The gossiping trills of some early morning birds startle you from the story you were reading. Having adopted a slight phobia for birds, you find their calls to be less soothing more than a nerve-wracking warning of their impending approach. Your eyes search your room fast, but it seems as though they’re all safely behind your lovely purple portrait of stained glass. You exhale a sigh of relief out of habit. At least they’re good for telling time, you think to yourself. Another night and another book have gone by. It’s still a little early in the morning, but you know that you’ve got school in about an hour.
Your hooves tap against the solid concrete floor of your bedroom as you tidy up in the mirror. Your stony exterior has a vitreous sheen; Dad’s buff job really brings out the brilliant little specs of gold in your rocky skin. It looks a lot better than when you used to paint yourself… while it did make you look like your old self, your lack of real hair, breathing, and your stony texture left others very uneasy, especially your mother. It’s been several months since you received this new look, but you’ve been finding your own ways to adapt.
“Even as a chunk of rock, you still got your looks girl.” You reassure yourself with a smile and wink. Picking up a toothbrush and a bottle of pumice, you buff out a rough patch on your chest before shining up your smile. It took a little while to get used to Mom not calling you out for breakfast, but she’s never failed to call you out for a hug before school.
With Hayseed on your back and your skin with a glass like shine, you feel ready to tackle another day at school. It’s been a difficult year, but you embrace every new day as a challenge and an adventure. Diamond Tiara and her friend Silver Spoon have been really difficult to deal with, but you’re determined to succeed no matter what.
You're currently in your room. Hayseed rides upon your back.
You love the look of your new room. You’ve got a beautiful, hoof sewn ornate rug in the very center, a big desk, several bookcases filled with books from the Ponyville Library, and a closet nearly the size of your old room. Some of your old stuff still remains, like your old dresser and your saddlebags, but almost everything else, like the paintings, the windows, the chandelier… that stuff is all brand new.
You know you’ve got Hayseed up on your back, very close and very safe. Your trusty saddlebags, slightly worn and torn from your recent trip with your friends through the Everfree Forest, are filled with a few supplies already. You know you’ve got a spare Cosmetics kit in there… courtesy of the local stone carver in town. There’s also a Bouquet of Flowers you collected for Zecora on your last trip. Lastly, there’s a large piece of Twisted Iron that you bent out of an old pipe to use as a securing ring for rope. It came in handy when your friends fell into a gigantic crater deep in the Everfree Forest.
Since your last major adventure, you’ve taken to collecting adventuring supplies. Along the wall by your dresser are a myriad of tools hanging up. You’ve got a Spool of Rope, a Stompstarter, some Glass Vials, a very secure Firework Chest with Quarter Sticks of Dynamite, some Lamp Oil, a Hammer, a Saw, a Box of Nails, a Bag of Sneezing Powder, a large Satchel with a Money Symbol on the front, a Treasure Chest, and a Pack of Bubblegum.
You think that it might be a good idea, before starting out this day in particular, to go ahead and give Hayseed a big hug. For some reason, you feel a bit more tense than usual, like something is bound to be different about today.
Swiftly taking that little doll into your hoof, you gently give her a little squeeze. As you do, you find yourself closing your eyes. You begin to think about the wind... how it felt in your mane. You think about the heat of a freshly baked loaf of bread radiating in your hooves. An inner peace sets over you as you imagine your mother's forelegs tucking a comfy blanket around your shoulders.
You feel safe.
GAME SAVED
LIST OF ITEMS AND ACTIONS:
After much self debate and a sudden streak of paranoia, you decide it best to equip yourself as best as possible. This day just doesn't settle well with you. It may have been the birds chirping so close to your window or that innate feeling you get when you sense danger nearby, but you're going out into the world prepared today.
Dumping out all of the items from inside of your saddlebags, you decide to stock them up with Hayseed, a Spool of Rope, a Stompstarter, and a Money Bag filled to the brim with 100 bits. You remember when this seemed like it was a ton of money... now, it's just a fraction of a weekly allowance.
Carefully, you don your Royal Medallion and secure your trusty Twisted Iron Rod around your back with a rope. It sits awkwardly at first, but you bend it into a convenient shape.
Standing in your room, you feel adequately prepared for anything the day has to throw at you. Before you is the door leading into the main hallway and a door leading into your closet.
You decide that you better check to see if there's anything useful inside of your closet. You haven't been in there in a while, but you think it'd be best to be fully prepared. You don't know if you'll be able to stop by your house later if your adventuring suspicions are correct.
You have a lot of new clothes inside the walk-in closet. Most of them are way too formal to wear to school everyday, so you almost never look around in here. Among several sets of gowns and dresses are several cases filled to the brim with jewelry. Unfortunately, most of it cannot be worn, considering you don’t have a mane to set them on. You’ve considered getting some gems inset on your ears, but your Dad won’t let you. You’re still too young, apparently.
Looking around, you have several pairs of custom built shoes, specifically designed to accommodate your incredible weight. You get made fun of by Diamond Tiara a lot when you wear these to school…
Along the east wall, you see a couple of costumes. They’re all from the play your Dad funded from back before Winter Wrap Up Day. He had a bunch of them done up for your classmates. You’d played 3 roles during the play… a Frog, a Dragon, and a Maid. While the first two looked ridiculous, you always liked the Maid costume for some indiscernible reason. Maybe it reminded you of your loving housekeeper, Mary Annette… you honestly don’t know.
Debating about whether or not a costume would look good with all of your current equipment, you decide it best to get your day started. You exit your closet and head out of the main door of your room. You look back for a moment, nod, then shut the door.
You venture out into the grand hallway of your home. You make sure to keep your hooves on the carpet since they leave scuff marks if you trod on the oak flooring. It also makes a terrible racket; you like to pretend that you’ve still got a bit of stealth left to you.
You’re now in the Merlot Residence Foyer. To your right, you can hear your Mom arguing about something. To your left is the main door.
You approach the door to the dining room cautiously, taking care not to make the floorboards creak under your weight. Putting your head against the door, you can hear her arguing with Mary Annette.
“No, no, itz fine! Just relax, Mrs. Merlot, and… I’ll prepare ze table for you after I’m done vith ze cooking…” It sounds like Mom is trying to do Mary's job again. You can't hear anything else beyond their talking, but you're sure Mary's putting on a breakfast for your mom, dad, and the staff.
It always looked incredibly appetizing.
Before you set out to school, you open the door to the dining room and head on in. Your mom is juggling a couple of plates while Mary chases her about, trying to prevent the stack of fine porcelain from falling to the floor.
“Please, Mary, I just want to help. Let me set the table while you…” Her resistance to the flustered maid ends when she sees you. “Raisin! You’re up and about early this morning! I didn’t even hear you come in!” She smiles as the maid dashes back into the kitchen to answer a whistling kettle. Mom meets you halfway between the table and the dining room door to give you an empty squeeze. You give her a little hug back, hearing her strain slightly. “Strong as ever! Oh, my beautiful, shiny little ge-” She stops for a moment, noticing all the equipment you've got on. "...you know not to go adventuring while your in school, don't you?"
"Of course, mom. I've just one of those feelings today... you know?"
She rolls her eyes. "Oh, of course you do!" You close your eyes as she gives you a little kiss on the forehead. “How are you this morning?”
"Everything's going good... but I had some birds chirping outside of the window..."
Your mom rolls her eyes. "Ah, the birds! That's why you're all fitted for combat! You know, you've lived through some of the most terrifying experiences I can possibly imagine... but you're scared of a few little bir-"
"I have reasons. It's kinda complicated."
Your mom looks at you with some concern. "It's alright, Raisin..." She gives you another hug. "Are you going to say bye to your dad before you go?"
"He's out in the fields, right?"
Your mom nods. "But hurry up! You're going to be late if you keep dilly dallying around!"
"Alright. Love ya, mom."
You turn about and dash out of the dining room, heading for the front door. As it swings open, you're greeted with a glistening view of Sweet Apple Acres in the distance. Ever since you moved out into the countryside, you’ve felt much more at peace with yourself. Your Dad’s new vineyard covers a ton of land behind your house; he’s never been happier. You can see several members of the staff tending to the grapes.
"Raisin! There you are!" Applebloom greets you at the door. Your house is only a little stroll down the street from the Apple Family's house now. "...what's with all the...?" She motions to your equipment.
You step on something crunchy.
You look down, seeing a small piece of parchment crunched under your hoof. You lift your hoof straight up to make sure that it doesn't get ground into dust.
"Oh, ah was gonna ask you about that... somepony dropped this off and flew away." She looks at it curiously. "Seems like there's a lot of weird letters gettin' delivered nowadays..."
You pick up the letter roll and undo a seal on it. It springs open.
"Dear Raisin,
You don’t know who I am… I think… but I want to help you with your golem (problem crossed out) situation.” The rest of the letter has a bunch of crossed out text that's almost completely indiscernible. The last line reads, "I want to tell you more, but I don’t know how to say it yet. I’ll be around.” There’s no signature, but there’s a scrawled out map on the back of the letter. There’s a bunch of X marks around Ponyville, but there’s a circle around Canterlot, some mountains near Sweet Apple Acres, and around the ruins in the Everfree Forest. All of the circles have question marks above them.
"Huh... that's definitely kinda weird..."
Applebloom gets a twisted up look on her face. "Yeah, wait til I show you the notes my sister keeps gettin'. That's some weird stuff."
"What weird letters? You gotta show me!" You knew that an adventure was going to happen, you just knew it. A ton of possibilities cross your mind; is there some evil dragon threatening the orchard? Are there some radioactive moles trying to dig tunnels through the farmhouse? Is it blackmail from a zombie pony king?
Applebloom rolls her eyes. "Here, ah snuck one out of her room. Be warned; It's REALLY sappy." She makes a gag look as she withdraws a peach smelling, pink postcard from her saddlebags. She starts trotting down the road as you hold it in one hoof, reading it over and keeping pace.
"Applejack, your mane is like the purest lightning bolt, bright and energetic as it's radiant glow strikes my heart. How I pine for your affection, to hold you in my arms and stare into your emerald eyes..." It continues, but you don't wish to read it too much further.
"Ugh, gross."
"I know, right? It's a love letter from some creep that won't say who he is. He initialed it 'LS'..." Applebloom takes the letter and stores it in her saddlebags. She moves in closer to whisper to you, "We don't know anypony with those initials. It's really weird..."
You continue walking on down the road. As you approach town, you see a small group of ponies huddled around town square. They chatter and talk quietly, surrounding something that you can't quite see.
"Huh? What's goin' on?" Applebloom asks.
You approach the large group of ponies, trying to get a peek at what they're surrounding. Through a sea of legs, you're unable to make out what has got their attention. You'd like to maneuver through them, but you don't want to draw too much attention.
"Hey Applebloom... you think you can sneak around and see what all the fuss is about?"
She nods, letting her curiosity guide her through all of the legs. A few ponies bounce up in the air as she pushes her way through. You hear several ponies near you chattering, "How did something this big show up overnight? Did someone carve this?"
As you wait for Applebloom, you hear a familiar voice chime in from behind. "Raisin! There you are! You'll never guess wh... uh... what's with all the...?" You turn, noticing that she's eyeing all the equipment you've got strapped onto yourself.
"Adventure, Sweetie. It's in the air."
The Mayor starts speaking over the crowd. "Citizens of Ponyville! There's no need for panic nor alarm!" The ponies all start to settle down, preparing for a speech. "We're currently assessing damages and trying to figure out where this thing came from!"
Several ponies bump up in the air as Applebloom makes her way back through the legs. She pushes out between the last pair, landing on the ground before you.
"It's a HUGE snake statue!" she gasps.
Sweetie tilts her head. "...a Snake... statue?"
You decide to hang back and see what the Mayor has to say about this thing. A Snake Statue seems like an odd thing to have just simply appeared here overnight.
"Twilight Sparkle, Celestia's star pupil, is currently researching what this creature may be or may have been. What we do know is that it has not moved since it was discovered and more than likely will not move again. We ask that everypony keep their distance while we try to get things sorted out!"
The crowd starts getting a little restless. "That can't be all you know! It destroyed half of my house!"
The Mayor talks over the disgruntled pony. "Please, be patient! We've already got ponies helping to repair all of the damaged buildings and other statues! We're not even sure if this thing caused the damages!"
From behind, another voice chirps in. "Hey, what's going on?" Scootaloo stands atop your back, being mindful of the Twisted Iron Rod you've strapped to yourself.
"There's some snake statue thing in the middle of town. Apparently, it caused a lot of damage or something." You bring her up to speed.
"Soo... does that mean school's cancelled?" Scootaloo leans over your head, looking into your stony, cold eyes.
"Doubt it. Cheerilee wouldn't cancel school even if the world was ending."
Sweetie Belle gasps. "Oh! Shoot! I really hope we're not late!" She trots on ahead, leading the way to school. A couple ponies turn their heads when they hear you gallop. Your hooves hit the ground with a slight quake; it's hard to ignore. A few adults chatter back and forth, saying, "Hey, that's Raisin!"
You turn back to look at the snake statue. From this angle, you can see it's tail. The thing is pretty big; at least as tall as two ponies. It looks all twisted up. You turn to keep your eyes ahead of you, noticing that Scootaloo isn't anywhere to be seen.
As you approach the schoolhouse, you immediately notice something's wrong.
"Uh.. wasn't the schoolhouse... taller... yesterday?" Applebloom comments on the sunken structure. Cheerilee is standing outside talking to a construction worker pony. She looks disappointed.
You slowly approach Cheerilee. You feel the ground nearly suck your hoof into the pathway. Taking another step, your other hoof plunges through the dirt and into a void beneath the ground. You pull up, looking slightly embarrassed as your friends traverse the path without a problem.
"Oh, girls... I'm terribly sorry, but I'm afraid that school's cancelled today." Cheerilee seems very down. "I can't open the front doors, so we can't run class." You imagine that if most of the building were destroyed but Cheerilee could access the blackboard, classes would be good to go.
"What happened?" Applebloom asks, staring at the dilapidated structure. You listen at a distance, not wanting to risk falling through the road completely.
"Well, apparently, the foundation of the school just up and vanished last night... that's what the construction workers are saying, at least." She points to the corner of the building. It looks like a large, circular chunk is missing.
Scootaloo jumps off your back. She does a little dance on the pathway in front of you. "Schooooooooool's cancelllllllleeeeddd~~~~ yeaahh!!!!" She moonwalks and flaps her little wings to barely keep herself hovering above the ground.
Sweetie and Applebloom continue talking with Cheerilee. Scootaloo celebrates before you. It's still pretty early in the morning.
You shout out to Sweetie Belle and Applebloom. "Hey guys!" You wave them back over. You place a hoof on Scootaloo to make her stop dancing and pay attention. She shivers slightly at your touch.
"Alright... I knew today was going to be different. Something weird's going on... this statue, the letters, and the school house sinking into the ground have to be related somehow..." You look about. "You guys get your saddlebags. Let's meet at my house quick, get supplies, then get a game plan down."
"Oh man, I love your new house!" Scootaloo looks happy. "Plus, you've got all those tools and stuff. You've got the coolest parents, Raisin!"
You smile at her enthusiasm before leading the way back to your place. You run through town square again, noticing that the Mayor now has a long line of ponies writing down something up on the makeshift stage she set. The snake statue is now clearly visible; it's incredibly long. In it's current state, it looks like a twisted pile of string with a giant mouth gaping open.
The CMC have split to their homes for the most part. Applebloom travels by your side. "You think this is gonna be something big?"
"Beats me. Let's get this thing figured out."
You stop by the front door of your house, letting Applebloom run down the road to Sweet Apple Acres.
Before she completely passes by, you wave to the blonde maned pegasus. You'd say something, but you've got a Bouquet of Flowers in your mouth at the moment. She's always seemed to be a really nice pony.
Her misaligned eyes turn your way as she cracks a soft smile. She waves. "Hi Raisin!" She's a little loud, but you know she's sincere. She continues down the road, prancing with a little more skip to her step.
She heads off to the Apple Family Farmhouse, checking the mailbox. You can't see her too well from here, but she continues on her way passed the farmhouse. She's taken to the air, so you assume she's making a roundabout back to town. Applebloom starts kicking up some dust as she makes her way back up the road.
"Oh! Ah was just about ta ask!" She nods towards the flowers. "Ya didn't get 'em crinkled up, right?"
You nod.
"We'll get those delivered a little later, prob'ly. Right now, we gotta figure ou-"
Suddenly, Scootaloo comes barreling down the road on her scooter. Sweetie Belle is riding with her, hanging on and trembling.
"What'd we miss?" The orange pegasus takes off her helmet and shakes her mane.
You take the Bouquet of Flowers out of your stony chops and hand them to Applebloom. She holds onto them for the time being.
"Applebloom and I were just trying to get some stuff figured out. I guess you missed the mail pony going on by."
Scootaloo looks suspicious. "...and where did she go off to?"
Applebloom shakes her head. "That doesn't matter right now. We've got a big, BIG mystery on our hooves..." On the doorstep, Applebloom sets down a pink postcard with a peachy scent to it. "Alright... on top of the statue in town, we have no idea who's sending my sister these weird letters..."
She motions for you to put your letter down alongside hers. You slide it out from between the rope around your stomach; the fragile parchment unfurls. "...and Raisin here got this weird letter from somepony else..."
Comparing the writing styles, they appear completely different. The love letter is written painstakingly in perfect calligraphy while your letter is written shakily. They don't appear to have an identical author.
Applebloom reads the letter over to Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. Scootaloo gags, but Sweetie Belle implores her to continue. "It sounds sweet, at least..." The little marshmallowy filly comments.
"Hey, let's go inside and get supplies." You open the front door, meeting Mary again as she polishes a handrail leading upstairs. She looks worried as the CMC starts to enter.
"Oh.. u-uh... welcome..." She smiles with her teeth clenched. "Y-you're not... staying... in the house... are you?" You can see sweat forming on her brow.
"Nah, we're gonna go exploring. Just need some supplies..." You look her up and down. "...and an adult, probably."
Mary Annette shakes her head. "I have chores to do, dishes to clean, floors to scrub, and beds to make... I'm sorry, Master Raisin, but I cannot come vith you." She quickly bows, then quickly gets back to cleaning.
You decide to come back for her later. You lead the fascinated CMC down the grand hallway of your house. They always seem so enthralled by the house.. you're really not sure why. As you enter your room, they rush passed you and start marveling at your collection of equipment.
"Oh man! Your dad lets you keep all of this stuff? What's in the Treasure Chest? Are there explosives in here?" The CMC pour over your assortment, picking things up and playing with them.
"Alright, guys... What now?" You begin to ponder your next course of action. Applebloom is carrying your box of explosives.
You grit your stony hoof against your chin, sitting down with Sweetie Belle. "You know... I think Mary is acting a bit fishy today..."
"How so?" Sweetie Belle lays next to you.
"Well... actually, I don't know, really... I just have a feeling, you know? What if she's writing those letters?"
Sweetie and Applebloom scrunch up their faces. "She's in love with Applejack?"
"No, no... like, maybe she's trying to trick her or something. We need to get her signature and compare it with the letters. She's the only pony I know that writes that fancy."
"That seems a little... paranoid... don't you think?" Scootaloo balances a saw on the end of her nose.
INVENTORY:
"Hey, it'll only take a couple minutes to try it out."
"Well... okay, I guess... I mean, it doesn't hurt to try, right?" The saw balancing on Scootaloo's nose dips and the saw falls to the side, narrowly missing Applebloom's tail. She picks it up and starts balancing it again.
Carefully, you begin scribing a note at your desk while the CMC spreads your tool set across the floor. They talk about which tools will be necessary to bring along.
Applebloom seems intent on taking the explosives. Scootaloo thinks a saw will come in handy if you need to cut down a tree and make a bridge. Sweetie Belle thinks the Lamp Oil could be used as a fire signal or a guaranteed way to start a campfire.
You finish the letter. Ever since you became a golem, you've been reading a writing most of your nights away. Without the need for sleep, it's all you can think to do while everyone is sleeping. Your writing is rather intricate; it should be easy to pass it off as a note from your mom.
"Alright, wait for me here..." You tell the CMC as you go down the hallway. Mary is just making her way down here with her cleaning cart.
"Master Raisin... please, you need to go to school..." She looks a bit worried.
"I'll go, but first you gotta sign this quick. It's a permission slip. Mom wrote it, but I think she's busy."
Mary looks it over. "...well, alright... but you've gotta promise to get back to school..."
RECEIVED SIGNED PERMISSION SLIP
You head on back to the room, your 'Permission Slip' firmly between your teeth. As you enter the room, you nod to your friends. They all hop up. "Alright, so, now that we got her signature, we can compare the letters, right?" Sweetie Belle confirms the plan.
"Yep!" Applebloom acknowledges.
You look around the room, noticing that the letters aren't anywhere to be found. You spit the Permission Slip into your hoof. "Uh.. guys, where are the letters?"
Applebloom panics. "Oh my gosh! We left 'em outside!"
Your party books it down the hallway, narrowly crashing into Mary Annette's cleaning cart. She shrieks as you bolt on passed, hopping up onto the cart. Sweetie apologizes as she lags behind.
As you clear the threshold of the front door, you notice that both of the letters are missing. Applebloom searches around, looking down the road. A pink square bounces in the wind. She races after it.
"Raisin! Where's your letter at?!" Sweetie Belle searches around the front lawn, looking for the parchment.
You chase after Applebloom and the runaway Love Letter. Your intimidating gallop is always met with excited laughter from Scootaloo; she really likes the presence you bring with your gait.
Applebloom dips her head down. "Got it!" She sputters around the aromatic letter. She scrunches up her face when she tastes it. "UGhhh!" She puts it securely into her bag as you gallop passed.
Looking around, you cannot see where your letter is. You're not sure where it could have gone off to. Nothing looks out of place down the road back to Ponyville.
Before you decide to venture out to Zecora's house with you Bouquet of Flowers, you decide that you had better get stocked up. Disappointed that your letter is lost at the moment, you turn around and start heading back to your house. For some reason, you can't help but think that someone... or something... is watching you. It's an odd feeling, but doesn't feel threatening.
You tell the CMC that you couldn't find the letter. Applebloom kicks the dirt. "Shoot! There goes one lead..."
"Hey, don't worry. We'll probably find it later. Let's get stocked up and get those flowers delivered."
Sweetie Belle looks around. "...but wait, weren't we trying to see if the signature..." She shrugs. "Alright, let's get some supplies."
Scootaloo holds up your saw. "I've got everything I need right here! We're good!"
You shake your head. "We'll need more than that, I guarantee it."
Everyone heads back inside, slightly disappointed about losing the letter to the wind. You head into your room and look over the equipment that's been laid out. The CMC reiterate they're opinions about each tool.
You look over all of the equipment, deciding who's going to carry what. You group the gear into piles and tell them each what they should take:
"Hey... uh... Raisin? Ah can't carry all that in my bags..." Applebloom holds up the Glass Vials and the Lamp Oil. "Sweetie Belle still has some room in her bags..."
"Not for both!" Sweetie jiggles her saddlebags up and down. "I'm carrying all the tools!"
You look over the equipment again, changing your loadout plans a little bit. "Um... alright, Scootaloo... I don't think we'll need my Cosmetics Kit today..." You snatch it out of her bags.
"Alright, so what do I get to carry?" She shrugs. You hand her your set of Reinforced Shoes. You immediately notice her start to strain. "UGH!! What in Equestria?! Why are these so heavy?!" She's nearly falling over.
You pass the Lamp Oil over to Sweetie Belle. "Just be careful with this... it's kinda fragile." Sweetie nods, making sure it goes on the side of her saddlebags with her gemstones. She keeps it away from her tools.
"Applebloom, leave your Hammer behind and take the Glass Vi-"
"Nope." She shakes her head. "Ain't no way I'm leaving this behind. Can't you leave something behind?"
You grit your teeth. "Okay... let me think."
To vent a bit, you decide to bring up both letters and compare them side by side. Carefully analyzing how each character looks on each of the letters, you don't determine any immediate comparisons between your maid's signature and the Love Letter. Both are written quite beautifully, though.
"Hmmm..."
Scratching your chin and slightly frustrated, you quickly swap out a few items from each of your friends' loadouts:
Applebloom strains a little as you give her the boots. "Sweet Celestia! What are these made of?" She shrugs off the weight as they settle in her bag. "Alright... Ah think Ah got this. Scoots sure wasn't kiddin', though... these are heavy!"
You pick up the Bouquet of Flowers in your mouth. Rolling your eyes, you open up the door and usher your friends on out. Applebloom seems a little slower than Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, but she's able to carry everything. You're not quite sure why she's straining so hard; the shoes are weightless to you.
Mary nods to you and the CMC. "You have a good day at school now, Master Raisin. Remember, you have an appointment with Twilight at the library after school!"
You tilt your head and catch your flowers in your hooves. "Since when?"
"Since she loaned you half of the library, Master Raisin." She bows gracefully, then continues sweeping the hallway.
You head out of the front door, Bouquet in mouth and your friends itching to go.
"So... off to Zecora's then, right?" Scootaloo leads.
You start heading down the road. Your party looks rather burdened, but their spirits are high. The late morning sun hangs nearly straight up above your heads as you head on out. The road feels safe with your friends at your side. As you travel, Applebloom tries to speculate as to the author of the Love Letter.
"So, who do ya think has a crush on my sister?" She asks Scootaloo.
"I dunno. You said the initials were 'LS', right?" Scootaloo looks back.
"Well, yeah, but... what colt has those initials? They must not be in Ponyville... Ah can't think of anypony that does, at least..."
You start rounding the bend out towards Fluttershy's cottage. You see her outside feeding some of her chickens. A few blue birds nuzzle up next to her as she tends to her animals. She sees your troupe and waves. "Hello girls! Shouldn't you... um... nevermind!"
The birds got you a bit tense. You stay on the outside of the group, putting as much distance and ponies between you and them as possible.
"Seriously? You still going on about that?" Scootaloo nudges you, though you don't feel it.
"I got my reasons. It's complicated."
You continue down the road and start venturing into the Everfree Forest. It feels so much different than it does at night.. though you've been able to explore it freely any time of the day. Most creatures don't scare you anymore...
...besides birds.
You follow the bouncy tail of Sweetie Belle as she leads the way ahead. You've been noticing that Applebloom has been lagging behind a bit, but she seems fine.
"You alright?"
"Yeah, Ah'm fine." She pants lightly. "Just a little warm out is all." Unfortunately, you're not able to tell if she's telling the truth or just trying to act tough... it IS sunny out.
As you near Zecora's clearing, you can't help shake a feeling of impending danger. Something doesn't feel right.
"Hold on, girls. Something doesn't feel right."
Now that you've stopped to listen, you notice that the nerve-wracking sounds of birds screeching in the air has given way to a dead silence. With Zecora's hut just a few hundred feet away, Scootaloo starts to complain.
"Come Oooooon, Raisin! The hut's RIGHT there!"
While you're certain that the danger isn't going to get you immediately, you hand your very expensive Stompstarter over to Applebloom in exchange for your shoes. She breathes a sigh of relief. "They weren't too heavy... Ah coulda carried 'em..."
"Shh... stay here guys..."
Scanning about once more, you notice the faintest movement from the bushes immediately down the path. The movement is terribly faint. You start to slowly approach the hut, getting closer to the bush.
You squint to see if there's any more movement. It's completely still once more.
"Come on out!" You slam your hooves into the ground, sending out a small but loud tremor. The bush shakes quickly. To the right of the bush, you see a lion like tail flicking up and down.
You determine that this creature has to be a griffin. You're aware of it's bird like appearance... you brace yourself for the worst.
You pass the flowers to your hoof so that you can address the bush. "I know you can understand me! Come out this instant!" You toss the flowers back into your teeth, being careful not to bite down on them too hard.
Bracing yourself, you hear the bush let out a mighty roar. A griffin leaps out of the bush, landing a couple feet in front of you. The eagle like face stares you down, letting out another shrill cry. You avert your head, but stand your ground, your Bouquet of Flowers firmly between your teeth.
The griffin lashes at you with it's talons, though they fail to even leave a scratch on your exterior. The creature is taken aback, looking at your skin then at it's claws. You start stamping your feet back and forth, making the creature jump back.
"Wooo!! Go Raisin! Show 'em who's boss!" Scootaloo cheers you on from a distance.
The griffin looks like it's been starving for some time... it's terribly thin. You're not sure where it came from, but it doesn't seem to be thinking clearly... or at all. It arches it's back and hisses through it's beak.
You look back at Scootaloo. "Hey! Throw me those apples!"
Scootaloo pauses for a second. "Apples? Don't you mean Hammer? Saw? Sneezing Powder?"
You reaffirm your decision. "Apples! Now!"
Scootaloo takes out all five Apples that she was asked to carry and rolls them your way. The griffin lunges again, this time with a curled up talon. As it's blow strikes the back of your head, you hear it recoil in pain. It yowls and sits on the ground, holding it's talon in pain.
"No, no! It's okay! Here, we have food! Take it!"
Through teary eyes, the griffin looks at you in confusion. You roll the apples towards the griffin. Looking back toward you and the apples, it decides that the apples are far more important. The starving griffin begins gorging itself on the food. It's nearly inhaling them, however...
>The starving, now injured griffin is feasting on the apples you gave it.
"Okay... it's distracted." You motion for the girls to come around the side, keeping your impervious body between them and it. They carefully though quickly use you as a shield while they pass around the edge of the bush and make their way towards Zecora's Hut. Through the window, you can see the zebra is completely engulfed in some sort of ritualistic medicine making practice.
As you move closer to your friends, the griffin pops it's head up and looks your way. It tries to walk toward you, but falls flat on it's face, letting out a yelp when it uses the talon it punched you with. It seems to lay by the bush.
Behind you is the door into Zecora's. The griffin lies next the bush, shivering slightly. You're not sure what to think of it.
"Go go go go go go go..." Sweetie Belle motions towards the door, hoping to get out of sight before the beast gets back up.
You stand outside of the door to the hut as Sweetie fumbles with the handle. Suddenly, the door finally opens up. Your three friends fall into the entry way of the house. You can hear Zecora fumbling as she snaps out of her trance. You spit the Bouquet out into your hoof, then turn your head while keeping a close eye on the Griffin. "...Zecora!!!"
The zebra moves towards the doorway and looms over your small, statuesque figure. She sees the Bouquet in your mouth. Before she goes to grab them, she notices the pile of griffin laying just a few hundred feet from the entrance of her house.
She asks you if you've killed the poor thing.
"No... actually, it looked really hungry, so I fed it some apples..."
Zecora looks down at you, then back up at the griffin. She reaches around the side of her door for a small satchel, then slowly moves out of the doorway. "Raisin... please come with me. I have not a clue who this griffin may be..."
The CMC begin to follow, but Zecora shoos them back toward the Hut. You and Zecora approach the huddled up griffin cautiously. As you get close, you hear a whimpering sound.
"...is it crying?" You ask.
Zecora nods, then leans down a little before addressing him. He just trembles, not giving her an immediate answer. She asks you if you can pick him up and bring him closer to the Hut. She doesn't think he's dangerous.
"Uh.. well, I may have forgot to mention, but he did kind of attack us on sight..."
Zecora backs away from the griffin. "His behavior now could be a trick! That... or this bird is really sick..." She's not quite sure what to think now that you've mentioned his aggressive behavior.
He doesn't seem to do much more than cry at the moment. He's trembling a bit, but nothing much else. You go to lift him up, but he slashes at you again with his good talon. When he rolls over, he looks like he's in a daze. Zecora leaps back, throwing her satchel at him. The griffin reaches out towards your face, but quickly passes out.
Zecora apologizes for putting you in harm's way and asks if you're hurt. You just stare back at her. She says that it should be safe to carry him now.
You load him on your back and drag him over to the Hut. He's sound asleep. Zecora tells you to leave him here for the moment; she'll find out what's bothering him.
As you enter, the CMC surround you with a group hug, ushering you into the house. Zecora stays outside with the griffin, placing her hoof over different parts of his head and neck. You're not sure what she's doing, but she seems to be the expert in medicine. You make sure to drop the Bouquet of Flowers off on the table, making a mental note to tell Zecora about it when she gets back inside.