//------------------------------// // Cake, Pie and Adventure Time. // Story: Age Swap // by Tangerine Blast //------------------------------// The last thing they had to check was the food, which the list stated was kept in the bakery at the center of town. When they reached their destination, Spike was surprised to find that the Bakery was a house made entirely out of gingerbread and held together with frosting. "Why is there a sweet shop...made out of sweets?" Spike stared at the store in front of him. "This is Sugarcube Corner," Twilight informed him. "The Cake twins run the bakery; they’re in charge of getting the food." Spike nodded as he opened the door to the bakery. He was immediately greeted by a mess of pink. It was that pink filly that Spike had seen when he first came to Ponyville. She did the same thing as their first encounter, jumping into the air while gasping before running off. Spike stared after the filly as she disappeared into the bakery's kitchen before deciding to follow her. He entered the kitchen and saw the filly trying to get a light orange unicorn's attention. "Pinkie," the unicorn told the filly, "I can't deal with you right now, I need to finish this cake." "But Pumpkin!" the filly, Pinkie, argued. "The official from Canterlot is here." "You've already told me that, Pinkie." The unicorn sighed. "No," The filly pouted, "I mean he's here here." She grabbed the unicorn and pulled her with unreal strength in the direction of Spike. The unicorn finally noticed Spike and stared at him for a few seconds, the situation sinking in. Spike took this as an opportunity to introduce himself. "Hi, I'm Spike and this is Twilight. As the filly told you, I'm here from Canterlot to check on the preparations for the celebration." Spike looked at the pink filly. "Although I don't know how she knew that." Pumpkin looked at Pinkie, then back at Spike. "You didn't tell her?" she asked. Spike shook his head. "Pinkie, how did you know Spike was from Canterlot?" "Duh, why else would a dragon and a unicorn come to Ponyville in a carriage?" The filly said as if this was the most obvious thing in the world. The unicorn just rolled her eyes and turned back to Spike, "I'm sorry, Spike. I'm Pumpkin Cake and this is Pinkie Pie. She can be........odd, sometimes." "It's OK." Spike reassured her, "I just need to check on how the food is coming." "It's coming along great," a new voice said. Everyone turned and saw a cream Pegasus with a chocolate colored mane and tail. "I'm Pound Cake, and me and my sis run this bakery." Spike noticed something odd about Twilight when Pound entered the room; her eyes grew wide and her legs didn't look like they could support her anymore. Spike leaned down to his assistant. "Is everything all right?" "He's so cute," she breathed. Spike stared at her, then at Pound. This was strange behavior for Twilight. Spike decided to play along and whispered to her, "Maybe you should tell him." Twilight's purple cheeks turned a little pink and she whispered, "N-n-no, I shouldn't do that." Spike shrugged and turned back to the twins, who were fussing over a cake recipe. The twins turned back to the duo and Pound looked at Twilight. "That's a cute necklace you got there," he commented. The little unicorn blushed deeper. "Thank you, a filly named Rarity gave it to me." Pumpkin nodded. "That was very kind of her." "So Spike," Pound asked the dragon, "has this little devil thrown you a party yet?" He affectionately noogied Pinkie Pie. Spike barely noticed the three balloons on her flank before she gasped and dashed off. Pound smiled at Spike. "I guess that's a ‘no’. You're in for a treat; Pinkie throws great parties." "Yeah, great." Pumpkin rolled her eyes. "As long as she doesn't destroy the bakery, they're great." "That was only like, one time." "Try five, and every time it happened you were somehow involved." Pumpkin glared at her brother. Pound rubbed the back of his neck, "Well, maybe I do get too wild sometimes." Twilight giggled. Pumpkin rolled her eyes before turning back to Spike. "Do you want to see some of the food?" "Yes, that's what we're here for." *** They thoroughly checked all of the food that was prepared for the celebration. Twilight stared with googley eyes at Pound the whole time, Spike watching her in amusement, until their visit ended, and they were finally on their way to where they were staying, the library. "Finally," Spike sighed. "After all this running around, I just want to relax and find a way to stop this coming disaster." They walked into the darkened library. The lack of lights wasn't surprising, as they hadn't been in there to turn them on yet. Spike got an uneasy feeling, though, and turned on the lights quickly. He saw pink. "Surprise!" Pinkie Pie shouted, bouncing around Spike. "Were you surprised? Probably not, because Pound told you that I was throwing you a party." "I was still very surprised," Spike reassured her, feeling more than a little uncomfortable. "That's GREAT! I invited everypony in Ponyville so you can get to know them all!" "That's great," Spike said unenthusiastically. "I would love to stay and party, but I'm really tired and I want to be well-rested so I don't fall asleep during the celebration." The filly’s face fell a little, but she quickly perked up again and said, "Okie Dokie Lokie, we can still have the party and Twilight can tell us about you!" She bounded off to the purple unicorn, who was looking around the room in shock. She was very fond of books, and partying in a library seemed to appall her. Spike rolled his eyes and went upstairs to his room. He would study about Sinking Sun and maybe find a way to put a stop to the upcoming disaster. How could he let himself get so distracted? It was already dark out; he had no time to lose. *** It was the next day, and dawn was drawing close. All the ponies were gathered at Sweet Apple Acres to watch the Princess raise the sun. Spike had a horrible feeling as he waited with the crowd for Princess Luna. There was something off, and though he suspected it to be simple paranoia, he couldn't shake the foreboding sense of dread that was only apparent to himself. The music played as everypony watched the curtains draw back. What greeted them was an absence of anything except the stage. For a moment, they all mumbled among themselves when a bright, near-blinding light came out of nowhere. Everypony shielded their eyes and when they looked again, there was a white Alicorn with blazing hair and burning eyes dressed in battle armor standing in front of them. Spike felt like he had swallowed a particularly sharp diamond as he gazed at the mare in front of him, nervousness making him scratch at his throat so hard that he had trouble speaking. "AH-HAHAHA!“ She laughed, her very voice seeming to be on fire as she spoke. Luna’s Pegasus guards opened their wings and flew at the intruder, but the alicorn threw a fireball at them, singeing their wings and forcing them to the ground. "Who are you, and what have you done with our Princess?!" Scootaloo called from the crowd, being the first to voice the question going through everypony’s minds. " Your Princess is gone, but am I no longer worthy of that title after being banished? Do none of you recognize my face?" the Alicorn asked, contempt and anger hanging in the very air around her as she spoke. "I know who you are," Spike spoke out, having finally regained his voice. With all eyes locked onto him, he continued without a moment’s hesitation. "You're Sinking Sun." The Alicorn snorted, "No pony knows? Only a dragon has heard of me? Disgraceful." She locked eyes with Spike. "After a thousand years I have grown tired of that name, so from now on, you will refer to me as SOLAR FLARE. Now, then. With that matter dealt with, I shall complete my duty as your new leader…to make the day last for all of eternity! For the night is a useless waste of time. I hope you've enjoyed your moon, for you will never see it again!" With those final words, she disappeared in a blinding flash. Spike ran out of the orchard with Twilight in tow. If he was right, he explained to her as they ran, and he found the Elements of Harmony right away, he could fix this and return things to how they should have been. As he reached the library, he started rummaging through the books with Twilight’s help. Without any warning whatsoever, a mass of blue popped up in front of his face, and a voice shouted with almost as much rage as Solar Flare had possessed. "I knew it! I knew you were a spy! That's how you know about Solar Flare!" it yelled. "Rainbow Dash," another voice sighed as the filly was pulled away from Spike's face, "how many times do I have to tell you that Spike isn't a spy?" Scootaloo pulled the young filly back, forcibly sitting her on her haunches. "That don't change the fact that he knows somethin','' Applebloom pointed out. As Spike faced his uninvited visitors, he found that everypony he had met to plan for the now-ruined celebration had followed him to the library, including the six foals. They looked at him expectantly, waiting for an explanation of what was happening. Spike took a deep breath and started talking. "That pony was one of the olden time pony sisters who was corrupted into a being named Sinking Sun- well, actually, I guess it‘s Solar Flare now, but that‘s beside the point. The only way to stop her is if we find the Elements of Harmony, but I don't know what they are or where to find them- much less how to use them or even what they do!" " ‘The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide’," Pound Cake read a book title, having wandered off to the side while Spike was explaining the situation. Spike shoved him out of the way and took the book from his hooves, astonished that he hadn't found it first. "Where did you find that?" He demanded. "It was under E!" Pound told him in a slightly sing-song voice, trying (and failing miserably) to hide his smile. "What?" Spike said, "I can’t believe I didn’t- never mind."<(The Elements of Harmony would go under “E”, so that was the right way to look. If the title of a book starts with “the”, they’re organized by the next word. That’s why Twilight said “Oh… right” in the actual episode. She forgot to look in the right place.)> He promptly started flipping through the book, locating the page that retained the knowledge they required to defeat the white Alicorn. "It says here that there are five known elements- Generosity, Honesty, Loyalty, Kindness and Laughter. The sixth and most evasive element is yet to be discovered. The last known location of their existence was in an ancient castle in the Everfree Forest." "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Rainbow Dash called, zooming towards the door. "Hold on, you," Scootaloo said, nabbing her tail in her teeth and pulling her back. "This is no place for little fillies; you stay here." She motioned for Rainbow Dash to sit, making it clear she didn't want her to come with them. "Yes, let's stay here," Fluttershy agreed, visibly shaking in her hooves. "Adventure time!" cried Pinkie Pie, jumping for joy. "We can't go," Rarity huffed, "that forest is disgusting." "Spike, it could be dangerous, you might need help!" Twilight told her mentor. Spike hesitated for a moment- was it really such a good idea to take any fillies into that forest in the first place? In the end, he decided the most logical option was not to. "No, Twilight. That’s no place for fillies; you stay here." "But...." Twilight started, but then stopped and nodded glumly, resigning herself to her stationary fate. "I'm coming though, right, Scootaloo?" Rainbow half declared, half asked, obviously not wanting to truly go against her sister’s wishes. "No, you aren't," Scootaloo said firmly. "You have to stay here and look after Fluttershy." Rainbow Dash looked at the yellow filly and sighed. "Oh, fine! I'll stay," she said, plopping down next to Fluttershy and crossing her hooves. "Good,” Scootaloo replied. “Now that we have that settled, let’s go." She took off low to the ground, with the rest of the adults following her. "Smithy will come by in a little bit and keep you all company," Applebloom told them, following into the brighter-than-ever daylight. "Be safe," the fillies called after their guardians, worry in their voices. * * * The group approached the entrance to the Everfree Forest, noticing that it was unnaturally dark considering the bright, blazing sun hanging in the sky. "Listen, guys," Spike addressed the ponies with him. "You don't need to do this. I can go and find the elements by myself. You should be with the fillies." "No way, we are definitely coming!" Scootaloo declared, not faltering for a second. "You can't get rid of us that easily," Pumpkin told the dragon. "Let's go, then!" said Pound, flying into the forest with the rest of the group behind him. Spike sighed, following the group into the thick brush. They walked a little ways until Spike broke the silence. "So...why doesn't anyone come in here?" "It's unnatural in here," Sweetie explained. "The clouds move on their own and the animals eat each other." "Nopony’s quite sure why it's like this, though,” Pound added in a deep, creepy voice, “because they say whoever enters... never.... comes ....OUT!" he jumped up in a dramatic pose. "Pound, don't do that," his sister scolded him, rolling her eyes. Pound smiled innocently, asking, "Do what?" Pumpkin sighed as they continued walking until they reached a cliff. Beneath it, an unseen cloud of semi-transparent mist seeped into the cliff as they stopped near it. Spike sighed. “Well, I guess we’ll-”  Suddenly, the ground started rumbling, making the whole cliff edge break off, sending all that couldn't fly hurtling downwards. The Pegasi caught as many ponies as they could, but Pumpkin was stuck hanging onto a branch below, while Spike just barely managed to dig his claws into the edge before tumbling off. "I'm coming!" Pumpkin called, sliding down and grabbing his claw with one hoof and a branch in the other. They held that pose for a couple of seconds before Pumpkin’s eyes flicked behind the dragon for a second before settling on him. With a moment’s hesitation, she said with a completely straight face, "Let go." "What? Are you crazy?" Spike yelled at her, unsure of just what this pony was thinking. "Pound will catch you," Pumpkin reassured Spike. "No, dragons are way heavier than ponies. He wouldn't be able to hold me for a second!" Spike was practically screaming. Was Pumpkin Cake really so clueless? "Yes, he will," Pumpkin insisted. "Listen, I'm telling you the complete truth here. Let go and Pound will catch you." Spike stared at her for a couple of seconds, then sighed, shut his eyes tightly, and let go. He screamed until he couldn't feel himself fall anymore. Spike opened his eyes and found that Pound was holding him by his arms. Pound looked strained, but he was able to set Spike down gently. Pumpkin got a ride down from Scootaloo and when she landed Spike asked her, "How did he do that?" "I've always been really strong," Pound shrugged. "You were super heavy though, what do you eat?" "Gems," Spike said bluntly, taking a moment to breathe. He felt extremely lucky and grateful to have had these ponies follow him now. He pondered this as they continued into the forest, wondering what had made them decide to follow him into danger, but also wondering how that cliff face could suddenly give out.