//------------------------------// // The Changelings' Pony Club // Story: Society as We Know It // by Comma Typer //------------------------------// Within the vast orchards of apple trees, past deep green foiliage and shrubs and bushes, standing tall and prominently, having a uniqueness that differs it from the rest, this great and sturdy apple tree held the humble yet widely-known clubhouse of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. It was still lightly-colored, still wooden, still small—but, this time, any trace of Cutie Mark Crusaders material was either gone or covered. Instead, in their place were festive, multi-colored balloons; pictures, posters, and paintings of Rainbow Dash in various poses (and even a balloon model of the colorful pegasus); and, there were many colts and fillies, many more than the three popular Crusaders—and they were all wearing rainbow wigs styled Rainbow Dash's way—cool. Some of them were also wearing models of blue wings—just like Rainbow Dash's real ones. Among them, several were wearing shirts that either subtly or obviously showed their adoration to Rainbow Dash. At the lectern, Scootaloo, also wearing a Rainbow Dash wig, slammed the lectern. All the noisy chattering was silenced. "It's been a short while since the official Rainbow Dash Fan Club has convened," Scootaloo began, holding an authoritative voice among her peers. "But, here we are now." She sheepishly grinned at her audience. "We're...convened." "What do you mean by 'convened'?" Snips asked, raising a hoof. "Uh, it means to meet together somewhere." Scootaloo kept up the grin. "So, now that we've got that out of the way, let's get back to official fan club business!" Everypony there made threw shouts and noises of approval. Scootaloo slammed her front hooves on the lectern again. And everypony went quiet again. "First, we'd like to welcome our newest member of the official Rainbow Dash Fan Club!" She cleared her throat and looked at the fan club's many optimistic members. "You all know her, right?" Everypony stared back at her, confused. "Uh, I thought you'd said that she was going to be a surprise," Snails said, breaking the silence. "That's because it's going to be an awesome surprise." The audience stayed silent. Maintaining her upbeat look, she continued on. "We all know her. She lives here in Ponyville. I and Sweetie Belle have been friends with her for a long time. But, when she asked me if she could join the Rainbow Dash Fan Club, I was honestly surprised, puzzled even. I knew that she and Rainbow Dash were on good terms, even friends, but a fan of Rainbow Dash? I didnt' expect that from her." She cleared her throat again. She faced the door. "And, now, may I present to you our newest member of the official Rainbow Dash Fan Club—Applejack's sister and fellow Cutie Mark Crusader, Apple Bloom!" The door hurled open and there was Apple Bloom, wearing her signature pink bow and also a rainbow-colored wig. Everypony there cheered for her. Amidst the happy commotion, Scootaloo rushed her way there, dodging and avoiding the other avid fan club members and stood in front of the smiling Apple Bloom. "So, Apple Bloom! Welcome to your first ever session of the official Rainbow Dash Fan Club!" She then bounced up and down, flapping her wings while she did so, keeping her up in the air for a little longer. "I'm so excited for what we're going to achieve with you inside the club!" "Well, finally," Apple Bloom replied, exhausted. "Ah' can finally get mah' reward fer all that Ah' had to face 'fore Ah' got here!" Scootaloo became perplexed. "Can you explain?" About thirty minutes ago The peaceful apple tree orchards of Sweet Apple Acres were indeed quiet. The only sound that was there was the rustling of the leaves and of the branches as the occasional gust of wind blew over the fields. The trees bended a little with the force of the wind. Right outside the family barn, Apple Bloom stood in front of her older sister. "What did ah' just hear?!" Applejack yelled at her. "Mah' sister, my very own sister, is going to a Rainbow Dash fan club?" She smacked a hoof on her face. "This...this just don't make a little haystack of sense, Apple Boom!" "But, Ah've seen Rainbow Dash an' her awesome flying skills an' abilities, 'specially now that you an' Twilight gave me permission to use that magic spell that makes Earth ponies an' unicorns walk on clouds. And, the more Ah see her do those cool sunts, Ah wanted to spend some mor' time with her an' now...here Ah' am!" She placed a pleading grin on her face. "Hmph!" She planted a hoof on the ground and glared at her younger sister. "Ya' do know that Ah am the better athlete 'round here?" "Uh..." "Is that a tiny part o' doubt that Ah' just heard now?!" Applejack screamed. "No, n-no!" Apple Bloom exclaimed, shaking her head, slowly walking away from Applejack while she faced her. "Ah didn't mean to say that, Applejack! You're both awesome in your own ways, that's what I meant!" "Oh, really, Apple Bloom?" Applejack slowly took her steps forward, each step more intimidating and frightening. "You're really saying that Ah'm just her equal?" Apple Bloom gulped and stopped her walk. "Uh, y-yes?" Applejack sighed. "Ah'm pretty OK with other ponies thinkin' that Rainbow Dash's better than me. However, mah own sister believin' that Ah'm just her equal? Just a pony who could match her skills and not a pony who could defeat her 'bout at least half the time?" She looked away from her sister. "What do ya' see in me, Apple Bloom?" she asked downheartedly. Her eyes were closed. A hug. Applejack opened her eyes in surprise. She saw her sister hugging her. She hugged back. "Nopony could replace my own sister, Applejack." A good, cheerful silence passed by. "If that's the case," Applejack said, still hugging her sister, "then, why are ya' joining the Rainbow Dash fan club?" "Ah' just like her skills an' her atheltic abilities—but you're not just athletic, Applejack. You're still mah' sister, Applejack. Besides, it's just a fan club. Ah' don't think we're supposed to like Rainbow Dash above our own families." Then, they stopped hugging. The two ponies were smiling at each other, now. "Heh." Applejack picked up a small box. "I sorta' anticipated somethin' like this happenin' anway! All the trips to Cloudsdale you've been makin' recently and the Cutie Mark Crusaders get-togethers I've been hearin' about lately—sooner or later, somepony's gonna find out." Applejack placed the box on the ground. Apple Bloom ran to open it. Inside was a rainbow-colored wig styled Rainbow Dash's way. "A-Applejack?" Apple Bloom stuttered. She slowly held up the wig with her front hooves, beholding it. She cautiously turned it around, feeling the fake hair of the wig. "Thank you, thank you!" Apple Bloom rushed to hug Applejack again. "Well, little sister," Applejack said, "ya' don't know what Ah' went through just to get that for ya'. Ah' got that from one of the clothing stores 'round town, and it turns out that Rainbow Dash herself was there. Ah' tried to buy it away from her sight, but she caught me and then wondered if Ah, Applejack, was joining her fan club. Couldn't keep a secret that well, so Ah told her mah' suspicion that ya' might be the next member of the fan club." Apple Bloom gasped. "So, she knows?!" "Apparently, while Ah thought ya' might be joinin' the fan club, she knew ya' were joinin'!" The grin on her face grew wide. "Uh, can ya' let go now?" Apple Bloom removed her hugging grip. Now, she was bouncing up and down, looking at her sister with that happy grin. "So, does that mean I can join the—" Applejack nodded. "Yes! Thanks, Applejack! You're still my sister!" Then, she rushed off. The present Scootaloo patted Apple Bloom. "Now, isn't that cool and awesome, just like what Rainbow Dash might say?" Apple Bloom's grin stayed there. She walked, seeing all the smiles and the ponies there saying their greetings to her and telling her that joining the official Rainbow Dash Fan Club was one of the best things that she had ever done in her life. She turned her head around, letting herself see and view all the Rainbow Dash works that were made and produced, finely created with different abilities and skills but united with the common vision of having a common pony to be a fan of: Rainbow Dash. "So, what about Sweetie Belle?" Apple Bloom asked, taking a seat on the floor as everypony finally sat down as well. Scootaloo stood up from her position behind the lectern. "I'm working on it." "Rarity?" Sweetie Belle asked her sister checking the clothes she has made. "Can I go outside and attend Scootaloo's fan club?" Rarity fixed her glasses, still looking at the fine details of the dress in front of her. "Why, is it that important, Sweetie Belle?" "But, I wanna at least try!" Sweetie Belle complained. "Not today, my dear!" "Everypony! Let's get back to official fan club business, shall we?" Scootaloo slammed on the lectern another time and then everypony was quiet once again. "The first item that we shall talk about today is something very peculiar." Everypony straightened their view towards her. "It turns out that, without our permission—" And, she began pacing the floor "—someone decided to establish another branch of the official Rainbow Dash Fan Club!" Several ponies gasped. "Wait," a pony mentioned. "Isn't that a good thing?" "Hmm." Scootaloo rested a hoof on the lectern, thinking and wondering and anaylzing as her gaze was upwards towards the wooden ceiling. "It could be a good thing." Everypony cheered at the positive declaration. "But, aren't we gonna recognize this new branch or somethin'?" Apple Bloom asked. "We might as well just invite them to come here," Scootaloo replied, "since you're not gonna believe where this club is and what it's about. I apologize for not being completely honest about it at first, but, it's not just a Rainbow Dash fan club. It's a fan club for ponies." Gasps were sounded by all the ponies there. "Ya' don't mean—" "Yes, I mean it!" Scootaloo took in some air. "We've got a pony fan club made by the changelings!" "What?!" everypony else screamed in bewilderment. Inside the rocky, craggy room, a soft green light glowed from a light fixture on the ceiling. The doorway was open, letting in all the changeling noise from outside as changelings walked and passed by on the road and on the sidewalk. The room was decorated with various balloons. A curtain was used as a makeshift sign—painted on it were the words "The Official Pony Fan Club!" Several books, most of them thick, were lying on the table. Cushioned chairs and couches stayed on the side. This gave way for the changelings there—all in different, various colors; all of them were glimmering and gleaming under the light—to sit on the rocky floor, although they were actually sitting on a carpet. On a tiny elevated platform which was actually a soapbox, Humerus stood tall above his fellow changelings. He stood there, smiling. "Who's excited as I am for today's session of the official Pony Fan Club?!" The changelings there cheered and raised their hooves as they did so. "Alright!" Humerus pointed to one of the changelings. "Long Winded!" "What?" He pointed to himself. "Me?" "Yes! You're our volunteer for, uh, today's session!" And the changelings cheered again, the nearby ones giving Long Winded a hand as he stood up. Then, he flew to Humerus and landed in front of him. Humerus looked at him. He faced the open window that let the sunlight in. Several changelings were watching the session take place from the sidewalks. A changeling waved a hoof, trying to catch Humerus's attention. He smiled at them. Humerus looked back at Long Winded. "So, would you care to give the new members of the fan club a short history of Equestria and its ponies?" he asked in a professional-sounding voice. "Uh, y-yes?" "That's great!" Then, Humerus pushed him up to the soapbox as Humerus himself stepped down from it and quickly took a seat beside one of the changelings there. He nudged that changeling. "How are you enjoying this so far, Nastic?" Nastic laughed smugly. "Just...don't take this too far, OK, Humerus?" Humerus laughed back happily and honestly. "We're going to have a great time here, Nastic! All three of my bestest and closest friends are here!" Nastic turned his head around. Among the small crowd of changelings, three changelings waved at him. Nastic turned back to Humerus. "I see you've brought Blue Alarm, Red Noise, and Neon Guard along." Humerus grabbed him. "That means more exciting times for the club! They're always better with your friends!" Nastic pushed himself away from Humerus and adjusted his hat. "I wonder why I have the feeling that this is going to sound very cheesy?" Long Winded cleared his throat as he stood on the soapbox. He saw all that was in front of him. There were the couches and the comfortable chairs. There was a lamp. He saw the green lights on the ceiling. He saw more of the house—a hallway and, past the hallway, a room that had a table prepared with plates and chairs. There were several shelves in the room he was in, some sporting books, others boasting pictures of happy, smiling changelings. Right in front of him were the changelings attending this session of the official Pony Fan Club. They were, like the changelings that were there in the pictures, happy and smiling. Long Winded eyed his fellow changelings. "Who's new here?" he asked heartily. Some changelings raised their hats, including the hatted Nastic. "Of course, I know your names, especially you Nastic!" The changeling in question groaned. "Anyway, you can get to talk with the other changelings and talk about ponies after this short introduction to Equestria and to ponies." He gulped, still wearing that glad smile. "Well, I hope that it's going to be short!" "Don't make this too long!" Nastic yelled from his place. Long Winded made a nervous smile. "Alright! Who's ready?!" All the changelings there raised their hooves. Nastic raised his slowly and reluctantly. Blitheful picked up the lamp. "Hey!" Long Winded cried out. "Why are you getting that lamp, Blitheful?!" "Why not?" "Uh..." Long Winded observed the changeling inspecting the lamp. "OK, why not?" He looked at all the changelings in front of him. "Again, who's ready?!" And all the changelings raised their hooves enthusiastically again—except for Nastic who didn't even raise his hoof but just gave his friend attention. "That's good and great and alright, changelings!" Long Winded took up a large piece of paper from the table behind him. He spread it out. The paper showed a huge map of Equestria and its surrounding areas—including the Changeling Kingdom. "You better be listening, because this is going to be a short introduction, so every word and every phrase and every sentence and every section of this introduction is important!" And every changeling there (except Nastic) leaned in closer towards the map. Long Winded took in a deep breath. "We start with the three pony tribes: Earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns. They weren't really friends so they fought over food and water. Then, their hatred for each other grew and the winter became worse because of the Windigos who feed on hatred. Because of the harsh weather and climate at the time, the leaders and their right-hand ponies went out to survey for a new place to call home. Then, they bumped into each other and called the same land their home which caused a squabble and the leaders' were frozen in ice and the right-hand ponies were concerned and were talking and laughing and the fire of their friendship thawed out the ice and the leaders were now good and then after that the Princesses—Princess Celestia and Princess Luna—they arrived and helped out but then Discord arrived and made chaos everywhere he went and, after a while, the Princesses stopped Discord and then there was peace for a while until Princess Luna became evil and became Nightmare Moon and then Princess Celestia had to banish her own sister who was Princess Luna and she banished her to the moon and then Princess Celestia reigned for about a thousand years and, after that, she sends out her faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, and she sends her to Ponyville and then Nightmare Moon was there at the one thousandth Summer Sun Celebration in Ponyville and then Twilight Sparkle had to make friends with Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Fluttershy, and then they saved the day and then it turns out that they are now the bearers of the Elements of Harmony and then they had adventures and friendship lessons and saved Equestria several times and then, some months ago, Starlight Glimmer and her friends gathered around and saved the Changeling Kingdom and then I'm done with the short introduction on Equestria!" And Long Winded was exasparated, breathing heavily and slowly, taking in big gulps of air while still holding the large map of Equestria. "Come on!" Nastic complained. "You just displayed the map for us to see—you didn't point to this or that place at all!" "Like I said, Nastic—short introduction. If I pointed my hoof at things on the map, it would make it longer!" "I agree!" Humerus agreed. And the rest of the changelings there mumbled and muttered their agreements with Long Winded, some of them approvingly nodding their heads. "OK, what about the short introduction on ponies?" "Really?" Nastic said, annoyed. "And Changed Chanticleer is going to give us the short introduction on ponies!" Every changeling there (except Nastic) cheered the yellow changeling on as he hovered to the soapbox. Long Winded hovered down from it, taking his large map with him. Changed Chanticleer, like Long Winded, cleared his throat. "You know what ponies are, right?" Changed Chanticleer began. Every changeling in the audience (except Nastic) gave an enthusiastic "Yes!" "Have you met at least one pony in your life?" Every changeling (except Nastic) answered "Yes!" again. Nastic remained silent, though he gave a slow and subtle nod. "You know there are three types of ponies, right?" Again, every changeling (except Nastic) answered "Yes!" "They are very friendly, correct?" "Yes!" all the changelings said to him (except Nastic). "OK, I'm done." And all the changelings (except Nastic) cheered on Changed Chanticleer once again, some of them giving noisy, loud shouts of acclaim and informal respect for the changeling and his short introduction on ponies. "Why do I have a feeling that this is not going to be as good as I thought?" Nastic whispered to himself. All the changelings sat around the large wooden table. On it were the various books and also various foods and drinks. "Of course," Nastic began, "you wouldn't have this fine arrangement of furniture without me, you know, Sunny Perky." "I know that, Nastic," Sunny Perky replied. "But, let's not talk about the furniture." "Yeah!" Humerus yelled. "Any pony news from Equestria and from other places?!" "Heh-heh-heh." Another changeling sipped his glass of water. "I forgot to bring the newspaper for today." "Which is why I have back-ups!" Long Winded threw a bunch of newspapers onto the table. Several changelings moved their plates and their glasses away from the incoming barrage of newspapers. "What's there?" Red Noise asked. "Let's see!" Long Winded took up one of the newspapers. "It seems like Princess Twilight Sparkle is going to visit the Changeling Kingdom to hold yet another friendship talk!" And all the changelings around the table cheered at the news (except Nastic). "Is it going to be free to attend like last time?!" Humerus asked. "Yes, it's going to be free!" Long Winded answered gladly. "Just like all the other times when Twilight Sparkle went here!" "What's she going to talk about this time?" the changeling who forgot to bring the newspaper asked. "I think she's going to talk about, uh, let me see, Critic Steno." Long Winded brought the newspaper closer to him. He read the column in front of him. "She's going to talk about, uh, not bothering your friends and not being annoying to them!" The changelings (except Nastic) smiled at the news. "Is she going to be any of her friends to the talk?" Neon Guard asked from his place. "The column says that it's going to be the first friendship talk where she'll bring all her best friends from Ponyville." And, every changeling there (except Nastic) gasped or otherwise reacted surprised at that piece of information. Then, the changelings (except Nastic) once again cheered at the prospect of Twilight Sparkle bringing her five best friends to the Changeling Kingdom to attend the friendship talk. Nastic looked out the window. The streets were normal—changelings were still walking and passing by on the sidewalks and on the streets. "Are they going to be speaking there, too?" Changed Chanticleer asked, desperate to know the answer. "The column affirms it." And, once again, the changelings (except Nastic) roared in joy. "Don't spill any of the drinks!" Nastic yelled. And the joyful roaring stopped at once. "We're going to have the best friendship talk ever!" one changeling shouted, seated at his seat. "All the Elements of Harmony are going to speak there!" another changeling screamed. "Of course, it's going to be the best friendship talk ever, Go Ahead!" The two changelings bumped each others' hooves. "We're both attending, right, Rook Castle?" "We sure are! What about Opty?" "He attended every friendship talk, remember?" "OK, alright, changelings!" Humerus announced, standing on the table. "Watch out, Humerus!" Sunny Perky yelled. "You might spill and ruin something!" "Don't worry about it, Sunny Perky!" He smiled at her. "I just need the extra space to make myself stand out among the rest so all can listen to the important thing that I have to tell you all!" "OK, what is it?!" Nastic cried. "I'm getting impatient over here!" "I'll tell you all..." And the changelings (except Nastic) leaned in again. "...later." "Really?!" Nastic shouted, slamming the table with his front hooves. "Changelings, it's that time again," Humerus told, gesturing professionally and over-professionally to all the changelings around the table. "It's that time after our afternoon meal time that's after lunch but before dinner." Changed Chanticleer raised a hoof. "Does that mean we're not having dinner this time?" "We will." Changed Chanticleer lowered his hoof. Humerus paced on the floor. "You know this time—well, those of you that have already attended the official Pony Fan Club before. However, let's show some consideration for the new ones here, the new guys and the new gals!" He quickly hovered to one of the changelings in the audience. "It's pony-item time!" All the changelings cheered in their various and unique ways—except Nastic who just sat there on the chair, his two front hooves slumped on the table along with his hatted head. "You've all brought your bags that have at least one item made by a pony, right?" And everypony (except Nastic) nodded. "Let's see who will start this day's session! What about—" He pointed to a random changeling "—you, Rook Castle!" A smile appeared on Rook Castle's face as he casually dropped his simple bag onto the table. "Let me introduce you to something that I have wanted to see for a long time. I've wanted to use it, and to have a good time with my friends with this thing!" He took the item in question out of the bag. It was a checkered board. Beside it was a container for little chess pieces. "It's a chess board!" "I knew you were going to get that one!" Humerus yelled. "I forgot to tell you all about it, but I've been delaying to tell you a story." "What's the story, Humerus?" Changed Chanticleer asked enthusiastically and eagerly. "Did you play chess with a pony?" "Both while I was evil and right now." He smiled anxiously, quickly looking at each of the changelings there as he did so. "But, of course we're good now, right?" All the changelings agreed, some of them bumping some other changeling's hooves, all of them making an obvious noise about their positive agreement (except Nastic). "Do you want to know who I played a game of chess with?" There was silence in the room as all eyes were on him, expecting an answer, demanding a definite name of the pony who he had played a game of chess with. "The Starlight Glimmer." And the screams and the shouts and the yells and the hollerings grew even more happy and more blaring. Nastic held his ground, holding on to the table as he nervously observed the pleasant chaos that was going on around him. "You know what?" Nastic blurted out. "This is getting too much!" "If only Starlight Glimmer were here at least once every two weeks!" Long Winded clamored. Neon Guard flew around the room, keeping the rest of the changelings from being too out of control by pushing them back to their seats. Then, he sat back down. Humerus sighed. "Thanks for the help there, Neon Guard." "Can you tell them to stop being so excited about ponies?" Neon Guard requested. "They're just getting crazier and crazier each time! Why can't we all be like Blue Alarm and just be happy without being excessive about it?" He gestured to Blue Alarm who was sitting quietly and was eating some hay fries. "Look, Humerus—we've only gotten the first item out from our pony-item time—" "Do you have a better namer, guys?" Nastic interrupted. "The names for the fan club aren't that well-thought out, if you ask me." "OK, Nastic," Neon Guard went on, "we'll discuss that later, but I'll just call it pony-item time." He turned towards Humerus. "Just look at all this happy anarchy that's going on in this fan club! They're getting thrilled and happy, yes, but if they're too reckless about it, it's not going to end up well for the fan club." Humerus closed his eyes. "Alright, Neon Guard." He opened his eyes and faced his audience sitting around the table. "Just be calm guys." Neon Guard hesitated a little. "Shouldn't you at least be a bit more, uh, more heavy-hoofed than that?" "I'm sure they're going to behave." He looked at another random changeling. "Alright, Long Winded! What's your pony item that you brought for the fan club today?" At the end of the pony-item time, though thanks to Nastic, the name of the time is now pending and to be replaced with a new name that is purported to sound better than its current name—the table was filled with pony-made items, all of them from Equestria. Aside from the chessboard, there was also a few ingredients from the common such as apples and oranges to the uncommon such as spices, books both old and new, materials like fabric and stone, rarities such as gems and diamonds. After all was presented by their respective owners, the items were returned to their respective bags and containers. Now, all were seated around another table, waiting for the next activity for the official Pony Fan Club. "Now...we'll have dinner!" Humerus announced. A few changelings hovered out of the kitchen room and into the dining room. On their hooves were held trays of plates of diffrent kinds of food and drinks—there were sandwiches from the short to the tall, there were bowls of salad sitting beside various containers and bottles of various dressings, there was a large container of peanuts, there were bowls of soup of diverse types, there were batches of apple pies. There was even more—there were individual vegetables like carrots placed in a nice and neat order, there were bowls of ice cream with the air emanating from them being freezing to the point of being even visible to the changelings' eyes, there were oat and hay burgers, there were small dessert plates filled with all sorts of candies like rock candy, and there were caramel apples with the apples clearly fresh from the caramel vat as the caramel was still dripping. And all the savory smells and fragrances of all the foods were fused together to form a wonderful, united smell that beckoned the changelings to just behold and to admire the food that was served right in front of them. Humerus and Long Winded already dug in to their food. The rest of the changelings there took a long concerned look at the two changelings feasting on their dinner. The loud sounds of unsophisticated dining dotted the experience. "Who's prepared for tomorrow?" Blue Alarm asked, taking a bite off his burger. "The friendship talk, I mean." "Thanks, Gabby!" Scootaloo yelled as Gabby flew off to the distance while waving a claw at them. The griffon then flew in the yellow-orange sunset sky—the sky had several clouds, but other than that, it was pretty nice. She, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle then trotted in to their clubhouse. Scootaloo closed the door. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were bouncing up and down, smiling widely and idealistically. "So," Apple Bloom said, "do you think the changelings and their Pony Fan Club are going to accept the invitation to meet up?" "Just think about all the things that we already have in common!" Sweetie Belle added while she bounced up and down on the wooden floor. "What's going to happen when we end up meeting for real?" "Well, they probably won't be answering overnight, even though the one sending the invitation letter is Gabby," Scootaloo answered. "But, I'm just as excited as you two, Crusaders!" Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo then walked towards the window. They looked at the sunset sky with its clouds and the light of the sun still there but not for much longer before the night arrives. The apple orchards gleamed a little under the sunlight.