My Little Pony: The Power of Friendship

by Type Writer

Rating: everyone
Tags: Main 6, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Sad, Original Character, Spike, Comedy, Random, Adventure
Length: 14217

When darkness shrouds the heart, there is always a beacon of hope. That is the power of friendship.

A collection of original stories featuring your favorite pony pals from Ponyville.

Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie embark on more adventures that not only test their talents, but also their hearts. It will be a long road filled with sadness, turmoil, and opposition, but with a tiny bit of magic, and love from friends, there will always be a way through.

When darkness shrouds the heart, when chaos reigns supreme, when the Elements of Harmony are contested, there is always a beacon of hope. There will always be a ray of light, no matter how small, that will shine through the darkness.

And that is the Power of Friendship.

Published 2012-01-17 23:23:57 UTC
Last updated 2012-01-17 23:23:57 UTC

Episode 1: Dazed

Episode 1: Dazed

Part A

I sprawled around in my bed. I was so comfortable. I wanted to sleep more, but the sun prevented me from drifting back into the land of dreams. The sunlight burned my eyelids just a bit, enough for me to wriggle out of my bed. I hit the floor with a thud. I grunted and slowly rose to my feet. Couldn’t I sleep for just a few more minutes?

What day was it today? I meandered over to my desk. A calendar was laid across it, in the middle. Today was Tuesday. Tuesday…Tuesday! I had completely forgotten! I placed an order for new parchment and quills! If I didn’t show up at the store to sign for the order, I’d have to wait another day to pick up the shipment! The delivery-colt at the store was very strict about pick up times for orders. If you missed a pick up, he would force you to wait another day while he went off to manage another order. It was extremely rude and completely unfair, but those were his rules, and he had the best shop in town. If dealing with his obnoxious behavior was a small price to pay for all those new scrolls and quills, then it was worth it in the end.

I trotted over to my mirror and levitated the hairbrush over to my head. I stroked my mane. I laughed at how silly I looked. It took me back to that time when everypony was afraid of Zecora and I had terrible bed-head from that nightmare I had. Those were good times. Actually, every time was a good time here.

Once I finished, I strolled to my bedside. A familiar little creature was lying in his tiny bed, with the blankets completely covering his head. His snoring was louder than a griffin’s roar. He looked adorable, but I had to remember who this was.

“Spike!” I said softly. “It’s time to get up. We have to pick up those quills at the store!”

Spike grumbled to himself. I could barely understand a thing he was saying.

“Spike!” I poked him with my hoof. “Wake up! We’re going to be late! You can’t lie around in bed all morning!”

“Hmmmmmrmmmm…” Spike groaned as he flipped over. His face was buried in his pillow. “Another doughnut…extra sprinkles…”

“Spike? Aren’t you going to get up and help me today?” I tapped my hoof against the floor. I was growing impatient.

“…Check please…hmmmmmrmmmmm…”

I huffed. “I suppose I’ll just have to go to the store, all by lonesome…” I feigned depression when I spoke, “…without a big strong baby dragon to protect me from the outside world. I guess I’ll just have to cope, when I’m breaking my back trying to lug all those new writing materials here.”

“…Hrmmm…yeah, okay, have fun with that, Twilight…”

“Ugh! Spike, get up!” I shouted. I stomped my hoof at him.

“…Nonono…you’re pure evil…just like…generation three…”

“Oh, for goodness sake!” I trotted over to the stairs. “I’ll go by myself then!”

“…Hrmmm…Rarity…please, I’m not that kind of dragon…!”

I slammed the door behind me when I left the library. I huffed to myself again and proceeded down the road into town. Honestly, that dragon got on my nerves sometimes. All he ever seemed to think about was gemstones, other assorted sweets, and Rarity. Whenever I needed help, he seemed to turn a deaf ear to me. Spike…he was annoying sometimes, but I wouldn’t have him any other way.

My mood quickly improved during my stroll into Ponyville. The sun was shining brightly, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and the air was as crisp as ever. This place was so different from Canterlot. The kingdom was regal, obviously, but it was filled with stuffy, rich, irritating ponies who thought too much of themselves. The only person I truly respected in the kingdom was the princess. I mean, she was kind enough to take me under her wing and teach me all that I knew about magic. Even while I was grateful to spend time in the presence of nobility, and in a glorious kingdom such as Canterlot, the magic there did not compare to what Ponyville had to offer.

Ponyville was filled with smiling faces, along with some of the friendliest ponies you could ever meet. You were always greeted warmly and you were treated like you were part of a family. I didn’t like the town when I first came here, mostly because I thought everpony was crazy. Over time, I grew to love the insanity and all the citizens. And all it took was the magic of friendship. It sounds corny of me to say such a thing, but it was true!

I was rounding the corner, onto Sugarcube Corner to be exact, when I was met with a familiar sound. Somepony was bouncing up and down, squeaking in delight. And I knew just who that was. I had grown accustomed to seeing that pony hop, skip, and jump all over town!

Pinkie Pie was giggling to herself, very loudly I might add. She tried her best to contain herself, but she would burst out into laughter whenever she tried. Everpony that passed her attacked her with looks of inquiry. Haven’t they ever seen the way this pony acted before? It was no surprise to me. She just had one too many cupcakes, as usual.

“Hi there, Pinkie Pie!” I called out to her when I approached her. “Good mor-”

“Hi, Twilight!” She hopped right past me. “Bye, Twilight!”

“Huh? Ah! Pinkie? Where are you going?”

She spun around and hopped backwards as she spoke to me. Could she really do that…?

She snickered. “I’m going to the train station!”

“The train station? What’s at the trai-?”

“We’ll talk later! I gotta get there before she arrives and if I don’t get there on time she’s gonna be upset and she’s gonna have to sit there alone and I wouldn’t want her to be upset because that’s so mean and I’m not mean so I gotta make it before she does ‘cause I don’t want her to be sad!” She said that all in one breath and she continued to repeat herself over and over again until she was out of my sight.

I stood there, just staring at the hoofprints that Pinkie left behind. What was she so excited about…?

“Y’all wonderin’ about her too, huh?” A voice came from behind me.

I turned around to see Applejack, chewing on the end of a piece of hay.

“Good morning, Applejack! You saw Pinkie before, didn’t you?”

“Yes, Ma’am.” She adjusted her hat. “That pony’s been actin’ real funny lately. Ah was pickin’ up a cake yesterday for Granny Smith’s birthday, when Ah saw Pinkie jumpin’ up and down in the bakery. She kept yapping about the train station and how she needed to get there before somepony showed up. Mr. and Mrs. Cake were just as dumbstruck as Ah was.”

“What do you think is going on with her?”

“Heck if Ah know.” Applejack spat out the piece of hay. “So what’cha up to now, Twi?”

“Me? Oh, I was just going to the store to pick up an order of parchment and quills.”

Applejack raised her eyebrow at me. “Didn’t ya buy all that fancy stuff last week?”

“Yeah, but you know me…” I chuckled guiltily.

“Twi, you’re gonna end up killin’ erery tree in Ponyville if ya keep up all this writin’! Can’t ya take a break sometime?”

“But I’m a student, and students have homework! I have to be mindful of my studies!” I was getting a little too excited. “If I’m late with an assignment…” I gulped. “I could be punished and go back to Magic Kinderga-”

Applejack put her hoof over my mouth.

“Yeah, let’s not talk about that, huh? Ah don’t need to be seein’ you go crazy again!”

“Oh…yeah…haha…right…”

“Y’know, Ah’m surprised Spike ain’t with ya. He’s still sleepin’, huh? Hehehe!” Applejack jumped to my side. “How’s about Ah help you carry your stuff? Ah bet ya could use an extra pair of legs!”

“Um, yeah! That would be great! Thanks!”

“Ain’t no problem at all! Let’s get movin’ now. Yee-haaaw!” Applejack kicked her front legs forward and dashed in front of me.

How could she move so fast? It was unreal! She could almost beat Rainbow Dash in speed…almost.

We arrived at the store just when the delivery truck flew up. The pegasi that emptied out of the truck were unloading all the crates. One particular pegasus caught my eye. I did my best to avoid her as best I could. The last time I was around her, a slew of crates and anvils fell right on my head. Every time when she took hold of a crate, I hid behind a confused Applejack. Ditsy Doo scared me…those eyes of hers never sat right with me at all.

I carried a small crate on my back while Applejack took most of the cargo. We carried it all the way back to the library. My companion ended up beating me to the front door. She treated the crates like it was nothing. She carried one on her back and kicked another one with her hind legs, pushing it a considerable distance down the road. I was dismayed at the fact that she didn’t shatter the wood of the crate. Her legs were always so strong from her apple bucking. I tried to imagine what would have happened if Spike came to help me. He probably wouldn’t be able to move a thing with those tiny arms of his!

“Hey! What’s the idea?”

Speak of Nightmare Moon…there he was.

Spike stood in the threshold of the door with his arms folded. His tail tapped against the frame. Small clouds of smoke emitted from his nostrils. Oh boy. I guess I had done it now.

“Twilight,” he said, “I thought we were going to get all that stuff together. Why didn’t you wake me up?”

That little liar…

AJ and I put down our crates.
“Um, I told you to set an alarm for yourself last night and I tried to get you up this morning, but you weren’t listening to me.”

“I did set an alarm! I just…don’t know what happened to it…”

“…You do have an alarm clock, don’t you…?”

“…Yeah…” He shifted his eyes from side to side.

“Didn’t I get you a clock two days ago?”

“…I don’t remember that…”

“Ugh! Don’t tell me you broke it!”

“…Okay. I won’t.”

I shook my head at him. “…Spike, what am I going to do with you?”

“Maybe y’all could use that fancy magic a’ yers to hypnotize him in ta follow yer erery command!” Applejack joked.

“There’s only one pony that has that ability…and that’s Rarity.”

“What about Rarity?” Spike tail wagged and his eyes lit up. “Did you talk to her today? Did she ask about me? Does she need me to run errands for her?”

“Whoa ho, take it easy there!” Applejack rubbed his head with her hoof. “Y’all get too excited, y’know that?”

“Yeah, yeah, okay. But did you see Rarity today, Twilight?”

Clearly he was dead to the world.

“No, sorry, I haven’t,” I said. “But just because I didn’t, it doesn’t mean you can’t. Why don’t you visit her later today and see if she needs help designing a new dress?”

“Better yet! I’ll go see her right now!”

“Hold it!” I bit his tail and yanked him back over to me before he could run away. “You need to help me organize. We need to put every scroll and quill into their proper places. This library has to be ship shape!”

“Aw, but, Twilight! Can’t we do that later? Rarity needs me!” he whined.

“Oh, let the critter have his fun, Twilight!” AJ winked at me. “I’ll help ya put the stuff away!”

“I can’t ask you to do that, Applejack. You already helped me so-”

“Alright, thanks, Applejack!” Spike grabbed AJ’s hoof and shook it violently. “I won’t forget this! You’re a real pal!” Spike turned in the direction of Rarity’s boutique. He sprinted off into the distance with a cloud of smoke kicking up behind him. “I’M COMING, MY SWEET!”

I coughed after I breathed in some of the dirt and sand.

“I swear that little dragon is way too much sometimes!” I groaned.

“He sure is funny, ain’t he? Hehe!”

“He always seems to weasel his way out of doing his chores. He needs to learn responsibility and-”

“He’s still just a baby!” AJ chuckled again. “Ah reckon he’s gonna grow up into quite the gentleman! Ah mean he’s got Rarity to help him out with that one! You know how prim and proper she is.”

“Still. He needs to learn on his own sometimes. I wish Princess Celestia would give him an assignment to report to her about the magic of responsibility.”

“That wouldn’t be as fun as all the friendshup stuff we’ve been through. Can you imagine having Spike goin’ on his own adventures, tusslin’ with a rip-snortin’ villain who wants to make everypony irresponsible? Hehehe! Something like that wouldn’t draw flies!”

I leered at my friend.

“What?”

I heaved a heavy sigh. “Nothing. Let’s just get these quills and parchments organized.”

“LOOK OUT BELOW!!!” a voice screeched from above.

“What in the hay?” Applejack gazed up into the sky.

Before we could even tell what was coming towards us, we were hit by a speeding projectile.

Applejack and I crashed into the library, with the crates following behind us. The crates smashed open, with the contents flying through the air. The quills stuck themselves into the wood of a book pedestal as well as my desk, while the scrolls unfolded in midair. The parchments draped themselves over the bookcases, the window curtains, Owlowiscious’ perch, and over my other pieces of furniture.

When I finally came around, I laid my eyes on the chaos. I furrowed my brow and sighed again.

“That’s one way of doing it…”

“Mmmf! Mmmf mmf mmmf!”

Muffled groans came from behind me.

A pony’s head was stuck in a flower pot. She thrashed and thrashed but she couldn’t remove it from her head. Applejack tried to help her by pulling it off, but to no avail. The country pony straightened her hat, winded herself up, and kicked the pot. The flower pot shattered the second it was kicked. The trapped pony hit the wall with her back and then fell to the floor with her tongue dangling from the side of her mouth. When she recomposed herself, she shook her head and brushed the dust from her coat.

“Hey, thanks for the assist, Apple Smack!” she said sarcastically as she rubbed her head. “You could’ve just yanked it off!”

“Ah did, but the darn thing wouldn’t budge! Ah had no choice but to use Bucky McGillicutty and Kicks McGee!”

“Yeah, well…warn me next time, would ya?!”

“Rainbow Dash!” I shouted in between their banter. “What on earth were you doing?”

“Hey, Twilight! Hehehe!” Rainbow ran her hoof through her mane. “Sorry for crashing your party here! Hahahaha!”

“Not funny, Rainbow,” I said with a glare. “Look at this mess! You’re going to help me clean this up! No excuses!”

“Okay, okay, relax!” She patted the top of my head. “I got this! I can clean this place up in ten seconds flat!”

“…Yeah. Just what were you doing before you nearly killed us?”

“What do you think I was doing? I was practicing my moves!”

“I can see that you were doing a good job…”

She looked up at the ceiling with a childish grin, trying not to look me in the eye.
“Maaaaaaybe it didn’t go so smoothly, but it’s a work in progress. I got plenty of time before the next Best Young Flier’s competition, so I just gotta keep practicing.”

“Oh! Rainbow Dash!” a soft and sweet voice spoke at the doorway. A pony with a flowing pink mane was hopping about. “That was so amazing! I-” When she caught the sight of the disaster, she ceased her trot and eyed the damage with a drop of sweat running down her cheek. “Wa-Was I too loud…? Did my assertive voice do that?”

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about anything, Fluttershy,” I replied, “it’s Rainbow’s fault.”

“Hey, I said I was sorry!”

“Oh, you should be more careful!” Fluttershy fluttered over to Rainbow’s side. She stroked the back of her coat. “I told you that move was too complicated and that you needed more room to maneuver.”

“I can handle it! I just…lost my concentration…that’s all.”

“Did my cheering distract you?”
Rainbow rolled her eyes. “…Actually, I couldn’t hear you at all…”
“Oh…I-I’m sorry…I-I-I’m trying real hard…”
“Aw, don’t worry about it. We got plenty of time to whip you into shape too.” She turned to me. “Hey, Twilight. Have you seen Pinkie Pie around by any chance? She’s supposed to help me prank some-ah! I-I mean…help someponies out later today…hehe…”
Now I rolled my eyes. “I have seen Pinkie actually. She’s was hopping through town to get to the train station not too long ago.”
“Why’s she going there?”
“I’m not sure. All she said was that if she didn’t get there soon, somepony would be sad.”
“Maybe somepony’s visitin’ her,” Applejack said. “Ah get relatives droppin’ by erery week to see how the ol’ farm’s holdin’ up.”
Fluttershy’s face was turning red. “Maybe she’s waiting for a cute and cuddly little friend to come!”
Rainbow raised her brow. “Why would a pet be traveling on a train?”
“Um…I-I dunno. Angel likes to take rides around in that little train set I just bought him, so I figured that-”
“Somehow I doubt that Pinkie’s getting a new pet. She has Gummy.”

“Whatever Pinkie’s up to,” I spoke up, “it’s her business. We shouldn’t stick our noses into her affairs. I’m sure she’ll tell us when she wants to.”

“Maybe she’s waiting for the arrival of a terrible spooky abominable monster from the Everfree forest!” Rainbow Dash announced in a dark and menacing voice. “Dun dun duuuuuuuun!”

Fluttershy squeaked and hid herself behind Applejack. She trembled and hung on to her for dear life.

“Again, why would a pet or a ‘terrible spooky abominable monster from the Everfree forest’ be on a train? And if that were the case, Pinkie would just laugh at it.” I strolled over to the quills that impaled my desk. “Now, let’s stop gossiping and get to work here. There’s a lot of goods to be put away!”

“I agree!” Rainbow dashed over to me. “Hey, tell ya what, Twilight. How about I go get us some snacks and bring them back here? I bet we could all use the boost of energy! And you didn’t eat breakfast right?”

My stomach growled. I giggled nervously.

“I thought so. I won’t be gone long!”
And with that, Rainbow bolted from the library. She flew past Fluttershy so fast that the poor pony spun around in a circle for a few seconds. She had to use Applejack as leverage to stay on her hooves.
“Well, that’s very nice of her to get us some food!” I smiled. “Okay, girls! Let’s get organized!”
“Sure thing, Twi, but um…” Applejack grinned deviously at me. “You do realize what you just did?”
“Yeah, I allowed Rainbow to go and get us some snacks because I’m hungry. What’s wrong with that?”
“…Didn’t that pony say she would clean this place up in ten seconds flat…before speeding outta here like a bat outta heck…without any supervision whatsoever?”
“Applejack, I don’t see what you’re-”
My eyes shot wide open. Everything made sense now.
“Ohhhhh,” Fluttershy kicked her hoof against the floor. “I see what she did there…”
AJ’s grin grew. “You wanna go out there and catch her, Sugarcube?”
I grinded my teeth so hard that they could have turned to dust.
“RAINBOW DASH!!” I hollered.

An hour past since Rainbow escaped from me. Fluttershy and Applejack were a great help though, despite being one pony down. AJ did the work of two ponies while Fluttershy…did the work of just one. Between the three of us and my magic, we were able to accomplish our task much quicker than the time it usually took Spike and I to tidy up. After we finished, we decided to go get something to eat. I was still starving. Rainbow…how could she lie to us like that? When I’m hungry and serious, I don’t mess around! When I see that pegasus again, I thought to myself, all bets are off!

The three of us stopped at a local restaurant near the library. Spike and I went there once. That was back when Princess Celestia sent us those tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala. I never did get the chance to try the establishment’s daisy and daffodil sandwich. I’ve been dying to get my hooves on something like that for ages!

We placed our order and the waiter trotted off to the cook. Soon, I would be in heaven! My mouth was watering at the thought of me sinking my teeth into that sandwich!

“You okay, hun?” AJ asked, resting her chin on her hoof. “You’re drippin’ all over the table!”

“Oh! Sorry!” I wiped my mouth clean with my napkin. “I’m just really famished. I was so excited about my quills and scrolls that I forgot to eat breakfast.”

“You really should make sure you eat breakfast,” Fluttershy said. “You’ll get sick if you don’t!”

“I’m fine, really! It’s nothing a good sandwich can’t fix!”

“Where do you suppose Rainbow Dash is?”

“She better be hiding from me if she knows what’s good for her…” I growled.

“I’m sure Rainbow didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.” The rose haired pony smiled warmly at me. “When she comes back, you should discuss your feelings with her and then you’ll be friends again!”

“She didn’t hurt my feelings, Fluttershy, she just irritated me by leaving us to all the work when I politely asked for her help. That’s all.”

“There’s no use reasonin’ with that one,” AJ snickered. “You know how Rainbow is! Why, she did the very same thing to me last week when I asked her to help me go apple pickin’. It’s just her sense of humor! And you kinda demanded her to help out anyway.”

“She made the mess! She needs to take responsibility for her-”

“Heeheeheehee!”

Somepony was giggling. The owner of that squeaky giggle was hopping down the road. I instantly knew who it was just by the sound of the laughter and the odd noises she made when she hopped. Pinkie Pie was trying hard not to burst out laughing. Her mouth contorted into very odd shapes, she bit her lip, and she was nearly crying. What was wrong with her? Why was she so happy?”

“Hey, Twilight! Fluttershy! Applejack!” Pinkie ceased her hop when she came to our table. “You guys have to-hahaha…! You have to-you have to-hahahaha! You have to-KYAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

Pinkie hit the ground. She held her stomach and rolled around like a ball. The other customers were staring at us, but particularly at Pinkie. They were furrowing their brows and slamming their utensils down on their tables. If we didn’t stop her right then, we’d probably get kicked out of the restaurant.

“Pinkie!” I pulled her up and sat her beside me. “Could you relax and tell us what the heck is going on?”

She snickered and covered her mouth.

“What is it, Sugarcube?” AJ eyed her closely. She narrowed her eyes. “Is yer Pinkie Sense a’ tinglin’…?”

Fluttershy lifted up her empty plate and hid her face behind it. “Is it scary?! Did something happen?!”

Pinkie was just about to burst.

I sighed hard. “Would you care to tell us already?”

She let go of her mouth and took a very deep breath.

“I’m good!”

“…You’re good?”

“Uh-huh!” She just smiled at me. Those large blue eyes just watched me. They never left me. It was kinda creepy.

“…Just good? Nothing happened at all?”

“Oh, something happened all right!”

“Well, what happened then?”

“It’s a surprise!”

I was quickly losing interest. “Pinkie…”

“Here’s your food,” our waiter said, placing my sandwich down before me.

“Thank you so mu-” I went to thank our waiter…only to discover that it wasn’t the colt we saw not too long ago.

It was a mare with a coat as white as snow, the same as Rarity’s. Her mane was short but it was very beautiful. It was a mixture of pink, yellow, purple, and orange, and so was her tail. Her eyes were large and very dazzling. They were an enchanting violet that seemed to cast a spell over any pony that gazed into them. I bet she was a hit with the colts around here.

Her Cutie Mark was special too. It was the image of a smiling sun shining through the clouds. I wondered what it meant. I couldn’t think of any special talent that involved the sun. Everything about her was very alluring. But…I never saw her in Ponyville before. Who was she? Was she even from Ponyville?

“Um…hello?” I said dumbly.

“Hiya!” the mare said with a cute smile.

“AHAHAHAHAHA!” Pinkie was laughing again.

Applejack covered her mouth and didn’t let go until she was ready to speak normally. When she composed herself, Pinkie jumped from her seat and through her leg over the white mare’s shoulder.

“This is the special surprise!”

Fluttershy only blinked. “You replaced our waiter…? How did you do that?”

“Nonononono! Don’t be silly, Fluttershy! I may be able to do a lot of things, but your Aunty Pinkie Pie can’t just change a food servicecolt like that!”

“I don’t know about that…and I’m still a year older than you…”

“Guys!” Pinkie thrashed her legs through the air. “I want you to meet my very best friend back when I was a little filly! This is Sunny Daze!”

Sunny Daze?

“Well, yee-haw!” Applejack seized the mare’s hoof and shook it violently. “It’s a real pleasure to make yer acquaintance! Any friend of Pinkie Pie’s is a friend a’ mine!”

“Um…hi…” Fluttershy still hid behind her plate. “I’m…I’m Flutter…I’m…Flu…”

“Nice to meet you!” Sunny tilted her head to the side and beamed at us.

The warmth from that smile was so strange. It made me forget the reason why I was so irritable. It sort of…made me want to smile too. I couldn’t help myself. Seeing Sunny happy made me happy too.

“You must be Twilight Sparkle,” Sunny said as she shook my hoof. “Pinkie’s told me a lot about you! You’re the unicorn from Canterlot, right?”

“Yes, um…that’s me! Haha! I’m here to study under the orders of Princess Celestia herself.”

“Whoa, no way! You know the Princess?”

Pinkie laughed. “Well, duh! I told you she was special, Sunny! She’s like the most super fantastical nicest all round unicorn in Ponyville! Well, besides Rarity of course. She’s another friend of mine. I’ll have to introduce you to her later. And I gotta introduce you to Rainbow Dash as well!”

“So these are some of your new friends, huh?” Sunny smiled at us again. “They really do seem special. They’ve been taking care of you since I’ve been gone?”

“Well, we met a long time ago and that’s waaaaaay after you left for Fillydelphia. I had to wait so long until I met these guys!”

“I’m sorry you had to be alone for so long…”
“It’s fine! Don’t worry about it!”
Sunny turned back to us. “I really can’t thank you enough for being so kind to Pinkie. I’m eternally gra-ah!” Sunny had bowed her head to us, but she bowed so low that she smacked her forehead right on the table.
“Ahaha!” Pinkie held her stomach. “Same old Sunny! I’m glad to see you haven’t changed one bit!”
She rubbed her head and smiled very weakly.
Pinkie grabbed an empty chair from a vacant table and put it beside her for Sunny. The two of them sat down with us. The waiter returned and took orders from them as well. Soon, we were all enjoying a nice lunch together.
“So, Sunny,” Applejack spoke after wiping her mouth with her hoof, “you and Pinkie have known each other for years, have ya?”
“Yes!” Sunny answered. She was placing mustard onto her own daffodil sandwich. “I was born here in Ponyville, right alongside Pinkie. We used to play together all the time on the old swing sets in the playground near the school. We also used to play hide-and-seek until the sun went down. Come to think of it, we still played when it got dark. Our parents were so infuriated with us! It took them forever to finally put us to bed!”

Sunny took a bite from her sandwich, but she soon realized that she had put too much mustard. It squirted onto her face when she took a bite. Pinkie grabbed a napkin and helped her clean.

“Sorry about that,” she laughed lowly.

“What…um…” Fluttershy twirled her empty plate around on the table, trying not to look up. “Uh…um…you said you went to Fillydelphia? Why did you go there? If…if you don’t mind me asking…”

“It’s okay. You see, my dad got a better job in Fillydelphia. He’s a sunflower salesman. When he got the job, we had to move with him. I didn’t have a choice.” Sunny’s ears lowered. The power of her soul soothing simper was gone. “I had to leave everything I knew: Ponyville, my school, my home…but most importantly, Pinkie Pie. I wrote to her every weekend while I was there. Even though we kept in touch, it still wasn’t the same.

“I promised myself, and her, that I would someday come back to Ponyville.” Sunny’s ears perked up. Her smile resurrected. “And now I’m here, and it feels so good to be back!”

“It’s great to have you back, Sunny!” Pinkie giggled. “Now all of us can hang out together! We can throw parties, we can go dancing, we can go to the moon, we can make hot cocoa, we can…uh…make hot cocoa…and we can…well we can do a whole bunch of stuff!”

AJ turned to me. “It’s sure gonna be swell to have a new face around here, huh, Twi?”

I nodded. “It’ll be great! I’m looking forward to becoming better acquainted with you, Sunny!”

“Me too!” She put her hoof up into the air. It was dangling right in front of me.

I raised my brow at it. What was she doing…? Why was she looking at me like I had two heads…?

“You’re supposed to tap her hoof back, Twilight!” Pinkie bobbed up and down. “All the colts are doing it nowadays! They call it a ‘bro-hoof!’”

“…I’ve never heard of that before…when did this start?”

“About a year ago I think.”

“…Interesting.”

“Well, don’t just sit there!” Sunny laughed at me. “Don’t leave me hanging!”

I lifted my hoof up. I reached out to tap hers.

She leaned forward, but her hind legs were standing awkwardly in her seat. Her legs jerked. It made her lose her balance; before I knew it, the table’s leg had snap in two. The plates shattered, the table cloth folded into itself, the vase that held a soft red rose broke, and the table had a large crack running along the center. Sunny was lying in the middle of it on her stomach. Swirls were in her eyes.

Everypony was watching us again. The waiter that had served us did not look pleased at all. Sunny laughed nervously, but the smile she was wearing was false. The warmth she had had disappeared again. I would feel terrible if I damaged someone’s property, but Sunny felt differently. Something didn’t feel right about it. I could sense it. Just from the way her eyes shifted down to the ground, the way her lip trembled, and from the lack of light her once gorgeous eyes held, it told me plenty. She seemed…genuinely depressed. That was just my opinion, though. I couldn’t come to any solid conclusions of what the mare was hiding, but I sensed the sadness in her heart all the same.

Part B

With the help of my magic, I was able to repair the table, the plates, and the vase, and I also fixed the tablecloth. Because of that, we were let off the hook. The management was about to turn us upside down and take what little money we had on us! Luckily, magic was on our side that day. I didn’t want to think about what our punishment would be if I hadn’t fixed it! I also didn’t want to think about what Princess Celestia would do if she found out that I didn’t try to solve our problem! The daydream I was having of that one thought became a nightmare just like that. I didn’t want to go back to Magic Kindergarten!

When we finally left the restaurant, it was just Pinkie Pie, myself, and Sunny Daze. Applejack had to return to Sweet Apple Acres to help Big Macintosh gather apples for their business, while Fluttershy went back to her cottage to tend to her animal friends. Pinkie and I decided that since it was just us and Sunny, we would go to see Rarity at her boutique. Spike was probably still there, answering to her every beck and call. I wondered what they were up to.

Pinkie and I took point, with Sunny following behind. Pinkie spent most of the time filling Sunny in about how Ponyville changed since she had left. I only listened to them talk. Pinkie was a lot more joyful than she usually was. I was happy for her. She had the chance to reunite with an old friend and I was happy to include her into our group.

It grew quiet. Sunny had stopped by the side of the road to admire some flowers that were blooming. Pinkie walked up to me.

“Hey, Twilight,” she said, lacking cheer in her voice. Why was she suddenly so serious? It disturbed me to see her so melancholy. “You’re not mad about what happened at the restaurant, are you?

“No, of course not! Accidents happen! We were able to repair the damage and nobody got in trouble. All’s well that ends well!”

“Good. I was really worried that you were angry with Sunny.”

“Why would I be angry with her? It was just an accident.”

Pinkie nodded. She gave me a small grin. “Well…thanks for understanding…and for being so nice to her.”

“Pinkie…?” Now her mood was really bothering me. “Is something the matter?”

Pinkie didn’t answer me. That small grin just stayed right there on her face.

“You can tell me, Pinkie. I’ll help you if you’re in trouble.”

“Just keep being nice to Sunny, okay?”

Sunny turned her head to the side. “Is that the boutique you mentioned, Pinkie? It’s so beautiful!”

“Yep!” Pinkie hopped to her. Her bubbly attitude returned. “This is the place where Rarity makes all those cool dresses I’ve been telling you about! She made Twilight and I a dress for the Grand Galloping Gala last year! Once we get better acquainted, I could ask her to make you one!”

“That would be wonderful!”

Pinkie didn’t miss a beat. I didn’t understand her at all. She was so down when she was speaking to me, but then she acted normally around Sunny. What was she hiding from me? Why was she acting so strange?

I opened the door to the boutique. Ribbons, buttons, glitter, feathers, cloths and various fabrics drifted through the air. The floor was littered with discarded pieces of clipped fabric and patches. The entire boutique was a maelstrom of fashion. It seemed as though somepony had been busy!

“Thread by thread, stitching it together…” a pony sang to herself near the back of the building, next to the mirrors.

A ponyquin stood in front of them, wearing a very complicated ensemble comprised of multiple colors and sparkling glitter. The dress reached down to the model’s legs; it shimmered under the light from the working pony’s magic. The model also had a matching hat with a wide brim and an abnormally large feather sticking out of it. It was grand all right. Grandiose!
Rarity stroked her chin. She adjusted the glasses on her nose.

“Hmm…I think a gemstone would complement the colors quite nicely if I put it there. Oh, Spike Wikey! Could you be a dear and bring me that lovely sapphire?”

Spike sprinted out of nowhere with the stone in question on a velvet pillow. He got down on one knee and presented it to the fashionista. Was that a…mark on his cheek? Was that lipstick?

“Thank you, Spike! You are a wonderful little assistant!”

He chuckled to himself. “Yeah well, I try…!”

“Having fun, Spike?” I spoke up.

“Huh? Hey, Twilight!” Spike handed the sapphire to Rarity. “I’m just helping Rarity with a new dress!”

“I thought you didn’t like this kind of girly stuff!”

“Are you kidding? I love making dresses! It’s so much fun! I might pick it up as a hobby!”

Yeah, right.

Rarity caressed the top of his head with her hoof. “It’s quite nice to see Spike so secure in himself. He’s the best little helper, aren’t you…?” she purred to him.

“Okay, break it up, you two.” I separated them with my magic.

Rarity was so generous and sweet, but she always knew how to manipulate Spike. I was a little jealous of her. He listened to everything she said, but it was like pulling teeth when I tried to get him to pick up a delivery with me. Maybe I should start keeping Rarity at the library to keep Spike under control.

Rarity directed her attention from me, to Pinkie Pie, and then to Sunny. She removed her glasses.

“…I don’t believe I’ve seen you around here before,” she said. “Are you a client?”

“No. I’m just a visitor.”

“This is my old pal, Sunny Daze!” Pinkie announced. “She came all the way from Fillydelphia to meet you guys!”

Sunny approached the model in front of the mirrors.

“This dress is very lovely! Pinkie’s told me all about your projects. Is it true that you make designs for the wealthy ponies in Canterlot?”

Rarity laughed arrogantly. “Why, yes I do! I’m the best around! Nopony can compete with my creative ingenuity!”

“I see.” Sunny pointed to the dress. “Do you have a special name for this one?”

The fashionista stuck her nose up. “As of right now, I don’t. I’m leaving the name up to Sapphire Shores.”

“You actually make dresses for Sapphire Shores?! The pop star?!” Sunny was nearly about to faint. Her legs were buckling.

“Yes, well,” Rarity’s smile grew. “This particular one is for an awards banquet she will be attending. I want her to look positively divine when she wins something, because I just know she will! Haha! We’re acquaintances you could say.”

“That so awesome! Pinkie, you didn’t tell me your friend was so sophisticated!”

“I’m not just sophisticated, darling.” She brushed her mane back. “I-am-Rarity, the most beautiful, talented, and creative mare in all of Equestria!”

I shook my head and simply laughed. “Let’s not get too prideful, Rarity.”

“Yes, you are absolutely right. When Equestria finally sees me for the genius I truly am, I must stay humble! I don’t want to be stuck up like all those rich folk up in Canterlot! I must be kind and courteous to all of my fans!”

Spike shuffled his foot around on the floor. “But…I’m still gonna be your number one fan…right…?”

“Why, of course!” She kissed the top of his head tenderly. “How could I possibly forget my little Spikey Wikey?”

“Oh, brother…” I groaned.

“Teeheehee!” Pinkie danced in place. “Spike’s never going to take another bath again!”

“…That’s just disgusting.”

Sunny brushed her hoof on the back of the model. “The fabric is so soft. What type did you use for it?”

“Oh, uh!” Rarity sped over to the model. Sweat rolled down the side of her head. “Please, don’t touch it…!”

“I’m really impressed with this! And what type of feather did you use for the hat? Is that a feather from a griffon?”

“Please, don’t touch that! It’s very delicate!”

“And what about this gemstone here? Where did you find such a-kyaaaaaa!”

Sunny accidentally bumped into the model. It swayed back forth until it ultimately toppled over. The gemstone fell from its place, but Spike managed to grab it before it touched the floor. While the sapphire didn’t suffer any damage, I couldn’t say the same for the dress. It had trapped Sunny under it. She tried to push it off of her, but she thrashed too hard, ripping some of the fabric used for the dress’s skirt. It was a small tear, but that one small tear was enough.

Rarity glued her eyes to that one spot. Her glasses fell to the floor. She lifted the dress into her hooves. Her eyes watered, her teeth gnashed together, and the hairs of her tail were standing on end. She slowly turned her head around to see Sunny. The water in her eyes evaporated as fire sparked within her pupils.

“You…” she said darkly. “You…”

“I-I-I’m sorry!” Sunny pleaded. “I-I didn’t mean to ruin it!”

“You…you…!”

“Rarity, Sunny didn’t mean it!” Pinkie stood in between them. “It-It-It-It was just an accident!”

“…I…I worked on this dress…for seventy-two hours…stitching every-blasted-fiber to make it just right…”

“Rarity!” I shouted, desperately trying to make peace. “I can use my magic to fix it! It’ll be like it never happened!”

“NO!” Rarity shook her hoof at me. “Don’t-you-dare! I want her to see what she’s done!” The mare shook the dress violently at Sunny. She was screaming. “Do you see this?! DO YOU SEE THIS?!”

“…Yes…” Sunny whimpered.

“I tortured myself over this dress for three days! I gave up food, water, and sleep to make this perfect! And now look at what you did!”

“I’m sorry…!”

“You’re sorry?! YOU’RE SORRY?!”
“Please, don’t hurt me…!”
“Hurt you?” Rarity dropped the dress and grabbed Sunny by her cheeks. “I love you!”
Sunny was just as terrified as Pinkie and I were.
“Hu-huh…?”
The fashion designer released her and levitated the dress up for us to see. She indicated to the skirt with her hoof.
“What on earth was I thinking? This skirt is far too frilly, and the rest of the ensemble is terribly gaudy! See this stitch here and this one there? Why, the whole thing is a fashion disaster! The arm's a size tight, the middy collar doesn’t go with the shawl lapel, the hems are cheaply machine stitched, the pleats are uneven, the fabric really looks like toile, I used a back stitch here when it clearly called for a top stitch-or maybe a traditional blanket stitch-and the overall design is reminiscent of pret-a-porter and not true French haute couture!
“No-no-no-no-no, this is far too amateur! Sapphire Shores wouldn’t be caught dead in something so…so…cheap and stuck up! She deserves something much more stylish, something that those rich snobs she’ll be conversing with would never dream of having!”
Rarity charged for her sketchpad that lay on her desk. She took out a quill and furiously scribbled something down.
“I-de-a!” She slashed the tip of the quill all around the page. “I could change the pattern for the skirt, maybe using a silk-esque material so she can have proper air for her legs. Or maybe I could use something even softer. Oh! I could alter my original idea of the gemstone. Instead of it being a center piece on the dress, I could make it into a fabulous necklace. That’s so good! Oh-ho, Rarity, you are a genius! Wa-ha-haaaaaaa!”
Sunny blinked at the busy Rarity. She stood up straight and retreated behind Pinkie. “She’s scary…!”
“You’re telling me!” I added. “I’ve never seen Rarity so excited about a dress before. I mean, she always tries to top her previous works, but to have a complete shift in attitude…that’s creepy.”
“I think it’s enchanting…” Spike hugged the sapphire tightly to his chest.
Pinkie trotted up to Rarity. When Sunny turned her attention elsewhere, she spoke to her. It was wrong of me to eavesdrop, but Pinkie’s own attitude change was bugging me.
“Rarity,” Pinkie said quietly. “Thanks for playing along. I know you really worked hard on that dress and you sacrificed so much, so I truly thank you for not being angry with Sunny. You see…she can be a little-”
“Hmm? What are you babbling about? I haven’t the foggiest idea of what you mean!” Rarity threw on her glasses once more. She was speaking rather loudly. “I love that mare; she’s an angel sent from the heavens to me, an unworthy pony! If she hadn’t ruined that dress, I would never have seen how cheaply I made it. Now, I can make it more durable…and flashy, but not too flashy…with more elegance and personality!” She eyed Sunny. “If there is anything I can do for you, simply name it! I am forever in your debt!”
She returned her attention to Rarity. “Um…it’s fine, really…”
“Nonsense! How would you like a custom designed dress, hmm? It’ll be free of charge! You’ll have all the stallions practically eating out of your hooves! You’ll be the toast of the town, the girl on the go! You’ll be the pony everypony should know! Ahahahahaha!”
“Yeah…uh…sure…”
“But not right now. I must begin work on this new dress; it’s needed by tomorrow morning, and I am ‘in the zone’, as it were! Come back here later tonight so I can measure you.”

“Okay…if you…say so…”

We left the Carousel Boutique a little while later, with Spike joining us. Rarity was beginning to put her new dress together for her client. Pinkie went off on her own to the cake shop. Sunny was curious as to why her friend wanted to go alone. Pinkie told her that there was something she needed to take care of, nothing more. Before she sprinted away, she quietly told me to stall Sunny for about an hour and a half. I had a sneaking suspicion about what the pink pony was up to. All I had to do was keep Sunny busy until it was the right time.

Spike, Sunny, and I journeyed to the library. The baby dragon yawned the entire way there. He was struggling to keep his eyes open. I had to carry him on my back. When we arrived at the library, I deposited him in his bed and pull the blanket over his little body. He had just fallen asleep and he was snoring so loudly! It just became evening too!

I sat in the study, taking down notes from a book I was reading. Sunny was gazing upon the vast selections of texts I had at my disposal. Needless to say, she was dumbfounded.

“You really live here, Twilight?” she asked me. “This place is so cool!”

“Thank you, Sunny! It is kinda cool, huh? Yes, there is where I live and where I do most of my studying.”

“You must be the smartest pony in Equestria!”

It was hard for me to stay humble after I heard that. “Well, you know. I have to live up to my mentor’s expectations. Princess Celestia gave me an important mission to do in Ponyville, and I want to make sure I perform that task to the best of my abilities.”

“What task is that?”

“I have to report to the princess about the magic of friendship.”

“Friendship?” Sunny titled her head. “That’s an odd thing to report on.”

“It sounds silly, but when you stop and think about it, it’s quite the opposite. I’ve been on so many adventures and faced so many odds, and friendship was the very thing that solved each and every problem my friends and I faced!”

“Is…friendship really that powerful?”

“Of course it is!” I turned around in my seat to face my bewildered guest. “Pinkie would agree with me! I mean, friendship was the very thing that brought you here in the first place!”

She didn’t speak.

“Pinkie’s a very good friend of yours, and after so many years of not seeing each other, you have your chance to reconnect. Your friendship carried you all the way from Fillydelphia back home to Ponyville!”

“I guess that’s right…” Sunny laughed lightly. “Pinkie was the only thing I really cared about in Ponyville.”

“What do you mean?”

She stroked her hoof against her leg. Her vision veered off to the side. “It’s nothing…forget I said anything.”

Her smile was fading again.

“Sunny, we’re friends now. If you want to talk about something…anything…you’re more than welcomed to.”

“…It’s nothing. I just…Pinkie was the only one, besides my parents, that really liked me. They were the only ones that really loved me.”

Her voice cracked here and there as she spoke. Her eyes were tearing up just a little.

“Sunny, I’m sorry. I’m pressuring you…I’m making you feel uncomfortable.”

“No…it’s fine. It’s not your fault.”

I wanted to change the subject. I was sorry I ever brought this up.

“Um…I really like your Cutie Mark,” I said quickly.

Sunny glanced at it. She grinned ever so slightly. “You do? It’s my most prized possession.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask you about that. What’s your special talent?”

She peered out the window. She caught a glimpse of the mountaintops. “I love to make people smile.”

She like to make people smile…? How was that a talent?

“When somepony’s feeling down, I do everything I can to cheer them up. I tell funny jokes, I play with them, and I smile.” The light in her heart was restoring. “Whenever I smile at somepony, they smile back. You see, a smile is like a sun breaking through the clouds of a dark and dreary day. Once the gloom disappears, the sun has a chance to share its warmth and light with everything around it. It lifts spirits and makes the ugly day beautiful.

“That’s what my talent is. I make people smile with a grin of my own. I can’t explain how it works, it just does…like magic. I figured that since I couldn’t smile when I was a filly, it doesn’t mean that I can’t make somepony else’s life a little bit…ah!” Sunny stopped herself cold. She shifted her body away from me. She was gazing out the window again. “Yeah…and that’s it…”

I was going to question why she couldn’t smile when she was young, but she was hurting. Whatever it was, it must have been terrible. It wasn’t my place to talk about it anymore. If Sunny wanted to get it off of her chest that was her decision. I couldn’t force her to talk if she wasn’t ready.

It was quiet between the two of us. Sunny was stargazing while I took down some more notes. I wanted to strike up another conversation, but nothing came to mind. The silence was killing me.

The front door to the library opened.

“Good evening, Twilight!”

It was her!

“Rainbow Dash!” I slammed my quill down on my desk. I stomped over to her. “Where have you been all day? I thought you were going to help me and the others clean up the mess here earlier!”

“I told you I was going to get some snacks!”

“Oh yeah? Where are the snacks?”

“I um…I ate them.”

“…You didn’t get snacks, did you? You were napping again, weren’t you?”

“…Maybe.”

I shook my head at her. “Rainbow…!”

She chuckled at me. “I’m sorry, Twilight! I’ll be sure to help you next time! I owe you a favor!”

“Um…Twilight?” Sunny appeared from behind me. “Is this another one of your friends?”

“Yes, yes she is.” I gestured to the flier. “This is Rainbow Dash, the-”

“The best flier in Cloudsdale, thank you very much! And the winner of the Best Young Flier competition!” Rainbow bowed. “And you are?”

“I’m-I’m, Sunny Daze!” She bowed her head. “I’m an old friend of Pinkie Pie!”

“No kidding? I didn’t think Pinkie knew anybody else outside of our group.”

“We go back to when we were fillies.”

Rainbow smacked Sunny on her shoulder playfully, but it was rather rough. “Well, glad to meet you! We’re gonna get along just fine!”

Sunny fell to the floor from Rainbow’s “tap.” It took her a little bit to stand back up.

“Wow….I didn’t think you were that dainty!”

“Fillydelphia’s not as rough as Ponyville, hahaha…I’ve been there for so long that I completely forgot just how strong the pony folk here are.”

“Uh-huh. So, Twilight.” Rainbow looked to me. “Pinkie actually sent me over here to tell you and ‘the guest’ that she’s ready.”

“Good! But before we go, could you do me a quick favor, Sunny?” I pointed to a bookshelf near a ladder. “Could you grab me that red book since you’re right there? It’s the one with the picture of a snake on it.”

“Sure thing!”

Rainbow laughed at me. “You’re gonna study about snakes while we’re at the cake shop? Ahaha! Twilight, you’re such an egg-head!”

“I am not an egg-head! I’m well-read! And it’s not for me, it’s for Fluttershy. I remembered that she’s nursing a pair of snakes she found near her cottage a few days ago. She wants the book to make sure she’s treating them correctly. I’ve been meaning to give it to her, but I keep forgetting.”

“Okay, whatever you say.”

A horrible series of crash and bangs exploded behind me. I was shocked that it didn’t wake Spike up. That dragon could sleep through anything it seemed. I dared to turn around. A mountain of books were scattered all over the floor. Sunny’s legs were sticking out of the mess. She found her way out of her prison and held the reptile book under her chin.

“I’m sorry…! Please don’t be upset with me!”

Spike and I spent hours alphabetizing those books! All of our hard work, ruined! I took deep and heavy breaths to calm down. I was mad, but this was Pinkie Pie’s friend. I couldn’t just yell at her like that. It was just an accident…she didn’t do it on purpose. Just an accident. I closed my eyes. I smiled faintly.

“Sunny, don’t worry about it. I can clean it up later.”
“Baaaaa-ahahahahahahaha!” Rainbow fell over on her side cackling. “You’ve done it now, Sunny! Twilight’s gonna throttle you!”
“Please don’t be mad at me!” Sunny was becoming hysterical. “I’m sorry! I’ll clean it up right now! I’m sorry!”
“You’re fighting a losing, battle there! Hahahaha!” Rainbow continued to laugh. “Sunny, you’re such a clutz!”
Her lip trembled at the word.
“It’s okay, Sunny, really!” I patted her back. “I’m not mad. I can take care of it later. Now, we really should be going to Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie says she has something in store for us!”

“Really? Should we go? After the mess I just made?”

“I said it’s fine! Don’t worry about it!”

Sunny soon surrendered. She nodded to me, reluctantly.

“You got off lucky!” Rainbow said to her. “If you did something like that to somepony else’s stuff, like anything of Rarity’s, she would be glaring daggers at you right now! Hahaha!”

Sunny hid her face. “I’m…I’m sorry…”

“You better be more careful from now on, okay? We don’t want you hurting yourself again!”

The white mare’s head drooped even lower.

Part C

It was a short walk to Sugarcube Corner. The time flew by as Rainbow Dash told me all of the tricks she was perfectingfor the next flight competition. While she carried on, Sunny followed behind us with her head bowed. Did she still think that I was mad at her? Was she still feeling bad about the accident? No, that wasn’t it. Something was obviously bothering her. You could tell by how she dragged her hooves across the ground and the sighs she made. What was wrong with her? Did I say something wrong? Did Rainbow say anything? I just hoped that whatever Pinkie had up her sleeve, it would bring the light back to Sunny’s face.

When we arrived at the cake shop, we spotted a horde of ponies piling into the building. There was one pony at the door that let one in after the other, to ensure there were no jams and that nopony pushed or shoved. We had to wait until the line died down before we could have a chance at entering. When it was finally our turn, we were led into the middle of the lobby.

Sunny was in awe at the sight of all the ponies that were there. Her jaw nearly hit the floor. Who were all these ponies?-I could hear her whisper to herself-and what were they doing here in this one place?

A pink pony cart-wheeled over to the center of the room. She bumped into a few mares and one stallion along the way, which earned her a couple of dirty looks. Even so, she bounced up high when she caught us.

“Twilight! Rainbow Dash! Sunny! You made it! You’re just in time!”

“In time for what?” Sunny asked.

“C’mere and I’ll show you!”

Pinkie dragged Sunny to the main counter, near the back of the shop. She hopped up on it and had Sunny stand beside her.

“Listen up everypony!” She clapped her hooves together to get their attention.

They all ceased their conversations. They directed their gaze to the counter.

“I wanna thank you all for coming tonight! This party is in honor of my fillyhood friend who arrived in town this morning! Give it up for Sunny Daze! Let’s give her a warm welcome, Ponyville style!”

Everpony cheered and stomped on the floor in excitement. Some bolted up to the counter and began to shake her hoof.

Sunny blushed. She tried to hide her face behind Pinkie, but the ponies tore her away from her shield. They were asking so many questions and they were smiling so hard at her, that she couldn’t help but smile herself. The happiness was too much for her to contain!

“Now!” Pinkie struck a pose, standing on her hind legs while throwing one hoof up into the air. “Whaddya say we get things started?!”

We all cheered again.

“We’re not here to party! We’re here to PAR-TAY!” Pinkie pointed to the side of the room, where a sound mixer and turntable were stationed. “Aw what up, DJ?!”

A white pony with a musical note for a Cutie Mark spun a record on her turntable. She threw on her stylish and outrageous sunglasses and turned up the volume on her sound system.
“Let’s get scratchin’!” she cried.

It was a special remix of Pinkie’s Pony Pokey. Most of the mares shoved us out of the way so they can have the middle of the room as the dance floor. Pinkie was the leader. She grabbed Sunny and threw her into the throng. Sunny adamantly protested, but her friend wouldn’t take “no” as an answer. Pinkie took her position and began to lead her dancing troupe.

As always, Pinkie was the star of the show. She sang along, shook her rump about, and swung her legs everywhere. It was amazing that she didn’t hit anypony! While she managed to have enough skill and grace to accomplish such dancing, Sunny wasn’t so fortunate. She would occasionally step on somepony’s hoof, bump into another’s side, or trip and fall, knocking one over. Whenever she fell down, Pinkie was always there to pick her back up and keep her dancing. Sunny’s victims didn’t mind, but she apologized up and down all the same.

I was standing off to the side watching, of course. I wasn’t much of a dancer anyway. I remembered how I had danced at my birthday party in Canterlot; I was having too much fun to see how silly I looked! I stood beside Rainbow Dash, who giggled every now and then as she watched Sunny’s dancing.

Applejack joined us a little while later. She entered the building and was immediately captivated by the dancing, and by the DJ’s beats.

“Ah got Pinkie’s telegram,” she said when she walked over to us. “Big Macintosh said I could take the rest of the evenin’ off to come!”

“Glad to see ya, Applejack!”

Rainbow and AJ connected hooves.

“Unfortunately, Fluttershy can’t make it. She’s way too busy with them sick critters of hers; y’all know how it is. So what’s erery-pony doin’? Is that Pinkie’s Pony Pokey Ah hear playin’?”

“Yep! Ahahaha!” Rainbow gestured to the dance floor. “You gotta see this though! You see Sunny right there? She keeps kicking everypony that steps out there! She’s already knocked down five!”

AJ frowned just a tad. “Poor kid…well, at least Pinkie’s there with her.”

“It’s so hilarious!”

“Rainbow,” I said sharply. “Be nice! So Sunny’s not a good dancer. That’s no reason to laugh at her.”

“But it’s funny! Come on, how could you not be laughing?”

My stern stare was my only reply.

“Okay fine, sheesh.” She looked back to the dance floor. “…Hehehehehe…!”

“Um…hey, Twi, got a second?” AJ pulled me aside. “Is everythin’ okay, hun?”

“…It’s Sunny. I’m really worried about her.”

“Why’s that?”

“…Remember this morning when she broke the table at the restaurant? Well…when we went to visit Rarity, she accidentally ruined a project she had been working on for three days over, and when I took her to my library, she knocked over a bookshelf and cluttered the floor with all the books on it.”

“That’s gotta be rough…”

“Sunny hasn’t gotten into trouble for all her accidents, luckily, but something’s not right about it.”

AJ looked confused. “What’s the big deal? She’s a little clumsy, that’s all.”

“No, it’s not just that!” I stroke my chin. “Pretty soon her luck is going to run out and somepony’s going to get really mad at her! They may not be as understanding as we are. Pinkie has been extremely grateful for my patience with her, and she was the first to defend her whenever she did something. Not only that, but Sunny was about to tell me something about her clumsiness, but she hushed up because she was afraid. They both…know something…”

AJ fiddled with her hat. “Whaddya think we should do? Should we have a talk with them?”

“No. I think it’s better if we just continue being nice to her. That’s all we can do, I guess.”

“Make way for the cake, everypony!” Pinkie called out from the backroom.

“Well,” AJ continued to converse with me, “you won’t hafta worry about me. Ah’m gonna treat her like she’s was one of us! Ah like her anyway! She’s a little darlin’, that one is!”

“Oh, Pinkie!” Sunny said. “That cake looks delicious!”

“Good,” I said to my companion. “Now we should tell Rainbow. I don’t think she-”

“WAAAAAAAAH!”

A dish crashed onto the hard floor.

Oh no…!

Frosting, ice cream, and strawberries were everywhere. Pinkie was trying to clean up the cake that had fallen on the floor. A lot of the ponies had some of the cake on them. They licked themselves clean, and were satisfied with the flavor of the cake, but looked down at the floor in collective sorrow. Of course they missed out on a delicious treat, but they were more concerned with the guest of honor.

Sunny had cake all over her face. The ice cream was stuck in her mane, the frosting was in her eyes, and strawberries were at her feet. She tried to stand up, but she slipped on the strawberries. She fell on her back, crushing them beneath her. The juice stained her snowy white coat. She was a mess.

Applejack, Pinkie and I rushed to her side and tried to clean her off, but she was far too dirty for us to take care of by ourselves. The other guests joined in, but they didn’t fare any better either.

“Sunny!” Pinkie exclaimed, swiping away pieces of frosting from her friend’s eyes. “Are you okay?!”

“I-I-I’m fine…” Sunny’s voice was breaking. “Pinkie…I…I ruined your cake…”

“It’s okay! Mr. and Mrs. Cake will make a new one! Problem solved! Hehehe!” Pinkie’s laugh was weak. It wasn’t festive at all.

Sunny noticed that every guest was watching her and asking about her condition. Her anxiety was beginning to grow.

“Okay, quit yer gawkin’!” Applejack said loudly. “We had a little accident! Go about yer business! We’ll take care of this!”

“BAAAA-HAHAHAHAHAHA!!”

That sky blue pegasus was hovering above us. She was laughing so hard that it sounded like it hurt.

“Oh-ho-ho, that’s classic!” Rainbow roared.

“Rainbow! Cut it out!” I shouted.

“That’s quality slapstick for you! You know, Sunny, people usually take a pie to the face, but a whole cake? Ahahahaha!”

“I said cut it out!”

“Hey, Sunny! I thought Ditsy Doo over here was the clumsiest, but you really take the…cake! Yeah! Ahahahahahaha!”

Ditsy Doo, who was off in the corner, furrowed her little brow at Rainbow. Her eyes swirled as she snorted at the pegasus.

“Rainbow!” AJ screamed. “Quit it! You’re upsettin’ her!”

“Oh, oh, oh! Wait! I got a better one!” Rainbow covered her mouth for a minute while she snickered. “I hope you had a nice trip, Sunny! I hope to see you next fall! Bahahahaha!”

Sunny’s lips quivered even more.

“C’mon, lighten up!” Rainbow landed beside her. She placed her hoof on her shoulder. “I’m only kidding!”

Sunny ripped her hoof from her shoulder. She whipped her head from side to side, and then bolted out the door, leaving a small trail of tears behind her.

“What? What’d I say?”

“YOU BULLY!!”

Pinkie seized Rainbow by her mane. She spun her around; she shoved her nose up against Rainbow’s.

“Who do you think you are?!” Pinkie screamed at the top of her lungs. “How could you be so cruel to Sunny?! What did she ever do to you?! What gives you the right to be such a…such a…BIG DUMB MEANIE?!”

“Hey, calm down!” Rainbow hollered back. “I said I was kidding around!”

“Just kidding?! You call that kidding?! Look what you did! You made her cry…at her welcome party!”

“It’s not my fault she can’t take a joke! Hey, has she been hanging around Fluttershy at all?”

“I can’t believe you!” Pinkie stomped. “You really hurt her feelings! Why…I’m gonna…I’m gonna…! You big, stupid, chump!”

“Who’re you callin’ a chump, Chump?!”

“Stop it right now, you two!” I yelled over them. “Now if you two would stop arguing for one second, maybe we can do something to help Sunny!”

“Make her apologize! She’s the one who ruined the party!”

“As if!” Rainbow scraped her foot against the floor. She tensed up. She was ready to fight if she had to. “I was joking! No harm no foul!”

“You don’t understand!”
“I understand that she’s way too sensitive! She needs to have fun and take a joke once in a while!”
“Listen to me!”
“You can’t just keep treating her like she’s a baby!”
“It because of bullies like you that made Sunny leave Ponyville when she was a filly!”

“…What?” Rainbow relaxed. “What’d you say...?”

“You heard me! It’s because of ponies like you that took my best friend away from me!”

“Pinkie!” I pushed her away from Rainbow, who drew closer and closer to her with every step, even after Applejack and I separated the two. “Stop shouting!”

The pink pony sat on the floor with her front legs folded. Her eyes continued to follow Rainbow; they never lost sight of their target.

“Pinkie,” I said gently. “Yelling at each other isn’t going to solve anything, you know that. No matter how satisfied it makes you to assault Rainbow Dash with your anger, it won’t make Sunny feel any better.”

“…She started it…”

“I think it’s time you tell us a little more about Sunny. What’s wrong with her? Why does she get so upset whenever she makes a mistake?”

Pinkie finally looked at me. Her fury was slowly fading. She heaved a heavy sigh.

“Go on, Sugarcube.” AJ slightly simpered. “If we understand what’s goin’ on with Sunny, maybe we can help her.”

Pinkie closed her eyes. Her voice was without any emotion. It scared me to hear such a zestful pony act so serious. I didn’t like it.

“When we were fillies,” Pinkie began, “Sunny was very clumsy. I could be going shopping with her and she would break something in a store. Her parents would have to pay for the damage. Other times, we could be playing and she’d accidentally hurt me or another filly. She’d always get in trouble at school and no one ever wanted to play with her because of how dangerous she was. She was always alone. She’d cry and constantly blame herself for everything.
“As time went on, her accidents kept getting more and more frequent. She continued to beat herself over every little thing she did. I didn’t want to see her in trouble anymore, and I didn’t want to see her cry, so I took the blame for her occasionally. I just wanted to see her happy; I was tired of seeing her so sad. But that’s when she started getting bullied.
“Our classmates would make fun of her, call her names, and shun her. Nopony would play with her, eat with her, or even talk with her. The only time they did pay attention to her was when she had an accident. They’d just keep calling her names…they wouldn’t stop!”
Pinkie was beginning to cry.
“I begged them to leave her alone, and I even picked fights with them, but they wouldn’t stop teasing her! I made her tell her parents what was going on, and later, they told the teacher about how Sunny was being harassed. The teacher tried her best to make it stop, but Sunny would be bullied after school ended too, where the teacher couldn’t see anything happen to her! We confronted the parents of the ponies that teased her, but they didn’t do a thing. It got so bad that Sunny’s parents wanted to move out of Ponyville so she could be left alone!”
Pinkie furiously wiped at her eyes.
“They took my best friend away from me! Sunny’s dad never got a job in Fillydelphia! They didn’t move there because of it! They moved because Sunny was being bullied! I was the only real friend she had. I didn’t care if she made mistakes. I love her like a sister…she was everything to me and she still is…!
“Until you made her cry again, Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie screamed again.
“N-No!” Rainbow backed into a wall. “I-I-I didn’t know…! I didn’t know about…!”
“Pinkie! Take it easy!” I rubbed her head slowly. “It’ll be okay. Rainbow didn’t know about Sunny. She didn’t mean the things she said. You know that.”
“Whew…thanks, Twilight…” Rainbow smiled slightly. “For a minute there, I thought she was gonna-”
I faced her with a glare.
“But you still said those hurtful things. I understand that you didn’t mean to hurt her, but you shouldn’t have been making those jokes at all! That was mean, rude, and so unlike you, Rainbow! You made her cry!”
Rainbow was a tearing up a little.
“You like pulling pranks and having fun, but you know better than to tease somepony like that. You really hurt her feelings, Rainbow!”
“I…I…I’m sorry…” She hung her head. “I didn’t know…I didn’t know about her being bullied…”
“I’m not the one you should be apologizing to.”
She dug her hoof into the floor.
“Twilight,” AJ spoke up. “Where do ya think Sunny ran off to?”
“My guess would be a lake or someplace that has water so she can clean herself.”
“We should go look for her right now. I’ll look near the library, while you and Pinkie can-”
“No.” Rainbow Dash straightened her posture. She removed the tears from her eyes. “No. You guys stay here. I’ll go.”
“Rainbow, I think it’s best if we all-”
“I’m the one who screwed up here. I made a mess of things. It’s my responsibility to make it right again.”
“Rainbow…”
“Please, Twilight. Lemme go alone…lemme take care of this myself. This one’s on me…”

I tried to come up with something to stop her, but she was right. It was her responsibility. She was remorseful and she understood what she had done wrong. Her cracking voice and her puffy eyes said so. I was kind of…proud of her. No…I was proud. Rainbow made a mistake and she wanted to fix it herself, without any of us to help her. She really grew up. All of our lessons together in Ponyville made her grow into a better mare, and I hoped that this situation would be no exception.

Rainbow spread her wings. She dashed out the door and took to the sky. I stood in the threshold of the door, watching her fly away.

“Twilight,” Pinkie called me. “Could you follow her?”

“But this is her responsibility. She wants to settle this herself, she said so.

“I’m not saying help her…just watch her. Make sure Sunny’s okay. Please?”

“Pinkie…”

“Please?”

I wasn’t going to win this argument, not against a depressed Pinkie Pie. It was better if I just did what she asked of me with no questions asked. She just wanted to know how Sunny faring.

I nodded to her. I shut the door behind me.

I ran along the moonlit road of Sugarcube Corner. How was I going to find Sunny? How was I going to find Rainbow Dash for that matter? She vanished into the sky and I lost sight of her. She could be anywhere in Ponyville. I still had to try! Nothing was going to stop me!

Once I got to the end of Sugarcube Corner, I felt something odd under my hoof. It felt moist. I held my hoof up to the moon. It was red and a little sticky. It was the juice from a strawberry. I recalled that Sunny had stepped on some when she was back in the cake shop, which made her slip and fall. The juice must have still been under her hooves when she ran away! That was it! That’s how I would find her! The moon’s light casted itself down on the road to my left. I could just make out the tiny red drops on the ground. The light followed along the road, revealing even more drops that made up a trail.

I looked up at the moon. I bowed my head in gratitude.

“Thank you…Princess!”

I chased after the light. I must have been running after the light for ages. It certainly felt that way. I just hoped that Sunny was close by. All of this running was starting to do a number on my legs. Why didn’t I practice that self levitation spell when I had the chance? Or cast a spell that granted me wings when I had the energy? For an advanced student, I was very inept!

The light stopped at the town square. The trail ended when I reached the pavilion. Where did she go to? She had to be in this general area….but where? I still believed that she needed to be near water so she could clean herself, so maybe she was by the river side. I decided to check there.

I looked at one side of the river, the other side, and even under the bridges, but I couldn’t find Sunny. Just when I was about to check the bridges themselves, I heard weeping. It came from atop the bridge. A white mare was leaning over the bridge’s ledge, weeping bitterly. I recognized the frosting that was on her nose. It was Sunny! But where was Rainbow?

“Um…hi…Sunny…”

Somepony clopped along the cobblestone bridge. It was coming from the other side. I stealthily crept behind the small wall at my side of the bridge. I placed my back against it and cocked my ears. I peeked every now and then, but I kept my head down as low as I could so I wouldn’t be discovered. All I could do was listen.

“…What do you want…?” Sunny sniffed.

“…I…I wanted to talk with you…”

“…Are you going to make fun of me again…? Go on…get it over with…I can take it…I’m used to it by now…”

Rainbow sighed. “Look, I…I want to apologize…”

Sunny was quiet.

“I shouldn’t have said those mean things to you. I shouldn’t have treated you so cruelly. I was a big jerk. I’m sorry…”

She still didn’t answer.

“Sunny…will you forgive me…?”

Nothing.

“…If you don’t want to, I completely understand. I deserve it, but…please just hear me out for a little while longer. After I’m done, I’ll leave you alone. You’ll never have to see me again.”

Sunny sniffled again.

“Pinkie…uh…she…told me what happened…about why you left Ponyville.”

She gasped. “…She…she did…?”

“She told me everything. Sunny…you don’t deserve that kind of treatment. I bet you’re a great pony…and I bet you’re an awesome friend…so I don’t get why people treated you so badly. I don’t understand why I treated you so badly. I was rough on you…I was insensitive…I didn’t think about your feelings at all…I was a jerk. For that…for everything…I’m sorry.”

Sunny was quiet again.

“…You still hate me, huh?”

Silence.

“I don’t blame you. Here, I’ll just go. You won’t ever have to see me ever again…I promise…”

Rainbow solemnly began her departure.

“…It’s because I’m clumsy!” Sunny cried aloud.
The pegasus turned.
“I always ruin everything! I always got into trouble! I got so many people angry with me! I hurt so many people! But…Pinkie…she was always there…to get me out of trouble. She’d always defend me, even when I didn’t deserve it…her and my parents…they all wanted what was best for me.”

Rainbow was silent now.

“Even then…people still teased me. Maybe it was my punishment for causing so many people grief when I was in Ponyville. Maybe I deserved it…”

“Don’t say that. You don’t…”

“Rainbow Dash…I’m not crying because I was bullied, or because of the things you said. I’m sad because…because I’m just a screw up! You’re right! I’m a clutz! I’m a failure!”

“You are not!”

“I break things! I rip things to shreds! I hurt everypony I meet! I cause so much trouble!” Sunny wailed. “I don’t do it on purpose! I swear! I’m just clumsy; I don’t pay attention to what I’m doing!”

“Sunny…”

“I thought…I thought Ponyville would be better off without me…that’s why I wanted to leave. I left because I didn’t want to hurt Pinkie.”

“…But you did hurt her. You’re her best friend. She was really sad without you.”

“…I guess I screwed up again, huh?”

“Stop talking like that!” Rainbow walked closer to her. “I don’t wanna hear you talking about yourself that way again!”

“It’s true though. I ruin everything…”

“Sunny…come on…”

Sunny laughed lightly. “You know this Cutie Mark I have? I got it when I was in Fillydelphia. One of my classmates had a similar problem like I had, but I was always there to make her smile. I was always there to bring some light into her life, just like what Pinkie did for me. That’s when I figured out what my special talent was: making people happy.

“Since Pinkie always did her best to cheer me up when I was down, I wanted to do the same for everypony I met. Whenever I saw a little filly, a gentle mare, or big strong stallion feeling down in the dumps…I was there to tell a joke, tell a story, to play a game, or to smile for them. Whenever I smiled, so did they. I was a ray of light for them. I felt good about myself…but it never really did make the pain of my past failures go away.

“I wanted to come to back to Ponyville, thinking I had really bettered myself. I thought that if I gave others the gift of a warm smile, all would be right with me. It seems as though I didn’t better myself…I’m still the same clutzy Sunny Daze.”

Rainbow touched her shoulder.

“Sunny. You need to forgive yourself. You can’t attack yourself like this. You need to stop being so afraid of making mistakes.”

“…How do I do that, Rainbow?”

“You have to overcome your fears…”

Sunny giggled. “Pinkie said something just like that one time when we were little. It was when I was crying after a rough school day, after I had broken something. I told her about how I was feeling, and how I didn’t like how clumsy I was. I was telling her how I was afraid I might destroy something else. You know what she told me?”

“What?”

“She said…‘Sunny, you have to stand up tall…learn to face your fears. You’ll see that they can’t hurt you. Just laugh and make them disappear.’”

Rainbow laughed. “I remember that song…she sang that to us when we went on our first adventure together!”

Sunny laughed as well. “That’s Pinkie Pie for you!” Her tone lowered again though. “Even so…laughing can’t stop me from making mistakes…I’m still afraid of what I’ll do next…”

“Sunny, Pinkie’s right. You can’t be afraid of yourself. So you’re a little clumsy, big whoop. There’s some things about me that I don’t like much either. I can be stubborn, rude, and I can hurt someone’s feelings without even knowing it. The only thing we can do…is to learn how to improve ourselves…to accept what we did in the past, and learn to move on. That’s all we can do. Only then can we really grow up into a better pony.”

The cake covered mare was slowly beginning to smile. “But…what if I mess up again?”

“Don’t be afraid anymore! The more you worry about it, the more likely it’s gonna happen! If you just let go, you can be cured! Everypony makes mistakes! We just need to learn from them!”

She nodded once…then twice…three times…now many times.

“Rainbow…you’re right. All my life I’ve been afraid of myself…afraid of what I was capable of doing to something or somepony. I thought making other people smile, so that they didn’t have to go suffer like I did when I was young, would correct everything I did. But that’s not the case. While it’s good to make other people smile, sometimes you have to make sure you’re smiling too…to make sure that you feel good about yourself. I have to think about me now…about what will make me smile...about how to make my sun shine for me. I think it’s time I finally start following Pinkie’s advice.”

She faced the pegasus.

“Thank you so much for finally getting through to me…Rainbow Dash…I owe you…”

Rainbow grinned. “I’m still sorry about what I did to you…you know, the offer still stands if you never wanna see me again.”

“No! I want to see you! I forgive you! Let’s promise to improve ourselves from this day forward, okay?” Sunny stuck out her chest proudly. “Let’s do our best!”

“First…let’s work on getting that cake out of your mane.” Rainbow giggled. “I’ll help you.”

“I’d appreciate it…friend.”

The two new friends laughed amongst themselves as they walked over the bridge in the direction of the pavilion. They stopped at the river side to clean Sunny. I spied from behind my wall one last time. Sunny was glowing again. She was truly happy…for the first time in years. I think she finally found her sun.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Princess Celestia,

Today I learned another valuable lesson about friendship.

Everypony has a flaw. There’s something inside of us, be it a personality trait, a way we speak, or certain mistakes we make, that we’re not very proud of. Constantly condemning yourself for your flaw and feeling sorry for yourself is not the right thing to do. You can lose your self-esteem and you can lose respect for yourself.
You shouldn’t beat yourself up over your mistakes. You should learn how to improve upon your faults so that you never make the same mistake twice. Sometimes, it takes the love and kindness of a friend to see that. Everpony is flawed and makes mistakes, but it is by working together that the both of you can improve. Two ponies today showed me that you can truly change yourself for the better through willpower, determination, and most importantly, through support for one another.

And that is the power of friendship.

Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle