All Our Lives

by Sora21

Rating: everyone
Tags: My Little Pony: A New Generation, Romance, Sunny Starscout, Adventure, Hitch Trailblazer, Slice of Life
Length: 5628

To think that one small meeting could not only set things in motion for the future. But would be the initial spark for a strong friendship.

All their lives, Sunny and Hitch, have been connected at the hip. Childhood friends, best friends. There hasn't been a single moment where they didn't have the other when they were growing up. As the years go on, one thing stays the same. The bond the two have will, then, now, and forever, remain intact. One day, while cleaning out some of her stuff in her storage room, the pair stumble across an old book. But not just any book. It's a book full of photos. Photos that depict the many adventures and times the pair spent together as they grew up.

Featured 1/2/24

Published 2024-01-02 14:50:01 UTC
Last updated 2024-01-15 03:41:03 UTC

Chapter 1: How it all Began

“Thanks for helping me, Hitch,” said Sunny as she and her childhood friend were moving some stuff around.

“No worries, Sunny. Happy to help,” said the stallion, moving some boxes with his head. “Though, I can’t believe you’re getting rid of this stuff.”

“Well, the Brighthouse is getting a bit cluttered. Plus, I have no need for these old things and figured somepony else might have better use for them.”

“Oh, what’s this?” asked Izzy as she popped out from a box.

The stack then began to fall from the sudden burst of the unicorn as it fell to the floor, and she let out a scream. Hitch and Sunny approached the clutter pile, tossed some stuff to the side, and pulled a blanket off to reveal Izzy.

“You okay, Izzy?” asked Sunny.

“Never better. Especially ‘cause I found shiny,” said the energetic unicorn as she revealed a jar of sparkling beads.

“Oh, I remember these,” said Sunny as she took the jar from Izzy to look at it. “I spent hours embedding these little sparkling bead stones into my pictures. My dad bought me a stash so that I could bedazzle them.”

“We just cleaned up,” stated Hitch as he was more focused on the mess that Izzy made after they had cleared out the storage space.

“Can I have them?” asked Izzy as she was already thinking of so many unicycling projects and crafts she could make from the bead stones.

“Sure thing, Izzy.”

“Awesome! I’m going to make something for everypony!” said Izzy as she took the jar in her magic and began to trot away happily.

“It’s going to take even longer to clean this up!” stated Hitch as he kicked some stuff around.

“No worries, we’ll just clean it up,” Sunny assured her childhood friend as she didn’t mind the mess.

“I gotta teach that girl about cleaning measures and making sure…” Hitch was talking to himself when he approached a section of the massive clutter pile when something caught his attention.

The stallion moved his hoof about as he noticed a book; he brought it up to his muzzle and blew on it as bits of dirt picked up which got him to cough before waving his hoof about. He then put the book down on a box as he opened it, and the first thing inside he saw was pictures. The stallion had unintentionally found an old picture book that belonged to Sunny and her father, as it was full of photos throughout the mare’s life.

“Hitch, are you gonna lend me a hoof or not?” asked Sunny as she felt like she was doing all the work of cleaning up.

“Sorry, I got distracted,” called out the stallion as he continued to look at the photos.

“Where did you find this?” asked the mare as she came up from behind her friend and saw the book.

“It was in one of the boxes that Izzy knocked over.”

“I remember this. That was my first ever popsicle house that I made with my dad!” said the mare as she looked at the photo. The image was that of her and her dad as Sunny’s tongue was stuck to one of the sides of the houses due to her accidentally putting glue on it. “I’ll never forget the taste of vinegar water thanks to that day.” The mare let out a disgusting sound as she recalled how her father used that stuff to remove her tongue.

“How’d you even get glue on your tongue?” asked Hitch.

“I was a foal, alright! Don’t judge me, Mr. Safety and all for rules!” said Sunny, giving her best friend a stern look. “I bet your first-ever popsicle house was a disaster.”

“Nope. It was perfect, look!” said Hitch as he directed Sunny’s attention to another photo; it showed Hitch and Sunny as foals, standing next to their popsicle stick houses as he managed to build without any flaws perfectly.

“Stupid…” mumbled the mare as she looked away.

“Hey, look, there’s your lemonade stand that you set up to raise money for the library,” said the stallion as he pointed to a photo of the mare as she stood behind a homemade stand and served some ponies with a smile on her face.

“That’s a day I’ll never forget. Because by doing that, I got my Cutie Mark,” stated the mare as it was an etched day in her mind.

“Huh? I don’t remember this,” said Hitch as he saw a photo of him and Sunny as the pair had boxes on their heads.

“I do. It’s the first time we met,” said the mare as she began to recall that memory.

It was a bright sunny day in Maretime Bay as the earth ponies were going about their business. Sunny's father was in the lighthouse that overlooked the small town on the hill. The earth pony was doing some research as he adjusted his glasses at the book he was reading. The sound of a mechanism was heard. Sunny descended from her room above as the little foal beamed excitedly; she quickly grabbed the skates her father had bought before rushing to the door.

“I’m going into town, Dad!”

“Alright, Sunny bunny. Be careful, now!” stated Argyle as he walked to his daughter and opened the door for her.

The little foal hugged her father before taking off down the road; he stood there and waved to see his daughter off. Sunny was skating into the town as she’d gotten better due to her father’s teachings. The small foal passed by some of her fellow townmates as they waved at the girl who felt the wind blowing in her face. The mare failed to pay attention to what was in front of her as there was a banana peel on the ground that someone had just thrown away. By the time Sunny opened her eyes, it was too late. The foal felt herself starting to lose balance as she tried to steady herself. She was letting out small shouts as a few ponies in her path moved out as the little pony tried to stop. But Sunny wasn’t having luck, it wasn’t until she realized that she was heading straight toward someone.

“Look out! I can’t stop!” exclaimed Sunny as the colt that heard the cry looked and turned his head.

He didn’t seem to hear or notice the mare coming at him until she collided with him, and everything went black.

“Now, it’s starting to come back,” groaned Hitch as the memory of that incident flashed into his mind as if it were fresh. “I still have the bruise to show for you crashing into me.”

“Well, if it wasn’t for that bruise, we’d never been friends,” chuckled Sunny.

“You’re lucky that I happen to be out that day,” stated Hitch as he began to recall the events leading up to that point from his POV.

A cottage just outside the skirts of the town, there was an elderly pony. The old mare adjusted her glasses as she had a basket in her mouth. She went to the small garden where she had grown herself and began picking some fruits and vegetables. The mare then entered her house and set the basket full of food on the counter; she took out the ingredients she needed to make a pie when she approached the fridge. The mare opened the fridge door and pulled out some additional supplies; however, there was something she couldn’t seem to find.

“Where are those berries?” wondered the mare as she closed the fridge.

She began to check her cupboards for the missing ingredient she thought she had but couldn’t seem to find anything.

“Hitch!”

“Yes, Granny!” said a voice.

The voice belonged to a colt as he heard his grandma calling for him and appeared before her.

“Hitch, dear. Do you happen to know where the strawberries are?” asked the old mare as she checked the drawers near the sink. “I could have sworn I saw them just the other day.”

“Oh, I… know where they are,” said Hitch.

“Where?” asked the mare as she adjusted her glasses to look at her grandson.

“I, uh, ate them,” said the colt as he nervously traced the floor before him with his hoof while trying to hide his face. “I’m sorry. I only wanted a few.” stated the young pony as the sweetness of the fruit caused him to consume more than he should have. “Please don’t be mad at me. I’ll clean the attic.”

The old mare merely smiled at her grandson as she approached him and held his face. The colt looked at his grandmother as he expected her to be disappointed or scold him for taking something without permission, but she didn’t have either of those. Instead, she had a smile on her face as she rubbed his head.

“It’s alright, Hitchy. Accidents happen,” said the old mare as she hugged her grandson. “But I’ll take you up on your offer to clean the attic later. Come on! Let’s go into town and get more strawberries!”

The small colt smiled as he was glad his grandmother wasn’t upset. He hugged her before she opened the door, and they proceeded to head out. The pair headed into town and went to the stand that was selling strawberries as a line of ponies was formed. The pair stood in for quite a while, as Hitch was becoming a bit bored. He saw a few parents and their colts as they were passing by a toy store. The colt got an idea as he nudged his grandmother in the side to get her attention.

“Hey, Granny. Can I go look at the toy store window?” asked Hitch.

“Of course, dear. Be careful, though.”

“I will, Granny!” said Hitch, hugging his grandmother before galloping away.

The colt began to approach the toy store as he arrived at the window and looked in. Inside were some families, as a few parents were buying their children some toys and gifts. The young colts hugged their parents for getting them the gifts as they all rushed out of the store to start playing with them. Hitch smiled at them but felt a tad bit envious before looking at the display window as it was full of stuff. He saw several toys, and one of the things that caught his eye was a small sash with a star badge attached to it. The colt looked at the shiny object for a bit before turning around to head back to his grandma. He wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings and he failed to hear the shout of someone.

“Look out! I can’t stop!” exclaimed Sunny as the colt that heard the cry looked and turned his head.

He didn’t seem to hear or notice the mare coming at him until she collided with him, and everything went black.

The sounds of groans were heard as two different bodies were shown as they crashed into some nearby boxes. Hitch was shown as he had his head inside a box while Sunny had the banana peel she slipped on her helmet as she lay on the ground.

“Next time, I’ll watch out for banana peels,” said the filly as she looked at the peel on her helmet and let out a disgusted look before standing up.

At that moment, Hitch pulled his head out of the box and rubbed his head.

“Ow,” said the colt.

“Oh, my bad,” said the filly as she skated over to the colt she bumped into and helped him up. “Sorry, it’s my fault.”

“No, no, it’s my fault,” said Hitch as he stretched out his back to crack it. “I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings.”

“No, it’s my fault!” stated Sunny. “I was skating with my eyes closed. I hope you’re not too hurt.”

“I’m fine,” said Hitch as the pain started to fade. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Sorry again. I’m Sunny Starscout,” said the filly as she put her hoof out.

“That’s a nice name. I’m Hitch. Hitch Trailblazer.” responded the colt as he put his hoof out and shook Sunny’s. “So, do you live around here?”

“Yup. I live with my dad at that lighthouse over there,” said Sunny as she pointed to the tall red and white striped building in the distance.

“Lighthouse? Cool!” said Hitch as he found the idea of Sunny living there to be out of this world.

“What about you?” asked the filly.

“I live with my Grandma Figgy,” answered the colt as the two began to walk and talk; well, mostly, Hitch as Sunny just skated along. “She has a cottage just on the outskirts of town.”

“Hitch! Hitch!” called out the old mare as she was currently looking for her grandson.

“Oh, that’s my Grandma Figgy. I gotta go.” stated the colt as he began to gallop back to his grandma.

“Okay. Bye! It was nice meeting you! I hope to see you again! And hey, feel free to visit me at the lighthouse!” shouted Sunny as she waved one of her hoofs wearing her roller blades.

“Thanks! It was nice to meet you, too!” stated the colt as he turned his head to address the filly he just met before picking up the speed to find his grandma.

“Huh? I just made a friend,” smiled Sunny as she actually talked to somepony new. It got the small filly to feel something nice as she turned around and began to skate back to the lighthouse to tell her dad about the new pony she met and made friends with.

“Hitch!”

“I’m here, Granny!” said the colt as he was shown approaching his grandma before slowing down into a small trot.

“Oh, there you are, Hitchy! I was beginning to worry,” said the mare as she hugged her grandson. “Did you have fun looking at the toys?”

“Yeah. And guess what? I met a pony. She’s super nice.” stated Hitch. “Her name’s Sunny, and she lives at that lighthouse over there.” The colt pointed to where the building stood as the old mare looked and saw it in the distance.

“That’s lovely, dear. My little Hitchy is already making friends,” said Grandma Figgy as she rubbed his mane, which made him laugh. “Come on, that pie isn’t gonna make itself.”

The colt licked his lips as he was looking forward to his grandma’s cooking. Little did Sunny and Hitch know that small unintentional crash into each other, whether by fate or not, not only set a series of events into motion for the distant future. But it was the start of something special between the pair. It was the start of a beautiful friendship. One that would continue to grow and develop as the years went on.

Author's Note

What better way to start the new year than with a new, simple story? I've had this idea floating about in my head, and I finally managed to sit down and jot it down. Something that I've really been wanting to do from my usual work.

Chapter 2: First Day of School

“Saddlebag?”

“Check!”

“School supplies?”

“Check!”

“Adorable little filly excited for her first day of school?” said Argyle as he lifted his daughter onto his back.

“Check!” giggled Sunny as she hugged her father’s neck.

The pair then galloped about as they laughed and had fun before Sunny let out a cute yawn. Argyle then began to head upstairs as he placed his daughter into bed, knowing that tomorrow would be the start of her first day of school.

“How’s my Sunny Bunny doing? You ready for your first day of school?”

“Yeah. I can’t wait to meet and make new friends!” said the filly as the thought of meeting new ponies made her eyes sparkle.

“That’s my girl,” said the older earth pony as he rubbed her head.

“Dad. Can you tell me a story?”

“What kind?”

“About one of the unicorns, pegasus, and earth ponies working together in harmony,” asked Sunny with the most innocent and cute expression, as nobody could say no to that.

“Alright,” said Argyle as he decided to honor his daughter’s wish and cleared his throat. “Once upon a time, many, many moons ago, in ancient Equestria, there lived a very special—”

The morning came as the sun rose over the small town, signaling the start of a new day. Upstairs at the lighthouse, a cute snoring was heard as it belonged to the small filly under her covers. The alarm beside her went off as a hoof was shown reaching out from under the covers and shutting it off. A few moments later, Sunny stood up from her bed and stretched her limbs before approaching the small mirror in her room as she gasped upon seeing her reflection.

“Dad!” shouted the small filly.

“What’s the matter, Sunny Bunny?”

“It happened again!” said the small filly as she pointed to her mane.

Every time it happened. Every time she looked in the mirror, her mane was all messed up and frizz. It annoyed the small filly that she constantly woke up with bed hair, as it was a pain to get it all straightened out.

“Oh, lighten, Sunny Bunny. It just means I get to spend more time with you before you leave for the day,” smiled the filly’s father. He didn’t mind fixing his daughter’s mane as he considered it bonding time.

“I’ll get the brush. But I hope it doesn’t continue,” stated Sunny as she hoped that when she got older, she still wouldn’t have to deal with the constant mess up of her mane when she awoke every day.

After acquiring the brush, Argyle got to work on fixing his daughter’s mane. He finished it with several kisses to Sunny, and she giggled. From there, the pair went down for some breakfast before heading out to the door and began to head toward the schoolhouse, where other small colts and fillies were being dropped off by their parents.

“Now, you remember what I taught you, Sunny,” said the older earth pony as he looked at his daughter.

“Greet everyone with a smile. And most importantly, have fun meeting new ponies,” recited the filly.

“That’s my little girl. Now go, I’ll see you later.”

“Bye, Dad!” said Sunny as she waved goodbye to her father before trotting off toward the entrance.

The school bell rang as the colts and fillies all stood at their desks as the teacher came in. She was a middle-aged mare as she didn't seem much older than the majority of most of the citizens living in Maritime Bay.

“Alright, class. Settle down, my name is Ms. Sweetwater. And I'll be your teacher for the school year.” stated the mare as she got the whole class to quiet down. “Now then, why don't we begin by introducing ourselves to the rest of our classmates?”

One by one, the teacher had each filly and colt come to the front and say their name and something interesting about them.

“Sunny! You're the last one.”

The orange filly made her way to the front of her class as she looked at them. She felt a tad bit nervous but remembered her father always saying to be brave and take a deep breath in situations like this. So the filly did what her father said and took a deep breath before speaking.

“Hi, every pony! My name is Sunny Starscout, and I love meeting new ponies and making new friends!” stated the mare as she got a warm round of stomping hooves from her classmates as they enjoyed her little introduction.

“Very nice, Ms. Starscout,” said Ms. Sweetwater as she ushered the little filly to her desk. “Now then, why don’t we start with a little history lesson? Who can tell me what life was like back in the olden days of Equestria? Anyone?”

The entire class stared at their teacher before a hoof was raised.

“Yes, Sunny?”

“Back in the olden days, earth ponies, pegasus, and unicorns all lived together in harmony. They worked together and spread the magic of friendship!” said the filly with an energetic smile.

Soon, a burst of laughter broke out from the other ponies as it made Sunny confused. The little filly didn’t understand why every other pony laughed before the teacher got their attention.

“Settle down, settle down, everypony!” said Ms. Sweetwater as the laughing ceased. “Ms. Starscout, what were you saying?”

“That all three pony kinds were friends. And they used their magic to make Equestria a better place.”

Once again, small cackles from the other ponies were heard, confusing Sunny even more.

“What an impressive imagination, Ms. Starscout,” said the teacher.

“Imagination? But it's true!” stated Sunny. “My dad tells me stories that all three ponykind used to live together.”

“Let’s stick to facts instead of fairytales, Ms. Starscout, okay?”

“But, but, but-“ stuttered Sunny as the teacher just patted her head and disregarded her claim.

“Now, who can tell me what actually happened?”

“I can!” said a colt as he was shown putting his hoof into the air. “The pegasus and unicorns invaded the earth ponies and tried to take them out using their weird laser zaps and flying powers. However, the earth ponies managed to fend them off and defeat them. And ever since then, earth ponies have always stood ready to fight them if they ever show their face again.”

“Correct, Sprout!” said the teacher as she placed a golden star sticker on a chart with his name on it.

“And who can tell me what a unicorn uses their horn for?”

“To read out minds and fire death lasers at us,” said another colt as he raised his hoof.

“Correct. And how do we defend against it?”

“By protecting our head so they can’t read our thoughts,” said a filly.

“Excellent!” said Ms. Sweetwater as she placed two stickers for the respective students to answer her questions correctly.

“But that’s not true!” said Sunny. “Everypony used to be friends!”

“Sunny! No more outbursts in class, alright!” said the older mare as she had enough of Sunny’s charades.

“B-b-but I…”

“No more! Less I need to speak with your parents!” threatened the mare as it got the filly to make herself smaller and fold her ears.

The mare went to the chart, and instead of a golden sticker next to Sunny’s, she put a disappointed sticker next to her name. The filly saw it as it hurt her to see she was already off to a bad start and made her teacher angry with her; sitting behind the little filly was the mare’s best friend, and watching the teacher berate Sunny made him conflicted. He wanted to help, but he also didn’t want to get in trouble as well.

By lunchtime, most of the class was sitting among their peers and talking. Sunny sat alone at a table with some of her classmates passing by while making some sneering comments about how she acted with their teacher. The little orange filly tried not to cry less she gave more ammunition for her classmates to use against her, but it was hard. She didn’t mean to get in trouble; it’s just that she felt everything Ms. Sweetwater said, along with her classmates, went against everything her father had taught her.

“Need some company?” asked Hitch as he sat on his hind next to Sunny.

The filly didn’t say anything and just had her head down while Hitch patted her back to show his support.

“I’m sure Ms. Sweetwater will forget what happened,” said the small colt, trying to be optimistic for his friend.

“I didn’t mean to cause trouble. But what she was saying was not true.”

“And how do you know?” asked the colt as he took a bite of an apple.

“Because my dad always told me stories about how all three pony kinds worked together. United in harmony and never turned their back on each other. You believe me, right?” asked Sunny to her friend.

“Um…” responded Hitch as he didn’t know how to answer that.

On one hoof, he’d wanted to believe Sunny, given they were friends. But on the other hand, what she said went against everything he had ever heard or read about unicorns and pegasus. The colt was at a crossroads as he struggled with his ideals.

“You believe me, right, Hitch?” asked Sunny.

“Uh, I mean, if… you want me to,” said the colt while rubbing the back of his head nervously, not sure how to properly respond to that question.

Sunny sighed sadly as she knew Hitch was just saying that because he didn’t want to disappoint her. She admired that he was willing to go along with most of the stuff she wanted to do, but it felt like an excuse not to make her angry at him. The filly continued to feel sad as a pair of other ponies passed by them; they saw Sunny as they snickered a bit before looking over at Hitch and waving at him, which he returned. The two fillies made cute sounds upon the colt, waving back at them before going about.

“He’s cute,” said one of the fillies.

“I don’t get why he hangs with her,” responded the other as they left.

Sunny barely heard what the two ponies were talking about, as the last one made her feel even more depressed. She looked at the colt sitting next to him, who finished his snack, as she felt like she may be damaging Hitch’s reputation by associating himself with her. She could handle being made fun of, but she didn’t want her friend to also suffer from her humiliation by being near her.

The rest of the school day went by as during arts and crafts, each pony was to either make or draw something they wanted to be. When the teacher came to check on her students, she was amazed by what the small ponies were able to make. For Hitch, he made a small star out of clay as he informed the mare that he wanted to one day become sheriff due to how the pony saved his grandma from being crushed by a crate of falling fruit.
“Do you think I can become that?” asked Hitch.

“As long as you put your mind to it, Hitch. There’s nothing you can’t do,” said Ms. Sweetwater as she offered advice and support to the colt on chasing his dream. She smiled at him before trotting over to Sunny. “And what do you have, Ms. Starscout?”

Sunny wiped her forehead as she showed off what she made. The little orange filly showed a drawing with an earth pony, unicorn, and pegasus gathered in a circle as a rainbow was drawn over them to show their unity.

“And what is this?” asked the teacher with some criticism in her tone.

“I drew a picture of what I want to be. And that’s meet pegasus and unicorns and one day, we all come together to share and spread unity and friendship!” said Sunny as her eyes beamed with wonder after talking about her lifelong dream.

“I asked you to show me something that’s realistic. Not make-believe!” stated the teacher as she didn’t find Sunny’s delusion of a dream to be interesting.

“But… this is real,” said the little filly.

“This! It is but a childish dream. Not a realistic vision. I’m sorry, Ms. Starscout,” said the teacher as she walked away in disappointment while Sunny put her drawing and head down.

The filly looked to see another disappointment sticker attached to her name as it hurt. She planted her face on the table as Hitch approached her and patted her back to make her feel better. And so it repeated throughout the day as anytime Sunny tried to tell her teacher about the stories her father told her, the mare shut her down and gave a disapproving look followed by another bad sticker. All of it started to affect Sunny as she started to feel slightly attacked, all while Hitch just watched. The colt wanted to help his friend, but what could he do? He didn’t want to suffer his teacher’s wrath, but more importantly, he was conflicted about Sunny’s stories about how all three tribes of ponies used to be friends when he’d been engrained that it was the opposite.

“Take care, ponies!” said Ms. Sweetwater as her class began to leave. “Wait a moment, Ms. Starscout. I want to talk to you.”

Sunny was worried as she approached her teacher; looking on from the school’s entrance was Hitch as he hoped their teacher wouldn’t be too hard on her. Sunny approached her teacher as the mare had a stern expression on her face.

“Yes?” said the filly in a timid tone.

“Let me make one thing clear. Today is to be the only day this happens.”

Sunny gave a confused look at her teacher.

“This little facade that you have. All the fairytales that your father had implemented into your mind. That will not be tolerated in my class!” stated the mare as she stomped her hoof. “I have spent more moons teaching than you have been trotting. And I will not have my reputation nor my authority questioned by a filly who chooses to live in some fantasy world simply because her father tells stories. Perception is reality. And the reality is that unicorns and pegasus are our enemies! No exception!”

“But…”

“No exceptions! Perception is reality!” stated the mare as she scowled at the small filly before her. “No more in my class. Am I clear?”

Sunny felt afraid of her teacher as the small filly looked at the mare and nervously nodded.

“Good. Now… have a nice day, Sunny Starscout. I’ll see you in class tomorrow, " said Ms. Sweetwater, dismissing the filly.

Sunny’s father saw her daughter exiting her school, and he could tell by her expression something was up.

“How was school?” asked Argyle as he walked alongside his daughter.

The filly kept her mouth shut as she feared what her father might say or do if he found out how the teacher didn’t like her constantly speaking out and trying to push the idea that all ponies used to live together.

“What’s the matter, Sunny?”

“My teacher hates me.”

“Oh. Why’s that?” asked the older earth pony.

“Because she kept saying that pegasus and unicorns are our enemies and that earth ponies don’t get along with them. Even though that’s not true, she says all the stories you tell me are make-believe.” said the small filly as she kept her head down.

“Did she now?” said Argyle with a smile as he continued to trot alongside his child. “What else did she say?”

“That I should stop trying to tell others that I’m right because I’m not.”

“I see,” said Argyle, looking forward with a smile. “Sunny, do you know what double thinking is?”

The filly looked at her father and shook her head.

“It’s having two opposing beliefs at once and believing both are true,” explained the earth pony to his daughter as they walked through town and to their home. “To deliberately believe in lies while knowing they’re false. Examples of this in everyday life include ponies needing to feel pretty, happy, famous, or even accepted.”

“Huh?” said Sunny, not fully understanding what her father was saying.

“Let me ask you this? What does assimilate mean?”

“It means… to take something in,” answered the little pony.

“Good. And what does ubiquitous mean?”

“Uh…”

“It means: everywhere all the time. So… what is ubiquitous assimilation?” asked Argyle to his daughter.

“Always… absorbing everything everywhere… all the time?” said Sunny, trying to use the clues her father told her to make an educated guess on what the phrase meant.

“That’s my girl. Well done,” smiled the earth pony as he hugged his daughter. “How can you imagine anything if the images are always provided for you? For the rest of our lives, the powers that be are hard at work, trying to dumb us. To defend ourselves and fight against assimulating this dullness into our thought processes. In turn, we must learn to read in order to stimulate our own thoughts and imagination to cultivate our own consciousness. Our own belief systems. We all need these skills to defend, to preserve our own minds.”

“Dad… what does that mean?” asked Sunny as she didn’t have a clue as to what her father was talking about.

“To put it plainly, Sunny Bunny. Don’t let what others say or think sway you from what you believe. If you believe in your ideals, you must stand for them. Who cares if you’re the only one who believes in it? The important thing is that you do. The only real mistake you can make is giving up. So don’t ever let anypony else get you down or downplay your ideals. Okay?”

“Okay, Dad,” said Sunny as she smiled at her father and gave him another warm embrace which he returned.

“And for the sake of your teacher, don’t worry about her. Just play along with her teachings, but just know… in time, they’ll start to listen to you.”

“I will, Dad,” smiled Sunny.

“Now remember, you have to keep this a secret, or the magic won’t work,” said Sunny’s father as he nudged his daughter, who let out a chuckle. “Promise?”

“Promise,” confirmed the small filly as the pair entered their home.