//------------------------------// // Sweets and Candies // Story: Party Pony Partners // by Jan Damz //------------------------------// Rarity was already at the train station, waiting for her pink friend to arrive. The train just arrived and ponies are already boarding it. She waited a few more minutes until she saw the pink party mare walk towards the station. "Took you long. We aren't staying in Manehatten for a week you know." Rarity started as Pinkie approached her "Sorry. I was just checking to see if I forgot something that may come in handy." Pinkie replied as Boneless sat on her back. Rarity took notice of the rubber chicken but decided to push the thought aside. "Anyways, let's get on the train before it starts to leave." Rarity said and boarded the train, Pinkie soon followed. They both took their seats across from one another as the train started to depart from the station. Pinkie laid Boneless next to her in her seat as Rarity watched out the window. "So..." Pinkie started as she looked at the white unicorn, "I was thinking, where are we going to stay there in the city?" Rarity looked at the pink mare and smiled, "Well I planned ahead and booked a room for myself at this hotel by a small park. I'm sure the room can fit at least two ponies knowing how the hotel always has it's rooms with two beds and all, so you are welcome to stay there." "Well isn't that convenient." Pinkie said, "So, anything more about the hotel like events or, I don't know, parties?" "Pinkie, the hotel doesn't allow parties in rooms." Rarity replied which made Pinkie a bit disappointed, just a tiny bit though. "Though I heard they have an all you can eat buffet on Tuesday nights." The unicorn added which almost immediately caught Pinkie's attention and interest. "Today's a Tuesday." Pinkie said, more likely, to herself and smiled. "Looks like you'll know where to find me tonight." "Is this hotel fancy or something?" Pinkie asked since a fancy buffet can sometimes have food that are both delicious and horrible. "Well, I don't exactly know, but I'm guessing it won't be that fancy since it's like the third known hotel in Manehatten." Rarity replied as she looked back out towards the scenery. Hm, the hotel they are going to stay in sure does sound quite familiar; I just couldn't put my finger on it though. "I do hope it isn't that fancy." Pinkie said as she looked out the window to see the scenery the train is passing by as well. She then felt Boneless lean on her which made her look at the chicken. "Oh, you want to look out too? Sure, here." Pinkie said as she took the boneless chicken and placed it on the window. It's a good thing the window wasn't open or otherwise Boneless could've leaned out and fall. Rarity looked over at Pinkie and the Boneless chicken. "Say, you are getting quite attached to that rubber chicken Cheese gave you." She started, eyeing the rubber bird, "Almost as if it were your own pet like Gummy." Pinkie looked over at Rarity and smiled, "Well Cheese wanted me to take care of his friend so of course I had to." "And I'm guessing you're bringing him along since you're going to meet Cheese?" Rarity asked since that was the reason why Pinkie wanted to come with her in the first place. "Well, If I can see him." Pinkie said, "The city is a big place and it's not likely that I'll meet Cheese like right when we head to the hotel." "So how are you going to find him?" "I'm currently thinking about that. My Pinkie Sense would probably kick up and show me where but if I cant find him, at least I'll have fun there in the city." "I still don't get how your Pinkie Sense works after all the years we've been friends." "It's best to just leave it be." Pinkie smiled as Boneless leaned over and almost fell to the floor, luckily Pinkie caught him. "Whoah there buddy. We don't want you to break a bone now can we?" "Pinkie I think he doesn't have bones at all." Rarity chuckled only to make Pinkie realize what she meant. "Oh yeah." Pinkie giggled a bit as she placed Boneless back on the seat next to her. "Yeah, I may have grown quite attached to Boneless." She added, rubbing the back of her head. The train ride to the city isn't going to be that long. Probably a good hour or so to reach it from Ponyville, though if there are distractions like some sheep blocking the tracks then it'll take a few minutes longer. As usual, Pinkie couldn't wait to get there as she looked out the window. Her excitement even managed to show off on her facial expression which Rarity took notice of. "I see you're eager to get there." Rarity smiled as she looked over at Pinkie who was looking out the window. "Am I." Pinkie replied, excitement clear in her tone. "Eager to see Cheese I'm guessing?" Rarity teased a bit, and for a second there, she thought she saw the pink mare blush just a tinsy winsy bit., that or she's been over thinking about what Dash said on Pinkie liking Cheese and vise versa. Either way, in truth Pinkie did blush; though due to her natural coat color, it hid most of it, and I mean MOST of it. "Well you can say that I guess." Pinkie replied with a hint of anxiety in her voice as she diverted her eyes back outside. Rarity's mind sure is starting to have second thoughts on what Dash said at the party by now. 'Oh don't jump that quickly to conclusions Rarity.' She thought to herself, trying to push the thought of Pinkie liking Cheese more than a friend aside, 'Teasing her about him probably made her blush, or if she did blush, and made her a bit uneasy. I mean, who doesn't get a bit nervous when they get teased by a friend on who they like?' Well I know one and that's Maud, though she might be an exception due to her not really showing emotions. Anyways, let's not steer off topic again. Pinkie sure gets uneasy when somepony tells her she likes Cheese or she enjoys having Cheese around. It's almost as if she really does like Cheese, and not just the like-friend type, I meant the like-like type. 'Pfft, relax Pinkie.' Pinkie thought to herself as she continued to stare at the view out the window, 'Cheese is just a friend; no need to get nervous about that right? Right?' 'It's not like you do actually like-like him, I mean, both of you are practically best buds.' She continued on with her 'train' of thought. Get it? Train of thought? Since they were on a train and you kno- Nevermind. Continuing on with Pinkie's thoughts: 'He's funny like me, hyper like me, crazy like me, friendly like me, who wouldn't want to be friends with him?' Pinkie stared at the trees zooming by the train, she then rested her head on one of her front hooves on the window. 'He's a perfect friend. A nice, funny, cute and handso- WAIT HOLD UP.' She widened her eyes when she realized what she was thinking then shook her head a bit. "Pinkie? Something wrong?" Rarity's voice went through her ears, she obviously took notice of the pink pony's action, "You seem a bit out of character." Funny how I'm referring it to this chapter in particular. Anyways, Pinkie looked at the white mare and smiled a pretty convincing smile. "Oh, just a bit tired from that party last night. Eeyup, tired." Pinkie replied, trying her best to not sound nervous and she was doing pretty well at it too. She must've gotten the hang of it. "Oh yeah, that was some party." Rarity said as she thought about the party that happened. Everypony had a blast during that time and knowing how every side has it's shortcomings, having way too much fun has the effect of leaving you pooped later. That's life I suppose. Cheese was up and early once the day started. Sure he was still a tad bit tired but he's got a job to do here in the city, that is, if he finds it. The thing about Cheese's Cheesy Sense is that it tells if there is a party that needs planning but isn't specific about the place other than what town or city it's in. Being a big city and all, Cheese has quite some time ahead of him trying to look for the place. It'll probably be some shop having like ten years in service or something. Cheese got himself refreshed before heading out to the city along with Boneless Two and started trotting along the streets of Manehatten. Hopefully, his Cheesy Sense would start to get more specific and tell him where in what part of the city the party is going to be. The orange stallion and the rubber chicken were walking down... Uh... the street, when they happen to stumble upon a candy store on the corner. The shop itself looked quite nice from the outside, with decorations having the candy theme on them though the shop looked quite old. Candy and sweets were also on display from the glass window and man do they look good. "The Sweet Tooth." Cheese read the sign hanging from the shop, and he seemed to have noticed another sign up front stating a buy one take two deal and half the price on sweets starting from today until the day after tomorrow. "Buy one, take two plus half the price?" Cheese asked himself, "Odd. First shop I've stumbled upon that has this deal." Odd indeed. Most shops most of the days just have sales and not have that buy one take one thing especially in Manehatten. This shop having a buy one, take TWO instead of one plus a half the price sale makes it even more interesting. Out of curiosity, Cheese decided to enter the shop and ask; and maybe get some candy too. He opened the front door and entered, ringing the bell that was hanging on top of the door. The place sure looked welcoming and cozy, though it also looked like it didn't follow modern design and had more of an old feel. An old, light brown stallion with a light grayish mane, probably in his seventies or eighties, was behind the counter in front of a wall that had different candies and sweets. "Welcome young gentlecolt." The old stallion greeted with a warm smile, "What brings you to this fine establishment on this beautiful day?" Cheese approached the counter with Boneless Two right behind him, like literally on his back, and smiled back at the stallion. "Oh I just thought I'd drop by and you know, probably get a sweet or two." The party stallion replied. "Well, you might be getting more than just two because buying one sweet gets you two more which in total is three sweets, if I can remember my math correctly." The old coot said as he placed a small plaque on the counter stating the deal, "Plus, everything's being sold for half the price so enjoy." "Say, that's quite a deal for a shop like this." Cheese said as he looked around the place. It felt like one of those oldish candy shops in the nineties or something. When did candy shops even start popping up? "Well this place is turning thirty-five years old tomorrow." The old stallion chuckled as he tapped the counter showing how durable it is even though it's getting old, "Of course I have to atleast celebrate this milestone." Cheese thought about it for a while and it clicked on him. This must be the place! Though from the looks of it, it looks like the old pony is the only one celebrating the candy store's anniversary. Where are the others if his Cheesy Sense wanted him to plan a big anniversary party? "So Mr..." Cheese started as he looked back at the light brown stallion. "Call me Charlie, Charlie Sweets." The stallion replied. "Okay, Mr. Charlie, are you the only one going to celebrate or do you have friends or family coming over?" Cheese asked. "Since the past years, it's been me and Caramel who's been celebrating." Charlie replied. "Who's Caramel?" Cheese asked out of curiosity. "She's my wife." Charlie replied as he sighed with a hint of sadness in it.. Cheese wondered why the old stallion sighed and noticed the lack of a pony named Caramel around. "If I may ask, where is Caramel?" Cheese asked again out of curiosity. Charlie just remained silent and looked down which made Cheese get the message. "Oh. I-I'm sorry for asking." "Nah it's fine." Charlie replied, "Besides, that was a few years ago and Caramel wouldn't want me to mope around. She would want me to smile all the time and keep this store running just for her, where ever she is." A couple minutes of uneasy silence swept throught the shop. "So what can I get ya?" Charlie spoke up as he clapped his hooves together, breaking the silence. "Oh I'm not really here for some candy." Cheese started, "You see, I'm a travelling party pony who plans parties for special occasions around Equestria." "Ah, I see." The brown stallion said, "Well, there's nothing you can really do here I'm afraid. I can handle celebrating the shop's anniversary by myself." "That's the problem. You can't just celebrate an anniversary all by yourself. You must at least have some friends or relatives to enjoy company with." "It's totally fine, trust me. I don't want you to waste time on planning the store's anniversary and such when there are other stuff you can attend to." Charlie tried to shrug it off. "Do you at least have a relative or family member in the city?" Cheese asked. Charlie looked at Cheese for a while and seeing how persistent the orange stallion can be, decided to atleast give some info. "Well, I do have a daughter, Penny, who I think is working with the local newspaper. She's probably busy right now at work." The old stallion replied, "Other than that, that's about it." "Great! Thanks for the info!" Cheese said as he turned to leave with Boneless Two still on his back. Charlie noticed Cheese's rubbery friend and smiled. "Say, that's one nice rubber chicken you have there." He started, "Reminds me of how my wife liked to gag around with some of those and a few other props." "Him?" Cheese asked as he looked at Boneless Two, "His name is Boneless Two, he's my travel partner and my party assistant." "What ever happened to Boneless One?" The old pony asked. "Oh I gave him to a very trusty friend of mine." Cheese replied as he thought of Pinkie Pie with his friend. "I see. Say, I didn't quite get your name sonny," "It's Cheese, Cheese Sandwich." "Cheese Sandwich huh? That's an odd name, but can't argue with that. Anyways, hope to see you again Cheese. Have a good day!" Charlie waved goodbye with a warm smile. "Have a great day too Charlie!" Cheese bid farewell too as he and Boneless Two headed out of the store. Once outside, Cheese started speaking to Boneless Two. "Boneless Two, I think I've got a plan for this anniversary." Boneless Two just leaned a bit as if he were asking 'What?' "I'm gonna go find Charlie's daughter and hopefully have her with him for the anniversary, and maybe a couple of other ponies as well. It'll be perfect!" Boneless Two just stayed silent on Cheese's back. "Of course I'm sure about this Boneless. Now let's go ask around for who ever this Penny is and go tell her about our plan. First stop, the news office." It was high noon (:3) by the time the train arrived at the station in Manehatten. Pinkie hopped out of the train carriage with Boneless first in which Rarity soon followed after. "So, where we off to first huh?" Pinkie asked the white unicorn, excited for the day ahead. "Well I am getting hungry after that train ride. Maybe we could go grab lunch." Rarity replied as she went off first, "I know this nice restaurant that serves some really good food nearby." "Okey dokey lokey." Pinkie hopped down the steps with Boneless right on her back and Rarity beside her, "What do we do next after that?" "Probably head over to the hotel to rest up. After that I'm going to my boutique to check on how's it doing." "And?" "You could do whatever you want while I check on my boutique, just as long as you don't get into trouble." "Pfft, since when do I ever get in trouble?" Pinkie joked around earning her a look from Rarity, "Got it. No trouble." After their quick meal at the restaurant, the two friends along with Boneless headed off towards that hotel Rarity talked about in the train. It wasn't that far from the station to be honest. It was about a hour long trot from the station to the hotel, add a couple of minutes if you decided to have some stops. Just like what Rarity said, there was a small but beautiful park in front of the hotel. Some ponies were there too, either relaxing or having fun by the pond. Another small note worth mentioning is that the hotel had about thirty floors. Now I'm positively one hundred percent sure that this hotel sounds familiar. It's right at the tip of my tongue though I just can't say it. Oh well, the answer would come to me sooner or later. The two mares and rubber chicken entered the hotel to be greeted by one of the employees since that was part of his job. Rarity told Pinkie to stay put for a while as she went to go and check in the room she booked in under her name. The room was at the twenty-first floor and was room number 313. Oh my, that's quite high. The two along with Boneless then took the elevator up to their room and headed in to unpack, not that there is that much to unpack though, especially for Pinkie. The room was quite roomy to say the least. There were two beds just like what Rarity mentioned, a bathroom, and a closet for storing stuff. "Alright, now that we've got a room and a place to stay for a while, I'll be heading off to go check on my boutique now." Rarity started as she headed for the door, "You can go do what ever you want Pinkie, just be sure to be here before dinner." "Okey dokey lokey Rarity." Pinkie saluted, and with that, Rarity headed off. The pink mare then decided to go head out with Boneless and check on the different shops around and hopefully bump into Cheese. Pinkie walked down the street with Boneless right on her back and noticed the different shops and shops she's seen when she visited the city last time. Most of the shops weren't appealing to the pink pony and some were quite interesting. Though there was this shop that caught her attention though, and it's not a shop that she's seen on her last visits. It was an old looking candy store yet a candy store nonetheless. What really caught Pinkie's attention was the sign upfront stating a buy one take two for half the price on the sweets. "OH MY GOSH THAT IS THE BEST DEAL EVER!" Pinkie Pie almost yelled due to her happiness taking over. She immediately zoomed in along with Boneless in the shop without hesitation, craving for some sweets to satisfy her sweet tooth. And before you ask, yes, the store was none other than 'The Sweet Tooth'. As Pinkie entered the shop, the door bell rang telling the owner that a customer has just entered. Pinkie noticed an old stallion was behind the counter which she guessed was one of the ponies running the place. "Why hello there miss." The old stallion greeted with a warm and welcoming smile. Pinkie almost thought of him as Mr Cake, though much older, "What brings you here on this fine day?" "Well I needed something sweet to satisfy my sweet tooth and decided to stop by here." Pinkie replied as she smiled at the stallion. "Well, you've come to right place. Here, we sell different kinds of candies and sweets to satisfy your sweet tooth. Go ahead and choose!" The old fella smiled back as he showed the numerous kinds of sweets around.