"Sweet dreams will come true here!" Bon Bon said as she cut the ribbon blocking the once-boutique's door.
A small crowd clapped their hooves as they witnessed the grand opening of Sweetie Drops Candies' second branch housed in the Carousel Boutique. Gone were the very bright pinks of the roofs and walls. Instead, there was a more refreshing batch of hues: orange, green, and red, making up an appetizing mix to the eyes. Hanging over the door was the grand opening's banner which read: "Grand Opening of Sweetie Drops Candies (Again)!"
Bon Bon opened the door and beckoned everyone present with a hoof. "Come inside!"
And so they did, following the owner.
They voiced their awe and amazement as they looked around them, beholding the renovations: shelves and racks of candies categorized by type, stylized counters and paintings of bright colors all over a checkered floor, kitchens where the confectioners created the sweets themselves. These were topped with a sugary scent throughout the entire room.
"I knew I had to expand with recent success," Bon Bon said, walking over to the counter. "But, I didn't expect to expand this fast. Granted, this is only a temporary place, for we all hope that Rarity and her family will come home soon. However, she gave me the permission to make use of this boutique; Rarity doesn't want it go to waste."
The rest of the ponies chatted short, agreeing and nodding.
"So, let's make the best out of it!"
The customers went about, milling and strolling as they saw candy bars, chocolates, hard candies, rock candies, marzipans, toffee, fondant, and more laid out on the displays.
One of the customers was none other than Applejack herself who was hauling a small sack of collected candies. She walked to the counter and pulled the sack up to it.
Bon Bon took a step back, a bit shocked. "Wow, Applejack! I didn't know you liked candy that much!"
"Heh-heh!" She tipped her hat. "It's not for me. It's all for Apple Bloom and her friends."
"What for?" Bon Bon inquired, tilting her head as she asked.
"A little get-together."
Back in Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack hauled the sack of candy through the fenced paths cutting through the apparently endless apple fields. She went over a fence, walked past many trees with no more apples left, and came into a clearing.
On one massive apple tree (with some apples still there) was a treehouse. Clean and tidy, it was all wooden and had a few heart shapes on the windows. Some ramps led up to that house; the balcony had guard rails.
She could hear laughter.
Applejack walked up the ramps, the sack now on her back.
"Quick!" Apple Bloom was heard yelling. "She's a-comin'!"
Then, she knocked on the door.
Scootaloo opened it. "Hi, Applejack!"
Inside the treehouse, she could see the table, the pictures, the papers, the snacks—it was not cluttered. She could also see the colts and fillies there including Apple Bloom who was sitting with a gray pegasus colt.
"You brought the candy?" Scootaloo asked, pointing at the sack.
"Sure did!"
Applejack let them spill on to the floor.
All of them said, "Wow!"
"Bon Bon was mighty generous today," Applejack went on, taking up the now empty sack. "She charged 'em for half the price when she knew that it was all for you!"
But, most of them paid little attention to her as they jumped in and grabbed whatever caught their fancy.
She stepped outside. "Uh, that's fine, too! I hope ya' enjoy your little party and have fun!"
Applejack left, walking down the ramps and back on to the ground.
The rest of the foals gathered in front of the gray colt, Rumble. They held their own bunches of candy, some already tasting and eating their sweets.
"So, are you ready to listen to more stories from my brother?" Rumble said.
Many shouted in agreement, their smiles only confirming their excitement.
"This is what happens when he's a Wonderbolt! I received a letter from him just this morning. He told me about his adventure over Edgington which isn't far away from Manehattan; it's so close, you could feel the danger and how it was important for the Wonderbolts and everypony else to defend Edgington at all costs!"
The audience gasped.
"You could see the immense, towering walls way over there! They were so big, you could fit thousands of ponies inside if you could hollow them out! Well, they could see lots of bad guys from far away; they saw all kinds of enemies. Then, they ran to the town...the poor, helpless town!
"But, it wasn't helpless! A pack of Crystal pegasi zipped in, but Thunderlane flew by and made one of them crash into the ground and crash!"
"Ooh!" some spoke.
"That's not the end. He still had four more to take down! So, they were now following him. The fight was on both in the air and on the ground. Some archers were even shooting at him, but Thunderlane dodged them all! But, that wasn't enough to throw them away. You wanna know what he did?"
The audience leaned closer.
"He led them straight into another pack of Crystal pegasi. They didn't see it coming and they crashed into one another! They took out each other and fell to the ground! Thunderlane only had to hurt one!"
His audience then went "Woah!"
Rumble nodded. "'Woah!' indeed. Only my brother could do those awesome things!"
"What about Rainbow Dash?" Scootaloo said, standing up. "She could do those things and more!"
"Uh, now calm down, you two," Apple Bloom said, walking between the two who glared at each other. "Let's not get into a fight. We're supposed to be relaxing, right?" She looked at Scootaloo. "Right?"
"But, what about—"
"Right, Scootaloo?"
She sat down again. "Right, Apple Bloom."
Rumble smiled again. "That was the first story he wrote to me today! Wanna hear the rest?"
Most everypony else yelled "Yeah!"
As dinner began for the Apple family in the dining area, the four ponies sat and ate what was there on the table, which was apple pie and apple fritters and candied apples and apple cake. Beside Apple Bloom was Scootaloo who took big bites of her food.
Outside, it was night, much of the farm now in darkness lit up by the moon.
Scootaloo drank some water. "Thanks for letting me eat with all you guys! These apples are still the best!"
Applejack laughed a bit. "Course, they are. You can't get anythin' better than Sweet Apple Acres produce!"
Big Mac nodded. "Eeyup."
The two fillies walked outside, the farmhouse only thirty seconds or so away. Around them were the various parts of the farm, for apples were not their only fruits. Near the entrance were the corn fields, and farther to their right were the turnip fields and the carrot fields. They could also see the rest of Ponyville in the distance, illuminated by many lights.
It was a cold night.
"Ya' still miss Sweetie Belle?" Apple Bloom asked.
"Yeah. Do you have any word about her coming back?"
"No."
"Me, too."
A pause. "I'm not sure if we're the same without her. We've always been the Cutie Mark Crusaders with her. Me, you, Sweetie Belle."
"I know what you mean, Apple Bloom," Scootaloo said. "Doing lots of activities to get our cutie marks isn't the same without her."
Another pause.
"How's your letters to Sweetie Belle?" Scootaloo asked. "Is she fine?"
"OK, I guess," Apple Bloom said. "Babs is doing well. The Manehattan branch of the Cutie Mark Crusaders is doing well, too."
"How many?"
"About three."
"Ugh. The Ponyville CMC's are worse off than the Manehattan CMC's!"
Apple Bloom looked to the sky.