//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: Unintended Professions and Hopeful Plans // Story: Between a Rock Farm and a New Place. // by Random_User //------------------------------// Chapter 3: Unintended Professions and Hopeful Plans The next morning, Cuisine found himself in the café’s kitchen before the rest of the family had even begun to stir. His sleep had been restless, and he had fallen back on cooking to relax. Cuisine tied on an apron and started up the stove. He automatically and mechanically started on breakfast. Eggs, hay bacon, and sides of toast appeared on plates. Even while trying to focus, his mind was not on the task. His thoughts wandered over the events of last night and the last few days. “You’re thinking too much about something again,” Fruit commented, as she walked into the kitchen. She took a seat at the end of the cooking counter. “You don’t cook this kind of meal unless something is bothering you.” Cuisine turned to Fruit, puzzled by her words. “What do you mean?” Fruit lazily waved a hoof over the meal. “Stock breakfast fare. You typically prepare omelets just the way each of us like them, or skillets of eggs and cooked vegetables.” She picked up a fork and poked at one of the servings of fried eggs. “This is typically what you call ‘boring breakfast slop.’ While this is a good breakfast, it tells me something is wrong. Where is your mind this morning that you would cook below your own standards?” Cuisine shook his head. “Everywhere, nowhere, and Celestia knows where all at the same time. There is too much going on. I don’t even know how to respond to it all.” He took a moment and started a pot of coffee. Fruit tilted her head, signaling she wanted a more detailed explanation. She asked, “Things going on such as?” “Your and Tray’s trip, Tray getting hired, Tongs getting hurt, Tray’s leaving Ponyville, what we’re going to do since we’re going to be down a pony, all kinds of things.” Fruit smiled at his concern. “It may get a little rough or wild for a bit, but we’ll make it. Being one pony down won’t have that much of an impact once Tongs is back to work.” She turned his head towards her with a hoof, her motherly instincts telling her something more was going on. “You’re thinking about that mare too.” “She comes to life when she talks about cooking. Yesterday, when we had breakfast, I tried to get her to talk about her home and her job. She didn’t want to say much about them at all. She clearly doesn’t like what she is doing.” He plated the last of the food, before it burned. It also gave him a chance to look way from his Aunt’s reading eyes. “I take it that she stirs echoes of your past situation.” He nodded mutely, and his expression darkened at the memories. Fruit picked up a couple of the plates, and started to head towards the living area of the café. “I want to help her. You should have seen her with Uncle, she devoured everything he said to her. She loved what she was doing, even though it pressed her limits.” He scrubbed the cooking surface vigorously with a damp cloth, as if cleaning the stove top would help rid his own mind of its emotional mess. While not glad to see he was having such trouble, she was happy to see that he had finally found somepony who he thought enough of for him to worry over her. “If you care for her as much as you seem to, I’m sure you’ll find a way to help her.” She quickly stepped out of the kitchen, placed the plates on the family table, and then returned. She hugged Cuisine around the shoulders. “Remember, you are not alone. Ask for help, when and if you need it.” “I will.” ***** Tray had spent the majority of his time packing like a mad pony and arranging for his transition to living in Canterlot. He had stopped only to help during the café’s heavy pushes. Cuisine, Fruit, and Tray, along with limited help and guidance from Tongs, worked like a well-oiled machine. They each knew they needed to do at any particular moment and the rhythm of the business never faltered. That changed when Tray returned from the serving area with a wide grin. “Cuisine, your marefriend is here.” Cuisine did not dignify Tray’s teasing with a reaction beyond asking, “I take it she’s seated at one of the tables.” “Yep, I saw her pull a cart by earlier this morning. Now I know where she got those nice legs of hers. That cart looked like it was full of rocks.” Tray gave Cuisine a joking, worried look. “You better be nice to her. I think she could take you.” “She probably could. She works on a rock farm. The work there is not exactly easy.” Cuisine never took his eyes off his cooking. Tongs pointed for Tray to go back out the kitchen door. “Stop goofing around, and go take the mare’s order. We owe her a free lunch.” Tray started out the door, carrying Marble’s drink on a serving tray. “What do I do if she asks for a bite of Cuisine?” Cuisine did not miss a step, as he answered, “Ask her whether she wants me raw, medium well, or well done. I haven’t prepared griffin food in a while, but I’ll manage.” Tray rolled his eyes. “Mom is right; you really need to take that stick out from under your tail.” Tray headed back outside, granting Cuisine a moment of peace. Fruit placed some prepared ingredients by Cuisine. “It’s interesting how she managed to show up right about the perfect time for her to finish her meal right before for our break between lunch and dinner.” “Leave the poor lad alone,” Tongs lightly admonished his wife. “This was the last chance she would have had to get that free lunch before she started working for us. Cuisine may have had nothing to do with her choice in timing. She’s been working all morning too. We would be the most logical spot for her to grab a quick lunch.” Tray came back and gave the collected orders he had received. He added, “The daisy salad was for Marble, if you wanted to know.” Cuisine did not even glance in Tray’s direction. “I figured as much. That’s what she ordered the first time she came.” He quickly got the last orders finished, and set them aside for Tray to deliver. Tray dutifully served the patrons their meals, but his cousin’s attitude irked him. After having delivered the last meal and putting out the café’s break in hours sign out, Tray returned to the kitchen and continued to pester Cusine. “You didn’t do anything special with her meal. I’m surprised.” “What did you expect me to do?” Cuisine looked up from his cleaning, finally addressing Tray eye to eye. “I can’t treat one customer any better than another.” “She’s your marefriend,” Tray responded, as if that explained everything. Cuisine gave Tray an exasperated look. “She is a wonderful pony, but we’re not special someponies to each other. We’ve only known each other for five days. She might not even like me in that way.” Fruit’s eyes went to the kitchen door, as it quietly swung open. Tongs followed his wife’s gaze. He struggled not to smile, as Marble walked into the kitchen carrying her dirty dishes. He made eye contact with her, and made a discreet sign for her to stay quiet. Tray and Cuisine were oblivious to Marble’s entry, and continued to bicker like brothers. Tray shook in head in disbelief. “I can’t believe what I’m hearing. Are you truly that dense? Didn’t you see her look over at you when I kissed her hoof?” “Not really, your head was in the way. Even if she did give me a look, your kissing her hoof may have just shocked her. It does not prove she wants me to be her coltfriend.” Tray stopped Cuisine before he could turn back to his work, by putting a hoof to Cuisine’s chest. “You mule, I’ve talked to Dad about her. How did he put it? ‘She only gets distracted from her work when Cuisine walks into the kitchen,’ I think is what he said. You can’t tell me you didn’t notice.” “My coming in and out is always a distraction. I distract Uncle on occasion for Celestia’s sake. She was adapting to a completely new job, in a new place. Being distracted by me means nothing more than that until proven otherwise.” Fruit took the opportunity, and cunningly asked, “What about you? Do like her?” Cuisine reached up and pulled off his tie, as if doing so allowed him to be candid. “Of course I like her. She’s intelligent, she has a kind heart, and she has a delicious personality. On top of that, she has a wonderfully fit figure, which is accented marvelously when her coat is wet. There is nothing not to like about her that I’ve seen so far.” Cuisine quickly pulled of his vest and cuffs as well. Tongs tried to give his nephew a hint as to what was happening. “What if she could hear what you were saying right now?” He paused, as Marble gestured for him to not give her away. Joining in on the fun, he decided to oblige her. “Let’s say she heard everything that you have said so far. What one question would you ask?” Marble gave Tongs an appreciative smile, and waited for Cuisine’s answer. “The kiss on the cheek yesterday, did you mean anything by it? We’re you just flirting or do you like me sincerely?” Marble pointed out, “That would be two questions, not one.” Cuisine whipped around, at the sound of Marble's voice. As he realized what had happened, he tried to form a coherent explanation. The only thing he succeeded in doing was to open and close his mouth ineffectively a couple of times. She smiled at his expression, like a cat that had just caught a bird. “As for my answers, they would be: the kiss did mean something, there was flirting involved, and I do have some feelings for you. Now that I think about it, you almost had three whole questions in there. ” She walked pass the stunned pair of Cuisine and Tray, put her plates down near the sink, and asked Tongs, “Should I be here at ten tomorrow morning, just like before?” “That would be fine.” He had to struggle not to laugh, as Marble humanely tormented Cuisine. “Tray, is there anything I can do to help you? My cart just had maintenance done on the wheels and axle, and it’s in the best shape it’s been in for a while. I’ll bring it around the back of the café, if you think you could use it tomorrow.” Marble gave him a cloyingly sweet smile. Tray could barely answer, due to trying not to laugh. “That would be nice.” “I’ll bring it by right after I finish the business I have left to get done this afternoon.” She turned to the matron of the family. “Is there anything I can do you help you?” Fruit’s voice trembled with suppressed mirth, as she said there was nothing for Marble to help with. Marble then turned to Cuisine, who was still too shocked to do anything beyond stand there and look at her with his mouth open. Marble carefully shut his mouth with a hoof. “If you want to know whether I would like to have you as a coltfriend or not, you could always ask me for a first date. Or was breakfast the other day our first?” He swallowed nervously. “I wasn’t thinking about it like that at the time, but you have the prerogative to call it whatever you like.” “Then let’s consider that just an outing between friends.” She lightly bopped him on the nose. “The next time we get something to eat, if you ask me, we’ll consider that our official first date. Sound good?” He quickly nodded. “Great! I’ll see you all again when I drop off the cart.” She walked out of the kitchen with a spring in her step. Tray started laughing uncontrollably. Cuisine closed his eyes and slowly put his face in his hoofs. Fruit walked over and patted his back. “It could have been worse. You could have said something dirty about her.” “He nearly did.” Tongs gave Cuisine a curious look. “Exactly when did you see her with her coat wet, and what’s this about a kiss?” Cuisine just groaned. ***** Marble sipped her coffee and watched the sun come up. She had gotten up with Pinkie, and helped her get the morning baking started. She still had some errands she needed to run for her parents, but decided they could wait for a day or two. Pinkie sat down beside her. “Everything is in the ovens. Thanks for the help. You made everything go super quickly.” Marble turned to Pinkie and grinned. “I’ve been getting a lot of practice in the kitchen here lately.” Pinkie hugged her sister around the shoulders. “You’ve really been enjoying working at the café. I haven’t seen you this happy in a long time.” “I’m doing what I’ve wanted to do, with ponies that I like. How can I not be happy?” She took another sip of her coffee, and her expression slowly changed. “I just wish it could last a little longer than what it’s going to.” “No frowning! That is not allowed!” Pinkie lightly shook Marble, trying to pull her back into the moment. “Don’t worry about what is going to happen. Enjoy what you have got right now, or you will lose what’s sweet in life.” “When did you become so philosophical?” Marble asked, impressed by Pinkie’s delving into deeper subjects. Pinkie looked at Marble, confused by her words. “I’m not being philosophical. It’s just like cooking muffins. If you don’t keep an eye on the oven, you could burn the batch and lose all the delicious goodness that you worked for.” Marble shook her head. Leave it to Pinkie to equate being mindful to baking sweets. “Pinkie, don’t ever change.” Pinkie perked up, and sat a little taller. “Don’t plan to.” The sound of a cart’s wheels drew their attention. Cuisine came around the corner, pulling Marble’s cart behind him. “Speaking of muffins, looks like yours just arrived.” Marble whispered, “We’re not even going out.” Marble got to her hooves, and helped Pinkie up. Pinkie whispered back, with a grin, “I think that’s going to change soon.” She turned her attention to the newly arrived pony. “Good morning, Horte.” He did not rise to Pinkie’s bait, and just smiled. “Good morning to both of you. I thought I’d bring back your cart.” Marble helped him with the harness’ straps. “Thanks. Did Tray’s leaving go alright?” “Lots of tears all around, but things went just fine.” Cuisine ducked out of the harness and helped chock the wheels. “Tray told me to thank you again for lending him the cart. It made things a lot easier this morning.” “Glad it helped.” Marble gestured towards the back door of the shop. “Would you like to come in? I just made some coffee.” Cuisine smiled appreciatively, but shook his head. “As much as I’d love to, I’ve got some things I have to get done before work today.” He waved as he trotted off. “I’ll see you at the café in a little bit.” Marble picked up her coffee, and took a longer, more thoughtful sip. “Pinkie, I know you want me to enjoy what I have right now, but I don’t think I should get too deep into it.” Pinkie asked, concerned at Marble’s sudden change in mood, “Why not, silly filly?” Marble put on a fragile smile. “This job with the cafe is not going to last too long. I’ve got to go back to the rock farm in a few days.” Pinkie stared at Marble, as she came to realize how much the time at the café meant to her sister. Marble noticed her look of concentration, and slowly started to back away from her. “Pinkie, whatever it is, just let it go. I remember the last time you got that look.” Pinkie smiled at the memory of the “last time” she tried to help Marble. “We got you out of the tree, eventually, and it did help you with your fear of heights.” “That’s not the point.” Marble finished off her coffee and started back into Sugar Cube Corner. “There is nothing to help me with or fix this time.” “Sure there is! I want to see you smile, and you’re not. I’m sure I can help, somehow.” Pinkie pawed at the ground, as she realized she did not have a clue as to how she could. “That would be great Pinkie, but I can’t smile all the time. Life isn’t like that.” Marble darkly laughed at her situation. “Sometimes in life, you just have to hit the rocks.” Marble stepped back inside, leaving the door open for Pinkie to follow. Pinkie was not going to accept the thought there was nothing she could do to help Marble. She promised, half to herself and half to her sister, “You just wait. I’ll come up with something.” ***** Fruit started to undo her apron. She fumbled with the knots, and said dark things under her breath. Tongs, seeing her predicament, helped her get the knots loose. She reminded him, “Dear, you’re not supposed to be using that leg.” “I’m starting back to work tomorrow. I can help my wife get herself out of a bind tonight without much risk.” He deftly undid the last knot on the apron and wrapped his good foreleg around her. “Besides, it’s not like we haven’t pushed things a little anyway.” Cuisine, out of his working attire, reminded them. “There are two ponies that are still here that don’t care to know any more than that, thank you.” Marble grinned at the pair. Her mom and dad cared for each other, but open displays of affection were rare in their home. “I think it’s cute. They’re still very much in love.” Cuisine held open the kitchen door for her. “They are, and I hope they stay that way, but some activities are better left unshared.” Marble looked back over her shoulder, as she went out the door. “Good night, we’ll see you in the morning!” Marble blushed, as she saw Tongs nibble on Fruit’s ear. She quickly turned around and let the door swing to behind her. “Maybe Serving Tray was the one that was named due to activities in the kitchen.” Cuisine laughed. “Knowing them and my grandparents, either one is quite likely.” “I didn’t know we had a day off the day after tomorrow.” “I guess things have been so crazy we forgot to tell you. Every two weeks the café doesn’t open for a day. It gives Tongs time to replace anything we need from the market, and Fruit to go over the ledgers.” He paused, thinking something over. “Are you going to plan something with Pinkie?” “She’s throwing a party for one of her friends, something about a rabbit’s birthday. She’ll be tied up all day.” “Weren’t you invited?” “I was, but I grew up with all kinds parties that Pinkie would throw at the least little thing. I got burned out.” She bumped into him in friendly way, as they kept walking. “What about you? Do you have any plans?” “I don’t know quite yet.” A note of nervousness entered his voice. “That’s rather vague.” “Well, I have to ask a certain mare a question before I can really start planning things out for that day.” “Is this going where I think it’s about to go?” He smirked. “I don’t know, where do you think I was going?” She narrowed her eyes in mock seriousness. “Don’t play games with me.” “Alright then, I won’t. I’ll just ask one question. Would you care to join me for dinner that evening?” “I most certainly would.” His resulting smile made her feel wonderful and appreciated. She felt a sharp pang of a less pleasant emotion as well. She was going to have to go home all too soon. Was she right to accept the date, if she was just going to have to leave? In a mirror of her own playful gesture, he barely tapped her on the nose. “I can tell where your mind went. I’ve thought about it too.” The gladness he felt at her accepting the date nearly left his eyes, but its loss allowed her to see that he was being sincere. “I know long distance relationships tend to fail, but if you’re willing to try, I’m more than game to take the risk that this won’t work out.” She cautiously allowed her smile to return. “I would like to like it give it a try.” Cuisine walked her to Sugar Cube Corner, wished her good night, and headed towards his home. Marble took a moment to gather her courage before she entered the shop. She knew what would be waiting on the other side, and she was not ready for it. She came to the realization she never would be ready for it, and bravely opened the door. She flinched as she stepped in, fully expecting to be pounced by her sister. To her shock, the attack never occurred. She paused and listened. Somepony was still working in the back of the shop. Marble walked into the kitchen. She covered her mouth with a hoof at what she saw. Pinkie was on a cooking rampage. There were muffins, cookies, cakes, and pastries of all descriptions all around the kitchen. Even with the variety of food she had prepared, Pinkie was vigorously mixing more batter. Pinkie’s mane and coat were barely visible under the layers of flour and other ingredients that were so swirled and mixed together Marble could not tell what they had been. The kitchen was not in much better shape, with flour, sprinkles, and icing on almost every surface. “Pinkie, what in Equestria are you doing?!” When Pinkie turned towards her, it almost broke Marble’s heart. Her sister’s mane had lost its curl and bounce and fell straight over her shoulders towards the flour-dusted floor. Tears had fallen down her face, making paths in the flour covering her cheeks. Even in the grip of her depression, Pinkie warmly greeted Marble, “Hey, sis! My Pinkie Sense told me you got a date. Congratulations!” With those words, fresh tears fell down her face, but she kept up her smile. Marble ran over, took the mixing bowl and spoon from Pinkie, shoved them on the counter, and then pulled Pinkie into a protective, worried hug. “Pinkie, what is wrong? Did somepony hurt you? If they did, I’ll beat them until Celestia and Luna both come and drag me off of them.” “No one hurt me, I promise.” Pinkie hugged Marble back. “I’ve been thinking about how to help you all day, and I can’t come up with one thing. I even went to Twilight and Rarity for help. They both said that I couldn’t do anything, and that you had to make the decisions in your life.” Marble stroked Pinkie’s mane. “They’re right. This is something that I have to face alone. You can’t stand beside me and do ventriloquist’s act to talk for me.” She smiled as a little happiness came back into Pinkie’s eyes. “No, Pinkie, you’re horrible at doing my voice anyway.” “Awww, you’re no fun.” Pinkie pulled back, and wiped her face with the back of her foreleg. “I still want to help you.” “This has been a great opportunity for me to dabble in what I want to do and get some experience, but everypony involved knew it was going to be a short term thing.” Pinkie quizzically tilted her head. “But Tray is gone. You could just take his place.” Marble brushed Pinkie’s mane back so she could see her face better. “True, but they will need somepony to fill that position long term, and I’m going to be gone. I can’t ask them to handle things without help long enough to make it back. It wouldn’t be right.” “You could send mom and dad a letter, stay here, and not go home at all.” Pinkie weakly suggested. “No, even if Tongs and Fruit extended an offer to make this a long term job, which they haven’t, I would still have to go home to get my stuff, if nothing else. Taking the job would be something I would need to talk to mom and dad about face to face too. You know they have never been supportive of me trying to get a job outside the farm.” “They helped me, they’ll help you.” “Pinkie, you were a special case. You were smothering at home to the point it was affecting your health. I can’t say it’s fun for me, but I can cope with working on the farm.” She put her hooves on Pinkie’s shoulders. “With just the four of us there right now, they’re not going to be too enthusiastic to see me go. My trying to get off the farm could end up with me having quite a row with them before everything is said and done.” Pinkie knew that Marble was right to be concerned. Their parents had always been strict and impressed into them that the family business came before all else. While Pinkie was not certain that Marble and their parents would have a fight over her trying to leave, Pinkie could see that it was a real possibility. “You should have the chance to be happy.” Marble could not help herself. She grabbed a clean washcloth, soaked it, and began to clean Pinkie off. “I tell you what, if can you figure out a way that I could get mom and dad here so I can show them what I can do and how much I love it, I promise to do just that. While they’re here, maybe we can figure out how we could make things work for them and me.” Pinkie’s eyes searched hers. “Really?” “That’s going to be a tall order, considering that neither one of them have taken a vacation in years.” Marble knew she might be getting her hopes up for nothing, but she was willing to take that risk to get Pinkie out of her funk. Pinkie’s exuberance began to return. “You Pinkie Pie Swear?” Marble smiled, she had not made a Pinkie Pie Swear in years, and it brought back fond memories. She completed the full set of motions and recited the oath, sealing her promise. Pinkie’s mane sprang back into full life and curl. “I’ll get them here, you’ll see.” A part of Marble wondered what she had just unleashed on her parents and whether she should feel guilty. Another part just wanted to see what was going to happen. No matter what Pinkie came up with, and whether it failed or not, she was certain it was going to be worth being around to witness. ***** Tongs woke up, thinking he heard a noise. He sat up in the bed and listened. “What is it?” Fruit raised herself up, and looked around the room. “Is something wrong?” “I thought I heard something.” Just as Tongs finished speaking, there was a knocking sound from down stairs. He groaned, “You have got to be joking.” “I’ll go see who it is. It might be an emergency.” Fruit rolled out of bed and started out the room. Hearing Tongs following her, she looked back over her shoulder. “You don’t have to get out of bed.” “I’m already awake. I’m not going to stay in bed and let you deal with some crazy pony at the crack of dawn.” He added in a chipper tone, “Besides, this is the first day I can use my leg again fully. I want to enjoy it.” She hummed an amused note. “You seemed to enjoy using it well enough last night.” She could hear the grin in his voice as he responded, “It was technically today since we started past midnight. Nurse Red Heart can’t fuss at me for that.” They made their way down the stairs and to the front door of the living section of the café building. Tongs opened the door, and immediately recognized the smiling face of Pinkie Pie. “Can I help you?” “I hope so. Do you sell gift certificates?” Pinkie’s worried expression puzzled him. “Of course we do. Why do you ask?” She bounced up and down with relief. “Great, I’ll take three!” Fruit, not as much of a morning pony as her husband, flatly stated, “We’re not open for hours, Pinkie.” Pinkie wilted a little at the prospect of having to wait, and then suddenly perked back up. “I know! I can talk to you until then. I can tell you what’s going on, and see if you’d be willing to help.” Tongs smirked at Fruit, who sighed and gestured for Pinkie to come in. “Let’s go to the kitchen, I’ll get the coffee started.” “I’ll do that! You’re the ones being extra nice.” After they made their way to the kitchen, Pinkie started the coffee, and then sat down at the counter. “I need your help so I can help Marble. First, I need to know what you think about her as an employee.” Tong did not hesitate as he told her, “She’s great. She cooks well, takes instruction fluidly, and is eager to learn the kitchen routine. I couldn’t ask for a better pony.” Pinkie nodded vigorously and made a check mark in the air. “Alright, item two. Would you be willing to have her here for longer than what she’s promised to be already?” Tongs was starting to get the feeling this was going to be a long conversation, and he was not sure where it was heading. “Sure, but she has to go back to the rock farm. She’s already told us that.” Pinkie made another check mark in the air. Before she could get the next time on her list, Fruit tactfully interjected herself into the conversation. “Pinkie, why don’t you tell us what is going on, and we could help you quicker.” Pinkie grinned. “Sounds great, I had a really long checklist to go over with you. Twilight would have been proud.” Tongs did his best not to laugh. “Pinkie, you need to focus.” “Oh, right. Here’s what’s going on.” Pinkie told them about Marble’s desire to cook, where and when she learned her cooking skills, and how much she had loved working in the café over the last week. She also told them about the plan she was trying to pull together to ensure that her parents would get to taste Marble’s professional level cooking and get them to talk with Marble about the possibility of her staying in Ponyville. At the end of Pinkie’s narrative, Tongs put a hoof to his chin in thought. “That explains a lot, including why you were knocking on our door at four thirty in the morning.” Pinkie gave him his cup of coffee, fixed just as he liked. “Thanks. I don’t want to sound rude, but shouldn’t you be helping the Cakes with their morning baking?” “Nope, got it all done last night. Marble helped me clean up till early in the morning, so she’s sleeping in a little today.” She paused to deliver Fruit her cup of Joe. “Seeing you and Fruit was the first item on my list of things to accomplish.” Fruit shook her head and retrieved three gift certificates from her office. Pinkie paid for them and tucked them in her mane along with her bit purse, where they disappeared from sight. “Thanks a ton! Now for stage two of operation Get Marble Off the Rock Farm and Into the Kitchen.” Fruit could not stop herself from asking, “What exactly would stage two of the plan be?” “Rainbow Dash Speedy Delivery of course!” Pinkie started to leave, but a noise from Tongs made her stop. “Pinkie, does this plan also have something to do with my nephew?” At seeing her reaction, he had his answer. “I see that it does.” Pinkie pleaded, “Please, don’t tell Horte. He might say something. He’s a little too honest at times, and Marble is pretty good at picking up on things.” Fruit gave her a knowing smile. “I take it things might be getting a little more serious between the two?” “Yep, Horte even asked her on a date.” Pinkie’s face took on a comically serious expression. “That’s another reason why I’ve got to help Marble. She loves what she had been doing here, but I think she really likes Horte too. Nopony should be separated from their special somepony.” Fruit smiled encouragingly. “You do what you can, and we’ll do what we’re able too.” Pinkie smiled. “Thanks for the help and understanding. If this works, I’m going to throw you guys the biggest part you’ve ever seen.” She hugged them both, and then left via the kitchen door. “I’m sorry if I spoke for you too, but I think Marble would fit in well here.” Fruit turned to Tongs, who was slowly sipping his coffee and pondering the details of the situation. He mildly shook his head. “Not at all, she has been a wonderful breath of fresh air, and she certainly has the skills we need.” “She’ll be good for Cuisine too. He’s needed somepony like her in his life for a while now.” She started to rinse out her cup in the sink, and did not see the smile that Tongs gave her. Tongs wrapped her in an embrace from behind. “I know you were for me.” He bowed his head and kissed the nape of her neck. “Seeing Cuisine and Marble fumblingly flirt with each other reminded me of our own courtship. It’s a miracle you put up with my poor attempts to get your attention long enough to get to know me.” He pulled her closer. “Tomorrow, how about we go out on a date of our own? We have not done that in far too long.” She broke the embrace just long enough to turn around and reciprocate it. “I would love to.” She leaned in and put her forehead to his. “For the record, you were very sweet back then. A little too shy at times, but you were an excellent coltfriend.” She kissed his nose, and made sure he looked into her eyes as she told him, “You’ve been an even better husband.”