My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

Friends from Unexpected Places

Chapter 26

Running of the Leaves

CLAP! CRASH! ZAP!

eTu`nes groaned as he crawled out of the rune in Hoofdini’s Feather Top Shop. “kill me now.”

“you’re the one who insisted on coming back not long after we arrived.” Hoofdini said as he appeared. “I warned you of the consequences.”

“And I’m the idiot who went along with it.” eTu`nes groaned. He took several deep breaths before getting up off the floor. “I just hope Derpy will forgive me for what I did.” he huffed as he walked out.

“forgive you?” a confused Hoofdini asked himself. “did I do something wrong?”

eTu`nes moaned is he walked back to Shine Dash’s place. Using that teleported really screwed him up on the inside. He felt a small pain on the side of his head. “Guess that’s to be expected.” he moaned as he rubbed it.

Derpy was fast asleep on the couch in the den. Rainbow was in the kitchen making herself a sandwich and Shine was humming while dusting. The door swung open and a much better eTu`nes walked in.

“There you are!” Rainbow exclaimed. “we’ve been looking for you all day.”

“Sorry, I had some… things to take care of.”

“like what?” Shine asked.

eTu`nes thought for a moment. He could trust them with their reactions; it’s Derpy’s reaction he’s worried about. “well… guess I can tell you guys.” he gestured them both to come closer, unaware that Derpy was sleeping on the couch and was just waking up.

“don’t tell Derpy this but I went to Ponyville.”

“Ponyville?” Shine asked. “Why?”

“I… went to tell her family that she’s here in Feather Top.” Derpy went wide-eyed. He didn’t really do that. He couldn’t have.

“why?”

“*sigh* guess it’s time to tell you the truth. The real reason she ran away was because these 2 bullies tortured her something fierce, forcing her to leave. She doesn’t want to go back because of those 2. Add her new eyes into the mix and she’d basically kill herself if those 2 found out.”

“oh, dear.” Shine gasped.

“her families’ on her way to get her now and take her back. They’ll be here in a couple of days to pick her up.”

“how could you do that, eTu`nes?” Derpy asked. The dragon winced when he heard that voice. He knew he should’ve checked the room when he had the chance. He glanced over to the couch to see an angry and sad Derpy staring at him. “Why would you go and stab me in the back.”

“Derpy, I…”

“Shut up!” Derpy yelled. “I trusted you and you go and tell them where I am. I told you I didn’t want to go back, not while those 2 are still there.”

“Derpy…” eTu`nes walked over but Derpy just ran to the stairs.

“I never want to see you again, eTu`nes! You hear me? Just leave me alone! I hate you!” Derpy ran upstairs. Dash ran after her.

eTu`nes fell back into a chair. “I knew this was a mistake. I just couldn’t bear to see her like this.”

“you did the right thing. Just give her some time, she’ll forgive you.” Shine said. She looked at the stairs for a moment. “wait here. I’ll be right back.” she flew up the stairs, leaving eTu`nes behind.

“did I make a mistake?” he muttered to himself.

“Derpy. Come on, open the door.” Dash asked. A sudden slam against it shut her up. “and that was the chair.” she muttered. Shine flew on up and landed beside her daughter. “mom, talk to her. She’s going to destroy the place.”

“That’s what I’m planning on doing, Dash.” Shine said. She moved Dash aside and knocked on the door.

“Go away!” Derpy yelled.

“Derpy, it’s Shine. I just want to talk to you.”

“Why, so you can stab me in the back too?”

“honey, eTu`nes did what he did because he cares about you. He didn’t want you to keep running from your problems.” Silence came from the room. Shine knew she was making progress. “Sooner or later, you’re going to have to face them. That’s what eTu`nes was doing; he was making it so that you wouldn’t bu haunted by these demons anymore.”

The door creaked open and Derpy slowly walked out. “I didn’t consider that.” she softly said. “but that still doesn’t excuse the fact that he did this without my permission.”

Shine smiled. “well, if someone cares about you very, very much, they’ll do whatever they can to make you happy and take the consequences up front.”

The way Shine was going on, eTu`nes was starting to look like a knight in shining armor. “I guess I… have been a bit harsh to him.”

eTu`nes leaned on his arm and sputtered. “so much for making her feel good.”

He heard hoof steps coming down from the stairs. Derpy reached the floor first. Shine and Dash waited half-way. “eTu`nes…” she started to say. “I’m… sorry for yelling at you. I was just… just so mad that you went behind my back and told my parents. I just…”

eTu`nes interrupted her with a pat on her shoulder. “it’s okay, Derpy. I should’ve asked your permission before doing this and I’m sorry.”

Derpy giggled. She suddenly kissed him on the cheek, surprising him completely. “thanks for looking out for me.” she said with a smile. eTu`nes smiled back. “So… *sigh* when do my parents get here?”

“2 days from now. It took us that long to get here, remember?”

“I remember.” Derpy sighed. “well, better get my things together.” she walked back upstairs, passing Shine and Dash.

“well, I better get ready to leave.” eTu`nes sighed. “I don’t think they’ll let me come with them.

18 years later…

It’s been a week since that display of darkness in the sky, and when Halo read that prophecy. ‘Beware the Might of Oscurita; the Harbinger of The End.’ this mystery has them scared. Thankfully, most of the gang had already forgotten about it or pushed it back to the recess’s of their mind; worrying about it now won’t give them any answers. They only know one thing: that ‘Oscurita’ is likely the monster that stranded Requiem and her friends on Equestria. Even then, it’s likely a long-shot. It could be anything under that cloak of darkness; speculating that it may be a dragon isn’t helping much.

Fortunately, there are plenty of distractions to keep them occupied. One such thing is the Running of the Leaves.

“running of the who-now?” Sora and Fox asked in confusion.

“Running of the Leaves.” Twilight insinuated. “it’s quite a popular event here in Ponyville.” she walked off the grab a book about it.

“you ever hear about this?” Fox asked Sora.

“no I have not. And I’ve been on this planet longer then you guys.” she said back.

“Ah man. Guess I can’t find it.” Twi sadly said. “aw, well. I think I can explain it easy enough.” she jumped down to the floor. “you see, the Running of the Leaves is how the ponies here in Ponyville help change the season from Autumn to Winter. They run though the wilderness as fast and as strong as they can, the shockwaves from it causing the leaves to fall.” Fox sat back on a chair as Sora leaned on a wall. “it also doubles as a contest to see who’s the fastest. Last year, it was a tie between Rainbow Dash and Applejack... Though they were feuding at the time.”

“Contest to see who’s fastest, huh?” Sora muttered. “Toothless would cream them in a second.”

“they have to run, not fly.” Fox corrected.

“Oh. Then anyone one of us would be dead last.”

Twi thought about that for a moment. “well… maybe not.” now she’s just being crazy. “not if you have the right, eh… equipment.”

“equipment?” Fox and Sora looked at each other. “what equipment?”

Time to turn Fall to Winter. The starting line for the Running of the Leaves was set up and the participants are ready to go.

“This should be fun.” Applejack said.

“yeah. We’re not trying to show each other up.” Dash chuckled. A pair of ponies talked nearby. They seem to be… placing bets?

“5 bits says Dash beats Applejack this running.” Sea Swirl betted with Shoeshine.

“you’re on.” Shoeshine replied.

“Can I get in on this?” Noteworthy asked.

A.J. and Dash looked at each other and came up with the same idea. “how about we make this interesting, Dash.”

“how interesting?” A.J. looked around, making sure no one was in hearing range. She gestured Dash to come closer, which she did. A.J. whispered the ‘plan’ into her ear, making Dash smile like a mad man. When A.J. was done with her explanation, Dash snickered. “that’ll get them good.”

A familiar lavender sight trotted up with, once again, the number 42 over her cutie mark. “Twilight?” A.J. asked in surprise.

“what are you doing here?” Dash asked.

“what? I’m want take part in this again. It was fun the last time I did this. Besides, might as well get all the exercise I can. Pretty soon, it’ll be tough for me to move.”

“so I remember.” Applejack said. “mom was having a hard time moving around when she was carrying Applebloom. Could barely get up.”

Twilight’s eyes half closed. “gee, thanks for the warning.”

“you didn’t ask for one.” A.J. said with a chuckle. Dash snickered. Twilight not knowing something; that’s a good one.

“okay, Racers. Get into positions!” Mayor Mare announced. The racers, which numbered at 3 dozen, lined up at the starting line.

“we’re gonna make a lot of ponies unhappy.” Applejack said as she cracked her back.

“I know.” Dash said, making sure the rope around her wings was tight. “but it’s gonna be funny.”

The Mayor nodded to Ash, who nodded back. Hs spun one of his pistols and raised it to the air. “on your marks…” the ponies got ready. “…get set…” Dash snickered. “Go!”

Ash fired into the air and the ponies were off.

With them gone, the crowd began to relocate at the finish line. There was no Pinkie Pie or Spike in the sky, giving announcements this time; they had other things to do.

Derpy tossed down a couple a bits and grabbed some Cotton Candy from Marble. She took a big bite out of hers. “man, I love Cotton Candy.”

“You and me both.” Cynder said, walking along-side her with her own Cotton Candy. “and this is the first time I’ve had it.” she took another big bit out of hers as they met up with Daring and Bolt. “where have you been all my life?”

“not on your world, apparently.” Derpy chuckled. She handed another cone to Daring and Bolt.

Cynder chuckled along with her. She fingered the cone for a second. “um, Derpy? I have something I want to ask you.” Derpy, mouth full with Cotton Candy, looked to her. “what’s it like, being a mother?”

Derpy almost choked. Her sister patted her back as she coughed. “*cough cough* what? *cough* Where’d this come from?”

“well… before we were brought here, me and Spyro were… planning of having kids. But, seeing as we’re stuck here, it’s given us some time to think about it.”

“oh.” Derpy didn’t have to think about what to say; she just said what came natural. “well… being a mother is one of the best things that could happen to you. Seeing that little boy or girl in your… err… claws, in your case, is one of the best moments of your life. You have the opportunity to shape a life as you see fit. There’s no other feeling in the world. An--”

they heard laughter coming from nearby. They looked to see Dinky trying to catch a butterfly. She jumped up to catch one but missed and fell in a mud puddle. “uh-oh.” Derpy flew on over, leaving Cynder, Daring, and Bolt behind.

“ew…” Dinky exclaimed as she pulled herself out of the mud. Derpy arrived to comfort her.

“You okay, Dinky?”

“yeah, I’m fine Mom. Just had a little accident.” Dinky said, wiping herself off.

Derpy wanted to do something to make her better. She looked at the Cotton Candy cone and got a idea. She placed it over Dinky’s horn. Dinky looked up with a confused look. “I asked for Cotton Candy, not Chocolate Pudding.”

Dinky chuckled. “and you like pudding, mom. Come on, take a lick.”

Now Derpy’s wishing she thought off a better joke. “eh… no thanks. I’m not a big fan of pudding.”

Dinky sinisterly snickered. She got up and crept closer. “Come on, mom. Got to get this off me somehow.”

“with a bath.” Derpy exclaimed as she backed up. “Dinky, you get me dirty, you’re grounded.”

“duh! I can’t fly.”

Derpy looked at the camera. Wrong kind of grounded.

Lyra and Bonbon passed by the group but stopped when they noticed Derpy running away from a muddy Dinky. “Help! Help! Help! Got a dirt monster after me!” Dinky jumped up and tackled her mother. Both fell into the same mud puddle.

Derpy’s eyes blinked open out of the mud. She looked down at a equally dirty Dinky. Both chortled in their mouths but eventually burst out laughing.

Bonbon sighed with a smile. “Derpy is such an amazing mother.” Daring and Cynder heard her and leaned over to them.

“she’s not an amazing mother.” Lyra said. “she’s the best mother in the world.”

“agreed.” Bonbon and Lyra looked at each other with a smile. “we should probably take notes.”

“no argument from me.”

Cynder smiled, watching Derpy play with Dinky, it gave her her answer.

Daring, however, was completely surprised. Her younger sister, a mother. After 4 weeks, she still didn’t believe it but, watching Derpy, she knew that Derpy was meant to be one. The way she’s playing with Dinky; it’s like then they were kids. It made her think about her life. She spent 10 years hunting artifacts and relics that she didn’t even think about settling down and having a family. The big question in that, however, is what a Pony-Gryphon hybrid would look like.

Requiem grabbed a book off the bookshelf and looked it though. There was a reason why Equestria was cut off from the rest of the world. By that, she meant why ponies changed the seasons, they cared for animals that could take care of themselves, why Celestia and Luna raised the Sun and Moon.

She was hoping for something to get Twilight out long enough for her to go though the place without her asking questions. She was never going to go to Twi about this; this whole thing might be Hearsay. She had to keep quiet about this.

She looked outside at the sun. she only had 3 hours till Twi comes home. Till then, she was going to do all the research she could.

A cloud of dust moved down the road and towards the finish line. Behind the dust cloud was a long road of fallen leaves. Guess this year’s Running of the Leaves was a rousing success. Clear as day, Rainbow and Applejack were neck and neck, not far ahead of the pack, unlike last time.

As the two approached the finish line, they looked at each other and nodded. They stuck their hooves into the dirt and skidded to a halt. A.J. stepped to the right, Dash to her left. The other ponies ran right pass them and across the finish line. The Cyan Pegasus and Orange Earth Pony stepped back where they were and slowly walked across the finish line.

“I think we just made a lot of betters unhappy.” Applejack chuckled.

“you think?” Dash retorted. They looked back at a lot of angry ponies yelling at the unfortunate bookie. She didn’t watch where she was going and rammed into another pony. Naturally, Dash got mad, as did the Pegasus she bumped into.

“Hey! Watch where your--” they both shut up when they saw who it was. “hey! It’s you!”

“you two know each other?” A.J. asked.

“oh, right.” Dash gathered herself. “Applejack, this is Thunderlane. I bumped into him when I was… less then great.”

“Great? You were practically depressed when we met on that train.” Thunderlane said. “you seem to be doing better, though.”

“yeah… but I did have a rough week.”

“you call Suicide rough?” A.J. laughed in surprise.

“Suicid--”

“abdadadadada.” Dash stopped him before he went anywhere with it. “I was able to pull myself out of that rut.”

“Rainbow Dash!” yelled a familiar voice. Eris ran over, holding a Cotton Candy cone.

“Hey, Squirt.” Dash chuckled.

“Gyah!” Thunder exclaimed. “What the heck is that thing?”

Dash looked at Eris and smiled. “This is the little girl that pulled me out of my rut. If it wasn’t for her, I’d be dead.”

“oh.” Thunder looked up at the sun. “Listen, I’m late for a meeting at Canterlot. Think we can pick this up when I get back. Say, over coffee?”

“I’d like that, Thunder.”

“Great. See you tomorrow.” He said. He unfurled his wings and took off.

Dash watched him fly off. She turned around to leave. “sounds like you’re going on a date.” A.J. said.

“What?” Dash squealed in surprise. “No. no no. it’s not a date. We’re just having coffee. That’s it.”

“Then why are you blushing?” A.J. joked. Dash embarrassingly covered her face. Eris, out of it as always, blinked in confusion.