The Cakes stood in their bakery, enjoying a quiet lull in the day. Pinkie Pie was humming to herself behind the counter, while Pound and Pumpkin played in a backroom visible through the swinging doors. It had been a good day, with brisk sales during breakfast, and quite a lunch rush as well. Tourism had brought many ponies to the town.
The sugar business was always booming.
The bell on the door rang and a small pegasus colt foal entered. He was dappled, his coat brown and white spots, with a few black patches. He had one white wing and one brown wing. The little colt was smiling broadly, his eyes wide with excitement. Mrs. Cake couldn’t help but notice how adorable he was, and gently nudged her husband, who was standing by her.
The colt cleared his throat loudly, lifted his head, and looked at the three of them. “Stand and deliver!” The colt said. “I’ve come for cupcakes and I’m not taking no for an answer!”
Mr. and Mrs. Cake stood there in shock. Was this a robbery?
“So that’s what my Pinkie sense does during a robbery.” Pinkie Pie said absentmindedly.
The colt reared up, snatched a cupcake from off the counter, and was out the door before anypony could react or stop him, gobbling his ill gotten gains. The Cakes stood looking at one another, disbelief etched upon their faces.
“What just happened?” Mr. Cake said.
“I think we were just robbed.” Mrs. Cake said. “That’s never happened before. Ever.”
“He sure was cute!” Pinkie Pie chirped, causing the Cakes to glare at her with some concern.
Elsewhere, and down the lane…
Bon Bon stood next to her counter while watching Lyra sweep the floor. It had been a great day for sales. She was considering closing early, so she could spend some time with Lyra. Perhaps a nice walk was in order. It was too nice a day to spend all day in her shop.
The door opened, causing the bell to ring.
“Hello and welcome to Bon Bon’s Confectionary Shoppe.” Bon Bon greeted.
Before her stood a small colt foal, dappled, grinning, and with a dollop of frosting on his nose. He was quite adorable, Bon Bon noted. He smiled at her broadly.
“Stand and deliver!” The colt said. “I’ve come for candy! Now hand it over!”
Lyra began to chortle to herself. Bon Bon smiled.
“Is this a robbery?” Bon Bon asked. “What if I don’t give you any candy? Usually, when you rob somepony, it is because you can threaten them in some way.”
The colt paused, looking thoughtful. He nodded slightly, agreeing, and began to trot through the room. He stopped when standing before Bon Bon.
He reached up and booped her nose with a hoof.
“Now look…” the colt said, “don’t make me boop you twice. Or three times. Hand over some candy and nopony has to be booped again.”
Bon Bon nodded, smiling faintly, trying hard to hide it.
“Better do as he asks Bon Bon, he looks dangerous.” Lyra said, sniggering.
Bon Bon went behind the counter, took some tongs in her mouth, and selected a bon bon. She offered it to the colt foal, who smiled pleasantly at her. He gobbled it right from the tongs, and gave her a chocolate coated smile.
“Thanks ma’am.” The colt said, still smiling a chocolatey smile. He then turned and was out the door in a flash, running, his tri-coloured tail streaming out behind him.
“We’ve been robbed Lyra!” Bon Bon said, bursting into laughter. “He was so adorable!”
Elsewhere, and down the lane…
Zapple Dapple strode down the road, feeling rather pleased with himself. He hadn’t had a day this good since, well, forever. He had awoken this morning, in his bed at the orphanarium, and he decided that he was going to have a grand day of adventuring… Just like those ponies in the books he had read.
Zapple Dapple was so named because of his somewhat rare ability to generate a great deal of static electricity by flapping his wings. He was one of the rare pegasi who were capable of creating storm clouds, providing them with the needed charge to jump start them. One day, when he was older, he hoped to work on the weather team. But for today, he was having fun and having an adventure. And committing robbery, just like the ponies in the books. It was all just a bit of harmless fun.
Ahead of him was an apple cart and an orange mare. His mouth watered. He loved apples. He trotted forward, eager, eyeing his prize. While the orange mare wasn’t looking, he snatched an apple and ran.
“Why you little hornswaggler!” the mare cried, but thankfully not giving chase.
Zapple Dapple ran, lickety split, tearing through the crowd and disappearing from view, an apple held in his mouth.
Elsewhere, and down the lane…
It was the perfect day to be at the spa. But then again, any day was the perfect day to be in the spa, Rarity though to herself. She relaxed, soaking in a giant hot tub, Fluttershy close by. Steam rose from the water. The soothing heat relaxed tense overworked muscles. Fluttershy took a deep breath, inhaling the steam, and yawned.
“Such a marvelous sensation.” Rarity said. “What did ponies do before the spa was invented I wonder. How did we survive?”
Fluttershy said nothing, but continued soaking, her eyes closed.
The door opened and Rarity heard hoofsteps approaching the enormous hot tub.
“Oh, why, hello there.” Rarity said, spying a dappled colt climbing the stairs that rose up the side of the hot tub. “What are you doing here?” Aloe and Lotus entered the room, looking worried. They stood there, waiting, unsure.
The dappled colt foal cannonballed into the hot tub, sending water everywhere, causing Rarity to begin spluttering. Fluttershy sat there, staring in complete shock, squeaking.
“Why you little scoundrel!” Rarity shouted when the dappled head finally broke the surface of the water. He smiled at her warmly.
He sat in the tub with two mares, grinning rakishly. “I’ve always wanted a bath with two hot mares.” He said in roguish tones. “One more thing off my checklist.”
He fell silent, a look of intense concentration on his face. Rarity and Fluttershy could only sit there in shock, both silent, Aloe and Lotus standing nearby with stunned expressions on their faces.
A violent stream of bubbles rose up from the water along with the sound of a distant foghorn.
“I gotta go!” The dappled pegasus foal announced, climbing out the tub and running away.
“HE SOILED MY BATHWATER!” Rarity shouted, a look of horror etched upon her face.
Fluttershy’s nose crinkled. “And he soiled the air too.” She added.
Elsewhere, and down the lane…
Zapple Dapple was having the time of his young life, crossing things to do off of his to do list. Today had been the greatest day ever so far. He spied his next target ahead.
Next up on the to do list was his first kiss. And he had the perfect target. Key Lime. An earth pony. She was lime green and had a creamy coloured mane with a few brown strands. She was a fellow orphan. She was a year older than him, and bossy as could be. But he was going to show her. Today was his day.
He strode up bravely, catching her off guard, and threw a leg around her neck. He pulled her in for a kiss, planting a big wet smooch on her lips. He had no idea what he was doing, but that didn’t stop him or slow him down. Not knowing what else to do, he blew a raspberry while he had his lips smushed up against hers.
Key Lime squealed and melted in his embrace, her backside hitting the ground with a plop. He pulled her closer, pressing both his advantage and his lips against her even more, finishing off his kiss with a wet sloppy smack.
Key Lime sat there, breathless, sides heaving, a wild look in her amber eyes. “Zapple Dapple!” She said in flustered tones.
Zapple Dapple took off, there was still his spree to continue.
“Come back!” Key Lime cried. “You can’t kiss a filly like that and run away!”
Zapple Dapple kept running.
Elsewhere, and down the lane…
Twilight Sparkle sat in the library, reading a book. Not much had changed since becoming a princess, she reflected. Only now, she was the Princess of Books. And that was fine with her. The Princess of Books needed a fortress of books, she thought to herself. Spike was nearby, reading a comic book and grinning.
The door opened.
Twilight smiled as a dappled colt entered the library. He seemed pleasant enough. He smiled at her, nodding a greeting, and then stood there, looking around, as though he was trying to figure out which book he might want.
The dappled foal shouted suddenly, and then ran around in a circle while still shouting and making noise, causing Twilight to gasp.
This little troublemaker was shouting in the library! Unthinkable!
The dappled foal continued his rampage, while Spike stared at him with open mouthed shock. Without warning, the foal halted, pulling a book from the A section, and then ran over to the Z section. He jammed the book into the Z section, selected another book at random, and then returned that book to the A section.
“Why you little anarchist!” Twilight cried in horror, seeing her books out of order.
The foal split, high tailing it out the door.
“Spike, take a letter!” Twilight said. “We have a badly misbehaving foal!”
Elsewhere, and outside of town...
Today had been just perfect, the kind of day he had dreamt of since he was small... Zapple Dapple rested not too far outside town. He was tired, but refused to believe that he needed a nap. Just needed to catch his breath a bit. He sat, not too far off of the road, reliving his glorious day in his mind.
And it had been a glorious day. There had been cupcakes, candy, an apple, he had gone for a swim, grossed out two mares, and kissed the filly that he liked the most.
Oh, and he had also razzed a princess and made noise in the library. This was the best day ever. He would probably get a scolding when he went back to the orphanarium tonight, but it would be worth it.
Zapple Dapple froze, hearing voices.
Too late, he realised, he had been found. He cursed his little tired legs.
“Zapple Dapple, you stay right there!” A voice said, a voice full of authority and majesty.
OH NO! He thought to himself. He knew that voice. It was HER voice. Perhaps he had gone a little too far.
He did the only thing a foal could do in his situation. He cowered and tried to look as pitiful as possible.
She was large. Majestic. White. Graceful. Swanlike. And she was ANGRY. Celestia stared down upon the foal with a scowl.
The frightened foal began to flutter his wings, trying to look as woeful as possible. His ears drooped, his lip quivered, and he squeezed his eyes shut.
“Zapple Dapple, your rampage of mischievousness ends now!” Celestia commanded, striding up to him, standing over him, her wings spread, blocking out her sun. Zapple Dapple continued to cower.
Or so Celestia thought…
Zapple Dapple realised that he had one last thing to do before the day ended. He was going to go down in history… The greatest foal to have ever lived. They would sing his name on playgrounds everywhere.
“Zapple Dapple, I do not know what you were thinking, but you have terrorised the entire town today and left my little ponies in a panic! Your behaviour was inexcusable! What do you have to say for yourself?” Celestia lowered her head, her nose inches away from Zapple Dapple’s, glaring at him. “Theft! Multiple counts of theft. Pranking ponies. Random mayhem. Soiling bathwater!” Celestia shuddered visibly.
Zapple Dapple opened his eyes and shyly raised his hoof. He lightly booped Celestia on the nose, releasing his static charge.
“Electro-boop!” He giggled.
There was a gasp from Twilight, five mares, and several royal guard as every hair on Celestia’s pelt stood on end.
Celestia stood silent for a moment before saying; “Construct some stocks at once. It has been too long since we last had a public shaming.”
Celestia then grabbed him by his one black ear and begun to tug him along back to town…
Later, and in the center of town...
Zapple Dapple sat, his head trapped in the stocks. Most of the town was staring at him. Celestia stood nearby, still looking rather disheveled. Twilight Sparkle stood next to her, along with several royal guards. Perhaps, Zapple Dapple thought to himself, he had gone a little too far.
“Zapple Dapple!” Celestia said, her voice carrying over the commotion of the crowd. “Shame on you! You are a bad foal!”
Zapple Dapple hung there limply in the stocks, suddenly feeling very ashamed.
“Zapple Dapple! You are a bad foal!” Somepony shouted.
“For shame Zapple Dapple!” Somepony else shouted.
“Shame on you Zapple Dapple, you are a bad pony!” Rarity cried.
Key Lime approached him, drawing close. “Shame on you Zapple Dapple.” She said, kissing him. “You’re a bad bad foal. And I think I love you for it…”
Celestia gave Key Lime a disapproving look and Key Lime scurried off.
“This seems a little harsh.” Fluttershy said, her voice drowned out by the angry mob.
“Shame on you Zapple Dapple, you are a bad colt!” An orange mare shouted, three apples on her backside.
“STOP!” A voice shouted, loud enough to silence the whole crowd.
The Cakes stood in the distance with Pinkie Pie. The three of them looked a little distressed.
“Please stop!” Pinkie Pie shouted. “This is wrong.”
Most of the crowd turned to look at her.
“He’s just a foal. He’s an orphan. That doesn’t excuse what he did, but he wants the same things that all foals want. Candy. Treats. A nice day out. How often do you think he gets those things?”
The crowd began to whisper and murmur amongst themselves.
“Now, he was a bad foal, and he should be punished…” continued Pinkie Pie, “but not like this. Everything has gotten out of hoof!”
“He needs to be punished!” Somepony shouted.
“And we intend to punish him.” Mr. Cake said in a loud voice. Mrs. Cake nodded.
“Do any of you remember how much trouble Pinkie Pie was when she came to Ponyville? All of her pranks? Her trouble making? The entire crate of soap placed into the town fountain, causing the entire town to flood with bubbles?”
Pinkie Pie suddenly looked very embarrassed and her head dropped a little, as did her ears. “Yeah, everypony…” she said in a small voice, “remember when I did that?”
“I got my cutie mark!” Derpy Hooves shouted. “Playing with bubbles!”
“We took Pinkie Pie in to our home. We made Pinkie Pie behave.” Mrs. Cake said. “And look at her now.”
A murmur traveled through the town square.
Celestia gave a faint nod to a guard, who moved forward to release Zapple Dapple.
“I pity you.” Celestia said softly to Zapple Dapple. “Time spent in the stocks and a public shaming were a lot nicer than whatever the Cakes have in store for you.”
Zapple Dapple fought back the sudden urge to widdle as Celestia’s warning chilled him to the bone and made him shiver.
A few days later...
Zapple Dapple awoke in his bed. He yawned, stretched, and looked around. He had his own room now. All to himself. He couldn’t believe it. And he lived in a bakery. A bakery! The sun had not yet risen, he saw the dark through his window.
He crept out of bed and began to creep down the hall, passing by Pinkie’s room. He peeked in her open door. She was sleeping, twisted up in her blankets, a big smile on her face, holding a teddy bear. He continued onward.
He paused at the top of the stairs, looking downward. He had almost placed his hoof in the middle of the stairs… A big mistake. He stepped down along the edge of the stairs where it would not creak. The kitchen awaited below.
He made his way down the stairs without a single creak. He turned to continue down the hall and bumped into something.
“Whatcha doing?” Pinkie Pie said, yawning sleepily.
“What? How? The I didn’t see you pass me on the stairs...” Zapple Dapple stammered. “How did you get down here?”
“That’s not important silly.” Pinkie Pie chirped, and then kissed him on the nose. “Whatcha want for breakfast you silly pony?” Pinkie Pie asked.
Zapple Dapple stood in shock. How?
“You can’t sneak past my Pinkie sense.” Pinkie Pie said, giggling and wiping sleepy from her eye with her foreleg. “We better get you fed. We have a long day of work ahead of us. So responsible of you to wake up early to get started.”
Zapple Dapple groaned, remembering Celestia’s warning.