BrownDog's Comment, First Segment, and DWC's First Suggestion

The surprise begins to wear off, though only slightly, as you look up to this floating Diamond Dog. He looks like he'd rather be anywhere else, but he's here. Fluttershy comes to the door, and you look to her. She returns the gaze, and the two of you take a second to look between the dog, and each other, stunned speechless. "...Do you see the, um-" Fluttershy asks nervously.

"-Floating Diamond Dog?" you finish for her. She nods, allowing you to answer "Yes, yes I do." You give him a complete once over. That's a rather nice suit, looking about as refined and high-quality as something Rarity would make. Either this Diamond Dog is a civilized pup with bits to spare, or he stole a suit that happened to fit, though the latter in unlikely given his measurements. Also, of course, he's floating about three feet off the ground. Your jaw still dropped, you look down at Canny, who's smiling smugly. "...Sooo..." you begin, gesturing at the Diamond Dog in front of you.

"I found my first Stand-user," she brags, gesturing at him herself, "and guess what? He's non-hostile!" As she says this, the Diamond Dog floats down so that his paws are just barely touching the ground, inches away from the dirt. His nails dig into the ground, making scuffs with every wave of his extremities and digging the dirt under his fingernail.

You raise an eyebrow as you look him over. You still have no idea what to make of it, but he does seem rather friendly, or at least aquaintance-ly (your mother, for once, was the one passing that word down to you). "I can see that," you deadpan, still nodding dumbly despite your attempt to keep your voice calm. Fluttershy, meanwhile, has already retreated, though you personally suspect that to be more Powerwolf's interruption than anything this Diamond Dog has done. Even now, his growling is loud and noticeable.

The Diamond Dog scoffs, flicking his fingers and throwing around dirt disinterestedly. He clears his throat, and then speaks clearly and with sophistication, in a Trottingham accent. "Well, not towards you anyway, but don’t think I’m a pushover," he warns you, cleaning his nail with a few finger flicks before crossing his forelegs.

Canny, meanwhile, steps up to gesture between the two of you with a single hoof, introducing "Ziggy, this is my mate, Shooting Star. Star, this is Ziggy, he's a pupper." It's a rather succinct greeting, you suppose. Short, sweet, and to the point, which you greatly prefer when faced with someone like this.

Ziggy looks up from his claws for a second and visibly clenches his jaw in thought, looking you over. His dilated eye watches just as well as his normal one as he judges you silently, before he finally says "Pleasure."

"Um, nice to meet you, I guess?" you try to reply at first, before backpedaling before he can even respond properly. You stand up straight and try to look less dumbfounded as you instead rephrase "I mean, I'm honored to be in the presence of someone so uni-"

"Yes, yes, it's a pleasure and all that camaraderie," Ziggy responds, waving you off. His tone of voice is rather anxious, and you can guess he might be in a bit of a hurry currently. A hurry to do what, exactly, you don't know. "Listen, can you just ask whatever questions your little organization asks so that you can tell me where the deer was?"

"...Buh-wha?" you say, your head still spinning. Now he's bringing deer into this? Who is this guy? You turn to look at Canny with a raised eyebrow, and you are so close to asking her eloquently what exactly he's talking about, but the words take a gallon of cider on the way to your mouth and so you just go "Huh?"

She scratches the back of her head with her hoof and explains "Yeah look, he’s curious about that deer we saw earlier, and the only way I got him to cooperate was to bargain that for a few questions. You know, black bagger, that bloke? Yep."

"And only a few," Ziggy nods along to, smirking. Oh, now he's trying to bargain. Or barter. You don't actually know which one to use.

You also scratch your head with a hoof in thought, asking him straight up "Well, I...uh...why do you want to know about this deer?"

He smirks again and says "That's one question down," and you can immediately feel your blood boiling red as your eye twitches. The dude's poked a loophole into the question before you could possibly barter for it! Sneaky. "And I’m curious if he’s a lead for me or not, or even if he’s a reindeer."

"A reindeer?" you ask on instinct.

"Why, yes, and that's two questions," he says, sounding bored.

You stamp a hoof down and half-whine/half-groan "That's not fair at all!" Before you either lose it or get fed up, though, your friendly neighborhood Fluttershy is there to the rescue, after sounding like dropping something.

"Oh, wait, wait, hold on!" she says, coming back to the door. "Sorry, mister, but I don't think there are any reindeer in this area. The ones in the Whitetail Woods and the Everfree are Mule Deer, or Whitetail. Sorry," she explains, looking a little disappointed to let the misconception hang in the air.

"Hmm," he wonders aloud, tapping his chin with a finger as he says "Still, this may be a lead, especially if they're theiv..." and then he trails off, looks to the side, and widens his eyes. Following his gaze reveals he's staring right at Powerwolf, who is standing there, growling and glaring. On instinct, he summons his Stand, some kind of white-suited biped with a large helmet.

Luckily, again, Fluttershy is there. "Oh, I'm so sorry!" she apologizes, before turning around and giving a vicious glare back to her Stand, telling him bluntly and point blank "Stop it! Behave, Mister!" To his credit, Powerwolf winces and moves back a bit, still sending Killing Intent to Ziggy, but otherwise heeding his User's warning.

Ziggy looks rather scared of the Stand in question, his voice quivering as he remarks "…I’m going to be honest, that is quite possibly the most horrifying thing I’ve seen in years."

Canny just touches her hat with her hoof and agrees "Bleedin' right it is." She then shudders, because who wouldn't? Even you think Powerwolf is freaky.

You look away from Powerwolf and just straight up ask "Uh...maybe we should go somewhere else for these questions?" To your surprise, instead of making a crack, Ziggy just shrugs and nods. And then, Fluttershy closes her front door, and off you trot to a new adventure-

Down With Chrysalis' Comment

And are immediately distracted when Powerwolf runs off and Fluttershy is forced to follow it. He looked ravenous when he went off, and naturally, Canny nervously asks "Uh...do you guys think maybe we should go after her?"

You blankly look over at Canny, and when you think your expression is blank, it really is blank. You've hit your quota of "Weird Things You Didn't Expect to See Ever In Your Life At All" for today, and to be blunt, you just straight up shrug. "Nah...I'm sure she's got it handled."

"NO!" Fluttershy scolds in the distance. "Bad Powerwolf! Put that nice pony down this instant!"

You flinch ever so slightly, but return your expression to a deadpan look as you respond "Yep...she's totally got it all under control. Yep-yep, no help here."

"That pony's leg is not a chew toy!" she scolds again. "Spit her out this instant!"

Ziggy, in all his doggy glory, blankly looks over to you and says, completely unimpressed, "Yes...she definitely does have this completely under control."

One final scold hits your ears, and it's the worst one. "Powerwolf...don't you dare...Don't even think abou-AH, Bad Powerwolf! Bad, bad, bad! We do not swallow ponies!"

There is a bit of a silence after that, the town proper quietly watching her and thus all you can hear is a struggle. Finally, though, you sigh, and concede defeat on this. "Okay, okay, fine, let's go help her and then we hit the Everfree.

Just outside of the forest treeline, you all stand, regrouping. It took a bit of time, and a few bite-marks, but that little filly Twist was finally pulled free, surprisingly unharmed save for, frankly, bitching about the, to her, completely invisible monster ruining her schedule. Thus, while Fluttershy and Canny talk about nature stuff (Canny specifically wondering about locomotion. What's she gonna make, a wagon that walks?), you learn more about Ziggy.

BrownDog's First Comment

"Alright...so, you're originally from Trottingham, and Space Oddity makes things float?" you recap, attempting to clarify.

Ziggy shrugs, and says "Amongst other things." You roll your eyes, thinking to yourself about just how vague that is.

It's at this time that Canny walks up, ready to ask her own questions. "Right, then, luv," she begins, asking "And where exactly were you when ol' Hodge-Podge 'imself, Mr. Discord, sank his arrow into your body?"You just close your eyes and shake your head, knowing for a fact she could've phrased that better. Ziggy seems to know this, too, raising an eyebrow and side-eyeing her in what seems like confusion.

"I'm sorry, is that a euphemism for something?" he asks with a chuckle, "Because quite frankly, my dear, an odd assortment of mismatched animal parts slammed together haphazardly just isn't my type, and I highly doubt he's yours."

Canny growls and shakes her head, clearly frustrated as she explains "No, you daft dog! When did you get shot with the bloody Stand Arrow to get yer Space Oddity!"

Ziggy stands there, kind of confused for a second, visibly trying to process the question as his eyes wander. Finally, he says, very carefully as though he knew the wrong word would just draw more confusion, "I...still don't quite get what you're asking. I've never been shot with any arrows, and I've had Space Oddity for years, now."

Canny's jaw drops in bewilderment. "What?" she asks, confused.

"Oh, I see. You're a natural-born user," you realize and then understand. This makes him look even more curious, raising an eyebrow at you.

"Is that not normally how it works?" he asks, once again scraping his lower paws against the dirt.

Canny shakes her head, and responds in doubt "Nah, you have to be hit with the arrow, I assumed."

"Well, you're both right," you explain. "The Princesses told me that there are natural born users, then there are those hit with the arrow, and of course, those who have been touched by the Elements of Harmony...which, according to Celestia, had arrows in 'em anyway. Must be smaller than pins if the Elements didn't notice nor see them, but...eh.”

"...Interesting..," Ziggy responds in awe, cupping his chin in thought.

Canny, meanwhile, replies "Wait, wait, hold on, you've met other natural Stand users before?"

"A few over the years, but, not all of them necessarily friendly," he responds, before smirking smugly yet again. Celestia above, you could punch him when he does that. "I'll give you that question for free, since I am colored curious."

"Um..." Fluttershy says behind you all, apparently forgotten in the excitement. "May I ask a question?" Nods from everyone involved push her to ask "Uh, well, you see, do you think you'd remember, um, where they might be? Or their names. If that's not too much trouble, sir."

He waves her off and ponders, tapping his chin once again. "Hmm," he thinks aloud, "Well, there was a rather agreeable Saddle Arabian I met in Somnambula some years ago. He's actually the one who explained Stands to me. As much as he knew, anyway. Can't quite recall his name off the top of my head, though..."

To double check, you and Canny look over the map. Sure enough, one of the blinking Xs is within the Deserts of Somnambula. "Okay, then," you think to yourself. "Either this is a Discord target...or we just found the Saddle Arabian that this...floating dog knows."

"Now, I'd like to tell you more," Ziggy explains, gesturing to the Everfree Forest. "But please point me in this deer's direction. The more we talk, the further away he gets."

You, Canny, and even Fluttershy look at eachother for a second, before you bargain "...OK, how's about this. If we help you investigate this deer, then afterwards, you can tell us about your Saddle Arabian friend."

He raises an eyebrow, but then your barter succeeds as she just shrugs. "Eh, sure, why not?" he rhetorically asks. "I won't stop you. I think I'd actually prefer some company in this deep, dank, dark woods. Just don't interfere if I do happen to find this miserable caribou!"

"...I thought it was a reindeer," Canny asks, slightly confused.

"Reindeer and caribou are the same thing, Canny," Fluttershy informs her.

This seems to frazzle Canny as she shouts "WELL WHY THE BLOODY HELL-oh forget it..."

A minute or two later on, the four of you are walking through the woods. Well, to be more specific, as you turn to Canny to speak with her, Ziggy is floating in front of your little gang. "He seems a bit...eccentric," you admit, glancing at him.

Canny dryly responds "Oh, he's a right nutter, all right," while spinning a hoof around her ear. "He's off his rocker because some antlered thief took his favorite toy, some China Doll or whatever the hell."

"Well..," you say, trying to find as many of his good qualities as you've noticed in the short time since meeting him. "I mean, he seems friendly enough?" you posit, earning a glance your way. "A bit brash, but nowhere near The Patient's level."

Canny shudders and reaches a hoof back to touch the part of her side the arrow impaled. "And thank goodness for that, then!"

"And since floating doesn't seem like Bad Luck," you change the subject, "I'm guessing you didn't find out anything about that?"

She kind of winces and tilts her head back and forth. "Eh...well...yes and no," she informs you, "I've got myself a suspect, at the least."

"Oh, really?" you ask. You're genuinely curious. Who in Ponyville could be causing something like this? "Who?"

She explains "There was this little dragon in an alleyway lookin' right at the community. But also kind of side-eyeing me. I think onto me noticing 'im, though, because he was gone by the time I rushed over." She shakes her head.

"Another dragon in town?" you ponder. "I doubt he's there for a family reunion with Spike. Even if he's not a Stand User, he's certainly a curiosity."

And through all of this, Fluttershy has been keeping her own notes on the flora and fauna. It's actually quite cute.

Ze1a7in and BrownDog's Comments

After a minute, though, something feels off. A presence behind you, or maybe in front of you. It feels like someone's staring into the back of your head. "Hey, uh..," you ask, catching everyone's attention. "Does anyone else feel like...they're being watched?"

"Uh...yeah," Canny admits.

"It's spooky," Fluttershy responds.

"I'm on edge already as is," Ziggy replies, looking around for the source.

You decide to put your mind at ease by putting on a search. You look in bushes, trees, and dirt, but it's Fluttershy who calls out "Hey, look!" When you all rush over, she's pointing at hoofprints. "Deer tracks!"

"Alright!" you say, as you all begin to follow them. You walk, and walk, and only then notice you're not going anywhere. "What the...?" Canny says, and the two of you look down to see yourselves rooted down, by roots. Of course. Using your Stands, Canny phases her legs through the roots as you fold and crush them apart, freeing yourselves. Only then, your Stands are suddenly grabbed by lashing vines, which also grab Ziggy and Fluttershy, the latter of whom screams as she is propelled up.

Just then, you all hear a rustling in the undergrowth. Out of the bushes emerges a Timberwolf. A large one, with a diadem of vines and thorns adorned on it's head like a makeshift crown with a green jewel shining and shimmering in the center of it. It growls, then says in what is distinctly a female voice "And what are a few ponies and a Diamond Dog doing in these woods?" A talking Timberwolf. You can hardly believe it.

Naturally, Ziggy's first response is "Oh dearie me, I've been in enough Neighponese literature shops to know where this is going." He says this warily as the vines wrap around his floating paws.

"SILENCE!" the Timberwolf (seriously, what the fuck) demands, tightening his rear paws and tying them together. "I'm not sure what that means, but you are already defiling this area, and I will not be insulted!"

As the vines are wrapping even around New Divide, you realize that this talking Timberwolf has got to be a Stand-User. But like everything else in this situation, that just flabbergasts you. "Everyone, be on the lookout for the Stand-User! It's talking to us through it's Timberwolf-lookin' Stand!"

"Excuse me?" the Timberwolf asks, "What are you talking about?"

"Show yourself, you coward!" you responds, trying to shake your way out of the vines, "everyone knows Timberwolves are too stupid to talk!" It-er, she takes offence to this, apparently, as you suddenly feel the vines tighten around your chest. You gasp as the breath is knocked out of you.

The Timberwolf snaps, growling and roaring out "YOU INSOLENT LITTLE HORSE!"

"OK, my bad!" you aqueisce, "Timberwolves can talk, I'm stupid!"

"Not normally," Fluttershy says, "not biologically. Something's different about her!"

"I think we've noticed!" Canny scolds, glaring down at the Timberwolf and staring daggers into glowing green eyes. "Let us go, you stupid slag, or we'll buckstart your head!"

This just makes her angrier, somehow. "You come into my woods, threatening me, and expect to go free?" she hisses, her eyes glowing even brighter. "These are my woods! I was gifted this power to steward it better, and intruders like you will not be tolerated..." The vines tighten more, deeper and constricting.

Ziggy finally speaks up, trying to negotiate as he says "Listen, babe, I can tell you're itching for a fight, but we're just looking for a single deer. Could we perhaps put this dance on hold?"

"Firstly, do not call me babe," she dryly says, before snarling and shaking her head. "And that's a likely story...I'll take care of that infestation later. All of you with your powers cannot be allowed to proceed."

"Welp, that does it, we tried," Canny grunts. "Smooth Criminal!" she shouts, the vines passing through both her and her Stand in a transparent green as her hooves hit the ground. She looks pissed.

And for her part, the Timberwolf looks stunned. "W-What the..?" she stammers, surprised.

"New Divide!" you shout, following her lead as you fold yourself further back into the treeline, snapping the vines. You're still tied up, but you must surely be out of her range.

"Oh, bloody hell," Ziggy mutters, before looking up to the Timberwolf. "Very well, then. Space Oddity!" Suddenly, the vines holding him at the base slam down as if pulled, slackening his feet bonds and pulling him out of the way.

With everyone else getting down or getting set up for a brawl, Fluttershy sighs with what you guess to be little other choice. "I'm so going to regret this," she tells herself, before shouting "Powerwolf!" That horrifying Stand materializes, and cuts the vines holding her in place, setting her down.

The Timberwolf growls as you all break from your vine-chains, staring you all down. She says "Cheap tricks will do you no good, interlopers! Evolution cannot be stopped!"

And with her grand declaration, all the plants nearby rustle as though commanded to shake.

What will you and your party do?
Stand for Equestria: Origin of Harmony

Author's Notes:

Musical Reference: The Timberwolf, Lupina, has the Stand Evolution. Evolution is named after the Korn song of the same name, and carries the power to mutate and control plant life.

And we're back! I'm so sorry for the delay! So much drama and life-stuff and dropped motivation got in the way and I just couldn't help but take a step back. But I'm here now, so let's keep this going!

So, another day, another battle. A lot of interesting Stands, can't wait to see how we all juggle 'em.

In response to the questions: I agree with all of these! Nemesis, the Outlast psychos, all of them scary pursuers. Personally, I recently finally got RE2 and I still have to agree with my original estimate: Mr. X is terrifying.

So, question of the day is:

What is something you wish could come back from cancellation or indefinite hiatus?

Personally, I'd go for my favorite cartoon, Ed Edd n' Eddy, but because hiatuses are on the brain, this was a good thing to get out there.

So, yeah, call spots, don't kill nobody, the floor is yours! Have fun, and I'll see you in the next chapter...hopefully sooner than this one, XD