> Sweetie and the Scientist
>  by TheDorkside99
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Sweetie's Surprise
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	“Get up, sleepy head,” said Sweetie Belle bursting through the bedroom door.

The sun had not even risen above the clouds when a slumbering Rarity was yanked out of bed like a blanket and rushed to the kitchen. By the time the sleepiness seeped out of her bed crusted eyes, she was assaulted with a hastily prepared breakfast of burnt toast and a mysterious looking bowl of goop.

“W-What on earth is this?” she asked.

“Breakfast,” Sweetie replied, strapping her saddle bag around her tiny waist. She turned her attention to adjusting her scarf. “Now hurry up and eat, I have something special I wanna show you before we get to school.”

The cautious unicorn dipped the head of her elegantly fashioned spoon into the sludgy mess and watched with fear as it disappeared forever. “I will ask again. What on Celestia’s green earth is this?”

Sweetie sighed and looked at the bowl. “It’s oatmeal.”

“It’s an abomination!” She screamed as the rest of her spoon sunk to its dissolving doom.

“Whatever, just hurry up and eat so we can go.”

Rarity got up from the table and scooted backwards towards the refrigerator, keeping a close eye on the oatmeal. “Not until I get a proper breakfast. A breakfast that won’t eat my insides like a ruthless monster from a late night flick would be wonderful.”

Sweetie reached for the front door. She groaned at the sight of her carefully preparing a cup of fruit-filled yogurt. “What’re you doing? I already made you breakfast so we could leave as soon as possible.”

“Sweetie, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You cannot function throughout the day properly without it. The only exception being that Frankenstein-like creation you made in that bowl!”

“I ate it and I feel fine.”

“Dear Luna,” she said, dipping a new spoon into her yogurt and breathing a sigh of relief when she pulled it out unscathed. “Let’s just hope you don’t have to visit the school nurse today.”

Sweetie rolled her eyes. “Whatever.” She looked up at the clock. “Okay, you got your breakfast. Now let’s go, please!”

“Okay, no need to get your mane in a frizzle. Speaking of which, did you comb your mane?”

“Yes.”

“Did you brush your teeth?”

“Yes,” with a groan.

“Did you shake out the kinks in your tail?”

“Yes,” with a groan and a rolling of the eyes.

“Did you use the bathroom?”

“Rarity!” 

“I’m sorry Sweetie Belle, but I am not going to set out on the long walk to the schoolhouse knowing that halfway through I will have to hear you complain that you have to go really, really bad.”

Sweetie Belle opened the door and pointed to the schoolhouse. “It only takes five minutes to get there! What are you, lazy?”

Rarity gasped. “Sweetie, how could you say such a thing? Of course I’m not lazy! I was going to start a rigorous workout regimen this Monday.”

“Today is Monday,” Sweetie replied flatly.

“Then I’ll start after I drop you off at school.” She cleared her throat. “Let’s go.”

“Finally!” 

Before the mare set one hoof in front of the other, she was pushed from behind by Sweetie. As soon as they were outside, her vision was suddenly blocked by a soft, woolly material. “Hey!”

“Sorry Rarity, but since it’s a surprise I need to keep you from seeing it.”

“B-But you’ll catch a cold! What’s the point of surprising me if you put yourself in that kind of risk?”

“Come on sis, it only the first day of fall. It still feels like summer.”

“That is no excuse! You know how the Pegasi like to change the weather unannounced. Why it could rain, or even snow and you could catch double pneumonia or…”

The rest of her lecture went through one ear and out the other while Sweetie assured the effectiveness of the blindfold by making silly faces and mocking the prissy pony’s movements. She was satisfied with the results and continued to push her older sister down the street. They blasted through the town of Ponyville past the sleepy houses, but they wouldn’t remain sleepy much longer as Rarity parted the stillness with her shrieks of terror. Groggy heads with unkempt manes popped out of every door and window they passed, often accompanied by groans of complaint about the complimentary wakeup call.

Out of the town square, the sisters found themselves walking on dirt as the wide cobblestone road narrowed and became grittier. This made the rushed pace a little more strenuous on the filly’s tiny leg muscles and scuffed the mare’s manicured hooves. They decided that Rarity would follow Sweetie’s voice guiding her the rest of the way. After another two minutes or so of stumbling and bumbling, they reached a small hill of low green grass. Atop the hill was an old crackling tree. Slowly, Sweetie led her sister to the top of the hill to one of the twisty branches. A little too close it turned out.

“Owuh!” yelled Rarity.

“Sorry sis,” Sweetie replied, trying to hold back a giggle but failing. She pulled the scarf from around her sister’s eyes. “Ta-da! Do you see it?”

Rarity blinked several times before focusing where her sister pointed. “What.”

“The thing I wanted to show you. Don’t you see it?”

Rarity squinted hard but still couldn’t find what she was supposed to marvel at. “Sweetie Belle, I don’t know what you’re talking about. All I see is the morning sky.”

“No, silly. The surprise is right next to you!”

Rarity looked and spotted the previously invisible branch. She was little more than underwhelmed at the sight of the old tree and she turned to give her sister’s wide grin a disappointed scowl. “Sweetie Belle, of all the worthless things you could’ve possibly shown me you chose this old tree?”

Sweetie groaned. “No, you dummy! Look at what’s on the tree hanging from the branch right there.” She pointed directly at the hanging object.

“Okay, you don’t have to be such a flank hurt,” her sister said. She neared her head to the object that hung lightly from the branch. It swung from side to side from the gentle breathing coming from her nostrils. The leaf-like exterior looked breakable to the touch. “What is it?”

Sweetie Belle walked up to her and whispered, “It’s a cocoon.”

“A cocoon?”

“Yeah, isn’t it great? It’s gonna be a butterfly pretty soon. I’m not sure how long it’ll take but I don’t think it should take long, do you?”

Rarity didn’t say anything, her eyes fixed on the cocoon.

“Uh, Rarity?”

Rarity finally broke from her gaze and turned to address her excited sister, prefacing her words with a troubled sigh. “Sweetie, while I admire your fascination with…nature, I am finding it hard to believe that you would go through all this trouble just to show me this.”

“What’re you talking about?”

“Sweetie, don’t you think that waking me from my beauty sleep, cooking me Celestia knows what for breakfast, then tearing across the town waking everypony up from their sleep counts as even the smallest of inconveniences?”

“I don’t even know what ‘inconveniences’ means.”

“What I’m trying to say is this cocoon was not worth all the trouble you put us through. It’s nice, but definitely not that important.”

“It’s important to me,” Sweetie replied, dropping her head.

Rarity knelt on the grass and lifted her sister’s head. “Hey, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I just want to make sure that next time you want to share one of your ‘surprises’ with me you let me know beforehoof.”

“But why? Isn’t that the point of surprises? To surprise you?” she asked raising her voice.

“Sweetie, I am a very busy mare with tons of orders to fill. Today I’m going to be very busy finalizing a few details on a large order of dresses that needs to be shipped to Manehatten tomorrow morning. I simply can’t have any small inconveniences getting in the way.”

“There’s that word again. What does ‘inconvenience’ even mean?”

Rarity cleared her throat. “Well, an inconvenience is like a distraction. It’s something that gets in your way keeping you from accomplishing your goals. Like a problem.”

“Oh,” Sweetie said in a low voice.

“Sweetie.”

The repentant unicorn put her hooves around her little sister, but was rejected.

“Come on Rarity, I don’t wanna keep you from your goals today.”





“Rarity! Sweetie Belle! How’re ya’ll doin’ this fine mornin’?” Applejack waved at the sisters from the schoolyard.

Rarity waved back wildly in the air and shouted a greeting, but was masked by the morning bell for which Sweetie Belle was glad. The sound of dashing hoofsteps and smooching kisses filled the autumn air. Even the normally rugged Applejack accepted a quick peck on the cheek from Apple Bloom with smiling eyes.

“Now you have wonderful day at school, okay sugarcube?” 

“Love ya sis,” and off the filly sprinted with the others.

Rarity couldn’t help but admire the tenderness of the moment, a soft hoof perching against her slow and steadied heart. She turned to Sweetie Belle with the warmest of intentions and lowered her face to give her sister the sweet kiss of departure. Little did she know that when she paused her steps to swoon at the farm sisters’ show of affection she inadvertently set herself up to plant her lips right on her sister’s flank. 

“Rarity!” Sweetie protested.

Rarity retracted like a measuring tape and flashed an apologetic grin to her embarrassed sister. “S-Sorry, Sweetie Belle. Will you allow me to give you a small goodbye kiss on your cheek?” She cleared her throat. “I mean, on your face?”

“Make it quick,” she responded flatly.

While the kiss was quick, it was anything but small. Her moist lips squashed against the filly’s face like a water balloon. She offered to wipe it off with a handkerchief, but Sweetie refused choosing instead to swipe her own hoof across the area.

The filly trotted slowly off to class hardly acknowledging her sister’s cries of farewell and good luck. She was the last one in before the doors were closed and all the parents left the yard bare and lifeless. Only two mares stood side by side staring at the wooden schoolhouse together.

The farm pony broke the silence. “Crazy, huh?” 

“I don’t understand.”

“Wasn’t too long ago we were in that schoolhouse, roused up an’ all for the first day. And now seein’ baby Apple Bloom all grown up and eager to learn everything she can about anything is like a fresh reminder of what I used to be like.” She paused to let out a sigh. “Those were the days.”

“Applejack,” said Rarity, changing the subject. “I was wondering if you could do me a huge favor today.”

“Sure,” said a revamped farm pony. “You know ah like helpin’ out the pony folk.”

“Great! You see, I have a huge order to fill for a Manehatten client that needs to be sent out tomorrow morning and I need all the concentration I can get. Would you mind taking Sweetie Belle to Sweet Apple Acres with you after school? I can pick her up as soon as seven o’clock. That should give me enough time to finish up the order.”

“Rarity, ya’ll don’ need to ask all formal-like. Sweetie’s always welcome at Sweet Apple Acres. In fact, it’ll be an honor to have her over.”

Rarity sighed with relief. “Oh Applejack, you don’t know how much this means to me and my business. I promise to pay you back somehow.” She inspected her friend’s hat. “How about a few touches here and there?”

Applejack jerked her head. “Well now, that won’t be necessary. Like ah said: it would be an honor to have your lil’ sister over.”

Rarity’s eyes narrowed a little, but the look was accompanied by a playful smile. “Very well then, I must be off. See you at seven, Applejack. And thank you again.”

“Don’t mention it! See ya at seven, Rarity!” 



	

“Oh mah gosh,” exclaimed Apple Bloom. “Check out this new saddle bag my sister made for me!”

“That’s so cool,” said Scootaloo, admiring the carefully crafted apple buttons that kept the tough brown knapsack shut. She reached into her saddle bag and pulled out a set of three shiny new erasers. “Take a look at these!”

Apple Bloom smiled. “Neato! Hey, each of them is the same color as we are.”

“That’s the best part,” replied Scootaloo, opening the package and handing the cream-colored eraser to her farm filly friend. “I got these especially for us so we can all start off the year with new erasers.”

“That’s mighty kind of you, Scoots!”

“And here’s yours, Sweetie Belle.”

The cheery filly held out the white eraser for her friend, but she was completely ignored. Ever since the fillies claimed a spot where they could sit together, the glum Cutie Mark Crusader hadn’t moved her head off the desk.

“Hey Sweetie, are you alright?”

“Yeah,” added Apple Bloom. “Do you have a headache or somethin’?”

Sweetie Belle sighed and lifted her head. “No. I’m just a little sad because of what happened this morning with Rarity.”

“What did she do this time?” asked Scootaloo, rolling her eyes.

“Well, I woke her up extra early and made her breakfast so I could show her a surprise before getting to school. But all she said about it was that it was an ‘inconvenience’.”

“An incon-wha?” asked Apple Bloom.

“Inconvenience,” began Sweetie. “It means something that gets in the way of your goals. Like a problem.”

“Well that wasn’t very nice.”

“What was the surprise you showed her?” asked Scootaloo.

“It was a cocoon I found yesterday hanging off that old tree by the path we take to get to school.”

“Really? And she didn’t think that was cool?”

“I guess not if she called it an inconvenience.” Sweetie rammed her face into the desk.

“I wouldn’t worry ‘bout it too much, Sweetie,” reassured Apple Bloom putting a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “All grown-ups think we’re an inconvenience. Besides, we don’t think your surprise is an inconvenience. Right Scoots?”

“Heck yeah,” she said. “Cocoons are awesome.”

“Thanks guys,” replied Sweetie, sitting up. “Maybe after school I can go show you the cocoon. It really does look pretty neat.”

“You said it!” cried her two friends.

Just then the door to the classroom swung open with a dignified elegance and inside stepped two arrogant fillies, much to the Crusaders’ chagrin.

“Like, sorry we’re fashionably late,” announced Silver Spoon to the class.

“Uh, no we’re not,” added Diamond Tiara. The two fillies bumped flanks and giggled.

“Talk about an inconvenience,” said Apple Bloom.

“Yeah, one on each flank,” added Scootaloo.

Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara walked up to where the Crusaders sat and eyed Apple Bloom’s new backpack with disgust. 

“So like, how many burlap sacks went into making that trash bag, huh?” joked Silver Spoon.

The farm filly met the rude comment with a distasteful smirk.

The girls turned their attention to Scootaloo. “So like,” began Diamond Tiara. “It’s the first day of school and all you got was a pack of some lame erasers?”

“Oh yeah,” she struck back. “I don’t see you with any new erasers.”

“Well duh, that’s because I never make any mistakes you flightless failure.”

Scootaloo fumed in her seat.

“Like, at least those two losers brought something of some value,” said Silver Spoon staring at Sweetie Belle’s empty desk. “The only thing she brought to school was her stupid face!”

Sweetie charged up from her seat and stuck her face into the bully’s. “I don’t have a stupid face. You do!”

“You wish I had a stupid face, but alas looking like you would be too much of a…inconvenience.”

“Huh?”

Sweetie’s challenger grinned. “I saw your pathetic attempt to show your sister that ‘cocoon’ earlier this morning on the way to school. You know, it’s such a shame that such an amazing and beautiful fashion designer like Rarity got stuck with you for a sister. I bet she wished she had a prettier filly for a sister that cared about her fashion like me.”

“You better shut up, Silver Spoon,” snarled Sweetie through gritted teeth.

“Or what? You know it’s true. She just doesn’t care about grimy little bugs like you.”

The final bell rang  and the two bullies left to their seats, laughing the whole way. Sweetie Belle cringed with anger before falling into her seat, her depression reenergized by Silver Spoon’s heartless words.

“Don’t pay any attention to that mean ol’ Silver Spoon,” said Apple Bloom rubbing her friend’s slumped back.

“Yeah, she’s just a snooty bag of wind just like Diamond Tiara,” added Scootaloo.

“But what they said is true,” said Sweetie. “My sister doesn’t care about what I like.”

“You wanna talk to Miss Cheerilee ‘bout it?” suggested Apple Bloom.

“Speaking of Miss Cheerilee,” said Scootaloo looking around the classroom. “Where is she?”

Just then, a loud crack of the ruler echoed in the room, seemingly triggered by Scootaloo’s question. All eyes darted over to the schoolmaster’s desk where a kinky orange mane slowly ascended from behind. The students looked on with horror as the unrecognizable mane was followed by a pair of equally bright orange glasses and a stethoscope.

“Good morning my young group of Equus Caballus,” he said. “Are you ready for a fun-filled day of exploring?”

> The Five Rules for Optimal Living
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The entire class erupted into gasps.

“Oh no, it’s the doctor!” cried a filly with pigtails.

“I don’t wanna get a shot!” cried a colt sucking his hoof.

“Does he check for teeth too?” asked another colt chewing gum.

“Children.” The doctor raised his hooves in the air and brought the sea of panicked voices down to a silence. He adjusted his glasses and scanned the room, appearing to be taking mental notes on his new pupils. He trotted down the middle of the desks with a slow gait. Not a single student budged. He paused in front of the colt chewing gum, an act that was against the rules, and knelt down to his level. The children watched with peeled eyes waiting for the impending rebuke.

“My boy,” he said. “I would like to check your heart with my stethoscope if you don’t mind.”

The colt stammered. “B-But, I feel fine.”

The doctor stood to address the class. “Children,” he said with an authoritative air. “The first rule of optimal living is this: ‘I feel fine’ is the worst evidence to include in a diagnosis. Pain is seldom the first indication of something wrong. But it is in fact proof of a problem already in progressed stages.”

He took a moment to scan the class again. Blank stares blanketed by fear and confusion.

“In other words, there could be something wrong with your body even though there is no pain. In fact, all problems start this way. Viruses can be introduced to the body through painless means like being breathed in from the air. Yet, when they begin to replicate with no barriers to halt the process, their increased levels of activity can cause the body to react negatively or with pain.” He turned back to the colt. “And so my boy, will you allow me to check your heart for any unseen problems?”

The colt, with eyes large as saucers, nodded in approval of the request.

The doctor knelt down once again and pressed his tool against the chest of the colt. Chairs scraped across the floor and supported curious students craning their necks to get a good look. After a minute or so, the doctor switched the chest piece over to his patient’s back.

“Okay, now I want you to breathe in as deeply as you can.”

The colt obeyed. With stuttered breath he filled his lungs with hushed air. The students sympathized with him by holding their own breaths.

“Good, now breathe out.”

The colt let out a hefty sigh of relief. “Doctor?”

“Yes?”

“A-Am I gonna be okay?”

The doctor smiled and gave the anxious colt a gentle rub on the back. “You’re going to be just fine my boy. You have a strong, healthy heart. I take it you play sports, right?”

“Yeah. Soccer.”

The doctor addressed the class. “Rule number two of optimal living: Be active. It doesn’t matter what you pursue as long as your body moves. Movement keeps joints flexible and aids in the transport of vital fluids around the body. It vitalizes the mind and it strengthens the heart, keeping its workload at an ideal level.”

The faces of the children contorted with confusion. The keen doctor began to circle the room, driving the mass of students back to their seats facing forward, hooves clasped over their desks.

“I can see so many questions just floating in the air,” he said with astonishment. He went back to the teacher’s desk and reached down behind it. When he came back up, the students were surprised to see a butterfly net in his possession. He started waving the net as if trying to catch something that hovered just out of his reach. 

“And,” he paused a moment to catch his breath. “I just can’t seem to trap those little buggers!”

He continued trying to trap the “questions” out of the air, running and swinging his net like a clumsy fool attacking a flying piñata. A few of the students giggled, but most of them just watched in dumbfounded wonder. The doctor swung his net and landed it on a filly’s head.

“Got it!” he screamed.

The entire class broke into muffled giggles as the doctor carefully removed the net off the filly who was relieved to have her head back. He reached in and pulled out an invisible object about the size of an apple.

“This question reads: Where is Miss Cheerilee?”

“Hey, I had that question,” said a colt.

“Me, too!” cried Apple Bloom.

“While I cannot distinguish to whom this belongs to, I do have the answer. Miss Cheerilee is sick and as her doctor I recommended she take a whole week off so she can rest at home in bed.”

“But how did she get sick?” asked Snips.

The doctor crouched and stared at Snips. “I see one of the questions has landed on your head my boy. Hold still so I can catch it.” He crept closer and closer to the colt, the tension spilling out of the lips of every child in the form of snickers. Snips too was chuckling. When the doctor was mere inches away, he sprang up and swung his net down on top of his head.

“Aha! I got it!”

The doctor reached in and pulled out the question and held it up for all to see. “Now then, the answer to Snips’s question is…”

The students waited for the rest of the response but the doctor simply stood with a plotting look. Before the awkward silence became too awkward, Snips finally asked, “Aren’t you gonna answer the question?”

“I could,” he said narrowing his eyes into a mischievous glare. “But I haven’t spotted it yet.”

Several "Huh’s" and "What’s" sprouted around the room. 

“So it’s floating around in the air or something?” asked Sweetie Belle. “Can you catch it with your net?” 

Manystudents snickered at her question. The doctor, however, dignified the question with a curious smile. “You asked a very good question, milady. Unlike questions, answers reside in the possession of answerers. Therefore, only the answerer can answer by providing the answer.”

Another round of "Huh’s" circled the room.

“In other words,” he continued. “While questions need to be caught, answers only need to be spotted. They almost always are willing to be spotted. Like this.” He stood on the chair of an absent student and cupped his hooves over his mouth. “Why is Miss Cheerilee sick?”

Three hooves shot into the air.

“Aha! There they are. You with the green mane, tell me your answer.”

“Well, I think Miss Cheerilee ate something that made her sick.”

“Good! Very good! Now what say you, missy?”

“Maybe she has a cold.”

“That’s a plausible explanation indeed! And finally the filly with the orange eyes and red mane, what say you my dear?”

Apple Bloom lowered her hoof and cleared her throat. “I think that maybe Miss Cheerilee caught some sort of virus like you were sayin’ earlier. Maybe she ate somethin’ or was out too late when it got cold and caught a virus.”

“Excellent answers and good speculations my dear!”

Sweetie gave her farm friend a high hoof, prompting the bullies in the back to make fake gagging noises. They returned the teases with pouting lips.

“So what if Apple Bloom said some smart-sounding stuff,” began Diamond Tiara. “It doesn’t mean she’s right, right?”

The doctor thought for a second. “Well, you are right about that. Anything is possible when it comes to seeking the right answer.”

“But at least she’s trying to find the right answer, right doc?” asked Scootaloo, coming to her friend’s defense.

“That’s true too,” he said. He took a seat on Miss Cheerilee’s chair and raised his legs behind his head.

“But isn’t the point of answering a question to find the right answer?” added Diamond Tiara glaring at the earth pony. “You can’t just throw any answer out there. You’ll sound like a bird brain.”

“Better to be a bird brain with an answer than a no-brain with no answer, Diamond Tiara!” snapped Scootaloo. 

The students gave their undivided attention to the two quarreling fillies. The doctor closed two oblivious eyes to the heated argument.

“If I don’t have a brain then how can I be alive, Misses No Flight Zone?”

“Well, if Apple Bloom is a bird brain then how can she talk, Misses No Magic Zone?”

Sweetie Belle pulled her fired up friend close. “Uh Scootaloo, I can’t use my magic yet either.” 

“Like duh, everyone knows unicorns don’t develop their magical abilities until they grow up. I can’t say the same for Pegasuses though. Everyone knows they can fly almost as soon as they’re born. I mean, we all heard the tale of how Rainbow Dash got her cutie mark. Why can’t you fly yet Scootaloo? Huh? What makes you so lame that you can’t get one foot off the ground without turning upside down like a balloon with all the helium sucked out of it?”

Scootaloo jumped off her seat. “Oh yeah? Well, like, everyone knows about how Twilight Sparkle used her magic as a filly to get her cutie mark. So what makes you so lametastically lamer than lamesauce that you can’t use yours, huh?”

“Scootaloo!” chided Sweetie Belle.

“Why don’t you ask your friend Sour Belle, you failbird!”

“Girls, I think that’s enough,” said Apple Bloom. “We ain’t gonna get nowhere with all this fightin’. What would Miss Cheerilee say at a time like this?”

“But she isn’t here,” rebutted Silver Spoon. 

“That don’t mean we can do whatever we feel like. Besides, this is still her classroom so we gotta follow her rules jus’ like if she were sittin’ right there at her desk.”

The students looked up where she pointed and were shocked to find the doctor gone. 

“Where’d he go?” asked several students amidst the mumbles and side whispers.

Sweetie Belle looked all around with the others. She finally spotted him at the back of the classroom leaning against the wall with a single hoof in one of his lab coat pockets. His eyes were closed and his face relaxed with a smile. “Um, doctor,” she spoke. “Aren’t you gonna teach us?” Her voice aroused the doctor from his thoughts and he began to make his way towards the front.

“The question my dear is not whether I am going to teach, but rather if you have learned.”

Her face crumpled with confusion as did the rest of the students’. “But I don’t think we learned anything.”

“Au contraire, moi petite belle,” he said smiling. “I believe you’ve all learned a few valuable things today.”

“Like what?”

“Well,” Apple Bloom began. “I did learn that viruses are like things that enter your body that make ya sick.”

“Yeah,” said Scootaloo. “And remember when he said something about being active and it being good for you or something?”

“You mean good for your heart, Scootalose?” teased Diamond Tiara. The Pegasus stuck her tongue out at her arrogant grin.

“I guess those are some things we learned today,” said Sweetie. “But we spent like the last twenty minutes doing nothing but watch you using your net and stuff.”

“Actually my dear, I believe that you spent the last twenty minutes learning the most valuable lesson today.” The doctor with the net in hoof addressed the class formally. “Allow me to explain. I have been using this butterfly net here as an example of sorts. A physical metaphor if you will.”

Blank stares formed from all sides, but that didn’t deter the doctor from his eloquent explanation.

“Can you really catch questions flying in the air with a butterfly net?”

“No way,” answered Sweetie Belle. “In fact, I don’t think questions even fly at all.”

“You’re absolutely right. The fact that questions float around the room like a pack of butterflies is in itself an anomaly. However, it’s not the fact that I’m concerned with but the picture that it creates in your mind. Tell me class, what do you think of when I say ‘Questions flying around the room’?”

“I picture like words just flying around an’ we try to catch them, but it’s hard,” said a colt.

“Yeah, I think it’s because maybe they fly too fast,” said another.

“Or maybe they’re so hard to see that you need some binoculars to find them,” said a filly. “I mean a microscope.”

“Maybe the questions don’t wanna get caught so they fly away when someone gets really close,” said Apple Bloom.

“Maybe questions would like it better if they were left alone,” added Scootaloo.

“What kind of stupid reason is that,” said Diamond Tiara. “Only you would come up with that, Scootalose.”

“Stuff it, Diamond!”

“Maybe the questions are just afraid of being seen,” whispered Sweetie Belle. No one heard her carefully thought out answer among the light murmur of the classroom, but the doctor seemed to pick it up as if he were standing right next to her.

“Say that again, my dear,” he said to her, loud enough so the classroom could hear.

“W-Well, I just think maybe the questions are afraid to be seen. I know that when I wanna ask something, I’m afraid it’s going to be a stupid question that everypony knows the answer to so I don’t ask it so I don’t look stupid. Maybe the questions don’t wanna sound stupid like we don’t wanna look stupid.”

All eyes shifted to the doctor. He planted a hoof on the desk and rested the net on his shoulder. “So why do answers almost appear without trouble?” 

“I think it’s because since they’re the opposite of questions, they like to be seen. It makes sense because whenever someone thinks they have the answer to something, they always raise their hooves high and hope Miss Cheerilee will call on them. Even if it’s wrong they still do it because they think it’s right.”

“Does it matter if they’re right?” he pressed.

“Yeah.  I mean, you keep trying until you get it right, right?”

“But why?”

“Because if you say the wrong answer then you’re wrong. It’s bad to be wrong, isn’t it?”

“So what must we do in order to be as little wrong as possible?”

Sweetie had to think for a minute. “Ask a lotta questions and find good answers?”

The doctor turned to address the class. “My students, rule number three for healthy living: Ask many questions and find good answers. As our clever scientist here pointed out, sometimes questions can seem daunting to be asked. However, if we do not take the risk to catch our evading questions, then nothing will be discovered. Answers, on the other hoof, must be chosen and believed with caution. Anyone can say they have the answer, but if it does not have solid evidence backing it up, it is as good as a broken ladder. Therefore as we continue our studies, remember to ask any question that comes to mind and consider the answers you get.”

He paused a moment to let the words sink in. Some students understood what he meant, but others still looked lost in the dark. This prompted the doctor to take a piece of chalk and draw a large circle on the board. “Class,” he began. “What questions come to mind about this drawing I made.”

“What questions,” posed Silver Spoon. “You drew a circle. Anyone with half a brain can see that.”

“But is it a circle?”

Blank stares, a common theme that day.

“What is this a drawing of?”

“I don’t know. A super circle?”

“What must you do to find out?”

Silver Spoon grunted and slumped in her seat.

“This is making my brain hurt,” said Scootaloo.

“Uh doctor,” said Apple Bloom. “I think we’re all a little confused by your lesson.”

Almost every head nodded in approval of the statement. But one hoof shot into the air, slicing the air of confusion.

“Yes, my dear scientist, what do you have to say?”

Sweetie began. “I think I figured it out. When you told us to ask as many questions as possible, it was to find out as much as we can about something. When you said to be careful about what answers we find, it was so we can be right all the time and not wrong.”

“Go on.”

“That circle you drew on the board can be anything like a ball or even a pizza. If we ask questions about it, then we can find out for sure what it is. Then we can take all of the answers and figure out what it is. For example...” She stood and strutted to the chalk board. “Doctor, were you hungry when you drew this?”

“What kind of question is that?” asked Silver Spoon. “How is that gonna help?”

“She’s just trying to impress the class,” added Diamond Tiara. “But she’s failing horribly.”

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo shushed the bullies.

The doctor looked over at the clock, smiling. “Well, it is getting close to lunch time. Yes I was hungry.”

“Did you know it was getting close to lunch time when you drew this circle?”

“Why yes, yes I did.”

“Well,” Sweetie turned to the class. “My answer to the question is that the doctor drew a pizza because he drew it knowing it was close to lunch, and he was hungry.”

The class cheered and clapped for Sweetie, except the two bullies of course. The little questioner smiled, feeling like she had solved the mystery. When the commotion had died down, the doctor looked at the board and thought. “I’m afraid,” he said. “That you’re wrong, Sweetie.”

“What?” She was flabbergasted.

“Rule number four for optimal living class: Not everything is what it seems. Though evidence can prove anything, evidence can also prove everything including false conclusions. Though our scientist’s conclusion seemed reasonable, it was in fact a wrong conclusion. What I drew here was actually the wheel of a wagon I saw this morning while walking to school.”

A pair of cackles came from the back of the class, making the ground around Sweetie Belle feel like it was caving in. She began the lonely walk back to her desk, head down and eyes quaking when the doctor’s hoof rested on her shoulder. She looked up.

“However,” he announced, quieting the class. “The good thing about being wrong is that it eliminates one possibility out of hundreds, possibly even thousands. That is why it is important to remember rule number five for optimal living.”

“What’s that?” asked Sweetie, wiping her eyes.

The doctor smiled. “Never stop searching for truth.”
	
	

> A Farmer and Librarian's Guide to Life
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The final bell  rang  and all the students ran to the schoolyard to meet with their parents. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo spotted Applejack from afar and rushed towards the farm filly’s bigger sister. She wasn’t alone as Big Macintosh towered next to her, a single grain of wheat sitting between his front teeth. 	

“Howdy y’all,” Applejack greeted. “How was school?”

“It was interestin’,” answered Apple Bloom, giving hugs to her siblings.

“Interestin’ huh? Well I got an interestin’ proposition myself for the three o’ y’all. Big Mac and I’re goin’ into town to pick up some extra barrels for the annual First Week of School celebration. Granny Smith is takin’ her afternoon nap, so how’d y’all like to come and give us a hoof pullin’ them barrels over to the farm? I do pay handsomely ya know.” She winked at the last comment.

“Sure, we can do it!” cried Apple Bloom.

“You can count me in,” added Sweetie Belle.

They both looked at Scootaloo. “You guys go ahead. I kinda already have plans.”

“Really? What plans?” asked Sweetie.

“Oh you know, just your normal run-of-the-mill plans. Nothing special.”

“Well, you’ll surely be missed sugar cube.” The farm pony turned to her two assistants. “Well now, we better get a move on. We gotta be home by seven ‘fore Rarity shows up to pick up Sweetie Belle.”

The four ponies started towards Ponyville waving to Scootaloo as she walked the opposite way. They marched out of the schoolyard and into the narrow dirt path that led into town. They were nearing the hill on which the old tree sat when Sweetie Belle suddenly remembered the cocoon she promised to show her friends before class.

“Hey Applejack. When we get to the top of this hill, is it okay if I show Apple Bloom something hanging on the old tree? I promise it’ll only take a minute.”

“Sure thing Sweetie Belle. I don’t see how a lil’ detour could hurt.”

As soon as they arrived at the top of the hill, Sweetie led Apple Bloom to the tree. She pointed to the end of the old branch where the leafy cocoon swung gently in the wind. The farm filly gasped with wonder.

“Mah, I’ve never seen anythin’ like it. It looks so much like a leaf.”

“I know, isn’t it the coolest?”

The two older ponies arrived at the scene and allowed their excited sister to present them the discovery.

“Well I’ll be,” said Applejack. “That’s one mighty fine cocoon there. She’s gonna be one beautiful butterfly someday. Ain’t that right Big Mac?”

“Eeyup,” he replied.

“Wow, I’m so glad you guys love it just as much as I do,” said Sweetie. She turned her head towards Ponyville. “Not like my sister.”

“Well, we pony folk who live off the land find joy in nature. In fact, a cocoon like this here beauty always reminds me of how mysterious and wonderful life really is. Puts an extra kick in my step.”

The four walkers continued their journey to Ponyville down the hill and into the crowded streets. They made their way through the bustle to a hardware store where two wagons stacked with about twenty barrels each waited for them outside. Big Mac paid the associate at the door and the two shook hooves. The two older ponies each pulled a wagon while the two fillies followed closely behind, making sure the hatches didn’t burst open and release a sea of wooden barrels to swamp over them.

“I sure hope these heavy duty barrels were a good investment,” said Applejack, struggling to pull the large wagon over the cobblestone street. Strands of sweat stricken mane stuck to her forehead as more sweat ran down her back. “They’re almost as heavy as our normal barrels filled with apples.”

“Eeyup,” said Big Mac, a single drop of sweat trickling down his muzzle.

“How’re them hatches holdin’ up girls?”

“Jus’ fine,” called out Apple Bloom. She looked down at the wheels of the monstrous wagon her sister pulled and watched them spike up whenever they hit a bumpy stone. She turned to her friend. “Gosh, they sure are workin’ their tail off, right Sweetie Belle?”

The unicorn paid no attention to her. Her eyes were lost in the everyday activities of the residents of Ponyville. One mare bought two cases of strawberries and was carrying them to her small cart. A couple smelled a bouquet of roses, the single mare owning the booth watching them longingly. A family of four sat down at a round table, resting from the beating sun underneath the large woven parasol. The two children, both colts, licked around their ice cream cones trying to keep any of the melting goodness from spilling onto the street. The father and mother enjoyed a glass of cool iced tea, a lemon wedge sitting on the edge of their wet glasses. The father wiped his glass over his warm forehead, relishing the tingly coolness and the joyful chuckle it elicited from his wife.

“Sweetie!”

Before she could react, the unicorn bumped her face into the wagon and fell to the ground. Apple Bloom tried hard to suppress a giggle while helping her distracted friend to her hooves. “Sorry Sweetie. I tried to warn you, but you seemed really distracted.”

Sweetie got to her hooves, shook her head and smiled. “It’s okay, I shoulda paid more attention.”

“Everything okay back there?” asked Applejack.

The two fillies made their way to the front to show themselves to Applejack and Big Macintosh. The two hard working ponies rested on a couple of large boulders on the side of the road. The two wagons sat on the ground. 

“You didn’t get hurt when you ran into the wagon, didja Sweetie?”

Sweetie silenced a giggle from Apple Bloom with a playful glare. “No, I’m just fine.”

“Well that’s good. I was afraid you’da hurt yourself. What happened anyway? Didja catch a handsome young colt back there or somethin’?”

“No, I just…” She ducked her head and sighed. “I guess I just wasn’t paying attention.”

“Does it have anything to do with what the doctor told us today, Sweetie?” asked Apple Bloom.

Applejack cocked her head “Doctor? Whaddya mean?”

“Well Miss Cheerilee was sick today so the doctor took her place. He said she was gonna be in bed for week.”

“So he’s gonna teach y’all all week or somethin’?” She looked at her brother who shrugged. “So what was it like havin’ a doctor for a teacher?”

“He taught us about the five rules for optimal living,” began Sweetie. “‘I feel fine’ is the worst evidence to include in a diagnosis, be active, ask many questions and find good answers, not everything is what it seems, and never stop searching for truth.”

“Go on.”

“I just kinda looked around town and saw everypony busy doing everyday things, like they don’t realize what they’re a part of. They should be looking for something, but they aren’t.”

“Lookin’ for what, sugar cube?”

“Life.”

“Life?” The farm pony looked at her brother again. Same reaction.

“Sweetie Belle,” asked Apple Bloom. “What do you mean ‘bout all this life stuff?”

“Applejack,” she said ignoring her friend’s concern. “Do you…know how life started?”

“Whaddya mean, Sweetie Belle?”

“How did everything happen? How did Equestria start?”

“Well now, I think you’re wonderin’ ‘bout the history of our dear country. Well, it all started back when the Pegasi and Earth ponies and Unicorns were separate nations and…”

“No, I know all about that. I mean.” She scooped up a small hoofful of dirt and poured it back on the ground. “How did the whole world start?”

“Oh, now I see what you’re gettin’ at.” She thought for a few moments of an answer to give the surprisingly deep question. “I really don’t know, Sweetie Belle. Mah guess is that the princesses had somethin’ to do with it. Maybe they created everything at the beginning of time an’, well, I don’t know.”

“You mean you never got taught about how everything was made in school?” asked Apple Bloom.

“Not in elementary school. Ain’t that right Big Mac?”

“Eeyup.”

“Well that doesn’t seem right,” said a determined Sweetie Belle. “What’s a filly to do when no one has the right answer about how everything got started? Someone must know, and I’m going to find out who.”

“But how?” asked Apple Bloom. 

“Rule number three: Ask lots of questions and find good answers.”

“I reckon y’all can start over there.” Applejack pointed about a quarter mile south to the Ponyville library. “I’m sure Twilight could give you a good answer, what with all them books she reads.”

“Good idea! Let’s go Apple Bloom.”

“Y’all sure it’s okay, Applejack?” 

Her sister waved them off. “Yeah, we got time. Besides, we can use all the time to rest our achin’ backs. Ain’t that right Big Mac? Big Mac?”

He was sound asleep, curled up in a gigantic red ball snoring like an Ursa Minor. The ponies laughed and off the two fillies ran towards the magical unicorn’s abode in search for an answer.





“Wow, that’s a pretty big question,” was Twilight’s response.

Sweetie Belle shifted uneasily. “Do you think it’s bad that we asked such a big question?” 

The librarian giggled. “Of course not! In fact, it makes me very happy to see two fillies so curious about the origins of the universe. More children should be like you!”

The fillies couldn’t help but beam at Twilight’s comment of praise. The magical unicorn led them inside the library to the bookshelves. They towered over the two fillies making them feel tiny. 

“Spike!” Twilight called out.

The speedy assistant skidded to a halt and raised an arm up to his forehead. “You called?”

“Please make our two guests a nutritious snack. Apples and peanut butter should do the trick.”

“With pleasure.” Spike dashed into the kitchen, a cascade of pots and pans toppling the eager helper.

“Now then, where did I put that book?”

“What book?” asked Apple Bloom.

The librarian ignored the question, scanning the titles at eye level and mumbling to herself.

“Here ya go!” exclaimed Spike. He placed a large platter of apple slices and slabs of peanut butter on a small table. He also put a pitcher of milk next to the snack entrée. “You know, just in case the peanut butter gets stuck to the roof of your mouth. Happens to me all the time. Then I can’t breathe fire for hours.”

The girls giggled until they heard a shriek of delight from Twilight. “I found it!”

The unicorn dropped a massive book the size of a cinder block onto the table. The impact tossed the platter and the pitcher into the air, both landing on her number one assistant’s head. Globs of peanut butter caked his eyelids shut and milk dripped all over his scales. He was blind and wet.

“Oops, sorry Spike.” Twilight giggled.

“That’s alright, I’ll just get another platter going. Can you point me to the direction of the kitchen, Twilight?”

“To your left.”

The baby dragon stumbled his way into the kitchen knocking over a vase, then the table on which the vase sat. After a good laugh, the ponies peered into the book which Twilight opened to a predetermined page. The text was tiny, microscopic, like ants crawling across a yellow picnic blanket. The librarian blew on the page creating a cloud of dust that tickled the noses of her two guests making them sneeze.

“Ah, here we are. The Origins of the Universe.” She pointed to the top of the page and drew her guests to it. “Take a look. You can find lots of different theories in this section. It’s all about how the universe came into existence.”

The two fillies read at the first paragraph:

“Currently, the prevailing cosmological theory indicates that the entire universe existed as an infinitely dense singularity which expanded in an explosive manner. This theory, popularized by the name ‘Magical Boom’, though collectively regarded as sufficient, has yet to accomplish the task of explaining the origin of the initial dense singularity.”

They did not continue reading.

“Mah brain hurts,” said Apple Bloom.

“What does this mean, Twilight?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“Well,” she began. “It means that modern science believes that billions of years ago the entire universe existed in one magic ball. It was the densest object that ever existed. Then, it exploded and all the debris spread out and created the universe we know today. Of course, it took time for things to get to how they are now, but that was the starting point for life as we know it.”

The fillies looked confused.

“So life started because of an explosion? Where did this happen?”

“In space.”

“Space?” asked Apple Bloom.

“But where did that ball come from? How did it get into space? And how was space made?”

Twilight sighed. “That’s the only thing modern science has yet to discover. Nopony knows where that ball came from. If you keep reading, you’ll find all sorts of theories on the origins of the magic ball, like this.” She flipped the pages and stopped at a section entitled “Origin of the Magic Ball: Theories”. “According to the Dispensational Theory, each atom of the magic ball existed in an infinite span of time frames, thus rendering the discovery of its origin entirely pointless.”

“And that means?” pressed Apple Bloom.

“Basically, the ball is infinite so it had no beginning or end.”

“But how is that possible?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“No one really knows, girls.” She walked to the window and peered out to the mountains. “I always wondered how everything got started, but anytime I read about a new theory it just confuses me. I’ve always believed in the wonders of science, but somehow I feel like they’re missing something.”

“Like what?” asked Apple Bloom.

“A creator.”

“You think the ball was made by somepony?” asked Sweetie. “But who?”

“I don’t know.”

“The Princesses?”

“Maybe. Or maybe it was their parents, or their grandparents.” She turned around and smiled at her two guests. “But in the end, what matters is that the world works on a consistent system and everything has a purpose. Whether we discover our origins in our lifetime or not, we can be sure the world will take care of itself just like it takes care of you and me.”

“Howdy, Twi.”

The three ponies were surprised by Applejack’s sudden entrance.

“Sorry ‘bout bargin’ in like that, but the door was open and I decided to let myself in.”

Twilight grinned. “No worries, I just wasn’t expecting it. I really need to remember to shut that door.”

Applejack chuckled. “Anyways, I came to take the girls home. Rarity’s gonna be pickin’ up Sweetie from my place pretty soon so we better get a move on.”

The fillies voiced their displeasure from having to leave the wonderful discussion, but obeyed and followed Applejack out the door. Before closing the door, Twilight called out, “Thanks for stopping by girls! Hope you find the answers to your questions!”

“Good answers I hope,” murmured Sweetie Belle.





“Thank you so much for watching Sweetie Belle, Applejack,” said Rarity. “I hope she wasn’t too much trouble.”

The farm pony locked the hatch of the empty wagon and smiled. “Nah, not at all! In fact, she was a great help today.”

“Good! Well, see you later then!”

The apple family waved the two unicorns goodbye as they walked off the property and onto the winding dirt path that led back to Ponyville. It was late in the evening, eight thirty to be exact, making Rarity an hour and a half late to pick up her sister. It didn’t appear to bother her, for she had an exceptionally good day for her business.

“So, how was school, dear sister?”

“Fine,” Sweetie mumbled.

“Sorry dear, you’ll have to speak louder.”

“I said it was fine.”

Rarity sighed. “Sweetie Belle, honestly, you need to learn how to speak up. How can you expect anyone to understand you if they can’t hear you? Don’t be scared to raise your volume a little.”

“I said I was fine!” she said, harshly. “And I wasn’t any trouble with Applejack either.”

“Okay, okay.” Rarity rolled her eyes. “You don’t have to get mad at me.”

“I’m not mad,” she grumbled.

The sisters spent the next five minutes in silence, looking in opposite directions. When they walked into the town, Rarity spoke. “So do you want to hear about my day?”

Sweetie shrugged.

“Well, when I got back home to review the orders I realized I had accidentally added pinstripe buttons to the dresses. The client wanted them all pure black and I hadn’t caught my mistake! But before I could do anything about it, who should show up but the client himself! Oh, I thought I was done for. What could I say? Well, to my pleasant surprise, he loved the pin stripe buttons and doubled the order right then and there! Since I still have more pinstripe buttons left over I don’t have to do much work for double the pay! Isn’t that wonderful, Sweetie Belle?”

No answer.

“Sweetie Belle?”

She was gone.

“Sweetie Belle, where are you?”

She looked all around and finally spotted her kneeling in a patch of grass. She marched over to her and swiped up her hoof.

“Hey, what’re you doing?” Sweetie protested.

“What is the matter with you, Sweetie? You think you can just run off at this time of night without telling me? You weren’t paying any attention to me were you?”

“I was just looking at something here, Rarity. It wasn’t like I was running away from your stupid story.”

“That is enough! You are not leaving my side until we get home even if I have to hold your hoof for the rest of the way.”

Sweetie swung her hoof back from her sister’s grip. “I can walk myself, thank you.”

Rarity let out a frustrated grunt and followed her little sister back home.

> Checkups
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	“Wake up, Sweetie Belle,” demanded Rarity.

The groggy filly rolled out of bed, mane tied in frazzled knots and the corners of her mouth crusted with spit. She turned her head slowly towards the alarm clock and was surprised to see that it read eight o’clock. Class had just started.

“I’m late!” she cried. “Why didn’t my alarm go off?”

“Because I turned it off,” said Rarity, slipping into a light sweater. “You have a doctor’s appointment at eight thirty, so you’ll be getting to school a little late today.”

“Why eight thirty? And why today?”

“Because that’s the day and time mother and father chose before they left for their vacation. Why did they choose the day I was supposed to oversee the shipment of possibly the most important transaction of my business career?”

Sweetie shrugged.

Rarity sighed. “Hurry and brush your teeth and comb your mane. We’ll pick up breakfast someplace out. I’ll meet you downstairs.” She turned on a hoof and marched down the stairs.

“Sheesh, touchy.” Sweetie Belle went to the bathroom and brushed her teeth. She gave her mane a few shakes and smiled at the result. She made her way down the stairs, pausing a moment to look out the living room window. Opalescence pressed her cold pink nose and two shivering paws against the chilly glass, her wide eyes pleading Sweetie to alert her master right away. She found her at the front door scribbling on a notepad. “Uh, Rarity?”

“Not now Sweetie Belle, I’m writing a note to post on the front door.”

“For what?”

“Well, since I will not be present for when the delivery truck arrives, I am writing them to direct their attention to the kitchen table where the package is placed. Terribly unprofessional of me I’m afraid, but what else can I do? My parents just don’t care about my craft it seems”

Sweetie rolled her eyes. Rarity opened the door and tacked on the note. “Come along Sweetie Belle. We don’t want to be late for your appointment.”

“But…”

The bothered unicorn started down the street so Sweetie Belle dashed after her, feeling uneasy that her sister’s fancy feline was left out in the cold. The two unicorns walked past the morning bustle of early grocery shoppers and store owners. A few ponies sat outside on wooden benches sipping cups of hot coffee, enjoying the crawl of its heat down their chests while basking in the sun’s warm glow. They came to a stand where a burly but friendly looking stallion with a curly moustache popped out from inside. He spoke with a heavy accent, but was understandable just the same.

“¡Buenos dias, señorita Rarity! What can I serve you today?”

“Good morning Tapatio. I’ll have a vegan breakfast burrito with extra hay. Easy on the salsa please.”

“Of course. And for you my dear?”

“Egg and cheese, please.”

“Coming right up!”

The friendly chef whipped up the two burritos and gave them to his grateful customers, fresh and hot. After they paid for the meal, they drifted their way towards the medical center through the swelling crowd of ponies. They bumped into familiar faces and wriggled through complete strangers. Sweetie Belle even stepped on an old mare’s wobbly hoof. It was an accident of course, and the repentant filly apologized immediately. As the number of ponies increased to a suffocating amount, the sisters grabbed onto each other’s hooves and trudged on. 

“Why are there so many ponies here?” yelled Sweetie Belle, the burrito muffling her words.

“I don’t know. Hold on and don’t let go, okay?”

“Why would I let go?”

The crowd had grown so big, you couldn’t even stare at your own front hooves if you looked straight down. Bumping into ponies became nearly essential to get through, and some of them were very bitter about it, especially with the way Rarity bulldozed her way through like…well, like a bulldozer.

“Hey, watch where your goin’, missy!”

“What am I, a bumper car?”

“You gotta license to plow like that, you moron!”

Rarity took none of that. “Take it and shove it, you idiots!”

Sweetie Belle could feel the heat of the surrounding ponies all over her tiny body. Her sister up front continued the charge with no regard at a pace that became difficult for her to maintain. She could feel her grip loosening with every step they took. She looked up and became mesmerized by the hundreds of bodies that dotted all around her. They almost seemed like they were floating in and out of her consciousness. When they finally broke into open space, a large flank knocked Sweetie to the ground. Her burrito shot out of her mouth and landed on the dusty street.

“My breakfast!” she screamed. 

Rarity turned around and grunted. “Sweetie, what in the world are you doing?” She bent down and helped her sister off the ground with a hoof.

“I dropped my burrito on the ground because somepony…”

“Your breakfast!”

Rarity picked up the dirty burrito and disposed of it into a nearby trash can.

“That’s what I’m trying to tell you,” said Sweetie. “Some stallion bumped into me, and then…”

“Why can’t you be more careful, Sweetie Belle? Here, you can have some of mine.”

Rarity held out her burrito, but Sweetie rejected the offering with a pout. “I hate the vegan burrito.”

“Then you should have been more careful and not monkey around with your food.”

“I wasn’t monkeying around, Rarity! Somepony bumped me and made me drop it.”

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed Sweetie Belle, but almost half the town is out this morning and we bumped almost all of them! You needed to hold onto it harder!”

“How can I if everyone’s like three times my size?”

“I don’t have time to argue about this. We need to get to the doctor’s office now or we will be late and mother and father will not be happy about you missing your appointment. So, be a good little filly and follow me!”

“But I’m hungry.”

“That is not my problem!”

The words came out so suddenly, she hadn’t a second to think them through. But it was too late to take them back now. Hurt and anger already took over her little sister’s face.

“Sweetie, I…”

“Shut up,” she whispered. 







“Fifty bit copay?” 

Rarity reached into her saddle bag and rummaged through its contents but was unable to find the amount of money that was due. “Um, excuse me but is there any way the doctor could take a rain check?”

The disgruntled nurse behind the window pointed to a sign tacked to a cheaply organized bulletin which read Copay due before any visit. 

“Yes, I know that. But you see, I was not aware of such rule since this is my first time bringing Sweetie Belle and…”

“Look missy, either you pay the copay or reschedule. And make it quick, you gotta long line behind you.”

The fashionable pony turned her head and smiled weakly at the long line of sloppily dressed patients waiting to sign in. “Just a moment, please.” She swallowed hard and walked gently over to Sweetie who was reading an issue of “Power Ponies.”

“Um, Sweetie, may I have a word with you?”

She looked up at her sister and raised an eyebrow. “Why are you so scared?”

Rarity laughed nervously and said through her teeth, “Why didn’t you tell me that mother and father have to pay copay before you can see the doctor?”

“Don’t you pay copay?”

She laughed again. “No, of course not. I mean, I have wonderful insurance and, well, it covers everything. Anyway, since I don’t have any bits to pay I’m afraid we’ll have to reschedule on a day mother can take you.”

“Uh, excuse me, miss pretty pony?”

Rarity turned around. The nurse behind the window waved her over.

“Yes?”

“It appears the doctor will allow the patient to have her checkup free of charge. But don’t expect this to happen every time, you hear me sweet cheeks?”

Rarity cringed. “Yes, of course. Thank you.” She walked over to Sweetie Belle to share the good news.

“Really? Wow, that’s nice.”

“Yes. Be sure to thank him for being so generous, understand?”

“Duh, I’m not stupid,” she said, her voice trailing into the hall.

The little filly knew exactly where to go: Down the hall, make a left, second door to the right. She sat up on the hard hospital bed and waited for the nurse to come in to weigh her body and measure her height. Then Dr. Brown would walk in, marvel at how much she’s grown since the last visit, and go through the routine. Ears, chest, back, tongue, then knees. She was never afraid of doctor’s checkups and found it silly to believe her other classmates’ horror stories of checkups gone wrong. Sweetie never had a single traumatic experience like her classmates. They always ended with a smile and a lollipop. The door knob jiggled and the door swung open, revealing not a nurse with a clipboard but a doctor with an orange mane.

“Doctor!” she cried.

“Well of course, my dear scientist. Who were you expecting, a police officer?” The doctor chuckled to himself while he made his way to the sink. He donned on a pair of gloves while his confused patient looked on.

"Where’s Dr. Brown?”

“On vacation. Therefore, all of the doctors here at the medical center decided to divvy up her patients equally. What a coincidence, correct?” He grabbed at one of his tools and took his seat in front of his patient. “Left ear, please.”

Sweetie obeyed. “But shouldn’t you be at school teaching?”

The doctor peered carefully into her ear and pulled back. “Good. As to your question, while I am currently the substitute teacher, I am still required to attend to my existing patients at the medical center. Therefore, I will teach on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday while seeing my normal patients and Dr. Brown’s on the other days.” He took the protective cap off and tossed it in the trash, replacing it with a new one. “Right ear, my dear.” 

She turned her head. “When did you tell everyone that there wasn’t gonna be any school today?”

The doctor rolled over to his tools and replaced the ophthalmoscope. “Now there’s an unnecessary question.”

Sweetie was taken aback. “What do you mean?”

“If you didn’t know about today’s cancellation, what does that say about everyone else?”

“I guess they didn’t know either.”

“Precisely.” The doctor rolled back to his patient and positioned his stethoscope over his ears. “You know well that I made no such announcement after school, so when could anyone could have figured out?”

“Today?”

“Well done.”

Sweetie scratched her head. “But how did they find out if you were here the whole time?”

The doctor adjusted the drum of his stethoscope. “I simply left a hoof-written note on the door.”

“How come you didn’t just tell everyone yesterday?”

“Now there’s a good question requiring a complex answer. You see my dear scientist, children retain a small percentage of what they hear. In fact, the second they hear the bell ring it’s as if the sound pushes out the announcement through one ear because they’re so eager to get home. A written notice holds a much higher retention rate than mere auditory instruction. However, understanding the wasteful nature of ponies I elected to nail a single page of the announcement on the door this morning, which I believe will prove to be a much more effective means of communication than any other.”

“But wouldn’t more papers with the announcement mean more ponies will see it?”

“That is only considering one sense my dear: sight. However, when the pony has to roll out of bed, taste the sandy bitterness of their toothpaste, smell breakfast fumes wafting throughout the home, hear their own clops across the cobblestone streets, feel the chilling cold of the blistery autumn day, and finally see the note hanging on the door, the message becomes much more powerful and meaningful as it engages all the senses.” The doctor tapped the drum and pointed it to his patient. “Now then my dear, let’s check your heart.”

Sweetie Belle allowed the doctor to press the cold drum against her chest. She kept very still as she always did for Dr. Brown. She scanned the entire room, her eyes fervently jumping from one end to the other. Nothing out of the ordinary today; the magazines lined up against the wall as always, boxes of tissue paper and gloves sat side by side on the counter. Everything was as it should be, except for the doctor treating her of course.

“Good. Now lean forward a little so I can check your breathing.”

She obeyed and leaned forward. The cold stethoscope jumped from one spot on her back to another, and she couldn’t help but giggle at the tickling sensation. The doctor pulled back and hung his tool around his neck. His expression changed to a concern that shocked Sweetie into an anxious concern herself.

“I-Is everything alright?” she asked.

The doctor’s face relaxed into a smile. “Absolutely my dear. Your heart is healthy and your breathing is normal. The telltale signs of a healthy child are all there. However, I couldn’t help but notice that you heart rate accelerated during the time I checked it.”

“Is that normal?”

“Oh it’s perfectly normal.” He grabbed a tongue depressor from a drawer. “If you’re nervous.”

Sweetie swallowed.

“Tell me, why are you nervous today?”

“N-Nervous, me? I’m never nervous at the doctor’s, honest.” She looked towards the ground at her hooves. “Well, maybe I am a little nervous today.”

“But why?”

Sweetie began. “I’m usually not scared of checkups. Dr. Brown is really nice and she answers any questions my mom has. Then at the end, she smiles and gives me a lollipop.”

“But your mother isn’t here to accompany you.”

“Yeah. Also, I heard some of my classmates say that the doctor can be mean and that they gave them these big shots that made blood spill everywhere.”

The doctor rubbed his chin inquisitively and hummed to himself. “Sounds like you miss your mother.”

“And father,” she said. “They went on vacation and I have to stay with my sister.”

“And I take it you don’t get along all the time.”

“How did you know?”

“Nuances my dear,” he said, chuckling. He brought the tongue depressor up to Sweetie’s mouth. “Open up, please.”

Sweetie opened her mouth as wide as she could. The doctor pushed against her tongue and flashed a small light down her throat. After a few seconds, the doctor moved away and tossed the depressor into the waste basket. Sweetie relaxed her jaw and waited patiently as the doctor made notes onto his clipboard.

“Tell me something my dear. If I were to tell you that the moon is raised by being catapulted into the sky by a giant slingshot, would you believe me?”

“That’s just silly. I know how the moon goes into the sky. Princess Luna uses her magic to get it up there just like her sister Princess Celestia raises the sun.”

“And how do you know that to be fact?”

“Because I’ve seen it before,” she said with excitement. “It’s great. The Princess flies to the sky and raises her hooves over her head. Then, the moon majestically floats to the top of the sky lighting everything below like a huge flashlight. Then she dots the sky with the stars and the night sky is bright and pretty for another night.”

The doctor surprised the eloquent patient with a rubber hammer strike to the knee. “Good, good. So your experience has revealed to you the truth behind the raising of the moon. In other words, you have verifiable evidence.”

“Right.”

The doctor checked the other three knees and scribbled more notes. “So tell me, what conclusions can you give me based on the empirical evidence you’ve gathered on your visits to the doctor?”

“Well, I know that Dr. Brown really is nice, not mean like everyone else says. And even when she gives me shots they don’t hurt too bad, and blood certainly doesn’t spill everywhere. Even today’s visit went well, right?”

The doctor chuckled. “I’d say so.”

“So then why does every one of my classmates think the doctor is scary?”

The doctor swiveled around in his chair and hunched mysteriously over the counter. “Do you remember rule number four for optimal living?”

“Yeah: Not everything is what it seems, right?”

“Precisely.” He turned around and held out a tongue depressor with a drip of blood to Sweetie. “What do you see here?”

The filly’s heart rate rose again, sweat began forming on her forehead. “It’s m-my blood?”

“Or is it?” The physician brought up his free hoof and showed Sweetie a small tear on his skin with crusted blood all around it. 

She breathed a sigh of relief.

“Cut myself trying to adjust the drum on my stethoscope. You thought it was your own, didn’t you?”

Sweetie laughed. “Yeah, definitely. But I guess not everything is what it seems, right?”

The doctor smiled and opened the door. “So what do you think of your friends’ tales of the horror that is the medical center now?”

The little filly jumped off the bed. “I think I’ll stick to what I know to be true and not believe everything they tell me. They’re just a bunch of fraidy cats!” She walked past the doorway when she stopped. She turned and was relieved to see the doctor was still standing in the room. “Um, doctor?”

“Yes, what is it my dear?”

“Well, I know we’re done and all, but I had a big question for you. It’s not about my health or anything. It’s just something I’ve been thinking about.”

“Go on.”

She breathed in deep. “How do you think life started?”

The doctor rubbed his chin. “That is a big question. I’m afraid I don’t really have the time to relinquish all of my beliefs on the subject right now.”

“Oh, okay.” She turned to leave to the waiting room when she felt his hoof on her shoulder.

“Perhaps you’d like to discuss this over lunch. I have a lunch break in about an hour. Why don’t you and your sister meet me out front and I can treat the two of you to a meal?”

Her eyes lit up. “Yeah! That sounds totally cool. I’ll let Rarity know and we’ll meet you out front.”

“Perfect! Until then, scientist.”

> A Lunch Date with the Doctor and his Advisor
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Sweetie Belle burst through the waiting room door and skidded to a halt. “Hey Rarity guess what? The doctor invited us to lunch today!” The waiting room was completely empty except for a few plastic chairs and half-open magazines sitting on end tables.  

“Where did she go?”

“Are you Sweetie Belle?” asked the nurse behind the counter.

She walked slowly to the window.

The nurse handed her a folded piece of paper. “Your sister left you this note before she left.”

Sweetie took the note and opened it. She read:

Dearest sister,
Something went wrong with the order this morning. I’m arranging for Fluttershy to pick you up after your appointment. Don’t leave the office until she gets there. Kisses.

Sweetie closed the note and took a seat. 

“You’re gonna stay here?” asked the nurse.

“Until someone picks me up,” she answered without looking up.

The nurse shut the window and disappeared. She reappeared through the waiting room door and walked over to the exit. “Well, I’m going out to lunch so you’re gonna be here all by yourself, okay?”

“Okay,” she whispered.

The nurse yanked the door open and walked out, letting the door slam shut on its own. Sweetie Belle sighed and picked up a random magazine from the end table next to her. She began flipping through its pages paying no attention to the small dark text that whizzed by her eyes. She stopped at a picture of an old stallion dressed like a cowboy from a spaghetti western, a shiny sheriff’s badge beaming on his proud chest. His grin was wide and bright and he winked a friendly eye at Sweetie. He was holding up a bottle of medicine and underneath was written in big bold text was: Argaiv. Stick up for fun!

“That’s so stupid,” she said. “What does that even mean?”

She continued flipping until she reached the end of the magazine. She picked up another and did the same. When she was through with all the magazines on the table she looked up at the wall clock and gazed on the red second hand circling steadily over the numerals. 

One minute passed.

Two minutes passed.

Three.

Ten.

Twelve.

Seventeen and a half.

Nineteen and fifty nine seconds.

The second hand stopped on the fifty ninth tick mark and jerked back and forth. Sweetie got up and walked over to the clock. She stood on the chair underneath and held up her hooves and retrieved the malfunctioning wall clock. She looked around the back and found the battery compartment.

“Darn,” she said. “It’s closed with a screw.”

She looked around for an abandoned screwdriver but her search was short. She decided the next best thing was to take matters to a more physical level. After repeated blows to the back, the second hand stopped moving altogether.

“Great, I broke it.”

“Actually my dear, it was failing before you even touched it.”

The doctor took the clock from Sweetie’s hooves and opened the back with a small screwdriver. He replaced the battery then replaced the clock on the wall. 

“Does it always do that?” she asked.

“Only when the battery is low. This is why I much prefer a clock that runs on gears and a pendulum rather than limited electricity.”

“Like a grandfather clock?”

“Yes, my dear scientist.” He scanned the empty waiting room. “I assume your sister had other matters to attend to.”

“Yeah. Something went wrong with her order this morning or something. She will not be attending our lunch date this afternoon.”

The doctor chuckled. “I see. Well then, shall we be on our way milady?”

“I kinda can’t go either.”

“Why not?”

Sweetie Belle sighed. “Rarity sent someone to come get me so she can take me home.”

“Who?”

Before she could answer, Fluttershy opened the door and poked her head inside. She flashed a smile at the two. “Hello. May I come in?”

“Of course Miss Fluttershy! You are always welcome here even on days when you needn’t be.”

“Wait a sec. You know each other?”

“Absolutely! Fluttershy comes in every weekend to serve as advisor to my practice.” 

“She gives you advice? On what?”

“Why animal care of course! You see, I had a baby dragon as a patient not too long ago and I hadn’t the slightest idea how to help him. It made me realize that our fair town of Ponyville is home to more than just ponies. I decided to open my practice to all creatures and Fluttershy helps me with her incredible knowledge on different species of animal.”

Fluttershy walked up to the two. “I hope I’m not disturbing anything serious doctor.”

“Nonsense! Why I was just telling my dear scientist what a wonderful resource you are when it comes to animal medicine. Truly a bottomless well of refreshing knowledge!”

Fluttershy blushed. “Oh doctor, you’re too kind.”

“Would you care to join us for lunch today? We were just going to step out.”

“Gee, that sounds wonderful. Unfortunately, I need to take Sweetie Belle to the Carousel Boutique where her sister lives.”

The doctor thought for a moment. “The Carousel Boutique you say?”

“That’s where my sister works,” added Sweetie Belle. “It’s the place with all the dresses and fashion stuff.”

The doctor broke from his pensive pose with a thunderous clap. “Perfect! The Crisp Grove is right across the street from there. After a brief pleasant lunch, the two of you should meet with Rarity in no time at all.”

Sweetie jumped. “That’s great! Whaddya say Fluttershy? Can we go?”

Fluttershy shrugged. “I guess it’ll be okay. We won’t take long, will we doctor?”

“Perish the thought my awesome advisor!” He picked out his coat from a closet near the front door. “Let us seize the day and seize the salads that await us! My stomach protests!”

Laughing at his passionate plea, the two ponies followed to doctor out of the medical center and into the calm bustle of the lunch hour.



	

“A week!? You said you could deliver it by tomorrow, not by next week!”

The cross eyed mail mare scratched the back of her head as she scanned the details of the order on her clipboard. “I’m really sorry Miss Rarity, but according to this we were supposed to pick up one large order of dresses. You have a lot more than one large order on your kitchen table. It’s gonna take a lot longer to take everything to Manehatten.”

“I don’t understand why it would take you longer.”

The mail mare directed her upset customer’s attention to the open sky. “If I had known you had so many boxes of dresses, I would’ve brought my mail wagon with me.”

“Then how on earth did you expect to take my order without your mail wagon?”

“Well, I was gonna carry it myself.”

“Alone!?” Rarity sighed. “Can’t you get a wagon out here to ship the order right now?”

The mail mare flipped through her papers. “I guess I could go back to the station and get one over here, but it’ll cost you extra.”

“But why!?”

“Well, it’s like I said. You have a lot of boxes. You’ll have to pay extra shipping costs.”

“But I specifically said it was a large order! Why should I be penalized when it was clearly your fault for misunderstanding?”

“I can’t tell you exactly why there was a mistake in the order or even if there was one. All I know is that for one wagon load of boxes it’ll be twice the shipping cost.”

“This is most unfair, but alright.” Rarity reached into her saddlebag and pulled out her wallet. “How much?”

“A hundred bits please.”

“One hundred bits!?” Rarity pulled out the money and thrust them towards the mail mare’s chest. “Fine, take it. Just get a wagon over here quickly. Those dresses need to get to Manehatten by tomorrow.”

“Yes ma’am! Derpy is on her way!” And with that, the cheery mail mare left Carousel Boutique and took off into the noon sky towards the postal office.

“I do hope she gets here soon,” Rarity said to herself. “I can’t allow some stupid mistake on her part tarnish my fashionable reputation. Imagine what my client would’ve said if his order wouldn’t have arrived for another week! Oh, I need a cup of hot tea!”

Rarity went into the kitchen and opened a drawer where she kept a box of her favorite tea. It was empty. She looked into every other drawer to see if she had misplaced the box, but her search ended up empty hoofed. She thought maybe Sweetie knew where it was.

“Sweetie Belle,” she called out. “Do you know where my box of Earl Hay tea is?” When no one answered her call, she slapped a hoof of remembrance on her powdered face. “Of course, she’s still at the doctor’s.” She looked at her wristwatch and read the time. Twelve thirty. “It’s been over an hour already. Where is Fluttershy with my sister?” She looked over at the empty box of tea and tossed it in the trash. “Maybe I can make a quick trip to The Crisp Grove to purchase another box. By the time I’m back, hopefully the wagon will be here and Sweetie too.”





“Lunch is served,” announced the waiter.

Fluttershy and the doctor picked up their forks and dove right into their salads. They shared a mutual smile as the garden fresh meal slid down their grateful throats. They reached for their napkins to wipe their faces and continued to enjoy their noonday meal. Sweetie Belle inspected the food in her plate carefully, trying to identify what every piece of vegetable was.

“Oh most wonderful of tastes! I cannot resist such a well-crafted entrée of greens and croutons. Do you share the same sentiment, my dearest Fluttershy?”

She swallowed her bite before answering. “Oh yes doctor. I especially enjoy the fact that everything is not only locally grown but grown organically.”

The doctor raised his water glass and slugged down a hearty amount of refreshing drink. “Ah yes, tis a comforting fact to know that that which enters the body is also good for the body.”

“I’ll be just as happy if I can figure out what this stuff is,” said Sweetie. She continued to poke around with her fork before letting it drop with a clank against the side of her plate. “I don’t think I ordered the right thing.”

“Well, my dear scientist,” he began, picking up her plate and examining it closely. “It appears that you ordered a most exotic assortment of fruits and vegetables. Edamame, eggplant, papaya, shredded coconut, and almonds all drizzled with crumbly feta cheese and doused with a splash of Thousand Island dressing.”

“Ooh, that sounds crazy,” added Fluttershy. “And yummy.”

The unsatisfied patron sighed. “That’s what I get for ordering the ‘Surprise Salad’.”

The doctor put Sweetie’s plate back and continued to eat.

“So doctor, how are you doing with your animal patients?” asked Fluttershy.

“All is well, Fluttershy Though I must present quite the conundrum to you.” He put his fork down and looked right at his attentive advisor. “The other day one of my patients brought in with her a pet alligator, a small cute fellow with large purple eyes. What was his name again?”

“It kind of sounds like a pet alligator a close friend of mine keeps.”

“Could it be the same one, my dearest advisor?”

“I don’t know.”

“What’s the name of the friend in question?”

“Pinkie Pie.” 

“Yes, Pinkie Pie…”

“She has a pet alligator named Gummy,” Sweetie chimed in.

The doctor gave the table a spirited slap. “That’s the one! Anyways, I went through with the checkup and everything came out perfectly normal. However, I couldn’t figure out why the specimen had absolutely no teeth in his mouth to speak of. I know he’s very young but they should have grown in by now, am I right?”

“Actually,” Fluttershy began. “Hatchlings are born with teeth already. Pinkie Pie found Gummy on the side of the road trying to bite off a piece of loose scrap metal when he broke off all his teeth.”

“How dreadful!” the doctor exclaimed.

“How does he eat, Fluttershy?” asked Sweetie, adding herself to the conversation.

“Since alligators can only use their jaws to move their mouths up and down and not side to side, they can’t chew. They have to swallow their food whole.”

“Therefore, as is the case with Gummy, it’s almost like he doesn’t need his teeth for consumption,” added the doctor.

“If they can just swallow their food, then why have teeth in the first place?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“Well, I would imagine that when he grows up and requires larger portions to satisfy his hunger he would utilize his sharp teeth to kill his prey on impact. Right, Fluttershy?”

The animal expert nodded. “Not only that, but sometimes alligators will need to use their teeth to rip larger animals into smaller, easier to swallow pieces. Lucky for Gummy he has a caring owner who will feed him ready to swallow food that won’t require any biting or ripping.”

“Wow, that’s neat!” exclaimed Sweetie Belle. The ponies turned their attention back to their meals when the youngest of the three came up with another question. “What would’ve happened to him if he were never discovered by Pinkie Pie?”

The doctor picked up his napkin and wiped his muzzle clean. “Two things: Either Gummy would have adapted to his surroundings or he would have died.”

“Adapted? What is that?”

The doctor gave the floor to his animal advisor.

“Well Sweetie, adaptation happens when an animal is faced with a situation which forces it to change its behavior. It’s kinda like how birds fly south for the winter because it gets too cold for them in their environment. They adapt to the cold by moving away from it to a warmer climate. Does that make sense?”

The filly scratched her head. “I think so.”

Her response prompted the quick thinking doctor to grab the salt bottle in front of Fluttershy. Once he removed the cap, he tipped it over Sweetie’s salad and poured the entire bottle over her untouched meal, leaving no fruit or vegetable unsalted. 

“Hey!” she protested. “What was that for?”

“Oh I’m sorry,” he said in a mischievous tone. “But I thought you didn’t want your Surprise Salad.”

“Not before, but I was starting to get hungry so I thought I would give it a try.”

“Won’t a little salt make it a little more bearable for you?”

“A little? This is a ton!”

“So you won’t eat it?”

“Not like this. I’ll get a major tummy ache if I ate all this salt.”

The doctor raised the bottle and calculated the volume mentally. “Actually, you would die.”

“Well that’s even worse.”

The light bulb clicked on in Fluttershy’s mind as a smile formed on her once shocked face. “So what will do if you’re gonna eat it, Sweetie?”

The bothered filly picked out a piece of papaya and began brushing the excess salt onto her napkin. “Isn’t it obvious? I have to brush off all this salt.” Once she got off all the salt she could, she placed the fruit in her mouth and began to chew slowly. The embedded saline crystals she could not remove attacked her palate with its salty flavor and her bitter expression brought soft chuckles to her older friends.

“So, my dear scientist, what did you have to do in order to eat your meal without dying?”

Sweetie swallowed her food hard. “I told you. I had to brush off all the salt before I ate it.” She grabbed her glass of water and drank down several gulps to wash out the saltiness from her mouth. When it finally hit her, she rammed down the glass hard on the table, a small amount falling out the side and wetting the tablecloth. “Wait a minute! I get it now! I had to change my behavior in order to eat my food! I had to adapt!” She looked at each of her friends who returned her triumphant grin with a proud smile. 

“Excellent work, my dear scientist,” said the doctor.

Fluttershy offered her a light clap.

“Hey, do ponies have to adapt like alligators do? I mean, besides having their salads covered completely by salt.”

“Good question,” said the doctor. “You see, our ancestors were much larger and much stronger than we. They had to run fast and free to travel across long distances to find food and run away from fast predators like manticores and hydras. As we’ve become more civilized, however, we’ve lost our abilities to run from danger in favor of developing our brains for critical thinking to thrive in our highly industrialized environment.”

“So, we’re not as fast anymore because we don’t have to run away as much?”

“Exactly.” The doctor held up a hoof and pinched a small flab of  sagging skin. “In fact, you could say we’ve traded our leanness for pudginess in the process.”

“We’re like marshmallows,” added Fluttershy.

The three ponies laughed at Fluttershy’s joke when they heard a clearing of the throat.

“Who’s a marshmallow?” asked Rarity.

Sweetie Belle slowly turned to face her sister and flashed a nervous grin. “Hey Rarity. What’s up?”

Rarity cut to the chase. “Why aren’t you at home?” She turned to Fluttershy who hid her red face behind a menu. “And for that matter, why haven’t you taken her home yet?”

“Don’t fault the two ladies my dear,” said the doctor. “I pressed upon them an irresistible invitation to lunch at the wonderful Crisp Grove. Please sit and join us.”

“No thank you doctor.  I just picked up what I came for and now I must return home. Come along Sweetie.”

“Right now?”

Rarity raised her voice. “Right now I should be at home waiting for the mail mare. You were supposed to be home way before ‘right now’.”

“But I was learning something and…”

“Learning? What did you learn today Sweetie? How to make your older sister angry? Well, you certainly secured an A+ for that! Now get your plot out of that chair and follow me home immediately!” 

Rarity turned and marched towards the Carousel Boutique. Her sister slithered out of her chair and followed, head hanging slightly.

“So, that’s Rarity,” said the doctor, rubbing the top of his glass in slow circles.

“Yes. Don’t take it the wrong way doctor. She’s just been having a hard day today. She’s really a nice and generous pony.”

“Oh I’m sure. I’m sure”

> Saving Commander Chickadee
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The two sisters exited the Crisp Grove and walked to Carousel Boutique. They spotted the blonde mail mare loading the last box of Rarity’s specially designed dresses onto the mail wagon and lock the hatch. When she spotted the two unicorns coming her way, she gave them a friendly salute across the forehead and smiled as bright as her bubbly personality.

“Everything’s loaded, Miss Rarity,” she said. “Next stop: Manehatten!”

Rarity wasn’t as thrilled as the mail mare was, but she offered a polite smile in return. “Good, good. Now before you leave, I must give you some very crucial instructions on how to handle these.”

For the next five minutes or so, Sweetie Belle stood by her sister while she explained to the mail carrier how each dress was folded and packed in a way that minimized wrinkling, and that much care should be taken to not rattle the cargo too much, lest the prized dresses unfold and arrive at their destination rumpled. Sweetie Belle yawned a great mouthful and lets her eyes wander around the streets of Ponyville. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of a feathery purple mane vanishing into a darkened alley between two houses. She thought about whom it might have belonged to when it hit her like a ton of bricks.

“Scootaloo,” she whispered. 

“What was that, Sweetie?” asked Rarity, turning her head momentarily from her instruction.

“Oh, nothing.”

With a shrug, Rarity turned back to address the mail mare, who was scribbling furiously into a pocket notepad. 

I wonder what Scootaloo is doing in that dark alley? Sweetie thought. She started walking in the direction of where her fast friend zipped, but decided maybe it would be wise to ask her sister first and retrace her steps. “Um, Rarity?”

She ignored her little sister’s call and continued instructing the mail mare.

“Rarity?” This time Sweetie poked her sister’s side. She was brushed off.

“Come on, Rarity. I just gotta ask you something.” She tugged lightly on her sister’s mane, finally provoking a reaction. A negative reaction.

“Sweetie Belle, honestly. Can’t you wait for a minute?”

“But I wanted to ask you if I could…”

“Not now, Sweetie Belle. Go inside and wait for me there. Don’t interrupt me.”

Sweetie huffed and marched to the front door of Carousel Boutique. Before she reached for the knob, she spotted Scootaloo poking her head out of the alley to look on both sides of the street, only to disappear again within. 

“What in the world is she doing in there?” the curious unicorn asked herself. She quickly checked on her older sister, who was still informing the head scratching mail mare, and dashed away to her escape. Using the barrels that sat in front of the first house to conceal her body, she crept closer and closer to the alley. Assured that her sister didn’t suspect a thing, she emerged from her hiding place and tip-hoofed into the dimly lit alley. 

“Scootaloo,” she called. “Where are you?”

A quick scan of her surroundings revealed nothing more than a few smelly trash cans and a slumped stack of weathered cardboard boxes that stood about six feet high. Reaching the end of the barren alley, she turned to go back to Carousel Boutique, disappointed that she couldn’t find her friend or whatever secret she was keeping. Then, she heard a soft peep coming from inside one of the boxes.

“Shh!” she heard.

“Scootaloo, was that you?”

No answer. She walked closer to the stack of boxes and, one by one, laid them down on the ground. She carefully opened the dusty flaps of each one and peeked until she found a hunched-over Scootaloo inside the last one.
“Scoots? What are you doing in there?”

The pegasus looked up at her friend and exposed the source of the soft peep sound resting in her hooves. It was a baby chick.

“Aw, that baby chick is so cute, Scootaloo! But what is it doing inside an old box sitting in a smelly alley?”

“Duh, I brought it here,” she replied, poking her head out. 

“But why?”

“Well, it’s kind of a long story. But, I found this little chick hanging around at school during recess so I kept it inside my backpack until school got out. I spent all yesterday and today looking for its home, but I haven’t had any luck.”

“Is that why you said you had plans yesterday after school?”

“Yeah.”

“You know we could’ve helped you if you just asked, right?”

Scootaloo hopped out of the box and observed the baby chick wandering around inside its temporary home. “I know, but I didn’t want Applejack and Big Mac to know.”

“Why not?”

“Because they’re grown-ups. They think us foals can’t handle something as simple as finding a lost chick its home. They think we’re dumb or something. It’s just like how Rainbow Dash doesn’t want to teach me her cool flying tricks yet. She thinks I’m too young to handle them right now.”

“Tell me about it,” grunted Sweetie Belle. “Rarity’s been treating me like a baby or something the past couple of days. She’s always ignoring me when I have something to say and when I’m doing something, it’s like I’m doing the worst possible thing. It gets annoying.”

“It’s like they think you can’t do anything on your own, right?”

Sweetie sighed and nodded.

“Well I wanna prove them wrong.” The determined filly scooped up the baby chick and held it up for her friend to see up close. “So, you wanna help me find its home?”

“Let’s do it!”

The baby chick peeped aloud in agreement, prompting laughter from the two fillies.

“It’s so cute! Did you name it?”

“Well, since I don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl, I thought of giving it a name that could fit both. So I named it Commander Chickadee.”

Sweetie chuckled. “Why such a tough sounding name?”


“’Cause look at the way it walks!”

Scootaloo set Commander Chickadee down and the two watched its wobbly gait across one side of the alley to the other, its posture as straight as any soldier in the army.

“Wow, it does look like a mini-soldier,” chuckled Sweetie.

Scootaloo picked up the soft orphan and nestled it comfortably in her mane. “Alright Commander Chickadee, let’s go find your home!”

The two fillies left the alley and walked out to the middle of the street. They spotted Rarity waving off the mail mare as she took off into the sky on her mail wagon. Before going inside, the dress maker was met by the third member of the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

“What’s Apple Bloom doing here?” asked Sweetie.

“Let’s find out,” suggested Scootaloo.

They crept behind a barrel and listened in on Rarity and Apple Bloom’s conversation.

“Hello Apple Bloom. I assume you want to see Sweetie Belle, correct?”

“Actually, my sister asked if y’all wanted to come to Sweet Apple Acres an’ help us out with preparations for the First Week of School celebration. We needs lotsa help still.”

Rarity cringed. “Help? Like, hard work help?”

“Nah. She said you can help with the decorations an’ stuff. She ain’t really good at that kinda thing, she says.”

The hesitant unicorn relaxed into a smile. “Well, now that’s something I can sink my hooves into. Not literally of course. Come inside while I call for Sweetie Belle. We’d both be more than happy to assist you with the decorations.”

“Great!” shouted Apple Bloom. She followed Rarity into Carousel Boutique.

Back behind the barrel, two friends were feeling a little perturbed by the sequence of events.

“What are we gonna do? If Rarity finds out I’m not in there, I’ll get in trouble for sure!”

“I don’t know, but we better come up with a plan fast,” said Scootaloo, struggling to keep Commander Chickadee still. “Our baby chick is getting restless.”

Sweetie gasped. “I got it. I know what we can do to make Rarity think I’m inside and get Apple Bloom to help us, but we gotta act fast and not make any mistakes.”

“Roger. What’s the plan?”





“Sweetie Belle!” Rarity called out. 

Apple Bloom waited by the entrance of Carousel Boutique while Rarity searched for her little sister. She went into the kitchen, the rooms, and peeked in every closet, but Sweetie was nowhere to be found.

“Where is that sister of mine?”

Just then, a low groan rang out from the halls.

“Sweetie, was that you?”

“Rarity,” Sweetie grunted. “Come here, quick!”

Rarity crouched at the ready. “I’m coming, Sweetie. Just tell me where you are.”

Sweetie uttered another painful moan. “I’m in the bathroom.”

Rarity galloped as quickly as she could to the bathroom door. She rattled the knob, but realized it had been locked. “Sweetie, are you okay in there?”

The plotting filly couldn’t believe that her little charade was actually working on her protective sister. She was okay after all. She was just feigning illness to distract Rarity away from Apple Bloom. If everything was going according to plan, the apple farm filly should’ve been receiving instruction from Scootaloo about their plans to help Commander Chickadee. Sweetie got herself together and continued her faking. “I don’t feel too good, Rarity I think it was the salad I had for lunch at the restaurant.”

“What is it, my dear sister? A loose stomach? Nausea? Vomiting?”

“All of that,” she responded, holding back giggles.

“Oh dearest me!” said Rarity, perching a hoof over her heart. “We must do something about that vicious stomach problem you’re having! I’m going to go see Applejack in a little while to help out with decorations for the First Week of School celebration. When I come back, I’ll bring some of her hot apple tea to help soothe your stomach, okay? You make sure to stay in bed and drink lots of fluids.”

“Okay, Rarity,” said Sweetie, adding fake gagging and vomiting noises. 

“Fret not, poor sister. Rarity won’t take long! Your big sister will take care of you!” The concerned sister walked briskly to the front door, just missing Scootaloo trying to make herself scarce. “Apple Bloom darling, I’m afraid I won’t be able to stay for long. Poor Sweetie has a dreadful stomach ache in need of your sister’s wonderful soothing tea. You don’t think she’d mind if I bought some, do you?”

“Not at all, Rarity,” said Apple Bloom. “I think she’d even give ya some for free.”

“That would be most wonderful. Let’s be on our way.”

The two stepped out, pausing so Rarity could lock the door. Behind the boutique, Sweetie Belle jumped out the open bathroom window and, with the help of Scootaloo, landed gently on the ground. The two made their way around the side and hid just out of sight to watch Apple Bloom carry out the rest of their little scheme.

“Hey Rarity,” began Apple Bloom.  “I just remembered that Applejack wanted me to go to Sugarcube Corner to pick up a chick…I mean, cake.”

“Cake? For what?”

“Oh, well, um, it’s for Big Mac’s belated birthday! Yeah, AJ wasn’t feelin’ too good about bein’ so busy workin’ on all the games an’ stuff for the celebration that she forgot about his birthday. She wants to make it up to him with a specially made cake.”

“Oh. I didn’t know Big Mac’s birthday already passed. Maybe I should bring him a gift. Maybe I can make him a dapper green tie that matches his eyes!” Rarity shook herself out of her reverie. “Not now, Rarity. You have an ailing sister that needs your help!” With that, Rarity took off towards Sweet Apple Acres wearing a worrisome look on her face. 

From the side of Carousel Boutique, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo emerged and met up with the third member of the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

“Alright, nice work Apple Bloom,” praised Sweetie Belle. 

“I don’t know, Sweetie Belle. I hate havin’ to fib like that, especially since she looked genuinely worried about you.”

Sweetie scowled. “Well, I wouldn’t worry about it one bit, Apple Bloom. She deserves to go on a wild goose chase for no reason at all.”

“Oh no!” screamed Scootaloo. “It looks like we might have a wild chick chase of our own!” She pointed down the street. Commander Chickadee had gotten a huge head start on the trio and waddled onto the steps of Sugarcube Corner. They broke into a hard gallop and made it to the front of the bakery shop just in time to watch the wayward chick slip inside through the cracked open door.

“Quick, inside Sugarcube Corner!” said Sweetie Belle.

They galloped up to the door and Sweetie Belle reached for the knob. She was staggered by the sudden appearance of Pinkie Pie, who was elated to see them.

“Oh my gosh, you’re here!” she said. “I totally forgot about Big Mac’s special belated birthday cake. I hope I’m not too late.”

Apple Bloom stared puzzlingly at the pizzazzed pony, but a soft kick to the shin from Scootaloo reminded her of her bogus story. “Oh yeah, it’s alright Pinkie. You’re not late.”

“Oh goody! And now that you girls are here, you can help me with making it! We’ll get it done in no time.”

Before any of the girls could say a word, Pinkie grabbed them all and pulled them inside the bakery shop and into her kitchen. In the blink of an eye, the Cutie Mark Crusaders were decked out in lacey aprons and colorful chef hats. The main baker laid out every ingredient, bowl, and utensil on the counter then donned her own pink poofy chef’s hat.

“Okay, let’s get to work!” She looked out over the gathered items and slapped her forehead. “Oh my goodness, I forgot the sugar! Help me find the sugar girls, yeah?”

Pinkie set out to look for the missing ingredient on one side of the kitchen while Sweetie Belle gathered her two friends into a huddle. “Okay, here’s our chance. Let’s split up and look for Commander Chickadee.”

“Right,” they said.

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo started the search in the shop while Sweetie Belle stayed in the kitchen. She looked in all the cupboards, in every drawer, between every container on the counter, and even in the refrigerator. In the shop, Apple Bloom looked in the broom closet, behind the counter, and inside the display case while Scootaloo searched elsewhere. They returned to the kitchen to discuss the status of the search party with their friend.

“No sign of Commander Chickadee anywhere,” said Scootaloo.

“We searched everywhere,” added Apple Bloom. “He’s nowhere to be found.”

“Come on, girls. It’s gotta be around somewhere.” Sweetie looked around and spotted a small yellow shape tucked away in a hall closet just across the kitchen door. It was sitting inside a package of some kind on a high shelf. She came to the object slowly, keeping her eyes on it. The yellow mystery item began to take shape. The shape of a baby chick. “You guys, I think I found it!”

The two fillies walked behind Sweetie Belle and watched as she slowly opened the closet door and stood on her tip hooves. She reached up high and secured two shaky hooves around the package and brought it down.

“You found the sugar!”

Pinkie Pie startled the unicorn as she toppled inside the closet and dropped the package of sugar on her head. It fell on its side and spilled all over the floor, taking the yellow chick with it.

“Grab the chick, quick!”

Both Apple Bloom and Scootaloo dove for the baby chick, but they met in the middle and bumped each other’s heads. Pinkie Pie snorted with laughter as she helped the girls to their hooves and picked up the package of sugar and placed it on the counter.

“Oh, you silly girls, that’s just Gummy’s squeaky toy.” She picked it up and gave it a squeeze. “See? The real baby chick is inside the room playing with Gummy.”

“What!?” The three fillies left the kitchen in a hurry and burst through the door where Gummy was and skidded to a halt, holding their breaths. To their surprise, and to their relief for that matter, the baby alligator was enjoying a nice game of balloon catch with Commander Chickadee. Each of the girls’ jaws nearly dropped to the floor while Pinkie simply gazed at the heartwarming scene and sighed.

“Aw, isn’t that the cutest thing you’ve ever seen? It’s like they’re brothers.”

“Wait, Commander Chickadee’s a boy?” asked Scootaloo. 

“Yes indeedy.”

“How can you tell?” asked Apple Bloom.

“Oh, I just can.”

“You called them brothers.” The awestruck unicorn couldn’t peel her eyes off of what was going on before them. “How can this be? I mean, Gummy’s an alligator and Commander Chickadee is a chick. How does that even work?”

Pinkie Pie picked up her pet and gave him a soft squeeze. “It’s because Gummy’s a big bundle of gummy goodness!”

“He should be trying to eat Commander Chickadee, not play with him.”

“Oh, not Gummy. He’s just one special little guy. When I found him out on the road, I just knew I was there at the right place at the right time. It couldn’t have happened any other way. He’s not a vicious baby chick-eating monster from a scary movie. He’s a lovable glob of greeny cuteness. He’s my Gummy and I love him.”

They all looked at Sweetie as confusion covered her entire face, then they looked up at the door and gasped at the unexpected arrival of ponies.

“It just doesn’t make any sense,” said Sweetie Belle.

“You’re right, it doesn’t,” said Rarity.

Sweetie joined the others in staring at the upset faces of her big sister and Applejack. 

“Rarity…”

“Hey there, Applejack,” shouted Pinkie Pie. “You’re brother’s cake is almost done. Just a few more minutes in the oven and he’ll be having the best birthday party ever!”

“His birthday was seven months ago, Pinkie Pie,” she said, staring down her little sister.

“Wow. You guys really put the ‘late’ in belated.”

“We’re not celebrating a belated birthday, Pinkie Pie.” Applejack ran a hoof through her mane when she spotted Commander Chickadee climbing into Scootaloo’s hoof. “Wait a minute. Is that one of our chicks?”

Scootaloo passed the chick over to Applejack, who inspected it up close and found a tiny blue band wrapped around its leg. “It is. How’d he get out here?”

All eyes were on the pegasus filly, who hunched down and stared at the floor.

“You told me you found it at school,” said Apple Bloom.

“I didn’t,” she confessed. “I found it at your farm.”

“You..”

“Stole him,” said Applejack. 

No one said a word for a few moments. Then, the apple sisters left the room. They were followed by Scootaloo, but not very close. Pinkie Pie left to check on the birthday cake, taking Gummy with her.  Only the two sisters remained.

“Rarity..”

“Don’t say a word to me.” And then, she left.
	

> Day One
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	“Are there any questions?”

The doctor’s question drifted in the silence and no student raised an eager hoof. It was as if the life had been sucked out of them, or they had other matters in mind that they deemed more important than class. The Cutie Mark Crusaders, for example, spent the entire day sitting in different seats away from each other. This fact posed quirky in the eyes of the students and became a point of ridicule for Diamond Tiara and her equally unkind friend, Silver Spoon. Even the doctor took mental note of it.

“Very well, a quiet class deserves a quiet dismissal. You’re homework assignment is at the door on your way out.”

The chairs scraped across the floor and every student filed out, taking a homework sheet from the neat stack. Once they stepped out into the cloudy autumn day, normal conversation grew steadily and the class lecture was forgotten. The last students out, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, trotted slowly down the steps and they went their separate ways. Sweetie Belle looked up and realized the uncommon break from routine. She turned to Apple Bloom to her right and found a most dreadful look of anger directed to Scootaloo who was on the left. The look she returned was apologetic, on the brink of tears, but she didn't say a word. Sweetie Belle could feel her own face contort into an anxious frown and stopped her solemn walk back home. She hadn’t gone far from the front door, and she waited until her two best friends abandoned her on the schoolyard.

“Hello, my dear scientist,” said a friendly voice from behind.

Sweetie acknowledged the greeting with a forced smile. “Hey doctor.”

He locked the door to the school and caught up with her. He gave her a genuine smile. “My, you were quite the shy one today. Care to share what’s been bothering you?”

Sweetie sighed and told the doctor the events that occurred after her sister picked her up from lunch at the Crisp Grove the day before.

“I see.” The doctor gestured that they walk together and so they began the trek down the winding dirt path into town. After a few minutes the doctor asked, “Is your friend Scootaloo an orphan?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, that explains it.”

“What do you mean?”

“You see, all creatures need someone to nurture them from birth to early adulthood. That is the natural order of things. Should it be interrupted, then certain key elements to the young’s maturation process may be missed or destructively altered. You’re friend Scootaloo is an orphan, thus she doesn’t have the easy access to her parents you and Apple Bloom share, and that is vital to her growth.”

“But why then did she steal the chick from Applejack’s farm?”

“That is not as easy to explain. There are several possibilities. Perhaps she saw the chick as abandoned, left on the field to venture the world on its own, and felt compassion and took it as her own. Or perhaps she was using the chick as a confidante, something to confide her secrets to. Maybe it’s as simple as she thought it looked lonely and wanted to give herself as a friend. It’s a better bet, however, that she was the one looking for someone to fill the void in her mind that was made by loneliness.”

Sweetie Belle shot a quick look at the old tree as they passed it and saw that the cocoon was still there. She tightened her scarf around her neck and asked, “But why would she feel so lonely? She has friends and lots of other ponies like her, too.”

“You miss the fundamental difference, my dear scientist. Scootaloo possesses a need which neither you nor Apple Bloom can fill. What she needs is a nurturing guide. Someone to take her under wing and show her the ropes of life in the absence of her parents.”

Sweetie thought about the doctor’s words for a moment and remembered something Scootaloo had said. “You know doctor, yesterday while we were in the alley she told me how Rainbow Dash kept telling her that she was too young to learn her cool flying tricks. Is that important in any way?”

“Could be. Perhaps the consistent turn down from Rainbow Dash to model for Scootaloo her flying tricks is being misinterpreted as rejection. The same she feels from her parents.” The doctor took a moment to wipe his glasses amidst the recent soft rainfall that broke through the clouds. “Of course, I am only speculating. There are so many unknown variables that to formulate a thesis would be like shooting an arrow in the dark.” 

“But you’re sure that something is causing Scootaloo to do these things and it’s not because she’s bad, right?”

“Of course, my dear scientist. We’re all creatures of formed habits, adapted and evolved through the passage of ancient times in which have occurred momentous events that forever changed the universe and its inhabitants. Take the alligator for instance. Did you know that alligators used to be over fifty feet long? Now, they average somewhere between eight and twenty. Do you know why?”

“Adaptation?”

“Precisely. The world is much easier to traverse that a large body is no longer needed to plow through enormous obstructions. In addition, the alligator is nimble, quicker than its ancestor to be able to chase and capture swifter prey. Nothing goes unaffected by the changes time brings. All must adapt.”

The rest of the walk was spent tracking through rain-smitten leaves in pensive silence.  The light from Ponyville’s gas lamps filled the square shadowed by the dark storm clouds. A single light emanated from Rarity’s bedroom in the otherwise dark Carousel Boutique. As they approached the front door, Sweetie Belle took off her scarf and laid a hoof on the door knob.

“Before you go, doctor.”

He stopped and turned.

“I wanted to know how you felt about Pinkie Pie’s words about how she met Gummy. You know, how it couldn’t have happened any other way and stuff.”

The doctor thought for a moment and responded, “Well, I do believe that her and I would differ on opinion. Whereas she believes there was some sort of supernatural coincidence, I would simply fall back on the rules for adaptation.”

“But you gotta admit, it was pretty lucky how she just found Gummy on the side of the road. And how he didn’t attack Commander Chickadee at all? Can an alligator just forget its natural instincts like that?”

The doctor was about to answer her question, but held back and instead said, “I suggest you do the homework assignment. I believe it will help you understand my position a bit better. Have a pleasant rest of the day, my dear scientist.”

“You too, doctor.” 

And with that, he turned and disappeared into the thickening fog.






Sweetie Belle settled onto the couch after shutting the door behind her. She dropped her scarf on the floor and switched on the lamp sitting next to her on a night stand. Hoisting her knapsack onto her lap, she reached in and pulled out the homework assignment. She looked at the top of the page and started reading the first paragraph:

Before you begin, it is important that you understand that this assignment has been formatted into a step-by-step model. If you follow the directions as indicated in every step, you will get an “A”.

“Wow, that’s like the easiest A ever,” she said to herself. She continued reading:

	It is also important that you make sure to do the steps on the day indicated. That means you are not allowed to skip ahead into Day 2’s steps until you have accomplished all of Day 1’s steps and have had a good night’s rest. If for some unforeseen reason you must stay up all night on Day 1, then take a short nap and continue onto Day 2.

Sweetie Belle lowered the paper and looked up at the wall clock. Four thirty.

“I have plenty of time to do this I’m sure.”

She picked up the paper and began on Step 1:

Step 1: Go to the kitchen and serve yourself a glass of water. Take a sip. Remember, water is the most important resource we have for survival. Without proper hydration, we jeopardize the basic functioning of our entire bodily system. In addition, proper hydration helps to keep the mind keen and focused, which is important for the task at hand.


“Weird.”

Sweetie Belle got up and went into the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of cool water from a pitcher she found in the refrigerator and took a hearty sip. The refreshing water felt good on its way down her throat, cooling her insides.

“I didn’t realize how thirsty I was.”

She made her way back to the couch and set her glass of water next to the lamp. She read step two:

Step 2: Seclude yourself in the quietest area around in preparation for step three. You will require all the peace and quiet you can find in order to give yourself the best chance for ultimate concentration.

Sweetie scanned the living room around her which, aside from the single light illuminating her lap, was in complete darkness. “It’s pretty quiet here, but he did say to find the quietest. How can I tell though?” After thinking about it for a minute, Sweetie closed her eyes and concentrated all her focus into her hearing. She could hear the light patter of afternoon rain outside her window, the hum of the washer machine working in the room behind her. She even picked up the buzzing of the lamp next to her. She opened her eyes. “Let’s try a different room.”

She took her glass of water and walked to the kitchen. She sat at the table and did the same thing. She could still hear the washer machine, though not as clearly. She also picked up the whirr of a single ceiling fan directly above her. “Well, that washer machine is pretty loud. I bet I’d hear it from anywhere.” She stood on her seat and reached for the string to shut the fan down. “But this fan doesn’t really need to be on. I’m not even cold.” After turning the fan off, Sweetie took her seat and listened again. No additional noises from anything else. “Great!” she exclaimed, taking a sip of water. “Now I can go on to step three.”

Step 3: Using the template below, list ten questions that you’ve always wanted the answer to but could never find. This can be any kind of question about any topic. List them on the left. On the right, write a corresponding reason for wanting to know the answer to the question. “I just want to know” is not a valid reason or anything like it. Think hard about your reasons.

Below the third step were two columns, side by side and separated into ten rows. On top of the left column was written “Questions” and on top of the other “Reasons”. She fetched for a pencil in her knapsack and began to think. After about ten minutes of thinking, she wrote down her ten questions:

1.	Why didn’t Gummy attack Commander Chickadee yesterday at Sugarcube Corner?
2.	Why did Scootaloo steal the baby chick from Sweet Apple Acres?
3.	What exactly happens inside a cocoon when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly?
4.	Why is the sky really blue?
5.	Do rainbows ever end somewhere?
6.	How did life begin on Equestria?
7.	Where do foals come from?
8.	How do you know when to stop watering the grass?
9.	What happens to you after you die?
10.	How long can you live without drinking any water?

And she wrote their corresponding reasons:

1.	It just seems weird how Gummy can just forget how to act like a natural alligator.
2.	The doctor told me a lot of reasons maybe why, but I want to know the real truth so I can help my friends get back together.
3.	I don’t have x-ray vision so I would like to know what really goes on inside.
4.	I can’t really feel the sky but it has a color I can see. Is it painted with some kind of invisible paint or something?

“I hope I don’t get in trouble for putting a question there,” Sweetie said. She decided to erase it 
and write in its place: I want to know if something that can’t be felt can have a color. She continued:

5.	I’ve always heard there was some kind of treasure at the end of every rainbow, but I never heard of someone finding it. I would like to know so I can get it and maybe buy some things for my friends and family and for me of course.
6.	If I can find out how life got started on Equestria, maybe that information can help doctors to discover ways to make it never end.
7.	No one knows the answer to this question and it makes me mad.
8.	Whenever my mom does it, dad always complains she’s doing it too long and can kill the grass. When my dad does it, she says he isn’t watering them enough. I would like to know so I can tell them just how much is enough and they can stop fighting over it.
9.	I want to know what I can look forward to and if any family members who have died will be there. It would be pretty neat to meet family members I never knew because they died before I was born.
10.	So I won’t die.

Sweetie put down her pencil and gave her wrist a much needed rub. She looked over her 
questions and reasons and was satisfied with her work. She looked for the next step on the page but 
realized there was none. She turned over the page and saw “Day 2” printed at the top.

“I guess I’m all done for today,” she said. “That wasn’t too bad.”

“Who are you talking to?” asked Rarity. She walked casually into the kitchen and opened the 
refrigerator and pulled out a sealed bag of ground coffee. She poured the grounds into the coffee machine and started it up.

“No one,” was the reply.

“Oh, so much work. The client loved the dresses so much he’s decided to appoint me his design expert. He’s asked for four new styles of dresses by the end of this week. This could mean big things for me, you know. It could be the first step into expanding my business outwards from Ponyville. Maybe even outside Equestria.”

She turned to her little sister who was paying no particular attention to her. She uttered a soft groan and poured herself a mug of hot coffee. “Sweetie Belle, I need to talk to you about something.”

“About what?” she asked with her face still turned away.

“Mother and father have decided to extend their vacation until the end of this week, so you’ll be staying with me a little longer than expected.”

Sweetie shrugged. "So?"

She continued. “That’s going to be a problem because the client has asked that I personally deliver the new designs when they’re ready. He wants to introduce me to his circle of friends who are all well-to-do business ponies. I’m afraid I’ll have to take you with me as I have no other choice.”

Sweetie turned around in her chair and raised her voice. “Can’t I stay with someone while you’re gone?”

“I’m not sure I can be confident that you’ll stay out of trouble if I’m not around. You know mother and father weren’t happy when I told them about your little rendezvous yesterday. They don’t want you out of my sight no matter what.”

Sweetie frowned and turned back. “Why do I always have to go where you go? I don’t even want to go to stupid Manehatten with you.”

“The feeling is mutual,” Rarity sighed. “But rules are rules. We leave Friday afternoon after you’re done with school. We’ll return Saturday right before the festivities begin, so you don’t have to worry about missing out.”

Rarity took her coffee cup and made her way back upstairs to her workroom. Sweetie slumped forward and bumped her head with a thud on the table. An elongated sigh escaped her lips as frustration exploded inside her like a volcano.

“It wasn’t like I was doing anything wrong. I was helping out a friend. Since when do you get in trouble for that?” She picked up her head and let out another sigh. “I hate this. I hate this so much.” 

She rubbed her eyes and looked back down on her paper. She noticed she overlooked the final step for the day’s assignment. The final step read:

Step 4: Review your list of questions and circle the three that are most important to you. If you have trouble classifying any of your questions as important, choose the three that would be the most difficult to answer. 

She looked over her list of questions and decided on circling questions three, six, and nine. She took one last glance over her homework assignment and made sure she had done every step for the day. She went back into the living room and put the paper into her knapsack. Before she closed it, an idea popped into her mind. She took the paper back out and rushed upstairs to her sister’s workroom. She gave the door a knock.

“Come in,” said Rarity.

Sweetie opened the door and poked her head inside. “Hey Rarity, I don’t think I can go with you to Manehatten after all.”

Rarity was unimpressed. “Really? Why’s that?”

“Well, it’s because we were given this assignment and it’s really hard. I need to put all of my concentration on it and I think going to Manehatten would be a distraction.”

Rarity stopped her work on the sewing machine and walked to the door. “Here, let me see the assignment.”

Sweetie Belle ripped the paper out of reach. “No, I already told you it’s hard.”

“I just want to see the due date. When is it due?”

“Friday.”

“Then why are you so worried? You have all day tomorrow to work on it. If you need help, I’d be more than happy to.”

“I don’t need your help!”

Rarity jerked her head and scowled. “Don’t raise you voice at me like that! I was just offering my help. If you don’t want me to help you, then you can go to the library and ask Twilight.”

“But what if she can’t? What if I don’t finish by Friday?”

“Then I suppose you’ll fail.”

Sweetie gasped. “You would let your little sister get an F? How could you?”

“Hey, it’s your homework so it’s your responsibility to get a good grade. Look young lady, you’re coming with me to Manehatten on Friday whether you like it or not. Don’t try to pull tricks on me so you can stay.”

Rarity went back to her sewing machine and continued work on the hem of one her presentations. Sweetie Belle just stood at the door staring at the floor, rage bottling up inside her. She left the room but not without slamming the door hard. She was about to go into her own room when she heard the workroom door open behind her.

“What on earth is your problem!? Why did you slam the door like that?”

Sweetie froze and didn’t say a word.

“You know, you’ve been acting very strangely ever since you came back from school today. Did something happen to you?”

Sweetie turned to face her sister with tears in her eyes. “No. I’m fine. It’s none of your business anyway.”

Rarity’s face softened as she tried to get closer to Sweetie Belle. Sweetie marched inside her room and shut the door. She lingered by the door long enough to hear her sister go back inside her workroom. She threw herself on the bed and screamed and cried into her pillow.

“Why do I feel so useless?” she cried. “Why do I feel so alone?”

> Day Two
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Sweetie Belle opened her eyes and the morning light blinded her immediately. She rolled out of bed and shut the curtains, then walked out of the room and into the kitchen. She served herself a lazy breakfast of cereal and picked up a banana seemingly hours away from turning into a brown, slimy mess. 

“Nevermind.”

Before taking the first spoonful of cereal, she pulled out the assignment from her backpack still hanging on the back of her chair and read over day two’s instructions.

Today’s instructions are simple: Find the answers to your uncircled questions. You may ask anypony or consult any form of media. Books, scrolls, paintings, anything you can think of. Even your personal observations will serve you. Write what you discover on the space provided below. Be sure to label your answers with its corresponding question.

“The uncircled ones?” Sweetie brought the paper below the table. “Why not the circled ones?” 

Her thoughts were suddenly broken by a knock on the front door.

“Who could that be?”

She left the kitchen to open the door.

“Howdy Sweetie Belle,” greeted a chipper Apple Bloom. 

Sweetie scratched her head. “Uh, hey Apple Bloom. What’re you doing here? Or better yet, how’re you here? I thought you got in trouble with Applejack.”

“Are ya talkin’ ‘bout what happened two days ago with that thievin’ Scootaloo?” Her voice changed dramatically to a much darker tone.

“Well…”

Apple Bloom flashed a smile. “There ain’t nothin’ to worry about, Sweetie. Mah sis an’ I had a good, long talk about things an’ everything’s good now. I got her permission to be here if’n that’s what your meanin’.”

“So you and Applejack are good now?”

“Eeyup! We’re back to bein’ the best sisters around!”

Sweetie smiled weakly. “So, what should we do?”

“Well, that’s what ah’m here for. I was wonderin’ if you wanted to go around town askin’ for answers to the questions we wrote for last night’s homework.”

“I can’t. I’m grounded.”

“What?”

Sweetie stomped a hoof on the ground. “Rarity grounded me for the rest of the week because of what happened. Not only that, I have to go with her to Manehatten tomorrow for some stupid business trip with one of her clients.”

“Where are yer parents?”

“On vacation,” Sweetie sighed.

“Again?”

Sweetie didn’t respond.

Apple Bloom thought for a few moments before suggesting, “Hey, why don’t we just do our homework here at Carousel Boutique together?”

“That might work for a little while, but some of the questions I wrote down need to be answered by someone outside. Watch.” Sweetie disappeared inside for a minute and came back with her list of questions. She showed them to Apple Bloom. “See? How can I answer some of these without going outside first?”

“Why did you write this one?” she asked, pointing to the second question.

Sweetie quickly scanned the question. She gulped. “Well…”

“We know why she did it, Sweetie Belle.”

“You do?”

Apple Bloom turned around. “Yeah, ‘cause she’s a thief. I don’t know what got into her, but what she did was wrong. Only thieves take somethin’ that ain’t theirs.”

“Apple Bloom, you don’t think she did it just because, right? There has to be a reason.”

“Well, whatever it is, it probably ain’t a good one.” She turned and gave her a reassuring smile to calm her friend’s anxieties. “So, should we just stay here then?”

Sweetie thought for a moment then announced, “Well, I do remember my sister saying that if I needed Twilight’s help I could go to the library.”

“Hey, that’s a great idea! Plus, we can look through all those books too!”

“Okay! Just let me get my backpack and we’ll…”

“Hey Sweetie?”

“Yeah?” 

The somber look on Apple Bloom’s face put Sweetie Belle on edge.

“Is something wrong, Apple Bloom?”

“Ah just don’ want y’all to think that ah hate Scootaloo or anythin’.”

“Why would I think that?”

“’Cause of what ah said about her earlier.”

Sweetie reassured her friend with a smile. “Apple Bloom, of course I don’t think you hate Scootaloo. You’re just mad because of what she did. I still think there’s a reason for what she did, but I’m not sure. Just don’t call her something that we can’t know for sure, like a thief, okay?”

“Ah s’pose,” she said, returning the smile with one of her own.

“Great! I’ll be right back.”





“Of course you can do your homework here!” said Twilight. “Come on in!”

The two fillies stepped inside and followed the cheerful librarian into the reading area. Spike stood atop a ladder dusting off some books while Owliscious snoozed silently on Twilight’s desk. They walked up to a large table that was cluttered with all kinds of books.

“Please excuse the mess, girls,” she said, magically reshelving the books in order. “I had a late study rush last night and forgot to put these titles back in their place.”

When all the books were put away, the fillies scooted some chairs close and hung their backpacks on the backrests.

“Thanks for letting us stay, Twi,” said Apple Bloom.

“No problem! I’m going to be in the kitchen making breakfast. Just holler if you need me!”

“Hey, what am I? Scuffed sapphires?” Spike put his hands on his sides, tipping backwards dangerously. He caught himself just before the fall pulled him down.

Twilight giggled and said to the girls, “Or you can ask my number one assistant Spike for help. In fact, he could get you any book that happens to be at the highest parts of the shelves. Right Spike?”

“Right!” he said, dusting with one hand while keeping a firm grip on the book shelf with the other.

Twilight laughed and made her way into the kitchen. The girls opened their backpacks and pulled out their assignments. Sweetie Belle decided to start on question number three, which read: What exactly happens inside a cocoon when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly?

“I wonder if Twilight has any books on butterflies,” she muttered to herself. Not a second later, Spike appeared right next to her holding out a book on butterflies, catching her off guard. “Whoa! Thanks Spike!”

“My pleasure! Anything for Rarity’s little sister!”

Spike went back to his dusting while Sweetie thumbed through the pages of the book. She found a section on the chrysalis and immediately began to read from the top:

A chrysalis is a leaf-like shell where caterpillars begin the butterfly transformation process. After shedding its last exoskeleton, the caterpillar reveals the chrysalis underneath. Though it appears that not much is going on, inside a wonderful and mysterious set of chemical changes are happening to the little caterpillar’s body, which will result in a totally new creature: A butterfly!

“Interesting,” she said to herself, writing the answer on her homework assignment. She closed the book and looked over at Apple Bloom putting her homework assignment away.

“Giving up?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“Ah’m done.”

“What!?” 

“Yeah. Ah only needed to double check one of the answers I wasn't sure about.”

Sweetie glanced over her paper and gawked at the thought of having all but one of her questions answered. “But, how did you do it so fast, and so early in the morning?”

“Ah was havin’ breakfast when Big Mac showed up an’ asked me why I was up so early. Ah told him ‘bout our assignment an’ he said he wanted to help me.”

“So did he?”

Apple Bloom’s eyes grew very wide. “It’s amazin’ all the things mah big brother knows. Shoot, he might be the smartest pony in all o’ Ponyville, as far as I can tell.”

“That’s so weird. He’s so…quiet most of the time.” Sweetie watched her friend zip her backpack shut. “So what question did you need to double check?”

“Why the sky is blue.”

“Hey I have that question. It’s…” Sweetie scanned down the list. “…number four. Could I see your paper really quick?”

“Ah don’ know. Ain’t that cheatin’?”

“I don’t see how it is,” began Sweetie. “The instructions say we can get our answers from anypony or anything. The way I see it, I’m getting the answer to my question from Big Mac through you.”

Apple Bloom thought for a moment then reached over the back of her chair for her backpack. “Makes sense to me. It just feels weird since y’all be lookin’ at mah answers an’ stuff.”

Sweetie waited until the page was right in front of her before scribbling down the answer. “Well, it’s like the doctor said: Anypony or anything.”

Apple Bloom watched as her friend finished off her last sentence. “You’ve been hangin’ around the doctor a lot, haven’t you?”

Sweetie Belle passed the page back to her friend and shot her a curious look. “Do you find that odd?”

“Oh no! That’s not what ah meant at all! It’s just, well, interestin’ how you get along so well with him. Like, I like Miss Cheerilee an’ all, but ah wouldn’t go outta mah way to be around her, ya know?”

“Yeah, I know what you mean. I normally wouldn’t do that either with my teacher, especially with a doctor.”

“So, why do you do it?”

Sweetie paused to think about her answer. “He’s different. He’s unlike anyone I’ve ever known. He makes everything really interesting and doesn’t take my questions lightly. He’s a very curious pony like me. And whenever I talk to him, it’s not like I’m talking to a teacher or a doctor, but it’s like I’m talking to my grandfather.”

“Well, that’s jus’ fine!” said Apple Bloom, putting her assignment away. She looked up from her backpack and spotted a familiar mane of flashy rainbow colors at the door. “Rainbow Dash?”

Sweetie Belle turned around and yelled, “Rainbow Dash!”

“Hey girls,” she replied, wearing a sheepish grin. “Is Twilight here?”

“She’s in the kitchen,” said Apple Bloom. “I can go get her if ya want.”

“No, that’s cool, that’s cool,” she said urgently. “I just came to return a book. Tell her that I brought back the latest edition of ‘Daring Do’ for me, okay?”

“Sure thing!”

Rainbow put the title on a nearby table and turned to leave. Before she could however, Sweetie Belle tagged her on the back. “Uh, yeah?”

“Hey Rainbow Dash. I was just wondering if you could help me on a question for my homework.”

Rainbow observed the filly flash a pleading grin and gave her one of her own. “Sure thing, sport. What’s the question?”

“Where do foals come from?”

The fearless flyer shrieked then mumbled a few words. 

“Rainbow, are you okay?” Sweetie asked.

Rainbow sighed. “Look sport, I don’t think you should be knowin’ this kinda stuff yet.”

“Why not?”

“You’re too young.”

“So?”

“So…” She struggled to find what to say about the question and grunted, “Sweetie Belle, isn’t there another question I could answer for you that’s not…weird? Why is that question even in your homework?”

“Actually, we needed to make a list of ten questions we want to know the answers to. That was one of the questions.”

“Oh, I see. That’s pretty cool. So, there must be another question I could help you with, right?”

“I suppose.” Sweetie led Rainbow Dash to her work area and scanned through her list. “Okay, how about this? How do you know when to stop watering grass?”

“Beats me. Got another one?”

“How long can you live without drinking any water?”

“Not long I guess.”

“That really isn’t the kind of answer I was hoping for, Rainbow Dash.”

The stumped pegasus huffed. “Well, I’m not a water-drinking expert you know. Got something I might actually know a thing or two about?”

“Hey, how ‘bout that one?” said Apple Bloom, pointing at Sweetie’s paper.

Sweetie laughed. “Oh yeah, why didn’t I think of that? Do rainbows ever end somewhere?”

“Now that I can answer,” said Rainbow Dash. “There’s only one rainbow that shoots across the sky. It all starts in Cloudsdale. The colors flows out in a  stream, high into the sky, then out beyond the horizon to the far stretches of Equestria.”

“What’s at the end?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“There’s another fountain that collects the rainbow. When it gets full, it shoots back to Cloudsdale after one night.”

“That’s really interesting and all, but why have the rainbow in the first place?”

“Don’t you remember we went to the edge of a rainbow to get some of it to make that love potion for Cheerilee?” Apple Bloom said.

“Yeah, but there has to be a primary reason for having a rainbow shoot across the sky. It can’t just be for potion making.”

“Well,” began Rainbow Dash. “Legend has it that thousands of years ago, all of Equestria was under attack by enemies from the North. Then, when all hope seemed lost, a white shining alicorn burst through the dark clouds and cast a rainbow all across the sky. This rainbow fell upon the enemies, burning them alive with its acidic properties. This enabled the ponies to fend of the invaders and reclaim the land for themselves. And so, every day a rainbow shoots from Cloudsdale across the sky, into the fountain and back in honor of that legendary alicorn that saved Equestria.”

The fillies stood for a few moments mulling over the story. Sweetie Belle finally asked, “Is that all true?”

Rainbow Dash belted out a hearty laugh and said, “Nah. It’s just a myth. The truth is rainbows were invented by Pegasi in Cloudsdale by direct order form the Princess many years ago. She thought the sky could use a little color so she came up with the initial design and presented it to the Pegasi. They figured a water based rainbow would look best given the way light reflects off of it.”

“Really, that’s it?” asked Apple Bloom.

“Yup.”

“So that whole story with the legendary alicorn, why does it exist if it’s not true?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“You got me there, sport. Some ponies just believe in things without checkin’ the facts out first. My guess is some pony who forgot to take their medication went out one night and saw one of the Pegasi placing the first rainbow up and mistook it for some supernatural phenomenon. Kinda like how you hear certain things in the dark that in actuality aren’t really scary.”

“How do you know so much about this?”

“Because,” she said, pointing to her head. “As an extreme athlete, I fly on facts. Ever since I began to take flying seriously, I became an expert on the physics of flying and strength training. All that hard work got me interested in becoming a fact-seeker and not believing just any ol’ namby-pamby story that ponies make up. The truth an’ nothin’ but truth as I always say.”

“I’m like that, too!” piped Sweetie Belle. 

“Then keep on truckin’, sport.”

Just then, Twilight emerged from the kitchen carrying a batch of muffins fresh from the oven. “Hey Rainbow Dash! It’s good to see you.”

“Hey Twilight! I just came to drop off the latest Daring Do copy. When’s the next one coming out?”

“Five months.”

“See ya then!”

“Well hold on just a minute there,” she said, holding up the muffins. “Would you like to try one? It’s a recipe I learned from Pinkie Pie not too long ago.”

“A Pinkie Pie inspired muffin? Count me in!” She zipped across the ceiling and snagged a muffin from Twilight’s grasp. She landed near the door and took a bite of the warm pastry. “Mmm, delicious!”

“Thank you! Hey, I couldn’t help but overhear you talking to the girls about Silent Arrow. Is it true you don’t believe in him?”

“Oh, that was his name,” she said in between mouthfuls. “Nah, it’s just an’ ol’ mare’s tale.”

“That’s funny. I sort of grew up hearing about him a lot.” She shrugged her shoulders and smiled. “Well, I don’t want to keep you from your plans so, have a nice day Rainbow!”

“You too! And thanks for the awesome muffin!” And with that, the speedy flier blast through the door, taking off into the sky unbeknownst to her that the hinges of the door were sent flying across the street.

Twilight sighed. “I was wondering when that was gonna happen.” She fixed the door using her magic then offered a muffin to the girls. “Want one?”

“Thanks!” they said, taking a muffin.

Sweetie took a bite then asked, “Hey Twilight, do you believe in the story about that one alicorn?”

“You mean Silent Arrow? Well, I remember believing it as a child. My parents basically raised me telling it like it was a fact. Some ponies still believe it today, too. But, I don’t know.”

After a brief moment of silence, Twilight grabbed the batch and walked back to the kitchen. “If you girls want more, they’ll be in the kitchen.”

“Okay, Twi,” said Apple Bloom.

Sweetie Belle ate the last bite of her muffin and continued to finish her homework.





It was late in the afternoon and the girls were on their way home. The Carousel Boutique wasn’t too far away as its decorative tower peeked over the hilly street, just to the left. They passed the fountain in the middle of the square and remembered the story of Silent Arrow told to them by Rainbow Dash.

“Do you think it’s true?” asked Sweetie Belle.

Apple Bloom shrugged. “Ah never heard it before. How ‘bout you?”

“I don’t know. I never really heard about it either, but it would be interesting to investigate. Too bad I already have ten questions for the homework.”

“Didja get them all done?”

“No,” she said, looking over her paper. “I still have two left unanswered.”

“Which ones?”

“One is about Gummy. And the other is about…”

“Hey,” said a frail voice.

The two friends stopped and looked to see the speaker. Scootaloo stood before them, not as the confident and strong Pegasus they knew, but ashamedly hiding her neck between her shoulders. “Apple Bloom, c-can we talk?”
Apple Bloom swallowed. “Okay. Whatcha wanna talk ‘bout?”

“Well, about the chick and stuff. Look, I’m really sorry I lied to you about it. See, I…” Her voice trailed off for a second before she cleared her throat and continued. “I just thought that having the chick would make me feel, you know, safe and not so lonely all the time.”

“Why do you feel so lonely all the time, Scoots?”

“Because, because I don’t have someone to, you know, look up to and I just thought the chick could help me and I just…”

“The chick could help you what?”

“Keep me company.”

Apple Bloom sighed. “Scoots, you’re not alone. You have us. We’re your friends. We’re the Cutie Mark Crusaders, remember?”

“You don’t understand. I can’t explain it. It’s…complicated.” Her voice deescalated and she hung her shoulders low. “I’m sorry. You must think I’m stupid.”

Apple Bloom looked at her lonely friend in the eye. “No ah don’t. Ah may not understand why you feel the way you do, but that’s only ‘cause I haven’t learned yet. Can you show me?”

Scootaloo looked up and smiled. “It’s okay. As long as you don’t think I’m a thief or something, I won’t mind if you don’t understand.”

“But I do want to understand.”

Sweetie joined her farm friend. “We both do, Scoots.”

Scootaloo couldn’t hold back the tears much longer. “Thank you,” she whispered.

The three friends hung a leg around each other and walked together to Carousel Boutique against the light of the setting sun.