My Little Pony Monthly Issue 21 (December 1,
1998)
My Little Pony Monthly
Established June 1997
This Newsletter is Child-Friendly
E-mail Tabby (TabbyMLP@aol.com) to be removed from the mailing list.
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Issue 21
December 1998
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Letters to the Editor
bri059@juno.com: This newsletter is so great!!!!!! I love it!
Pinky75910@aol.com: Thanks! Doin' a great job with your newsletter! It reaches
so many MLP fans, I've already gotten quite a few trades and sales!
Send your letters to the editor to Tabby at TabbyMLP@aol.com
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All The Pretty Little Ponies
(A Revisionist Interpretation of the MLP Mythos)
Chapter 10
by
C. Alan Loewen
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
For Candice and Allison
Synopsis: Megan, an eleven-year-old orphan who lives with her Aunt Constance,
has been given guardianship over seven magical ponies also known as the Seven Sisters. Megan
and the seven ponies have discovered that the ponies are the enchanted daughters of King Arthur
and Queen Guinevere, turned into ponies by Arthur's evil half-sister Morgan. Megan is now
taking the ponies back to their parents through the Wood of the World that can take them to any
time and any place on Earth. Megan and the ponies are accompanied by Madra, an Irish
Wolfhound; Spike, a baby dragon; Aunt Constance; and Sarah, a distant granddaughter of
Morgan. Unknown to them, Morgan has sent Hydia and her two daughters after them armed with
Morgan's book of spells. Comments and constructive criticism may be sent to
cloewen@juno.com
Megan awoke just enough to enjoy that feeling of being half-asleep and half-awake.
Nestled in a small feather bed and surrounded by the crisp smell of a cotton nightdress and cotton
sheets, she stretched and yawned and opened her eyes just enough to see Sarah still bundled up in
her bed. Aunt Constance's bed was empty and Megan assumed she had gotten up to greet the day
in the common room.
Morning sunlight streamed through the circular window showing their small
bedroom to be from another time and another place. Carved out of a mansion-sized mushroom,
the walls and floor were as hard as real wood though with a grainless white color. The door had
no handle, but a latch. The three small beds had rope lacing holding the feather-stuffed mattresses
in place instead of springs. A large pitcher of water with a blue filigree design stood in a basin
which in turn stood on an old wooden cupboard filled with coarse cotton towels.
Sarah yawned loudly and sat up in her bed rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She
dreamily smiled at Megan and plopped back into the pillows with a sigh. "After four days of
sleeping in the Wood with Ember as a pillow, I don't ever want to get up," she said. "Where's
your aunt?"
Megan stretched and yawned in turn. "Probably with the ponies or in the common
room eating breakfast." Their strange little host had placed the seven sisters in their own room
with large mattresses directly laid on the floor. Megan simply assumed that Madra and Spike had
spent the night in front of the walk-in fireplace in the common room.
Sarah yawned again and stretched. "I'm trying to get up. Really I am."
Megan laughed and threw a pillow which was immediately returned. Giggling
loudly, the two young girls began throwing pillows at each other.
"A pillow fight!" somebody yelled from the door. Ember had opened the latch with
her mouth and the little black pony laughed with delight at the scene of Megan and Sarah pelting
each other with pillows. Running to Aunt Constance's empty bed, Ember grabbed the pillow with
her teeth and, flinging her head, threw it with amazing accuracy at Megan.
Once again, pillows flew through the air, soon followed by feathers as Ember's
sharp teeth tore holes in the pillows.
"Oh, no!" came a gasp from by the door. Twilight and Aunt Constance stood in
shock at the feathery disaster before them. Covered in white feathers, Ember looked more like a
chicken than a pony; Megan and Sarah had feathers in their hair as well as through the bedclothes.
Feathers still floated around the room.
Megan and Sarah blinked at each other, shocked at themselves after realizing what
they had done.
Aunt Constance had gone very red in the face while Twilight looked on with great
disapproval. Several times, Megan's aunt tried to speak, but after a few moments simply told the
girls to clean up and shut the door behind her.
Megan sighed and stared at the scene before her. Ember blinked, her equine face
covered in feathers. Her nose suddenly twitched. "I forgot that I'm allergic to feathers," she said
sadly.
It was very hard to clean up the room when Ember's powerful sneezes sent feathers
flying.
Draggle could not sleep. Not only was the morning sun blazing through the little
window in her room, Hydia and Reeka were snoring so loudly Draggle swore she could feel the
entire Mushrump shake in time to their snorting and roaring. Muttering, she stumbled out of the
bed looking like she was going to get all tangled up in her long, thin legs and arms. Glancing at
the mirror, she brushed her fingers through her hair and stumbled out into the hallway to see if
there might be some breakfast she could get in the common room.
The guests in the common room stared at Draggle, a thin apparition with her
brilliant red hair uncombed and matted and her homespun dress wrinkled and slightly smelly. She
had slept in her clothes. Draggle simply ignored them and plopped down at an empty bench.
"Good morning, mistress," the strange innkeeper said, plopping a bowl of
something warm and spicy-smelling in front of her. "I trust you slept well."
He offered her a spoon, but Draggle simply stared at it, never having used one
before. Using fingers and slurping directly from the bowl, she ignored the stares of the guests.
However, she stared with interest at the great dog and baby dragon dozing in front of the fire.
The rest of the guests ignored them, but as they were all a strange lot themselves, Draggle
assumed that it was normal for a dog and dragon to be casual friends in front of a fire, at least in
this inn.
When Draggle was halfway through her bowl of porridge, a blue-colored roan pony
walked into the room, its hooves beating a rhythmic tattoo on the floor. It looked casually at
Draggle who stared back in open-mouthed surprise.
"Good morning," it said to her. "Excuse me, but you're drooling porridge on your
dress."
Draggle shut her open mouth with a snap and stared at the pony as it made its way
toward one of the windows. Again, as if by magic, the little innkeeper appeared through the
kitchen door pushing a wheelbarrow filled with fresh grasses and sweet-smelling herbs. "Good
morning, mistress Bowtie. I trust you slept well."
"Very well," the pony replied. "Your feather mattresses are far more comfortable
than the ground in the Wood."
Everyone jumped as, with a shriek, Draggle jumped up from her table and ran down
the hallway.
The Moochick stared in surprise, looked at Bowtie, and shrugged his shoulders. "It
couldn't have been the porridge," he muttered to himself. "It was freshly made this
morning."
Running back to her mother and sister, Draggle ran directly into another pony. This
one had wings. "Excuse me," it said with some concern. "You could have damaged my
wings."
Draggle gulped and stuttered incomprehensibly. She picked herself up from the
floor and continued to run down the curving hallway to the room where Hydia and Reeka still
slept. On the way, she passed another winged pony and several others. She almost tripped over a
middle-aged woman being escorted by a tiny unicorn.
Bursting into the room where her mother and sister were still sleeping, she shook
Hydia awake, "They're here!" she yelled. "Those ponies we're looking for are here!"
"Shut up, Draggle," Reeka muttered in a sleepy, oily voice. "Go away."
Hydia groaned as she forced her old body up out of the soft bed. "Get up,
lazybones," she ordered, rudely pushing Reeka on the shoulder. "Where are they?" she asked
Draggle.
Excited, it took Draggle a few seconds to finally gasp out that they were all over
the inn and getting up to eat breakfast.
Hydia smiled evilly to herself and grabbed the thick book of magic from underneath
her pillow where she had hidden it. "Now listen and listen well," she told her daughters. "We may
only have one chance to do this right and win Morgan's favor."
Good to his word, the Moochick had washed their clothes and, reluctant as they
were to put them back on, Megan and Sarah were once again dressed in T-shirts and shorts. The
chore of cleaning up the feathers behind them, they sat in the common room with Aunt Constance
where they ate porridge. The Moochick had found another bone for Madra and once again Spike
feasted on fresh fish, while the ponies contentedly munched on fresh grass and greens.
Though the lion man from the night before had long gone on whatever mission sent
him through the Wood of the World, there were enough unique human guests of the inn to keep
Megan fascinated. The pair of heavily cloaked travelers from the night before sat at their table as
if they had spent the night there. Megan was still convinced they were bears.
Halfway through their breakfast, a small lump of a woman entered the common
room followed by what Megan assumed were her two daughters. Under her arm, the woman
carried a large, leather-bound book. They sat at a table across the room and though they tried
hard not to stare, Megan knew the trio was intensely interested in the ponies.
"And I assume you will be leaving after your breakfast?" the Moochick asked Aunt
Constance, appearing at her side as if by magic.
Aunt Constance sighed and pushed her empty bowl away. "Yes, but regretfully.
Your hospitality has been so wonderful; we're reluctant to return to the Wood. Who knows how
long it will be before we sleep in real beds again?"
The Moochick smiled. "The Wood has a will …"
"… and the Wood has a way," Aunt Constance said, finishing his sentence for him.
"All I can say is that, hopefully, the Wood will get us to our destination quickly."
"And I hope that someday the Wood will guide you back here where you will
always be welcome. I have a few food items for you to carry for the rest of your trip." With that,
the funny little man bowed and, taking the empty bowls, disappeared through the door that led to
the kitchen.
"Megan?" Aunt Constance asked. "Would you and Sarah get the ponies and the rest
of our party together? It is time for us to leave."
Megan noticed that at this announcement, the tiny, old lady with the two daughters
turned quite pale. What is going on with those three, Megan wondered.
Nonetheless, Megan spoke quickly to the ponies and called for Madra and Spike.
Madra obediently came at Megan's command. Spike, however, was still in the middle of his final
fish and was ignoring all interruptions.
Hydia frantically paged through Morgan's spell book looking for any appropriate
spell that would stop the ponies from entering the Wood and continuing their journey. Nervously,
the pages seeming to stick together in her frustration, she grabbed for the first spell that sounded
even remotely useful-- a spell that would create a wall of fire.
"Dorkkulk glunguno mardglol vlerguno," she intoned, not having a hope of
pronouncing the archaic words correctly.
Suddenly the fire in the fireplace flared up and exploded into the common room
engulfing the baby dragon who chewed his fish. With a squeal of terror, Spike backpedaled away
from the fire for though dragons are immune to flame, it can still startle them when it bursts in
their face. "Hot!" Spike wailed. "Spike hot!"
The rest of the room erupted in various cries of alarm, the whinnies of frightened
ponies, and the startled roars of the two cloaked figures. The fire, acting as if it had a mind of its
own, jumped from table to table, igniting the floor, walls, and ceiling. The Moochick, his eyes
round with terror, ran from the kitchen to see his beloved inn on fire. "The stairs!" he cried over
the din. "Everybody to the stairs."
Panic spread through the room; ponies, people, and other creatures surged toward
the stairway that led down to open air and safety. The cloaked travelers threw back their hoods;
and, in spite of her fear, Megan noticed with satisfaction that they were bears, with the light of
intelligence shining from their large black eyes. Ripping off their cloaks, they tried unsuccessfully
to smother the fires that burned with a supernatural power. Realizing the futility of trying to douse
the flames, they turned and waddled toward the stairway.
Hydia still sat at her table stunned at the power of the spell, her mouth opening and
closing like a fish. Reeka laughed and clapped her hands at the display, oblivious to the possibility
of her own destruction. Only Draggle viewed the scene with true horror. "Hydia," she cried.
"What have you done? What have you done?"
"Nothing," Hydia spat back. "Come, girls. Run for the stairs."
With amazing speed for her age, Hydia sprinted for the stairway followed closely by
Reeka. Draggle, once again getting tangled in her own feet, tripped and fell into Medley causing
the winged pony to also stumble. Together, they rolled past the stairwell and into the adjoining
hallway. In a flurry of hooves and feathers, Medley tried to regain her feet but tangled together
with Draggle, had to momentarily still her panic and wait for Draggle to regain her own footing.
When the two were finally able to stand, flames blocked the hallway.
"What'll we do?" Draggle sobbed.
Medley backed away from the flames. Through them, she could see the last of the
inn's patrons fleeing down the stairway. "We have to find another way out," she said. "Come on."
Together they turned and fled down the hallway.
On the entrance lawn, the group turned to see the flames shooting out of the
western windows of the giant mushroom.
"Is everybody here? We need to count heads." The Moochick turned his back on
the burning mushroom inn and tried to count his guests and employees.
Suddenly, the old squat woman screamed. "My Draggle! She's not here. My
Draggle is still up there!" Frantically, she tore open her book to try and find some spell that would
reverse the harm she had caused.
"Medley!" several ponies also cried out at once. "Medley's missing."
By now, flames had followed the stairwell and were shooting out the front
door.
Medley and Draggle fled into one of the open bedrooms. As Draggle turned to shut
the door to keep out the thickening smoke, she could see the flames racing down the hallway
toward them.
"What are we going to do? How are we going to get out?"
Medley was already at the window and looking out at the ground below. "I have an
idea," she said. "I'll be able to carry you on my back and we'll just fly out the window."
"But I've never even ridden a horse," Draggle blubbered. "We'll hit the ground and
hurt ourselves or worse."
"Nonsense," Medley said, keeping a brave face. "It's simple. You open the window,
climb on my back, and then I'll jump. Now the window is too narrow for me to spread my wings
so we will drop some distance before I can control the flight, but it'll be fun."
They could hear the fire crackle at the door.
"Actually," Medley said, "you really don't have a choice."
Weeping and shaking with fear, Draggle opened the window and looked out at the
ground forty feet below. "Mother!" she screamed. "Mother!"
Far below, she could hear Hydia scream in response. "That's my Draggle. Draggle,
where are you?"
"I'm on the other side of the mushroom. We're trapped."
Within moments, the crowd had moved to the rear of the Mushrump.
"Tell them that we're going to fly out," Medley ordered Draggle. Draggle relayed
the message below. Smoke started to pour into the room from underneath the door.
Still shaking, Draggle climbed on Medley's back while the crowd below shouted
encouragement. "Remember," warned Medley, "we're going to drop a good distance before I am
able to spread my wings. Don't squeeze me too hard or move about. Just hold on and be
still."
Wailing, Draggle held onto Medley's mane and shut her eyes tight. "Here we go!"
Medley cried, and she jumped out the window.
Draggle screamed as she and the winged pony plummeted to the ground. Medley
spread her wings and strained to slow the descent, but it was not enough. With a bone-wrenching
crack, Medley hit the ground and tumbled while Draggle went sprawling into the grass.
"Draggle! Draggle!" Hydia cried. "Are you all right?" Dazed, Draggle stumbled to
her feet and tried to find Medley.
"Where's the pony?" she asked. "Is the pony all right?"
"That's not important," Hydia hissed. "We have to leave here. Now!"
"No," Draggle said, jerking her arm out of her mother's grasp. "I have to
see."
A large group of people had gathered around something laying in the grass. Draggle
pushed her way through. Medley lay on the grass, her eyes closed, her right foreleg bent at an
impossible angle.
"No!" Draggle cried. "No! I didn't mean for this to happen."
Suddenly she was violently pulled back away from the crowd by her mother.
"Listen, you knucklewit," she hissed. "We're in trouble here. We've failed. If you don't come
with me right now, I'm going to leave you here."
Draggle bit back a retort that leaving her would be a good thing, but she looked
again at the crowd that stood over the injured pony and felt a wave of shame sweep over her
heart. Leaving the pony behind her, she followed her mother and sister as the furious sound of
flames destroying the giant mushroom filled the air.
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Ember's Halloween
by Northstar
Ember, the baby pony, sighed as she looked at her closet of dress-up clothes.
"What can I be for Halloween?" she asked Baby Bubbles, who was dressing up as a pirate.
"I don't know," replied Baby Bubbles.
"I wish I had some neat clothes," Ember said. "Maybe I can be a doggy!"
"No, Baby Paws is a doggy, Ember."
"Oh," said Ember. "Maybe a kitty?"
"Nope," Baby bubbles said, "Tabby is a kitty."
"Wahhhh!" cried Baby Ember. "I can't go to the Halloween party ‘cause me don't
have a costume and I don't have a symbol to help with it!"
Just then Northstar came prancing in. "What's wrong, Ember?" she asked.
"I cannot find anything to be for Halloween."
"Why don't you dress up like a princess?" suggested Northstar.
"YEAH!" yelled Ember.
"That great idea, Northy," said Baby Bubbles.
Ember went galloping across the room to her dress-up clothes. "Ohhh, pretty!" she
exclaimed as she pulled out one of Ribbon's old dresses. "I be a pretty princess," she said. "But
what else can I wear?" she asked Ribbon, who had just come in.
"I don't know," replied Ribbon.
"I wish I had jewels to wear," sighed Ember.
The moon heard her wish and sent his star friends to fetch her. They whisked her
on top of a cloud to soar to the moon while her friends looked on.
"What's wrong, Ember?" asked the moon when she arrived in the sky.
"I need pretties for me costume for Halloween ball," she replied.
"Oh," said the moon. "Well, I don't have jewels, but I can give you stars."
"Really?" exclaimed Ember.
"Yes, I can," the moon replied. He sprinkled some stars over Ember and one stuck
to her. She tried to shake it off , but couldn't.
"Keep it on," urged the moon.
Ember looked at the star. It had become her symbol! She hadn't had a symbol
before! "Ooooo," she said. "Pretty!"
The moon just smiled and sprinkled more star dust on her dress and hair. "And now
for the final touch," he said as he took one big star and bent it into a crown shape. "Now your
outfit is done," he said.
"Thank you!" Ember cried as the stars helped her cloud float to earth.
At the ball, everyone agreed that Ember was the prettiest pony there! And that's
how she got her symbol.
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You Might be a My Little Pony Fanatic if...
chibimoon38@hotmail.com:
--you paint your flesh-and-blood pony one of the colors of the rainbow just so it will look like a
MLP.
--if you glue wings or a horn on your flesh-and-blood pony and expect it to fly or wink.
--you legally change your name to Molly, Megan, or Danny.
--you envy anyone with the names Megan, Danny, or Molly.
--you daydream more about Danny then your boyfriend, or Megan and Molly more than your
girlfriend.
--you truly believe that you're really Megan, and Firefly just hasn't found you yet.
--you see some purple paint on the ground and you think it could be smooze.
--if you are studying volcanoes in your science class, and you raise your hand and tell your teacher
about the Volcano of Gloom and that the witches live there.
--you buy a flesh-and-blood pony and are upset that it doesn't talk.
--you make your own rainbow locket and carry it around with you everywhere; and when your
friends ask what it is, you tell them that you are the guardian of the rainbow locket which holds
the rainbow of light and that the Moochick gave it to you.
--when you see a rainbow, you try to figure out a way to Dream Valley.
Ambie182@aol.com:
--you take a quick shower instead of a bath, so your pony friends can have a bathing session in
your tub.
--you bring your Sea Ponies in the pool with you.
--Applejack "helps" you make apple confections (You all know what I mean; she sits on the
counter with you when you bake apple pie-- hehe).
MeryTreat@aol.com:
--you name all of your pets and stuffed animals after MLPs.
--you start calling everyone you meet by their MLP names.
--for every Halloween since you were five, you wore a MLP costume.
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Whether it's rain, sleet, snow, or ice, you cannot escape! It's time for:
---------Gusty and Applejack's Talking Times!-----------
Applejack: Greeting one and all! Applejack here!
Gusty: And dis is Gusty.
Applejack: Gee, what's your problem?
Gusty: I hab a cold.
Applejack: Oh.
Gusty: Don't sound so sorry for me.
Applejack: Okay then! First topic!
Gusty: A-A-ACHOOO!
Applejack: Wow, what did you do to get that cold?
Gusty: Nothin'.
Applejack: Oh, I know what it was.
Gusty: What?
Applejack: It's when you went outside when it was freezing rain and played hockey.
Gusty: I had to practice.
Applejack: Couldn't you have skipped practicing for one day?!
Gusty: Nope.
Applejack: One of these days hockey is going to be the end of you...
Gusty: But what a way ta go.
Applejack: Aaanyway... the baby ponies are trying to decide what they want for Christmas!
Gusty: And der lists are very long, too.
Applejack: Well, didn't you have a lot of stuff you wanted when you were a little pony?
Gusty: Nope. All I wanted for Christmas was hockey stuff.
Applejack: You didn't want a baby human doll or PonyPrice things?
Gusty: Neber.
Applejack: You were a weird baby pony, weren't you?
Gusty: Yup.
Applejack: Say, I've got an idea! Let's have some adult ponies call in and tell us what their
favorite toy was when they were little that they got for Christmas!
Gusty: Well, what was yours?
Applejack: Mine was a PonyPrice Kitchen Set with all the accessories! I would play with that for
hours on end!
Gusty: Guess wat mine was. ACHOO!
Applejack: God bless you. I would have to guess it was a hockey stick.
Gusty: Cwose. It was a package of a hockey stwick, puck, an jersey.
Applejack: Oh well. First call is in! Hello, you're on the air on "Gusty and Applejack's Talking
Times!" Who is this?
Caller: This is Quarterback. I'm calling about the favorite gift for Christmas thing.
Gusty: Yup. So wat was it?
Applejack: I bet I know...
Caller: It was my very first football given to me by my Uncle Halfback.
Gusty: Dat's what I-I-ACHOO!
Caller: You better take something to get rid of that cold, Gusty.
Gusty: Well, at weast I didn't chicken out di other day when you were supposed to practice wit
me.
Caller: It was raining and the rain was almost ice!
Gusty: Devotion... that of which ou have none.
Caller: Whatever. Talk to you guys later.
Applejack: Bye!
Gusty: Yeah... bye.
Applejack: Gusty! That was kinda rude, wasn't it?
Gusty: Well, he was supposed to practice with me tat day.
Applejack: Let's take our next caller. You're on the air!
Caller: Hello. Glad you could take my call. This is Bubbles.
Gusty: Hullo.
Applejack: And what was your favorite Christmas gift as a child?
Caller: Well, I always adored going swimming. But I never thought baths were much fun. So for
Christmas, I was surprised when I tore off some wrapping paper to find that there was a little
rubber yellow duck sitting there!
Gusty: And...
Caller: I didn't know that those were designed for bathtubs. I only thought they were for rivers
and lakes! That's when my parents told me that I could play with it in the bathtub! I was so
happy. From then on I began to enjoy my baths.
Applejack: Cool. Thanks for coming on the air.
Gusty: NO MORE CWALLS! ACHOO!!!
Applejack: Why, Gusty?
Gusty: Cwause we have to take a commercial break.
Applejack: We'll be back right after this!
Cupcake: Does everything you bake come out in one big glob?
Gingerbread: And it's not supposed to be jello?
Cupcake: Then let us do the baking!
Gingerbread: Here at Gingerbread and Cupcake's Diner, we can cater to any kind of party.
Cupcake: That's right. Whether it be a Bushwoolie hole or Flutter Valley, we can get the food
you want there!
Gingerbread: Or you can come by and pick it up.
Cupcake: Our diner is conveniently located on the corner of Page and Rainbow. Please visit us
soon.
Gingerbread: From 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM is when we are open. Hope to see you there.
Gusty: Welcomb back.
Applejack: Now we have our special guests coming in!
Gusty: We were finally able to book them!
Applejack: From one of the hottest daytime talk shows in Ponyland, here's Tabby and Sugarberry
from Tabby and Sugarberry's Gossip Hour!
Tabby: Hi, guys.
Gusty: Hey, Tab. Glad ou both could make it.
Sugarberry: Glad to be here! Sorry about your cold, Gusty.
Gusty: Oh well.
Tabby: See... that's a reason to say no to sports.
Gusty: Sports are awesome. Say yes to sports!
Tabby: No!
Gusty: Yes!
Tabby: No!
Gusty: Yes!
Tabby: N--
Sugarberry: ENOUGH!
Applejack: See what I have to put up with month after month?
Sugarberry: I know how you feel.
Gusty: What was dat supposed to mean?
Tabby: Yeah. Don't you like doing the shows with us?
Applejack: Sure we do. It's just sometimes you get carried away, Gusty.
Sugarberry: And your extreme hatred about the babies and Tex get carried away sometimes, too,
Tabby.
Tabby: Gee, now your true feelings come out.
Gusty: Well, den! Tabby an I will just start our own show!
Tabby!: Right! Tabby and Gusty's Cool Corner!
Gusty: Uh…that would be Gusty and Tabby's Cool Corner.
Tabby: Tabby and Gusty.
Gusty: Gusty and Tabby.
Tabby: Tabby and--
Applejack: Let's not start this again! Let's just keep our shows the way they are, okay???
Gusty: Fine.
Sugarberry: This is going to be a loooong show isn't it?
Applejack: Oh, yeah...
Tabby: So...
Gusty: What to say... ummm...
Applejack: We could talk about... uh... no... umm...
Sugarberry: Let me see here...
Tabby: So first we have too many words--
Gusty: An now we're at a loss for dem.
Sugarberry: Well, I'm writing a new Christmas mystery novel.
Applejack: What's it about?
Sugarberry: It's about how... well... I've got it here... let me just read a part of it...
Tabby: Okay.
Sugarberry: "The wind howled outside. The shutters banged against the rickety old house with
the cobwebs in every corner.
‘What a way to spend Christmas,' Baby Present sighed.
‘Someone will save us... someone has to...' Baby Future's voice drifted off.
‘No one has ever done it before when we were in such a mess,' Baby Past
mumbled, lying her head on the wooden floor."
Gusty: Uh... I don't get it.
Sugarberry: I guess I should have just told you about it. See, you know the Christmas story
about Scrooge and the three ghosts?
Applejack: Yeah...
Sugarberry: Well, in this story, the ghosts are portrayed as babies. Mr. Miser is an evil sorcerer
who traps the babies inside a magical house. And if the babies are not free to roam about the
world, then there would be no Christmas celebration for anyone. No one would remember
Christmas... it would simply pass on by as any other day, for the other ponies would lose track of
time and not remember what day it was.
Applejack: Sounds interesting.
Gusty: But very confusing.
Sugarberry: It's hard to describe. You'll have to read the book.
Tabby: I'm getting another cat for Christmas.
Applejack: ANOTHER one?
Tabby: I love cats!
Sugarberry: What color will this one be?
Tabby: Calico.
Gusty: Wat's her name goin' be?
Tabby: I'm thinking Calico.
Gusty: So she's calico in color, so you'll name her Calico.
Tabby: Yeah.
Applejack: Actually, I love it! Very cool!
Tabby: Thanks, Appy.
Gusty: Guess what I'm getting?
Sugarberry: A new hockey jersey.
Applejack: New hockey sticks.
Tabby: Hockey... oh, what's that rubber thing called?... puck!
Gusty: Yup. And I'm also getting all new equipment! Gloves, shin pads... da works.
ACHOO!
Sugarberry: I'm going to get some stuff for my strawberry garden!
Applejack: I'm getting more apple trees and pie pans!
Gusty: I can't wait for Chwistmas.
Applejack: Speaking of Christmas, we might have a special Christmas special edition of Gusty
and Applejack's Talking Times-- so keep your eyes peeled!
Sugarberry: Hey, who all is on your Christmas card list? I'd send one to every pony but... you
know how many ponies there are!
Tabby: Well, Gusty, Applejack, Sugarberry, Mimic, Powder, Tickle, Seashell, Crumpet,
Blueberry Baskets, and Boysenberry Pie…and a lot more-- Bushwoolies, too! But NO babies and
NO Tex!
Applejack: Aw... have a heart, Tabby. Just be nice to them for Christmas!
Gusty: Even I'm giving some babies some cards... and all of the big brothers... including
Tex.
Applejack: I'm giving a card to lots of ponies!
Sugarberry: Me too! Come on, Tabby!
Tabby: I'll think about it.
Gusty: After all, your name has the word baby in it.
Tabby: Huh? EEEEK! It does! I'm changing my name! Let's see... how about... Bolt?
Applejack: Bolt?!?!
Gusty: I like the name Mud.
Tabby: Fine... I'm changing my name to Mud and going into hiding.
Applejack: Hehehe... well, that's all the time we have for today on Gusty and Applejack's
Talking Times!!!
Gusty: It's been brought to you today by: Gingerbread and Cupcake's Diner. Got a food order
you can't make? Let them do the cooking!
Applejack: And by Bushwoolie Bargain Books-- It's food for your brain.
Gusty: Yup.
Applejack: And we thank Tabby-- er-- Mud... formally known as Tabby... and Sugarberry for
coming in today! Be sure to watch their show!
Gusty: ACHOO!!!!! And ours! So tune in next time for another exciting episode of Gusty and
Applejack Talking Times!
Applejack: This is Applejack and Gusty signing off! Have a great day!
Theme song: Where do you go to, get all the info, your sweet
heart so gratefully wants? Where do you go to, have all the fun you, ever can possibly want?
Gusty and Appy, they're normally happy, to entertain you! Gusty and Appy, Gusty and Appy,
they'll know just what to do. They'll love tooooo iiinnnnform yooooou!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
by Wonder and Midnight Dancer
http://members.tripod.com/~Aynslee/DancersDream.htm
email: chamber@lakenet.com
Dancer stared silently at the scene before her taking place at Whitebrook's mile-long
training oval. Jazzman was practicing for an upcoming Steeplechase on the inside turf track,
and Mindy was galloping around the outside dirt track. Her other friend, Hope, was in the indoor
arena practicing stadium jumping.
Dancer frowned deeply and hobbled off back towards the garden. "Stupid cast!"
Dancer hissed as she stared at it.
A few months ago, Dancer had fallen and broken her leg, ending her racing career
before it started. At first she had been in the hospital, but when she was fitted with a smaller cast
and able to move around, she was allowed to return to Whitebrook.
As Dancer approached the garden, she saw that someone was already there. It was
a handsome gray Andalusian colt named Orion. He was a superb artist. Today he was painting a
picture of Mindy, his girlfriend.
"Hi, Orion," Dancer said as she walked over to where he sat.
"Hiya, Dancer! How are you feeling?" he asked.
"Okay, I guess," Dancer told him. "Nice work, as usual," she said as she looked at
the painting.
Orion was about a year older than Dancer, Mindy, and Hope; but he was a great
friend and a good listener when someone needed to talk. "Have any more of those dreams?"
Orion asked.
"No, I don't think I will again. I'm just wondering if they are really true," Dancer
said.
"Well, you know there is only one way to find out," Orion said as he put
down his brush. "Done!" he said.
"Are you going to sign it?" Dancer asked.
"Right, right," Orion mumbled as he picked up the brush, dipped it in the black
paint, and neatly signed his name in the bottom left corner.
"What will you be working on next?" Dancer asked.
"Wonder and Jazzman thought it would be okay to sculpt a statue of Lord
Whitebrook for a centerpiece to the fountain in front of the main barn," Orion told her.
Dancer nodded. Lord Whitebrook was the first Whitebrook stallion and had been
Jazzman's great-great-grandsire.
"Orion!" Mindy called as she trotted towards him.
Dancer made a face and turned. As she walked down a small path, she started
thinking again. Duchess... her grandmother. Her parents had wanted Dancer to meet her.
"Why didn't we go?" Dancer wondered. "In my dreams, they told me about
Duchess. I think I'll go fiddle with the computer and see if I can find anything," Dancer mumbled
to herself.
Dancer stared at the computer screen. She had been searching for the last hour.
Wonder had given Dancer permission to use the office computer.
Beside her on the desk was a printed-out idea sheet. When she scanned the sheet,
she smiled. First on the list was a racing clinic. Wonder had thought it was a good idea, and so
did Dancer. That had been one of the surprises Wonder was thinking of. Dancer would be better
by then, and Wonder had asked her to help her teach some of the horses since she wasn't going to
take part in it.
Just then Mindy burst into the office. "He proposed!" she squealed.
"He did?" Dancer asked with a gasp. "I thought you liked Triumph," she teased.
"Don't joke about that. You know he was just trying to get us mad at each other,"
Mindy warned.
"I know, sorry," Dancer apologized. "If I could jump up and down and hug you, I
would, but my leg still really hurts. When is the big day?" she asked.
"I just wanted to come in here and tell you; I'll be right back, as soon as Orion and I
talk about it more," Mindy said, then rushed out of the office as quickly as she came in.
"Did you find anything?" Hope asked that evening after supper as Dancer slowly
made her way back to the office.
"Yeah, Clover was Duchess's only daughter; Lord Ainsley was a Triple Crown
winner ten years ago; and Clover was a princess. It went on and said how they died, but if I'm
related to them, I don't want to read it," Dancer told her friend.
"Wow. Do you think you really are their daughter?" she asked.
"I don't know; it's kinda hard to think of yourself as the daughter of a princess
when you grew up in an orphanage. And the daughter of a famous race horse when you're
limping around with a broken leg and can barely walk," Dancer said, then glared at her cast.
"C'mon, you know you'll get better; the doctor said you will get your cast off in a
week or two. In the meantime, we can help Mindy plan her wedding," Hope suggested.
Dancer shook her head. "No, I've got to find Duchess as soon as I get this dumb
thing off," she said, then turned and walked towards the training barn.
"I'm glad you came," Dancer told Orion as they waited outside a gigantic two-story
barn three weeks later.
"I'm glad I did, too; with Wonder and Jazzman busy, you need someone to come
along, and I was getting exhausted planning for my wedding," Orion laughed, then looked over at
the two stallions standing at the entrance to the barn.
Upstairs, a chestnut mare looked out the second story window, and down at Orion
and Dancer. "Who is she?" Duchess asked the pony beside her.
"She says her name is Dancer," the pony told her.
"How old is she?" Duchess asked.
"A year and a half. She spent the first year of her life at Dream Valley Orphanage,
and ran away to a place called Whitebrook Acres earlier this spring," the pony informed Duchess.
"She is limping. Why?" Duchess asked.
"A terrible accident earlier this summer; she had broken her leg," the pony replied.
"Send them away; she is not my granddaughter," Duchess said, then turned and left
the window.
"Sorry, Dancer," Orion said as he helped her out of the taxi back at Whitebrook.
"It's not your fault," Dancer said. Fighting back tears, she walked to her stall.
"Why is this happening to me?" she cried as she slowly laid down in her stall.
The next morning was Mindy and Orion's wedding. After Dancer took her daily
walk around the training oval to get the strength back in her leg, she watched as Hope and
Hollywood styled Mindy's mane and tail.
Now Dancer was watching Orion and Mindy saying their vows. Hope looked over
at Dancer and smiled; Dancer smiled back.
"You looked great!" Hollywood cried as she hugged the bride. "Sorry, I can't help
crying at weddings!" she giggled.
"The food is good," Hope said as she brought over a plate of appetizers.
"Yeah!" Dancer agreed as she ate a baked and breaded cheese stick.
"Look at Wonder and Jazzman!" Hope pointed over by the fountain, where music
was playing. Wonder and Jazzman were dancing together; so were Mindy and Orion.
"Yeah, Wonder is a good dancer. Did you see the size of the wedding cake?"
Dancer asked. This wedding reception and party was turning out to be fun.
Two days later Dancer said goodbye to Mindy and Orion as they left for their
honeymoon. Hope was going to a show in the next town, so Dancer walked into town to go to
the mall; she needed something to cheer her up.
As she stood in Bushwoolie Bargain Books looking through the My Little People
Monthly magazine, she thought she heard someone call her name. "Dancer!" she heard someone
call.
Dancer looked up and around, but saw nobody; then she looked out the
door into the food court; a yellow pony was standing outside the bookstore waving frantically at
her.
"Dancer!" the pony called.
"Sunflower?" Dancer gasped. "Hi!" she said as she hugged her old friend.
"Where were you?" Sunflower asked.
"I live at Whitebrook now; can you believe it?" Dancer said as she hugged her
friend again. "How are you?" Dancer asked.
"I'm fine. I have a flower shop downtown, and was just having lunch when I saw
you in here. Why did you run off?" Sunflower asked.
"I wanted to be a racehorse, and have a good home," Dancer told her. "I broke my
leg a few weeks after I got home from Arabia," she said.
"You went to Arabia?!" Sunflower gasped.
"Yeah, I went with Wonder to the Dubai World cup; she won," Dancer said.
"Wow, you are lucky!" Sunflower smiled.
"Not really; I'm never going to race," Dancer sighed.
"There are other things you can do besides racing. You were so talented back in
the orphanage," Sunflower said.
"That's what Hope said; Mindy, too," Dancer told her.
"Who are they?" Sunflower asked.
"Just some friends back at Whitebrook; I met Hope when I went to Arabia, and she
came to Whitebrook. Mindy I met the first day at Whitebrook; she just got married to a colt
named Orion," Dancer said.
"I've missed you," Sunflower told her.
"I've missed you, too. I have been pretty lonely today," Dancer said.
"Maybe we could see each other again?" Sunflower asked.
"Yeah, I'll come by your flower shop," Dancer said.
"Or I'll come by your stable," Sunflower said as she waved goodbye.
The next day, Dancer was going to try to trot around the oval for the first time.
Wonder and Jazzman had already finished their workouts, and so had most of the other horses on
the farm.
As Dancer walked out of her stall, she saw a note for her on the wall. "Dancer,
Jazzman and I went into town to mail a letter to Magic and do some shopping. Hope went to
Hollywood's; she didn't want to wake you up; you looked comfortable in there," Dancer read
outloud. "Don't trot all around the oval if it hurts too much; you will get better if you don't push
yourself. See you after lunch. Wonder."
Dancer smiled at the note Wonder had left, then walked out to the oval. A chestnut
mare was standing next to the gap as Dancer walked out. Dancer had never seen her before, or
she would have known it was Duchess.
"Are you a racehorse?" the mare asked.
"I wish," Dancer said. "I broke my leg earlier this year," she told her. "I'm just
trotting today; my first time."
"Go ahead; I'll watch you," the mare said. Dancer walked out and started up the
oval. At the quarter pole, she moved out into a trot. At first it was a little weird, but then she
hadn't trotted in a while. By the half-mile pole she was trotting smoothly.
"This is great!" Dancer said as she passed the three-fourths mile marker. She
smiled as she walked off the oval and over to the mare.
"Looks like you had a fun time," the mare said as Dancer looked at her leg.
"Yeah, it was okay. I wish it didn't happen." Dancer frowned.
"There are some things you just can't change," the mare said. "Do you want to
take a walk?" she asked.
"Sure," Dancer shrugged. "Who are you?" she asked when they reached the end of
the drive.
"I will tell you, but first I want to know a little more about you," the mare said.
"I lived at the orphanage since before I can remember, a little over a year ago. They
said that they found me sleeping at the bottom of a cliff. I remember having bruises, but I was
unconscious, and woke up a few days later," Dancer said.
"Wow, then what happened?" the mare asked.
"Since I couldn't remember anything, they had me stay at the orphanage.
Sunflower was my first best friend; we played together. I ran away early spring. I wanted to
become a racehorse," Dancer told her. "Wonder and Jazzman were so nice to me. They adopted
me and gave me a real home. I saw Sunflower yesterday. She and I are going to get together
soon, and I thought I'd introduce her to Mindy, Hope, and Hollywood; they are my new friends.
Mindy just got married, so she is off on her honeymoon," Dancer said.
"Sounds like your life is okay after all," the mare said.
"Yeah, except for one thing. I want to find out my past."
"Your past?" the mare asked.
"Yeah," Dancer said. "When I broke my leg, I dreamed about my real family. They
were so nice; they told me about when I was a baby, and about my grandmother. I wanted to find
out if the dream was real, but I guess it wasn't," Dancer said as she looked at the ground.
"Yes, Dancer, the dream was real," the mare said. "My name is Duchess."
Dancer stopped and stared at her grandmother. "You-- you are?" she gasped.
Duchess nodded and took a few steps back.
"I thought you didn't want to see me?" Dancer said.
"I didn't want to that day; I also had wanted to find more about you, without you
knowing who I really was," Duchess said.
"Oh," Dancer said.
"But yes, you are my granddaughter, Midnight Dancer!"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LETTERS OF LOVE
Shining Super Special #1
By Shining (http://www.angelfire.com/mi/shining48/index.html)
It seemed to Honor, standing in Smoothie's embrace in the London hospital, that
her whole world had just come crashing down around her. "Oh, Smoothie," the bay mare wept,
"Caesar's gone! Why did he have to die? I loved him too much." Honor hid her face in her
hooves, protecting herself from some unknown demon that would dare take her beloved
away.
With tears in his eyes, the roan stallion hugged Honor tightly. "Honor, love, he's
not gone forever. You'll see him again one day," Smoothie comforted with his British
accent.
Hiccoughing, Honor's cries subsided and she sat down in an uncomfortable hospital
chair. "What am I going to do without Caesar?" she asked despondently. "There's no point to
life without him anymore."
Smoothie placed his hooves firmly on Honor's slim shoulders and shook her gently,
a light appearing in his eyes. "How dare you say that, On My Honor. Your life is indeed
important. And you will go on without Caesar. It will be a hard and rocky road, but you will
succeed! Because you are On My Honor and nothing and no one can change that. We all love
Caesar, but we all love you, too." His voiced trembled with emotion.
The roan stallion's speech, though true and valiant, could not break Honor away
from her daze. "I need to go back home," she whispered. Honor's eyes watered; tears threatened
to fall down her dark face.
Smoothie's expression softened. "Of course you do, love. Learning to smile again
will take time."
"I don't think I'll ever smile again," Honor confessed. Tears rolled down her
beautiful face unchecked. "I didn't get to tell him how much I loved him."
Patting Honor's shoulder, Smoothie smiled ruefully. "He knows, love, he
knows."
* * *
My Dearest Caesar,
I am writing this letter to you because it is the only way I know that I can express
my grief. Why did you leave me? You are off to a place that I cannot go. And I am left here all
alone. The world seems so strange without you here. All the colors are gone.
If only I could turn back time and save you. I relive the moment that car swung
around that curve so many times that I know I will never forget it. So many "what ifs" run
through my head; I try to clamp my hooves over my ears to block out the shrieks. But I cannot.
Ironic, isn't it? The car was coming back from a wedding. And we were torn apart on our
honeymoon. Sometimes I wish that the couple in the car had been killed, or at least injured, but
then I feel remorse because I would not want anyone else to go through the agony I do. But how
could they walk away from this untouched, when I can not touch you either?
London was such a special place for us. We had so much fun there. But now I
think about that city and only see the dreariness of it.
I can see you so clearly in my mind, but I am afraid that with time your image will
fade. I can see your quiet smile and your dark eyes. I remember the way you would look into my
eyes, searching for something.
I remember the first time I saw you dance, the way the moon bathed you in all its
glory, and it was wonderful. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I cherish those
moments, knowing that nothing like it will ever happen again.
For you are gone, to a place where I cannot follow. Farewell, my love. Perhaps
one day, we will meet again, and it will be a glorious reunion.
Forever yours,
Honor
* * *
Coming back to Glorified Acres was a blessing and a curse for Honor. The stables
where she had grown up to be a champion were just more reminders that the happy times she and
Caesar had shared would be no more.
Together, Honor and Caesar had trained at Glorified Acres with Honor's parents,
Shining and Signature Required, to be two of the world's top dancers. Honor had lived on the
farm all her life with her twin brother, In A Moment, but Caesar had come to Glorified Acres as a
lost orphan. Caesar had always been reluctant to share his past with anybody, and all Honor
knew was that his parents, who had also been performers, had been killed in a terrible train
wreck.
For days Honor wandered the winding paths that stretched across Glorified Acres'
vast property, lost in thoughts and memories. Honor remembered little about the first few days
after Caesar's death.
The funeral was a blur in Honor's mind. She remembered seeing Caesar, looking
nothing like he ever did alive. Before, he was strong and proud. But now, he seemed fragile and
pale. His once-shining dapple gray coat was dull in death.
In the very back of her mind, Honor knew she was losing. She could feel herself
being pulled farther and farther into a quagmire of oblivion, but she felt so weak and defenseless
without Caesar, that she didn't have enough strength to pull herself out.
All of Honor's friends and family tried in every way to get Honor out of her misery.
Honor's young friend, Liberty Bell, a baby pony from Dream Valley, baked Honor chocolate chip
cookies. Smoothie read Honor poetry. Baby Gusty, a long time friend of the family, tried
cracking corny jokes. Honor's best friend and twin brother, Moment, had Honor pose as a model
for an art project. But it was all to no avail.
"Honor, I'm going to start training on some new two-year-olds. Would you mind
helping me with their first lesson?" Shining, Honor's mother, asked one day.
Silently, Honor followed her mother, who looked exactly like her, to the training
barn. To make up for Honor's muteness, Shining kept up an endless chatter. "There are a few
foals out there that have a lot of promise. I've been having the older colts and fillies like Orion
take some of the new ones under their wing for a while. And we might have Wonder's daughter's
friend, Mindy, come in to do a clinic. She's originally from Arabia, but she's staying at
Whitebrook for a while."
As soon as the two bay mares had reached the training barn, Shining saw a
difference in Honor. She held her head high and perked her ears. Shining smiled knowingly.
"It's in your blood; you can't stop dancing even when tragedy strikes," Shining said quietly.
Honor blinked back tears and nodded. "But Caesar's in my heart," Honor
responded.