A Small Glimmer of Hope

“So, you said this town is named Ponyville, right?” you asked while walking beside Starlight.

“That’s right. It’s a pretty humble town and quite frankly, almost everypony here in Ponyville enjoys the simple life. To be honest though, I haven’t always lived the easy life I have today,” she said averting her eyes.

You looked at her with concern. “What do you mean?” you asked.

Starlight sighed, “I don’t want to talk about it right now. Let’s just enjoy our little outing. There’s a good friend of mine who I want you to meet as well.”

“Oh really? Who might that be?”

“Her name is Trixie. She’s a unicorn just like me as well as the first friend I made on my own. She lives not too far away from the town’s market district, so we’ll pay her a visit during our tour. She’s a little... conceited, but she’s nice once you get to know her. By the way, please don’t tell her I said that,” she asked.

You chuckled, “Sure, no problem. So by conceited, are you saying she’s... a bit full of herself? If she acts like that, I can understand where you’re coming from. Back on my world, my little brother was always bragging about how great he is.”

Starlight couldn’t help giggling since you could relate to her. However, she stopped as she saw you pull your locket out from underneath your shirt. Her eyes filled with sympathy, as it was obvious you missed your family.

Unable to stand your depression, Starlight wrapped her arms around you in a hug, causing you to blush. “It’s going to be okay, I know you miss your family. Just know that you’re not alone. Twilight and her friends have taught me much about friendship. If you want, I can help teach you that too.”

You nodded. “Please do Starlight. I’d like that very much,” you answered as a smile returned to your face.

“You got it,” she replied. “In the meantime, let me take you and introduce you to Trixie.” With that, you and Starlight continued on your way into Ponyville. Just like during your arrival, none of the residents showed any signs of fear as you walked into town. You didn’t want to be rude, so you gave them a little wave. Some of the residents waved back and gave you kind smiles.

“They say Ponyville is the easiest place to make friends,” Starlight said as she watched the residents wave to you.

“Were they this accepting of humans when Twilight’s husband first came to Ponyville? I mean, she did say he was the first human to arrive here.”

“Unfortunately... no. Back when Twilight first introduced him to Ponyville, the residents were a little scared to see an unfamiliar species in town. However, as time passed on, the residents slowly began to warm up to him. Though, Twilight’s family felt a little uneasy with her getting married to a human.”

“Well seeing how happy they are right now, I’m guessing things eventually worked out,” you assumed.

“Yup. It took quite a long time for the ponies to warm up to him. But even longer for Twilight’s parents to accept him.”

You and Starlight continued your conversation as you walked around town. However you’re a perceptive man, so you could tell as you talked that there was something Starlight was trying to keep hidden from you. Soon, you and Starlight arrived at Trixie’s wagon. It was a bit small, but it looked big enough to house at least one resident.

Starlight knocked on the door, but didn’t get an answer. She tried again much louder than before. “Trixie! Are you home?! It’s me, Starlight!” she called still knocking.

“Maybe she’s not here,” you suggested, but you soon heard sound coming from inside before the door opened. Out stepped a tired looking light blue unicorn, dressed in a night robe.

‘I stand corrected,’ you thought.

“Do you know what time it is? The Great and Powerful Trixie is very tired from staying up late last night from working on her next magic trick.” she says, rubbing her eyes. Afterward she noticed you standing beside Starlight.

“Who might this be?” she asked. Like the others, she didn’t show any signs of fear, so evidently, Trixie was familiar with humans. You introduced yourself to Trixie, telling her your name.

Trixie glanced to you and back to Starlight and a mischievous smile formed on her face. She wrapped her arm around Starlight, pulling her close. “Is this a date?” she asked, causing the purple unicorn to glare at her and blush.

“We’re just friends, Trix,” she replied.

You rolled your eyes at Trixie’s immaturity, but you still couldn’t help smiling as well. After all, she was just joking. “So, I take it that you’re a magician?”

Trixie gasped as if you had just insulted her. “The Great and Powerful Trixie is more than just your everyday ordinary magician! When it comes to stage magic, she is the most talented and most amazing magician anypony in Equestria has ever seen!”

Her boasting sounded so adorable, you couldn’t help chuckling a little. “Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Trixie. I can tell you’re a very talented magician. Maybe one of these days when we’re not so busy, we can come and see your magic show. What do you say, Starlight?” you asked.

Starlight smiled “I think that’s a great idea! You’d be amazed at how well she’s been getting over the years. However for now, I think it’s time I showed you the rest of the town. See you later, Trixie,” Starlight said walking up to give her best friend a hug, which she gladly returned.

“You two have a nice time,” Trixie said releasing Starlight from the hug. “Trixie however needs to go back to bed.” She let out a yawn before going back inside her wagon. With that, you and Starlight continued on your way.

Starlight soon guides you to the entrance of a building where you could see a couple of ponies getting mud baths and massages through the windows. There was no doubt this was a spa.

“As I’m sure you’ve figured out, this is the Ponyville Spa. This is where Twilight and her friends usually come in order to relieve their stress,” Starlight explained.

“Have you ever paid a visit?” you asked as the two of you continued on your way.

“Yes, in fact, the spa is where I first met Trixie,” Starlight said with a happy sigh.

While walking, you couldn’t help staring at Starlight yet again. The sun was reflecting off of her fur, causing it to shine. Your face started to heat up again, she was just so pretty.

“Your face is turning red, are you alright” Starlight asked. You didn’t know what to say. As much as you didn’t want to admit you’re blushing, you also didn’t want to lie, especially to a friend.

“Uh… s-sorry Starlight. I just… I kept thinking how beautiful you are, if you don’t mind me saying so.”

Instead of getting offended, Starlight smiled widely. “Why thank you. You’re the first one who’s ever called me something so nice.”

Your curiosity returned. “What do you mean?”

Starlight’s smile instantly disappeared and she turned away. “Well, not a lot of stallions have complimented me like you just did. I felt like I wasn’t as attractive as other mares. I’ve seen a few couples here and there, and I just kept on thinking to myself that I might not get to experience something like that. That’s why I was so happy when you called me beautiful; you’re the first guy that’s ever given such a genuine compliment.”

You were quite surprised to hear that Starlight’s never had a boyfriend in all her life. For a mare as beautiful as her to not be given a chance makes you think that maybe other stallions just can’t see what she might have to offer.

You placed a hand on her shoulder, getting Starlight to look back at you. “Since we just met, we should take things slow. For now, let’s just focus on being friends and if things go well, maybe I can take you out. How does that sound?” you asked.

Starlight responded by giving you a hug, “I’d like that very much, thank you.” With a sigh of relief, you gave Starlight a hug in return, causing her to sigh happily and lean onto your shoulder. Your heart felt like it was racing the more you and Starlight hugged each other. After a few seconds of hugging, you released each other.

“I couldn’t ask for a better friend,” she tells you, smiling at you genuinely.

“Right back at ya, Starlight,” you replied. Taking you by the hand, Starlight continued to show you a few other places in Ponyville that you’ve never seen before. Such places included this cute little bakery called Sugarcube Corner, which is apparently one of the most popular bakeries in Equestria, and possibly the only bakery in this town.

Starlight opened the front door to Sugarcube Corner, wanting to show you what it was like inside and what kind of sweets they had. You were amazed at how many pastries there were. Whoever runs Sugarcube Corner sure knows what they’re doing. Starlight giggles, seeing your surprised expression.

Behind the counter were two anthro earth ponies. One of them had pink hair in the shape of cupcake frosting with blue fur and the other had yellow fur with carrot orange hair.

“Oh, hello there, Starlight. Is this dear a friend of yours?” the mare asked.

“Yep. He’s gonna be living here in Ponyville from now on.” Starlight replied. She turned her attention back to you. “Go ahead and introduce yourself.”

Smiling, you approached them and told them your name. “Oh, nice to meet you. I’m Cup Cake, and this is my husband,” Cup Cake says, gesturing the stallion next to her.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Carrot Cake. Welcome to Ponyville,” he said before he extended his hand out to you for a handshake. You accepted and shook his hand and his wife’s.

“Wait! Wait! WAIT! Did I hear somepony say we have somepony new in PONYVILLE?!” called out another female voice.

You got confused at who just said that. Soon, in a pink blur, this pink pony shows up from the kitchen with a big smile on her face. Her fur was a lighter pink than her poofy hair, and she had big blue eyes staring directly at you. You felt slightly uncomfortable with her looking at you at such a close distance, so you backed up a bit.

“Umm... hello there,” you say, still trying to keep a smile on your face.

“Hiya! My name’s Pinkamena Diane Pie, but you can just call me Pinkie!” she says, excitedly before pulling you into a hug. You couldn’t believe how strong she was, you swore your spine was about to snap.

“Honey, take it easy on the poor guy, you don’t want to squeeze him to death.” said a male from the kitchen. With a giggle, Pinkie released you from her bear hug on you and turns to the kitchen where another male human appears and comes walking towards you.

He chuckled as he wrapped an arm around Pinkie. “Sorry about that. My wife tends to get excited when she hears about new residents in Ponyville,” he said before kissing Pinkie’s cheek. “Anyway, it’s nice to meet you. My friends call me Frosty.”

“That’s a nice name. Anyway, thanks for the backup, your wife sure is strong,” you said rubbing your back, which was now sore. Putting both hands on your back, you popped your spine back into place.

Pinkie giggled sheepishly. “Sorry. I just love making new friends!” she said bouncing. “OOH! Speaking of ‘new’, I’ve gotta plan your ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party! Frosty, can you watch over the kids for a couple of hours?” she asked.

Frosty smiled and nodded. “No problem.” he said.

“Thanks honey pie!” Pinkie says cheerfully, before pecking her husband on the lips. She heads back into the kitchen and already, you see a few drops of pastry batter splatter on the walls and the floor. You quickly moved your head to avoid getting hit by some batter.

“Uhh... I’m guessing this is the part when I take my leave?” you asked Starlight, as this was getting a bit awkward.

“Well, we don’t want to spoil the surprise before it’s even started. Come on, I’ll show you some more of the town,” Starlight said, walking out the door. You were about to say good-bye to the Cakes, but they already went into the kitchen to stop Pinkie from making an even bigger mess than before.

“Well it was very nice to have met you guys. Take care!” you called out. You saw Carrot Cake give you a thumbs up. You smiled and walked out of the building and followed Starlight.

“Are you gonna be alright?” Starlight asks, putting her hand on your back.

You still felt the pain from that bear hug, even as Starlight only slightly touched it. “I’ll be fine. Tell me, is Pinkie always on a sugar rush?” you asked.

Starlight chuckled, “That’s just Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie. She loves making new friends, whether they’re staying in Ponyville or just passing by.”

You and Starlight looked at each other for a few seconds, and soon you both broke out into laughter. This is turning into quite an interesting afternoon to say the least.

“Where to now?” you asked after the laughter died down.

Starlight thought for a moment before an idea came to mind. “I know just the place,” she says gently taking your hand. You both passed by a few buildings, including this clock tower. Looking at it, you thought it looked like a junior version of Big Ben. That was all you had time to think about before Starlight leads you away to this fancy-looking building.

Through the windows, you could see a few mannequins displaying some dresses. This was probably some sort of tailor shop. Surprisingly, each of the outfits in the window had its own unique style.

“Starlight, what is this place?” you asked.

“This is Carousel Boutique. My friend, Rarity, designs clothes here. If you’re ever in need of somepony to fix up any tears or holes in your clothes, she’ll be there.” Starlight explains. “Come on, I’ll introduce you to her and her family.”

Once again, you acted as a gentleman and opened the door for Starlight. She walks inside and you follow her before closing the door, causing the bell above it to ring.

“Coming!” an angelic voice called out from another room.

You began to look around at all the creative outfits that decorated the store. ‘Hmm, I wonder if Rarity owns this shop. If she does, then surely she’s got a few helping hands. It’s probably tough to design this many clothes.’ you thought to yourself.

You returned your attention back in front of you, as a beautiful white unicorn walked into the room. She had a neat, curly purple mane which looked like it took hours to make. Her eyes sparkled like beautiful sapphires, more specifically the sapphires decorating the robe she was wearing. This pony definitely had a taste for fashion.

Her eyes locked onto you and Starlight and she smiled. “Oh, why hello, Starlight. Who might this young man be, is he a friend of yours?” she asked.

Starlight nodded. “Yep, he’s going to be staying in Twilight’s castle from now on. Since he’s new, I’ve taken the liberty of showing him around town.”

Rarity walked up to you with a friendly smile. “What a splendid idea. Well darling my name is Rarity, such a pleasure to meet you. Any friend of Starlight’s is definitely a friend of mine.”

You shook Rarity’s hand, telling her your name. “It’s nice to meet you, too, Rarity. And, I hope you don’t mind me asking, but did you make all of these amazing outfits by yourself?” you asked.

“Darling, I’m flattered, but I honestly can’t take all the credit. In these recent years, I’ve received plenty of help from my darling husband and daughter,” she said proudly.

You smiled and thought to yourself. ‘Talk about talented. I wonder if she gave her husband a few lessons to get good enough to help her make those clothes.’ Another question peaked your curiosity after that. “So where exactly is your husband?”

“Well, since you asked, he’s actually upstairs spending some time with our daughter,” Rarity explained before noticing your outfit and smiled, somewhat amused.

“What are the odds, that happens to be the same outfit I gave to Twilight a couple of days ago. Are they working out well for you?” she asked.

You nodded and smiled. “Yeah, they fit me pretty well and it’s just my style. Thank you for the new outfit, Rarity.”

Rarity smiled and shook her head modestly. “It’s no trouble at all, darling. Anything to help a friend in need. And if you ever need me to make you more for your wardrobe, just know that I’m always here to help. Does that sound alright?” she asked.

“Sure, that would be great.”

After Rarity’s husband, Silver came downstairs with their daughter, Rarity decided to fix some tea as you had a conversation. You could see how close those two were judging by how she was riding on her dad’s shoulders. You also learned that this is not their only store, as Rarity and Silver work on opening boutiques all over Equestria.

“I see you’ve already met my wife. Well, I’m Silver and this is our daughter, Crystal Gem,” Silver said, gesturing his little girl on his shoulders. She hid half her face behind her dad, too shy to even say hi. “It’s okay, sweetheart. Say hello,” he encouraged.

“H-Hello...” the young girl said timidly before hiding behind her dad’s head.

“Aww, she’s adorable,” you said smiling as Crystal peered a little bit from behind her father.

“Thanks. She gets her shyness from my side of the family. It took her a lot of time to warm up to the other kids here in Ponyville. It took even longer for the other kids to warm up to my daughter, mostly because of her other personality,” Silver explained.

You quirked an eyebrow. “What do you mean “other personality?”

“What Silver means to say is that our darling Crystal has inherited my personality. As in… there’s times when she’s always like ‘*gasp* IDEA!!!’ It’s absolutely adorable. She reminds me so much of myself at times,” Rarity explained as she leaned down to stroke Crystal’s head.

“Like mother like daughter,” Silver said with a chuckle.

“That’s just sweet. I can’t wait for the day when I have a kid of my own. Although, I’m not sure if that’s even possible, given the situation I’m in.”

“Whatever do you mean, darling?” Rarity asked with sympathy in her tone.

“Well, I don’t know if I should tell you. I don’t want to say the wrong thing in front of the child.” you say, not wanting their daughter to hear.

“Oh, I see.” Rarity said before she turned her attention to her husband. “Silver, darling, could you please take Crystal to her room? This isn’t going to be suitable for a young lady to hear.”

“Sure thing, Rarity. Come on, Crystal. Mommy and daddy need to have a little grown-up talk with our friend here,” Silver said.

“Okay, daddy.” Crystal said. With that, Silver carried his daughter and headed back upstairs and walked down to the door on the right and entered the room, out of your sight. A couple of seconds later, Silver came back downstairs after closing the door to his daughter’s room.

“So what did you mean when you said you weren’t sure if it’s possible to have a child?” Silver asked.

“Well you see, I was in a pretty bad condition before I came to Ponyville. Back home, I suffered a terminal illness, which badly damaged my body. Even though I’m healthy now, I don’t know if I’m still fertile enough to reproduce,” you explained.

“I see. Well, I’m not sure what to say, darling, but you never know unless you at least try. Though, I don’t think it’s wise to rush into a relationship. It took me 2 years to finally give myself to Silver and have our daughter,” Rarity said leaning on her husband’s shoulder.

“I’m really happy for you two. Though are you sure I can experience the same happiness if I just try?” you asked, still unsure.

“There are endless possibilities, darling. It’s all up to you to pursue them. Just don’t act too rashly, okay?”

You nodded as you and Starlight finished the rest of the tea Rarity made for you. “We should be going. There’s still a few places I want to show him. You know, help him get to know the way of the land so he can get used to this town.”

Rarity nodded, “We completely understand darling, glad we had this talk. And remember, you’re free to stop by if you ever need more outfits for your wardrobe, or if you want to stop by for a visit and a friendly chat.”

You nodded. “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind. It was nice to meet you Rarity and you too, Silver,” you said, shaking each of their hands.

“It was nice to meet you, too,” Silver said. “I’ll show you two to the door,” he said, walking over to the entrance and opening the door, letting you and Starlight exit.

As you walked to your next destination, you could tell Starlight felt a little awkward about the conversation you had with Rarity. It was even pointless to bring it up, because it’ll only make things even more awkward between you two.

You decided to change the subject, “Where to next?”

“Probably the core of Ponyville, in other words, Sweet Apple Acres,” Starlight said.

“Sweet Apple Acres? Is that some sort of farm?” you asked even though the answer was quite obvious.

“Yup, and trust me, you’d be surprised how big and busy it is. Applejack and her family work extremely hard to harvest their apples and other crops before the winter kicks in.”

As the two of you continued walking for about 8 minutes, you saw a farm in the distance. Looking around, you could only imagine how many apple trees were around here. Some of the trees had fresh apples, ripe enough for picking. Others however, were bare and the leaves were starting to change color.

Your ears catch the sound of a thud coming from up ahead. Starlight guides you over there and you came across a pony with orange fur and blonde hair, wearing a stetson hat. It looked like she had just kicked an apple tree, judging by the baskets full of apples. There was also a human standing next to another tree before rushing up and tackling it, causing more apples to fall.

Panting a little, the orange mare wiped her sweaty forehead before turning to look at you and Starlight. “Howdy there Starlight! This guy a friend o’ yers?” she asked in a country accent.

Starlight nodded, “Yes he is and since he’s new here, I’m trying to show him around Ponyville.”

“Well that’s mighty nice of ya,” she said, before looking at you. “Howdy there partner. Mah name’s Applejack, proud owner of Sweet Apple Acres,” she said, offering her hand to you. You shake her hand and tell her your name. “And of course, this here is mah husband, Bucky,” she said, walking towards the man leaning against the tree and placing her hand on his shoulder.

“Hi there... how... do you do?” Bucky asked, panting and waving weakly at you. You wave back at him with a smile, which soon turned into a look of worry.

“You alright there? You look pretty beat,” you said to Bucky with concern.

“I’m fine... just a little... worn out, that’s all,” Bucky replied panting.

Applejack gently patted him on the back. “Just relax, hun. Don’t want ya to get sick in the stomach from a bit o’ heat stroke. Bucky started to relax a bit and his breathing finally became more steady. “Feelin’ better, sugarcube?”

Bucky nodded and smiled at his wife. “Yeah, thanks AJ.”

“Y’all feelin’ hungry?” Applejack asked.

“No thanks, we’ve already had breakfast. I’m just showing our new friend here around town so I can help him get to know the way of the land. And I can tell you’ve been pretty busy harvesting as much apples as you can,” Starlight said, looking at some of the bare trees.

“Yer darn tootin’. It ain’t easy gettin’ all these apples harvested. It’s an even bigger hassle when winter is rushin’ on by. Luckily, Bucky and Ah are workin’ our flanks off with the help o’ Big Mac and our son, Apple Slice,” Applejack said proudly.

“Apple Slice?” you asked.

“He’s our very special boy. He’s an honest-to-goodness farmer, just like his beautiful and hard-working mother,” Bucky said, causing Applejack to blush. “You want to see him?”

“I would love to,” you replied.

“Alright then. Hey, Apple Slice, come on over here, we got some company!” Bucky called out over to the pig pen. A little boy who was giving the pigs their food turned over to your direction, smiling casually as he hopped over the gate. He ran over to Bucky and Applejack, waving to his parents.

“What’d ya need from me, pa?” asked the boy. He looks at you and smiles happily and unlike Crystal, he didn’t show any signs of shyness. “Oh, howdy there. Mah name’s Apple Slice, nice to meetcha!” he said, extending his arm out.

You told him your name and shook his hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Apple Slice,” you said.

“Apple Slice,” Applejack began, getting her son’s attention. “Starlight here is givin’ our new friend here a tour around town. She’s already introduced him to both Twilight and Rarity’s families.”

“We also visited Pinkie’s family,” Starlight said.

“Which almost resulted in her breaking my back with that bear hug of hers,” you added, rubbing your spine.

“Ah know what that’s like. Auntie Pinkie would always give me one o’ her big ol’ bear hugs anytime mah parents and Ah go over to visit her,” Apple Slice said.

Applejack chuckled, “Yeah, but that’s yer aunt Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie. You know how much she loves her friends an’ family. Especially makin’ new friends. And Ah’m assumin’ she’s also plannin’ yer ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party.”

You quirked an eyebrow when she guessed that. “How’d you know?” you asked.

“Pinkie Pie always plans ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ parties fer friends who are movin’ into town. It’s one o’ her favorite things to do, other than eatin’ and bakin’ sweets, o’ course.”

You chuckled before you began to look around the farm with great interest. In addition to the dozens of apple trees, there were many farm animals, including the pigs Apple Slice was feeding, as well as some sheep and cows. It reminded you of back home, when you visited your cousin, who also worked on a farm.

Getting your tour around Sweet Apple Acres underway, you followed Applejack into the house and into the kitchen. Once inside, you see a young mare with bright yellow fur and red mane pull out a fresh, apple pie from the oven and set it on the open window for it cool off. There was also a dog, which appeared to be a Border Collie laying down in the corner. Her ears perked up and she opened her eyes, turning to face you and barked happily, startling the yellow mare.

“Winona, don’t scare me like that! Ya almost made me ruin mah apple pie!” the mare scolded. However, Winona didn’t seem to care and ran up to you and leaned onto your knee, barking happily as if she wanted “upsies”.

The bright yellow mare looks your way and smiles. “Oh, howdy there. Who might you be?” she asked nicely. You tell her your name. “Nice to meet ya. Mah name’s Apple Bloom!”

The smell of the fresh apple pie filled your sinuses. “Mmm, that apple pie smells good, did you make it yourself?” you asked

Apple Bloom blushed “Well Granny gave me the recipe,” she admitted. She then cut the out a small piece of the pie and offered it to you. “Y’all want some?”

Even though you and Starlight already ate breakfast, you decided one slice couldn’t hurt. You grabbed a fork and dug it into the slice and took a bite. The taste was incredible, nothing like any apple pie you’ve had before. Still, you remembered your manners as you ate.

Giggling at your expression, Starlight decided to have a piece as well. Apple Bloom cut another slice and offered it to her. Starlight got herself a fork and dug it into her slice and took a bite. Upon taking the first bite, Starlight showed the same expression you did.

“Apple Bloom, this pie is amazing. Keep this up and no doubt everypony in Ponyville will want to have a taste,” Starlight said with a wink.

Apple Bloom blushed again and smiled. “Aww shucks, thank ya, Starlight,” she said.

“You’re welcome. Oh, and if you hadn’t caught on,” Starlight began, returning her attention to you, “This is Applejack’s little sister. Although, she’s not so little anymore. She’s going to be 18 years old in just a few more weeks.”

“That’s great. Happy early birthday, Apple Bloom,” you joked causing her to giggle and smile.

“Thanks, Ah can’t wait until Ah turn into an adult! But fer now, Ah’m gonna git back to makin’ some brunch fer mah family. After that, Ah’m takin’ mah nephew fer a lil’ walk around town. Ah still got some more stories to tell him about how Ah was tryin’ to get mah cutie mark.

You nodded, and prepared to leave the kitchen. “We’ll leave you to it. Thanks again for the pie, it was delicious.”

“Yeah, take care, Apple Bloom. Tell Big Mac and Granny Smith we said hi.”

Walking back outside, you looked to see that Applejack and Bucky were sitting down, apparently taking a break from the chores. It was clear that even the most hard-working apple farmers here needed time to catch their breath.

Applejack smiled as she noticed you and Starlight walking over to them. “Y’all enjoyin’ your stay?” she asked.

“We sure did. Maybe one of these days we can all get together and hang out when we’re not so busy,” you suggested. “Thank you so much for your hospitality.”

“No problem sugarcube,” Applejack said as she shook your hand and pulled you into a hug. “But y’all come back, now ya hear?”

“You got it. See you later, Applejack. You too, Bucky,” Starlight said and Bucky nodded with a smile.

After waving goodbye, you and Starlight began to walk down the hill that would take you back to Ponyville.