MANE SMELODY
Written by Dave Horwitz
Executive producers: Olivier Dumont, Randi Yaffa, Cort Lane
Story editing by Gillian Berrow
Supervising direction by Will Lau
Transcribed by Alan Back (ajback@yahoo.com)
Prologue
(Opening shot: a stretch of treetops in Bridlewood during the day. Tilt down to follow a twittering bird toward ground level, where Pipp Petals is walking a path with a basket slung on her back.)
Pipp: (singing) A-foraging I will go, oh, oh
(Two bunny-corns react with mild puzzlement.)
A-schmoraging I will go, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
(She drops her load and scoops up a stray blossom.)
Pipp: Ooh, great lighting!
(It goes into the basket, which she snags on one foreleg while deploying her cell phone in the other; the bird and bunny-corns cluster around her.)
Pipp: Nature selfie!
(An instant after she snaps the picture and puts the phone away, one rear hoof comes down on a patch of yellow thistle-like flowers growing through a crack in the paving stones, throwing her off balance.)
Pipp: Ow!
(Down she goes with a pained moan, scattering blooms and critters everywhere. She pops upright, shrieking out her dismay over having her hard work ruined, and flops to her haunches on the next line. The hoof that touched the flowers now sports a mirror-like shine, but she does not immediately notice.)
Pipp: My natural beauty forage haul! (glaring at flowers) Sheesh! Watch where you’re going, plants! (petulantly, grunting) That really hurts!
(Now she gets a good look at the affected hoof. Cut to a close-up of it during the next line, presenting her reflection in crisp detail.)
Pipp: What the hay? That ink thistle shined my hoof so bright, I can see my own reflection! (Gasp; pull out phone and tap away.) My plant finder app didn’t tell me it could do that!
(The electronics are quickly swapped for a pair of heart-shaped sunglasses, which she takes off after a moment to gesture at the formerly offending flora.)
Pipp: This gives me an idea!
(They are put away as she stands up with an exuberant laugh; giant images of herself striking poses, a bottle of polish set with her cutie mark, and an applicator brush appear behind her.)
Pipp: Whoa, mama! I think my future’s gonna be bright! (The lot disappears in a blink.) I never say “mama.” Now I know this is a good idea!
(A yellowish fume begins to drift up from ground level, upon getting a lungful, she makes a noise of disgust and covers her nose. A longer shot reveals that the smell is issuing from her polished hoof as she lets herself breathe freely again.)
Pipp: Huh. (Laugh; she stands up.) Little fragrant— (giddily, raising that hind leg) —but look at that shine!
(She walks off, leaving one bunny-corn to cough and gag once the vapors reach it. Snap to black.)
OPENING THEME
Act One
(Cut from the title card directly to the exterior of Mane Melody, seen from across Mane Street in Maretime Bay. Zoom in slowly and cut to Jazz Hooves at one of the mirrors inside, spraying her mane. One of the front doors swings open to admit Pipp, once again carrying her basket.)
Pipp: Jazz, look! (She drops it and holds up a sprig of ink thistles.) To spruce up the place.
(She rolls the R in “spruce,” showing that all four hooves are now polished up. Jazz takes the proffered blooms.)
Jazz: Oh, these are— (A good whiff forces her to suppress a gag reflex.) —nice! They’re nice! What’s the occasion?
Pipp: Let me answer that question with a question. (holding out a foreleg) Ever seen hooves this shiny?
(Cut to Jazz on the end of this, leaning in for a closer look as the fumes drift up.)
Jazz: My, that is bright! You could power a lighthouse with that shimmer! (She fights back an urge to vomit; cut to a giggling Pipp.)
Pipp: (circling around Jazz) And it’s all because of this perfect plant I plucked!
(Close-up of the manicurist, who forces herself to grin over the noxious blooms.)
Pipp: (from o.s.) It’s a miracle beauty discovery cropping up all over Bridlewood Forest!
(Cut to both again on the end of this.)
Jazz: (putting ink thistles in a cabinet) This has potential, which is great—(losing steam) —because our sales have been dropping ever since our last failed promotion.
(Zoom in quickly on one eye and cut to just outside the salon as a screaming mare bursts out. Her face is slathered with multicolored goop that has what appear to be candy sprinkles studded into it. Several winged rats flit toward her to nibble at the stuff.)
Mare 1: Get it off! GET IT OFF!!
(Zoom in quickly on her screaming mouth until the screen is entirely black, then out to frame a chastened Pipp.)
Pipp: Huh. Maybe using actual ice cream as a face mask treatment wasn’t that great of an idea.
Jazz: Yeah, no. It wasn’t. (Pipp giggles.) But those shiny hooves could redeem us. Let’s test it out! (She and Pipp let their eyes rove through the room.) Who will be our guinea-pony?
(Cut to a longer shot of them on this last sentence, framing Zipp Storm in the fore. Wearing all of her detective gear, including her visor and badge, she sits on the red carpet running the length of the shop and consults her FlyPad. Throwing huge smiles to each other, Pipp and Jazz whip across the room to the white pegasus and accost her as she heads for the doors, visor up and FlyPad put away.)
Pipp: Zipp! (Who gasps and stops.) It’s your lucky day! You are the recipient of a free luxury hooficure treatment! (Giggle; Jazz holds up the ink thistles.) We can’t wait to know what you think of this great shiny find I came across!
(Close-up of Zipp, who regards the sprig through slitted eyes as the fumes drift up.)
Pipp: (from o.s.) Ink thistle! (Zipp struggles not to bolt.)
Jazz: You okay?
Zipp: (gagging, staggering to doors) Uh, yeah! That was from something else. Can’t do the hoof thing. I’m busy. (Kick one open.) Gotta run! (Cut to Pipp on the next line.)
Pipp: Uh, busy with what?
Zipp: Investigating! Bye!
(She bails out, the door slamming behind her; outside, she gallops a few yards away to get well clear of the stench, then makes a sound of clear disgust and takes a deep breath. Behind her, Sunny Starscout walks unnoticed toward Mane Melody.)
Zipp: That stuff stinks!
(Repeating her non-verbal appraisal, she lifts off; cut to just inside as Sunny enters, setting off the electronic door chime. Pipp flies to her.)
Pipp: Sunny! Lucky you! (ushering her onto a front bench; Jazz brings ink thistles to them) You get to be the first pony to try our new all-natural luxury hooficure treatment!
Sunny: I do? (Excited squeal.) Okay!
(The scent hits her hard enough to leave her gagging, holding her breath, and trying to keep her breakfast down.)
Pipp: Sooooo…what do you think?
(Another sniff puts the earth pony even closer to explosively redecorating the place. Zoom in slowly as she ventures a cough and does her very best to smile over bulging cheeks. From here, cut to the building exterior and zoom in slowly, then to the three mares on the next line. The plants have been set aside, and the fumes have dissipated.)
Pipp: Don’t worry, Sunny. I know this ink thistle plant itself has a little bit of a…funky aroma at first, but the incredible hoof cream I’ve made out of it is scentless.
(On the second half of his sentence, cut to frame two bottles of said product on a shelf, styled as in the prologue, and zoom out as she removes one to show it off.)
Pipp: (passing it t Jazz) The perfect luxurious touch for those seeking a top-notch hooficure with lasting shine!
(As soon as the latter mare pulls the stopper and the applicator brush attached to it, a fresh burst of the reek hits her like a two-by-four upside the head. So much for that “scentless” claim, apparently.)
Jazz: (half-strangled) You’re right! It’s kind of nice!
(A dab to one of Sunny’s front hooves turns one portion gold but sends up the fumes.)
Sunny: Yep! Just, uh, super-pleasant!
Pipp: (giggling, hopping in place) I’m so excited to start selling these treatments!
(In her elation, she fails to notice Sunny’s inflated cheeks and Jazz’s quiet retch.)
Pipp: (composing herself) I must practice my sales pitch.
(Cut to the magical trying-on wall mirror; her throat-clearing is heard from o.s., and she bounds into view holding a fresh bottle.)
Pipp: Hello, my glamour ponies! (Zoom in slowly.) This special new treatment is guaranteed to make your hooves shine as bright as your sparkle!
(Cut to frame all three. All of Sunny’s hooves have now been polished; the open bottle sits on the floor, and Jazz risks a sniff from the applicator, immediately regrets her choice, and sticks it back where it came from.)
Pipp: Get it while you can. It’s a Mane Melody limited-time-only exclusive!
Jazz: (smiling broadly) Sounds great, Pipp! We’re gonna have so many sales! (to Sunny, whispering) Sorry it stinks, but you look great!
Sunny: I feel great— (holding out a front hoof) —and look at that shine! Ah!
(Her perspective of the appendage on these words, tilting up to the manicurist’s face as the fumes assault her nostrils anew. After the camera cuts to frame both again, Sunny hops off the bench and Jazz claps a hoof to her own mouth.)
Sunny: Good luck with the launch, and, um, m-maybe crack a window?
Jazz: (half-strangled) Good idea!
(She does so as Sunny departs, heaving to get some clean air into her lungs, then lounges on the bench as a placidly humming Pipp carries a bottle across the room. Jazz’s airy laugh is met by an acknowledging smile from the boss. Cut to a long shot of the Crystal Brighthouse, zooming in slowly, then to one corner of the map/photo-cluttered wall that forms part of the support for Zipp’s elevated bunk in the shared bedroom. Tilt down to a thick book resting at the end of the desk, then swivel to frame her working at her laptop with all her accessories off.)
Zipp: (groaning) There’s gotta be something else here!
(Ink thistle fumes waft into view, causing her to gag; cut to the source—a freshly arrived Sunny—then back to the pegasus sniffing and uncovering her nose.)
Zipp: Oh, no! She got to you? (She puts on her sunglasses.)
Sunny: (despondently) I just wanted to help. (holding up a hoof) And the smell kinda goes away— (It strikes; the thought dies on her tongue.) —or maybe I’m just used to it. Uh, w-what exactly are you doing? (The shades come off.)
Zipp: My leads have all run cold. (gesturing to book, propping chin on front hooves) I read that Alicorns book, like, a hundred times, and certain things still aren’t adding up about the past we’ve all been taught.
(She is referring to Alicorns of the Ancient World, the book Misty found in the library archives of Zephyr Heights Palace and gave to her during “The Manesquerade Ball.”)
Sunny: My dad always used to say, “The past is something we’ll never stop discovering.”
Zipp: (suddenly inspired) Sunny! That’s it! (Lift off; pace in midair.) Your dad was definitely on to something with his research, right? Do you have any old things that Argyle left lying around? (Land.) Stuff that might have a clue?
Sunny: (sadly) Well, we lost a lot when the lighthouse was destroyed. (brightening a bit) I do still have a few things, but I’ve gone through them a million times before.
Zipp: Buuut… (rapid fire, gesturing to each body part she names) …with fresh eyes and open hearts and minds and clear heads and the help of a master sleuth…
(She pulls her magical magnifying glass from beneath a wing and twirls it like a revolver, bringing Sunny around to a smile.)
Sunny: Okay, we can try. Maybe my dad would have liked that. (gesturing) I’ll go dig them up right now.
(The motion sends another wave of vexatious vapors toward Zipp, who dry-heaves and lets out a breath as Sunny walks off. Cut to an overhead shot of the area directly in front of Mane Melody, where a table has been set with flowers and a tiered display of bottled products. A hovering, humming Pipp makes adjustments to her phone, mounted on a tripod and facing the display. Zoom in slowly, then cut to the perspective through its camera, a steady stream of approval icons running up the right edge—a broadcast in progress. She whips into view and lands to gesture at the products.)
Pipp: Casual viewers and Pippsqueaks alike, have I got something great for you! (Cut to her, picking up a bottle.) It’s the special deluxe pampering you’ve been needing! (Whisk over to the phone.) Treat yourself. You deserve only the best, and we’ve got it here at Mane Melody!
(Back to the phone’s camera-eye view on this last.)
Pipp: (tucking bottle away, circling back to table) Guaranteed to make your hooves shine brighter than a Bridlewood crystal during the Lumi-Bloom.
(Zoom out slightly to show this video running on a phone, then cut to Jazz watching it in Mane Melody. Her hooves have now been polished.)
Jazz: Good thing ponies can’t smell through the phone.
(She grimaces at the touch-up. Cut to the open doorway of the storage closet in the Brighthouse and zoom in slowly.)
Sunny: (from inside, slightly muffled) There it is! Gimme a boost!
(Inside, she is standing on Zipp’s back and straining toward a piled-high box on the top shelf of a bookcase. The pegasus has stowed her magnifier. Cut to Sunny’s perspective, easing the container free.)
Sunny: Got it!
(Back to her; gravity gets its way and she plummets to the floor amid a shower of loose papers. A double yell floats up before the camera shifts to frame both of them sprawled out among the chaos. They take a moment to regain their senses, then sit up, Zipp with a scrap of parchment plastered across her forehead.)
Zipp: Probably coulda just flown up there. (She picks it off and eyes it.) What do you suppose it is?
(Close-up: one edge appears to be charred, and the remainder bears faint, hasty sketches to suggest geographical features on…)
Sunny: (from o.s.) A piece of a map?
(Both again; Zipp brings out her magnifier and applies it to the fragment.)
Zipp: Hmmm…all I can see is the word “scale”?
Sunny: Sometimes maps list distances for scale.
Zipp: Hmmm…I’m not sure.
Sunny: (picking up a sheet; Zipp stows her gear) Well, my dad and I used to sketch maps of imaginary places for fun all the time. (putting it down) It’s probably nothing.
Zipp: Maybe so, but a detective never fully abandons a clue. It might lead us somewhere.
Sunny: Where? It’s not just gonna fall into our laps.
(Cut to a close-up of a rolled document lying atop the bookcase as she finishes; it chooses this moment to roll off, stick in Zipp’s mane for an instant, then fall to the floor. Like the scrap, it too appears to have been partially singed.)
Zipp: (dryly, passing scrap to Sunny) Or it could be our heads.
(She presents the unrolled document, which proves to have one piece missing at its edge. Close-up of it as Sunny fills the gap; it is indeed a badly faded map, with Twilight Sparkle’s cutie mark in the bottom right corner. Zipp’s gasp and triumphant laugh are heard.)
Sunny, Zipp: (from o.s.) Yes!
(Back to them, Sunny adding a quiet giggle.)
Act Two
(Cut to the exterior of Mane Melody and pan back along the block to frame a steadily growing line of prospective customers, the first of whom is Sweets. Inside, Pipp voices a squeal of anticipation; cut to a mildly concerned Jazz and then to both on the next line. The display table Pipp had used in her commercial has now been set up in the front corner, across from the bench on which Sunny got her hooves shined.)
Pipp: Jazz, I’ve got a great feeling about this, don’t you?
Jazz: (forcing a laugh/smile) Yes, definitely! Absolutely! It’s gonna be a spectacle!
(Cut briefly to Pipp on this last word, registering a degree of perplexity.)
Jazz: (catching herself) I mean, spectacular!
(They pull the doors open, setting off the chime, and ponies instantly begin to stream in.)
Sweets: I’m first!
Pipp: (holding up a bottle) Ponies, ponies! There’s plenty of deluxe to go around. Right, Jazz? (It is promptly taken from her.)
Jazz: Yes, of course! Everypony will get a treatment—if they want one. Totally optional, but… (She picks one up.) …you’d have to be, uh, ready to miss out on the best beauty treatment ever!
(Her words shift Pipp’s expression from content to confused and back. Cut to a trio of waiting ponies as she finishes; all smile and make their way to the goods.)
Pipp: That’s more like it. (to the crowd, hovering briefly) Okay, let’s break out that ink thistle and get this sparkle party started!
(The camera shifts to a few buyers on this last, who cheer and raise their bottles. Cut to the exterior of the Brighthouse, zooming in slowly, then to Sunny at a countertop inside. The completed map is laid out flat before her, held together with tape; she snaps a picture of it with her phone, and the camera shifts to frame her at the island in the kitchen. A sidestep brings her to Zipp’s book lying open so she can read, and the pegasus drops into view with all her detective equipment firmly in place. The map gets a quick visor scan.)
Zipp: Hmmm…
Sunny: Hmmm…
Sunny, Zipp: (Zipp lifting map) Hmmm…
Zipp: Are you seeing this?
Sunny: Yes! I-I mean, I think so…uh, wait. What do you see?
Zipp: A shimmer!
(Her visor perspective of the parchment on the end of this. A set of sights roves all over its surface as a gleam plays across it and part of a sketch appears on the upper portion, glowing white.)
Zipp: Could this be…a-a magical item?
(Cut to Sunny, who gets the eyewear slapped onto her own mug.)
Zipp: (from o.s.) Look!
(The orange mare gasps in shock and trains her gaze on the map for a second, then backs off.)
Sunny: (spinning in place) These things are amazing! (Back to the map.)
Zipp: Well, yeah, but do you see it?
Sunny: Kinda, maybe. I don’t know. (removing visor) I-I think if we’re going to get to the bottom of this, we’ve gotta get out of here— (gesturing to window) —and get out there! Start asking some questions.
Zipp: Maybe you’re right, Sunny. And I know exactly where to start.
Sunny: Yay, field trip! (Zipp dons the visor.)
Zipp: Field research.
(Cut to the line outside Mane Melody, which has grown a fair bit in the meantime. A mare with newly polished hooves steps out to meet a similarly upgraded stallion who has his phone ready to record video. She raises one smelly foreleg for its camera and grins, but becomes visibly/audibly revolted in record time and gallops away. Inside, two mares voice their disgust at the vapors rising from their own gleaming hooves; behind them, a third—the one who got the ice cream facial in Act One—cries out and bolts. Up at one front corner, Jazz is finishing up with Windy at the bench as Posey inspects herself in the trying-on mirror.)
Posey: Ugh! I’ve never seen anything like this! (raising a treated, smelly hoof) Have you, bestie?
Windy: (squinching one eye shut) I actually can’t see anything like this! It’s too bright! (She puts on heart-shaped sunglasses.) My eyes!
Posey: Oh, I’ve never smelled anything like this. (smirking) I was lying when I said I’ve never seen anything like this. It’s just bright. But this? (She gets a nose full of Windy’s hoof.) Ugh! This is something else!
(Cut to/from the offending limb on this last, Posey heaving for breath as Jazz keeps herself from reacting. Now Posey glances across the room and registers surprise.)
Posey: Oh.
(Cut to the display table, ponies helping themselves as Pipp arcs overhead.)
Posey: (from o.s.) Shh-shh-shh. (Back to her and Jazz; she smiles/waves as Pipp touches down.) Hi, Pipp.
Pipp: Hiya! Ooh, haven’t seen shines this bright since I made my own toothpaste. (To/from Windy’s hooves on this last.)
Windy: (forcing a grin) Thanks, Pipp. (Laugh; zoom out slowly.)
Pipp: No prob, Windy! (hopping in place, flaring wings) This is turning into Mane Melody’s biggest success! (flying off) What are we going to do with all of this success?!
Jazz: Yeah! The sweet… (She inhales the fumes from the polish, gags, and continues in a strangled tone.) …smell of success.
(Posey just stands there with a malicious little smile as Pipp wings across the salon and Jazz switches on a fan set up in an open window.)
Jazz: (sighing with relief) Phew!
(Cut to the Marestream in flight above the cloud cover; Sunny and Zipp are in the cabin.)
Sunny: So… (Cut to them; Zipp has her shades on, her gear gone, and is at the controls.) …are you gonna tell me where we’re going?
Zipp: To Bridlewood.
Sunny: What’s there?
Zipp: The Breezie Night Market.
Sunny: (skeptically, holding up rolled map) You really think the Breezies can help us with this?
Zipp: Come on, Suns. There’s a lot of old mystical stuff there. Maybe they have, like, a map decoder or something. (as Sunny tucks the map away) And if not, I’ll buy you your favorite treat.
Sunny: (excitedly, rubbing front hooves together) Ooh! Triple-berry ice cream?
Zipp: Three scoops! Also, maybe they have some magical cure to make your hooves smell better.
Sunny: (needled, but smiling) Hey!
Zipp: Those things are ripe, buddy.
Sunny: (sighing; fumes rise from one hoof) You’re not wrong.
(Their laughter rings out as the Marestream arcs through the sky in a long shot. Cut to Pipp addressing three potential buyers at the display table in Mane Melody and pan across to Jazz polishing Toots’ hooves at the bench.)
Jazz: (to herself, forced cheerful tone) This is great for business, Jazz. (aloud) Oh! That’s gonna look wonderful! (The smell starts to rise.)
Toots: Yes! Yes. But I wanted to know, uh…well, it’s just that, uh…how do I say this? The odor—is that part of the package?
Jazz: (showing off a bottle) Everything that goes into this treatment, from the raw ingredients to the experience of sitting in that chair— (Close-up of her hoof lifting his; she continues o.s.) —to the beautiful shimmer, and yes— (Both again.) —even the— (recoiling briefly) —odor— (putting his hoof down) —is a part of a special and one-of-a-kind hooficure. You’ll be talking about this one for moons, I bet! Yep! (Shaky giggle.)
Toots: (to Windy, whispering) Does she not smell it?
Windy: (ditto) I’ve been wondering that all day! (aloud, sitting) My friends have to see this!
(By this point, she has removed her sunglasses. She brings out her phone and begins to record; cut to a close-up of one odor-emitting front hoof and the screen showing it, a couple of viewer-approval hearts floating up. Across the room, Pipp eagerly watches one customer take video of another’s polish job.)
Pipp: This is fantastic! (to the crowd; zoom out slowly) Tell your friends, please! (The subject of the video gags as Pipp hovers off the red carpet.) There’s plenty of Potions by Pipp to go around!
(Cut back to Jazz’s corner on this last, her face frozen in shock as Toots and Windy worriedly regard the end products of her ministrations. The pegasus voices a cross-eyed yell of disgust, which snaps the bandolier-clad mare back to reality.)
(In Bridlewood, the Marestream has parked next to the Wishing Tree. The hour has advanced to late afternoon or early evening. Bark and leaves and surrounding crystals glow warmly in the fading light, bright spots can be seen up and down among the foliage, and the ramp leading up to the open entrance into the Breezies’ Night Market—as seen in “Family Trees”—gleams invitingly. Zoom in slowly, then cut to a slow pan through the busy Market as Sunny and Zipp stroll the aisles; Zipp has removed her sunglasses. They approach the stall at which Sparky Sparkeroni found the fossilized dragon footprint that touched off his revival in Part Two of that episode. Its female Breezie proprietor blabbers a greeting.)
Sunny: (pulling out map) We’re trying to figure out how to read this map—well, we think it’s a map.
(The tiny flyer begins to scrutinize the page, but the fumes from Sunny’s hooves draw a cry of distaste.)
Zipp: It’s not a map? (Another screech; she flies off; Zipp chuckles and addresses Sunny.) I think she’s also saying you, uh, stink.
(The earth pony bags the map during this last and throws her a slightly nasty sidewise look. Cut to some distance behind them as she turns away with a sigh; another Breezie, this one wearing a mushroom cap for a hat, hovers into view and stays back behind cover to listen in.)
Sunny: (as both walk off) Should we get that triple-berry ice cream now?
(The view shifts on this last to the tiny spy, who exclaims something and flies after them. Cut to the stage inside Mane Melody, where Dahlia is holding up one shined hoof so that Posey and Sprout Cloverleaf can shoot video footage of it with their phones. The camera zooms out to frame similar actions taking place up and down both sides of the room, accompanied by a buzz of conversation. Pipp and Jazz come into view on the next line, watching from their spot near the doors.)
Pipp: Jazz, are you seeing this?
Jazz: (slightly stunned) Yeah. I guess ponies really want to remember their time here.
Pipp: We’ll sell out of these treatments by the end of the week if this keeps up! (turning to display table) We’re hitting our stride! (Cut to Jazz.)
Jazz: Well, ponies did like our hooficures before. (To Pipp on the following.)
Pipp: (flaring wings) I know, but not like this! The word of mouth is going to be incredible!
(Jazz’s smile runs away from her face in the time it takes a fresh wave of miasma to bulldoze its way up her nose. She shudders audibly, coughs, and opens a window; turning back; she gasps upon finding that Posey has moved to face her straight on and put her phone away.)
Jazz: A little fresh air never hurt anypony. (Grin.)
Posey: (rolling eyes) Puh-lease. (pacing around her) You know what we all know. Whatever’s in that shiny hoof cream is stinky to the extreme! (waving a hoof; fumes rise) Our snouts are falling off over here!
Jazz: I don’t know whether to agree or be offended! (Pause.) Wait. (Posey smirks at her.) If you don’t like the hooficure treatment, why are you all filming it with your phones?
(Cut to the stage as she finishes, Dahlia nearly losing her lunch as Sprout laughs.)
Posey: (from o.s.) Oh. (Back to her.) That’s just the Mane Smelody Challenge. (To Jazz.)
Jazz: The what now? (To Posey on the following.)
Posey: It’s, like, the latest viral endurance test. If you can get through it without your eyes watering from the smell, you tag a friend and they have to do it.
Jazz: (with growing horror) So our newest hoof treatment is now a joke online?
Posey: Yeah, but it’s a really good one! (to Toots) Hey, show Jazz your phone. (He does so.)
Jazz: Oh!
(Onscreen, a colt sniffs at one of his own polished hooves and recoils as a friend laughs. Icons of sickened faces scroll up the edge.)
Colt: Oh, yuck!
Jazz: Oh, my. (She takes the phone from Toots for a better look.) It’s trending?!?
Pipp: (hovering into view) Whatcha looking at, Jazz? (Jazz sucks in a squealing gasp.) What are you gasping at? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.
Jazz: (backing frantically away) Yep, that’s it! I-It was one of those…ghost-hunting videos on YouHoof. I’m, uh…afraid! (Glance at screen and yell in fake terror.) G-G-G-Ghost!
(The device is flung out the window, bringing a panicked shout from Toots.)
Toots: (galloping out) My phone! (Sound of the doors slamming.)
Pipp: (giggling) You’re just like Hitch. What a scaredy cat.
(She flaps away, leaving the manicurist to heave a deep sigh and watch the latest bit of olfactory idiocy unfolding on the stage. Namely: two colts shoving polished hooves into one another’s faces and struggling not to flinch as a stallion records the whole thing. One of them gives in after a few seconds and gets heartily laughed at by the other two, causing Jazz to grimace.)
(Cut to a fruit stall in the Market; Sunny’s quiet sigh is heard from o.s., and the camera pans to stop on her and Zipp, seated on a bench with ice cream cones in hoof. Three scoops for Sunny, who also holds the map, and one for Zipp.)
Sunny: I guess no Breezie knows what this thing is.
(Brief close-up of it as she finishes, after which she sets it down.)
Sunny: Should we get out of here?
Zipp: (groaning) I hate leaving empty-hoofed.
Sunny (smiling, raising her cone) But not empty-stomached!
(She gives it a lick as the mushroom-capped Breezie flits into view from around a corner, carrying a small basket and announcing itself. It pulls into a hover inches from Sunny’s face.)
Sunny: Whoa! Hello!
(Set down on the wooden walkway; mumble to itself while rooting in the container; pull out a sizable heart-shaped ruby and fly it over to her. The stone is framed in gold and strung on a thin matching chain as a pendant.)
Sunny: No, I think there’s been a mistake. That’s not mine.
(It speaks animatedly at some length as Zipp works on her own ice cream.)
Sunny: (to Zipp) What is she saying? It seems serious.
Zipp: (pulling out FlyPad) Wait! I think I can translate this with my new app!
(The voice recorder is up and running onscreen; the little visitor delivers the whole spiel again, followed by a mechanical male voice from the phone. This particular camera angle reveals a hinge set into the lower left portion of the frame, indicating that the pendant is actually a locket.)
Phone voice: It has long been waiting for a special pony. A hopeful pony. I believe that you are the one.
Sunny: Me?
Zipp: That’s kind of strange. (The Breezie speaks again.) But weirdly flattering. This is awesome! What a cool color! And it looks old too!
(Close-up of the locket on the end of this as it is laid on Sunny’s hoof.)
Zipp: (from o.s.) Really old. (Back to the pair.)
Sunny: It’s lovely! Thank you so much!
(More speech from the miniature courier, which Zipp’s FlyPad records and translates as before.)
Phone voice: Remember, nopony is alone who has friends. (The basket is picked up…) I bid you adieu. (…and carried away; Zipp stashes the rig.)
Sunny: Did that just happen, or am I dreaming? Uh, what do you think she meant by “the one”?
Zipp: I have no idea, but it looks like mysteries are cropping up all over the place. We gotta start solving some of ’em.
(Sunny’s perspective of the locket again. From this distance and angle, the exposed side can be seen to have facets that slope gently upward from edge to center, where they converge at a flat one cut as a small heart.)
Sunny: Hmmm…
(Dissolve to it hanging around her neck and zoom out to frame both mares on the move, having finished off their treats. The map has been put away.)
Sunny: Okay. The clue hunt continues.
Zipp: Back to the Brighthouse?
Sunny: I just have to investigate one quick thing first. (She gallops away.)
Zipp: Hmmm?
(A confused stare after her gives way to a chuckle; cut to Sunny picking up a fresh triple-scoop cone.)
Sunny: What? Ice cream helps me think.
(Tongue quickly makes contact with frozen sweet stuff. Cut to a long shot of Opaline Arcana’s castle, zooming in slowly, then to a long overhead shot of her occupying the seat of power in the throne room. She ponders her image in a hoof-held mirror as Misty approaches, her cutie mark hidden by makeup. Cut to floor level after a moment; the boss flicks her mane petulantly.)
Opaline: I haven’t seen you all day! (setting mirror aside) What wing of the lair were you in?
Misty: The entertainment…uh, quarters?
Opaline: Next time let me know. I was trotting from room to room looking. (Cut to Misty.)
Misty: I must not have heard. Sorry.
Opaline: (from o.s.) Ugh! (Both again.) Moving on!
(The fake flunky sits and gets ready to take notes on her phone.)
Opaline: We’ve suffered some setbacks, losing those ponies before I took possession of their cutie marks. But I’ve been hard at work on my new scheme. (A thought occurs to her.) Wait just one second. You said you were in the entertainment quarters?
Misty: (very hesitantly) Yes?
Opaline: The east entertainment quarters, or the west entertainment quarters?
Misty: East?
Opaline: That makes sense. (Misty cranks off a quiet, profoundly relieved sigh.) The west one is where I’ve been keeping all the spiders. We’ve got to clean that out. (Long overhead shot; zoom out slowly.) Add it to the list.
(Misty resumes her note-taking.)
Act Three
(Outside Mane Melody, the line of customers has not abated one whit. During the next line, pan to its head, where a mare is filming herself with her phone.)
Mare 2: About to do the MSC—Mane Smelody Challenge.
(Cut to her phone’s camera view on the next line.)
Mare 2: My friend Sugar Moonlight tagged me. I’m next.
(Inside, two stallions are laughing heartily over the phone held by one of them.)
Pipp: Hey, glam-ponies! (They fall quiet; wings flare as she continues.) Thanks for making today the best day in the history of our little singing salon! (Deep breath.) Success smells great!
(Lifting off, she bursts out through a side door and thus completely misses the tide of raucous, mocking laughter that washes over the room. Posey brings out her phone, on which a close-up of a pale pink mare with blue-green mane/brows/eyes is displayed. This is Shutter Snap, who speaks with a heavy New York accent.)
Shutter: What’s up, trend watchers?
(The camera shifts to frame the yellow mare head-on, leaving the screen out of view, as Jazz eases closer with clear trepidation.)
Voice of Shutter: I’m Shutter Snap.
(The screen again; she steps aside to give a clear view of the queue outside the salon. Her next words are accompanied by a brief cut to the upper story of the building and tilt down, then back to her.)
Shutter: Today in trends, everypony in Maretime Bay is lining up at our very own Princess Pipp’s salon to do the Mane Smelody Challenge. (A stallion who has already done it waves from behind her.) Can you stand the stink?
(The reek drifting from his hoof puts both of them within an ace of blowing chunks; now Pipp returns from her side trip.)
Pipp: Hey! (Posey hastily lowers her phone.) Whatcha watching?
(In a frantic burst of inspiration, Jazz snatches the device and hurls it aside, bringing an affronted gasp from Posey. Close-up of a trash can in one corner as it clatters in.)
Posey: (from o.s.) Hey! (Back to Pipp.)
Pipp: (to Jazz) Why did you just trash Posey’s phone?
Jazz: (thinking fast) Um…everypony should focus on the Zen of the treatment when they’re here. Phones are a distraction!
(It takes the Princess a moment to make sense of this, but she smiles and walks away. Jazz sighs heavily, retrieves the phone from the garbage, and offers it to Posey; the latter snatches it away with an offended huff and exits.)
Jazz: (sighing, to herself, seeing Pipp serve a customer) Why can’t I just tell her the truth?
(Cut to the sign above the front entrance to Hitch Trailblazer’s office and tilt down to street level and the open doors. A winding path of yellow traffic cones has been laid out, the camera veering/zooming in quickly along its length toward the Sheriff standing inside. Sparky is next to him, wearing a crash helmet.)
Hitch: Speed run! How fast can you get out of the station? Like we practiced.
(The dragon claps the side of his headwear and gets a pat from Hitch.)
Hitch: You can never be too safe, my tiny buddy. (Foreleg up; Sparky tenses for a quick start.) Aaaand…go!
(The limb is swung forward in the same instant, and Sparky starts running for the exit—and knocking over every cone he can reach along the way. Hitch takes his time following, with an indulgent smile.)
Hitch: Typical Sparky. (picking up a cone) Why even put the cones down, Hitch, you silly safety stickler?
(He tosses it aside as Zipp steps into view facing him.)
Hitch: Hey!
(Camera shift; Sunny is here as well, having dispatched the second ice cream cone she got at the Market in Act Two.)
Hitch: You’re just in time to see Sparky fail his safety drill with flying colors! (Sparky scrambles by on the street.)
Zipp: Yeah. Why even put down the cones?
Hitch: That’s what I said. So, what’s new?
Sunny: We’re investigating a mystery— (detaching her ruby from its chain, holding it up) —and we found another mystery! A Breezie just randomly gave me this ancient locket. Cool, huh?
(A close-up of it during this line shows the faceted side, the light hitting it in such a way as to reveal a new detail. Three fissures run along from edge to center, along the seams joining the facets, dividing the entire surface roughly into thirds, and appear too neat and straight to be the result of cracking or damage. Back to Sunny and Hitch after she finishes speaking.)
Hitch: Very cool. But what does it do?
Sunny: No idea. It’s just pretty, I think. (thoughtfully; zoom in on her) It’s more about what the Breezie said. “Nopony is alone who has friends.”
Hitch: Hmmm…
Zipp: (from o.s.) Hitch! (Cut to frame her standing at the front desk.) You’re great at puzzles. (He crosses to her; slow pan.) What do you think these are? (She lays out the map.) We think they might be pieces of the map.
(Zoom out slowly from the desk as both lean over it.)
Hitch: Huh. Nothing I recognize (as both turn from it) But I can look through the old station archives to see if it looks like any of the maps in there. (All three again; Sunny has reattached the ruby to its chain.)
Sunny: Let us know, would you? /Thanks, Hitch. (She and Zipp exit.)
Hitch: You betcha! And if you see Sparky outside, would you tell him to scoot his boot on in here?
Zipp: (calling over her shoulder) We will!
(Something yellow and green flashes past the mares and into the station, leaping up to tackle Hitch to the floor. The hapless law officer has time for one yell, which turns into a laugh when he lands on his back and sees just what has taken him down. Held in his forelegs is Sparky, now wearing a stack of three cones on his head. Framed from behind, he is lowered on to Hitch’s belly; ripples of light begin to flow along the scaly back, the camera cutting to a close-up of these.)
Hitch: (from o.s.) That’s new. (Both again.) What’s up with your scales, buddy?
(Head-on shot of the youngster on this last; he coos as the effect spreads to the rest of his body. The map briefly exhibits it as well, much as when Zipp scanned it with her visor in Act Two; now, though, features appear across its entire surface. Cut to Opaline and Misty in the throne room of the former’s castle, standing before an image of the Unity Crystals that the floor pool is conjuring up. As Opaline speaks her first sentence, the camera shifts to frame the Crystals in close-up; they drift apart and are replaced by the silhouette of a somnolent dragon.)
Opaline: And the entire time, magic was absent from our realms. (Back to her.) The dragons have been slumbering in a deep, deep hibernation.
(The silhouette again, the Crystals superimposing themselves and flaring white. The view clears to present the figures of many such creatures large and small, all with glowing eyes. On the second half of the next line, cut briefly to Opaline and Misty, then to the spectral figures being replaced by one that is a remarkably good match for Sparky in size and general contours.)
Opaline: (from o.s.) But now that magic has returned, the dragons are awake—as is evident by that baby dragon’s mere existence.
(The two mares again, Misty swallowing her nerves with some effort as the camera pans slowly away from Opaline and shifts to frame a set of schematics projected by the pool. Seen from behind, these include the Dragon Stone she found in Chapter Four, the mountain on which it rested, and a reduced-scale image of a dragon footprint. Zoom out slowly.)
Opaline: And my brilliant scheme culminates in an infiltration of the Dragon Land [sic] to enchant them and possess them for my own devious uses.
(Misty disposes of her phone, stands, and turns to face the head honcho.)
Misty: Uh, okay. I-If that’s all—
Opaline: It is.
Misty: (hastily, backing away) I just remembered, I have to get more intel for you! Lots of good info to be shared—I mean, had! (She races out.)
Opaline: (calling after her, as doors slam shut) Well, don’t be long! There’s evil hoof-notes and pie charts to go over!
(Outside in the corridor, the unicorn pauses to catch her breath and then gallops like mad. Cut to the line outside Mane Melody, with Izzy Moonbow now at its head; across the street, a mare shows a phone video to her friend, who laughs. The crafting ace darts in as soon as the latest customer emerges; inside, she throws the doors open to set off their chime and steps cheerfully past Jazz at the front bench. The earth pony keeps her voice down for her next two lines.)
Izzy: Pipp! I’m here to— (She gets a dose of airborne foulness.) Ooh! Sheesh-a-roo! Why does this whole salon smell like stink thistle?
Jazz: Hey, hey, listen! Izzy!
Izzy: Wassup?!
Jazz: Shhh! Pipp’s in the back, so I’ll just say this now. This stuff Pipp foraged shines hooves like you wouldn’t believe, but the smell is—
Izzy: Stiiinky! That’s why it’s called stink thistle.
Jazz: (normal volume) You know it?
Izzy: (nodding) Mmm-hmm. Pipp has foraged the stinkiest plant in all of Bridlewood. If a pony spends a long time exposed to it, she can become used to it. (Close-up of Jazz.)
Jazz: That’s why Pipp can’t tell!
Izzy: (from o.s.) Yeah. (Both again.) Unicorns mostly stay away from it because it is so stink-errific! (She paces a bit.)
Jazz: You mean, I’ve gotten used to it too? And it’s actually stinkier than even I can tell?
(She stares at a salon full of laughing, reeking, video-taking clients; zoom out slowly.)
Jazz: These poor customers! (Back to her, anguish creeping in.) Why didn’t I say something sooner?
(One screen catches a stallion bringing an overripe hoof up to his face and aiming a puzzled glance at it.)
Stallion 1: Hm?
(He grimaces an instant before he device is lowered to frame Izzy and Jazz up front, the latter sitting on the bench.)
Jazz: Izzy, it all makes sense now! But I still feel nervous to tell Pipp the truth! She’s worked so hard on her beauty line!
(Cut briefly to a slow zoom in on the display table on this last, then back to her.)
Jazz: What if I tell her and ruin it?
Izzy: You’ve got to!
Jazz: Just knowing how bad it smells would crush her— (as two more ponies walk in) —but knowing that everypony is here for a viral challenge? It would destroy her!
Izzy: Jazz, if you were part of a viral craze that made you the butt of somepony else’s joke, wouldn’t you want to know? (Long pause.)
Jazz: (heavily) Yes.
(Cut to a long shot of the Brighthouse and zoom in slowly; at this distance, Misty is visible only a tiny blue dot closing in on the front entrance. Inside, Sunny and Zipp are seated at a table near the fireplace at the back of the entrance hall, ready to study Sunny’s locket which has been taken off its chain. The doors fly open and Misty barges in, stopping to heave for breath at the threshold.)
Sunny: (cheerfully) Misty! (She clips the ruby on again.)
Zipp: Check out this old locket!
Misty: Opaline…dragons…awake…magic!
Sunny: Get her some water! (She and Zipp dart to her from their seats, Zipp flying.)
Zipp: Get her some room!
(They usher their frazzled friend over to the couch Sunny was using so she can seat herself.)
Sunny: Now, what is going on?
Misty: Opaline’s going to descend upon the Dragon Lands and enchant and possess them! For evil! And…and…so much more!
(Her eyes pop wide the instant she gets a load of the fumes emanating from Sunny’s hoof.)
Misty: Um, what’s that smell?
Sunny: (laughing lightly, patting Misty’s shoulder) Nothing! Just tell us everything.
Zipp: (picking up map) And we’ll tell you about what we found, too.
(Misty pulls in a gargantuan gasp upon seeing the faded lines, then smiles confidently.)
Misty: Hmmm!
(Back at Mane Melody, a mare laughs as her freshly polished hoof sets her friend to hacking for air, and both depart in good spirits to leave the place empty of customers.)
Pipp: (flying across, hovering by Jazz) That…was…wild! (landing) Oh, we gotta rest our hooves, girl!
Jazz: (forced casual tone) Yeah, we’ve had quite a day. So, listen, Pipper, Pippito, Pipperoo.
Pipp: Mmmm—you’ve never called me a nickname. What’s going on? You can be honest with me.
Jazz: Um…well…how to say this?
(The boss just blinks inquisitively as she clears her throat.)
Jazz: You foraged the worst-smelling plant in the entire forest and made it into an only slightly less smelly lotion.
Pipp: (stunned) I did?
Jazz: You did. (She sits, then brings out her phone as she continues.) And then all of our customers today? (Show a freeze frame of two to Pipp.) They turned the deluxe treatment into the Mane Smelody Challenge, because stink thistle smells so bad, being around it is like punishment for your nose!
(A tap plays the video; the mare who recorded herself at the start of this act laughs and gets her stallion companion to cringe away from her hoof.)
Stallion 2: Nasty!
Mare 2: Ew.
(He dodges away with a cry, only to double back for another lungful and whine. Cut to Pipp regarding the device through narrowed eyes; it is positioned so that the screen is out of view. Two new voices are heard now, a stallion and mare, the former groaning in discomfort. Zoom in slowly as the eyes widen in slowly growing comprehension.)
Voice of Mare 3: Oh, my hoofness, the smell!
Pipp: (flaring wings) Ohhhhh! Oh, no. Oh. (Gasp and smile.) Wow! Oh, that makes so much sense! (hovering, twirling in place) You and everypony were acting so funny today! (Jazz stands up.) And I was just used to the smell? Oh, this is bad. Oh!
(But she shifts into a bubbly giggle and touches down again.)
Jazz: Wait. So, you’re not mad?
Pipp: (giggling, flying to Jazz’s side, landing) It certainly doesn’t feel good to be the butt of an entire town’s joke, but…you know what does feel good? A friend you can be honest with. Friends should always feel safe and comfortable to tell each other the truth, even when it stinks.
Jazz: I’m sorry I kept this from you.
Pipp: It’s okay. (glancing at display table) Now, help me drastically slash these prices.
(She flies and Jazz walks over to the array of bottles.)
Pipp: For my next Potion by Pipp, I’ll…
Jazz: Keep it simple?
Pipp: I’ll stick to the classics. Oh! I love that for us.
(One front door flies open, setting off the chime, and Izzy bounds in with a basket under her horn-power.)
Izzy: Pipp, Pipp, Pipp, I found it! I found the elusive neutralizing ingredient!
(Taking a deep breath, she pulls her freight a bit closer to show a great many thistle heads protruding above the wicker—pink rather than yellow.)
Izzy: Pink thistle! (Float one and over to Pipp.) Fresh from Bridlewood! Give this a whiff. (Jazz does so and smiles.)
Jazz: Best smell I’ve ever smelled!
Pipp: (gasping, grabbing a bottle) This will keep the shine but erase the smell! And it’s all natural! Just like I wanted! Awww…Potions by Pipp is saved!
(In close-up, Jazz brings up her phone as Izzy repositions the pink thistle.)
Jazz: (to Pipp) Should I start the social media blast, or should you? (All three again; Pipp has pulled the stopper from her bottle and Izzy has set down her basket.)
Pipp: Let’s do it together—but with way less stink this time.
(The flower is gently shaken over the bottle to drop in a few glittery pollen grains. The three mares put their noses within striking distance and inflate their lungs.)
Izzy: (happily) Ah!
(All laugh as the camera cuts to the exterior of Mane Melody and zooms out slowly, the line of customers having dispersed at long last.)