//------------------------------//
// Epilogue 
// Story: Diary of a Baker 
// by Wildebeest 
//------------------------------//

	"...and that's the story of how I met your mother," concluded Carrot Cake.

It was another typical night at Sugarcube Corner.  The entire family had gathered in the Twins' room, where Mr. Cake had just finished telling them one of their favorite bedtime stories.  He momentarily glanced up to find that the Cake Twins had long since passed into a deep, deep sleep, snuggling one another in the crib.  Pinkie Pie, on the other hand, was still listening intently to the story, her eyes wide open with rapt attention.  

"So what kind of donut did Snails order?" Pinkie Pie asked.

Mr. Cake couldn't help but chuckle.  "Just go to sleep, Pinkie," he said.

"Okay!" chirped Pinkie Pie, who immediately collapsed onto the floor and passed out.

Mrs. Cake giggled.  "Maybe you should have said, 'go to bed'," she whispered.

"Maybe I should have," Mr. Cake said sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.  

"You know, I think it's about time for us to pack it in, too," said Mrs. Cake, punctuating her sentence with a yawn and a good, hardy stretch.

Mr. Cake opened his mouth to respond, but before anything could come out, Mrs. Cake grabbed him and lifted him up into her hooves, eliciting a surprised "Whoa!" from Mr. Cake.  His wife hastily clamped one of her hooves over his mouth and quietly reminded him that he was still in a room with two sleeping babies.  (Well, three.  Two little ones and one big one.)

"Sorry," whispered Mr. Cake as his mate carried him out of the room.  

"It's fine," Mrs. Cake whispered back.  "I probably should have warned you first."

Cup Cake quietly creaked open the door to their bedroom, slipped inside and carried Carrot Cake over to the side of the bed.  Carrot Cake waited expectantly for her to put him down.

Instead, Cup Cake just looked down at him, smiled dreamily and started to rock him back and forth.

"Cup Cake... Cup Cake, this really isn't... it isn't... *YAWN*"

Before Carrot Cake could even say 'necessary', drowsiness began to overtake him.  Her gentle rocking, combined with the sound of her heartbeat close to his, ensured that he would be out like a light in a matter of seconds.

"I can be your hero, baby," she sweetly sang to him as he drifted off into slumber.