Sweet as Sugar

Crash!

"Not again!" I groaned, my head spinning.

Applejack sighed as Pinkie bounced on ahead, claiming to be needed somewhere... "Night Wish, you bumped into somethin' again?"

"Who can blame me?" I straightened myself up - I still wasn't used to walking on all fours - before sighing and looking up. "I wish this was just a dream, but it isn't! I really am in a different world!" By this I lowered my voice. "A world that belongs in a cartoon..."

Twilight looked at me curiously. "Interdimensional travel is quite rare in occurrence, Night Wish, but not impossible. If it helps, I'll send a letter to Princess Celestia regarding your return home." She paused, thinking about it, before adding, "That is, as a human..."

"Er..." I looked down at my hooves. "Maybe... not yet."

Judging from her expression, I'm guessing Twilight looked as baffled as I was. "Why not?"

"Er, I was thinking..." If I had opposable thumbs at the moment, I'd be twiddling them by now. So instead, I pawed at the pavement. For a town filled with horses, this place had pretty good architecture. I should probably try and draw these... "... maybe I could stay and... er, explore... your town?"

Rainbow looked down from the cloud she was riding. "Yeah! You could stay and I could teach you how to use your wings for racing!"

"How about just ordinary flying, Rainbow Dash?" Fluttershy asked quietly, walking alongside Rarity.

"Flying, schmying, he'll learn if he stays!" Rainbow shrugged before turning to Twilight with pleading eyes. "Pleaaase, Twilight, can Night Wish stay? PLEAAASE?"

Twilight continued to look baffled as Rarity added, "I need a colt for my newest fashion line, and he's just perfect, Twilight! Oh please, don't write a letter to Celestia regarding his return!"

"I'll still have to write a letter though." Twilight replied, staring at me, a calculating look on her face. I felt unnerved just looking at her. "But I'll just tell her that you're a human who came as a pony who wants to explore Ponyville..."

Applejack smiled. "Sugarcube, I believe you jus' got permitted ta stay in Ponyville!"

"...?!" I couldn't help it. Everyone was smiling, and heaven knows how much I smile when everyone else is smiling, so I smiled as well before we continued on to our... destination? I don't know where we're going, honestly, so sorry. "Er, where are we going, exactly?"

Rarity answered with a flourish, "Why, to Carousel Boutique, my dear! My humble abode, so to say, and soon to also be your temporary home away from home!"

"Gee, that's uh..." I suddenly regretted accepting her offer to stay with her for the time being. If the shows were anything like here, then that meant Rarity would be super generous and give me lots of clothes to wear even if nopony wears mu- wait a minute, did I just say nopony?! I facepalmed - er, facehoofed - making the others look at me strangely. "... that's nice, Rarity." I finished lamely. What else could I say?

Rarity paused beside a tall gazebo-like building. "We're here, darling! Come inside and make yourself at home while I go out with the others!"

"You mean... you're leaving me alone here? In your house?" I looked baffled. Absolutely baffled. "Me, a pony you just met, alone in your house?"

The unicorn smiled, and I won't deny that it was heartwarming. "Opalescence, my cat, is inside too, so she'll know if you do anything... uncouth, so to speak. Oh yes, and if you decide to go out, just place a sign up that says, 'Out to Lunch'. You can find it inside."

"Wow." She really was leaving me alone in her house, even if I was just someone she met! "Er, Rarity, thanks. Thanks a lot..."

Rarity waved her hoof in a dismissive manner. "Don't you worry dear. The moment I come back home I will shower you with attention! I'm truly sorry I can't be with you now, but the least I can do is let you stay here for the time being. Remember that, alright?"

"OK." I smiled as the others waved goodbye before heading who knows where. I turned to the Carousel Boutique, gulping, before pushing open the door, going inside... and getting hit by a flying gemstone square in the face. I tumbled backwards, accidentally slamming the door as I rolled.

A gentle-sounding voice said, "Scootaloo, I think you just hit someone with that emerald!"

"Oh please, no one's here except us and Opalescence!" Another voice, this time a bit tomboyish, replied. "Now get busy! We'll get our cutie marks in no time if we manage to help Pinkie!"

I blinked as the other voice replied with an accent similar to Applejack's. "Y'all don't realize that it's kinda hard ta decorate like this, do ya? Ow, Sweetie Bell, ya stepped on mah tail!"

"Uh, hello?" I ventured, standing up shakily before walking over. I will never get used to walking on all fours if everything makes me fall down. "Is anyone there?"

Silence answered me as I continued on, looking at my surroundings. Rarity's house-slash-boutique was pretty beautiful, and the decorations were just like the ones back at home, except that our house didn't have gems in every corner like Rarity's. I could identify emeralds, rubies, sapphires, even diamonds in this room. A pony mannequin - hey, wouldn't it be called a ponyquin, or a ponykin? - stood in a corner, wearing a very detailed ballgown dotted with lots of black gemstones that I think are called onyxes.

As I passed a door, it creaked slightly. I froze, looking back at it, before walking on, muttering, "Geez, this place is creepy if you're alo-!"

By that point, I had been ambushed, attacked from behind, assaulted with my back turned, oh, you get the drill. Somepony - oh God, not again with the pony suffixes! - wrapped a cloth in front of my eyes and stuffed something into my mouth before dragging me somewhere. Just when I was about to shout, the gag was removed and the cloth in front of my eyes detached, revealing a bright light that made me close my eyes.

"Who's he?" The tomboyish voice was here. I opened one eye to see an orange pegasus, er, filly, if that's what you called girls here, a whiteish-gray unicorn filly, and a yellow Earth pony filly staring at me. The pegasus spoke, and I realized that the tomboyish voice belonged to her. "Sweetie Bell, do you know him?"

The unicorn spoke next in the gentle voice I heard earlier. "Not really. I've never seen him in Miss Cheerilee's class. Apple Bloom?"

"Nnnope." Apple Bloom sounded a lot like Applejack. Huh. They must be related somehow. "Say there, colt, who are ya?"

I sat up before falling back down. Curses! I forgot that I was a pony, and ponies don't sit up like humans! Cursing under my breath, I stood up, wobbling shakily, before replying, "I'm Rya- Night Wish. You are?"

"I'm Scootaloo, and this is Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom!" The pegasus introduced, pointing to her friends. I cocked my head. Scootaloo looked a lot like Rainbow Dash, down to the hairstyle! "We're the Cutie Mark Crusaders!"

I blinked. "The whaaaaat?"

"The Cutie Mark Crusaders!" Sweetie Bell smiled, and I suddenly envisioned a younger version of Rarity with purple and pink hair and more curls. "We're a secret society trying to get our cutie marks like everyone else!"

I blinked. Again. "Your what now?"

"Our cutie marks!" Apple Bloom nodded. "Y'know, the symbols on our flanks... hey, yer a blank flank too!"

I couldn't help it. I was so out of it, so I blinked once more. "A what?"

"A blank flank, dummy!" Scootaloo pointed to somewhere near my tail. I craned my head towards it, and at first, I didn't get it. Then, I remembered that Rarity, Twilight and everyone else had something on their flank, something that looked really random at first before I remembered its purpose in the show.

I exclaimed, "Ooooh! Now I remember! Blank flanks are for ponies who don't have their cutie marks in the show!"

"Show?" The three Crusaders echoed, staring at me.

I felt my ears grow hot as I mumbled, "Nothing... so what were you three doing here?"

"We're- mmph!" Sweetie Bell was about to say something, but Scootaloo and Apple Bloom had stuffed the unicorn's hooves into her mouth before smiling widely. I narrowed my eyes, suspicious, as Scootaloo babbled, "Er, we're just, y'know... er, making dresses and stuff!"

"Yeah!" Apple Bloom nodded quickly. "Ain't anythin' ta worry about Night Wish."

If I were human, I would've crossed my arms. "Oh really? Then I guess I'll just go and check out your works of art then." I started walking out of the room - it looked a lot like a spare bedroom - while the other three Crusaders started protesting, holding me back by my tail. I struggled, and, judging from the time that passed, I took about one step per minute with them holding me back. My estimate was that I took fifty something steps to the room they were in - I could tell they were there a while ago, because there were a lot of gems and banners scattered around - before I pushed it open.

"SURPRISE!!!" I tumbled backwards, again, as lots of ponies inside a room that could probably hold my class back home and double it cheered. In the middle was a cake - how the hell? - and a punch bowl and other things, and can you guess who was there in the middle?

Yep, Pinkie Pie. I knew she was planning something.