• Published 15th Apr 2017
  • 9,040 Views, 678 Comments

The Worst of All Possible Worlds - TheTimeSword



Sunset Shimmer returns to Equestria only to find Twilight Sparkle battling a strange pony named Starlight Glimmer. Unbeknownst to Sunset, Starlight has altered the past, forcing Sunset to deal with reigniting her friendships all over again.

  • ...
24
 678
 9,040

PreviousChapters Next
World 3: Chapter 4

The cute, chunky pink pony trotted back and forth from counter to counter. “Are we going to spend all day in the kitchen?” Sunset asked as she watched the earth pony grab a pan with her mouth, flip whatever was inside and then set it back down on the stove.

“You mean niiiight!” the pink pony sang, exaggerating the word night with a full lilt. “As the castle’s head chef, there are a few things I have to do personally before I can let other staff handle the rest.” She opened the oven, pulling a tray out with her mitted hoof. “Such as feed you breakfast!”

“I’m not that hungry, Pinkie Pie,” Sunset replied. She had been full all throughout the true night, ever since the ice cream parlor. Her mind was still fighting with the terrible things she learned. Misery wracked her thoughts that not even sleep could comfort. At least there weren’t any dreams last night.

Pinkie Pie giggled and snorted. “That might be true, but you’ll definitely eat one of my super-duper pan-muffins! Nopony in Equestria can resist the taste. Especially not with delicious napples cooked right into the yummy dough!”

The kitchen was rather large from what Sunset could remember, though she had been only a filly at the time. Cabinets rounded the entirety of the overhead space with even more below the countertops. In the middle sat an island of counters along with several stoves. The ovens were separate, stacked doubled on each other, closer to the walk-in freezer.

“A napple, huh? I wouldn’t mind trying such a thing.” Sunset halted her bored attitude, leaning forward to get a better view of the earth pony’s movements.

With glee, the pink pony lifted the pan into the air and flopped the pan-muffin onto a plate. “Here you go, Sunset Shimmer!” The pan-muffin was just that, a muffin in the shape of a pancake. Little glows of cyan could be seen scattered amongst the brown fluff of the morning treat. With a fork, Sunset levitated a slice up to her mouth. She found it odd tasting, a muffin when it should have been a pancake, but the bits of napple were the bigger, tastier mystery.

Sunset’s brows furrowed and released with every new bite, unable to discern the flavor. “This tastes like, well, I don’t even know. It’s not an apple, I’m not sure what it is!” she exclaimed, taking another bite.

“Told ya nopony can resist! The napples are absolutely the best!” Pinkie Pie undid her apron, leaving her green chef’s coat on. She hadn’t bothered with a hair hat, keeping her mane wrapped up behind her head and along the back of her neck. “Oh, and I’m sure you know what the taste is. Ever had a zap apple before? Same thing, except now we get them all year round!” she squealed, her short, cyan glasses gripping tightly to her shaky muzzle.

With a mouthful, Sunset said, “Zap apple huh? I don’t know what that is, but if it tastes as good as this, I’ll take twenty.”

Pinkie Pie laughed at that, shaking her bouncy cheeks. “Silly! Zap apples don’t grow anymore. Just one of the many fruits and vegetables gone from this world.” The way she sounded, Pinkie Pie didn’t seem too upset at the fact. “Finish up quick, though! I can’t be behind schedule tonight.”

Scooping the last bit in and swallowing, Sunset licked the plate clean. “Oh yeah? Where are we going?” she asked in between licks.

“I wasn’t expecting the princess to make such a request as to have somepony pal around with me for a night. There are so many different events that I’ve crammed into my schedule, I wouldn’t even know where to begin!” Pinkie shrugged and motioned for the door, opening it for Sunset. “But when the princess makes a request, you don’t dare deny it.”

“Why not? Does she send you to the dungeon?” Sunset half-joked, expecting that it was, in fact, the reality of this world.

“No, no, no.” Pinkie shook her head, leading Sunset down the back hall where staff prepared for their nightly routines. “Princess Nightmare Moon is just like any other royalty or noblepony. She’ll just dismiss you from her staff. There are very few ponies who get sent to the dungeons, and even then it’s just for a short while.” The hall filtered out to a staff entrance where they passed a few ponies Sunset recognized. “Morning Blueblood and Hash Berry!” Pinkie yelled as they passed by.

“Good morning, Miss Pie,” Blueblood replied more curtly than Sunset would have expected from the previously formal stallion.

Sunset glanced back at the no-longer-a-prince as she trotted out into the moonlight, wondering what exactly the role of an ex-prince was. “Why does everyone say morning? The moons out.” Sunset stared up at the unicorn-like shape smudged against the moon’s surface.

“You sure are from another world, ain'tcha?” Pinkie teased. “Dawn, morning, noon, dusk, evening. Pretty sure you can name the time even if you lived in a hole in the ground. Day might be gone, but night's just replaced it. Nothing has changed. Plus the moon makes it easier because you’re not blinded by a big ball of fire anymore!”

“Gee, guess I know why any relationship I’ve had hasn’t worked out.” Sunset flexed her eyebrows, nudging her head to her cutie mark.

Pinkie laughed. She had been laughing and giggling a lot since Sunset arrived in her kitchen, but this was the truest, longest laugh. “I’ll have to remember that one next time I sign up for an open mic comedy night.”

“You do jokes? I can hardly believe it,” Sunset replied dryly.

“Really? I’d imagine I would be the same in any world. Jokes are what I do second best!”

“Satire is lost on you, but you’d be surprised by your other selves. They’re nothing like you.”

“What are they like?”

Sunset mulled over the personalities of the two Pinkies that she had met as they wandered down and out the castle’s gate. The two guards were the same as the previous night, both still giving a suspicious eye but making no attempts to stop them. “They were very anti-you,” she said as they trotted down the marble steps, reaching the limestone road. “One was extremely quiet, the other was extremely cynical.”

“I’m sure I can get like that if I’m in one of my moods,” Pinkie replied. “I grew up on a rock farm where all we did was mine rocks. There was no talking, no smiling, just rocks.” She gave another laugh, but it sounded more pitiful than any of the others, as though her heart wasn’t in it. “I sure don’t miss those days, but I do miss my family.”

“Does Maud come to Canterlot at all? It’s been a whole other world since I’ve seen her!”

In the middle of the street, Pinkie stopped to let out the biggest gasp Sunset ever heard. It was a miracle that the glasses the pink pony wore stayed on her face. “You know my sister!?” she wailed. “I can’t believe it! I won’t believe it! What’s she like? Wait! Don’t tell me! She’s quiet, right?” Sunset couldn’t help but laugh. “Oh, come on! Don’t laugh! I haven’t seen her in years!”

“What!? Why not?”

A sudden strike of panic struck Pinkie’s face as she glanced around the road, her teeth bit down on her plump bottom lip. With surprising strength, she pushed Sunset into a darkened alley between two shops, out of ear range of any street pony passing by. “My family isn’t—” Her eyes darted between the two sides of the alley “—very happy with the Forever Night. It makes their work harder because they can’t see as well. I’ve tried to get them to come to Canterlot, but they just won’t see reason. And it’s pretty difficult for me to find time off to go down there. It’s a real nightmare.”

“I see,” Sunset replied. Guess there are more than a few ponies out in the world that still miss Celestia.

Pinkie grabbed hold of Sunset’s left foreleg, wrapping both hooves around it. “Please, Sunset. You can’t let anypony know about their feelings. Even if I don’t get to see them often, I couldn’t bear to lose them.”

“I thought you said the dungeons were rarely used?”

The earth pony lowered her head as if there were more, but she huffed and gawked for a moment before bringing up Sunset’s watch. “My goodness! We’re going to be late!” she yelled, tugging on the foreleg and pulling Sunset back onto the city street. With a surprising amount of speed for the pudgy pink pony, Sunset had trouble keeping up with the mad dash down the main street. With a sloppy turn down a side road, Pinkie trotted up to a big bronze door of a rosy pink building with window pots full of colorful flowers. “Come on!” she yelled over the classical music playing down the road, beckoning for Sunset to keep up.

“What is this place?” Sunset asked through her wheezing, a few sweat drops beating on her brow. She glanced around the skinny street, trying to picture it from her youth and drawing a blank. Licking her dry lips to speak, she said, “I don’t recognize it.”

“It’s Canterlot’s main schoolhouse, Canterlot Honorary School,” Pinkie replied. “Well, so long as you don’t count the School for Gifted Unicorns.” She shrugged. “But they wouldn’t let a non-unicorn guest speak, so I sure don’t count ‘em!”

Canterlot Honorary School, Sunset remarked, chuckling to herself. I bet this is the closest thing to CHS as I’ll get for a while.

Pinkie pushed open the bronze door just as the sound of a bell clanging rang out overhead. Students petered out of the school’s open classrooms and into the hall, all being ushered in the same direction by teachers and faculty. One of the instructors perked up at the opening door, glancing at Sunset and then Pinkie Pie. “Ohhh boy! Everypony, hurry and be seated in the lecture hall. Our guest will be with you in a moment!” the mare hollered, pushing past the wave of fillies and colts all turning to see the chef and unicorn.

“Mornin’ Miss B!” Pinkie saluted before wrapping a foreleg around the instructor, squeezing a short hug out. “Hope you and the kiddos don’t mind that the guest speaker also brought a guest listener,” she said, giggling and pulling the unicorn forward.

“Hello. I’m Sunset Shimmer. It’s a, uh, pleasure to meet you… Miss B, was it?” Sunset extended a hoof, and the amethyst-colored teacher shook it warmly.

“Please, call me Berryshine. I haven’t seen you around Canterlot before. Come in, come in!”

Pinkie Pie bounced happily down the wooden floorboards, past the open schoolrooms, seemingly knowing where she was going. Sunset was a bit slower, taking her time to wait for the instructor named Berryshine who was prompt in closing the big bronze door. “What exactly are you speaking about, Pinkie?” Sunset asked, glancing between classrooms. One held foal-sized tables with building blocks and crayons while another room had desks lined in rows that reminded Sunset of CHS. “Pinkie?” she called again.

The pink pony had already bounced around the corner, but Berryshine was quick to pick up the trail. “Pinkie Pie loves these events,” the instructor said, edging up next to Sunset. “I haven’t seen her at her worst, but I’ve definitely seen her at her brightest, and these kids really make her glow.” Berryshine glided around the corner and into a hall where lockers no taller than Sunset stood in rows. At the end were two solid metal push doors, which another instructor held open for the two mares.

“Settle down!” Sunset could hear Pinkie yell. “I know you all love to hear my stories, and you especially enjoy the treats I bring,” the pink pony was saying. The sounds of fillies and colts screeching echoed loudly the closer they came.

Entering the lecture hall, a flood of old memories poured into Sunset. A great number of bleachers covered one side of the room while the podium and Pinkie stood on the opposite. All the seats filled up aside from a few spots along the front row. Behind the podium was a large chalkboard devoid of anything written on it other than “Special Guest Speaker: Canterlot Castle’s Head Chef, Pinkie Pie”. This had once been the setting that Sunset had found herself, sitting amongst the bleachers in the School for Gifted Unicorns, listening to Celestia give a short lecture. Technically, I still do the same thing, but its Principal Celestia now.

“Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to prepare treats.” The entire room echoed with grief, a few even starting to cry. “I brought something better!” Pinkie quickly corrected, and the room fell silent. “Well, not better for your tummies. I’d be lying if I didn’t say a good ol’ cookie wouldn’t hit the spot!” Grabbing her podgy cheeks, she began to rub them in circles and lick her lips, to which the lecture hall fell heavy with laughter. As Berryshine went to sit down, Sunset followed, but stopped halfway. “I brought a pony from another world! Sunset Shimmer! Come on up here!”

Fillies and colts alike gasped at the thought. “What? Pinkie, I don’t have anything planned!” Sunset snapped back with an angry whisper.

“Oh please. If you were good at planning you wouldn’t be trapped in an alternate reality where everything is just slightly different with no way of returning home without the help of six super mystical gems!” Pinkie slapped the wooden podium. “Get up here!”

A groan left Sunset’s lips as she trotted to the stage, her heart pounding with every step. Hopping up and taking her place beside the pink pony, she gave the chef a sour stare. “You’ll be fine,” Pinkie whispered. “Everypony, give a round of hooves for Sunset Shimmer!”

The crowd of foals clapped their hooves together excitedly as teachers looked nervously at each other. While Pinkie got off the stage, Sunset tried to think of a good place to start. Should I tell them about the war that ravaged their families' livelihood or the changelings who fed on their love? Turning her head to glance at the blackboard, Sunset decided on neither. “Pinkie’s right in the fact that I am from another world,” she began to say, her voice booming. Speeches came naturally to the reformed, it seemed. “Though it’s actually the same world as this one. There are many reasons that I can’t talk about certain specifics from my world, but one of the things that I can tell you all about is the Elements of Harmony.” With a flick of her magic, a piece of chalk went to the board. “The Elements of Harmony are two separate things. One is a set of gems that come from an all-powerful tree.”

Instead of drawing the gemstones from the Resistance timeline, Sunset chose to draw the necklaces of the bearers surrounding the best drawing of the Tree of Harmony that she could manage. “These gems hold power to defeat any evil, turning bad from good, or simply turning the villain into a stony villain like I’m sure we’ve all heard about in fairy tales.” She then backed up, drawing six cutie marks. “I don’t suppose anybody recognizes this one?” She pointed to a set of three balloons.

“Oh! Oh!” Pinkie excitedly raised her hoof. “That’s mine!”

Sunset lowered her head for a moment. “Yes, Pinkie. That is yours,” she wryly said. She then continued after briefly rethinking everything she had ever done. “This is the second part of the Elements of Harmony, the bearers of the Elements.” Drawing a line to connect each of the drawn necklaces to the cutie marks, Sunset pointed back at Pinkie’s. “Pinkie Pie, known in this world as a world-class chef in Canterlot Castle, is also the Element of Laughter.”

Several of the foals laughed. “You are pretty funny, Pinkie Pie!” one colt said.

“That’s debatable,” Sunset replied, to which the room erupted with laughter, even the teachers couldn’t contain themselves. Sunset smirked and continued, “In my world, she’s even funnier. However, she’s also not a world-class chef for Canterlot Castle. From my understanding, she’s a simple baker who loves making other people feel happy, smile, and laugh.”

Pinkie Pie raised her hoof.

“Yes, Pinkie?” acknowledged Sunset.

“I enjoy all those things. Why can’t I be both in either world?”

“Yeah! Pinkie deserves it!” a filly yelled, to which a colt added, “The snobs aren’t nice to her in this world. That doesn’t change in any world!”

One of the instructors was quick to hush the foals, but the effect had been there. Sunset saw it in the pink pony’s sudden eye twitch. Snobs aren’t nice to anyone in any world, bucko, Sunset mused. “Actually, she’s far more important than some high-class chef. In my world, she’s buddies with the princess, and not just on a professional level. The princess trusts Pinkie and all of these bearers so much that they’re pretty much on speed dial.”

Pinkie once again raised her hoof.

With a sigh, Sunset asked, “Yes, Pinkie?”

“What’s speed dial?”

“Oh.” Sunset reddened for a moment. Why didn’t I try to brush up on my idioms in the last world? “It just means that you’re readily available should the princess need you. From my understanding, she would often visit the bearers in Ponyville simply because they are friends.”

“Friends with Princess Nightmare Moon?” one of the teachers who wasn’t Berryshine gawked. “That’s amazing!”

“Nightmare Moon?” Sunset squinted at the name. “Yes, Nightmare Moon is absolutely friends with all the bearers.” Technically, that’s not a lie. I’m sure Princess Luna thinks of them that way, at least, from what Twilight has told me. “But more importantly than that, Pinkie Pie’s a great friend, and that friendship with the other five bearers is so strong that it transcends worlds. They prove on a daily basis that friendship is the strongest form of magic. A magic that anyone can perform by simply following in their steps.”

Next to the lines, Sunset began to write each Element. “Pinkie Pie, Element of Laughter. There’s also Kindness, Loyalty, Honesty, Generosity, and Magic. We all hold each Element within us, regardless of what we look like on the outside. Friendship is what binds them all together. So, if you have a friend, show them you care. Give them a hug, a present, or just call them friend.”

Pinkie rose her hoof to the air, really giving it a shake this time.

“Yes, friend?” Sunset asked, shooting a grin at her.

“What’s your Element? Do you have one?”

“No, I don’t,” responded Sunset with a shake of her head.

“Why not?” a colt asked, and Pinkie chorused the whine.

“Well,” Sunset said, turning and levitating an eraser to the board. She went to work removing the Elements and cutie marks, leaving only the crown that was Twilight’s Element. “Friendship is a powerful force that transcends worlds. It can beat those who only hunger for power.” She had drawn it several times, but here in the classroom, Sunset designed the best-looking demon she ever drew. “It beat me when I stole one of the Elements of Harmony and became a terrifying demon. It was the only thing that could stop me.” A few murmurs of the class began to surface, to which Sunset laughed internally. “It was also the only thing that could help me. When I was beaten and unsure what to do with my life, Pinkie Pie and these other Elements all befriended me, even though I was the one who hurt them the most.”

“I did that!?” Pinkie exclaimed and was quickly hushed by the foals and some teachers.

“That you did. Which is why I’m always ready to return the favor. I’m not from this world, but I’ve visited several others where things aren’t right. I did my best to right those wrongs by bringing these six bearers together.” And I’m doing that again for this world. “No matter the time, place, or universe, my friends can always count on me to be there for them, and I can count on them.”

The entire hall burst with joy. Fillies, colts, and even teachers clapped their hooves as hard as they could. Taking a bow, Sunset let the commotion wash over her. I should become a motivational speaker. Even I’m impressed with that little speech.

After the lecture hall filtered the students out, Sunset remained to clean the chalkboard of her last drawing. Pinkie Pie had stayed behind as well. “See, I knew you didn’t need to plan anything,” Pinkie said, snorting.

“That you did, Pinkie Pie. Never change.” Sunset set the eraser down at the lip of the chalkboard, turning to face the chubby pink pony after doing so. “How did you know I’d be such a hit? I might have frozen up, maybe crowds weren’t my thing.”

“Oh, please. You said it yourself, you’ve done extraordinary things. Pretty sure it’s only fairytales and kiddy books that the hero is afraid of something so non-life threatening like giving speeches.”

“I wouldn’t consider myself a hero, though,” Sunset replied, hopping off the podium’s stage.

Pinkie ungracefully followed. “You are to me.” Sunset stopped and glanced over her shoulder. Pinkie was tucking her cheek into her neck, a hesitant smile on her face. “I’ve never had anyone talk about me so positively before. At least, not without it relating to food.” It was there again, the slight twitch of her eye. Sunset knew it well, and the reason behind it. “So, thanks for that,” Pinkie finished and moseyed past the unicorn. “Come on, still got a busy schedule ahead of us.”

“Still?” Sunset glanced at the window, moonlight dragging itself against the glass. Her eyes drifted down to the watch. It’s only eleven.

“That’s right. Plenty of hours left in the night,” Pinkie replied as if she knew what Sunset was thinking.

The side street had become more crowded in the shifting of hours, but Sunset kept right beside the pink pony. Crossing the main street, a right, a left, another left, hitting the terrace and heading north, Canterlot had remained as much the same as Sunset remembered. Trotting up further, Pinkie stopped on Restaurant Row, a street made up of the best fine dining in all of Equestria, or so the proprietors of the restaurants would have you believe. The Row was mostly empty aside for the wafts of smells coming from each eatery, all preparing for the lunchtime rush that would soon arrive as the moon hit the middle of its apex.

“Why are we here, Pinkie?”

“It’s an inspection night for The Smoked Oat,” Pinkie replied.

“And that is?”

“It’s a restaurant.”

“I meant the inspection night.”

“Oh!” Pinkie stopped short of a restaurant’s door and pointed to the sign above it. “Back before I became the head chef, there was some other lady who had put hoofprints to show if a restaurant was good or not. After receiving my honorable position, I went to those places that supposedly had the most amount of hoofprints and tried them out, but they were all nasty!” She spat her tongue out. “Turns out, as head chef, my opinion matters. The places that had super yummy food wanted my approval. I told them to take off the hoofprints, and they did. Ponies started trying out the places, and then every restaurant took off the hoofprints.”

Pinkie tapped a three balloon mark that sat just below the restaurant’s name. “With no restaurant having hoofprints, nopony could figure out what was good, so I started adding my logo as a seal of approval.” She continued to trot on. “The Smoked Oat has been going downhill recently, and I’m not sure why. I’m hoping tonight they can keep their standard.”

“That’s a really nice thing of you to do, Pinkie.” Sunset glanced over the signs as they passed, some with one balloon while others displayed three. “I bet you’re pretty popular around here.”

Pinkie didn’t reply, though. They made their way to The Smoked Oat, the smells of grain emanating through the open window. A grizzly looking unicorn behind a small stand perked up as the door opened. “Pinkie Pie!” the stallion yelled gleefully. The Smoked Oat was devoid of customers, possibly remaining closed for Pinkie’s inspection. “It’s a pleasure, as always.”

“Hey there, Mr. Barley!” Pinkie replied, nodding to the stallion and saluting the three unicorn mares on staff as well. “You ready for your inspection?”

The unicorn named Mr. Barley stepped out from behind his small stand. Within an instant, the mustached stallion cut across the eatery and wrapped the chubby pink pony in a hug. He was twice her size, and his black glasses seemed far too large for any normal pony. “I am certain we shall pass with flying colors tonight, thanks to your advice.”

“Oh, stop it you.” Pinkie’s bouncy cheeks blushed. Her foreleg turned and stretched toward Sunset. “I also have a second judge joining me tonight, and trust me, her tastes are out of this world.”

“Oh, my!” the stallion strained. “I’m not sure we’re good enough for that!”

“Oh, brother.” Sunset shook her head, covering her face out of embarrassment. “My name’s Sunset Shimmer, and I’m no food expert. If it tastes good, then you’re good.” If you could make a couple more pan-muffins with napples, that’d be great.

Pinkie danced her elbow against Sunset, giving a wink. “That’s what makes you the best judge around! If it doesn’t taste good then what’s the point of working so hard on it?” The pink pony then went and sat down, Sunset tagging along mindfully.

“Order up ladies!” Mr. Barley shouted to the three other unicorns who were steadily readying the trays for food. A simmering bowl of cinnamon soup was out first, a garnish of wheat protruded on the side. In the bowl was a color of liquid matching Mr. Barley’s pale, light brown fur. Pecans and oats were mixed into the soup, creating an interesting looking mix for the appetizer. “Bon appétit!” the stallion said with a bow.

Sunset glanced at the concoction, unsure if the bowl could look appetizing in anyone’s eyes. Pinkie had dug in, swallowing fast chunks of nuts and squealing in delight. With Pinkie so adamant in her eager appetite, Sunset gave it a chance. A spoonful of soupy nuts and oats in her magical grasp, she pushed it into her mouth. Pinkie finished her bowl before Sunset even had a chance to chew and swallow, not that she wanted to. Gulping the blend down, Sunset gasped for air. “Urghh,” was the sound she made as she pushed the bowl away, her whole body releasing one great big shiver.

The three unicorn staff all gasped, and Mr. Barley shared their fervor. Pinkie finished with her own, glancing over at the full bowl. “Not so good? Really?” She turned back to Mr. Barley. “This isn’t going to end well.” Her face full of pity.

The stallion grabbed at his collar, tugging it nervously as he ordered for the next meal. The trio took away the bowls and returned with a gourmet platter of freshly pan-seared oatmeal treats. Each the size and shape of a cellphone, the treats were lathered in honey and had bits of cherries sprinkled on top. “Yummy!” exclaimed the pink pony chef as she took two. Sunset, now cautious, took only one. Both the staff and Mr. Barley stared intently at Sunset, almost ignoring Pinkie Pie altogether. Gnawing down on a few bites, Pinkie was happy to be ignored.

Unlike the soup, the pan-seared oatmeal snacks were cooked and covered to look perfect, and Sunset wondered if the opening course had just been a fluke. Taking a nice big bite, it only took two seconds for Sunset to spit it out. When she looked up from the platter, Mr. Barley and his staff were sweating oats, the worried look in their eyes hurt to see. “Golly gosh, Sunset! That’s two in a row!” Pinkie quickly wiped her honey-coated mouth, and ordered Mr. Barley to bring out his best dish.

The platters were taken and in return Mr. Barley himself presented another set of bowls, which immediately caused Sunset to worry. “This I have never heard a pony say they did not like!” he said, setting the bowls down in front of the two. Just like before, Pinkie began to scarf her food down like it was going out of style.

Sunset, on the other hoof, stared at the disgusting mixture of spinach, oats, and marinara sauce. “I can’t even begin to describe how awful this looks,” Sunset said aloud, though she hadn’t meant to. Mr. Barley winced, and one of the trio fainted.

“Well, give it a try!” Pinkie exclaimed, a smile still on her face, bits of spinach stuck to her teeth.

Doing as asked, Sunset scooped a spoonful of stew out and dumped the contents into her mouth. The mixtures of salt and pepper along with spinach and oats were not nearly as bad as Sunset would first assumed. She chewed for a long moment, swallowed, and then took another scoop. Once she swallowed that too, she put the spoon down. “Eh,” she said with a shrug. “It’s not as bad as the last two. Maybe oats just aren’t my thing?”

Pinkie Pie already finished her bowl, slamming it down with a satisfied gleeful grin. A hefty breath left her plump lips as she relaxed in her seat. Her glasses had steamed up from the heat rising from her stew, but she didn’t need them to see. “There you have it, Mr. Barley,” Pinkie said, “Something’s wrong with your food.”

“B-b-but Pinkie!” Mr. Barley squealed like a scared little colt.

“The Smoked Oat wasn’t always this bad,” Pinkie said to Sunset. “It’s only been recent that the food hasn’t been up to snuff. Even the recommendations I made and the changes Mr. Barley has done, it’s still not enough.” In a huff, the pink pony slammed the table, rattling the silverware. “Something has to be done!”

“Pinkie, what are you saying?” Mr. Barley asked, woefully.

“Yeah, Pinkie, what are you saying?” Sunset reiterated, surprised by the chef’s change in demeanor.

“I wasn’t able to tell myself, on the account that I just love food too much—” Pinkie stopped, giggled, and snorted “—but with you here it’s clear as night. Somepony out there is turning our ingredients sour.”

Mr. Barley gave a sigh of relief, but then sucked it right back in. “A saboteur? Who would want to sabotage my establishment!? What could I have possibly done?” His whole body was shaking far more than it had been a moment ago, and the staff member who had fainted awoke only to faint once more.

“It’s not just you. I’ve had to make extreme cutbacks on some of the ingredients we use in the castle.” Pinkie turned to face Sunset. “That’s why I had to make a pan-muffin this morning instead of a regular pancake! The scratch ingredients I use were making things taste funny. And I’m an expert on funny!”

“That’s pretty odd. Who would do something like that, and why? Do you know someone who might have stock in the things opposing ingredients like oats? Maybe there’s some new food type that’s come on the market that wants to get rid of grains or wheat? Is it just grains and wheat?” Sunset asked.

“No, but that’s a good start!” Pinkie got up from the table and hugged Mr. Barley. “Don’tchu worry now, I’m not going to change your rating tonight. Thanks to Sunset, she’s proven you’re a real grade A chef like I always knew!”

Mr. Barley removed his glasses to wipe the tears away but missed a few before they reached his mustache. The bulky stallion couldn’t respond with anything more than a few unintelligible thanks, his trio of unicorn staff all muttering kind words between their bellowing cries. As Pinkie bounced out of the eatery, Sunset rose to follow but Mr. Barley stopped her. “Please, watch over Pinkie Pie” he said, taking Sunset’s hoof in between his. “She’s such a kind pony. She doesn’t deserve the disrespect she gets.”

“Disrespect?”

“Please. You’re the only one not from Restaurant Row that I’ve seen be kind to her. Whoever is doing this, they’ll target her if they’ve found she’s figured it out. Her position as head chef, it’s all she has here in Canterlot.”

Stallions, mares, fillies, and colts. They all seem to like Pinkie Pie. Yet people keep telling me she isn’t liked. Something tells me it has Nightmare Moon’s stink written all over this. “Don’t worry. Pinkie Pie’s a lot stronger than you’d expect. I’ve seen it, multiple times now.”

She didn’t stay to hear any more. “There’s still a bit of schedule left to go,” Pinkie Pie said, standing out in the moonlight, waiting on Sunset.

“I hope it’s not more food,” Sunset replied, letting the door close itself behind her.

Pinkie shook her head, her bundle of hair wiggling like an earthquake. “Nopey-dopey-lopey!” The pink pony led, and Sunset followed. Back up Restaurant Row, through the crowd of ponies returning to work, and up to the main street where the filtered sounds of classical music played. Pinkie remained silent for the entire walk. It gave Sunset time to think. She didn’t want to give thought to who might be behind Pinkie’s problem, but in the end, it seemed like it might be the best opportunity to get close to her. Maybe even recover her Element.

“Pinkie,” Sunset called, keeping in line with the chunky pink pony. “I just want to let you know that if you ever need help, just come to me. I’m not just here to help get you your piece of the Elements of Harmony. Technically, I’m not even sure why I’m here. But so long as I am, you matter to me, and I’ll do everything I can to help you if you ask.”

“That’s why I called you a hero, Sunset. Something about you just sings it.”

“Yeah? I hope that’s true.”

“It is.” Pinkie sounded determined as if she knew something Sunset didn’t, though Sunset couldn’t discern what that would be. “It’s right up here,” she said, marching faster down the main street.

Crossing into the residential district, Pinkie began to zigzag down streets where homes were quaint or generic or identical. Some even began to look the same right down to the mail slot on the door. “Where are we going?” asked Sunset, glancing over each home with a disinterested stare.

Finally, Pinkie stopped. “My home,” she answered and began to trot up the sidewalk to a two-story home. There was no pizazz to the home, not as much as was to be expected for the most eccentric pony Sunset knew. It had a cyan roof which glowed in the moonlight, much like every home in the area. Two windows on both sides of the violet oak door, three windows on the second floor. Some well-kept bushes chopped into squares just underneath the frames. The home itself was grand in Sunset’s eyes, but for Pinkie, Sunset expected a whole different sort of home. It looks like a home Pinkie would has back beyond the mirror where magic can’t help build houses.

Entering the home, Sunset immediately felt unnerved. The house was a long hall with a spiral staircase at the opposite end—to the left was a living room and to the right was the kitchen. Separated by a wall from the living area was Pinkie’s study. It was a beautiful house, and far too conventional for the unconventional earth pony. “This is amazing, Pinkie Pie. I wish I had a home like this,” Sunset said as she closed the door behind her.

“It’s alright,” Pinkie answered modestly. “It reminds me of my home back on the ol’ rock farm, ‘cept cozier.”

That’s odd. If she doesn’t really care for it, why’d she bring me here? Sunset wondered but followed the pink mare regardless. Pinkie trotted around the corner into the study where a couple of bookcases held at least a hundred books. “This is impressive, Pinkie. Not that I wouldn’t consider you an intrepid reader, but none of the worlds I’ve visited have you ever struck me as an egghead, like myself or Twilight.” Scanning the titles, Sunset found that a quarter were cooking related and another quarter were about rocks. The rest were fiction.

“It’s what I do when I have free time,” Pinkie replied, searching one of the shelves for something particular. “Reading a good book can be just as good as eating something really sweet.” Her pink hooves prodded a thick dictionary, dragging it out and dropping it on the floor. She then prodded the book that had been next to it, grabbing the binding with her teeth. “Mmphh!” she said to Sunset, motioning for the unicorn to take it.

“What’s this?” Sunset levitated the brown book from Pinkie’s mouth, glancing at the cover. “By Applejack?”

“It’s The Great Napple Discovery, by Applejack. Learning a bit about you Sunset, I figure you’re really curious how this world operates. I’d recommend giving this book a go before speaking with Applejack, it’ll really help in the long run. She’s amazing.”

“Thanks, Pinkie. That’s really thoughtful of you,” Sunset replied, looking and grinning at the pink pony.

Pinkie stood still for a moment. A long moment. Her eye was starting to twitch, and Sunset could tell what that meant. “Hey,” Sunset said, “Come here.” Holding a foreleg out, Pinkie couldn’t handle it any longer. The tears finally broke through her guard as she rushed to hug Sunset, tossing off her glasses and rubbing her teary cheeks into the unicorn’s neck.

“Oh Sunset, you have no idea what your kindness means to me. It’s been so long since someone as nice as you has come along. I wish there were more like you,” Pinkie cried, her voice quivering with every word.

“There, there,” Sunset answered, patting the back of Pinkie’s head. “I’m here for you.” As she held the pink pony’s wet cheeks against her shoulder, she glanced back at the cover of Applejack’s book. The Great Napple Discovery, huh. I guess I better save Applejack for last so that I can finish this before then. Maybe I’ll dream of tasty napples instead of golden flowers. Everyone deserves nice dreams.

PreviousChapters Next