//------------------------------// // Chapter Two // Story: Rhubarb // by JuneLuxray2 //------------------------------// Rhubarb entered the bakery, and a bell above the door jingled to announce a customer had arrived. He took in the interior of the building in amazement. It was not unlike the exterior; the corners of the building had candy cane styled pillars. The walls and doors followed the gingerbread house theme, brown and tan colors with white paint to mimic frosting. There was a back room he could see into scarcely, but he could spy a conveyer belt with wheels that looked like pieces of candy and the belt looked like pieces of chocolate. The building had the scent of baked goods like cake and frosting. It was heaven for the changeling. A bright pink earth pony with curly hair was kneeling in front of the display case and putting out fresh desserts. She had not seen him yet, but heard him. "Sorry, please give me a minute and I'll be right with you!" she declared. The display case was closed and she looked up. "How can I help you..." The pony had stopped herself and began to stare at Rhubarb. He shifted nervously, thinking he had done something wrong. "I'm sorry, did I-" He was cut off by an extended gasp, and then the pony's face transformed into a colossal grin. "I've never seen you before! You must be new to Ponyville 'cause I know everypony that lives in Ponyville and since I don't remember ever seeing you before so that must mean you're new!" She spoke fast and excitedly and without missing a beat or taking a breath. "What's your name? My name is Pinkie Pie!" she asked, her blue eyes locking onto him. He did a double take as she practically appeared instantly in front of him. For a moment he thought about asking her how she managed to pop in front of him so fast. Rhubarb disregarded the question for the moment and responded. "My name is Rhubarb, and yes, I'm new to Ponyville. I, uh, just moved in. And-" Another drawn out gasp escaped Pinkie Pie. "Oh! There's so much I need to do! I need to throw a party and give you the welcome wagon and sing about how we're gonna be best friends forever and-" "Pinkie Pie!" another earth pony chided as she came in. This pony had a blue coat, pink hair, an apron, and three cupcakes in her cutie mark. "Slow down. This newcomer may be a little frazzled by everything still." Pinkie Pie nodded and calmed down slightly. "Okay, Mrs. Cake! So, welcome to Sugarcube Corner, Rhubarb! What can I get for you?" she asked. Rhubarb smiled back at her. "Actually, I'm here to apply for the job you have. You're still hiring, correct?" he asked. Pinkie Pie gasped, even more excited than before. Mrs. Cake examined the pony applying. "Of course. So, your name is Rhubarb; come with me. I'd like to have an interview with you." she said. Rhubarb's face lit up and he followed her into the back room he had been looking into earlier. Pinkie Pie watched them go back for a second before running off to get hard at work. He could see more as he entered, and it was much like the first room he entered. The conveyer belt extended from one room, which he assumed was where the baked goods were being made. The smell almost prompted him to start drooling in delight, but he restrained himself. They went through and went into the kitchen. The kitchen had multiple ovens and shelves with wheels on them with all sorts of treats cooling on them. It followed the same design as the last rooms. Rhubarb saw another pony who was yellow with an orange mane and three carrot cakes for a cutie mark; the stallion was currently covered in flour, while pushing a vat full of dough into a walk in freezer. He glanced at them "Gimme a second." he said. He closed the freezer and looked at them. "So, who do we have with us?" he asked. Rhubarb smiled cordially, trying to look professional. "This is Rhubarb," Mrs. Cake said, "he's applying for our job opening as a baker." "I see. I'm Mr. Carrot Cake, and you've already met my wife, Mrs. Cupcake. Welcome to Sugarcube Corner. So, where ya from, Rhubarb?" he asked while brushing some of the flour off of him and shaking the interviewee's hoof. Rhubarb was caught off-guard by the question. "Um..." His eyes darted around the room, looking for some sort of answer. His eyes locked onto a bag of coffee beans in the corner. The bag said Coffee Beans Grown In Fillydelphia, and he spoke. "I'm from Fillydelphia." "Oh, how nice. Tell us about yourself, Rhubarb." Mr. Cake said. The changeling thought for a minute. "I was born and raised in Fillydelphia." he started, "My family never really approved of my love of baking, but I persisted. They never allowed me to go get a job as a baker, so I finally left for Ponyville to seek out a job. All I've ever wanted to do was be a pastry chef." he said. The two before him looked pleased with his response, and he felt relieved; they believed his story. "How did you hear about the job here?" Mr. Cake asked curiously. "I heard about the job from a pegasus pony named Fluttershy. Oh, and this may seem a little unprofessional, but she asked me to tell you she said hello." "We'll just have to say hello to her next time she comes in. She's a regular and is a very shy filly, so it impresses us she asked you to say hello for her. Thank you. Now, even if you haven't had any jobs baking, what other job experience do you have, Rhubarb?" Mrs. Cupcake asked. Rhubarb again was forced to think for a second. "Well...I don't have any formal training, and this is my first time applying for a job." He grimaced. "But I've been cooking ever since I was a little one." he added. Mr. and Mrs. Cake frowned a little. "Okay..." Mr. Carrot Cake continued. "So, what's your greatest strength?" "I do my very best to please customers and I'm good at whipping up quality pastries quickly." Rhubarb replied nervously. In all truth, he wasn't sure how his pastries tasted to others; he was the only one to ever sample his own cooking. He was fairly certain that his food was good, as everything he tasted that he made after getting practice was delicious. Still, he was unsure of whether or not changelings had impaired taste buds due to the fact that they usually only fed on love. "Alright, so what's your greatest weakness?" Mrs. Cupcake asked. The one being interviewed considered this for a second. "Well...I tend to panic a bit if any ingredient for a recipe is missing. I can overreact to situations." he admitted with a shrug. "What are you passionate about?" Mr. Carrot Cake asked. "My passion is baking. As I said, I've been baking since I was a child. It's my life and it's what I know best." Rhubarb replied; he hadn't even had to stop to think about that one. Mrs. Cupcake gave a grin at that. "An ambitious young colt, I see. So, how do you work with other employees?" she inquired. Pinkie Pie's antics slid into both her and her husband's mind. Rhubarb remembered the pony he had seen upon entering. "I'm very patient with others. I can respect differences, since I know what it's like to be a little different. I will work hard with other employees." Mr. Cake turned to whisper to Mrs. Cake. "Has he met Pinkie Pie yet?" "Yes, and he wasn't fazed much by her. I like him." "He hasn't had much experience, though." "I get a good feeling from him, Dear. He certainly wants to try." "I have an idea. I have some cupcake ingredients ready; why don't we ask him to make a cupcake for us so we can sample his work?" "Okay." The two turned back to Rhubarb, who was waiting anxiously. "We have an idea, Rhubarb. Would you mind baking a cupcake for us to show us your talent? We already have some ingredients ready to go." Mrs. Cake said. Rhubarb nodded. "Yes ma'am. What sort of ingredients are they?" "Chocolate and strawberries aside from necessary ingredients." Mr. Cake responded. The unicorn beamed. "I know just what to do with it." Soon enough Rhubarb finished off the cupcake. He had filled the chocolate cupcake with vanilla frosting on the inside and had gotten chocolate frosting (which he attempted to dye a reddish color) and spread it in a swirl on top. He cut a strawberry into multiple slices and spread them over the top of the cupcake in a circle. Albeit nervously, he then presented the cupcake to Mr. and Mrs. Cake. The two examined his work for a few moments, taking in the details, and then cut the cupcake in half and each tried it. Rhubarb was trembling; this was the first ever time anyone else had tried his desserts, and he was unsure of how it tasted. He watched their facial expressions. They finished their first bite and gave a smile. "This is delicious!" Mrs. Cupcake said. "You cooked it just right, and the strawberry really compliments the chocolate and vanilla." "Your detail work is good," Mr. Cake said, "you could use a little more practice on making the frosting even, but...we like you. You can learn. Well, Mrs. Cake, what do you think?" "I think we have a new baker," she said, finishing off her half of the cupcake. "It would be hard to say no after trying these. We need more of the cupcakes sometime. It was scrumptious." Rhubarb unleashed the biggest grin he ever had. As soon as she said he was hired, his heart started bumping, and to say he was excited was an understatement. This was the greatest moment of his life. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, thank you so much, Mr. and Mrs. Cake. I won't let you down and I promise to work hard! When do I start?" "Tomorrow morning. The shop opens at eight, but we'd like you to be here at five to start prepping the pastries. In the morning we serve a lot of croissants and bagels, so you and Pinkie Pie will be getting those ready. Welcome to Sugarcube Corner." Mr. Cake tossed him an apron and a hat, and he gleefully clung onto them. "Of course! I'll get here as early as you need me. Thank you again!" "Goodbye, Rhubarb!" Mrs. Cupcake said, watching the overjoyed unicorn skip out of the kitchen. As soon as he left, Pinkie Pie stopped him by popping out of seemingly nowhere. "Hi, Rhubarb! You gotta follow me right now, 'cause I have a surprise for you!" "Right now?" he questioned, startled. Pinkie Pie nodded her head. "Yeah, right now!" She took his hoof. "C'mon, c'mon! I promise it's gonna be fun!" Rhubarb began to follow her curiously, despite being half frightened by the sudden prospect and not knowing what was going to happen. She took him to another room of the bakery that was shrouded in darkness when she opened the door. Pinkie Pie flipped the light on and another surprise met the newcomer's eyes. Balloons were tied to tables and streamers hung from the ceiling. A large sign was taped to one of the walls that said WELCOME TO PONYVILLE, RHUBARB! So many different ponies were waiting, each one grinning from ear to ear. Pinkie retrieved her party cannon and made confetti burst out of it. With the explosion of confetti, everypony let out a shout. "SURPRISE!"