Since she had decided to reach out and facilitate the reunion of the M6, Aurora immediately grabbed paper and a pen to start writing a letter.
Pinkie Pie even pulled an envelope out of her mane; there was no telling just how much stuff she kept in there.
After finishing and sealing it, Aurora stamped it with her cutie mark wax seal to ensure she would receive a reply from Fleur Dis Lee as soon as possible. She usually carried such things with her, as they could sometimes serve as stamps.
Fleur Dis Lee was quite popular right now, and she surely received a lot of mail. To prevent her own letter from being buried in a pile by the roadside, it was better to add a mark.
Now, all that was left was to mail this letter.
"I'll go, I'll go! Let me go! I run the fastest!"
Pinkie Pie stopped Aurora, who was about to leave, snatched the letter that was being carried by magic, and without giving Aurora a chance to speak, she saluted them and dashed out the door.
"Let her go, Flying Light. This party is held especially for you; it wouldn't be right if the guest of honor left."
"Rarity makes sense; the post office is just a few steps away. Besides, you've done enough for us; it's time we contributed something too."
However, less than a minute later, Pinkie Pie returned with the letter in her mouth, looking exceptionally nervous. She backed against the door of Sugarcube Corner, gasping heavily through her nose.
"Emergency! The foals!"
Pinkie Pie shrieked, though it sounded muffled because she had something in her mouth, but her meaning was still clear.
She quickly locked the door, closed the windows, and pulled the curtains shut, peeking outside only through a small gap between them.
"I asked what happened, Pinkie Pie? Weren't you going to mail the letter?"
Applejack took the letter from Pinkie Pie's mouth, not knowing what she was making such a fuss about again.
"Shh!"
Pinkie Pie covered Applejack's mouth, then stepped aside to let Applejack see the situation outside for herself.
The once bustling street was now completely empty, save for a pony wearing a cloak walking down the street, looking very strange.
"Celestia above! It's her! We're in trouble!"
Although Applejack didn't say her name, Rarity and Fluttershy understood implicitly and began to panic.
"What's going on all of a sudden?"
Aurora also leaned toward the window to get a look, but the moment she peeked, Pinkie Pie covered her eyes.
"Don't look! You'll be cursed by her!"
"Pinkie Pie, I'm a professional when it comes to magic; I won't get cursed for no reason."
Aurora pulled Pinkie Pie off her head and set her aside, then, ignoring the other ponies' attempts to stop her, pulled the curtains open.
Sugarcube Corner didn't have the lights on anyway, and it was brighter outside than inside, so pulling the curtains had been completely unnecessary.
Aurora finally saw the pony covered by the black cloak. At first glance, she did look quite suspicious, but that was just looking; the other party wasn't doing anything bad. Instead, all the ponies in town were inexplicably wary of her, which was what caused the panic.
"You all should know what her name is, right?"
Aurora had already somewhat recognized her, but she still wanted to verify it with these ponies first.
"I really don't want to say her name; I might get cursed...!"
Hearing this, Aurora was speechless. Equestria didn't have Voldemort or Polka Kaka, right? Could they really come through the magical link to kill you?
"That won't happen. I'm certain there's no such magic where saying a name triggers a curse..."
Right?
Aurora's tone became slightly uncertain as she finished, because she suddenly remembered that she had indeed fallen victim to a magic triggered by cognition a few years ago.
But what she needed to do now was to soothe these ponies' emotions, not make them even more afraid. Moreover, regarding that kind of cognition-triggered magic, Aurora had searched for a lot of related materials over the years, but had found nothing.
It was evident that even if such insidious magic existed, it was only possessed by a very few ponies. At the very least, none of the great wizards whose names were known could use it.
The foals looked at each other and finally chose to trust Aurora. After all, as the Princess's student, Aurora was quite authoritative in magic studies. If they told her the situation, perhaps she could solve this trouble for them.
However, Applejack was really reluctant to say Zecora's name and information because she felt that trouble comes from the mouth, and mentioning Zecora was a risky thing. So, after stalling for a long time, she left it to Rarity to explain.
"She came to Ponyville a few days ago. We only know her name is Zecora, and she's a witch. But she looks too strange, and she lives alone in the Everfree Forest. No one knows what dangerous things she's brewing."
"And look, she has so many gaudy stripes on her body; it looks so barbaric."
Just then, Zecora lifted her hood, revealing her mohawk hairstyle and her fur covered in black and white stripes, which made them gasp in shock.
"I was just planning to write a song about her to warn other ponies how dangerous she is!"
However, Pinkie Pie could only hum the tune for now; she hadn't had time to write the lyrics yet.
"She is a Zebra. Those stripes are natural to her; that's perfectly normal. She is likely a foreign pony from the Zebra continent southwest of Equestria, not some suspicious or dangerous pony."
Zebra? Zebra continent?
Having learned two new terms in a row, The foals couldn't immediately grasp them, but the new confusion muddled their fear of Zecora, causing them to temporarily relax their vigilance toward her.
Aurora took the opportunity to take off her glasses and look at Zecora outside.
As a Zebra, she had a very distinct magical aura about her. This was very special and piqued Aurora's interest.
Furthermore, Zecora lived in the Everfree Forest and seemed to have been living there for quite some time. If she could build a good relationship with her, it would be very helpful for Aurora's research plans.
"I'm going to go say hello to her."
And by the way, I can also prove to you ponies that Zecora isn't scary.
As Aurora said this, she was about to walk outside to call Zecora, but she was held back by the panicked ponies.
"Are you crazy?! Flying Light, how can you do such a dangerous thing?!"
"darling, please don't go. I know you mean well, but how about we discuss this before taking action?"
"We need a protection spell! To ensure that if we anger her, we can escape unscathed!"
They were each pulling on one of her hooves. Aurora tried to struggle a bit; only the one Fluttershy was holding was easily pulled free.
"Sorry, I tried my best..."
With no other choice, Aurora had to use her versatile Teleportation Magic to help herself break free. Before leaving, she also swiped a chocolate cupcake; it was the sweetest treat here.
"Don't worry, girls. I'll be fine, and I'll also have a new friend."
After saying this, Aurora took the cupcake and headed out to chase after Zecora.
The four ponies worriedly clung to the doorway, watching. Applejack suddenly couldn't help but say to Rarity.
"Looks like you did introduce her to a 'new friend' after all."
"Oh no... That's not what I hoped for."
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