Author's Note

The chapter title comes from in the song "Can you keep up" by Blue Kid.

All of Savarin's family (and her) are named after French pastries.

Or Prance pastries, in this case.

4. Just as sweet as arsenic

Four years later

Eleven-year-old Misty walked through the fields, plucking a tiny red fruit from one of the branches.

Behind her, Dad shifted from hoof to hoof. He was incredibly nervous for her opinion.

Seriously.

Misty couldn't help but chuckle. Dad thought she was taking over the family business, and she let him believe that.

It was easier than telling him in six years, or so she'd have all the power she could ask for, and she wouldn't want to run a brewery. She had bigger things to do. What she wanted to do with her newfound power she couldn't decide yet, but it would be great.

Dad would be so proud.

"It's wonderful, Dad," she said.

Misty walked through the pinkish trees, breathing in the scent.

Beyond the field of cherries, was a rippling field of golden wheat, and beyond that were the wild trees of Kirin Grove.
Several kirin workers were among the trees, bucking the cherries into baskets or harvesting the grain.

"They have a pit inside," Dad added.

"You could breed them without the pit," Misty pointed out. She arched an eyebrow. "Why aren't you writing this down? My words are gold."

She scanned the workers again. One of them was glaring in her direction, saying something to the kirin next to him: spoiled daughter. Misty hissed. She could read lips. She was about to march on over when Dad rested a hoof on her shoulder.

"I think Mom's calling you," he said. "She's visiting today."

In the years since moving to Kirin Grove, her parents had finally divorced. Mom lived in a small flat near the centre of town.

Misty gave Dad a quick hug before galloping towards the mansion. She charged inside. Voices reached her ears. Mom was in her room. She charged upstairs, bursting inside in time to see Mom and Leafy talking to one another.

"Mom!" Misty exclaimed.

"Oh, hello Misty," Mom said. "What an interesting plant you have here."

"His name is Leafy." Misty walked around, facing them all the while until she reached her bed. She took a seat. "Was he talking to you?"

"Yes, he was."

Misty twisted her mouth to the side before letting out a huff. "I'm happy he's making more friends, though I thought you liked that willow tree-"

"They were so mean," Leafy interrupted.

"Has Leafy told you anything interesting?" Misty asked.

She didn't have much faith in Leafy's intelligence- he had told the oak tree down the street about the Fire Flower. It had been a problem that was solved with arson.

"Just that you hardly take him out," Mom said.

Misty frowned. "I don't know where to take him."

"Well, it's Mother-daughter day today. We could take him with us."

Misty's eyes bugged out. "Take him to the spa?!"

"My leaves do need moisturizing," Leafy added.

Mom burst out laughing. "Dear, you shouldn't be so concerned with what people think."

Misty couldn't help but gasp. Don't tell her Mom actually liked Leafy?

"I need to talk to Leafy. Alone," Misty said.

Mom left the room, her hoofsteps fading downstairs, along with two voices as she talked to Dad. Misty sagged for a minute, knowing Leafy was watching her before she perked right up.

"Okay, ground rules," she said. "First, talk only to Mom and me."

"Do I have to?" whined Leafy.

"Do you want to drink only water for a month?"

Leafy bowed his flower and Misty scooped him up in her magic.

By the time she, Leafy and Mom were walking through Kirin Grove, it was bustling. Today was a festival of some kind, and three kirins were dancing on a stage and performing tricks with fire.

They stopped to watch for a few minutes before moving on to the spa.

The spa had newly opened, just last year. Two pale blue unicorns ran it. Eyebrows raised when they saw Leafy, but they didn't say a word.

Misty sat down on a chair, holding out her hooves so they could be shined and polished. She couldn't sit still, twisting her head to check Leafy wasn't talking to anycreature else but her and Mom.

Mom asked: "how did the two of you meet?"

The two unicorns helped some kirins with a hooficure and fur grooming and weren't paying attention to them.

Misty let out a sigh. "He started talking one day. I was seven."

"I think I must've overheard you two talking a few times," Mom said.

"You did," Leafy replied.

Misty twitched. The unicorns hadn't noticed, talking to the kirins excitedly about the new Kirin Grove museum.
What would be in that museum Misty didn't know; hardly anything interesting ever happened here.

"I'm glad you had a friend, Misty. He's like a sibling," Mom replied. She shifted on the chaise, blue mane spilling down her shoulders. "I wish I could've been there for you more, Misty. I know the divorce wasn't easy..."

Misty rested a hoof on Mom's shoulder. "We can make up for lost time."

"I'm here too," Leafy added.

Misty smiled. She was getting good at faking smiles. "After the spa, lets' go out to eat. You can come with us, Leafy."

"I can have tea?"

Misty tossed her mane. "Duh." She got the full spa treatment, heading into the sauna alone. Steam billowed around her, and she relaxed. One geyser of flame shot from her hoof into the bucket, heating the water back to boiling.

Laughter. Misty crept to the main door, peeking out into the main spa room. Leafy and Mom were laughing together. It was the hardest Mom had laughed in years.

Of course, Mom liked him more than her daughter. She let a slow smile inch across her face. Don't enjoy it forever, don't enjoy it forever, Leafy.

Things change.

The sky was purpling by the time they got back to the mansion.
Misty put Leafy on her bedside table. He was asleep already.

The kirin that had called her spoiled with slinging several baskets of cherries onto the back of a cart. Misty's lips twisted bitterly.

He had called her a spoiled daughter. If that was what he thought, she'd play the part. It was time to find her Dad.

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

Four years later

Every Summer, Savarin returned from the Unicorn Magic school and stayed with her parents, and every Summer, Misty had a chance to visit.

But, this year was different. She was fifteen now, and Mom and Leafy weren't coming with her.

Savarin was helping her with the asteroid plan, and they needed to talk it over. She had spent years cultivating a civil relationship with Mom, leading up to Mom letting her go to Ponyville by herself.

Mom was even looking after Leafy.

Trotting through Ponyville's centre, she heard some singing. Ponyville had almost as much singing as Kirin Grove.

Savarin's family bakery was brightly coloured, sticking out like a sore thumb. It was shaped like two macarons on top of one another, one pink and the other red, topped with a swirl of cream that was the roof. A tilted door stuck out the front.

When she had lived in Ponyville, she had been there once. She could barely remember the place. Now, whenever she was in Ponyville, she was able to have a room upstairs.

Misty trotted in, easily finagling her suitcases around her head as she stepped inside.

A bright yellow earth pony sat behind the counter, beaming when she spotted Misty. "Misty. Heavens to Betsy, I could've met you at the station. Savarin must've fallen asleep again."

"Hello Ms Madeleine," Misty said.

"Oh, you can drop the miss." Madeleine (or Maddy for short) laughed. "I can help you with your luggage."

"There's no one else operating the shop. Where's Tatin?"

"Tatin!" shouted Maddy. "Where is that boy?"

Tarte Tatin, or Tatin for short, was Savarin's brother. He had the same yellow coat as their mother, Maddy, but his mane was spiky.

Tatin walked out of the backroom, complaining loudly. Misty lunged at him and gave him a noogie. He gave her a noogie in return before continuing to complain.

"Take care of the customers," said Maddy. "I'm helping out Misty."

Misty watched the proceedings with a distant smile, using her magic and a hoof to adjust her mane. Once Tatin was operating the counters -two griffon customers entered right that second,- Misty gave Maddy the lightest suitcase and they ascended the stairs to the living quarters.

The living quarters were in the topmost 'macaron' part of the building. The hallways were brightly coloured and dotted with family memorabilia. Misty carefully scanned them, asking about Maddy's cousins and things until they reached Savarin's door.

Maddy set down the suitcase from her mouth, licking her lips. "Savarin, your friend is here."

"Okay," came Savarin's quiet voice from inside the room.

"Well, let me know if you need anything."

"Of course," Misty said. "Dinner at the usual time?" She winked, and Maddy laughed. Maddy and Savarin had the same tinkling laugh.

Misty waited until Maddy had descended the stairs, the sounds of her talking to Tatin rising in a whine before she rapped a hoof against the door. "I'm coming in."

No answer, which was an answer with Savarin. Misty walked in.

Savarin was lying sprawled out on her bed, horn glowing, as she carefully arranged layers of cake filling into a cake. It gleamed and sparkled, before she set it on a tray and moved onto the next one.

Her room floor was littered with cakes. The lighting was dim.

"You're experimenting again?" Misty asked.

Savarin smiled, not looking away from her work. "I had a nap and got good ideas in my dreams. There are ground up gems in the icing. I am also using a spell for cooking the ingredients in seconds." She set another gleaming cake on a tray. "I'll be done soon."

Misty inched around the cakes, carful not to step on a single one until she reached the bed and took a seat. "Take your time. I love seeing you work."

Savarin smiled even wider, looping icing around a cake, making strawberries appear out of thin air like they were fireworks. Savarin's eyes gleamed and sparkled.

Misty hadn't been there when Savarin had gotten her Cutie Mark. She wished she had been there to see it happen.

Savarin's speciality was baking mixed with magic.

Her cutie mark was a savarin pastry, a circular thing shaped like a cake-sized doughnut filled with cream and fruit in the centre. But, more than that, it had several white sparkles running through the cream.
Magic.

"Savarin, are you sure you're okay not eating the Fire Flower with me?" Misty asked. "You could make even better pastries. You'd be losing out."

"I'm fine the way I am." Savarin twisted her head to face Misty. "I can't wait to see you with power." She paused, brown eyes deep as whirlpools before she shook her head and came back to Equestria.

Misty flopped next to her friend.

Another cake formed above and Savarin set on the floor. "What will you do?"

"With power? What can't I do? The sky is the limit, Savarin. The sky is the limit."

"Let's focus on right now."

Misty poked Savarin with her hoof, causing her friend to twitch and laugh. For a few minutes, the two sat on the bed, dozing in and out until Maddy yelled up the stairs for them to come down for dinner.