The streets of Ponyville are becoming active as the day settles in; the birds are chirping, the pegasi are already hard at work preparing the weather for the day, and the ponies in the market place are opening for business.
Pound pulls the covers over his eyes as the early morning light pours into the room, shifting over onto his side to face away from the intrusion. His bed sits in the far corner of the room so when the sun rises, it beams right in his face.
Pumpkin continues sleeping soundly, her bed positioned parallel to his but directly under the window, so the harsh light passes her by.
The bedroom door creeps open, neither foal awake to notice. Mrs. Cake smiles to herself contently as she watches her children sleep. They behave so well when they're sleeping, Mrs. Cake thinks to herself. With a massive smile she flings the door open and flips the light on. "Good morning, my beautiful children!"
Pound pulls the covers up over his head and groans and Pumpkin pouts, "Mom, school's out."
"Can't we please sleep in?" The muffled input from Pound resonates through the blanket.
"Both of you know that I would love for you to be able to sleep in but your dad and I have a surprise for you," Mrs. Cake says cheerfully. Despite the promise of a surprise, neither foal wants to get out of bed. "Besides, you two shouldn't have stayed up so late last night."
"Well, it's the summer," Pound says, finally revealing his eyes and his ruffled mane. "We don't have a reason to get up early."
"Well," Mrs. Cake replies with a half-mocking tone raising her eyebrow, "you do now."
"Uuuggghhh," Pumpkin says unenthusiastically.
Mrs. Cake looks between both of them, starting with Pound and stopping on Pumpkin. "I'm going back downstairs, if you two aren't down there in five minutes," she pauses and acts like she's catching on to a memory. "Well, you two know what will happen, huh?" She finishes with a giggle before closing the door shut once again.
They both listen in for the creaking of one of the stairs that will signify their mother has legitimately gone down stairs. When the sound hits their ears letting them know the coast is clear, they both jump from the beds. They don't want their mom to have the satisfaction of her threat working on them. The last time they stayed asleep she came back with a bucket of cold water and neither of them wanted that again.
They both take off their pajamas and throw them into the dirty clothes hamper and open the door groggily. As they walk down the hall, Pumpkin says, "I wonder what the surprise is."
"With our parents, there's no telling," Pound replies with a yawn. They descend the stairs and walk into the restaurant area of the building. The family-owned restuarant is still closed which is way out of the ordinary. Normally, Sugar Cube Corner is one of the earliest opening businesses in Ponyville.
They slowly come to a stop inside the kitchen when they see their mom and dad pinning things up on a bulletin board. Little pieces of paper, pamphlets, a map of Equestria, and more all hang loosely from thumbtacks.
"What is all of this?" Pumpkin asks trying to get a better view. The view doesn't help her however; the planning board is a bit too complex to comprehend without an explanation.
"I think our parents are going to rob a bank," Pound inputs cautiously but lightheartedly, likewise stepping closer for a better view. Mrs. Cake turns around and flashes Pound a demeaning but devious smile. The two parents continue hanging up various things on the wall in silence, some of the pamphlets displaying a massive ship.
"It looks like they've got the get away vehicle," Pumpkin chimes in, just now realizing Pound's reference to one of their favorite comic book series.
"And the plans to get there," Pound says, pointing out with a hoof to the far corner that shows a train.
"And a plan to get the equipment into the bank without suspicion," Pumpkin returns inquisitively, pointing her hoof at a photo of suitcases.
Both of the parents turn around looking way happier than usual, which actually sets the two foals on edge. They're parents are generally happy ponies but they look happier than they have ever been.
With the exchange of a glance between Mr. and Mrs. Cake, they both shout, "We are going on a cruise!"
Pound and Pumpkin exchange confused glances. "Uh," they both say in unison.
After a moment of awkward silence, Mr. Cake's smile falters before he asks nervously, "Aren't you two excited?"
Pound and Pumpkin look at each other once again before back to their parents. "You two go on a cruise every year," Pumpkin points out softly.
"Yeah," Pound says with a nod of his head. "What makes this year so different?"
The parents exchange an excited glance. "This year is different because you two get to come with us!" Mr. Cake says enthusiastically, his smile widening at the shock on Pound and Pumpkin's faces.
"Do we really?!" Pound asks with enthusiasm that rivals Mr. Cake's.
"Of course!" Mrs. Cake answers with a cheerful smile.
"We get to go on a cruise!" Pumpkin exclaims as the two foals begin jumping circles around each other. The proud parents relish in their children's excitement. The twins continue jumping and with each happy bounce, they shout something they are going to do on the cruise.
Pound stops abruptly, Pumpkin smacking into him and falling on the ground. "Ouch, Pound, what'd you stop for?" Pumpkin groans disapprovingly, massaging the part of her head that hit his back.
Pound looks at his parents, ignoring Pumpkin's complaint and asks, "what's a cruise?"
It's Mr. and Mrs. Cake's turn to laugh hysterically at their uninformed son, knowing that Pumpkin is probably wondering the same thing.
"Oh boy," Mrs. Cake chuckles.
"I can hardly wait!" Pumpkin shouts enthusiastically as she accompanies Pound home from the park.
"I know! It's going to be so cool," Pound replies excitedly.
"I really want to try the lemon peppermint sticks in Baltimare," Pumpkin says dreamily, "I've heard they are spectacular."
"And what about meeting the writer of the Way of the Heist comics in Los Pegasus?!" Pound retorts, disappointed at his sister's lack of mention.
"Oh definitely!"
They continue their walk home after a hard day of playing with their friends at the park. Walking through the door of the bakery, they both halt in surprise that Princess Twilight is sitting at one of the tables with their mom and dad.
"Hey, sweeties," Mrs. Cake says upon spotting them. "Did you two have fun at the park?"
"Oh yeah!" Pound says with a flutter of his wings. His age shows though in the fact that he can't fly yet. Likewise, Pumpkin can't do any magic..
"Hello, Princess Twilight," Pumpkin says with a respectful smile and bow, much to Twilight's humiliation. Even having been a Princess for eight years she still isn't very fond of the title.
"Please, just Twilight," she says nervously before putting on a smile of her own. "And hello little ones."
"So what are you doing here, Twilight?" Pound asks, breaking the noticeable silence that followed Twilight's greeting.
"Oh, I'm just discussing the cruise with your parents is all," Twilight replies to the curious colt.
"Okey, dokey, lokey," Pumpkin says with uncertainty. Her face lights, making it obvious she just had an idea before turning to Pound and asking, "hey Bub, you wanna go read the latest edition of Cowcolts and Buffaloes with me?"
Without a second of hesitation, Pound accepts Pumpkin's idea and they both bounce up the stairs to their room. Twilight watches them as they go out until they are out of sight. With a nervous smile she looks back at Mr. and Mrs. Cake. "So, as I was saying, Baltimare is a big city, not to mention dangerous," Twilight reasons.
The Cake's both give a nod of understanding and Mr. Cake replies, "We understand that but we will only be there for a day and then we will be on the cruise ship."
"And I understand that," Twilight gives a pause. It seems that no matter what she says, she can't persuade to them that Baltimare is simply to dangerous for two foals their age. They don't understand just how big and dangerous Baltimare is. Twilight sighs in discontent, her disapproval very clear on her face.
Mrs. Cake uses the silence for her ultimatum, "Twilight, I thank you for your concern but," she waits for a reaction. She doesn't get one, so she continues, "Pound and Pumpkin are old enough. With us watching over them, I assure you that that they will be just fine."
Twilight sighs once again but instead of a grimace, she smiles and says, "I'm sure they will. I'm just a little...worried, is all." Mrs. Cake gets out of her seat and Mr. Cake follows the motion. Twilight remains sitting for just a second more before getting to her hooves as well. "Well, I must be going."
"Oh yes, I didn't realize how late it is getting," Mr. Cake says after glancing up to the clock on the wall. He feels a little agitated at Twilight for not accepting that they can take care of their own children but still is respectful nonetheless.
"Good night, Mr. and Mrs. Cake," Twilight says while slowly opening the door.
"Good night, Princess Twilight," both Cakes say in unison which earns them a nervous look from Twilight before the door shuts.
Mr. and Mrs. Cake walk up the stairs quietly, their conversation with Twilight still fresh on their minds. They understand Twilight's concern but aren't happy about the obvious doubt that they can't take care of their own children even though they have been for going on eleven years now. They have raised a happy and healthy son and daughter; so what's the big deal?
Mrs. Cake stops at the kids' room while Mr. Cake continues on to their bedroom. Mrs. Cake opens the door slowly. Pound is laying on his bed reading a comic book and Pumpkin is laying down on top of him, her head sitting to the right of his as she reads along. Opening the door even more, the motion causes both of them to look up. "Hey, you two," Mrs. Cake says softly, "it's bedtime."
"Awwww," they reply simultaneously, Pumpkin rolling off the bed onto both hooves before bouncing up onto her own bed.
Mrs. Cake hates hearing their disappointment but if she doesn't make them go to bed they'll stay up all night. "We've got a big day of packing for the trip."
Pound rolls backwards pulling the covers with him as he lands perfectly on his back with covers up to his neck. Pumpkin pulls her covers back and plops onto the thick, comfy pillow while Mrs. Cake makes her rounds tucking in both of the children, planting a kiss on both of their foreheads.
Once she sees they are both comfortable, she turns out the light, exits and slowly shuts the door. Darkness engulfs the room, the only light coming from Luna's moon outside. After a few minutes of silence, the only noises to be heard being the ruffling of sheets, a small orange light softly illuminates Pumpkin's corner of the room. With a little static noise and a flicker, the light goes out.
Pound's excitement for the cruise still has him wide awake and when he sees the light go out, he asks, "You're still trying to get it, huh?"
Pumpkin lays there in silence for a moment before answering. It's always been to her dismay that she isn't going to be one of those early learner unicorns and that no matter how hard she tried, she would probably learn all of the magic at the same time as everyone else. "Yeah," she replies dismissively.
Upon hearing the disappointment in her words, Pound sits up slightly and looks over to her side of the room. He can't see her because the moonlight only lights up his side of the room. Pound assures her, "You'll get it eventually. Everypony does"
After another futile attempt at harnessing some form of magical ability, she sighs. "Yeah, maybe."
Pound then gives a little flutter of his wings and tries to make his disheartened sister feel better. "You know, I can't do anything besides hover yet," he sighs, trying to show his disappointment as well. "But just because I can't right now, that doesn't mean I never will."
A smile creeps up on her lips; Pound is right. I may not be able to do it now, but that doesn't mean I never will. I just need to stop worrying about it and focus on the now. With that conclusion, she slowly but surely falls into a deep sleep.
With his sister's silence he calls quietly, "Pumpkin?" Realizing she had fallen asleep. His sister has always been able to simply go to sleep without even trying. With a huff he asks, "How do you do that?" Rolling over on his side, he closes his eyes and waits patiently for his turn to drift off to sleep as well.
Another day settles in and the Cake family is hard at work doing some last minute packing before the trip. Sleep wear, toiletries, and plenty of things to do on the train ride to Baltimare and back from Los Pegasus. The trip will be roughly a day from Ponyville to Baltimare and the train leaves at noon.
Visible sweat drips down the twins' necks as they run up and down the stairs with various size bags and cases. They have to have a week's worth of everything and they might be being a little excessive. After looking into their method of travel and schedules, only one other couple will be on the train with them, but they'll be sitting at the front. Because of that, they can bring almost as much as they want without any weight fees.
After spending the whole day yesterday packing, Mr. and Mrs. Cake are almost glad that the train ride will be a while. That means they'll get to sit back and relax on the way there.
A knock on the door of the bakery grabs everypony's attention. When they open the door, Twilight Sparkle and the Friendship Council are standing there with big smiles. Although as you can imagine, Pinkie's is the largest. "Pinkie Pie!" The twin's shout simultaneously, running to hug their life long friend. Pinkie welcomes them with open hooves, the rest of the group smiling at their embrace.
Mrs. Cake sets a bag down next to the already large pile of cases and saddlebags and swivels around to look at the ponies. "Thank all of you for coming! It would take us four or five trips back and forth to the station alone."
"It's no problem, ma'am," Applejack says with a tip of her brown hat.
"Oh yeah! We'll have it done in a jiffy," Rainbow Dash chimes in with other enthusiastic responses from the rest of the group.
Twilight looks around at the massive pile, stepping away from the rest of the group towards the parents. "Is it all here?" She asks, turning around and facing her friends who are still playing with Pound and Pumpkin.
"Well, we sure hope so," Mr. Cake replies with a giggle. Twilight smiles.
After a second of awkward silence and giving her wings a little rustle, she looks at Mr. and Mrs. Cake, "I'm sorry about the other day, I-" her head falls a little and with a sigh she continues, "I guess I got a little carried away."
With a smile Mrs. Cake says, "Don't worry about it, dear. We both understand your concern."
Twilight lifts her head. "Thank you for that but please be careful. Baltimare really is a dangerous city," Twilight pauses for a second to reach around to one of her own saddlebags and opens it up. With her magic she levitates a necklace from her packs. The jewel on it is a sapphire blue and anypony with eyes can see that there is something magical about it. "Take this with you. If you get into any trouble, put it on. It will allow you to talk to whoever is wearing it's match," she pauses once more and levitates another necklace that is identical to the other and puts it around her neck, "which is me."
"Oh dear, you don't have to do that," Mrs. Cake says, taking the necklace in her hoof and eyeing it inquisitively.
With another smile, this one a little bit more confident now that she has a surefire way of knowing they are safe, Twilight replies, "I know, but safety first right? You don't have to wear it unless you need it."
Before either Cakes can reply, Rainbow Dash flies over to them. "Are you slowpokes ready to get this show on the road?" Twilight looks eagerly at the parents who both nod happily, very much ready for the needed sleep the train ride will hopefully supply. Rainbow Dash turns around to the group of friends who are still entertaining the foals and says, "alright everypony, let's do this!"
After a minute of getting situated and getting all of the luggage and cargo on the backs and saddlebags of all of the ponies present and made their way to the train station.
Many conversations spark out amongst the group between various ponies as they walk along happily the almost empty street of Ponyville. Now that summer has begun, many ponies have packed up and taken trips to unwind and relax.
The train station comes into view and the train's whistle rings out, halting all conversation for just a moment. Once the whistle dies out, the group continues their chatter.
With a hop and a bounce, Pound exclaims, "I can't wait to get to the ship!
"Me neither! It's going to be so awesome!" Pumpkin chimes in, her little blue bow flicking around her shoulder at the turn of her head. Rainbow Dash's lips curl up slightly at the use of one of her most reknown phrases.
Applejack just smiles, while Fluttershy giggles at the familiar words. Rarity, who is falling right behind Pumpkin, asks, "My dear, where did you get that beautiful bow? The blue matches your eyes perfectly."
Giving her head a little toss to impress her friend, Pumpkin replies, "I don't really know. Mom got it for me a little while ago."
"Is that so?" Rarity says, looking over at Mrs. Cake who is engaged in her own conversation with Pound, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. Not wanting to interrupt, Rarity concludes that she will have to ask her later.
Pound asks Fluttershy with genuine curiosity sparkling in his eye, "Fluttershy, how come you never go out of town unless it's a friendship mission?"
Fluttershy blushes slightly at becoming the center of attention but replies with a lighthearted chuckle. "I'll leave all of the big adventures for you two. It seems like you'll probably have a lot."
"I sure hope so!" Pound replies happily.
Hearing the precedings of the conversation, Mr. Cake quickly pipes up, "Don't encourage them!"
The remark makes the whole group laugh until they finally come upon the train station. The train in all of its glory sits motionless on the tracks, the conductor and the driver working hastily to do last minute checks before the long journey.
The group walks to one of the cargo cars and drop all of the luggage off in neat stacks making sure the name tags on them are visible. Only two other bags occupy the car, leaving plenty of space for their belongings. Once the bags are all dropped off, everypony steadily makes their way back onto the platform.
They all look at each other for a moment in silence, the Cakes standing together, across from Twilight and the council. After a few more heartbreaking moments, Pinkie can't hold herself together anymore. "I'm going to miss you guys so much!" She exclaims, grabbing all four Cakes in a bear hug.
"Oh Pinkie Pie," Twilight giggles, covering her muzzle with a hoof. The whole group looks a little upset at their soon departure but all of them know it won't last forever.
"Come on, Pinkie, it's not like we are leaving forever," Pound tells her, returning the embrace.
"Yeah! We'll be back before you know it!" Pumpkin retorts assuringly.
Mr. and Mrs. Cake exchange a nervous glance and a smilr before the hold on the family is loosened and Pinkie Pie takes a step back. "I know," she sighs sadly, "but one week could feel like an eternity." She slowly trudges off to her crowd of friends.
The train's whistle fires up again, this time a lot louder than before. The conductor hangs loosely from one of the passenger cars and shouts, "all a board!"
Twilight takes a step forward and puts a hoof up to the little jewel on the necklace she is wearing. "Just remember, if you need anything, let me know," she says with a worried look but still with a hopeful smile.
"Don't you worry, Twilight. We will," Mrs. Cake assures her with a smile of her own. At that, the Cakes turn to the train and climb on board, passing in between the two cars and to the right into a sleeper car.
Once inside and closing the door behind them, they all make their way to the window in between two of the bunks and pull it down. The group of Elements stand on the platform, with smiles and happy glances. Except for Pinkie, who's deflated mane and quivering lip tells of anything except happiness to see them go.
The group then begins waving their hooves as the train let's off some exhaust and begins rolling forward. The window rolled down, the Cakes hear their friends' goodbyes and fare wells and begin shouting back with their own goodbyes.
Pinkie is still sitting, watching them go. The train passes the platform when Twilight walks over to Pinkie. Craning her neck down so that she can still see the train as it goes, Twilight asks Pinkie from the corner of her mouth, "Don't you have something you want to tell them?"
Pinkie sighs and shakes her head. "No, I just wish-" she stops for a second, her eyes going wide. She stands up and gallops full speed to the end of the platform and brings her hooves up on the rails. With the power of a wolf on a full moon, she shouts, "DON'T FORGET TO WRITE!"
The Cakes are just about to close the window when Pinkie's message hits their ears. They all smile at each before bursting out laughing amongst themselves.
Twilight and her friends giggle at Pinkie's sudden change in mood and her outburst and they all begin heading home.
Her friends all trotting ahead of her, Twilight stops as the others continue. Before leaving the platform, Twilight takes one last glance at the train now dipping over the horizon and smiles. "I hope you have a great time." Her blessing gets lost on the wind, and Twilight makes her way home.