"So... what is this thing, anyway? In our time, we didn't have anything like this. A self-driving cart!"
"We call it an automobile, and yea, they are on the market now, but I'd still prefer stallion-steered because these are such pieces of junk. Though, it does help us out on the farm." Applejack explained.
"Hm. How does it work?" Rarity asked.
"Well, that's not something I know for sure, but it runs off of some kind of magic... erm- I don't really know." Applejack shrugged.
"Also... what is it all about paying with a card instead of bits?" Rarity continued.
"You mean bitcards?" Rainbow asked.
"Sure." Rarity shrugged. "Wait, bit-"
"Well... I guess somepony thought it would be nice to have all your money stored in one place. So thus the bank created a bitcard, where you can deposit bits onto your bit account, which you can withdraw from a ABM. Then, somepony made the credit and debit card... don't even get me started on what happened to the Banking Industry after that. Our economy is ruined." Rainbow folded her arms.
"Er... she gets really opinionated on economic issues, especially when it comes to ABMs." Applejack frowned.
"Our system would have this much more money if they charged for deposit!" Rainbow held her thumb and index fingers barley apart from each other.
Everyone stared at her. Spike and Rarity were the most confused.
"Er... I mean- Yea! Whatever... I can fly fast! Hey look, a bird!" She pointed.
Applejack rolled her eyes. "Mah eye sockets are gettin' tired a' this." The car kept driving. "So... Why exactly are we drivin' tah Canterlot?"
"Well, we could take the train." Spike suggested.
Rainbow laughed. "Oh yea, The train tracks leading to Canterlot... well... one or two days ago, coincidentally, were destroyed epicly by Star-"
"Ah ah ah!" Twilight put her hoof up. "Starlight Glimmer was practicing a spell, and it simply backfired-"
"Destroying the track bridge to Canterlot!" Rainbow grinned.
"Really?!" Spike asked.
"Oh, yea! You should have seen it! It was one heck of an episode! Er... at least that's how Pinkie described it." Rainbow said.
"We'll have tah take the hastily built magic dust bridge." Applejack said.
"The train bridge should be done today!" Twilight said. "But I don't think it will be done soon enough. Unless you guys want to wait." She shrugged.
"Magic dust objects?" Rarity asked. "Only you dreamed of having that kind of magical study complete..."
Spike stared.
"What? She talked about it a lot!" Rarity shrugged.
"Actually, I did complete Star-Swirl's research on magical solid rendering with Princess Celestia quite a while ago. The basic factor is that any solid object can be created fairly easily within seconds, that is very strong and lasts up to 48 hours!" Twilight smiled.
"Pfff... yea, yea." Rainbow said.
"Okay, as I was saying, we're heading tah Canterlot because..." Applejack continued.
"The archives." Twilight replied. "We could find a time spell that should be able to fix all this. I wonder if the Spike and Rarity we're used to travelled back to your bodies?"
"Wouldn't that be something." Rarity laughed strangely.
"Look, we know your still in that 'shocked' phase, but you need to start acting normal so we know it's actually you." Rainbow rolled her eyes.
"Terribly sorry but... It's just a lot to take in. Rarity repeated. I mean... automobiles? Magical speech-transmitting machines? Bitcards? Magic dust? What's next?" Rarity asked.
"Bye, Vinyl! Thanks for saving us!" Pinkie smiled.
Vinyl gave a smile back as she loaded her equipment into a large chariot, and hopping in the front, waving goodbye.
"Well that was a lost cause, we didn't even have a party!" Pinkie shrugged.
The kids watched as the chariot drove off. "Now what?" Lavender asked.
"Can't we go out to eat?" The horned pony asked, rummaging through Pinkie's saddlebags.
"Clarity!" Pinkie shouted. "I keep very important things in there!"
"Like a bitcard?" Claire asked.
"Why's that important? I keep that on the desk in Sugarcube Corner!" Pinkie replied, shrugged.
The kids stared. "What, now I can buy whatever I want there!"
"Let's go there!" Claire said.
"Cupcakes!" T shouted.
"Ummm...." Pinkie Pie said nervously. "I don't know, I'm supposed to be watching you guys. Who knows how long they'll be gone..."
"What do you mean?" Lavender asked. "Are they leaving? Going back in time or something? Leaving us? Will they ever be back?!"
"Of course! I'm sure they'll be back! I mean, Twilight said-" Pinkie began. "Kids?"
She soon saw the kids taking her saddlebags and taking them out the door. She rolled. Her eyes.
"If we're gonna get to Canterlot and find Mom and Dad, then we'd better be prepared. We've got a bitcard, cupcakes... and other stuff." Lavender said to the two other fillies.
"Guys! Your Mom and Dad will be back! I swear!" Pinkie said. "They just- Something happened with the time-space contin-"
"Bye, Pinkie!" Lavender said, putting the large saddle bag on her back, as the two other fillies followed.
"Yay!" T smiled.
"You know guys..." Pinkie said.
They turned.
"We could take Cranky's chariot." Pinkie said willingly.
They beamed.
"Yay!" All three fillies squeal as Pinkie held the reins to Cranky's chariot, with Cranky himself pulling it.
"Soo... where to?" Cranky asked.
"Canterlot." Pinkie said.
Cranky stopped. "Your gonna have to pay more than a friend discount on that one."
"I can't believe it! We're going to Canterlot again. We've only gone three or four times! Mom never takes us!" Lavender said happily.
"Three or four times?!" Pinkie rolled her eyes.
"I just can't wait to see Mommy's boutique!" Claire said.
"You've already seen it before..." Lavender said.
"I know, but never without Mommy!" Claire replied.
Lavender shrugged.
The cart rolled on.
Soon enough, the kids drifted to sleep, and Pinkie sat boredly in the cart. "This is gonna take days, isn't it?"
"We're here!" Cranky said.
Pinkie sat up. "Really?! It's been a half an hour!"
"The mountain view Canterlot train stop! This train'll take you straight to Canterlot faster than the Ponyville train stop!" Cranky said.
"No... Cranky, you don't get it. We wanted you to take us all the way to Canterlot." Pinkie said.
"They haven't built a chariot route yet." Cranky replied.
"They did a few days ago out of magic dust because the train bridge broke. Temporary, but after they built the train bridge back, they don't want anyone coming by chariot. Don't know why." Pinkie shrugged. "Soooo?!"
"Uh... I don't even know which trail to take, let alone how long it is! I only have till dinner! I've gotta be home for Matilda!" Cranky replied nervously. "You still can't take the train?!"
"Nope." Pinkie deadpanned.
"Well... you could always try!" Cranky said. "Go on ahead! Take the kids and see if the conductor is in! If he is, give me signal."
Pinkie woke up the kids.
"Are we at Canterlot?" Lavender asked.
"Not quite." Pinkie replied. Bouncing toward the train station. She knocked on the window of the train. Nothing. She walked past the train and knock on the conducter's office window.
It opened. Pinkie gave a smile to Cranky, and off he went. "Wait!" Pinkie shouted. "I didn't say- Nevermind."
"Can I help you?" A tan stallion asked from inside the door.
"Yea! We're wondering when the train system to Canterlot will be running!" Pinkie said.
"Funny you asked!" The conducter said. "In bout' one or two hours, the construction will be complete. See, Celestia and Luna wanted to get on that construction. They don't like people accessing Canterlot without the train."
"One or two hours?!" Claire gasped. "What're we gonna do! Cranky left!"
"Uhhhh...."
"Bout' one or two hours left on the journey!" Applejack said. "Maybe more, depending on traffic."
"Traffic?!" Rainbow said. "Traffic!!" Her voice echoed. "We're out in the middle of NOWHERELAND! No wonder visits to Canterlot have been dropping! It takes ten years to get there, and you have to take a route that literally is carved from rock!" The car was driving through a narrow dark canyon.
"Oh, Rainbow. It isn't that bad." Twilight said.
"And what exactly do you mean by "that bad"?" Rarity asked, looking around the gloomy enviornment.
"I mean... we aren't surrounded by- creatures?" Twilight said.
"Don't! Jinx it!" Rainbow shouted. "Can't this thing go any faster?"
"Rain-bow." Applejack replied. "At least nobody has pull the cart themselves."
"Don't jinx that, too!" Rainbow cringed.
"Rainbow, leave it be." Applejack said.
"I don't know about you guys, but this gloomy canyon has a terrible sense of color... why mix all blacks with grays? I don't get it!" Rarity said.
"We're almost out of the canyon, stop whinin' everypony." Applejack rolled her eyes.
10 minutes later... the ponies complained again.
"How close are we now?" Rainbow asked.
"I can see the bridge!" Spike said.
"You sure can!" AJ replied. "It's only 15.5 miles away! We're almost there!"
"Um... what's that noise?" Rainbow asked, listening to the sputtering of the motor.
"Relax, it just means we're out of fuel. I brought an extra tank." Applejack said. "I knew we'd need it. I'm always prepared."
Spike looked at her nervously. "Uh... was it red with a yellow cap and a squiggly thing?
"Umm... yea, could you grab it. Surely ya'll have seen it back there!" Applejack said.
"Uh, about that, actually." Spike said, "I didn't exactly know what that was... so I moved it out to make room for me."
"You what Applejack asked. "When!?"
"How prepared are you now?" Rainbow rolled her eyes.
"Actually, mah car has an emergency tank built in. But I've never used it it my whole life. I'd be surprised if the fuel still worked." Applejack said. "I don't know. Are you there's not another way?"
"Applejack, you're gonna have to let go of your emergency tank." Rainbow laughed.
"Well... it can get us about 25 miles. I just can't imagine the fact of usin' it."
"It looks like you need it now." Twilight said.
Applejack flipped the fuel switch from Normal to Emergency. "Let's go." She said dully.
Everyone sighed.
Rarity and Spike shut their eyes. When they opened them, it was about a half an hour later. They were in front of the large magical bridge.
"Everyone ready?" Applejack asked. "We're about to cross this sturdy pixie dust bridge." She stepped on the gas.
The car lurched forward. "Hey look, they're already rebuilding the train bridge, and it's almost done!" Twilight said. Everypony looked to their left to see the bridge being constructed by large numbers of spell unicorns. They were currently levitating a large stone arch toward the gap. In a matter of 2 minutes, they were over the bridge.
"Hey! We didn't die!" Rainbow laughed.
They drove the moving chariot through town, occasionally hitting traffic. "The archives tower is in the main castle, to the left!" Twilight said. "I can get us in.
"Hey look, there's Lenny's!" Rainbow pointed to a french-style restaurant to their left. "We should totally eat there!"
"Well, we did promise Spike and Rarity dinner..." Applejack said.
Rarity shrugged. "Um, we don't really mind- we just want to get ho-"
"Oh, fine, we'll eat if you guys insist." Twilight said.
"C'mon, Rarity. This'll give us time to think this through." Spike said.
"Hm. Suppose it would." Rarity said. "Let's dine then!"
"Stoppitrightthere!"
They heard a familiar voice behind them. A pink pony hopped out of a Canterlot chariot. And following her, three fillies.
"Our kids?!" Spike and Rarity gasped. "How did you guys get here?"
They pointed to Pinkie.
"It was Lavender's idea!" Pinkie shrugged. "Hey, and by the way, the train system is back online! We watched them collapse the magic dust one!"
"Oh, why didn't we bring them in the first place?" Rarity said, rushing up to T and picking him up.
"Uhhh... because there was no room?" Pinkie said.
Spike shrugged. "Everyone else just went into... Lenny's for dinner. Should we bring the kids and Pinkie?"
"That's how we planned it!" Pinkie smiled.
"You planned to bring us to Canterlot and eat at Lenny's?" Rarity cocked her head.
"Well, not that." Pinkie said.
Everyone went inside.
"This is gonna be just like breakfast." Rarity rolled her eyes.