A Boozer's Dozen

It was a typical sunny summer morning in Ponyville. The birds sang sweetly in the trees as an excited, purple earth mare trotted eagerly up the dirt road. She wore a wide grin on her face. Following behind the earth mare, a light blue unicorn trotted along while wearing her own sly grin.

The duo was none other than Ponyville's own Berry Punch and Colgate. Berry was a bit too caught up in her own little world to notice the obviously suspicious look her friend was giving her as they walked up to their destination.

Berry gave an excited laugh to herself, ecstatic as a filly at an amusement park. "Thanks so much for inviting me out to get a drink, Cole. And for offering to pick up the tab!" she stated in a mixture of joy and gratitude. Despite how unlikely these events sounded, Berry only cared about getting free booze with her friend. "I haven't even had breakfast yet. But like I always say, it's five o'clock somewhere."

Colgate caught up from behind, giving herself an imaginary pat on the back, even if her plan was simple. "No problem, Berry," she replied casually, "I figure we really don't do stuff like this enough."

"I'll say. You're usually too much of a health nut to do anything like this," the purple mare continued obliviously, keeping her eyes forward the whole time.

Colgate gave a half-hearted laugh at her comment, deciding to keep playing along rather than get angry. "Well, guess I just decided to loosen up a bit." She shot her friend a cheery grin to add to her ruse.

The two friends continued their trot through town as Berry was all too eager to lead them to her favorite bar, Buck's Shots. Colgate, however, had a different idea in mind.

She stopped along a new pathway and pointed down it. "Hey Berry, how about we head down this way. I think it's faster."

Berry herself stopped and turned around to her friend. "Colgate, please. You're speaking with a veteran here," she stated proudly, placing a hoof on her chest, "I know the quickest way to EVERY bar in town. Especially Buck's."

Colgate kicked herself in her head for not thinking of that. She'd need to think fast to convince her. "But..." she paused briefly before getting an idea, "I work on this road and know a secret trick to cut down on time."

Berry stopped and thought this over for a moment. "A secret shortcut to a bar I don't know and you do?"

"Just come on. Trust me." Colgate grabbed her by the hoof before she could further protest. If there truly was an unknown shortcut in town, Berry wasn't going to think twice about discovering it.

The blue mare led her friend closely behind her as she continued down their new path. After passing by a few buildings, Colgate lead Berry down an alleyway she knew would take them to her desired destination.

Berry gave her a skeptical look. "This is it? Just passing through an alley?" she asked, avoiding the various stains and better-left-unknown messes left behind.

"Well, have YOU been down this way before?" Colgate retorted in defense.

"No, because the local bums use this way as a toilet." She plugged her nose with a hoof.

Colgate plugged her own nose from the rotten stench. Even if it wasn't the cleanest way to get this done, she told herself it would all be worth it. They managed to make it without getting their hooves filthy and made it to Colgate's true goal.

Upon exiting the dank passage, Colgate walked her friend up to a wide, multi-roomed building used to house many of Ponyville's many community activities.

Berry raised a curious brow at her. "Ponyville Community Center? Why did you bring me here? What's all this about?" She raised her voice slightly with each new question.

Colgate grinned smugly as she motioned her hoof to a sign with the center's latest news bulletins. Berry looked over and read the sign.

"You wanna make macaroni art in Arts n' Crafts?" she questioned.

Colgate facehoofed and gave an annoyed look. "The next line."

She looked back and continued reading. "Alcoholics Anonymous session beginning today at 10 AM..." As she read that, her eyes widened and she turned back to Colgate nervously.

"Yep, I decided to sign you up for the day." she explained, still grinning.

"Why?!" the purple mare asked in panic, as she grabbed Colgate by the shoulders, "What in Equestria did I do to deserve this?!"

Colgate removed her hooves and gave her a stern expression. "Do you remember last Friday night?"

"Um... no?" Berry admitted, confused by the sudden question.

"Well, I do..."

Last Friday at roughly eleven o'clock at night, Colgate was lying in her bedroom when she heard a knock at the door. Putting on her dark blue night robe, she begrudgingly went to answer the knock.

"Yeah, I'm coming." she said drowsily, before opening the door.

As the door slowly opened, a very tipsy Berry Punch with a bottle of booze in her hoof burst in. "Finally *hic* home!" she shouted uproaringly. She could barely walk and had a blush on her face from drinking.

"Berry?!" Colgate shouted in shock, "This isn't your house!"

"Don't be ridiculous, talking pony," she replied tipsily, as she headed to the kitchen, "I'm *hic* starved." She opened the fridge and managed to grab some eggs out. She then grabbed a pan from the cupboards, knocking down all of Colgate's utensils.

Colgate ran in after her, noticing the falling pots and catching them with her magic just before making contact on Berry's skull.

"Berry, stop! You'll break something!" she pleaded, "Oh, or hurt yourself."

Berry waved a dismissive hoof at her. "I am a *hic* professional." She grabbed some eggs out and cracked them open, getting more yolk on the counter and floor than the pan. She turned on the stove to begin frying the gooey substance, as she went to drink from her bottle beside her. She accidentally spilled the bottle and the alcohol flew towards the fire, causing it roar up in a blaze.

"Oopsie *hic* doodles." Berry said with a giggle. Before the fire could cause much damage, the in-house sprinkler system felt the smoke and turned on, dousing the flames and drenching the kitchen.

With the water now on, Berry looked around the house and laughed at her foolishness. "Sprinklers? This *hic* isn't my *hic* house." She laughed further as she stumbled out. "Good night, magical horse!" she shouted to Colgate before closing the door to leave.

The unicorn had just been standing with her mouth agape this whole time. As Berry left, she grit her teeth angrily. "Berry..."

As Colgate finished recounting the night's events. As the realization began hitting her, she threw herself at Colgate's hooves. "Cole, I'm so so sorry. I'll do anything to make it up to you... Except attend this."

Colgate didn't say a word, just gave her a look of bemusement. For quite a while she had been growing more and more annoyed by Berry's alcoholic antics, and after last Friday, she wasn't going to budge on this.

Seeing this herself, Berry gave an innocent smile before jumping up to her hooves and attempting to bolt. Colgate caught her by the tail with her magic, causing the earth pony to claw at the ground desperately.

"Pleeaaase, Cole! I'm sorry!" she yelled pleadingly.

"Sorry, Berry. But enough is enough," she replied sternly, "Everypony in town has disregarded your problem for long enough."

"It's not a problem!" she denied, "Besides, I hear Ruby calling me!"

"Your daughter will be fine. I'll watch her while you're here."

Berry turned her head to face her, scrunching her muzzle in confusion. "What? No, not Pinchy. My flask with the gem on it."

Colgate gave another facehoof, now forcing Berry to stand back up. "Listen, the session only lasts for one hour. Just go for the day and I promise that if you don't like it, we'll really go on that bar date."

"And I can get as hammered as I want?" Berry asked, raising a skeptical brow.

She sighed in defeat. "Yes. But I really hope you get something from this. All that booze is killing your teeth."

Berry rolled her eyes at her friend. "It always come back to teeth with you, doesn't it? Maybe you should be the one getting help."

"Shut up," Colgate said irritably, "Just head in. I'll watch Ruby for you. And don't you dare run away either."

"Alright, Mom," the earth mare said sarcastically before the two parted ways. Even if they were a bit upset with one another, they couldn't leave without a quick brohoof.

Berry stepped inside the center and noticed a sign at the entrance of the right hallway saying "Welcome all future dry-spouts." She shook her head and couldn't believe she was about to do this. She walked to the end of the hall and found a room with a circle of chairs in the center. There were cookies and punch by the door.

Noticing she was the first to arrive, Berry shrugged and grabbed a cookie to munch on. It was quite good and tasted homemade.

"Excuse me," said a pony from behind her, "It's not polite to eat before everyone has arrived." She chuckled.

"Oh, sorry," Berry said, crumbs flying from her mouth. She swallowed and tutrned around, recognizing the pony, "Nurse Redheart? You're an alcoholic?"

The white mare chuckled passively. She looked more casual than she normally did, not wearing her nurse's cap. "Heavens no, dear. I've never touched the stuff," she explained, "I'm the group leader, though."

"But I thought you were just a medical nurse."

"As a nurse, I've studied up on the effects of alcohol, as well as dabbled in on the psychology of the patients," She trotted over and patted Berry on the back, "I'm so proud that you've decided to sober up."

"I'm only here because a friend tricked me." she explained, growling slightly.

"Well, whatever gets the job done, I suppose." She chuckled.

Before they could continue, the room was met with more ponies, some of whom Berry was well acquainted with. One was a white unicorn with an electric blue mane, whom Berry identified as her friend, Vinyl. The other was a large, red stallion who looked very stoic. Lastly was a unicorn mare with a luxurious purple tail, looking a bit ashamed for attending. She wore a comically large, pink hat and a pair of matching sunglasses.

Vinyl approached Berry with a grin, giving her a brohoof in greeting. "Hey, BP. What's the spill?" she asked crudely. Berry and Vinyl had partied together numerous times when the purple mare visited her dance club.

"Not much, Vi. I got dragged here by Cole. Literally." she explained, still annoyed by that. She was gonna enjoy rubbing it in Colgate's face when this was over.

"Ah, bummer. But I knew you'd never come here on your own time," she chuckled, "I was told to come by my manager. Got in a bit of trouble partying a bit too hard and he said doing this could help lose some heat from the press."

"Alright, everypony," Redheart announced, "We will be starting soon, so help yourself to the punch and cookies while you can."

"Don't mind if I do," said another new voice, which started making chewing sounds from the treats.

Redheart looked and her jaw nearly hit the floor as she saw who it was. "Mayor Mare? What are you doing here?"

She swallowed before speaking. "I decided to make a surprise visit on our first meeting. I need to make sure these sessions will be worth the space. The Salsa Club was very eager to get a studio, but I went with this." She gave an uneasy chuckle at the end.

"Oooh, salsa? I love spicy food!" Vinyl cheered. Every other pony looked at her blankly, "What?"

"Moving on..." Redheart said dismissively, turning to the Mayor, "I can assure you, Mayor, that this will be well worth i-"

Before she could finish, the Mayor threw herself at her hooves. "Please help me!" she begged, "I have a problem!"

"Woah woah, calm down, Mayor," she comforted, picking her off the floor, "Just have a seat over in the circle and we'll begin."

There was a crash outside the door as a grey pony rushed in, bumping her head into the wall. "Ow!" she shouted in pain, "Wait, don't start without me!"

Redheart examined the pony and put a hoof to her muzzle. "Oh dear, this is a bad one. She's already drunk."

"Drunk? My eyes are always like this." the ditzy pony explained.

"Then I can only imagine when you do drink."

"I don't drink at all, silly." She giggled.

"Then why are you here?" Redheart asked, quizzically.

The pegasus' expression dropped in confusion. "Isn't this Arts n' Crafts?"

"No... it isn't." The nurse deadpanned.

"Oops, sorry! I'm gonna make a macaroni muffin!" she said absent-mindedly, grabbing a cookie before leaving.

Redheart shook her head dismissively and motioned for everypony to sit. With the clock striking ten and everypony now having arrived, it was time to begin.

"Good morning, everypony," she said, pleasantly, "Welcome to Alcoholics Anonymous. You can all call me Redheart."

Berry was already shaking her head at this. She knew this was never going to work on her. Nothing had come close to steering her away from beer before, so she had zero faith that this would. She was gonna need a drink after this.

"I'd like to start off with everypony introducing themselves and sharing how they first got into drinking," Redheart instructed, motioning to the lone stallion in the room, "Would you care to go first?"

The stallion looked around the room of mares and shrugged. "Eeyup," he answered before standing, "Y'all can call me Big Macintosh. Y'all may know me from Sweet Apple Acres. Well, every cider season... we may run out of supply sooner than we should. I love the stuff, and I'm a pretty big guy-"

"In more ways than one." Vinyl said slyly, nudging Berry. Berry rolled her eyes at the lewd comment. Redheart shushed her, as it wasn't her turn.

Big Mac simply ignored her and continued. "And we only make cider once a year, so I... keep a few barrels to hoard during the long year." He looked down shamefully.

"Thank you, Mac. And don't worry, you're among friends here." Redheart assured him, as he sat down.

"Some of us may want to be a bit more." Vinyl teased, moving her glasses down to give him a wink. Big Mac blushed a slight pink, causing him to turn his head.

"If you insist on talking, maybe you would like to go next." Redheart said to her in annoyance.

"I thought you'd never ask," she replied, jumping up from her chair, "You're in the presence of the one and only Vinyl Scratch. As the owner of the most bumping club in town, partying is my game. And you can't have a party without the hard stuff. There was this one time I got wasted and fell off the stage in a mosh pit attempt. It was sick!" She nonchalantly sat back down as she finished.

Redheart simply gave her a quizzical look at her. "Um, okay. Who wants to go next?" she asked in an attempt to move things along.

Wanting to get it off her chest as soon as possible, the glamorous pony removed her head gear to reveal her gorgeous mane. "Good day to you all. You may call me Rarity," she greeted, "I would never degrade myself to drinking bottles of cheap beer - not in a million years. But after my uncle's wedding last year, I simply can't get enough of champagne and white wine." She was looking up in the air with a wide grin, getting more excited at the thought. She noticed the others looking at her and controlled herself before retaking her seat.

"Thank you, Rarity." Redheart said warmly.

Before it was even asked, the Mayor stood up. "I suppose I'm next," she said, looking ashamed, "You all know me as your mayor, which only makes this more embarrassing. I haven't drank since I was a young mare waving around my freedom. The stress of a job like mine makes ponies weak to temptation. I was at a gathering of Equestrian city representatives and Manehattan's Mayor brought in some gin. Oh Celestia, that was quite the night." She smiled to herself as she reminisced. She shook it off and went back to her serious tone, "Nevertheless, I wish us all luck here." She sat back down as she finished.

"Thank you, Mayor. That only leaves you, dear." Redheart said, turning to Berry.

"Huh, what?" she said drearily, having fallen asleep, "Oh, right," She got to her hooves as the others listened. They were all curious to find out more about the town drunk and her inner workings, "Well, I just like drinking. I don't do it to escape the world, not because of some family issues, and not because I'm an addict. It's just fun." She then sat down.

It was actually quite a disappoint from the others, as they gave her blank looks. Having now finished all the introductions, Redheart stood up and left the circle.

"Well, don't you worry, ponies," she told them, pointing to a chart posted on the wall, "We have a twelve step program created to help those in need."

The chart read as followed:

1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol - that our lives have become unmanageable...

And Berry stopped reading right after that. This sounded incredibly preachy and unrealistic. Even from the standpoint of the pony that once thought drinking more would help a hangover.

While Redheart was reading off the chart, Rarity was feeling a bit of an "itch." Due to the size of her hat, she was able to hide a wine bottle inside... along with several other bottles, a martini glass, and a shaker. She poured in the different drinks into the shaker and mixed them well. Once done, she poured it into the glass, put in a little umbrelaa, and dropped an olive in.

"...And with a little bit of self-control and perseverance, I have no doubt you all can be cured," Redheart finished, before turning around. She gave a gasp as she saw Rarity, glaring at her like an angry mother and taking the all of her alcoholic equipment away, "I'll just hold onto these until after our session."

Rarity looked down in sadness, as the Mayor leaned in by her. "I hope you were planning to share that, miss Element of Generosity," she whispered.

Redheart sighed in exasperation before setting the bottle down at a table. "Alright, quiet down now, everypony," she instructed, picking up a CD and going to a radio she had set up, "We're going to try an exercise."

"Oh, but I hate exercise." Vinyl said lazily, slumping to the ground.

"It's just an expression Ms. Scratch. We're going to listen to an audio tape from a motivational speaker named Ben Stable."

"Oh, I've listened to audio books while sleeping," Rarity spoke up, "They really do get inside your head."

Redheart gave a nod and inserted the disc. A bit of calming music came on as she rejoined the group. "Now, everypony close your eyes and follow along."

The group shut their lids as the voice came on. "Hello, I'm Ben Stable," the tape greeted in a very monotone voice, "And I'm here to help motivate you in *insert goal here*."

As the tape played, Berry only imagined getting back at Colgate by forcing her to drink with her once this was all over.

"You are the master of your own destiny," the tape said, lacking any real emotion, "Don't let yourself become a victim to the dic-dic-dic-dic-dic."

As immature as it was, the ponies began snickering at the awkward placement of the skip.

Redheart blushed in embarrassment. "Oh, the tape's skipping." she said, irritably.

"Don't worry, I got it." Vinyl offered, getting up from her seat. She went up to the radio, but rather than fix the skip, she pulled out a CD of her own. She exchanged the discs and set volume to max, before hitting play.

Everypony jumped from their seats and snapped awake as their ears were assaulted by massive wubs. Vinyl stood by the radio, headbanging.

"Vinyl, what the hay are you doing?!" Redheart shouted, hooves cupping her ears.

"I thought we could use something to bring up the mood! That tape was rotting my brain!"

Redheart trotted over irritably and shut the music off. "Forget the tape!" she shouted, covering her mouth in embarrassment. She composed herself before speaking again, "I mean, forget the tape. I have one last exercise for us to try outside."

She motioned for the group to follow outside of the activities center to the back of the building, where a wagon, some weights, and an obstacle course were all set up.. As they exited, the group all gave skeptical looks.

Redheart walked out in front of them to begin explaining. "So, this will be our last activity of the day. Many experts believe exercise is a way to help distract an addict from their obsession."

"But you said "exercise" was just an expression!" Vinyl shouted in protest.

"For that last one, yes. Here it is quite literal," the earth mare retorted. "So, I have set up several different exercises to help get across my point."

Rarity raised a hoof up to speak. "Excuse me, but I really don't do physical labor. I can't risk ruining my coat. Besides, I thought lunch was being provided"

"Well, just look at the finish line," Redheart said, slyly. At the end was a freshly made submarine sandwich, looking mouther-wateringly good, "Gotta work up that appetite."

Rarity's eyes widened in excitement. Her stomach grumbled, causing her to bite her lip eagerly. "Mine!" she shouted, taking off like a rocket.

The first test was a bunch of tires, which Rarity trotted through with ease thanks to all that time she spent threading the needle. Next test involved crawling on one's belly through a tunnel, making Rarity cringe at the feeling of dirt on her underside. Once out, she was faced with climbing over a wall. She jumped and got a grip over the wall, but was unable to climb over. She lost her grip and fell off, landing on her back.

"Peh, amateur," Vinyl said smugly, using her magic to bring over the sandwich from across the field. She bit into it, but spit it out in disgust, "I hate mayo!"

"Glad to see my cooking to go appreciated," Redheart said, shaking her head in disappointment. She motioned over to see Big Mac lifting a barbell constructed from full barrels.

"See? This is what an addiction gets you. You wind up tired, but always force yourself to go further." she stated as he lifted.

"Or you can always do this." the Mayor said, cracking open a barrel at the nozzle. She put her mouth down and guzzled down what happened to be milk. She swallowed with a disappointed look, "I was hoping for cider."

The nurse turned away and looked at her. "Look like you're all that's left, Berry. Why don't you hook up to that wagon?"

The mare groaned in anguish, but complied. Once Berry hitched in, Redheart sat in the wagon. "What's going to make me want to walk?" the purple mare questioned.

"This." the nurse said, getting out a delicious looking cinammon bun hung by a fishing rod. The bun dangled in front of Berry's eyes, mesmerizing her. She began pulling the wagon with her tongue hanging out.

"This whole exercise is meant to represent an addiction. An addiction keeps you going and messes with your head, like so," Redheart explained, "You think you're doing it because you want to, but that's because the addiction's taken over your thoughts."

"I'll say!" Berry shouted, excitedly. She couldn't take it anymore and began running so fast, Rainbow Dash would be impressed.

Redheart screamed in terror as Berry began running circles around the other ponies. "Berry, please stop!" she screamed, horrificly.

Berrry came upon the wall from earlier and jumped up, grabbing the bun in her mouth. Due to the angle, Redheart fell off and into the mud below.

The nurse rubbed her head irritably as she stood up, looking at Berry happily munch to her heart's content. "You all just hang out here for a minute. I need some time alone," she instructed, before heading back inside.

Rarity smirked, looking towards Vinyl. "Well, Berry isn't the only one who's gone off the wagon."

Redheart groaned to herself, as she entered the room. "Confound these ponies. They'll drive me to drink," she said. She looked over at the confiscated drink from Rarity and picked it up, "What is it about this stuff that they enjoy so much, anyway?"

She sniffed at it and shrugged, before she curiously took a sip, causing her to grow a small grin of satisfaction. She began drinking more, growing into a chug.

Now finishing their exercises, the remaining ponies rejoined inside. Some were dirty, some glad they got a drink, and some wishing to go home. As they entered, they all let out a gasp at what they saw.

A dizzy and flushed Redheart turned to them, giving a goofy grin. "Oh, hey there, *hic* gang," she stammered, "I see why y'all *hic* love this stuff." She pressed her face to the bottle and stroked it lovingly.

"I knew this was all horse apples!" Vinyl shouted angrily, stomping out of the center.

"I should've taken the Salsa Club's offer." the Mayor added, following her out.

Rarity glared at Redheart. "You owe me a new drink." she said demandingly, turning her nose in the air and leaving.

Big Mac just stood there, glancing down at Berry. "Eeyup." he said, leaving without another word.

Berry simply gave the nurse a blank look, but then erupted into applause for herself. "Yes! I can't wait to see the look on Cole's face!" she said gleefully, running out of the building.

Even though she was more than excited to head home to gloat to Colgate, Berry couldn't go through that whole mess and not get a quick drink at Buck's.

She began to think about how stupid the idea of sobering up was. Booze gave her some of her fondest memories. Partying out with friends, pulling mischief around town, the time she got drunk at Ruby's party and ruined her cake... the nights Ruby begged her to stay home and play with her and not go out.

She shook her head forcefully to get those bad thoughts out. "What the hay am I thinking?" she told herself. "Drinking is who I am. Can't let a few bad experiences get in the way."

Her train of thought was cut off as she entered the bar, which was quite empty due to the early hour. It was a stereotypical bar with a pool table, wooden tables with lined seats connected to the wall, and tall stools placed at the front by the bar itself.

A gruff looking stallion with a faded, grey coat and dark red mane was behind the bar, cleaning a mug. He noticed Berry as she came in and smirked. "Well, look what the booze brought in." he said in a deep, scratchy voice.

"Heya there, Buck," Berry greeted, casually, "You're looking as pleasant as ever."

"It's thanks to my beauty rest," he spit on the mug and rubbed it with a cloth, before setting it down, "So, a tall frosty?"

"On the rocks." she added. Buck nodded and went off to fix her drink. Berry relaxed in her stool as she tried to forget about her agonizing morning and enjoy her favorite hangout, as she awaited returning home.

"And here I *hic* thought I was the only *hic* deadbeat here for the day." a drunken voice slurred from beside Berry. It was a teal pegasus mare with a mohawk.

Berry scrunched her muzzle in a mix of confusion and discomfort. "Excuse me?" she asked.

The pony slung herself over to Berry and put a hoof around her shoulder. "Name's Lighting *hic* Dust," she greeted, "After the stinkin' Wonderbolts *hic* kicked me out, I came here to drown my sorrow." She grabbed her mug and downed it like a vacuum. She gave a loud burp and flopped her head on the counter, looking satisfied.

Buck came back with Berry's drink, which was foaming over the rim and dribbling down. "Here you go, Bear." he said, setting it down in front of her and grinning.

Berry gave him an unsure look, looking back at both her mug and the drunken Lightning Dust. She wasn't sure why, but she suddenly lost her thirst. Had all the mumbo jumbo at the session really gotten through?

"Come on, Bear. You know you want to." the stallion further pushed. Berry picked up the drink, making him grin wider.

Rather than take a sip, Berry hoofed it back, giving a confident grin. "On second thought, Buck, keep the drink. I have a daughter I need to be heading home to."

As the mare departed, Buck simply shook his head dismissively and set the mug down. "She'll be back. They always come back."

Lightning Dust looked at the lone mug and grabbed it. "Oh well, more for me." She picked her head up and chugged it down, falling back on the floor and passing out as she finished.

Berry wasted no time in trotting to her home to see Colgate and Pinchy. She was feeling so selfish for neglecting her sweet little filly. It was time to make it up to her.

Back at Berry's house, Colgate was busy "playing" with Ruby. "Wasn't it fun learning the right way to brush your teeth, Ruby?" she asked the filly, oblivious to her attitude.

"Uh... Sure, Auntie Cole." she answered passively, not wanting to hurt her feelings. "Can we do something else?"

"Oh, I see. Okay, we're calling out the big guns." Ruby grew an excited smile at her words. After searching, Colgate pulled out a small box and held it in the air. "We're gonna learn how to floss!"

Ruby gave a double facehoof and felt ready to lay down and die. Just then, the door opened, saving her just in time.

"I'm back!" Berry cheered, happily, "Hope you girls are having fun."

"Mommy!" Ruby cheered, going to give her mother a hug, "I'm so glad your back!"

Colgate walked her and gave her a suspicious look. "So... how was it?"

Berry broke the hug with her daughter and smiled. "Oh, it was crazy. I'll have to tell you about it later."

"Auntie Cole said maybe you'd be able to start staying around more often." Ruby said, giving her mother a hopeful smile.

Berry smiled warmly at her and kissed her on the head. "I will, sweetie. I promise."

"There's no way it was that easy." Colgate said, skeptically.

"Well, I may not be completely dry, but cutting back a bit wouldn't hurt," she explained to her, walking over to her wine cabinet and grabbing a few bottles. "So, how's about we celebrate?"

Both Colgate and Ruby gave her unsure looks, causing her to snap out of her excitement. She bashfully chuckled and set them away. "Maybe we can just get ice cream, instead."

"Yay! Ice cream!" Ruby cheered.

Colgate looked uneased by that idea. "But... all that sugar." she said, nervously.

"Please, Auntie Cole!" Ruby pleaded, giving her the puppy dog eyes.

The unicorn bit her lip, before submitting. "Okay, maybe just a bit."

"Then let's get a move on! I won't even get rum raisin this time." Berry told them, motioning them out the door.

The two ponies followed her out excitedly, especially her daughter. "I'm gonna get a triple scoop with nuts and chocolate syrup and gummy worms and..."

Colgate gave a nervous twitch at each of her words. Maybe Berry's not the only pony needing help...

The End

Author's Note:

I hope you all enjoyed my first time at a non-OC story. I had a lot of fun writing it and hope you'll all see me back for more in the future.

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