[A. Visual]

[Well here's a face that hasn't been on the scrolls much recently; you'd be forgiven for assuming she disappeared, given that the only sign she was still around was the tangible lack of Harvey Finevoice losing his damn mind. She seems to be mostly unchanged, though, aside from a bit of tiredness around her eyes and her hair being more than a little nappy.]

Hey. Someone mind telling me what I missed over the last month or so? I got the latest tabloid trash, but past that and the wedding, something is bound to have gone wrong in that time frame.

[There's a long pause as the pegasus tries to remember what she was originally going to add, but after a minute she seems to get it, looking aside awkwardly.]

And... hey. Anyone know how to take care of birds? There's... uh... one around here that got in real bad shape because of the bad winter we had, and then the whole thing with Tirek, and... [Cough.] ...look, what I'm saying is that it doesn't have the feathers left to fly any more, and I was trying to find out if there was any way to help it heal faster. Not magic or something silly like taping the feathers back on, but... I dunno.

Anything.

[And just as awkwardly, Flare shuts off the scroll.]

[B. Action - Ponyville streets/Night Market, daytime]

[Some time after her post, the pegasus is skulking through town with a singular destination in mind - a cart that she's seen set up in the Night Market. That wouldn't be too out of place, except it's the very end of spring - temperatures are getting higher, the sun is getting brighter... and Flare is huddled up in a thick, full-body cloak. She had to give credit where it was due - Nephenee's Hearth's Warming giff was indispensable. She might be drawing a bit of attention, though, in her desire to avoid it.]

[So many folks lately had lost others...and her own heart was burdened a bit by this, truth be told. But Nephenee was bound and determined to try to make the best of the situation...as much as she could, anyways. She wanted to help those who had lost loved ones recently, and while she ultimately wanted to do it for all that had, she needed to start somewhere small...]

[So there would be a pony knocking on doors today, handing out some gifts. When they open the door, they see a possibly-familiar pelorus pony there.]

( List of people inside; Find the peace within ourselves, No need for a cure )
[OOC: I'm sure I forgot some people who've lost some recently, so please poke me via PM or Plurk if you think of any!] 

[Who's this pony? His face certainly isn't familiar...at least, not without that trademark black mask. But the voice, lower and flatter than it's ever sounded, is definitely Strong Bad's. Yes, apparently that's him, but he won't even look at the scroll directly.]

Lemme make one thing crystal-clear: I never want to hear a word about friendship again. At least not where I'm concerned.

I'm nobody's friend. Been there, tried it...and ended up being the bad guy anyway, so I'm thinking life's trying to tell me to stick to what I know. We're all be much happier pony-people this way, and that's just how it's gonna have to be.

So, uh...I hate you. I guess.

[It's early evening when the scrolls come on, showing the small-ish pegasus. He looks... well, troubled would probably be the best description. Like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders and found it too heavy.]

I've... um. I've got a question, for anyone that might be able to help.

[He doesn't look too confident about that idea, though. He sighs softly, fiddling for a moment with the ground, not quite looking at the scroll.]

I was wondering if any of you have heard of, ah... "Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder"? And know anything more about it other than "it's pretty much what it sounds like."

[A shrug.] I've already tried researching around here, and haven't had any luck. So... any help that anyone can give me would be really, really appreciated.

..Thanks. [And then the feed cuts out.]

[As fun as the Gala was, it did something for Kafei he never thought would be possible: Put things in perspective. The food, while very pretty and some of it absolutely delicious, had some...interesting ingredients to it. Namely flowers, grasses, hay, normal pony food. It was not something he could eat, and a part of him was very thankful for that, and yet there were people...people he knew weren't ponies before, eating them like it was no problem. Nothing wrong with that, in fact he was almost impressed.

...And then it made him think. A lot. If he were a pony, how long would it take him to start eating those sorts of things? Because right now? It sounded a lot easier than what his body craved. In other words, in desperation of trying to get some kind of protein, Kafei often found himself snapping at bugs. It was awful, demeaning...but would anyone else think so? So far he's been able to control himself just in time, but with the way he shows up on the scroll resting pathetically on one of his cushions and the way his stomach begins to growl, he almost wonders if he should stop caring.

He could, you know, hunt, but that takes a lot more effort... Rabbits are way too fast.]

How...how long does it take to adjust to eating strange things here? Did anyone else have a difficult time with this, because I think I'm going mad.

[He says that so casually. But no, really, how long did it take for others to stop depending on cakes, because that information is important. For science.]

Maybe I'm just homesick, but knowing that this party is only a few weeks away, I've been wondering how strange it would be to attend in ...a mask.

[Because if there's one thing a party needs, it's a tiny fox in a mask.]

...I never thought I'd ever have to ask something like that, it's almost hard to imagine a large event without masks. You see, back in Clock Town we held a similar yearly Carnival and mask wearing was simply tradition. Seeing as I missed...ours, I thought it could be...fun...to make more masks with...others.

[He almost sounds hesitant, but it's Kafei so who's even surprised anymore.]

Unless it's too strange, of course, I wouldn't want to ruin your own traditions. ...And provided I even attend.

Yeah hey hi. So, I don't really have a horse in this idiot race but I've got a question for a bunch of you. You know. You guys who want to jump back into the monster that has us here to get your friend back?

Are you idiots?

...Okay. Maybe that's a bit harsh even if it's probably true! Cause you've got every right to want to tear this thing apart. I mean I sure want to. But hey let's consider something. So you get inside to find your friend.

Then what?

Let's say that you somehow don't find yourself in an environment you know nothing about, that this thing doesn't have several layers of terrifying defense you know nothing about, and that you aren't helpless before this thing. Assuming all that miraculously happens to be true and you do find her?

How do you know this thing hasn't done something to her? How do you know it hasn't done something to all of us for that matter, but specifically the person it got its hands on? How do you know, if you can get to her beyond all odds, the thing keeping us here didn't want you to find her?

I've seen this crap happen time after time after time, and I don't care what super duper powers or junk you think you have, going back into this thing is a terrible idea that at best is just going to end in you getting caught or at worst is going to make this dumb thing angry enough to decide it needs to punish all of us.

I'm not saying don't be angry or want to do something, just don't do something that can only get you killed because you're so pissed you decide you're not going to care what you do, just that you're going to do something. You can't win in this. Only chance you got is maybe appealing to it like whatever nerdlinger wrote that sappy note here a day or two ago. The thing doesn't seem to actively be trying to kill us, so maybe it'll listen to you trying to beg it. Maybe.

...I'm not saying don't miss her. I'm just saying that maybe if you're at a point where you want to get back something you lost so bad that you're that fixated on it, it...isn't really about the thing you lost. It's just about you. And if that's the reason you're going into this monster, that's a pretty terrible reason. I dunno why people were jumping into it in the first place, I'll be a nice guy and give the benefit of a doubt that it was for a good reason. So do you really wanna negate her good reason with a bad one?

You can't brute force something like this. No matter how hard you try. That's it. It'd be a good idea to learn that.

Jeez.

A week?!

(Cue one concerned pink filly on the scrolls.)

How did I sleep for a whole week?! I've never slept this long before! I must be so behind on school and everything going on...what happened? I wasn't that tired last night...did something happen? I don't...ooh. My head hurts...

(The small filly rests a hoof on her forehead, covering her face. A brief glance at her face reveals a flash of an unnatural glowing yellow in her eyes.

...And she's immediately tackled to the ground by a blur of black. Moments later, a mare pigtails and glasses shuffles in place before Madoka's scroll.)

U-um...bee! There was a big...big bee...it looked scary....I didn't want it to hurt you!

(Yeah, that's exactly why she charged in like that. Once the uhh...bee...is repelled away from the young Madoka, the feed promptly ends.)

[The 19th:]

[It's shortly after the blizzard starts, that some rumors circulate that rainbow explosions have been seen again, and that one of the ponies that vanished is back. Weeeell, those rumors, and some others, are definitely founded, as the feed goes live on the scrolls. One Nephenee pops up, her head only in view, and she grins sheepishly.]

Uh...hiya, everypony...Ah'm back. Sorry for worryin' y'all...but Ah'm fine! For those who don't know me, Ah'm Nephenee..Ah help run the Commune, though Ah kinda got pulled into another world for a bit. Again. An' Ah brought a few friends with me this time...

[She motions to something, or someone, off-camera.]

Chrys, Myri, come over here.

[A large, yellow, extremely fluffy sheep pokes her head in the frame, as does a steely blue diamond dog, both looking curiously at the sheet of 'paper'.]

This is Chrysanthemum [A bleat..was that an electric charge you just saw? Nah, probably nothing.], an' Myrddin [The dog takes after his namesakes well, barking happily with a wagging tail.]...we met in a place called Kalos, in one o'them worlds with Pokémon, so Ah'm the trainer for these two.

Uh..that ain't the only thing that changed, though...

[The visual pans out, and the thing apparent to those familiar with her is...well, the wings she now has!]

Ah uh...seem to have wings now. Don't know why, but Ah do.
...If..somepony could help me learn to use these darn things after this darn blizzard's over, Ah'd sure appreciate it.

[She looks off-screen, rubbing the back of her neck, while one wing flares out without so much as a by-your-leave from her.]

...Somepony should really tell Cálice or whatever makes us be certain things here Ah'm a Sentinel, not a Pegasus Knight...

~~~~

[The 27th:]

[After the insanity of all that, Neph's had a chance to try to get some flight practice in, and to try to relax and help others do the same. But it seems there are those that were hit hard by the Windigos' spell, so after some talking and brainstorming with Lethe, the mare pops up on the scrolls, wrapped up in the blanket Morgan gave her for an anniversary.]

Boy, Ah sure am glad them Windigos are gone...hopefully things'll be quiet for a bit.

Ah was talkin' with Lethe, an' we figured that folks could use somethin' to help 'em unwind a lil'...an' Arcee gave me an idea at the party. Why not have a lil' get together at my house, with pillows an' blankets an' snacks? We could make lil' 'forts' with 'em an' jus' hang out an' stay warm. Wanted to see who'd be up for that.

Also, now that it ain't super windy, Ah'd like to try to learn to use my new wings. [She forces one to peek out from under the covers, just barely visible. Darn muscles.] Ah've been tryin' to get them movin' when Ah want 'em to, but the new muscles are real weak. Most o'the time, they jus' pop out when they feel like it. An' Ah probably should try to get in some trainin' soon, too.

[Nephenee winces as she tries to fold the wing back in, and frowns.]

...Maybe not today on the lessons an' trainin', though. Ah reckon Ah need to go to the spa for a spell...

video

[ A very contrite magical girl bear is sitting on the roof of the Commune, looking into her scroll. Maybe she can't bring herself to go inside just yet. ]

So. Show's over, ev'ryone can go home. Guess we only get normal snow now.

[ She paws at the roof. The remains of flaky snow fall lightly onto the roads below. ]

I said some stuff an' did some things last week. Nothin' can change that. Prob'ly a buncha you did, too.

If ya want someplace ta meditate an' get th'bad stuff outta ya, there's a spot by the lake in th'Everfree. I go there sometimes. Kinda useful.

[ She shrugs. ]

An' for what little they're worth... 'm sorry. I hope ta God I can make it up ta ya all. Ya've given me a home here an' there's nothin' I can do ta thank ya for that. How I was last week was a shitty repayment.

private to Chiyo

Ya've got a lifetime supply from Bon Bon's candy shop. S'on me. ... if ya can bear bein' around me, I'd like ta see ya fer a milkshake or somethin', too, sometime.

private to Teddie

Hey. Um... been lookin' for ya. Tha's prob'ly obvious. [ She scratches the back of her head. ] But, I haven' found ya. I know yer a polar bear an' yer prob'ly fine. But 'm gettin' kinda worried.

So, uh, if there's somethin' ya need... call me.

[ She looks like she wants to say something else, but finally drops her head and rolls up her scroll. ]

[This past week had been very trying on the students of Beacon Academy. Short tempers flared, mistakes were made, ponies may have been frozen… it was altogether not a fun week.]

[But now, the blizzard has died down and the windingoes have been chased away. Tensions may still be high, however, so Ren decides to fix that by inviting everyone over for pancakes and hot chocolate. The powdered kind. Best he could afford and get on such short notice.]

[Of course, the scrolls can’t leave some friends well enough alone, so Ren’s manages to unroll itself and hang over the counter just enough to give a good view of the group sitting around a table in Ren’s room at the commune.]

[The group whiles away the time waiting for the water to boil by talking, catching up and remembering times at Beacon. Somewhere along the line Jaune got up, deciding he might as well spend the time by getting mugs ready.]

Okay, how much does everybody want?

[A chorus of replies follows, with Ruby of course piping up ”Double for me!” and earning a warm laugh from her sister. Conversation picks back up while the mugs are prepared, but it’s Pyrrha who notices Jaune staring thoughtfully at the container.]

Jaune?

I wonder what happens when you try to eat the powder by itself?

[The suggestion is initially met with silence, then mixed replies. Pyrrha, of course, warns him not to but is overshadowed by Yang’s enthusiastic ”Do it!”, Ruby’s bright curiosity, and Ren and Blake’s… silent observation (This is gonna be good).]

[True to form Jaune decides to do it anyway, picking up a generous scoop of the powder and sticks it in his mouth. One… two…]

[He whips his head back and coughs out a huge cloud of powder, which is enough to send ripples of laughter through the group.]

I hope you realize-[Pffft-] -you’re cleaning up the ceiling.

[Jaune would reply, really. Verbally anyway; he manages a nod before another cough, a raised hoof doing absolutely nothing from keeping the powder going everywhere. At least everyone’s still laughing.]

Okay- [Hack, powder spilling.] -Note to self, never aga- [He exhaled a whuff of it and shook his head, at least laughing through the tears.] It’s in my eyes!

[Safe to say the group is completely and absolutely gone. Even Pyrrha’s giggling hard, almost as much as she had at the dance, no matter how much she was trying not to.]

Oh Jaune…

Still the life of the party, as always...

[It’s at this point that Ren, in the midst of a laughing fit, looks over to see the scroll on and broadcasting to the town at large. The realization makes him cover his face to hide the fact he’s laughing even harder now. Everypony just saw that. Even if he could say something, he decides against it. They’ll find out soon enough.]

[OOC: Replies will come from... whoever the heck's not laughing at the moment. Or more than one of them. Or all of them. It's a grab bag, really.]

It's come to my attention that the winter holidays in this world are bearculiarly similar to Christmas, a holiday made for spending time with either a group of hot studs or your special somebody. Unlike last year, I'm sadly going to skip on the stud meeting - but please save me a slice of cake - as I'm no longer a single bear anymore.

As a lotta you are already aware, but I've been training myself mentally and physically to reach the top of the maturity ladder, and my training is telling me that I gotta prebear the most romantic date imaginable.

[Teddie's standing in one of the Agency rooms, arms behind his back. This entire time he's been wearing a pair of glasses in hopes to make himself look smarter, but seeing as he's Teddie, he only manages to make himself look more ridiculous. Behind him are a few crayon drawings taped to the wall. He smacks one of them with a small tree branch, his temporary pointing stick. It's a little difficult to make out, but anyone with a good eye might catch that it's a drawing of a familiar city.]

Now, my field research concluded that Canterloft is the most romantic destination this world has to offer.

[See, it's not spying if it's for research. But enough about past nonsense, Teddie points to the next drawing, something much more sparkly looking. It...it also looks like it's covered in glitter.]

But with the inclusion of the Sparkling Crystal Place, I'm exbeariencing a sudden case of what we in the science business like to call "a difficult choice." [The scroll pans to the corner of the room, giving a good shot at Teddie's turtle, Peek, next to another piece of paper taped to the wall. It's drawn in such a way that it's meant to look like an itty bitty chalkboard, question marks scribbled all over it. Peek herself is wearing a tiny pair of glasses, clearly representing the science business of Equestria.] I need to know if we're still allowed to go there, or if I have to come up with a new sporting event to make it all pawsible.

[The scroll then turns back to him, one paw nudging his glasses "professionally."]

Any and all opinions on this matter are appreciated, as well as any and all snacks as I am scientifically starving at the moment.

[As if on cue, his stomach proceeds to rumble, causing him to drop character and grab onto it in an overdramatic flair. The feed ends there.]

[Teddie seems really happy today, more so than usual. He's also in his bear suit for a change, it feels like forever since he's last put it on. In his big fuzzy paws looks to be a small styrofoam cup, the same kind you'd expect to see from a...cafe.]

Now that the weather's not so HOT on my poor fuzzy bod, I can finally start wearing my glorious fur again just like the old days. Whew, I never thought I'd see the day where I too could call days the OLD days, they don't feel that old to me, but what can you do? So don't be so surprised when you see a devilishly handsome bear about, or think I've gone missing or something 'cause I HAVEN'T.

[He inhales, catching his breath from all that babbling. Why...why is he babbling?]

In other news, I'm super duper grateful for all these op-bear-tunities to advance my quest towards maturity what with schooool and woooork and both at the SAME TIME but it's been sooooooooooo draining on my little bear body when I finally remembered "HEY, what do adults do when they get tired?!" so I started drinking coffee and - it's awful - but I think it's WORKING!!

[Oh, that's why.]

At this rate, I'm gonna be a man in NO TIME!!

[See Minato.]

[Or at least, something that vaguely resembles him. It's hard to tell, considering the pegasus is covered head to hoof in scarves.]

[Seriously, he has around twenty or so scarves on. One properly on his neck, some around his face, a couple on each limb, a few around his midsection, two tied to each wing, a couple on his tail... Most of them were given to him as gifts, so they're mostly various shades of blue, but some are other colors. All of them are tied to him in such a way so that they're all blowing in the late fall wind. It would almost look cool if he wasn't covered in them.]

[Plus the one around his neck seems to be blowing in the opposite direction of all the other scarves. Quite frankly, the entire thing looks ridiculous.]

[So what does he have to say about this?]

I am the warmest pony in Equestria.

[That's all. The stoic Fool of Equestria, everypony.]

[There's been a lack of pompadour lately, but thankfully it's back in full force...baby. Don't ask where he's been, chances are he's not going to tell you.]

Hey assholes, I'm still homeless. No seriously, what the hell, where's my free house? ...We get free houses, right? I mean, it's not like I'd know since NOBODY TELLS ME ANYTHING.

I've been here since, what? July or something? Chop chop.

[Hi Dandy, no one missed you.]

It seems like Mako is using the Shack of Truth for today's broadcast, once again beaming her natural, human visage across the scrolls as she talks.

"In case you weren't here for the reveal, I have a magic mirror that shows your true form in a shack behind my house - I don't actually have a miraculous spell to return you to your original form. But that's not why I'm here today."

The reflection moves a little closer towards the scroll as Mako leans forward.

"So today is the Giving Thanks celebration, and I got to thinking - why not be thankful for things that are going to happen, as well as things that have already happened? That's why I'm announcing - in advance - the Shining Road Project."

An honest, happy smile spreads over the reflection's face.

"In the center of my home region, Unova, is something called the Entree. Instead of light and water, it flourishes thanks to the power of bonds - the feeling of wanting to help your friends. Using the power of bonds, the Entree allows people to explore parallel dimensions, growing stronger as they help others. Once everything's over here, I get the feeling there are a lot of us that will want to stay in touch with the friends they made here, right? That's what the Shining Road Project is for - I'm going to use my magic and the power of the Entree to make a pathway between all our different worlds, but I'm going to need your help. If you want to be connected to the world network, I'm going to need something from your homeworld to help me find it."

A slight pause for breath.

"So! That's something to be thankful for, right?"

Boy, that week was a real blast, huh? I think I'm gonna miss being Kyo-chan for awhile...

[He gives a dreamy sigh as he runs a paw through his own, short hair. Easy come, easy go. At the very least, maybe Kyouko will appreciate what he did to her hair.

But being nostalgic for the body swap event isn't the main reason why Teddie is addressing the scrolls this fine morning, oh no.

This is business.]

Anyway, once upon a time ago, I was like "OH YEAH, I'm totally gonna go to school 'cause that's the mature thing to do" and everyone was all "No Teddie, school's closed for the summer!" so Kyo-chan got me a job instead and it was really, REALLY fun!

But now it sounds like everybody's all going to school, even Nana-chan, and I'm starting to bearcome super jealous. I don't know what the heck I should be doing! My schedule's way too busy to fit in both work and school, I'd have to take out a nap and I don't wanna even think about dropping snack time. I dunno how Yosuke manages both...

So I guess my question is, what would you choose? And how much do turtle babysitters run for?