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Pound and Pumpkin Tales 2

by Never2muchpinkie

Chapter 59: 8-4: To the beach

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When his new friends let go of him Mayhem felt warm inside. He could already feel the new bonds forming with them. Now he had ten friends. That was a lot! He was already thinking about the letter he was going to write his other friends when he was done with his new ones.

Mayhem floated over to Fluttershy, hugging her.

She could see the dreamy expression on his face, and it also made her feel warm.

She looked towards his new friends and bowed her head to them. “Thank you oh so very much for being his friends. I was devastated when I heard about how out of control he became after he grew too bored.

“I’m sure that all of you have sometimes lost control of your emotions out of frustration or boredom, but with his powers it’s much more dangerous for him to lose control. That’s why this means so much to me to see Mayhem making some new friends.

“Thank you!” she said with a teary expression, squeezing Mayhem to her. “Thank you! Thank you!” Her head was practically touching the ground now in supplication.

The kids all got awkward expressions on their faces. “It’s… it’s not that big a deal,” said Plum.

“You don’t have to bow to us over it!” said Chocolate.

“It’s a big deal to me!” Fluttershy responded as she got up. “I have no desire to ever see Mayhem ‘turn into a ferocious tiger’ again either. I want him to always remain my sweet little angel.

“It’s more than just being friends. You’re keeping him safe and his heart strong.”

Mayhem looked at her sadly, always hating it when she got upset.

Twilight stood next to Fluttershy and patted her head. “I understand your gratitude, but you’re putting too much pressure on these children.

“It’s the same as when I told Pound and the rest that I thought they could become the next Elements of Friendship. To them it feels like they’re being put on a pedestal they don’t deserve.”

Fluttershy looked away from Twilight to the children, seeing how uncomfortable they all looked. She knew Twilight was right, and that she had let her emotions get the better of her.

“I’m sorry,” she said to them. “It’s just… Mayhem is like my child, and I worry about him. I just want to see him happy and safe, that’s all. I didn’t mean to overwhelm you.”

“It’s alright,” said Flash. “My parents can be overprotective of me too.” The other nodded in agreement.

“Hmm…” Fluttershy set Mayhem down. “We got so caught up talking about Mayhem that it seems we got way off track to what you were here for. You said you came here to release some stress after your first adventure.”

“That’s right,” said Plum.

“Mayhem, why don’t you introduce me to your new friends?”

“Okay, Mommy!” he said happily, pointing to each one in turn. “That’s Plum Pie, Chocolate Chip, Flash Step, and Sweet Pea.”

“I’m pleased to meet all of you,” she said with a tender smile, hoping a friendly attitude would help dispel their stress a bit. She could see some of the stress leave their faces as they returned her smile.

She inhaled and then whistled into her hoof. “Come here, my animal friends!” A short while later animals of all types and sizes came towards the house. “You get to play with these children.”

“Ooo!” Plum cried out as she saw all the cute little bunnies hopping towards them, and trotted over to pet some of them.

Sweet Pea played with the cats.

Flash flew around with the birds, having a light hearted race with some of them.

Chocolate chased some of the animals around.

While the others were relaxing Mayhem told Fluttershy about Flash’s wish and the pirate adventure they had.

Twilight sat and watched the others have fun. There wasn’t any danger as long as Fluttershy was there, so she didn’t have to keep an eye on him for now.

After a little while the children returned, eager to move on to the next game.

“Well, I’m wanted again,” said Mayhem, hugging Fluttershy, “so I’ll see you later, Mommy.”

“Bye, Mayhem,” she said, giving him a quick hug back.

With a snap the six of them were back inside the room in Twilight’s castle. “So… who’s next?”

“We already were above the water in that pirate ship,” said Plum. “Why don’t we see what’s under it? Go deep sea diving.”

“That sounds fun,” said Mayhem. Water appeared in a sphere in his claw, which he threw at the floor. There was a splash that went straight up, and the water landed in the shape of a circle about five feet wide.

“LET’S GO!” he cried out, hopping forward. They expected him to just hit the ground and cause more splashing, but he disappeared through it.

After a few moments of hesitation the other children jumped in, followed by Twilight.

As they got their bearings they could see they were floating beneath an ocean.

Flash looked around, gently paddling. He put a hoof to his snout, feeling like he was running out of oxygen. He looked around for the hole they had come through, but he didn’t see it anywhere.

Before they began to panic Mayhem said, “It’s okay, everyone. Breathe.”

Twilight could see they were having trouble, real life logic interfering with the knowledge it was just an imaginary world. She moved to the center, and took in a deep breath, letting it out to a stream of bubbles. “Remember, everyone. This is Mayhem’s world, and he makes the rules in it. You can breathe underwater here.”

Even with Twilight’s demonstration to show it was safe they still hesitated until they were forced to draw breath. Though, once they got past that hurdle, they began to breathe normally.

“What do you think, Plum?” asked Mayhem.

She looked all around. They were so deep underwater that she could barely see the light of the surface, though she could see everything just fine even without a strong light source. There were reefs and fish of all sorts floating by. The water was crystal clear, and it wasn’t until she took notice of that that she also noticed she wasn’t getting water in her eyes either.

“I like it!”

“Glad to hear it.”

They swam around for the next ten minutes, exploring the undersea life. After that Mayhem called them all over.

“You’re gonna love this next part.” He moved his body. “Okay, now copy me. All of you angle yourself so you’re facing straight up.” When they all were all in position he grinned widely. “Buckle up! It’s gonna be a bumpy ride!”

Before they could process that statement a stream of bubbles surrounded their bottom halves, and then without warning they were rapidly jettisoned upwards.

The surface grew more and more defined as they grew closer to it, and suddenly they were out, flying up dozens of feet until they lost momentum.

The others kids were all screaming in terror as they fell back into the water.

Mayhem was giggling like mad. “Wasn’t that awesome?” He created the streams again, but this time in front of them rather than underneath them. “Let’s go again!”

He moved forward, getting caught in the stream and blasted upwards out of the water, only to land a little later, still giggling like crazy.

Once the fear passed they had to admit that it looked like fun. They just didn’t like being taken by surprise.

Flash was the first to be brave enough to go for a second run, and when he came down his face was bright with exhilaration. The sudden weightlessness was scary, but it was also what made it fun.

It took a little while, but the other three got over their nerves and gave it a shot too, finding it to be enjoyable now as well.

After a couple of rounds Flash said, “Hey, Mayhem? Just going up and down is fine, but I think it would be even cooler if these were at an angle so we could go forward too.”

Mayhem’s eyes lit up. “Ooooo! I like the way you think, Flash!”

He snapped his claw. “Okay. This is just like when I gave you the floating power. Just use your imagination to angle it whichever direction you want. Don’t worry about hitting one another. My world, my rules, so you won’t get hurt if you crash into each other.”

They trusted him, and they liked being in control of some new powers, even if it was just in a fantasy world.

It wasn’t long before they were blasting off in every direction, all five of them laughing and cheering and screaming like crazy. Shortly after that they began to make combinations, making new streams right where they were about to land so they'd be continually shooting off.

Twilight was sucking on her cheek. She didn’t want to admit it to herself, but that looked like it would be a bunch of fun. She didn’t doubt for a moment that Mayhem would conjure up a stream for her. With a bit of Discord’s magic she could also just conjure up her own.

However, as much as she wanted to participate, she had given her word as a princess that she would carefully watch Mayhem and put a stop to things if he began to get too wild. Mayhem hadn’t conjured up any dangerous animals, like sharks, but even so she was also the safe zone if the other children grew too overwhelmed and needed a break.

If Mayhem made a mistake that she could have prevented if she was paying attention she’d feel horrible about it. She’d have broken her word to him, and it might sour his new friendships, neither of which she was willing to risk when everything was going so well for him right now.

She let out a little sigh, knowing she’d just have to suck it up and endure it. Today wasn’t about her, after all.

After about ten minutes the adrenaline caught up to them. Sweet Pea was the first to call a halt, and the others didn’t put up any protest.

Mayhem gently floated them out of the water and towards the beach nearby.

All of them were panting slightly and a little tired, but they all had mile-wide smiles.

“I’ve never done something like that before!” said Chocolate.

“Me neither!” said Flash.

“That was crazy fun!” said Sweet Pea.

“You are so COOL!” said Plum, giving him a big hug. “This wish is coming out just like I wanted it.”

Mayhem blushed at the compliment, returning the hug. “You’re welcome, Plum.”

“Cool?” said Flash. “Try AWESOME! This has been one of the funnest days of my life!”

The little draconequus squirmed a little in embarrassment, the blush getting deeper. “W-well, I think we should settle down a bit after all that excitement.” With a few snaps he created several towels on the sand, a few lounge chairs, and beach toys.

He laid down on one of the towels and closed his eyes, still feeling warm inside from their compliments. This seemed just like what happened with Tree Leaf. When they first met the colt had been dismissive of him and off-put by his appearance, but after the colt saw his power his tune changed.

The day Twilight had made her plan for him Tree Leaf admitted that at first he only cared about him for his powers, but then grew to care for him as an individual.

It was obvious they enjoyed what he could do, but at Fluttershy’s they were all questioning him and trying to find out more about him. They even made him think about some things he had never considered before, letting him learn some new things about himself.

He felt pretty certain that they weren’t only out to use him for his powers. Of course, there was no way to know that for sure, but if he was going to consider them his friends then that started with trusting in them. He wouldn’t treat them suspiciously unless they showed he had a reason to.

And, really, he was having so much fun he wasn’t sure if he’d care if they were only in it for themselves. He liked being able to cut loose and just be who he was. As long as he got to cause chaos now and again it would keep him in control of his powers until next he got to play with his friends again.

For the next few minutes all the children just sat and relaxed, enjoying the warmth of the sun. When they got their stamina back they worked together creating a big sand castle.

After that Mayhem got a wicked smirk on his face. “Hey, everybody! You ready for the new fun thing?”

“YEAH!” they said eagerly.

Mayhem snapped, and the four children were now wearing backpacks and a leather band was wrapped around their middles. On the front of the band was a long rope that ended in a handle.

Flash pulled at the band. It was snug, but comfortable. “What does this have to do with having fun?” he asked.

Mayhem chuckled. He grabbed the four handles and began running towards the water. He jumped, a pair of waterski’s appearing beneath him.

A strong breeze hit the area, blowing open the backpacks the kid were wearing. Out of them came parachutes. The chutes caught the breeze and pushed them back and up.

The four kids screamed as they suddenly took to the air, effectively turning into pony kites as Mayhem coasted along the water.

After the initial fear faded they quickly got into it. They were about twenty feet up, and they could see how sparkling clear the water was.

After letting them enjoy the heights for a bit Mayhem gave them all their own waterski’s and had them descend. When they touched the surface of the water the parachutes disappeared.

The four children were laughing at first, but Mayhem kept them on their hooves. He’d make sudden, sharp turns, making their hearts jump. He then created high waves to jump off of, adding another element of tension.

After another few minutes he called it a halt, figuring they had probably hit their emotional limits even if they hadn’t told him to stop.

When they returned to the shore the ski’s disappeared, and unsurprisingly the four children collapsed to the ground, slightly dizzy and a bit drained from all the excitement.

Mayhem lifted his claw, moving the sun so that it was now close to dusk. The bright sky grew dim, though everything was still completely visible.

He sat down too, laying in the wet sand as the water gently rose and receded.

The other kids joined him.

“That… was… amazing,” said Plum.

“And terrifying,” said Sweet Pea with a giggle.

“Terrimazing!” said Flash.

“I’ll go with that,” said Chocolate.

“Man, I wish I had powers like yours,” said Sweet Pea whimsically, looking up at the beautiful hues of the sky. “Every game would be perfect.”

“Hey!” said Flash. “Didn’t Twilight say you gave some of your other friends some of your power? Or, well, this Discord did.”

Mayhem tensed. “That’s true, but… I don’t ever want to do it again. It almost led to their death.

“I know you can say it’s only because they took in too much magic, but I don’t know the long-term effects of letting a pony have chaos magic… even if it is just a little dot. It might start to change them in unexpected ways.

“I don’t ever want to hurt my friends again, so I need to play it safe and keep this magic inside me. I certainly don’t mind using it to benefit all of you. I know this might not be what you want to hear, but I just can’t stand the thought of doing something to hurt anyone. I’ve done that too much already.”

Flash let out a laugh. “Ha! What’s with that mopey tone of yours? Did you think we were going to abandon you for saying no?”

He spun over so he was sitting on top of him. “It’s like you said. Today is all about playtime, so who cares about the past?” He tried to coax Mayhem into a wrestle. “We’re here now, so let’s make the most of it.”

When Mayhem didn’t take the bait he picked him up and began flapping. The extra weight already had him straining, and he knew he didn’t have much time, so he chucked Mayhem into the water before diving in himself.

Mayhem broke the surface with a sputter. He let out a little sigh, smiling. “Thanks. I think I needed that.”

“No problem. You’re not allowed to be miserable today.” The other children voiced their agreement.

He turned to Plum. “So… are you satisfied?” His head tilted. “Hmm… we didn’t really spend a lot of time underwater like you asked for.”

“I don’t mind at all,” she replied. “Shooting out of the water and then paragliding and riding the waves was all super fun. I’m satisfied.”

“Good.” He snapped, and the world dissolved around them until they were back in the castle.

“Even though I’m seeing it with my own eyes it’s still hard to believe that none of this has been real,” said Chocolate.

“I know. It’s hard to tell what’s real and what’s not with him,” said Sweet Pea.

Mayhem got a hurt look on his face. “B-but… I really do care about you.”

They looked at him oddly.

Twilight quickly stepped in before the mood was ruined. “Mayhem, they’re not talking about you. They’re just talking about your magic.”

Sweet Pea looked up at Twilight, then she pieced together what was causing Mayhem’s distress.

She gave the draconequus a hug. “Sorry if that’s how I came off. I wasn’t trying to say that you’re being fake. Your fantasy worlds are just so convincing it feels like I’m really there.”

Mayhem returned the hug, letting out a heavy breath. “I’m sorry too. I’ve been working hard. I didn’t want you to think I’ve just been playing you all this time.

“So, two left.” He released Sweet Pea. “Who wants to make the next one?”

“Oooh!” said Chocolate. “What about a Power Ponies adventure where we team up to stop the Mane-iac?”

“I like it!” said Flash. “I definitely wanna be Fili-Second!”

As the others were getting excited and chatting about who they wanted to be Mayhem felt chills going through him.

He tensed hard, then began to shiver. Memories began flooding into his mind, sending him to the ground as he began to pant for breath, finally catching the attention of the children.

“Hey!” called out Flash. “What’s wrong?”

“Mayhem!” said Chocolate.

Twilight teleported over, picking him up and holding him close. “Hey, hey. Settle down.”

“No, no, no,” Mayhem said in a lost voice. “Not again! Never again! I can’t… I can’t…”

“What’s going on, Twilight?” asked Plum, concerned.

Twilight gathered them all in her magic, then teleported them back to Fluttershy’s. “Go play with the animals,” she said, trying not to be rude in her urgency.

She opened the door without knocking, seeing Fluttershy had gone back to her book. “Fluttershy, I need you! Now!”

The mare looked up, seeing the pain on Mayhem’s face, and she hopped up immediately, dropping the book on the floor.

“Look, Mayhem,” Twilight said sweetly. “It’s your mommy. It’s Fluttershy.”

“It’s me, Sweetie,” said Fluttershy, extending her hooves. “Come here.”

The words slowly wormed their way into his consciousness. He looked up, seeing her face, and quickly melted into her hooves, crying over her shoulder.

“What happened, Twilight?”

“The second wish went just fine, but the third child asked for a superhero adventure.”

“And then what?”

“That was enough.” Fluttershy gave her a questioning look for a few moments, but then understanding came to her. “Oh… I get it.”

“So it’s my fault?” came the voice of Chocolate from behind them, and Twilight turned to see the four children hovering by the front door. “I don’t know what I did, but I’m sorry.”

She felt she should have known they weren’t going to just go play while a friend was in distress, but she had been concerned that Mayhem was about to lose control. Now that Mayhem was with Fluttershy she owed them an explanation.

She went outside, taking them a short distance from the house. “I had to hurry to make sure Mayhem got some comforting, but now I can answer your questions.

“I told you that Mayhem has played these types of games in the past, but before he didn’t have his safety rules in place. Do you remember?”

They all nodded, listening intently. They could still hear Mayhem crying inside.

“I also told you that, because of that, his friends got hurt. Well, the situation that got all of them hurt was a superhero adventure.”

Chocolate let out a moan, feeling guilty.

“I needed to give him a little reassurance before we started Flash’s wish because he worried about causing more pain.”

“But… why now?” asked Sweet Pea. “When you got back you mentioned his friends got hurt, and he didn’t freak out.”

“There’s a difference between talking about something and actually doing it. For example, you may find it easy to talk about the time you tripped and sprained a leg while scootering, but actually getting back on it and riding again can feel like too much. It’s a feeling that things are going to turn out the same even though circumstances are different.

“Even with all his protective spells, because it’s a similar scenario to the one that got his friends injured, he’s terrified it’s going to injure you too.

“I think it should go without saying that it would be best if you came up with a new wish, Chocolate.”

He gave a little nod, his stomach feeling heavy.

He jerked as he felt something on his back, and looked up to see Twilight next to him. “This isn’t your fault,” she said firmly. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Chocolate. There was no way you could have known that was going to happen, so don’t beat yourself up about it.”

“Why does that change anything? Just because I didn’t do it intentionally doesn’t change that I hurt him.”

Twilight was lost for a response at first. “Well… that’s not untrue, but you shouldn’t shoulder all the blame on your own.”

“Well,” said Flash with a grin, “if Mayhem is feeling down then let’s go cheer him up.”

That was met with approval from all of them, and they all went inside the house.

Mayhem was quieter now, Fluttershy gently speaking comforting words.

“Hey, Mayhem!”

The draconequus twitched as he heard Flash’s voice. He slowly let go of Fluttershy and turned towards them, Fluttershy hugging him around the stomach.

“I’m sorry,” said Chocolate. “I didn’t know a superhero story was what caused your friends to get hurt. We don’t have to do that. I’ll pick something else.”

“Go home!” Mayhem said miserably with a sniff. “I’m a danger to everyone. If you stick around me I’ll just hurt you too.

“Sweet Pea was right! I am just like a monster out of a horror story! I don’t deserve any friends.”

“Mayhem,” Fluttershy said sadly.

“Go home. Go home before it’s too late!” He buried his face in his claw and paw, gently sobbing.

Twilight bit her lip, unsure of what she wanted to do. She thought it might indeed be best if she separated him from the children, at least until he calmed down. Not because she was afraid he would hurt them, but because their presence was setting off his guilt.

Before she could suggest this Flash took the lead again, walking up to Mayhem and extending one of his wings and running it up his side.

Mayhem let out a squeal from the tickly sensation.

“Well, too bad!” said the colt. “You’re not getting rid of us that easily.

“It’s just not my style to abandon a friend in need.” He hopped on Fluttershy’s lap and hugged him. “And you’re definitely in need.”

“But… b-b-but…”

“No buts! Do I need to throw you in another river? I told you that you don’t get to be mopey and miserable today.”

Mayhem poofed out of his hooves, settling on the floor with an angry expression. “You don’t understand! We did go through a superhero adventure, but I wasn’t on their side. I wasn’t fighting alongside them and they just happened to get hurt. I was the main villain they were fighting against.

“I separated them and threw some of their worst fears at them. I put so much pressure on all of them. It wasn’t just physical injuries. I actively terrorized them and only felt nothing but satisfaction over all of it just because it was relieving weeks of pent-up boredom.”

“So what?” said Sweet Pea. “That was in the past. It’s not who you are now!

“You’re kitten Mayhem now, not tiger Mayhem, and all of us like kitten Mayhem a lot.”

"Mmm-hmm!" "Yeah!" "That's right!"

His anger faded, and his eyes shimmered with tears. “But… I… I could…”

“Could what?” asked Plum. “Give us one of the best days of our lives? Allow us to do a bunch of stuff we’d never be able to do normally?”

“Twilight explained it all,” said Chocolate. “She explained why we’re here. You also said it yourself why you need us. You want to remain kitten Mayhem and never turn back into tiger Mayhem.

“None of us wants to leave you when you need us more than ever. Leaving would just put you in more danger.”

Flash jumped off Fluttershy and threw a hoof around Mayhem. “We’re your friends, and don’t you forget it, dummy! A true friend sticks it out when things get tough, and you’re definitely someone worth sticking it out for.

“I mean, come on! You let me live out my biggest fantasy. No one else could have done that.”

Mayhem looked between the four of them, seeing that none of them were going to leave. It meant so much to him. His legs grew weak, and he found himself crying again. “T-thank you!”

Flash helped him back up, and the other three surrounded him, all of them hugging him.

Mayhem could feel their hearts melding with his. They really did care about him.

Twilight and Fluttershy were both smiling warmly at the group hug going on.

After a minute Mayhem pulled away from them, tears streaming down his eyes with a determined expression. “I… I’m not going to give up! If all of you are going to give it your all then I’m going to as well.

“I still have more wishes to grant, and I want you to all leave here fully satisfied!”

“Heh!” said Flash. “Now that’s more like it.”

He poofed over to Fluttershy and gave her a hug. “I have to go!”

She gave him a kiss. “Do your best.”

“I will!”

With that they teleported back to the castle to prepare for the next adventure.

Next Chapter: 8-5: Carnival and jungle Estimated time remaining: 11 Hours, 53 Minutes
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