The Adventures of James Stallion, Book 1: The Gift of New Life

Chapter 2

The run to Ponyville was quite a long one. Even though I could see the town from the Oak tree I woke up under clearly, I didn‘t take notice to the actual distance that had lain before me.

After my rush of adrenaline was over, I slowed down to a trot to catch my breath. It wasn’t that much farther until I reached my destination and already I could see ponies of all different colors and sizes beginning to come into view. I couldn’t believe it. There I was on my way to Ponyville to meet the two main characters from the show. Just that thought alone swelled me with excitement.

On my way there I arrived at a river that completely encircled the entire city. The river coiled around the outer edge of the city snuggly and eventually turned away and continued to go further out into the distance. I stopped near the bank of the river and gazed at my surrounding area to look for a way to cross it. I didn’t want to forge the river unless I actually had to; I didn’t want to meet Twilight Sparkle looking like a wet slob.

As I looked around I noticed a pink bridge further downstream that led across the river and onto a path that would take me the rest of the way to the city. Without a moment of hesitation I began to walk over to it. I knew that the chariot would land in or near the town center so that narrowed my search; however a big obstacle I would face would be finding my way there and arriving in time.

As I approached the bridge I noticed a peculiar object hanging on bridge’s corner. Even though I was in a hurry curiosity got the best of me and I stopped to take to look at it. It appeared to be a strap that was ripped off of a backpack of some sort. As I looked at the strap I remembered that the strange mare I saw was wearing a backpack when I had seen her walking up the trail towards Sweet Apple Acres, and I assumed it had belonged to her.

I brought my head down closer to examine it a little more carefully but the sound of flapping wings coming from Ponyville brought me out of my trance. I looked towards the town and saw the chariot take back to the sky over the buildings and started to turn around to head back toward Cantralot. From what I could see, Twilight and Spike weren’t in the chariot so I knew immediately that they had already been dropped off.

I cursed my luck and galloped across the bridge as fast as I could. Once I crossed, I got onto the trail that lead to Ponyville and continued to make my way towards the city. It wasn’t that much further away so I reached the outskirts of the town a few moments later. As soon as I arrived though I slowed to a brisk walk so I wouldn’t run into anypony.

Just as I had walked onto the first road I saw ponies of all ages walking around having a good time. They were doing everything from talking to each other, to buying or selling goods at stands that were on the side of the streets. There were young fillies and colts running about the streets playing games and laughing in joy as they did so. Every once in a while, one would occasionally stop and greet somepony else they knew or would take a break from playing for a moment to rest.

The whole town was full of abundant energy, so much so that I quickly became caught up in trying to take in everything; the sights, the sounds, and especially the smells. There were so many different aromas in the air that my brain almost went into overdrive trying to separate what the different smells were.

I became so enthralled of the life around me that I momentarily stopped paying attention to where I was going and accidentally ran into a galloping pink mare that was headed in the opposite direction. The impact was enough to stagger me back a step or two, but the mare had been completely knocked down on her flank. After I realized what had happened I apologized to the mare and hoped that I hadn’t hurt her.

“Oh I am so sorry-” I began to say, but I stopped when I looked at who it actually was; it was the eccentric friendly party mare Pinkie Pie. She looked exactly like she did from the show just like Applejack had. She was completely pink, with the exception off her mane and tail which was more of a magenta shade of color. With her colors and her happy-go-lucky attitude, she definitely stood out from most other ponies that were in Ponyville. Her mane was extremely curly and actually resembled a big swab of cotton candy. Once I realized who it was that I had knocked down, I immediately began to apologize even more intently.

Pinky Pie stood up as I was apologizing to her and when she looked at me let out a really loud drawn out gasp and galloped past me without looking back.

I looked back towards her confused and watched as she expertly dodged through the crowds of ponies. I shook my head and continued on towards the town center. There was one thing about Pinky Pie that definitively was true about her; she was really strange and random. I hadn’t even gotten a chance to introduce myself to her before she ran away. What’s more she didn’t even really have a reason to run away.

With a sigh I quickened my pace when I seen the town hall drawing into view. Even though I had no idea about the layout of Ponyville, I did know that the town hall was located in the center, and after another few moments of making my way through the crowded streets I finally made it my destination.

The center of Ponyville was a huge vacant area of the town with buildings built all around the outskirts of it. There was a small stream which cut through and curved around the town hall. Along the banks river there was flowers that were in full bloom and they added a pristine look of life to the area. The town hall was located in the very center and was extremely large; large enough in fact that it could probably be seen from most, if not all of Ponyville. On one side of the town center there was a fairly large fountain that had a statue of a pony rearing up on its hind legs in glory, and on the opposite side of the stream there were colorful tents set up and I assumed that the tents were selling goods and merchandise. I marveled to myself at the expanse of the town I now found myself in. I never would have guessed that it was this massive when I watched the show back on earth.

While I was looking at the pristine beauty of the town hall I suddenly remembered Twilight and Spike. I quickly began to look around the town center for any hint of them but as I looked I quickly began to take notice that the town center was a lot more crowded then the streets I had just on. There were so many ponies located in the area that just the sheer number of them alone would make finding Twilight and Spike as difficult as trying to find a needle in a haystack.

As I was trying to seek them out, I overheard some of the ponies make mention about a golden chariot as they were walking by me. It then occurred to me that the huge crowd of ponies that were there had actually come to see the royal guards that had dropped of Twilight and Spike.

With this knowledge I immediately set out and started to look through the crowds of ponies for Twilight. I searched every square foot of the town square twice before I gave up. I even asked a few ponies that were passing by if they had seen them exit the carriage, but each time I did I received similar responses- ‘Who’s Twilight Sparkle?’ or ‘How could there be a dragon here in Ponyville?’

I let out another sigh and made my way closer to the town hall so I could have some reprieve from the herds of ponies that were still trying to vacate the area. On my way over, I took notice to the actual architecture of the building. The town hall had a rounded appearance with multiple stories to it. I wasn’t sure of how many floors it actually had, but on the top it formed together into a dome shape. At the base of the building there were six sets of small staircases that led onto the first floor. The entrance to the establishment sat facing to what I guessed was north, and in between the staircases there were sets of flowers and other bushes planted to add to the beauty of the surroundings. Most of the plants were merely daisies and other common flowers; however I did take notice that there was one section that was completely covered with what looked like roses in addition to the other plants.

There were multiple wooden posts that connected the of bottom floor to the second story balcony, and since I didn’t have anything else to do, I walked over to one and leaned on it for a bit. As I was resting I watched the other ponies as they went about their business in the crowded town center, most of which were just trying to leave. I didn’t have any idea on where to look for Twilight and Spike, and even if I did know where they went I wouldn’t know my way around town to catch up with them.

I stood there for a few moments and admired the liveliness of the town once more. I didn’t know what it was, but there was something about the sounds that relaxed me. The sound of pony’s hooves plopping on the dirt streets as they walked, the soft chattering of the birds singing their lovely songs in the distance, the sound of ponies laughing and talking to one another all accumulated into my burdened mind and relaxed me.

As I was taking in the sights and sounds around me, a young filly walking with a mare caught my attention. “Mom can I have one more cupcake, please.” The filly asked her mother as they walked by. She was a small pony with tan fur and also had a really curly red mane and tail. She wore a pair of purple reading glasses that were a little too big on her face and gave her somewhat of an intelligent look.

“No Twist you’ll ruin your dinner. If you have to eat something else before we get home, eat an apple ok?” The mare replied to the filly as she reached into her saddle bag.

“An apple, that’s it!” I exclaimed as an idea flared into my mind. I was too enthralled by my sudden insight of knowledge that I didn’t even realize that I cried out like a mad man before it was too late.

The mare and filly both stopped and looked at me like with weird expressions on their faces as I shouted. I hadn’t intended to cry out like that, let alone make them stop and notice me, but now they had and I was standing there probably looking like I was insane. I tried my best to come up with a good excuse for why I cried out, but due to my nervousness, all that came out was senseless babbling which added to the awkwardness of the moment.

“Oh sorry, I uh… remembered something very important when you said apple and I um…” I stammered as I took a step back from them in embarrassment. The mare and filly continued to look at me strangely and all I did was laugh nervously and turned and walked away.

“Mom, what’s wrong with that stallion?” I heard the filly ask as I made my way through the now dwindling crowds of ponies.

“Nothing sweetie, he’s just disturbed is all.”

I turned and made my way down the nearest street and dodged my way through the last of the ponies. I felt like an idiot after what had just happened. I made a fool of myself in front of the two ponies and to top it off I ruined my chance of a good first impression. However, if there was anything good that had come out of the mess, it was that their conversation reminded me of were Twilight and Spike went after they arrived in Ponyville; they went to Sweet Apple Acres.

I stopped in my tracks as I then recalled my run-in with Applejack earlier. If I went after them and try to meet them at the farm, there was a huge possibility that Applejack would get her brother and they would probably beat me to a bloody mess; or at least ‘rip my head clean off my shoulders’ as Applejack had put it.

I sighed and hung my head in defeat as I sidestepped to a secluded corner of the street I was on. I knew then that meeting Twilight Sparkle would have to wait and I had the urge to kick myself considering that I let her get away.

I leaned against a corner of a building and began to think of what I should do now since Twilight and Spike were gone. I considered looking for some of the other characters like Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy the pegasus ponies, but as I thought about it however I decided against looking for them due to one prominent reason; I still didn’t know my way around Ponyville yet. If I were to just blindly run around looking for them, I would run a chance of getting lost in this metropolis. Plus in addition to that there were also the other various other minor things that would hinder my ability to meet them. Rainbow Dash, for example, would be next to impossible to find in the sky unless she flew directly overhead, and even then she probably wouldn’t stop if I tried to call out to her. As for Fluttershy, she would be too shy to talk to me, let alone try to make conversation. Since I ruled out looking for Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy, I then thought about looking for Rarity the unicorn pony, but once again decided against it because of the various complications that I would face. As always there was the fact that I didn’t know where her boutique was located, and even if I found it she would be too busy working on dresses to talk with me.

Having considering my options for a few moments, it became clear that no matter what I did I wouldn’t be able to meet any of the ponies that I wanted to meet. With that in mind, I decided that the best thing to do was to walk around town and get to know the layout of Ponyville a little bit better and hope I didn’t get lost in the process. In addition to learning the layout of the town, I would pass a lot of time as well, hopefully enough that when I was finished Twilight would have returned and I could meet her then.

I made my way out of the secluded corner and continued down the street I was on. As I started to walk, I noticed a clock that was hanging on a wall of a shop to my right and I took note of the time. It was a little after four o’clock now, but despite knowing the time I still didn’t have any idea of how long it would be before Twilight would return.

I took a few moments while I was walking to try to get a general idea of when Twilight would be back. I knew that Sweet Apple Acres was located a pretty good distance away from Ponyville, and I considered that if it had taken me about fifteen minutes to gallop from there to here, then it would probably take Twilight and Spike twice as long to make the same trip since they would be walking. In addition to the journey itself, I also added in another half an hour or so for them to finish checking on the food preparations, and with all of that in mind, as well as an additional time for them to walk back, I estimated that it would be about an hour and a half before they would return to Ponyville.

Once I had the mathematics figured out in my head and an idea of when they would return, I continued forward with a renewed vigor. Even though it was just a complete guess as to the actual amount of time, it was still something for me to look forward to and fill me with some excitement. Soon I would meet Twilight Sparkle and Spike the Dragon, and just that thought alone almost made me jump with joy.

As I walked around for awhile I started to take notice to what places of interest that Ponyville had to offer. As I looked however, I made sure that I kept my distance from the stores out of the fear of having another incident like the one I had earlier with Applejack.

There was a huge variety of stores that sold everything from horseshoes and saddlebags, to stores that sold clothing for mares and stallions. In addition to all of those stores, there was also an overabundance of places that sold fruits and vegetables; so much so that I found entire sections of streets devoted to nothing but stands of that nature.

As I continued to walk around looking at the wide assortments that the town had to offer, I came across a bakery shop called Sugar Cube Corner. I noticed the shop immediately because it was the only bakery store that I seen throughout the entire city, and not to mention, it looked like a giant multistory gingerbread house. The entire building looked completely edible from the outside and just the sight of it alone gave me a craving for sweets. All of the windows of the shop were bright pink in color and on the very top of the building there was what appeared to be a giant cupcake addition to the structure. All around the edge of the roof was painted white and looked like vanilla icing.

As I walked by the shop, I noticed a stallion outside of the store cleaning the windows near the entrance and was humming a song as he did so. When I drew close to the store the stallion heard me as I approached and looked over at me. I froze as he gave me a kind smile and began to walk over.

I was hit with by a wave of anxiety and fear; I had no idea of what to do and the closer he got to me the more concerned I became. I worried of what would happen when he found out that I didn’t have any money to buy anything from him. Ordinarily I wouldn’t have cared about being approached, but seeing as to how Applejack had acted earlier when I told her I couldn’t afford her apples made me feel uneasy.

He was a tall and skinny earth pony that had yellow fur and a red colored mane and tail. He wore a white and orange hat that covered the top of his mane almost completely, except for a few strands that stuck out underneath the front of the cap. In addition to the hat, he also wore a white apron and a white bowtie that had red streaks that ran through it. He had freckles on his muzzle that really stood out on his yellow fur and, when he smiled at me, I noticed that he also had a slight under bite.

“Well hi there.” he said as he stopped in front of me. “I’ve never seen you around here before. You must be new to town aren’t you?”

“Um yes I am new, I just got here today.” I replied looking away from his gaze a little. He seemed to be nice enough for me to feel a little more at ease.

“Aha I knew it! I would never forget a face. Everypony in town comes to my shop so I know just about everyone there is to know,” he said happily. “Little competition in the bakery business means lots of customers.” He added with a laugh.

“Yea I know, um… that’s really cool.” I said shifting uncomfortably on my hooves.

“I know right?” he said with a glimmer in his eyes. “Oh I’m terribly sorry, I didn’t even introduce myself. My name is Carrot Cake, but everypony just calls me ‘Mr. Cake’ for short”

“Oh, it’s really nice to meet you Mr. Cake.” I said as I awkwardly extended my right hoof out to him. I didn’t really know what else to do or how to continue the conversation, and I prayed that ponies here shook hooves like humans did on Earth.

“Ah, you’re quite a gentlecolt I see. With an attitude like that you going to fit in around here nicely.” He said as he grabbed onto my hoof and shook it. I let out a quiet sigh of relief and after a firm hoofshake he let go of my hoof and continued. “So what’s your name sir?”

“Oh uh, my name?” I asked obliviously to the unexpected question.

“Why yes your name. Everypony’s got to have a name don’t they?”

I smiled embarrassedly at him. I hadn’t thought of a name for myself now that I was in Ponyville and in a near panic I quickly said the first name that came to my mind. “Uh yes indeed, my name is um… Stallion… James Stallion.”

Mr. Cake nodded and gave me another smile “Well it’s a pleasure to meet you Mr. Stallion. Please don’t take offense of my saying so, but your name sounds slightly foreign. Are you from out of Canterlot by chance?”

“Oh, uh no. in fact I’ve never been there before. However I am from a very faraway place though. You’ve probably never heard of it and there isn’t really that much to say about it.” I said starting to feel uncomfortable. I really hoped that Mr. Cake didn’t press me for more information on where I was actually from. If I told him the truth about my origin he’d probably brand me as a lunatic.

“Well that’s fine and dandy Mr. Stallion. I’ll tell you what; how about you come in and we can continue our conversation over some cake?” Mr. Cake asked with a gesture toward the shop.

My heart skipped a beat and I nearly fell over. I was hit by the familiar fear that I had felt just before Mr. Cake had started to talk to me. Once again I started to become afraid of what he would do when he found out that I didn’t have any finances to compensate him. He did seem really nice, but then again Applejack also did when I had seen her on the show. I tried my best to think of a quick excuse onto how to get out of there, but all I managed to do was stutter.

“Oh I uh… You see I um…”

Mr. Cake raised an eyebrow and started to look concerned. “What? What’s a matter James?”

“Oh well um you see I can’t. I um… uh… the place… and the money…”

“James spit it out stallion; get it off your chest.”

I stopped stammering and looked at Mr. Cake, then down to the ground. “I can’t come in and eat Mr. Cake because I don’t have any money to pay you.” I said closing my eyes. I was afraid of how he was going to react, but to my relief he actually started to laugh.

“What is that all? My word James you acted like I was going to… I don’t know… tear your head off or something just because you couldn’t pay.”

My eyes grew wide and I just looked at him in response. That was exactly what I had thought he would’ve done, or rather something else along those lines.

“Look its fine alright? The sweets are on the house.” He said reassuringly. “Besides Cupcake would kill me if I didn’t invite you in and welcome you to Ponyville properly; she always loves to meet new ponies.” Mr. Cake added with a chuckle.

“Oh, um… ok.” I said with a nod.

“Well alright then, let’s go.” He said giving me a pat on the back with a front hoof.

He turned towards Sugar Cube Corner and walked towards the front door. I hung back for a second and tried to grasp onto what just happened. Even though it was just a simple kind gesture, it was still something that was unusual to me. A life full of cruelty and hardships had made me into a hollow shell that was foreign to all types of kindness.

Mr. Cake reached the door and turned back towards me. “Are you coming James?” he asked me with another gesture towards the store.

“Oh uh yea, sorry.”

I quickly moved towards the store, and when I got close, Mr. Cake opened the door and motioned for me to enter. I told him thanks as I entered the shop and immediately upon entry I was barraged by a massive amount of delicious smells. I smelled everything ranging from natural fruit to sweet artificial sugary smells that made my mouth water. On the opposite side of the room away from me there was a counter that served as a display case that held intricately and beautifully designed cakes of all various sizes. When I looked around more intently, I noticed that there were other stands set up that also displayed a huge selection of merchandise that was readily available for purchase. To my immediate right there were tables and booths set up for ponies to sit and enjoy their goods that they purchase, but as of right then the entire place was empty except for Mr. Cake and myself. In the back of the room there was an archway that led to what I assumed was the kitchen and from within I heard sounds of various cooking utensils being used. I assumed that someone was preparing to bake something.

The entire place was completely decorated with a wide variety of colorful paintings; all of which were of different types of candy or other sweets. In addition to those paintings, there were also pictures hanging on the walls that were of Mr. Cake standing with a mare. I assumed that the other pony in the pictures was Cupcake, and as far as appearance was concerned, she looked like the complete opposite of Mr. Cake. She was a short mare that had a rounded appearance to her and she had blue fur and a pink colored mane and tail. Her mane had a curly appearance to it and since it was pink in color, resembled a big strawberry ice-cream swirl. She wore a small yellow apron that had small thin pink sleeves that hung over her front shoulders and in addition to that, she also wore two pink pearl earrings in that complemented her outfit perfectly.

“Mr. Cake, is that Cupcake in those photos?” I asked as I stopped and looked at one that was the two of them that was in front of a church altar.

“Why yes it is. That particular photo that you’re looking at was taken on our wedding day over ten years ago. Ever since that wonderful day, Cupcake and I have been happy ever since. Honeybunch we have a guest, pieces of cake all around.” Mr. Cake pronounced as he began to walk over to a booth that was near a window.

“Just one minute.” Came the cheery response from within the kitchen.

As I was looking at the various photos, Mr. Cake took a seat at the booth and cleared his throat to get my attention. I looked over at him and he motioned for me to come over to take a seat and with a nod I approached and took the seat opposite of him.

“Were you enjoying the photos?” Mr. Cake asked with another chuckle.

I looked at him and blushed a little bit. “Oh sorry about that Mr. Cake, I didn’t mean to seem to be nosy or anything.”

“No need to apologize James, I don’t mind. In fact I’m happy that you took notice to the decorations. Cupcake put a lot of effort into the décor and I’m glad to see that ponies take notice and enjoy it.” He said with a smile.

After a few seconds he continued to speak, but on a more serious note.

“James there’s something that has been bothering me; can I ask you a question?”

My immediate thought was to try to make up an excuse so I wouldn’t have to answer any questions. However, considering that I every time I tried to I just stammered like an idiot, I reluctantly fought the urge and gave him a nod to continue.

“Why did you freak out when I invited you in for some cake?”

I sighed and rested my front hooves on the table. If there was ever was a time to come clean about my erratic behavior, then that was the time.

“I am very sorry about that Mr. Cake. It’s just that I was afraid that you would get really mad when you found out that I didn’t have any money to pay you with.”

Mr. Cake raised an eyebrow and looked at me. “Why did you think I’d get mad?”

“Well the reason why I thought that was because the last pony who I talked to threatened to beat me to a bloody mess because I couldn’t pay for her apples. Since this is my first day here, I figured that everypony acted that way when it came to money.”

“Who in Equestria would do such a thing?” Mr. Cake asked in surprise. “Tell me everything that happened.”

I shifted in my seat and told him about what had happened at Sweet Apple Acres, and once I made mention that it was Applejack who threatened me he immediately nodded his head in understanding.

“You have to forgive Applejack for that.” He said as I finished my story. “I will admit that she could’ve handled the whole situation better, seeing to as your new here and everything,” He paused for a moment and I nodded to show that I was listening. “But you must look at it from her perspective though. You were a stranger who had come onto her property and started to eat her family’s food without permission.”

“I know Mr. Cake, but she didn’t even let me explain that I was new or that I didn’t know that the apples were hers. I fact she hardly even let me speak at all.”

Mr. Cake again nodded in understanding. “I know James. I’m not trying to stick up for what she did because I know it was wrong, but what I am trying to say is that you have to overlook her attitude. I’ve known the Apple family for quite a while now and I’ve seen Applejack grow up over the years. Over that time, I’ve realized that there’s one thing about her that stands out above all else; and that’s that she jumps to conclusions very quickly. My personal guess as to why she acted the way she did is because she needed the apples to prepare the food for the Summer Sun Celebration.”

“Wait, she’s making the entire banquet for the Summer Sun Celebration?” I asked incredulously.

“Oh no, the entire Apple family is making the food. She was probably out collecting the harvested apples when she found you.”

“Oh, that makes sense.” I said looking down at the table.

“Hey there’s no reason to get upset over it. Just give her time to calm down and apologize to her when you see her again. Like I said, I’ve known the Apple family a long time, and I know for fact that they aren’t ones for holding grudges. She will forgive you when you explain yourself to her. Trust me.”

I nodded and gave him a weak smile to show that I understood. A sudden loud sound coming from the kitchen made us both turn to look and see Cupcake emerge from the room.

“Alrighty then, I just put the cake in the oven and it’ll be ready in a few minutes.” She said as she walked over to the booth that Mr. Cake and I were sitting at. When she noticed me she smiled as she approached.

“Well hello there, you must be new here I take it. My name is Cupcake, but everypony in town calls me just ‘Mrs. Cake’ for simplicities sake.”

“Oh hello Mrs. Cake my name is James Stallion and it’s a pleasure to meet you.” I said offering out my hoof to her.

“It’s good to meet you too Mr. Stallion.” She said as she shook my hoof. “You’re quite the gentlecolt aren’t you?”

“Yea I try to be when I meet somepony new.” I said as we let each other’s hooves go.

Mrs. Cake took a seat next to her husband and she continued to speak. “So tell me James, what brings you here to Ponyville?” she asked as she took Mr. Cake’s hoof into hers by their sides.

“Oh I uh, I came to town to meet new ponies and make new friends.”

“Well you’ve come to the right place for that dearie. The ponyfolk here are the nicest bunch you will ever meet in all of Equestria. Did you by chance meet anypony else since you’ve arrived in town?”

“Well, no not really. The only other pony I met here was Applejack and I just got done telling Mr. Cake about how that turned out.”

“Oh? What happened” She asked as she looked over at Mr. Cake.

“There was a big misunderstanding dear. James ate some apples over at Sweet Apple Acres and Applejack had found him. She had believed that he was a thief and drove him off before he could explain himself.” Mr. Cake said as he set his free hoof down on the table.

“Oh my, that’s horrible.” Mrs. Cake said looking back at me. “Don’t you worry dearie, there will be another chance to make things right as rain between the two you, just give it some time.”

We sat there talking for a few moments until there was a sudden buzzing noise that came from the kitchen.

“That must be the cake.” Mrs. Cake said as she stood up from the table. “It’ll be just one minute.”

Mrs. Cake then went into the kitchen leaving me and Mr. Cake alone once more.

“It won’t take her long. All she has to do is cool it, put the icing on and it will be good to go.” Mr. Cake said.

“Won’t that take her around half an hour to let the cake cool?”

“Oh no, Mrs. Cake and I have been baking for so long that we found a way around that. We can bake a cake, cool it, cover it in icing, and have it to the costumer in less than ten minutes flat.” Mr. Cake said with a grin.

“What? No way, that’s impossible! It takes at least half an hour for the cake to bake, and just as long to let it cool.”

“You got to open you mind James; you’re thinking too literal. I’m telling you that there is nothing in this world is impossible to achieve, it’s just highly difficult to come by it at times.”

I couldn’t find the words to respond to that comment. I then remembered that my friend had told me the exact same thing when I was on Earth. I couldn’t believe that I had actually lost that insight. Just the night before, I had been sitting on Earth considering committing suicide because I couldn’t make my dream a reality, only to wake up the next morning and find myself in Equestria-- the place where I only thought existed in the hearts and minds of children. God heard my prayer and fulfilled my dream and still I sat there and continued to deem things impossible. Mr. Cake was right, I do think too literal.

“Just watch.” Mr. Cake said holding up a hoof. “Three…two…one…” he counted aloud as he moved his hoof back and forth. As if on cue, Mrs. Cake came out of the kitchen balancing a pan on her muzzle that had a perfectly iced cake on it. She approached our table and sat the pan between Mr. Cake and myself, then once again took her seat by Mr. Cake’s side.

My eyes grew wide with astonishment. “What the? How did she? Did you?” I stammered looking at the cake that now sat in front of me. Mr. and Mrs. Cake both laughed as I leaned close and examined the cake. To my disbelief, it was perfectly cooled and iced. It was a beautifully decorated blue cake that had the words ‘Welcome to Ponyville James’ inscribed on the top in chocolate icing.

“How did she do that?” I asked leaning back in my chair.

“That my friend is a family secret.” Mr. Cake said to me with a smirk.

We sat there a few moments talking about how Mr. Cake met Mrs. Cake and discussed how they got married. As he concluded his tales, Mrs. Cake got up and got us each a fork and plate and then she cut the cake into nine perfect slices. She gave me the first slice and, once I had taken my first bite out of it, I exclaimed at how good it tasted which again caused Mr. and Mrs. Cake to laugh a little. As we ate, they both told me about the layout of Ponyville. We talked for over an hour and by to time we were finished with our conversation we had completely eaten the entire cake. They asked me if I wanted something else to eat and I just shook my head in response; I was completely full and couldn’t eat another bite even if I tried.

“I have to say that that was the best cake that I have ever eaten before.” I said as I laid a hoof over my stomach.

“Why thank you dearie. It was my pleasure to welcome you to Ponyville, and the best way to do that is with a ‘welcome to town’ cake.” Mrs. Cake said with a smile.

I nodded and smiled back to her in return and when I did she rose once again from the table and took our dishes into the kitchen. A moment later I heard the sound of running water from a sink and knew that she had begun to wash them.

I sat there talking with Mr. Cake for a few more minutes until he had glanced over at a clock that was hanging on the wall and let out a sigh.

“Well James unfortunately it’s time to close up shop for the day.”

I looked over at the clock and saw that it was only a little past five o’clock and became confused as to why they were closing so early.

“But it’s only five fifteen Mr. Cake. Do all stores in Ponyville close this early every day?”

“Oh no, stores around here usually are open till around eight or nine o’clock at night. Today however, all the shops are closing up early today to get ready for the Summer Sun Celebration.”

“Yes, and also Pinky Pie usually throws a big party before the event and the store keepers want to make sure they get prepared for that as well.” Mrs. Cake added as she returned from the kitchen and sat back down next to Mr. Cake.

I remembered that I had a run in with Pinkie Pie earlier when I arrived into town, however I didn’t want to let Mr. and Mrs. Cake know that I knew her. If I did tell them they might ask me about how I knew Pinky Pie, and in reality the only reason why I actually knew her was because I seen her on the television show. I didn’t think that that explanation would go by them very well.

“Who’s Pinky Pie?” I asked after I thought to myself for a few seconds.

“Oh sorry dearie, I keep forgetting that you’re new to town. Pinky Pie is the pink mare that we’re renting our loft out to. You can usually find her hopping around town laughing and having a good time. She’s a really nice mare, but if you give her a chance and she will talk you up a storm.” Mrs. Cake said.

“Yes and she absolutely loves parties.” Mr. Cake added. “She would have a party everyday of the week if she had a chance too. To top things off; she also has a huge obsession over sweets. Why this one time we left her in charge of the bakery while Mrs. Cake and myself went to get our mail, and while we were gone she ate our whole inventory! Needless to say we haven’t left her in charge of our bakery, unless it’s a sheer emergency, ever since.”

“Wow. That’s crazy; I can’t see how anypony can eat that much in one sitting. How long were the two of you gone?” I asked.

“Five minutes.” Mrs. Cake said with a shrug.

I just looked at them in astonishment. “Whoa!”

“Yea you’re telling me. It took us almost two full workdays to remake the cakes for the orders and to restock our inventory. But don’t get the wrong idea about her though; she’s not a bad mare. She may act completely crazy at times, but she is extremely friendly and doesn’t have any bad in her at all. Even though she constantly eats our cakes if we’re not careful, we love her like she was part of our family.” Mr. Cake concluded.

“Well that’s good to hear. It would really stink if you lived with someone that you always had fights with…” I started to say but I trailed off as I remembered my childhood and how I always fought with my parents. I looked down at the table as I remembered the pain and sadness that I had went through. “I would know.”

Mr. and Mrs. Cake exchanged glances as I sat there for a moment lost in my memories.

“Well since you all are closing up shop I’m going to be on my way.” I said as I stood up from the table.

Mr. and Mrs. Cake stood up as I made my way to the door and I stopped as reached for the door knob and looked back to them.

“Do you need any help closing up?”

“Uh no we’re alright; we just have some minor things we need to take care of. James is everything alright?” Mrs. Cake asked sounding concerned.

“Yea I’m fine. I’m just… remembering some unwanted memories is all.”

Mr. and Mrs. Cake looked at each other with concerned looks on their faces.

“Thanks for the cake, it was delicious.”

“It wasn’t a problem James; you can come back any time that you like.” Mr. Cake said.

“And James if you ever need anypony to talk too, you can always talk to Mr. Cake or me. Even if we’re busy we will still make time for you.” Mrs. Cake said as she approached me.

“I know Mrs. Cake. I… I just have problems coping with my past is all. It’s nothing too serious; I don’t mean to worry you.”

“James we all have problems with our pasts that will continue to haunt us through our lives unless we let them go. I’m telling you this as a friend; it’s always better to move on than too dwell in the past. The more you keep things bottled up inside, the more it will continue to eat you alive.” Mr. Cake said as he walked up next to his wife. “There’s only loneliness in life if we choose to make it that way.”

I nodded to him and opened the door and took a step out onto the street. Mr. and Mrs. Cake both came to the doorway to see me off, and so I turned and gave them a wave goodbye.

“Be sure to come back now.” They both said with a wave.

I nodded and smiled back to them. “You can be sure to count on it.”

I turned and started to walk down the street towards the town center and as I did I heard them close the door.

As I continued to walk forward, I felt hollow inside. Up until that moment in time, I hadn’t thought of my childhood in years. When I remembered the turmoil that I endured, I felt as though a lurking giant had awoken in my mind. All of the emotions that I locked away in my past suddenly returned to me all at once and caused me to shudder under the weight of their relentless sorrow. Despite this however, as I continued to walk my grief slowly began to turn into happiness once more. I realized that I would never have to face pain like that ever again. Mr. Cake had made a really good point; I had a new life here in Ponyville and I didn’t have to hold onto that sadness any longer; I could finally move on.

As I got closer to the town center, I stopped and looked around the street I was on. I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t even take notice that the streets were completely vacant. All of the stores and stands were already closed or were closing up for the day, and in addition, there were hardly any ponies roaming the streets.

At first I was confused as to why the town had suddenly become void of activity, but as I started to think about it I remembered what Mr. Cake had told me about the Summer Sun Celebration. All the ponies were probably at their homes getting ready for the festivities that were about to begin.

I stood there a moment piecing everything together in my mind, and as I did a cloud drifted in front of the sun casting a big shadow on my surroundings. It was a minor thing, but the change in light distracted me and I was drawn to look up at the sky and I took notice that the sky had begun to cloud up a bit while I was in Sugar Cube Corner.

There was nothing special about the clouds; they looked just like they would’ve as if they were on Earth. However as I watched them, a flying blur suddenly rocketed through the sky above Ponyville. I recognized immediately that the object was a light blue pegasus pony, but it was moving so fast that it appeared to be nothing more than a blur of motion.

The pegasus sped towards the cloud I was looking at and rammed into it, causing it to disappear into a poof of white fluff. It then zoomed away towards another and destroyed it in the same manner. With a series of aerial acrobatics and break-neck speed, the pegasus had the entire sky cleared of clouds in a matter of seconds, leaving me staring upward in a state of pure shock and amazement.

Once it was done with clearing the sky, the pegasus decelerated and began to hover downward towards the town center. Once the pegasus slowed down, I managed to recognize who it was; it was Rainbow Dash! She continued to casually fly down towards the town hall until she disappeared behind some buildings in the distance.

Finally that was it; my chance to meet a character from the show and not make a complete fool of myself. Since there were no other ponies in the streets, and also since I knew the relative layout of the town, there was nothing that could get in my way; nothing that would get in my way.

I began to gallop as fast as I could towards the town hall with nothing but pure excitement swelling inside me. This time I wouldn’t take a chance losing her like I had lost Twilight and Spike. I expertly began to dodge through alley ways and jumped over obstacles that got in my way. It took me no more than about three minutes to get to the town center due to my quick reflexes and my rush of adrenaline; however once I arrived I stopped to catch my breath.

I quickly scanned the sky looking for any trace of Rainbow Dash, but as I did so I quickly found that there wasn’t any sign of her.

“Oh come on!” I said to myself as I kicked at the ground in frustration, although I still tried to keep quiet so that I didn’t cause a scene.

I walked over to the nearest street corner and leaned against a wall of a small red hut and muttered to myself in irritation. It seemed like that every time I came close to meeting one of the ponies, something would happen and I would either arrive too late or they would run off.

As I stood there contemplating about what I was going to do next, I caught sight of two figures walking toward the town hall in the distance. I could tell right away that one of them was a unicorn pony, but the other one was much harder to identify. It was much smaller than the unicorn and it was walking on hind legs.

I raised a hoof in front of my eyes to shade them from the blinding sun so I could see them better, and when I did I almost exclaimed in excitement. It was none other than Twilight Sparkle and Spike the Dragon.