In the parking lot of the Tri-Country Recreation Center, the annual Rummage Sale and Swap Meet was in full swing. Row after row of tables of knickknacks, old clothes, assorted hardware and parts, and of course old games and toys, were spread out across the lot. Customers wandered up and down the aisles, sifting and haggling.
On a table with a bunch of old books, videos, shoes, and other desiderata, there was a broad, flat cardboard box.
The lid of the box jostled, then lifted slowly. Six pairs of small, frightened eyes peered out from beneath it.
"Wayall," said Applejack, "looks like this is it. We're bein' sold off!"
"Ohhh... I hoped that this day would never come," Rarity sobbed, and dabbed at her eyes with a scrap of packing paper.
"Yeah..." said Rainbow sadly. For once she was at a loss for a snappy come-back. "I figured we had, what... at least a couple more years? I mean the show's still running for pony's sake! What gives?"
"I guess Jamie grew up faster than we thought," Fluttershy said, cringing in fright as someone walked past the table. "I can barely remember the last time we were played with."
"Waaahhhhh!" Pinkie Pie bawled. "I haveta cry, and tears just aren't INCLUDED!"
"Try to stay calm, everypony!" Twilight said, peering around at the customers wandering amongst the tables. "We just have to hope someone will buy us soon."
"But Twilight... what if they don't buy all of us?" Spike clambered up to sit on her back. Holding tightly to her mane, he peered anxiously over her shoulder. "What if we get split up? Or worse..." He gasped in fright. "... what if we wind up being... E-ZONNED!"
"Well!" Rarity sniffed. "At least you don't have to worry, Spike. Anyone who bought Twilight would buy you as well. You're a matched set! The rest of us..."
"Yeah..." Rainbow grumbled, "the rest of us people just buy to complete their collection. And it'll be just my luck that whoever it is already has a Rainbow Dash, and I get left behind. That's what I get for being the coolest pony."
"At least you'd be alright on your own," Applejack said. "But what 'bout me? What if they buy me and they don't want Granny Smith, or Big Mac, or... even little Apple Bloom? We Apples have been together ever since we came out of the gift set. My family is plum near all I got left! And they're buried down the bottom, so's I can't even say goodbye to 'em. What if I never see 'em again?"
"At least you've had family," Rarity grumbled. "Somehow Jamie never got around to adding a Sweetie Belle to the collection."
"Yeah, and I wish we could have gotten a Scootaloo!" Rainbow sighed. "It would've been nice to hang out with the little squirt, just for a while."
"And I don't even have any critters to look after," Fluttershy sighed. "I feel like part of me is missing."
"Thank goodness I've still got my party cannon!" Pinkie Pie said, patting it. "That's almost like having family." Then she gasped in horror. "But what if they don't want to buy my party cannon? What if they think it's just... an accessory?" She hugged the cannon desperately, looking ready to start bawling again any moment.
"Ahem."
They all turned at the sound of the calm, regal voice coming from the shadows at the back of the box. Princess Celestia lay on her side, bundled up in extra packing to prevent damage to her horn, wings, and regalia. Her single visible eye regarded them with stoic calm.
"Come here, my little ponies. All of you."
The six ponies and Spike gathered round.
"I know this is difficult," she said. "But we've had a good run together as a complete set. And there comes a time in every toy's life when it's necessary to put the past behind us and move on. I'm proud of all of you, how well you've all gotten along over the years. I know you'll carry that with you and set a good example, no matter where you next find a home."
"We will, your Highness," Twilight said. "We won't let you down!"
"I'll especially remember you, Twilight. I'm actually glad we never got the Princess version of you. It would have been so difficult for me to divide my affections between two copies of my most faithful student."
"I'm just glad I never fell into that mirror pool," Pinkie said. "Imagine having to say goodbye to a whole boxful of me's!"
"Uh, yeah... somehow, I don't think that would be a problem," said Rainbow. And they all laughed sadly at that.
"I hope that we at least are kept together, Sister," Luna said, from her seat in the corner of the box. Being shorter than Celestia she was able to sit up in the box, though she had to crouch down to avoid scraping her horn against the lid. "I'm not sure I could take being separated from you again."
"And what of me?" said Nightmare Moon, who like Celestia was bundled up and laying on her side next to Luna. "At least you are beautiful enough for children to want to own you. I'm just a horrid monster! What child would ever want to play with the sinister Mistress of Nightmares?"
"You would be surprised," said Luna, with a wry smile. "From my explorations of fan sites on the Internet I believe you may actually be more popular than I am." She put out a silver-shod forehoof to gently stroke the bundled nightmare. "But I would miss you as well, if we were separated. Strange as it seems, you are a part of me, and I would not readily lose that."
"Oh, you all think you have problems?" called a muffled voice from deep in the packing material underhoof. "Try being Great and Powerful when you're buried in tissue paper!
In the far corner, a cross-eyed pony hugged a tan pony with an hourglass cutie mark. "Whatever happens, you'll look after me, won't you?"
"Absolutely, love!" the tan pony hugged her back. "Promise! Now if I could just figure out who's going to look after me!"
"I don't know what will become of each of us in the end," Celestia said, "or where our paths will lead. But I will treasure my memories of each of you, and I hope you will think of me from time to time."
"No worries there, your Majesty," said Applejack. Then her head whipped round, and she ran over to the opening under the box lid. "Aw, shoot! Little girl just walked by. And she didn't even see us! We gotta stay visible, y'all! It's the only chance we got of bein' sold."
The others ran over to join her. All except Twilight and Spike, who remained sitting by Celestia. "Go with them, Twilight," Celestia said. "And if we are separated, I would like you to watch over them for me. You may not be an Alicorn Twilight, but as far as I'm concerned you're more than Princess enough to lead. And I would not want to see you separated from your friends."
"I will. I promise, your Highness!"
"Celestia, Twilight? Please? Humor me, just this once?"
"Celestia," Twilight echoed, with a sad smile.
The brown-haired little girl who'd walked by was named Bonnie, and she trotted along behind her mother, looking around wide-eyed at the variety of wares on display. She was wearing a large backpack shaped like a spaceship with a clear plastic window on its face. Through this, a strange assortment of toys was visible: a cowboy, a space ranger, a cowgirl, a round-faced dolly with purple hair, and a blue triceratops who owing to her uncomfortable positioning was currently forced to view the passing scenery upside down over her head.
As they passed the table, the cowboy doll suddenly leaned forward, pressing his hands and face against the clear plastic as he peered through it at the cardboard box on the table.
"Oh, no..." he said. "I know that look."
"What?" The space ranger looked with him. "What is it?"
"That box on the table. There's an Applejack looking out of it. Oh, wait! There's five of them. Oh, gosh! It's all six Elements! They're a complete set! And they've got that look in their eyes. They're being sold off, and they have no idea why it's happened to them or what to do about it."
The space ranger put a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder. "I know how you feel, cowboy. It happens to all of us. We just have to hope they manage to find a good home like we did."
"But what if they don't? I can't just abandon them like this!" He glanced out through the window. "Look, I need to go talk with those toys. Could you keep an eye on things here?"
"Sure thing. But don't take chances out there. We don't want to lose you, too!"
"Be back before you know it."
Gently unzipping the backpack's top, the cowboy carefully wormed his way out. Watching for a good moment he jumped for the edge of a nearby table. He just barely caught it, then swung underneath and dropped down to the ground below. He ran back below the tables to the one he wanted, then clambered up a leg and onto the top.
Slipping quickly behind a stack of books, he edged around until he was close to the side of the cardboard box, but still reasonably obscured from passing customers. Glancing around to make sure the coast was clear, he gently tapped on the top of the box.
"Psst! Anybody in there? We need to talk, and fast!"
The lid was shoved open further, and an orange pony stuck its head out, peering up at him from under its pint-sized Stetson.
"Well, howdy y'all! Name's Applejack."
"Howdy back!" He shook the forehoof the pony offered him. "No offense, A.J., but can I talk to the pony in charge? It's really urgent!"
A lavender unicorn appeared next to Applejack. "Um... I guess that would be me?"
"Twilight Sparkle! Hey howdy hey, it's wonderful to meet you!" He shook her hoof.
"You've heard of me?"
"My Little Pony?" The cowboy nodded. "Of course! We've been watching clips online after hours. The show is great! Listen, I'm here with my owner, a little girl named Bonnie. I know she would love you guys -- sorry, gals -- if we can just find a way to swing it."
"Will you unwrap me please?" said a voice inside the box. "I would like to speak with him."
There were sounds of packing material been torn loose. The box lid lifted a little higher, and a regal alicorn peered out, a sad gaze in her eyes -- yet with just a glimmer of hope. "How can I help you, Sheriff?"
The cowboy took off his hat. "Princess Celestia?" He nodded respectfully. "It's an honor, ma'am! How many of you are there in there?"
"Myself, plus a fair number of my loyal subjects," the Princess replied. "And I would do anything to see them all safely to a new home. We need to work quickly, Sheriff. What can we do?"
"Well, first we need to get you noticed." The cowboy glanced around, thinking fast. "Because I know Bonnie would love to have you!"
"But...?" Celestia had noticed the hesitation in his voice.
"It's her mother." He sighed. "Classic mother-franchise block. She doesn't approve of toys connected to TV shows. She feels they stunt children's creativity. But I've seen the show, I know you're nothing like that. And I know Bonnie... she's got imagination to spare! Enough to beat an entire network of TV shows. We just need to get that across to her mother somehow."
"Hmmm..." Celestia nodded. "I have an idea. Can I ask for your help?"
The cowboy slapped his hat back on. "That's what I'm here for, ma'am!"
Bonnie wandered away from her mother, who was negotiating with the woman selling hand-knitted scarves. A lot of the stuff she saw was old-person stuff, boring antiques, strange trinkets, and devices the purpose of which she wasn't sure about. Like that box with all the little metal keys with letters on them. Or the strange-looking paperweight with the plastic dial of numbers on the front. Or the squat, fat box with the glass front. It looked like a television, but Bonnie couldn't understand why it needed to be so huge.
She strolled around the corner and down the front row again. Suddenly her foot trod on something, and she looked down in surprise. The path had been clear a moment ago.
"Cowboy!" she cried. "Did you fall out?"
She scooped up her cowboy doll, and held him close. Then she looked shocked, and stared around suspiciously. "Or... were you pushed out? Was it... the work of the Scary Witch?"
She pulled the cowboy's string. "There's a snake in my boot!"
"Yes! The Scary Witch was trying to get rid of you, so she could take over! But you were too smart for her."
Swinging off the backpack, she unzipped it, and carefully tucked him back inside, taking a moment to shake her finger at the purple-haired dolly.
"Now you mind your manners, Scary Witch! Or you don't get to go on any more space flights!"
As she zipped up the spaceship and swung it back on, the space ranger patted his friend on the back. "Great work, Sheriff! I was wondering how you were going to get back in here."
"Congratulate me later, guys. We're minus on seconds, and we need to work fast. Okay, here's the plan..."
As Bonnie strolled idly along the row, the cowboy carefully unzipped the top of the backpack again. Leaning out he peered ahead. He saw the table with the box. He took hold of his string.
"Please, please, please be the right phrase!"
He pulled it.
"Somebody poisoned the water hole!"
He grimaced. Not the right phrase. Bonnie stopped in surprise. She started to turn to look...
Quickly he yanked the string again, so hard it almost broke.
"Yee haw! We got to get this wagon train a-movin!"
The cowgirl leaned out with him and gave a piercing shout. "Yee haw!"
And from the table ahead, a small voice answered:
"Yee haw!"
The cowboy sighed in relief. Bonnie was turning toward the table. And she saw Applejack rearing proudly on her hind legs, standing in plain sight near the table's edge.
Behind her was Rarity, poised with one foreleg lifted, aimed so she was looking toward the box. And Fluttershy too, caught in the act of trying to scramble hurriedly back into it.
The cowgirl ducked back inside so the space ranger could lean out. He carefully prodded one of the buttons on his spacesuit collar.
"There's a secret mission, in uncharted space..."
"Eh, I'd like that if it was about 20% cooler!" called a muffled, scratchy voice from inside the box.
And sitting up behind the box was a DVD case: Season One of the series. The cowboy had found it in a stack of DVDs behind the books.
"Ponies!" Bonnie hurried over. She dragged a nearby cooler in front of the table and climbed on top of it, putting herself level with the table top. She lifted the lid of the box, and saw Princess Celestia and the other ponies sitting inside. They were gathered in a circle around the bundled Nightmare Moon.
Reaching in, Bonnie lifted out the nightmare and gazed at her in mock fright. "So it wasn't the Scary Witch. It was the... Evil Black Pony!" She held up Nightmare Moon and made her dance in the air. "She tried to make everything dark and scary like she is! But the rainbow ponies... led by the brave Rainbow Princess..." Bonnie lifted out Rainbow Dash and flew her around, making wooshing noises. "... trapped her in the Magic Blanket of Wishes, and then..." She looked around, and spotted Luna. "... they turned her into the nice blue Moon Pony! Who made up with her sister, and now they're all having a party together." Quickly, she collected all the ponies and arranged them facing each other in a circle. "Even the Evil Black Pony, because they made her friendly again, and the ponies make friends with everyone, even the bad guys."
Thinking about that, she shrugged out of her backpack, turned it around, and looked through the plastic front. "Sorry, Scary Witch!" she said. "I guess it was mean of me to suspect you of trying to take over. You can be friends with us too, if you want."
Setting the backpack down, she looked at the circle of ponies. And then picked up Twilight Sparkle and Spike.
"Now they ran out of jelly doughnuts, so the book pony and her assistant went out to the baking store to buy some, and..."
"Bonnie! There you are! What have you been doing?"
"Playing ponies, Mom! Look, the Big Princess pony needed jelly doughnuts, so the book pony and her dragon went to get some, but the store was closed, so they went down the yellow brick road, and they met a scarecrow pony..." She pointed to Applejack. "... and then they chased after a white rabbit..." Picking up Rarity she hopped her a few steps. "... and fell down a rabbit hole, where they met the scary lady who says Off With Their Heads..." She motioned with Nightmare Moon. "... and then they went through the tollbooth, and came out in the forest with the bear and the piglet..." She pointed to Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie. "... and then..."
"Bonnie! That's so wonderful, how you remember all those books we've been reading together."
"Just like the book pony does!" Bonnie proudly held up Twilight. "She loves to read, and she runs the library, and she knows all kinds of stuff."
"She does?" Bonnie's mother looked at the lavender pony in surprise.
"And the farmer pony is like everyone's big sister, and the white pony with purple hair makes all the dresses but never wants money because she's so kind, and the pink pony throws parties all the time because she wants them all to smile, and the yellow pony takes care of all the animals, and the Rainbow Princess runs the group because she's so fast and brave, and..."
"Honey, how do you know all this about them?"
"Well..." Bonnie looked a little sheepish. "When I'm over at Mason's house, we sometimes watch the pony show when he's not playing TV games. Because they've got all the movie disks, and his parents say it's okay, and we both think it's fun. I know you don't like it much, but the ponies are so friendly! We sometimes make up pretend stories about them afterward."
"I see." Reaching out, Bonnie's mother picked up a pony.
It was Nightmare Moon.
She turned it around, a doubtful look on her face as she stared at the black armor, dragon eyes, and bared fangs.
"See, that was the Big Princess's sister," Bonnie said. "She got all mean and scary, but the Rainbow ponies got together and made her better. And then she and her sister were friends again." Bonnie pointed at Celestia and Luna, standing proudly side by side amongst the circle of other ponies.
Putting Nightmare Moon down, Bonnie's mother picked up Celestia.
The Princess of the Sun put on her most regal pose, her calmest, most reassuring game-face, her most open, sensitive gaze.
Please, she thought desperately, please give my ponies the benefit of the doubt! I see how strongly you feel about your daughter and her future. I feel the same about all my subjects. I do my best to teach them, to help them learn and become better at who they are and what they do best. If you will just give them a chance, they will do the same for you. I know they will!
For a second she thought she saw Bonnie's mother look sad, as if she was remembering something...
...because she was. She was remembering a book she loved to read when she was a little girl: a book about a white unicorn. The last of her kind.
Then she gently put Celestia back in the box, along with all the other ponies, including Nightmare Moon.
"Maybe when you're just a little older, Bonnie."
"Aww..." But Bonnie knew that tone. Sadly, she picked up her backpack and shrugged into it, and then walked with her mother back to the car. And all the way the cowboy and his friends stared in shock at the box sitting on the table, as it disappeared into the distance.
"Yeeeesss!" Rainbow punched the air. "Did you hear that? She thought I was a Princess, and that I called the shots around here. Finally, someone who recognizes my awesomeness. Woo hoo! Yeah, baby!"
She suddenly realized she was playing to a dead room. The other ponies stared at her, shattered looks on their faces.
Princess Celestia lay down forlornly. "You'd best wrap me back up again. I need to look my best, just in case we get another chance."
"We won't!" Applejack sighed. "You saw what happened. We're franchise toys! Collector's items! E-Zon fodder! No parent's gonna want us for their kids to play with."
"I wish we could have gone with Bonnie," said Twilight. "She knew all those stories from all those books. And she has such a wonderfully fluid imagination... it was like every second we were something different!"
"And you were right, Luna," said Nightmare Moon. "She reached for me first! She knew all about me. About me! And she liked playing with me. I could feel it in the way she held me. It was like being truly alive!"
"You know..." Pinkie hugged her party cannon miserably. "I don't think I'm ever gonna smile again!"
For a long while they sat in silence. They all felt the same way.
All at once the box rocked. Applejack threw herself flat on the packing material, grabbing for purchase. "Woah! Hang onto something, y'all! This wagon train's a-movin' out!"
The other ponies braced themselves. Celestia and Luna grabbed hold of Nightmare Moon to keep the three of them from sliding about.
And then they all heard the most wonderful sound in the world: Bonnie's mother's voice.
"Excuse me, I'm with my daughter and it's her birthday in a couple days, so I'd like to surprise her with this. Could I ask you to hold it for me? I'll be back later this afternoon to pick it up."
"Absolutely, my dear!" said the elderly woman who was managing the table. "They're such dear little toys. I was hoping they might go to a good home."
"And... I think I'll take this Season One DVD as well..."
Princess Celestia looked around her palace. It was a cardboard box with windows cut in the sides, an open top, and a drawbridge entrance at the far end. Her throne was an upside-down margarine bowl, with a piece of heavy card for a ramp and a stretch of broad ribbon for a red carpet.
But to the Princess of the Sun it felt like heaven.
Princess Luna was standing beside her on the makeshift throne. Nightmare Moon stood guard at the base of the ramp. And the other ponies -- with a few exceptions -- were gathered in the open area before the throne to celebrate the return to power of the Princesses.
"Bonnie! Dinner's ready!"
"Be right there!" Running footsteps, and then the door slammed.
"Hooray!" The great, happy cry rang out both from within the Royal Palace, and from the room outside.
The cowboy gently tapped on the wall, and leaned down to peer in through the drawbridge opening.
"Excuse me, your Highness. Could we request an audience?"
"Oh, there's no need to stand on ceremony, Sheriff." Celestia strode proudly down the ramp, accompanied by her pony subjects, and out onto the carpet of Bonnie's room, to a boisterous welcome by all of the room's toys.
"Your Majesty," said the space-ranger, "may I just say... uh..." He sought an appropriately cultured remark. "I like the look of your new Palace!"
"Why, thank you," Celestia replied with a gracious nod. "And we're most grateful for it."
"It's a bit of a fixer-upper." Luna tapped the wall doubtfully with a hoof. "But we could not be happier." Then she suddenly looked shocked. "Oh, my word! I just realized. We're back to being first season again. I'm going to have to remember to use the Canterlot Voice..."
She reared dramatically, her eyes flaring. Lightning flashed and thunder rolled.
"AND WE ARE A LITTLE OUT OF PRACTICE!"
In the stunned silence that followed, Celestia stared at her. "Luna, how do you do that?"
"We taught her everything she knows!" said Nightmare Moon with a crafty leer.
"And the Elements of Harmony are back in action," said Twilight, with the other five ponies and Spike gathered around her. "Including Princess Rainbow." She put a hoof around Dash with a smirk.
"Geez, I'm never gonna live that down, huh?" She crossed her forehooves. "And, yeah... like, ya know, I couldn't care less?"
"And the Apples are together too!" Applejack reached over and yanked Big Mac close, and hugged a smiling Apple Bloom on her other side. Behind them, Granny Smith lay curled up in a heap, snoring away.
"And the Great and Powerful Trixie..." shouted the blue pony with the purple magician's robe.
"... has teamed up with the Great and Powerful Trixie!" laughed the blue triceratops wearing the pony's hat on her head.
"And I just don't believe it," called out the tan pony with the hourglass mark. "I finally have a real, working TARDIS!" He flung open the doors of the plastic Police Box, and jumped in, reaching up to work the switch that made the light flash. "Lucky for me that Mason chap is a Whovian as well!"
The cross-eyed pony joined her friend, and hugged him tightly. "Where are we going to go first?" she asked.
"All of time and space, my sweet! Anywhere and everywhere!" he cried. "Fantastic! Allons Y! Geronimo!"
"Take off!" Rainbow jeered.
"Oh yeah? Shuttaty up!" The tan pony beamed, and turned back to his companion. "I'm so glad we've gotten up to those episodes now. No more spoilers!"
"And if I ask really nicely," the cross-eyed pony whispered to him. "Will you be my new best friend?"
He smiled at her. "Now you're teasing me, love."
"Okay, everypony," Pinkie Pie cried. "Say PAR-TAY!"
"Par-tay!" they all called out.
Her recharged party cannon let off a blast of hoof-cut streamers and confetti. Then they all got down to serious celebrating.
Celestia smiled at her ponies and their new toy friends, all laughing and playing together. And fates willing, they would have several more years to learn and grow together.
She turned to the cowboy and bowed her head. "My thanks, Sheriff. Without your quick thinking and bravery, none of this would have been possible."
"Well... I can't take all the credit, your Highness. You and your friends needed a chance. I just made sure you got one. You're the ones who took it and made it happen." He put out a hand. "Here's to a ton of new memories!"
Celestia put out a forehoof and they shook.
"To Friendship and Beyond..." she replied.
The End
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, its characters and indicia are the property of Hasbro.
Toy Story, its characters and indicia are the property of Pixar Animation and Walt Disney Studios.
No infringement is intended. This story is a work of fan fiction, written by fans for fans of both series.
