Anypony walking in town would have thought a bundle of red ribbons had come to life and was making its way through the streets. But underneath the shimmering pile was an alabaster mare, her eyes barely able to see through the strands of fabric.

"Sorry! Pardon me. I am so sorry. Do forgive me. Oops! Sorry about your hoof."

Normally Rarity wouldn't be so clumsy. But her ribbon order just had to come in all at once. And Sweetie Belle was nowhere to be found. So there really had been only one option. And now she was walking towards Town Hall, looking utterly ridiculous.

From the sounds penetrating her red exterior, Rarity guessed she was entering the town square. Finally! She was almost-

"OOF!"

There was hardly any time to react as Rarity collided with something, or more specifically, somepony. Her hooves tangled in the ribbon and she fell to the ground.

"Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't see you there."

"What in Tartarus are you? Some sort of ribbon troll?"

Troll?! Had she heard that correctly?

"Excuse me?!"

Rarity did her best to pull herself out of the ribbon trap. As she finally freed her last hoof her eyes turned to the insolent pony who had just insulted her.

He was a brown stallion. Slightly taller than herself. Easy on the eyes. Hourglass cutie mark. And a slight frown.

"Well. That's disappointing. You're just a mare."

"And what is that supposed to mean?!"

"I was really hoping you actually were a ribbon troll."

"Well! How would you like it if ponies called you horrid words as well?"

He chuckled. "Oh they do. And not just ponies either."

Rarity glared at the stallion, not sure if she should still be mad at him. He seemed a little..odd. She looked down at her beautiful ribbons, now a pile on the ground.

"Do you mind helping me pick up this mess you've made?"

"Oh! Of course. Picking up red ribbons. I'm just the pony for the job."

Oh boy.

"Not to say I'm a ribbon picker-upper normally. Usually I'm picking up my screwdriver-"

"Must you chatter on like that?"

"Hmm? Oh. Sorry. I just like meeting new ponies."

He placed the last of the ribbons on Rarity's back.

"Now let's see if we can fix this for you."

He began pulling ribbons back and forth. Rarity froze, waiting for the ribbons to fall again. Instead, when the stallion stepped back, there was a hole for her to see through clearly.

"Much better! Can't have you running into anymore ponies."

"Oh my! That is much better! Thank you.."

"Time Turner."

"Thank you Time Turner."

"And you are?"

"Rarity. I run the Carousel Boutique."

"Ah. The dress designer. Make sure to have your mannequins checked."

"What?"

"Just a precaution. Now where was I.. Ah!"

He whirled around and stared at the nearby fountain. Rarity followed his gaze to the statue in the water. It was the shape of a female pegasus. Nothing spectacular about it. Though it was in an odd pose. Why would they sculpt the mare covering her eyes?

"Drat! I've lost the upper hoof."

"Umm... Sorry?"

"Have a lovely day. Don't get home too late tonight."

Rarity was growing more confused by the second. his stallion was making absolutely zero sense. But there wasn't time to dwell on it. She had to get these ribbons to Twon Hall.

"Well.. It was lovely meeting you Time Turner."

"You as well."

A bit rude not to look at her when saying goodbye. He hadn't taken his eyes off the statue at all. What a strange stallion..

Rarity continued on towards Town Hall, the ribbons bouncing around her.

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"No, no no no, NO!!"

The ribbons wouldn't cooperate. How was she supposed to get things organized if she couldn't find the perfect spot for each ribbon?! Things had to be perfect for the Summer Sun Celebration. There was no way she'd let Princess Celestia see the horrid display in front of her.

"Back to square one..again."

Her horn lit up and all the ribbons dropped to the floor.

"Simply unacceptable!"

She grabbed the closest ribbon and held it up to the hall. Surely she could find a spot..

Her eyes fell on the window. Of course! Her horn lit up again as she sent the ribbon flying up to the windowsill. It was perfect!

"Finally! We're getting somewhere."

She admired her work for a moment. And then she noticed the view outside the window. It was dark.

"Oh my goodness! Is it really that late already?"

She looked over at the nearby clock. It read 12:52.

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"I'll never get enough beauty sleep for tomorrow."

Rarity walked along the darkened shops, the only light coming from the nearby streetlamps.

She looked up at the night sky, the stars shining down on the town she called home. Everything at that very moment seemed perfect.

And then the moment ended.

"OOF!"

Rarity fell to the ground, a weight crushing her from above.

"What in the world?!"

"Sorry miss. But you might want to get out from under me. I've got to lure it away from the town."

"What in Equestria are you going on about?"

She looked up to find Time Turner on top of her.

"Time Turner?!"

He looked down.

"Rarity? What are you doing out here? I thought I told you not to be out late!"

"Firstly, I cannot believe you knocked me down again! And secondly, why do you care if I'm out late?"

"Because it's not safe out here! Mares prey on any pony they can catch alone."

"Excuse me?! Are you saying I'm out late looking for-"

"No! I'm not talking about mares. I'm talking about Mares."

"Please tell me you're a patient from the psychiatric ward of the hospital."

"If we don't move now, we'll both be in serious danger!"

"From what?!"

"That!"

Time Turner pointed to the corner of the street behind him. Rarity stepped around him to see.

It was the statue.

"But.. But that was in the fountain this morning.."

"It's not what you think. It's a dangerous creature. And it's hunting us."

"Now I know you're making things up."

"Fine. You want proof? Blink."

"What?"

"Blink!"

The forcefulness in his voice was beginning to scare her. And perhaps the shock of his change in demeanor was what caused her to blink.

And the staute was closer.

"That's not possible!"

"Yes it is. Because that's not a statue. It's a living creature. But it can only move when you can't see it."

"Please tell me you're joking. There's somepony moving the staute, right?"

"I wish."

"You're...You're not lying are you?"

"Unfortunately no."

"Then what do we do?"

"Run!"

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The next few minutes were a blur as Rarity ran after Time Turner. She kept glancing back to see the statue following them. No matter how many turns they took or roads they backtracked, the statue was still there.

Both ponies kept glancing at the statue to stop it from cathing up. But no matter how many times they looked back, it seemed the statue was growing closer.

Rarity wasn't entirely sure where in Ponyville they were when Time Turner burst through a door and slammed it behind her.

The banging started just as Time Turner turned the lock. Rarity looked around the room they were in. It was a shop. And every wall was lined with clocks.

"I'd love to give you the tour, but that'll have to wait. "

"There's no where to hide!"

"Nonsense!"

The brown stallion ran over to a large blue cabinet and knocked against the door.

"We'll be safe once we get in."

"A cabinet?!"

"You'd be surprised what a cabinet can do."

He pulled the doors open and hopped in. Rarity's eyes widened in shock. There was whole other room inside the cabinet!

"But.. How.. What?!"

"Get in! I'll explain in a minute!"

'CRACK!'

Rarity turned towards the shop door. The wood had split and she could see the statue through the cracks. It was standing still, now that it had a viewer.

"It's almost inside!"

"Then get in here!"

She didn't even hesitate. One jump and Rarity was inside the cabinet. Time Turner shut the doors and threw the lock into place.

'BANG!!'

It was easy to tell the statue had entered the shop now. Outside the cabinet, it sounded like every clock was being destroyed. And there was an eeire sound that sent a chill down Rarity's spine. Could that be the statue?

Time Turner away from the door, a smile on his face.

"Well! Can't wait to see how we get out of this!"