An event of great significance was slated to begin at Sweet Apple Acres very soon. Big Macintosh was finally getting married to his special somepony: Cheerilee. It wasn't intended to be a very big and dramatic event, in contrast to Shining Armor and Cadence's royal wedding and even the wedding of Cranky and Matilda, the overall attendance was much smaller. Aside from a few close friends and honorary family members, the only guests at the wedding involved Mrs. Cake, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Spike, and even Discord.

Applejack was serving in the role of best mare (to the surprise of no one), and had gotten all dressed up for the occasion. Her outfit for the big day consisted of a mostly green, flowing dress with red trim for accents. Around her neck was a red heart shaped to look like an apple. She had even swaped out the stetson she usually used, replacing it with one that a few string lines to make it look more fancy. She couldn't be happier for her brother if she tried.

However, the farm mare was currently concerned with some details that had come to her attention about how the wedding had come to be, and what had transpired while she'd been working to get Sweet Apple Acres all set up for the occasion. Looking over the guests who had not yet taken their seats or otherwise assumed their place at the altar in the orchard that contained the intertwined apple/pear trees, she asked them in a serious but not necessarily harsh tone. "Let me just start by sayin' that I'm not mad with any of y'all," She said to them while speaking slowly. "Let me repeat that: I'm not mad with any of y'all."

That helped to defuse the tensions just a little bit, putting the ponies, dragon, and lord of chaos at ease. They now knew this wasn't an interrogation.

Applejack cleared her throat. "However, that doesn't mean I don't have a ton of questions about what the hay y'all got up tryin' to make this weddin' happen," She looked over the group. "So, who wants to be the first to explain themselves so that I can start piecin' it all together?"

Spike opted to speak up first, sighing a little as he did so. "I just wanted everything to be perfect. I mean, this was a big deal. But when Discord insists on being involved... well, I guess you have to expect chaos. But even I didn't think he'd mess up as badly as I did."

Discord saw fit to protest with the most annoyed expression upon his face. "Regardless of what Spike might say, that not so little dragon begged me to help. And let me tell you, he can cause plenty of chaos all on his purple scaled lonesome. Besides, it's not like I meant for any of this to happen. Even I'm allowed to mess up every once in a while, right? Right?!"

Mrs. Cake spoke up next, sounding and looking rather guilty as she did so. "I pride myself on baking under pressure, but I just... Oh, dear... Guess this is what I get for trying to juggle so many responsibilities all at once."

Scootaloo then remarked. "We were only trying to help. We never meant for things to get so out of control."

Apple Bloom added with a nervous laugh. "It's funny. You'd think we would be used to stuff like this in Ponyville."

And Sweetie Belle shuddered. "I still have nightmares about it. It's kind of a long story."

Applejack could only sigh. "Well, the weddin' won't be startin' for a little while still. Reckon I've got time to hear a shortened version of it." Yet even she could not have imagined the story she was about to hear.

So it was that, with Applejack listening, Spike opted to tell his story first. "It all seemed so simple when it started. Just a proposal, nothing more." And just like that, he was flashing back to where everything had begun. It had only been a day or two ago, when he'd visited Big Macintosh at Sweet Appe Acres.

Having called Spike over, Big Mac opened up a box and proudly presented a huge diamond ring that sparkled and glistened in the sunlight!

"It's... beautiful!" Spike exclaimed with wide eyed wonder! In spite of his better instincts, he found himself unable to keep from dooling.

Big Macintosh quickly closed the box and put the diamond ring away while scolding. "Nope!"

The dragon with light purple scales and green spines groaned. "Aw, come on! I'm not gonna eat it, I swear!"

Just then, who should show up from literally out of nowhere but Discord himself? "Eat what?" He questioned, completely unaware of the conversation or its context. He soon saw the box, and with his curiosity piqued he asked. "Hey, what is it?! I want to see it!"

But the earth pony stallion with a bright red coat protested. "Nope!" And he held the box shut, refusing to open it back up.

The wity draconequus groaned in annoyance and frustration. "What? Why not?"

"Because you can't keep a secret. You have a big mouth," Spike protested with narrowed eyes. "And Big Mac clearly wants this to be a surprise."

Discord quickly took offense to Spike's suggestion. "And who says I can't keep a secret? I keep tons of secrets! Like Fluttershy's secret fear of clowns. Or that time I caught Twilight sleep-trotting through town. Oh! And did you know that Octavia once went on a date with Bulk Biceps?" He chuckled to himself. "Talk about an odd couple. I heard that-" But then he realized what he had said and done, proving Spike right. "Oh, all right," He said with a sigh and groan. "Point taken. I guess I'm too much of a chatterbox for my own good. But I can learn how to keep a secret. Isn't that what friends do: Help each other learn?" He snapped his talons, summoning up various costumes as he proclaimed. "But we're pals, right? Comrades. Amigos."

Reluctantly, Big Macintosh relented, sensing that Discord wouldn't be satisfied until he saw what was inside the little box. So after looking all around to make sure the coast was clear, he lifted up the lid and once again showed off the diamond ring he had purchased.

When the reformed chaos maker saw the huge diamond in the diamond ring, even he could not believe the majesty of the sight! "You mean Big Mac's FINALLY going to propose to Cheerilee?!" He exclaimed as his voice echoed everywhere in spite of himself.

Spike rolled his eyes in disbelief and put a claw to his face. "Nice going, Discord. Now half of Ponyville probably knows about it."

All Discord could do in response was blush. "Oopsie!" He hurridly clamped a paw over his mouth, literally zipping it shut for the time being.

"So, yeah, we were the first ones to find out," Spike explained to Applejack in the present. "I guess it never occurred to us that we should maybe tell you."

Applejack shrugged her hooves. "Hey, you guys were just tryin' to help him out. I would've found out eventually regardless of whether you told me or not," Then she asked. "So, how did things go with the proposal? What did you do that caused such a ruckus?"

The not so little dragon insisted. "Well, Big Mac asked Discord and I to help out with his proposal. And of course I said yes. I'm not just a good friend, I'm the most romantic dragon I know."

Discord, meanwhile, let out an impatient sigh. "It really is a curse having infinite powers. Everypony is always asking you to move a couch or help with a proposal. I didn't even want to do it, really. But when my paw was forced, what other choice did I have?" And he started thinking about how everything had quickly escalated and gotten out of control despite what he and Spike had been tasked with doing.

With the secret no longer a secret, Spike had quickly begun trying to press Big Macintosh for more information. "Alright, spill it, Big Mac! And don't leave anything out, tell us every little detail! What's your plan?!"

But Discord groaned and let out a drawn out sigh of protest. "Ugh. Do we really have to hear all the little details? Is that a 'friend' thing? Some of us have places we'd like to be and things we'd like to get done today."

Undeterred, the stallion with a beautiful red coat agreed. "Eeyup," He waited as Discord snapped his talons and sat down in a chair that had just been summoned up, then explained. "I still don't really talk much. So instead of just showin' up and givin' her the ring, I wanna show Cheerilee how committed I am. And I can't do it alone," He cleared his throat as he trotted over to a wooden bench he had built. "First I..."

Spike interrupted, appearing to guess what Big Mac was doing. "-You're building a picnic table just like the benches in the school yard," Looking over it and taking notice of what was on top of said table, he added. "And you're setting up a romantic meal overlooking Sweet Apple Acres?"

"Eeyup." Big Mac proudly proclaimed with a smile.

The wity draconequus eyed Spike with suspicion. "Hey, how did you know what he was going to say? Did you read the script or something?" He briefly conjured up a scroll, then made it disappear after throwing it at Spike.

The dragon with green spines snorted. "Don't be silly, Discord. I'm not a mind reader. If you were a helpless romantic like I am, you'd recognize that that was the only logical choice. You do have a brain in that head of yours, right?"

"Of course I do." Discord grumpily remarked and folded his arms in protest.

The earth pony stallion, meanwhile, cleared his throat as he continued. "Well, that's just one part of it. I know it's silly, but I want my proposal to really mean somethin'. So I'm also-" He began to trot over to a large barrel.

Spike flew over to the barrel, eyed it, and pulled out an apple inside of it as he seemed to realize. "-Painting apples to leave around Ponyville with little riddles tied to the stem that will lead her up here to meet you for a picnic lunch?"

"Eeyup!" Big Macintosh declared as his smile grew wider and brighter.

"Seriously?! I don't see why that's all necessary," The reformed chaos maker complained. "You've been dating her for quite a while, haven't you? What, you afraid you'll mess it up somehow if you don't go all out for her?! I could easily just teleport her up here for you."

The winged dragon flew up to Discord's face and told him off. "Then you'd ruin the mood! Don't you know anything about romance? Elaborate proposals are part of what makes love so special."

Again, Big Macintosh said. "Eeyup," Then he cleared his throat once again. "So now I-"

But the wity spirit interrupted with his own insistence. "-I know! You need a giant rhino named Dolores who can knit a romantic sweater for two!" And he promptly conjured up just such a creature, who knitted what seemed to be a perfect sweater. It even had crudely drawn images of Big Mac and Cheerilee inside of a heart.

Big Mac could only shake his head. " Uhhh... nope."

Unhappily, Discord made the giant rhino disappear with a snap of his talons.

Spike then pointed out. "He needs food for the picnic. That was a gimme," He turned to the stallion and immediately vowed. "Okay, Big Mac. You finish your table, I'll pick up whatever you need to eat, and Discord will put all the apples in place."

"What? I will?" The draconequus blinked in surprise.

"Eeyup! Thanks for volunteerin'!" Big Macintosh smiled, and then set to work on building the picnic table. It was already almost finished, it just needed a few more planks of wood added to it and for said planks to be painted.

Spike then turned to Discord, quickly pressing the draconequus. "Come on! Big Mac's counting on us, and we're not going to let him down!"

Relcutantly, the reformed spirit of chaos snapped his talons, making himself, Spike, and the apples with the messages inside them disappear.

"We went straight to where we thought Cheerilee would usually be," Spike explained to Applejack in the present, pausing his recollections for the moment. "I got the hard job. All Discord had to do was place the apples."

Discord grumpily remarked while gesturing to Spike. "Oh of course, you volunteered me for the job knowing that I'd feel guilty if I backed out. It's not my fault Cheerilee was so distracted. If she'd just noticed the first apple, everything would've been just fine."

That prompted Mrs. Cake to shoot both Spike and Discord a most unusual expression, conveying that she knew something neither of them did. But for the moment at least, she opted to remain silent and let the two guys continue telling their side of the story first.

"So, after you guys went to the school house, what did you do next?" The stetson wearing earth pony questioned.

Spike put a claw to his chin. "Well..." And he resumed his reflection, remembering how the events had unfolded from there.

Discord had teleported himself and Spike right outside of the Ponyville schoolhouse. It was a day where class was not in session. But even when that wasn't the case, Cheerilee still sometimes stayed there.

"You sure she's here, Spike?" The wity draconequus questioned while shooing away a bunch of noisy farm animals that he'd accidentally teleported along.

The dragon with wings nodded. "Yeah. There may not be classes today, but Cheerilee always comes for at least half the day in those cases so she can work on her lesson plans and catch up on grading tests. It's amazing she still finds time for other things like seeing concerts or going on picnic dates with Big Mac," He then turned to the chaos maker. "Are the apples okay? You didn't bruise any of them, did you?"

"Of course not!" The spirit of chaos complained as he pulled one out and read aloud the message printed on the little paper strip inside of it. "'From the school house here, look for your next clue. Red, delicious, sweet like you. Find it; you'll know what to do. At the end, a special treat shall be your gift. Meanwhile, these riddles will test your wit.'" He frowned, narrowly resisting the urge to crumple up the piece of paper. "He really should stick to bucking apples. Even I could write better poetry than that."

Spike just rolled his eyes. "Stop whining, Discord. It's supposed to be romantic, it doesn't have to be the best poetry ever. What matters is that Cheerilee loves it."

The chaos maker frowned. "At least when I did this, it was part of a game."

"This is no game! This is serious! We're talking about true love!" The winged dragon protested and scolded as he turned to leave. "Look, I'll go get the food. Sugarcube Corner shouldn't be too busy at this time of day, and Pinkie and the Cakes should have everything under control. You just focus on placing the apples. Think you can handle that by the time I get back? Or does the Lord of Chaos think that such a simple task is too much for him?"

Discord literally rolled his eyes for a moment and groaned. "Quit trying to get under my fur. I'm only doing this for Big Mac's sake, so please don't make me regret it." He hurridly snapped his talons and made all the apples disappear with a poof.

Nervously, Spike questioned. "Are you sure you put them all in the right spots?"

Annoyed by the dragon's constant pressing and prodding, the spirit of chaos bitterly insisted. "Those terrible riddles on the apples were very clear on their locations. I'm sure that they were placed properly," When Spike shot him an annoyed, skeptical look, the draconequus somewhat nervously added. "I-I-I think. Maybe. Does it really matter as long as she gets where she's supposed to go in the end?" Still, Spike continued to look at him, further unnerving Discord and making him finally agree. "Oh, okay, fine! I'll double-check."

Just as the lord of chaos was about to do so, however, the school house door suddenly swung open. And out strolled Cheerilee, who had the most carefree and unsuspecting expression upon her face. In fact, she was so happy go lucky that she paid no attention at all to her surroundings. As such, she completely missed the apple that was resting in a neat little basket on a fence by the school yard. She trotted right past it without noticing it, and went on her way unaware of Spike and Discord's presence nearby.

No sooner had Cheerilee disappeared from sight then did Spike and Discord approach the apple that had been left out for her to find. "I don't believe it! She didn't see the apple!" He exclaimed and broke out into a nervous sweat! "What are we gonna do now?! If she doesn't find that apple, the whole plan's ruined!"

The crafty draconequus swiftly proposed. "Well, we could just give it to her."

Spike immediately rejected the idea. "Are you dense?! That's not romantic! She needs to discover it! It's all part of the plan!" And he pointed to his temporary partner. "Do I have to explain everything?! You need to make her see it, no matter what it takes!"

Discord had to resist the urge to groan again, even as he complained. "Oh, don't be such a drama dragon. You know qhat I'm capable of. If I can steal the Elements of Harmony right from under Celestia's nose, make it rain chocolate milk from cotton candy clouds, and bring an Ogres & Oubliettes game to life, I can certainly make a pony see an apple," He snapped his talons and lifted up the apple, dangling it from a string. "You leave Cheerilee to me. Go get the food, like you said you were going to."

The not so little dragon sighed in dismay, but reluctantly agreed and set off for Sugarcube Corner. "Does he have to make everything so complicated?" He thought to himself as he walked away in a rather grumpy mood.

Suspecting that nothing was out of the ordinary and believing that Discord more or less had things under control on his end, Spike made his way across town to Sugarcube Corner. Strangely enough, as he did so he happened to see Cheerilee trotting away with an exceptionally bright smile on her face. He found that odd, but had very little time to dwell upon it as he saw a very frantic looking Pinkie Pie was not only working the counter but also tending to customers that seemed to have taken up every able table within the bakery!

The pink party pony was rushing to and fro in a blur, alternating between ringing up orders at the counter and delivering various baked goods to tables as soon as they came out of the kitchen! Even for a pony like her, it seemed as if this juggling act was very overwhelming!

Spike quickly came up to the counter, just as Pinkie came back to it for a brief moment. "Hey, Spike!" She called in a hurriedy fashion. "Sorry, can't talk, very busy right now! It's lunch rush time!" And she then zoomed away to pick up some pies and pasetries that had emerged from the kitchen during the brief time she was talking to the dragon!

"It's alright, I'm just ordering some food for a friend. It's a pick-up order." The dragon explained.

Pinkie Pie just proclaimed as she kept up her frantic pace! "Can't take any orders right now, talk to Mrs. Cake!"

So the winged dragon did just that, making his way into the kitchen where he found a rather frazzled Mrs. Cake stirring a bowl filled with some kind of batter, all the while she had a pot on the stove and something cooking in the oven as the timer dinged, signaling that the object in the oven was ready to be taken out.

"What is it?!" Mrs. Cake asked when she briefly laid eyes on Spike, before turning her attention to the oven and pulling out what looked like a very hastily made cake. "I'm afraid I'm very busy at the moment, as you can see!"

"What is going on here?!" Spike questioned as he observed his surroundings, taking notice of chaotic everything seemed to be in the kitchen. "This isn't like you, Mrs. Cake! You're always so well organized."

The plump baker sighed. "I'm filling an important order. Carrot took the twins to go shopping, and Pinkie's managing the store. I didn't expect all these baked goods to take so long to make. But they had to be just right." She gestured a hoof to some pies, a few cupcakes, and various apple themed baked goods that were all set off to the side on a counter. All the while, she kept stirring her batter.

The dragon quickly offered. "Well, how about I take some of those off your hooves? That way I'll have time to tell you about an important order I need you to fill."

Mrs. Cake refused to let Spike even touch the baked goods on the counter, swatting away his claw with a wooden spoon. "No! The pony who ordered them is coming by later to pick them up! It's for a very important occasion."

Spike blinked his green eyes in surprise as he listed off the number of baked goods one by one. "All of them? There's... one, two, three, four—"

"-Twenty one!" The earth pony baker interrupted in a harsh tone of voice. "And yes, all of them!"

The winged dragon was rendered near speechless by the admission. "But who even needs all these baked goods anyway?"

Mrs. Cake shook her head from side to side and nervously insisted! "I can't tell you! It's a secret! You'll just have to come back later!'

"But later won't work! It has to be now!" The dragon with light purple scales and green spines furiously and stubbornly insisted.

Mrs. Cake immediately pressed him on that. "Why?"

And Spike only replied by saying. "I can't tell you. It's a secret."

The plump baker just groaned and mumbled something under her breath. Whatever it was that had caused her to bake all those apple themed treats, it was clearly putting a lot of pressure on her. And with Spike refusing to explain what he needed her to make for him, it only made things that much worse.

Meanwhile, the winged dragon sampled some of the nearby desserts, and gagged at how badly they tasted! "Ugh! Man, did somepony else bake these?"

"No. Why?" Mrs. Cake nervously asked as she spun around, suddenly looking very concerned.

Perhaps realizing what the baker earth pony was implying by such a question, the dragon sheepishly and hesitantly answered. "Uh... no reason."

As all of that was going on, Discord had followed Cheerilee as the now off-duty teacher was wandering around Ponyville with seemingly no destination in mind. She even stopped at the flower stand, apparently interested in buying flowers all of a sudden.

Sensing that he might not get a better opportunity, Discord not so secretly lowered the apple on a string as he tried to dangle it in front of Cheerilee and make her notice it.

But Cheerilee didn't. Instead, she tossed over a few bits to pay for the flowers and then went on her way again.

The chaos maker groaned in annoyance as he set the apple down. He had to resist the urge to tear out the hairs on his head due to how frustrated he was becoming with the whole ordeal! "Ugh! Why do these ponies always insist on making everything so difficult with them?! All I want is to help a friend with a silly proposal!" Then, looking at the apple, he got an idea. "You know what: If she's too busy to read all these horribly written clues, then maybe you should just tell her yourself."

And that's exactly what the draconequus did as he snapped his talons, causing the apple to sprout legs and a mouth. It began to chitter audibly in the process. He quickly did the same thing to the other apples, all of which started to chitter at the exact same time. Ponies who were nearby and witnessing the display did not know what to make of it.

Satisfied with his work, the witty spirit of chaos snapped his talons again and dawned a green military uniform, complete with a hat that gold stars resting atop it, and a bubble pipe hanging from his mouth. He pulled down a large banner from out of nowhere and instructed to the newly sentient apples in a gruff tone of voice. "Alright, you apples, listen and listen good! Each of you has a job to do! Take a look at your stems!"

The apples did so without hesitation. And they all seemed to react the same way, chittering and groaning in protest before they started to complain.

Discord only replied. "I know, I know. I don't like it either, men. Regardless, your messages must be delivered. Failure is not an option!" And he tapped a wooden staff against the banner while declaring. 'Now all of you spread out! Go to your assigned destinations, deliver your messages, and make me proud!" Then with a sharp, sudden whistle he declared. "Dismissed!" And once the apples started chattering, he snapped his talons once more and sent them on their way. Satisfied with his work, he sat down to rest and said to himself with a content sigh. "You're really lucky to have me as a friend, Big Mac. What would you do without me?"

"Ah, so that explains the commotion I was hearing while trying to help Mrs. Cake," Spike realized as he looked across to Discord, once again pausing his reflecting and recollection in the process. "Of course you'd try to take the easy way out. Maybe we should've swapped roles."

Discord just grumbled and huffed. "If you were in my position, dealing with the same frustrations and setbacks that I was dealing with, you'd be just as annoyed as I was. I didn't even want to help Big Mac, but I did it anyway because I was told that's what friends do."

"Enough, you two," Applejack spoke up, quieting down an argument before it could start. "I think I got a pretty clear picture of what happened now. Or at least half of it."

Discord then grinned. "Oh, but you would not believe what happened next! Even I couldn't have planned it to unfold the way it did."

And Spike, for his part, looked down at the ground in shame as he started to recall. "Yeah, it wasn't exactly my finest moment. I was only trying to help," He sheepishly added while twiddling his claws. "It just... didn't quite work out that way." And he once more began to remembering memories from just the other day.

Mrs. Cake had finally managed to set down that bowl of batter she was stirring and mixing. And that gave her time to focus on a few other things that were more immediate in concern. "Everything going okay out there, Pinkie?!" She hollered out from the kitchen.

Pinkie Pie briefly stuck her head into the kitchen and replied. "Yes, Mrs. Cake. Everything's under control. You just keep baking those treats for Che..." But she quickly stopped herself when Mrs. Cake shot her a look that (to Spike at least) seemed strange. "-Er, never mind." And she went back to tending to the counter and to the costumers at the tables.

As for the plump baker, she just sighed and put a hoof to her forehead. "I really bit off more than I could chew with this one. Still, at least now I'm finally making progress. Just a few more apple treats, and then I'll be all caught up."

Spike, meanwhile, got an idea as he turned his attention to the bowl of batter he'd seen Mrs. Cake set down on the counter next to the other treats. He grabbed the bowel, eyeing it carefully. "If you won't let me take any of those finished treats away, the least you can do is let me help you bake. I cook for Twilight all the time. Heck, I even gave her a few lessons. And between you and me," He said with a knowing wink. "She really needed them."

The plump earth pony mare with a cobalt blue coat insisted with a huff. "I don't need help! I can do this!"

Not one way to just take no for an answer, the winged dragon simply concentrated on the bowl. "You most certainly do. A little dragon fire will cook whatever you pour this batter into," He hurridly poured it into a nearby pan. "Watch!"

"NO! DON'T!" Mrs. Cake hollered in horror! But it was too late!

Taking a deep breath, the green spined dragon spewed flames out of his mouth and directly over the pan. It worked a little too well: The heat caused the batter to cook all the way through until it had turned into a charred, black, hard as rock like substance. Smoke billowed up from it. "Oops." He realized with a slow blink, wiping the soot from his brows.

The plump baker only groaned in annoyance and frustration. "And I thought burnt cupcakes during Diamond Tiara's cute-ceañera was the worst thing ever."

Just then, both pony and dragon heard the sound of panicked screams coming from outside! Without hesitation, they dropped everything they had been doing and ran outside to see what was the matter! They soon saw that the disturbance was the result of sentient apples on legs, all of them running back and forth while chasing after various ponies and all but shouting at them.

One of the apples could be heard shouting at a pony who was just passing by. "Hurry hurry, there's no need to sneak!"

And another apple a little farther away was causing a cream coated earth pony and a sea green coated unicorn (who had just finished a proposal of their own to scream), running away as the apple chased after them and said. "The next apple is at Carousel Boutique."

A third apple off in the distance was spooking several ponies all at once as it hollered. "At Twilight's castle, take a right! The next apple sits in plain sight!"

"What in the wide world of Equestria is going on?!" Mrs. Cake exclaimed in disbelief!

Spike groaned, he already knew who was likely to blame for this turn of events. "Discord." He grumbled and groaned.

Sure enough, Discord appeared but a second later, floating on a cloud and drinking a smoothie through a straw. "Oh!" He exclaimed when he saw Spike, removing the straw from his lips in the process. "Are you finally finished? I've been done for a while. You sure took your sweet time."

Just then, two of the apples happened to run into each other. And as they did so, they grew bigger and their voices became much lower in pitch.

With Spike and Mrs. Cake eyeing him, the draconequus admitted. "You know, thinking back, I probably could have been clearer which pony to deliver the messages to."

"You think?" Spike sarcastically quipped.

Having been confronted and exposed for how little thought he'd put into his plan, the witty draconequus snapped his talons and made all the talking apples disappear. "There, happy?" He humphed as he stood up and got down from his cloud. "It's not my fault apples are so bad at taking directions. They couldn't even stay in one place. Now if they were bananas, this wouldn't have happened. Bananas are so much better at listening." He briefly held one up to his ears to demonstrate that fact.

As luck would have it, Cheerilee happened to come trotting by seconds later. And when she saw the carnage and the chaos that had been caused in Discord's wake, she could only blink her eyes in disbelief. Things had not been like this earlier. "What happened here?" She questioned, completely unaware of Spike and Discord watching her from afar.

The winged dragon was utterly astounded and in disbelief about Cheerilee's presence. "Seriously? All those apples running around, and she still didn't see the poem to go to the hilltop?"

"Honestly, you should be thanking me. Not seeing the poem is a blessing if you think about it." The chaos maker insisted as he snapped his talons again, conjuring up a blindfold that he put over Cheerilee's face before teleporting her to the top of the hill near Sweet Apple Acres (along with himself, Spike, and Mrs. Cake).

"What are you doing?!" Spike snapped as he looked at Discord! "You're gonna ruin everything! It's too soon!"

And at that very moment, Big Macintosh happened to spot his friends off in the distance. He was most surprised to see them again so soon. "Spike?" He blinked as he trotted over.

The not so little dragon gave off a nervous laugh and flew in front of Cheerilee, trying to block her from Big Mac's view. "O-oh! Uh, hey there, Big Mac. Heh. I bet you're wondering what—"

But Big Mac interrupted as he happened to see a still blindfolded Cheerilee come trotting out from behind Spike (completely unaware of where she was). "Cheerilee?!" He exclaimed in shock! He had most certainly not been expecting to see her so soon or in such a state as she currently was.

"Big Mac?" Cheerilee questioned. For the moment, it didn't occur to her to take off her blindfold since she was still trying to process everything that was happening to her.

The earth pony stallion then growled at Discord and accusingly shouted! "Discord!"

And Discord replied by shouting out! "Mrs. Cake!"

"Huh? What did I do?" Mrs. Cake remarked, surprised by the sudden accusation.

The chaos maker innocently insisted. "Nothing. I just thought we were all saying each other's names. But I guess we're not playing that game after all."

Spike just unhappily sighed as he watched Cheerilee reach up a hoof to remove her blindfold, now suddenly finding herself on a hilltop overlooking Ponyville. "Great, the surprise is ruined," He complained, before shrugging his claws. "Oh well, at least it can't get any worse."

The lord of chaos rather omionusly warned the winged dragon. "As the Lord of Chaos, I'd advise against saying things like that. Things can always get worse."

As if to prove Discord right, at that very moment the Cutie Mark Crusaders and Granny Smith started running past, and all of them were screaming at the top of their lungs!

"It's comin'! Save yourselves!" Granny Smith hollered as she continued to run!

Before anyone had a chance to ask for more details, the ground began to shake. The vibrations grew louder and more intense by the second. At last, with a thunderous boom, emerging over some trees was a gigantic, sentient apple! "Cheerilee!" It roared, its mouth appearing to have some kind of pie stuck in it!

Cheerilee, upon seeing the huge apple, did the only thing she could think to do in her situation: She screamed and ran off as fast as her legs could carry her!

And Big Macintosh, Spike, and Discord could only look at themselves and wonder how it had come to this. Not only was Big Mac's secret proposal ruined, but now Cheerilee was so frightened it seemed she might not be in a mood to let Big Mac propose to her at all.

"Even if it worked out in the end," Spike confessed to Applejack as the flashback ended. "At that moment, it looked like everything had gone wrong. Guess maybe it's not entirely Discord's fault. I was just trying to help Mrs. Cake, when I should've been keeping a better eye on Discord."

Discord looked down at the ground in something akin to shame. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel bad about the chaos I caused. I really did want to help," He looked across to Spike. "And it seems I wasn't the only one who ran into trouble. Is this how it always is with you ponies? You make the simplest of things so needlessly complicated?"

The winged dragon, meanwhile, pondered aloud. "The one thing I still don't get is what the heck was up with that pie in the giant apple's mouth."

At that point, Mrs. Cake spoke up and confessed. "I must apologize. Big Mac wasn't the only one who had a secret proposal he was working on. Cheerilee asked me to help her confess to him," She sighed in regret. "Of course I said yes. How was I to know Big Mac already had a proposal of his own ready to go?"

"Hey, don't forget about us!" Apple Bloom remarked, drawing all attention towards her and her fellow Crusaders. "We played a part in this too. And we most certainly didn't mean for things to get so out of hoof," She gave off a nervous laugh. "We have a bit of a reputation for gettin' carried away."

Sweetie Belle added with an innocent smile. "Especially when romance is involved. We're definitely not matchmakers, even if we've had a few successes."

Scootaloo then insisted. "But we were just helping Miss. Cheerilee with her plan. She asked us specifically. And... well... we tried our best."

Applejack now turned her attention to Mrs. Cake and the Cutie Mark Crusaders. "Alright, time to hear your half of the story. What exactly did y'all get yourselves into?"

The bow wearing earth pony filly put a hoof to her chin as she started to recall. "It all started when Miss. Cheerilee called us to the school house. And that's when she told us about how she planned to propose to Big Mac." Just like that, it was her turn to start flashing back to the events that had taken place only a day or two prior.

When the Cutie Mark Crusaders had arrived at the school house on that day, they were quickly ushered inside by Cheerilee. Whatever it was she wanted to talk to them about, she clearly wanted it to be a secret.

Apple Bloom was extremely giddy and full of excitement when Cheerilee revealed what the reasons behind the abrupt summons was! The currently off-duty teacher was finally ready to propose to Big Macintosh! "Oh my gosh! I can't wait to welcome ya into the family, Miss. Cheerilee," She smiled, before blushing. "Guess I'll have to get used to callin' ya just Cheerilee, instead of Miss. Cheerilee. That's gonna be so weird."

Cheerilee gingerly patted Apple Bloom on the forehead. "We'll all have to adjust, Apple Bloom. But that's okay. You'll be an excellent sister-in-law. You and your fellow Crusaders have been among my most talent students. I still owe you a lot of thanks for helping Diamond Tiara turn over a new leaf."

Scootaloo waved a hoof, playing it off like it was no big deal. "Hey, it's what we do," And she added. "We're so happy for you, Miss. Cheerilee!"

"Yeah!" Sweetie Belle excitedly proclaimed! "And we're glad you want us to help," Then she questioned. "But are you sure you want us to? The last time we tried to help you with your love life, it... didn't go so well."

"Girls, I've long since forgiven you for the love poison incident," Cheerilee sincerely replied. "And you've matured a lot since then. Which is exactly why I could use your help now."

The farm filly adjusted her bow and smiled. "Whatever you need us to do, we'll do it! So, what's the plan?"

"I've already got almost everything set up," The earth pony mare explained. "I remember how distraught Big Mac was when his pie for Sugar Belle got sent back because the ink label got all smudged. He really wanted to help Sugar Belle and Party Favor celebrate their first Hearts and Hooves Day together. So I decided to try my hoof af the concept myself. Except instead of just a pie, I'm gonna have a whole bunch of apple flavored desserts. And I've even written a little message to go with them, since I know he's still a stallion of very few words." She giggled as she said the last line with a knowing wink, then showing off the message that she had written onto a piece of paper.

Scootaloo examined the piece of paper and read the message aloud. ""I love you, Big Mac. Do you want to-spend the rest of our lives together? I hope that you say 'Eeyup'."

Sweetie smiled brightly, "Aw, that's so sweet."

Cheerilee nodded. "Almost as sweet as the pie I made," She carefully gave the aforementioned treat to the Crusaders. "It's a good thing Mrs. Cake is willing to give baking lessons. Without her help, I could've never gotten this pie to turn out so perfectly," She then added. "Now you girls go right to Sweet Apple Acres and give this to Big Mac. When you do, tell him to meet me back here at the school house by sun down. I'm going to pick up some flowers, and order the rest of the treats from Sugarcube Corner."

The bow wearing earth pony filly gave a firm salute while watching as Sweetie Belle carefully held the pie aloft with her magic. "We won't let ya down, Miss. Cheerilee! The Cutie Mark Crusaders never disappoint!" Then she and her fellow Crusaders raced for the school house door.

When the door was opened, however, Cheerilee happened to spot Spike and Discord off in the distance. And they seemed to be arguing about something. Gasping, she hastily shut the door and whispered to the CMC! "This could be a problem: Spike and Discord are outside. If they figure out what we're up to, they'll spill the beans to Big Mac! And I want this to be a surprise!"

Sweetie Belle, however, eyed the two through one of the school house windows and commented. "I don't think they suspect anything. If they ask, we'll just say the pie is for us."

Scootaloo even went so far as to remark. "Why would they even suspect we're up to anything?"

But Apple Bloom protested! "We can't take any chances! We gotta draw their attention, somehow."

Luckily, the earth pony mare with a dark reddish-violet coat had an idea. "I'll go first," She whispered to the CMC. "Then while they're busy looking at me, you girls slip away and go find Big Mac." And then, with a smile on her face, she set out to do just that. As a result, she passed right by Discord without even noticing the apple he had left for her.

The Crusaders, meanwhile, went out the school house door and then snuck around the back way before setting off for Sweet Apple Acres. Little did they know what was about to unfold in Ponyville.

"Ah, so that's why I didn't see you girls!" Discord realized, momentarily interrupting the flashback. "Very clever on your parts."

"And who says we can't be sneaky when the situation calls for it?" Scootaloo boasted with a grin.

But Apple Bloom just cleared her throat. "That's not important, Scootaloo," And she tried to gather her thoughts. "Now where was I?"

Sweetie Belle spoke up. "Uh, weren't you at the part where we were went to find Big Mac and give him the pie Miss. Cheerilee made?"

The bow wearing earth pony filly let out a gasp as she suddenly remembered! "That's right!" And she started recalling again while blushing deeply. "Even knowin' that we ain't the only ones that messed up, it's still embarassin' to think a simple pie delivery could go so wrong."

Just like that, the memories started playing again: The trio of fillies made it all the way to Sweet Apple Acres without incident. By a sheer stroke of luck, they had managed to miss all the chaos, carnage, and confusion that had been caused by Discord's attempt to deliver Big Macintosh's message to Cheerilee. And neither would they be present to see how badly Spike had messed up while trying to help Mrs. Cake at Sugarcube Corner.

Unbeknownst to the Crusaders, however, Big Mac was hard at work putting the finishing touches on the picnic table for his picnic lunch between him and his intended. Frowning, he noticed that he currently lacked the tools he needed to complete the job. And so, he wandered away from his spot on the hilltop overlooking Ponyville to go get his tool chest. He departed, missing the CMC by mere seconds (but with just enough of a time difference to where they didn't see him leave).

"Big Mac!" Apple Bloom called out as she pushed open the doors to the barn, only to find no trace of her big brother anywhere. "Huh, I thought for sure he'd be here. He's always in the barn at this time of day."

"Well he's not here now," Scootaloo impatiently spoke up. "Come on, let's find him, wherever he is."

Sweetie Belle, however, noticed something out of the corner of her eye. "Hey, is that a picnic table on a hill?" She questioned, squinting to try to get a better look.

The earth pony filly groaned. "We don't have time for sightseein', Sweetie Belle! We've gotta find my brother!" And she dragged her fellow filly away. Unknowingly, this prevented her or the other Crusaders from seeing him, because only a second or two after they left to go search elsewhere for Big Mac, the stallion came back up to the hilltop to finish his work and wait for Cheerilee to come and see him.

The three fillies looked all over Sweet Apple Acres and its immediate surroundings. But no matter where they searched, they could not find Big Macintosh or any trace of him. It was as if the stallion had vanished into thin air.

Eventually, the unicorn filly (who was still holding up the pie with her magic) started to complain. "This is ridiculous! How's Miss. Cheerilee supposed to propose to Big Mac if we can't even find him?! The pie's going to spoil at this rate!"

"Well, we should still have some time," The tomboyish pegasus filly asumed. "I doubt all those treats Miss. Cheerilee ordered are ready yet. Even Pinkie Pie can't bake that fast."

And the farm filly then proposed. "You know what: I bet Granny Smith will know where we can find Big Mac. Let's go see her." And she and her fellow Crusaders went to do just that.

It took the Cutie Mark Crusaders very little time to find Granny Smith. The elderly earth pony was snoozing happily while resting in a rocking chair near the barn.

"Granny Smith!" Scootaloo called out. A little bit too loudly, seeing as it made Granny Smith jolt awake with a start and nearly fall out of her rocking chair as a result!

"Gah!" Granny Smith exclaimed, before quickly realizing where she was. "Oh, it's just you youngin''s. Sorry 'bout that, you scared the willies of me," And then she started to say. "Actually, it's a good thing you're here: I just had the strangest dream. It was about me and Grand Pear, and Mudbriar was there too, and so was Discord."

"That's... nice, Granny Smith," Sweetie Belle commented as she tried her best not to sound annoyed. "But we're just trying to find Big Mac, so do you know where he is?"

The elderly earth pony mare shook her head from side to side. "Ain't see hide or hair of him all day long, I'm afraid," Then she remarked. "I wish he was here so I had somepony to talk to about that weird dream I was havin'. It must've meant somethin', 'cause we were all in outer space on some kind of mission to explore a new world." And she began to prattle on at length about it.

Apple Bloom could only sigh and lament. "Once Granny gets goin', there's nothin' in Equestria that can stop her from talkin'."

Yet only seconds later, it was possible to notice water in a nearby bucket start to vibrate as the ground began to shake. It was faint at first, but the vibrations became louder and more intense by the second. And then suddenly, the CMC and Granny Smith heard a loud roar as an ominous shadow appeared before them!

"OH MY CELESTIA?! WHAT IS THAT?!" Sweetie Belle shrieked as she lost her hold on the pie, only to see it be grabbed out of thin air and shoved into the mouth of something big, round, and red!

Thus, the CMC and Granny Smith ended up running away from what turned to be a giant, sentient apple that now had a pie stuck in its mouth.

As the chaos and confusion of that scene wore off, the apple began to bellow and holler at the top of its lungs! "CHEERILEE! I LOVE YOU! YOU LOVE ME! OUR LOVE WILL GROW LIKE AN APPLE TREE! SO LET ME ASK YOU: WILL YOU MARRY ME?!"

The realization slowly settled in for all who were still staring down at the giant apple. Two separate proposals had gotten mixed up due both unknowingly working against each other.

"Wait a minute, you two were working on a proposal too?!" Mrs. Cake exclaimed as the realization dawned on her! "That's what I was doing! Why didn't you just tell me?!"

"It was supposed to be a secret!" Spike shouted back in protest.

And Discord saw fit to ask the plump baker. "Who are you proposing to? I thought you were married."

Mrs. Cake groaned in frustration and annoyance. "It wasn't for me, Discord! It was for Cheerilee, she was trying to propose to Big Mac. And yet all this time, it seems Big Mac was trying to propose to her," She hung her head in shame. "Oh, I made such a mess of things. I never should've said yes."

The CMC, meanwhile, stopped running and screaming when they saw everyone else on the hilltop. "Hey, what's going on here?!" Scootaloo snorted as she eyed Discord! "Discord, what did you do now?!"

The draconequss protested and feigned ignorance. "Who? Me? Why is it that everypony always blames me every time something mysterious happens that can't be explained otherwise? Besides, it's not completely my fault."

Apple Bloom just lamented. "All we wanted to do was make up for messin' things up with Big Mac and Cheerilee with that love poison, even if it's what brought 'em together," She began to speak up. "Big Mac, Miss. Cheerilee, we're really-"

But then everyone else noticed that not only had Cheerilee disappeared, but so had Big Macintosh. And none of the remaining creatures on the hill had any clue as to where the two earth ponies had gone. "Hey, where'd they go?" Sweetie Belle pondered aloud.

All eyes fell upon the witty chaos maker, who insisted in a sincere tone of voice. "Okay, this time, it really wasn't me! I swear!"

Only later would the friends and associates learn that Big Macintosh and Cheerilee had found each other admist all the chaos and confusion. Cheerilee, for her part, had by now managed to recover from her initial state of shock and horror over seeing the giant apple. She had overheard everything, about how her proposal and Big Mac's proposal had gotten mixed up, setting off the chain of events that had escalated into the giant, sentient apple.

Big Mac, however, was anything but relieved by the fact that the truth had come out. In fact, his overall posture became gloomy and downtrodden as he began walking away.

The earth pony mare followed, quickly catching up to the stallion and saying to him. "Well, today has been... interesting, to say the least."

The earth pony stallion with a beautiful red coat could only sigh in unhappiness, lamenting. "Eeyup." He even kicked the ground, stirring up a bit of dust.

Cheerilee naturally found herself moved with pity and concern for her special somepony, especially considering they were near the spot where it was said his parents had proposed to each other in secret long ago. "What's the matter, Big Mac? I know this didn't go quite like you planned, but my proposal didn't work out well either. I still love you, and I still want to be with you. That hasn't changed just because of a few slip ups."

Big Macintosh did his best to fight back the tears as he lamented long and loud. "I...I'm really sorry, Cheerilee. Sorry you had to get mixed up in all of this. I wanted everythin' to go right today. I wanted our love to be as perfect as my parents' was when they planted these two trees together. Instead, it turned into a mess. No matter how hard I try, I always seem to mess up when it comes to you. I'd understand if you were havin' second thoughts about all off this. After today, I wouldn't blame ya."

But Cheerilee trotted forward, locking eyes with her special somepony and saying to him. "I meant everything I said just now. And your parents' love wasn't perfect either. Don't you remember?"

"Whaddya mean?" Big Mac asked even as his overall tone and posture did not change.

The off-duty teacher sweetly explained. "From everything you told me about your parents, they had to deal with things a lot tougher than a burnt dessert and an apple monster," She gestured to the intertwined apple and pear trees nearby. "This apple tree and pear tree are stronger together. They'll survive whatever comes because they don't have to do it alone. They belong together. Like your parents. And like us."

The stallion blinked slowly. "...Eeyup." He found himself agreeing.

The earth pony mare with a lovely dark reddish-violet coat then added. "Today was a disaster. But today was also the last day we're ever gonna have to do anything apart. From here on out, we'll be together. And we'll make sure everything always works out just right, even if it doesn't go exactly the way we wanted it to. Maybe there'll be some bumps in the road along the way, but I know we'll get through them," She smiled. "I'm ready to spent the rest of my life with you, Big Mac. And I know you're more than ready to do the same."

Then at the same time, the ponies deeply in love tried to ask each other the obvious question, and both apologized while blushing profusely.

Big Macintosh took the lead afterward. "On three?" He asked his marefriend.

Cheerilee nodded and agreed. "Sure," She and Big Mac then slowly counted to three. When they did so, they asked each other at the same time. "Will you marry me?" And they both replied with an affirmative "Eeyup." before they kissed each other on the cheek. Big Mac also took the liberty of presenting Cheerilee with a necklace that contained the diamond ring he'd bought for her.

Unbeknownst to either of the two earth ponies, their friends were all watching them from afar. They had long since sorted out the mess they'd inadvertently casued, and couldn't have been happier to know that things were working out just fine in spite of that.

The flashback ended as Apple Bloom told her sister. "And so, that's how we ended up bein' responsible for the perfect proposal," With a snicker, she added. "Or I guess I should said the perfect 'pear-posal'."

Sweetie Belle commented with a smile. "And to think, if we hadn't messed up so bad..."

"-It wouldn't have worked out the way it did!" Scootaloo finished, buzzing her tiny wings a bit.

Mrs. Cake saw fit to add her own sentiments. "I suppose it's just like baking. Sometimes, it's the mistakes that help you discover something truly special."

Spike then remarked. "And when all the planning and grand gestures go wrong, it reminds you the most romantic things are usually the simplest. Guess I'll have to take that into account."

And even Discord admitted. "Even if I kind of knew that all along, it's nice that I could help others learn that lesson too. See? Who says I don't really care?"

Applejack, for her part, just smiled. She could now piece together everything that had happened in the run up to the wedding. "Thanks, y'all," She happily told the gathered group. "Now come on, the weddin' will be startin' any minute now. We'd all better take our seats."

And in a very short while, the wedding did indeed begin to unfold. All the guests were seated in their assigned seats, and Applejack happily stood at the altar, ready to serve as the best mare for her brother. Cheerilee wore a lovely, long and flowing white gown. And Big Macintosh proudly wore a finely pressed tuxedo and matching top hat.

When at last the bride and groom were present at the altar, Mayor Mare cleared her throat and quickly proclaimed. "It is my sincere pleasure to say, for my second Apple family wedding, that I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride!"

Big Mac needed no further incentive. He happily pulled Cheerilee close and kissed her as she kissed him back, and that made everyone in attendance cheer happily!

Unbeknownst to all in attendance, however, their joyous celebration was being watched over by a very crafty goat. Peering in through his crystal ball, he could ony comment. "Celebrate while you can, foolish ponies. Soon, you'll have nothing to be happy about. I will personally see to that." All the pieces were falling into place. He was almost ready to carry out a plan he had been hatching and scheming for almost a year at this point.

Author's Note

I knew I wanted to hold off on rewriting this episode until I'd rewritten "Hard to Say Anything" and settled the issue of SugarMac versus CheeriMac and which one I'd end up preferring. I ultimately went with CherriMac seeing as we saw them going on a picnic date in the background during "Just for Sidekicks" and saw Cheerilee swoon and faint at what she thought was Big Mac's voice in "Filli Vanilli", whereas SugarMac came completely out of left field with no prior build-up. Hence, why this is a bonus chapter.

The episode as it is feels very much like a rushed first draft, a case of hurry up and get it done that can infect Season 9 even at its best (especially from an animator stand-point). It's only at the very end of the episode that we learn that our characters have been talking to Applejack and not directly to the audience. And a lot of things feel like they were done just to fill time, such as Granny Smith rambling on about her dream that references Star Trek, or the CMC wandering all over Ponyville to find Big Mac only to decide to stay put.

Also, Mrs. Cake having to bake all the desserts for Sugar Belle's proposal not only makes Sugar Belle look bad when she isn't willing to help despite being established as Mrs. Cake's baking student, but they also never explain where Mr. Cake or Pinkie Pie were and why they aren't helping. And Spike trying to put the messages into the desserts via his flame breath feels like a very contrived way of making him mess up, because he would have to remember how messages usually arrive through him and how he usually sends them.

So I did my best to change those things, particularly by having the revelation about Applejack be at the beginning of the episode rather than the end in order to make the framing device work better, and better explaining why Mrs. Cake was left to manage alone on the desserts. Plus, Discord doesn't exactly apologize for the role he played in making things worse, even if in canon it would quickly be trumped by his masquerade as Grogar and the roll he played in helping the Legion of Doom obtain Grogar's bell.

Speaking of which, I should clarify two things for newcomers: One is that when I rewrote "Molt Down" I physically aged Spike up to about the same size as Smolder and Ember, hence why I don't call him "little" in this rewrite. And I have written specifically with the intent for the Grogar twist to not exist, Grogar will be the genuine article.

~~Stare Master~~
~~Pinkie Apple Pie~~
~~The Cutie Map, Parts 1 and 2~~
~~The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone~~
~~Hard to Say Anything (Bonus Chapter)~~
~~A Health of Information~~
~~Uprooted~~
~~The Royal Apologies (The Point of No Return)~~
~~The Big Mac Question (Bonus Chapter)~~