How the Mane 6 met Screwball

by Musiclover435

Chapter 4

Twilight and Pinkie Pie went back to the factory to talk with Mayor Sweet Tooth and Tootsie Roll. Pinkie Pie was more than happy to go back but Twilight was just confused. She still didn't understand how this friendship problem needed all six of them. 'If Tootsie Roll did have a friendship problem, then why did this require all of us? Wouldn't this particular problem need maybe two of us or the CMC's? None of this makes any sense.'

"Everything all right, Twilight?" Pinkie Pie asked startling Twilight out of her thoughts.

"Sorry, Pinkie. This whole friendship problem is just so confusing. I just can't figure out why the map sent all six of us."

"Don't worry, Twilight. I'm sure we'll figure it out."

Twilight sighed. "You're right, Pinkie. We'll figure it out."

Twilight and Pinkie arrived at the factory. Twilight was about to knock on the door but the door opened to reveal Mayor Sweet Tooth and Tootsie Roll. "Princess Twilight and Pinkie Pie, we were just about to lock up and head home. What are you doing back here?"

"Actually, we can back because we think we know what the friendship problem is."

Mayor Sweet Tooth looked very surprised. "Really? Are you sure? I think I would have found a problem in my village."

"Pretty sure, Mayor Sweet Tooth," Pinkie Pie said happily.

"Yes, we actually think that it's Tootsie Roll."

Mayor Sweet Tooth looked surprised and Tootsie Roll paled.

"My daughter? But she always talks about her friends. Don't you, sweetheart?"

Tootsie Roll nodded. "Uhh... yeah, I have loads of friends. After all, I'm the mayor's daughter." She smiled a fake smile that Pinkie Pie noticed instantly.

"See, she has many friends, so how can she have a friendship problem?"

"Really, cause our friends, Applejack and Fluttershy, said that you had no friends and that no pony wanted to be your friend." Tootsie Roll gulped once Pinkie Pie said that and both Twilight and Pinkie Pie noticed it.

"Also, our other friends, Rarity and Rainbow Dash, said that while you take everypony else's ideas, you don't really take Tootsie Roll's ideas."

"Hmm. Well, those problems are easily fixable." Mayor Sweet Tooth turned to his daughter and asked, "Tootsie Roll, what ideas do you have?"

Tootsie Roll rubbed the back of her head and said, "Well... maybe candied... pineapples..." She smiled nervously at him.

"Well, that could work. I think we might be able to work with that. I think that's all, right? That's the friendship problem, if so then we must depart. Tomorrow is Saturday and it will be a very busy day for the two of us."

"Actually, one more question, something else our friends also mentioned, why doesn't Tootsie Roll call you dad?" Twilight asked.

"Well, I adopted her many years ago. I guess she still misses her real father. Now, Tootsie Roll and I must be going. Good night." The two ponies left and Tootsie Roll looked back at the two with a look of sadness in her eyes before looking away.

"Twilight, our friendship mission isn't even complete. If we solved it, our cutie marks would have glowed but they didn't."

"Yeah, I think we have to do some research on this town. Something isn't right and has been bugging me for a while." The two started their trek back to their hotel room. "How can a unicorn create a spell that turns a tree into a chocolate cotton candy, candy apple tree?"

"I don't know. He did say that he experimented with a bunch of stuff when he was a young colt."

"Yeah, but experiments can only go so far. From what we've seen, there are candied pears, lemons, limes, and all sorts of different fruits that have been candied from growth. How is that possible? That much would have taken him years, if not decades. If this town was founded just a few years ago, how did he create a candy tree?"

"Not sure, maybe you can find a spell in the town library."

"Oh, of course. Let's do it in the morning. Mayor Sweet Tooth is right. It's late and we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

---

From an open window, a pony watched from the shadows as Twilight and Pinkie Pie went back to their hotel. "Watch them and if they cause trouble, take care of them."

"What about the filly?"

The pony smirked. "I have her wrapped around my hoof. She will obey my orders without question but those mares are trouble. I don't care if they saved all of Equestria multiple times. They will not ruin my hard work." The pony nodded and walked out.

"I have work too hard and too long for those mares to ruin me and this town. I will not lose it to some 'friendship problem'."

---

The next morning, Twilight, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy went to the library to find a spell and the history of the town. While Applejack and Rainbow Dash went back to the factory to spy on Mayor Sweet Tooth, something about him didn't sit right with Twilight but she couldn't figure out what.

"So, Twilight wants us to spy on Mayor Sweet Tooth? Why? He seems like a good pony."

"Yeah, but she said that even though she and Pinkie Pie talked to him about Tootsie Roll, their cutie marks didn't glow. She says that somethin' is goin' on in the factory that she doesn't like and when Twilight says somethings wrong, then we should trust her."

"Agreed, so how are we going to spy on Mayor Sweet Tooth?"

"I think I have an idea." Applejack proceeded to tell Rainbow Dash her plan. She would be helping them factory workers by bucking the various candied fruits down while Rainbow Dash would sneak around the factory for answers. With the plan in mind, Applejack walked to the factory while Rainbow Dash flew around, trying to find a way inside with no pony noticing them.

Applejack knocked on the doors of the factory and Mayor Sweet Tooth happily let her in once she explained what she wanted to do. "It's nice to know that a strong pony like you is willing to help get the candied fruits down from the trees, Applejack."

"Not a problem, Mayor Sweet Tooth. I've been buckin' apples my whole life and I know about every apple in all of Equestria. I would love to try and buck a candied apple tree."

"It's not a problem. Though, I am wondering how long you and your friends will be staying in Candy Town? I thought you solved your friendship problem by talking to me and my daughter. Tootsie Roll is hanging out with some of my co-workers' fillies and colts and I am also taking her ideas."

"Well, Twilight thinks it's a bit more complicated than that."

"I see. So, how do you know when your friendship problem is solved?"

"Oh, well, our cutie marks will glow. Since they haven't glowed yet, then we haven't solved the friendship problem." The two arrived at a closed door once Applejack was finished talking.

"Hmm... I see. Well, here is the garden where we grow the candied trees." Mayor Sweet Tooth opened the doors to reveal many chocolate trees with cotton candy leaves and various candied fruits on them. "Who-ee! This wasn't on the tour."

"I don't show these trees often but the fruits are sometimes very sticky so somepony helping to get them down would be perfect."

"Well, let's get started," Applejack said as she rushed to buck down the candied fruit. 'Okay, Rainbow Dash. I hope you found everything Twilight needs.'

Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash, who found a way inside the factory with no pony noticing her which was through the vents, was searching through the factory for answers. As she went deeper into the factory, she began to notice that there were only workers in the factory where they packaged all the candy but never created or produced it. "Weird... why are there only workers in one room but no the other?" As she went further in, she found a big room that had all the candy that she and her friends had heard about.

Soon, she got out of the vents, flew down to the ground, and began to look around. "Where are all the workers?"

"No pony is allowed back here and now, you will never leave."

"Huh!" Before Rainbow Dash could see who was talking, she was hit on the head and knocked out.

Applejack was having a blast knocking down candied apples. "Boy, I can't wait to tell everypony back on the farm about these trees."

"Applejack, think my daughter and I could speak with you for a few moments in my office?" Mayor Sweet Tooth asked.

"Sure, I could use a break anyway. I didn't expect these trees to be so hard to buck."

"No worries."

The two ponies went to his office with Tootsie Roll sitting on a chair inside. "Hey, Tootsie Roll. You and your dad needed to speak with me about somethin'?"

Tootsie Roll nodded than Mayor Sweet Tooth shut his door. "So, you represent the element of honesty, correct?" Applejack nodded as she turned to the mayor. "And you can tell if anypony lies?"

"Yes, sir. I myself don't tell lies."

"Well, that's very impressive."

"Uhh... thanks. What did you want to speak to me about?" Applejack asked. 'Something's wrong. I can feel it.' She thought to herself.

"Well, Tootsie Roll has something to tell you."

Applejack turned to the young unicorn and asked, "I'm really sorry."

"What are you sorry fo..." Before Applejack could finish her question, she was knocked out.

---

When Applejack came to, she could feel somepony shaking her. "APPLEJACK!!"

Applejack jumped as she woke up and she saw Rainbow Dash with her in a cell. "What happened? Where are we?"

"I don't know. I woke up and I saw knocked out in here."

"You two are in a magical prison where no matter how strong or fast or powerful you are, you can't escape." The two looked in the shadows and the pony who stepped out of the shadows was Mayor Sweet Tooth.

"Mayor Sweet Tooth?!"

"Okay! What's going on?! Who are you?" Rainbow Dash demanded angrily.

"I'm the Mayor of Candy Town and I will NOT have you ponies ruin what I have built here." Mayor Sweet Tooth turned around away from the ponies. "I have worked too hard to create the most successful candy factory in all of Equestria and I will not have you mares ruin it. You already ruined Gladmane so I already had plans in case you ponies came here to ruin me"

"So, Twilight was right. You couldn't have made all that crazy candy," Applejack suspected.

Mayor Sweet Tooth turned to Applejack and Rainbow Dash and shouted, "OF COURSE NOT!! I was able to make some of these things like never-melt ice cream, candy glass, gum that never loses its flavor, and even a frosting fountain but all that other stuff was impossible. I spent years experimenting and creating magic spells to make all my candy ideas come true but for years, nothing happened. Then, I met a young filly who could do those spells like it was nothing. Now, since it is obvious that you and your friends will not leave my home, it seems that I will have to bring you all in here."

"And what? Keep us here? Somepony will get suspicious if we don't return."

Mayor Sweet Tooth smirked. "Tootsie, come here and bring the pony."

Applejack and Rainbow Dash looked at each other confused as they saw the young unicorn bring in a very scared colt. "I'm sorry, Mayor Sweet Tooth. I didn't mean to sneak in!"

"Don't worry, my little pony. You won't remember this encounter, Tootsie. Take care of him."

Tootsie Roll sighed as she made the scared colt face her and she hypnotized him with her magic. "You will forget this ever happened." The colt nodded. "Go home and be a good colt." He nodded and walked out as if nothing happened.

"As you can see, Tootsie Roll has very powerful magic and once I get all six of you in here, you will forget everything that you encountered in this town." Mayor Sweet Tooth then left Tootsie Roll, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash alone.

"Why are you helping him?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Come on, sugarcube. Help us out of here, please."

Tootsie Roll was silent for a moment then said, "I want to help you. I really do but Mayor Sweet Tooth has something that I can't escape from. For what it's worth, you are your friends are the first ponies to be nice to me in a very, very long time."

"We can help. We just need to get to our friends and together, we can stop Mayor Sweet Tooth," Rainbow Dash told her.

Tears started to form on Tootsie Roll's eyes. "I'm sorry. I can't help you. I'm so sorry." Then Tootsie Roll ran away crying with Rainbow Dash and Applejack watching her sadly and with fear in their stomachs for their friends.

Comments

[GamePlayer64]

Huh... I imagine The Mayor be a puppet like in Futurama, the one the cat controlled to appeared to be a living human