"Rarity," Sweetie Bell whined as Rarity shoed her towards the door. "I don't want to go to summer camp. I want to hang out here and go to the Clydesdale Mall and relax and have fun."
"Oh Sweetie Bell. I promise you'll have tons of fun at Camp Dustyhoof. I went there when I was a filly and I had so much fun. That's where I first met Applejack and Fluttershy too." Rarity smiled warmly at Sweetie Bell as she handed her a green duffel bag packed full. "I'll write you letters every day. You're going to meet so many new ponies! I know you'll just have a blast. Now, come, come. Wouldn't want to miss the bus now would we?"
Sweetie Bell groaned and dragged her hooves all the way to the bus stop. She loved camping with her friends, but going to a summer camp for a whole moon with tons of other fillies from all over Equestria? It sounded so stressful. And so long. A moon without the comforts of home? How would she bare it? At least Scootaloo and Apple Bloom were going too. Maybe they would even find their talent and get their cutie marks! Sweetie Bell brightened up and began to trot happily along next to Rarity.
It was a beautiful summer day in Ponyville and everypony seemed to be enjoying themselves. There were colorful mares sunning themselves on the grass and foals and fillies whinnying and chasing each other around town. Everything suddenly seemed alive and welcoming.
Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were already waiting at the bus stop for her, each of them carrying huge duffel bags roughly the size of their bodies.
"Sweetie Bell you made it! We weren't sure if you were even gonna come!" Apple Bloom said and she stamped happily on the ground.
"Of course I'm coming! Camp is where Rarity met Applejack and Fluttershy, didn't you know?" Sweetie Bell replied as she shrugged off her bag and trotted over to her friends.
"Yep!" Apple Bloom said. "I heard that we get to go swimming and take long hikes and make hoofmark paintings and meet all kinds of other ponies!"
"Yeah! But, lets make a pact to always still hang out with each other every day too." Scootaloo said.
"Alright!" Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom agreed in unison.
"Now girls, don't get too cliquey. Camp is about meeting new ponies and getting to know yourselves better." Rarity butted in.
"Ok Rarity. I can handle it from here. Thanks! I'll see you in a moon!" Sweetie Bell said.
"Wow Sweetie Bell. Just a moment ago you were begging me to..." Rarity began.
"Begging you to let me stay longer!" Sweetie Bell interrupted. "I just don't see why we can't be there now!"
"Well, you'll be on your way soon. Look, there's the bus now!" Rarity nodded toward a scrappy-looking yellow bus that was wheezing it's way down the street.
"Yippee! Here we go, ya'll!" Apple Bloom exclaimed, grabbing her duffel bag and shaking her mane excitedly.
"Bye Rarity. I'll see you on visiting day," Sweetie Bell quickly nuzzled her sister's side before snatching up her own duffel and hauling it closer to the stop.
The bus rattled to a stop before them and a pale blue mare with short wild hair galloped down the stairs to meet them.
"Hey there guys! My name's Firewood Greengrass and I'll be the counselor escorting you to Camp Dustyhoof!" The mare grinned widely. "You guys all set to hit the road? We've got quite a ways to go."
"Yeah! We can't wait to get there!" Sweetie Bell exclaimed, hoisting her duffle into her mouth and waddling towards the bus.
"Whoa, slow down there, camper. We can stow your bags down below. Gives you guys a little more space." Firewood trotted over to the storage door and knocked it open with her hoof.
The trio dragged their luggage over to the compartment and struggled to shove it in with the overflowing bags and gear already occupying the compartment. With a bit of pushing and a lot of huffing and puffing, the girls managed to get everything squeezed in as Firewood closed the hatch.
"Alright ponies. Head on inside and find a seat! Sit next to anypony you like! We're all friends at Camp Dustyhoof." Firewood trotted to the front and stood by the door.
"Bye girls! Have fun!" Rarity called, waved her hoof as the trio bounced past.
As they stepped onto the bus, loud laughter and songs echoed over them.
"Sure sounds fun in there." Apple Bloom noted. "What're we waiting for? Let's go!"
The three fillies wandered down the aisle to the back. As Ponyville was the last pick-up spot before camp, there didn't seem to be any open seats.
"Guess we might have to split up for the ride. But don't worry ponies, we'll have plenty of time together once we get there!" Sweetie Bell assured them.
"Alright. I'm not too worried. Plus, we get to make new friends! I'll see you guys when we get off." Scootaloo promised, stepping up into an empty spot next to a smaller filly with a purple mane and golden wings.
Sweetie Bell glanced around and saw another unicorn sitting by herself near the front. She trotted over and smiled up at the pony. "Is this seat taken?"
"No its not. Come and join me!" The pony invited. "My name is Pixie Dust. What's your name?"
"I'm Sweetie Bell." Sweetie Bell said, hopping into the seat and settling down. "You're a unicorn, just like me!"
"Yeah, I am," Pixie laughed as she sized up Sweetie Bell. "I love your mane. It's gorgeous. How do you get it to curl like that? Mine is always so flat."
"Oh, I guess it just does that." Sweetie Bell said shyly. She looked back to see Apple Bloom laughing with a grey earth pony a few rows back. She was glad her friends seem to be having a good time.
"Anyway, this is my fourth summer at Camp Dustyhoof! I get to be an older pony and sleep in the north cabins this year! How about you? How many times have you been to camp?" Pixie asked.
"Oh, I've never been before. My sister Rarity went when she was a filly but this is my first time." Sweetie Bell admitted.
"It's your first time? Wow, that's great! I remember my first time. It was magical." Pixie winked as her horn glowed a bit. "They teach you all kinds of new spells and you get to learn a ton!"
"Oh, cool! They teach all the ponies spells?" Sweetie Bell asked, confused.
Pixie laughed good-heartedly. "No, silly. Just the unicorns! The pegasus and earth ponies have their own parts of camp. But everyone knows unicorns have the most fun." Pixie winked.
Earth ponies and pegasi had their own parts of camp? But that would mean the trio would be separated! Sweetie Bell hoped she would still get to see her friends often enough. Pixie seemed to notice her nervously looking back at the earth ponies and pegasi that seemed to have paired off into similar groups.
"You can still eat meals and have free time with your friends. They just have different activities. I mean, we are different ponies after all." Pixie said.
Sweetie Bell felt a little better knowing she would still get to see her friends. But Pixie did have a point. Eventually, Apple Bloom would have to go apple bucking all the time and Scootaloo would be working in Cloudsdale to make the weather. It was her dream to be one of the best fliers in Equestria. So, Sweetie Bell figured she might as well get used to being a bit different than her friends. Maybe she could get to know the other unicorns better.
"So, where are you from?" Sweetie Bell asked.
"I'm from Manehatten. My parents send me out here every summer so I get a taste of "the wild country". The city gets kind of boring after a while." Pixie yawned. "What's it like living in Ponyville? It seems kind of...small."
"It is a bit small." Sweetie Bell admitted. "But it's nice too. You get to know everypony pretty well."
"Hm. Sounds...close-knit." Pixie remarked. "Manehatten is huge. Everypony is always going somewhere and doing something really important. So it's nice to just sit back and relax a bit at camp."
"Yeah, it sounds really fun." Sweetie Bell agreed.
The two unicorns talked the entire ride to camp. They shared stories from school and stories about silly foals and stories about their families. As they talked, the scenery outside the bus changed from rolling green hills to high peaks and evergreens. Glancing out the window once or twice, Sweetie Bell saw squirrels scampering up tree with acorns clutched in their paws and blue jays flitting from branch to branch.
After what seemed like forever, Firewood Greengrass jumped out of her seat and called out to the grouo loudly. "Hey, everypony! We're almost to camp! And do you know what that means?"
"Camp song time!" Everypony cheered. Sweetie Bell looked around and saw ponies starting to sway back and forth.
"That's right! New ponies, don't worry, you'll catch on pretty fast."
All at once everypony broke out into song and began chanting at the top of their lungs: "Camp, Camp Dustyhoof. Camp, camp Dustyhoof. Camp, camp Dustyhoof! We're up at Camp Dustyhoof with wild grass and few roofs, we just can't wait to sing! We love our camp so much! We can't ever get enough! We will love it till are days are through! So come on along with us and hop on our big school bus and you can come have some fun in the trees!"
The song went on for another five minutes with everypony singing cheerily, Pixie included. Sweetie Bell was a little unsure of herself, not knowing any of the words, but she soon got the rhythm and started to hum along. The music swept her along and she began to stamp her hoofs to the beat.
The song concluded just as the bus pulled through a dusty metal gate with a sign hanging from it that boldly read: Welcome to Camp Dustyhoof. As they passed the sign, everypony cheered and Pixie let out a whistle.
"Alright, alright everypony! Once we get off the bus, go ahead and find your group. Unicorns to the right, pegasi to the left, and earth ponies straight ahead!" Firewood called over the cheering.
Sweetie Bell and Pixie hopped into the aisle and followed the winding line of ponies out into the sunlight. Sweetie Bell gasped. It was absolutely gorgeous. Straight ahead of her, a huge shimmering lake gleamed in the sun. A green meadow rolled out before it with three flagpoles huddled together on the far side. To the right, a castle covered in paint and glitter stood at attention among the pines. To the left, a long table was set out with colorful horseshoes and bandanas strewn about it.
"Come on, Sweetie Bell! Let's go join the other unicorns!" Pixie tugged on her mane.
Sweetie Bell looked around for her friends but they seemed to already have dissolved into the crowd of excited ponies flooding the clearing. Sweetie Bell trotted along next to Pixie and made her way over to a forming group of young unicorns.
"Welcome to Camp Dustyhoof! I'm Scorch Shimmer and I'll be your head counselor for the moon!" A brown unicorn with an orange and red mane called to the group of forming ponies. "Now, let's have younger ponies on the left here and older ponies on the right. Twenty four seasons and younger left, anyone older than that, go to the right."
Sweetie Bell trotted over to the right. She just made the cut for the older group. Most of the other unicorns in her group seemed to know each other and were nuzzling faces and swapping excited hellos. Sweetie Bell trotted over to Pixie and stood awkwardly next to her.
Pixie smiled widely at Sweetie Bell and nodded to her. "Guy, this is Sweetie Bell. She's a newbie, so try and be nice to her." Pixie laughed as she presented Sweetie Bell to the group huddled around her. The fillies all nodded and smiled at her.
"Ok, lets head down to the dining hall and we can make some name tags." Scorch started to lead the group down to an open-air tent with tables lined up inside.
Pixie stuck back for a second to trot along with Sweetie Bell. Leaning over, she whispered in her ear, "You're new here. So just be patient and pay attention. Don't step on anypony's hoof, and you'll be fine."
Sweetie Bell gulped and nodded quickly. She would do everything Pixie told her. After all, she would be here for a whole moon. What have I gotten myself into? Sweetie Bell thought as she trotted into the dining hall. Guess I'll make the best of it.