The crowd was still alive with the sound of chuckles and light conversation involving the crash and burn of Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon's magic show when Twilight Sparkle reappeared on stage. She cleared her throat catching the attention of most of the crowd, with still a few light chuckles here and there.
"Hello again, everypony" she began damage control. "There's been a slight change in tonight's line up. We have a surprise guest who would like to introduce himself. Please stomp your hooves for Forest Rain!"
As Twilight stepped off the stage to the right side, a grey pegusus stallion with a dark green mane took the stage, entering from the left. Me smiled at the crowd as he set a guitar case on the ground and picked a microphone. "Good evening, Ponyville. How are you all doing?"
"Good!" The crowd of ponies all said some what as the same time.
"Glad to hear it" Forest said as he unpacked his guitar, but rather then sit on the stool provided, he took to the front of the stage and dangled his back hooves over the edge while he sat down and turned his guitar. "Now a lot of you ponies might not remember me, but I actually lived in Ponyville for years. I grew up here. Had my first kiss here. And most importantly, I learned a very important lesson. One that's really kept me going, picked me up when I was down, and helped me to live my life the way I want to. By now I'm sure you've all noticed that I don't have a cutie mark..."
The crowd seemed a little shocked as the grey pegusus turned his flanks to the audience to prove he was telling the truth. It was incredibly odd that a pony his age didn't have a cutie mark.
"But that's ok" he recollected the crowd's attention. "It makes me different, and the lesson a very sweet, wonderful mare taught me a long time ago is... Well, why don't I just sing it for you...." The crowd fell silent as the cutie markless stallion began to strum his guitar.
By the middle of the song everypony was singing along with the lyrics, holding hooves, smiling, some even needing to wipe away a few heartfelt tears. The judges themselves who did their best to remain neutral couldn't help but join in with singing along. Back stage, Derpy smiled as her friend sang about the lessons that they shared. Doctor Whooves, moved by Forest Rain's words nuzzled Derpy in the cheek, who in turn, smiled and nuzzled him back.
When the song finally ended, the crowd erupted into cheers and hoof stomps. Forest Rain smiled and waved to them as he got up and placed his guitar back in the case. "You all have been a wonderful audience. I'm really glad I came, and I hope you all take that lesson to heart. I sure did. And now, Princess..."
As Twilight came into view again, ready to call for a short break, Forest Rain bowed, left the stage and went over to Derpy and Doctor Whooves.
"That was amazing, Forest!" Derpy said, hugging him with a smile.
"I do say, you were brilliant! Fantasic even!" Doctor Whooves said, walking up to him. "Derpy had told me about you, and how you were a traveling musician, but I never knew you had such talent!"
"Thank you" Forest Rain released Derpy from their hug and shook hooves with the Doctor. "Do me a favor, Doctor Whooves was it?"
"Yes? What can I do for you?" The Doctor asked.
"Take care of Derpy" Forest smiled at the grey mare. "She's very special, but needs somepony there for her."
Doctor Whooves just smiled and nodded. "Well you don't have to worry about that. We're there for each other. We, well.... Kinda..."
"Complete each other?" Derpy sprang up, giving Doctor Whooves a smile, earning a smile in return.
"You have no idea how happy that makes me" Forest said, a gently smile upon his face. His attention was then pulled away as a bear ridding a unicycle, carrying with him several bowling pins walked past the group onto the stage. "Let's catch the next act. I can't wait to see what else Ponyville has to offer for entertainment."
Doctor Whooves, Derpy, and Forest Rain all stood back stage and watched as the next act, a Fluttershy's bear friend, began to juggle the bowling pins. Not only that, but moments after he began to juggle, a little white bunny hopped onto the stage. The little creature then pulled out a match, flicked it to life by running it on the ground, then used it to light all the bowling pins on fire as he juggled them! The entire crowd emitted awes of every tone, some in shuttle surprise, others in slight fear. Either way, Twilight stood by with Spike and a fire extinguisher, ready incase anything went wrong. Amazingly, nothing did. To end his routine, the bear began to blow out the burning bowling pins and catch them. Once the last one was out out and the bear smiled at the crowd, the ponies in the audience cheered and applauded.
As Twilight went back onto the stage and began to talk about the pet shelter and how many of the critters available were just as talented as the bear, although she didn't think any of them had his same talent, Applejack was running around frantically looking for Sunny.
"Has anypony seen Sunny?" Applejack asked the stage ponies who operated the curtains and lights. But nopony had seen him.
The orange farm pony then went over to Octavia who was brushing her mane in front of a mirror while talking to Vynal. "Octavia, have ya seen Sunny?"
The grey mare turned to Applejack, slightly concerned. "No, I believe he was here during my act, but I haven't seen him. Is everything ok, Applejack?"
"Ah haven't seen hide nor hair of that yellow feller" Applejack answered, growing more and more worried by the moment.
"Don't worry, Applejack" Octavia said with a smile as she put a reassuring hoof on the orange mare's shoulder. "He wouldn't miss your act for the world."
"Ah sure hope so..." Applejack commented with a weak smile. Then shook it off as she congratulated the cello player. "Way ta go out there, by the way. Ya'll were great!"
"Thank you" Octavia smiled back. "I know you will be just as great, if not better."
"Ah sure hope so... Ah..." Applejack hesitated, thinking of her words carefully. "Ah want ta kinda inspire somepony out there, if ya know what ah mean."
"I think i do" Octavia's smile grew. "And I think you'll do just that. Aren't you on next after this... Act?" Octavia wasn't sure what to call the act that went on after the juggling bear.
"No, I asked you who's on first!" A short and stubby stallion began to yell, flustered by the conversation.
"That's what I just said! Who's on first!" The taller, thinner stallion replied in just as much of a frustrated and annoyed tone.
"Ah think 'Who' is the feller's name" Appeljack whispered to Octavia. The grey mare then repeated the banter between the two Comedians over again in her head, then chuckled lightly once she realized the act was a play on words. Humor she found uplifting and witty. "But yeah, ah better get ready. And... Thanks Octavia."
"It's my pleasure, Applejack" Octavia replied, going back to brushing her mane.
"Not for letting me know about Sunny" Applejack said with a smile still on her face. "For being a good friend to him. He talks about you just as much as he does about Thunder Lane... Thanks fer bein' good ta him."
The grey mare was taken back a little by this. She looked away, blushed a little, slightly embarrassed. She didn't know what to say, so she just pushed out of her mouth the fest thing that popped into her head. "Y-you better get ready. You're almost up."
"Oh, right! Wish me luck" Applejack said as she swiped up her guitar and booked it across to the side of the stage where she met up with her little sister and grandmother who were joining her in her act.
"B-break a leg!" Octavia called out, then heavily sighed and looked back into the mirror, then at the single rose Sunny left for her. Now really not knowing what to do.
Back on stage, as the two polar opposite comedians left, Princess Twilight reappeared on the stage enjoying the sight of the laughing audience. It was nice to see everypony enjoying themselves every now and again. It made Twilight want to brainstorm other fun event ideas for Ponyville in the near future.
'Maybe later I should get together with Mayor Mare and talk about more ideas' Twilight thought to herself as the audience calmed down. She then cleared her throat and caught their attention. "Next up we have one of my best friends, and a pony you all know, playing a song with her family. Let's give a warm welcome to The Apple Family!"
As Twilight stepped off stage, Applejack, Apple Bloom, and Granny Smith all took center stage. Applejack readjusted a mic stand confront of her and spoke out to the crowd. "Ah'd like ta thank ya'll for comin' out and supportin' th' animal shelter, as well as taking part in our great community. Ah've lived in Ponyville mah whole life and ah can honestly say that I'm proud to call it mah home. Mah big brother, Big Macintosh, couldn't be here. He'a a little under th' weather. So ah'd like to give a shout out to him and one other member of the family who seems ta be around here somewhere..." Appeljack then strummed her guitar, the cords vibrating the instrument to life. "This is what it means to be family..."
And altogether the Applefamily began to sing, with a surprise guest popping in from out of nowhere. Pinkie Pie had a friend take over the bake sale while she sang with her distant family in a song that was as close to heart as it was to theirs. When it came to Big Mac's part, Pinkie would copy his 'Eh' yep' with her forehoof hiding her mouth to keep the realism.
By the end of the song the crowd cheered and stomped their hooves, applauding the Apples as each family member stood up and took a bow. Applejack letting out a 'yeehaw!' As she tossed her hat into the air and caught it. As the Apple family made their way off stage, Pinkie zipped back to the bake sale and relieved her friend as ponies piles up to buy both Apple family and Sugar Cube corner based goods. Granny let out a wide yawn as she took a seat in a very comfy couch provided for the cast of the talent show. Apple Bloom ran off to find her best friends, Scootaloo and Sweetie Bell, while Applejack looked frantically around the back stage for Sunny.
She knew he was going to be the last act of the show, and there were two more acts to go on between her act and his. But she was still nervously looking around for that yellow stallion, hoping he wasn't going to be a 'no-show'. While the twins from the spa performed their acrobatic act, Applejack kept a look out for Sunny back stage and in the audience. Unforyunatly, she didn't see one single orange hair from that unicorn's head. She began to get nervous when the act after the spa twins took the stage.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders had tried their hooves at getting their cutie marks at double-dutch jump rope after singing with Pinkie Pie about smiling some months back. Although they didn't receive cutie marks for their effort, they did find it to be very enjoyable and that they were really quite good at it. Even going as far as making up songs, rhymes and tricks of their own to go along with it. The crowd seemed to think it was cute and enjoyable to say the least. But as the three fillies finished their act and began to file off stage, and Twilight began to speak, Applejack realized that Sunny was still nowhere to be seen.
"Thank you girls" Twilight said with a smile as she reached center stage. She nervously looked over to Applejack who was looking even more shaky then when she first saw Zecora and thought she was an evil witch. 'Sunny still isn't here yet?!' Twilight thought as she gulped. 'Well.... Maybe I can stall them.'
Just as Twilight was about to tell a few book related jokes that Shinning made up for her back in the day, a familiar yellow stallion pushed his way onto the side stage, carrying with him several various items. The purple alicorn princess was relieved to see him and released a held breath. She then turned to the crowd and and introduced the final act. "And now, without further a due, please give a warm Ponyville welcome to one of our newest citizens, Sunny !"
As the crowd stomped and cheered Sunny made his way awkwardly into the stage. He shuffled the items around in his hooves and mouth before accidentally dropping them into the floor. The crowd went silent as he smiled at them and cleared his throat, pushing all the fallen items off to the side in a giant pile, and smiling nervously at the crowd as she approached the microphone.
"H-hey everypony!" He began, trying to collect himself as the sea of eyes focused on him. "S-s-sorry I'm a little late." Sunny cleared his throat again. "You see, I planned to do an act with another partner of mine. But he decided he could work better as a solo act, and hit the road. Also, if anypony sees a giant, pony puppet, possibly lingering around the Everfree Forest, please let him know I have his last paycheck."
Some of the crowd lightly chuckled at the joke, remembering what happened on Nightmare Night. Rainbow Dash herself, shuttered and gulped as she had just gotten the frightening image out of her head.
"But luckily, thanks to my good friend, Fluttershy...." Sunny spoke now with a humble confidence as he motioned to the adoption center where a timid yellow Pegasus sunk in her seat. "I met a new companion. Hopefully this one won't go running off on me. And now without further delay, meet Crackers...."
As Sunny slightly bowed, he removes his hat and presented the top of his head as if something else other then his mop of orange mane was supposed to be there. The crowd looked from the top of the stallion's head to all around the stage, confused by the yellow unicorn's actions. After a quick moment, Sunny then felt around the top of his own head, and flashed a shocked look from his muzzle. "Where did that little critter go now?!"
Sunny then playfully looked to the left of the stage, a hoof over his brow to help block out the light. He then did the same thing to the right. And by the time he turned to the left again, a furry little creature popped up behind his back, just out of the yellow stallion's field of vision. It was a ferret, with markings of brown that gave him a little brown mask over his tiny black eyes. The crowd chucked lightly as some of the foals in the crowd pointed and yelled to Sunny where the little critter was hiding.
"Where now?" Sunny then turned to his right, and as he did the ferret then scurried over to the stallion's left side and snickered. The crowd began to laugh a little more at it. "I don't see him. Where could that little varmint have wondered off to?"
As Sunny pretended to ponder, he lifted up his Stetson once more and raised a hoof to scratch his head. But as he did, the ferret quickly climbed to the top of the stallion's head and laid down on his belly. Instead of the stallion scratching his own head, he ended up scratching the ferret's back. The critter let out a relaxed sigh as a smile grew across his face.
"Oh well" Sunny said to the snickering crowd. "If Crackers doesn't show up, guess I'll have to eat these myself!" Sunny then pulled out a full sheath of crackers from the pile of items he had dropped on stage and kicked away.
The ferret's head shot up as his eyes locked onto the delicious looking snack that he was named after. Crackers then hopped down from the top of Sunny's head and stood at attention like a dog waiting for a biscuit, tail wagging and all. Sunny then smugly looked down, pretending to be surprised by the ferret's sudden appearance. "Oh there you are! Are you ready for the show?"
Crackers then nodded his head vigorously, his eyes still glued to the crackers Sunny had levitating with his green magical aura.
"Well let's begin" Sunny then tossed the ferret a cracker, to which the little critter caught and devoured in seconds.
The crowd watched as Sunny next levitated several metal hoops into the air at various heights. Crackers then saw a cracker hovering at the first hoop and knew what that meant. The ferret then hopped up to the first hoop in an attempt to snag the deciduous morsel, bust as his little paw reached for it, the cracked levitated away, just bairly out of his grasp. The food driven ferret then hopped through the other seven hoops, chasing the cracker. The crowd applauded as Crackers reached the end of the hoops and finally caught his prize. As he stood there, looped over one of the hoops, finishing his snack. Sunny caught the crowd's attention.
"I'm afraid that is all we have for today, ladies and gentle colts" Sunny said with a bow, removing his Stetson hat again. As he did, Crackers quickly finished his snack, looked over at his comfy looking head and made a mad dash over, landing right on top of Sunny's head right as he placed his Stetson securely back where it belonged. "But I want to thank you all for coming and supporting the good businesses of Ponyville. And now I'll turn the stage back over to princess Twilight Sparkle. Good night everypony!"
As Sunny moved off stage and Twilight made her way up to the stage mic again, Applejack flew across to Sunny. He smiled as she approached him and gave him a playful push with her muzzle. "Better late then never. Good job out there!"
"Thanks, it wasn't easy until I found out this little guy is food orientated" Sunny said as he pulled his Stetson off, revealing a curled up ferret that was fast asleep. "He wasn't what I had in mind when I went looking for a pet, but he and I just sorta..."
"Clicked?" Applejack finished Sunny's sentence, shooting him a humble half smile.
"Exactly" Sunny commented, then looked half nervous. "I hope it's ok that he comes home with us. I mean, I talked with Fluttershy, and she said they sleep 23 hours a day, and that wouldn't really help the farm but I-"
"Come on!" Scootaloo brushed past Sunny and Applejack, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Bell quickly following behind her. "They're announcing the winners!"
"Best be getting ' up there." Applejack smiled as she motioned for Sunny to follow her onto the side stage that was just outside the crowd's field of vision. As the yellow stallion bowed and tipped his hat to the audience as he stepped into their view, he walked up with Applejack and the rest of the performers, who stood on stage, wanting eagerly to see who the top 3 winners were.
"Judges, have you made your decision?" Twilight loudly for everypony in the crowd and back stage hear.
"Indeed we have, Princess" Mayor Mare spoke first into her mic. She cleared her throat and read off of a paper she and the other judges had written on. "But before we start, we would like to thank everypony for coming out and supporting our community. The results of tonight's turn out will further support future events just like this. Now, in third place we have the Applejack and the Apple family, for their loving and heart warming family sing along!"
As the mayor spoke, Applejack , Apple Bloom and Granny (who was still half asleep by this time) made their way onto the stage, smiling and waving at the crowd. The next pony to speak was the guest judge, Hoity Touty.
"Before we announce the second place winner, we would like to give a special mention to a last minute entry" the purplish grey stallion said as he adjusted his sunglasses. "Thank you, Forest Rain for your touching and moving song. I wish we could have placed you in the top 3, but you are, I'm afraid, not technically a resident of Ponyville. But thank you for performing."
Forest Rain then stepped up on stage with his guitar strapped across his back. He smiled and waved as he took a spot at the end near Granny Smith. He turned to the judges and smiled "That's more then ok. Thank you for the mention."
The judges smiled back and nodded. Hoity continued to read from their list. "Well that being the case, we feel the second slot goes to none other then miss Octavia, for her elegant and heartfelt performance."
Octavia smile as she walked onto the stage, smiling at Sunny as she walked past him. As she reached the stage, she gave a slight elegant bow. Rainbow Dash then grabbed the mic from Hoity, not even looking at the paper they had, already knowing who won the competition.
"And first prize, and the prize of a basket of sweets from Sugar Cube Corner of their choosing, goes to none other then Ponyville's own mail mare and mad doctor," Rainbow flew from her seat and hovered in the air for a moment, the mic still in her hooves as she called out "Derpy and Doctor Whooves! Congratulations you guys!"
As she said that Derpy and Doctor Whooves crashed into the stage's curtain again, this time though, they only tore half of the curtain down with them. Derpy crawled through the pile of cloth and poked her head out with a huge smile on her face. "We won?!"
Every pony smiled at her and nodded as Doctor Whooves quickly joined her side, mumbling about how Rainbow Dash announced him as being the town's 'mad doctor'.
"Yeah! We won Doctor! We won!" Derpy could bairly contain her joy and excitement as she gave Doctor Whooves the biggest and tightest bear hug she had ever given him. His eyes nearly popped out of his head as his face turned red and ten blue from lack of oxygen. "Do you know what this means?!"
The Doctor couldn't really answer, all the air in his lungs had left his body. But he was able to make a slight whimpering noise which he meant to be 'you'll let me go?'
"That right Doctor! " Derpy said as she released him. "A basket of all kinds of muffins!!!"
The Doctor grasped for air but only smiled at his mare friend as she seemed to glow and beam with joy and pride. She was a star to the crowd tonight, but she would always be that way to him. She would always shine brightly in his eyes.