"Hark, Sir Lemon Drop!" Prism exclaimed, pointing her wooden sword at the Cutie Mark Crusaders' Clubhouse. "There lies the castle where the fair Princess Gemstone is being held captive!"
She looked at Lemon Drop, who wore a plastic knight's helmet like hers. They both carried wooden swords and shields bearing the Cutie Mark Crusaders' symbol.
"Should we go rescue her, Sir Prism?" he asked.
"Of course!" Prism said, proudly holding up her sword. "For we are Knights of the Cutie Mark, and it is our duty to protect the innocent! Onward, my friend!"
They trotted towards the treehouse when the Tri-Pies jumped out from behind the trunk, Cherry balancing on the backs of her sisters.
"Watch out, Sir Prism!" Lemon Drop said, coming to a halt. "The dreaded three-headed dog Cerberus is guarding the entrance!"
The Tri-Pies snarled menacingly.
"No three-headed dog is a match for us!" Prism declared. "Let's send this beast back to Tartarus!"
She and Lemon Drop wailed as they charged for the Tri-Pies. Before the wooden swords could make contact, the triplets yelped as Cherry flipped backward off her sisters.
"Great job, Sir Prism!" Lemon Drop cheered. "You've cut off its head!"
"Oh, the pain, the pain!" Cherry whined as she writhed in agony.
"Shush, Cherry!" Prism whispered. "Cerberus doesn't talk!"
"Oh. I mean… Arf! Arf!"
The pegasus put her hoof to her forehead. "You're also dead!"
"Oh. Okay."
Cherry fell limp and let her tongue loll. Prism rolled her eyes.
"Come, Sir Lemon Drop! The princess awaits!"
The two knights rushed up the steps and found Gemstone in the middle of the room, wearing a pink conical princess hat.
"My heroes!" she exclaimed.
Lemon Drop held up his sword. "We've come to rescue you, my la—"
"Sir Lemon Drop, look out!" Prism said, stopping him with her foreleg. "Behold! There is but another obstacle!"
The colt gasped as a figure crawled in front of Gemstone. "What is it?"
"It's the dreaded dragon!"
Baby Applespike let out a gurgle and started sucking on his tail.
"Oh, it's so terrifying!" Lemon Drop gasped.
"Save me, brave knights!" Gemstone said, dramatically lifting her foreleg to her head. "Save me from this horrid beast!"
"Gah!" Applespike exclaimed, clapping his hooves.
"Have at thee, dragon!" Prism said, waving her sword threateningly. "You shall not prevail! For we are mightier than…"
"What's going on up here?"
The foals turned to see their six-foot dragon uncle Spike coming up the steps, the wood creaking beneath his enormous feet. Upon hearing his father's voice, Applespike came crawling towards the entrance.
"Dada!" he said, holding up his hooves.
Spike looked down at his son and then at the foals' costumes and gasped. "Were you making believe my son was a fire-breathing dragon holding a princess captive?"
Lemon Drop and Prism gulped. "N-No?"
"Shame on you!" the dragon said as he picked up his boy. "When I asked you kids to watch him for a few minutes while I was helping Applejack catch a loose pig, I didn't mean cast him in a stereotypical role!"
"If it helps, Uncle Spike," Prism said with a nervous laugh. "He wasn't scary enough."
"We didn't mean any harm, Uncle Spike," Raspberry called up to him. "We just wanted to include him in our game."
"Well next time," Spike huffed as he returned to the ground with his son, "don't make him the evil monster."
"Oh he was just the dragon," Cherry chimed. "We were the monster."
"Why we always gotta be the monster?" Raspberry pouted. "Just once, can't I be the princess?" She looked up dreamily at her coltfriend. "So Lemony Drop can come and rescue me?"
The colt pulled his helmet over his face in embarrassment.
"Anyway," Spike said, turning to the Tri-Pies, "your dad's here. He's come to take you to the train station."
"Oh, that's right!" Blueberry exclaimed. "Our cousins are coming today!"
"What cousins?" Lemon Drop asked, leaning over the rail.
"Our cousins from the family rock farm," Raspberry explained.
"We haven't seen them since we were five," said Cherry. "And now they're coming to spend the weekend with us!"
"I forget," Prism said. "How are your cousins related to you? I know you have a lot of aunts."
Cherry and Raspberry turned to Blueberry, who cleared her throat and took a deep breath.
"You see we have three male cousins all living on the rock farm with their moms. The oldest is Igneous Rock Pie II or Iggy for short who is eleven years old and named after our grandfather and is Aunt Marble Pie's kid along with Metamorphic Rock Pie who we call Metty who is eight and then there is Aunt Limestone's kid Sedimentary Rock Pie who is ten and nicknamed Seddie."
The Tri-Pies' friends blinked.
"Did you get any of that?" Gemstone whispered.
"Nope," Prism said, shaking her head.
"Well, we better get going!" Blueberry said cheerfully.
"Don't wanna be late!" Raspberry piped.
"Or our cousins will think we've been kidnapped!" Cherry chimed.
The three of them whizzed off.
"So…" Lemon Drop said. "Who's our monster now?"
They looked to Spike, who narrowed his eyes.
"Don't even think about it."
The Tri-Pies bounced up and down as the train pulled into the station.
"Ooh, this is so exciting!" Cherry chimed.
"I can't wait to see Metty!" said Raspberry. "I remember he and I used to look at poetry and puzzle books together!"
"And I remember how Iggy and I would go off into the woods looking for stuff!"
"I may not remember much about Seddie," said Blueberry, "but I remember him being really, really smart!"
"I'm sure they'll be excited to see you too, girls," said Pinkie. "Maybe you all can start swapping rock candy necklaces like Maud and I used to do! Or maybe become pen pals or exchange savings bonds or…"
"Honey, we have to find 'em first," Cheese said as he searched the crowd.
"Don't worry, Dad!" Blueberry exclaimed. "We're on it!"
The Tri-Pies each held up a sign. Cherry's read "Iggy," Blueberry's read "Seddie" and Raspberry's read "Metty." As the crowd dispersed, three earth colts with saddlebags came up to them. All their eyelids were drooped as they stared blankly at the Pies.
The tallest one stood on the left. He was a skinny colt with a gray coat, straight black hair that went down to his shoulders, and dull yellow eyes. The cloudy purple one on the far right was the Tri-Pies' height. His mane was the same style as the tall one's, only it was a light gray, and his eyes were as purple as his coat. In the middle was a short, stout colt holding the tall one's hoof while sucking his free hoof. His coat was also gray, but darker, and his mane was white. Despite the boredom in his eyes, they were bright blue like Pinkie's.
"Boys, you're here!" Pinkie squealed, spreading out her forelegs. "Come give your old Auntie Pinkie Pie a hug!"
"Don't forget one for Uncle Cheese!"
The three colts didn't react as the adults threw their hooves round them.
"Aunt Pinkie," the tall one said monotonously. "Who is this stranger hugging us?"
"Whoops," Cheese chuckled as he backed away. "I forgot. Last time I saw you three, I was Red Shoes, but it's Cheese Sandwich now. Red Shoes was my, uh, secret identity. It's kind of a long story. See, I was running away from my ex-girlfriend because I thought she was stalking me even though she was just trying to return my scarf and…"
"No need to explain," said the purple one in a voice just as bland as the tall one's. "It's obvious you're our uncle. You just died your mane brunette and took the paint off your cutie mark. I knew it was paint all along because the clown nose was smeared last time you visited the rock farm but I didn't say anything because I didn't want to appear judgmental of your life decisions."
"Ooh," Cherry said in awe. "He is smart."
"You knew all along?" Blueberry asked. "It took me eight years to figure it out, Seddie!"
Seddie shrugged. "I just noticed."
"In case you don't remember us," the tall one said in his emotionless tone, "I am Igneous Rock Pie II," he flicked the hoof holding the short colt's, "this is my younger brother Metamorphic Rock Pie, and you've already identified Sedimentary Rock Pie."
"Well, we're…" Blueberry started to say.
"You don't need to introduce yourselves," Seddie said as he pointed to each of them. "Blueberry Pancake Pie, Raspberry Strudel Pie, and Cherry Changa Pie."
"You remember us!" Raspberry squealed. "Even our middle names!"
"Even if we didn't, your coat colors give it away."
"I told you it was obvious," Cherry whispered.
"Now that we're all introduced," Pinkie piped, "we'll just scoot on down to the Party Palace and get you all settled!"
"Here, let me take your bags," Cheese Sandwich offered as he reached for the suitcases behind the boys.
But as he picked them up, his forelegs gave way and he collapsed to the floor.
"Geez!" he panted. "What have you boys got in here? Rocks?"
"Yes," Iggy and Seddie murmured.
It took all the Pies to carry the Rock Pies' luggage. Cherry didn't seem to have much difficulty with her load. It was a slow process, but they made it to the Party Palace. Every pony but Cherry and the Rock cousins groaned when they realized they would have to take the stairs. A collective sigh of relief filled the guest room when the bags were finally dropped.
"I hope," Pinkie heaved, "you're all…comfortable…here…your beds…are made…up."
The colts looked around the room.
"It's gray, just how you Rock Pies like it!"
"It's fine," Iggy said bluntly.
"Do you have any refreshments?" Seddie asked.
"Of course!" Cheese chirped. "We have some milk and cookies downstairs! Girls, why don't you help your cousins settle in while your mother and I get the cookies?"
"Can we take the elevator this time?" Pinkie asked with a moan.
"We have an elevator?" Raspberry questioned, cocking her head.
The adults didn't answer as they left the children alone. The boys spread out and silently chose their beds on which they began unloading their saddlebags. Blueberry watched as Seddie took out a thick book.
"Ooh, what you got there?" she said, coming up to the bed so she could read the title. "The Encyclopedia of Rocks."
"I hope to become a rock scientist like Aunt Maud," Seddie said as he brought out a microscope.
Blueberry's jaw dropped. "You have a microscope?!"
"It's for analyzing rock samples, to determine what type of rock they are."
"There's more than one type of rock?"
"Of course. There are three classifications of rock: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic. That's how we got our names. In the igneous family there are andesite rocks, felsite rocks, peridotite rocks…"
Over at Iggy's bed, Cherry was peering over her cousin's shoulder as he dumped several rocks wrapped in plastic out of his bag.
"Wow, that's a lot of rocks!"
"They're part of my collection," he droned. "They don't like it when I'm gone for too long, so I had to take them with me."
She lifted one curiously. "What's with all the plastic?"
"It's to protect them. I don't want them to be scratched or chipped."
Meanwhile, Raspberry was looking at a box Metty had unpacked.
"A rock polishing kit?" she said. "You polish rocks?"
Metty nodded, but didn't look at her. Raspberry gasped when she saw a puzzle book.
"Oh, goodie! You remembered! Hey, maybe now that we're older and know more words, we can finish that crossword we started!"
He shrugged as he continued unpacking. Raspberry frowned.
"You're not much of a talker, are you?" No response. "Were you always this quiet? Then again, you were only four last time. I just assumed you were slow to learn." He glanced at her briefly, but still said nothing. "Little shy, huh? That's okay. My boyfriend's a little shy too. I kind of do most of the talking for him. I could do most of the talking for you if you like."
"…obsidian rocks, basalt rocks and volcanic tuff."
Blueberry snorted as she blinked her eyes open. "That's…amazing how you're able to remember…all those rocks."
"Now for the sedimentary rocks."
Blueberry groaned as she flopped her face onto the bed.
"Do you have anything besides rocks in there?" Cherry said as she stared at the large pile on Iggy's bed.
"I got a brush," Iggy said.
"For your mane? Your teeth?"
"For my rocks."
Cherry gritted her teeth together as she tugged on her mane to stop herself from screaming.
"Is there anything else you like to do besides polish rocks?" Raspberry asked Metty.
He held up a book titled Poetry.
"Ah, right!" She smiled brightly. "Poetry! I used to read that to you all the time! What is that? Shakespony? Edgar Allan Pony? Lewis Carrot?"
He moved his hoof to uncover the rest of the title: Rock Poetry. Raspberry's face fell.
"Oh. More rocks. Guess you boys really live up to your name, huh?" He was silent as he put his book down. "Not to be rude, but are you mute or something?"
"Who wants cookies?!" Pinkie hollered as she came into the room with a steaming pile of chocolate chip.
"And milk?" Cheese called as he brought in a tray holding six glasses of milk.
"I do, I do, I do!" the Tri-Pies cheered.
The Rock cousins walked silently towards their aunt and uncle and casually took a cookie and glass each. The Tri-Pies watched as the colts bit into their cookies in perfect synchronization, chewed slowly, swallowed, simultaneously sipped their milks, swallowed and bit into their cookies, starting the whole thing all over again.
"What do you think, boys?" Pinkie asked cheerfully.
"Crunchy," said Iggy and Seddie.
Metty merely nodded in approval. The Tri-Pies glanced unceasingly at each other.
"When you're all finished with your snack," Cheese said, "perhaps you girls can show the boys the clubhouse, introduce them to your friends."
The triplets spat out their milk. "What?!"
"Yeah, I'm sure Prism, Gemstone and Lemon Drop would love to meet your cousins!" Pinkie piped.
"We always look forward to meeting new ponies," Iggy said, keeping his deadpan expression.
"Maybe we like the same kinds of rocks," Seddie droned.
Metty nodded silently.
"Um…Mom, Dad?" Blueberry whispered. "Can we talk to you for a moment?"
"Sure!" their parents said.
They smiled down at their daughters.
"Alone?" the Tri-Pies said.
"Oh, of course!" Pinkie said, turning to the boys. "We'll be right back."
They filed out of the room and shut the door.
"Do we have to show them to our friends?" Blueberry whined.
"Can't they just stay here all weekend?" Raspberry begged.
Their parents scrunched their muzzles.
"What's wrong?" Pinkie inquired. "Don't you want your cousins to become friends with your friends?"
"It'd be nice," Blueberry said, rubbing her foreleg. "It's just that…"
"We don't think…" Raspberry said, rubbing the back of her neck. "You see…the boys are kind of…"
"Boring," Cherry stated.
"Boring?" Cheese snorted. "How can you say that? They're your cousins! You used to have fun all the time when you were foals!"
"Yeah, used to," said Blueberry. "But Seddie talks about nothing but rocks!"
"Iggy's got a whole rock farm in his bag!" Cherry exclaimed.
"Metty says nothing at all," Raspberry huffed.
"And they haven't smiled once since they got here! Are they physically incapable of happiness?!"
"We can't show them to our friends!" Blueberry exclaimed. "They'll be bored to death!"
"Now girls," Pinkie said, kneeling down to them. "Just because you and your cousins have different interests, doesn't mean they're boring. You all managed to find common ground with them as foals, maybe you just need time to find that common ground again."
"And who knows?" Cheese said. "They just might find common ground with your friends. After all, none of them have cutie marks. Shouldn't that be a start?"
"They're your cousins, girls. You don't get to see them very often. Why not just give them a chance?"
The Tri-Pies glanced at each other and sighed.
"Okay, Mom and Dad," said Blueberry.
"We'll give them a chance," said Raspberry.
"Even if they are boring," Cherry murmured.
"That's the spirit!" Pinkie cheered.
"Eh," Cheese said with a shrug. "Close enough."
Since Gemstone had to go home for a piano lesson, only Prism and Lemon Drop were at the clubhouse when the Tri-Pies returned with their cousins. The minute Seddie heard Prism's name, he started scrutinizing her from all angles, even touched her feathers, much to her discomfort.
"Uh, what are you doing?" she finally asked.
"Your name is Prism," he replied as he circled her. "I am merely curious to see if light refracts into a rainbow when it passes through you, but since you don't appear to be transparent, I can only assume you are named for your multicolored mane and tail."
Prism looked at Blueberry. "Is he always like this?"
She sighed. "It would seem."
On the floor, Metty was polishing some of Iggy's rocks with his kit.
"So…" Raspberry said, shifting in the uncomfortable silence. "You just…dip the brush in the polish there and…brush it on the rocks?"
He said nothing as he continued brushing.
"Just regular old…polish? No colors or anything? Have you considered…painting them?"
He looked up at her, his eyes wide in horror, as if she had just committed blasphemy.
"Okay, okay! No paint! Geez!" She dropped her head into her hooves. "You could at least make conversation."
In the corner, Lemon Drop was showing Iggy his scrapbook of stamps.
"I have a collection too," the unicorn said, pointing to an open page. "See? I got a whole page full of rock stamps!"
"What kind of rocks?" Iggy inquired.
"Uh…I don't know. Gray ones?"
"Let me see," Seddie said, peering over Lemon Drop's shoulder. "Hmm. I can only assume this light gray scribble is supposed to be limestone. My mother would be ashamed. This obsidian here is a better representation of its intended subject. And this boulder here actually stands on our family farm."
"Really?" Lemon Drop asked in wonder.
"It's called Holder's Boulder. It's my mother's prized rock."
"I've got some obsidian and limestone here," Iggy said, showing a black rock and a light gray rock. "I find 'em, Seddie classifies 'em, Metty polishes 'em."
"It's smart that you wrap 'em in plastic," Lemon Drop said.
"And I appreciate how you keep plastic coverings on your pages so they don't get torn or wet."
The unicorn turned to his marefriend. "I like your cousins, Razz!"
Raspberry rolled her eyes. "That makes one of us."
"I can't take it anymore!" Cherry screamed, springing up from the floor. "Let's do something fun! Something that's not related to rocks!"
"We could go for a walk," Iggy suggested. "Like we did when we were foals, Cherry."
"A walk," she heaved. "Sure. Whatever. Just as long as…"
"We could look for new rocks for my collection."
The red filly pounded her head against the wall.
"Well, I'm up for getting out of this clubhouse," Prism said. "Why don't we go down to Sugar Cube Corner for some shakes? Do you boys like shakes?"
"Do they have tapioca flavored?" Seddie asked.
Cherry began bawling.
"You guys like tapioca?" Lemon Drop inquired. "Sweet!"
"Divorce him," Blueberry muttered to Raspberry.
The magenta filly pushed her sister away. "Okay, every pony, on to Sugar Cube Corner."
She led her cousins outside, but when they got onto the balcony, they stopped in their tracks. When Raspberry noticed they weren't following her, she looked behind her to see that their jaws had dropped.
"Hey, you guys coming or what?"
"Who's…" Seddie said.
"…that?" Iggy heaved.
Raspberry followed their gaze. Gemstone was coming up the hill.
"Oh, that's our friend Gemstone."
"Gem…" Seddie breathed.
"…stone?" said Iggy.
"Uh-huh," Raspberry said, cocking her head in confusion. "She's coming back from her piano lesson."
The boys ogled at the white unicorn as she approached the treehouse.
"What going on out here?" Blueberry asked as she and Cherry came out onto the deck.
"I don't know," Raspberry said. "We were headed down the stairs and they just…shutdown."
"Hello!" Cherry said, conking their heads. "Any pony home?!"
"Her eyes are like cornflower corundum," Seddie said in awe.
"Huh?" the Tri-Pies said.
"Her mane," Iggy heaved, "possesses the luster of lapis lazuli."
"Her coat has the smooth complexion of a margaritifera."
"Her horn has the conical characteristics of a stalagmite."
"She's…"
Raspberry stiffened as she heard a third voice and looked at Metty.
"She's…" he murmured through the tiny opening between his lips. "She's…"
"Pulchritudinous," all three of them said in a collective sigh.
"Polka-tooty-what-inous?" Cherry questioned.
"It's another word for 'beautiful,'" Blueberry whispered.
"Oh." She gasped. "Wait, does that mean…?"
When they looked back, their cousins had gone. Somehow, they had teleported to the ground while trotting at an extremely slow pace. They met Gemstone at the bottom of the steps.
"Oh, hello," she greeted them politely. "You must be the Tri-Pies' cousins. I'm Gemstone, their friend."
"We know," Iggy said as his eyelids drooped further.
"Our cousins told us all about you," Seddie said as he sluggishly raised his hoof.
The Tri-Pies gawked at their cousins' behavior.
"Are they…smiling?!" Cherry exclaimed.
It was true. The corners of their mouths had turned up just enough to make small, but obvious smiles.
"Sedimentary Rock Pie," Seddie said as he shook Gemstone's hoof. "So nice to meet you, Gemstone."
"And I'm Igneous Rock Pie II," Iggy said as he giddily took her hoof. "And this little one here is…"
"Metamorphic Rock Pie!" Metty piped as he eagerly shook her hoof at a pace which surprised the Tri-Pies. "Call me Metty! Or Morphie! Both are good!"
"Well!" Gemstone exclaimed, pulling her hoof away. "It's so nice to meet all of you!"
"Our cousins were taking us to this place called Sugar Cube Corner," Seddie said.
"Would you like to come with us, Miss Stone?" Iggy inquired.
"Oh, of course!" Gemstone said cheerfully. "I'd love to accompany you. Oh, and you can just call me Gemstone, or Gem."
"Gem," the three colts sighed dreamily.
"Come on. Town is this way."
The Tri-Pies, Prism and Lemon Drop watched in shock and amazement as the Rock Pies followed Gemstone. The three of them almost seemed to be bouncing.
"Well!" Blueberry said, folding her hooves in satisfaction. "That gets them out of our manes for a bit!"
Raspberry giggled. "Who would've thought the boys had it in them, eh?"
Cherry huffed. "They don't stand a chance with her."
"Uh, guys?" Lemon Drop said. "Don't you see the problem here?"
The Tri-Pies turned to their friends.
"What?" Blueberry asked.
"Seriously?" said Prism. "Even I can see the danger in this."
Raspberry shrugged. "So our cousins have a little crush on Gemstone, big deal."
"It's not like it'll last," Cherry snorted.
"That's the problem," Lemon Drop said.
"All three," Prism said, rotating her hoof for emphasis, "of your cousins have a crush on one Gemstone."
The Tri-Pies glanced at each other. Their expressions turned into ones of horror as it finally sank in.
"Uh-oh," they said in unison.
That evening, the Rock Pies invited Gemstone over for dinner, which Pinkie and Cheese didn't object to, because they loved having guests. Metty rushed to pull out a chair for Gemstone while Iggy and Seddie took their seats on either side of her. Neither of the boys even touched the rock soup Pinkie had made especially for them because they were too busy staring at the pretty unicorn. Blueberry and Raspberry watched them warily while Cherry chomped furiously on her rock.
"Gemstone?" Iggy said dreamily. "I got you something."
He held up a blue stone with rough edges.
"Oh, it's lovely!" Gemstone exclaimed. "What is it?"
"Lapis lazuli?" Seddie snorted. "How common! You should've gotten her a real rock! Behold!" He produced an uncut pink gem. "An alexandrite! One of the rarest stones in the world! It changes color!"
Iggy gawked. "Where did you get that?"
"You're not the only one with a collection, cousin."
Gemstone looked down when she felt something touch her side. Metty was holding up a piece of paper, looking shyly at the floor. She took it and frowned at the words.
"Um…I'm dyslexic, so could…?"
"I'll read it!" Iggy volunteered, snatching the paper. "It's a…poem?"
Metty traced circles on the floor with his hoof.
"Gemstone,
Your eyes have the rarity
Of cornflower corundum…"
"Hey!" Seddie shouted, slamming his hooves on the table. "That's what I said!" He picked up Metty by the mane. "You stole my line!"
"Leave my brother alone!" Iggy said, poking his cousin in the chest.
"He's a plagiarizer!"
"Now, now, boys," Pinkie said. "I'm sure Metty only used that line because he appreciated its…"
"He's using my words to flatter Gemstone! I was going to tell her that!"
"Better than an alexandrite," Iggy huffed. "My gift has a poetic meaning all its own. It possesses the luster of Gemstone's lovely mane."
"But my gift has larger monetary value!"
"You put little thought into it!"
"You think you're better than me?!"
Iggy pretended to roll up his sleeves. "Oh, just try it, coz!"
"Bring it on!" Seddie held up his hooves. "You know my legs are stronger!"
Metty started kicking both their chairs.
"Hey, no wrestling at the table!" Cheese shouted.
"Well, I'm taller!" said Iggy.
"I'm smarter!" said Seddie.
"I'm…"
"CUT IT OUT!"
Every pony turned to Cherry as she slammed her hooves firmly onto the table.
"Listen," Cherry looked between the three boys. "You all like Gemstone. Who wouldn't? She's gorgeous. But you can't tear each other apart over that! You're cousins! You can't let a girl come between you!"
"Is that what this is all about?" Gemstone said. "Thank you, Cherry. I can handle this." She faced the Rock Pies. "Boys, I am truly flattered that you fancy me, but I'm afraid I cannot return either of your affections."
"W-Why not?" Iggy croaked.
"Is it our manes?" Seddie asked. "We can cut them!"
"No," Gemstone said, chuckling slightly. "You see, my father won't allow me to have a coltfriend until I'm fourteen, so even if I liked any of you, I cannot go out with you." She patted their heads. "But you're all wonderful boys. I'm sure you'll make any filly happy one day."
Out of curiosity, Raspberry reached over for the poem and read it over.
"Hey, this is pretty good," she told Metty. "Though your technique could use a little work. If you want, I can give you some pointers."
The smallest colt smiled.
"Can that rock really change color?" Blueberry asked as she eyed the alexandrite.
"Oh, yes," Seddie said proudly. "If you hold it up in the daylight, it will turn green. I can show you after dinner."
"I thought you just collected regular old rocks," Cherry said to Iggy. "Where do you find gems?"
"We have this whole cavern full of them on the rock farm," he explained. "I found this one while Metty and I were playing hide-and-seek and…"
Pinkie and Cheese smiled as the young Pies started talking to each other and they both let out a sigh of relief.
"It's inevitable," Pinkie said, putting her hoof around her husband. "Rocks and Pies mix well together."
After dinner, Gemstone went home and the foals reconvened in the Rock Pies' room. Raspberry and Metty were doing a crossword.
"What is a six-lettered word for a cucumber soaked in brine?" Raspberry asked.
Metty wrote the answer in the boxes.
"That's right, 'pickle!' And what words rhyme with pickle?"
He moved his pencil to the notebook beside the puzzle book and scribbled the words.
"Fickle, tickle, sickle… Good job! You'll be a rhymer in no time! Now what words can you alliterate with 'pickle?'"
Iggy was showing some of the rarest rocks in his collection to Cherry.
"I found this smoky quartz in our basement. It was hiding behind a box of Hearth's Warming decorations."
"Cool!" Cherry said, ogling at the clear black gem. "We once found an alligator in our attic!"
"An alligator?"
"Yeah, apparently Mom's had him since before we were born. He got too big for her room, so she built a habitat for him up there!"
Blueberry was looking through Seddie's microscope.
"This is amazing!" she said. "They're like little crystals!"
"You can tell it's an igneous rock because of its crystalline structure," Seddie explained. "That's because igneous rocks are formed by cooling magma inside or on the world's surface."
"Well, everyone," Blueberry said, addressing the room. "I think we've all learned a very important lesson today!"
"Never fall in love with the same pony as your cousins?" Cherry grunted.
"First impressions are always wrong?" Raspberry asked.
Blueberry shook her head. "Rocks are cool!"
"Yeah!" her sisters cheered.
"Yeah," the boys said monotonously.