My Little Pony: The Next Generation
Canterlot Wrap-up
It was an early morning for the touring ponies, as they had a train to catch. The relative silence of the castle’s guest suite was broken by the hubbub of ponies taking inventory of their possessions and packing them away. Soon, everypony but Claire was finished and ready to go, until Applejack made a rather unsettling discovery.
“Where’s Golden Delicious?” Every head in the room whipped up and began scanning the room. When the search of the lounge resulted in nothing, the ponies searched each individual room. He was not here either, and the search expanded to the entire castle. After this fruitless effort, the group split up to search Canterlot. They checked just about everywhere they could think to go: the golden apple, the shops downtown, even the quaint little café. When it was obvious the group was out of ideas, they returned to the castle to plan further. Soon, the new plan was ironed out. Prism and T would search from the sky, Star would take the ground with a photo and ask around, and Annie and Claire would remain at the castle to send up a magical flare should Gold return. Once everyone was clear, on their roles, Gold came strutting into the suite with a box on his back. A myriad of questions were immediately flung at him, so he decided the best thing to do was simply tell his story.
Gold was awake before everypony else, as was the norm for him. He decided to make the best of his lead and pack up first. This was easy, as he had only brought some toiletries and formal wear, just in case. As he finished, he realized that he was hungry. This lead to another thought: Candy never got those doughnuts she wanted. He quickly scrounged up what bits he had and snuck out. He was greeted as he left the castle by the warm but humid summer air. He took a deep breath, then began walking again. He reminisced as he walked, thinking about the trip so far. They had a lot of fun in Canterlot, and this was only the first stop. Imagine what they would wind up doing by the end of the tour. It was gonna be awesome! He was pulled from this as he approached Doughnut Joe’s. Even though they had just opened, there was already a line forming around the block. This was a good sign in his eyes, as he had come to associate large demand with quality. That’s why Sweet Apple Acres gets so much business, he rationalized and took his place at the back of the line.
He still had plenty of time, as the train didn’t leave for a few hours and Claire would probably still be packing when he got back. The line grew shorter and he grew closer to the counter over the course of about two hours, but it felt like days. While he was quite accustomed to tedium, his mind ventured to the list of things these ponies could be doing instead of waiting in line. It’s a wonder anything gets done in the city he thought, and soon found himself ordering. He simply ordered two dozen of the best doughnuts they had. Within minutes, he was walking back to the castle with a box on his back and a smile on his face. He opened the door to the guest suite, and was met with shocked glances and loud questions, rather than the happy faces he hoped to see.
“So you had us all worried sick over doughnuts?” Applejack asked sternly, still not quite down from her worry.
“I hadn’t expected to be gone so long,” he retorted calmly. “And I figured y’all would appreciate the gesture.”
“We do,” Fluttershy began, “but you really should let somepony know where you are. We would have no idea what had happened if you really did go missing.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Gold replied dejectedly, “Now, let’s eat these darn doughnuts!” the entire crew grabbed a doughnut, starting with Pinkie Pie and Candy, who each took a long-john. Candy had almost come to terms with the fact that she would not get to taste these world-famous confections, and yet here she was. It was as good as she had heard, even better than she had hoped. Her mind began to settle on one fact: if not for Gold, she still wouldn’t have tasted the treat before her. She would have to make it a point to thank him later. For now, they sat in silence enjoying their breakfast and remembering what had happened over the last few days. Claire was plotting her return, as well as planning her next date with Prince Illusion. T was thinking up things he could do with Annie in Manehattan, while she simply yearned to go flying again. The remainder of the group simply decided to let the city lead them. The growing excitement was almost palpable as the group got on board the train. As they looked up at the display, it read “Next Stop: Manehattan.”