Chapter 2: Game Changer in the Basement

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I might as well mention that the minor changes don't end with the end of the first day. And, at the same time, there are things I don't change at all on the second day. I make no changes to the first encounter with Derpy Hooves, who I still call Ataahua. I make no changes to the journey through the Everfree forest with the three stallions. I make no changes to Lyra's first visit to my character's house. I make no changes to my character visiting the home of Vinyl Scratch and Octavia with Lyra to play video games. And, I make no changes to my character eating the griffon cupcake.

The first change, however minor, comes when my character visits the basement of the factory for the second time.

One of the changes I make, before entering the basement, is to make sure a box is available next to the doorway so Pinkie Pie can get it quickly and bring it down with her into the basement.

My character still picks up Gilda's skull, and I still begin the Shakespearean speech relating to the skull. This time, though, it goes this way: “Alas, poor Gilda. I knew her, Pinkie Pie. Not as well as I would've liked to, although, I suppose, in a way, I'm closer to her now after her death than I was when she was alive. I suppose I'll have to assume I really did win that roaring contest with her. But, at least I have the photo of her at the party as a souvenir.” I still refer to it as channeling Shakespeare, and it's still an effective way of getting the pink earth pony's attention as she enters the basement. And, I still say that she and I need to talk about the griffon cupcake.

Diane Pie still asks, “So, what did you think about the cupcake?”

I still say, “Well, in the sense that the meat was well prepared and seasoned, and had a pleasant flavor, it tasted just like chicken.”

Diane Pie still says, “I'm glad you liked it. I could make more if you want.”

I still say, pausing for the pink pony's responses at the appropriate moments, “But, having said that, this is not the sort of thing I would've expected from you.”

Diane Pie's response doesn't change: “What do you mean? You said you liked the cupcake.”

I make a minor change here when I say, “That's not the point,” then when I see the gray pegasa tied behind Diane Pie, I ask, “Is that who I think it is, Derpy Hooves?”

Diane Pie tries to excuse herself with: “You said you liked the griffon-flavored cupcakes. I thought I'd try pony-flavored next.”

Here's where I make the game-changing statement: “No, just no. You're supposed to be making friends with other ponies, not pastries of them. The Pinkie Pie I know and love doesn't make her friends, doesn't make other ponies, doesn't make other creatures, into cupcakes. And, the Pinkie Pie I know and love certainly doesn't sacrifice her friends, or any other creature for that matter, to false gods.”

I can see the change taking place in the pink earth pony, and not just the shift in mane- and tail-style as Pinkamena takes control. The look of shock on her face, as much at the description of her actions as something related to idolatry as my saying that I love her, as demonstrated in her expression, has clearly left a great impression on her, leaving her immobilized in her place. As she starts to recover, she says, “I-I-I … h-how can you say that? I-I didn't intend it th-that w-way.”

I answer, “Well, that's what it looks like. Pinkie Pie, what were you thinking?”

Pinkie Pie's eyes vibrate in her head as she says, just above a whisper, “You … love … me?” Now her lower jaw starts to quiver, and I can see tears forming under her eyes.

As my character automatically stands up, I say, “If I've misread what I'm seeing here, now's your chance to let me know. There's a box just next to the door of the shed outside this basement. One thing you can do is grab that box and bring it down here. I'll help you clean up Gilda's remains.

“But first, I think you need to release Derpy. Let her know what you were going to do to her, and give her the choice whether she forgives you or flees in fear. Even if she chooses to flee, there's the chance that she'll forgive you later on, as long as you don't try to stop her.

“And, as for the griffon cupcakes, what's left of them should go in the box with Gilda's remains. I have a place at my house where they can be buried. Pinkie Pie, will you do this?”

Pinkie Pie sniffles hard and rubs the end of her nose with a forelimb before nodding.

Knowing how important this type of promise is to the pink earth pony, I ask, “Will you Pinkie promise?”

Her voice cracks several times, but Pinkie Pie manages to speak out, “Cross my heart … hope to fly … stick a cupcake … in my eye,” performing the ritual actions that go along with the words. After that, she starts sobbing.

As per my instructions, my character opens his arms to the pink earth pony; and I say, “Come here.”

Accepting the invitation, Pinkie Pie drops the rope she'd used to tie and drag Ataahua to her present position, then runs and jumps into my character's arms, sobbing and sharing the hug.

After a few seconds, the restrained pegasa starts to wake up from her evident anesthesia.

As my character pushes the pink mare away, I notice that once again Diane has taken control.

The straight-haired mare backs away from him and says, “Thank you, Mormon. Things will be better from now on, but you still have a lot of work ahead of you.” After that, she returns control back to the distraught Pinkamena.

I say, “It looks like Derpy's waking up now. You'd better get her back upstairs and get those ropes off of her. If you want, I'll help.”

Pinkie forces a chuckle before saying, “Thanks for the offer. But, I'm the one that tied her up, and I should be the one to free her.” After that, she climbs the stairs to just above the gray pegasa and proceeds to drag her back up, and away from the basement.

After a few seconds, I hear Ataahua's voice say, “Wh-wh … where am I? Pinkie Pie, what am I doing here?”

A few seconds later, I hear a grieving Pinkie Pie say, “Derpy, I have a confession to make to you.”

Ataahua's voice says, “Pinkie Pie, what's wrong?”

Pinkie Pie says, “I was going to fasten you to a wall. I was going to … oh, Derpy, I was going to kill you!” Again she starts to sob.

Ataahua's voice betrays her surprise as she asks, “Kill me? Why?”

Pinkie Pie continues, “I was going to make … cupcakes out of you.”

Now, Ataahua's voice sounds skeptical as she asks, “Cupcakes? Don't you mean muffins?”

Through her sobs, Pinkie Pie cries out, “Oh, Derpy, you don't understand!”

Ataahua pauses for a moment, then says, “Wait a minute. Why were you going to make pastries of me?”

I decide it's time to help the pink earth pony. Following my instructions, my character ascends the stairs just enough so that he can be seen from his shoulders up above the floor; and I say, “Hi, Ataahua.”

The gray mare's attention turns instantly to me as she says, “Mormon, why are you here?”

I answer, “Pinkie Pie felt she had a debt to pay to me, and went about it the wrong way. She was going to kill you and make you into pastries to serve to me. She misunderstood a story I'd told to a group of stallions I'd met when I first came to Ponyville.”

Now alarmed, Ataahua, backing away from me, says, “You were going to eat me?”

I answer, “I promise you, I would not have eaten you.”

I think my promise relaxes the frightened pegasa, if only by a minimal amount. She turns to the pink earth pony and asks, “Pinkie Pie, how could you think of doing such a thing?”

Whimpering, Pinkie Pie begs, “Oh, Derpy, I'm so sorry. Can you ever forgive me?”

I state, “I made her promise to let you go and tell you what she was going to do to you, then give you the choice whether to forgive her or to flee in fear. I made her Pinkie promise. As you can see, she's kept her end of the deal. Now, it's up to you to choose what you will do.”

The gray pegasa, focusing on my character, hovers maybe an inch off the ground as she chuckles and says, “You just sounded like Zecora.” As I laugh in agreement, she then turns to Pinkie Pie, still crying on the ground, and says, “Well, while you were the one that drugged me and tied me up, you're also the one that untied me and confessed what you were going to do. And, you kept a promise made to Mormon, who must be a friend of yours.” Landing again in front of the pink mare, Ataahua says, “I haven't been too badly hurt, and even if I had been, as long as I survived, I could forgive you. And, seeing that I am alive, I do forgive you.”

I get a look at Pinkie Pie's face as she looks up at Ataahua, and I can see that her tears of grief have become tears of joy and gratitude. But, there's also something else that catches my attention. Through my character's eyes, I can see a long streamer curled up, the end resting on the ground, from each of Pinkie Pie's nostrils, blue from one nostril, yellow from the other. I can't help laughing as I look at her. She looks like she has a strange, long, thin, half-blue-half-yellow handlebar mustache coming from her nostrils.

More focused on Ataahua than me, Pinkie Pie squeaks, “Oh, thank you, Derpy, thank you. You have no idea what that means to me.” And, with that, she jumps into the gray pegasa's forelimbs, knocking her onto her back.

I'm surprised to see that Ataahua doesn't struggle to get back up, or get out from under the grateful pink earth pony. Instead, she says, “Well, I think I do have some idea,” before hugging her in return.

Now, Pinkie Pie's crying turns to honest laughter, which Ataahua shares.

After a few seconds, Pinkie Pie backs away from Ataahua and says, “Well, I have more work to do here. You're free to go.”

Leaning toward my character, the gray pegasa states, “Well, based on what Mormon said, I always was. But, I do have something I need to do back in Ponyville. I'll see you later, Pinkie Pie.” She then rolls to her hooves and trots to the door. Before she leaves, though, she turns to my character again and adds, “And, I'll see you later as well, Mormon.” Not waiting for an answer, she exits through the door, hitting a shoulder on the doorway before she can finally leave the factory and head back toward Ponyville.

Pinkie Pie, still sniffling, manages to smile at my character as she says, “Well, that's taken care of. Now, let's take care of Gilda's remains.”

As I watch the pink party pony circle around my character to get the box, I say, “Excellent,” before ordering my character to duck back into the basement.

As I wait for the pink earth pony to join me with the box, once again my character picks up the griffon's skull. Looking through my character's eyes into the empty sockets of Gilda's skull, I suddenly notice the image of Gilda superimposing itself over the skull.

Before I can react, I see and hear the griffon say, “You're not as lame as I thought. I misjudged you. I can't forgive Stinkie Pie for killing me, but I can respect you for keeping her from killing anyone else. You can take my remains to that burial place you mentioned, the one on your property.”

Just then, I hear Pinkie Pie drag the box down the stairs, and watch her drag the box next to Gilda's remains. As she turns to look at him, she asks, “Are you alright?”

My character first turns his attention to the pink earth pony, then back to the skull in his hand, and I can see the image of Gilda's face has now disappeared. As he turns back to Pinkie Pie, I answer, “I'm just fine. Let's get to work.”

The pink party pony eyes my character suspiciously, until he puts the skull in the box; then she grabs individual bones in her mouth and puts them in the box.

With the help of my character the process takes a few minutes, and the bones maybe fill the box only halfway.

Then, as Pinkie Pie drags the box in her mouth toward the staircase, I say, “Let me help you with that.” And, with that, my character stands up and proceeds toward the other end of the box, ready to pick it up.

As she starts to climb the stairs backwards, I hear her say something that sounds like “Maef moof,” which I'm sure is just Pinkie Pie trying to express gratitude through a mouthful of wood.

Once we're out of the basement, I have my character close the doors; after which I say, “Now, let's let this be the last time we ever visit this place.”

Pinkie Pie places her end of the box gently on the ground, approaches me, and, looking at the closed doors, says, “I agree. If only I'd known beforehand how you felt about me, I wouldn't have even killed Gilda. But, what's done is done. Let's get out of here.”

I answer, “First we need a lid for this box. Just because we know what's in it doesn't mean everyone we meet while moving this box has to know.”

Looking up at me, Pinkie Pie tilts her head and asks, “So, Mormon, where are we going to get the wood for the lid?”

As my character slowly looks around the room, I'm suddenly aware of a long plank of wood near the wall opposite the one with the doorway. My character approaches it, and I notice it seems to be the perfect size to fit over the top of the box containing Gilda's remains. Of course, in the process of designing the world of this game, I'm the one who placed it there. As my character grabs the plank and returns to the box, I say, “I believe I've found a lid for the box.”

Watching my character carry the long piece of wood, Pinkie Pie says, “Well, that does look like it'll fit. But, let's be sure.”

In a few seconds, my character arrives with the piece of wood and puts it on the top of the box. Apparently to the pleasant surprise of Pinkie Pie, the piece of wood fits perfectly over the top of the box, making a perfect lid.

Pinkie Pie simply nods to my character, then attempts to find a way to grab a corner of the box in her mouth. Unfortunately, with the top of the box secured, there's no way she can grab the box and effectively lift it up.

Noticing her struggle, I think for a moment and say, “Well, I guess we'd better find some wheels for this box. Maybe there's a vehicle we can find or make to carry it.”

At my statement, the pink pony starts bouncing around the room and says, “I know where one is, I know where one is!”

I say, “So, let's go and get it. Is it nearby?”

Pinkie Pie stops bouncing and says, “Of course. The past times I came here, I always passed it. There's a small wagon just past this shed.” And, with that, she bounces out the door and off to one side.

As my character runs to keep up with the re-energized pink party pony, I see her bouncing next to a small wagon, which reminds me of one of those wagons used either to carry seedling plants to spots in a garden, or for children's recreational activities. It does look like it'd be just the right size. Just the way I designed it.

As my character approaches the pink earth pony, I notice one minor problem. Weeds have grown through openings in the bottom of the wagon, and around the wheels. The problem is just complex enough that it takes a few minutes for my character to untangle the weeds from the wagon and allow it to move again. And, as rusted as the joints in the wheels appear to be, they're surprisingly mobile. So, my character drags the now-free wagon to the box containing Gilda's remains, which my character easily hoists on top of the wagon.

With Pinkie Pie to keep the wagon and box stable, my character spends half an hour dragging the load from the factory to Sugar Cube Corner in Ponyville.

It's Pinkie Pie who enters the bakery to retrieve the griffon cupcakes.

As I wait for her, I hear her call out, “Snails, stop right there! You can't have any of those cupcakes!”

I then hear Mrs. Cake's voice ask, “Pinkie Pie, what are you talking about?”

I hear Pinkie Pie answer, “I'll explain later. But, right now, the pink cupcakes are off limits. I'll be taking them now.”

I then hear protests, and Pinkie Pie saying, “I'm sorry about this. But, it's important that I take these cupcakes out of here. Please, understand.”

Just then, I see what I assume to be the back door open up, and Pinkie Pie comes galloping out with the large tray of pink cupcakes. Seeing me, she says, “Get the box ready. These are comin' in hot!”

As much as I want to laugh at the statement, I understand what she means.

My character works on the lid, and is able to get it open just as Pinkie Pie gets there with the griffon pastries. In a matter of seconds the cupcakes are dumped into the box, after which my character closes the lid, which instantly secures itself.

From behind Pinkie Pie a squeaky voice says, “Ah, couldn't I have even one of them?” That's when I see a skinny, juvenile orange unicorn with long neck and limbs, green mane and tail and the picture of a snail on the hip of his that I can see. I know who it is.

Pinkie Pie answers, “I'm sorry, Snails, but this batch has got to go. I'll make a fresh batch later, but these need to be buried before they hurt somepony.”

Now I hear another voice, deeper, betraying a toothy impediment, complaining, “But, I had one already, and it tasted fine to me.”

As my character searches for the source of the new voice, finally he focuses on another unicorn, this one shorter than Snails, a somewhat-blanched green color, with a mane and tail of darker orange than the coloring of Snails, perhaps half the height and twice the width of the orange unicorn colt, with the picture of a pair of scissors on the visible hip. As soon as I see this pony, who I recognize as Snips, I hear a rumbling sound, and he starts to rock right and left, a spaced-out expression on his face, and he groans and says, “Ugh, I don't feel so good.”

Knowing what's going to happen, I have my character grab the little unicorn and pick him up under his chest, and cover his eyes. I then say, “Pinky Pie, will you open the box?”

The pink pony does so, just in time for the little green unicorn to open his mouth.

My character holds Snips so his face is aimed into the box as the unicorn starts vomiting.

As a result, the contents of the little unicorn's stomach land in the box, on top of the cupcakes and other remains of Gilda already inside. When Snips is finished emptying his stomach, my character puts him down again; and Pinkie Pie once more closes the box.

As my character removes his hand from the green unicorn's eyes, he turns to my character and cries, “I don't get it. I saw you eat one, and you didn't get sick from it.”

My character kneels down in front of Snips, and I say, “Right now, the only explanation I can give you is that I'm a human, and humans are omnivorous. You'll get a better explanation later.” Then, as my character stands back up again, then turns to Pinkie Pie, I say, “Well, we'd better get going now.”

As my character proceeds to pull the wagon toward the outskirts of town, with Pinkie Pie to keep it balanced and centered, I hear Snips ask, “Miss Cheerilee, what's omnivorous, and what's it have to do with why the cupcakes were alright for the human to eat, and not for me?”

After a few seconds, I hear a female voice, which sounds more mature than that of Snips and Snails, call out, “Alright, everypony! This field trip is over! We're heading back to the school now!”

As I hear moans of disappointment from younger-sounding voices, I also hear Pinkie Pie cry, “Oh, what've I done?”

I answer, “It's alright. I think we've minimized the damage.”

Neither of us says anymore as we make our way out of Ponyville and toward the Everfree forest. By the time we're passing by Fluttershy's cottage, Pinkie Pie has stopped crying; but, as we see Fluttershy taking care of a family of weasels(?), her question on seeing us indicates to me that Pinkie Pie is still feeling bad about her actions.

The timid yellow pegasa approaches the human and earth pony and asks, “Pinkie Pie, are you alright?”

I answer, “It's just a matter between me and her that needs to be taken care of. Nothing for you to worry about.”

Fluttershy stops before she can cross the bridge. But, when we've nearly entered the forest, I hear her call out, “I hope you feel better, Pinkie.”

After a few seconds of following the path into the forest, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “I don't know if I'll ever feel better.”

I find myself unable to think of a response to the pink earth pony's comment. While I'm aware of the burden being guided through the forest, I'm not personally pulling it; my character is. There is something troubling about the environment of the Everfree forest, but that doesn't solve the mystery, either. Whatever it is that seems to keep me from thinking of what I can say to comfort Pinkie Pie, it doesn't stop my character from continuing to pull the wagon with what for all intents and purposes is Gilda's coffin through the forest and to my character's house.

Instead of heading through the gate, my character follows the path a little further to the intersection, then turns to a path that leads past the house and back toward the family history center. Following the path beyond that, the party of two enters a cave, at which point the path starts going downward. After a few minutes the path levels out again and widens, at which point my character stops walking. As he produces a flashlight, which just happens to be in his inventory, and turns it on; the cave lights up, showing what appear to be bunk beds of stone in the walls along the path. He continues on a little further, in spite of the screams of fear coming from Pinkie Pie. Finally, upon entering a room at the end of the path, my character stops; and I say, “Alright, here's where I'll keep Gilda's remains. I think we'll leave the wagon here, too.”

Hearing me say that the wagon will stay in the room with Gilda, Pinkie Pie, saying nothing, just turns and gallops back to the entrance of the cave as fast as she can. So much for laughing at the things that scare her.

In the mean time, as soon as my character lets go of the rope, then while he stands over the box with Gilda's remains, I say, “Well, Gilda, I'm guessing you wouldn't have expected your remains to end up in my care. But, neither did I. And, all this after you talked about not wanting to spend your time with lame-os.”

Over the box I see a transparent Gilda appear, and hear her say, “You're nowhere near as lame as those ponies. I don't mind having you keep my remains. And, as for you eating a cupcake made from some of my meat, I can think of no creature I'd rather have eat me than you.” After that, the apparition disappears, leaving my character alone once again.

As my character walks out of the room, and out of the burial cave altogether, I find myself thinking of what this'll mean for the future. Having told Pinkie Pie that I love her, and having effectively let her know the error of her ways, I know things are going to be better this time around. The only question is how much better will it get? That question will be answered in due time. Right now, I have a gift to offer the pink mare, and an invitation to the next reading.

At the entrance of the cave, I find Pinkie Pie evidently waiting for me. She says, “I'm sorry I couldn't stay in there. Yes, I know I'm supposed to laugh at my fears, but I just didn't feel like it down there. I can't explain it. All I know is I won't kill anymore creatures, and I won't kill any of my friends. I promise. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Again, she goes through the actions as she Pinkie promises.

I answer, “That's good to hear. Now, if you'll follow me to the house, I have a gift for you, and an invitation.”

That seems to raise her spirits. Immediately she starts bouncing around me and chanting, “I'm gonna get a present, I'm gonna get a present.” Then, she stops and, tilting her head, asks, “What are you gonna give me?”

As my character starts heading toward the house, I answer, “It's a book, a special one, a book that's come to mean a lot to me over the years.”

The pink pony doesn't go back to bouncing, she just canters next to me as she asks, “What's this book called?”

I answer, “It's called The Book of Mormon.”

Pinkie Pie pauses for a moment, then trots back up to me and asks, “This isn't your autobiography, is it?”

I chuckle before answering, “No, it's a book of scripture. It's the ancient record of two peoples that start out as one family that leaves their home in the Middle East and travels to a continent they call Bountiful or Nephi, but what is known in my time as South America. After the family splits up, the resulting two peoples have many fights between them, and the people that starts out as good becomes bad at one point, while the people that starts out bad becomes good at the same time. At one point, the two peoples unite for a while, in time for the Christ to visit them and give them a new set of laws for them to follow. Then, for a few centuries after that they follow those laws, until one generation stops following them, and from there on things go downhill. The united family group divides again, and the one that's named for the originally good group goes so bad that they're eventually and completely destroyed. The one remaining member of the people named for the originally good people makes a final record of the group when they were at their best, a chapter about activities that lead to their destruction, and leaves a promise to the reader in the last chapter on how they can know that the record is true.

“There's also a record of a group that preceded these two peoples, how they made it to the Americas, how their population fluctuated wildly over a few thousand years as they went through cycles of good and evil, and how they eventually and completely destroyed themselves, leaving one member, their last king, to meet the next group to inherit the land.”

By the time I've finished describing the story, my character and Pinkie Pie have arrived at the front door of the house, having turned the corner to walk on the sidewalk just past the edge of the house.

Pinkie Pie, waiting at the door, says, “Wow. Obviously you've read the book all the way through. How many times have you read it?”

I answer, “You know, I've lost count. Enough times that I have a favorite story from the book, which I'm sure we'll get to read eventually. If you'll wait here, I'll go ahead and get it.”

My character opens the door and enters the house, then closes the door behind him. Once inside, he makes his way to the closet, opens the door, and grabs a copy of the book to give to the pink party pony. Then he turns around, to find Pinkie Pie immediately behind him.

I call out, “Woah, how did you get in here?”

Pinkie Pie covers her mouth with a front hoof and giggles, then puts the hoof down and says, “Well, duh, I got in through the door,” pointing to the front door.

I ask, “Weren't you supposed to wait outside while I got the book?”

Pinkie Pie, looking at the front door, asks, “I was?” Then, turning back to my character, she says, “I thought you wanted me to wait inside your house. If you wanted me to wait outside, you should've said so. Oh, well, I'll remember it for next time.”

Well, since she's there, I figure she might as well receive the book.

As my character holds out the copy of the Book of Mormon, I say, “Well, here it is. I've already started reading the book with three stallions. If you want to join in, I'm sure they'll likely be coming some time soon. Yesterday, we read the first chapter of First Nephi. You can go ahead and read it now, or any time you like. We'll be reading the second chapter this evening. You may also read the introduction, which includes testimonies of witnesses that helped in the translation of the record, witnesses that were allowed to handle the original gold plates that contained the record, and Joseph Smith Junior, who was given the record to translate in the first place.” Pausing for a moment, I add, “You know, I probably should've extended that invitation to the three stallions, as well.”

Hearing my last statement, Pinkie Pie tilts her head and asks, “Who are these three stallions?”

I answer, “I'm sure you know them. Berry Ground, Stunts, and Emerald Hill.”

Pinkie Pie, straightening her head again, accepts the book from me, then, starting to glare, says, “Wait a minute. Didn't you tell them a story that made one of them sick?”

I answer, “That's right.”

Before I can say more, Pinkie Pie adds, looking away from me, “And then they come and read with you.” After a few seconds, she inhales rather noisily, then turns to me and, smiling, concludes, “That must mean you made up!”

Again I answer, “There's a principle I've taken from my experiences with 3D modeling and animation: if I make a mesh, I should be the one to clean it up.” And, for those who ask, yes, it is a play on the word mess.

I can only guess Pinkie Pie gets the connection, as she once again covers her mouth with the front hoof and giggles. After a few seconds, she drops the hoof again and, looking at the book, says, “Well, if I'm going to be able to keep up with the four of you, I'd better start reading. You said you'd be reading chapter two of First Nephi?”

I answer, “That's right. And, if you have any questions, you can bring them up during the reading. As I said to the stallions, if I can't answer a question, it may be that someone else could. And, it's also possible that you could have the answer to a question that one of the stallions has, or one that I have.”

The pink pony had opened the book and started turning pages when I mentioned about having questions of my own. Hearing that, she looks up at me again and tilts her head and asks, “Wait, didn't you say you'd lost count of how many times you read this book?”

I answer, “That's correct.”

She looks down at the book, then back up at me again, and says, “Well, that must mean that either you can't count very high before losing count, or this book is more complex than I realized. But, if it's come to mean so much to you, it must be a good book.”

I answer, “It contains the word of God, so yes, it is a good book. And, there is a lot of complexity to it. As many times as I've read it, I learn new things from it each time. While prophecies in the book are given in clear language, this is the religious record of a people that existed for some one thousand years, and thus it spans generations of humans. I encourage you to read it, whether it's with me and the stallions, or by yourself.” I add in admission, “I don't completely understand the Book of Mormon either, so part of the reason for the readings is so that I can learn to understand it better. That, and it helps me to see the stories in the book from different perspectives. And, your perspective on the stories we'll be reading is going to be just as valid as that of myself, those stallions, or the perspectives of any other ponies, or other creatures for that matter, that'll be reading with us in the future.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie closes the book and thinks aloud, “My perspective.” I'm not sure how to read this change in the pink earth pony's behavior, not even when she asks, “Is there something specifically about me that you find interesting?”

As I've mentioned before, I do find earth ponies of particular interest; but, I must admit, I am specifically interested in Pinkie Pie. And, while I could answer honestly, I have to wonder how I could guide the information afterwards so I wouldn't have to reveal the details about the game in which she's starring. And, I don't want to lie to the pink earth pony, not even this fictional version of her. Of course, on the other hand, it could be she's only asking to confirm her suspicions, and won't probe further. I find myself considering the possibility that she could somehow discover the reasons for herself, without probing me with questions. She's an unpredictable character in the animated series, and I've made her an unpredictable character in this game as well.

Finally, I decide to answer honestly, although incompletely, “Let's just say that I've read and heard things about you, and I want to learn more about you because of those things.”

I'm surprised when, instead of asking more questions, the pink party pony starts tearing up. She sniffles, rubs her nose with a forelimb, then says, “Thank you, Mormon. Thank you for being honest with me. It means a lot to me that you want to learn more about me. I hope I can be a good teacher, a good example, for you.” With that, she opens the book again and proceeds to turn pages, then read what I recognize as one of the testimonies.

I can't say for sure, but I think she's starting with the testimony of the three witnesses. I decide to leave her to her reading, while I decide to go out to the orchard to gather some fruits, and maybe to the garden for some vegetables, to make snacks for my character and his guests as we read.

Somehow, I'm not surprised, as soon as I reach the orchard, to find Princess Celestia there.

The white alicorn says, “I've noticed you've been leading ponies from Ponyville here. I've also noticed they returned later, carrying books with them.”

I answer, “Yesterday, three stallions and I started reading a book.” I then ask, “You're Princess Celestia, right?”

The white alicorn answers, “You don't have to be so formal here. We're not in the castle, and no other ponies are around. You may call me Celestia, or Tia, whichever you prefer.”

It's worth noting, at this point, the importance of how the white alicorn princess instructs the one playing the game. If she invites the gamer to refer to her informally in informal circumstances, as she's done to me at this point, that's one of the best indications that the gamer is on the right path. If she speaks of her preference to be referred to more formally in formal circumstances, that's an indication that the gamer is on the wrong course, and could lose if he or she doesn't change course soon.

I say, “As you wish, Tia.”

The white alicorn princess then asks, “So, is Pinkie Pie here as well?”

I answer, “She is. Do you want to meet her?”

Celestia answers, “I trust her with you. One thing I'd like to know about, though, is what are the books the stallions were carrying?”

I answer, “They're copies of a book that means a lot to me, the Book of Mormon.” I then ask, “Would you like a copy?”

The white alicorn princess answers, “I would appreciate a copy. If I'm going to see ponies walking around with this book, I would like to know what it contains.”

I state, “Right now, I'm gathering some fruits for refreshments for the three stallions that'll be coming for a reading of the book. When I'm ready to go inside, you can follow me; and I'll get you a copy. And, if you'd like to join us, we'll likely start as soon as the three stallions arrive.”

Celestia answers, “I appreciate the offer, but I have duties at the castle. I'll accept a copy of the book and read it when I get back and have the first opportunity.”

By this point, my character has gathered what I figure are enough apples, so he starts heading back to the house.

On the way, I ask, “Oh, and do you think your sister, Luna, would like a copy of the book?”

It's a few seconds before Celestia answers, “I suppose she probably will, especially after seeing me reading it. It would be a good idea for you to give me two copies of the book that I can bring back with me.”

I state, “That shouldn't be a problem. I have plenty of copies.” By this point, my character has made it to the front door, and now opens it.

As my character enters the door, Celestia says, “I'll wait out here for you to get the books.”

My character places the fruits on the coffee table, approximately next to Pinkie Pie, while he proceeds to the closet to retrieve the books.

In the mean time, as soon as she hears the voice, the pink earth pony turns toward the doorway and says, “Oh, hi, Princess.”

I don't see it, but I assume Celestia nods as she answers, “Hello, Pinkie Pie.” I then hear her say, “I notice the book isn't limited to the stallions.”

As my character gets two copies of the Book of Mormon, I answer, “I saw nothing wrong with offering Pinkie Pie a copy of the book.”

As my character turns back to the doorway, I notice that, while Celestia hasn't entered, she is sticking her head through the doorway. As she looks at me, she says, “Seeing the bearer of the element of laughter reading the book makes me all the more curious about it.” Then, when my character reaches her with the two copies, she says, “I appreciate this. You can be sure I'll read this, and give a copy to my sister.” With that, a white aura envelops the books, which disappear with the white alicorn.

As my character turns to get the apples off the coffee table, Pinkie Pie says, “You even have Princess Celestia interested in your book. Is anypony else going to be interested?”

I answer, “I wouldn't be surprised.”

I then hear the pink party pony ask, “What are those apples for?”

I answer, “I thought I'd offer refreshments to anyone interested in having a snack during the reading this evening.”

As my character proceeds into the kitchen, I hear Pinkie Pie, surprisingly close behind him, sigh and say, “If you're going to throw a party, you need to do it the right way.” Before I can respond, she continues, “You need candy and cupcakes and balloons and streamers and punch and games and all sorts of fun stuff.”

I wait for Pinkie Pie to say more. When she doesn't, I answer, “The three stallions seemed to enjoy reading the first chapter of First Nephi yesterday evening. I'm sure they'll enjoy reading the second chapter this evening.”

The pink earth pony groans before saying, “You're not getting the point. And besides, you're gonna need a lot more ponies for it to work.”

By this point, my character has gotten a knife out of the drawer and started cutting up the apples.

I answer, “My objective here isn't to throw a big party. My objective is to make my guests feel welcome while we read.”

At this statement, I hear Pinkie Pie utter an extended “Oh.” Then, after my character starts cutting out the core from each slice and eating the core, she says, “Of course, you're going to need more than apples to make it really fun.”

After a moment, I say, “You may be right. I also have a vegetable garden behind the house. If you want, you can dig up some carrots, or other vegetables ponies will like to snack on while they read.”

At my announcement, the pink earth pony growls low and just barely audible before saying, “Fine. I'll go back to reading.”

As Pinkie Pie returns to the front room, I'm left to wonder to myself what just happened. I know the pink earth pony grew up on a rock farm, and I have to wonder if rocks are easier to harvest than vegetables. It's also possible that Pinkie Pie has had no experience harvesting vegetables, and what I said offended her on that level. It could also be that she did have experience with harvesting vegetables, just none that she enjoyed. Whatever the case is, it's clear I need to talk with her about it before the stallions arrive, some time soon.

After having prepared the first apple, I have my character put the knife down and go back into the front room and sit on the couch just behind the pink pony. Once he's there, I ask, “Pinkie Pie, did I say something that offended you?”

The pink pony says nothing, just continues reading.

When I get no response from the question, I say, “It's just your response when I mentioned the vegetable garden. Did you have a bad experience with vegetables or a vegetable garden?”

At this question, I hear a thump which I can only interpret as Pinkie Pie closing the book as hard as she can.

She then turns to my character and shouts, “I've had no experience with vegetable gardens, alright? I grew up on a rock farm! If you know anything about me, you should know that!”

I have my character pat an area next to him as I say, “Come up here.” Then, once the pink pony jumps up onto the couch and lays down next to my character, I have him stroke the side of her neck as I say, “I didn't know you had no experience with vegetable gardens. If I had known about that, I wouldn't have said anything about it.” After another second, I say, “I don't know how different harvesting rocks is from harvesting vegetables, but I'm guessing there is a difference. If I made you feel bad, I didn't mean to.”

Presently the pink earth pony props herself up on my character, uses her front hooves to adjust his head so I can see only her face, then puts a front hoof below where I can see, most likely over my character's mouth. When she's sure I won't say anymore, she says, “I know you didn't mean to hurt my feelings. I guess I shouldn't have gotten so mad.” At this point, she removes her hoof from my character's mouth, or at least to where I can see it again, and backs away, dropping to all fours again, and says, “It's just that none of my memories of working on the rock farm are any fun. Is it fun picking vegetables?”

I answer, “It can be.” I have my character look out the nearest window, and I can see the light outside indicating sometime between day and night. As he turns back to Pinkie Pie, I add, “If you want experience in a vegetable garden, we'll have to wait until tomorrow, in the morning. You can spend the night here, if you want, and tomorrow morning I'll teach you how to harvest vegetables.”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll leave picking veggies to you. Something tells me I wouldn't be very good at it, anyway.”

I answer, “You're probably right. Your gift is in throwing parties.” I pause for a second before continuing, “So, how does harvesting rocks work?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “You'll have to ask Diane about that. I could get her, if you want, and if she's willing.”

Before I can answer, I hear a knock at the door. Responding to that, I say, “I'm guessing the stallions are here.” My character stands up, then turns to Pinkie Pie; and I say, “I am curious about how a pony would go about harvesting rocks. Maybe after the reading you could answer some of my questions. In the mean time, we'd better get to welcoming our guests.”

Pinkie Pie jumps over the back of the couch, somehow avoiding getting hurt, then says, “I'll go cut up the rest of the apples.” And, before I can respond, she disappears through the door to the kitchen.

My character makes his way to the front door and opens it, to see Berry Ground, with Stunts and Emerald Hill behind him.

I say, “It's nice to meet you. We're going to have another pony reading with us. Right now, she's preparing some refreshments. She'll be out when she's ready.”

Stunts nickers and thinks aloud, “I wonder who it is.”

Just then, I hear the door to the kitchen open. As my character turns to focus on the source of the sound, I see the pink earth pony coming in with a plate full of sliced apples in her mouth.

At first she says, “Ah wewy … “ then puts the plate on the floor before saying, “I'm ready with the snacks when everypony else is ready to read.”

I find myself smiling as my character approaches Pinkie Pie to retrieve the plate of apple slices from her, and I say, “That's just fine. I'll take the apples, and you can get your book.” Taking that as a cue, my character kneels down to pick up the plate.

Pinkie Pie nods, then runs to her copy of the Book of Mormon.

As my character stands up again and turns to the stallions, I can see the reverence in Berry's eyes. I find this understandable. Pinkie Pie's a bearer of an element of harmony. For a pony from Ponyville, or from anywhere else in Equestria, I'd imagine, meeting her or any other member of the Mane Six would be equivalent to me meeting a general authority. Or, that's the nearest parallel I can find. I say, “Now, if you'll go back to the lawn, Pinkie Pie and I'll join you, and we'll all read then.”

The three stallions obey, and Pinkie Pie and my character follow close behind. Once outside, Emerald Hill says, “Please forgive us. We were delayed at Fluttershy's house. Her pet, Angel, was running wild, and wouldn't let us into the forest. That rabbit can be really mean when he wants to be.”

I ask, “Is everyone alright?”

Emerald Hill answers, “We're fine.”

I say, “Well, in that case, shall we begin?”

Before any of the stallions can answer, I hear a mature, female voice next to my character ask, “May I join thee?”

As my character turns to see the origin of the voice, I see a dark-purple alicorn with, I'd say, light-blue mane. I recognize her as Princess Luna. I answer, “As long as you have a copy of the Book of Mormon, you're welcome to join us in the reading.” My character looks around to see all the ponies present and ready to read. As my character turns back to the dark-purple alicorn, I say, “We'll be reading chapter two of First Nephi. Would you like to begin?”

Princess Luna answers, “I'd be honored.” Then, as she joins one side of the circle and my character joins another side, she produces a copy of the Book of Mormon, turns a few pages, then reads, “For behold, it came to pass that the Lord spake unto my father, yea, even in a dream, and said unto him: Blessed art thou Lehi, because of the things which thou hast done; and because thou hast been faithful and declared unto this people the things which I commanded thee, behold, they seek to take away thy life.”

My character turns to see Pinkie Pie between my character and Princess Luna. I ask her, “Will you read the next verse?”

The pink earth pony nods, answering, “Okie dokie lokie,” then turns to her book and reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord commanded my father, even in a dream, that he should take his family and depart into the wilderness.” She then looks at me and says, “When we're finished with this, I'm gonna have to read the first chapter.”

My character nods, and I say, “I'll read the next verse,” before continuing, “And it came to pass that he was obedient unto the word of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded him.”

Emerald Hill, next to me, reads the next verse: “And it came to pass that he departed into the wilderness. And he left his house, and the land of his inheritance, and his gold, and his silver, and his precious things, and took nothing with him, save it were his family, and provisions, and tents, and departed into the wilderness.”

Berry Ground, the next in the circle, reads the next verse: “And he came down by the borders near the shore of the Red Sea; and he traveled in the wilderness in the borders which are nearer the Red Sea; and he did travel in the wilderness with his family, which consisted of my mother, Sariah, and my elder brothers, who were Laman, Lemuel, and Sam.”

Stunts, between Berry Ground and Princess Luna, reads, “And it came to pass that when he had traveled three days in the wilderness, he pitched his tent in a valley by the side of a river of water.”

Princess Luna then reads, “And it came to pass that he built an alter of stones, and made an offering unto the Lord, and gave thanks unto the Lord our God.”

As my character looks at the alicorn, I get the feeling she has a question or comment. But, before either of us can say anything, Pinkie Pie reads, “And it came to pass that he called the name of the river, Laman, and it emptied into the Red Sea; and the valley was in the borders near the mouth thereof.” She then looks up at my character and says, “Your turn now.”

As my character looks at the pink pony, I say, “Just a moment.” Then he turns to Princess Luna, and I ask, “Do you have a question or comment?”

The alicorn answers, “I just find it interesting that this Lehi builds an alter and offers sacrifice. I have not heard of such a thing in a thousand years.”

I say, “I'll continue reading now,” before I read, “And when my father saw that the waters of the river emptied into the fountain of the Red Sea, he spake unto Laman saying: O that thou mightest be like unto this river, continually running into the fountain of all righteousness!”

Now Pinkie Pie asks, “Wasn't Laman already a good guy?”

I answer, “Not really. We'll find out later that he and his brother Lemuel need to be coerced to do the right thing. Then, when they get to South America—“

Before I can say more, Pinkie Pie puts a front hoof on my character's arm and says, “Don't tell me. I prefer to read it on my own. I just wanted an idea about what Laman was like.”

I state, “You asked a good question, one that deserved an answer. But, we do learn more about what kind of people Laman and Lemuel are later on.” Then, as my character turns to Emerald Hill, I say, “Go ahead and read.”

The pegasus nods, then reads, “And he also spake unto Lemuel: O that thou mightest be like unto this valley, firm and steadfast, and immovable in keeping the commandments of the Lord!”

Berry Ground then reads, “Now this he spake because of the stiffneckedness of Laman and Lemuel; for behold they did murmur in many things against their father, because he was a visionary man, and had led them out of the land of Jerusalem, to leave the land of their inheritance, and their gold, and their silver, and their precious things, to perish in the wilderness. And this they said he had done because of the foolish imaginations of his heart.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie says, “Well, this explains why Lehi said what he said then. I'm not close to my dad either, but I don't think that makes me a bad pony. After I got my cutie mark, after throwing my first party, I just felt I'd be better off away from the rock farm, better off with ponies in a city, or at least in a town.” She then turns to her copy of the book and reads, “And it came to pass that my father did speak unto them in the valley of Lemuel with power, being filled with the Spirit, until their frames did shake before him. And he did confound them, that they durst not utter against him, wherefore they did as he commanded them.” Now, Pinkie Pie looks up at me and says, “Just like you said.”

I have my character nod before I read, “And my father dwelt in a tent.” I then look up and say, “Well, how's that for a long one?”

The ponies in the circle laugh for a few seconds before Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, and also having great desires to know of the mysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord, and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father; wherefore, I did not rebel against him like unto my brothers.”

Berry Ground then reads, “And I spake unto Sam, making known unto him the things which the Lord had manifested unto me by this Holy Spirit. And it came to pass that he believed in my words.” Presently he nickers and says, “The oldest two are the bad guys, and the youngest are the good guys.”

Stunts then reads, “But, behold, Laman and Lemuel would not hearken unto my words; and being grieved because of the hardness of their hearts I cried unto the Lord for them.”

Princess Luna reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Blessed art thou, Nephi, because of thy faith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands.”

I read, “And inasmuch as thy brethren shall rebel against thee, they shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And inasmuch as thou shalt keep my commandments, thou shalt be made a ruler and a teacher over thy brethren.”

Berry Ground reads, “For behold, in that day that they shall rebel against me, I will curse them even with a sore curse, and they shall have no power over thy seed except they shall rebel against me also.”

Finally, Stunts reads, “And if it so be that they rebel against me, they shall be a scourge unto thy seed, to stir them up in the ways of remembrance.”

My character closes his copy of the book, prompting the ponies to close their copies as well; and I say, “Tomorrow we'll be reading chapter three.” It's then that I notice the plate of apple slices hasn't been touched. As my character points out the plate, I say, “I'd prepared the apples for everyone to snack on during the reading. But, I suppose they can be eaten after the reading just as well.”

My statement is taken as the necessary invitation, as some slices of apple rise, surrounded by two different colors of aura, indicating either Stunts or Princess Luna was accepting them. Other slices are grabbed either by pony forelimbs or by pony lips.

My character turns to the nighttime princess as she bites off half the apple slice hovering at her mouth.

She comments, “You chose well,” before adding, “I must return to the castle now to raise the moon. I thank thee for allowing me this opportunity to take part in the reading. The next time I have an opportunity, I shall gladly accept.” And, with that, she, the slices of apple she chose, and her copy of the Book of Mormon disappear.

After that, Pinkie Pie turns to the three stallions and says, “Could I go with you through the forest? Once we're out, I can make it home on my own.”

Berry Ground answers, “That's fine with us.” And, with that, the four ponies make their way out of the gate, with Berry Ground lingering behind to close it, and they head off into the forest.

I find that some part of me had hoped Pinkie Pie would stay. She could've slept on the couch, or in one of the bedrooms other than that of my character. But, she made her decision. She'll be fine with the three stallions.

I look forward to her visiting again tomorrow, that is the game's tomorrow. But, in the mean time, my character cleans up the plate of apple slices, gets some food for himself, prepares and eats it in the kitchen, then returns to his room and retires to his bed. After that, I save and close down the game.

Not bad for my second game day. While I've set Pinkie Pie on the right course, as Diane said, I have my work cut out for me to keep her on that course. But, I expect that work to be well worth it, and very fulfilling. So, as I've already written in my notes, until the game's tomorrow.

Chapter 3: Experience with Two Unicorn Mares

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Now, before I resume the game, let me say that I don't expect any major changes to my character's second encounter with Lyra. I still startle her by talking to her through the communications device my character'll be using. On the other hand, I plan on having assistance as I talk to the unicorn in the dungeon. So, with that in mind, let's resume.

As I open the second game file, I hear knocking at the front door.

My character gets up, opens his bedroom door, makes his way to the front room and door and opens that door to see Princess Celestia there once again.

I say, “Hi.”

The white alicorn nods and says, “We need your help at the castle in Canterlot. My sister Luna and I suspect a threat approaching, and we could use your help taking care of it. Will you help us?”

I ask, “Could you give me more information on this threat?”

Princess Celestia answers, “We suspect another acquaintance of yours, a unicorn named Lyra, may be planning to break into our castle. We are aware of her fascination with humans, and Luna has informed me of dreams she sensed from her, about going into the human world and leaving Equestria behind. She thinks Lyra could go so far as to make sure no one follows her.”

I ask, “Is there a way from here to the human world?” I haven't forgotten the answer to the question; it's just important that I ask.

Princess Celestia nods and answers, “We have a magic mirror that serves as a doorway that opens to a high school in the human world. The other side of the doorway is the base of a statue, and any pony that goes through comes out human in the other world. I've heard that Lyra brought a hammer, and we suspect that she'll use it to destroy the mirror. We do not believe Lyra understands the kind of world she could enter; and we worry for her life if she gives herself no way of coming back. So, will you help us?”

I still can't help thinking of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at the mention of the mirror, and that song when I hear about the hammer. I answer, “Sure, I'll help you. What exactly do you want me to do?”

The white alicorn says, “Thank you. We just need you to do whatever you can to keep Lyra from getting to the mirror. We have lots of security equipment in the castle, but that doesn't mean we're completely secure.”

After a moment, I say, “I have to get some equipment from here, then I can join you at the castle, if that's what you want.”

Princess Celestia nods again, then says, “We've also decided to offer you an assistant.”

Once again I know the answer, but it's important that I ask the question, “What assistant? Who's going to assist me?”

The white alicorn princess starts to back away from me as she answers, “She bears an element of harmony. And, I'm guessing the two of you are friends by now.”

As she backs a few more steps to reveal my assistant, I'm not really surprised to see the pink earth pony. I am honestly pleased to see her again as I say, “Pinkie Pie.”

The pink pony smiles and responds, “Hi, Mormom. I'm happy to see you, too.”

This is part of the reward I intend for pointing the party pony in a more constructive course of action. While I doubt everyone who plays this game will take the interest in Pinkie Pie that I take, she is the one, beside the gamer, who stars in this game. What happens to Pinkie Pie, and what she does, are the deciding factors in whether the gamer wins or loses. But, I'm getting off track.

Princess Celestia says, “I'm happy to see that I am right about the two of you. So, Mormon, you get the items and tools you need, then you and Pinkie Pie meet us at the castle in Canterlot. I'll see you there.” And, with that, she disappears.

Presently Pinkie Pie approaches my character and asks, “So, can I help you with anything?”

As my character backs into the house to allow the pink pony to enter, I answer, “I don't know for sure. All I need to get are my tablet, a surveillance camera, a listening device, and a microphone. I have those things around the house, and I can find them easily enough on my own. Can you think of anything else I might need?”

As Pinkie Pie enters the house, she answers, “Well, once you stop Lyra, I think you're gonna need advice on how to talk to her. When you told the stallions about your experience eating horse meat, you made one of them sick. Lyra's fascinated with humans, and I don't think it'd be a good idea to discourage that. Don't tell her about your horse meat experience. It'll trouble Lyra, but it'll be harder on Luna. But, you know that already.” By this point, the pink earth pony has made her way to the couch facing, more or less, the front door.

In the mean time, my character has closed the door behind her.

Pinkie Pie jumps up on the couch, settles down, and continues, “It may be alright to let her know about human omnivory, but it may also be a good idea to let her know about other aspects of being human that ponies won't be used to, that may not even be part of being a pony. Anything on that order you think you could mention?”

In the My Little Pony Friendship is Magic animated series, Pinkie Pie often demonstrated abilities, intellect, and wisdom that most wouldn't expect her to have, and I've tried to incorporate that into her character in this game. Thus, here I have the pink earth pony offering really good advice to the gamer. And, I'm convinced that the pink party pony has somehow read the previous game file and discovered what I'd told Lyra in that game. Could I have programmed her better than I thought? Whatever the case is, she asked me a question; and I answer it, “Well, unlike most creatures, humans aren't relegated to a single season to reproduce. And, whether it's the case with ponies or not, while humans can control them, we do have strong reproductive instincts. Humans also seem to have a talent for being destructive, especially to themselves and to each other. Not everything that a human eats or drinks is good for that human, although there are a lot of things a human can eat and drink that are good for him or her. On the other hand, humans have invented a lot of good things, have done a lot of good things.” After a momentary pause, I conclude, “I suppose the best thing I can do is ask her why she wants to be a human. If she wants to become a human simply because they have hands, then it's probably best that she remain a pony, since there is more to being a human than hands. If she wants to do all the good things humans have done, she may want to try doing those things as a pony first. There are likely limits to what a unicorn can do, that don't limit a human. On the other hand, there may be things that limit a human that don't limit a unicorn. In short, I need to know why she wants to be a human before I can know what to do next.”

It seems to take a few minutes for the pink earth pony to process what I said to her. Still settled in her chosen spot on the couch, she taps her chin with a front hoof, then finally looks at my character again and says, “It sounds to me like you already have some good ideas about what to talk about with Lyra. Start off by asking her why she wants to be a human, and her answer should let you know where you need to take the conversation next.” Then, rising again and jumping off the couch, she says, “So, let's get to work and get those items you mentioned. What were they again? A tablet? A surveillance camera? A listening device? A microphone?”

I answer, “That's right. Have you seen those things before?”

Pinkie Pie hums in contemplation for a moment, then scratches the back of her head with a back hoof, then answers, “The camera sounds familiar, and I'm sure I've seen a microphone before. As for the other two items, I don't know. A listening device can be just about anything. And, a tablet can be a container or shape of medicine, a slab of rock with writing on it, or something else that doesn't seem to belong with the other items you mentioned.”

As my character moves toward the door opposite the closet, then opens it, I say, “In that case, you come with me. You can look for the camera and the microphone, and I'll look for the listening device and the tablet. If I find the listening device and tablet first, I'll help you find the camera and microphone. But, somehow I'm thinking it'll be easier for you to find the camera and microphone.”

As the pink party pony approaches my character, she smiles and says, “Okie dokie lokie.”

In the hallway, the two make their way to the first door on my character's left and enter a room with what looks like a mess of wires, boxes, boards, and other items on desks against each of the four walls.

I choose a desk against the adjacent wall closest to the door, while Pinkie Pie chooses a desk opposite the door.

I have no problems finding the tablet and listening device, and I even find a bag to carry the items. My character puts them into the bag, then turns to Pinkie Pie; and I ask, “Did you find the camera and microphone?”

As the pink pony turns to me, she looks like she's about to cry as she answers, “I haven't been able to find anything yet.”

At the moment I asked the question, my character looked up and allowed me to see, through his eyes, the microphone right in front of her. When she talks about not having found anything, I say, “Oh, I don't know about that. The microphone is right in front of you.”

Pinkie Pie perks up as she turns to the desk again and asks, “The microphone?” Then, seeing what no doubt looks to her like a silver-colored lollypop, she points to it with a front hoof and, turning to me, asks, “You mean this?”

I answer, “That's right.”

Grinning, the party pony says, “Well, I guess I found one of those things after all.”

As my character looks around, I say, “The camera shouldn't be too far away from the microphone.”

Pinkie Pie, looking around the desk with the microphone, asks, “So, what does this surveillance camera look like?”

Wouldn't you know it, I see the camera, not on the desk where Pinkie Pie is looking, but on the desk next to it. As my character walks over to the desk and picks up the camera, I answer, “It looks something like this.”

As the pink pony looks and sees what my character is holding, she says, “Oh. I guess you found all the items after all. You didn't need my help then, I guess.”

As my character puts the camera, then the microphone, in the bag, I say, “I wouldn't go so far as to say that. You were helpful.”

The party pony, her mane starting to droop, asks, “How? All I did was ask a question.”

I answer, “Yes, you did. And, that question was helpful.” I then watch Pinkie Pie turn to me before continuing, “You'd be surprised at how helpful even just asking a question can be. I've had times when all I had to do was start asking a question, and I wouldn't have to finish that question before I found the answer. I don't know if I could've found all the items I needed if you hadn't been here to ask about them first. At least, not so quickly. Thank you for your help, Pinkie. Shall we head for Ponyville?”

Pinkie Pie squees, and her mane fluffs up again, when she hears me thank her for her help. Having been cheered up by what I say, she says, “Sure. If we have everything we need, then let's go.” And, with that, she leads the way back into the hallway, to the front room, and to the front door.

My character follows behind, closing doors along the way. He opens the front door, allowing the party pony to exit first, then follows and closes the door behind them.

Once the two have left the front porch, I ask, “Before we leave, how about an apple for each of us?”

At this point, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and, giving him a strange look, asks, “An apple?”

I answer, “I haven't had anything to eat, and I thought I, at least, could use something before we leave, or perhaps for the trip. Of course, if you've already eaten, then I could just get an apple for myself.”

The pink earth pony starts to snicker as she says, “Now, wait a minute. You mean to tell me that you eat apples for breakfast?” The way she puts it does sound kind of funny.

But, I answer, “I've eaten various fruits for breakfast, not just apples.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie bursts into full-out giggles.

Watching the earth pony rolling in the grass, I say, “I'm guessing you've never had fruit for breakfast?”

The pink pony seems lost in her mirth. I hear her say, “Apples for breakfast. I've gotta tell Twilight about that one.”

As my character turns to the orchard, I say, “I just need a few minutes to get the apple. Then we'll head out.” Then, leaving the party pony on the lawn, my character heads for the orchard to retrieve the fruit.

It doesn't take very long for my character to find and pick a nice, big, red apple from the nearest tree, after which he returns to Pinkie Pie's position.

When she sees my character holding the apple, Pinkie Pie expresses surprise as she says, “You mean you really are going to eat an apple for breakfast?”

I don't answer vocally; but as my character heads to the gate to open it, he takes a bite from the apple. He then moves aside to allow Pinkie Pie to go ahead of him.

I can't tell if the pink earth pony's attitude toward having apples for breakfast has really changed, but I hear her say, “Wow,” as she passes my character and heads into the pathway.

My character follows close behind, just pausing for a moment to close the gate, and the human and pony make their way through the forest on their way to Ponyville.

One thing I must say about the Everfree Forest: As long as it takes to travel through it, it's never boring. And, it's not just the voices of the creatures living there. I find my attitude toward the Everfeee Forest not unlike the attitude of Wesley from the Princess Bride toward the Fire Swamp, except, for all intents and purposes, my character does live in the Everfree Forest. Still, the forest does have a charm of it's own, at least as far as I can see. And, now, knowing that I'm wandering from the story for just a moment, I do have to wonder how well an ROUS would do in the Everfree Forest, and how well an Equestrian timber wolf would do in the Fire Swamp. What a crossover that'd be.

We finally make our way out of the forest, and head into town, where we come across a group of ponies gathering around a traveling stage. I can't help stop and have a look at the well-designed stage, although Pinkie Pie seems to want me to keep going. Just then, I hear an introduction, in which a female voice announces some pony known as “the Great and Powerful Trixie.” It's clear to me where the emphasis goes, as the voice rolls the r's in the words “Great” and “Trixie.” Presently, an azure pony with mane of layered pale blue and white appears, dressed in a light-purple cape and pointed hat, both with stars, circles, and sparks(?) decorating them. As I watch, it's clear she can really put on a display. She clearly has different ways of emphasizing what she says, as she finishes her next sentence with a fireworks display.

But, it's evident that not all of the ponies are impressed by what they're seeing from Trixie. I hear various voices from the Mane Six talking about the evils of showing off. And, it's clear to me that what Rainbow Dash says is a cover for her verbal mistake, as she offers what I can tell is an insincere heckle to the performer.

And, that's when I hear Trixie say the words that evidently ring in many fans' ears when they think of her: “Well, it seems we have some neigh-sayers in the audience.”

Now is when I decide to say under my breath, “You know, you'd think that, she being a horse, and having worked around horses all her life, she'd be used to neigh-sayers by now. But, is she that way? Evidently, the answer to that question is, well, neigh.” Considering Trixie opened the pun up for use, I figure it's alright to run with it. What I don't take into consideration, actually what surprises me, is that Trixie proves she's actually heard me.

Presently, I hear the azure pony's voice directly in front of me say, “First of all, I am not a horse, I am a pony.” My character looks in the direction of the voice to show me Trixie cast her hat aside with a front hoof, revealing her horn, as she continues, “We are all ponies! And, second of all, I am used to neigh-sayers.” She then casts her cape aside, revealing her tail is the same color as her mane, as she continues, “I was just about to accept the challenge from the rainbow-maned pegasus, and the purple unicorn as well. But, if you want to challenge me first, I would be happy to accept your challenge.”

I take a moment for my character to look at the audience, which now has its attention trained on him and the azure unicorn. My character turns his attention to Pinkie Pie, and I see the fear in her face as she shakes her head at me.

Evidently Pinkie Pie thinks I'm going to accept Trixie's challenge.

As my character turns back to the azure unicorn, I answer, “Now, let's get one thing straight. I'm not here to mess with a traveling stage show, and I'm not here to get messed with by the performer. I have better things to do. And, I didn't realize you'd hear what I said. I had intended humor in what I said, but evidently it didn't work for me. If I offended you, I didn't mean to.”

As my character turns away from the azure unicorn, I hear her say, “So, you're going to cower out of the challenge? I guess that makes sense. Who would, who could, stand up to the magic that defeated an Ursa Major?”

As I hear Pinkie Pie worriedly chant “Keep going, keep going, keep going,” I say, “I don't have time for this,” and my character starts walking away from Trixie, who is still taunting my character, still taunting me.

Just then Princess Luna appears in front of me and says, “I'm here to transport you and Pinkie Pie to Canterlot Castle. Do you have any business here?”

My character turns back to the azure unicorn, who is growling and snorting at him, then back to Princess Luna; and I say, “I have no business here. Let's get going.”

The dark purple alicorn nods; and one frame later, she, Pinkie Pie and my character are at the entrance of Canterlot Castle. I can only assume that Trixie must've called out that the matter between me and her is not over yet.

But, that's not important right now, as Luna immediately leads us into the castle and to a room that I remember from the first game. Again I produce items from the bag, describing them to my audience as I place them on the table, starting with the tablet and ending with the transmitting device. As with the first game, I make the request to be teleported to the entranceway where Lyra is likely to enter, holding the transmitting device, and place the device on the ground where Lyra will be stopping before she enters through the door.

As I'm once again teleported to the room, I request that the surveillance camera be placed on the wall opposite the door that leads to the room where the mirror is. I suggest that the tablet will have to show the door so that I'll be able to see Lyra entering, or at least trying to enter, when she does so.

Luna accepts the camera and tablet and disappears for a minute or two, then returns with just the tablet, which she returns to my character.

I can see in the tablet a clear image of the door, indicating that the nighttime princess, and no doubt those she chose to help her, did a good job. There's nothing more to do until nighttime.

Seeing that all is ready, Princess Celestia says to my character, “I'm going to return you to Ponyville now, but I want to keep Pinkie Pie here for a while. She'll return when we're our business is finished.” And, with that, in the space of one frame I'm out of the room and back in Ponyville, where Trixie is proving a better show-off than Rainbow Dash.

As soon as she sees me, she disappears off the stage and appears in front of me, then says, “So, you're back. Are you going to challenge the great and powerful Trixie now?”

I answer, “That's not why I'm here. But, when you're finished here, I'd like you to join me on a walk. I'll be heading to my house on the other side of the Everfree Forest, and I would appreciate some company.”

For a moment the azure unicorn has a puzzled look on her face. Then she shakes it off and says, “Alright, let me get this straight. You mock the great and powerful Trixie, then you want her to walk with you through a dangerous forest on your way home?”

I answer, “That pretty much covers it, yes.”

Trixie growls for a few seconds, then says, “Fine. But, you'd better have a good reason.” And, with that, she returns to her stage to request further challenges.

After some discussion about how another unicorn should challenge Trixie, Rarity steps forward, on the assumption that they're suggesting she challenge Trixie next. When she refuses to accept, Trixie makes some comment about the style of her mane, which causes her in her fury to accept.

As the white unicorn walks onto the stage and uses her magic to change the curtain into a dress, she talks about how a unicorn needs style and elegance.

Trixie's response is to turn Rarity's mane into a literal rat's nest, which causes her to run off crying in disgrace.

When Trixie challenges Twilight Sparkle next, she refuses and instead chooses to leave. So, with no more challenges, Trixie closes her stage and, as the crowd disperses, teleports to my character's position again.

As she uses her magic to once again dress herself in her cape and hat, she says, “Whatever reason you have to inconvenience the great and powerful Trixie, it better be something important. Let's get going.”

As the unicorn and human make their way out of Ponyville, I'm aware that my character and Trixie have been joined by two more unicorns, Snips and Snails.

As my character turns to them, Snails pleads, “Could we please follow you? Please, please, please?”

I'm guessing a lot of readers might find it entertaining to see the two unicorn runts get eaten by timber wolves, or bears, or any other predatory creatures that might be living in the forest; but, I'm not one of them. I decide it'd be safer for all concerned if they not come with us. What I offer them is a different reason why I don't want them following my character and Trixie: “I have something to discuss with Trixie, and only with Trixie.”

Snips tries to interject when I mention having something to discuss with Trixie, but the two accept when I say it's only for Trixie. They return, most likely to guard Trixie's stage, distraught, leaving my character and Trixie to make our way towards the forest.

As we pass Fluttershy's cottage, Trixie asks my character, “So, does this have anything to do with how I treated the rainbow pegasus and the white unicorn?”

I answer, “While I'm sure you could've conducted yourself better, no, that's not what I wanna discus with you.”

As we get past the cottage and enter the forest proper, instantly Trixie freezes in place and says, “You're not going to call out an Ursa Major, are you?”

I answer, “No, that's not why we're going through here. I generally respect the creatures here, and they respect me in return.” Then, I add, “There are a lot of dangerous creatures in the forest. Unless you want to get eaten, you'd better stick with me. And, you need to relax. If the creatures smell your fear, they may decide to act on it.”

The azure unicorn stammers, “N-now, now, wh-what makes you think I'm af-fraid? I'm the G-great and P-powerful Trixie, after a-all.”

I think to myself, what indeed. Especially after her forced, nervous chuckle. I say, “Just keep up with me. Like I said, the creatures here respect me as long as I respect them. And, they'll likely leave you alone as long as you're with me. It's been that way with other ponies that've accompanied me through here.”

Trixie seems about ready to say something more, but a roar from behind her startles her, and she runs ahead of me along the path.

My character had better catch up to her, just to make sure she's alright. And, that's what he does. Running after her, he manages to catch up with her perhaps a few hundred feet along the trail, where the azure unicorn has stopped, and is now just panting. As her breathing slows, she turns to my character and says, “Alright, you win. You can survive better in this forest than I can. I admit it. Now, let's get out of here.”

I answer, “That's not why I wanted you to come with me. Once we get to my house, I'll explain what I want. In the mean time, let's get going.”

As my character moves ahead of the azure unicorn, I hear her groan before her hoof-falls start to match my character's footsteps again.

We spend maybe forty minutes walking in the forest before we come out the other side. Then, it's another minute before we reach my character's house.

As soon as he and Trixie are inside the gate, my character turns to her; and I say, “Now for what I wanted to talk about. You were right, back in Ponyville, when you said I made fun of you. I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry. Will you forgive me?”

As my character looks into Trixie's eyes, I can see the honest surprise in them. She says, “I-I … I've never had somepony repent to me before. Never before has anypony admitted having done something wrong. And, it wasn't a pony, but a human, that admitted to wrongdoing.” She turns away from me and starts walking toward the house as she continues, “If you hadn't admitted to mocking me, then said you shouldn't have done so, I wouldn't have a reason to forgive you.” Then, turning to my character again, she concludes, “But, you've given me a reason; so, yes, I do forgive you.”

I respond, “Thanks.” Then, as my character stands up again and starts walking to the house, I continue, “Now, I'd like to give you a gift, something that's come to mean a great deal to me over the years. It's a book.”

The azure unicorn tilts her head and says, “A … book?”

I answer, “That's right. If you'll wait out here, I'll go in and get it. It shouldn't take too long.”

Trixie straightens her head again and says, “Alright.”

The process of my character entering the house, going to the closet, retrieving a copy of the Book of Mormon, then returning to the front door and to Trixie's position takes probably less than a minute.

As the blue unicorn accepts the book, she looks at and reads the front cover: “The Book of Mormon, another testament of Jesus Christ.” She then looks at my character and says, “I don't know if I'll have time to read this, but I'll just have to see. Thanks, I guess.”

I answer, “You're welcome.” Then, as my character walks to the front gate, I ask, “So, shall we head back to town?”

Trixie opens the book and turns pages with her magic as she says, “Sure. My traveling stage is still there, or at least it should be.”

I don't say this aloud, but I wouldn't be surprised if Snips and Snails are, in fact, guarding it. As my character opens the gate, allowing the azure unicorn to exit, I say, “If you plan on sticking around, I'll be having a reading of the book at my house with a few of Ponyville's residents. You may join in if you want.”

Trixie, once outside the gate, turns to my character and says, “Mine is a traveling performance. I don't know where I'll be heading next, but I doubt I'll be staying in Ponyville for much longer. As long as I have my traveling stage, I'll have a place to call home as I travel from one place to another.”

By this point, my character is outside the gate, and has closed it behind him. As he makes his way to the pathway, accompanied by the azure unicorn, and on into the forest, I say, “If you decide to travel through the Everfree forest on your way to your next destination, you can stop by here for a while. The reading will begin as soon as everyone is present and ready. We'll be reading chapter three of First Nephi, and probably chapter four, depending on questions that come up.”

Just then, the thought strikes me that I need another copy of the Book of Mormon. So, I stop and turn to Trixie and say, “I just realized I need to get something. If you'll wait here for a moment, I'll go get it. It shouldn't take too long.” And, before Trixie can answer, I order my character to run back to the house and retrieve another copy of the book, then run back to Trixie.

Again the process takes less than a minute, and Trixie and my character are back on the trail through the forest and back to Ponyville.

Along the way, the azure pony turns to my character and asks, “So, what did you need to get?”

I answer, “I just had this feeling that I needed to get another copy of the book I gave you.”

Trixie grunts and says, “So you have multiple copies of this book. Doesn't that lower the book's value?”

I answer, “Not at all. It could be that the book will be as valuable to the pony or other creature I hand it to as it is to me. Such is the nature of the word of God.”

Trixie, suddenly frozen in place, nearly falls, as does the book she momentarily loses magical control over. Recovering, she says, “The word of God?”

I continue, “The Book of Mormon is the religious record of a people that started out as a family that lived in Jerusalem six hundred years before the birth of the Christ. The father of the family was commanded by God to leave their home to escape the impending captivity of Jerusalem, although his sons were to return a few days later to retrieve records on brass plates, then again to retrieve another family. They traveled through the wilderness on their way to the Red Sea, where they built a ship and sailed to a land they'd call Bountiful or Nephi, but that in my time is known as South America.

“From there, the story follows the combined family as it divides into two separate peoples, one a godly people known as the Nephites, the other an evil people known as the Lamanites. But, they don't always remain that way. At one point, the Lamanites become good, and the Nephites become evil. Then, in the years between the birth of the Christ, and his visit to these peoples, they combine again to defeat a common enemy.

“The reason the book is known as another testament of Jesus Christ is that he visits this people some three and a half decades after his birth, and a few days after his crucifixion and death in the Middle East. By this point, his church is already established among these people, but he comes to make modifications to the law, replacing practices that are meant to anticipate his first coming with practices that commemorate the reason for his birth, life, and death. He leaves them to visit more of his people, leaving the combined Nephites and Lamanites to continue following his commandments.

“For some three or four centuries after that, the people in the Americas continue on, eventually turning evil again and dividing back into the Nephites and Lamanites. The Nephites become worse than the Lamanites and are eventually completely destroyed by them, leaving one man to complete the record.

“There's also a record of a people that preceded the Nephites and Lamanites, which survived some two thousand years, whose population fluctuated wildly in size as they cycled between good and evil, and eventually destroyed itself, leaving one survivor, their last king, to meet and die among the next people who would inherit the Americas next.”

Considering we're both walking, I know Trixie couldn't have fallen asleep. And, a look from my character to the azure unicorn confirms it. So, I can only assume she expects to hear more of the story after I stop talking. When she hears no more for a while, she says, “I had no idea there was so much to this book. I'll try to find time to read it, maybe even travel to your house to join in the reading. You say chapter three of First Nephi?”

I answer, “That's right. And, you're welcome to join us if and when you find the time.”

Trixie says, “I suppose I'll start reading the book now. I can use my magic to detect danger, so you don't have to worry about that. On the other hoof, if the creatures respect you as much as you say, then I won't need to worry about them attacking us.”

I say, “You may want to start with the introduction, which includes the testimony of three witnesses who helped translate the book, the testimony eight witnesses who were allowed to handle the gold plates that originally contained the record, and the testimony of the one who translated the book, Joseph Smith Jr.”

Trixie responds, “I'll go ahead and do that.”

No more is said between the two of us, as the azure unicorn walks and reads at the same time.

I have to give her credit. She doesn't seem to need her eyes as she maneuvers around obstacles in her path while she reads.

I can't say how much she reads during the time we walk, although she finally closes the book as we arrive at Ponyville, about half an hour after leaving my character's house. A few minutes later we arrive at Trixie's mobile stage, guarded, as I figured, by Snips and Snails.

As the two bow in front of the azure unicorn, Snails says, “Oh, Trixie, thou Great and Powerful, we've been guarding your stage that you might entertain us with another show.”

While it's all I can do to keep from bursting into laughter, I'm sure my character doesn't convey that. Just as well, as he and Trixie exchange glances. In the exchange, I can see the azure unicorn's ears twitch, suggesting nervousness.

She turns back to the two unicorn runts and says, “Uh, thanks. You're dismissed. I have work to do.”

Just then, I hear the voice of Twilight Sparkle say, “Mormon, I have some questions for you.”

As my character turns in the direction of the voice, I see her, Pinkie Pie, at her side, looking at my character. I say, “Very well. Do you want to ask your questions here, or somewhere else?”

The purple unicorn answers, “If you'll follow me to the library, I'll ask my questions there.”

As my character looks around him, I notice that Trixie is no longer present. Then, I hear Snips say, “She said her magic once stopped an Ursa Major. Let's go get one. I wanna see that.”

I turn to the short, corpulent unicorn and say, “That's not a good idea, trust me. In fact, if you've learned to trust me, you'll go back home instead.”

Both unicorns look at my character with blank expressions, then run off along the path that Trixie and I took out of the forest, heading in to search for the Great Bear.

I groan and say, “Evidently they haven't learned to trust me after all.” Then, as my character turns to the purple unicorn, I say, “Well, I guess I have nothing else to do. Let's go to the library.” And, with that, my character follows Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie there.

Once inside the library tree, the purple unicorn turns to my character and says, “Princess Celestia has informed us that you seem to have an interest in Pinkie Pie, perhaps an interest in earth ponies in general. Is this true?”

I pause for a moment. I did program this moment into the game, just in case the gamer found and chose to use the game-changing method to save Pinkie Pie. I have my reasons for taking an interest in earth ponies in general, and specifically in the pink party pony, which I plan on disclosing to Twilight Sparkle now. But, my reasons are not likely to be the reasons of other gamers that choose to play this game. I answer, “The short answer is that I see more potential in earth ponies than in any other type.”

The purple unicorn tilts her head as she asks, “More potential. Could you explain that?”

I answer, “I have stories of Equestria, those of the recognized history, starting with you learning about the story of Nightmare Moon and the prophecy of her return, and continuing on from there. But, there are alternative stories, putting characters from Equestria into situations they'll likely never exist in, and theorizing how they might respond to them. In fact, the story being told here is one of those alternative stories.

“One of these stories tells of Pinkie Pie holding Rainbow Dash captive and cutting her to pieces until she dies, harvesting her internal organs to make cupcakes.” I listen and watch as Twilight straightens her head and gags; and when nothing more happens, I continue, “There are other stories, which tell about pegasi and unicorns building factories, pegasi to process failed pegasi for colors, and unicorns to process failed unicorns to recycle their magic. These stories suggest to me how evil the authors believe the ponies can get.”

Before I continue, the purple unicorn, again expressing disgust, asks, “And you want to see them become that evil?”

I answer, “No, I don't. Quite the opposite, in fact.” I pause for a moment before continuing, “In my world, I heard somewhere that if a human could release all the energy in his or her body in one destructive explosion, such an explosion would destroy much of the human world, as well as the human that exploded. But, if that same human can tame that energy and channel it into more constructive behaviors, that human's potential becomes so much greater.

“Now, the Equestrian world, and the ponies that live in it, are the creation of humans, and creations tend to take on the qualities of their creator or creators. Now, that being the case, I wonder if Equestrian ponies don't have this quality in common with humans, that is similar potential to do evil, and to do good; to become like the devil, or to become like God.

“The story I mentioned about Pinkie Pie reminds me of something mentioned in a book, of which Pinkie Pie has a copy, in which an abominable practice among a people prior to their destruction is described in a letter. While there are parallels, there are sufficient differences between the two stories that suggest to me that what Pinkie Pie does to Rainbow Dash isn't quite as bad as the abomination that, at least in part, lead to the destruction of an entire people. Still, based on what I've gathered from the stories I've mentioned, while unicorns and pegasi are building factories to process each other and themselves for magic and colors, Pinkie Pie is getting her hooves dirty doing something even worse.

“I have to wonder, if that's the extent of their potential to become so demonic, compared to that of a human, might their potential to become godly be similar? If earth ponies in general, and more specifically Pinkie Pie, can practice something that comes so close to an abomination that destroyed a nation, what practices can she do that could be equally close to practices that lead to another people being raised into heaven?”

It takes a few minutes for Twilight to process all I said, before she says, “I think I understand. You don't want to see ponies at their worst, you want to see them at their very best. You don't want to see the worst of humanity in us, you want to see in us humanity's best.”

I answer, “That's right.”

I think the news hits Pinkie Pie the hardest, as she seems frozen in place, her irises and pupils just barely visible, her ears flat against her skull. Her hair doesn't straighten out, although I have to wonder if it will.

Twilight Sparkle, not initially noticing her friend's condition, turns to her and says, “Well, we have our work cut out for us, but I think … “ She trails off as the sight of a frozen Pinkie Pie starts to sink in. Pushing the pink earth pony's cheek lightly with a forelimb, and nearly pushing her over, she says, “Pinkie Pie?”

But, she has no time to explore the party pony's condition any further, as heavy footfalls can be heard getting closer.

With my character focused on the purple unicorn, I say, “I think you'd better go out there and take care of the problem brewing outside. I'll take care of Pinkie Pie in here.”

The purple unicorn says no more to me, just runs out the door to take care of the Ursa Minor that Snips and Snails led into town so Trixie could control it with her magic, thinking it was an Ursa Major.

In the mean time, I approach the pink earth pony and stroke her cheek, asking, “Pinkie Pie, are you alright?”

She turns to my character slowly and says, “I-I-I … I had no idea.” She then grasps my character's hand with her forelimbs and, gripping it close to her face as she rubs her cheek against it's back, and starts sniffling.

I answer, “Now you know why I'm willing to invest so much into you.”

Now, Pinkie Pie sobs as she says, “To think, you want to see me do so much good because you've heard of me doing such a bad thing. How can I live up to that?”

Again I answer, “That's why I gave you a copy of the Book of Mormon. I want to help you.”

Presently the pink pony jumps into my character's arms and hugs him tightly. Her voice seems unable to work as she whispers, “You said you love me, but that much?” Her evident trembling causes my character to vibrate as well, making it difficult for me to see through his eyes.

Before either of us can say anything more, I hear Luna's voice ask, “Is there anything wrong?”

Pinkie Pie immediately separates from my character, allowing him to focus on the nighttime princess.

I answer, “Let's just say Pinkie Pie knows why I'm so interested in her.” A look at the party pony shows that she's rubbing her eyes with her front hooves, and at best, when she does show her eyes, she can manage a trembling smile.

Princess Luna, seeing Pinkie Pie trying to show a happy face, says, “Well, if all is well, we need you at Canterlot Castle. The time is almost here.” And, before pony or human can respond, in the next frame they're inside the room at the familiar castle.

My character turns to the pink earth pony, and I ask, “Are you going to be alright?”

Pinkie Pie looks at my character and, holding a front limb up, like a dog holding a front paw up for someone to shake it, says, “Now that I know you … now that I know how much … “ Pinkie Pie finds herself unable to say the words. Then her mane and tail straighten out, her mane flowing to one side, and Diane says, “What my sister is trying to say is she'll be fine now that she knows how much you love her.” Again she pink pony's mane and tail curl, and Pinkamena says, “Yea, what Diane said.”

Princess Celestia, reclining nearby, asks, “Diane?”

I answer, “It's kind of a long story.” Changing the subject, I ask, “Don't you need to lower the sun first?”

The white alicorn arises and answers, “That's right. Lyra won't even try if she thinks it's still daytime.” And, with that, she points her horn at the sun.

As Princess Celestia's horn glows, my character turns just in time to see the sun descend behind the mountains.

As my character returns his attention to the daytime princess, she says, “There. Now we just need to wait.”

Evidently we don't need to wait for too much longer, as I hear light hoof-falls outside the window. As my character looks out the window, I notice a strangely mobile bush approaching behind the pegasus guard.

The bush slowly makes it's way behind the guard, and directly over the spot where I put the transmitting device. Not long afterward, the bush seems to sprout the head of a pale-green unicorn, one with pale-azure-and-white mane. The bush next sprouts a pale-green hoof, then another, the second one holding an audio-cassette player.

Lyra scratches an ear with the evidently empty hoof, then uses it to open the player in the other hoof and make sure a cassette is inside. After that, she abandons the false bush and disappears through the door.

As my character turns to the two princesses and the party pony, I say, “Well, all we can do now is wait. Lyra's pretty smart, and it'll be just a matter of time before she reaches the door to the room with the mirror.” And, with that, my character grabs the tablet and turns it on, then touches a few areas of it so that the camera's view of the door shows up.

Pinkie Pie, evidently more composed now, asks, “Can I have a look?”

As I vocalize agreement, my character kneels down next to her, holding the tablet so she can see it.

After a while, she says, “Nothing's happening. How boring.”

I answer, “Waiting for something to happen is frequently not the most exciting thing you can imagine, but it proves well worth it when something finally does happen.”

Before the party pony can say anymore to my character, Princess Celestia says, “So, Pinkie Pie, what can you tell me about what Mormon finds so interesting about you, or about earth ponies in general?”

Again, I'm sure my character can't convey my smile as I watch, through my character's eyes, the unchanging scene of the door.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie approaches the white alicorn and says, “Well, based on what Mormon said, and how Twily understood it, he thinks I, and maybe all earth ponies, can do more good than any other race. And, he wants to see me do that.”

Princess Celestia asks, “And, why does he think that?”

Pinkie Pie settles down into a sphinx-style position as she answers, “He's heard of a story about me doing something really bad to Dashy.” She sniffles, trying to stifle a sob, before continuing, “He thinks we're like humans, and thinks we can do things that are even better than the bad things he's heard I could do, maybe things just as good as what humans can do.”

As the pink pony starts sobbing again, Pirncess Celestia asks, “Not to belittle humans, especially not around a human, but how good can they be?”

Through her sobs, the pink earth pony says, “Mormon has this hero, called the Christ—“

Before Pinkie Pie can say more, the white alicorn says, “That's enough. I understand now.” She then asks my character, “Mormon, is this true?”

I answer, “It is.”

I hear Princess Celestia's voice above my character, suggesting she's now up on all fours, as she says, “Testing such a theory will require a lot of work, and a lot of time. Are you willing to do that much?”

I answer, “I am.”

After a momentary pause, the daytime princess says, “Well, if you are indeed willing to put forth the effort to test your theory, then I look forward to seeing the results. So, with that in mind, I'm giving you permission to perform your experiment on Pinkie Pie. Because it'll mean doing things that'll be for her best, be for the best of everypony, I want you to give me daily updates on your progress.”

As she sobs a few more times, Pinkie Pie squeaks, “Really?”

Just then I see the pale-green unicorn in the view of the camera. I say, “Just a minute. Lyra's at the door.” With that, my character stands up and positions the tablet opposite the microphone from him. As the ponies gather around him, I wait until the mint-colored pony is ready to put a key in the hole. At that moment, I yell into the microphone, “Raira, kei te aha?” which, in English, is, “Lyra, what are you doing?”

The response from the pale-green pony is the same as in the first game. She rears back on her hind legs and whinnies loudly in surprise and terror. In fact, the sound of her whinny can be heard in this room.

Pinkie Pie, who'd been sobbing before, now bursts out into uncontrolled giggles.

I don't blame her. I find myself laughing as well. And, I also hear chuckles from Princess Celestia.

On the other hand, Lyra is surrounded by guard ponies, and, as she relaxes, I somehow find myself able to see a yellow puddle developing under the pale-green unicorn.

The guards, maneuvering around the puddle of what I'm guessing is the unicorn mare's urine, seize Lyra and drag her away, still managing to reshape the puddle.

Before my character can shut down the tablet, I have him take the microphone and hold it up to his mouth before I say, “Rattled.”

I don't think even Pinkie Pie understands the reference, although she still giggles.

On the other hand, we can hear what I can only assume are epithets coming from the pale-green unicorn leaking upward from the floor of the room.

As my character turns to the two alicorns, I say, “I'm thinking now's the time for me to visit Lyra. And, if she wants, Pinkie Pie can come with me as well.”

The pink party pony, hearing my invitation, stops laughing and, puzzled, says, “Wait, what?”

The two princesses rise, and Princess Luna says, “I can arrange it, but Lyra'll have to remain in her cell and under guard during the visit. Still, after the way you served us, I believe we owe you that much.”

Pinkie Pie rolls away from my character onto her hooves, then looks at me and says, “Now hold on. You're sure you want me to go with you?”

I answer, “Unless there's a reason you shouldn't, sure.”

The party pony turns to Princess Celestia.

The white alicorn princess says, “Like Mormon is so fond of saying, it's up to you. Business between us is over, for now. So, do you want to visit Lyra with Mormon?”

Pinkie Pie turns to my character, then back to Princess Celestia, then answers, “I do want to visit Lyra, whether it's with Mormon or not.”

As my character stands up and walks to Princess Luna, Princess Celestia says, “Then go on ahead.”

The pink earth pony bows to the white alicorn, then follows my character as the three leave and head toward the dungeon.

As with the first game, it's a matter of minutes traveling through hallways, getting permission from guards, and getting doors unlocked and open before Princess Luna, Pinkie Pie, and my character make their way to the prison cell where the pale-green unicorn is being held.

As with the first game, Lyra, as soon as she sees my character, says, “So, it was your voice I heard in my ear. Where were you?”

I answer, “I was in a room with Princesses Celestia and Luna, and Pinkie Pie here.”

Just then, I hear a sniffing sound coming from Pinkie Pie. As my character looks at her, she covers her nose and groans, “Eww, Lyra, did you wet yourself?”

I have my character turn to the party pony while I say, “Pinkie, if you don't want me to make Lyra feel bad, then you should set an example and not make her feel bad either.”

As I hear a zipping or ripping sound coming from Lyra's direction, I watch the pink earth pony as she lowers her head and looks down, her ears and mane appearing to melt, as she says, “You're right. I'm sorry.”

I turn back to Lyra, and watch her peel off the dark gray pajama suit she's been wearing. I notice a darker, shiny line on the side of each leg, meeting at the crotch, indicating that Lyra had indeed urinated. As I see the light-green unicorn cast the suit aside, I ask, “Are you alright?”

Lyra looks at the suit, which takes on a pale-green aura and comes to life.

The suit stretches as flat as it can, except for the crotch, which folds. The suit rises, so the crotch is level with my character's head, then presses against the bars of the prison, causing some of the unicorn's urine to leak onto the bars.

Lyra asks, “What do you think?” before letting the suit drop. Then she continues, “Now I know what you meant when you talked about unicorn burglars being easy to rattle. I have yet to figure out how you got your voice to sound in my ear. What language were you speaking, anyway?”

Before I can answer, Princess Luna asks, “Unicorn burglars?”

My character turns to the dark purple alicorn, and I say, “It's a long story.” Then, after my character turns back to Lyra, I answer, “That was Maori,” then ask, “So, why is it so important to you that you become human?”

I hear Princess Luna say under her breath, “A good question.”

The pale-green unicorn pauses for a second after hearing the nighttime princess's statement, then answers, “I want hands.”

I pause for a moment. I already know why Lyra wants hands, but I still ask the question to move the story forward. I say, “Hands? You want to be a human so you can have ... hands?”

Lyra lowers her head and answers, “I can do a lot of good with my magic, and I know that. And, I can use my magic to sense things. I can make my own tools and clothes, I can control food so I can eat it.” She then looks up at my character again as she continues, “But, there are things that I could do only if I had hands. Without hands, I can't play woodwind instruments, not and make them sound right. While I can make shapes from dirt and other materials, sense how hot or cold things are; I can't leave a hand-print, a fingerprint, on the shapes I make. At best, I can leave a hoof-print. But, so can everypony else.” Looking away again, she asks, “Do you remember when Doctor Whooves asked what type of pony you wanted to be? You said you'd want to be an earth pony.”

I hear a few hoof-falls, and my character looks to see Pinkie Pie approach the bars of the cell, no longer holding her nose. She pushes herself into a standing position, then props herself on the bars of the cell, each hoof on a bar, then says, “I know why he would prefer to be an earth pony. He thinks earth ponies can do more good than any other pony race.”

Lyra turns to Pinkie Pie and says, “Mormon said that he'd choose to be an earth pony only if he had to be a pony, and only if he could choose what race he could be. Don't you see? Mormon prefers to be a human.”

Pinkie Pie nods and answers, “Well, duh. He was born a human, so why wouldn't he want to spend the rest of his life the way he started it?”

Presently the light-green unicorn kicks the suspended bed with her hind legs and says, “That's right. Mormon gets to stay a human, and I'm forced to be a unicorn.”

My character turns to the dark-purple alicorn, and I ask, “Forced to be a unicorn?”

Princess Luna, looking back at my character, says, “I have heard nothing of this. Perhaps my sister, Tia, will have the answers.”

As my character turns back to the pale-green unicorn, a thought comes to me. I ask, “So, if you could walk out of this prison right now, what would you do?”

Lyra sighs and answers, “The first thing I'd do is seek the first opportunity to take a bath. I need one after you scared me, Mormon.” She then continues, “Then, I'd try for that mirror again. But, this time, I'd be more careful. I'd try to find a way into that room without letting you know I'm there.”

Now, Pinkie Pie starts giggling. After a moment, she says, “That's going to be harder than you think.”

Lyra sighs as she says, “You're probably right about that.” She then turns to my character and adds, “I don't know how you saw me, but as soon as I find out, I'll know where to begin to avoid it.”

I ask, “And, what if I were assigned to take care of you?”

Lyra gasps. She backs away one pace, slips on something behind her, and falls into something of a canine-style sitting position. She asks, “You?” Then she rises again, snorts derisively, and says, “You'd just remind me of something I can't have, not again.”

Clearly, whether it's true or not, Lyra believes she was once a human, and is stuck being a unicorn. For the sake of this story, she's designed to be a unicorn, and her studies of humans have made her wish, even believe, she had been a human. But, it's important to play the role I've been given, the role I've made for myself in this game. I'll get the truth from Princess Celestia. Then, I'll accept custody of the pale-green unicorn from them. And, somehow, I wouldn't be surprised if I get to take care of Pinkie Pie as well. After all, it is how I programmed this game.

I answer, “I'll see what I can do. But, I want you to know, as long as you're in my care, you'll have more freedom than you have right now. I may even let you visit your friend, Bon-Bon, as long as I'm with you. I'll be there to remind you, not of what you can not have, but of what you can have. I just want to be one of your friends.” My character starts backing away from Lyra's cell when I remember something. I say, “Oh, and one more thing.” As my character produces the book from his inventory, I continue, “I have something for you. It's a book that's come to mean a lot to me over the years.”

The pegasus guard pony holds out a hoof and says, “I'll take that for a moment.”

As my character hands the book to the guard, I say, “I understand.”

Princess Luna, noticing the cover, says, “That looks like the book thou gave to my sister. She gave me a copy of the book. Is that not the Book of Mormon?”

I answer, “It is. I thought Lyra might like to have a copy of it, something to read while she's waiting in here.”

Lyra responds, “That's ... thoughtful of you.”

The guard, in the mean time, opens the book, flips through the pages, then holds it by its binding and shakes it out. When he's convinced that nothing's hiding in the book, he hands it back to me and says, “It's safe. You may pass it to Lyra now.”

I accept the book back with a word of gratitude, then slide it through two of the bars to Lyra, who seizes the book with her magic and pulls it to her, opening it to the first page and starting to read aloud: “The Book of Mormon, another testament of Jesus Christ.”

I say, “You may want to read the introduction first, which includes the testimonies of three witnesses who helped translate that book, eight witnesses who held the gold plates of the original record, and the testimony of the translator of the record, Joseph Smith Jr.”

As my character, Princess Luna, and Pinkie Pie turn to follow the guard out, I hear Lyra say, “I'll do that. Thank you.”

In another few minutes we're back in the room with Princess Celestia.

Once there, with the door closed, as my character focuses on the white alicorn, I say, “Lyra suggested she was once human, and was turned into a pony.”

Princess Celestia answers, “I'm thinking that's a product of her studies of humans. She's always been a unicorn, and humans have always fascinated her. Did she say why she wants to be a human?”

I answer, “Something about us humans having hands, and being able to do things with them that she can't do with her magic.”

The white alicorn then says, “I would prefer not to keep Lyra in jail. And, since she has taken such an interest in humans, and since you are a human, I think it'd be best if you take care of her from now on, at least until she's served her time.”

I say, “I'm a male human. If I get custody of Lyra, she'll learn a lot, if not everything, about male humans, or at least about me. To learn about female humans, she'll need a female human to learn from.”

Princess Celestia says, “We have no female humans available to assist you. But, if it'll keep Lyra from attempting to enter the human world again, and damaging royal property in the process, and if you can be trusted to respect her, then I will release Lyra to your custody.”

Being this is the second game, and for that reason the game I intend to win, the question of what would happen to her should Pinkie Pie be lost no longer applies. And, I expect to get to take care of Pinkie Pie as well, anyway.

I answer, “I would be honored to accept custody of Lyra.”

At my response, Princess Celestia turns to her sister and says, “Go get Lyra, but don't tell her why we're summoning her. For that matter, just tell the guards that she is wanted for an audience with you and Princess Celestia.” Then, as Princess Luna disappears, Princess Celestia turns to Pinkie Pie and asks, “How would you feel about helping Mormon take care of Lyra?”

The pink earth pony points to herself with a forelimb and asks, “You want me to help take care of Lyra? Do you think she'll be a problem?”

The white alicorn answers, “I think it'd be a good idea to prepare for such a possibility. But, there's another reason why I want you to help Mormon. If he's to run his experiments on you, then you should be there to be experimented upon. I doubt they'll hurt you at all. In fact, I think you may enjoy them. He wants to bring out the best in you, and I want to see him succeed. So, will you help him?”

The pink pony looks up at me for a while, studying me, then looks back at Princess Celestia, and says, “He's already given me a copy of the Book of Mormon, and Princess Luna knows I've already read a chapter with him and other ponies. I expect him to continue with that, and I look forward to finding out what happens to Nephi next. So, sure, I'll help him.”

I find myself smiling at the reference to Nephi.

In the mean time, Princess Celestia turns to my character.

Before she can say anything, though, Princess Luna appears in the room again, with the pale-green unicorn next to her, putting Lyra in between the nighttime princess and my character.

Seeing this, Princess Celestia rises again and says, “Ah, you're just in time.” Then, turning to the pale-green unicorn, she says, “Lyra Heartstrings, by order of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, you are hereby remanded to the custody of Mormon. And, Pinkamena Diane Pie will assist him in taking care of you.”

Lyra turns to me, evidently noticing me for the first time since being teleported into the room, then turns back to the white alicorn and says, “Princess Celestia, are you sure about this?” She then turns to the dark-purple alicorn and says, “And, Princess Luna, are you also sure? Because, I'm not.” Then, dividing her attention between the two alicorns, she continues, “Don't do this to me. I promise I won't try to go to the human world again. Just don't leave me in his control.”

As my character turns his attention to Princess Celestia, who looks like she's ready to say something, I say, “Let me talk to her.” I then turn to Lyra and say, “You don't need to worry. I won't hurt you. You've wanted to learn more about humans, right? Well, consider me your chance to learn from a human firsthand, or, in your case, first hoof.” Noticing the book on her back, I add, “Also, this evening, we'll be reading the third chapter of First Nephi, at least. You don't have to read with us, but we would appreciate your company and input. So, what's your answer?”

Lyra has stopped begging, but is now whimpering.

In the mean time, as my character turns his attention to Princess Celestia, the daytime princess says, “You will send me daily letters informing me of what you learn about humans, especially from living with one.” As with the first game, what looks like a white clipboard with a parchment on it drifts toward my character as Princess Celestia continues, “This device has been enchanted so that it'll never run out of parchment. This way you can write as much as you feel you need to.” This time, it doesn't surprise me to see a small, bipedal, herbivorous dinosaur appear from behind Princess Celestia as she continues, “This dragon has been enchanted to send letters to me and my sister, and receive them from us. She will bite down on them to send them to us, and letters from us will appear in her mouth. We will be making requests from time to time, offering assignments as opportunities arise. Are these instructions understood?”

As I hear Lyra crying, I decide to answer for both, for all, of us, “Yes, we understand your instructions.”

The dinosaur waddles up to me and says, “My name is Weed Whacker. I am honored to be of service to you.”

I'm still thinking there's some evidence of a sense of humor involved in the dinosaur's naming.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie takes a step toward the dinosaur and, using a front hoof to stroke her on her head, says, “Aww, isn't she cute? She reminds me of Spike.”

Accepting the attention from the pink party pony, Weed Whacker says, “Well, thank you.” she then turns to my character and reaches out a hand.

My character takes and shakes the offered hand, and the dinosaur sticks out her tongue and touches it to the knuckle of his middle finger.

The dinosaur then turns to Pinkie Pie again and sticks her tongue out and touches the pink pony's nose with it.

In the mean time, my character accepts the clipboard, which is hovering in front of him, with one hand, while putting the other hand on Lyra's back.

In response, the pale-green unicorn rears up on her hind legs and shouts, “Don't touch me!”

As soon as Lyra calms down, Princess Celestia says to her, “Lyra, if you refuse, you will return to your cell where you will get only enough food to keep you alive. You're imprisonment will be at least as long as your time with Mormon would be, three years, during which time you will have limited contact with your friends. You will also be fitted with a device that'll keep you from using any of your magic.”

As my character watches the expression on the pale-green unicorn's face, I can see she's more troubled by the loss of her magic than getting minimal food.

Weed Whacker says to her, “Lyra, listen to me. I want to be of service to you, Mormon, and Pinkie Pie; but I can't do that if you insist on serving your time in jail. Your human friend is a good one, and wants as much as I do what's best for you. So, do you choose no freedom in jail, or do you choose limited freedom with your human friend Mormon and your pony friend Pinkie Pie?”

Another effect of choosing the right course is that, with the pink earth pony to assist the gamer, her name is added alongside the gamer's name in situations like this where she'll help him or her.

My character and Lyra look into each other's eyes, and I find myself unable to tell what's going through her mind, although it's evident she's studying my character. After a few seconds, she asks, “Do you promise to not eat me?”

Since I haven't told Lyra the story about the horse meat, this question comes as something of a surprise. Still, I answer, “I promise I won't eat you. I only want to be one of your friends.”

The pale-green unicorn turns to Princess Celestia again and asks, “If Bon-Bon wants to visit me, will that be alright?”

Princess Celestia answers, “That'll be up to Mormon. You'll be in his custody, meaning you'll be living at his house, with him.”

Lyra turns to my character again, and I say, “I'd welcome visits from your other friends. And, as I said to a trio of stallions, I make it a rule of thumb to not kill and eat my friends.”

Lyra forces a chuckle, then sniffles, then says, “Well, if that's one of your rules, then I can live with that.” She then turns to the white princess again and says, “Alright. I'll go with the human. And, I agree to send letters to you about what I learn about him.” After a momentary pause, she asks, “Are you also interested in humans?”

Princess Luna answers, “Mormon has shown us a side of humans we didn't expect to see, a positive, constructive side. Thou hast shown a great interest in humans. What better way for us to learn about them than from thee? Wilt thou help us learn about humans?”

As my character watches the pale-green unicorn, I can see her smile; and she's also tearing up again. She bows to Princess Celestia, then Princess Luna, and says, “I will be happy to help you learn more about humans. Yes, I will allow Mormon to take care of me.”

At Lyra's acceptance, Princess Celestia smiles; then she turns to Princess Luna and nods.

The next thing we know, Princess Luna, Lyra Heartstrings, Weed Whacker, Pinkie Pie, and my character, along with the clipboard Princess Celestia gave us, are in the library; and I can't help noticing how quiet it is outside.

Princess Luna says, “Twilight Sparkle has already taken care of the Ursa Minor that Snips and Snails led into Ponyville. You'll find Trixie surveying the damage to her stage.” At this point, my character's tablet, possessed by a grayish aura, hovers toward my character as Luna continues, “Also, here's your tablet.” Finally, as my character accepts the tablet, she says, “Thank you for your assistance, Mormon.” And, with that, the nighttime princess disappears.

As the remainder of the group leaves the library, lead by my character, Lyra asks, “Was that thing, the tablet, Princess Luna gave you what you used to watch me?”

I answer, “It's one of the devices. Also, you should have a device in one of your ears. I used the device so you'd hear my voice without seeing me.”

Lyra uses her magic to detect the foreign object in her ear, removes it, studies the small device, then destroys it, before glaring at my character and saying, “I don't ever want you to use such a thing on me again.”

I answer, “I don't want to have to use such a thing on you again. It was fun seeing you jump half out of your skin, but I'd rather not have to use such a device to take your freedom from you again.” Just then, as my character looks around, I see Trixie sitting canine-style over a pile of wood. Then, I remember that's where her mobile theater used to be.

Before I can say anything, I hear the azure unicorn say, “I can't believe it's gone. My home's been destroyed.” Then, she pushes some of the broken planks aside and sees something that evidently surprises her. She picks it up in her teeth and lays it on the wood, and I see it's the copy of the Book of Mormon I gave her. She says, “After my home's been destroyed, why is this book still around?”

I approach her, and I guess I startle her, as I say, “I'm sorry about your home. It looks like my gift to you survived.”

Trixie glares up at my character and says, “I've lost everything except this. Where am I gonna go now?”

I answer, “You can come with me and my friends. I've lead you to my home before, and now there'll be more with us. You can search for materials to build a new mobile theater, if you want, and I'll be willing to help. In the mean time, you can stay at my house as long as you want. You can even put on one of your shows, if you want.”

The azure unicorn's glare morphs into surprise, and she starts to tear up as she says, “I didn't expect you to offer me that. You really are a good human.” Presently she shakes off her emotion and asks, “So, are you going to have a reading at your home?”

I answer, “That's the plan. Start with chapter three of First Nephi, and, if there are any questions that warrant further reading, continue on from there.”

Trixie pauses for a moment, then smiles and says, “I'll be honored to join you, to participate in the reading. I've read the testimonies and description, and even read a few chapters from First Nephi. Of course, that was during our walk through the forest. I couldn't read much during the attack from that Ursa Minor.”

I say, “That's alright. As I've said before, if you have any questions, you may bring them up during the reading this evening.”

Now Weed Whacker speaks up and asks, “Could I have one of those books?”

As my character turns to the little dinosaur, I answer, “We'll have to go to my house on the other side of the forest. But, sure. I have plenty of copies anyway.”

Weed Whacker eagerly asks, “Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get going.”

As my character looks at each member of the group, I say, “Well, if there are no objections, shall we get going then?”

The unicorns and the earth pony each voice agreement, and thus, with my character in the lead, the group begins the walk out of Ponyville, then to and through the Everfree forest.

As the group enters the forest, Lyra expresses concerns about attracting wild creatures; but there turn out to be no encounters. All members of the party: pony, dinosaur, and human, make the trip without any problems.

Once they get to my character's house, he opens the gate to allow them to enter, then closes it after all have entered, then leads the group to the front door, which he opens to allow all to enter, then closes it behind them again afterwards.

Once inside, my character offers a brief tour to the group, showing rooms on each side of the front room attached to hallways, with Lyra pointing out her familiarity with the bathroom across from my character's bedroom, and Pinkie pointing out her familiarity with the work room.

Once the tour is over, Lyra proceeds to the bathroom I'd lead her to and prepares and proceeds to bathe.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie asks, “Are you going to provide snacks like you did last time?”

I answer, “I wouldn't mind getting some help, but sure.”

Trixie asks, “So, where do you keep your snacks?”

As my character turns to her, I answer, “I have an orchard, a vineyard, and a vegetable garden. Anyone who wants to join me can gather what they want from one of those places, then bring them back; and we can cut them up in the kitchen.”

Holding her head up as high as she can, Trixie says, “The Great and Powerful Trixie does not harvest fruits and vegetables.” Then, lowering her head again, she adds, “But, under the circumstances, I don't feel so great and powerful anymore; so, I'll help. You say you have a vineyard?”

I find it difficult to restrain myself from laughing as I say, “That's right. It's next to the orchard.”

Weed Whacker says, “My kind are great at digging up roots. I'll look into your vegetable garden, if that's alright with you.”

Before I can answer, “Pinkie Pie says, “I'll stay inside and wait for Lyra to come out of the bathroom.”

I wait for further statements. When there are no more, I say, “That leaves me with the orchard then. Now, even though I have plenty growing on my property, it's still a good idea to just pick what you figure three stallions, two unicorn mares, one earth pony mare, one dragon, at last one alicorn, and one human are likely to eat. And also, remember that these are for snacks. So, if everyone is ready, let's get to work.”

My character leads Trixie and Weed Whacker outside, where he points out the vegetable garden to Weed Whacker, and the vineyard to Trixie, then heads for the orchard.

I find it surprising that Weed Whacker seems to take the longest to return. When she does come back, she has at least one carrot, one parsnip, one beet, one onion, one radish, and one of each of perhaps two or three other types of vegetables from the garden. She seems to have no more than, I'd say, three of each type of vegetable.

All the fruits that Trixie has picked she's carrying with her magic. These include grapes, a few types of berries, and some kiwi fruits.

I, in the mean time, have gathered a few apples, pears, apricots, peaches, nectarines, and plums.

It's Trixie who uses her magic to open the door for us to enter, then closes the door when we're all inside. She does the same with the kitchen door.

Once inside, the azure unicorn says, floating one of the kiwi fruits toward me, “I found a vine in your vineyard growing these strange, green, fuzzy fruits. What are they?” Evidently Trixie hasn't heard of them.

I answer, “Those are kiwi fruits. It looks like you picked those at just the right time. Nicely done.”

As she uses her magic to place the fruits on the table, the azure unicorn answers, “Thank you. I just picked some of them because I hadn't seen them before.”

Before I can say anymore, Weed Whacker says, “I've never seen so many different types of roots in one place before. I thought I'd get some of each so I could try them.”

As my character, at my request, gets out three knives, I say, “You're welcome to sample what you harvested while you're preparing them for snacks. They just need to be bite-sized. That is, small enough that they can be bitten easily.”

One of the knives becomes possessed by an azure aura and floats toward Trixie as she says, “I would like to try tasting one of those kiwi fruits. I doubt I'd like the skin, but I may like the fruit.”

My character places one of the knives on the opposite side of the sink from where he plans to work, then takes each vegetable from Weed Whacker and places it in the sink. When he's finished, he points the faucets over the vegetables and turns it on, allowing it to rinse off the roots. He then picks up Weed Whacker and places him next to the sink, past the knife. As he hands a carrot to the herbivorous dinosaur, I say, “You'll need to rinse off each root under the running water here. Then you can cut them up.”

Just then, I hear Lyra next to my character ask, “Are you sure it's a good idea for such a young creature to be handling a sharp object like a knife?”

As my character turns to her, I hear Trixie say, “She's right. Your dragon could hurt herself or somepony else. Maybe you should have your dragon just take care of cleaning the fruits and vegetables, and Lyra can cut them up.”

After a momentary pause, I answer, “That is a better idea. Thanks for the advice.” As my character turns to Weed Whacker, I ask, “Would you prefer to just do the cleaning?”

The herbivorous dinosaur looks at the knife, then back at my character, and says, “I think so, yes.”

As my character turns to Lyra, I say, “Well, in that case, if you'll take over cutting up the vegetables Weed Whacker cleans, I'll provide a platter for a snack tray.” And, with that, my character goes to a cabinet and produces a large platter and sets it in a corner, where pony and human should be able to get to it easily.

That's when Trixie, using her magic, moves the berries and grapes to the sink and places them on the vegetables and says, “Well, if Weed Whacker is going to do the cleaning, she can clean the fruits I picked; then, I'll cut them into snack-sized pieces.”

As my character turns to the little dinosaur, I ask, “Is that alright with you?”

Weed Whacker, looking at my character, answers, “As long as the roots don't end up tasting like the fruits, I'm fine with that. Are you going to have me wash off the fruits you picked as well?”

My character looks at the fruits he picked, then back at the little dinosaur; and I say, “Sure, if you don't mind.”

Accepting that as an invitation, Weed Whacker proceeds to grab fruits from my character's pile, rinse them off, then hand them back to him so he can cut them up.

Just then, Pinkie Pie enters the kitchen. Seeing us ready to work, she gasps long and exaggerated, then says, “Can I join in? Is there anything I can do?”

My character turns to the empty platter, and I say, “If you want, you can arrange the snacks on the platter there.”

With three surprisingly high and fast hops, the pink earth pony gets to the platter, saying, “Oh, yes, yes, yes!” at the rate of one hop per yes. Once there, she says, “Just hand me the fruit or veggie, and I'll put it on the platter.”

And thus the machine begins to work.

Weed Whacker rinses off the items and hands the tree fruits to me, the vine fruits to Trixie, and the vegetables to Lyra, for each of them to cut up or otherwise prepare, then hand to Pinkie Pie so she can arrange them on the platter.

The process takes no more than an hour, resulting in a platter somewhat resembling some kind of royal crown.

I have to wonder if Rarity's talent for organization hasn't rubbed off on Pinkie Pie.

Before I can say anything to that effect, I hear a knock at the door.

Switching mental tracks, I say, “Well, we've gotten the snacks prepared just in time. I'll go answer the door.” And, with that, my character makes his way out of the kitchen and to the front door, opening it to see the three stallions, evidently led by Berry Ground.

Smiling, the earth pony says, “Mormon! Are you ready?”

I answer, “We'll have to see if Princess Luna will show up this time, but we do have a few more joining us this time. Just take your places on the lawn, and I'll come with the other ponies and all that'll be joining us in the reading.”

Just then, I hear the kitchen door open; and my character turns to show me, through his eyes, the ponies and dinosaur joining forces to carry the snack platter.

As my character turns back to the stallions, I say, “And, here come my other guests with the refreshments.”

Berry Ground nods, then turns around, as do the two other stallions; and the three proceed to take positions in the center of the front yard.

My character backs away one or two paces, holding the door open for the three ponies and dinosaur to carry the snack platter outside.

Just before the four can head down the steps, I ask, “Weed Whacker, did I get you your copy of the Book of Mormon?”

The herbivorous dinosaur turns and answers, “No, you didn't.”

I say, “Well, in that case, I'll get you one right now.” And, with that, my character walks away from the front door and heads to the closet to retrieve a copy of the book for her. After that, he walks to and through the front door, then to the group, who have formed a circle around the snack tray, and hands the book to Weed Whacker. At this point, I ask, “Trixie, Lyra, Pinkie Pie, do you have your copies with you?”

Each of the three look at each other, then agree that they left their copies of the book in the front room while they helped prepare the snacks. Before my character can say or do anything, the three run to the front door and enter, then come out a few seconds later, each with a copy of the book.

Before they can retake their positions in the front yard, Princess Luna appears with her copy of the book. Looking at my character, she asks, “Am I late?”

I answer, “No, actually you're just in time. We're about to begin the reading.”

As the nighttime princess takes a position, settling next to Stunts, she says to my character, “Twilight Sparkle wrote about you. She wants to study you and your type of friendship.”

I respond, “I'm sure Pinkie Pie will be able to help her learn more about how I make friends, and what I think friendship is, while I show that to her. For that matter, I'm sure Lyra and Trixie will also be learning from me for the time they stay here.”

As I watch through my character's eyes the three mares take their positions, with Weed Whacker taking a position between me and Pinkie Pie, I hear Princess Luna say, “Tia and I, that is, Princess Celestia and I, would like you to learn about Lyra as well, and send regular reports on what you learn about unicorns from her.”

I think aloud, “That does make sense. If Lyra's going to learn about humans from me, it only makes sense that I should learn about unicorns from her.” I then answer the dark-purple alicorn, “I'll be honored to do so. And, I'm sure I'll learn about earth ponies from Pinkie Pie, as well as learning about unicorns from Trixie and other unicorns.”

I hear Trixie say under her breath, “I don't expect to stick around for much longer than it takes me to build a new home. But, in the mean time, I suppose it won't hurt to allow Mormon to observe me.”

Lyra speaks up and asks, “Will Mormon be studying unicorns in general, or specifically me?”

Turning to the pale-green unicorn, Princess Luna answers, “Mormon will be learning about thee, learning about unicorns by observing thee. But, it'll help him to learn from others about unicorns in general, as well.”

Presently Lyra asks, “Won't that give Mormon an advantage, having so many unicorns to study, while I just have just one human to study?”

The nighttime princess answers, “Thou has been studying about humans in books, right? I think that will equal things out between you two.”

As my character looks around at the other ponies, I can see they seem to be getting restless. So, I say, “So, tonight we'll be reading chapter three of First Nephi. Will anyone volunteer to begin?” Once again noticing no one willing to volunteer, I have my character turn to Weed Whacker, who I ask, “Will you begin?”

Before he can answer, I hear Trixie say, “I would like to begin.”

As my character turns to the azure unicorn, who's sitting between Princess Luna and Lyra, I say, “Well, if you want, then go ahead.”

I have trouble interpreting the sound I hear from Weed Whacker as Trixie begins reading, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, returned from speaking with the Lord, to the tent of my father.”

Noticing Trixie seems to have no comment on her verse, I have my character turn to Lyra.

Pinkie Pie, sitting next to her, says, “You're next, Lyra.”

Before the pale-green unicorn can read the second verse, as my character looks around at each of the characters, I say, “And, please feel free to have some of the snacks while we read.”

Accepting my invitation, unicorns and alicorn use their magic to take pieces of fruits and/or vegetables, while other ponies grab snacks with their mouths or front hooves, and Weed Whacker grabs a piece of turnip with her hands.

My character gets a handful of grapes.

Before she obtains a piece of carrot, Lyra reads, “And it came to pass that he spake unto me, saying: Behold I have dreamed a dream, in the which the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brothers should go unto the house of Laban, and seek the records, and bring them down hither into the wilderness.” Looking up, she says, “Now, just a minute. Didn't the Lord order Lehi to take his family out of Jerusalem? Laban's back there, in Jerusalem, isn't he? Couldn't Lehi have obtained these records before leaving? I don't mean to sound disrespectful or anything, but it seems kind of short-sighted on the Lord's part to send Lehi and his family out of their home town to journey for a few days, and then send his sons back to get those records.”

I answer the pale-green unicorn, “You've brought up an interesting point, and asked some good questions. Let's keep reading. The answers will come soon enough.”

Before I can say more, Pinkie Pie reads, “For behold, Laban hath the record of the Jews and also a genealogy of my forefathers, and they are engraven upon plates of brass.” Looking up from the book, she says, “This doesn't answer Lyra's question.”

Before I can respond, Princess Luna says, “The answers don't necessarily come in the very next verse. Be patient, for the answers will come soon enough.”

Now Weed Whacker reads, “Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brothers should go unto the house of Laban, and seek the records, and bring them down hither into the wilderness.”

I read, “And thou, behold thy brothers murmur, saying it is a hard thing which I have required of them, but behold I have not required it of them, but it is a commandment of the Lord.”

Berry Ground, next to me, reads, “Therefore go, my son, and thou shalt be favored of the Lord, because thou hast not murmured.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.” Looking up from the book for a moment, the pegasus nickers and says, “I find it interesting that Nephi, while not knowing how he's going to get the records from Laban, is still willing to do it. He knows they're going to need the records on the brass plates, and I guess he has some idea of how he's going to get them. And, his brothers are going with him, suggesting that it's going to take all of them to get those records. I look forward to finding out what happens next.”

Stunts, having had time to swallow his carrot snack, now reads, “And it came to pass that when my father had heard these words he was exceedingly glad, for he knew that I had been blessed of the Lord.” Not looking up, the male unicorn says, “Lehi got that from Nephi's willingness to do what he was told. I find that interesting.”

Princess Luna reads, “And I, Nephi, and my brethren took our journey in the wilderness, with our tents, to go up to the land of Jerusalem.”

Trixie reads, “And it came to pass that when we had gone up to the land of Jerusalem, I and my brethren did consult one with another.”

Lyra reads, “And we cast lots—who of us should go in unto the house of Laban. And it came to pass that the lot fell upon Laman; and Laman went in unto the house of Laban, and he talked with him as he sat in his house.” Presently the pale-green unicorn scratches the back of her neck with a forelimb as she asks, “They cast lots?”

I answer, “Evidently they decided that one of them should go, and couldn't decide which one it should be. I don't know what the pony equivalent would be, or even if you ponies have an equivalent; but they probably drew straws, or used some other kind of lottery method, to decide who should contact Laban and request the brass plates from him. Evidently, whatever it was they used, Laman got the odd item.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And he desired of Laban the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, which contained the genealogy of my father.” Looking up at my character, she asks, “Why do I have a bad feeling about this?”

Before I can say anything, Weed Whacker reads, “And behold, it came to pass that Laban was angry, and thrust him out from his presence; and he would not that he should have the records. Wherefore, he said unto him: Behold thou art a robber, and I will slay thee.” Turning to Pinkie Pie, the herbivorous dinosaur answers, “Maybe that's why.”

The pink pony turns to Weed Whacker and says, “I think there's more to it than that.” Turning to my character, she says, “Please continue.”

I must say, I'm happy to see Pinkie Pie demonstrating some manners. Before I read, though, I say, “Now, there's some importance to those words, 'Behold thou art a robber, and I will slay thee.' But, that's for later verses.” At present, I read, “But Laman fled out of his presence, and told the things which Laban had done, unto us. And we began to be exceedingly sorrowful, and my brethren went about to return unto my father in the wilderness.”

Before reading the next verse, Berry Ground says, “I couldn't blame them for feeling that way.” Then he reads, “But behold I said unto them that: As the Lord liveth, and as we live, we will not go down unto our father in the wilderness until we have accomplished the thing which the Lord hath commanded us.”

I have to wonder if Emerald Hill gets some idea of what Berry Ground is preparing to say. Before the earth stallion can say it, the pegasus reads, “Wherefore, let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord; therefore let us go down to the land of our father's inheritance, for behold he left gold and silver, and all manner of riches. And all this hath he done because of the commandments of the Lord.”

Stunts reads, “For he knew that Jerusalem must be destroyed, because of the wickedness of the people.”

Princess Luna reads, “For behold, they have rejected the words of the prophets. Wherefore, if my father should dwell in the land after he hath been commanded to flee out of the land, behold, he would also perish. Wherefore, it must needs be that we flee out of the land.”

Trixie reads, “And behold, it is wisdom in God that we should obtain these records, that we may preserve unto our children the language of our fathers.”

Lyra reads, “And also that we may preserve unto them the words which have been spoken by the mouth of all the holy prophets, which have been delivered unto them by the Spirit and power of God, since the world began, even down unto this present time.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And it came to pass that after this manner of language did I persuade my brethren, that they might be faithful in keeping the commandments of God.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And it came to pass that we went down to the land of our inheritance, and we did gather together our gold, and our silver, and our precious things.”

I read, “And after we had gathered these things together, we went up again unto the house of Laban.”

Berry Ground reads, “And it came to pass that we went in unto Laban, and desired him that he would give unto us the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, for which we would give unto him our gold, and our silver, and our precious things.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that when Laban saw our property, and that it was exceedingly great, he did lust after it, insomuch that he thrust us out, and sent his servants to slay us, that he might obtain our property.”

At this point, Weed Whacker says, “Alright, let's see if I understand what's been happening so far. First Laman goes to see Laban to get the records, and Laban drives him out, calls him a thief, and threatens to kill him. Then, Nephi and his brothers gather up all their treasure and bring it to Laban, hoping to purchase the records, and Laban decides he wants to keep their stuff and the records. Is that right?”

I answer, “That pretty much covers it, yes.”

Weed Whacker growls under her breath and says, “Laban suggested that thieves should be killed. Now, he's the thief. It seems to me, then, that Laban deserves—“

Before Weed Whacker can finish his thought, Berry Ground turns to his unicorn friend and says, “Stunts, let's continue the reading.”

I can only suspect that Berry Ground has already read chapter four, and knows what's going to happen to Laban.

In the mean time, Stunts reads, “And it came to pass that we did flee before the servants of Laban, and we were obliged to leave behind our property, and it fell into the hands of Laban.” Looking up, he says, “Well, there we have it. Like Weed Whacker said, Laban's a thief now. It sounds like things aren't gonna go well for him from now on.”

Princess Luna reads, “And it came to pass that we fled unto the wilderness, and the servants of Laban did not overtake us, and we hid ourselves in the cavity of a rock.”

Lyra reads, “And it came to pass that Laman was angry with me, and also with my father, and also was Lemuel, for he hearkened unto the words of Laman. Wherefore Laman and Lemuel did speak many hard words unto us, their younger brothers, and they did smite us even with a rod.”

At this point, Princess Luna asks, “Why would Laman and Lemuel be angry with Sam and Nephi? It was Laban that stole their property.”

I answer, “Most likely, it was because they as much as handed everything they had left in Jerusalem to Laban, and still didn't get what they came for. It was Nephi that suggested the transaction after Laman failed to get the records.”

Princess Luna adds, “Something tells me that I don't want to know what exactly Laman and Lemuel said to their younger brothers. It's enough that they were mean. But, then they beat up on them, and with a stick no less.”

I agree with the dark-purple alicorn, “Laman and Lemuel weren't very nice.” Then, more generally, I add, “Now, I'd like to take this time to mention what I believe to be the relationship between Laman and Lemuel. Frequently, in works of fiction, I've seen pairs of characters, where one is the leader, which I believe was the role that Laman took on, and the other is the follower, which I believe was the role that Lemuel accepted. Evidently, this occurred outside the fictional world as well. But, because this is the first non-fictional account of this kind of relationship I've read about, when I come across this kind of pairing in fictional works, I like to call it a Laman-Lemuel relationship.” Then, as my character turns to the pink earth pony, I ask, “Pinkie, will you continue reading?”

Pinkie Pie nods and reads, “And it came to pass as they smote us with a rod, behold, an angel of the Lord came and stood before them, and he spake unto them, saying: Why do ye smite your younger brother with a rod? Know ye not that the Lord hath chosen him to be a ruler over you, and this because of your iniquities? Behold ye shall go up to Jerusalem again, and the Lord will deliver Laban unto your hands.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And after the angel had spoken unto us, he departed.”

I read, “And after the angel had departed, Laman and Lemuel again began to murmur, saying: How is it possible that the Lord will deliver Laban into our hands? Behold, he is a mighty man, and he can command fifty, yea, even he can slay fifty; then why not us?” Looking up, I say, “Well, that's the end of chapter three. Are there any questions? Shall we keep reading, or end it here for the night?”

At this point, Lyra rises to all-fours stance and says, “If it's alright with everypony else, I'd like to continue the reading. This chapter is ended and I still have an unanswered question.”

I ask, “Are there any objections?” As my character looks at each of the ponies, and at Weed Whacker, I see that all are eager to hear and read what happens to Laban, except, evidently, for Berry Ground. But, since the majority are willing to continue the reading, I turn to the stallion earth pony and ask, “So, will you begin reading chapter four?”

Berry Ground sighs, but nods and reads, “And it came to pass that I spake unto my brethren saying: Let us go up again unto Jerusalem, and let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord; for behold he is mightier than all the earth, then why not mightier than Laban and his fifty, yea, or even than his tens of thousands?”

Again Princess Luna speaks up, this time saying, “Did Nephi think Laban could command tens of thousands of humans?”

I answer, “Maybe, and maybe not. It's possible that Laban could've commanded such a large army, and it's possible that Nephi was exaggerating. The point is Nephi was demonstrating his faith in God by what he was saying, as well as the fact that he was willing to go back in there.” Seeing that Princess Luna is evidently satisfied, I have my character turn to the pegasus; and I ask, “Emerald Hill, will you read the next verse?”

Emerald Hill nods, then reads, “Therefore let us go up, let us be strong like unto Moses; for he truly spake unto the waters of the Red Sea and they divided hither and thither, and our fathers came through, out of captivity, on dry ground, and the armies of Pharaoh did follow and were drowned in the waters of the Red Sea.”

Stunts reads, “Now behold we know that this is true; and we also know that an angel hath spoken unto you; wherefore can we doubt? Let us go up; the Lord is able to deliver us even as our fathers, and to destroy Laban even as the Egyptians.”

Princess Luna reads, “Now when I had spoken these words, they were yet wroth, and did still continue to murmur; nevertheless they did follow me up until we came without the walls of Jerusalem.”

Trixie reads, “And it was by night; and I caused that they should hide themselves without the walls. And after they had hid themselves, I, Nephi, crept into the city and went forth towards the house of Laban.”

Lyra reads, “And I was led by the spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “Nevertheless I went forth, and as I came near unto the house of Laban, I beheld a man, and he had fallen to the earth before me, for he was drunken with wine.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And when I came to him I found that it was Laban.”

I read, “And I beheld his sword, and I drew it forth from the sheath thereof; and the hilt thereof was of pure gold, and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine, and I saw that the blade thereof was of the most precious steel.”

Berry Ground swallows hard before reading, “And it came to pass that I was constrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban; but I said in my heart: Never at any time have I shed the blood of man. And I shrunk and would that I might not slay him.”

I'm sensing that there's definitely something wrong with my earth stallion friend. I have my character turn to him, and I ask, “Are you alright?”

Berry Ground turns to me, and I can see tears in his eyes as he says, “If it's alright with you, I'd rather not do anymore reading.” I can see and hear him start to sob now.

As my character strokes the earth stallion's neck, I answer, “You don't have to read anymore if you don't want to.” I then turn to Emerald Hill and ask, “Will you read the next verse?”

As the pegasus nods, presently Berry Ground rises, backs away, turns away from us, and gallops toward the fence a couple paces. It seems that, whatever his problem is, it's worse than I thought, worse than he's letting on.

In the mean time, Emerald Hill reads, “And the Spirit said unto me again: Behold the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands. Yea, and I also know that he had sought to take away mine own life; yea, and he would not hearken unto the commandments of the Lord, and he also had taken away our property.”

Stunts reads, “And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me again: Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands.”

As we hear gagging and splattering sounds from Berry Ground's position, followed by moaning, Princess Luna reads, “Behold the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is better that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief.”

Trixie, evidently troubled by the sounds coming from Berry Ground, still manages to read, “And now, when I, Nephi, had heard these words, I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that: Inasmuch as thy seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise.”

Lyra reads, “Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses, save they should have the law.” As she looks up and toward Berry Ground, it's clear she has some concerns about him. I can see, through my character's eyes, based on how her lips are moving, that she also wants to ask about the earth stallion, but she can't vocalize the words.

Pinkie Pie, also concerned, turns to my character.

I simply nod for her to continue.

The pink earth pony looks down at her book and reads, “And I also knew that the law was engraven upon the plates of brass.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause—that I might obtain the records according to his commandments.”

I read, “Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit, and took Laban by the hair of his head, and I smote off his head with his own sword.” After gasps and whinnies of surprise and horror die down, my character looks up as I say, “So, there we have it. Indeed, Laban became a thief, or maybe he'd always been one. Whatever the case was, he got the punishment he'd prescribed for thieves.” As my character focuses on the pale-green unicorn, I say, “Lyra, you asked if Lehi couldn't have gotten the records before leaving Jerusalem. Perhaps he could've done that, and then left. But, in my world, we have what are called movies or moving pictures, a relatively new way of telling stories. One of these is a movie called the Book of Mormon Movie Volume One, in which actors play the roles of Lehi, Sariah, Laman, Lemuel, Sam, Nephi, and others, as they replay the experiences, including this one, told by Nephi, from the time Lehi and his family leave Jerusalem to the time they arrive in the continent we know as South America, then the division of Lehi's family, and in general the origins of the Nephites and Lamanites. In this movie, because Nephi provided such detail to this experience, the producers of the movie provided equal detail to the actors in what they could do with the roles they were given. After this, when Nephi and his brothers have returned to their father with the plates, Laman and Lemuel want to go back to Jerusalem, thinking their father is wrong about the city being destroyed. This isn't written in the Book of Mormon, but in the movie Lehi tells them, 'You killed Laban.' It took me hearing those words to realize why the Lord ordered Lehi to take his family and leave Jerusalem, then, after a few days of journeying, send his sons back for the plates.

“God knew Nephi would have to kill Laban in order to get the records on the brass plates. He knew Lehi would have to lose all his property in order to get those records. If Lehi and his family had, under those circumstances, left Jerusalem with the brass plates, it would've aroused the suspicion of the Jews, and they would've chased after them and brought them back to Jerusalem. Then, one way or another, they wouldn't have been able to escape, they would've either been killed by the Jews or hauled away with the other Jews in Jerusalem by the Babylonians that would destroy Jerusalem and take the residents captive or kill them. There would've been no Nephites or Lamanites, no people in the South American continent to found the Church of Jesus Christ in the Americas, no people for the Christ to visit there, and ultimately no Book of Mormon. That's why the Lord ordered Lehi to leave Jerusalem first, then send his sons back to retrieve the brass plates. God knows what he's doing, even when we don't understand it.”

It seems that I got so invested in my explanation that I couldn't hear the hoof-falls of the earth stallion behind me. All I know is after I finish testifying of this basically being evidence of the truth and importance of the Book of Mormon, I hear Berry Ground's voice behind my character say, “I hadn't thought of it that way.” As my character turns to him, he continues, “I read that verse you just read, and my only thoughts were of what I would've done in Nephi's place. I hadn't read anymore than that because I kept thinking that I wouldn't have been able to do what he did, even if it meant my descendants would've dwindled and perished in unbelief.” As the earth stallion settles into a sphinx-style position next to my character again, he continues, “Like you, I didn't have that one piece of the puzzle to make the picture complete.” Focusing on my character, he concludes, “I'm fine now. If it's alright with you, I'll read the next verse.”

I answer, “You're quite welcome to. But, first I have one more thing to say.” As my character turns to the other readers, I say, “We're pretty much halfway through this chapter. Shall we finish the chapter, or end the reading here for the night, and come back to it tomorrow?”

It's Pinkie Pie who says, “I say we finish the chapter.”

The other readers voice their agreement, so I turn to Berry Ground and nod for him to read.

The earth stallion nods back, then looks down into his book and reads, “And after I had smitten off his head with his own sword, I took the garments of Laban and put them upon my own body; yea, even every whit; and I did gird on his armor about my loins.”

Before Emerald Hill reads his verse, he says, “Since we know that Nephi and his brothers do get the brass plates, we just need to know how they get them.” Then he reads, “And after I had done this, I went forth unto the treasury of Laban. And as I went forth toward the treasury of Laban, behold, I saw the servant of Laban who had the keys of the treasury. And I commanded him in the voice of Laban, that he should go with me into the treasury.”

Stunts reads, “And he supposed me to be his master, Laban, for he beheld the garments and also the sword girded about my loins.” Looking up, he says, “I'm not really sure what to think of this servant of Laban right now. Although, considering it's nighttime, the darkness must've provided the perfect cover, hiding Nephi's details, so all he'd need to do, after having dressed in Laban's clothes, was to just sound like Laban.”

I answer, “That's pretty much right.” Then, I nod to Princess Luna to read the next verse.

The nighttime princess nods back before reading, “And he spake unto me concerning the elders of the Jews, he knowing that his master, Laban, had been out by night among them.”

Trixie reads, “And I spake unto him as if it had been Laban.”

Lyra reads, “And I also spake unto him that I should carry the engravings, which were upon the plates of brass, to my elder brethren, who were without the walls.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And I also bade him that he should follow me.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And he, supposing that I spake of the brethren of the church, and that I was truly that Laban whom I had slain, therefore he did follow me.”

At this point, Berry Ground says, “It sounds like this Laban had a lot of respect among the Jews, if he held such a position in the church among them.”

I answer, “He very likely did,” before reading, “And he spake unto me many times concerning the elders of the Jews, as I went forth unto my brethren, who were without the walls.”

Berry Ground reads, “And it came to pass that when Laman saw me he was exceedingly frightened, and also Lemuel and Sam. And they fled from before my presence; for they supposed it was Laban, and that he had slain me and had sought to take away their lives also.”

Emerald Hill, after chuckling for a moment, reads, “And it came to pass that I called after them, and they did hear me, wherefore they did cease to flee from my presence.” Looking up from the book, the pegasus asks, “Isn't what Nephi just did going to let Laban's servant know he isn't Laban?”

Stunts says, “Indeed,” before reading, “And it came to pass when the servant of Laban beheld my brethren he began to tremble, and was about to flee from before me and return to the city of Jerusalem.” Looking up, he says, “Now, if they let Laban's servant go, chances are he's going to alert everypony in the city, and their chances of escape are going to disappear instantly.”

Princess Luna reads, “And now I, Nephi, being a man large in stature, and also having received much strength in the Lord, therefore I did seize upon the servant of Laban, and held him, that he should not flee.”

Trixie reads, “And it came to pass that I spake unto him, that if he would hearken unto my words, as the Lord liveth, and as I live, even so that if he would hearken unto our words, we would spare his life.” Looking up from the book, she says, “I get the feeling that these words, 'as the Lord liveth, and as the speaker lives,' hold some great significance to Nephi.”

I answer, “That's Nephi's way of making a very powerful, very sacred promise. I guess you could say it's equivalent to a Pinkie promise.”

Pinkie Pie perks up and says, “Oh really?”

I answer, Oh, yeah.”

The pink earth pony says, “I take Pinkie promises very seriously. If this type of promise that Nephi made is the same as a Pinkie promise, then Nephi's very serious about keeping it.”

Before I can respond, Lyra reads, “And I spake unto him, even with an oath, that he need not fear; that he should be a free man like unto us if he would go down in the wilderness with us.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And I also spake unto him, saying: Surely the Lord hath commanded us to do this thing; and shall we not be diligent in keeping the commandments of the Lord? Therefore, if thou wilt go down into the wilderness to my father thou shalt have place with us.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And it came to pass that Zoram did take courage at the words which I spake. Now Zoram was the name of the servant, and he promised that he would go down into the wilderness unto our father. Yea, and he did tarry with us from that time forth.”

I read, “Now we were desirous that he should tarry with us for this cause, that the Jews might not know concerning our flight into the wilderness, lest they should pursue us and destroy us.”

Stunts speaks up now and says, “A valid concern, based on what Mormon said about them.”

Berry Ground reads, “And it came to pass that when Zoram had made an oath unto us, our fears did cease concerning him.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that we took the plates of brass and the servant of Laban, and departed into the wilderness, and journeyed unto the tent of our father.” Looking up, the pegasus says, “And, that ends chapter four.”

As my character looks up, I say, “Well, if there are no further questions that require further reading, I move we call an end to it for now.”

This time it's Princess Luna who says, “I have enjoyed reading with you. But, now I must raise the moon. So, I have no objections to ending the reading for the time being.”

Lyra says, “I'm fully satisfied with the answers to my questions. I can wait for tomorrow to read the next chapter.”

Other statements follow a similar train of thought.

Hearing general agreement, my character, followed by everyone else, closes his copy of the Book of Mormon. Then, as he stands up and puts the book in his inventory, I say, “Well, in that case, tomorrow we'll be at least reading chapter five of First Nephi. Until then, this reading is ended.”

As the others rise, I happen to notice that the snack tray is half the height it was before. Evidently the readers were more willing to accept the snacks this evening than they were last night.

Before she leaves, Princess Luna says, “You've demonstrated an understanding of this book that I hadn't expected. It really has been a pleasure joining thee in this reading. I thank thee for allowing me to participate.”

I answer, “You're welcome to come any place and time we have a reading.”

The nighttime princess says, “I shall read chapter five, so that I may be prepared for the next reading.” And, before I can answer, she disappears.

Next is Berry Ground, who approaches my character and says, “I need to thank you as well. I really was stuck in that fourth chapter before I came to the reading and heard you talk about why Lehi had to leave Jerusalem with his family, and then send his sons back. I needed to hear you talk about that. Now I'm ready to read more of the Book of Mormon. Thank you.”

I answer, “I'm glad I could help. But, I think the one you should really be thanking is Lyra. Evidently my agreeing to take care of her was a better decision than I thought. If she hadn't had that question to ask, I wouldn't have had a reason to answer it, and I guess I wouldn't have been able to solve your problem as well, at least not during the reading. But, your input has been valuable as well.”

I can see that the earth stallion is getting ready to ask a question, but then the other two call for him that it's time to leave; so he salutes me goodbye and turns and heads off toward the Everfree forest. Before he leaves, though, he turns to my character and says, “Oh, by the way, is Pinkie Pie going to need a guide back to Ponyville?”

From behind my character, I hear the party pony's voice say, “No, I'll be staying with Mormon for a while. In the morning he'll walk with me to Ponyville, and I'll go back with him in the evening. I have to stay here and help him take care of Lyra. But, thanks for offering.” After Berry Ground and my character salute each other goodbye, I turn to Pinkie Pie, who says, “You know, Trixie is not as bad as I thought she was. You can study Lyra, but I wanna study Trixie.”

I answer, “That's up to you. But, Trixie's only gonna stick around until she finishes building her next mobile theater. After that, she'll be heading off.”

Pinkie Pie sighs somewhat heavily, then says, “I know. But, at least I can make friends with her while she's here.” Then, turning back to the two unicorns, who with Weed Whacker are preparing to take the platter in, she says, “I'd better help with the platter.” And, with that, she's off to join in carrying the snack tray.

As the four creatures proceed to carry the platter of snacks to the porch, I decide my character should at least help by opening the door, and holding it open to make it easier on the four. So, as per my instructions, my character moves ahead of the quartet to the front door, opens it, and holds it open as they proceed to carry the platter of leftover snacks into the house. Once they've made it inside, my character closes the door behind them, then proceeds to the kitchen door to do the same thing.

This time, Lyra and Trixie join forces, using their magic to raise the platter above the table, then lower the platter onto it.

I suggest, “Since we have these leftover snacks, why don't we have them for dinner tonight?”

The four answer by sitting in chairs around the table and taking from the remaining pile of snacks.

Pinkie Pie stops herself before she can eat the grape she's chosen, and says, “Wait a minute.” When the others have stopped, she continues, “I think we're forgetting something.”

The two unicorns and Weed Whacker look at each other, then at my character, and Lyra says, “That's right. Mormon doesn't have a place to sit.”

As the pale-green unicorn proceeds to leave her chair and search for one for my character, Pinkie Pie says, “That's true, but it's not what I meant.” As soon as Lyra stops, the pink earth pony continues, “We've forgotten to offer a prayer on the food. I think we need to have it blessed before we eat it.”

Now here's a pleasant turn of events. Pinkie Pie has thought of blessing the food, something I haven't thought of.

As Lyra returns to the chair she left, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “Mormon, will you offer a prayer over the food?”

Normally, it's the man of the house who asks for volunteers, or invites someone to bless the food. But, in this case, I don't mind. Once Lyra is back in her chair, all bow their heads, and I pray, “Heavenly Father, we thank thee for this food and ask thee to bless it, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.” A simple prayer, but adequate for its purposes.

Pinkie Pie is the first to say “Amen,” followed by the other three, and the four go back to eating.

In the mean time, my character gets his own plate, gathers some of the snacks, and proceeds to eat them.

Among the five the snacks aren't completely finished off before all are satisfied.

Lyra and Weed Whacker occupy one bedroom at the end of the hallway from the kitchen while Pinkie Pie occupies the bedroom right next to it. Trixie, on the other hand, occupies a bedroom on the other side of the house, on one side of the hallway attached to the front room, opposite my work room.

My character occupies his bedroom, where he proceeds to write his letter to Princess Celestia: “I've found that accepting custody of Lyra is more beneficial than I'd first thought.

“Perhaps Princess Luna has already informed you about this, but it's good to have more than one witness to these things. Anyway, Lyra had a question during the reading, which required reading not just the third chapter of First Nephi, but also the fourth. She wanted to know why God would have Lehi leave Jerusalem with his family, then send his sons back to get some necessary records after traveling in the wilderness for a few days.

“You may have read this already, but in the third chapter Nephi and his brothers go back to Jerusalem, and Laman is the first chosen to try to obtain the records from Laban. In return, Laban chases Laman away, calls him a thief, and threatens to kill him. On the second attempt, all four of them gather their remaining treasures from their home and offer them to trade for the records. In return, Laban chases them off, keeps their treasure for himself, and refuses to give up the records, thus becoming a thief.

“After a hot argument among the four, leading to blows, Nephi goes in alone, and is obliged to kill Laban, among other things because without those records his descendants would dwindle and perish in unbelief, and the only way to get those records is to kill Laban.

“Here I chose to answer Lyra's question, that, in one telling of the story I'm familiar with, after they've gotten the records and brought them back to their father Lehi, when Laman and Lemuel want to go back to Jerusalem, one of the things Lehi says to them, which isn't written in the Book of Mormon, is, 'You killed Laban.'

"As I explained to Lyra, and to everyone else there, I needed to hear that before I understood why God had ordered Lehi to take his family out of Jerusalem and travel for a few days before ordering him to send his sons back. As I explained to the other readers, God knew Nephi would have to kill Laban in order to get the records, and he knew it would also mean trading all their property to get them. If those events had transpired before they left Jerusalem the way they did afterwards, if Lehi had left Jerusalem after thusly obtaining the records, the Jews in Jerusalem would've gotten suspicious of them, and would've taken them and brought them back. One way or another, they would've been unable to leave Jerusalem when it was captured and destroyed by the Babylonians. There would've been no Nephites and Lamanites. There would've been no Church of Jesus Christ founded in the Americas, and there would've been no people for the Christ to visit there, and ultimately no Book of Mormon. Like I said to the readers tonight, God knows what he's doing, even when the rest of us don't understand.

“One of the readers, a stallion earth pony named Berry Ground, was having problems getting past the point when Nephi killed Laban, saying that if he'd been in Nephi's place, he would've doomed his descendants to dwindle and perish in unbelief, rather than kill Laban. Thanks to Lyra's question and the answer I was able to provide, Berry Ground got his own answers, and is willing to go back to reading the Book of Mormon.

“I owe you thanks for giving me the opportunity to take care of Lyra.

“Signed, Mormon.”

As my character leaves his room to head to that of Lyra and Weed Whacker, as it turns out the herbivorous dinosaur is leaving their room, evidently to head to that of my character. As they meet in the middle of the hallway, my character hands the letter to Weed Whacker, who immediately bites it, sending it to the princesses.

After that, my character returns to his room and prepares for and goes to bed.

There's been more to this part of the playthrough than I thought there'd be, a lot more. But, it has been satisfying. I find, as I save and quit the game, that I'm looking forward to playing it next time. So, until the game's tomorrow.

Chapter 4: DJ Poison3

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As the game resumes, I hear a knocking at my character's bedroom door. As my character rises and walks to his bedroom door, I hear Pinkie Pie moan as though she's losing her balance, followed by a light thud. Then, my character opens the door to see the pink party pony on her back. Whatever else her sense had done, it evidently kept her from getting hurt from my character opening his door.

As she rolls onto her hooves, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “Hi Mormon. If we're gonna get to Ponyville in time for me to get to Sugar Cube Corner, we'd better start preparing now. And, Lyra's gonna wanna visit Bon-Bon.” Cantering toward the kitchen, she continues, “Lyra's already gathered fruits from your orchard and vineyard. I hope you don't mind.”

As my character follows the pink earth pony into the kitchen, I answer, “No problem. So, what all's for breakfast?”

There's no answer, but I see three of the chairs around the the table already occupied by two unicorn mares on opposite sides of the table, with Weed Whacker occupying the chair on the side of the table opposite my character.

As the three invite my character to sit down, I see the plate in the middle of the table has a few apples, pears, summer fruits, grapes, and kiwi fruits. Before he sits down, my character goes to a cupboard and retrieves a plate for himself. Then, once in the remaining chair, he chooses a pear, a few grapes, and a peach, and starts eating them.

Then, remembering there aren't quite enough chairs for all, my character turns to the pink party pony, and I say, “I need to get a chair for you.”

Sitting canine style, Pinkie Pie closes her eyes and waves a forelimb as she says, “No, that's alright.” Putting her hoof down again and opening her eyes, she adds, “I've already eaten.”

I have to assume she's being honest with me. I guess we'll find out when we make our way through the Everfree forest, on our way back to Ponyville. And, that's another thing.

I turn to Trixie and ask, “So, will you be coming with us to Ponyville?”

The azure unicorn answers, “I can't go back there, not yet. I have to get back on my hooves.”

I understand what she means. After all, she lost her home there in Ponyville, and all she can do is try to build a new one. I say, “I suppose the least we can do, while we're in Ponyville, is get some tools and other items to help you build your new home. Is there anything in particular you need?”

Trixie has chosen a kiwi fruit and was about to bite into it when I asked. She pauses for a moment, then answers, “Since we're right next to the forest, I should have no problems finding wood. But, I could use a hammer, a saw, a bunch of nails, and some cloth for a curtain, preferably red.” She floats the fruit to her mouth, which she opens to prepare to bite it. Then, she floats the fruit away from her mouth before saying, “For that matter, if you could get a needle and some thread, I'd appreciate it.”

As I watch the azure unicorn eat the fruit, I answer, “That should be no problem.” As my character turns to Lyra, then Pinkie Pie, I ask, “Are there any hardware stores in Ponyville?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “There's one in Ponyville, and I'm sure you could find what you need there. As for the cloth and thread, Rarity should have some. Just say what you need, and she'll give it to you.”

As my character turns back to the azure unicorn, I say, “Well, it sounds like we can get what you need, then.”

Trixie looks down and says, “Nopony outside of family ever helped me before.” Then, with a sound that could be a cough or a forced laugh, she looks at my character and continues, “Fitting, is it not, that the one creature that helps me isn't a pony, but a human? Thanks, Mormon.”

Somehow I feel that, if I could've been there physically instead of through an avatar, I would've tried to stroke the azure unicorn's mane. Then, I would most likely have had my hand batted away. I answer, “Happy to be of service.”

Other than Lyra volunteering to carry what I get with her magic, no more is said among us as the four finish eating. After that, Lyra, Pinkie Pie, Weed Whacker and my character leave the house and head into the Everfree forest, leaving Trixie to gather wood to build a new mobile theater home.

Round about an hour later, the party of four is in Ponyville; and at Sugar Cube Corner, the unicorn, the dinosaur, and the human are saluting Pinkie Pie good luck at her job. Then, the remaining three tour the town, searching for the hardware store Pinkie Pie mentioned.

Not far from Sugar Cube Corner, the trio come across what is evidently the marketplace, where a few ponies have gathered to sell whatever they have to sell. Among these is the familiar orange earth pony, Applejack, selling apples and products made from them.

It's Lyra who approaches the orange earth pony.

Seeing the pale-green unicorn, Applejack says, “Howdy, Lyra. Wouldja like an apple?”

Lyra answers, “Thanks, but no thanks.” Then, she asks, “Would you know where the hardware store in town is?”

Applejack points over her stand as she answers, “Sure, it's right over there?”

As my character looks to see where Applejack is pointing, I see through his eyes what looks like a rather plain-looking building, one-floor, with a wooden sign hanging over the door.

Lyra thanks Applejack, then turns to my character and says, “Well, let's go and see what they have.”

As we enter the hardware store, Lyra and Weed Whacker go to the front desk to ask for where they could find the hammers and nails.

I have my character make his way to the back wall, to one corner, where he immediately finds the hammers. After my character chooses three hammers, I direct him to an isle, where, through his eyes, I can see boxes of nails.

As my character grabs a paper bag and proceeds to grab handfuls of nails and put them in the bag, I hear Lyra's voice say, “This seems to be your first time in the hardware store, but you seem to know where you're going.”

I answer, “This isn't the first hardware store I've been in. I've found that one hardware store is the same as another.”

Once my character has gathered enough nails, he takes what he's gathered and heads to the front desk, with the unicorn and the dinosaur following close behind him.

The stallion at the desk eyes the items, evidently counting them, then looks up at my character and says, “That'll be ten bits.”

My character produces ten gold-colored, flat cylinders and drops them on the desk next to the bag of nails.

Simultaneously, the stallion collects the coins, and my character gathers the hammers and nails.

That's when the pale-green unicorn steps up to the desk and places a saw in front of the stallion and says, “I'd like to get this, please.”

The stallion looks at the saw, then back at Lyra, and says, “That'll be five bits.”

Lyra produces five gold-colored flat cylinders and places them on the table, then lifts the saw with her magic and returns to my character's side.

As the three exit the store, I say, “Well, Lyra, here's another reason why it was a good idea for me to accept custody of you. You remembered the thing I'd forgotten. Nicely done.”

The pale-green unicorn nods and says, “I saw you getting hammers and nails, and I figured you'd forget something. Thanks for the compliment.”

After I welcome the unicorn's gratitude, the group heads to Rarity's boutique for the cloth, thread, and needle.

As we arrive at the cylindrical structure, Lyra opens the door and enters, calling out, “Rarity, we need your help with something.”

I'm sure I hear something land on a wooden surface from one of the rooms that I can see through my character's eyes before I hear Rarity's voice call, “I'll be right there!” Somehow, I wouldn't be surprised if Lyra accidentally surprised the white unicorn.

As I watch, through my character's eyes, Rarity come down the stairs, the white unicorn looks at Lyra and asks, “Yes, dear, what do you want?”

Lyra answers, “Just some red cloth, a needle, and thread.”

Rarity looks at my character, then back at Lyra, and says, “If you want to make clothes for your friend, I can make them easily enough.” And, with that, a rolled-up band of measuring tape nearby, possessed by a pale-purple aura, drifts past Rarity and toward my character.

Lyra, somewhat alarmed, says, “Oh, it's not for him.”

The measuring tape stops, then drifts back to it's place on a shelf, as Rarity asks, “Oh? Then what's it for?”

I answer, “I have a friend who needs some material for making a curtain. Do you have any?”

Rarity looks at my character again and answers, “I don't have material for making a curtain, but I do happen to have some red curtains available to use. Here. Let me get them for you.”

Lyra seems to be just as curious as I am about the red curtains Rarity has available.

We only have a few minutes to wait, as the white unicorn comes out with two red curtains that look oddly familiar to me.

As Rarity uses her magic to stretch the curtains in front of us, she says, “I managed to salvage these yesterday after the Ursa Minor ran amok through town. I couldn't stand to see perfectly good curtains go to waste, so I took them. I even repaired the holes.

“I was thinking of how I might use these red curtains, but if you want them, you can have them.”

As Rarity uses her magic to fold the curtains, Lyra answers, “Thank you so much. I'm sure these'll help our friend out a lot.”

As Rarity produces a bag and places the folded curtains in it, she says, “Oh, not at all.” Then, as Lyra accepts the bag from her, Rarity turns away and asks, “Oh, by the way, … “ And, that's all I hear her say as Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character are suddenly outside the door to the boutique.

Lyra, as an explanation, half-whispers, “I don't want Rarity to know that we're getting the curtains for Trixie.”

Now, I know Lyra wasn't in Ponyville to see Trixie turn Rarity's mane into a literal rat's nest, so I have to wonder if there isn't a deeper history between the blue unicorn and the white one, one that Lyra's more familiar with. Still, I say, “A wise precaution, especially after what happened yesterday.”

My suspicion is apparently confirmed as the pale-green unicorn says, “Uh-oh. What happened this time?”

Once we're a few paces away from Carousel Boutique, I answer, “Rarity was one of those that challenged Trixie. In response, Trixie turned Rarity's mane literally into a rat's nest.”

Lyra looks down at the ground and groans, then looks back up at my character and says, “That sounds like what normally happens when Rarity and Trixie meet. This time it was Trixie who was meaner to Rarity. Before that, it was Rarity who did something worse to Trixie. I have yet to see an end to it.”

As unicorn, dinosaur, and human make their way toward Bon-Bon's house, I say, “Well, maybe that's part of the reason why I'm here, helping you. Maybe it's time to help build a lasting bridge between Trixie and Rarity. And, just maybe it starts with the two reading together, at least in the same group.” After a strategic pause, I continue, “When I first saw Trixie in Ponyville, I heard her say something about naysayers, or as she put it, neigh-sayers. I made fun of that and hurt Trixie's feelings. Later on, I took the opportunity to make it up to her, and she forgave me. Now, we're friends. If I can repent to Trixie and she can forgive me, maybe I can help her and Rarity become friends. Whether the two forgive each other or not is up to them. But, I figure the least I can do is help them take the first step toward building a relationship of trust between them.”

Lyra sighs and says, “The difference between you and Rarity, aside from species and gender, is that you don't have the history with Trixie that Rarity has. Trixie forgave you more easily because you repented to her not long after making your mistake. Rarity and Trixie have been at each other's throats ever since they were fillies. And, maybe the fact that they're unicorns and mares has something to do with it, I don't know. Unicorns can be pretty stubborn, and it's not easy for a unicorn to admit when he or she is wrong.” Then, looking up at my character again, she concludes, “But, if you can get Trixie to forgive you, then maybe, just maybe, you can get her to repent to Rarity.”

I answer, “At the very least it's worth a shot. But, just to let you know, it isn't easy for humans to admit doing wrong either. Frequently, one human may do something to another, not knowing it offended the other. I've been in that situation before, or at least sensing that I've offended someone, and I've gotten into the habit of waiting to be sure that an offense has taken place so I'd know what to do next. I can't say that an offense has been confirmed, so I wasn't able to do anything about it if there was an offense. But, I feel like I learned some level of self-restraint.”

Before we can say anymore to each other, Lyra demonstrates that we've arrived at Bon-Bon's house by leading my character and Weed Whacker to the front door and knocking.

After a few seconds, the door opens; and I see the pale-yellow earth mare Bon-Bon on the other side. Seeing her pale-green unicorn friend, she says, “Lyra! Come on in. I have to warn you, you're not the first guest I have here.”

Lyra answers, “And, I've brought others with me.” Before she enters, she points to my character and says, “You remember Mormon, right?” then points to the herbivorous dinosaur between her and my character and says, “And here's a new friend of mine, Weed Whacker.” She then enters her friend's house, followed by Weed Whacker and my character.

As my character enters, his attention is drawn to a white unicorn with mane and tail of two shades of blue lying on her face on one of two couches facing each other across a coffee table with a glass top. Evidently the setup in the front room of my character's house isn't all that unique.

The unicorn groans, then looks up at the new guests. Seeing my character, she says, in a tone I'm not sure about, “Oh, it's you.”

I open my mouth to say something, but Lyra beats me to it: “Is Vinyl alright?”

I was going to ask Vinyl Scratch directly, but this ought to get the answer to my question as much as my asking the white, blue-haired unicorn would've done.

Bon-Bon answers, “Vinyl went on a binge last night, and Octavia didn't want to deal with it. So, Vinyl stayed with me for the night. I guess her concert was a big success.”

The white unicorn on the couch moans, “Not so loud!”

I've never experienced a hangover, and, from what I've observed, I never want to. Experience with migraines is enough. And, if I want to lose my sense of equilibrium, I can spin in one place until I can't tell up from down. For that matter, I don't need alcohol poisoning to make a fool of myself; I've done that plenty of times without any help.

The white unicorn mare stares at me for a few seconds before saying, “So, I'm guessing you want me to play that Slender game again, huh? Wanna grab me again, maybe make me pee all over the place?”

From her last question, it's clear to me Vinyl hasn't forgiven me for what happened at her and Octavia's house, when I scared her by grabbing her by the shoulder just as Slenderpony appeared. I say, “About that. I really shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry.”

In response, Vinyl says, “Well, you did clean up the mess I made, so I have no reason to—“ Just then, she closes her mouth and her cheeks puff up; and with one hoof she covers her mouth and with the other forelimb she grabs her stomach.

Presently different things are possessed by different colors of aura: the doorknob to an apparent bathroom nearby by a blue aura as it opens; Vinyl herself by a pale-green aura as she floats upward; and Vinyl's mouth by an aura between her blue and Lyra's pale-green, evidently keeping her mouth closed so she doesn't vomit before she can reach the bathroom. On arriving at the toilet inside, the white unicorn is lowered with her head over the basin. When she's safely on the ground, I finally hear a long, loud gagging sound and splashing sounds as whatever Vinyl last ate and drank end up mixing with the water in the toilet.

Only needing to hear what's going on to understand, I turn to Lyra and say, “Not quite the response I was hoping for.”

In the mean time, I notice, on the edge of the periphery of my character's vision, a pale-green aura possess and close the bathroom door, giving Vinyl the privacy she needs.

And, that's when Bon-Bon enters the room with a plate full of what once again resemble French fries made with Yukon Gold potatoes. And, once again, I'm not sure if my character should eat any, considering they're probably not what they appear to be.

In the mean time, Lyra and Bon-Bon delve into the snacks, each grabbing one of them and biting off pieces, clearly enjoying them.

As soon as Bon-Bon chews and swallows her snack, she turns to me and asks, “So, did you come here to apologize to Vinyl?”

I answer, “Not really. I'm actually here for Lyra's benefit. Being able to repent to Vinyl was an unexpected opportunity for me.”

Bon-Bon says to me, “Oh,” then turns to Lyra and asks, “So, what's this about your benefit?”

The pale-green unicorn looks down at the remainder of the snack in her hoof, sighs, then puts it down on the coffee table. Looking at her friend, she says, “A couple days ago, I broke into Canterlot Castle and tried to get to a magic mirror so I could get into the human world.”

Bon-Bon answers with an extended “Oh,” then adds, “And, based on the fact that you're still here, I'm guessing you didn't succeed.”

Lyra explains, “I don't know how he did it, but Mormon got some kind of sound-transmitting device into my ear; and, before I could get that last door open, he called out something I didn't understand. I freaked out, and then the guards came, and … I wet myself.”

In Lyra's pause, I notice that Bon-Bon doesn't vocally respond. As my character looks at the yellow earth pony, I can see an expression of concern on her face.

Lyra continues, “Needless to say, I was caught and thrown in jail. Mormon visited me with Pinkie Pie, and I guess Princess Luna decided it'd be a good idea for Mormon to take care of me for my sentence. Since then, Mormon has been taking care of me, and I've been assigned to write letters to the princesses about what I learn about humans from him.” Pointing to the herbivorous dinosaur, Lyra continues, “Weed Whacker here sends the letters I write directly to them.”

After hearing what Lyra said, Bon-Bon turns to my character and asks, “So, what was it you said to Lyra?”

I answer, “I asked her in a language she wouldn't recognize what she was doing.”

Bon-Bon, more focused, asks, “What were your exact words?”

I answer, “Raira, kei te aha?”

Bon-Bon asks, “And, that language is … “

I answer, “Maori.”

Bon-Bon looks down for a moment, then back up, and says, “That's certainly not a language I've ever heard of. And, you seem really good at it.” Before I can thank her, she points to the snacks on the plate and says, “By the way, I can't help noticing you haven't had any of my snacks yet.”

I ask, “If you don't mind me asking, what are they?”

Bon-Bon answers, “Fried, breaded asparagus.”

I have my character reach for one of the snacks, and I say, “That does sound good. I do like asparagus.”

And, as my character bites down on the stick, a message box on the bottom of the screen reads, “A pleasant mixture of corn and herb.”

I say, “Corn breading. Nice touch.”

That's when Lyra turns to me and says, “Didn't your mother teach you any manners? You shouldn't talk with your mouth full.”

I wait for the message box that reads, “Your character swallows,” before I say, “Oops.”

In the mean time, Bon-Bon squees and says, “Thanks for the compliment.”

Just then, the bathroom door opens, and an unstable Vinyl Scratch stumbles out. She looks up at my character and says, “Mormon, I forgive you,” before collapsing. Aside from her chest expanding and contracting, the main evidence that she's still alive is her snoring.

Bon-Bon finishes her asparagus in one big bite, then turns to Lyra and asks, “Could you help me with Vinyl?”

Lyra nods, and the two mares move to each side of the sleeping white unicorn. Then, once in position, they turn around at the same time and pick up their friend, holding her up under each forelimb, and proceed to drag her to and up a flight of stairs.

Having programmed this game, I know that, unless my character intervenes, something's going to go horribly wrong with this plan. I have my character stand up and turn to watch the two mares as I say, "Excuse me, but I think you're dragging Vinyl in the wrong direction."

Lyra ignores my warning, and instead says, “You stay there. We can handle this.”

So, my character continues to watch the three mares, even moves around the couch to follow them to the stairs; and again I warn, "Trust me, you really need to take her back to the bathroom, right now."

This time, it's Bon-Bon who, dragging the blue-haired unicorn up the stairs with Lyra's help, says, "What Vinyl needs right now is to go to bed."

Then, half-way up the stairs, I see, through my character's eyes, Vinyl Scratch's hind legs twitch slightly, and I can only watch as her tail rises, and a waterfall starts flowing from her behind, accompanied by the the sound effect of water being poured on carpet.

As the two pause, Bon-Bon looks down under Vinyl, groans, and says, “Well, that's one thing Mormon won't have to scare out of her.”

I must admit, I'm feeling disappointed that Lyra didn't trust me, as I watch, through my character's eyes, the yellow waterfall, or urine-fall, land on the stairs just behind Vinyl, then continue on a path back down the stairs.

When Vinyl Scratch stops urinating and lowers her tail, Lyra and Bon-Bon resume their trek up the stairs.

At the top, Lyra stops and asks, “Now, Bon-Bon, if Vinyl peed when we were half-way up the stairs, doesn't that mean that … “

Bon Bon, having stopped to hear Lyra out, realizes why her pale-green unicorn friend trailed off, and I can only assume she closed her eyes and put her free front hoof between them as she shakes her head and says, “Oh, no.”

But, it's too late to do anything about it.

Vinyl's tail rises again, and what resembles greenish chocolate pours from the base of her tail between her hips onto the second or third step from the top, then starts flowing slowly down the stairs, ready to join the unconscious mare's urine.

I have to keep from laughing as I hear Bon-Bon say, “The worst thing about it is it doesn't make her any lighter.” Then, she turns to the unconscious unicorn and says, “The next time you go on a drinking binge, Vinyl, you're sleepin' outside.”

Just then, the front door opens, and I hear Pinkie Pie's voice say, “Hi, Mormon, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Bon-Bon! I'm on my break, and I thought I'd see how things were going … “ As my character turns to her, I see her pull a sour face as she says, “Eww, did someone just poop and pee in here?” Then, before my character can stop her, she canters toward the stairs where she sees the freshly-made messes; and my character turns back to the trio to show me Vinyl's tail lowering as her bowels have finally emptied, then Lyra and Bon-Bon drag the white unicorn to a doorway.

As my character turns away from the scene to look at Pinkie Pie again, I can see her mane and ears droop and tears form in her eyes as she turns around and wanders out the door again. Her tail remains curly, just not as much as before. Evidently Pinkamena is still in control, just not as happy as she was when she first came in.

Weed Whacker follows my character, who follows Pinkie Pie out the door.

Once outside, I don't need a direct look at Pinkie's face to tell that she's trying to recompose herself. I assume she's using the front hoof she just picked up to rub her nose as she sniffles, then says, “It never fails. Every time she goes out binge drinking, it always happens.”

As my character approaches the pink mare, she makes a wide U-turn to the nearby yard and to a chaise lounge as she continues, “She comes home the next day all hung over, throws up, then falls asleep. Then she loses all control of her bowels and bladder, leaving her friend or friends to clean up the mess.”

Evidently, what I observed isn't just a one-time event. It's happened frequently.

As we arrive at the chaise lounge, I ask the pink earth pony, “Have you had experience … ?”

As Pinkie Pie jumps up on the lounge, minus her normal enthusiasm, she answers, “No, I haven't cleaned up her messes, but I have seen her mess herself when she was asleep.” As she slumps down into sphinx-style position on the lounge, she continues, “Lyra, Bon-Bon, and Octavia know better than I do how difficult it is to get pony poop out of tail hair. After what they say about it, I don't even want to try drinking anything with alcohol in it.” Her voice goes up an octave as she continues, “I want to respect her, but how can I when she does … that?” Finally, she folds her forelimbs in front of her and buries her face in them as she sobs, “Oh Vinyl.” And, she doesn't stop sobbing.

Having had experience with the real Pinkie Pie, I know how much she cares about her friends; and I think I've incorporated that rather effectively into the game. And, for that matter, I've also programmed variations of this effect of intoxication into the game for all ponies.

My character sits down next to the pink pony and massages her back as she continues to sob, and I say, “Maybe it's time to invite her to join us in our reading.”

Pinkie Pie turns to me, and I can see the streams of tears from her eyes, as well as a streamer starting to form from each nostril, as she smiles weakly and says, “I think she needs to wake up first.”

I chuckle and say, “Alright, when she wakes up.”

Pinkie Pie forces a chuckle and nods.

In the mean time, Weed Whacker says, “If you want. There's just something about her that scares me.”

As my character turns to look at the herbivorous dinosaur, I can see that she is indeed trembling. Under my direction, my character uses his other hand to massage the little dinosaur behind her head, which does the job of relaxing her.

Pinkie Pie peers over my lap to see the herbivorous dinosaur and says, “I'm sorry about that. But, she is my friend. I worry one of these days she's gonna get herself killed.”

It seems to me Pinkie Pie's concern is valid, even in this fictional, computer-generated world. Vinyl could die of hypothermia if she collapses outside in a cold rainstorm or in a snowstorm. Or, her binge drinking could just destroy her internal organs. Thanks to the way I programmed the game, physical and spiritual laws apply. And, while Vinyl Scratch is not on the same course that Pinkie Pie was on in the first game, she's still on a course of self-destruction. And, like Pinkie Pie's downfall, Vinyl's is affecting her friends, and not in a positive way.

I ask, “So, Pinkie, when she wakes up, do you want to invite your friend, or should I?”

The pink earth pony sighs and says, “I don't know if I'll be around when Vinyl wakes up. My break'll be over soon. But, I would like to be the one that invites her.”

As my character stands up again, I state, “Well, in that case, Lyra, Weed Whacker and I will keep an eye on Vinyl, and let you know when she wakes up.”

At this point, the pink earth pony rises and looks at my character. Her mane and tail are returning to their normal level of curliness.

She answers, “Nah, that's alright. I'll be back after work, and Vinyl should be awake by then. You just keep her here, and it'll give me the perfect opportunity to invite her.”

I say, “I'll see what I can do to keep her here.”

Pinkie Pie looks up at the sky, then back at my character, and says, “Oh, I'd better get going. If I don't leave now, I'm gonna be late. Bye!” And, with that, she's on her way back to Sugar Cube Corner.

As my character turns to Weed Whacker, I say, “Well, I guess we'd better go back inside.”

The herbivorous dinosaur groans, but follows my character as they enter Lyra and Bon-Bon's house.

Once inside, I notice the two mares on the steps, evidently in the process of cleaning up the messes made by Vinyl.

Lyra is saying, “if that … so-called musician … messes my bed, so help me, … “ then she grunts angrily and punches her two front hooves together.

I ask, “So, is Vinyl alright?”

The two turn to me, and Lyra answers, “That depends on what you mean by alright. She's still asleep, and, as usual, she has no idea how much trouble she's caused.” Then, after a pause, she asks, "How did you know she was gonna wet and mess herself on the steps?"

Clearly, the two ponies hadn't expected Vinyl to urinate and defecate, at least not when she did. They should've taken her back to the bathroom and propped her up on the toilet until she'd done so, then taken her upstairs. But, in the interest of keeping peace among the three of us, I decide not to say that. Instead, I say, “Well, I have a good source for my information. And, just so long as she's alive, Pinkie Pie and I have decided to invite her to the reading tonight.”

Bon-Bon, pausing from her evident job of scrubbing the musical mare's feces off one step, looks at Lyra and asks, “What reading?”

Lyra turns to Bon-Bon and answers, “I don't know how long it's been going on, but Mormon has been having readings of a book of scripture at his house, a book called the Book of Mormon.”

Not turning to me, the yellow earth pony asks, “Is there any particular reason why the book is named after you?”

I answer, “It's not so much the book being named after me, as it is I'm named after one of the prominent people in the book.”

Lyra adds, “I brought a copy of the book with me, if you want to read it. You don't have to read it with us, although your input would be appreciated. If you want, we read at Mormon's house on the other side of the Everfree forest.”

I add, “Pinkie Pie will be coming back when she's finished at work. Then, she, Lyra, Weed Whacker and I will be heading back to my house. If you want, you can follow us.”

Bon-Bon sighs and says, “I have a feeling I'm gonna be busy scrubbing Vinyl's poop out of the stairs here for the rest of the day. I don't know if I'll be able to make the reading.”

I say, “If I help, that should speed things up.” I then ask, “If the three of us can get the mess cleaned up before Pinkie Pie comes, will you come with us, and take part in the reading?”

Bon-Bon looks down at the greenish-chocolate-colored dung she just scooped up, then back at my character, and says, “You're a guest in my house, and I wouldn't feel right making you clean up a mess you didn't help cause. On the other hand, like you said, it would help move things along.”

I say, “In that case, I volunteer to help clean up the mess.” Then, when my character turns to Weed Whacker, I ask, “Will you help?”

The little herbivorous dinosaur groans and says, “I never though I'd be cleaning up pony dung. But, if it'll help get the job done quicker, I guess so.”

As half-hearted as the acceptance was, at least Weed Whacker accepted.

My character turns to Bon-Bon, and I say, “I guess that means you have two volunteers to help.”

From the edge of my character's periphery, I see Lyra's horn glow, and a door opposite the stairs from the living room opens. From inside the evidently opened room, a bucket and a couple scrubbing brushes float out, evidently possessed by Lyra's magic aura. The three objects are followed by a bottle of cleanser.

The four objects pass by my character and Weed Whacker, though the two brushes stop and hover, one in front of my character, the other in front of Weed Whacker. The other objects make their way to another room, where more of Lyra's magic aura possesses the door and opens it, allowing the items to enter. After that, the cleanser and bucket float back out, the bucket stopping and coming to rest in front of my character and Weed Whacker, and the cleanser bottle returning to the room (closet?), after which the door closes.

Lyra pants for a bit before saying, “You can use the bucket of cleanser water and the brushes to clean. Mormon, you can scrub the stairs Bon-Bon started on, the ones with Vinyl's poop on them. Weed Whacker, you can clean the stairs I started on, the ones with Vinyl's pee on them.”

The dinosaur and I agree, and soon the unicorn, the earth pony, the human, and the dinosaur are cleaning the messes Vinyl left behind out of the stairs.

At times, it seems that Bon-Bon might gag, and add the to the mess we're trying to clean up. But, Lyra says she needs to learn to grin and bear it.

I seem to remember something about people who, confronting a nauseating situation, learned that smiling kept them from feeling sick, and thus from vomiting. As I watch Bon-Bon attempt to smile, I notice it seems to be working for her, even just attempting to smile.

With the four of us working together, we do get the job done before Pinkie Pie arrives, and just as Vinyl comes out and wonders aloud what the four of us are doing on the steps.

I find my character has to restrain Lyra as she marches up the steps toward the white unicorn mare and says, “If you'd emptied your bowels and bladder in the bathroom before we had to drag you to my bedroom, we wouldn't have had to clean it out of the stairs.”

Vinyl bursts into laughter, falling against a nearby wall as she says, pointing between her hind legs with a forelimb, “You mean I actually peed and pooped on the stairs?” she then slides down the wall, continuing to giggle at the thought.

Lyra, struggling to free herself from my character's hold, growls, “It's not funny.”

I say to the pale-green unicorn, “Lyra, let me talk to her. And, don't forget that I also warned you that Vinyl wasn't ready to leave the bathroom when you were taking her to the stairs. If you'd followed my advice, we wouldn't have been cleaning her urine and feces out of the stairs.”

Hearing what I say, Lyra calms down and, agreeing with me, allows my character to let her go.

With his hands thus free, my character heads up the stairs and settles down next to the still-laughing white unicorn; and I say, “I heard from Pinkie Pie that this isn't the first time it's happened. In fact, from what she said, you become completely incontinent when you've been on a drinking binge, after you've vomited and passed out. And, from what she's said, that happens often. You need help.”

At this point, the white unicorn has stopped laughing, and is now snarling at my character. She arises, paws at the carpet, and growls, “Who are you to tell me what I need? What, are you a doctor or something? You've only met me twice, and you think you know my whole story? What are you even doing here?”

I watch Vinyl's horn start to glow, and have my character grab it and hold it firm, to the evident surprise of all three ponies. Even Weed Whacker vocalizes surprise.

The now alarmed Vinyl backs away from my character, struggling to free her horn from his grip, as she says, “Hey, what're ya doin'? Leggo my horn!”

At the same time, Lyra grabs the arm that's holding Vinyl's horn and says, “Let go of Vinyl! That's no way to treat a unicorn! You could hurt her!”

My character turns to Lyra, and I say, “I know what I'm doing. I'm handling the situation.”

Lyra says, “You're handling it the wrong way. You're gonna break her horn off.”

My character turns back to Vinyl as I say, “Only if she keeps struggling.”

I watch through my character's eyes as the white unicorn pulls back hard. Then I hear a snap, and Vinyl stops struggling and yelps, “Ow, ow, ow, ow! My horn! It hurts!” Then she collapses and starts sobbing.

My character finally releases her horn, and I say, “I'm sorry I had to do that, but you didn't leave me much of a choice. Now, if you're willing to keep calm and listen, I think I can help you.” After a few seconds of waiting for a response, and not getting any, I continue, “I did see you urinate and defecate on the stairs. And, I helped Bon-Bon clean your feces out of the stairs toward the top, and Weed Whacker helped Lyra clean your urine out of the stairs further down. Now, I don't know that much about pony physiology or anatomy, so I have no idea if alcohol poisoning would work on other ponies the way I saw it work on you. All I know is it isn't treating you very well.”

Looking at Vinyl and seeing the evident pain as too much of a distraction for her, I have my character heal her horn by touch. And, yes, that is an option in this game.

Evidently noticing the absence of pain, yet still holding her head, Vinyl looks at me and says, “Why would you do that? First you break my horn, then you heal it?”

I answer, “I didn't mean to hurt you. But, I do want to help you, if you'll let me.”

Vinyl opens her mouth, evidently intending to say something, but is interrupted by the door opening.

All I know is my character turns to show me that Pinkie Pie has just entered.

The pink earth pony, seeing us on the stairs, tilts her head and asks, “Is everything alright?”

I answer, “Everything's fine. And, Vinyl's awake.”

Next to my character, Vinyl Scratch rises to her hooves and, seeing her pink friend, says, “Hi, Pinks!”

As she enters the room, Pinkie Pie kicks the door closed with a rear hoof. Focused on her white unicorn friend, she says, “Hi, Vinyl. Could you come down the stairs? I have something I'd like to talk to you about.”

Under her breath, I hear Vinyl say, “Uh oh.” As the others on the stairs clear a path for her, mainly by descending them ahead of her, the white unicorn swallows as she looks at me and whispers, “Did she see me, you know, when I was passed out?”

I have my character nod.

I watch Vinyl as she grimaces and freezes up in fear. Then, a moment later, she relaxes and sighs, looks ahead, and makes her way slowly down the stairs. She pauses for a moment, looks at Pinkie Pie, and says, “I'm sorry, Pinks. I really didn't want you to see me that way.”

Pinkie Pie, still focused on Vinyl, watches her continue her descent down the stairs as she says, “You know as well as I do that wasn't the first time I saw you that way. But, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about.”

Vinyl, now at the bottom of the stairs, emits a sigh of relief before asking, “So, what did you want to talk to me about, Pinkie?”

At this point the pink earth pony turns away from the white unicorn and trots to the couch more-or-less facing her as she says, “Come over here and join me on the couch. We'll talk about it there.”

Vinyl freezes in place, and her ears point straight up as she says, “Pinkie, I didn't think you were that kind of mare!”

At this point, Lyra and Bon-Bon start giggling.

And, I can understand why. Right now, I can't tell if Pinkie Pie realizes the connotations of her invitation.

That is, until the pink earth pony tilts her head and asks, “Huh?” Now, it's clear that she didn't.

Vinyl, seeing her friend's curious posture, starts walking toward her again; and her ears point behind her again as she says, “Uh, nothing.” When she gets to the couch and jumps up next to the pink earth pony, she asks, “So, Pinkie, what did you want to talk to me about?”

Straightening her head again, Pinkie turns to one side, searches her saddle bag (When did she get that?), and produces a copy of the Book of Mormon. Setting it next to her friend, she looks up at her again and says, “I'd like to invite you to a reading of this book. It'll be at Mormon's house, sometime around dusk, and a bunch of other ponies will be joining us. Are you interested?”

Scratching the back of her head with a front hoof, Vinyl answers, “Uh, I don't know. Where is Mormon's house?”

I answer, “It's on the other side of the Everfree forest.” As I see the two ponies on the couch look at my character, I continue, “If it'll help, there'll be at least three stallions heading there. You could follow them if you want. And, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Trixie and I will be there to let you in.”

Vinyl asks, “Is this how you wanted to help me?”

I answer, “It's one of the ways. And, you do need help giving up your drinking habit.”

Vinyl groans, then resumes scratching the back of her neck with the forelimb as she says, “I really don't see how reading a book is gonna help me give up drinking.” Then, her ears point straight up again, and she drops her forelimb to her side as she asks, “Wait, did you say 'stallions?'”

Before I can answer, I see a hammer, possessed by a pale-green aura, float into the middle of my character's periphery.

I have my character grab the hammer and turn to the pale-green unicorn as I say, “Lyra, I don't need the hammer right now.” I then have him turn back to Vinyl, who I see evidently snickering over what I said to Lyra, and answer, “The stallions are friends of mine. If you want, I could have them wait for you in the entrance of the forest, and guide you through it. Then, afterward, you could go with them back to Ponyville. Is that alright?”

The white unicorn regains her composure as she listens to me, then says, “I suppose that'd be alright. So, when can I expect to see them?”

I answer, “That's up to them, I suppose. I don't know what their schedule is, but they've been coming after dusk on a regular basis for the past few days for the reading. Like I said, I could ask them to wait for you at the entrance to the forest, in case you're interested.”

At this point, I hear Lyra loudly whisper, “Mormon, you don't know what you're doing!”

As my character turns to the pale-green unicorn, I ask, “What's wrong?”

Lyra, still whispering, answers, “I know how Vinyl thinks. And, from what I've seen, she thinks you want her to sleep with the stallions.”

I whisper my answer, “How is she gonna sleep with stallions that are standing? And, besides, they'll be traveling through the Everfree forest. And, Berry Ground, Emerald Hill, and Stunts are just gonna be guides.”

This is when I hear Vinyl ask, “Wait, did you say Berry Ground, Emerald Hill, and Stunts? The Blank Stallions? Trust me, they're not my type. I'd rather go alone.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie says, “Well, I've also invited some of my friends to the reading. Twilight Sparkle and Applejack. I even gave them their own book to read.”

By the way it sounds, at this rate, it won't be long before all of Ponyville will be traveling to my character's house to read from the Book of Mormon.

Before I can say anything, I hear Lyra ask, “So, Bon-Bon, will you be going to the reading?”

As my character turns to the yellow earth pony, she, much like Vinyl did, scratches the back of her head with a forelimb and says, “Well, I'll have to lock up here first. But, if you don't mind, afterward, I'd like to travel with you, at least until I know where the reading's gonna take place.”

As Lyra and Bon-Bon look to my character, I say, “That's fine with me.” Then, as my character turns to Vinyl, I add, “If you want to join us on our way through the forest, you're welcome as well.”

Peer pressure is not one of my favorite motivators, and I can see Pinkie Pie demonstrating that she's better at applying it than any of the other ponies, as she pleads and begs and appeals to the fact that Vinyl will have a growing audience there.

I hear Bon-Bon say, “Well, Vinyl, my locking this place up means that you're gonna have to leave. Either you go back and stay with Octavia, you come with us through the forest for the reading at Mormon's house, or you have to look for another place to stay.”

The white unicorn looks down at the book, grabs it in her front hooves, and looks at the cover for a moment. She looks at Pinkie Pie, then back at the book. She looks at my character, then back at Pinkie Pie. Finally, she looks back at my character, sighs, and says, “I don't know if I can face Octy just yet, so it looks like my best choice is to go with you to that house on the other side of the forest. I won't guarantee that I'll join in the reading, although I might decide to read this book by myself.”

I can only guess it's the fact that Vinyl Scratch has decided to join us on the walk that causes Pinkie Pie to jump up and down and cheer in excitement.

In the mean time, I say, “Well, we may want to get going now. But, before we go, I think it'd be a good idea to go to that boutique first.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie stops bouncing, tilts her head, and asks, “Carousel Boutique? Why?”

As my character descends the stairs, I answer, “I think it'd be a good idea to invite Rarity to the reading.”

As my character turns to Pinkie Pie again, I can see her drawing circles on a cushion with a front hoof as she says, “Oh, I don't know about that.”

I hear Lyra ask, “Didn't I tell you about the history between her and Trixie? If you want Rarity to trust you, you're gonna have to tell her about Trixie staying at your house.”

I answer, “So, that's what I'll do. Whatever happens, she'll have the right to accept or refuse.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “Do you think you can promise Trixie'll behave herself while Rarity's there?”

I answer, “If Trixie respects me, then she should behave herself; so, yes.”

Lyra asks, “And, what about Rarity? She'll expect Trixie to pull some sort of stunt.”

I ask the pink earth pony, “Do you think you can keep your friend under control, Pinkie?”

Pinkie Pie stops drawing the circles, looks up at me, and asks, “What are you suggesting?”

I answer, “if you can keep an eye on Rarity, I'll keep an eye on Trixie.”

At this proposal Pinkie Pie looks up at the ceiling and starts scratching the bottom of her chin with the front hoof she wasn't using to draw circles. Her hum reflects the worry on her face as she says, “I just realized, Trixie also gave Applejack a hard time yesterday. If I'm gonna have to watch Rarity, I'm also gonna have to watch Applejack.”

I answer, “Well, the good news about Applejack is she can't cast spells. She should be easier to watch than Rarity, I'm thinking.”

Bon-Bon, who with Lyra has followed my character down the stairs, says, “Well, if it helps, I can watch Applejack. But, another good thing is that she doesn't have the history with Trixie that Rarity has.”

Taking that as evidence that everything is in order, I ask, “So, is everyone ready to go?”

Pinkie Pie bounces off one side of the couch while Vinyl jumps off the other side, and Vinyl grabs her copy of the book with her magic. Neither of them says anything, they just make their way to my character.

In the mean time, I hear Lyra and Bon-Bon say in unison, “We're ready.”

Weed Whacker, after making her way down the last step, answers, “I'm ready to go.”

It's Bon-Bon who approaches the door and opens it, allowing the rest of us to leave. She then follows us out and closes and locks the door behind her.

I must admit, I'm puzzled that the door locks on the outside. Something about that doesn't make sense to me. But, now is not the time to worry about it.

My character leads the group toward the Carousel Boutique, where, from several feet away, I can see that Twilight Sparkle and Applejack are already there, evidently inviting Rarity to join them at what they're calling “a party at Mormon's house.”

I say, “Well, it looks like Twilight Sparkle and Applejack have beaten us to it.”

My character looks down to see Pinkie Pie catch up to him, and, from my character's vantage point above her, I can see her grimace as she says, “Oh, goddesses, I'm in trouble now.”

I must say, as panicked as Pinkie Pie seems to be right now, I'm pleasantly surprised that she isn't wetting or messing herself. I say, “Well, if you'd prefer to stay here at the moment, I could approach them and talk about the situation.”

The pink earth pony sits down, and I can see her trembling as she points ahead and says, “No need. They're coming. No, scratch that. They're here.”

After watching the pink party pony hide her face in her flexed forelimbs, I have my character look toward the trio of ponies that are just a foot away from my character now.

Twilight, seeing her pink friend cowering, asks, “Pinkie Pie, what's wrong?”

I answer, “She's just worried about something she forgot to mention to you.”

Still focused on her pink earth pony friend, Twilight calmly, but curiously, says, “Pinkie Pie, please, tell me what's wrong.”

Pinkie Pie, now whimpering, can only stammer incoherently.

I say, “Maybe I should answer the question.”

Twilight sighs, then turns to me and says, in an uncertain tone, “Alright.”

I say, “Yesterday, when you returned the Ursa Minor to the Everfree forest, … “

Presently Twilight tilts her head and says, “Wait a minute. You weren't there at the time. How did you know about that?”

I suppose I could ask how Twilight knew I was gone at that time. Instead, I answer, “I have a good source for my information. Now, as I was saying, that particular incident left Trixie without a place to live. So, …”

Before I can continue, Twilight asks, “So,?” Then, as I open my mouth to continue, what I'm ready to say dawns on the purple unicorn. She gasps as she says, “Trixie is at your house right now, isn't she?”

I answer, “She'll be spending time, at least a few days, at my house until she can build a new mobile theater house for herself.”

I can see, though my character's eyes, the fury building in Rarity's face.

The white unicorn with purple hair marches toward the pink earth pony and says, “You knew about this, didn't you, Pinkie Pie?”

It takes a few seconds, but then Pinkie Pie bawls out, “I'm so sorry, Rarity! I didn't mean to hide it from you!” Turning to Applejack, she continues, “I forgot all about it! Can you ever forgive me!?”

The orange earth pony steps forward, a glare with, I'd say, less than half the fury of Rarity's on her face. She says, “Ah didn't believe Rarity at first. Not until that blue witch hogtied me with my own rope.” She sighs before continuing, “Well, at least she'll be gone in a few days.”

Presently, Rarity turns her fury on my character as she asks, “How could you harbor that … that … monster?”

Alright. So far, from these two, I've learned I'm harboring a witch and a monster. I say, “I don't know if this'll help, but I've gained Trixie's respect and trust. I understand how you feel about her, Lyra told me about it. But, I can promise you that Trixie'll behave herself as long as she's on my property. You have nothing to worry about from her.”

Rarity answers, “Oh, I have no reason to distrust you. But, I have every reason in the world to distrust Trixie.” She then turns to Twilight Sparkle and says, “I'm sorry. But, as long as that blue witch is there, I won't be going to Mormon's house.”

As my character focuses on Applejack, I ask, “And, you?”

The orange earth pony sighs and says, “Well, Trixie only attacked me once, so Ah s'pose Ah can forgive her. But, y'all better be careful. If'n she pulls one more stunt like she did last night, Ah don't care. Ah'll walk home by myself.”

I have my character kneel down and stroke the pink earth pony's mane as I say, “I'm thinking it's alright now. Rarity won't be joining us on this reading, but Applejack's still coming with us.” Then, as he stands up again, I add, “Still, it is unfortunate that the holder of the element of generosity can't forgive.”

Still whimpering, Pinkie Pie rises to her hooves again. Looking at Applejack, she says, “I really am sorry about forgetting to tell you about Trixie. It just slipped my mind.”

As my character's group turns around and is joined by Twilight Sparkle and Applejack, I hear Applejack answer, “That's alright, Pinkie Pie. Ah may be the element of honesty, but that doesn't mean Ah have a perfect memory. Even Ah forget things.”

I lose track of what the ponies talk about as they and my character venture out of town and into the Everfree forest. But, as they pass Fluttershy's cottage, a now recomposed Pinkie Pie separates from the group and makes her way to the building, requesting that we wait for her.

A few minutes later, three stallions join us, my three friends. Seeing my character waiting in front of the bridge over the stream which separates Fluttershy's cottage from the main path, Berry Ground, Emerald Hill, and Stunts decide to wait with us for Pinkie Pie, and perhaps Fluttershy, to join the group.

A few minutes later, a distraught Pinkie Pie comes out and rejoins the group, saying something about her friend being too shy to go with a large group to a human's house and read in front of everypony.

I console her by saying that at least she got to choose to come with us or stay at her cottage.

She answers that she left her friend with a copy of the Book of Mormon, and added that to the list of good things.

And, besides conversation on other topics, that's pretty much all that happens from the time the large group enters the forest proper until the time they make it to the other side, and to my character's house.

Seeing that there hasn't been time to prepare snacks, everyone, including Princess Luna, who was there to meet the large group, joins forces to prepare a platter of snacks for consumption during the reading.

Finally, the group gathers in a wide circle in the front yard, ready with their books, to read the fifth chapter of First Nephi.

My character turns to Twilight Sparkle as I ask, “Will you begin the reading?”

The purple unicorn nods, looks down, turns to the right page with her magic, and reads, “And it came to pass that after we had come down into the wilderness unto our father, behold, he was filled with joy, and also my mother, for she truly had mourned because of us.” Looking up, she says, “I'm gonna have to read the previous four chapters to understand what's going on here.”

Before I can ask Applejack, who's seated next to Twilight, to read the next verse, Weed Whacker asks, “Uh, Twilight Sparkle, don't you have a dragon companion?”

Twilight turns to the curious herbivorous dinosaur and answers, “I do have a dragon that assists me, yes.”

Weed Whacker asks, “So, where is he?”

Twilight answers, “Spike's taking care of the library. Why do you ask?”

Weed Whacker answers, “Mormon lets me read with you ponies. I was thinking you could have Spike come with you, and join us in the reading.”

With a somewhat surprised tone in her voice, the purple unicorn grunts, then says, “I hadn't thought of that. Do you think I should invite him to come to the next reading?”

Weed Whacker answers, “I've appreciated joining in the readings. I'm sure Spike would appreciate it as well.” She then turns to my character and asks, “Mormon, will you get a copy of the book, so Twilight can offer it to Spike when she invites him?”

I have my character nod to the female dinosaur, then stand up to go inside and retrieve a copy of the book.

Before my character can leave the circle, I hear Weed Whacker say, “Besides, I would look forward to seeing him again.”

The herbivorous dinosaur's last statement leads me to wonder if she's developed a crush on the purple, jewel-eating dragon.

The process of getting the book, and returning to hand it to the purple unicorn, then taking his place in the circle again, takes less than a minute. Then, as my character turns to the orange earth pony, I ask, “Applejack, will you read the next verse?”

Applejack nods, then turns to her book and reads, “For she had supposed that we had perished in the wilderness; and she had complained against my father, telling him that he was a visionary man, saying: Behold thou hast led us forth from the land of our inheritance, and my sons are no more, and we perish in the wilderness.”

Applejack looks like she wants to say something; but before she can, Pinkie Pie on her other side says, “I read next!” before reading, “And after this manner had my mother complained against my father.” She then turns to Princess Luna and cheerfully says, “Your turn, Princess!”

The nighttime princess nods, then looks down at her book and reads, “And it came to pass that my father spake unto her, saying: I know that I am a visionary man; for if I had not seen the things of God in a vision I should not have known the goodness of God, but had tarried at Jerusalem, and had perished with my brethren.”

Trixie, between Princess Luna and Vinyl Scratch, says, “I guess that means it's my turn now.” Looking down at her book, she reads, “But behold, I have obtained a land of promise, in the which things I do rejoice; yea, and I know that the Lord will deliver my sons out of the hands of Laban, and bring them down again unto us in the wilderness.” She then turns to the white unicorn next to her and asks, “So, Vinyl, do you want to read next, or should Stunts read?”

The DJ Pony, a blue aura raising her goggles from her eyes, says, “You know, I'm actually excited to read.” She then looks down at her book and reads, “And after this manner of language did my father, Lehi, comfort my mother, Sariah, concerning us, while we journeyed in the wilderness up to the land of Jerusalem, to obtain the record of the Jews.”

Stunts turns to Vinyl and says, “You should read more often,” before turning to his own book and reading, “And when we had returned to the tent of my father, behold their joy was full, and my mother was comforted.”

Berry Ground then reads, “And she spake, saying: Now I know of a surety that the Lord hath commanded my husband to flee into the wilderness; yea, and I also know of a surety that the Lord hath protected my sons, and delivered them out of the hands of Laban, and given them power whereby they could accomplish the thing which the Lord hath commanded them. And after this manner of language did she speak.” The earth pony then looks up and says, “When I read about Nephi saying that 'after this manner of language did ... somepony ... speak,' I get the idea that he's not quoting that somepony's words exactly. It seems like Nephi is just like the rest of us, unable to remember words perfectly, and quoting what he can remember as best he can.”

I find myself welcoming that kind of adaptation of the scriptures. I answer, “I wouldn't be surprised if that's the case. And, somehow I'm not surprised that you ponies have that same problem, not able to remember exact words, but able to remember the ideas those words represent.” As my character turns to Emerald Hill, I ask him, “Will you read the next verse?”

The pegasus nods, looks down at his copy of the book, then reads, “And it came to pass that they did rejoice exceedingly, and did offer sacrifice and burnt offerings unto the Lord; and they gave thanks unto the God of Israel.”

I read, “And after they had given thanks unto the God of Israel, my father, Lehi, took the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, and he did search them from the beginning.”

Presently, before Weed Whacker can get a chance to read his verse, I hear a female voice with a British accent call out from the gate, “Please, may we come in?”

All turn to the gate to see Rarity and Spike waiting to enter.

My character stands up and walks to the gate and opens it as I say, “Well, it's nice to see you here.”

At the same time, I hear Weed Whacker call out, “Spike!”

Defensively, the purple dragon, following Rarity as she enters first, says, “This was Rarity's idea. I just followed along.”

Rarity, waiting for the purple dragon to catch up to her, says, “I tried to get some sleep, but I couldn't.” Looking at my character, she continues, “Mormon, you were right. I can't very well hold the element of generosity if I can't forgive somepony else, even if we are lifelong rivals.”

As space is made among ponies and dinosaur around my place to allow the new arrivals to take positions, I say, “You and Trixie can talk later. Right now, you're just in time to join us in the reading. Rarity, if you want to read next, then Spike, Weed Whacker will read after Spike, and we'll continue on from there.”

As the pony and dragon take their positions, Twilight Sparkle floats the copy my character had given her to Spike.

As my character goes back inside to retrieve another copy of the book, I hear Spike say, “Wow. Thanks, Twilight.”

After a minute Rarity has her own copy of the book; and after my character settles down again with his own copy, the white unicorn with purple mane and tail reads, “And he beheld that they did contain the five books of Moses, which gave an account of the creation of the world, and also of Adam and Eve, who were our first parents;”

Spike then reads, “And also a record of the Jews from the beginning, even down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah;”

I then see Weed Whacker snuggle next to Spike, and watch the purple dragon react with discomfort from the attention, before she reads, “And also the prophecies of the holy prophets, from the beginning even down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah, and also many prophecies which have been spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah.”

I hear nickering from Rarity and Bon-Bon as Weed Whacker rests her head in Spike's lap before Bon-Bon reads, “And it came to pass that my father, Lehi, also found upon the plates of brass a genealogy of his fathers; wherefore he knew that he was a descendant of Joseph; yea, even that Joseph who was the son of Jacob, who was sold into Egypt, and who was preserved by the hand of the Lord, that he might preserve his father, Jacob, and all his household from perishing with famine.”

Lyra reads, “And they were also led out of captivity and out of the land of Egypt, by that same God who had preserved them.”

Twilight reads, “And thus my father, Lehi, did discover the genealogy of his fathers. And Laban also was a descendant of Joseph, wherefore he and his fathers had kept the records.”

Applejack reads, “And now when my father saw all these things, he was filled with the Spirit, and began to prophesy concerning his seed—“

Pinkie Pie reads, “That these plates of brass should go forth unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people who were of his seed.”

Princess Luna reads, “Wherefore, he said that these plates of brass should never perish; neither should they be dimmed any more by time. And he prophesied many things concerning his seed.”

Trixie reads, “And it came to pass that thus far I and my father had kept the commandments wherewith the Lord had commanded us.”

Vinyl Scratch eagerly reads, “And we had obtained the records which the Lord had commanded us, and searched them and found that they were desirable; yea, even of great worth unto us, insomuch that we could preserve the commandments of the Lord unto our children.”

Stunts reads, “Wherefore, it was wisdom in the Lord that we should carry them with us, as we journeyed in the wilderness towards the land of promise.”

As ponies start to rise, I say, “Well, that is the end of the chapter, and each of us has gotten to read at least one verse. But, the next chapter is only six verses long. So, if it's alright with everyone else, I think we should go ahead and read chapter six now.”

As my character turns to Berry Ground, I'm sure I can see eagerness in his eyes. He seems to agree.

Princess Luna says, “Well, not everypony will have a chance to read that chapter tonight, but they will get the opportunity to read it on their own after this. I have read the chapter, and indeed it will not take very long. So, let us go ahead and read it.” As all settle back down again, the nighttime princess turns to Berry Ground and asks, “Will thou read the first verse?”

Smiling, the earth stallion nods, looks down at his book again, and reads, “And now, I, Nephi, do not give the genealogy of my fathers in this part of my record; neither at any time shall I give it after upon these plates which I am writing; for it is given in the record which has been kept by my father; wherefore, I do not write it in this work.”

Emerald Hill reads, “For it sufficeth me to say that we are descendants of Joseph.”

I read, “And it mattereth not to me that I am particular to give a full account of all things of my father, for they cannot be written upon these plates, for I desire the room that I may write of the things of God.”

Rarity reads, “For the fullness of mine intent is that I may persuade men to come unto the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and be saved.”

Spike, immobilized by a now-sleeping Weed Whacker on his lap, and so unable to get to his book, turns to Rarity and says, “Uh, some help please?”

Nickering, Rarity floats her own copy of the book to Spike for him to read.

Grinning, although still uncomfortable with the sleeping herbivore in his lap, Spike says, “Thanks,” before clearing his throat and reading, “Wherefore, the things which are pleasing unto the world I do not write, but the things which are pleasing unto God and unto those who are not of the world.”

Seeing that Weed Whacker is asleep, Bon-Bon reads, “Wherefore, I shall give commandment unto my seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men.” Looking up at my character, she asks, “Are we finished reading for tonight?”

I decide to ignore the connotation of impatience in that question and say, “The next chapter is another twenty-two verses, so, sure, let's call an end to the reading for tonight.”

As she rises, Applejack says, “Ah reckon, if this keeps up, we're gonna have to read two chapters each time, unless'n there's a chapter with more than, say, thirty verses comin' up.”

My character turns over a couple of pages, and I say, “Well, it looks like chapter eight has exactly that number in it. Besides, there's a chapter in the book of Jacob that has about eighty verses in it. Even at two chapters per reading, I don't think we'll be getting there anytime soon, though.”

Just then, I hear Trixie, not far away, ask, “Rarity, do you remember yesterday, when I turned your mane into a rat's nest?”

I hear Rarity answer, “I do still remember, yes.”

I then hear Trixie say, “I shouldn't have done that. Can you forgive me?” I can hear the sincerity in her voice.

I then hear Rarity answer after a few seconds, “In the times we've met, you've never repented of anything you've done. I was going to forgive you anyway, but this is just extra incentive. Yes, Trixie, I forgive you.”

The conversation between the two unicorns follows a similar pattern: one brings up something she did to the other, asks forgiveness, and the other forgives. I have my character turn away from the two to look around. Then, when I finally decide to have him turn back to the two unicorns, after several minutes of them thus conversing, I see them, through his eyes, hugging and crying on each other's shoulders.

In the mean time, as other ponies are leaving, I hear Pinkie Pie ask her unicorn friend, “So, Vinyl, are you goin' back to Ponyville?”

I hear Vinyl Scratch answer, “I don't think so. If Mormon'll let me, I think I'll stay here. If I go back to Ponyville, I'm gonna get drunk again, and wet and mess myself again, and probably somepony's house too. I won't be able to do that if I stay here, and it's about time I admit ... I have a problem.” After a few seconds, I hear the white unicorn with blue mane and tail continue, voice maybe an octave higher and trembling, “I want you to respect me, Pinkie.”

When I hear Vinyl Scratch say no more, I have my character turn to her, and I can see through his eyes that she's sobbing on Pinkie's shoulder.

The pink earth pony strokes her friend's blue mane and says, her own voice trembling, “You have no idea how much it means to me to hear you say that. I'll do everything I can to help you.”

I look at Lyra and Bon-Bon, and see them hugging and saying their farewells, before Bon-Bon turns and follows Applejack and Rarity out the gate.

As they leave, I hear Applejack say, “So, what do you think of Trixie? Do you think she's serious?”

Rarity answers, “I've known her for a long time, and I know when she's being sincere. And, I heard her being sincere when we talked.” And with that, she turns and joins the rest of the group of ponies as they disappear into the forest.

As my character turns back to Pinkie Pie and Vinyl Scratch, Vinyl turns to me, having separated from Pinkie, and asks, “Is it alright if I stay with you for a while?”

I answer, “Sure. Whatever I can do to help you rehabilitate, I will. We just need to find a room for you.”

Sighing, yet smiling, Pinkie Pie says, “I'll share my room with her. There is one more bed in my room. We can call it a slumber party.”

Vinyl Scratch chuckles, then says, “Thanks, Pinks.”

Lyra offers to show the white unicorn the way to Pinkie Pie's room, and Vinyl follows her into the house.

I watch through my character's eyes as Trixie follows the other two unicorns into the house, then I have my character look at the pink earth pony as I say, “It looks like my house is turning into a rehab clinic. At this rate I'm gonna have to add another floor. Maybe a basement.”

Being the only non-resident pony left, Princess Luna says, "I must return to Canterlot now and raise the moon." And, with that, she disappears.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie covers her mouth with a front hoof and giggles, then uses the hoof to point to the house as she says, “Let's go inside.”

My character follows the pink pony as she bounces up the stairs, turns the doorknob with her front hooves, pulls the door open, and enters, leaving my character to close the door as soon as he enters.

Inside, the two make their way to the kitchen to see the platter on the table, empty.

As my character proceeds to move the platter to the sink, I hear Pinkie Pie ask, “Mormon?”

I answer, “Yes, Pinkie Pie?”

The pink pony asks, “When are you gonna start experimenting on me?”

I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie, holding the dish brush Statue-of-Liberty style, as I answer, “What's not to say the experiments haven't already begun?”

I can see the pink mare's tail start to twitch as she nervously, but innocently, asks, “Mormon, whatcha doin'?”

I say nothing, just watch as Pinkie starts to sweat.

Pinkie Pie, after a few seconds, swallows and says, “Mormon, I'm warnin' you, Diane doesn't like bein' tested like this.”

I wait for a couple seconds, then have my character toss the brush away from Pinkie Pie as I say, “So, I'll just throw this over there.”

I then watch as Pinkie Pie just sits there canine style, watching the brush fall to the ground, and her tail stops twitching. Instead, her mane straightens out and flows to one side of her head, and I can also see her tail straighten as well.

The stoic, emotionless Diane rises to all fours again, then walks up to my character and says, “That was not a nice thing to do to my sister. Yes, it is part of the code between us, so I can defend her the best I can. I make her tail twitch when I see something ready fall that could hurt her. And, I have other ways of warning her against danger. But, I do not appreciate you threatening her, just to get my attention, or just to prove a point.” She props herself up on my character and adds, “Continue to include my sister in reading the Book of Mormon. I like how she reacts to that, and she enjoys the reading. But, keep your experiments unintrusive. If I have to warn you again, I may not use words next time.”

I say, “I understand, and my intention wasn't to hurt Pinkamena. But, what if I wanted to play a game with her?”

Diane's only movement is to look right and left as she says, “We're in a room with lots of objects that could hurt Pinkamena. A falling object doesn't have to hurt her directly.”

I say, “Agreed. But, if I did want to play a game with Pinkamena, could you let her know about that? Say, similar to the tail-twitch, but with less frequency and more magnitude?”

Diane turns to look back at her tail, then rapidly and slightly wags it, then turns to my character again and asks, “Like that?”

I answer, “That'd work, yes.”

The straight-haired pink pony pushes away from my character and drops on all fours to the ground again as she says, “Pinkamena will answer your question.” Then, in a second her mane and tail curl again.

Pinkamena Pie, a worried look on her face, asks, “Are you alright?” Not waiting for an answer, she adds, “Like I said, and like Diane said, it's not a good idea to test her. I know you were just curious when you held and threw that brush, so I won't hold it against you, not this time.

“But, I do love playing games. If you want to play the game with me that Applejack plays with Winona, I could do that.”

Just then Vinyl Scratch enters the kitchen and asks, “Diane? Who's this Diane?”

Pinkie Pie, turning to her friend, answers, “Nothing to worry about. Let's get something to eat.”

It's important to note, at this point, that there are dire consequences to the gamer's character torturing Pinkamena Pie. After the vocal warning, which I've already gotten, the second offense means Diane bites the gamer's character on the leg. After the third offense, she kicks the gamer's character in a tender spot, disabling him or her long enough for her and Pinkamena to escape. With the fourth offense, Diane will break at least one of the bones of the gamer's character, and the fifth offense is answered by Diane killing him or her. I will not demonstrate this in the game, nor in any subsequent game of this I may play. I'm just informing you as a warning. The game is only lost if Pinkie Pie is lost.

Now, back to the game, Pinkie and Vinyl gather food, then bring it in for the ponies and dinosaur in the house to prepare and eat. After that, we retire to our rooms, and I can only assume Lyra is faithful in writing her letter to the princesses.

In the mean time, I have my character write in his letter, “My progress with Lyra seems to be equal to that with Pinkie Pie.

“Pinkie Pie is demonstrating manners, and an eagerness to help. She's shown me she cares deeply about her friends, and I'm helping one of them, Vinyl Scratch, break her drinking habit.

“On that subject, I'm finding my house is turning into a rehab clinic, or a boarding home. I'm helping another unicorn, Trixie, build a new mobile theater home, so she can get back to performing.

“I joined Lyra in visiting her friend, Bon-Bon. In fact, it was at their house where I met Vinyl Scratch, who was hung over. I don't know if this is typical of unicorns, or ponies in general; but I was there to see Vinyl Scratch get sick and pass out, then urinate and defecate involuntarily as Lyra and Bon-Bon were dragging her up the stairs to put her in Lyra's bed.

“Pinkie Pie is sharing her room with Vinyl, and I have to wonder what'll happen over the next few days as Vinyl recovers. If a pony's recovery, or at least a unicorn's recovery, from alcoholism is anything like that of a human, we're going to be occupied for a while.

“Signed,

“Mormon.”

My character delivers the letter to Weed Whacker to send to the princesses, and then returns to his room and goes to bed.

I have nothing much more to say than what I've already said and written. If the group of readers at my character's house continues to grow, the readings will have to be of at least two chapters. And, I won't mind that. With that in mind, I save and end the game for now.

Chapter 5: Of Dragons and Griffons

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Just because Pinkie Pie is on the right course now doesn't mean her previous actions have no further consequences. This is a lesson she learns in this next part of this playthrough. So, let's begin.

As I resume the game, my character awakes and arises, gets ready and leaves his room.

In the kitchen, I see, through his eyes, Pinkie Pie, Weed Whacker, Lyra, and Trixie sitting around the table, all looking worried.

I say, “Hi. Where's Vinyl?”

Pinkie Pie looks at me and says, “She's still in bed. She hasn't woken up yet.”

I ask, “Does she usually sleep for so long?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “She's a nighttime musician. She usually throws parties during the night, then sleeps during the day.”

I ask, “So, why do you look so worried?”

Pinkie Pie groans and asks, “Have you ever tried to separate a pony from a habit of drinking strong ciders or other juices?”

I answer, “No,” pause for a moment, then add, “Oh, so you're worried about her recovery?”

Trixie answers, “We're three ponies, one dragon, and one human, a team of five. If we can get Vinyl Scratch's cooperation, we're a team of six. But, that's the problem. None of us is confident that Vinyl's ready to cooperate. And, if she decides to fight against us, even with two of us being unicorns, we're worried that we won't be able to control her.”

Lyra adds, “When you thought Vinyl was going to attack you somehow with her magic, you grabbed her horn and effectively stopped her from using her magic on you. Now, to a unicorn, the horn is sacred, and, in general, a unicorn's horn cannot be touched by another pony, not even by another unicorn, unless it's with the other unicorn's horn, and then only by permission. By Vinyl's reaction when she pulled away from you, it sounds like, in some way, her horn was broken. But, you promptly healed her.”

As Lyra mentioned my character grabbing Vinyl's horn, I saw Pinkie Pie cover her mouth in shock. The pink earth pony remained that way until Lyra talked about me healing her, at which point she let her front hooves fall in front of her. Before Lyra can say anything more, Pinkie Pie asks, “Mormon, is this true? Did you grab Vinyl's horn?”

I answer, “It is true.”

Pinkie Pie growls, then says, “Well, I don't know how, but that makes a difference. Whether you intended it or not, Vinyl's probably going to be afraid of you, at last for a while. As long as you're around, it'll be easier to get her cooperation. That, or more difficult. It all depends on if she respects you or not. But, if I were a unicorn and a human had grabbed my horn for any reason at all, I would certainly not trust that human as much as I did before.”

I wait for Pinkie Pie to say more. When she doesn't, I answer, “I suppose if I were a unicorn and a human had grabbed my horn, I wouldn't trust that human either. On the other hand, not knowing what Vinyl was going to do, I felt it better to do something that would cause her to lose some of her trust in me than to end up injured or worse. I didn't know exactly what her glowing horn was going to do, and I didn't want to find out. Simply put, I acted out of self defense.”

Pinkie Pie answers, “And I understand that. We all do. I just hope it won't complicate things for us.”

Just then, I hear a door open some distance behind my character, and he turns to show me that Vinyl opened the door and is approaching.

As my character turns back to the four sitting at the table, I say, “Well, I can see that no one has gotten anything for breakfast. So, I think I'll get something from the orchard, and maybe from the vineyard and other gardens. In the mean time, Vinyl's coming.” And, with that, I have my character move to the door to the front room, open it, go through, close the door, then proceed to the front door, doing the same to it as with the kitchen door. Once outside, he proceeds to the orchard, where he goes to work harvesting a few apples and other fruits from the trees.

On the way out of the orchard, he looks up; and I can see through his eyes a long, black cloud seemingly coming from Ponyville. Presently I have my character go back inside and back to the ponies and dinosaur in the kitchen, where I say, “While I was outside, I saw this black cloud that seemed to be coming from Ponyville.”

All five faces focus on my character.

It's Pinkie Pie who asks, “Did you say a black cloud coming from Ponyville?”

I answer, “It looked like it was coming from Ponyville, anyway. If you want to see it, just follow me outside.” After that, I lead the way back through the front room through the door, close enough to the orchard to hopefully allow the others to see what I'm talking about.

As it turns out, going that far proves unnecessary. The cloud that seems to be coming from Ponyville has extended over my character's house. And, it's hiding the sun.

My character looks to the group to show me Vinyl apparently frozen in fear, the other three ponies with worried looks on their faces, and Weed Whacker seeming to recognize what's happening, evidently indicated by the expression of worry on her face.

I say, “Let's go back inside and have breakfast. Afterward, we can go to Ponyville to see what's going on.”

The five agree and head back inside. All, that is, except Vinyl, who only responds to Pinkie Pie tapping her shoulder before she nods and enters the house.

Over breakfast, a few minutes later, Pinkie Pie says, “Mormon, I hope you realize not all of us should go to Ponyville. Remember, if Vinyl's gonna break her habit, she shouldn't be near anyplace that might serve strong juices. It's best if she stays here.”

I think Vinyl's about to complain, but she's interrupted by Lyra, who says, “Well, in that case, we need somepony to stay behind to keep an eye on her.”

I say, “Well, I'll have to go with Pinkie Pie.”

Lyra says, “Well, if you're going, then I'll have to go with you, which means Weed Whacker will also have to go with.”

As my character turns to the blue unicorn, I say, “That just leaves you, Trixie.”

The blue unicorn mare, a blue-aura-possessed piece of apple in front of her face, hums in thought for a moment, then says, “Well, I could use help putting my new stage together. And, you did get more than one hammer, didn't you, Mormon?”

I answer, “As a matter of fact, I did get three.”

Trixie continues, “And, if it'll help Vinyl, I could keep her occupied while you're gone.” Again she hums with interest, then finally says, “Very well. You can leave Vinyl Scratch with me.”

Vinyl Scratch, frustrated at not having a choice, growls under her breath, then says, “Fine. I'll stay here with Trixie.”

With my character focused on the white unicorn, I say, “We're only doing this to help you. We want to trust you, but you need to earn that trust. Stay here and help Trixie build her mobile stage, and you will start earning our trust.” Not waiting for a response from Vinyl, I have my character stand up as I say, “Well, as soon as we're done, Pinkie, Weed Whacker, Lyra, let's get going.” And, that's when I realize that the fruit my character gathered is gone.

Pinkie Pie, having cheered up, says, “Okie dokie lokie. I'm ready to go.”

Lyra and Weed Whacker don't vocally respond. They just leave their chairs at the same time as Pinkie Pie, then approach my character, ready to follow him to Ponyville.

An uneventful half-hour later, the group of four are out of the forest.

I can see through my character's eyes that the cloud that seemed to be coming from Ponyville is actually coming from somewhere on the opposite side of the town.

Pinkie Pie looks at my character and says, “I need to find my friends. We'll meet at the library.”

As the pink pony runs off, I assume in the direction of the park in town, my character leads the group to the library. Once there, it's only a matter of time before the element bearers arrive, and Twilight Sparkle opens the door to allow the group to enter.

Once all are inside, Twilight turns to my character and says, “I assume you're here because of the cloud of smoke. As I told everypony else, the smoke is coming from a—“

Before the purple unicorn can finish her last statement, Fluttershy says, “Oh, please, Twilight, please don't say it.”

As Twilight groans, Weed Whacker says, “It's coming from a dragon, isn't it?”

At hearing the word “dragon,” the yellow pegasa yelps and whimpers.

Twilight, turning to the herbivorous dinosaur, answers, “That's right.”

Applejack says, “What Ah wanna know is why a dragon is here in Equestria.”

Twilight, starting to rummage through books, answers, “It's sleeping.”

I think I'm the only one, besides Twilight, Spike, and Weed Whacker, that doesn't grunt in confusion. Come to think of it, where is Twilight's dragon friend, anyway?

Twilight rephrases, “According to Celestia, the dragon's taking a nap.”

Before Twilight can say anymore, Weed Whacker says, “Which means his snoring is what's causing the cloud of smoke.”

Twilight, turning to the herbivorous dinosaur, answers, “That's right.”

Just then, I hear, from somewhere behind my character, Spike's voice say, “Now wait a minute.” As my character turns to look for Spike, he asks, “How do you know about that?”

By the time my character finds the purple dragon, he's almost nose-to-nose with Weed Whacker.

My herbivorous dinosaur friend answers, “I may not be able to breath fire, but my ancestors have come in contact with dragons that could. From them I know not to disturb a dragon with smoke coming out of his or her nostrils. No dragon likes to be awakened from such a deep sleep. For that matter, I can't imagine any creature that would like being woke up.”

That's when Pinkie Pie says, “Well, if he's smoking like that, then he needs to see a doctor. That can't be healthy for him.”

While I resist the urge to chuckle at Pinkie Pie's comment, Rarity says, “Well, at least he's not snoring fire. So, what are we to do about it?”

Rainbow Dash, perched on a shelf above the group, says, “Well, I'll show you what I plan to do.” And, with that, while Twilight Sparkle moves the bust of a horse's head around with her magic, the rainbow-haired pegasa proceeds to try and fail several times to attack it with kicks, punches, and aerial dives.

When a failed dive finally results in the blue pegasa crashing into a bookshelf, Twilight Sparkle puts the bust back in place and says, “No, Rainbow Dash.” Then, turning to the rest of the group, she continues, “We need to convince the dragon to find a different place to sleep. Princess Celestia has given us this mission, and we must not fail. If we do, Ponyville, and perhaps all of Equestria, could be covered in smoke for the next hundred years.”

Fluttershy gasps, and Rarity grunts and says, “Talk about getting your beauty sleep.”

Finally, Twilight says, “Everypony, gather supplies. We meet back here in an hour.”

As the rest of the Mane Six, including Twilight, obediently leave the library, only Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Spike, and my character remain.

I turn to Weed Whacker and say, “For this particular trip, I think it's best if you stay here with Spike.”

For a moment the little herbivore reacts with excitement, I'm guessing at the prospect of spending time with the purple dragon. Then she calms down and, with a worried look, asks, “But, shouldn't I stay with you, Pinkie Pie, and Lyra?”

I answer, “We don't need you with us all the time. In this case, I think it's best if you stay out of harm's way. We can tell you how things went when we return.”

Spike adds, “In the mean time, we have food to prepare for the trip.” Looking up at me, he asks, “Are there any foods that both a pony and a human can eat?”

Spike brought up a valid question. I answer, “I know that both humans and ponies can eat apples and carrots. Humans can also eat oats.” Pausing for a moment for effect, I continue, “I suppose if I can find some oat bread, as well as some fruits, I can prepare some sandwiches for the trip.”

My spoken plans cause Pinkie Pie to hum with pleasure, as I hear her, as though she's in a trance, say, “Apple sandwiches. Carrot sandwiches.”

Weed Whacker says, “Well, if I can't join you on this trip, could I at least help you gather what you need to make the sandwiches?”

As my character turns to her, I answer, “I suppose that'll be alright.”

Presently I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Alrighty then. Let's go find some food.”

As we leave the library, Pinkie Pie heads off, most likely to Sugar Cube Corner.

As the pink mare disappears from view on the other side of the library, I turn to Lyra, ready to ask a question.

Before I can, though, Pinkie Pie reappears from where she disappeared and, in an angry tone, says, “Mormon, if you want bread, we can get it at Sugar Cube Corner.”

Pinkie Pie does have a point. Sugar Cube Corner, the main, if not only, bakery in town, would be the logical place to go for bread.

I answer, “You're right, Pinkie. Lead the way.”

Instantly smiling again, Pinkie Pie turns a hundred eighty degrees in one bounce, then continues to bounce through the streets on her way to the bakery.

As my character, Lyra, and Weed Whacker follow some distance behind, I ask, “Do you think they also have fruit I can use to make sandwiches?”

Pinkie Pie stops at the front door of what resembles a gingerbread house and, waiting for the rest to catch up, says, “You know, I'm not sure. I know they have bread. I just don't know about the fruit, unless it's fruit filling. I guess I'll have to ask.”

Once we've caught up with the pink earth pony, she opens the door, allowing the quartet to enter.

Once all are inside, Pinkie Pie bounces up to the orange stallion at the cash register and asks, “Mr. Cake, do you have fruits here that we can use to make sandwiches?”

Mr. Cake looks down, groans, and says, “Unfortunately, no.” Looking up again, he adds, “But, we do have some flowers that'd be perfect for sandwiches.”

The pink party pony says, “No, silly. The sandwiches are for Mormon.”

As my character catches up to Pinkie Pie, I say, “Hi.”

The orange stallion freezes in fear for a moment, then recomposes himself enough to say, “You just wait here. I'll go get the bread,” before running off into what I'm sure must be the kitchen.

I look at Pinkie Pie, Pinkie Pie looks back at me, and I say, “You know, something tells me I should've stayed back at the door.”

In response, Pinkie Pie glares at me and vibrates for a second or two, then looks down and sighs, and her glare is replaced with a look of sadness when she looks up at me again and says, “Just go back to the door.”

I obey, thinking aloud, “I thought I'd already established that I wasn't going to hurt any pony here. Evidently not.”

At this point, I hear Mr. Cake's voice say, “Here's the bread. B-but, you'll have to go somewhere else for f-fruits if you wanna make s-sandwiches from it.” As my character turns to the orange stallion, I see he's focused on him.

Pinkie Pie answers, “Mormon didn't mean to scare you. He's really not a bad human. In fact, he's a really good human. He has copies of a book he reads with a lot of us ponies. And he knows a lot about that book. Also, while he has caused messes, he was more than willing to clean them up.”

While Pinkie Pie talked, Mr. Cake managed to pry his attention from my character and turn it to the pink mare. After her last statement, before she can say more, he says, “Alright, Pinkie, you've convinced me. If you trust him, then I suppose I can trust him too.”

Pinkie Pie sighs with relief, then points out various other pastries, requesting them, then produces a number of gold coins she trades for the pastries as they're placed in a bag. She then turns to me and says, “If you'll wait here, I need to get a few things from upstairs.” After that, she disappears for a few minutes. When she returns, a few minutes later, she's wearing a saddle bag on each of her sides. Looking at my character, she says, “Alright, let's go.”

At this point, Lyra says, “I know a place where they should have fruits Mormon could use to make his sandwiches.”

As she stands at the door, waiting for the rest of us to exit, Pinkie Pie responds, “Well, if we can get there and back to the library in, say, thirty minutes, then let's go.”

As my character passes the pink earth pony, following Weed Whacker, he accidentally bumps the closest saddle bag to him.

The result is a small explosion of balloons, confetti, and streamers.

At first I say, “Oops. Sorry.” Then, as my character grabs the party favors, I ask, “You're planning on throwing the dragon a going-away party?”

Pinkie Pie forces a laugh, then says, “Well, no, although that isn't a bad idea. But, I do bear the element of laughter. If I can get the dragon to laugh, maybe I can get it on our side, maybe get it to leave, you know, from gratitude?”

I know what's going to happen, but I see no reason to tell her about it. She'll find out soon enough anyway. What I say is, “Well, best of luck to you.”

Pinkie Pie responds with a sincere “Thank you, Mormon.”

By this time, Lyra has taken the lead position. As she rises onto her hind legs, I have to wonder if she's exposing parts of herself that most ponies, or at least most mares, would prefer to keep hidden. Then, she starts walking; and she reminds me of a toy poodle walking on it's hind legs. After a few steps she drops back on all fours, and I hear a zipper sound effect from her. As she looks at the other three behind her, with frowning eyes and an apologetically weak smile, she says, “Oops. Well, you couldn't blame me for trying.” She then looks ahead again and says, “Well, it's this way,” before starting in that direction.

Following the pale-green unicorn, my character looks down at Pinkie Pie; and I can see she's walking on three hooves and limping. My guess is she's using a forelimb to cover her nose. I find myself respecting her for not commenting on Lyra's flatulence, although it's clearly bothering her.

On the other hand, I can't even tell if it's bothering Weed Whacker. For all I know, she might be enjoying it; I couldn't tell either way.

All I know is, even with the message at the bottom of the screen, “The scent of various digested fruits and vegetables,” because I can't smell it, I am unphased.

After a few minutes, Lyra leads us to a restaurant with what appear to be toadstools, which serve as tables, in front of it.

By the time we've reached the restaurant, Pinkie Pie has dropped the hoof she was using to cover her face, and has been using it once again in her trotting.

Lyra turns to her three companions and says, "Pinkie Pie, if you'll get the bread out, I'll go in and ask about what they have for sandwiches.”

I say, “Just ask what they have. I'll decide what I want on my sandwiches.”

Lyra turns to my character and hears him out, then nods and says, “Alright, then.” Then, as she turns to the door of the restaurant, she adds, “I'll also ask for a knife to cut the bread.”

I watch Pinkie Pie as she searches the bag opposite the one my character had bumped, produces a knife with a long, serrated blade, then a butter knife, putting each on the toadstool table, then produces the loaf of bread, then turns to Lyra and says, “Oh, no need to worry. I brought everything I need to make sandwiches with me. Just ask about the fruits and other stuff.”

A creature I modeled, textured, animated, and programmed still manages to surprise me. I have to wonder if that on it's own is surprising.

Lyra nods and enters the restaurant, then comes out a few minutes later with a tray containing a few apples, pears, carrots, cucumbers, and a few grain stalks.

My character is the first to grab the bread knife, and I hear gasps and screams around my character as he applies the blade to the loaf of bread. As he slides it across the top of the crust, and it starts to penetrate, he looks around him; and I wonder aloud to myself, “Alright, the ponies here haven't seen a human before. So, are they really worried about me menacingly cutting slices of bread?”

Then, my character's attention focuses on Lyra, who, on the other side of the table, has a worried look on her face. His attention follows her as she circles around the table, behind Pinkie Pie, and says, “They're not reacting to you.”

My character's attention turns to Pinkie Pie, and I can see her looking down on a puddle of vomit, just as she opens her mouth and contributes to it.

As my character looks down at the puddle of thick, tan, shiny liquid, one thought crosses my mind: I'll never look at butterscotch pudding the same way again.

My character, noticing the pink earth pony starting to faint, lets go of the bread and knife and catches Pinkie Pie as she falls; and I say, “Pinkie Pie, are you alright?”

When the pink pony manages to breath again, she emits a moan, then, panting, says, “I should've said something. Even if it hurt Lyra's feelings, I should've said something.”

I hear Lyra's voice break; and as I look up at Lyra, I can see her tearing up as she says, “It's because I farted in your face, isn't it? Oh, Pinkie Pie, I'm so sorry.”

The pink pony looks up at the whimpering pale-green unicorn, then looks down again and coughs a few times, then looks up again and says, “It's alright, I'll be fine. I just need a moment.” Then, looking at my character, she adds, “Go back to making your sandwiches.” She then looks down at the puddle and coughs a couple more times.

Well, at least I know why I got to the bread knife before Pinkie Pie. Trusting that she won't fall over, I have my character let her go and return to slicing the bread.

When he's cut six slices, he lays them out with the bases facing each other, then cuts the apple first, being careful to keep the skin as he slices it width-wise through the core and places the slices of apple on one slice of bread, then covers it, once it's adequately layered with the slices of apple, with the opposite slice of bread.

He then cuts the pear the same way as the apple, puts the slices of pear on the next slice of bread, then, as with the apple sandwich, covers it with the opposite slice.

Next is the cucumber, which he cuts similarly to the apple and pear, then puts the slices on the next slice of bread, then, one last time, covers the slices of cucumbers with the last slice of bread.

As my character stacks the sandwiches, he turns to Pinkie Pie, who seems to be stronger now; and I ask, “Should I prepare some sandwiches for you?”

Pinkie Pie squees, then says, “Thanks, Mormon. Just make some fruit sandwiches for me. I'm still feeling sick right now, but I'll be better soon.”

I ask, “How many do you want?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Four. I'll have four.”

And, that's when the janitor ponies come out, with buckets, brooms, mops, and dust pans. One of them is also holding a wet towel of some sort. The janitor ponies proceed to clean up Pinkie Pie's vomit, both off the ground, and the remnant still sticking to her mouth.

I ask, “Four of each, or four altogether?”

Pinkie Pie hiccups once, prompting one of the janitor ponies to hold a bucket under her mouth, in case she vomits again. She gestures to the janitor pony that she's fine, then says to me, “Two apple, two pear.”

I say no more, while my character proceeds to prepare the sandwiches for Pinkie Pie the way he did for himself, except he cuts the apples and pears into eighths, cuts out the core and eats it, before putting the cut apple and pear on the bread. By the time he's finished making the sandwiches for Pinkie Pie, the janitor ponies have cleaned both the floor and the outside of the pink mare's mouth of her vomit.

Not only that, but Pinkie Pie is acting as though she's feeling even better.

In the mean time, in spite of the pink party pony's protests that everything is alright, Lyra still fusses over her, pleading for forgiveness for having made her sick.

I decide to call an end to the fussing by announcing, “Well, all we need to do is put these sandwiches away, and we can head back to the library.” As my character looks at Pinkie Pie, I ask, “Are you sure you're alright?”

Pinkie Pie rises to her hooves, and, as far as I can tell, is stable on them. She answers, “Yes, I'm fine.” Then, turning to point with her nose at the bag where the loaf of bread came from, she says, “You can put the sandwiches, as well as the rest of the loaf, back in the bag here.”

At the invitation, Lyra helps put the sandwiches and the rest of the loaf of bread in the bag. After that, the group of four head back to the library.

Outside, the other five are already there, with Twilight giving them a pep talk. As she turns to look at Pinkie Pie, she says, “Good, you made it. Is everything alright?”

My character turns to Pinkie Pie to show me she's even smiling now. She answers, “Yep. Everything is okie dokie lokie. We're all ready to go.”

Then my character turns his attention to Fluttershy; and I can see, through his eyes, that she's trembling, evidently afraid of something. Of course, being a follower of the show, I know she's afraid of the dragon. But, the others won't know about that until they've made it to the cave.

As Pinkie Pie takes her position in the line, I have my character focus on Weed Whacker.

The herbivorous dinosaur looks toward the ground and says, “Yeah, I know. I stay with Spike.” And, with that, she makes her way into the library.

In the mean time, Twilight is letting the other bearers of the elements of harmony know where the dragon will be found: at the top of a mountain evidently faced by the library.

After Rainbow Dash makes a comment about how cold it'll get up in the mountains, Rarity produces a scarf, saying something about preparedness, and Pinkie Pie calls the scarf “pretty.”

As Twilight produces and studies a map, holding it with her magic, Fluttershy proceeds to offer a speech she hopes will convince Twilight to leave her, that is Fluttershy, behind.

Twilight, occupied with the map, agrees to Fluttershy's proposal, then realizes what she agreed to, and demands that she come along, saying that her gift of communication with animals will help when they confront the dragon.

Having failed at convincing Twilight, the timid yellow pegasa turns to my character and asks, “Please, Mr. Human, if you don't mind, could you talk to Twilight and get her to leave me behind?”

As my character leans toward her, I quietly answer, “In this case, I'm with Twilight. Trust me, you're going to play an essential role when we get there.” Then, as my character stands up again, I add, “And, by the way, call me Mormon.”

Then I hear Twilight growl at Fluttershy, then Rainbow Dash express her own doubts as to the yellow pegasa's usefulness.

And, as if to prove the rainbow-haired pegasa's point, Fluttershy squeals, rears up and swats at her own shadow as if to drive it away, then jumps into a bush.

In the mean time, Spike and Weed Whacker seem to have their hands full trying to control Fluttershy's animals.

Finally, Twilight groans and irritatedly says, “Come on. Let's go.”

My character approaches the bush with the hidden yellow pegasa, and I say, “You can come with me and Lyra.”

Fluttershy jumps out of the bush, and, smiling, asks, “Really?” Not waiting for an answer, she says, “Alright, then. Let's go.”

With that, Fluttershy and Lyra follow my character as he follows the rest of the Mane Six to the mountain to confront the dragon.

As the group of eight approaches the mountain, I, as well as all the others, hear a deep, loud inhale, followed by a rumbling sound; and, as my character looks up at the mountain, the trail of smoke is punctuated by a thick cloud starting at the only visible cave in the mountain and following the trail toward Ponyville.

Fluttershy yelps and jumps behind my character, whimpering timidly, “Mormon, I thought we weren't going this way.”

I answer, “I don't usually follow the crowd, but in this case it seemed like a good idea. Safety in numbers and all that.”

At my answer, Applejack pauses until I've caught up to her, then says, “Ah agree with the numbers thing and all. But you know as well as Ah do that you're here for both Pinkie Pie an' Fluttershy. Like you said, Fluttershy's gonna play an important role aggin that dragon.”

Before I can say anything, Fluttershy flies in front of my character, hovers, evidently trying to impede his progress, and says, “So the truth is out. I thought you wouldn't be going this way, but I guess I was wrong. Well, I'm going back.” And, with that, she moves out of the way of my character and starts heading back toward Ponyville.

That is, until another dragon snore convinces the yellow pegasa that she's better off sticking with my character.

As the rumbling passes, Fluttershy tells my character, having attached herself to his back, “Well, I guess I don't have a choice now. But, that mountain sure is high.”

Presently, Rainbow Dash, as much in my character's face as in that of Fluttershy, says, “Well, it is a mountain.” Then, turning around again, she decides, “I'm just gonna fly up there and have a look.”

But, before the rainbow-haired pegasa can fly up there, Applejack grabs her tail and pulls her back down.

As Rainbow Dash glares at her, Applejack says, “You can't go flyin' up there on your own. What if you get in trouble?” Turning to my character, the orange earth pony concludes, “Mormon's right. Safety in numbers.”

And, with those wise words from Applejack, the group, now at the base of the mountain, proceeds to climb; but not without a groan from Rainbow Dash.

On the way up, Rarity mentions something about dragons building their nests with jewels, and expresses interest in claiming some of those jewels.

And, that's when Lyra takes action. Moving ahead of my character, she quickly climbs to Rarity's position and says, “Now, remember, we're here to convince the dragon to find a different place to sleep, not to take his nest apart.”

To my pleasant surprise, Pinkie Pie says, “Lyra's right. Besides, if the dragon thinks we're gonna rob him, he's not gonna leave.”

And, it seems I'm not the only one who's pleasantly surprised.

I hear the difference in the tone of Twilight's voice as she says, “Pinkie Pie and Lyra are both right. We need to remain focused on convincing the dragon to leave the cave and find a different place to sleep, so his snoring can't harm Ponyville.”

As the group makes their way to and past an outcropping of rock, we once again hear the dragon snore, this time louder, indicating how much closer we're getting.

Unfortunately, this also seems to be the signal for Fluttershy to fly from my character's back.

As my character looks behind him, I call out, “Fluttershy?”

Twilight groans, looks behind her, and asks, “What now?”

As my character looks up toward the purple unicorn, I answer, “I'll handle this.” Then, my character proceeds back down to the outcropping in search of the elusive yellow pegasa.

The search takes only a short time, as I can see her pink mane sticking up over what looks like a juniper bush.

As my character walks toward the bush, I say, “Fluttershy, is everything alright?”

Fluttershy quickly answers, “Yes, everything's fine. I just need to rest.”

I say, “You've been riding on my back the whole way up the mountain.”

Fluttershy answers, “Oh, yeah, that's right.” Then she says, “Well, what about a bathroom break?”

I ask, “Didn't you go before we left?”

Fluttershy squeaks and answers, “Oh, that's right.”

I didn't know that already; so thanks for informing me, Fluttershy.

The timid yellow pegasa continues, “Just give me a minute.” Then, I hear her grunting as though she's forcing herself to have a bowel movement.

Not even the zipper sound effect.

I grunt, “Uh, huh,” before adding, “Look, Fluttershy, … “

Before I can complete my thought, I hear Rainbow Dash call out, “Hey, what're you waiting for, an invitation?”

Then I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, I think I have one in my bag,” followed by a pop and a high-pitched whistling sound.

I call out, “Just let me handle it!” When I turn back to Fluttershy, I see tears streaming down her face. I restart, “Fluttershy, I know you're scared of the dragon.”

A surprised Fluttershy rises from behind the bush and asks, “Really?” Not waiting for an answer, she asks, “How do you know? I didn't mention it to anypony.”

I answer with what I suppose has become a catchphrase for me: “I have a good source for my information.” I continue, “Look, if I didn't think you were gonna be helpful, I would've let you stay back in Ponyville. But, you are the one with a gift for communicating with non-pony creatures. If you don't come along, it'll be up to the rest of us to try to convince the dragon to leave.” I pause for effect before adding, “You know, I suppose I could give it a shot.”

Now Fluttershy has a different reason to look surprised. She asks, “You, Mormon? What experience do you have with dragons?”

What I say to Fluttershy is “I have lots of experience with dragons.” What I don't say is my experience is with bearded dragons. I continue, “I'm sure I could find a way to convince the dragon to at least come out and see what his snoring is doing. I'll leave it up to him to decide whether he chooses to leave or not.”

Fluttershy asks, “Oh, but, what if he chooses to stay?”

I answer, “Well, at least I've given it my best shot.”

Just then, I hear Rainbow Dash's voice behind my character asking, “Mormon, what are you doing? We want the dragon to leave, not stay.”

As my character turns to the hovering blue pegasa, I hear Fluttershy say, “Besides, isn't it steep goin' up there? Aren't you afraid you'll fall?”

As my character turns back to the yellow pegasa, I answer, “I also have a lot of experience hiking up mountains. There is the risk, but that's what makes it fun.”

Rainbow Dash, still behind me, says, “That's the spirit, Mormon.”

Fluttershy swallows and says, “If it's alright with you, I'll look for another way up, one that doesn't have so much risk.”

Rainbow Dash, now moving past me, says, “Fluttershy, you've got wings, ya know. You can fly up there.”

Fluttershy, uncertainty in her voice, answers, “Alright, I'll try.” She then proceeds to unfurl and flap her wings.

I must say, she does pretty well. She even gets up past where Twilight is.

That is, until another snore from the dragon freaks her out.

Instantly, her wings snap into folded position again; and, without their support, she falls back towards my character.

The good news is that my character is there to catch her before she can get hurt on the rocks. The bad news is the fall reinforces her fears, making her more insistent on finding an alternative way up.

Seeing a trail going up the mountain on a roundabout course, she turns to me and says, “Thanks for catching me, Mormon.” Then, as I put her down, she says, “If it's alright with you, I'll just follow that path up the mountain.” And, she points a front hoof toward the trail.

At the same time I sigh and Rainbow Dash groans, and we both say, “Whatever.”

So, we follow our courses up the maintain: Rainbow Dash flies, I climb the cliff, and Fluttershy chooses the trail which spirals up the mountain.

When we reach the others, Twilight looks at me and asks, “Well?”

I answer, “Well, she'll be coming around the mountain when she comes.” That's right, I quoted a line from a song. In my defense, I couldn't think of a different way to put it. And, besides, I said the line, I didn't sing it.

And, aside from that, based on the way Twilight groans, “Fluttershy,” under her breath, it's clear to me she doesn't know I quoted a line from a song.

Just then, I notice Rainbow Dash looking down, evidently at Fluttershy's position.

I guess she notices me in return, as she sighs and says, “Well, it looks like she wants you, Mormon, to go with her up the trail she's found.”

I answer, “Alright, but I have to warn you. I have a feeling this is gonna—“

At that moment, I hear another dragon snore.

When it passes, I conclude, “ … take awhile.” Turning to Lyra and Pinkie Pie, I call out, “You two continue on with the rest of the group! Fluttershy and I'll catch up!”

As my character climbs down the side of the cliff, I see through his eyes Pinkie Pie and Lyra, immediately following Rarity, turn and nod in my character's direction. And, I think I see Lyra even salute me. Or was that Pinkie Pie? Or, did they both salute me? Well, whatever. I get to Fluttershy's position, and see that she's rolled onto her back, and she reminds me of what a dead cockroach is supposed to look like. No, I haven't seen such a thing; but I have heard that a cockroach will roll onto its back when it dies.

At any rate, I have to have my character wake up the now catatonic yellow pegasa without it looking like he's attacking her in some way. Thinking of no other way to do it, I have him stroke the side of her neck as I say, “Fluttershy, I'm here.” When she doesn't respond to that, I have my character set her on her hooves again, and I say, “Fluttershy, you're not getting out of it that way.”

Well, my last experiment on her proves successful.

Fluttershy blinks her eyes a few times, looks at me, then sighs and says, “I know you're right, and I know I have to go confront that dragon. If only it weren't so big. If only it were more like Spike.”

I answer, “I suppose if this dragon were more like Spike, it wouldn't be up in a mountain; but it'd probably be more difficult to move.” I wait for a response, but Fluttershy only gives me a confused look; so, I continue, “We don't generally get exactly what we want when we go into a situation, so we have to make due with what we get and what we have.”

Before I can say more, I hear Rainbow Dash call out, “We don't have time for you two to be talking! Mormon, just get her up here! We'll be waiting for you!”

Although I can hear what Rainbow Dash says, my character remains focused on Fluttershy. When the blue pegasa is finished, I say, “Well, you heard your friend. We'd better get going.” Not waiting for an answer, my character stands up again and proceeds toward the pathway spiraling up the mountain.

From behind my character, I hear Fluttershy's voice, which demonstrates that she's evidently keeping up with him, halfheartedly say, “You're right. Let's go, then.”

Just then I hear another dragon snore. I have my character turn to get a look at Fluttershy.

The yellow pegasa is evidently stronger than she would seem to want her friends to think she is. As much as the snore jars her, she doesn't freeze up or roll over in fear. In fact, after the rumbling, she resumes her march toward my character, saying, “It's alright. I'm fine.”

It seems to take us being out of view of the others for Fluttershy to say, “I've noticed more and more ponies heading through the forest. I'm guessing they're headed toward your house. And, all are carrying a book with them.”

As my character continues the march up the trail, I answer, “The book they're carrying is called the Book of Mormon. I began reading it with three stallions a few days ago, and, evidently, the group has grown since then. If you want to come and just listen, you're welcome to do so. No one reads who doesn't want to.”

I can hear the hoof-falls that let me know that the yellow pegasa is maintaining her pace behind my character; but I hear her squeak before she says, “I'm not good with crowds.”

I ask, “Didn't Pinkie Pie give you a copy of the Book of Mormon last night?”

Fluttershy says, “Well, yeah, she did; but I haven't had a chance to read it. Is it your autobiography?”

I answer, “No. It's the religious record of a people that lived in my world a long time ago. I can't tell you too much about it before we get to your friends, except that there's documentation of the Christ visiting them, and them being destroyed some four centuries later.”

Fluttershy asks, “Oh, is there a lot of violence in it? Because I don't think I could handle a lot of violence in a book.”

My character pauses for a moment, then continues, as I say, “Well, there is violence mentioned in the book. One group separates into two, and there is a lot of fighting between the two groups. But, the book isn't about that. It's about the dealings between the two groups and their God. One thing that's made clear in the book is how good humans can be, and what happens to them when they're that good; and how bad humans can be, and what happens to them when they're that bad. Basically, every action has consequences, and those consequences are clearly identified in the book.”

When Fluttershy does say something, which takes a few seconds, she says, “Well, if it's a religious record, and it has God and humans talking to each other, then I suppose I could look past the violence. When we come back, I'll have to read the copy Pinkie Pie gave me.”

Through my character's eyes I can see, as he and Fluttershy are circling around the mountain, the first evidence that we're catching up to the other ponies. In fact, I think that's Applejack's tail I'm seeing.

After a few seconds, my character and Fluttershy have reunited with the rest of the team; and I get to see, through my character's eyes, Pinkie Pie finish a game of tic-tac-toe against Rarity. From what I see, the game ends in a draw.

Applejack, seeing the duo, says, “Amazin'. Ah was a'gonna go down and git Fluttershy. But, Ah would'a dragged her by the tail, and it would'a taken at least an hour.”

Presently, Fluttershy says, “Oh, I'm sorry. If you want, we can wait here an hour.”

I can't help chuckling as I say, “I honestly don't think that's what she meant, Fluttershy.”

That's when I hear Twilight say, “Unless anypony's hungry. We can take a lunch break.”

As my character turns to the purple unicorn, she continues, “Mormon and I have something to talk about anyway.”

As Twilight Sparkle leads the way, and my character follows, I notice ponies removing their saddle bags and producing fruits, vegetables, and sandwiches from them.

Based on the evidence that Pinkie Pie is enjoying an apple sandwich my character made for her, it's clear that her appetite is back. I'm pleased to see that.

Once we're past the group, I hear Twilight Sparkle say, “First of all, about Pinkie Pie. I'm pleased with her behavior. You've been a good influence on her.”

I answer, “I'm glad you approve.” And, in all honesty, I am pleased that Twilight gave her approval.

Not long after that, Twilight and my character stop at a clear end in the path up the mountain.

Twilight turns to me and says, “And, here's the problem. As you can see, the trail up this mountain ends here. Fluttershy's made it clear that she prefers to take the trail up the mountain, but it'll mean circling around another mountain to return to this mountain before we finally get to the dragon's cave.”

My character looks to see that indeed there's another trail that begins where the path my character and Twilight are on ends. A look upward reveals that the second path leads to another gap between it and a third path that leads to an outcropping that indicates the dragon's cave.

I say, “I'm guessing you're questioning whether Fluttershy will be willing to cross those two gaps.”

Twilight answers, “Actually, I was worried more about you. Do you think you could jump across that gap?”

I answer, “Well, let's see.” Then, after my character maneuvers around Twilight, he takes a running leap across the gap, running into the cliff on the other side, but definitely remaining on the trail.

My character turns to the purple unicorn to show me, through his eyes, the fear on Twilight's face turns to relief. Clearly I don't have to say anything.

As my character makes the jump back to Twilight again, this time landing in front of the purple unicorn, she says, “Well, that answers that question. But, you're right about what you said. I am worried about Fluttershy. Do you think you could get her to cross?”

After a pause for effect, I say, “Well, if I carry her on my back while I jump, chances are she'll probably open and flap her wings instinctively on the descent, which could cause us to crash into the cliff on the other side. But, the good news is we'd make it. Of course, looking at the gap up there, which is clearly wider, her instinctive wing flapping could actually be a benefit. I'd be willing to carry her on my back both times.”

The purple unicorn smiles as she says, “Well, that solves those two problems. Let's go back and let the others know.”

I have my character nod in agreement, and the two make their way back to the main group.

As Pinkie Pie offers my character a pear sandwich and he accepts, Twilight Sparkle says, “There's a problem up ahead, but Mormon and I think we've come up with a workable solution.”

Pinkie Pie, looking up from her own pear sandwich, asks, “So, what is it, Twily?”

The purple unicorn, trotting to Fluttershy, says, “The trail ends just a little further up, but continues on the next mountain, over a gap. Then it circles around that mountain, then continues back to this mountain, over a wider gap.”

Fluttershy seems to know what's coming, as she looks away from Twilight Sparkle and says, “Oh, dear.”

Twilight Sparkle continues, “Mormon had no problems jumping the first gap, but he says he could use help jumping the second one.”

I guess what I said suggested that, although those weren't my exact words.

In the mean time, Twilight Sparkle taps the yellow pegasa on her closest wing with a front hoof, startling her somewhat. She says, “Sorry about that, Fluttershy. But, Mormon has volunteered to carry you over the two gaps. Is that alright with you?”

As she looks at my character, Fluttershy asks, “Mormon, is this true?”

I answer, “It is.”

Twilight adds, “Mormon said your instincts could harm him jumping over the first gap, but could help him over the second one. But, he said he's willing to risk it.”

I'm sure I hear a note of worry in her voice as Fluttershy says, “Oh, I don't know. I don't want to hurt Mormon.”

I answer, “I took a running leap across the first gap, and ran into the cliff on the other side. Obviously I survived, but I also learned what not to do crossing that first gap. If I carry you on my back, Fluttershy, I could probably just walk over the gap and make it safely. It's that second gap that's the bigger one. I'm thinking I could make it across with the help of you and your wings.”

And, then it happens. The zipper sound effect. And, it comes from Fluttershy.

The yellow pegasa blushes and backs to the edge of the trail as she says, “Excuse me.” Then she smiles apologetically, blushes, and raises her tail, and another zipper sound effect, this time slower, followed by the sound of a thick liquid spilling over rocks, is all the evidence any creature needs as to what's happening. A few seconds after the sounds have stopped, she lowers her head and tail, then frowns and says, “Sorry about that.”

Applejack says, “Well, as long as we don't have to step in it.”

Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, is more aggressive, too much for my taste. Presently nose-to-nose with her fellow pegasa, she says, “Honestly, Fluttershy, you couldn't have done that before we were this close to the dragon's cave?”

I have my character take the step or two toward the azure pegasa, grab her by the tail, and pull her away gently as I say, “That's enough, Rainbow Dash.” Then, ignoring her glare and protesting, I turn to Fluttershy and ask, “Are you alright?”

The yellow pegasa whimpers, but nods.

On the other hand, Rainbow Dash growls, “Mormon.”

Twilight says, “That's enough, Rainbow Dash. Mormon's right.”

As my character looks at Rainbow Dash and the members of the group she looks at, I hear voices of approval either of me or of Twilight.

Finally the azure pegasa focuses on Pinkie Pie and says, “Surely you'll side with me.”

But, the pink earth pony closes her eyes and slowly shakes her head. Opening her eyes again and pointing to my character, she says, “I'm with Mormon on this one.”

Frustrated, the rainbow-maned pegasa groans and says, “Alright, I'm sorry! Can we get going now?”

I hear Fluttershy shake herself out, and my character turns to her as she says, “I'm ready to go now.”

Twilight asks, “Is everypony else ready?”

In staggered unison, the rest of the group announces their readiness to head out.

As my character looks around, I can't help noticing that even Rarity has had the sense to produce only as much from her bags as she needed to eat, leaving herself fully ready to head out. I find myself gaining respect for the Equestrian creatures.

As he looks down, I see Pinkie Pie holding a sandwich in her mouth. With surprising clarity, she says, “This is for you.”

If this had been real, that is if a real horse or pony had been holding a sandwich in his or her mouth and offered it to me, I wouldn't have accepted it, not wanting whatever germs had been in that creature's mouth to get into mine. But, since this is a video game setting, and I won't be directly eating the sandwich, I have my character accept it; and I say, “Thank you, Pinkie.”

The pink earth pony squees in welcome after my character takes the sandwich from her mouth.

In the mean time, Fluttershy flaps her wings and flies up high enough that she's in line with my character's back, then floats into position, making her not unlike an equine, yellow-and-pink, winged backpack for my character.

A message box testifies that Fluttershy is surprisingly light on my character's back.

By this time, the other ponies have lined up, and are following Twilight Sparkle up the mountain to the apparent end of the path.

It's not long before I hear the purple unicorn's voice calling out, “Alright, all earth ponies and all unicorns that don't know a teleport spell are going to have to jump across. Pegasi can fly across, and everypony else use their teleport spell. First, Mormon, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, you come forward.”

Obediently my character and the two earth ponies move to the head of the line.

Pinkie Pie is the first to jump, or bounce, to the other side.

Applejack follows close behind, making the jump like Pinkie Pie, with minimal effort.

As the two earth ponies move aside to allow my character to make the jump, my character turns to Fluttershy's head as I say, “I'm not going to run first, but I may jump over. If you want, you may hold your wings open; but I'm thinking it'll be in the best interest of both of us if you don't flap.”

As my character looks back to the other side of the gap, I see that Rainbow Dash has already flown over to the other side, and is hovering impatiently next to Pinkie Pie.

I hear Fluttershy mutter, “Oh dear,” as my character proceeds to make a standing jump over the gap.

To my credit my calculations are correct. As Fluttershy opens her wings to assist, my character easily makes the jump over the gap, and without running into the cliff on the other side. Just a couple of steps, and he and his passenger are safely on the other side of the gap.

I hear a trembling moan from the yellow pegasa, so I ask her, “Are you alright, Fluttershy?”

She answers, “I will be, as long as we don't have to do that again.”

As my character looks up, I say, “Well, we will when we come back this way. But, further up is a wider gap we'll have to cross. I'm thinking we'll make that one as long as we work together.” Then, when I hear her start whining, I add, “Now, I'm not the only friend you've got with you.”

One thing I don't expect from the yellow pegasa at this point is for her to cry, “I don't care. I don't wanna do this anymore!”

Before I can protest, we hear another dragon snore, and Fluttershy's head disappears from my character's view.

Well, the argument is moot anyway. My character moves out of the way, allowing Lyra, then Rarity, and finally Twilight, to pass over the gap with no problems.

The group, including my character with a still-terrified Fluttershy on his back, follows the path around the mountain, where we find the trail widening next to a cliff that, considering the sun is shining on it, is surprisingly dark.

Twilight Sparkle calls a halt to the march, then turns to my character, who's following right behind her, and says, “I'm not sure about this part. I don't like the color of that cliff face.”

As my character nods, I answer, “I agree. Maybe I should check it to see if it's safe?” Then, while the purple unicorn is nodding in agreement, I have my character kneel down and remove Fluttershy from his back. After he puts the yellow pegasa down next to Twilight, I have my character proceed ahead to have a look at the cliff face.

One of the things that helps out here is that, by this time, my character, with Fluttershy's help, has finished off the apple sandwich Pinkie Pie gave him. As he approaches, I can't help noticing that the wall has several cracks in it, making it look more like flagstone than pure, solid rock. My character pushes a pointer finger into one of the cracks, then pulls it out to find it somewhat caked with soft soil.

This can only mean that whatever is holding the flagstone together isn't very adhesive, and is actually very moist. Not only that, but I wouldn't be surprised to find out that my character testing the soil has weakened the wall further.

My character returns to the group, hearing some rumbling behind him which seems to confirm my theory about what the test has done to the quality of the wall. I say under my breath, “Well, the only thing that seems to be holding the cliff face together is soft, moist soil. If we're going to get across there, we're going to have to do it as quietly as possible, so we can minimize the vibrations against that wall.”

Twilight nods and says, “It sounds like we'll also have to keep a safe distance between the rock face and us. And, I think we'll also have to go, all of us, on hoof. Foot in your case, Mormon.” Focusing on me, she affirms, “And, that means you won't be carrying Fluttershy until we get past that cliff face.”

I hear Fluttershy start whimpering again; so, as my character turns to her, I say, “We're too close to turn back now. After it's all over, we'll be returning home; and we won't have to worry about climbing this mountain any more.”

Presently Twilight says, “Come on, Fluttershy. You'll be behind me, and I'll be following Mormon.” Turning to my character, she says, “So, let's go.”

As surprised as I am that Twilight's giving my character, giving me, the lead position, I have my character nod, then proceed ahead, followed by the ponies.

My character makes it past an evidently healthy bush without disturbing it, but I can only assume either Twilight or Fluttershy aren't as lucky. All I can say for sure is I suddenly hear Fluttershy scream behind me.

The good news is the scream lasts for a second, thanks to some quick thinking on Twilight's part.

The bad news is that one-second scream is all that's needed to cause a rock slide.

As I hear the rumbling, I call out, “Everyone, back up!”

Even worse is, in spite of my effort to sound calm, the ponies are evidently more focused on the rock slide, and are thus easily panicked.

I do my best to keep the ponies from running into the slide or off the cliff, and I prove successful at it. Unfortunately, when it's all over, the path is blocked by the now-collapsed rock face.

I turn to Fluttershy and ask, “What happened?”

The yellow pegasa answers, looking behind her, “I felt something touch me on my behind. I thought something was going to eat me.” Looking at me again, but downward, she adds, “I'm sorry.”

I say, “What matters is everyone's alright.” At this point, my character looks around to confirm what I said to Fluttershy.

While my character is in the process of doing this, Twilight Sparkle says, “Well, if everypony is alright, then I guess there's just one thing left for us to do.” She swallows and concludes, “We're going to have to climb over the mess.”

At the purple unicorn's announcement, I have my character turn his back to the yellow pegasa, and I say, “Well, Fluttershy, the good news is the unstable part of the wall has fallen; so, there should be no problems with me carrying you from here on. So, do you want to climb on my back?”

The only confirmation I get is evidence of a little extra weight on my character's back, then seeing, through my character's eyes, part of Fluttershy's face. With that confirmation, my character stands up again.

In one way or another, all of the ponies demonstrate displeasure over their current predicament. But, it seems that the only ones that don't vocally complain are Twilight and Fluttershy.

As I have my character power run up the debris field, I can't divert enough attention to the pale-green unicorn until I'm at the top of the mound. But, on the way down, as Lyra is still complaining when she passes me, I have my character turn to her while I say, “Lyra, that's enough. As I recall, Fluttershy wasn't the only one panicking during the rock slide. Maybe I should've left you back at the library with Weed Whacker and Spike.”

It seems my comment about panicking ends not only Lyra's complaining, but the complaining of the rest of the ponies.

When all are safe on the other side of the mound of slidden rock, Twilight turns to the other ponies and the human. I can see a look of sadness on the purple unicorn's face as she says, “Before we go on, there's a matter we need to address.” The purple unicorn turns to my character as she says, “Mormon, you were right when you told Lyra that Fluttershy wasn't the only one that panicked. In fact, you were the only one keeping the group together and safe while everypony else was panicking.” Turning her attention to the rest of the group, she continues, “We owe Mormon our gratitude for keeping us out of the rock slide and from running off the cliff. And, I don't know about the rest of you, but I need to tell Fluttershy how sorry I am. No, I didn't say any of the things I was thinking, but I was agreeing with everypony who was complaining against Fluttershy.” Now she looks at her yellow pegasa friend and says, “So, Fluttershy, on behalf of everypony here, let me say that I'm sorry for complaining about you. You're an important part of this team, and we need to treat you with more respect.”

From over my character's shoulder, I hear Fluttershy say, “Oh, well, thank you, Twilight. But, the fact of the matter is you were right to complain about me. After all, I was the first to panic, and I was the one that caused the rock slide.”

I say, “Well, if anyone's gonna accept responsibility for causing the slide, I at least need to accept some. I poked my finger into the soil in the wall, which I'm sure made the cliff face less stable than it was before.”

Now I hear Twilight say, “Now, from your report, it sounded to me like the cliff face was ready to crumble before you touched it. But, that's not what matters right now. The fact of the matter is nopony I heard complained about you. All the complaining I heard was directed toward Fluttershy.”

There is perhaps a minute of silence, after which the first to approach Fluttershy with their sorrow at having complained against her are Pinkie Pie and Lyra. After that, since Twilight has already done so, Rarity, then Applejack, then Rainbow Dash, who is most sincere, inform Fluttershy they are sorry.

After that, and after the yellow pegasa accepts gratefully their words, the group moves ahead to the pathway leading back toward the mountain. Fortunately, the rock face is more stable for the rest of the trek along the trail.

When it comes to that wider gap, I am right in suggesting Fluttershy is going to assist me in crossing it. Her flapping wings make it so that both she and my character make it over the gap with no problems.

Applejack and Pinkie Pie cross the gap with what seems to be as little effort as when they crossed the narrower gap.

Twilight uses a spell to teleport from one side of the gap to the other.

Lyra leaps, and just barely makes it across. It's thanks to my character's quick actions that she doesn't fall into the ravine below.

Rainbow Dash, as she'd done with the narrower gap, flies over this one.

I think my biggest surprise is Rarity, who makes the leap over the gap with what seems like as much, or as little, effort as what Applejack and Pinkie Pie put into their leaps over the gap. As far as I can tell, she uses none of her magic, and doesn't run first. She just leaps and makes it over the gap.

From that point on, it's just a short walk to the dragon's cave.

Just as it was in the “Dragonshy” episode, Twilight's the first to go in, with her approach being calm persuasion.

When that fails, Rarity goes in next, attempting to flatter the dragon not only out of the cave, but out of his nest of jewels as well.

After that fails, Pinkie Pie goes in next, dressed in a gift-wrapped box, swimming flippers, and balloons, hoping to gain the dragon's attention by making him laugh. And, just like in the episode, while she succeeds in getting the dragon's attention, she fails at getting him to budge from his position in the cave.

Once she comes out, and while Rainbow Dash lists the failed approaches, I decide to have my character enter the cave, putting Fluttershy down next to Lyra, as I attempt my own approach.

My attempt doesn't go unnoticed by Rainbow Dash, who flies in front of my character and says, “Now, just a minute. I can't let you go in there. What makes you think you can succeed where ponies have failed?”

I answer, “May be I will succeed, and maybe I'll fail. But, at least I'd like to try.”

The rainbow-haired pegasa groans and says, “Whatever.” She then flies over my character's head and back to her friends. Before my character can go deeper into the cave, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “Pinkie Pie, your human had better know what he's doing.”

With that vote of confidence from the rainbow-haired pegasa, my character proceeds further into the cave, which, not surprisingly, is tall and deep by human standards, just the kind of cave where one would expect to find a dragon that could swallow my character whole.

He makes his approach to the dragon and strokes him on the nose, waking him up.

Now, I expect him to speak to Fluttershy later on; but I don't expect him to ask me now, “What do you want?”

Nonetheless, I answer, “Will you just follow me out of the cave? I just want you to see something. After that, you can make up your own mind on what you should do.”

The dragon answers, “You're probably going to be like that white unicorn, after my jewels.” He then turns away from me and adds, “No thanks. I'm staying right here.” And, while I don't actually see the action from my character's position, the change in level and color of light in the cave is suggesting to me that the dragon has just closed his eyes.

I have my character sit on a nearby rock as I say, “Very well, we stay here then. And, while I'm here, I'll provide some entertainment.”

The level and color of light have just gone back to what they were before, indicating that the dragon has just opened his eyes again. He turns to me and asks, “What do you mean, 'entertainment?'”

I remember watching in a movie about a ghost who sang a song to irritate a mystic into doing what he wanted, and I consider the same approach may work on the dragon. And, with that in mind, I start singing “I Am Henry the Eighth, I Am.”

I manage to sing the first line before I hear Rainbow Dash from outside the cave say, “Ah, for the love of the goddesses!” And, before I can move my character in position to stop her, she flies into the cave and jump kicks the dragon on the nose.

I, from my character's perspective, see the attack land; and I stop at the end of the fourth line, and end the singing with, "And, Rainbow Dash, you really shouldn't have done that."

In the mean time, the dragon responds to the assault by sneezing, then growling at the intrusive pegasa, then chasing her as she flies out of the cave.

In the mean time, as my character rises again and follows more slowly behind, I say, “Well, at least he's out of the cave.”

By the time my character joins the dragon outside his cave, the damage is already done.

Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack are lined up against a small mesa; Rainbow Dash dazed with a small stream of blood between her eyes, and the two earth ponies holding each other, trembling, focused on the furious monster.

Twilight Sparkle and Lyra have taken positions on each side of the cave opening, and are firing magical bursts at the dragon, evidently trying to divert his attention from Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack.

Who would've thought the pale-green unicorn knew an attack spell? But, I can wonder about how she learned such a spell later.

In the mean time, I see Rarity popping her head out from another somewhat larger plateau, probably trying to find a way into the cave to get some of those jewels. At least, that's the idea I'm getting as I'm seeing her head pop up closer and closer to Twilight Sparkle's position, until the holder of the element of generosity shows up right next to the holder of the element of magic.

This causes Twilight Sparkle to create the worst possible moment to let down her attacks as she sees her friend and calls out, “Rarity, what are you doing?”

The dragon turns to the two unicorns, … and focuses on Rarity.

Twilight closes her eyes and plants a front hoof between them.

In the mean time, Lyra uses her horn to build up a large sphere of magical energy, aims it at the dragon's ear that she can see, and fires it, in an attempt to distract the dragon.

But, the attempted attack is in vain. The dragon reaches down to grab Rarity just in time for the sphere to miss him, and fly off into space. It's the sphere's explosion that attracts the dragon's attention.

It also gives Rarity the chance she's been waiting for to run into the cave toward the dragon's nest.

In the mean time, when the dragon looks down to see Rarity has disappeared, he turns his attention to the source of the exploding sphere, ready to unleash his fury on the source.

The good news for Lyra is my character is on the same side of the cave opening as she is, so he can at least attempt to stand between dragon and pony. Or at least between dragon and Lyra.

As Rarity continues her run toward the gems that compose the dragon's nest, I call out, as my character holds out his arms, “That's enough! Twilight, go get your unicorn friend!”

From inside the cave, I hear the sound effect of tires on asphalt, followed by Rarity's voice calling out, “Mormon, how could you?”

In the mean time, Twilight Sparkle snaps out of her disappointment and obeys me, heading into the cave to collect her friend.

Before the dragon can turn his attention to the inside of the cave, I say, “Well, now that you're out of the cave, I want you to see something.”

The dragon snarls, “Let me at that mint unicorn.”

I answer, “No. Not until you've seen what I want you to see.”

The dragon snarls, “The mint unicorn tried to hit me with that energy sphere.”

I answer, “She was trying to defend one of her friends. And, all things considered, she succeeded.”

That's when I hear Fluttershy's voice, near her fellow pegasa's position, ask, “Rainbow Dash, are you alright?”

Her question is answered by a groan from Rainbow Dash.

My character's attention turns to Fluttershy now as she turns her head to the dragon and says, “How dare you?” She then turns the rest of her body around, glares at the dragon, and, flying up to his face, screams, “How dare you!?”

When I saw the episode, “Dragonshy,” I laughed at this part, thinking that a real dragon, having the yellow pegasa in his face, would've just eaten her out of the air, in one bite. This dragon is certainly capable of that. But, at the time I watched the episode, I'd never had the experience of a furious Fluttershy in my face. Yes, it was in my character's face, but that didn't change the effect. Let me tell you, the pegasa's glaring eyes are far more intimidating than you might realize. It's no wonder the dragon is so scared right now. It's not just the element of surprise that's presently working to Fluttershy's advantage.

And then she tells the dragon off. And, she's earning all sorts of respect from me right now.

The dragon, clearly frozen in fear, has no way to escape from what he's seeing. When he does get a chance to speak, he whimpers, pointing to Rainbow Dash, “But, the rainbow one kicked me.”

Fluttershy's fury subsides for the moment as she says, “And, we're very sorry for that.” But, her anger returns as she adds, “But, that doesn't give you the right to harm another creature. What would your mother think if she saw you right now?”

The mother card proves too much for the dragon, who immediately starts bawling.

He only stops crying when Fluttershy, her maternal instinct taking over, comforts him, telling him that it's his decision, not him, that's bad. Now having effectively humbled the dragon, she convinces him to move somewhere else to sleep.

But, before he leaves, he turns to my character and says, “Before I go, I should like to pay you back for what you did. So, may I take you back to Ponyville?”

I answer, “I think you would be most helpful if you could fly all my friends back to Ponyville first, starting with Twilight and Rarity.”

That's when I near Rarity say, “Oh, no.” At this point, my main hope is she hasn't gone back to trying to grab as many of the dragon's gems as she can.

As my character turns to see the two unicorns, I can see through my character's eyes that the only thing separating Rarity from the gems in the dragon's bed is Twilight holding her by her tail.

The dragon, seeing this, takes a few steps and scoops up the two unicorns, then turns to me and says, “If it'll keep the white one from stealing my wake-up meal, then these two will go first.” And, with that, and with the two unicorns in his forelimbs, he takes a running leap out of the cave and flies off to the small town with the cylindrical building at it's center.

Rainbow Dash, in the mean time, having stretched herself to full alertness, turns to me and says, “I can fly back to Ponyville.” And, with that, “the rainbow one” proceeds to do just that, following the dragon while managing to keep in his apparent blind spot.

In the mean time, Fluttershy turns to me and asks, “So, what did you do to the dragon to make him think he needed to pay you back?”

I answer, “You know, I'm not really sure.” And, right now, the fact of the matter is I'm not. I plan on asking the dragon when he takes my character back to Ponyville after the rest are back.

It doesn't take the dragon more than a minute to return, ready for two more passengers. Seeing one of the ponies missing, he asks me, “Where did the rainbow one go?”

I answer, “She decided she could fly back.”

The dragon snorts and says, “That doesn't surprise me.”

The dragon's next two passengers are Applejack and Pinkie Pie, then Fluttershy and Lyra.

While the dragon is carrying my character back to Ponyville, I ask, “So, why do you think you owe me something?”

I think I hear a smile in the dragon's voice as he answers, “You sang me that song. And, you sang it so well. Not even a dragon could've sung as well as you did.”

Evidently, my plan to irritate the dragon out of the cave failed with the choice of song, and with my singing. But, all things considered, the job of convincing the dragon to move to and sleep in another cave fell on Fluttershy, and she was successful. So, I have nothing to complain about. And, besides, we got a ride home afterward.

That's the good news.

The bad news comes when the dragon drops my character off, and I have to face a furious Rarity, who didn't get her sample of the dragon's gems.

It's Twilight who convinces her that if she'd gotten to the gems, the dragon would've gotten to her, and the team would've been missing the element of generosity.

Now, in the first playthrough, I established that, at least in this game, the elements of harmony could be passed to other ponies when their bearers couldn't hold them anymore. I suppose if Rarity had gotten a sample of the dragon's gems and the dragon had killed her, then another pony would've taken her place as bearer of the element of generosity. But, since that didn't happen, I can guess we'll never know who that would've been.

In the mean time, after hearing what Twilight said, Rarity agrees that I made the right decision having the dragon take her and Twilight back to Ponyville first.

Fluttershy, in the mean time, after cleaning and patching up Rainbow Dash, informs my character that she wants to join in the reading. Evidently her confrontation with the dragon left her with a new-found confidence. It was a real benefit to her.

And, as it turns out, Rainbow Dash also wants to take part in the reading. According to her and Pinkie Pie, she's been listening in on the readings thus far, and has taken an interest in what she heard.

And, to my pleasant surprise, Pinkie Pie has already supplied her with a copy of the Book of Mormon.

It takes less than a minute for the pegasi in town to clear the black clouds from over Ponyville, which leaves me some time to separate my character from the ponies and check out something suspiciously familiar I notice at what appears to be a tavern nearby. From the edge of his periphery I've been noticing a white unicorn with mane and tail of two shades of blue, and I'm hoping it's not the pony I think it is, one that should be at my character's home helping Trixie build a new mobile stage.

As my character approaches the white unicorn, I notice her cutie mark, two connected eighth notes, and it's clear to me who it is.

Next to her is a cup with what appears to be urine, or perhaps apple juice, inside. From what I can see, Vinyl hasn't touched it yet. In fact, it's not until my character is just a few steps from her that she picks up the cup with her magic and starts drinking from it.

As soon as my character is directly behind her, I have him kneel on one knee as I call out, “Vinyl!” Then, after she demonstrates a rather unusual method of sharing her drink with the pegasa on the opposite side of the table from her, I say, “Alright, that was the best spit take I've ever seen. Now, my question for you is why are you here?”

When Vinyl turns to me, I can see her ears are flat against her head and backward, and she's forcing a smile as she stammers, “M-m-mormon, imagine s-s-seeing y-y-you h-here. Th-things w-w-went w-w-well, I g-guess?”

Again I ask, “Why are you here, Vinyl?”

The white unicorn mare swallows hard, and her smile disappears. It's clear she at least has some idea of how much trouble she's in.

It's about this time that I hear sniffing nearby, and my character turns his head to show me that it's Pinkie Pie sniffing at Vinyl's cup.

She then grimaces as she pulls away, and she frowns as she moves in so she's nose-to-nose with Vinyl before saying, “I thought you promised me you'd stay back at Mormon's house.” At this point, I can see one eye of her's vibrate, and I don't doubt the other is doing the same thing. Her hair is also starting to uncurl, but I think it's more evidence of her emotional state than her sister Diane taking over.

Before Vinyl can respond, which she either can't or won't right now, I hear a different male voice behind my character say, “I guess it's partly our fault that this unicorn's here.”

As my character turns to the source of the voice, I see two griffons, one larger than the other.

The smaller griffon says, in the male voice I heard before, “We brought her here from a house just outside the Everfree forest because she said she could help us find out what happened to our daughter.”

I ask, “And, what's your daughter's name?”

The larger griffon, in a female voice, answers, “Her name is Gilda.”

Now, I hear Pinkie Pie say under her breath, “Oh, goddesses.”

As my character turns to look at her, I see through his eyes the pink pony is trembling, the look on her face a mixture of fear and sadness. And, I can't blame her for feeling that way. Now she's got to explain to the two griffons what she did to their daughter.

While up to this point she had her front hooves on Vinyl's hind legs to keep the two of them at eye level, now she pushes away from Vinyl and drops to the ground, then sighs before saying, “Well, this was going to come sooner or later.”

I say, “Pinkie Pie, you're dismissed to go with Gilda's parents.”

By this time, the pegasi are long finished clearing away the clouds; and Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, as well as the rest of the element bearers, have joined the rest of us in this unplanned gathering, Lyra and Weed Whacker following close behind.

Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “Thanks, Mormon.” Turning to the two griffons, she says, “If you'll take me back to Mormon's house, that house where you brought Vinyl from, I have something I need to show you.” Then she turns to Rainbow Dash and says, “Dashie, if you'll come with us, you're gonna have to see this, too.”

It's clear that both Rainbow Dash and the female griffon sense something is wrong.

I expect one of the griffons, specifically the female, to ask more earnestly about their daughter.

Instead, the female griffon points a wing at Vinyl sitting at the table and asks, “What about this unicorn?”

I answer, “She'll be coming with me. You two go ahead and take Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash back to my home.”

The griffons nod.

The female lowers herself to the ground, and Pinkie Pie climbs onto her back, after which the female griffon rises again.

The male griffon lowers as well, but Rainbow Dash says, “That's alright. I'll fly.” As the male griffon rises, Rainbow Dash approaches my character and says under her breath, “Something about this scares me. Why is Pinkie Pie so serious all of a sudden?”

Before I can answer, I hear the pink earth pony call out, “Dashie, are you comin' or not?”

When the rainbow-haired pegasa refuses to move, and I see the look of fear in her face, I say, “Just go with your friend.”

For another second Rainbow Dash doesn't move. When she does finally decide to do so, she sighs deeply, then turns and joins the griffons, as they fly off toward my character's house.

As my character turns to the rest of the group, I search for and find the pale-green unicorn and say, “Lyra, if you'll lead everyone else to my house, I have something to discuss with Vinyl here.”

Lyra looks at Vinyl, who I'm guessing is looking as worried as Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and the griffons did before they left, then back at me, then nods and says, “Alright. We'll meet you there.” And, with that, she gestures to the group of ponies and dragons to follow her as she walks toward the Everfree forest.

In the mean time, I have my character turn to Vinyl Scratch, who has turned away from my character and is manipulating the cup with her magic again. Before she can take a drink from the cup, I grab her by the forelimb I don't see and pull her away, causing her to lose her concentration, and thus her control of the cup.

As the cup falls on its side onto the table, spilling its contents; Vinyl starts to protest, then gives up and turns to the other ponies at the table and calls out goodbye to them while my character drags her away. She then turns to my character and, seeing that we're not headed in the same direction as the others, asks, “Where are you taking me?”

As my character drags the white unicorn toward the only side of the town where I haven't been to yet, I say, “Hopefully someplace where we can talk more privately.”

At this point, Vinyl Scratch doesn't say anymore, just struggles, in vain, to escape from the human who's dragging her away.

When I figure my character and the white unicorn are far enough out of town, I have my character throw her ahead of him a short distance; then I ask, “Didn't we have an agreement? Weren't you going to stay at my home so you could get over your drinking habit?”

The white unicorn rises, looks at my character, and stammers, “Well, I-I-I … “

Deciding on a different line of questioning, I ask, “Do you want my help, or not? Do you, or do you not, want Pinkie's respect? Because, if that's not what you want, you can go back to Ponyville right now.”

It's clearly my questioning of Vinyl's desire for Pinkie Pie's respect that hurts her.

Presently Vinyl's voice trembles with emotional pain as she says, “Of course, I want Pinkie Pie's respect.”

I ask, “So, why were you in Ponyville just now instead of back at my house?” When I see her either not having an answer or not willing to offer one, I continue, “I was helping you because I thought that's what you wanted. Like I said, you can go back to Ponyville now if that's what you prefer. But, if you do, chances are you're going to get yourself killed one way or another. You'll lose Pinkie Pie's respect, and you won't get it back. And, knowing Pinkie Pie as I do, she won't kill you. She just won't respect you anymore.”

I watch Vinyl Scratch as she uses her magic to pull her goggles away from her face, showing my character, and for that matter me, the fear and sorrow in her eyes.

I have my character kneel on one knee again as I continue, “But, if you return with me to my house, your friends and I will help you get over your drinking habit. Lyra is allowed to have visits from Bon-Bon, and you'll also be allowed visits from Octavia, or any other friends you may have.

“Eventually I'll dismiss you to return to Ponyville, or wherever you want to go, when I feel you're ready. As you may know, I'm making frequent visits to Ponyville nowadays. So, when I release you to return to Ponyville, I never want to see you at another bar, tavern, or drinking party again, neither do I ever want to hear about you going to such things. Right now, I'm willing to respect your wishes.

“So, right now, do you choose to come with me back to my house, or do you choose to return to Ponyville?”

At this point I'm aware that Vinyl is no longer looking at my character. In fact, she seems to be looking through him at something, or perhaps some pony, else.

The white unicorn says, “Octy, is that you?”

As my character turns to see who Vinyl is talking to, I indeed notice a gray earth pony with nearly-black mane approaching me and Vinyl. And, I can see evidence of her tail as it swishes back and forth behind her.

Octavia approaches and then passes my character, but stops right next to him, before saying, “Vinyl, you need help. This human is offering it to you, so please accept it.”

As my character turns to look at Vinyl again, I see something unexpected.

She's still emoting fear and sorrow, but she's also successfully emoting happiness, no doubt at seeing that she has Octavia's support. She turns to me and says, “If Octy can stay as well, then I'll go back home with you.”

I have my character turn to the gray mare as I ask, ”So, Octavia, is that alright with you?”

Octavia approaches and circles around Vinyl as she says, “Well, I shall have to make some arrangements in Ponyville first, but I suppose it is doable.”

At her friend's evident acceptance, Vinyl smiles and cheers, “Yay, Octy's coming, too!”

I state, “You realize, of course, that, as long as you're on my property, no alcoholic beverages of any kind will be allowed. That means no wine, no strong cider, no beer, no alcoholic beverages at all.”

At this point, Octavia is between me and Vinyl.

I notice the white unicorn's smile turn slightly evil as she points a front hoof at her friend and practically sings, “Ah, you know what that means. You won't be allowed to drink your favorite wine.”

I notice, from the edge of my character's periphery, the gray mare's tail point upward somewhat, followed by a zipper sound effect, then a splatter, suggesting to me that she may have just messed herself. As she looks at me, she looks like she may cry. Then, she puts on a stoic face as she says, “Very well. If it means helping Vinyl get over her drinking problem, then so be it.”

I find it a little difficult to tell exactly what's going through Vinyl's mind right now. I have to wonder if she was hoping for some way to get back to Ponyville before I gave permission, or if it might be something else. All I know is that she puts her hoof down and asks, “Really?”

My character focuses on the gray earth pony mare, and I say, “Well, whatever arrangements you need to make in Ponyville, you should get to them now, and we'll head through the Everfree forest when you return.”

Octavia uses a front hoof to scratch under her chin as she says, “Well, all I'll need, then, is my cello.” Turning to Vinyl again, she asks, “Do you want me to get your music system as well?”

Vinyl is evidently even more excited as she answers, “Oh, boy, do I ever! I've missed it!”

Again I speak up and say, “You also realize I'll have restrictions beyond what we'll eat and drink. Remember, my home is right next to the Everfree forest. I prefer to enjoy quiet music myself, which keeps me in good terms with my neighbors. If I think the music playing is getting too loud, I reserve the right to put an end to it. As long as the music playing is kept reasonable, I'll allow it.”

As she turns toward Ponyville again, Octavia says, “Very well. I shall be back in a few minutes with my cello, and Vinyl's music system.” And, with that, the gray earth mare begins her march toward town.

It's evidently at the point when she thinks that her friend is out of earshot that Vinyl settles into a canine-style position and says, waving a front hoof in the air, “Great. No wubs.”

My character focuses on the unicorn, and I say, “As long as you keep them reasonable, you can have your wubs.”

Vinyl uses both front hooves to rub her closed eyes as she groans and says, “I don't know how I'm gonna do this.”

I ask, “Doesn't your music system include headphones?”

Vinyl answers, “Yeah. So, what?”

I say, “As long as you keep your headphones plugged in and you're wearing them, you should be able to listen to your music while you practice, and it shouldn't cause any problems.”

Vinyl groans again, but drops her front hooves in front of her as she says, “You don't understand how it works.”

I answer, “But, I'm thinking you understand how it's going to have to work if you want to keep your music system.”

Vinyl rises again, and once again there's that familiar zipper sound effect, which comes from her, as she says, “So, you're resorting to threats now?”

I answer, “I won't harm your system, but I can't say the same for the creatures that live in the forest. They have a way of communicating their disapproval.”

Vinyl looks like she wants to argue the point further, but then Octavia arrives with the musical instruments and says, “Alright, I'm ready to go when you are.”

Vinyl turns her attention to the gray pony as she says, “Wow, Octy, that was fast.”

I have my character go ahead to the pathway between Ponyville and the Everfree forest as I say, “Well, if every pony here is ready, then let's go.”

In agreement the two ponies follow behind my character, with Octavia pulling the musical instruments behind her.

Vinyl catches up to my character and says, “You know when you stopped me from getting a drink at that bar in Ponyville? Well, you were right to do that. I shouldn't have gone back with the griffons.”

What I want to say is that she may have done the right thing, albeit for the wrong reasons, in giving Pinkie Pie a chance to meet Gilda's parents. But, then I think better of it. Best not to invite questions that Pinkie Pie should be the one to answer, not if I want to keep her respect. What I do say to the white unicorn is, “I forgive you. Why don't you go help your friend with the instruments?”

Vinyl agrees, then stops long enough for Octavia to catch up to her. She offers assistance with the musical instruments, which her friend accepts graciously; and I assume the two share the burden of the musical instruments.

The trek from where I had a discussion with Vinyl Scratch to my character's home takes more than an hour, at which point we meet up with the Mane Six, the three stallions, the two griffons, Trixie, Bon-Bon, and others, who have prepared another snack tray in anticipation of the reading later.

I can't help noticing Pinkie Pie seems to be carrying a heavy burden of her own. So, I have my character approach her; and I ask, “Is everything alright?”

The pink earth pony answers, “I hope I can put this whole Gilda thing behind me as soon as possible.”

At this point, I have my character head toward his house as I say, “Let's go inside so we can talk about it.”

Pinkie Pie doesn't say anything, but she does follow my character into the house.

Once inside, we take seats on each end of a couch; and I ask, “So, you told Gilda's parents about what you did to her?”

The pink pony answers, “Them and Rainbow Dash. I even showed them her remains.” She sighs before continuing, “The hardest part is not knowing if Rainbow Dash'll forgive me. She's my best friend, and she'll be staying. The griffons, on the other hoof, want me to tell Snips about that cupcake he ate before they leave.”

I state, “So, you haven't told him yet.”

Pinkie Pie answers, “I wanted to tell Rainbow Dash first. I didn't want her to hear it from Snips or any of the other foals before I got a chance to tell her.”

I say, “That sounds reasonable. So, when are you going to tell Snips?”

Pinkie Pie focuses on my character as she answers, “As much as I want to make friends with the griffons, the sooner the better. I'm thinking tomorrow. Now that I've told Dashie, I don't have to hide it from Snips any longer.”

I ask, “Do you want me to go with you when you tell Snips?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “I'll have Gilda's parents with me, and I don't want to alarm Snips too much; so, I think three should be enough of a crowd.”

I state, “Well, I'm sure you'll let me know how it goes, then.”

Pinkie nods and sniffles.

Just then, the front door opens; and Fluttershy enters. Seeing my character, she walks up to him and says, “If it's alright with you, I'd like to join in the reading tonight. And, I brought the copy of the Book of Mormon with me that Pinkie Pie gave me.”

I have my character stand up as I say, “That's good news. I'm happy to hear it. If you'll wait outside, Pinkie Pie and I have a few more things to talk about, then we'll come out and begin the reading.”

I watch, through my character's eyes, as Fluttershy leaves through the front door, then have my character turn to Pinkie Pie; and I ask, “Do you suppose Gilda's parents would like to read with us?”

Pinkie Pie closes her eyes and puts a front hoof between them, reminding me of Twilight, as she says, “The one thing I forgot about.”

I answer, “That's alright. You've had a lot to think about recently. I'll take care of it.” And, with that, I have my character retrieve two copies of the Book of Mormon from the closet, then make his way outside to talk to the two griffons.

When my character exits the house and looks and finds the griffons, to my surprise I see them talking with not just Princess Luna, but also Princess Celestia. As my character approaches the conversing quartet, I see the two alicorn sisters are trying to comfort the two griffons, who are clearly still distraught over the fate of their daughter.

When my character is a few footsteps away from them, I say, “Hello.”

The four turn to my character and salute him in return.

Princess Celestia, who, with Gilda's mother, is the closest of the four of us, turns to the two griffons and says, “This is our host, Mormon.”

Gilda's father turns to the white alicorn and answers, “We know. We were introduced earlier in Ponyville.” Turning back to my character, he asks, “Mormon, is that one white unicorn friend of yours in trouble?”

I answer, “Vinyl's gonna have more eyes on her, or at least I hope she will. She'll have to prove she will stick to her promise to stay here. If she can do that, I can help her.”

Gilda's mother says, “I've noticed you brought a gray earth pony mare with you and Vinyl. Is she one of Vinyl's friends?”

I answer the female griffon, “From what I understand she is. She's the 'more eyes' I was talking about. Vinyl said she'd stay here at my house if the gray earth pony, Octavia, agreed to stay as well.”

Gilda's mother responds, “Well, just so long as she won't come to harm because of us, I suppose it'll be alright.” She then notices something about my character and, tilting her head, asks, “What are you holding?”

My character looks down at the two books, then back at the griffons, then holds the books out to them.

I answer, “These are copies of a book that's come to mean a lot to me over the years. It's called the Book of Mormon. I figured, since you were staying for the night, at least, you might be interested in joining in the reading. So, I thought I'd offer you your own copies, in case you wanted to read with us.”

As the female griffon straightens her head again, the male griffon says, “Oh, we wouldn't want to impose.”

I answer, “You wouldn't be imposing. You're quite welcome to join us if you want.”

The male griffon turns away in shame, or so it appears, as the female says, “My male and I aren't good at reading languages beyond our own.”

I answer, “You don't have to read if you don't want to. If you only want to stay and listen, that's perfectly fine.”

Now Princess Celestia says, “On the other hoof, if you really want to read, I could enchant your copies of the book so that you can see the writings in your own language.”

This gets the male griffon's attention, as he turns to the female and nudges her with his beak.

The two converse with chirps and mild squawks, after which the male turns to me and, reaching out a claw, says, “Very well. We'll stay and read with you.”

I hand a copy of the book to Gilda's father, and one to her mother as the larger griffon reaches out a claw, after which the books start glowing with a white aura.

The two, in unison that surprises me again, say to me, “Thank you.” They then turn to Princess Celestia and, again in unison, say, “And, thank you.”

I'm further surprised when Princess Celestia and I, in unison, answer, “You're welcome.”

At this point, my character looks around to show me more than a dozen ponies, two dragons, and the two griffons, with no more coming.

As he looks back at the griffons and alicorns, I say, “Well, there's one more pony inside the house. Since it appears that everyone's here that's coming, I'm going to invite the pony inside the house to join us outside. In the mean time, for the past few days we've been reading this way, we've been forming a circle. You may, with those that are here, form a circle in the front yard here.”

Princess Celestia nods and says, “Very well, then.”

And, as my character heads to the house so I can invite Pinkie Pie to join in, I hear the daytime princess call out, “Alright, everypony. Let's form a circle in the front yard here. The reading will begin shortly.”

My character is reaching for the door knob when it turns, and he backs up in response as the door swings open.

I'm pleased, if not just surprised, to see Pinkie Pie carrying her copy of the Book of Mormon in her mouth as she exits through the front door.

I let the pink earth pony pass in front of my character before having him close the door behind her.

As I follow Pinkie Pie to an opening in the circle, Rainbow Dash, gesturing with an open wing, says, “Over here, Pinkie.”

The pink pony pauses for a moment, then runs to her friend and settles next to her, dropping her copy of the book next to the blue pegasa.

As my character joins in the circle between Pinkie Pie and Weed Whacker, effectively completing it, I hear Pinkie ask, “So, we're fine then?”

As my character produces his own copy of the Book of Mormon, I hear Rainbow Dash answer her friend, “Of course we're alright. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't forgive you? Besides, the six of us are a team. And, I can see that Mormon's been a good influence on you. Like I said before, I've been listening to the readings, and I've enjoyed hearing the stories. Now, I get to read with you.”

Based on the seconds of silence after Rainbow Dash is finished talking, I wouldn't be surprised if Pinkie Pie starts crying, when she does start breathing again. And, sure enough, after a sharp sniffle of an inhale, I hear the pink pony whimper, “Thanks, Dashie.”

As my character looks down to show me the two ponies, I see Rainbow Dash covering Pinkie Pie with a blue wing and nuzzling her mane in front of her ear as the pink pony leans her head against the pegasa's neck.

My character looks at the rest of the group, and I can see the two griffons between the two sister alicorns.

I wonder aloud, seeing how wide the circle is, “Is everyone going to be able to hear who's reading?”

At this point, Princess Luna answers, “I can cast an acoustic spell that should allow everypony to hear the speaker.”

I'm not the only one, it seems, that voices agreement to the proposition.

So, the nighttime princess lights her horn up, and a transparent bubble forms around the group.

After the bubble takes form, I ask, “So, can everyone hear me alright?”

A staggered chorus of affirmation echoes around the circle. I'm sure I can even hear Fluttershy clearly answer affirmatively.

With that confirmation, I state, “We'll be starting with chapter seven of First Nephi,” before asking, “So, do I have a volunteer to begin the reading?”

After what sounds like a furious rush of pages flying around, the male griffon, Gilda's father, sits up and raises a claw, reminding me of a dog begging, and says, “I would like to read first.”

I say, “You may begin with the first verse.”

If I'm reading the griffon's expression correctly, he's eager as he nods, then relaxes again and reads, “And now I would that ye might know, that after my father, Lehi, had made an end of prophesying concerning his seed, it came to pass that the Lord spoke unto him again, saying that it was not meet for him, Lehi, that he should take his family into the wilderness alone; but that his sons should take daughters to wife, that they might raise up seed unto the Lord in the land of promise.” Looking up, the male griffon says, “Now, let me see if I understand what's going on here. This human, Lehi, is out in the wilderness with his family, and his sons need to have families of their own.”

I answer, “That's right.”

The male griffon nods and continues, “I'm clearly missing something. Are Lehi and his family … wanderers or something?”

I'm about to answer the question, but Princess Celestia beats me to it as she says, “Lehi and his family used to live in a city called Jerusalem. Their God ordered him to take his family and leave the city, then ordered him to send his sons back to get some necessary records, which they did successfully. Lehi looked through the records and found out how important they were going to be.”

It's the female griffon that asks, “So, if these records were so important, why didn't this God have Lehi get the records first, and then leave? Did he forget, or something?”

Now, Lyra speaks up and answers, “Mormon explained it to us. In order to get the records, one of Lehi's sons, Nephi, had to kill the one keeping them, a human named Laban. To make a long story short, if Lehi had, under such circumstances, gotten the records and then left, the people of Jerusalem would've stopped them and brought them back, thus stopping them from reaching their destination. The records were necessary so Nephi's descendants wouldn't dwindle and perish in unbelief. But, they had to get to their destination with those records in order to keep the commandments in them. Otherwise, simply put, we wouldn't have the religious record of this people. The God that Lehi served, and that our host Mormon serves, knows what He's doing.”

The male griffon rubs the bottom of his lower jaw with a claw as he says, “That being the case, Lehi and his family would need at least a few day's head start before his sons went back to get the records they needed. If this Laban was a respected man among the people of Jerusalem, his death would've created some commotion among the people for some few days afterward. I suppose one family disappearing a few days before the death of a respected record-keeper, and then another family disappearing perhaps a week afterward, might go unnoticed by a large city, especially if the families in question weren't very large.” He then lowers the claw as he concludes, “The question then is why did Nephi have to kill Laban in the first place? But, that question can be answered another time. For now, let's continue the reading.”

I have my character nod in agreement, then turn to the female griffon and ask, “Will you read the second verse?”

Gilda's mother nods and reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord commanded him that I, Nephi, and my brethren, should again return unto the land of Jerusalem, and bring down Ishmael and his family into the wilderness.” She then looks up and says, “That works as long as this Ishmael has enough daughters for Lehi's sons, and as long as the two families are on good terms with each other. Not to mention, as long as this city, Jerusalem, has calmed down from the death of their record-keeper.”

Princess Luna reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did again, with my brethren, go forth unto the wilderness to go up to Jerusalem.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that we went up unto the home of Ishmael, and we did gain favor in the sight of Ishmael, insomuch that we did speak unto him the words of the Lord.”

Stunts reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord did soften the heart of Ishmael, and also his household, insomuch that they took their journey with us down unto the wilderness to the tent of our father.” Looking up, Stunts says, “Well, that was easy.”

I chuckle and say, “Yeah, I suppose, compared to when they had to get the records, getting Ishmael and his family to travel into the wilderness with them was a lot easier for Lehi's sons.”

Berry Ground reads, “And it came to pass that as we journeyed in the wilderness, behold Laman and Lemuel, and two of the daughters of Ishmael, and two of the sons of Ishmael and their families, did rebel against us; yea, against me, Nephi, and Sam, and their father, Ishmael, and his wife, and his three other daughters.”

It looks like the earth stallion is about to say something, but Bon-Bon presently reads, “And it came to pass in the which rebellion, they were desirous to return unto the land of Jerusalem.”

Lyra then reads, “And now I, Nephi, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, therefore I spake unto them, saying, yea, even unto Laman and Lemuel: Behold ye are mine elder brethren, and how is it that ye are so hard in your hearts, and so blind in your minds, that ye have need that I, your younger brother, should speak unto you, yea, and set an example for you?”

Next is Trixie, who reads, “How is it that ye have not hearkened unto the word of the Lord?”

Vinyl Scratch seems uneasy, somehow, as she reads, “How is it that ye have forgotten that ye have seen an angel of the Lord?”

Next, Octavia reads, “Yea, and how is it that we have forgotten what great things the Lord hath done for us, in delivering us out of the hands of Laban, and also that we should obtain the record?”

Weed Whacker is next. She reads, “Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to him.”

I read, “And if it so be that we are faithful to him, we shall obtain the land of promise; and ye shall know at some future period that the word of the Lord shall be fulfilled concerning the destruction of Jerusalem; for all things which the Lord hath spoken concerning the destruction of Jerusalem must be fulfilled.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “For behold, the Spirit of the Lord ceaseth soon to strive with them; for behold, they have rejected the prophets, and Jeremiah have they cast into prison. And they have sought to take away the life of my father, insomuch that they have driven him out of the land.”

Next is Rainbow Dash, who reads, “Now behold, I say unto you that if ye will return unto Jerusalem ye shall also perish with them. And now, if ye have choice, go up to the land, and remember the words which I speak unto you, that if ye go ye will also perish, for thus the Spirit of the Lord constraineth me that I should speak.” Looking up, she says, “It doesn't make a lot of sense that these two, Laman and Lemuel, would want to go back to a place that's going to be destroyed.” Then, tilting her head, she asks, “But, how does Nephi know that this city, Jerusalem, is gonna be destroyed? Does he have, like, a Pinkie sense or something?”

Pinkie Pie turns to Rainbow Dash and says, “Ah, that's so sweet, Dashie,” then nuzzles her under her chin.

I answer, “Nephi isn't the only one who knows. Lehi, the father of Laman, Lemuel, and Nephi, was informed by God that Jerusalem was going to be destroyed, and he and his family had to leave. And, they're not just going a short distance away. We'll find in subsequent chapters that they'll be traveling across an ocean to a land where they've never been, where they'll spend the rest of their lives, raise families, and build up two nations. The remnants of one of these nations still exist in my time. The other, from Nephi's perspective, will be destroyed some one thousand years later. But, not before the Savior visits them.”

Rainbow Dash, evidently still curious, asks, “So, if one of these peoples is going to be destroyed anyway, what would be the purpose of putting them in another land?”

I answer, “In the time the descendants of Nephi existed in what in my time is called South America, they do a lot of good things. And, they left behind this record, which we call the Book of Mormon, which has information on what these people were like at their best, and, before they were destroyed, at their worst. As I mentioned before, these people were around to receive the Savior when he visited them after his death and resurrection in the Middle East.”

Rainbow Dash straightens her head again and says, “I have some reading to catch up on when we're done here. I did hear previous readings, but I seem to have some things missing. I'm guessing there'll be another reading tomorrow. I'm sure I'll have more questions then. In the mean time, let's continue reading.”

Taking that as her signal, Fluttershy reads, “And it came to pass that when I, Nephi, had spoken these words unto my brethren, they were angry with me. And it came to pass that they did lay their hands upon me, for behold, they were exceedingly wroth, and they did bind me with cords, for they sought to take away my life, that they might leave me in the wilderness to be devoured by wild beasts.” Looking up, she says, “Laman and Lemuel weren't very nice to their brother.”

I answer, “Now, they weren't. And, when these two families get to South America, the only thing that changes about Laman and Lemuel is they just get meaner. But, that's a story for another day.”

Applejack reads, “But it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord, saying: O Lord, according to my faith which is in thee, wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren; yea, even give me strength that I may burst these bands with which I am bound.”

Next, Rarity reads, “And it came to pass that when I had said these words, behold, the bands were loosed from off my hands and feet, and I stood before my brethren, and I spake unto them again.” Looking up, Rarity says, “From what I've read about Nephi, he doesn't seem like the vengeful type. Still, I expect he'll have some choice words to say to his brothers.”

Spike reads, “And it came to pass that they were angry with me again, and sought to lay hands upon me; but behold, one of the daughters of Ishmael, yea, and also her mother, and one of the sons of Ishmael, did plead with my brethren, insomuch that they did soften their hearts, and they did cease striving to take away my life.” Looking up at Rarity, he says, “Whatever he said to his brothers, he didn't record it here, if at all. But, whatever it was, it just got them angry at him. It took members of Ishmael's family to calm them down, I guess, so they didn't kill Nephi.”

It's at this point that Lyra speaks up and says, looking at my character, “Mormon, I remember a few days ago when you answered my question about God ordering Lehi to take his family and get out of Jerusalem, then after a few days of traveling send his sons back to get the records. You said it was Lehi who told them that they'd killed Laban. I wonder, couldn't it have been this son of Ishmael that talked to them, that said that they'd killed Laban?”

It takes me a moment of thought before I answer, “You know what, Lyra, you may be right. I'll have to look into that. Thanks.” I then turn to the white alicorn and ask, “Princess Celestia, will you continue reading?”

Princess Celestia nods, then reads, “And it came to pass that I did frankly forgive them all that they had done, and I did exhort them that they would pray unto the Lord their God for forgiveness. And it came to pass that they did so. And after they had done praying unto the Lord we did again travel on our journey towards the tent of our father.” She then turns to Rarity and says, “You were right about one thing. Nephi is not the vengeful type.”

Gilda's father reads, “And it came to pass that we did come down unto the tent of our father. And after I and my brethren and all the house of Ishmael had come down unto the tent of my father, they did give thanks unto the Lord their God, and they did offer sacrifice and burnt offerings unto him.”

I look up from the reading and say, “Well, that's the end of chapter seven. Are there any objections to moving on and reading chapter eight?” Then, after staggered statements ranging from one or two direct negative answers to my question to the majority being proposals to start the next chapter, I shift my character's attention to the female griffon, and I say, “Well, in that case, will you read verse one of chapter eight?”

The female griffon nods in agreement, then looks down and reads, “And it came to pass that we had gathered together all manner of seeds of every kind, both of grain of every kind, and also of the seeds of fruit of every kind.” Looking up, she says, “I suppose, considering they don't know what to expect in the new land they'll be going to, that it would make sense that they'd gather as many different kinds of seeds as they could find.”

Princess Luna then reads, “And it came to pass that while my father tarried in the wilderness he spake unto us, saying: Behold, I have dreamed a dream; or, in other words, I have seen a vision.” She then looks up and says, “Considering what Lehi's dreams and visions have meant up to this point, I can imagine Laman and Lemuel are probably thinking 'Uh-oh, now what do we have to do?'”

When the ripples of laughter have died down, Emerald Hill reads, “And behold, because of the thing which I have seen, I have reason to rejoice in the Lord because of Nephi and also of Sam; for I have reason to suppose that they, and also many of their seed, will be saved.” As he looks up, he says, “Sounds like good news for Nephi and Sam. I'm guessing we'll find out soon enough what Lehi saw in his dream.”

Stunts reads, “But behold, Laman and Lemuel, I fear exceedingly because of you; for behold, methought I saw in my dream, a dark and dreary wilderness.” Looking up, the unicorn stallion snorts and says, “It almost sounds like Lehi's associating Laman and Lemuel with this dark and dreary wilderness he saw in his dream.”

Again ripples of laughter, after which Berry Ground reads, “And it came to pass that I saw a man, and he was dressed in a white robe; and he came and stood before me.”

And again, it appears that before Berry Ground can say what he wants to, Bon-Bon reads, “And it came to pass that he spake unto me, and bade me follow him.”

Lyra sighs as she reads, “And it came to pass that as I followed him I beheld myself that I was in a dark and dreary waste.”

Trixie reads, “And after I had traveled for the space of many hours in darkness, I began to pray unto the Lord that he would have mercy on me, according to the multitude of his tender mercies.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And it came to pass after I had prayed unto the Lord I beheld a large and spacious field.”

Octavia reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld a tree, whose fruit was desirable to make one happy.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And it came to pass that I did go forth and partake of the fruit thereof, and I beheld that it was most sweet, above all that I ever before tasted. Yea, and I beheld that the fruit thereof was white, to exceed all the whiteness that I had ever seen.” Looking up, she says, “Extremely white, and extremely sweet. I've had fruits like that, after biting through a rind or a skin. But, rind and skin aren't mentioned here, so I have to wonder what kind of fruit Lehi's talking about here.”

I answer, “That's a good question. The answer to that'll come in a future chapter, or at least what the fruit represents. In the mean time, we'll continue reading.” With that, my character looks down at his book, and I read, “And as I partook of the fruit thereof it filled my soul with exceedingly great joy; wherefore, I began to be desirous that my family should partake of it also, for I knew that it was desirable above all other fruit.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And as I cast my eyes round about, that perhaps I might discover my family also, I beheld a river of water; and it ran along, and it was near the tree of which I was partaking the fruit.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And I looked to behold from whence it came, and I saw the head thereof a little way off, and at the head thereof I beheld your mother Sariah, and Sam, and Nephi, and they stood as if they knew not whither they should go.”

Fluttershy reads, “And it came to pass that I beckoned unto them; and I also did say unto them with a loud voice that they should come unto me, and partake of the fruit, which was desirable above all other fruit.”

Applejack reads, “And it came to pass that they did come unto me and partake of the fruit also.”

Rarity reads, “And it came to pass that I was desirous that Laman and Lemuel should come and partake of the fruit also; wherefore, I cast mine eyes towards the head of the river, that perhaps I might see them.” Looking up from her book, she says, “Something tells me that, even if Lehi does find Laman and Lemuel, they're not going to come no matter how much he calls them.”

Spike reads, “And it came to pass that I saw them, but they would not come unto me and partake of the fruit.” Then, looking up at the white unicorn next to him, he says, “Just like you said, Rarity.”

I think I see a smile on Twilight Sparkle's face as she reads, “And I beheld a rod of iron, and it extended along the bank of the river, and led to the tree by which I stood.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And I also beheld a strait and narrow path, which came along by the rod of iron, even to the tree by which I stood, and it also led by the head of the fountain, unto a large and spacious field, as if it had been a world.”

Gilda's father reads, “And I saw numberless concourses of people, many of whom were pressing forward, that they might obtain the path which led unto the tree by which I stood.”

Gilda's mother reads, “And it came to pass that they did come forth, and commence in the path which led to the tree.”

Princess Luna reads, “And it came to pass that there arose a mist of darkness; yea, even an exceedingly great mist of darkness, insomuch that they who had commenced in the path did lose their way, that they wandered off and were lost.” Not looking up this time, the nighttime princess sighs and says, “I know the feeling.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld others pressing forward, and they came forth and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron; and they did press forward through the mist of darkness, clinging to the rod of iron, even until they did come forth and partake of the fruit of the tree.”

Stunts reads, “And after they had partaken of the fruit of the tree they did cast their eyes about as if they were ashamed.”

Berry Ground reads, “And I also cast my eyes round about, and beheld, on the other side of the river of water, a great and spacious building; and it stood as it were in the air, high above the earth.”

This time, it seems that Berry Ground has nothing to say before Bon-Bon reads, “And it was filled with people, both old and young, both male and female, and their manner of dress was exceedingly fine; and they were in the attitude of mocking and pointing their fingers towards those who had come at and were partaking of the fruit.”

Lyra reads, “And after they had tasted of the fruit they were ashamed, because of those that were scoffing at them; and they fell away into forbidden paths and were lost.”

Trixie reads, “And now I, Nephi, do not speak all the words of my father.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “But, to be short in writing, behold, he saw other multitudes pressing forward; and they came and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron; and they did press their way forward, continually holding fast to the rod of iron, until they came forth and fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree.”

Octavia reads, “And he also saw other multitudes feeling their way towards that great and spacious building.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And it came to pass that many were drowned in the depths of the fountain; and many were lost from his view, wandering in strange roads.”

I read, “And great was the multitude that did enter into that strange building. And after they did enter into that building they did point the finger of scorn at me and those that were partaking of the fruit also, but we heeded them not.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “These are the words of my father: For as many as heeded them, had fallen away.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And Laman and Lemuel partook not of the fruit, said my father.”

Fluttershy reads, “And it came to pass after my father had spoken all the words of his dream or vision, which were many, he said unto us, because of the things which he saw in a vision, he exceedingly feared for Laman and Lemuel; yea, he feared lest they should be cast off from the presence of the Lord.”

Applejack reads, “And he did exhort them then with all the feeling of a tender parent, that they would hearken to his words, that perhaps the Lord would be merciful to them, and not cast them off, yea, my father did preach unto them.”

Rarity reads, “And after he had preached unto them, and also prophesied unto them of many things, he bade them to keep the commandments of the Lord, and he did cease speaking unto them.”

At this point, Princess Celestia speaks up and says, “I've read the next chapter, and it's only six verses. So, I propose we also read that chapter.”

The responses are staggered, but also mixed. But, most of the responses are in favor of Princess Celestia's proposal.

So, as my character turns to the purple dragon, I ask, “Well, in that case, Spike, will you read the first verse of chapter nine?”

it seems that Spike was one of those who disagreed with the daytime princess's proposal. He groans, but reads, “And all these things did my father see, and hear, and speak, as he dwelt in a tent, in the valley of Lemuel, and also a great many more things, which cannot be written upon these plates.”

Twilight Sparkle rubs the top of Spike's head with a front hoof as she reads, “And now, as I have spoken concerning these plates, behold they are not the plates upon which I make a full account of the history of my people; for the plates upon which I make a full account of my people I have given the name of Nephi; wherefore, they are called the plates of Nephi, after mine own name, and those plates also are called the plates of Nephi.”

Princess Celestia reads, “Nevertheless, I have received a commandment of the Lord that I should make these plates, for the special purpose that there should be an account engraven of the ministry of my people.”

Gilda's father reads, “Upon the other plates should be engraven an account of the reign of the kings, and the wars and contentions of my people, wherefore these plates are for the more part of the ministry; and the other plates are for the more part of the reign of the kings and the wars and contentions of my people.”

Gilda's mother reads, “Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me to make these plates for a wise purpose in him, which purpose I know not.”

Princess Luna reads, “But the Lord knoweth all things from the beginning; wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men; for behold, he hath all power unto the fulfilling of all his words. And thus it is. Amen.”

As my character stands up, I say, “And, with that, let's call an end to the reading for tonight. Tomorrow's reading will begin with chapter ten, and we'll see whether more will be read or not after that.”

As the group rises, closes their books, and puts them away, I hear Spike say, “Finally.”

I then hear Twilight Sparkle say, “Spike!”

Next, I hear Spike say, “I'm sorry. I'm just tired right now.”

Then, I hear Fluttershy say, “I understand. My creatures can be difficult at times.”

Twilight says, “Weed Whacker helped take care of Fluttershy's creatures, and I haven't heard her complain.”

At that statement, my character looks down at the dinosaur to find her asleep.

I can only guess that the three talking have also noticed, as I hear Fluttershy say, “Weed Whacker's asleep.”

Spike says, “Weed Whacker didn't have to read anymore.”

Now, I hear Lyra say, “Nopony had to read.”

Twilight says, “That's right. If you didn't want to read, Spike, you could've just said so; and I would've read that first verse instead. I doubt Emerald Hill would've minded finishing the reading for tonight.”

I take Spike's moment of silence as an opportunity to call Lyra over to help bring Weed Whacker into the house.

While my character is hoisting the sleeping dinosaur onto Lyra's back, I hear Spike say, with more sincerity, “I'm really sorry. I guess I didn't think about that. I'll try to remember next time.”

By the time Spike's finished repenting, Lyra and I are passing behind them.

I have my character pause for a moment as I ask, “Is everything alright here?”

Twilight answers, “Yeah. Spike's just tired. He had a hard time taking care of Fluttershy's creatures, and I guess he wasn't expecting you to ask him to read another verse.”

I state, “He understands, I hope, that he could've said no, and I wouldn't have held it against him. All reading is voluntary, after all.”

Lyra, who has also paused, turns and says, “That's basically what I said.”

By this time, Spike proves Weed Whacker isn't the only dragon who's fallen asleep, as we start hearing snoring from him.

As Twilight Sparkle uses her magic to hoist the young dragon onto her back, she says, “Well, I guess we'll be heading back to Ponyville then.”

I say, “Don't forget your and Spike's copies of the book.”

The purple unicorn turns and sees that the books are still on the ground. As she uses her magic to lift them and put them in her saddle bags, she turns to my character and says, “Thanks for reminding me. I'd forgotten about them for a moment, what with Spike and all.”

I answer, “No problem. I'm glad I could help.”

Just then, I hear Pinkie Pie scream out, “Vinyl Scratch! I thought you were staying!”

Attentions are attracted to some point outside the gate, to the positions of the pink pony and her target, including that of my character, as the blue-maned unicorn says, “Oh, that's right,” in a tone I recognize as not that sincere.

And, I can see that Octavia is with her.

Those that vocalize around the two either groan or say, “Uh-oh.”

I'm one of those who says, “Uh-oh.”

Pinkie Pie noses her friend back into the yard, not unlike a truck backing a trailer into a driveway, as she says, “I want you to Pinkie promise me that you'll stay and accept Mormon's help.”

Vinyl, evidently scared now, answers, “Alright, I p-promise.”

The pink mare roars out, “Pinkie promise!”

Vinyl shouts, “Alright, I Pinkie promise! I won't try to leave anymore! I'll let Mormon help me!”

I have to wonder if the white mare with the blue mane realizes what kind of commitment she's just made. If she does know, she'll stay on my character's property and allow me to help her break her drinking habit. Otherwise, well, let's not think about that. Let's just hope Vinyl has the sense to stick to the Pinkie promise she just made.

There's just one problem I see. My character leaves Weed Whacker in Lyra's care as I approach the gate and ask, “Octavia, didn't you promise you'd stay and help Vinyl?”

The gray mare's ears droop, and she lowers her head as she says, “That's right. I'm sorry.”

Pinkie Pie moves out of the way to allow Octavia to enter again as Vinyl says, “Octy, how could you?”

Octavia's regret turns to anger as she marches toward Vinyl and says, “Hey, you were the one who convinced me to join you in trying to escape in the first place.”

I'm thinking to myself Octavia must've meant from the first place. Whatever Vinyl had said to convince her, they'd evidently tried by hiding opposite my three stallion friends.

Pinkie Pie, looking at the gray earth pony, sighs and says, “Well, I guess I'm gonna have to get a Pinkie promise from you, too.” The pink earth pony then turns to my character and asks, “What did she promise, exactly?”

I answer, “Vinyl promised she'd stay and allow me to help her on the condition that Octavia join her.” I then have my character focus on the gray earth pony as I add, “And, that did not mean joining in to help her break her promise.”

Octavia's expression morphs to fear, then once again to regret.

Pinkie Pie then turns to the gray mare and asks, “So, Octavia, will you Pinkie promise that you'll stay and help Mormon help Vinyl?”

Octavia answers, looking at Vinyl, “Yes, I Pinkie promise.”

I think Vinyl has a better chance of understanding the importance of a Pinkie promise than Octavia does. But, on the other hand, I also suspect, if she weren't influenced by Vinyl, Octavia would be more likely to keep her promises.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “Okie dokie lokie,” and bounces away from the three toward the nearly-empty snack tray. And, yes, ponies were snacking on the plant products provided during the reading. For that matter, so were my character and Weed Whacker.

As I watch the pink earth pony grab and eat a carrot stick, I hear Octavia say, “Come on, Vinyl. Let's go inside. We need to find a room where we can store my cello, and your music system.”

I decide I should have my character help Octavia and Vinyl find a place for them to store their musical instruments. But first, my character is approached by the two griffons; and the male says, “Oh, Mormon, we were wondering. Could we keep the copies of the book you gave us?”

I answer, “You're quite welcome to keep your copies. I have plenty, and I can always get more.”

The female griffon says, “Thank you. Now, is there a place around here where we can get some meat to eat?”

If there are ponies that stop and stare in horror at the griffons' request, my response very likely horrifies them even more: “I have a pond that should have plenty of fish. It's past my vineyard. As long as you don't mind going fishing, you can try there.”

It's the male griffon who says, “Again, thank you,” before the two of them fly off in that direction. Based on their direction, I'm guessing that they must've seen it when they first came to my character's house.

With them evidently satisfied, I have my character once again turn his attention to helping Octavia and Vinyl find a place to store their instruments until they're ready for them. But, their first obstacle, evidently, is the flight of stairs leading to the front porch and door.

For Vinyl and her music system, it doesn't seem to be a problem. She uses her magic to lift the system up and onto the porch.

On the other hand, there's Octavia, who's evidently having problems figuring out how to get her cello up on the porch without damaging it. Even with it in it's case, Octavia is evidently unwilling to drag it up the stairs to the porch.

The gray earth pony is evidently surprised when her cello suddenly changes angles, as she looks behind her to see my character has lifted the larger, heavier end of the case. With a word of gratitude, she then looks ahead and proceeds up the stairs to the porch, with my character following behind, matching her speed, to carry the huge string instrument to the porch, where they put it down.

My character proceeds to the front door to open it; but the door knob, suddenly possessed by an azure aura, turns on its own; and the door opens. My guess is Vinyl opened the door with her magic.

What appears to be a trio of black boxes, possessed of the same azure aura that possessed the doorknob, proceeds through the doorway, managing to easily fit through.

Vinyl follows her music system, and is in turn followed by Octavia, her cello, and my character, who kicks the door closed behind them.

Then, I hear Pinkie's voice call out, “Mormon, open the door!”

My focus had been so much on having my character help Octavia get her cello into the house, I'd forgotten about Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker, and the possibility that they might follow the three, carrying the snack tray with them. Actually, come to think of it, Weed Whacker should still be asleep, and Lyra might've taken the little dinosaur into their bedroom. So, it would be just Pinkie Pie left to drag the snack tray back inside.

As soon as Octavia is satisfied with her cello's position against the closest wall, I have my character proceed to the front door and open it so that Pinkie Pie can drag in the snack tray.

As she proceeds through the door, I say, “I'm sorry about that, Pinkie Pie. I was busy helping Octavia, and I forgot about you.”

In spite of holding an edge of the tray in her mouth, Pinkie Pie is surprisingly clear when she says, “You're lucky I'm busy right now, or I'd stomp on your foot or something.”

I'm thinking my character would've earned it, too.

As Lyra enters the front room, no longer having Weed Whacker on her back, she says, “Now, Pinkie, Mormon did say he was sorry.”

Well, I'm thinking this chapter's gone on long enough. To finish it off as quickly as possible, Pinkie Pie forgives me, Octavia and Vinyl Scratch store their instruments in my character's work room, Trixie and Vinyl trade rooms so Vinyl and Octavia have a room together, again with separate beds, and the party of six have a small dinner in the front room.

As I save and close the game with everyone headed to bed, including the two griffons sharing a tent near the pond, I find myself considering adding a musical library to my program, something to entertain my guests who are staying for the present time. I do have that option available, although I haven't found a use for it, at least not yet. I can even add a video library for their entertainment, as well as my own. And, I happen to have plenty of music and videos to put in the folders so I can have my character play them. Oh, I can have the program call on such folders on the computer itself, if I want. And, once they're accessed, I can have my character use them, or even the ponies or other creatures can make use of them as they see fit. You know, I suppose, considering this is my game, I could also make document stories available—

“Mormon, just call it a night already!”

That was Pinkie Pie. How did she do that? Well, she's right, anyway. I can brainstorm later. And, come to think of it, I'm gonna have to look into the Book of Mormon Movie again and see if Lyra was right about it being one of the sons of Ishmael, the one that spoke up when Laman and Lemuel rebelled, that told them that they'd killed Laban. In the mean time, good night.

Chapter 6: Not Quite a Day Off

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Before I get into the game, I have something to mention. I had another look into the Book of Mormon movie, and Lyra was right. It was actually the son of Ishmael that spoke out that, at least in the movie, told Laman and Lemuel they'd killed Laban. Evidently, having Lyra with me was more of a benefit than I'd realized. I'll have to tell her about it, and thank her.

Now, as I resume the game I plan to win, I seem to remember something about how I designed the game to react to music, both music files that I might add, and songs I might choose to sing. I'm thinking at some point I may get the opportunity to test that out.

As the game resumes, I hear knocking at the door of my bedroom, and the voice of Weed Whacker calling for me to wake up.

My character rises from his bed and walks to and opens his door, to see his dinosaur friend ask him, “Do you have your letter to the Princesses ready?”

As I realize what happened, I say, "Oh, I'm sorry, Weed Whacker. I forgot all about it."

In response, Weed Whacker enters my bedroom and noses around until he finds the clipboard with the parchment, then something to write with, then hands them to my character, and tells him, "Well, you'd better get to writing your letter now."

I find myself having to remember the events of the previous day and see if, in the events of that day, I've learned anything new about unicorns, about Lyra specifically, about Pinkie Pie, about earth ponies in general perhaps, or even about pegasi or even ponies in general. Then, I remember that in the previous round, or the game's yesterday, was my programming into the game of the events of the MLP FIM episode “Dragonshy,” with some other events involving Pinkie Pie and her likely informing two griffon parents and Rainbow Dash about what had become of Gilda.

I start the letter lamenting how it was late, mentioning that I'd forgotten about it until Weed Whacker reminded me. After that, I write about the events that transpired as my character and the Mane Six, along with Lyra, headed up to the dragon's cave to convince the dragon to leave. The main event I highlight in that expedition is when I chewed Lyra out for complaining about Fluttershy panicking. I observe that my chewing out Lyra put an end to all ]/i]the complaining. Not only that, but I have to admit, as I write as much in the letter, I was surprised when Twilight Sparkle accepted responsibility and repented on behalf of all the ponies there for complaining against Fluttershy.

I also highlight how Fluttershy stood out to me when she chewed out the dragon, which could've eaten her in one bite, for attacking and injuring her friends. As I've written in my notes, after seeing the look of fury on Fluttershy's face, I wasn't surprised that the dragon was so frightened. However, what I don't write in the letter is that my experience with a furious Fluttershy came from the previous game which I'd deliberately lost.

I also have to make note that, while it was Rainbow Dash kicking the dragon that got him out of the cave, it was actually my singing that made him grateful enough to give the ponies and me rides back to Ponyville. I write that the dragon gave me a ride, although I know he gave the ride to my character. At any rate, I write that I'd intended to irritate the dragon, but that part of the plan had backfired on me.

I write about finding Vinyl Scratch in Ponyville getting a drink at a local tavern, and finding that it had been Gilda's parents that had given her a ride there to find out what had happened to their daughter. I also write that I'm sure Pinkie Pie informed the two griffons and Rainbow Dash about what had happened to her, although Pinkie Pie would have to confirm this.

Considering both alicorns were there at the reading, I decide not to add anything about that. After all, they were witnesses to the events at that time. Besides, I don't remember anything particularly notable happening there.

After signing the letter, I hand it to Weed Whacker, who promptly bites on it to send it to the princesses.

After that, the two head to the kitchen, which seems strangely empty. On the other hand, there are sounds coming from the front room; so I have my character follow Weed Whacker there, opening the door for her, to find, to my surprise, not just the ponies, but also Gilda's parents waiting and conversing there. And, on the table is an assortment of fruits and vegetables.

As my character and Weed Whacker approach the table and each grab a fruit, Gilda's father says, “So, Mormon, it's about time you showed up. What took you so long?”

I answer, “There was something I'd forgotten to do, and Weed Whacker here reminded me of it. It's taken care of now.”

Gilda's mother fluffs out her feathers, then relaxes them, before saying, “Good. We want to meet with Snips as soon as possible so Pinkie Pie can repent to him. We appreciate you allowing us to stay in your territory, but we want to make our report at home as soon as we can.”

I answer, “I understand.”

It doesn't take long for Weed Whacker and my character to finish their fruits, after which all head out the front door.

My character lags behind to close the door.

Gilda's father volunteers to carry Pinkie Pie, while Gilda's mother volunteers to carry my character, on their way to the school house to find Snips.

Vinyl Scratch volunteers to join us, but I refuse, reminding her that she Pinkie promised to stay.

Instead, I suggest that she help Trixie build her mobile theater.

The white unicorn agrees, although halfheartedly, and Octavia volunteers to help her.

In the mean time, Lyra and Weed Whacker agree to stay at my character's house and help Trixie build her mobile theater as well.

With that taken care of, Pinkie Pie mounts the male griffon, my character mounts the female griffon, and the group of four head for the school house.

As we fly over the forest, my character looks over at Pinkie Pie, and I can see, through his eyes, she seems troubled.

I ask, “Pinkie Pie, are you alright?”

The pink earth pony turns to me and says, “I know I said I hoped to fly, but that's part of my Pinkie promise. This isn't what I had in mind.”

I open my mouth to say something, but Pinkie Pie holds out a forelimb, signaling me that she's not finished. Did she actually see me getting ready to say something?

She continues, “Having said that, it's not this flight experience that's bothering me. I'm worried about what I might say to Snips. But, more than that, I just hope he's alright.”

The thought occurs to me that Pinkie Pie voiced a valid concern. There is the possibility that, after his experience at Sugar Cube Corner, which may have been his last to date, the obese, greenish-blue, unicorn colt may have gotten so suspicious of anything coming out of the bakery that he's refusing to eat anything from there. And, depending on whether his family grows their own food, it could be that he's eaten little or nothing for days now.

As the group of four land at the door of the school house, Pinkie Pie presently dismounts, then approaches and opens the door.

From my character's perspective, I don't see much more than the chalkboard and, I think, one side of Cheerilee's behind. I think I can at least see her tail, or part of it.

At any rate, Pinkie Pie asks, “Hi. Is Snips here?”

I hear the teacher pony answer, “I'm sorry, Pinkie Pie. He hasn't shown up for the past two days.”

I then hear the voice of Snails say, “He's home right now. I think he's sick. He fell when we were heading for school yesterday.”

Through my character's eyes I see Pinkie Pie's head, ears, and tail droop as she asks, “Do you think you could take me to see him? I have something important to talk to him about.”

Next I hear Snails' voice say, “I guess so. Miss Cheerilee, is it alright if I go with Pinkie Pie?”

At this point, I hear Cheerilee say, “I must admit, I'm worried about Snips as well. Sure, Snails, go right ahead.”

I then watch as Pinkie Pie moves aside, allowing the small orange unicorn to pass by her through the doorway, but not before he turns to the teacher and says, “Thanks, Miss Cheerilee.”

As he turns back and takes a few more steps out the door, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Thanks. I'll bring him back as soon as I can.”

I then hear a “You're welcome” from the teacher pony as Pinkie Pie closes the door to the school house, then walks over to and mounts the male griffon again.

Now the problem is getting Snails to move. He's focused on the two griffons, and I can see him trembling, his ears pointed backward and flat against his head.

I turn to the pink earth pony and say, “He's in the presence of strangers, and two of them are carnivores. If I were in his position, I'd be nervous, too. Pinkie, maybe you should walk with him.”

The pink pony, after turning and hearing what I have to say, answers, “You're probably right.” She then dismounts the male griffon and walks up to the immobile orange unicorn and says, “I'll walk with you. I promise the griffons won't hurt you. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” As she was saying that last sentence, she went through the motions of her Pinkie promise.

Then, as she and Snails start walking again, I see her stop, close her eyes, and put a front hoof between her closed eyes, as she says, “Oh shoot, I forgot to Pinkie promise Cheerilee.”

I answer, “That's alright. I'm sure she trusts you. Otherwise, she wouldn't have let Snails go with you.”

After the pink pony turns to listen to me again, opening her eyes and putting the hoof down, she says, “I guess you're right.” Then, she turns to Snails again and says, “Let's go.”

As the two ponies move ahead, Snails guiding Pinkie Pie past the griffons and away from the school house, the little orange unicorn asks, “I'm not in any trouble, am I?”

I see Pinkie Pie shake her head as she answers, “No, you're not in any trouble. I'm the one in trouble.”

The young unicorn looks up at the pink earth pony and asks, “You? What did you do wrong?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “I'll explain when I talk to Snips.”

It's just a few minutes following the two ponies before the group arrives at a house.

Passing by a window, I see a greenish-blue unicorn that looks like Snips, but is greener and thinner than the unicorn I recognize, and is in bed, apparently asleep.

At the door Pinkie Pie knocks, after which I hear thudding or thundering sounds from the room where the sleeping unicorn was to the door.

As the door opens, I see the head of a unicorn stallion stick out, something of a greenish blue darker than that of Snips, with reddish orange mane.

He focuses on the long-necked orange unicorn as he says, “Snails, I'm surprised to see you back from school so soon. Is everything alright?”

Snails answers, “Yeah, everything's goin' alright at school, and I'm fine. I just brought Pinkie Pie here to talk to Snips. How is he, anyway?”

The head disappears, and the door opens wider, as the voice of the unicorn stallion answers, “Not well, I'm afraid. He's just not eating.”

Interestingly enough, I can hear the voices as they move through the house toward the bedroom(?) where I saw the little green unicorn sleeping.

I hear Pinkie Pie say, “I'm sorry to hear that. Do you think he'll be alright?”

I then hear the male unicorn's voice answer, “Not if he doesn't eat anything. And, that's the problem. He doesn't even look at food without groaning. He's really scarin' us.”

At this point, I hear a door open, approximately where I saw the green unicorn sleeping, and the voice of the male unicorn asks, “Is Snips doin' alright?”

Now, a female voice says, “He's sleepin' right now. At least he's not coughin'.”

With my character still riding on the female, the two griffons move to the window where I saw the sleeping green unicorn. As I see, through my character's eyes, Pinkie Pie enter the room with the unicorn, I'm still not quite certain that the pony in bed is in fact Snips. I guess I'll find out soon enough.

As Pinkie Pie moves in front of the window, momentarily hiding the bedridden unicorn from my character, from me, she says, “Snails, it's me, Pinkie Pie.” I don't have to hear it in her voice, I can see that the pink pony is shivering.

I finally get my confirmation when the green unicorn wakes up, although his eyes are still mostly closed, then turns to the pink pony, and says, “Oh, it's you.” The words come out as a groan.

Pinkie Pie nods nervously and says, “That's right, it's me. I just came to talk to you about that cupcake you ate.”

Immediately Snips' eyes open, and I can't blame Pinkie Pie for being frightened at the foal's glare.

I must admit, it's alarming me.

He growls, “Well, start talkin'.”

Pinkie Pie swallows hard, then says, “W-well, I'm sure you n-noticed it had t-two f-flavors?”

The pink pony flinches as Snips sits up and says, “Yeah, what about it?” then collapses again and starts coughing.

The coughing fit lasts for maybe half a minute, leaving Snips panting when it's over; and Pinkie Pie waits patiently for the fit to pass before she stammers a few times, then finally blurts out, “That cupcake was made from griffon meat!”

Three voices, no, four voices, say the same thing at the same time: “What?”

The pink earth pony cries, “They weren't intended for you, Snips. They were intended for a human I didn't understand at the time!” Then, looking out the window and seeing my character, she asks, “Mormon, will you come in, please?” Then, with a sniffle, she turns to another creature in the room and sobs, “Will you let him in, please?”

I say nothing as my character dismounts the female griffon and proceeds to the door. At least, I don't say anything aloud. I must note, at this point, that I could see the streams of tears from Pinkie Pie's eyes. She clearly regrets what she did.

As my character arrives at the door, it opens; and the stallion I saw earlier waits for my character to enter. Once my character's inside, the stallion closes the door, then leads him to Snips' bedroom.

Once my character has entered the room, and I see a nearly-white-pink mare sitting next to Snips' bed, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “This is the human I made the cupcakes for. He ate one of them, then later told me I shouldn't have killed another creature and made her into food for him.” She sniffles before continuing, “I've been living with him for a few days now, and I've learned a lot about him.” Focusing on the unicorn in bed, she concludes, “I didn't mean to hurt anypony. I hope you'll forgive me.”

Snips, focused on Pinkie Pie, says, “Well, it's nice to know you're sorry, since I'm dying.” With that, he starts coughing again, but this time it doesn't stop until he falls into unconsciousness, burying his face in his pillow.

The mare, who I guess is Snips' mother, hurriedly moves to reposition his head. Then she screams and pulls away.

I understand when I see one of her hooves has a drop of blood on it. Things are worse than I thought.

And, I'm not the only one that's seen it; Pinkie Pie and Snails have also seen the blood on the mare's hoof, and are starting to panic.

But, Pinkie Pie manages to snap out of it. She turns to my character and asks, “Mormon, couldn't you do something about this? Would you heal Snips?”

I must say, I find Pinkie Pie's request encouraging. But, at the same time, I'm thinking the request should come from Snips' parents.

The unicorn mare, hearing Pinkie Pie, turns to my character and says, “I never learned any healing spells, and neither has my husband. If you can heal my son, please, I can't lose him. Do what you can.”

As my character approaches Snips, the unicorn stallion, glaring at him, proceeds to arch over the foal, keeping my character from touching him.

That's when the mare, actively proving herself to be, at least emotionally, Snips' mother, taps the stallion, who I'm guessing is Snips' father, on one of his hips and, once she has his attention, asks, “What harm can it do? Whether he can heal our son or not, he should at least get the chance.”

When the stallion turns back to my character, I can see through his eyes the anger has been replaced by sorrow. The stallion backs away, avoiding stepping onto his wife as he drops away from Snips, and says, “My female is right. Whether you can heal him or not, you should at least get the chance. But, if you can, please heal Snips.”

Now, with the encouragement of both parents, my character, as per my instruction, touches the dormant Snips, who immediately sits up and looks around.

The foal still in bed grimaces and groans, and I hear the familiar zipper sound effect. Looking at the unicorn mare, Snips says, “Mommy, I'm hungry. And, I think I just messed myself.”

I think the sounds coming from Snips' father and Snails are a mixture of both laughter and crying. On the other hand, I'm sure the sounds coming from the mares in the room are pure sobs.

The two parents nuzzle their revived son, Snails nuzzles his revived brother, and Pinkie Pie nuzzles my character. The two parents and Snails express gratitude that Snips is or will be fine, and Pinkie Pie is grateful that she can finally forgive herself.

After a few minutes, when Snails, Pinkie Pie, and Snips' parents have finally regained their composure, I say, “I'm thinking it's time to return Snails to the school house.”

And, wouldn't you know it, at the same time Snips' parents have pulled back his bedsheets to reveal that he has indeed had a bowel movement, and a rather moist one at that. But, they agree that it's time for Snails to go back to school.

A few minutes later, Pinkie Pie, Snails, the griffons, and my character are headed back to the school house.

Once there, I inform Cheerilee that Snips should be back in school tomorrow. Snails returns to his place in the class, and, by our request, the griffons give Pinkie Pie and my character a ride back to my character's house.

The ride back is uneventful, except for me singing a favorite hymn, “Count Your Blessings,” on seeing Pinkie Pie still grieving that her decision to make cupcakes from a griffon almost cost the life of a fellow pony, and such a young one at that. And, one thing about that. Evidently humans are more unpredictable than ponies, at least the Equestrian variety. Or, is it that real humans are more difficult for the game to predict than the ponies in the game?

When I start singing, instrumental accompaniment hasn't already started. But, it does join in as I sing the second line of the first verse of the song, and the griffons join in on the chorus, providing harmony. And, as I anticipate, the second verse provides the most comfort to Pinkie Pie. I sing all four verses from memory, and the song ends just as the griffons land in my character's front yard.

Once the four have landed, I'm happy to see, through my character's eyes, that Lyra and Vinyl are helping Trixie begin the building of her mobile theater. Evidently, over the past few days since she arrived, Trixie's been gathering materials for the theater, and has just now, with the help of the two other unicorns, begun building. They seem to be off to a good start, too. They already have at least one of the wheels complete.

Once Pinkie Pie, the griffons, and my character are on the ground, Vinyl turns to me and asks, “Did you have a musical number just now?”

I can't help laughing as I answer, “We sang a song on the way back.”

The white unicorn seems resentful as she says, “You couldn't have waited until you landed? I wanted to join in.”

I answer, “It was kind of an emergency thing.”

Vinyl groans, just as Octavia comes out, carrying some drinks on a tray.

The gray earth pony, hearing Vinyl's groan, asks, “Vinyl, what's wrong?”

Pointing to my character, the white unicorn mare answers, “Mormon just had an emergency musical number.”

Something about Vinyl Scratch's serious tone makes what she said all the funnier. And, it's just compounded when Octavia turns to me and asks, “Is everything alright?”

It's Pinkie Pie who says, “Everything's fine.” Did I just hear anger in her voice?

The male griffon takes the moment to say, “Well, we must be off now. We need to make our report back at home.” And, with that, the two griffons fly off.

When the griffons are gone, Pinkie Pie grabs my character by the arm and drags him into and through the house to his bedroom. Once there, she closes the door, turns to my character, and says, “Alright. I'm glad we're entertaining you so much. But, when you talk about us having an emergency musical number and then start laughing about it, well, it makes it sound like you're not taking it seriously.”

I must admit, I'm surprised at how seriously Pinkie Pie's taking this. I say, “I'm sorry. It's just that, when Vinyl Scratch talked about an 'emergency musical number,' the idea just struck me as funny, that's all, especially with her tone.”

For a moment Pinkie Pie closes her eyes and puts a front hoof between them. When she removes the hoof and opens her eyes again, she sighs and says, “Look, Mormon, you remember, in your previous game, at Rarity's house, when she talked about the probability of me killing Derpy and Rainbow Dash as being the worst possible thing? You removed your head gear as fast as you could when you laughed. Then, when you were finished, you put the head gear back on and resumed the game. You could've done that same thing this time, just maybe not removing the head gear as fast. We would've waited for you to come back.” As she grabs the doorknob to leave, she concludes, “If you still feel like laughing, please feel free to do so in here. We'll wait for you to come out when you're finished.” And, with that, she opens the door, enters the hallway, and closes the door behind her.

I have to admit, I'm left surprised at the hole she left in the fourth wall. How did she get that much information from that first file? Whatever the case is, it's clear I'm going to have to be careful what I do from now on.

Well, since I don't feel like laughing anymore, I guess I'd better let Vinyl know that I'm sorry. So, I have my character leave his room to find Pinkie Pie waiting for him there. I guess that makes sense, since I didn't hear hoof-falls leaving.

The pink pony doesn't say anything, just leads me back through the house outside to where Vinyl is once again helping Trixie with her mobile stage.

Once the two are there, Pinkie Pie steps aside as my character kneels on one knee, and I say, “Well, Vinyl Scratch, I'm sorry about laughing earlier at what you said. I didn't mean to offend you. It's just that the idea of an emergency musical number is so foreign to me, I just had to laugh at it.”

Vinyl turns to my character and hears me out, then says, “You're the one that said your musical number was an emergency thing.”

I answer, “I know. I guess I didn't add up what I'd said until you put it together. I guess I should be more careful in the future, either about what I say, or how I react to how it's restated.”

While I'm talking, I see Vinyl Scratch shaking her head. When I'm finished, she says, “Maybe it's not your problem. It could be that we need to learn not to be offended when you laugh at what we say, or how we say it. Whichever it is, I should get back to helping Trixie. But, thanks for informing me.”

As I watch the white unicorn go back to helping Trixie, I wonder to myself if I should sing a song for her benefit. I have quite a repertoire of my own, and I'm sure it'd be interesting to see how she, and for that matter the rest of the ponies that'd hear me, would react to it. When I sang 'Count Your Blessings,' the griffons joined in. And, for that matter, they sounded surprisingly good. The question is, if I do choose to sing, what song would I choose? Would Vinyl like to hear a hymn? Somehow, songs from popular artists like Weird Al or Duran Duran don't seem appropriate; but neither do any of the songs from the Castle Valley Pageant. Fortunately, those aren't the only sources I have. So, the question is, what song do I know that'd be appropriate for what Vinyl Scratch is working on?

Then the decision dawns on me, and I have my character take a few steps back before I start singing. The song I choose comes from an album of songs from various LDS artists, a song called “Hold It Up to the Light.”

I find it rather fun to watch Vinyl's ears twitch as I start singing, again without an introduction. She manages to harmonize during the apparent chorus, then she and the other ponies present echo the chorus after the second verse.

Then, the ponies start a dance routine while they harmonize with the first bridge verse.

It's Vinyl and Trixie who, together, sing the second bridge verse, while Pinkie Pie sings the final verse, followed by the other ponies and me singing the chorus to end the number.

I can't say that I remember any instrumental accompaniment, whether from any of the ponies, or anything ambient. But, it is entertaining to sing for the ponies and watch them respond.

When it's all over, the ponies seem to return to what they were doing before as though nothing had happened. But, I'm fine with that. I can only guess that it was as much fun for me as it was for the ponies.

After that, I decide to send my character fishing. It's one thing I have yet to see him do, and about the only harm I can imagine is I expose the ponies here to my character's omnivory when he comes back with a fish. So, I send him into the house to search for his fishing equipment, then, once he's found everything he needs, I send him to the pond.

I'm not surprised to see Pinkie Pie following my character, although I have to wonder, should I be? But, it doesn't matter at this point. The two arrive at the pond in a minute or two, and my character casts his line into the pond. Once the baited hook is settled in it's position, my character sits near the coast; and Pinkie Pie settles next to him. My character will know what to do if and when a fish decides to bite.

For a few minutes we wait, until Pinkie Pie gets bored with the silence; at which point she says, “You know that was a nice thing you did for Vinyl, singing to her the way you did.”

I answer, “Well, after making her feel bad from laughing at her, I figured she could use a song to cheer her up. She made it clear she doesn't like being left out of musical numbers. Besides, it was a fun experiment.”

Just then, there's a buzzing sound coming from my character's fishing pole, and he sits up and looks to see the top of it bending, indicating a fish has taken the bait.

He grabs the pole from its position and starts reeling in the line.

The sudden activity startles Pinkie Pie, and she watches in interest as my character battles the string coming out of the water.

It takes a minute or two, but my character manages to reel in a fish, and a rather big one at that. The first time it appears, it's clearly too far into the pond to not have a chance to escape. Then, the second time, it's close enough to the shore that Pinkie Pie, if she wanted to, could take a few steps out into the pond to grab the fish in her mouth and bring it in.

My character manages to reel in the fish until it's just hanging, flopping around, at the end of his line, still attached to the hook.

As my character searches for and finds a box to put the fish in, Pinkie Pie, grimacing, asks, “Are you sure you want everypony to see you eating that?”

As my character frees the fish from the hook and puts it in the box, I answer, “I did catch it so I could eat it. But, I plan to cook it before that. I suppose I could just eat it in the kitchen, if you're so worried about the others reacting badly to seeing a man eating fish.”

The pink pony, acknowledging my sense of humor, forces a laugh before saying, “Yeah. I know humans eat meat as well as plants, and I'm willing to live with that. I'm just not sure about the others.” Swallowing hard, she continues, “Lyra might try some of the fish, just for the experience. If the taste doesn't force her to spit it out, or she doesn't throw up soon after swallowing the meat, she'll have some other bad reaction to it.

“Then, there are Trixie and Vinyl. I just don't think they're ready to see you eating meat. If they happen to see you eating the fish, with or without plants, it'll take some explaining from you, I think, before they accept that you won't eat them. Just because you promised and demonstrated that you'd rather make friends with ponies than eat them, that doesn't mean the fear won't come up again if they see you eating meat.”

My character looks at the box, then back at Pinkie Pie, and I ask, “Do you think I should cook and eat the fish now, here at the pond, before heading back?”

The pink earth pony looks around the pond, then back at me, before answering, “I don't see a place around here where you could cook and eat that fish. Unless you have a secret place somewhere nearby, in your genealogy building for example, you may have to leave your fish and equipment here while you go back for your cooking equipment. And, considering how unpredictable the weather is so close to the Everfree forest, cooking outside means you run the risk of the wind changing and blowing the smell of the cooking fish toward the other ponies and disturbing them.”

I state, “Well, it sounds to me like, if I'm gonna eat this fish, my best option is to take it back to the house and cook and eat it there, and just risk your pony friends seeing me. That, or I show them the fish and let them know what I plan to do with it.”

Pinkie Pie grunts in thought, then says, “It is best that they hear about it from you beforehand, rather than they enter the kitchen and see you preparing or eating the fish without getting warned about it first. And, if you hadn't suggested informing them, then I was going to.

“You've always given us ponies, as well as other creatures, the right to decide. Well, now the decision is yours what you think you should do.”

Whether my character is smiling right now or not, it doesn't matter to me. I know I'm smiling. My experiment with Pinkie Pie, involving her in reading the Book of Mormon, has proven successful, showing me her better side, and more quickly and just plain more than I'd expected.

I answer, “Let's go, and I'll show them the fish and inform them of what I plan to do with it. After that, it'll be their decision how they'll react.”

Pinkie Pie nods in agreement, and the two head back to the house. Or, should that be three, considering the fish?

Another minute or two later, the two, three counting the fish, are back at the house.

My character approaches the three unicorns still working on the mobile theater, then kneels down a few steps away from the one in the middle, who happens to be Vinyl Scratch; then, as my character holds out the box, I say, “Hi. I have something to show you, then to tell you what I plan to do with it.”

Trixie saw my character coming, but I seem to have startled Vinyl and Lyra. Still, the three gather around me when they hear about what my character has to show and tell.

At first I say nothing as my character opens the box and reveals the fish inside.

In return, none of the unicorns responds with any noticeable emotion.

Pinkie Pie, making her way toward the house, says, “I'll go get Octavia.”

As the pink pony disappears into the house, Trixie, staring at the fish, grunts and says, “So, you're probably going to eat it.”

I answer, “After I clean and fry it, that's right.”

Vinyl and Trixie mumble in shock and horror; but Lyra, as Pinkie Pie more or less predicted, looks on in curiosity and asks, “When you're ready to eat it, may I try some?”

Vinyl and Trixie turn their shocked and horrified expressions on Lyra as they say, perhaps a little louder than they intend, “What?”

I answer, “I don't think so, Lyra. Your digestive system isn't designed to process meat. You most likely wouldn't even like the smell.” At this point, my character closes the box.

As he stands up again, I hear the sound of a door opening and closing, no doubt the front door; and my character turns toward the sound to show me Octavia and Pinkie Pie approaching from the house.

I then hear Lyra, evidently with hurt feelings, say, “Hey, I used to be a human, remember? I'm still an omnivore.”

As my character looks down at the pale-green unicorn propped up on her hind legs against one of those of his, I say, “I can't risk it. You can think of me as selfish for saying this, but I'm going to eat all of this fish on my own.”

I hear Octavia's voice, surprised, ask, “Fish? What fish?”

As my character turns to the gray mare, I can see Weed Whacker close behind her. As she approaches, I have my character kneel down again, open the box to show the contents to the both of them, and say, “I caught this fish with the intent of eating it.” I can't help noticing, as I peer into the box, that the fish has already stopped gasping, or moving at all.

As Octavia looks into the box and sees the now dead fish, she groans in disgust and looks away.

On the other hand, Weed Whacker asks, “I don't have to watch you eat it, do I?”

I answer, as my character closes the box again, “No, you don't. I plan on eating it once I've cleaned it out and fried it.”

That's when I hear Lyra complain, “And, he won't let me have any.”

I almost feel like laughing.

On the other hand, as Octavia turns to the pale-green unicorn, the disgust on her face is either replaced by or mixed with anger as she says, “Lyra, you're a pony, not a human. Your digestive system isn't meant for meat.”

I decide not to listen anymore as I have my character stand up again and head for the house to prepare and eat the fish.

Once in the kitchen, my character removes the fish from the box and puts it in the sink, turns on the water and sets it to a tolerable warmth, then takes a steak knife from the drawer nearby and uses it to cut off the fish's head, then slice open it's abdomen. He uses a thumb to scoop out the contents of the abdomen, including the large blood vessel just under the spinal column. Allowing the guts to fall into the sink, he rinses his thumb in the stream of water, then proceeds to do the same thing with the inside of the fish's abdomen, using his thumb once again to lightly scrub the surface of any blood. After that, he again rinses and lightly scrubs the outside skin of the fish, moistening the skin again and freeing it of as much slime as he can. After that, he puts the fish back in the sink, grabs the guts and head, and puts them back in the box, ready to take them back to the pond, or maybe toss them in the garbage or compost heap, one way or another to get rid of them. Then, he turns off the water.

Next he gets a frying pan and prepares it to fry the fish. He gets the pan from a set of shelves next to the oven, not far from the sink.

Next is the butter from the fridge, then some seasoning, specifically salt, in a shaker which he places next to the oven.

My character turns on a front plate, places the pan over it, then takes a butter knife from the drawer where he got the steak knife, then uses it to cut some of the butter from the brick and drops it into the pan. I watch the butter melt as the pan warms up, then as my character picks up the pan and tilts it around, allowing gravity to move the butter around so it can cover the bottom of the pan. He then puts it down and allows me to watch as the melted butter starts to sizzle and scorch a little.

Next he places the fish in the pan, then seasons it on the exposed side, waits for it to fry on the side touching the frying pan, then flips it over onto the other side and seasons the exposed side again, and waits a little longer for the side touching the frying pan to fry. After that, my character turns off the plate under the pan, then moves the pan to the other front plate to keep the fish from burning.

Finally, he gets out a plate and fork, scoops the fish from the pan and onto the plate, then proceeds to the table to enjoy his fish.

I have to say, I'm surprised that it takes this long for Lyra to separate herself from talking with Octavia or assisting Trixie to enter the house and search for my character. I'm also surprised at how well she tolerates the smell of my character's fried fish. As the two look at each other, my character ready to eat the fish, and Lyra on her hind legs in the doorway of the kitchen, the pale-green unicorn asks, “Won't you please let me have some of your fish, Mormon?”

I have my character move the chair closest to him and most available to Lyra and tap it with his hand as I say, “Lyra, come here.”

Lyra shows excitement as she runs to the chair, climbs it, then stands up again and says, “Yes?”

I then say, “Now, open your mouth.”

I can tell, the way she opens her mouth, that she's expecting to get some of my character's fish.

Instead, I have my character use the tip of the handle of his fork to test Lyra's teeth, demonstrating none with sharp edges, none with sharp tops, none designed for eating meat. Indeed, I can see that the rows of teeth in her top and bottom jaws are all smooth. When my character is finished testing them, he moves his fork away; and I say, “You can close your mouth now.”

The pale-green unicorn does so for a second before asking, “So, can I have some fish?”

I answer, “You don't even have teeth that are good for chewing meat. And, if your teeth are only good for chewing plants, can I have any assurance that your digestive system will be able to process meat?”

I watch as Lyra's expression morphs in a second from excitement to sadness and desperation. With evident difficulty she avoids crying as she says, her voice shaking nonetheless, “Please, Mormon, can't I have even just a little of your fish?”

I answer, “No, Lyra, I don't think so. What if the fish poisons you? Ponyville is a half hour away. There's no guarantee that even I could get you to the doctor in time to save you. I just can't take that risk.”

The pale-green unicorn turns away from my character, but can't hide the fact that she's trembling.

I have my character put a hand on her closest shoulder to him as I ask, “Lyra, are you alright?”

Lyra knocks the hand away with the closest forelimb, then falls off the chair, gets up on all fours, then proceeds to gallop off. From what I can see, my guess is that she's headed to her room, based on the fact that after she disappears from behind a chair I hear her hoof-falls and I can see a little bit of her mane from the top of the chair and the edge of the wall of the hallway.

I decide not to say anything, not to impede her progress to her room, and instead have my character eat the fish, leaving only the skeleton behind. After that, I have him put the plate in the sink, placing the fish's skeleton in the box ready for disposal. I decide the best place for disposal of the fish is the garbage receptacle in the kitchen.

My character cleans the plate and fork off in the sink, then places them in the drying tray, then heads out the door to see how things are progressing with Trixie's mobile theater.

From what I can see, the wheels are complete, spokes and all, joined together with round posts, and the main platform is nearly complete.

Pinkie Pie, who has evidently taken over for Lyra, turns to me, dropping the hammer in her mouth, and asks, “Is Lyra alright?”

I answer, “I'm sure she will be.”

The pink pony canters up to my character and, propping herself up on his leg, says, “You did the right thing, you know, denying her your fish. You were right. If she had been poisoned, which she would've been had she eaten any of the fish, you might've gotten her to the doctor in Ponyville in time to save her. But, the risk is too great. I don't think Fluttershy would've been able to help her.”

I answer, “I know.” Then, looking at the progress on the theater, I ask, “So, how's the theater coming along?”

A happy Trixie, suspending a hammer in mid-air over a nail, turns to my character and answers, “So far, so good. I have to thank you for the tools, and Vinyl, Octavia, Lyra, and Pinkie for their assistance. I wouldn't be this close to having another theater without you, and my fellow unicorns.”

My character looks into the sky, showing me indications that it's early in the afternoon, and there are no clouds.

I say, “Looks like a clear day.”

Pinkie Pie, who had been reaching for her hammer until then, looks up at the sky directly over her, then looks toward Ponyville, then says, “Oh, shoot!”

I ask, “What's wrong, Pinkie Pie?”

The pink pony focuses on my character and answers, “There was a rain shower scheduled for today, for this morning. It looks like Rainbow Dash and the other pegasi forgot about it.” She groans, looking down, then continues, “Now it looks like they'll have to make up for it with a major storm tomorrow.”

Something about that makes sense to me. It's not just normal consumption by the ponies that needs to be taken into consideration. As warm as it was, there's also evaporation that needs to be considered. It's not just going to be taken care of with double the precipitation a day later. No, it would require an even greater storm. But, that also leaves me to wonder how many ponies would be able to make it to tomorrow's reading. I might have to settle with it being present company, and perhaps one or both princesses. But, it doesn't matter how many show up; as long as the group enjoys the reading, that's all that matters. And, even if it's just Lyra, Weed Whacker, Pinkie Pie, and me, my experiment on Pinkie Pie can continue.

After that, Pinkie Pie turns to me again and says, “Well, when I'm finished here, when we're done for the day, I have something to show you.”

I have a sneaking suspicion I already know what it is.

That's when Octavia says, “Pinkie Pie, if it's important to you, I'll take over for you.”

Pinkie Pie turns to her fellow earth pony and says, “Thanks, Octavia.” Then, as the gray earth mare grabs the hammer, the pink earth mare approaches me and says, “Come with me. If it's alright with you, let's meet in your work room.”

My character nods in agreement, then follows Pinkie Pie back into the house. Once inside, my character heads to his work room, while Pinkie Pie heads to her bedroom. When she comes to the work room, a minute or two later, I can see, through my character's eyes, she's holding a gold leaf of some sort in her mouth. When she drops it on the ground, and after my character closes the door behind her, I can see that the gold leaf has writing on it, in the outline of a rectangle, which is the shape of the leaf.

I hear Pinkie Pie say, “This is a ticket to the Grand Galloping Gala. If you want one, I'm sure I could get Twily to get it for you.”

As my character focuses on her, I say, “I don't know. Isn't the Grand Galloping Gala strictly for ponies? I'm a human. I don't have any motivation to attend such an event. And, I don't think you need me to go with you.”

The pink pony's smile inverts, and her head and ears droop as she says, “But, I want you to go there with me. And, I'm sure the princesses'd make an exception.” She perks up again and asks, “Couldn't you bring copies of the Book of Mormon with you, and hold a special reading?”

I grunt in interest and say, “That would be motivation. But, if I'm going to attend, I'm also going to have to bring Lyra and Weed Whacker with.”

Pinkie Pie concludes, “So, I'm gonna need to ask for three tickets. I'll see what I can do.”

My thoughts remain on the idea of a special Book of Mormon reading at Canterlot Castle as I add, “If I'm gonna have a special reading, Princess Celestia will likely need to give me a place, either just outside where the Gala will be held, or maybe in their library. But, first thing's first. I can think about arrangements if I get the tickets. Assuming I do, I suppose I'll leave it up to the princesses to provide arrangements for the reading. I just wonder, how many ponies would be interested in such an event?”

Pinkie Pie tilts her head for a moment, then straightens it again before saying, “Well, all my bestest friends have reasons to go, and that's all that matters to me. Even my bestest human friend has a reason to go!” And, with that, the pink pony grabs her ticket off the floor, bounces to the door, opens it, takes a few steps out into the hall, then closes the door behind her.

From out of the hallway, very likely in the front room, I hear the voices of Pinkie Pie and Lyra evidently talking for a bit, although the voices are too muffled for me to understand what they're saying.

In the mean time, I'm left to think about what just happened. Pinkie Pie pretty much invited me to an event that I'd understood was strictly for ponies. She even provided me with a reason to go. There seem to be a few things missing, including at least one ticket. Of course, that leaves me with a few questions. For one thing, other than being a pony, does Lyra have a good reason for attending? Having seen the "Ticket Master" episode, I know Spike will be attending, if for no other reason than to keep the local doughnut shop open. It's likely that my attending will give him a better reason, as well as the fact that Weed Whacker will also be attending. Would he prefer to join in reading the Book of Mormon with my character, Lyra, Weed Whacker, the Mane Six, and other ponies that'll join in, or would he prefer to remain at the doughnut shop? And, how many copies of the Book of Mormon should I bring? But, right now, that doesn't matter. When one or both of the princesses come to the reading tonight, I can ask about it then. But, I'm guessing it'll most likely be Pinkie Pie that asks.

In the mean time, I hear a knock at the door of the work room, which my character answers to find Lyra standing there.

As my character stands aside to allow her to enter, she takes a few steps inside and settles down into a canine-style position and, while he closes the door, says, “Pinkie Pie just told me you'll be going to the Grand Galloping Gala.”

I answer, “That's not completely confirmed yet. But, if Pinkie Pie has her way, Weed Whacker, you and I will have tickets to go there.”

I can see, through my character's eyes, the pale-green unicorn's eyes vibrate as she says, “Y-you want m-me to go w-with y-you to the G-gala?”

I have my character kneel on one knee in front of her and stroke the side of her face with one hand as I say, “Well, I can't very well study you unless you're with me.”

And, that's when I notice the box with the message, “Lyra's face feels unusually warm.”

Not only that, but her face seems to be turning a different shade of green, something more yellowish.

Before I can ask if she's alright, she jumps into my character's arms and cries, “Oh, Mormon, I'm so sorry I was so mean to you!” Her statement ends with a loud belch.

My character pushes her away just in time for her to spew what looks like a thin pink-yellow-white milk onto the floor before she collapses into it. He then picks her up again as I ask, “Lyra, what did you do?”

Lyra looks up and groans weakly as she says, “I ate a little of your leftover fish.”

My character reacts instantly. Hoisting the unicorn over a shoulder, he stands up, opens the door to the work room, runs through the hallway into the front room, then opens the front door and nearly runs over Pinkie Pie.

The pink earth pony jumps aside as my character runs past her, then follows him, grabbing Weed Whacker along the way, and says, “Lyra, you ate the fish, didn't you?”

The sick unicorn groans, “Just a little.”

My character has jumped over the gate and headed into the forest when something occurs to me. I say, “I threw what was left of that fish away. Lyra, did you eat out of the garbage?”

I hear a groan from Lyra which I think sounds like an affirmative answer. If she has eaten out of the garbage container, things may be worse than I thought, or at least different.

Whereas walking through the forest takes around half an hour, the run through the forest and into Ponyville takes about ten to fifteen minutes. And, with Pinkie Pie's help, it's only another minute before we find the clinic.

As the group bursts through the door, led by my character, Pinkie Pie calls out, “We've got an emergency! Lyra's been poisoned!”

The white earth mare at the front desk seems to act out of fear of the human facing her as she calls for a stretcher to come as soon as possible. Then, turning to Pinkie Pie, she asks, “What did he do to her?”

I answer, “I didn't do anything. She ate some bad fish.”

And, that's when the stretcher arrives.

My character places the sick unicorn on the stretcher, which disappears down a hallway into the clinic. Based on the fact that I couldn't see it possessed by any color or aura, I can only assume it's being controlled some way other than with unicorn magic. Could it be electrical or electronic? But, that's just a minor mystery compared to what's going to happen to Lyra.

I ask, “Is Lyra going to be alright?”

The still terrified nurse pony answers, “Just calm down. We won't know what we can do until we give her a checkup. How long ago did she eat the fish?”

I answer, “Not more than twenty minutes, I think.”

The nurse pony asks, “And, in that time, did she throw up?”

My character nods as I answer, “Yes, she did.”

The earth pony sighs, seemingly relieved, as she says, “Good. That gives us a better chance of saving her. If she hasn't processed any of the fish, then chances are she'll be fine. But, what were you doing that it took you twenty minutes to get here?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “We were running through the Everfree forest.”

Now confused, the nurse pony asks, “And, why were you in the Everfree forest?”

I answer, “My home is on the other side of the forest. Lyra's been living with me by orders from Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. It's a long story.”

The white earth pony nods and says, “That's alright. You've given me enough information already. We'll take care of Lyra. You just wait over there.” And, she points to the waiting area evidently ahead of the front desk.

As the white earth mare disappears into the clinic, following the stretcher that carried Lyra away, my character follows Pinkie Pie to a place in the waiting area were they settle down together.

Once settled down, I say, “I can't believe Lyra would do something like this.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie say, “Lyra wanted to prove she was a human. At this point, I'm thinking she knows she isn't.”

As my character looks down at the pink earth pony, I can see her trembling, a stream of tears flowing down the side of her face I can see. I have my character hold his closest arm out to her as I say, “Come here.”

The pink earth pony looks up at my character, whimpers, then jumps onto his chest. As he supports her with the arm he held out to her, she drapes a forelimb over each of his shoulders, rests her head on the shoulder opposite the closest wall, and starts sobbing.

As my character rubs her back with his free hand, I say, “Now, it's going to be alright. You heard the nurse pony. All we can do now is hope for the best. We just need to have faith that Lyra'll pull through.”

I say no more, just let my character hold Pinkie Pie.

It makes sense to me that Pinkie Pie would be close friends with Lyra. Based on the story, she's friends with every pony in Ponyville. And, it makes sense that she'd suffer while any of her friends suffers.

We wait for some two or three hours until Lyra comes out from the hallway where she'd been carried in by the stretcher. As she comes out, I can see, through my character's eyes, that she's on all fours.

Seeing my character, the pale-green unicorn hops off the stretcher, wanders up to him, head bowed, and says, “I'm sorry. I know now that I'm not a human, that I never was a human. I guess I studied humans for so long, I found them so fascinating, I just wanted to know what it was like to be a human. And, it didn't help that none of the other unicorns respected me.”

I don't say this aloud to Lyra, but I grew up fascinated by dinosaurs. But, having such an interest in them, that didn't mean I wanted to become one of them, nor that I believed that I was one of them. What makes them interesting to me is that so little is known about them. But, just because I find them interesting, that doesn't mean I would rather be a dinosaur than a human.

What I do decide to say to Lyra is, “It's alright if you want to take an interest in humans. I must admit, I'm finding unicorn ponies more and more interesting. But, as much of an interest as I take in unicorns, pegasi, earth ponies, or even alicorns, I'm happy to remain a human.

“I don't disrespect you for wanting to be a human, or for wanting to learn as much about humans as you can. But, I don't respect you any less for being a unicorn, either. You are the creature you were intended to be; and as long as you respect that, I'll respect you.”

It's worth noting, at this point, that Pinkie Pie cried herself to sleep in the first hour. I guess it's taken the length of my speech to Lyra for the pink earth pony to wake up.

When she does, she turns to look at the pale-green unicorn, perks up, and, pushing away from my character, says, “Lyra, you're alright.”

My character lets her go, and she falls into his lap, then recovers and runs to Lyra, giving her a hug, which Lyra returns.

When they separate, Lyra says, “I'm sorry I worried you.”

Pinkie Pie waves a forelimb dismissively and says, “Let's just go home now.”

In response, my character stands up, walks to the hospital's front door, and opens it for the two mares.

Before leaving with them, though, I wonder aloud, “Do I owe the doctor ponies here anything?”

I hear the voice of the white earth mare back at the front desk answer, “Just keep Lyra out of trouble from now on.”

Pinkie Pie, Lyra and my character pause long enough to wave farewell to the nurse pony at the front desk, then the three head back through Ponyville, through the Everfree forest, and back to my character's house.

On the way there, as we pass by Fluttershy's cottage, I hear Fluttershy ask, “Is everything alright?”

As my character turns to the yellow pegasa, I answer, “We appreciate your concern, but everything's fine now.”

Fluttershy, evidently on her way to taking care of some of her animals, says, “Well, I look forward to attending the next reading.”

As my character waves to her, I answer, “I look forward to seeing you there.” And, with that, the party of three head into the forest.

As it turns out, all is not quite as well as I'd thought. Maybe ten or so minutes into our walk into the forest, Lyra collapses and starts bawling.

As my character approaches her, I ask, “Lyra, what's wrong?”

Lyra cries, “You're right! I shouldn't have eaten that fish! I'm not a human, I'm just a unicorn!”

My character reaches a hand to her, and I say, “Come here, Lyra.”

The pale-green unicorn looks up at my character; and I can see, through his eyes, the tears in hers. She says nothing, but does manage to prop herself up so my character can pick her up.

Once he does so, I say, “You are a unicorn, but you're also one of my friends, and a very good one at that. Do you remember last night when you suggested it was one of the sons of Ishmael, and not Lehi, who told Laman and Lemuel they'd killed Laban?”

Lyra has calmed down somewhat. She answers, “Yeah. So, what about it?”

I continue, “As it turns out, you were right. I had a look into it, and it was the son of Ishmael who told them, at least in the movie. Thanks for getting me thinking about that. If you're a typical unicorn, then they're a lot better than I gave them credit for.”

I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Wow, Mormon, that's a really nice thing to say about unicorns, and specifically about Lyra.”

In the mean time, my character, who has resumed walking, looks at Lyra, who's also looking at him.

The pale-green unicorn says, “Pinkie Pie's right. Thank you for saying that. Now, I think I'll just let you carry me.”

I don't argue the point, I see no reason to.

The rest of the walk is silent and uneventful, taking ten or fifteen minutes before the four are back at my character's house.

As my character enters through the gate this time, still carrying Lyra, I can see, though his eyes, that Trixie's mobile theater is looking better. The wheels are in place under the floor, and the walls are being built.

Trixie, distracted from her work by the sound of the gate opening and closing, turns to my character, and, seeing him holding Lyra, asks, “Is she alright?”

I answer, “Lyra's fine.”

As my character sets her on her hooves on the ground, the pale-green unicorn adds, “I had to learn the hard way that I was never a human. But, according to Mormon, I'm a really good unicorn.”

At this point, I can see, based on the sweat on their faces, Trixie, Vinyl Scratch and Octavia have been working hard on Trixie's mobile theater.

Trixie, glancing at her project, then up at the sky, says, “Well, I think we can call it a day now. The work on my theater is coming along faster than I expected. And, it's looking really good.”

The hammers, possessed by auras in differing shades of blue, drift onto the porch where they land silently near the doorway.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie says, “Besides, it's getting close to time for the reading. We need to get the snacks ready.”

As my character stands up again, I say, “That's a good idea.” Then, as my character looks at each of them, I continue, “Pinkie Pie, you go into the vineyard and get some fruits from there. Weed Whacker, you go into the vegetable garden and get some vegetables. Lyra, you come with me into the orchard, and we'll get some fruits from there. Everyone else, you can go back inside and rest up and get ready for tonight's reading.”

My orders are generally met with enthusiastic agreement as all depart to their assigned tasks.

I still find it entertaining to watch Pinkie Pie bounce off toward the vineyard.

It's only a matter of minutes before the four reunite with their small harvests, then enter the house to clean the prospective snacks and prepare them for the guests that will arrive soon enough.

In the mean time, I, at least, can hear activity from each of the bathrooms in the house as two unicorns and one earth pony are either bathing or preparing to bathe in preparation for the reading. By the time they've finished, the other two ponies, one dinosaur, and one human have almost finished preparing the snacks.

And, as though timed that way (which it very likely was), there is a knock at the door, indicating that guests for the reading are starting to arrive.

And, it's Trixie, freshly showered and dried, who volunteers to greet the arriving guests, seeing that the snacks aren't quite ready yet.

I'm not surprised to hear, as Trixie answers the door, the voices of my three stallion friends are the first to arrive, nor am I surprised to hear Pinkie Pie's other five friends' voices close behind them. What does surprise me is hearing the two voices that I recognize as those of Snips' and Snails' parents soon after the voices of the other five of the Mane Six. Seeing that all that's left is placing the prepared snacks on the tray, I hand that job over to Lyra, Pinkie Pie, and Weed Whacker as my character heads to the front door to confirm what I heard.

Sure enough, the greenish-blue unicorn stallion and the nearly-white-pink unicorn mare are at the door, with Snails and Snips behind them.

It's Snails that, seeing my character, says, “Mormon, it's nice to meet you! Is Pinkie Pie here?”

I answer, “Pinkie Pie is in the kitchen making snacks.”

Snips grumbles, “Just so long as they don't have any griffon meat in them.”

The unicorn mare lightly taps him on the back of the head with a front hoof as she says, “Now, Snails, be nice.”

The little greenish unicorn turns away and just groans.

In the mean time, I add, “I can promise you, they're fruits and vegetables. No meat.” Then, as my character points to an area on the lawn, I say, “If you'll take positions on the lawn, I'll get you your own copies of the Book of Mormon. Tonight, we'll be starting First Nephi chapter ten, and see about continuing from there.”

As the family of four unicorns makes their way to the group on the lawn, I hear Snails ask, “If they're making snacks with fruits and vegetables, then what's that strange smell in his house?”

I stop listening, and instead point my character to the closet to retrieve four more copies of the Book of Mormon.

When I return to the door, Trixie is there to use her magic to take the books and deliver them to the four unicorns. And, that puts her in a better position to greet the guests I can see are still coming.

In the mean time, I have my character return to the kitchen to see how Lyra, Pinkie Pie, and Weed Whacker are coming along with preparing the snacks. As he enters, I can see they have the snack tray ready.

In fact, I can see Lyra using her magic to levitate the tray into a position so the others can help carry it out to our arriving guests.

Then, as my character backs out of the kitchen and turns toward the hallway leading out of the front room, I can see through his eyes Vinyl and Octavia are coming out of the bathroom, also freshly cleaned and dried.

The party of six head outside, my character helping move the snack tray out the front door, with Vinyl and Octavia following behind Lyra, Weed Whacker and Pinkie Pie.

After the ones carrying the snack tray set it in the middle of the developing circle, Pinkie Pie joins the rest of the Mane Six, and Lyra finds and settles next to Bon-Bon.

The last to arrive are the two princesses, Celestia and Luna, who take their positions on one side of the family of unicorns, while I've noticed that the Mane Six are in position on their other side.

Octavia, Vinyl, my character, and Weed Whacker take positions between Lyra and Princess Luna; and, seeing that all are ready, I have my character turn his attention to the unicorn family while I ask, “Would any of you like to volunteer to begin reading the first verse?”

Snips and his brother converse quickly between them, after which the nearly-white-pink mare looks at my character and says, “Snips wants to read first.”

I have my character nod in agreement, at which point Snips reads, “And now I, Nephi, proceed to give an account upon these plates of my proceedings, and my reign and ministry, wherefore, to proceed with mine account, I must speak somewhat of the things of my father, and also of my brethren.” He then looks up and, tilting his head, asks, “Why is my name suddenly Nephi?”

The ponies and dragons in the circle, as well as I, laugh for a few seconds before I turn to the nearly-white-pink unicorn mare and invite her to read the next verse.

She nods and reads, “For behold, it came to pass after my father had made an end of speaking the words of his dream, and also of exhorting them to all diligence, he spake unto them concerning the Jews—“ Looking up from the book, she says, “We're going to have to read to catch up with the rest of you. I'm guessing this dream of Nephi's father was important somehow.”

Next to her, Rainbow Dash nickers, then reads, “That after they should be destroyed, even that great city Jerusalem, and many be carried away captive into Babylon, according to the own due time of the Lord, they should return again, yea, even be brought back out of captivity; and after they should be brought back out of captivity they should possess again the land of their inheritance.” Looking at my character, she says, “I'm guessing it was more than just a few days or months before the Jews were allowed to go home again?” The azure pegasa looks down at her book again, then back up at my character, and reasons aloud, “Which would've meant that if Lehi and his family had been in Jerusalem when it was captured by the Babylonians, if he'd survived the invasion, he probably wouldn't have survived to return to Jerusalem and head out eventually to get to South America. If the Jews weren't allowed to return for centuries, not even Lehi's children would've survived that long. It was best that he left when he did.”

Next to Rainbow Dash, Rarity reads, “Yea, even six hundred years from the time that my father left Jerusalem, a prophet would the Lord God raise up among the Jews—even a Messiah, or, in other words, a Savior of the world.” Looking at my character, the white unicorn with purple hair asks, “When in this book does that take place?”

Princess Celestia is the one that answers, “Not until Third Nephi.”

Rarity groans in surprise and says, “Six hundred years passes that fast in this book?”

I answer, “There are several books between Second Nephi and Third Nephi.”

Now, Spike reads, “And he also spake concerning the prophets, how great a number had testified of these things, concerning this Messiah, of whom he had spoken, or this Redeemer of the world.”

When it's clear Spike has no more to contribute, Twilight Sparkle reads, “Wherefore, all mankind were in a lost and in a fallen state, and ever would be save they should rely on this Redeemer.” She nods to Pinkie Pie to read the next verse.

The pink earth pony nods in agreement, and reads, “And he spake also concerning a prophet who should come before the Messiah, to prepare the way of the Lord—“ Grunting with interest, she says, “So, we have one prophet who comes before another one, a Messiah, to prepare the way of the Lord. What does that mean?”

Before I can say anything, Applejack says, “Maybe if we read further, we'll find the answer.” Then, she reads, “Yea, even he should go forth and cry in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, and make his paths straight; for there standeth one among you whom ye know not; and he is mightier than I, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose. And much spake my father concerning this thing.” Grunting in interest, the orange earth pony says, “Well, let's just keep readin'. If the answer ain't in this verse, maybe we'll find it in a later one.”

Fluttershy reads, “And my father said he should baptize in Bethlehem, beyond Jordan; and he also said he should baptize with water; even that he should baptize the Messiah with water.”

It seems as though the yellow pegasa wants to ask a question; but, after a few seconds of silence, an impatient Emerald Hill reads, “And after he had baptized the messiah with water, he should behold and bear record that he had baptized the Lamb of God, who should take away the sins of the world.”

Stunts then reads, “And it came to pass after my father had spoken these words he spake unto my brethren concerning the gospel which should be preached among the Jews; and also concerning the dwindling of the Jews in unbelief. And after they had slain the Messiah, who should come, and after he had been slain he should make himself manifest, by the Holy Ghost, unto the Gentiles.”

Next, Trixie reads, “Yea, even my father spake much concerning the Gentiles, and also concerning the house of Israel, that they should be compared like unto an olive tree, whose branches should be broken off and should be scattered upon all the face of the earth.”

Berry Ground then reads, “Wherefore, he said it must needs be that we should be led with one accord into the land of promise, unto the fulfilling of the word of the Lord, that we should be scattered upon all the face of the earth.”

Bon-Bon then reads, “And after the house of Israel should be scattered they should be gathered together again; or, in fine, after the Gentiles had received the fulness of the Gospel, the natural branches of the olive tree, or the remnants of the house of Israel, should be grafted in, or come to the knowledge of the true Messiah, their Lord and their Redeemer.”

Next, Lyra reads, “And after this manner of language did my father prophesy and speak unto my brethren, and also many more things which I do not write in this book; for I have written as many of them as were expedient for me in mine other book.”

Weed Whacker then reads, “And all these things, of which I have spoken, were done as my father dwelt in a tent, in the valley of Lemuel.”

Now, I read, “And it came to pass after I, Nephi, having heard all the words of my father, concerning the things which he saw in a vision, and also the things which he spake by the power of the Holy Ghost, which power he received by faith on the Son of God—and the Son of God was the Messiah who should come—I, Nephi, was desirous also that I might see, and hear, and know of these things, by the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God unto all those who diligently seek him, as well in times of old as in the time that he should manifest himself unto the children of men.”

Vinyl Scratch then reads, “For he is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and the way is prepared for all men from the foundation of the world, if it so be that they repent and come unto him.”

Presently, Octavia reads, “For he that diligently seeketh shall find; and the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto them, by the power of the Holy Ghost, as well in these times as in times of old, and as well in times of old as in times to come; wherefore, the course of the Lord is one eternal round.”

I find it strange that Octavia should be so impatient; but, before I can mention it, Princess Luna reads, “Therefore remember, O man, for all thy doings thou shalt be brought into judgment.” Grunting in either interest or mild surprise, the nighttime princess asks, “Is the reader often addressed in such a way by the one writing these things?”

I answer, “As far as I can tell, the prophets that have written their own words tend to preach to the reader. But, as for direct orders like this, not so much. The only other author of scripture I can think of right off the bat that addresses the reader in this way is Isaiah. And, later on, we'll get into quotes from him. In the mean time, let's keep reading.”

At this point, Princess Celestia nods and reads, “Wherefore, if ye have sought to do wickedly in the days of your probation, then ye are found unclean before the judgement-seat of God; and no unclean thing can dwell with God; wherefore, ye must be cast off forever.”

Next, the greenish-blue unicorn stallion reads, “And the Holy Ghost giveth authority that I should speak these things, and deny them not.”

Seeing that chapter ten is finished and not quite everyone has had a chance to read, I ask, “So, shall we continue on to the next chapter?”

Ponies and dragons all speak at once, but I hear mostly affirmations to my proposal.

And, Princess Celestia confirms my thoughts by saying, “I think we all agree that we should proceed.”

So, with the daytime princess' approval, I turn to the orange unicorn with the long, thin neck and ask, “So, Snails, will you read the first verse of chapter eleven?”

Snails nods nervously, swallows, then looks down and starts reading.

Now, at this point I'd like to mention that there's something about the young unicorn struggling to read the verse that I find somehow kind of heroic. He's evidently not the best reader I've ever heard, but he doesn't give up. And, it doesn't hurt that the greenish-blue unicorn stallion helps him.

He reads, “For it came to pass after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly high mountain, which I never had before seen, and upon which I never had before set my feet.”

When he finishes reading, I find myself applauding and saying, “Well done, Snails, well done,” evidently to the surprise of the other ponies and the dragons in the circle. Or, at least most of them.

The alicorn princesses, as well as the unicorns immediately around Snails and Snips, are demonstrating approval of my encouraging Snails, and the orange unicorn himself seems pleased.

Next, Snips reads, “And the Spirit said unto me: Behold, what desirest thou?”

The nearly-white-pink unicorn mare then reads, “And I said: I desire to behold the things which my father saw.”

Rainbow Dash then reads, “And the Spirit said unto me: Believest thou that thy father saw the tree of which he hath spoken?” She then looks up and says, “I'm thinkin' we're gonna get a review of what Lehi saw in his dream.”

Rarity reads, “And I said: Yea, thou knowest that I believe all the words of my father.”

Next, Spike reads, “And when I had spoken these words, the Spirit cried with a loud voice, saying: Hosanna to the Lord, the most high God, for he is God over all the earth, yea, even above all. And blessed art thou, Nephi, because thou believest in the Son of the most high God; wherefore, thou shalt behold the things which thou hast desired.”

After a simple “Wow” from the purple dragon, Twilight Sparkle reads, “And behold this thing shall be given unto thee for a sign, that after thou hast beheld the tree which bore the fruit which thy father tasted, thou shalt also behold a man descending out of heaven, and him shall ye witness; and after ye have witnessed him ye shall bear record it is the Son of God.” Looking at her winged friend, the purple unicorn says, “You know what, Rainbow Dash, you may be right.”

Next, Pinkie Pie reads, “And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me: Look! And I looked and beheld a tree; and it was like unto the tree which my father had seen; and the beauty thereof was far beyond, yea, exceeding of all beauty; and the whiteness thereof did exceed the whiteness of the driven snow.” Looking up, she says, “We are getting a review of Lehi's dream.”

Before Applejack can read the next verse, I say, “That's not to say that Lehi's perspective of his vision isn't without merit. I'll just mention that Nephi notices something about the vision that Lehi didn't notice.” Then, I turn to the orange earth pony and say, “Go ahead, Applejack.”

The orange earth pony nods, then reads, “And it came to pass after I had seen the tree, I said unto the Spirit, I behold thou hast shown unto me the tree which is precious above all.”

Next, Fluttershy reads, “And he said unto me: What desirest thou?”

Emerald Hill then reads, “And I said unto him: To know the interpretation thereof—for I spake unto him as a man speaketh; for I beheld that he was in the form of a man; yet nevertheless, I knew that it was the Spirit of the Lord; and he spake unto me as a man speaketh with another.” At this point, he looks up and says, “It sounds like they were speaking casually to each other.”

Stunts grunts in agreement, then reads, “And it came to pass that he said unto me: Look! And I looked as if to look upon him, and I saw him not; for he had gone from before my presence.”

Trixie reads, “And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the great city of Jerusalem, and also other cities. And I beheld the city of Nazareth; and in the city of Nazareth I beheld a virgin, and she was exceedingly fair and white.” Looking up from the book, she says, “This doesn't sound like what Lehi saw in his dream.”

Next, Berry Ground reads, “And it came to pass that I saw the heavens open; and an angel came down and stood before me; and he said unto me: Nephi, what beholdest thou?”

Bon-Bon then reads, “And I said unto him: A virgin, most beautiful and fair above all other virgins.”

Next, Lyra reads, “And he said unto me: Knowest thou the condescension of God?”

Following a grunt of confusion from the pale-green unicorn, Weed Whacker reads, “And I said unto him: I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do now know the meaning of all things.” Looking up at her unicorn friend, the herbivorous dinosaur says, “It sounds like Nephi was as uncertain about the question as you are.”

I smile and read, “And he said unto me: Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the Son of God, after the manner of the flesh.”

Next, Vinyl Scratch reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld that she was carried away in the Spirit; and after she had been carried away in the Spirit for the space of a time the angel spake unto me, saying: Look!”

Again, Octavia immediately reads, “And I looked and beheld the virgin again, bearing a child in her arms.” But, this time, she gets up, backs away, and very rapidly and nervously says, “Well, that'll be all for me tonight. I'm goin' to bed now. Good night.” And, with that, she gallops toward the house, nervously opens the door, then gallops to her and Vinyl's room. Or, based on what she said, that's my assumption.

It isn't difficult to tell that Vinyl is worried about her friend. After watching the gray earth pony disappear into the house, Vinyl turns to me and says, “I've never seen Octy act like that before. I'm sorry, but I'm gonna have to go and see if she's alright. You're gonna have to continue on without us.”

I answer, “That's alright. You go on ahead and check on your friend.” Then, as the white unicorn with blue hair disappears into the house, closing the front door behind her, I turn to Princess Luna and ask, “Will you read the next verse?”

The nighttime princess, evidently as worried about Octavia as Vinyl is, nonetheless reads, “And the angel said unto me: Behold the Lamb of God, yea, even the Son of the Eternal Father! Knowest thou the meaning of the tree which thy father saw?”

Next, Princess Celestia reads, “And I answered him, saying: Yea, it is the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the most desirable above all things.” She then turns to Trixie and says, “This may be why the Spirit's showing Nephi things besides what Lehi saw. Now, not only is he getting to see what his father saw, he's also learning to understand the symbolism behind those things.”

At this point, I speak up and say, “It's also important to note that Nephi abbreviated his account of what his father Lehi had said was in his dream. Based on that, it may not be accurate to say that Lehi didn't see the virgin, or whatever else Nephi saw or will see in his own vision. For all we know, Lehi may very well have seen the virgin, the baby she carried, and other things that Nephi will be shown.” I then turn to the greenish-blue unicorn stallion and say, “You can go ahead and read the next verse now.”

He nods, then reads, “And he spake unto me, saying: Yea, and the most joyous to the soul.”

Next, Snails reads, “And after he had said these words, he said unto me: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the Son of God going forth among the children of men; and I saw many fall down at his feet and worship him.” He struggles as much on this verse as he did on the first verse he read; but just as before, he refuses to give up.

When he finishes reading the verse, I don't applaud this time; but I do still let him know once again that he did a good job.

Snips then reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld that the rod of iron, which my father had seen, was the word of God, which led to the fountain of living waters, or to the tree of life; which waters were a representation of the love of God; and I also beheld that the tree of life was a representation of the love of God.”

Next, the nearly-white-pink unicorn mare reads, “And the angel said unto me again: Look and behold the condescension of God!”

Rainbow Dash then reads, “And I looked and beheld the Redeemer of the world, of whom my father had spoken; and I also beheld the prophet who should prepare the way before him. And the Lamb of God went forth and was baptized of him; and after he was baptized, I beheld the heavens open, and the Holy Ghost come down out of heaven and abide upon him in the form of a dove.”

I'm not sure if she just waits for Rainbow Dash to finish reading, or if it takes that amount of time for the thought to dawn on her. Either way, although it seems that the latter is most likely, I hear Pinkie Pie suddenly say, “Oh, I get it now. The Redeemer and the Lord are the same person.”

I open my mouth to affirm what Pinkie Pie said, but I'm interrupted when Rarity reads, “And I beheld that he went forth ministering unto the people, in power and great glory; and the multitudes were gathered together to hear him; and I beheld that they cast him out from among them.” Looking up from her reading, the white unicorn says, “They're not very nice, throwing the Redeemer out for ministering to them.”

I answer, “That's the way people generally are. If someone starts talking in a way that most people don't consider normal, that someone is generally thrown out. People don't generally like to change what they're doing, and especially don't like being told that what they're doing is wrong, particularly while they're doing something wrong.” Then, as my character turns to Spike, I ask, “Will you read next?”

Spike nods, then reads, “And I also beheld twelve others following him. And it came to pass that they were carried away in the Spirit from before my face, and I saw them not.”

Next, Twilight Sparkle reads, “And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and beheld the heavens open again, and I saw angels descending upon the children of men; and they did minister unto them.”

Then, Pinkie Pie reads, “And he spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the Lamb of God going forth among the children of men. And I beheld multitudes of people who were sick, and who were afflicted with all manner of diseases, and with devils and unclean spirits; and the angel spake and showed all these things unto me. And they were healed by the power of the Lamb of God; and the devils and the unclean spirits were cast out.”

Applejack then reads, “And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked and beheld the Lamb of God, that he was taken by the people; yea, the Son of the everlasting God was judged of the world; and I saw and bear record.”

Next, Fluttershy reads, “And I, Nephi, saw that he was lifted up upon the cross and slain for the sins of the world.”

I can't honestly say that I blame Fluttershy for slowing down as she reads about the “Lamb of God” being “slain for the sins of the world.”

But, before anyone can dwell too much on that, Emerald Hill reads, “And after he was slain I saw the multitudes of the earth, that they were gathered together to fight against the apostles of the Lamb; for thus were the twelve called by the angel of the Lord.”

Next, Stunts reads, “And the multitude of the earth was gathered together; and I beheld that they were in a large and spacious building, like unto the building which my father saw. And the angel of the Lord spake unto me again, saying: Behold the world and the wisdom thereof; yea, behold the house of Israel hath gathered together to fight against the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”

Finally, Trixie reads, “And it came to pass that I saw and bear record, that the great and spacious building was the pride of the world, and it fell, and the fall thereof was exceedingly great. And the angel of the Lord spake unto me again, saying: Thus shall be the destruction of all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, that shall fight against the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”

Everyone closes their books, but no one moves.

After a few seconds of silence, Pinkie Pie sighs and says, “There are a few things I don't understand, and I'm guessing everypony else is wondering the same. First of all, why was this Redeemer necessary, and second of all, why did he have to be killed?”

Murmurs of agreement ripple through the circle.

I have my character turn to the daytime princess as I ask, “Princess Celestia, could you conjure up a piece of parchment, rectangular in shape, large enough that it just about touches the edges of the circle? Let's have two of the corners touching you and me, and the other two corners heading out at a right angle to the other side of the circle.”

At my request, the white alicorn nods, then her horn glows for a second or two.

Not long after that, a rectangular parchment with the dimensions I requested appears, along with what looks like a black crayon.

As my character grabs the crayon, I have him turn to Princess Celestia, after which I thank her for the parchment and writing utensil. I then have my character draw a circle closest to the side between me and her and write the words “Premortal Existence” in it while I say, “Humans didn't always have mortal bodies. In a time that we Mormons call the Premortal Existence, we lived with our Heavenly Father. Then at some point, He decided it was time for us to progress to the next stage. He presented a plan to us that would allow us to become like Him. He would send us to Earth and give us the choice of how we would live. And, how we would live on Earth would determine if we would return to him.”

I then have my character draw three circles next to the first circle, with lines connecting each of the three new circles to the first one, as I continue, “Based on what's written in the scriptures available to me, I know there was a war of ideas during this time. There were two brothers that spoke up. The first one was in favor of Heavenly Father's plan, while the second one had his own ideas. According to what I understand of what was written, I'm guessing all of the children of God, me included, split up into three groups. One group chose to follow the brother that sided with our Heavenly Father, while another one chose to follow the brother with the alternate plan. It's written that a third part of the host of heaven was cast out. So, I'm guessing that there was one more group. And, considering the choices that were available, I'm thinking this other group chose to not take sides on the matter.

“I'm guessing there were rewards based on the choices made: the right to physical, mortal bodies for not choosing the alternate plan, and the right to the powers that Heavenly Father would give us, as long as we were worthy of them, for siding with the brother that sided with Him.”

I then have my character draw a rectangle next to two of the circles, with another circle on the other side of the rectangle, and one more from the lowest circle directly to the last circle drawn, as I say, “The group that sided with the brother with the alternate plan was thrown out, along with that brother; and while they're on the earth, they've given up their rights to physical bodies. And, to this day, they're known as devils, and they're trying to keep Heavenly Father from succeeding in his plan.

“In the mean time, the earth and the rest of the solar system was planned and created for us, and our first parents, Adam and Eve, were created and placed in a paradise known as the Garden of Eden. There, two trees were placed, one known as the Tree of Knowledge, and the other one known as the Tree of Life. Adam and Eve were given two instructions: not to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, and to multiply and replenish the earth. Well, long story short, they were deceived into eating the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, and were thrown out of the Garden of Eden to keep them from eating from the Tree of Life, and living forever. If they had, after eating from the Tree of Knowledge, eaten from the Tree of Life, they would've lived forever, and made it impossible for Heavenly Father's plan to make any further progress.

“Our time on the earth, then, is given us so we can prove whether we'll keep His commandments or not, whether we'll be worthy to return to him or not. But, there are two problems.

“First of all, because we can die, and will someday; and because we need physical bodies to return to our Heavenly Father, we need to have physical bodies again, bodies that can't be corrupted. Second of all, since we're given the freedom to chose whether or not we'll keep His commandments, well, I admit I haven't always kept those commandments. And, I'm not the only one. In fact, almost all people have disobeyed the commandments, and will do so, at some point or other. And, this keeps us from being worthy to return to our Heavenly Father.”

This is when Pinkie Pie chimes in with, “Oh, so that's why you need a Redeemer.”

As my character looks at the pink pony, I answer, “That's right, Pinkie.” Then, I continue, “Without a Redeemer, a Christ, a Messiah, we'd be stuck. And, this is why we measure time the way we do, with an earlier time period that counted down to the time of the birth of the Christ, and the time after that, which we call the Year of our Lord.

“Before the coming of the Christ, those who died couldn't get incorruptible bodies. But, after the Christ died, he was the first to obtain an incorruptible body, through a process known as resurrection. And, because he lived a perfect life, an example for all of us to follow, and payed the price for the crimes the rest of us would commit, he could repent and follow the commandments and finally return to Heavenly Father again.”

During this time, I have my character draw another rectangle, followed by three more circles, drawing lines from the last four circles to the last rectangle, as I continue, “After all who chose not to follow the brother with the alternate plan have lived on the earth, and have died and been resurrected, based on how we lived, we are given our inheritance, the place where we'll live for all of eternity. Those of us who've proven we want to live with our Heavenly Father will go to the Celestial Kingdom.” Then, I have my character turn to the white alicorn as I say, “And, Princess Celestia, before you ask, no, humans will not be coming to Equestria after they've died and been resurrected.”

I find myself happy to hear ripples of laughter around the the circle at my last comment. When they die down, I continue, “Those who've lived good lives, but haven't qualified for Celestial glory, inherit the Terrestrial Kingdom. Most criminals will inherit the Telestial Kingdom, but there's also a place prepared for the very worst offenders, known as Outer Darkness.” I have my character write the appropriate titles in the circles from the top to the bottom, then, after isolating the last of the parchment after the last rectangle with lines, write in Outer Darkness, after which I ask, “So, Pinkie Pie, does this answer your question?”

The pink pony answers, “You've given me more than I asked for. Yes, you've answered my question.”

It seems that I've answered the questions of all the other creatures, as all finally rise, take their books, and proceed to exit through the gate, all that is except for the alicorns who teleport back to Canterlot, and Pinkie Pie, Trixie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Vinyl Scratch, and Octavia, who are staying with my character.

Before Twilight Sparkle can leave, though, Pinkie Pie approaches her and asks about getting more tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala, for my character, Weed Whacker, and Lyra. As far as I can tell, Twilight's response is to ask either Princess Celestia or Princess Luna for tickets. The news seems to leave the pink pony saddened for only a very short time, until she remembers that Weed Whacker can send letters to the princesses, at which point she approaches the herbivorous dinosaur with the proposal.

I decide to allow Pinkie Pie a page of parchment, but only if she, Weed Whacker, and Trixie take the now-empty snack tray back into the house. What I don't realize, at least until I notice the large parchment has disappeared, is that the pink party pony has put her own plan into action.

She does manage to bring in the snack tray, but I don't realize until it's too late that she wrote her letter on the parchment I used to have my character make a diagram of the Plan of Salvation, and sent that to the princesses.

While it saves, unnecessarily, on parchment, it also leaves me without a diagram to give to Pinkie Pie. Oh, well. I suppose I can hope she'll remember the diagram and connected lesson well enough on her own.

Then, there are Vinyl Scratch and Octavia.

As my character enters the house, I see Vinyl Scratch on one of the couches. If she's trying to get some sleep, she's not doing a very good job. As comfortable as the couch is intended to be that she's stretched out on, something about her position doesn't seem all that comfortable to me.

As my character walks by the couch, I notice the white unicorn isn't wearing her goggles, and she's just staring straight ahead.

I ask, “Vinyl, is everything alright?”

The white unicorn looks up at my character, then goes back to staring straight ahead, inhaling and exhaling in a deep sigh.

I have my character move to the side of the couch where Vinyl's staring straight ahead so he's in her line of sight and look at her, then I ask, “What's wrong?”

Vinyl only moves her mouth as she answers, “Octy just kicked me out of my room.”

I ask, “Is she alright?”

Presently Vinyl rises to a canine-style sitting position as she whines, “She's scary! I've never seen her like that before.”

I think aloud, “She did seem unusually tense when she got up and ran back into the house during the reading. Maybe I should go in and talk to her.”

As my character turns to the hallway to head to the bedroom Vinyl and Octavia have taken over, Vinyl props herself up on the back of the couch and grabs his arm and says, “I wouldn't suggest it. I don't know what's wrong with her, but I don't want you to get hurt trying to find out.”

As my character looks at the white unicorn, I answer, “I appreciate that you care about me. Do you have any suggestions?”

Vinyl Scratch freezes almost completely for a moment, then lets my character's arm go and answers, “No.” After that, she collapses back into her original position on the couch.

My character continues to the door of their bedroom. Once there, I have him knock, after which I call out, “Octavia?”

From the other side of the door, I hear the gray mare's voice growl, “What do you want?”

I answer, “I just want to know if you're alright in there.”

After a few seconds, I hear Octavia say, “I could use a drink.” Actually, it's more of a muffled shout.

I answer, “I'll get you a cup of water, then.”

Octavia's voice goes from a shout to a scream as she answers, “I don't want water, I want wine!” And, to reinforce what she said, presently there's a light thud at the door.

My character recoils, but otherwise doesn't move, as I say, “Now, you know we don't serve alcohol here.”

Immediately Octavia just screams, “Either get me my wine, or go away!”

Pinkie Pie had informed me about Vinyl Scratch's drinking problem, but not before I'd seen the results for myself. And, on the day Gilda's parents came, I found Vinyl at the local tavern about to get a drink, evidently with some friends. However, she didn't show any of the signs of addiction, of withdrawal, that Octavia's showing right now. Or, if she did, I never noticed them.

As my character returns to Vinyl's side on the couch, I notice the white unicorn trembling as she asks, “So, what do you think we should do?”

I answer, “I'm thinking you should spend the night on the couch, so you can keep an eye on her. The rest of us will get the food ready. I'll leave a plate of food at the door for her, in case she gets hungry. Beyond that, I can't think of anything we can do.”

As the front door opens and I see Pinkie Pie enter, Vinyl asks, “Is Octy gonna die?” As my character focuses on the unicorn's face, I can see the terror in her eyes.

I answer, “I doubt it.”

Whereas Pinkie Pie was bouncing as she entered the house, she stops and, evidently worried by Vinyl Scratch's question, gallops to my character's position and asks, “Is something wrong with Octavia?”

My character turns to the pink pony, and I answer, “I'm guessing she's suffering from withdrawal. If Vinyl was addicted to alcohol, it seems Octavia's even worse.”

At this point, I can't help noticing Pinkie Pie's expression is a nearly perfect copy of Vinyl's. She asks, “So, what'll you do?”

I answer, “I'll just do what I can. Offer her food in case she's hungry, water in case she's thirsty, and hope she'll stay and support her friend Vinyl.”

The pink pony turns to the hallway behind her and says, somewhat relaxed, “She Pinkie promised she'd stay. And, she'd better not break her promise.”

I don't say this aloud, but I remember finding Vinyl Scratch in Ponyville. She'd gotten assistance from the two griffons, Gilda's parents. I have to wonder if those served as her only option to leave my property. Whatever the case, Octavia doesn't have griffons to help her.

As I see the front door open again, and Lyra and Weed Whacker enter, I have my character focus on Pinkie Pie as I say, “Let's go out and get some more food, you, me, Lyra and Weed Whacker. When it's ready, I'll leave some at the door to Octavia's and Vinyl's room, in case Octavia gets hungry.”

And, with that, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker and my character go out again and harvest more food for dinner, then prepare and eat it, leaving enough for me to place on a plate in front of the door to Octavia's and Vinyl's bedroom. After that, all prepare and go to bed.

Part of the preparation for bed is writing letters, although it's clear Pinkie Pie has already written hers.

While I can't say I've learned much about unicorn behavior from observing Lyra today, other than her cooperation with Vinyl and Trixie in helping build the mobile theater, I suppose I have enough material in that regard from observing Vinyl specifically. Thus, in my letter to the princesses, I have my character write, “One thing I've observed in unicorn behavior is how well they work together. While you were here, I'm sure you noticed the structure that's being built. That's going to be a new mobile theater for Trixie. Most of the work was done by her, Lyra, and Vinyl Scratch.

“I have some questions, though. This evening, I had an experience I never had before with an earth pony. I seems that Octavia, Vinyl Scratch's friend, is going through withdrawal symptoms involving alcohol addiction. And, from what I've observed, she's become violent. This is something I never observed in Vinyl. I wonder, is it normal for alcoholic earth ponies going through withdrawal to be so violent, and unicorns in similar conditions not to be? I must admit, I don't have any experience with this; and I'm at a loss as to what I can do, beyond offering food and water and hoping for the best.

“I'm thinking what's helped Vinyl more than anything else is having a project to work on. I wonder, would the same thing work for Octavia? And, come to think of it, before Gilda's parents came, what was keeping Vinyl Scratch from leaving?”

Once my character signs the letter, I have him deliver it to Weed Whacker to send to the princesses, then I send him to bed.

As I save and close the game, I find myself wondering what effect the storm on the morrow will have on the reading schedule. I expect it'll be worth heading to Ponyville, if for no other reason than to help with the pre-storm cleanup.

Chapter 7: Pinkie Pie's New Pet

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I've finally gotten around to getting a copy of my music to add to the “media” folder of my game. With, I think, hundreds of songs to choose from, I shouldn't run out of songs to share with the inhabitants of Equestria anytime soon, those who are interested, anyway.

With that in mind, I resume the second game.

The first thing that happens when my character leaves his room is he's met by Weed Whacker, who holds a letter, evidently from the princesses, in her mouth. As he unrolls the parchment, three familiar-looking gold leaves fall out. Evidently, Pinkie Pie's message to the princesses, whether directly or indirectly, was received and answered affirmatively.

The letter reads:

“Dear Mormon,

“We're sorry you're having such problems, especially when it relates to one of our best musicians.

“I, Princess Celestia, have observed that violence isn't strictly a trait in alcoholic earth ponies. All the pony races have that tendency, whether it involves alcohol poisoning, or withdrawal from alcohol. However, you may be right in considering a work assignment for Octavia. If it's been helpful to Vinyl Scratch, it may be equally helpful for Octavia Philharmonica.

“As for what kept Vinyl Scratch from leaving your property before Gilda's parents came, we, the princesses, have enlisted the timber wolves of the Everfree forest to help with that. They will help keep Vinyl and Octavia from leaving until you deem them ready.

“Like you, we also hope for the best.”

The letter is signed by both princesses, with a post-script informing me that Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character are formally invited to the Grand Galloping Gala.

I have my character gather up the tickets and put them on the dresser in my room, deciding not to inform the other two of the invitations, at least not yet. I decide to inform them when I can be sure Trixie, Vinyl, and Octavia are living on their own, or at least under conditions where the three won't be able to hear about the invitations.

My character, as he follows the herbivorous dinosaur into the kitchen, stores the letter in his inventory.

When the two arrive in the kitchen, I see, through my character's eyes, three unicorns and one earth pony, all with worried looks on their faces, sitting around the table. I ask, “Is everything alright?”

It's Lyra who answers, “We hope so.”

Vinyl adds, “Octy hasn't left our room since she tried to leave your property last night. She hasn't even made a sound since she went to sleep.”

Pinkie Pie says, “We hope she wasn't scared too badly by the timber wolves that chased her back.”

At this point, I think aloud, “Maybe I should go check on her.” All things, including the most recent letter my character got from the princesses, considered; their concern may be valid.

As my character walks to the door between the kitchen and the front room, Vinyl says, “I don't see how you're gonna do that. Octy locked herself in there.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie says, “Vinyl, this is Mormon's house. If anypony, uh, anyone, can get into a locked door in his house, he can.”

I keep my character focused on the door as I say, “I'll make sure Octavia is alright. Ki tahi au.”

Once everything's frozen, that is all except my character, I have him proceed to the room kept by Vinyl and Octavia and enter through the door.

The first thing I see when my character enters the room would be alarming if it were real. Well, it is troubling to see the room in such a mess.

The good news is my offering of food has evidently been received.

The bad news is that there's at least one puddle of urine and one pile of feces on the floor. Not only that, but, as I have my character circle around the frozen form of Octavia in her bed, I can see through his eyes that, even while asleep, she's urinating. I have to wonder, is what I saw Vinyl Scratch do the last time I saw her drunk universal among ponies, or is what I'm seeing Octavia doing normal strictly for earth ponies going through withdrawal? Yes, I know, I designed this game. But, this is the video game I designed. It doesn't take away from the mystery of what Equestrian ponies in the show might go through in Octavia's condition.

I have my character stand just beyond the door, ready to turn on the light, when I say, “Continue.”

Immediately the room goes dark, indicating the lightmapping has kicked in.

I have my character turn on the light in the room, while in the mean time I hear the sound, from Octavia, of both mild snoring and high-speed tapping on cloth. When my character turns to Octavia, I can see through his eyes that she is definitely still alive, indicated by her expanding and contracting as she breathes, as well as her tail extended from her behind as a dark yellow circle expands from behind her.

Making sure my character is careful to avoid the excrement on the floor, I have him approach the gray earth pony by way of the opposite side of the bed from the door, then touch her, as I say, “Time to wake up, Octavia.”

At first she groans, until she turns and looks and sees my character next to her. Then, she screams and jumps sideways out of her bed. She moves her legs under her as fast as she can, which is surprisingly fast, as she backs into the wall opposite my character and whimpers, “What are you doing in here? What were you going to do to me?”

I have my character remain in his spot as I say, “I just came to check up on you.”

Presently, Octavia asks, “How did you get in here?”

I have my character wave an arm slowly but dramatically over the urine stain on the bed and where I remember the urine and feces on the floor being, as I say, “I'm thinking I should be asking, what have you been doing in here? Are you alright?”

That's when I hear, from the opposite side of the door, Vinyl Scratch echoing to Octavia my last question, and adding, “Octavia, answer me!”

I call out, “It's alright, Vinyl! No need to worry! You can go back to the kitchen now!”

I then hear Vinyl call back, “You'd better be right,” before, I assume, going back to the kitchen.

In the mean time, my character's focus is still on Octavia. I say, “You can see your friend, Vinyl, is worried about you. You've gotten all of us worried about you.”

The look of horror on Octavia's face turns to anger, and she looks wilder, as she says, “You're worried about me? You break into my room, and you're worried about me? We're all trapped here by wooden dogs, and you're worried about me?”

At this point, I have my character stand up; and I can see, both my the hoof-prints and by the stains on Octavia's hooves, that she stepped in her own feces on her way to the wall. But, standing is all I let my character do as I say, “I'm not here to hurt you, I'm here to help.”

The crazed gray earth pony snarls, “You can help me by getting me past those timber wolves.”

I answer, “I can do that, but you need to do some things first.”

Presently Octavia says, “I'm listening.”

I continue, “First of all, you need to clean up this room. I can understand you being scared of the timber wolves, but what I'm seeing in here isn't the result of normal behavior brought on by fear. And, when you're finished cleaning up in here, which I'm willing to help you with, there's a bathroom next to this bedroom. I want you to take a bath or a shower in there, whichever you choose to do.

“Second of all, I want you to repent to your friend, Vinyl Scratch. You've really scared her. Then, you can join us in getting something to eat, and eating with us. You're surrounded by friends here, who want to help you.

“Finally, you can volunteer to help in building Trixie's mobile theater. And, that means more than just serving drinks to the unicorns building it. I'll talk to Trixie, and see if I can get her to give you more of a role in the building process, even if it's just supporting boards as they're put in place.

“Is that alright?”

As I watch the gray earth pony during my soliloquy, I notice she relaxes, and seems to take particular interest in my last proposition. I'm guessing my bringing up Trixie's mobile theater and getting more of a role in building it was unexpectedly insightful for her.

She asks, “You'd do that for me?”

I answer, “I'd be honored to do that.”

The gray earth pony looks around at her room, and she seems disgraced by what she sees. Finally, she says, “Well, if it's the only way I'm gonna get past those timber wolves, then I'll do it.”

At this point, I have my character walk toward the door as I say, “The main thing that'll get you past the timber wolves is you breaking your addiction to alcohol. You've been going through withdrawal, which is what's been causing you so much pain. What I'm suggesting will help you keep your mind off of it, and should make it easier for you to cope. It's certainly been helping Vinyl.” I have my character unlock the door; but before I have him leave through it, I say, “I'll get a broom, a mop, a dust pan, a bucket with water and cleaning fluid, and one more empty bucket. I don't want to have to force my way in here again, so please don't lock the door behind me. When I return, I'll help you clean up the messes you've made on the floor, and you can clean your bedding. Once you've got your bedding in the wash, you can go and take a bath or shower in the bathroom next door. After that, let's head to the kitchen so you can repent to Vinyl Scratch, and we'll move on from there.”

After my character exits the room, and closes the door behind him, he proceeds to get the cleaning equipment I mentioned from the broom closet on the opposite side of the hall from the bathroom, then enters the bathroom and fills one of the buckets with hot water, adds cleaning fluid to it, then heads to Vinyl's and Octavia's bedroom again. Once there, he opens the door and enters.

I find it pleasing that Octavia chose not to lock the door when my character left.

The cleaning itself goes to Octavia, while my character does supporting activities such as holding the dust pan. First to go are the puddles of urine, which are easily mopped up. Second are the piles of feces, most of which Octavia sweeps into the dust pan that my character holds, then dumps into the empty bucket, while the rest of the mess is cleaned up using the mop and the hot water with the cleaning fluid.

After that, once Octavia gathers the sheet and blanket from her bed, I lead her down the hall past the bathroom to the laundry room, where she puts the bedding in the washing machine, pushes the button labeled “Bulky Bedding,” pours in a cup full of laundry detergent, and starts the machine.

Once that's done, she canters to the bathroom to bathe, while my character takes care of the cleaning equipment, taking the mop and buckets outside: the buckets to dump and rinse out, and the mop to rinse and wring out. Those things are, of course, done on a different side of the house from the mobile theater.

I'm not surprised that it takes less time for my character to take care of the cleaning equipment and return them to their place in the broom closet than it does for Octavia to bathe. Her time in the bathroom gives me the opportunity to send my character into Vinyl's and Octavia's room to check to see how much damage was actually done.

As my character inspects the room of the two mares, I find that the only messes made were two puddles of urine and two piles of feces on the floor, and Octavia wetting herself in her bed; and her bed is surprisingly unstained afterward.

What does surprise me is that Octavia's bath, or shower, time also covers my character's time inspecting their room. He's on his way to the laundry room to check on the bedding when Octavia is finished with her bath and leaves the bathroom, mostly dried off.

My character is between the bathroom and the laundry room when he turns to the gray earth pony, and I say, “I guess that means you're ready to talk to Vinyl then?”

Octavia answers, “I'm as ready as I'll ever be.” She closes the bathroom door, then leads the way, slowly, to the kitchen where the other ponies, including Vinyl, are waiting for her.

In fact, by the time the two get to the kitchen, Weed Whacker is also there.

As my character holds the door open, I say, “Octavia has some things to talk about with Vinyl.” Then, as Pinkie Pie starts to follow the white unicorn into the front room, I have my character step between them; and I say, “Just Vinyl. You and the rest will have to wait here.”

While the white unicorn and the gray earth pony discuss their matter in the front room, I have my character turn to the blue unicorn while I say, “Octavia's going to need help breaking her alcohol addiction, and I'm thinking the best way to do that is for you to let her help you build your mobile theater. Is that alright with you, Trixie?”

The blue unicorn looks down at the table, evidently bothered by what I'm suggesting, and says, “I don't know. Beyond serving drinks to us, I'm not sure there's anything an earth pony can help us with.”

I state, “Well, she needs to be more involved than that. Maybe she could help hold boards in place, while the rest of you are hammering in nails?”

Trixie just stammers, which I suspect is more of a delay tactic than anything else at this point.

I conclude, “It's just a suggestion for something that'll help Octavia.”

Just then, the two musical mares come back into the kitchen, and the look on Vinyl's face suggests relief.

In the mean time, Octavia, head bowed, ears drooping, and eyes pointed at the floor just a few inches in front of her, says, “I'm thinking I should seek forgiveness from the rest of you as well. I'm sorry I worried all of you.” She then turns to my character and says, “You were right to suggest a bath. It has helped me feel a lot better.” Next she turns to Pinkie Pie and says, “If it hadn't been for the timber wolves, I would've most certainly broken my Pinkie promise. But, the fact of the matter is I should've known better than to try to break my promise to you. Will you, can you, forgive me?” Not waiting for the pink mare's answer, she then turns to Trixie and says, “I don't know how I can help with building your mobile theater, but I am offering to help.”

Pinkie Pie is the first to react, almost immediately after Octavia has addressed Trixie. She jumps off her chair and lands right in front of the gray earth pony, hugs her, and says, “Of course I forgive you, silly.”

I guess I'll never know if Pinkie Pie would've said more than that, as she seems to be caught off guard, enough that she says no more, when Octavia hugs her back. All I know is the two separate after a few seconds.

As the pink pony returns to her place, I say, “I'm glad I could help.”

Trixie, aside from breathing, doesn't move.

Finally, I hear Weed Whacker say, “Well, while the rest of you were busy moping around in here, I went out and got some food. I've been cleaning it, and now it's ready for us when we're ready to eat.”

While it had been my plan for Octavia to join in harvesting breakfast, I suppose she can join in harvesting lunch or dinner. Aloud, I say, “Well, in that case, let's eat.”

It doesn't take long for the group to devour the little dinosaur's harvest, after which my character, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker leave and head to Ponyville.

An hour later, we find that the Cakes have decided not to open today, in anticipation of the storm the pegasi are working on.

In the episode 'Look Before You Sleep,' on which this particular day is based, at least Applejack and Rarity were out in the park cleaning up dead branches, in anticipation of the coming storm.

Thinking my character can help with that, having included it in the game, I propose to the two ponies and the dinosaur in the group that we assist with the pre-storm cleanup.

The three agree, citing it as the only available activity; and the group of four head for the park to offer assistance.

By the time the group gets there, the dead branches have already been pulled off the trees; so all that's left to do is gather them up and put them in either the bags or the garbage containers in the area.

My offering the assistance of the group of four is eagerly accepted by the orange earth pony and the white unicorn.

In a matter of minutes, long before the pegasi overhead are finished building up their huge storm cloud, the half dozen workers have managed to clean up all the dead limbs in the park. What manages to occupy the rest of the time is placing the containers in positions where the coming storm won't blow them away, or redistribute the mess that's been cleaned up.

Once that's done, seeing that the pegasi have finished building the storm cloud, I decide it's time for my group of four to return to my character's home.

Applejack and Rarity remain in Ponyville to make sure the garbage containers are securely in place, while my character and his group head through Ponyville toward the Everfree forest.

Lightning flashes and thunder rumbles just as the party of four reach the borders of Ponyville, and it starts raining just when they've gotten outside of town. And, curiously enough, it's raining only over Ponyville. Evidently those pegasi are better at controlling the weather than I, at least, might've thought.

An hour later, the party of four are back at my character's house. But, my character looks back at Ponyville to show me that the storm is still raging over the town.

At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if the only ones at the reading tonight are my character, Octavia, Vinyl, Lyra, Pinkie Pie, Weed Whacker, and maybe the two princesses. Unless the princesses teleport volunteers from Ponyville, we may be reading only one chapter tonight. Of course, there's the possibility that circumstances could change so that we have the reading earlier.

And, one more thing. If the storm is only raging over Ponyville, does that mean that the water from the storm will be contained in Ponyville as well? That's something I've never really seen addressed in the animated series. In this game, the water is strictly contained where it falls, in this case in Ponyville. It's just never physically seen, except perhaps in the river or the pond in the park.

But, that fact isn't important right now. What is important is that the princesses teleport in just as my character and the two ponies and the dinosaur have entered the gate.

Princess Celestia says, “I've been discussing the situation in Ponyville with my student, Twilight, and, if you'll agree, we think the reading should be held during the day, as soon as volunteers have been teleported here.”

Presently I think aloud, “That does sound like a good idea. As long as all come who want to come, I'm fine with that. We just need to make a few preparations, prepare some snacks.”

Princess Celestia nods, smiles, and says, “Luna and I have discussed between us who each of us will visit and invite to the reading. We'll teleport here whoever volunteers to come.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie asks, “Would you also invite the Cakes? They might want to join in the reading, too.”

It's Princess Luna who answers, “You may come with us if you want, and invite the Cakes personally.”

Pinkie Pie quees and says, “Thanks for offering, but I think I'm gonna be needed here to help prepare snacks.” She then asks, “Princess Luna, will you invite them?”

The nighttime princess answers, “We shall, and if they accept, we shall bring them.”

Immediately Pinkie Pie starts bouncing around in a circle, cheering with each bounce, “Yes!” at the rate of one yes per bounce.

Princess Celestia continues to smile as she says, “I guess it's settled then. We'll invite the ponies that were here at the last reading, and Luna shall also invite the Cakes to this reading.” And, with that, she and Princess Luna disappear.

I'm not sure how many circles Pinkie Pie bounced in before the princesses left, but she presently stops bouncing long enough to ask, “So, can I receive the guests, huh, huh? Can I, can I, can I?”

I'm entertained by the pink pony's enthusiasm, so much so that I can't help but smile when I answer, “I don't know. Didn't you say you'd be needed to help prepare snacks?”

At the realization, Pinkie Pie grimaces, then looks down, and her ears droop, as she says, “Oh, that's right.”

After a moment, I add, “On the other hand, it will take some time for Lyra, Weed Whacker, and me to gather the fruits and veggies for the snacks. I suppose I could have some pony to receive the guests in the mean time.”

I watch as Pinkie Pie perks up again when I begin my addendum, then bounces in her “Yes!” circles again when I as much as give her permission to receive guests while Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character gather fruits and vegetables for the snacks.

As it turns out, the pink pony doesn't have time to complete her first circle before Princess Celestia reappears with the first group of guests, and says, “Here's my faithful student, two of her friends, and her assistant.”

Pinkie Pie, who was facing away from the group when they teleported in, bounces a hundred eighty degrees to face them, hops toward the group of four, and says, “Twily! Applejack! Rarity! Spike! Welcome!” Then, tilting her head, she asks, “Wait, did Applejack and Rarity get caught in the rain?”

Applejack answers, “We sure did.”

Twilight adds, “I was about to suggest a slumber party when Princess Celestia came and invited us to an early reading.”

I state, “Well, there's no reason why you couldn't have the slumber party after the reading.”

The purple unicorn smiles, evidently relieved, as she says, “I suppose you're right.”

I add, “Well, in the mean time, Pinkie Pie here will be receiving guests, while Lyra, Weed Whacker and I gather food for snacks. We'll see you again then.” And, with that, while Twilight moves aside to allow the three to pass, the pale-green unicorn, the dinosaur, and my character proceed to different areas to gather what we need for the snacks.

Before we get too far, Trixie approaches my character and says, “This is not a good time for a reading. We just got back to building my theater.”

I state, “And, you can keep working at it while the guests arrive. After the reading, you can go back to working on your theater.”

The blue unicorn sputters for a bit, evidently trying to come up with a response, then sighs in frustration and says, “Fine.”

My character has no further interruptions as he heads to the orchard to gather fruits.

The process takes a few minutes, during which evidently more and more guests arrive. By the time Lyra, Weed Whacker and my character have gathered the food for the snacks and gotten back to the front porch, in fact, it seems the population in the front yard has grown by some ten or twenty, and those are just the ponies. The non-pony component is a definite minority, consisting of Spike, Weed Whacker, and my character.

With the help of Pinkie Pie and Mr. Cake, who volunteers while Mrs. Cake receives more guests, the preparation of the snacks in the kitchen takes less time than normal, allowing the group to come out with the snack tray in, it seems, less than ten minutes.

While the ponies and dinosaur take care of moving the snack tray out to the guests, my character heads to the closet to retrieve two copies of the Book of Mormon for the two Cakes.

When he goes to offer the books to the orange earth stallion and his wife, Applejack approaches him and asks, “Mormon, could you get three more copies for me? When the slumber party with Twilight's done, Ah wanna offer Granny Smith, Big Mac, and my little sister copies of yer book. Ah'm thinkin' they'd be int'rested too, maybe wanna join in the next readin'.”

I answer, “Sure. I just need to deliver these copies to the cakes, then I'll get you the copies you want.” And, with that, and with the orange earth mare following him, my character proceeds to offer the books to Mr. and Mrs. Cake, then returns to the closet to get three more copies for Applejack. When she's received the three copies and put them in her saddle bag, the human and the earth mare head back out to the yard.

By the time we get there, I can see the circle is nearly complete, with an opening for my character, evidently between Octavia and Lyra, and another for Applejack among the Mane Six.

After the open spaces have been taken, I ask, “So, are there any volunteers to start the reading?”

Presently front hooves sprout up around the circle, making it look kind of like a grove of cut-down trees.

I have my character turn to the orange earth stallion as I say, “We'll begin reading chapter twelve of First Nephi. Mr. Cake, will you begin with verse one?”

Mr. Cake nods, then flips through the pages with a front hoof until he gets to the one where the chapter starts, then reads, “And it came to pass that the angel said unto me: Look, and behold thy seed, and also the seed of thy brethren. And I looked and beheld the land of promise; and I beheld multitudes of people, yea, even as it were in number as many as the sand of the sea.”

I then have my character turn his attention to the blue earth mare next to Mr. Cake and, seeing she has nosed through the pages of the book until she reached the right page, I ask, “Mrs. Cake, will you read verse two?”

She nods and reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld multitudes gathered together to battle, one against the other; and I beheld wars, and rumors of wars, and great slaughters with the sword among my people.” She then looks up and asks, “Are you sure we should be reading this sort of thing around foals?”

Before anyone can respond, Pinkie Pie reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld many generations pass away, after the manner of wars and contentions in the land, and I beheld many cities, yea, even that I did not number them.”

Next, Twilight Sparkle reads, “And it came to pass that I saw a mist of darkness on the face of the land of promise; and I saw lightnings, and I heard thunderings, and earthquakes, and all manner of tumultuous noises; and I saw the earth and the rocks, that they rent; and I saw mountains trembling into pieces; and I saw the plains of the earth, that they were broken up; and I saw many cities that they were sunk; and I saw many that they were burned with fire; and I saw many that did tumble to the earth, because of the quaking thereof.”

Spike reads, “And it came to pass after I saw these things, I saw the vapor of darkness, that it passed from off the face of the earth; and behold, I saw multitudes who had not fallen because of the great and terrible judgments of the Lord.”

Rarity reads, “And I saw the heavens open, and the Lamb of God descending out of heaven, and he came down and showed himself unto them.”

Applejack reads, “And I also saw and bear record that the Holy Ghost fell upon twelve others; and they were ordained of God, and chosen.”

Fluttershy reads, “And the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold the twelve disciples of the Lamb, who are chosen to minister unto thy seed.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And he said unto me: Thou rememberest the twelve apostles of the Lamb? Behold they are they who shall judge the twelve tribes of Israel; wherefore, the twelve ministers of thy seed shall be judged of them; for they are of the house of Israel.”

Princess Luna reads, “And these twelve ministers whom thou beholdest shall judge thy seed. And, behold, they are righteous forever; for because of their faith in the Lamb of God their garments are made white in his blood.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And the angel said unto me: Look! And I looked, and beheld three generations pass away in righteousness; and their garments were white even like unto the Lamb of God. And the angel said unto me: These are made white in the blood of the Lamb, because of their faith in him.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And I, Nephi, also saw many of the fourth generation who passed away in righteousness.”

Octavia reads, “And it came to pass that I saw the multitudes of the earth gathered together.”

I read, “And the angel said unto me: Behold thy seed, and also the seed of thy brethren.”

Lyra reads, “And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the people of my seed gathered together in multitudes against the seed of my brethren; and they were gathered together to battle.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold the fountain of filthy water which thy father saw; yea, even the river of which he spake; and the depths thereof are the depths of hell.” She then looks up and says, “Lehi didn't mention the water from the fountain being filthy.” Then, turning to my character, she asks, “Is this what you meant when you said Nephi observed something that his father Lehi didn't?”

I have my character turn to the little dinosaur as I answer, “That's right. And, Nephi will explain why his father didn't notice that in a later chapter, when he explains the symbols and their meanings to his brothers.” I then have my character turn to the yellow earth pony as I ask, “So, Bon-Bon, will you continue?”

She nods and reads, “And the mists of darkness are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they perish and are lost.”

Next, the nearly-white-pink unicorn mare reads, “And the large and spacious building, which thy father saw, is vain imaginations and the pride of the children of men. And a great and a terrible gulf divideth them; yea, even the word of the justice of the Eternal God, and the Messiah who is the Lamb of God, of whom the Holy Ghost beareth record, from the beginning of the world until this time, and from this time henceforth and forever.”

Snips reads, “And while the angel spake these words, I beheld and saw that the seed of my brethren did contend with my seed, according to the word of the angel; and because of the pride of my seed, and the temptations of the devil, I beheld that the seed of my brethren did overpower the people of my seed.”

Snails then reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld, and saw the people of the seed of my brethren that they had overcome my seed, and they went forth in multitudes upon the face of the land.”

I can't help noticing that he doesn't struggle as much with this verse as he did with the two verses he read yesterday. And, I don't think it has anything to do with the verse being short. From what I can tell, Snails is getting better at reading.

When the orange unicorn looks at me, I give him an encouraging thumbs up and say, “You're really getting good at reading. Keep it up.”

The bluish-green unicorn stallion, seeing me encourage Snails, smiles at my character, then reads, “And I saw them gathered together in multitudes; and I saw wars and rumors of wars among them; and in wars and rumors of wars I saw many generations pass away.”

Stunts reads, “And the angel said unto me: Behold these shall dwindle in unbelief.”

Finally, Trixie reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld, after they had dwindled in unbelief they became a dark, and loathsome, and a filthy people, full of idleness and all manner of abominations.”

Noticing that not everyone in the circle has had a chance to read, I ask, “So, shall we continue on to chapter thirteen?”

The subsequent chorus of voices, as far as I can tell, seems to agree with my suggestion.

So, I have my character turn to my green unicorn friend while I ask, “Well, in that case, Emerald Hill, will you begin reading with verse one?”

He smiles and nods before reading, “And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me, saying: Look! And I looked and beheld many nations and kingdoms.”

Next, Berry Ground reads, “And the angel said unto me: What beholdest thou? And I said: I behold many nations and kingdoms.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And he said unto me: Those are the nations and kingdoms of the Gentiles.”

Mrs. Cake says, “Evidently there's more in this book than just violence,” before reading, “And it came to pass that I saw among the nations of the Gentiles the formation of a great church.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And the angel said unto me: Behold the formation of a church which is most abominable above all other churches, which slayeth the saints of God, yea, and tortureth them and bindeth them down, and yoketh them with a yoke of iron, and bringeth them down into captivity.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld this great and abominable church; and I saw the devil that he was the founder of it.”

Spike reads, “And I also saw gold, and silver, and silks, and scarlets, and fine-twined linen, and all manner of precious clothing; and I saw many harlots.”

Rarity reads, “And the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold the gold, and the silver, and the silks, and the scarlets, and the fine-twined linen, and the precious clothing, and the harlots, are the desires of this great and abominable church.”

Applejack reads, “And also for the praise of the world do they destroy the saints of God, and bring them down into captivity.”

Fluttershy reads, “And it came to pass that I looked and beheld many waters; and they divided the Gentiles from the seed of my brethren.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And it came to pass that the angel said unto me: Behold the wrath of God is upon the seed of thy brethren.”

Princess Luna reads, “And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles, who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man, and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren, who were in the promised land.”

At this point, I speak up and say, “It may interest you to know that this 'man among the Gentiles,' whom 'the Spirit of God wrought upon,' is known where I come from as Christopher Columbus. He was, in fact, guided by the Spirit of God to sail the ocean from Spain to South America and back. His voyage is one of the reasons why we have this record today.” I then turn to Princess Celestia and say, “You may read the next verse now.”

Princess Celestia nods, then reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles; and they went forth out of captivity, upon the many waters.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld many multitudes of the Gentiles upon the land of promise; and I beheld the wrath of God, that it was upon the seed of my brethren; and they were scattered before the Gentiles and were smitten.”

Octavia reads, “And I beheld the Spirit of the Lord, that it was upon the Gentiles, and they did prosper and obtain the land for their inheritance; and I beheld that they were white, and exceedingly fair and beautiful, like unto my people before they were slain.”

I read, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles who had gone forth out of captivity did humble themselves before the Lord; and the power of the Lord was with them.”

Lyra reads, “And I beheld that their mother Gentiles were gathered together upon the waters, and upon the land also, to battle against them.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And I beheld that the power of God was with them, and also that the wrath of God was upon all those that were gathered together against them to battle.”

Bon-Bon reads, “And I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles that had gone out of captivity were delivered by the power of God out of the hands of all other nations.”

At this point, again I speak up and say, “If I might offer some insight here, at this point, Nephi has been shown the beginnings of the United States of America. The United States started out as thirteen colonies, which joined forces and declared their independence from Great Britain on July fourth, seventeen seventy-six. Since then, as we'll see Nephi was shown, the United States has proven quite successful.”

The nearly-white-pink unicorn mare nods and says, “Indeed. Listen to this,” then reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld that they did prosper in the land; and I beheld a book, and it was carried forth among them.”

Snips reads, “And the angel said unto me: Knowest thou the meaning of the book?”

Snails doesn't struggle at all with the verse he reads: “And I said unto him: I know not.” And, it seems to me that the simplicity of the wording of the verse doesn't make the little orange unicorn's victory any less.

I have my character give Snails a soldier's salute when he looks at him again.

The blue-green unicorn stallion reads, “And he said: Behold it proceedeth out of the mouth of a Jew. And I, Nephi, beheld it; and he said unto me: The book that thou beholdest is a record of the Jews, which contains the covenants of the Lord, which he hath made unto the house of Israel; and it also containeth many of the prophecies of the holy prophets; and it is a record like unto the engravings which are upon the plates of brass, save there are not so many; nevertheless, they contain the covenants of the Lord, which he hath made unto the house of Israel; wherefore, they are of great worth unto the Gentiles.”

Stunts reads, “And the angel of the Lord said unto me: Thou hast beheld that the book proceeded forth from the mouth of a Jew; and when it proceeded forth from the mouth of a Jew it contained the fulness of the gospel of the Lord, of whom the twelve apostles bear record; and they bear record according to the truth which is in the Lamb of God.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “And after these plain and precious things were taken away it goeth forth unto all the nations of the Gentiles; and after it goeth forth unto all the nations of the Gentiles, yea, even across the many waters which thou hast seen with the Gentiles which have gone forth out of captivity, thou seest—because of the many plain and precious things which have been taken out of the book, which were plain unto the understanding of the children of men, according to the plainness which is in the Lamb of God—because of these things which are taken away out of the gospel of the Lamb, an exceedingly great many do stumble, yea, insomuch that Satan hath great power over them.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “Nevertheless, thou beholdest that the Gentiles who have gone forth out of captivity, and have been lifted up by the power of God above all other nations, upon the face of the land which is choice above all other lands, which is the land that the Lord God hath covenanted with thy father that his seed should have for the land of their inheritance; wherefore, thou seest that the Lord God will not suffer that the Gentiles will utterly destroy the mixture of thy seed, which are among thy brethren.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Neither will he suffer that the Gentiles shall destroy the seed of thy brethren.”

Spike reads, “Neither will the Lord God suffer that the Gentiles shall forever remain in that awful state of blindness, which thou beholdest they are in, because of the plain and most precious parts of the gospel of the Lamb which have been kept back by that abominable church, whose formation thou hast seen.”

Rarity reads, “Wherefore saith the Lamb of God: I will be merciful unto the Gentiles, unto the visiting of the remnant of the house of Israel in great judgment.”

Applejack reads, “And it came to pass that the angel of the Lord spake unto me, saying: Behold, saith the Lamb of God, after I have visited the remnant of the house of Israel—and this remnant of whom I speak is the seed of thy father—wherefore, after I have visited them in judgment, and smitten them by the hand of the Gentiles, and after the Gentiles do stumble exceedingly, because of the most plain and precious parts of the gospel of the Lamb which have been kept back by that abominable church, which is the mother of harlots, saith the Lamb—I will be merciful unto the Gentiles in that day, insomuch that I will bring forth unto them, in mine own power, much of my gospel, which shall be plain and precious, saith the Lamb.”

Fluttershy reads, “For, behold, saith the Lamb: I will manifest myself unto thy seed, that they shall write many things which I shall minister unto them, which shall be plain and precious; and after thy seed shall be destroyed, and dwindle in unbelief, and also the seed of thy brethren, behold, these things shall be hid up, to come forth unto the Gentiles, by the gift and power of the Lamb.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And in them shall be written my gospel, saith the Lamb, and my rock and my salvation.”

Princess Luna reads, “And blessed are they who shall seek to bring forth my Zion at that day, for they shall have the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost; and if they endure unto the end they shall be lifted up at the last day, and shall be saved in the everlasting kingdom of the Lamb; and whoso shall publish peace, yea, tidings of great joy, how beautiful upon the mountains shall they be.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the book of the Lamb of God, which had proceeded forth from the mouth of the Jew, that it came forth from the Gentiles unto the remnant of the seed of my brethren.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And after it had come forth unto them I beheld other books, which came forth by the power of the Lamb, from the Gentiles unto them, unto the convincing of the Gentiles and the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the Jews who were scattered upon all the face of the earth, that the records of the prophets and of the twelve apostles of the Lamb are true.”

Octavia reads, “And the angel spake unto me, saying: These last records, which thou hast seen among the Gentiles, shall establish the truth of the first, which are of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, and shall make known the plain and precious things which have been taken away from them, and shall make known to all kindreds, tongues, and people, that the Lamb of God is the Son of the Eternal Father, and the Savior of the world; and that all men must come unto him, or they cannot be saved.”

I read, “And they must come according to the words which shall be established by the mouth of the Lamb; and the words of the Lamb shall be made known in the records of thy seed, as well as in the records of the twelve apostles of the Lamb; wherefore they both shall be established in one; for there is one God and one Shepherd over all the earth.”

Finally, Lyra reads, “And the time cometh that he shall manifest himself unto all nations, both unto the Jews and also unto the Gentiles; and after he has manifested himself unto the Jews and also unto the Gentiles, then he shall manifest himself unto the Gentiles and also unto the Jews, and the last shall be first, and the first shall be last.”

At this point, I have my character stand up as I say, “Well, unless anyone wants to read further, I think we can call the reading over until tomorrow.”

Ponies around the circle, as well as the two dragons, rise and stretch and vocalize something to the effect that, as much as they'd like to read more, with the offering of various reasons, that they can wait until the following day to read more from the Book of Mormon.

Hearing mostly agreement from the ponies, I add, “One thing that I'd like to add about the United States of America, which by the way is my home country, is that even in my time it has its share of enemies, both outside and inside their boundaries. I suppose I need to remember that my home country needs friends, particularly in my time, just as much as it needs enemies. We need friends to show us we aren't alone, and we need enemies to remind us which is the right path.

“Well, thanks for volunteering to come here for an early reading. The Princesses will return you to your homes, or wherever you prefer to go.”

With my announcement, Mr. Cake approaches my character and says, “I guess I should thank Pinkie Pie for sending me and my wife an invitation to the reading, but I want to thank you personally for having these readings. Now I think I understand why Pinkie Pie has been getting so nice to customers.”

I answer, “Well, I'm happy to hear I've been having such a positive effect on her. I plan on keeping that up.” Then, as my character shows me that the two Cakes have left their copies of the Book of Mormon on the ground, I add, “Oh, and you're welcome to take your copies of the Book of Mormon with you. And, I'd like to encourage you to read the introduction, which includes the testimony of eight witnesses who were allowed to hold the gold plates that were the origin of the Book of Mormon, the testimony of three witnesses who helped translate the book, and the testimony of Joseph Smith Jr., who was entrusted with the gold plates. After that, you may read the first eleven chapters, which should help you get caught up with the reading. You may also, if you want, read chapters twelve and thirteen over, or even read beyond where we stopped reading. If you have any questions, please feel free to come back and ask them. Whatever questions I might not be able to answer could be answered by someone, some pony or some dragon, else.”

Mr. Cake smiles and says, “Well, thank you for that. I think we will take our copies of the book home, and take you up on your suggestions.” And, with that, he returns to his wife's side and waits for Princess Luna to return him and Mrs. Cake to Sugar Cube Corner, or so I assume.

The next to approach me is Twilight Sparkle, who says, “Well, this was once again an enjoyable reading.”

I respond, “I'm glad you're enjoying it. So, did you invite Applejack and Rarity to have a slumber party at your place?”

The purple unicorn smiles as she says, “I did, and they said yes. Now I just need to wait for Princess Celestia to teleport us back to the library. And, you know what, I've been dying to try out this book on slumber parties.”

I answer, “Well, good luck on that. But, I'd just suggest using the book as a guide. The book may have some good ideas, but it doesn't hurt to let your guests contribute some of their own ideas as well. And, I'm sure you also have some good ideas that might not be in the book.”

Twilight grunts and taps or scratches her chin with a front hoof, either one or both, before saying under her breath, “The slumber party is more complicated than I thought.” Then she puts the hoof down as she says, “Well, you're probably right. Very well, then. I'll take suggestions from Applejack and Rarity, as well as from the book, and see what happens.” And, with that, she rejoins her orange earth pony and white unicorn friends, as well as her dragon assistant, waiting for the daytime princess to teleport back and return them to the library.

I call out to her, “Let me know how things turn out!” And, that happens to be just before the white alicorn appears next to them, and the group disappears a short time later.

I'm not surprised to see that the alicorn that brings each group or individual to the reading is the same one that returns that group or individual.

In a matter of minutes, it's back to just Pinkie Pie, Trixie, Lyra, Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, Weed Whacker, and my character.

Trixie, Vinyl Scratch and Octavia go back to working on Trixie's mobile theater; while Pinkie Pie, Lyra and Weed Whacker take the now empty snack tray back into the house.

Because the reading was so early in the day, there's still plenty of time for activities, whether inside or outside the house.

A thought occurs to me, and I have my character go into the house and use one of the parchments to make a bull's eye design. I just happen to finish when Pinkie Pie comes out and circles around the couch to have a look at what I've been doing.

Seeing the series of circles in circles, she says, “Well, that's a funny picture. What's it for?”

I answer, “I've been thinking I could use some help with something. Specifically, Diane's help.”

The pink earth pony uses a hind hoof to scratch the ear on that side, the ear closest to my character, in fact, before saying, “We're both happy to help you with whatever you want. But, we're curious, why do you need Diane specifically?”

At this point, I don't think it's a good idea to tell Pinkamena and Diane that I'm preparing Diane for an event that won't occur for months, perhaps at least a year. And, while I've programmed Pinkie Pie to progress toward becoming an alicorn depending on which one of them I teach a new skill, and I'm sure she could figure it out for herself, that's one more secret I don't intend to reveal to her. What I do say is: “Just think of it as part of the experiment.”

The pink earth pony tilts her head as if wanting to ask a question, but just holds that pose for a few seconds. Finally, she says, “Alright, Diane and I trust you.” Then, I watch, through my character's eyes, as Pinkie's mane deflates, falling in a straight flow completely to one side.

I don't doubt that her tail has also straightened out.

Diane then flatly asks, “So, what do you need my help with?”

I have my character stand up and, bull's eye in hand, head for the door, gesturing for Diane to follow him as I answer, “If you'll follow me into the orchard, I'll let you know.”

Diane Pie, her expressionless face and straight mane and tail reminding me somehow of her sister Maud, follows my character silently to the door. In fact, she follows my character all the way into the orchard, easily jumping over the wooden fence.

Once there, I have my character place the bull's eye on the closest tree, approximately where a kick from the hind legs of an earth pony would knock the most apples from the tree without hurting it. Then, I say, “I want you to kick this target with your hind legs.”

Again with no evident expression, Diane restates, “You want me to learn apple bucking. Very well. I shall try.” And, with that, she turns her behind to the tree, backs until her tail nearly touches the trunk, looks behind her, lowers her front half, walks her hind legs a step forward, then jumps her hind legs and pushes them with as much force as she can muster with her forelimbs acting as springs.

The good news is she manages to knock two, no make that three, apples out of the tree.

The bad news is one leg misses the center, so she ends up with that leg pointing upward.

I must admit, when I see her in that position, I find myself wincing in sympathy at what must be a painful position for her.

On the other hand, I have to restrain myself from laughing when I hear her emotionlessly say, “Ow.”

I clear my throat to keep from laughing before I ask, “Are you alright?”

Diane takes a step forward from the tree, and I can see that there seems to be no permanent damage as the leg that was bent upwards provides her a landing place as it rotates a hundred eighty degrees downward again. She then looks behind her at the leg as she kicks outward with it a few times, before she turns to my character, to me, and says, setting the leg under her again, “I shall be fine.”

I ask, “Would you like to try again?”

Diane doesn't answer vocally, but she tries the same technique to kick the tree where my character placed the bull's eye. But, this time, she ends up straddling the trunk, pinning her tail between her behind and the bark, ending up in a position that, if it were a stallion that had ended up that way, I imagine would likely be especially painful. But, at least she manages to knock another two, uh three, apples from the tree.

As I watch her stumble forward away from the tree and land on her behind, I say, “Maybe we should call it quits for today. We can try again later, when you've healed up from this practice run.”

I think I see a tear stream down the pink mare's face as she says, “A good idea. I will need your help getting over the fence again.”

I have my character walk over to the pink pony and grab her under her front half, then carry her to the fence, then carefully place her on all four hooves on the other side, before he retrieves the apples that Diane managed to knock out of the tree.

As my character turns to watch the pink pony, I can see that it's Diane that's still in control as she limps back toward the house. While I'm sure she'll recover, I just have to wonder how long that recovery will take.

My character follows Diane to the steps, then picks her up and carries her up to the porch, then puts her down long enough to get the door open.

Diane limps through the door and toward the couch where she can get the best vantage point of the front door, while my character heads into the kitchen with the half dozen apples the pink pony managed to kick out of the tree.

As my character places the apples in the sink, I hear Diane from in the front room say, “No, Pinkamena, this is not the time for you to … “

Presently I hear Pinkamena complain, “Ow, ow, ow, ow! Diane, what did you do?”

Diane answers, “Please, forgive me. I learned that there's more to apple bucking than I first thought.” After a few seconds, I then hear Diane ask, “How did that green lizard get in here?”

I have to wonder to myself, a green lizard? Then I realize I forgot to have my character close the front door. I have him enter the front room and circle around the closest couch to show me a green hatchling alligator. And, for me anyway, there's definitely something familiar about the little reptile.

As the newcomer and Diane stare at each other, I have my character circle around them to reach and close the front door, when the alligator opens its mouth to snap at him. And, just then, I notice something about the alligator: It has no teeth. I have to wonder, is this alligator that young?

Then I notice Pinkamena take control to get a closer look at the alligator. In spite of the evident pain in her back half, Pinkamena Pie does manage to amble a few steps forward to have a look at the visitor. As she lowers her front half toward the reptile, she says, “Hi there.”

The alligator only responds by blinking its right eye, then left eye, in rapid succession.

I have my character make another move toward the door to close it, only for the alligator to snap at him again.

The observant Pinkie Pie, noticing the inside of the little reptile's mouth, says, “You don't have any teeth. Just gums.”

The alligator turns to Pinkie, twitches its tail, then blinks its eyes the way it did before.

Pinkie Pie says, “I think I'll call you Gummy.” She then pushes herself, evidently slowly and painfully, up to quadruped standing position again, looks up at my character, and asks, “So, Mormon, can I keep him?”

My character manages to get to the door again and close it before turning to the pink earth mare, and I say, “I suppose it'll be alright. But, you do realize Gummy's a carnivore.”

Pinkie Pie responds, “That's why you're the best one to feed him. He doesn't have any teeth, so he won't hurt you.”

I think aloud, “I wonder if he's capable to catching fish for his own food.”

I can only guess that the alligator is responding to my thought when he opens his mouth and makes what I imagine is the closest thing a hatchling alligator can make to a roar or cry, basically the sound effect I've come to recognize as the distress call of a hatchling alligator.

I hear Pinkie Pie say, “I think he wants you to open the door again. He wants to go outside.”

I do have my character focused on the alligator, Gummy, when I say, “If you'll give me a moment to help Pinkie Pie get onto the couch and take care of her injuries, I'll open the door for you afterward.”

This time, Gummy blinks both eyes simultaneously, then slowly makes his way to the door.

Since I don't hear Pinkie Pie interpreting for him, I can only assume he agrees.

When my character turns to look at Pinkie Pie, I notice it's Diane back in control. I have my character walk to her and pick her up just behind her forelimbs, then carefully place her on the couch. During this time, I notice she isn't bleeding. A good sign, or so I assume. I take it to mean she should heal just fine, possibly be back to bouncing around again by tomorrow.

In the mean time, I send my character into the kitchen to fetch an ice pack from the freezer, the upper part of the fridge, then return to place it under Pinkie Pie's backside.

Diane cooperates easily enough, although she grimaces a little when she sits down on the ice-cold object.

I have my character stroke the pink earth pony on her neck with the back of his fingers as I say, “Gummy and I will be back to see if he can catch his own fish.”

Diane answers, “I'm sure he can. He just wants to show you that he's capable.”

I have my character stand up again and head to the door and open it.

As soon as the door opens enough, Gummy runs through it.

My character opens the door the rest of the way, and I can see through his eyes that Gummy is already down the stairs and heading toward the pond.

Evidently he already knows the way there.

My character has to run to catch up to the surprisingly fast hatchling, whose entrance into the pond is made evident by a splash sound effect that sounds like a cobble hitting the water.

Perhaps a minute or two after my character arrives at the side of the pond, Gummy comes out holding a fish not quite as big as him in his mouth. He then crawls triumphantly past me and back toward the house, surprising me again with his ability to keep hold of the fish, despite it flapping around, trying to free itself from the alligator's hold on it.

The two return to the house where I notice two things. First of all I once again forgot to have my character close the front door; and second of all Gummy has no problems making his way up the stairs to the porch, despite his size.

I'm about to have my character close the front door again, that is until I hear Vinyl Scratch's voice say, “We saw you chasing a lizard out of your house and to your pond? Is everything alright?”

I have my character turn to the white unicorn, and I notice her goggles are above her horn. Seeing the look of concern on her face, I say, “Pinkie Pie has a new friend, an alligator. He was just showing me that he can catch his own food.”

As my character looks down at the hatchling alligator, I can only assume he's using his tongue to help maneuver the fish around so its head is facing into his mouth.

After that, Gummy snaps a few times, enough to swallow the fish whole. He then licks his lips before slowly making his way to the couch to sit at its base, evidently wanting to attend to Pinkie Pie.

I hear Vinyl groan with disgust before she says, “Well, just so long as he sticks to eating fish, I guess it's alright if he stays.”

Diane answers, “He has no teeth, so he wouldn't be able to hurt you.”

Vinyl says, “Well, that's cool. Anyway, I noticed you trying to buck apples out of one of the trees. Are you alright?”

Diane answers, “I'll be fine.”

As my character turns to the white unicorn, I add, “We did manage to get a half a dozen apples for two bucks.” Looking at her face, I seriously doubt Vinyl understood my joke.

On the other hand, as my character turns to look at Diane, I'm guessing, by the smile on her face, that she understood.

In the mean time, I hear Vinyl say, “Well, as long as everything's alright, I'm gonna go back and help Trixie and Octy with the theater. And, Mormon, you might want to have a look at it. It's looking really good so far.”

Diane answers, “Go ahead,” then turns her head, the best she can, in Gummy's direction.

My character nods in agreement, then follows the white unicorn outside, closing the door behind him this time, then walks over to the mobile theater.

I can't help noticing how well constructed the theater is, although still incomplete. Even at this stage of development (no pun intended), any hinges that would allow the theater to collapse into a more compact form are well hidden. About all it needs now is a ceiling and a curtain, as the side walls are complete, and the back wall is nearly so. And, I might add, the theater, wheels included, stands a few inches above my character's head. One thing I have to wonder about, although I'm not sure if I should ask, is if Trixie plans on having decorative paneling on the outsides of her walls. I can wait until later for that.

As my character circles around the theater, I can't help noticing how thin it is, especially compared to it's length and height. I say, “Well, this theater is coming along very nicely.”

Trixie, who is there to meet my character as he comes around the front wheels, says, “Well, thank you. I agree. I must admit, the building has come along faster than I expected.”

I have my character nod before I say, “So, how long do you think it'll be before your theater is complete?”

Trixie turns to the structure, then back to my character, before saying, “At this rate, it should be complete and ready for a test run by tomorrow evening.”

I state, “It sounds like it's coming along extremely well.” Then, a thought occurs to me; and I ask, “So, when your theater's complete, what kind of magic acts do you plan on performing?”

Trixie, who'd been smiling up to this point, now frowns and droops a bit as she says, “I don't know that I'll be performing my usual acts from now on. I get the feeling that my audiences are getting tired of them. And, after what happened the last time I performed in Ponyville, I'm thinking it's probably not a good idea to talk about my magic having beaten an Ursa Major.”

I answer, “Yeah, you're probably right about that. From what I saw when I got back, you were lucky to get out with what you had left after the Ursa that attacked left.”

The fact of the matter is I know what happened. I still remember very clearly from watching the "Boast Busters" episode that Snips and Snails wanted to see Trixie beat an Ursa Major, so they got an Ursa Minor, thinking it was an Ursa Major, to follow them into Ponyville, hoping their heroine could defeat it. Trixie had panicked and run off, the Ursa Minor had destroyed her theater, and it was Twilight Sparkle who had managed to calm the Ursa down, giving it a bottle and returning it to it's cave with the Ursa Major. But, this is the sort of thing I decide not to tell Trixie.

When I don't get a response from my comment, I ask, “So, what kind of act do you plan on putting on?”

The blue unicorn marches slowly in front of my character as she says, “Well, I've been reading the Book of Mormon, since it's one of the few things of mine that survived the Ursa attack, and I've noticed there are a lot of interesting stories in that book. I've been thinking of doing puppet shows of those stories.” She then turns to me and asks, “Would that be alright with you?”

I, for one, have seen stories from the Book of Mormon brought to life in many forms: nearly direct stories in movies, variations in anime stories, even live-action stage plays. And, while I haven't really programmed my game for puppet shows depicting stories, I'm sure I have programmed the game to allow for such a possibility. And besides, if the Trixie from the animated series were to propose such an idea to me, I'm sure there would be no problem with me agreeing to it.

I say, “Sure. Sounds interesting.”

Presently, Trixie smiles and squees, then says, “Thank you, Mormon, thank you. Tonight, I'll get to work on the puppets.” She then pauses for a moment before asking, “Do you have a room where I can work on the puppets without disturbing anypony?”

I answer, “Well, as a matter of fact, I do have a work room where I'm sure you can work on your puppets without disturbing anyone.”

I'm almost surprised that Trixie isn't bouncing around like Pinkie Pie as she says, “Yes, yes, yes! After dinner tonight, I'll get to work on it.” I lose track of what else she says as she returns to her theater, supervising and helping again with the construction.

At this point, I decide to send my character back inside and see how Pinkie Pie is doing. One thing I wonder about is if I can expect to find Diane still in control, or do I find that Pinkamena has taken over? Either way, I'll know how well Pinkie Pie is doing, and how well she's recovering.

As my character enters the house, and after closing the door behind him, he turns to the couch where I expect to find Pinkie Pie and walks toward it, to show me that it is still Diane in control. As he continues to approach the pink pony, I can see that she's been relaxing as much as possible, and tears have been streaming from her eyes, or at least the one eye I can see.

When my character is close enough to her, he kneels on one knee and starts stroking her mane; and I ask, “Are you alright?”

Diane answers, “I did not intend that Pinkamena should feel the pain. I had hoped that I should maintain control for the whole time that this body recovers.”

I say, “Well, just so long as you're feeling better, that's all that matters to me.” Then, I wonder aloud, “Hmm, do you think Pinkamena understands why you wanted to stay in control of your body?”

Diane inhales and exhales in a sigh, then answers, “She probably does now. She hasn't let me know why she decided to take control when she did. She's only agreed to let me have control until this body recovers enough that there is no more pain.”

I have my character stand up again, which cancels out his further stroking Pinkie Pie's mane, while I say, “Well, I'll let you get to it, then. I have something I need to get to in the kitchen, anyway. I am sorry about you hurting yourself, though.”

Diane says, “It is nothing this body cannot recover from. Besides, while I'm not entirely sure why, I do understand you were trying to teach me a new skill. When I'm ready, I will continue to learn that skill.”

I answer, “That's good to hear.” Then, I have my character return to the kitchen to clean off the apples.

Before he can maneuver around the couch, though, I hear Gummy vocalize for a split second, which I suppose is the closest thing to a bark that a hatchling alligator can make.

As my character turns to the alligator, I can see him propped up against the couch, blinking his purple-red eyes and seemingly trying to climb up onto the couch with Pinkie Pie.

I ask, “Do you want to be on the couch with Pinkie?”

My character doesn't wait for an answer before he reaches out to try to help Gummy get onto the couch, only for the little alligator to drop down and snap at him.

As my character pulls away from the alligator again, I ask, “Are you just worried about her?”

Gummy looks up at my character and blinks his right eye, then his left eye, which I can only assume is an affirmation.

I smile and say, “I'm sure Pinkie Pie appreciates that you care about her. She'll be fine.”

And, that's when Diane says, “As a matter of fact, we do appreciate that Gummy cares about us.” Then, as my character turns his attention to her, I notice she lowers her head and closes her eyes, leading me to assume she's falling asleep.

When my character turns his attention back to the little alligator, I continue, “You know, I've heard of people, where I come from, who keep cats as pets, and they consider themselves owned by the cats. I wonder if Pinkie Pie, seeing how much you care about her, considers herself owned by you.” I decide to say no more as I have my character head into the kitchen.

I find it strange that I don't notice, until I'm in the process of cleaning the apples, that Lyra is at the table. That is, not until she says, “I need something to do.”

I answer, “I see no reason why you couldn't go outside and help Trixie and the others with building her mobile theater.” At this point, my character finishes cleaning the first apple and puts it in the drying tray.

In the mean time, Lyra answers, “I don't know if you've noticed or not, but Trixie's mobile theater is nearly completed. About all she needs is to build the roof, the ceiling, and put that on top, and she'll be done.”

As my character chooses the next apple and holds it under the stream of water from the tap, I ask, “Well, couldn't you go offer to help with that?”

That's when Lyra continues, “And, besides, what about that predatory lizard in the front room?”

I ask, “I assume you're talking about the alligator?”

Lyra answers, “That's the one.”

I state, “Pinkie named him Gummy. He's taking care of her. He's kind of her new pet. And, the predator has no teeth.”

Lyra whimpers, “I'm not worried about him attacking me.”

As my character puts the second now-clean apple in the drying tray and chooses the next one from the sink, I state, “Gummy's too preoccupied with caring for Pinkie Pie to attack another pony. I'm sure the only reason he'd attack you is if he thought you were going to hurt Pinkie Pie. And besides, he's already eaten a fish that was about as big as him.”

Presently I hear Lyra say, “Alright, now I'm confused. Why would a predatory lizard take an interest in a pony, much less Pinkie Pie?”

I don't say anything until my character puts the third apple in the drying tray, then picks up the fourth and proceeds to clean it. At that point, I say, “I know Gummy doesn't have any teeth, like I mentioned before. If he's unable to grow teeth, he may have been rejected by his mother, and is thus seeking that kind of companionship from Pinkie Pie. And, if he is, in fact, unable to grow teeth, that would no doubt be a disability to him, to any alligator, or any predator for that matter. I don't know how alligators think, so I can't say for sure. But, I also have to wonder if he considers Pinkie Pie also disabled, seeing that she behaves differently from other ponies, and wants to join forces with her for that reason.

“Whatever Gummy's reasons are, it's clear to me that he doesn't want to hurt her.”

I think I hear a smile in the pale-green unicorn's voice as she says, “If the lizard really has no teeth, like you said, and can't grow any, he probably wouldn't be able to hurt her even if he wanted to. For that matter, he wouldn't be able to hurt me.” A second later, I hear a thud from behind my character, suggesting that Lyra has jumped or fallen off her chair, then her voice as she moves past him, saying, “Alright, I'll go ahead and offer to help with the mobile theater.” After that, the only indication I get that she's heading in that direction is the door opening, hoof-falls through it, and the door closing again.

My character takes a minute to clean each of the last two apples, then I have him choose the first of the apples to offer to Pinkie Pie. Then, he enters the room; and I see through his eyes that Pinkie Pie, or specifically Diane, is sleeping soundly on the couch. At that point, I decide to leave her alone so he can get her rest.

Now, it seems that the only problem is, as my character peers out one of the windows and shows me that there's plenty of daylight outside, he's the only one left without something to do at the moment. Fortunately, there are options.

The first thing I think of is to send my character on another fishing expedition to the pond. And, just in case Gummy needs to contact me if there's a problem with Pinkie Pie, after my character gathers his fishing equipment, I have him leave the front door open just enough so Gummy can get through.

Once he's outside, my character makes his way to the pond and promptly casts his line in. He then sits and watches, allowing me to watch as well, for activity either at the end of the line, or at the end of the fishing pole.

It seems to take some time, at least one minute I'd say, before there's some activity in the line. Then, after the line starts uncurling in the direction of the hook, in a second it straightens out, and the end of the fishing pole bows in the direction of the line.

Immediately my character takes action, grabbing the pole and yanking at it to snag the fish with the hook. Once the hook is set and the fish starts fighting to escape, indicating it's trapped, my character starts reeling it in.

I have to give this fish some credit. It puts up a good fight against my character. There are times when my character stops reeling, then the fish jumps, and my character starts reeling the fish in again.

The battle with the fish continues for perhaps another minute or two until the fish is close to shore, at which point my character grabs the fishing net and catches the fish in it. From that point on, it's just a matter of getting the fish in the box, then carrying it back to the house to clean it, then fry and eat it.

Since the ponies living at my character's house already know of his omnivory, I see no reason to inform them of the fish he most recently caught. Instead, I have him take it in the house immediately and into the kitchen to prepare and eat it.

The preparation of this fish is no different from the preparation of the first fish my character caught. And, there's no real difference in the process of eating it, either. That is, not until Gummy comes in, evidently interested in the origin of the smell.

By the time the little alligator has entered the kitchen, my character has eaten half the fish.

As my character shows me that the alligator is at his feet, I ask, “So, Gummy, is there something you want from me?”

Gummy licks his lips, blinks his eyes, and proceeds to climb up my character's leg.

In response, I have my character catch the little alligator, carefully put him on the floor, and I say, “Oh, no. You've already had your fish. This one's mine.”

Gummy responds by emitting his distress call.

My response to this is to say, “Of all the creatures here, as far as I know, there are only two of us capable of digesting meat. You've already eaten the fish you caught. Now, I caught this fish, and I intend to eat it.”

As my character goes back to eating the fish, Gummy runs back into the front room. From that point until my character finishes eating the fish, leaving only the bones behind, he has no further disturbances. He disposes of the fish bones, head, and internal organs, then cleans off the plate and silverware he used and puts them in the drying tray, moving the apples onto the top of the counter.

I also decide my character can have one of the apples, which my character agrees to.

He chooses one, then gets a knife and cuts the apple into eighths, then eats each slice, leaving only the stem behind.

Just then, the door opens again; and I hear Trixie's voice ask, “What's that smell? Is there an overheated fish somewhere?”

As my character turns to the source of the voice, I answer, “I caught a fish, then cleaned it out, fried it up, and ate it. That's most likely what you're smelling.”

The blue unicorn groans in disgust, then says, “I decided it was getting late enough that we should wait and finish the theater tomorrow. There's not that much left to do. We've built the roof, and that just needs to go on top. After that, I just need to test it to see if it'll fold away, unfold, and travel.”

I answer, “It sounds like you have things well in hand, uh, in hoof.”

Trixie answers, “We do. And, I wouldn't have been able to build a new theater without you. Thank you.”

I say, “I'm happy I could help.”

Trixie pauses for a moment before saying, “The others are out gathering food for dinner. If you've already eaten, you don't have to eat anymore.”

I answer, “I've already had some fish and one apple, but I could have a little more to eat.”

I see, through my character's eyes, the blue unicorn recoil a little before she says, “Well, you're welcome to join us if you're still hungry.”

Presently a thought crosses my mind, and I ask, “Oh, have you seen if Pinkie Pie's alright?”

Trixie pauses for a second, then answers, “She's still on the one couch. She's been talking to that little green lizard.” She pauses for a moment longer before asking, “Did you … did you withhold your fish from him?”

I answer, “Yes, I was greedy. I wouldn't let Gummy have any of my fish, which I wasn't finished eating at the time.”

I watch through my character's eyes as Trixie covers her mouth with a front hoof and gags. The good news is she doesn't empty her stomach onto the floor in front of my character.

I have my character kneel on one knee next to her and rub her back as I say, “I guess you're still not comfortable with human omnivory?”

Trixie manages to say, “Thanks … for understanding,” before running into the nearest bathroom.

The sound of a creature retching is usually unpleasant. But, it's especially so when it's as loud as Trixie is right now. If there were a creature in the room that Vinyl and Octavia share, I'm sure that creature could hear the blue unicorn.

About that time, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Vinyl Scratch, and Octavia enter the kitchen with their harvest.

Vinyl, hearing the sounds of the nauseated blue unicorn, turns to my character and, placing the berries she'd harvested on the counter, asks, “Is Trixie alright?”

I answer, “I guess there are some creatures that don't even like hearing about human omnivory.”

Octavia sniffs the air, then states, “Based on the smell, I'm guessing you've already prepared and eaten that fish you brought in.”

I answer, “That's right.”

The four herbivores groan, but they manage to prepare their harvest and place it on a tray, which I get for them.

The dinner proceeds without further incident, with Trixie managing to eat some of the fruit and vegetables.

After that, it's late enough that ponies, human, and dinosaur proceed to our rooms; I write my letter to the princesses informing them that about all I learned about unicorns today, or at least this evening, was that they seem to have trouble getting past dietary habits, particularly creatures that eat meat, strictly or otherwise. I inform them of the new member of the family, an alligator that Pinkie Pie adopted as her pet.

After that, I have my character retire to his bed.

It's been quite a day. From what I understand, the storm the pegasi put together lasts well into the night. I have to wonder if my influence has had any effect on the slumber party hosted by Twilight Sparkle, and attended by Rarity and Applejack. I know that in the episode "Look Before You Sleep," the constant bickering of the white unicorn and the orange earth pony spoiled the fun for their host. Will things have turned out the same this time? I guess I shall find out tomorrow when I resume this game. But, for now, it's time to save and close it.

Chapter 8: My Friend Zecora

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As I resume the game, it seems that my character is awakened by scratching and pounding at his bedroom door, with intermittent shouts from Pinkie Pie calling for him to wake up.

As my character gets out of bed, I call out, “Yes, I'm awake, Pinkie! And it sounds like you've recovered from last night's mishaps with the apple trees!”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Thank you, Mormon! Oh, and by the way, we've already got breakfast ready! Come and join us when you're ready!” She sings the first and last sentences.

I answer, “Will do!”

Then, as I hear Pinkie Pie's hoof-falls away from the door, I have my character walk to it, open it up, and head into the hallway, closing the door behind him. From there on, he proceeds to the kitchen where indeed Pinkie Pie, Weed Whacker, Lyra, Octavia, and Vinyl Scratch are nibbling on pieces of apple, with more slices on a platter on the table.

As my character grabs a slice of apple, I say, “Well, I guess today's the big day for you, Trixie. How close are you to completing your theater?”

The blue unicorn, in plain sight of my character, and thus me, freezes for a second, then swallows hard (I not only see it, I also hear it.), before saying, “Well, uh, you know, I, uh, just need to finish the roof, then, uh, I just need to, uh, put it on top of the, uh, theater. After that, uh, I just need to test the, uh, hinges and make sure that, uh, you know, I can fold it and unfold it, uh, when I need to.”

I do believe this is the first time I've heard any pony generate static like that when he or she spoke. And, Trixie used so much of it, one might forget much of what she'd said.

I have my character kneel on one knee in front of the azure unicorn, then I ask, “Trixie, are you alright?”

The piece of apple which had been possessed by the blue aura of Trixie's magic loses that aura and falls to the floor as Trixie, starting to tremble, says, “I'll be leaving either today or early tomorrow, as soon as my new theater is finished, as soon as it's tested, and once I've given you the show I promised.”

In such a brief period of time, the once cheerful atmosphere in the kitchen has become almost morbid.

Pinkie Pie is the first to speak, and it seems all she can say is, “Oh, Trixie.”

I ask, “So, you've completed the puppets you were working on?”

Trixie sniffles, but it seems her mood picks up as the answers, “I didn't need your work room after all. Since Pinkie Pie spent the night on the couch, she said it was alright for me to make the puppets in her room. I have all the puppets I need to tell the story I want to tell.”

I state, “I look forward to seeing and hearing you tell the story.” Thinking about it, I ask, “So, what story do you plan on telling?”

I notice her smile fades a bit as she looks down and says, “I'd like that to be a surprise. I'll tell you it's one from the Book of Mormon.”

I say, “Well, it ought to be a good one, then.” I hear Trixie sniffle again, so I have my character hold out a hand and place a pointer finger under her chin and gently lift it upward, forcing her to look up at him, at me, as I say, “It's been a real honor having you here.”

The blue unicorn sobs, “Now, Mormon, I'm not leaving yet.” Then, she forces a chuckle.

At this point, I have my character open his arms as I say, “Ah, just come here.”

In response, Trixie jumps into his arms. As he closes them around her, she continues to sob as she says, “No pony has ever been as nice to me as you've been. Thank you, Mormon, thank you so much.”

Right now, Trixie's sobs are the only ones I hear. I don't know if any of the other ponies are crying right now, I don't know if Weed Whacker is crying right now. All I know is that it's at least one minute before Trixie finally regains her composure and pushes away from my character.

As my character lets her go, carefully guiding her to the ground, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Well, we'd better get going. I don't want to be late for work.”

While my character is standing up, he looks around to show me that, while the other ponies, and for that matter Weed Whacker, now have frowns of sadness, none of them seem to have been crying.

I have my character grab a handful of the apple slices as I say, “Well, we'll see you when we get back.”

At this point, Lyra and Weed Whacker, who have been waiting near Pinkie Pie at the door, move aside as my character proceeds in that direction, opens the door, leads Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker into the front room, closes the door behind them, then proceeds to the front door to follow the same procedure.

Once all are outside, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “You know what, I think I'm actually gonna miss Trixie when she leaves. Who would've thought, huh? When she first came to Ponyville, after she made fools of my friends, I didn't want to see her again.” As we arrive at the front gate, she, immediately behind my character, continues, “Then she started making up with Rarity, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash, and we've actually become friends. And, it's all because of you, Mormon. Now, she's gonna be putting on puppet shows instead of her magic act.”

You know what, I find myself feeling the same way about the blue unicorn. As my character lets the two ponies and dinosaur out of the gate, I say, “I was telling the truth when I said it was an honor having her here. And, I find myself looking forward to her coming back after she does leave. In the mean time, we do have her puppet show to look forward to. I wonder what story she'll be telling.” I'm being honest with that last statement. There are many stories told in the Book of Mormon, some of which I've seen animated, acted, or otherwise told. I really do look forward to the story that Trixie has chosen to tell with her puppets.

In the mean time, as we head into the Everfree forest, I hear Pinkie Pie say, more like growl, almost under her breath, “Oh, Celestia, no. it can't be … her.”

My character looks at the source of the voice to show me Pinkie Pie staring at a hoof-print that's evidently deeper than those a pony would make. I ask, “Her, who?” In the mean time, my character looks at the path behind, then ahead, to show me that there are more of the unusually profound hoof-prints.

Pinkie Pie, her voice thick with either suspicion or anger, says, “Never mind. Let's just keep going. If we move quietly enough, we shouldn't have to bother with her.”

I decide not to press the matter, although I already have a good idea of who Pinkie Pie is referring to.

It takes us more than an hour just to get through the forest, with Pinkie Pie more slowly leading the way, and not allowing me to get ahead of her. From there, it's another ten or so minutes before we get to Sugar Cube Corner.

That close to the doorway, my character looks ahead to show me an equine, at least, covered in a cloak, pawing at the ground. Recognizing the stripes on her legs, I say, “Oh, her. I know her. She's Ze—“

Before I can finish my statement, Pinkie Pie herds my character and Weed Whacker into the bakery, with Lyra following close behind.

Once my character stabilizes again, I finish, “cora.” This comes after the pink party pony has closed the door behind the group.

In the darkness, I hear Applejack's voice ask, “What do you mean, you know Zecora?”

Then, despite the darkness, I find myself only able to see, through my character's eyes, the eyes of Rainbow Dash as she asks, “How often do you meet her?”

I open my mouth to answer, but Pinkie Pie beats me to it as she almost whispers, “We don't have time for that now. Twilight's out there.”

I, and evidently Rainbow Dash, turn to the doorway to see that the top part is still open. Evidently Pinkie Pie didn't close all of the door.

I watch as Pinkie Pie insistently beckons the purple unicorn into Sugar Cube Corner, then closes the top part of the door, completely darkening the room.

I hear Twilight's voice ask, “So, why are we alone in the dark?”

I choose to ignore, for the moment, the evident reference to the video game and movie.

Just as well, since I hear Applejack's voice answer, “You're not alone in the dark, Twilight.”

Don't ask me how, because I can't explain it. All I know is somehow the room brightens just enough so I can make out the shapes of other ponies in the room, as well as the dinosaur.

When it's clear that Twilight has adjusted to the new level of light, she says, “So, what are we hiding from?”

Presently, I hear Spike ask, “Zombie ponies?” And, that's when I realize that the purple dragon is on Twilight Sparkle's back.

I then hear Pinkie Pie, her voice trembling, say, “Zombie ponies?”

I can't help chuckling a little, which seems justified when Twilight Sparkle says, “There's no such thing as zombie ponies.” Then, with honest curiosity in her voice, she asks, “So, what are we hiding from?”

I hear the curtains open from some point to the right of my character, next to the door where Pinkie Pie escorted my character and Weed Whacker in; and I hear Applejack answer, “From her.” It's then that I realize it was Applejack that opened the curtain.

As the other ponies, except for Twilight, crouch to hide from the view out the window, I have my character stand where he is and look out at the cloaked zebra.

From there, I notice Zecora now between Sugar Cube Corner and the house clearly opposite, standing there and clawing the ground some more. After a few seconds, she turns in the direction of the open window, causing all ponies except for Twilight to recoil from her glowing yellow eyes.

I finally notice Applebloom in the room as she says, “Zecora.”

Now, before I continue with the story, let me just say that I'm familiar with the episode on which this day, and the day following, are based, the episode called “Bridle Gossip.” having said that, just because I'm familiar with the episode and have based two consecutive days on it, that doesn't mean I immediately notice all the characters in a dark room.

Now, continuing with the story, the little filly's big sister, Applejack, says to her, “Applebloom, didn't Ah tell you not to never say that name?”

In response, Applebloom whines, “But, Applejack, … “

Before the little yellow filly can protest further, I hear Rarity say, “Look at that.”

All of us look out the window just in time to see Zecora pull the hood back from her head.

Rarity continues, “Those stripes! How out-of-fashion can she be!”

Twilight answers, “She's a zebra. Those stripes aren't a fashion statement.”

I finally decide to speak up and add to Twilight's statement, “Actually, those stripes are how zebras defend themselves.”

All ponies in the room gasp, except for Twilight and Applebloom. But, even those two are focused on my character now.

The yellow earth filly asks, incredulously, “How can she defend herself with stripes?”

I answer, “When a herd of zebras gets together, generally all a predator can see when looking at the herd are lines of black and white. The predator can't pick out an individual, gets discouraged, and moves on; so, the zebras are safe.”

That's when Applejack says, “Well, what about where she lives?”

Rainbow Dash says, “That's right. She lives in … “

Then all the ponies in the room, again save for Twilight Sparkle and Applebloom, ominously say in unison, “The Everfree forest.”

Again I say, “So, what? I have to travel through the Everfree forest to get from my house to Ponyville and back again. You ponies have done the same thing, and none of you is afraid of me.”

I'm surprised to find that it's Applejack who says, “Yeah, we know you're not a threat. But, Zecora is.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie adds, “And besides, you live on the edge of the forest. Zecora actually lives in the forest.”

From that point on, the other four of the element bearers start talking about how Zecora is scary, mysterious, and all sorts of other nonsense. It all concludes with Pinkie Pie singing her infamous Evil Enchantress song.

At this point, I have to laugh. Not just at the absurdity of the song, but especially at Applejack trembling, holding her younger sister, and particularly when the little yellow filly pushes away from her.

When Pinkie Pie finishes her number standing on the table (and I do mean standing) and panting, I have to wonder if part of the reason is because she hadn't fully recovered from her lesson in apple bucking yesterday afternoon.

Just like in the animated series, I detect no sincerity in Twilight's voice when she says, “Wow, catchy.”

And, just like in the animated series, Pinkie Pie drops to all fours, closes her eyes and smiles and waves a front hoof, then says, “It's a work in progress.” But, unlike the animated series, I have her jump off the table before she speaks. She doesn't just suddenly appear off the table.

I've regained my composure by this point.

In the mean time, Twilight asks about what Zecora's done that makes her such a threat.

I find myself putting one of my hands on my forehead and shaking my head as I hear two of the ponies talk about things that Zecora does, which really aren't that different from what I've seen ponies do. I can't say I blame Twilight for reacting with mock fear to what each of the ponies says. Then, they get to the subject of Zecora digging in the dirt.

At this point, before Twilight can react again in mock fear, I throw my hands in front of me and say, “Well, with the way you ponies treat her, is it any wonder that she's nervous?” I'm sure my character isn't doing the same thing as me, so the ponies, except perhaps for Pinkie Pie, have no idea what I'm doing.

In the mean time, all the ponies turn to my character, and Applejack says, “What?”

I continue, “Well, think about it. Every time she comes into town, every pony goes into hiding. So far, about the only friend she's had around here has been me.”

Next, Applebloom adds, “Yeah, maybe she's just tryin' to be neighborly.”

Twilight continues, “And, maybe she's not lurking in front of the stores. Maybe she just wants to do some shopping, you know, the kind that doesn't involve lurking?”

Again Applebloom tries to take sides with me, or at least my character, and Twilight. That is, until her big sister, Applejack, pushes her away, something about the matter being for the big ponies to discuss. I can't blame the little filly for going out to approach Zecora on her own.

I suppose, if I wanted, I could make a prequel expansion that would allow me to begin the game before my first visit to Ponyville, at the point when my character first arrives, builds a home where it is, just outside of the Everfree forest, and makes friends with Zecora. But, my game isn't based on Zecora, it's based on Pinkie Pie. So, I've constructed a sort of back story about how Zecora helped the gamer's character build his house, thus becoming friends with him or her. And, seeing as how the other ponies shunned the strange equine, it was Applebloom who got tools and building supplies for Zecora, and thus her friendship with the zebra. Thus, with this back story, the gamer starts out already with one friend in the game. Now, back to the present story.

As I watch the little yellow earth filly walk out the door, trying to prove she's as mature as the others in Sugar Cube Corner, I find myself wanting to have my character join her, if for no other reason than to get away from the bickering. The only things holding me back are that, considering how big he is, he'd most certainly draw attention as he made his way to the door, and he'd very likely injure the ponies that are continually moving between him and that doorway. I suppose I could use the “ki tahi au” pause, but somehow I figure doing that would be equivalent to informing the ponies and Weed Whacker that I'd be leaving anyway.

By the time they notice that Applebloom is gone, she has been for, I'd say, three or four minutes, plenty of time for her to follow Zecora out of town. No one has to say anything about the possibility that Applejack's little sister has followed Zecora into the Everfree forest, but still it's the first thing that the orange earth mare says when they realize her little sister has disappeared. And, while I can understand her concern for her little sister, I still find myself disliking their attitude toward Zecora. Still, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character follow the Mane Six into the forest, past my character's house, in search of the little yellow filly.

Nothing is said before we reach my character's house. When we're passing in front of it, though, that's when Pinkie Pie turns to me and says, “If any of us could've noticed Applejack's little sister leave, you should've.”

I answer, “I did notice, and I was wanting to join her.”

Like a flock of birds, all seven ponies stop. They then turn to my character and say, “What?”

While Weed Whacker also stops, I think she's too surprised to join the ponies in their question.

I continue, “It really wasn't that difficult for Applebloom to prove herself more mature than you were acting.”

Twilight Sparkle, after a second, says, “Mormon's right. And, I would've joined him too.”

As the group turns their attention to the purple unicorn, a worried Applejack asks, “Twilight, how can you say that?”

Twilight, approaching my character, answers, “While everypony else was talking about how evil Zecora was, Mormon and Applebloom were the only ones saying nice things about her. Mormon even referred to Zecora as a friend of his.”

Pinkie Pie angrily growls and says, “We don't have time for this. Let's just find Applebloom before Zecora does something to her.”

As the group again starts making their way slowly into the forest past my character's house, the purple unicorn groans and says, “Whatever,” before taking the lead once again.

No more is said until we get to the infamous part of the trail where a patch of poison joke has grown over the pathway. And, I seem to be the only one that notices an alternate, thinner walkway around the patch of blue plants. But, it seems that Lyra and Weed Whacker maintain position between my character and the alternate trail, so he's unable to follow it, at least without hurting his pony and dinosaur friends. And, that leaves my character with his only option being to follow the group straight ahead.

And, wouldn't you know it, Applebloom, following closely behind the zebra, is clearly visible on the other side of the patch of blue plants.

The seven ponies run right into the patch of poison joke, trying to get to Applejack's little sister, with my character following a little more slowly behind them, as Applejack calls out to her little sister.

Both Applebloom and Zecora turn to the group of ponies in the blue plants as Applejack demands that her little sister come back to her.

As the little yellow earth filly pauses, evidently unsure whether or not to go back to her big sister in the middle of the patch of blue plants, Zecora warns, “Beware, beware, ye pony folk. Those leaves of blue are not a joke.”

In the mean time, Applejack bounds forward and scoops her little sister over her head and onto her back as she says, “You keep yer mumbo-jumbo to yerself, ya hear?”

I again apply my hand to my forehead and groan as the rest of the group, still amongst the poison joke, taunt the zebra.

Not the least among the groan-worthy taunting is Pinkie Pie gratingly singing a line from her Evil Enchantress song.

And, in the mean time, my character has also wandered into the patch of blue-leafed plants.

As Zecora disappears into the distant fog, she continues to warn the ponies of their danger. And, I wouldn't be surprised if she's warning my character as well.

Before Applejack can start chewing out her little sister, I say, “Come on, let's get outta here. You can continue your bickering when you get back to Ponyville.” And, with that, my character proceeds to turn around and head out of the poison joke patch, followed by the ponies. And, Weed Whacker, just outside the patch, climbs back on Lyra's back as soon as the pale-green unicorn is out.

Evidently the ponies are taking me literally, as there is no conversation, in fact nothing said, until the group arrives at my character's house again, at which point I have my character stop while I say, “The rest of you can go back to Ponyville. Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker and I are staying here.” And, with that, my character proceeds to open the gate and enter, followed by the two ponies and the dinosaur.

The remaining six ponies say nothing as they continue on their way into the Everfree forest, on their way back to Ponyville.

I say nothing more, and neither do the other three, until the group has made its way into the house and to the kitchen. Once there, Pinkie Pie and Lyra take seats at the table opposite each other, while Weed Whacker takes the remaining seat closest to the fridge, opposite where I'm standing.

I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie as I say, “I guess I should've mentioned before we got to Ponyville that I am friends with Zecora. Maybe I should've mentioned it when you first saw the hoof-prints, before we continued into the Everfree forest.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie says, “How can you be friends with that creepy Zecora? Didn't you hear my song?” And, with that, she immediately starts her Evil Enchantress song again.

I put a hasty end to the performance by shouting, “Pinkamena, that's enough!”

Looking at the pink pony's face, one would think she'd been caught face-first in an explosion.

I continue, “You're acting just like Gilda.” I'm not sure if the dead griffon would've sung a song, but it did seem like Pinkie Pie's actions were reminding me of her.

In the mean time, the pink pony looks down at the table, and her ears, mane, and tail seem to melt as she starts sniffling.

At this point, I decide to tell the back story: “Ponyville wasn't the first place I went to when I first came here. I decided to make my home where it is now, just outside of what you ponies call the Everfree forest. Zecora helped me build my home here, and because of that we became friends. She even helped me make the furniture, and move in the heavier appliances. So, I think you'll understand that I have a lot of respect and appreciation for her. And, I don't appreciate you bad-mouthing her.”

As Pinkie Pie starts whimpering, I hear Lyra say, “I think I deserve that as much as Pinkie Pie. I didn't know Zecora was one of your friends. I didn't mean, we didn't mean, to hurt your feelings. Can you forgive us?”

I have my character turn to the pale-green unicorn, and I note that she's as close to tears as Pinkie Pie is. I then have him kneel on one knee and open his arms while I say, “Come here, and let me give you a hug.”

In response, the two ponies jump off their chairs and run into my character's open arms, gripping him, and each sobbing into her chosen shoulder.

At this point, I have my character close his arms around them.

After a minute or two, the two mares push away from my character.

As he lets them go, I have him stand up again while I say, “Well, with that in the past, it seems to me that there was one among us who was smart enough to avoid stepping into the patch of poison joke; isn't that right, Weed Whacker?”

The little herbivorous dinosaur scratches the back of her neck with a forelimb as she says, “Well, I learned my lesson before we met. I tried eating some of the blue leaves, and believe me, that proved to be a really bad idea. Had it not been for Celestia, I don't know what would've happened to me. After that, I got the chance to serve you and Lyra and Pinkie Pie. And, as much as that ended up being a good thing, as long as I can help it, I'll never get close to even one poison joke plant ever again.”

Pinkie Pie tilts her head and asks, “Poison joke?”

I answer, “Those blue plants we wandered into.”

The pink pony straightens her head again as she emits an elongated “Oh!”

Then, Lyra says, “Well, I, for one, know it's not good for eating. But, we didn't eat any of it, so we should be fine, right?”

I answer, “I'm not really sure about that. I've heard things about poison joke.”

The two ponies and the dinosaur ask in unison, “What have you heard?”

I answer, “I've heard there's a good reason why it's called 'poison joke.' I've heard the effects are as unique as the creature it infects. I can't give you details on what those effects are, or can be, but I'm sure we'll find out soon enough that the effects will be on us.” After a few seconds of silence, I continue, “What I can say is that the poison joke takes effect, or starts to take effect, in the morning. In the mean time, if I'm not mistaken, there's a unicorn outside that's getting ready to put on a puppet show for us.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie perks up and says, “That's right. We've gotta see it before she leaves.”

I state, “Well, as long as the matter with Zecora is settled, I see no reason why we couldn't go out there now and watch, especially if Trixie's theater is ready. If you want to follow me out there, I plan on at least seeing if she's ready for us.” And, with that, I have my character walk to the door between the kitchen and the front room, open it, and walk through.

As my character turns around to close the door, he shows me that the two ponies and Weed Whacker are following behind him; so, he allows them to go through before closing the door behind them. After that, he proceeds to the front door and opens it, then allows his three followers to proceed ahead of him, after which he follows them out and closes the front door behind him and them. Then, as he looks at the gate, I can see through his eyes Zecora standing on the other side, this time without her cape, evidently digging at the ground. So, while the two ponies and the dinosaur proceed to talk to Trixie, I have my character head to the front gate to talk to Zecora.

Once my character is maybe a step or two away from the zebra, still separated by the gate, I say, “Zecora, how are you doing?”

I can see, through my character's eyes, the sadness on Zecora's face as she looks at him and says, “Not well, for I can clearly see that ponies are still afraid of me.”

I have my character turn around to look at Trixie's stage. And, as he looks, I notice that, while the roof is complete, it still isn't in place. Not only that, but I don't see Vinyl or Octavia anywhere in visible range. I can only guess they're cowering behind the house.

I have my character turn back to Zecora before I say, “Yeah, I see what you mean. But, at least I seem to have gotten through to Pinkie Pie and Lyra. And, I can only guess that Trixie hasn't heard ponies say anything bad about you, at least not anything she chooses to believe.”

Zecora smiles as she says, “It could also mean she's on my side. Seeing me, she's chosen not to hide.”

Then, the reason why I came out comes back to me, and I say, “Oh, as soon as Trixie's theater is complete and tested, she's gonna put on a puppet show for us. If you want, you can stay and watch it with us. I'm sure Trixie won't mind another member in her audience.”

The zebra maintains her smile as she answers, “Thank you, but I must refuse.” Then, she frowns as she adds, “Our friendship I wish not to abuse.”

I pause for a moment before saying, “I'm sure you won't be overstaying your welcome. Trixie was also something of an outcast in Ponyville, although in her case it was for a good reason. But, I'm sure I've patched things up between her and at least some of the Ponyvillians. And, besides, this isn't Ponyville. Still, the decision is yours to make.”

Again Zecora smiles as she says, “And I'm grateful that you would hear my voice.” Then, this time her frown is one of sternness as she adds, “But, I have already made my choice.”

I say, “Well, in that case, it's been nice getting another visit from you. I hope to see you again some time.”

Zecora nods as she says, “It has been a pleasure visiting you. But, now I have things I must do.”

As I watch, though my character's eyes, the zebra head into the forest, I get the feeling she'd wanted to say something about my character having been in the patch of poison joke with the ponies. If that was part of her reason for visiting me after a week of absence, my invitation to a viewing of Trixie's puppet show may have distracted her from that. Still, considering that I'm familiar with the episode on which this and the following day are based, the episode called "Bridle Gossip," I can figure Zecora will have a solution ready for when the ponies and I come to her under the influence of the poison joke. In the mean time, I need to get to the reason for her coming here.

I have my character turn to Trixie and her theater to head in that direction. Once he's gotten there, I ask, “So, how are things going with your theater?”

Trixie answers, “Well, as you can see, all I need to do to complete it is get the roof on it. Unfortunately, Vinyl Scratch and Octavia are hiding behind your house, as you can see.” And, she points behind my character's house.

As my character turns to see what Trixie's talking about, I see the two musical ponies indeed huddled together behind the house, out of view of the front gate.

I have my character walk to them before I say, “You can come out now. Zecora's gone.”

The two rise and sigh with relief.

Then, pointing at my character, Octavia asks, “W-wait. How do you know Zecora's name?”

As the gray earth pony puts her hoof down, Vinyl sits canine-style as she also points to me with a front hoof and asks, “Does that mean … you're friends with her?”

As the white unicorn and the gray earth pony look at each other, I answer, “Yes, she is one of my friends. And, let me tell you something: She's nowhere near as bad as you think she is.”

I had their attention when I answered their question. But, now they look at each other again and shout, “Mormon's friends with Zecora!”

Then, from behind my character I hear a familiar voice groan. As my character turns to show me the source, I see and hear an angry Pinkie Pie march toward the two musical ponies as she says, “Yes, we've established that Mormon is friends with Zecora. Now, let's get past that.” She stops when she's almost touching noses with Vinyl as she says, “Now, Trixie needs your help getting the roof on top of her stage. Then, she's going to treat us to her first puppet show. Now, are you going to help her and Lyra, or are they going to have to get that roof up there by themselves?”

The white unicorn, head lowered, reminding me of a dog that's just lost its fight for dominance, trots past Pinkie Pie and toward the not-quite-complete theater to help Trixie and Lyra place the roof.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie turns to Octavia, who takes a step back from her. The angry pink pony says, “I'm disappointed in you. Evil enchantress, you said. Evil dances, you said. Cooks ponies in a big, tasty stew? She's friends with Mormon!” With each sentence Pinkie Pie takes a step toward Octavia.

The gray mare, on the other hand, not wanting a confrontation with the furious pink pony, has been stumbling backward to keep some distance between the two of them, looking up at my character every once in a while as if to beg him to call off the pink fury. When Pinkie Pie seems to be finished talking, Octavia stammers, “I-I was j-just s-saying what others t-told m-me.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie snarls, “And, you didn't think to check to see if it was true or not?” Then, for a moment, Pinkie Pie pauses. When she speaks again, I hear her say, “Alright, I guess I could've found out for myself if what you'd told me was true. Hay, I should've gone to find out if all I'd heard was true. Then I would've known better than to make up that stupid song!”

She sounds sincere now. But, I figure the real test of her sincerity will come tomorrow, when the poison joke has placed on her tongue the curse of Daffy Duck.

In the mean time, she goes back to snarling, “Still, there's the fact that she's friends with Mormon. And, let me tell you something. No friend of Mormon is anywhere near as bad as everypony's been saying Zecora is!”

I must admit, right now I feel like applauding Pinkie Pie. As she stomps off toward the theater, I have my character walk next to her as I ask, “Are you alright?”

Pinkie Pie's march toward the theater softens as she looks up at me and says, “Yeah, I'm fine. It's just that … I feel like everypony lied to me about Zecora.”

I can see, through my character's eyes, the expression on the pink earth pony's face, a mixture of anger and sadness. I answer, “It's easy to make wrong judgments of a creature that's a mystery to everyone. After all, when I first arrived in Ponyville, I was attacked by three stallions. I can understand that, at the time, all you ponies saw me as a human, and thought I was going to hurt you somehow. I had to prove that I wasn't out to hurt any of you. Since then, I've made friends with those three stallions.”

Pinkie Pie states, “You've made friends with a lot of us.”

I add, “Also, I appreciate what you said about my relationship with Zecora, that friends of mine aren't that bad.”

Pinkie Pie says, “Well, how could they be? You're a good human.”

If there's one thing I can appreciate about what Pinkie Pie said, it's the suggestion that I'm a good influence on my friends. I've certainly been trying to be one on her, and that's evidently been paying off. But, we arrived at the mobile theater a minute or so ago, and we've been standing there, talking to each other.

In the mean time, the unicorns have been magically and literally raising the roof of the theater, putting it in place, then securing it with nails. Judging by the sounds, I'm guessing it won't be long before the theater's ready for its test run.

Before I can open my mouth to say anything more, I hear Octavia's voice from behind my character say, “I guess I owe you an explanation.” As my character turns to focus on the gray earth pony, I can see through his eyes the sorrow in hers as she continues, “Like I said to Pinkie Pie, I was only repeating what I'd heard others say about Zecora. When I first came to Ponyville, it was on the day of one of Zecora's visits. The streets were empty, and it was Mayor Mare that called me into her home, saying she was trying to keep me safe from the strange horse that had wandered into town. She was the one that talked about Zecora being an enchantress, and the other stuff I told you about, Pinkie Pie. I believed her because she's older than me, and I figured she wouldn't lie. You feel betrayed? Well, I know how you feel; I feel the same way.

“I should've found out for myself if what I'd heard about Zecora was true. I had no idea she was a friend of yours, Mormon. Of course, at the time, I didn't even know you existed, much less that you're a good human. I'm sorry if I offended you, both of you. Can you forgive me?”

It's true what they say. What goes around comes around. I've evidently set the standard for repenting to others. I answer, “Yes, Octavia, I forgive you.”

Pinkie Pie, who had evidently also been listening to Octavia's explanation, is more energetic with her acceptance, jumping toward the gray earth pony and tackling her in a big hug as she answers, “Oh, of course I forgive you, Octy!”

While the pink pony's energetic approach doesn't completely knock Octavia over, it does knock her backward into the familiar canine sitting position. But, in that position, the gray mare hugs Pinkie Pie back, and the two weep into each other's shoulders and mane.

In the mean time, the lack of hammering from the roof of the theater suggests to me that work on the mobile theater is complete, at least for now.

As I have my character turn to look at the theater, I get confirmation as I hear Trixie say, “Well, that's all that needs to be done. And, I've been working on the puppets and the story I plan to tell with them. But, first I need to test this theater and see if I can get it to fold away like I need it to.”

Lyra, Vinyl, and my character back away from the theater as it, possessed by Trixie's blue magic, folds, almost like an accordion, into a compact space, joints becoming visible only for an instant as walls, roof and floor become zig-zagged to make the stage appear to almost shrink. When the stage has become as compact as it can, it then comes open again, expanding with the straightening of the joints until the theater is back to its original shape. And, I might add, its only the corners that don't have those folding joints.

With the successful folding and unfolding of the theater, I hear Trixie's voice say, “Well, I guess all that's left is for me to put on the show that I promised.”

I give it a moment's thought before I say, “Why don't we roll your theater out onto the front lawn? Considering the scripture readings have been there, I think it's only appropriate to have your first puppet show there, as well.”

My character, in the mean time, has turned his attention to the blue unicorn.

And, at this point, blue seems to be an appropriate color for her. She says no more, just nods as she uses her magic to pull her new stage into position on the front lawn. And, she's just hanging her head and frowning.

I choose not to pay too much attention to her, but turn my character's attention to the two earth ponies, who by now have separated and are watching the new theater fold again before moving into position on the front lawn of my character's house.

I ask, “Do you know where Weed Whacker is?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “I think she's still in the house.”

Then, I hear Weed Whacker's voice to my character's left say, “Actually, I'm right here.”

My character turns his attention to the source of the voice, and I see the little dinosaur looking up at him. I then have my character look at each of the ponies as I count heads to make sure all are present. When I see that all are outside, I state, “Well, it looks like we're all ready to watch Trixie's puppet show. So, shall we all gather around in front of the theater?”

I don't get a vocal response, but ponies and dinosaur move to the side of the lawn opposite the theater to watch the show that Trixie has planned for her small audience.

As the blue unicorn trots onto the stage, she says, “Welcome, welcome, one and all, to the first puppet show of Trixie the Storyteller!”

I have to say, I'm finding it pleasing to her that Trixie's no longer referring to herself as great and powerful. In fact, the title 'Trixie the Storyteller' has a nice ring to it, a lot better, in my opinion, than 'The Great and Powerful Trixie.'

In the mean time, the blue unicorn continues, “Tonight, I will be presenting to you the story of a family of humans from long ago, a story that took place a long time ago, in a land far far away.”

At this point, I have to wonder: When did Star Wars become part of My Little Pony?

Trixie continues, “It is a time when the home town of this family has fallen into great evil, when the people that lived in this town stopped believing in their God, and were worshiping false gods. During this time, a man named Lehi, called by his God, preached to his home town, warning them that they needed to repent or they would face destruction. But, when the people of his home town were ready to kill him for his preaching, God told him to leave his home and take his family with him. And, this is where our story begins, a few days after Lehi and his wife and children have left his home town, Jerusalem.”

I should mention at this point that the curtain from Trixie's original stage is part of this theater. And, it still does a good job covering the scenes behind it.

Trixie disappears from the stage, and immediately the curtain opens on a scene depicting a tent with a puppet depicting an old man, Lehi, sitting in front of it, out in a desolate desert. Surprisingly accurate, considering the chapters involved only mention a wilderness, not specifically a desolate desert. And then, a puppet depicting Nephi enters the scene. And, I do recognize the puppet depiction easily. And, I might add, the puppet's walking is surprisingly similar to how my character walks.

Evidently, Trixie's been paying attention to how my character moves. And, I might also add, Trixie is making these puppets move while evidently reading directly from the Book of Mormon.

As Trixie narrates, the puppets depict Lehi telling Nephi that he and his brothers need to return to Jerusalem to get the records on brass plates from Laban. The first scene closes with Nephi agreeing to go, and Lehi demonstrating approval of his youngest son's decision.

Trixie takes a minute to narrate the travels of the four brothers from their father's tent to Jerusalem, at which point the curtain opens again to a scene outside what appear to be the white brick walls of a castle. Four puppets depicting Laman, Lemuel, Sam and Nephi walk up to the walls, discuss who should go in first, then draw straws to decide who should go in, with Laman drawing the longest straw. And then the curtain closes on this second act.

At this point, I must say, I find myself surprised at how quickly and easily Trixie has been able to change scenes, especially with no evidence, none that I can sense, of activity behind the curtains.

After Trixie spends another minute, or nearly that amount of time, talking about Laman going to see Laban, the curtain opens again on a scene with a lot of shiny, yellow metal objects, or at least objects around one puppet that's facing the audience, while another puppet has his back to the audience. The puppet with his back to the audience requests the brass plates from the puppet facing the audience, and that puppet then glares at the other puppet and orders his men to pursue and kill the puppet that, to me anyway, clearly depicts Laman, calling him a thief, a robber. And thus the curtain closes on the third act.

Trixie takes about another minute to describe Laman running from Laban's forces back out of the city, at which point the curtain opens again on the scene of the four brothers at the walls of the city, where Laman reports the results of his meeting with Laban. Three of the brothers, evidently discouraged by the failure, decide they should go back without the records; but the fourth, Nephi, says that they should go back only when they've gotten the records from Laban. At that point, he starts offering a plan, at which point the curtain closes on this fourth act.

At this point, Trixie spends more than a minute describing the four brothers gathering their remaining possessions from their home, then heading back to Laban. The curtain then opens on the scene once again depicting Laban's treasury, where one puppet is facing the audience again, but this time there are not just one, but four puppets with their backs to the audience. The four brothers offer a huge treasure to Laban for the records, but he looks hungrily at the treasure, then orders his men to chase the four brothers away, forcing them to leave their treasure behind. And thus the curtain closes on the fifth act with Laban claiming the possessions of the four brothers.

Trixie narrates how the forces of Laban, who has now become a robber, a thief, chase the four brothers out of Jerusalem; and how they take shelter in a hole in a rock, and watch as Laban's men run past them. At this point, the curtain opens on the scene of the four brothers hiding in a hollowed-out rock, where two of the brothers turn on the other two, and one of them grabs a stick and starts beating one of the others with it. I must admit, I'm further surprised by the sudden appearance of a fifth puppet, evidently representing the angel that rescues the one brother, Nephi, from the beating his oldest brothers are giving him. And, after the angel tells them off for thus attacking their younger brother and disappears, the two older brothers again start bickering over how they're going to get the records from a man that can kill or command fifty men. That is, until Nephi says that they should try again, trusting that God will deliver them from Laman and his army of fifty, or even his army of tens of thousands. And thus the curtain closes on the sixth act.

Trixie narrates how Nephi enters the city alone, with no plans this time, before the curtain opens on a scene among buildings, and a street only wide enough for maybe two lines of people to walk either side-by-side or in opposite directions without touching each other.

Again, I find the depiction surprisingly accurate.

Nephi enters the scene from off one side of the stage, walks up a street, and is seemingly attacked by a man coming from a nearby alley. As the attacker collapses, Nephi recognizes him as Laban, draws out Laban's sword from the sheath, and studies it. Then, as Trixie narrates, Nephi reacts to a voice hat tells him to kill Laban. I must say, I find Trixie's depiction of the conversation between Nephi and the spirit, and Nephi's realization that he must kill Laban in order to get the records, really fascinating, as the puppets really do seem to have come to life in this scene. Finally, Nephi beheads Laban, then removes the armor from the now dead body and dresses himself in it. And, this is when the curtain closes on the seventh act.

Trixie narrates how Nephi, dressed in Laban's armor, approaches Laban's treasury to get the records, meeting one of Laban's servants along the way, and the curtain opens again on the scene of Laban's treasury. This eighth act, depicting Nephi ordering Laban's servant to get the records on the brass plates for him, is a short one, especially compared to the previous scenes, and ends with the two walking out of the treasury, with Laban's servant carrying the plates, wrapped in a leather covering. And, this is the last time the curtain is closed.

In the mean time, Trixie narrates the rest of the story, how this servant of Laban, known as Zoram, discovers who has been with him the whole time, how Nephi stops him from turning back to the city, then promises him his freedom if he'll go with him and his brothers, and how the group of five return to their father's tent in the wilderness.

Finally, Trixie reappears on the stage and says, “You may wonder why it is that Lehi's God ordered him to leave his home town, Jerusalem, travel for a few days, and then send his sons back for the necessary records, when he could've just as easily gotten them there in Jerusalem before leaving. Well, the reason for this is simple.

“Lehi's God knew his son Nephi would have to kill Laban in order to get the records. He knew Lehi's sons would have to trade away all their property for those records, and that Laban would steal it from them. If, with their property gone and Laban dead in the streets, Lehi and his family had left with the records, say, the next morning, this would have made the people of Jerusalem suspicious, and they would've pursued Lehi and his family and brought them back to Jerusalem, so that they wouldn't have been able to escape the captivity that would befall the city.

“With Lehi thus unable to escape the destruction of Jerusalem, there would be no Nephites and Lamanites in South America, none in any of the Americas. There would be no people for the Christ to visit there after His resurrection. And, finally, there would be no Book of Mormon. So, we see that the God that Lehi served knew what he was doing, what he was commanding his servants to do.

“I thank you for attending this performance, and I hope you enjoyed it.”

Whether I'm the first to applaud or not, it doesn't matter. Being the only human present, I'm the only one to applaud by clapping hands.

Actually, that's not true. Weed Whacker, following my example, also claps her hands.

The ponies applaud by stomping their front hooves.

The biggest surprise of the show, though, has to be two deep, loud voices roaring behind the audience.

The applause immediately stops, and the audience, my character included, turns around to see an Ursa Major and an Ursa Minor evidently roaring in approval of what they saw of the puppet show. In a few seconds, they stop roaring; then, in a surprisingly human gesture, the Ursa Major raises a front paw to her forehead, evidently saluting Trixie for her storytelling. After that, she and her Ursa Minor turn and head off back into the Everfree forest.

The audience then turns back to face the storytelling unicorn.

The show of approval has clearly had a profound effect on Trixie, who looks like she's almost ready to cry. She asks, “You really liked the show?”

I have my character turn to her as I answer, “It was excellent. I must admit, I didn't expect you to show that Lehi and his family were in a desert. You were right on the mark with that one. And, you really brought those puppets to life. You really know how to tell a story. And, you can honestly say that your show pleased an Ursa Major and an Ursa Minor.” At this point, my character is right next to the stage.

Presently, Trixie wraps her forelimbs around my character's neck in a hug as she sobs, “Oh, thank you so much, Mormon. I'm glad I could please you with that show.”

You know, I think it's then that it dawns on me that Trixie will be heading out soon. And, it also dawns on me how much, in the short time she's been here, a part of my life she's been. Suddenly, I find myself questioning whether I want her to leave.

And, that's when guests start arriving for the reading, starting with the three stallions. And, that's also when I realize we haven't prepared any snacks for them.

Noticing guests starting to arrive, Trixie separates from me and shakes away her emotions, then folds away her theater and moves it back behind the house, away from the front lawn.

In the mean time, Weed Whacker heads to the vegetable garden, Lyra to the vineyard, and Pinkie Pie to the orchard, each to gather fruits and vegetables for snacks for the guests.

In the mean time, my three stallion friends have been the first to arrive; and they are followed by Applejack and her family, consisting of her grandmother Granny Smith, her brother Big MacIntosh, and her little sister Applebloom. Next are the rest of the Mane Six along with Spike, then Snips and Snails and their parents, then Mr. and Mrs. Cake, and finally Bon-Bon, who closely follows the Cakes. And, not long after that, the two princesses, Luna and Celestia, appear approximately where Trixie's stage has been when she'd put on her puppet show for us.

The time it takes for guests to arrive is evidently approximately the time it takes for Weed Whacker, Lyra, and Pinkie Pie to gather what they need for snacks. And, they're joined in the house by Trixie and Emerald Hill as they prepare the snacks.

Everyone outside at present, except for my character, forms a circle on the lawn and settles into their positions, evidently getting ready for the reading.

It takes a few minutes, after the circle has formed, for the remaining five in the house to come out carrying the platter with the snacks. At that point, some of the ponies have to rise again and move aside so the five carrying the snack platter can get in and place it approximately in the center. After that, Trixie joins Stunts, Pinkie Pie joins the rest of the element bearers, Emerald Hill joins his friends, Lyra joins Bon-Bon, and Weed Whacker and my character take their positions approximately on the opposite side of the circle from the princesses.

With all settled into their positions, I say, “Now, I have an announcement to make.”

At once all attention is turned to my character, and all, except for Trixie, Weed Whacker, Lyra, Pinkie Pie, Octavia, and Vinyl Scratch, tilt their heads in the same direction in curiosity.

Before I continue, let me just say that I remember seeing something like this on an episode of Pokemon, when a flock of taillow, listening to Team Rocket, similarly tilted their heads. The effect of so many heads tilting at the same time and to the same degree was, for me anyway, the feeling that the world or the scene through the camera had tilted. I find I'm getting that same somewhat disorienting effect and feeling here and now.

On with the story, I continue, “Trixie completed her new mobile stage today, and had a successful test run of it. So, she'll be leaving soon, either tonight or tomorrow, meaning this will be the last time, at least for a while, that she'll be taking part in these readings. Because of this, I'd like to ask her to begin the reading this evening.”

The blue unicorn mare looks surprised for a moment, but nods in agreement. She sniffles, then inhales deeply and exhales slowly, before calmly reading, “And it shall come to pass, that if the Gentiles shall hearken unto the Lamb of God in that day that he shall manifest himself unto them in word, and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their stumbling blocks—“

I have my character turn to the unicorn stallion next to her as I ask, “Stunts, will you read the next verse?”

He nods and reads, “And harden not their hearts against the Lamb of God, they shall be numbered among the seed of my father; yea, they shall be numbered among the house of Israel; and they shall be a blessed people upon the promised land forever; they shall be no more brought down into captivity; and the house of Israel shall no more be confounded.”

Next, Berry Ground reads, “And that great pit, which hath been digged for them by that great and abominable church, which was founded by the devil and his children, that he might lead away the souls of men down to hell—yea, that great pit which hath been digged for the destruction of men shall be filled by those who digged it, unto their utter destruction, saith the Lamb of God; not the destruction of the soul, save it be the casting of it into that hell which hath no end.”

Next is Emerald Hill, who reads, “For behold, this is according to the captivity of the devil, and also according to the justice of God, upon all those who will work wickedness and abomination before him.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me, Nephi, saying: Thou hast beheld that if the Gentiles repent it shall be well with them; and thou also knowest concerning the covenants of the Lord unto the house of Israel; and thou also hast heard that whoso repenteth not must perish.”

I read, “Therefore, wo be unto the Gentiles if it so be that they harden their hearts against the Lamb of God.”

Lyra reads, “For the time cometh, saith the Lamb of God, that I will work a great and a marvelous work among the children of men; a work which shall be everlasting, either on the one hand or on the other—either to the convincing of them unto peace and life eternal, or unto the deliverance of them to the hardness of their hearts and the blindness of their minds unto their being brought down into captivity, and also into destruction, both temporally and spiritually, according to the captivity of the devil, of which I have spoken.”

Bon-Bon reads, “And it came to pass that when the angel had spoken these words, he said unto me: Rememberest thou the covenants of the Father unto the house of Israel? I said unto him, Yea.”

The nearly-white-pink unicorn mare then reads, “And it came to pass that he said unto me: Look, and behold that great and abominable church, which is the mother of abominations, whose founder is the devil.”

Snails seems to have gone back to struggling as he reads, “And he said unto me: Behold there are save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil; wherefore, whoso belongeth not to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the mother of abominations; and she is the whore of all the earth.” However, I think it's because his heroine, Trixie, will be leaving soon. Whatever the case is, he still doesn't give up until he finishes the verse.

And, I wouldn't be surprised if Snips struggles with his verse for the same reason Snails struggled with his verse. Snips reads, “And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the whore of all the earth, and she sat upon many waters; and she had dominion over all the earth, among all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people.” To my surprise, Snips doesn't struggle at all.

The blue-green unicorn stallion reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld the church of the Lamb of God, and its numbers were few, because of the wickedness and abominations of the whore who sat upon many waters; nevertheless, I beheld that the church of the Lamb, who were the saints of God, were also upon all the face of the earth; and their dominions upon the face of the earth were small, because of the wickedness of the great whore whom I saw.”

Big MacIntosh then reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld that the great mother of abominations did gather together multitudes upon the face of all the earth, among all the nations of the Gentiles, to fight against the Lamb of God.”

Granny Smith reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the saints of the church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.”

Applebloom reads, “And it came to pass that I beheld that the wrath of God was poured out upon that great and abominable church, insomuch that there were wars and rumors of wars among all the nations and kindreds of the earth.”

Applejack reads, “And as there began to be wars and rumors of wars among all the nations which belonged to the mother of abominations, the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold, the wrath of God is upon the mother of harlots; and behold, thou seest all these things—“

Pinkie Pie reads, “And when the day cometh that the wrath of God is poured out upon the mother of harlots, which is the great and abominable church of all the earth, whose founder is the devil, then, at that day, the work of the Father shall commence, in preparing the way for the fulfilling of his covenants, which he hath made to his people who are of the house of Israel.”

Rarity seems to struggle as she reads, “And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me, saying: Look!”

Spike reads, “And I looked and beheld a man, and he was dressed in a white robe.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “And the angel said unto me: Behold one of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”

Fluttershy reads, “Behold, he shall see and write the remainder of these things; yea, and also many things which have been.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And he shall also write concerning the end of the world.”

Princess Celestia reads, “Wherefore, the things which he shall write are just and true, and behold they are written in the book which thou beheld proceeding out of the mouth of the Jew; and at the time they proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew; or, at the time the book proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew; the things which were written were plain and pure, and most precious and easy to the understanding of all men.”

Princess Luna reads, “And behold, the things which this apostle of the Lamb shall write are many things which thou hast seen; and behold, the remainder shalt thou see.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “But the things which thou shalt see hereafter thou shalt not write; for the Lord God hath ordained the apostle of the Lamb of God that he should write them.”

Octavia reads, “And also others who have been, to them hath he shown all things, and they have written them; and they are sealed up to come forth in their purity, according to the truth which is in the Lamb, in the own due time of the Lord, unto the house of Israel.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “And I, Nephi, heard and bear record, that the name of the apostle of the Lamb was John, according to the word of the angel.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And behold, I, Nephi, am forbidden that I should write the remainder of the things which I saw and heard; wherefore the things which I have written sufficeth me; and I have written but a small part of the things which I saw.”

At this point, Trixie rises and says, “Alright, we've been around the circle, and nopony has commented on what anypony's been reading. Now, yes, I'll be leaving soon. Since it's late, I'll likely be heading out tomorrow morning. But, that doesn't mean we have to just read tonight. If there's anything I've enjoyed about these reading experiences, it's listening to everypony commenting on what was read. Hay, I've heard Mormon testify of the truthfulness of what's in this book.

“Now, if nopony feels there is anything worth commenting on in these verses, then I won't complain anymore. But, I don't want any missed opportunities simply because I'll be leaving, and won't be back for maybe a month or more.” And, with that, she settles down again, looks into her book, and reads, “And I bear record that I saw the things which my father saw, and the angel of the Lord did make them known unto me.”

Stunts reads, “And now I make an end of speaking concerning the things which I saw while I was carried away in the Spirit; and if all the things which I saw are not written, the things which I have written are true. And thus it is, Amen.”

At this point, I look up and say, “Alright. I'm as much guilty of this as the rest of you, but so far the only comment that's been made is about how there've been no comments, in spite of some comment-worthy material. Maybe I should've waited until after the reading to bring up Trixie's leaving. But, that's in the past now. And, whether or not it's in Trixie's company, we should be doing more than just reading. I'm not saying that I don't appreciate that you clearly have positive feelings toward Trixie now, I'm just saying that we can demonstrate those positive feelings better than we are.

“We won't be rereading chapter fourteen, but let's move on to chapter fifteen. And, let's have some appropriate comments on what we're reading.”

I have my character turn to Berry Ground to invite him to read, when I hear Pinkie Pie say, “But, Trixie will be leaving soon.” As my character turns to her, she asks, “How can you expect us to think about what we're reading when we're thinking about that?”

After a second, I hear Trixie say, “That's right, I will be leaving soon.” As my character turns his attention to her, she continues, “And, if it helps, I've decided to wait until tomorrow morning to head out.”

I have my character look around the circle again as I begin, “Alright, let's save the goodbyes until after the reading.” I then turn my character's attention back to the blue unicorn as I say, “Considering how late it's gotten, Trixie, I'd say you've made a good decision.” I then turn my character's attention to the pink earth pony, and I say, “Pinkie Pie, you can think of this as Trixie's going-away party, a celebration of her time here with us reading these scriptures while she's still here.” Finally, I direct my character's attention to Berry Ground again as I ask, “Now, will you start with the first verse of chapter fifteen?”

My earth stallion friend nickers and nods before reading, “And it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had been carried away in the Spirit, and seen all these things, I returned to the tent of my father.” Looking up, he says, “I'm guessing he and his father are going to have much to talk about.”

I look up to offer approval, but Emerald Hill immediately starts reading, “And it came to pass that I beheld my brethren, and they were disputing one with another concerning the things which my father had spoken unto them.” He then turns to Berry Ground and says, “Whatever he's going to discuss with his father will likely have to wait.”

I decide to hold my peace and allow the reading to continue as Weed Whacker reads, “For he truly spake many great things unto them, which were hard to be understood, save a man should inquire of the Lord; and they being hard in their hearts, therefore they did not look unto the Lord as they ought.” At this point, she looks up at my character and says, “It sounds like Nephi was the only one among his brothers that prayed about it. Sam didn't understand either?”

I answer, “Evidently not. And, it's good to hear us not just reading, but also talking about what we're reading.” I then have my character look into his copy of the book as I read, “And now I, Nephi, was grieved because of the hardness of their hearts, and also, because of the things which I had seen, and knew they must unavoidably come to pass because of the great wickedness of the children of men.”

Next, Lyra reads, “And it came to pass that I was overcome because of my afflictions, for I considered that mine afflictions were great above all, because of the destruction of my people, for I had beheld their fall.” She looks up, inhales and exhales, then says, “I guess it would be difficult to watch an entire people be destroyed, especially if that people were one's own descendants.”

Bon-Bon reads, “And it came to pass that after I had received strength I spake unto my brethren, desiring to know of them the cause of their disputations.” She looks up and says, “Nephi talks about how he 'received strength.' Are visions like what he had really that tiring?”

I answer, “I've read various scriptures that talk about different prophets who, after having had their first experience with visions like the one Nephi had, were exhausted afterward. Evidently that's one of the properties of having a first vision from God. After that, my guess is those prophets adjusted as they had more visions from God. I haven't had such an experience, but I haven't asked for the experience either.

"But, there's something else to take into consideration. Nephi saw all of his descendants destroyed. As Lyra observed, that's going to be hard on anyone to see something like that.” I then have my character turn to the nearly-white-pink unicorn mare and say, “You may go ahead and read the next verse.”

She nods and reads, “And they said: Behold, we cannot understand the words which our father hath spoken concerning the natural branches of the olive tree, and also concerning the Gentiles.” Looking up, she tilts her head until she's finished saying, “You know, I'm not sure I understand that either.”

Snails reads, “And I said unto them: Have ye inquired of the Lord?” I can't help noticing the little orange unicorn stallion doesn't struggle at all with this verse.

Snips reads, “And they said unto me: We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us.” He looks up and says, “You don't get an answer if you don't ask a question.”

The blue-green unicorn stallion smiles and says, “True enough,” before reading, “Behold, I said unto them: How is it that ye do not keep the commandments of the Lord? How is it that ye will perish, because of the hardness of your hearts?”

Presently, Big MacIntosh reads, “Do ye not remember the things which the Lord hath said?—If ye will not harden your hearts, and ask me in faith, believing that ye shall receive, with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall be made known unto you.”

Next, Granny Smith reads, “Behold, I say unto you, that the house of Israel was compared unto an olive tree, by the Spirit of the Lord, which was in our father; and behold are we not broken off from the house of Israel, and are we not a branch of the house of Israel?” Looking up, she says, “Ya know, somethin' 'bout that does make sense.”

Applebloom reads, “And now, the thing which our father meaneth concerning the grafting in of the natural branches through the fulness of the Gentiles, is, that in the latter days, when our seed shall have dwindled in unbelief, yea, for the space of many years, and many generations after the Messiah shall be manifested in body unto the children of men, then shall the fulness of the gospel of the Messiah come unto the Gentiles, and from the Gentiles unto the remnant of our seed—“ Looking up at the unicorn mare between Bon-Bon and Snails, she asks, “Does that answer yer question, Ma'am?”

The nearly-white-pink unicorn mare smiles and says, “You know, I believe it does.” She then looks down and, with her magic, starts turning pages as she says, “I should read this more often.”

Applejack chuckles and reads, “And at that day shall the remnant of our seed know that they are of the house of Israel, and that they are the covenant people of the Lord, and then shall they know and come to the knowledge of their forefathers, and also to the knowledge of the gospel of their Redeemer, which was ministered unto their fathers by him, wherefore, they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer and the very points of his doctrine, that they may know how to come unto him and be saved.”

Next, Pinkie Pie reads, “And then at that day will they not rejoice and give praise unto their everlasting God, their rock and their salvation? Yea, at that day, will they not receive the strength and nourishment from the true vine? Yea, will they not come unto the true fold of God?”

Rarity reads, “Behold, I say unto you, Yea; they shall be remembered again among the house of Israel; they shall be grafted in, being a natural branch of the olive tree, into the true olive tree.” She looks up and says, “I'm guessing this means they'll be returning to their origins, to their home?”

I answer, “That's certainly been happening in my time. Israel is a country again; and I know the Jews, at least, are heading back there.”

Spike gets a nod from my character before reading, “And this is what our father meaneth; and he meaneth that it will not come to pass until after they are scattered by the Gentiles; and he meaneth that it shall come by way of the Gentiles, that the Lord may show his power unto the Gentiles, for the very cause that he shall be rejected of the Jews, or of the house of Israel.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Wherefore, our father hath not spoken of our seed alone, but also of all the house of Israel, pointing to the covenant which should be fulfilled in the latter days; which covenant the Lord made to our father Abraham, saying: In thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.”

Fluttershy reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, spake much unto them concerning these things; yea, I spake unto them concerning the restoration of the Jews in the latter days.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And I did rehearse unto them the words of Isaiah, who spake concerning the restoration of the Jews, or of the house of Israel; and after they were restored they should no more be confounded, neither should they be scattered again. And it came to pass that I did speak many words unto my brethren, that they were pacified and did humble themselves before the Lord.”

At this point, I say, “Now, just to let you know, the Isaiah mentioned here is a prophet that lived in Israel centuries before the birth of the Christ. His writings are in the first testament, what is known as the Old Testament in a library of religious writings known as the Bible. We'll get into some of his writings later on, at the end of this First Book of Nephi, and later on in the Second Book of Nephi. They can be difficult to read because of Isaiah's style of writing; but, for those who understand what he's writing about, it can make for exciting reading as well.” I then have my character turn to Princess Celestia, and I say, “You can go ahead and read the next verse.”

She nods and reads, “And it came to pass that they did speak unto me again, saying: What meaneth this thing which our father saw in a dream? What meaneth the tree which he saw?” Looking up, she says, “Here, they're referring to the tree with the fruit Lehi enjoyed so much that he wanted to share it with everyone in his family. And, for the record, Nephi isn't the only one in the Book of Mormon who quotes Isaiah.”

Princess Luna reads, “And I said unto them: It was a representation of the tree of life.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And they said unto me: What meaneth the rod of iron which our father saw, that led to the tree?”

Octavia reads, “And I said unto them that it was the word of God, and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish, neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction.” Looking up, she says, “Nephi makes it pretty clear he knows what he's talking about.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “Wherefore, I, Nephi, did exhort them to give heed unto the word of the Lord; yea, I did exhort them with all the energies of my soul, and with all the faculty which I possessed, that they would give heed to the word of God and remember to keep his commandments always in all things.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And they said unto me: What meaneth the river of water which our father saw?”

Trixie reads, “And I said unto them that the water which my father saw was filthiness, and so much was his mind swallowed up in other things that he beheld not the filthiness of the water.” At this point, she looks up and asks, “How is that possible?”

I answer, “Humans have a limit as to how much input they can handle at one time. Lehi was likely so preoccupied with what all else he was seeing, what all was happening, in his dream that, while he was aware of the water, he might not have been able to get a clear image of its quality.”

At this point, Stunts reads, “And I said unto them that it was an awful gulf, which separated the wicked from the tree of life, and also from the saints of God.”

Berry Ground reads, “And I said unto them that it was a representation of that awful hell, which the angel said unto me was prepared for the wicked.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And I said unto them that our father also saw that the justice of God did also divide the wicked from the righteous; and the brightness thereof was like unto the brightness of a flaming fire, which ascendeth up unto God forever and ever, and hath no end.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And they said unto me: Doth this thing mean the torment of the body in the days of probation, or doth it mean the final state of the soul after the death of the temporal body, or doth it speak of the things which are temporal?”

I read, “And it came to pass that I said unto them that it was a representation of things both temporal and spiritual; for the day should come that they must be judged of their works, yea, even the works which were done by the temporal body in their days of probation.”

Lyra reads, “Wherefore, if they should die in their wickedness they must be cast off also, as to the things which are spiritual, which are pertaining to righteousness; wherefore, they must be brought to stand before God, to be judged of their works; and if their works have been filthiness they must needs be filthy; and if they be filthy it must needs be that they cannot dwell in the kingdom of God; if so, the kingdom of God must be filthy also.”

Bon-Bon reads, “But behold, I say unto you, the kingdom of God is not filthy, and there cannot any unclean thing enter into the kingdom of God; wherefore there must needs be a place of filthiness prepared for that which is filthy.” She then looks up, chuckles a few times, and says, “You know, if Filthy Rich were here right now, he'd really be taking offense to this.”

At this point, I can't help thinking Bon-Bon is probably right.

In the mean time, the almost-white-pink unicorn mare reads, “And there is a place prepared, yea, even that awful hell of which I have spoken, and the devil is the preparator of it; wherefore the final state of the souls of men is to dwell in the kingdom of God, or to be cast out because of that justice of which I have spoken.”

Finally, Snails reads, “Wherefore, the wicked are rejected from the righteous, and also from that tree of life, whose fruit is most precious and most desirable above all other fruits; yea, and it is the greatest of all the gifts of God. And thus I spake unto my brethren. Amen.”

I have my character close his book as I say, “Well, let's call the reading over for the present time. Tomorrow, we'll start with chapter sixteen, and see what happens from there.”

For a few seconds, not even Applejack's family, the newest members of the group, stand up. Even Princesses Celestia and Luna aren't rising.

Then, Snips and Snails rise and approach Trixie; and Snips says, “We're probably not going to see you when you leave tomorrow morning, so we just want to say goodbye to you now.” And, at that point, each occupy a shoulder of the blue unicorn mare, each one resting his head on his chosen shoulder, and start crying into it.

Trixie demonstrates she isn't unaffected by their demonstration, as she wraps her forelimbs around the two unicorn foals and starts weeping into them as well. Then, after a while, she says, “You know, maybe I can put on one last show before I leave.”

I answer, “Well, right now, it's getting pretty late. Maybe tomorrow you can go to Ponyville with me, and you can put on that puppet show you put on here.”

At my proposition Trixie looks at me and smiles uneasily and says, “As long as I'm allowed back in Ponyville.”

At this point, the Mane Six rise; and Rarity takes a step towards Trixie and says, “I would most certainly welcome another visit from you.”

Rainbow Dash asks, “What kind of puppet show is it?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Oh, it's amazing! Do you remember that story about when Nephi had to kill Laban?”

Gasps come from various areas of the circle, mostly from Applejack's family.

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash turns to Pinkie Pie and answers, “I have read that chapter.”

Pinkie Pie continues, “Trixie talks about how Lehi started out in Jerusalem, then had to leave because God told him to, then sent his sons back to get the records from Laban. That's where the puppet show starts.” Pinkie Pie tells the story so fast, it's difficult to make out all she says. But, I recognize she's telling the story from chapters three and four of First Nephi.

By the time the pink earth pony is finished telling the story, Rainbow Dash is demonstrating signs of information overload, teetering in something of a dazed state.

As the rainbow-haired pegasa recovers from Pinkie Pie's telling of the story, the rest of the ponies rise, and Princess Celestia says, “It sounds like an interesting telling of the story. The ponies in Canterlot may want to see it.”

Princess Luna says, “This has been quite an eventful night. Now, my sister must lower the sun, and I must raise the moon.” And, with that, the two princesses disappear.

Applejack's family are the next to leave, exiting the gate.

They are followed by my three stallion friends, then the rest of the element bearers with Spike (and minus Pinkie Pie), and the Cakes, who are joined by Bon-Bon.

The blue-green unicorn stallion approaches me and says, “It's been a big help to my son, Snails, to have you encourage him in his reading. He's gotten a lot better at it because of you. And, it's been a long time coming, but we also want to thank you for healing our son, Snips.”

The nearly-white-pink unicorn mare walks up to the stallion and says, “We'd better be getting the foals back to home now. I'm sure Princess Luna will wait unto we're back in Ponyville before she raises the moon, but I'm also sure we don't have much time before Princess Celestia lowers the sun.”

The unicorn stallion nods in agreement, salutes my character goodbye, then, with Snips and Snails following him and his wife, proceeds through the gate, allowing the other three to go ahead of him, then using his magic to close the gate after him.

I hear Trixie sniffle rather harshly, then say, “I'm gonna miss those two foals.”

In the mean time, I can't help noticing the absence of the gray earth pony and the white unicorn. I know they couldn't have left with the group heading back to Ponyville, so they must still be in the yard.

As my character looks around, I notice the two musical mares near Trixie's mobile theater. I have my character approach them as I say, “The rest of you go back inside. I need to talk to Octavia and Vinyl.” Then, as Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker head for the house, I approach the gray earth pony and the white unicorn.

The two don't seem to notice me coming, as I hear Octavia say, “I don't know, but, after my experience with withdrawal, I don't even want to look at another glass or bottle of wine for as long as I live.”

Vinyl says, “Helping Trixie build this stage helped me keep my mind off of not getting that hard apple cider, so I really didn't feel any withdrawal. So, what happens now that Trixie's leaving with this thing?”

Octavia shivers before saying, “I don't want to face those feelings again. I just don't know what to do to keep busy now.”

By this time, I'm maybe a foot away from them. I answer, “I have an idea.”

The two mares, evidently not expecting to hear me, stumble a bit before turning to my character and saying in unison, “Mormon, we didn't expect you to be there.” Something to that effect, anyway.

I answer, “That's alright. Anyway, like I said, I think I can help you. If you'll join me in the house, I have a song I'd like to share with you. Maybe the two of you can join forces and do your own rendition of it.”

The two mares look at each other, and I'm sure I see interest in their eyes. When they look back at my character, Vinyl says, “if it helps us keep busy, then sure. What do you have in mind?”

I answer, “Follow me into the house, and I'll play the song for you. After that, you can discuss it between the two of you, and decide how you want to treat the song.”

My character doesn't wait for an answer, just turns away from the two musical mares and starts walking back toward the front door.

One surprising thing is how, at least in this video game, hoof-falls can be heard on a surface that would normally absorb impact, and thus sound. But, thus it is that I can hear both Vinyl Scratch and Octavia following my character as the three circle around the house to the front porch, up the stairs, then through the front door my character opens.

Once inside, the three make their way to the kitchen, where my character produces a small electronic music box and opens it up, at which point a song plays, which I know as “Light Up the Land.” The music plays for about five minutes, after which I ask the two mares, “So, what do you think?”

As per my instructions, the two mares discuss the song between them, then turn to me; and it's Octavia who says, “It's going to take some time for us to put together an arrangement that we can agree on, one that we can both work with. But, we think we can get it to work. We're just thinking it'll take more than just the two of us. So, if we need help from, say, Lyra, Pinkie Pie, or Weed Whacker, do you think they'd help?”

I answer, “I can't speak for them, you'll have to ask them yourselves. But, as long as they're willing, I say sure. And, if you need help from any other ponies, any other friends, those coming to the reading will be another good group to ask for help.”

That seems to satisfy the two; and at that point they head out, with Weed Whacker and Lyra, to go harvest fruits and vegetables for dinner. When they return, the group joins forces to prepare them for the evening meal. Then, after the plant products are eaten, as much as can be, the rest is thrown away. After that, Lyra and I write our letters to the princesses, which Weed Whacker sends off, and all retire to their rooms.

Then, a thought occurs to me, an; I have my character leave his room and go to Pinkie Pie's room and knock on her door.

I hear the pink party pony call out, "Mormon?"

I answer, "Yes, Pinkie Pie."

I hear Pinkie's voice call out, "Come on in!"

Obediently I have my character open her door and enter, then close the door behind him. When he turns to face the pink earth pony, I notice Gummy on the floor next to her bed, while she's in her bed. I have my character approach her, and I say, "You know, I've just started thinking about something."

Pinkie Pie tilts her head in curiosity and asks, "What's that, Mormon?"

I answer, "Actually, it's about Gummy." I pause for a moment to see if Pinkie will offer a comment or ask me to continue. When she doesn't, I continue anyway, "As you may be aware, alligators are known for spending a lot of time in the water. And, alligators like Gummy may not be very picky about where that water is."

Pinkie Pie hums for a moment in thought, then says, "And, you're worried that he might get hurt if somepony finds him in, say, a bathtub or a toilet or a sink or something like that?"

I answer, "That's right."

Pinkie Pie asks, "So, do you have an idea on what can be done about it?"

I answer, "As a matter of fact, I do. And, I'm thinking Diane can help with that."

Pinkie asks, again tilting her head, "You think she could detect Gummy in a tub or a toilet or a sink in the house, and warn me about it so I can warn somepony who might not be aware?"

I answer, "That's right."

Pinkie continues, "And, once she does detect Gummy in such places, how's she going to let me know about it?"

I shrug and answer, "Oh, I don't know, maybe an achy shoulder?"

Pinkie looks down from her bed at the green alligator, then back up at my character, and her mane and tail straighten out, and her mane falls to one side of her head, indicating that Diane has taken control. In a flat voice, she says to my character, to me, "I'm sensing that your concern is as much for other ponies, and for yourself, as it is for Gummy. Very well. I will keep watch for Gummy, and will use your suggested signal to warn Pinkamena about the presence of Gummy where he might get hurt, where you or another creature might not know where he is." Just then, Pinkie's mane and tail curl again, and Pinkamena says, "You know, Mormon, it's nice of you to show such concern for Gummy, for everypony, like that. Thank you."

I answer, "You're welcome. That's all I had on my mind right now. I'll head back to my room now. Good night, Pinkie."

As my character stands up and walks to the door, I hear Pinkie Pie answer, "Good night, Mormon."

My character then returns to his room, makes preparations, and goes to bed.

As I save and close the game, I can't help thinking about how that patch of poison joke eight characters walked into is going to affect them. I already know how it's going to affect Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Twilight Sparkle. I may even have an idea about how it's going to affect my character. But, I'm not sure how the poison joke is going to affect Lyra. I guess I'll find out in the game's tomorrow. So, until then.

Chapter 9: Plant Humor

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Once again I resume the game to the sound of pounding on my character's bedroom door. But, this time it's accompanied by the voice of Vinyl Scratch calling out, “Mormon, you'd better come out! Something's wrong with Pinkie Pie and Lyra!”

I already know what Pinkie Pie's problem is going to be. Lyra on the other hand? Well, my character and I are just going to have to go and find out.

As my character gets out of bed, there's really no change. Then he exits his room, running into Vinyl Scratch, and that's when things start changing for him. I can already tell what's happening, as, while he closes his bedroom door, the hallway seems to get bigger. But, I know it isn't the hallway growing; it's my character shrinking. And, I don't need the expression on Vinyl's face to tell me there's something different about my character. I ask her, “Are you alright?”

The white unicorn answers, “I'm fine. The questions is, are you alright?”

Evidently the effect of the poison joke on my character is what makes him shrink to approximately half his original height, and probably length and width as well. I answer, “I don't mean to be short with you, but I think I need to see Pinkie Pie and Lyra right now.”

Vinyl grunts and clears her throat, then says, “Of course. Just follow me.”

As I hear her giggling in front of me, I say, as though I don't care, “Okay,” and start following the white unicorn. While I'm sure Vinyl doesn't understand the Oddworld reference, I still can't help making it.

In the kitchen, the first thing I see is a worried-looking Pinkie Pie sitting at the table with her tongue, covered in blue spots, sticking out. A little further in, I can see Lyra's head, or the back of it anyway, sticking up over one chair.

I ask, “Is everything alright?”

It is indeed the curse of Daffy Duck on Pinkie Pie as she answers, “Nol, ich isthhnth.”

I have my character turn to Lyra as I ask, “What about you? Are you alright?”

The pale-green unicorn turns to me, and while she appears to be crying, mouthing words, no sound's coming out of her.

So, these are the effects of the poison joke on three of the characters so far: my character's turned into a midget; Lyra's become a mute; and Pinkie's tongue has been paralyzed, or at least it doesn't work properly. When we get to the library with the rest of the Mane Six, I can expect to see Twilight Sparkle with a limp horn, Rarity looking like an untrimmed poodle, Applejack about the size of a kitten, Rainbow Dash with inverted wings, and I can expect to hear Fluttershy's deep bass voice. And, something tells me we're going to meet up with Fluttershy first.

In the mean time, Trixie nearly runs into my character as she enters the kitchen through the door, prompting Pinkie Pie to warn her to “Wat-th outh!”

Trixie grunts in curiosity and confusion, then turns toward my character. Presently she jumps back and screams, then whimpers, “Who the hay are you?”

I answer, “It's alright, Trixie. It's me, Mormon.”

The now surprised blue unicorn walks up to my character and sniffs at him, then asks, “Mormon, what the hay happened to you?”

I answer, “Long story short, eight of us stepped into some blue plants, and now I'm not half the man I used to be.” And, for your curiosity, no, I do not sing out that last part.

Now once again confused but also somewhat skeptical, Trixie tilts her head and asks, “Wait, eight of you stepped into some blue plants?”

I hear Pinkie Pie answer, “That'th weithth?”

I add, “Pinkie Pie, Lyra and I, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy.”

Now, the unicorn magician-turned-puppeteer straightens her head again and, with an expression of mixed alarm and anger, asks, “Do you know what those blue plants are called?”

I answer, “As a matter of fact, I do. They're called poison joke.”

I hear Pinkie Pie ask, “Poithon thoakth?”

I continue, “It was growing across the pathway further up the road. Zecora introduced me to it when she was helping me build my house here, and warned me to stay away from it. She talked about it liking to play tricks on ponies, and at least one zebra, that walked through it. Evidently humans aren't immune to it, either.”

I then hear Weed Whacker say, “Neither are dragons, at least not dragons that eat plants. I ate some, and it nearly killed me. But, that was before I became an assistant to Mormon, Pinkie Pie, and Lyra.”

I conclude, “So, some time soon the three of us are gonna go visit Twilight Sparkle in Ponyville, first to see what effects the poison joke has had on the other five ponies, then to figure out what to do next.”

I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Withth oiy thung weich thithth, I khanth eath; ththo I ththay we go ath ththoon ath poththiboe.”

At this point, Trixie sighs before saying, “So, Pinkie Pie's tongue is paralyzed, and you're half your normal height. What about Lyra?”

I answer, “The poison joke seems to have paralyzed her vocal cords. She's unable to talk, or make any vocalization.”

Trixie closes her eyes and, frowning, says, “Well, with my friends afflicted like this, I can't leave. Not until the problem's solved.” She opens her eyes again and adds, “Zecora must know of a cure for the poison joke. If she's had problems with it as well, she must have a cure. You three go ahead to Ponyville, and I'll stay here until you come back.”

I say, “Agreed. And, since Pinkie Pie can't eat until she can use her tongue again, or at least pull it back into her mouth, I'm thinking we'd better go as soon as possible.” What I don't say is that I already know we'll be back on a course to Zecora's home, further up the road and past the patch of poison joke. I ask, “So, shall we head out now?”

Pinkie Pie asks, “Momom, you noch humgwy?”

I turn to her and answer, “Right now, there are more important things than food. You need to get your tongue working again, Lyra needs her voice back, and I need to get back to my original height. The sooner we get these problems solved, the better.”

Lyra doesn't bother trying to say anything, she just jumps out of her chair and canters toward my character.

Pinkie Pie follows Lyra's example and says, “Ueu, wethth gho.”

My character heads to the door between the kitchen and the front room as I say, “Well, I guess that's it then. We're off to see the librarian of Ponyville.” And, with that, my character reaches upward to open the door, then proceeds to the front door and outside, then to the gate, all the time followed by three ponies and one dinosaur. While my character doesn't bother closing the doors behind him, as it turns out, he doesn't need to. It turns out that Trixie has been using her magic to close the doors behind the group.

As the blue unicorn mare closes the gate behind my character and his three followers, the four leaving wave goodbye to her, as she waves back; and one pink earth pony, one pale-green unicorn, one herbivorous dinosaur, and one human head through the Everfree forest, headed for Ponyville.

Not much more than half an hour later (All things considered, it's surprising we've made such good time.), we're passing in front of Fluttershy's cottage. There, we see that the yellow pegasa has just exited her house and is closing the door behind her.

I know what to expect, but I still call to her, “Fluttershy, how are you?”

And, that's when we hear a masculine, deep-toned shout of surprise from her.

Presently, Pinkie Pie calls out, “Fuowoththy, ah uou oweithth?”

The yellow pegasa, her head lowered, wanders to the bridge in front of her house and asks in the deep, masculine voice, “Pinkie Pie, are you alright?”

I answer, “As you can see, almost all of us have problems. Pinkie Pie's tongue is paralyzed, as are Lyra's vocal cords. As for me, well, suddenly I'm not half the man I used to be.” Yeah, I know, I used the same line on Fluttershy that I used on Trixie. But, I still don't sing it.

Flutterguy, as most, starting with Spike, have called the poison-joke-afflicted yellow pegasa, says, “Well, I'm not much better off. I'm a bass now.”

Something tells me that if Lyra had a voice right now, she'd be laughing about this.

If my character weren't a hobbit, I'd likely be laughing as well. I say, “Well, let's get going to Twilight's house. Pinkie Pie needs a new tongue, Lyra needs new vocal cords, and I need to grow up again. And, evidently you need your old voice back.”

Flutterguy nods and says, “Alright, let's get goin'.”

And, with that, we're back on the road to the Ponyville library. And, by the time we get there, we're just in time to see a flight-impared Rainbow Dash ram into the wall of the library.

I have my character run ahead to stop the reckless blue pegasa as I say, “Woah, Rainbow Dash.” Then, having gotten the now spinning pegasa's attention, I continue, “Now, just land.”

In response, Rainbow Dash folds her wings and just drops, landing on her back.

I have my character help her to her hooves, then open the door for her; and I say, “Now, just follow me, on hoof, into the library. You're not the only one with problems.”

As I watch, through my character's eyes, the blue pegasa's wings on each side of her rib cage have folded upside down, I hear her say, “I guess not.”

But, before my character can enter the library, Rarity, looking either like a French poodle or an unshorn sheep, moves ahead of me, saying, “Ladies first.”

Deciding to allow the shaggy unicorn to enter in front of my character, I notice the line of ponies behind him has grown to include Applebloom, carrying a miniature Applejack on her back. At this point, I rethink my decision, and decide to allow the ponies to enter the library ahead of my character, then have him close the door behind him once he's entered.

And, wouldn't you know it, Rainbow Dash gets the idea to try to fly up to her normal perch, which results in her crashing into the ladder, thus getting herself tangled in it.

The evident effects of the poison joke on each of the ponies causes Twilight Sparkle to emit a gasp of surprise, and Spike to cry out in shock and fear.

Twilight, looking at each of the ponies in the room, asks, “What happened to all of you?”

As my character pushes his way through the ponies, I answer, “Maybe I should be the spokesman.”

Rainbow Dash, still stuck in the ladder, groans and says, “Isn't it obvious? It's that curse that Zecora put on us!”

Then Pinkie Pie says, “Moh, ich iththn'th. Momom eththpuainth ith thoo uthth. It wath the poithon thoakth we ththepth intho.”

Spike, who got the brunt of Pinkie Pie's speech, says, wringing out his tail, “Woah, Pinkie Pie, say it, don't spray it.”

I have my character put a hand up to the pink earth pony as I say, “Let me speak for you.” Then, after she grunts in somewhat defeated agreement, I have my character turn to Twilight Sparkle; and I say, “Now, as Pinkie Pie was trying to say, this isn't Zecora's fault. In fact, she did try to warn us about the plants we walked into.”

Rainbow Dash manages to flip herself over, ladder and all, before she says, “I don't think so. It has to be Zecora. How else do you think we got this curse?”

At this point, my character starts pacing around as I say, “I'm thinking we have better things to do with our time than argue about how we got our problems. Now, if I were in a superstitious hobbit, uh, habit, but with the knowledge I do have, I'd say we were cursed by that poison joke plant." My character looks around and shows me, through his eyes, that most of the ponies in the room have opened their mouths to ask questions. Instead of giving them the chance, I continue, "I mean, look at us. All of us who walked into that plant now have problems. I'm half my normal height. Pinkie Pie's tongue and Lyra's vocal cords are paralyzed.”

Before I can say anything further, Twilight turns to the pale-green unicorn and asks, “Lyra, is what Mormon said true?”

Lyra doesn't even bother opening her mouth, just closes her eyes and nods.

I continue, “Applejack's body is now the same size as her mind.”

The orange earth pony shouts, “Hey!”

I continue, “Fluttershy now has this beautiful bass voice.”

The yellow pegasa smiles and says, “Thank you, Mormon, I guess.”

I add, “Rarity looks like an unshorn sheep.”

The white unicorn grunts indignantly and, under her breath, says, “There's no need to be cruel about it.”

I conclude, “Rainbow Dash's wings are inverted, and Twilight's horn is more like a rattlesnake's tail, but quiet. I'd say we wandered into a plant with a rather cruel sense of humor.” Then, I remember what I said about Fluttershy and add, “Well, for most of us.”

Presently, Fluttershy says, “Well, Mormon, as much as I appreciate what you said about me, I'm still a mare, not a stallion. This is not the voice I'm intended to have. The fact of the matter is, whether it's your poison joke plant or Zecora, I'm still as badly cursed as anypony else here.”

I state, “Well, Zecora's only role in this one is she tried to warn us about it.”

Applebloom says, “That's right. She warned us about the plant.”

Applejack chooses to ignore her younger sister and instead turns to me and says, “Good gravy, Mormon, why are you defendin' Zecora? What, are you two friends or somethin'?”

Isn't is wonderful how good things like that can become incriminating? I answer, “As a matter of fact, yes, I am. Zecora and I are friends.”

At my announcement gasps are heard around the library, and Rarity dramatically faints.

I continue, “When I first moved to Equestria, I built my home on the edge of the Everfree forest, on the opposite side from Ponyville, and pretty much the rest of your country. And, Zecora helped me build my house. She'd go to your town to get supplies like hammers and nails, and she'd come back talking about how the only one who'd help her was a filly from a nearby farm. At any rate, because of that we became friends; and she visited me frequently until I decided to visit Ponyville. The last visit I got from her was yesterday. And, I'm sure you're pretty much familiar with the rest of the story.”

At this point, Applejack asks, “So, what you're sayin' is you've been workin' with Zecora?”

I answer, “Zecora and I are friends. And, yes, she and I did work together to build my house.”

Now, Pinkie Pie says, or spits, “We mow wuh kime ovhh who-mum Momom ith. An, he'th fuenth with The-koa. Ththo, tha muthth meem The-koa ith no ueu neo ath evo ath evuypony'th been ththayin' ththee ith. Ah meem, Momom'th a good who-mum.”

Fluttershy, glaring at the pink pony, asks, “Oh, yeah? And what about your song?” Presently she starts doing her own rendition of Pinkie Pie's “Evil Enchantress” song, which, I might add, sounds better coming from Flutterguy than it did coming from Pinkie Pie.

That is, until Pinkie Pie gallops past me toward her, shoves a forelimb into her muzzle before she can get to the trances part, and roars out, “Thath'th enuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhph!” When she's finished, she pants for a few seconds before continuing, with a sad look on her face, “Ah thuud neua how megh up tha' ththupid ththong! Bu', Ah wath onuy uepeetin' wha' evuypony eothth wathth ththtayin'. An, Ah'm ththowy abou' tha'.” And, with that, she removes her front hoof from Fluttershy's muzzle and slowly walks back to where she was, and sniffles.

As she walks past me, I ask, “Pinkie Pie, are you alright?” But, I don't get an answer. Still, I can't help thinking about what she'd said to Octavia yesterday, and again to this group of ponies just now: 'No friend of Mormon can be anywhere as evil as everypony's been saying Zecora is.' I must admit, it made me feel good, and it does again now, to think that Pinkie Pie thought of me, and still thinks of me, as that kind of positive influence on my friends.

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash, who has finally managed to free herself from the ladder, says, “Whatever. I say we go to Zecora's house and demand that she take this curse off us.”

The only ponies who don't voice agreement with the blue pegasa are Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, and Lyra. But, they still follow Rainbow Dash and the rest of the element bearers as they leave, headed for Zecora's place.

Pinkie Pie, before she leaves, turns to my character and says, “Ah'm we-we ththowy, Momom.” And then, she follows the other ponies.

All they're missing are torches and a hanging rope.

As they leave, I notice a book with a hard, green cover on the floor. As I pick it up, I notice on the cover a picture of some type of herb. As my character flips through the pages, he stops at a chapter on the poison joke; and I notice it seems to include a cure for the problems the weed causes, what it's been causing.

From behind my character I hear Applebloom innocently ask, “What's that?”

I answer, “It's a book Zecora donated to the library, called Super Naturals. It's a book about various herbs and the effects they can have on different creatures. It includes information on the poison joke plant, and a cure for its effects.”

I find myself surprised to suddenly hear sniffling from Applebloom's position, and to hear her cry, “Ah'm so sorry, Mormon. If Ah hadn't tried to follow Zecora, none of this would'a happened.”

My character turns to the grieving yellow filly and starts stroking her mane as I say, “Now, it's alright. My friendship with her would've come out eventually. It's probably for the best that it came out the way it has.”

Applebloom can't help sobbing at least once. Then she swallows, sniffles again, and asks, “So, what do we do now?”

I answer, “There's just one thing left to do. Follow the yellow brick road.”

This causes the yellow filly to stop immediately and emit a confused, incredulous grunt.

Yes, I made another reference to the Wizard of Oz. And, while my character is the size he is, you can expect me to make more. And, while I knew Applebloom wouldn't understand it, I didn't let that stop me. What I say afterward is, “Never mind. Let's just follow the other ponies before they get themselves hurt or lost in the Everfree forest.”

As Applebloom follows my character to the door, she states, “Considerin' they know their way to yer house, Ah don't see that happenin'.”

As my character reaches for the doorknob, I answer, “It's true they know their way to my house, and they know their way to that patch of poison joke. But, as far as I can tell, they've never been further than that. They don't know about the short path around the poison joke, and they don't know exactly where Zecora lives. They could very likely find themselves lost outside the forest, who-knows-where.”

My character opens the door to an angry-looking herbivorous dinosaur, arms folded, and tapping a foot on the ground. The posture is surprisingly human.

I then realize that my character had closed the door on Weed Whacker, not allowing her to enter with him. With my character still focused on the little dinosaur, I say, “Oops. Sorry about that, Weed Whacker. I guess I was so occupied with the ponies I'd forgotten about you. Will you forgive me?”

In response, the little dinosaur stops tapping her foot and looks down for a moment. Then she looks up at my character again and says, “Alright.” She then jumps onto my character, climbs onto his shoulder (or so I assume), and says, “Just don't let it happen again.”

I answer, “As long as you do something to remind me, I won't.”

Before the little dinosaur can say anything further, a curious Applebloom asks, “Do you think they'll find the human civilization where you came from?”

I answer, “I doubt it. My original home is nowhere near that close. They'd have to walk a lot further than just outside the Everfree forest.”

The yellow filly nods and says, “Well, at any rate, we'd better catch up with them.”

I can only assume that Weed Whacker is nuzzling my character's face, based on the movements his head seems to be making, as I say, “Agreed. Let's get going.” Then, as we start running toward the forest, I ask, “Applebloom, who do you suppose has your sister?”

The future crusader answers, “Ah don't know. But, she's pretty resourceful. She may be flyin' Rainbow Dash.”

I state, “Sounds like all the more reason why we should get to them as soon as possible.”

We say no more as she and my character make their way into the forest and catch up with the herd of ponies. As it turns out, they haven't made it too far past Fluttershy's house before my character, Applebloom, and Weed Whacker catch up with them.

Applebloom and I call out, “Hold on! Wait for us!”

The herd immediately stops, and Twilight circles around them to my character and asks, “Alright, Mormon, what is it now?”

As my character and Applebloom come to a halt in front of the purple unicorn, I say, “If we're going to Zecora's house, then you're going to need me and Applebloom to guide you there. We know the way.”

At this point, let me state for the record my surprise that Rainbow Dash is on the ground with the rest of the group, and no longer trying to fly.

From Lyra's position I hear Applejack's voice call out, “Applebloom, have you been to Zecora's place before?”

I turn to the yellow filly, who looks like she's going to cry again, and say, “You have nothing to be ashamed of.”

She nods to me, then turns to her sister, who is actually riding on Lyra's back, and, with determination in her voice, says, “Yes, Ah have.”

Gasping, Applejack asks, “Applebloom, do you know how dangerous that is?”

I answer, “I know.”

Applebloom's little big sister says, “Mormon, you're a human, and you can defend yourself.”

I state, “I've never needed to.”

Applejack continues, “But, you, Applebloom, you should know better than to talk to strange horses.”

At this point, I have my character maneuver through the herd to Applejack's position and kneel down before I say, “Applejack, that's enough.” Having effectively silenced the orange earth mare, I then have my character stand up again and move to the front of the herd before I add, “Now, if we're going to Zecora's house, then I'll lead the way.” And, with that, I have my character continue on the path, ahead of the herd of ponies, with Applebloom trotting to catch up to him.

It's a few seconds later that I hear Twilight, not far behind me, say, “Well, you heard him. Let's get this mob moving again.” And, soon after that, I hear the cacophony of hoof-falls behind my character, indicating that he is indeed being followed by the herd of ponies.

I have to say, I find it almost funny how Twilight referred to the herd as a mob. Almost funny because that's how I described it earlier.

My character leads the group past his house, and back into the forest, to the patch of poison joke. But, before we get close enough, again I notice the pathway that leads around it. I have my character point it out as I say, “If we take this pathway, we can avoid the poison joke altogether.”

As my character leads the heard along the alternate path, I hear Applejack ask, “Why didn't ya tell us 'bout this pathway b'fore?”

I consider telling them about how my way there was blocked, but then I think better of it. Instead, I ask, “Would you have listened?” I never get an answer to that question.

Past the alternate route, after rejoining the main path, we make our way; and I have my character look around to see if I can spot a tree that doesn't fit in with the rest of the forest. And after a few minutes, I find one that's a lot wider than the others, lighter in color, and with windows.

Applebloom sees it too, and runs toward the front door, calling out, “This is it, this is it!”

Presently Applejack calls out, “Applebloom, you get back here!”

My character turns to the herd, to see them turning away from me and entering the trees, evidently maneuvering to some position behind Zecora's house.

I have my character stop walking before I ask, “What are you doing?”

Flutterguy answers, “We wanna see what we're up against.”

I sigh and say, “Very well. You go back there and argue some more, and I'll go to the front door and knock.”

As my character proceeds to the front door of Zecora's house, I hear Twilight whisper, “Mormon, what are you doing?”

I decide if they're not going to listen to me, I won't listen to them either.

My character reaches the front door and knocks, and it's a few seconds before Zecora opens the door and, seeing me, says, “Mormon, I heard that you had spoke.” Then, with a look of horror on her face, she adds, “You walked into the patch of poison joke!”

I answer, “Me and seven ponies.” Then, after I watch, through my character's eyes, the zebra's expression morph into one of anger, I continue, “I know, I should've been looking where I was going. But, now I'm not the only one with problems. Pinkie Pie's tongue and Lyra's vocal cords are paralyzed, Applejack's more of a toy pony than normal, Fluttershy sounds like a deep-voiced stallion, Rarity reminds me of a poodle, Rainbow Dash can't fly very well because her wings are inverted, and Twilight's horn is limp.”

Zecora sighs and turns away from me and, cantering away from the door, says, “I see. Come in. I'll make a brew that shall work to cure all of you.”

Applebloom, Weed Whacker and I follow the zebra into her house, and I continue, “Thanks. I don't blame you for those problems, but the afflicted ponies think you've cursed them. Or, at least most of them do.”

The zebra stops for a moment near her cauldron, then turns her head to look at my character and says, “You say, most of the ponies do. Those that don't, are there one or two?”

I answer, “Pinkie Pie and Lyra know that we're friends. Pinkie Pie sees me as a good influence on my friends, and thus believes you aren't as evil as the other ponies were saying you are.”

Zecora nods and says, “So, Pinkie Pie thinks that I am good because of your influence, and she should.”

Just then, the herd enters, led by Rainbow Dash, who snarls, “We demand you remove this curse from us this instant, Zecora!”

I can see the blue pegasa heading straight for Zecora's cauldron, so I have my character step in front of her and catch her before she can knock it over. Once he's caught her, I state, “Zecora had nothing to do with your flying problem, or any of the problems the other ponies are facing; or mine for that matter. It was the poison joke.”

Rainbow Dash glances up at my character and says, “Oh, yeah? Then prove it.”

I answer, “There were only two who were smart enough not to get into that patch of poison joke yesterday: Applebloom and Weed Whacker. And, they're just fine.”

At this point, I hear Twilight say, “Mormon's got a point, Rainbow Dash.”

The rainbow-haired pegasa turns to the purple unicorn and says, “Don't tell me your taking sides with Zecora.”

Twilight answers, “This isn't about taking sides. The fact of the matter is eight of us wandered into that patch of blue plants. And now eight of us have problems that we wouldn't normally have, that we shouldn't have. Applebloom and Weed Whacker stayed out of contact with those blue plants, and they're not having problems, not like what we're having.”

In the mean time, Zecora, using her own copy of the Super Naturals book as a guide, has been gathering ingredients to produce the remedy. After hearing what Twilight said, she smiles and says, “It is nice to see, in this crisis, that I have pony friends beyond Pinkie Pie. But, now I need time to make the cure that you from the poison joke may be pure.”

Since my character is still facing the ponies, I say, “You heard her. So, you have a choice. You can be helpful, or you can be obstacles. But, any of you who chooses to be obstacles will have to wait outside.”

Presently, Rainbow Dash starts struggling as she says, “Let go of me!” And, before my character can react, she frees herself from his grasp and knocks over Zecora's cauldron.

That's the bad news.

The good news is that Zecora hadn't had a chance to start on her potion yet.

But, since it's clear that Rainbow Dash has made her decision, I have my character grab her again as I say, “Alright, Rainbow Dash, you've just earned yourself a time-out,” at which point I have my character take the rainbow-haired pegasa outside of Zecora's house and set her on her hooves and, before she can follow him back inside, closes the door behind him.

Seeing the leader of the mob now outside, it's Applejack who speaks next. She says, “Ah won't be much of an obstacle, but Ah won't be much help neither. If it's all the same to you, Ah'll wait outside with Rainbow Dash.” And, at that point, she jumps off of Lyra and moves toward the door. But, she has only managed to land on the lowest step, and is unable to jump up the next ones.

Rarity is next to speak; and she says, “I simply can't do a thing with my hair this way. I shall wait outside as well.” And, with that, a white aura possesses the orange earth pony, lifts her up, and puts her on Rarity's back, while the white unicorn makes her way to the door.

While Applejack expresses gratitude to Rarity, Pinkie Pie says, “With uie tongue wike thithth, Ah'o juththt be a methth. Ah'o wait outththithe with Daththie.” And, with that, she proceeds to follow Rarity out the door.

As my character opens the door to allow those three to exit, I can't help noticing the group that entered is a little more than half of what it was when it entered. I ask, “Anyone else choose to go outside?”

I guess it's taken Twilight Sparkle this long to notice the book that Zecora's been working from. She marches towards it, saying, “Wait a minute,” and, placing a front hoof on an open page, she uses the other one to close the book somewhat to get a look at the cover. Recognizing the picture on the cover, she says, “This is that Supernaturals book that Spike showed me at the library.” Opening it again, she looks at the picture of the poison joke and says, “Why does it have information on this blue plant?”

I answer, “It's not Supernaturals. It's Super Naturals. The title is two separate words. It's a book about various plants and their many different uses and effects. Don't you have a copy of it at the library?”

Sheepishly, Twilight Sparkle answers, “I do. But, I didn't look inside because the title was so weird.”

At this point, Zecora chuckles before saying, “Maybe next time you'll take a look, and not judge the cover of the book.”

Twilight forces a laugh before saying, “Yeah.” Then she asks, “So, what do we have to do with it?”

Applebloom answers, “You just have to take a bubble bath.”

I add, “I'm thinking the first thing we need to do to help out is get Zecora's cauldron upright again.”

When Twilight turns around to her friends, I can see the determined look on her face as she says, “Alright, let's start there.”

After that, it's just a matter of seconds before the ponies have the zebra's cauldron upright again. Then, following Zecora's instruction, each of the remaining ponies assists in some part of making the potion. It doesn't take very long before it's ready; and the group, this time including Zecora, returns to Ponyville.

And, on the way there, I can't help singing, “We're Off to See the Wizard,” and the ponies, and even Zecora, join in on a repeat of the song. Also, the group follows that alternate course around the poison joke in the main pathway.

Once back in Ponyville, Rarity leads the group to a spa with what she says should be a tub big enough for the entire group.

It makes sense that Applejack would raise concerns, which she does, at this point, that she could get lost, drowned, or stepped on in a tub large enough for all of them to bathe in. So, a bucket is provided for her.

In the mean time, once we're in the spa and while the tub is being prepared, I sing another song from the Wizard of Oz, or at least part of a song, which starts with the line, “We represent the lollipop guild.”

When the bath is ready, Pinkie Pie is the first to jump in and swim for a bit. When she surfaces, I can't help noticing the blue spots melt off of her tongue; and she's able to use it again. I'm not sure she quite notices her ability to use her tongue again until she says, “Ah, that feels good.” But, then, noticing her ability to talk again without slobbering, she cheers, “I can talk again! I can talk, I can talk, I can talk!”

Next is Rarity, whose thick coat of fur also melts away as soon as she enters the tub. She sighs with relief as she says, “Ah, it's so nice to be rid of all that fur.”

Rainbow Dash jumps in, or more like stumbles in, and I watch through my character's eyes as her wings right themselves again. She then looks at her wings and, seeing them right-side up again and attached to her back, flaps them and rises above the tub. Hovering in the air, she stretches her limbs out in joy and shouts, “Yes! I can fly again!” Then, she carefully lowers herself back into the tub.

As Twilight enters the tub next, she lowers her head into the bubbling water. When she surfaces again, I watch through my character's eyes as, just like Pinkie Pie's tongue, or like Rarity's thick fur coat, the spots on Twilight's horn melt away; and it straightens out again. Even sparks of magic fly off of her horn; and Twilight, groaning in relief, says, “It's so nice to have my magic back again.”

Fluttershy seems uncertain about entering the wooden tub with her friends. But, eventually she slowly walks into it, then turns to Zecora and asks, “Do I have to fully submerge for it to work?”

Applebloom answers, “If you want to get rid of the poison joke spores, you do. And, in your case, you'll probably have to gargle some of the water, too.”

Rainbow Dash starts to react, but Fluttershy isn't paying attention to her as she sighs and says, “Alright.” She then disappears under the water. When she surfaces again, she coughs and spits out the water. Groaning, but in her normal voice again, she asks, “Did somepony do something in the water? It tastes awful.”

Most of the ponies look at each other, except for Rainbow Dash, who grimaces, until Applelbloom answers, “That's probably just the cure. Medicine usually tastes yucky.”

I have my character turn his attention away from the tub and grab Applejack and put her in the nearby bucket.

As he does so, Applejack says, “Mormon, your hands are cold.”

I answer, “Well, you know the old saying, cold hands, warm heart?”

At that point, with Applejack in the bucket, I hear two familiar-sounding voices grunt in curious response to what I said.

As my character looks for the source of the voices, I see through his eyes two unicorns, the stallion blue-green in color, and the mare a nearly-white-pink, both in a tub of their own. I have to admit, I'm surprised to see the parents of Snips and Snails there at the spa; but they seem equally surprised to see my character there.

As my character holds out a hand, palm down, to them, I say, “So, one of you is Cold Hands.”

The stallion nods and says, “That's me.”

Then, as my character points to the mare, I conclude, “So, that must mean you're Warm Heart?”

The mare answers, “That's right.” She then asks, “So, why are you here, and what happened to you?”

I answer, “It's kind of a long story.”

Then, before I can say more, I hear Lyra groan in disgust and say, “Fluttershy's right. Something's not right with this water. It tastes like sompony messed herself in it.”

Before my character can turn his attention to the pale-green unicorn, I hear Applejack call out, "Woah!” and he looks down and behind him to show me that the orange earth mare, now back to her full size, is lying on her back outside the bucket.

I state, “Well, I guess that just leaves me then.” At that point, my character proceeds to ascend the stairs next to the tub, then descend the stairs into it. As my character baptizes himself in the water, eyes open, I can't help noticing, while down there, a mess evidently forming under Rainbow Dash's behind. Once my character resurfaces, I can see, through his eyes, things seeming to shrink. I have my character focus on the rainbow-haired pegasa as I ask, “Rainbow Dash, are you defecating?”

Her ears droop, and she smiles weakly as she forces a laugh and says, “Sorry.”

Presently, the five other ponies in the tub jump out of their closest sides and start groaning and complaining about having to swim in poop.

I have my character evacuate the tub as well, leaving the way he entered.

One of the attendants, a pink earth mare with what looks to me like a white bandage on her head, growls, “Well, that's just great. That's one tub that won't be in use for the rest of the day. Not until we get it cleaned out.”

At that, Rainbow Dash's smile fades; and, disgraced, she lowers her head into the water.

Zecora chuckles again and says, “I hope you have learned your lesson well, that no baseless stories should you tell.”

The other ponies laugh for a bit, but then Rainbow Dash, raising her head out of the water again, says, “Yeah, I'm sorry, Zecora. I shouldn't have accused you of anything without getting to know you first.”

The rest of the ponies also repent to the zebra, starting with the element bearers, and evidently including the ponies present in the spa that were not directly involved in the trouble with the poison joke, but had still spread rumors about the zebra.

It's during this time that Rainbow Dash, once her bowels are empty, also exits the tub of now-contaminated water, allowing the attendants to drain and clean the tub.

Once the group leave the spa, I mention that I may bring Trixie with me into Ponyville to test her new act with a familiar audience to see how well it goes.

The first question to answer is what kind of act Trixie will be performing, to which the answer is a puppet show based on a story from the Book of Mormon. After that, concerns are raised, including Twilight raising the concern that the residents of Ponyville may not accept the magic pony's new act despite not knowing the details of what it is.

While I can't deny the possibility of Trixie being rejected from Ponyville, I plan on having my character defend her during the performance, requesting that the audience withhold their judgements until after the show, and then they can offer all the opinions they want.

The concerns, while addressed, aren't completely relieved; but it is agreed to allow Trixie to make one more performance in town before she heads off to wherever she chooses to go.

With the poison joke debacle taken care of, members of the group go their separate ways, most of the group returning to their homes, no doubt among other things to take a bath, with the group led by my character being reduced to him, Weed Whacker, Lyra, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Zecora.

Once the six have passed Fluttershy's cottage, and the yellow pegasa has separated from the group and is on her way to her home, I have my character turn to Zecora; and I ask, “So, do you think you'll be joining us in the reading?”

Zecora answers, “Maybe I won't, maybe I will. I am now accepted in Ponyville.”

I allow my character to turn his attention back to the trail ahead of the group as I state, “I'm guessing that'll be the same answer for coming to see the puppet show?”

Zecora only nods.

No more is said between us, although the two remaining ponies in the group talk to each other about the events of today and yesterday, until the group arrives at my character's home.

At that point, with everyone else on my character's property, Zecora turns to my character and says, “Well, Mormon, I must thank you; for now I have pony friends too.” And, before I can answer, she canters ahead on the trail, toward her own home.

Pinkie Pie watches the zebra disappear into the forest, then turns to my character and asks, “So, shall we go inside and talk to Trixie about your idea?”

I answer, “I don't see why we shouldn't. But, first let's get cleaned up, and get something to eat.”

Immediately Pinkie Pie's mane and tail straighten out, and her mane falls to the one side of her face, indicating that Diane is taking over. She then says, “If you wish me to help with getting something to eat, I can try to buck some apples out of the tree.”

I find myself happy to see that Diane Pie, in spite of her first experience with the training, is still willing to try again. I agree, and the two of us head into the orchard to harvest a few apples.

As it turns out, Diane is showing signs of improvement. She manages to kick the tree with her back legs without doing splits or ending up straddling the tree. And, she manages to knock half a dozen apples out of the tree. So, it seems that the price of half a dozen apples has gone down a buck. And, that many apples should be enough for us.

In the mean time, Lyra and Weed Whacker have proceeded into the house; and are waiting for us in the kitchen with Trixie.

Once we arrive with the apples, and my character puts them in the sink; Trixie turns to my character and says, “Lyra and Weed Whacker said you have a proposal for me?”

My character turns to her as I say, “I'm thinking, since your stage is complete and you have an act that we here have enjoyed watching, you could try your new act out in Ponyville.”

I can't help noticing the blue unicorn starts trembling suddenly as she says, “Oh, I don't know about that. Last time I was there, my home got destroyed.”

I answer, “I'm going to be with you on this trip, and I'll defend you. I'll request that your audience withhold responses until you've finished your performance. I'll give them my word that your performance won't involve competing against your audience.”

Trixie seems to relax somewhat as she says, “I guess that helps a little. And, while my puppet show at your house did actually please both an Ursa Minor and an Ursa Major, I'm not sure I want to make comments on that this time.”

I answer, “Yeah, it's probably best that you not say anything about that. Whatever tone of voice you use, it'll still sound like boasting.” Then, I ask, “So, will you join me on a walk to Ponyville so you can put on a performance there?”

The blue unicorn grunts in uncertainty, then sniffs at my character, recoils, and says, “You'd better take a bath first.”

At that statement, Pinkie Pie, now back under Pinkamena's control, says, “Yeah, Lyra and I need to take baths, too. But, after that, can we go with?”

I answer, “As long as Trixie is willing to go, I don't see why not.”

Trixie, after a second in thought, says, “For you, it'll be my farewell performance. For the rest of Equestria, it'll be my debut. And, considering you, Mormon, are on my side, it should make things at least a little easier to perform for the ponies in Ponyville. So, sure, I'll go with you.”

I state, “Well, in that case, it seems to me that we need to get to work and get bathed. Then, after that, we can go ahead and guide Trixie and her new act into Ponyville.” And, with that, I have my character proceed to the nearest bathroom, the one across the hall from my character, to hear sounds indicating that it's not only occupied, but that the occupant is taking a shower. So, as my character turns back to the pink earth pony and the blue unicorn, I say, “Well, if I'm gonna take a bath, I need to find a different bathroom. This one's already occupied.”

It's Trixie that says, “I saw Lyra go in there while we were talking.”

I conclude, “That must mean she's the one taking a shower in there.”

Pinkie states, “Well, there's only one other bathroom. And, considering you're the one creature that wears clothes, I'm thinking you, Mormon, should be the one to use it first, so you can be putting fresh clothes on while I'm taking a shower.”

I agree with Pinkie's decision, adding that it may take me less time to dress, once I have my clothes ready, than it would for Pinkie to take her shower. Still, I have my character proceed to the bathroom facing the bedroom Vinyl and Octavia are occupying, and, finding it not already occupied, go ahead and occupy it and prepare and take a shower.

When my character is finished showering, he proceeds, with his dirty clothes, to leave the bathroom and return to his own room. There, he puts his dirty clothes in a nearby hamper, then chooses fresh clothes from some nearby drawers and proceeds to put them on. After that, he exits his room and returns to the kitchen to see Lyra waiting for him next to Trixie.

My guess is, after Lyra was finished in the bathroom across the hall from my character's bedroom, Pinkie Pie went in and started to take a shower.

Noting the two unicorn mares are sitting across the table from each other, I have my character occupy the chair closest him, putting him more or less between the two mares.

Once my character is seated, Lyra says, “I couldn't help noticing, as you were headed to your room, that you don't have a cutie mark?”

On his way back to his room, my character hadn't been wearing any clothing; so, any creature who'd seen him would've noticed.

I answer, “Yeah, humans don't get cutie marks.”

I watch, through my character's eyes, as Trixie recoils in fear before Lyra asks, “Why? Why wouldn't humans get cutie marks?”

I answer, “For humans, cutie marks are too much like tattoos or brands. And, besides, in human cultures, actions speak louder than cutie marks.”

Both Lyra and Trixie look at their own hips to see the pictures there, then turn to look at my character again.

It's Trixie who says, “I hadn't thought about it that way.”

Lyra agrees, “Neither had I.”

I add, “For you ponies, a cutie mark is part of you identity. And, I respect that. I don't want you questioning what is an important part of you just because for reasons of beliefs a different creature doesn't get the same thing.”

Trixie answers, “It wasn't that at all. I don't know about Lyra, but I was just wondering how humans identify themselves.”

I say, “Humans come in different shapes, sizes, and colors. While all humans have qualities in common, we also have things about us, besides shapes, sizes, and colors, that make one human different from any other human. And, while we don't get cutie marks, there are some humans that have gotten various types of pictures and messages on their bodies, and in such a way that removing them would be, I'd imagine, a rather painful process.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie emerges from the bathroom, evidently controlled by Diane for the time of the process of showering and drying off. As Pinkamena takes control again, she says, “Well, I'm ready to go when everypony else who's going is.”

And, wouldn't you know it, it's at this moment that I notice the apples, cut into perfect eighths, on a plate on the table surrounding various vegetables.

Trixie says, “While you were bathing, Lyra and I went ahead and cleaned and prepared the fruits and vegetables in the sink. If you're hungry, you can go ahead and eat.”

Considering it a very thoughtful action on Trixie's part, I smile as I have my character reach over and grab a piece of apple from the plate and start eating it.

Trixie then proceeds to use her magic to pick up pieces of fruit or vegetable and hand them to the other ponies and the dinosaur, then grabs a piece of carrot for herself.

As the group nibbles on their fruit or vegetable, I have my character lead the way through the door between the kitchen and front room, then from there to the front door, then outside and on toward Trixie's stage.

As I turn around to see who all is following my character, I notice Lyra isn't there. I ask, “Isn't Lyra coming with us?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “She's just going to get Weed Whacker. They'll be here as soon as possible.”

As Trixie uses her magic to form a line connecting her to her stage, then proceeds to drag it to the front lawn, I turn to see not just Lyra and Weed Whacker, but also Vinyl and Octavia, the two musical mares glaring as they approach my character.

Vinyl says, “We heard you're going to Ponyville with Trixie.”

I answer, “That's right. And, I'm guessing you want to come with us?”

Octavia answers, “If we can't see one more performance from Trixie here, then we'd like to go with you to Ponyville to see her perform. Is that alright?”

I have my character turn to the pink earth pony as I ask, “Well, Pinkie Pie, what do you think? Should we let them go with us this once?”

Pinkie Pie trots up to them, grunting uncertainly. She looks into each of the two ponies' eyes, sniffs their mouths, then circles around them, visually studying the two. Finally, she returns to my side and, looking up at my character, says, “Well, on the one hoof, they have made a lot of progress in breaking their bad habits. In the time they've been here, only Vinyl got back to Ponyville, and that was with the help of a couple of griffons.

“On the other hoof, they did Pinkie promise to stay, and they still have that music assignment you gave them. And, I'm just not sure they're ready to go back to Ponyville just yet.” Turning to Vinyl and Octavia again, she closes her eyes and shakes her head as she concludes, “I'm sorry, but I think you should stay here. You're just not ready for me to release you from your Pinkie promise right now.” Opening her eyes again, she stops shaking her head and just focuses on the two musical ponies as she adds, “When you're ready with your song, and you've performed it for us, then you'll prove you're ready to go back. Until then, you'll have to stay here. But, if you want to say goodbye to Trixie before she leaves, then now's the time to do it.”

I must admit, I agree with Pinkie Pie's decision. And, I'm guessing she's finished with her piece of apple.

In the mean time, Vinyl's the first to walk up to Trixie and say, “I didn't think I'd be saying this after your last magic show in Ponyville, but I'm gonna miss you. Mormon's been as much of a good influence on you as he's been on the rest of us. And, that puppet show you put on was the best show I've seen you put on.” As the two unicorns hug, Vinyl adds, “I hope you'll keep reading the Book of Mormon and be inspired to put on more puppet shows.”

After the two unicorns separate and Vinyl backs off, Octavia steps forward and says, “Well, Vinyl said as much as I wanted to say. But, if I could add anything to what she said, it's just that it's been a pleasure helping you build your stage. It helped get my mind off of my withdrawal.” Then, as they hug, Octavia adds, “I hope you're successful.”

Once the two ponies separate and Octavia returns to Vinyl's side, Trixie shakes herself out before saying, “Thank you, both of you. Without your help, I couldn't have gotten my new stage built as fast as I did. The next time I come to Ponyville to perform, I hope you two will be there.” I think I even see tears in Trixie's eyes.

As the two musical ones return to the house, Lyra, Pinkie Pie, and I help Trixie, as much as possible, get her folded stage out of the gate. Then once it's out and on the path, we surround it and proceed on our way to Ponyville.

The ponies that worked on the mobile theater did a good job making it sturdy enough at least for the ride through the Everfree forest. Not once, on any of the bumps in the pathway, does the theater even threaten to automatically open up. Nor do any of the parts even threaten to come off.

It takes as much time to get through the forest and to Ponyville with the stage as I expected it would, approximately an hour.

Once there, Trixie chooses a spot, round about the middle of the town, unfolds her stage, puts a sign next to it, and announces her puppet show.

In response, ponies start gathering in front of the theater, a lot of them with skeptical scowls on their faces. Among the gatherers are the element bearers, my three stallion friends, the Cakes, Snips and Snails and their parents, and others in my growing reading group.

As my character focuses on the azure unicorn, I can't help noticing her growing discomfort with her growing audience. I'm not sure if it's because of the evident skeptics in the group, or uncertainty over her new act, or if there's a different reason I'm not thinking of. But, the fact that she evidently has stage fright is enough for me to take action.

I have my character step forward next to Trixie and turn to the audience, at which point I say, “I'm hoping I've given you plenty of reasons to trust me. Yesterday, before the reading, Trixie presented her puppet show to me and the ponies living with me, and I can tell you right now, she really brought to life a story that I really enjoy from a record that means a lot to me. For those of you who are worried that Trixie's going to start competing with you, I give you my word that, unless you start it, she won't be competing with any pony here. And, I encourage you to not compete with tonight's performance. Trixie's here to tell a story, not to try to make herself look good by making other ponies look bad.”

When I finish talking to the audience, and they start talking amongst themselves, I hear Trixie say, “Thanks, Mormon. Honestly, I don't want to make other ponies look bad any more.”

My character looks down at the blue unicorn, and I notice that, while she's still smiling, she also looks like she's going to cry. I state, “You looked like you were getting stage fright. Not only that, but not everyone in the audience looked friendly. I thought it'd help to have a friendly voice speak for you.”

Trixie forces a laugh before saying, “I appreciate that, too.”

At this point, I notice a change in color on the edge of my character's periphery. So, I have my character look at the audience again, and notice that there are still scowling ponies that remain in the audience; but other ponies that had been part of the audience, none of which include members of my reading group, are leaving, heading elsewhere. I can only guess as to their reasons. Some, having heard that Trixie won't be competing with her audience, might be disappointed, and leaving to cause trouble elsewhere. Some may be getting family and friends to come and watch the puppet show with them. Some may simply have business elsewhere, and have no time for the performance. Again, I can only theorize as to their reasons for leaving.

I have my character look up at the sky, to see, based on the position of the sun, that it's getting late in the afternoon.

Trixie seems to have noticed as well, as I hear a couple of quiet explosions next to my character, indicating that she's teleported herself onto the stage. As I turn to her, she says, “Now, Mormon, if you'll move back into the audience, I think it's time for the show to begin.”

I agree, and I have my character choose a spot in back of the present audience.

Once my character has taken his position and is facing the stage, Trixie announces, “Welcome to my first puppet show. This afternoon, I will be telling a story about a family of humans who left their home and traveled for a few days, before the God their father served told him to send his sons back to get some records they needed.”

Before Trixie can continue with her presentation, a stallion from the audience calls out, “Aren't you great and powerful anymore?”

In response, Trixie closes her eyes and looks down and says, “The fact of the matter is I was never anything great and powerful to begin with.” Opening her eyes again, she adds, “Somepony that's great and powerful has nothing to prove, and certainly doesn't do so by putting others down. If there's anything great and powerful here, it'll be the story I'll be telling.”

The stallion asks, “So, what, no fireworks? No magic tricks?”

Trixie, showing signs of becoming angry, answers, “I'll be telling a story here, not trying to dazzle you with illusions.”

The stallion fires back, “So, you're tellin' us you're a fake, then, is that right?”

Trixie now emits a groan of exasperation as she closes her eyes again, this time planting a front hoof between them. In this position shaking her head, she says under her breath, “I don't have time for this.” She then puts the hoof down and opens her eyes again, and, focusing on the stallion, says, “Alright, pony, let's just get one thing straight. I didn't come here to compete or argue with anypony. So, if that's the only reason why you're here, then you can just … leave, alright? Just … go.” Then, as the stallion separates himself from the audience and wanders off along one of the streets, Trixie focuses on her audience again and says, “And, that goes for anypony else that came here just to argue or compete with me.”

At this announcement, maybe two or three more ponies separate from the audience and wander off to wherever they choose to go.

At this point, Trixie clears her throat and continues with her introduction: “Now, as I was saying, it is a time of great trouble. The city where this family lived, known as Jerusalem, has become very evil, and will be destroyed; and the people living there will be taken as captives by another people known as the Babylonians. The story I will tell takes place before this captivity.”

Having finished her introduction, Trixie teleports herself to somewhere offstage; and the curtain rises to show a scene out in the desert, with a tent and a few puppets representing Lehi and his family on the stage.

To make a long story short, it's the same puppet show that Trixie showed me and the ponies and Weed Whacker living at my character's house. And, the puppets seem to be just as much alive in this performance as they were when Trixie showed us the puppet show at my character's house.

The ponies react appropriately as Lehi sends his sons back to Jerusalem; Laman goes in and tries and fails to get the plates from Laban; the four get their remaining possessions in Jerusalem to trade for the records, only for them to be stolen by Laban; and they especially react with horror when Nephi, commanded by God, finally agrees and kills Laban. From then on, the audience is in confused silence when, after Laban is killed, Nephi dresses up in his clothes, then, with the help of Zoram, Laban's servant, retrieves the records and returns to his brothers; and the group returns to their father's tent.

As the curtain closes on the final act, Trixie teleports again onto the stage and, as she did in the presentation for all living at my character's house, testifies that it was necessary for Lehi and his family to leave Jerusalem first, and then send his sons back to get those records. After repeating what I'd said about what would've happened if Lehi had gotten the records before leaving Jerusalem, she testifies that the God that Lehi served, "the God that Mormon serves," knows what He's doing. After that, she asks if members of the audience have any questions.

The only question that comes up is why it was necessary for Nephi to kill Laban.

With surprising confidence that I personally find pleasing, Trixie answers, “Laban left Nephi two choices. Nephi could either go back without the records and leave his descendants to dwindle and perish in unbelief in the new land where they'd be living, or he could kill Laban and get the necessary records, giving his descendants lessons to learn from, and laws to follow. And, as you saw, his God, who was also his father's God, had commanded him to kill Laban; so, he knew which was the right choice to make. And, you can see that he made the right decision. It's not one that we have to make nowadays, but because one human made that difficult decision so long ago, we have this record, the Book of Mormon, now.” And, as she mentions the book, with her magic she produces her copy of it and holds it up for her audience to see.

As I've already mentioned, this proves to be the only question from the audience. Satisfied, the ponies stomp their front hooves and cheer in approval, an applause that starts with the audience member in the front row who asked the question, and spreading through the audience until all the ponies are applauding.

I also clap my hands in approval of the performance and the way Trixie answered the question.

Again Trixie closes her eyes, but this time she smiles as she says, her voice trembling, “Thank you. You don't know how much that means to me.”

The applause dies down after at least ten seconds; and after the applause completely ceases, the crowd starts to disperse. The only ponies that remain are members of my reading group and maybe two or three more, including an orange pegasa foal wearing a helmet and guarding a skateboard with a handlebar. Standing next to the pegasa foal is the school teacher pony, Cheerilee, while hesitating on the edge of the dispersing group is a light-tan earth pony, who I recognize as Mayor Mare.

Choosing to ignore the potentially new members of my reading group for a moment, I have my character approach the front of the stage where Trixie, having opened her eyes now, is still smiling, watching the crowd disperse. When my character is close enough to her, I say, “It looks like your puppet show was a big hit.”

The azure unicorn takes a step toward my character and nuzzles him as she says, “And it's thanks to you and this book you gave me,” using her magic to hold up her copy of the Book of Mormon.

I respond, “I'm glad I could help.”

Presently, she grabs my character over his shoulder with her forelimbs and, sobbing, says, “You've been a bigger help to me than anypony I've ever met. I don't think I could ever thank you enough for that.”

At this point, I choose not to say anymore, just allow my character to pick the azure unicorn up off the stage and hold her for a while, until she teleports out of his arms and onto the ground again.

It's Twilight who, noticing how late it's getting, steps toward Trixie and says, “You can spend the night at the library, then head off in the morning if you want.”

Trixie answers, “I appreciate the offer, Twilight, but I think it's time for me to be going. The ponies of Ponyville have shown me how much they appreciate my performance, and now I need to go to other towns and perform for the ponies there. I'm grateful for the ponies here that have enjoyed my performance, and I'm grateful to Mormon for giving me a place to stay while I built a new stage.”

Before Trixie can ramble anymore, Twilight puts a front hoof in her muzzle and says, “I understand, and I won't keep you any longer.” Then, putting the hoof down again, she concludes, “You'll always have friends here.”

For some reason I don't understand until after the fact, my character looks around. Then, as he does so, I happen to notice one of the stallions, my unicorn stallion friend, is missing from the remnants of the audience. Then, as he looks some more, I notice Stunts next to the front of the stage, that is the side of the stage where the wheels are aiming ahead, evidently waiting for Trixie.

In the mean time, as my character looks back at Twilight and Trixie, the two have evidently been hugging, and are just now backing away from each other.

Trixie proceeds to the side of the stage where Stunts is standing, proceeds to make a line or pole with her magic, attaching herself to her stage, as Stunts says, “You, you be safe, little sister. Keep reading the book Mormon gave you, and find more stories for your puppet show. You're really good at telling stories that way.”

Trixie looks up at him and says, “Thanks, big brother,” then proceeds forward, dragging her mobile stage behind her.

Before she can get too far, I ask, "Uh, Trixie, shouldn't you fold your stage before moving out?"

Trixie looks back at my character as I ask, then looks at her unfolded stage, then chuckles and says, "Oh, you're right, Mormon."

At that point, the stage, possessed by her blue magic, folds and shrinks to its more compact form.

Once the stage is, I'd say, a third of its height and length, the blue unicorn turns to me again and says, "Thanks for telling me about that." Then, she moves forward again, dragging her stage behind her, evidently on her way to Canterlot.

As I watch, through my character's eyes, the azure unicorn and her mobile theater move ahead along the road away from the Everfree forest, I hear a voice behind me, the voice I recognize as that of Cheerilee, say, “Uh, Mormon, may I have a few words with you?”

My character turns to the reddish-purple earth pony mare, and I answer, “Sure. What would you like to talk about?”

Cheerilee answers, “Well, I've noticed a sudden improvement in Snails' reading skills, and Mrs. Warm Heart has had all sorts of good things to say about you. I've been wondering if you would help another student of mine, Scootaloo?”

I wonder aloud, “Is he having troubles reading, or anything like that?”

Cheerilee answers, “All the other students in my class have been getting their cutie marks, and Scootaloo's getting discouraged because she hasn't gotten hers yet.”

It's my turn to answer, “Well, I'm not sure how I can help with that. I'm a human, and humans don't get cutie marks.”

The teacher pony says, “Mrs. Warm Heart has been talking about how you've been encouraging her son Snails to read, and I can see it's been really helping him. If you could include Scootaloo in your readings, I'm hoping she'll find support in your group, and maybe she'll cheer up.”

It's then that I notice Rarity behind Cheerilee. The white unicorn says, “That's not such a bad idea. I have a little sister visiting me right now, and she doesn't have her cutie mark either. I suppose I could bring her with me, and you could bring Scootaloo, and the two of them could read together with the rest of us.”

I state, “Since I've started the readings, the group has grown at a steady pace. I welcome those who want to join in the readings, although there's an increasing need for the newcomers to catch up. Tonight, the group will be reading First Nephi chapter sixteen, or at least starting there; and we may read further, depending on how things go. If you and Scootaloo and any pony else want to join in, you're quite welcome.”

And, that's when, from the edge of my character's periphery, I notice Mayor Mare approaching. As my character turns his attention to her, she stops and hesitates for a moment, then says, “Well, um, I've heard what those ponies have been saying about you, and, uh, … “

I conclude, “And, you want to join in the reading, right?” Is it just being in the presence of a human that's making her so nervous?

The tan earth pony says, “Well, if it's alright with you, yes, I would like to join in.”

I answer, “Sure. The more, the merrier.”

I'm having to wonder if, based on her sigh of relief, the mayor pony thought I was going to attack her or something.

Presently, Rarity says, “Well, if everypony will wait here, I'll go get my little sister.”

My character looks and shows me that Carousel Boutique is just a short walk away from where the group is standing. Unless Sweetie Belle decides to be difficult, it shouldn't take very long.

And, as it turns out, Rarity comes back with her little sister in approximately one minute. After that, the group heads out of town, on its way through the Everfree forest, to my character's home.

An hour later they arrive; and I can see, through my character's eyes, the two princesses waiting for us with a prepared snack tray.

As the group enters the front yard, led by my character, Princess Celestia says, “We took the liberty of preparing a snack tray for you, since you seemed to be running late.”

I answer, “Thanks, that was very kind of you. I just need to go inside and get some copies of the Book of Mormon for the newcomers to the group, then we'll get started. And, Trixie has had a successful performance in Ponyville, and she's already headed off to perform for other audiences.”

Princess Luna says, “Well, then, go thou on inside and get copies for the newcomers. We shall stay out here and welcome guests.”

I have my character nod to the two alicorns, then head inside to retrieve four copies of the Book of Mormon, one each for Cheerilee, Mayor Mare, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle. But, before my character can enter the house, I hear Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle say, simultaneously, “You don't have your cutie mark either?”

It doesn't take long for my character to get the copies of the book from the closet, then go back outside to hand them out to the newcomers to the reading.

The group forms a circle, at which point I have my character turn to Cheerilee; and I ask, “Will you start by reading verse one?”

The teacher mare answers, “I think Scootaloo should read the first verse, and I'll read the second.”

As the little pegasa foal flips nervously through the pages, I have my character nod in affirmation; then I say, “If it helps any, the chapter starts on page thirty-three.”

Scootaloo looks up at my character and says, “I know. I just wanted to see where it ends.” Then, she looks down at her book and reads, “And now it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had made an end of speaking to my brethren, behold they said unto me: Thou hast declared unto us hard things, more than we are able to bear.”

At this point, I have my character raise a hand to pause the reading; then I say, “I'm thinking it's a good idea right now to summarize what's been happening up to this point, for the benefit of the newcomers to the reading.

“The main characters in this story are Lehi, his wife Sariah, and their four sons, from oldest to youngest Laman, Lemuel, Sam, and Nephi. This family lived in a city called Jerusalem more than six hundred years before the birth of the Christ.

“Lehi was one of many prophets at the time who were warning the people of Jerusalem that they needed to repent of their evils, that or face destruction. When it was clear none of the prophets were going to get through to the people of Jerusalem, God told Lehi to take his family and what supplies he needed, and leave Jerusalem; and He'd lead them to a new land. So, Lehi did so, and traveled for a few days until God told him to send his sons back to get some records they'd need. You already know about this story from Trixie's puppet show.

“Anyway, after that, God told Lehi to send his sons back one more time to get another family, so his sons could marry the daughters of the other family, and they could raise families of their own. And, once that was done, in fact shortly afterward, Lehi had a dream which he talked about with his family. I won't get into details of what he saw, you can read that on your own in the four chapters preceeding the one we're reading tonight.

“Nephi, wanting to see what his father saw and know what it all meant, asked God about it and got his answers. Then, when he saw his brothers arguing about their father's dream, he explained the symbolism of the things his father had seen. And, that's what leads up to this point in the story.” I then turn to Cheerilee and say, “Alright, you can go ahead and read now.”

Cheerilee nods, then reads, “And it came to pass that I said unto them that I knew that I had spoken hard things against the wicked, according to the truth; and the righteous have I justified, and testified that they should be lifted up at the last day; wherefore, the guilty taketh the truth to be hard, for it cutteth them to the very center.”

Next, Sweetie Belle reads, “And now, my brethren, if ye were righteous and were willing to hearken to the truth, and give heed unto it, that ye might walk uprightly before God, then ye would not murmur because of the truth, and say: Thou speakest hard things against us.”

Rarity then reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did exhort my brethren, with all diligence, to keep the commandments of the Lord.”

Next, Spike reads, “And it came to pass that they did humble themselves before the Lord, insomuch that I had joy and great hopes of them, that they would walk in the paths of righteousness.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Now, all these things were said and done as my father dwelt in the valley which he called Lemuel.”

At this point, Cheerilee speaks up and says, “It's interesting that Lehi named a valley after one of his sons. Did he really have that much respect for Lemuel?”

I open my mouth to speak, but Stunts beats me to it as he says, “He not only named the valley after his son Lemuel, but he also named a nearby river after his son Laman.”

At this point, I decide to hold my peace, to see if another of the ponies will provide further input.

And, sure enough, it's Emerald Hill who adds, “Lehi named the fountain after his oldest son because he hoped Laman would be like the river, always flowing into righteousness. He named the valley after his second oldest son, hoping Lemuel would be firm in the lessons his father was teaching him, solid in faith toward his God.”

I must admit, I'm finding it exciting that my stallion friends are learning so well the lessons taught in these stories. When it's clear there's no further input, I have my character turn to the yellow pegasa; and I say, “You may go ahead and read now, Fluttershy.”

She nods and reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, took one of the daughters of Ishmael to wife, and also, my brethren took of the daughters of Ishmael to wife; and also Zoram took the eldest daughter of Ishmael to wife.”

At this point, I speak up again and say, “It may interest you to know that in the Book of Mormon Movie, it portrays Lehi holding something of a mass wedding for his sons and Zoram. I guess it would've been more economical, time-wise, to hold all the weddings at once than to hold individual weddings for each son and for Zoram.” I then turn to Rainbow Dash and say, “You go ahead and read the next verse.”

The rainbow-haired pegasa nods and reads, “And thus my father had fulfilled all the commandments of the Lord which had been given unto him. And also, I, Nephi, had been blessed of the Lord exceedingly.”

Next, Pinkie Pie reads, “And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord spake unto my father by night, and commanded him that on the morrow he should take his journey into the wilderness.”

Applejack reads, “And it came to pass that as my father arose in the morning, and went forth to the tent door, to his great astonishment he beheld upon the ground a round ball of curious workmanship, and it was of fine brass. And within the ball were two spindles, and the one pointed the way whither we should go into the wilderness.”

At this point, Berry Ground speaks up and says, “You know, this religious record of this ancient people, this Book of Mormon, is to us as the 'round ball of curious workmanship' was to Lehi's family. Just as one of the spindles in the ball pointed the way where Lehi and Ishmael and their families should travel through the wilderness, in the same way this Book of Mormon has directions on how we can best travel through life.”

It's a connection any inspired creature could make, and Berry Ground just made it. What I've heard from each of the three stallions, in my book anyway, bodes well for all of them.

Applebloom, taking a gentle nuzzling from her older sister as a cue, reads, “And it came to pass that we did gather together whatsoever things we should carry into the wilderness, and all the remainder of our provisions which the Lord had given unto us, and we did take seed of every kind that we might carry into the wilderness.”

Next, Big MacIntosh reads, “And it came to pass that we did take our tents and depart into the wilderness, across the river Laman.”

Granny Smith reads, “And it came to pass that we traveled for the space of four days, nearly a south-southeast direction, and we did pitch our tents again, and we did call the name of the place Shazer.”

Cold Hands reads, “And it came to pass that we did take our bows and our arrows, and go forth into the wilderness to slay food for our families, and after we had slain food for our families we did return again to our families in the wilderness, to the place of Shazer. And we did go forth again in the wilderness, following the same direction, keeping in the most fertile parts of the wilderness, which were in the borders near the Red Sea.” Looking up, the blue-green unicorn stallion says, “Their God is taking good care of them. I don't like the idea of hunting animals for food, which I'm guessing they're doing; but, then again, I'm not a human.”

Snips reads, “And it came to pass that we did travel for the space of many days, slaying food by the way, with our bows and our arrows and our stones and our slings.”

Snails reads, “And we did follow the directions of the ball, which led us in the more fertile parts of the wilderness.”

Snails has gotten really good at reading. Now, I'm thinking that hearing him make comments or ask questions on this verse, or some future verse he reads, would be a good step in his learning process.

In the mean time, Warm Heart reads, “And after we had traveled for the space of many days, we did pitch our tents for the space of a time, that we might again rest ourselves and obtain food for our families.”

Next, Princess Celestia reads, “And it came to pass that as I, Nephi, went forth to slay food, behold, I did break my bow, which was made of fine steel, and after I did break my bow, behold, my brethren were angry with me because of the loss of my bow, for we did obtain no food.”

Presently, Rainbow Dash says, “I don't know what Nephi's brothers are so mad about. After all, don't they have their own bows and arrows to work with?”

I answer, “We'll read later on that they do. But, it could be that Nephi was the best with the bow and arrow, and his brothers were just not having very good luck with theirs. I can only guess that they were good with those items, and probably didn't have much luck with their hunting.” I then turn to Mayor Mare and say, “You may go ahead and read now.”

The tan earth pony nods and reads, “And it came to pass that we did return without food to our families, and being much fatigued, because of their journeying, they did suffer much for the want of food.”

Next, Weed Whacker reads, “And it came to pass that Laman and Lemuel and the sons of Ishmael did begin to murmur exceedingly, because of their sufferings and afflictions in the wilderness, and also my father began to murmur against the Lord his God; yea, and they were all exceedingly sorrowful, even that they did murmur against the Lord.” The little dinosaur looks up at my character and says, “Now, that's just sad.”

Mayor Mare states, “But, it is understandable. After all, their God had supported them up to that point. Couldn't He have preserved Nephi's bow, seeing how important it was to them?”

I answer, “I suppose he could've. But, if there's one thing that's constant about life, it's that it's not going to be easy. If, for even one creature, life were easy, that is to say, if even just one creature could sail through life into Exaltation without any effort whatsoever, then life wouldn't be fair. On the other hand, if everyone could sail through life into Exaltation, would there be a point to living? With that in mind, just because someone has God on his or her side doesn't mean life is going to be easy for that someone. Having said that, God often sees fit to test His children, to see if they'll prove faithful to Him.”

At this point, Rainbow Dash asks, “Are you saying Lehi's God was testing the faithfulness of him and his family by letting Nephi's bow break?”

I have my character turn to the rainbow-haired pegasa as I answer, “Him and Ishmael and their families, yes. And, we'll see in the following verses how Nephi reacts to the test.” I then read, “Now it came to pass that I, Nephi, having been afflicted with my brethren because of the loss of my bow, and their bows having lost their springs, it began to be exceedingly difficult, yea, insomuch that we could obtain no food.” I then have my character look up as I say, “Evidently Nephi's brothers did have bows after all, and they'd just worn out.” I then say, as my character turns to the pale-green unicorn, “Lyra, you may go ahead and read now.”

She nods and reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did speak much unto my brethren, because they had hardened their hearts again, even unto complaining against the Lord their God.”

Next, Bon-Bon reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did make out of wood a bow, and out of a straight stick, an arrow; wherefore, I did arm myself with a bow and an arrow, with a sling and with stones. And I said unto my father: Whither shall I go to obtain food?” Looking up, she asks, “Now, just a minute. Wasn't Lehi also complaining against his God? So, why is Nephi going to him?”

I answer, “One of the commandments God had given to His people through His prophet Moses a few centuries earlier was 'Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.' I'm sure this was one of Nephi's motivations. And besides, Lehi was still a prophet, even if he wasn't as faithful at this point as he should've been. It could be that Nephi was trying to motivate his father to trust in his God again.”

Before I can ask, Princess Luna says, “That makes a lot of sense, especially when we read what happens next,” before reading, “And it came to pass that he did inquire of the Lord, for they had humbled themselves because of my words, for I did say many things unto them in the energy of my soul.”

Next, Stunts reads, “And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came unto my father; and he was truly chastened because of his murmuring against the Lord, insomuch that he was brought down into the depths of sorrow.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord said unto him: Look upon the ball, and behold the things which are written.”

Berry Ground reads, “And it came to pass that when my father beheld the things which were written upon the ball, he did fear and tremble exceedingly, and also my brethren and the sons of Ishmael and their wives.”

Octavia reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the pointers which were in the ball, that they did work according to the faith and diligence and heed which we did give unto them.” Looking up, she asks, “I wonder, what was written on that ball that scared everypony so much?”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And there was also written upon them a new writing, which was plain to be read, which did give us understanding concerning the ways of the Lord; and it was written and changed from time to time, according to the faith and diligence which we gave unto it. And thus we see that by small means the Lord can bring about great things.” Turning to the gray earth mare, she asks, “Does that answer your question?”

Octavia answers, “I guess it'll have to do, although I was hoping for more detail.”

Before Mr. Cake can read, I say, “It may interest you to know that this ball will prove to be a valuable compass to Lehi and Ishmael and their families later on.” I then have my character turn to the orange earth stallion and nod for him to go ahead and read.

Mr. Cake nods back, then turns to his book and reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did go forth up into the top of the mountain, according to the directions which were given upon the ball.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “And it came to pass that I did slay wild beasts, insomuch that I did obtain food for our families.”

Scootaloo reads, “And it came to pass that I did return to our tents, bearing the beasts which I had slain; and now when they beheld that I had obtained food, how great was their joy! And it came to pass that they did humble themselves before the Lord, and did give thanks unto him.”

Cheerilee reads, “And it came to pass that we did again take our journey, traveling nearly the same course as in the beginning; and after we had traveled for the space of many days we did pitch our tents again, that we might tarry for the space of a time.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “And it came to pass that Ishmael died, and was buried in the place which was called Nahom.”

Rarity reads, “And it came to pass that the daughters of Ishmael did mourn exceedingly, because of the loss of their father, and because of their afflictions in the wilderness; and they did murmur against my father, because he had brougth them out of the land of Jerusalem, saying: Our father is dead; yea, and we have wandered much in the wilderness, and we have suffered much affliction, hunger, thirst, and fatigue; and after all these sufferings we must perish in the wilderness with hunger.”

Spike reads, “And thus they did murmur against my father, and also against me; and they were desirous to return again to Jerusalem.” Looking up, he says, “You just can't satisfy some people.”

After a ripple of laugher around the circle, Twilight Sparkle reads, “And Laman said unto Lemuel and also unto the sons of Ishmael: Behold, let us slay our father, and also our brother Nephi, who has taken it upon him to be our ruler and our teacher, who are his elder brethren.” She looks up, and I can see her glare as she says, “Alright, now they're taking it too far.”

Fluttershy reads, “Now, he says that the Lord has talked with him, and also that angels have ministered unto him. But behold, we know that he lies unto us; and he tells us these things, and he worketh many things by his cunning arts, that he may deceive our eyes, thinking, perhaps, that he may lead us away into some strange wilderness; and after he has led us away, he has thought to make himself a king and a ruler over us, that he may do with us according to his will and pleasure. And after this manner did my brother Laman stir up their hearts to anger.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord was with us, yea, even the voice of the Lord came and did speak many words unto them, and did chasten them exceedingly; and after they were chastened by the voice of the Lord they did turn away their anger, and did repent of their sins, insomuch that the Lord did bless us again with food, that we did not perish.” Looking up, she says, “Kind of interesting. Laman got everypony riled up, then Lehi's God calmed them all down again.”

I answer, “There's a saying I'm familiar with, 'Man proposeth, and God disposeth.' This saying is used to describe situations where someone plans out something very carefully, then something happens to make the plan fall completely apart; or the entire plan hinges on an event that never happens. But, in this case, it happened quite literally. Laman tried to use the grief of Ishmael's family to turn everyone against Nephi and Lehi, and then God stepped in and called them to repentance.”

At this point, I have my character look around the circle; then I say, “So, since everyone's had a chance to read at least one verse, I have a question for you. Shall we stop at this point and pick up the reading tomorrow, or shall we read one more chapter?”

As the rest of the ponies, aside from the princesses, start talking at once, Princess Luna says, “Please take into consideration that the next chapter is fifty-five verses long.”

At that announcement, the voices I'm hearing are really neither positive nor negative, just uncertain.

Then, Pinkie Pie rises to all fours and says, “Yeh, I say we go ahead and read chapter seventeen.”

As the pink pony settles down again, the voices I'm hearing are sounding more positive.

After a few seconds, Princess Celestia says, “The ponies seem to agree with Pinkie Pie. So, we shall keep the sun in its present position, and go ahead and read chapter seventeen, as Pinkie Pie proposed.”

Excitedly, the pink party pony settles bacl into a sphinx-style position and starts reading, “And it came to pass that we did again take our journey in the wilderness; and we did travel nearly eastward from that time forth. And we did travel and wade through much affliction in the wilderness, and our women did bear children in the wilderness.”

Next, Applejack reads, “And so great were the blessings of the Lord upon us, that while we did live upon raw meat in the wilderness, our women did give plenty of suck for their children, and were strong, yea, even like unto the men; and they began to bear their journeyings without murmurings.”

After a grunt of interest from the orange earth mare, Applebloom reads, “And thus we see that the commandments of God must be fulfilled. And if it so be that the children of men keep the commandments of God he doth nourish them, and strengthen them, and provide means whereby they can accomplish the thing which he had commanded them; wherefore, he did provide means for us while we did sojourn in the wilderness.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “And we did sojourn for the space of many years, yea, even eight years in the wilderness.” Looking up, he says, “That's quite a long time to be travelin' in the wilderness.”

Granny Smith reads, “And we did come to the land which we called Bountiful, because of its much fruit and also wild honey; and all these things were prepared of the Lord that we might not perish. And we beheld the sea, which he called Irreantum, which, being interpreted, is many waters.”

Cold Hands reads, “And it came to pass that we did pitch our tents by the seashore; and notwithstanding we had suffered many afflictions and much difficulty, yea, even so much that we cannot write them all, we were exceedingly rejoiced when we came to the seashore; and we called the place Bountiful, because of its much fruit.”

Snips reads, “And it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had been in the land of Bountiful for the space of many days, the voice of the Lord came unto me, saying: Arise, and get thee into the mountain. And it came to pass that I arose and went up into the mountain, and cried unto the Lord.”

Snails reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Thou shalt construct a ship, after the manner which I shall show thee, that I may carry thy people across these waters.” He then turns to my character and says, “I have a question.” Then, when he sees my character turning to him, he asks, “Shouldn't the families of Lehi and Ishmael have crossed the ocean, these many waters, before they got to Bountiful? Or are there two or more places called Bountiful?”

I had hoped Snails would start making comments or asking questions about verses he'd read. And, while this isn't in reference to the verse he's just read, I do like that he's making a contribution beyond just reading verses. On the other hand, he has brought up a point that I'm surprised hasn't been brought up by the ponies who read those verses already. Still, considering his question does deserve an answer, I say, “I did say those two families would be going to South America, which they'd be calling Bountiful. But, that isn't the only land that they call Bountiful. They do have to cross an ocean before they reach their final destination. Good question, Snails. Nicely asked.”

Next, Warm Heart reads, “And I said: Lord, whither shall I go that I may find ore to molten, that I may make tools to construct the ship after the manner which thou hast shown unto me?” She then grunts with interest and says, “God tells Nephi to build a ship, and his first question is where he can find materials so he can make tools for the construction.”

I answer, “It certainly shows Nephi's mindset.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord told me whither I should go to find ore, that I might make tools.”

Mayor Mare reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did make a bellows wherewith to blow the fire, of the skins of beasts; and after I had made a bellows, that I might have wherewith to blow the fire, I did smite two stones together that I might make fire.”

Weed Whacker reads, “For the Lord had not hitherto suffered that we should make much fire, as we journeyed in the wilderness; for he said: I will make thy food become sweet, that ye cook it not.”

I read, “And I will also be your light in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before you, if it so be that ye shall keep my commandments, wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the promised land; and ye shall know that it is by me that ye are led.”

Lyra reads, “Yea, and the Lord said also that: After ye have arrived in the promised land, ye shall know that I, the Lord, am God; and that I, the Lord, did deliver you from destruction; yea, that I did bring you out of the land of Jerusalem.”

Bon-Bon reads, “Wherefore, I, Nephi, did strive to keep the commandments of the Lord, and I did exhort my brethren to faithfulness and diligence.”

At this point, Vinyl Scratch says, “So, up to this point, God made it unnecessary for them to use fire, and told them not to use it, is that right?”

I don't mind ponies commenting or asking questions about verses that other ponies have read. I answer, “That's correct.”

The white, blue-haired unicorn continues, “And, now He says it's alright for them to use fire again?”

I answer, “Evidently so.”

Vinyl Scratch nods and says, “I just wanted to be sure I understood what was goin' on.” She then turns to the nighttime alicorn and says, “You may go ahead and read, Princess Luna.”

The dark-gray alicorn nods and reads, “And it came to pass that I did make tools of the ore which I did molten out of the rock.”

Stunts reads, “And when my brethren saw that I was about to build a ship, they began to murmur against me, saying: Our brother is a fool, for he thinketh that he can build a ship; yea, and he also thinketh that he can cross these great waters.” He then grunts angrily and says, “I'm beginning to think Nephi's brothers just look for things to complain about.”

Before I can respond to Stunts' comment, Emerald Hill reads, “And thus my brethren did complain against me, and were desirous that they might not labor, for they did not believe that I could build a ship; neither would they believe that I was instructed of the Lord.”

Berry Ground reads, “And now it came to pass that I, Nephi, was exceedingly sorrowful because of the hardness of their hearts; and now when they saw that I began to be sorrowful they were glad in their hearts, insomuch that they did rejoice over me, saying: We knew that ye could not construct a ship, for we knew that ye were lacking in judgment; wherefore, thou canst not accomplish so great a work.”

Octavia reads, “And thou art like unto our father, led away by the foolish imaginations of his heart; yea, he hath led us out of the land of Jerusalem, and we have wandered in the wilderness for these many years, and our women have toiled, being big with child; and they have borne children in the wilderness and suffered all things, save it were death; and it would have been better that they had died before they came out of Jerusalem than to have suffered these afflictions.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “Behold, these many years we have sufferd in the wilderness, which time we might have enjoyed our possessions and the land of our inheritance; yea, and we might have been happy.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And we know that the people who were in the land of Jerusalem were a righteous people, for they kept the statutes and judgments of the Lord, and all his commandments, according to the law of Moses; wherefore, we know that they are a righteous people; and our father hath judged them, and hath led us away because we would hearken unto his words; yea, and our brother is like unto him. And after this manner of language did my brethren murmur and complain against us.”

Mrs Cake reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, spake unto them, saying: Do ye believe that our fathers, who were the children of Israel, would have been led away out of the hands of the Egyptians if they had not hearkened unto the words of the Lord?”

Scootaloo reads, “Yea, do ye suppose that they would have been led out of bondage, if the Lord had not commanded Moses that he should lead them out of bondage?”

Cheerilee reads, “Now ye know that the children of Israel were in bondage, and ye know that they were laden with tasks, which were grievous to be borne; wherefore, ye know that it must needs be a good thing for them, that they should be brought out of bondage.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Now ye know that Moses was commanded of the Lord to do that great work; and ye know that by his word the waters of the Red Sea were divided hither and thither, and they passed through on dry ground.”

Rarity reads, “But ye know that the Egyptians were drowned in the Red Sea, who were the armies of Pharaoh.”

Spike reads, “And ye also know that they were fed with manna in the wilderness.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Yea, and ye also know that Moses, by his word according to the power of God which was in him, smote the rock, and there came forth water, that the children of Israel might quench their thirst.”

Fluttershy reads, “And notwithstanding they being led, the Lord their God, their Redeemer, going before them, leading them by day and giving light unto them by night, and doing all things for them which were expedient for man to receive, they hardened their hearts and blinded their minds, and reviled against Moses and against the true and living God.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And it came to pass that according to his word he did destroy them; and according to his word he did lead them, and according to his word he did do all things for them; and there was not any thing done save it were by his word.” Looking at my character, she says, “I read through this earlier. It seems to me that Nephi's making the people he's talking about sound like a bunch of ingrates.”

I open my mouth to respond, but Emerald Hill beats me to it, saying, “Well, they were ingrates. God had provided all those things for them, and they turned around and complained against Him and Moses. But, God was evidently patient with them, and continued to give them what they needed.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And after they had crossed the river Jordan he did make them mighty unto the driving out of the children of the land, yea, unto the scattering them to destruction.”

Applejack reads, “And now, do ye suppose that the children of this land, who were in the land of promise, who were driven out by our fathers, do ye suppose that they were righteous? Behold, I say unto you, Nay.”

Applebloom reads, “Do ye suppose that our fathers would have been more choice than they if they had been righteous? I say unto you, Nay.”

I don't say this aloud, but at this point I'm thinking that if ponies or horses had been answering these questions, the answers they gave, sounding as much like these negative answers as we seem to think they do, would've been ambiguous.

Big MacIntosh reads, “Behold, the Lord esteemeth all flesh in one; he that is righteous is favored of God. But behold, this people had rejected every word of God, and they were ripe in iniquity; and the fulness of the wrath of God was upon them; and the Lord did curse the land against them, and bless it unto our fathers; yea, he did curse it against them unto their destruction, and he did bless it unto our fathers unto their obtaining power over it.”

Granny Smith reads, “Behold, the Lord hath created the earth that it should be inhabited, and he hath created his children that they should possess it.”

Cold Hands reads, “And he raiseth up a righteous nation, and destroyeth the nations of the wicked.”

Snips reads, “And he leadeth away the righteous into precious lands, and the wicked he destroyeth, and curseth the land unto them for their sakes.”

Snails reads, “He ruleth high in the heavens, for it is his throne, and this earth is his footstool.”

Warm Heart reads, “And he loveth those who will have him to be their God. Behold, he loved our fathers, and he covenanted with them, yea, even Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and he remembered the covenants which he made; wherefore, he did bring them out of the land of Egypt.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And he did straiten them in the wilderness with his rod; for they hardened their hearts, even as ye have; and the Lord straitened them because of their iniquity. He sent fiery flying serpents among them; and after they were bitten he prepared a way that they might be healed; and the labor which they had to perform was to look; and because of the simpleness of the way, or the easiness of it, there were many who perished.” Continuing to look down at her book, she says, “They didn't even bother to look.”

I answer, “Frequently that's the way people are. Even in situations like that, they expect to take on some major task. And, when the job they have to do is something like looking at something, or maybe being dunked in water, they think it's too easy, and refuse to believe they should do it.”

Mayor Mare reads, “And they did harden their hearts from time to time, and they did revile against Moses, and also against God; nevertheless, ye know that they were led forth by his matchless power into the land of promise.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And now, after all these things, the time has come that they have become wicked, yea, nearly unto ripeness; and I know not but they are at this day about to be destroyed; for I know that the day must surely come that they must be destroyed, save a few only, who shall be led away into captivity.”

I read, “Wherefore, the Lord commanded my father that he should depart into the wilderness, and the Jews also sought to take away his life; and ye also have sought to take away his life; wherefore, ye are murderers in your hearts and ye are like unto them.”

Lyra reads, “Ye are swift to do iniquity but slow to remember the Lord your God. Ye have seen an angel, and he spake unto you; yea, ye have heard his voice from time to time; and he hath spoken unto you in a still small voice, but ye were past feeling, that ye could not feel his words; wherefore, he has spoken unto you like unto the voice of thunder, which did cause the earth to shake as if it were to divide asunder.”

Bon-Bon reads, “And ye also know that by the power of his almighty word he can cause the earth that it shall pass away; yea, and ye know that by his word he can cause the rough places to be made smooth, and the smooth places shall be broken up, O, then, why is it, that ye can be so hard in your hearts?”

Princess Luna reads, “Behold, my soul is rent with anguish because of you, and my heart is pained; I fear lest ye shall be cast off forever. Behold, I am full of the Spirit of God, insomuch that my frame has no strength.”

Stunts reads, “And now it came to pass that when I had spoken these words they were angry with me, and were desirous to throw me into the depths of the sea; and as they came forth to lay their hands upon me I spoke unto them, saying: In the name of the Almighty God, I command you that ye touch me not, for I am filled with the power of God, even unto the consuming of my flesh; and whoso shall lay his hands upon me shall wither even as a dried reed; and he shall be as naught before the power of God, for God shall smite him.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto them that they should murmur no more against their father; neither should they withhold their labor from me, for God had commanded me that I should build a ship.”

Berry Ground reads, “And I said unto them: If God had commanded me to do all things I could do them. If he should command me that I should say unto this water, be thou earth, it should be earth, and if I should say it, it would be done.”

Octavia reads, “And now, if the Lord has such great power, and has wrought so many miracles among the children of men, how is it that he cannot instruct me, that I should build a ship?”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said many things unto my brethren, insomuch that they were confounded and could not contend against me; neither durst they lay their hands upon me nor touch me with their fingers, even for the space of many days. Now they durst not do this lest they should wither before me, so powerful was the Spirit of God; and thus it had wrought upon them.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord said unto me: Stretch forth thine hand again unto thy brethren, and they shall not wither before thee, but I will shock them, saith the Lord, and this will I do, that they may know that I am the Lord their God.”

At this point, I say, “I remember seeing how this was portrayed in the Book of Mormon movie. I was curious to see how they'd portray it. As it turns out, in the movie anyway, when Nephi reached out to his brothers and shook them, it appeared very much electrical, like translucent bolts of lightning had come out of Nephi's fingers and hit his brothers.”

I turn to Mrs. Cake to nod to her, but she's already reading, “And it came to pass that I stretched forth my hand unto my brethren, and they did not wither before me; but the Lord did shake them, even according to the word which he had spoken.”

Finally, Scootaloo reads, “And now, they said: We know of a surety that the Lord is with thee, for we know that it is the power of the Lord that has shaken us. And they fell down before me, and were about to worship me, but I would not suffer them, saying: I am thy brother, yea, even thy younger brother; wherefore, worship the Lord thy God, and honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God shall give thee.” Looking at my character, she says, “That last part sounds like what you said earlier, that quote from Moses, which you said was part of what motivated Nephi to ask his father for directions on where to find food.”

I answer, “That's right. I'm not the only one that's familiar with that scripture.” Then, noting that's the end of chapter seventeen, I say, “Well, I'm thinking we should call an end to the reading for tonight. As enjoyable as it's been to read with you, and talk about what we've been reading, it's getting late enough that you should be going back to your homes now.”

At this point, the ponies start rising and talking to each other.

As my character walks over to the gate to open it for the ponies and Spike to leave, I hear something from my stallion friends about cutie marks. And, when my character turns so I can see them, I notice Vinyl Scratch stumbling backwards away form them, then turning and galloping off. I notice Berry Ground indeed has a picture on the hip of his that I can see, what looks to me like a mathematical expression, something on the order of calculus.

As ponies start heading for and leaving through the gate, my character starts approaching my three stallion friends; while Octavia, concerned for Vinyl, follows her to wherever she galloped off to.

Berry Ground, the first to notice my character approaching, turns to me and says, “The three of us have gotten our cutie marks. But, we don't understand them.”

By this point, the other ponies that aren't living with me have lined up to exit through the gate.

I have my character turn away from the three stallions and head for the front porch of his house, as I say, “Follow me. You can show me your marks when we get to the front porch, and we'll discuss them then.”

It doesn't take very long for the group of four to get to the porch, and during that time it's made clear that the images on the flanks of one of my stallion friends hasn't gone unnoticed by Pinkie Pie, who says, “Stunts, you've finally gotten your cutie mark. You should show that to Trixie when she comes back.”

By the time Pinkie Pie's finished talking about Stunts' cutie mark, the group of four has made it to the front porch.

I have my character turn to my stallion friends and sit on the top step of the porch as I say, “Now, let me see your cutie marks, and I'll see if I can explain them to you.”

The three stallions line up to show me the images on the hip each one chooses to show me, and I can see that Stunts has the image of an internal hard drive for his mark, Emerald Hill has a similar image to that of Stunts, except his includes the numeral two above the hard drive, just to the right; and Berry Ground has an image similar to that of Emerald Hill, following a lime symbol with the hard drive followed by an arrow and the infinity symbol underneath them, perhaps half the length and height of the rest of the image.

Remembering how they'd talked during the reading, I say, “While we were reading from the Book of Mormon, I couldn't help noticing something.”

I then have my character turn to my blue unicorn friend as I continue, “Stunts, you recited what you remembered from what we'd been reading. You demonstrated knowledge of what you'd been reading. The image on your flank is a hard drive, which is basically the long-term memory of a computer. And, what is knowledge, but what we hold in our long-term memories from what the holy spirit has taught us?”

I then have my character turn to my green pegasus friend as I continue, “Emerald Hill, you demonstrated understanding of what Stunts was saying when you explained why Lehi had named the river Laman, and the valley Lemuel. Your cutie mark represents understanding, which is knowing the meaning of what is known.”

Finally, I have my character turn to my red earth stallion friend as I continue, “Berry Ground, you demonstrated wisdom when you talked about how the scriptures are useful to us now. Your cutie mark represents wisdom, which is knowing how to use what you know for the greatest good.”

As my character divides his attention among the three stallions now, I conclude, “The three of you represent the three components of intelligence: knowledge, understanding, and wisdom. Keep working together to study and learn from the Book of Mormon. The three of you are on the right track.”

The three, demonstrating understanding of what I've said, nod, then turn and proceed to join the other ponies in the line exiting through the gate.

As they do so, I can't help noticing a few copies of the Book of Mormon left on the lawn, and with them the little orange pegasa filly and the reddish purple earth pony mare.

I have my character approach the two before I ask, “Is there something wrong?”

Cheerilee looks up at my character and says, “Nothing in particular. We just want to know if we can keep these copies of the book.”

I answer, “You're quite welcome to keep your copies. I have plenty more.”

Scootaloo's smile demonstrates excitement while Cheerilee's smile demonstrates relief.

Cheerilee says, “Thanks. I noticed the Mayor has already left with her copy, and I was just wondering if that was alright.”

I answer, “If she wants to take her copy home and study from it, she's quite welcome to do so. Each of the ponies who've come here to read leave with a copy of the Book of Mormon. Even Spike has his own copy, which he brings with him to the readings.”

Cheerilee asks, “So, is everypony in your reading group required to come here to read?”

I answer, “I hope not, except for a couple of special cases living here with me. They should be the ones to tell you what their reason for being here is that they need my help with. Other than that, I don't force anyone, pony, dragon, or other creature, to come to these readings. I'm hoping that those that come to these readings are coming because they want to. I'm sure it's working that way for Princesses Celestia and Luna.”

Cheerilee asks, “Is there a part of the book we should read?”

I answer, “You may read any part you want. There's an introduction that includes three testimonies that may interest you. You may start wherever you want in the book, and you may end wherever you want. If you want to be a step ahead of the reading, then start with chapter eighteen. And, if you have any questions, please feel free to come to the next reading and bring your questions up then. One of the ponies or dragons may have the answers that I don't have.”

Cheerilee asks, “So, this group will be reading chapter eighteen of First Nephi next time, right?”

I answer, “We'll be starting there, yes. And, depending on if others haven't had a chance to read, or if there's a question that requires further reading, or if the group just wants to read another chapter, or even if the next chapter is just really short, we may just read more.”

At this point, I can't help noticing how dark it's gotten.

Cheerilee has also noticed, not to mention that the rest of the group is waiting for her outside the gate. She says, “Well, it's getting late, and we must get home now. I do look forward to coming to the reading tomorrow. Thanks for letting me join in. I look forward to coming tomorrow to join in the next reading.”

I welcome her thanks, then have my character follow her and Scootaloo to the gate. At the gate, I thank her for attending, which she welcomes. I watch, through my character's eyes, as the group proceeds into the forest on their way back to Ponyville, lit throughout the group by unicorns using their magic to light the way. When they're no longer in view, I have my character head back to the house.

It seems that while I was out dismissing guests, the ponies living with my character, along with Weed Whacker, were gathering food for dinner that evening. While I may not be able to speak for the guests, it is evident that the ponies and dinosaur living with me weren't filled up on the snacks provided.

After dinner, we proceed to our rooms, and I proceed to have my character write the letter to the princesses while I dictate. While I can't say that I've really learned much more about Lyra, it's evident that Lyra has learned something more about humans, or at least about my character. Still, I find it worth mentioning that my three stallion friends have earned their cutie marks, based on the components of intelligence they demonstrated in this last reading. I also write about Trixie's first successful puppet show in Ponyville, and that she's headed off to wherever she wants to go next, which looked like Canterlot. In fact, Trixie's successful puppet show and exit are the first things I write about.

Once the letter is finished, I head to Lyra and Weed Whacker's bedroom so the little dinosaur can send the letter to the princesses. When I get there, I find that Weed Whacker has a letter for my character, from the princesses. So, we trade letters, and my character returns to his room with the letter the alicorns sent him.

In the letter from the princesses, I read that Princess Celestia is planning to visit Ponyville tomorrow. I'm guessing this will mean that Pinkie Pie and Lyra will want to leave as soon as possible, to help make preparations for her arrival.

I have my character put the letter in his inventory, then go to bed.

Today has been one of the longer days I've had in this game. Based on what I've learned from the characters in this game, as well from the conclusion of the incident with Zecora as from the puppet show and the night's reading, I must say I'm looking forward to the next time I play this game. At some point in the near future, I'm going to have to find out how Vinyl and Octavia are progressing on the musical project I've given them. In the mean time, before I get chewed out by Pinkie Pie again, I'd better save and close this game.

Chapter 10: We'll Always Have Parasprites (Or Not)

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As I resume the game, my character wakes up to pounding on his door, and Pinkie Pie calling out, “Mormon, wake up! We need to get going as soon as possible!”

I have my character get out of bed, then head to his bedroom door to open it. As he's reaching for the doorknob to open his door, I hear a groan from Pinkie Pie, as though she's losing or lost her balance. But, considering I don't hear a thud, I assume she regained her lost balance before she could fall.

My character opens his bedroom door to see Pinkie Pie maybe a pace or two away from it. I immediately say, “Let me guess. Princess Celestia's coming to Ponyville, and you want to get there as soon as possible to help with the preparations.”

As my character walks out of his bedroom and closes the door behind him, the pink earth pony leads him into the kitchen as she answers, “I need to be there as soon as possible, but yes, it is to help with the preparations. But, I'm guessing that letter you got from the princesses last night told you about that.” Turning to the hallway, she concludes, “Let's just get going. Lyra, Weed Whacker and I have already eaten, and we've prepared your breakfast for you to eat on the way.”

I say, “That's really thoughtful of you. Thanks.”

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie goes to the nearest counter, grabs a paper bag from it, tosses it to my character, then gallops to the door, saying, “No time to talk. We need to hurry. Let's go.”

I follow the pink earth pony into the front room, where Lyra and Weed Whacker are waiting on the closest couch. They jump off the couch to join the group, and after approximately a minute we're on our way through the Everfree forest to Ponyville.

Weed Whacker, noticing my character's just carrying the paper bag, asks, “Well, aren't you going to eat that now?”

I answer, “I'm thinking I'll wait until I get to Ponyville.”

Pinkie Pie whines, “You won't have time to eat when we get there. Just go ahead and eat on the run.”

I haven't programmed my character to get sick from eating something while running, which is what he'd be doing if I had programmed that into him, and he were to start eating now; but I still wonder if he'll be able to hold onto an item of food while running, much less eat it. On the other hand, considering how this day is likely to turn out, my character's food may get eaten by something else before he has a chance to eat it. So, I have my character go ahead and take items out of the bag and eat them.

I'm pleasantly surprised to see that my three friends have packed a sliced apple and a sliced pear for my character. I suppose it's just as well that no summer fruits or other particularly juicy plant products were packed in the paper bag. The apple and pear are enough, both sliced into eighths.

I don't think it takes even half an hour, at the rate the group runs, to get to Ponyville. And, by the time they get there, it's clear the town is making a big deal of the visit from the daytime princess.

Trees are decorated with flowers, bells and tied ribbons, and attached by loose-hanging streamers. Various ponies are grooming the lawns, watering gardens, or hanging other decorations on or cleaning buildings, or otherwise sprucing up the town.

Two earth ponies, one pink with a magenta mane and the other yellow-orange with an orange mane, are preparing a banner for the arrival of their daytime princess. The one problem is it's reading, “Welcome Princess Celest.” The valentine shape over the “i” in "Princess" is a nice touch; but they either need to add a little more to the banner to make room for the last two letters in Celestia's name, or make the letters on the banner just a little smaller to accommodate the two missing letters.

Pinkie Pie runs off, saying something about helping the Cakes at Sugar Cube Corner.

Lyra decides to help tend to some flowers.

I see the banner as an opportunity to offer some assistance. And, it seems that Weed Whacker had the foresight to bring the enchanted clipboard with her.

I have my character walk up to the two earth ponies as I ask, “Is there some way I can help?”

The two ponies, who I recognize as Berry Punch and Carrot Top, jump and scream as they hear my voice.

I watch the two run head-first into each other before I say, “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. Are you alright?”

The two, sitting canine-style on the ground and rubbing their foreheads, turn to my character and simultaneously say, “We're fine. Who are you?”

I answer, “You may call me Mormon.”

Next to my character, my herbivorous dinosaur friend says, “I'm Weed Whacker.”

The yellow earth pony says, “My name's Carrot Top,” then pointing to her pink friend, adds, “and this is my friend, Berry Punch.”

I state, “It's nice to meet the two of you.” As is normal, I don't feel it necessary to let them know I already know their names. I continue, having my character gesture to the sign, “I can't help noticing you seem to have a problem with your banner.”

It's Berry Punch who, now rubbing the back of her head with a front hoof, sheepishly says, “Yeah, we kind of ran out of room.”

I answer, “That's alright. I think I can help you there.” As I have my character pan over the banner, I ask, “Do you think you could erase this sign and start over?”

I immediately get the idea that I said something wrong, as the two earth mares look like they're about to cry.

Carrot Top says, “We ran out of red crayon making this sign. We wanted to make it as big as we could, and then this happened.” And, with that, the two start whimpering.

I think aloud, “Well, let's get the banner up and see how it looks.”

In response, the two mares stop whimpering and immediately hoist up the banner on the two wooden poles.

I have my character take a few steps back so he can have a better look at the sign. As far as I can tell, other than the message, the banner looks really good.

And, that's when Twilight Sparkle shows up. She takes one look at the sign and asks, “What happened to the rest of her name?”

Carrot Top answers, “We couldn't fit it all in.”

Twilight points to the two mares and says, “You can't have a banner that says, 'Welcome Princess Celest.' Take it down and do it again.”

As I watch the purple unicorn gallop past, I say, “Uh, Twilight, if you wouldn't mind helping us for a moment, … “

I think I may have startled her. As she stops, then turns around and looks at my character, she says, “Oh, Mormon, I didn't see you there.”

I continue, “Could you conjure up a red crayon and erase the message on this sign with your magic?”

Having fully stopped, the purple unicorn looks ahead of her, then behind at my character and the two mares, then turns back and trots up to me as she says, “Alright.” It almost sounded like she was growling when she said that.

Anyway, she fires magic at the sign, causing the message on it to disappear, then fires more of her magic at my character's hand, causing a red crayon to appear in it. She then turns and gallops off.

I have my character turn to her and call out, “Thanks!” then turn to the two mares and, accepting the clipboard from Weed Whacker, I put it down in front of Carrot Top and say, “Now, first let's have you write the message you want here, just big enough so we can see how big and tall it needs to be.”

Carrot Top nods, then proceeds to write the message out on the parchment, “Welcome Princess Celestia.”

Just then, I hear Lyra's voice next to me say, “Oh, I think I see what you're trying to do.” As the attention of the rest of the group turns to her, the pale-green unicorn continues, “You want to make sure the message can fit on the banner, right?”

Berry Punch answers, “That's right. Do you think you can help us?”

I answer, “I'm thinking we just need this parchment as something of a stencil to write the message on the banner. If we can get it stretched just enough that all the words in the message fit on the banner, then we can get to work and complete it. So, what do you think?”

The pale-green unicorn grunts with interest for a moment, then closes her eyes and points her horn, which starts to glow and sparkle.

Immediately, the parchment rises and grows; holes develop in the parchment where the red crayon was; and the parchment stretches over the banner. In a matter of seconds, the message is stretched over the banner material.

Immediately Berry Punch gets to work, drawing the message through the stretched parchment. In a matter of a minute, the message is written on the banner. And, this time, there is a valentine over the i in "Princess," and over the i in "Celestia." The banner clearly says, “Welcome Princess Celestia.”

Again the two earth ponies raise the banner, and, as far as I can tell, it looks perfect. I don't know if Twilight Sparkle will see the banner again, or if Princess Celestia will even see it, but it's nice to know it's finally ready for the daytime princess when she arrives.

In the mean time, Lyra has shrunk the parchment back to its original size, and returns it to my character. Then, as soon as she sees the banner, she says, “That's just what it needed. Good work, Mormon. Good work, everypony.”

At this point, Carrot Top says, “Yes, thank you, Mormon. I don't think we could've gotten the banner ready in time without your help.”

I answer, “I'm glad I could be of service.”

Lyra says, “Well, it looks like that's the last thing that needed to be done. Any idea what we should do next?”

Just then, a yellow blur topped with pink gallops past the four, on its way to Sugar Cube Corner.

Knowing that this day is based on the episode 'Swarm of the Century,' I already know it's Fluttershy, on her way to show her new-found friend to the Cakes, as well as Pinkie Pie and Twilight Sparkle, who should be there by the time Fluttershy arrives.

I say, “I'm thinking it's time for us to head to Sugar Cube Corner now.”

Lyra answers, “Well, alright. If you think we can find something to do there, then let's go.”

In a few minutes the pale-green unicorn and my character have arrived at the bakery, in time for Fluttershy to mention some kind of discovery she's made at the edge of the Everfree forest.

I decide the best thing to do is wait a few footsteps outside the door while we listen to what's going on inside. Unfortunately, much of the conversation is muffled.

On the other hand, the voice of Pinkie Pie is suddenly loud and clear as she grunts in disgust and says, “A parasprite, are you kidding?”

In a few seconds, the front door opens; and Pinkie Pie looks back at Fluttershy and Twilight Sparkle and growls in frustration and says, “Now I've gotta find a trombone.”

Confused, Twilight asks, “A what?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “A trombone. You know.” And then, while playing an air trombone, she does a really good approximation of the voice of the brass instrument before running out the door, and nearly into my character. Screeching to a stop, she looks up at him and says, “Mormon, I'm gonna need your help.”

But, before the reunited group can get going, Lyra looks inside and sees the little creatures. She says, “Oh, how cute!”

Again Pinkie Pie growls as she runs and grabs Lyra's tail, saying, “No, Lyra, no. We're not getting a parasprite.”

Just then, a brown sphere with green eyes that are large for the size of the sphere, a smile, four legs and a pair of compound wings zooms, then hovers into my character's view.

Presently and automatically, my character swats the little arthropod away.

Instantly, Fluttershy, who I hadn't realized until then was at the back door, gasps, then says, “Mormon, how could you do such a thing to such a cute little creature?”

I answer, “Oh, yeah, it's all ooh, and aah, at first. Then, there's running, and screaming. Besides, they remind me too much of houseflies.”

In the mean time, the parasprite my character swatted away flies to Fluttershy and hides in her mane, trembling. It looks like it may also be crying, although I can't be sure of that.

Fluttershy, seeing the little flying arthropod's reaction, turns to me with a look of mild anger on her face and says, “Well, if you're going to treat one of my new friends like that, then I suggest you leave now.”

I have no intention of responding vocally to that suggestion.

But, even if I did, Pinkie Pie wouldn't have given me the chance; as presently she asks, “Well, Mormon, are you coming or not?”

My character turns to her and shows me she's a few steps ahead of him, waiting to start galloping again as soon as he's caught up to her. I choose to have him run to and with the pink earth pony as she makes her way to the outskirts of Ponyville.

During this time, she says, “I've been all over Ponyville, and there are some musical instruments I haven't seen that I need. I don't know if they're anywhere else in Equestria, but there wouldn't be anything left of Ponyville if I were to go looking for them and found them by the time I got back. So, Mormon, if you have these instruments modeled in a folder or something like that, and just haven't converted them, or maybe haven't even modeled them yet, I need them now.”

Most of the ponies are still busy in the park making final preparations for the arrival of Princess Celestia, leaving the streets of Ponyville largely unoccupied. So, Pinkie Pie and my character really have no reason to stop for any traffic.

My character and Pinkie Pie have crossed two intersections by now, and are heading toward another one, when I say, “You can give me the list of musical instruments you haven't seen, that you need, and I'll be happy to get to work on them.” The two reach and cross another intersection before I ask, “So, I'm guessing you've had experience with parasprites, perhaps back on the rock farm?”

It seems we need to stop at the fourth intersection away from the bakery to wait for Big MacIntosh to cross ahead of us with a wagon-load of apples.

Given such a moment to take a break from running, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “It won't be too much longer before we're out of town. I'll fill you in then.”

I have a sneaking suspicion that Pinkie Pie already knows that I know what her back story is on the subject of the parasprites; but, she also understands that I'm asking so she'll tell her story for the benefit of those who read these notes and/or play the game. She doesn't say that; but, knowing Pinkie Pie, it's highly likely.

Indeed, it looks like we have one or two intersections to cross before we're out of town. And, having an opportunity, I have my character look back; and I can see through his eyes that Lyra is following us, and carrying Weed Whacker on her back.

By the time my character has turned back around, Big Mac has already moved past us, and Pinkie Pie is already galloping ahead, leaving the rest of us to run to catch up with her. But, with no further obstacles, my character, PInkie Pie, and Lyra, still carrying Weed Whacker, make their way out of town in a matter of a minute or two.

Once there, I speak up and say, “Now, before you get to your story, Pinkie, I just want to mention now that I have gotten three tickets to that Grand Galloping Gala event. One for me, one for Lyra, and one for Weed Whacker.”

Weed Whacker seems indifferent about it.

Lyra, on the other hand, pauses for a moment to clap her front hooves as she says, “Oh, that's so cool! I've gotta tell Bon-Bon about this!”

Presently I have my character U-turn, run in front of Lyra, and stop, before I say, “No, Lyra, I don't want you telling anyone about it.”

The pale-green unicorn comes to a screeching halt grimacing with enlarged eyes and shrunken pupils, even backpedals, to avoid running into my character. As she comes to a halt perhaps an inch away from him, she sighs with relief that she didn't run into him before asking, “Why can't I tell my best friend?”

I can't tell if her expression of hurt is from my character jumping in front of her, causing a near collision, or if it really is that she's forbidden from telling her friend. Whichever the case is, I answer, “If she has her own ticket, then you'll likely see her at the event anyway. But, in case she doesn't, I don't see any reason to drive a wedge between you two. Besides, this isn't the time to be running off.” Seeing that Lyra appears to be satisfied with the answer, I herd her back toward Pinkie Pie, who has stopped running and has turned to watch the exchange between me and Lyra. Once we've gotten back to Pinkie Pie, I have my character turn to her as I say, “You can tell your story now.”

Pinkie Pie resumes her gallop into the forest as she says, “We don't know how it got there, but somehow, and I seem to remember it being a month or so before I got my cutie mark, we found one of those things eating the remains of a loaf of bread. At the time, all we knew about it was it was small and cute and had a taste for pastries. And then, it coughed out what looked like a hairball, except the hairball turned into another one of them.

“Still, we didn't mind. After all, it seemed harmless enough at that point. All it'd done was eaten some bread and reproduced. We decided to keep the little creatures, because they seemed even helpful.

“What we didn't realize was that the bread was enough to make one of them turn into a swarm overnight. And, even worse than that, they started eating all the food on the farm. That's when we decided to call them parasprites. We'd started farming rocks because my sister Maud couldn't eat anything else. But, thanks to the parasprites, we had to resort to full-time rock farming. Rocks were the only things we'd eat that the parasprites couldn't. To this day, we have no idea who or what their natural predators might be, and it was one miserable week we spent trying to drive off those little monsters.

“And, wouldn't you know it, our salvation came when a marching band passed by our farm.

“I'll say one thing about the parasprites: they have a great sense of rhythm. They followed the marching band away, keeping time by flying in circles while they maintained their distance from the sousaphone player at the end of the march.

“That's why I'd rather have nothing to do with those things. And since Diane and I have memorized all the instruments in that band, we know what we need to get rid of the parasprites.

“Now, thanks to Fluttershy, I know they come from the Everfree forest. If their natural predators are in there, maybe we can send those parasprites back there so we can be rid of them for once.”

I've noticed, while Pinkie Pie was telling her story, that Lyra seems to have been getting nervous. I ask her, “Are you alright?”

Lyra answers, “I'm f-fine. Let's just k-keep going.”

I guess I've been paying so much attention to Lyra that I haven't noticed Pinkie Pie grabbing the clipboard from Weed Whacker and starting on the list of musical instruments she needs. The pink pony, when she's finished, hands the clipboard to me and says, “Here's the list of instruments you can get for me. We don't have time to order these from all over Equestria; so, Mormon, you'll have to find or make these instruments yourself, then put them in your 'models' folder when they're ready. We'll wait at your character's house. You can come back to your game when you have these instruments ready for me. And, please have them in a box.”

By the time Pinkie Pie is finished talking, the group has reached my character's house.

My character opens the gate to allow the ponies to enter as he receives the list of musical instruments. I find myself surprised at how many I haven't modeled and made available in Ponyville. Perhaps more surprising is the number of instruments that aren't on the list, which are evidently already in town. The list of unavailable instruments includes a trombone, a bass drum, cymbals, maracas, and a recorder. There are maybe two or three other instruments, all of which, if I can't find in my folder models, I should be able to model easily enough.

I turn to Pinkie Pie and say, “I'll get to work on this list of instruments immediately. Ki tahi au.” Then, as soon as the game's paused, I have my character show me, through his eyes, the list, which I write out, then say, “Continue.”

Just then, I hear a strange chattering or trilling sound coming, as my character shows me, from Lyra's mane.

Before anyone can do anymore to react, a timber wolf, evidently young, jumps out of the trees near the yard, tackles Lyra, and starts sniffing at her mane, digging around for whatever might be in there.

Pinkie Pie watches in evident surprise, while I, through my character's eyes, watch in fascination; while the wooden dog scares out, then snaps up, some four or five parasprites as each one makes itself known by flying out of the pale-green unicorn's mane.

When Lyra's mane is no longer making trilling or chattering sounds, the timber wolf backs away from her. I can't help noticing the timber wolf seems to be smiling at Lyra as she stumbles to her hooves again.

After a few seconds of inactivity from the wooden canid, Pinkie Pie says, “I didn't see that coming.”

I have my character turn to the pink pony as I say, “Well, thanks to Lyra, we now know that the parasprites' natural predator, or at least one of them, is the timber wolf that lives in the Everfree forest.”

Pinkie Pie turns back to my character and says, “Well, we can't have a pack of timber wolves runnin' wild through Ponyville. They'd do more damage to the town than the parasprites would.”

I state, “I agree. I'm guessing the best plan of action is to get those musical instruments together, then maybe organize a band to perform and attract those arthropods away from Ponyville and back into the forest.”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Organizing a marching band would take too long. No. Either I'll have to play all the instruments, or you'll have to take some, maybe the percussion instruments; and we can join forces. Whatever we do, we need to get started as soon as possible.”

As I prepare to save and exit the game for the time being, I say to Pinkie Pie, “Agreed. I'll be back with the instruments in a box. And, I'm thinking the best place to have those instruments is in the house.” I don't give the pink party pony a chance to respond as I save and exit the game, then get to work searching for the instruments on Pinkie Pie's list.

It's been a few days now. I found several of the instruments on Pinkie Pie's list, all except for the cymbals and the trombone, in my folder of musical instrument models for Equestria. I had to model and animate the cymbals and trombone before adding all the required instruments on Pinkie Pie's list to the “models” folder, the “musical instruments” subfolder, placing them in a modeled box and putting them, with the musical instruments inside the box, in the front room. The modeling wasn't quite so difficult, especially the cymbals, as the animations, particularly the trombone. But, it's all complete now, and I'm ready to continue the game.

As I do so, the game starts paused.

I continue the game to hear Pinkie Pie say, “I'll go inside and have a look at the instruments. Knowing you, I know I'm gonna be happy with them.” And, with that, she proceeds to go into the house and have a look at the box of instruments.

In the mean time, I'm left with a sobbing pale-green unicorn and a happy-looking young timber wolf.

As I proceed to comfort Lyra, she screams, “Keep that wooden mutt away from me!”

Evidently the timber wolf understands what Lyra said, as presently it frowns and starts whimpering.

I'm at a loss for a moment until I remember that previously in the game Lyra had apparently brought a parasprite with her from Sugar Cube Corner. The little insect must have multiplied in her mane and made sounds when the group had gotten back to my character's house, causing the timber wolf still present to jump out of the woods and attack her, chasing the parasprites out one by one and devouring them as they appeared.

After that, I say, “Trust me, the timber wolf did the right thing. The parasprites would've been more trouble than they were worth.”

Now Lyra glares into the timber wolf's eyes and growls, “Don't you dare touch me again. Just go back to the woods where you came from.” Then, she turns and gallops back to the house.

As Lyra turns around, the timber wolf growls and prepares to lunge at her. That is, until I have my character grab it and hold it firm.

While it struggles against my character, I say, “She's angry because you attacked her and killed her parasprites. She'll get over it. Just calm down.”

The wooden canid stops struggling against me as I hear the door to my character's house open and close, although the timber wolf continues to growl.

I continue, “Lyra thought she was bringing home a new pet. She didn't understand how destructive parasprites can be. My knowledge of their abilities comes from observation, not from experience. But, I still appreciate that you took care of them. Thanks.”

At this point, the timber wolf stops growling. It backs away from my character, sniffs at his face, tilts its head, and makes a sound that I can only interpret as the grunt of canine curiosity.

I add, “Since Lyra's going to be angry with you for a while, I'm thinking it probably won't be a good idea to let you into the house for the time being. But, you can still stick around if you want.”

Now, the timber wolf straightens its head again, smiles, barks once, then licks my character's face.

I'm wondering if this timber wolf is my character's new pet now. If so, then I'm going to need to learn more about it. Is this one male, or female? Somehow, I can tell that it's young, but exactly how many years has it lived? And, if I join in activities with Pinkie Pie and her other friends in playing with our pets, how will they react to my character bringing a timber wolf to their event? Finally, what am I going to name it? In the immediate future, I'm guessing I'll get to see how a dog made of wood and a toothless alligator get along.

In the mean time, I decide it's time to go into the house and see what Pinkie Pie thinks of the assortment of instruments I've provided for her.

The timber wolf follows my character up the steps onto the porch of his house, then settles down near the door as my character opens it and enters the house. Before he can close the door, though, a green streak zooms past him and out the door. I guess that means I should leave the door open just enough for Pinkie Pie's pet to come back in when he's gotten his fish for the day.

Lyra is the first to speak, as she asks, “Is that timber wolf gone now?”

I slowly answer, “I don't think so.” As Lyra starts to glare at my character, I add, “In fact, I think I have a new pet.”

It's Pinkie Pie who pulls her head out of the box, then claps her front hooves together as she says, “Oh, sweet!”

On the other hand, Lyra glares at my character and says, “Oh, no. We are not keeping a timber wolf around here. Especially not the one that attacked me.”

You know, I can't say for sure if Pinkie Pie was responding to my having a pet, or if she was just finding another instrument among those she'd listed for me to get. Maybe both. Whichever it is, I answer Lyra, “I haven't decided yet if I'm going to keep the timber wolf or not. But, if I do decide to keep it, it'll be my pet.”

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie has found and, I guess, tested, the trombone, cymbals, and maracas, and laid them out on the floor next to her. Now, she sets the recorder next to her and sticks her nose into the box in search of the next musical instrument.

Lyra's question, “What about me?” steals my character's attention away from Pinkie Pie for the moment.

I answer, “You're a friend, not a pet.”

Lyra, presently calmer, says, “Thanks, but that's not what I meant. What I meant is, you're going to keep a creature that attacked me?”

I answer, “The timber wolf only did that because you had parasprites in your mane. Don't bring home any more parasprites, and I'm sure the timber wolf won't attack you again.”

Sarcastically, the pale-green unicorn mare says, “Well, that's a relief.”

I add, “As I said to the timber wolf, what I know about parasprites comes from observation, not from personal experience. You had no idea what you were bringing home. Chances are, if it hadn't been for that timber wolf, the parasprites would likely have multiplied further, and eaten all the food in and around the house. It would've been a disaster for all of us. Thanks to the timber wolf, we don't have that potential problem anymore.” I wait, watching through my character's eyes for a response from the pale-green unicorn. When I get none, I continue, “One thing that should be clear to you is that the timber wolf meant no harm to you. It was only after the parasprites in your mane. As I said before, it's thanks to you that we know that at least one of the parasprites' natural predators is the timber wolf. Who knows but that we'll find more of the parasprites' natural predators as we guide them back into the Everfree forest?”

Again Lyra is speechless, although she does start sniffling. When my character opens his arms to her, she immediately jumps into them. It's then that she finally finds her voice as she sobs, “I guess I need to repent to that timber wolf.”

I answer, “It's still outside if you want to talk to it. But, I'm thinking if you do, I should be out there with you, just to be safe.”

Lyra pulls away from my character and says, “Yeah, you're probably right about that.” She then sniffles again, then rubs her nose, then sighs.

As my character turns to the door, I notice Gummy's head poke through it, a fresh fish in his mouth, as he pushes the door open enough that he can get inside. A few steps past the door, he points his head upward, jump-bites the fish, and manages to swallow it whole before running past Pinkie Pie and into the kitchen.

After watching that activity, I lead Lyra out to the timber wolf on the porch.

The timber wolf, on seeing Lyra again, starts growling mildly. To the credit of the wolf, it seems to understand when I hold my hand out to it, palm facing it, that it should calm down.

As soon as the wooden dog relaxes again, Lyra slowly makes her approach, head lowered and looking toward the floor in front of her, as she says, “Mormon let me know that you weren't trying to hurt me, and you were just after the parasprites. If I hadn't brought them here, you wouldn't have attacked me. Mormon also said he'd observed that parasprites are dangerous insects. If that's true, then you were right to chase them out of my mane. I'm not angry with you anymore. I just thought they were cute. But, if they are as destructive as Mormon says they are, then I need to ask you to forgive me for being angry with you.”

Presently, the timber wolf rises onto all fours and gently nuzzles Lyra.

The pale-green unicorn chuckles in relief and says, “Thank you.”

Just then, Pinkie Pie comes out of the house and says, “I just need a few more instruments, and some stuff to connect them, and I'll be ready to go.”

As the group proceeds to the gate, following the pink pony's lead, I can't help noticing the timber wolf is next to my character. I ask, “Pinkie Pie, do you think it'd be alright if just one timber wolf follows us into Ponyville?”

Pinkie Pie tilts her head as she responds, “Are you sure he can be trusted to behave himself?”

At that point, the previously smiling timber wolf droops and returns to his place on the porch. It seems that the timber wolf didn't trust itself to behave in a town possibly swarming by now with ravenous parasprites. In the mean time, if Pinkie Pie's suggestion is right, I know the gender of my new timber wolf friend.

As the group gets to the gate, I wonder for a moment where Weed Whacker is. Then, I look at Pinkie Pie and notice the little herbivorous dinosaur is on her back. I have my character turn back to the gate latch, only to find that Pinkie Pie has already grabbed it and opened the gate. My character follows her and Lyra out of the gate, closing it behind them.

A half hour later, the group is back in Ponyville; and I'm left in the area of the market place in town with Lyra as Pinkie Pie finds the rest of the instruments on her mental list. As she finds each one, she brings it to me and Lyra, who keep them safe while she searches for the next one. When some ten different musical instruments have been gathered from town, Pinkie Pie takes a moment to rest before dividing the instruments among the group, based on who can carry them most easily, then runs to the hardware store in town to get some metal rods and other items to make holders for the instruments.

When all the items have been gathered, the group returns to my character's house; and Pinkie Pie proceeds, with the help of my character and Lyra, to build the contraptions for holding the musical instruments. Evidently, at some point she's decided Lyra and my character can help her with her musical project.

At this point, two things surprise me: First, that I haven't seen more than one or two parasprites in Ponyville, and second, that it takes no more than an hour to put Pinkie Pie's contraptions together. As for the parasprites, it's most likely that they were less interested in the park than in the market place, where all the food would be. Although, considering we were there, I have to wonder, why was I still unable to see any parasprites? And, when it comes to Pinkie Pie's contraptions, it's more than just three characters working together. Pinkie Pie seems to know instinctively what part should go where.

After building the contraptions; one for holding the wind instruments and accordion for Pinkie Pie, one for my character to carry a complete drum set so he can easily play it, and one for Lyra so she can carry and play the remaining instruments, including a xylophone; we're finally ready to rid Ponyville of the plague of the parasprites.

Before heading back to Ponyville to perform, the group does a practice round of a piece that I'm familiar with, one from the Animusic series of videos, a favorite of mine called "Stick Figures." While I'm not sure if the parasprites will keep up with the change in tempo, the quartet performs the piece surprisingly well, giving it a definite ending the measure immediately after the music video faded the music out. When Pinkie Pie needs to play a different instrument, she calls it out. And, Lyra's talents with string instruments are just what the group needs to complete the ensemble.

The successful practice of the piece satisfies Pinkie Pie, who proceeds to lead the group back to Ponyville.

Once there, another hour later (With all those instruments, we couldn't be expected to run through the Everfree forest now, could we?), Pinkie Pie leads the group around to the other side of town; and the march begins. Pinkie Pie leads, my character follows immediately behind her, and Lyra is behind him.

My character keeps the rhythm of the march for a minute before Pinkie Pie calls out that it's time to begin playing. And, I'll say one thing for sure: it's as much fun to play through proxy in this game as I remember marching band being in reality when I was in junior high and high school.

I do happen to notice, through my character's eyes, parasprites, in swarms, leaving houses and other structures, bouncing rhythmically, then falling in, I assume, behind Lyra. It's clear that they enjoy the performance. With my character, it isn't a series of timed events, but a series of keystrokes based on lines of music that show up on the screen, indicating which drum is to be played at a particular time. And, as I hoped, the feeling is more natural, at least for me, than it would be with timed events.

As the group approaches the rest of the Mane Six in the marketplace, I hear Twilight Sparkle start to say, as she sees the human and another unicorn, “Mormon, Lyra, I can't believe that you'd … get … caught … up … in … Pinkie … “ She trails off as she notices parasprites leaving buildings, bouncing to the music, then joining the parade.

And, as it turns out, the parasprites change their rhythm with the change in tempo, keeping right up with the earth pony, the human, and the unicorn as they are lead out of town and back into the Everfree forest, where eager timber wolves wait to devour the flying menaces. The group even marches around the town once to make sure any parasprites that might not have heard the music during the performance through the town get to join in.

In the mean time, the marching trio follows Pinkie Pie's lead both in march and in music as she chooses when and where in the music to loop.

By the time we return to my character's house, other timber wolves have snapped up nearly all the parasprites in the parade, leaving maybe half a dozen for my timber wolf friend to finish off.

With the last of the parasprites eaten, Pinkie Pie calls an end to the performance; and we play one last extended note.

As fun as it was to be surrounded by the music, it's also made clear that all the performers are worn out. Particularly Pinkie Pie, whose legs collapse under her, and I can hear her breathing heavily.

My character drops the drum sticks and also collapses, but it seems that Lyra is the least tired of the group. Based on her groan at the rest of the group sitting there and trying to catch their breath, she still wants to perform.

After a few minutes of rest, I hear the voice of Twilight Sparkle, which draws my character's attention, as she says, “Princess Celestia wanted me to tell you that she really enjoyed the marching band's performance, but she's been called to Filly-delphia to take care of an infestation of flying insects there. Unfortunately, this means she won't be able to attend the reading with us tonight. But, Princess Luna will still be attending, and she'll bring Princess Celestia up-to-date on what happened during the reading.

“I've given her my report on what I learned about friendship. And, she looks forward to reading your reports, Mormon and Lyra, on what you learned from each other. By the way, what's a timber wolf doing on your property, Mormon?”

I answer, “Evidently, keeping it free from parasprites. Lyra brought some here in her mane when we first came back from Ponyville, and the timber wolf jumped out of the woods and took care of them. It meant attacking and scaring Lyra, but the good news is that we now know that the timber wolf is one of the natural predators of the parasprites. I'll have to include that in my report to the princesses, I think.”

It's then that I hear Pinkie Pie ask, “So, Mormon, does that mean he's gonna be your new pet?”

My character, as per my instructions, turns to the pink earth pony as she asks her question, then turns to Lyra afterward to see if she has anything to say about it. When it seems that she doesn't, he turns to Pinkie Pie; and I say, “Sure, why not.”

I can only assume that it's with the help of her sister Diane, but Pinkie Pie manages to jump out of her contraption without getting hurt as she squeals, “Yes! Yes! Now we can all play with our pets together!”

I then hear Fluttershy ask, “Does this mean you have a pet too, Pinkie Pie?”

I have my character turn to her as I answer, “She adopted a toothless alligator hatchling a few days ago, and called him Gummy.”

Then, from right next to my character, I hear Pinkie Pie's voice ask, “Oh, that reminds me. What're you gonna name your timber wolf pet, huh?”

As my character turns to her, I hear a bark from his other side, causing him to turn to the wooden canid whose nose is just inches from his face. After a double shock like that, I have to regain my composure before I can even think about the answer to my pink pony friend's question. Then, the idea occurs to me; and I have my character turn back to Pinkie Pie before I say, “I think I'll call him Scout.” What I don't say aloud is that I wonder if, considering the shape of the living pile of wood, I should treat him more like a dog or more like a plant of some kind. I'm guessing the answer to that question will come in time.

In the mean time, I think my new timber wolf friend is just happy to have a name. He barks once, then, I assume, based on the involuntary movement of my character's head, licks his, that is my character's, face.

At the same time, the pink earth pony watching says, “Well, it looks like he likes it.” Then she thinks aloud, “You know, that reminds me. I wonder how Gummy's doin'.” And, with that, she turns to the house and canters to the door.

As I watch, through my character's eyes, Pinkie Pie heading for the house, I begin to wonder what a timber wolf might think about playing a game of fetch with sticks. Considering the timber wolves in this game, and in the animated series for that matter, are composed of broken parts of trees, would they consider such a game offensive? Disturbing? Morbid? I have to wonder if I'd want to play a game of fetch with a timber wolf using anything composed of wood. Maybe I should model a disc in the modeling program I used to produce all the objects for this game, marking the disc as composed of plastic or something like that. I'll have to consider that the next time I close this program.

Thus are my thoughts when I suddenly hear the voice of Vinyl Scratch at the door, saying, “Oh, hi, Pinks. I thought you should know, when I opened the door to go out and get some fresh air, your lizard ran out of the house and, I guess, to the pond. I guess he was hungry.”

As my character turns to see the white unicorn and the pink earth pony at the door, I notice Gummy, once again carrying a fish in his mouth, run next to the house, then U-turn to the steps, then easily scale each of them up to the porch. Seeing the two ponies in the way, he proceeds to swallow the fish, then look up at the white unicorn and twitch his tail.

Pinkie Pie, noticing her pet alligator next to her, looks down at him and says, “Oh, hi, Gummy. I was going to check up on you. You wanna see Mormon's new pet?”

The only reaction I can see from my perspective is Gummy turning to, and looking up at, Pinkie Pie.

The pink pony U-turns in place, being careful not to step on her alligator pet, then trots down the steps and bounces toward my character as she says, “Well, come on over. He's right here with Mormon.”

Obediently, the alligator follows Pinkie Pie down the steps and to my character to meet Scout.

In a matter of seconds, the alligator and the timber wolf are kind of staring at each other, with my character in the middle.

I have my character motion to the timber wolf, then to the alligator, then back again, as I say, “Scout, meet Gummy. Gummy, meet Scout.”

Taking my introduction as an invitation, Scout puts his front paws on my character's lap, then lowers his front half to sniff at Gummy.

In response, Gummy takes a step back, then jumps and grabs onto Scout's nose, holding on by his mouth.

At this point, Scout jumps back in surprise, but seems to notice that Gummy's grip on his snout isn't going to hurt him. But, he does start whining as he looks at my character.

Because of the familiarity of the situation, I wonder aloud, “Do you think singing Gummy to sleep would work?”

Pinkie Pie doesn't respond to my question. Instead, she approaches Scout, supports Gummy with her head, then starts stroking him gently with a front hoof as she says, “Now, Gummy, you can let go. Scout wasn't going to hurt you. He was just curious.”

Indeed, Pinkie Pie's massaging causes the alligator to relax, and eventually let go of the timber wolf's snout, at which point she backs away from him, her pet alligator nestled in her mane.

As my character strokes the wooden dog on his back, I again think aloud, "I wonder when guests are going to start arriving for the reading.”

Pinkie Pie freezes for a moment, then looks at me and says, “You know, you're right. We need to get ready for them.” She then moves to Lyra and starts freeing her from her instruments as she says, “We need to get the snacks ready for them.”

One by one, the rest of the Mane Six volunteer to help my character and Pinkie Pie with preparations for the night's reading.

I have my character stand up, then I say, “Well, Pinkie's going to have to separate all the instruments, then put away all the ones we own, and maybe hold the rest until we return to Ponyville tomorrow and return them. In the mean time, there's the orchard, the vineyard, and the vegetable garden where we usually gather fruits and veggies to prepare as snacks. We just get enough for the guests for the reading.”

Applejack and Rarity dismiss themselves to go back to get their families.

Twilight volunteers to help Pinkie Pie with the musical instruments.

Once Lyra is freed from the instruments she's been carrying, she and Rainbow Dash make their way to the vineyard to gather fruit from there for snacks.

Fluttershy and Weed Whacker make their way to the vegetable garden to gather veggies.

As soon as my character frees himself from the percussion instruments, he proceeds to the orchard to harvest apples, pears, and a few summer fruits.

In a matter of minutes, the instruments are put away; and fruits and vegetables are gathered in the kitchen for cleaning and making into snacks. Then, with the combined force of ponies, dragon, and human, it's another few minutes before the snack tray is made ready.

Twilight dismisses herself to go get her dragon assistant and their books, and Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy do the same.

With evident time to prepare, Lyra chooses to take a shower in preparation for the guests to arrive.

I have my character put a cover over the snack tray to keep the plant products as safe from the elements as possible until the guests arrive.

As it turns out, Lyra is finished with her shower before guests start arriving.

The first to arrive, as I expect, are my stallion friends, who have been joined by Rarity, Sweetie Belle, and Applejack and her family.

I'm pleasantly surprised to see two faces I only remember seeing in Ponyville just today, Berry Punch and Carrot Top.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie occupies herself greeting guests; while my character, with the help of Lyra, proceeds to carry the snack tray, of course after uncovering it.

By the time the two have made it out there, it seems that all the guests, including Princess Luna, have arrived. All that's left is to get copies of the Book of Mormon for Berry Punch and Carrot Top.

As my character takes another look at the guests, I find myself pleasantly surprised to see Mayor Mare here again. I also see, through my character's eyes, Cheerilee, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle, in that order. I must say, it's good to see them again as well.

My character goes inside to the closet and retrieves two copies of the Book of Mormon, then goes back outside and hands the books to the newcomers, then takes his place between Lyra and Weed Whacker.

What I don't take into account is Ponyville's mayor pushing my herbivorous dinosaur friend aside to put herself between my character and Princess Luna, a maneuver that pleases neither me nor the nighttime princess.

I have my character turn to Mayor Mare before I say, “I appreciate you wanting to sit next to me, but that didn't give you the right to push Weed Whacker out of her place.” Then, as Princess Luna proceeds to agree with me, I have my character turn to the herbivorous dinosaur while I say, as Lyra and Bon-Bon move over, “You can sit on my other side.” Finally, as Weed Whacker takes her position, I turn back to the Mayor and say, “You can sit between me and Princess Luna this time, but next time you want to sit between me and one of your princesses, please ask us first. Don't just go pushing juveniles out of the way, alright?”

As the humbled mare looks down into her book, I have my character look around at the rest of the audience as I ask, “Are there any volunteers to begin the reading?”

At my invitation, Carrot Top stands up and asks, as if to be reminded, “Where are we reading, again?”

I answer, “We're beginning the reading tonight with chapter eighteen.” As I watch the yellow-orange earth pony with orange hair and her friend flip through the pages using their noses, I continue, “To bring you up-to-date on what's been going on so far, the people we'll be reading about are a man named Lehi and his wife Sariah, their sons Laman, Lemuel, Sam and Nephi, as well as another man, Ishmael, and his family. They lived in Jerusalem more than six hundred years before the coming of the Christ, until Lehi was told by God to take his family and leave, as Jerusalem was going to be captured by the Babylonians. Lehi obeyed, and after a few days was told to send his sons back to get some records they'd need for when they reached their destination. After obtaining those records, and after Lehi looked through them, God told him to send his sons back, this time to get Ishmael and his family so his sons could take wives of his daughters and start families of their own in the new land. After they did that, the two families traveled for some eight years, and at this point have arrived at the coast where God has commanded Nephi to build a ship.

"Nephi's older brothers haven't been making things easy for everyone else, and, otherwise, the group has been having some hardships. But, they've made it to the shore of the ocean, which is where this chapter begins.” As I see, through my character's eyes, evidence that the two mares have gotten to the right page, I ask the orange-haired mare, “So, Carrot Top, will you begin the reading with verse one?”

She looks at me and nods, then looks down into her copy of the book and reads, “And it came to pass that they did worship the Lord, and did go forth with me; and we did work timbers of curious workmanship. And the Lord did show me from time to time after what manner I should work the timbers of the ship.”

I then have my character turn to the pale-reddish-purple earth pony next to Carrot Top and ask, “Berry Punch, will you read verse two?”

The earth pony looks at my character and nods, then looks down at her copy of the book and reads, “Now I, Nephi, did not work the timbers after the manner which was learned by men, neither did I build the ship after the manner of men; but I did build it after the manner which the Lord had shown me; wherefore, it was not after the manner of men.”

Next, Berry Ground reads, “And I, Nephi, did go into the mount oft, and I did pray oft unto the Lord; wherefore the Lord showed unto me great things.”

Stunts reads, “And it came to pass that after I had finished the ship, according to the word of the Lord, my brethren beheld that it was good, and that the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine; wherefore, they did humble themselves again before the Lord.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came unto my father, that we should arise and go down into the ship.”

Cold Hands reads, “And it came to pass that on the morrow, after we had prepared all things, much fruits and meat from the wilderness, and honey in abundance, and provisions according to that which the Lord had commanded us, we did go down into the ship, with all our loading and our seeds, and whatsoever thing we had brought with us, everyone according to his age; wherefore, we did all go down into the ship, with our wives and our children.”

Snails reads, “And now, my father had begat two sons in the wilderness; the elder was called Jacob and the younger Joseph.” Looking up, he says, “So, now Nephi has younger brothers.”

I smile, which I'm sure doesn't translate through to my character, at the little orange unicorn colt.

In the mean time, Snips reads, “And it came to pass after we had all gone down into the ship, and had taken with us our provisions and things which had been commanded us, we did put forth into the sea and were driven forth before the wind towards the promised land.”

Warm Heart reads, “And after we had been driven forth before the wind for the space of many days, behold, my brethren and the sons of Ishmael and also their wives began to make themselves merry, insomuch that they began to dance, and to sing, and to speak with much rudeness, yea, even that they did forget by what power they had been brought thither; yea, they were lifted up unto exceeding rudeness.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “And I, Nephi, began to fear exceedingly lest the Lord should be angry with us, and smite us because of our iniquity, that we should be swallowed up in the depths of the sea; wherefore, I, Nephi, began to speak to them with much soberness; but behold they were angry with me, saying: We will not that our younger brother shall be a ruler over us.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And it came to pass that Laman and Lemuel did take me and bind me with cords, and they did treat me with much harshness, nevertheless, the Lord did suffer it that he might show forth his power, unto the fulfilling of his word which he had spoken concerning the wicked.”

At this point, I decide to say, “Nephi brings up a good point here. God may not keep his servants from being attacked by others intending to do them harm. But, He has His reasons for that. If He prevented evil forces from doing evil, well, for one thing, that'd be intruding on their freedom. No one would know if the judgments that would come up on them were just, because they weren't able to act. We need our freedom to do what we intend to do; otherwise, we won't know if we, or anyone around us, is good or evil, and thus, we wouldn't know if we deserve the consequences. Not only that, but we wouldn't know whether or not we'd want to make changes to our behavior. That's what makes our freedom so important to us.” As my character turns to the red stallion, I say, “You may go ahead and read now, Big MacIntosh.”

He nods to me, then reads, “And it came to pass that after they had bound me insomuch that I could not move, the compass, which had been prepared of the Lord, did cease to work.”

Applebloom reads, “Wherefore, they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch that there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest, and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days, and they began to be frightened exceedingly lest they should be drowned in the sea; nevertheless they did not loose me.”

At this point, before Applejack can read the next verse, I have my character look up at the other members of the reading circle; and I say, “Now, before we continue the reading, I just have a few things to say. There's this one animated series I'm familiar with, called Pokemon, or Pocket Monsters where it originally comes from. In that animated series, which has run for several years now, there's this one episode which, in English-speaking countries, at least, is called 'The Big Balloon Blow-Up.' In this episode, the villains, again known in at least English-speaking countries as Jessie, James, and Meowth, in my opinion anyway, do the best reenactment of this story that I've seen outside a Latter-Day Saint performance. There are a few differences: they don't have a compass, the reenactment takes place in a hot-air balloon, it's just the three of them, and they don't make it to their destination as Lehi and his family and friends will do. But, it's a situation that could only take place among the three of them.

“It takes place when the trio, headed by Meowth, enter a hot-air balloon race, as Meowth wants to prove his skills. But, Jessie and James decide they can't win without cheating, and so that's what they do. But, Meowth, when he sees them acting against his plans, chews them out; and gets tied to a post because of it. They even run, or fly or glide, into a storm. As I said, they don't make it to the end of the race; but, as I also said, they did a really good job bringing this story to life. In fact, even if it wasn't perfect, because of their reenactment of this story, the first reenactment of a Book of Mormon story I've seen outside of a church publication, the episode, 'The Big Balloon Blow-Up,' is my favorite of all the Pokemon episodes, and the reason why I follow that show as closely as I do. I hope the producers of the show will bring more Book of Mormon stories, or, for that matter, more scriptural stories, to life. And, I hope to find out about other shows that have done something similar.”

Having said what I wanted to say, I have my character turn to Applejack as I say, “You may go ahead with the next verse.”

The orange earth mare nods, then looks down and reads, “And on the fourth day, which we had been driven back, the tempest began to be exceedingly sore.”

Granny Smith reads, “And it came to pass that we were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea. And after we had been driven back upon the waters for the space of four days, my brethren began to see that the judgments of God were upon them, and that they must perish save that they should repent of their iniquities; wherefore, they came unto me, and loosed the bands which were upon my wrists, and behold they had swollen exceedingly, and also mine ankles were much swollen, and great was the soreness thereof.”

Cheerilee reads, “Nevertheless, I did look unto my God, and I did praise him all the day long; and I did not murmur against the Lord because of mine afflictions.”

Scootaloo reads, “Now my father, Lehi, had said many things unto them, and also unto the sons of Ishmael; but, behold, they did breathe out much threatenings against anyone that should speak for me; and my parents being stricken in years, and having suffered much grief because of their children, they were brought down, yea, even upon their sick-beds.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Because of their grief and much sorrow, and the iniquity of my brethren, they were brought near even to be carried out of this time to meet their God; yea, their grey hairs were about to be brought down to lie low in the dust; yea, even they were near to be cast with sorrow into a watery grave.”

Rarity reads, “And Jacob and Joseph also, being young, having need of much nourishment, were grieved because of the afflictions of their mother; and also my wife with her tears and prayers, and also my children, did not soften the hearts of my brethren that they would loose me.”

Spike reads, “And there was nothing save it were the power of God, which threatened them with destruction, could soften their hearts; wherefore, when they saw that they were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea they repented of the thing which they had done, insomuch that they loosed me.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “And it came to pass after they had loosed me, behold, I took the compass, and it did work whither I desired it. And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord; and after I had prayed the winds did cease, and the storm did cease, and there was a great calm.”

Fluttershy reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did guide the ship, that we sailed again towards the promised land.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And it came to pass that after we had sailed for the space of many days we did arrive at the promised land; and we went forth upon the land, and did pitch our tents; and we did call it the promised land.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And it came to pass that we did begin to till the earth, and we began to plant seeds; yea, we did put all our seeds into the earth, which we had brought from the land of Jerusalem. And it came to pass that they did grow exceedingly; wherefore, we were blessed in abundance.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And it came to pass that we did find upon the land of promise, as we journeyed in the wilderness, that there were beasts in the forests of every kind, both the cow and the ox, and the ass and the horse, and the goat and the wild goat, and all manner of wild animals, which were for the use of men. And we did find all manner of ore; both of gold, and of silver, and of copper.” Looking up, she says, “Nephi noted that there were horses in this 'land of promise.' Do you think there were also ponies there?”

I answer, “That is possible. Nephi notes that among the creatures they found were 'the horse.' It could mean that they found equines there, not strictly horses. In my time, zebras have been imported from Africa to zoos where I live. I've even heard zebra vocalizations near my own home, so it's possible that they've been farmed near there. And, who knows but there was some South American variety of zebra, as well as ponies and other equines? If I understand what I've read correctly, there has been, it seems, fossil evidence of some striped equine in the Americas.”

From outside the gate I hear Zecora's voice say, “Yes, Nephi did testify that they found 'the horse.' It could be that pony and zebra were in his course.”

As my character turns to her, I have him stand up and walk to the gate to let her in while I say, “Zecora, it's nice to see you here. Did you come to read with us?” I do notice a copy of the Book of Mormon on her back.

Zecora answers, “I did come to visit you, but still, if I am welcome to read, then I will.”

As my character opens the gate, I hear Luna say, “Carrot Top, wilt thou move over and give Zecora a space in the circle?”

Then, as Zecora enters, smiling, I hear rustling behind me; and my character turns to the sound to show me that Carrot Top and others have made enough room for two zebras Zecora's size to sit in the circle.

The zebra, seeing this, chuckles and says, “Please, Carrot Top, I am not that wide. But, I am honored to sit at Princess Luna's side.”

As Zecora takes her place on the side of Princess Luna opposite Mayor Mare, and my character takes his place between the Mayor and Weed Whacker, I say, “We just got finished reading chapter eighteen, and haven't gotten completely around the circle the first time.” I then have my character turn to the gray earth mare, and I ask, “Octavia, will you read verse … “

Before I can finish the question, Mayor Mare rises and backs out, saying, “Well, if that zebra is going to be part of this circle, then count me out.” She then turns to the gate and trots towards it.

Just as she is opening it, though, Princess Luna disappears from her position and appears outside the gate, nose-to-nose with Mayor Mare. Pushing the gate open while, at the same time, pushing the now alarmed Mayor pony back inside, she says, “Thou hast cast Mormon's dragon friend from her place, and now thou backest out because thou wishest not to read with a zebra? Thou wilt return to thy place and read when it is thy turn, or thou wilt be mayor no more!”

As my character watches the conflict, I can see the glare in Princess Luna's eyes; and I can hear the thunder in her voice. Seeing the two ponies in conflict this way, it kind of reminds me of when Fluttershy humbled that dragon, except the size difference isn't so great, and it's a larger creature humbling a smaller one. And, while it is rather entertaining to see the tan earth pony stumbling backwards away from the nighttime alicorn, still, it wasn't my intention to coerce any member of the circle to read, unless they live with my character in his house. And, even then it's persuasion, not force. On the other hand, it is true that Mayor Mare hasn't been nice, pushing Weed Whacker out of her place, and now discriminating against a zebra. But, still, if Princess Luna was wanting to punish the Mayor pony, she could've chosen a better penalty than this reading. I may have a talk with her when we're finished reading this last chapter for the evening. But, right now, I decide to turn to Octavia again and once more ask, “So, will you read verse one of chapter nineteen?”

As Mayor Mare takes her place next to me, and Princess Luna between her and Zecora, Octavia nods, then looks down and reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord commanded me, wherefore I did make plates of ore that I might engraven upon them the record of my people. And upon the plates which I made I did engraven the record of my father, and also our journeyings in the wilderness, and the prophecies of my father; and also many of mine own prophecies have I engraven upon them.”

At this point, before Bon-Bon can begin reading verse two, I speak up and say, “It seems that when Joseph Smith Junior was interpreting the Book of Mormon from the gold plates, he was dictating while a friend of his, Martin Harris, wrote down what he said. When a hundred sixteen pages worth had been interpreted, comprising the Book of Lehi, Harris wanted to show what he'd written to some friends of his, to prove that this ancient, religious record was indeed being interpreted. Eventually Joseph agreed, on the condition that Harris not let the pages out of his hands. Well, as it turns out, Harris' wife somehow got a hold of the pages, leaving Harris with nothing to return to Joseph. Needless to say, Joseph was not happy, and for a while the interpretation of the record was stopped. With those pages in evil hands, if they had been reinterpreted, the original pages would likely have been changed, making the interpretation look false, and bringing the work to an end before it could get started.

“Eventually the interpretation of the record resumed, but starting with the First Book of Nephi. Yet, I have to wonder if either those hundred sixteen pages are going to turn up some day, or if they have been or will be destroyed, and we'll get the Book of Lehi at some point in the future. I think it'd be interesting to get these stories from the point of view of Nephi's father. Who knows? Maybe we'll find out about a conversation between Lehi and Ishmael, or between Lehi and one of Ishmael's sons, in which we find out that, in the process of stopping Nephi's brothers from rebelling against him, he did say that they, that is the sons of Lehi, had killed Laban.” I then turn to the yellow earth pony with the pink and blue hair and say, “You can go ahead and read the next verse now, Bon-Bon.”

She nods and reads, “And I knew not at the time when I made them that I should be commanded of the Lord to make these plates; wherefore, the record of my father, and the genealogy of his fathers, and the more part of all our proceedings in the wilderness are engraven upon those first plates of which I have spoken; wherefore, the things which transpired before I made these plates are, of a truth, more particularly made mention upon the first plates.”

Lyra reads, “And after I had made these plates by way of commandment, I, Nephi, received a commandment that the ministry and the prophecies, the more plain and precious parts of them, should be written upon these plates; and that the things which were written should be kept for the instruction of my people, who should possess the land, and also for other wise purposes, which purposes are known unto the Lord.”

Weed Whacker reads, “Wherefore, I, Nephi, did make a record upon the other plates, which gives an account, or which gives a greater account of the wars and contentions and destructions of my people. And this have I done, and commanded my people what they should do after I was gone; and that these plates should be handed down from one generation to another, or from one prophet to another, until further commandments of the Lord.”

I read, “And an account of my making these plates shall be given hereafter; and then, behold, I proceed according to that which I have spoken; and this I do that the more sacred things may be kept for the knowledge of my people.”

Mayor Mare reads, “Nevertheless, I do not write anything upon plates save it be that I think it be sacred. And now, if I do err, even did they err of old; not that I would excuse myself because of other men, but because of the weakness which is in me, according to the flesh, I would excuse myself.”

Princess Luna reads, “For the things which some men esteem to be of great worth, both to the body and soul, others set at naught and trample under their feet. Yea, even the very God of Israel do men trample under their feet; I say, trample under their feet but I would speak in other words—they set him at naught, and hearken not to the voice of his counsels.”

Zecora reads, “And behold he cometh, according to the words of the angel, in six hundred years from the time my father left Jerusalem.”

I think it's noteworthy that Zecora demonstrates, at this point, that she can speak without rhyming. The Zecora I've programmed into this game, at least, is capable of speaking without rhyming, and it's just a preference of hers. As for the Zecora in the animated series, well, I'm guessing that's for the producers of the show to know, and for the rest of us to figure out.

In the mean time, Carrot Top reads, “And the world, because of their iniquity, shall judge him to be a thing of naught; wherefore they scourge him, and he suffereth it; and they smite him, and he suffereth it. Yea, they spit upon him, and he suffereth it, because of his loving kindness and his long-suffering towards the children of men.”

Berry Punch reads, “And the God of our fathers, who were led out of Egypt, out of bondage, and also were preserved in the wilderness by him, yea, the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, yieldeth himself, according to the words of the angel, as a man, into the hands of wicked men, to be lifted up, according to the words of Zenock, and to be crucified, according to the words of Neum, and to be buried in a sepulcre, according to the words of Zenos, which he spake concerning the three days of darkness, which should be a sign given of his death unto those who should inhabit the isles of the sea, more especially given unto those who are of the house of Israel.”

Berry Ground reads, “For thus spake the prophet: The Lord God surely shall visit all the house of Israel at that day, some with his voice, because of their righteousness, unto their great joy and salvation, and others with the thunderings and the lightnings of his power, by tempest, by fire, and by smoke, and vapor of darkness, and by the opening of the earth, and by mountains which shall be carried up.”

Stunts reads, “And all these things must surely come, saith the prophet Zenos. And the rocks of the earth must rend; and because of the groanings of the earth, many of the kings of the isles of the sea shall be wrought upon by the Spirit of God, to exclaim: The God of nature suffers.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And as for those who are at Jerusalem, saith the prophet, they shall be scourged by all people, because they crucify the God of Israel, and turn their hearts aside, rejecting signs and wonders, and the power and glory of the God of Israel.”

Cold Hands reads, “And because they turn their hearts aside, saith the prophet, and have despised the Holy One of Israel, they shall wander in the flesh, and perish, and become a hiss and a byword, and be hated among all nations.”

Snails reads, “Nevertheless, when that day cometh, saith the prophet, that they no more turn aside their hearts against the Holy One of Israel, then will he remember the covenants which he made to their fathers.” Looking up at my character, he asks, “I wonder, do you have any of the records that Nephi mentions?”

I answer, “In my day, we do have the recorded prophecies of a prophet called Nahum; but, I tend to doubt that the Nahum in the Old Testament is the same as the Neum that Nephi talks about, since Nahum prophecies about the Christ's Second Coming, which hasn't happened yet. So, no, we don't have the recorded prophecies or other records of Neum, or for that matter Zenock or Zenos. But, again, good question.”

Snips reads, “Yea, then will he remember the isles of the sea; yea, and all the people who are of the house of Israel, will I gather in, saith the Lord, according to the words of the prophet Zenos, from the four quarters of the earth.”

Warm Heart reads, “Yea, and all the earth shall see the salvation of the Lord, saith the prophet; every nation, kindred, tongue and people shall be blessed.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “And I, Nephi, have written these things unto my people, that perhaps I might persuade them that they would remember the Lord their Redeemer.”

Mr. Cake reads, “Wherefore, I speak unto all the house of Israel, if it so be that they should obtain these things.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “For behold, I have workings in the spirit, which doth weary me even that all my joints are weak, for those who are at Jerusalem; for had not the Lord been merciful, to show unto me concerning them, even as he had prophets of old, I should have perished also.”

Applebloom reads, “And he surely did show unto the prophets of old all things concerning them; and also he did show unto many concerning us; wherefore, it must needs be that we know concerning them for they are written upon the plates of brass.”

Applejack reads, “Now it came to pass that I, Nephi, did teach my brethren these things; and it came to pass that I did read many things to them, which were engraven upon the plates of brass, that they might know concerning the doings of the Lord in other lands, among people of old.”

Granny Smith reads, “And I did read many things unto them which were written in the books of Moses; but that I might more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer I did read unto them that which was written by the prophet Isaiah; for I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning.”

Cheerilee reads, “Wherefore I spake unto them, saying: Hear ye the words of the prophet, ye who are a remnant of the house of Israel, a branch who have been broken off; hear ye the words of the prophet, which were written unto all the house of Israel, and liken them unto yourselves, that ye may have hope as well as your brethren from whom ye have been broken off; for after this manner has the prophet written.”

At this point, I have my character close his copy of the Book of Mormon while I say, “And, that's the end of tonight's reading. Tomorrow, we'll be starting with chapter twenty of First Nephi, and we might just read the last two chapters after that.

“Now, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, if you'll dismiss the rest of our guests, I have something I need to talk about with Princess Luna.”

It seems as though, at first, Princess Luna and my character are the only ones that rise and leave the circle; that is until my character, under my instruction, leads the nighttime princess behind the house.

While, I assume, my five friends living at my character's house with him dismiss the rest of the guests, Princess Luna stops and says, “Yes, Mormon?”

After my character stops and turns to her, I say, “First of all, I'd like to say that I appreciate you wanting to defend Zecora's honor. And, I agree that Mayor Mare wasn't being very nice to Zecora or Weed Whacker.”

Princess Luna answers, “Thus my warning, that if she wanted to keep her position, she should stay and read.”

I continue, “So, you do understand that these readings are intended as a kind of celebration, a time of enjoyment, not a punishment?”

The nighttime princess answers, “Well, of course.”

I state, “I was hoping you understood that. It's just that, while you were confronting Ponyville's mayor, it did sound like you were turning the reading into some kind of punishment for her.”

At this point, Princess Luna looks down and says, “Oh. I-I didn't realize that. I'm sorry.”

I answer, “That's alright. I just thought I should bring the matter up with you. You may want to discuss it with Mayor Mare, and make sure she understands your intentions before you go back to Canterlot to raise the moon.” I do notice, while I'm talking with the nighttime princess, that the sun lowers, and there is still a level of light; not so bright as when the sun is out, but not as dark as when the moon is out either. If my video game representation of Equestria is correct, it requires the moon to be out for the stars to start shining. Only having seen the place in the My Little Pony Friendship is Magic series, and only having seen it for maybe no more than ten frames when neither the sun nor the moon were out, I can only make an educated guess as to how things work under those conditions.

In the mean time, having finished my conversation with Princess Luna, I have my character circle around her and head back to the front of the house.

As my character returns to the front of the house, indeed the circle has been broken up; but the ponies have broken up into groups, and are talking amongst themselves.

Lyra has taken a position at the front gate, and is holding it open with her magic, waiting for the guests to pass through it so she can salute them goodbye. Yet, so far, none of the ponies, or Spike, has seen fit to leave just yet.

Vinyl, Octavia, and Weed Whacker are taking the empty snack tray, or trying to at least, through the clusters of guests and back into the house.

Even having made as many friends as she has, Pinkie Pie seems to be unable to get even the rest of the element bearers even toward the gate.

In the mean time, the only way I notice that Princess Luna hasn't immediately followed my character from behind the house is when he looks behind him to show me that the nighttime princess isn't there. At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if the other ponies in the yard, other than my closest friends, are wondering if my character has eaten her or something.

It takes a few seconds before Princess Luna, in her most authoritative stance, marches from behind the house and joins the rest of the group.

I can't say for sure whether I was right or not. All I know is that my guests start making their way to and out of the gate only when they see the nighttime princess again. And, it seems that it's Mayor Mare that leaves first.

As the other ponies and Spike make their way out of the gate, it seems that suddenly the mayor of Ponyville appears back in the yard, facing Princess Luna, as much to the mayor's surprise as to my own.

Seeing the tan earth pony frozen in place, the nighttime princess says, “Don't worry, Mayor. I'm not going to hurt you. I just have something to discuss with you. I'll return you to your home when I'm finished.” And, with that, both Mayor Mare and Princess Luna disappear. I can only guess that the two are at Canterlot Castle right now.

In the mean time, it's a matter of maybe one or two minutes before the rest of the guests are outside the gate, and, save for Zecora, back on their way to Ponyville, lit not unlike Christmas lights by the magic of various unicorns in the group.

The zebra moves to the corner of the yard, evidently waiting for my character to approach her. I have him do so; and when he's close enough, Zecora says, “I have enjoyed this reading, too. So, I leave now with a fond 'Thank you.'” And, with that, she turns in the opposite direction of the ponies heading for Ponyville, and makes her way to her own home, or so I assume.

As I welcome the zebra's thanks and salute her goodbye, I can only guess that Octavia, Vinyl, and Weed Whacker make it back inside with the empty snack tray. In the mean time, after watching, through my character's eyes, the zebra disappear back into the forest, the three outside make their way to the orchard, vineyard, and vegetable garden to harvest food for dinner, which they bring inside and prepare and eat for dinner with Octavia, Vinyl Scratch, and Weed Whacker.

While the group eats, I have my character turn to the two musical ponies, and I ask, “So, how has progress been going on the music project I gave you two?”

Octavia answers, “We've gotten it organized, and planned out on parchment. We will need some help from other ponies, and probably from you, for most of the instrumental part of it, and maybe even some of the singing. Would you be willing to help us with that?”

I answer, “I'd be honored to help in any way I can. What would you need me for?”

It's Vinyl Scratch who says, “We need somepony to handle the percussion instruments, and a few more ponies to play a few wind instruments.”

Pinkie Pie volunteers to play the brass instruments, while Lyra volunteers to play woodwinds.

That seems to leave my character with the percussion instruments, although I have to wonder if there's something Weed Whacker can do to help.

In the mean time, with the performance apparently organized, we finish dinner, clean up, and return to our rooms.

I can only assume, by this time, that the mayor is back in her home in Ponyville. As I have my character write a letter to the princesses, I find myself unable to keep from thinking about the incident during the reading, when Princess Luna publicly confronted Mayor Mare about her conduct and ordered her to stay for the reading. In fact, that's the first thing I write about in the letter. Next, I write about the musical project assignment I've given to Vinyl Scratch and Octavia, and the progress they've made so far, mentioning that Lyra's volunteered to play woodwinds for them.

Next, I write about the parasprite incident, and how Lyra and I helped Pinkie Pie gather instruments for her part in the evacuation of the flying insects. While I wouldn't be surprised if Pinkie Pie has written about this herself, still I decide to write that if the infestation in Filly-delphia is composed of flying spherical insects, then they might want to try organizing a marching band as soon as possible to lead the invasion out of town and into the nearest forest, especially if that forest is inhabited by timber wolves.

The subject of the timber wolves leads to my writing about my new pet, Scout the timber wolf. I write about how he taught us that timber wolves are one of the natural predators of the parasprites, the colorful flying spheres with legs that had invaded Ponyville, and might be invading Filly-delphia.

I add a post-script for Princess Luna at the end of the letter, making reference to the incident with Mayor Mare during the reading, hoping that things have been squared away between the two of them, something to that effect.

After that, I have my character deliver the letter to Weed Whacker to send to the princesses. After that, I send him to bed.

As I save and close the game, I reflect on how the addition of the instruments will affect gameplay in the future, particularly for gamers that start their own playthroughs of the “Hey, Batter!” game.

The instruments that I modeled will be redistributed through Ponyville, with various ponies having a back story of having played them their whole lives or since their time in school or something like that. Who knows? There may be a back story about how Carrot Top picked up the harmonica in her foal-hood, and has been playing it ever since. Maybe Applejack will have a back story about how she picked up the cymbals during her time with her cousins, the Oranges, and has been given a pair for her birthday, or something like that. This game has been programmed with that kind of randomness in mind for distribution of new models and other items.

And, speaking of the game, I did program the timber wolves to be one of the natural predators of the parasprites. If I remember correctly, for the purposes of this game, the cockatrice and the chimera are the other predators of the parasprite. But, that can be discovered by other gamers, or perhaps by the ponies in the story later on. In the mean time, with the game saved and closed, it's time to call it a night until next time.

Chapter 11: Let the Crusade Begin

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Before I get into the game, I'd like to mention that I added a DLL to it to allow video files to play on a “video” cube that I've imported and specially programmed. I also have a “video” folder, which has a file containing the episode of Pokemon I mentioned in the previous day of the game, in case Pinkie Pie, or any other characters in the game, might want to watch it. I'm sure there will be other videos that will be of interest to the characters in the game later on, but the “video” cube will only be available in the house of the only playable character. Also, the programming in the DLL I just added doesn't allow for gamers' video, audio, document, or picture files to be saved when the game is compiled for export.

As I resume the game, there is, once again, knocking at my character's door.

As my character rises from his bed and answers his door, it's once again Weed Whacker, with a scroll in her mouth. My character accepts the scroll, allowing the little herbivorous dinosaur to move on, then opens it; and I read, “Dear Mormon,

“By the time Tia had arrived in Filly-delphia, there was indeed an invasion of parasprites that had taken over the city. But, it seems that a pack of timber wolves has since also invaded the city, after the parasprites, and have been breaking into buildings in order to attack and eat the flying insects. Tia is doing her best to organize a marching band to help lead the parasprites, and hopefully the timber wolves with them, out of Filly-delphia; but it's going to take a while, perhaps days, to get the problem under control. In the mean time, in order to avoid further problems, warnings have been sent throughout Equestria about the menace posed by the parasprites.

“In the mean time, yes, Mayor Mare is back in Ponyville. She does understand why I ordered her back into the reading circle, and the wrong she did, both in pushing your dragon friend out of her place, and in discriminating against Zecora. I just wanted thee to know that when I said that she should stay and read or be mayor no more, I was just warning her that she had the eyes of the readers on her, and they weren't going to trust her as the mayor of Ponyville if, at that point, she were to leave the reading circle. I did not intend to make it sound as though I was using the reading as a punishment for her.

“I had noticed, during the reading, the timber wolf sitting on your porch. Because they are the first evidence that parasprites do indeed have predators, as well as a way to rid thee of the menace they pose, I am not surprised that thou wouldst keep a timber wolf as a pet. I am sure thy timber wolf friend, Scout, will serve thee well. I have had no personal contact with the parasprites, but Tia has informed me of the problems they have caused, both as invaders and as food for timber wolves, in Filly-delphia. I hope she will be successful in ending the problem there and will return soon. And, considering the presence of Scout on your property, it is evident to me that he and Lyra are also friends, and will continue to be so, as long as Lyra no longer hides parasprites in her mane.

“My sister and I look forward to hearing from you again.

“Signed, Princess Luna.”

Assuming Pinkie Pie, and perhaps Lyra, have each received a similar letter, I decide to leave my letter in my character's room, and have my character head to the kitchen to get some breakfast.

When he gets there, I see, through his eyes, the ponies living with my character gathered around the table, fruit prepared and ready to eat, but untouched. Pinkie Pie is facing away from me, but the other three are showing sad or angry expressions on their faces.

I have my character reach out and grab a piece of fruit from the table, then back against and lean on the counter behind him, then eat the fruit, before I say, “I'm guessing you received word about Filly-delphia.”

It's at this point that my character shows me, through his eyes, that the expression on Pinkie Pie's face is one of worry.

In the mean time, Lyra folds her forelimbs in front of her, drops her head into them, and starts sobbing.

At this point, Pinkie Pie, looking up at my character, says, “I think Lyra could use a party to cheer her up.”

Presently, Lyra cries, “If—it were just the parasprites—then—Filly-delphia would be fine. … B-but—did it have to be timber wolves too?”

I have my character stroke the side of Lyra's neck that I can see, through my character's eyes, with his closest hand, while I say, “I'm sure Princess Celestia is doing everything she can to get rid of the parasprites and timber wolves in Filly-delphia. And, I'm sure she'll be successful. We'll know she's succeeded when she shows up at a future reading. In the mean time, we just need to have faith that she will succeed.”

At this point, Lyra looks up at my character and pushes his hand away, preventing him from stroking her neck any more. But, my character shows me, through his eyes, the streams under her eyes and nose, as she asks, “And—what about Filly-delphia, huh? … Do you think—it'll survive?”

I answer, “If the ponies of Filly-delphia are anything like the ponies of Ponyville, then yes, it'll survive.”

At this point, she stops crying altogether, and starts smiling. She jumps into my character's arms, hanging from his neck, and says, “Oh, thank you, Mormon. I needed that.”

At this point, Octavia says, “Lyra informed us that she has family living in Filly-delphia. So, you can understand that she has an emotional connection to that city.”

It's at this moment that I notice Pinkie Pie's eyes bulge just a little bit before returning to normal, and before she says, “Oh, I just remembered, we're having a Cute-seniera over at Sugar Cube Corner today.”

I think aloud, “A Cute-seniera?” I say it as more of a statement than a question. Having seen the episode “Call of the Cutie,” on which this day will be based, I know what Pinkie Pie's talking about; but, she'll describe it soon enough. In the mean time, I wonder to myself how similar it is to the Spanish-speakers' Quincenera, the celebration of an individual's fifteenth birthday. As much of a big deal as it is among Spanish-speakers, even if I had heard about it before my own fifteenth birthday, I can't say for sure if it would've been that big of a deal for me. As I remember, the celebration of the fifteenth anniversary of my birth wasn't that much different than the celebration of any other such anniversary.

In apparent response to my question, Pinkie Pie says, “It's when we throw a party for somepony that's just gotten their cutie mark. We're throwing one for a filly, Diamond Tiara. You're welcome to come along, if you want.” The smile she'd had on her face when she was describing the event morphs into an expression of worry again as she says, “In fact, I need to get over there as soon as possible to help get it ready.” She then jumps out of her chair and to the door, then turns around. I notice her expression is now one of sorrow as she says, “Octy, Scratchy, I'm sorry you won't be able to attend the Cute-seniera. I'll see if I can bring back some cupcakes for you.” After that, she opens the door and bounces through it to the front door.

My character, still carrying Lyra, and Weed Whacker follow the pink earth pony to the front door, but not before the pale-green unicorn and the herbivorous dinosaur, as well as my character, salute the two musical ponies goodbye. After that, and with my character closing doors behind the group, they make their way to the front gate and are on their way back to Ponyville.

As the group runs through the Everfree forest on their way to Ponyville, I can't help thinking about Diamond Tiara and her friend Silver Spoon, the Laman and Lemuel of the school foals. I seem to remember in the episode, “Call of the Cutie,” that the lesson of the day by the teacher, Cheerilee, no doubt going on right now, is about cutie marks. In fact, about this time, I'd imagine Applebloom is being bothered by the two because of her lack of a cutie mark. I have to wonder if I'll get to Ponyville in time to see Applejack set up her apple stand, and watch Applebloom scare other ponies into, or away from, buying apples in an attempt to get a cutie mark.

Between ten and fifteen minutes after leaving my character's house, we arrive in Ponyville, then a few minutes later we reach Sugar Cube Corner.

I decide to have my character head to the market place in town, not far from the bakery, while Pinkie Pie goes inside to help set things up for the Cute-seniera.

It's not until I get to the market place when I turn around and find that Lyra, carrying Weed Whacker on her back, has followed me. And, it's not long afterwards that she's found another pony, evidently a foal, to talk to.

My character looks around to show me that Applejack, her little sister, and the cart haven't arrived yet. Evidently I have time to take a position where I can watch the drama unfold. Fortunately, not far from the town square is a set of tables, each covered by an umbrella. In fact, based on their appearances, I wouldn't be surprised if one of those is the table where Pinkie Pie saw me chase off Gilda the griffon and offer to assist Fluttershy with guiding her parade of ducks through Ponyville. I have my character take his position at the table that offers the best view of the town square.

Not long after he's seated, I hear a female voice next to him ask, “May I take your order, sir?”

My character turns to the origin of the voice to show me a dark-green unicorn mare with blue mane, manipulating a forest-green tray with her magic.

I say, “Sure. Do you serve orange juice here?”

The unicorn mare answers, “Yes, sir.”

I state, “Then, I'll have that.”

Without saying anything more, the unicorn mare trots off to get the drink I ordered.

In the mean time, I watch as Applejack, with her little sister in tow, arrives with her apple cart and prepares to sell her stock of apples. Soon after getting the decorations set up on her stand, she begins calling out, “Get your delicious, nutritious apples here!”

I then watch, through my character's eyes, as Applebloom talks about, and demonstrates, how apples can be used for more than just eating.

A piece of the apple she tries to use as a tennis ball lands just short of where my character is sitting.

I can't help chuckling when I see one unfortunate unicorn stallion get splattered from some of the apple that Applebloom kicks into his canvas.

In fact, my chuckling seems to have attracted the little earth filly's attention just as my character's drink has arrived.

Before her big sister can stop her, she gallops up to me and asks, “Mormon, could I sell you some apples?”

I answer, “Applebloom, I'm sure you know as well as I do that I have a few apple trees in my orchard, and they supply me with all the apples I need.”

One thing I can say about the little yellow earth filly: she's persistent. She takes a step toward my character and asks, “Are ya sure you couldn't use a few more apples?”

Before I can answer, Applejack circles around her little sister, then grabs her by her tail and drags her off.

I can't help at least smiling as the little earth filly, pleading with her eyes, calls out, “Well, could ya think about it, at least?”

Back at the stand, Applejack lets go of Applebloom's tail and tells her under her breath, “Now, Ah don't want you causin any … “

But, before she can finish her statement, the little yellow earth filly is distracted by Doctor Whooves walking by; and she runs up to him calling out, “You, sir!”

Now without her intended audience, the orange earth mare sighs in exasperation as she concludes, “trouble.”

In the mean time, having caught up with the brown earth stallion, Applebloom asks, “Care to buy some apples?”

He answers, “Uh, no thanks.”

The little yellow earth filly, seeming to have borrowed some of Pinkie Pie's powers, appears from a vegetable cart and asks the now startled stallion, “Why not?”

Backing away, Doctor Whooves answers, “I have plenty at home.”

Now, once again appearing behind him, Applebloom asks, “Are ya sure?”

The brown earth pony nervously answers, "Uh, pretty sure."

I appreciate persistence, but I must admit Applebloom's technique is going from persistent to predatory as she appears in front of Doctor Whooves again and says, “You're pretty sure. But, you're not absolutely, positively, super-duper sure, are ya?” all the time, backing the brown stallion into the apple stand.

I can't really tell if Doctor Whooves is sweating or crying or both as he asks, “Uh, if I promise to buy some apples, will you please leave me alone?”

The little yellow earth filly cheers, “Alright!”

Presently, the brown stallion produces a bunch of bits and tosses them into Applejack's pouch on her apron, then grabs an apple and gallops off.

At this point, I must admit, I'm feeling sorry for Doctor Whooves.

While Applejack is calling to the brown stallion about having forgotten his change, Applebloom is running in circles, cheering about having earned her cutie mark, theorizing about what it could be. When she finds no image on her hip, she decides she needs to sell more apples.

Unfortunately, it seems that Berry Punch is her next victim.

Seeing her sniffing in a barrel of apples, Applebloom jumps at her and calls out, “You touch it, you bought it.” Then, more quietly, she adds, “We take cash or credit.”

As funny as it is to see the purplish-pink pony stumbling away from the little yellow filly, still I'm finding Applebloom's methods too aggressive for my taste.

And, her big sister evidently agrees with me as she says to the alarmed earth mare, “Ah'm sorry, ma'am.”

Presently, Berry Punch gallops off, leaving a cloud of dust and flying paper in her wake.

And, before her big sister can chew her out, Applebloom is dumping a tub of apples into one of Bon-Bon's saddle bags, demanding payment for them.

When the pale-yellow earth pony insists she didn't put the apples in her bag, Applebloom retorts, “Likely story.”

Before Applebloom can further demand payment for the apples, Applejack shoves a front hoof into her mouth, effectively silencing her. She then hands over the rest of her stock of apples to Bon-Bon, insisting that the apples are “free of charge.” She then turns to her little sister and calls an end to the day's sales, much to the disappointment of the little yellow filly.

I lose track of the conversation between the two sisters when Bon-Bon stumbles up to my character and asks, “Could I interest you in some apples?”

I turn to the light-yellow earth mare and answer, “As I told Applebloom, I have trees at home which provide me with plenty of apples. Sorry.”

Bon-Bon groans in frustration before asking, “So, what am I gonna do with these?”

Her overloaded saddle bags make her cutie mark all the more evident to me.

I ask, “Aren't you known for making candy?”

Bon-Bon answers, “It is my special talent.”

I ask, “So, why not make candies out of the apples?”

The pale-yellow earth pony stares at my character incredulously. After a second or two, she asks, “What kind of candy can I make out of apples?”

I answer, “Well, you could make caramel-covered apples, and maybe cut up some apples and dehydrate them, make apple snacks out of them. I'm sure there are other ideas you could come up with.”

I have my character remove the wooden tub of apples from Bon-Bon's back as she thinks aloud, “Caramel-covered apples and apple snacks.” She then turns to my character and states, “You may have some good ideas there.”

As my character sets the tub on the ground, I notice Lyra approaching, still carrying Weed Whacker on her back.

As soon as she's right next to her earth pony friend, she asks, “Are you alright, Bon-Bon?”

The pale-yellow earth pony answers, “I'm fine. Mormon just gave me some ideas about what I could do with all these apples.”

As soon as my character lets go of the tub, it becomes possessed by a pale-green aura and rises on its own, indicating that Lyra is using her magic on it.

The unicorn says, “I saw what happened, and I can understand why Applejack dumped all her apples on you. I also heard Mormon's idea for what you can do with them.”

Bon-Bon replies, “He has some good ideas, but they're the only ones I have so far. Do you have any other ideas?”

Lyra pauses for a moment, humming with interest. Finally, she says, “Well, there's no reason why you couldn't make apple-flavored candies. Like, you could make apple-flavored taffy or suckers or lollypops or any of the other candies you'd normally make.”

Bon-Bon squees before saying, “Those are good ideas, too. Let's go home, and we'll see what we can do with those ideas.”

Lyra uses her magic to set the tub of apples on her own back, forcing Weed Whacker off.

I have my character turn to the herbivorous dinosaur before saying, “Maybe you should go to Sugar Cube Corner and help Pinkie Pie out while Lyra and I help Bon-Bon.”

Weed Whacker nods, then turns and runs off to the bakery to offer assistance to Pinkie Pie.

In the mean time, my character turns away from the pale-green unicorn and the cream-colored earth pony to show me the dark-green unicorn standing in his way.

She says, “That'll be two bits, please.”

I have my character produce two gold coins and hand them to the unicorn waitress as I say, “Oh, of course. Here you are.” After that, I have my character grab the drink in one hand and help support the tub of apples Lyra's carrying with the other hand, as he follows the two friends to their home.

Bon-Bon, the first to enter, has to remove her saddle bags and drag them into the house.

Lyra has to leave the tub outside while she uses her magic to bring the apples one-by-one into the house. When all the apples are inside, she then uses her magic to turn the tub sideways and move it into the house; then, once the tub is righted again, she puts the apples back into it, inside the living room.

Once everything is inside, Lyra turns to me and says, “We may have a problem. If what I've heard is correct, then the Cute-seniera for Diamond Tiara is just over an hour from now. So, the plans for the apples may have to wait until later.”

I state, “Well, that doesn't sound like a problem for me. While I do plan on attending, I haven't Pinkie promised or anything like that.”

Lyra looks down for a moment, then looks up at my character again and says, “Well, I have. And, it's best if you go with me.”

I take a deep breath and let it out before saying, “Well, if that's how it's gotta be, then I guess we'd better get going.” I then turn to Bon-Bon, who's evidently been listening, and say, “Well, like Lyra said, the apple project is gonna have to wait. I hope you don't mind.”

Bon-Bon answers, “A Pinkie promise is extremely important to Pinkie Pie. If Lyra's made one, and you need to go with her, then you need to get over there and keep that promise. So, go ahead.”

Having thus been dismissed, Lyra and my character make our way to and out the door, just in time to run into a depressed-looking Applebloom.

I have a pretty good idea of what the little yellow earth filly's problem is, but I decide to ask anyway, “Applebloom, is something wrong?”

She prepares for her speech by taking a deep, somewhat noisy breath, then, in rapid succession, says, “Diamond Tiara's Cute-seniera's this afternoon, and Ah wanna go, but Ah don't have my cutie mark yet, and Ah was a'gonna go with Twist because she didn't have her cutie mark, except she does, and now Ah'm the only one without a cutie mark.” Finally, she whines, “Ah need my cutie mark right now!”

I have my character look over at Lyra, then back at Applebloom; and I say, “I'm probably not the best to turn to for advice on getting a cutie mark. After all, I'm a human, and humans don't get cutie marks.”

Lyra states, “That's right. I saw for myself. Mormon said that, for humans, a cutie mark is like a brand or a tattoo, and actions speak louder than cutie marks.”

I appreciate how the pale-green unicorn quoted me.

On the other hand, Applebloom looks down and says, flatly, “Well, Ah'm a pony. And, ponies need cutie marks.”

I add, “However, just because your friend got her cutie mark just recently doesn't mean you can't go to the party with her.”

At this point, the little yellow filly glares up at my character and says, “It's Diamond Tiara's party. And, besides, like Ah said, Ah'm the only one in my class that doesn't have a cutie mark.” Her glare morphs into a look of sadness again before she looks down and says, “Ah just can't go to a Cute-seniera without a cutie mark.”

I consider mentioning that I'm on my way, with Lyra, to the party, but then I decide to wait on that. Instead, I ask, “Well, do you have an idea of what makes you unique form the others in your class?”

Applebloom slowly looks up at my character and asks, “You mean, besides not having a cutie mark?”

I continue, “For instance, do you have a talent that the other foals don't have?”

The little earth filly looks down again and answers, “Well, Ah'm no good at sellin' apples.”

I've seen that; but, considering that's common knowledge and mentioning it isn't likely to help the situation, I decide to hold my peace on that subject. Instead, I ask, “Is there anything you do frequently that you enjoy doing, anything that makes you happy?”

I hear Applebloom answer, “Ah thought sellin' apples was a'gonna make me happy, but that didn't work.”

I state, “Well, that's just one of many possibilities. Besides, being able to do something well isn't the only way, from what I understand, for a pony to earn a cutie mark. There are ponies, both here in Ponyville and elsewhere, with cutie marks that don't represent a special talent of theirs, but a unique quality. And besides, just because you failed at one thing doesn't mean you're gonna fail at everything else.”

At this point, the little yellow earth filly looks up at my character again and asks, “But what about Diamond Tiara? How can Ah go to her Cute-seniera if Ah don't have a cutie mark?”

I answer, “Well, as for Diamond Tiara, I'm not all that worried about her. I suppose, if my father's first name were something on the order of Filthy, that'd likely color my attitude toward the world, too.”

What I don't notice, that is until it's too late, is that Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon are passing right behind my character. Before I know it, there's a pony on my character's back screaming, “How do you know so much about my family?”

I suppose it's better to have a kitten-sized pony on my back, or that of my character, than a monkey. Still, while my character tries, and fails, to grab the little filly on him, I answer, “I have a good source for my information.”

In the mean time, I hear snickering, then chuckling, coming from Applebloom.

That is, until Diamond Tiara, now perching herself on my character's head, says, “Oh, you'll attend my Cute-seniera, Applebloom. You'll attend, and show everypony just how not-special you are.”

In just a few seconds, Applebloom goes from laughing to bawling as I, through my character's eyes, watch her gallop off.

At this point, my character is finally able to grab the foal on his head and remove her as I say, “Alright, Little Richy, that's enough.” But, my character is only able to hold onto the filly long enough to stand up again, when a lucky kick from a front hoof manages to get him in the hand, forcing him to let her go.

The pink filly has a rough landing, but manages to get back on her hooves again. Glaring up at my character, she growls, “I'm gonna tell my daddy on you!”

Just then, her gray earth filly friend, Silver Spoon, comes between my character and her and, looking at Diamond Tiara, says, “Let's just get going. We'll go to Rarity's, and you can get a new dress. Just forget about that human.”

Something tells me that won't be so easy to do, especially when my character shows up at her Cute-seniera. Which reminds me.

Or, at least Lyra reminds me. She says, “Well, Mormon, we need to be getting to Sugar Cube Corner now, so I can keep my Pinkie promise.”

Silently agreeing with the pale-green unicorn, I have my character run behind her as she gallops toward the bakery. On the way, I have my character show me the hand that Diamond Tiara kicked. From what I can see, through his eyes, it's just a minor bruise. It'll heal.

In a matter of seconds, Lyra and my character arrive at Sugar Cube Corner, where they enter through the back door, which connects directly to the kitchen.

As soon as Pinkie Pie sees the two, she says, “Lyra, Mormon, nice of you to come! We just need your help making final preparations.” Focusing on the unicorn, she says, “Lyra, you go help the Cakes with the decorations.” Then, after Lyra salutes, then trots off to the front room for her assignment, the pink party pony focuses on my character and says, “Was there something keeping you from getting here sooner?”

I answer, “We helped Bon-Bon get her groceries back to her house, and were coming back here when we ran into Applejack's little sister. It seems she didn't want to be the only one at Diamond Tiara's Cute-seniera without a cutie mark, but all I could do was offer some advice I thought might be helpful. For humans, just a name, and maybe a job, are enough for an identity. But, evidently, that's not enough for a pony. Applebloom seems to be having quite the identity crisis.”

Pinkie Pie hums with serious interest, then says, “Well, there are two other fillies that haven't gotten their cutie marks yet. I'm sure they'll show up to the party. And, I'm sure the three will eventually meet up, and Applebloom will realize she's not the only one without a cutie mark.”

Knowing what's going to happen, I'm in full agreement with Pinkie Pie.

Then, the pink party pony asks, “So, did she say anything about Diamond Tiara?”

I answer, “Mainly that she didn't want to attend the Cute-seniera without a cutie mark.”

Pinkie Pie adds, “And, what advice did you give her about Diamond Tiara?”

I'm just willing to chalk this up to Pinkie Pie knowing the ponies in town so well. I answer, “I said she shouldn't worry so much about her. Why do you ask?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Well, I saw Applebloom run down the road, crying. Then, when I went outside, I heard Diamond Tiara say something about a human who called her 'Little Richie,' then grabbed and dropped her.”

I state, “That would've been me, although I wouldn't have dropped her if she hadn't kicked me.”

Before I can say more, Pinkie Pie adds, “She also said something about her father's name having something to do with how she saw the world.”

I snicker as I say, “I did tell Applebloom that if my father had a first name something like Filthy, that'd probably color my view of the world, not unlike Diamond Tiara.”

Pinkie Pie sounds like she's grumbling when she looks down for a moment and says, “Well, that explains that.” She then looks up at my character again and says, “You've gotta be careful what you say around ponies. You never know who could be listening to you. You're lucky you didn't get more than that bruise on your hand.”

I answer, “Yeah, I made Applebloom laugh when I made that comment about Diamond Tiara and her father. Then, before I knew what was going on, Diamond Tiara jumped on my back and asked me how I knew about her father. I said I had a good source for my information, and she threatened Applebloom. I was able to catch the little pink filly when she was standing on my head, but she kicked free when I stood up again. That little filly can really kick when she's not thinking about it. I did call her 'Little Richy' when I grabbed her off of my head, and said she'd done enough damage. She landed a little ungracefully when I let her go, but then she went off with her friend, Silver Spoon.”

Pinkie Pie says, “I hope she's alright.”

I answer, “Well, based on how she got up and trotted off, I'd say she's just fine.”

Pinkie Pie looks away from me and says, “I was thinking of Applebloom, but it's nice to know Diamond Tiara can still attend her Cute-seniera, too.”

I have to admit, I find it interesting how Pinkie Pie was able to separate her thoughts from my response, so that she didn't misunderstand me. I say, “She's very likely getting some advice from Rainbow Dash right now.” At this point, I also wonder to myself if the little yellow filly has added my advice to her complaint to the blue, rainbow-haired pegasa. For that matter, I suppose I'll have to wait and see if my advice will be part of her complaint to Pinkie Pie when the two finally meet this afternoon. Then, a thought dawns on me, and I ask, “So, Pinkie Pie, is there anything you need me to do around here?”

The pink earth pony looks around, then says, “Nothing I need help with. You can go and see if the Cakes, Weed Whacker, and Lyra need any help with anything.”

I say nothing more as I have my character head into the main room of the bakery. From what I can see, through my character's eyes, as he wanders into the room and looks around, the room seems to be well decorated with ribbons and bows and balloons and whatnot, giving the room a few extra colors, besides those of the pastries prominently placed throughout. As my character turns to the orange earth stallion, I ask, “So, Mr. Cake, is there anything I can help you with?”

In response, Mr. Cake answers, “Lyra just helped us put up the last of the ribbons, so we're pretty much set here. But, thanks for offering.”

As my character looks around at the ribbons and bows hanging all over the room again, I think aloud, “I've never attended a quincenera, much less a Cute-seniera.”

Mr. Cake asks in understandable confusion, “Quincenera?”

As my character focuses on the orange earth stallion, I answer, “In one human culture, it seems that having lived fifteen hears is a major milestone. It wasn't that way for me where I come from. For me, one birthday celebration was no different from another. Whether a human where I live reached their fifteenth birthday, or their fiftieth or beyond, it didn't make that big of a difference, although there is some importance in living eight years, twelve years, fourteen years, sixteen years, and eighteen years. But, those are stories for a different time.”

And, wouldn't you know it, the moment I finish talking is the moment when Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon walk into the main room of the bakery.

Diamond Tiara, who's carrying a box perhaps twice as tall as she is, glares at my character, lowers her head, paws at the floor, and snarls, “You! What are you doing here?”

I answer, “I thought I could be helpful getting things ready for the party here.”

While Diamond Tiara snorts and tries to dig a hole in the floor with one hoof, Silver Spoon asks, “Mr. Cake, is there a room where Diamond Tiara and I can get dressed?”

Mr. Cake leads the way up a flight of stairs as she says, “Well, there's Pinkie Pie's old room. You could get dressed in there.”

As Silver Spoon nudges her toward the stairs, Diamond Tiara, still focused on my character, growls, “Don't tell me you're attending my Cute-seniera?”

As I watch, through my character's eyes, the two earth fillies make their way up the stairs, I salute Diamond Tiara and say, “I wouldn't miss it for the world.” I have a sneaking suspicion that in reality the two fillies wouldn't have such an easy time getting that big box up the stairs.

My character's gaze follows the trio of earth ponies as they make their way up the stairs, the pink one with the tiara on her hip still growling about my character, then Mr. Cake opens a door and allows the two fillies to enter.

After the last of the two, Silver Spoon, enters the room, Mr. Cake closes the door behind them, then heads back down the stairs.

At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if the two are planning to get me kicked out of the bakery before the party can begin, or perhaps during the party.

And, it's approximately then that I hear Applebloom's voice from the kitchen saying something about a cupcake-eating cutie mark. I'm guessing Pinkie Pie got my character and Lyra into the front room of the bakery so she could go out and retrieve the little yellow filly without us knowing. The only problem I see, which I expect the two earth mares to solve on their own, is there are no cupcakes for Applebloom to eat. Of course, I also remember, in the “Call of the Cutie” episode, that Applebloom fails at making cupcakes, although according to Pinkie Pie, her second batch will be, or at least will look, better than her first one.

While Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon are evidently preparing to make their triumphant entrance from Pinkie Pie's room, the first to come in for the party are Snips and Snails, who are immediately run over by a bunch of other foals ready for the party.

I, feeling sorry for the two unicorn brothers, have my character move to help them stand up again and move out of the entrance to the bakery. And, I'm just in time for a group of adults, including Carrot Top, to enter behind them, and I have my character keep the two unicorn colts from getting run over a second time by herding them away from the doorway.

One thing I can say about the two unicorn foals, they recover readily. In a matter of seconds, they're exploring the bakery, looking for other ponies to talk to, or for snacks to eat.

Then, just as Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon exit Pinkie Pie's bedroom and start descending the stairs, a message box appears on the bottom of the screen reading, “The smell of sweet cake.”

In the mean time, Diamond Tiara says, “Welcome, one and all, to my Cute-seniera. Please enjoy yourselves.” She then looks at me and says, “You weren't invited. Go away.”

I ask, “And miss a Cute-seniera? And besides, wouldn't you rather I stay, so you can make fun of me because I'm one of the few creatures at your party without a cutie mark?”

The pink filly smiles evilly at my character and says, “Prove it.”

I know where Diamond Tiara's going with this, but I still ask, “Huh?”

Diamond Tiara answers, “Prove to me you don't have a cutie mark.”

I state, “I'm a human, remember? And, humans wear clothes.”

Her evil smile intensifies as she says, “So, take your clothes off, and show me you don't have a cutie mark.”

At this point, the message in the box changes to “The smell of charcoal.”

At the same time, Lyra shows up and says, “Now, fillies, that's rude. Besides, I've seen it for myself. Mormon does not have a cutie mark.”

I add, “Now, if that matter's settled, I think there's a problem I need to attend to.”

That's when Silver Spoon says, “Not so fast. Why don't you have your cutie mark yet?”

I turn to the gray filly and answer, “Humans don't need cutie marks.”

Then, Lyra steps in to give a more detailed reason, based on my explanation, why humans don't get cutie marks.

In the mean time, my character's path to the kitchen, short as it is, is blocked by ponies at least old enough to attend grade school, either talking or eating pastries and other candy.

I start by talking politely, trying to persuade the ponies to move out of the way; but, my voice doesn't carry well over the conversations among the ponies. So, finally, having my character move his arms in something of a swimming motion, I call out, “Everybody, move!”

Immediately all conversation stops, and all pony eyes in the room are focused on my character.

Now that I have their attention, I say, “I just need a path to the kitchen.”

In response, the ponies in my way move either forward or backward or sideways, providing me a path to the kitchen.

I must admit, the activity reminds me of the portrayal of the parting of the Red Sea in the movie The Ten Commandments. Now that I have a pathway to the kitchen, I have my character make his way along it until he's at the doorway. Once there, I have him turn to the ponies in the main room; and I say, “Thanks. Uh, as you were.” Then, as the party resumes, I have my character turn to face into the kitchen as I ask, “Is everything alright in here?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Everything's fine. Why do you ask?”

I answer, “Well, I could smell something burning in here.”

Pinkie Pie, tilting her head, asks, “Burning?”

Presently, I hear Applebloom's voice say, “Oh, shoot, the cupcakes!”

I take a few more steps into the kitchen to see the yellow filly open the door of the oven, and release a dark gray cloud into the kitchen.

The good news is that the back door is open, and the cloud is making its way in that direction.

The bad news is that Mr. Cake seems to have taken notice. I hear his voice ask, “Is everything alright in here?”

Before I can answer, I hear Applebloom's voice say, “Ow-hot-hot-hot!” followed by a clanging sound, like a thin, heavy piece of metal landing on a solid surface.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie, her head straightened out again, bounces up to her employee and says, “Everything's fine. There's nothing to worry about.”

My character's attention turns to the oven again, so I only hear Mr. Cake's voice as he says, “Well, if you say so, Pinkie Pie.”

In the mean time, I have a look at Applebloom's first batch of cupcakes.

The bad news is they look like pieces of charcoal. The good news is they're not glowing red.

Pinkie Pie grabs a cupcake in her mouth, starts chewing, and, with her mouth still full, says, “Mmm, crunchy.”

I can see that being all sorts of trouble. Generally, when I think of cupcakes, crunchy isn't the first thing that comes to mind.

And, it seems that the yellow filly agrees with me as she whines, “But, they're burned!”

I state, “We humans have a saying: 'If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.' Was the oven the right temperature? Maybe you just need to keep a better eye on the cupcakes while they're baking. Learn from what you did wrong, and you'll do better next time.”

Pinkie Pie swallows her mouthful of charcoal cupcake, then, focused on Applebloom, asks, “So, do you want to try again?”

Grudgingly Applejack's little sister answers, “Oh, alright.”

Pinkie Pie squeaks, “Sweet! I'll take care of these, and you can get started on the next batch.” And, with that, she grabs the pan of charcoal cupcakes in her mouth, puts them on the island counter, then goes to the fridge and produces some icing.

At this point, I'm picturing things going from bad to worse for Sugar Cube Corner, especially if their customers were human. But, still I turn away from the kitchen, hearing Pinkie Pie humming her Cupcakes song. And then I notice that the party seems to have come to a screeching halt. Everyone in the room is focused on my character or the doorway, and all have worried looks on their faces.

I say, “Everything's alright. There's nothing to worry about.”

That's when Lyra shows up, propping herself up on the counter as she says, “But, Mormon, you said something about something burning. And, we did see smoke coming from the kitchen.”

I state, “There's nothing to worry about. We've got everything under control.”

Now there are random ponies' equivalents of shrugs around the room as the ponies go back to what they'd been doing before.

And, seconds later, Pinkie Pie comes out with the first batch of charcoal cupcakes and sets them up in a display in the main room.

Before I can worry about that, Lyra, still propped up on the counter, asks, in a lowered voice, “Mormon, are you sure everything's alright?”

I have my character kneel on one knee on the opposite side of the counter from the pale-green unicorn mare as I answer in an equally lowered voice, “Not really. But, I don't see any reason to alarm the guests.”

Lyra asks, in a voice just above a whisper, “What's wrong?”

I answer, “Well, Pinkie Pie's invited a new cook, and let's just say that, with her first batch, she's proven just how new she is to cooking.”

Lyra asks, “Do you think everypony'll be alright?”

I answer, “I hope so.”

Before either of us can say anymore, Pinkie Pie puts something on my character's head and says, “Don't forget your party hat.”

At this point, I find it curious that my character is the only one in the room wearing a cone-shaped, rubber-band-strapped hat. From what I understand, the only pony that'll be wearing such a hat will be Applebloom, and then it'll be for a very short time.

But, before that, I notice the message box on the bottom of the screen reads, “The smell of sweet cake.” At this point, I decide to end my conversation with Lyra and go in to see how the second batch of cupcakes has turned out. Maybe I can help the little yellow filly so she doesn't burn this batch.

I have my character stand up and turn to the doorway of the kitchen and enter, then I notice the mess throughout and can't help calling out, “Hey, batter!”

This causes Pinkie Pie to giggle and say, “Ah, Mormon!”

In the mean time, I have my character focus on Applebloom as I say, “Maybe you should take those cupcakes out of the oven now.”

Applebloom sighs and says, “Alright,” then opens the door of the oven.

This time, a cloud of white steam jumps out of the oven, then rises and dissipates before it can reach the ceiling. Based on how I programmed this game, that's a good sign.

The little yellow filly then grabs a protective cloth from a nearby counter and proceeds to pull out the pan with the newest batch of cupcakes. But, it seems that the protective cloth isn't quite protective enough, as Applebloom calls out, “Ow! Hot! Hot!” then drops the pan onto the floor.

As the pan comes to rest in the middle of the floor, I can't help noticing the brown coloring of the cupcakes. I state, “I didn't know you were making chocolate cupcakes this time.” And, then I realize I said something wrong, as my character turns to Applebloom and shows me her lower jaw trembling. I'm guessing the cupcakes weren't supposed to be chocolate.

Then, Pinkie Pie says, “Wow! Those look a lot better than the last ones.”

Now, there's a phrase that's puzzled me since the first time I heard it: <insert comparative here> than the last. What exactly does that mean? Let's take Pinkie Pie's statement, “better than the last,” for an example. This is Applebloom's second batch of cupcakes, and, for the present time, her last. How can something be better than itself? And, what if Applebloom were to decide to make another batch of cupcakes? Wouldn't the phrase imply that her cooking skills had peaked, and hat it was downhill from then on? But, that's not what's really important right now.

Pinkie Pie chomps down on one of the cupcakes, and seems to be enjoying it.

Then, Applebloom grabs one in her mouth, chews on it as though test-tasting it, then spits it out, groaning in disgust. Then, she strolls away, distraught, saying in bitterness, “Ah guess Ah'm not cut out to be a baker, either.” As she makes her way to the back door, the whines, “Ah guess Ah'm just gonna have ta face it. Ah'm gonna be a blank flank forever!”

At this point, I wonder aloud, “Were the ingredients wrong, perhaps?”

Pinkie Pie trots up to my character and answers, “They were according to my recipe, so they shouldn't have been.” Then, she looks and sees something on Applebloom and, trotting to her now, says, “Wait, I see something on you.”

The little yellow filly runs in circles now as she asks, “What do you see? Is there something on my flank? Is there? Is there? Is there?”

While Applebloom occupies herself with the spot of flour on her backside trying to figure out what it is, I have my character walk up to the pan of cupcakes, pick one of them, and take a bite out of it. And, from there, I quote the keyword in the message box that shows up: “Hmm, pancakes.”

At this point, I hear Applebloom ask, “Really, Mormon? Do ya really think Ah'd'a have pancakes as a cutie mark?”

I answer, “Well, you never know. But, I was actually referring to this cupcake. It tastes like pancakes to me. All it needs is some maple syrup.”

Pinkie Pie bounces over to my character again and takes a bite out of the cupcake where my character had bitten it, then says, “You know what, Mormon, you may be right. I wonder if we have any maple syrup.”

I think aloud, “I wonder how good maple-syrup-flavored icing would work on these cupcakes.”

And, that's when I hear Applebloom groan and say, “It was just flour.”

Just then, I hear Twilight Sparkle's voice say, “Woah, what happened in here?”

Seeing that Pinkie Pie is too occupied looking for maple syrup in the fridge and Applebloom is too distraught at finding that the spot on her flank was just flour, I decide to answer, “We've just been having adventures in baking.”

From the fridge, Pinkie Pie says, “There's some cupcakes in that pan on the floor, if you want to try one.”

At her friend's invitation, the purple unicorn trots over to the pan and sniffs at the pancake-flavored cupcakes, then, scrunching her nose in distaste, says, “Uh, I don't think so. Not that they don't look … “ then she chuckles uneasily before she concludes, “ … delicious.”

I state, “I guess pancakes aren't everyone's cup of tea, but I like them.”

Then, I have to laugh when Pinkie Pie expresses disgust over the concept of drinking pancake-flavored tea. And, it seems that her search for maple syrup has proven fruitless.

In the mean time, Applebloom approaches the purple unicorn and says, “Twilight, you have to help me.”

Twilight asks, “What's the matter?”

Applebloom takes a deep breath, then spouts off a lengthy sentence, something about her struggles with trying and failing to get a cutie mark, which she believes she needs for the Cute-seniera, finally ending in: “ … right now!”

While the little yellow earth filly tries to convince Twilight to make her cutie mark appear using her magic, Pinkie Pie approaches me and says, “Well, I'm sorry Mormon, but I couldn't find any maple syrup.”

I answer, “Well, that's alright. Maybe if you take some vanilla icing and mix some brown sugar and a little extra butter into it, it'll approximate the flavor of the syrup.”

Pinkie Pie goes to the refrigerator again and says, “Yeah, it's worth a shot. First I'll get the icing.” She then runs to the island and puts a bowl of icing next to my character, then turns to the counter next to the now-crowded sink and says, “Now for the brown sugar.” After bringing that to my character, she goes back to the counter and says, “And, finally the butter.” Then, once she retrieves that, she gets a cup from one of the shelves and brings it to my character, along with a couple spoons, then uses one spoon to dish out some of the icing, then adds some of the brown sugar and the butter, then mixes it together, then hands it to my character to sample it.

As he tastes the icing, the message box at the bottom of the screen reads, “Too sweet to be syrup.”

I say, “I'm thinking it could use a little more butter.”

Pinkie Pie complies, slicing off a sliver of butter and dropping it into the icing, then mixing it together, before offering it to my character to test taste it again.

At this point, Twilight is firing her magic at Applebloom's hip, trying to make a cutie mark appear. While it succeeds, each mark disappears after a second. One of the more notable cutie marks to appear is a plate with three pancakes stacked on it, covered in syrup and topped with a sphere of butter.

In the mean time, as my character samples the icing, the message box reads, “A good approximation of syrup.”

As my character turns to Pinkie Pie, I say, “I'm thinking this is as good as it's gonna get.”

The pink pony smiles, then gets the pan of cupcakes, as well as a plate, then places a cupcake on the plate and spreads the icing on top of it, in a design that reminds me either of an ice cream cone, or a pile of cartoon poop. Then, for each cupcake, she makes more of the icing, then piles it on the cupcake, making a similar shape, and does so with the remaining cupcakes. After that, she takes the cupcakes out to the party guests in the main room.

In the mean time, it seems that Twilight Sparkle has exhausted herself trying to make a cutie mark appear and stick on Applebloom's hip. And, Applebloom is clearly not happy about it.

Once Twilight catches her breath, she says, “I told you, nothing can make a cutie mark appear before it's time.”

Upset, the little yellow filly stomps a front hoof for emphasis as she says, “Ah, it's hopeless.” Then, as she wanders past my character into the main room, she spouts off a speech about how she'll just refuse to attend the Cute-seniera. And, only too late does she realize she's right in the middle of the party. At that moment, she wonders aloud three questions: having forgotten the time and location of the party, and the fact that Pinkie Pie was hosting it, is hosting it.

And, just at that moment, Pinkie Pie straps a paper cone onto her head and says, “Don't forget your party hat, Forgettie Forgetterson.”

As the pink party pony bounces back into the kitchen, I find myself more interested in Applebloom, and how she plans to get out of her predicament. I know what she'll try to do, and that she'll fail at it. But, I expect it to still be interesting to watch.

Actually, it proves to be as much fun to watch in the context of a video game setting as it has been to watch in the episode on which this particular day is based.

I watch her, through my character's eyes, until she makes her way under the punch table; but then I'm interrupted by Twilight Sparkle, who says, “Mormon, you need to check on Pinkie Pie. There's something wrong with her.”

As my character turns to the purple unicorn, I can see through his eyes the worried look on her face. I ask, “What is it?”

She answers, “I don't know exactly. All I know is when she came back in here after putting a party hat on Applebloom, I saw her face turn green, and she started moaning. I think she's sick.”

Automatically my character looks into the kitchen while I ask, “Where is—?” Before I can finish asking the question I see her at the back door, or at least her backside. Wanting to know how she is, but at the same time not wanting to alarm the guests, I have my character walk over to the pink earth pony before I ask, “Pinkie Pie, are you—?” Again, before I finish asking the question, I see her, through my character's eyes, standing over a puddle of what looks like black tar, just to the side of the steps. I then watch, through his eyes, as Pinkie Pie's abdomen convulses, and she spouts from her mouth more of the black tar.

From next to me, I hear Twilight Sparkle ask, “Is she going to be alright?”

My character turns to show me her speaking, and when she's done I answer, “I'm gonna take her to the clinic. You go and tell the Cakes and Lyra where I'm going, and that they're in charge of the party, either until Pinkie and I get back, or until it ends, whichever comes first.”

The purple unicorn doesn't say anything, just runs into the main room of the bakery.

In the mean time, my character is in the perfect position to catch Pinkie Pie as she starts to collapse. He picks her up in his arms, then runs to the clinic in town.

As he bursts through the doors of the clinic, I call out, “We have an emergency here!”

A white unicorn mare, who happens to be checking out the oddly-bent wing of a blue pegasa, who I immediately recognize as Rainbow Dash, looks up to see the green-faced Pinkie Pie in my character's arms, then sighs and says, “Here we go again.” She then calls out to the pathway past the waiting room, “We need a gurney in here stat!”

Presently, Pinkie Pie starts vibrating, then points her head past my arm and spews out more of the black tar.

Then, the gurney arrives, running over the puddle of tar from Pinkie Pie.

I put the pink earth pony on the gurney, which immediately rolls back through the hallway and disappears around a corner, leaving a track of her vomit behind it.

Now, I hear Rainbow Dash ask, no, demand, “What did you do to Pinkie Pie?”

As my character turns to the blue, rainbow-haired pegasa, I answer, “I didn't do anything. I think she just had a bad reaction to a burnt cupcake.”

The glare on her face intensifies as she says, “You're lucky I can't fly right now. What were you doing, feeding her burnt cupcakes?”

I answer, “I didn't feed her any. She was teaching Applejack's little sister how to bake them, and she had a sample of the first batch, which didn't exactly come out top-quality.”

By now, janitors have arrived, and are cleaning up the divided puddle of Pinkie Pie's vomit.

I must say, I find it interesting that the janitor ponies, instead of using a bucket or a dust pan for the shiny black stuff, are using what looks like a jar. I have to wonder if they suspect that there's more in the vomit than the burned remnants of a cupcake.

In the mean time, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “She'd just better be alright.”

As my character turns back to her, I see her turning away from me and settling down again, after which I hear her sniffle, then see her make a movement, which I assume is her rubbing her nose with a forelimb. I decide it might be a good idea, while I'm waiting for news about Pinkie Pie, to visit with Rainbow Dash. So, I have my character go around the two rows of five ponies, the pony in one row with his or her back to the one next to him or her in the other, until he's in front of the blue, rainbow-haired pegasa, then sit down in front of her; after which, I ask, “So, how are you?”

Rainbow Dash settles down, sphinx-style, then rests her head over one hoof so she's facing away from me, then says, “I'm fine. My last stunt just went wrong, that's all.” Then, she looks up at my character again and says, “So, what happened to Pinkie Pie? She doesn't usually get sick from eating a cupcake, even if it's burned.”

I answer, “I'm not sure I understand it either. All I know is she gave a party hat to Applebloom, then left. Next thing I knew, Twilight's telling me she isn't looking very good, and I find her half outside, getting sick.”

At this point, Rainbow Dash tilts her head and asks, “Why would Pinkie Pie give Applebloom a party hat?”

I answer, “They were at the Cute-seniera at Sugar Cube Corner.”

At this point, I watch, through my character's eyes, as a look of shock on Rainbow Dash's face morphs into fury, then she closes her eyes and taps a front hoof, the one below her injured wing in fact, between them, groans, then says, “Just shoot me now.”

I ask her, “What's wrong?”

Presently she waves the hoof she was tapping between her eyes past me, opens her eyes, focuses on me, and says, “I was practicing the stunt for Diamond Tiara's Cute-seniera, and I landed wrong!” She then puts the hoof parallel to her other front hoof as she continues, “I was lucky enough to land in front of the clinic, here. I probably just need to pull out a few broken feathers. But, it looks like I won't be able to perform for the Cute-seniera now.”

I consider what the stunt was going to be. But, before I can ask, a gurney comes out, possibly the one that wheeled Pinkie Pie away; and the mare at the desk says, “Rainbow Dash, it's your turn now.”

Instead of asking about the stunt, as Rainbow Dash rises and stumbles toward the gurney, I ask, “So, will you be attending the reading this evening?”

The blue pegasa looks back at my character, half-smiles, and says, “Even if I have to walk there, I'll be sure to make it.” Then, as she approaches the gurney, it lowers, allowing her to step up onto it. She then settles down on it as the bed part rises again, and she reminds me of a sad dog as she's being wheeled away.

After watching Rainbow Dash disappear on the gurney, I have my character turns to the mare at the desk; and I ask, “Any news on Pinkie Pie?”

The mare, a unicorn that's darker pink than Pinkie Pie's mane with her own mane two shades of yellow, looks at my character and answers, “They're doing a blood test on her right now. When they get the results from that, they'll give them to Pinkie Pie. Whether she informs you about them will be her decision.”

Based on the rule of patient confidentiality, that sounds fair to me.

Then, a few minutes later, when my character has taken a seat in the waiting room, a white earth pony shows up at the entrance to the hallway and calls out, “If there's somepony named Mormon here, Pinkie Pie's awake, and she's asking for you.”

I, of course, am not a pony, and neither is my character. But, still, I have my character rise and approach the white earth pony.

I must admit, I'm surprised when the nurse pony, seeing my character approach, shows no signs of being scared of him. She just turns around and calmly trots off into the hallway, leading my character to a room where Pinkie Pie is stretched out on one side on a patient's bed.

As soon as she sees my character, she whimpers, “I'm sorry you had to leave the party early because of me.”

I answer, “That's alright. Your health matters more to me than some party.”

At this point, the nurse pony that lead my character into the room says, “Excuse me, but the patient informed me that she was hosting a party at Sugar Cube Corner?”

My character turns to the nurse pony, and I answer, “That's right. She was hosting a Cute-seniera for Diamond Tiara.”

The nurse pony grunts with understanding, then says, “And, did she eat anything unusual while she was there?”

I answer, “Well, she was teaching a young filly now to bake cupcakes. The first batch that she produced was basically pieces of charcoal, but Pinkie Pie ate one of them anyway, and remarked on it being crunchy. I have to agree with Pinkie Pie about the second batch. It was a major improvement on the first one. The student sampled one of the cupcakes and spit it out, saying she wasn't cut out to be a baker. I had a sample from the second batch, and to me it tasted like a pancake. I made a suggestion on what would make the perfect icing for it, and Pinkie Pie went to work preparing it. Long story short, we got the frosting perfected for the cupcakes, Pinkie Pie got them out to the guests, then put a hat on the student, then went outside and started getting sick.”

At this point, a light-brown stallion in a lab coat enters the room, dismisses the nurse pony, then turns to Pinkie Pie and says, “I have the results of your blood test here.” It seems to be then that he notices my character standing nearby, as he turns to him and says, “I'm sorry, but this is between the patient and me.”

And, that's when Pinkie Pie speaks up and says, “Oh, that's alright. I trust Mormon. He won't talk about the results with anypony else but me. Not unless I say it's alright.”

The stallion, evidently a doctor pony, eyes my character before saying, “Well, alright, if you say so.” He then marches up to Pinkie Pie and, evidently reading from the paper on his clipboard, says, “Pinkie Pie, according to the results from your blood test, you have diabetes. It's recommended that you cut back on your sugar intake for a month. That means no more sweets. Then, you should come back in for another blood test, and maybe a urine test, to see if further measures need to be taken.”

My character watches the doctor pony leave the room, after which I hear Pinkie Pie ask, “Why do I feel like I'm being punished for something I didn't do?” Then, my character turns to her and shows me the sad look on her face.

I say, “I'm sure it won't be that bad. While you've been living with me, you have been eating fruit. Maybe it's time to add some fresh vegetables and grains to your diet.”

At this point, the pink party pony whines, “Mormon, not you too?”

I answer, “Now, it wouldn't hurt you to start eating some carrots and oats.”

Pinkie Pie groans in disgust, then again whines, “But, what about my friends? Remember, I'm the party pony.”

I say, “I'm sure that you eating veggies and grains won't hurt them either.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie glares at me for a second or two, then says, “I mean, what are they gonna think about me? I have a reputation to uphold. I can't have them knowing about my condition.”

That's when Rainbow Dash, her injured wing now bandaged up, walks in. Seeing her pink friend on the bed, she asks, “Pinkie Pie, are you alright?”

Pinkie Pie groans, “Yeah, I'm fine.”

Rainbow Dash adds, “Mormon told me you got sick over at Sugar Cube Corner.”

Pinkie Pie answers, “I just ate a bad cupcake.”

Rainbow Dash continues, “I heard the doctor say something about diabetes.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie groans and looks away, then says, “That's all I need.”

I explain, “Pinkie Pie doesn't want anyone else to know about it.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie growl, “Mormon!” and my character turns to her to show me that she's glaring at him.

I don't see Rainbow Dash canter in from the doorway, but I do see her prop herself up on the bed where Pinkie Pie is. She then says, “It's alright, Pinkie. I can keep a secret. Remember, I'm the element of loyalty.”

I watch as Pinkie Pie stares, frowning, into her friend's eyes for a few seconds. Then, she smiles and says, “Alright. But, I don't want anypony else knowing about my condition. You Pinkie promise, Dashie?”

I see Rainbow Dash nod as she backs away from the bed and drops down, then sits and, I assume, even goes through the actions as she says, “I won't tell anypony about your condition. Cross my heart and hope to fly, again, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

I can't help laughing at the rainbow-haired pegasa's little addition to the Pinkie promise.

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash turns to the doorway and says, “I'll go ask the doctor if it's alright for you to leave now. I'm sure you need to get back to that party as soon as possible.” And, with that, she trots out the door again.

When the rainbow-haired pegasa has left, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “I don't want you saying anything about my condition either.”

I answer, “I assure you, I won't say anything about it. Ki tahi au. Continue.” What I don't say, what I don't even need to mention, is that I have still said nothing about the basement of that factory, and what went on in there.

When the split-second pause is over, Pinkie Pie says, “Thank you, Mormon. I know the promise you made is as important to you as my Pinkie promises are to me.”

A few seconds later, I hear Rainbow Dash in the doorway again saying, “The doctor says we're both free to go. You, as long as you don't have anymore sweets, and me, as long as I don't try to fly again until they remove the bandage.”

My character turns to her just in time to see her indicate by turning to show Pinkie Pie the bandaged wing and waving it slightly.

He then turns to Pinkie Pie to show me that she's rising on the bed.

I watch, through my character's eyes, as the pink earth pony jumps off the bed onto the floor, then says, “Good. Let's get out of here.”

Rainbow Dash is the first to move out into the hallway, and she waits, providing enough room away from the doorway for Pinkie Pie to join her so they can walk side-by-side, with my character following behind them.

As my character follows the two ponies down the hallway, I hear Rainbow Dash ask, “So, Pinkie, you're the one—“ My character then looks down, and has to stop mid-step in order to avoid stepping on the blue pegasa as the two ponies have already stopped.

It seems that Pinkie Pie has shoved a front hoof into Rainbow Dash's mouth in order to stop her from finishing her sentence, which I can also assume was going to conclude with “—with diabetes?” At least, that's what I get from her mumbling through the hoof.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie glares and growls at her. Unusual behavior from Pinkie Pie, and effective.

Indeed, Rainbow Dash makes it clear that she understands, as her ears droop, and she swallows hard. Then, as Pinkie Pie removes the hoof from her mouth, Rainbow Dash sincerely says, “Sorry, Pinkie.”

The two resume their walk, allowing my character to continue walking behind them.

Before my character can make his way out of the clinic, though, I hear the voice of the doctor pony say, “Mormon, I'd like to have a word with you before you leave with Pinkie Pie.”

I tell the two ponies to go ahead and wait for me in the waiting room, then have my character enter a room which is evidently the doctor pony's office.

The doctor pony is in front of his desk holding what looks like a leather-bound notebook in his mouth. He gives my character the item, then backs up a pace and says, “I had to give Pinkie Pie a shot of insulin to get her blood sugar to a normal level. I want you to keep an eye on her from now on, and if she eats any more sugary foods, I want you to give her a shot of insulin from one of the needles in the case I gave you. Is that understood?”

I have my character nod in agreement, after which I have him put the case of insulin shots in his inventory. After that, the doctor dismisses him; and he makes his way back to the two ponies waiting for him.

The three make their way out of the clinic and back to Sugar Cube Corner, where the party is still in progress. In fact, they make it in time for me to see, through my character's eyes, the formation of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, which starts out with three fillies: one unicorn, one earth pony, and one pegasa. And, even in the video game setting, it's still funny to see Scootaloo try to celebrate with a cupcake, only for Applebloom to put an immediate stop to it, in favor of cookies instead.

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash apologizes to Diamond Tiara for being unable to make a picture of her cutie mark in the sky, with the words “Happy Cute-seniera” underneath it. I'm guessing that was the stunt Rainbow Dash was working on when she crashed in front of the clinic.

Without that kind of conclusion to the party, Diamond Tiara settles for removing her dress to show off her cutie mark, which all her classmates have seen anyway, and her and Silver Spoon dismissing the guests.

The party thus over, I have my character assist in cleaning up, including taking down the decorations.

It's during that time, after Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, and the other guests have left, that Lyra and Twilight Sparkle approach Pinkie Pie with their questions about how she's doing, which Pinkie Pie answers with the same answer she gave Rainbow Dash.

With the bakery showing no more evidence of the party thrown there, the group of seven, joined by Mrs. Cake, make their way outside, where Mr. Cake puts a “Closed” sign on the front door. After that, the group makes its way out of Ponyville, and into the Everfree forest.

It takes an hour from the time the group enters the forest to the time they reach my character's home, at which point my character opens the gate and allows the others to enter, then enters behind them and closes the gate.

Once the seven of them are inside the gate, Pinkie Pie ascends the steps to the front porch, then turns and says, “Lyra, Weed Whacker, if you'll go gather fruits and veggies and make snacks for the guests, Mormon and I have something we need to discuss. Mr. and Mrs. Cake and Rainbow Dash, you're welcome to help Lyra and Weed Whacker if you want.”

There's something in the pink earth pony's tone that leads me to believe she wants to ask me about what the doctor pony wanted to talk to me, to my character, about. I have him join her on the porch, then follow her into the house, through the front room around the couches, into the kitchen, then down the hall and into my character's bedroom.

Once my character closes the door behind them, Pinkie Pie turns to him, to me, and asks, “So, what did the doctor want with you?”

I have my character produce the case of insulin shots from his inventory and show it to Pinkie Pie, after which I say, “He told me he'd given you an insulin shot to get your blood sugar level under control.”

Pinkie Pie eyes the case suspiciously as she asks, “So, what does that thing have to do with it?”

I answer, as my character puts the case back in his inventory, “He gave me instructions to keep a close eye on you. He wants me to give you a shot of insulin if I see you eating anything with a lot of sugar in it.”

The way Pinkie Pie is grimacing, one would think the insulin shots were a punishment. And, I can't say I blame her for feeling that way about it. She stammers, “D-do you think I sh-should've P-pinkie promised?”

I answer, “That would've been up to you. But, I think he knows that I care about you.”

The pink party pony seems to be on the verge of a panic attack as she says, “I never thought having treats would become a bad thing.”

At this point, I have my character kneel down and open his arms as I say, “Come here, Pinkie.”

Accepting the invitation, Pinkie Pie gallops and jumps into my character's arms, then starts sobbing.

My character carries her to his bed and sits down on it, stroking Pinkie's mane with his free hand in the mean time.

After a few seconds, Pinkie Pie says, through her sobs, “The w-worst thing is—th-those cupcakes I ate—w-weren't even s-sweet!”

I have to restrain myself from laughing at Pinkie Pie's comment. When I feel like I can talk without sounding like I'm going to laugh, I say, “Maybe, after all the oxygen and hydrogen was burned away, there was enough carbon left behind that it didn't matter.”

I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Th-that w-wasn't f-funny.”

I say, “I'm sorry, Pinkie. But, you still have me with you. I'm not going to abandon you.”

That assurance seems to calm her down. As her sobbing subsides, she pushes away from me and says, “Thanks, Mormon. I needed that.”

I add, “Now, if you want to take a shower or something before the reading tonight, go right ahead. The rest of us will take care of everything else.”

As my character stands up again, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “J-just—carry me to the bathroom, alright?”

I answer, “Sure,” then have my character open the door to my bedroom, walk into the hallway, then open the door opposite my bedroom and walk inside, then place Pinkie Pie on the ground.

Once on her own hooves again, Pinkie Pie looks up at my character and says, “Thanks. I won't be in here too long.”

For a pony her friends rarely take seriously, Pinkie Pie has a lot of serious moments. She reminds me of a character from Star Trek the Next Generation.

I have my character close the door behind him as he leaves, allowing the pink party pony to take her shower or bath in privacy. After that, he heads into the kitchen where Lyra, Rainbow Dash, and Weed Whacker are preparing the fruits and vegetables they gathered for snacks for the guests that'll be arriving for the reading.

Before any of those three can say anything, the door between the kitchen and the front room opens; and Vinyl Scratch walks in. After looking around, she asks, “So, where's Pinkie Pie?”

I hear the whistle of pipes allowing hot water to flow through them towards the closest bathroom before I answer, “She's taking a shower. That, or a bath.”

The white unicorn grunts, “Oh,” then asks, “So, how did that party at Sugar Cube Corner go?”

I notice, from the top of my character's periphery, Rainbow Dash droop a bit. I answer, “Not quite the way Diamond Tiara planned it, but, from what I saw, it went well.”

Vinyl Scratch grunts again, then asks, “What things happened that she didn't plan on?”

I answer, “Well, for one thing, she made it clear that she didn't plan on a human, specifically me, showing up at her Cute-seniera. Pinkie Pie got sick, and I had to take her to the clinic; but, I don't think Diamond Tiara knew anything about that. Pinkie Pie's fine, by the way. Three fillies without cutie marks got all the attention Diamond Tiara wanted. Beyond that, I think everything went about according to her plans.”

Vinyl asks, “What about Rainbow Dash? Pinkie Pie mentioned something about her performing a stunt for the party.”

From behind her, Rainbow Dash angrily approaches the white unicorn as she says, “I got hurt, alright? I couldn't perform the stunt.” Having backed her against the door, the blue pegasa adds, turning her side with the injured wing to Vinyl, “Here, you wanna see?”

At this point, I have my character put an arm between the two mares and push Rainbow Dash away gently, and I say, “Alright, Rainbow Dash, at ease.”

The rainbow-haired pegasa glares up at my character, then, growling loudly, pushes past his arm and marches through the hallway. If I understand what I'm hearing correctly, based on which door slams, she ends up in Pinkie Pie's room.

After a few seconds, a now distraught Vinyl Scratch says, “Oops.”

Presently, I hear the barking of a timber wolf from the front porch.

An alarmed Vinyl Scratch rears up on her hind legs and whinnies, kicking with her front legs, then gallops to the side of my character opposite the door and hides.

As my character stands up, I say, “That's probably just Scout. I'm guessing the guests are arriving. I'll go have a look.” And, with that, my character makes his way to the front door and opens it to see what's going on.

Indeed it is Scout barking from the steps, at the first guests, my three stallion friends, who are waiting at the gate, evidently wondering if they want to enter and face the wrath of the timber wolf barking at them.

I have my character turn to my timber wolf friend as I say, “It's alright, Scout. Those are some of my friends.”

Scout looks up at my character to hear him out, then, hearing about how the ponies at the gate are friends of mine, turns to one side of the porch and takes a position there.

In the mean time, my character makes his way to the gate and opens it, allowing the unicorn, earth pony, and pegasus to enter.

Berry Ground, who enters first, says, “Maybe some day we'll get used to you keeping a timber wolf as a pet. And, maybe your timber wolf pet will get used to guests arriving for the readings.”

I answer, “Scout means no harm. I'm sure he knows you're friends of mine, and he trusts me. In the mean time, please make yourselves comfortable.”

And, as I watch the last of my stallion friends enter the yard, that's when I notice the next group emerge from the forest.

This time, it's the Apple family, with Cheerilee followed by five foals, including Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, and Twist.

As the Apples are the first to emerge from the forest, I greet them. Then, as Cheerilee enters, I say, “I notice Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon are with you this time.”

She answers, “And Twist. Diamond Tiara's father is off on a business trip, and he's left Diamond Tiara in my care. I figured, why not bring her and Silver Spoon along with. And, since Applebloom comes to these readings, she invited Twist to come along.”

I answer, “Well, as I've said before, the more, the merrier.”

As Silver Spoon enters, she turns away from the gate for a moment and groans, “Since when does that zebra come to the readings?”

I answer, “Since yesterday.”

In the mean time, my character turns to the other entrance to the Everfree forest to show me that indeed Zecora's coming with her copy of the Book of Mormon. At the same time, I look in the opposite direction and see Carrot Top, Berry Punch, and Bon-Bon, followed by Rarity, Spike, Twilight Sparkle, and Fluttershy.

As my character greets those eight, I notice, on the edge of my character's periphery, Cold Hands and Warm Heart emerging from the forest along with their two foals, and followed closely behind by Mayor Mare. My character greets the last of the guests at the gate, then closes it behind them, then turns around to show me that Princess Luna has teleported in as well. My character walks up to her, and I say, “Welcome, Princess Luna. Please, make yourself comfortable. I just need to go inside and get the others, as well as get more copies of the Book of Mormon for the three newcomers.”

I hear Princess Luna say, “It's an honor to be here,” as my character enters the house to invite the others outside, and get three copies of the Book of Mormon for Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, and Twist.

As my character opens the door, Pinkie Pie, evidently fresh from the shower, is there to greet him. She says, “Hey, I thought I was supposed to be the one greeting guests.”

As my character makes his way past her to the closet, I say, “Well, you were busy taking a bath, and, when Scout started barking, I decided to go out and see who was coming. It started with my three stallion friends, and the rest just kept coming. Anyway, you, Lyra, Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, Weed Whacker, Rainbow Dash, and the Cakes can go ahead out there now and talk with the guests. I just need to get copies for the three new guests: Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, and Twist.”

As my character gets the copies of the Book of Mormon from the closet, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, that's right. Filthy Rich is off on a business trip. So, Diamond Tiara most likely came with Cheerilee. Well, I better go gather everypony in here so they can go out with the rest of the guests.”

While Pinkie Pie is informing the rest of the creatures in the house that it's time to go out to the reading, my character, after getting three copies of the Book of Mormon from the closet, heads outside to deliver them to the three foals in the now-formed circle outside.

As my character takes the last position between Lyra and Weed Whacker, I turn to my earth pony friend and ask, “Pinkie Pie, will you bring everyone up-to-date on what's been going on in the story so far?”

The pink pony perks up and asks, “Really?”

I answer, “Sure. Go ahead.” Then, as I see her, through my character's eyes, taking a deep breath, I add, “Just go slowly. We don't want to lose anyone in a rapid-fire description of events leading up to where we are.”

Pinkie Pie exhales, then nods, then says, “Well, you see, there are these two families, one of a human called Lehi, and another of a human called Ishmael. They lived in a city called Jerusalem, which was becoming really bad a long time ago. Lehi tried telling the people there to stop being so bad, but that didn't work. So, his God told him to take his family and leave Jerusalem. Then, after a few days traveling in the wilderness, Lehi's God told him to send his sons back to get some records they'd need from another human called Laban. They managed to get the records, but they had to kill Laban in order to get them. After that, they went back with the records and gave them to Lehi, who gave his approval. Then, Lehi's God told him to send his sons back to get Ishmael and his family, which they did. Then, they traveled in the wilderness until they got to the ocean, at which point Nephi, Lehi's youngest son when they left, got the help of his brothers to build a ship so they could cross the ocean. At this point, they've arrived in a new land, and are settling in. Oh, and Lehi has six sons: Laman, Lemuel, Sam, Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph.” Turning to my character, Pinkie Pie asks, “Was that alright, Mormon?”

I answer, “Yes, Pinkie Pie. Thank you.” Then, addressing the group, I say, “We're down to the last three chapters of the First Book of Nephi, and I figured we could read them this evening. The longest is the last chapter, with thirty-one verses, and it should give everyone at least two verses to read.” As my character looks around and shows me general nods of agreement, I continue, “The first two chapters we'll be reading will be quoting the Book of Isaiah in the Bible.” I then turn to the pink earth filly and ask, “Diamond Tiara, will you begin with the first verse of chapter twenty?”

Diamond Tiara groans, “If I have to.” She then flips through the pages until she gets to her verse, then reads, “Hearken and hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and are come forth out of the waters of Judah, or out of the waters of baptism, who swear by the name of the Lord, and make mention of the God of Israel, yet they swear not in truth nor in righteousness.” Looking up, she says, “I was always taught that it isn't nice to swear.”

After the ripple of laughter, I have my character turn to the gray filly next to Diamond Tiara, and I ask, “Silver Spoon, will you read the next verse?”

Silver Spoon nods, then opens her copy of the book and flips through the pages until she gets to the right one, then reads, “Nevertheless, they call themselves of the holy city, but they do not stay themselves upon the God of Israel, who is the Lord of Hosts; yea, the Lord of Hosts is his name.”

Next, Cheerilee reads, “Behold, I have declared the former things from the beginning, and they went forth out of my mouth, and I showed them. I did show them suddenly.”

Twist reads, “And I did it because I knew that thou art obstinate, and thy neck is an iron sinew, and they brow brass.” At this point, the little orange-haired filly looks up and grunts in confusion.

I answer, “Humans are creatures of habit. Here, God is warning his people, through his servant Isaiah, that they've very firmly set themselves on the wrong path.” Seeing that Twist seems to be satisfied with the explanation, I have my character turn to Applebloom while I say, “You can go ahead and read now.”

Applebloom nods, then looks down and reads, “And I have even from the beginning declared to thee; before it came to pass I showed them thee; and I showed them for fear lest thou shouldst say—Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image hath commanded them.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Thou hast seen and heard all this; and will ye not declare them? And that I have showed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them.”

Scootaloo reads, “They are created now, and not from the beginning, even before the day when thou heardest them not they were declared unto thee, lest thou shouldest say—Behold I knew them.”

Warm Heart reads, “Yea, and thou heardest not; yea, thou knewest not; yea, from that time thine ear was not opened; for I knew that thou wouldst deal very treacherously, and wast called a transgressor from the womb.”

Snails reads, “Nevertheless, for my name's sake will I defer mine anger, and for my praise will I refrain from thee, that I cut thee not off.”

Snips reads, “For, behold, I have refined thee, I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.”

Cold Hands reads, “For mine own sake, yea, for mine own sake will I do this, for I will not suffer my name to be polluted, and I will not give my glory unto another.”

Mr. Cake reads, “Hearken unto me, O Jacob, and Israel my called, for I am he; I am the first, and I am the last.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “Mine hand hath also laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens. I call unto them and they stand up together.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “All ye, assemble yourselves, and hear; who among them hath declared these things unto them? The Lord hath loved him; yea, and he will fulfil his word which he hath declared by them; and he will do his pleasure on Babylon, and his arm shall come upon the Chaldeans.”

Granny Smith reads, “Also, saith the Lord, I the Lord, yea, I have spoken; yea, I have called him to declare, I have brought him, and he shall make his way prosperous.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “Come ye near unto me; I have not spoken in secret; from the beginning, from the time that it was declared have I spoken; and the Lord God, and his Spirit, hath sent me.”

Applejack reads, “And thus saith the Lord, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I have sent him, the Lord thy God who teacheth thee to profit, who leadeth thee by the way thou shouldst go, hath done it.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments—then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea.”

Spike reads, “Thy seed also had been as the sand; the offspring of thy bowels like the gravel thereof; his name should not have been cut off nor destroyed from before me.”

Rarity reads, “Go ye forth of Babylon, flee ye from the Chaldeans, with a voice of singing declare ye, tell this, utter to the end of the earth; say ye: The Lord hath redeemed his servant Jacob.”

Stunts reads, “And they thirsted not; he led them through the deserts; he caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them; he clave the rock also and the waters gushed out.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And notwithstanding he hath done all this, and greater also, there is no peace, saith the Lord, unto the wicked.”

Octavia looks up and says, “I guess that means I start chapter twenty-one,” then looks down and reads, “And again: Hearken, O ye house of Israel, all ye that are broken off and are driven out because of the wickedness of the pastors of my people; yea, all ye that are broken off, that are scattered abroad, who are of my people, O house of Israel. Listen, O isles, unto me, and hearken ye people from far; the Lord hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.”

Carrot Top reads, “And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me;”

Berry Ground reads, “And said unto me: Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”

Berry Punch reads, “Then I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for naught and in vain; surely my judgment is with the Lord, and my work with my God.”

Fluttershy reads, “And now, saith the Lord—that formed me from the womb that I should be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him—though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And he said: It is a light thing that thou shouldst be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel. I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the ends of the earth.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nations abhorreth, to servant of rulers: Kings shall see and arise, princes shall also worship, because of the Lord that is faithful.”

Bon-Bon reads, “Thus saith the Lord: In an acceptable time have I heard thee, O isles of the sea, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee; and I will preserve thee, and give thee my servant for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages;”

Lyra reads, “That thou mayest say to the prisoners: Go forth; to them that sit in darkness: Show yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places.”

I read, “They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the head nor the sun smite them; for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted.”

Zecora reads, “And then, O house of Israel, behold, there shall come from far; and lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.”

Mayor Mare reads, “Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; for the feet of those who are in the east shall be established; and break forth into singing, O mountains; for they shall be smitten no more; for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted.”

Princess Luna reads, “But, behold, Zion hath said: The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me—but he will show that he hath not.”

At this point, I decide to say, “You may find it interesting to know that, at least in the King James version of this verse in the Book of Isaiah, that last phrase, ' but he will show that he hath not,' is missing.” I then have my character turn to Diamond Tiara, and I say, “You can go ahead and read now.”

Diamond Tiara nods, then looks down and reads, “For can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee, O house of Israel.”

Silver Spoon reads, “Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.” Looking up, she asks, “Wouldn't that be painful, engraving something on your hands?”

I agree, “Literal engraving of images or messages on one's hands would be painful, that's true." Then, I add, "But, I'm thinking there's all sorts of symbolism in this saying. For one thing, I'm thinking this is a reference to the way the Christ was executed, which wouldn't take place, from the perspective of when this was written, for between six and seven centuries. It wouldn't surprise me if there's symbolism beyond this, though.” I then have my character turn to Cheerilee as I say, “You can go ahead and read now.”

She nods, then looks down and reads, “Thy children shall make haste against thy destroyers; and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee.”

Twist reads, “Lift up thine eyes round about and behold; all these gather themselves together, and they shall come to thee. And as I live, saith the Lord, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on even as a bridle.”

Applebloom reads, “For thy waste and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction, shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants; and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “The children whom thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the first, shall again in thine ears say: The place is too strait for me; give place to me that I may dwell.”

Scootaloo reads, “Then shalt thou say in thine heart: Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? And who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where have they been?”

Warm Heart reads, “Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people; and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.”

Snails reads, “And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their face towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that wait for thee.”

Snips reads, “For shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captives delivered?”

Cold Hands reads, “But thus saith the Lord, even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save my children.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; they shall be drunken with their own blood as with sweet wine; and all flesh shall know that I, the Lord, am thy Savior and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”

Mrs. Cake says, “And, I guess that means I start reading chapter twenty-two.” Then, she looks down and reads, “And now it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had read these things which were engraven upon the plates of brass, my brethren came unto me and said unto me: What meaneth these things which ye have read? Behold, are they to be understood according to things which are spiritual, which shall come to pass according to the spirit and not the flesh?”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And I, Nephi, said unto them, Behold they were manifest unto the prophet by the voice of the Spirit; for by the Spirit are all things made known unto the prophets, which shall come upon the children of men according to the flesh.”

Granny Smith reads, “Wherefore, the things of which I have read are things pertaining to things both temporal and spiritual; for it appears that the house of Israel, sooner or later, will be scattered upon all the face of the earth, and also among all nations.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “And behold, there are many who are already lost from the knowledge of those who are at Jerusalem. Yea, the more part of all the tribes have been led away; and they are scattered to and fro upon the isles of the sea; and whither they are none of us knoweth, save that we know that they have been led away.”

Applejack reads, “And since they have been led away, these things have been prophesied concerning them, and also concerning all those who shall hereafter be scattered and be confounded, because of the Holy One of Israel; for against him will they harden their hearts; wherefore, they shall be scattered among all nations and shall be hated of all men.”

Twilight reads, “Nevertheless, after they shall be nursed by the Gentiles, and the Lord has lifted up his hand upon the Gentiles and set them up for a standard, and their children have been carried in their arms, and their daughters have been carried upon their shoulders, behold these things of which are spoken are temporal; for thus are the covenants of the Lord with our fathers; and it meaneth us in the days to come, and also all our brethren who are of the house of Israel.”

Spike reads, “And it meaneth that the time cometh that after all the house of Israel have been scattered and confounded, that the Lord God will raise up a mighty nation among the Gentiles, yea, even upon the face of this land; and by them shall our seed be scattered.”

Rarity reads, “And after our seed is scattered the Lord God will proceed to do a marvelous work among the Gentiles, which shall be of great worth unto our seed; wherefore, it is likened unto their being nourished by the Gentiles and being carried in their arms and upon their shoulders.”

At this point, I state, “By my time, this has already happened. The Lord God has, at least, begun a marvelous work, which I have been, and am still, part of.”

Stunts reads, “And it shall be of worth unto the Gentiles; and not only unto the Gentiles but unto all the house of Israel, unto the making known of the covenants of the Father of heaven unto Abraham, saying: In thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And I would, my brethren, that ye should know that all the kindreds of the earth cannot be blessed unless he shall make bare his arm in the eyes of the nations.”

Octavia reads, “Wherefore, the Lord God will proceed to make bare his arm in the eyes of all the nations, in bringing about his covenants and his gospel unto those who are of the house of Israel.”

Carrot Top reads, “Wherefore, he will bring them again out of captivity, and they shall be gathered together to the lands of their inheritance; and they shall be brought out of obscurity and out of darkness; and they shall know that the Lord is their Savior and their Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel.”

Berry Ground reads, “And the blood of that great and abominable church, which is the whore of all the earth, shall turn upon their own heads; for they shall war among themselves, and the sword of their own hands shall fall upon their own heads, and they shall be drunken with their own blood.”

Berry Punch reads, “And every nation which shall war against thee, O house of Israel, shall be turned one against another, and they shall fall into the pit which they digged to ensnare the people of the Lord. And all that fight against Zion shall be destroyed, and that great whore, who hath perverted the right ways of the Lord, yea, that great and abominable church, shall tumble to the dust and great shall be the fall of it.”

Fluttershy reads, “For behold, saith the prophet, the time cometh speedily that Satan shall have no more power over the hearts of the children of men; for the day soon cometh that all the proud and they who do wickedly shall be as stubble; and the day cometh that they must be burned.”

Emerald Hill reads, “For the time soon cometh that the fulness of the wrath of God shall be poured out upon all the children of men; for he will not suffer that the wicked shall destroy the righteous.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “Wherefore, he will preserve the righteous by his power, even if it so be that the fulness of his wrath must come, and the righteous be preserved, even unto the destruction of their enemies by fire. Wherefore, the righteous need not fear; for thus saith the prophet, they shall be saved, even if it so be as by fire.”

Bon-Bon reads, “Behold, my brethren, I say unto you, that these things must shortly come; yea, even blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke must come; and it must needs be upon the face of this earth; and it cometh unto men according to the flesh if it so be that they will harden their hearts against the Holy One of Israel.”

Lyra reads, “For behold, the righteous shall not perish; for the time surely must come that all they who fight against Zion shall be cut off.”

I read, “And the Lord will surely prepare a way for his people, unto the fulfilling of the words of Moses, which he spake, saying: A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass that all those who will not hear that prophet shall be cut off from among the people.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And now I, Nephi, declare unto you, that this prophet of whom Moses spake was the Holy One of Israel; wherefore, he shall execute judgment in righteousness.”

Zecora reads, “And the righteous need not fear, for they are those who shall not be confounded. But it is the kingdom of the devil, which shall be built up among the children of men, which kingdom is established among them which are in the flesh—“

Mayor Mare reads, “For the time speedily shall come that all churches which are built up to get gain, and all those who are built up to get power over the flesh, and those who are built up to become popular in the eyes of the world, and those who seek the lusts of the flesh and the things of the world, and to do all manner of iniquity; yea, in fine, all those who belong to the kingdom of the devil are they who need fear, and tremble, and quake; they are those who must be brought low in the dust; they are those who must be consumed as stubble; and this is according to the words of the prophet.”

Princess Luna reads, “And the time cometh speedily that the righteous must be led up as calves of the stall, and the Holy One of Israel must reign in dominion, and might, and power, and great glory.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “And he gathereth his children from the four quarters of the earth; and he numbereth his sheep, and they know him; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd; and he shall feed his sheep, and in him they shall find pasture.”

Silver Spoon reds, “And because of the righteousness of his people, Satan has no power, wherefore, he cannot be loosed for the space of many years; for he hath no power over the hearts of the people, for they dwell in righteousness, and the Holy One of Israel reigneth.”

Cheerilee reads, “And now behold, I, Nephi, say unto you that all these things must come according to the flesh.”

Twist reads, “But, behold, all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people shall dwell safely in the Holy One of Israel if it so be that they will repent.”

Applebloom reads, “And now I, Nephi, make an end; but I durst not speak further as yet concerning these things.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Wherefore, my brethren, I would that ye should consider that the things which have been written upon the plates of brass are true; and they testify that a man must be obedient to the commandments of God.”

Scootaloo reads, “Wherefore, ye need not suppose that I and my father are the only ones that have testified, and also taught them. Wherefore, if ye shall be obedient to the commandments, and endure to the end, ye shall be saved at the last day. And thus it is. Amen.”

At this point, I stand up and say, “And, that concludes the First Book of Nephi. Next time, we'll begin reading the Second Book of Nephi. Until then, let's call an end to the reading for the night.”

There are expressions of agreement around the circle, and equines and dragons rise and start talking amongst themselves.

Zecora turns to my character and says, “Thirty-six readers I did count. There hasn't always been that amount.”

I answer, “That's true. When I started these readings, there were just four in the group: three ponies and one human. The group really has grown since then.”

Before the conversation between human and zebra can continue, we're interrupted by the voice of Applebloom saying, “Hey, Mormon, we've decided we wanna try scripture reading, and see if that's our special talent.”

Two sets of eyes focus downward on the little yellow earth filly, and I notice, seeing through my character's eyes, that Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are right behind her.

When Applebloom is finished with her announcement, the three call out in unison, “Cutie Mark Crusaders Scripture Readers, yay!”

I have my character kneel down in front of the three fillies, and I say, “I'm glad you enjoyed it. I don't know if that's going to be your special talent, or what makes you unique from other ponies; but, even if it isn't, it might help you find out what is. And, as a bit of advice, don't give up on an idea after failing at it once. One saying among us humans I'm familiar with is, 'It matters not if you try and fail and try and fail again. It matters much if you try and fail, and fail to try again.' Just because you haven't gotten something to work for you once, that doesn't mean you should give up on it. Learn from your mistakes. If you can get it to work, and it isn't leading to you getting your cutie marks, or isn't even making you happy, then it may be a good idea to try something else.

“Also, don't lose a friend just because he or she has a cutie mark and you don't. Who knows? That friend may just help you find your own. And, don't be surprised or sad if each of you gets a different cutie mark, and at different times.”

At this point, Scootaloo says, “What about you? Applebloom said something about humans not having cutie marks.”

I answer her, “That's true, but that doesn't mean I'm without my talents, or that I'm exactly the same as every other human. The fact of the matter is I've discovered that I have several talents. And, I'm very much unique from other humans.”

Now, Applebloom asks, “So, does that mean I should invite Twist to be one of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, even though she has a cutie mark and we don't?”

I answer, “That's up to you. But, even if you don't let her join your group, you can still keep her as a friend. Like I said, your friends who have their cutie marks might just help you find your own.”

At this point, Sweetie Belle bows in front of me and says, “Thank you, Mormon, for your advice.” And, with that, the three run, cheering, into the herd.

As my character stands up again, Zecora laughs and says, “Advice from a human. We shall know how much further that will go.”

I answer, smiling, “They're good foals. And, who knows when they'll get their cutie marks? It took my three stallion friends, evidently, into their adult years to get theirs. And, they each got their cutie marks sharing a scripture reading. It might not work the same way for Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle; but I hope they'll enjoy the effort in the mean time.”

Again our conversation is interrupted, this time by Princess Luna saying, “I need to return to Canterlot now and raise the moon.” And, by the time my character can focus on her, she's disappeared.

My character's attention returns to Zecora, who says, “So, I must return to my home, too. Until next time, when I shall see you.”

My character walks with her to the gate, as I say, “Agreed.” Then, as he opens the gate for her, and she trots through it, I say, “See you later, Zecora.”

The zebra turns to me, bows slightly, then waves a forelimb to salute my character farewell, then turns around again and disappears into the Everfree forest.

My character doesn't get a chance to close the gate, at least not just yet, as Twilight Sparkle has followed close behind her, at least going through. She turns to me and says, “I guess that means the rest of us ought to be heading back to Ponyville. As always, it's been a pleasure joining in the reading.”

As I accept her compliment with gratitude and say goodbye to her, I find that she's the first pony to leave, and she's carrying Spike on her back. Behind her are the rest of the element bearers, except for Pinkie Pie. Next are my three stallion friends, then Bon-Bon, Carrot Top, Berry Punch, the rest of the Apple family, Snips and Snails and their parents, the Cakes, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, Cheerilee, Twist, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo, and last of all Mayor Mare. They form a group that makes its way into the Everfree forest and disappears.

I'm not bothered by the fact that Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon took their copies of the Book of Mormon without asking. I just hope they'll continue reading, whether together or each by herself; whether they start from the beginning, from where this evening's reading ended, or wherever they want.

In the mean time, the empty snack tray is brought in by Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, and Weed Whacker, while Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and my character linger outside to gather more fruits and vegetables for the evening's dinner. Once we've gathered the items, we go back inside, and the six prepare and eat the gathered food. It's also worth noting that, since that first evening that I was asked to bless the food, it's become a tradition for the group, once they're ready to eat, to offer a blessing on the food before eating it. We each have been taking turns, and this time the turn has fallen on Weed Whacker to say the prayer.

After dinner, each heads to their room to prepare for bed.

For my letter to the princesses, I start out mentioning my discovery that Lyra has family living in Filly-delphia. I write my hope that they can get rid of their parasprite and timber wolf problems, and be able to rebuild their city.

I mention the Cute-seniera, including that it's the first I've ever attended, and how, from what I saw, it was a success, in spite of plans that didn't work out for Diamond Tiara.

While I don't provide the specific name for the condition, I do write to the princesses that Pinkie Pie has developed a condition that requires that I keep a closer eye on her.

I also mention that three fillies, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo, have formed a group they call the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

Finally, I mention that Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon came to the latest reading, and they seem to have behaved themselves, at least as long as Cheerilee was there to separate them from the newly-formed Cutie Mark Crusaders.

Having finished my letter to the princesses, my character delivers it to Weed Whacker so she can send it off. After that, he returns to his room and prepares for and goes to bed.

As I save and close the game, I can't help wondering to myself if a certain religious practice I'm familiar with wouldn't help Pinkie Pie. I know it helps humans, so, who knows? I'll see what happens in the future. So, until the game's tomorrow.

Chapter 12: Rarity a'Dressin' Her Friends

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Anymore, I'm not surprised when I start the game and there's knocking on my character's bedroom door. I even expect to hear a voice from the other side of it.

In this case, it's Pinkie Pie, who says, “Mormon, could I come in and talk with you for a moment before we go to breakfast?”

My character gets out of bed, then goes to and opens his door, allowing Pinkie Pie to enter. When she's inside and my character closes the door behind her, I ask her, “Is there something wrong?”

The pink earth pony marches over to my character's bed, jumps on it, turns to my character, reclines into a sphinx-style position, and, looking down apparently at the edge of the bed, sighs before saying, “I've actually known for a long time that something was wrong with me, and it was only yesterday that I found out there was a name and a treatment for it.” At this point, she looks up at my character as she says, “It's been a week now since that day I threw up in front of everypony, and that was the first time since I was a sick foal that something like that had happened. And then it was stomach flu. A week ago, I just suddenly didn't feel good. Then, there was yesterday.” Again she looks down as she continues, “I had no idea eating so much candy could do that to a pony.”

I answer, “Too much of anything can hurt anyone. And, often it doesn't take a lot of candy to be too much.”

Pinkie Pie states, “I learned that the hard way.” She looks up at my character again as she continues, “I didn't think the candy I'd kept under the bed in my room at Sugar Cube Corner was going to do that to me. And, I didn't have anywhere near that much yesterday at the party before I got sick again. I threw up one more time before the doctor gave me a blood test, and that time it really made my tummy hurt. The doctor must've seen that I wasn't feelin' good, because he gave me a bucket to throw up in. Then, when I was done, he looked inside, then called a nurse to study it, and I think that's why he gave me the blood test. Then, even though I could hear the doctor, suddenly it was like I couldn't hear him. I think he called my name, but I can't remember right now. I couldn't think straight.

“I think the doctor said I was dying of kitty-acid-something-or-other. He stuck me in one of my forelimbs with a needle, and I started feeling better. Then you came in; and I understood when the doctor said I had diabetes.” Still looking in my character's direction, she rests her head over one forelimb and concludes, “I'm really scared right now. I like candy, but I'm not sure I'm gonna be able to eat it again. I don't know if there's anything I can eat that won't make me sick again.”

I have my character sit on the bed next to Pinkie Pie and start stroking her mane as I say, “This is something I don't have experience with. The best I can offer right now is that we take it one day at a time, handle problems as they come. As for things you can eat that won't make you sick, I'm sure there are plenty of fruits and vegetables you can eat at least growing around here, as well as oats, that you can eat without getting sick. Beyond that, we'll just have to see what happens.” At this point, I have my character stand up and walk to the door as I say, “Now, let's go get some breakfast. I'm sure apples won't be a problem for you.” I don't have my character walk through the door, at least not yet.

As she sees my character waiting for her, Pinkie Pie rises again and sighs, then says, “Alright, Mormon. Let's go have some breakfast.” And, with that, she jumps off the bed and trots past my character into the hallway, then toward and into the kitchen.

My character follows after her, closing his bedroom door behind him.

For breakfast, it's evidently an assortment of fruits that I'm guessing were gathered from the orchard and vineyard by Lyra and Weed Whacker.

I notice that Pinkie Pie eats a little more slowly than usual. Evidently, having been diagnosed with diabetes, if not strictly her experience of yesterday afternoon, has had quite an impact on her.

After breakfast, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker and my character head out to travel through the Everfree forest on our way to Ponyville.

It seems to make Pinkie Pie especially happy that she doesn't get sick on her way through the forest.

When the group gets to the opening of the forest, maybe thirty or forty minutes after leaving the house, Rainbow Dash is there to meet them.

She looks at my character and says, “Mormon, could I borrow Pinkie Pie for a moment? The two of us have something we need to talk about.”

I know what Rainbow Dash wants to talk to Pinkie Pie about, and I also know, as well as Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker, that I've gotten three tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala, one for my character, one for Lyra, and one for Weed Whacker. But, that last thing is something that Rainbow Dash and the rest of the element bearers, other than Pinkie Pie, don't know. And, remembering what happened in the episode “The Best Night Ever,” I seem to remember that Spike, the only non-pony in the group, is the only one that doesn't wear clothes, and he spends most, if not all, his time in Canterlot at the doughnut shop. I don't expect Weed Whacker to get any clothing, and I'm sure the suit I've provided for my character will be fancy enough for the event. And so, that just leaves Lyra.

Pinkie Pie looks at me as though asking for permission to go.

I say to her, “Go on ahead. We'll go on to town square, and you can meet up with us there when Rainbow Dash is finished talking with you.”

Rainbow Dash, as soon as Pinkie Pie joins her, answers, “Oh, I'm sure it won't take that long. It's just some news I need to give Pinkie that's just between me and her. You can just head to Sugar Cube Corner and wait for her there.”

I state, “Yeah, we can just as easily wait for her in the town square. It isn't all that far away from Sugar Cube Corner, and, like I said, Pinkie Pie can meet up with us there when the two of you are finished talking.”

Rainbow Dash looks at the pale-green unicorn, then at the dinosaur on her back, then at the human again, and finally says, “Whatever. Like I said, it won't take very long for me to tell Pinkie Pie what I need to tell her. You do whatever you want.”

In silent agreement, I have my character lead my two other friends to the town square, where we take a seat near where my character sat the game's yesterday, while Lyra and Weed Whacker take seats around the same table.

Lyra leans toward my character and asks, under her breath, “Do you think they're going to talk about something having to do with the Gala in Canterlot?”

I answer, in a tone to match Lyra's, “It wouldn't surprise me.” I don't dare say more than that, at least not in such a public setting. And, right now, I'm surprised a waiter hasn't offered to take orders from the three sitting at the table.

Lyra continues, “It sounds like Rainbow Dash doesn't know yet that we also have tickets.”

I say, “If she does know, she's keeping the secret pretty well. Which makes sense, considering what I heard about what happened when it was revealed about Twilight Sparkle having two tickets.”

Just then, I hear a familiar voice ask, “Tickets to what?”

My character turns to the source of the voice to show me the waitress from the game's yesterday, the one that served my character the orange juice. I just grunt in curiosity.

The waitress answers, “I heard you say something about having tickets.”

I decide to have a little fun as I say, “Yeah, and we need to get them taken care of as soon as possible.” Not exactly a lie, but a statement with misleading connotations.

And, it seems to work, as the waitress, after a momentary pause, says, “Oh, I didn't realize.”

Before she can say anymore, I hear Pinkie Pie's voice behind my character say, “I'm here!”

My character turns to the pink pony, and I say, “Good. So, shall we go to Sugar Cube Corner, then?”

Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “Let's get going.”

I have my character stand up and turn to the waitress as I say, “I'm sorry I don't have time to order anything this time. Maybe next time.”

Something about the look on the waitress pony's face tells me that tickets are given out for offenses greater than I realize. She runs off, leaving the party of four to head to the bakery, not far from the spot where I chose to wait for Pinkie Pie.

On the way there, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “We need to talk. Hopefully we can use my room at Sugar Cube Corner.”

I have my character nod in agreement, and no more is said until the group reaches the front door of the bakery and enters.

The blue earth mare, Mrs. Cake, is at the cash register, while the orange earth stallion, Mr. Cake, is checking the pastries in the displays.

Pinkie Pie leads the way through the main room, then up the stairs, as she says, “I hope you don't mind us using my old room. We just have something we need to discuss.”

Pinkie Pie has already made it halfway up the stairs before we hear Mr. Cake call out, “Pinkie Pie, wait! You can't go in there just yet!”

By the time Mr. Cake is finished talking, Pinkie Pie is already at the door to her room. Reaching for the doorknob, she asks, “Why? What's wrong?” My character is right next to her as she opens the door, so I can see, through his eyes, the pink earth mare almost instantly cover her nose and mouth with the hoof she used to open the door as she groans, “Eww, gross! Did somepony make a poop in my room?”

I have my character look into the room, and sure enough, a little more than the distance of the length of a foal pony from the bed is a thick but small puddle of greenish-brown feces, somewhat dried up. I have him turn back to Pinkie Pie, and I say, “It looks like.”

I have to wonder if the hoof-falls sound effect is either not available or not being accessed as I hear Mr. Cake's voice, much closer this time, say, “That's what I was trying to warn you about.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “What happened in there?”

I ask in response, “Isn't this the room Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon used to put on their dresses for the Cute-seniera yesterday?”

Mr. Cake answers, “That's right.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “So, what, you're saying either Diamond Tiara or Silver Spoon made a poop in my room?”

I repeat, “That's what it looks like.”

I hear Lyra ask, “Well, great, now what do we do?”

I think out loud, “I suppose we could air out the room, either while or before Pinkie Pie tells us what she and Rainbow Dash talked about.” And, in the mean time, I prevent a curious Weed Whacker from getting too far into the room.

The female dinosaur, being gripped by human hands and suspended above the ground, groans in disappointment and frustration.

Mr. Cake says, “Well, if you still want to have your meeting here, then I won't stop you. But, while we're converting the room next to this one into a nursery, I could still offer you that room for you to hold your meeting, if you'd prefer a clean room.”

Pinkie Pie says, “I think we'll stick with my old room. We'll go with Mormon's idea and open a window so the room can air out, but it should still give us enough privacy so I can tell my friends here what I need to tell them without anypony else hearing.”

Mr. Cake sighs and says, “It's your choice.”

Taking that as affirmation, I have my character put Weed Whacker down next to Lyra, then enter the room and go to the window in the back and open it.

Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker follow my character, and Lyra groans with disgust at the smell of the feces in the room.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie lingers long enough to close the door behind Weed Whacker, who once again proceeds toward the pile of feces.

This time, it's Lyra who herds her away, and once again the herbivorous dinosaur groans in disappointment at not being able to investigate the mess.

Once my character's opened the window, the two ponies in the room sigh with relief; and Pinkie Pie says, “Alright, I guess I better give you the news before any of us starts feeling sick.”

Lyra turns to the pink earth pony and starts asking, “Are you sure—“ before the pink earth pony puts a hoof in her mouth, causing Lyra to mumble the rest of her question.

I'm guessing she was going to ask Pinkie Pie if she was going to be alright. From her perspective, a reasonable question, considering what she understands about the incident when she, Pinkie Pie, and my character were preparing, along with the rest of the Mane Six, to face the dragon that had threatened to cover Ponyville with a cloud of black smoke from his snoring.

Now, back to the present story, Pinkie Pie says, “Rainbow Dash said Rarity's making dresses for me and her and the rest of the element bearers.”

I think aloud, “I'm guessing they're for that Gala in Canterlot.”

Pinkie Pie says, “That's what Dashie said.”

Lyra remarks, “You know, since Mormon, Weed Whacker and I are also going, Weed Whacker and I need dresses. But, I'm guessing Mormon's gonna need a suit.”

At this point, I answer, “I'm thinking I'll be fine with a suit I've brought with me.”

Weed Whacker, seeming worried about one thing, and perhaps saddened by another, says, “I don't think I'd be comfortable wearing clothes.”

Lyra says, “So, I guess that just leaves me.”

Before the rest of us can say anything more, Pinkie Pie says, “The reason I brought this up was because I want Mormon with me when we see the dresses Rarity made for us.”

Now, Lyra asks, “Well, what about me and Weed Whacker?”

I have my character look at the unicorn and the dinosaur as I answer, “Well, I guess the possibility of you two going with us depends on if Pinkie Pie is ready to let her friends know about us also having tickets to the Gala, although maybe that doesn't have to be part of the decision.”

Pinkie Pie says, “I think it's best if just Mormon comes with.” Looking at Lyra, she continues, “You and Weed Whacker can wait just outside while we have our first look at the dresses.” Turning back to my character, she continues, "I'm sure Rarity won't mind me bringing my bestest human friend along. It's just that, well, more than one bestest friend other than us element bearers might be pushin' it. After all, as much as I'd like Rarity and the others to know that all of you have tickets to the Gala, I just don't think now's the time to tell them. Besides, I want a human's opinions on the dresses first.” Turning back to Lyra and Weed Whacker, she concludes, “I'll be happy to get your opinions later.”

I happen to look at the unicorn and the dinosaur, and I can see more easily Lyra emoting disappointment at the news.

Still, she says, “Well, alright, Pinkie. I suppose Weed Whacker and I can wait.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie proceeds to the door and says, “So, it's settled then. In the mean time, we have work to do in the bakery. And, I could use everypony's, everyone's, help getting things ready and running smoothly.”

I need to keep an eye on Pinkie Pie, but I decide I don't need to let Lyra and Weed Whacker know that, or why I need to do that. I ask, “Is there anything in particular you need me to do, Pinkie?”

Pinkie Pie has long since pulled her hoof out of Lyra's mouth, but she uses that hoof to tap her chin as she grunts in uncertainty, then puts the hoof down again as she says, smiling, “I'll let Mr. Cake decide on how you can help, alright, Mormon?”

I answer, “Sure. That'll be fine.”

With all decisions evidently made, Pinkie Pie directs my character to close the window to her room, then opens the door to let the rest of us out, after which she follows, closing the door behind her.

The group makes its way to the kitchen, where each requests and accepts assignments from Mr. Cake, and proceeds to fulfill their assignment.

I'll say this for the subsequent hour: it passes quickly with all members of the group active in helping the Cakes. Weed Whacker gets the ingredients, Pinkie Pie does the cooking, Lyra does the taste testing, and my character takes the finished products out to Mrs. Cake, who puts them on their designated shelves. In the mean time, Mr. Cake works at the cash register.

There is a minor incident when Silver Spoon shows up requesting a pastry.

I recognize the gray earth filly's voice, but I'm not sure I want to mention it to Pinkie Pie.

On the other hand, Mr. Cake, who recognizes her immediately, asks, “So, Silver Spoon, where's Diamond Tiara?”

Almost instantly Pinkie Pie is right there next to Mr. Cake glaring at the gray filly and saying, “We really need to have a word with the two of you. Are you the one that made a poop in my old room?”

Silver Spoon stammers, “I … well, I, uh, … well, you see … “ before lowering her head and finally saying, “Yeah, I did it.”

Pinkie Pie circles around Mr. Cake and the counter holding the cash register, and I watch, through my character's eyes, as her glare morphs into an expression something like sadness or concern, as she asks, “Why would you do such a thing?”

Silver Spoon starts whimpering as she says, “I knew I shouldn't have let Diamond Tiara talk me into going to her Cute-seniera when I wasn't feeling good.”

Something about Silver Spoon's declaration strikes me as not truthful. I find myself thinking aloud, “That's strange. The two of you seemed perfectly fine yesterday. If you had diarrhea, you should've been making a mess all over the place, not just in Pinkie Pie's old bedroom.”

At my statement, Pinkie Pie once again glares at Silver Spoon and asks, no, growls, “Where's Diamond Tiara?”

Just at that moment, the little pink earth filly marches into the bakery, slamming the door open in front of her, and screams, “Silver Spoon, what's taking you so long with my eclair?” Then, as she notices that the attention of every creature in the room, except for that of Silver Spoon, is focused on her, she asks in the most innocent tone she can muster, “What?”

Before the little filly can move, Pinkie Pie runs the few hoof-steps toward her and grabs her ear in her mouth, then drags her to and up the stairs as she says, “You're coming with me. I have something to show you.” She talks like Daffy Duck when her tongue is paralyzed, but, through teeth gripping a filly's ear, she has no trouble speaking clearly. How does that work?

I have my character grab Silver Spoon and follow Pinkie Pie up the stairs before the gray filly can escape.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie manages to drag Diamond Tiara up the stairs and into her old room with little or no effort, despite the pink filly trying desperately to get away.

When the four are in the room, my character still holding Silver Spoon, Pinkie Pie says, “Mormon, close the door.”

I have my character follow the pink party pony's instructions, then set Silver Spoon back on the ground.

Having pretty much guaranteed privacy for the group, Pinkie Pie lets go of Diamond Tiara's ear, points the little filly's head at the pile of feces on the ground using her hooves, and says, “I think I deserve an explanation.”

Diamond Tiara, struggling to get out of the party pony's grip, says, “Pinkie Pie, I'm surprised at you. Pooping in your own room, then blaming me for it? Shame on you!”

I decide to speak up, as I say, “That's not the kind of mess Pinkie Pie would make. Considering all she eats, if she were to make that kind of a mess, it'd be a lot bigger. And besides, that mess couldn't have been made any time during or after your Cute-seniera, Little Richy.”

Indignant, the little pink filly manages to free herself from Pinkie Pie's grip, although I wouldn't be surprised to find out that Pinkie Pie just let her go. Then, she turns to my character and says, “Don't call me Little Richy! My name is Diamond Tiara.” And, she enunciates her name.

I answer, “Whatever. The fact of the matter is you should take responsibility for your own actions. Silver Spoon tried to cover for you, but her story didn't make any sense, based on what I remembered went on yesterday.”

At this point, Diamond Tiara groans, then asks, “So, what if I did?”

I answer, “The rule of 3-D modeling: Whoever makes the mesh ought to be the one that cleans it up.”

Before further action can be taken, there's a knock on the door; and Mr. Cake calls out, "Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash is here to see you! She says she has something to talk to you about!”

Diamond Tiara tries to make a run for the door. That is, until she sees my character's hand covering the knob.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie calls out, “I'll come down in a moment! In the mean time, could you get a dust pan, a broom, a bucket of water and cleaner, and a mop and bring them up here? Diamond Tiara has a mess to clean up!”

After a few seconds, Mr. Cake's voice answers, “It'll take a few minutes, but I'll be back as soon as I can!”

I have my character turn his attention to Silver Spoon before I say, “And, as for you, you can help Diamond Tiara clean up her mess.”

The gray filly looks up at my character and asks, “Why do I get punished for what Diamond Tiara did?”

Presently, Diamond Tiara turns to her friend and growls, “Hey!”

I answer, “You tried to cover for her.”

The only thing Silver Spoon can do for a response is sputter and stammer, until she finally groans in defeat and frustration.

Now, the pink filly, pointing to the pile of dried feces on the floor, says, “Well, I hope you're happy, Silver Spoon. Now they know I did that.”

I answer, “Actually, Little Richy, it's because of you that we know.”

Diamond Tiara turns her glare from her friend to my character and asks, “How can you say that?”

I answer, “First of all, when your friend Silver Spoon asked why she should be punished for what you did, you responded. Then, just now, you out-and-out admitted you did it.”

At this point, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon have the same pose. Both remind me of cats that've just seen an explosion at close range, or at least what I expect they'd look like.

And, just now, it seems that Mr. Cake has come with the cleaning supplies Pinkie Pie requested.

As soon as I hear a knock at the door and Mr. Cake's voice saying he's there with the supplies, I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie, who says I should open the door and let Mr. Cake in. A look from my character at the two fillies shows me that they're either unable or unwilling to move from their positions.

As my character opens the door and lets Mr. Cake enter, Pinkie Pie says, “Mormon and I will go talk to Rainbow Dash now. In the mean time, would you stay here and make sure Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon clean up this mess?” And, she points to the pile of dried feces.

As the pink party pony trots out of the room, and my character follows her, Mr. Cake says, “Uh, sure thing, Pinkie.”

And, Pinkie Pie only allows my character to close the door after she sings out, “Thank you.” After that, she bounces to and down the stairs (amazing that she can do that without rolling down them and hurting herself), and to her rainbow-haired friend.

My character, of course, after closing the door to her room, follows closely behind the pink earth mare. He just walks, though.

As soon as she's close enough, Pinkie Pie asks, “So, what's up, Dashie?”

Rainbow Dash, after looking up at my character, then back to her friend, answers, “I'd really rather not say in front of your human friend."

Pinkie Pie covers her mouth and giggles, then leans in towards her friend and whispers, “It's alright. He already knows about our tickets. And, he has one of his own.”

Rainbow Dash looks up at my character again, then back at Pinkie Pie, and whispers back, “Alright. But still, I'd rather just you come with me to Carousel Boutique. If Mormon wants to come with, he can. But, I don't want anypony else to know. So, I'll fill you in when we get there.”

Suddenly, Pinkie pie calls out, “Okie dokie lokie!” and proceeds to bounce into the kitchen.

Rainbow Dash tries to shush her, then wanders into the kitchen after her, facially looking, to me anyway, like a cat that's just been threatened.

My character follows close behind Rainbow Dash.

Once the three are in the kitchen, Pinkie Pie turns to Lyra and Weed Whacker and says, “Dashie, Mormon, and I are going to Carousel Boutique to look at the dresses—“

Before the pink party pony can say anything more, Rainbow Dash shoves a front hoof into her mouth, so all she can do is mumble the rest of her statement. She then chuckles nervously and says, “We're just going to Carousel Boutique for a few minutes. If you two'll cover for Mormon and Pinkie, they'll be back as soon as they can.” She then pulls her front hoof from Pinkie's mouth and proceeds to push her from behind out the door.

As my character follows, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “I'm sorry, Dashie. But, it's not as if they don't have tickets either.”

Rainbow Dash manages to scream under her breath, “What?” before somewhat more calmly asking, “How many more ponies in town have tickets?”

I state, “Rainbow Dash, you and Pinkie Pie can argue about that later. Right now, I'm thinking we need to be getting to the boutique to have a look at the dresses Rarity made for you and your other friends.”

Rainbow Dash looks up at my character and listens to what I have to say, then groans and says, “You're right, Mormon.” She then looks ahead and says, “Let's just get going.”

As the rainbow-haired pegasa takes the lead, my character catches up to Pinkie Pie; and I ask her, “Are you alright?”

The pink earth mare answers, “I'm fine. Let's just go.”

Nothing more is said among the three as they make their way to and into the boutique.

Rarity, Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, and Applejack are waiting for Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie to arrive, and are evidently surprised to see a human following close behind them.

Pinkie Pie, seeing the surprise on the faces of her four other friends, says, “Oh, Mormon has a ticket too, and so do Lyra and Weed Whacker.”

After a momentary pause, Rarity says, “Whatever. You've just got to see the dresses I've made for you. I know you'll just love them. Just follow me up the stairs.”

As the Mane Six and my character form a line behind Rarity, I'm careful not to say that I already know how Rarity's friends are going to react to the dresses she made. Having based this day, and the following day, on the episode “Suited for Success,” I'm familiar, both with the results of this event, and with the ultimate result of the entire experience. But, I have no reason to reveal this knowledge to Rarity or any of the other element bearers.

At the top of the stairs, Rarity, in front of the door to her work room, says, “Now, everypony close your eyes.” As she looks up at my character, she adds, “You too, Mormon.”

As my character closes his eyes, I say, “Just as long as I don't bump my head on the doorway, or step on any of you.”

I hear Rarity laugh as she says, “Now, just follow my voice, and I'll lead you into my work room.” And, she continues to talk, instructing each of her friends into the room. She even instructs my character on entering her workroom without hitting his head on the doorway. Then, when all are in the room, she tells us to keep our eyes closed until I can hear her voice to the left of my character, at which point she says, “Now, open your eyes.”

As Rarity describes each of the dresses and the work she put into them for each of her friends, I have my character look at each of the other five to get a look at their expressions.

I seem to remember Applejack saying something about how Rarity was supposed to make a “stunning, one-of-a-kind dress” in a short amount of time. And, from what I can see, the expressions on their faces do demonstrate “stunned.” But, then they make it clear that they aren't the kind of “stunned” that Rarity's looking for.

It takes a few seconds after Rarity's finished with her presentation, but then the other five element bearers him-haw around until Applejack calls the dresses “something,” on which the rest agree.

Pinkie Pie even says, “I love something. Something is my favorite.”

At this point, I say, “Well, Rarity, it's clear to me that you put a lot of thought into each of these dresses. The one with the rainbow colors was clearly meant for Rainbow Dash. And, the pink one with the candy on it was evidently designed with Pinkie Pie in mind. There's obviously symbolism in putting stars on the base of the dress you made for Twilight Sparkle. And, the dress you made for Applejack has an appropriately western theme to it. I'm guessing the green coloring of Fluttershy's dress is to reflect how she likes to make her creatures feel at home. All in all, I'd say you did a really good job with the dresses.”

Fluttershy waits until I'm finished speaking before saying, “It's … nice.” And, there's something in the tone of her voice that suggests to me that she's disappointed in her dress.

Rarity smiles up at my character as she says, “Thank you, Mormon, for your compliments.” Then, as she focuses on the her fellow element bearers, there's genuine concern in her voice as she asks, “But, what about the rest of you? Don't you like the dresses?” I wouldn't be surprised if she also heard the disappointment in Fluttershy's voice.

Twilight apologetically answers, “They're … very nice.”

Applejack adds, “And, we're plum grateful 'cuz you worked so hard on 'em.”

Then, Rainbow Dash says, “Mine's just not as cool as I imagined.”

Now, the rest of the element bearers look at the blue pegasa in clear surprise.

After a few seconds, Rainbow Dash waves a hoof and says, not unlike a child trying to pass the blame on to someone else, “Well, she asked.”

Again apologetically, Twilight Sparkle restates, “I guess what we're saying is they're just not what we had in mind.” And, I'm not sure if she ends her statement with a tremble or a forced giggle.

Whatever it is, the other four agree with Twilight's statement.

As my character focuses on Rarity, I can see that she's upset by not having pleased her friends. But, she forces a smile and says, “Uh, that's okay. No problem. There's plenty more where that came from. They were only a first pass. You're my friends. I want you to be one hundred and ten percent satisfied. Not to worry. I'll re-do them.”

It seems to me, at least from Fluttershy's tone, that she, at least, has heard the attitude in her friend's voice that she's trying to cover her disappointment in a thin shield of forced confidence as she says, “Oh, Rarity, you don't have to do that. They're fine.”

Rarity answers, “I want them to be better than just fine. I want you to think they're absolutely perfect.” And, in the mean time, she starts disassembling the dresses with her magic, starting with Applejack's dress.

I have to wonder if that's what's bothering Applejack as she says, “Are you sure? Ah mean, we wouldn't wanna impose.”

Rarity forces a laugh as she says, “Oh, it's no imposition. Really, I insist.”

As the other four and my character march out of the room, Twilight lingers behind to say, “Well, in that case, thank you again, Rarity.” And, I'm having to wonder if I've missed something. It's either that, or Twilight Sparkle's expression of gratitude to her friend wasn't all that sincere.

But, perhaps even less sincere is Rarity's disturbingly forced giggle as the purple unicorn follows the rest of her friends out the door.

As I see the door close under the influence of Twilight's magic, and sense Pinkie Pie nudging my character out the door, I have my character dodge her long enough for me to say, “If you want my advice, Rarity, start with the dresses you've already made for your friends. They'll tell you what modifications need to be made as you call them in.”

Rarity nods once before saying, “Uh, thanks again for the advice, Mormon.”

Having said to the white unicorn what I wanted to say, I have my character follow the other five element bearers out the door, closing it behind him and Pinkie Pie.

From there on, it's a short amount of time before the group of six, including my character, has made it out the front door of the boutique, at which point Fluttershy says, “Oh, I hope we didn't hurt her too much. I didn't want her to think we were disappointed in her dresses.”

I open my mouth to say something, but Twilight beats me to it, echoing my thoughts as she says, “Well, nopony wanted to hurt her feelings.”

Pinkie Pie looks up at my character and asks, “Do you think she bought what I said?” And, her smile to my character appears unsteady.

I answer, “'Something is my favorite?' Yeah, I'm sure she believed every word of that.”

Clearly the pink party pony catches the sarcasm in my voice, as she looks down and starts sniffling.

And, she's not the only one. The other four are downcast as well.

Fluttershy, after a few seconds, says, “The only one of us that really had nice things to say about the dresses Rarity made was Mormon.”

I answer, “Well, it was clear to me that she put everything she knew about her friends into each of those dresses.” I then have my character turn to the rainbow-haired pegasa as I say, “Oh, and by the way, Rainbow Dash, it's nice to see your wing's healed now.”

Rainbow Dash, clearly weighed down by my comment about the dresses, says, “Uh, thanks. Like I said, I just needed to lose all the broken feathers.” She perks up a little as she adds, “They grew back overnight. Fluttershy let me spend the night at her cottage while the missing feathers grew back.”

Pinkie Pie, evidently lost in my remarks, says, “I guess the dresses weren't all that bad.”

I have my character kneel in front of the pink earth pony as I say, “Personally, I thought the candy corns were a nice touch.” Then, I hear her sniffle again and start whimpering, suggesting to me that what I said was perhaps the wrong thing.

But, before I can say anything further, Sweetie Belle comes out from the door and says, “Uh, Miss Fluttershy, Rarity wants to see you first.”

As the white unicorn foal goes back into the boutique, Fluttershy says, “Well, I guess that means I should go in first. I hope I don't say anything to upset Rarity.”

As the remaining five watch Fluttershy go back inside the boutique, Twilight Sparkle says, “Well, I need to be getting back to the library.”

Applejack says, “Ah ought'a get back to the ranch. Big Mac'll need my help with the apples.” And, with that, she heads back to her house.

Now that the group's down to a human, a pegasa, and an earth pony, Rainbow Dash looks up at my character and says, “Well, I can't leave Pinkie Pie the way she is. I'll go with you back to Sugar Cube Corner. I'll take over for her until she's feeling well enough to get back to work.”

My character turns to Pinkie Pie and shows me, through his eyes, that Pinkie Pie is still too upset to move on her own. So, I have him pick her up and hold her in his arms, and he and Rainbow Dash make their way back to the bakery.

Once the three get there, Lyra's at the back door to meet us. Seeing the pink party pony in my character's arms, she asks, “Is Pinkie Pie alright?”

I answer, “She'll be fine.”

Rainbow Dash adds, “In the mean time, I'm gonna help out until she's feelin' better. So, what do you need me to do?”

As the blue pegasa enters the back door of the bakery and closes it behind her, I hear Mr. Cake say something about oat bread and some kind of cake.

Now that it's just my character and Pinkie Pie in the alleyway, I say to her, “I'm sorry about upsetting you.”

The pink earth pony says, “No, you don't need to apologize. I'm the one who should be sorry, because I disappointed you.”

I answer, “No, Pinkie Pie, you didn't disappoint me. Like your friends, you didn't want to hurt Rarity's feelings; and I can understand that. In your place, I would've done something similar, said something similar. But, Rarity wants you to be happy with the dress she makes for you. So, when you're called back in to talk to her, you can let her know exactly what you want your dress to be.”

By this point, Pinkie Pie has stopped sniffling. When she looks at my character's face, I can see, through his eyes, that she's smiling. Sincerely, she says, “Thank you, Mormon. I'm ready to go back to work now.”

My character puts her down on the ground, then opens the door to allow her to enter, follows her inside, and closes the door behind her.

As I watch the pink earth pony take over baking the bread, I can't help thinking about Fluttershy giving Rarity a detailed description of the problems she has with her dress, then telling her that whatever she wants is alright.

My character helps put a fresh loaf of oat bread in a display when Pinkie calls out, “Mormon, we need to get back to Rarity's boutique now!”

After being dismissed by the Cakes, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and my character make their way back to Carousel Boutique so Pinkie Pie, then Rainbow Dash, can give Rarity a better idea about what they want of their dresses. The three arrive in time to see Fluttershy fly off toward her own home. And, as they enter Rarity's work room, I hear the white unicorn mumble something about French old couture.

Seeing the pink earth pony first, Rarity says, “Well, come on in, Pinkie Pie.” And, it's only after Pinkie Pie enters that Rarity sees the blue pegasa hovering close behind her. At that point, she says, “Rainbow Dash, I was hoping to take care of your dress after Twilight's; but, now that you're here, I can take care of yours now.”

It seems that Pinkie Pie has taken an interest in a bolt of green fabric.

At her request, Rarity unfolds some of the fabric so her pink friend can have a closer look at it.

As soon as the fabric touches the floor, Pinkie Pie disappears under it. Then she sticks her head out from under the cloth, oohs in excitement, and says, “I want my dress in this color.”

Rarity laughs nervously and says, “Oh, but Pinkie Pie, that color's going to disappear in the light. Here, let me show you.” And, with that, the curtains behind Pinkie Pie open up, possessed by Rarity's magic.

As I watch the curtain open and the light shine on the fabric, I understand what Rarity's talking about. Indeed, the green color disappears; and the fabric turns, or at least seems to turn, white. When Rarity, using her magic, closes the curtain again, the green color reveals itself again.

I have to wonder if that just gets Pinkie Pie all the more interested in the cloth, as she says, “I want my dress this color!” and stomps a front hoof for emphasis.

But, it's only when Rarity's cutting the fabric that Pinkie Pie gets a closer look at the dress already made for her, at which point she says, “No, wait a minute. This is just fine.”

I hear a thud from Rarity's position, and turn to see that she's dropped the cloth and scissors. For a moment, I see her trembling; and I have to wonder if she's going to lose her temper. But, then she reigns it in as she turns to her pink friend and, smiling, says, “Very well, then.”

Then, Pinkie Pie says, “It just needs balloons.”

Rarity says, “Alright, then. Balloons it shall have.”

And, as Rarity starts applying helium-filled balloons to the dress, Pinkie Pie says, “Um, I think it needs more balloons.” Then, as Rarity continues to use her magic to follow her pink friend's orders, Pinkie Pie continues, “No, less balloons. It needs more candy. No, it's already got plenty of candy. It needs streamers.”

I don't doubt Pinkie Pie's having fun with this. On the other hand, I have to wonder if Rarity's going to need therapy sessions with a psychiatrist, the way she's looking right now.

Then, Pinkie Pie pulls her party cannon out from nowhere and fires it at her dress.

Instantly, the dress is covered in blue and yellow confetti and streamers, making it look, to me anyway, like a raw, poorly-plucked, blue-and-yellow turkey without a head and neck. I decide to keep this opinion to myself.

Pinkie Pie then examines her work, then screams, “It's perfect!”

At this point, Rarity emits a sound that I think is supposed to be a sigh of relief, although it sounds more like a groan. She then says, “Alright, Pinkie Pie, you're dismissed.” After that, she turns to her blue pegasa friend and says, “Now, Rainbow Dash, it's your turn.”

It's at this point that I realize all this time that Rainbow Dash's been leaning against the desk with the sewing machine. She doesn't even move when Rarity calls to her, just leans there looking bored.

I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie, then I say, “I think I'll stay here for a few more minutes. I'm thinking I'm gonna be more helpful here.”

At my announcement, Pinkie Pie bounces to the window, settles down on the green fabric she'd rejected for her new dress, facing away from the window, and says, “Well, Mormon, if you're staying, I'm staying.”

I can clearly hear the frustration in Rarity's voice as she groans, “Whatever.”

Then, Rarity and Rainbow Dash spend a few seconds staring at each other, after which Rarity asks, “Well, Rainbow, aren't you going to tell me to make a revision?”

The blue pegasa answers, “No, just make it cooler.”

Rarity asks, “Do you not like the color?”

Rainbow Dash answers, “The color's fine. Just make it look cooler.”

Rarity asks, “You don't like the shape?”

Rainbow Dash answers, “The shape's fine. You know, just make the whole thing cooler.” And, Rarity's frustration really starts to blossom when her blue pegasa friend says, “It needs to be about twenty percent cooler.”

At this point, I have my character take a step between the unicorn and the pegasa. I then have him turn to Rarity, and I say, “Maybe I can be helpful here.” Then, I have my character turn to Rainbow Dash as I ask, “Does your dress need air conditioning or something?”

In an angry, kind of sing-songy tone, Rainbow Dash says, pushing away from the desk, “No one's listening to me.” She then flies toward my character and, stopping and hovering far enough away from his face that all I'm seeing of her through my character's eyes is her face, says, slowly, “It needs to be about twenty percent cooler.”

I wait for the blue pegasa to settle down on the ground again, then a thought occurs to me. I have my character focus on her again as I suggest, “Maybe you should try putting your dress on.”

Rainbow Dash groans in frustration, then says, “Alright, if it'll get this done quicker.”

As the blue pegasa positions herself so she's between the door and the window, pointing herself so she's facing the door with her back toward Pinkie Pie, I notice, from the left edge of my character's periphery, the pink pony's tilting her head in curiosity.

In the mean time, Rarity uses her magic to assemble Rainbow Dash's dress around her.

The absence of complaints from the blue pegasa suggests to me that the dress is comfortable for her to wear.

When the dress is fully assembled on her, Rainbow Dash looks behind her, toward the ground, then circles around somewhat, appearing to chase her tail, before saying, “Now, here's the problem. You see how the dress is dragging on the ground? What if I have to fly off all of a sudden? And, what if my dress snags on something, or somepony's standing on it dragging like that? If it doesn't fall apart, I'm not gonna get very far, and I could crash and get hurt. And, that's just not cool.”

I now see, from the edge of my character's periphery, Pinkie Pie straighten her head, then rise to a canine-style sitting position, as I say, “I see. So, in other words, you need the dress more engineered for flight safety.”

For once, I think I see Rainbow Dash smile as she says, “Well, safety for when I take off and land.” She then turns to Rarity and says, pointing at my character with a front limb, “My dress needs to be … like Mormon said … for my safety. You know, about twenty percent cooler.”

My character then focuses on Rarity as she says, “That shouldn't be a problem. Thank you, Mormon, you were indeed a big help.” And, she also smiles sincerely.

I have my character nod to her as I say, “It was my pleasure to be of service.” Then, I have him head toward the door as I add, “Now, if I'm no longer needed here, I'm sure Pinkie Pie and I need to get back to Sugar Cube Corner.”

As my character reaches for the doorknob, and I hear Pinkie Pie bounce up to his side, I also hear Rarity say, “Uh, one moment, Mormon.” As my character turns to her, I notice she's focused on her pony friends as she says, “I forgot to mention this before, but I've decided to hold a fashion show with all my friends when all their dresses are finished. Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Twilight know about it, but I forgot to mention it to you. I was able to get Fluttershy to agree to be part of it. Pinkie Pie, would you also like to take part?”

As she bounces, Pinkie Pie and my character could, if in no other way, literally see eye-to-eye with the altitudes she reaches as she squeals in excitement, “Oh, I'd love to! It sounds like so … much … fun!”

Taking her pink friend's response as affirmation, Rarity broadens her smile. She then turns to me and says, “I've noticed, Mormon, that you've had two pony musicians at your house for more than a week now.”

I say, “I'm guessing you're referring to Vinyl Scratch and Octavia?”

Rarity asks, “Vinyl Scratch? Don't you mean DJ Pon3?”

I answer, “I'm guessing that's her stage name. Around my house, she's been happy to be known as Vinyl Scratch.”

Rarity pauses for a moment, says under her breath, “Yes, of course,” then, so she wants me to hear, says, “I was wondering if one or both of them would be willing to come to Ponyville to perform the music for the fashion show.”

Pinkie Pie and my character exchange looks, then my character turns to Rarity again; and I answer, “The two musicians have been having problems that they've needed my help in solving, and that's required them to stay at my house.” I notice the smile on Rarity's face melts into a frown, and she looks down, before I say, “If you want, you and your friends could come to my house to hold the fashion show. If it's really important that Octavia or DJ Pon3 or both provide the music for the show, and as long as one or both agree, I wouldn't have a problem hosting the event. You'd have to ask them about it. So, would that be alright with you?”

Rarity hums with interest for a moment, then looks up at my character and says, “Well, if that's the only way I'm going to get DJ Pon3 to provide the music for the fashion show, then that is what I shall do.” Then, her smile returns as she concludes, “Sure. We'll hold the fashion show at your house.”

I add, “I'm thinking the best time for the show will be after the reading. You can make the announcement beforehand, and we'll follow the plan after that.” Then, after Rarity nods and grunts in affirmation, I have my character turn the doorknob as I conclude, “Well, if that's everything, Pinkie Pie and I need to be going back to Sugar Cube Corner.”

As Pinkie Pie and my character proceed out the door, I hear Rarity say, “Oh, go on ahead, darling. And, thank you for offering to host the fashion show at your house.”

Before my character closes the door behind him and Pinkie Pie, I answer, “No problem.”

Then, as human and earth pony head down the stairs and to and out the front door, I can't help but laugh as Pinkie Pie says, as fast as a creature can talk, bouncing along next to my character, “This is so sweet! Are you excited? 'Cause I'm excited. I've never been so excited! Oh, except for when Twily first came to town, and I went—“ At this point, she inhales deeply and noisily, and kind of resembles a helium balloon animal as she rises above the ground for a second or two. But, at least she breathes before immediately continuing, “Ah, but there's nothing that could top that. Just wait until Lyra hears about this!”

As soon as I hear Lyra's name, I say, “I think we should wait to tell Lyra about it, at least until after the bakery closes down for the day.”

I hear the pink party pony immediately say, “Oh,” then, after a couple footsteps, add, “Okie dokie.” And, somehow, when she says that, she reminds me of Mario from the video games.

Nothing more is said between the two of us as human and party pony walk back to the bakery. And, once the two get there, they resume their duties.

Maybe a minute or two after they've come back, I hear Lyra ask, “So, Pinkie Pie, is everything alright with Rarity?”

I hear Pinkie Pie answer, “Everything's great. She just needed my advice on the dress she's making for me.” Then, after a few seconds, she adds, “You know, I think Mormon was more helpful when it came to another one of the dresses than I was.”

After a moment, I hear Lyra say, “You know, somehow, I have trouble seeing Mormon in a dress.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie giggle, then say, “He didn't wear it, silly. He just helped Rarity find out what was wrong with it.” And, again she giggles.

For some reason, I begin to wonder at this point if I was hasty in telling Pinkie Pie to wait until after the bakery's business hours to tell Lyra about the fashion show and the dresses Rarity was making for her and the others.

For the rest of the time there, Pinkie Pie and Lyra continue to talk about the wonders of Rarity's dresses while helping with the duties around Sugar Cube Corner, until it's time to close down for the night.

As the group consisting of four ponies, one dinosaur, and one human leave the bakery, and Mr. Cake proceeds to close the door behind them, once again Sweetie Belle is out there to meet them.

The white unicorn foal says, “Mormon, Pinkie Pie, Rarity wants you to come to Carousel Boutique one more time. Something about the dresses she made for her friends.”

I have my character turn to Mr. and Mrs. Cake, who in turn nod in agreement to let him and Pinkie Pie go. I then have him turn to Lyra and Weed Whacker before I say, “If you two will stay with the Cakes and go with them to my home, Pinkie Pie and I will go ahead to the boutique so Pinkie Pie can make a final appraisal of the dresses. It shouldn't take that long.”

The two hesitate for a second, then each agrees to my proposal.

And, with that, Pinkie Pie and my character make their way to the boutique to have a final look at the dresses, and very likely help pack them away so they can be transported to my character's house in preparation for the fashion show after the reading.

When the two get to the boutique, Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash are already there.

Sweetie Belle goes on inside to inform her big sister that her friends are there.

A few seconds later, the doors to the boutique open, evidently possessed by Rarity's magic, and the group of five ponies and one human enter as Rarity announces, “Alright, I did exactly what each of you asked for. Now, don't hold back. Let me know what you really think.”

The rest of the five voice their approval of the dresses Rarity made for them, saying that they're perfect.

On the other hand, Rarity's Persian cat, Opalescence, has a less-than-friendly opinion of the dresses, batting at Twilight's dress without leaving a mark, and expressing disgust at Applejack's wardrobe, which includes what look to me like two pairs of moon boots.

I'm not sure I dare say anything about the costumes. Twilight Sparkle's dress, while no doubt accurate when it comes to the constellations, looks like a tent. Pinkie Pie's confetti-covered dress, well, I've already recorded my opinion of it. Rainbow Dash's dress has been trimmed back so the base no longer drags on the ground, and still looks good; and it also includes a sharp-looking helmet. As familiar as I am with the “Suited for Success” episode on which this day, and the day following, are based, I still have trouble understanding why Fluttershy would choose to wear a bird's nest with wire-suspended paper butterflies on her head. And, Applejack's dress seems to me to be little more than cover-alls with a tablecloth for a skirt.

Rarity sighs when her friends announce in unison, “It's exactly what I asked for!”

Twilight is the first to step forward and offer her gratitude to her friend.

Then, Pinkie Pie bounces forward and asks, “Are you as happy with them as we are, huh, huh, huh?”

Rarity hesitates for a moment before answering, “Well, I'm happy that all of you are happy. I'm just relieved to finally be done.”

Just then, the double doors open behind the group, and all turn around to see Spike, who, after panting a couple times, says, “You are never going to believe this! You've heard of Hoity Toity?”

Twilight Sparkle says, “The big-wig fashion hot-shot from Canterlot?”

Spike grunts in affirmation before continuing, “He heard about your fashion show! Well, maybe I had to mention it to him. He's come all the way from Canterlot to see your work, Rarity!”

Applejack exclaims, “Woah, Nelly!” She then turns to Rarity and says, “You could sell a ton of dresses to this guy. Yer business'll be boomin'.”

The other ponies also exclaim in excitement.

All, that is, except for Rarity, who, on the other hand, seems to be on the verge of collapse as she asks, “Hoity Toity … is coming here … to see these dresses?”

I still have my character focused on Rarity, so I can only hear when Spike says, “Yep. Get ready for all your dreams to come true.”

Seeing the expression on the white unicorn's face, it's clear to me she doesn't share the optimism of the young dragon, or of her other friends for that matter. In fact, based on the facial tic she seems to have developed, I'd say she's picturing her worst nightmare coming to life.

Before I can think anymore about Rarity's evident emotional condition, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “So, Mormon, we haven't heard your opinion yet.”

Now, it's my turn to hesitate as I have my character turn away from Rarity, and I say, with as much optimism as I can muster, “Well, they're a clear reflection of the ponies that ordered them.”

My statement is enough of a compliment for Twilight, who smiles at my character and says, “Ah, that's so sweet, Mormon.”

I then have my character turn back to Rarity as I say, “So, shouldn't we get those dresses in boxes so they can be moved?”

Rarity, evidently still stunned, just mumbles, “Dresses. Box dresses. Move dresses.”

it's Applejack who approaches the white unicorn and asks, “Rarity, are you alright?”

Rarity snaps out of her stunned daze, shakes herself out, then turns to her orange earth pony friend, and says, “I'm fine, Applejack. I just didn't expect Hoity Toity to be coming here.”

Then, Pinkie Pie, bouncing next to my character, asks, “So, what about those boxes, huh? Can I help get 'em?”

Still sounding unsteady, Rarity answers, “No, that's alright. I'll go get them.” And, with that, she disappears through a door between two of the equine mannequins.

Applejack, after strolling up to my character's side, opposite from Pinkie Pie, leans toward him and says, “Ah think there's something really wrong with Rarity.”

At this point, I hear Pinkie Pie stop bouncing and ask, “Whatcha think is wrong, huh AJ?”

Applejack answers, “Ah dunno, but Ah think it's more than just Hoity Toity bein' here.”

Pinkie Pie gasps, then sounds worried when she asks, “What, do you think she might be sick?”

Applejack answers, “If she ain't now, then she's probably gonna be.”

Having based this day on part of the “Suited for Success” episode, I have programmed Hoity Toity to show up at some point on this day to be a spectator at the fashion show. And, I have also volunteered my character's house to be where the fashion show takes place. And, based on what I've observed in the episode, I've programmed the rest of the Mane Six, that is all but Rarity, to be oblivious to their dresses being the reason for Rarity's apprehension. But, it's something that can't be hidden from the gamer, in this case, me. So, I decide to have my character approach the door that Rarity went through to see if I can help her.

But, wouldn't you know it, just as I have my character reach out to the door, it opens, possessed by Rarity's magic; and Rarity, seeing my character at the door, yelps and jumps back in surprise, which causes her to lose control of the boxes she's supporting on her back with her magic.

After I see, through my character's eyes, the stack of boxes topple over, I ask, “Could I help you with those?”

Rarity takes a few breaths to recompose herself, then says, “Uh, sure, Mormon.” She then uses her magic to raise three white cylindrical boxes and three matching lids and float them to my character so he can carry them out of the room.

While my character carries the three boxes, which stacked are just below his chin, Rarity follows him into the front room of the boutique.

As soon as she sees her white unicorn friend, Pinkie Pie trots over to her and asks, “Rarity, are you alright? AJ said you might be sick.”

Somehow Rarity manages to place three boxes, including one of the one's my character is carrying, in front of three of the equine mannequins and open them before she suddenly runs upstairs and into her work room, and from there I can hear her bawling.

My character puts the remaining boxes in front of the remaining mannequins and opens them, then turns to each of the rest of the Mane Six, then Spike; and I can see, through his eyes, they're exchanging worried looks. When my character's attention settles on the purple unicorn again, I say, “Twilight, if you'll put the dresses in the boxes, I'm gonna go upstairs and see if I can help Rarity.” And, with that, my character proceeds to climb the stairs.

I hear Spike's voice getting closer and closer behind my character as he asks, “Mormon, is there something I can do?” I can hear the worry in his voice.

At the top of the stairs, I have my character turn to the purple dragon; and I say, “You can help Twilight with the dresses. I'll go and talk with Rarity.” I then have my character turn to the door to Rarity's work room and take the remaining steps to it.

Before I can have my character reach out to the doorknob, I hear Spike say, “You'd better not hurt her.”

My character turns to the purple dragon; and I can see, through his eyes, Spike pointing and glaring at him.

I answer, “I promise I won't hurt her. Ki tahi au.” And, with that, all except my character stops moving. I don't even hear Rarity's bawling anymore.

I have my character proceed through the door, after which I say, “Continue.”

Before I continue with the story, there's one thing I should mention right now. One of the cheats I've provided for this game is the ability to click on a room or any other inanimate object in the game, and give it commands. In this case, I click on the room itself and say, “Soundproof on.” This will allow Rarity and me to speak our minds without anyone outside the room hearing us.

One thing it doesn't do, though, is prevent Rarity from being startled by the sudden presence of a human in her room.

I hear her scream in alarm; and I see, through my character's eyes, the door seem to vibrate for a split second. As my character turns to the white unicorn, I see her in her bed, holding a pillow.

It seems that she's so surprised by my character's presence in her room that she's forgotten she can hold objects with her magic.

Seeing, through his eyes, a pillow missing from Rarity's bed, I have my character look down on the ground; and he shows me that the pillow is at his feet.

It's also evident now that Rarity threw that pillow at him, and is ready to throw another.

I have my character raise his hands in front of him, ready to catch or deflect the pillow she's evidently ready to throw, and I say, “Rarity, it's alright. I'm not here to hurt you.”

The white unicorn raises the forelimb holding the pillow, evidently getting ready to throw it as hard as she can, and asks, “Then, why the hay are you in my room?”

I answer, “I thought we could talk for a few minutes. It's alright. I've made it so whatever we say in this room won't get beyond these walls.”

At this announcement, Rarity lowers her forelimb and the pillow she's holding in it, looks down at the pillow, then wails, “Oh, what shall I do? How can I show those hideous things to Hoity Toity?”

I watch as Rarity hides her face in the pillow she's still holding, then continues bawling, before I have my character take a step or two toward her; and I say, “Those 'hideous things' are the dresses your friends wanted you to make for them. And, I plan to defend them as such.”

Now, the dresses Rarity made for her friends, based on what they wanted, were, as far as I could tell, at the very worst, strange. But, as she looks up at my character from her pillow, her glaring, tear-stained face is about as frightening as Fluttershy's glare. She, that is Rarity, through her sobs, asks, “How—c-can you defend those—monstrosities? Those are the worst—th-things I've ever—made.”

As alarming as her appearance is, I still have my character take the remaining steps to her bed as I say, “By defending those dresses, I'm defending my friends, including you.” Watching her glare melt into a full facial frown, I continue, “I'm here first and foremost for Pinkie Pie, but that doesn't mean I can't or won't help the rest of her friends as well. Like I said, those dresses are what your friends wanted, and I will defend them as such. That doesn't mean I won't let Hoity Toity say what he chooses to say. It just means I'll warn him about who he's attacking.”

By now, Rarity's stopped bawling; but she continues to sniffle as she says, “But, Hoity Toity—I just know—he's going to hate—those dresses. What if—what he says—ruins my career?”

At this point, I have my character sit on the bed next to Rarity and start stroking her neck as I ask, “Has he really been so perfect in everything he's done?” After a momentary pause, I continue, “In my world, there's this one chef who's become really popular. I won't give you his name, but he's admitted to making his share of mistakes. As critical as he is of other's mistakes, he doesn't discourage others from cooking. It's through learning from his own mistakes that he's become the great, successful chef that he is.

“I'm not perfect. I've made my own share of mistakes in my time. But, I've also learned from them. At least, I hope I have. And, I'll make more mistakes in the future. And, hopefully I'll learn from them as well.”

Rarity pushes my character's hand away with a forelimb as she says, “Well, that's all well and good in your world. But, what does that have to do with me and Hoity Toity?”

I answer, “You remember that chef I mentioned? Well, he frequently gives constructive criticism. Maybe I can get Hoity Toity to give you and your friends some constructive criticism, give them some pointers on what they need to change to make their wardrobes more presentable.”

Rarity asks, “But, what if he has nothing constructive to say? What if he hates all my dresses? What if he says I should give up and never try making anything again?”

I pause for a second or two after her last question before I say, “It's easy to think of worst-case scenarios when it comes to presenting your works to the public. But, unless you really want it to be that way, it doesn't have to be. I've seen you do some really amazing things, and you'll do amazing things in the future. This is just something to learn from. Don't give up just because you've hit a bump in the road. Just learn from it and move on.”

Now, Rarity rises and sets her pillow aside, then says, “Very well, then. Thank you for your pep talk, Mormon. I believe I'm ready to present those … dresses to the public, to Hoity Toity. I just need a moment to make myself presentable. I must look a fright.”

I have my character stand up again and walk to the door as I say, “Alright, then. You get ready, and we'll meet you at the bottom of the stairs. Twilight and the others should have the dresses in the boxes by now, anyway.” I then click on the room again and say, “Soundproof off,” then have my character leave through the door and head down the stairs again.

At the bottom of the stairs, Spike asks, “Is Rarity gonna be alright?”

I answer, “She'll be fine. She was just getting cold feet, uh, cold hooves.”

Then, before anyone can say anything more, the doors, with the chime of the bell above them, open.

Spike, feeling one of the doors gently nudge the end of his tail, turns to see who just entered. Seeing the gray earth stallion standing above him, he calls out, “He's here! He's here!” and runs behind Twilight.

From where my character stands, seeing through his eyes, I'd describe the visitor as having shine-less silver and white hair, although I have to wonder if the white in his hair is supposed to represent shine. I can't tell you right now the color of his eyes, as they're hidden behind sunglasses. His cutie mark is a folded, hand-held fan of sorts. There's something about a male of any species with hair curled the way this stallion has his curled that, to me anyway, makes a male seem effeminate. He wears cuffs on his front hooves, and a strange collar around his neck, which looks to me like the remnants of a suit worn by people centuries ago. To the stallion's credit, the collar, in spite of looking like a piece of a suit, looks like it was removed cleanly.

As he stands in the doorway, looking around, the five mares in the room nod politely; and Twilight says, “Hoity Toity, welcome.”

Hoity Toity takes a step or two further into the boutique and says, “Yes, I'm here to meet the proprieter of this establishment.”

Presently, Spike runs upstairs to the door to Rarity's work room and knocks on it, shouting to her, “Hoity Toity's here to see you!”

I find myself feeling sorry for Spike when the door slams open, catching him by surprise between it and the wall it's joined to.

Rarity, clearly visible from the doorway, asks, “Hoity Toity?” Then, when she sees him, she screams and disappears into her room again.

The door closes slowly, revealing a flattened Spike, arms and legs spread out. Finally free of the door, he drifts to the ground, then pops into 3D again when his feet touch the solid floor. As he stumbles forward, he says, “Always glad to be of service.” Still dazed and unable to focus on where he's going, Spike stumbles off the edge of the walkway on the upper level and falls to the lower one. On the bright side, at least one of the equine mannequins is there to break his fall.

As Twilight comes to the rescue of her assistant, again Rarity appears at her door, slamming it open and, making her way to and down the stairs, says, “Uh, welcome, Hoity Toity. Will you please come in?”

Practically inside already, the gray stallion takes two more steps into the main room of the boutique, followed by a somewhat-light-chocolate-brown stallion, who I guess is a servant, and says, “Yes, I'm here because the little purple dragon said there's going to be a fashion show here.”

Rarity, at the bottom of the stairs by now, stumbles vocally as she says, “Uh, yeah, well, you see, the fashion show isn't going to be here.” Then, evidently intimidated by a disapproving nod from Hoity Toity, she adds, pointing to my character, “Uh, you see, Mormon, here, has volunteered to host the fashion show at his house.”

The gray stallion turns to my character and asks, “And, where is your house?”

I answer, “It's on the other side of the Everfree forest.”

At this point, I see Rarity start to deflate.

Hoity Toity says, “I see. So, I have to travel through a wilderness in order to watch a fashion show?”

I answer, “That pretty much covers it.” If the stallion is trying to sound or make himself intimidating to me, it isn't working.

After a few seconds, Hoity Toity sighs, then removes his sunglasses, produces a handkerchief from his collar, and starts polishing his sunglasses with it.

I can't help noticing that Hoity Toity, while polishing his sunglasses, is keeping his eyes closed. I'm guessing either there's something wrong with his eyes that he doesn't want anyone to know about, or he just thinks himself too important to look at his audience through uncovered eyes.

Whatever the case is, after polishing his sunglasses, for a minute or so, he puts them back on, puts the handkerchief back in its pocket, and says, “Very well. We shall follow you to your place. But, this had better be worth my time.”

Twilight turns to Hoity Toity and Rarity and, smiling, says, “I have all the dresses put away in the boxes you provided for them. They're ready to be moved.”

I add, “And, before the fashion show, there's going to be a scripture reading when all the guests arrive that're going to show up for the event.” I then have my character turn to Hoity Toity as I continue, “I have more than enough copies of the book. I'll provide you a copy in case you would like to read with us.”

Now, I think I hear Hoity Toity groan under his breath before he says, “The things I have to go through for a fashion show.” I then clearly hear him say, “Very well. But, this had better be the best show I've ever seen. My time is too important to be wasted on anything less.”

I find myself having difficulty resisting the urge to give a long-winded speech about how I've had my fill of the concept of “wasting time.” Eventually, I end up saying instead, “Very well, then. As soon as the dresses are packed into whatever vehicle is available for us to use and ready to go, we'll be on our way.”

Now, I see, through my character's eyes, Rarity freeze into a whole-body grimace. As I direct my character's full attention to the white unicorn, I hear her say, “I don't have a vehicle at the moment that could transport the dresses.” While she speaks I can't see her mouth move, and she's frozen like a statue.

Hoity Toity sighs and asks, “How many dresses are there to transport?”

Twilight Sparkle answers, “Five, and they're all in boxes.”

The gray stallion looks at each of the five white, cylindrical boxes (or so I assume; my character's watching Hoity Toity right now, so I can't say for sure), then says, “Very well. You may use the top of my coach to transport the dresses to the human's house.”

Presently, Rarity jumps up and shouts, “Yes!”

Evidently Rarity's outburst has caught Hoity Toity off guard, as he, focused on the excited white unicorn, recoils.

As Rarity lands, she turns and sees that she startled the gray earth stallion. Taking a repentant stance, she says, “Sorry about that.” Then, after forcing a laugh or two, she claps her hooves together a few times and says, “Alright then. Chop-chop. We must be on our way.”

Now, Twilight uses her magic to carry three of the boxes while Rarity uses her magic to carry the other two.

The boxes are placed carefully on top of the coach, where I find it surprising that they all seem to fit without having to be stacked.

The trip through the Everfree forest from Ponyville takes, I'd say, as long as it usually has, with no time gained and now time lost.

When the group arrives, lead by my character, as expected, Lyra, Weed Whacker and the Cakes are there to meet us at the front gate.

My character opens the gate and allows the element bearers, Spike, and Rarity's little sister Sweetie Belle to enter.

Hoity Toity's servant, in the mean time, pulls his coach up to the gate; and I hear the gray earth stallion groan and say, “I can't believe I have to open the door to my own carriage.” As the door to his coach opens, he steps out and says, “I guess I have to let myself out.” Then, once he's out and onto the front lawn, he turns to me and adds, “And, where shall my valet park my coach?”

I answer, “Well, there are two choices. There's a trail that starts between the foremost corner of my fence here and the fence to the orchard. Then, alternatively, your coach can be parked on the opposite side of the road from my house.”

I'm pleasantly surprised when Hoity Toity shouts to his servant, “Park the coach along the trail, next to the human's house!”

As Hoity Toity's servant proceeds to do so, I say, “If you'll make yourself comfortable on the front lawn, Rarity and I have something to discuss with a few friends in the house.”

As Rarity follows my character towards the house, I hear Hoity Toity ask, “I have to stay out here?”

As my character reaches the door to allow Rarity in, and before he follows her into the house and closes the door behind her, I hear Twilight Sparkle say, “Believe me, when everypony has arrived for the reading, there won't be enough room in the house for them.” And, my character closes the door behind him before he can hear any more of the conversation, assuming there is any more.

Presently, I hear Rarity say, “Oh, DJ Pon3, it's nice to meet you.” My character turns to show me Vinyl Scratch leaning against the couch somewhat facing the door.

The white, blue-haired unicorn answers, “Rarity, nice to meet you. Is there something you need?”

Rarity seems unable to speak, so, after a few seconds, I answer, “If you'll get Octavia and meet us in the kitchen, Rarity does have a request to make.”

Vinyl Scratch pushes herself away from the couch with her shoulder, then trots off to the room where she and Octavia have been staying, as she says, “Sure, Mormon. It'll just take a second.”

I lead the way to the kitchen and open the door to allow Rarity to enter, while I hear Vinyl Scratch call out, “Octy, Rarity's here, and she wants to talk to us!”

Then, as Rarity enters the kitchen, followed by my character, I have him point to the table and chairs and ask, “Do you want to make the proposal, or should I?”

Rarity jumps onto the chair closest to the fridge and props herself up on the table, then, as my character occupies the chair opposite her, she stammers, “S-sure, I-I'll make the p-proposal.”

I find myself remembering the conversation back in Rarity's workroom when I ask, “You're still worried about the fashion show?”

Rarity answers, “I can't stop worrying about it. Yes, those dresses are what my customers wanted, but they're not up to my standards. I worry that Hoity Toity will think they're my usual, or my best.”

Before I can address Rarity's concern, the door opens; and Vinyl Scratch and Octavia trot in. As Vinyl takes the empty seat closest to the door, Octavia closes the door behind her, then trots to the remaining chair and occupies it.

As soon as she sees Octavia comfortable in the chair furthest from the door, Vinyl Scratch turns her attention to the white, purple-haired unicorn and asks, “So, Rarity, what do you need our help with?”

Octavia and my character turn their attentions to Rarity, who opens her mouth to respond. But, instead of words, what comes out of her mouth is a loud belch.

As I watch, through my character's eyes, Rarity cover her mouth with a front hoof, and a worried look develop on her face, it becomes clear to me what's going to happen next. I have my character run to the closest bathroom, the one across from my character's bedroom, and open the door, as Rarity jumps off her chair and, still holding her mouth closed with the one front hoof, gallops into the bathroom and to the toilet, where she buries her face in the bowl and starts retching.

I have my character close the door to provide some privacy for Rarity, then return to a worried-looking Vinyl Scratch and Octavia; and I say, “I'm sorry about that. Rarity and her friends are putting on a fashion show to show off the dresses she made for them, and she wanted one or both of you to provide the music. I've agreed to hold the fashion show here at my house for your convenience. Also, Hoity Toity's here, and Rarity's worried that he's not going to like the dresses she made for her friends. So, will either or both of you provide the music for the fashion show?”

The two musical ponies look at each other, and Vinyl says, “This could be the chance for us to perform that song Mormon assigned us.”

Octavia nods, evidently in agreement, and says, “We haven't worked out all the problems we've been having, but it would be nice to perform for an audience again.”

Vinyl eagerly nods and grunts in agreement, then asks, “So, what do you say? You wanna perform that 'Light up the Land' song for Rarity's fashion show?”

Octavia smiles at Vinyl, then says, “Well, if you think we're ready for it, then sure. Let's do it.”

Vinyl Scratch raises her forelimbs in victory and shouts, looking up, “Yes!” Then, lowering her forelimbs and looking at Octavia again, she warbles, “This is gonna be sweet.” Finally, she turns to my character and says, “Sure, we'll play for Rarity's fashion show.”

I answer, “Excellent. The fashion show will take place after the reading, so you'll need to get your scriptures. And, be careful. There are likely to be boxes in the front room.” I have my character back away from the unicorn and earth pony as they run out the kitchen door to wherever they plan to go next, then I have him head to the bathroom; and I call out, “Rarity, are you alright in there?”

I hear her weakly answer, “I just need a few more minutes.”

I continue, “I'm gonna see if the rest of the guests have arrived.” And, with that, I have my character make his way to the front door of the house and look outside to see how many there are on the front lawn.

When I get a look outside, I recognize, among the familiar faces from previous readings, the Cakes, the element bearers, save for Rarity who I know is in the bathroom, Lyra and Bon-Bon, Carrot Top and Berry Punch, Snips and Snails and their parents, Granny Smith, Big MacIntosh and Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Cheerilee, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, Twist, Stunts, Emerald Hill and Berry Ground, Mayor Mare, and even the two princesses, Luna and Celestia, and Zecora are present. I'm guessing that means the trouble in Filly-delphia is finally over with. And, Spike and Weed Whacker are out there on the lawn. And, all have begun to form the familiar reading circle around the snack tray.

As for the newcomers to the circle, I notice, besides Hoity Toity and his servant, a blue unicorn with darker-blue-and-white mane and tail in the group. Whether it's her official name according to the series, or just one associated with her because her hair is colored like a familiar brand of toothpaste, I'm not entirely sure. But, in this game, this unicorn is known as Colgate. I have to wonder if she came strictly for the fashion show. But, considering her name, I've given her the cutie mark of a toothbrush with fresh toothpaste on the bristles.

There are also two more unicorns, both talking to Hoity Toity, both I recognize as Rarity's parents. The stallion is white colored, although I notice, as Sweetie Belle walks past him, that her shade of white is brighter than his. His mane and tail are a chocolate brown color, as are his mustache and eyebrows. And, he has three footballs as a cutie mark.

The mare is pink colored, with mane and tail that are two shades of purple, I'd say. Her mane is done up in a bun, and she's wearing earrings and a scarf.

Considering how the presence of parents of humans is depicted in movies and TV shows, I have to wonder how the presence of Rarity's parents is going to influence her during the fashion show after the reading. As much as I expect and appreciate that they're here to support their daughter Rarity, I expect they'll most likely add to her stage fright.

In the mean time, Spike approaches my character and asks, “So, when's Rarity comin' out?”

My character focuses on the young purple dragon, and I answer, “She'll come out when she's ready.” I don't know if I dare say any more about her.

Then, from behind my character, I hear Vinyl Scratch say, “Rarity's out of the bathroom now.” As my character turns to the blue-maned unicorn, she continues, “I told her that you invited me and Octavia to perform the music at her fashion show, and that we agreed to it.”

I can see, from my character's perspective, Rarity walking up behind Vinyl Scratch, which the blue-haired unicorn mare doesn't notice until she says, “Yes, and I appreciate that, Mormon. Thank you.”

I watch Vinyl start, then I say to Rarity, “You're welcome. Now, if you two and Octavia will go outside, and join the circle, I have five more copies of the Book of Mormon to get.”

As my character heads to the closet to get the copies, I hear an alarmed whinny from the doorway, and Rarity say, “Why didn't you tell me my parents are here?”

While my character is getting the copies, I answer, “I didn't know they were out there until just now. And, I didn't have time to tell you about it. And, besides, you didn't ask.”

As my character counts five copies of the book, I hear an equine snort or sneeze from behind him, followed by Rarity's voice growling, “One does not ask if one's parents are going to be present at an event one has prepared.” Not waiting for a response from me, she worriedly asks, “What am I going to do? How can I go out there with my parents waiting for me?”

While my character picks up the stack of books, I answer, “You're not committing a crime. You'll be putting on a fashion show after the reading. And, you can't back out of it now. It's too late for that.”

At this point, Rarity starts pacing back and forth like a caged predator of sorts while she says, “Oh, I've never been so nervous in my life. How can I show these … things to Hoity Toity? How can I show them to my parents? How will I ever be able to show my face in Ponyville, or anywhere else, again? Oh, this really is the worst possible thing.” The way she's talking, she sounds like she's withdrawing into herself or something like that.

By this point, my character's at the front door again. While he maneuvers the books into a position so he can open the door, I say to Rarity, “Let's just take this one step at a time, starting with the reading.”

Rarity stops pacing and looks up at me, then says, “Oh, very well, Mormon. I suppose I can at least read with everypony here.”

My character opens the door while I say, “Good. Now, let's get going.” And, with that, and with Rarity following my character, he leads the way to the nearly-complete circle of ponies and dragons.

Once all are settled into their places, I announce, “We'll be having a special treat this evening. After the reading, Rarity is going to put on a fashion show. But, in the mean time, we'll be starting the Second Book of Nephi.” I then have my character turn to my unicorn stallion friend as I ask, “Stunts, will you give us a brief description of what's happened up to this point, for the benefit of the newcomers to the reading?”

Stunts nods, then says, “Thus far, a human named Lehi, along with his wife Sariah and their sons Laman Lemuel, Sam and Nephi, left their home in a city called Jerusalem some six hundred years before the coming of the Christ. Before they could get very far, Lehi's God told him to send his sons back to Jerusalem to get some important records, which they managed to do. Then, when they got back with the records, Lehi's God once again told him to send his sons back to Jerusalem, this time to get another family to go with them, one who's father's name was Ishmael. Soon after they returned from that, Lehi's sons married Ishmael's daughters, and they went back to traveling in the wilderness, on their way to the ocean. They didn't have an easy time of it, but they made their way to the shore of the ocean, where Nephi and his brothers built a ship, which they used to sail across the ocean to a land promised to them. Before they sailed on the ship, before it was built, Lehi and Sariah had two more sons, Jacob and Joseph. Anyway, after arriving in the new land, it seems that Nephi has done some teaching of scriptures to his brothers, wife, and children.”

After thanking Stunts for the description, I have my character look around the circle; and I ask, “Do I have a volunteer to start the reading?”

After a few seconds, Hoity Toity raises a hoof and says, “If it means we get to the fashion show that much sooner, then I volunteer to begin the reading.”

I notice, through my character's eyes, that the gray earth stallion is evidently on the right page. So, I say, “You may go ahead. Please start with verse one.”

Hoity Toity says, “Yes,” then clears his throat, then reads, “And now it came to pas that after I, Nephi, had made an end of teaching my brethren, our father, Lehi, also spake many things unto them, and rehearsed unto them, how great things the Lord had done for them in bringing them out of the land of Jerusalem.” Afterwards, he nudges his servant and says, “You read verse two.”

The tan stallion nods, then reads, “And he spake unto them concerning their rebellion upon the waters, and the mercies of God in sparing their lives, that they were not swallowed up in the sea.”

Next, Mr. Cake reads, “And he also spake unto them concerning the land of promise, which they had obtained—how merciful the Lord had been in warning us that we should flee out of the land of Jerusalem.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “For, behold, said he, I have seen a vision, in which I know that Jerusalem is destroyed, and had we remained in Jerusalem we should also have perished.” She then looks up and says, “Lehi's God keeps him well informed on what's happened to his home town.”

At this piont, Hoity Toity groans and asks, “Can't we just keep this to reading? Do we have to have comments as well?”

I have to admit, I'm starting to lose patience with the gray stallion. Still, I try to maintain a calmness to my voice as I answer, “Yes, Hoity Toity, in this circle, it's more than just reading. If one of us has something appropriate to say about what's been read up to this point, that individual is quite welcome to say what's on his or her mind.” Then, before Hoity Toity can ask any further questions, I have my character turn to the nearly-white-pink unicorn mare next to Mrs. Cake; and I ask, “Warm Heart, will you read verse five?”

Warm Heart nods in agreement, then reads, “But, said he, notwithstanding our afflictions, we have obtained a land of promise, a land which is choice above all other lands, a land which the Lord God hath covenanted with me should be a land for the inheritance of my seed. Yea, the Lord hath covenanted this land unto me, and to my children forever, and also all those who should be led out of other countries by the hand of God.”

Next, Snips reads, “Wherefore, I, Lehi, prophesy according to the workings of the Spirit which is in me, that there shall none come into this land save they shall be brought by the hand of the Lord.”

Snails reads, “Wherefore, this land is consecrated unto him whom he shall bring. And if it so be that they shall serve him according to the commandments which he hath given, it shall be a land of liberty unto them; wherefore, they shall never be brought down into captivity; if so, it shall be because of iniquity; for if iniquity shall abound cursed shall be the land for their sakes, but unto the righteous it shall be blessed forever.” He then looks up and says, “It sounds like a good land to live in.”

I answer, “I can tell you right now, at least where I live in North America, while there are challenges to living there, it is a good place to live in.”

Cold Hands then reads, “And behold, it is wisdom that this land should be kept as yet from the knowledge of other nations; for behold, many nations would overrun the land, that there would be no place for an inheritance.”

After a grunt of interest from him, Big MacIntosh reads, “Wherefore, I, Lehi, have obtained a promise, that inasmuch as those whom the Lord God shall bring out of the land of Jerusalem shall keep his commandments, they shall prosper upon the face of this land, and they shall be kept from all other nations, that they may possess this land unto themselves. And if it so be that they shall keep his commandments they shall be blessed upon the face of this land, and there shall be none to molest them, not to take away the land of their inheritance; and they shall dwell safely forever.” He then matches Cold Hands' grunt of interest and adds, “This 'land of their inheritance' is soundin' better 'n' better.”

Granny Smith then reads, “But behold, when the time cometh that they shall dwindle in unbelief, after they have received so great blessings from the hand of the Lord—having a knowledge of the creation of the earth, and all men, knowing the great and marvelous works of the Lord from the creation of the world; having power given them to do all things by faith; having all the commandments from the beginning, and having been brought by his infinite goodness into this precious land of promise—behold, I say, if the day shall come that they will reject the Holy One of Israel, the true Messiah, their Redeemer and their God, behold the judgments of him that is just shall rest upon them.”

Applebloom reads, “Yea, he will bring other nations unto them, and he will give unto them power, and he will take away from them the lands of their possessions, and he will cause them to be scattered and smitten.”

Applejack reads, “Yea, as one generation passeth to another there shall be bloodsheds, and great visitations among them; wherefore, my sons, I would that ye would remember; yea, I would that ye would hearken unto my words.”

Rarity reads, “O that ye would awake; awake from a deep sleep, yea, even from the sleep of hell, and shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe.”

Spike reads, “Awake! and arise from the dust, and hear the words of a trembling parent, whose limbs ye must soon lay down in the cold and silent grave, from whence no traveler can return; a few more days and I go the way of all the earth.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “But behold, the Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell; I have beheld his glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And I desire that ye should remember to observe the statutes and the judgments of the Lord; behold, this hath been the anxiety of my soul from the beginning.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “My heart hath been weighed down with sorrow from time to time, for I have feared, lest for the hardness of your hearts the Lord your God should come out in the fulness of his wrath upon you, that ye be cut off and destroyed forever.”

Fluttershy reads, “Or, that a cursing should come upon you for the space of many generations; and ye are visited by sword, and by famine, and are hated, and are led according to the will and captivity of the devil.”

Bon-Bon reads, “O my sons, that these things might not come upon you, but that ye might be a choice and a favored people of the Lord. But, behold, his will be done; for his ways are righteousness forever.”

Lyra reads, “And he hath said that: Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land; but inasmuch as he will not keep my commandments ye shall be cut off from my presence.”

I read, “And now that my soul might have joy in you, and that my heart might leave his world with gladness because of you, that I might not be brought down with grief and sorrow to the grave, arise from the dust, my sons, and be men, and be determined in one mind and in one heart, united in all things, that ye may not come down into captivity.”

Weed Whacker reads, “That ye may not be cursed with a sore cursing; and also, that ye may not incur the displeasure of a just God upon you, unto the destruction, yea, the eternal destruction of both soul and body.”

Scootaloo reads, “Awake, my sons; put on the armor of righteousness. Shake off the chains with which ye are bound, and come forth out of obscurity, and arise from the dust.”

Twist reads, “Rebel no more against your brother, whose views have been glorious, and who hath kept the commandments from the time that we left Jerusalem; and who hath been an instrument in the hands of God, in bringing us forth into the land of promise; for were it not for him, we must have perished with hunger in the wilderness; nevertheless, ye sought to take away his life; yea, and he hath suffered much sorrow because of you.”

At this point, I'm caught off-guard when Hoity Toity asks, “Uh, excuse me, but what happened to his family in the wilderness that threatened them with starvation?”

I open my mouth to say something, but it's Berry Ground that says, “I'll answer this one.” He then turns to the gray stallion and says, “After Lehi's family was joined by Ishmael's family, while Lehi's sons were hunting for food, Nephi broke his bow. It's recorded that the bows of Laman, Lemuel and Sam had 'lost their spring,' and Mormon interprets that to mean that they'd worn out; anyway, the loss of Nephi's bow was a major blow to them. In fact, the only one, it seems, that didn't complain was Nephi. Even Lehi complained against his God because of the threat of starvation, or at least extreme hunger. But then, Nephi made a new bow and arrow from wood and other materials that were available, then went to his father and asked him where he should go to get food. That was quite the humbling experience for Lehi, who prayed about it and got instructions from his God on where to go. After that, Nephi went and hunted for and got food for them, based on the instructions God had given him through his father, and that allowed them to survive.

“It's also noteworthy that, before the combined families of Lehi and Ishmael left to travel further, their God supplied them with a compass that worked based on whether they remembered their God or not. It's this compass that their God used to inform Lehi of where he should send Nephi to get the food.”

After hearing the explanation, Hoity Toity asks, “And, what, humans eat meat?”

I now answer, “Not strictly, but yes.” Then, as I watch the gray stallion suddenly struggle to rise and back out of the circle, I add, “But, let me assure you that I'm not here to eat you, or any of the other ponies in this circle, in Ponyville, in Canterlot, or anywhere else in Equestria for that matter. I'm here to make friends with ponies and other creatures, not to eat them.”

At this point, Hoity Toity, seeing he's the only one who seems to have panicked, returns to his position and once again reclines into a sphinx-style position.

Now, Cheerilee reads, “And I exceedingly fear and tremble because of you, lest he shall suffer again; for behold, ye have accused him that he sought power and authority over you; but I know that he hath not sought for power and authority over you, but he hath sought the glory of God, and your own eternal welfare.” At this point, she nickers and says, “Hoity Toity was certainly fearing and trembling.”

At this, the only ones that don't laugh are Hoity Toity and me. Instead, I say, “Alright, that's enough. Let's just get back to the reading.” Then, as the laughter dies down, I have my character turn to Diamond Tiara; and I ask, “Will you read verse twenty-six?”

The pink earth filly nods, then looks down and reads, “And ye have murmured because he hath been plain unto you. Ye say that he hath used sharpness; ye say that he hath been angry with you; but behold, his sharpness was the sharpness of the power of the word of God, which was in him; and that which ye call anger was the truth, according to that which is in God, which he could not restrain, manifesting boldly concerning your iniquities.”

Next, Silver Spoon reads, “And it must needs be that the power of God must be with him, even unto his commanding you that ye must obey. But, behold, it was not he, but it was the Spirit of the Lord which was in him, which opened his mouth to utterance that he could not shut it.”

Colgate reads, “And now my son, Laman, and also Lemuel and Sam, and also my sons who are the sons of Ishmael, behold, if ye will hearken unto the voice of Nephi ye shall not perish. And if ye will hearken unto him I leave you a blessing, yea even my first blessing.”

Berry Punch reads, “But if ye will not hearken unto him I take away my first blessing, yea, even my blessing, and it shall rest upon him.”

Carrot Top reads, “And now, Zoram, I speak unto you: Behold, thou art the servant of Laban; nevertheless, thou hast been brought out of the land of Jerusalem, and I know that thou art a true friend unto my son, Nephi, forever.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “Wherefore, because thou hast been faithful thy seed shall be blessed with his seed, that they dwell in prosperity long upon the face of this land; and nothing, save it shall be iniquity among them, shall harm or disturb their prosperity upon the face of this land forever.”

Octavia reads, “Wherefore, if ye shall keep the commandments of the Lord, the Lord hath consecrated this land for the security of thy seed with the seed of my son.”

At this point, I say, “I'm thinking we should go on to the next chapter, seeing that not everyone has had a chance to read.”

At my proposal the voices I hear around the circle seem to be in agreement. I think it's Princess Celestia who mentions that thus far on average the readings have each involved two chapters from First Nephi. Of course, that's when the circle had as many as three dozen individuals.

But, considering all are evidently in agreement, Zecora starts reading with the first verse of chapter two: “And now, Jacob, I speak unto you. Thou art my firstborn in the days of my tribulation in the wilderness. And behold, in thy childhood thou hast suffered afflictions and much sorrow, because of the rudeness of thy brethren.”

Next, Princess Luna reads, “Nevertheless, Jacob, my firstborn in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God, and he shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain.”

Mayor Mare reads, “Wherefore, thy soul shall be blessed, and thou shalt dwell safely with thy brother, Nephi, and thy days shall be spent in the service of thy God. Wherefore, I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer; for thou hast beheld that in the fulness of time he cometh to bring salvation unto men.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And thou hast beheld in thy youth his glory; wherefore, thou art blessed even as they whom he shall minister in the flesh; for the Spirit is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. And the way is prepared from the fall of man, and salvation is free.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And men are instructed sufficiently that they know good from evil. And the law is given unto men. And by the law no flesh is justified; or, by the law men are cut off. Yea, by the temporal law they were cut off; and also, by the spiritual law they perish from that which is good, and become miserable forever.”

Stunts reads, “Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah; for he is full of grace and truth.”

Berry Ground reads, “Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered.”

Rarity's father reads, “Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Wherefore, he is the firstfruits unto God, inasmuch as he shall make intercession for all the children of men; and they that believe in him shall be saved.”

Rarity's mother reads, “And because of the intercession for all, all men come unto God; wherefore, they stand in the presence of him, to be judged of him according to the truth and holiness which is in him. Wherefore, the ends of the law which the Holy One hath given, unto the inflicting of the punishment which is affixed, which punishment that is affixed is in opposition to that of the happiness which is affixed, to answer the ends of the atonement—“

Hoity Toity reads, “For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my firstborn in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead; having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility.”

When Hoity Toity is finished reading, I find I cant help mentioning two points of interest in this verse: “I've just noticed something of interest here. In this verse, Lehi seems to have holiness and happiness as synonyms, and opposite of misery. I hadn't thought about them that way before, but it makes sense.” Now, noticing that I have the attention of the others in the circle, I have my character turn to Hoity Toity's servant, and I say, “Uh, go ahead and read verse twelve.”

The tan earth stallion nods and reads, “Wherefore, it must needs have been created for a thing of naught; wherefore there would have been no purpose in the end of its creation. Wherefore, this thing must needs destroy the wisdom of God and his eternal purposes, and also the power, and the mercy, and the justice of God.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And if ye shall say there is no law, ye shall also say there is no sin. If ye shall say there is no sin, he shall also say there is no righteousness. And if there be no righteousness there be no happiness. And if there be no righteousness nor happiness there be no punishment nor misery. And if these things are not there is no God. And if there is no God we are not, neither the earth; for there could have been no creation of things, neither to act nor to be acted upon; wherefore, all things must have vanished away.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And now, my sons, I speak unto you these things for your profit and learning; for there is a God, and he hath created all things, both the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are, both things to act and things to be acted upon.”

Warm Heart reads, “And to bring about his eternal purposes in the end of man, after he had created our first parents, and the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and in fine, all things which are created, it must needs be that there was an opposition; even the forbidden fruit in opposition to the tree of life; the one being sweet and the other bitter.”

Snips reads, “Wherefore, the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other.”

Snails reads, “And I, Lehi, according to the things which I have read, must needs suppose that an angel of God, according to that which is written, had fallen from heaven; wherefore, he became a devil, having sought that which was evil before God.” He then looks up and says, “You know, this sounds like that lesson you gave a few days ago, Mormon. That one about the plan of salvation.”

I answer, “That's right. And, Lehi's giving at least a part of that lesson in his own words to his son Jacob. In fact, he probably does a better job than I did of explaining it.”

Cold Hands reads, “And because he had fallen from heaven, and had become miserable forever, he sought also the misery of all mankind. Wherefore, he said unto Eve, yea, even that old serpent, who is the devil, who is the father of all lies, wherefore he said: Partake of the forbidden fruit, and ye shall not die, but ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil.”

Big Macintosh reads, “And after Adam and Eve had partaken of the forbidden fruit they were driven out of the garden of Eden, to till the earth.”

Granny Smith reads, “And they have brought forth children; yea, even the family of all the earth.”

Applebloom reads, “And the days of the children of men were prolonged, according to the will of God, that they might repent while in the flesh; wherefore, their state became a state of probation, and their time was lengthened, according to the commandments which the Lord God gave unto the children of men. For he gave commandments that all men must repent; for he showed unto all men that they were lost, because of the transgression of their parents.”

Applejack reads, “And now, behold, if Adam had not transgressed he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden. And all things which were created must have remained in the same state in which they were after they were created; and they must have remained forever, and had no end.”

Rarity reads, “And they would have had no children; wherefore they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no sin.”

Spike reads, “But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Adam fell that men night be; and men are, that they might have joy.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall they have become free forever, knowing good from evil, to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.” Looking up, Pinkie Pie says, “You know, I'm beginning to wonder if it was somehow planned that I should read this verse.”

Twilight answers, “Well, whatever, or whoever, planned for you to read the verses you read also planned for me to read the verses I read.”

Fluttershy reads, “And now, my sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit.”

Bon-Bon reads, “And not choose eternal death, according to the will of the flesh and the evil which is therein, which giveth the spirit of the devil power to captivate, to bring you down to hell, that he may reign over you in his own kingdom.”

Lyra looks at Pinkie Pie and Twilight Sparkle and says, “Well, whatever or whoever planned for you to read the verses you read seems to have planned for me to read the last verse of this chapter.” She then looks down and reads, “I have spoken these few words unto you all, my sons, in the last days of my probation; and I have chosen the good part, according to the words of the prophet. And I have none other object save it be the everlasting welfare of your souls. Amen.”

As soon as Lyra's finished reading, I hear Rarity ask, “Uh, Mormon, could we please read one more chapter?”

At this point, I can't say for sure if Rarity's asking in order to delay the fashion show, or because she enjoys the reading so much. Maybe both are true. Still, as I have my character look around the circle, I ask, “Well, shall we read another chapter, or get to the fashion show?”

At this point, voices around the circle seem to be in favor of reading another chapter.

Hoity Toity speaks up and says, “I came here for a fashion show, and I will not leave until I see a fashion show.”

I have my character focus as best he can between the white, purple-haired unicorn and the gray earth stallion, so that I can see both of them through his eyes. Then, after my character looks at each of them a few times, I finally say, “Alright, we'll read one more chapter. But, after that, the fashion show must proceed. Is that alright?”

Hoity Toity answers first: “It has been a pleasure reading from this book, but I did come here to see a fashion show. However, if I must stay for the reading of one more chapter, then it had better be just one more chapter; and then there has to be a fashion show.”

Rarity manipulates a page with her magic to see how long the chapter will be, then grimaces. Then, she looks at my character, sighs, and says, “Oh, very well then.”

That argument having been settled, I have my character look down into his book; and I read, “And now I speak unto you, Joseph, my last-born. Thou wast born in the wilderness of mine afflictions; yea, in the days of my greatest sorrow did thy mother bear thee.”

Weed Whacker then reads, “And may the Lord consecrate also unto thee this land, which is a most precious land, for thine inheritance and the inheritance of thy seed with thy children, for thy security forever, if it so be that ye shall keep the commandments of the Holy One of Israel.”

Scootaloo reads, “And now, Joseph, my last-born, whom I have brought out of the wilderness of mine afflictions, may the Lord bless thee forever, for thy seed shall not utterly be destroyed.”

Twist reads, “For behold, thou art the fruit of my loins; and I am a descendant of Joseph who was carried captive into Egypt. And great are the covenants of the Lord which he made unto Joseph.”

Cheerilee reads, “Wherefore, Joseph truly saw our day. And he obtained a promise of the Lord, that out of the fruit of his loins the Lord God would raise up a righteous branch unto the house of Israel; not the Messiah, but a branch which was to be broken off, nevertheless, to be remembered in the covenants of the Lord that the Messiah should be made manifest unto them in the latter days, in the spirit of power, unto the bringing of them out of darkness unto light—yea, out of hidden darkness and out of captivity unto freedom.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “For Joseph truly testified, saying: A seer shall the Lord my God raise up, who shall be a choice seer unto the fruit of my loins.”

Silver Spoon reads, “Yea, Joseph truly said: Thus saith the Lord unto me: A choice seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins, and he shall be esteemed highly among the fruit of thy loins. And unto him will I give commandment that he shall do a work for the fruit of thy loins, his brethren, which shall be of great worth unto them, even to the bringing of them to the knowledge of the covenants which I have made with thy fathers.”

Colgate reads, “And I will give unto him a commandment that he shall do none other work, save the work which I shall command him. And I will make him great in mine eyes; for he shall do my work.”

Berry Punch reads, “And he shall be great like unto Moses, whom I have said I would raise up unto you, to deliver my people, O house of Israel.”

Carrot Top reads, “And Moses will I raise up, to deliver thy people out of the land of Egypt.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “But a seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins; and unto him will I give power to bring forth my word unto the seed of thy loins—and not to the bringing forth my word only, saith the Lord, but to the convincing them of my word, which shall have already gone forth among them.”

Octavia reads, “Wherefore, the fruit of thy loins shall write; and the fruit of the loins of Judah shall write; and that which shall be written by the fruit of thy loins, and also that which shall be written by the fruit of the loins of Judah, shall grow together, unto the confounding of false doctrines and laying down of contentions, and establishing peace among the fruit of thy loins, and bringing them to the knowledge of their fathers in the latter days, and also to the knowledge of my covenants, saith the Lord.”

Zecora reads, “And out of weakness he shall be made strong, in that day when my work shall commence among all my people, unto the restoring thee, O house of Israel, saith the Lord.”

Princess Luna reads, “And thus prophesied Joseph, saying: Behold, that seer will the Lord bless; and they that seek to destroy him shall be confounded; for this promise, which I have obtained of the Lord, of the fruit of my loins, shall be fulfilled. Behold, I am sure of the fulfilling of this promise.”

Mayor Mare reads, “And his name shall be called after me; and it shall be after the name of his father. And he shall be like unto me; for the thing, which the Lord shall bring forth by his hand, by the power of the Lord shall bring my people unto salvation.”

At this point, I speak up and say, “The prophet that's been talked about in these verses of chapter three is Joseph Smith Junior, the first prophet of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And in his ministry, he did all these things that are written here.” I then turn to the daytime princess and say, “You may go ahead and read verse sixteen now.”

Princess Celestia nods and reads, “Yea, thus prophesied Joseph: I am sure of this thing, even as I am sure of the promise of Moses; for the Lord hath said unto me, I will preserve thy seed forever.”

Emerald Hill then reads, “And the Lord hath said: I will raise up a Moses; and I will give power unto him in a rod; and I will give judgment unto him in writing. Yet I will not loose his tongue, that he shall speak much, for I will not make him mighty in speaking. But I will write unto him my law, by the finger of mine own hand; and I will make a spokesman for him.”

Stunts reads, “And the lord said unto me also: I will raise up unto the fruit of thy loins; and I will make for him a spokesman. And I, behold, I will give unto him that he shall write the writing of the fruit of thy loins, unto the fruit of thy loins; and the spokesman of thy loins shall declare it.”

Berry Ground reads, “And the words which he shall write shall be the words which are expedient in my wisdom should go forth unto the fruit of thy loins. And it shall be as if the fruit of thy loins had cried unto them from the dust; for I know their faith.”

Rarity's father reads, “And they shall cry from the dust; yea, even repentance unto their brethren, even after many generations have gone by them. And it shall come to pass that their cry shall go, even according to the simpleness of their words.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Because of their faith their words shall proceed forth out of thy mouth unto their brethren who are the fruit of thy loins; and the weakness of their words will I make strong in their faith, unto the remembering of my covenant which I made unto thy fathers.”

Rarity's mother reads, “And now, behold, my son Joseph, after this manner did my father of old prophesy.”

Hoity Toity reads, “Wherefore, because of this covenant thou art blessed; for thy seed shall not be destroyed, for they shall hearken unto the words of the book.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “And there shall rise up one mighty among them, who shall do much good, both in word and in deed, being an instrument in the hands of God, with exceeding faith, to work mighty wonders, and do that thing which is great in the sight of God, unto the bringing to pass much restoration unto the house of Israel, and unto the seed of thy brethren.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And now, blessed art thou, Joseph. Behold, thou art little; wherefore hearken unto the word of thy brother, Nephi, and it shall be done unto thee even according to the words which I have spoken. Remember the words of thy dying father. Amen.”

As books around the circle are closed, Rarity rises and asks, “Mormon, would we please read one more chapter?”

At this point, I say, “The agreement was the fashion show would be after chapter three. That chapter's been read, and the reading for tonight is ended. Now it's time for the fashion show.”

The way Rarity looks at my character, I'm guessing she's looking for a way to change my mind. After a few seconds, when it's clear to her that she won't be able to find anything, she sighs, then says, “Oh, alright.” Then, as she marches toward my character's house, I notice, the way she holds her head, I'd say it lines up perfectly so that, from her nose along her torso, she's parallel with the ground.

Her actions are evidently a concern to her friend Twilight, who tries to ask her if she's alright. As the rest of the creatures around the circle rise and start talking amongst themselves, drowning out anything I might hear from Twilight and the rest of the element bearers, I watch, through my character's eyes, as she talks to her friends for a second, then trots over to Rarity to try to talk to her again. And, this time it seems that Rarity responds to Twilight.

But, as interesting as the conversation between them is, I have to get the crowd organized so that they can be in the best position to see Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Fluttershy as they come out, parade in among them, turn in front of Hoity Toity, return to the front porch, and take their positions there. With that in mind, I have my character stand up, put his copy of the Book of Mormon in his inventory, then walk to the front gate, then turn to the rest of the crowd; and I say, “Alright, everyone, here's how this is going to work. Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Fluttershy, if you'll follow Rarity and Twilight Sparkle into the house, you can go ahead and get dressed. Vin—uh, DJ Pon3—and Octavia, you go inside, get your instruments ready, then bring them out onto the front porch. You can take the side of the porch opposite where Scout is sitting. Hoity Toity, you can take your position in front of the gate here. Everyone else, if you'll make two lines, one on each side of the steps to the porch, as balanced as you can make them, just a step or two back away from the steps to give the five enough room to turn around in front of Hoity Toity, that should be enough.”

One thing I can't help noticing is that Weed Whacker and Lyra follow Vinyl Scratch and Octavia into the house. I wonder if they have their own roles to play in the fashion show, perhaps singing along with Vinyl and Octavia's performance? Also, Spike has followed the element bearers into the house. In the episode, “Suited for Success,” he serves as MC for the event. He'll serve the same purpose here. Beyond that, I help organize the rows of ponies so that they can get the best view as the Mane Six parade in front of them, turn in front of Hoity Toity, and return to the porch, where they'll take their positions. I then head inside to see how things are going with the element bearers and Vinyl and Octavia.

As my character turns and closes the front door, from behind him I hear Vinyl Scratch say, “I appreciate you using my stage name in front of Hoity Toity.” As my character turns to her, she continues, “I heard you catch yourself before you could call me by my real name. Thanks for that.”

I answer, “Well, since, for all intents and purposes, this is going to be a stage act, I figured calling you by your stage name would be the most appropriate.” I have my character look at Rarity helping her friends put their dresses on, then turn back to Vinyl; and I ask, “Do you think you'll be able to get your sound system through this door?”

The white, blue-haired unicorn mare answers, “Oh, sure. I can easily levitate it over the boxes and everything and everypony, so that shouldn't be a problem. I'll just need somepony to get the door for me.”

I state, “I can do that easily enough. And, what about Octavia? Could she get her cello through all this?”

Just then, I see Octavia dragging her cello out of my character's work room, and into the front room. As soon as she sees my character, she says, “Oh, Mormon. It's a good thing you're here. I could use your help getting my cello outside.”

As Vinyl Scratch enters the work room, I have my character maneuver his way around the ponies and boxes to Octavia's position as I say to her, “Sure, no problem. I'm happy to be of assistance.”

My character gets to where Octavia is, then picks up her cello, holds it over his head, then maneuvers through the labyrinth of boxes and ponies to the front door again, followed by the gray earth mare.

At the door, Octavia opens it and allows my character to maneuver his way, careful not to hurt the cello, out onto the porch. From there, he takes the string instrument and places it near the corner, just far enough away from the edge so that Octavia can sit in a chair and play her cello without threat of falling off the edge of the porch.

After that, I have my character go back to the front door. And, he's just in time to open the door to allow Vinyl Scratch, who's supporting her sound system over her head with her magic. As my character moves out of her way, the white, blue-haired unicorn comes out, her system following close behind her, and takes her place in front of Octavia and her cello on the porch.

I have my character go back inside to see, through his eyes, all of the element bearers, except for Rarity, in their dresses. As my character looks at each of them, I say, “Now, I'm thinking the best way for you to present yourselves is one at a time. Each one comes out, walks to Hoity Toity, then turns and walks back to the porch to take her position, before the next one comes out. Does that sound good to you?”

Rarity puts a front hoof under her chin, hums in slight uncertainty, then says, “You know, that just might work out the best.” She then puts the hoof down again as she adds, “I'll stay here to decide which pony should go out next, and where they should stand on the porch when they come back.”

Then, Spike says, “So, Rarity, if everypony's ready, I'll go out and get things started.”

I state, “Well, in that case, I'll go and take a position next to Hoity Toity, opposite his servant.”

As human and dragon head out the door, Spike takes his position on the second step down from the porch; and my character takes his position next to Hoity Toity, where I planned him to be.

As Vinyl Scratch and Octavia begin their version of “Light Up the Land,” I can't help noticing Vinyl has a rather interesting talent for making at least one of this turn tables sound like a song bird whistling.

As Lyra starts singing, Spike clears his throat and says, “Since the beginning of time, the elite of Equestria have longed for pony fashions that truly express the essence of their very souls, patiently waiting decades, no, centuries, for the perfect pony gown. Today, at long last, Equestria, your wait is over. Let's hear it for the breath-taking design of Ponyville's own, Rarity!”

The first to come out is Twilight. Personally, it seems to me that if Twilight was looking for modesty, she found it. The only parts of her that her dress doesn't hide are her head from the neck up, and her tail. And, it's evident the pentagram stars hovering over her head are being suspended by flexible wires or something like that.

As she makes her way down the stairs and toward Hoity Toity and my character, if she's nervous, she's hiding it well. Perhaps a foot away from Hoity Toity she makes a U-turn and heads back to the porch, near Scout.

Next is Rainbow Dash, with the dress Rarity made for her more streamlined and hovering somewhat above the ground. If I may say so, her dress has turned out pretty well.

She jumps off the porch, then immediately opens and flaps her wings, hovering for a moment, then flies to Hoity Toity, bows to him, then turns and flies back to the porch, where she lands in front of Vinyl's turntable.

As Rainbow Dash folds her wings and turns to face her audience, Applejack emerges from the doorway, also leaps over the steps, but just lands on the lawn just in front of them. Now that I've gotten a better look at her in her wardrobe, it seems to me she doesn't seem to be wearing a dress at all. To cover her torso, she wears overalls and a saddle bag, with what appears to be a patched-up tablecloth covering her cutie mark. At the base of her neck she wears a handkerchief, and a ten-gallon hat on her head. On her feet she wears what look to me like moon boots. But, after all, wasn't that part of her wardrobe in the first place?

She trots proudly to Hoity Toity's position, makes a U-turn approximately where Twilight did, then trots back to the porch, taking position next to Twilight.

For the time that Applejack was taking her turn I think everyone there could hear Pinkie Pie begging Rarity to let her go next. As Applejack takes her place next to Twilight, indeed it is Pinkie Pie who comes out next. As she, like Applejack and Rainbow Dash did, jumps off the porch and, more like Applejack, onto the lawn, all I can say about her dress is it's just the way I remembered it at the boutique, except it looks stranger with Pinkie Pie's head sticking out from the neck, and her hooves from underneath. Every other part of her is hidden.

Then, she makes herself and her dress look even stranger by bouncing up to my character and Hoity Toity, then bouncing five-hundred-forty degrees in the air, then bouncing back to and up the porch, where she takes her position next to Rainbow Dash.

Last of all is Fluttershy, who Rarity has to push from behind out the door. As she stumbles ungracefully off the porch and down the steps, flaring her wings out to keep from landing too painfully on the ground, I find the most eye-catching part of her wardrobe is the bird's nest on her head. And that is not in a good way. Her dress looks, to me anyway, like a glowing flower garden, which doesn't seem all that bad to me. And, the butterflies suspended above the nest have been replaced with or smooshed into flowers. On her hooves she wears what look like green slippers.

More timidly and slowly than the others, she ambles up to Hoity Toity, nods at him, then U-turns, then gallops back to the porch, where she takes her position next to Pinkie Pie.

As Spike cheers for Rarity and the dresses she made for each of her friends, I can't help noticing, through my character's eyes, looks of confusion on the ponies who've been members of the audience for this fashion show.

Then, there's Hoity Toity. As he rises and approaches the five ponies on the front porch, he groans and says, “Ugh, that amateurish design looks like a piled-on mishmash of everything but the kitchen sink.”

I think the reason why there are giggles through the audience is because Pinkie Pie says, “Shoot! I knew I forgot something.”

In the mean time, I have my character turn to the gray earth stallion, and I say, “Now, Hoity Toity, I'd like you to take into consideration that those 'amateurish designs' are exactly what Rarity's customers asked for.”

It's at this moment that I notice, from the edge of my character's periphery, Twilight looking down at her dress, then at those of her four friends on display, then, with an expression of foreboding and regret, says, “Oh, dear.”

Fluttershy asks, “Is something wrong, Twilight?”

Rainbow Dash asks, “Do you think we overdid it?”

At first, Applejack confidently answers, “Nah.” Then, she looks down at her boots, then looks up again with a worried expression on her face, and says, “Alright, maybe a little.”

In the mean time, Hoity Toity looks up at my character and asks, “And, that makes it alright to subject our eyes to these … horrors?” Again he turns to the ponies on the porch, then says, “I must know who is responsible for this travesty, not to mention wasting my valuable time.”

At this point, I can't blame my timber wolf friend for rising and growling. But, at the same time, I can't have him attacking any of my guests, no matter how rude he or she is being. So, I have my character turn to him while I say, “At ease, Scout.”

My timber wolf friend responds by settling down again and ceasing his growling.

With that potential problem settled before it could get started, I have my character turn to the gray earth stallion again, and I say, “It seems to me that your time here will only have been a waste if you can't find something constructive to say.”

That's when Spike says, “Come on out and take a bow, Rarity! You worked really hard for this.”

But, as the purple dragon cheers her on, Rarity ambles out onto the porch head lowered, either unwilling or unable to look at anything past what's inches in front of her. Once she's at the bottom of the steps and in front of her evident idol, she stammers, “Y-yes, Hoity Toity?” She sounds like she's expecting to be punished by her father.

At this point, I have my character tap his foot as I say, “Well?”

Oh, and, by the way, I might as well mention that the song performed by Octavia, Vinyl Scratch, Lyra, and Weed Whacker ended shortly after Fluttershy took her place on the porch.

At any rate, Hoity Toity snorts under his breath, then says, “Oh, alright! But, I must give these … things … a proper critiquing.” Then, I'm sure I hear him say, again under his breath, “You're worse than my father.” Then, as he passes in front of my character, seemingly ignoring Rarity, who still follows behind him, he approaches Rainbow Dash and, looking at her wardrobe more closely, says, “Well, this one is actually not so bad. Clearly it's been designed for a pegasa who's accustomed to flying, and is mindful of her own safety. Even the hat has an aerodynamic feel to it.”

In response, Rainbow Dash lifts up a front hoof and poses proudly.

Next, Hoity Toity examines Pinkie Pie's dress closely and says, "Ma'am, you could've at least unpacked your dress properly before putting it on. Or, after having worn it to a party, you could've properly cleaned it before wearing it again.”

Pinkie Pie responds by glaring at the gray earth pony and snarling, “Hey!”

I have my character hold out a hand, palm facing my pink pony friend, as I say, “Now, Pinkie Pie, calm down. It's alright.”

As Hoity Toity examines Fluttershy's wardrobe, Pinkie Pie grumbles under her breath, “Alright? I don't think so. He just ruined my fun.”

It's clear to me that Hoity Toity chooses to ignore Pinkie Pie as he says, “As for this dress, again it's not that bad. But, that bird's nest has to go.”

In response, Fluttershy lowers her head submissively, and carefully removes the nest from her head, leading me to wonder if those eggs are actually real.

In the mean time, Hoity Toity examines Applejack's wardrobe, then says, “This is what I was referring to as a mishmash of everything but the kitchen sink. How can anypony call this fashion? Oh, for shame.”

The look on Applejack's face tells how much the gray stallion's words hurt her. Unlike Pinkie Pie, Applejack removes her hat and, with sincere sadness in her voice says, “Ah'm sorry.”

Finally, Hoity Toity makes a close examination of Twilight's wardrobe, then says, “Well, the constellations are no doubt correct. But, you look like you're wearing a throw rug or a tapestry. Hang this on the wall, or put it on the floor; but take it off and never wear it again.”

Twilight's response is to remain silent and lower her head, while her ears twitch in different directions, reminding me of chameleon eyes. Evidently this has been a humbling experience for her.

Finally, Hoity Toity turns to the white, purple-haired unicorn and asks, “And, your name is?”

She quietly answers, “Rarity, sir.”

Hoity Toity asks, “And, you made these … things … based on what these five said they wanted?”

Rarity answers, “Yes, sir.” At this point, she's reminding me of Fluttershy.

Now, Hoity Toity puts a front hoof under Rarity's chin and gently pushes it upward, forcing Rarity to look into his face, as he asks, “Tell me, is this the best you can do?” And, when he says, “this,” he nods toward the five mares on the porch.

With some emphasis, Rarity answers, “No, sir.”

Hoity Toity releases Rarity's chin and places the hoof under him again, then says, “I shall stay here for one more day, and this time I want to see a real fashion show.” He then looks up at my character and says, “I did not get to my position without making a few mistakes of my own. I want you to remember that.”

I must admit, I'm surprised by Hoity Toity's last message to my character. Or, was he actually directing that message at Rarity, or himself?

In the mean time, I hear Pinkie Pie squeak, “Oh, Rarity.” It seems the pink party pony is no longer angry.

But, the fashion show is officially over.

As five of the element bearers enter my character's house to remove their dresses, and Octavia and Vinyl to put away their instruments; my character follows closely behind Rarity as she enters the house, but stops and watches her as she heads through the hallway connecting the front room to rooms in that direction, enters one of the rooms at the end of the hallway, and closes the door behind her. And, not long after that, we hear what I would consider excessive wailing coming from there.

Twilight's the first to take her dress off, with the help of her magic, and Pinkie Pie is the first she helps take off her dress.

When Pinkie Pie is no longer encumbered by her dress, she looks at my character and asks, tilting her head, “Do you think Rarity's gonna be alright?”

I answer, “I think she will be, eventually.”

Twilight says, “I hope so. I can't help feeling responsible.”

Rainbow Dash, who has had no problems removing her dress, asks, “Why? What did you do?”

As distraught as Twilight looks, I'm surprised she can focus well enough to put her and Pinkie's dresses back in their respective boxes. After she does, she says, “We're the ones who had Rarity make those dresses exactly the way we wanted them.”

In a lower tone, Rainbow Dash says, “Oh, that's right.” Then, she perks up and says, “Well, they weren't all bad. Hoity Toity did like my dress, and he also liked Fluttershy's dress.”

Pinkie Pie growls, “Well, he also said my dress should be 'properly unpacked' before I wear it. He made the fashion show not fun for me.”

Applejack, clearly upset, says, “Well, he was right about my work duds. They're great for workin' and buildin' stuff and harvestin', but puttin' a cape on 'em don't make 'em fittin' for the Gala.”

Fluttershy says, “I thought a hat made to look like a bird's nest would make my dress stand out more. Well, it did, just not in a good way.”

Twilight Sparkle says, “He said my dress looked like a throw rug or a tapestry. And, he's right. The constellations are correct, but it's better off on a wall or floor than on a pony.”

Applejack asks, “Well, shouldn't one of us at least go talk to Rarity?”

Fluttershy, having just removed her dress, answers, “I'll go talk to her.” And, with that, she proceeds to follow Rarity's path to the room she's now occupying.

Twilight, watching Fluttershy make her way to the room Rarity's occupying, says, “Well, we can't just leave her like this.”

Pinkie Pie says, “Yeah. She could become one of those crazy cat ladies.”

Twilight turns to her pink friend and says, “She's only got one cat, and that one isn't here.”

Pinkie Pie says, “Give her time.”

At this point, I have my character turn to my pink earth pony friend; and I ask, “Do you really want that to happen?”

At my question, Pinkie Pie lowers her head and says, “You're right, Mormon. I'm sorry.”

Just then, I hear a loud thump, then Fluttershy yelp, then the yellow pegasa flies back into the front room and hides behind my character.

Seeing this evident response from Rarity, I say, “Well, I guess that means Rarity's staying at my house tonight.”

By this time, even Applejack has managed to remove her dress completely and get it into its box.

Twilight, looking at each of her friends, including my character, says, “Well, I guess that means the four of us leave without her.” Then, she focuses on my character and says, “On behalf of all of us, including Rarity, thanks for hosting the fashion show. I'm sorry it didn't go very well.”

I answer, “Actually, it went better than I expected it to. I managed to get some constructive criticism from Hoity Toity, and we can hope that Rarity'll eventually take it that way.”

Twilight says, “Well, I hope she'll be a good guest for you. But, the rest of us need to be getting back to Ponyville. Since Rarity's the only one who can get into her boutique, can we leave our dresses with you tonight?”

I answer, “Sure. I'll have to move them somewhere so no one will trip over them, but that shouldn't be a problem.”

Before I can say more, Twilight uses her magic to stack the boxes along the wall connected to the hallway, while the others move out of the way, so the dress boxes will be least intrusive. After that, she uses her magic to open the door, then leads the way as Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash follow her outside. Then, as the other three make their way to the front gate, Twilight lingers behind to turn to my character and say, “Well, like I said, I hope Rarity proves to be a good guest. See you tomorrow.”

As my character follows the four ponies to the front gate, I say, “Thanks for stacking the boxes out of the way for me. Goodbye.” Then, I have my character open the front gate and allow the four to exit, then watch through my character's eyes as the four disappear into the forest.

As my character turns to see Pinkie Pie right behind him, she says, “I'm really worried about Rarity. Do you really think she'll be alright?”

I have my character open his arms to offer the pink earth pony a hug, which she accepts; then I say, “Like I said, I'm sure she'll be fine. Criticism isn't always the easiest to take, and it can hurt. But, I'm sure Rarity'll recognize the opportunity that's been opened up to her to recover from this apparent loss.”

Pinkie Pie sighs, then says, “I know you're right. I just wish I'd seen that this was gonna happen to one of my friends.”

Just then, the front door opens; and Lyra and Weed Whacker enter the house with fruits and vegetables fresh from my orchard, vineyard, and vegetable garden.

From this point on, as Pinkie Pie and my character enter the house, concern for Rarity dramatically reduces, except for her not coming to join us for dinner.

It's Lyra who puts some food on a plate and leaves it at the door to the room Rarity's occupying so she can eat in case she gets hungry.

After dinner, I find myself having trouble finding something to write to the princesses, other than the results of the fashion show, which I saw them attend, and the fact that Rarity's parents were there for the event but evidently didn't stay long afterwards. I know that Rarity will eventually recover, and her friends wil play a large roll in her recovery. But, that doesn't stop me from worrying about how I can help her right now. She is, after all, staying at my character's house.

Beyond that, I write about how I noticed that Lyra actually has a pretty good singing voice. Of course, I also take note that the princesses must've also noticed that, having been present at the fashion show. And, I'm sure they've noticed that Weed Whacker also has a good singing voice, but I write about that in the letter as well.

Having written all I can think to write at the moment, I roll the scroll up and deliver it to Weed Whacker, who sends it to the princesses. And, after that, my character returns to his room, then prepares for and goes to bed.

I've already voiced my concern for Rarity in my letter to the princesses. I'm sure there's something I can do to at least get her back to Ponyville. But, in the mean time, with my character going to sleep, I decide to save and close the game. So, until the game's tomorrow, when I continue.

Chapter 13: Rarity Addressin' Her Failure

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As I continue the game, once again my character wakes up to pounding on his door. But, this time, it's accompanied by the voice of Vinyl Scratch moaning, “Please, you've gotta do something about Rarity! She's been keeping Octy and me up all night with her incessant bawling!”

Isn't it interesting what we can find to respect about a character? For instance, who would've thought Rarity would have the energy to bawl for an entire night? Most children, that I've heard of anyway, cry for a few hours before exhausting themselves and going to sleep. I'm wondering if Rarity's mourning over the fashion show last night, which I honestly think didn't go anywhere near that badly. I did get some constructive criticism out of Hoity Toity before he left and returned to Ponyville, after all, and I'm sure Rarity and her friends could find something to work with from that.

I have my character get out of his bed and walk to and open his bedroom door, in time to see Pinkie Pie tackle the white, blue-haired unicorn. My character steps halfway out into the hallway to show me the pink, white, and blue wheel roll to a stop just before the kitchen.

Vinyl Scratch, looking up at the pink earth pony on top of her, says, “Uh, thanks, Pinks. But, I could've gotten out of the way without your help.”

Pinkie Pie says, “Well, you're safe now,” then bounces over the musical unicorn and into the kitchen.

Vinyl Scratch rolls onto her hooves again, then turns to my character, and says, “Now, about Rarity.”

I say, “Yeah, I'm sorry about that. Honestly, I couldn't hear her from my room. She's been crying all night?” Something I don't say out loud is that I honestly do think Rarity's overreacting. And, seeing Vinyl, it's clearly taken a toll on at least one of the other ponies living here.

The white, blue-haired unicorn answers, “All night. Octy and I tried sleeping in the kitchen. As quiet as it is in there, it's not comfy.”

I understand. Sleeping on a hard linoleum floor can't be very comfortable. And, having been driven there by a guest's overreacting to the criticism of her fashion show isn't fair to Vinyl Scratch and Octavia. I'm going to have to do something about it, and the sooner, the better. I tell Vinyl, “I'm gonna go deal with Rarity right now. Then, you and Octavia should be able to return to your room.” After that, I have my character walk past the evidently unstable unicorn and into the kitchen. And, then I get a look, through my character's eyes, at Octavia.

I must admit, I'm not surprised that her fur isn't that much of a mess. Typically, equine body fur is generally short, and not that easy to mess up. It's the hair on the tail and the head and neck that's longer and more difficult to take care of. And, Octavia's mane and tail are the most tangled and messy I've seen on an equine. As she slowly turns to look at my character, I dare say she almost looks possessed, or at least how I'd imagine a possessed Equestrian pony would look. As uncomfortable as a linoleum floor can be, somehow I have trouble believing it could treat a pony, or any equine for that matter, that badly. Of course, then again, there's also the table and chairs that could've been obstacles to Octavia and Vinyl getting a good night's sleep.

Before she can say anything, I have my character raise a hand to her, palm facing toward her, as I say, “It's alright, Octavia. Like I said to Vinyl, I'm gonna deal with Rarity now. You and Vinyl can get back to sleeping in your own room, in your own beds, as soon as possible.” I then have my character open the door to the kitchen, walk through it, then close the door behind him, then make his way to the room where I remember Rarity decided to stay. Once there, I have my character knock on the door as I say, “Alright, Rarity, we need to talk!”

As my character approached her room, I could hear her moaning getting louder and louder. Now, in response to my statement, I hear her howl, “Oh, just leave me alone! Can't you see I just wanna be left alone?”

I answer, “Well, if that's what you want, then you've come to the wrong place! And, you've been keeping my other guests up all night! Now, either you open this door right now, or I'll open it!”

I hear Rarity wail, “Oh, but you can't! I'm not descent!”

I call out, “You're not a human, either! Now, are you gonna open this door, or am I?”

I hear Rarity moan, “Ah, what do you care? You're just a human!”

Taking that as an invitation, I have my character turn the doorknob and open the door. As my character enters the room, I see Rarity stretched out on her back on the bed, her back half aimed at the door.

She rolls over on her front, then turns to my character and says, “Well, I hope you're happy now. Because of you, … “

Before she can continue her rant, I interrupt and say, “Because of me, you and your friends got some constructive criticism from that hoity toity fashion expert. Now, he's waiting for you back in Ponyville. And, you're gonna get yourself fixed up and ready to go back to your boutique. That, or you can whimper and whine your way through the Everfree forest on your own without any preparation. Either way, I have some guests that need their sleep.”

At this point, Rarity rises and turns to face my character, then sits canine-style, then says, “B-b-but, … “

I have my character back out of the doorway and stand to the side so Rarity has an easy path through the hallway as I say, “Either the bathroom first, or straight through the forest. But, you have to choose now!”

For a moment I see, through my character's eyes, fear flash in her humanized equine face, then she rises again and steps forward and drops off the bed, then trots toward and past my character, as she says, “Oh, alright.” The good news is at least she isn't bawling anymore.

As she trots past my character, I have him kneel on one knee as I say, “I'm sorry I have to treat you this way. But, I do have other guests to think about. And, I do believe you've been overreacting to this whole thing with the fashion show.” I guess I have suggested, the way I used his name, my belief that Hoity Toity was appropriately named.

In the mean time, as Rarity makes her way past my character, she says, “I … I'm … heading to the bathroom.”

I have my character rise again as I say, “Good. When you're ready to come out, we'll have some fruits and vegetables ready to eat for breakfast. And, when that's done, you and me and Pinkie Pie and Lyra and Weed Whacker are heading back to Ponyville through the Everfree forest together. When we get back there, you can head to your boutique, where you can do whatever you want. But, as I remember, you did tell Hoity Toity that you could do better than the dresses your friends wanted you to make for them. I'm thinking that's a good place to start.” I have no more to say to Rarity, which is just as well since she's reached and entered the bathroom now.

I order my character to return to the kitchen, where the first thing I see is a horrified Lyra staring at Octavia, who still looks possessed, sitting at the table. I have my character turn from her to Pinkie Pie, as I say, “Well, Pinkie, seeing that neither fruits nor vegetables have been gathered yet, I suggest you and Lyra join me outside so we can gather some food for breakfast.” Of course, that's when I notice Vinyl Scratch on the opposite side of the table from Octavia.

Vinyl turns to my character and asks, “Uh, by the way, Mormon—“

Before she can finish asking her question, I say, “You want to know about Rarity?” I don't wait for Vinyl to answer, but I still notice her nod as I continue, “She's in the bathroom next to my work room right now, either taking a bath or a shower. After breakfast, she'll be joining me, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker on our way back to Ponyville.”

I'm guessing, from Vinyl's sigh of relief, that she thought I might've done something cruel to Rarity, maybe attacked her in some way. Whatever her thoughts were on the matter, she looks up at my character again and asks, “And, that means, … ?”

I conclude, “It means that once breakfast is over, you and Octavia can get some sleep in your own room.”

Now, again Octavia slowly turns to my character, but this time she asks, “May I go and get some sleep now?”

I answer, allowing my character to focus on her, “If you want, then sure, go right ahead.” As I have my character move aside and allow the gray earth mare to amble past him and to her and Vinyl's room, what I don't say, what I feel I don't need to say, is that she likely won't hear anymore of Rarity's bawling.

In the mean time, Vinyl turns to my character, yawns, and says, “I think I'd better hit the hay too. Me and Octy'll have breakfast later.” And, with that, like Octavia, she falls out of her chair, then ambles past my character, through the front room, and to her and Octavia's bedroom, following her friend.

I watch the two mares as they wander to their bedroom, then I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie and Lyra again; and I say, “Well, I guess that means it'll just be the four, uh, five of us, including Rarity, that'll be having breakfast before heading back to Ponyville.” I then have my character focus on Lyra as I say, “So, shall we go out and get some fruits and vegetables?”

When the pale-green unicorn doesn't immediately respond, I have my character take a step or two toward her and reach out and set a hand on her back as I ask, “Lyra?”

As it turns out, my saying her name and my character touching her happen at the same time, resulting in Lyra rearing up on her hind legs and whinnying in alarm. When she drops onto all fours again, she looks up at my character and says, “Oh, Mormon, you scared me.”

I can't help laughing as I say, “That's alright. When you didn't answer me at first, you had me scared, too.”

Lyra says, “Sorry about that. I just never saw an earth pony look the way Octavia did.”

I state, “I know what you mean. Let's go outside and get some food gathered, and we'll come back inside and get it ready. Vinyl and Octavia are sleeping in their room. So, it'll just be you, Weed Whacker, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and me who'll be having breakfast, after which we'll be heading for Ponyville.”

Lyra nods in agreement; Pinkie Pie manages to bounce from her chair, on the opposite side of the table from my character, to him without getting hurt or hurting him or Lyra, and the group of three head out to harvest fruits and vegetables for breakfast for seven creatures.

Pinkie Pie bounces into the orchard, and Lyra heads to the vegetable garden, leaving my character to head to the vineyard to gather fruits from there.

As my character reaches out to grab a ripe-looking kiwi fruit from the vine, I hear Weed Whacker's voice say, “No need to worry. I've already got some of those.” As my character turns and focuses on the herbivorous dinosaur, she continues, “If you want to help, you can get some grapes from the vine over there,” and points to the nearby grape vine.

I have my character nod while I ask, “How long have you been out here?”

Weed Whacker answers, “Oh, long enough to get enough of those furry fruits for the seven of us.” She then asks, “So, how's Rarity?”

As my character examines a cluster of grapes, I answer, “I'm sure she'll be fine. When Lyra, Pinkie Pie and I left the house, she was in the bathroom across from Octavia and Vinyl's bedroom, taking a bath or a shower. Oh, and Octavia and Vinyl are back in their room getting some sleep. It seems that Rarity was bawling all night, keeping them awake.”

Weed Whacker sighs, then says, “I didn't think she'd take the problems at the fashion show like that. After all, that Hoity Toity earth pony liked the dress she made for Rainbow Dash, and the one she made for Fluttershy. The one he really didn't like was Applejack's … dress?”

I can't help chuckling over how Weed Whacker paused before saying “dress” that last time. And, she didn't seem sure about what it was that Applejack had worn, either. Personally, if I'd had to guess, Applejack might not have known how to take the coming event at Canterlot Castle seriously. Not surprising, considering this will be her first time attending an event like the Grand Galloping Gala.

In the mean time, while I'm lost in such thoughts, my character harvests maybe two or three clusters of grapes, after which he and Weed Whacker, along with Pinkie Pie, who for the harvesting has evidently been controlled by Diane, and Lyra, head back to the house.

By the time the four get back to the house, Pinkamena has taken control of Pinkie Pie again.

Once back in the kitchen, the four join forces to prepare the harvest for breakfast. And, they're finished with their preparations just in time for Rarity to join them in the kitchen.

Considering there are five having breakfast, the group moves into the front room so all can have comfortable seating while they eat. And, it's agreed, during the breakfast, that some should be left, best in the fridge, for Octavia and Vinyl when they get up and are ready to eat. And, it's Rarity who writes the letter for the two of them, and leaves it on the table in the kitchen.

After that, and the cleanup, Rarity decides she wants to take the dresses she'd made for Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie back with the group, since Pinkie Pie had only shot her dress with her party cannon with no permanent damage caused, and Hoity Toity seemed to like Rainbow Dash's and Fluttershy's dresses the best. If Twilight Sparkle and Applejack want to retrieve their wardrobes after the evening's reading, they're welcome to do so.

The trip back to Ponyville takes a half hour, then it's a minute or two of further travel before the group arrives at Carousel Boutique.

But, the group doesn't arrive before overhearing a conversation between Carrot Top and Berry Punch, in reference to the fashion show my character had hosted at his house.

Berry Punch talks about how she liked the dresses Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy wore, then makes a negative comment about Applejack's wardrobe.

Carrot Top responds by saying something about how Applejack was never interested in fashion, at which the two ponies laugh.

Then, the two make rude comments about Twilight Sparkle's dress, echoing Hoity Toity's remarks about Applejack's wardrobe.

I'm unable to ignore the effect the comments are clearly having on the white unicorn mare I've guided back to her boutique.

But, before I can respond to the comments, to my surprise, it's Pinkie Pie who I hear say, “Hey! Those are my friends you're talking about!”

My character turns to Pinkie Pie to show me, through his eyes, the pink earth pony digging at the ground with a front hoof, watching two evidently regretful other earth ponies, one orange, the other a purple-red color.

I see Berry Punch say, “We're sorry, Pinkie. We didn't know you could hear us.”

In response, Pinkie Pie gallops a few paces towards the two as she screams, “Just go, go, go, go, go!”

The two earth mares don't say anything more, just turn and gallop away from the evidently furious Pinkie Pie.

The pink party pony then turns to the white unicorn next to my character and asks, “Are you alright, Rarity?” And, I can see genuine concern in Pinkie Pie's face.

As my character turns to Rarity, I can see her eyes are tightly closed, and evidently have been for the time of the exchange between her pink friend and the other two earth ponies. Finally, she opens her eyes again and says, “Y-yes. Thanks, P-pinkie.” Then, she turns to my character and asks, “M-mormon, could you please h-help me with the d-door?”

I say nothing as my character pushes the door open for Rarity, allowing the three ponies, the human, and the dinosaur to enter.

Once the five are inside and the double doors close behind them, Rarity manages to put the box she was carrying next to the stair case in front of one of the equine mannequins. She doesn't turn to look at the rest of the four as she stammers, “W-w-will y-you … j-just p-p-put … I-I-I … “ Presently she runs up the stairs, along the hallway, then pauses long enough to use her magic to open the door at the end of the hallway, then gallops inside, then closes the door behind her. At that point, we hear Rarity once again start bawling.

Just then, the double doors open behind us; and the rest of the element bearers and Spike enter.

Twilight asks, “Is Rarity alright? We just saw Pinkie Pie chase off two other ponies, and we came to see what happened.”

I answer, “She just ran upstairs to her room. All of us overheard what Berry Punch and Carrot Top said, and Rarity's taking it pretty hard.” I then have my character put the box he's holding, which, as I remember, holds Fluttershy's dress, on top of the box Rarity was holding with her magic all the way here, as I say, “Pinkie Pie and I just have to put these boxes down.” I then have my character take the box from Pinkie Pie back and put it on top of the stack of boxes.

Then, while Twilight delays long enough to use her magic to take the two boxes stacked on the box Rarity'd placed and places them side-by-side, Pinkie Pie runs past her up the stairs and to the door Rarity'd entered.

The rest of the assembled group follows Pinkie Pie, led by Twilight, until all are at the door.

At this point, Pinkie Pie knocks and asks, “Rarity, are you okay in there? You haven't come out for days.”

Whether this is actually true in the cannon of the animated series or not, it's clearly an extreme exaggeration in this game.

At any rate, Rarity answers, “I'm never coming out! I can't show my face in Ponyville ever again! I used to be somepony. I used to be respected. I made dresses, beautiful, beautiful dresses. But now, everypony is laughing at me. I'm nothing but a laughing stock!”

As the white unicorn lets out a melodramatic wail, Twilight Sparkle says, “You're not a laughing stock, Rarity.”

Then, Rainbow Dash says, “She kind of is.”

After shushing her rainbow-haired pegasa friend, Twilight Sparkle pleads, “Come on out and talk to us.”

In response, we hear Rarity wail, “Leave me alo-ho-ho-ho-ho-hone! I want to be alone! I want to wallow in … whatever it is a pony's supposed to wallow in!” For a moment she pauses her crying to think aloud, “Are we supposed to wallow in pity?” before continuing, “Oh, listen to me! I don't even know what I'm supposed to wallow in! I'm just pathe-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-etic!”

Twilight waits for a second before she asks, “Now what do we do?”

Fluttershy asks, “Panic?”

Rainbow Dash turns to her fellow pegasa and says, “That's your answer for everything!”

At this point, I say, “Well, the good news is she's bawling in her own home. This way, she won't be keeping my guests up all night.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie growl under her breath, “Mormon.”

My character turns to her, and I answer, “You're right, Pinkie, I'm not helping. I'm sorry.”

Now, Applejack says, “Well, we can't just leave Rarity like this.”

Pinkie Pie says, “She—“ then pauses and puts a front hoof over her mouth. Evidently she remembers the brief exchange she and I had the night before. After a second, she puts the hoof down again and, turning to her fellow earth pony, says, “You're right, Applejack. There must be something we can do.”

At this point, Twilight turns and walks past my character to Rarity's work room and looks into the keyhole. After a second or two, she hums with curiosity and says, “You know what, Pinkie, I think you're right. Maybe there is something we can do.”

Then, I can't help but laugh when Pinkie Pie bounces a few times as she says, “Yes, I'm right, I'm right, I'm right,” then stops bouncing and puts a hoof to her chin, the same one she used to cover her mouth before, and quietly asks, “Wait, what am I right about?”

Not bothering to answer Pinkie Pie's question, Twilight opens the door to Rarity's work room, takes a step or two inside, then comes back out carrying a dressed-up equine mannequin with her magic. She then closes the door behind her with more of her magic, turns to her friends, and says, “Let's get going. We have a surprise to prepare.”

As five ponies and two dragons follow the purple unicorn down the hall and down the stairs, I notice something she seems to have missed. I have my character start to follow Twilight as well, and I say, “I think you may be missing something.”

Twilight Sparkle pauses to turn and look at my character before she asks, “What's that, Mormon?”

I answer, “Didn't Rarity have something of a blueprint in her work room?”

Twilight grunts in confusion, then Applejack says, “Ah wonder if Mormon's a'thinkin' 'bout that picture Rarity had on her wall.”

Then, Rainbow Dash says, “That's right! I got a good look at it when I crashed through the roof in her work room.” Immediately, she flies down to the front door and exits through it, but not before turning to the rest of the group and saying, “I'll be right back.” Then, a moment later, she appears at the front door again holding in her mouth the pencil-drawn picture of an equine mannequin wearing a complete, flashy dress.

I have my character nod, and I say, “That's what I was talking about.”

Now, Fluttershy flies over to Rainbow Dash to have a better look at the picture the blue pegasa's holding. After looking at it for a few seconds, then turning to the dress on the mannequin still possessed by Twilight's magic, she nods and smiles as she says, “Rarity's already done most of the work. It shouldn't take long for us to finish putting it together.”

At Fluttershy's announcement, Twilight Sparkle says, “Excellent.” She then turns to my character and says, “If you and Lyra will stay here and keep an eye on Rarity, we'll see about getting the surprise ready.”

As Twilight, Spike, Pinkie Pie and Applejack make their way down the stairs and, joined by Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, make their way outside, Weed Whacker lingers behind and says, “Well, if you and Lyra are staying here to take care of Rarity, I'd better stay here too.”

At this point, I decide to see if I can do something to encourage Rarity to leave her room. I have my character approach the door. Then, when he's there, I say, “It seems to me you're blowing this way out of proportion. You can't let the opinion of two earth ponies out on the street get you down like this.”

I hear Rarity's voice retort, “Those 'earth ponies out on the street' are friends of yours, are they not?”

I answer, “Well, that is true.”

Rarity continues, “They've been attending your readings ever since the parasprite incident. So, their opinion should matter as much to you as anypony else. And, you may not think so, but everypony in town listens to those two.” She then lets out another melodramatic wail before she says, “Oh, my career is ruined! Ruined, I tell you! Ruined!”

I have my character turn to Lyra and Weed Whacker as I say, “Well, it was worth a shot. Do the opinions of Carrot Top and Berry Punch really mean that much in this town?”

Lyra and Weed Whacker shrug, leaving us with nothing more to say for the next few minutes. So, the ponies and human just settle in silence at that door, in front of the room Rarity's hiding in.

Then, I hear Rarity say, “Exile. I guess technically I'd have to move away to be in exile. Where would I go, and what would I pack? Oh, it'd take me forever to do all of that packing. What are you supposed to pack when you go into exile? Are you supposed to pack warm?”

At this point, I know that Rarity's cat, Opalescence, having been stranded in a tree by Rainbow Dash, is starting to cry right now, even if I can't hear it in my character's present position. Even if Lyra and Weed Whacker can't hear it, I know that's what's happening when I hear Rarity ask, “Opal, is that you?”

Knowing what's going to happen, I have my character stand up and take a step or two away from the door, as I say to my unicorn and dinosaur friends, “You'd better get out of the way. Rarity's gonna come bursting out that door—“

And, right on cue, Rarity comes bursting out of the door, past the three of us, along the hallway, down the stairs, and to and out the front door, in a mad dash to rescue her cat.

Fortunately, Lyra and Weed Whacker jumped out of the way of the moving door, thus managing to escape being trampled by the rampaging unicorn.

Even my character managed to escape without being harmed.

As I look at my two friends, I say, “Let's follow her outside. Something tells me her surprise is ready for her.”

The three make it outside and to Rarity's position just in time to catch her surprised expression when the other five of the element bearers reveal the completed dress to her.

As the three approach, I hear Rarity fumble her words, then conclude with a grunt of mixed surprise and confusion.

Pinkie Pie says, pointing to the dress, “We all finished your dress for you!”

Applejack adds, “Thanks to Fluttershy's freaky knowledge of sewin'.”

Then, Fluttershy asks, “Do you like it?”

I know what Rarity's answer is going to be, but I still find it fun to watch her answer, and to watch her friends respond to her answer.

Since I, through my character's eyes, can't see her face from his present angle, I can only say for certain that I hear her say, “Like it?” Then, when she circles around behind the mannequin and the dress, I do get a look at her face the second time she says, “Like it?” But, I can't honestly say that I'm able to read her thoughts in her expression.

A concerned Fluttershy says, “Uh-oh, she doesn't like it.”

At this point, I know the white unicorn is just feigning disappointment when she, with closed eyes, says, “No, I don't like it.” Then, after her friends groan sadly, she turns around and, with excitement in her voice, says, “I love it!”

Now, her friends cheer in, I'm sure, equal parts excitement and relief.

Rarity continues, “You ponies did an amazing job. It's exactly the way I imagined it.”

Fluttershy states, “We just followed your brilliant design.”

Twilight adds, “Like we should've let you do for our dresses. Those first dresses you designed were perfect.”

I hear the sincerity in Pinkie Pie's voice as she says, “We're so super sorry.”

Then, Rainbow Dash, carrying Rarity's cat down from the tree, says, “You worked really hard to make our dresses exactly the way we wanted. And, we all saw the way that turned out.”

At this point, I decide to speak up and say, “Now, as I remember, not all the dresses were failures. Hoity Toity seemed to like Rainbow Dash's dress. And, the only thing he found wrong with Fluttershy's dress was that bird's-nest hat. He also said that Pinkie Pie's dress just needed some cleanin' up.”

I then watch, through my character's eyes, as Applejack looks down regretfully and draws circles in the ground as she says, “Yeah, then there was my dress.” She stops drawing the circles and looks up at Rarity and says, “Like Twilight said, we should've just gone with your first dresses.”

Now, Rainbow Dash, still focused on Rarity, speaks up again and says, “Yeah, I don't know. You did manage to make my dress about twenty percent cooler.”

Rarity responds, “Yes, but only after Mormon got the information I needed out of you. In fact, it was Mormon's idea that I keep the original designs for the dresses.”

Now, Twilight says, “I do seem to remember Mormon saying something about that before he left your work room.”

I state, “I'm glad I could help.”

Then, Rarity complains, “But, my whole career is still ruined!”

I open my mouth to say something, but Applejack beats me to it as she says, “Oh, right, that.”

I then notice Twilight turn to the boutique before she says, “Maybe not.”

My character follows Twilight's gaze to Hoity Toity, standing at the front doors, as he says, “Oh, alright. But, you'd better have something for me this time, Rarity. I haven't got all day.”

An excited squeal from Rarity draws my character's attention to her. I then watch, through his eyes, as she says, “I still have the original dresses. Come. Let's get dressed and ready for another fashion show.” Her choice of words and her tone of voice clearly demonstrate a pony charged with excitement.

As the element bearers disappear into the boutique, I hear Rainbow Dash say something about wanting to keep her dress the way it is, and Pinkie Pie saying something about letting Rarity clean up her dress.

I have my character turn to Hoity Toity, and I say, “I'm sure you'll be more than satisfied with what you see this time.” I then plot a course for my character back into the boutique, then have him gesture for Hoity Toity to follow him.

As my character follows the course, and the gray earth stallion nods and follows my character, he, that is Hoity Toity, says, “Let's hope so. I'd rather not have a repeat of last night's disaster.”

I find myself inclined to agree with Hoity Toity, but I know what's going to happen. As I've mentioned before, this day, as well as the previous day, are based on the episode “Suited for Success,” and I know the episode ends with Rarity and her friends displaying the dresses Rarity had originally made for her friends, as well as the dress Rarity's friends have just completed for her. In this case, though, there will be some slight changes. Rainbow Dash, this time, will be coming out in her modified dress; and Fluttershy will be coming out in just her dress, minus the birds nest. Also, it's evident that it doesn't take long for Rarity to clean the confetti and streamers off of Pinkie Pie's dress.

Then, while Rarity's friends are putting on the dresses Rarity had made for them: the originals for Twilight and Applejack, Fluttershy and her French old couture without the hat, Rainbow Dash and her twenty-percent-cooler dress, and Pinkie Pie and her cleaned-up original; Rarity comes out and uses her magic to take out materials and build the stage, as well as the catwalk, for her friends. Then, after that, she disappears under the stage; and I hear a door open and close behind it.

I seem to remember, after following the Mane Six into the boutique, watching them enter a room on the main floor, the central door next to the mannequin that'd evidently been moved aside hastily. I'm guessing they'll be heading on up the stage from the room connected to that door.

In the mean time, a few minutes later, as Hoity Toity, Lyra, Weed Whacker and my character see Rarity reappear, this time on the stage, Hoity Toity says, “Take two.”

The room darkens as Spike closes the curtains in front of the windows.

Then, with all the windows closed, the room brightens again, this time due to the magical aura and sparks coming from Rarity's horn.

It seems that Rarity's flare for the dramatic is good for more than just melodrama as she puts on a light show of five-cornered stars that introduces Twilight as she appears in the dress Rarity had first made for her. And, just like in the episode, its a display of falling stars in a nighttime sky that hides Twilight's coming out on the stage, and stars appear to catch on her dress as her audience finally notices her.

In the episode, Hoity Toity was convinced he was seeing the works of a different artist. In this game, at least in this playthrough, I know why he said, “Hello. Oh, this can't be the same designer.” For all intents and purposes, it isn't.

Next, we see the orchards of Sweet Apple Acres, while a lasso from seemingly nowhere grabs an apple and pulls it off a tree. This is clearly and effectively a distraction for Twilight to leave the stage, and for Applejack to enter; and, when her audience finally does notice her, she rears up on her hind legs and kicks her front legs excitedly.

As she lands and takes a pose of confidence, Hoity Toity says, “Simply magnificent! And, I suddenly have a fierce craving for some Dutch apple pie, candied apples on a stick, … “ He names a few other apple-related treats as another light display begins.

This time clouds appear, ranging in differing shades of purple up to white, as various candies fall from them. Yet another distraction for Applejack to leave the stage, and for Pinkie Pie to take her place. Candy corns and small lollypops fall onto her dress, then she sticks out her tongue to grab a gum drop, which she eats as she smiles happily.

In response, Hoity Toity says, “Brilliant!”

But, before he can say more, he's surprised by a flash of multi-colored light, and another transition allows Pinkie Pie to leave the stage and Rainbow Dash to take her place. This time, white cirrus clouds are shown quickly covering a blue sky and the sun, then six openings in the clouds allow beams of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple light, in that order, to escape. They then connect to the base of the rainbow-haired pegasa, who hovers for a second or two, although she appears to fly, then lands on the stage in a confident pose, not unlike that of Applejack.

Hoity Toity responds to the display by squealing, “Oh, spectacular!”

Then, it seems to be a case of the vine intervention which keeps the gray earth stallion from saying anything more. The vines then end in buds that flower. Each flower then releases its petals in an explosion, another effective distraction while Rainbow Dash leaves the stage and is replaced by Fluttershy, who appears in a garden of flowers and hanging vines, which subsequently disappear.

Again Hoity Toity squeals, this time saying, “Now, this is a fashion show!” His voice then lowers an octave as he says, “Oh, these dresses are absolutely amazing. Who is responsible? Step forward, show yourself!”

And, with one more display from Rarity's horn, she appears on the catwalk of the stage, showing off a disco-style light show, as the curtains behind her open to reveal her five friends in their dresses.

Then, as Rarity marches toward Hoity Toity, he cheers, “Oh, bravo, bravo! Magnifico! Encore!”

And, for once, I find myself gaining respect for him as I watch him applaud like a human. I just have to wonder, how does he keep himself balanced on his backside while he's doing that?

In the mean time, Rarity says, “Oh, thank you! Thank you! Oh, thank you so much!”

As Spike opens the curtains again, allowing light to enter the boutique once more, Hoity Toity turns to my character and says, “Your name is Mormon, is it not?”

I answer, “That's correct.”

Hoity Toity continues, “Mormon, I'd be honored to come to one more of your readings, if you'll allow me.”

I answer, “You are quite welcome to come to any future readings that you want. There's always a place for you.”

As I watch the element bearers leave the stage from behind, and Rarity dismantle the stage and put it in storage again, I can't help remembering the lessons that seem to have been learned from this experience. Rarity's lesson seems to have been that in the process of pleasing everyone sometimes no one ends up pleased, not even the one trying to please everyone. Twilight's lesson, as she will record to Princess Celestia, is not to look a gift horse in the mouth. Good lessons to learn, although I question the circumstances in which they were taught.

Personally, when I consider the lesson Rarity apparently learned from this experience, it seems to me it could've been better taught in a political arena, as opposed to making clothes for friends. In Rarity's case, when she modified or completely remodeled the dresses, then finally revealed them, her friends, in so many words, said they were pleased with what they saw. But, it was the original dresses, at least those of Twilight, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie, that pleased Rarity, and later Hoity Toity. And, come to think of it, they were rather demanding of what they wanted to see in their dresses. But, Rarity was more than willing to comply with their demands.

Perhaps Twilight's lesson was appropriately learned after all. Over all, if this were a real experience and not just an event from an animated series or a video game, if I had been in Rarity's place, I'm sure I would've come out of it with a better understanding of my friends, and they might've come out of it understanding me better. All in all, if this were real, I'd imagine Rarity and her friends must've come out of it closer than they were before.

In the mean time, with the pathway clear, Hoity Toity makes his way to the central door; and my character and two friends follow him as they enter the dressing room behind the door.

Twilight Sparkle is dictating her letter to Princess Celestia, while Spike writes it down, and Pinkie Pie is talking to Fluttershy, while Applejack and Rainbow Dash also talk.

When the letter is complete, and Spike sends it off; Hoity Toity turns and canters to Rarity and asks if he can put her best dress designs (that or her dung, perhaps?) on display in his boutique in Canterlot. Then, when she agrees to that, he requests ten copies of each dress so he can sell them.

At that invitation, the nervous tic in Rarity's eye makes a comeback; and I have to wonder if she's about to lose consiousness. But, she snaps out of it in time to agree; but only if he'll allow extra time for her to complete the order. Honestly, I'm not surprised when she explains that she would rather not have the dresses displayed until after the Grand Galloping Gala, where she plans on having the dresses revealed.

I am surprised, though, when Hoity Toity agrees to the request. But, on the other hand, I'm guessing he only wants the highest-quality clothing in his boutique, at the very least in appearance.

Then, with that out of the way, the ponies, dragon, and human watch the gray earth stallion make his way out of the dressing room.

Afterwards, while Rarity proceeds to help Pinkie Pie out of her dress, Applejack approaches me and says, “Rarity, Fluttershy and Ah like to take our pets out to the park in town and play with 'em. We've noticed you have a pet, Mormon, and we were a'wonderin' if you'd like to join us. Once we've taken these dresses off, we'll get our pets and head out to the park. So, you wanna come with?” She ends her invitation with something of a weak smile.

I must admit, I'm concerned about how a timber wolf and a dog would interact, even if they are in a fictional environment. I'm fully aware that Applejack's pet is Winona the dog, Rarity's is Opalescence the cat, and Fluttershy's is Angel the rabbit. Pinkie Pie also has her pet alligator, who she named Gummy. Later on, Twilight Sparkle will get a pet owl, who she'll call Owlowiscious. And, last of all, Rainbow Dash will get a tortoise who she'll call Tank. Even Spike will get a pet phoenix, who he'll name Peewee. But, right now I have to concern myself with the present pets.

I decide to say, “Sounds interesting. I might just decide to bring Scout with me.” Then, as I see, through my character's eyes, the orange earth mare smile, I add, “Oh, by the way, Pinkie Pie also has a pet. Have you invited her yet?”

Applejack answers, “Well, as a matter of fact, Ah already have. She suggested Ah invite you to join us.”

I seem to surprise Applejack when I have my character kneel on one knee in front of her and say, “There's one thing that concerns me, though. What game do you usually play with your pet?”

In fact, it seems the entire room quiets down before Applejack answers, “Well, Ah usually play fetch with Winona.”

Choosing my tone carefully so that I don't sound like I'm accusing Applejack of anything, I continue, “And, how do you play fetch?”

As careful as I am with my words and tone, I notice Applejack still seems apprehensive as she answers, “Well, Ah grab a stick, and … Ah … “ Her voice trails off, and after a few seconds she just says, “Oh.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie's voice approaching as she says, with concern, “That's right.” My character's attention is drawn to her as she continues, “Scout is a timber wolf, and is made of sticks.”

At this point, Applejack takes a step back, then looks down as she says, “Ah'm sorry, Mormon. Ah should'a realized.”

I have my character turn back to her, and I reply, “Now, it's alright, you haven't offended me. I appreciate the invitation. I just wonder, have you ever played fetch using anything other than sticks?”

Applejack looks up at my character again and asks, “Like what, Mormon?”

I ask, “Have you ever thrown a disc or something like that?”

Now, Applejack tilts her head and asks, “What, you mean like a plate?” Before I can answer, she straightens her head again and laughs a little before saying, “Ah really don't think that's such a good idea. If'n Ah threw one of our plates, and Winona did catch it, Ah'm afraid it'd be too heavy for her. It could hurt her.”

I ask, “What if I were to bring a couple of light-weight discs with me? Would you be willing to use one of those to play fetch with Winona?”

At this, Applejack sits down canine-style and hums with interest for a moment, looking away from my character, then looks at him again and says, “You know, it might be worth givin' it a try.”

I have my character stand up again as I say, “Alright, then. Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker and I will head back to my house, and we'll get our pets, and I'll get a couple discs, and we'll meet in the park. I'll even show you how we humans use the disc. Is that alright?”

At my question, Applejack nods and, smiling, says, “Well, sure. Just as long as Winona's willin', and it don't hurt her.”

At this point, I don't see any reason to say more than “Alright,” then to turn to my friends and call out, “Lyra, Weed Whacker, Pinkie Pie, let's get going!” before having my character, leading the two ponies and one dinosaur, head out of the dressing room, then the boutique altogether, and head through and out of Ponyville, then back through the forest and to his house to gather the pets and discs. The one problem is my character has no such discs in his house or inventory. I'm going to have to model and copy a disc, then place the two in my character's work room for him to put in his inventory. And, I'll have to make the discs different colors to keep from confusing Scout and Winona.

After half an hour, give or take a few minutes, my character and his three friends arrive at his house, where he opens the gate for them to enter, then closes it behind them and himself, then does the same to the front door to the house.

After that, Pinkie Pie follows my character into his work room, then closes the door behind them before turning to him and saying, “I'm gonna go out and leave you alone while you exit and save your game, then make the discs for you and Applejack. We'll be waiting for you in the front room when you get back.” And with that, like she said, she opens the door again, then walks out of it, then closes the door behind her.

I don't know any more if it surprises me that Pinkie Pie knows exactly what I plan to do. But, it doesn't matter to me right now. I have my character focus on the table where I plan to have the discs when I come back to the game, then I close and save it.

The discs didn't take that long to make. All that was required was taking a cylinder, making it wide and thin, then maybe an extrusion or two to shape it like a Frisbee, except without edges that might snag on a herbivore's teeth too much. After giving it a simple spin animation, then exporting it in .X format from the modeling program, I place it in the proper “objects” folder, then place two copies of the disc on the work table in front of my character, a red one for Applejack and Winona, and a blue one for my character and Scout; after which I resume the game.

As soon as I have control of my character, I have him place the discs in his inventory, then leave the work room and meet up again with Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker in the front room. Seeing the three there, I say, “I'm thinking it may be a good idea to have a bit of a practice session with Scout before the six of us go back to Ponyville.”

Just then, I hear a door open behind my character, at which point he turns to show me, through his eyes, Vinyl Scratch coming out, somewhat unstable on her feet, yawning before she asks, “The six of us?”

I answer, “Lyra, Weed Whacker, Pinkie Pie and Gummy, and me and Scout. Applejack invited us to go to the park for a pet play date with her, Rarity and Fluttershy.”

Hearing my answer, Vinyl says, “Oh, that's what you meant.” She then turns around again and says, “In that case, I'll go back to bed then.” And, with that, she disappears through the door which, possessed by her magic, closes behind her.

In the mean time, it seems that Pinkie Pie has gone to her room to get her alligator friend Gummy. It doesn't take her long to come back with the green reptilian attached to the curl in her forehead, reminding me of a fish on a hook.

With Pinkie Pie's pet thus in tow, the group makes its way out onto the front porch, where I have my character turn to my timber wolf friend while I say, “Scout, we've been invited to go to a place in Ponyville to play for a while.”

At my announcement, Scout rises to all fours and barks once, smiling and wagging his tail.

I continue, “Before we go, though, I think we should do at least one practice run of a game I think you'll enjoy playing, called 'fetch.'” I then have my character retrieve the blue disc from his inventory and show it to Scout.

The timber wolf sniffs the blue disc, then looks up at my character and whimpers in such a changing tone that it sounds to me like he's saying, “Huh?” Could he be saying that?

I then say, “I'm going to throw this disc, and I want you to go catch it, then bring it back to me.”

Scout seems uncertain about what I mean, that is until I have my character throw the disc from his position on the porch.

The disc seems to sail in a nearly straight course from my character's position until it lands just in front of the gate.

If I didn't know better, I'd say Scout shrugs before he jumps off the porch, then runs to the disc, picks it up, then runs back to me with the disc in his mouth. Positioned over the steps, he offers the disc to me.

At this point, I have my character stroke the back of Scout's neck and accept the disc from him as I congratulate him. Afterwards, I have my character put the disc back in his inventory; then I say to Scout, “We'll play more of that game when we get to the park in Ponyville. In the mean time, we'll be heading back through the forest before we get there.”

My timber wolf friend turns and looks at the front gate while I talk, then turns to my character again. This time, as he wags his tail, he doesn't open his mouth even to smile, making me wonder if he's uncertain about traveling through the forest.

Then, I have my character make his way to the front gate and open it, allowing Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker to exit, at which point Scout follows behind them. After that, I have my character follow the timber wolf out, then close the gate behind the group. After that, it's another half hour of walking before we get to Ponyville again, and then another few minutes before we reach the park in the middle of the town.

I'm not surprised that even the other three ponies are apprehensive around Scout, my timber wolf friend. But, I still introduce him, and explain his role in the parasprite incident, and how he became my pet. Still, it is rather strange that they'd react that way, after having invited me, and after having seen Scout on my front porch at the readings.

Then, Pinkie Pie introduces Gummy, her pet alligator, and explains how he became her pet.

After that, I have my character take the red disc out of his inventory and offer it to Applejack, who takes it with a few words of gratitude. I then have him take the blue disc out of his inventory and toss it away from the group, as a demonstration of how the game of fetch works with the discs.

This time, as soon as the disc leaves my character's hand, Scout runs ahead, in fact far enough ahead of the disc that he jumps and perfectly catches it in his mouth. After that, he brings it back to my character.

I find it most interesting to see how Applejack throws the red disc I gave her to give it the spin my character gave the blue one. Actually, it isn't that surprising to me that she jumps straight up and spins a complete three hundred sixty degrees in the air before releasing the disc, rapidly enough that it gives the disc a spin that keeps it in the air for several seconds.

In fact, I'm sure the red disc would've stayed longer in the air if Winona hadn't run ahead of it, as Scout had done with the blue disc, and caught it in midair.

In the mean time, Scout has brought the blue disc back to my character, who is now stroking the back of his neck.

As I see Applejack's dog come back with the red disc, I say, “Excellent!”

Applejack turns to my character and says, “It comes from lassoin' critters on the farm. Yer disc is shaped about the same as the lassos we use.”

The games continue on that way: Winona and Scout catch the discs Applejack and my character throw, while Rarity and Opalescence seem to play a game of rolling catch with a ball of yarn, Gummy grabs various areas of Pinkie Pie's hair and limbs, and Fluttershy and Angel throw pieces of fruits and vegetables at each other, which the other catches and eats. Even Lyra and Weed Whacker have some fun, as Lyra gives Weed Whacker rides on her back around the park. These games last until Twilight Sparkle arrives on the scene with her copy of the Book of Mormon on her back, just as I've had my character throw the blue disc for Scout to once again catch and bring back.

The purple unicorn says, “It's about time for us to go—whoa!” It seems she didn't get very far into her statement before Scout buzzed her, carrying the disc I threw for him to catch.

Either Pinkie Pie doesn't understand, or she's just having fun with the idea. Either way, she turns to her purple unicorn friend and says, “I've never gone whoa before. How do you do that, Twily?”

In the mean time, I can't help but laugh, as much at Twilight being interrupted by Scout and her reaction to it as by what Pinkie Pie said about it.

As Twilight and I try to regain our composure, Applejack says, “Ah think Twilight meant to say it's time for us to go to the readin' at Mormon's house.” Turning to the purple unicorn, she says, “Is that right, Twilight?”

Twilight Sparkle shakes herself out, dropping her copy of the Book of Mormon on the ground, then says, “That's right, Applejack,” before lowering her head to pick the book up again.

As I begin to control my laughter, I say, “Alright then. Let's call it a night for now.” As my character turns to Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy, I add, “This has been a lot of fun. We should do this again some time.”

Applejack answers, “Well, if'n you wanna join us again, we always meet here every Sunday for a pony-pet play date. Yer always welcome to bring Scout with you and join us. Uh, by the way, can Ah keep this disc?”

I answer, “You're quite welcome to. That's why I brought it with, so you could play with Winona with it.”

Applejack nods and says, “Well, Thank you kindly, Mormon. Ah'm sure the rest of the family'll wanna try it too.”

In the mean time, it seems that Rarity and Fluttershy have already departed with their pets to their own homes to get their own copies of the Book of Mormon.

As I have my character put the blue disc back into his inventory, I hear Twilight Sparkle say, “That was very generous of you.”

I have my character turn to her as I answer, “I can always make more of them.”

Now, Twilight starts walking in the direction of the Everfree forest as she says, “Let's get going now. I think we'll wait in front of Fluttershy's house for Applejack and Rarity to come with their books.”

I answer, “I suppose that'll be alright.” I then have my character turn to Pinkie Pie, Lyra and Weed Whacker as I call for them and say, “It's time for us to be heading back now!”

I'm not surprised that Pinkie Pie's already next to me, leaving Lyra and Weed Whacker to come. Once they've arrived, Twilight, who leads the group next to my character, says, “We'll just walk to Fluttershy's house until Rarity and Applejack catch up with us. Then we'll be heading to Mormon's house.”

Lyra and Weed Whacker vocalize their agreement, and the group heads off toward the Everfree forest.

It's actually on the way out of town that the group is joined by Rarity, and then, while entering the Everfree forest when the group is joined by Applejack. Then, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash join the group at the intersection to the trail to Fluttershy's house. With the united element bearers in the group, Twilight and my character lead the way into the forest to my character's house.

Half an hour later we've arrived at my character's house, where we see, or at least I see, through my character's eyes, Vinyl in the orchard harvesting apples.

As she sees my character open the gate to allow the others in, she waves and calls out, “Hey, Mormon! We thought, since you gave us a chance to sleep in after last night, we'd get the snacks ready for the guests for the reading!”

Scout runs up to and takes his position on the front porch.

Pinkie Pie with Gummy still attached to her mane, and Lyra still carrying Weed Whacker on her back, make their way to and into the house.

Rarity, in the mean time, walks up to the orchard and says, “Yes, about that, DJ Pon3. It was selfish of me to cry and keep you and Octavia up all night. I should have been more polite, and not done that. Can you forgive me?”

Vinyl picks one more apple from a tree, then turns and walks to Rarity as she says, “DJ Pon3 is just my stage name. I'm not performing on a stage right now, so you can call me Vinyl Scratch, or Vinyl if you prefer.”

Rarity answers, “Well, then, thanks, Vinyl. But, I really feel like I must ask for your forgiveness on this matter.”

Vinyl responds, “Hey, it's alright. It ain't easy gettin' criticism after havin' had a bad day.”

I guess what Rarity went through yesterday, at least the game's yesterday, could qualify as much for a bad day as anything I could imagine; although, considering the expression on Rarity's face, she doesn't seem to want to agree with it. Still, it's evident that Vinyl Scratch has accepted Rarity's request for forgiveness; and has, in fact, forgiven her.

Then, Vinyl asks, “Oh, by the way, could you take these fruits for a moment while I get over this fence?”

In the mean time, the fruits floating around her, possessed by her magic, float over to Rarity.

The white, purple-haired unicorn nods, and the aura around the fruits changes from a slightly blue white to a slightly purple white.

After that, Vinyl thanks Rarity, then backs up a few steps, then runs and leaps over the fence, easily clearing it.

At this point, the aura surrounding the fruits again changes color, this time back to the slightly blue white; and the fruits float back over to Vinyl Scratch as she makes her way back to the house.

In the mean time, Octavia comes from, I'm assuming, the vegetable garden, carrying a variety of vegetables in a bag on her back. As she approaches Rarity, the earth pony and the unicorn exchange polite greetings.

At this point, I decide to have my character walk to the door and open it for Vinyl and Octavia and any of the others who want to go inside for the present time, which, as it turns out, are just Vinyl and Octavia.

I have my character follow the two ponies into the house, then lead them to the kitchen where he opens the door for them again. He then follows them inside and helps them prepare the fruits and vegetables for snacks for the guests that'll be attending tonight's reading.

Then, Pinkie Pie comes from the hallway and, before exiting through the door, says she's going out to greet guests as they come.

My character continues to help Vinyl and Octavia with the preparation of the snacks until they're all ready, first getting out a serving tray, then cleaning the fruits and vegetables in the sink before handing them to Octavia and Vinyl to cut up and place them on the tray. By the time the process is over, the tray looks like the slices of fruit and vegetables were just thrown on top. From the tray up, it's taken on the shape of a short, wide-based cone.

Weed Whacker and Lyra show up just in time to help carry the tray of snacks out to the guests, which they eagerly volunteer to do.

At this point, I have my character hold the kitchen door open for them to go through, then move around his couches to the front door to open that for them. After they've gone out, I have my character close the front door behind them, then go to the kitchen and close that door.

Then, as my character turns around, Pinkie Pie enters through the front door and says, sighing with relief, “That's all the guests. I'm guessing Rarity's parents must've left and took Sweetie Belle with them. I didn't see them this time. And, you're going to need to get another copy of the Book of Mormon. There's another foal with Cheerilee.”

I watch, through my character's eyes, Pinkie Pie disappear from the front door, closing it behind her, then I have my character go to the closet and retrieve a copy of the book from there, after which I have him head out the front door to greet his guests and hand the book to the newcomer.

Actually, my character only descends the steps from the front porch before he's met by Cheerilee who says, “Hi. I brought another of my students to the reading.” She then turns her neck a hundred eighty degrees to look behind her to her right as she says, “Come on out, Namby Pamby.”

I have my character look around Cheerilee to see who she's talking to, to see a male foal with a build similar to that of Snails, except his neck is, I'd say, the typical length for a foal. His coat is white, with spots of black and red in something very close to a polka-dot pattern. His mane is similar in color, but seems to magnify the color of his coat, mostly white, though also black or red depending on what spots it runs through. And his tail is a solid white color. He also has a black spot over his right eye, and a red one over his left. Also, he has a cutie mark of a newspaper on the hip I can see through my character's eyes.

As the little colt slowly approaches my character, I say, “It's nice to meet you, Namby Pamby. How are you?”

Namby Pamby responds by running behind Cheerilee where I, through my character's eyes, can't see him.

As my character looks up at Cheerilee again, I say, “I guess that means you should be the one to give him this book.”

As my character hands the book to Cheerilee, and before she takes it, she says, “Thank you.”

At this point, the other ponies and creatures are forming the familiar circle on the lawn, getting ready for the reading.

I have my character join the circle between Weed Whacker and Lyra, and watch as the other ponies and the dragon take their places. Then, as soon as I can see everyone ready to read, I have my character turn to Berry Ground; and I ask him to give a brief description of what's been going on in the story up to this point.

Berry Ground nods in agreement, then describes events from the First Book of Nephi, concluding with Lehi talking to his sons in the first three chapters of the Second Book of Nephi.

After that, I have my character turn to Cheerilee, who has just handed the book to the little spotted colt, and I ask, “Do you think Namby Pamby'd be willing to read the first verse of chapter four?”

Before the school teacher pony can answer, Twist, between the two of them, says, “I'll help him.” She then nuzzles Namby Pamby, helping him to open the book and turn to the right page.

As Twist whispers into his ear, he says, “And now, I, Nephi, speak concerning the prophecies of which my father hath spoken, concerning Joseph, who was carried into Egypt.”

I'm guessing, based on the evident fact that he needed Twist's help, that Namby Pamby isn't just new to this reading, but new to reading altogether. That, or he's so nervous that he's forgotten how to read. Either way, I say to him, “Nicely done, Namby Pamby.”

At my words of encouragement, Namby Pamby looks up at me and, smiling, says, “Thank you.”

Next, Twist reads, “For behold, he truly prophesied concerning all his seed. And the prophecies which he wrote, there are not many greater. And he prophesied concerning us, and our future generations; and they are written upon the plates of brass.”

It seems to be then that I notice Scootaloo between Twist and Cheerilee, as she, that is Scootaloo, reads, “Wherefore, after my father had made an end of speaking concerning the prophesies of Joseph, he called the children of Laman, his sons, and his daughters, and said unto them, Behold, my sons, and my daughters, who are the sons and the daughters of my firstborn, I would that ye should give ear unto my words.”

Cheerilee then reads, “For the Lord God hath said that: Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land; and inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall be cut off from my presence.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “But behold, my sons and my daughters, I cannot go down to my grave save I should leave a blessing upon you; for behold, I know that if ye are brought up in the way ye should go ye will not depart from it.”

Silver Spoon reads, “Wherefore, if ye are cursed, behold, I leave my blessing upon you, that the cursing may be taken from you and be answered upon the heads of your parents.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “Wherefore, because of my blessing the Lord God will not suffer that ye shall perish; wherefore, he will be merciful unto you and unto your seed forever.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And it came to pass that after my father had made an end of speaking to the sons and daughters of Laman, he caused the sons and daughters of Lemuel to be brought before him.”

Berry Ground reads, “And he spake unto them, saying: Behold, my sons and my daughters, who are the sons and the daughters of my second son; behold I leave unto you the same blessing which I left unto the sons and daughters of Laman; wherefore, thou shalt not utterly be destroyed; but in the end thy seed shall be blessed.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it came to pass that when my father had made an end of speaking unto them, behold, he spake unto the sons of Ishmael, yea, even all his household.”

Stunts reads, “And after he had made an end of speaking unto them, he spake unto Sam, saying: Blessed art thou, and thy seed; for thou shalt inherit the land like unto thy brother Nephi. And thy seed shall be numbered with his seed; and thou shalt be even like unto thy brother, and thy seed like unto his seed, and thou shalt be blessed in all thy days.”

Cold Hands reads, “And it came to pass after my father, Lehi, had spoken unto all his household, according to the feelings of his heart and the Spirit of the Lord which was in him, he waxed old. And it came to pass that he died, and was buried.”

Snips reads, “And it came to pass that not many days after his death, Laman and Lemuel and the sons of Ishmael were angry with me because of the admonitions of the Lord.”

Snails reads, “For I, Nephi, was commanded to speak unto them, according to his word; for I had spoken many things unto them, and also my father, before his death; many of which sayings are written upon mine other plates; for a more history part are written upon mine other plates.”

Warm Heart reads, “And upon these I write the things of my soul, and many of the scriptures which are engraven upon the plates of brass. For my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them, and writeth them for the learning and the profit of my children.”

Weed Whacker reads, “Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard.”

I read, “Nevertheless, notwithstanding the great goodness of the Lord, in showing me his great and marvelous works, my heart exclaimeth: O wretched man that I am! Yea, my heart sorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities.”

Lyra reads, “I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily beset me.”

Bon-Bon reads, “And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins; nevertheless, I know in whom I have trusted.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep.”

Hoity Toity reads, “He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh.”

Granny Smith reads, “Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the night-time.”

Applebloom reads, “And by day have I waxed bold in mighty prayer before him; yea, my voice have I sent up on high; and angels came down and ministered unto me.”

Applejack reads, “And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceedingly high mountains. And mine eyes have beheld great things, yea, even too great for man; therefore I was forbidden that I should not write them.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “O then, if I have seen so great things, if the Lord in his condescension unto the children of men hath visited men in so much mercy, why should my heart weep and my soul linger in the valley of sorrow; and my flesh waste away, and my strength slacken, because of mine afflictions?”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And why should I yield to sin, because of my flesh? Yea, why should I give way to temptations, and the evil one have place in my heart to destroy my peace and afflict my soul? Why am I angry because of mine enemy?”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul.”

Spike reads, “Do not anger again because of mine enemies. Do not slacken my strength because of mine afflictions.”

Rarity reads, “Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto the Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation.”

Fluttershy reads, “O Lord, wilt thou redeem my soul? Wilt thou deliver me out of the hands of mine enemies? Wilt thou make me that I may shake at the appearance of sin?”

Mayor Mare reads, “May the gates of hell be shut continually before me, because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite! O Lord, wilt thou not shut the gates of thy righteousness before me, that I may walk in the path of the low valley, that I may be strict in the plain road!”

Zecora reads, “O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy righteousness! O Lord, wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine enemies! Wilt thou make my path straight before me! Wilt thou not place a stumbling block in my way—but that thou wouldst clear my way before me, and hedge not up my way, but the ways of mine enemy.”

Princess Celestia reads, “O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh, for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yeah, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm.”

Princess Luna reads, “Yea, I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh. Yea, my God will give me, if I ask not amiss; therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto thee, my God, the rock of my righteousness. Behold, my voice shall forever ascend up unto thee, my rock and mine everlasting God. Amen.”

Seeing that not everyone in the circle has had a chance to read, I open my mouth to propose that the reading continue.

But, it seems that Carrot Top is one step ahead of me. She says, “I'll read the first verse of chapter five.” Then, as my character turns to her, and I decide to close my mouth, she looks down into her book and reads, “Behold, it came to pass that I, Nephi, did cry much unto the Lord my God, because of the anger of my brethren.”

Berry Punch then reads, “But behold, their anger did increase against me, insomuch that they did seek to take away my life.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “Yea, they did murmur against me, saying: Our younger brother thinks to rule over us; and we have had much trial because of him; wherefore, now let us slay him, that we may not be afflicted more because of his words. For behold, we will not have him to be our ruler; for it belongs unto us, who are the elder brethren, to rule over this people.”

Octavia reads, “Now I do not write upon these plates all the words which they murmured against me. But it sufficeth me to say, that they did seek to take away my life.”

Colgate reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord did warn me, that I, Nephi, should depart from them and flee into the wilderness, and all those who would go with me.”

it seems that Namby Pamby's problem was, in fact, that he was just nervous. He shows evidence of being able to read after all, as he looks into his book and reads, “Wherefore, it came to pass that I, Nephi, did take my family, and also Zoram and his family, and Sam, mine elder brother and his family, and Jacob and Joseph, my younger brethren, and also my sisters, and all those who would go with me. And all those who would go with me were those who believed in the warnings and the revelations of God; wherefore, they did hearken unto my words.”

As my character focuses on the spotted foal, I say, “That was quite a long verse you had to read, and you did a good job with it.”

Again he smiles, but this time he doesn't say anything.

Twist reads, “And we did take our tents and whatsoever things were possible for us, and did journey in the wilderness for the space of many days. And after we had journeyed for the space of many days we did pitch our tents.”

Scootaloo reads, “And my people would that we should call the name of the place Nephi; wherefore, we did call it Nephi.”

Cheerilee reads, “And all those who were with me did take upon them to call themselves the people of Nephi.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “And we did observe to keep the judgments, and the statutes, and the commandments of the Lord in all things, according to the law of Moses.”

Silver Spoon reads, “And the Lord was with us; and we did prosper exceedingly; for we did sow seed, and we did reap again in abundance. And we began to raise flocks, and herds, and animals of every kind.”

Mrs. Cake reads, “And I, Nephi, had also brought the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass; and also the ball, or compass, which was prepared for my father by the hand of the Lord, according to that which is written.”

Mr. Cake reads, “And it came to pass that we began to prosper exceedingly, and to multiply in the land.”

Berry Ground reads, “And I, Nephi, did take the sword of Laban, and after the manner of it did make many swords, lest by any means the people who were now called Lamanites should come upon us and destroy us; for I knew their hatred towards me and my people and those who were called my people.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And I did teach my people to build buildings, and to work all manner of wood, and of iron, and of copper, and of brass, and of steel, and of gold, and of silver, and of precious ores, which were in great abundance.”

Stunts reads, “And I, Nephi, did build a temple; and I did construct it after the manner of the temple of Solomon save it were not built of so many precious things; for they were not to be found upon the land, wherefore, it could not be built like unto Solomon's temple. But the manner of the construction was like unto the temple of Solomon; and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine.”

Cold Hands reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did cause my people to be industrious, and to labor with their hands.”

Snips reads, “And it came to pass that they would that I should be their king. But I, Nephi, was desirous that they should have no king; nevertheless, I did for them according to that which was in my power.”

Snails reads, “And behold, the words of the Lord had been fulfilled unto my brethren, which he spake concerning them, that I should be their ruler and their teacher. Wherefore, I had been their ruler and their teacher, according to the commandments of the Lord, until the time they sought to take away my life.”

Warm Heart reads, “Wherefore, the word of the Lord was fulfilled which he spake unto me, saying that: Inasmuch as they will not hearken unto my words they shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord. And behold, they were cut off from his presence.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And he had caused the cursing to come upon them, yea, even a sore cursing, because of their iniquity. For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, that they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, exceedingly fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them.”

I read, “And thus saith the Lord God: I will cause that they shall be loathsome unto my people, save they shall repent of their iniquities.”

Lyra reads, “And cursed shall be the seed of him that mixeth with their seed; for they shall be cursed even with the same cursing. And the Lord spake it, and it was done.”

Bon-Bon reads, “And because of their cursing which was upon them they did become an idle people, full of mischief and subtlety, and did seek in the wilderness for beasts of prey.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “And the Lord God said unto me: They shall be a scourge unto thy seed, to stir them up in remembrance of me; and inasmuch as they will not remember me, and hearken unto my words, they shall scourge them even unto destruction.”

Hoity Toity reads, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did consecrate Jacob and Joseph, that they should be priests and teachers over the land of my people.”

Granny Smith reads, “And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “And thirty years had passed away from the time we left Jerusalem.”

Applebloom reads, “And I, Nephi, had kept the records upon my plates, which I had made, of my people thus far.”

Applejack reads, “And it came to pass that the Lord God said unto me: Make other plates; and thou shalt engraven many things upon them which are good in my sight, for the profit of thy people.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “Wherefore, I, Nephi, to be obedient to the commandments of the Lord, went and made these plates upon which I have engraven these things.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And I engraved that which is pleasing unto God. And if my people are pleased with the things of God they will be pleased with mine engravings which are upon these plates.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “And if my people desire to know the more particular part of the history of my people they must search mine other plates.”

Spike reads, “And it sufficeth me to say that forty years had passed away, and we had already had wars and contentions with our brethren.” He then looks up, toward my character, and asks, “Shouldn't we give Rarity a chance to read one more verse?”

Twilight growls his name, but Rarity rubs his head with her closest front hoof and says, “Aw, Spike, you're so sweet.”

I have to wonder if Rarity reciprocates Spike's amorous feelings toward her. But, the little purple dragon has brought up a question which deserves an answer. So, I have my character look around at the ponies and dragons in the circle, and I ask, “So, what do you say? Shall we read one more chapter?”

Around the circle there seem to be remarks of agreement.

Finally, Princess Celestia says, “Very well, then. Let's read one more chapter.”

Rarity smiles and nods, then looks down and reads, “The words of Jacob, the brother of Nephi, which he spake unto the people of Nephi.”

Fluttershy reads, “Behld, my beloved brethren, I, Jacob, having been called of God, and ordained after the manner of his holy order, and having been consecrated by my brother Nephi, unto whom ye look as a king or a protector, and on whom ye depend for safety, behold ye know that I have spoken unto you exceedingly many things.”

Mayor Mare reads, “Nevertheless, I speak unto you again; for I am desirous for the welfare of your souls. Yea, mine anxiety is great for you; and ye yourselves know that it ever has been. For I have exhorted you with all diligence; and I have taught you the words of my father; and I have spoken unto you concerning all things which are written, from the creation of the world.”

Zecora reads, “And now, behold, I would speak unto you concerning things which are, and which are to come; wherefore, I will read you the words of Isaiah. And they are the words which my brother has desired that I should speak unto you. And I speak unto you for your sakes, that ye may learn and glorify the name of your God.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And now, the words which I shall read are they which Isaiah spake concerning all the house of Israel; wherefore, they may be likened unto you, for ye are of the house of Israel. And there are many things which have been spoken by Isaiah which may be likened unto you, because ye are of the house of Israel.”

Princess Luna reads, “And now, these are the words: Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people; and they shall bring my sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.”

Carrot Top reads, “And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their faces towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that wait for thee.”

Berry Punch reads, “And now I, Jacob, would speak somewhat concerning these words. For behold, the Lord has shown me that those who were at Jerusalem, from whence we came, have been slain and carried away captive.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “Nevertheless, the Lord has shown unto me that they should return again. And he also has shown unto me that the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, should manifest himself unto them in the flesh; and after he should manifest himself they should scourge him and crucify him, according to the words of the angel who spake it unto me.”

Octavia reads, “And after they have hardened their hearts and stiffened their necks against the Holy One of Israel, behold, the judgments of the Holy One of Israel shall come upon them. And the day cometh that they shall be smitten and afflicted.”

Colgate reads, “Wherefore, after they are driven to and fro, for thus saith the angel, many shall be afflicted in the flesh, and shall not be suffered to perish, because of the prayers of the faithful; they shall be scattered, and smitten, and hated; nevertheless, the Lord will be merciful unto them, that when they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer, they shall be gathered together again to the lands of their inheritance.”

Namby Pamby reads, “And blessed are the Gentiles, they of whom the prophet has written; for behold, if it so be that they shall repent and fight not against Zion, and do not unite themselves to that great and abominable church, they shall be saved; for the Lord God will fulfill his covenants which he has made unto his children, and for this cause the prophet has written these things.”

Twist reads, “Wherefore, they that fight against Zion and the covenant people of the Lord shall lick up the dust of their feet; and the people of the Lord shall not be ashamed. For the people of the Lord are they who wait for him; for they still wait for the coming of the Messiah.”

Scootaloo reads, “And behold, according to the words of the prophet, the Messiah will set himself again the second time to recover them; wherefore, he will manifest himself unto them in power and great glory, unto the destruction of their enemies, when that day cometh when they shall believe in him; and none will he destroy that believe in him.”

Cheerilee reads, “And they that believe not in him shall be destroyed, both by fire, and by tempest, and by earthquakes, and by bloodsheds, and by pestilence, and by famine. And they shall know that the Lord is God, the Holy One of Israel.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “For shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered?”

Silver Spoon reads, “But thus saith the Lord: Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; for the Mighty God shall deliver his covenant people. For thus saith the Lord: I will contend with them that contendeth with thee—“

Mrs. Cake reads, “And I will feed them that oppress thee, with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood as with sweet wine; and all flesh shall know that I the Lord am thy Savior and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”

At this point I have my character close his book and put it in his inventory, then stand up, while I say, “And, on that appetizing note, let's call an end to the reading tonight. Tomorrow, we'll be reading from at least one chapter where we get into quotes from the Book of Isaiah again.”

I hear a lot of groans as ponies start rising to their hooves, and once again converse amongst themselves.

Mrs. Cake approaches my character and says, “I wouldn't consider that last verse I read appetizing.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie's voice from my character's left, where I can't see her, say, “I agree.” As my character turns to the pink earth mare, she continues, “I understand you were trying to be funny. But, these are herbivores, and they won't understand or appreciate your sense of humor about that. Just remember who your audience is from now on, alright?”

I answer, “I guess you're right about that.” I then have my character turn to the other ponies as I say, “I'm sorry about what I said before calling an end to the reading. Evidently my attempt at humor didn't work very well.”

I notice Lyra walks to the front gate and opens it with her magic, allowing the ponies and dragon, other than those that stay with my character, to make their way out of the yard.

In the mean time, Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, and Weed Whacker take the now empty tray into the house.

Pinkie Pie leads my character, and follows Vinyl, Octavia, and Weed Whacker into the house.

As far as I can tell, today has been quite productive. I managed to get Rarity out of my character's house and back to her own, where her friends completed her dress and helped her find the courage to keep going after her failure at last night's fashion show. Which reminds me.

I notice the orange earth pony and the purple unicorn in the line waiting to leave through the gate; so I call out to them, “Applejack, Twilight Sparkle, your dresses are still in my living room if you want to get them now!”

As Applejack turns to my character, I notice she grimaces, as though she's been disgraced.

On the other hand, Twilight Sparkle, after turning to hear what I have to say to her, closes her eyes and, as far as I can see, punches herself between them as she says, “Oh, that's right.” After that, she puts the hoof down again, opens her eyes, and follows Applejack up the stairs to my character's front porch.

My character opens the door for the two so they can enter.

Then, once they're inside, Applejack noses open one box while Twilight opens the other box with her magic, both checking to see if they've chosen the right box. And, they seem to be satisfied with their choices when they close the boxes again.

At that point, a purple aura possesses both boxes; and Twilight says, “Thanks for keeping our dresses here. I think Hoity Toity's right. My dress would make a better tapestry.”

Sheepishly Applejack says, “Yeah,” before adding, “Well, Mormon, if you really don't want my dress, Ah'll take it home with me. It was just some spiffied-up overalls anyhow. Ah can just take off the frills and use 'em fer work clothes.” Turning to the purple unicorn, she concludes, “You were right, Twilight. The dresses Rarity made for us first were perfect.”

As the two ponies head for and out the door, I hear Twilight say, “Well, once we get through the Everfree forest, should I walk your dress home with you, or do you want to take it by yourself?”

I think Applejack decides to take her dress back with her by herself. I don't get her full answer before my character closes the door behind them.

You know what, considering how things turned out, I'm not altogether sure that first fashion show was such a failure after all. It seems to me that it would've been a failure if Rarity had given up and moved out, gone somewhere else, decided to do something completely different. But, instead, with the help of her friends, she decided to try again, and this time she succeeded. I guess in a way that's not unlike me playing this game, although my failure in the first playthrough was deliberate. And, my success in this playthrough will be just as deliberate.

When all the guests have left, save for Pinkie Pie, Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, Lyra and Weed Whacker, the group goes out and gathers fruits and vegetables for dinner, after which they bring them in and prepare and eat them. After that, they retire to their rooms.

My letter to the princesses is along the lines of what I've already written in my notes, save for my remarks relating to the first and present playthroughs. Then, after delivering the letter to Weed Whacker, and after she sends them off, I have my character return to his room and go to bed.

My thoughts that I've written are enough for me for now. This playthrough has proven quite enjoyable so far, quite engaging, definitely worth the effort. So, until the game's tomorrow.

Chapter 14: Twilight, Pinkie's ... Student?

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Again I start the game, waking my character, to the sound of knocking on his bedroom door.

As my character rises and leaves his bed, I hear Pinkie Pie's voice call out, “Wakey, wakey, Mormon! You're the last one up! We've already got breakfast ready for you!”

As my character approaches his bedroom door, I'm pretty sure I hear bouncing sounds away from it. Thus, when my character opens the door, I'm not surprised to see, through my character's eyes, Pinkie Pie from behind. As, for the moment, I don't see her moving, I ask, “So, Pinkie, how are you this morning?”

As she turns to face me, I see, through my character's eyes, the smile on her face as she answers, “I'm great! And, how about you?”

As my character steps into the hallway and closes the door behind him, I answer, “I'm lookin' forward to seeing what happens next.” Just then, I hear the introduction of the song Light Up the Land, which seems to be coming from the front room. And, while it's not what I'd initially thought of when I talked about looking forward to the next happening, I do welcome it. I think aloud, “It sounds really good so far.”

Pinkie Pie answers, “I know.” Then, I'm guessing she's thinking aloud when she says, “I wonder if they're trying to tell us something.”

I ask, “Have Vinyl and Octavia eaten already?”

Pinkie Pie answers uncertainly, “I don't think so.” Then, turning to the kitchen again, she grunts and says, “Maybe they're just going through another practice round before they eat.”

I don't say this aloud to Pinkie Pie, but I'm considering the possibility that they're getting close to being ready to go back to Ponyville. Sometime, either today or tomorrow, I'm going to have to talk to them about their progress. They are sounding really good.

In the mean time, as the two enter the kitchen, Pinkie Pie leading my character, we find no one there. Then, we hear Lyra start to sing the first verse of the song, and again it's coming from the front room.

I notice that Pinkie Pie seems to hesitate at the doorway to the kitchen.

On the other hand, my character, after looking at the table and showing me the absence of either food or Weed Whacker, turns to the door between the kitchen and the front room, then proceeds toward it and goes through.

Before he can walk into the front room, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Mormon, I'm worried about something.”

My character turns to the pink party pony, and I can see her trembling. I say, “Now Pinkie Pie, your friends, our friends, are playing music for us. Let's just enjoy it while we eat.”

By the time Pinkie Pie decides to enter the front room with my character, I can hear the second verse conclude, meaning it's time for the chorus. Then, as the pink earth pony enters the room, allowing my character to close the door behind her, I decide to harmonize with Lyra and Weed Whacker as they sing the chorus.

I can't say whether Pinkie Pie is moved by the music or distraught at the prospect of Octavia and Vinyl Scratch moving out in the near future. Whichever the case is, I hear her sniffle loudly as she circles to the side of the couch opposite the performers, who have set up their performance in the more empty part of the room.

My character, on the other hand, circles the couch on the other side, then takes a position on the couch more-or-less facing the door.

I guess I don't really hear Pinkie Pie whimpering until the chorus is finished, and I've stopped singing. And, by that time, my character has grabbed a piece of pear from the coffee table. I decide not to say anything, just let my character eat his piece of fruit and rub the side of Pinkie Pie's neck closest to him. When he's finished eating the piece of pear, I have my character take a piece of apple and offer it to the pink earth pony.

In response, Pinkie Pie pushes the apple, and my character's hand, away, and quietly sobs, “I'm … not … hungry.”

At this point, I have my character put the slice of apple down on the table again, then pick up Pinkie Pie by her forelimbs and drape them over his shoulders so that, for all intents and purposes, she's hugging him. Now, I have him hug her in return as I say, “Now, you're the one that invited me to breakfast. And now, you're not going to eat with me?”

The performers look at my character uncertainly, but I have him give them a thumbs up, encouraging them to continue with their performance.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie says, “That was before … I heard Octy … and Vinyl … play that song … you wanted them … to work on. Like you said, … they sound really good.” Then, I can only guess she's hiding her face in my character's shoulder, hiding her face from the performing band, as she goes back to whimpering.

As my character strokes her back, I say, “Now, Pinkie Pie, you know as well as I do that I didn't intend for Octavia and Vinyl to stay here for the rest of their lives. Just until they broke their addictions. And, it sounds to me like they've done that. And, whether they go back to Ponyville today or tomorrow, they will be going back soon. And, it'll be up to them whether they come back for the readings or not.”

By this point, Vinyl starts singing the chorus with Weed Whacker in the background, while Lyra and Octavia sing in the foreground. And, it's more than just flawless, it's downright spiritual.

Now, Pinkie Pie sobs, “B-but, … they're leaving. Don't … you … care … about that?”

I answer, “What should matter to you as much as it does to me is that our friends are going to get their freedom back, completely. They don't need to be here anymore.”

At first, all I hear her say is, “I know.” Then, as Vinyl and Lyra finish singing the chorus in the background and Octavia and Weed Whacker finish singing in the foreground, Pinkie Pie suddenly pushes against my character's shoulders by her forelimbs. I then see her ears flap, then her eyes blink, then I notice her forelimbs vibrate at the … elbows?

Based on my understanding, that means Diane is warning Pinkamena that a door is either opening or about to open. That, or perhaps a door is closing or about to close. But, I have to wonder, is that always literal? In this case, could Diane be informing Pinkamena that the door to Vinyl Scratch's and Octavia's freedom is opening? If I'm not mistaken, Diane seems to be communicating that to me.

Whatever the case is, it has immediately stopped Pinkie Pie from crying. At first she seems dazed. Then, she turns to the performers, who seem to be unsure about what to do next. Then, she says, “Let's have breakfast. We need to talk about your performance.”

The pink party pony moves off of my character's lap and onto her previous place on the couch, claiming the piece of apple I'd offered her before.

In the mean time, Vinyl, Octavia, Lyra and Weed Whacker take positions on the couch opposite Pinkie Pie and my character, and each claim a piece of fruit from what's still on the coffee table.

Vinyl asks, “So, Pinks, did you like the song?”

Vinyl's question comes just as Pinkie Pie has taken a bite of the piece of apple she claimed. She chews it for a few seconds, then swallows, then says, “You did a really, supper good job with it. It was beautiful.” She then looks down at the piece of fruit in her front hooves, then back at Vinyl, before saying, “In fact, I'm wondering if you need to stay here any longer.”

At Pinkie's declaration Vinyl and Octavia seem to start. Then they turn to each other, then back to my character and Pinkie Pie, and Vinyl says, “Really?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “That's right. But, first I have some questions for you.”

Vinyl Scratch says, “Well, ask away, Pinks.”

Octavia asks, “Yes, Pinkie Pie, what questions do you have for us?”

Pinkie Pie and my character exchange looks, then Pinkie Pie, after I have my character nod, turns and focuses on Octavia as she asks, “Well, Octy, when you go back, what do you plan to do?”

In response, Octavia grunts in either uncertainty or incredulity.

At this point, I have my character focus on the gray earth mare, and I ask, “I think what Pinkie Pie means is, do you plan on going back to drinking wine when you go back?”

If I'm not mistaken, Pinkie Pie points her grunt of affirmation at my character, at me.

In the mean time, I can see Octavia scrunch her face and groan in disgust, which I sense as sincere. Then, she says, “After what it took for me to break away from that, I don't ever want to go back to drinking wine or anything with alcohol in it again.” After a momentary pause, she continues, “I'd thought taking drinks in moderation, just enough at a time to enjoy the flavor, would be enough. I never got drunk from it, I was always careful about that. But, it took living with you, Mormon, having to separate myself from it, to realize what it was doing to me. If I had known that breaking away from it was going to be so painful, I would never have started in the first place.” She then smiles at my character and says, “Mormon, thank you for being with me through that time. If it hadn't been for you, I doubt I would have survived the withdrawal pains I was going through.”

The first thing I think to say, in fact, the first thing I say after Octavia's answer, is, “Flaxen cords.”

At this statement, I think four ponies and one dinosaur grunt in curiosity.

I continue, “In the scriptures, in fact in the Book of Mormon, flaxen cords will be used as an analogy to the devil tempting some people very gradually with certain things. They don't even realize the destructive habits they're getting into until it's impossible to break them.” I pause for a moment for my character to take a slice of apple from the pile on the table before I continue, “Octavia, I was in time to rescue you from a habit that could've claimed your life. And, it was an honor for me to do so. And, if you've learned your lesson, and will never go back to that habit again, then the effort was well worth it.”

I'm definitely surprised when Octavia suddenly jumps over the coffee table and into my character's lap, then buries her face in my character's chest and starts sobbing.

In an effort to calm down the gray earth pony, I have my character stroke her back with his free hand.

Evidently the action is as much a surprise to Vinyl as it is to me, as she seems unable to talk for a few seconds. When she does speak, she says, “I started drinkin' beer and hard cider because it looked like fun. Everypony else was doin' it, so I figured, why shouldn't I?” She pauses for a moment, then continues, “I didn't like the taste at first, but I got used to it. At least, I didn't like the taste of the beer at first. The cider always tasted like apples, so that made it easier to drink. I figured if I drank a lot of the beer, then I'd get used to the taste a lot faster, and it was kinda fun to get drunk, and even pass out.” Now, the white unicorn turns to the pale-green one next to her as she says, “Lyra, I had no idea I was doin' those things when I was drunk, when I was passed out. Or, I didn't care at the time. But, I do now.” Now, her voice starts to shake as she continues, “I'm so sorry about messin' and peein' on your and Bon-Bon's floor. I was bein' selfish, gettin' drunk and messin' on your stairs like that.”

At this point, Lyra hugs the white, blue-haired unicorn and says, “Oh, Vinyl, I forgive you. And, I'm sure Bon-Bon will, too.”

Now, Vinyl closes her eyes and sobs, “Thank you, Lyra. Thank you … so much.” She chuckles once before adding, “You know, … I didn't … realize … how much … that meant to me … until … you … said it.” She then opens her eyes again, turns to my character again, and says, “And, … thank you, … Mormon. I … had no idea … a human ... could care that … much.”

I can't help smiling as I open my mouth to speak.

But, Pinkie Pie beats me to it, as she says, “You'd be surprised.”

Again Vinyl chuckles as she turns to Pinkie Pie and says, “And, thank you, Pinks. I guess I should've known how much you care about me.”

With my character still focused on the white unicorn, I can only hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, Vinyl, I just want you to be somepony I can respect.”

Vinyl, evidently still focused on Pinkie Pie, says, “I know that now, Pinks.” She then turns to my character and says, rubbing an eye with a front hoof, “Look at me … crying again.”

At this point, I have my character put an arm under Octavia's hind legs, trapping her tail between her behind and his arm, then, supporting her, stand up, and move to the side of the table as I say, “Ah, come here.” I then have him kneel down and place Octavia on her hind legs on the carpet.

In response, Vinyl chuckles one more time, then gallops and jumps off the couch and into my character, wrapping her forelimbs around him and Octavia.

Pinkie Pie follows suit, getting in behind and between Vinyl and Octavia to join in the group hug.

Lyra and Weed Whacker also join in, taking positions on the right and left of Pinkie Pie.

At this point, I can't help but notice the group hug reminds me of a rugby skirmish, except there's no pushing, and no rugby ball. But, this isn't something I mention aloud. And, while I can't participate personally in the hug, I find myself still able to enjoy it.

I lose track of time as to how long the group of six remains in this position. But, when they eventually separate, they go back to eating until the fruit is gone. Then, after that, Octavia packs away her cello, Vinyl Scratch prepares her sound system for travel, and the other four help in their own way to get the two musician ponies out the door, across the lawn, and to the front gate.

Just then, I hear Scout growl, and my character focuses on the timber wolf to show me, through my character's eyes, him approaching, growling and snarling with each step.

At this point, I say, “It's alright, Scout. Vinyl and Octavia have proven themselves. They're free to go to their own homes now.”

Just then I see a flash of white, and I hear Celestia's voice say, “Is that so?”

As four ponies, one dinosaur and one human turn and focus on the daytime alicorn, Pinkie Pie nods and says, “It's true, Princess. I'm releasing Vinyl and Octavia from their Pinkie promise.”

At this point, the daytime princess focuses on Octavia, then Vinyl, studying them intently for at least one minute each. Then, evidently satisfied, she turns to my character and says, “Very well, then. You've done well, taking care of these little ponies of mine. And, if you're satisfied with their progress, and believe they're ready to return to the lives they had before, then so am I.” I watch through my character's eyes as Princess Celestia closes her eyes and her horn glows. Then, after a few seconds her horn stops glowing; and she opens her eyes again and says, “Vinyl, Octavia, you are free to go. The timber wolves will bother you no more. All I request is that you remember for the rest of your lives the lessons you've learned from Mormon. For, he is as much a friend of mine as he is of yours.”

I must admit, I'm pleasantly surprised at Princess Celestia's declaration about me being a friend of hers. But, in the mean time, she's made it possible for Octavia and Vinyl to return to their home or homes, whether in Ponyville or wherever else they choose, without interference from the timber wolves. I say, “It's been as much of an honor helping Vinyl Scratch through her problems as it was helping Octavia through hers.” I then have my character turn to the white unicorn as I add, “Vinyl, as I said to Octavia, if you'll remember the lessons I taught you, and will never go back to your old habit of binge drinking again, then the effort I put into you was well worth it.”

Vinyl smiles and answers, “You've been a big help to me and Octavia, Mormon. If that's what it takes to thank you for your help, I'll do everything I can to prove that your effort was well worth it.”

Although I'm sure the characters in the video game can't see it, I smile as I say, “I hope so. Now, let's get going back to Ponyville.” And, with that, my character opens the gate and allows the four ponies and the dinosaur to exit first, then follows behind them and closes the gate again.

As the group makes its way back to Ponyville through the forest, I can't help thinking to myself how much quieter it's going to be at the house, other than the readings, now that the musician ponies aren't going to be staying with my character anymore, how much more space will be available. Not that long ago, Trixie was also living with my character, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker. I don't know if Lyra will change in the next three years she'll be living with my character, but I do plan that Pinkie Pie will change. But, I can wait for that. Right now, we just need to get the musician ponies back to Ponyville so they can return to their jobs, whether in Ponyville, Canterlot, Manehattan, Las Pegasus, or anywhere else in Equestria they might go.

As is typical, the journey through the Everfree forest takes about half an hour, then it's another few minutes to get into Ponyville, then a few more minutes to help Octavia and Vinyl back to their home again.

It's not until they enter their house before I notice, with the help of my character, Pinkie Pie's tail vibrating.

I'm not surprised that Pinkie Pie also notices it, as she grabs her tail and says, “Hmm, twitchy tail.”

I know that when Pinkie Pie's tail is twitching like that, it means that Diane is warning Pinkamena that something has a lot of potential energy that's going to become kinetic. That is to say, something's going to fall, and that something could hurt her, or someone else. But, having seen the episode, “Feeling Pinkie Keen,” on which this day is based, I also know what's going to fall. So, I immediately have my character look up, hoping to see, through his eyes, Fluttershy with her wagon full of frogs.

I can only guess that Pinkie sees my character looking up into the sky, as I only hear her ask, her voice full of innocence, “Mormon, why are you looking at the sky?”

As my character looks down at the pink earth pony, I answer, “Well, your tail was twitching.”

Pinkie Pie states, “Yeah, and it still is.” Then she asks, “And, you think something's gonna fall outta the sky?”

I answer, “I wouldn't be surprised.”

I can see, through my character's eyes, Pinkie Pie relax as she says, “You know, normally I'd be wearing a rainbow umbrella hat and ducking under everything from here to Sugar Cube Corner; but, since you're on lookout, I'm thinkin' I won't need to do that.”

I didn't realize I, or my character anyway, was going to be such a reassuring influence. But, since that's what Pinkie Pie's seeing in me, in my character, I might as well go with it. So, I have my character watch the skies for Fluttershy and her wagon of frogs and walk at the same time, while Pinkie Pie bounces around him, and Lyra warns him of possible obstacles in his path.

It's not until I hear Spike ask, as innocently as Pinkie Pie had done, “What's Mormon doing?” that my character turns to see where the little purple dragon is. He focuses on Spike just in time to show me, through his eyes, the top hat over his head suddenly turn into a boulder, the black-and-white suit turn into leaves, and the cane turn into a stick, and the boulder land on Spike's head.

Then, as my character's focus turns to Twilight Sparkle, who suddenly comes into view, I hear her say, “Spike, this magic needs our full attention to make it happen.”

At this point, I know what was going on. Evidently Twilight needed Spike to concentrate with her to make objects like a stick, a few leaves, and a rock turn into a cane, a suit, and a top hat, respectively. And, evidently I provided just the right amount of noise to break the little purple dragon's concentration.

Twilight continues, “There's no other way.”

Spike answers, “I'm sorry, but I couldn't help it.” As he stands up again, he continues, “I've never seen Mormon just look up into the sky the way he was.”

I have my character divide his attention between the purple unicorn and her assistant and approach them, then after he stops a few feet away from them, I say to the little purple dragon, “I'm sorry, Spike. I didn't mean to distract you. I just noticed Pinkie's tail twitching, and I figured I'd better keep a look out just in case something falls.”

I hear Twilight Sparkle incredulously say, “Pinkie's tail twitching makes you look up at the sky?”

I have my character focus on her as I answer, “Only when we're outside.” I pause for a moment so my character can look up into the sky for something that might be moving, then I continue, “I know how strange it sounds, but there is a method to my madness, to our madness. You'll just have to trust me and Pinkie Pie on this.”

At this point, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Hmm, twitchy twitch-a-twitchy twitch.”

Just then I see Fluttershy with her wagon full of frogs flying just past a cloud. I just need to wait for one of those frogs to jump out of the wagon, or off of Fluttershy herself.

In the mean time, I hear Twilight say, “Pinkie Pie, what in the whole wide world of Equestria have you gotten Mormon into?”

I then hear Pinkie Pie answer, “Oh, it's my tail, it's my tail. It's a'twitch-a'twitchin'. And, you know what that means.”

Then I hear Twilight Sparkle say, “Actually, Pinkie, I haven't the slightest idea.”

At this point, I notice one of the frogs in the wagon leaning out a little too far to get a look at things down below it.

In the mean time, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “The twitchin' means that my Pinkie sense is telling me that stuff's gonna start falling. You should better duck for cover, or stick close to me and Mormon.”

And then it happens: the frog leaning too far slips free and starts falling, ready to use Twilight as a landing base.

As my character holds out his hands over the purple unicorn, she says, “Oh, Pinkie, it's not gonna rain.”

At this point, I say, “Just a moment.”

Then, the frog that was going to land on Twilight's face instead lands in my character's hands.

As my character lowers his hands full of frog into the view of the ponies and dragons, I say, “And, there we have it. The rain of the frogs, as brief as it was, is over now.”

The now-safe frog turns to my character, smiles and croaks, then frowns and croaks in a lower key.

Pinkie Pie then says, “He just said 'Nice catch, and not-so-funny joke,' in frog.”

I answer, “Well, it was worth a shot at least.”

Pinkie Pie covers her mouth with a front hoof and giggles for a moment, then puts the hoof down again.

Just then, I hear Fluttershy say, “Oh, I'm so, so sorry. Is everypony alright down there?”

I look up at the concerned yellow pegasa and answer, “Everyone's fine. I was just in the right place at the right time.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie say, “You know what, Mormon, I'll bet there's more to it than that. Like, your good source of information.”

I don't answer, although I appreciate the reference.

In the mean time, Fluttershy continues, “I couldn't stand seeing the pond getting so overpopulated, what with the frogs hopping into each other and all? So, I decided to fly as many as I could over to Froggy Bottom Bog.”

While I try to keep the frog quite literally in-hand, I hear Twilight Sparkle say, in a low, disparaging tone, “Of course you were.”

In the mean time, I ask, “Would you like to take this frog with you?”

As Fluttershy comes in for a landing, she says, “Oh, yes, of course. And, thank you so much for catching him.”

Once the wagon's on the ground, I have my character put the frog in his hands into the middle of the pool of frogs, then grab frogs ready to fall out and put them in the middle as well, as I say, “You know, maybe you should take fewer at a time, so you don't run the risk of so many falling out.”

I think I hear shame in the yellow pegasa's voice as she says, “You're right, I should do that.” Then, before she flies off, she concludes, “Thanks for the help. Bye-bye!” At least I think that's what she's saying. It's difficult to tell what she said with her mouth full of wicker basket handle.

In the mean time, I observe, through my character's eyes, that, for the moment anyway, Pinkie Pie's tail has stopped twitching. I say, “Well, that seems to be all for now. Shall we head on over to Sugar Cube Corner?”

Twilight Sparkle groans in response, “Yeah, we should get going too, Spike. We need to find a place where there aren't so many distractions.”

As the two parties head in opposite directions, I hear the purple unicorn and her dragon assistant talking to each other: Spike talking about how Pinkie Pie predicted the future and I was there to defend everyone, and Twilight Sparkle talking about how it was all coincidence.

Then, just as I notice Pinkie Pie's tail twitching again, I remember what happens in the episode.

Pinkie Pie and I exchange looks, then Pinkie Pie turns and gallops toward Twilight again and, sticking her tail in the purple unicorn's face, says, “My tail, my tail! Twitch-a-twitch! Twitch-a-twitch!”

I look ahead of where Twilight's walking, and I see the stream bed just ahead of her. If Pinkie Pie hadn't stopped her, Twilight would've walked right into it. She still might do so if she keeps walking in the direction she's headed.

Fortunately, she's paused for the moment.

I call out, “Twilight, before you take another step forward, I think you'd better look ahead of you, and down.”

At least Spike listens to me. As he sees the dried-up stream bed, he stands up on Twilight's back and prepares to jump off.

In the mean time, Twilight turns ahead and closes her eyes, then starts walking again as she says, “You two are taking this too far. Nothing else is gonna fa—ah!”

My character runs to try to catch the purple unicorn before she can fall, but to no avail.

At least Spike had the good sense to jump off before Twilight could take that last dangerous step. Looking into the stream bed at his fallen adoptive-mother, he says, “Oh no, Twilight fell.”

I add, “And, if she'd listened to me, she wouldn't have.”

Then, Spike turns to Pinkie Pie and asks, “Is it … save to go help her?”

As my character steps into the stream bed to help the fallen purple unicorn out, Pinkie Pie answers, “It's okay. My tail's not twitchin'.”

Then, as my character grabs Twilight in his hands, picks her up, and sets her on her hooves again on the ground next to the stream bed, I ask, “Are you alright, Twilight?”

Twilight responds by growling, “Hands off me, human.”

I have my character step out of the stream bed, hands in the air, and away from the purple unicorn, as I say, “Fair enough.”

Then, Spike laughs and says, “That was amazing!”

I have my character take a few more steps away from Twilight and the stream bed as I hear her say, “Oh, please.” And, I do notice Applejack approaching.

The orange earth pony innocently asks, “Uh, Twilight, why was Mormon a'diggin' ya out of a ditch?”

Pinkie Pie had bounced a few steps away, but had stopped, probably to allow my character to catch up to her.

As he arrives at the pink earth pony's side, I hear Spike say, “Because Pinkie Pie predicted Twilight'd fall.”

Then I hear Twilight Sparkle say, “Honestly, Spike, she did not. Two coincidences in a row like this may be unlikely, but it's still easier to believe than twitchy tails that predict the future.” And, while she says “twitchy tails,” she wiggles her backside.

The evidence seems to dawn on the orange earth pony as she gasps and nervously says, “Twitchy tail? Pinkie sense?” and dives under the nearest cart, one carrying vegetables, and starts trembling.

I have to admit, I have to struggle to keep from laughing at how absurd she looks, even having been there to change the story just a little bit.

Then, Spike approaches her and says, reassuringly, “Don't worry, it's safe. The prediction already came true.”

As Applejack crawls out from under the cart, the incredulous Twilight says, “Oh, wait. Don't tell me you believe in this stuff, too.”

The orange earth pony answers, “Ah know it doesn't make much sense, but those of us who've lived in Ponyville for a while have learned that if Pinkie's a'twitchin', you'd better listen.”

Just then, Pinkie Pie dashes in front of her fellow earth pony, and I notice, through my character's eyes, her ears seem to be involuntarily flopping over her eyes. She says, “My ears are flopping, my ears are flopping!”

Spike recoils and whimpers, “What does that mean?”

I think it means specifically that someone, or something, is about to be splashed with mud; but I'm not entirely sure. It could be more generic, simply that a mess is about to happen.

All I know is that Pinkie Pie knows what it means, as she says, “When we get to Sugar Cube Corner, I'll draw a bath for you.”

Twilight Sparkle laughs as she says, “Huh, a bath? This thing keeps on getting more ridiculous by the minute.”

Just then, a pony-drawn cart rushes past behind the purple unicorn, running over a nearby puddle and drenching her in mud.

At this point, Twilight, head lowered, turns to my character and growls, “You knew this was gonna happen, didn't you, Mormon?”

I answer, “Well, as a matter of fact, …”

Before I can complete my answer, the purple unicorn continues, “And you didn't do anything?”

Again I answer, “Well, you said you didn't want me to touch you.”

Laughing, Spike says, “He's gotcha there, Twilight.” But, a glare and a growl from her quiets the purple dragon. Now downcast, he says, “I think I'll head over to Rarity's.”

As Spike wanders off toward Carousel Boutique, Pinkie Pie says, “Let's get to Sugar Cube Corner before anything more can happen. The Cakes should have a bathtub you can use.”

For a few more seconds Twilight growls, then finally she sighs and says, “Alright, let's just get goin'.”

Pinkie Pie leads the way, while the human, the unicorns, and the dinosaur follow behind her.

As the group approaches the bakery, Lyra turns to her fellow unicorn and asks, “Twilight?”

Evidently still upset from being baptized in mud, Twilight Sparkle turns her scowl on Lyra and growls, “What?”

Lyra shrinks away from Twilight and says, “Nothing.”

At this point, I decide to say, “Now, Twilight, …”

Before I can continue, Twilight turns her scowl on my character and barks, “What!”

I continue, “Just because you've had a bad day doesn't mean you have the right to take it out on someone else. Remember, it's not Lyra's fault you've had so many problems lately.”

Evidently my words of wisdom have gotten through to the purple unicorn, as she turns to look at the road immediately ahead of her and, humbled, says, “You're right.” Then, turning to the pale-green unicorn, she says, “I'm sorry, Lyra.”

Lyra hesitates, then says, “I just wanted to know if you were alright.” She then turns to me and says, “Thanks, Mormon.”

Simultaneously Twilight says, “I'm fine, thanks,” and I say, “Glad I could help.”

By this time, the group has reached the front door of Sugar Cube Corner.

Pinkie Pie opens the door and leads the group inside; and my character, at the back of the line, closes the door behind himself and the others once all are inside.

The pink party pony calls out, “Mr. and Mrs. Cake, could we use your bathtub? Twilight's covered in mud!”

From the kitchen we hear Mrs. Cake answer, “Go on ahead, dear! It's up the stairs, just past your room!”

I don't know if I dare laugh at the exchange. But, I decide that my character shouldn't follow the pink earth pony and the purple unicorn to the bathroom either. And, as I watch Pinkie Pie ascend the stairs, I happen to notice something green attached to the underneath of her tail. Is that Gummy? Somehow, it wouldn't surprise me.

In the mean time, I have my character lead the remaining two into the kitchen to see if the group of three can help with anything.

As we enter, I hear Mrs. Cake ask, “Wait, did Pinkie Pie say 'Twilight's covered in mud?'” She seems to be stirring something at the side counter next to the stove.

I answer, “On our way here, we met up with Twilight, and Pinkie Pie's tail started twitching.”

Mrs. Cake gasps and says, “Oh dear. Did anypony get hurt?”

I answer, “Nothing too serious. I was able to catch a frog that had jumped out of a cart that Fluttershy was taking to Froggy Bottom Bog. It seems that Twilight Sparkle hasn't had experience with the Pinkie sense before, and she's incredulous to the whole thing.”

Mrs. Cake looks back at my character and asks, “Well, is she alright?”

I answer, “I'm sure she'll be fine.”

Mrs. Cake pauses for a moment, then asks, “Just one thing: How did Twilight Sparkle get covered in mud?”

I answer, “A pony-drawn wagon came up behind her and ran over a mud puddle, and she got the brunt of it.”

Mrs. Cake asks, “Well, didn't Pinkie Pie warn her about it?”

I answer, “Well, her ears started flopping, and Pinkie Pie did mention that; but Twilight couldn't make the connection until it was too late. Actually, I'm not really sure Twilight is still willing to make the connection between Pinkie Pie's ear flops and being splashed with mud.”

At this point, Lyra says, “Twilight also fell into a ditch after being warned by Mormon and Pinkie Pie.”

Before Mrs. Cake can ask, I state, “She's fine. I managed to help her back out again.”

Mrs. Cake replies, “Well, that's good to hear.”

Finally, I ask, “So, is there anything we can do to help out here?”

My guess, when the blue earth mare turns back to her bowl, is that she's checking to see if the contents are ready yet. She hums with uncertainty for a moment, then grunts in affirmation, then says, “Lyra, could you get a cupcake pan from the cupboard over there?”

The pale-green unicorn seems to know where Mrs. Cake is gesturing, as the handle of a door to a cupboard becomes possessed by a pale-green aura and opens up; and a well-used, metal cupcake pan floats out toward the blue earth mare, also possessed by a pale-green aura.

Mrs. Cake thanks Lyra for the assistance, then asks, “Mormon, could you spoon out the batter into the holes? We're making muffins for Derpy when she comes.”

My character automatically steps forward as I say, “Sure, no problem.” Then, my character steps next to Mrs. Cake and accepts the bowl of muffin batter from her and starts scooping it out of the bowl with the wooden spoon she'd been mixing it with and pouring it into the holes of the cupcake pan.

While my character is doing that, Mrs. Cake says, “Good. Now, I'll put slices of lemon on top of each muffin to show that these are lemon surprise muffins.”

At this statement, I can't help chuckling a little at the memory of a fan-made video of the gray pegasa going crazy after not getting her “lemon muffin surprise.” She calms down at the end of the video, after Mr. Cake comes back with, as he put it, “one muffin left,” leaving Vinyl Scratch, nearby, disappointed that the laser show ended so early. I don't include that event in this game, it's just funny to remember it. And, one thing among many that I decide not to ask about: If the lemon in the muffin is supposed to be a surprise, why put a slice of it out in plain sight on top?

In the mean time, while Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character are helping the Cakes, Pinkie Pie is likely talking to Twilight about the involuntary energies, the “niggly feelings,” in her body that tell her when certain things are going to happen. It's also during this time that Twilight learns about the existence of Pinkie's pet alligator, Gummy, who, unbeknownst to Twilight, is evidently taking a bath with her. I wonder if Pinkie ever tells the purple unicorn about how the alligator and the pink earth pony met.

At any rate, by the time Pinkie Pie and Twilight Sparkle join Lyra, Weed Whacker and my character in the kitchen of the bakery, Derpy has already been in and claimed her supply of lemon surprise muffins.

As soon as she enters the kitchen, Twilight Sparkle says, “I really need to get back to the library now.”

Just then, Pinkie's leg closest to my character trembles, then collapses under her, causing the pink earth pony to fall.

As she gets up, Twilight comes to her aid and asks, “Pinkie, are you alright?”

Pinkie answers, “I'm fine. But, my Pinkie sense just told me that I should go with you, and Mormon needs to come along, too.”

At this announcement, Twilight groans and says, “Whatever. Let's just get going.”

Lyra turns to my character and asks, “Could I come along too?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Nah. Just Mormon needs to come along.”

I add, while my character looks at the pale-green unicorn, “You and Weed Whacker stay here and help the Cakes. Pinkie and I'll come back when we're finished at the library.”

Unlike Twilight's groan of frustration, the groans that come from Lyra and Weed Whacker are more of disappointment. But, they agree.

In the mean time, my character follows the purple unicorn and the pink earth pony out of the bakery.

As the three walk to the library, Twilight says, “Well, I still don't believe all this 'special power' stuff. It's just a bunch of mumbo-jumbo.'”

I'm almost surprised that there isn't a pony nearby to grunt in curiosity at his or her name being called.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie responds, “What's not to believe? You do magic. What's the difference?”

Twilight stops and, as though it's something obvious, answers, “Huge.” Then, as she catches up to Pinkie Pie, she starts to say, “For one thing …” when she notices a cart with various soap products being sold.

Next to the cart is a box with various types of soap in and on it, with a picture of a bubbling bar of soap on it.

The purple unicorn moves the soap products aside and jumps up onto the box, then turns to Pinkie, clears her throat and says, looking upward with her eyes closed, “Magic is something you study and practice. It only happens when you decide to do it. And, it's meant to make something specific, that you choose to happen, happen!" She then opens her eyes and focuses on Pinkie Pie as she concludes, "With you, it makes no sense at all!”

Pinkie Pie, focused on the purple unicorn, says, “That's so not true, Twilight." Her eyes then dart in seemingly random directions as she adds, "Sometimes it's a bunch of random things happening to my body at random times that supposedly predict the future. I call them combos.”

Twilight jumps off the soap box and, cantering toward the library again, asks, “Combos?”

Pinkie Pie bounces twice toward the purple unicorn and answers, “Sure! Like, ear flap, then knee twitch, then eye flutter? That means that the sky is going to be graced with a beautiful rainbow.” And, she demonstrates these actions for effect.

This gets me to wondering about something, although I don't ask it out loud. When Pinkie Pie first saw Rainbow Dash's sonic rainboom, did she get that combo? My guess is she probably didn't. Then again, would Pinkamena, or Diane, have known about it? Knowing Diane, she probably would. She was in command of Pinkie Pie at the time. But, that's a story for another time.

In the mean time, Twilight pauses long enough to say with incredulity, “Yeah, sure.”

Then, Pinkie Pie stops and says, “Uh-oh, I feel a combo coming on.”

I have my character catch up to the purple unicorn as I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Ear flap. Eye flutter. Knee twitch!” At this point, I have my character grab Twilight Sparkle and lift her up above the doorway, just as the door opens, and Spike comes out backwards.

The purple dragon takes a few steps past my character, then, seeing him, stops and says, “Hi, Mormon.” Then, seeing him holding his adoptive mother, innocently asks, “What are you doing with Twilight?”

I have my character put the purple unicorn down in front of the open doorway, then I answer, “Just keepin' her safe.”

At first confused, Spike asks, “Safe from what?” Then, as he sees where my character puts Twilight, he says, “Oh.” Focused on the purple unicorn, he says, “Sorry, Twilight.” He then turns to my character and says, “Thanks, Mormon.”

As Spike continues on his way, Twilight, scratching the back of her neck, says, “You said that combo meant beautiful rainbow.”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Oh, no-no-no-no-no. You're thinking of an ear flap, then knee twitch, then eye flutter. This was an ear flap, then eye flutter, then knee twitch. That usually means, 'Look out for opening doors.' You okay?”

I guess this answers my thought from before when I saw this combo through my character's eyes, as it happened on his lap. Although, who's to say that it couldn't warn about closing doors as well?

Then, my last thought is answered when I hear Pinkie Pie say, "No, Mormon, just opening doors."

As my character's attention is drawn to the pink earth pony, and I see her smiling face through my character's eyes; I hear Twilight grunt in curiosity.

Then, as my character's attention is drawn back to the purple unicorn, I hear Pinkie Pie answer, "Nothing, Twily." And, at this point I decide to keep my character's attention focused on Twilight.

The purple unicorn, in the mean time, pointing to my character, says, “Well, I'm fine, thanks to Mormon.” Then, as she looks at my character, she asks, “Wait, how did you know about that?”

I answer, “Experience and observation are great teachers.”

At this point, Twilight groans, “I don't believe this.”

Then, Pinkie Pie approaches her and says, “You don't believe because you don't understand.”

As I observe, through my character's eyes, the look on Twilight's face, not to mention her posture, I know what she's planning on doing when she hums with interest, then focuses on Pinkie Pie and says, “Would you mind following me into the library? There's a basement downstairs, and it'll give me the perfect opportunity to learn more about this Pinkie sense of yours.”

I can see the worry in Pinkie Pie's eyes as she looks up at my character. I say, “Maybe I can help.”

For a moment, Pinkie Pie goes from worried to fearful, then instantly smiles and, bouncing over Twilight into the library, says, “Okie dokie lokie.”

I wouldn't be surprised at all if Diane was telling Pinkamena what she thought I was planning to do. For all I know, for all the two of them know, Diane may be right.

As one unicorn, one earth pony, and one human, in that order, enter the library, I say, “So, I'm guessing Spike was delivering those books to someone in town?”

Then, as my character closes the door behind him, I hear the sound effect of wood hitting wood, then Twilight saying, “Oh, that's right. Bon-Bon had ordered some books about how to make candies from apples, and they just arrived today.”

As the purple unicorn speaks, my character turns to show me, through his eyes, her with a front hoof planted between her closed eyes. Come to think of it, that reminds me. I'd completely forgotten about that incident when Applebloom had tried to earn her cutie mark selling apples. She'd managed to more-or-less guilt Dr. Whooves into buying an apple, and her treatment of other possible customers had caused her big sister, Applejack, to unload the rest of the apples they'd brought onto Bon-Bon. I had given the pale-yellow earth pony some ideas about what she could do with all those apples, but that's all I'd done. Hopefully, those books can help her.

In the mean time, Twilight opens her eyes and puts her hoof down again, then turns to Pinkie Pie and my character and says, “If you'll follow me downstairs, I found a bunch of rooms in the basement, and I've set up a lab in the lowest one. I'll get Pinkie Pie hooked up to one of the machines, and maybe it'll give me a better idea of what her Pinkie sense is all about.” Then, as Pinkie Pie and my character follow Twilight under the stair case and through the door she opens, the purple unicorn turns to my character and says, “Mormon, there should be a box of paper next to the staircase. Could you get that before coming down the stairs?”

I do notice a box of paper there; so I have my character turn to Twilight; and I say, “Sure. You go on ahead, and I'll grab the box.” Then, as the two ponies proceed down the hallway to the staircase that'll lead to Twilight's underground lab, I have my character look around and find the globe, which I know is in the library. Once he finds it, I have him remove it from its stand and place it on top of the box before taking the stacked objects with him through the door and down the hall.

It's about at the end of the hall when the expected happens, and the large sphere rolls off the box, down the rest of the hallway, and down the stairs, just as I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Uh-oh, twitchy tail.”

I call out, “Heads up!”

Then, as my character walks down the staircase, I think it's Pinkie Pie and Twilight Sparkle in unison that I hear calling out, “Mormon!” Then, when my character gets to the bottom of the staircase, I see, through his eyes, Pinkie Pie basically mooning my character and Twilight glaring at him, holding the globe in the air with her magic. As my character takes the last steps to the basement, I ask, “Is everyone alright down here? I guess using the globe as a paperweight wasn't such a good idea after all.”

As my character puts the box down, I hear Twilight say, “A paperweight! The box is secure. There was no need for a paperweight!”

I have my character focus on the top of the box, which I can see is closed; and I say, “I guess you're right.”

My character then looks at the furious unicorn as she continues, “Do you realize how dangerous it is to have things like this rolling around down here? What if it had damaged one of my machines? What if this globe had been damaged? Do you realize just how rare one of these globes is? I'd have to get the whole thing replaced, which'd mean at least a month without a globe! And then, what if I needed to do a project involving geography, huh?” While she asks about “this” being damaged, the globe, possessed by Twilight's magic aura, moves toward my character.

I answer, “I'm sorry, Twilight. But, I did get Pinkie's tail to twitch.” Then, as my character grabs the hovering globe, I say, “I guess I'd better take this back upstairs.” Then, as the purple aura disappears from the globe, my character proceeds up the stairs again, with the globe in his hands. Now, why does this remind me of a song?

I think my character makes one round up the spiraling staircase before I hear Pinkie Pie say, “I'm so sorry about Mormon, Twilight. I guess I'll have to have a talk with him when this is over with.”

The purple unicorn answers, “That's alright, I guess. He's right about two things. He did get your tail to twitch, and he warned us in time so nothing was damaged.”

After that, I lose track of the conversation between the two element bearers as I continue up the stairs, which, as far as I can tell, spiral only twice before ending in the hallway that goes past a few rooms on it's way to the door to the library.

Once there, I see Spike entering the library from the door to the outside.

As the purple dragon enters and sees me, he asks, “So, where's Twilight?”

I have my character put the globe back on it's stand as I answer, “She's downstairs hooking Pinkie Pie up to a machine. She wants to understand her Pinkie sense better.”

Seeing my character's actions, Spike asks, “And, what were you doing with the globe?”

I answer, “I thought it'd be a good paperweight. And, it proved me wrong.”

Spike chuckles and says, “Yeah, I tried that out, too. Twilight really chewed me out for it, too.”

I also laugh as I state, “Well, that's one thing we have in common.” I then leave the purple dragon laughing about it as I have my character head through the door, closing it behind him. Then, I have him head down the hallway, then down the spiral stairs to the basement. On the way down the stairs, I hear Twilight say, “Okay. Now, when you get another twitch, we'll have all sorts of scientific information.”

When I saw this in the episode “Feeling Pinkie Keen,” I couldn't help thinking Twilight was going about it all wrong. Hearing it in the context of this video game, my attitude toward Twilight's approach doesn't change.

In the mean time, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Okie dokie lokie.”

About the time my character's down the first half of the first spiral, I hear Twilight ask, “Any twitches yet?”

Then, I hear Pinkie Pie answer, “Nopey lopey.”

As my character completes the first spiral, he can look down at the underground lab and show me, through his eyes, Twilight as she asks, “Now? Anything?”

As scientifically incorrect as Twilight's approach is, it's still fun to watch the two. For instance, I can see Pinkie Pie building suspense, or I'm guessing that's her objective, as she says, “Wait, hold on.” Then, after a second, she says, “Uh, no.” That, or she's just having fun with the purple unicorn.

Presently, Twilight says, “Are you kidding me? After a whole day of non-stop twitching, after I've got you all hooked up, you're not getting a single one?”

As I reach the bottom of the stairs to the lab, I wonder if I should mention the saying about a watched pot never boiling. Then, I decide against it.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie says, “I don't control it. They just come and go.”

Then, Twilight says, “It makes no sense.”

Pinkie Pie responds, “Sometimes you just have to believe in things, even when you can't figure 'em out.”

You know, now that I'm getting a good look at the strange helmet strapped to Pinkie's head, while I'm not surprised at the number of different types of light-emitting diodes blinking on and off, I am surprised that so many could be found in Equestria. While I don't ask aloud, I have to wonder, did Twilight make all of them herself? At least, when I saw this in the episode I mentioned, that was the question I was asking myself.

In the mean time, Twilight states, “I will not believe in anything I cannot explain.”

Then, Pinkie Pie says, “Wait, hold on. I'm feelin' somethin'.”

Her scientific interest aroused, Twilight asks, “Oh my gosh, what? What? What is it?”

Then, I hear a rumbling sound from Pinkie Pie, after which she says, “That's my tummy. That usually means I'm hungry. Let's eat!”

Twilight groans in frustration, then violently disconnects Pinkie Pie from the machinery as she says, “You know what? Just forget it. I don't need to know if this is real or not. I don't need to understand it. I don't even care!”

Watching her purple unicorn friend walk away, Pinkie Pie seems surprised for a moment. Then she easily frees herself from the machine and the helmet as she says, “Okie dokie lokie,” then bounces behind Twilight as they head up the stairs again.

None of us says anything as the three make their way up the spiraling stairs and along the hall to the door to the library.

Then, Pinkie Pie, behind Twilight and ahead of my character, suddenly stops as Twilight approaches the door.

My character moves ahead of the pink earth pony, and I notice, through his eyes, that her ears flap, then her eyes flutter, then her knees twitch, causing her to moan in fear and fall over backward. I immediately have my character grab Twilight and hold her up as the door between the library and the basement swings open, and Spike walks through.

The little purple dragon looks up at my character and, seeing him holding the purple unicorn above him, asks innocently, “Why are you holding Twilight that way?”

I have my character put her back down on her hooves as I answer, “Just keeping her safe.”

As Pinkie Pie bounces past the human, the dragon, and the unicorn, back into the library, Twilight says, “I'm beginning to think this is some kind of conspiracy.” Then, as the door closes behind her, she turns to my character, growls, and says, “This is ridiculous! This can't be happening! It makes no sense!”

At this point, I say to the purple unicorn, “Well, Twilight, it seems to me that your problem was with your approach.”

Glaring at my character, she asks, “What do you mean?”

I answer, “In your lab, everything was under control, maybe too much so. You had nothing for Pinkie Pie to react to, so she didn't react to anything.”

At this point, Spike chimes in with: “I think Mormon's right.”

Pointing at my character with a front hoof, Twilight says, “Well, you got her to twitch.”

I answer, “Well, that's because of an event that I planned.”

Twilight puts her hoof down again and asks, “What do you mean you 'planned?'”

I answer, “Actually, the fact of the matter is I intended to lose control of the globe and have it roll down the stairs. I knew such an event would cause Pinkie Pie's tail to twitch. The only problem with planning an event like that is it puts me in some danger.”

At this point, Twilight's anger melts away into concern as she asks, “What do you mean?”

I answer, “The best I can hope for right now is that Pinkie Pie'll just chew me out for what I did. But, you were right about one thing. I did get Pinkie Pie to twitch. I just don't recommend that you do such a thing. Let's just say that it's best not to tempt fate.”

I can't say for sure if Twilight's just covering her fear, or feigning it. All I know is she asks, “So, what do you suggest I do?”

I answer, “Well, my best suggestion is if you want to get a better understanding of Pinkie Pie's Pinkie sense, your best option is to observe her from a vantage point of safety. It is possible to watch her without being in direct contact.”

At this point, Twilight turns away from my character and hums with interest. After a few seconds, she turns back to my character and asks, “Mormon, could you help me study Pinkie Pie?”

I answer, “I suppose I could do that. But, I really think we should be getting back to Sugar Cube Corner as soon as we can.”

Twilight's response is to sigh and say, “Oh, alright. I just need to get this figured out.” And, with that, she opens the door and leads Spike and my character back into the library.

Once there, a cheerful Pinkie Pie approaches my character and says, “So, let's get back to Sugar Cube Corner.”

I agree, and human and earth pony head back to the bakery. Then, as we head through the back door, I see, through my character's eyes, Mrs. Cake sitting canine-style on the floor in the middle of the kitchen, trembling, with Lyra and Weed Whacker on each side of her, and Mr. Cake facing her, a look of fear on his face.

Pinkie Pie trots a couple steps ahead of my character and asks, “Mrs. Cake, are you alright?”

My character takes a few steps forward and shows me, through his eyes, a dark green, shiny puddle which ends, or perhaps starts, just under Mrs. Cake's mouth, while a shiny dark-green particle drips off the end of her mouth into the puddle. Whatever happened, it was probably just a few seconds ago.

Mr. Cake looks up at my character and asks, “Mormon, do you think you could pick Cup Cake up off the ground?”

As my character looks the blue earth mare over, I can see, through his eyes, that her evident pregnancy has made her extremely round. When he focuses on Mr. Cake again, I answer, “I'm not sure how I'll be able to do that.”

Through my character's eyes, I think I see the orange earth stallion tear up as he looks into his female's eyes and says, “You stay here, dear, and I'll get a wagon for you. You'll be fine, you hear me?”

The blue mare says nothing. But, as Mr. Cake steps past her, over Weed Whacker, she opens her mouth and spews dark-green slime into the puddle, increasing it's size and causing Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker to scream in fear.

In the mean time, I hear Mr. Cake next to my character say, “Mormon, I'm gonna need your help.”

Instantly my character turns and follows the orange earth stallion back out the back door.

Once outside, Mr. Cake turns to my character and says, “I'm really scared for her. I don't wanna lose her.”

I answer, “Let's get that wagon. Mrs. Cake will be fine.”

As the human and earth pony emerge from the alleyway behind the two buildings, I hear Twilight's voice say, “Mormon, Mr. Cake, is everything alright?”

As soon as my character focuses on the purple unicorn, I answer, “Mrs. Cake is ill. She needs to go to the clinic as soon as possible.”

Presently Twilight turns around and says, “I know where the library's cart is. I'll get it and be back as soon as possible.” And, with that, she gallops back to the library.

In the mean time, I hear sniffling sounds coming from Mr. Cake, and my character turns to him to show me, through his eyes, he's starting to cry.

I state, “Like I said before, Mrs. Cake is gonna be fine. There's no need to worry.”

Mr. Cake sits down canine-style, rubs his nose with a forelimb, then says, “I just can't help worryin' about her.”

I say, “And, I understand that. It's just that I know that your female will survive this. And, she'll have two foals.”

Focusing on my character now, the orange earth stallion asks, “H-how do you know that?”

I answer, “I have a good source for my information.” As old as this excuse might seem to get, it seems to me better than telling him that I saw it on an episode of a cartoon, or that Mr. Cake is a character in a video game that I made, and I planned things to happen this way.

Mr. Cake rises to his hooves again and says, “I'm gonna trust you, Mormon. I just hope you're right.”

Just then, Twilight Sparkle arrives with the library cart, which Mr. Cake and my character help guide into the alleyway as close as the three can get to the back door.

Then, Mr. Cake goes inside and, with the help of Pinkie Pie and Lyra, guide Mrs. Cake through the back door and into the cart. After that, he moves to take the place of Twilight and gently starts moving the cart forward, then speeds up slowly enough to make sure Mrs. Cake stays in the back of the vehicle as he proceeds toward the clinic, but not before turning to my character and saying, “Close down the bakery for me! I don't think we'll be back in business for the rest of the day!”

Following Mr. Cake's orders, I have my character turn and head back into the bakery through the back door. Once inside, I tell Pinkie Pie, “Mr. Cake wants us—“

Before I can finish my statement, Pinkie Pie says, “wants us to close down the bakery. Yes, we heard him.” Then, she goes into the main room of the bakery and calls out, “I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but due to a medical emergency, the bakery is closed for the rest of the day!”

I hear groans as ponies leave through the front door, and Pinkie Pie continues to say she's sorry for the inconvenience. Then, some time after the customers have left, Pinkie Pie returns and says, “Well, that's it. I just need to put the 'Closed' sign in the window, and it'll be official.”

Lyra says, “You go ahead and do that, and Weed Whacker and I'll get to work and clean up the mess that Mrs. Cake left in here.”

And, with that, the ponies get to work on the jobs they've assigned for themselves. It's not long before all have done their jobs, after which the group of five leave through the back door.

Once outside, Pinkie Pie says, “Well, now that there's nothing to do here anymore, I think I'll go to the park. That should take my mind off of this thing with Mrs. Cake.”

I ask, “Are you sure you don't want to visit the clinic and find out what they learned about Mrs. Cake?”

Pinkie answers, “Like you said, she'll be fine. And besides, I don't wanna block the way for any emergencies that might come up.”

I respond, “Well, alright then. So, shall we go then?”

The pink earth pony looks behind her at Lyra and Weed Whacker, then back to my character, then says, “Sure, let's go on ahead.”

At the leisurely stroll we take, the park is just a few minutes away. Then, while Pinkie Pie starts smelling flowers and playing in the grass with Gummy, Lyra provides rides for Weed Whacker around the park area; and I have my character go in search of Twilight Sparkle, who I know is hiding herself in a bush somewhere in the park. As I wander around the park, I go in search of a bush that develops purple pony legs and moves from one spot to another, following Pinkie Pie. Fortunately, considering Discord won't be freed from his statue until the beginning of the next season, such a bush shouldn't be that difficult to find.

I have my character circle around a static bush just in time to see the purple unicorn jump out of the mobile bush, holding a pad of paper and a pencil with her magic.

She notices me, but doesn't register my presence for a moment as she starts writing something on her note pad, at least not until after she says, “Oh, hi, Mormon.” Then, realizing what she said, she turns to my character and loudly whispers, “Mormon, what are you doing here?”

I answer, “It's not that difficult to spot a bush that gets up on purple pony legs and moves around on its own.”

Not giving my character time to react, the purple unicorn grabs his hand with a front hoof and pulls him down as she says, “Well, get down here. I don't want subject Pinkius Pieicus to know I'm trackin' her.”

I don't say this aloud, but I think she already does know.

But, before I have a chance to say anything, I hear Spike behind my character saying, “Twilight?”

As much as I expect Spike to say something about this time, I don't expect Twilight to leap half out of her skin. Still, she manages to keep from screaming as she turns to her dragon assistant and shushes him. Then, she asks, “Honestly, Spike, don't you know better than to sneak up on ponies?”

Innocently Spike scratches the bottom of his chin as he says, “Uh, sorry, Twilight.” Then, seeing my character, he asks, “Whatcha doin' with Mormon?”

I can't say for sure if Twilight's choosing to ignore Spike's question when she asks, “Is anypony else gonna show up now?”

I keep my voice down as I answer, “I doubt it. Lyra's giving Weed Whacker a ride around the park, so that should keep them occupied.”

Twilight simply answers, “Good.”

Then, Spike asks, “So, Twilight, aren't you sneakin' up on another pony?”

Twilight shakes her head and answers, “No.” Then, after repositioning the bush to hide the unicorn, the human and the dragon as best she can, she continues, “I'm doing scientific research. I'm observing Pinkie Pie, scientifically, …”

Before she can continue, I say, “Scientifically Pinkius Pieicus, right?”

I'm guessing Twilight has her hoof on my character's mouth as she answers, “Right,” then continues, “In it's natural habitat.”

I almost feel like laughing at this point. Yes, she's in a place as close to the wild as ponies in this town would dare to get without going into the Everfree forest, but Pinkie Pie doesn't exactly live here. She's just trying to relax and get her mind off of what happened at the bakery, and, I guess, enjoy her time off. And, considering the giggles I'm hearing from her, I'm guessing it's working.

In the mean time, Spike incredulously says, “Pinkius Whaticus?”

Twilight jumps into the bush, dragging her assistant with her, and I can hear her say under her breath, “There's something fishy going on with the whole twitchy prediction thing.” I have my character move a few branches aside so I can see the two of them through my character's eyes as she continues, “And, I'm getting to the bottom of it. So, shh!”

In response, Spike holds a claw up to his mouth, and his lips form a circle, indicating he understands his instruction.

After that, as Pinkie Pie bounces off, Twilight rises again, raising the bush with her, and says, “Come on. Pinkius Pieicus is on the move.” And, with that, and with Spike in tow, she runs on ahead, forcing my character to let go of the branches he was holding.

I wait for her to stop and set the bush back down again before I have my character catch up to her. Then, when my character has reached her, I see her stalking the pink earth pony in the yard at the school. Surprising, or perhaps not, that the school playground is so close to the park. Anyway, while Twilight observes through her binoculars Pinkie Pie rolling around in the grass, I have no problems observing the pink pony without them, just through my character's eyes.

Then, as I watch Pinkie Pie start rubbing her nose once, then again, I hear Twilight say, “Hmm, itchy nose.”

I then watch as the pink earth pony gasps, then runs for cover under an over-sized horse shoe. Knowing what's coming, I say, “Uh-oh.” Then, after Twilight asks me what's wrong, I turn to her and ask, “Do you know a shield spell?”

Twilight answers, “Well, as a matter of fact, yes I do.”

I say, “Well, then you'd better use it right now.”

Twilight asks under her breath, “Why?”

I whisper harshly, “Just do it!”

Twilight just groans and closes her eyes. Then, her horn starts glowing and sparking, and a shield forms around her, Spike, and my character. When she opens her eyes again, she says, “I really think you're overreacting to this whole Pinkie-twitchy thing. I mean, look at Pinkie Pie. She's hiding under that horseshoe like something's gonna fall out of the sky. But, she had an itchy nose. A twitchy tail means something's gonna fall.”

Then, before the purple unicorn can say anything more, I hear the sound effect of something lightly tapping on glass. When my character looks behind him, where the sound is coming from, I can see through his eyes bees ramming the force shield that Twilight conjured up.

As much as the attack from the swarm of bees doesn't surprise me, neither does it surprise me that Twilight and Spike have also taken notice of it.

I hear Twilight ask, “Mormon, you knew we were going to be attacked by that swarm of bees, didn't you?”

As my character turns to look at the purple unicorn, I can see, through his eyes, the look of surprise on her face. I answer, “As a matter of fact, yes I did.”

Twilight continues, “And that's what Pinkie Pie's itchy nose meant?”

I answer, “I don't know if it specifically meant that. But, an attack of some kind was coming, and Pinkie Pie's Pinkie sense was warning her about it. Just because she's hiding from something doesn't necessarily mean that something's gonna fall. You just have to observe her and see what she does before she goes into hiding.”

By the time I'm finished talking, the bees have given up their attack and flown off.

In the mean time, I hear Spike saying, “Itchy nose means attack is coming,” evidently based on the scratching sounds, while writing it down. When he's finished, he says, “Got it.”

I have my character turn back to Twilight as I say, “You can remove the shield now.” Then, I watch as the purple unicorn's horn glows and sparks, and the shield disappears.

Looking at my character again, Twilight says, “Thanks, Mormon. It seems you're able to tell us what all of Pinkie Pie's twitches are all about.” Just then, she turns to the giant horseshoe where Pinkie Pie was, then says, “Subject Pinkius Pieicus on the move once again.”

As subject Twilighticus Sparkelus jumps into her bush and starts following the pink earth pony, I can't help thinking that Pinkie Pie is having all sorts of fun with this. And, I know where she's headed next. So, allowing Twilight a minute's head start, I then have my character follow the walking bush to Sweet Apple Acres.

Not far from the front gate, I watch as Twilight abandons the bush, then makes a mad dash for a stack of hay bales near a barn. Then, as she turns and sees my character, she gestures for him to approach her, evidently hoping my character won't be spotted by Pinkie Pie.

As my character, followed by Spike, casually walks to Twilight's impenetrable barrier where she's hiding, as soon as he's close enough, she comes out, grabs his arm and pulls him in as she whispers, “Get down here!”

While my character struggles to get up at least on his hands and knees, I say, “I didn't know you wanted me to start dancing.”

Twilight shoves a front hoof into my character's mouth, or I assume that's where it went, as she whispers, “I don't! But, I don't want Pinkie Pie to spot us, either!” After that, she removes her hoof from my character's mouth and puts it down again, then looks in the direction, I'm guessing, of the pink earth pony.

As I watch her grab her binoculars and put them up to her eyes, I hear Spike ask, “So, what's Pinkie Pie doin' now?”

Twilight answers, “Smelling a flower.”

Presently, Spike says, “Holy guacamole! I wonder what that means.”

Twilight answers, “Probably that the flower smells good.”

I state, “Well, why not? I mean, after all, Pinkie Pie's as capable of enjoying the smell of flowers as the rest of us. So, why shouldn't she?”

Twilight turns and shushes my character, then turns back to observing Pinkie Pie through her binoculars, then says, “Wait, I'm getting something.” Then, as Spike resumes scribbling in his notebook, Twilight continues, “Ear flap, eye flutter, knee twitch.”

I can't help asking, “Wait, is Pinkie Pie looking directly at you?”

Not moving from her spot, the purple unicorn answers, “No, she's looking at the silo.”

Before either Twilight or I can say anything more, I hear Spike say, “Ear flap, eye flutter, knee twitch. I wonder what that means.”

I answer, “That's a warning to Pinkie that a door's gonna open nearby.”

On hearing my statement, Spike freaks out, then jumps up and runs ahead to hide behind another stack of hay bales.

Twilight, after watching her assistant do this, incredulously says, “You really, really believe this stuff, don't you?” Then, stepping back from her impenetrable fortress, she continues, “Here, let me show you that there's nothing to be afraid of.” Then, leaning on the door of the barn next to her, she says, “You see?”

In the mean time, knowing what door's going to open, I have my character move ahead of the purple unicorn and hold her off by her chest before she can fall into the cellar door she can clearly not see has opened in front of her as she trots forward and says, “There's nothing to fear from that—woah!”

As she sees that my character has stopped her from going any further forward, Twilight looks up at him and asks, “Hey, Mormon, what are you doin'?”

I have my character start to point to the open cellar door, when Applejack emerges. As she turns to look at him, she says, “Oh, hi, Mormon. Ah see you found my new apple cellar.” Then, seeing him holding back the purple unicorn, she asks, “Uh, what're ya doin' with Twilight?”

As my character takes his hand away from the purple unicorn, I answer, “Just keepin' her from droppin' in unexpected.”

For a moment Applejack looks at where Twilight was clearly headed, then at her open cellar door, then says, “Oh.” After forcing a couple of nervous laughs, she asks, “So, whatcha doin' here, anyhow?”

Spike answers, “We're trackin' Pinkie Pie.”

I add, “Twilight wants to get a better idea of what the Pinkie sense is all about.”

As the orange earth pony comes out of her cellar, she says, “Well, yer welcome to give it a try, Ah guess.”

As we watch Applejack close the door to her cellar, Twilight asks, “What do you mean?”

Applejack continues, “The last one that tried ended up beat up in a really bad way. Since then, we just accept the Pinkie sense.” She points to my character as she adds, “Yer lucky, bein' with Mormon here, who's been able to protect ya so far. Just, be careful.” And, with that, the orange earth mare canters off toward one of the orchards.

As Twilight circles around my character and watches Applejack wander off, she says, “So says anypony that doesn't wanna unravel a mystery.” Then, she looks up at my character and asks, “So, Mormon, why are you so lucky that you can keep me from getting hurt?” Then, she says, pointing a front hoof at him, “No, never mind. I think I already know what you're gonna say. You've got a good source for your information.”

I answer, “That's right.”

Just then, I hear Spike say, “Woah, Pinkie Pie's on the move again.”

Twilight turns to her assistant and asks, “So, where's she headed?”

At this point, I answer, “Lyra and Weed Whacker are still in the park. So, she's probably headed back that way.”

Now Twilight turns to my character as she says, “Well, then, let us go back that way.” And, with that, Twilight starts her march out of the orchard and back towards the park as she says, “I still haven't figured out this twitchy-Pinkie nonsense.”

As my character catches up to her, I say, “You've had two witnesses so far. And, one of those witnesses has been keeping you safe. What more do you need?”

Presently, the purple unicorn turns to my character and growls, “I don't know.” Then she calms down and says, “I'm sorry, Mormon. It's just that this whole Pinkie sense thing is driving me up the wall. I just can't rest until I've got it figured out.”

I answer, “I understand. It represents a puzzle, a mystery. And, such things can be fun to figure out.” Then, after a meaningful pause, I continue, “But, it seems to me that the way you're treating it is bordering on obsession, and that can get to be dangerous if you're not careful.”

Twilight sighs, then says, “You're probably right. And, I guess it's a good thing I have you around to keep me from falling into any traps. Thanks, Mormon.”

I state, “I'm glad to be of service.”

No more is said between us, no more is really said at all, until the unicorn, the dragon, and the human arrive at the park; and Twilight decides to hide from Pinkie Pie behind a park bench.

As Spike produces his notebook and prepares to start taking notes again, I have my character take a look up into the sky, and notice a moving carriage pulled by two pegasae, and followed by three others, including Ataahua. I watch, through my character's eyes, as the carriage passes overhead, then the door latch starts to rattle loose.

Just then, I hear Twilight Sparkle say, “Okay, take this down: twitchy tail.”

At that point, I notice, through my character's eyes, Ataahua fly in front of the pegasae to stop them before anything can fall out. And, in a way, she succeeds.

As Spike says, “Twithy tail? Twitchy tail!” I take action and have my character grab Twilight and run away from the park bench, and Spike follows close behind him.

Evidently my character was a little rough on Twilight, as she yelps in pain and says,”Mormon, what are you doing?”

My character trips and falls after a few running paces, throwing the purple unicorn in the process, but those running paces prove just enough.

I hear a soft thud behind him; and my character turns to show me, through his eyes, a flower pot on it's side on the ground where Twilight had been. Presently, an anvil lands on the flower pot, then a cart filled with bales of hay lands on the anvil, and last of all a piano lands on top of the other fallen objects. My character then looks up to show me, through his eyes, a somewhat-dark-tan pegasus wearing a baseball cap, seemingly ready to attack Ataahua and another pegasa. I have to wonder if that pegasus had been pulling the cart with the bales of hay in it. It'd make sense, considering that cart wouldn't have fit in that carriage.

In the mean time, I hear Twilight, her trembling voice just barely above a whisper, say, “Oh, Celestia!” As my character focuses his attention on the clearly terrified unicorn, she continues, “I could've been …”

As my character gets to a crawling position, I state, “But, you weren't. Are you alright?”

Twilight turns to my character, then stares for a second, then collapses sideways.

At that point, Spike tuns to the purple unicorn and asks, “Twilight?”

I say, “I'm sure she'll be alright.”

Just then, from above, I hear a gruff voice say, “Eh, you're not worth it.”

My character looks up to show me, through his eyes, the pegasus fly off, then Ataahua descend to the park bench. My character, under my orders, then rises and walks over to the distraught pegasa and sits down on the bench next to her; and I ask, “Are you alright, Ataahua?”

The gray pegasa looks at my character and sobs, “I tried to stop it. I saw the latch almost undone. But, then the flower … and the anvil … and the cart … and the piano!”

I have my character stroke Ataahua's neck as I say, “Well, at least there were no casualties.”

At this point, Ataahua grabs my character around his chest and wails, “I … almost … killed … Twilight!”

I answer, “But, Ataahua, you didn't even hurt her. She's fine.”

Now the gray pegasa pushes away from my character and, before he can react, stumbles and falls off the bench. She then gets up on all fours again and, looking up at my character, sniffles and says, “Just … I … need to be alone … right now.” And, with that, she stumbles her way out of the park.

Just then, I hear Pinkie Pie's voice ask, “Hey, Applejack, whatcha doin'?”

As my character turns his attention to the two earth mares, Applejack answers, “Takin' more apples to my new apple cellar.” She then asks, “How about you, Pinkie? What you doin'?”

At this point, I can't help laughing when Pinkie answers, “Oh, just lettin' Twilight secretly follow me all day without me knowin'.”

However, Twilight makes it known that she isn't as amused by the response as I am. Marching up to the pink earth pony, she growls, “You mean you knew all along? Why didn't you tell me?”

Pinkie chuckles and answers, “Silly, that would'a spoiled the secret.”

As the purple unicorn fights to reign in her emotions, Spike peers from behind her and asks Pinkie, “Tail still twitchin'?”

Pinkie smiles and says, “All done. Clear skies from here on in as far as I can tell.” Just then, the pink earth pony's body is seized by a vibration that bounces her off the ground, just enough that Applejack tosses aside her basket of apples in alarm.

As alarmed as Applejack, Spike says, “Oh no. What does that mean?”

I watch, through my character's eyes, as Applejack pushes her bucket of apples upright again and puts the few escaped apples back inside; and I listen as Pinkie Pie answers, “Don't know. Never gotten anything like it before. But, whatever that shutter's about, it's a doozy. Something you'd never expect to happen is gonna happen.” Then, after another vibration, which attracts my character's attention, the pink earth pony adds, “And, it's gonna happen … at Froggy Bottom Bog!”

Presently, Applejack gasps and says, “That's where Fluttershy's headed.”

Worried, Spike asks, “Oh no, is it about her?”

In response, Pinkie Pie rubs her chin with a front hoof and answers, “Uh, I'm not sure.”

At that point, Applejack jumps a hundred eighty degrees in her place, then, her voice rich with concern, says, “We better go make sure she's okay.”

Then, as the two ponies and the dragon run off, Twilight says, still incredulous, “Calm down, everypony. All we know right now is that Pinkie Pie just got a case of the shivers. That's all.” Then, realizing that my character is the only one with her, she looks up at him and grumbles, “Well, aren't you goin' with them?”

I answer, “I need to get Lyra and Weed Whacker first. I'll catch up to you afterwards.”

As my character walks off to find the pale-green unicorn and the herbivorous dinosaur, I hear Twilight groan in defeat and say, “Whatever.”

Not far from the scene of the accident with the moving trailer, I spot Lyra still giving Weed Whacker a ride. So, I call out to Lyra.

In response, the pale-green unicorn turns, being careful not to lose Weed Whacker, and makes her way to my character. After slowing to a stop just less than a foot, I'd say, away, she asks, “Mormon, is anything wrong?”

I answer, “I'm gonna follow Pinkie Pie and a couple of her friends to Froggity Bobbity Bog.” I know. A reference to Disney's Cinderella. I just couldn't resist. At any rate, I ask, “Do you want to come with us?”

Lyra gives my character a dirty look as she answers, “I think you're thinking of Froggy Bottom Bog.” Then she smiles and says, “And, sure, I'll go with you. Why?”

I answer, “Pinkie Pie got this vibration that shook her right off the ground.” I watch, through my character's eyes, as Lyra's smile melts into a look of worry as I continue, “She said something really big's gonna happen at …”

Lyra concludes for me, “ … at Froggy Bottom Bog.” Scratching the bottom of her chin with a front hoof, she asks, “Didn't Fluttershy say that's where she was taking all the frogs?”

I answer, “That's right. And, while I don't think it'll have anything to do with the frogs, I do plan on being helpful to Pinkie Pie and her friends.”

Lyra puts the hoof back on the ground, then says, “Well, we'd better get going then. If you're gonna be helpful, you'd better be there to help.” And, with that, keeping Weed Whacker on her back with her magic, the pale-green unicorn gallops out of the park and toward Sweet Apple Acres.

As the two groups merge, and Spike, now riding on Twilight's back, sees that my character has caught up with the two of them, he asks, “So, Mormon, how do you think Lyra's gonna help us?”

I answer, “I can't say for sure. But, I'm sure Lyra and I will prove helpful at some point.” Then, I look ahead and watch as Pinkie Pie's gallop is arrested by another vibration. As my character catches up to her, I ask, “Should I carry you until we get to the bog?”

Presently the vibration stops, and the pink earth pony bounces high enough into the air so that my character catches her easily. At that point, I hear her cheerfully say, “Thank you, Mormon.”

No more is said among the group of seven creatures as, just before Sweet Apple Acres, they turn on an alternate route into the Everfree forest. At that point, the group slows down to a stroll as they enter.

Spike jumps off of Twilight's back and runs to catch up to Applejack and Lyra, and my character puts Pinkie Pie back down on the ground on her hooves, just as she gets another vibration.

Now, having seen the episode before, I know they'll find a hydra there, and I know it'll be a lot larger than my character because I modeled it that way, based on the creature in the episode. But, the big event that Pinkie Pie is sensing, the unexpected one, will be Twilight finally deciding she believes in the Pinkie sense. So, there are no surprises for me. But, that doesn't make this game any less fun for me. I still plan to find enjoyment in the journey.

In the mean time, Twilight turns to Pinkie Pie and kids, “Cold? Need a jacket or something?”

Pinkie Pie turns to her and, smiling, answers, “No thanks. I'm fine.” Then, she's overcome with another vibration.

Then, further ahead, I hear Spike ask, “So, what do you think happened to Fluttershy?”

Applejack shakes her head and answers, “Ah hope nothin'.”

Spike, evidently not satisfied, asks, “I know, but, what do you think happened?”

Applejack, probably trying to hide her concern for the yellow pegasa, answers, “Ah'm tryin' not to think about it.”

Spike, clearly not trying to hide his concern, looks ahead and says, “Me, too.” Then, he turns back to Applejack and says, “But, I'm thinkin' about it anyway.” Then, he asks, “Like, … what … if … she exploded?”

Incredulously, Applejack turns to the purple dragon and asks, “Just exploded? For no reason?”

Spike answers, “Yeah, like, boom.”

Pinkie Pie, just ahead of my character, says, “Woah.”

Then, Spike says, “I know.”

Then, Pinkie Pie gets into the spirit of it and asks, “What if … what if she exploded, a-and then exploded again?”

Now it's Spike's turn to be incredulous as he asks, “Can you do that? Can you explode twice?”

Applejack answers, “Of course not.”

At this point, I say, “Fireworks are designed to explode as many as three times, but that's for display. Ponies, not so much.”

But, it seems I've given the purple dragon something to latch on to, as he asks, “But, what if Fluttershy was like a firework? Like, what if she exploded, then exploded again, and then—“

Fortunately, Twilight's there to stop her assistant before his imagination can run too far away with him. In a few galloping strides she'd caught up to the dragon, and is standing on his tail before he realizes it. Then, when Spike has noticed that he can't move forward anymore, Twilight says, “Will all of you stop?” Then, as she removes her front hoof from Spike's tail, allowing him to move again, she adds, “She's fine, I'm sure of it.”

Now, I say, “I'm with Twilight on this one.”

Then, Lyra says, “I agree with Mormon. Like, how's he gonna help Fluttershy if she explodes?”

And that seems to settle the argument just in time as Applejack calls out, “Hey, look, it's Froggy Bottom Bog!”

Then, I'm sure I hear a smile in Lyra's voice as she says, “Or, if you're Mormon, Froggity Bobbity Bog.”

That seems to break the tension in the air, as Lyra, Pinkie Pie, and I laugh over the joke shared between me and the pale-green unicorn. I think even Twilight smiles about it.

As the group hastily makes its way on ahead toward the swamp, Applejack is the first to call out, “Fluttershy!”

Pinkie Pie backtracks a bit and calls her yellow pegasa friend's name.

Twilight climbs a slanted tree, but just searches among the branches.

Applejack trots under an arched tree limb.

Pinkie Pie checks under a lily pad, but is first surprised by a frog jumping onto it, then Spike jumping onto her head, pushing her face into the mud.

But, it seems that meant he was the first to spot the yellow pegasa perched on a boulder in the swamp. He jumps off of the pink earth pony's head and onto the yellow pegasa's neck, hugging her as he says, “Fluttershy, you're okay.”

The surprised pegasa answers, “Of course.”

Applejack sighs and, in all sincerity, says, “What a relief.”

Pinkie Pie adds, “I'm so glad everything's alright.”

Twilight says, “Sorry. I know it's not nice to gloat, but, ah-hah! I told you there was nothing to worry about, and I was right.” At this point, a dark green mist rises around the purple unicorn, causing her to start to cough as she continues, “Pinkie Pie said there was gonna be a doozy, and, … and the only doozy here is how right I am.”

While Twilight gives her speech, I have my character walk across part of the swamp to where Applejack, Fluttershy, Spike, Lyra, and Weed Whacker are. When she's finished talking about her rightness being a doozy, I say, “Uh, if you don't mind me saying, first of all, and this goes for everyone here, I seriously doubt a doozy is necessarily a bad thing. And, second of all, …”

Spike finishes my thought by calling out, “Twilight, l-l-look b-b-beh-h-hind y-y-you!”

Twilight stops glaring at my character long enough to look behind her, then up, at the four-headed, wingless version of Ghidora that's risen above her.

In the mean time, I have my character grab Pinkie Pie and run on ahead before Twilight can say, “I see it, but I don't believe it.”

My character, pink earth pony in hand, or in one arm, is already a few paces ahead as I hear Applejack shout, “Let's do what Mormon's doin', and run!”

After a few seconds of the whole group running, I hear Fluttershy say, “Oh, I'm so sorry.”

My character doesn't look behind him, but he doesn't have to, either. I know the yellow pegasa's talking to a frog she passes, who's also fleeing from the hydra. I do have to wonder, though, if she thinks the frog might be hopping mad at her.

In the mean time, I hear Pinkie Pie, still in my character's arm, ask, “Mormon, why did you grab me when you started running away from that hydra?”

As my character looks down for a moment at the curious pink pony, then back in front of him, I answer, “I know you would've frozen up back there. I wasn't going to leave you to the mercy of a monster like that.”

I suppose Pinkie Pie would be in the position to emote as she says, “Oh. Well, thank you, Mormon.”

No more is spoken for a few seconds, although I hear heavy thuds here and there, followed by laughter coming form the hydra. Evidently, three of the heads have snapped at, and failed to catch, three of the ponies; and have caught other things instead.

In the episode, as far as I can tell, panic can be the only reason for the screaming before the ponies arrive at a dead end, which proves to be just a turn in the pathway. In the game, I guess I provide a better excuse as I call out, seeing the turn, “Uh-oh, turn!”

The ponies follow my character, that is until we hear Spike scream, “Help!”

I'm not surprised when Twilight turns and heads back to rescue Spike from an especially sticky part of the bog which he unluckily stepped into. But, I have my character lead the group up the hill, then stop when he's around a foot from running off the edge of a cliff. Then, he looks behind him to show me, through his eyes, Twilight Sparkle, Spike on her back, galloping to catch up to the group.

I know that nearby is a series of half a dozen natural monuments that provide a pathway across the ravine to the other cliff; where the group'll be safe. So, I have my character make the jumps across the monuments to the other cliff.

It's notable that Pinkie Pie, the entire time, has been vibrating on and off. And, if I'm not mistaken, her vibration attacks are becoming more and more frequent, as well as stronger and stronger. I'm not sure if I dare have my character put her down.

In the mean time, I hear Twilight call out, “He'll be up here in no time! Quick, one at a time! Cross!”

My character is in no position to help Spike as he stumbles and nearly falls in the swampy ravine. The good news is he doesn't need to be, as Spike's natural reflexes keep him from falling in. As he tuns from the dangerous position to Twilight, he asks her, “Uh, do you know any spells for turning a hydra into a mouse?”

Twilight answers, “No.”

Spike makes a couple more suggestions, but Twilight finally answers, “No small rodents of any kind!”

Fluttershy hesitates as she looks down into the ravine below.

Applejack jumps the six monuments ahead of her, calling to the yellow pegasa, “Hurry it up, Fluttershy!”

In response, the timid yellow pegasa backs away and, looking up at my character, says, “Oh, Mormon, why did you have to run across first?”

I answer, “I'm sorry about that, Fluttershy, but it's alright.”

Before I can say more, I hear Twlight say, “I'll distract the hydra. Fluttershy, you take Spike and get over to the other side.” And, with that, she picks up the purple dragon with her magic and settles him on her back.

As Twilight gallops at full speed under the hydra, Fluttershy turns to my pale-green unicorn friend and says, “You go on ahead, Lyra. I'll follow behind you, if you don't mind.”

Lyra just nods before jumping across each of the monuments to my character and Applejack and Pinkie Pie.

Again I call out, “Now Fluttershy, if you can humble a full-grown dragon and get it to move to another mountain, it seems to me you can make it across this ravine! And, since it's not an uphill battle, you should have no problems flying across!”

As I have my character set Pinkie Pie on her hooves on the ground, Lyra calls out, “Mormon's right! It should be just a hop, skip, and a jump!”

Again Fluttershy peers over the edge of the cliff to look at the swamp below as she chants to herself, “Hop, skip, jump. Hop, skip, jump.” Then, she backs up a few paces, then, focusing on my character, gallops a pace forward and jumps as she says, “Hop, skip, jump!” then opens her wings and flies toward him.

I can only imagine it's good fortune that keeps the hydra silent until Fluttershy is more than halfway over the swampy ravine. But, it is a cry from the enormous creature that, once again, causes the timid yellow pegasa to snap her wings folded, then dive toward my character.

I have my character open his arms just in time to receive the pegasa as she hits him in the chest, forcing him backward into the mountain behind him. Then, when I'm sure my character can say anything, I say, “There, ya see, no problem.”

Fluttershy answers, “Oh, thank you, Mormon, for being there to catch me again.”

I'll admit I'm surprised to hear Pinkie Pie say, “Just back off of him, sister. He's mine.” And, immediately after that, she's seized by another fit of vibrating.

Seeing PInkie Pie's evident seizure, I'm left with no time to respond to her outburst, as I also see Twilight, still on the dangerous side of the ravine, galloping at full speed ahead of the rampaging hydra.

Just a few of Twilight's paces before she can jump, one of the hydra's heads lunges forward to grab her.

Spike screams out, “Twilight!”

That seems to be enough to make the purple unicorn jump, and just in time to dodge the lunging head, causing it to crash into the edge of the cliff with enough force to break it off, and hit and knock over one of the pillars where Twilight could've landed and jumped off to the next pillar, on her way to safety from the hydra.

Looking at the stunned head, I have to wonder if the pain it must be feeling is the only smarts that head'll ever have. What I say aloud is, “Ouch, that'll leave a mark.”

But, the mark that's left is on more than one of the hydra's heads; as knocking over one of the pillars causes a chain reaction that leaves only two of the six pillars standing. As a result, it's evident that Twilight is stranded on the one side of the ravine with a hurt and furious hydra.

It's Pinkie Pie that, in between vibrating fits, calls out, “Twilight, you have to jump!”

Twilight shouts back, “I'll never make it!”

Pinkie Pie calls back, “You'll be fine!”

Twilight responds, “I will not!”

I wouldn't be surprised if Pinkie Pie's evident confidence is due to my character, under my instructions, moving down the path a little ways to show me, through his eyes, a better perspective of what I know is coming.

In the mean time, the hydra's four heads roar, and the giant creature starts moving forward again.

Pinkie Pie calls out, “It's your o-o-only ho-o-ope!”

Whether it's in this video game environment or in the episode, it doesn't matter. I still find it fascinating to watch.

Twilight still hesitates as the hydra marches towards her.

Then I hear Pinkie Pie shout, “You have to take a leap of faith!”

From this point, I have my character watch the swamp below, and I do notice what I expect will be the bubble that saves the purple unicorn's life forming in the slimy mud. From my character's perspective, I don't get to see Twilight Sparkle back up a few steps, then run and take her leap of faith off the cliff. But, I do get to see her bounce off of the bubble, then back up onto one of the pillars. I have my character run and jump into the place where I know Twilight will land, providing her with a relatively soft place to land after she bounces on the two pillars and onto the side of the ravine with the rest of the group.

Instead of a squee to her friends representing recovery from a daze due to hitting the cliff wall; the squee is directed at my character, and represents recognition that he was once again there to keep her from getting seriously hurt.

After her friends cheer over her evident safety, Pinkie Pie hugs her and says, “I knew you could do it, Twilight.”

The purple unicorn responds by saying, “I don't know how it happened, coincidence, dumb luck or what. But, you said there'd be a doozy here at Froggy Bottom Bog, and I'd say we just had ourselves one heck of a doozy. I mean, that hydra—“

Just then, Pinkie Pie's seized by another vibrating fit.

Watching her pink earth pony friend, Twilight says, “Pinkie?”

As soon as Pinkie Pie stops vibrating, she says, matter-of-factly, “That wasn't it.”

Twilight grunts in surprise and confusion.

Then, Spike asks, “What wasn't it?”

Insistently, as Pinkie Pie vibrates again, Applejack asks, “What are you talkin' about, Pink?”

Pinkie Pie, after the vibration ceases, replies, “The hydra wasn't the doozy.”

Through my character's eyes, I happen to catch a glimpse of one of the hydra's heads, before the creature marches off, blowing a raspberry at the group on the side of the swampy ravine safe from it. In fact, as I notice the lump on it's head, I recognize it as the head that inadvertently played dominoes with the monuments over the ravine.

As my character turns back to Twilight and Pinkie Pie, I hear the pink earth pony say, “I'm still getting the shudders.” When another vibrating spell passes, she says, “You see, there it is again. Whatever the doozy is at Froggy Bottom Bog, my Pinkie sense says it still hasn't happened.”

At this point, I watch the purple unicorn completely loose her composure as she says, “Uh—but I—what?” I can't tell, at this point, whether she's trembling from fear or fury as she adds, “The hydra—wasn't—the doozy? How—could—it—not—be—the doozy? What could be doozier than that?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Dunno, but that just wasn't it.”

Another fun part of the episode to watch, which I've effectively recreated in this game, is Twlight's transformation into a juvenile, yet fully evolved, pokemon.

Twilight Sparkle growls, then roars, then bursts into flames, taking on the appearance of a very young-looking rapidash. After a few seconds, the flames instantly die out, leaving the purple unicorn to collapse on the ground and groan, “I give up.”

At this point, I have my character start to sit up.

In the mean time, Spike walks up to the purple unicorn and asks, “Give up what, Twi?”

I have to wonder if I'm the only one that thinks of the words of the chorus from an REO Speedwagon song when I hear Twilight answer, “The fight. I can't fight it anymore.” The purple unicorn continues, “I don't understand how, why, or what; but, Pinkie sense somehow … makes sense. I don't see how it does, but it just does. Just because I don't understand doesn't mean it's not true.”

Pinkie Pie, in the mean time vibrating more than ever, asks, “Y-y-you m-m-mean y-y-you b-b-be-e-elieve?”

With a somewhat defeated expression on her face, Twilight looks up at her and says, “Yep, I guess I do.”

At the purple unicorn's answer, Pinkie Pie's vibrations climax, and she comes as close as I can imagine she can to exploding without being torn apart. Then, after looking around, she gasps and says, “That's it! That's the doozy!”

After Spike shakes himself out, Twilight trots toward Pinkie Pie and asks, “What? What is?”

Pinkie Pie answers, pointing at Twilight, “You believing! I never expected that to happen. That was the doozy! And, oh what a doozy of a doozy it was!” And, with that, she trots past the purple unicorn and starts singing, leaving the rest of her friends, other than me, wondering what just happened.

In the mean time, I have my character rise to his feet, take a few steps down the path, following Pinkie Pie, and get a good look over the tree tops. As I notice something, I say, “Fluttershy, could you fly up and get a look over there?” And, I have my character point past the trees. I don't quite expect it, but I'm sure I can see, through my character's eyes, his house.

When I first called the yellow pegasa, I heard her yelp in surprise. Then, when she hears my request, she flies up and hovers in place next to him, then states, “Oh, you can see your house from here. So can I.”

My character doesn't look to see, so I can't say for sure if it's Lyra or Twilight that says, “That should mean the trail out of the Everfree forest isn't that far away.” I'm pretty sure it's Twilight's voice I was hearing.

At any rate, as the yellow pegasa approaches my character, I ask her, “Do you think you could guide us to the trail? Once we're there, we should get back to Ponyville with no problems.”

Presently, I hear Pinkie Pie call out, “Well, let's get goin', sillies!”

Fluttershy then answers, “I suppose I could. But, I don't think I'll be takin' anymore frogs to Froggy Bottom Bog anymore.”

With the yellow pegasa to guide the group from above, and a few instances of Pinkie Pie's pinchy knee, the group is able to choose a safe course to the trail, then eventually back to Ponyville, although Fluttershy chooses to stay back at her cottage, probably to make plans to find a safer place to move the extra frogs to. And, just outside the forest, Applejack decides to return to Sweet Apple Acres to get back to harvesting apples.

In the mean time, as the group makes its way back to the library, Pinkie Pie's tail starts twitching, prompting a rapid movement into the library.

Once again, Twilight turns to me and asks, “So, did you know there was gonna be a hydra at Froggy Bottom Bog?”

I don't want Twilight to know that I programmed this game to have as many elements in common with the cartoon series as possible, including the hydra that would show up on this particular day; so, I answer, “I never saw it before.” Then, as I see Pinkie Pie's tail twitch again, I say, “I'll keep an eye out for anything, or anyone, that might fall.” Of course, that's when I notice that Spike isn't in the library.

And, of course, that happens to be when the purple dragon comes through the front door.

Twilight says, “Oh, good, Spike, you're here. Take a letter.”

Spike, running to the desk, answers, “With pleasure, Twilight.”

I decide to let my sense of humor shine through as I state, “Preferably with a quill and parchment.”

As Spike stands there for a moment confused, Twilight and Pinkie giggle over my joke. Then, looking at the supplies ready on the table, he chuckles a couple times and says, “Oh, that was a joke.” Then, after grabbing a quill and some of the parchment, he turns to Twilight and says, “Ready when you are.”

At her assistant's announcement, Twilight clears her throat and says, “Dear Princess Celestia, I'm happy to report that—“ Then, noticing her assistant hasn't start writing yet, she asks, “Spike, what've I been saying about focus?”

At this point, I'm not sure if I dare ask a question about why Twilight's happy to report a question about Spike's focus.

In the mean time, the little purple dragon points the feathery end of the quill at my character and asks, “Why is Mormon here?”

Twilight answers, “Well, Pinkie's tail's twitchin'. Mormon's kept me safe so far, so what else can I do?” And, again the two mares laugh.

Until he's stopped by Twilight, Spike also laughs. Then, he gets ready and starts writing as the purple unicorn dictates, “I'm happy to report that I now realize there are wonderful things in this world that you just can't explain, but that doesn't necessarily make them any less true. It just means you have to choose to believe in them, and sometimes, it takes a friend or two to show you the way.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie pushes on Twilight's nose with a front hoof and says, “Honk!”

I still find it funny that Spike even writes down Pinkie Pie's “Honk,” even saying it as he writes it. That's one of the many things I have preserved in this game.

At any rate, Twilight concludes, “Always your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.”

As Spike rolls up the letter and prepares to send it off, Twilight leads Pinkie Pie and my character out of the library and asks my character, “So, shall we head on over to your house now?”

I can see, through my character's eyes, that there seems to be plenty of daylight still left; so I answer, “We still seem to have some time left. We could go to the clinic and see how Mrs. Cake's doin'.”

I hear Pinkie Pie ask, “You really care about her, dontcha?”

I answer, focusing on the pink earth pony, “I'm sure she'll be fine. I just figure it's still a good idea to let her know we're thinkin' about her.”

As the group makes it's way from the library, again Pinkie's tail vibrates.

Pinkie Pie says, pointing to it with a front hoof, “There it goes again.”

Twilight turns around and approaches her, then seeing the pink pony's tail stop twitching, says, “I wonder what's gonna drop out of the sky this time.”

I amend, “What or who.”

Pinkie Pie giggles and says, “You never know.”

Then, as the group walks away from the library, after a few seconds I hear a thud coming from the arboreal house of books; and my character turns to it to show me, through his eyes, Princess Celestia on what I'm guessing is the back porch. I'm surprised, neither by that, nor by the fact that Pinkie Pie's tail has stopped twitching, as I watch the daytime princess take the letter from Spike and fly off.

It's not long before Spike comes out of the library and catches up to Twilight Sparkle, at which point the group of six makes its way to the clinic where Twilight asks about the Cakes.

The nurse pony at the front desk strolls off to the back, and in about a minute returns with Mr. Cake, who, seeing Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character, says, “I'm afraid I'm gonna have to keep Sugar Cube Corner closed for a few days. Cup is fine, they're just keepin' her here for a few days to keep an eye on her.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “And, her foals?”

Mr. Cake answers, “That's the main reason why they're keepin' her here, so when she's ready to foal, …”

At this point, I say, “I understand. Right now, your place is with your wife.”

Mr. Cake nods, appearing relieved, and says, “We'll let you know when the foals have arrived.” And, with that, he goes back into the clinic.

As the group makes it's way out of the clinic, Twilight says, “I guess that means the Cakes won't be coming to the readings for a while.”

I state, “That's fine. They can read between the two of them. But, like I said, Mr. Cake's place, right now, is with Mrs. Cake.”

The group makes it's way out of Ponyville and on their way to, then through, the Everfree forest.

At my character's house, as my character opens the gate and allows the ponies and the dinosaur in, Pinkie Pie sighs and says, “I'm gonna miss havin' Vinyl and Octavia around.”

At the pink earth pony's statement, Twilight turns to my character and asks, “Did something happen to them?”

I answer, “They proved they were ready to leave, so Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker and I guided them back to Ponyville. My guess is they're getting settled again.”

As my character, seeing the ponies and dinosaur in the yard, closes the door behind him, Twilight turns to her pink friend and says, “Well, the good news is you won't have to worry about them keepin' you awake at night.”

As I watch, through my character's eyes, Pinkie Pie turn to the purple unicorn, I notice her glaring, which causes Twilight to pause for a moment. Having effectively silenced the purple unicorn, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and asks, “Do you remember if Vinyl and Octy took their books with them?”

As I remember, the white unicorn and gray earth pony took their instruments with them. But, I can't say I remember seeing them with their copies of the Book of Mormon. So, I state, “It might be a good idea to check their room and make sure.”

Taking that as encouragement, Pinkie Pie runs into the house, making sure to open the door first, and, I'm guessing, into the room where the two musicians had been, to search for the books they might've left there.

In the mean time, Lyra looks up at my character and says, “It may be a good idea to get the snacks ready for the ponies that'll be coming to the reading.” And, with that, she heads off to the vineyard, while Weed Whacker makes her way to the vegetable garden.

Before they can get very far, though, Pinkie Pie comes out with two copies of the Book of Mormon on her back and says, “They forgot their books, they forgot their books!”

I have my character kneel on one knee in front of the pink earth pony and stroke her neck as I say, “It's alright. You can leave the books on the coffee table; and, when they come to the reading, you can give them their books.” Then, seeing Pinkie Pie relax, I continue, “When you've put the books on the table, you can come out into the orchard with me; and we'll get some fruits to make snacks for the reading this evening.”

Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “Good idea.” Then, she gallops back into the house.

In the mean time, Twilight heads to the house; and my character heads to the orchard in search of fruits.

Not long after he's made it into the orchard, the pink earth pony, now being controlled by Diane, jumps over the fence. And I can see she's wearing her saddle bags.

The pink pony with straight mane and tail kicks a tree so that nine apples fall from it, after which she collects the fruits and puts them in her bag. She's gotten pretty good at apple bucking. I wonder what Applejack would think about that.

In the mean time, I collect a few summer fruits, then put them in the bag opposite the one where Diane had put the apples. I also pick a pear or two. And, whereas Diane Pie had no problem leaping over the fence entering the orchard, she needs my help getting back out over the fence.

When all are finished with the harvest, the pink earth pony, the pale-green unicorn, the dinosaur, and the human congregate at the front door, which Twilight has evidently closed behind her as she entered; and I have my character open the door for the others to enter.

In the kitchen, Twilight helps by cutting up the vegetables that Weed Whacker harvested; and Pinkie Pie, now being controlled by Pinkamena, places the pieces of fruit and vegetables on the platter my character has provided for the snacks. And, my character joins forces with Lyra to either separate fruits from their stems, or to cut them into bite-sized pieces. And, once again, when the preparation is complete, the pile of snacks looks like some kind of royal crown.

And, it's just then that we hear a knock at the door.

My character answers the door, to find Vinyl Scratch, closely followed by Octavia, ready to come in.

I say, “It's good to see you back, Vinyl. I'm guessing you're here for the reading?”

The smiling white unicorn answers, “Of course. And, we realized when we got home that … we forgot our books. So, can we have them?”

I have my character move out of the doorway and gesture to the position of the books as I say, “Sure. They're right here on the coffee table.”

Pretty much the only evidence that I get that the bespectacled white unicorn sees the books on the table is her squealing, “Yes!” Then, my character turns to the table to show me, through his eyes, the books, possessed by a bluish-white aura, rising from the table and floating across the room, one to Vinyl, and the other to Octavia. After that, Vinyl nods to my character and says, “Thanks, Mormon. We'll wait outside.” And, with that, the two musician ponies leave the porch to take positions on the lawn.

Once my character returns to the kitchen, Pinkie Pie asks, “So, Mormon, who was that?”

I answer, “It was Vinyl and Octavia. They've reclaimed their books, and are waiting on the front lawn for the reading.”

The bounces may not be very high this time, but it's still very funny to watch the pink earth pony bouncing in a circle squealing, “Oh, yes-yes-yes-yes-yes!” once again at the rate of one bounce per yes. When she's finished bouncing, she turns to me and, smiling, asks, “Can I go see them, please?”

I answer, “Sure. And, while you're out there, you can greet the rest of the guests as they come in.”

At my response, it takes one high bounce for the pink pony to get from the counter where the snack tray is to the door to the front room. With surprising ease she opens the door and gallops to the front door. From there, I can only assume, based on the sounds, she opens the front door and runs out to greet Vinyl and Octavia.

As my character turns back to the two unicorns and the dinosaur, Twilight says, “Yeah, that's Pinkie Pie for you. So, shall we take the snack tray out to the guests?”

I answer, “I like to make sure the guests have arrived first. But, if you prefer, sure, we can take the snack tray out now.”

Turning to the pale green unicorn next to her, Twilight asks, “Lyra, will you help me?” And, I notice, through my character's eyes, one side of the tray glows with a purple aura.

As Lyra nods in affirmation, the other side of the tray glows with a pale-green aura.

I have my character open the kitchen door and stand to one side to allow the two unicorns to pass with the snack tray in the grip of their magic.

And, Weed Whacker follows closely behind the two unicorns.

Once the trio are past the kitchen door, I have my character close the door behind them, then run around the couches to the front door to open that for them, or to hold it open for them. Then, once they've made their way outside, I have my character follow, closing the door behind him. Then, after following the trio to where they place the tray, approximately in the middle of the lawn between the sidewalk and the orchard, I ask, “So, do you have your copies of the Book of Mormon?”

At this point, the look on Twilight's face morphs into one of surprise and horror, after which she closes her eyes and plants a front hoof between them, and, shaking her head, answers, “I left my copy at the library.” Then, dropping the hoof, opening her eyes, and looking at my character, she adds, “I'm sorry, Mormon.” Judging by the present expression on her face, I almost expect her to start crying any time now.

I state, “That's alright. I can always loan you a copy. I have plenty.”

Twilight emits a genuine sigh of relief and says, “Thanks, Mormon. I'll be sure to bring my copy next time.”

I simply answer, “No problem.” And, my attention is drawn to the line of ponies at the front gate.

It's evident that Pinkie Pie's taking the time to give each of the visitors an enthusiastic greeting as she allows them to enter.

From what I can see, aside from Vinyl and Octavia, there's also the Apple family that arrives together. And, I can see, through my character's eyes, that Cheerilee is used to separating the school bullies, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, Ponyville's equivalent of Laman and Lemuel, from other foals she brings with her, in this case Twist, Scootaloo, and Namby Pamby.

My three stallion friends, as well as Snips and Snails and their parents, are already in the yard.

Lyra runs toward the next pony to enter the gate, Bon-Bon, making the cream-colored mare one of the few to be doubly greeted. Then, as they walk away form the gate, I happen to notice, behind the school teacher pony, Rarity, followed by Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy.

Following them are Mayor Mare, Colgate, Berry Punch, and Carrot Top.

As Twilight marches forward to greet Rarity, the princesses appear in the open area of the front yard, along with Hoity Toity and his servant, leaving me to wonder if they're going to be regulars to the reading from now on. But, that question will be answered with time. As I notice Zecora coming from the other direction, it's clear to me that all the guests for the reading have arrived.

Once all the guests are in the yard and have taken places around the snack tray, I take a position between Weed Whacker and Pinkie Pie. Seeing that there are no newcomers, I ask, “Are there any volunteers to start reading chapter seven of Second Nephi?”

I'm pleasantly surprised when Berry Ground says, “I'd like to start.”

I nod and say, “Go right ahead.”

Berry Ground nods back, then looks down and reads, “Yea, for thus saith the Lord: Have I put thee away, or have I cast thee off forever? For thus saith the Lord: Where is the bill of your mother’s divorcement? To whom have I put thee away, or to which of my creditors have I sold you? Yea, to whom have I sold you? Behold, for your iniquities have ye sold yourselves, and for your transgressions is your mother put away.” Looking up at my character, he says, “I notice in the heading of this chapter, the end of the heading, it says I should compare Isaiah 50.”

I nod and state, “This is one of those times when Nephi, or his brother Jacob, quotes Isaiah. Later on, Nephi'll quote as many as thirteen chapters in a row from the book of Isaiah. If you're interested in Isaiah's prophesies, I can see if I can get them for you by the next time you come.”

The earth stallion nods and says, “I would appreciate that. Thank you, Mormon.”

At this point, Stunts, next to him, reads, “Wherefore, when I came, there was no man; when I called, yea, there was none to answer. O house of Israel, is my hand shortened at all that it cannot redeem, or have I no power to deliver? Behold, at my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make their rivers a wilderness and their fish to stink because the waters are dried up, and they die because of thirst.”

Emerald Hill reads, “I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering.”

Lyra reads, “The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season unto thee, O house of Israel. When ye are weary he waketh morning by morning. He waketh mine ear to hear as the learned.”

Bon-Bon reads, “The Lord God hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back.”

Weed Whacker reads, “I gave my back to the smiter, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair. I hid not my face from shame and spitting.”

At this point, I say, “Here, what Weed Whacker just read is Isaiah referring to what the Christ, from Isaiah's perspective, will go through, towards the end of his ministry, the end of his life.” I then read, “For the Lord God will help me, therefore shall I not be confounded. Therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And the Lord is near, and he justifieth me. Who will contend with me? Let us stand together. Who is mine adversary? Let him come near me, and I will smite him with the strength of my mouth.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “For the Lord God will help me. And all they who shall condemn me, behold, all they shall wax old as a garment, and the moth shall eat them up.”

Following a groan of disgust from the rainbow-haired pegasa, Fluttershy reads, “Who is among you that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness and hath no light?”

Rarity reads, “Behold all ye that kindle fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks, walk in the light of your fire and in the sparks which ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand—ye shall lie down in sorrow.”

Spike says, “Well, I'm guessing that, since that was such a short chapter, I can go ahead and start reading chapter eight?”

I have my character nod in the purple dragon's direction, and I answer, “Go ahead, Spike.”

And, with my encouragement, Spike reads, “Hearken unto me, ye that follow after righteousness. Look unto the rock from whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit from whence ye are digged.”

Twilight reads, “Look unto Abraham, your father, and unto Sarah, she that bare you; for I called him alone, and blessed him.”

Applejack reads, “For the Lord shall comfort Zion, he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord. Joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving and the voice of melody.”

Applebloom reads, “Hearken unto me, my people; and give ear unto me, O my nation; for a law shall proceed from me, and I will make my judgment to rest for a light for the people.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “My righteousness is near; my salvation is gone forth, and mine arm shall judge the people. The isles shall wait upon me, and on mine arm shall they trust.”

Granny Smith reads, “Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath; for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment; and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner. But my salvation shall be forever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished.”

Hoity Toity reads, “Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart I have written my law, fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be ye afraid of their revilings.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “For the moth shall eat them up like a garment, and the worm shall eat them like wool. But my righteousness shall be forever, and my salvation from generation to generation.”

Zecora reads, “Awake, awake! Put on strength, O arm of the Lord; awake as in the ancient days. Art thou not he that hath cut Rahab, and wounded the dragon?”

Mayor Mare reads, “Art thou not he who hath dried the sea, the waters of the great deep; that hath made the depths of the sea a way for the ransomed to pass over?”

Princess Luna reads, “Therefore, the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy and holiness shall be upon their heads; and they shall obtain gladness and joy; sorrow and mourning shall flee away.”

Princess Celestia reads, “I am he; yea, I am he that comforteth you. Behold, who art thou, that thou shouldst be afraid of man, who shall die, and of the son of man, who shall be made like unto grass?”

Warm Heart reads, “And forgettest the Lord thy maker, that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth, and hast feared continually every day, because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? And where is the fury of the oppressor?”

Snails reads, “The captive exile hasteneth, that he may be loosed, and that he should not die in the pit, nor that his bread should fail.”

Snips reads, “But I am the Lord thy God, whose waves roared; the Lord of Hosts is my name.”

Cold Hands reads, “And I have put my words in thy mouth, and have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion: Behold, thou art my people.”

Namby Pamby reads, “Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury—thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling wrung out—“

Twist reads, “And none to guide her among all the sons she hath brought forth; neither that taketh her by the hand, of all the sons she hath brought up.”

Scootaloo reads, “These two sons are come unto thee, who shall be sorry for thee—thy desolation and destruction, and the famine and the sword—and by whom shall I comfort thee?”

Cheerilee reads, “Thy sons have fainted, save these two; they lie at the head of all the streets; as a wild bull in a net, they are full of the fury of the Lord, the rebuke of thy God.”

Diamond Tiara looks up at my character, and I can see, through his eyes, the evil grin on her face as she says, “Oh, by the way, my dad's coming tomorrow. And, he's looking forward to meeting you.” And, she sings the last statement.

I answer, with a more sincere tone in my voice, “Well, I look forward to meeting him, too.”

The pink earth filly growls for a few seconds before looking down into her book again and reading, “Therefore hear now this, thou afflicted, and drunken, and not with wine:”

Silver Spoon reads, “Thus saith thy Lord, the Lord and thy God pleadeth the cause of his people; behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again.”

Octavia reads, “But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee; who have said to thy soul: Bow down, that we may go over—and thou hast laid thy body as the ground and as the street to them that went over.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “Awake, awake, put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city; for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.”

Colgate reads, “Shake thyself from the dust; arise, sit down, O Jerusalem; loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion.”

Seeing, through my character's eyes, that there are two in the circle that still haven't gotten the chance to read yet, I say, “Well, after two chapters, I can see that Berry Punch and Carrot Top have yet to read. So, I say we read one more chapter. Any objections?”

The two earth mares look at me, and Carrot Top says, “Oh, that's alright. You don't have to start another chapter on our account.”

But, it seems that Carrot Top is the only one that seems to have an objection. Even Spike seems to think it's a good idea to read another chapter.

Finally, Princess Celestia says, “It seems that everypony thinks that reading one more chapter is a good idea.” Turning to the purple-red earth mare, she says, “Go right ahead, Berry Punch.”

I can't help noticing a concerned look on Carrot Top's face as Berry Punch nods, then looks down and reads, “And now, my beloved brethren, I have read these things that ye might know concerning the covenants of the Lord that he has covenanted with all the house of Israel—“

I must admit that I'm starting to get concerned about the purple-red earth pony now. Was that a stream I was hearing from her position while she read? And, not only that, but, while she read, she seemed to be having problems, like she was slurring her words, or at least just having trouble reading, or perhaps saying, some of the words.

But, I don't get much time to worry about that, as Carrot Top reads, “That he has spoken unto the Jews, by the mouth of his holy prophets, even from the beginning down, from generation to generation, until the time comes that they shall be restored to the true church and fold of God; when they shall be gathered home to the lands of their inheritance, and shall be established in all their lands of promise.”

Then, Berry Ground reads, “Behold, my beloved brethren, I speak unto you these things that ye may rejoice, and lift up your heads forever, because of the blessings which the Lord God shall bestow upon your children.”

Stunts reads, “For I know that ye have searched much, many of you, to know of things to come; wherefore I know that ye know that our flesh must waste away and die; nevertheless, in our bodies we shall see God.”

Emerald Hill reads, “Yea, I know that ye know that in the body he shall show himself unto those at Jerusalem, from whence we came; for it is expedient that it should be among them; for it behooveth the great Creator that he suffereth himself to become subject unto man in the flesh, and die for all men, that all men might become subject unto him.”

Lyra reads, “For as death hath passed upon all men, to fulfil the merciful plan of the great Creator, there must needs be a power of resurrection, and the resurrection must needs come unto man by reason of the fall; and the fall came by reason of transgression; and because man became fallen they were cut off from the presence of the Lord.”

Bon-Bon reads, “Wherefore, it must needs be an infinite atonement—save it should be an infinite atonement this corruption could not put on incorruption. Wherefore, the first judgment which came upon man must needs have remained to an endless duration. And if so, this flesh must have laid down to rot and to crumble to its mother earth, to rise no more.”

Weed Whacker reads, “O the wisdom of God, his mercy and grace! For behold, if the flesh should rise no more our spirits must become subject to that angel who fell from before the presence of the Eternal God, and became the devil, to rise no more.”

I read, “And our spirits must have become like unto him, and we become devils, angels to a devil, to be shut out from the presence of our God, and to remain with the father of lies, in misery, like unto himself; yea, to that being who beguiled our first parents, who transformeth himself nigh unto an angel of light, and stirreth up the children of men unto secret combinations of murder and all manner of secret works of darkness.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “O how great the goodness of our God, who prepareth a way for our escape from the grasp of this awful monster; yea, that monster, death and hell, which I call the death of the body, and also the death of the spirit.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And because of the way of deliverance of our God, the Holy One of Israel, this death, of which I have spoken, which is the temporal, shall deliver up its dead; which death is the grave.”

Fluttershy reads, “And this death of which I have spoken, which is the spiritual death, shall deliver up its dead; which spiritual death is hell; wherefore, death and hell must deliver up their dead, and hell must deliver up its captive spirits, and the grave must deliver up its captive bodies, and the bodies and the spirits of men will be restored one to the other; and it is by the power of the resurrection of the Holy One of Israel.”

Rarity reads, “O how great the plan of our God! For on the other hand, the paradise of God must deliver up the spirits of the righteous, and the grave deliver up the body of the righteous; and the spirit and the body is restored to itself again, and all men become incorruptible, and immortal, and they are living souls, having a perfect knowledge like unto us in the flesh, save it be that our knowledge shall be perfect.”

Spike reads, “Wherefore, we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their righteousness, being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “And it shall come to pass that when all men shall have passed from this first death unto life, insomuch as they have become immortal, they must appear before the judgment-seat of the Holy One of Israel; and then cometh the judgment, and then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God.”

Applejack reads, “And assuredly, as the Lord liveth, for the Lord God hath spoken it, and it is his eternal word, which cannot pass away, that they who are righteous shall be righteous still, and they who are filthy shall be filthy still; wherefore, they who are filthy are the devil and his angels; and they shall go away into everlasting fire, prepared for them; and their torment is as a lake of fire and brimstone, whose flame ascendeth up forever and ever and has no end.”

Applebloom reads, “O the greatness and the justice of our God! For he executeth all his words, and they have gone forth out of his mouth, and his law must be fulfilled.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “But, behold, the righteous, the saints of the Holy One of Israel, they who have believed in the Holy One of Israel, they who have endured the crosses of the world, and despised the shame of it, they shall inherit the kingdom of God, which was prepared for them from the foundation of the world, and their joy shall be full forever.”

Granny Smith reads, “O the greatness of the mercy of our God, the Holy One of Israel! For he delivereth his saints from that awful monster the devil, and death, and hell, and that lake of fire and brimstone, which is endless torment.”

Hoity Toity reads, “O how great the holiness of our God! For he knoweth all things, and there is not anything save he knows it.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men, yea, the pains of every living creature, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam.”

Zecora reads, “And he suffereth this that the resurrection might pass upon all men, that all might stand before him at the great and judgment day.”

Mayor Mare reads, “And he commandeth all men that they must repent, and be baptized in his name, having perfect faith in the Holy One of Israel, or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God.”

Princess Luna reads, “And if they will not repent and believe in his name, and be baptized in his name, and endure to the end, they must be damned; for the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has spoken it.”

Princess Celestia reads, “Wherefore, he has given a law; and where there is no law given there is no punishment; and where there is no punishment there is no condemnation; and where there is no condemnation the mercies of the Holy One of Israel have claim upon them, because of the atonement; for they are delivered by the power of him.”

Warm Heart reads, “For the atonement satisfieth the demands of his justice upon all those who have not the law given to them, that they are delivered from that awful monster, death and hell, and the devil, and the lake of fire and brimstone, which is endless torment; and they are restored to that God who gave them breath, which is the Holy One of Israel.”

Snails reads, “But wo unto him that has the law given, yea, that has all the commandments of God, like unto us, and that transgresseth them, and that wasteth the days of his probation, for awful is his state!”

Snips reads, “O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness, and the frailties, and the foolishness of men! When they are learned they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not. And they shall perish.”

Cold Hands reads, “But to be learned is good if they hearken unto the counsels of God.”

Namby Pamby reads, “But wo unto the rich, who are rich as to the things of the world. For because they are rich they despise the poor, and they persecute the meek, and their hearts are upon their treasures; wherefore, their treasure is their god. And behold, their treasure shall perish with them also.”

Twist reads, “And wo unto the deaf that will not hear; for they shall perish.”

Scootaloo reads, “Wo unto the blind that will not see; for they shall perish also.”

Cheerilee reads, “Wo unto the uncircumcised of heart, for a knowledge of their iniquities shall smite them at the last day.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “Wo unto the liar, for he shall be thrust down to hell.”

Silver Spoon reads, “Wo unto the murderer who deliberately killeth, for he shall die.”

Octavia reads, “Wo unto them who commit whoredoms, for they shall be thrust down to hell.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “Yea, wo unto those that worship idols, for the devil of all devils delighteth in them.”

Colgate reads, “And, in fine, wo unto all those who die in their sins; for they shall return to God, and behold his face, and remain in their sins.”

Berry Punch reads, “O, my beloved brethren, remember the awfulness in transgressing against that Holy God, and also the awfulness of yielding to the enticings of that cunning one. Remember, to be carnally-minded is death, and to be spiritually-minded is life eternal.”

I must admit I'm still concerned about Berry Punch. She still has that impediment that she had with the first verse she read. If, as I suspect, she did wet herself, that's long past now. But, besides her speech, I can see, through my character's eyes, that Berry Punch just isn't acting right.

In the mean time, Carrot Top reads, “O, my beloved brethren, give ear to my words. Remember the greatness of the Holy One of Israel. Do not say that I have spoken hard things against you; for if ye do, ye will revile against the truth; for I have spoken the words of your Maker. I know that the words of truth are hard against all uncleanness; but the righteous fear them not, for they love the truth and are not shaken.”

Berry Ground reads, “O then, my beloved brethren, come unto the Lord, the Holy One. Remember that his paths are righteous. Behold, the way for man is narrow, but it lieth in a straight course before him, and the keeper of the gate is the Holy One of Israel; and he employeth no servant there; and there is none other way save it be by the gate; for he cannot be deceived, for the Lord God is his name.”

Stunts reads, “And whoso knocketh, to him will he open; and the wise, and the learned, and they that are rich, who are puffed up because of their learning, and their wisdom, and their riches—yea, they are they whom he despiseth; and save they shall cast these things away, and consider themselves fools before God, and come down in the depths of humility, he will not open unto them.”

Emerald Hill reads, “But the things of the wise and the prudent shall be hid from them forever—yea, that happiness which is prepared for the saints.”

Lyra reads, “O, my beloved brethren, remember my words. Behold, I take off my garments, and I shake them before you; I pray the God of my salvation that he view me with his all-searching eye; wherefore, ye shall know at the last day, when all men shall be judged of their works, that the God of Israel did witness that I shook your iniquities from my soul, and that I stand with brightness before him, and am rid of your blood.”

Bon-Bon reads, “O, my beloved brethren, turn away from your sins; shake off the chains of him that would bind you fast; come unto that God who is the rock of your salvation.”

Weed Whacker reads, “Prepare your souls for that glorious day when justice shall be administered unto the righteous, even the day of judgment, that ye may not shrink with awful fear; that ye may not remember your awful guilt in perfectness, and be constrained to exclaim: Holy, holy are thy judgments, O Lord God Almighty—but I know my guilt; I transgressed thy law, and my transgressions are mine; and the devil hath obtained me, that I am a prey to his awful misery.”

I read, “But behold, my brethren, is it expedient that I should awake you to an awful reality of these things? Would I harrow up your souls if your minds were pure? Would I be plain unto you according to the plainness of the truth if ye were freed from sin?”

Pinkie Pie reads, “Behold, if ye were holy I would speak unto you of holiness; but as ye are not holy, and ye look upon me as a teacher, it must needs be expedient that I teach you the consequences of sin.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “Behold, my soul abhorreth sin, and my heart delighteth in righteousness; and I will praise the holy name of my God.”

Fluttershy reads, “Come, my brethren, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters; and he that hath no money, come buy and eat; yea, come buy wine and milk without money and without price.”

Rarity reads, “Wherefore, do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy. Hearken diligently unto me, and remember the words which I have spoken; and come unto the Holy One of Israel, and feast upon that which perisheth not, neither can be corrupted, and let your soul delight in fatness.”

Spike reads, “Behold, my beloved brethren, remember the words of your God; pray unto him continually by day, and give thanks unto his holy name by night. Let your hearts rejoice.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “And behold how great the covenants of the Lord, and how great his condescensions unto the children of men; and because of his greatness, and his grace and mercy, he has promised unto us that our seed shall not utterly be destroyed, according to the flesh, but that he would preserve them; and in future generations they shall become a righteous branch unto the house of Israel.”

And, last of all, Applejack reads, “And now, my brethren, I would speak unto you more; but on the morrow I will declare unto you the remainder of my words. Amen.”

At this point, I have my character stand up; and I say, “Well, everyone's gotten a chance to read at least two verses now. And, I can see you've enjoyed yourselves. But, I'm thinking it's time to call an end to the reading for now. Next time, we'll begin the reading with chapter ten of Second Nephi, and see what happens from there. Is that alright with everyone here?”

The second of the group to rise, as it turns out, is Berry Punch. As my character's attention is turned to her, I see, through his eyes, the purple-red earth mare open her mouth, and I have to wonder if she's going to say anything. But, then I hear a belch from her, and she seems to freeze up, perhaps in shock, as, I'm guessing, instead of words, the contents of her stomach come out of her mouth.

The rest of the ponies in the circle rise even more quickly, and various ponies scream in surprise and disgust.

Cold Hands and Warm Heart move to protect Snips and Snails from the sight, and Applejack does the same with Applebloom. Even Twilight moves to protect Spike, and my character blocks Weed Whacker's view of the eruption.

After a few seconds, Berry Punch stops vomiting, then stumbles a bit; and her legs give out under her as she collapses. But, she seems more breathless than anything else. She still demonstrates evidence of being awake.

In the mean time, it's evident that her eruption has missed her copy of the Book of Mormon, and, for that matter, those of the others nearby. And, while that's good news, even if Berry Punch had gotten sick on her copy, or that of anyone else for that matter, I could've replaced it or them easily enough. Still, this display from the purple-red earth mare leaves me even more concerned about her.

As Carrot Top nervously settles back down next to her friend, she looks up at my character and says, “I think you're right. Let's call it a night.”

As the other ponies exit, Zecora lingers to get a better look at Berry Punch.

The princesses also stay in place, probably awaiting word on Berry Punch's condition.

As Zecora puts a front hoof on Berry Punch's forehead, undoubtedly to feel for her body temperature, it's Carrot Top who says, “I know what's wrong with her.” With the eyes of the remaining ponies, the dinosaur, the human and the zebra on her, she concludes, “She's just drunk.”

Zecora opens her mouth to speak, but it's Princess Luna who asks, “What doest thou mean, 'She's just drunk?'”

Carrot Top answers, “Just before she came, she was drinking at the tavern with DJ Pon3's band members.”

My character turns to the line and shows me, through his eyes, that Vinyl Scratch is still among the ponies that hasn't left yet.

But, now, she gallops in between me and Zecora, landing a rear hoof in Berry Punch's vomit as she comes to a stop. She then asks, “Who, exactly, did this to her?”

Before Carrot Top can answer, Berry Punch pushes Zecora's hoof away, rises on all fours, and says, “It's alright. I'm perfffectly fffine.”

Then I hear a zipper sound effect from behind her, and watch her as she raises her tail. With my character's attention drawn to the purple-red earth pony's backside, I get a view as she, most likely involuntarily, empties her bowels. Seeing this, I say, “Somehow, I don't think so. Generally, ponies that are 'perfectly fine' have control over their bowels.”

At this point, I hear Vinyl say, “This is the sort of thing that was happening to me before Mormon helped me.” As my character turns to the white, blue-haired unicorn, she adds, “And, just like he helped me, I think Berry Punch should stay here so Mormon can help her.” She then focuses on me and asks, “Mormon, is that alright with you?”

Before I can answer, I hear Carrot Top say, “Well, if Berry Punch is staying here, then I should stay here, too. I'm her friend, after all, and it wouldn't do to have her face whatever she's gonna face alone.”

I wait for a few seconds for input from other sources. When I don't get any, I say, “Berry Punch would be better off with someone, some pony, who could stay here with her while she's breaking her alcoholic habit. Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker and I generally go to Ponyville for whatever Pinkie Pie needs to do for that day. And, I do have things that should help Berry Punch focus on other things than the withdrawal symptoms she may face.” I have my character focus on the purple-red earth pony as I ask, “Are you good at any kind of gardening work?”

By this point, Berry Punch has stopped defecating, which would most likely means her bowels are empty now. She answers, “Whaddo you think? My sss-ssspecial talent is raise-raising fff-fff-fffruits. Didn'tcha sssee my cutie mmm-mmmark?” And, she points with her nose to the picture on her left hip.

I say, “Excellent. Then, I guess it's settled.”

As my character, following my instructions, focuses on Carrot Top, the bright-orange earth mare says, “My special talent is raising and digging up roots. I know you have a vegetable garden, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to provide veggie snacks.”

At this point, I hear Weed Whacker say, “Now, just a minute. The veggie garden is my turf.”

And, my character turns to the herbivorous dinosaur to show me she's glaring, evidently at Carrot Top.

I say, “Now, Weed Whacker, calm down. If Carrot Top is gonna stay here, she needs something to do. And, since you're so often with me, Lyra, and Pinkie Pie in town, it'll be good for the garden to have someone here to take care of it. And besides, it's only until Berry Punch is better, free from her alcoholic habit.”

Then, Berry Punch says, “Hhhey! I may be dddrunk nnnow, bbbuttt thhhat doesssn't mean I'm annn alchhh … annn alchhh …”

Vinyl Scratch pushes the purple-red earth pony's head down just as she starts to dry heave.

As she watches her friend gagging, Carrot Top says, “So, it's settled then.” She focuses on my character again and says, “Berry Punch and I will stay here while Berry Punch recovers, and I'll keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn't try to escape or do anything harmful. That is, I'll keep her here until you say it's alright for her to go back to Ponyville.”

I say, “That's fine with me. You two can have the room where Vinyl and Octavia stayed.” I then turn to Pinkie Pie and Lyra and ask, “Will you two lead Berry Punch and Carrot Top to Vinyl and Octavia's old room?”

The pale-green unicorn and pink earth pony agree; and Pinkie Pie helps Carrot Top carry Berry Punch while Lyra opens the front door, at least, and allows them to enter.

In the mean time, I have my character gather up the remaining copies of the Book of Mormon, and Weed Whacker cleans up the messes that Berry Punch made.

Zecora says, “You also helped Octavia and Vinyl Scratch. The recovery plans should almost match.”

As my character works to gather the books, I say, “Vinyl and Octavia have given me experience helping ponies break their alcoholic habits. I'll just be getting more with Berry Punch.” At this point, my character looks up to show me that Zecora seems to have disappeared. As he looks around to show me, through his eyes, that there seems to be no evidence of her presence, I'm left to guess that, while I was talking, she made her way out of the gate, or over the fence, and back into the Everfree forest, to her home.

In the mean time, Vinyl has also left for Ponyville, with the other ponies that came for the reading, save for Berry Punch and Carrot Top.

And, considering I don't see them anymore, I'm guessing the princesses have teleported back to Canterlot with Hoity Toity and his servant.

With most of the evidence of the reading gone, I have my character take the books and platter back inside.

My character puts the books on the coffee table, then takes the platter into the kitchen and puts it into the sink.

You know, thinking about it, I almost wish Weed Whacker had left the messes that Berry Punch had made. Then, the game's tomorrow morning, Berry Punch, as part of her recovery, could've cleaned them up. But, that's not for me to complain about. What's done is done. And, there's still plenty for Berry Punch to do to help with her recovery.

Lyra, Carrot Top, and Pinkie Pie come back without Berry Punch, saying that the purple-red pony is asleep in one of the beds, from what they say, I'm guessing the bed that Octavia once occupied.

Carrot Top and Weed Whacker go to the vegetable garden to harvest roots, Lyra goes to the vineyard to gather fruits from there, and Pinkie Pie and my character go to the orchard to gather fruits from there. After that, all go back inside, where they prepare the fruits and vegetables for dinner.

Carrot Top sets aside some of the fruits and vegetables for Berry Punch when she wakes up.

The rest are eaten by the rest of the group for dinner.

After that, each character retires to his or her chosen room.

But, before Pinkie Pie can retire to her room, I call to her and ask, “Will you join me in my room for a moment?”

As she turns to my character and nods in agreement, if I'm reading her expressions correctly, she alternates between excitement and fear.

My character stands at the door to allow her to enter first, then follows, closing the door behind them.

In the mean time, I watch, through my character's eyes, as Pinkie Pie jumps on my character's bed, then turns to me, nervously laughs, and says, “So, Mormon, what do you want to talk about?”

I answer, “Back in the Everfree forest, after Lyra and I convinced Fluttershy to cross the pillars across that ravine in Froggy Bottom Bog, you told her to leave me alone, that I was yours. Is there something we need to talk about?”

Pinkie Pie's ears turn backwards and flatten against her head, and she lowers into some kind of submissive pose. Then her eyebrows form an upward-pointing arrow as she says, “Well, … you see, …”

I have my character approach the pink earth pony, but she backs away from me. I then have him kneel on one knee just off the bed from her as I say, “Now, you don't need to be afraid of me. I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to know if there's some meaning to what you said to Fluttershy, that's all.” Then, when I see her trembling and apparently unable to form words, I say, “You don't have to talk aobut it if you don't want to. I just want you to know that you can talk to me whenever you feel like it. I won't hurt you.” I then have my character stretch his arms to her as I say, “Now, come here and give me a hug.”

That invitation seems to do more to calm Pinkie Pie down than anything else. While not the most enthusiastic she's ever been, she does accept, rising on all fours and taking the step towards my character, then wrapping her forelimbs around his neck, and allowing him to wrap his arms around her.

A few seconds later, they separate; and I have my character go to the door and open it, allowing the pink earth pony to leave.

At that point, Pinkie Pie jumps off the bed and trots through the door. Back in the hallway, she turns to me and says, “G-goodnight, M-mormon.” Then, she heads to her room.

I watch through my character's eyes as she opens the door, then enters her room, then closes the door behind her. After that, I have my character enter his room again and close the door behind him, then proceed to his bed, grabbing writing equipment along the way so he can write his letter to the princesses. But, I can't help thinking about what kind of feelings the bearer of the element of laughter might have for me, or at least for my character.

In the letter my character writes to the princesses, I note the number of times I had to rescue Twilight from possible disasters throughout the day. I also note that, for the most part, Lyra seemed to be a silent observer through the adventures in Froggy Bottom Bog.

I don't have my character write about my knowledge of Pinkie Pie's Pinkie sense, just that she's been a great teacher to me of that part of her life, and that knowledge has helped me keep Twilight from getting seriously hurt when things would fall, or when an attack was eminent.

I also have my character write that, at least from Twilight, I've gotten a better understanding of unicorn stubbornness, and what its limit seemed to be.

I decide not to have what Pinkie Pie said to Fluttershy on the cliff noted, at least not until I can get a better idea of what it was all about. Whatever's going on, I decide it's best for Pinkie Pie to come to me, to my character, with it.

With the letter completed, I have my character roll it up and deliver it to Weed Whacker, who is actually in the hallway when my character goes out to meet her. After that, my character returns to his room, where he gets ready for and goes to bed.

Well, I can't think of anymore to take notes on than what's already there. So, as I save and close the game, I suppose that ends it until the game's tomorrow.

Chapter 15: Return of the Musicians

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Well, it took some time. But, I managed to copy the entire Book of Isaiah from a religious website and paste it into a text file. I even have it in the documents folder of the game. Now, I just need to wait for the reading in the game to deliver the copy of the book to one of my stallion friends. So, with no further delays, let's begin.

Once again as I resume the game, I hear the sound of knocking coming from my character's door; but, this time it's followed by Pinkie Pie calling out, “Mormon, I need to come in and talk to you!”

As I have my character get out of his bed and walk to and open the door, I say, “Hold on, Pinkie, I'm coming.” As my character reaches the door and reaches for the knob, I hear Pinkie Pie moan as thought she's losing her balance, then the thud sound effect. My character opens the door and shows me, through his eyes, the pink earth pony lying on her back.

Pinkie Pie rolls onto her front and rises to her hooves again, then turns to my character and enters his room. Then, as soon as he closes the door behind her, she says, “Thank you, Mormon.”

I ask, “So, is there something wrong?”

Pinkie Pie gallops to and jumps onto my character's bed, then turns to my character and answers, “No, nothing wrong.”

As the pink earth pony settles into a canine-style position on my character's bed, I have him walk to her and kneel on one knee as I ask, “So, what did you want to talk to me about?”

Pinkie Pie swallows, then says, “Well, … you see, …” then looks away from my character for a few seconds. When she turns to look at him again, she blurts out, “Mormon, I think I've fallen in love with you.”

Somehow I had a sneaking suspicion that's what had happened. After all, what else would cause Pinkie Pie to say what she'd said to her friend Fluttershy the game's yesterday on that cliff at Froggy Bottom Bog? But, at the same time, now that I know for sure, I'm left with a problem: What do I do now? With my character still focused on her, I honestly say, “Well, … I'm gonna level with you right now. I have no experience with this sort of thing.”

The pink earth pony tilts her head and asks, “What do you mean?”

I answer, “I've never had a pony fall in love with me before. So, I have no idea how to react to it.”

As Pinkie Pie straightens her head again and looks down, she looks like she's about to cry. I have my character stroke her neck, but she moves a front hoof over his wrist and lowers it, trapping his hand.

I have my character pull his hand away as I say, “This is just something we'll have to take the same way as with your diabetes: one day at a time. It'll give me experience with an enamored pony, and I'll teach you more about how I prefer that you behave around me.”

The next thing I know, Pinkie Pie has her forelimbs around my character's shoulders, and she's saying, “Thank you, Mormon. Thank you so much.” Then, I watch as Pinkie Pie's head moves to the right and, save for some of her mane, disappears. My guess is she's making her hug complete.

I decide to have my character hug Pinkie Pie in return.

After a few seconds the pink earth pony and my character separate, and my character goes to the door to his bedroom and opens it, then gestures for Pinkie Pie to exit first, which she does. My character then follows behind her, closing the door once he's out of his room.

In the kitchen, I notice Berry Punch and Carrot Top at the table opposite each other. I can't help noticing the glare Berry Punch has trained on my character. I say to the two earth mares, “Good morning.”

Presently all I can see, through my character's eyes, is the face of Berry Punch, who asks, “Why are you keeping me here?” Not giving me a chance to answer, she adds, her expression morphing into one of worry, “I need to get home as soon as possible.”

It's when I have my character push the red-purple earth mare away from him that I see the ceiling above her, and I realize that she has managed to knock him onto his back. I answer, as my character sits up again, “I have a question for you first.”

Before I can ask the question, I hear Pinkie Pie's voice snarl, “Alright, pony, put 'em up!”

As my character turns to her, I can see, through his eyes, she's up on her hind legs, jumping around and throwing punches like a boxer practicing on her shadow. I have my character point to the door to the front room, and I say to her, “At ease, Pinkie.” Then, when I see her fall forward onto her front hooves, I add, “Just go to the front room. We'll join you in there in a minute or two.”

I can only guess Pinkie Pie's glaring at Berry Punch as, heading for the door, she says, “You'd better not lay another hoof on my human.”

In the best tone of warning I can put in my voice, I say, “Pinkie.”

As she manages to open the door between the kitchen and the front room and exit the kitchen, very likely still focused on Berry Punch, I begin to wonder if her crush on me, or it could be just on my character, is going to become a problem at some point.

As my character turns back to Berry Punch, I hear Carrot Top ask, “Is there something wrong with Pinkie? I've never seen her act that way before.”

I have my character turn to the orange earth pony, and I say, “It's just a matter between me and her. You don't need to worry about it.” I then focus my character's attention on Berry Punch again as I say, “Now, about my question: do you normally get drunk like you did last night?”

Now the purple earth pony turns to Carrot Top, or so I'm assuming, glares, and says, “You told him, didn't you? How could you?”

Watching Berry Punch prepare to pounce, or at least jump, I have my character grab her by her forelimbs as I say, “She only mentioned it to me because she cares about you.”

The purple earth mare turns her glare on my character, snorts a few times, and growls, “Let me go, Mormon!”

I answer, “No. Not until you calm down.”

Human and earth pony remain focused on each other, but it's the earth pony that finally backs off.

It takes at least a minute, but, after snorting one or two more times, Berry Punch relaxes, even rises again from her attack posture. As she looks down, she says, “I tried it for the first time at that tavern last night. The apple-flavored stuff at least tasted good.”

I state, having my character let the purple earth pony's front limbs go, “I knew you weren't acting right last night. You got sick. You wet and messed yourself.” After a pause, I continue, “Getting drunk is not a good habit to get into. It's not even a good habit to start drinking alcohol in the first place. Trust me, I've seen what happens to ponies that get into that.”

At this point, as Berry Punch looks up at my character again, I can see, through his eyes, sorrow in hers.

I continue, “One mare I helped here, I'm guessing, thought she'd become immune to the effects of the alcohol she'd been drinking. But, the first night she was here was, based on what she said, the most painful night she'd had. I helped her through it, and she's just fine now. And, she's promised that she'll never touch alcohol again. And, I trust her.” After another pause, I continue, “Another mare I helped binge drank on a regular basis. When I first saw her in that condition, she also got sick, and wet and messed herself. But, like you, she had friends to help her in her recovery.” Finally, I conclude with the question, “So, will you let me help you?”

The purple earth pony's expression morphs to one of not caring, if I'm interpreting it correctly, as she says, “I don't see what the big deal is. It was only one time.”

I state, “I think you need to stay here, just to be sure that it stays only one time. Just for a few days.”

I get the idea that Berry Punch either is running out of excuses, or has run out of them, as she turns to Carrot Top and complains, “Are you going to let this strange creature hold me prisoner here?”

Carrot Top answers, “If you're being held prisoner here, then so am I. I care about you, and the way I saw you last night scared me. I wasn't going to let you go back through the Everfree forest and maybe get eaten by timber wolves or something like that. I want you to get better. And, the reason I'm willing to stay here with you is to make sure you get better.”

Berry Punch whines, “But, I am better.”

A look at the edge of my character's periphery shows me that Carrot Top has a sad or worried look on her face as she says, “I wish I could believe that. I'm just scared that if you go back to Ponyville right now, I'll find you back at that tavern. You said the strong apple cider tasted good. That's how the ponies at the tavern got started on that stuff, and I've seen how it affects them. And, I don't want to see that happen to you.”

Berry Punch starts glaring again as she says, “Yeah, but I'm not them. I'm me.”

Carrot Top says, “And, I want you to stay you. I want you to stay the Berry Punch I know and love. I don't want you to become an alcoholic. So, if I stay here with you, will you stay here, just for a few days, until Mormon decides you're ready to leave?”

The look on Berry Punch's face reminds me of the look Pinkie Pie gave me two of the game's weeks ago when I referred to the Pinkie Pie I know and love. For a few seconds the purple-red earth pony is frozen with that look of surprise on her face, then the look melts into one of sad defeat as she looks down and says, “Alright. I shouldn't have gone out drinking in the first place. But, if I'm gonna face punishment, I suppose it's better I face it here than back in Ponyville.” She sniffles and rubs her nose, and I can see her lower lip trembling as she says, “I'm sorry, Carrot. I didn't mean to worry you.”

The two earth mares hug.

When they separate, Carrot Top says, “Let's go into the front room and tell Lyra, Pinkie Pie, and Weed Whacker about your decision, our decision.”

No more is said among the three as they make their way into the front room, where the pale-green unicorn, the pink earth pony, and the herbivorous dinosaur are waiting.

My character takes his position on the couch facing the door, and Pinkie Pie takes a protective position next to him.

Lyra moves over on the opposite couch as Carrot Top, then Berry Punch, jump up on the couch, and Carrot Top moves to make room for the other earth mare, her friend.

It's Carrot Top who says, “Berry Punch and I are going to stay here for a few days to make sure Berry doesn't try drinking again.” The two earth mares exchange looks, after which the orange earth mare adds, “Berry's good with vineyards; so, Mormon, if you'd like, she'll help take care of that. I'm good with vegetables, so I'll help Weed Whacker with your vegetable garden.”

I open my mouth to offer my acceptance, but then I hear Pinkie Pie say, “You'd better not hurt my human, Berry.”

I'm not surprised at Berry Punch's reaction to Pinkie Pie's outburst, but I am surprised at Pinkie Pie's outburst. I have my character turn to her, and I say, “Now, Pinkie Pie, that's enough.”

The pink earth pony looks up at my character with a surprised look on her face as she says, “What? You're defending her after she attacked you?”

I insist, “Things are fine between me and Berry Punch. You should trust me on that.”

Pinkie Pie doesn't respond, just looks at the pile of fruit pieces on the table, jumps somewhat so that her front half is on the table, claims a piece of apple, then pushes herself back onto the couch. I can't help noticing, while she eats the piece of apple, she doesn't take her eyes off of Berry Punch.

I also can't ignore the look of discomfort on Berry Punch's face. I have my character reach out and claim a piece of peach for himself, and I say, “It'll be different, I suppose, having two agricultural ponies around the house instead of two musicians. I'm guessing you two enjoy taking care of fruits and vegetables?”

Carrot Top answers, “My special talent is raising vegetables, and Berry's is taking care of fruits, specifically berries. And, yes, we do enjoy it.”

I don't say this aloud, but it makes sense, considering Carrot Top's cutie mark is a bunch of carrots, and Berry Punch's is a strawberry and a bunch of grapes.

In fact, I'm not really given a chance to say anything.

I'm guessing Pinkie Pie's incessant staring at Berry Punch has gotten to be too much for the purple-red earth mare, as she jumps off the couch and, passing by next to my character, says, “I need to use the bathroom.”

As Berry Punch is just about below my character, I hear Pinkie Pie snarl, “You keep away from Mormon!” and suddenly my character's lap is occupied by the pink earth pony.

Instantly I have my character grab Pinkie Pie in an effort to restrain her, then focus on Berry Punch; and I say, “There's a bathroom right next to my work room, opposite a closet next to your room, just down the hall. You can use that one.” I then have my character maneuver a struggling pink earth pony under one arm and stand up and sidestep toward the kitchen door as I add, “Pinkie Pie and I need to have a talk.”

Berry Punch, ears folded backwards against her skull, backs away, then turns and runs into the hallway, looking for the bathroom I directed her to.

In the mean time, while I carry Pinkie Pie out of the room, she growls, “Lemme go, Mormon, lemme go!”

Once my character has made his way to the side of the couch farthest from the wall, then backs into the kitchen, I say, “I don't think so. Not until we're in your room.”

On the way through the hallway, Pinkie Pie grunts in anger and says, “This isn't fair. I'm the one trying to defend you, and you're sending me to my room? I'm not the one that attacked you!”

By the time Pinkie Pie is finished, the pink earth pony and the human are in her room.

I have my character close the door behind them, then put Pinkie Pie on one of the beds; then I say, “Alright. Is this normally how a mare that's enamored with a stallion acts?”

Sitting canine-style on the bed, she looks up at my character, at me, and grunts in confusion matched by the expression on her face.

I have my character kneel on one knee in front of the pink earth pony and ask, “Do mares usually try to protect the stallions they fall in love with?”

Pinkie Pie grunts, “I don't know," before adding, "This is the first time I've fallen in love.” She then looks down and says, “I just thought you'd like it if I defended you.”

I have my character reach out and stroke the pink earth pony's neck as I say, “I appreciate that you want to protect me. But, I think I'm best qualified to know when I need protecting. Don't you think?”

The pink earth pony sniffles and rubs her nose with a front limb, then looks up at my character and says, “I … I guess.”

Now I have my character open his arms to the pink earth pony as I say, “Here. Gimme a hug.”

Pinkie Pie accepts the invitation, draping a forelimb over each of my character's shoulders.

At this point, I say, “I don't want you acting out violently, especially when there's no reason to. I know you care about me, and I also care about you.”

From the shoulder where Pinkie Pie is resting her head, I hear her start sobbing, “I'm so sorry, Mormon. I hope you can forgive me.”

I answer, “If I hadn't forgiven you, I wouldn't ask you for a hug. I do still trust you.” Then, as she pushes out of the hug, I have my character let her go and, as he lets me look through his eyes into hers, I say, “Besides, it's not me who you should be asking to forgive.”

Pinkie Pie demonstrates that she understands what, or who, I'm talking about, when she sniffles, then says, “B-but, she—attacked—you.”

I respond, “But, things are squared away between her and me. Isn't that a good enough reason to forgive her?”

At this point, Pinkie Pie looks down and says, “I guess.”

Again human and earth pony hug for a few seconds. Then, when the two separate, I have my character walk to the door and open it; and I say to Pinkie Pie, “Let's get going so you can let Berry Punch know you're sorry.”

Pinkie Pie drops off the bed, landing on her hooves, and follows my character to the door, as she says, “Okay.” She goes through the door first, then waits for my character to exit her room and close the door behind him, before seeing the purple-red earth pony leaving the bathroom across from my bedroom. Seeing her, she says, “Uh, Berry Punch, if I could talk with you for a moment?”

My character turns to the two earth ponies to show me, through his eyes, Berry Punch backing away from Pinkie Pie, ears folded backwards against her skull and head lowered.

I say, “It's alright, Berry Punch. I've had a talk with Pinkie Pie, and she's not going to hurt you.”

As I finish talking, I notice Pinkie Pie lowers her head and looks away from her fellow earth mare, and her ears droop, as she says, “I'm so sorry for threatening and trying to attack you. I shouldn't have done that.” Then, looking at the purple-red earth pony, she asks, “Can you forgive me, Berry?”

The purple-red earth mare looks at Pinkie Pie, and I can only assume she sees the sincerity in her eyes as she relaxes, and she also looks down as she says, “I suppose, if you can forgive me for attacking Mormon, I can forgive you for trying to attack me. I guess I had that coming anyway." She then slowly draws circles with a front hoof on the floor as she adds, "I didn't know you had such feelings for him. But, even if you didn't, I still shouldn't have attacked him. I'm sorry about that.”

Berry Punch's statement about Pinkie Pie's feelings toward me, toward my character, causes the pink earth pony to turn to my character; and I can see, through his eyes, the surprise in hers. She turns back to Berry Punch and, after listening to the rest of what she has to say, says, “I forgive you for attacking Mormon. I really do care about him; and if he's willing to forgive you, then so should I.”

I watch, through my character's eyes, as the two earth mares hug. Then, when they separate, I say, “Well, with that cleared up, why don't we go back to the front room and have the rest of our breakfast?”

The two agree, and it's Berry Punch that opens the door between the kitchen and the front room, then leaves it open for Pinkie Pie and my character to go through.

My character, being the last to go through the door, closes it behind him. Then, afterwards, with Pinkie Pie going to the closest side of the couch and jumping onto it, she meets my character as he goes to the other side and chooses a place to sit down next to the arm.

I find out that, while Pinkie Pie and my character were talking, the breakfast was paused. Also, it seems that I'd given such bad directions to Berry Punch that she'd decided to use the bathroom just across the hallway attached to the kitchen from my room.

So, after breakfast, I show her the way to the bathroom closest to her and Carrot Top's room. Also, Pinkie Pie lets Carrot Top, Lyra and Weed Whacker know that the matter between her and Berry Punch is resolved, and she won't be trying to attack her anymore.

After that, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker and my character head out back through the Everfree forest and back to Ponyville.

On our way out, I'm sure I hear Berry Punch say something about me not being such a bad human to serve her time under.

In Ponyville, noting that Sugar Cube Corner won't be open until the nurse and doctor ponies at the clinic have deemed Mrs. Cake ready to leave, we decide to head over to the home of Octavia and Vinyl to see how they're doing.

When the four arrive, it's Pinkie Pie that knocks on the door.

And, it's Octavia that answers. Seeing their guests, she steps aside and, waving a forelimb toward the evident living room, says, “Come on in.”

I allow Pinkie Pie to enter first, and my character follows.

When we're inside, the pink earth pony leads the way to the couch she chooses, while I hear Octavia say, “I'll go get Vinyl. We'll be with you shortly.”

I can't help noticing music playing in the background, evidently from some place in the house where Octavia is headed. The music momentarily gets louder, then stops, when I hear Octavia say, “Vinyl; Mormon, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker are here.”

I then hear Vinyl exclaim something in excitement that I'm not quite sure I understand. All I know is that the white unicorn with blue hair sounds excited to get a visit from Pinkie Pie and my character, as well as Lyra and Weed Whacker.

I can't help smiling when, as the gray earth mare and the white unicorn enter the room, and my character turns to show them to me through his eyes, Vinyl Scratch says, “Pinks, Mormon, Lyra, Weed Whacker, it's great to see you again!”

My character rises to greet the unicorn, but Octavia says, “Oh, it's alright. You don't have to be so formal.”

As my character sits back down, I ask, “So, how have things been going?”

At my question, I watch Vinyl Scratch point her head downward as she says, “I heard about what my band mates did to Berry Punch yesterday. I'm sorry about that.”

I answer, “I'm not going to hold you responsible for something someone else did.”

The white unicorn looks up at my character and smiles weakly as she says, “Thanks for that.”

Now the two musician ponies take positions on the opposite couch, after which Octavia says, “We've been busy since we got back here, throwing away all the alcoholic beverages we had in the house.”

Once again I can't help smiling at the news.

Pinkie Pie asks, “So, are you getting back together with your bands?”

Vinyl answers, “After they got Berry Punch drunk? I'm not sure I'm ready to get back together with Drum Roll, Lotta Pipes, and Sweet Tones.”

Octavia says, “I've been too busy to even write a letter, much less send it to Canterlot. I suppose I should do that some time soon.”

I have my character focus on Vinyl as I say, “You know, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to invite your band mates to the readings at my house. It might help them. Just let them know my house is a no-alcohol zone.”

Vinyl looks at my character for a moment, then looks down, and her ears droop as she says, “I don't know. I got so angry at them for what they did to Berry Punch, I said some things I probably shouldn't have.”

I ask, “So, where are they?”

Vinyl answers, “They're probably at the tavern where you caught me taking a drink before.”

I ask, “Are they going to be outside?”

Vinyl answers, “Probably.” Then, after a momentary pause, she says, “I'm guessing you want to invite them to the readings at your house?”

I answer, “Well, at least one reading. Whether they decide to attend will be up to them. And, if they do decide, it'll also be up to them whether or not they want to keep attending the readings after that. But, I'm thinking it could help clear the air among you, and even if they don't accept, at least they got the opportunity. So, what do you say?”

Vinyl shrugs and says, “I guess we have nothing to lose by asking.” She then rises and slides off the couch and says, “So, shall we go?”

Pinkie Pie bounces off of her canine-style position next to my character on the couch and lands easily on her hooves, then says, “Let's meet Vinyl's friends! Let's meet Vinyl's friends!”

I can't help chuckling at the pink pony's enthusiasm as I have my character rise from his position.

Octavia doesn't bounce off like Pinkie Pie, nor does she slide off like Vinyl did. But, she does jump over the arm of the couch closest to her, landing as easily on her hooves as Pinkie Pie did, then turns to my character and says, “Very well, then. Let's go.”

The group makes its way to the door, and it's Vinyl that opens it with her magic. And, she's also the one that closes the door behind everyone once they've exited.

On the way to the tavern, Vinyl Scratch says, “I'm still nervous about this.” Looking at my character, she adds, “There's something I forgot to tell you.”

I ask, “What's that?”

The white unicorn answers, “Well, do you remember when you caught me drinking, or about to have a drink?”

The memory does come back to me, and I can't help snickering a little before I say, “Well, yeah, I do remember.”

A sigh from Vinyl silences my laughter. Then, she says, “Drum Roll, the one I spat my drink all over, is still holding it against me for doing that.” The white unicorn then sighs again and says, “I'm expecting her to refuse because of that.”

I state, “Well, like I said, once we offer the invitation, it's up to her to accept or refuse. But, who knows? She may surprise you.”

I then see and hear Vinyl swallow hard before she says, “You know, th-that scares me even m-more.”

I ask, “Do you think Drum Roll will have an ulterior motive for accepting?”

Vinyl inhales and exhales, then says, “Probably.”

After a step or two in silence, I say, “If it'll help you, I could take responsibility for scaring you into spitting on her.”

Vinyl Scratch forces a chuckle, then says, “Thanks for the offer. But, if Drum Roll thinks I'm making excuses, or somepony else is making excuses for me, she may just attack me anyway.”

Before either of us can say anymore, I hear Pinkie Pie sing, “There's the tavern! There's the tavern!”

Pinkie Pie's singing those words reminds me of the singing macaws are known for, except that they whistle at the end.

At the announcement, however, Vinyl freezes up; and she says, “Great. Did it have to be so soon?”

Pinkie Pie, either oblivious to or just ignoring the white unicorn's plight, grabs her by the closest forelimb and pulls her toward the tavern, saying, “Well, come on, silly, let's invite your friends to the reading.”

Evidently the building where I'd seen Vinyl taking a drink with other ponies a week or so ago was, in fact, what it'd appeared to be.

And, there in front, stationed around a circular table under an umbrella, are three ponies talking and drinking some kind of yellowish liquid. Whether they're becoming, or already are, intoxicated, I can't tell from my character's present position. But, they do seem to be enjoying themselves.

And, they seem to have spotted the approaching group of one human, one dragon, and four ponies.

When I approached Vinyl, who was with the group, more than a week ago, I really didn't pay attention to them, as I was more focused on Vinyl. Isn't it interesting what details one doesn't notice until one's paying attention to them?

For instance, I notice the pegasa is something of a light gray in color, with darker gray mane and tail. Her cutie mark is a bass drum with two appropriate sticks, one of them mostly hidden by the drum. Logically, that one is Drum Roll.

The earth pony in the group is a dark tan color with a white spot on her nose, and yellow mane and tail. Her cutie mark is the head of a pony, eyes closed, smiling mouth open, with a speech bubble coming out of the mouth, and a pair of connected eighth notes in the bubble. She's Sweet Tones.

Finally, there's the unicorn, the only male in the group. His coloring is chocolate brown, with a white patch on top of his snout, and lighter brown mane and tail. His cutie mark is a clarinet with an eighth note attached by a line. He's the one named Lotta Pipes.

At any rate, as Vinyl and Pinkie Pie are approaching the trio, it's clear that Vinyl isn't approaching of her own accord. In fact, she's struggling, clearly in vane, to escape the pink earth pony's grasp.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie is encouraging Vinyl, or so she seems to think, to approach her friends and invite them to the reading at “Mormon's house.” Finally, she swings the white unicorn around and toward the table and says, “There's your friends, Vinyl. Go ahead and invite 'em.”

The white unicorn lands and slides under the table, which I'm guessing leaves her somewhat relieved that she doesn't have to look at her friends' faces, just their hooves. In her struggle to get out from under the table, she bumps her horn on the bottom of it, which, if unicorns were real, I'd imagine would be rather painful. But, Vinyl manages to shake it off; then, sitting canine-style, looks into the eyes of her friends. She seems to shrink a bit before she says, “Uh, hi, everypony.” She then forces a nervous smile as she adds, ”So, how are you?”

The white unicorn's ears fold backwards on her head as Drum Roll points at her and says, “So, you're back are ya. Have you come to take another drink so you can spit it in my face?”

Vinyl looks down at the table and says, “Uh, yeah, about that. I didn't mean to do that.”

At this point, my character has caught up to the group of ponies at the table. As I have him focus on Drum Roll, I say, “If you'll remember, I was the one that shouted at Vinyl and made her spit her drink on you. If it helps, I'm sorry for making her do that.”

Now, Pinkie Pie leans toward my character and says, “Uh, Mormon, we're supposed to be inviting them to the reading, not seeking forgiveness from them.”

I answer, “Well, if there are any trust issues between us, then clearing them up should be the first step in getting them to listen.”

In the mean time, Drum Roll's glaring at my character. When I'm finished talking to Pinkie Pie, the pegasa says, “So, you're here to take responsibility for DJ Pon3 spitting her drink on me?”

I answer, “If that's what it'll take to get you to listen to her, then yes.”

In a second the pegasa's hovering over the table, and a second later she tackles my character, knocking him to the ground.

As my character starts to sit up, I can see, through his eyes, that indeed Vinyl seems surprised.

The white unicorn rises to all fours, turns to Drum Roll, who is hovering over my character, and says, “Alright, I think you've made your point. Now, if you'll just settle down, there's something I want to talk about with you.”

Lotta Pipes asks, “Is it about what we did to 'Poor little Berry Punch?'”

As the three laugh, I see, through my character's eyes, tears in those of Pinkie Pie as she approaches him and asks, “Are you alright, Mormon?”

I answer her, “I'm fine.” I then have my character turn to Lotta Pipes, and I say, “I'll have you know she's recovering at my house right now.”

Again the group laughs for a few seconds, after which Sweet Tones asks, “And, where's that?”

I answer her, “On the edge of the Everfree forest, opposite from Ponyville.”

My answer seems to have ended the laughter, at least for the moment.

Lotta Pipes glares at my character and says, “So, you're one of those Everfree monsters?”

I have my character stand up again, and I answer, “I'm hoping I've proven myself not a monster, although I am aware that I'm a lot bigger than you.” I then have my character kneel on one knee as I continue, “But, I can be a monster, if that's what you want me to be. Personally, I'd prefer to be your friend.”

This statement causes the brown unicorn to burst into laughter again. After a few seconds, he says, “The Everfree monster wants to be our friend!”

I can't argue that, when he puts it that way, it does sound kind of absurd. And, I can't blame the rest of the group for laughing again.

But, then Lyra steps forward and says, “But it's true. And, Mormon is no monster. He's a human. And, as far as humans go, he's the best friend a pony could have.”

I don't doubt that, among creatures of equal size, one can easily intimidate another by glaring. But, I'll admit that even I have been intimidated by a little flying pony, though not in this playthrough of the game. But, that story's already been told.

Drum Roll flies down at the pale-green unicorn until her face is all Lyra can see. Then, she says, “You just keep out of this, sister.”

At this point, I don't doubt that I surprise the light-gray pegasa by having my character grab her under her chest and over her back between her wings, then pull her away from Lyra, who's starting to whimper. Then, as Drum Roll struggles to escape my character's grip, I say, “Now, you just calm down, or I'll put you in time out.”

In the mean time, the light-gray pegasa growls, “You just let me go right now!”

At this point, I firmly say, “Calm. Down.”

At my insistent tone, Drum Roll immediately folds her wings and relaxes.

Seeing that I have the pegasa's cooperation, I say, “Good.” Then, as I have my character set her on her hooves on the ground, I add, “Now, if you'll listen to Vinyl, she has an invitation to offer the three of you. You don't have to accept, you just have to listen.”

The pegasa twitches her wings nervously, but she inhales deeply, then exhales slowly, then says to her white unicorn friend, “Alright, DJ Pon3, what do you want to invite us to?”

Vinyl seems a little uncertain as she says, “Well,” then clears her throat, then continues, “Mormon, here, has already let you know where his home is. And, a lot of us go there to read a book with him, the Book of Mormon.” The question on the faces of her friends is as evident, it seems, to Vinyl as it is to me, otherwise she wouldn't add, “No, it's not his autobiography. It's a book of scripture that tells the story of a people from their origins in the Middle East to their final destruction in the Americas.” Then, she asks, “So, will you come with us to the reading this afternoon?”

As Drum Roll circles around the table, evidently to discuss the invitation among the three of them and how to answer, I have my character turn to my pale-green unicorn friend; and I ask, “Are you alright, Lyra?”

Lyra tries unsuccessfully to stifle a sob or two, then sniffles as she looks up at my character and says, “Yea, I guess.”

I have my character stroke the side of her neck, which seems to work in making her feel better.

In the mean time, as my character looks at Pinkie Pie, I can see evidence of some kind of conflict building up in her. I'm guessing she wanted to defend me, but my telling her that I didn't want her to act out violently is keeping her from acting on her feelings. At some point I guess I'm going to have to talk with her about her feelings, and how she can act on them without being violent.

Now, back to the trio that, besides Vinyl, makes up her band. After a few seconds in a huddle, the trio separate; and Drum Roll approaches my character and says, “Alright, here's what we've decided. Mormon, if you'll sing for us, we'll go to your house for one reading.”

Pinkie Pie approaches the light-gray pegasa and asks, “Do you Pinkie promise?”

I'm guessing Drum Roll either doesn't hear the warning coming form Vinyl Scratch or chooses to ignore it. Either way, she answers, “Sure, I'll Pinkie promise.”

Apparently satisfied with the light-gray pegasa, the pink earth pony turns to my character and asks, in a quieter voice, “So, Mormon, what do you plan on singing?”

I think about it for a moment before I answer, “Well, I chose this song for Octavia and Vinyl to help them with their own alcoholic habits. So, I figure, why not sing it to Vinyl's friends?”

The only indication I get from Pinkie Pie, the only one I need, that she understands what “this song” is is a growing smile on her face. She hugs my character and says, “Do it, Mormon. Sing that song for Vinyl's friends.”

As soon as the pink party pony lets go of my character, I have him rise and focus on the trio of musicians. Then I clear my throat and sing “Light Up the Land.”

Of course, ponies all around me, not just patrons of the tavern, join in the chorus, and it seems that some ponies even produce musical instruments and start playing them.

The entire song takes some four minutes, give or take a few seconds, and the ponies that joined in disperse after the last note ends.

Based on the looks on the faces of the trio, I'm guessing they weren't expecting me to sing at all.

Lotta Pipes stammers, “W-well, that was p-pretty good.”

I accept the compliment with a word of gratitude before asking, “So, will you come to the reading this evening?”

The three ponies stammer out staggered affirmations; and I let them know that other ponies will be heading through the Everfree forest to my house for the reading as well.

After that, Pinkie Pie makes Lotta Pipes and Sweet Tones Pinkie promise to attend. And, when she's satisfied, my group of six separate from the three musicians and head back to Octavia's and Vinyl's house.

When the group is back in their positions on the couches, Vinyl says, “Well, that went a lot better than I expected.”

Octavia says, “Agreed.”

I ask, “So, when do you plan on getting back together with your musical groups?”

The two look at each other, then back at my character, and Vinyl answers, “I guess it depends on how things go at tonight's reading.”

Octavia answers, “I honestly don't know. My group isn't normally known for singing, and I have to wonder if they're going to expect me to drink wine before or after a performance. I used to have a glass after a practice or before a performance just to relax. Now that I don't have that, well, I'm not sure I even want to go back.”

Lyra, who by now has recomposed herself, says, “Well, if you're looking to start a new band, I'd be honored to be part of it. My talent's with string instruments, and I'm always willing to learn a new melody or song.”

Octavia smiles and says, “Well, thank you, Lyra. I may just take you up on that.”

Then, Pinkie Pie leans toward my character and asks, “”Uh, shouldn't we head over to the clinic to see how Mr. and Mrs. Cake are doin'?”

I answer her, “Well, if you want.”

Then, I hear Vinyl say, “I have noticed that the Cakes don't seem to be at Sugar Cube Corner anymore. And, they haven't been to last night's reading, either. What happened to them?”

I answer, “I'm guessing Mrs. Cake is getting close to foaling. She got sick yesterday working at Sugar Cube Corner, and Mr. Cake rushed her over to the clinic. Apparently she's fine, and they're just keeping her there at least until she foals. And, I'm sure they're going to release her when they're sure she's alright. And, Mr. Cake is staying with her to make sure she's fine.”

Octavia smiles and says, “Well, that makes sense. If Mrs. Cake isn't feelin' well, then it makes sense that Mr. Cake would want to spend time with her.”

Vinyl, on the other hand, frowns and says, “The only problem with that is a lot of ponies in town depend on the Cakes for their bread. Before you came for a visit, I walked by Sugar Cube Corner; and I saw a line of ponies building in front of the front door. Just goes to show how many ponies have gotten addicted to the Cakes' bakin'.”

I don't say this aloud, but it's difficult to ignore the fact that it sounded like Vinyl was referring to the Cakes' bacon. And, I do agree with one thing. It would be a good idea to check up on the Cakes at the clinic, if for no other reason than to see how Mrs. Cake is doing.

And, on that subject, it turns out that I don't have to say anything; as Octavia rises and leaps from her position on the couch, then says to her four guests, “Well, if you need to visit the Cakes at the clinic, then we won't hold you back.” And, with that, she approaches the front door.

Taking that as the signal, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Pinkie Pie and my character rise and leave their positions on the couch, then follow Octavia to the door to be let out. Once outside, we say our farewells, then proceed to the gingerbread bakery to see what's happening there.

And, sure enough, in spite of the sign on the door reading “Closed,” there is a growing line of ponies at the front door waiting to get in.

Among the four of us, we debate whether to go visit the Cakes at the clinic first or try to dismiss the line of earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns that are waiting to get in to Sugar Cube Corner.

That is, until Pinkie Pie marches to the front of the line, clears her throat, and calls out, “Now, if I may have everypony's attention, I'd like to make an announcement!” Then, with the attention of all the ponies in the line, she continues, “I'm aware that you've come to buy bread from here; but Mrs. Cake is in the clinic right now, and Mr. Cake is with her! We don't know how long they'll be there, but I'm sure Mr. Cake will open the bakery again as soon as he and Mrs. Cake are out of the clinic!”

I notice, from my character's perspective, an earth stallion, something of a dirt-tan color, with gray mane and tail. From my character's present perspective, I can see he's wearing a white-and-blue collar; and I can also see his cutie mark, three bags, each with a dollar sign. Noting that it is indeed Filthy Rich I'm seeing among the ponies in the line, I'm not sure if I want to draw his attention to my character right now. Still, I notice he's the one that calls out to Pinkie Pie, “I didn't come here to be told to leave! I'm just here for one loaf of bread!”

In response, Pinkie Pie screeches, “I'm really, really sorry; but until further notice, Sugar Cube Corner is closed!”

At this point, Filthy Rich starts a chant; and the other ponies join in: “Let us in! Let us in!”

Evidently having failed to disperse the line, Pinkie Pie separates herself from it, approaches my character, and, with a worried look on her face, says, “I'm sorry. But, it looks like they're not going anywhere unless we open Sugar Cube Corner and give them what they want.”

I say, “Well, let's go over to the clinic and talk to Mr. Cake about it. If he says it's alright to open the bakery long enough to satisfy the line of customers here, then that's what we'll do.”

Lyra, already pointed in that direction, starts trotting and says, “So, let's get going.”

The rest of the group, in agreement, starts running, causing Lyra to gallop along with.

At the clinic, it's Pinkie Pie who informs the nurse pony at the front desk that she and the rest of the group are there to see how Mrs. Cake is doing.

The nurse pony leaves the front desk for a minute or two, then returns with Mr. Cake.

As soon as she sees the orange earth stallion, Pinkie Pie says, “Mr. Cake, there's a line of ponies waiting to get into Sugar Cube Corner, and they're not gonna take 'no' for an answer.”

Mr. Cake seems to take the instant sidetracking in stride as he turns to the pink earth mare and says, “Oh. Well, I'm sorry, Pinkie, but I just can't leave my wife here. I hope you understand.”

I answer, “I do understand. But, noting the insistent mob outside of Sugar Cube Corner, we were wondering if we could open the shop just long enough to give them what they want, then close down again when they're satisfied.”

Mr. Cake hums and taps his chin with a front hoof in uncertainty for a moment, then puts the hoof down again and says, “Alright, but only until the group outside Sugar Cube Corner gets what they want.” He then turns to the pink earth pony and says, “Pinkie Pie, I'm putting you in charge to make sure everything runs smoothly while Sugar Cube Corner is open, and to close it down when the customers are satisfied.”

Pinkie Pie salutes Mr. Cake like a soldier, or at least as much like one as a pony can, and says, “You can count on me, Mr. Cake.” Then, after getting a satisfied nod from the orange earth stallion, she turns and marches for the front door of the clinic.

But, before I have my character join her, as well as Lyra and Weed Whacker who are also following the pink party pony, I ask Mr. Cake, “Oh, and by the way, how is Mrs. Cake doing?”

The orange earth stallion smiles and answers, “She's doing just fine. Doctor Horse thinks she'll foal in a couple of days, so we'll have to stay here at least that long. But, I'm not sure how she'll take the news that I've just put Pinkie Pie in charge of Sugar Cube Corner for the day.”

I state, “If it helps any, I'll help her make sure things go smoothly. And, knowing Pinkie, I'm sure it won't just be us four involved for the day.”

Mr. Cake forces a nervous laugh and says, “Whatever you can do to keep Sugar Cube Corner standing while Pinkie Pie is in charge will be appreciated.” And, with that, he heads back, or so I assume, to Mrs. Cake.

While my character makes it outside, Pinkie Pie, waiting for him, asks, “So you think I should've Pinkie promised?”

I answer, “I don't know that it really matters right now. So, do you think we have enough here, or do we need more?”

Pinkie Pie hums for a moment in thought, then says, “The more we can get to help, the better. Maybe Twilight and Rarity?”

I state, “I suppose, as long as they're willing. So, shall we head to the library first?”

Pinkie Pie smiles at my character and answers, “Sounds good to me.”

Well, as it turns out, Carousel Boutique is along the pathway between the library and the clinic.

As we're approaching the boutique, it's Lyra who asks, “Considering we're going to talk to Rarity anyway, why don't we stop by Carousel Boutique and talk to her first?”

Pinkie Pie, who's leading the group, slows down and stops, then says, “You may be right, Lyra. Sure, let's do that.” And, with that, and with the other three following her, Pinkie Pie makes her way to the front door of the boutique and enters.

And, it's to my pleasant surprise, at least, that Twilight just happens to be there, evidently delivering some books to and collecting others from Rarity, at a table on the main floor, in the front room.

After the group of four salute the group of two, it's Twilight who asks, “So, what brings you here?”

Pinkie Pie asks in response, “Have you seen the line building over at Sugar Cube Corner?”

Rarity answers, “I was about to get in line over there until I saw how long it was getting. Is there something wrong with the Cakes, darling?”

I answer, “Mrs. Cake became ill yesterday.”

At my announcement, the purple and white unicorns exchange worried looks, then turn back to my character; and Rarity asks, “Well, is she alright?”

I continue, “She's fine. But, they're keeping her at the clinic until she foals. And, Mr. Cake's staying with her.”

Presently, Rarity says, “And, let me guess. The Cakes have closed down Sugar Cube Corner in the mean time.”

At this time, Pinkie Pie says, “That's right. But, the crowd of ponies is demanding their bread.”

Twilight thinks aloud, “That is a problem.”

I state, “That's the bad news. The good news is that Mr. Cake has given Pinkie Pie permission to open the bakery, given her charge over it, until the customers are satisfied.”

Again the two unicorns at the table exchange worried looks, then it's Rarity who looks at my character again and asks, “Uh, that's good news?”

An offended Pinkie Pie glares at the white unicorn and snarls, “Hey.”

I answer, “Like I said, it's only until the customers are satisfied. Besides, Weed Whacker, Lyra and I'll be helping her.”

Immediately Rarity rises and says, “Well, that will simply not be enough. I must also help.”

Twilight Sparkle also rises; and she says, smiling, “You can count on me to help out, too.”

Pinkie Pie, still offended by the implications of her unicorn friends, stomps a front hoof and says, “Now, wait a minute here.”

At this point, I have my character kneel next to Pinkie Pie; and I say, “Now, Pinkie, it's alright.” Then, when I see that I have the pink party pony's attention, I continue, “You came here to get some help, and you're getting it. Just be grateful for that.”

Pinkie Pie's glare melts into an expression of sadness as she listens to me, then says, “But, they're making it sound like I won't be able to run Sugar Cube Corner.”

I state, “Well, this is your chance to prove them wrong. Being in charge, you can delegate responsibilities. When we get to Sugar Cube Corner, you can give them the jobs you think they'll be best for, and they should respect you enough to do those jobs.”

I hear a begrudging tone in Pinkie Pie's voice as she turns to the door behind her and says, “Oh, alright.” Before leaving through that door, she turns to Twilight and Rarity and kind of growls, “Let's go.” And, with that, she leaves through the door.

As the group of six leaves the boutique, and Rarity puts a “Closed” sign on the door, it's a still-upset Pinkie Pie in the lead.

Twilight catches up to the pink earth pony and says, “I'm sorry, Pinkie. I didn't mean to suggest that you wouldn't know what you were doing.”

Pinkie Pie sighs and says, “Thanks for saying that, Twilight. I forgive you.”

The distance between the boutique and the bakery isn't very great, and nothing more is said among the group in the mean time.

At Sugar Cube Corner, the six enter the back door; after which Pinkie Pie says, “Alright. I'm not used to working this way, but it looks like we're going to have to handle things here like a restaurant.” Turning to the purple unicorn, she says, “Twilight, you'll be in charge of the cash register. That means that you'll be taking orders as well.” Turning to the white unicorn, she continues, “Rarity, I'm putting you in charge of the front door, and delivering orders to us in the back from Twilight. That means you'll be opening Sugar Cube Corner, then closing it when the customers are satisfied.” Turning to the pale-green unicorn, Pinkie Pie continues, “Lyra, you'll be in charge of gathering and mixing ingredients.” To my character, the pink earth pony says, “Mormon, I want you to sort out the orders and tell us in the kitchen what all needs to be done.” To the dinosaur, she says, “Weed Whacker, I'm putting you in charge of cleanup.” Finally, to the entire group, she concludes, “I'll be doing the baking. So, if there are no questions, let's get to work.”

As I figured, Twilight and Rarity obediently take positions in the front room.

Knowing that the main product of a bakery is bread, I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie; and I ask, “So, how many loaves of bread does the Cakes' oven handle at a time?”

Pinkie Pie smiles for a moment, then, with a serious expression on her face, scratches her chin with a front hoof. Eventually, she answers, “You know, I've never seen the Cakes put more than four loaves in the oven at a time. And, I've never put in more than that.”

It seemed to me a good idea to ask the question, just to get a good idea, based on how many ponies would most likely be asking for loaves of bread, so I would know when to come in with orders of bread.

Pinkie seems to know why I've asked, as she says, “You don't have to worry. I expect we'll get lots of orders for bread, so we're gonna get to work on those immediately.”

I don't say this aloud; but, considering it's equines working in and ordering from Sugar Cube Corner, I anticipate it'll be loaves of oat bread. What I do say is, “Alright then, ready when you are.”

Indeed, as I watch, Lyra produces oat flour, eggs, milk, water, butter, and other ingredients for oat bread, mixes them together with surprising expertise, then hands the bowl over to Pinkie Pie, along with bread pans.

The pink earth pony, in the mean time, prepares the bread and puts it in the pans, then places them in the oven.

I've had my own experience baking oat bread, and I've implemented that experience into this game. But, one thing I wonder about is, are there going to be orders for other pastries, such as cake? I suppose I'll get the answer to that question soon enough.

In the mean time, Rarity hands me a few pieces of paper with orders on them.

The first four, as expected, are orders for a loaf of bread each. The next is for a batch of cookies, then two more orders for a loaf of bread each, then an order for a chocolate cake.

I sort the eight orders based on frequency, then call out, “Alright, on order: six loaves of bread, one order of cookies, and one order for a chocolate cake!”

As soon as I mention the cake, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, shoot, I forgot!”

I have my character turn to the pink earth pony, and I ask, “Is everything alright, Pinkie?”

Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “Everything's fine. I just remembered who that cake is for.”

I ask, “So, is the cake ready to go?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “It should be.” Then, backing away from the oven and turning around, she says, “In fact, it should be in one of the displays right now.”

As the pink earth pony walks up to my character, I have him sidestep to the left to allow her to pass.

As she walks by, Pinkie Pie says, “This shouldn't take very long.” Then, after she enters the main room of the bakery, I hear her ask, “So, who wanted the chocolate cake?”

A male voice answers; and, I assume, Pinkie Pie retrieves the cake for him; and a ring from the cash register, as well as effects of light metal hitting light metal, tell me that the cake has been purchased.

When Pinkie Pie returns, she says, “I'm glad I remembered. I wouldn't want the Cakes to be left with too much cake.”

Isn't it interesting how baking physics in video games works differently than baking physics in reality? Evidently, when it comes to preparing food with heat, we humans, at least as gamers, are less patient in video games than we are in reality. Even I, in this game, have made the baking time in the game a fraction of what it is in reality. Of course, on the other hand, I've done so to match the number of hours it normally takes to prepare food with heat. And, the logical assumption is that other people who make games have done that for that purpose as well, matching the preparation time with the time of the game.

And, so it is. As orders come in, loaves of bread are sent out as soon as they're ready to go. And, other orders are made and sent out as they're issued and delivered, occupying the rest of the game day, but at the same time also proving equally and surprisingly enjoyable and tiring.

When the last order is completed, Rarity closes the bakery down; all join Weed Whacker in the last bit of cleanup; and the group of six head over to the clinic to report to Mr. Cake on how things went. After that, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker and my character wait on the outskirts of town while Rarity goes to the boutique to pick up her copy of the Book of Mormon, and Twilight Sparkle goes to the library to pick up her copy and Spike.

And, while the group is waiting, Pinkie Pie takes the opportunity to go to the house of Vinyl and Octavia to see if the members of Vinyl's band are ready to come to the reading.

In the mean time, Rarity's parents meet up with us, Sweetie Belle in tow, talking about the vacation, and how it seemed that Sweetie Belle couldn't wait to return to Ponyville to be with her sister again.

While it seems that Rarity, when she meets up with the group again, is happy to see her little sister again, she's not so happy to see her parents.

And, Spike had evidently wondered why it had taken so long for Twilight to get back to the library.

Then, Pinkie Pie returns fuming, evidently because the members of Vinyl's band had decided not to go to this evening's reading after all. But, she at least brought Vinyl and Octavia with her.

With that much apparently done, the group proceeds out of town, that is until I hear a familiar female voice behind the group call out, “Mormon, you wait right there! My daddy wants to have a talk with you!”

My character turns around to show me that it's none other than Diamond Tiara, along with her father, Filthy Rich.

I open my mouth to say hello to the two earth ponies, but the earth stallion speaks first, saying, “Diamond Tiara's been telling me some interesting things about you.”

I answer, “And, Diamond Tiara's told me some interesting things about you.” As I have my character extend a hand to the earth stallion, I say, “So, you must be Filthy.”

The tan earth stallion glares and growls at me for a few seconds, then says, “My name is Filthy Rich! Call me Filthy Rich, or just Mr. Rich!”

I have my character withdraw his hand as I answer, “Whatever you say, Mr. Filthy.”

While I enjoy calling him that, mainly because I know it gets on his nerves, the rest of the ponies, save for Twilight apparently, clearly disagree.

While Filthy Rich continues to growl about my use of his name, Diamond Tiara says to him, “There, you see? He doesn't have any respect for any of us.”

At the same time, Pinkie Pie's saying to my character, “Mormon, this isn't the time to be making fun of his name. Just repent and call him Mr. Rich.”

I have my character lean toward the pink earth pony as I say, “You're right.” Then, I have him stand up straight again as I say, “I'm sorry, Mr. Rich. I shouldn't have made fun of you.”

It's difficult to tell whether it was my repenting or just my admitting that I made fun of him that surprises Filthy Rich more. Whatever it is, instead of growling and glaring, he just stands there with a surprised look on his face. When he does talk again, he says, “You admit you were making fun of me?”

I have my character kneel on one knee in front of the tan earth stallion as I say, “Yes, I'm willing to admit my mistake.”

Diamond Tiara, right next to him, growls, “Don't take that from him.”

Filthy Rich leans toward his daughter and responds, “Shut up, Little Richie.”

At this point, it's all I can do to keep from laughing. Evidently I'm not the only one who's called Diamond Tiara by that nick name. I can only guess, at least right now, that it's the nick name Filthy Rich gave to his daughter, although I doubt either of them would know the reference.

At any rate, Filthy Rich turns to my character again and says, “I didn't expect you to own up to just calling me by my first name, and making fun of it. But, if you're not going to pursue that offense any further, then I see no reason why I shouldn't forgive you.”

Pinkie Pie sighs with relief after I accept Filthy Rich's forgiveness with a word of gratitude, and Filthy Rich welcomes it.

Then, I ask, “So, what did you want to talk to me about?”

The tan earth pony noses toward the Everfree forest as he says, “I'm guessing you're headed that way?”

I answer, “We are. My home is on the other side of the forest, and I hold regular scripture readings there. Would you like to join us?”

Filthy Rich nods and answers, “As a matter of fact, yes, I would.”

Considering that as a sufficient acceptance, I have my character head into the Everfree forest, followed by his friends, both new and old, following or keeping up with him.

As they're walking past Fluttershy's cottage, I hear Filthy Rich say, “So, I hear you've been calling my daughter by the nick name I've given her.”

Well, that confirms my suspicions. I answer, “Before her cute-seniera a half a week ago, that's right. I wasn't aware, at the time, that you'd nick named her that, too.”

Next, as the group heads into the forest proper, Filthy Rich asks, “Is it true that you said that my first name was influencing Diamond Tiara's attitude toward everything around her?”

I answer, “I had theorized something to that effect, yes.” I then have my character turn to the tan earth stallion as I ask, “Have you asked her about that?”

Filthy Rich looks up at my character again, then ahead, then shakes his head and says, “I don't think it's that, so much, as me having to leave home so often to go on business trips. I don't get to stay home that long before I have to leave again.”

I have my character look ahead along the trail as I say, “I suppose it can get difficult to find a balance between business and home.” I then ask, “How much time do you get to spend with Diamond Tiara, anyway?”

I hear Filthy Rich sigh, then say, “Not enough, I'm afraid.”

At this point, I hear Diamond Tiara growl under her breath, “Daddy!”

Again I have trouble keeping from laughing when I hear Filthy Rich say, “Well, it's true,” then Diamond Tiara say, “Well, you don't have to tell everypony about it.”

Filthy Rich answers her, “I'm not telling every pony. Your human friend asked about it, and I answered.”

Diamond Tiara groans, “Well, you didn't have to tell him. And, he's not my friend.”

Then, after a few seconds, I hear Filthy Rich ask, “Is what your human friend said true? Is my first name influencing your attitude toward everything and everypony around you?”

Diamond Tiara insists, “Mormon is not my human friend. He's not even a friend. And, well, as for your name, …”

It's clear that the little pink earth filly doesn't want to say anything to acknowledge my theory, and refuses to speak even when her father prods her about it. I'm beginning to think that I'm right about what I said about her. Maybe having a father with a name like Filthy is at least part of the source of her social problems after all.

But, it's no longer than an hour before the group arrives at my character's house.

Diamond Tiara, Filthy Rich, Octavia and Vinyl wait outside, and the rest of the group go inside.

I have my character proceed to get another copy of the Book of Mormon for Filthy Rich. Then, my character turns to Pinkie Pie when it's evident that she's trying to get his attention; and I can see, through his eyes, that Pinkie Pie is starting to turn pale, and she's not acting right.

At least having a good idea of what's happening, I say, “Uh-oh,” then have my character put his copy of the book into his inventory, then follow Pinkie Pie through the kitchen and into the bathroom across from my bedroom.

Once inside, as my character closes the door behind him, Pinkie Pie stumbles to the toilet and opens the lid, then points her head inside. In that position, she says, “I had … to sample some of the cookie dough.”

I have my character produce the insulin kit from his inventory, then produce a needle from the kit, as I say, “It may be a good idea to hand control over to Diane while I do this.”

Just then, Pinkie Pie waves a front hoof toward my character as she says, “Just um—“ then I hear a belch and a splattering sound. At least she could keep it down this long. When she pulls her face out of the toilet, she seems to be wearing white clown makeup, and looks anything but happy. She pulls the lever, then drops to the floor again; then, in a moment, her mane and tail straighten, and her mane falls to one side of her head and neck.

At this point, Diane turns to my character and says, “I'm ready.”

With that as confirmation, I have my character pull the protective seal off of the needle, then choose a spot just above her visible cutie mark, then I have him stick the needle into her. I must say, Diane's self control is really impressive. She doesn't even try to kick me while I inject the insulin from the needle into her hip, then pull the needle back out again.

I then put the protective seal on the needle again before throwing it in the nearest garbage container. When I turn to see Pinkie Pie again, her mane and tail are back to being curly, indicating that Pinkamena is back in control.

Her smile seems somewhat forced as she says, “Thank you, Mormon.”

I answer, “I'm glad I could help.” Then, I ask, “So, how was the cookie dough?”

Pinkie Pie forces a laugh as she says, “It was really sweet. It tasted better when I was eating it than when I was throwing it back up again.”

I can see, through my character's eyes, color returning to the pink earth pony's face; so, I ask her, “So, do you think you can go outside now and greet guests?”

Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “I am feeling better.” Then, she tries to take a step toward my character, but stumbles and falls on the leg where I'd given her the injection. In pain she yelps, “Ow! Ow-ow-ow!” Then, she looks up at my character; and I can see, through his eyes, her eyes are starting to tear up as she whimpers, “Maybe not.”

I have my character proceed to help her up as I say, “You may want to try exercising that leg for a while. It should make it feel better.”

As my character lets her go and she stabilizes on her hooves, she asks, “Do you think so?”

I answer, ”I've had pains in my legs before. And, it's been my experience that walking on them for a while does make them feel better.”

Pinkie Pie looks behind her at her leg as she says, “Alright, I'll try.” Then, she flexes the leg a few times, then puts it down and lifts the other leg, applying the weight of her hind quarters on the injected leg, then sort of marches her hind quarters in place. After maybe a minute she stops, then turns to me and says, “You know, I think you're right. It does feel better now.”

I ask, “So, are you ready to greet guests then?”

Pinkie Pie smiles even more, now, and says, “You know, I think I am!”

I have my character open the door for the pink earth pony, then move out of the way so she can exit and head into the kitchen ahead of him. I notice she has a slight limp in the leg where I injected her, but she doesn't seem to let it bother her. I have my character close the bathroom door as soon as the pink earth pony is far enough ahead, then follow her into the kitchen, through the front room, and outside to see that at least forty creatures, including the princesses, are in the front yard. I can only guess the number of creatures following my character home had been more than I'd thought.

Then I realize I hadn't given Filthy Rich his copy of the Book of Mormon yet; and I have my character go back inside and check the coffee table, then the couches, before I remember I had my character put the new copy in his inventory. After that, I have my character go outside and produce the copy of the book from his inventory and hand it to Filthy Rich.

When the circle has been formed around the snack tray, which I can only assume was prepared by Carrot Top and Berry Punch, I say, “This evening, we'll be starting with chapter ten of the Second Book of Nephi. Do I have a volunteer to offer a brief review for Filthy Rich's benefit?”

As an answer to my question, Emerald Hill rises and briefly describes the events that took place in the First Book of Nephi, then what had been in the readings on up to the end of chapter nine of the Second Book.

When my pegasus friend is finished, something occurs to me; and I say, "That reminds me. I seem to remember someone asked me for a copy of the Book of Isaiah?"

That's when Berry Ground, my earth pony friend, rises and says, "That was me."

I have my character stand up and produce the book from his inventory, then walk over to the earth stallion and hand it to him, as I say, "Well, here it is. I hope you enjoy reading it."

Berry Ground accepts the document, then says, "Thank you. I hope I enjoy reading it, too."

After that, I have my character return to his position between Weed Whacker and Mayor Mare, then turn to Filthy Rich; and I ask, “Mr. Rich, will you please start with verse one?”

Filthy Rich smiles and nods, then looks down into his copy and reads, “And now I, Jacob, speak unto you again, my beloved brethren, concerning this righteous branch of which I have spoken.”

After that, Diamond Tiara looks up at him and says, “I'll read next, Daddy,” then looks down into her own book and reads, “For behold, the promises which we have obtained are promises unto us according to the flesh; wherefore, as it has been shown unto me that many of our children shall perish in the flesh because of unbelief, nevertheless, God will be merciful unto many; and our children shall be restored, that they may come to that which will give them the true knowledge of their Redeemer.”

Next, Silver Spoon reads, “Wherefore, as I said unto you, it must needs be expedient that Christ—for in the last night the angel spake unto me that this should be his name—should come among the Jews, among those who are the more wicked part of the world; and they shall crucify him—for thus it behooveth our God, and there is none other nation on earth that would crucify their God.”

Cheerilee reads, “For should the mighty miracles be wrought among other nations they would repent, and know that he be their God.”

Namby Pamby reads, “But because of priestcrafts and iniquities, they at Jerusalem will stiffen their necks against him, that he be crucified.” Looking up at my character, the little colt innocently asks, “What's a priestcraft?”

I answer, “From what I understand based on what I've read, and what we'll read later in the Book of Mormon, priestcraft is the idea that servants of God, or at least priests, should be popular, and be supported by the people and not have to do their own work. It's not the kind of attitude that God would want us to have. God wants us to do our own work, so we earn our own rewards, and not seek to be popular in the eyes of others. That was a good question, by the way.”

As Namby Pamby seems satisfied by my answer, Twist reads, “Wherefore, because of their iniquities, destructions, famines, pestilences, and bloodshed shall come upon them; and they who shall not be destroyed shall be scattered among all nations.”

Scootaloo reads, “But behold, thus saith the Lord God: When the day cometh that they shall believe in me, that I am Christ, then have I covenanted with their fathers that they shall be restored in the flesh, upon the earth, unto the lands of their inheritance.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “And it shall come to pass that they shall be gathered in from their long dispersion, from the isles of the sea, and from the four parts of the earth; and the nations of the Gentiles shall be great in the eyes of me, saith God, in carrying them forth to the lands of their inheritance.”

Applebloom reads, “Yea, the kings of the Gentiles shall be nursing fathers unto them, and their queens shall become nursing mothers; wherefore, the promises of the Lord are great unto the Gentiles, for he hath spoken it, and who can dispute?”

Applejack reads, “But behold, this land, said God, shall be a land of thine inheritance, and the Gentiles shall be blessed upon the land.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “And this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there shall be no kings upon the land, who shall raise up unto the Gentiles.”

Granny Smith reads, “And I will fortify this land against all other nations.”

Hoity Toity reads, “And he that fighteth against Zion shall perish, saith God.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “For he that raiseth up a king against me shall perish, for I, the Lord, the king of heaven, will be their king, and I will be a light unto them forever, that hear my words.”

Rarity's father reads, “Wherefore, for this cause, that my covenants may be fulfilled which I have made unto the children of men, that I will do unto them while they are in the flesh, I must needs destroy the secret works of darkness, and of murders, and of abominations.”

Rarity's mother reads, “Wherefore, he that fighteth against Zion, both Jew and Gentile, both bond and free, both male and female, shall perish; for they are they who are the whore of all the earth; for they who are not for me are against me, saith our God.”

Rarity reads, “For I will fulfil my promises which I have made unto the children of men, that I will do unto them while they are in the flesh—“

Spike reads, “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, thus saith our God: I will afflict thy seed by the hand of the Gentiles; nevertheless, I will soften the hearts of the Gentiles, that they shall be like unto a father to them; wherefore, the Gentiles shall be blessed and numbered among the house of Israel.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Wherefore, I will consecrate this land unto thy seed, and them who shall be numbered among thy seed, forever, for the land of their inheritance; for it is a choice land, saith God unto me, above all other lands, wherefore I will have all men that dwell thereon that they shall worship me, saith God.”

Fluttershy reads, “And now, my beloved brethren, seeing that our merciful God has given us so great knowledge concerning these things, let us remember him, and lay aside our sins, and not hang down our heads, for we are not cast off; nevertheless, we have been driven out of the land of our inheritance; but we have been led to a better land, for the Lord has made the sea our path, and we are upon an isle of the sea.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “But great are the promises of the Lord unto them who are upon the isles of the sea; wherefore as it says isles, there must needs be more than this, and they are inhabited also by our brethren.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “For behold, the Lord God has led away from time to time from the house of Israel, according to his will and pleasure. And now behold, the Lord remembereth all them who have been broken off, wherefore he remembereth us also.”

Bon-Bon reads, “Therefore, cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves—to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life.”

Lyra reads, “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved.”

Weed Whacker reads, “Wherefore, may God raise you from death by the power of the resurrection, and also from everlasting death by the power of the atonement, that ye may be received into the eternal kingdom of God, that ye may praise him through grace divine. Amen.”

At this point, I say, “Well, since we've come to the end of this chapter and several of us haven't gotten a chance to read yet, I say we move on to chapter eleven.”

This time, before others in the circle can voice agreement or disagreement, Princess Celestia turns to my character and says, “Go ahead, Mormon.”

So, with the evident support of at least one of the princesses, I nod, then read, “And now, Jacob spake many more things to my people at that time; nevertheless only these things have I caused to be written, for the things which I have written sufficeth me.”

Mayor Mare reads, “And now I, Nephi, write more of the words of Isaiah, for my soul delighteth in his words. For I will liken his words unto my people, and I will send them forth unto all my children, for he verily saw my Redeemer, even as I have seen him.”

Zecora reads, “And my brother, Jacob, also has seen him as I have seen him; wherefore, I will send their words forth unto my children to prove unto them that my words are true. Wherefore, by the words of three, God hath said, I will establish my word. Nevertheless, God sendeth more witnesses, and he proveth all his words.”

Princess Celestia reads, “Behold, my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ; for, for this end hath the law of Moses been given; and all things which have been given of God from the beginning of the world, unto man, are the typifying of him.”

Princess Luna reads, “And also my soul delighteth in the covenants of the Lord which he hath made to our fathers; yea, my soul delighteth in his grace, and in his justice, and power, and mercy in the great and eternal plan of deliverance from death.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And my soul delighteth in proving unto my people that save Christ should come all men must perish.”

Octavia reads, “For if there be no Christ there be no God; and if there be no God we are not, for there could have been no creation. But there is a God, and he is Christ, and he cometh in the fulness of his own time.”

Carrot Top reads, “And now I write some of the words of Isaiah, that whoso of my people shall see these words may lift up their hearts and rejoice for all men. Now these are the words, and ye may liken them unto you and unto all men.”

This time, before I have a chance to say anything, Princess Luna turns to Berry Punch and says, “You may go ahead and start reading chapter twelve.”

Before the purple-red mare can begin reading, though, I say, “First, though, I'd just like to mention that this next chapter is the first of thirteen straight where Nephi quotes chapters from the Book of Isaiah. They can be difficult to understand, so anyone with questions please feel free to ask.” After that, I have my character turn to the purple-red earth pony; and I say, “You can go ahead and start reading chapter twelve, Berry Punch.”

She nods, then looks down into her book and reads, “The word that Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:”

Next, Colgate reads, “And it shall come to pass in the last days, when the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it.”

Warm Heart reads, “And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths; for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”

Snails reads, “And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plow-shares, and their spears into pruning-hooks—nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”

Snips reads, “O house of Jacob, come ye and let us walk in the light of the Lord; yea, come, for ye have all gone astray, every one to his wicked ways.”

Cold Hands reads, “Therefore, O Lord, thou hast forsaken thy people, the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and hearken unto soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.”

Berry Ground reads, “Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots.”

Stunts reads, “Their land is also full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And the mean man boweth not down, and the great man humbleth himself not, therefore, forgive him not.”

Filthy Rich reads, “O ye wicked ones, enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for the fear of the Lord and the glory of his majesty shall smite thee.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “And it shall come to pass that the lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.”

Silver Spoon reads, “For the day of the Lord of Hosts soon cometh upon all nations, yea, upon every one; yea, upon the proud and lofty, and upon every one who is lifted up, and he shall be brought low.”

Cheerilee reads, “Yea, and the day of the Lord shall come upon all the cedars of Lebanon, for they are high and lifted up; and upon all the oaks of Bashan;”

Namby Pamby reads, “And upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills, and upon all the nations which are lifted up, and upon every people;”

Twist reads, “And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall;”

Scootaloo reads, “And upon all the ships of the sea, and upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low; and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.”

Applebloom reads, “And the idols he shall utterly abolish.”

Applejack reads, “And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for the fear of the Lord shall come upon them and the glory of his majesty shall smite them, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which he hath made for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats;”

Granny Smith reads, “To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for the fear of the Lord shall come upon them and the majesty of his glory shall smite them, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.”

Hoity Toity reads, “Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for wherein is he to be accounted of?”

At this point, I have my character stand up; and I say, “Now that everyone's had a chance to read at least one verse, I have a question for you. Would you like to continue until everyone's read at least two verses, or should we end the reading for tonight and continue tomorrow where we left off?”

Every creature in the circle seems to have an answer to my question, although, based on all talking at once and in the same tone, I'm finding it impossible to tell specifically who is of what opinion. Even so, if I go by smiling faces around the circle, well, at least the vast majority of them are happy with their decision.

Ultimately, though, it's Princess Celestia who has the final say on the matter. She rises and stretches her wings as she says, “The next two chapters aren't very long. In fact, chapter fourteen is only six verses. That and the number of verses in chapter thirteen should be enough so that everypony has at least two verses to have read, with a few having read three. Thus, I propose we go ahead and read those two chapters, and then call it a night.”

Somehow, I'm not surprised to hear a loud shout of “Yay!” from the supporters. But, I can't help chuckle to myself when I hear, “All opposed, say neigh!” But, the silence that follows makes my laughter pretty obvious.

I say I'm sorry for having laughed, after which I add, “But, anyway, since everyone's decided in favor of reading two more chapters, let's go ahead and do that.” I then have my character sit down again as I say to Hoity Toity's servant, “Will you go ahead with verse one of chapter thirteen?”

Hoity Toity's servant nods, then looks down into his book and reads, “For behold, the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem, and from Judah, the stay and the staff, the whole staff of bread, and the whole stay of water—”

Rarity's father reads, “The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient;”

Rarity's mother reads, “The captain of fifty, and the honorable man, and the counselor, and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator.”

Rarity reads, “And I will give children unto them to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them.”

Spike reads, “And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbor; the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honorable.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “When a man shall take hold of his brother of the house of his father, and shall say: Thou hast clothing, be thou our ruler, and let not this ruin come under thy hand—”

Fluttershy reads, “In that day shall he swear, saying: I will not be a healer; for in my house there is neither bread nor clothing; make me not a ruler of the people.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen, because their tongues and their doings have been against the Lord, to provoke the eyes of his glory.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “The show of their countenance doth witness against them, and doth declare their sin to be even as Sodom, and they cannot hide it. Wo unto their souls, for they have rewarded evil unto themselves!”

Bon-Bon reads, “Say unto the righteous that it is well with them; for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.”

Lyra reads, “Wo unto the wicked, for they shall perish; for the reward of their hands shall be upon them!”

Weed Whacker reads, “And my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they who lead thee cause thee to err and destroy the way of thy paths.”

I read, “The Lord standeth up to plead, and standeth to judge the people.”

Mayor Mare reads, “The Lord will enter into judgment with the ancients of his people and the princes thereof; for ye have eaten up the vineyard and the spoil of the poor in your houses.”

Zecora reads, “What mean ye? Ye beat my people to pieces, and grind the faces of the poor, saith the Lord God of Hosts.”

Princess Celestia reads, “Moreover, the Lord saith: Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched-forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet—”

Princess Luna reads, “Therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the Lord will discover their secret parts.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling ornaments, and cauls, and round tires like the moon;”

Octavia reads, “The chains and the bracelets, and the mufflers;”

Carrot Top reads, “The bonnets, and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the tablets, and the ear-rings;”

Berry Punch reads, “The rings, and nose jewels;”

Colgate reads, “The changeable suits of apparel, and the mantles, and the wimples, and the crisping-pins;”

Warm Heart reads, “The glasses, and the fine linen, and hoods, and the veils.”

Snails reads, “And it shall come to pass, instead of sweet smell there shall be stink; and instead of a girdle, a rent; and instead of well set hair, baldness; and instead of a stomacher, a girding of sackcloth; burning instead of beauty.”

Snips reads, “Thy men shall fall by the sword and thy mighty in the war.”

Cold Hands reads, “And her gates shall lament and mourn; and she shall be desolate, and shall sit upon the ground.”

Berry Ground reads, “And in that day, seven women shall take hold of one man, saying: We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel; only let us be called by thy name to take away our reproach.”

Stunts reads, “In that day shall the branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious; the fruit of the earth excellent and comely to them that are escaped of Israel.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And it shall come to pass, they that are left in Zion and remain in Jerusalem shall be called holy, every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem—”

Filthy Rich reads, “When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “And the Lord will create upon every dwelling-place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for upon all the glory of Zion shall be a defence.”

And, last of all, Silver Spoon reads, “And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and a covert from storm and from rain.”

At this point, I stand up and say, “And, that ends the reading for tonight. It's been a pleasure reading these chapters with you. Tomorrow we begin with chapter fifteen of the Second Book of Nephi. But, in the mean time, I hereby dismiss you. Please have a safe journey home.”

With my announcement, the ponies and dragons rise and stretch; and those not staying or teleporting away proceed to the gate to exit.

Pinkie Pie goes to the gate to offer each of the guests a cheerful goodbye, while Carrot Top heads to the vegetable garden, Lyra heads to the orchard, and Berry Punch heads to the vineyard.

When all the guests are dismissed, the ponies that went to gather food for dinner join Pinkie Pie, Weed Whacker, and my character inside the house, where the meal is prepared and eaten; and afterward, ponies, dinosaur, and human go to their rooms.

In my letter to the princesses, I make note of the problems Octavia and Vinyl seem to be having getting back into life in Ponyville: Vinyl getting back together with her band, and Octavia probably needing to organize a new band. I also write about the situation at Sugar Cube Corner, where my character, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Rarity and Twilight had to open the bakery and serve until the line of customers outside was satisfied.

I also write about my first meeting with Diamond Tiara's father, Filthy Rich, and how I could've treated the situation better.

After concluding and signing the letter, I roll it up and deliver it to Weed Whacker for her to send it off. Then, I have my character return to his room and to go bed.

So, with that eventful day in the game behind me, I have to wonder what's going to be in store for Sugar Cube Corner in the future. Chances are Pinkie Pie and I are going to have to open the bakery again in order to satisfy another line of customers, and probably another the next day, until the Cakes are back from the clinic, very likely with two new foals to take care of.

And then, there are Vinyl Scratch and Octavia. Their future is evidently not clear-cut. And, tomorrow is going to be another day based on an episode; and, from what I understand, that episode is gonna take the element bearers, as well as my character, Weed Whacker, and Lyra, out of Ponyville. And, that means the group won't be able to open Sugar Cube Corner for any customers that come. But, that's a story for the game's tomorrow.

At this point, I save and end the game until then.

Chapter 16: The Icarus Effect

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As I resume the game, again my character awakens to knocking on his door, and again it's Pinkie Pie asking if she can come in.

I have my character rise from his bed, walk to his door, and open it; and I invite the pink earth pony in.

My character holds the door open, allowing Pinkie Pie to enter. After she ambles far enough into his room, my character closes the door behind her.

She stops, turns to him, and asks, “If there's a way I can defend you without violence, could you tell me?”

I had wanted to bring the matter up, and I guess now's as good a time as any to talk about it. I have my character lead Pinkie Pie to his bed, then pick her up and put her on the covers; then I say, “I'm glad you came to me about it. Yes, there are ways you can defend me without violence, ways that'd be good for making friends.”

I wait for the pink earth pony to say something, but her only response is to smile, while her eyes vibrate.

I continue, “If you want to defend me, the best way to do so is to talk to someone else, not with hostility, but calmly. Think about how you'd want to be treated, and treat the other creature that way. If the other creature is only going to react with violence, then, unless he or she insists, just walk away. If the other creature insists on violence, then just fight enough to escape. Your sister Diane is your closest and best friend. You should listen to her. If anyone knows what kind of a situation you're gonna run into, she will. And, in the mean time, while you see me under direct attack, watch what I do, and learn from my example. You may learn from me how to act in a situation, but you may also learn how not to act.”

Pinkie Pie giggles at my last statement, then says, “Thanks for the advice, Mormon. I hope I can put it to good use.”

I answer, “I'm sure you will.” Then, as I have my character stand up again, I say, “So, shall we go to the kitchen and see what's for breakfast?”

Pinkie Pie jumps off of my character's bed and, walking with him, says, “No problem. Berry Punch, Carrot Top, and I already have breakfast ready in the front room.”

As my character opens the door to his room, I hear Pinkie Pie say something about fruits from the orchard and vineyard, and vegetables from the garden. Human and earth pony make their way to the front room through the kitchen, take positions on the couch facing the front door, and have breakfast with Lyra, Berry Punch, Carrot Top, and Weed Whacker. And, after that, my character, Pinkie Pie, Lyra and Weed Whacker head out, leaving Berry Punch and Carrot Top to tend the grounds, with Scout keeping guard.

After an uneventful hour's trek through the Everfree forest, we come out hearing Rainbow Dash evidently coaching her fellow pegasa, Fluttershy, on the art of cheering.

Three times Rainbow Dash encourages Fluttershy to cheer louder, and after two short quiet cheers, Fluttershy noisily inhales, then emits a still very quiet, yet slightly extended, “Yay.”

Exasperated, Rainbow Dash sighs, then turns away from the yellow pegasa. And, that's when she sees the group of four, lead my character. As the group of four stop, the rainbow-haired pegasa says, “Oh, hi, Mormon, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker. What's up?”

I answer, “Not much. So, I'm guessing cheering practice is going well?”

Rainbow Dash answers somewhat under her breath, “It would, if Fluttershy knew how to cheer.”

I can't help noticing Fluttershy lowers her head. Evidently she heard what Rainbow Dash said about her cheering, and it's hit her pretty hard.

And, it's evident that Rainbow Dash isn't beyond sensing the impact her statement has had on her fellow pegasa, when she turns around and sees her. Approaching the now distraught yellow pegasa, Rainbow Dash says, “Ah, I'm sorry, Fluttershy.”

She looks up at her rainbow-haired friend and says, “No, Rainbow Dash, I'm sorry, for not being a good cheerer.”

Again Rainbow Dash sighs, then turns to my character and says, “Well, Mormon, maybe you can help.”

I answer, “Well, I'm not good at cheering, but I guess I could give it a shot.” I then have my character fold his arms in front of him, and I say, simply and slightly louder than Fluttershy, “Go, Rainbow Dash.”

The rainbow-haired pegasa closes her eyes, plants a front hoof between them, and shakes her head. After a second or two she puts the hoof down and opens her eyes again, then turns to my character and says, “When you said you were 'not good' at cheering, I didn't think you were going to be that not good.”

It's all I can do to keep from laughing when I see, through my character's eyes, Rainbow Dash react that way. After she speaks, I answer, “I did say, 'Go, Rainbow Dash.'”

The rainbow-haired pegasa opens her wings and flies up and hovers at eye level to my character, and glares into his eyes. But, somehow, her glare doesn't strike me as anywhere near as scary as Fluttershy's did in a previous playthrough. The blue pegasa says, “Yes, you only said, 'Go, Rainbow Dash.' But, you didn't put any meaning behind your words, any passion.”

I must admit, seeing Rainbow Dash react the way she does is making this kind of fun for me. In my best imitation of surprise, I respond, “Oh, passion. I guess I forgot about that.”

I have to wonder if my words have sunk in when the blue pegasa asks, “And, what's with you folding your arms like that?” I think my words do start to sink in when she groans, then descends to the ground, then says to my character, “Alright, let's try this again, and this time with passion, and louder!”

Now I have my character unfold his arms and let them hang at his side before I say, as I had before, “Go, Rainbow Dash.”

Hearing the lack of change in my voice, Rainbow Dash growls for a second before saying, “You're not listening,” then raising her voice as she continues, “Do it again, and this time louder, and with passion!”

As I inhale, I consider slowing down my cheer. But, I decide against that, at least for now, and instead repeat the cheer as I'd said it before, “Go, Rainbow Dash.”

At this complete repetition of what I'd said, Rainbow Dash starts digging a hole in the ground under one hoof and growling, which, from what I can see at the left edge of my character's periphery, seems to be causing Fluttershy to back away. I must admit, it is looking like Rainbow Dash may blow a fuse as she looks at me, snorts, and says, “I'm giving you one more chance, human. I want you to cheer, and this time, say it with passion, and louder!” And, she points her head upward when she shouts “louder.”

I sustain a tone as I inhale raspily. In fact, I dare say I prove it's possible to sing inhaling. Then, I hold my breath as I contemplate whether I want to answer Rainbow Dash literally, that is, say, “It with passion, and louder.” Then I make my decision. I open my mouth, and slowly say, “Gggooo, Rrraaaiiinnnbbbooowww Dddaaassshhh.”

I must admit, cheering that slowly was fun for me.

On the other hand, it was clearly not so much fun for the rainbow-haired pegasa to hear, as she groans and falls over backwards.

As my character watches Rainbow Dash, I ask, “So, did you like my cheer?”

Rainbow Dash responds by pointing towards Ponyville with one hoof and saying, “You know what, just ... go. Go to Ponyville, go back to the Everfree forest, go to Canterlot, go to Manehattan, I don't care. Just ... go.”

I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie, and that's when I notice, through his eyes, the look of disillusionment on her face.

The pink earth pony starts walking toward Ponyville as she sighs and says, “Let's just get going to the library so we can help Twilight put her books away.”

I decide not to say anything, just follow Pinkie Pie towards the library. I'm guessing she's read ahead in the game's script, and thus knows what we, or at least she, will be doing next.

As we enter town, Pinkie Pie says, “I know you were just having fun with Rainbow Dash, but you could've been just a little more respectful of her. Remember, she's going to Cloudsdale today to compete in the Best Young Fliers' competition.”

Well, that settles it. Either Pinkamena or Diane, I suspect Diane, has been reading ahead in the game's script. Still, she's right.

I admit that to Pinkie Pie, then I ask, “Do you think I should go tell her I'm sorry?”

Pinkie Pie continues on to the library as she says, “You'll get your chance later. For right now, let's just go to the library.”

I don't answer vocally, just have my character follow Pinkie to the tree house of books. And, I assume, so do Lyra and Weed Whacker.

When we get there, Pinkie Pie just opens the door to the library. And, as my character follows her inside, I can't help noticing stacks of books on the floor, as well as empty shelves.

Then I hear Twilight Sparkle's voice, and my character turns to her as she says, “Pinkie Pie. Mormon. Lyra. Weed Whacker. You're just in time to help me and Rarity and Applejack clean these books up.”

I answer, “I'm glad to be of service.” Immediately, my character moves toward an empty shelf; and I ask, “So, where do you need my help?”

I'm sure I hear the purple unicorn smile as she says, “That bookshelf'll be a good place to start. I'll pass you a book and you put it on the shelf. Then I'll pass you another book, and you put it next to the first book, and we'll continue on from there.”

I decide to react with patience as I say, “Sure, no problem.”

Twilight passes books to my character, Rarity to Spike and Weed Whacker, and Lyra to Pinkie Pie and Applejack. Thus, the unicorns join forces to pass books to the rest as they put them on the shelves. And, in a matter of minutes the books are in the order Twilight Sparkle has decided on back on the shelves.

When the work is done and the dragons and earth ponies are descending to the floor again, Twilight says, “Thank you so much for helping me clean up these books, guys. It was a crazy weekend of studying.”

I turn to the purple unicorn and watch her speak. I'm about to reiterate that I was happy to help, when I see her turn to the window and grunt in curiosity. Then, I realize what's going to happen, and I have my character grab the closest pony to him and jump out of the way, just in time for Rainbow Dash to crash through the window and knock all the books off the shelves. I turn to the book shelves I'd helped set up to see Twilight, then Pinkie Pie, then Applejack, emerge from different areas of the new mess. I have my character look down into his arms to see Lyra there. And, I hear Spike and Weed Whacker groan, then Lyra say, “Thanks for rescuing me, Mormon.”

I set the pale-green unicorn back on her hooves on what looks to me like a sufficiently stable pile of books as I say, “Glad I could help.”

Then, I hear Fluttershy's voice at the window say, “Rainbow Dash, you rock.” Then, my character turns to her just in time to show me, through his eyes, the yellow pegasa look up and quietly cheer, “Woo-hoo,” just before she looks down at the mess and asks, “Did my cheering do that?”

Just then, I notice, on the lower edge of my character's periphery, Rainbow Dash emerge from a pile of books, chuckle apologetically, and say, “Sorry about that, ladies.” Then, seeing my character, she asks, “Mormon, what're you doin' here?”

Twilight answers, “He was just helping me put books away.” Then, I'm sure I hear her say, under her breath, “That is, until you knocked them all down again.”

Angrily, Rainbow Dash says, “Well, I hope he was more helpful to you than he was to me.”

Twilight asks, “Really? What happened?”

The rainbow-haired pegasa points a hoof at my character and says, “He did a cheer that made Fluttershy sound encouraging.” Then, she does a really good impression of me as she says, really slowly, “Gggooo, Rrraaaiiinnnbbbooowww Dddaaassshhh.” Then, using her regular voice again, she says, no, growls, “I mean, what kind of cheer was that?”

I can't help laughing at Rainbow Dash's impression of me. Then, a dirty look from Pinkie Pie gives me all the incentive I need to regain my composure, enough for me to clear my throat and say, “Yeah, I was just having some fun.”

Rainbow Dash turns her glare away from my character as she grumbles under her breath, “Well, at least one of us was having fun.” And, I'm sure I hear a note of sarcasm as she says that.

I stammer a bit as I say, “Yeah, I-I'm sorry about that.” Then, I ask, “So, what brings you here?”

I hear Rainbow Dash sigh before she says, “I was practicing my routine for the Best Young Fliers' Competition in Cloudsdale, and I messed up.” Looking at her four non-pegasa friends, she says, “I wish you guys could come and see me compete.”

Curious, Twilight asks, “What's the Best Young Fliers' Competition?”

With her normal enthusiasm, Pinkie Pie answers, “It's where all the greatest pegasus fliers get together and show off their different flying stats.” She then runs around the library as she says, “Some are fast!” After a few seconds of doing her impression of a race car, she stops and says, “And, some are graceful.” Then, Pinkie Pie's grace fails her as she slips on one book, then stumbles over more for a few seconds before falling into another pile.

As my character proceeds to help the fallen earth pony to her hooves again, Applejack says, “Golly. Ah'd love to see you strut your stuff in that competition.”

Rainbow Dash smiles and says, “Yeah, I wish you guys could be there.” Nodding toward her fellow pegasa, she adds, “Fluttershy's a great support, but her cheering isn't exactly inspirational.”

I open my mouth to say something, but Pinkie Pie beats me to it as she says, “Ooh, I'd love to see you make a sonic rainboom. It's like, the most coolest thing ever. I mean I've never actually seen it, but come on, it's a sonic rainboom. How not-cool could it possibly not be?”

In a way, I tend to believe Pinkie Pie when she says she's never seen a sonic rainboom. At least, not while knowing what it was. In the episode “Cutie Mark Chronicles,” on which a later day will be based, Pinkie Pie will tell the story about how she got her cutie mark. She was stuck outside when she saw a sonic rainboom, or at least the effects of it, but I'm sure even her twin sister Diane wouldn't have known what the flaming, rainbow-colored circle was what she was seeing, and just called Pinkamena out to see the colorful display, knowing it'd make her happy. We'll see the evidence of that lack of knowledge soon enough. And then, she'll be able to testify that she's seen a sonic rainboom, on two separate occasions.

In the mean time, Twilight says, in honest curiosity, “What's a sonic rainboom?”

In a split second Pinkie Pie is invading the purple unicorn's personal space as she answers, “You really need to get out more.”

I'm guessing I'm going to have to address that at some point.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie jumps into a windowed alcove, one where I might expect Rainbow Dash to perch, and continues, “The sonic rainboom is legendary.” She then jumps off of her perch into another pile of books as she says, “When a pegasus like Rainbow Dash gets going so fast, boom!” As books scatter in all directions, Pinkie Pie continues, “A sonic boom and a rainbow happen all at once.”

I wouldn't be surprised if Pinkie Pie's picturing the event as the shock wave from the sonic boom manifesting at the same time as a rainbow, very likely attached to Rainbow Dash.

But, again, in the mean time, Applejack complements her fellow earth pony's speech with: “And, Rainbow Dash here's the only pony ta ever pull it off.”

Rainbow Dash, her ego having gotten a nice massage from the praise of her earth pony friends, says, “It was a long time ago. I-I was just a filly.” And, she forces a slight chuckle at the end.

Pinkie Pie, still on her high, asks, “Yeah, but you're gonna do it again, right?”

At this point, I begin to detect a hint of fear in the rainbow-haired pegasa's voice as she says, “A-are you kidding? I'm the greatest flier to ever come out of Cloudsdale. I can do sonic rainbooms in my sleep.”

I know, from having watched the episode “Sonic Rainboom,” that Rainbow Dash's latest attempt at the legendary event failed, resulting in her crashing into the library. But, I see no reason to reveal that to any of the ponies present. Still, I can understand why she's not so confident in her abilities as she's suggesting she is.

In the mean time, Twilight Sparkle says, “Wow. If you pull that off, you'll win the crown for sure.”

Rainbow Dash's excitement returns as she says, “The grand prize is an entire day with the Wonderbolts! A whole day flying with my life long heroes. It'll be a dream come true!”

And, yes, in case you, the reader, are wondering, I do hear Fluttershy say, acting as though she's shouting it out, “Yay.” My guess is, being aware of an audience, she's as loud as she's going to get.

At this point, I contemplate doing my own cheer; but then I decide against it.

Instead, I'm satisfied with the rainbow-haired pegasa glaring to her fellow pegasa, then turning to the others in the room and saying, “I'm gonna rest now. Don't wanna over-prepare myself, you know.” Then, after a nervous chuckle, she turns to Fluttershy and says, “You, on the other hand, better keep practicing.” Then, strutting toward the window, the blue pegasa continues, “I need a cheering section to match my spectacular performance.” And, with that, she takes off and flies out through the window, or at least the hole where the window used to be.

Fluttershy watches her fellow pegasa for a second before turning to the rest of the group and saying, “She's practiced that move a hundred times, and she's never even gotten close to getting it right.”

Before the yellow pegasa can continue, I ask, “Is it really that difficult for a pegasus like Rainbow Dash to break the sound barrier?”

Fluttershy pushes away from the window, then turns to and approaches my character as she says, “I've seen her. She can fly fast enough, and she gets only so close. But then, just as she gets to the point where she can break through, she just stops, and then she bounces off of the barrier.”

While she speaks, I can see, through my character's eyes, the worry in those of the yellow pegasa.

She looks down as she says, “I just don't know if I can cheer loud enough to help her.” She then turns away from my character and flies to the window, then turns back to him one more time and says, “The best part of her routines is when she makes the clouds spin.” Then, she turns to the window again and flies out of it, either following Rainbow Dash or heading back to her cottage.

With the timid yellow pegasa gone, Twilight Sparkle says, “Well, guess we better get this mess cleaned up, … again.”

As Twilight gets started sorting out the mess of books, Rarity prods her in the backside with her horn and says, “Go on, go on.”

Twilight glances back at her fellow unicorn and asks, “Go on, what?”

Rarity answers, “Find a spell that'll get us wingless ponies into Cloudsdale. Did you see how nervous she was?”

Applejack asks, “Nervous? Have you spit your bit or something?” She raises a front hoof and stomps with it as she continues, “She was tootin' her horn louder than the brass section of a marchin' band.”

Should I be surprised that Applejack is demonstrating less sensitivity and empathy than I'm feeling towards Rainbow Dash?

Rarity answers the orange earth pony, “Oh, puh-lease. I've been to enough fashion shows to recognize stage fright when I see it. We've got to find a way to be there for her.” She then shoves her fellow unicorn with her rump into the stack of books she's been preparing as she says, “Now, go on.”

Now, I respect and appreciate Rarity for wanting to be there to support her friend, Rainbow Dash. But, having seen the episode “Sonic Rainboom,” and having based this particular day on that episode, I know what's going to happen when Rarity gets her own pair of wings. And, once Rarity gets her butterfly wings, I plan on being there to remind the white unicorn of why she has them. And, if that means telling her a couple stories that don't seem related and relating them to her, then that's what I'll do.

In the mean time, after Twilight yelps in pain from the impact with the books, she emerges, growls, and asks, “How am I supposed to find a flight spell in this mess?”

I suppose it only makes sense that, after Rarity talked about 'wingless ponies,' the first thing Twilight'd think of would be a spell on flight.

And, that's when Pinkie Pie answers, “A flight spell? One sec.” She then runs to the shelves where my character had been helping put books away, then kicks a turquoise book, which lands open, to Twilight, and says, “Page twenty-seven.”

Twilight uses her magic to turn to the suggested page.

Applejack looks to Pinkie Pie and asks, “How'd ya do that?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “It landed on my face when Rainbow Dash knocked me into the bookcase.”

Ah, the wonders of timing.

I hear Twilight say, “Here it is.” Then, as my character turns to look at her, she continues, “A spell that'll allow earth ponies to fly for three days.”

At this point, I'd like to note that Twilight did say the spell was for earth ponies. I can only guess, since the spell is successfully used on Rarity, that Twilight managed to adapt the spell for her unicorn friend.

Twilight continues, “Ooh, it looks really difficult. I'm not sure I can do it.”

Rarity says, “You've got to try.”

Twilight asks, “Okay, but, who's going to be the test subject?”

The two earth ponies in the room exchange looks, evidently unsure about wanting to be test subjects.

I have to wonder, at this point, how many people who've seen this episode, and previous episodes, remember the Pinkie promise, and wonder why Pinkie Pie doesn't volunteer. While this isn't part of the canon of the show, I'm not all that surprised, considering the incident more than a week ago, when Gilda's parents came and had Pinkie Pie repent to Snips, who'd eaten a cupcake made from Gilda's meat. Of course, even then, it was Gilda's father, as I remember, who was taking Pinkie Pie on the ride there. All things considered, I'm sure Pinkie Pie just wants to earn her wings.

Then, I hear Rarity say, “I will.” As my character focuses on the white unicorn, she continues, “For Rainbow Dash, I'll go first.”

Remember when I suggested that Twilight managed to adapt the spell for Rarity? Well, this is why I think so.

Twilight says, with uncertainty, “Here goes.” Then, her horn glows and sparks; and ribbons of blue energy circle around Rarity, enveloping her and raising her into the air.

I think I see surprise in the white unicorn's face while this is happening.

The blue energy, frequently twinkling as though it contains glitter, continues to wrap around Rarity as Twilight grunts, evidently struggling to keep the magic energy under control.

Then, a sphere of energy emerges from Twilight's horn and explodes, knocking the purple unicorn backward into her earth pony friends and Lyra.

While Twilight was working on the spell, I think I saw, through my character's eyes, Spike and Weed Whacker running upstairs to the bedroom, probably to hide under Twilight's bed.

At any rate, when the residual energy clears away and Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Twilight and Lyra can focus again, I'm probably the only one not surprised to see Rarity hovering in the air, thanks to her new butterfly wings.

Twilight, the first speak, gasps and says, sounding almost intoxicated, “I think it worked.”

In curiosity, Rarity looks behind her and asks, “It worked?” Then, seeing the wings supporting her weight, she rises an inch or two higher as she shouts, “It worked!” Then, with unexpected skill to rival Rainbow Dash and excitement to rival Pinkie Pie—

“Hey! Mormon!”

That was Pinkie Pie again. I have to wonder if Diane is somehow able to interpret the sound of my scribbling as I'm taking notes. Whatever the case is, Pinkie Pie's still glaring at me. And, I know she's glaring into my character's eyes at me.

At any rate, as I was saying, Rarity does a few loop-d-loops before settling onto the ground again.

When the white unicorn finally lands, Twilight approaches her and, after panting a few times, says, “Now, Rarity, I want you to remember that these wings are made of gossamer and morning dew. You've got to be careful with them.”

Rarity giggles and says, “Oh, but of course, darling.”

Considering this as evidence that Rarity seems to be forgetting why she wanted to be the test subject for the flight spell in the first place, I decide to have my character take a step toward her as I say, “I'm thinking now's as good a time as any to tell you a couple stories, or at least tell you one and remind you of another.”

Rarity turns to my character and asks, “Yes, Mormon?”

I clear my throat and say, “First of all, seeing you with those wings reminds me of a story from Greek mythology, of a man named Icarus. He was given shoes with wings made of wax attached to them. He was also given a warning about them, that if he flew too close to the sun, those wings could be destroyed.

“Well, one day, I guess he was showing off, because he did what he was warned not to do, and flew really close to the sun. Too close, in fact. Then, his wings melted away, and he fell into the sea and drowned.”

Rarity gives me a clueless expression as she says, “An interesting story, but I fail to understand how it relates to me.”

I continue, “Second of all, do you remember the story of Lehi's dream from the Book of Mormon?”

Rarity smiles and chuckles as she says, “Why Mormon, you're not making any sense.”

More insistently, I ask, “Do you remember?”

At this point, Rarity swallows hard, then answers, nervously, “Yes?”

I ask, “Do you remember the building in Lehi's dream?”

Rarity nods slowly, as she says, “The pride of the world. It collapsed with a great fall.” Then, after a moment of thought, she asks, “Mormon, are you threatening me?”

I have my character reach out and stroke the white unicorn's neck as I answer, “I'm warning you. I just want you to remember why you have those wings. As long as you don't go showing them off, and you remember that you have those wings so you can support Rainbow Dash, you'll be able to keep them for three days. But, if you don't rein in your pride, you'll lose those wings, and your fall will be great.”

I think I see understanding in Rarity's eyes, even if it isn't complete.

She swallows hard again, then says, humbled, “Thanks, Mormon. I shall try to remember that.”

Presently, I hear Twilight ask my character, “So, Mormon, what about you?”

It's Pinkie Pie who answers, “Oh, you don't need to worry about him. He's got that cheat, Cloud Nine, that he can use to make clouds solid so he can walk on 'em.”

So, not only does Diane read ahead in the game's script, she also knows about the cheat codes I've provided for gamers. And, she can read my handwriting just by listening to me write. The good news is, while Pinkie Pie may know about the cheat codes, she won't be able to make use of them. At least, I hope not.

Anyway, after giving the pink party pony a questioning look, Twilight Sparkle shakes her head, then says, “Well, whatever. I doubt I'll be able to try that flight spell again for a while; it's too exhausting for me, too dangerous.” Looking at the other three ponies, she asks, “Any idea what spell I can use to help the rest of us, one that isn't so dangerous and exhausting?”

And, that's when I hear Lyra say, “You know, I learned this one spell which helped me keep traction on slippery surfaces. It's really simple, and I'm sure you could modify it for walking on clouds.” As my character's attention focuses on the pale-green unicorn, she concludes, “I could teach it to you, Twilight, and maybe you could modify it.”

Twilight nods and says, “Sure, let's do that.”

As the purple and pale-green unicorns get together, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “Mormon, you go into the hallway to the basement and use your Cloud Nine cheat, and Lyra and Twilight'll use their traction spell, once they modify it, on the rest of us.”

My character nods in agreement, then heads through the doorway to the hallway leading to the basement where Twilight's lab had been, and most likely still is. Once past the hallway a few steps down, he stops, giving me the chance to use the Cloud Nine cheat that Pinkie Pie had mentioned.

Basically, my making use of the Cloud Nine cheat simply involves me opening the cheat menu, finding the cheat, and clicking on the box to make a check mark appear inside it. And, in the mean time, I'm sure Twilight's learning the traction spell from Lyra, and modifying it so that she can use it on herself and the others so they can walk on clouds like pegasi can.

And, as far as I can guess, the lesson and the job are complete by the time my character comes back through the door back into the library. At least, that's my assumption when I emerge through the door and hear Twilight say, “Alright, done. I guess we'll know if it worked when we get to Cloudsdale.”

It's Pinkie Pie who says, “So, what are we waiting for? Let's get going!”

And, it's Lyra who says, “Uh, shouldn't we get these books cleaned up first?”

Twilight Sparkle looks around at the books scattered on the floor, then turns to her fellow ponies and my character and says, “Lyra's got a point. We need to get these books cleaned up first.”

And, that's when Spike emerges from under Twilight's bed and says, “Oh, that's alright. I'll get the books cleaned up, and you can go ahead to Cloudsdale.”

Twilight looks up at her assistant and asks, “Are you sure, Spike? I could use the cloud-walking spell on you and Weed Whacker, and both of you could come. After all, don't you want to help Rarity support Rainbow Dash?”

I watch, through my character's eyes, as Spike's pupils turn into pink valentine shapes, and a silly smile forms on his face. Then, he shakes himself out of it and says, “As much as I'd love to, I don't like the idea of walking on clouds. I'd much rather stay here and clean up the books, if it's all the same to you.”

Evidently, even Spike can sound like Fluttershy at times.

I turn to my herbivorous dinosaur friend and ask, “And, what about you, Weed Whacker?”

She emerges from under Twilight's bed and answers, “I'm with Spike on this one. I wasn't meant to fly, and I wasn't designed to walk on clouds like a pegasus. I'll stay here and help Spike clean up the books.”

As my character turns back to the purple unicorn, she says, “Well, I guess that's settled, then. My balloon is just behind the library. If we can all fit in it, then we're all on our way.”

And, that's when Rarity chimes in with: “Except for me.” She chuckles as she adds, “Remember, I have wings.”

Twilight smiles and says, “Yeah, that's right.” She then makes her way to the front door of the library as she says, “Well, let's get going.”

The rest of us voice agreement, and the group follows the purple unicorn out and to her balloon.

As it turns out, there is plenty of room in the balloon for all the ponies without wings, as well as the human, to fit in the basket, and the manipulation of video game physics allows the balloon to carry the load without the whole thing falling apart.

With Rarity flying next to the balloon, the group begins to make it's way up into the sky, and towards the cluster of clouds that makes up the pegasi's city.

Seeing her fellow unicorn's eagerness, Twilight turns to Rarity and says, “You can go on ahead and let Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy know we're coming.”

Rarity smiles back at Twilight and says, “Thank you,” then flies on ahead to one of the larger clouds.

The rest of the group float on in the balloon behind the eager, butterfly-winged unicorn, when I hear Rainbow Dash's voice saying, “Rare? The sonic rainboom is way more than rare.”

Having seen the “Sonic Rainboom” episode as frequently as I have, I know Rainbow Dash thinks she's answering Fluttershy's question on the subject.

I hear Fluttershy correct her, “No, Rarity?”

After a few seconds, as the balloon starts to emerge from below the cloud, I hear Rainbow Dash ask, “Rarity, are you … flying?”

Then, as the balloon emerges from the cloud, and the group can see what's going on, I watch Rarity drift in front of the evidently surprised pegasae as she says, no, sings, “I most certainly am. Aren't my wings smashing?”

It's almost all I can do to keep myself from vocalizing agreement with the literal interpretation of her question.

The excited unicorn continues, “Twilight made them for me. I just adore them.” Then, evidently seeing the surprised expressions on the faces of her two pegasa friends, Rarity asks, “Why so shocked? We couldn't leave our favorite flier without a big cheering section.”

By this point, Twilight's balloon is preparing to land.

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash asks, “We?”

It's clear to me that the two pegasae have been so focused on Rarity that they haven't noticed the balloon the rest of the group has been riding in. That is, not until I answer, to their surprise, “Me oui oui, mademoiselle.”

I think my sense of humor is lost on the clearly shocked Rainbow Dash, who says, “I … I-I can't believe it!”

As the balloon lands and I have my character step backwards out of the basket, I hear Fluttershy say, “It's incredible.”

In the “Sonic Rainboom” episode, the balloon emerges from the cloud and parks in front of Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy. The way I have the game programmed, Twilight guides the balloon, with her magic, to a spot just far enough away from the edge of the cloud so that it's not likely to fall over; and Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy walk, while Rarity flies, to where the balloon is parked.

I'm not sure which Rainbow Dash sees first: my character coming from behind the balloon, or Pinkie Pie jumping out of the basket and landing on the cloud. Whichever it is, I hear Rainbow Dash call out, “Wait!” until she sees that Pinkie Pie remains on top of the cloud's surface. Then, as the other ponies jump out of the basket, Rainbow Dash says, “How'd you do that? Only pegasus ponies can walk on clouds.”

Pinkie Pie, cartwheeling past the two pegasae, says, “Pretty cool, huh?”

Twilight answers, “Lyra, here, taught me a traction spell, and I just modified it so I could use it on us so we could walk on clouds.”

Rainbow Dash, seeing me, gets this disappointed look on her face, and a matching tone in her voice, as she asks, “You too, Mormon?”

Pinkie Pie bounces back to my character's side and giggles, then says, “No, silly. Mormon just used his Cloud Nine cheat.”

Now confused, Rainbow Dash says, “Uh, yeah.” Then she shakes herself out of her confusion and says, “Anyway, what about Rarity?”

It's the white unicorn herself who answers, “Twilight found a spell that allows earth ponies to fly, and she modified it and used it on me.”

Twilight continues, “It was too tiring to use more than once, and that's where Lyra's traction spell came in.”

Then, Applejack says, “And, we came to cheer you to victory.”

Presently, Rainbow Dash says, “To be honest, I was starting to get just the teeniest, tiniest bit nervous. But, I feel a lot better now that you guys are here.” Then she pauses for a moment before saying, “Hey, we've got some time before the competition. Why don't Fluttershy and I show you around Cloudsdale?”

Rainbow Dash's proposition is met with cheers of agreement from around the group.

I must admit, while I have seen the tour from the perspective of the camera in the animated series, I wouldn't mind having a more personal tour of the cloud city, or as personal as I can get form a gamer's perspective. I think I even say as much while the ponies are cheering. And, with that, my character follows the ponies as, with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy in the lead, they proceed on into the city.

At the edge of one cloud, Rainbow Dash says, pointing toward several buildings apparently supported by clouds, “Here it is, the greatest city in the sky.”

While the unicorns and and earth ponies answer with oohs and ahs, I say, “Fascinating.” And, as far as I'm concerned, whether from the perspective of the camera in the cartoon or my character in this video game, it is fascinating to see the buildings supported by clouds, and pegasi flying among them.

Then, as I hear more oohs and ahs coming from Rarity, my character turns to the group to show me, through his eyes, that she isn't among them anymore. He then looks around and finds her looking at her reflection in a mirror. Evidently she's gotten a better perspective of her wings from her reflection.

I groan under my breath, “Rarity, this isn't supposed to be your show.”

I then realize the other ponies have moved on when I hear Rainbow Dash say, “Some of the greatest pegasi in history came from Cloudsdale.”

I call out to the white unicorn, “Come on, Rarity! Let's catch up with the others!” and have my character proceed to catch up with the group.

I hear a male voice, which somehow sounds familiar to me, say, “Those wings are gorgeous.” I have to wonder, was that the pegasus that, pulling a wagon full of hay, ran into the moving carriage that Ataahua was in charge of?

In the mean time, I hear Rarity answer the pegasus, “Why, thank you.”

As the white unicorn flies on ahead of the group, Twilight says, “Now, be careful with those wings, Rarity. Remember, they're made from gossamer and morning dew, and they're incredibly delicate.”

Lyra adds, “And, it wouldn't hurt you to remember Mormon's warning as well.”

Rainbow Dash looks behind her at the rest of the group and asks, “And, what warning was that?”

I answer, “I warned Rarity that if she doesn't rein in her pride, she'll lose her wings, and have a great fall.”

At this point, Rarity circles around behind the group, then comes in for a landing a couple of steps ahead of my character, then says, “Oh, you two needn't worry about me. After all, I'm sure these wings can't get worn out from too much attention.”

I state, “And, Rarity, I promise you I won't be the one to take away your wings. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Yes, I made a Pinkie promise. In this case, I figured it was appropriate.

And, I guess I should've expected the ponies ahead of my character to stop and look at him in surprise, with Pinkie Pie being the most surprised.

After a few seconds, Applejack breaks the tension by saying, “Uh, since we're up here, Ah'd sure like to see where the weather's made.”

Rainbow Dash answers, “Great idea!”

Remembering what happened in the episode, and having worked to produce the same effect in this game, I know how things are going to turn out, and how it won't be so great when Rarity takes a close-up look at some hanging snowflakes. But, I see no reason to let the group know about it. Let them experience it for themselves when the time comes.

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash takes a running leap and starts flying as she calls out, “Come on, everypony, to the weather factory!”

Pinkie Pie leads the cheering, while Fluttershy leads the gallop, as the ponies catch up to Rainbow Dash on their way to the factory.

One thing I'll say about Rainbow Dash, she's got great control of her wings when she flies. And, she's being considerate of her friends who don't have wings, as she flies only fast enough so that they can gallop to catch up to, and keep up with, her.

At the rate the group moves, my character included, it's just a few minutes before the group reaches a white building with rumbling, sparking, dark clouds sparsely floating over it.

As the group enters one of the buildings, Rainbow Dash says, “This is where they make the snowflakes. Each one is hoof-made. And, as you can see, it's a delicate operation.”

And, on cue, Rarity flies up to two snowflakes, one with six branches and another with eight, and, looking at them, says, “Oh, these snowflakes look even better from up here.”

And, as I expect, the breeze from her wings causes snowflakes to fly from their tables and all over the room, producing an indoor snowstorm.

As pegasi run to reclaim the snowflakes and complain about the interruption, Rainbow Dash says, “We'd better move on before Rarity ruins winter and causes a drought.”

Presently we hear the sound effect of the light shattering of glass, indicating that a snowflake has landed and shattered on the ground.

Another snowflake lands on my character's nose and immediately melts.

I answer, “Good idea,” then call up to the white unicorn, “Come on, Rarity, let's get outta here!”

As the group exits from where it entered, I watch, through my character's eyes, as Rarity, realizing she's caused the fiasco, descends and apologizes and nervously giggles as she follows the rest of the group out. And, it seems that she can't help stepping on a few fallen snowflakes on her way out.

Rainbow Dash, waiting at the entrance, glares at Rarity as she walks past.

Rarity, in response, just lowers her head as she wanders past her rainbow-haired friend.

As Rainbow Dash takes her position at the head of the group again, I hear Pinkie Pie say to my character, “Mormon, you knew Rarity was going to do that, didn't you?”

I answer, “Yes, I did.”

The pink earth pony asks, “And, you didn't try to stop her?”

I ask in response, “And, how was I going to do that?”

After a second or two, Pinkie Pie sighs and whispers in response, “I guess you've got a point.”

Then, I hear Rainbow Dash sigh and say, “Let's just head over to the next building.”

The group, including a crestfallen Rarity who, for the moment, is content with strolling among the rest of her friends, proceeds into a building where there are waterfalls of colors separated into the familiar rainbow spectrum.

Rainbow Dash, leading the group, says, “And, here's where they make the rainbows.”

Somehow, when I hear the blue pegasa say that, I can't help thinking of a story by a famous comedian, telling a story about a trip to the dentist. And, looking up at a particular exit point, where one spectral stream evidently begins, I can't help thinking about the title of a familiar dark fan fic, featuring the leader of this tour.

In the mean time, I watch, through my character's eyes, as Pinkie Pie dips a front hoof in one pool, pulls it out again, and takes a taste of the spectrum.

Now, I'm reminded of the familiar Skittles slogan.

But, Pinkie Pie finds out that the rainbows produced at the weather factory have a different flavor, as her face changes colors backwards through the spectrum, and she shoots flames out of her mouth. When that passes, the shocked earth pony gasps and whispers, “Spicy,” then gallops off.

As the other ponies laugh, Rainbow Dash says, “Yeah, rainbows aren't really known for their flavor.”

I have my character turn to where Pinkie Pie ran off, and I say, “I guess I'd better see if she's alright.”

As my character turns and starts walking after the pink earth pony, Rainbow Dash says, “You go on ahead. We'll wait here for you.”

After a few seconds, I find Pinkie Pie just outside the building, munching on a piece of cloud, evidently trying to calm her burning mouth down. As my character walks up next to her, then kneels on one knee and puts a hand on her back, I ask, “Are you alright?”

In response, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and half-climbs onto his supportive leg, then coughs a couple times, then wheezes, “Oh, Mormon, I thought it was going to be fruit-flavored.”

I can't help laughing as I stroke Pinkie Pie's back. When I've sufficiently regained my composure, I say, “Well, your friends, our friends, are waiting for us back inside when you're ready.”

Pinkie Pie takes a few unsteady breaths, which make me wonder if she's crying right now. But, that question seems to be answered when she looks up at me and says, “Thanks for coming out here for me, Mormon.”

Noting that her voice sounds normal now, I ask, “So, you ready to go back to the group now?”

Pinkie Pie inhales and exhales deeply a couple more times, then pushes away from my leg and says, “Yeah, I think so.” She then turns to the building and says, “Let's go back inside.”

Seeing the pink party pony ready and willing, I have my character follow her back into the rainbow building and back to the group, where the rest of the ponies are, as Rainbow Dash promised, still waiting for the return of my character and Pinkie Pie.

All, that is, except for Rarity, who, it seems, has decided to take her own tour further into the rainbow building.

As she returns to the group, three pegasi, all males, all dressed as though for construction, are following her.

The apparent leader of the trio, a chocolate-brown pegasus with white-chocolate mane and tail, is saying, “Oh, where'd you get those wings? I want a pair.”

Evidently she's back to her old self again. Those wings, while still attached to her back, have clearly gone to her head.

In the mean time, the chocolate pegasus, evidently noticing the group, says, “Woah, look, it's Rainbow Crash again!”

The one immediately behind him, a butterscotch-colored pegasus with mane and tail somewhat more brown than the body fur of the leading pony, eyes covered as much by the helmet, I suppose, as his mane, answers, “Yeah, Rainbow … uh … ghi-ah-um … Crash!” And, I think he's just trying to cover his vocal stumbling with his laugh at the end.

Rainbow Dash asks her butterfly-winged friend, “Rarity, what're you doing talking to these guys?”

Rarity, floating towards her blue pegasa friend, answers, “Oh, they were just admiring my wings, Rainbow Dash.”

Remember what I mentioned about Rarity's wings going to her head? I rest my case.

The chocolate stallion tells Rainbow Dash, “Yeah, you should forget the sonic rainboom, and just get yourself some wings like these!”

I have to wonder if he's referring to his own wings, as he flaps them before he finishes his statement and laughs, along with the two other pegasi. Come to think of it, their behavior is stereotypical of school bullies.

Before any member of any group can say more, or at least any other member, I have my character walk toward the three winged stallions.

The chocolate stallion, seeing my character approach, nervously says, “Uh, who, and what, are you?”

I answer, “You don't need to be scared of me. I'm a human, and you can call me—”

Just then, Pinkie Pie excitedly calls out, “Mormon!”

The chocolate stallion starts to cower as he asks, “Uh, wh-what do you w-want?”

I answer, “I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to see if I can guess your names.”

The chocolate pegasus turns and looks at his friends, then back at my character, and I'm guessing he's disguising his fear when he clears his throat, straightens up, puffs out his chest, and says, “Oh. This oughta be good for a laugh.”

I add, “And, even if I prove to be wrong, I'll just make my guesses my nicknames for each of you.”

At this point, all three of them voice agreement, tinged by nervousness.

The first one I look at is the chocolate pegasus.

His build is what I'd expect from a winged stallion, with his coloring and cutie mark being his most defining features. His cutie mark, by the way, is an adjustable weight that a human would lift with one hand.

After a momentary pause, I say to the winged chocolate stallion, “I'm guessing your name is Dumb Bell.”

He laughs derisively as he answers, “Not even close.”

I answer, “Still, I think it suits you for a nickname.” I then turn my character's attention to the butterscotch pegasus.

Again, the type of build I'd expect from a pegasus. And, again, his coloring and cutie mark are his most defining features. His cutie mark is a trio of basketballs in the formation of an equilateral triangle.

I tell the butterscotch pegasus, “My guess is that your name is Basket Case.”

This time, all three of them laugh, and the butterscotch pegasus asks, “Where'd you come up with that?”

I simply answer, “Again, fitting nickname.” Then, I turn my attention to the last of the three pegasi.

This one is, once again, typical of the type of build I'd expect from a pegasus, with gray coloring, and mane and tail closer to black. His cutie mark is a trio of footballs, again forming an equilateral triangle. Come to think of it, doesn't Rarity's father also have that as his cutie mark?

I tell this pegasus, “And, as for you, I'm thinking your name is probably Touch Down.”

This time, there's no laughter. Instead, the gray pegasus says, “You know, I think you got mine … right.”

I answer, “Had to happen at some point. It fits you. And, if it weren't your name, it'd still be an appropriate nickname for you.”

As my character returns to the element bearers, I hear Touch Down answer, “Uh, thanks,” followed by the sound of flapping wings, suggesting to me that the trio are flying off.

And, that's when I notice the distraught look on Rainbow Dash's face.

Fluttershy says, “Come on, everypony, let's go see how clouds are made.” As the group starts moving, the yellow pegasa says to Rainbow Dash, “Don't listen to them. You're gonna win that competition for sure.”

In the mean time, I have my character fall in place at the end of the line before he starts walking.

The blue pegasa answers, “Are you kidding? I can't do the sonic rainboom. And, just look at these plain, boring, old, feathered wings.”

At this point, I speak up and say, “It seems to me that your plain, boring, old, feathered wings have served you well in the past, Rainbow Dash. And, I think you'll find that when you're in the service of your fellow ponies, and you've forgotten your fears, you'll have no problems doing a sonic rainboom.”

Rainbow Dash looks back at my character and, sniffling, says, “Thanks, Mormon. That means a lot to me.” And, considering the look on her face, I'd say she's sincere about that.

As Rainbow Dash turns ahead, I notice Pinkie Pie look back at my character and say, “You know what, Mormon. That was a really nice thing to say to Dashie.”

I answer, “She sounded like she needed the encouragement.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie says, “That, and you've already seen what happens.”

I decide, beyond smiling, not to respond to Pinkie's last statement.

The cloud production building of the factory is probably just a minute or two from the building where the rainbows are produced.

Before either Fluttershy or Rainbow Dash can say anything about the machines in the room, we hear commotion; and my character turns to show me, through his eyes, Rarity once again showing off for a group of pegasi, one of whom, a mare, looks a lot like Fluttershy, save for shorter, more curly mane.

Clearly milking the moment for all it's worth, Rarity asks, “What, these old things? Go ahead, everypony. Photos are encouraged.”

Twilight Sparkle walks up to the hovering unicorn mare and says, just above a whisper, “Rarity, we're supposed to be helping Rainbow Dash relax, remember? Put your wings away and stop showing off.”

Rarity rises above the groups as she says, “Oh, how can you expect me to put away perfection?”

Now, I can't argue that the sunlight shining through Rarity's butterfly wings does put on a pretty display of light. But, at the same time, Twilight has a point.

I state, “You're also forgetting my warning.”

But, the warnings of human and fellow unicorn seem to be lost to Rarity among the oohs and ahs of the crowd. And then, Rarity notices how the sunlight is shining through her wings, and she emits an excited, almost manic giggle.

I and my character are distracted from the floating unicorn by Twilight asking, “Rainbow Dash, are you okay?” My character turns and focuses on the purple unicorn and the blue pegasa; and I can see, through his eyes, that Rainbow Dash is letting her fear of failure get the best of her.

Twilight continues, “You don't look so good.”

Rainbow Dash says, “Of course. Why wouldn't I be okay?” Looking to the side, she adds, “Everybody's so in love with Rarity's wings that they won't even notice when I totally blow it in the Best Young Fliers' Competition.”

And, to make matters worse, a pale-purple pegasa with pink mane and a rainbow cutie mark steps forward and says, “Hey, there's an idea. You should enter the competition.” And, having seen the “Sonic Rainboom” episode, I know said pegasa is talking to Rarity.

I keep my character's attention focused on Rainbow Dash, so I can only hear when Rarity answers, “There really isn't any pony that uses her wings quite like me. Perhaps I should compete.”

And, that's when Rainbow Dash rises quickly and says, “What?”

The only evidence that I get that Rarity is drifting out of the sunlight is when I see the colors move to one side.

As the other ponies follow Rarity out of the cloud-making building, the other four element bearers gather around Rainbow Dash, who asks, “What am I gonna do?” Looking down, she adds, “I'll never win the competition now.”

I have my character take a step toward the blue pegasa and put a hand on her back, just below her neck, an action which seems to startle her. I say, “I'm sorry if I alarmed you, but I just wanted to say that you're letting your fears get the better of you. When it's your time to shine, I'll be there to support you, and so will the rest of your friends. And besides, I think you're overestimating Rarity's flying abilities.”

When the rainbow-haired pegasa looks up at my character, she looks like she's about to cry.

I continue, “And, speaking of Rarity, even she'll have a role to play in your success.”

I get the idea that her smile, at this point, is more forced than anything else. She doesn't say anything, just rests her head on my character's knee.

And, the other four element bearers stroll toward her with their own expressions of encouragement and support.

After being the center of an equine group hug, Rainbow Dash pushes away from my character's leg and says, with more confidence, “Thanks, everypony. Now, let's get to that competition.”

As the group of five ponies and one human begin their trek out of the weather factory and to the stadium where the competition will be held, Twilight Sparkle turns to my character and says, “Wow. You're giving words of support to Rainbow Dash that I couldn't give her.”

I answer, “I'm happy to be of service.”

Just then, Pinkie Pie asks, “Uh, where's Lyra?”

My character looks around to show me, through his eyes, that Lyra seems to have disappeared from the grounds of the cloud-making building.

I say, “Uh-oh.”

The rest of the ponies look up at my character, and Applejack asks, “What's wrong, Mormon?”

I answer, “I wonder if Lyra followed the crowd of pegasi to wherever Rarity's headed.”

That's when Pinkie Pie echoes, “Uh-oh,” and gallops off in the direction of the group of pegasi.

In the mean time, Twilight Sparkle says, “If that's the case, then they're probably headed to the stadium where they'll be holding the Best Young Fliers' Competition.”

Applejack says, “Well then, we best be headed there, too.”

The group of four follow Pinkie Pie out the other side of the cloud-making building, galloping, with Rainbow Dash in the lead, at least until they're a few paces outside. Then, Rainbow Dash quickly slows down and comes to a stop.

The rest of the group follow suit, and Twilight Sparkle asks her blue pegasa friend, “Alright, Rainbow Dash, what's wrong? We need to get to that stadium.”

Rainbow Dash whines, “Ah, what's the point, anyway? I'm not gonna win.” And, that's when she collapses, buries her face in the cloudy pavement in front of her, and silently starts to sob.

At this point, I have my character take a step toward her and stroke the side of her neck with his closest hand; and I say, “I'm guessing something happened?”

As the cloud immediately under Rainbow Dash darkens, she looks up at my character and says, “Nothing happened. That's the problem.”

I say, “I mean, since you got to Cloudsdale. I could tell you were nervous back in the library, but nothing like this. Tell me, what's wrong?”

Rainbow Dash looks down as she sobs, “When … when Fluttershy and I … got here, we … were met by those … three guys from … earlier.”

I ask, “What about them?”

The blue pegasa continues, “What they said … didn't bother me. When they left, … F-fluttershy said, … she said, …”

At this point, I have my character put a pointer finger under the rainbow-haired pegasa's chin and lift it up lightly, gently forcing her to look up at him; then I ask, “What did she say, Rainbow Dash?”

Sniffling, she answers, “She said, 'Just because … you failed the sonic rainboom … a hundred thousand times … in practice doesn't mean …”

I encourage, “Yes, 'doesn't mean.'”

Rainbow Dash sniffles some more as she timidly continues, “… doesn't mean you won't … be able to do it … in front of an entire stadium … full of impatient, … super critical sports fan ponies.”

As far as I can tell, this is the first time in the My Little Pony Friendship is Magic series something like this happens, but it isn't the only time. Fluttershy, in an attempt to encourage Rainbow Dash, said something that, in fact, did the exact opposite. Later on, in the fourth season, Pinkie Pie will do the same to Fluttershy, in a very loud, very screechy voice. That is, in the animated series. Depending on the success of this game, that is depending on how enjoyable I find it, I may expand it to further seasons, including the fourth season where Pinkie Pie uses similar tactics on Fluttershy to try to encourage her to sing in front of an audience. But, right now, it's clear the damage to Rainbow Dash's resolve has been done.

I say, “I'm sure she didn't mean to scare you.”

Rainbow Dash retorts, “I know she didn't mean to scare me. But now, I don't know what to do. Should I go and compete and humiliate myself in front of all those sports fan ponies? Those three bullies already think the sonic rainboom isn't real. What if I can't do it again?”

I answer, “You know the sonic rainboom is possible, because you've done it before. And, Fluttershy is right about one thing. Just because you haven't been able to do it in practice doesn't mean you won't be able to do it when it really matters. And, trust me. It will matter now that Rarity's part of the competition.”

Rainbow Dash looks up at my character again and asks, “Well, what did you warn her about, exactly?”

I answer, “I told her about a Greek myth, a man named Icarus who was given shoes with wings made of wax attached to them. In spite of the warnings he was given, he flew too close to the sun; then the wings on his shoes melted, and he fell into the sea and drowned.

“I also reminded her about Lehi's dream, and the floating tower in that dream; and she remembered how it fell.

“After that, I warned her that if she didn't rein in her pride, she was going to lose her wings, like Icarus, and, like the floating building, she'd have a great fall.”

Rainbow Dash asks, “And, what does that have to do with me?”

I answer, “When she's falling, she's gonna need someone, a friend, to catch her. And, when that time comes, if you're part of the competition, you'll be there to perform your greatest work when it isn't the most important to you.”

The blue pegasa, now no longer crying, simply says, “Mormon, please don't take this the wrong way, but what you said doesn't make a lot of sense.”

I state, “That's alright. Let's get going to the stadium so you can compete. Just as Fluttershy had an important role to play in moving that dragon, you'll have an important role to play in the competition. All that I've said to you will make sense to you soon enough.”

Now, Rainbow Dash rises up on all fours, sighs, and says, “Alright. But, I'm holding you to your word, Mormon.” And, with that, she gallops on ahead, encouraging the rest to keep up with her.

The run from the weather factory to the stadium takes about as long as a run through the Everfree forest takes.

There, the group finds Pinkie Pie and Lyra waiting for them, with information that Rarity was allowed a last-minute registry because she was a friend of another competitor, specifically Rainbow Dash.

Speaking of which, the group dismisses her to go to the waiting room while the rest of the group are shown to a stadium platform directly under the one for special guest spectators.

I remember how Rainbow Dash said she'd hold me to my word. I hope she means she'll remember all I told her, and will take my advice. But, it's not just what Rainbow Dash said that I'm thinking about. I also find myself entertained by the thoughts of the costume Rarity wore in the “Sonic Rainboom” episode, and her makeup, which, it seems to me, made her look more like a clown than anything else. I'm sure I preserved the absurdity of that in my modeling and painting job. I'll see for sure when the two come out and perform.

As I notice Rainbow Dash peeking out nervously from the white curtain, I hear the announcer say, “Ladies and gentle colts, please rise and join me in welcoming our beloved Princess Celestia!”

I don't think any member of the group is able to look up and see the daytime princess and her two guards descending into the guests' platform directly above them. But, to me anyway, it doesn't matter. If I want to see it, I can always watch the episode.

After a few seconds, the announcer continues, “Please welcome our celebrity judges for the Best Young Fliers' Competition, the Wonderbolts!”

As my character watches the announcer, I am able to see six clothed pegasi fly over him, each trailing gray smoke or steam behind him or her, as they rise into the sky. The gray trail fizzles out as the six line up, perform a circle in the air, meet in the center of that circle, then fly off, producing an explosion and a fireworks effect. They then fly to a nearby platform, where three of the six land, and the other three take their places in an upper tier above the audience.

After this display, the announcer continues, “And now, let's find out who will take the prize, as this year's best young flier!”

I already know who it'll be, but that doesn't mean I should not want to watch the competition anyway. I've found that, whether it's in movies, television, video games, books, or even stage plays, the journey frequently tends to outshine the destination.

The first performer to come out is a gold-colored pegasa with pink mane and tail.

I can't help noticing her cutie mark is hidden by a piece of paper or parchment with a number on it, in this case “1.” Remembering the episode, I still have to wonder if, in these competitions, enumeration really is more important than identity.

At any rate, the gold pegasa manages to take a cube-shaped cloud and punch it until it looks like Princess Celestia. While sculpting is something I couldn't do, I can't help wondering if this contestant isn't pandering to the princess. Still, it is a really good likeness.

The second one to come out is a brown pegasus with darker-brown mane and tail. I can't help noticing that his cutie mark isn't so well hidden as that of the first contestant. Considering what can be seen of the cutie mark indicates it's an hourglass, it isn't surprising that many would wonder if this isn't the pegasus version of Doctor Whooves. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. As far as I know, everyone's guess has an equal chance of being right.

At any rate, the pegasus comes out and, with the help of a cloud nearby, makes horns, facial hair, and other parts, and imitates various figureheads in Equestrian history, or so I assume. And, based on the response of the audience, he does a really good job of it, or at least a really crowd-pleasing job.

The third one to come out, a juvenile, coal-black pegasa with contrastingly white wings, mane, and tail, has cue cards, which clearly pleases Twilight Sparkle. But, that's as pleasing as she gets, as, just a few seconds into her speech, which, in all honesty, isn't very exciting, she starts crossing her hind legs, as though she needs to expel something. And, her bodily needs become all too distracting, as she hesitates and repeats her last two words every few seconds. And, from then on, things go from bad to worse for her.

She starts urinating, then drops the cue cards in favor of grabbing her tail and pulling it under her, futilely trying to hide her shame from her audience. Now panicking, she opens her mouth, only to belch loudly and expel the contents of her stomach. Then I hear a zipper sound effect from her, and she finally drops her tail, covers her face the best she can with her front hooves, turns back to the curtain, and flies into it, bawling and leaving a falling trail of feces behind her.

I must admit, I feel sorry for the filly. Having prepared as much as she clearly did, only to literally choke like that. While in every competition there's at least one bad performance, it's sad that it had to happen to one so young as her. Hopefully she can make a comeback, and treat this failure as a growth experience.

The fourth to come out is a reddish-tan stallion with yellow mane and tail, and the number seven over his cutie mark. He comes out and, starting close to Princess Celestia, rolls fifteen times, spiraling from the one side of the stadium to the other, with his back to the inside of the spiral.

I must say, from my position, as my character watches, it almost seems, by the fifth or sixth loop, that the stallion is losing control of his stunt; and, by the end, I'm pleasantly surprised that he isn't dazed as he pulls out of the last loop. It's a performance I applaud, just as much as the ponies in the audience.

The fifth to come out, not to my surprise, but to my pleasure nonetheless, is Ataahua, who has the number six over her cutie mark. If there's one thing that surprises me about her performance, it's that she seems to manage to incorporate her clumsiness into her dance, putting on something of a tai-kwon-dodo style performance. I find it surprisingly appropriate to the nickname I gave her.

The sixth to emerge is the Fluttershy look-alike I first saw at the cloud-construction room of the weather factory. She has the number five over her cutie mark. She uses clouds to set up an obstacle course, and then races through the obstacles without damaging any of them. And, the whole performance takes less than a minute.

The seventh is a completely green mare with the number ten over her cutie mark. She races around the stadium, then manages to stumble over nothing I can see at the start of her fifth lap, but recovers and completes three more laps before celebrating as though she won first prize in a race.

I guess, since she was the only one racing, for all intents and purposes, she did come in first place. Still, I have to wonder if she was telling the story of a famous pegasus athlete or something like that with her performance.

The eighth, who happens to have the number eight over her cutie mark of three clovers, is a gray pegasus with dark-gray mane and tail. Seeming uncertain at first, nonetheless he jumps and flies upward, disappearing above the platform above my character, and thus not allowing me to see all he does. As near as I can tell, he dives downward to approximately the bottom edge of the stadium, then manages to pull out of the dive, at which point I hear groans of disgust from the audience. I only find out as he's going back through the curtain, and I see the shiny, dark green stain on his backside. I have to wonder if he realized that he messed himself as he was pulling out of his dive.

The ninth, with the number nine over his barbell cutie mark, is none other than Bulk Biceps. How he manages it I can only attribute to video game physics; but, while hovering in the middle of the stadium, he tosses a barbell on one side from one front hoof to the other and back a few times, then, while still holding it in his mouth, flexes for the audience.

The tenth, with the number eleven over her cutie mark, is the elderly mare who'd said she could watch Rarity all day. She comes out with a ball of yarn and, in a matter of two or three minutes, manages to knit a sweater for an adult pony from it.

The eleventh, with the number twelve over his cutie mark of three blue horseshoes, is a yellowish-tan stallion with brown mane and tail. Pretty much all he does is fly around the stadium, shaking hooves with as many mares as he can find that'll shake hooves with him. Not quite so respectable, in my opinion, as the performance of the elderly mare that came before him.

The twelfth, a blue-purple mare with mane and tail of two shades of pink and the number thirteen covering her cutie mark, comes out with a frozen hexagon and, within a minute, sculpts it into a twelve-branched snowflake, with alternating long and short branches radiating from the center, the long branches all the same, and the short branches all the same. An impressive feat, although probably not appropriate to a sports event. Then again, there were at least two others that weren't appropriate to a sports event as well.

The thirteenth, a light-blue stallion with dark blue mane and tail and the number fourteen mostly covering his cutie mark, gathers a bunch of small clouds and combines them into one large cloud, then, with one kick, knocks it out of existence. The process takes all of the one minute he's given, and, while not original, is surprisingly interesting to watch.

Finally, for the fourteenth event, both Rarity and Rainbow Dash emerge from the curtain: Rarity wearing a dress that looks like a purple tiger fish and makeup that, in my opinion anyway, makes her look like a clown; and Rainbow Dash who's only wearing the number fifteen over her cutie mark.

While I hear the ponies talk about how Rarity seems to be doing some kind of fancy dance number to what I recognize as a waltz, my character's focus is on Rainbow Dash, where I want it. And, whereas in the cartoon she emerged looking more timid than Fluttershy, in this game she comes out looking surprisingly confident.

The first part of Rainbow Dash's performance involves her weaving through columns of clouds. And, I must say, she does very well at it. That is, until she runs into the last column and bounces into the edge of the platform where her friends and my character are.

While she three stallion bullies are laughing at her, I say, “It's alright, Rainbow Dash. Remember, you only fail if you give up.”

The azure pegasa smiles and salutes my character, then looks away and says, “Time for phase two.” And, with that, she flies off.

The second part of her performance is to go up to some carefully placed round clouds and circle around them, spinning them around Superman-style. She manages to get five or six spinning that way, until she's knocked away by a piece of one of the clouds, which immediately spins toward the platform immediately above where the group of five are.

I seriously doubt, considering it's a cloud, that it would've caused damage to any spectator it might've hit. The fact that it disappeared when it landed just above Princess Celestia, at least in the episode, is enough of a suggestion of that for me. Still, I'm sure it was not what Rainbow Dash had intended. The worst thing that could've happened doesn't, as Rainbow Dash manages to regain control of her flying. Still, it looks like she's starting to panic.

I call out to her, “It's alright! It's just two mistakes! You can recover!”

Rainbow Dash makes it clear that she heard me, as she turns to me and once again salutes. Now, it's time for the last part of her performance.

In the mean time, I hear Rarity say, “Now for my grand finale. I'll fly up to the sun, and beam my beautiful wings over the whole city of Cloudsdale.” Then, I hear her gasp before she concludes, “Oh, they'll be talking about it for years!”

At this point, I bury my forehead in my hands and ask, “Ugh, Rarity, didn't I warn you about reining in your pride?”

But, at this point, there's really nothing I can do to stop her. From what I remember of the episode, both she and Rainbow Dash rise above the stadium, Rainbow Dash faster and higher than Rarity.

I remove my hands from my forehead just in time to see, through my character's eyes, the white unicorn rise up in front of the sun and say, “Look upon me, Equestria, for I am Rarity!”

Again I hide my forehead in my hands, and this time my face with it, as I say, “You sure are.” And, knowing how things'll turn out, I'm sure whatever the citizens of Cloudsdale will be saying about her, she won't want to hear it.

Then, as I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Uh-oh, twitchy-twitch,” I remove my hands from my face, just in time to see Rarity's butterfly wings disappear in flames and fall away as ashes.

She hovers there just long enough to notice her wings are gone and say, “Uh-oh,” before she plummets through the hole in the middle of the stadium and towards the ground below.

In this game, it isn't the judges that jump to rescue Rarity; it's the three Wonderbolts in the audience. And, they're just as successful in rescuing the falling, panicking white unicorn in the game as the judges were in the cartoon, all three being knocked out by Rarity's flailing.

I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Mormon, do something.”

I have my character turn to her, and I say, “I will. Ki tahi au.”

As the scene freezes, I have my character look out from under the platform above him and focus on the rainbow-haired pegasa, and I say, “Continue,” then call out, “Rainbow Dash, Rarity needs you!”

The azure pegasa stops in mid-air, then, seeing her unicorn friend falling, dives toward her, calling out, “Hold on, Rarity! I'm comin!”

While I hear Fluttershy near my character say, “I can't look,” I, on the other hand, can't help watching, through my character's eyes, as Rainbow Dash dives downward toward the falling ponies.

Then, I notice something interesting happen. And, just because I've seen it done as many times as I've seen this episode, and I've duplicated it successfully in this game, that doesn't make the effect any less exciting for me to watch. And this comes after I see, from the corner of my character's periphery, Pinkie Pie's ears flop, then her knees twitch, and finally her eyes flutter.

Just as in the episode, Rainbow Dash seems to be enveloped in a translucent bullet, which seems to thin into an arrow head. And, Rainbow Dash keeps on going, maintaining her speed, until she breaks through, producing a circular shockwave lit up with flames of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple, doubly in that order around the inside of the circle.

As the shockwave radiates away from the point where Rainbow Dash broke the sound barrier, I know she manages to catch both Rarity and the falling Wonderbolts before they can hit the ground, then immediately shoots upward to the Cloud-iseum, as I remember Fluttershy calling it, producing a rainbow over the stadium before rising from underneath and coming to a hovering stop just on the edge of the track, where other pegasi come to collect the three Wonderbolts and Rarity, allowing Rainbow Dash to land.

You know, whereas I remember Fluttershy seeming to borrow Pinkie Pie's voice as she cheers for Rainbow Dash, establishing that she did indeed produce a sonic rainboom, I seem to have blocked out that cheer as I watch the event through my character's eyes in the game.

I do remember it's Princess Celestia who dismisses the five in the platform immediately below her to go to that level and meet Rainbow Dash and Rarity as the crowd cheers.

It takes a minute or two to get to their positions[ and once he's there, I have my character hold out his hands to accept charge of Rarity while Twilight Sparkle goes to get her balloon from where she'd left it.

As the two pegasae holding Rarity hand her over to my character, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “You know what, Mormon, you were right about everything!”

A humbled Rarity says, “Yes, Mormon, you were right, about everything.” And, somehow, I get the feeling her crying is sincere as she says, “Oh, I'm so sorry I failed you.”

I answer, “Now, you didn't fail. As long as you learned your lesson, you didn't fail.”

Rarity continues, “Oh, you were right! I should've reined in my pride! And, now my beautiful wings are gone, and I'll never get them back!”

I respond, “Now, you knew your wings were temporary when you first got them, and Twilight told you what they were made of, and that you'd only have them for three days at the most.”

Then I hear Rainbow Dash say, “But, you were right about something else.” As my character turns and focuses on her, she continues, “When I was waiting backstage, I switched my number with others so they could go ahead of me. As encouraging as you were, I was still scared to come out here. But, then there was that little filly that came back crying about having gotten sick and messed and wet herself in front of everypony. I traded numbers with Derpy Hooves so I could stay behind and comfort the filly, and, while I was doing that, I forgot about my worries about doing the sonic rainboom. By the time it was my turn, I wasn't worried at all.

“And, there's one more thing. You may be a lousy cheerer, but you gave me the best words of encouragement I could've gotten out here. And, when you told me Rarity was in trouble, well, her life is more important to me than doing a sonic rainboom. And, strangely enough, I think that helped me the most in actually being able to do one.”

At this point, I speak up and say, “About that. When you broke the sound barrier, the shockwave you produced was outlined with rainbow-colored flames.” I then ask, “Was that the sonic rainboom?” I already know the answer to the question; but still, for Pinkie Pie's benefit, I feel it important to ask.

Rainbow Dash grins as broadly as she can as she answers, “It most certainly was!”

Now, Pinkie Pie says, “So, I guess I have seen a sonic rainboom before, back on the rock farm when I was stuck outside. And, now I've seen another one!”

Rainbow Dash giggles, then says, “So, Mormon, what did you think?”

I answer, “Well, a sonic boom never looked so good.”

Just then, I hear a surprisingly familiar voice next to my character say, “Hi, Rainbow Dash.” My character turns to show me, through his eyes, Ataahua right next to him, as she continues, “I just came to congratulate you on that sonic rainboom. It was beautiful.”

Rainbow Dash chuckles, then says, “Thanks, Derpy.”

I say to the gray pegasa, “You know, Ataahua, you put on a pretty impressive performance, too.”

Rainbow Dash looks at my character, then at Ataahua, then back at my character, and asks, “So, what did she do?”

Ataahua answers, “I just danced around the stadium.”

I state, “And, while Ataahua was dancing, she turned her clumsiness into a strength when she knocked over different things and caught them and put them back, and even bounced off various other things and kept dancing like it was part of the performance.”

I then hear Ataahua say, “But, human.” My character turns to her to show me, through his eyes, a look of sadness on her face, as she says, “That was part of the performance.”

You know, getting that bit of information just makes what I saw of her performance all the better. I tell her, “I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I was just saying that I liked what I was seeing. And, by the way, you can call me Mormon.”

At that comment, Ataahua smiles as she says, “Well, in that case, thanks, Mormon.” Then she tilts her head as she asks, “But, why do you keep calling me Ataahua?”

At this point, I hear Rainbow Dash state, “I've been wondering that myself.”

I'm not surprised that Rainbow Dash isn't familiar with the nickname I gave the gray, yellow-haired pegasa. But, I can only guess the Derpy Hooves I met back in my second day in the game wasn't the Derpy Hooves I'm meeting right now. In fact, the Derpy Hooves I'm talking with right now may be the same one who was part of that accident a couple days ago when Twilight Sparkle was trying to figure out the Pinkie sense.

I answer, “Ataahua is a Maori word. It means 'beautiful.' I just thought it was an appropriate nickname for you, especially considering that performance you put on in the stadium.”

Ataahua straightens her head, then smiles and says, “Oh. Well, I kinda like it. If you want to call me that, then go ahead.” She then rubs her face against my leg, not unlike a cat, and says, “Thank you, Mormon.”

Just then, I hear Lyra say, “Uh, by the way, Mormon, Twilight's coming with the balloon.”

I have my character turn to Lyra, and I open my mouth to say something. But, I'm interrupted by the shadow of Twilight's balloon, and my character turns to see it land, and Twilight jump out of it.

She then says, “You can put Rarity in the balloon now.”

I have my character nod, then maneuver Rarity so he can put her on her hooves in the balloon.

When the white unicorn is settled in the balloon, she turns to me and says, “Thanks, Mormon.” Then, not giving me a chance to respond, she turns to her friends and says, “I want to apologize to all of you for getting so carried away with my beautiful wings.” She chokes up when she mentions her wings. Then she continues, “I guess I just lost my head.”

Among the words of forgiveness offered by the other element bearers, Pinkie Pie's statement, “We still love you,” sticks out most in my mind. In the episode, she said that without my influence, and her saying that in this video game suggests to me that Pinkie Pie doesn't always need my influence to say the nicest things to her friends. But, my influence doesn't hurt.

Rarity continues, focusing on Rainbow Dash, “And, I'm especially sorry that I was so thoughtless as to jump into the contest at the last minute after you had worked so hard to win it.” She then asks, “Can you ever, ever forgive me?”

Rainbow Dash answers, “Ah, it's okay. Everything turned out alright, right?” And, whereas in the episode she says, “I just wish I could've met the Wonderbolts when they were awake,” in this game, she says, “I guess I didn't need to worry so much about doing a sonic rainboom after all.”

In either case, she doesn't notice, until she's finished talking, the hoof that taps her on the wing of hers that I can see. She turns her head, then the rest of her body, then freezes and gasps.

My character turns to see the source of the hoof, to show me, through his eyes, the six Wonderbolts standing, facing Rainbow Dash. Arranged in an equilateral triangle formation with three in the back row, two in the middle, and one in the front, the six soldier-salute Rainbow Dash.

The one in the front, a mare with, from what I can tell of what's not hidden by her suit, yellow fur, with mane and tail of two shades of orange, looking almost like fire from her head, neck and behind, says, “We want to congratulate you, Rainbow Dash, for saving our team mates.”

Presently, Rainbow Dash says, “Oh my gosh,” and repeats that phrase some four times, each time raising the tone in her voice.

I say, “Yeah, it looks to me like you could use some training in handling a falling pony in full panic mode.”

The three Wonderbolts in the back row, as well as Rarity, lower their heads in shame.

I have my character reach out to Rarity and stroke her neck.

In the mean time, the mare in the front turns to the three in the back and says, “Yeah, we'll work on that as soon as we get back to base camp.”

Just then, I hear Twilight Sparkle say, “Princess.”

And, my character turns to show me, through his eyes, Princess Celestia, with two of her guards, behind him.

As my character turns all the way around to face the daytime alicorn, she says, “Hello, Twilight Sparkle. And, hello to your friends, too.”

Presently, Rarity says, “Princess Celestia, I'm sorry I ruined the competition.” Turning to her pegasa friend, she continues, “Rainbow Dash really is the best flier in Equestria.”

Princess Celestia answers, “I know she is, my dear. That's why, for her incredible acts of bravery, and her spectacular sonic rainboom, I'm awarding the prize for Best Young Flier to this year's winner, Ms. Rainbow Dash.” And, with that, she places a golden, winged tiara on the rainbow-haired pegasa's head.

Immediately on receiving the tiara, Rainbow Dash opens her mouth to speak; but she can only repeat, “Oh my gosh,” several more times, even while three of her friends pick her up and carry her away.

I have my character focus on Princess Celestia, and I smile and say, “Isn't it nice to know that she isn't without something to say?”

Princess Celestia chuckles, then turns to Twilight and asks, “So, Twilight Sparkle, did you learn anything about friendship from this experience?”

Twilight answers, “I did, princess. But, I think Rarity learned even more than me.”

Rarity states, “I certainly did. I learned how important it is to keep your hooves on the ground, and be there for your friends.”

Princess Celestia smiles and says, “Excellent. Well done, Rarity.” She then turns to my character and asks, “And, Mormon, have you learned anything about unicorns from this experience?”

I answer, “Well, one thing I've observed is that unicorns, or at least Rarity, have a tendency to get carried away when they get something they want, and may even forget why they wanted that gift in the first place.” I then have my character turn to Lyra, still next to me, as I ask, “Is that the case with all unicorns?”

The way the pale-green unicorn reacts, I'm guessing I put her on the spot. She looks away from my character and rubs her closest front hoof to him over the other front hoof, and hesitates, “Uh, … well, …”

I have my character turn back to the daytime princess as I continue, “And, there's another thing.”

Princess Celestia blinks and asks, “Yes?”

I say, “A lot of humans, at least in my world, would wonder why you didn't make a move to rescue Rarity. But, I think I understand why you didn't.”

The white alicorn starts to smile again as she asks, “And, why do you think that is?”

I answer, “Well, for one thing, it was Rainbow Dash's time to shine, not yours. While I'm sure you could've rescued Rarity easily enough even while she was panicking, you must've also known that Rainbow Dash would've known what to do.

“And, second of all, I'm guessing there's a rule against ponies in authority showing partiality to a particular competitor in events like this one.”

Princess Celestia responds, “Well, yes, it was Rainbow Dash's 'time to shine,' as you called it. She was, after all, worried about being able to perform a sonic rainboom in front of an audience. But, when her friend was in trouble, she let go of her fear and, in an effort to rescue her friend, did what she feared she couldn't do. And, as a result, she's more confident in her own abilities.”

By this point, I see, from the edge of my character's periphery, that Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy have nearly completed their victory lap around the stadium, carring the still excited Rainbow Dash the whole way. So, I decide not to say anymore.

As the ponies maneuver around behind the balloon, they come to rest on the opposite side of the Wonderbolts from the balloon, and put Rainbow Dash back down on the cloud surface.

Rising up on her hind legs, the blue pegasus shouts, “This really is the best day ever!” and raises her front hooves in victory.

Presently, a familiar stallion's voice says, “Uh, hey, Rainbow Crash,” causing her to fall to all fours again and turn around to find who called her.

Then, as my character turns to show me, through his eyes, the trio of bully stallions, Basket Case nudges his chocolate friend and says, “Dash.”

Taking the correction, Dumb Bell says, “Oh, uh, sorry, Rainbow Dash. We just wanted to congratulate you on winning the competition.”

Rearing up on his hind legs and kicking his front ones some, Basket Case adds, “That sonic rainboom was awesome!”

As Basket Case falls to all fours again, Rainbow Dash says, “Uh, thanks, guys.”

Dumb Bell then says, “Uh, we're sorry we gave you such a hard time before.”

I'm beginning to think that Dumb Bell, at least, isn't such a bad pony after all. And, I hear the flapping of wings behind my character, suggesting that the Wonderbolts have taken off.

Rainbow Dash answers, “Ah, that's okay. Don't worry about it.”

Dumb Bell asks, “Hey, do you wanna hang out with us?” He adds, “Maybe you could show us how you did that incredible trick.”

Rainbow Dash flies off toward the team of six pegasi as she says, “Sorry, boys. But, I've got plans.”

You know, as frequently as I've watched the episode, I've wondered, why, as Rainbow Dash flies off with the two stallion Wonderbolts, does the scene end with the first five notes of the Simpsons theme?

Well, whether I get the answer to that question or not, one thing's clear now. It's time for the rest of the group to head to their homes. While Fluttershy hovers next to the balloon, the rest climb into the basket. Then, all salute Princess Celestia farewell, and Twilight drives the balloon back to Ponyville, landing it behind the library.

But, the group seems to include one more pegasa.

As my character gets out of the basket, Ataahua approaches him and says, “I just wanted to thank you again for the compliment.”

All I can think to say in response is, “You're welcome.”

Then, Pinkie Pie asks, “So, Derpy, we have readings on the other side of the Everfree forest, where Mormon lives. Would you like to come with us and join in?”

To me, anyway, the gray pegasa's hum suggests interest in Pinkie Pie's proposition. Then, she says, “Maybe some time later. I've seen how many ponies go to the reading, and it looks crowded. Maybe some day I will join in. But, not now.” And, with that, she salutes both Pinkie Pie and my character, then turns and flies off.

As, through my character's eyes, I watch the pegasa fly away, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Well, it was worth a shot anyway.” Then, as my character looks down at her, she asks, “So, what do you wanna do next?”

I answer, “Well, I suppose the first thing we need to do is pick up Weed Whacker. I wonder how she and Spike are doing with the library clean up.”

Applejack says, “I'd better get back to the farm, make sure Big Mac hasn't hurt himself again.” And, she heads off toward Sweet Apple Acres.

Rarity says, “Well, I best be heading to the boutique to see how things are there. Who knows what Sweetie Belle and her friends have gotten themselves into?” And, she heads off to Carousel Boutique.

Fluttershy says, “I need to get back to my cottage and see how my critters are doing.” And, she flies off toward the Everfree forest.

Seeing her friends get back to their businesses, Twilight turns to my character and Pinkie Pie and says, “Well, I guess Mormon's right about one thing. We need to find out if Spike and Weed Whacker have finished putting away the books yet.” And, she leads my character, Pinkie Pie, and Lyra around to the front of, then into, the library.

Once inside, sure enough, all the books and scrolls have been put back in place on the shelves. Spike and Weed Whacker made good use of their time. But, I don't see them in the main room of the library.

I'm guessing it's Lyra who uses her magic to close the door behind my character.

Twilight, still in the lead, says, “Spike and Weed Whacker are most likely in the kitchen right now. Just follow me.” And, with that, she leads the group to and into the kitchen, where, sure enough, Spike and Weed Whacker are having a snack together: Spike having a bowl full of gems, and Weed Whacker having a salad.

Spike, with the perfect vantage point to the door, and seeing the purple unicorn, says, “Twilight! Did you have a good trip?”

Presently, Weed Whacker, facing away from the door the group entered, turns to the group and calls out, “Mormon! Lyra! Pinkie Pie!” and jumps off her chair and runs to Lyra.

Smiling and strolling further into the kitchen, Twilight answers, “We sure did. Rainbow Dash won first prize. She managed to pull off a sonic rainboom and saved Rarity from herself.”

For the time Twilight was talking, Weed Whacker and Lyra have been nuzzling each other. They pull away from each other, and Weed Whacker says, “Well, it's good to see you back. So, I guess we're heading back to your home, Mormon?”

I answer, “I suppose, after we visit the Cakes at the clinic.”

And, that's when I hear Twilight say, “Well then, go on ahead. Weed Whacker and Spike did a good job cleaning up all the books.”

I hear Weed Whacker say, “Thanks, Twilight.”

So, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character make their way out of the library and head over to the clinic to visit the Cakes and see how they're doing.

The group gets to the clinic in time to meet Mr. Cake, who seems to be returning after having visited somewhere else.

It's Pinkie Pie who says, “Mr. Cake, it's nice to meet you.”

The orange stallion turns to her and says, “Oh, Pinkie Pie. It's nice to see you, too.”

Pinkie continues, “We just came by to see how you and Mrs. Cake are doing.”

Mr. Cake says, “Well, that's very nice of you. I just got back from checking up on Sugar Cube Corner. No line of customers this time. And, the place looks nice and clean. You did a good job yesterday. Thanks. And, by the way, Mrs. Cake and I are doing just fine.”

I state, “Well, that's good to hear.”

Then, Lyra asks, “So, when is Mrs. Cake expected to foal?”

Mr. Cake answers, “Most likely in the next few days. Dr. Horse says Cup is doing really healthy, and we can look forward to two healthy foals.”

The news about the foals doesn't surprise me, but it does seem to surprise Pinkie Pie, Weed Whacker, and Lyra.

The group talks for a few more minutes until Mr. Cake decides he needs to go back inside and get back to attending to his wife.

The group of four head out of Ponyville, then back to the Everfree forest and on to my character's house.

There, Carrot Top and Berry Punch come to meet them from the garden and vineyard.

Carrot Top asks, “So, we gather things went well?”

I open my mouth to answer; but it's Pinkie Pie who, after taking a deep, noisy breath, says, “It sure did. It didn't start that good, because Mormon made Rainbow Dash think he's a lousy cheerer. Then, we headed over to the library and helped Twilight put the books away. Then, Dashy flew through the window and knocked me into the bookcase, and all the books fell off of the shelves again. Then, she told us that she was going to compete in the Best Young Fliers' Competition, and Fluttershy said that Dashy couldn't do a sonic rainboom. Then, Rarity told Twilight to find a spell that'd get us flightless ponies into Cloudsdale so we could support Dashy. Then, Rarity got wings, and Lyra taught Twilight a traction spell, and Twily modified it so us ponies could walk on clouds.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie takes another deep breath before continuing, “Mormon has a cheat that allows him to walk on clouds, and so all of us were able to go to Cloudsdale to cheer on Dashy. But, then Rarity got obsessed with her wings, and Dashy got so, so scared of losing the competition. Mormon warned Rarity that she needed to rein in her pride, or she'd fall like the building in Lehi's dream, and told Dashy that she'd do a sonic rainboom when it wasn't the most important thing. Well, as it turns out, everything Mormon said came true. Dashy and Rarity had the last performance, and they did theirs at the same time. Then, Rarity flew too close to the sun and lost her wings, and Dashy did a sonic rainboom saving Rarity and three Wonderbolts she'd knocked silly. Now, Rainbow Dash is spending time with the Wonderbolts because she's the best young flier now.” That being the end of her story, Pinkie Pie proceeds to collapse and pant.

Well, it's clear what impact the experience had on Pinkie Pie. It's been a memorable event for all of us.

Berry Punch says, “Well, it sounds like you had quite the adventure.”

Lyra responds, “That's for sure. What Pinkie Pie didn't mention is that during their joint performances, when Rarity was falling, Mormon called out to Rainbow Dash and told her Rarity needed her help. Also, before then, as we were heading to the weather factory to take a tour, Mormon Pinkie-promised Rarity that he wouldn't be the one that'd take away her wings.”

So, now it's evident what impact the experience had on Lyra.

Weed Whacker says, “I stayed behind with Spike at the library, and helped him clean up books. Unlike pegasi, even winged dragons can't walk on clouds. And, neither Spike nor me wanted to get hit with a spell that'd let us walk on them.”

Carrot Top focuses on my character and asks, “So, Mormon, how did you know those things were going to happen to Rainbow Dash and Rarity?”

I answer, “I have a good source for my information.”

Berry Punch grunts and says, “We should've guessed that'd be your answer.”

I have my character open the front gate and allow the other three to enter ahead of him, then follow them inside, then close the gate behind him, before I ask, “So, how've things been going around here?”

Carrot Top answers, “Nothing as exciting as your adventure. Just the usual gardening.”

Berry Punch looks up into the sky, then says, “On that subject, we should probably start gathering fruits and vegetables for the reading this evening.”

Carrot Top nods and says, “In that case, I'll head out to the vegetable garden.”

Weed Whacker says, “I'll go with you.”

As Carrot Top and Weed Whacker head in that direction, Berry Punch says, “I'll head out to the vineyard.”

Lyra turns to the red-purple earth pony and says, “I'll go with you and help.”

As Berry Punch and Lyra head toward the vineyard, I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie, and I say, “I guess that leaves us with orchard duty.”

By this point, Pinkie Pie has caught her breath. She gets back up on her hooves and says, “Okie dokie lokie. As soon as we're in the orchard, I'll get Diane.”

And, with that, the pink earth pony and my character head to the orchard. And, as soon as my character has climbed over the fence and Pinkie Pie has jumped over it, I notice, through my character's perspective, that Pinkie Pie's mane and tail immediately straighten, and her mane falls to one side of her head.

Diane then looks up at my character and says, pointing to the closest tree. “I'll go ahead and buck apples out of this tree, and you can collect them.”

I have my character nod in agreement, after which he follows Diane Pie to the tree she pointed to, and Diane proceeds to kick the tree with her hind legs.

To her credit, twelve apples fall out of the tree; and my character gathers them up.

While in the orchard, the two also harvest a few pears and peaches. Then, after that, while my character holds the harvested fruits, Diane hands control of Pinkie back over to Pinkamena, indicated by her mane and tail immediately curling again. Then, she bounces over the fence and waits and encourages my character to toss her some of the fruits he's holding.

To the pink party pony's credit, she manages to catch the fruits thrown to her in her mane and tail.

Once it's clear my character has just enough fruits that he can get over the fence without dropping any, he does so; and he and Pinkie Pie head back to the house.

In fact, everyone meets there, and my character opens the door to allow the others to enter first, after which he enters and closes the door behind him.

Pinkie Pie leads the way to the kitchen door, where, to my surprise, she uses the curl in her forehead to grab the nob and open the door, allowing the rest of the group to enter behind her. And, my character, the last to enter the kitchen, closes the door behind them.

Similar to a previous arrangement, Weed Whacker takes charge of cleaning the harvested fruits and vegetables, which I hand out to Carrot Top, Berry Punch, or Lyra for them to slice up; then they hand the pieces of fruit and vegetables to Pinkie Pie so she can put them on the platter provided for her. And, once again, the arrangement resembles a crown of sorts.

The entire process takes maybe half an hour, after which the question comes up which of us should take our bath or shower first. By vote, it's decided that Pinkie Pie and my character should shower first, my character in the bathroom closest to his room, and Pinkie Pie in the other one. The next two should be Weed Whacker in the bathroom closest to her room, and Carrot Top in the bathroom closest to hers. And, that leaves Lyra and Berry Punch, each in the bathroom closest to their rooms.

Pinkie Pie and my character, as it turns out, are finished just in time for the first guests to arrive; and, while Weed Whacker and Carrot Top take their showers, Pinkie Pie goes out and greets guests. And, my character carries the platter out about the time that Lyra and Berry Punch are heading to the bathrooms to take their showers.

By the time my character makes it out there and places the tray, I see, through his eyes, quite a lot of ponies talking, including, to my pleasant surprise, Drum Roll, Lotta Pipes, and Sweet Tones. Seeing those newcomers, I have my character go back inside and get three more copies of the Book of Mormon from the closet, then take them to the three friends of Vinyl Scratch.

When my character is just out the door, Pinkie Pie intercepts, taking the books from him and delivering them to the three newcomers. This doesn't surprise me, nor does it surprise me to see Rainbow Dash absent from the group, considering she's likely taking full advantage of her prize for winning the Best Young Fliers' competition. But, now, the ponies and dragons are forming a circle around the fruit tray, preparing for the reading.

It's Carrot Top that announces, “We still need to wait for Lyra and Berry to finish with their showers. When they've come out, then we'll begin the reading.”

At that moment, I decide to have my character go back inside and see if the two ponies are out of the shower yet. And, he goes inside and takes a few steps into the front room and turns to show me, through his eyes. a dripping-wet Berry Punch in the hallway, just out of the bathroom.

The two just stand there and stare at each other for a second or two before Berry Punch screams and runs back into the bathroom. Not exactly the best of circumstances, but I figure there's one thing my character can do to rectify the situation.

Under my directions, he heads to the closet closest to the bathroom where Berry Punch is hiding, gets a dry towel from it, then turns to and knocks on the bathroom door; and I say, “I'm sorry about what happened. I know how important it is to you ponies to be seen at your best. I just came in to see if you and Lyra were ready for the reading.” At this point, I have my character put the towel at the door so Berry Punch can reach out and grab it, and I add, “Here's the towel for you. I'm leaving it here at the door.” I then have my character head back to the front room.

As my character enters the front room, the front door and the kitchen door open at the same time.

From the outside Carrot Top enters, while Lyra sticks her head into the front room from the kitchen. Simultaneously, the two ask, “Is everything alright?”

I answer, “Everything's fine. I just accidentally caught Berry Punch at a less-than-ideal moment.”

Lyra asks, “What happened? You didn't see her soaked, did you?”

I slowly answer the pale-green unicorn, “Well, as a matter of fact, …”

I don't have to say anymore, as it's clear to Lyra and Carrot Top what happened.

Carrot Top gallops to the door to the bathroom to check up on her friend.

Lyra, who I happen to notice is dripping water from her head onto the floor, asks, “Did you tell Berry Punch that you're sorry?”

I answer, “I did, in fact. And, I put a towel on the floor next to the door so she could grab it.” I then have my character turn to where Carrot Top has stopped at the door, and, seeing her pick the towel up, I add, “I'm guessing Carrot Top's gonna take it in to her.”

I hear Lyra say, “I'll be back in a minute, and hopefully Berry Punch'll be out as well.” I then hear what I'm guessing is the kitchen door close.

My character turns to the kitchen to show me, through his eyes, that the door is indeed closed.

While I wait for the three ponies to join my character in the front room, I decide to have him sit on the couch where he can see them enter, the one facing the kitchen door.

As it turns out, like Lyra said, it's a minute after she closed the kitchen door before she comes back through it again. A second later I hear a squishing sound, then I hear Lyra gasp and say, “Oh, sorry about that. I'll get the towel I used on myself and dry this up.”

I decide not to say anything.

By the time Lyra's finished, Carrot Top, followed by Berry Punch, walks into the front room and takes a position on the other couch.

Just a few seconds afterwards, Lyra also comes in and takes a position on the couch where my character's sitting, approximately next to him, then turns to the two earth ponies and says, “I heard Mormon said he was sorry for seeing you in a less-than-ideal moment?”

Berry Punch answers, “Yes, he did.”

Lyra continues, “So, everything's alright, then?”

Berry Punch focuses on my character for a moment, then turns to Lyra and says, “Yes, everything's fine now.”

At this point, I say, “Good. Because, our guests are in a circle out on the lawn right now, ready to begin the reading for tonight.”

Now, Carrot Top says, indicating her and Berry Punch, “Well, in that case, we'd better get our books and join you outside.” And, with that, they jump off the couch and head to their room.

Now, I hear Lyra say, “I must say, I'm pleasantly surprised by you.” As my character turns to her, she asks, “How did you know about how we like to be seen only at our best?” Then, she puts a front hoof on my character's hand and says, “No, never mind. Knowing you, you'll say you have a good source for your information.”

I smile and say, “That's right.”

And, it's only taken our brief exchange for the two earth pony friends to get their books and join my character and Lyra in the front room again.

Before they can say anything, Pinkie Pie appears in the doorway and says, “Well, you four better get out here. The crowd's getting restless.”

I have my character stand up and walk toward the door; and Carrot Top, Berry Punch, and Lyra follow him. Then, my character lingers at the door while the three ponies exit and start making their way down the stairs, and he closes the door behind the four of them.

When the five take their places in the circle, I ask, “Do I have a volunteer to give a summary about what we've read so far?”

Berry Ground rises and says, “While we were waiting, I already offered a summary of what we've read. I hope you don't mind. “

I answer, “Well, as long as the newcomers to the reading are up-to-date on the story, that's perfectly fine with me.” I then have my character turn to Vinyl Scratch's friends, and I say, “We're starting with chapter fifteen of the Second Book of Nephi. Would any of you like to start the reading?”

Drum Roll says, “I'll start.” She then looks down and reads, “And then will I sing to my well-beloved a song of my beloved, touching his vineyard. My well-beloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill.” She then looks up and says, “I didn't think this chapter was going to start with a love song.” Then, she turns to Sweet Tones and says, “You read the next verse.”

Sweet Tones nods, then looks down and reads, “And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a wine-press therein; and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.”

Next, Vinyl Scratch reads, “And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.”

Octavia reads, “What could have been done more to my vineyard that I have not done in it? Wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes it brought forth wild grapes.”

Colgate reads, “And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard—I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and I will break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down;”

Bon-Bon reads, “And I will lay it waste; it shall not be pruned nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns; I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.”

Lyra reads, “For the vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant; and he looked for judgment, and behold, oppression; for righteousness, but behold, a cry.”

Weed Whacker reads, “Wo unto them that join house to house, till there can be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!”

I read, “In mine ears, said the Lord of Hosts, of a truth many houses shall be desolate, and great and fair cities without inhabitant.”

Mayor Mare reads, “Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and the seed of a homer shall yield an ephah.”

Zecora reads, “Wo unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink, that continue until night, and wine inflame them!”

Princess Luna reads, “And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine are in their feasts; but they regard not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of his hands.”

Princess Celestia reads, “Therefore, my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge; and their honorable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Therefore, hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure; and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.”

Spike reads, “And the mean man shall be brought down, and the mighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled.”

Rarity reads, “But the Lord of Hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and God that is holy shall be sanctified in righteousness.”

Rarity's father reads, “Then shall the lambs feed after their manner, and the waste places of the fat ones shall strangers eat.”

Rarity's mother reads, “Wo unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope;”

Fluttershy reads, “That say: Let him make speed, hasten his work, that we may see it; and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it.”

Applejack reads, “Wo unto them that call evil good, and good evil, that put darkness for light, and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”

Applebloom reads, “Wo unto the wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight!”

Big MacIntosh reads, “Wo unto the mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink;”

Granny Smith reads, “Who justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!”

Pinkie Pie reads, “Therefore, as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, their root shall be rottenness, and their blossoms shall go up as dust; because they have cast away the law of the Lord of Hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.”

Warm Heart reads, “Therefore, is the anger of the Lord kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them; and the hills did tremble, and their carcasses were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.”

Snips reads, “And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth; and behold, they shall come with speed swiftly; none shall be weary nor stumble among them.”

Snails reads, “None shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken;”

Cold Hands reads, “Whose arrows shall be sharp, and all their bows bent, and their horses’ hoofs shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind, their roaring like a lion.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “They shall roar like young lions; yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry away safe, and none shall deliver.”

Hoity Toity reads, “And in that day they shall roar against them like the roaring of the sea; and if they look unto the land, behold, darkness and sorrow, and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof.”

At this point, Berry Ground looks at my character for confirmation, and I have him nod in response. Then, Berry Ground smiles, then looks down again and reads, “In the year that king Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.”

Stunts reads, “Above it stood the seraphim; each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And one cried unto another, and said: Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of Hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory.”

Namby Pamby reads, “And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.”

Twist reads, “Then said I: Wo is unto me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips; and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts.”

Scootaloo reads, “Then flew one of the seraphim unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar;”

Sweetie Belle reads, “And he laid it upon my mouth, and said: Lo, this has touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.”

Cheerilee reads, “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then I said: Here am I; send me.”

Silver Spoon reads, “And he said: Go and tell this people—Hear ye indeed, but they understood not; and see ye indeed, but they perceived not.”

Filthy Rich reads, “Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes—lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted and be healed.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “Then said I: Lord, how long? And he said: Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate;”

Carrot Top reads, “And the Lord have removed men far away, for there shall be a great forsaking in the midst of the land.”

Berry Punch reads, “But yet there shall be a tenth, and they shall return, and shall be eaten, as a teil tree, and as an oak whose substance is in them when they cast their leaves; so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof.”

Lotta Pipes reads, “And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin, king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up toward Jerusalem to war against it, but could not prevail against it.” He then looks up at my character and says, “I assumed it was alright for me to start chapter seventeen?”

I answer, “That was perfectly fine.” I then have my character focus on Drum Roll, and I say, “And, you can go ahead and read the second verse.”

After nodding and vocalizing agreement, Drum Roll reads, “And it was told the house of David, saying: Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.”

Sweet Tones reads, “Then said the Lord unto Isaiah: Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou and Shearjashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller’s field;”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And say unto him: Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be faint-hearted for the two tails of these smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.”

Octavia reads, “Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against thee, saying:”

Colgate reads, “Let us go up against Judah and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, yea, the son of Tabeal.”

Bon-Bon reads, “Thus saith the Lord God: It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.”

Lyra reads, “For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus, Rezin; and within threescore and five years shall Ephraim be broken that it be not a people.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If ye will not believe surely ye shall not be established.”

I read, “Moreover, the Lord spake again unto Ahaz, saying:”

Mayor Mare reads, “Ask thee a sign of the Lord thy God; ask it either in the depths, or in the heights above.”

Zecora reads, “But Ahaz said: I will not ask, neither will I tempt the Lord.”

Princess Luna reads, “And he said: Hear ye now, O house of David; is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?”

Princess Celestia reads, “Therefore, the Lord himself shall give you a sign—Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and shall bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil and to choose the good.”

Spike reads, “For before the child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings.”

Rarity reads, “The Lord shall bring upon thee, and upon thy people, and upon thy father’s house, days that have not come from the day that Ephraim departed from Judah, the king of Assyria.”

Rarity's father reads, “And it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.”

Rarity's mother reads, “And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all thorns, and upon all bushes.”

Fluttershy reads, “In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired, by them beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet; and it shall also consume the beard.”

Applejack reads, “And it shall come to pass in that day, a man shall nourish a young cow and two sheep;”

Applebloom reads, “And it shall come to pass, for the abundance of milk they shall give he shall eat butter; for butter and honey shall every one eat that is left in the land.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “And it shall come to pass in that day, every place shall be, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand silverlings, which shall be for briers and thorns.”

Granny Smith reads, “With arrows and with bows shall men come thither, because all the land shall become briers and thorns.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And all hills that shall be digged with the mattock, there shall not come thither the fear of briers and thorns; but it shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and the treading of lesser cattle.”

At this point, I have my character turn to Warm Heart, and I say to her, “Go ahead and start reading chapter eighteen.”

At my encouragement Warm Heart smiles and nods, then looks down and reads, “Moreover, the word of the Lord said unto me: Take thee a great roll, and write in it with a man’s pen, concerning Maher-shalal-hash-baz.”

Snips reads, “And I took unto me faithful witnesses to record, Uriah the priest, and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.”

Snails reads, “And I went unto the prophetess; and she conceived and bare a son. Then said the Lord to me: Call his name, Maher-shalal-hash-baz.”

Cold Hands reads, “For behold, the child shall not have knowledge to cry, My father, and my mother, before the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria shall be taken away before the king of Assyria.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “The Lord spake also unto me again, saying:”

Hoity Toity reads, “Forasmuch as this people refuseth the waters of Shiloah that go softly, and rejoice in Rezin and Remaliah’s son;”

Berry Ground reads, “Now therefore, behold, the Lord bringeth up upon them the waters of the river, strong and many, even the king of Assyria and all his glory; and he shall come up over all his channels, and go over all his banks.”

Stunts reads, “And he shall pass through Judah; he shall overflow and go over, he shall reach even to the neck; and the stretching out of his wings shall fill the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel.”

Emerald Hill reads, “Associate yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear all ye of far countries; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces.”

Namby Pamby reads, “Take counsel together, and it shall come to naught; speak the word, and it shall not stand; for God is with us.”

Twist reads, “For the Lord spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying:”

Scootaloo reads, “Say ye not, A confederacy, to all to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Sanctify the Lord of Hosts himself, and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.”

Cheerilee reads, “And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling, and for a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”

Silver Spoon reads, “And many among them shall stumble and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.”

Filthy Rich reads, “Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “And I will wait upon the Lord, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him.”

Carrot Top reads, “Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of Hosts, which dwelleth in Mount Zion.”

Berry Punch reads, “And when they shall say unto you: Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep and mutter—should not a people seek unto their God for the living to hear from the dead?”

Lotta Pipes reads, “To the law and to the testimony; and if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”

Drum Roll reads, “And they shall pass through it hardly bestead and hungry; and it shall come to pass that when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse their king and their God, and look upward.”

Sweet Tones reads, “And they shall look unto the earth and behold trouble, and darkness, dimness of anguish, and shall be driven to darkness.”

At this point I have my character stand up, and I say, “And, I think that should be all for tonight. Thanks for coming. Tomorrow we'll begin the reading with chapter nineteen. Until then, I hope you have a safe trip to your homes.”

As the members of the circle rise, among them the three friends of Vinyl Scratch rise and approach my character.

I ask them, “So, did you enjoy the reading?”

Drum Roll answers, “Well, I know I did.”

The other two voice agreement.

I open my mouth to speak, but it's Vinyl's voice that I hear say, “I'm happy to hear that.” As my character closes his mouth again and focuses on the white, blue-haired unicorn, she asks, “So, does that mean you'll be coming back?”

Sweet Tones turns to her and answers, “We came here to keep the promise we made to Pinkie Pie. But, since we did enjoy reading, yes, we will come back again, tomorrow.”

At this point, I say, “I'm pleased to hear that.” As my character divides his attention among the four of them, I continue, “I've already let you know where in the book tomorrow's reading will begin. You can go ahead and read that chapter in preparation for the reading, and even read further ahead than that. You may also want to start from the first chapter of the First Book of Nephi, so you can catch up with the rest of the group. Basically, you may read wherever you want in the Book of Mormon.”

Drum Roll smiles at my character and says, “Thanks. We might just do that.” And, with that, she leads the musical trio toward the front gate and joins, with the other two, the rest of the group leaving my character's property.

Vinyl Scratch lingers just long enough to say, “I guess that means you have more regular readers in your group.” Not waiting for a response, she turns and joins her friend, Octavia, in the line out of the front gate.

I hear Carrot Top's voice, next, say, “I missed seeing Rainbow Dash. Where is she?”

My character turns to focus on her, and I answer, “You remember when Pinkie Pie and Lyra told you about how Rainbow Dash won that Best Young Fliers' competition?”

Carrot Top answers, “Yeah. So, what about it?”

I say, “Well, one of her prizes for winning that competition was spending a day with the Wonderbolts.”

Now, Carrot Top's ears perk up, her eyes widen, and she says, “Oh, that's right.” Then she relaxes again, and says, “I guess when she comes back from that she's gonna need to catch up on her reading.”

I respond, “I suppose so.”

It takes a minute or so for the princesses and Hoity Toity and his servant to gather together before they teleport out, and for the other ponies that aren't living with my character, as well as Spike, to exit his property and head back into the forest on their way back to Ponyville.

After that, the six that remain take the now empty platter into the house, and my character cleans it. After that, the six head out and harvest more fruits and vegetables, then head inside and prepare and have them for dinner. After that, they separate to their bedrooms. Or, most do.

I don't realize until she says something that Pinkie Pie's followed my character. As he opens the door to his room, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Mormon, wait. If you'll let me, I have a few questions I want to ask you about in your room.”

I have my character stand inside the doorway and hold the door open for the pink earth pony as she enters, then close the door behind her. After that, as I watch, through my character's eyes, the pink earth pony jump up on his bed, I ask, “Is there something the matter, Pinkie?”

The pink earth pony turns to my character, settles into a sphinx-style position, and answers, “I do have a few questions, like I said.”

I have my character walk to his bed and sit on it next to the pink earth mare, and, having him stroke her on the side of her neck, I ask, “So, what are they?”

Pinkie Pie looks up at my character and says, “First of all, during that competition in Cloudsdale, before Rarity started falling, my tail started twitchin'. Then, when Rainbow Dash dove down to catch Rarity and those Wonderbolts, just before she did that sonic rainboom, my ears flopped, then my knees twitched, then my eyes fluttered. I was just wondering, in the episode based on that event, I wasn't shown doing those things, was I?”

I'm not sure what I can attribute this question to, although I did watch the episode, 'Sonic Rainboom,' before I continued the game this time. I answer, “No, you weren't.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “So, why did you have me doing those things in this game?”

I answer, “Those are some of the ways Diane communicates with you. The twitching tail is her way of telling you that something or someone is about to fall, and someone could get hurt. And, it makes sense to me that you'd get that warning just before your friend Rarity fell.

“Then, the ear flop, knee twitch, then eye flutter is her way of informing you that the sky is going to be graced by a beautiful rainbow, isn't that right?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “That is true. And, the sonic rainboom and the rainbow she produced afterwards were beautiful.” Then, after a momentary pause to think about what I said, she concludes, “So, that demonstration of my Pinkie sense was just for continuity's sake?”

I answer, “Pretty much so, yes.” My character now stops stroking Pinkie Pie's neck, just before I ask, “So, do you have any more questions?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Just one about something we read this evening.”

I ask, “What's that?”

Pinkie answers, “First of all, I'll make the assumption that the Lord was speaking to Ahaz through Isaiah.” Not waiting for an answer, she continues, “He ordered Ahaz to ask for a sign from him, and Ahaz said he wasn't going to tempt the Lord. Is it normally the case that asking for a sign from God is, as Ahaz suggested, tempting Him?”

I answer, “In the scriptures, there are people who say they won't believe until they get a sign from God that He exists. That kind of faithless request is the kind of test that gets those individuals in a lot of trouble, and there are cases where such a request has led to at least one individual getting struck with something, and eventually dying from it.

“Then, there are other signs requested as an affirmative answer to a prayer, where the one praying, frequently a prophet, exercises faith by placing some type of object and inviting some kind of divine intervention on that object. Those prayers of faith are the kinds that are answered with blessings.”

Pinkie Pie pauses for a moment to process what I said, then says, “So, Ahaz was questioning his own faith, is that it?”

I answer, “I don't know if it was necessarily that. I have to wonder if God saw that Ahaz was in need of something, and wanted Ahaz to ask Him for it. In the mean time, Ahaz may have been thinking that a request for a sign was an assumption of a lack of faith, and he was going to bring a curse on himself by making such a request. Thus seeing it only in that way, Ahaz refused; and his disobedience on this matter just made things worse for him.”

Pinkie Pie continues, “And, he was given a sign anyway.” Again not waiting for an answer, she continues, “If he'd understood the invitation, what do you think Ahaz could've done to make the best of it?”

I pause to think about Pinkie's question for a moment, then answer, “Well, I suppose he could've gone to his family and asked them if there was anything they might've needed. Of course, on the other hand, his kingdom was already in trouble. He might've asked God for further guidance, or assistance otherwise, in the problems he was having. He could easily have asked for a sign in faith, and it would've been answered, and he would've been blessed for it.”

Pinkie Pie looks away for a moment, then turns back to my character, to me, and asks, “About this child, Immanuel, who was going to learn to choose good over evil by eating butter and honey, was Isaiah talking about the Christ?”

I answer, “Yes, he was.”

Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “I thought as much.” She then rises and jumps off my character's bed, then walks to the door, before turning and saying, “Thanks. That's all the questions I had for tonight.”

As I watch, through my character's eyes, the pink earth pony open the door, I respond, “I'm glad I could help. Don't be afraid to come to me with any more questions you may have.”

Pinkie Pie just turns and smiles at my character before leaving and closing the door once she's outside.

You know, I think it's about then that the significance of Pinkie Pie's cutie mark dawns on me. Hopefully I'll get the chance to discuss it with her in the near future. In the mean time, I have other things to do. The significance of the pink earth pony's cutie mark can wait until our next meeting.

My letter to the princesses is basically a review of what I reported to Princess Celestia at the end of the Best Young Fliers' competition, more for Princess Luna's benefit than anything else. After delivering the letter to Weed Whacker to send to them, I have my character to go bed.

As with all the episode-based days to date, this one has been an enjoyable exercise in experimenting on how I could influence events. And, I expect the game's tomorrow to be just as much fun. So, until then, I save and close the game.

Chapter 17: Avian Medusa

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I resume the game, waking up my character, to, as is pretty much normal anymore, the sound of pounding at my character's bedroom door. As he gets up, I hear Pinkie Pie call out, “Mormon, you're needed at the front door right now!”

My character walks to his bedroom door and, as I hear a losing-my-balance moan from Pinkie Pie, as well as a light thud from the opposite side of the door, opens it. Through his eyes, he shows me Pinkie Pie rolling onto her front facing away from him, at which point I ask, “Is there something wrong?”

The pink earth pony gets back up on all fours before turning a hundred eighty degrees to look at my character and saying, “I don't know for sure. All I know is Zecora's there, and she looks worried.”

At this point, I figure I have a good idea about why she's there. This is no doubt the day based on the episode, “Stare Master,” in which Twilight Sparkle, a chicken, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and Fluttershy encounter a cockatrice. Now, I seem to remember reading in the scriptures about the cockatrice being some kind of poisonous snake. On the other hand, in the My Little Pony Friendship is Magic world, a cockatrice is a chicken with a long reptilian tail, that or some kind of dragon with a chicken's head and feet. Whichever it is, it's capable of turning other creatures to stone by staring at them, much like the gorgon Medusa from Greek mythology was said to do. But, as I've mentioned before on other subjects, I see no reason why I should reveal to either Pinkie Pie or Zecora that I already know about this, at least not right now.

Instead, I say, “Well, I guess I'd better find out what she wants.” And, I have my character follow Pinkie Pie to the front door.

Once the two get there, I see, through my character's eyes, that Pinkie Pie has left the front door open, and Zecora is standing there waiting for him.

As my character makes his way from behind the couch closest to him, I ask, “Zecora, is there something wrong?”

The zebra nods and says, “I must warn you and Pinkie Pie, a cockatrice may be nearby.”

Well, Zecora has established the possibility of such a creature being in the vicinity.

Pinkie Pie groans worriedly and asks, “Well, have you seen any evidence?”

Again Zecora nods, then states, “I've seen a creature in stone, or two. It's why I have come to warn you.”

Another thing I know that I see no reason to reveal to Pinkie Pie or Zecora, or anyone else in the game for that matter, is that I know that and how Fluttershy will deal with the avian menace when she comes in contact with it taking care of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. In fact, her talent for staring creatures down is the reason for the name of the episode.

Instead, I ask, “So, do you have any advice for us?”

Zecora turns away from my character and Pinkie Pie and heads down the stairs as she says, “I only have this to offer: Please, enter not the land of the cockatrice!”

As I watch, through my character's eyes, the zebra make her way to the gate, I think aloud, “I wonder what the chances are that we'll see the cockatrice on the path to Ponyville.”

As my character closes the door, Pinkie Pie laughs and says, “Now you're being silly, Mormon. Everfree creatures don't go near trails. Especially not one that's as well-worn as the one that leads through the forest.”

I have my character turn to the pink earth pony as I say, “Well, in that case, as long as we keep to the trail, we should be fine.” Then, after a pause, I state, “At any rate, there's something I've been thinking about, and I'd like to discuss it with you.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “Yeah? What's that?”

I have my character start walking towards the closest hallway as I say, “Let's go to my work room. We'll discuss it there.”

Pinkie Pie squees and says, “Okie dokie lokie,” then follows my character to his work room.

Once there, I have my character close the door once he and Pinkie Pie have entered, sit in a chair nearby, and focus on her; and I say, “I've been thinking about your cutie mark, and what it means.”

The pink party pony looks at one of her hips, the one I can see, then back to my character, and asks, “Yeah, what about it?”

I answer, “Your cutie mark is two blue balloons, with a yellow one above them, in between. I'm thinking the blue balloons represent you, Pinkamena, and your sister Diane. I'm not sure which one represents which of you, but I think the yellow balloon represents the body you share, the one you two support.”

Again Pinkie Pie looks at the hip I can see, then grunts with interest, then turns back to my character and says, “I hadn't thought about it that way.” She then tilts her head and asks, “What makes you think that?”

I answer, “Well, I know you. Two spirits in one body? What better way to represent that in a cutie mark than two objects of one color under another of a different color?”

Pinkie Pie settles down and asks, “So, why balloons?”

I answer by asking, “Well, what better way to identify you as the party pony than with balloons?”

Now, Pinkie Pie rises to a canine-style sitting position, shrugs, and says, “Oh, I don't know, a grilled-cheese sandwich, maybe?”

I can't say if that's a reference to one of the episodes in season four or not, but it does make me smile. I have my character rise from his chair, then go to the door and open it, while I say, “Well, that's my theory, anyway. So, shall we go get us some breakfast?”

Pinkie Pie straightens her head again, rises up on all fours, and says, “Okie dokie,” then follows my character as he makes his way out of the room.

My character closes the door behind Pinkie Pie, then I watch through his eyes as Pinkie's ears flap, then a second later the one front leg I can see wiggles, and she rises onto her hind legs, stumbles backward, and falls. My character then looks up to show me the door to the room of Carrot Top and Berry Punch opening. It closes a moment later; and I see, through my character's eyes, the two earth ponies from behind.

It's Pinkie Pie who, getting up again, says, “Hi, Berry, Carrot!”

The two other earth ponies start, then turn and see Pinkie Pie and my character behind them.

Carrot Top chuckles nervously and says, “Oh, hi, Mormon, Pinkie Pie. We didn't know you were there.”

I answer, “Yeah, that's alright. If it hadn't been for the Pinkie sense, I wouldn't have known to wait for the two of you.”

Berry Punch looks at Pinkie Pie, who by now is back on her hooves, then back at my character, and says, “Yeah, I guess that was a good thing.”

I continue, “So, I'm guessing you're headed out to harvest some breakfast?”

The two earth mares answer together, “That's right,” then Carrot Top says, “So, are you headed out, too?”

I answer, “We are, indeed.”

Then, Pinkie Pie says, “Uh, by the way, Zecora just came and warned us, there's a cockatrice on the loose in the Everfree forest. She said it could be close. You should be careful out there.”

Berry Punch says, “Well, so should you. But, knowing that it's out there, at least we know what to avoid.”

At this point, I decide to ask, “Have you seen a cockatrice before?”

Now it's Carrot Top who answers, “I don't think either of us have seen one before.”

I say, “Well, just to give you a warning, if you see a chicken in the forest, especially one with teeth, don't bother trying to pick anymore fruits or vegetables. Just leave them and run back to the house.”

Incredulously, Berry Punch says, “A chicken. You want us ... to run away ... from a chicken.”

I answer, “Trust me, it's no ordinary chicken. It has a long, round tail, kind of like a snake, the body and wings of a dragon, and it can turn creatures to stone just by staring at them. Plus, it's the only chicken you'll ever see with teeth, as I mentioned before.”

Carrot Top turns to Berry Punch and says, “It sounds like Fluttershy in a bad mood.” She then glares up at my character and says, “It's not nice to tell stories like that. You really scared Berry.”

As Pinkie Pie steps aside, I have my character take a step or two toward Berry Punch, kneel on one knee, and put a hand on her back; and I say, “I just wanted to warn you.”

Carrot Top moves behind her earth pony friend and pushes my character's hand away with her head, then says, “Well, I think you've scared her enough.” Then, pushing Berry Punch from behind with her head, she says, “Now, let's get going, Berry.”

Pushed off balance, Berry Punch moves her front legs forward to regain the equilibrium she lost. She looks behind her; and I can see, through my character's eyes, the fear in hers, as she says, “Are you sure we should be going outside?”

Carrot Top pushes her again as she says, “It'll be alright. Mormon just told a story, that's all.”

Berry Punch looks forward again as she stumbles ahead, then starts walking on her own as she says, “Well, alright, if you say so.”

My character looks at Pinkie Pie, and I can see through his eyes that she's also looking at him, at me. I say, “Well, we'd better get going out there too, as much to harvest fruits as to make sure Berry Punch and Carrot Top'll be alright.”

Pinkie Pie only nods in agreement, and the four head to the front door, which my character opens, and head out to their fields.

As soon as my character and Pinkie Pie are in the orchard, Diane takes over, chooses a tree, and proceeds to give it a kick with her hind legs. She manages to knock six apples out of it with one kick.

I gather up the apples and proceed to carry them back to the house, followed by Pinkie Pie, who's back under the control of Pinkamena.

The two make it to the front door before I hear Berry Punch fearfully call out, “Carrot Top!”

My character and Pinkie Pie exchange looks; and I can see, through my character's eyes, the look of fear and worry in hers.

I have my character kneel on one knee and drop the apples he gathered in front of Pinkie Pie, then stand again and open the front door, then I say to Pinkie, “Gather up the apples, and take them inside. I'll go see what happened to Carrot Top.” I don't wait for Pinkie Pie to answer, just have my character run to the vegetable garden to see what happened.

As my character jumps over the fence to the garden, I see Berry Punch trembling, staring at what appears to be a statue of Carrot Top. As he gets closer, I say, “Berry Punch, go back to the house, now.”

As the reddish-purple earth pony turns to my character, I can see, through his eyes, the tears in hers. She says, “B-but, C-carrot T-top.”

I answer, “I'll bring her back to the house. You just get going. Now!”

I hear Berry Punch bawling as she gallops back to the house.

Now, alone in the garden with the literally stoned Carrot Top, I have my character circle around her to get into a position to pick her up and carry her into the house. Now, just when I'm in position, I hear a clucking sound, kind of like a chicken, but somewhat deeper in tone. I decide to stop my character from taking further action to retrieve the normally orange earth pony, and instead start programming my character to grab the creature I expect to assault him.

I have to say, I'm pleasantly surprised that the cockatrice waits until I've entered the last bit of code before I see a slight vibration, indicating that something has jumped onto him; and I see, in a box, the message, “Something has jumped onto your back.”

As soon as I hear the loud squawk, I push the Enter button.

Instantly, my character reaches behind him and grabs something, then pulls it in front of him. He shows me, through his eyes, that it is indeed the cockatrice that jumped onto his back. He moves quickly to hold the now panicked creature by his draconian wings and body, as well as covering its eyes with one hand.

Once my character has the cockatrice secured, I have him move his head to the side of the cockatrice's head; and I say, “Now, I'm going to take you to the edge of my property, and let you go back into the forest. And, once you're free, you will head into the forest and not come back again. Do you understand?”

I don't get any indication of understanding from the creature, just evidence that it understands that it's trapped.

I have my character stand up again, still holding the cockatrice, then carry it, as I promised, to the edge of my character's property, then proceed to let it go over the fence, only afterwards realizing it's in the direction of Fluttershy's cottage.

The now liberated creature runs panicked into the forest. I can only hope it did understand me. But, having now had my own experience with a cockatrice, I now have good reason to warn Fluttershy, at least, about the menace I just dealt with.

I have my character return to the side of the Carrot Top statue, pick it up, and carry it back to and into the house.

Berry Punch, seeing Carrot Top frozen the way she is, as soon as my character puts her down, gallops to her and hugs her, crying, “Oh, Carrot Top, Mormon warned you! Why didn't you listen?”

As Berry Punch continues bawling over her friend, Pinkie Pie approaches my character and says, “Mormon, you've got to put your hands on Carrot Top. You've got to heal her.”

I can't help smiling as I have my character take a step toward the statue and put a hand on it.

Immediately, and evidently to Berry Punch's surprise, the white stone turns orange again; and the now unfrozen Carrot Top stumbles a bit, then turns and looks at her friend draped over her.

Presently, Berry Punch gasps and says, “C-carrot T-top, you're alive!”

Carrot Top doesn't answer Berry Punch, at least not immediately. She turns to my character, who removes his hand at that point, and asks, “Uh, Mormon, what happened?”

I answer, “I got a visit from a cockatrice, and it made first contact with you. It's alright, though. I took care of it.”

Tilting her head, the orange earth pony asks, “So, how did you manage to escape without getting turned to stone yourself?”

I answer, “It's kind of a long story. The important thing is you're fine now.”

As Berry Punch turns to my character, I have no doubt that her tears are for joy as she says, “And, it's all because of you. Thank you, Mormon.”

I smile as I say, “You're welcome.” Then, having my character focus as much on Carrot Top as on Berry Punch, I add, “Now, the cockatrice should be gone by now. You can go out again and finish gathering fruits and vegetables.”

Just then, the door to the kitchen opens and closes. A few seconds later, Lyra and Weed Whacker appear close to my character from behind the couch; and Lyra asks, “What's this about a cockatrice?”

I turn to the pale-green unicorn and answer, “Zecora came and warned me and Pinkie Pie about a cockatrice in the vicinity. Berry Punch, Carrot Top, Pinkie Pie and I went out to harvest breakfast; and Carrot Top came into contact with the cockatrice. I dealt with it, and had to heal Carrot Top from being turned to stone. About the only problem now is the cockatrice is somewhere between here and Fluttershy's cottage.”

Weed Whacker says, “Well, in that case, it seems to me that it's best that no one be outside alone.” Turning to Berry Punch and Carrot Top, she continues, “Berry Punch, if you're still going out to the vineyard, then I think you should take Lyra with you. I'll go with Carrot Top to the vegetable garden.”

I state, “Pinkie Pie and I have already gotten fruit from the orchard, so we should be fine for that. We'll wait for you back here in the house.”

The dinosaur and three ponies nod, then head out the door to gather the vegetables and the rest of the fruit.

Pinkie Pie and my character take the fruits they gathered and bring them into the kitchen, then head back to the front room to wait for the four outside. As I expect, at least for the time the four are outside, the cockatrice doesn't return. Evidently, my character holding it hostage has been traumatizing enough for it.

As soon as the three ponies and the dinosaur are back in the house, they, along with the pink party pony and the human, take part in cleaning and preparing the harvested fruits and vegetables in the kitchen, after which they take them into the front room and eat them. After that, again Carrot Top and Berry Punch stay at the house while Lyra, Weed Whacker, Pinkie Pie, and my character leave for Ponyville.

The cockatrice, it seems, has gained enough respect for my character that it doesn't bother him or the ponies and dinosaur that are with him.

At Fluttershy's cottage, I decide that my character should make a detour to warn the yellow pegasa about the menace between her cottage and my character's house. So, at the bridge, under my directions, my character crosses and heads to the front door, followed by Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker.

Before I can have my character knock, I hear Pinkie Pie call out, “Fluttershy, there you are!” My character turns to the pink earth pony, then looks in the direction she's looking to show me, through his eyes, the yellow pegasa, as Pinkie Pie continues, “We were looking for you!”

Fluttershy canters toward the group of four saying, “Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't want anypony to think I was lost.”

I answer, “No, that's alright. That's not the problem.”

Fluttershy stops at about the closest corner to her cottage as she asks, “Is there something wrong?”

I answer, “I'm afraid there is.” As I watch the yellow pegasa lower her head, I continue, “Earlier today, Zecora came to my home and warned me about a cockatrice on the loose. It paid me and my guests a visit, but I managed to get it off of my property before it could do too much damage. The only problem is I turned it loose in the direction of your cottage. I just thought I'd stop by and warn you about it.”

Fluttershy turns away from my character and says, “Oh, dear.” Then, she looks back at my character and asks, “Did it hurt anypony?”

I answer, “It turned Carrot Top to stone, but I was able to heal her from that.”

Fluttershy, still focused on my character, raises her head and says, “Well, it's good to hear that the cockatrice didn't do too much damage. Thanks for the warning.”

I have my character turn around as I say, “I just thought you should know.” Then, as my character turns to the trail back to the bridge, I see an angry-looking white Persian cat in the way. I immediately ask the feline, “Aren't you Rarity's cat?”

The cat hisses and swipes her claws at Weed Whacker, who manages to jump out of the way before she can get hurt.

As surprisingly fast as Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy is there, picking the cat up by the scruff of the neck and carrying her away. She stops next to the basket, puts the cat inside, and says, “Now, Opalescence, you know better than to attack somepony like that.” She then turns to the group of four as, lead by my character, they make their way to the bridge again; and she says, “I'm sorry about that. Rarity left her in my charge for the night, so she could take care of an order at the boutique.”

I answer, “That's alright. Thanks for getting her out of the way.” I pause for a moment in thought before asking, “Uh, by the way, Fluttershy, would you like to join us on our way to Ponyville?”

The yellow pegasa lowers her head and answers, “Oh, I don't know. I wouldn't want to be a burden on you.”

I state, “Trust me, you won't be a burden. Remember, Ponyville isn't that far away; and the four of us have already made it through the Everfree forest. One more member of the group this close to Ponyville wouldn't be that much of a problem.” Seeing the yellow pegasa still undecided, I continue, “It's still your decision whether you want to come with us or not.”

Fluttershy turns and looks at the basket.

Inside, I can see, through my character's eyes, that the white Persian cat inside seems to be glaring at my character, and perhaps those with him as well.

When she turns back to the group of four, Fluttershy smiles as she says, “Well, then, alright. I'll go with you until we get into Ponyville. If you have any business in Carousel Boutique, you can follow me there. If not, then we'll separate.”

I find myself smiling as I answer, “Fair enough.” And, with that, the group of five, plus Fluttershy and Opalescence, leave her property and make their way to Ponyville, not that much further away.

Once the group arrives, Pinkie Pie and I agree that the group of four should visit Twilight Sparkle at the library.

The group salutes Fluttershy farewell, then follows the plan made by Pinkie Pie and me.

Once the group arrives at the library, Pinkie Pie opens the door; and the rest follow her inside. Then, Pinkie Pie calls out, “Twilight, are you here?”

The door between the kitchen and the main room of the library opens, and Twilight comes out and, seeing Pinkie Pie, says, “Oh, hi, Pinkie. What can I do for you?”

Before the pink earth pony or I can answer the question, Spike comes out of the kitchen, holding a small kettle and a tea bag, and says, “Uh, Twilight, we've got a problem.”

The purple unicorn turns to her assistant and asks, “What's wrong, Spike?”

Spike holds up the tea bag and answers, “Well, this is our last bag of tea.”

Twilight, seeing the bag and the kettle, sighs and says, “I guess that means I'm gonna have to get some more.” She turns and looks at the group of four and says, “Well, the good news is Zecora has my favorite tea. I can go to her house and get some.”

Isn't it nice how stories can lead to these kinds of things?

I open my mouth to speak, but Pinkie Pie beats me to it, saying, “That's not such a good idea. There's a cockatrice loose in the Everfree forest.”

Quizzically, Twilight asks, “A cocka-what, now?”

I answer, “A cockatrice. We've already made contact with it. Or, at least I have.”

Pinkie Pie adds, “That's right! It turned Carrot Top to stone, but then Mormon healed her.”

I hear Lyra ask, “Mormon, didn't you have a fight with it?”

My character turns to her, and I answer, “That's right. When it jumped up on my back, I grabbed it and kept my hand over its face so it didn't turn me to stone. I'm sure it respects me after that, but it's because of me, I think, that it's now in the forest between Fluttershy's cottage and my home.”

I then hear Twilight ask, “So, this cockatrice turns ponies to stone.” As my character focuses on her, she continues, “So, what does it look like?”

I answer, “It has the head, lower legs, and feet of a white chicken, but the rest of its body is more like that of a green dragon, except somewhat larger than an adult pony, I'd say. If you see a chicken with teeth, I suggest you run away from it.”

Pinkie Pie adds, growling and crawling low to the ground towards Twilight as though ready to pounce, “If you're heading into the Everfree forest, stay on the trail. Never leave the trail.”

Twilight seems a little frightened as she says, “Uh, alright then. Are you sure you don't need anything else?”

I answer, “We just thought you should know about it, just in case.”

I watch, through my character's eyes, as Twilight turns to one shelf of books and walks toward it and says, “I'm thinking I should do some research on the cockatrice before I head into the Everfree forest. Doesn't hurt to be prepared.”

I state, “Just as well. I'm sure the four of us have other places we need to go.”

As my character turns to the door, I hear Twilight say, “Uh, just one thing, Mormon.”

I have my character turn his head to her, and I ask, “What's that?”

Twilight asks, “Can all humans heal ponies who've been turned to stone?”

I answer, “Not all of them. It's just a gift I have.” I then have my character turn back toward the door as I say, “Well, we'd better get going.”

Then, as my character reaches for the door, I hear Pinkie Pie say, still in her growling voice, “Remember, stay on the trail. Never leave the trail.”

I say to her, “Alright, Pinkie Pie, that's enough.”

Then, as my character opens the door, I watch her, through my character's eyes, bounce past him out the door as she says, “Okie dokie.”

As Lyra and Weed Whacker follow the pink party pony out the door, I have my character turn to Twilight again; and I say, “Sorry about Pinkie Pie. I guess I'm going to have to talk to her about that.”

Twilight smiles back at my character as she says, “That's alright. It is just Pinkie being Pinkie after all. No harm done. Thanks for the warning, anyway.”

As my character makes his way out the door, I say, “You're welcome.”

Then, as my character closes the library door behind him, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “You don't think I went too far, do you, Mormon?”

As my character turns to her, I can see, through his eyes, that her head is tilted in curiosity, and she has a worried look on her face. I answer, “Well, let's just say you could've told her in a nicer way.”

Now, Pinkie Pie straightens her head again, then lowers her gaze toward the ground immediately in front of her, her expression melting into one of sadness, as she says, “I'm sorry.”

I have my character take a step toward her, kneel on one knee, and stroke her neck with his closest hand; and I say, “It's alright. The important thing is Twilight's been warned about the danger in the Everfree forest.”

Pinkie Pie sighs, then looks up at my character's face and says, “Yeah, I guess what she does with that warning is up to her.”

I respond, “That's right.”

Then, I hear Lyra say, “You know, it's been some time since I've visited Bon-Bon's house.” My character turns to her as she adds, “Let's go over there next.”

As my character stands up again, I say, “Sure, why not?”

The idea evidently appeals to Pinkie Pie, as she perks up and says, “Yeah, let's go to Bon-Bon's house!”

Weed Whacker doesn't say anything, just jumps onto Lyra's back. But, I wouldn't be surprised if she's also looking forward to visiting Lyra's earth pony friend again.

So, I say, “Well, if everyone agrees, then let's head on over to Bon-Bon's house.”

The cheers from the two ponies and the dinosaur are enough evidence for me. With that as confirmation, the group of four, lead by Lyra, makes its way to the house of her cream-colored earth pony friend.

On arrival, as my character reaches out to knock, Lyra grabs the doorknob and pushes the door open, then calls out, “Bon-Bon, you've got visitors!”

I hear a door open elsewhere in the house, then hoof-falls approaching; then my character's attention focuses on the cream-colored earth pony as she appears from the opposite corner of the front room, looks at her visitors, and says, smiling, “Lyra, come on in. I haven't seen you in a while.”

The rest of the group follows the pale-green unicorn into the house as she says, “Yeah, I thought I'd come for a visit. How've things been going?”

Bon-Bon takes a seat on one of the couches as she says, “Well, unfortunately I couldn't save all the apples that Applejack gave me. I was able to make some candies from the ones I could save, though.”

As members of the group take positions on the two couches, Lyra next to Bon-Bon and Weed Whacker next to Lyra, the pale-green unicorn says, “Well, it's good to hear that you could make use of some of the apples, then.” Then, I see, through my character's eyes, the idea dawn on Lyra before she asks, “So, could we have a sample of your apple candies?”

The request evidently pleases Bon-Bon as she says, “I can't see why not.” Then she jumps off the couch and heads for another room as she says, “I'll be back with the candies I made.”

As the cream-colored earth mare disappears, Lyra turns to each member of the group and says, “Bon-Bon makes the best candies. I'm sure you'll like these.” Then, I see, from my character's perspective, Lyra focus on the pink earth pony next to my character as she asks, “Pinkie Pie, are you alright?”

My character looks down at Pinkie Pie and shows me, through his eyes, the worried expression on her face as she's looking up at him, at me. I have my character put his closest arm over her and rub her opposite shoulder as I say, “I'm sure it'll be fine.”

I then hear Lyra ask, “Is there something I should know about?”

Before I can answer, Bon-Bon comes back in with the apple candies and puts them on the coffee table.

Each of the four takes a sample of each of the candies, which include pieces of dehydrated apple, green and red candies which I assume are apple-flavored, and what look like toffee spheres.

As my character eats each sample, the dehydrated apple piece and the green and red candies are labeled “apple-flavored” by the message box at the bottom of the screen, and the toffee sphere, as indicated by the message box, informs me that there's a sphere of apple inside the toffee.

Each member of the group gives Bon-Bon compliments on the candies.

Based on the message boxes, I have serious doubts about there being much, if any, sugar in the candies, beyond the natural sugar in the apples. And, they're pretty small samples anyway.

As a way of receiving the compliments, Bon-Bon says, “I'm glad you liked them. I worked hard, and was able to save, I think, half of the apples Applejack gave me. Now I just need to know how many ponies would be interested in apple candies.”

I smile and say, “Well, I'm sure Applejack and her family would be interested in them. Have you offered samples to anyone else in town?”

The cream-colored pony looks down, and her face seems to melt a little, as she says, “You know, I've been so occupied making these candies, I really haven't had time for anything else.”

I state, “Well, the four of us liked them.”

Lyra, Pinkie Pie, and Weed Whacker vocalize agreement.

Bon-Bon looks up at my character and smiles again as she says, “Thanks, human, that means a lot to me.”

Now, Lyra prods her earth pony friend and says, “Uh, Bon-Bon, you do know his name is Mormon, right?”

I smile again and say, “That's alright, Lyra. After all, I am the only human around here.”

Lyra turns to my character and says, “Well, yeah, but you do still have a name.”

Just then, I hear the voice of Rainbow Dash outside saying, “Thanks, Spitfire, Soarin. It was great to get to know the Wonderbolts better!”

At this point, I say, “It sounds like Rainbow Dash is back from her day with the Wonderbolts. It sounds like things went well.”

Hearing my observation, Pinkie Pie immediately perks up and calls out, “Dashy's back, Dashy's back!” then bounces off the couch and to the front door, throws it open, and bounces out to meet the rainbow-haired pegasa.

After watching the display from the energetic pink earth pony, who's left the front door open, I hear Bon-Bon say, “So, I know Rainbow Dash is a fan of the Wonderbolts. I just don't know how she managed to get to spend a day with them.”

I answer, “Yesterday, Rainbow Dash was part of the Best Young Fliers' competition in Cloudsdale, and the grand prize was a day with the Wonderbolts.”

Bon-Bon says, “Oh, and I'm guessing Rainbow Dash came in first place?”

I answer, “That's right. She managed to pull off a sonic rainboom. It was quite the display.”

Bon-Bon's expression morphs into one of curious worry as she asks, “The sonic rainboom didn't take place over your home, did it?”

I answer, “No, it didn't.”

Lyra continues, “You see, what happened was Rainbow Dash payed Twilight Sparkle an unexpected visit at the library when her practice went wrong. She told us about the competition and left with Fluttershy, then Rarity had Twilight use a spell on her so she'd get wings so she could fly up to Cloudsdale. I taught her my traction spell, and she modified it so the rest of us could walk on clouds.” She pauses for a moment, then focuses on my character and asks, “Uh, Mormon, how were you able to walk on clouds?”

I open my mouth to answer, but then I hear Pinkie Pie's voice next to my character say, “Oh, he has this 'cloud nine' cheat that he can use so he can walk on clouds.”

Presently my character focuses on the pink earth pony; and I say, “Woah, Pinkie Pie, when did you get back here?”

Pinkie Pie giggles and says, “Just a few seconds ago, silly. What, you didn't know I was gone?”

I answer, “I knew you were gone. I just didn't know you'd come back.”

Again the pink earth pony giggles, then she says, “I brought Dashy with me, too.” Then, as the focus of every creature in the room turns to the azure pegasa, Pinkie Pie says, “Say, 'hello,' Dashy.”

Clearly not expecting to be the center of attention, Rainbow Dash rubs the back of her neck with a front hoof, forces a nervous chuckle, and says, “Uh, hi everypony.”

I happen to see, from the edge of my character's periphery, Bon-Bon evidently surprised to see the azure, rainbow-haired pegasa in her front room. As my character turns his attention to her, she eventually says, “Well, this is an unexpected honor.” She then jumps off of the couch and, turning to her new guest, says, “Just a moment, and I'll get some apple candies for you to try out.”

I then hear Rainbow Dash say, “Uh, that's really not necessary.”

But, it's too late. Bon-Bon has already disappeared on her way to get more of the apple candies.

I have my character focus on the azure pegasa, then I ask her, “So, Rainbow Dash, I'm guessing things went well on the day you spent with the Wonderbolts?”

My mention of the Wonderbolts seems to snap Rainbow Dash out of her discomfort. As she looks at my character, she smiles and says, “Oh, did it ever. You remember how you said they needed work on handling a falling pony in full panic?”

I answer, “I figured it was worth mentioning after seeing how Rarity knocked out the three that tried to rescue her.”

Rainbow Dash nods and continues, “Well, when we got to their base camp, that's the first thing they went to work on. Spitfire gave those three a lecture on how they should get around a panicking pony's flailing limbs, then she played the role of Rarity, except she just flew up as high as she could, folded her wings, and went into free-fall. But, she flailed her legs just like Rarity did.” The azure pegasa giggles a bit before continuing, “Those three couldn't get anywhere near Spitfire without taking a hit and getting knocked out. Spitfire and two other Wonderbolts had to rescue them!”

As Rainbow Dash continues to laugh, I ask, “Was Spitfire able to teach them what to do?”

Rainbow Dash answers, “She woke 'em up by throwin' water on 'em. Then, she had all of us fly up, then she went into free-fall again and had me rescue her. I caught her the way I caught Rarity, grabbing her under her shoulders and angling off so we didn't get hurt. I kept from getting hit by her hooves by keeping my head closer to her head, since that wasn't flailing like the legs were.”

I state, “It sounds like you were able to demonstrate something those three Wonderbolts weren't able to do.”

Rainbow Dash answers, “It was one of those things I'd learned in flight school before I dropped out.”

I think aloud, “It leaves me to wonder if those three were there when that lesson was taught.”

Rainbow Dash pauses for a moment before saying, “Ya know, maybe they weren't. But, I know they were there at the base camp to learn the lesson from me and Spitfire. And, they learned it really good, too.”

I state, “Well, that's good to hear, just in case they need to rescue another falling pony. And, maybe then they'll coordinate better, and not get so close to flailing hooves.”

Rainbow Dash opens her mouth to say something, but then I hear Bon-Bon say, “Well, here they are. Go ahead and try 'em.”

The rainbow-haired pegasa looks at the candies, sniffs them, then grabs the ball of toffee and pushes it into her mouth. After chewing on it for a while, she says, “Hmm, not bad. I can taste the apple in the middle, and it mixes real good with the toffee on the outside.” After swallowing that, she next eats the dehydrated apple piece. After swallowing and complimenting that, she eats the red, then the green candies, and compliments Bon-Bon on the apple flavoring in them.

The cream-colored earth pony smiles and says, “I'm glad you liked them. Do you think Applejack'll like 'em, too?”

Rainbow Dash hums in thought, then says, “You know, I'm sure she will. She's in the market place right now sellin' apples, so you might wanna take some of those candies and offer 'em to her.”

Pinkie Pie says, “Mormon, Lyra, Weed Whacker and I liked 'em. And, Applejack loves apples anyway. So, why not?”

Now it's Bon-Bon's turn to hum with interest, after which she says, “You know, you're right, Pinkie Pie.” She then turns and heads back to wherever she got the candies and says, “I'll go get some more of those candies so I can offer 'em to Applejack in the market place.”

As the cream-colored earth pony disappears again, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “You know, I wonder how long it'll be before the Cakes open Sugar Cube Corner again. It's been closed for a few days now. Are they alright?”

At Rainbow Dash's question, Pinkie Pie closes her eyes and plants a front hoof between them as she says, “That's right, we need to visit them at the clinic.”

I'm guessing, by the look on Rainbow Dash's face, that she's starting to think of a worst-case scenario. Her voice even shakes as she asks, “Wh-what happened to the C-cakes?”

I answer, “It's alright. Mrs. Cake's just getting ready to foal.”

My answer seems to calm the azure pegasa, at least for the moment; I hear her sigh in relief. Then, something in what I said dawns on her, and she excitedly says, “Wait, Mrs. Cake's gonna have foals soon?” Then, she flaps her wings and rises over her position on the couch as she says, “That's so awesome!”

Then, I hear Lyra say, “Well, if we're gonna visit the Cakes at the clinic, then one of us is gonna have to let Bon-Bon know we're gonna need to leave. And, I think that should be me.” I have my character turn to see her as she jumps off the couch toward where her cream-colored pony friend disappeared and calls out, “Bon-Bon, we're gonna have to leave now!”

From somewhere further inside, I hear Bon-Bon's voice call back, “Go on ahead! I'm just gathering some candies to take to Applejack!”

As the group makes its way to the front door, I hear Rainbow Dash ask, “Can I come with? I wanna see.”

As Lyra makes her way to the door, I say, “I seriously doubt that Mrs. Cake has had her foals yet. But, you are welcome to come with us to visit.”

Rainbow Dash says nothing more, at least nothing coherent. She just falls in line next to Pinkie Pie.

In fact, no more is said among the group of now five as they make their way out of Bon-Bon's house, then make their way to the clinic.

When they get there and enter, sounds of activity suggest it's unexpectedly busy.

As the group makes its way to the front desk, I say to the white mare, “We're here to visit the Cakes.”

As the mare looks up at my character, the look of worry on her face is made obvious as she says, “This is not a good time. You see, Mrs. Cake's just started to foal. You'll have to come back later, maybe tomorrow.”

And, that's when Rainbow Dash says, “That's so cool! I wanna see!”

I grab the azure pegasa's tail as she tries to fly into the hallway further into the clinic, and I say, “Didn't you hear the nurse pony? This isn't a good time. Like she said, we're gonna have to come back later, most likely tomorrow.” When Rainbow Dash makes it clear that I have her attention, I say, “Let's just go now. We'll come back tomorrow, and hopefully we'll be able to see the foals then.”

Rainbow Dash turns away from the hallway into the clinic, lands on the floor, then groans in disappointment and says, “Oh, alright. I'll come back tomorrow then.”

As the party of five makes its way out of the clinic, Pinkie Pie, as optimistic as ever, says, “You know what this means, right?”

I have a sneaking suspicion that I already know what Pinkie Pie's going to say, but I still ask, “What's that?”

Pinkie Pie starts bouncing as she says, “It means we get to invite everypony to see the Cakes' foals!”

Actually, I thought she was going to say something about it being party time. But, perhaps she was planning on that as part of the invitation. Still, I say, “I doubt there'll be enough room for the entire population of Ponyville to fit in the hallway of the clinic.”

Pinkie Pie stops bouncing as she says, “Well, of course not, silly. I just meant we could invite Twilight, and Fluttershy, and Rarity, and Applejack to see the foals.”

I state, “Well, I'm guessing by now that Twilight's on her way through the Everfree forest to get some of the tea she likes from Zecora. Fluttershy's most likely at her cottage right now. Rarity's at Carousel Boutique, and Applejack's most likely still at the market place.”

Pinkie Pie resumes her bouncing as she says, “Well, then, let's go to the market place first. Then we'll go to Carousel Boutique, then to Fluttershy's cottage.”

The other three vocalize general agreement to Pinkie Pie's plan, but I'm left remembering the last time this group, which didn't include Rainbow Dash at the time, headed to the library from the clinic on their way to the boutique, only to discover that the boutique was going to be their first destination. On the other hand, this group, which does include Rainbow Dash, isn't heading to the library first, isn't planning on going to the library at all, not for the rest of the day anyway. I have to wonder, how close is Ponyville's market place to Carousel Boutique? And, another thing to remember is that the market place is outdoors. Taking that last detail into consideration, I decide that Pinkie Pie's plan is a good one after all.

I find that the route we take to the market place doesn't take us so close to Carousel Boutique as I thought it would. The party of five heads down one street until they see the market place, then makes the turn and follows that street to their destination. And, once they get to the market place, it's just a matter of time before they find the booth where Applejack's stationed, and tending to a customer who's purchasing a bunch of apples.

By the time the group gets there, the customer, a familiar-looking stallion, has made his purchase, and is on his way elsewhere.

As soon as the group is close enough, Pinkie Pie blurts out, “Applejack, we're gonna get a chance tomorrow to see the foals that Mrs. Cake's havin' right now. You wanna come with us?”

Applejack rubs the back of her neck with a front hoof and frowns as she says, “Well, Ah'm kinda busy right now.” Then, as more of Pinkie Pie's message sinks in, Applejack drops her front hoof and asks, “Wait, did you say Mrs. Cake's a'foalin' right now?”

Pinkie Pie nods vigorously and answers, “That's right.”

Applejack demonstrates that she didn't hear everything her pink earth pony friend said as she says, “Well, in that case, Ah doubt they'll allow us to visit 'em right now anyway. If Mrs. Cake's a'foalin', then the doctors are a'gonna be busy with her; an' they won't let anypony else in. So, chances are nopony's gonna be allowed in until tomorrow.”

Pinkie Pie giggles and says, “But that's what I'm sayin', silly. The five of us already tried to visit them before we came here. That's how we know Mrs. Cake's havin' her foals right now. They told us we should come back tomorrow.” And, again she giggles.

Now, Applejack nervously chuckles as again she rubs the back of her neck with a front hoof and says, “Oh, of course.”

Now, Pinkie Pie starts bouncing as she says, “So, you wanna come with us tomorrow to see Mrs. Cake's foals?”

Again Applejack puts the front hoof down as she smiles and says, “Well, sure. When're ya goin'?”

I answer, “It'll likely be sometime in the morning, as soon as we have breakfast and can get through the Everfree forest.”

Pinkie Pie, still bouncing, adds, “We'll be comin' with Fluttershy.”

At this point, I have my character turn his attention to Pinkie Pie; and I say, “I think we should invite her to come first.”

Pinkie Pie bounces one hundred eighty degrees, approximately, to face my character, stops bouncing, giggles, and says, “Well, of course we're gonna invite her. After all, we're talkin' about foals, and they're little critters, and Fluttershy loves little critters, so why wouldn't she wanna see 'em?”

I smile as I say, “Well, who can argue with logic like that?”

As Pinkie Pie giggles again, Applejack says, “Well, it's a date then. Ah'll meet you at the edge of the Everfree where you usually come out. Is that alright with you?”

At the same time, Pinkie and I say, “Sure, no problem.”

Now it's Applejack's turn to laugh, more sincerely, after which she says, “Well, in that case, Ah'll see ya then and there.”

We say our farewells to Applejack, then the group makes its way to Carousel Boutique. And, when we arrive, it's Pinkie Pie that opens the door and lets the rest of the group in.

Before my character enters, I hear Rarity from the second floor growl, “What is it now?”

As Lyra enters ahead of my character, I hear her ask, “Uh, do you think it's such a good time to invite her right now?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Sure, why not? No time like the present.”

As my character, behind Weed Whacker, enters the boutique, I happen to catch, from the top edge of my character's periphery, sight of Rarity peering through a doorway as she asks, “Excuse me, invite me to what?”

Pinkie Pie turns to her white unicorn friend, inhales somewhat noisily, and says, “Mrs. Cake is havin' her foals today, and we're getting a chance to see them tomorrow morning. You wanna come with us?”

Rarity takes enough of a step forward that she's halfway through the doorway before she says, “Oh, well, that's going to be a problem. You see, I have some gold cloth to make, and an order to fill with said cloth, and I'm afraid that's going to take the rest of the day, and all night. So, I'm not going to be able to make it.” She sighs dramatically before adding, “And, I'm afraid that also means that I won't be able to make the reading tonight.”

I say, “Well, if you do get the time to join us in seeing the Cakes' foals tomorrow morning, you can meet us at the clinic. We'll be there along with Applejack, and hopefully Fluttershy too.”

Rarity says, “I'll keep that in mind,” then disappears into her room again. Then, as the group of five turns around and starts heading out the door, I hear Rarity ask, “Wait, did you say 'the Cakes' foals, tomorrow morning?'”

My character turns to focus on the white unicorn, who I can see is once again halfway through her doorway; and I answer, “That's right.”

Then, Rainbow Dash says, “When we tried to visit the Cakes at the clinic, Mrs. Cake was foaling. I wanted to see, but Mormon here wouldn't let me.”

Rarity responds, “Well, it's not a good idea to barge in on anypony that's giving birth. The clinic's probably going to be busy with Mrs. Cake all night, as I will be with my order. But, if I can fill it by morning, then sure, I'll see the foals with you.”

The thought occurs to me, and I ask, “Is there some way we can be of service?”

Rarity answers, “I'm afraid not. You see, this isn't like baking. There's a lot of intricate work that goes into making clothes.”

Just then, I hear Pinkie Pie angrily say, “Hey!” Then, as my character focuses on the pink earth pony, I hear her continue, as she marches toward Rarity, “I'll have you know that baking a cake is just as intricate as making a dress.”

I have my character grab hold of the pink earth pony as I say, “Now, Pinkie Pie, calm down. I'm sure Rarity didn't mean to hurt your feelings. Let's just get going. We need to invite Fluttershy next.”

Pinkie Pie looks up at my character, then back at Rarity, then back at my character again, then sighs and says, “Yeah, alright.”

I have my character let the pink earth pony go, and she marches to and through the front door.

Then, I hear Rarity again say, “If you're going to visit Fluttershy, she's going to have her hooves full. She's taking care of Sweetie Belle and her friends.”

Aloud, I agree, “She will be busy, then.” After all, I have watched the episode, “Stare Master;” and I remember from that what Fluttershy goes through in taking care of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Of course, in that episode, she also discovers Twilight Sparkle, who had, at the time, apparently wandered from the trail and encountered the cockatrice. This time, I have to wonder if I'll be the one to encounter her in her literally petrified condition. If I do, then it might just be one less thing Fluttershy is going to encounter.

As we make our way out of the boutique, I hear Rairty call out, “Oh, and Pinkie Pie, Mormon's right! I didn't mean to offend you!”

As my character, the last to leave, closes the door behind him, I hear Pinkie Pie ask, in an innocent tone, “What does intricate mean?”

My character turns to her, and I answer, “It means complex, detailed.”

Then, before Pinkie Pie can respond to my answer, Rainbow Dash says, “Rarity just meant that there's a lot of little things that go into making dresses.”

Pinkie Pie snorts, then says, “Well, there are a lot of little things that go into making cakes, too.”

At this point, I have my character step in; and I say, “Alright, let's just go to Fluttershy's cottage so we can invite her to see the Cakes' foals.”

As much as I might expect there to be further murmuring from Pinkie Pie, I'm happy to state that there is none as the group makes its way out of Ponyville and into the edge of the Everfree forest to offer the invitation to Fluttershy.

As the group crosses the bridge on their way to the yellow pegasa's cottage, I hear a somewhat muffled shout, “Cutie Mark Crusaders, yay!”

I find myself having to restrain myself from laughing as the group makes its way to the front door of the cottage.

It's Rainbow Dash that knocks on the door.

A few seconds later, the top half of the door opens; and Fluttershy's head peers over the lower half. She acknowledges each member of the group of five before asking, “Is there something wrong?”

I answer, “No, there's nothing wrong.”

Then, Rainbow Dash drifts forward and says, “We just got finished inviting Applejack and Rarity to see the Cakes' foals tomorrow morning, and now we're here to invite you.”

Fluttershy smiles and says, “I would like to see the Cakes' foals. Oh, but right now, I have guests.”

Just then, I see, through my character's eyes, an orange filly with wings and a yellow filly with neither wings nor horn run past behind Fluttershy, giggling. And, they seem to be wearing dark red capes with a blue crest of some kind on them.

Rainbow Dash calls out, “Scootaloo!” Evidently she recognized the orange, winged filly.

The identified filly backs into view, then turns and sees her hero looking at her. She calls out, “Rainbow Dash, you're back already! Fluttershy was just telling us you were with the Wonderbolts.”

The blue pegasa answers, “That's right. I spent the past day with the Wonderbolts. And, I just got back.”

Scootaloo smiles and says, “Me, Applebloom, and Sweetie Belle are spending the night with Fluttershy.”

Just then, the other two appear on each side of Scootaloo, and the three call out together, “Cutie Mark Crusaders sleepover at Fluttershy's, yay!”

I can't help smiling as I say, focusing my character's attention on Fluttershy, “Yeah, when we invited Rarity, she told us about Sweetie Belle and her friends spending the night at your home.”

Fluttershy says, “I suppose, if I can get these three back to Ponyville early enough, I could go and see the Cakes' foals. I do want to see them.”

I open my mouth to speak, but it's Lyra who says, “Well, as long as you can make the time, you're welcome to come with us.”

Fluttershy says, “Thank you for inviting me, Rainbow Dash, Mormon, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Pinkie Pie. I'll try to be there.” Then, she looks back at the trio of fillies, then back at my character, and says, “Oh, if the four of us are going to that reading of yours this evening, now would be a good time to start out. Would it be alright if we walk with you?”

I answer, “You and the Crusaders are quite welcome to walk with me to my house. And, when we get there, we'll start preparing snacks for the reading.”

Fluttershy then turns to the trio of fillies, and she's met with smiles as she asks, “Would you like to walk with Mormon and his friends to his house?”

Sweetie Belle squeaks, “We'd love to!”

Then, the trio again call out together, “Cutie Mark Crusaders, scripture reading at Mormon's house, yay!”

And, again I smile as I say, “Well, I guess the 'yays' have it, then.”

I'm sure it's Pinkie Pie who giggles at my comment as Fluttershy opens the lower half of her door to allow the trio of fillies out, then closes the door behind her after she exits.

From there, the party of now nine head to and across the bridge back to the path, then into the Everfree forest on their way to my character's house.

But, not too far in, I happen to see, on the left side of my character's periphery, a gray object that seems like it doesn't belong to the forest.

Fluttershy makes it evident that she also notices the strange gray object, as she says, “Uh-oh.” Then, she turns to my character and asks, “Uh, Mormon, will you come with me, if it's alright with you?”

I answer, “Sure. I'm guessing you saw that gray thing in the forest?”

Fluttershy answers, “I did. I hope it isn't what or who I think it is.” Then, she turns to the trio of fillies and says, “Cutie Mark Crusaders, if you'll stay here with the others, Mormon and I are going to check out something in the woods. We'll be back as soon as we can. Is that alright?”

The three fillies nod vigorously, then start to call out, “Cutie Mark Crusaders, …”

Immediately I shush them, then say, “This isn't the kind of place where you should be shouting. There are wild, dangerous creatures living in these woods, and they don't like disturbances. So, please, keep it down.”

The three look at each other as I talk, then nod again. When they open their mouths, this time they simultaneously whisper, “Cutie Mark Crusaders, yay.”

It's all I can do to keep from laughing at hearing them cheer quietly.

Anyway, Fluttershy and my character make their way into the forest, away from the path, to find out what that gray object is, although I already know what the two are going to find.

And, sure enough, it's apparently a statue of a familiar-looking unicorn. Even her cutie mark, one big eight-point star surrounded by five much smaller stars, shows up as some kind of relief carving.

Fluttershy, just barely above a whisper, says, “Twilight.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie's voice say, “Oh, Twily, didn't I warn you? Why didn't you stay on the path?”

As my character automatically focuses on the pink earth pony, I say, “Woah! Pinkie Pie, why aren't you with the Crusaders, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and Rainbow Dash?”

Pinkie Pie turns to me and says, “Well, you know as well as I do that I was supposed to join you here. Besides, we're here to get Twily back.”

I state, “Well, I guess you're right about that much. It's not a good idea to leave her like this. Maybe I should take her back to my house with me. I'll do what I can for her when we get there.”

I think I hear an angry tone in Fluttershy's voice when she says, “No. That cockatrice is nearby. He could turn anypony to stone who tries to move Twilight.” Then, she slowly makes her way to a bush, grabs something on the ground in her teeth, and starts pulling it out into the open.

I must say, I'm surprised to see that Fluttershy has grabbed the cockatrice by its tail, and is pulling the mythological creature from its hiding place.

She throws it towards the statue of Twilight Sparkle, then gallops toward it, glaring.

Now, here's one more creature I find myself sympathizing with. I've also been on the receiving end of Fluttershy's glare, although, as I mentioned on the day when Twilight Sparkle and her friends had to deal with that dragon, it was in the game I'd chosen to lose.

But, unlike the dragon, the cockatrice isn't quite so easily intimidated. Instead, it, he, glares back at the yellow pegasa, and she starts to turn to stone.

But, Fluttershy's glare intensifies; and she says, “Just who do you think you are, going around, turning my friends to stone?” How she manages to march forward while her hind legs are petrifying is something of a mystery to me as she continues, “You should be ashamed of yourself. I have a mind to find your mother, and tell her what you've been up to, young man.” At this point, even Fluttershy can't move her hind legs anymore; but that doesn't stop her from glaring at the now alarmed creature as she continues, “Now, you're going to turn my friend Twilight, here, back to normal, and don't ever let me catch you doing this again.” And, it's just as surprising in this video game setting as it was to watch in the episode when Fluttershy's hind legs and tail unpretrify in a flash of light, although, in the episode it was just noted that the stone was just a thin external layer that shattered and fell away; as Fluttershy concludes, “Do you understand me?”

The now humbled cockatrice closes his eyes and nods, then turns his back to the statue of Twilight Sparkle and wraps his tail around her closest front leg.

Immediately the statue glows, and, after an explosion of light and sound, Twilight rises to all fours where the statue used to be. Now free to move, the purple unicorn stumbles and falls, with Pinkie Pie there to catch her.

At this point, the cockatrice looks up at my character, and I'm sure I can hear him say, “I'm sorry about your orange earth pony friend. If you'll take me to her, I'll unpetrify her as well.”

I answer, “That's alright. I've already taken care of it. She's fine now.”

I hear Fluttershy ask, “You understood that?” at the same time the cockatrice sighs deeply, then says, “I guess that's good, then.” Looking away from my character, the cockatrice continues, “This forest is too rough for me. If you'll carry me across the path to the other side, then let me go, I'll leave and never return. And, I'll never use my stare to turn another creature here to stone.”

I answer, “That sounds fair enough.” Then, I have my character grab the chicken-like creature by his sides, over his wings, then take him back to the path, across it, and to the other side, where I have him set the cockatrice down and let him go.

The cockatrice turns to my character and says, “Thank you,” then turns and runs into the forest again, evidently to find his way out and to a safer place.

From behind my character, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Wow, Mormon, I didn't know you understood cockatrice.”

I answer, “Well, to be honest with you, neither did I.”

The other members of the group, now ten with the addition of Twilight, start cracking up and laughing, until I have my character take the lead of the group; and I say, “Well, let's get going to my house.”

Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie catch up to my character, walking on either side of him, with the others taking care of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and Weed Whacker assisting them; and Twilight Sparkle says to my character, “I should've listened to you and Pinkie Pie. I shouldn't have wandered off the path like that. It's a good thing you, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were there to stop that cockatrice, or I probably wouldn't have been the only statue in that part of the forest.”

I answer, “I'm glad I could be of service. But, I'm thinking that you won't need to worry about the cockatrice from now on.”

Twilight says, “Yeah, I hope you're right. Let's just head to your house.” Then, after a few more steps, suddenly she stops and says, “Oh, shoot, Spike!”

My character stops as well and turns to her, and I say, “You probably want to let him know where you are, and that you're alright.”

The purple unicorn nods, then Rainbow Dash says, “I'll go get him.” And, with that, the rainbow-haired pegasa turns and flies off in the direction of Ponyville.

The remaining nine make it to my character's house with no further problems.

Actually, the group turns the last corner to see that Zecora is visiting with Carrot Top and Berry Punch across the fence. And, it's Zecora who notices the group approaching, as she says, “Mormon, while I passed by, I had to stop, and talk with Berry Punch and Carrot Top.”

Before I can even open my mouth to greet the zebra, Twilight gallops toward her and says, “Zecora, I just thought I'd come by and get some tea from you.”

Zecora smiles and says, turning back toward her home, “Well then, Twilight, come with me, and I'll get you some more herbal tea.”

To the zebra, Twilight nods, smiles, and says, “Thank you, Zecora.” Then, she turns back to my character and says, “And, thank you for your help, Mormon.”

I answer, “Like I said before, I'm glad I could be of service. I'll be here getting ready for the reading this evening. And, I'm sure Spike'll be here, too.”

With a bit of a laugh in her voice, Twilight responds, “Knowing Rainbow Dash, he probably will be. When I've gotten some tea from Zecora, I'll be back here for the reading.”

I state, “Well, in that case, we'll be here waiting for you.”

No more is said, at least not by the zebra or the purple unicorn, as Twilight follows Zecora back into the forest.

On the other hand, as the group of now eight enters through the front gate, Carrot Top asks, “So, is everything alright?”

I answer, “Everything's fine. I can promise you the cockatrice won't be bothering us again.”

Berry Punch asks, “Oh really? What happened?”

Now, it's Fluttershy who answers, “Mormon and I noticed something as we were heading through the forest, something that didn't look like it belonged. So, we went off the path to get a look at what we saw, and found out it was Twilight frozen in stone. And, it wasn't long after that that we saw the cockatrice that'd frozen her. I told him off, then Mormon carried him across the path to the other side, and let him go.”

I add, “The cockatrice told me that things were too rough for him in the forest, and that he wouldn't bother anyone here if I'd carry him to the other side. Then, after I did so, he turned to me and thanked me, then turned and ran off. I'm guessing he's headed out to some place he thinks will be safer.”

Carrot Top asks, “You understand cockatrice?”

I answer, “I understood that cockatrice. And, don't ask me how, because I don't know. I can only promise you that he won't trouble us anymore.”

As my character closes the gate after the last to enter, Weed Whacker, Carrot Top says, “Well, if we're gonna get ready for the guests for tonight's reading, then we need to get started as soon as possible.” Focusing on the herbivorous dinosaur, she asks, “So, Weed Whacker, will you join me in the vegetable garden?”

The little dinosaur smiles up at the orange earth pony and says, “Sure, Carrot Top. You've been taking good care of it.”

As Carrot Top graciously accepts Weed Whacker's compliment, Berry Punch turns to the pale-green unicorn and asks, “And, Lyra, will you join me in the vineyard?”

Lyra answers, “Sure, no problem.” And, with that, she follows the reddish-purple earth pony toward the vineyard.

I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie, and I say, “Well, I guess that leaves us with the orchard.”

Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “Okie dokie lokie,” then follows my character as he makes his way there.

Neither of us realizes until we're into the orchard that the pink earth pony and the human been followed. Our first sign is after Diane kicks maybe ten apples out of a tree with one try, and I hear Applebloom say, “Ah didn't know Pinkie Pie could buck apples.”

My character focuses on the little yellow earth filly, and I say, “It's something I've been teaching her.”

Applebloom smiles and says, “Ah could help if ya want.”

I answer, “I appreciate the offer, but I think we've gotten enough apples, thanks to Pinkie Pie.”

As my character gathers up the apples and Diane says, “You're welcome,” Applebloom, with a child's observant attitude, asks, “Uh, why is Pinkie Pie's mane and tail straight?”

I answer, “That just shows how much she's focused on her work. I'm sure you know how much concentration it takes to kick apples out of a tree. Well, Pinkie Pie focuses so hard, she can't be bothered keeping her mane and tail curly.”

Applebloom, as though the answer has dawned on her, says, “Oh.” Then, as she wanders away from the orchard, she thinks aloud, “Well, what does apple buckin' have to do with her mane and tail bein' curly?”

I hear a giggle from Pinkie Pie, and my character turns to her to show me, through his eyes, that Pinkamena has taken over again. She gathers five of the ten apples in her mane and tail, then hops over the fence and gallops to the house.

My character gathers the other five apples, then climbs over the fence and follows the pink earth pony back to the house.

As soon as my character meets her at the door, in fact once the other four gather there, Pinkie opens the door with her front curl and leads the way into the house, through the front room, then, once again using that curl in her forehead, opens the door to the kitchen, where she leads the group inside.

I have my character linger behind to close the door behind the last of the harvesting group, then follow them into the kitchen, where he also closes the kitchen door behind them.

The system is familiar enough: Weed Whacker cleans the fruits and vegetables; then she hands each one to my character, who passes them to Carrot Top, Berry Punch, or Lyra; they cut the fruits and vegetables or, in the case of the grapes, separate them from their branch; then they hand them to Pinkie Pie, who places them on the tray. The only difference, a minor one, is that Pinkie Pie managed to get the snack tray herself. But, ultimately, the results, a pile of fruits and vegetables that looks like some kind of crown, are the same.

After the snack preparations are complete, I have my character go to the front door to have a look to see how many guests have arrived so far.

In fact, he's just in time to open the front door before one of my three stallion friends, Berry Ground, can knock with a front hoof.

He puts the hoof down and says, “Oh, hi, Mormon.”

I answer, “Hi, Berry Ground. You, Stunts, and Emerald Hill can come inside if you want, or you can wait out on the lawn.”

It's Stunts who says, “Thank you for the offer. We'll wait out on the lawn.”

I only get the chance to say, “Very well then,” before Pinkie Pie runs next to my character and, looking up at him, asks, “Oh, can I greet the guests, please?”

I can't help smiling as I answer, “Sure, go right ahead.”

Pinkie Pie smiles back and says, “Thank you, Mormon,” then runs out the door and to the gate to greet guests as they enter.

In the mean time, the three stallions return to the lawn; and I have my character return to the kitchen to see if the other creatures need help moving the snack tray out onto the lawn.

As soon as my character opens the door, I see, through his eyes, that Berry Punch, Carrot Top, and Lyra seem to have the snack tray under control; and they just need me to hold doors open for them so they can take the tray outside without spilling the contents or otherwise being distracted. So, I have my character hold the kitchen door open for the three ponies so they can carry the tray out of the kitchen, then run to the front door and open it so the trio can move the tray outside. After that, I have my character return to the kitchen and, making sure that there are no further creatures to exit, close the kitchen door.

As it turns out, Weed Whacker followed the trio of snack tray carriers from the kitchen on outside to the front lawn, I assume to make sure they didn't spill the contents of the tray.

With that in mind, I have my character go out the front door, then close it behind him. And, as he turns around, my character is met by Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo, who ask in unison, “Mormon, can we stay at your house tomorrow night?”

I pause for a moment before saying, “I think you should ask your parents first, or in Applebloom's case, your family. But, as long as they agree, sure.”

Again in unison, the trio call out, “Yay! Cutie Mark Crusaders sleepover at Mormon's house, yay!” And, with that, they run off back to Fluttershy.

Or, at least Scootaloo does.

My character shows me, through his eyes, that Applebloom, as soon as her siblings and grandmother have entered the gate, runs to her big sister and asks permission to stay tomorrow night at “Mormon's house.”

In the mean time, Sweetie Belle, again as soon as they've entered the gate, runs to her parents and asks for their permission.

From what I hear, those two manage to get permission from their sources. All that's left is for Scotaloo to get permission from her parents.

As the other two Crusaders return smiling, I notice that Scootaloo seems to have a sincere concern about getting permission from her parents to spend the night at my character's house. The other two state that either all three of them spend the night at “Mormon's house,” or none of them do. This seems to comfort the little orange pegasa.

In the mean time, as the guests arrive, more and more of them gather around the snack tray and are already eating the snacks.

This doesn't bother me any, as they were prepared for that purpose, whether before, during, or after the reading.

Among the arrivals, Rainbow Dash arrives from above with Spike, Twilight Sparkle and Zecora arrive together from the direction of Zecora's home, and the princesses and Hoity Toity and his servant appear almost without warning, teleporting in from Canterlot. The rest come from Ponyville through the Everfree forest, and I notice there don't seem to be any newcomers this time. Just Rainbow Dash apparently replacing Rarity.

The pile of fruit and vegetable snacks is, I'd say, around half it's original height before the ponies and dragons start forming a circle around the tray.

Since I'm already outside, I take my place between Weed Whacker and Mayor Mare, who, it seems, thinks that being seen next to me will keep her in her popularity somehow.

As soon as all are settled into their positions, I look around the circle. As I remember who started the reading the previous evening in the game, I turn to one of Vinyl Scratch's friends and ask, “Sweet Tones, will you begin reading chapter nineteen of the Second Book of Nephi?”

The dark tan earth pony nods, then looks down at her book, flips through the pages until she reaches the right one, then reads, “Nevertheless, the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali, and afterwards did more grievously afflict by the way of the Red Sea beyond Jordan in Galilee of the nations.”

Next to her, Lotta Pipes speaks up and says, “I'll read next,” then looks down into his book and reads, “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light; they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.”

Then, Drum Roll reads, “Thou hast multiplied the nation, and increased the joy—they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor.”

Octavia reads, “For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.”

Bon-Bon reads, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.”

At this point, I decide to speak up and say, “This is one of those verses that was originally in the Bible, the Old Testament, and has become the lyrics to a song I'm familiar with, part of a musical number called 'The Messiah.' And, because of that, I'm very familiar with this verse.” I then turn to Lyra and say, “You can go ahead and read verse seven.”

The pale-green unicorn nods, then looks down and reads, “Of the increase of government and peace there is no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform this.”

Weed Whacker reads, “The Lord sent his word unto Jacob and it hath lighted upon Israel.”

I read, “And all the people shall know, even Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria, that say in the pride and stoutness of heart:”

Mayor Mare reads, “The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones; the sycamores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars.” She then turns to my character and asks, “Are you suggesting something by this?”

I can't help laughing as I say, “You're the one that chose to sit next to me here.”

Others laugh as well before Zecora quiets them down by reading, “Therefore the Lord shall set up the adversaries of Rezin against him, and join his enemies together;”

Princess Luna reads, “The Syrians before and the Philistines behind; and they shall devour Israel with open mouth. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.”

Princess Celestia reads, “For the people turneth not unto him that smiteth them, neither do they seek the Lord of Hosts.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Therefore will the Lord cut off from Israel head and tail, branch and rush in one day.”

Spike reads, “The ancient, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, neither shall have mercy on their fatherless and widows; for every one of them is a hypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.”

Applejack reads, “For wickedness burneth as the fire; it shall devour the briers and thorns, and shall kindle in the thickets of the forests, and they shall mount up like the lifting up of smoke.”

Fluttershy reads, “Through the wrath of the Lord of Hosts is the land darkened, and the people shall be as the fuel of the fire; no man shall spare his brother.”

Rarity's mother reads, “And he shall snatch on the right hand and be hungry; and he shall eat on the left hand and they shall not be satisfied; they shall eat every man the flesh of his own arm—“

Rarity's father reads, “Manasseh, Ephraim; and Ephraim, Manasseh; they together shall be against Judah. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.”

Big MacIntosh says, “I'll go ahead and start chapter twenty,” before reading, “Wo unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed;”

Granny Smith reads, “To turn away the needy from judgment, and to take away the right from the poor of my people, that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless!”

Applebloom reads, “And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory?”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Without me they shall bow down under the prisoners, and they shall fall under the slain. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.”

Scootaloo reads, “O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is their indignation.”

Colgate reads, “I will send him against a hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.”

Twist reads, “Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but in his heart it is to destroy and cut off nations not a few.”

Namby Pamby reads, “For he saith: Are not my princes altogether kings?”

Cheerilee reads, “Is not Calno as Carchemish? Is not Hamath as Arpad? Is not Samaria as Damascus?”

Silver Spoon reads, “As my hand hath founded the kingdoms of the idols, and whose graven images did excel them of Jerusalem and of Samaria;”

Filthy Rich reads, “Shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and to her idols?”

Diamond Tiara reads, “Wherefore it shall come to pass that when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon Mount Zion and upon Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.”

Warm Heart reads, “For he saith: By the strength of my hand and by my wisdom I have done these things; for I am prudent; and I have moved the borders of the people, and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man;”

Snails reads, “And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people; and as one gathereth eggs that are left have I gathered all the earth; and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped.”

Snips reads, “Shall the ax boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? As if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself as if it were no wood!”

Cold Hands reads, “Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, send among his fat ones, leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame, and shall burn and shall devour his thorns and his briers in one day;”

Stunts reads, “And shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body; and they shall be as when a standard-bearer fainteth.”

Berry Ground reads, “And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them, but shall stay upon the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.”

Hoity Toity reads, “The remnant shall return, yea, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.”

Carrot Top reads, “For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return; the consumption decreed shall overflow with righteousness.”

Berry Punch reads, “For the Lord God of Hosts shall make a consumption, even determined in all the land.”

Sweet Tones reads, “Therefore, thus saith the Lord God of Hosts: O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian; he shall smite thee with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt.”

Lotta Pipes reads, “For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and mine anger in their destruction.”

Drum Roll reads, “And the Lord of Hosts shall stir up a scourge for him according to the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; and as his rod was upon the sea so shall he lift it up after the manner of Egypt.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And it shall come to pass in that day that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.”

Octavia reads, “He is come to Aiath, he is passed to Migron; at Michmash he hath laid up his carriages.”

Bon-Bon reads, “They are gone over the passage; they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramath is afraid; Gibeah of Saul is fled.”

Lyra reads, “Lift up the voice, O daughter of Gallim; cause it to be heard unto Laish, O poor Anathoth.”

Weed Whacker reads, “Madmenah is removed; the inhabitants of Gebim gather themselves to flee.”

I read, “As yet shall he remain at Nob that day; he shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.”

Mayor Mare reads, “Behold, the Lord, the Lord of Hosts shall lop the bough with terror; and the high ones of stature shall be hewn down; and the haughty shall be humbled.”

Zecora reads, “And he shall cut down the thickets of the forests with iron, and Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one.”

Princess Luna says, “I shall begin chapter twenty-one,” before looking into her book and reading, “And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord;”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord; and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears.”

Spike reads, “But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the young lion and fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.”

Applejack reads, “And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.”

Fluttershy reads, “And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’s den.” She then looks up and says, “Oh, I thought Mormon and I had already taken care of the cockatrice.”

I have my character turn to the yellow pegasa, and I say, “I don't think the cockatrice that Isaiah was referring to was the same one we'd dealth with, Fluttershy. I suspect what Isaiah's talking about was, or is, a type of poisonous snake that lives in the middle east.” As I have my character look at the others in the circle, I add, “And, on the subject of Isaiah's prophesy here, a lot of people interpret these three verses that Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Fluttershy read, and the verse that Rarity's mother is going to read, literally. That is to say, they think those things are actually going to happen. And, for all I know, they might, and in the way Isaiah described them. But, I also think there's something in what Isaiah's describing using these examples, in that he's describing a paradise where predation has been eliminated. Instead of the wolf hunting the lamb, the two are living together in peace. Instead of the bear preying on the cow, those two are grazing together. At least, that's what I'm getting out of it.” I then have my character turn to Rarity's mother, and I say, “You can go ahead and read verse eight.”

Rarity's mother nods, then looks down into her book and reads, “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.”

Rarity's father reads, “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek; and his rest shall be glorious.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “And it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.”

Granny Smith reads, “And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.”

Applebloom reads, “The envy of Ephraim also shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “But they shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines towards the west; they shall spoil them of the east together; they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab; and the children of Ammon shall obey them.”

Scootaloo reads, “And the Lord shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea; and with his mighty wind he shall shake his hand over the river, and shall smite it in the seven streams, and make men go over dry shod.”

Colgate reads, “And there shall be a highway for the remnant of his people which shall be left, from Assyria, like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt.”

Twist looks up and says, “I guess that means I get to begin chapter twenty-two,” before looking down into her book and reading, “And in that day thou shalt say: O Lord, I will praise thee; though thou wast angry with me thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortedst me.”

Namby Pamby reads, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid; for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also has become my salvation.”

Cheerilee reads, “Therefore, with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.”

Silver Spoon reads, “And in that day shall ye say: Praise the Lord, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted.”

Filthy Rich reads, “Sing unto the Lord; for he hath done excellent things; this is known in all the earth.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion; for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.”

Warm Heart looks up for a moment and says, “It looks like I start chapter twenty-three,” before looking down into her book and reading, “The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz did see.”

Snails reads, “Lift ye up a banner upon the high mountain, exalt the voice unto them, shake the hand, that they may go into the gates of the nobles.”

Snips reads, “I have commanded my sanctified ones, I have also called my mighty ones, for mine anger is not upon them that rejoice in my highness.”

Cold Hands reads, “The noise of the multitude in the mountains like as of a great people, a tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together, the Lord of Hosts mustereth the hosts of the battle.”

Emerald Hill reads, “They come from a far country, from the end of heaven, yea, the Lord, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land.”

Stunts reads, “Howl ye, for the day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty.”

Berry Ground reads, “Therefore shall all hands be faint, every man’s heart shall melt;”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “And they shall be afraid; pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be amazed one at another; their faces shall be as flames.”

Hoity Toity reads, “Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate; and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.”

Carrot Top reads, “For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light; the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.”

Berry Punch reads, “And I will punish the world for evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay down the haughtiness of the terrible.”

Sweet Tones reads, “I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.”

Lotta Pipes reads, “Therefore, I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of Hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.”

Drum Roll reads, “And it shall be as the chased roe, and as a sheep that no man taketh up; and they shall every man turn to his own people, and flee every one into his own land.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “Every one that is proud shall be thrust through; yea, and every one that is joined to the wicked shall fall by the sword.”

Octavia reads, “Their children also shall be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses shall be spoiled and their wives ravished.”

Bon-Bon reads, “Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver and gold, nor shall they delight in it.”

Lyra reads, “Their bows shall also dash the young men to pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eyes shall not spare children.”

Weed Whacker reads, “And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees’ excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.”

I read, “It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there.”

Mayor Mare reads, “But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there.”

Zecora reads, “And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces; and her time is near to come, and her day shall not be prolonged. For I will destroy her speedily; yea, for I will be merciful unto my people, but the wicked shall perish.”

At this point, I have my character stand up; and I say, “And, I think we should call it a night now. All of us who live here appreciate you coming here for these readings. As enjoyable as they are, you, my friends, need to be getting back to your homes. Tomorrow we'll be starting with chapter twenty-four, which'll be the last of the consecutive chapters where Nephi quotes Isaiah, and we'll continue on from there. Until then, again I and those that are living with me in my home thank all of you for coming, and we'll see you here next time.”

Dragons and ponies alike rise and stretch.

Drum Roll, Sweet Tones, and Lotta Pipes approach my character and say, “If it's alright with you, we'd like to guide Carrot Top and Berry Punch back through the forest.”

I notice, through my character's eyes, that Pinkie Pie is also approaching. I say, “Well, why don't you ask Pinkie Pie about it? If she agrees, then I'll let the two go home; and I'll let you guide them.”

There is, I guess from a pony's point of view, something scary about Pinkie Pie's serious face. I don't see it directly, but I can see the effect it has on the trio of musical ponies as she studies them. Then, she backs away from them and says, smiling, “Okie dokie lokie! I don't see anything wrong with them going with you.”

The trio breath a collective sigh of relief, and Drum Roll says, “Thank you, Pinkie. We'll be sure to keep them safe.”

I respond, “See to it that you do. I don't want to even hear anymore about you guiding ponies to the tavern, or going there yourselves. If I do see you guiding another pony there, whether it's Berry Punch, Carrot Top, or any pony else, or for that matter any other creature, or if I hear about it or find evidence of it, if that pony or those ponies come here, you'll come too; and you'll help them break their alcohol addiction, is that understood?” Not waiting for an answer, I continue, “On the other hand, I'll be especially happy if I hear about or see you leading other ponies, or other creatures for that matter, away from the tavern.”

It's Sweet Tones who says, “We understand, Mormon.”

I can't help noticing, from the upper periphery of my character's vision, the two earth pony friends approaching as I hear Pinkie Pie ask, “Will you Pinkie promise that you'll stay with Berry Punch and Carrot Top through the Everfree forest? And, will you Pinkie promise that you won't lead anypony else to the tavern?”

It's Lotta Pipes who answers, “Yes, Pinkie Pie, we Pinkie promise to stay with Berry Punch and Carrot Top and keep them safe through the Everfree forest, and we won't lead anypony else to the tavern, including Berry Punch and Carrot Top.”

Just after I say “Good,” Berry Punch asks, “Does that mean that we can go back to Ponyville then?”

I answer, “It does.”

The two earth mare friends squeal with happiness, then gallop to their books to collect them, then come back.

On their return, Carrot Top says, “If you ever need help with your garden, orchard, or vineyard, please feel free to ask us. Thank you, Mormon.” And, before I can answer, the two trot off to the front gate, following the trio of Vinyl Scratch's musical friends.

By this time, the princesses and Hoity Toity and his servant have already teleported back to Canterlot.

As Pinkie Pie and I watch the ponies gather at the front gate, Pinkie Pie says, “You know, I'm gonna miss having Berry Punch and Carrot Top around here.”

I state, “They weren't here for very long, you know. Only a few days.”

Pinkie Pie answers, “I know. But, that doesn't mean I can't miss them when they leave.”

I say, “I guess you've got a point there.” Then, I have my character focus on her as I ask, “So, do you want to let our guests out now? Salute them goodbye?”

Three times Pinkie Pie bounces, and squeals “Yes” each time, at the rate of one yes per bounce. Then, she gallops to the front gate and opens it, bidding each guest farewell as they exit.

I make my way to the front porch and wait, along with Lyra and Weed Whacker, for the guests to leave. Then, as I watch the last of the guests disappear into the Everfree forest, and once Pinkie Pie closes the gate and comes back, I say, “Well, I guess we'd better clean up, then get some dinner.”

The two ponies and the dinosaur agree, and in a few minutes the four have the remnants of the reading cleaned up. Then, it's back to the orchard for Pinkie Pie and my character, back to the vineyard for Lyra, and back to the vegetable garden for Weed Whacker, to gather fruits and vegetables for dinner.

I have to say, Diane has gotten really good control of Pinkie Pie when it comes to kicking fruits out of trees. She seems to know just how much force or power to use in order to knock the number of apples she wants out of a tree. In this case, she kicks the closest tree just hard enough to knock four apples out of it.

After gathering their harvests, the four gather at the front door where Pinkie Pie, once again controlled by Pinkamena, opens the door and leads the group into the kitchen. Once there, the group cleans the fruits and vegetables, prepares and eats them, then we retire to our rooms.

In my letter to the princesses, I write about how I've dismissed Carrot Top and Berry Punch to return to Ponyville with Vinyl Scratch's three musician friends, with the warning that I didn't want to even hear about them leading any more creatures to the tavern. I also write that I'm sure I provided them incentive to lead ponies away from the tavern.

I include in my letter that and how Fluttershy and I dealt with a cockatrice that wandered in from I-don't-know-where, and that Zecora had warned me about the cockatrice this morning. I mention that before the cockatrice left it told me that the forest was getting too rough for it, and if I helped it leave, it'd never turn forest creatures or ponies to stone again, at least none in the Everfree; and it ran off as soon as I let it go on the opposite side of the trail from the one where Fluttershy and I live. I indicate that my experiences have taught me that, at least when it involves unicorns and earth ponies, sometimes it takes more than a vocal warning before they'll believe. And, that's one more way that ponies are like humans. I finish the letter noting that it was fortunate for Twilight Sparkle that Fluttershy and I noticed something different just off the path through the Everfree forest to my house.

After that, I have my character sign the letter, then take it to Weed Whacker, who sends it off. He then returns to his room and prepares for and goes to bed.

So, indeed this has been quite an experience for me. I realize, in writing about this day, that it seems much like a horror story with a happy ending. All the creatures that were turned to stone, that I know of anyway, were unpetrified; and a cockatrice is on his way out of the Everfree forest and to where he thinks will be a safer place to live. Who knows if he's right about that? Who knows if I'll ever know? One thing's for sure. I find myself looking forward to the game's tomorrow as I save and close the game.

Chapter 18: The Crusaders, the Human, the Party Pony, and the Mint Unicorn

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Once again, as I start the game, my character is awakened to knocking on his bedroom door.

Accompanying the knocking, I hear Lyra's voice call out, “Mormon, you need to come as fast as possible! Carrot Top and Berry Punch aren't in their room, and I can't find them anywhere!”

I have my character get out of his bed as I answer, “It's alright, Lyra! I let them go last night!”

I hear Lyra's voice call, “Oh! You might've let me know about that as soon as you did, so I wouldn't get worried about them!”

I answer, “Yeah, sorry about that!”

As my character gets ready to leave his room, I hear Lyra's voice call, “Oh, and by the way, Weed Whacker and Pinkie Pie are out getting fruits and vegetables for breakfast! I'll be out too, getting fruits from the vineyard!”

I answer, “Go on ahead!”

As I listen to the hoof-falls away from my character's bedroom door, I find that it doesn't take long for him to get ready. It's just a matter of checking his inventory to make sure he's ready, and heading to the door to leave.

By the time my character arrives in the kitchen, I find that Pinkie Pie's there putting the apples she harvested in the sink. Evidently, Diane managed to knock four of them out of the tree she chose.

I say, “Hi, Pinkie. I'm guessing things went well?”

The pink earth pony turns to my character, smiles, and says, “You betcha. Diane knows just how hard to kick a tree to get just the amount of apples she wants from it."

Just then, I notice the kitchen door open, and Weed Whacker comes in with her arms loaded with vegetables from the garden.

I have my character kneel down on one knee as I ask, “You need help with that?”

I can only hear Weed Whacker's muffled voice answer, “Please, Mormon, could you help me?”

I have my character stand up again and move around the herbivorous dinosaur so he's between her and the sink, then grab a handful of vegetables from the top and put them in the sink.

As my character grabs another handful of vegetables, I hear Weed Whacker say, “Oh, thank you, Mormon.”

I answer, “Glad I could be of service. I'm guessing Lyra usually helps you?”

The herbivorous dinosaur answers, “Yeah she does, but today she had to tell you about Carrot Top and Berry Punch first.” As my character grabs another handful of vegetables, Weed Whacker asks, “Uh, by the way, what happened to them?”

It's Pinkie Pie who answers, “Mormon let them go last night, with Vinyl's friends.”

Before anymore can be said on the matter, the kitchen door opens again; and Lyra enters with various fruits floating in the air, possessed by her magic.

The pale-green unicorn sees my character and says, “So, I guess that means everypony living here is going to Ponyville, then?”

I answer, “Pony, human, and dragon.”

Pinkie Pie demonstrates understanding of my joke by giggling at what I said, while Lyra stares at my character almost apologetically.

As my character grabs the last handful of vegetables from Weed Whacker, I say, “Well, let's get breakfast ready, so we can head to Ponyville. We need to visit the Cakes at the clinic and see how they're doing with their new foals. And, assuming Scootaloo's parents agree to let her join Applebloom and Sweetie Belle, we're going to have three guests here this evening.”

That's when Pinkie Pie says, “That's right, the Cutie Mark Crusaders said they wanted to spend the night here. Well, at least here they'll be outnumbered.”

As my character picks Weed Whacker up and puts her in the sink, I say, “Even one infant can be a handful for three adults. Just because there are more of us than there are of them doesn't mean all of us will be able to handle all of them. If anything, it'll be a learning experience for all of us.”

Pinkie Pie grunts with interest and says, “You may be right. I didn't think of that.”

Lyra, with her magic, places her harvest in the sink with Weed Whacker as she says, “Weed Whacker hasn't been a problem for us. How difficult can three school-aged foals be?”

At this point, I see Weed Whacker look at Lyra and glare. Based on the look she's giving the pale-green unicorn, I'd say she doesn't like being equated with young equines.

I say to the evidently offended dinosaur, “Now, calm down, Weed Whacker. I'm sure Lyra didn't mean anything by it.”

Weed Whacker simply snorts and looks away, then proceeds to turn the taps on in the sink and get ready to clean some fruits and vegetables.

Then, I hear Lyra ask, “Mormon, could you let me near the sink?”

I respond by having my character move aside so the pale-green unicorn can approach.

As soon as she has the chance, Lyra ambles forward, then props herself against the cabinet so she can see the herbivorous dinosaur in the sink, then says, “I'm sorry, Weed Whacker. Mormon was right. I didn't think comparing you to school-age foals was going to offend you. Will you forgive me?”

Somehow, as Weed Whacker turns around, she knocks the faucet so the stream of water from it is between her and Lyra's face. She steps forward through the stream, allowing the water to fall on her head, some of which bounces off her nose and splashes on Lyra's face. When the water's running down the herbivorous dinosaur's back, she turns and eyes the pale-green unicorn's face. Then, after a few seconds, Weed Whacker points her nose toward Lyra again, sighs, and says, “I know you didn't mean to offend me. So, I forgive you.”

Lyra smiles back at her and says, “Thank you, Weed Whacker. I'll be careful about what I say from now on.”

As Weed Whacker pushes the tap toward the fruits and vegetables again, she says, “I guess I shouldn't get so offended when I'm compared to the young of another species. After all, I am just a hatchling.” Then, she turns, grabs a carrot, and starts cleaning it off under the running water.

At this point, I say, “Well, let's consider that argument settled. We need to get ready so we can head to Ponyville. We have a busy day ahead of us.”

Lyra pushes away from the sink, then turns to my character and says, “Agreed.” At that point, she and Pinkie Pie take positions on opposite sides of the table from each other; and I proceed to take fruits and vegetables that Weed Whacker has washed and hand them to the two mares, who, with the drying cloths Pinkie Pie seems to have gotten from somewhere, dry them off.

When all the fruits and vegetables are ready, I have my character take Weed Whacker out of the sink and put her on the seat in front of him, then occupy the seat opposite the herbivorous dinosaur.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie occupies the chair to my character's right; and Lyra occupies the chair to his left.

After the group eats the prepared food, they proceed out of the kitchen, with my character at the end of the line to close doors behind them, through the front room, out the front door, then to the front gate to head to Ponyville.

After an uneventful trip through the Everfree forest, the group arrives at the bridge to Fluttershy's house.

I hear Twilight Sparkle say, “This is going to make quite a letter to the princess. I was wrong about you. You certainly do know how to handle those girls.”

Pinkie Pie leads the group across the bridge to Fluttershy's house as I hear the yellow pegasa say, “No, I wouldn't go that far.”

Twilight Sparkle grunts in curiosity and asks, “How so?”

Fluttershy answers, “I assumed I'd be just as good with kids as I am with animals. Boy, was I wrong. I learned the hard way not to bite off more than I can chew.”

Twilight states, “You and Rarity both.”

Then, the yellow pegasa, noticing the party of four approaching her, says, “Oh, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Mormon, nice to see you again.”

The four of us respond with similar remarks about how it's also nice to see her and Twilight.

The purple unicorn, turning to us, says, “Oh, I've been meaning to thank you again for helping me out in the forest. You and Fluttershy here.”

I respond, “I was glad to be of service.”

Then Pinkie Pie says, “Oh, I don't know if Fluttershy's told you about this, but we're going to see the Cakes' foals today. Do you wanna come along?”

Twilight grins and says, “Well, I'd be happy to. They had them already?”

Lyra answers, “Just yesterday. They were so busy at the clinic that we didn't get a chance to visit them then.”

Just then, I hear Rarity say, “Oh, Mormon, imagine meeting you here.”

As my character turns to focus on the white unicorn, I answer, “Nice to see you, too.”

Rarity continues, “I just delivered that order of dresses I was working on for most of the night. I must admit, if you hadn't come along, I might not have finished it. Thanks again.”

Fluttershy nods and asks, “Will you be coming with us to see the Cakes' foals?”

Rarity answers, “Oh, I wouldn't miss it for the world. But, right now, I need to take the girls back to Ponyville.” Then, she turns around and calls out, “Girls, get your things! Time to go!”

Just then, a giggling herd of three caped fillies runs past my character.

In an attempt to get the attention of the three Crusaders, Rarity calls out, “Girls … Girls! It's time … Girls! Your things! Girls, … it's time to …” It's clear to me that the white unicorn is getting more and more frustrated with the Cutie Mark Crusaders not paying attention to her, ultimately culminating in her almost roaring out, “Girls!”

Finally, Fluttershy steps forward and says, “Allow me.” Then, the yellow pegasa clears her throat and quietly says, “Girls?”

Immediately the trio stops, turns to Fluttershy, and lines up side-by-side in front of her.

Applebloom says, “Yes, Fluttershy?”

Scootaloo asks, “You called?”

Fluttershy nods and says, “Go and get your things. Rarity's here to see you home.”

Sweetie Belle nods and says, “Of course, Fluttershy. Right away.”

And, with that, the three run off into the yellow pegasa's cottage to collect their things.

I'm sure it's Applebloom I hear say, “Now, you can go home and get permission from your parents to go with us to Mormon's house tonight.”

As the yellow earth filly disappears into Fluttershy's cottage, a Rarity in shock asks, “How did you … how did you do that?”

I see, through my character's eyes, Fluttershy wink at Twilight before she says, “I guess I'm just as good with kids as I am with animals.”

The trio of fillies shout their thanks and farewells to Fluttershy, after which Rarity says, trotting away from the yellow pegasa, “Uh, speaking of which, I could use your help with Opal.”

Fluttershy answers, “Oh, of course. How about later today?”

How I managed to miss this I can only attribute to too much input as Rarity turns her side to face the group of six to show us the white Persian cat attached by her claws to the white unicorn's side. As the cat screeches and glares on, Rarity asks, “Uh, how about—now?”

I, for one, can't help sharing Rarity's grimace of pain.

On the other hand, Fluttershy and Twilight, who's just trotted up to her, giggle for a second or two, after which Fluttershy trots up to the white Persian and starts nuzzling her.

In a matter of seconds, Opalescence calms down enough that she lets go of her owner, then jumps onto Fluttershy's back.

Rarity smiles with relief and says, “Why, thank you, Fluttershy. I don't know what I did to get her so upset at me. She followed me all the way here and just grabbed on to me.”

The white Persian cat hisses at Rarity, then turns to my character and smiles a wide smile, which somehow reminds me of the Cheshire cat from Walt Disney's Alice in Wonderland.

On the other hand, Fluttershy turns to the smiling feline and says, “Now, Opalescence, you know better than to attack your owner that way. Remember, you should never bite the hoof that feeds you.”

I can't help commenting, “She didn't seem to have any problems with the hoof. She just got attached to Rarity's side.”

At my comment, Opalescence jumps off of Fluttershy's back, trots over to my character, and proceeds to purr and rub against his leg.

Rarity, seeing this, glares at my character, sputters a bit, then says, “Hey!”

I shrug and say, “I guess there's no accounting for animal magnetism.”

That causes Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker to start giggling.

I allow them the moment, then say, “Well, I guess we should be heading for Ponyville, then.”

Pinkie Pie gasps and says, “That's right. We need to go to the clinic to visit the Cakes and their foals.”

Scootaloo, suddenly next to Rarity, says, “And, I need to go home and ask permission from my mom and dad.”

I turn to Rarity and ask, “Uh, by the way, did you see Applejack on your way in?”

Rarity answers, “No, I didn't. Why do you ask?”

I answer, “Nothing. She just said she'd be waiting for us when we came out of the forest.”

Twilight Sparkle proceeds to the bridge as she says, “Well, we'd better get going, then.”

I add, “But, first, I'm guessing we're going to need to stop at a few places.”

Rarity states, “That's right. I need to drop Opalescence off at the Boutique.”

Twilight says, “I guess we also need to deliver these three fillies to their homes.”

Sweetie Belle squeaks, “Nah, we'll just wait in front of Scootaloo's house to see if her parents give her permission to come with us to go to Mormon's house.”

Then, the trio call out, “Cutie Mark Crusaders, sleepover at Mormon's house, yay!”

I state, “Well, let's get going, then.”

And, with that, the group of thirteen, including Opalescence, makes their way to the bridge, crosses it, then heads out of the forest to meet up with Applejack, and Rainbow Dash, at the opening facing town. From there, the group makes its way into Ponyville.

Just within the borders, Rarity turns to the yellow pegasa and asks, “Fluttershy, will you come with me?” Then, as Fluttershy agrees, Rarity turns to the rest of the group and says, “If the rest of you will head to the clinic, we'll catch up with you there.” And, with that, the white unicorn and the yellow pegasa head for Carousel Boutique, I'm guessing to drop off Opalescence.

In the mean time, Twilight also separates from the group. Turning to the now dwindling group, she says, “I need to deliver this letter to Spike so he can send it to Princess Celestia.” Then, she turns ahead of her and makes her way to the library.

Scootaloo looks up at my character and says, “Sweetie Belle, Applebloom and I better get going to my house, so I can ask my parents for permission. See you later.” And, with that, the three foals run off into town, giggling all the way.

With the group now reduced to six, my character, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed whacker, Applejack and Rainbow Dash, I have my character lead the others to the clinic.

On the way there, Applejack says, “Ah'm sure lookin' forward to seein' the Cake's foals.”

Rainbow Dash says, “Me too. I didn't get a chance to see them yesterday because Mormon stopped me.”

Applejack glares at her blue pegasa friend and says, “Rainbow Dash, the foals weren't even born yet. Ya can't just barge in on a mare while she's a'foalin'.”

Rainbow Dash whines, “Yeah, but I just wanted to have a look at the foals.”

I respond, “And, you're gonna get that chance as soon as Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, and Rarity get here, along with the rest of us. I'm sure you can wait until then.”

Rainbow Dash's response is simply a groan of irritation.

No more is said among the group, which is just as well since they make it there just a few seconds later.

I make the decision to wait outside the clinic for the other three to arrive. And, the group doesn't have to wait long for Rarity and Fluttershy to be the first of the three to make it, and Twilight Sparkle to arrive not far behind.

The group of nine, lead by my character and Pinkie Pie, enters the clinic and makes their way to the front desk.

It's Pinkie Pie who says to the nurse pony at the front desk, “We're here to visit the Cakes and their foals.”

The white earth pony smiles and says, “Just wait here. I'll go and see how they're doing, and if they're allowed visitors.” And, with that, she backs out of the cubicle and heads into the clinic.

It doesn't take more than a few seconds before I hear Rainbow Dash behind my character say, “This is so awesome.”

I have my character turn to her, then I say, “Just be patient, Rainbow Dash. We still need permission to get in there.”

The smiling blue pegasa says, “I know. I'm just really excited right now.”

Well, at least she's keeping relatively quiet about it.

Before I can say as much, the nurse shows up with Mr. Cake and says, “Good news. You and your group have been given permission to enter and see the Cakes' two foals.”

Every pony, as well as Weed Whacker, cheers for joy over the announcement.

Instantly, the nurse shushes them and says, “Quiet down. Remember, this is a clinic. You don't want to make too much noise. We've got patients here that need their sleep.”

Immediately the cheers quiet down, and it's Fluttershy who says, “Sorry about that.”

As Mr. Cake makes his way to the hallway leading into the clinic, he says, “Follow me. I'll lead you to the nursery.”

For a clinic, the building has a main hall that twists and turns around quite a few rooms.

When the group finally arrives at the nursery, with seven ponies, one dinosaur and one human waiting out in a wide part of the hallway, Mr. Cake is allowed inside, where he makes his way in between two foals, each in their own bed.

Rainbow Dash, unable to contain her excitement anymore, flaps her wings and hovers over Fluttershy; while Pinkie Pie props herself up against the window. For that matter, so do the other ponies that aren't hovering.

On the other hand, to get a better view of the scene, Weed Whacker jumps off of Lyra and onto my character's shoulder. At least, that's what I'm assuming from the involuntary and momentary shutter of my character. Then, he turns and shows me, through his eyes, the little dinosaur indeed on his shoulder.

After a second or two of the group vocalizing their excitement, Applejack asks, “Can you believe the new babies are finally here?”

Twilight excitedly says, “Cup Cake and Carrot Cake must be so proud!”

Rarity says, “I wonder if it's going to be a filly or a colt.”

I state, “I'm thinking they're going to be one of each.”

At my comment, Applejack, Twilight, Rarity and Rainbow Dash look at me and simultaneously grunt in confusion and disbelief.

Before I can respond, Pinkie Pie says, “I wanna see the new baby ponies. I wanna see. Which ones are they?”

I don't say this aloud, but I'm finding it difficult to believe that, considering Mr. Cake is standing right over one of the foals, none of them is taking notice. I guess they're just too excited to think clearly.

Then, Mr. Cake pulls a blanket off of the first foal, who's wrapped in a blue blanket, and says, “Meet our son, Pound Cake.”

The little colt stretches and yawns and flaps his wings, then relaxes again.

In response, seven mares and one dinosaur simultaneously say, “Aw.”

Then, Mr. Cake turns to the cradle behind him and pulls the blanket off of a foal wrapped in a pink blanket, and continues, “And, our daughter, Pumpkin Cake.”

The little filly, like her brother, stretches and yawns. But, since it's clear she has no wings, but a horn instead, she has nothing to flap. Still, again like her brother, after yawning and stretching, she also relaxes.

At this point, Rarity turns to my character and says, “Mormon, how did you know that the Cakes were going to have two foals?”

I open my mouth to answer, but Pinkie Pie starts first, saying, “Oh, that's easy. Mr. Cake said that Doctor Horse said they were going to have twins.” Excitedly, she continues, “And you know what that means. Two, two, two times the fun. It's the greatest day ever!” And, before I can stop her, she runs into the nursery, produces a party hat and whistle from her mane, and calls out, “We need to celebrate your birthdays, babies!”

I lose track of what else she says, as I say, “Pinkie Pie, you're not supposed to be in there.” Of course, since I have the episode on which this is based, I can watch that if I want to catch the rest of what Pinkie Pie says.

In the mean time, it turns out that what I say is echoed by the nurse pony anyway, as she attempts to shush the excited pink earth pony. She adds, “The babies are trying to sleep.”

Pinkie Pie tries to say something, but the nurse pony shushes her. She tries again, with the same result. Finally, she sneaks in between the two cradles, puts a forelimb over each one, and starts quietly singing a “Happy Birthday” song.

That is, until the nurse pony glares at her, effectively silencing her.

At this point, I wonder aloud, “Do you think I should go in there and get Pinkie Pie out before she causes anymore trouble?”

The answer comes when the nurse grabs Pinkie by the scruff of the neck and drags her out of the nursery, then tosses her into the hallway.

As my character goes to collect the now disgraced party pony, I hear Applejack say, “Ah have a better question. How in thunderation is one of them twins a pegasus, and the other a unicorn?”

As my character scoops Pinkie Pie up and holds her the way a human would hold an infant and carries her back to the other element bearers, I hear Mr. Cake answer, “Easy. My great-great-great-great grandfather was a unicorn. And, Cup Cake's second cousin twice removed was a pegasus.” Then, evidently uncertain about his explanation, he asks, “Uh, that makes sense, right?”

I find myself humming with uncertainty.

And, I'm not entirely certain Rainbow Dash heard Mr. Cake's question when she says, “Ah, yeah.” She continues, “Just you wait. Once little Pound Cake gets his wings goin', he'll be all over the place.” And, to emphasize her point, she starts flying around the hallway.

Then, Twilight says, “And, be careful around Pumpkin Cake.”

Rarity adds, “Baby unicorns get strange magic surges that come and go.”

A suddenly uncertain Mr. Cake looks at each of his new foals.

Then, Pinkie Pie appears in between them with a cake and says, “Quick, make a wish and blow out your candles. Which is easy, because there are zero candles. You are zero years old after all.”

Presently, the nurse pony shushes the excited Pinkie Pie.

In the mean time, after showing me, through his eyes, that Pinkie Pie has managed to slip out of his arms, my character, as per my instructions, puts Weed Whacker on Lyra's back again, and, while I have him enter the nursery after the party pony, I say, “I think I'd better handle this problem personally.” Then, as a cake-bearded Pinkie Pie grunts questioningly, I have my character grab her by the scruff of her neck, hold her up between the foals, then move her over Pumpkin Cake, being careful not to let any of Pinkie Pie's cake crumbs fall on the little filly.

As the once more disgraced pink earth pony drops her cake and, like a cat in such a position, pulls her tail between her legs, she looks at me and innocently asks, “Mormon, what're you doing?”

I answer, “I'm taking care of a problem. And, for you, young lady, the party's over.”

With one keystroke I have my character hold her as he had before, like an infant. And, with another keystroke, I have him carry her out of the clinic, backtracking along the route he took to get to the nursery, all the time holding and watching the pink party pony so she won't be able to escape.

But, that doesn't mean she doesn't try. Reaching back toward her friends, she says, “But, what about Lyra and Weed Whacker?”

I answer, “I'm sure they'll come when they're ready.”

Then, Pinkie asks, “And, what about the rest of my friends? Are you gonna carry them out the same way?”

I answer, “They were behaving themselves.”

At this statement, Pinkie Pie pauses for a moment, then says, “I'm sorry. I was just so excited to see the Cakes' foals.”

I respond, “We'll continue this discussion outside.” Which is just as well, since the entrance to the hallway of the clinic, unblocked, isn't that far away.

In a matter of seconds, my character and Pinkie Pie are outside; at which point I have my character put Pinkie down, facing away from him.

When she turns to my character, she's frowning as she says, “I really am sorry, Mormon. I didn't think I was doing anything bad.”

I have my character sit next to her as I say, “The fact of the matter is you were going into a place where you shouldn't have been. The nursery is for infants, their parents, and the nurses that take care of the infants. And, as far as I can see, you don't qualify as any of those, even if you were acting like a child.”

Pinkie tries to speak, but ends up only stammering and sniffling.

In response, I have my character put a hand on her back, then I say, “Come here, Pinkie.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie jumps into my character's arms, puts her forelimbs, I assume, over his shoulders, rests her head on one of his shoulders, and sobs, “I'm so, so sorry, Mormon. I wasn't thinking when I went in there. Can you forgive me?”

I have my character rub the back of the pink earth pony's neck where he'd grabbed her, and I say, “Of course I forgive you. You are neither the first nor the only one who's done things without thinking first. If I hold those kinds of things against you, I might as well hold them against myself.” Then, after a momentary pause, I add, “Besides, I have a sneaking suspicion that I'm going to need your help in taking care of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Since you're an earth pony, I'm thinking I could use your help in taking care of Applebloom.”

Pinkie Pie sobs a few more times, then, after taking a sharp, noisy breath, says, “So, can we go back inside now?”

I answer, “I don't think so. Not today.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “Not even to clean up the mess I made?”

I answer, “I'm sure the janitor or one of the nurses'll take care of that.”

Just then, I hear Lyra's voice ask, from behind my character, say, “Is everything alright between you and Pinkie Pie?”

My character turns to show me, through his eyes, the pale-green unicorn with Weed Whacker on her back. I answer, “We're fine. But, I'm thinking it's time for us to go back home.”

As my character puts the pink party pony back on the ground, Lyra asks, “And, what about the Cutie Mark Crusaders? Aren't we gonna wait for them?”

Then, again from behind my character, I hear a new male voice say, “That's right. If I'm gonna let a human take care of Scootaloo, I think I should at least know who's going to be taking care of her.”

And, again my character turns around, this time to show me, through his eyes, a somewhat dark tan stallion with a yellow spot over his rounded snout, and reddish-orange mane and tail. In his position, facing my character directly, I can't see his cutie mark. I say, “I'm guessing you're Scootaloo's father?”

The stallion nods and answers, “That's right. My name's Wind Walker.”

That name catches me completely off guard. A pony named for a story about an old Lamanite?

Wind Walker continues, taking a step closer to my character, “I seem to recognize you. Didn't you bring Trixie into town one last time, and have her put on that puppet show?”

I answer, “The puppet show was her idea. She showed it to me and the ponies and dragon living with me, and I really liked it. So, I thought she should show it to the ponies in Ponyville before she left. They seemed to like it, too.”

Wind Walker grunts in agreement, and says, “I was one of those in the audience that liked Trixie's puppet show. In fact, I was the one that asked about why Nephi had to kill Laban.” Taking a step back now, the tan stallion continues, “You've had a good influence on Trixie, as far as I can see, and Scootaloo speaks highly of you otherwise. So, I'll let her and her friends stay with you on one condition.”

I ask, “And, what would that be?”

Wind Walker answers, “I want to join in the reading this evening.”

I can't help smiling as I state, “Well, you're welcome to join in the reading anytime. Generally there's a group of ponies that leaves Ponyville and travels through the Everfree forest for the readings.” I then ask, “Is there anyone that lives near you that you know comes to my home to read?”

The tan stallion pauses for a moment in thought, then answers, “Towards the end of the day, I see Cold Hands and Warm Heart leaving their home with their sons Snips and Snails. Are they part of the group that goes to your home to read?”

I answer, “They are.”

Wind Walker smiles and says, “Then, in that case, I shall come with my wife and my daughter, and we shall take part in the next reading at your house.” And, before I can respond, he turns and walks off.

From next to my character, opposite Pinkie Pie, I hear Lyra say, “I guess that means you have another member of your reading group.”

My character turns to her, and I say, “I guess you're right. So, shall we head home, then?”

It looks like the pale-green unicorn is about to say something, until she turns and sees Pinkie Pie with cake crumbs on her front. Then, she says, looking up at my character, “Yeah, I guess that's a good idea. Let's get going.”

So, with agreement from Lyra, Pinkie Pie, and Weed Whacker, the group of four start to make their way away from the clinic and toward Ponyville's main street to head back to the Everfree forest.

As the quartet reaches the main street and turns to head out of town, I hear the voice of Applebloom ask, “So, how'd things go with you 'n' Scootaloo's dad?”

My character turns to the source of the voice to show me, through his eyes, the little yellow filly between Lyra and him. I answer, “We've made a deal. He'll allow her to stay with me if he can come to the reading tonight.”

Immediately she jumps into the air, kicks her hind hooves together, and shouts out, “Yahoo!” Then, when she lands, she says, “I'm goin' ta Carousel Boutique! Sweetie Belle's gotta hear 'bout this!” And, with that, she gallops off to the boutique, shouting, “Cutie Mark Crusaders, sleepover at Mormon's house! Yay!”

I can't help laughing to myself at the little earth filly's excitement.

Then, Lyra says, “I guess that's all the more reason to get home, so we can get things ready for the reading. And, it looks like you'll need to get out two more of those books.”

I answer, “Agreed.”

As the group leaves Ponyville and heads into the Everfree forest, the thought occurs to me that the Crusaders are likely going to be searching my home for ways to earn their cutie marks. Whether I can help them or not, maybe I can help them find a good reason for their search, or at least get to the reason why they want to earn their marks in the first place. I have nothing against them finding their own identities, whether its by a talent each of them has, or by something else that identifies each of them. I just want them to have a good reason for getting their cutie marks.

By the time the group of four reaches my character's home, it's still really early in the afternoon. And, not only does Pinkie Pie need to take a bath, my character also needs one, considering the crumbs from the party pony's mystery cake are not only on his shirt, but also on his face and who knows where else.

As soon as the group enters the house, Pinkie Pie goes to the nearest bathroom and starts her shower.

Lyra and Weed Whacker head to the room they share.

My character heads to his room and removes his clothes, then heads to the bathroom across from his room and takes his shower. And, afterwards, he returns to his room, takes out a fresh change of clothes, and puts them on. By the time he's back out, Pinkie Pie is also there, sitting at the kitchen table.

Considering how early it still is, I wonder to myself if I should go fishing again. Then again, while Pinkie Pie may be at least familiar with at least some of the details of human omnivory, it's highly unlikely that Weed Whacker is. So, I decide against it.

Then, Pinkie Pie suggests, “You know, since you still have a lot of time before the reading, you could take out that disc and go play fetch with Scout.”

You know, Pinkie Pie may have something there. I ask her, “So, would you like to join us?”

Pinkie Pie hums for a moment and looks as though she's thinking about something she doesn't like thinking about, or at least isn't sure about it, in the mean time rubbing her chin with a front hoof. Then, she says, “You know, Gummy and I haven't played together for a few days now. I suppose the four of us could have a play date, me with Gummy, and you with Scout.” Then, she puts the hoof down and smiles as though the idea just dawned on her, and says, “Okie dokie. You just wait here, and I'll get Gummy.”

I admit I hadn't really been thinking about Pinkie's pet alligator. But, if she wants to bring her along, then why not?”

As I wait with my character in the kitchen, I hear a door open in the hallway. Then, I hear Lyra's voice say, “Hi, Pinkie.”

I hear Pinkie respond, “Oh, hi, Lyra.”

I hear another door open, and Lyra ask, “What's going on?”

I hear Pinkie answer, “Mormon and I are gonna take our pets on a play date. Do you and Weed Whacker wanna come along?”

From Lyra's grunt, it sounds like she's interested. I hear her ask, “Where'll you be goin'?”

Then, I hear Pinkie answer, “You know, I'm not really sure. Very likely somewhere on Mormon's property, so it probably won't be too far away. He's gonna take his disc with him and play fetch with Scout.”

Now, the groan I hear from Lyra makes it sound as though she's disappointed.

I then hear Weed Whacker's voice ask, “What's going on?”

Lyra answers, “Mormon and Pinkie Pie are going out, probably somewhere else on his property, to play with their pets.”

Weed Whacker asks, “Is there something wrong with that?”

Lyra answers, “I'm just not sure what games can include three ponies, one dragon, one human, one lizard, and one timber wolf.”

Presently, Weed Whacker says, “The last play date we were on, it didn't matter if everyone was playing the same game, just as long as at least two were playing together. You gave me rides all over the park, and we had so much fun. Mormon and Scout had just as much fun when Mormon threw that disc and Scout ran and retrieved it, and Pinkie Pie and Gummy had as much fun with Gummy snapping at Pinkie's hair and legs.”

I hear Lyra grunt in interested affirmation. Then, a second later, she says, “You know, Weed Whacker, you're right about that. So, do you wanna go out for rides around Mormon's property?”

I can't help smiling as I hear Weed Whacker's excited answer, “Sure.” Evidently all six of us are going on a play date. As I once said, the more, the merrier.

As I hear hoof-falls toward the kitchen, my character turns to show me, through his eyes, the pale-green unicorn emerge from the hallway, followed closely behind by the herbivorous dinosaur. Is it my imagination, or has Weed Whacker grown some since the second day of this game? I have programmed her, and other creatures for that matter, including ponies, with that ability.

Lyra says, “Pinkie Pie just told me that you and her are gonna take your pets on a play date.”

I conclude, “And, you and Weed Whacker want to come with us, is that right?”

Lyra smiles and says, “That's right.”

Again I smile as I say, “You're quite welcome to.”

I can see, through my character's eyes, the gratitude in those of Lyra. But, before she can express it vocally, Pinkie Pie appears with Gummy in her mane and says, “So, let's get going.”

I check my character's inventory and find the blue disc still there. With that worked out, and with Pinkie Pie leading the way, I have my character follow her, behind Lyra and Weed Whacker, out of the kitchen, through and out the front room, closing doors behind him. Once the group is outside, I have my character produce the disc from his inventory to get Scout's attention, which works. Then, with the others following him, I have my character lead the way past the vineyard and vegetable garden, and on to the pond and the grassy area around it, tossing the disc ahead of him so Scout can run ahead, catch it, and bring it back.

Once the group arrives at the pond, the time is spent in this way: Pinkie Pie playing with Gummy, Lyra giving Weed Whacker rides around the back yard, and my character throwing the blue disc for Scout to catch it and bring it back. That is, until Pinkie Pie, I think, notices activity in the front yard and directs the attention of the rest of the group to it. And, from that point on, the play date is over. Time to go back to the front yard, gather fruits and vegetables for snacks, and otherwise prepare for the reading.

As the party of six makes it to the front yard, my character is met by Scootaloo, who says, “Mormon, mommy and daddy are here for the reading!”

Just behind him are Wind Walker and a pegasa. Wind Walker nuzzles the pegasa and says, “This is my wife, Sleeping Beauty.”

Well, why not? I suppose if Scootaloo's father's name can remind me of a book, her mother's name can remind me of a fairy tale. I say to them, “It's nice of you to come. I hope you enjoy the reading.”

Wind Walker rubs his daughter's mane with a front hoof as he says, “Scootaloo here's been reading from that book you gave her, and even read some of it to us. That's part of the reason why we're here. We want to understand what Scootaloo's been reading here.”

I say, “Well, I'm happy to have you here anyway. Now, I need to help get some snacks ready, and then I'll get you your own copies of the book.” And, with that, my character makes his way to the orchard, followed by Pinkie Pie.

In the mean time, I can only assume that Lyra is already in the vineyard, and Weed Whacker is already in the vegetable garden. I also notice a couple familiar earth ponies, Carrot Top and Berry Punch, heading to those places, evidently to help out: Carrot Top to the vegetable garden, and Berry Punch to the vineyard.

It only takes one kick from Diane to knock seven apples out of the tree, four of which Pinkamena collects in her mane, and the other three my character gathers up. Then, the pink earth pony and the human meet Weed Whacker, Lyra, Carrot Top, and Berry Punch on the front porch, where Pinkie Pie opens the door to allow the others to enter.

Once inside the house, I happen to see, from the edge of my character's periphery, a yellow earth filly with red mane following us. As my character focuses on her, I ask, “Applebloom, shouldn't you be outside with the others?”

Applebloom starts to frown as she says, “Aw, but my friends and Ah wanna help.”

My character then turns to show me, through his eyes, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo following close behind Applebloom. A thought occurs to me, and I say, “You know, maybe you can help. Just follow us into the kitchen, and we'll get things set up.”

My invitation is met with three smiling faces, and the three fillies follow my character and the other ponies and the dinosaur into the kitchen.

I have my character put Weed Whacker in the sink, then hand her the apples he gathered, as well as those that Pinkie Pie gives him from her mane; then, as Weed Whacker's receiving other fruits and vegetables from Lyra, who's accepting them from Berry Punch and Carrot Top, I have my character help Pinkie Pie get out the snack tray, then line up the Cutie Mark Crusaders behind Lyra, Berry Punch, and Carrot Top: Sweetie Belle behind Lyra, Applebloom behind Berry Punch, and Scootaloo behind Carrot Top. After that, I pass out knives to Lyra, Berry Punch, and Carrot Top and instruct them to pass the slices of fruit and vegetables to the fillies behind them so they can pass them to Pinkie Pie.

The machine has a few extra parts to it now, but they all work smoothly. Weed Whacker cleans the plant parts in the sink, then hands them to my character, who distributes them to Lyra, Berry Punch, or Carrot Top. They cut up the plant parts, then pass them to the filly behind each of them, who passes them to Pinkie Pie, who puts them on the snack tray.

When Weed Whacker has handed me the last item, a beet, I have my character hand it to Carrot Top to cut up, then remove Weed Whacker from the sink, then go into the front room to get two copies of the Book of Mormon from the closet, and finally go outside and deliver them to Wind Walker and Sleeping Beauty.

Not long after that, three earth ponies, assisted by the Cutie Mark Crusaders, come out with the snack tray and place it in the middle of the forming circle on the lawn, with Lyra and Weed Whacker following close behind.

One thing I can't help noticing, as my character takes his place in the circle, is that Zecora has, it seems, taken it on herself to take a position between Mayor Mare and him this time. I'm not sure if this means the zebra and the earth pony are in competition for a position next to my character, but it is something I'm finding difficult to ignore.

But, there's another unexpected thing that comes up. Fluttershy rises from her place in the circle, approaches my character, and says, “If it's alright with you, I'd like to stay here tonight and help you take care of Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Applebloom.”

I say, “I welcome the offer. But, I have to wonder, is there any particular reason why you're offering?”

The yellow pegasa rubs the back of her neck with a front hoof as she answers, “Well, I've had experience taking care of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and I'm thinking you could use all the help you can get, if that's alright with you.”

I state, “Well, actually, I'm honored by the offer. Honestly, I haven't had any experience taking care of three fillies. And, I could use as much help as I could get. If you want to help me take care of them, then you're welcome to stay.”

A surprisingly eager Fluttershy smiles, nods, and says, “Oh, thank you, Mormon,” before going back to her place in the circle.

After Fluttershy is back in her place and Zecora and Mayor Mare have settled down, I ask, “Has anyone here brought Wind Walker and Sleeping Beauty up-to-date on what we've been reading so far?”

Scootaloo rises and says, “I've been telling mommy and daddy about what I've been reading. I've even been reading with 'em.”

I nod and say, “Well, in that case, I suppose the next thing to do is start reading. It begins in the Second Book of Nephi, chapter twenty-four.” I then direct my character's attention to Scootaloo's parents as I ask, “Wind Walker, Sleeping Beauty, would one of you like to read the first verse?”

The two pegasi flip through the pages until they get to the right one; then Wind Walker says, “I'll read the first verse.” He then looks down and reads, “For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land; and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob.”

Sleeping Beauty then says, “I'll read the second verse,” before reading, “And the people shall take them and bring them to their place; yea, from far unto the ends of the earth; and they shall return to their lands of promise. And the house of Israel shall possess them, and the land of the Lord shall be for servants and handmaids; and they shall take them captives unto whom they were captives; and they shall rule over their oppressors.”

Scootaloo reads, “And it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord shall give thee rest, from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou wast made to serve.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “And it shall come to pass in that day, that thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say: How hath the oppressor ceased, the golden city ceased!”

Applebloom reads, “The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, the scepters of the rulers.”

Lyra reads, “He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth.”

Weed Whacker reads, “The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet; they break forth into singing.”

I read, “Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, and also the cedars of Lebanon, saying: Since thou art laid down no feller is come up against us.”

Zecora reads, “Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming; it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations.”

Mayor Mare reads, “All they shall speak and say unto thee: Art thou also become weak as we? Art thou become like unto us?”

Princess Luna reads, “Thy pomp is brought down to the grave; the noise of thy viols is not heard; the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee.”

Princess Celestia reads, “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! Art thou cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations!”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “For thou hast said in thy heart: I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north;”

Spike reads, “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High.”

Rarity reads, “Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and shall consider thee, and shall say: Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms?”

Fluttershy reads, “And made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof, and opened not the house of his prisoners?”

Applejack reads, “All the kings of the nations, yea, all of them, lie in glory, every one of them in his own house.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, and the remnant of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcass trodden under feet.”

Granny Smith reads, “Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, because thou hast destroyed thy land and slain thy people; the seed of evil-doers shall never be renowned.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquities of their fathers, that they do not rise, nor possess the land, nor fill the face of the world with cities.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “For I will rise up against them, saith the Lord of Hosts, and cut off from Babylon the name, and remnant, and son, and nephew, saith the Lord.”

Hoity Toity reads, “I will also make it a possession for the bittern, and pools of water; and I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, saith the Lord of Hosts.”

Berry Ground reads, “The Lord of Hosts hath sworn, saying: Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand—”

Emerald Hill reads, “That I will bring the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot; then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulders.”

Stunts reads, “This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth; and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all nations.”

Cold Hands reads, “For the Lord of Hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul? And his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?”

Snails reads, “In the year that king Ahaz died was this burden.”

Snips reads, “Rejoice not thou, whole Palestina, because the rod of him that smote thee is broken; for out of the serpent’s root shall come forth a cockatrice, and his fruit shall be a fiery flying serpent.”

Warm Heart reads, “And the firstborn of the poor shall feed, and the needy shall lie down in safety; and I will kill thy root with famine, and he shall slay thy remnant.”

Twist reads, “Howl, O gate; cry, O city; thou, whole Palestina, art dissolved; for there shall come from the north a smoke, and none shall be alone in his appointed times.”

Namby Pamby reads, “What shall then answer the messengers of the nations? That the Lord hath founded Zion, and the poor of his people shall trust in it.”

At this point, I have my character look up at the rest of the members of the circle; and I say, “And, that concludes the consecutive chapters of Nephi's excerpts of the Book of Isaiah. Nephi has written more, including an interesting description and explanation of what goes on in gatherings among his people.” I then have my character focus on the teacher pony, and I ask, “Cheerilee, will you read verse one of chapter twenty-five?”

Cheerilee nods, then looks down at her book and reads, “Now I, Nephi, do speak somewhat concerning the words which I have written, which have been spoken by the mouth of Isaiah. For behold, Isaiah spake many things which were hard for many of my people to understand; for they know not concerning the manner of prophesying among the Jews.”

Silver Spoon reads, “For I, Nephi, have not taught them many things concerning the manner of the Jews; for their works were works of darkness, and their doings were doings of abominations.”

Filthy Rich reads, “Wherefore, I write unto my people, unto all those that shall receive hereafter these things which I write, that they may know the judgments of God, that they come upon all nations, according to the word which he hath spoken.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “Wherefore, hearken, O my people, which are of the house of Israel, and give ear unto my words; for because the words of Isaiah are not plain unto you, nevertheless they are plain unto all those that are filled with the spirit of prophecy. But I give unto you a prophecy, according to the spirit which is in me; wherefore I shall prophesy according to the plainness which hath been with me from the time that I came out from Jerusalem with my father; for behold, my soul delighteth in plainness unto my people, that they may learn.”

Bon-Bon reads, “Yea, and my soul delighteth in the words of Isaiah, for I came out from Jerusalem, and mine eyes hath beheld the things of the Jews, and I know that the Jews do understand the things of the prophets, and there is none other people that understand the things which were spoken unto the Jews like unto them, save it be that they are taught after the manner of the things of the Jews.”

Colgate reads, “But behold, I, Nephi, have not taught my children after the manner of the Jews; but behold, I, of myself, have dwelt at Jerusalem, wherefore I know concerning the regions round about; and I have made mention unto my children concerning the judgments of God, which hath come to pass among the Jews, unto my children, according to all that which Isaiah hath spoken, and I do not write them.”

Octavia reads, “But behold, I proceed with mine own prophecy, according to my plainness; in the which I know that no man can err; nevertheless, in the days that the prophecies of Isaiah shall be fulfilled men shall know of a surety, at the times when they shall come to pass.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “Wherefore, they are of worth unto the children of men, and he that supposeth that they are not, unto them will I speak particularly, and confine the words unto mine own people; for I know that they shall be of great worth unto them in the last days; for in that day shall they understand them; wherefore, for their good have I written them.”

Sweet Tones reads, “And as one generation hath been destroyed among the Jews because of iniquity, even so have they been destroyed from generation to generation according to their iniquities; and never hath any of them been destroyed save it were foretold them by the prophets of the Lord.”

Drum Roll reads, “Wherefore, it hath been told them concerning the destruction which should come upon them, immediately after my father left Jerusalem; nevertheless, they hardened their hearts; and according to my prophecy they have been destroyed, save it be those which are carried away captive into Babylon.”

Lotta Pipes reads, “And now this I speak because of the spirit which is in me. And notwithstanding they have been carried away they shall return again, and possess the land of Jerusalem; wherefore, they shall be restored again to the land of their inheritance.”

Berry Punch reads, “But, behold, they shall have wars, and rumors of wars; and when the day cometh that the Only Begotten of the Father, yea, even the Father of heaven and of earth, shall manifest himself unto them in the flesh, behold, they will reject him, because of their iniquities, and the hardness of their hearts, and the stiffness of their necks.”

Carrot Top reads, “Behold, they will crucify him; and after he is laid in a sepulchre for the space of three days he shall rise from the dead, with healing in his wings; and all those who shall believe on his name shall be saved in the kingdom of God. Wherefore, my soul delighteth to prophesy concerning him, for I have seen his day, and my heart doth magnify his holy name.”

Rarity's mother reads, “And behold it shall come to pass that after the Messiah hath risen from the dead, and hath manifested himself unto his people, unto as many as will believe on his name, behold, Jerusalem shall be destroyed again; for wo unto them that fight against God and the people of his church.”

Rarity's father reads, “Wherefore, the Jews shall be scattered among all nations; yea, and also Babylon shall be destroyed; wherefore, the Jews shall be scattered by other nations.”

Wind Walker reads, “And after they have been scattered, and the Lord God hath scourged them by other nations for the space of many generations, yea, even down from generation to generation until they shall be persuaded to believe in Christ, the Son of God, and the atonement, which is infinite for all mankind—and when that day shall come that they shall believe in Christ, and worship the Father in his name, with pure hearts and clean hands, and look not forward any more for another Messiah, then, at that time, the day will come that it must needs be expedient that they should believe these things.”

Sleeping Beauty reads, “And the Lord will set his hand again the second time to restore his people from their lost and fallen state. Wherefore, he will proceed to do a marvelous work and a wonder among the children of men.”

Applebloom reads, “Wherefore, he shall bring forth his words unto them, which words shall judge them at the last day, for they shall be given them for the purpose of convincing them of the true Messiah, who was rejected by them; and unto the convincing of them that they need not look forward any more for a Messiah to come, for there should not any come, save it should be a false Messiah which should deceive the people; for there is save one Messiah spoken of by the prophets, and that Messiah is he who should be rejected of the Jews.”

Lyra reads, “For according to the words of the prophets, the Messiah cometh in six hundred years from the time that my father left Jerusalem; and according to the words of the prophets, and also the word of the angel of God, his name shall be Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”

At this point, I speak up and say, "This is the first prophesy in which the Christ is named before his birth. Later on, we'll read about how His mother is also named. And, considering this is for a people that has no chance of seeing the Christ while he's alive, not until his resurrection, it makes sense that such a people should get these kinds of details about Him." I then have my character turn to the herbivorous dinosaur next to him, and I say, "Weed Whacker, you can go ahead and read the next verse."

The little herbivorous dinosaur nods, then reads, “And now, my brethren, I have spoken plainly that ye cannot err. And as the Lord God liveth that brought Israel up out of the land of Egypt, and gave unto Moses power that he should heal the nations after they had been bitten by the poisonous serpents, if they would cast their eyes unto the serpent which he did raise up before them, and also gave him power that he should smite the rock and the water should come forth; yea, behold I say unto you, that as these things are true, and as the Lord God liveth, there is none other name given under heaven save it be this Jesus Christ, of which I have spoken, whereby man can be saved.”

I read, “Wherefore, for this cause hath the Lord God promised unto me that these things which I write shall be kept and preserved, and handed down unto my seed, from generation to generation, that the promise may be fulfilled unto Joseph, that his seed should never perish as long as the earth should stand.”

Zecora reads, “Wherefore, these things shall go from generation to generation as long as the earth shall stand; and they shall go according to the will and pleasure of God; and the nations who shall possess them shall be judged of them according to the words which are written.”

Mayor Mare reads, “For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.”

Princess Luna reads, “And, notwithstanding we believe in Christ, we keep the law of Moses, and look forward with steadfastness unto Christ, until the law shall be fulfilled.”

Princess Celestia reads, “For, for this end was the law given; wherefore the law hath become dead unto us, and we are made alive in Christ because of our faith; yet we keep the law because of the commandments.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.”

Spike reads, “Wherefore, we speak concerning the law that our children may know the deadness of the law; and they, by knowing the deadness of the law, may look forward unto that life which is in Christ, and know for what end the law was given. And after the law is fulfilled in Christ, that they need not harden their hearts against him when the law ought to be done away.”

Rarity reads, “And now behold, my people, ye are a stiffnecked people; wherefore, I have spoken plainly unto you, that ye cannot misunderstand. And the words which I have spoken shall stand as a testimony against you; for they are sufficient to teach any man the right way; for the right way is to believe in Christ and deny him not; for by denying him ye also deny the prophets and the law.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And now behold, I say unto you that the right way is to believe in Christ, and deny him not; and Christ is the Holy One of Israel; wherefore ye must bow down before him, and worship him with all your might, mind, and strength, and your whole soul; and if ye do this ye shall in nowise be cast out.”

Fluttershy reads, “And, inasmuch as it shall be expedient, ye must keep the performances and ordinances of God until the law shall be fulfilled which was given unto Moses.”

Applejack looks up and says, “Ah guess that means Ah start chapter twenty-six,” before looking down again and reading, “And after Christ shall have risen from the dead he shall show himself unto you, my children, and my beloved brethren; and the words which he shall speak unto you shall be the law which ye shall do.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “For behold, I say unto you that I have beheld that many generations shall pass away, and there shall be great wars and contentions among my people.”

Granny Smith reads, “And after the Messiah shall come there shall be signs given unto my people of his birth, and also of his death and resurrection; and great and terrible shall that day be unto the wicked, for they shall perish; and they perish because they cast out the prophets, and the saints, and stone them, and slay them; wherefore the cry of the blood of the saints shall ascend up to God from the ground against them.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “Wherefore, all those who are proud, and that do wickedly, the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts, for they shall be as stubble.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “And they that kill the prophets, and the saints, the depths of the earth shall swallow them up, saith the Lord of Hosts; and mountains shall cover them, and whirlwinds shall carry them away, and buildings shall fall upon them and crush them to pieces and grind them to powder.”

Hoity Toity reads, “And they shall be visited with thunderings, and lightnings, and earthquakes, and all manner of destructions, for the fire of the anger of the Lord shall be kindled against them, and they shall be as stubble, and the day that cometh shall consume them, saith the Lord of Hosts.”

Berry Ground reads, “O the pain, and the anguish of my soul for the loss of the slain of my people! For I, Nephi, have seen it, and it well nigh consumeth me before the presence of the Lord; but I must cry unto my God: Thy ways are just.”

Emerald Hill reads, “But behold, the righteous that hearken unto the words of the prophets, and destroy them not, but look forward unto Christ with steadfastness for the signs which are given, notwithstanding all persecution—behold, they are they which shall not perish.”

Stunts reads, “But the Son of Righteousness shall appear unto them; and he shall heal them, and they shall have peace with him, until three generations shall have passed away, and many of the fourth generation shall have passed away in righteousness.”

Cold Hands reads, “And when these things have passed away a speedy destruction cometh unto my people; for, notwithstanding the pains of my soul, I have seen it; wherefore, I know that it shall come to pass; and they sell themselves for naught; for, for the reward of their pride and their foolishness they shall reap destruction; for because they yield unto the devil and choose works of darkness rather than light, therefore they must go down to hell.”

Snails reads, “For the Spirit of the Lord will not always strive with man. And when the Spirit ceaseth to strive with man then cometh speedy destruction, and this grieveth my soul.”

Snips reads, “And as I spake concerning the convincing of the Jews, that Jesus is the very Christ, it must needs be that the Gentiles be convinced also that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God;”

Warm Heart reads, “And that he manifesteth himself unto all those who believe in him, by the power of the Holy Ghost; yea, unto every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, working mighty miracles, signs, and wonders, among the children of men according to their faith.”

Twist reads, “But behold, I prophesy unto you concerning the last days; concerning the days when the Lord God shall bring these things forth unto the children of men.”

Namby Pamby reads, “After my seed and the seed of my brethren shall have dwindled in unbelief, and shall have been smitten by the Gentiles; yea, after the Lord God shall have camped against them round about, and shall have laid siege against them with a mount, and raised forts against them; and after they shall have been brought down low in the dust, even that they are not, yet the words of the righteous shall be written, and the prayers of the faithful shall be heard, and all those who have dwindled in unbelief shall not be forgotten.”

Cheerilee reads, “For those who shall be destroyed shall speak unto them out of the ground, and their speech shall be low out of the dust, and their voice shall be as one that hath a familiar spirit; for the Lord God will give unto him power, that he may whisper concerning them, even as it were out of the ground; and their speech shall whisper out of the dust.”

Silver Spoon reads, “For thus saith the Lord God: They shall write the things which shall be done among them, and they shall be written and sealed up in a book, and those who have dwindled in unbelief shall not have them, for they seek to destroy the things of God.”

Filthy Rich reads, “Wherefore, as those who have been destroyed have been destroyed speedily; and the multitude of their terrible ones shall be as chaff that passeth away—yea, thus saith the Lord God: It shall be at an instant, suddenly—”

Diamond Tiara reads, “And it shall come to pass, that those who have dwindled in unbelief shall be smitten by the hand of the Gentiles.”

Bon-Bon reads, “And the Gentiles are lifted up in the pride of their eyes, and have stumbled, because of the greatness of their stumbling block, that they have built up many churches; nevertheless, they put down the power and miracles of God, and preach up unto themselves their own wisdom and their own learning, that they may get gain and grind upon the face of the poor.”

Colgate reads, “And there are many churches built up which cause envyings, and strifes, and malice.”

Octavia reads, “And there are also secret combinations, even as in times of old, according to the combinations of the devil, for he is the founder of all these things; yea, the founder of murder, and works of darkness; yea, and he leadeth them by the neck with a flaxen cord, until he bindeth them with his strong cords forever.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “For behold, my beloved brethren, I say unto you that the Lord God worketh not in darkness.”

Sweet Tones reads, “He doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore, he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation.”

Drum Roll reads, “Behold, doth he cry unto any, saying: Depart from me? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; but he saith: Come unto me all ye ends of the earth, buy milk and honey, without money and without price.”

Lotta Pipes reads, “Behold, hath he commanded any that they should depart out of the synagogues, or out of the houses of worship? Behold, I say unto you, Nay.”

Rarity's mother reads, “Hath he commanded any that they should not partake of his salvation? Behold I say unto you, Nay; but he hath given it free for all men; and he hath commanded his people that they should persuade all men to repentance.”

Rarity's father reads, “Behold, hath the Lord commanded any that they should not partake of his goodness? Behold I say unto you, Nay; but all men are privileged the one like unto the other, and none are forbidden.”

Wind Walker reads, “He commandeth that there shall be no priestcrafts; for, behold, priestcrafts are that men preach and set themselves up for a light unto the world, that they may get gain and praise of the world; but they seek not the welfare of Zion.”

Sleeping Beauty reads, “Behold, the Lord hath forbidden this thing; wherefore, the Lord God hath given a commandment that all men should have charity, which charity is love. And except they should have charity they were nothing. Wherefore, if they should have charity they would not suffer the laborer in Zion to perish.”

Scootaloo reads, “But the laborer in Zion shall labor for Zion; for if they labor for money they shall perish.”

Sweetie Belle reads, “And again, the Lord God hath commanded that men should not murder; that they should not lie; that they should not steal; that they should not take the name of the Lord their God in vain; that they should not envy; that they should not have malice; that they should not contend one with another; that they should not commit whoredoms; and that they should do none of these things; for whoso doeth them shall perish.”

Applebloom reads, “For none of these iniquities come of the Lord; for he doeth that which is good among the children of men; and he doeth nothing save it be plain unto the children of men; and he inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile.”

Lyra looks up and says, “I guess that means I start chapter twenty-seven.” And, before anyone can stop her, she looks down and reads, “But, behold, in the last days, or in the days of the Gentiles—yea, behold all the nations of the Gentiles and also the Jews, both those who shall come upon this land and those who shall be upon other lands, yea, even upon all the lands of the earth, behold, they will be drunken with iniquity and all manner of abominations—”

Weed Whacker reads, “And when that day shall come they shall be visited of the Lord of Hosts, with thunder and with earthquake, and with a great noise, and with storm, and with tempest, and with the flame of devouring fire.”

I read, “And all the nations that fight against Zion, and that distress her, shall be as a dream of a night vision; yea, it shall be unto them, even as unto a hungry man which dreameth, and behold he eateth but he awaketh and his soul is empty; or like unto a thirsty man which dreameth, and behold he drinketh but he awaketh and behold he is faint, and his soul hath appetite; yea, even so shall the multitude of all the nations be that fight against Mount Zion.”

Zecora reads, “For behold, all ye that doeth iniquity, stay yourselves and wonder, for ye shall cry out, and cry; yea, ye shall be drunken but not with wine, ye shall stagger but not with strong drink.”

Mayor Mare reads, “For behold, the Lord hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep. For behold, ye have closed your eyes, and ye have rejected the prophets; and your rulers, and the seers hath he covered because of your iniquity.”

Princess Luna reads, “And it shall come to pass that the Lord God shall bring forth unto you the words of a book, and they shall be the words of them which have slumbered.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And behold the book shall be sealed; and in the book shall be a revelation from God, from the beginning of the world to the ending thereof.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Wherefore, because of the things which are sealed up, the things which are sealed shall not be delivered in the day of the wickedness and abominations of the people. Wherefore the book shall be kept from them.”

Spike reads, “But the book shall be delivered unto a man, and he shall deliver the words of the book, which are the words of those who have slumbered in the dust, and he shall deliver these words unto another;”

Rarity reads, “But the words which are sealed he shall not deliver, neither shall he deliver the book. For the book shall be sealed by the power of God, and the revelation which was sealed shall be kept in the book until the own due time of the Lord, that they may come forth; for behold, they reveal all things from the foundation of the world unto the end thereof.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And the day cometh that the words of the book which were sealed shall be read upon the house tops; and they shall be read by the power of Christ; and all things shall be revealed unto the children of men which ever have been among the children of men, and which ever will be even unto the end of the earth.”

Fluttershy reads, “Wherefore, at that day when the book shall be delivered unto the man of whom I have spoken, the book shall be hid from the eyes of the world, that the eyes of none shall behold it save it be that three witnesses shall behold it, by the power of God, besides him to whom the book shall be delivered; and they shall testify to the truth of the book and the things therein.”

Applejack reads, “And there is none other which shall view it, save it be a few according to the will of God, to bear testimony of his word unto the children of men; for the Lord God hath said that the words of the faithful should speak as if it were from the dead.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “Wherefore, the Lord God will proceed to bring forth the words of the book; and in the mouth of as many witnesses as seemeth him good will he establish his word; and wo be unto him that rejecteth the word of God!”

Granny Smith reads, “But behold, it shall come to pass that the Lord God shall say unto him to whom he shall deliver the book: Take these words which are not sealed and deliver them to another, that he may show them unto the learned, saying: Read this, I pray thee. And the learned shall say: Bring hither the book, and I will read them.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “And now, because of the glory of the world and to get gain will they say this, and not for the glory of God.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “And the man shall say: I cannot bring the book, for it is sealed.”

Hoity Toity reads, “Then shall the learned say: I cannot read it.”

Berry Ground reads, “Wherefore it shall come to pass, that the Lord God will deliver again the book and the words thereof to him that is not learned; and the man that is not learned shall say: I am not learned.”

Emerald Hill reads, “Then shall the Lord God say unto him: The learned shall not read them, for they have rejected them, and I am able to do mine own work; wherefore thou shalt read the words which I shall give unto thee.”

Stunts reads, “Touch not the things which are sealed, for I will bring them forth in mine own due time; for I will show unto the children of men that I am able to do mine own work.”

Cold Hands reads, “Wherefore, when thou hast read the words which I have commanded thee, and obtained the witnesses which I have promised unto thee, then shalt thou seal up the book again, and hide it up unto me, that I may preserve the words which thou hast not read, until I shall see fit in mine own wisdom to reveal all things unto the children of men.”

Snails reads, “For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I work not among the children of men save it be according to their faith.”

Snips reads, “And again it shall come to pass that the Lord shall say unto him that shall read the words that shall be delivered him:”

Warm Heart reads, “Forasmuch as this people draw near unto me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their hearts far from me, and their fear towards me is taught by the precepts of men—”

Twist reads, “Therefore, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, yea, a marvelous work and a wonder, for the wisdom of their wise and learned shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent shall be hid.”

Namby Pamby reads, “And wo unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord! And their works are in the dark; and they say: Who seeth us, and who knoweth us? And they also say: Surely, your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter’s clay. But behold, I will show unto them, saith the Lord of Hosts, that I know all their works. For shall the work say of him that made it, he made me not? Or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, he had no understanding?”

Cheerilee reads, “But behold, saith the Lord of Hosts: I will show unto the children of men that it is yet a very little while and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field; and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest.”

Silver Spoon reads, “And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.”

Filthy Rich reads, “And the meek also shall increase, and their joy shall be in the Lord, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “For assuredly as the Lord liveth they shall see that the terrible one is brought to naught, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off;”

Bon-Bon reads, “And they that make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of naught.”

Colgate reads, “Therefore, thus saith the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale.”

Octavia reads, “But when he seeth his children, the work of my hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine.”

At this point, I'm looking at the heading of chapter twenty-eight, when I hear Octavia say, “I hope you don't mind, Mormon, but I think we should call it a night now. As much as I enjoy reading, I'm sure most of us need to be getting home now.”

My character looks up to show me, through his eyes, the gray earth mare as she speaks. When she's finished, I nod and say, “I'm thinking you have a point there. Now's as good a time as any to call an end to the reading.” I then have my character divide his attention among all the other members of the reading circle as I say, “I've enjoyed having you here, and I hope you've enjoyed being here. But, as Octavia said, it's time to call an end to the reading. Next time, I'm thinking we'll finish reading the Second Book of Nephi. Until then, please have a safe trip through the forest and back to your homes.”

The members of the circle rise and start talking amongst themselves.

Wind Walker and Sleeping Beauty approach my character, with Scootaloo following close behind them, and Wind Walker says, “This reading was indeed enjoyable. You can expect us to come tomorrow.”

I respond, “I'm glad you enjoyed it.”

Sleeping Beauty asks, “Is it alright if we keep the books you gave us?”

I answer, “You're quiet welcome to keep the books. And, you may read whatever you want in them. If you want to keep ahead in the reading, you can start with chapter twenty-eight of the Second Book of Nephi. If you want to read what's been read by everyone else in the circle, you can start with the first chapter of the First Book of Nephi. You may also find the introduction interesting. It includes the testimonies of eight witnesses who were allowed to handle the gold plates that were the original record, the testimonies of three witnesses who helped translate the Book of Mormon, and the testimony of Joseph Smith Junior, who received the record from God and translated it.”

Wind Walker nods and smiles, then says, “Thank you, Mormon.” He then turns to his daughter behind him and says, “Go on ahead, Scootaloo. You get to stay with your friends at Mormon's house tonight.”

The little orange pegasa looks up at her father and, smiling, says, “Thank you, daddy.” Then, she rides her scooter to the front porch of my character's house, where I happen to notice, through my character's eyes, Applebloom and Sweetie Belle are waiting for her already.

From behind my character, I hear Sleeping Beauty's voice say, “Take good care of our daughter, alright Mormon?”

My character turns to the pegasa, and I answer, “I'll be sure to take the best care I can.” Then, a thought occurs to me; and I ask, “Oh, by the way, will you be coming here, or shall I bring Scootaloo with me, her friends, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker when I get back to Ponyville tomorrow?”

The two pegasi exchange looks, then turn back to my character. It's Wind Walker who answers, “You bring her back to Ponyville with her friends and yours. We'll wait for you at the market place.”

I nod and say, “That sounds good to me. We'll see you then.”

As the two pegasi turn and walk toward the front gate, I hear the voice of Applejack from my character's right say, “Ah guess that means Ah'll be waitin' for my li'l sis in the market place, too?”

As my character turns to the orange earth mare, I answer, “I'm sure I'll know where to look for you. I'm guessing you'll have a stand set up, selling apples?”

Applejack answers, “Ah sure will. Ah hope Applebloom won't be too much trouble for y'all.”

I answer, “I'll have Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker to help out. And, Fluttershy has also volunteered to help.”

Applejack says, “Ah hear she took good care of the Cutie Mark Crusaders last night.”

I state, “I heard the same thing.”

The orange earth mare smiles and says, “Well, if she could handle three fillies on her lonesome, Ah'm sure she can help you, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker take care of 'em.”

I respond, “I figure I can use all the help I can get. I, for one, don't have that much experience taking care of three fillies, especially of all different types. I'm hoping if I can assign one filly to each of the ponies staying with me, especially matching types; that should be a big help.” And, I can't help noticing, from the edge of my character's periphery, the pink party pony approaching the orange earth pony from behind.

Applejack evidently doesn't notice as she smiles again and says, “Well, best of luck to y'all. If you can handle Pinkie Pie, then three fillies shouldn't be that big of a problem.”

Then, Applejack starts as Pinkie Pie, who has stopped just behind her, growls, “Hey!”

The orange earth mare looks behind her and, seeing the pink earth pony glaring at her, says, “Oh, Pinkie Pie, Ah didn't hear ya approachin'.”

From the left of my character, just out of his periphery, I hear Rarity's voice say, “Now, Pinkie Pie, I'm sure Applejack didn't mean anything by it.”

My character just takes a small step back and to his left to get the white unicorn in his view.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie says, “Yeah, I know.”

I then say, “So, Rarity, I'm guessing you have some advice for me about taking care of your little sister?”

Then, again from just outside my character's periphery, I hear Fluttershy's voice say, “Oh, I'm sure you don't need to worry about
Sweetie Belle. I'm sure that with my help Mormon'll be able to handle her.” And, the yellow pegasa comes in for a landing at a right angle to Rarity and Applejack.

Rarity turns and watches Fluttershy land, then says to her, “I still don't know how you were able to handle all three of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Why Sweetie Belle is just more than I can handle. I can't imagine what the three of them would've done to my boutique.”

I can't help laughing as I say, “Well, I guess it's my turn to find out how much of a handful the three fillies are going to be. But, like I said before, I have Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and Fluttershy to help me out. If anything, this'll give me experience taking care of foals.”

Applejack nods and says, “Well, Ah guess we oughta be goin' then. See y'all tomorrow, then?”

I nod and say to Applejack, “See you tomorrow.” I then have my character focus on Rarity, and I say, “And, I'll see you tomorrow as well. Shall I drop Sweetie Belle off at Carousel Boutique then?”

Rarity turns to see the three caped Crusaders on my character's front porch, then turns back to my character and says, “Knowing Sweetie Belle, she'll stay with her friends until you drop them off at the market place. So, I guess I'll be waiting for you there.”

I nod and say, “Very well, then. When we get back to Ponyville tomorrow, we'll head to the market place to drop off Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo.”

Applejack and Rarity say no more, at least not to my character, as they make their way to the front gate and wait in line to exit.

I must say, I'm surprised that the parents of Rarity and Sweetie Belle don't approach me. By the time I notice them, they're already outside the gate, waiting for Rarity.

Once the front yard is empty and the group headed for Ponyville have disappeared on the trail through the forest, I turn to find that the Cutie Mark Crusaders have been joined by Lyra and Weed Whacker on the front porch. My character, followed by Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy, makes his way to the front porch and past the small herd, who move to the right to allow him to pass.

Then, as my character opens the door, the trio of fillies shouts out, “Cutie Mark Crusaders, sleepover at Mormon's house, yay!” and immediately gallop through the front door and start exploring the front room.

My character holds the door open long enough for Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Fluttershy, and Weed Whacker to enter as well, then enters himself and closes the door behind him.

With all safely inside, I decide it's best to have the one with the most experience call the trio of fillies to attention. So, I have my character turn to the yellow pegasa, and I say, “Fluttershy, if you will?”

Fluttershy looks up at my character for a moment, then says, “Oh, yes, of course.” Then, she looks ahead of her and says, “Now, ladies, if you'll come forward, please.”

Immediately, and in this order, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo pretty much appear in front of Fluttershy, and Sweetie Belle asks, “Yes, Fluttershy?”

I say to the yellow pegasa, “Thanks.” Then, I say to the three fillies, “Now, I'm thinking it'll be most helpful to me that I assign each of you to an adult for the time you're here.”

Presently the trio respond by groaning in childish disappointment.

I continue, “Now, first of all, …”

Before I can say more, Pinkie Pie excitedly calls out, “Oh, oh, I get to take care of Applebloom!”

I state, “That is what I had in mind.”

Applebloom doesn't say anything, just looks down and ambles toward Pinkie Pie.

The pink party pony looks at her and says, “Aw, don't be like that. We're gonna have all sorts of fun together.”

I continue, “Fluttershy, I want you to take care of Scootaloo.”

At this point, I hear a giggle from Pinkie Pie as she says, “Mormon, you just sounded like Zecora.”

I can't argue that I did rhyme like my zebra friend.

As I see the orange pegasa filly take her position next to Fluttershy, I hear Lyra say, “I guess that means I take care of Sweetie Belle.”

I turn to the pale-green unicorn and answer, “That's right.” Then, as the white unicorn filly takes her position next to Lyra, I say, “Now, the next order of business is dinner. Guests aren't required to help us gather food in the vegetable garden, vineyard, and orchard; but, if you three want to volunteer, you're welcome to do so.”

At this point, I hear Applebloom say, “Ah've see'd Mormon and Pinkie Pie in the orchard a'buckin' apples outta one of his trees. Mormon said Pinkie Pie focuses so hard on apple buckin' she can't keep her hair curly. It falls flat.”

At this statement from the earth filly, the other two crusaders start giggling; and Applebloom joins in.

After a second or two, I say, “Alright, if you want to help me, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker, here's how it works. Pinkie Pie and I harvest fruits from the orchard, Lyra harvests fruits from the vineyard, and Weed Whacker harvests vegetables from the garden.” And, at that, I turn and open the front door again.

From a certain spot behind my character, I hear the trio of fillies speaking just above a whisper.

Scootaloo says, “Uh, I don't know about this. It sounds kinda boring.”

Sweetie Belle says, “Yeah, gathering food isn't my favorite thing either. But, if it's the only way we're gonna get something to eat, then I say we go for it.”

Applebloom says, “Well, buckin' apples ain't so bad. Whoever's a'gonna help Weed Whacker harvest the veggies is a'gonna have the hardest time of it. But, she'll likely be doin' all the work, so it shouldn't be all that bad. So, whatcha say, girls?”

A second later, I hear the trio call out, “Cutie Mark Crusaders harvesters, yay!”

I can't help chuckling to myself as the trio of fillies runs past my character out the door and down the porch.

As the three mares and the dinosaur join the fillies, and my character follows behind them, I hear Applebloom say, pointing to the orchard, “Alright. The orchard's that away.” Then, she uses the front hoof to scratch under her chin as she asks, “But, where's the vineyard, and where's the veggie garden?”

I answer, “Lyra knows where the vineyard is, and Weed Whacker knows where the vegetable garden is. You get to choose who you'll follow where.”

I hear Sweetie Belle say, “Well, I guess I'll follow Lyra to the vineyard.”

Applebloom says, “Ah'll follow Mormon and Pinkie Pie to the orchard.”

Scootaloo concludes, “And, I'll follow Weed Whacker to the veggie garden.”

Presently, as the trio split up and join their chosen groups, Fluttershy says, “Oh, I don't know about this. Shouldn't we all stay together?”

I answer her, “If you want, Fluttershy, you can stay in between the orchard, vineyard, and vegetable garden, and keep an eye on everyone.”

Fluttershy responds, “Oh, I don't know. It's dark, and I don't think I'll be able to see everypony.”

After a moment of thought, I say, “Well, Applebloom and Sweetie Belle will have an adult with them while they're harvesting fruits. You could be the adult with Scootaloo while she's harvesting vegetables with Weed Whacker. And, if you get worried about the rest of us, you can always call. Does that sound good to you?”

After a brief pause, Fluttershy answers, “I suppose so.”

I add, “Chances are it won't take any of us long to finish harvesting once we get started, especially with the help of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Pinkie Pie and I usually just choose one tree to harvest from at a time, and then it's just enough for our group for the one meal. That generally takes just a few minutes. And, that seems to be the same for Lyra and Weed Whacker.”

Fluttershy responds, “Well, alright then, if you're sure it won't be a problem.”

I state, “It hasn't been so far.”

An excited Applebloom gallops toward the orchard saying, “Well, then, what're we waitn' for? Let's get goin'! Cutie Mark Crusaders harvesters, yay!”

Pinkie Pie follows Applebloom, and I say to Fluttershy, “Like I said, this shouldn't take more than a few minutes. Just call if you need anything.” And, with that, I have my character follow the two earth ponies to the orchard.

Whatever Lyra says to Fluttershy seems to be muffled so I don't hear it very well. But, based on what I observe, she follows her statement by heading to the vineyard.

I'm not surprised by the need of my character to help Applebloom over the fence when he gets to the orchard. And, once the three are in the orchard and Pinkie Pie, now under the control of Diane, chooses a tree to harvest from, I hear Applebloom say, “Ah bet Ah can buck all the apples outta this tree b'fore Pinkie Pie can buck all the apples outta her tree.”

Presently, I say to the little yellow filly, “Now, hold on a moment.” Then, when it's evident I've gotten her attention, I continue, “We're not here to harvest all the apples out of all the trees. Around here, like I said to Fluttershy, we just get enough fruits for one meal for everyone that lives here.”

Applebloom focuses on my character and asks, “But, why not buck all the apples outta all the trees?”

I pause for a moment in thought before I ask, “Do you, Big MacIntosh and Applejack buck all the apples out of all the trees in your orchard in one day?”

Applebloom laughs and answers, “Ah'm sure you've see'd all the trees we have on Sweet Apple Acres. It'd take us a week to buck all them apples outta all them trees. We only buck 'em all when it's the end of the season.”

I state, “It wouldn't take that long to harvest all the fruit from this orchard, since it isn't as large as yours in Sweet Apple Acres. But, it is just enough for the needs of me and those that live in my house with me. We don't need so much fruit for one meal, so we just take what we need. If we harvested all the fruit, it'd most likely go bad before we could use it all.”

Applebloom asks, “Well, what about the end of the season?”

I answer, “Before about three weeks ago, it was always just me living here. Zecora would come by for a visit, and I'd share some fruit with her; but, again, it was adequate for my needs, sometimes a little more than adequate. Then, when winter came, well, I had other means to survive. And, I never had to make a business of raising fruit trees to sell their fruit to anyone else. I still don't need to do that.”

Just then, before I can say anymore, I hear a sound like a thud, then what sound like six or seven smaller thuds, indicating that Pinkie “Diane” Pie has started the harvest.

A few seconds later, I hear Pinkie Pie call out, “Time to gather the apples!”

With my character still focused on the little yellow filly, I say, “You heard Pinkie Pie. It's time to gather the apples she kicked out of the tree. Let's go ahead and do that.”

I think Applebloom rears up on her hind legs and kicks with her front ones as she says, “Alright, let's git gatherin'!”

I'm not sure if Applebloom sees where she's going, especially when I hear a soft thud and a grunt, followed by another soft thud.

Then I hear Pinkie Pie ask, “Applebloom, are you alright?”

I then hear Applebloom grumble, “Yeah, Ah'm alright.”

I say, “Well, let's get these apples gathered up, and we'll head back to the house.”

My character gathers three apples, and the two earth ponies gather the rest, after which we head back to the house. And, not surprising to me, my character carries Applebloom over the fence again, while Pinkie, back under the control of Pinkamena, just bounces over the fence.

By the time the two earth ponies and the human get back to the front porch, the other five are already there.

My character opens the door and allows the ponies and dinosaur to enter, then follows them in and closes the door behind them.

The three fillies check their own hips, then each others' all asking the same question: “Did we get our cutie marks yet?” And, from what I see through my character's eyes anyway, the answer to that question is no. And, when the three realize that, they simultaneously groan in disappointment.

I can't help chuckling as I say, “Let's go to the kitchen and get the fruits and veggies ready to eat. Then, we'll bring 'em back here to the front room.”

The three now distraught fillies grumble in unison, “Ah, alright.”

Pinkie Pie, who's already at the kitchen door, peers from behind the couch closest to her and says, “Aw, don't be like that. Come on. Let's get these fruits and veggies cleaned up, and then we can eat.”

The Cutie Mark Crusaders don't say anymore, just follow the three adult ponies, the human, and the dinosaur into the kitchen.

During this time, I've noticed that Scootaloo has been holding the vegetables on her back, or at least vegetables that were long enough to be draped across it.

In the kitchen, the system is the same as that used to prepare the snacks, except that the three fillies carry each clean fruit or vegetable into the front room, assisted by an adult. None of the fruits or vegetables are cut up.

When the group is back in the front room, and each member has selected a fruit or vegetable to eat, I decide to ask the trio of fillies, “So, why is it so important that you get your cutie marks?”

It's Sweetie Belle who, after chewing and swallowing her mouthful of carrot, answers, “Well, we're the only ones who don't have ours yet.”

I state, “So, you just want yours because everyone else has one, is that it?”

Scootaloo, with a mouth full of apple, answers, “Well, yeah.”

I ask, “And, if everyone else were jumping off the tallest bridge, would you be interested in that?”

The three stop for a moment and look at each other, then start laughing.

After a second or two, Applebloom turns to my character and answers, “Course not. Just 'cause ever'pony else is a'doin' it don't mean we should be interested.”

At this point, I state, “I don't want to discourage you from getting your cutie marks, I just want to be sure you're searching for them for the right reasons. I just wonder, what if your cutie marks aren't tied to a particular talent? Or, what if your cutie marks are attached to an activity you don't like?” After a pause to note that the three fillies are focused on my character, I continue, “Now, I can understand the need to find what makes each of you what you are, what identifies you from any other pony, besides your names. Humans also search for their own identities, some for their whole lives. And, more often than not, as we humans live our lives, that identity comes a piece at a time. For you ponies, on the other hand, your identities come in an instant, and are manifested in a picture on your hips. And, once you find that identifying mark, you only lose it when you lose either your magic or your life. I don't know if it works the same way for you ponies as it does for us humans; but when we die, we get that life back when we're resurrected. I do know that you can get your cutie marks back when you get your magic back.

“I do look forward to seeing you get your cutie marks, and find out what makes each of you what you are. And, I'm thinking, I'm hoping, you'll find your identifiers when you find out what you enjoy most. And, don't be surprised if each of you gets a different mark from the others, and at a different time. But, if I might offer some advice, just because one of you gets your cutie mark at a different time from the others, don't kick her out of the group. She can still help you, even if she already has her cutie mark, maybe because she has her cutie mark. And, the same goes for a classmate that already has his or her cutie mark. Don't separate from him or her just because of that. Just because that classmate has their cutie mark doesn't mean he or she can't help you find yours.”

For a few seconds there is silence, except for the sound of munching on fruits and vegetables.

Then, Applebloom asks, “Didn't you say once that humans see cutie marks as tattoos or brands, and actions speak louder to them than cutie marks?”

I answer, “I did say that once, yes.”

The curious earth filly asks, “So, what're you really good at?”

I pause for a moment to smile, then say, “I happen to be good at all sorts of things, some things that you may not understand.”

It's Sweetie Belle who squeaks, “Like what?”

Again I smile before I say, “Well, in general, if math is a major part it, then I'm likely to be good at it.”

Again Sweetie Belle asks, “Like what?”

I hum for a moment in thought, then I say, “Well, I have a talent for music. I'm good at singing, and I've found I'm good at playing different kinds of musical instruments.”

Scootaloo seems in shock as she says, “Music … and math … ?” Then, she shakes herself out, then sticks her tongue out and groans in disgust.

I have my character focus on the little orange pegasa, and I say, “You may be surprised. Math is a lot of fun, or at least it can be.”

Under her breath, Scootaloo grumbles, “Yeah, I'll believe that when I see it.”

I laugh for a second or two before I say, “I understand. Not everyone's talented at everything. I'm good at math-related subjects, and not-so-good at athletics. There are things that I'm good at, and other things I'm not.” I then have my character divide his attention among the three fillies as I continue, “And, I'm sure the same thing is true for all three of you. There may be some things that Sweetie Belle is good at, that the rest of you aren't. And, I'm sure the same can be said about Applebloom and Scootaloo. I do look forward to seeing you find out what you're good at. Just don't be surprised when one of you proves good at something that the rest of you may not be good at.”

The three look at each other, then back at my character again, and together say, “Yeah, whatever.” And, they continue eating.

For the rest of dinner the ponies talk amongst themselves about other things; but the conversations are simultaneous, so that making anything out on any given subject is rendered pretty much impossible.

After dinner, the ponies, the dinosaur, and the human join forces to clean up. Then, with Lyra and Weed Whacker guarding the front door, the Cutie Mark Crusaders are allowed to play in the front room for a while.

During this time, Pinkie Pie grabs my character's hand in her mane and drags him into the kitchen. There, she guides him to a chair and, after letting him go, occupies the chair on the opposite side of the table from him. Once seated, she focuses on my character and asks, “Mormon, do you remember when you mentioned something about meetings among the Nephites?”

I answer, “Yeah, what about it?”

Pinkie Pie continues, “One thing that stuck out to me was that one verse, 'And we speak of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, and we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to whom they may turn for a remission of their sins.'” After a brief pause, she asks, “Was that what you meant when you talked about those meetings among the Nephites?”

I answer, “That was what I was referring to, yes. Although, come to think of it, I suppose things like that may not have been specific to church gatherings. Did you have anything specific to ask about that?”

Pinkie Pie shakes her head and answers, “No, I was just wondering.”

I have to wonder if that was really all she had to ask about. Before I can ask, though, Fluttershy enters the kitchen and, seeing my character and her pink earth pony friend at the table, asks, “Mormon, Pinkie Pie, is there a bedroom available for me and Scootaloo to spend the night?”

I answer, “On one side of the hallway leading from the front room, the first door on the right in fact, is a bedroom. There are also two bedrooms at the end of that hallway. You can choose from one of them.”

Fluttershy smiles and says, “Oh, thank you.” Then, she asks, “Also, are there any bathrooms along that hallway?”

I answer, “The first door on the left along that hallway leads to my work room. The second door leads to the bathroom, which is right across the hallway from a closet, which should have clean towels and other things for the bathroom.”

Again Fluttershy smiles, but she also nods as she says, “Oh, thank you, Mormon.”

I ask, “Have the Cutie Mark Crusaders worn themselves out yet?”

Fluttershy giggles for a second before answering, “No, not yet. They are fillies, after all. And, like all foals their age, they have lots and lots of energy.”

I state, “Well, I'm sure that at least one more of us needs to be in the front room helping Lyra and Weed Whacker keep the Crusaders in line.”

Fluttershy's smiling face morphs into an expression of surprise, and she puts a front hoof to her mouth as she says, “Oh, you're right. I'm sorry, Mormon.”

Before the yellow pegasa disappears through the door, I respond, “That's alright, Fluttershy. You had some good, important questions to ask.” Then, as Fluttershy disappears through the door, I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie; and I say, “I think we should get in there and help, too.”

Pinkie Pie jumps off of her chair and responds, “You're right, Mormon. Let's get going.”

The human and pink earth pony enter the room just in time for my character to catch an airborne Scootaloo before she can make an accidental entrance into the kitchen, one that would likely have at least damaged the door.

For another hour the three adult ponies, the three fillies, the human and the dinosaur play a few games. Then, the groups separate, Applebloom following Pinkie Pie, Sweetie Belle following Lyra and Weed Whacker, and Scootaloo following Fluttershy as they head to their rooms.

Fluttershy and Scootaloo occupy the first bedroom on the right side of the hallway connected to the front room, a room that had been occupied by Octavia and Vinyl Scratch first, then by Carrot Top and Berry Punch.

As the remaining five follow my character into the kitchen, Lyra says, “You know, Mormon, here Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy and I have charge of each of the three fillies, and you don’t have charge over anypony.”

I have my character step aside to allow the five others to pass, and I say, “One of the jobs of a leader is to delegate responsibility to others.”

Lyra turns to my character and says, “So, you delegate the responsibility of each of the three fillies to us, and you don’t have to make any decisions.”

I respond, “I did make the decision to hand over responsibility of each of the fillies to the pony I thought could handle it best.”

Lyra tilts her head and asks, “And so you put me in charge of Sweetie Belle?”

Sweetie Belle seems hurt as she asks, “Is there something wrong with me?”

I have my character turn to the little white unicorn filly, and I answer, “I’m sure Lyra didn’t mean it that way.” I then have him turn back to Lyra as I answer, “I’m thinking you know more about taking care of unicorns, especially unicorn foals, than I do. I have had experience taking care of you, but you’re an adult. And, like I said, you have responsibility over Sweetie Belle because I’m sure you can handle it best.”

The look Lyra gives me suggests that she’s looking for a way to change my mind. After a few seconds I can only guess she finds none, as she turns away from my character and says, “Fine. I’ll take care of Sweetie Belle.”

As the pale-green unicorn follows Sweetie Belle and the two earth ponies down the hall from the kitchen, I open my mouth to say something, only for Pinkie Pie to beat me to it. She even says what I was going to say: “And, you’ll have Weed Whacker to help you. If you need help, you can always ask Mormon, or me, or Fluttershy.”

As Pinkie Pie opens the door to her room to allow Applebloom to enter ahead of her, I hear Sweetie Belle whine, “You don’t like me, do you, Lyra.”

The pale-green unicorn uses some of her magic to pick up the little white unicorn filly, then more of her magic to open the door to her own bedroom, as she says, “Now, I didn’t mean it that way, Sweetie Belle.”

As the two unicorns and the herbivorous dinosaur disappear through the bedroom door, I hear Sweetie Belle sob, “Yes, you did.”

It’s clear to me, from what I’ve heard just now, that, of the three ponies given responsibility over one of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Lyra’s going to have the most difficult time with Sweetie Belle. That is, unless she changes her attitude.

After my character enters his room, and when he’s ready to write the letter to the princesses, that’s the first thing I have him write about. After that, I talk about how things have turned out with Twilight visiting Fluttershy in the morning, then my character, the element bearers and Weed Whacker visiting the clinic to get their first looks at the Cakes’ twin foals, and how I had to discipline Pinkie Pie for going into the nursery where she shouldn’t have been.

I also add how I delegated responsibility for taking care of each of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who are spending the night with me and the others living with me, among three adult ponies: Applebloom to Pinkie Pie, Sweetie Belle to Lyra, and Scootaloo to Fluttershy, who asked to help me out.

After concluding and signing the letter, I deliver it to Weed Whacker, who sends it off. And, I can't help noticing that Sweetie Belle has calmed down by then. After that, my character returns to his room and goes to bed.

You know, I wonder if I should’ve mentioned the impromptu pet play date I had with Pinkie Pie and Lyra. I suppose it isn’t all that important. What matters is that I’ve delivered my report to the princesses. And, thus I conclude my character's day and evening by saving and closing the game until the next time I play.

Chapter 19: A Number on the Music

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This time, as I start the game, it seems that, for once, my character doesn’t wake up to pounding on his door. Instead, it’s to the sound of galloping and juvenile giggling in the hallway past his door, toward the kitchen.

As my character rises from his bed, I hear Lyra’s voice call out, “Now, be careful, Sweetie Belle. You never know when Mormon’s gonna come out of his room. You don’t wanna run into his door.”

I’m not entirely sure what Lyra’s warning Sweetie Belle about. But, knowing there are juvenile ponies running around in the hallways, I’m prepared to take care not to have my character open his door too quickly, just in case one or more of the Crusaders runs into it, or diverts into the wall. When I’m sure there’s no traffic in the hallway, I have my character open his door, but still slowly.

As my character steps out into the hallway, I hear Applebloom call out, “Scootaloo, hold up a moment!”

My character turns toward the kitchen to show me, through his eyes, the little orange pegasa on her scooter, evidently ready to race toward either Pinkie Pie’s or Lyra’s bedroom. And, based on the way she’s facing, my guess is she was going to do it backwards.

Just then, from the upper half of my character’s periphery, I see Fluttershy’s face come into view, etched with worry. She says, “Oh, I’m sorry, Mormon.” Then, she turns to the little orange pegasa and says, “Whatever you were thinking of doing, Scootaloo, I really don’t think you should be doing it.”

Scootaloo emits a groan of disappointment, then takes a step off of her scooter.

I state, “Fluttershy’s right. Racing through hallways on your scooter, especially backward, is not a good idea.” Then, as the startled juvenile pegasa turns and looks at my character, I continue, “However, if you want, you can help me, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and Pinkie Pie pick fruits and vegetables outside.”

Again, Scootaloo groans, before whining, “But, we did that last night.”

I respond, “We do that on a daily basis when we want to eat. And, it really isn’t that bad.”

Scootaloo whines, “But, last night, I had to hold all the vegetables Weed Whacker picked.”

I state, “Well, in that case, you could help me and Pinkie Pie out in the orchard, or you could help Lyra out in the vineyard.”

At this point, Fluttershy says, “Actually, Lyra decided to stay in here and help take care of the Crusaders. Weed Whacker’s taking care of the vineyard as well as the vegetable garden.”

Hearing that, I say, “Well, I guess that means I should leave the orchard to Pinkie Pie, and take over harvesting in the vineyard while Weed Whacker harvests in the vegetable garden.” I then have my character turn to Scootaloo, and I ask, “So, do you wanna help me in the vineyard?”

Scootaloo looks up at my character and answers, “Well, as long as I don’t have to carry all the vegetables, then sure, I’ll help you.”

As the little orange pegasa moves forward to allow my character room to get to the kitchen door, I say, “The vegetables are Weed Whacker’s department. Some of the fruits are in the vineyard, and the rest are in the orchard. Usually it’s me and Pinkie Pie in the orchard, but since Lyra’s staying inside, I’m guessing I’ll be harvesting in the vineyard.”

As my character stands up, Scootaloo says, “Well then, let’s go.”

Just then, Applebloom says, “Oh, Ah wanna help, Ah wanna help.”

Sweetie Belle squeaks, “If Scootaloo’s helpin’ Mormon, I wanna help Weed Whacker!”

Then from behind my character, I hear Lyra say, “The only reason I decided to stay inside with Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle was to keep them occupied indoors while Weed Whacker and Pinkie Pie harvested fruits and vegetables outside. If these three fillies are going to be helping in the vegetable garden and the vineyard, then there’s no reason for me to be indoors. And, since it’ll be easier to keep an eye on them while they’re all in the same place, I might as well go outside with the rest of you.”

I have my character turn to Fluttershy as I ask, “So, do you wanna come with us?”

The yellow pegasa hums in uncertainty for a moment, then turns to Applebloom and asks, “Would you rather help Weed Whacker, or Mormon?”

As my character focuses on the little yellow earth filly, she looks at my character for a second or two, then says, “Ah think Ah’ll help Mormon.”

Since my character’s focused on Applebloom, I only hear Lyra as she says, “Well, in that case, I’ll just watch over Applebloom and Scootaloo.” As my character shifts his focus to the pale-green unicorn, I hear her add, “Fluttershy, you can watch over Sweetie Belle.”

Fluttershy nods and smiles as she says, “Well, alright, if that’s what you think is best.”

With all decisions evidently made, I have my character open the kitchen door for the ponies, who file out through it. From there on, my character follows the ponies through the front room, closing the kitchen door behind them, then moves ahead to the front door. By the time he gets there, it seems that Lyra has already used her magic to open it. So, he waits for the ponies to exit through the door, then follows them out and closes the door behind them.

Then, he turns around to find Pinkie Pie ascending the stairs and saying, “Just hold the door open for me. I’m already finished harvesting fruits from the orchard.”

Acting in agreement, I have my character open the door again to allow the pink earth pony through, then close the door behind her. I’m not surprised that it took such a short time for Pinkie Pie to finish harvesting fruits from the orchard. After all, with Diane’s skills, it shouldn’t have taken long for her to get the apples and any other fruits she could from the trees she chose.

After my character closes the door behind Pinkie Pie, I have my character follow the group of other ponies to the vineyard, where Sweetie Belle separates and heads into the vegetable garden, hoping to help Weed Whacker. But, not before the trio of fillies shouts, “Cutie Mark Crusaders harvesters, yay!”

Lyra and I follow Scootaloo and Applebloom into the vineyard, while Fluttershy follows Sweetie Belle into the vegetable garden.

I have my character start searching the nearest kiwi vine for ripe fruits as I ask, “So, Lyra, how did things go with Sweetie Belle last night?”

I hear the unicorn sigh before she says, “Well, it took some time to calm her down and let her know I really wasn’t against spending time with her. After that, we spent time talking about what we’d read from the Book of Mormon, as well as what you’d said to them about their cutie marks and the Crusaders’ quest to find them. It took an hour, but eventually she managed to fall asleep; and it wasn’t long after that that I also fell asleep. All in all, not a bad experience.”

I state, as my character picks his first kiwi fruit from the vine, “I’m glad to hear that you had such a good experience.”

I hear Lyra respond, “Yeah. Maybe someday I’ll have a family of my own. Then, maybe I can put my experience with Sweetie Belle to good use.”

I don’t say this aloud, but I find it pleasing to hear Lyra talk about starting her own family. If what she’d told me about her experience with Sweetie Belle, and her response to it, is an accurate indication, she sounds like she could be a good mother.

From behind my character, I hear Scootaloo ask, “Do you think that these grapes are alright to pick?”

I hear Applebloom answer, “Ah don’t think so. Those’re too small. Look for a bunch with larger grapes.”

I lose track of the rest of the conversation as my character continues to harvest kiwi fruits until he has about a dozen of them. Then after that, he turns to show me, through his eyes, that Lyra’s been using her magic to hold a bunch or two of grapes that Applebloom and Scootaloo have harvested, and they’ve been waiting for my character to finish picking as many fruits as he’s decided on. After that, he, along with Lyra, Applebloom, and Scootaloo, leave the vineyard and head back to the house, followed closely behind, as it turns out, by Weed Whacker, Fluttershy, and Sweetie Belle.

Back inside, with Weed Whacker once again in the sink, and this time with Fluttershy along with Pinkie Pie and Lyra at the table, the group gets to work cleaning and preparing the vegetables and fruits to be eaten. After that, the Cutie Mark Crusaders help bring the plant parts into the front room to eat them.

Again I lose track of what’s said as the group eats the prepared fruits and vegetables. But, afterwards, and after the cleanup, the entire group heads out, across the front yard, and on into the forest.

After another uneventful half hour, Fluttershy decides to separate from the group and head to her cottage to take care of her critters.

And, after a short walk from there, who should be there at the borders of Ponyville to meet the group than Mr. Cake. He says, “I’m planning on opening Sugar Cube Corner again tomorrow.”

At the announcement Pinkie Pie rears up on her hind legs and kicks with her front ones as she shouts, “Yes! Yes!” Then, she drops down onto all fours again as she says, “I’m gonna make cakes, and cupcakes, and cookies, and pies, and …”

The orange earth stallion smiles and says, “Yes, yes, Pinkie Pie, that’s right.” Turning to my character, he adds, “But, since Cup’s gonna be taking care of the twins, I’m going to need some extra help in the kitchen. So, I was wondering, could you help out, Mormon?”

There’s one thing that Mr. Cake said that I can’t help thinking about. I ask, “So, Mrs. Cake’s home then?”

Mr. Cake answers, “She’s at Sugar Cube Corner, yes. She recovered so quickly from foaling that the doctors decided to release her from the clinic.” Then, once again he asks, “So, will you help us out in the kitchen?”

I answer, “I’d be honored to. I’m guessing we begin as soon as we get to the bakery?”

Mr. Cake turns away from the group of four and starts his march as he says, “That’s right. We won’t be opening today, but we will be getting ready by baking as much as we can. We’ll be opening tomorrow.” Then, after a moment, he adds, “And, there’s one more thing. We’ve got another appliance I want to try out, a taffy-pulling machine.”

Something about that reminds me of a certain episode, the one called “Show Stoppers,” in which the Cutie Mark Crusaders, in a vain attempt to get their marks, try using such a machine at the bakery, and end up getting stuck in it. In fact, this particular day is based on that episode.

And then, Lyra comes up with a concern that must be addressed first. She approaches my character and asks, “Mormon, shouldn’t we deliver the Cutie Mark Crusaders to their families at the market place first?”

It takes me a moment to remember that I’d promised to do so as soon as I got into town, after which I say, “Oh, that’s right.” Then, I have my character turn his attention from her to Mr. Cake, then point to the Cutie Mark Crusaders, as I say, “If you can wait for a few minutes, we have to take these three fillies to their parents in the market place, then we’ll come right back.”

I notice, from the bottom left corner of my character’s periphery, Pinkie Pie blink, then say, “Oh, that’s right. And then, Lyra’s gotta get a new—!” She manages to catch herself, covering her mouth with her front hooves, before she can reveal Lyra’s plans to get a new dress for the Grand Galloping Gala at Rarity’s boutique. When she puts the hooves down again, after a few seconds, she says, “Lyra, you and Mormon go on ahead with Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. Weed Whacker, Mr. Cake and I will meet you at Sugar Cube Corner, alright, Mormon?”

I smile as I say, “It shouldn’t take too much time. See you later.” And, with that, and with Lyra walking next to him and the Crusaders behind them, I have my character make his way to Ponyville’s market place.

On the way there, Applebloom asks, “Lyra, what was Pinkie Pie sayin’ you were a’gonna get that’s new?”

Lyra answers, “Uh, nothing for you to worry about.”

I hear whispering after that from the Crusaders, but I don’t pay attention to it as my character leads the group the rest of the way to the market place.

Once there, Applebloom runs to Applejack, Sweetie Belle runs to Rarity, and Scootaloo runs to her parents.

After they greet each other, and the adults thank my character for taking care of the Crusaders, Lyra approaches the purple-haired unicorn and asks, “Uh, Rarity, could you make a dress for me?”

Rarity answers, “Well, I’d be happy to, darling. What do you need it for?”

Lyra answers, “Well, I have this appointment coming up, and I need formal attire for it.”

Rarity seems to accept the cryptic response, as she says, “Oh, I see.” Then, nodding to her sister, she says, “But, if I’m going to help you, then I shall need somepony to take care of Sweetie Belle so she’s not in the way.” Then, it’s all I can do to keep from laughing when she dramatically puts a forelimb over her forehead and asks, “Oh, is there anypony who will help me out of this dilemma?” And, she turns to Applejack.

And, the orange earth pony doesn’t make it any easier for me to keep from laughing when she says, “Oh, alright. Ah do have a surprise fer Applebloom anyways.”

Then, Scootaloo turns to her parents and asks, “Oh, mommy and daddy, can I go with Applebloom and Sweetie Belle too, please?”

The two pegasi turn and smile at each other, then turn back to their daughter. It’s Sleeping Beauty who answers, “Sure, go right ahead.”

The little orange pegasa jumps and thrusts a front hoof up into the air as she shouts, “Yahoo!” Then, when she lands, she flaps her wings, propelling herself on her scooter to her two friends.

As the trio of fillies helps Applejack pack up her apple cart, then follow her to Sweet Apple Acres, they call out, “Cutie Mark Crusaders, yay!”

When those four ponies are far enough away, I have my character turn to the two unicorns, and I say, “I’ll walk with you over to the boutique, alright?”

Lyra smiles and answers, “Sure, no problem.”

And, with that, the two unicorns and one human head, without saying anything, to Carousel Boutique.

Once the group arrives, at the front door, Lyra turns to my character and says, “You go on back to Sugar Cube Corner and help Pinkie Pie, Weed Whacker, and Mr. Cake. I’ll stay here and maybe offer assistance getting my dress made.”

I nod and say, “Alright then.” And, while Lyra follows Rarity into the boutique, my character makes his way back to the bakery, which is, sure enough, open from the door in the alleyway.

As my character enters, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, hi, Mormon. Come on in.”

I have my character close the door once he’s inside, then turn his attention to Mr. Cake, who’s putting ingredients into a bowl. I ask him, “So, what do you want me to do?”

The orange earth stallion points to the counter next to the oven, where I can see, through my character’s eyes, maybe half a dozen blocks of differing colors, then to what looks to me like a Kitchenaid blender with two forks, one on top and one on the bottom, each with two teeth, as he says, “Yes. If you’ll put some of that taffy in the puller there, we can go ahead and see how it works.”

I have my character approach the colored blocks as I ask, “Is there a particular color you want me to start with?”

Mr. Cake pauses and hums for a moment, then says, “Start with the blue taffy.” Then, he grabs a spoon and starts stirring ingredients in a bowl in front of him.

I have my character grab a knife from nearby and cut a section from the blue block and take the section to the puller, and find that the section my character is carrying is starting to melt. After that, I have my character drape the taffy over the top blender fork, then start walking around the blender to see where the controls are. Seeing a switch with a list of integers in descending order from ten to one, I have my character turn to Mr. Cake again, and I ask, “And, what speed do you want it?”

Mr. Cake stops mixing and approaches my character. Seeing the numbers, he again hums for a moment, then says, “Start at speed two, I guess. If it’s too slow, then go to a higher speed. If it’s too fast, then switch to a lower speed.” And, with that, he returns to his bowl and spoon, and goes back to mixing.

Following the orange earth stallion’s instructions, I have my character move the switch to the number 2, and watch as the two blender parts start pulling the taffy, one of the two spindles of one mixer passing in between the two of the other to catch the taffy and pull it away. I’ve seen at least one other machine work the way this one is working, but up and down instead of from one side to the other.

Then, Mr. Cake calls out, “Now, I’m not really sure how it’s supposed to work!”

I respond, “That’s alright. I’ve seen machines like this, and I have a good idea about how they work.”

The orange earth stallion calls out, “Well, in that case, I’m putting you in charge of the taffy!”

I just grunt in affirmation, then continue to watch the taffy in the puller. I must admit, watching the taffy in the puller, it surprises me that it remains where it should be as it gets pulled. Yes, I know I programmed the taffy object to behave the way it is, but I still have to wonder, in reality, would taffy really behave that way? But, right now, that doesn’t matter very much. In a matter of minutes, the taffy has lightened in color; and the puller is having more and more difficulty pulling it. After maybe an hour, I decide it’s struggled enough; and I have my character turn the machine off.

As my character removes the pulled taffy from the machine and puts it on a counter top, Pinkie Pie, seeing it, says, “Ooh, pretty.” Then, noticing the color, she asks, “Uh, Mormon, why is it lighter than when you put it in?”

I shrug and answer, “That’s what happens to taffy when it gets pulled. It lightens in color, and it gets tough.” I then have my character take out a knife, then put it next to the line of taffy; then I ask Mr. Cake, “So, how long do you want the pieces of taffy to be?”

Mr. Cake answers, “Uh, make the pieces as long as they are wide.”

I respond, “Alright,” then have my character cut the taffy into pieces that are equal in length to their width. Not too surprisingly, leaving the instructions to the computer, my character manages to cut the line of taffy into equal-sized pieces. Then, he takes the platter from the closest shelf, puts the pieces on the platter, then carries the platter to Mr. Cake to get his approval.

The orange earth stallion takes one look at the colored sweets, and I notice his eyes widen as he turns to my character and says, “Wow, Mormon, you did a really good job. I think I’ll keep you in charge of pulling taffy from now on.”

I ask, “So, where should I put these for right now?”

Mr. Cake answers, “Uh, put them in the fridge for now. They’ll be treats for foals who want them.”

I nod in agreement, then have my character place the completed treats in the fridge, then remove the puller parts and get them cleaned off before putting them back in place and taking more of the taffy, this time red, to the puller to get it pulled.

While Pinkie Pie, Weed Whacker, and Mr. Cake are making rolls, cupcakes, muffins, loaves of bread, and other pastries, my character operates the taffy-pulling machine, doing as I instructed him to do the first time.

My character probably makes three more batches of pulled taffy before Lyra comes in, talking about how Rarity’s done a good job with her dress. Then, seeing my character at the taffy puller, she asks, “When did the Cakes get one of those things?”

Mr. Cake answers, “I ordered it when Cup and I were in the clinic. Mormon’s been operating it, and he’s been doing a good job making pulled taffy.”

Lyra asks, “Really? Could I try some?”

Mr. Cake answers, “You can have a sample of each color. Then, I need you to help me, Pinkie Pie and Weed Whacker make pastries.”

After a second, Lyra asks, “So, where are they?”

Mr. Cake and I answer together, “They’re in the fridge.”

After a second, I hear Lyra say, “Oh, there it is.” After that, I hear the door to the fridge open, and the pale-green unicorn, I assume, takes samples of the candies and eats them. At least, that’s what I understand when she mentions flavors and appraises them. It seems that the blue is blueberry flavored, the red is cherry flavored, the yellow is lemon, and the orange is, well, orange. I have to say, it surprises me that Lyra would be familiar with all those fruit flavors, especially the citrus ones.

Then, just as Lyra’s finished appraising the taffy samples, the three Cutie Mark Crusaders come in, and Sweetie Belle asks, “So, Mr. Cake, can we help out in here?”

At this point, I remember when Applebloom tried to help Pinkie Pie make cupcakes to try to earn her cutie mark in eating them.

Before I can say anything about it, I hear Mr. Cake answer, “Sure. You can help Mormon.”

I then hear a brief, small stampede up to my character, followed by Sweetie Belle asking, “Oh, Mormon, please, can we help you?”

As my character turns and shows me, through his eyes, the three eager, smiling faces, I can’t help remembering how things turned out in the episode “Show Stoppers,” when the three fillies got caught in the machine, and ended up glued together by the taffy they were covered in. I answer, “Alright, but you need to follow my instructions.” Noticing the condition of the taffy already in the puller, I state, “This batch is just about finished. I’ll remove it and put it on the counter, then you three can help clean off the spindles, then I’ll put them back on, then you can help me get the next batch ready to be pulled.”

Presently, the three fillies shout out, “Yay! Cutie Mark Crusaders, taffy pulling helpers, yay!”

Evidently, what I’d hoped to teach the trio last night went in one ear and out the other. But, I suppose that’s alright. Experience usually is the best teacher.

The trio do prove helpful in cleaning off the spindles, mainly licking off the remaining taffy, and enjoying it. Then, after my character gets the parts cleaned off, he puts them back in place on the puller, after which I tell Scootaloo, “Now, if you’ll bring the green taffy, that’s the only one I haven’t tried yet.”

The little orange pegasa salutes my character and says, “Yes, sir.” Then, she rides her scooter over and retrieves the green taffy, then brings it back to my character.

As my character is putting the taffy onto the mobile puller part, I say, “Now, it’s important that you keep parts of you away that can get caught in the puller parts. That means, keep your manes and tails away from the moving parts of the puller.” Then, once my character moves the switch on the puller to the number 2, I have him turn to the trio of fillies, and I say, “Now, I’m gonna be over here cutting up the last batch of pulled taffy. It shouldn’t take very long, but I want you to let me know if I need to speed up the puller, or slow it down.”

This time, all three of the fillies salute my character and say, “Yes, sir!”

Confident that I’ve given the three fillies adequate instructions, I have my character turn his attention to the taffy on the counter, where he starts cutting the line into equal portions, each as long as they are wide. I count some ten candies cut before I hear a scream from the direction of the puller, and three staggered fillies’ voices call out variations of “Mormon, help!”

As my character turns to the puller, I notice each of them hanging on for dear life to a spindle as the machine relentlessly operates to pull the taffy. Instantly, my character runs to the machine and switches it off, then allows the machine to slow rapidly to a stop. When the puller has stopped, he then assists the three dazed fillies out of the blades. Noticing the colored mess, I ask, “What happened?”

Applebloom is the first to snap out of her dazed state, after which, looking at my character with a look of sorrow on her face, answers, “We thought we could be more helpful by putting the rest of the colors of taffy in the puller. Next thing Ah know, Scootaloo was a’bein’ pulled in there with the taffy. Sweetie Belle and Ah tried to get her out, but we got pulled in, too.”

I state, “Well, you’re safe now.”

A clearly and reasonably shaken Mr. Cake walks up to the trio and says, “Yeah. Maybe you sh-should t-try something s-safer.”

The now disheartened trio makes their way to the back door, and it’s Sweetie Belle who says, “Sorry about the mess.” And, even if one of us did have something to say, the Cutie Mark Crusaders leave before anyone, pony, human or dragon, has a chance to say it.

I watch, through my character’s eyes, as the trio of fillies makes their way out the back door, after which I say, “I’m sure the three of ‘em will be fine. Whatever they decide to do, they just need to stick to it.”

I think it’s all four, including Weed Whacker, that call out my name in a reproving tone. But, it’s Lyra’s voice I hear the best.

I then realize what I said, and its implications, and I say, “Uh, sorry about that.”

As I have my character go to work cleaning out the taffy puller again, I hear Mr. Cake say, “Lyra, w-will you t-take over m-mixing? I n-need a m-moment.”

My character turns to show me, through his eyes, the orange earth stallion. I don’t see Mr. Cake’s face since his back is to my character. But, I don’t need to. I have to wonder if, since he has his own foals to take care of, the Cutie Mark Crusaders getting stuck in the taffy puller got him especially worried and scared for them. All I know is that I complete another batch of pulled taffy before he returns.

And, because those three fillies threw most of the taffy into the puller before they got stuck in it, the last batch my character makes is the last batch. Whether the Cakes make more taffy or the puller is retired after the incident with the Cutie Mark Crusaders is unclear; all I know is once my character’s finished, his next assignment is to help Pinkie Pie and Lyra with a birthday cake project. And, it seems I’m there at just the right time.

Pinkie Pie has just completed the baking of the cake, which it seems is meant to be at least two layers, and just needs Lyra to make the whipped cream and my character to prepare fruit to go in between each layer. Evidently, it’s going to be some kind of fruit cake.

When Pinkie Pie puts the first layer of cake, upside down, as the base and cuts the crust away to form a perfect circle, Lyra layers it with whipped cream. After that, my character puts strawberry slices on top of the layer of whipped cream, after which Pinkie Pie puts the next layer of cake, again with the crust cut away to form another circle, on top. Lyra layers the cake on top with whipped cream, after which my character places whole blueberries on the cream, followed by Pinkie Pie putting the last cake layer on the top. Lyra layers the top cake with whipped cream, after which the earth mare, the unicorn, and the human take slices of peaches and place them on top of the cake. Then, when it’s done, my character goes to open the door to the fridge, only to find that it’s occupied by taffy and won’t admit the cake.

At this point, Mr. Cake laughs and says, “That’s alright. We have a basement with a freezer. You can take the cake and put it in the freezer down there, and it should be fine for tomorrow.”

Mr. Cake’s mention of a basement seems to cause Pinkie Pie to melt in fear.

Whether Mr. Cake understands this or not seems irrelevant to me. I have my character walk to the pink earth pony and stroke the side of her neck with the back of his hand as I say, “That’s alright. You don’t have to go down there. Lyra and I will take care of it.”

Pinkie Pie inhales deeply, then exhales slowly, then looks at my character, at me, and says, “Thank you, Mormon.”

Taking that as her cue, Lyra uses her magic to lift the cake off the counter. Or, that’s what I assume, since it starts glowing with a pale-green aura and floats in the air.

As my character and Lyra follow Mr. Cake to the door to the basement, I comment, “It’s unusual, I imagine, to get an order for Norwegian-style fruit cake.”

I hear Mr. Cake answer, “Yeah, I was surprised to get the instructions for it. But, that’s what one of the patients at the clinic wanted for when he finally got out. He expects to be out of the clinic by tomorrow, which is when he said he needed the cake to be ready.” Then, after opening the door to the basement, he turns to me and asks, “How did you know it was a Mare-wegian-style cake?”

I answer, “Experience is a good teacher.” Wait, did he just say "Mare-wegian-style?"

As Mr. Cake leads Lyra and my character into the basement, he asks, “You’ve made such a cake before?”

I answer, “Not on my own, but I have helped make one.”

It’s pretty impressive, I think, that Lyra is able, with her magic, to keep the cake from falling over or falling apart. She even manages to put the cake smoothly into the freezer, after my character removes some of the freezer levels to accommodate the pastry, and brings it to rest on the level my character left in there.

After Mr. Cake closes the door to the freezer, he sighs with relief as he turns to Lyra and my character and says, “Thank you. Now, that cake’ll be ready for that stallion when he comes in.”

As the trio, lead by Lyra now, makes their way out of the basement, I ask, “Is there anything else that needs to be done?”

Mr. Cake, the last one out of the basement, which just happens to connect to the kitchen, says, “Actually, it should be getting late enough that this last batch should be all for today. Thank you two for helping me out. it’s much appreciated.”

Lyra and I simultaneously respond, “I’m glad I could help.”

Just then, I hear the back door open; and my character turns to show me, through his eyes, Pinkie Pie entering with a poster in her mouth.

She drops it on the floor, then says, “I went outside for some fresh air, and some of the foals from school came and gave me this poster.”

Lyra gallops a step or two toward the poster and looks at it, then turns to my character and says, “According to this, the school foals are putting on a talent show on the school grounds. There’s no list here on who all is involved, but I’ve been to some of these events, and they are a lot of fun.”

I have a sneaking suspicion that I know what one of the acts is going to be, perhaps all of them. Still, I see no reason why Lyra, Pinkie Pie, Weed Whacker and I shouldn’t attend, if for no other reason than moral support. And, considering I’ve always imagined the Crusaders’ performance a mockery of Bohemian Rhapsody, I figure I’ll find it all the more entertaining to see the event in full three-dimensional, computer-generated glory. I ask, “So, how many of you want to attend?”

Somehow, I’m not surprised when Lyra, Pinkie Pie, and Weed Whacker call out in unison variations of “I want to go!”

I state, “Well, I guess it’s unanimous then. We’re all going to the school foals’ talent show.”

At my announcement, Mr. Cake says, “Well, in that case, you’re all dismissed. I’ll clean up here, and we’ll see you tomorrow.”

It’s Lyra, I think, who picks the poster up off the floor, with her magic. Then, Pinkie Pie leads the way out of the bakery and on to the Ponyville school playground, where a very amateur-looking theater has evidently been built outside. And, there are already ponies gathering around it.

Lyra moves to the front now, carrying Weed Whacker on her back, so they can have a better look at what happens on the stage.

Pinkie Pie, in the mean time, is satisfied to have my character hold her in his arms so she can see what’s going on over the other ponies.

And, there are other familiar pony faces. My stallion friends are there, as well as Applejack, her siblings and grandmother, Snips and Snails and their parents, Rarity and her parents and little sister, and several other ponies that I recognize by coloring and cutie mark.

The first to come out on the stage, who I recognize as the teacher pony, Cheerilee, says, “Welcome to the talent show put on by the Ponyville school foals. We hope you enjoy yourselves.”

Ponies applaud in front and to the side of my character by stomping their front hooves on the ground.

My character is unable to applaud due to his arms being full of pink earth pony, and Pinkie Pie is in no position to offer the applause the other ponies are offering.

The first act is Snips and Snails, with probably the only magic act they know: apparently making vegetables disappear and rabbits appear in their place, then making rabbits disappear again and making the vegetables appear in Snails’ mouth. Of course, it could just be carrots that work that way. But, that being their only act, I can’t argue that they’re really good at it.

The second act is a couple of fillies, Sunny Days and Peachie Pie, reciting poetry while rollerskating.

After the duo are announced, and as they roll out on stage, Pinkie Pie looks up at my character and says, “Before you ask, Mormon, as far as I know, no, Peachie and I are not related.”

I had wondered about that, and I’m not at all surprised that Pinkie read my mind on the subject.

When I heard Cheerilee announce the act, it sounded like their poetry was going to be about roller skates or rollerskating. Still, their coordination, using the stage as a roller rink while reciting their poem, makes it seem almost like a song and dance routine. All in all, they demonstrate as much talent with their act as Snips and Snails did with their magic act.

The last act is the Cutie Mark Crusaders with their song and dance routine in front of a scene depicting Ponyville. If, in the episode, this had been a tribute to the Bohemian Rhapsody instead of a mockery of it, or if it had been a mockery of something I hold sacred, I wouldn’t have watched the episode again. But, as it stands, I consider “Show Stoppers” one of my favorite episodes because this scene is a mockery of the Bohemian Rhapsody. And, I’ve done my best to reproduce it in this game.

As the music starts, the lights dim, and the curtains open; the trio of fillies first shows up in shadows. Then, the face of the first one to sing, Scootaloo, appears, followed by the faces of the other two. In this scene, Scootaloo has quite the opposite of the best singing voice; but, if she did sing the song well, that, combined with their strangely clownish makeup, would’ve made it a tribute to Bohemian Rhapsody. In my book her treatment earns the Crusaders their first point.

Their depiction of Ponyville first shows up when the lights come up and all the trio sings their first three notes together of the words “really loud,” which they sing, well, really loud.

Each one is dressed in a different costume, evidently depicting heavy metal performers.

Applebloom is dressed in a black suit with stars, and a black bandanna with what appear to be white human skulls, minus the lower jaws, on it.

Scootaloo is dressed in a purple suit, zebra-striped with pink and eggshell blue. She also has purple makeup over her eyes, reminding me of some kind of strange cyclops mask.

Finally, there’s Sweetie Belle, who’s dressed in a pink outfit, again zebra-striped with white-outlined green. Like Scootaloo she also has makeup over her eyes. But, hers reminds me more of a started paint job with a single stroke than anything else.

While the ponies in the audience look at each other in bewilderment, I find myself unable to keep from saluting them silently and giving them a thumbs-up.

After a guitar riff, Scootaloo starts singing again while Applebloom jumps up on her hind legs and starts dancing.

The little yellow earth filly’s dance routine, which consists of martial arts punches and kicks, actually isn’t all too bad, although it does nothing to make up for Scootaloo’s singing.

Then, as Scootaloo sings about not fearing anything, badly-constructed bats, spiders, and a ghost drop down behind her, and, to their credit, hold together alright when their strings keep them from falling all the way to the stage floor.

The most musical part of the event comes when the trio join harmoniously in singing “’till our cutie marks are here.” From there, the inexperience of the trio begins to shine through.

While Applebloom does another kick-and-punch routine, Scootaloo tries and fails to find her first step off the three-tier platform she's been on top of up until the first time she sings the chorus.

In the mean time, Sweetie Belle has disappeared for a few seconds, evidently to start a fog machine. She reappears on the opposite side of Applebloom as fog hides the stage, and the trio finish the chorus.

In fact, all that can be seen of the trio are their silhouettes, as they hop around. And, they demonstrate their lack of coordination in the fog when Applebloom and Sweetie Belle try to bounce together over Scootaloo, and end up bouncing into each other.

As Scootaloo starts singing the third and final verse, the fog clears away, and again Sweetie Belle has disappeared. But, so has Applebloom.

Sweetie Belle reappears with a depiction of a clock in her mouth, which she carries across the stage, tripping over her hooves and rolling in front of Scootaloo, who in the mean time sings about time.

Then, a spotlight focuses on Sweetie Belle who, between a depiction of a house and one of a tree, starts another kick-and-punch routine, and gets a rear hoof stuck in the tree depiction. In a vain attempt to free herself from the prop, she hops backward. But, at least she has a faithful follower now.

Scootaloo continues to sing as she trots across the stage, but stops short of where Sweetie Belle has a stage light pointed.

The white unicorn filly covers the light with a blue translucent material as Scootaloo sings about her blue face, and sticks her face in the light.

All the light manages to do, though, is turn the little orange pegasa’s face yellow.

I have to wonder if Sweetie Belle intended a wind effect when she ran out on stage and to the opposite side from Applebloom, who is still dragging the tree prop towards Scootaloo’s three-tier platform. But, the little yellow earth pony finally manages to free herself from the prop by using the platform as leverage.

To Scootaloo’s credit, she manages to continue singing in spite of becoming airborne and landing on top of Applebloom in front of her platform.

In the mean time, Sweetie Belle jumps up on the platform to stop the tree prop from falling over, putting her in just the right place to catch the house prop as it also collapses.

In the mean time, Scootaloo and Applebloom have recovered; and, while Applebloom does one more kick-and-punch routine, Scootaloo slides in front of her platform on her knees, much like a rock artist would do.

The song ends just as Sweetie Belle’s strength fails her, and props collapse around and on top of the trio.

But, it’s not just the stage that gives props to the three performers.

As the trio emerges from the pile of rubble, the audience is silent for a few seconds, then, all at once, starts laughing and applauding.

The trio, evidently distraught by the mirth, make their way off the stage.

Personally, I don’t think they should feel too bad about what they did. After all, they did put on a crowd-pleasing performance. They really brought down the house, or at least the prop that looked like a house.

Somehow, the curtain manages to hide the wide-spread mess as Cheerilee, following the performers onto the stage, comes out and announces the awards for the best performers.

One thing I have to wonder about. Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, and Twist didn’t put on any performance. So, what are they doing on the stage? Did they control the lighting and curtains or something for the first two acts? Did they set up each scene?

The Cutie Mark Crusaders first hide behind Snips and Snails, until the brothers are given the award for the best magic act. They then hide behind the rollerskaters, until those two are given medals for the best dramatic performance. Then, as the trio stand together on the stage, looking like they're awaiting a prison or death sentence, Cheerilee announces them as the recipients of the last award of the night. As the trio exchange confused looks, Cheerilee continues the announcement that they’ve won for best comedy act.

After accepting their awards to the sounds of cheering and applause from the audience, the trio bows to them before happily trotting off the stage.

As the other fillies and Cheerilee follow the Crusaders off the stage, I have my character look down at Pinkie Pie, who’s looking up at him; and I ask, “Do you think we should go back stage and talk to Scootaloo, Applebloom, and Sweetie Belle about their performance?”

As my character kneels on one knee to set Pinkie Pie back on the ground, the pink earth pony answers, “I can’t see why not. Like you were thinking, they brought down the house.” Once she’s on her hooves on the ground again, she says, “Let’s get going.”

After the pink party pony’s reference to my thoughts, I’m starting to wonder if it’s how well I programmed the game, or if it’s something else, that’s given her such a connection to me.

My character follows Pinkie Pie to the side of the stage, where I hear Twilight say, “Congratulations, ponies! Job well done!”

As my character reaches for the door knob, I hear the trio simultaneously, but depressedly, say, “Thanks, Twilight.”

I decide to stop my character at that point, and listen for a moment as I hear the purple unicorn say, “Hey, you don’t sound too excited.”

I then hear Scootaloo sigh and say, “We worked really hard and we won a prize, but we still don’t have our cutie marks.”

Next, I hear Sweetie Belle add, “Which is the prize we really wanted.”

At this point, I decide to allow my character to open the door. As he enters, with Pinkie Pie following close behind him, I ask, “Is there a problem?”

Pinkie Pie adds, “Yeah, you know you made everypony laugh, don’t you? You did a really good job out there.”

Twilight, focused on my character and Pinkie Pie, answers, “These three fillies were trying to earn their cutie marks with this talent show, and things didn’t work out the way they wanted.”

I have my character focus on Twilight as I say, “I mentioned to them last night that it’s possible that their cutie marks may not necessarily be attached to a talent of theirs. Aren’t cutie marks indentifiers for ponies?”

Twilight answers, “That’s true.”

As my character’s attention shifts to include the Cutie Mark Crusaders, I continue, “It’s true that some ponies are thus identified by a particular talent. For instance, Pinkie Pie is identified as the party pony by her cutie mark of balloons.”

Pinkie Pie eagerly nods and grunts in agreement.

I ask, “But, aren’t there other ponies that are identified not by a talent, but a quality of some sort that they have?”

Applebloom takes a step or two toward my character and asks, “Uh, Mormon, just what are you gittin’ at?”

As my character focuses on the yellow earth filly, I answer, “Like I said, it is possible that your cutie marks aren’t necessarily connected to a talent of yours. It could very well be something else. Maybe it’s a prized possession, like what Diamond Tiara’s represents. Or, it could represent a condition, like Silver Spoon’s cutie mark. For all you know, the cutie mark of at least one of you could represent an emotional state you’re most familiar with.” I watch, through my character’s eyes, Applebloom return to Sweetie Belle’s side, opposite that of Scootaloo, as I continue, “Maybe your cutie marks really are connected to a talent of yours. By all means, keep working on it. But, if you aren’t destined to be identified by a talent, especially one the three of you might share, then don’t be surprised, don’t get depressed over it.”

Now, Sweetie Belle speaks up and asks, “Now, didn’t those three stallions get their cutie marks all on the same day?”

I answer, “Well, on the same night, yes. One of them, when he summarized from memory part of a story from the Book of Mormon, got his cutie mark, representing knowledge. Another one got his cutie mark when he demonstrated understanding about what the first stallion talked about, and his cutie mark represented that, understanding. The last one got his cutie mark representing wisdom when he talked about the usefulness of the Book of Mormon.”

I see, through my character’s eyes, Scootaloo smiling as she says, “Well, your talk to us last night did inspire us. And, we’d like to thank you for that.”

I respond, “Well, I’m glad I could help.”

Then, Sweetie Belle says, “But, I wonder if we were trying too hard.”

I hear Twilight say, “Well, if there’s something you’ve learned from this experience, I’d like to make a special report to the princess about it.”

I state, “I might just make a special report of my own.”

Now, Scootaloo steps forward and says, “Well, instead of doing something that’s not meant for us, …”

Encouragingly, Twilight says, “Yes?”

Applebloom continues, “We each should be embracin’ our true talent.”

Again Twilight encourages the trio to continue when she asks, “And, that is?”

In unison, the trio smile and answer back, “Comedy!”

If this video game were representing an anime, Twilight’s confusion would be represented by her falling forward on her face. But, it’s funny enough to see her confusion represented just in her stance and facial expression.

From approximately behind my character I hear Applejack call out her little sister’s name.

As my character turns toward the orange earth pony, I see that it’s not just her, but Granny Smith and Big MacIntosh as well. And, that’s not all.

Rarity’s there with her parents, as well as Wind Walker, Sleeping Beauty, and Rainbow Dash.

Applejack concludes by saying, “You did it!”

The trio of fillies turns toward their families and friends and, in unison again, says, “Did you see our awards? Weren’t we funny?”

I have my character turn to Twilight, who shakes herself out of her confused stupor and says, “One day.” Then, she giggles and repeats, “One day.”

I state, “They are still learning. Whether their cutie marks are connected to a talent, an emotional state, a prized possession, or even a geographical location, it’ll be interesting to see what happens when they finally find the mark that identifies each of them.”

Again Twilight Sparkle giggles, then turns to my character and says, “You’re right, Mormon.”

I then add, “And, come to think of it, considering how late it’s getting, I don’t know if it’s such a good idea to have even a herd of ponies marching through the Everfree forest in the dark. I wonder if there’s some place in town where we can have the reading tonight.”

Twilight hums for a moment in thought, then says, “Well, there’s not enough room at the library to accommodate all the ponies that come to your readings.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie ask, “Hey, what about Town Hall?” As the attention of my character and Twilight turn to the pink earth pony, she continues, “There’s plenty of room in there.”

Now, Twilight grunts before saying, “I don’t know. We’re gonna have to ask permission from the mayor before we use Town Hall that way, I think.”

Just then, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “No problem. She comes to the readings too, right?” As all focus on the blue pegasa, she continues, “If she isn’t heading through the Everfree forest right now, we can go ahead and ask her.”

As my character turns his attention to Twilight, the idea seems to have dawned on her. She says, “Rainbow Dash, since you suggested it, you go to the Everfree forest. If you see Mayor Mare heading toward the forest, stop her before she gets there. If she’s already in the forest, heading towards Mormon’s house, stop her. If she’s in trouble, get her out of it. But whatever you need to do before, afterwards I want you to tell her Mormon’s plan, and ask her for permission to use Town Hall for tonight’s reading.”

Rainbow Dash gives a soldier salute to Twilight and says, “Will do.” Then, she opens her wings and flies off the stage between the wall and the curtain, heading for the Everfree forest.

In the mean time, Twilight turns to my character and says, “Spike and I need to get our copies of the Book of Mormon from the library.”

I hear Applejack say, “We need to get our copies from the barn in Sweet Apple Acres.”

As my character turns his attention to the group of ponies, Rarity says, “Sweetie Belle and I need to get our copies from Carousel Boutique.”

Her parents say, “We need to get our copies from our home. And, I’m guessing the same goes for Wind Walker and Sleeping Beauty and their home.”

Wind Walker states, “That’s correct.”

I hear Twilight say, “We’ll meet at the Town Hall in half an hour. Hopefully it’ll be open by then.”

Then, a thought occurs to me; and I ask, “Twilight, shouldn’t one of us write to the Princesses and tell them about the new plans?”

The purple unicorn closes her eyes and plants a front hoof between them. After a moment of shaking her head, she says, “I brought one piece of parchment with me, and that was to write my report to Princess Celestia.”

From the doorway I’d forgotten up until that point I’d left open, I hear Lyra’s voice say, “That’s alright. Weed Whacker can write the letter and send it to the princesses.”

My character turns to the pale-green unicorn, and I can see through his eyes that the herbivorous dinosaur riding on her back is already writing the letter. As my character moves aside to allow her to enter, Weed Whacker seems to have already finished writing the letter, which she rolls up and bites down on.

As the parchment disappears, I hear Twilight say, “Well, that much is settled, then. Let’s get our copies, and we’ll meet at the Town Hall in half an hour.” And, with that, Twilight moves past Lyra, out the doorway, and on to the library. Clearly, by this point, she no longer has her front hoof between her eyes, and her eyes are open.

But, as the purple unicorn moves past the pale-green one, it’s Lyra’s turn to close her eyes, and plant a front hoof between them. I watch her shake her head as she says, “Weed Whacker and I left our copies at your house, Mormon.”

I state, “That’s alright. When we get to Town Hall, Princesses Celestia and Luna should be there by then. You can ask them to teleport you to my home, and you can get your copies from there, and they can teleport you back again.”

Lyra puts the hoof back on the ground, opens her eyes, and sighs with relief before saying, “You’re right, Mormon. Let’s get going.”

The distance between the school grounds and Ponyville’s Town Hall proves to be really short, at least compared to the distance between Ponyville and my character’s house. And, as expected, by the time the group of four gets there, the two sister princesses are also there.

Princess Celestia, seeing the group coming, says to my character, “We were waiting at your home when we got your letter. We were, it seems, the first ones there.”

I respond, “We attended a talent show on the grounds of the grade school. Snips and Snails won the price for best magic show, and Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle won the prize for the best comedy act.”

Princess Celestia states, “Well, in that case, they are to be congratulated.”

Lyra steps forward and asks, “Uh, Princess Celestia, could you transport me and Weed Whacker to Mormon’s house? Our copies of the Book of Mormon are there.”

The daytime princess smiles and nods and says, “That will be no problem. And, while you’re there, perhaps you can pick up some extra copies, in case more show up?”

Lyra turns to my character and asks, “Mormon, would that be alright?”

I answer, “I suppose so.” Then, I have my character turn to Princess Celestia as I ask, “How many extra copies do you think we’ll need?”

Princess Celestia hums for a moment in thought, then answers, “Perhaps ten for right now. This is, after all, just in case more decide to join the reading group.” And, before I can answer, the daytime princess, along with Lyra and Weed Whacker, disappears. And, a minute or two later, they reappear, Lyra and Weed Whacker holding their copies, and Princess Celestia with ten copies each supported in the air by a white aura.

And, at the same time the daytime princess reappears, Twilight arrives with Spike on her back, carrying two copies of the Book of Mormon.

Not long after that, Rarity, her parents, and Sweetie Belle arrive, each with their own copies.

A few seconds later, Rainbow Dash arrives with Mayor Mare, and says, “I was lucky to catch the mayor before she got into the Everfree. I told her about your plan, …”

The mayor pony interrupts and continues, “And, I accept. You’re right, Mormon. It’s not a good idea for ponies, when it’s this dark, to be runnin’ through the Everfree forest, alone or in groups. But, I do have one question. What about you, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker?”

I answer, “I admit I’ve never traveled through the Everfree forest at night or in this much darkness, but it seems to me that the creatures there have enough respect for me that they shouldn’t bother me, even at night time. Just as long as my friends and I keep to the trail, there should be no problems.”

Lyra brings up another point when she says, “That reminds me. What about Zecora?”

Princess Luna steps forward and says, “I shall go get her.” And, with that, she disappears.

And, not long after that, Fluttershy arrives and says, seeing my character, “Mormon, I flew over to your house, and I didn’t see anypony there. But, seeing everypony here, I guess that means the reading’s going to be here tonight?”

The mayor pony turns to the yellow pegasa and answers, “That’s right. And, I’m about to open the Town Hall.” And, with that, she turns and approaches the door, then pushes it open. Then, as she, followed by the other ponies, two dragons, and one human, enters the building, she says, “I’ll just need help lighting the lamps so that we can see in here.”

Twilight, as she enters, answers, “That shouldn’t be a problem. I can light them easily enough with my magic.” And, with that, glass-protected candles throughout the room start glowing with a purple aura, and seem to light up on their own. Soon, the room is lit up with the yellow light of the flames.

Just then, an eager Pinkie Pie asks, “Oh, oh, can I greet guests, huh, huh, can I can I can I?”

I smile as I answer the pink earth pony, “That’s a good idea.” Then, I add to the rest of the group, “And, it may be a good idea if someone goes outside, maybe to the trail to the Everfree forest, and lets everyone else know that tonight’s reading is going to be here at Town Hall.”

Within a second Rainbow Dash flies in front of my character, soldier-salutes him, and says, “I’ll get right on it,” then flies out the door, following Pinkie Pie.

The mayor, by this time at the stage, says, “You know, another thing occurs to me. Don’t you usually have snacks at your readings, Mormon?”

As my character focuses on Mayor Mare, I answer, “They’re not absolutely necessary, but it is true I normally have them. However, I’m not altogether sure that we have enough time to go all the way to my house just to harvest fruits and vegetables for snacks.”

Just then, I hear Applejack’s voice say, “Did somepony say snacks?” As my character’s attention is drawn to the orange earth mare, she adds, “We just happened to bring a bunch of apples for snacks. We figured Mormon wouldn’t be able to make it back to his home and come back with anythin', so we figured we’d bring some apples for everypony to snack on.”

And, sure enough, I can see, through my character’s eyes, that on Big MacIntosh’s back is a small tub of apples stacked perhaps two or three times its height above the top. Again, only video game physics can explain how the stack of apples manages to stay in the tub, and how they all manage to stay in there in spite of the stack apparently being too high to fit through the door.

My character runs to assist the red earth stallion as he proceeds to carefully place the tub of apples on the ground. And, wouldn’t you know it, it’s when the tub is safely on the floor of the Town Hall that the apples at least one level above the top of the tub decide to break formation, and fall and roll away from the tub.

Some even make it out the door.

From that point, it’s a mad dash as ponies, dragons, and human run and gather as many of the red fruits as have tried to make their escape. In a matter of seconds, all ponies present thus far have at least one apple in his or her mouth.

My character has grabbed two, no three apples, and Spike and Weed Whacker each have two.

Even the princesses have managed to collect the apples that rolled out the door, and are each holding two or three in their magic.

After that, it’s a group effort to prepare the apples, by cutting them into eighths, for the guests as snacks.

And, sure enough, there have evidently been ponies that have thought that the reading was going to be at my character’s house this evening.

And, also sure enough, there are two extra guests for the reading: the two winners for best dramatic performance at the talent show, Sunny Days and Peachie Pie.

It’s Princess Celestia who hands copies of the Book of Mormon to each of those two. The pair of rollerskating fillies then take their place alongside Twist, who sits between Sunny Days and Cheerilee.

As more guests arrive, Applejack is there next to the tub of apple snacks, inviting the guests to have some.

Eventually, Pinkie Pie comes in, evidently worn out, saying that there are no more guests that are coming.

Mayor Mare approaches the doors and closes them, then returns to her position between Princess Luna and Zecora.

Before I can even ask for a volunteer, Emerald Hill rises and offers a brief summary of what the group has read up to and including last night.

After that, I have my character turn to the two rollerskating fillies; and I ask, “Would one of you two like to begin the reading?” I add, “It starts with the first verse of chapter twenty-eight of the Second Book of Nephi.”

The two fillies, as well as everyone else in the circle, quickly turn the pages until they get to the right one. Then, Peachie Pie says, “I’ll read first.” After that, she looks down and reads, “And now, behold, my brethren, I have spoken unto you, according as the Spirit hath constrained me; wherefore, I know that they must surely come to pass.”

Next, Sunny Days reads, “And the things which shall be written out of the book shall be of great worth unto the children of men, and especially unto our seed, which is a remnant of the house of Israel.”

Twist reads, “For it shall come to pass in that day that the churches which are built up, and not unto the Lord, when the one shall say unto the other: Behold, I, I am the Lord’s; and the others shall say: I, I am the Lord’s; and thus shall every one say that hath built up churches, and not unto the Lord—”

Cheerilee reads, “And they shall contend one with another; and their priests shall contend one with another, and they shall teach with their learning, and deny the Holy Ghost, which giveth utterance.” She then turns to my character and asks, “I’m curious, do humans really work that way? Do they really teach the things of God as though God didn’t say them?”

I answer, “For some people it works that way. In a time long ago, there were a lot of churches that said they believed in God. They said they taught His doctrines, but they very rarely had His guidance. Every now and then they might throw in something that had truth in it, but most of the time what they said was uninspired and not true. Sadly, even where I come from there are members that are only members in name. They don’t ask for God’s assistance, so they don’t get it.” I then have my character divide his attention among the rest of the members of the circle as I conclude, “It’s important to ask God for His help in teaching His doctrines so we don’t end up going off track.” Finally, I have my character focus on the gray filly as I say, “Silver Spoon, you can go ahead and read verse five.”

Silver Spoon nods, then reads, “And they deny the power of God, the Holy One of Israel; and they say unto the people: Hearken unto us, and hear ye our precept; for behold there is no God today, for the Lord and the Redeemer hath done his work, and he hath given his power unto men;”

Filthy Rich reads, “Behold, hearken ye unto my precept; if they shall say there is a miracle wrought by the hand of the Lord, believe it not; for this day he is not a God of miracles; he hath done his work.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “Yea, and there shall be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die; and it shall be well with us.”

Sleeping Beauty reads, “And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God—he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take the advantage of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor; there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God.”

At this point, I speak up and say, “I’ve heard about a practice in the Catholic church, one that, according to what I’ve heard, isn’t done anymore. A practice called the indulgence, which, based on my understanding, is purchasing forgiveness of sins. From what I understand, some took advantage of this idea, and purchased their forgiveness before committing whatever sins they intended to commit. I have to wonder if this indulgence thing isn’t a way of putting into practice the idea that Nephi predicts to be preached here. Considering what I understand of it, it makes sense to me. It’s not something I want to see any of you practicing, because it is not a good thing. Just something I was thinking of that might fall into the category of what Nephi was predicting here.”

I have my character nod to Wind Walker, and he nods back and reads, “Yea, and there shall be many which shall teach after this manner, false and vain and foolish doctrines, and shall be puffed up in their hearts, and shall seek deep to hide their counsels from the Lord; and their works shall be in the dark.” Then, he looks at my character and says, “Somehow, I don’t see this working out for them.”

I nod and say, “Considering Nephi’s predicting it, clearly it hasn’t.”

After a wave of laughter around the circle, Cold Hands reads, “And the blood of the saints shall cry from the ground against them.”

Snips reads, “Yea, they have all gone out of the way; they have become corrupted.”

Snails reads, “Because of pride, and because of false teachers, and false doctrine, their churches have become corrupted, and their churches are lifted up; because of pride they are puffed up.”

Warm Heart reads, “They rob the poor because of their fine sanctuaries; they rob the poor because of their fine clothing; and they persecute the meek and the poor in heart, because in their pride they are puffed up.”

Bon-Bon reads, “They wear stiff necks and high heads; yea, and because of pride, and wickedness, and abominations, and whoredoms, they have all gone astray save it be a few, who are the humble followers of Christ; nevertheless, they are led, that in many instances they do err because they are taught by the precepts of men.”

Lyra reads, “O the wise, and the learned, and the rich, that are puffed up in the pride of their hearts, and all those who preach false doctrines, and all those who commit whoredoms, and pervert the right way of the Lord, wo, wo, wo be unto them, saith the Lord God Almighty, for they shall be thrust down to hell!”

Weed Whacker reads, “Wo unto them that turn aside the just for a thing of naught and revile against that which is good, and say that it is of no worth! For the day shall come that the Lord God will speedily visit the inhabitants of the earth; and in that day that they are fully ripe in iniquity they shall perish.”

I read, “But behold, if the inhabitants of the earth shall repent of their wickedness and abominations they shall not be destroyed, saith the Lord of Hosts.”

Zecora reads, “But behold, that great and abominable church, the whore of all the earth, must tumble to the earth, and great must be the fall thereof.”

Mayor Mare reads, “For the kingdom of the devil must shake, and they which belong to it must needs be stirred up unto repentance, or the devil will grasp them with his everlasting chains, and they be stirred up to anger, and perish;”

Princess Luna reads, “For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.”

Princess Celestia reads, “And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.”

At this point, I speak up again and say, “This is something I’ve observed happen around me, and … I may have fallen into this kid of trap as well. One thing we need to remember is just because we’re doing well right now doesn’t mean we can’t to better, we can't continue to do better.”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “And behold, others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none—and thus he whispereth in their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains, from whence there is no deliverance.”

Again I speak up and say, “Another concept I’m familiar with, that I’ve heard taught frequently, is disbelief in ghosts and spirits. It makes sense to me that this falls into the category of the ‘there is no devil’ idea. After all, if there are no ghosts, no spirits, then how can there be angels or devils? But, there’s another idea I’m familiar with, one that’s taught in philosophy; and I’ve heard it in fictional works as well. The concept is known as ‘Cogito ergo sum,’ or ‘I think, therefore I am.’ The idea is that if someone can think enough to lie and say he or she doesn’t exit, then that someone has proven his or her existence. I find this idea particularly applicable here. If the devil can think enough to lie and say he doesn’t exist, hasn’t he proven that he does? And, based on the law of opposition, if the devil and his servants exist, shouldn’t that also mean that God and his servants also exist?”

After a momentary pause, Spike reads, “Yea, they are grasped with death, and hell; and death, and hell, and the devil, and all that have been seized therewith must stand before the throne of God, and be judged according to their works, from whence they must go into the place prepared for them, even a lake of fire and brimstone, which is endless torment.”

Rarity reads, “Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!”

Applejack reads, “Wo be unto him that crieth: All is well!”

Pinkie Pie reads, “Yea, wo be unto him that hearkeneth unto the precepts of men, and denieth the power of God, and the gift of the Holy Ghost!”

Rainbow Dash reads, “Yea, wo be unto him that saith: We have received, and we need no more!”

Fluttershy reads, “And in fine, wo unto all those who tremble, and are angry because of the truth of God! For behold, he that is built upon the rock receiveth it with gladness; and he that is built upon a sandy foundation trembleth lest he shall fall.”

Octavia reads, “Wo be unto him that shall say: We have received the word of God, and we need no more of the word of God, for we have enough!”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have.”

Once more I speak up and say, “Among the testimonies of four individuals in the second or new testament of Jesus Christ, there is an account of him telling a story, known as the parable of the sower and the seed. In part of this story, as the sower is throwing seeds around, some of them fall in the road, where birds come and take them away. I have to wonder if the mentality that Nephi describes here, which Vinyl just read about, isn’t at least some variation of that.”

Sweet Tones reads, “Cursed is he that putteth his trust in man, or maketh flesh his arm, or shall hearken unto the precepts of men, save their precepts shall be given by the power of the Holy Ghost.”

Lotta Pipes reads, “Wo be unto the Gentiles, saith the Lord God of Hosts! For notwithstanding I shall lengthen out mine arm unto them from day to day, they will deny me; nevertheless, I will be merciful unto them, saith the Lord God, if they will repent and come unto me; for mine arm is lengthened out all the day long, saith the Lord God of Hosts.”

Drum Roll looks up and says, “I guess I start chapter twenty-nine, then,” then looks down and reads, “But behold, there shall be many—at that day when I shall proceed to do a marvelous work among them, that I may remember my covenants which I have made unto the children of men, that I may set my hand again the second time to recover my people, which are of the house of Israel;”

Rarity’s mother reads, “And also, that I may remember the promises which I have made unto thee, Nephi, and also unto thy father, that I would remember your seed; and that the words of your seed should proceed forth out of my mouth unto your seed; and my words shall hiss forth unto the ends of the earth, for a standard unto my people, which are of the house of Israel;”

Rarity’s father reads, “And because my words shall hiss forth—many of the Gentiles shall say: A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible.”

Emerald Hill reads, “But thus saith the Lord God: O fools, they shall have a Bible; and it shall proceed forth from the Jews, mine ancient covenant people. And what thank they the Jews for the Bible which they receive from them? Yea, what do the Gentiles mean? Do they remember the travails, and the labors, and the pains of the Jews, and their diligence unto me, in bringing forth salvation unto the Gentiles?”

Berry Ground reads, “O ye Gentiles, have ye remembered the Jews, mine ancient covenant people? Nay; but ye have cursed them, and have hated them, and have not sought to recover them. But behold, I will return all these things upon your own heads; for I the Lord have not forgotten my people.”

Stunts reads, “Thou fool, that shall say: A Bible, we have got a Bible, and we need no more Bible. Have ye obtained a Bible save it were by the Jews?”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Know ye not that there are more nations than one? Know ye not that I, the Lord your God, have created all men, and that I remember those who are upon the isles of the sea; and that I rule in the heavens above and in the earth beneath; and I bring forth my word unto the children of men, yea, even upon all the nations of the earth?”

Scootaloo reads, “Wherefore murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word? Know ye not that the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God, that I remember one nation like unto another? Wherefore, I speak the same words unto one nation like unto another. And when the two nations shall run together the testimony of the two nations shall run together also.”

Applebloom reads, “And I do this that I may prove unto many that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and that I speak forth my words according to mine own pleasure. And because that I have spoken one word ye need not suppose that I cannot speak another; for my work is not yet finished; neither shall it be until the end of man, neither from that time henceforth and forever.”

At this point, again I speak up and say, “I like the way Nephi, speaking for God, put this: ‘Because I have spoke one word, he need not suppose I cannot speak another.’ And, where I come from, God has more prophets as his spokesmen. He only stopped speaking to his children because they didn’t want to hear from him. But, where I come from, He’s making preparations for the Second Coming; and it’s not a work that people can stop.” I then have my character turn to Applejack’s older brother, and I say, “Big MacIntosh, you can go ahead and read the next verse.”

Big MacIntosh nods, then looks down and reads, “Wherefore, because that ye have a Bible ye need not suppose that it contains all my words; neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written.”

Granny Smith reads, “For I command all men, both in the east and in the west, and in the north, and in the south, and in the islands of the sea, that they shall write the words which I speak unto them; for out of the books which shall be written I will judge the world, every man according to their works, according to that which is written.”

Colgate reads, “For behold, I shall speak unto the Jews and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the Nephites and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the other tribes of the house of Israel, which I have led away, and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto all nations of the earth and they shall write it.”

Carrot Top reads, “And it shall come to pass that the Jews shall have the words of the Nephites, and the Nephites shall have the words of the Jews; and the Nephites and the Jews shall have the words of the lost tribes of Israel; and the lost tribes of Israel shall have the words of the Nephites and the Jews.”

At this point, I again speak up and say, “I have to wonder, when Nephi talks about the Nephites having the words of the Jews and those of the lost tribes of Israel, if he isn’t referring to all the descendants of his father that are still alive. In my time, the descendants of the Lamanites, which are more commonly known as Native Americans or American Indians, have received the Book of Mormon, as well as the Bible. And, I’m also sure that there are Jews that have the Book of Mormon. So, if what I’m thinking is the case, Nephi’s prophecy here has been fulfilled thus far. But, there is still more to do.”

Berry Punch reads, “And it shall come to pass that my people, which are of the house of Israel, shall be gathered home unto the lands of their possessions; and my word also shall be gathered in one. And I will show unto them that fight against my word and against my people, who are of the house of Israel, that I am God, and that I covenanted with Abraham that I would remember his seed forever.”

Presently, Hoity Toity’s servant looks up and says, “I suppose this means I start chapter thirty.” Without waiting for a response, he looks down again and reads, “And now behold, my beloved brethren, I would speak unto you; for I, Nephi, would not suffer that ye should suppose that ye are more righteous than the Gentiles shall be. For behold, except ye shall keep the commandments of God ye shall all likewise perish; and because of the words which have been spoken ye need not suppose that the Gentiles are utterly destroyed.”

Hoity Toity reads, “For behold, I say unto you that as many of the Gentiles as will repent are the covenant people of the Lord; and as many of the Jews as will not repent shall be cast off; for the Lord covenanteth with none save it be with them that repent and believe in his Son, who is the Holy One of Israel.”

Namby Pamby reads, “And now, I would prophesy somewhat more concerning the Jews and the Gentiles. For after the book of which I have spoken shall come forth, and be written unto the Gentiles, and sealed up again unto the Lord, there shall be many which shall believe the words which are written; and they shall carry them forth unto the remnant of our seed.”

Peachie Pie reads, “And then shall the remnant of our seed know concerning us, how that we came out from Jerusalem, and that they are descendants of the Jews.”

Sunny Days reads, “And the gospel of Jesus Christ shall be declared among them; wherefore, they shall be restored unto the knowledge of their fathers, and also to the knowledge of Jesus Christ, which was had among their fathers.”

Twist reads, “And then shall they rejoice; for they shall know that it is a blessing unto them from the hand of God; and their scales of darkness shall begin to fall from their eyes; and many generations shall not pass away among them, save they shall be a pure and a delightsome people.”

Cheerilee reads, “And it shall come to pass that the Jews which are scattered also shall begin to believe in Christ; and they shall begin to gather in upon the face of the land; and as many as shall believe in Christ shall also become a delightsome people.”

Silver Spoon reads, “And it shall come to pass that the Lord God shall commence his work among all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, to bring about the restoration of his people upon the earth.”

Filthy Rich reads, “And with righteousness shall the Lord God judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth. And he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth; and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.”

At this point, Diamond Tiara speaks up and asks, “Doesn’t it sound like Nephi’s saying that God has bad breath?”

Presently, Filthy Rich growls, “Diamond!”

I focus my character’s attention on Filthy Rich before saying, “Now, it’s alright. Your daughter’s question deserves an answer.” I then have my character focus his attention on Diamond Tiara before I say, “I think what Nephi’s trying to say here is that God has command of all the components of the earth and all that live on it; and all he has to do is command those components, and they’ll follow his orders. God can, and will, command the earth to destroy those that disobey his commandments, and it’ll happen the way he commands it.”

I have my character nod to Diamond Tiara to go ahead, and she nods back and reads, “For the time speedily cometh that the Lord God shall cause a great division among the people, and the wicked will he destroy; and he will spare his people, yea, even if it so be that he must destroy the wicked by fire.”

Sleeping Beauty reads, “And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.”

Wind Walker reads, “And then shall the wolf dwell with the lamb; and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf, and the young lion, and the fatling, together; and a little child shall lead them.”

Cold Hands reads, “And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.”

Snips reads, “And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’s den.”

At this point, I hear Fluttershy say, “Just so everypony that wasn’t at the reading just after the cockatrice incident understands, Mormon explained it this way.” My character’s attention turns to the yellow pegasa as she continues, “He thinks there may be a snake called a cockatrice that Isaiah was referring to, and Nephi was quoting him, that is, Isaiah. In other words, he probably wasn’t referring to the chicken-dragon creature that lives here in Equestria and turns creatures to stone by staring at them.”

As she turns to the orange unicorn colt and nods for him to continue reading, I find I have two reasons to be pleased. First, it was one of the ponies that offered an explanation this time. And second, it was Fluttershy.

Snails reads, “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”

Warm Heart reads, “Wherefore, the things of all nations shall be made known; yea, all things shall be made known unto the children of men.”

Bon-Bon reads, “There is nothing which is secret save it shall be revealed; there is no work of darkness save it shall be made manifest in the light; and there is nothing which is sealed upon the earth save it shall be loosed.”

Lyra reads, “Wherefore, all things which have been revealed unto the children of men shall at that day be revealed; and Satan shall have power over the hearts of the children of men no more, for a long time. And now, my beloved brethren, I make an end of my sayings.”

I have my character look up and direct his attention to all the members of the circle as I state, “Now, before Weed Whacker gets started on chapter thirty-one, let me just say that I’m pleased to hear you offering input during the reading, and I hope to hear more of you offering input.”

Weed Whacker and I exchange looks, and I nod for her to go ahead and read. She then looks down and reads, “And now I, Nephi, make an end of my prophesying unto you, my beloved brethren. And I cannot write but a few things, which I know must surely come to pass; neither can I write but a few of the words of my brother Jacob.”

I read, “Wherefore, the things which I have written sufficeth me, save it be a few words which I must speak concerning the doctrine of Christ; wherefore, I shall speak unto you plainly, according to the plainness of my prophesying.”

Zecora reads, “For my soul delighteth in plainness; for after this manner doth the Lord God work among the children of men. For the Lord God giveth light unto the understanding; for he speaketh unto men according to their language, unto their understanding.”

Mayor Mare reads, “Wherefore, I would that ye should remember that I have spoken unto you concerning that prophet which the Lord showed unto me, that should baptize the Lamb of God, which should take away the sins of the world.”

Princess Luna reads, “And now, if the Lamb of God, he being holy, should have need to be baptized by water, to fulfil all righteousness, O then, how much more need have we, being unholy, to be baptized, yea, even by water!”

Princess Celestia reads, “And now, I would ask of you, my beloved brethren, wherein the Lamb of God did fulfil all righteousness in being baptized by water?”

Twilight Sparkle reads, “Know ye not that he was holy? But notwithstanding he being holy, he showeth unto the children of men that, according to the flesh he humbleth himself before the Father, and witnesseth unto the Father that he would be obedient unto him in keeping his commandments.”

Spike reads, “Wherefore, after he was baptized with water the Holy Ghost descended upon him in the form of a dove.”

Rarity reads, “And again, it showeth unto the children of men the straitness of the path, and the narrowness of the gate, by which they should enter, he having set the example before them.”

Applejack reads, “And he said unto the children of men: Follow thou me. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, can we follow Jesus save we shall be willing to keep the commandments of the Father?”

Pinkie Pie reads, “And the Father said: Repent ye, repent ye, and be baptized in the name of my Beloved Son.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And also, the voice of the Son came unto me, saying: He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father give the Holy Ghost, like unto me; wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do.”

Fluttershy reads, “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I know that if ye shall follow the Son, with full purpose of heart, acting no hypocrisy and no deception before God, but with real intent, repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, by baptism—yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel.”

Octavia reads, “But, behold, my beloved brethren, thus came the voice of the Son unto me, saying: After ye have repented of your sins, and witnessed unto the Father that ye are willing to keep my commandments, by the baptism of water, and have received the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost, and can speak with a new tongue, yea, even with the tongue of angels, and after this should deny me, it would have been better for you that ye had not known me.”

Vinyl Scratch reads, “And I heard a voice from the Father, saying: Yea, the words of my Beloved are true and faithful. He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.”

Sweet Tones reads, “And now, my beloved brethren, I know by this that unless a man shall endure to the end, in following the example of the Son of the living God, he cannot be saved.”

Lotta Pipes reads, “Wherefore, do the things which I have told you I have seen that your Lord and your Redeemer should do; for, for this cause have they been shown unto me, that ye might know the gate by which ye should enter. For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost.”

Drum Roll reads, “And then are ye in this strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life; yea, ye have entered in by the gate; ye have done according to the commandments of the Father and the Son; and ye have received the Holy Ghost, which witnesses of the Father and the Son, unto the fulfilling of the promise which he hath made, that if ye entered in by the way ye should receive.”

Rarity's mother reads, “And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.”

Rarity’s father reads, “Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.”

Emerald Hill reads, “And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. Amen.”

Berry Ground looks up and says, “I guess that means I get to start chapter thirty-two.” He then clears his throat before looking down and reading, “And now, behold, my beloved brethren, I suppose that ye ponder somewhat in your hearts concerning that which ye should do after ye have entered in by the way. But, behold, why do ye ponder these things in your hearts?”

Stunts reads, “Do ye not remember that I said unto you that after ye had received the Holy Ghost ye could speak with the tongue of angels? And now, how could ye speak with the tongue of angels save it were by the Holy Ghost?”

Sweetie Belle reads, “Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ. Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do.”

Scootaloo reads, “Wherefore, now after I have spoken these words, if ye cannot understand them it will be because ye ask not, neither do ye knock; wherefore, ye are not brought into the light, but must perish in the dark.”

Applebloom reads, “For behold, again I say unto you that if ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do.”

Big MacIntosh reads, “Behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and there will be no more doctrine given until after he shall manifest himself unto you in the flesh. And when he shall manifest himself unto you in the flesh, the things which he shall say unto you shall ye observe to do.”

Granny Smith reads, “And now I, Nephi, cannot say more; the Spirit stoppeth mine utterance, and I am left to mourn because of the unbelief, and the wickedness, and the ignorance, and the stiffneckedness of men; for they will not search knowledge, nor understand great knowledge, when it is given unto them in plainness, even as plain as word can be.”

Colgate reads, “And now, my beloved brethren, I perceive that ye ponder still in your hearts; and it grieveth me that I must speak concerning this thing. For if ye would hearken unto the Spirit which teacheth a man to pray, ye would know that ye must pray; for the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray, but teacheth him that he must not pray.”

Carrot Top reads, “But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul.”

At this point, Berry Punch looks up and says, “I guess this means I get to start chapter thirty-three,” then looks down again and reads, “And now I, Nephi, cannot write all the things which were taught among my people; neither am I mighty in writing, like unto speaking; for when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men.”

Hoity Toity's servant reads, “But behold, there are many that harden their hearts against the Holy Spirit, that it hath no place in them; wherefore, they cast many things away which are written and esteem them as things of naught.”

Hoity Toity reads, “But I, Nephi, have written what I have written, and I esteem it as of great worth, and especially unto my people. For I pray continually for them by day, and mine eyes water my pillow by night, because of them; and I cry unto my God in faith, and I know that he will hear my cry.”

Namby Pamby reads, “And I know that the Lord God will consecrate my prayers for the gain of my people. And the words which I have written in weakness will be made strong unto them; for it persuadeth them to do good; it maketh known unto them of their fathers; and it speaketh of Jesus, and persuadeth them to believe in him, and to endure to the end, which is life eternal.”

Peachie Pie reads, “And it speaketh harshly against sin, according to the plainness of the truth; wherefore, no man will be angry at the words which I have written save he shall be of the spirit of the devil.”

Sunny Days reads, “I glory in plainness; I glory in truth; I glory in my Jesus, for he hath redeemed my soul from hell.”

Twist reads, “I have charity for my people, and great faith in Christ that I shall meet many souls spotless at his judgment-seat.”

Cheerilee reads, “I have charity for the Jew—I say Jew, because I mean them from whence I came.”

Silver Spoon reads, “I also have charity for the Gentiles. But behold, for none of these can I hope except they shall be reconciled unto Christ, and enter into the narrow gate, and walk in the strait path which leads to life, and continue in the path until the end of the day of probation.”

Filthy Rich reads, “And now, my beloved brethren, and also Jew, and all ye ends of the earth, hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ, and he hath given them unto me; and they teach all men that they should do good.”

Diamond Tiara reads, “And if they are not the words of Christ, judge ye—for Christ will show unto you, with power and great glory, that they are his words, at the last day; and you and I shall stand face to face before his bar; and ye shall know that I have been commanded of him to write these things, notwithstanding my weakness.”

Sleeping Beauty reads, “And I pray the Father in the name of Christ that many of us, if not all, may be saved in his kingdom at that great and last day.”

Wind Walker reads, “And now, my beloved brethren, all those who are of the house of Israel, and all ye ends of the earth, I speak unto you as the voice of one crying from the dust: Farewell until that great day shall come.”

Cold Hands reads, “And you that will not partake of the goodness of God, and respect the words of the Jews, and also my words, and the words which shall proceed forth out of the mouth of the Lamb of God, behold, I bid you an everlasting farewell, for these words shall condemn you at the last day.”

Snips reads, “For what I seal on earth, shall be brought against you at the judgment bar; for thus hath the Lord commanded me, and I must obey. Amen.”

At this point, I have my character stand up; and I say, “And, that’s the end of the Second Book of Nephi. Next is the book of Jacob, which is only seven chapters long. I expect we’ll be reading the first four chapters in tomorrow’s reading, and the rest the following reading. But, right now, I have a question for you.”

At this point, the ponies around the circle have risen from a sphinx-style sitting position to a canine-style, and are looking at me with heads tilted in curiosity.

I ask, “Would you rather continue to have the readings here in town, or back at my house?”

At this point, beyond that they’re discussing my question, I can’t make out any details about what the ponies around the circle are saying.

Finally, Princess Celestia rises up on all fours and says, “It seems to me that it’s better to have the readings here in town than for half the town to travel through the Everfree forest to your house, Mormon. Therefore, I propose that the readings take place here in Town Hall from now on.”

At the daytime alicorn’s suggestion, I hear around the circle variations of “I agree.”

And, with that agreement, I state, “Well, in that case, from now on we’ll have the readings here in Town Hall. And, for what it’s worth, I agree with Princess Celestia. It is better to have readings here in town, where it’s safer and more convenient for the readers. In fact, it seems to me that we’re fortunate that there haven’t been any incidents up to this point. I’m happy to stay here in town for the readings, and then head back to my home afterwards.

“Now, considering how late it is, I suggest we return to our homes now, and we’ll meet here again for the next reading. Thank you, everyone, and good night.”

With the reading thus concluded, the rest of the ponies rise up on all fours and start gathering their books and prepare to leave.

Princess Celestia approaches my character and says, “Considering how late it is, I would be honored to transport you, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker back to your home.”

I open my mouth to talk about waiting for everyone to gather together, but then I hear Pinkie Pie next to my character ask, “But, what about Zecora?”

As my character’s attention is drawn to the pink earth pony, I hear Princess Celestia answer, “My sister, Princess Luna, will transport her home.”

At this point, I have my character look around to show me, through his eyes, that Lyra and Weed Whacker are on the side of him opposite Pinkie Pie. Seeing that all are present and ready to leave, I have my character turn to Princess Celestia again; and I say, “Well, it looks like we’re ready to go then.”

The daytime princess nods and closes her eyes, and her horn starts to glow and sparkle.

In one frame, the group of five have gone from inside Ponyville’s town hall to outside my character’s house, where I’m immediately aware of the darkness of night around my character. When things appear to have gotten brighter, indicating that my character’s eyes have adjusted to the darkness, I say to Princess Celestia, “Thanks. While I’m sure we could’ve gotten back here on our own, it would’ve taken a lot longer. And, you no doubt have insured our safe trip here.”

The daytime princess opens her eyes, smiles, and says, “It was a pleasure helping you. Now, I must return to Ponyville so I can transport Hoity Toity and his servant back to Canterlot.” And, before I can say anything to her, she disappears.

By the light of Lyra’s glowing horn, the group of four gathers fruits and vegetables from the orchard, vineyard, and vegetable garden, then brings them inside and prepare them for dinner.

During dinner, I invite Pinkie Pie to invite the Cakes to the readings, which will now be taking place in town; and she eagerly accepts. She even volunteers to bring the family of earth ponies up-to-date on what we’ve been reading. Further discussion at dinner generally involves the last five chapters of the Second Book of Nephi, as well as the fact that it’ll be after the readings from now on that the group will be heading home.

Then, while the group is cleaning up after dinner, Pinkie Pie brings up an interesting point. She says, “You know, I don’t know anything about when Gummy’s birthday is.”

That’s something I’m sure none of us knows about. I didn’t program it into the game, and there’s really no information in the My Little Pony Friendship is Magic series on when Pinkie’s pet alligator was hatched. I ask, “I wonder, do you think alligators celebrate the anniversary of the day when they were hatched?”

Pinkie Pie looks in my character’s direction at the end of her tail, where Gummy’s attached himself by his jaws, and I hear her answer, “I honestly don’t know.” Then, as she turns back to my character, I can see through his eyes the worried look in hers as she continues, “But, I think he deserves to have everypony celebrate it with him, whether his kind celebrates it or not.”

I ask, “So, when do you think that should be?”

The pink earth pony hums for a moment in thought, then says, “You know, since he is my pet and one of my bestest friends, and since I don’t know when his birthday is, I think his birthday should be celebrated as close to mine as possible, but not on my birthday. Like, the day before my birthday.”

I nod and say, “That sounds good to me, just so long as you remember when your birthday is.”

Pinkie Pie giggles and says, “Oh, I’ll be sure to remember when my own birthday is. You don’t need to worry about that.”

I was actually thinking about her remembering that she’d be putting Gummy’s birthday before her own; but her plan still works, like I said, as long as she remembers. But, somehow, I get the feeling that when the time comes she’s going to forget her plans. And, that’s going to lead to trouble.

At any rate, after the cleanup, each member of the quartet heads to his or her room, and I have my character write his letter to the princesses.

As my character writes, I dictate about the new appliance in the Cakes’ bakery, and how the Cutie Mark Crusaders got caught in it. I also mention that I safely returned the three fillies to their families before heading to Sugar Cube Corner and finding out about the taffy puller. Considering Mr. Cake’s reaction to the trio getting caught in the puller, I have to wonder what it’ll mean for the future of the machine.

I also dictate about the talent show the four of us attended, and the performance put on by Snips and Snails, Peachie Pie and Sunny Days, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders. I decide not to mention that the performance of the trio was my favorite because of it being a mockery of the Bohemian Rhapsody. And, you know, come to think of it, looking back at the makeup that Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were wearing, they reminded me more of KISS than Queen. Whether that adds to the mockery or not is up for interpretation.

At any rate, I have my character sign and address the letter, then deliver it to Weed Whacker to send it to the princesses. After that, I have him return to his room, and go to bed.

Beyond what I’ve written and said, I really have nothing to add here. Tomorrow is going to be another episode-based day, and I look forward to it. I also find myself looking forward to leaving the main readings in the control of the ponies of Ponyville, so they, as Nephi might put it, can "speak of Christ, rejoice in Christ, preach of Christ, and prophesy of Christ" on their own. As much as I enjoy the readings amongst them, it seems to me that the group has gotten too large for me to do anymore with them. It’s getting close to time for them to continue the readings on their own. And, it’s with this thought that I save and end the game, until the next time I decide to play.

Chapter 20: Diamond Doggone It!

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As I start the game, I expect my character to wake up to the sound of knocking, or a voice from his bedroom door. But, instead, I hear nothing. I have my character get up out of his bed, then walk to his door and open it, only to find that the hallway is empty. Thinking about it, I have to wonder if the two ponies and the dinosaur are outside harvesting fruits and vegetables. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what they’re doing. So, I have my character make his way through the hallway to the kitchen door, then through that and the front room, to the front door. And, wouldn’t you know it, he’s just in time to open the door for Pinkie Pie.

As she enters, four apples hanging from her mane, the pink party pony says to my character, to me, “Oh, hi, Mormon. So, you’re awake already.”

I respond, “Hi, Pinkie. I’m guessing Lyra’s in the vineyard, and Weed Whacker’s in the vegetable garden?”

Pinkie Pie smiles and answers, “That’s right. And, after breakfast, we’re heading to the Ponyville park for a pet play date. Isn't that right?”

That does make sense. Last week, the element bearers with pets, along with my character, went to the park and played games with our pets. But, there is one thing that puzzles me. I ask Pinkie Pie, “That's correct, but what about the Cakes?”

The pink earth pony giggles as she answers, “Mormon, you’re being silly. The Cakes don’t have any pets.” Then she stops giggling, and her voice takes on a more serious, more suspicious tone, as does the expression on her face, as she adds, “Unless, you’re suggesting they treat their foals as pets?”

I chuckle before answering, “No, I’m not suggesting that at all. I’m just wondering, shouldn’t we help them at Sugar Cube Corner?”

As my explanation dawns on her, Pinkie Pie rolls her eyes and says, “Oh.” Then, she giggles and says, “They’ll be fine. Besides, this is my day off.”

Well, that alleviates that concern. However, if things happen the way I expect them to today, something tells me that the pet play date’s going to be cut short, and not all ponies with pets are going to be able to play this time. But, I wouldn’t be surprised if Pinkie Pie, most likely Diane, already knows that.

But, the immediate presence of Lyra and Weed Whacker at the still-open door really gives me no chance to think too much about that. As the two pass my character, I say hello to them; and they respond with their hello. I then have my character close the door behind them, then head them off at the kitchen to open the door for the trio, then close the kitchen door behind him, following Weed Whacker.

It’s not long before the group has the fruits and vegetables cleaned and ready to eat. And, conversation over breakfast consists of my concerns to Pinkie Pie helping the Cakes over at Sugar Cube Corner, as well as the events of the game’s yesterday.

I do bring up the point about the Cutie Mark Crusaders literally getting props for their performance, and I also have to wonder what happened to the taffy-pulling machine after the trio got caught in it. Somehow, I wouldn’t be surprised if Mr. Cake got rid of it, maybe gave it to Bon-Bon, after all the trouble it caused.

After breakfast, with Pinkie’s pet alligator Gummy and my character’s pet timber wolf Scout in tow, we make our way through the Everfree forest and on into Ponyville.

As the group enters, I can’t help noticing a cream-colored pony with mane and tail of two shades of blue. What makes her stand out the most is her costume, which consists of a tiny white hat I’d expect to see much larger on the head of the mad hatter from Alice in Wonderland, and a matching white blouse(?), with colorful frill and purple ribbons. And, considering how lost she looks, she’s clearly not a resident of Ponyville.

Before I can stop him, Scout runs toward the new earth pony, barking and snarling.

I call out to him, “Scout, you get back here!”

The timber wolf stops an inch or two away from the cream-colored earth pony and sniffs at her, just as she turns to face him. And, even from my character’s position, it’s clear to me, from the terrified expression on the mare’s face, that the damage has already been done. And, even worse, she seems to have made eye contact with Scout.

Fortunately, my timber wolf friend has enough self control that he just growls at the earth mare before turning and running back to my character.

By the time the rest of the group reaches the cream-colored earth mare, she seems to have calmed down somewhat.

Before I or any of my friends can say anything, the cream-colored earth pony asks, “Just what is a wooden dog doin' runnin' through town?”

I answer, “I’m sorry about that. Scout here is my pet, and we didn’t expect to see a new pony in town.”

And, once again, the new earth mare’s ears fold backwards against her skull, and from her facial expression you’d think she’d been caught face first in an explosion. That is the expression she’s showing my character, as she asks, “A-and, wh-who are y-you?”

I answer, “You may call me Mormon.” Then, her name occurs to me, and I add, “And, I’m guessing you are Sapphire Shores?”

Still vibrating, the cream-colored earth mare confirms her identity by asking, “H-h-how do you know me?”

At this point, Pinkie Pie steps forward and, taking Sapphire’s attention off of my character, says, “Mormon’s got a good source for his information.”

I would have said something to that effect if Pinkie hadn’t. But, having said that, it’s nice to know I have a pony to speak for me in situations like this. And, having identified Sapphire Shores, I can also guess where she wants to go. I say, “I’m guessing you’re looking for Carousel Boutique?”

Still clearly frightened of me, Sapphire Shores answers, “Y-y-yeah.”

Having heard the answer to my question, Pinkie Pie says, “Well, no problem. I’ll lead you there.” And, with that, the pink earth pony nudges the cream-colored earth pony around and toward the cylinder-shaped clothing shop in town.

When it seems that Sapphire can move on her own, I hear her say, “I really don’t like it when somepony like that has an advantage over me.”

Pinkie Pie giggles and says, “Oh, you don’t need to worry about Mormon. He’s harmless.”

Sapphire Shores asks, still evidently a little nervous, “Are you sure about that?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “He’s friends with everypony in town. He has readings, which have moved into the Town Hall. In fact, if you want, you can wait until this evening and join us.”

The cream-colored earth pony says, “I-I-I really don’t wanna wait that long.”

Now, the fact of the matter is all of the ponies in Ponyville were scared of me when they first met me. Maybe even Spike was at one time. But, I’d proven myself a friend to them, or so I’ve hoped. Even ponies outside of Ponyville have learned to see me, or at least my character, as a friend. And, maybe at some point I will prove myself a friend to Sapphire Shores as well. But, right now is likely not that time.

The group has arrived at Carousel Boutique at this point, which Pinkie Pie confirms by telling the cream-colored earth mare, “Well, here we are.”

In a lowered voice, Sapphire Shores says to the pink party pony, “And, I’d like to thank you for that. But, I’ll go in alone. And, will you take your human friend and his wooden dog and get them away from me?”

From my character’s perspective, I can see Pinkie Pie’s smile melt into an expression of disappointment and sadness before she says, “Oh, alright then.” And, without saying more, she ambles away, leading the group to the park, undoubtedly to meet up with Fluttershy and Applejack.

On the way there, when I’m sure the celebrity visitor can’t hear me, I say, “It’s alright, Pinkie. Remember, Sapphire Shores has never seen me before. So, considering the reputation us humans evidently still have among ponies, it’s not surprising that she’d be afraid of me.”

Pinkie Pie looks back at my character and says, “It’s not just that.”

I honestly and knowingly say, “I understand. Rarity isn’t going to be able to join the rest of us on today’s pet play date.”

The pink earth pony turns to look ahead of her again as she confirms, “Exactly.” And, I think I heard a growl in her voice when she said that.

Presently I hear Pinkie Pie sniffle and sigh, at which point I decide to say, “This is going to be an important appointment for Rarity. And, she will be occupied so she won’t be able to join us for the play date. But, that doesn’t mean she won’t be able to join us next time. And, I’m sure we’ll get a reason to help her today.”

It’s as we’re entering the park that Pinkie Pie turns back to my character and says, “Oh, Mormon, I know you’re right. It’s just that …”

I conclude, “It’s just that you wish she could still come this time.”

Pinkie Pie’s voice goes up an octave and shakes as she again confirms, “Exactly.”

By this time, the group is in view of Fluttershy and Applejack, with their pets Angel the rabbit and Winona the dog respectively.

As Pinkie Pie collapses on the grass and starts whimpering, Fluttershy and Applejack gallop towards her, with Winona following Applejack, at least.

It’s the orange earth pony who calls out, “Pinkie Pie, what’s wrong?”

I hear Lyra call out, “Sapphire Shores is here in Ponyville!” and scream with glee.

I answer Applejack, “Rarity’s got an important out-of-town customer, so she’s probably not going to make the play date this time.”

As the orange earth pony and the yellow pegasa come to a stop near their pink earth pony friend, it’s Applejack who simply says, “Oh.”

Fluttershy adds, “Poor Pinkie Pie. She looks forward to having all her friends together.”

In the mean time, Winona runs up to the collapsed Pinkie Pie and licks her face, then crouches into a stretching position and wags her tail.

At the same time, I have my character produce the disc from his inventory, which signals to Scout that it’s time to play.

Then, Applejack says, “Well, just b’cause Rarity ain’t here don’t mean the rest of us can’t have no fun. Come on, Pinkie Pie. Let’s start our play date.”

As Applejack gallops off to where she and Fluttershy and their pets were evidently before my character’s group arrived, I have my character kneel next to Pinkie Pie and stroke her mane; and I say, “Applejack’s right. Do you think Rarity’d want us to be depressed just because she isn’t here? Let’s go have some fun. Rarity’ll likely be able to come next time.”

The pink party pony looks up at my character, inhales and exhales deeply, then smiles and says, “You’re right, Mormon.” Then, she gets up on all fours again and says, “Let’s go have some fun.” And, with that, she gallops toward Applejack, with Gummy fastened by his gums on her tail.

As my character rises again, I hear Fluttershy say, “Thank you for cheering Pinkie Pie up, Mormon.”

As my character turns his attention to the yellow pegasa, I respond, “I knew why she was sad in the first place. And, after all, she is one of my friends. It’s sort of part of my job to cheer up a friend when he or she’s sad.”

No more is said between Fluttershy and me, although both of us laugh as Fluttershy returns to Angel’s side, and I have my character produce the disc and toss it ahead of him, away from the trio of ponies.

And, thus the play date begins. And, even Twilight Sparkle joins in on the fun, giving her assistant rides around the park similar to what Lyra does with Weed Whacker.

The play date continues on this way for maybe an hour, until Rarity arrives on the scene, but without her Persian cat, Opalescence.

The five friends, as well as my character, gather together, and Applejack asks, “Rarity, what’s up?”

Smiling, Rarity answers, “Sapphire Shores visited my shop today, and she’s just ordered some dresses from me.”

Excitedly, Spike asks, “Sapphire Shores, the Pony of Pop?”

Rarity focuses her smile on the little purple dragon and answers, “That’s right, Spike, and I’m going to need your help.”

Spike’s excited expression fades a bit as he asks, “What do you need my help with, Rarity?”

The white unicorn answers, “I shall be searching for gems to help in putting together the dresses Sapphire Shores wants me to make, and I need your help, Spike, digging them up.”

Now, having seen the episode on which this day is based, “A Dog and Pony Show,” I know what’s going to happen to Rarity. And, then again, I know what she’s going to do to the diamond dogs that try to enslave her. And, in the context of this game, I’m looking forward to seeing, or at least hearing about, how it all plays out, even if, in this game, I won’t be able to see what all she does.

In the mean time, Rarity asks, “So, Spike, can I count on you to help me?”

The purple dragon, supported in the air by his hormones represented by red valentine shapes, answers, “Oh, yeah.” Then, when he’s an inch or two away from the white unicorn’s face, he stops there and adds, “I’d do anything for you, my sweet.”

At this point, I have to wonder, how in the episode “Green Isn’t Your Color” does Spike not expect everyone who knows him to not know about his crush on Rarity?

In the mean time, Rarity rubs the purple dragon under his chin and says, “Oh, thank you, Spike. I know I can always count on you.” Then, as she turns and walks off, with Spike floating behind her, she continues, “And, if you’ll dig up the jewels I find, I’ll give you some to snack on as a reward.”

I watch, through my character’s eyes, as the white unicorn and the purple dragon make their way out of the park, at which point I hear Twilight groan in disappointment.

When my character turns to her, she turns to him as well, then says, “Well, I guess that means my time here’s over.”

Seeing the look of disappointment on Twilight’s face, I state, “That’s not necessarily true. You can take turns with Lyra giving Weed Whacker rides around the park.”

My invitation prompts a smile from the purple unicorn, and she says, “Thanks, but I should be heading to the restaurant near the school. Rainbow Dash introduced me to it the day we went to the clinic and saw the Cakes’ foals, and you left early because of Pinkie Pie. In fact, I should be meeting her there soon.”

I open my mouth to speak; but Pinkie Pie beats me to it, saying, “Well, you better get going then, Twily. See you later?”

Twilight turns her smile on Pinkie Pie as she says, “See you later, Pinkie,” then turns and gallops out of the park.

Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “Well, we’d better get back to our play date.”

I suppose, when one’s pet is a toothless alligator, getting bitten by him or her really isn’t that painful, maybe not painful at all. At least, that’s what I’m getting by watching the pink party pony respond with giggles as Gummy grabs her with his mouth by her legs, mane, and tail.

I throw the disc a few more times for Scout until Lyra completes a circuit around the park and, noticing the purple unicorn’s absence, approaches my character and asks, “Uh, where’s Twilight?”

I answer, “She decided to leave after Rarity came and got Spike to help her on some gem-hunting expedition. She said something about going to a restaurant near the school to meet up with Rainbow Dash.”

Lyra hums with interest, then thinks aloud, “I wonder if she means that burger joint near the school?”

The next thing I know, I hear, from my character’s left, Pinkie’s voice ask, “Burger joint near the school?”

As my character’s attention shifts to the pink earth pony, I hear Lyra answer, “Bon-Bon and I went there a lot when I first got here and, and she was my only friend. My parents didn’t like me hangin’ out with an earth pony, and her parents didn’t like her hangin’ out with a unicorn. But, until the Cakes came and opened Sugar Cube Corner, it was the only place where we could eat.”

Pinkie Pie starts bouncing as she says, “I wanna go, I wanna go!”

I ask, “Do you suppose they’ll allow pets in the restaurant?”

Lyra hums for a moment in thought, then answers, “They might allow Pinkie’s pet alligator, I’m just not so sure they’ll allow a human and his pet timber wolf in there.”

Pinkie sighs and says, “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

I state, “Well, that’s alright. You two and Weed Whacker can go on ahead. And I’ll stay here in the park and play with Scout some more.”

Lyra closes her eyes, shakes her head, and grunts in negation. Then she opens her eyes again and says, “You’re supposed to be keeping an eye on me and Pinkie Pie, remember? And, you can’t do that while you’re playing with your pet in the park and the rest of us are at the burger joint.”

I respond, “Well, in that case, I may as well go with you. If I’m not allowed inside, I can wait outside for the rest of you.”

And, that’s when I hear Applejack, from behind my character, ask, “What’re you three talkin’ ‘bout?”

As my character turns to the orange earth pony, I hear Weed Whacker answer, “Twilight headed over to a restaurant, which Lyra thinks is a burger joint near the school.” Then, as my character’s attention is drawn to the herbivorous dinosaur, she continues, “She also thinks they won’t let Mormon in there because he’s a human. But, she and Pinkie Pie want to go there.”

I then hear Fluttershy say, “I don’t go to restaurants because they’re too crowded.”

As my character turns his attention to the yellow pegasa, I see, through his eyes, Applejack in front of her say, “Me neither. But, Ah don’t go 'cause Ah don't got no reason to.”

I state, “Well, my reason for going is because Lyra and Pinkie Pie want to go; and I need to keep an eye on them.”

Applejack responds, “Well, Ah ain’t opposed to goin’. Ah s’pose if ever’pony else is a'goin’, Ah may’s well go too.” She then turns to the yellow pegasa and asks, “So, Fluttershy, you wanna come with us?”

Fluttershy lowers her head and starts backing away as she answers, “Oh, I don’t know.”

I have my character focus on her, and I state, “Well, Fluttershy, if it turns out that I’m not allowed inside, then you can wait outside with me.”

When I start talking to her, Fluttershy starts and emits a quietly alarmed “Eep.” Then, when I finish, she says, “I don’t like public places. But, if Mormon’s not allowed to go into the restaurant, I suppose I can keep him company outside.”

At that point, it’s Lyra who says, “So, I guess it’s settled then. Let’s all head to that burger joint next to the school.”

With mutual agreement among the group, they head to the hamburger restaurant that is indeed next to the grade school. And, as they approach, I’m sure I can see Twilight Sparkle through the closest window. I don’t get a good look at Rainbow Dash, though, until the group is approaching the door.

One thing I find surprising is how high the ceiling is. But, I suppose buildings need to be that tall to accommodate pegasi that choose to fly around inside them. The only problem is the doorway is designed to comfortably admit an adult pony, but not so much a human.

Considering the apparent difficulty in just getting through the door, I decide to stay outside.

Lyra turns to my character and says, “I’m sorry, Mormon.” Then, as she enters, she says, “I’ll see if they serve anything a human would like.”

As the rest of the ponies and Weed Whacker enter, Fluttershy turns to my character and says, “That’s alright. We can go to the park across the street and wait for them there.”

I can’t help smilling as I respond, “That sounds good to me. I should be able to see them just fine through the windows.”

Fluttershy leads the way across the pathway, with my character and the pets following not far behind her. On the other side, with a clear view of the restaurant, I have my character sit down facing it.

Fluttershy settles down into a sphinx-style position next to him and asks, “Is there a particular reason why you need to keep an eye on Pinkie Pie and Lyra?”

I answer, “Nothing you need to worry about.”

If Fluttershy says anything after that, it’s lost on me as activity at the nearby school distracts my character. As his focus shifts to the front door of the school, I watch, through his eyes, as foals peer out of it after it opens.

Two familiar-looking earth fillies in particular seem to notice my character, as they turn and start galloping toward him.

I recognize them immediately as Sunny Days and Peachie Pie.

As soon as they reach me, they stop; and Peachie Pie says, “Hi, Mormon.”

I respond, “Hi, Peachie Pie, Sunny Days.”

Sunny Days grabs a hold of and pulls hard on Peachie Pie’s tail. Then, when Peachie Pie lets her know that she painfully got her attention, Sunny Days says, “Mommy and daddy don’t want us talking to Mormon, remember?”

Peachie Pie turns back to my character and whimpers, “We brought the Book of Mormons back with us, and … and …”

I have my character turn to Sunny Days as I ask, “And, what happened?”

Sunny Days backs away from my character a few steps, then turns and gallops back to the school grounds.

In the mean time, Peachie Pie sniffles as she sits on her haunches, looks down, and says, “Mommy and daddy—don’t want me—a-and Sunny Days to go to—no more readings.” Then, she slumps down altogether, buries her face in her forelimbs, and starts sobbing.

I state, “Well, if that’s what your parents want you to do, then you should listen to them.”

The little yellow-orange earth filly looks up at my character; and I can see through his eyes the tears streaming from hers as she asks, “Wh-what?”

I continue, “‘Honor thy father and thy mother that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God hath given thee.’ Their demands may seem unreasonable right now, but they know better than you what kind of dangers there are in the world. Clearly they trust you enough to let you go to school on your own. And, the more you listen to them, the more they’ll trust you.”

Peachie Pie argues, “B-but, I know you’re a good human.”

I respond, “But, your parents don’t.” After a brief, strategic pause, I continue, “Take my advice and listen to them. Maybe if they see that my advice is in agreement with theirs, they’ll come to the readings, and find out for themselves if I’m a good or bad human.”

Peachie Pie rises to a canine-style sitting position again, sighs, and says, somewhat begrudgingly, “Oh, alright.” She continues to look at the ground immediately in front of her as she trots off back to the school.

As I watch, through my character’s eyes, the little filly return to the school grounds, I hear Fluttershy say, “I guess I should’ve expected you to say that to her, Mormon.”

As my character’s attention shifts to the yellow pegasa, I say, “Sunny Days and Peachie Pie are good fillies. And, their parents just want what’s best for them.” I have my character look towards the school as I continue, “That kind of behavior is not that much different than human behavior. That is to say, humans also have a tendency to be afraid of things they don’t understand or aren’t familiar with. Like I said, I’m sure that when their parents realize that I want their foals to follow their advice, they might just decide to come to at least one reading, just to see what kind of creature gave their fillies those books as gifts.”

I hear Fluttershy respond, “I don’t know many ponies that would’ve thought about telling fillies and colts to follow their parents’ advice. I hope you’re right about them.”

As Fluttershy talks about her hope for me, I hear a sound from the restaurant which draws my character’s attention to it. I see, through his eyes, Pinkie Pie coming out of the restaurant as she asks, “Were you talking to somepony out here, Mormy?”

I can’t help laughing at Pinkie Pie’s evident nickname for me. After a few seconds, when I regain my composure, I answer, “Sunny Days and Peachie Pie came to visit me. It seems their parents don’t want them coming to the readings anymore.”

Pinkie Pie concludes, “And, you advised them to listen to their parents.”

I answer, ”That’s right.”

Pinkie Pie bounces toward and around my character as she says, “Well, Mormy, Fluttershy is right. I know everypony in town, and I don’t know anypony that’d give advice like you gave those two fillies.”

Before I can respond, I notice the door to the restaurant opens again, and Twilight, followed by Rainbow Dash, Lyra and Applejack, says, “That was excellent. We should do that again.”

Just then, Pinkie stops bouncing as soon as she’s in front of Twilight, then says, “Hey, shouldn’t we be heading to the library right now?”

The purple unicorn seems confused for a moment. Then, an idea dawns on her, and she says, “That’s right. I have a research project I need to get started on.” And, with that, she gallops off toward the tree house of books, and ponies and their pets, along with my character, Scout, and Weed Whacker, follow her.

When the group arrives at the library, Twilight groans and says, “My project’s gonna be late unless I have Spike to help me.” She then turns to the rest of the group and says, “Let’s head over to Carousel Boutique. Rarity may be back by now.”

I don’t say this aloud; I just think to myself that by now Rarity may have been captured by the diamond dogs. But I do agree with the need to go to Carousel Boutique. So, along with the rest of the group, my character follows Twilight to the clothing store.

As the group approaches the cylindrical building, I see Spike running full speed towards them. Perhaps a foot from Twilight, he stops, then emits a terrified scream before saying, “Rarity—was—jewel—dogs—gold(?)—taken—save her!”

From watching the episode, I'm not sure about what that fifth word was that Spike said in his panicked haste. "Gold" is my best guess.

At any rate, the ponies look at each other in confusion, and I can’t say I blame them. Like I said, I’m not sure I got all the panicked little dragon said right.

Twilight approaches her assistant and says, rubbing his head with a front hoof, “Now, calm down, Spike, and tell me what happened.”

But, Spike proves he's too terrified to think clearly as he says, “Rarity—caught—dogs!”

After a second, Rainbow Dash says, “Something about Rarity?”

I add, “And something about a jewel or jewels?”

Spike seems about ready to burst into tears as he points to my character and says, “Yeah! Jewels—Rarity—dogs!”

I then hear Weed Whacker say, “Oh, shoot,” and my character turns to her to show me, through his eyes, that her eyes are closed, and she’s planted a hand between them.

I ask, “Weed Whacker, what’s wrong?”

The little herbivorous dinosaur pulls the hand away from her face, opens her eyes, and focuses on my character as she answers, “If I understand Spike right, I think I know where Rarity is.”

Applejack approaches Weed Whacker and asks, “So, what is it? Where is she?”

Weed Whacker turns to the orange earth pony and answers, “There’s this one place that’s been taken over by diamond dogs. Young rock-eating dragons used to go there because there were a lot of jewels for them to eat. Then the diamond dogs came and drove them off.”

Impatiently, Applejack asks, “And, what does that have to do with Rarity?”

Unfortunately, the orange earth pony’s prodding causes Weed Whacker to lose track of what she was saying, and the little dinosaur closes her mouth and shrinks away.

I have my character approach the orange earth mare as I say, “Alright, Applejack, at ease.”

My character succeeds in pushing Applejack away from Weed Whacker, only for her to growl and start shoving her way back toward the little dinosaur.

As my character turns his attention to the orange earth mare, I say, “Applejack, you’re not helping. You had your turn, now let me have mine.”

At my statement, Applejack stops pushing and backs away in disgrace. After a few steps, she stops and says, “Ah’m sorry, Mormon.”

I have my character turn his attention to the herbivorous dinosaur, then pick her up and place her on Lyra’s back; and I say, “Alright, Weed Whacker, please continue.”

Now in a comfortable position, Weed Whacker sighs, then says, “If Rarity’s gone to the jewel mine, then she may have been captured by the diamond dogs.”

Confused, Applejack asks, “Uh, what the hay are these diamond dogs?”

Weed Whacker answers, “I’m sure Rarity’s becoming more familiar with them than she wants to right now.”

I have my character turn to the orange earth mare as I add, “I think I can answer your question. I’ve seen them before.” As the attention of the rest of the group focuses on my character, I continue, “They’re monkey-like dogs that live underground. They’re similar to Spike in that they like jewels. But, as far as I know, they don’t eat them. They just carry the jewels around in pockets in their jackets. And, they’re likely to enslave any creature that they think can help them find whatever jewels they want.”

When I’m finished speaking, all the ponies echo one of the words I said: “Enslave!”

Then, Twilight draws the most obvious conclusion, “We need to rescue Rarity,” before focusing on Weed Whacker and asking, “Can you show us where this jewel mine is?”

The little herbivorous dinosaur turns to the purple unicorn and answers, “Yes,” then turns to Lyra and adds, “But, if we’re gonna get there as soon as possible, I’m gonna need your help.”

Lyra nods to Weed Whacker and says, “No problem.”

At this point, I turn to Scout, and I ask, “Will you take Gummy and head back to my house?”

The timber wolf whimpers, but nods in agreement.

As Pinkie Pie’s pet alligator jumps onto Scout’s back, Fluttershy turns to her pet rabbit and says, “You go with Scout too, alright, Angel?”

The white rabbit seems to have an annoyed look on his face, but complies by jumping onto Scout’s back, behind Gummy.

Then, Applejack turns to her pet dog and says, “Winona, Ah want you ta go back ta Sweet Apple Acres. Will ya do that fer me?”

Based on how Winona droops, I’d say she’s upset and disappointed to have to go back to the orchard without Applejack. But, still she complies, if reluctantly.

I then hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, before we go, …” My character turns to her in time to see her produce a paper bag from her mane and pass it to Spike as she says, “I think you’re gonna need this.”

Spike doesn’t say anything more, just grabs the bag from Pinkie Pie and starts breathing into it.

Then, with Lyra and Weed Whacker in the lead, the group heads as fast as possible to the jewel mine.

A few minutes into the run, Twilight turns to her assistant and asks, “Spike, can you breath now?”

Spike, in the mean time, is making it clear that he is getting his breathing back under control, as his breathing into the paper bag is slowing down. In a few seconds, he answers, “Yes,” then turns to Twilight before adding, “I think so.”

Before looking ahead of her again, Twilight says, “Good.” Then, afterwards, she continues, “Now, tell us what you know.”

Flying immediately behind the two, Rainbow Dash adds, “Yeah, because, well, we remember what you said earlier.”

The blue pegasa starts to fall behind, and Applejack moves ahead of her and states, “Yeah, it wasn’t much to go on, Sport.”

At this point, I state, “Oh, I don’t know about that. It was enough, after all, for us to gather that Rarity is in some kind of trouble.”

My view of Spike, through my character’s eyes, is obscured by Rainbow Dash; so, I can only hear him say, “Yeah, thanks, Weed Whacker.” Then, after a moment, he continues, “Rarity and I were in the woods lookin’ for jewels, when those creepy diamond dogs showed up.”

Evidently my description was enough that Spike was able to identify Rarity’s abductors as the diamond dogs.

Rainbow Dash moves to the right just in time to show me, through my character’s eyes, Twilight turning to her assistant and saying, “Keep going, Spike,” before looking ahead of her again.

Presently, Spike continues, “And, they called themselves diamond dogs. They grabbed Rarity and then disappeared down a hole in the ground!”

Ahead of Spike and Twilight, I hear Weed Whacker say, “That’s how they work. Whoever they think can help them, they grab and take underground with them, usually through a hole.”

I then hear Applejack say, “Well, this seems mighty easy. Just take us to that there hole, and we’ll save Rarity.”

Before Applejack finishes her statement, Lyra stops, forcing the rest of the group to skid to a stop behind her.

Presently, Weed Whacker says, “Diamond dogs don’t work that way.” As the rest of the group takes positions to each side of the dinosaur and unicorn, Weed Whacker continues, “Diamond dogs, given the time, will dig a bunch of holes so that anyone who plans a rescue won’t know which hole to go down.”

After the group gasps over the bare ground, which reminds me of the surface of a block of Swiss cheese, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Holy moley, that’s a lot of holies.”

Twilight Sparkle makes her way down the embankment, saying, “Come on girls, let’s get started.”

As the purple unicorn approaches a hole and looks down into it, Weed Whacker calls down, “No, wait a minute!”

But, it’s too late; the rest of the group, save for Lyra and my character, have made their way down the embankment, and are each peering down a hole.

Twilight turns to the herbivorous dinosaur and asks, “What’s wrong, W-oah!” just in time to get hit in the face by an eruption of dirt that covers the hole. In fact, it overcompensates, turning the hole into a hill.

Since my character is watching the ponies, I can only hear Weed Whacker sigh before she says, “If the rescuer or rescuers don’t get discouraged by the many holes, the diamond dogs fill ‘em back in.”

Almost as if on cue, one by one the rest of the holes erupt with dirt, and are buried.

In the mean time, Twilight shakes the dirt off of her face, then says, “Quick. We’ve gotta get down one before they’re all filled up.”

But, try as they might, before any one pony can get close enough to a hole, it erupts with dirt and is buried, until all the holes are thus filled in.

Hearing Weed Whacker groan, I have my character turn to her; and I ask, “So, any ideas on which hole I should dig out?”

The herbivorous dinosaur, who once again has a hand planted between her two closed eyes, removes the hand and opens her eyes again, then looks around at the hills. Finally, she points at one and says, “That one over there.”

I have my character stand behind Weed Whacker and align himself so I can see, through his eyes, which hole she’s pointing at. Then, after clicking on the hole, I have my character approach it, a hole close to the opposite embankment, and point to it; and I ask, “This one?”

Weed Whacker answers, “Yeah, that one oughtta do. But, be careful. The diamond dogs are used to rescuers with tails. So, in order to distract rescuers that try to dig the holes out again, they’ll appear from nearby holes and grab the tails of the rescuers. And, if they can, they’ll trip up the rescuers, or make them run into each other. Mormon, you should be the most difficult to distract, since you don’t have a tail.”

I have a sneaking suspicion Weed Whacker may be right.

As my character starts digging with his hands at the hill Weed Whacker selected for him, I hear Applejack say, “Ah think Mormon’s got the right idea. Let’s start diggin’ these things out.”

As my character continues to dig, I call out, “Just don’t get distracted by the diamond dogs! Remember what Weed Whacker said!”

But, sure enough, I hear yelps, screams, and grunts from ponies around my character, letting me know they’re being distracted by diamond dogs pulling their tails and otherwise keeping them from digging out the holes.

In fact, I hear a voice behind my character, a voice the sounds strangely like Yoda from Star Wars or Grover from Sesame Street, say, “Oh, no you don’t.” Then, a slight tremble of my character’s view of the ground indicates that a diamond dog has jumped on my character’s back to try to distract him or slow him down. But, a quick action from him, and the diamond dog, or so I’m assuming, is thrown off of him, after which my character goes back to digging the hill out.

While my character continues working on the hole, I hear Grover-Yoda say, “Alright, time to try something else.” I then hear digging sounds next to my character, then similar sounds directly under him, followed by the face of a tan bulldog that jumps out and barks at him once.

I respond by saying, “Oh, nice to meet you.” Then, I ask, “So, could you help me dig this hole out?”

Grover-Yoda nods eagerly and answers, “Sure, no problem,” and starts digging away the hill my character was digging at.

In a matter of seconds, the hill is back to being a hole.

As the pug-faced diamond dog disappears back into the hole, I call out, “Thank you!”

Grover-Yoda calls back, “Glad I could help!”

From behind me, I hear Weed Whacker grunt in surprise, then say, “I wouldn’t have thought of doing that.”

I have my character turn to Weed Whacker and Lyra, and I call to them, “So, let’s get going before they fill in this hole again!” And, I have my character jump down the hole.

As my character descends down the hole, I hear, behind him, a chorus of grunts indicating that at least five ponies and one dragon tried to jump down the hole head first at the same time, and must have head-butted each other. But, I have no time to respond to that, as I watch the tunnel ahead of my character move up and down, left and right, then open up suddenly into a cavern. I continue to watch another hole open just ahead of my character, then move down, then up, then stay in one place, and once again open up, this time into a tunnel. Finally, I see ground under my character magnify as he lands on it with a slight bounce.

When he’s finally stable in his place, I have him roll to one side to avoid the ponies and dragons that I know have followed my character down the hole.

Indeed, the first one down is Weed Whacker, then Lyra, then Spike, then Applejack, then Twilight Sparkle, then Rainbow Dash, then Fluttershy, and finally Pinkie Pie.

As my character, as per my instructions, helps the dazed ponies and dragons out of their pile-up, I say, “You know, there are humans that’d pay a lot of money to go on a ride like that.” But, it seems that the ponies and dragons are too dazed at the time to hear, or understand, what I say.

Once all are on their feet, or hooves, and have shaken themselves out, Twilight says, “Well, we’ve come this far. Any idea how we’re gonna get to Rarity now?”

Presently, an idea seems to dawn on Spike. He produces an azure jewel and says, “Hey, we can use this to find her!”

Then, again as if on cue, the jewel starts glowing, and drags the purple dragon to another hole, which is significantly smaller than the one that got the group down to the present tunnel.

Again Applejack grabs onto Spike’s tail to keep him from going down too fast.

And, mostly like the previous lineup, Twilight follows Applejack, and is followed by Rainbow Dash, then Fluttershy, then Pinkie Pie. But, this time, Weed Whacker attaches herself to Pinkie Pie’s tail, Lyra to Weed Whacker’s tail, and my character grabs onto Lyra’s tail. Whether the effect is worth it or not is, and most likely will remain, unclear; but, even my character is dragged into the hole, to end up on top of the pile.

My character gets up off of Lyra’s back, then helps the ponies and dragons, once again, out of the stack and onto their hooves or feet.

As they once again shake themselves out, Twilight turns to my character and says, “Thank … you … Mormon.”

The rest of the group, noticing how Twilight seemed to have trailed off, turn to her, then to my character.

Twilight, tilting her head in a way I can only interpret as curious, asks, “Mormon, are you alright?”

Lyra and Pinkie Pie, after looking at my character for a few seconds, each close their eyes and plant a hoof between them, then shake their heads and say, “Oh, no.”

I ask, “Is something wrong?”

And, then, my character looks down at himself, then back up at the hole. It seems that, on the trip down that last hole, whatever was in there ripped away all his clothing.

I turn to the ponies and dragons and say, “Well, we can’t worry about that right now. We still have to find and rescue Rarity, although, I wouldn’t be surprised if she has everything well in hand.”

Twilight says, “Remember, Rarity’s a pony. In her case, it’s well in hoof.”

I respond, “Yeah, that too. The point is I suspect she’ll have everything under control.”

Just then, I hear Spike ask, “Wait, where’d it go?”

Twilight turns to her assistant and asks, “Where did what go, Spike?”

The focus of my character turns to the purple dragon as he, searching the ground, answers, “The jewel Rarity gave me. I can’t find it.” When his search turns up fruitless, desperation and frustration set in; and he looks up and cries out an extended “No!”

And, it seems that Spike’s pained cry is enough to snap the focus of pony and dragon alike away from my character.

Applejack says, “Well, like Mormon said, we can’t be worried about that right now. We still have to find Rarity.”

Fluttershy responds, “Yes. But, how are we going to find her with all these tunnels?”

Indeed, with one panning, three-hundred-sixty-degree turn, my character shows me, through his eyes, the tunnels, going in all directions, connecting to the tunnel where the group is at present.

The attention of my character is drawn back to Twilight Sparkle as she asks, “All these tunnels, how are we ever gonna find Rarity?” And, I can already see she’s leading the group, save for my character, apparently, through the main tunnel, which leads to a fork.

As my character runs to catch up to the main group, I hear Applejack answer, “Giss we’re gonna have to start goin’ through ‘em one-by-one.”

Then, Rainbow Dash points out, “That could take forever. There’s gotta be a way to narrow it down.”

Presently, Spike points upwards and, stopping the group by example, says, “I know. I bet they’ve taken her down the tunnel with the most gems.”

Twilight points out, “But, Spike, Rarity’s the only one that knows how to find gems.”

Spike, who’d been looking away from the purple unicorn, turns to her again and states, “No. Twilight, you can. You can copy Rarity’s gem-hunting spell.”

Twilight points to herself and, with a distressed look on her face, states, “Oh, my gosh, you’re right.” She then starts walking forward smiling as she continues, “Rarity showed me how she did it a while back.” She then stops as she concludes, “If I can just remember, …” And, she starts focusing as her horn starts to glow and sparkle.

As the purple unicorn looks up, jewels start glowing from surfaces in the walls, floor, and ceiling of the cave. And, sure enough, along one pathway are more of the glowing gems than in any other pathway.

Presently, Spike says, “You did it, Twilight!” He then hops onto the purple unicorn’s back and says, pointing to the pathway, “Come on!”

The rest of the group follows Twilight as she rears up and kicks her front legs for a moment, then lands and starts galloping into the tunnel with the most glowing jewels.

I can’t help noticing that Twilight’s spell seems to have a limited range; as, while most of the rest of the group follows her, the jewels around my character seem to disappear back into the ground.

Nothing is said amongst the group as my character follows the galloping ponies, lead by Twilight, as gems appear in the walls, ceiling, and floor ahead of her, and disappear around my character. But, thus the rapidly moving parade proceeds for a few minutes until I start to hear Rarity’s melodramatic bawling.

And, not long after that, the group arrives at an intersection of tunnels, one of which is closed off by a door made of metal bars.

As the group comes to a stop, Rainbow Dash points to the metal bar door and says, “She must be in there!”

But, before the group can proceed, each of the ponies, as well as my character, is attacked by an earthy-chocolate colored, armored diamond dog; and each of the ponies is secured by the muzzle with a rope.

I hear Applejack say, “Woah, Doggies. If you can take this bull by the horns, you better be ready for a ride.” And, with that, she starts jumping and kicking, determined to get the diamond dog off of her back.

The rest of the ponies follow suit.

I, on the other hand, have my character turn one hundred eighty degrees, then grab the arms of the diamond dog on his back, then kneel and bow, throwing the surprised dog in front of him, as I call out, “Woah-I’m-gonna-throw-you-over-there!”

As soon as the diamond dog lands on his back, he rolls over onto his front, then looks up at my character and says, “Hey, why you not warn me first?” This one kind of sounds like Scooby-doo to me.

I answer, “I did warn you. I said I was gonna throw you over there, and I did.”

In the mean time, the diamond dog stands back up again. When I’m finished speaking, he responds, “Yeah, while you were throwing me.”

I ask, “Well, did I lie?”

The diamond dog doesn’t answer my question, just growls and jumps at my character again.

This time, I have my character kick the dog in the chest, causing him to yelp in pain and grab his chest as he once again lands on his back.

This time, as he rolls over on his front, he looks up at me, then whimpers, “This not worth it. I go now.” And, with that, he turns and runs off.

As I turn to the ponies, I hear Applejack say, “Yee-haw! Git along, little doggies!” Evidently, each of them has taken care of their own diamond dog.

But, before anyone can say anything more, loud crashing sounds start coming from the metal bar door.

Spike grabs and breaks off a stalactite, then tosses and catches it so he’s holding it just at it’s broken part, making it look like a jousting sword. He then says, “I’m comin’ for ya, m’lady. Hi-ho, Twilight, away!”

I can’t help noticing the indignant look on the purple unicorn’s face as she turns to her assistant and asks, “And, just what do you think you’re doing?”

Somewhat humbled, Spike replies, “Please, Twilight, just give me this?”

Twilight groans and says, “Fine,” then rears up on her hind legs and kicks with her front ones, then charges through the metal bar door. Either she’s sturdier than she looks, the door was weaker than it looked, or Twilight used a shield spell on her way through the door. Maybe it’s a mixture of those possibilities. I may never know.

At any rate, as the rest of the ponies follow Twilight into the room through the broken door, I hear Weed Whacker sigh and say, “Maybe some day he’ll do that for me.”

I choose not to respond to the herbivorous dinosaur’s statement, just have my character follow the ponies through the now-open doorway. And, what greets our vision is among the funniest things I’ve seen in the show.

As I hear Spike say, “Rarity, I’m here to save you,” I watch three diamond dogs, one of which is the one that helped me dig out the hole again, running towards the group of ponies, dragons, and human, crying variations of “Save me!”

As the trio falls at Twilight’s front hooves, in confusion she asks, “Excuse me?”

Presently, as the three stand up again, Grover-Yoda says, “So picky.”

The gray diamond dog adds, “And critical.”

Grover-Yoda continues, “She won’t stop talking.”

The gray diamond dog adds, “And crying!”

The earth-gray dog in the middle concludes, “We, uh, give her back, yes.”

Immediately, Spike jumps off of Twilight and, running to hug the white unicorn, says, “Rarity, you’re safe!”

Smiling, Rarity responds, “Why, yes. And, girls, you’ve arrived just in time to assist me.”

An incredulous Applejack asks, “Assist ya with what?” It’s either that, or “A sissy with what?”

Whichever it is, Rarity looks behind her and says, “With those.”

My character follows Rarity’s gaze to some half a dozen carts, each filled high above the top with shining gems.

I hear Spike ask, “You’re letting her leave, with all these—jewels?”

The earth-gray diamond dog answers, “Yes, take them! And her with them!”

Grover-Yoda adds, “Please!”

At this point, I can’t help but laugh at the trio, trembling behind an unstable-looking column.

On the other hand, each of the element holders is more than willing to take a cart and pull it, following Rarity out of the underground room.

I have my character linger behind for a moment and face the diamond dogs, as I ask, “So, how do we get out of here?”

It’s Grover-Yoda who answers, “J-just follow the main tunnel.”

The earth-gray diamond dog adds, “Yes-yes! The main tunnel will lead you out of here!”

I have my character wave to the trio as I say, “Thanks again. Goodbye!” And, as the dogs respond in kind, I have my character turn around and follow the ponies, carts and all.

As the group passes the broken door, I hear Rarity ask, “Oh, Mormon, by the way, why are you not wearing any clothing?”

I answer, “One of the tunnels we went through wouldn’t admit me with my clothes.”

Lyra asks, “A better question is how were you able to scare those diamond dogs into submission, Rarity?”

Spike’s voice shakes with excitement as he adds, “Yeah, and with all these jewels?”

Rarity answers, “Well, let me start by saying that being a lady does have it’s advantages.”

Twilight asks, “How’s that?”

Rarity continues, “As soon as they told me what they wanted, I used my gem-finding spell, then marked the place where some jewels were with a stick and asked them to let me go. But, of course they insisted that I stay and dig the jewels up. Well, I couldn’t allow my pony pedicure to be ruined, so I dug as slowly and as little as I could. Eventually, the diamond dogs got impatient and dug the jewels up themselves.”

At this point, I speak up and say, “You know, that reminds me of a story I heard from LDS history. It seems that after Joseph Smith got the golden plates, he had to move out of his home. So, he hid the gold plates in a barrel of raw, dehydrated beans, or that’s how the video portrayed it. Anyway, when a mob came and demanded the plates, they ransacked his wagon until they got to the barrel of beans, at which point Joseph stopped them, and demanded that he help by digging the beans out himself. When they agreed, he took the beans, a handful at a time, out of the barrel, and put them into a bucket. It seems that the process was so slow, the mob got impatient; but they gave up and moved on.”

Rarity continues, “Well, the diamond dogs decided that if I wasn’t going to dig, then I should pull the cart with the jewels. Well, let me tell you something, the old rusty harness they gave me to pull the cart wasn’t as uncomfortable as their claws. I don’t know what they used them for, but they were a real mess, and I let them know about it. And, don’t get me started on the odors they produced.

“Well, while I pulled their cart and marked where the jewels were, I let them know what I thought of the conditions I was working under. And, when they said I was whining, I let them know what whining is. And, after that, at least for a while, I had them eating out of my hoof.

“And, then they called me a mule, and I cried over them calling me ugly.”

I hear Twilight say, “And, that’s when we heard you.”

Rainbow Dash adds, “A bunch of diamond dogs tried to catch us, but, with Applejack leading the way, we managed to jump and kick ‘em off.” And, she concludes with a couple of laughs.

I add, “The one that tried to catch me, after a throw and a kick, gave up easily enough.”

I hear Lyra say, “I heard you say something about throwing him over there.”

I respond, “I just warned him what I was going to do.”

I hear Pinkie Pie giggle, then snort, then say, “I heard you warned him while you were throwing him.”

I state, “Well, I did warn him, after all. I just didn’t give him a chance to respond.”

At this point, all of the ponies, as well as the dragons, laugh.

And, based on the increasing light, it seems that the group is approaching, no, make that has reached, the opening to the cave.

At the opening, I find that Lyra has lingered behind to wait for me. Then, as she sees me, she asks, “So, Mormon, do you want me to teleport you back to your home so you can get a bath and some clothes?”

I have my character stop pushing the cart ahead of him, only to see that the cart is moving just as easily on its own. Evidently, whichever pony has been pulling the cart probably didn’t need my character pushing from behind after all.

After watching the cart move on ahead of my character for a few seconds, I have him turn Lyra; and I answer, “That’s a good idea. Sure, go ahead.”

At my acceptance, Lyra closes her eyes, and her horn glows and sparkles as she concentrates.

Then, a frame later, the pale-green unicorn and my character are on the lawn in front of my character’s home.

I have my character head up the front steps as I say, “Thanks, Lyra. You can wait inside if you want.”

Then, I hear growling, and my character turns to show me, through his eyes, that it’s Scout growling at him.

I state, “It’s alright, Scout, it’s me.”

Scout stops growling, then rises to all fours and walks toward my character and sniffs at his hand, then backs away and drops into a sphinx-style sitting position again.

I have my character enter the house, then head to the bathroom closest to his bedroom and enter and turn on the shower. You know, it turns out that not all of my character’s clothes were removed in that last, tight tunnel. It seems that the collar of his shirt, as well as the belt line of his pants, remained on him. I have him remove those and throw them on the floor before he starts his shower. Then after the shower, I have him go to his room and put some fresh clothes on, then go into the bathroom after the remnants of his torn clothes, gather them up, then throw them in the nearest garbage container, which happens to be the one next to the fridge in the kitchen.

My character enters the front room to find Lyra waiting for him on the couch. Based on what I’m seeing from my character’s perspective, it looks like Lyra also had a shower.

I ask her, “So, would you like to walk back to Ponyville, or shall we teleport there?”

Lyra answers, “Well, either way, I’m guessing by the time we get back there, Pinkie Pie and her friends will be at the boutique, and Rarity’ll be sorting through the jewels. I say we teleport there.” And, before I can agree, again she concentrates; and, once her horn starts to glow and sparkle, in one frame she and my character are at the entrance to the boutique where, indeed, six more carts are waiting, evidently abandoned by six ponies. Lyra walks up to the front door and says, “Now, let’s go inside.”

But, before the pale-green unicorn can open the door, it pulls open on its own; and Pinkie Pie, on the other side, says, “Oh, Lyra, Mormon, come on in. We’ve been waiting for you.”

As the human and the unicorn enter, I say, “I’m guessing you had Weed Whacker ride on Pinkie Pie’s back?”

And, once the two are inside, I hear Weed Whacker answer, “That’s right.”

And, that’s before I notice the pile of gems in the middle of Rarity’s boutique.

To the side of the pile opposite the door, I hear Rarity say, “It will take me quite some time to sort out all these jewels, but that doesn’t mean I won’t have time to go to the reading this evening.”

And, that’s when I remember an important matter.

And, as it turns out, Pinkie remembers it too, as I hear her blurt out, “Oh, yeah, I need to go invite the Cakes to the reading!”

If Pinkie Pie hadn’t said that, I would’ve asked her about it. But, since she’s indicated that she’s thinking about it, with my character turning his attention from Rarity to her, I ask, “So, Pinkie, do you want me to go with you?”

Pinkie smiles as she answers, “If you wanna go with me, then you can.” She then turns to the white unicorn and asks, “Do you need Mormon for anything, Rarity?”

She answers, “No, Mormon may go with you, Pinkie.”

The pink earth pony turns to my character and says, “Well, if you wanna come with me, then let’s get going.” And, with that, she turns and heads out the door.

Before I can close the door behind my character and Pinkie, I hear Rarity address Lyra. Whether it’s to help her sort out the jewels or it’s something about her dress, I don’t catch because my character closes the door too quickly. But, I’m guessing it’s to help sort the jewels.

In the mean time, my character follows Pinkie Pie to Sugar Cube Corner, where Mr. Cake is outside, either saluting one last customer farewell, or closing up shop for the day.

As the human and pink earth pony approach, Pinkie gallops forward and says, “Hi, Mr. Cake!”

The orange earth stallion turns to her and says, “Oh, hi, Pinkie. How are you?”

Pinkie stops an inch away from Mr. Cake and answers, “I’m fine. I just came to invite you and Mrs. Cake to the reading tonight. It’s being held at Town Hall starting last night.”

Mr. Cake smiles and says, “Oh, is that so. I noticed that ponies that were headed to Mormon’s house to read were being diverted into town. Just give me a minute or two, and I’ll go inside and ask Cup if she wants to go to the reading.” And, with that, he heads around to the back door, opens it, and enters, calling to the pink party pony and the human, “You can wait for us inside, Pinkie, Mormon.”

In agreement, my character and Pinkie Pie follow the orange earth stallion through the back door, then through the kitchen into the main room.

As they walk through the kitchen, I’m not surprised to see that, indeed, the taffy-pulling machine is no longer in the kitchen. I state, “I’m guessing you got rid of the taffy puller?”

I hear Mr. Cake say flatly, “Yes. After what happened to the Cutie Mark Crusaders, I decided it was better not to have that machine in here. I gave it to Bon-Bon.”

As I’m thinking about it, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Well, Mormy, it sounds like you were totally right.”

At this point, the group of three are in the main room.

Mr. Cake turns to my character and asks, “Totally right about what?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “He figured that, after Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle got caught in the taffy puller, you’d give it away to somepony else, most likely Bon-Bon.”

I don’t seem to remember saying that aloud. But, I wouldn’t be surprised if Diane knew, and managed to inform Pinkamena about it.

In the mean time, Mr. Cake walks to the stairs, then, turning to the pink earth mare and the human, says, “If you two will wait down here, I’ll go up and ask Cup about the reading.” And, with that, he marches up the stairs.

I watch, through my character’s eyes, the orange earth stallion head up the stairs, down the hall, and into the second door. Then, when the door closes behind Mr. Cake, I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie.

The pink party pony, as it turns out, is looking up at my character. She says, “I wonder if they’ll be able to catch up.”

I respond, “I suspect they will. For all we know, they may have been reading the whole time between the two of them. Who knows? The Book of Mormon may have been providing them with bedtime stories for their two foals. I’m guessing they’ll only tell us about it if it matters that much to them.”

Pinkie Pie seemed to have a worried look on her face when she mentioned the Cakes catching up. But, now she begins to smile as she says, “I hope you’re right.”

Not long after she says that, the door to the room Mr. Cake entered opens; and he comes out. Smiling, he says, “We’ll need some time to get ready, but yes. In fact, we’ll be honored to join in the reading tonight.”

In response, Pinkie Pie jumps into the air and screams, “Yes!” Then, evidently realizing she’s gotten overly excited, she stops in mid air, then slowly descends to the ground, then giggles and says to the orange earth stallion, “Uh, I mean, thank you, Mr. Cake.”

I can’t blame Pinkie Pie for her excitement, though. I ask, “So, do you need any help making preparations?”

Mr. Cake smiles as he responds, “I appreciate the offer, but no, I don’t think so. You two can go on ahead to Town Hall, or wherever you need to go before then.”

As Pinkie Pie leads the way through the kitchen to the back door, I say, “We look forward to seeing you and Mrs. Cake there at the reading.”

Mr. Cake replies, “We look forward to being there.”

Approximately halfway through the kitchen, as my character turns to the pink earth mare, I hear her ask, “Do you think they’ll bring their foals with them?”

I answer, “It wouldn’t surprise me.”

I’m sure I can hear Pinkie smile when she says, “I do look forward to seeing them again.”

I say, “Let’s just get back to Carousel Boutique. Maybe we can help Rarity and Lyra sort out all those gems.”

Once the pony and human are back outside, Pinkie turns to my character and says, “Oh, that reminds me. Do you still have your Book of Mormon in your inventory?”

It takes me only a few seconds to find out that I have in my inventory all the items I had before, including my copy of the Book of Mormon.

As I exit out of my inventory, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “I know I have mine in mine.”

I answer, “Yes, I have my Book of Mormon in my inventory.”

Pinkie closes her eyes and smiles as she says, “Good!” Then, she opens her eyes again and says, “I wonder if Lyra has hers.”

As the pink earth pony starts trotting off to Carousel Boutique again, and my character follows her, I ask, “Her Book of Mormon, or her inventory?”

Pinkie Pie giggles as she starts galloping.

When the two arrive at the boutique, Pinkie Pie opens the door and enters first, while my character follows.

As soon as my character enters the boutique, I’m aware of a pale-yellow earth pony wearing a white blouse and staring at the pile of jewels just a few feet from the doorway.

I say, “Miss Sapphire Shores, imagine meeting you here.”

The butter-colored earth pony jumps and yelps at the sound of my voice, then turns and looks at my character. I’m sure I hear her growl, “Oh, it’s you,” before she asks, “What do you want? Do you live here or something?”

I open my mouth to answer, but then I hear Pinkie Pie giggle and answer for me, “No, Mormon lives on the other side of the Everfree forest.”

Sapphire Shores simply repeats, “The Everfree forest.” Then, she continues, “You let a monster from the nearby forest run loose through your town.”

Again I open my mouth to speak, and again Pinkie Pie answers for me, “Oh, Mormon’s no monster. He’s our friend.”

At this point, considering the calming effect she seems to have on Sapphire Shores, I decide it’s alright to allow Pinkie Pie to be my spokes pony.

In the mean time, the pale-yellow earth pony says, “Well, as long as he doesn’t hurt anypony, I suppose he can stay.”

This time, as I open my mouth to speak, Pinkie Pie doesn’t say anything. So, I go ahead and say, “When ponies first meet me, they’re scared of me. That is, until they find out that I don’t want to do them any harm, and prefer to make friends with them. After that, they’re perfectly fine with me being around.”

Sapphire Shores looks at my character, then grunts in something that kind of sounds like affirmation, but I tend to doubt it is. Still, she seems to accept my presence, at least for the moment.

In the mean time, Rarity asks, “Oh, by the way, Sapphire, how long will you be staying here?”

The butter-colored earth mare answers, “Oh, I like to stay at a place until my costumes are complete, you know, make sure they’re perfect?”

Next, Rarity asks, “So, would you like to attend the reading this evening? It’s hosted by Mormon, here, and being held at Town Hall.”

Sapphire Shores turns to and eyes my character up and down, then turns back to Rarity and answers, “I suppose I could find something to do in town while I’m waiting. Sure, I’ll attend the reading.”

It could be that Rarity has more than enough materials to complete Sapphire Shores’ order, or that she’s occupied sorting out the pile of jewels she gathered with the help of the diamond dogs. But, I don’t seem to sense any nervousness in her.

As the four leave through the front door, with my character watching them, I hear Lyra say, “I brought my and Weed Whacker’s books with me. I got them while Mormon was taking a bath and getting a new change of clothes.”

Rarity looks over and takes a look at my character, then says, “Oh, yes, Mormon, it’s good to see you dressed again.”

Before I can respond, Sapphire Shores asks, “He always wears that much clothing?”

Rarity goes back to sorting the gems as she answers, “But, of course. He’s a human.”

Sapphire Shores continues, “And, there was a time today when he wasn’t?”

This time, it’s Pinkie Pie who answers, “He came with us to rescue Rarity from the diamond dogs.” Rarity calls the pink earth pony’s name to get her attention, but Pinkie Pie continues, “He dug out a hole that the diamond dogs buried, then jumped down it. He lost his clothes when he grabbed on to Lyra to keep her from going down a little hole too fast after us, and the hole ripped off all his clothing.” And, she concludes by giggling.

I correct, “I did start digging the hole out; but when a diamond dog jumped out at me, I asked him politely to help me dig the hole out, and he went ahead and finished the job.”

I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, is that what happened?”

As my character turns his attention to the pink earth pony, I hear Rarity growl, “Mormon, don’t encourage her!”

As my character now focuses his attention on the white unicorn, I respond, “I was just stating the event based on how I saw it.”

At that moment Rarity sighs, then says, “So, you were polite to a diamond dog, and the diamond dog did your job for you?”

I answer, “That’s right.”

Rarity rubs her chin with a front hoof as she says, “I just had to make myself look good only at finding the jewels so the diamond dogs would do the digging for me.”

At this, I hear Sapphire Shores laugh boisterously. As my character turns his attention to the butter-colored earth pony, she says, “Well, it sounds like you all had your adventures for the day.”

At her comment, Rarity and I voice our affirmations simultaneously.

After that, I think out loud, “I wonder if we should wait here for the other four to return, or if we should head over to the Town Hall now.”

I think Rarity was getting ready to answer; but before she can, the front door opens; and Twilight comes in, with Spike on her back holding two books, and says, “Well, Spike and I are ready to go to the reading when everypony else is.”

My guess is Rarity switches gears when she says, “Well, that’s good to hear. Mormon was just wondering if we should go to the Town Hall now, or wait for the others to come first. If everypony can wait here, I shall go upstairs and get my copy of the book.”

As the white unicorn turns from the now not-quite-so-large pile of gems and heads up the stairs to her room, again I hear the front door open.

This time, it’s Rainbow Dash who flies in and says, “Well, I’m ready with my book.” Then, looking around, she says, “I guess we just wait for Fluttershy and Applejack.”

As the blue pegasa settles down on the ground, I hear Sapphire Shores ask, “Uh, what about me? When do I get my copy of this book that we’ll be reading?”

As my character turns to the pale-yellow earth pony, I answer, “There are copies of the Book of Mormon at the Town Hall.”

Sapphire Shores asks, “And, how much do they cost?”

I answer, “They don’t cost anything. Newcomers get their own copy.”

The butter-colored earth pony rubs her chin with a front hoof and hums with interest for a moment. Then, she puts the front hoof down again and, focusing on my character, asks, “And, do I get to keep my copy of the book?”

I answer, “Sure, no problem.”

Sapphire Shores goes back to rubbing her chin with her front hoof and humming with interest. This time, when she puts her front hoof down, she asks, “But, doesn’t that lower the value of the book, just giving copies away like that?”

This time, it’s Pinkie Pie who answers, “Oh, not at all. In fact, Mormon believes the book would be less valuable if he did offer it for money.”

Again Sapphire Shores rubs her chin with her front hoof and hums.

But, before she can come up with another question, the front door to the boutique opens; and Applejack enters, followed by her little sister Applebloom, then Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, and finally Fluttershy close behind them.

The white unicorn filly squeaks, “I better go get my book now.” And, with that, she gallops to her room.

As Sweetie Belle disappears behind a door, Scootaloo says, “I’m sure mom and dad’ll be coming with their copies, as well as mine.”

Applebloom states, “Ah got mine from my room ‘fore Ah left.”

Applejack says, “Yes. Fluttershy met us on the way into town. She and Ah have our copies. Is ever’pony else ready to go?”

I open my mouth to speak, but then I hear a door open from the upper level.

As my character turns his attention to the sound, I see, through his eyes, Rarity come out of her room, her copy of the Book of Mormon supported in the air by her magic. As she approaches the stairs, she says, “I shall be with you in a moment, and then we all can go.”

I order my character to the front door, and Lyra and Pinkie Pie follow him there. And I’m not sure, but I think the other four element bearers and the Cutie Mark Crusaders follow suit with Lyra and Pinkie Pie.

All I know is a few seconds later I hear Rarity say, “You may go on ahead, Mormon. We’re all waiting for you.” And, she does sound close.

Then, as I’m inputting my instruction for my character to reach for and open the door, again I hear a door on the upper level open, then the voice of Sweetie Belle once again squeak, “Wait for me!”

At this point, I decide to wait on entering the instruction until Rarity’s little sister comes down the stairs and catches up to the group.

And, it’s just as well; since I hear Rarity call to her, “We’re waiting for you, Sweetie Belle!”

Then, once Rarity indicates that her little sister is part of the group, I enter the instruction; and my character opens the door and holds it open for all the ponies to exit, then my character follows close behind them, pausing for a moment to close the door behind him.

After my character closes the door, the white unicorn turns and puts a sign reading “Closed” over the handles.

After that, my character and Rarity catch up to the rest of the group on their way to the Town Hall, which they reach in a matter of at least a minute. And, once they get there, it’s evident that some ponies are already there for the reading.

Pinkie’s the first to approach the door and open it. Then, as my character did, she stays and holds the door open for the rest of the group to enter. But, unlike my character, Pinkie Pie waits at the door, evidently putting herself in a position to greet guests that will enter.

In the mean time, as I get a good look around at the guests that have already arrived, I see that included among them are the two sister princesses, Mayor Mare, Zecora, and Sapphire Shores, evidently a newcomer to the group.

I decide to have my character steer clear of the line between Rarity and the stack of books near the doorway when I see her approach the butter-colored earth pony and ask, “Sapphire, have you gotten your copy of the Book of Mormon yet?”

Sapphire Shores answers, “I don’t know where to find 'em.”

From my character’s position, to the left of the door a few steps into the room, I can clearly see Sapphire Shores’ face as she talks. And, my decision to steer clear of the stack of books proves to be a good one; as the book on the top of the stack becomes possessed of a white aura, then rises maybe an inch and floats toward the two ponies.

In the mean time, Rarity says, “Oh, that’s right. I shall get you one of them now.”

And, with that, the book floats toward the two, and more directly toward Sapphire Shores.

The butter-colored earth mare receives the book with a word of gratitude, prompting Rarity to nervously grunt her acceptance.

In the mean time, more guests arrive, including Octavia and Vinyl Scratch, Berry Punch and Carrot Top, Snips and Snails and their parents, the parents of Rarity, as well as those of Scootaloo, and the Cakes with their two foals. And, as it turns out, the Cakes have brought some apparently leftover pastries as snacks for the reading. For that matter, the rest of the Apple family living at Sweet Apple Acres arrives with cut-up apples also as snacks.

In a few minutes, Pinkie Pie follows the last guests in to the Town Hall, then closes the door behind her.

If I’m not mistaken, there seem to be fifty guests total at this reading. Unfortunately, it seems that Sunny Days, Peachie Pie, and their parents won’t be attending this reading. But, at least the Cakes are here again.

The group forms a circle in front of the stage, where I evidently have a position on the lowest step.

Before I can say anything, Princess Celestia rises and gives a brief review of what the group has been reading up to this point, comprising all of the first two books of Nephi.

When she's finished and returns to a sphinx-style sitting position, I say, "Now, this evening we'll be starting the book of Jacob, and reading the first four chapters." And, while ponies and dragons open their books and flip through the pages until they get to the right page, I continue, "And, this time I'm not going to offer any comments. That's because I want to hear your opinions and insights on what you're reading. I understand that not everything we'll be reading will be difficult to understand; in fact, there are going to be some straight-forward verses. But, if there's a verse you think applies specifically to you, or holds special meaning for you, then please feel free to speak up about it." Noting, by this point, that all seem to be at the right page, I have my character turn to the butter-colored earth pony; and I ask, "Sapphire Shores, will you begin the reading?"

Smiling, she nods and answers, "Well, I'd be honored." She then looks down and reads, "For behold, it came to pass that fifty and five years had passed away from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem; wherefore, Nephi gave me, Jacob, a commandment concerning the small plates, upon which these things are engraven."

Mrs. Cake reads, "And he gave me, Jacob, a commandment that I should write upon these plates a few of the things which I considered to be most precious; that I should not touch, save it were lightly, concerning the history of this people which are called the people of Nephi."

Mr. Cake reads, "For he said that the history of his people should be engraven upon his other plates, and that I should preserve these plates and hand them down unto my seed, from generation to generation."

Cold Hands reads, "And if there were preaching which was sacred, or revelation which was great, or prophesying, that I should engraven the heads of them upon these plates, and touch upon them as much as it were possible, for Christ’s sake, and for the sake of our people." He then looks up and says, "I'm guessing when Jacob, here, talks about 'the heads,' he's referring to the most important parts of the preaching, revelation, and prophesying?"

Snails reads, "For because of faith and great anxiety, it truly had been made manifest unto us concerning our people, what things should happen unto them."

Snips reads, "And we also had many revelations, and the spirit of much prophecy; wherefore, we knew of Christ and his kingdom, which should come."

Warm Heart reads, "Wherefore we labored diligently among our people, that we might persuade them to come unto Christ, and partake of the goodness of God, that they might enter into his rest, lest by any means he should swear in his wrath they should not enter in, as in the provocation in the days of temptation while the children of Israel were in the wilderness."

Colgate reads, "Wherefore, we would to God that we could persuade all men not to rebel against God, to provoke him to anger, but that all men would believe in Christ, and view his death, and suffer his cross and bear the shame of the world; wherefore, I, Jacob, take it upon me to fulfil the commandment of my brother Nephi."

At this point, I hear Rainbow Dash say, "'Bear the shame of the world.'" As my character's attention is drawn to her, she asks, "What does that mean, exactly? Are we supposed to be ashamed of this in front of others?"

I answer, "That's a good question." I then turn to the daytime princess and ask, "Princess Celestia, what do you think it means?"

The white alicorn hums for a moment in thought, then says, "I don't think we're supposed to be ashamed of what we're reading here. But, not everypony is going to look at these things as words of wisdom. It may be that what Jacob is saying here is that those that aren't familiar with these things, and don't want to know about them, are going to make fun of those of us that welcome them. The things that we find honorable are going to be shameful to others, and those others may go so far as to make fun of them. But, they are as much entitled to their opinion as we are to ours. Does that make sense to you, Rainbow Dash?"

The blue pegasa pauses for a moment in thought, then says, "You know, I think it does. Thanks, Princess Celestia."

At this point, Bon-Bon reads, "Now Nephi began to be old, and he saw that he must soon die; wherefore, he anointed a man to be a king and a ruler over his people now, according to the reigns of the kings." She then looks up and asks, "Wasn't there something about them not having kings when they got to the promised land?"

This time, it's Princess Luna who nods and says, "That's true. But, the God the Nephites serve frequently gave them what they wanted, whether it was for their benefit or their detriment. That way, they could find out for themselves whether they really wanted it or not, and whether it was good for them or not. In this case, the people wanted a king; so, they were given a king. But, we shall read later that the Nephites did indeed learn that having a king was more trouble for them than it was worth."

At this point, I must say this is getting back to what I originally enjoyed about the readings.

In the mean time, Lyra reads, "The people having loved Nephi exceedingly, he having been a great protector for them, having wielded the sword of Laban in their defense, and having labored in all his days for their welfare—"

Weed Whacker reads, "Wherefore, the people were desirous to retain in remembrance his name. And whoso should reign in his stead were called by the people, second Nephi, third Nephi, and so forth, according to the reigns of the kings; and thus they were called by the people, let them be of whatever name they would." Looking up, she says, "You know, considering Nephi's history with his people, it isn't surprising that they'd respect and appreciate him so much."

I read, "And it came to pass that Nephi died."

Zecora reads, "Now the people which were not Lamanites were Nephites; nevertheless, they were called Nephites, Jacobites, Josephites, Zoramites, Lamanites, Lemuelites, and Ishmaelites."

Mayor Mare reads, "But I, Jacob, shall not hereafter distinguish them by these names, but I shall call them Lamanites that seek to destroy the people of Nephi, and those who are friendly to Nephi I shall call Nephites, or the people of Nephi, according to the reigns of the kings."

Princess Luna reads, "And now it came to pass that the people of Nephi, under the reign of the second king, began to grow hard in their hearts, and indulge themselves somewhat in wicked practices, such as like unto David of old desiring many wives and concubines, and also Solomon, his son." She then turns to me and says, "This is something that Tia and I have been wondering about ever since we read about it." She then asks, "Who are these two, David and Solomon?"

I answer, "David was the second king of Israel, and Solomon was their third king, and David's son. David more or less inherited the kingdom of Israel from Saul, their first king, after Saul turned evil. And, even he and his son weren't exempt from practices that were contrary to God's commandments. Both had multiple wives. In fact, Solomon, before and while he built a temple to God, was the wisest and richest king of his time, perhaps of all time. But, after building the temple, he got into practices he shouldn't have. He had a thousand wives, seventy percent of which were concubines, or secondary wives."

Princess Celestia reads, "Yea, and they also began to search much gold and silver, and began to be lifted up somewhat in pride."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "Wherefore I, Jacob, gave unto them these words as I taught them in the temple, having first obtained mine errand from the Lord." Looking up, she says, "So, the Nephites had their own temple then?"

Princess Celestia turns to her and says, "That's right. Not everything they did was against the commandments of their God."

Spike reads, "For I, Jacob, and my brother Joseph had been consecrated priests and teachers of this people, by the hand of Nephi."

Rarity reads, "And we did magnify our office unto the Lord, taking upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads if we did not teach them the word of God with all diligence; wherefore, by laboring with our might their blood might not come upon our garments; otherwise their blood would come upon our garments, and we would not be found spotless at the last day."

At this point, Princess Celestia rises up to a canine-style sitting position and says, "This is the responsibility I, for instance, have taken on myself as princess of Equestria. Not necessarily teaching the word of God, but making sure the laws that everypony has agreed to are obeyed. It has not always been easy, but things that are worth it usually aren't. It has been an honor serving all of you, and I will endeavor to continue to do so."

At this point, as Princess Celestia returns to a sphinx-style sitting position, Applejack looks up and says, "Ah suppose Ah'll be startin' chapter two, then." She then looks down and reads, "The words which Jacob, the brother of Nephi, spake unto the people of Nephi, after the death of Nephi:"

Pinkie Pie reads, "Now, my beloved brethren, I, Jacob, according to the responsibility which I am under to God, to magnify mine office with soberness, and that I might rid my garments of your sins, I come up into the temple this day that I might declare unto you the word of God."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And ye yourselves know that I have hitherto been diligent in the office of my calling; but I this day am weighed down with much more desire and anxiety for the welfare of your souls than I have hitherto been."

Fluttershy reads, "For behold, as yet, ye have been obedient unto the word of the Lord, which I have given unto you."

Twist reads, "But behold, hearken ye unto me, and know that by the help of the all-powerful Creator of heaven and earth I can tell you concerning your thoughts, how that ye are beginning to labor in sin, which sin appeareth very abominable unto me, yea, and abominable unto God."

Namby Pamby reads, "Yea, it grieveth my soul and causeth me to shrink with shame before the presence of my Maker, that I must testify unto you concerning the wickedness of your hearts."

Cheerilee reads, "And also it grieveth me that I must use so much boldness of speech concerning you, before your wives and your children, many of whose feelings are exceedingly tender and chaste and delicate before God, which thing is pleasing unto God;"

Silver Spoon reads, "And it supposeth me that they have come up hither to hear the pleasing word of God, yea, the word which healeth the wounded soul."

Filthy Rich reads, "Wherefore, it burdeneth my soul that I should be constrained, because of the strict commandment which I have received from God, to admonish you according to your crimes, to enlarge the wounds of those who are already wounded, instead of consoling and healing their wounds; and those who have not been wounded, instead of feasting upon the pleasing word of God have daggers placed to pierce their souls and wound their delicate minds."

Diamond Tiara reads, "But, notwithstanding the greatness of the task, I must do according to the strict commands of God, and tell you concerning your wickedness and abominations, in the presence of the pure in heart, and the broken heart, and under the glance of the piercing eye of the Almighty God."

Rarity's Mother reads, "Wherefore, I must tell you the truth according to the plainness of the word of God. For behold, as I inquired of the Lord, thus came the word unto me, saying: Jacob, get thou up into the temple on the morrow, and declare the word which I shall give thee unto this people."

Rarity's Father reads, "And now behold, my brethren, this is the word which I declare unto you, that many of you have begun to search for gold, and for silver, and for all manner of precious ores, in the which this land, which is a land of promise unto you and to your seed, doth abound most plentifully."

Stunts reads, "And the hand of providence hath smiled upon you most pleasingly, that you have obtained many riches; and because some of you have obtained more abundantly than that of your brethren ye are lifted up in the pride of your hearts, and wear stiff necks and high heads because of the costliness of your apparel, and persecute your brethren because ye suppose that ye are better than they." Looking up, he says, "This is something I think all of us need to be careful about, and remember. Just because one of us has more of something than somepony else has, or just because we have something that somepony else doesn't have, that doesn't make that one of us better than that somepony else."

Berry Ground reads, "And now, my brethren, do ye suppose that God justifieth you in this thing? Behold, I say unto you, Nay. But he condemneth you, and if ye persist in these things his judgments must speedily come unto you."

Emerald Hill reads, "O that he would show you that he can pierce you, and with one glance of his eye he can smite you to the dust!"

Wind Walker reads, "O that he would rid you from this iniquity and abomination. And, O that ye would listen unto the word of his commands, and let not this pride of your hearts destroy your souls!"

Sleeping Beauty reads, "Think of your brethren like unto yourselves, and be familiar with all and free with your substance, that they may be rich like unto you."

Scootaloo reads, "But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God."

Sweetie Belle reads, "And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good—to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted."

Applebloom reads, "And now, my brethren, I have spoken unto you concerning pride; and those of you which have afflicted your neighbor, and persecuted him because ye were proud in your hearts, of the things which God hath given you, what say ye of it?"

Big MacIntosh reads, "Do ye not suppose that such things are abominable unto him who created all flesh? And the one being is as precious in his sight as the other. And all flesh is of the dust; and for the selfsame end hath he created them, that they should keep his commandments and glorify him forever."

Granny Smith reads, "And now I make an end of speaking unto you concerning this pride. And were it not that I must speak unto you concerning a grosser crime, my heart would rejoice exceedingly because of you."

Berry Punch reads, "But the word of God burdens me because of your grosser crimes. For behold, thus saith the Lord: This people begin to wax in iniquity; they understand not the scriptures, for they seek to excuse themselves in committing whoredoms, because of the things which were written concerning David, and Solomon his son."

Carrot Top reads, "Behold, David and Solomon truly had many wives and concubines, which thing was abominable before me, saith the Lord."

Octavia reads, "Wherefore, thus saith the Lord, I have led this people forth out of the land of Jerusalem, by the power of mine arm, that I might raise up unto me a righteous branch from the fruit of the loins of Joseph."

Vinyl Scratch reads, "Wherefore, I the Lord God will not suffer that this people shall do like unto them of old."

Drum Roll reads, "Wherefore, my brethren, hear me, and hearken to the word of the Lord: For there shall not any man among you have save it be one wife; and concubines he shall have none;"

Sweet Tones reads, "For I, the Lord God, delight in the chastity of women. And whoredoms are an abomination before me; thus saith the Lord of Hosts."

Lotta Pipes reads, "Wherefore, this people shall keep my commandments, saith the Lord of Hosts, or cursed be the land for their sakes."

Hoity Toity reads, "For if I will, saith the Lord of Hosts, raise up seed unto me, I will command my people; otherwise they shall hearken unto these things."

Hoity Toity's servant reads, "For behold, I, the Lord, have seen the sorrow, and heard the mourning of the daughters of my people in the land of Jerusalem, yea, and in all the lands of my people, because of the wickedness and abominations of their husbands."

Sapphire Shores reads, "And I will not suffer, saith the Lord of Hosts, that the cries of the fair daughters of this people, which I have led out of the land of Jerusalem, shall come up unto me against the men of my people, saith the Lord of Hosts."

Mrs. Cake reads, "For they shall not lead away captive the daughters of my people because of their tenderness, save I shall visit them with a sore curse, even unto destruction; for they shall not commit whoredoms, like unto them of old, saith the Lord of Hosts."

Mr. Cake reads, "And now behold, my brethren, ye know that these commandments were given to our father, Lehi; wherefore, ye have known them before; and ye have come unto great condemnation; for ye have done these things which ye ought not to have done."

Cold Hands reads, "Behold, ye have done greater iniquities than the Lamanites, our brethren. Ye have broken the hearts of your tender wives, and lost the confidence of your children, because of your bad examples before them; and the sobbings of their hearts ascend up to God against you. And because of the strictness of the word of God, which cometh down against you, many hearts died, pierced with deep wounds."

Snails looks up and says, "I guess I start chapter three, then." Then, he looks down again and reads, "But behold, I, Jacob, would speak unto you that are pure in heart. Look unto God with firmness of mind, and pray unto him with exceeding faith, and he will console you in your afflictions, and he will plead your cause, and send down justice upon those who seek your destruction."

Snips reads, "O all ye that are pure in heart, lift up your heads and receive the pleasing word of God, and feast upon his love; for ye may, if your minds are firm, forever."

Warm Heart reads, "But, wo, wo, unto you that are not pure in heart, that are filthy this day before God; for except ye repent the land is cursed for your sakes; and the Lamanites, which are not filthy like unto you, nevertheless they are cursed with a sore cursing, shall scourge you even unto destruction."

Colgate reads, "And the time speedily cometh, that except ye repent they shall possess the land of your inheritance, and the Lord God will lead away the righteous out from among you."

Bon-Bon reads, "Behold, the Lamanites your brethren, whom ye hate because of their filthiness and the cursing which hath come upon their skins, are more righteous than you; for they have not forgotten the commandment of the Lord, which was given unto our father—that they should have save it were one wife, and concubines they should have none, and there should not be whoredoms committed among them."

At this point, I hear Stunts say, "Now, I find this interesting. The evil Lamanites are better than the Nephites."

I respond, "That's generally the way it works. A creature can't break a law if he or she isn't familiar with that law. Then again, it seems that the Lamanites were keeping one commandment that their father Lehi had given them."

Lyra reads, "And now, this commandment they observe to keep; wherefore, because of this observance, in keeping this commandment, the Lord God will not destroy them, but will be merciful unto them; and one day they shall become a blessed people."

Weed Whacker reads, "Behold, their husbands love their wives, and their wives love their husbands; and their husbands and their wives love their children; and their unbelief and their hatred towards you is because of the iniquity of their fathers; wherefore, how much better are you than they, in the sight of your great Creator?"

I read, "O my brethren, I fear that unless ye shall repent of your sins that their skins will be whiter than yours, when ye shall be brought with them before the throne of God."

Zecora reads, "Wherefore, a commandment I give unto you, which is the word of God, that ye revile no more against them because of the darkness of their skins; neither shall ye revile against them because of their filthiness; but ye shall remember your own filthiness, and remember that their filthiness came because of their fathers."

Mayor Mare reads, "Wherefore, ye shall remember your children, how that ye have grieved their hearts because of the example that ye have set before them; and also, remember that ye may, because of your filthiness, bring your children unto destruction, and their sins be heaped upon your heads at the last day."

Princess Luna reads, "O my brethren, hearken unto my words; arouse the faculties of your souls; shake yourselves that ye may awake from the slumber of death; and loose yourselves from the pains of hell that ye may not become angels to the devil, to be cast into that lake of fire and brimstone which is the second death."

Princess Celestia reads, "And now I, Jacob, spake many more things unto the people of Nephi, warning them against fornication and lasciviousness, and every kind of sin, telling them the awful consequences of them."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And a hundredth part of the proceedings of this people, which now began to be numerous, cannot be written upon these plates; but many of their proceedings are written upon the larger plates, and their wars, and their contentions, and the reigns of their kings."

Spike reads, "These plates are called the plates of Jacob, and they were made by the hand of Nephi. And I make an end of speaking these words."

At this point, Rarity says, "And, I start the fourth chapter," before reading, "Now behold, it came to pass that I, Jacob, having ministered much unto my people in word, (and I cannot write but a little of my words, because of the difficulty of engraving our words upon plates) and we know that the things which we write upon plates must remain;"

Applejack reads, "But whatsoever things we write upon anything save it be upon plates must perish and vanish away; but we can write a few words upon plates, which will give our children, and also our beloved brethren, a small degree of knowledge concerning us, or concerning their fathers—"

Pinkie Pie reads, "Now in this thing we do rejoice; and we labor diligently to engraven these words upon plates, hoping that our beloved brethren and our children will receive them with thankful hearts, and look upon them that they may learn with joy and not with sorrow, neither with contempt, concerning their first parents."

Rainbow Dash reads, "For, for this intent have we written these things, that they may know that we knew of Christ, and we had a hope of his glory many hundred years before his coming; and not only we ourselves had a hope of his glory, but also all the holy prophets which were before us."

Fluttershy reads, "Behold, they believed in Christ and worshiped the Father in his name, and also we worship the Father in his name. And for this intent we keep the law of Moses, it pointing our souls to him; and for this cause it is sanctified unto us for righteousness, even as it was accounted unto Abraham in the wilderness to be obedient unto the commands of God in offering up his son Isaac, which is a similitude of God and his Only Begotten Son."

Twist reads, "Wherefore, we search the prophets, and we have many revelations and the spirit of prophecy; and having all these witnesses we obtain a hope, and our faith becometh unshaken, insomuch that we truly can command in the name of Jesus and the very trees obey us, or the mountains, or the waves of the sea."

Namby Pamby reads, "Nevertheless, the Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by his grace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things."

Cheerilee reads, "Behold, great and marvelous are the works of the Lord. How unsearchable are the depths of the mysteries of him; and it is impossible that man should find out all his ways. And no man knoweth of his ways save it be revealed unto him; wherefore, brethren, despise not the revelations of God."

Silver Spoon reads, "For behold, by the power of his word man came upon the face of the earth, which earth was created by the power of his word. Wherefore, if God being able to speak and the world was, and to speak and man was created, O then, why not able to command the earth, or the workmanship of his hands upon the face of it, according to his will and pleasure?"

Filthy Rich reads, "Wherefore, brethren, seek not to counsel the Lord, but to take counsel from his hand. For behold, ye yourselves know that he counseleth in wisdom, and in justice, and in great mercy, over all his works."

Diamond Tiara reads, "Wherefore, beloved brethren, be reconciled unto him through the atonement of Christ, his Only Begotten Son, and ye may obtain a resurrection, according to the power of the resurrection which is in Christ, and be presented as the first-fruits of Christ unto God, having faith, and obtained a good hope of glory in him before he manifesteth himself in the flesh."

Rarity's Mother reads, "And now, beloved, marvel not that I tell you these things; for why not speak of the atonement of Christ, and attain to a perfect knowledge of him, as to attain to the knowledge of a resurrection and the world to come?"

Rarity's Father reads, "Behold, my brethren, he that prophesieth, let him prophesy to the understanding of men; for the Spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not. Wherefore, it speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be; wherefore, these things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls. But behold, we are not witnesses alone in these things; for God also spake them unto prophets of old."

Stunts reads, "But behold, the Jews were a stiffnecked people; and they despised the words of plainness, and killed the prophets, and sought for things that they could not understand. Wherefore, because of their blindness, which blindness came by looking beyond the mark, they must needs fall; for God hath taken away his plainness from them, and delivered unto them many things which they cannot understand, because they desired it. And because they desired it God hath done it, that they may stumble."

Berry Ground reads, "And now I, Jacob, am led on by the Spirit unto prophesying; for I perceive by the workings of the Spirit which is in me, that by the stumbling of the Jews they will reject the stone upon which they might build and have safe foundation."

Emerald Hill reads, "But behold, according to the scriptures, this stone shall become the great, and the last, and the only sure foundation, upon which the Jews can build."

Wind Walker reads, "And now, my beloved, how is it possible that these, after having rejected the sure foundation, can ever build upon it, that it may become the head of their corner?"

At this point, I rise and say, "Unfortunately, there wasn't quite enough for all to read two verses each. But, you can always go home and read further. But, in the mean time, let's call an end to the reading for tonight. Next time, we'll read the rest of the Book of Jacob. Until then, thanks for coming, everyone, and have a safe trip to your homes. Good evening."

As ponies start rising around the circle, Sapphire Shores approaches my character and says, “You know, I really don’t think anypony minded not getting to read more than one verse each. But, I must admit, I have enjoyed reading with you. You’re the first human I’ve ever met. Are all humans like you?”

I answer, “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself. The fact of the matter is I’m fairly unique among humans. In fact, I don’t know if there is such a thing as a typical human. Every human has qualities that makes him or her different from every other human. And, from what I understand, the same thing can be said for ponies.”

Smiling and nodding, Sapphire Shores responds, “That’s true. No two ponies have the same color of hair or fur, and then there are our cutie marks to distinguish us. Do humans have cutie marks?”

Not even I notice, from my character’s perspective, Rarity approach the butter-colored earth pony from behind. Not until she says, “No, I can assure you that humans do not have cutie marks.”

Sapphire Shores starts, jumping into the air and turning ninety degrees to her right before landing and noticing the white unicorn behind her. She then focuses on her and says, “Rarity, I didn’t know you were there.”

Rarity, reminding me of Fluttershy, lowers her head and says, “Oh, I’m sorry, Sapphire. I didn’t mean to alarm you.”

Sapphire Shores smiles and says, “Oh, that’s alright. We’ll just call it payback for when I surprised you earlier.”

Rarity raises her head a little, chuckles, and says, “Oh, there’s really no need for that.”

The two continue with their conversation, but my character is distracted by the voice of Pinkie Pie saying, “Mormy, the rest of us are ready to go when you are.”

My character turns to the pink earth pony and notices she’s joined by Lyra and Weed Whacker. And, Princess Celestia is also with them. I state, “Well, I’m ready to head back now.”

The daytime princess says, “Then, allow me to do the honor.” And, before I can react, or have my character react, the scene changes in a frame to the front of my character's house, where it’s still very much light outside.

Followed by Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker, in that order, I thank Princess Celestia for teleporting the group home. Then, when the daytime alicorn teleports away again, the group of four disperses into the orchard, the vineyard, and the vegetable garden to harvest fruits and vegetables for dinner.

In a matter of minutes, before the sun lowers and the moon rises, the party of four have harvested enough fruits and vegetables for the nighttime meal. And, it’s not very much longer after that when they’ve prepared and eaten the plant parts and headed to their rooms.

In my letter to the princesses, I start out writing about my introduction to Sapphire Shores, and how things could’ve gone better without Scout running ahead to meet her. From there on, I give a summary of what Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Lyra, Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy and my character did with our pets while in the park, before the arrival of Rarity with news of her need for Spike. After that, I talk about how, at the restaurant next to the school, I, along with Fluttershy, waited outside, and I was informed by Sunny Days and Peachie Pie that they weren’t allowed to attend any further readings. I write that I’d told them that they should listen to their parents, and maybe they’d come to the next reading with them. Whether it’ll happen that way or not will be anyone’s guess. But, all we can do is hope for the best.

I then write about how, approaching Carousel Boutique, we got word from Spike, with Weed Whacker’s assistance, that Rarity had been captured by diamond dogs, and was going to be their slave. I don’t mention that I’d lost my clothes entering the diamond dogs’ caves, I just mention how the group got in. I also talk about how, by the time we arrived to help Rarity, she’d had the diamond dogs running scared of her, and they were willing to give up the jewels they’d collected for her in order to be rid of her. Since I don’t hold any ponies hostage at my character’s house, I’ve never experienced unicorn hostility. And, considering the attitudes of the diamond dogs after what Rarity put them through, I’m willing to count that as a blessing.

I conclude the letter, then have my character roll it up and deliver it to Weed Whacker, so she can send it to the princesses. After that, I have my character prepare for and go to bed.

Another eventful day in my computerized version of Ponyville, with more memorable events. The play date was shorter than Scout would’ve liked, evidently, but he still had fun. And, I’m sure there’ll be more fun events in the game’s tomorrow. So, until the game’s tomorrow, I save and close the game.

Chapter 21: Know Your ... Mormon?

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As I resume the game, I find my character waking up, not to pounding on his door or to the voice of one of his friends, of my friends, from the other side of it, but to the sound of somewhat screechy laughter from outside of his room, in fact from outside the house. Well, since I'm here to continue the game, I have him exit his room, then head through the house to the front door.

As my character opens the door and looks down, I happen to see, through his eyes, Pinkie Pie, under Pinkamena’s control, holding a letter in her mouth. As my character takes the letter from her, she says, “A diamond dog left it at your door. What’s it say, huh, Mormy? What’s it say, what’s it say?”

My character opens the letter, and I read, “To human:

“You are invite to special club time as special guest. You may bring friends with, but you are main guest.

“Please come soon. We look forward to you come. Instruction are on back of letter.”

As my character turns to the pink earth pony again, her head is tilted as she looks at him in return, a look of confusion and concern on her face. She asks, “‘We look forward to you come?’ What does that mean?”

I answer, “I think it means whoever dropped this letter off for me, evidently a member of a group of whoevers, is looking forward to me coming to whatever they have planned.” Then, my character turns the letter over, showing me through his eyes the map on the other side.

In the mean time, I see, through my character's eyes, Lyra and Weed Whacker approaching Pinkie Pie from behind, Lyra supporting the fruit she picked in her magic, and Weed Whacker carrying her harvest of vegetables in her arms.

While perhaps not the most detailed, or perhaps not the most professional looking, it is enough to let me know that the event is supposed to be in a cave, most likely the cave of the diamond dogs. The map is in two parts, with an arrow leading from the cave toward the top of the paper to the beginning of a maze-like pathway that covers the rest of that side of the paper. And, there’s a line following a course through those caves leading to, and ending at, a particular node.

I have my character put the letter in his inventory, during which time I hear Lyra say, “I don’t know about this. It sounds like a trap to me.”

As my character focuses on the pale-green unicorn, I state, “You may be right, Lyra. So, let’s get some breakfast, and we’ll head to Ponyville when we’re done.”

Lyra sounds relieved when she says, “Yeah, good idea.”

I then have my character follow Pinkie Pie out of the house, allowing Lyra and Weed Whacker to enter, when I hear the pink earth mare say, “You know, maybe we should head to that place on the map first. If those diamond dogs really want us to come to that ‘special club’ thing, they’re probably gonna grab Mormon and drag him away if he doesn’t come willingly. Lyra, are you sure it’s such a good idea for him to avoid the ‘special club’ thing?”

Now I hear Lyra say, “Pinkie Pie, I’m surprised at you." Somehow, it seems as though Lyra has borrowed Pinkie Pie's ability to come from nowhere. As my character focuses on the pale-green unicorn, she continues, "Yes I’m worried about Mormon’s safety. But, which is better for him, to just go willingly and get stuck in the diamond dogs’ trap, or to head to Ponyville first and know for sure if the diamond dogs are that interested in him?”

That seems to silence the pink earth pony.

At the trail between the house and the vineyard and orchard, Lyra turns around and returns to the house.

Once Pinkie Pie has jumped over the fence, her mane and tail immediately straighten out, and her mane falls to one side of her head, indicating Diane has taken over.

As she chooses a tree and kicks apples out of it, I say, “You can let Pinkamena know that I do appreciate that she cares about my safety. But, in this case, Lyra may be right. If the diamond dogs want me there so badly, maybe it’s just as well that they get the chance to prove themselves with the chance to take my freedom from me.”

Once four apples have fallen from the tree, Pinkie “Diane” Pie, in the process of gathering them, says, “That’s what worries her. She doesn’t want to see you lose your freedom, not even for a few minutes.” Reaching for the last apple to hang from her mane, she adds, “And, neither do I.”

Well, I guess it’s nice to know that Pinkie Pie is unanimous on the matter. It’s nice to know that both Pinkamena and Diane are concerned for my safety and freedom. But, since I’ve already read the letter, it could be that this day in the playthrough is all but written already. I could be like Muad’dib from the Dune series, with a script handed to me, and just having to play the role to the best of my abilities. But, I do know how this day will proceed, and I do have a plan of action, or inaction in this case, as to how I will respond. After all, the letter indicates to me that the plot of this day is my own variation of the “Know Your Mare” fan fic, in which various My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic characters, including each of the Mane Six, are put in front of an audience, and respond to various comments made by the announcer. This being my own version of that fiction, I plan on saying nothing in response to the announcer’s comments, if I end up in front of an audience of diamond dogs, which I expect will be the case.

It seems that it’s when I’m finished with this train of thought that I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Mormon, it’s time to go back inside now.” As my character focuses on the pink earth pony, I notice she’s back under the control of Pinkamena.

I say, “I’m coming, Pinkie.” And, with that, my character, who has been kneeling on one knee for the past few minutes, rises to his feet again and climbs back over the fence.

It doesn’t take long for the group of four to prepare the food, nor does it take long for them to eat it. And, after that, they leave to travel through the Everfree forest on their way to Ponyville.

As the four, lead by my character, leave the forest, my character is immediately met by a trio of diamond dogs, evidently led by Grover-Yoda.

The earth-tan diamond dog steps forward and says, “Nice to meet you, human. We want you come to special club time.”

Well, if there were any questions about who sent the letter, or any doubts about whether they want my character there or not, they’re all answered by the trio in front of my character.

I state, “Well, I appreciate that. But, I have other things I need to do. If this can wait until after I’m done for the day, I’ll get back to you then.”

Grover-Yoda grabs my character’s arm and says, “Oh, but it cannot wait. You come now.” And, he laughs evilly.

I recognize the pale-green aura that suddenly surrounds Grover-Yoda as that of Lyra’s magic, as, just as suddenly, the earth-tan diamond dog is immediately lifted into the air and tossed aside.

I then hear Lyra call out, “Mormon, run to Ponyville! I’ll hold them off!”

As my character starts to obey the pale-green unicorn, a taller, gray diamond dog jumps in his way and says, “I think not so,” then proceeds to grab him by the arm.

I then hear Pinkie Pie scream, “Do you ever think?” And, as I hear the last word, I see and hear the gray diamond dog yelp in pain, and fly off to the side, evidently propelled by the force of the pink party pony.

My character takes a few more running steps when his foot seems to get caught on something, and he falls.

Then, a voice that kind of reminds me of Scooby-doo, except with clearer speech, says, “You take ponies. You take dragon. I take human.”

I then hear Weed Whacker say, “Oh, no,” and see her make a run for Ponyville. But, to no avail, she’s apprehended by Grover-Yoda.

And, as my character stands up again, I notice two more diamond dogs, similar to the ones that’d attacked him and the rest of the rescue team just before they reached Rarity. And, by their posture, they’re not about to let my character past.

With Lyra and Pinkie Pie being held firm by the gray diamond dog, and Grover-Yoda holding on to Weed Whacker, and with two more diamond dogs having shown up, it’s evident to me that my character and his friends are outnumbered. I finally decide to say, “Alright, I’ll go with you to your special club time.”

The Scooby-doo diamond dog says, “Good.” Then, as the two new diamond dogs lead the way, the Scooby-doo diamond dog adds, “Now, let’s get going.”

The trek to the cave of the diamond dogs is without incident. It seems that the creatures of the Everfree forest respect, or perhaps fear, the diamond dogs as much as they respect my character.

Once inside, Grover-Yoda leads the way, followed by the two diamond guard dogs, then my character, then the Scooby-doo diamond dog, and finally the dog carrying Lyra and Pinkie Pie. Grover-Yoda leads the way through the main tunnel, then along a few side tunnels, to an enlarged node that seems to house a stage of some sort.

The two guard dogs force my character onto the stage, while Grover-Yoda and the dog carrying my two pony friends drops them onto the ground in front of the stage.

The two guard dogs take positions behind Lyra, Pinkie Pie and Weed Whacker, while other diamond dogs file into the node and take positions in front of the stage.

You know, considering there are no benches for any of the dogs to sit on, I find it surprising that they seat themselves in two groups in a really organized manner, with a path between them, at least as the game portrays them. I have to wonder, would the My Little Pony Friendship is Magic show portray the diamond dogs as so organized?

In the mean time, I have yet to see Grover-Yoda again. But, that last part doesn’t surprise me. I expect him to be the announcer for this event.

And, indeed, when the floor of the node behind my three friends is covered by the diamond dogs, I hear Grover-Yoda say, “Welcome, my friends, to a new show, which I call ‘Know Your Human.’”

And, throughout the audience, it seems that each diamond dog repeats once the words, “Know Your Human.” That is, until Grover-Yoda calls out, “Silence!”

Hearing that, it’s all I can do to keep from laughing about it.

In the mean time, Grover-Yoda then clears his throat before saying, “Human not always wear clothing.”

The audience responds by laughing, which sounds to me more polite than anything else.

In the mean time, I employ my strategy, and say nothing in response, which seems to quell further laughter. It is true that, by the time my character got to that one cave in the diamond dogs’ mine, he wasn’t wearing any clothing; but that was only because he was stripped, mostly, by whatever was in that last tunnel. Still, I see no reason to say that, or anything for that matter, to this audience.

I hear a little nervousness in Grover-Yoda’s voice as he grunts, then says, “Human, sleep with ponies.”

I’m not entirely certain what the earth-tan diamond dog was intending to imply by that, but I still see no reason to respond to it. Pinkie Pie and Lyra know as well as I do that they each have their own separate rooms, although we all sleep under the same roof. But, once again, I see no reason to say anything about it, especially since I’ve made my decision not to say anything at all until Grover-Yoda’s given his fifth statement.

In the mean time, it seems that the diamond dogs in the audience are just as confused by the earth-tan diamond dog’s statement as I am, as they don’t respond to it at all.

Again Grover-Yoda grunts, a little more nervously this time, before he says, “Human read bedtime story to pony.” And, he grunts a couple times in what sounds to me like nervous affirmation, although it could pass as hyper as well.

Now, the diamond dogs in the audience start grumbling, something about the human they’re watching not being as fun to watch as they’d hoped.

In the mean time, I still refuse to speak. I suppose it is possible to interpret the readings at my house, readings which have now been moved to Ponyville, as me reading bedtime stories to the ponies. However, Grover-Yoda seems to fail to take into consideration that I’m not the only one reading at those times. Or, he fails or refuses to inform the other diamond dogs of that fact. Still, I see no reason to say anything about it.

Now, it seems that Grover-Yoda starts to whimper before he says, “Human … not like diamond dogs?”

Again I refuse to say anything, which all but incites a riot among the diamond dogs in the audience. Having had little or no chance to really become familiar with any of the diamond dogs, I can’t really say for sure whether I like or dislike them. Considering that they are dogs, there is the possibility of me, or at least my character, making friends with at least one of them, perhaps even in this situation. But, I still follow my strategy and refuse to speak.

Finally, Grover-Yoda groans loudly and shouts out, “Human not say nothing since we bring here! He still alive in there?”

It’s at this point that I finally decide to speak. I say, “And now, you know your announcer. Thank you for your attendance. Please feel free to tip your waitress on your way out.”

At my statement, the laughter begins with Pinkie Pie and Lyra, then spreads to the diamond dogs behind them. In a matter of seconds, it seems that all the diamond dogs in the audience are laughing.

But, it seems that Grover-Yoda wanted to be the source of the laughter, as he says, “No, that suppose be my line.” Then, he rethinks what he said and corrects, “No, wait I no mean you know announcer. I mean you know human. But, he not say nothing, so we not know nothing.” Then, as the diamond dogs in the audience filter out through the various exits, the earth-tan diamond dog orders, “Wait, I no finish! Come back!” But, it’s obviously too late, as he follows his fellow diamond dogs out of the node.

With what I can only guess the diamond dogs call the theater node empty of all but one human, one herbivorous dinosaur, one earth pony, and one unicorn, the two ponies and the dinosaur join my character on the stage.

I say, under my breath, “Let’s get out of here. I think our time here is finished.”

My three friends nod in agreement, and the group of four proceed to leave the stage and head out of the cave, approximately the way they were brought in. And, it’s not until they’re out of the cave before a member of the group speaks again.

Once outside the cave, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “You know, Mormon, I would’ve just agreed with everything that was said about me, and maybe adjusted some things so they suited me better.”

I answer, “Yeah, I like my strategy better. Give them as little fuel as possible, and let them fumble around for something to work with. Then, when they decide they’ve had enough, drop it all on the announcer, and let the audience have their fun.”

It’s Lyra who says, “Well, that evidently worked for you this time. But, it could just as easily have worked against you.”

I state, “You’re probably right, Lyra. In which case, I’m lucky that it didn’t work against me.” I then ask, “So, shall we head to Ponyville again, to Sugar Cube Corner?”

It’s Weed Whacker who answers, “Yeah, lets go ahead and do that. I need to put this behind me.”

I guess this experience was harder on the little herbivorous dinosaur than I thought it’d be. But, I suppose the entire group needs to put the experience behind them. Perhaps especially evident when no member of the group says anything until they’re back into Ponyville, and into the kitchen of Sugar Cube Corner.

Mr. Cake, who is in the kitchen at the time, is the first to notice the pink earth pony, the first to enter. He says, “Oh, hi, Pinkie. What happened? What took you so long to get here?”

I answer, “We were just held up for a few minutes. The traffic between Ponyville and the Everfree forest was unexpectedly rough.”

I’m not surprised, at this point, to hear Pinkie Pie giggle at my response. When she mostly regains her composure, she adds, “Yeah, we needed to take a detour.”

The orange earth stallion seems to accept the explanation, as he says, “Well, since you’re here, I could use your help.” He then assigns each member of the group a task, which each member accepts.

For the next few hours, until closing time, my friends and my character prepare dough and batter, bake various pastries, and set them out in the displays for the customers who come in to buy them.

When the last customers leave and the Cakes close down the bakery, Mr. Cake leads the group of eight, including Mrs. Cake who's carrying the twins in their carrying saddle, out of Sugar Cube Corner and on to Town Hall.

When the group gets there, it’s evident that there is only one other present: the mayor pony.

Seeing the approaching group, Mayor Mare says, “Well, it’s so nice to see you, Mormon, Mr. and Mrs. Cake, Pinkie Pie, Lyra.”

Presently, Lyra says, “Oh, and don’t forget about Weed Whacker here.”

As the herbivorous dinosaur rises on her hind legs to wave to the mayor pony, Mrs. Cake says, “And, also, you can’t forget the twins.”

Mayor Mare nods politely and says, “Oh, yes, of course.” And, she laughs, sounding somewhat nervous to me.

Then, Lyra asks, “So, shall we go inside then?”

The mayor pony answers, pushing the door open with a front hoof, “Yes, of course, go right ahead.”

Except for the infant twins, each member of the group that passes Mayor Mare thanks her.

Once inside, Lyra proceeds to light the candles in the large room with her magic, while Pinkie Pie makes an accounting of the copies of the Book of Mormon at the entrance.

Soon other ponies are entering the Town Hall, and Pinkie Pie is in just the right spot to greet each of them. And, when most of the guests have arrived, the alicorn sisters appear on the stage, surprising some of the ponies.

I hear something from Princess Celestia about that being why she prefers to ride her carriage to events outside Canterlot.

When the last of the guests arrive, Pinkie Pie closes the doors; and the ponies start to form a circle in front of the stage.

And, as usual, my character takes his place on the stage.

Since there are no newcomers at the reading, there's no need for an introduction.

I have my character turn to the zebra, and I ask, "Zecora, will you read verse one of chapter five of Jacob?" I then have my character turn to the earth mare next to her, and I say, "And Mayor, you can read verse two."

The zebra nods and smiles at my character, then looks down at her book and reads, "Behold, my brethren, do ye not remember to have read the words of the prophet Zenos, which he spake unto the house of Israel, saying:"

Mayor Mare then reads, "Hearken, O ye house of Israel, and hear the words of me, a prophet of the Lord."

Princess Luna reads, "For behold, thus saith the Lord, I will liken thee, O house of Israel, like unto a tame olive tree, which a man took and nourished in his vineyard; and it grew, and waxed old, and began to decay." She then looks up and says, "Comparing one's own people to a rotting, old tree doesn't sound very nice."

Princess Celestia reads, "And it came to pass that the master of the vineyard went forth, and he saw that his olive tree began to decay; and he said: I will prune it, and dig about it, and nourish it, that perhaps it may shoot forth young and tender branches, and it perish not." She then turns to her sister and says, "The comparison doesn't seem so bad when you take into consideration that the master of the vineyard is still taking care of the rotting, old tree."

Princess Luna doesn't respond vocally, just nods in response.

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And it came to pass that he pruned it, and digged about it, and nourished it according to his word."

Spike reads, "And it came to pass that after many days it began to put forth somewhat a little, young and tender branches; but behold, the main top thereof began to perish."

Rarity reads, "And it came to pass that the master of the vineyard saw it, and he said unto his servant: It grieveth me that I should lose this tree; wherefore, go and pluck the branches from a wild olive tree, and bring them hither unto me; and we will pluck off those main branches which are beginning to wither away, and we will cast them into the fire that they may be burned."

Fluttershy reads, "And behold, saith the Lord of the vineyard, I take away many of these young and tender branches, and I will graft them whithersoever I will; and it mattereth not that if it so be that the root of this tree will perish, I may preserve the fruit thereof unto myself; wherefore, I will take these young and tender branches, and I will graft them whithersoever I will."

Rainbow Dash reads, "Take thou the branches of the wild olive tree, and graft them in, in the stead thereof; and these which I have plucked off I will cast into the fire and burn them, that they may not cumber the ground of my vineyard."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And it came to pass that the servant of the Lord of the vineyard did according to the word of the Lord of the vineyard, and grafted in the branches of the wild olive tree."

Applejack reads, "And the Lord of the vineyard caused that it should be digged about, and pruned, and nourished, saying unto his servant: It grieveth me that I should lose this tree; wherefore, that perhaps I might preserve the roots thereof that they perish not, that I might preserve them unto myself, I have done this thing."

Granny Smith reads, "Wherefore, go thy way; watch the tree, and nourish it, according to my words."

Big MacIntosh reads, "And these will I place in the nethermost part of my vineyard, whithersoever I will, it mattereth not unto thee; and I do it that I may preserve unto myself the natural branches of the tree; and also, that I may lay up fruit thereof against the season, unto myself; for it grieveth me that I should lose this tree and the fruit thereof."

Applebloom reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard went his way, and hid the natural branches of the tame olive tree in the nethermost parts of the vineyard, some in one and some in another, according to his will and pleasure." At this point, she looks up and asks, "Ah wonder, couldn't the Lord of the vineyard have waited for the tree to produce fruits, then saved the seeds and planted them in His vineyard?"

It's Granny Smith who answers, "The Lord of the vineyard might not have known if the tree was a'gonna survive long enough to produce more fruit. At this stage of the tree's life, he did the only thing he believed he could do."

Then, Applejack says, "Besides, even if'n he did keep some of the seeds from previous harvests and planted them, there was no way of knowin' if they were a'gonna sprout and grow. Better to take fresh, young branches and plant 'em throughout his vineyard than to risk the seeds not sproutin', and Him endin' up with nothin'."

Applebloom shrugs and says, "Ah don't know. It seems to me even fresh young branches are risky." She then turns to Sweetie Belle and says, "You go ahead and read the next verse."

Sweetie Belle nods, then reads, "And it came to pass that a long time passed away, and the Lord of the vineyard said unto his servant: Come, let us go down into the vineyard, that we may labor in the vineyard."

Rarity's mother reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard, and also the servant, went down into the vineyard to labor. And it came to pass that the servant said unto his master: Behold, look here; behold the tree."

Rarity's father reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard looked and beheld the tree in the which the wild olive branches had been grafted; and it had sprung forth and begun to bear fruit. And he beheld that it was good; and the fruit thereof was like unto the natural fruit."

Wind Walker reads, "And he said unto the servant: Behold, the branches of the wild tree have taken hold of the moisture of the root thereof, that the root thereof hath brought forth much strength; and because of the much strength of the root thereof the wild branches have brought forth tame fruit. Now, if we had not grafted in these branches, the tree thereof would have perished. And now, behold, I shall lay up much fruit, which the tree thereof hath brought forth; and the fruit thereof I shall lay up against the season, unto mine own self."

Sleeping Beauty reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard said unto the servant: Come, let us go to the nethermost part of the vineyard, and behold if the natural branches of the tree have not brought forth much fruit also, that I may lay up of the fruit thereof against the season, unto mine own self."

Scootaloo reads, "And it came to pass that they went forth whither the master had hid the natural branches of the tree, and he said unto the servant: Behold these; and he beheld the first that it had brought forth much fruit; and he beheld also that it was good. And he said unto the servant: Take of the fruit thereof, and lay it up against the season, that I may preserve it unto mine own self; for behold, said he, this long time have I nourished it, and it hath brought forth much fruit."

Twist reads, "And it came to pass that the servant said unto his master: How comest thou hither to plant this tree, or this branch of the tree? For behold, it was the poorest spot in all the land of thy vineyard."

Namby Pamby reads, "And the Lord of the vineyard said unto him: Counsel me not; I knew that it was a poor spot of ground; wherefore, I said unto thee, I have nourished it this long time, and thou beholdest that it hath brought forth much fruit."

Cheerilee reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard said unto his servant: Look hither; behold I have planted another branch of the tree also; and thou knowest that this spot of ground was poorer than the first. But, behold the tree. I have nourished it this long time, and it hath brought forth much fruit; therefore, gather it, and lay it up against the season, that I may preserve it unto mine own self."

Silver Spoon reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard said again unto his servant: Look hither, and behold another branch also, which I have planted; behold that I have nourished it also, and it hath brought forth fruit."

Filthy Rich reads, "And he said unto the servant: Look hither and behold the last. Behold, this have I planted in a good spot of ground; and I have nourished it this long time, and only a part of the tree hath brought forth tame fruit, and the other part of the tree hath brought forth wild fruit; behold, I have nourished this tree like unto the others."

Diamond Tiara reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard said unto the servant: Pluck off the branches that have not brought forth good fruit, and cast them into the fire."

Mrs. Cake reads, "But behold, the servant said unto him: Let us prune it, and dig about it, and nourish it a little longer, that perhaps it may bring forth good fruit unto thee, that thou canst lay it up against the season."

Mr. Cake reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard and the servant of the Lord of the vineyard did nourish all the fruit of the vineyard."

Sapphire Shores reads, "And it came to pass that a long time had passed away, and the Lord of the vineyard said unto his servant: Come, let us go down into the vineyard, that we may labor again in the vineyard. For behold, the time draweth near, and the end soon cometh; wherefore, I must lay up fruit against the season, unto mine own self."

Octavia reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard and the servant went down into the vineyard; and they came to the tree whose natural branches had been broken off, and the wild branches had been grafted in; and behold all sorts of fruit did cumber the tree."

Vinyl Scratch reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard did taste of the fruit, every sort according to its number. And the Lord of the vineyard said: Behold, this long time have we nourished this tree, and I have laid up unto myself against the season much fruit."

Sweet Tones reads, "But behold, this time it hath brought forth much fruit, and there is none of it which is good. And behold, there are all kinds of bad fruit; and it profiteth me nothing, notwithstanding all our labor; and now it grieveth me that I should lose this tree."

Drum Roll reads, "And the Lord of the vineyard said unto the servant: What shall we do unto the tree, that I may preserve again good fruit thereof unto mine own self?"

Lotta Pipes reads, "And the servant said unto his master: Behold, because thou didst graft in the branches of the wild olive tree they have nourished the roots, that they are alive and they have not perished; wherefore thou beholdest that they are yet good."

Stunts reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard said unto his servant: The tree profiteth me nothing, and the roots thereof profit me nothing so long as it shall bring forth evil fruit."

Berry Ground reads, "Nevertheless, I know that the roots are good, and for mine own purpose I have preserved them; and because of their much strength they have hitherto brought forth, from the wild branches, good fruit."

Emerald Hill reads, "But behold, the wild branches have grown and have overrun the roots thereof; and because that the wild branches have overcome the roots thereof it hath brought forth much evil fruit; and because that it hath brought forth so much evil fruit thou beholdest that it beginneth to perish; and it will soon become ripened, that it may be cast into the fire, except we should do something for it to preserve it."

Hoity Toity reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard said unto his servant: Let us go down into the nethermost parts of the vineyard, and behold if the natural branches have also brought forth evil fruit."

Hoity Toity's servant reads, "And it came to pass that they went down into the nethermost parts of the vineyard. And it came to pass that they beheld that the fruit of the natural branches had become corrupt also; yea, the first and the second and also the last; and they had all become corrupt."

Cold Hands reads, "And the wild fruit of the last had overcome that part of the tree which brought forth good fruit, even that the branch had withered away and died."

Snips reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard wept, and said unto the servant: What could I have done more for my vineyard?"

At this point, I find myself surprised to hear sobbing from the eldest of the Apple family.

But, before I can address it, Snails reads, "Behold, I knew that all the fruit of the vineyard, save it were these, had become corrupted. And now these which have once brought forth good fruit have also become corrupted; and now all the trees of my vineyard are good for nothing save it be to be hewn down and cast into the fire."

Now, I hear Granny Smith call out, "No! He can't give up on his favorite tree that easily!"

Warm Heart, although alarmed by the old earth pony's outburst, still reads, "And behold this last, whose branch hath withered away, I did plant in a good spot of ground; yea, even that which was choice unto me above all other parts of the land of my vineyard."

Carrot Top reads, "And thou beheldest that I also cut down that which cumbered this spot of ground, that I might plant this tree in the stead thereof."

Berry Punch reads, "And thou beheldest that a part thereof brought forth good fruit, and a part thereof brought forth wild fruit; and because I plucked not the branches thereof and cast them into the fire, behold, they have overcome the good branch that it hath withered away."

Colgate reads, "And now, behold, notwithstanding all the care which we have taken of my vineyard, the trees thereof have become corrupted, that they bring forth no good fruit; and these I had hoped to preserve, to have laid up fruit thereof against the season, unto mine own self. But, behold, they have become like unto the wild olive tree, and they are of no worth but to be hewn down and cast into the fire; and it grieveth me that I should lose them."

At this point, in spite of her grandmother's protesting, Applebloom says, "He chose to risk plantin' all those sprouts ever'where. Now he's wonderin' if it was worth it, it sounds like."

Bon-Bon reads, "But what could I have done more in my vineyard? Have I slackened mine hand, that I have not nourished it? Nay, I have nourished it, and I have digged about it, and I have pruned it, and I have dunged it; and I have stretched forth mine hand almost all the day long, and the end draweth nigh. And it grieveth me that I should hew down all the trees of my vineyard, and cast them into the fire that they should be burned. Who is it that has corrupted my vineyard?"

Lyra reads, "And it came to pass that the servant said unto his master: Is it not the loftiness of thy vineyard—have not the branches thereof overcome the roots which are good? And because the branches have overcome the roots thereof, behold they grew faster than the strength of the roots, taking strength unto themselves. Behold, I say, is not this the cause that the trees of thy vineyard have become corrupted?"

Again Granny Smith calls out, "Yeah, there must be somethin' he can do to save all his trees."

Weed Whacker reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard said unto the servant: Let us go to and hew down the trees of the vineyard and cast them into the fire, that they shall not cumber the ground of my vineyard, for I have done all. What could I have done more for my vineyard?"

I read, "But, behold, the servant said unto the Lord of the vineyard: Spare it a little longer."

Zecora reads, "And the Lord said: Yea, I will spare it a little longer, for it grieveth me that I should lose the trees of my vineyard."

Now Granny Smith cheers, "Yeah, that's the spirit!"

At this point, I'm finding it interesting how a senior citizen pony such as Granny Smith can add excitement to a scripture reading. Having read the story, I know how it's going to end. I just wonder what Granny Smith is going to respond to next, and how she's going to respond.

Mayor Mare reads, "Wherefore, let us take of the branches of these which I have planted in the nethermost parts of my vineyard, and let us graft them into the tree from whence they came; and let us pluck from the tree those branches whose fruit is most bitter, and graft in the natural branches of the tree in the stead thereof."

Princess Luna reads, "And this will I do that the tree may not perish, that, perhaps, I may preserve unto myself the roots thereof for mine own purpose."

Princess Celestia reads, "And, behold, the roots of the natural branches of the tree which I planted whithersoever I would are yet alive; wherefore, that I may preserve them also for mine own purpose, I will take of the branches of this tree, and I will graft them in unto them. Yea, I will graft in unto them the branches of their mother tree, that I may preserve the roots also unto mine own self, that when they shall be sufficiently strong perhaps they may bring forth good fruit unto me, and I may yet have glory in the fruit of my vineyard."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And it came to pass that they took from the natural tree which had become wild, and grafted in unto the natural trees, which also had become wild."

Spike reads, "And they also took of the natural trees which had become wild, and grafted into their mother tree."

Rarity reads, "And the Lord of the vineyard said unto the servant: Pluck not the wild branches from the trees, save it be those which are most bitter; and in them ye shall graft according to that which I have said."

Fluttershy reads, "And we will nourish again the trees of the vineyard, and we will trim up the branches thereof; and we will pluck from the trees those branches which are ripened, that must perish, and cast them into the fire."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And this I do that, perhaps, the roots thereof may take strength because of their goodness; and because of the change of the branches, that the good may overcome the evil."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And because that I have preserved the natural branches and the roots thereof, and that I have grafted in the natural branches again into their mother tree, and have preserved the roots of their mother tree, that, perhaps, the trees of my vineyard may bring forth again good fruit; and that I may have joy again in the fruit of my vineyard, and, perhaps, that I may rejoice exceedingly that I have preserved the roots and the branches of the first fruit—"

Applejack reads, "Wherefore, go to, and call servants, that we may labor diligently with our might in the vineyard, that we may prepare the way, that I may bring forth again the natural fruit, which natural fruit is good and the most precious above all other fruit."

Granny Smith reads, "Wherefore, let us go to and labor with our might this last time, for behold the end draweth nigh, and this is for the last time that I shall prune my vineyard."

Big MacIntosh reads, "Graft in the branches; begin at the last that they may be first, and that the first may be last, and dig about the trees, both old and young, the first and the last; and the last and the first, that all may be nourished once again for the last time."

Applebloom reads, "Wherefore, dig about them, and prune them, and dung them once more, for the last time, for the end draweth nigh. And if it be so that these last grafts shall grow, and bring forth the natural fruit, then shall ye prepare the way for them, that they may grow."

Sweetie Belle reads, "And as they begin to grow ye shall clear away the branches which bring forth bitter fruit, according to the strength of the good and the size thereof; and ye shall not clear away the bad thereof all at once, lest the roots thereof should be too strong for the graft, and the graft thereof shall perish, and I lose the trees of my vineyard."

Rarity's mother reads, "For it grieveth me that I should lose the trees of my vineyard; wherefore ye shall clear away the bad according as the good shall grow, that the root and the top may be equal in strength, until the good shall overcome the bad, and the bad be hewn down and cast into the fire, that they cumber not the ground of my vineyard; and thus will I sweep away the bad out of my vineyard."

Rarity's father reads, "And the branches of the natural tree will I graft in again into the natural tree;"

Wind Walker reads, "And the branches of the natural tree will I graft into the natural branches of the tree; and thus will I bring them together again, that they shall bring forth the natural fruit, and they shall be one."

Sleeping Beauty reads, "And the bad shall be cast away, yea, even out of all the land of my vineyard; for behold, only this once will I prune my vineyard."

Scootaloo reads, "And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard sent his servant; and the servant went and did as the Lord had commanded him, and brought other servants; and they were few."

Twist reads, "And the Lord of the vineyard said unto them: Go to, and labor in the vineyard, with your might. For behold, this is the last time that I shall nourish my vineyard; for the end is nigh at hand, and the season speedily cometh; and if ye labor with your might with me ye shall have joy in the fruit which I shall lay up unto myself against the time which will soon come."

Namby Pamby reads, "And it came to pass that the servants did go and labor with their mights; and the Lord of the vineyard labored also with them; and they did obey the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard in all things."

Cheerilee reads, "And there began to be the natural fruit again in the vineyard; and the natural branches began to grow and thrive exceedingly; and the wild branches began to be plucked off and to be cast away; and they did keep the root and the top thereof equal, according to the strength thereof."

Silver Spoon reads, "And thus they labored, with all diligence, according to the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard, even until the bad had been cast away out of the vineyard, and the Lord had preserved unto himself that the trees had become again the natural fruit; and they became like unto one body; and the fruits were equal; and the Lord of the vineyard had preserved unto himself the natural fruit, which was most precious unto him from the beginning."

Filthy Rich reads, "And it came to pass that when the Lord of the vineyard saw that his fruit was good, and that his vineyard was no more corrupt, he called up his servants, and said unto them: Behold, for this last time have we nourished my vineyard; and thou beholdest that I have done according to my will; and I have preserved the natural fruit, that it is good, even like as it was in the beginning. And blessed art thou; for because ye have been diligent in laboring with me in my vineyard, and have kept my commandments, and have brought unto me again the natural fruit, that my vineyard is no more corrupted, and the bad is cast away, behold ye shall have joy with me because of the fruit of my vineyard."

I have a sneaking suspicion that the sobbing I'm hearing from Granny Smith is due to happiness, especially when she says, "There, I knew He could do it."

Diamond Tiara reads, "For behold, for a long time will I lay up of the fruit of my vineyard unto mine own self against the season, which speedily cometh; and for the last time have I nourished my vineyard, and pruned it, and dug about it, and dunged it; wherefore I will lay up unto mine own self of the fruit, for a long time, according to that which I have spoken."

Mrs. Cake reads, "And when the time cometh that evil fruit shall again come into my vineyard, then will I cause the good and the bad to be gathered; and the good will I preserve unto myself, and the bad will I cast away into its own place. And then cometh the season and the end; and my vineyard will I cause to be burned with fire."

Mr. Cake looks up and says, "The reading of that chapter went almost twice around the circle. Now, it looks like the reading of this next chapter almost completes that circle." He then looks down and reads, "And now, behold, my brethren, as I said unto you that I would prophesy, behold, this is my prophecy—that the things which this prophet Zenos spake, concerning the house of Israel, in the which he likened them unto a tame olive tree, must surely come to pass."

Sapphire Shores reads, "And the day that he shall set his hand again the second time to recover his people, is the day, yea, even the last time, that the servants of the Lord shall go forth in his power, to nourish and prune his vineyard; and after that the end soon cometh."

Octavia reads, "And how blessed are they who have labored diligently in his vineyard; and how cursed are they who shall be cast out into their own place! And the world shall be burned with fire."

Vinyl Scratch reads, "And how merciful is our God unto us, for he remembereth the house of Israel, both roots and branches; and he stretches forth his hands unto them all the day long; and they are a stiffnecked and a gainsaying people; but as many as will not harden their hearts shall be saved in the kingdom of God."

Sweet Tones reads, "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I beseech of you in words of soberness that ye would repent, and come with full purpose of heart, and cleave unto God as he cleaveth unto you. And while his arm of mercy is extended towards you in the light of the day, harden not your hearts."

Drum Roll reads, "Yea, today, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts; for why will ye die?"

Lotta Pipes reads, "For behold, after ye have been nourished by the good word of God all the day long, will ye bring forth evil fruit, that ye must be hewn down and cast into the fire?"

Stunts reads, "Behold, will ye reject these words? Will ye reject the words of the prophets; and will ye reject all the words which have been spoken concerning Christ, after so many have spoken concerning him; and deny the good word of Christ, and the power of God, and the gift of the Holy Ghost, and quench the Holy Spirit, and make a mock of the great plan of redemption, which hath been laid for you?"

Berry Ground reads, "Know ye not that if ye will do these things, that the power of the redemption and the resurrection, which is in Christ, will bring you to stand with shame and awful guilt before the bar of God?"

Emerald Hill reads, "And according to the power of justice, for justice cannot be denied, ye must go away into that lake of fire and brimstone, whose flames are unquenchable, and whose smoke ascendeth up forever and ever, which lake of fire and brimstone is endless torment."

Hoity Toity reads, "O then, my beloved brethren, repent ye, and enter in at the strait gate, and continue in the way which is narrow, until ye shall obtain eternal life."

Hoity Toity's servant reads, "O be wise; what can I say more?"

Cold Hands reads, "Finally, I bid you farewell, until I shall meet you before the pleasing bar of God, which bar striketh the wicked with awful dread and fear. Amen."

Snips looks up and says, "I guess that means I get to start the last chapter." He then looks down again and reads, "And now it came to pass after some years had passed away, there came a man among the people of Nephi, whose name was Sherem."

Snails reads, "And it came to pass that he began to preach among the people, and to declare unto them that there should be no Christ. And he preached many things which were flattering unto the people; and this he did that he might overthrow the doctrine of Christ."

Warm Heart reads, "And he labored diligently that he might lead away the hearts of the people, insomuch that he did lead away many hearts; and he knowing that I, Jacob, had faith in Christ who should come, he sought much opportunity that he might come unto me."

Carrot Top reads, "And he was learned, that he had a perfect knowledge of the language of the people; wherefore, he could use much flattery, and much power of speech, according to the power of the devil."

Berry Punch reads, "And he had hope to shake me from the faith, notwithstanding the many revelations and the many things which I had seen concerning these things; for I truly had seen angels, and they had ministered unto me. And also, I had heard the voice of the Lord speaking unto me in very word, from time to time; wherefore, I could not be shaken."

Colgate reads, "And it came to pass that he came unto me, and on this wise did he speak unto me, saying: Brother Jacob, I have sought much opportunity that I might speak unto you; for I have heard and also know that thou goest about much, preaching that which ye call the gospel, or the doctrine of Christ."

Bon-Bon reads, "And ye have led away much of this people that they pervert the right way of God, and keep not the law of Moses which is the right way; and convert the law of Moses into the worship of a being which ye say shall come many hundred years hence. And now behold, I, Sherem, declare unto you that this is blasphemy; for no man knoweth of such things; for he cannot tell of things to come. And after this manner did Sherem contend against me."

Lyra reads, "But behold, the Lord God poured in his Spirit into my soul, insomuch that I did confound him in all his words."

Weed Whacker reads, "And I said unto him: Deniest thou the Christ who shall come? And he said: If there should be a Christ, I would not deny him; but I know that there is no Christ, neither has been, nor ever will be."

I read, "And I said unto him: Believest thou the scriptures? And he said, Yea."

Zecora reads, "And I said unto him: Then ye do not understand them; for they truly testify of Christ. Behold, I say unto you that none of the prophets have written, nor prophesied, save they have spoken concerning this Christ."

Mayor Mare reads, "And this is not all—it has been made manifest unto me, for I have heard and seen; and it also has been made manifest unto me by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, I know if there should be no atonement made all mankind must be lost."

Princess Luna reads, "And it came to pass that he said unto me: Show me a sign by this power of the Holy Ghost, in the which ye know so much."

Princess Celestia reads, "And I said unto him: What am I that I should tempt God to show unto thee a sign in the thing which thou knowest to be true? Yet thou wilt deny it, because thou art of the devil. Nevertheless, not my will be done; but if God shall smite thee, let that be a sign unto thee that he has power, both in heaven and in earth; and also, that Christ shall come. And thy will, O Lord, be done, and not mine."

At this point, Vinyl Scratch says, "Now, I'm confused here. In the Second Book of Nephi, in his quoting Isaiah, it included Isaiah telling Ahaz to ask for a sign; and Ahaz says he won't, because he doesn't want to tempt God. Then, Isaiah tells him he's wearing down God's patience with him.

"Here, Sherem demands a sign, and Jacob says he'd be tempting God in showing such a sign. What's the difference?"

It's Berry Punch who answers, "In the case of Isaiah and Ahaz, God wanted Ahaz to ask for a sign. There was most likely some service God could've provided for Ahaz, and all that king had to do was ask, and he would've gotten it. But, instead, he refused, saying he didn't want to tempt God, basically missing the point of the exercise.

"In Sherem's case, he demanded, without invitation, a sign, and without any specifics. And, besides, he knew what he, that is Sherem, was teaching was wrong in the first place; but he went ahead and preached it anyway. Now, he's asking for something he doesn't need, and he's going to end up regretting it. Does that answer your question?"

The white, blue-haired unicorn scratches her chin and hums for a moment, then says, "You know what, I believe it does. Thanks, Berry." She then turns to the purple unicorn and says, "You can go ahead and read the next verse, Twilight."

Twilight Sparkle nods and, smiling, reads, "And it came to pass that when I, Jacob, had spoken these words, the power of the Lord came upon him, insomuch that he fell to the earth. And it came to pass that he was nourished for the space of many days."

Spike reads, "And it came to pass that he said unto the people: Gather together on the morrow, for I shall die; wherefore, I desire to speak unto the people before I shall die."

Rarity reads, "And it came to pass that on the morrow the multitude were gathered together; and he spake plainly unto them and denied the things which he had taught them, and confessed the Christ, and the power of the Holy Ghost, and the ministering of angels."

Fluttershy reads, "And he spake plainly unto them, that he had been deceived by the power of the devil. And he spake of hell, and of eternity, and of eternal punishment."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And he said: I fear lest I have committed the unpardonable sin, for I have lied unto God; for I denied the Christ, and said that I believed the scriptures; and they truly testify of him. And because I have thus lied unto God I greatly fear lest my case shall be awful; but I confess unto God."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And it came to pass that when he had said these words he could say no more, and he gave up the ghost."

Applejack reads, "And when the multitude had witnessed that he spake these things as he was about to give up the ghost, they were astonished exceedingly; insomuch that the power of God came down upon them, and they were overcome that they fell to the earth."

Granny Smith reads, "Now, this thing was pleasing unto me, Jacob, for I had requested it of my Father who was in heaven; for he had heard my cry and answered my prayer."

Big MacIntosh reads, "And it came to pass that peace and the love of God was restored again among the people; and they searched the scriptures, and hearkened no more to the words of this wicked man."

Applebloom reads, "And it came to pass that many means were devised to reclaim and restore the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth; but it all was vain, for they delighted in wars and bloodshed, and they had an eternal hatred against us, their brethren. And they sought by the power of their arms to destroy us continually."

Sweetie Belle reads, "Wherefore, the people of Nephi did fortify against them with their arms, and with all their might, trusting in the God and rock of their salvation; wherefore, they became as yet, conquerors of their enemies."

Rarity's mother reads, "And it came to pass that I, Jacob, began to be old; and the record of this people being kept on the other plates of Nephi, wherefore, I conclude this record, declaring that I have written according to the best of my knowledge, by saying that the time passed away with us, and also our lives passed away like as it were unto us a dream, we being a lonesome and a solemn people, wanderers, cast out from Jerusalem, born in tribulation, in a wilderness, and hated of our brethren, which caused wars and contentions; wherefore, we did mourn out our days."

Rarity's father reads, "And I, Jacob, saw that I must soon go down to my grave; wherefore, I said unto my son Enos: Take these plates. And I told him the things which my brother Nephi had commanded me, and he promised obedience unto the commands. And I make an end of my writing upon these plates, which writing has been small; and to the reader I bid farewell, hoping that many of my brethren may read my words. Brethren, adieu."

At this point, I have my character stand up; and I say, "Now, before we leave to our own places of residence, let me just note how, at the end, Joseph Smith Junior translated Jacob's final salute into French. I wouldn't be surprised if this was perhaps an acknowledgement of respect that was trying to be conveyed by Jacob saying a final 'Goodbye.'

"At any rate, I thank you for coming to this reading this evening. Next time, we'll be reading four one-chapter books: Enos, Jarom, Omni, and the Words of Mormon. So, until then, good night."

As the ponies and dragons around the circle also start standing up, I can’t help but hear Mayor Mare say, “Hopefully I’ll get a chance to start the reading next time.”

I don’t respond aloud, but considering how the readings have been going, and how unusual it’s been to have a day that isn’t based on at least part of an episode, and how even more unusual it is to not have a day where a new character is introduced to the reading, it may not be all that likely that the mayor pony will get the opportunity she wants any time soon. And, if she does, it probably won’t be with me reading with the Ponyville group anymore.

Anyway, as groups of ponies gather together and prepare to leave to head back to their own homes, I find that Pinkie Pie approaches my character as well. And, Lyra and Weed Whacker are already with my character. But, it seems that there’s one more character, the zebra, who approaches, following Pinkie Pie.

Noticing this, I ask, “Zecora, are you planning to join us on our walk through the Everfree?”

Zecora only smiles and nods.

I have my character take a look out one of the windows, and I notice that the sun doesn’t seem to be too ready to set just yet.

Then, from behind my character, I hear Princess Celestia’s voice say, “I guess you’re planning to walk through the Everfree forest, is that right?”

My character turns a half circle to show me the daytime alicorn smiling at him. I answer, “Considering the sun doesn’t seem to be ready to set just yet, I’m thinking it shouldn’t be much of a problem getting to my house on foot.”

Then, from my character’s right, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Or, on hoof.”

Princess Celestia chuckles, then says, “Well, if that’s what you want to do, then I’ll keep the sun in the sky until you’ve made it home.”

It’s Lyra who says, “We appreciate that, Princess.”

I have my character turn to look at the front door, to see that the ponies have lined up there, and are filing out. And, unlike a lunch line, they’re moving at a rapid pace. I then let my character turn back to the daytime alicorn, and I say, “I guess we can just head to the back of the line. The way it looks, it shouldn’t be too much longer before everyone is out the door.”

Princess Celestia nods and says, “You’re right about that. But, Hoity Toity and his servant and my sister will be teleporting out with me soon enough to return to Canterlot. And, as I said, I’ll keep the sun in the sky until you get back to your home.”

I respond, “Fair enough.” And, with that, my group of five, including Zecora, heads to the back of the line and joins the steady march to the front door.

And, in the mean time, the two alicorns and Hoity Toity and his servant disappear.

As I’ve figured, it doesn’t take more than a minute, if even that long, for the parade of ponies, dragons, and human to make it to and through the door, where the line seems to erode away as ponies head to their homes or otherwise to where they intend to go.

As my group makes it out the door, Mayor Mare is there waiting for us. As she closes the door behind Zecora, the last to leave, the mayor pony says, “I do hope I get to read first tomorrow.”

I state, “Now, that isn’t guaranteed. Who knows but there’ll be a newcomer or two to the reading? And, chances are the right to start the reading will belong to the newcomer, or one of them if there’s more than one.”

The mayor pony turns to my character and says, “Well, in that case, I shall just have to make sure that there are no newcomers to the next reading.”

At this point, I have my character kneel on one knee in front of the mayor pony; and I disapprovingly say, “Now, Mayor, you know that’s not how it works. The readings are for anyone, pony, dragon, or otherwise, that wants to join in them.”

Mayor Mare lowers her head and says, “Yeah, I know.” She then raises her head again and says, “But, it doesn’t hurt to hope I can be first next time.”

I have my character stand up again as I say, “Being the one to read the first verse in a chapter or a book isn’t intended to be any kind of a great honor, it’s just a way to get the reading started. And, most of the time, each member of the circle gets to read at least two verses, two paragraphs. These readings are intended to be a kind of celebration, not a competition or a requirement.”

The mayor pony nods and says, “Yes, I understood that from Princess Luna.” Then she asks, “So, where’ll you be headed now?”

I answer, “We’re headed back to my home.”

Mayor Mare says, “Well, in that case, I hope you enjoy your walk.”

And, with that encouragement, my group of five heads down Ponyville’s main street, on their way out of town, then to, into, and through the Everfree forest.

As it turns out, not long after the group enters the forest, Weed Whacker falls asleep on Lyra’s back.

And, it seems that Pinkie Pie has nothing to say, or at least nothing she wants to say, during the walk.

One thing about Princess Celestia, she keeps her promise. The sun stays in its place in the sky as the five travel, and only starts to go down again as they arrive at my character’s house.

To my surprise, after Zecora separates and makes her way further into the forest to her own home, and as the remaining group of four are approaching the porch, I notice Grover-Yoda there to meet the group. And, even more surprising to me is that Scout doesn’t seem to mind his presence. Does he detect some sort of friendly history between the diamond dog and my character, or perhaps some friendly intent on Grover-Yoda’s part?

As if to answer the questions I’m thinking about, as soon as the group is at the lowest step, Grover-Yoda says, somewhat slowly, “First, let me say I sorry for try to make fun of you.”

I have my character look at Scout to my character’s left.

The timber wolf is in one piece; and, while eyeing the diamond dog, he remains in his place.

As my character turns back to the diamond dog, I say, “Well, I have had worse happen to me than that. And, it gave me a chance to prove the success of my strategy for dealing with such a situation. And, might I just say that it seems my strategy really was a success.”

Grover-Yoda scratches behind an ear with a hand as he says, “Yes, I guess it was.”

Noticing how the earth-tan diamond dog hasn’t moved, I ask, “So, is there another reason why you came here?”

Grover Yoda eagerly nods, and just as eagerly says, “Yes!” He then continues, “I want copy of book I hear you read with ponies.”

Considering I guess it was this diamond dog that showed evidence of at least being able to write, it’s been my experience that the ability to read goes along with writing ability. I have my character open the door, allowing the two ponies and the diamond dog to enter, then close the door after my character has entered behind Pinkie Pie.

As Lyra proceeds to her room to drop off Weed Whacker, I have my character head to the closet to get a copy of the Book of Mormon for Grover-Yoda. In the mean time, I say, “So, I’m guessing you’ve found the stories we’ve read interesting?”

I hear Grover-Yoda answer, “Oh, yes, very much so,” and pant immediately afterward.

After my character grabs a copy of the book and turns around, I have him hand it to the earth-tan diamond dog; and I say, “So, here you are.”

Grover-Yoda accepts the book from my character, looks down at it as though it’s some kind of trophy, then looks up at my character again and says, “Oh, thank you, human.” He then puts the book in his mouth so that he can grip it securely that way, then drops to all fours and runs to the door. Once there, he opens the door, takes the step through it, then closes the door behind him. I can only assume, from then on, that he gallops back to his home in the caves.

In the mean time, Lyra comes back; and the group decides that the work load should be adjusted so that my character takes over Weed Whacker’s job of harvesting vegetables from the garden, while Pinkie Pie takes on the task of harvesting fruits from the orchard on her own. And, with the harvest planned out, each of the three heads out to each field and harvests what they believe they’ll need.

Once the three are back on the front porch with their harvest, Lyra uses her magic to open the front door and allow the group to enter. Then, once in the kitchen, the group goes to the sink; and my character places the fruits and vegetables inside.

And, wouldn’t you know it, that’s when Weed Whacker comes out of Lyra’s bedroom, through the hall, and into the kitchen. Seeing the two ponies and the human at the sink, she asks, “So, when are we gonna harvest food for dinner?”

As my character focuses on her, I answer, “We’ve already one that.”

Surprised, the herbivorous dinosaur says, “What? And without me?” Then, she goes from surprised to worried as she says, “Oh, I hope the vegetables are alright.”

I answer, “The vegetables are fine. I harvested them myself, and I left the harvesting of fruit from the orchard to Pinkie Pie.”

Now, Weed Whacker growls for a few seconds before she says, “You know the vegetables are my department, right?”

I answer, “You were asleep at the time. And, besides, the vegetable garden was mine long before you became part of the team.”

Weed Whacker grunts indignantly. Then, after a few seconds, she groans, then says, “Well, can I at least clean the fruits and veggies?”

I have my character kneel on one knee and open his arms to the herbivorous dinosaur as I say, “Sure. Come on over, and I’ll help you into the sink.”

Weed Whacker responds by running and jumping over Pinkie Pie into my character’s arms.

Automatically, my character rises and places the herbivorous dinosaur in the sink, where she immediately goes to work turning on the tap, then washing the fruits and vegetables under the water, after which she hands them to my character so he can hand them to Pinkie Pie or Lyra, who dry them off, preparing the vegetables to be eaten. And, since only enough have been harvested for two ponies, one dinosaur and one human, it’s not long before all the fruits and vegetables are ready to eat.

Normally, Pinkie Pie has been more than eager to start up a conversation. But, this time, it seems that, even when Lyra, Weed Whacker or I try to include her in our conversation, she’s unwilling to contribute. She just eats with the rest of the group around the kitchen table, then leaves and goes to her room.

While the pink party pony’s behavior is unusual, it seems that most of the group chooses not to worry about it. Lyra and Weed Whacker head for Lyra’s bedroom, and my character heads to his.

As my character grabs the parchment and pencil, I hear a knock at his door. And, when he puts the writing equipment down and walks over to the door and opens it, Pinkie Pie is waiting for him on the other side.

The pink earth pony asks, “Mormon, may I come in?”

I have my character step to one side and gesture for her to proceed as I say, “Sure, come on in.”

Pinkie Pie nods, then enters and trots over to my character’s bed, then jumps on top of it. She turns around and settles down into a sphinx-style sitting position, then asks, “Mormon, do you plan on ending the readings in Ponyville?”

I’m surprised by the question. I have my character close the door to his room, after which I answer, “No, I don’t. Why do you ask?”

Pinkie Pie places her head between her front hooves as she says, “Just a feeling.”

I have my character walk over to her and start stroking her mane, and I say, “I do plan on leaving the readings there in the control of the Ponyvillians, though, and soon.”

The pink earth pony looks up at my character, at me, and starts tearing up as she asks, “Why? Don’t you like reading with them? Don’t you like reading with me and my friends?”

I answer, “I do. But, I also wonder if my presence is holding them back from deeper conversation on the topics brought up in the Book of Mormon. Over the past two or so weeks, at least before today, I’ve noticed that I’ve been the major contributor to discussions on Book of Mormon topics, and I’m thinking it may be time for me to step aside, and allow the ponies of Ponyville to take over the readings.”

Whimpering, Pinkie Pie asks, “But, what if they’re not ready?”

I ask in response, “Well, what if they are?" And, I continue, "I won’t know for sure if I don’t leave the readings up to them. And, besides, I’m thinking there’s going to come a time when I won’t be able to come to the readings in Ponyville. It seems to me best to find out now if the residents of Ponyville are ready to handle the readings on their own, which I believe they are.”

Now, Pinkie Pie just whimpers, “Y-yeah, … w-well, …”

I continue, “I’ll have one more reading with them tomorrow evening. And, after that, well, I’m thinking we’re gonna have to help Applejack with a project she’ll be working on, which’ll take us more than a mile away from Ponyville.” Seeing Pinkie Pie still whimpering, I have my character hold his arms out to her, and I say, “Come here.”

Pinkie Pie rises to a canine-style sitting position, then, after hesitating for a second, rises to a standing position on her hind legs and collapses onto my character.

At this point, I have my character pick her up under her hind legs, then sit on his bed; and I add, “I do still plan to have readings at my house, on the front lawn. They just won’t include all of Ponyville. But, all these living here are automatically included in the group.”

Pinkie Pie giggles a bit before sniffling and asking, “W-will it include m-my five f-friends?”

I answer, “If you mean Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Applejack, then sure, as long as they wanna come.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “And, what about the Princesses?”

I answer, “Sure, and Spike, and maybe a random traveler that wants to read with us. But, no more than that.”

Pinkie Pie sighs, then says, “Alright, then. I just wanted to know how big your group was gonna be. If it’s just gonna be you, those that live with you, my friends, and the Princesses, then I can live with that. I’m gonna miss reading with all of my friends in Ponyville, but, if you think they’re ready to continue the readings on their own, then I think so too.” After that, she nuzzles my character, then pushes away from him and concludes, “Thanks, Mormon, I’m ready to go back to my room now.”

I reply, “Good. I have a letter to write to the princesses, then I’ll go to bed.” And, in the mean time, my character lets go of the pink earth pony, then heads to the door and opens it, letting Pinkie Pie go on to her room.

Seeing that I seem to have time to get to that letter, I have my character grab the writing equipment and sit down on the bed, then start writing while I come up with the content of the letter. Since the only real events were the “special club” thing in a stage node of the diamond dogs’ caves and the subsequent work at Sugar Cube Corner, that’s all I have my character write about. And, after that, my character takes the letter to Weed Whacker in Lyra’s room. Then, after the herbivorous dinosaur bites down on it and sends it to the Princesses, my character returns to his room and prepares for and goes to bed.

Working at Sugar Cube Corner took more of the day than the second trip to the diamond dogs’ caves did. But, still my time was occupied in the game, and it felt like it was worth it. I look forward to the game’s tomorrow. So, with that in mind, I save and close the game for now.

Chapter 22: The Defender of Promises

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It seems that having no more than four creatures, including my character, living in his house is taking longer than expected to get used to. As I resume the game, I still expect to find my character waking up to either knocking at his door, or the voice of some pony or dinosaur calling him to wake up. But, it seems that my character wakes up on his own this time.

I have my character leave his bed, go to his door, and exit through it. After that, he automatically closes the door behind him; then I have him go to the kitchen, then look around to show me, through his eyes, that it’s vacant. This doesn’t surprise me. Knowing Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker, they’re most likely in the orchard, vineyard, and vegetable garden, respectively. And, chances are, by the time I’ve given my character his instructions, Pinkie Pie’ll be at the front door waiting to come in. So, I decide to go ahead and enter the instructions to head out to the orchard, which my character follows, at least until he opens the front door.

I’m not surprised to see, on the other side of that door, Pinkie Pie waiting for him. As she enters, she says, “Hi, Mormy. Lyra and Weed Whacker shouldn’t be too much longer.”

And, indeed, I see Lyra coming around the corner of the house supporting kiwi fruits, grapes, and a few other fruits in midair with her magic, followed by Weed Whacker carrying vegetables in her arms. I decide to have my character wait at the door and hold it open for them. And, it’s only after they enter, thanking my character for holding the door open for them, that I have my character close the door behind Weed Whacker, the last to enter. After that, I have my character move ahead of them, to find that Pinkie Pie is already holding the door open for the unicorn and the dinosaur, and likely for my character as well.

Once all four are in the kitchen, Pinkie Pie closes the door behind them, then moves to the kitchen sink to produce from her mane the fruits she harvested and put them in the sink, while Lyra uses her magic to put her harvest, and that of Weed Whacker, in there as well. After that, I have my character put Weed Whacker in the sink, then, with Pinkie Pie and Lyra ready to cut the fruits and vegetables, I have my character in the middle ready to hand the plant parts to the two ponies after Weed Whacker has cleaned each one. Then, once the fruits and vegetables are cleaned and ready, the group of four sits around the table to eat the prepared breakfast.

As my character, Lyra, and Weed Whacker each grab a fruit or vegetable, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “Uh, Mormon, I’ve been wondering about something since last night’s reading. It involves that story about the tame olive tree.”

I ask, “What is it, Pinkie?”

Pinkie tilts her head and asks, “Well, first of all, what does the tree represent?”

I can’t help smiling as I answer, “Well, the tree represents the children, the descendants, of Israel.”

Pinkie Pie grunts with interest, then asks, “And, what about the Lord of the vineyard? I noticed the word Lord was capitalized. Does he represent God?”

I answer, “That’s right. God counts all humans as His children, but he does have a family among them that He’s specifically chosen to pass His blessings along to the rest of His children.”

Presently, Lyra asks, “And, what about the servant? Who or what does he represent?”

I have to pause for a moment to collect my thoughts before I answer, “You know, looking at historical parallels, I can’t really say for sure who the servant represents, not specifically. He could represent the prophets God has chosen through the years, or he could specifically represent the Christ. I suppose I’ll have to do some research on that and get back to you on it.”

Now, Pinkie Pie asks, “So, this taking of fresh branches from the tree and planting them throughout his vineyard, my guess is that represents the descendants of Israel being spread throughout the earth. Is that right?”

I answer, “Yes.”

At this point, I watch as Pinkie, noticing that she hasn’t gotten anything to eat just yet, grabs an apple in her mouth and starts nibbling on it.

In the mean time, Weed Whacker asks, “About the spreading of the descendants of Israel throughout the earth. Has that happened in your time?”

I answer, “By the time I was born, yes, the descendants of Israel have been spread, or scattered, all over the earth. In fact, I was born when the gathering of Israel has been taking place, as well as the return of the true gospel of Jesus Christ being spread throughout the earth.”

Lyra swallows her mouthful of grape before she asks, “And, I’m guessing this gathering of Israel is represented in the story by the Lord of the vineyard ordering his servants to help him re-graft the branches back into the original tree?”

I answer, “Yes, that’s correct.”

Lyra then adds, “In the story, there’s mention of one branch that was planted in a plot of ground that was favored by the Lord of the vineyard more than the rest. Could that plot of ground represent the Americas, where you live?”

I answer, “The branch planted in that plot of ground developed two branches, one of which bore wild fruit, and the other bore tame fruit. That runs in parallel with the history of the descendants of Lehi and Ishmael, who divided into the Lamanites, who were a wild group, and the Nephites, who were more domesticated. In the story of the tame olive tree, the wild branch overcomes the tame one, and the tame branch withers away and dies. This, we will find, runs parallel with the story of the Nephites turning evil some three or four centuries after the first coming of the Christ, at which point they are destroyed by the Lamanites. Considering these two stories, and how they run parallel to each other, yes, I do believe that the favored plot of ground represents the Americas, which God has stated is most favored above all the lands on earth.”

There is a bit of hesitation before Weed Whacker asks, “And, what about all the branches going bad? Is that parallel to all the descendants of Israel becoming evil?”

I answer, “That’s correct.”

Weed Whacker continues, “And, the wild branches being grafted into the tree. Does that mean the children of God, who were not descended from Israel, held the position that belonged to Israel’s descendants for a time?”

I answer, “That is also true.”

Now, Lyra says, “So, based on the story, considering how it’s representing pretty much the history of the descendants of Israel at least from a certain point in time, I’m guessing that the time is either coming or is here, when the rights intended for Israel’s descendants are going to be taken from the other people, and given back to their rightful owners?”

I answer, “It isn’t going to happen all at once, but it is happening where I come from, yes. There needs to be a smooth transition made, so that nothing is lost that needs to be preserved.”

Pinkie Pie continues, “But, eventually the descendants of Israel are going to be reunited in one group, with all the rights intended for them only in their possession, isn’t that right?”

I answer, “That is right.”

Lyra adds, “And, they will exercise those rights as God intends them to, …”

Weed Whacker concludes, “Until they start doing evil again, at which point God’s going to destroy them.”

I answer, “That final destruction won’t come until a thousand years after the Christ has come the second time; but yes, it will happen. And, it’ll be the entire earth, not just the descendants of Israel.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie smiles at my character, at me, and says, “You know, I think you’ve answered all our questions. Thanks, Mormon.”

I respond, “I’m glad I could help.”

I lose track of what all is said after that; but eventually breakfast is eaten and cleaned up; and the group heads out to travel through the Everfree forest, on their way to Ponyville.

As it turns out, there’s apparently one more matter about the previous night’s reading up for discussion. Lyra, as my character’s home disappears from view, says, “Uh, Mormon, I have some questions about Sherem.”

The fact of the matter is I find myself enjoying discussing Book-of-Mormon-related subjects. I ask, “What do you want to talk about?”

The pale-green unicorn answers, “First of all, when he approached Jacob, he said he didn’t believe that Christ would come.”

I answer, “That is what he said.”

Lyra adds, “But, toward the end of the chapter, the end of his story, he says, or suggests anyway, that he had known, but he’d been deceived by the devil.”

I answer, “That’s true.”

At this point, Lyra asks, “So, how can somepony who knows the truth be deceived into denying it?”

I gather my thoughts for a few seconds before answering, “Later on in the scriptures, we’ll read about a man named Corihor, who we later learn was told by a lying spirit that there wasn’t going to be a Christ. He talks about how he started preaching the message because it was pleasing to the carnal mind, and he preached it until he started believing it himself. His life ends in a less dignified way than Sherem’s life does, but it’s possible that the motivations of the two were similar. Sherem, like Corihor later on in Nephite history, realized his mistake all too late, after demanding a sign. And, both confessed their errors before they died, although Sherem’s death came immediately after his confession, whereas Corihor’s death will come perhaps as much as a year after his confession.”

Presently, Lyra restates, “Oh, so, you think Sherem preached that the Christ wouldn’t come because it sounded good to uninspired minds?”

I answer, “It does make sense to me. In the Book of Mormon, specifically the Book of Jacob, Sherem spoke of hell, eternity, and eternal punishment, stating that he was afraid he’d done something for which he couldn’t be forgiven. Maybe he could, maybe he couldn’t. Maybe he was, maybe he wasn’t. But, he did confess his mistakes at the end of his life. I don’t know if that meant he was forgiven of his crimes or not, although there is the question of what a deathbed confession really amounts to in the long run. All I know for sure is that Sherem died repenting of his sins in the presence of those he’d preached to, and that repentance had a profound impression on those people.”

I think I hear disappointment in Lyra’s humming before she says, “I guess that means you don’t know any more about what ultimately happened to Sherem than I know. That is, what happened after his death.”

I answer, “That’s right.” Then, as my character looks down on the pale-green unicorn and shows me, through his eyes, the disappointment on her face, I decide to add, “But, just because I don’t have the answer doesn’t mean there is none. There are other sources to turn to for the answers to your questions.”

At this last statement, Lyra looks up at my character and smiles, then says, “Thanks, Mormon.”

That topic of conversation doesn’t take very long, ten minutes at most. And, after that, no more is said until the group emerges from the Everfree forest and heads into Ponyville.

Once the group enters the borders of the town, I, through my character’s eyes, notice a pale-azure earth pony with white mane and tail, as well as a black, white, and pink dress with a pink ribbon, looking around her. And, I particularly know who it is, not just because I modeled and painted her, but because she turns around and sees my character and friends. It’s also then that I see she’s wearing pink sunglasses in a black frame.

She’s not alone, either. There are two other earth ponies following her, each in jump suits that remind me of the costumes the Cutie Mark Crusaders wore in their musical number a few days ago. One of them looks the way I might expect Carrot Top to look if she were colored yellow green, except her tail is tied up at the end and her mane is done up so it reminds me of the Bride of Frankenstein. The other is bluish-white, with mane and tail colored like Pinkie Pie’s fur color. Her mane is evidently dressed so that some of it circles around her ears.

I’m apparently not the only one to recognize the pale-azure earth pony, as I hear Pinkie Pie call out, “Hi, Photo Finish!” And, my character turns to her to show me, though his eyes, that she’s waving at her.

My guess is Lyra recognizes her as well, as she gallops toward her.

I can only guess that Photo Finish also recognizes Lyra, as, while my character’s attention follows the mint-colored unicorn, I see her and the pale-azure earth pony meet not far from the group and exchange greetings. And, there’s something about the pale-azure earth pony’s Germanic accent that I find I kind of like.

I recognize what’s going to happen, and I figure it’s only a matter of time before Pinkie Pie recognizes it as well, if she hasn’t already. This day is going to be based on the episode “Green Isn’t Your Color,” and I don’t doubt that my character and I are going to be caught up in all that happens between Rarity and Fluttershy, as much as Pinkie Pie will be involved, anyway. And, while there’s no evidence in the show of any relations between Lyra and Photo Finish, I’ve added such a back story to my game.

At any rate, as my character, Pinkie Pie, and Weed Whacker catch up to Lyra and Photo Finish, the photographer pony joins the group on their way to Sugar Cube Corner. And, perhaps a few blocks down, as the group is crossing an intersection, it seems that the pale-azure earth pony just happens to turn her head in time to see Rarity; as I hear her call out, "Vell, who iss zat?”

I then hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, that’s Rarity.”

My character stops and looks down at Photo Finish to show me she’s looking to her left, then looks in that direction to show me, through his eyes, Rarity wearing a hat composed of peacock feathers tied by a blue ribbon, with two more attached at the base with what looks to me like pale-blue fur and two jewel-encrusted circles that, to me anyway, resemble eyes.

Photo Finish turns to Lyra and says, “If you vill excuse me, I musst meet zis Rarity at vonce.” And, she and the two ponies with her gallop off toward the white unicorn.

A puzzled Lyra freezes in place for a second or two, then says, “Okay. I didn’t see that coming.”

I don’t know if I dare say that I did.

In the mean time, I hear Pinkie Pie say, in a voice of worry that surprises me, “Come on. Let’s get going to Sugar Cube Corner. I think Mormon and I need to talk about something.”

The thing is, Pinkie Pie may be right. But, as the group starts walking again, I hear from behind my character Rarity scream. But, it isn’t a scream of terror. Rather, it’s one of excitement. I then hear the sound of galloping coming up behind my character. And, it’s getting louder and clearer.

My character, along with the other three, stops and turns toward the sound to show me that it’s Rarity catching up to the group. And, when she stops a few inches from my character, I can see her, through my character’s eyes, smiling as she says, “Can you believe it? That was Photo Finish! She wants to take pictures of my clothes!” She then jumps around and giggles excitedly, then asks, “So, Mormon, could I get you and your friends to help me at the boutique?”

I decide to hold off on answering until the others have had their say.

The first to answer is Lyra, who says, “I’d be happy to help.”

Pinkie Pie sounds nervous to me when she says, “Sure, Rarity, I’ll help.” And, her forced giggle makes her sound even more so. I wouldn’t be surprised if she does recognize what’s going on.

In the mean time, Weed Whacker says, “If there’s anything I can do to help, I’ll be happy to.”

At this point, I say, “Well, I guess the vote’s unanimous. Sure, I’ll be happy to assist you.”

Again Rarity jumps and squeals for joy, then says, “I have an appointment with Fluttershy right now. But, afterwards, I’ll come and get you.” She then gallops off again singing out, “See you then!”

At this point, I hear Pinkie Pie sigh. As my character turns his attention to her, she says, “Well, let’s head over to Sugar Cube Corner.” Turning to the unicorn and dinosaur, she says, “Lyra, Weed Whacker, you can go ahead and start helping Mr. and Mrs. Cake. Mormon and I need to talk. We’ll join you when we’re finished.” And, with that, she leads the group the rest of the way to the bakery.

As the group enters through the doorway to the kitchen, the first thing I see, through my character’s eyes, is Mr. Cake putting a cookie sheet on the island. He turns to the group and says, “Hi, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Mormon. How are you?”

I open my mouth to answer, but Pinkie Pie speaks up ahead of me and says, “Mr. Cake, would it be alright if Mormon and I go to my old room for a few minutes? We need to talk about something.”

It’s not difficult to tell, from the expression on the orange stallion’s face, that he’s noticing the concern on Pinkie’s face. He answers, “Uh, sure, Pinkie Pie. Whatever you need.”

About half a minute later, when my character and Pinkie Pie are in her room, and after my character has closed the door, the pink earth pony turns to him and asks, “Now, could you use that ‘soundproof on’ cheat? I really don’t want anypony to hear what we have to talk about.” The way she’s marching in her spot, one might think she’s in some kind of hurry.

I answer, “Sure. Just a moment,” then click on the room and say, “Soundproof on.”

As soon as Pinkie Pie hears me say that, she relaxes, sighs, and says, “Thanks, Mormon.” Then, her worry evidently returning, she sits down canine-style and continues, “Now, I’m sure you’ve guessed by now that I know what’s going to happen today.”

I answer, “Yes, I understand.”

Pinkie Pie continues, “Then, you also know that Twilight’s going to make three promises today, one to Rarity, one to Fluttershy, and one to Spike.”

I respond, “Yes, I know. And, I also know that she’ll be able to keep two of the promises, because Rarity and Fluttershy’ll reveal their secrets to each other. But, Twilight will reveal Spike’s secret to a more-or-less empty room.”

The pink earth pony looks down and starts drawing circles on the floor with a front hoof as she says, “In the episode, yes.” Then, after sighing, she adds, “And, knowing that, I’m just not sure if it’s going to be worth helping her.” By this time, her ears are drooping. When she looks up at my character’s face, I can see, through his eyes, her frown as she continues, “What do I do? I know she’s going to break one of her promises. And, both of us know which one she's going to break. So, do I try to help her anyway?”

There’s something about this moral dilemma Pinkie Pie’s evidently going through, not to mention the way she’s facing it, that I find pleases me. I have my character approach her, then kneel down when he’s close enough, and stroke her neck with his closest hand; and I say, “Throughout the history of God’s dealings with His people, especially with His servants, He’s given them instructions and made two-sided promises with them, even when he knows they won’t keep their end of the deal. Still, He gives His people, those who want it, advice. That way, they have a choice in the matter whether they’ll follow that advice or not. Then, what they do with that advice is up to them.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie pushes my character’s hand away with her closest forelimb, and she seems to kind of glare at me as she asks, “So, you’re saying I should help her, even though I know she’s going to break one of her promises?”

I answer, “As long as she wants you to help her, yes.” I then have my character pull his arm away.

Again Pinkie Pie sighs as she puts the hoof down, and again she looks down and frowns, before saying, “Alright, Mormon, if you think that’s best. But, I’m going to need your help.” Then, when she looks up at my character, at me, again, she at least has the start of a smile as she adds, “I know that you’ve been keeping the promises you’ve made to me, even the ones from the previous game. So, I know I can trust you.”

At this point, I have my character kneel on one knee and open his arms to the pink earth pony, and I say, “Come here, Pinkie Pie.”

Pinkie proves her familiarity with the invitation, as she really smiles, and jumps into my character’s open arms.

My character then automatically closes his arms around her, and the two hug each other.

For the next few seconds, Pinkie Pie releases her emotions in quiet sobs before eventually pushing away from my character.

As my character opens his arms again, the pink earth pony jumps out of them and shakes herself out, then looks up at him, at me, and says, “Alright, Mormon, I’m ready to leave now.”

Taking that as his signal, my character stands up, walks to the door, and starts to open it for the pink party pony.

Just then, Pinkie Pie giggles and asks, “Uh, Mormy, aren’t you forgetting something?”

That’s when I realize what Pinkie Pie means. Again I click on the room, and this time I say, “Soundproof off.” And, after that, I have my character finish opening the door for her.

As Pinkie Pie trots through the door, she looks up at my character and says, “Let’s get going. We need to be there when Rarity comes and tells us she wants our help.”

As my character closes the door behind the two, then follows the pink party pony down the stairs, through the main room, and into the kitchen, I find myself looking forward to Rarity coming and requesting help from my character. I don’t know if that’ll include Lyra and Weed Whacker or not, but I do expect to be helpful to Pinkie Pie, at least.

It seems like just a few minutes of helping put ingredients together for loaves of bread before Rarity actually comes, evidently through the front door of the bakery, and asks, “Excuse me, is Pinkie Pie here?”

As my character turns to the pink earth pony, she sighs, then says, “Well, I guess that’s my cue.” She then turns to my character and asks, “Mormon, will you come with me? I could really use your help.”

I find I can’t help smiling as I answer, “Sure, Pinkie Pie.” And, my character follows her from the kitchen into the main room.

Once there, Pinkie Pie cheerfully says, “I’m here, Rarity.” Then, indicating my character with a head gesture, she asks, “Uh, can Mormon come along?”

The white unicorn looks up at my character, then nods and smiles as she looks back at her pink earth pony friend and answers, “Sure, Pinkie Pie, he can come along.”

Next, Pinkie Pie asks, “And, what about Lyra and Weed Whacker?”

At this question, Rarity says, “No, not this time. Just you and Mormon’ll be fine. I just need your help getting Fluttershy ready to model for Photo Finish.”

As the white unicorn turns and heads for the front door of the bakery, Pinkie Pie follows her, saying, “Okie dokie lokie.”

You know, I have yet to get tired of hearing that from her.

It’s just a few minutes’ walk from Sugar Cube Corner to Carousel Boutique, where the group enters the front door, then goes into a special dressing room, where Fluttershy is poised on a platform, wearing a black cape with pink cotton frill and a matching feathered headdress. And, on the back of the cape is a saddle apparently made of pink scales of some sort.

Also, I seem to remember this dressing room being the one the five of the element bearers used when they were putting on a fashion show for Hoity Toity more than a week ago.

Seeing the earth pony and the human, Fluttershy says, “Hi, Pinkie Pie, Mormon.”

After saluting the yellow pegasa, I ask Rarity, “So, what do you need our help with?”

The white unicorn answers, “Photo Finish is going to want to see the best I have to offer. And, I believe this cape and headdress are going to be it.”

Before I give myself a chance to think about it, I say, “Well, if anyone’s capable of pleasing Photo Finish with their designs, I’m sure you are.” Then I hear Pinkie Pie giggling, and I realize what I just said.

Then, Rarity says, “Cape-able,” chuckles, then says, “Oh, that’s very amusing, Mormon.”

Before anyone can respond further to my statement, the door opens; and Twilight Sparkle enters, carrying Spike on her back.

The purple unicorn asks, “So, Rarity, what do you need our help with?”

The white unicorn looks at Fluttershy and the clothes she’s wearing and says, “I need the help of you, Spike, Pinkie Pie, and Mormon to get this cape just right.” She then turns to the pink earth pony and asks, “So, Pinkie Pie, what do you think?”

The pink party pony makes a quick, but thorough, inspection, as much of Fluttershy’s facial expression as of the cape and headdress. Then, turning to Rarity, she says, “Uh, do you think it’s pink enough?”

Rarity has a closer look at the cape, then grunts in interest and says, “You may be right, Pinkie.” She then turns to my character and says, “Mormon, if you will, those pink diamonds, please?” and, she points to a bowl of pink, nearly transparent jewels on a dresser bar.

I have my character walk toward the bar and grab the bowl, then walk over to Rarity, who, with her magic, grabs the contents, spreads them out over the cape, then drops them onto it. Then she backs away to have a better look, then groans and says, “Oh, this is no good. Nopony can even see it.” She then approaches the purple unicorn and asks, “Twilight, could you please … ?”

Twilight uses her magic to turn on a spotlight that’s directly over Fluttershy and the platform she’s poised on.

The yellow pegasa reacts to the sudden light with a slight start.

Rarity then paces in front of the platform as she groans nervously and says, “Now, she’s going to want to see attitude, and pizzazz.”

Equally nervous, or perhaps more so, Fluttershy stammers, “A-a-attitude, and p-p-pizzazz.”

Then, the white unicorn zooms to the other side of the platform from my character, so I can only hear her say, “More light! It has to catch the sequins just right, or else it is just a disaster.”

In response, Twilight uses her magic to open the spotlight so it lights up the entire room.

In the mean time, I can’t help noticing the look on Fluttershy’s face, reflected in one of the mirrors. For a split second, she seems to be losing patience with Rarity’s demands.

Then, Rarity says, “Oh, and the headdress needs more feathers. Pinkie Pie, more feathers.”

The pink earth pony produces a basket of feathers from next to one of the stools and, carrying it in her mouth, bounces over to her white unicorn friend.

Rarity, using her magic, takes four of the pink feathers from the basket and places them in the headdress, where, from what I can see, they disappear.

My guess is they’re intended to add volume to the top of the headdress. From my character’s perspective, they don’t seem to make that big of a difference.

I hear a growl in Rarity’s voice as she says, “And sequins, more sequins.”

Dutifully, Spike grabs a bowl of macroscopic, bluish-white jewels and brings them to Rarity, who uses her magic to take perhaps half the bowl’s contents and toss it into Fluttershy’s face.

Fluttershy reacts with a startled yelp before relaxing somewhat again.

At this point, I anticipate what Rarity’s going to ask for next, and have my character grab a couple ribbons from the dresser.

And, sure enough, the white unicorn calls out, “And, more ribbons.”

I have my character take the ribbons over to the yellow pegasa and place one ribbon on each side of the headdress, then back away from her for Rarity to inspect them.

Presently, she says, “No, less ribbons.”

Instantly, Spike is there to remove the ribbons.

And, as soon as he does, Rarity says, “No, more ribbons.”

I watch Fluttershy’s expression change as Spike puts the ribbons back where my character had put them. Based on her glare, I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s thinking, “Make up your mind, Rarity.”

And, considering she says nothing more about them, Rarity has made up her mind that the two are enough. Then, she canters behind her yellow pegasa friend and, looking at the base of the cape, says, “Oh, the hem is all wrong.” Then, she calls out, “Pin cushion!”

From the edge of my character’s periphery, I see Spike leave, then come back with a bunch of pins stuck in his back. As he approaches Rarity, I can’t help thinking that to a real creature that’d be really painful.

And, as my character pans his attention to the ponies in the room, judging by their expressions, all but Rarity agree with me. And, I can only guess that Rarity just isn’t paying attention to Spike.

At any rate, the white unicorn uses her magic to remove four of the pins from the purple dragon’s back, then gestures him away with a hoof. Then, as she places the pins, she says, “Thank you all for helping me. I’m sorry to be so short with you, but I’m just so nervous.”

My character’s attention, in the mean time, is drawn to Spike as he backs away from Rarity, and almost into Twilight.

The purple unicorn, also focused on her assistant, and the remaining pins in his back, asks, “Ooh, doesn’t that hurt?”

Spike turns to her and answers, “Thick scales. Can’t feel a thing.” Then, he focuses dreamily on Rarity again and adds, “And, even if I could, there is no pain that would keep me from resisting … the most beautiful creature in the world.”

Based on Twilight’s present groan, I’m guessing she’s wondering when Spike’s crush will finally be over with. And, based on what I’ve seen, that crush has no chance of ending anytime soon, probably not for years down the line, if it ever does. In fact, from what I’ve seen, I wonder if it actually deepens.

Then, the purple dragon turns to Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and my character, and says, “I’m going to tell you three a secret, but you have to promise not to tell anyone.”

Twilight simply says, “I promise.”

Pinkie Pie, on the other hand, goes through the motions of her Pinkie promise, as she says, “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

As Pinkie Pie removes her left hoof from her left eye and opens it again, I say, “I won’t say anything about it without your permission. Although, when the time comes, I’m sure you’ll be the one to reveal it, Spike.”

Satisfied with our promises, Spike gestures to the three to approach him. He does so three times, until he thinks the two ponies and the human close enough, then says, “I have a crush on Rarity.”

At this point, I’m quite sure that Pinkie Pie’s only acting surprised before she covers her mouth, then uncovers it again and says, “We won’t say a word.”

Presently, Twilight visually groans as she says, “Give me a break. Everypony already knows how you—”

Before the purple unicorn can finish her statement, Pinkie Pie interrupts her, intruding on her personal space, as she says, “Twilight, you promised Spike you wouldn’t say anything. He trusts you, and, … well, …” She then turns to my character and says, “Uh, Mormon, I could use your help here.”

My character’s attention is drawn to Spike, who turns and looks at Rarity, then back at Twilight, and pleads to her with his eyes. I then have my character turn to the purple unicorn, and I say, “We humans have a saying, ‘An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.’”

Twilight nods and says, “Yeah, I’m familiar with that one.”

I continue, “Breaking a promise to a friend means losing that friend’s trust. And, the way to get that trust back would be to repent to that friend, and hope he, in this case, forgives you. But, it’s better to keep the promise and secret and maintain the friendship than to break the promise you made, and hope you can repair the broken friendship.”

Presently, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Thank you, Mormon.”

Then, Twilight sighs before saying, “Alright, my lips are sealed.” Then, more cheerfully, she adds, “Though I’m pretty sure she’s going to pick up on your feelings.”

In the animated series, when the camera cut to a shot of Spike at this point, he was suddenly wearing a white tee-shirt, with a picture of Rarity in front of a red valentine. I don’t doubt that this was the producers’ way of keeping the show child-friendly.

In my game, though, there’s still the pins in Spike’s back, which, with the valentine shapes of their heads, I think adequately represent Spike’s amorous feelings toward Rarity.

I say, “In the mean time, let’s get those pins out of your back.” And, I have my character take a step toward the purple dragon and start removing the pins.

Spike takes the removal of the pins with as many grimaces as there are pins that my character removes. And, when the last pin is removed, he sighs with relief and says, “Thanks, Mormon.”

Presently the bell over the dressing room door rings, and the attention of all those present in the room is drawn to the pony, no, ponies, who have entered.

The foremost of the ponies, the one of the three newcomers I’m most familiar with, says, “I, Photo Finish, have arrived.”

In an attempt to formally greet her guest, Rarity trots toward her and says, “Let me just say, what an honor …” that is, until the blue earth pony trots past her and towards the yellow pegasa on the platform.

I can only guess that camera in the suitcase is designed to pop out automatically when the one dark-tan earth pony pushes it forward, and Photo Finish says, “Ve begin, now.”

As the photographer pony peers into one side of the camera, Rarity instantly appears opposite Fluttershy from the camera, right next to her, and excitedly, but just above a whisper, says, “Attitude and pizzazz.”

And, before the yellow pegasa can respond, Photo Finish takes her first picture, causing Fluttershy to recoil in surprise.

The blue earth pony peers from behind her camera and says, “Yes. Show Photo Finish somethink.”

In response, Fluttershy props herself up on her hind legs, posing like a typical horse statue.

Photo Finish responds to this by emphatically saying, “No.”

At the evident rejection, Fluttershy drops down to a more humbled, more submissive posture, and whimpers.

Based on the way Photo Finish says, “Yes,” I would say she likes the more timid Fluttershy better, especially considering that now’s when she takes the yellow pegasa’s picture.

In an attempt to encourage Fluttershy, Rarity rises onto her hind legs, pulls her front hooves away from each other, and grins. At least, that’s how I remember it from the episode, and have tried to replicate it in the video game.

Fluttershy takes the cue from Rarity, grinning in a way that looks, to me anyway, rather uncomfortable, and supporting her chin with a front hoof.

But, Photo Finish makes it clear that such a pose is not what she’s looking for, as she again emphatically says, “No.”

Fluttershy responds by lowering the front hoof to the ground and looking down with her eyes, and the uncomfortable-looking grin disappears.

The look of sadness seems to be what Photo Finish is looking for, as once again she says, “Yes,” and takes another picture.

Again Rarity signals to Fluttershy, this time by posing as heroically as an equine can, then smiling.

Fluttershy again takes the cue from her white unicorn friend, posing similarly to Rarity.

But, once again, the photographer pony emphatically refuses, causing the yellow pegasa to melt into a more humble, more puppy-like pose. And, once again, Photo Finish acknowledges the alternate pose as the one she wants, and takes a picture of it. Then, after taking one more picture of Fluttershy, she pulls away from the camera, points a hoof into the air, for that moment reminding me of pictures I’ve seen of the Nazi regime, and calls out, “Enough!”

Obediently, the camera disappears back into the suitcase, which is then caught by the dark-tan earth pony.

As the trio of earth ponies trots away, Fluttershy and Rarity look as though they have no idea what just happened. And, that may very well be the case.

As Photo Finish passes Twilight, the purple unicorn leans toward Pinkie Pie and says under her breath, “She hardly took any pictures.”

I watch the blue earth pony exit, followed by her assistants, before I say, “My guess is she took as many pictures as she thought she needed.”

In the mean time, my character turns his attention to Rarity, who uses her magic to remove the headdress from Fluttershy’s head.

The yellow pegasa sincerely says, “I’m so sorry. I tried my best.”

Rarity replies, “Well, the headdress is too big for you, and the cape had too much sparkle. I can’t believe I ever though I could impress her.”

Just then, the azure earth pony appears in the doorway of the room again and says, “It seems that I, Photo Finish, have found the next photo star here in Ponyville.”

By her grin, it’s clear that Rarity thinks the photographer pony’s referring to her, as she asks, “Really!?”

Photo Finish answers, “Yes, really. And, I, Photo Finish, am going to help her to shine all over Eqvestria.”

The news is appreciated, if not clearly understood, by the white unicorn and the yellow pegasa.

And, before she leaves, Photo Finish says, “Tomorrow, a photo shoot in the park, … we go.” And, with that, the azure earth pony runs out the door.

An excited Rarity follows Photo Finish and her team to, but not out, the door. She then turns to the rest of the group in the dressing room and says, “Did you hear that? I am going to … shine all over Equestria.”

Now, having seen the episode, I know that it’s going to be Fluttershy, not Rarity, that Photo Finish wants to help shine. I have to wonder if the photographer pony thinks Rarity shines enough already. I have a sneaking suspicion that I’ll have to mention that to her some time before the end of this day.

In the mean time, an evidently relieved Fluttershy says, “Oh, Rarity, I was so worried I’d ruined everything.”

Rarity responds, “Ah, never. I knew you’d be perfect.” Then, excitement overcomes her, and she starts jumping up and down—on Spike’s tail, as it turns out.

Even though he grimaces with pain each time Rarity lands on his tail, Spike still looks with adoration on the bouncing unicorn, even as Twilight drags him away so that Rarity’s no longer bouncing on his now swollen tail.

Then, I get a look, through my character’s eyes, at Pinkie Pie; and she looks worried.

The pink party pony says, “If we’re no longer needed here, Mormon and I need to be dismissed.”

Rarity, still bouncing and giggling, doesn’t seem to hear Pinkie Pie.

On the other hand, Twilight lets go of her assistant, then puts a hoof in front of him to keep him away from Rarity, then says, “You two go on ahead.”

My character follows Pinkie Pie through the door to the dressing room, but not before I hear Fluttershy say, “I’m so happy to see Rarity so happy.”

As the pink earth pony and the human make their way out of the front door of the clothing store, I say, “I’m guessing you’re worried about Rarity, right?”

After he closes the door behind him, my character turns to Pinkie Pie, who’s looking up at him, and appearing as though she may start crying at any moment. She says, “Oh please, Mormon, let’s wait until we get back to Sugar Cube Corner, back to my room, before we say anymore about this.”

I respond, “Sure.” I’m guessing I was right.

Neither of us says another word until we get back to the bakery, at which point once again Pinkie Pie asks Mr. Cake for permission to go to the room where she used to live there; and Mr. Cake agrees.

Once inside, as soon as my character closes the door behind him and Pinkie Pie, the pink earth pony turns to my character and says, “Now, do that soundproof cheat on the room.”

I nod and answer, “Yes, of course.” I then click on the room and say, “Soundproof on.”

Now satisfied, once my character turns to her, Pinkie Pie jumps into his arms and sobs, “Oh, Mormon, what are we going to do now? You know better than anypony else that Photo Finish wants Fluttershy, not Rarity.”

I have my character walk over to Pinkie Pie’s bed and sit down on it, holding the pink earth pony, then stroke her back with his available hand; and I say, “Yes, I know.”

Pinkie Pie looks up at my character and asks, “So, what are we going to do about it?”

I answer, “We’re going to let Rarity find out for herself.”

Pinkie Pie’s expression morphs into one of fearful surprise before she asks, “B-b-but, w-won’t that m-mean …”

I answer, “It’ll be a shock to Rarity, yes. And, she’ll be resentful and jealous toward Fluttershy for a while, until she finds out that Fluttershy hates getting all that attention.”

Pinkie Pie continues, “A-a-and, they’re gonna p-p-put s-so m-much stress on T-twilight, m-making her p-promise not to r-reveal to anypony h-how they r-really f-feel about the whole th-thing.”

Here’s another interesting thing about this kind of situation. Watching the episode “Green Isn’t Your Color,” I always found it fun to watch the whole situation play out, especially how Twilight has to struggle with wanting to relieve the stress between her two friends versus having to keep their secrets. However, now I get this perspective, playing the game I’ve made based on the episodes of the show; and while it’s still very interesting, it’s for a different reason. I’ve seen how stressful it is on Twilight Sparkle, but now I’m seeing it perhaps equally stressful, maybe even more so, for Pinkie Pie. In the animated series, Pinkie Pie always seemed to take these situations with a grain of salt. However, I have to wonder, how accurately to the show have I programmed Pinkie Pie? Then again, in her “Smile” song, Pinkie Pie does mention how some of her days are “dark and lonely.” Of course, with me to help her, they shouldn't be so much.

Speaking of such, pulling me out of my thoughts, I hear Pinkie Pie determinedly say, “Well, whatever we do, we have to help our friends through this. We can’t just let them face it alone.”

You know what, I couldn’t agree more with the pink earth pony. I respond, “You’re right.” I then ask, “So, what do you propose we do?”

Looking away from my character and toward the door, Pinkie Pie sighs and answers, “I don’t know. I was hoping you might have some advice for me.”

I state, “Well, we’ve already given Twilight some good advice.”

Now, Pinkie Pie looks up at my character, and I can see her smiling as she says, “Well, you gave her good advice. Thank you, Mormon.”

I continue, “The best thing we can do is remind her of that advice. And, in the most friendly way possible.”

Pinkie Pie grunts with, I think, a mixture of interest and surprise, before she says, “You know, you’re probably right about that. Normally, I would’ve gone about it growling at her. But, maybe that’s not the right way to remind somepony.” Again she sighs, then says, “Alright. The next time I hide in a bowl of cheese waiting for Twilight at the spa, I’ll think about your advice.” She then turns and jumps out of my character’s arms and onto the floor, then turns back to my character and asks, “Uh, don’t you have a song somewhere, about being a certain kind of friend?”

I think I know what song Pinkie Pie’s asking about. As I open the media player on my computer and start searching through the songs, I answer, “You know, I believe I do.”

It's not long after I say so that I find a song by Michael McLean, a song called “Be That Friend.” Just before I double-click on it, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Yeah, that’s the one.”

It takes a few minutes for the song to play all the way through after I click on it, and after that Pinkie Pie says, “Thank you, Mormon. I really needed that.” She then turns to the door and says, “I’m ready to leave now.” She then turns back to my character again, to me, and says, “And, don’t forget to use that soundproof cheat on the room again.”

As I click on the room and say, “Soundproof off,” I can’t help thinking Pinkie Pie’s inspired somehow. Then again, I also wonder how many times in the past Pinkie Pie waited in a bowl of cheese at the spa for Twilight.

Then, as my character approaches the door, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “And, Mormon, thanks for thinking of me as inspired.”

As the earth pony and the human exit the room, I notice, through my character’s eyes, Lyra talking to Mr. Cake at the cash register. And, from what I’m hearing, she seems worried about me, or at least my character, and Pinkie Pie.

As Pinkie Pie leads the way down the stairs, followed by my character, Lyra turns to the two and says, “Oh, there you are.” She then approaches and meets the two at the bottom of the stairs and says, “We could use your help in the kitchen.”

I can hear Pinkie Pie smiling as she says, “Sure, Lyra. What’s the problem?”

I guess I’m still too preoccupied with my own thoughts to clearly hear what Lyra’s saying, something about a missing loaf of bread, or a missing ingredient, or something like that. When the three enter the kitchen, Pinkie Pie goes to work and helps Lyra with whatever problem she has; and, in the mean time, Mrs. Cake gets my character to work on the dough for the bread, or rolls, or something like that.

For the next hour or so the group is thusly occupied, until I hear Twilight’s voice in the main room of the bakery, asking Mr. Cake for Pinkie Pie and me.

Presently, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Well, Mormy, let’s get going.” And, my character proceeds to follow the pink party pony out of the kitchen and into the main room.

Twilight, on seeing the two, says, “Oh, good, you’re here. I thought it’d be a good idea to head over to Carousel Boutique and find out how the photo shoot in the park went.”

Pinkie Pie turns to my character, flashing me a worried look.

I understand how she feels.

She then turns back to Twilight and says, “Okie dokie lokie.”

And, with that, the three, actually four including Spike, leave the bakery and head for the clothing store.

When the four get there, lead by Twilight, they enter, then head up the stairs and enter the first door to find Rarity sewing a black cloak on her sewing machine.

Pinkie Pie bounces in and shouts, “How’d it go, how’d it go?”

Rarity turns to her visitors and answers, “It didn’t.” She then tosses the cloak onto her back and ties the strap around her neck before continuing, “Photo Finish wanted to work with Fluttershy, not me.”

As Pinkie Pie flashes another worried look to my character, to me, I hear Twilight Sparkle say, “Oh, Rarity, I’m so sorry.”

Seeing Pinkie Pie plead to me with her eyes, I decide to say, “You know what, Rarity, I wonder if Photo Finish thought you were shining enough on your own.”

Rarity sighs heavily, but remains focused on her sewing machine as she says, “Thank you, Mormon, I appreciate that thought. But, I prefer to be alone right now.”

In the television shows, emotions are generally evoked by the music. And, while there is ambient music in this video game, emotions are evoked more by the expressions on the faces of the characters, as well as their vocal inflections and tones. And, as the pink earth pony and the purple unicorn exchange looks, I can see that both are worried about their white unicorn friend.

My character, as per my instructions, waits at the door; but Twilight and Pinkie decide to approach Rarity.

That is, until Spike jumps in their way and says, “You heard her.” Then, as he whooshes the two ponies and the human out of the room, he continues, “She vants to be … alone.” He then lets his hormones take over as he turns and wanders toward the white unicorn.

That is, until Twilight grabs him by the tail and drags him out of the room.

Once outside the doorway, Spike says, “What? I didn’t think she meant alone alone.”

I have my character close the door to Rarity’s room to keep Spike from going back in.

In the mean time, as my character closes the door, Twilight lets go of her dragon assistant’s tail and says, “Actually, Spike, I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what she meant.”

Then, Pinkie Pie begins, “Uh, Twilight?”

The purple unicorn turns to her and asks, “Yeah, Pinkie?”

The pink earth pony starts backing away from Twilight, forcing my character to back up as well, as she says, “Mormon and I need to head back to Sugar Cube Corner now.” She then emits a giggle that, to me anyway, seems more forced than usual before saying, “I hope you don’t mind.”

Twilight answers, “Of course not, Pinkie, go right on ahead.”

By this time, Pinkie and my character are at the stairs.

Pinkie, while still focusing on her purple unicorn friend, turns her body to the stairs and says, “Thanks, Twily.” She then turns to my character and says, “Let’s go,” then turns her head down the stairs and starts galloping down them.

My character automatically follows her as she heads down the stairs, to the front door, and outside.

Then, as the door closes behind my character, Pinkie Pie turns to him, sighs, and says, “Oh, poor Rarity.”

I nod and say, “This is going to be difficult for her. Not to mention for Fluttershy.”

Pinkie Pie answers, “And, then there’ll be Twilight.” She then looks up at my character, at me, and says, “Mormon, in this playthrough, you’ve always steered me in the right direction. And, I could really use your help right now.” She then pauses before asking, “Mormon, is there an example in the Book of Mormon of somepony needing to keep a secret?”

The reading group has yet to get to the Book of Alma, or the Book of Helaman, where it talks about the Gadianton robbers and them keeping secrets. Of course, that band of thieves and murderers lead to the destruction of the Nephites, so they would not be a good example to present to Pinkie Pie. But, on the other hand, there is an example that the group has already read about, where Nephi had to keep a secret. With that in mind, I answer, “As a matter of fact, there is an example that comes to mind.” Seeing the look of interest on Pinkie’s face, I continue, “God showed Nephi the history of the world, and told him what part he could reveal, and what part he couldn’t. He did record, at one point, that he was forbidden from revealing a certain part of what he’d been shown.”

It evidently dawns on the pink earth pony what I’m referring to, as she gasps and says, “That’s right.” She then thinks aloud, “I wonder what it was.”

I answer, “Nephi did record that he’d been shown a certain apostle, and that apostle would be shown many of the things he, that is Nephi, would see, and that apostle would be charged with recording them.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “Do you know who he was referring to?”

I answer, “At the end of the second testament, known as the New Testament, there is the book of Revelation, recorded by a man known as John the Beloved. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was the apostle that Nephi was shown, that he was referring to.”

Again Pinkie Pie thinks aloud, “Nephi did write that he’d been forbidden from recording anymore of what he’d been shown by God. So, God trusted him with the vision of what John the Beloved would be shown later on, to keep it a secret.”

I continue, “God knew he could trust Nephi to keep that part of his vision a secret. And, later on, He trusted Nephi with more of His powers, knowing that Nephi wouldn’t abuse them.”

Pinkie Pie draws some curious looks when she suddenly jumps up and shouts, “Mormon, that’s perfect!” Then, in mid air, noticing how other ponies are looking at her, she, more slowly, lowers herself to the ground, giggles somewhat nervously, and says, “Uh, as you were.” Then, she smiles up at my character, at me, and says, “Let’s get back to Sugar Cube Corner. We have work to do.”

The two of us say no more until the pink party pony and my character get back to the bakery. Then, once in the kitchen, Pinkie Pie produces a blue bowl from one of the cabinets, then pours pieces of cheese into it, then dives into the cheese. She then peers out for a moment and says, “Now, Mormon, if you’ll deliver me in this bowl of cheese to the spa, to that wooden tub where Twilight and Rarity are gonna be, and then Fluttershy when Rarity leaves, I’ll wait there for them. I’ll remember that example you gave me, and mention it to Twily when she’s asked to keep her next secrets.”

As the pink earth pony disappears into the cheese again, I have my character pick up the bowl, then take it out of the bakery by way of the back door, then plan the course to the spa, as I say, “And, remember to keep it optimistic.”

Just before I enter the course for my character to follow, I hear Pinkie Pie ask, “Uh, what do you mean?”

As my character starts following the course he’s been given, I answer, “Remember and mention only the positive effects of Nephi keeping his promise to God.”

I hear Pinkie Pie reply, “Oh, like how you said it at the end.”

I respond, “Exactly.”

The last thing I hear Pinkie Pie say before the two arrive at the spa is, “Oh. I can do optimistic. Thanks for the advice, Mormon.”

A minute or so later they arrive at the spa, where I have my character place the blue bowl, Pinkie, cheese, and all, near the wooden tub where I have it planned for Twilight to be to make a promise to Rarity, and another to Fluttershy. I find myself contemplating for a moment waiting nearby, but then I decide it’s best not to get too involved in Pinkie Pie’s plan. If she’s going to help Twilight Sparkle keep her promises and secrets, she doesn’t need me revealing her secret. So, I have my character follow the course back to the bakery.

And, wouldn’t you know it, on the way back I happen to see, through my character’s eyes, Photo Finish and Fluttershy heading to someplace evidently deeper into town than my character is headed. I decide not to bother the two, although I do overhear Photo Finish say, “Ven ve get to ze ting at ze place, ve vill capture … ze magics.”

It’s about all I can do to keep from laughing as my character continues his course toward Sugar Cube Corner. Thinking about Photo Finish’s dialect on the show, I have to wonder if it wasn’t supposed to reflect a Finnish heritage. Considering her name, it would make sense. Of course, not being familiar with anyone from Finland, I couldn’t say for sure.

At any rate, when I get back to the bakery, as my character walks in the back door, he almost walks into Mr. Cake.

The orange earth stallion asks, “Uh, Mormon, where’s Pinkie Pie?”

I answer, “She had an important appointment she needed to keep.”

I decide not to respond when Mr. Cake thinks aloud, “I’m guessing she needed to be there by herself.” When he doesn’t get an answer from me, he continues, “Well, we could use your help anyway.” He then leads my character to the island, then says, “I already have the ingredients for oat bread in this bowl. All I need is for you to mix them together.”

I answer, “Sure, Mr. Cake. No problem.” And, with that, my character grabs a nearby wooden spoon, sticks it into the bowl of ingredients, and starts mixing.

Before the orange earth stallion goes back into the main room, he turns to my character and says, “Oh, and when Pinkie Pie returns, I’m going to need her help making some cupcakes.”

I answer affirmatively, and my character continues to mix the contents of the bowl until they turn into the required thick dough.

By the time the dough is ready to go into the oven, the back door opens; and Pinkie Pie walks in. And, as my character turns to her, I can see, through his eyes, that she’s smiling.

The pink earth pony approaches my character and says, “You know what, Mormy, your advice worked! I think Twilight might just keep all her promises now!”

I ask, “So, she accepted Nephi’s example?”

Pinkie Pie smiles and answers, “She thanked me for it!”

I state, “Well, that’s good to hear. Now, Mr. Cake said he needs your help making some cupcakes.”

Like the head of a typewriter capturing lines of typing, Pinkie Pie looks right to left, then quickly right again, a few times with her eyes as she says, “Well, I guess I better get to helping him then.” She then focuses on my character as she adds, “But, I expect Twilight to come soon, with some idea on how she can help Fluttershy get out of the modeling business. And, I want you to be there to help us.”

The fact of the matter is, for the same reasons Pinkie Pie expects her, I also expect Twilight to come. I decide to ask, “What exactly do you need my help with?”

The pink earth pony answers, “Well, you’ve given me such good advice, I’m sure you’ll have good advice for Twily, too.”

Pinkie Pie may be right. I do have some good advice I think Twilight can use. In the animated series, in the episode in fact, Twilight uses her magic to manipulate Fluttershy into doing things that make her repulsive, which could in reality, similarly to the way it does in the show, work against their cause. It seems to me that if she can restrain her instincts to causing her yellow pegasa friend to do things that only make her boring, then she could do more to help her out than harm her. I respond, “As long as she welcomes my advice, I’ll be happy to give it.”

Again Pinkie smiles at my character, at me, and says, “Thank you. You already know from the episode what all secrets she’s keeping, so I just have to tell her you have a good source. Not only that, but we’ve been living together for three weeks now; and even longer than that in reality. So, Twilight’ll think that all of that living together just means I’m rubbing off on you. You should be fine.”

Pinkie mentioning reality makes me wonder about something. But, there’ll be time for that later, when this playthrough is over. In the mean time, I ask, “So, when Twilight comes, shouldn’t Lyra and Weed Whacker be dismissed?”

From behind my character, I hear Weed Whacker whine, “But, I wanna stay.”

At the same time, Pinkie Pie answers, “You’re probably right. They don’t know about the secrets Twilight’s keeping, and it’s best they be kept among us.”

While Pinkie Pie is speaking, my character turns to the source of Weed Whacker’s voice to show me that she and Lyra are standing behind him. And, I note that Weed Whacker is the only one that’s groaning. Apparently Lyra understands.

In the mean time, Mr. Cake comes in and, seeing the pink party pony, says, “Ah, I thought I heard your voice, Pinkie. I just need your help icing some cupcakes. They’re in the oven right now, and as soon as they come out and have cooled off, I need your help putting icing on them.”

Pinkie grins sincerely at the orange earth stallion and answers, “Okie dokie lokie.”

And, wouldn’t you know it, it’s about then that a message box at the bottom of the screen reads, “The smell of lemon.”

At that point, Mr. Cake turns to the oven and says, “As a matter of fact, it smells like the cupcakes are just about ready to come out now.” He then turns to my character and asks, “Uh, Mormon, will you take them out of the oven for me?”

My character automatically searches for an oven mitt and puts it on one hand as I say, “Sure, no problem.” He then walks over to the oven, opens the door, reaches inside with the mitted hand, and pulls out the tray of cupcakes. Then, holding them above the oven, he closes the door with his free hand, then walks to the island, where he puts the tray.

Come to think of it, weren’t there also a couple loaves of bread in the oven? And won’t the recipients of those loaves wonder why they smell and taste like lemon?

After accepting thanks from Mr. Cake, I have my character go ahead and remove the loaves of bread from the oven, and put them on top.

After a few minutes, two things happen, if not simultaneously, then really close to each other. Twilight arrives, entering through the back door; and Mrs. Cake calls out to her husband, telling him the foals’ diapers need changing.

Worriedly, Mr. Cake turns to my character and Pinkie Pie and asks, “Uh, do you think you could take over icing the cupcakes?”

Once again, I answer, “Sure, no problem.”

Twilight adds, “I’ll be happy to help.”

An eager Weed Whacker calls out, “Me too, me too.”

Mr. Cake smiles and says, “Well, it looks like my pastries are in capable hands and hooves then. This shouldn’t take very long.” And, with that, he leaves the kitchen on his way to the nursery.

In the mean time, I have my character turn to Lyra; but she seems to be one step ahead of me, as she says, “I’ll go ahead and take Weed Whacker for a walk around town.” She then picks up the herbivorous dinosaur with her magic and places her on her back, then trots to and out the back door.

After watching the pale-green unicorn disappear out the back door, Twilight turns to Pinkie and asks, “So, what about Mormon?” And, in the mean time, she takes an icing bag with some of her magic, and, with more of her magic, fills it with icing from a nearby bowl.

As my character proceeds to turn the tray of cupcakes over, then right the cakes, Pinkie Pie whispers, “It’s alright. He already knows.”

Under her breath, Twilight says, “He knows about my promise to Spike. He and you made the same promise. But he doesn’t know about the promises I made to Rarity and Fluttershy. And that’s what this is about.”

Pinkie leans in close to Twilight and whispers, “Actually, he does know about them.”

Presently, Twilight calls out, “What!?” Then, realizing she spoke louder than she’d intended, she covers her mouth with a front hoof.

Pinkie Pie adds, still whispering, “He didn’t hear it from me, but he does have a good source for his information.”

Twilight removes her hoof from her mouth and calmly says, “Oh.” She then sighs and says, “Well, in that case, I guess it’s alright.” As she starts applying icing to the first cupcake, she says, “Well, we know that Rarity’s envious of Fluttershy because Photo Finish wants Fluttershy to ‘shine across Equestria.’ And, Fluttershy hates being a model.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “Yeah, so what about it?”

At this point, let me mention that I’m guessing Twilight must have quite a lot of experience icing cupcakes, as she’s already done three of them now, and they look really good.

At any rate, she continues, “Well, in our last talk together, after that last time you helped me keep my secret to Rarity, Fluttershy told me that if nopony was interested in her anymore, then maybe Photo Finish would find somepony else with … ‘the magic.’ And, that gave me the idea for what I could do to help her.” And, as she speaks, I can hear the tone in her voice rise with her excitement.

Pinkie Pie asks, “So, Twily, what’s your plan?”

Twilight answers, “Fluttershy has a fashion show late this afternoon. I was thinking, I could hide behind the curtain, then use my magic to make her look unattractive to the ponies in the audience. Don’t you see? On her own, Fluttershy could never do anything unattractive.” At this point, Pinkie Pie takes over icing the cupcakes as Twilight continues, “But, if I use my magic to help her do something unattractive at her next fashion show, no one’ll ever want her to model again. And if Fluttershy no longer has to be a model, Rarity will no longer have to be jealous of her; and I’ll no longer have to keep their secrets!” She then claps her front hooves together as she concludes, “It’s the perfect plan!” She then pulls my character down to her eye level with her magic, while she pulls in Pinkie Pie similar to how Spike had done, and says, “Now, I don’t want either of you telling anypony about it.” In a worried tone, she asks, “Promise me you won’t tell anypony?”

At this point, Pinkie Pie does a pantomime display of zipping her mouth closed, dropping a key into a hole she digs, covering the hole, drawing a house over the hole, and moving into the house.

When the act is over, Twilight, evidently somewhat confused, slowly asks, “So, you do promise, or you don’t?”

As though she doesn't feel she needs to do so, Pinkie answers, “Uh, yes.” She then turns her head upside down as she adds, “Obviously.” Then, she turns her head right side up again and repeats her pantomime act as she narrates, “That’s why I zipped my mouth closed, then locked away the key, then dug a hole, then buried the key, then built the house on top of the hole where I buried the key, then moved into the house on top of the hole.”

Twilight looks up, rolls her eyes, and says, “Obviously.” She then turns to my character and asks, “And, what about you, Mormon?”

I answer, “I also promise I won’t say anything.”

Pinkie Pie adds, “And, I know you can trust Mormon, Twily.”

I add, “But, I do have some advice for you.”

Immediately, Pinkie Pie jumps and squeals, “Yes!”

Twilight turns to her pink earth pony friend and tilts her head in curiosity.

Pinkie immediately lowers herself to the ground, smiles and laughs nervously, and says, “Uh, go on ahead, Mormon.” And, again she laughs nervously.

As Twilight turns back to my character, I continue, “It seems to me that you need to handle the situation delicately. You’re gonna want to make her look uninteresting, not disgusting. After all, it’s been my observation and experience that ugly is just another level of interesting.”

At my statement, Twilight looks away from my character and sighs before flatly saying, “You know, that’s also been my observation and experience.” She then turns back to my character and asks, “So, what do you think I should do?”

I answer, “Well, under normal circumstances, if Fluttershy were extremely nervous about something, what would she do?”

Twilight answers, “Well, she’d freeze up. Like a couple of weeks ago, when we had to get that dragon out of that mountain. Every time the dragon snored, well, you were there at the time, Mormon. You remember how she panicked.”

I answer, “That’s true.” I then add, “So, couldn’t you just manipulate her into acting especially nervous, then suddenly freezing under the pressure?”

The plan seems to dawn on Twilight as she gasps and says, “You know, Mormon, you’re right! That might just work out for the best!” She then gallops for the door, stopping only for a moment to turn to my character and say, “Thanks for the advice, Mormon,” before disappearing through it.

As my character turns to the pink earth pony, she says, “There! I knew you would give her good advice.”

Before I can answer, I hear the door open behind my character, and Lyra’s voice say, “I just saw a poster in town, talking about a fashion show starring Fluttershy.” As my character turns to the pale-green unicorn, she asks, “Could we go see it?”

Pinkie Pie, holding the icing bag in her mouth, turns to my character and says, “You go ahead with Lyra and Weed Whacker. I’ll finish up here, and hopefully I can catch up to you. Just see if you can help Twilight keep her promises, alright?”

I answer, “Sure, no problem,” before following the mint-colored unicorn carrying the herbivorous dinosaur out the door.

Lyra leads the way to a building in a part of town that I designed, but I never had a reason to go there until now.

Lyra takes her position behind Photo Finish, while I have my character take a position in the pathway between stands, to one side so he doesn’t stand in the way of Rarity when she comes.

Among the ponies I see in attendance are Doctor Whooves, Ataahua, Colgate, Bon-Bon, and Berry Punch. And, it seems that Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character have arrived perhaps a few minutes early, as the fashion show hasn’t started yet.

As some upbeat ambiance music starts, from behind my character I hear Rarity’s voice say, “I guess it’s time to see what all the fuss is about.”

Once my character turns to the white unicorn, I can see that she’s wearing what looks to me like three capes, each of a different color, each with jewels on the visible edges at least, and feathers on the top cape. The capes are attached to her neck by a blue collar, and Rarity’s also wearing a feathered hat on her horn, keeping her mane back away from it.

I say, “Oh, hi, Rarity. How are you?”

She sighs and says, “As well as can be expected, I suppose.”

My character turns back to the stage, and shows me, through his eyes, Fluttershy looking like she’s about to exit stage left. I say, “Well, it looks like your friend’s out on stage now.”

From her grunt of displeasure, I expect, if my character were to turn to her, I’d see, through his eyes, Rarity snobbishly pointing her nose in the air.

In the mean time, I watch as the yellow pegasa makes her way a few steps onto the catwalk. Then, she starts to glow purple, then starts trembling uncontrollably, then stops moving altogether.

My character remains focused on Fluttershy, so I can only hear Rarity hum with interest.

Back on the catwalk, I watch as Fluttershy seems to struggle to move, although I can’t be sure if her trembling is due to her battling against Twilight’s magical control, or if it’s entirely Twilight. Then, like a statue, she falls over, immobile.

As members of the audience gasp and the music stops, I hear Rarity say, “Oh, no.”

My character turns to the white unicorn to show me, through his eyes, the worried look on her face. I ask, “Rarity, what’s wrong?”

As Rarity gestures to my character to approach her, I hear a different voice with a British accent say, “If I’d wanted to see an outfit on something that doesn’t move, I’d’ve gone to a clothing store.”

In the mean time, Rarity moves behind the set of stands opposite where my character’s standing.

My character follows her until she stops.

Apparently in a position of safety, she says, “What have I done?”

I ask, “Rarity?”

The white unicorn continues, “I wanted her to fail, but I didn’t want her to die.”

I state, “I wouldn’t say it was that bad. She was still breathing.” And, last I saw her, I did see her torso expanding and contracting, indicating that she was still breathing.

Back to Rarity, she says, “B-but, I can’t just leave her like this. Not when she’s doing something she loves so much.”

Now, I know, as well as Twilight and Fluttershy, that the yellow pegasa is not at all happy with her present career path, and where it’s taking her right now. But, Fluttershy has to be the one to let Rarity know about it, not me. So, I just allow the white unicorn to run back between the stands and call out, “Bravo, bravo,” and stomp her front hooves in applause.

The voice with the British accent, the one that had mentioned a clothing store before, asks, “‘Bravo?’ A pony has frozen up and collapsed on stage, and she says, ‘Bravo?’”

Rarity continues, “Such … attitude! Such … pizzazz! Why, she’s obviously sending the message that those clothes are to die for!”

At Rarity’s last statement, it’s all I can do to keep from laughing.

In the mean time, another voice with a British accent asks, “Who is saying these things?”

Another voice gasps and says, “It’s her, that unicorn in that gorgeous cape and headdress. Now that is a pony who clearly knows a thing or two about fashion.”

The voice that asked the question says, “Well, if that fabulous pony likes it, then I do too!” And, she starts cheering, while I hear more stomping in applause. And, I hear more voices join in on the hoof-stomping and cheering.

Then, after a few more seconds, Rarity approaches my character behind the stands, sighs, and says, “Thank goodness her career is saved.” She then looks up at my character and says, “Now, I need to go backstage and see if Fluttershy is alright.”

I decide to have my character follow her, and I say, “I think you may find that things are a little different than what you think.”

My statement came before Rarity could come out from behind the stands to a different pathway. She pauses and turns to my character before asking, “Why, whatever do you mean, Mormon?”

I answer, “I’m going to leave that for Fluttershy to tell you. Best you hear it from her.” I figure just because I didn’t make any promises doesn’t mean I shouldn’t keep Fluttershy’s secret. I do believe it’s best that Rarity hear it from Flutteshy herself.

From inside my headphones, I hear Pinkie Pie’s voice say, “Good answer, Mormon.”

In the mean time, my character follows the white unicorn as she resumes her course out a back door, I’m guessing opposite the one she entered, and proceeds down the hallway.

She approaches an earth pony backstage, one that bears a striking resemblance to Pinkie Pie under Diane’s control, and asks her where Fluttershy’s dressing room is. After that, and getting the directions from the pink pony, she follows the directions to the room in question.

As she opens he door, with my character following close behind her, Rarity, seeing her yellow pegasa friend, hurriedly asks, “Fluttershy, are you alright?”

Fluttershy grins after a second and says, “I’m great. I’m a super famous fashion model. Why wouldn’t I be great?”

I can’t help noticing Twilight, who, in the mean time, looks very much stressed out. She starts to answer, “Because you ha—” then stuffs her front hooves into her mouth.

I say, “Twilight, maybe you should come with me. Clearly Rarity and Fluttershy have something that the two of them need to talk about.” Then, I have my character focus on the white unicorn and the yellow pegasa, and I say, “We’ll leave you two alone now.”

As Rarity talks about her feelings about watching Fluttershy on the catwalk, what she calls the runway, Twilight removes her front hooves from her mouth and trots past her two friends. Then, as, to Fluttershy’s evident surprise, Rarity admits feelings of jealousy, Twilight, walking back down the hall with my character, says, “Thanks, Mormon. I had no idea keeping secrets could be so stressful. And I have to keep three of them.”

I respond, “Well, Rarity and Fluttershy are revealing their secrets to each other now. Best to leave them alone while they do that.”

And, indeed, I hear Fluttershy confess her feelings of hatred toward being a model.

In the mean time, Twilight says, “You know, Mormon, if you hadn’t come, I would’ve thought I’d have to reveal all of their secrets. It never really crossed my mind that they’d reveal them to each other.”

I reply, “Yeah, when it comes to secrets that two friends want to keep from each other, it’s best that those two friends reveal their secrets to each other. And, sometimes they just need a little encouragement to get them started.”

Just then, Photo Finish gallops past the human and the purple unicorn saying, “Excuse me.”

Any further conversation between the two ends then and there; as I hear Photo Finish, at Fluttershy’s dressing room door, say, “The way you conveyed your message was brilliant! I’fe already got six photo shoots lined up for tomorrow alone.”

I then hear Fluttershy say, “I’m sorry, Photo Finish, but I don’t think I’ll be able to make any of them.”

Surprised, Photo Finish asks, “Vat?”

Then, Rarity and Fluttershy high-five each other and say, “We go,” then pass by the stunned photographer pony, giggling.

Confused, the azure earth mare innocently asks, “Vat just happened?”

As the white unicorn and the yellow pegasa make their approach, Twilight says, “Well, that just leaves me with one secret left to keep.”

As she continues her approach, Rarity says, “Well, if you’re talking about Spike’s crush on me, then you needn’t worry. I’ve known about that since the first day you came.”

Twilight smiles in relief for a moment at not having to keep secrets any longer, then asks, “So, why don’t you say anything to him about it?”

Rarity answers, “Because, it’s so nice to have a stallion around that’ll do whatever I ask without any questions.”

Then, Fluttershy asks, “So, how did you know about Spike’s feelings toward you?”

Rarity answers, “Well, for instance today, only a creature in love with another would stick pins in his back and pretend they don’t hurt.”

Twilight wonders aloud, “So, does that mean I don’t have to keep Spike’s secret?”

I answer, “I suppose that’s between you and him. If you want to talk to him about it, then that’s up to you. But, I suggest you do that either in the library or at Carousel Boutique. Just discuss it while it’s only between the two of you.”

About this time, I happen to notice, from the edge of my character’s periphery, Lyra approaching, carrying Weed Whacker on her back. And, Pinkie Pie’s with them.

Twilight smiles up at my character and says, “That’s a good idea. I may just go and do that.”

Lyra asks, “Do what?”

Presently Pinkie Pie worriedly waves her front hooves in front of her toward the purple unicorn and mouths the words, “No, Twilight, no.”

But, since I can’t see for myself, I can only guess that Twilight has her eyes closed so she can’t see. It’s the only thing I can think of that could explain why Twilight doesn’t notice Pinkie’s actions when she says, “Oh, nothing you need to worry about. Just me talking with Spike about his secret crush on Rarity.” And, I can only guess that it’s then that she opens her eyes and sees the look of grief on Pinkie Pie’s face; as she covers her mouth with a forelimb. She then turns to my character so I can see, through his eyes, the grimace on her face.

As she turns back to Pinkie Pie, I can’t help noticing tears starting to stream down the one side of the purple unicorn’s face I can see, as well as from Pinkie Pie’s eyes, as the pink earth pony says, “Oh, Twilight, and you were doing so well.”

In the mean time, Lyra, clearly seeing the look on Twilight’s face, develops her own look of worry and shock as she slowly says, “I … wasn’t supposed to know about that, was I?”

I state, “The most dangerous time for a secret is when its keeper feels the safest.”

Twilight whimpers, “Oh, what do I do now?”

I have my character kneel on one knee next to the purple unicorn and put a hand on her back, and I answer, “Well, Twilight, if you hope to maintain the relationship between you and Spike, then there’s really only one path for you to take.”

Twilight turns to my character, sniffles, and asks, “And, what’s that?”

I answer, “Tell him what you did as soon as possible, and ask him to forgive you. The secret meant a lot to him, and so do you, which is why he shared the secret with you. If he wants to keep the friendship between you two alive, then he will forgive you.”

Then, from behind my character, I hear Photo Finish say, “I, Photo Finish, and my makeup artists and dressers, heared somethink ve veren’t intented to hear. So, I promise you that I, Photo Finish, vill say nothink about it.” She then calls out, “Ef’rypony, come on out!”

At her call, earth ponies from four rooms surrounding the group of five enter the hallway.

The azure earth pony continues, “How many off you heard vat dis unicorn said about her friend Shpike?”

Almost without exception, every earth pony raises a forelimb.

Seeing this, Photo Finish calls out, “Now, hear dis! I vant you to promise me dat you vill nefer refeal vat you heard dis unicorn say about her friend Shpike!”

In unison, after the ponies drop their raised hooves, they call out, “I promise!”

I notice, from the edge of my character’s periphery, Photo Finish nod as she says, “Goot. Das iss goot.” She then marches toward Twilight and continues, “Now, I vill holt you to dat promise. Iff I hear off any off you zay anyting off dis matter, you vill be immediately fiet, iss dat undershtoot?”

From around my character I hear a chorus answer, “Yes, we understand.”

Now on the opposite side of the purple unicorn from my character, Photo Finish says, “Goot. You are dismissed.” She then leans toward Twilight and says, “Your zecret iss zafe vit us.”

I can’t help smilling as I hear Twilight say, “Oh, thank you, Photo Finish.” She then turns to my character, then Pinkie Pie, then Lyra and Weed Whacker, and says, “I guess I’d better get going then.” And, with that, she leads the way out of the photography building.

As my character follows the purple unicorn out of the building, I can’t help thinking about how Photo Finish really earned my respect when she did what she did. I have to wonder how many people that run a business the way Photo Finish does would, after hearing a secret the way she did, have their entire crew promise not to reveal it, on penalty of the termination of their job if they were to reveal the secret. And, considering how much they respect her, it wouldn’t surprise me to find that they’ve had similar situations to this before.

In the mean time, outside the building, Twilight turns to the two ponies, one dinosaur and one human, sighs, and says, “Well, I guess I’d better go and let Spike know what happened here. Mormon, I hope you’re right, and that he does forgive me.”

I state, “I’m sure you’ll let me know, you’ll let all of us know, at the reading.”

Twilight starts to smile as she says, “Everypony that needs to know.”

Then, suddenly Pinkie Pie gets a worried look on her face and starts prancing in her spot as she says, “Oh, I nearly forgot about something.” She then turns to my character and asks, “Mormon, can you wait here with Lyra and Weed Whacker? I wanna invite Photo Finish to the readings.”

I answer, “Sure, no problem. Go right ahead.”

Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “Thank you, Mormon. I’ll be right back.” And, with that, she disappears in a cloud of dust.

I then hear Twilight giggle sincerely and say, “Yeah, that’s Pinkie for you.” As my character turns to her, she sighs and adds, “Well, I’d better get over to the library. See you at the reading.”

I answer, “See you there.”

Then, I notice Rarity turn to Fluttershy and ask, “So, where would you like to go now, the spa for a soak in a hot tub, or to Town Hall to wait for the reading tonight?”

Fluttershy lowers her head and looks away from Rarity as she answers, “Oh, well, whatever you want to do is fine with me.”

Rarity looks up into the sky for a moment, then back at Fluttershy, and says, “Well, we still have some time. Let’s go to the spa.”

Fluttershy smiles and answers, “Alright then.”

And, with that, the white unicorn and the yellow pegasa head off to the spa.

Just a few seconds later, Pinkie Pie is back in another cloud of dust, smiling and saying, “She accepted! She’s coming!”

I can’t help smiling as well as I say, “That’s good to hear. She knows where the readings are held now, right?”

Pinkie Pie nods as she answers, “I told her they’re held at Town Hall.”

I consider, since Rarity seems to think there’s plenty of time for a soak in a hot tub at the spa, there should be plenty of time for the group of four to do something while we wait for the time of the reading. I ask, “So, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, what do you want to do in the mean time?”

The two ponies and the dinosaur seem uncertain about what to do next, until I hear Photo Finish behind my character say, “If you haff a moment, let us go to ze town shqvare. I haff zome qvestions I neet anzert.”

The two ponies and the dinosaur seem either undecided or uncaring; so, as my character turns to the azure earth pony, I answer, “I suppose that’ll be alright.”

Photo Finish’s response is to point a hoof ahead of her, once again reminding me of depictions of the Nazi regime, and say, “Vunderbar. Ve go!” And, with that, she trots off on a course to town square. And, until they get to the familiar outdoor restaurant, no one in the party of five says anything.

It’s only after all have been seated around a table and ordered something that Photo Finish says, “Alright. Now, normally, ven I choose a model, she iss exzited to be one. But, Fluttershy vas not.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie says, “Yeah. Fluttershy was never one to like publicity.”

Photo Finish asks, “Zo, vy did she agree?”

At this point, I decide to answer, “She felt obliged by her friend, Rarity. You see, Rarity thought you were going to help her shine across Equestria, not Fluttershy.”

Then, Pinkie Pie adds, “But then, you decided you wanted Fluttershy to shine instead of Rarity.”

Photo Finish replies, “Ja. I had noticed her makink ze clothes for Sapphire Shores, ant I figuret she shines enough on her own.”

I state, “It might’ve helped if you’d let her know that was why you were redirecting your attention to Fluttershy.”

The way Photo Finish says, “Ja, you were probably right,” she sounds like she’s groaning. Then, she asks, “Zo, is zat vy she qvit all of a zodden?”

I answer, “That was after Rarity confessed to Fluttershy that she was jealous of her modeling success, and after Fluttershy confessed to Rarity that she hated being a model. You came in just after they made a deal to never hide their feelings from each other again.”

Photo Finish concludes, “Und, after dat, zere vas no vay I vas goink to shtop her from qvittink.” She then sighs before adding, “I nefer vant a model to feel uncomfortabil.”

I state, “I understood you have genuine feelings for your employees when you had your make up artists and dressers make that promise. You really helped Twilight out there.”

The azure earth pony shrugs and says, “Und, how coot I not? She’t broken a promise zat meant much to zomepony zat meant much to her.”

I state, “It was very thoughtful of you.”

Before more can be said on the matter, I hear the voice of Bon-Bon behind me ask, “So, where’s Fluttershy right now?”

As my character turns to the cream-colored pony, Photo Finish simply answers, “She qvit.”

It’s about the time that she says, “Oh. Well, in that case, never mind,” when I notice Berry Punch is with her.

I find it strange, as I watch them, through my character’s eyes, trotting off. I’d always thought that Lyra’s cream-colored earth pony friend had more depth to her than that. As my character turns back to Photo Finish, I say as much to her.

Photo Finish sighs and says, “Ja, ja, zat is ze natures of ze fans of ze fashions.”

Now that I think about it, that does make sense when I take into consideration what that one pony said after Fluttershy, under Twilight’s control, froze up and collapsed, and then, after Rarity’s cheering. That one pony had said, “Well, if that fabulous pony likes it, then so do I.”

When I don’t say anything for a few seconds, Photo Finish tilts her head slightly and says, “You probably vonder vy I continue to pursue a career, zervink zuch a feekle matter, no?”

It takes me a few seconds to push away the funny mental image of Photo Finish pursuing or serving fecal matter. When I do finally manage to do that, I answer, “The question does come to mind.”

The azure earth pony nods once, then says, “Vell, ven an employee zuczeeds, zere iss no greater revart in ze vorlt.”

I don’t say this aloud, but, after my experiences as a missionary, I think I can come up with rewards that could top a successful modelling career. Or, at least experiences that’d produce such rewards.

It’s now that Lyra asks, “So, Photo, what’ll you do now?”

Matter-of-factly, Photo Finish answers, “I, Photo Finish, shall fint another pony I can help to shine across Eqvestria. Another pony vit whom I can make … ze magics.” And, as she says those last two words, again she gives that stereotypically Nazi salute.

I decide to say no more than, “Well, I wish you the best, then.”

I suspect that Photo Finish was going to respond with grace to my statement. But, our orders arrive before she can do so. So, the group enjoys a meal together, before leaving to go to Town Hall.

As the party of five heads down the road, an azure pony with white hair approaches them. When she’s close enough, she turns to my character and says, “Hi. My name is Lucky Charm. I’ve heard about these readings hosted by a human, and I was wondering if I could attend one of them.” She then asks, “You are the human that hosts those readings, isn’t that right?”

I answer, “As a matter of fact, yes, I am. And, you are very much welcome to come to the readings. In fact, we’re headed to the Town Hall to tonight’s reading right now. Would you like to join us?”

Lucky Charm smiles and nods vigorously as she answers, “Oh, yes.” Then, she asks, “So, it’s alright if I join you then?”

I can’t help smiling as I answer, “Yes, you are quite welcome to join us.”

As Lucky Charm takes a place next to Photo Finish, I notice her cutie mark is a couple of linked horse shoes, one a pale pink, and the other something of an off yellow.

The party of now six makes its way to the Town Hall, where Mayor Mare is opening the doors.

Photo Finish turns to my character and asks, “Zo, vere are ze books for ze readink?”

I answer, “They’re just inside the door, to your left.”

Lucky Charm asks, “Oh, and can we keep our copies?”

Now, it’s Pinkie Pie who cheerfully answers, “Sure, go right ahead.”

And, wouldn’t you know it, that’s when Twilight arrives, carrying an unhappy-looking Spike on her back.

I ask, “So, how did it go?”

The purple unicorn sighs, motions to her rider with her head, and flatly says, “See for yourself.”

As Twilight turns her head away from him again, he waves a clawed hand toward her head and growls, “Well, what do you expect? I trusted you with one of my secrets, and you betrayed me.”

Twilight whimpers, “I know, Spike. And, I know I was wrong to do that. Can you ever forgive me?”

Spike seems to fight against his instincts as he says, “Well, … I …” Then he groans as he turns to my character and says, “I could use some help here.”

As the group enters the main room of the Town Hall, I look to the senior earth pony and ask, “Mayor Mare, is there a room in here where Spike and I can talk?”

The earth-tan pony looks at my character, then at Spike, then back at my character, and, moving past the two, says, “Follow me.” And, with that, she enters a certain door.

Before I allow my character to follow her, I have him turn to my two pony friends, and my dinosaur friend; and I say, “Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, if you’ll stay here and try to comfort Twilight, I’ll have a talk with Spike and see if I can do anything to help him.”

While my character turns away from them, I hear them agree.

After that, the human and the purple dragon follow Mayor Mare down a hall to a room, where she opens the door.

As she points inside with a forelimb, she says, “This is a room that I use to discuss business with other ponies. It should serve you just fine.”

As my character and Spike enter the room, I say, “Thanks, Mayor.” And, I can only assume the mayor pony closes the door behind my character once he’s in the room with Spike.

As the purple dragon takes a position on one side of the room and my character takes a position on the opposite side from him, I hear Spike ask, “So, how do I forgive Twilight? She broke her promise to me.”

I answer, “I’d imagine most people at this point would say, ‘You just do.’ But, that’s not really an answer, it’s something one would say when he or she doesn’t have the answer. Here’s what I think.

“Twilight repented to you, meaning that she knows what she did to lose your trust, and she wants you to trust her again, and is willing to do what it takes to get what trust back. It seems to me that to forgive is to let the one who lost your trust, in your case Twilight, know that you want to trust her again, and are willing to do what it takes to do that. And, it seems to me that in order to learn to trust someone else again, in your case Twilight, the first thing you need to do is stop holding her offense against her. Don’t even mention it again.

“The second thing you need to do is help Twilight be the best creature she can be, and the way to do that is to continue to serve her the way you did before her offense. At some point in the future, she may trust you with a secret, in which case the best thing you can do is keep the secret.”

As I speak, I notice that Spike starts holding his head as though he has a headache. After I talk about him keeping a secret that Twilight might trust him with, he closes his eyes, waves his hands at my character, and says, “Alright, just a minute, just a minute.” Then, he opens his eyes again and holds his hands out as though accepting some solid object from my character as he asks, “So, you want me to do to Twilight the exact opposite of her offense?”

I answer, “That’s right.”

Spike shakes his arms out as he continues, “And, that’ll be part of forgiving her?”

Again I say, “That’s right.”

For a second or two Spike clenches his fists and growls before he opens them again and shouts, “Do you realize how difficult that’s going to be!?”

I answer, “There are times when doing the right thing isn’t going to be easy. But, it won’t help a relationship to keep an offense alive between two creatures that really care about each other. One of them is going to have to let go of that offense, and the sooner the better. If you really care about Twilight, and want your relationship with her to continue, and even grow stronger, then you’ll take my advice.”

It seems that my statement about keeping an offense alive in a relationship really hit Spike hard. For a few seconds he’s silent. Then, when he does speak again, he mumbles, “Alright, I’ll take your advice.” Then, as he gets to his feet, he adds, “It won’t be easy for me, but I’ll try.”

I have my character rise as well, then I say, “Work at it, and keep working at it. The more you practice, the easier it’ll get, or at least the more you’ll get used to it.” I then have my character open the door again as I continue, “You know, far too often in fictional works, at least for my taste, I’ve heard the words, ‘I forgive you,’ used improperly as a weapon of sorts, which, I think, does more to damage a relationship than do anything to help it. It seems to me that if those three words are going to be used that way, then it’s better to not use them at all, just demonstrate forgiveness.”

As the human and the dragon leave the room together, I can’t help noticing, when Spike looks up at my character, at least the beginning of a smile on his face as he says, “Thanks, Mormon. I’m glad I could talk with you about my problem.”

I simply answer, “I hope my advice helps you.”

No more is said between us as my character and Spike make their way back through the hallway and to the main room of Town Hall. And, as they walk through the door, I can’t help noticing something close to fifty creatures, including Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker, in the room.

In fact, Pinkie Pie bounces toward my character and cheerfully says, “Hi, Mormon. I think all the guests have arrived.” And, close behind her is Twilight, who is more subduedly cantering.

Presently, Spike runs to her, wraps his arms around her closest foreleg, and cries, “Oh, Twilight, I do want to forgive you! I want to trust you again!” And, with that, he buries his face in her shoulder.

I watch, through my character’s eyes, as Twilight closes her eyes, wraps her other forelimb around her dragon assistant, and says, “Thank you, Spike. I want you to trust me again.” Her voice trembles as she says that, and I see a tear roll down her face.

I think even Pinkie Pie starts to tear up. I at least hear her sniffle and say, “Oh, Twilight. Oh, Spike.”

I give the unicorn and dragon time to separate before I ask, “So, shall we get to the reading, then?”

It’s Twilight who nods and, smiling, answers, “Sure. Let’s do that.” and, with that, she leads the way to the reading group, which is almost entirely composed of ponies.

As the group of readers sees my character approach, they spread out and form a circle which touches the steps to the stage, where my character will evidently be.

The circle envelops the human, the earth pony, the unicorn, and the dragon, who separate to other parts of the circle, save for Twilight and Spike, and take their positions.

Before the reading begins, Princess Luna gives a brief summary of what the group had read in the first two Books of Nephi, and in the Book of Jacob.

I have my character turn to the photographer pony, and I ask, "Photo Finish will you begin the reading with the Book of Enos, verse one?"

The azure earth pony smiles and nods, then looks down and reads, "Behold, it came to pass that I, Enos, knowing my father that he was a just man—for he taught me in his language, and also in the nurture and admonition of the Lord—and blessed be the name of my God for it—"

Next, Lyra reads, "And I will tell you of the wrestle which I had before God, before I received a remission of my sins." She then looks up and wonders aloud, "He got a remission of his sins for wrestling in front of God?"

I hear Princess Luna chuckle, then answer, "I think not, Lyra, not as you imagine anyway. Let us read further, and we shall understand better."

Weed Whacker reads, "Behold, I went to hunt beasts in the forests; and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart."

I read, "And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens."

At this point, I hear Lyra say, "Wow. He prayed for an entire day? He was really determined, then."

Mayor Mare reads, "And there came a voice unto me, saying: Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed."

Zecora reads, "And I, Enos, knew that God could not lie; wherefore, my guilt was swept away."

Princess Luna reads, "And I said: Lord, how is it done?"

Princess Celestia reads, "And he said unto me: Because of thy faith in Christ, whom thou hast never before heard nor seen. And many years pass away before he shall manifest himself in the flesh; wherefore, go to, thy faith hath made thee whole."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "Now, it came to pass that when I had heard these words I began to feel a desire for the welfare of my brethren, the Nephites; wherefore, I did pour out my whole soul unto God for them."

Spike reads, "And while I was thus struggling in the spirit, behold, the voice of the Lord came into my mind again, saying: I will visit thy brethren according to their diligence in keeping my commandments. I have given unto them this land, and it is a holy land; and I curse it not save it be for the cause of iniquity; wherefore, I will visit thy brethren according as I have said; and their transgressions will I bring down with sorrow upon their own heads."

Rarity reads, "And after I, Enos, had heard these words, my faith began to be unshaken in the Lord; and I prayed unto him with many long strugglings for my brethren, the Lamanites."

Fluttershy reads, "And it came to pass that after I had prayed and labored with all diligence, the Lord said unto me: I will grant unto thee according to thy desires, because of thy faith."

PInkie Pie reads, "And now behold, this was the desire which I desired of him—that if it should so be, that my people, the Nephites, should fall into transgression, and by any means be destroyed, and the Lamanites should not be destroyed, that the Lord God would preserve a record of my people, the Nephites; even if it so be by the power of his holy arm, that it might be brought forth at some future day unto the Lamanites, that, perhaps, they might be brought unto salvation—" She then says, "You know, Enos here isn't the first to ask for this, I don't think. And, considering we have this record, evidently the prayers concerning it were answered 'yes.'"

Rainbow Dash reads, "For at the present our strugglings were vain in restoring them to the true faith. And they swore in their wrath that, if it were possible, they would destroy our records and us, and also all the traditions of our fathers."

Applejack reads, "Wherefore, I knowing that the Lord God was able to preserve our records, I cried unto him continually, for he had said unto me: Whatsoever thing ye shall ask in faith, believing that ye shall receive in the name of Christ, ye shall receive it."

Big MacIntosh reads, "And I had faith, and I did cry unto God that he would preserve the records; and he covenanted with me that he would bring them forth unto the Lamanites in his own due time."

Granny Smith reads, "And I, Enos, knew it would be according to the covenant which he had made; wherefore my soul did rest."

Applebloom reads, "And the Lord said unto me: Thy fathers have also required of me this thing; and it shall be done unto them according to their faith; for their faith was like unto thine."

Sweetie Belle reads, "And now it came to pass that I, Enos, went about among the people of Nephi, prophesying of things to come, and testifying of the things which I had heard and seen."

Scootaloo reads, "And I bear record that the people of Nephi did seek diligently to restore the Lamanites unto the true faith in God. But our labors were vain; their hatred was fixed, and they were led by their evil nature that they became wild, and ferocious, and a blood-thirsty people, full of idolatry and filthiness; feeding upon beasts of prey; dwelling in tents, and wandering about in the wilderness with a short skin girdle about their loins and their heads shaven; and their skill was in the bow, and in the cimeter, and the ax. And many of them did eat nothing save it was raw meat; and they were continually seeking to destroy us."

Sleeping Beauty reads, "And it came to pass that the people of Nephi did till the land, and raise all manner of grain, and of fruit, and flocks of herds, and flocks of all manner of cattle of every kind, and goats, and wild goats, and also many horses."

Wind Walker reads, "And there were exceedingly many prophets among us. And the people were a stiffnecked people, hard to understand."

Cold Hands reads, "And there was nothing save it was exceeding harshness, preaching and prophesying of wars, and contentions, and destructions, and continually reminding them of death, and the duration of eternity, and the judgments and the power of God, and all these things--stirring them up continually to keep them in the fear of the Lord. I say there was nothing short of these things, and exceedingly great plainness of speech, would keep them from going down speedily to destruction. And after this manner do I write concerning them."

Snails reads, "And I saw wars between the Nephites and Lamanites in the course of my days."

Snips reads, "And it came to pass that I began to be old, and an hundred and twenty and nine years had passed away from the time that our father Lehi left Jerusalem."

Warm Heart reads, "And I saw that I must soon go down to my grave, having been wrought upon by the power of God that I must preach and prophesy unto this people, and declare the word according to the truth which is in Christ. And I have declared it in all my days, and have rejoiced in it above that of the world."

Rarity's mother reads, "And I soon go to the place of my rest, which is with my redeemer; for I know that in him I shall rest. And I rejoice in the day when my mortal shall put on immortality, and shall stand before him; then shall I see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto me: Come unto me, ye blessed, there is a place prepared for you in the mansions of my Father. Amen."

Rarity's father looks up and says, "I guess that means I start the Book of Jarom," then looks down again and reads, "Now behold, I, Jarom, write a few words according to the commandment of my father, Enos, that our genealogy may be kept."

Berry Ground reads, "And as these plates are small, and as these things are written for the intent of the benefit of our brethren the Lamanites, wherefore, it must needs be that I write a little; but I shall not write the things of my prophesying, nor of my revelations. For what could I write more than my fathers have written? For have not they revealed the plan of salvation? I say unto you, Yea; and this sufficeth me."

Stunts reads, "Behold, it is expedient that much should be done among this people, because of the hardness of their hearts, and the deafness of their ears, and the blindness of their minds, and the stiffness of their necks; nevertheless, God is exceedingly merciful unto them, and has not as yet swept them off from the face of the land."

Emerald Hill reads, "And there are many among us who have many revelations, for they are not all stiffnecked. And as many as are not stiffnecked and have faith, have communion with the Holy Spirit, which maketh manifest unto the children of men, according to their faith."

Namby Pamby reads, "And now, behold, two hundred years had passed away, and the people of Nephi had waxed strong in the land. They observed to keep the law of Moses and the sabbath day holy unto the Lord. And they profaned not; neither did they blaspheme. And the laws of the land were exceedingly strict."

Twist reads, "And they were scattered upon much of the face of the land, and the Lamanites also. And they were exceedingly more numerous than were they of the Nephites; and they loved murder and would drink the blood of beasts."

Silver Spoon reads, "And it came to pass that they came many times against us, the Nephites, to battle. But our kings and our leaders were mighty men in the faith of the Lord; and they taught the people the ways of the Lord; wherefore, we withstood the Lamanites and swept them away out of our lands, and began to fortify our cities, or whatsoever place of our inheritance."

Filthy Rich reads, "And we multiplied exceedingly, and spread upon the face of the land, and became exceedingly rich in gold, and in silver, and in precious things, and in fine workmanship of wood, in buildings, and in machinery, and also in iron and copper, and brass and steel, making all manner of tools of every kind to till the ground, and weapons of war—yea, the sharp pointed arrow, and the quiver, and the dart, and the javelin, and all preparations for war."

Diamond Tiara reads, "And thus being prepared to meet the Lamanites, they did not prosper against us. But the word of the Lord was verified, which he spake unto our fathers, saying that: Inasmuch as ye will keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land."

Octavia reads, "And it came to pass that the prophets of the Lord did threaten the people of Nephi, according to the word of God, that if they did not keep the commandments, but should fall into transgression, they should be destroyed from off the face of the land."

Vinyl Scratch reads, "Wherefore, the prophets, and the priests, and the teachers, did labor diligently, exhorting with all long-suffering the people to diligence; teaching the law of Moses, and the intent for which it was given; persuading them to look forward unto the Messiah, and believe in him to come as though he already was. And after this manner did they teach them."

Sweet Tones reads, "And it came to pass that by so doing they kept them from being destroyed upon the face of the land; for they did prick their hearts with the word, continually stirring them up unto repentance."

Drum Roll reads, "And it came to pass that two hundred and thirty and eight years had passed away—after the manner of wars, and contentions, and dissensions, for the space of much of the time."

Lotta Pipes reads, "And I, Jarom, do not write more, for the plates are small. But behold, my brethren, ye can go to the other plates of Nephi; for behold, upon them the records of our wars are engraven, according to the writings of the kings, or those which they caused to be written."

Hoity Toity reads, "And I deliver these plates into the hands of my son Omni, that they may be kept according to the commandments of my fathers."

Mr. Cake looks up and says, "I guess I'll start reading the Book of Omni, then." And, with that, he looks down again into his book and reads, "Behold, it came to pass that I, Omni, being commanded by my father, Jarom, that I should write somewhat upon these plates, to preserve our genealogy—"

Mrs. Cake reads, "Wherefore, in my days, I would that ye should know that I fought much with the sword to preserve my people, the Nephites, from falling into the hands of their enemies, the Lamanites. But behold, I of myself am a wicked man, and I have not kept the statutes and the commandments of the Lord as I ought to have done." She then looks up and says, "I find it surprising that he'd admit that. Even among us ponies, it's difficult to admit when we've done something wrong."

Colgate reads, "And it came to pass that two hundred and seventy and six years had passed away, and we had many seasons of peace; and we had many seasons of serious war and bloodshed. Yea, and in fine, two hundred and eighty and two years had passed away, and I had kept these plates according to the commandments of my fathers; and I conferred them upon my son Amaron. And I make an end."

Lucky Charm reads, "And now I, Amaron, write the things whatsoever I write, which are few, in the book of my father."

Carrot Top reads, "Behold, it came to pass that three hundred and twenty years had passed away, and the more wicked part of the Nephites were destroyed."

Berry Punch reads, "For the Lord would not suffer, after he had led them out of the land of Jerusalem and kept and preserved them from falling into the hands of their enemies, yea, he would not suffer that the words should not be verified, which he spake unto our fathers, saying that: Inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall not prosper in the land."

Bon-Bon reads, "Wherefore, the Lord did visit them in great judgment; nevertheless, he did spare the righteous that they should not perish, but did deliver them out of the hands of their enemies."

Photo Finish reads, "And it came to pass that I did deliver the plates unto my brother Chemish."

Lyra reads, "Now I, Chemish, write what few things I write, in the same book with my brother; for behold, I saw the last which he wrote, that he wrote it with his own hand; and he wrote it in the day that he delivered them unto me. And after this manner we keep the records, for it is according to the commandments of our fathers. And I make an end."

Weed Whacker reads, "Behold, I, Abinadom, am the son of Chemish. Behold, it came to pass that I saw much war and contention between my people, the Nephites, and the Lamanites; and I, with my own sword, have taken the lives of many of the Lamanites in the defence of my brethren."

I read, "And behold, the record of this people is engraven upon plates which is had by the kings, according to the generations; and I know of no revelation save that which has been written, neither prophecy; wherefore, that which is sufficient is written. And I make an end."

Mayor Mare reads, "Behold, I am Amaleki, the son of Abinadom. Behold, I will speak unto you somewhat concerning Mosiah, who was made king over the land of Zarahemla; for behold, he being warned of the Lord that he should flee out of the land of Nephi, and as many as would hearken unto the voice of the Lord should also depart out of the land with him, into the wilderness—"

Zecora reads, "And it came to pass that he did according as the Lord had commanded him. And they departed out of the land into the wilderness, as many as would hearken unto the voice of the Lord; and they were led by many preachings and prophesyings. And they were admonished continually by the word of God; and they were led by the power of his arm, through the wilderness until they came down into the land which is called the land of Zarahemla."

Princess Luna reads, "And they discovered a people, who were called the people of Zarahemla. Now, there was great rejoicing among the people of Zarahemla; and also Zarahemla did rejoice exceedingly, because the Lord had sent the people of Mosiah with the plates of brass which contained the record of the Jews."

Princess Celestia reads, "Behold, it came to pass that Mosiah discovered that the people of Zarahemla came out from Jerusalem at the time that Zedekiah, king of Judah, was carried away captive into Babylon."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And they journeyed in the wilderness, and were brought by the hand of the Lord across the great waters, into the land where Mosiah discovered them; and they had dwelt there from that time forth."

Spike reads, "And at the time that Mosiah discovered them, they had become exceedingly numerous. Nevertheless, they had had many wars and serious contentions, and had fallen by the sword from time to time; and their language had become corrupted; and they had brought no records with them; and they denied the being of their Creator; and Mosiah, nor the people of Mosiah, could understand them."

At this point, I hear Berry Ground say, "Now, back when we were reading in the first book of Nephi, when we were reading chapter three, there was the question of why God would have Lehi send his sons back to Jerusalem to retrieve the records on the brass plates when he could just as easily have had them get the records before they left Jerusalem. Then, when we were reading chapter four, we learned that God wanted them to have those records because if they didn't, Nephi's descendants would dwindle and perish in unbelief; and that encouraged Nephi to get those plates by killing Laban.

"Well, now we have an example of a people that left and came to the Americas without the necessary records, and they were dwindling and perishing in unbelief. They weren't descendants of Lehi, but they were evidently former residents of Jerusalem. The records that Lehi had sent his sons back to get are clearly proving to be more useful than, I suppose, Lehi and Nephi could've predicted." He then turns to the white unicorn next to him and says, "You may continue reading now."

Rarity nods, then reads, "But it came to pass that Mosiah caused that they should be taught in his language. And it came to pass that after they were taught in the language of Mosiah, Zarahemla gave a genealogy of his fathers, according to his memory; and they are written, but not in these plates."

Fluttershy reads, "And it came to pass that the people of Zarahemla, and of Mosiah, did unite together; and Mosiah was appointed to be their king."

PInkie Pie reads, "And it came to pass in the days of Mosiah, there was a large stone brought unto him with engravings on it; and he did interpret the engravings by the gift and power of God."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And they gave an account of one Coriantumr, and the slain of his people. And Coriantumr was discovered by the people of Zarahemla; and he dwelt with them for the space of nine moons."

Applejack reads, "It also spake a few words concerning his fathers. And his first parents came out from the tower, at the time the Lord confounded the language of the people; and the severity of the Lord fell upon them according to his judgments, which are just; and their bones lay scattered in the land northward."

Big MacIntosh reads, "Behold, I, Amaleki, was born in the days of Mosiah; and I have lived to see his death; and Benjamin, his son, reigneth in his stead."

Granny Smith reads, "And behold, I have seen, in the days of king Benjamin, a serious war and much bloodshed between the Nephites and the Lamanites. But behold, the Nephites did obtain much advantage over them; yea, insomuch that king Benjamin did drive them out of the land of Zarahemla."

Applebloom reads, "And it came to pass that I began to be old; and, having no seed, and knowing king Benjamin to be a just man before the Lord, wherefore, I shall deliver up these plates unto him, exhorting all men to come unto God, the Holy One of Israel, and believe in prophesying, and in revelations, and in the ministering of angels, and in the gift of speaking with tongues, and in the gift of interpreting languages, and in all things which are good; for there is nothing which is good save it comes from the Lord: and that which is evil cometh from the devil."

Sweetie Belle reads, "And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved."

Scootaloo reads, "And now I would speak somewhat concerning a certain number who went up into the wilderness to return to the land of Nephi; for there was a large number who were desirous to possess the land of their inheritance."

Sleeping Beauty reads, "Wherefore, they went up into the wilderness. And their leader being a strong and mighty man, and a stiffnecked man, wherefore he caused a contention among them; and they were all slain, save fifty, in the wilderness, and they returned again to the land of Zarahemla."

Wind Walker reads, "And it came to pass that they also took others to a considerable number, and took their journey again into the wilderness."

Cold Hands reads, "And I, Amaleki, had a brother, who also went with them; and I have not since known concerning them. And I am about to lie down in my grave; and these plates are full. And I make an end of my speaking."

Snails says, "I guess that means I start reading the book of the Words of Mormon," then reads, "And now I, Mormon, being about to deliver up the record which I have been making into the hands of my son Moroni, behold I have witnessed almost all the destruction of my people, the Nephites."

Snips reads, "And it is many hundred years after the coming of Christ that I deliver these records into the hands of my son; and it supposeth me that he will witness the entire destruction of my people. But may God grant that he may survive them, that he may write somewhat concerning them, and somewhat concerning Christ, that perhaps some day it may profit them."

Warm Heart reads, "And now, I speak somewhat concerning that which I have written; for after I had made an abridgment from the plates of Nephi, down to the reign of this king Benjamin, of whom Amaleki spake, I searched among the records which had been delivered into my hands, and I found these plates, which contained this small account of the prophets, from Jacob down to the reign of this king Benjamin, and also many of the words of Nephi."

Rarity's mother reads, "And the things which are upon these plates pleasing me, because of the prophecies of the coming of Christ; and my fathers knowing that many of them have been fulfilled; yea, and I also know that as many things as have been prophesied concerning us down to this day have been fulfilled, and as many as go beyond this day must surely come to pass—"

Rarity's father reads, "Wherefore, I chose these things, to finish my record upon them, which remainder of my record I shall take from the plates of Nephi; and I cannot write the hundredth part of the things of my people."

Berry Ground reads, "But behold, I shall take these plates, which contain these prophesyings and revelations, and put them with the remainder of my record, for they are choice unto me; and I know they will be choice unto my brethren."

Stunts reads, "And I do this for a wise purpose; for thus it whispereth me, according to the workings of the Spirit of the Lord which is in me. And now, I do not know all things; but the Lord knoweth all things which are to come; wherefore, he worketh in me to do according to his will."

Emerald Hill reads, "And my prayer to God is concerning my brethren, that they may once again come to the knowledge of God, yea, the redemption of Christ; that they may once again be a delightsome people."

Namby Pamby reads, "And now I, Mormon, proceed to finish out my record, which I take from the plates of Nephi; and I make it according to the knowledge and the understanding which God has given me."

Twist reads, "Wherefore, it came to pass that after Amaleki had delivered up these plates into the hands of king Benjamin, he took them and put them with the other plates, which contained records which had been handed down by the kings, from generation to generation until the days of king Benjamin."

Cheerilee reads, "And they were handed down from king Benjamin, from generation to generation until they have fallen into my hands. And I, Mormon, pray to God that they may be preserved from this time henceforth. And I know that they will be preserved; for there are great things written upon them, out of which my people and their brethren shall be judged at the great and last day, according to the word of God which is written."

Silver Spoon reads, "And now, concerning this king Benjamin—he had somewhat of contentions among his own people."

Filthy Rich reads, "And it came to pass also that the armies of the Lamanites came down out of the land of Nephi, to battle against his people. But behold, king Benjamin gathered together his armies, and he did stand against them; and he did fight with the strength of his own arm, with the sword of Laban."

Diamond Tiara reads, "And in the strength of the Lord they did contend against their enemies, until they had slain many thousands of the Lamanites. And it came to pass that they did contend against the Lamanites until they had driven them out of all the lands of their inheritance."

Octavia reads, "And it came to pass that after there had been false Christs, and their mouths had been shut, and they punished according to their crimes;"

Vinyl Scratch reads, "And after there had been false prophets, and false preachers and teachers among the people, and all these having been punished according to their crimes; and after there having been much contention and many dissensions away unto the Lamanites, behold, it came to pass that king Benjamin, with the assistance of the holy prophets who were among his people—"

Sweet Tones reads, "For behold, king Benjamin was a holy man, and he did reign over his people in righteousness; and there were many holy men in the land, and they did speak the word of God with power and with authority; and they did use much sharpness because of the stiffneckedness of the people—"

Drum Roll reads, "Wherefore, with the help of these, king Benjamin, by laboring with all the might of his body and the faculty of his whole soul, and also the prophets, did once more establish peace in the land."

At this point, I have my character stand up; and I say, "And, with that, we'll end tonight's reading. And, I have an announcement for you. I'm thinking it's time for you, who live here in Ponyville, to take control of the readings here from now on." I'm not really surprised at the complaints and groans at my announcement, but I continue, "I appreciate having included you in these readings, but I think there are enough of you now that you can continue these readings among yourselves. So, I'm handing control of the readings here in town to my three friends, Emerald Hill, Stunts, and Berry Ground. You can split up into your own reading groups as you see fit, or continue to read as one group, whatever you prefer. It'll be all up to you from now on. I just encourage you to continue discussing what you read. You may come to me with questions you may have that none of you in the group can answer, but the readings here after tonight are under your control. Thank you. Good night."

When I finish talking, Pinkie Pie and Lyra immediately approach my character; and Lyra asks, "Mormon, why are you doing this?"

I have my character kneel on one knee in front of the two mares, and I answer, "Like I said, it seems to me they can handle the readings on their own from now on."

Worriedly, Lyra asks, "But, what if they can't?"

I answer, "That'll be up to them. If they want the readings to continue, then they'll find a way for them to continue."

I then hear Mayor Mare next to my character ask, "Don't you enjoy reading with us anymore?"

As my character turns to her, I answer, "Reading with you has been really enjoyable for me. But, it seems to me that, well, as long as I'm reading with you, the reading will probably have a tendency to move too fast. There's a lot of material that's worthy of discussion, and I have to wonder if my presence is making it difficult for discussion of the material to take place. For instance, there haven't been many who have commented on what was read this time, in spite of there being a lot of material worthy of discussion. If I'm holding that back, then it may be time for me to step aside and allow you to read, and discuss what you read amongst yourselves."

Mayor Mare looks down and says, "I hadn't thought you'd felt that way about it." She then looks up at my character again and asks, "Couldn't you give us one more chance?"

I answer, "It seems to me that this reading group is strong enough to stand on its own. It doesn't, or at least it shouldn't, need me anymore."

The mayor pony continues to stare up at my character, and it looks to me as though she could start crying at any time. Finally, after a few seconds, she sighs, then says, "Alright, Mormon, if you think that's best, then so be it. It has been an honor to have you lead these readings." And, with that, she turns and canters off.

I then hear Pinkie Pie ask, "You are still going to have readings, aren't you?"

My character turns to her, and I answer, "I do still plan to have them, yes. Just with a smaller group, and at my house again."

Lyra starts to smile as she asks, "Oh, could I be a part of that group?"

Pinkie Pie adds, "Me too, me too."

I answer, "A group isn't really a group unless there are two or more. As long as you live with me under my roof, yes, you are part of that group."

I then hear Princess Celestia ask, "And, what of me and my sister? Can we be part of your smaller reading group?"

As my character looks up at them, I answer, "You are quite welcome to. And, I would also welcome the other element bearers, besides Pinkie Pie, into that reading group. Just so long as an entire town isn't traveling through the Everfree forest to read at my house, then traveling back through there to return to their homes. I don't want to put that many lives in that much danger." And, I have my character stand up once again. And, that’s when I notice Applejack behind Pinkie Pie.

She steps forward and says, removing her hat with a front hoof and holding it in front of her, “Uh, Mormon, Ah’d like to invite you, along with Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker, to come with us t'Appleoosa. Ah’m a’movin’ one of my apple trees over there, and, Ah could use as much help as Ah could get. Would you like to come with? Ah’ve already invited Twilight, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash, and they’ve agreed.”

I answer, “Well, if Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker are willing to go and help you, then sure, I’ll come with.”

Pinkie Pie is the first to speak; and, turning to her friend, she says, “If you’re movin’ a tree to Appleoosa, I’m guessing we’ll be going by train?”

Applejack nods and answers, “That’s right, Sugarcube.”

Pinkie Pie then turns back to my character and, tilting her head, asks, “Then, where are you gonna sleep?”

Applejack’s smile immediately morphs into a frown, and she puts her hat back on her head and says, “Oh, yeah, that’s right. Ah hadn’t thought ‘bout that.”

Then Lyra says, “That is right. Passenger sleeping quarters are designed for ponies, not humans.” Focusing on my character now, she concludes, “You probably wouldn’t be able to fit in one of those bunk beds.”

Having had some time to think about the predicament, I answer, “I suppose I’ll have to sleep on the floor of one of the cars.”

At this statement, Applejack swallows hard and says, “Ah really don’t like that idea.” She then asks, “What if somepony had to enter real fast like, and ended up trippin’ over ya while y’all were a’sleepin’?”

I answer, “I suppose that’d be one way to wake me up.”

A chuckle escapes Pinkie Pie, until Applejack says, “Yeah, a painful way.”

It’s then that Weed Whacker says, “Well, if there’s any way that I can help, I’d be happy to come with.”

Then, Lyra says, “Well, I can’t allow Weed Whacker to go on her own. I’ll come with you.”

Pinkie Pie, still focused on my character, straightens her head and says, “Well, Mormon, I’m leaving my decision up to you. If you wanna go, then I’ll go with you.”

Now, I know that Pinkie Pie is going to play an important role in the story of the next couple of days, which are going to be based on another episode; and in order to play that role, she’s going to have to be there. And, maybe I can have some influence on her. So, for me, especially considering that Lyra and Weed Whacker have already decided they want to go, the choice is that much simpler. I answer, “Well, sure, I’ll be happy to go with.”

At my answer, Pinkie Pie jumps into the air and shouts, “Yes! We’re all goin’ to Appleoosa!”

Just then, I hear Princess Celestia, who I’d forgotten was still there, say, “Well, in that case, I shall transport you to your home so the four of you can get ready to leave on the train.” And, with that, the white alicorn nods and closes her eyes; and her horn starts to glow and sparkle. Then, the group of five, in one frame, find themselves in front of my character’s home.

It’s Pinkie Pie who says, “Well, let’s get ready so we can get back to Ponyville and go with Applejack and the others.” And, she leads the charge into my character's house.

The preparations don’t take that long, at least not for my character, who just packs some of his bedding into a bag designed for travel. And, it seems that the preparations are just as simple for Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker.

It seems that Pinkie Pie has thought ahead, and provided a bag with copies of the Book of Mormon for the trip. I guess that means she expects a reading to take place there, perhaps with Applejack’s cousin Braeburn as well as the other townsfolk there.

Once the group is back outside, Princess Celestia transports them in one frame back to Town Hall, but outside this time.

Somehow, I’m not surprised to see that Rarity has packed a mountain of things to take with her.

At any rate, as the daytime princess teleports away, the group of nine makes its way to the train station, where each gets a ticket, then boards the present train headed for the desert town. And, the group’s belongings, save for my character’s bedding, are packed in a chamber under one of the passenger cars.

In the mean time, Applejack is carefully instructing the workers on how to move an apple tree into the caboose and lay it down on the bed provided without damaging it, that is, the tree.

The worker ponies there also decide that the best place for my character to sleep on the way to the desert town is on the floor of the caboose with the apple tree. And, I see no reason to argue with them. After all, the caboose which houses the tree for the trip is evidently roomy enough to allow a human to sleep on the floor, at least one the size of my character. And, once the train starts moving, my character unpacks his sleeping gear; and Applejack starts reading a bedtime story to her tree, something about an apple tree growing from a sapling to a full-grown tree.

Then, just as Applejack finishes telling the story, Rarity enters. Seeing the farmer pony closing the book she was reading, the white unicorn asks, “Applejack, were you reading a bedtime story to … an apple tree?”

Applejack’s response, after a nervous laugh, is, “Uh, well, you know, bein’ replanted in a whole new place is very upsettin’ for a tree. And, Bloomberg here is one of my favorites.”

After a momentary pause, Rarity puts a front hoof down and says, “Not fair, Applejack.” She then whines, “You’ve got a luxurious private sleeper car for a tree, while I am crowded and cramped in the same car with all the other ponies. How am I supposed to get my beauty sleep?”

At this point, I have my character hold his arms out, the palm of each hand facing a pony, and I say, “Alright, that’s enough out of both of you.” Then, focusing on the white unicorn, I add, “I’m sure, Rarity, that you care just as much about the clothes you make as Applejack cares about the trees she raises and the fruit she gets from them.”

As I have my character put his arms down again, Rarity sounds offended when she responds, “Well, of course I care. But, at least the clothes I make are mature enough to not need a bedtime story.”

At this point, I can’t help but laugh at what Rarity just said.

Confused, the fashionista pony asks, “And, just what is so funny?”

Wanting to keep this session decent, I control my laughter just enough to say, “It’s kind of a long story.”

I think Applejack also understands, as she also chuckles. Then, as Rarity glares back at her, she regains her composure and says, “Now, remember, Bloomberg’s the main reason we’re makin’ this trip. He needs his rest for when we give 'im as a gift to my relatives in Appleoosa.”

Rarity grunts derisively before saying, “You talk about it as if it’s your baby, or something.”

That seems to offend Applejack, as she immediately gasps and says, “Who’re you callin’ a baby? Bloomberg’s no baby.” She then rushes to the apple tree and, rubbing its leaves with a front hoof, says, the way a mother would typically say to her infant, “Don’t wet ol’ Wa’ity make you aww saddy-waddy. Bwoomberg’s a big, stwong appo twee, yes he is.”

And, she continues on that way until a disgusted Rarity leaves the car, saying, “It’s ol’ Wa’ity who’s all saddy-waddy.”

Then, when it’s just the orange earth pony, the apple tree, and the human in the car, Applejack turns to my character and asks, “Can you believe Rarity’d say such a thing about my Bloomberg?”

I answer, “Well, in her own way, although perhaps not the most respectfully, she was acknowledging how much you care for your apple trees, especially Bloomberg.” I then have my character slip under his covers as I say, “You have nothing to worry about. I’ll take care of him.”

As my character closes his eyes, I can only hear Applejack say, “Thank you, Mormon. Ah really appreciate that.” Then, I hear the hoof falls past my character as Applejack proceeds out of the room and, I suppose, into the car with the rest of the ponies in the group.

I decide that it’s not quite time for me to save and shut down the game, as there is one more thing that needs to be taken care of.

Actually, make that two things. Weed Whacker, seconds after Applejack leaves, enters and nudges my character awake, then hands him a clipboard and pen, reminding me about the report to the princesses.

So, I have my character take the writing equipment from the herbivorous dinosaur, then write down the highlights of the day, including the discussion over breakfast about the story of the tame olive tree and the symbolism of all that was mentioned, the discussion on the walk through the forest about Sherem, and how Pinkie Pie asked for my advice throughout the day on how to help Twilight Sparkle keep her promises. I also include how, at the moment she felt the safest, she broke the promise she’d made to her dragon assistant, Spike. One of the things I include is how I advised Twilight on how to repent to Spike, and how I advised Spike on how to forgive Twilight. Princess Celestia’s faithful student did demonstrate how, as I’d said, the most dangerous time for a promise is when its keeper feels the safest. Then, after signing the letter and rolling it up for Weed Whacker, I hand it back to her; and she promptly bites it, causing it to disappear.

Then, as the herbivorous dinosaur exits the caboose, Spike enters, grumbling something about ponies being too noisy. Seeing my character ready to sleep on the floor, he asks, “Could I sleep with you tonight?”

Knowing what he means, I answer, “You can sleep wherever you want.”

As he snuggles, I assume, against my character's back, Spike says, “Sorry, I tend to snore a bit.”

As the purple dragon dozes off, I respond, “That’s alright. So do I.”

Now I decide to save and end the game. Evidently one of the longer ones I’ve had, who knows but that the game’s tomorrow will be even longer than this one? I guess I’ll find out.

Chapter 23: The Complaint of the Bison

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As I resume the game, I find that my character wakes up to what must feel like some kind of earthquake to him, judging by the noticeable vibration around him.

Not only that, but Spike proves that even a baby dragon couldn’t sleep through such rattling, as I hear him ask, fully awake, “Mormon, what’s going on?”

My character automatically turns to him, and I answer, “I can’t say for sure. Let me have a look.” Then, following my commands, my character gets to his hands and knees and looks out the window above him. Through his eyes, I see, besides it clearly being morning, a herd of bison, lead by a calf, stampeding past. I say, “A herd of bison is running past us.”

Judging by my character’s involuntary movement, it’s evident that Spike has just jumped on his shoulder. A second later, the purple dragon says, “I think you mean buffalo.”

As my character turns to the dragon on his shoulder, all I can see through his eyes are Spike’s eyes set in purple. I answer, “They’re known as either American buffalo or bison.”

The purple dragon climbs down my character’s arm, then asks, “So, what’re we gonna do?”

I answer, “I’m thinking the best thing for us to do right now is stay where we are. For all we know, the train conductor and crew have dealt with this kind of thing before. And besides, we really don’t know how to respond, since all the bison are doing right now is stampeding. And, don’t we have a tree to take care of while we’re here?”

The implications of my question seem to dawn on the dragon, as he says, “Oh, that’s right. Bloomberg, Applejack’s tree.”

I respond, “Exactly. So, until something more urgent happens, I think we should stay here with Bloomberg.”

Then, the smile on Spike’s face turns to an expression of deep worry, and he asks, “B-but, what if it’s too late by then? What if we’re stuck here?”

Seeing that Spike looks like he’s about to start crying, I have my character reach out and stroke one side of his face while I say, “Even if that ends up being the case, we’ll be stuck together, and that’s how we’ll handle the situation.” And, considering that Spike himself isn’t programmed to know what’s going to happen, I consider myself justified in saying, “For all we know, the bison are just curious about us, and are just going to turn and run in a different direction once their curiosity is satisfied.”

Spike swallows hard, but he seems to relax a little when he says, “I hope you’re right, Mormon. I don’t wanna be stuck, lost out in the middle of the desert.”

I open my mouth to say something, but then I hear a crashing sound from further ahead in the train. It seems as though these Equestrian trains were designed to carry sounds from one car to another.

And, it seems that Spike heard it too, as he cries out in alarm and asks, “What was that?”

I answer, “I’ll go have a look.” And, automatically my character rises from his sleeping gear and goes to the front of the caboose. As he peers out of the window, I see, through his eyes, just the back of the next car. As my character turns back to Spike, I say, "You stay here. I’m gonna go out and have a closer look.” And, as per my instructions, my character then opens the door, takes the step outside, then closes the door behind him before Spike can follow. Then, as my character moves to the side to show me, through his eyes, what’s going on, I see a bison ram sideways into one of the passenger cars, which I know must be the one with the element bearers, as well as Lyra and Weed Whacker, in it.

I know Pinkie Pie’s having fun with being thrown around, even if the others aren’t.

But, then I’m sure I hear a voice shout out, “Wait, we must stop the plan! There’s more than just the tree in that red cave!”

I hear another voice call out, “No, we are too far in! We must get that red cave!”

I hear the first voice call out, “But, it also contains a monster!”

At this point, I decide to have my character go back inside the caboose. But, before he can make it back inside, I hear the second voice call out the question, “What kind of monster?” and the first voice answer back, “One that walks on its hind legs and fully covers itself with other creatures’ fur!”

Once my character is back inside the caboose with the door closed behind him, I hear Spike ask, “So, what’s going on?”

As my character turns to him, I answer, “We seem to be caught in a conspiracy to get Applejack’s tree.”

Presently, Spike cries out, “What!?” He then runs in circles, worriedly saying, “Oh no, what’ll we do, what’ll we do?”

By this time, I’m guessing Rainbow Dash is trying to apprehend and ask a question of the bison calf that, by now, is likely running along the roofs of the passenger cars right now, on his way here. I answer, “Spike, the first thing you need to do is calm down. You’re not going to be able to help anyone or anything by panicking.”

As Spike stops and looks at my character’s face, I can see tears start to stream from his eyes as he asks, “But, what’re we gonna do? Those bison, buffalo, whatever they are, are gonna take Bloomberg, and us with him.”

I state, “They do know I’m in here. They don’t know anything about you being in here.”

I watch, through my character’s eyes, for a moment while Spike evidently thinks about my last statement. His smile suggests to me that a thought is occurring to him, and he says, “That means I can go on ahead and warn Twilight and the others about what you said!”

Just then, I happen to see, through my character’s eyes, Rainbow Dash, from behind, sliding down a railroad crossing sign. I slowly say, “I think it’s too late for that now.”

As I have my character turn to the door of the caboose, I hear Spike ask, “What do you mean?”

My character looks out the window of the door and shows me, through his eyes, the bison calf going to work, quickly unlatching the caboose from the rest of the train. Considering the little bison calf’s focus, not to mention how easily she undoes the latch, I’m guessing this isn’t her first experience with it.

I don’t allow my character to look away from the door window as I answer, “The bison have what they came for, and a little extra. At least one of them knows there’s a monster in the caboose.”

I hear Spike ask, “W-what k-kind of m-monster?”

I answer, “According to one of the bison, one that walks on its hind legs and fully covers itself with other creatures’ fur.”

As I finally allow my character to look away from the window and at Spike again, I see the little dragon point a finger at him and say, “Wait, that sounds like you.”

I reply, “At least one of the bison did see me while I was having a look outside.”

Presently, Spike uses the finger he’d pointed at my character to scratch his chin before continuing, matter-of-factly, “But, you’re no monster.”

I respond, “Well, according to the bison, I am.” I then have my character turn to the door window again, just in time to see the faces of the remaining five element bearers, as well as Lyra and Weed Whacker, in the window of the car ahead of us. As I see, through my character’s eyes, the door to that car open up, I call out, “It’s alright! Just stay where you are! We’ll catch up, somehow!” But, I can only watch as I see Pinkie Pie and Lyra converse for a few seconds, then disappear from view along with Weed Whacker.

Then, a few seconds later, I hear a wheezing pop, followed by Pinkie’s voice saying, “Now, Mormon, what did you say?”

I allow my character to turn to the pink earth pony, and I say, “Pinkie, you were supposed to stay with the others. I was saying that we were going to catch up somehow.”

Pinkie Pie slowly rolls her eyes and says, “Oh!” as if it dawns on her. Then, she asks, “Also, you know what’s going on, don’t you?”

Before I can even think to answer, the door to the caboose opens, and the bison calf enters. Seeing the pink earth pony, the monster, and the purple dragon there in the car with the tree, she blinks, then closes the door behind her, then gallops to the bed with the tree in it, braces herself against it, then turns to the other three and says, “You’d better brace yourselves. It’s gonna get bumpy.”

In agreement, the three brace themselves against the back wall, with Pinkie Pie bracing herself against the door.

Seeing the three thus positioned, the bison calf growls, “No, I mean get down!”

Understanding what the bison calf means, I have my character collapse onto the floor of the caboose, and Spike follows my example.

On the other hand, Pinkie Pie immediately hops away from the door and starts doing some kind of popping and locking street dance.

As my character looks up at the dancing earth pony, well, I have to say she dances really well. But, I decide now is not the time for such an act; and I call out, “Pinkie Pie, that’s not what Little Strongheart means. She means she wants you on the floor of the caboose with the rest of us.”

Immediately the pink party pony stops dancing, then turns her head to my character and says, “Oh, really?”

But, before I can answer, the caboose suddenly lurches, causing Pinkie Pie to fall backwards into the door again. And, before anything can be done, the door opens, ejecting the pink earth pony outside.

My character manages to look behind him out the door to show me that one of the bison has caught her, and is moving off to the side, while others have managed to stop the caboose from going forward any further, and are now pushing it backwards.

Spike, evidently realizing that he’s in a car moving away from the rest of the train, jumps up on his feet, runs to the open door, and calls out, “Help!”

I call out, “Now, Spike, remember, I’m in the same predicament as you. We're in this together.”

But, the little purple dragon refuses to acknowledge what I said, or to turn and look at my character.

Then, I hear the bison calf say, “It’s alright now.” And, my character turns his attention to her as she adds, “You can stand up again.” And, sure enough, he’s no longer bracing against the bed containing the tree.

I have my character stand up again, then walk over to Spike, then grab him and pick him up.

At first the purple dragon starts, then he turns his head to see that I’m the one that grabbed him. Then, he turns the rest of himself around and buries his face in my character’s chest and cries, “Oh, Mormon, what’re we gonna do now?”

I have my character stroke Spike’s back as I answer, “The main thing we need to do right now is keep calm. I’m sure the bison have a good reason for what they’re doing.”

The bison calf turns away from the bed and tree and, focusing on my character, says, “Yes, we do. And, just so you know, we never intended to get you involved in this. We just wanted the tree.”

At this point, I decide to have my character sit down. Then, once he’s seated and leaning against the nearest wall adjacent to the one with the door, I have him focus on the bison calf, and I ask, “So, Little Strongheart, why do you want the tree?”

The bison calf sits canine-style and says, “It’s a long story. I’ll explain the whole thing to you when this red cave is stopped.” He then tilts his head as he asks, “Better question is how do you know my name?”

I answer, “I have a good source for my information.”

Little Strongheart’s next question is, “And, what are you doing on a train with a dragon and a bunch of ponies?”

I answer, “Those ponies are friends of mine, and so is Spike here.” And, I have my character indicate the purple dragon who’s still attached to him. I then continue, “We were helping one of the ponies, Applejack, deliver the tree to a cousin of hers in Appleoosa.”

Presently, the bison calf jumps to her hooves, lowers her head, and, pawing at the floor, snorts two or three times. Then, she calms down and says, “No, I promised I’d tell you when this red cave is stopped.” She then sits back down canine-style again.

Now, once again having seen this episode, that is the one on which this and the following day are based, I know why the bison want the apple tree. But, also as I’ve done before, I plan on asking questions and getting answers before I do anything further. Still, I’m also familiar with the bison wanting their stampeding grounds back. And, based on the story they tell in the episode, I have programmed these bison with their instinctive need for their grounds.

In the mean time, another lurch, this time not as great, suggests that the bison are slowing the caboose down again, preparing to stop it.

And, the purpose for them stopping is made clear when Little Strongheart says, “Ah, it looks like we’re almost there.” Then, she approaches the purple dragon in my character’s arms and says, “Again, I want you to know that I’m sorry you got involved in this.” He then nuzzles Spike before adding, “I hope you will forgive us. We mean you no harm.”

Spike turns to the bison calf and asks, “So, why did you kidnap me, then?”

Little Strongheart answers, “Like I said, we were after the tree. We didn’t know until I got in here that you were here.”

I say, “Just one question,” before asking, “If you’d known that there was a dragon in the caboose, would you have taken it with the tree?”

As the caboose comes to a stop, Little Strongheart inhales deeply, then exhales just as deeply, then answers, “That’ll be for Chief Thunderhooves to answer. If it had been up to me, no, we wouldn’t have taken this … ca-boose.” And, she pronounces the word “caboose” as though it’s new to her, which it most likely is.

Then, I hear a voice from the doorway call, “You can come out now!”

I have my character wait for Little Strongheart to go first, then follow behind her as the three inside the caboose exit. Then, when I see Pinkie Pie still riding on the back of the bison that caught her, I ask, “Pinkie Pie, are you alright?”

It’s only after my character has put Spike back down on his feet that I hear the pink earth pony answer, “Yeah, I’m fine.” Then, as my character turns his attention to her, she adds, “Say, that was fun. Could we do that again, huh, huh, huh?”

I answer, “I think we’ve got other concerns to take care of right now.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie asks, “Yeah, like, what happened to Dashy?”

I agree, “That’s true. He hit that railroad crossing sign chasing down Little Strongheart, …”

Before I can say more, I hear the voice of the bison calf say, “Oh, no.” Then, as my character’s attention is drawn to her, she continues, “I hope she isn’t hurt.”

I state, “I’m sure she’ll be fine. But, she will come looking for us.”

Pinkie Pie says, “Well, in that case, I’d better go looking for her.”

A now calmed-down Spike says, “Yeah, I’d better go, too.”

I say, “Well, if Pinkie Pie’s going, then I’d better go.”

Little Strongheart says, “Well, in that case, I’d better stay here and guard the tree until you get back.” She then points to some three or four of the adult bison and orders them to join the monster, the dragon, and the pony in search of their friend.

I have my character focus on the bison calf as I say, “And, by the way, I’m what’s known as a human.”

Then, as my character turns away from Little Strongheart to follow Pinkie Pie and Spike, I hear the bison calf say, “Human, human. Why does that sound familiar to me?”

Noting how long it seemed to take from the time the bison managed to capture the caboose until they managed to stop it again, and deciding the best course of action is to follow the railroad tracks back to the crossing sign, I call ahead to the pony and the dragon to follow the tracks to the sign that Rainbow Dash had run into to see if she’s still there, which I understand she most likely isn’t.

Once the group makes it to the railroad crossing sign, it’s made clear that the blue pegasa is no longer there. But, it’s Pinkie Pie that notices a trail leading from the sign off into the desert. So, the group follows the hoof-print trail to a cluster of rocks, where I happen to see Rainbow Dash evidently trying to hide among them, looking around ahead of her to see if there are any of the bison around.

Pinkie Pie, evidently thinking that Rainbow Dash is playing a game of hide and seek, or something similar, jumps in among the boulders and starts moving from one to another, sneaking up on the blue pegasa.

In the mean time, Spike and my character, as well as the bison following us, just casually walk toward them.

From behind the last boulder I saw Rainbow Dash hiding next to, in fact the one I can see her trying to hide behind, I hear her say, “Oh, I can’t wait to get my hands on that little buffalo.” She then winces and howls in evident pain and, rubbing her head with a front hoof, says, “Nobody tricks Rainbow Dash and gets away with it.”

And, wouldn’t you know it, that’s just when, without her realizing it, Pinkie Pie sneaks up on her, pausing in relatively open space so the blue pegasa doesn’t run into her. Then, as Rainbow Dash turns to look ahead of herself, Pinkie Pie says, “Boo.”

Startled, Rainbow Dash yelps and jumps backwards, in fact falling on her back. Then, she recognizes the source of the voice as she rolls over and says under her breath, “Pinkie Pie!”

The pink earth mare says, “Aww, you caught me.” She then looks toward my character and adds, “Looks like I tricked you and didn’t get away with it either.” She then turns back to her blue pegasa friend and, pointing at her, concludes, “You’re good.”

Presently, Rainbow Dash covers the pink earth pony’s muzzle with a hoof and shushes her before asking, “What do you think you’re doing?” With a worried look on her face, she adds, “We’ve gotta get outta here.” She then jumps to the other side of the rock and peers out from it.

Innocently, Pinkie Pie asks, “I do?” She then points to my character and asks, “But, what about Mormon over there?”

My guess is Rainbow Dash doesn’t hear Pinkie Pie’s last question as she almost growls, “You’re gonna blow my cover.”

Once again innocently, Pinkie Pie asks, “I am?” And, once again she points to my character and adds, “And, what about Mormon? He’s coming this way.”

But, Rainbow Dash is apparently neither looking nor listening. She just continues to peer past her rock, away from the group approaching her from behind, as she finally growls, “I’m trying to save Spike and Mormon.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie asks, “Oh my gosh, they’re missing? Then, why are they coming up behind us?”

By this time, the human, the dragon, and the small group of bison are close enough to the two ponies that my character, at least, could reach out and touch Rainbow Dash.

But, the still-unaware azure pegasa puts her front hooves against Pinkie Pie’s chest and continues, “And, the more of us there are out here, the more chances of us getting …” And, finally she turns and sees the other six behind her. She takes a step away from Pinkie Pie, allowing her front hooves to fall to the ground under her and catch her, as she puts a single word to her fears: “ … caught.”

As the blue pegasa forces a grin in spite of her otherwise worried expression, I have my character kneel on one knee and reach out and start stroking her on the side of the neck, and I say, “Hi, Rainbow Dash.”

I then hear a male voice next to my character say, “This winged, blue pony with mane and tail of many colors, you know her?”

My character turns to show me, through his eyes, the bison next to him. I answer, “She’s a friend of mine.”

Presently, Rainbow Dash pushes my character’s hand away and, almost under her breath, asks, “What’re you doing with these buffalo? Shouldn’t you be with Applejack’s tree? And, where’s Spike?”

Before I can address any of the blue pegasa’s questions, I hear Spike, from the side of my character opposite the bison, say, “I’m right here, Rainbow Dash.” Then, as the pegasa’s attention turns to him, he adds, “As it turns out, these buffalo, bison, whatever you wanna call ‘em, really respect dragons.” He then turns to the bison next to my character and says, “It’s alright. She’s cool.”

The bison steps back and says, “if you say so, bro.”

My character remains focused on the blue pegasa as I add, “If you’ll remember, I was riding in the caboose when the bison calf unlatched it from the rest of the train. They knew it was occupied by more than just the tree when I went out to see what was going on, but they didn’t let that stop them. I have yet to find out why they wanted the tree, and still want it, I’m guessing.”

The bison that’d spoken to me and Spike says, “We need to be getting back to that cab-oose now.” And, the way he says “caboose” suggests that, as it was to Little Strongheart, the word is unfamiliar to him.

I have my character stand up again, and I say, “He’s right. So, Rainbow Dash, if you’ll join us, we’ll head back to the caboose now, and hopefully we’ll get the story of why the bison wanted Applejack’s tree from the bison calf.”

Rainbow Dash rubs the back of her neck as she grumbles, “Not as if I have much of a choice in the matter.”

I state, “You can always fly off back to the railroad tracks and follow them on to Appleoosa, or back to Ponyville.”

Rainbow Dash continues to rub the back of her neck as she states, “The way my head’s feelin’ right now, I wouldn’t be able to think straight. I’m gonna have to walk.”

I ask, “So, shall we get goin’?”

Rainbow Dash drops the front hoof to the ground again, then lowers her head and sighs, then says, “Fine, whatever.”

Considering that as her affirmation, the bison take the lead; and the ponies, human and dragon follow them. And, it isn’t long before the group makes it back to the caboose.

Little Strongheart, seeing the group coming back, jumps over the latch and gallops toward my character, then stops about a yard away from him and says, “I hope you understand, but I think we should wait until we get to our camp before we answer your questions. I think Chief Thunderhooves can explain our situation better.”

Presently, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “Wait a minute, I know you.”

Automatically, my character turns his attention away from the bison calf and to Rainbow Dash, who is pointing a front hoof at the bison calf.

As my character turns his attention back to Little Strongheart, she emphatically says, “You?”

Rainbow Dash then draws my character’s attention to her again as she asks, “You’re being held prisoner by these … things?”

I answer, “More or less,” before suggesting, “Look, let’s just follow them to their camp and hear them out. I’m sure they have a good explanation for what they’re doing. And, maybe we can help.”

Rainbow Dash angrily snorts for a few seconds, then sighs and says, looking away from my character, “Fine, let’s just go.”

I then have my character turn to the bison calf, and I say, “Well, Little Strongheart, lead the way.”

As the bison calf nods and moves to the lead position, all but four bison follow her away from the caboose.

In the mean time, I hear Rainbow Dash grumble under her breath, “I can’t believe Mormon is so easily brainwashed by these buffalo.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie, in a loud whisper, respond, “He’s not being brainwashed. He knows something. He just wants them to say it, and he wants us to hear it. And, I wouldn’t be surprised if he has a question or two for them. And, by the way, he calls them bison.”

I hear Rainbow Dash whisper, “Whatever. The first chance I get, I’m gettin’ outta here, and I’m takin’ you, Mormon, and Spike with me.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie whisper, “What?”

I then hear a thud close behind my character, followed immediately by Rainbow Dash moaning a little too dramatically for me to believe or take seriously, but still enough to stop the forward progress of the group.

Once all have stopped, I have my character turn to the blue pegasa to see her holding and complaining about her head.

Not long after that, I hear and see Little Strongheart from the opposite side of one of the bison approach and ask, “Is everything alright with your winged friend?”

I have my character approach Rainbow Dash and pick her up while I say, “It’s alright. I’ll take care of her.”

The blue pegasa, in surprise, asks, “What?” She then starts to struggle as she asks, “Mormon, what’re you doin’?”

As my character gets a firmer grip on the struggling pegasa, covering her wings with the arm not supporting her under her legs, the bison calf nods and says, “Alright, then.” She then disappears past the bison she’d appeared from, and a second or two later the march resumes.

I then hear Rainbow Dash call me by name, which causes my character to automatically look down at her. She then asks, “What did you do that for? I was trying to give us a chance to escape.”

I answer, “These bison have a story to tell, and I think we should listen.” Then, my character starts to look forward again as I add, “And besides, Pinkie Pie’s right. I do have a question or two for them. And beyond that, I thought you had too much of a headache to think of an escape plan.”

I hear Rainbow Dash growl for a second or two, then stop suddenly. My character looks down at her again to show me, through his eyes, her grimace. Evidently she’s had another jolt of pain through her head. And, it’s enough to prevent any further conversation or complaining from then on until the group arrives at the bison encampment.

Once there, as the rest of the bison disperse among the tepees, Little Strongheart approaches my character and asks, “Have you had anything to eat yet?”

Spike answers, “I haven’t, and neither has Mormon.”

Pinkie Pie adds, “Rainbow Dash and I haven’t had anything to eat, neither.”

The bison calf says, “Well, in that case,” then turns around and, using a front hoof, whistles, then calls out, “The clothed monster and his friends need some food!”

I can’t help chuckling. I don’t know that I’ll ever get used to being referred to as a “clothed monster.”

And, it seems that Pinkie Pie might simply not like the reference, as she says, “Mormon’s a human.”

I have my character turn to her as I say, “It’s alright, Pinkie. I’m guessing humans have been absent from Equestria for so long, most creatures may not have even heard of them.”

Then, Little Strongheart turns to my character again and says, “In the mean time, we need to find a place for you to set your winged pony friend down.” She then turns toward one of the tepees, away from my character again, and says, “Follow me. I’ll lead you to our campfire.”

I decide not to say anything, just follow the bison calf to the campfire, which, not surprisingly, is in the middle of the camp, surrounded by the tepees of the bison.

By the time the group has arrived, the sun has just started to set.

Two bison, which I’m guessing are female based on their lack of horns, are setting up a leather blanket and a pillow a few feet away from the campfire. And, by the time my friends and my character arrive, they’ve finished; and seeing us, they back away, then turn and gallop off.

Little Strongheart approaches the basic bed, then points to it, turns to my character again, and says, “You can put your winged pony friend on this bed. Then, you can take care of her, or we can, whichever you prefer.”

As my character approaches the bed, I have him turn to the bison calf; and I say, “Thanks, Little Strongheart.”

Then, as I have my character put Rainbow Dash on the bed, Little Strongheart comments, “You seem to know much about me, about us.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie responds, “That’s because he’s seen all of us on a cartoon show.”

Equal parts confused and curious, the bison calf turns to her, tilts her head, and grunts.

As Rainbow Dash moans, I state, “Let’s just say that I have a good source for my information.”

I have my character focus on the blue pegasa, so I can only hear Little Strongheart say, “Oh.” I’m guessing she probably still doesn’t fully understand.

At any rate, as Rainbow Dash starts to wake up again, I get a good look, through my character’s eyes, at her forehead, and notice there doesn’t seem to be any bruising. I can only guess that’s because of her facial fur. But, I still have my character massage her gently on her forehead, between her eyes, which clearly makes her feel better.

For the time my character massages the blue pegasa, she stops moving altogether. Then, when he pulls his hand away from her, she shakes her head, then touches it with a forelimb where my character had touched her, then moves her hoof away and looks at it. Then, she looks up at my character and asks, somewhat sleepily, “You healed me, didn’t you?”

I answer, “That’s right.”

Rainbow Dash then puts the hoof down and looks around her, then back at my character, and asks, “Where are we?”

I answer, “We’re in the camp of the bison.”

Presently, the blue pegasa jumps up onto all fours and, looking around, says, “We need to get outta here. We need to get Bloomberg to Appleoosa.”

I now have my character put a hand on the alert blue pegasa, and I say, “First thing’s first.” As she focuses on my character again, I continue, “First, we need to listen to what the bison have to say. Then, like I said before, I have some questions for them. Then, after we can make an informed decision, then we’ll act.”

I then hear Little Strongheart say, “But, before that,” and my character turns his attention to the bison calf as she continues, “You need to eat something.”

And, it’s then that I notice three female bison behind her, each with a bowl in her mouth.

One of them sets a bowl in front of my character, one in front of Rainbow Dash, and one in front of Pinkie Pie.

The pink earth pony immediately plants her face in her bowl of green mush and starts chomping away.

On the other hand, Rainbow Dash sniffs at her bowl, then pulls a face and groans in disgust.

As my character sniffs at the bowl in front of him, a message box appears at the bottom of the screen, reading, “The scent of corn.”

Presently, I say, “Hmm, cornmeal.” And, I have my character take a hand, push it into the mush, pull it out, and start eating the cornmeal that has stuck to his hand.

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash pushes her bowl away, then turns and trots to the side of one of the tepees, then starts peering past it. As she looks in each direction, she says, “I don’t know why Mormon trusts these buffalo, but I don’t. I say we turn tail and bail once they …” But, she’s evidently interrupted by the sounds of Pinkie Pie enjoying her meal. At least, that’s what I get from watching her, through my character’s eyes, turn and focus on her friend.

In the mean time, I happen to notice that Little Strongheart is holding a bowl of stones in his mouth.

As Pinkie Pie looks up again from her now-empty bowl, her face covered in the cornmeal, she asks, “Before we’re finished eating? Are you loco in the coco?”

I happen to catch, on the edge of my character’s vision, Little Strongheart approach Spike with the bowl full of stones, which are the color of Rainbow Dash’s fur. But, while the bison calf approaches Spike, I state, “I agree with Pinkie Pie on this one. We’re guests of the bison, and we have yet to hear them out. And, I have yet to ask them my questions.”

As the bison calf sets the bowl of stones next to Spike, Pinkie Pie asks, “Can I have more of that mushy stuff, uh, cornmeal as Mormon called it?”

Little Strongheart answers the pink earth pony, “Certainly.” She then pushes the bowl of stones toward Spike and asks, “And, Mr. Spike, you like gemstones, yes?”

The purple dragon looks hungrily at the contents of the bowl, hums with anticipation, and says, “Turquoise.” He then dumps the contents of the bowl into his mouth and munches away at the stones. Then, after a few seconds, when he can speak again, he says, “I know you’ve already met my human friend, Mormon, as well as Pinkie Pie, the one with the, uh, cornmeal, all over her face. And, the pony searching for a way out is Rainbow Dash.”

The blue pegasa, evidently having been named, turns to the purple dragon and snorts. She then focuses on Little Strongheart and growls, trotting toward her, “But, I suppose I could stay a little longer. Just long enough to settle things between me and this little brat.”

At this point, I have my character stick his cornmeal-covered hand out in front of the blue pegasa, and I say, “Now, Rainbow Dash, calm down. Remember, we’re their guests.”

Rainbow Dash glares at my character and says, “Don’t touch me.”

I respond, “Don’t force me to.”

The blue pegasa only stops when she sees the hand I’ve had my character stick out in front of her. It seems that, while she doesn’t care too much about physical appearance, she also doesn’t even want to be associated with the cornmeal the bison eat and have offered to her. She stares at the messy hand, then at its owner, and asks, “How can you eat that stuff?”

I open my mouth to answer, but Pinkie Pie beats me to it, giggling before she says, “I think you already know the answer to that one, Dashie.”

Then, I hear Little Strongheart’s voice approach and say, “Please, forgive us for what happened on the train.” As my character turns to the bison calf, she continues, “We didn’t mean for anyone to be hurt.”

From the edge of my character’s periphery, I can see Rainbow Dash glaring at Little Strongheart as she rolls her eyes and says, “Yeah, right.” She then trots past my character, brushing her tail against my character’s hand.

I have him hold out his other hand in front of the blue pegasa as I say, “Now, let’s hear Little Strongheart out.”

The bison calf says, “Thanks, Mormon,” then continues, “We only wanted the tree. The settler ponies have taken over the land and have planted an orchard all over it. Because of their thoughtlessness, we can no longer run over our traditional stampeding grounds.”

While Little Strongheart talks, Pinkie Pie approaches Rainbow Dash, and the two share a confused look. When the bison calf is finished, they turn to her and communicate their confusion in a grunt.

In the episode, it’s Spike who suggests a meeting with the alpha bison. In this game, I, the gamer, beat Spike to it, having my character focus on the bison calf and saying, “Maybe it’s time for you to go get Chief Thunderhooves. He should give us a better idea of what your side of the story is, and he could even answer a few of my questions.”

Little Strongheart sighs, then says, “Alright. I’ll be right back with our chief. In the mean time, stay here and enjoy your food.”

As the bison calf wanders off past Spike, Rainbow Dash approaches my character and, under her breath, says, “I think we’ve already stayed here too long. it’s getting dark, and we should be getting to Appleoosa. Everypony’s gonna be worried about us.”

I respond, “You’re right, it is getting dark. And, this is unfamiliar territory. Do you know how far away the train tracks are? Sure we could get to Appleoosa if we could follow those tracks, but do we have much of a chance of finding them in the dark? I say we stay here and listen to what the bison have to say. They’ve been hospitable so far, and I’m sure they’ll allow us to sleep among them for the night, then they’ll lead us to Appleoosa in the morning. But, we need to hear their side of this story first.”

Rainbow Dash growls for a few seconds, then grumbles, “Oh, alright. But, you’d better be right about this.”

I respond, “Trust me, I am.”

And, it takes a little more than the time of the conversation between me and Rainbow Dash took for Little Strongheart to show up with Chief Thunderhooves, who says, “Little Strongheart here tells me that she couldn’t communicate to you our situation. She also said that you, who are called Mormon, have some questions for me. So, let me tell you our story.

“You see, we have a long and winding stampeding trail we have run upon for many generations. My father stampeded upon these grounds, and his father before him, and his father before him, …”

Chief Thunderhooves repeats the phrase, “and his father before him,” maybe six to eight times more before Little Strongheart states, “I think they got the idea, Chief.”

The dark gray bison snorts, then continues, “It is a sacred tradition to run the path every year. But, this year, these settler ponies, these … Apple-loosens!”

He then snorts a few more times in evident anger before Little Strongheart sticks a front hoof in his closest nostril and says, “They planted apple trees all over it without asking our permission.”

At this point, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Well, that’s not nice, right Rainbow Dash?”

My character automatically turns to the pink earth pony to show me, through his eyes, that Rainbow Dash is sitting strangely human-style now, her forelimbs folded in front of her.

I have my character turn back to the senior bison, and I ask, “Just out of curiosity, did anyone of you bother to inform the settler ponies about your stampeding grounds?”

Chief Thunderhooves responds by snorting in growing fury, then retorting, “And why should we do that? Those are our stampeding grounds, and they are sacred to us!”

I respond, “Well, in that case, the Appleoosans can’t be held responsible for planting an orchard on ground they didn’t know was sacred now, can they?”

As the alpha bison snorts a few more times, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Uh, Mormon, I really don’t think you should be making them any more angry than they already are.”

Presently, Chief Thunderhooves roars out, “Do you display your sacred items to everyone you see?”

I answer, “Displaying something sacred to someone else isn’t the same as informing that someone that something you’re pointing out is sacred to you.” I then watch as Chief Thunderhooves relaxes, evidently sensing his error, before I continue, “It may be of interest for you to know that I’ve observed that there are things that ponies hold sacred. And, not only that, but there are things that I myself hold sacred.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie says, “That’s right. Mormon has this record of a people that lived in the Americas some six … hundred … years …” My character turns his attention to the pink earth pony as she trails off, and I watch, through his eyes, as she forces a smile and a laugh in an effort to hide her disgrace, then says, “Uh, go ahead, Mormon.” She then turns away form my character and lowers her head.

I say to her, “It’s alright, Pinkie. I would’ve brought up the Book of Mormon anyway, but thank you for your assistance.”

As the pink earth pony turns back to my character, I can see, through his eyes, the tears falling from hers. She doesn’t respond, other than sniffling and nodding.

I then have my character turn his attention back to Chief Thunderhooves, and I continue, “Anyway, my point is that if you’d informed the settlers about the situation as soon as you saw them, then at least they could’ve made an informed decision. I can’t speak for them what that decision would’ve been; but I can tell you that if, after they’d heard your side of the story, they’d still chosen to build their orchard on your stampeding grounds without your permission, then you’d be perfectly justified in your anger. But, what’s done is done. Still, I’m sure there’s some kind of an agreement that can be reached between you and the settler ponies.”

As I finish speaking, Little Strongheart steps between Chief Thunderhooves and the campfire and says to my character, “And, what’re we supposed to in the mean time, huh? Is it fair that we’re stuck here because the settlers planted their trees on our sacred stampeding grounds?”

While I’m opening my mouth to answer, suddenly Rainbow Dash is between my character and the campfire, wings flared out, saying to the bison calf, “No, it isn’t. I say we go and talk to some apple-pickin’ Appleoosans.”

I decide to add to the blue pegasa’s answer, “But, I think we need to get some sleep, first. It’s been a long day; and I don’t know about anyone else, but I could use some rest.” Then, after Rainbow Dash turns to me, then with a begrudging attitude canters off, I continue, “I’ll be honored to mediate between you and the Appleoosans. And, I wouldn’t be surprised if a unicorn friend of mine, of ours, Twilight Sparkle, has also agreed to mediate on the part of the Appleoosans. And, assuming it’s her, I should be able to get the settlers’ side of this story, and together we can hopefully come to a reasonable, informed agreement on the matter.”

At my statement, Chief Thunderhooves hums in interest, then asks, “Tell me, is this Twilight Sparkle one of the Appleoosans?”

I answer, “No, she and I, as well as others, including Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Spike here, came with an orange earth pony known as Applejack to help deliver a tree to a cousin of hers that’s currently living in Appleoosa right now.”

At my mention of the cousin of Applejack living in Appleoosa, suddenly the alpha bison stomps and snorts, then says, “You mean to tell me that you and your friends are in league with the Apple-loosens?”

I restate, “We’re just here to make a delivery. This is the first we’ve heard of this conflict between you and the settlers.” Not true of me personally, but true of the group of four as a whole.

At any rate, twice more Chief Thunderhooves snorts, then finally relaxes and says, “Very well. If you and this Twilight Sparkle can come to an agreement that both sides will be happy with, then we will abide by it.” And, with that, he turns away from the campfire and marches off.

Before following the elder bison, Little Strongheart smiles at my character and, I suppose, gives the closest thing to a thumbs up that a hoofed creature like her can offer.

As I watch, through my character’s eyes, the elder bison and the calf wander away from the campfire, I hear Rainbow Dash ask, “Do you really think you and Twilight can settle this argument between the buffalo and the Appleoosans?”

My character automatically focuses on the azure pegasa, and I say, “Assuming she’s heard the settlers’ side of the story, I think it’s at least worth a shot. Right now, this situation needs two calm minds working together on a solution, and I think Twilight and I qualify for that. And, if we can get representatives from each side, one to speak for the bison and one to speak for the settlers, along with a couple mediators, that should help things even further.”

Just then, I hear the voice of Chief Thunderhooves on the opposite side of the campfire from my character ask, “Oh, and about this record that your pink pony friend talked about. Can you explain it for me?”

My character focuses on the senior bison, opposite the campfire again from him, while he speaks, then turns to my pink earth pony friend, and I ask her, “So, Pinkie Pie, would you like to do the honors?”

Instantly, the pink earth pony perks up, then, to the amusement of her audience, bounces around in a circle and says, “Oh, yes-yes-yes-yes-yes!” at the rate of one bounce per yes. When she’s finished, she turns to Chief Thunderhooves, clears her throat, and says, “You see, it’s called the Book of Mormon, and it’s about a group of humans that started out as two families that came from the Middle East, from Jerusalem, six hundred years before the Christ was born. They were guided by their God to what Mormon, here, knows as South America, where they divided into the Nephites and the Lamanites. The record mainly follows the Nephites through their times of being good and bad until more than four hundred years after the Christ was born, a few decades after most of the Nephites were destroyed by the Lamanites, and only one Nephite, called Moroni, is left.” She then turns to my character, to me, and asks, “Is that good, Mormon?”

I answer, “That was excellent, Pinkie.” I then ask, “Oh, and also, did you bring copies of the book with you?”

Pinkie nods vigorously, then says, “I sure did.” She then starts producing copies of the book from seemingly nowhere.

I have my character turn to the alpha bison, and I ask, “Is there anyone among you who knows how to read?”

For a few seconds, there is grumbling among the bison. Then, Chief Thunderhooves sighs and answers, “Unfortunately, no, none of us knows how to read.”

I state, “That’s perfectly fine. The four of us will read aloud to you.”

The voices I hear from the bison border on cheering.

In addition, or perhaps confirmation, Chief Thunderhooves says, “Well, then, we’ll be honored to listen to you read.”

I voice approval with one word: “Excellent.” I then have my character focus on Rainbow Dash, and I ask, “Will you give a brief description of what we’ve been reading up until now?” Then, before the blue pegasa can answer, I say, “I’ve been reading with ponies in Ponyville for a few weeks now, and, while we haven’t gotten through the majority of the Book of Mormon, we have read through the first seven of the fifteen books that compose it. And, tonight, we’ll be reading the first chapter in the eighth book, the Book of Mosiah, if that’s alright with you.”

Chief Thunderhooves nods and says, “Wherever you choose to read in the book is fine with us, just as long as we get a chance to listen to it.”

Presently Rainbow Dash offers a word of gratitude, then describes events as she remembers them, from the stories of Lehi’s family as described in the first two Books of Nephi to the topics of discussion in the Book of Omni, then gives a brief description of the contents of the Words of Mormon, which, as I mentioned, is something of an introduction to the rest of the record.

When the blue pegasa is finished, I turn to the purple dragon; and, once Pinkie Pie passes him a copy of the Book of Mormon, I ask, “Spike, will you start with the first verse of chapter one of Mosiah?”

Then, as my character produces his own copy of the book from his inventory, and Pinkie Pie produces her own and passes another to Rainbow Dash, Spike nods, then flips through the pages of his own copy, then finally starts reading, “And now there was no more contention in all the land of Zarahemla, among all the people who belonged to king Benjamin, so that king Benjamin had continual peace all the remainder of his days.”

Pinkie Pie seems to have opened her copy to the right page, as she, once Spike has finished reading, reads, “And it came to pass that he had three sons; and he called their names Mosiah, and Helorum, and Helaman. And he caused that they should be taught in all the language of his fathers, that thereby they might become men of understanding; and that they might know concerning the prophecies which had been spoken by the mouths of their fathers, which were delivered them by the hand of the Lord.”

Then, Rainbow Dash reads, “And he also taught them concerning the records which were engraven on the plates of brass, saying: My sons, I would that ye should remember that were it not for these plates, which contain these records and these commandments, we must have suffered in ignorance, even at this present time, not knowing the mysteries of God.”

I read, “For it were not possible that our father, Lehi, could have remembered all these things, to have taught them to his children, except it were for the help of these plates; for he having been taught in the language of the Egyptians therefore he could read these engravings, and teach them to his children, that thereby they could teach them to their children, and so fulfilling the commandments of God, even down to this present time.”

Spike reads, “I say unto you, my sons, were it not for these things, which have been kept and preserved by the hand of God, that we might read and understand of his mysteries, and have his commandments always before our eyes, that even our fathers would have dwindled in unbelief, and we should have been like unto our brethren, the Lamanites, who know nothing concerning these things, or even do not believe them when they are taught them, because of the traditions of their fathers, which are not correct.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “O my sons, I would that ye should remember that these sayings are true, and also that these records are true. And behold, also the plates of Nephi, which contain the records and the sayings of our fathers from the time they left Jerusalem until now, and they are true; and we can know of their surety because we have them before our eyes.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And now, my sons, I would that ye should remember to search them diligently, that ye may profit thereby; and I would that ye should keep the commandments of God, that ye may prosper in the land according to the promises which the Lord made unto our fathers.”

I read, “And many more things did king Benjamin teach his sons, which are not written in this book.”

Spike reads, “And it came to pass that after king Benjamin had made an end of teaching his sons, that he waxed old, and he saw that he must very soon go the way of all the earth; therefore, he thought it expedient that he should confer the kingdom upon one of his sons.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “Therefore, he had Mosiah brought before him; and these are the words which he spake unto him, saying: My son, I would that ye should make a proclamation throughout all this land among all this people, or the people of Zarahemla, and the people of Mosiah who dwell in the land, that thereby they may be gathered together; for on the morrow I shall proclaim unto this my people out of mine own mouth that thou art a king and a ruler over this people, whom the Lord our God hath given us.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And moreover, I shall give this people a name, that thereby they may be distinguished above all the people which the Lord God hath brought out of the land of Jerusalem; and this I do because they have been a diligent people in keeping the commandments of the Lord.”

I read, “And I give unto them a name that never shall be blotted out, except it be through transgression.”

Spike reads, “Yea, and moreover I say unto you, that if this highly favored people of the Lord should fall into transgression, and become a wicked and an adulterous people, that the Lord will deliver them up, that thereby they become weak like unto their brethren; and he will no more preserve them by his matchless and marvelous power, as he has hitherto preserved our fathers.”

Pinkie Pie reads, “For I say unto you, that if he had not extended his arm in the preservation of our fathers they must have fallen into the hands of the Lamanites, and become victims to their hatred.”

Rainbow Dash reads, “And it came to pass that after king Benjamin had made an end of these sayings to his son, that he gave him charge concerning all the affairs of the kingdom.”

I read, “And moreover, he also gave him charge concerning the records which were engraven on the plates of brass; and also the plates of Nephi; and also, the sword of Laban, and the ball or director, which led our fathers through the wilderness, which was prepared by the hand of the Lord that thereby they might be led, every one according to the heed and diligence which they gave unto him.”

Spike reads, “Therefore, as they were unfaithful they did not prosper nor progress in their journey, but were driven back, and incurred the displeasure of God upon them; and therefore they were smitten with famine and sore afflictions, to stir them up in remembrance of their duty.”

And, last of all, Pinkie Pie reads, “And now, it came to pass that Mosiah went and did as his father had commanded him, and proclaimed unto all the people who were in the land of Zarahemla that thereby they might gather themselves together, to go up to the temple to hear the words which his father should speak unto them.”

As two ponies, one dragon and one human close their books, the alpha bison asks, “And, that’s all?”

My character turns to Chief Thunderhooves, and I answer, “For the first chapter of the Book of Mosiah, yes. I do plan on the next reading covering chapter two, but, with this small group, this one chapter is enough for now. So, did you like what you heard?”

The bison chief answers, “It was an interesting story, and I’m guessing there is more to come.” Without waiting for an answer, he continues, “I have been in the position of Mosiah. My father, before he died, conferred on me the position of chief of this tribe. His father, before him, before he died, conferred the position on my father, and his father before him, and his father before him, and his father before him, and his father before him, and his father before him, and—”

I can see Little Strongheart approaching, evidently to stop her chief before he can get lost in his train of thought. And, that just gives me all the more incentive to have my character put a hand up while I say, “And, I’m guessing that means you come from a long line of chiefs over your tribe.”

Chief Thunderhooves responds, “Yes,” and nods to reinforce his response.

At this point, Little Strongheart approaches my character and says, “Thank you, Mormon, for stopping Chief Thunderhooves. We respect him, but, if he isn’t stopped, he forgets what he was talking about, and repeats that phrase over and over again. I haven’t seen it myself, but I have heard stories of the chief repeating ‘and his father before him’ all night, and still repeating those same words the next morning.”

I state, “I understand. When a phrase is repeated over and over again, it’s easy to fall into a rhythm or pattern. Then, it can be difficult to get out of that rhythm or pattern again. And, at that point, it helps to have some assistance.”

A heavy, somewhat rumbling snort draws my character’s attention from the bison calf to the chief, who says, “It is late, and we all need sleep. But, we shall arise early in the morning so that you and your friends may travel to Appleoosa.”

Little Strongheart, whose attention was also drawn to the chief, approaches him and says, “If it’s alright with you, I’d like to go with Mormon and his friends. I can lead them to the settlers’ town, and maybe I can represent us when Mormon talks to his other friends there.”

I think I actually see Chief Thunderhooves smile as he says to the bison calf, “Very well, then. You may go with your, our, new friends.”

The bison calf nods to her chief and thanks him, then turns to my character and says, “Now, if you’ll follow me, some of the other bison have provided a tepee for you and your friends to stay.”

I find myself pleasantly surprised to hear Spike say, “Uh, I wouldn’t want to inconvenience anypony here.”

Little Strongheart turns to the purple dragon and says, “Aw, you won’t be inconveniencing any ponies, or any buffalo for that matter. We welcome guests to stay among us for as long as they want or need to.” And, with that, he turns and continues on to a particular tepee with an open door.

Inside, I notice a smaller campfire set up in the middle, and my character’s bedding, it seems, has been brought from the caboose to the inside of the tepee, and set up so that it points either toward or away from the campfire, depending on how one would choose to look at it. The pillow is on the end opposite the fire. Also radiating from the campfire are three other sleeping mats, one on one side of my bedding, and two on the other side, evidently the smaller one right next to my bedding for Spike. I’m guessing the bison expect the ponies to protect the human and the dragon. Whether that’ll prove to be necessary or not will be seen soon enough.

In the mean time, as each of the four takes their positions, Pinkie Pie on the mat opposite me from Spike, and Rainbow Dash on the remaining mat, the blue pegasa asks, “Mormon, do you really think you can settle things between the buffalo and the settlers without violence?"

I answer, “I can’t imagine why not. Or, I’d prefer not to.” I listen to Pinkie Pie giggle for a few seconds, then I continue, “The settlers clearly didn’t know they were planting their orchard on ground the bison considered sacred. Once they’re informed of that, then they can decide on what to do next.”

At this point, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “I hope you’re right, Mormy. I wouldn’t want any fighting to break out.”

I then hear Rainbow Dash ask, “Mormy? Who’s Mormy?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “That’s my nickname for Mormon.”

At this point, Spike growls, “Let’s just get some sleep, alright?”

As my character crawls feet-first into his covers, I answer, “Sure. Goodnight, Spike. Goodnight, Pinkie Pie. Goodnight, Rainbow Dash.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie reply, “Goodnight, Mormon. Goodnight, Spike. Goodnight, Rainbow Dash.”

Now, as my character closes his eyes, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “Goodnight, Pinkie Pie. Goodnight, Spike. Goodnight, Mormon.”

Then, my character’s eyes open again in response to Spike roaring out, “Will you guys be quiet already? I’m trying to get some sleep over here!”

My character focuses on the angry baby dragon, and I say, “Now, Spike, calm down. Would it hurt for you to say goodnight to the rest of us?”

Spike asks in reply, “And risk hearing Pinkie Pie say, ‘Goodnight, Spike. Goodnight, Mormon. Goodnight, Rainbow Dash,' and it continuing among the three of you all night? No thanks. I just wanna get some sleep so we can go back to Twilight and the others and put this whole thing behind us.”

I state, “Now, things with the bison haven’t been that bad.”

At the same time, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “Goodnight, Spike.”

I then see Spike turn to the blue pegasa and growl, “Don’t. Start. Rainbow.”

Rainbow Dash simply says, “Alright, Spike. Goodnight.”

I add, “Spike’s right. Let’s get some sleep tonight, and tomorrow we’ll head to Appleoosa.” I do consider saying “goodnight” to the three of them again, maybe in a different order this time; but, for Spike’s sake, I decide against it. I just save and close the game.

I’ll say one thing for this game I’ve designed. it’s been good practice talking with the characters in the game for when I talk to real people. I do find that the way I talk to the characters in the game is reflecting on how I communicate with people in reality. If others who play this game get the same kind of effect I’m getting from it, then this game is most certainly worth making.

I didn’t get a chance to even write a letter to the princesses, much less send it. Perhaps on the game’s tomorrow I’ll get a chance to do that. Whether it’ll be the first thing I do when my character gets to Appleoosa, or it’s a letter covering both this day and the following, I’m guessing my character’s definitely going to be doing some writing tomorrow. In the mean time, this is Mormon, signing off.

Chapter 24: The Complaint and the Settlement

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As I resume the game, my character wakes up in low light evidently to the sight of Pinkie Pie nuzzling him and saying, “Mormon, we need to get up now. We gotta get an early start if we wanna get to Appleoosa before noon.”

I have my character sit up to show me, through his eyes, that he’s still facing the campfire, which, as indicated by the flames and the more-or-less fresh wood, has apparently been fed during the night. I then have him look out the doorway of the tepee. Through his eyes, I can see that the sun’s just starting to rise.

I hear Pinkie Pie continue, “Little Strongheart has bowls of cornmeal ready, one for you, one for Rainbow Dash, and one for me. And, there’s a bowl of rocks for Spike.”

I have my character, at this point, look down at where I expect to see Rainbow Dash and Spike, to find that, as I expect, Rainbow Dash is still asleep.

On the other hand, Spike’s just waking up.

As my character turns back to the pink earth pony, I say, “Thanks, Pinkie.” I then ask, “Do you wanna wake up Rainbow Dash, or should I?”

Pinkie Pie looks at the blue pegasa still sleeping, hums for a moment in uncertainty, then turns back to my character and says, “I guess you could try. One buffalo tried it, and got a hoof in the nose.”

Considering what kind of tactics the bison might’ve used, that might not be too surprising. I have my character get onto his hands and knees and approach the azure pegasa, who’s stretched out on her side facing away from him, snoring with each inhale, and neighing with each exhale. When he’s close enough, I have him reach out and rub her shoulder as I say, “Rainbow Dash, it’s time to wake up.”

In response, Rainbow Dash snorts, pulls her head up, and says, “Huh, what, what?”

I have my character pull his hand away, but I repeat, “It’s time to wake up, Rainbow Dash.”

As the blue pegasa turns to my character, I can see, through his eyes, that her eyes are only half open as she says, “Oh, hi, Mormon.” She then yawns before asking, “What are you doing in my bedroom?”

I answer, “I’m not. Remember? We’re in the camp with the bison.”

Instantly Rainbow Dash’s eyes snap completely open, and she looks around and says, “Oh, yeah, that’s right.” She then looks toward the doorway of the tepee and asks, “What time is it?”

I answer, “The sun’s just starting to rise, as you can see.”

Now, the blue pegasa jumps up, then flaps her wings to support her in the air. Turning to my character, she says, “We need to get goin’ as soon as possible.”

I nod and grunt in agreement, then add, “But, first, the bison have prepared some breakfast for us. After we’ve eaten, then it’ll be time for us to leave.”

Now, Rainbow Dash settles back down again, rolls her eyes, and says, “Oh, great, more of that yucky-smellin’ stuff again.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie giggles and says, “It’s called cornmeal, silly.” And, again she giggles.

I add, “I didn’t think it was all that bad.”

Rainbow Dash glares at my character and retorts, “You wouldn’t.”

I then hear Spike say, “I hope they have more of that turquoise.” As my character’s attention is drawn to him, he concludes, “That’s good stuff.”

I say to the little dragon, “I wouldn’t be surprised if they do.” Then, including the two ponies with my character, I ask, “So, shall we go out and have breakfast then?”

Presently, Pinkie Pie bounces up and down in her place a few times, with each bounce saying, “Yes!”

Rainbow Dash groans in disgust before saying, “Ah, if we have to.”

I ask, “You like it here?”

At this point, I hear Pinkie Pie stop bouncing and say, “You know, Mormon’s right, Dashie. You do need to eat something. Or, would you rather faint on the way to Appleoosa, and have Mormon carry you the rest of the way?”

Now, Rainbow Dash sighs in defeat and says, “Alright, I’ll try it.”

Spike and my character rise to their feet and follow the blue pegasa out of the tent, with Pinkie Pie bouncing immediately behind them.

As the four emerge from the tepee, I turn to the pink party pony and, under my breath, I can’t resist asking, “Do you think Rainbow Dash’ll refuse to eat the cornmeal because she hates everything?”

Pinkie Pie doesn’t seem to respond to my question.

In the mean time, I notice a line of four bowls, evidently waiting for the two ponies, the human, and the dragon. In order from left to right, from my character’s perspective, there’s one bowl of cornmeal, then a bowl of light-azure rocks, then two more bowls of cornmeal.

In front of the audience of bison, Rainbow Dash walks up to the bowl of cornmeal isolated from the other two by the bowl of rocks. She sniffs at the bowl, then recoils somewhat and groans again in disgust. Then she sighs, approaches the bowl again, and takes a bite of the cornmeal. After chewing for a second or two, she seems to freeze for a split second. Then she swallows her bite of the cornmeal, then proceeds to take a larger mouthful. And, I’m sure I hear her hum in delight.

Presently, I hear Pinkie Pie call out, “She likes it! Hey, Dashie!”

I can’t help but laugh to myself at this reminder of the old breakfast cereal advertisement.

In the mean time, Spike claims the bowl of rocks, Pinkie Pie claims the bowl of cornmeal that was next to the bowl that Spike claimed, and my character claims the remaining bowl.

During the breakfast, there’s some discussion about the Book of Mormon, including what we’d read from at the previous night, and questions about reading it again.

Now, part of my plan was to involve the Book of Mormon in settling the apparent differences between the bison and the settler ponies. While I haven’t mentioned it yet, I plan on proposing an exchange program of sorts between the settlers and the bison, so that each side can get a better understanding of how the other side lives. The situation with the apple orchard should come first, but the exchange program, I think, would help resolve things further with the bison and the settlers.

At any rate, after breakfast, I have my character go back into the tepee and roll up his bedding in preparation to carry it with him for when the group of five, including Little Strongheart, head to Appleoosa.

Well, it doesn’t take long for my character to roll up his bedding, and the bison supply him with rope to tie it so it doesn’t unroll. And, after that, the five, including Little Strongheart, set out from the camp of the bison, head to the railroad tracks, and follow them toward the ponies’ settlement.

Before they get to the settlement, though, it’s Rainbow Dash who notices six ponies and one dragon among some boulders. She points them out to the other four, then flies off in the direction of the party of seven.

Knowing the group of seven, especially after having seen the episode, I know they’re preparing to search for two ponies, one human, and one baby dragon, not knowing that the four are almost there to meet them before they leave.

I’m not surprised that Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash are eager to meet up with the other element bearers, and Spike is just eager to return to Twilight. But, neither am I surprised that Little Strongheart is lingering behind, probably uncertain if she wants to meet a small herd of ponies by herself.

I have my character turn to the bison calf, and I say, “Let’s get going. If we’re going to settle the problems between your kind and the Appleoosans, then we both need to be there.”

Little Strongheart looks up at my character, then nods and says, “You’re right, Mormon,” then gallops off, following the two ponies and the baby dragon.

My character, in the mean time, jogs after them, until I hear a gasp from the party of seven, and Pinkie Pie say, “Hi, guys.”

As my character slows to a stop next to Pinkie Pie, I see Fluttershy tackle her and knock her over, as she says, “Pinkie! We’re so glad you’re safe.”

I anticipate Lyra and Wood Whacker possibly doing the same thing to my character by having him kneel down on one knee, then open his arms to them.

And, indeed, the unicorn and the dinosaur jump into his arms and say something to the effect of, “Oh, Mormon, we thought we’d never see you again.”

I answer, “I’m also happy to see you two.”

After further greetings from the other element bearers, Twilight asks, “How did you escape from the buffalo?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “We didn’t.”

Then, as the bison calf jumps out from behind a rock, I have my character allow Lyra and Weed Whacker to slide down to the ground before I say, “I’d like you to meet Little Strongheart, one of the bison.”

Rainbow Dash adds, “We promised them a chance to talk.”

As Applejack approaches Rainbow Dash, Twilight approaches my character, as I expected, and asks, “So, I’m guessing you and the buffalo, or bison as I guess you call them, are friends now?”

I answer, “Basically, yes. I got the story from the point of view of the bison. And, I’m guessing you got the story from the settlers’ point of view?”

Twilight nods and answers, “That’s right. The settlers don’t understand why the bison want them to remove all their trees.”

I reply, “Well, based on what the chief of the bison said, the settlers planted their trees on their sacred stampeding grounds.” More slowly, I add, “The problem is the grounds are apparently so sacred to the bison that they failed to mention it to the settlers.”

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash and Applejack have caught Little Strongheart and Braeburn, respectively, in their argument about what Twilight and I are calmly discussing.

Back to our conversation, I watch the purple unicorn as her ears droop, and she looks down and lowers her head before saying, “Well, now we know why the bison don’t like the apple trees where they are.”

At this point, I hear Rainbow Dash and Applejack argue over how either the trees need to be moved, or the bison need to stampede somewhere else.

After I hear about how the sacred stampeding grounds are the only flat land available, I have my character turn to the bison calf, who, along with Braeburn, is no longer caught between Applejack and Rainbow Dash; and I ask, “I’m guessing, since you said you’re stuck where you are, that your stampeding grounds are the only passageway through the area?”

Little Strongheart nods and answers, “That’s right.”

Hearing Little Strongheart’s answer, I hear Twilight say, “So, on the one hoof, we have the Appleoosans who need the flat land so they can grow their apple orchard in order to survive." My character automatically focuses on the purple unicorn as she continues, "And, on the other hoof, there are the buffalo, the bison, who need the flat land to get from where they are now to where they want to go.” She then groans in thought as she says, “This is a difficult puzzle to figure out.”

I state, “But, I do have an idea that I think could help.” I then divide my character’s attention between the bison calf and Braeburn, and I add, “But, I think it should be up to you two, Little Strongheart and Braeburn, who you want to mediate for you.” I then have my character point to the blue pegasa and the orange earth pony as I continue, “Clearly we have Rainbow Dash and me wanting to mediate for the bison, and Applejack and Twilight Sparkle wanting to mediate for the Appleoosans.” Finally, I have my character lower his arm as I ask, “So, which one of us do you want to mediate for each side?”

Little Strongheart looks from Rainbow Dash to my character and back to Rainbow Dash again, while Braeburn looks from Applejack to Twilight and back to Applejack again.

Then, Braeburn, the first to speak, says to Applejack, “Ah’m sorry, Cuz, but Ah think Ah’d prefer to have Twilight Sparkle speak for us Appleoosans. Ah hate to say this, but you’re just too hot-headed, and your two friends over thar are the only ones that talked calm-like.”

A stunned Applejack can only stammer out, “B-b-but, Braeburn, …”

Presently, Little Strongheart says to Rainbow Dash, “I’m also sorry. But, like the yellow, wingless pony said, your two friends were the only ones that talked about our situation calmly. I appreciate you wanting to speak for us buffalo, but we already agreed that it should be Mormon who speaks for us.”

At this statement from the bison calf, Rainbow Dash almost seams hurt. Then she sighs as she says, “You’re right, Little Strongheart.” She then turns to the yellow earth pony and adds, “And, you’re right too, sir. Applejack and I were too caught up in arguing to come to any kind of an agreement on anything.”

I add, “But, that doesn’t mean that your arguing wasn’t helpful to us, Rainbow Dash, Applejack. Thanks to you, we now know why the flat lands where the orchard is right now are so important to both sides.”

Twilight agrees, “That’s right. We know that the buffalo need the land so they can migrate from one place to another, and we also know that the settlers need it because it’s the only flat land around here. Now, all we need to do is find a way so that both sides can use the land peaceably.”

As Little Strongheart approaches my character and Braeburn approaches Twilight, the purple unicorn asks the yellow earth pony, “So, Braeburn, is there a place where the four of us can discuss this matter in private?”

Braeburn pauses for a moment, scratches his chin with a front hoof, then says, “Ya know, there is our town hall. We could discuss our situation there.”

Somewhat staggered, Little Strongheart, Twilight and I agree.

But, as the group of four head toward Appleoosa, I hear Weed Whacker say, “Mormon, wait.” As my character obediently stops and turns to the little herbivorous dinosaur, she continues, “You haven’t written your letter to the princesses yet.”

Then, from behind her, Pinkie Pie says, “Right now, Mormon, Twilight and the others have something more important on their minds. When they’re finished with that, then I’m sure Mormon’ll have time to update the princesses on what’s been going on.”

I have my character nod to the pink earth pony, then turn and catch up to the three others who are heading for Appleoosa’s town hall. However, as my character meets up with the three en route to the town hall, I find myself particularly pleased to hear Pinkie Pie say something about praying for the four of us.

The evidently year-old town is small enough that it takes only a few minutes for the party of four to get to the town hall, where Braeburn opens the front door and allows the other three to enter.

Once all are inside, Twilight Sparkle uses her magic to light the candles in the main room and provide light for everyone there.

Then, Twilight turns to Braeburn and begins, “Now, here’s what we have so far. When the settlers came and built Appleoosa, they immediately went to work and planted their apple trees in the only flat land available, is that right?”

Braeburn nods and says, “That’s right.”

Twilight then turns to Little Strongheart and continues, “What the settlers didn’t know was that the flat land was used by the buffalo as their sacred stampeding grounds. But, those grounds were so sacred to them that they didn’t mention it to the settlers. Is that right?”

The bison calf looks disgraced as she answers, “That’s right.”

Twilight turns back to Braeburn and continues, “Now, the orchard can’t be moved elsewhere because it’s in the only flat land available, and the first harvest is nearly ready, is that right?”

Again Braeburn nods, then he says, “The apples are ready to be picked now.”

Then, Twilight turns to Little Strongheart again and continues, “But, without their sacred stampeding grounds, the buffalo can’t migrate, is that right?”

The bison calf looks like she might cry at any moment. All she does is nod in affirmation.

I have my character put a hand on her back as I say, “So, now we need to come to an agreement on how both the bison and the settlers can use the land.” Then, after a moment, I think aloud, “I wonder, how wide of a pathway do the bison need to get through?”

Little Strongheart sniffles as she says, “W-well, th-there’s that n-narrow opening th-that we run through, th-the one blocked by the trees right now.” She then inhales deeply, then exhales deeply, before adding, “Until now, that’s always been enough for us.”

I have my character start stroking the side of the bison calf’s neck with the back of his closest hand as I say, “Now, it’s alright, Little Strongheart. I’m here to help. In fact, that’s what we’re all here for.”

Then, Braeburn starts up, “Now, wait a minute. We can’t move the entire orchard. We need those trees to survive.”

I respond, “I’m not suggesting you move the entire orchard. Just enough of the trees so that the bison can have a pathway to get through. As difficult as it’ll be for the trees that’ll need to be moved, I’m sure they can be planted further out so the inconvenience is minimized.”

Then, not unlike a candle wick introduced to a flame, Little Strongheart brightens up and says, “You know, Mormon’s got a point. If you can move just enough of your trees so that we buffalo can get past even one-by-one, then we won’t be stuck anymore!” She then turns to my character and nuzzles him as she says, “I’m sure the buffalo will agree to that.”

Then, to the surprise of all, a yellow earth mare with blue eyes, mane, and tail, and two bunches of grapes for her cutie mark comes in carrying a pie on her back. She slides the pie onto a table nearby, produces a few plates and a knife, and starts cutting the pie into four equal parts.

Braeburn takes notice of her presence and angrily asks, “Grape Vine, what’re you doin’ here? This is a private meetin’, and we’re tryin’ to come to an agreement!”

Grape Vine answers, “Now, I know how you stallions can get all stubborn, and I can’t have you starvin’ to death in here while you ain't gettin’ nowhere with yer arguin’.”

Twilight then says, “Well, we have made some progress. Mormon made a proposal that Little Strongheart agrees with.”

I notice, through my character’s eyes, that the pie that Grape Vine is now cutting into quarters and putting on plates is an apple pie. I state, “Actually, it might not be a bad idea to continue our discussion over the pie. It could give us further ideas on what we can agree on.”

Little Strongheart seems to agree with me, as she says, “You know, that pie does look good. And, Mormon and I haven’t had anything to eat since breakfast.”

Hearing the bison calf’s statement, the yellow earth mare says, “So, Ah guess it’s settled then. Ah’ll leave you four to eat whilst you solve the problems of the world, then Ah’ll come back when ye’re finished.” And, with that, she turns and leaves through the front door, the way she entered.

The four each claim a piece of the pie.

After taking a bite of the fruit-filled pastry, Little Strongheart hums in delight and says, “This is great. I’m sure the other buffalo would like this, too.”

I wait for my character to take a bite of his slice of pie, then chew and swallow it, before I say, “You know, the bison have their own food, cornmeal, that some of you settler ponies might like.”

Braeburn, through his own mouthful of pie, says, “Really?”

Little Strongheart says, “I don’t know. I remember, while Pinkie Pie liked the cornmeal, Rainbow Dash would only sniff it.”

I add, “At first. But, when she did finally decide to take a taste, she seemed to enjoy it just as much as Pinkie Pie did.”

The bison calf pauses for a moment, then says, “You know, you’ve got a point there. Although, I have to wonder if it wasn’t hunger more than anything else that was driving Rainbow Dash to eat the way she did.”

Then, Breaburn asks, “So, Mormon, what’re you suggestin’?”

I answer, “Tonight, why don’t you have a potluck dinner?”

Curiously, the yellow earth stallion tilts his head and asks, “What’s a potluck dinner?”

I answer, “It’s a dinner where everyone contributes. If you ponies will prepare the foods you like to eat, and the bison prepare the foods they like to eat, and both groups share, then it could go a long way toward both the settlers and the bison resolving their differences.”

At the proposition, the bison calf and the yellow earth stallion, both with faces caked with the crumbs of the pie crust, look at each other for a few seconds. They then turn to my character again, and Braeburn says, “You might be right again. You and Little Strongheart have said that Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash liked the bison’s cornmeal. And, Little Strongheart likes the apple pie Grape Vine served. So, why not?”

Little Strongheart adds, “And, we buffalo always welcome guests. I’m sure the other buffalo will agree to your suggestion.”

Then, Braeburn seems to think aloud, “The only problem is, what trees can we move so that the buffalo can get through? We don’t wanna lose the whole orchard.”

I wait for my character to finish his last bite of apple pie, then I say, “If the three of you are finished, or as soon as you are, let’s go out to the orchard and plot a course the bison can take through it. We can figure out from that what trees need to be moved. Does that make sense to you?”

Little Strongheart says, “As much as we would like our stampeding grounds back, if we can just have a pathway through to the other side of your orchard, and beyond, then we’ll be happy, and we’ll give back the tree we’re still holding.”

At this point, Twilight Sparkle says, “Well, I’m finished with my slice of pie. What about you and Little Strongheart?”

The bison calf answers, “All I have left are crumbs.”

Then, Braeburn answers, “Ah’ve eaten as much as Ah can.” And, judging by his empty plate, I believe him.

So, with Braeburn once again leading the way, the group heads out of the town hall, and toward the orchard.

A few minutes later, with the two ponies, the bison calf, and the human working together, a slightly meandering course is plotted through the orchard, which requires no more, it seems, than six trees to be moved to different locations.

And, in the mean time, my character happens to turn to the nearby mountains to show me, through his eyes, a line of bison along the edge of the mountain, evidently watching the group of four creatures plotting the course through the orchard.

When the work is done, the four return to the town square, where the pie tin and plates have evidently been cleared away; and Braeburn and Little Strongheart finally make and write up an agreement on the plans that have been made. And, after that, Braeburn heads out and rings the bell on the town hall, while Little Strongheart returns to the bison herd, each to call the two groups together and announce the resolution that’s been reached.

In the mean time, Twilight and I agree that Braeburn and Little Strongheart should make the announcements.

After several minutes, the bison and settlers are gathered in front of an outdoor stage, although it’s clear that the two parties aren’t ready to mix just yet.

And, it’s Twilight who informs Braeburn and Little Strongheart that they are to make the announcements.

Braeburn, on the stage next to Little Strongheart, clears his throat before saying, “We have, after much discussion, made up a plan that we think all will agree with. We’ve plotted a course through the orchard, and only six trees will need to be moved. If we the settlers will move those trees, …”

Little Strongheart continues, “Then we the buffalo can have a way through their orchard.”

Braeburn continues, “Furthermore, as per Mormon’s suggestion, we will have a potluck dinner tonight. This means we settlers will make the kind of foods that we like to eat, …”

Little Strongheart continues, “and we buffalo will make the kind of foods that we like to eat, …”

Braeburn concludes, “And both sides will share with each other.”

Just as in the episode, Chief Thunderhooves and Sheriff Silverstar are right next to each other, just to the side of the stage. But, unlike in the episode, the conversation between the two immediately follows the combined speech of the bison calf and the yellow earth pony instead of Pinkie Pie’s musical number, which, at this point, doesn't happen.

After a few seconds of Appleoosa’s law enforcement and the alpha bison talking to each other, Chief Thunderhooves says, “It appears that Sheriff Silverstar and I have come to … an agreement.”

Just as in the episode, there are a few seconds of excited, silent anticipation as the ponies and the bison fill the silence with an audible gasp.

The earth pony and bison again nod to each other, and Chief Thunderhooves continues, “That is most certainly a plan that both sides can live with.” Then, after cheers and applause from around the audience, the chief of the bison continues, “However, we would like to add one thing.”

I ask, “Yes, Chief?”

The elder bison continues, “This conflict started because we buffalo thought we’d be desecrating our sacred stampeding grounds by letting the settlers know about them. But, I think there is something we can do to help both us buffalo and the settlers understand each other better. I suggest the settlers choose one from among them to live among us for seven days, and we buffalo will choose one from among us to live with the Appleoosans for those seven days. Then, when that period of time is up, the buffalo will return to the buffalo, and the Appleoosan will return to the Appleoosans, and our representatives will help us learn to understand each other better.”

You know, I seem to remember that being a suggestion I’d wanted to bring up. I guess I’d forgotten about it. The good news is that Chief Thunderhooves had it in mind. So, I just restate, “It sounds like you’re talking about an exchange program.”

Chief Thunderhooves hums with interest, or perhaps in agreement, before saying, “That does sound like a reasonable title for the plan. Very well. If that is what it is called, then yes, I suggest an exchange program.”

Braeburn and Little Strongheart exchange a smile between the two of them before turning back to the audience, and Braeburn says, “Well, if our officials agree to it, in addition to the plans we’ve already agreed to, then I say let’s do it.”

And, again there are cheers from both bison and ponies.

As the earth pony and bison calf descend from the stage, Pinkie Pie approaches my character and says, “I knew you’d help them come to the right decision. And, it was a much better idea than the musical number I would've come up with.”

My character kneels down on one knee, and Pinkie Pie immediately jumps into his arms. As the two hug, Pinkie adds, “That dress was gonna be uncomfortable anyway. Better to start a period of peace with your plan than a battle with mine.”

Just then, I hear Little Strongheart on the stage again saying, “Oh, and one more thing. Whoever it is among the settlers that is chosen to live with us for a week, we would be honored if he or she would read more from the Book of Mormon for us.”

At that, Pinkie Pie pushes away from my character and says, “That’s why I brought the extra copies of the Book of Mormon with me. I don’t know if we’ll be able to have a reading before we leave, but I figured it was worth bringing the books just in case.”

Twilight then says, “I did bring my copy with me, along with Spike’s.”

Each of the other element bearers, except for Rainbow Dash, states that they have their own with them.

Then, Braeburn, Sheriff Silverstar, and Grape Vine step forward and volunteer to join in on the reading.

I decide, at that point, to agree to have one more reading, this time among the Appleoosans and bison, as something of a farewell before my character, the element bearers, Spike, Lyra, and Weed Whacker have to return by train to Ponyville.

And, it’s agreed that the reading be held in Appleoosa’s town hall. And, the settler ponies and some of the bison volunteer to listen to the reading, which they agree should take place as soon as possible, after which they decide to make preparations for it, and execute the plans that have been made.

The readers, consisting of me, Lyra, Weed Whacker, the element bearers, Spike, Braeburn, Sheriff Silverstar, and Grape Vine, are the first to enter, followed by the settler ponies and the bison who want to watch and listen.

Once all are settled in the circle, I state, "Last night, since it was just Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Spike and me, we just read the first chapter of Mosiah."

Twilight Sparkle responds, "Well, in our reading circle, we just had me, Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, Spike, Lyra, and Weed Whacker. We didn't know what to do, so we went with Lyra's suggestion, and read the first chapter of the Book of Mosiah as well. Was that alright?"

I listen to the purple unicorn as my character focuses on her, then I answer, "That's just fine. But, since there are newcomers to the reading circle, would anyone like to volunteer to give a summary of what we've read so far?"

Presently, Lyra rises to all fours and gives a brief description of the events starting in the First Book of Nephi, and ending with the first chapter in the Book of Mosiah. And, in the mean time, ponies around the circle open their books and flip through the pages until they arrive at the right chapter.

As the pale-green unicorn proceeds to sit down, I say, "Thank you, Lyra." I then have my character turn to the three newcomers, and I continue, "Now, it's a tradition among us readers that a newcomer to the reading has the opportunity to start the reading first. So, do I have a volunteer?" Then, after between five and ten seconds with no one volunteering, I have my character turn to Applejack's cousin, and I ask, "Braeburn, will you start reading chapter two?"

The yellow earth stallion nods and answers, "Ah'd be honored." He then looks down into his book and reads, "And it came to pass that after Mosiah had done as his father had commanded him, and had made a proclamation throughout all the land, that the people gathered themselves together throughout all the land, that they might go up to the temple to hear the words which king Benjamin should speak unto them."

Sheriff Silverstar then says, "Ah'll read verse two," Before looking down and reading, "And there were a great number, even so many that they did not number them; for they had multiplied exceedingly and waxed great in the land."

Grape Vine reads, "And they also took of the firstlings of their flocks, that they might offer sacrifice and burnt offerings according to the law of Moses;"

Lyra reads, "And also that they might give thanks to the Lord their God, who had brought them out of the land of Jerusalem, and who had delivered them out of the hands of their enemies, and had appointed just men to be their teachers, and also a just man to be their king, who had established peace in the land of Zarahemla, and who had taught them to keep the commandments of God, that they might rejoice and be filled with love towards God and all men."

I read, "And it came to pass that when they came up to the temple, they pitched their tents round about, every man according to his family, consisting of his wife, and his sons, and his daughters, and their sons, and their daughters, from the eldest down to the youngest, every family being separate one from another."

Weed Whacker reads, "And they pitched their tents round about the temple, every man having his tent with the door thereof towards the temple, that thereby they might remain in their tents and hear the words which king Benjamin should speak unto them;"

Pinkie Pie reads, "For the multitude being so great that king Benjamin could not teach them all within the walls of the temple, therefore he caused a tower to be erected, that thereby his people might hear the words which he should speak unto them."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And it came to pass that he began to speak to his people from the tower; and they could not all hear his words because of the greatness of the multitude; therefore he caused that the words which he spake should be written and sent forth among those that were not under the sound of his voice, that they might also receive his words."

Spike reads, "And these are the words which he spake and caused to be written, saying: My brethren, all ye that have assembled yourselves together, you that can hear my words which I shall speak unto you this day; for I have not commanded you to come up hither to trifle with the words which I shall speak, but that you should hearken unto me, and open your ears that ye may hear, and your hearts that ye may understand, and your minds that the mysteries of God may be unfolded to your view."

Rarity reads, "I have not commanded you to come up hither that ye should fear me, or that ye should think that I of myself am more than a mortal man."

Fluttershy reads, "But I am like as yourselves, subject to all manner of infirmities in body and mind; yet I have been chosen by this people, and consecrated by my father, and was suffered by the hand of the Lord that I should be a ruler and a king over this people; and have been kept and preserved by his matchless power, to serve you with all the might, mind and strength which the Lord hath granted unto me."

Rainbow Dash reads, "I say unto you that as I have been suffered to spend my days in your service, even up to this time, and have not sought gold nor silver nor any manner of riches of you;"

Applejack reads, "Neither have I suffered that ye should be confined in dungeons, nor that ye should make slaves one of another, nor that ye should murder, or plunder, or steal, or commit adultery; nor even have I suffered that ye should commit any manner of wickedness, and have taught you that ye should keep the commandments of the Lord, in all things which he hath commanded you—"

Braeburn reads, "And even I, myself, have labored with mine own hands that I might serve you, and that ye should not be laden with taxes, and that there should nothing come upon you which was grievous to be borne—and of all these things which I have spoken, ye yourselves are witnesses this day."

Sheriff Silverstar reads, "Yet, my brethren, I have not done these things that I might boast, neither do I tell these things that thereby I might accuse you; but I tell you these things that ye may know that I can answer a clear conscience before God this day."

Grape Vine reads, "Behold, I say unto you that because I said unto you that I had spent my days in your service, I do not desire to boast, for I have only been in the service of God."

Lyra reads, "And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." She then looks up and asks, "Is this King Benjamin suggesting that his people should worship each other?"

I answer, "I don't think so. The Christ has said that he wants us to treat each other the way each of us would want to be treated. He's also said that what we do to each other, even the weakest among us, we might as well be doing to Him. We all have our strengths and weaknesses, and all of us, whether directly or indirectly, were created by God. And, looking at ourselves that way as descendants of God, it does make sense that the way we treat each other may be a reflection of how we would treat our creator. Something to think about, when we interact with another creature, is, 'Would I want to be treated this way?' or 'Would I treat God this way?' Maybe this is what King Benjamin was getting at." I then thank the pale-green unicorn, then, as my character looks down into his book, I read, "Behold, ye have called me your king; and if I, whom ye call your king, do labor to serve you, then ought not ye to labor to serve one another?"

Weed Whacker reads, "And behold also, if I, whom ye call your king, who has spent his days in your service, and yet has been in the service of God, do merit any thanks from you, O how you ought to thank your heavenly King!"

Pinkie Pie reads, "I say unto you, my brethren, that if you should render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has power to possess, to that God who has created you, and has kept and preserved you, and has caused that ye should rejoice, and has granted that ye should live in peace one with another—"

Twilight Sparkle reads, "I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants."

Spike reads, "And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you."

Rarity reads, "And now, in the first place, he hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted unto him."

Fluttershy reads, "And secondly, he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever; therefore, of what have ye to boast?"

Rainbow Dash reads, "And now I ask, can ye say aught of yourselves? I answer you, Nay. Ye cannot say that ye are even as much as the dust of the earth; yet ye were created of the dust of the earth; but behold, it belongeth to him who created you."

Applejack reads, "And I, even I, whom ye call your king, am no better than ye yourselves are; for I am also of the dust. And ye behold that I am old, and am about to yield up this mortal frame to its mother earth."

Braeburn reads, "Therefore, as I said unto you that I had served you, walking with a clear conscience before God, even so I at this time have caused that ye should assemble yourselves together, that I might be found blameless, and that your blood should not come upon me, when I shall stand to be judged of God of the things whereof he hath commanded me concerning you."

Sheriff Silverstar reads, "I say unto you that I have caused that ye should assemble yourselves together that I might rid my garments of your blood, at this period of time when I am about to go down to my grave, that I might go down in peace, and my immortal spirit may join the choirs above in singing the praises of a just God."

Grape Vine reads, "And moreover, I say unto you that I have caused that ye should assemble yourselves together, that I might declare unto you that I can no longer be your teacher, nor your king;"

Lyra reads, "For even at this time, my whole frame doth tremble exceedingly while attempting to speak unto you; but the Lord God doth support me, and hath suffered me that I should speak unto you, and hath commanded me that I should declare unto you this day, that my son Mosiah is a king and a ruler over you."

I read, "And now, my brethren, I would that ye should do as ye have hitherto done. As ye have kept my commandments, and also the commandments of my father, and have prospered, and have been kept from falling into the hands of your enemies, even so if ye shall keep the commandments of my son, or the commandments of God which shall be delivered unto you by him, ye shall prosper in the land, and your enemies shall have no power over you."

Weed Whacker reads, "But, O my people, beware lest there shall arise contentions among you, and ye list to obey the evil spirit, which was spoken of by my father Mosiah."

Pinkie Pie reads, "For behold, there is a wo pronounced upon him who listeth to obey that spirit; for if he listeth to obey him, and remaineth and dieth in his sins, the same drinketh damnation to his own soul; for he receiveth for his wages an everlasting punishment, having transgressed the law of God contrary to his own knowledge."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "I say unto you, that there are not any among you, except it be your little children that have not been taught concerning these things, but what knoweth that ye are eternally indebted to your heavenly Father, to render to him all that you have and are; and also have been taught concerning the records which contain the prophecies which have been spoken by the holy prophets, even down to the time our father, Lehi, left Jerusalem;"

Spike reads, "And also, all that has been spoken by our fathers until now. And behold, also, they spake that which was commanded them of the Lord; therefore, they are just and true."

Rarity reads, "And now, I say unto you, my brethren, that after ye have known and have been taught all these things, if ye should transgress and go contrary to that which has been spoken, that ye do withdraw yourselves from the Spirit of the Lord, that it may have no place in you to guide you in wisdom’s paths that ye may be blessed, prospered, and preserved—"

Fluttershy reads, "I say unto you, that the man that doeth this, the same cometh out in open rebellion against God; therefore he listeth to obey the evil spirit, and becometh an enemy to all righteousness; therefore, the Lord has no place in him, for he dwelleth not in unholy temples."

Rainbow Dash reads, "Therefore if that man repenteth not, and remaineth and dieth an enemy to God, the demands of divine justice do awaken his immortal soul to a lively sense of his own guilt, which doth cause him to shrink from the presence of the Lord, and doth fill his breast with guilt, and pain, and anguish, which is like an unquenchable fire, whose flame ascendeth up forever and ever."

Applejack reads, "And now I say unto you, that mercy hath no claim on that man; therefore his final doom is to endure a never-ending torment."

Braeburn reads, "O, all ye old men, and also ye young men, and you little children who can understand my words, for I have spoken plainly unto you that ye might understand, I pray that ye should awake to a remembrance of the awful situation of those that have fallen into transgression."

Sheriff Silverstar reads, "And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it."

At this point, I have my character stand up; and I say, "And, I think that should be all for now. Pinkie Pie has brought more copies of the Book of Mormon with her, and I'm guessing she'll leave them here in your town hall so that others who want a copy can have one.

"In the mean time, there are preparations that need to be made for the potluck dinner tonight, as well as deciding on which settler pony's going to live in the camp among the bison, and which bison's going to live in Appleoosa among the settler ponies. So, I'm thinking this should be the end of the reading for now."

As ponies and bison start leaving the town hall, Pinkie Pie takes a position next to the doorway and produces the bag with the copies of the Book of Mormon in it, and sets it next to the doorway so that anyone who walks through the door can see the bag as they enter or exit.

In the mean time, Braeburn and the sheriff approach me; and Braeburn asks, “Is it alright if we keep these copies of your book?”

I answer, “It isn’t my book, I’m just named after the prophet that contributed the most to it. But, yes, you are welcome to keep your copies.”

Sheriff Silverstar smiles and says, “Well, thank you, Mormon. Ah can’t speak for everypony that gets a copy of this book, but Ah know Ah’ll continue to read it.”

I reply, “That’s good to hear. You’re welcome to read as much of it as you want, and you may start wherever you want, too.”

Braeburn then asks, “And, Ah suppose Ah’m also welcome to do that?”

I open my mouth to answer, but Applejack beats me to it, saying, “In Ponyville, we have readin’s each day. If you wanna set up somethin’ like that here in Appleoosa, then go fer it.”

The two relatives turn to each other, and Braeburn says, “Well, thank you, cuz. We were thinkin’ of just readin’ by our lonesomes, but we can get everypony who wants to gather here and read together, too.”

I state, “Well, I’m thinking it’s time to make plans and preparations for the dinner tonight, and to decide who among you Appleoosan ponies is gonna live among the bison for the next week.”

The sheriff and Braeburn simultaneously answer, “Agreed,” and they, as well as Applejack and my character, join the rest of the creatures in the shrinking line out the door.

Once outside, it’s found that ponies have been gathering, waiting to get in and discuss who should stay with the bison for the week.

Sheriff Silverstar dismisses Braeburn to take care of the trees, and the yellow earth stallion then proceeds to lead the element bearers and my character and his other friends to the apple orchard to uproot the six trees and move them to the outer edge of the orchard.

On the way there, I hear Twilight say, “Well, I don’t think we could’ve asked for a better outcome. Just think, if Mormon here hadn’t been captured by the buffalo, who knows what might’ve happened?”

Pinkie Pie says, “Yeah. I would’ve tried a musical number, and that would’ve caused a fight between the settler ponies and the buffalo if Mormon hadn’t been here at all.”

I state, “You know what, Pinkie, it didn’t hurt any that you prayed for us while we were discussing a solution to the problem.”

Pinkie Pie “Aww”s, then says, “I figured it couldn’t hurt to try.”

I reply, “Well, it most certainly helped.”

About this time the group arrives at the orchard and starts with the tree immediately past the mountain entrance. It surprisingly takes only a short time to uproot the tree, maybe ten or so minutes, then another ten minutes to move it to another part of the orchard, and plant it where Braeburn decides it should go.

In fact, uprooting and replanting all six trees takes, I’d say, approximately two hours, after which the holes left by the uprooted trees are filled in, making a clear path for the bison to follow through the orchard.

And, as it turns out, it evidently takes that long for Little Srongheart to arrive with the caboose containing the tree that Applejack had planned on offering as a present to Braeburn. And, a spot is chosen for the tree, bordering on the trail through the orchard.

When the apple tree is planted in its prominent position, Applejack rests her head on it and says, “Bloomberg, this is your special day. Momma’s so proud of you.” And, I’m sure I can see, through my character’s eyes, tears flow from hers.

With a pathway through the orchard made evident, the group, joined by Little Strongheart, makes their way along it and into town.

Then, as the group starts along Appleoosa’s evident main street, Braeburn says, “Ya know, considerin’ that path, Ah’d say you had a good idea, Mormon. The path won’t just be good for the buffalo that stampede through there. It should also be good for gettin’ the apples picked in half the time.”

I hadn’t really thought of that benefit when I’d suggested the course through the orchard. But, if it works that way for Braeburn and his fellow Appleoosans, then I see no reason to argue about it. And, I think I communicate as much to the yellow earth stallion.

In the mean time, the group visits the town hall again to find out that a pony, an earth stallion with a blue coat slightly darker than that of Rainbow Dash, dark blue mane and tail, yellow eyes, and two pairs of connected eighth notes as a cutie mark, has been chosen to live among the bison. Elsewhere, in one bakery, mares have joined forces to make various foods with oats and apples.

My guess is the Appleoosans had already started the harvest, perhaps gathered apples from the trees that had been uprooted and replanted. That, or they’d brought apples with them, and hadn’t used them up until then.

Whatever the case is, it’s clear that preparations for the potluck dinner are under way, at least on the part of the settler ponies. And, my guess is that the same thing can be said for the bison.

Wouldn’t you know it, while that thought is fresh in my mind, I see Chief Thunderhooves making a run through the orchard, along the course.

And, wouldn’t you know it, one of the settler mares is carrying a pie on her back, evidently heading for a building across the street, in Chief Thunderhooves’ path. And, she doesn’t see him until she’s right in his path, at which point she panics, hiding her face in her front hooves, resembling the stereotypical view of an ostrich burying its head in the sand. And, so fast is her movement that the pie on her back becomes airborne.

The next few seconds seem to slow down as the alpha bison slows to a stop to minimize the shock of the apple pie about to land on him. And land it does, on his face.

As the alpha bison stands there, warm apple pie dripping down his face, I have trouble keeping from laughing about it. Still, after a few seconds, I manage to say, “Uh, so Chief, would you like some apple pie?”

With one swipe of a surprisingly long tongue, the alpha bison cleans his face of the pastry. Then, he hums with delight before saying, “I hope our offerings are as pleasing to you as this apple pie is to me.”

Sighs of relief are followed by cheers of excitement at Chief Thunderhooves’ statement.

Then, Twilight approaches the alpha bison and asks, “So, Chief Thunderhooves, have you decided on a bison to live among the settlers?”

The chief bison answers, “We have, and the exchange will begin after the potluck dinner.”

Twilight smiles and says, “Excellent.” She then turns to my character and says, “If it’s alright with you, I think we should be heading on the train back to Ponyville now.”

A saddened Pinkie Pie asks, “Aww, but can’t we stay for the party?”

Twilight answers the pink earth pony, “I’m sorry, but no. We have duties to attend to back in Ponyville. Princess Celestia is coming to visit, and we need to be there.”

I state, “Well, I’m guessing we won’t be having another parasprite incident.”

Twilight giggles, then says, “No, but apparently Princess Celestia will be bringing her pet along.”

I know what Twilight’s talking about. Knowing that the next episode-based day is going to involve Philomena, Princess Celestia’s pet phoenix, I already know Fluttershy is once again going to make things interesting for Twilight when she, not understanding the life cycle of a phoenix, is going to abduct the bird and try to heal her. But, that’s a story for another day. Right now, I decide that Twilight has the right idea.

In the mean time, Chief Thunderhooves inhales deeply, then exhales deeply, then says, “Well, if you must leave, then let me just say that, in spite of your accidental abduction, I must say that our meeting was the best I’ve had with any creature. However you will be serving Princess Celestia, I know you will be a good example for her subjects.”

I can think of nothing else to say except to express gratitude, after which the rest of the group, save for Little Strongheart, who joins her chief, heads for the train station.

Once there, the element bearers, Spike, my character, Lyra, and Weed Whacker purchase tickets back to Ponyville, then start entering the train.

Before my character gets on board, though, I have him turn to the yellow earth stallion; and I say, “Now, Braeburn, I want to get reports from you on how things go with the potluck dinner, as well as the exchange program.”

Braeburn smiles and says, “Ah’ll be sure you get ‘em.”

I prepare to say more, but my character is pulled onto the train before I can say what I wanted to say, mainly that I would look forward to hearing from the yellow earth stallion.

As my character heads to the caboose at the back of the train, I hear Pinkie Pie, who’s following him, say, “Oh, I got your bedding with me. You left it in the town hall.”

I have my character turn to the pink earth pony, and I notice, from his perspective, the rolled-up bedding on her back. Apparently, the exchange program wasn’t the only thing I’d forgotten during the activity in the town hall. I have my character reach down and scratch Pinkie Pie behind one of her ears, then resume his walk to the red car.

Pinkie Pie even helps my character with the layout of the bedding, keeping her front hooves on one end of the foam rubber mattress as my character rolls it out, then pulling opposite corners of the blanket he brought with him to help straighten it out over the mattress. Then, after my character puts the pillow in place, earth pony and human feel a lurch as the train starts moving.

When the floor under the two has more or less stopped shifting, Pinkie Pie asks, “So, what about what you're gonna write to the princesses? Is it gonna be two of 'em, or just one covering both days?”

I answer, “I’m thinking I’ll just write one letter.”

And, seemingly on cue, Weed Whacker comes in with the clipboard and the writing utensil. She hands the two items to my character and says, “Mormon, you need to write your report or reports to the princesses.”

Pinkie Pie then nods and says, “Well, I’ll leave you to it then.” And, with that, she leaves through the door.

I have my character nod in agreement, first to Pinkie Pie before she leaves, then to the herbivorous dinosaur; and I wonder to myself what I should write. Finally, I decide to start with the previous day, and write about how I was abducted, along with Spike, Bloomberg, and Pinkie Pie, by the bison, and was thus unable to write a letter yesterday. And, from there on, I write about what I learned from them about the conflict they were having with the settler ponies of Appleoosa, and how it occurred because the bison hadn’t communicated to the settlers about their sacred stampeding grounds, where the settlers had planted their apple orchard.

I then write about how, the next day, the day when I’m writing this letter, in fact, I helped the bison and the settlers come to an agreement on how they could resolve their problems. And, that settlement included a suggestion from Chief Thunderhooves, the alpha among the bison, that they should have a week-long exchange program so that the settlers and the bison could understand each other better.

I don’t bother to mention that the exchange program was something I’d had in mind to suggest, and had forgotten to do so.

At any rate, I write about how, when we, that is my friends and the other element holders and Spike, were leaving, the plans for the potluck dinner, which I’d suggested, and the exchange program, are under way. I conclude the letter with the hope that things will go well for the settlers and the bison, and that I’ll be getting letters from Appleoosa letting me know how things go for them.

With the letter is complete, I roll it up, then hand it to the little herbivorous dinosaur for her to bite and thus send to the princesses. And, it seems that the train ride home is less eventful than the ride to Appleoosa. The sun sets, and my character settles down into his bedding and goes to sleep. And, considering I have no more to say or write than what I've already said and written, I close and end the game.

Chapter 25: Silent Ponyville, Holy Ponyville

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This time, as I start the game, I find my character already awake, and standing in what I recognize as Ponyville's main street. This can only mean that I’ve opened a dream sequence, and the game has started my character in it.

I start to enter the command for my character to look around at his surroundings, when I hear Pinkie Pie’s voice, or at least what sounds like her to me, saying, “So, are you bored with him yet?”

Automatically my character turns to the source of the voice to show me, through his eyes, three different versions of Pinkie Pie: the one I’m familiar with; one with a dress apparently made from pieces of pony hides (specifically the hip, considering the evident cutie marks) and half a dozen pegasus wings of different colors, and a necklace of half a dozen unicorn horns strung together at their base; and an evident alicorn version of the pink party pony, with her own horn and pair of wings.

The Pinkie Pie I'm most familiar with is responding, “I could never get bored with my Mormy. Why do you have to be such a mean-meanie-pants when you talk about him?”

As it turns out, she’s talking with the version of herself based on the Cupcakes fan fiction, as that version retorts, “Oh, come on! You know as well as I do he just plots along. And, he thinks he’s better than you.”

Pinkie Pie growls back, “He does not. He freely admits he isn’t perfect, and I know for a fact he isn’t boring. And, best of all, he wants me to be the best I can be.”

The Cupcakes Pinkie Pie growls for a second or two before saying, “You’re as blind as you are stupid.”

At this remark, Pinkie Pie closes her eyes, smiles, and says, “Well, thank you,” then opens them again and grunts in uncertainty before adding, “strange pony.”

Now, the Cupcakes Pinkie Pie starts marching toward my Pinkie Pie as she says, “That wasn’t a compliment.” The two touch noses, but the Cupcakes Pinkie Pie continues her march.

Evidently uncomfortable, Pinkie Pie stumbles backward, trying to keep away from the intruding version of herself.

The Cupcakes Pinkie Pie, keeping up with her, continues, “How could you let a creature that isn’t even a pony rule over you?”

Pinkie’s mane and tail seem to melt, and she grimaces as she continues to back away from her Cupcakes version. She says, “He doesn’t rule over me, he’s a friend.” Then, she stumbles into the wall behind her and, sitting in something of a begging position, adds, “A-and, I’d r-rather have h-his g-guidance than y-yours.”

Then, the Cupcakes Pinkie Pie rears up and, almost roaring now, slams her front hooves down toward Pinkie Pie.

The pink earth pony manages to jump out of the way before her Cupcakes version can catch her, and perhaps injure her. Then, looking past her Cupcakes version and seeing my character, she says, “M-mormon, I could use s-some h-help.”

The Cupcakes version of Pinkie Pie turns and looks at my character, then says, “Oh, so you’re here.”

One thing I observe, I’ve been observing up to this point, is that the alicorn version of Pinkie Pie hasn’t moved, and hasn’t said anything. And, she remains immobile, and silent.

In the mean time, the Cupcakes Pinkie Pie turns to my friend Pinkie Pie and asks, “And, what’s wrong with me being your guide? What, you don’t like the dress, the cutie marks, the wings, the necklace of horns? You don’t want all the control I have over pegasus flight and unicorn magic?”

At this point, I decide to have my character step forward; and I say, “Pinkie Pie, you’ve been able to tap into my previous playthrough of this game, the one I lost. Tell me, what did you learn about cutie marks from that playthrough?”

Pinkie Pie spends a few seconds looking up at my character, then back at her Cupcakes version, then back up at my character again. Finally, she says, “I-I-I … I’ve learned that cutie marks disappear when they’re separated from their owners.” She then turns back to her Cupcakes version and, more confidently, continues, “I could never have a dress like yours. The cutie marks just wouldn’t stay long enough.”

The Cupcakes Pinkie Pie grunts derisively, then asks, “And, what about my control of pegasus flight with these wings, and my control of unicorn magic with these horns?”

Again Pinkie Pie looks up at my character, but I decide to say nothing this time. After a few seconds of not getting any suggestions from me, Pinkie Pie turns to her Cupcakes version and asks, “If a pony’s cutie mark, which is part of their identity, disappears when removed from the pony, how can I expect that wings separated from a pegasus are going to work? And, what about a horn separated from a unicorn?” Now, Pinkie starts pushing her Cupcakes version back as she continues, “Pegasus wings and unicorn horns are like plants. For that matter, so are cutie marks. When they’re separated from their life source, they die. There’s no way I’d get any use out of them. I’d just end up with dead friends if I were to follow your plan. Hay, I’d die, I’d be killed, and rightly so, if I were to follow your plan.”

The Cupcakes Pinkie Pie, still backing away from my Pinkie, says, “You don’t know that for sure.”

At this point, Pinkie’s mane and tail inflate again; and she responds, “Yes, I do. I know because Mormon played this game already, and lost on purpose. And, because of that, I know, from two sources, that pegasus wings stop working when their owner dies, or when they’re separated from their owner.”

The Cupcakes Pinkie Pie then stops moving and says, “You could get the wings grafted into your back.” And, she stops in the position where she’d started, or at least where I'd first seen her.

In response, Pinkie Pie stops pushing her backward, but circles to the opposite side of her Cupcakes version from my character. She then grabs one of the wings in her mouth and starts pulling on it.

In response, the dress remains attached to the wing, following it, and apparently abandoning the pony wearing it.

The Cupcakes Pinkie Pie, turning and seeing that Pinkie is pulling her dress off of her, shouts, “Hey, stop doing that!”

Presently, Pinkie Pie lets go of the wing. As her Cupcakes version starts moving the dress back onto her back, Pinkie Pie says, “Those wings are attached to the dress, not to you. And besides, who would I get to attach wings to my back that wouldn’t ask where I got them?”

The Cupcakes Pinkie Pie answers, “I could lead you to a pony or two. I have more servants than you know about. And, I’m guessing you don’t want the horns, either?”

Pinkie Pie shudders for a moment, then answers, “No. I prefer to earn my own. And, my sister Diane can earn her wings. That way, together we’ll be an alicorn.”

The Cupcakes Pinkie Pie very loudly grunts, then says, “You have no idea what you’re giving up by not letting me rule over you.” And, with that, the Cupcakes version of the pink earth pony turns away from her and starts strolling away.

In response, Pinkie Pie approaches my character and says, “Actually, I do know what I’m giving up. I know because of Mormon’s previous playthrough.”

As my character watches the Cupcakes version of Pinkie Pie disappear into the distance, I hear Pinkie Pie’s voice behind him, over his shoulder, say, “Well done. Pinkie Pie has been struggling with that evil voice in her head for a long time now. And, thanks to you, she’s finally rid of it.”

My character turns to show me, through his eyes, the alicorn version of the pink earth pony; and based on her position, I’m guessing her head is over his shoulder.

I reply, “I’m happy I could help.”

The alicorn Pinkie Pie continues, “Now, Pinkamena and I will wake up. We’ll be arriving in Ponyville soon.” And, with that, the alicorn Pinkie Pie disappears.

While my character looks down to his other side, he shows me, through his eyes, that Pinkie has also disappeared. Since the alicorn version of Pinkie Pie said that she and Pinkamena were going to wake up, that indicates to me that the alicorn was a manifestation of Diane. Clearly, Pinkamena really looks up to her twin.

In the mean time, since the versions of Pinkie Pie have disappeared, I’m left to wonder, why has the dream not ended for my character? Why have I not received a request to close and save the game?

Then, the answer comes when Princess Luna shows up at the closest intersection, and canters toward my character. After a few steps, she stops and says, “Let us also thank you, Mormon, for helping us help Pinkie Pie with her inner conflict. What you’ve seen has been troubling her for a long time now.”

I respond, “Like I said to Diane, I guess that was, I was happy to help.”

Princess Luna nods and smiles, then says, “I want you to continue to help Pinkie Pie. She’s taken a step in the right direction, one of many, but it’s still just one more step. She still has a ways to go; and I sense that, even if she does earn her wings and horn, that won’t be the end of her story. She has much more to do than that.”

At this point, I say, “Perhaps the most important message she needs to hear is that her problems will only have as much power over her as she will give them.” Then, a thought occurs to me; and I add, “And, that would be a good thing for you to remember, as well.”

At my last statement, Princess Luna seems surprised. In an attempt to hide her surprise, she turns away from my character and says, “We know not of what thou speakest.”

I state, “You haven’t forgiven yourself for becoming Nightmare Moon, nor what you did as her, have you?”

Now, as the nighttime alicorn turns to my character, I can see, through his eyes, tears well up in hers. She says, “Thou knowest not what we did as Nightmare Moon. We did much evil, caused much destruction. How can we trust ourselves after that?”

I answer, “You must learn to do just that, or you’ll destroy yourself.” I then watch the nighttime princess turn away again before I ask, “Have you read the story of Ammon, Aaron, Omner and Himni?”

Princess Luna answers, “We have not.”

I state, “You may want to have a look into that story. They may provide you with some examples of what you can do to forgive yourself. Their story is in the Book of Alma. And, it leads to my favorite story in the Book of Mormon. If you’ll look in the index for the name Ammon, that should point you in the right direction.”

Princess Luna turns completely away from my character, then slowly says, “I … will … try.” And, she disappears.

Now, the scene fades to black, and a message box appears, with the question, “Do you want to save and quit now?”

As I click on the answer “Yes,” I’d just like to mention that in dream sequences like this, there is no scripture reading. And, neither is there a need for a letter to the princesses. And, whether my advice to Princess Luna will have any impact on the game or not, it was what I had to offer her. And so, this concludes the dream sequence as the game automatically closes.

Chapter 26: One Way to View Resurrection

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As I resume the game, I find my character being awakened once again by Pinkie Pie nuzzling his face. But, this time, she’s quietly screaming, “We’re back in Ponyville, we’re back in Ponyville!”

I have my character sit up and look out the closest window, to find that indeed the train has arrived at the station in Ponyville. And, not only that, it seems as though the sun has just barely risen.

I have my character turn to the pink earth pony, and I ask, “So, how’s everyone else?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “Oh, they’re fine. And, Applejack’s waiting outside to get her tree-bed back.”

Hearing that from the pink earth pony, I have my character get out of his bedding, then start rolling it up, as I say, “Well, I guess that means I’d better get busy with this, then.”

Then, I hear Applejack from the door ask, “Is it alright if Ah come in, then?”

My character automatically turns to the orange earth mare, and I answer, “Sure, no problem. I shouldn’t be in here for too much longer.” I then have him turn to Pinkie Pie again, and I say, “So, how much longer before Princess Celestia’s visit?”

Pinkie Pie looks out the window I’d looked out of, then turns back to my character, and answers, “Oh, I’d say about an hour. Not long enough for us to go back to your house to get ready, but at least we can help the Cakes get ready.”

By the time Pinkie Pie’s finished answering my question, my character’s finished rolling up his bedding, and even tying it so it doesn’t unroll again.

In the mean time, Applejack has started disassembling the bed she’d brought for Bloomberg.

Before I can even think to say anything, Pinkie Pie says, “Well, since you’ve finished packing, you can stay and help Applejack take the tree-bed apart, or you can just come outside.”

Applejack turns to my character and says, “Aw, this shouldn’t take too long. You can jes' go on ahead.”

As my character stands up, I say, “Well, if you say so,” then I have my character walk toward the side door of the caboose, with Pinkie Pie right next to him.

Outside, I see the other four element bearers, as well as Lyra and Weed Whacker, waiting for Pinkie Pie, my character, and Applejack just outside the train.

While Lyra and Twilight approach my character, Twilight says, “I’d better go see how Applejack’s doing with unpacking her bed.”

Lyra stops in front of my character while Twilight goes on ahead, and Lyra, rubbing the back of her head with a front hoof, says, “I guess we won’t have time to go back to your house to put your bedding away.”

I respond, “That’s alright. Pinkie Pie said as much. I just wonder if I’ll have time to store my bedding so it’ll be out of the way while Princess Celestia’s visiting.”

It’s Pinkie Pie who says, “Yeah, we should have at least enough time for that before she arrives.”

Then, I see, through my character’s eyes, Fluttershy approach behind Pinkie. She stops a few inches behind the pink earth pony and says, “I just remembered, I have to take care of my creatures back at the cottage. Do you think Twilight’ll mind if I leave and take care of them now?”

As my character focuses on the yellow pegasa, I answer, “I don’t think so. You go on ahead and take care of your critters. Just be sure to be at Sugar Cube Corner within the hour.”

Fluttershy nods and smiles as she says, “I’ll try to be.” Then, she flies off in the direction of her cottage.

As my character watches the yellow pegasa fly off, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “You know, we should be heading there, too.” Immediately, my character’s attention snaps to the pink earth pony as she concludes, “You need to find a place to store your bedding until we can head back to your house, and I should better see if I can help the Cakes with the preparations.”

I open my mouth to agree with the pink earth pony, when I’m suddenly aware of parts of the bed Applejack had in the caboose floating around, suspended in the air by a purple aura. I have my character turn to the caboose to see the mattress floating out the door, followed by a few more parts of the bed; then the purple unicorn, followed by Applejack, canter out of the caboose.

The orange earth pony says, “Thank you kindly for yer help, Twilight.”

The purple unicorn asks, “Couldn’t Mormon have helped you?”

Applejack answers, “It didn’t take me that long to take the bed apart.”

Twilight says, “Well, he could’ve at least helped you carry the pieces out.”

Applejack chuckles nervously before rubbing the back of her neck with a front hoof and saying, “Ya know, Ah hadn’t thought ‘bout that.”

Twilight then looks around the platform and asks, “Uh, where’s Fluttershy?”

I open my mouth to answer, but Lyra approaches Twilight first and says, “I could take the mattress.” And, as my character’s attention is drawn to the smooth-edged object, I notice the purple aura around it starts to turn greenish.

In the mean time, Applejack says, “Y’all’re too kind. Ah got a wagon a'waitin’ for me so Ah can put the bed in there, and take it back to Sweet Apple Acres.”

At the same time, Twilight turns to Lyra and says, “Thanks. That will be helpful.” And, the aura around the mattress turns completely pale-green.

When other conversations have ended among the three ponies, I say, “Fluttershy’s headed back to her cottage to take care of her animals.”

Twilight turns and focuses on my character while I speak, then says, “Well, alright then. Just as long as she’s back in time for the Princess’s visit.”

Then, Pinkie Pie says, “Oh, and Mormon and I need to head to Sugar Cube Corner so we can find a place to store his bedding away until we can go back to his house.”

The purple-aura-suspended objects drop an inch each as the aura around them fades slightly, and I hear Twilight say, “Oh, that’s right, you don’t have time to go back to your home right now, do you Mormon?” The objects then return to their previous elevations above the ground, and the purple aura around them to its previous brightness, as Twilight says, “Well, you go on ahead then, and we’ll catch up to you. Just make sure your bedding isn’t in the way.”

I state, “That shouldn’t be a problem, just so long as there is such a place.”

With the aura-suspended components of Applejack’s tree-bed in the way, I can only guess the orange earth mare is leading the way, while Pinkie Pie moves ahead of my character from the train station. Then, I assume as soon as she sees the wagon, Applejack draws Twilight’s attention to it; and she and Lyra move to put the disassembled bed in it.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie leads my character to Sugar Cube Corner, where they enter from the kitchen doorway.

It’s only when Pinkie and my character are inside that I hear Lyra’s voice say, “Wait for me and Weed Whacker,” that I realize the pale-green unicorn had caught up to my character and been following him.

I’m not sure if I should allow my character, still carrying his bedding, to turn around in the kitchen. I just allow him to move forward enough so he isn’t in the way of Lyra and Weed Whacker entering the kitchen.

Just then, I see, through my character’s eyes, Mrs. Cake in the doorway between the kitchen and the front room. She says, “Oh, you’re here already.” Then, seeing my character carrying his bedding, she asks, “Uh, is there something I can help you with?”

I answer, “I just need a place to store my bedding until after the Princess’s visit. I’ll be taking it home with me afterward.”

Mrs. Cake says, “Well, in that case, you can take it into Pinkie Pie’s old bedroom. It’s still available.”

My character follows the blue earth mare as she turns and canters away from the doorway. Then, seeing the pastries and other treats on tables around the main room, I decide to have my character carefully move his bedding from his back to in front of him.

In the mean time, Mrs. Cake says, “As you can see, we’ve already got things just about ready for the princess’s arrival.”

As my character looks around at the occupied tables, I say, “I’m sure Princess Celestia’ll be pleased.”

By this time, Mrs. Cake has reached the steps, and turned, and is stationed to the side to allow my character to head up the stairs. She smiles as she says, “Oh, I hope so.” Then, seeing my character holding the bedding in front of him, I see her looking quizzically at him as she asks, “Uh, why are you holding your bedding in front of you?”

I answer, “I have better control of it this way. I didn’t want to knock over or damage anything.”

Mrs. Cake then smiles and says, “Oh,” before chuckling and adding, “How thoughtful.”

My character makes his way up the stairs, then opens the first door, the one to Pinkie Pie’s old room, and places the bedding against the wall just inside the bedroom, then closes the door. He then turns to the blue earth mare, and I say, “There. It should be secure until I can come back for it.”

Again Mrs. Cake chuckles before saying, “Oh, but of course it’ll be.”

Then I hear Twilight’s voice from the kitchen say, “Now, Spike, you’re gonna need to be here to help in case the Cakes need any cooking to be done more quickly.”

I state, “I guess that means Twilight’s arrived.” And, I have my character head down the stairs again.

Then, from behind my character, I hear Mr. Cake say, “Cup, Hun, the foals are fed, changed, and sleeping now.”

Mrs. Cake looks up and says, “Thank you, dear.” Her face then morphs into a look of worry as she asks, “You did remember to burp them, didn’t you?”

I can hear Mr. Cake smile as he says, “Yes, of course I did, sweetie.”

Mrs. Cake says, “Oh, good. I’d think the last thing the princess needs during her visit is to hear the foals start bawling.”

Just then, as my character has made it to the bottom of the stairs, I see Twilight peer from the doorway into the main room, look around, then take a step or two into the room, and say, “Well, it looks like you’re ready for Princess Celestia’s arrival.”

From the upper level, I hear Mr. Cake answer, “Yes, we are.”

The purple unicorn continues, “I have Spike in the kitchen waiting to help with any extra cooking you might need.”

Mrs. Cake says, “Well, thank you, Twilight. I’m sure he'll be helpful.”

A thought occurs to me, and I ask, “I wonder, is there anything Weed Whacker can help with?”

Mrs. Cake marches forward and looks around, then turns to my character and says, “I don’t think so. She can come in and visit with the Princess as soon as she arrives.”

Then, from in the kitchen, I hear Weed Whacker say, “I think I’ll just wait in here and help Spike.”

At that, I think aloud, “Well, I guess that settles that.”

Just then, I happen to see, from the left side of my character’s periphery, the front door to the bakery open, and Rarity enter, wearing a dress of at least two shades of pink, with yellow trim and rounded jewels distributed evenly around it. She looks at my character and says, “Why, Mormon, couldn’t you have taken a bath at least before coming in?”

I answer, “I didn’t have time to go home. A bath is one of the things I’ll have to take into consideration after the princess’s visit.”

The white unicorn inhales deeply, then releases the breath in what I’m guessing is a mixture of sigh and groan, before saying, “Well, at least one of us is presentable.”

I then see, from the bottom edge of my character’s periphery, Twilight close her eyes and plant a front hoof between them, shake her head, then say, “That’s right, I should’ve taken a bath.”

As Rarity trots in and takes a position in about the middle of the room, Applejack enters behind the white unicorn and says, “Ah really don’t think you have time for that right now.” Then, a fanfare sounds, and the orange earth mare concludes, “She’s here already.”

Instantly Twilight’s eyes open, and I can see her irises are so small they’re barely visible. She puts the hoof down and asks, “Mormon, where’s Pinkie Pie?”

I answer, “She’s in the kitchen with Lyra, Weed Whacker, and Spike.”

Nervously, she looks around and says, identifying her two friends, “Alright, Rarity’s right here, and Applejack’s just coming in." Then, more frantically, she asks, "Wait, where’s Rainbow Dash, where’s Rainbow Dash?”

Perhaps two or three frames later, the blue, rainbow-haired pegasa is hovering in front of the purple unicorn. She answers, “I’m right here. I wouldn’t miss this for the world. It’s so awesome!”

Twilight Sparkle emits a relieved sigh before saying, “Good.” Then, she looks around again, then starts jogging in place as though she’s in a hurry, and says, “Where’s Fluttershy, where’s Fluttershy?”

I answer, “I’m guessing she’s still at her cottage taking care of her critters.”

Now, Twilight starts sweating as she says, “She should be here!”

I state, “I’m sure she will be. After all, she has her rabbit, Angel, to remind her.”

Twilight moans worriedly before saying, “I hope you’re right.”

Just then, I hear Princess Celestia’s voice at the front door ask, “Right about what?”

Immediately Twilight turns to her teacher and, trying to sound calm and positive, says, “Oh, nothing.” Then, after a nervous chuckle, she adds, “So, uh, welcome to Sugar Cube Corner.”

The daytime princess smiles as she says, “I’m happy to be here.” She then focuses on my character and adds, “And, Mormon, it’s nice to see you again.”

I answer, “It’s an honor to meet you, too.”

Just then, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “Hmm, I wonder if I can get those guards to crack a smile.”

But, before I can do anything to stop the blue pegasa, I hear Mr. Cake say, “Uh, Mormon, we could use your help in the kitchen.”

My character focuses on the orange earth stallion while he speaks, then follows him into the kitchen where it seems that Lyra, Weed Whacker and Spike have developed a system for preparing extra pastries. And, it turns out that my character is needed to help bring in a gold-plated bird cage. It seems that unicorn guards have already gotten it in through the door, and just need my help getting it through the kitchen to the main room.

My character looks inside and shows me, through his eyes, Philomena, curled around the base of the perch in the middle of her cage, reminding me of how dragons are typically depicted sleeping in a circle, except the end of her beak isn’t quite touching her tail feathers. And, to me anyway, she looks like a hatchling parrot, except that Philomena's beak is longer.

My character guides the cage through the kitchen, then through the main room right next to where Princess Celestia is sitting between a table and a display of various candies.

The daytime alicorn, seeing her pet brought in and placed next to her, turns to my character and says, “Thank you for your assistance, Mormon.”

I answer, “I’m glad I could help.”

Then, I hear Rainbow Dash, from the front door, groan loudly and say, “I couldn’t even get them to move.”

I can’t help laughing to myself about that.

Then, I hear Fluttershy’s voice, also from the door, say, “I made it.”

To myself, I say, “Just as I figured.” Then, I have my character circle around the table and approach Twilight, who’s nervously watching her mentor; and I say, “Twilight, Fluttershy needs to be let in.”

Presently, Twilight says, “Oh, that’s right, the guards.” She then gallops to the front door, and a second later I hear her say, “It’s alright, sirs. She’s on the list.”

Just then, I hear Princess Celestia’s voice again, this time saying, “So, Mormon, you’re back from your trip to Appleoosa?”

I have my character turn to the daytime alicorn, and I answer, “That’s right.”

Princess Celestia continues, “Lyra had written that you’d been abducted by the buffalo?”

I state, “They were actually after the tree Applejack was bringing as a present to her cousin Braeburn. Since there wasn’t room for me anywhere else in the train, I shared the caboose with the tree, and Spike joined me there as well. It seems that while the bison were in the process of stealing the tree, Pinkie Pie joined me, and was taken as well.”

Princess Celestia says, “Well, since you had Spike with you, considering the buffalo respect dragons, you should’ve been fine as long as you and Spike were together.”

I respond, “We were. And, we were even able to get Rainbow Dash after she’d run into a railroad crossing sign when she unsuccessfully tried to stop a bison calf, Little Strongheart.”

Before I can continue, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “Mormon, you didn’t have to tell the princess about that.”

As my character’s attention is drawn to the blue pegasa, I can see her, through his eyes, glaring at him.

I then hear Princess Celestia say, “Now, my little pony, it’s alright. I can see that you came back fine, and that’s what matters most to me.”

I then watch Rainbow Dash’s face seem to stretch into surprise, then melt into sorrow, as she looks down and says, “You’re right, Princess. I’m sorry, Mormon.”

I open my mouth to say something comforting to the blue pegasa, when I hear Princess Celestia say, “So, Mormon, you were saying?”

My character turns to the daytime alicorn, and I take a moment to switch mental tracks before I continue, “Well, anyway, the four of us spent the night in the camp of the bison, where we learned that they were up in arms over the settlers planting their orchard in their sacred stampeding grounds. Turns out, if the bison had explained their situation to the settlers, they most likely would’ve planted their orchard somewhere else, or the two sides would’ve come to an agreement on how the settlers could plant their orchard so that they wouldn’t be interfering with the migration path of the bison.”

Princess Celestia smiles and says, “Yes, I read your letter on how you settled things between the buffalo and the settlers. I’m glad you could help with that.”

I reply, “As am I.”

Just then, I hear Mrs. Cake ask, “Is there anything else I can get for you, dearie?” Then, as my character focuses on her, evidently she realizes how she’d addressed the princess, as she hoots in alarm before adding, “I-I mean, esteemed guest?” And, she chuckles nervously.

Smiling, the daytime princess answers, “Everything is fine, Mr. and Mrs. Cake.”

And, indeed, Mr. Cake has joined his wife at the table.

In the mean time, I can’t help hearing Rarity warn away ponies that approach her and worry about how various snacks will affect her dress.

Then, there’s Applejack, who can’t seem to identify what should be eaten first.

Then Pinkie Pie bounces into the room, excitedly identifies various pastries on the tables, and slaps herself on the side of the face with an apple pie. Then she approaches the chocolate fountain and says, “Oh, chocolate fountain goodness.” She then plunges her face into the fountain, then pulls it out again. Whether she actually gets any of the stuff into her mouth or not is anyone’s guess. All I can say for sure is the chocolate that covers her face hardens, then crumbles away.

I decide to take action when the pink party pony approaches the princess and, seeing the apple surprise cupcake floating in front of her, asks, “Are you gonna eat that?”

Presently, I have my character put a hand between Pinkie’s face and the pastry; and I say, “I’m sure she wouldn’t be holding it if she didn’t intend to eat it.”

Pinkie Pie hears me out, then sits canine-style and, looking down, says, “Oh, I guess you’re right.” Then, with an uneasy smile, she looks up at Princess Celestia and says, “Sorry, Princess,” then turns and jumps off the table and gallops back into the kitchen.

Immediately, Mr. Cake approaches Princess Celestia and says, “A thousand pardons for the interruption, Your Majesty.” And, he places a saucer with a cup full of tea in front of her.

As the orange earth stallion backs away from her, head lowered, the daytime princess replies, “That’s quite alright. Thank you.” She then takes a bite of the cupcake, then uses her magic to suspend the cup in front of her, and takes a sip from the cup. When she places it back in the saucer, the cup is empty.

This does not go unnoticed by Mrs. Cake, as she calls out, “Empty teacup at four o’clock!”

Presently, Mr. Cake says, “I see it, Honey Bunch,” and is there in perhaps two frames to fill it again.

The princess, evidently not expecting such rapid service, says, “Oh, um, thank you.”

It seems that even alicorn princesses can be surprised and at a loss for words at times.

In the mean time, Mr. Cake nods and backs away, saying, “Not at all, Your Highness.”

And, once again the daytime alicorn empties the cup in one sip.

Now, it’s Mrs. Cake’s turn to fill Princess Celestia’s teacup.

And, the daytime princess says, “Thank you again.”

Twice more Princess Celestia empties her cup in one sip, and Mr. Cake, then Mrs. Cake, take their turns filling it again. Then she decides to test the evidently-set pattern, and this time keeping the teacup separate from her lips, makes a sipping sound.

And, sure enough, Mr. Cake takes his turn filling the cup.

But, since the cup is already full, the excess tea spills out onto the saucer and table.

I can’t help but chuckle over this development. I say, “I probably would’ve done the same thing myself, just to see what they’d do.”

As the two earth ponies back away from the table, Princess Celestia grins and says, “Yes, I just had to see it for myself.” She then turns to the yellow pegasa, and my character’s attention is also drawn to her, as she sits next to a shrinking Twilight Sparkle, and the daytime princess asks, “And, what about you, dear? Fluttershy is it?”

Fluttershy answers, “Me? Oh, yes, Your Highness.”

The princess continues, “I understand from Twilight Sparkle’s letters that you enjoy tending to the needs of woodland creatures.”

Fluttershy replies, “Yes, I love to take care of animals.”

You know, that gets me to wondering. How many different types of creatures out there see humans as animals? Humans tend to see non-humans as animals, lower lifeforms. Is that kind of species-ism common among other species of creatures?

But, those are questions for another time. Right now, Princess Celestia is saying, “As do I. As Princess, I care deeply about all creatures, great and small.”

Just then, I hear a cough and wheeze from the birdcage, evidently coming from Philomena, and accompanied by a small, visual explosion of feathers.

The only ones that don’t seem to be worried about this interruption are Princess Celestia and me. But, that’s because the two of us know that Philomena is a phoenix, and preparing to start a new cycle. The only thing about that is I seriously doubt Princess Celestia knows that I know.

In the mean time, as Philomena continues to cough, spit, and eject feathers, Princess Celestia says, “Nothing means more to me than the welfare of all my subjects.”

While the evident contrast between Philomena’s behavior and the daytime alicorn’s words is evidently a major concern to the other ponies around the table, I find that it’s about all I can do to keep from laughing. Philomena’s really playing this up.

Then, the large, pink, hatchling parrot flies up and lands on the perch.

In the mean time, Princess Celestia, noticing her pet, addresses her by name and position and says, “You’re awake. Do say ‘hello’ to our gracious hosts.”

Amidst the further expulsion of feathers, Philomena emits a series of strained coughs and groans.

A clearly worried Fluttershy says, “Oh, my.”

Like a proud parent, Princess Celestia says, “She is quite a sight, isn’t she?”

At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if Fluttershy’s thinking the Princess is too close to the problem to see it clearly. Politely, she answers, “I … I … I’ve never seen anything like her.”

Just then, a guard pony, most likely one of the two posted outside, approaches Princess Celestia, clears his throat, and whispers something into her ear.

When he’s finished, the Princess, seemingly startled, asks, “Really?” When the guard stallion nods in affirmation, she says, “Well, if I must.” Then, she turns to her audience and says, “I’m sorry, everypony. I’m afraid I have to cut the party short.”

Presently, Twilight Sparkle, who was drinking from her own teacup at the time, starts to spit out the contents of her mouth in surprise. But, she covers her mouth before she can spit out all of her tea.

Princess Celestia continues, “The mayor has requested an audience with me. Royal duty calls. Thank you for a wonderful time. It’s been a joy getting to know you all better.” And, with that, she gracefully jumps over the table, then makes her way to the front door past her subjects, who stand on each side, watching her leave.

I guess it’s theoretically possible that Princess Celestia forgot to take Philomena with her. But, I wonder if it isn’t more likely that she intended that one of the element bearers, perhaps Fluttershy, take care of her pet phoenix while she was tending to her royal duties. After all, she did speak to Fluttershy before she was called away to business with the mayor. And, I wouldn’t be surprised of she’s planning on staying in Ponyville for a while anyway.

At any rate, a relieved Applejack sighs and says, “Now Ah can eat somethin’. Ah’m starved.”

But, before she can start, Mr. Cake comes and clears the table, wrapping its contents in the cloth covering it, then dragging the tablecloth away.

Seeing the table suddenly empty, Applejack groans in disappointment.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie gleefully cartwheels out the door, bowling over the ponies ahead of her.

Then, Rarity, warning ponies around her to keep away, marches backwards out the front door. Since I saw it in the animated series, I always thought the funniest thing Rarity said in this episode was, “Nopony move, and my dress won’t get hurt.” And, you know, I think it’s even funnier in this video game setting.

In the mean time, Applejack follows, more or less, balancing a sizable stack of deserts on her nose and forehead.

I may be the only one that notices Fluttershy jumping out the window with Philomena on her back. In the mean time, I turn to Twilight and say, “Well, since that’s the end of the party, I guess I better get my bedding from upstairs and take it to my house.” And, before the purple unicorn can react, my character starts doing as I said.

In the mean time, I hear Twilight sigh and say, “Well, Spike, I don’t know for sure how things went with the princess, but at least no big disasters happened.”

After the parasprite incident some two weeks previous, I can understand what Twilight means. But, I have to wonder how long it’ll take before she realizes that Philomena has disappeared.

At any rate, my character grabs his bedding from upstairs in Pinkie Pie’s old bedroom, then heads out the front door, where the guards are no longer posted.

From my character’s right, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, Mormy, there you are. So, are you ready to go home now?”

My character focuses on the pink earth pony as she talks, then afterwards I say, “I’m ready, and looking forward to it.” I then look around Pinkie Pie and ask, “But, where are Lyra and Weed Whacker?”

Pinkie Pie looks around, then says, “They must still be in the kitchen.” She then focuses on my character again and says, “Just wait here. I’ll go get ‘em.” And, with that, she gallops toward the back door of the bakery. And, a few seconds later, she comes out with the pale-green unicorn and the herbivorous dinosaur.

Looking at my character, Lyra says, “I guess that means you’re ready to go back to your house then?”

Pinkie Pie, not waiting for my answer, says, “Well, let’s get going!” And, she takes the lead as the human and the unicorn, with the dinosaur riding on her back, follow her toward and into the Everfree forest.

You know, I can’t help noticing, along the way, a trail of feathers also leading to and into the forest.

But, it’s not long after we’ve gotten past the opening of the forest that we happen to catch up with Fluttershy, who’s just about to cross the bridge to her cottage.

Pinkie Pie calls out, “Oh, hi, Fluttershy!”

The yellow pegasa emits a startled “Eep.” She then turns to the source of the voice and, noticing both her friend and the others following her, says, “Oh, hi, Pinkie Pie, Mormon, Lyra, Weed Whacker.”

Then, Pinkie Pie asks, “Uh, Fluttershy, watcha doin’ with Philomena?”

Presently, the bird on Fluttershy’s back emits another cough and strained groan, and a few more feathers jump away.

In the mean time, Fluttershy answers, “I couldn’t just leave her there, as sick as she is. So, I decided I should take care of her, you know, heal her. You won’t say anything about it, will you?”

Presently, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” And, since I’m keeping my character’s attention on the yellow pegasa, I can only assume that the pink earth pony is also going through the motions of her Pinkie promise.

At any rate, when she’s finished, I say, “I won’t say anything. I think I should stay out of this one, anyway. But, it seems to me that Princess Celestia is demonstrating that she trusts her subjects by leaving Philomena where she did. I just hope you realize—”

Before I can inform Fluttershy that she’s trying to heal a phoenix that's just preparing to start a new life cycle, I hear Pinkie Pie groan, as though she’s in pain. When my character turns his attention to the pink earth pony, I see her, through his eyes, gallop into the forest proper. And, I’m sure I see green in her face.

I have my character turn back to Fluttershy, and I say, “It looks like I have my own matter to attend to. In the mean time, I hope you’ll let the princess know as soon as possible that you're the one taking care of her pet.” And, with that, I have my character follow Pinkie Pie into the forest.

It’s not until I catch up to Pinkie Pie and see her sit canine-style and point her face downward that I hear Lyra’s voice ask, “Is Pinkie Pie alright?”

My character’s attention is drawn to the pale-green unicorn, so that I only hear the belch and splatter from Pinkie Pie’s direction. But, I see, through my character’s eyes, the alarm in those of Lyra and Weed Whacker. I say, “You go on ahead, and Pinkie and I will catch up.”

Evidently bothered by what she’d seen, Lyra steps around my character and Pinkie Pie as she says, “Alright, if you s-say so.” Then, when she’s past the pink earth pony and the human, she starts galloping ahead.

I have my character kneel next to the pink earth pony, but I wait until the pale-green unicorn is far enough ahead before I have my character produce the package of needles from his inventory, take out one of the needles, and prepare to use it on Pinkie Pie.

Trembling, the pink earth pony turns and looks at my character, then her mane and tail straighten, and her mane falls to one side of her head and neck. She stops trembling and rises to all fours before saying, “I’m ready now.”

Taking that as the invitation from Diane, I have my character stab the pink earth pony in the hip, just above her cutie mark, with the needle, and inject the contents into her, after which he pulls the needle out again.

In a second, Pinkie’s mane and tail go back to being curly, letting me know that Pinkamena is back in control. As she watches my character put the kit back into his inventory, and the used needle and cover away separately, she glares and says, “You know, for once I’d like to enjoy candy again without getting sick.”

I reply, “I know what you mean. I don’t like having to stab you with needles.” I then have my character stand up, and I ask, “So, are you ready to get going again?”

Pinkie Pie sniffles heavily and noisily, then rubs under her right eye, or so I’m guessing, with her right forelimb, then says, turning to my character, “I guess so.”

At this point, I have my character kneel on one knee next to her again, then open his arms; and I say, “Come here.”

Accepting the invitation, Pinkie Pie jumps into my character’s arms, then rests her head on the shoulder opposite the rolled-up bedding. And, as my character rises again, I hear her start sobbing quietly.

My character continues on his way, holding the pink earth pony in his arms; and I say, “Give me a couple days, and I’ll have a plan ready for you. I think I know of something that can help.”

Through her sobs, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “If … anypony … can help me, … you … can.”

I have my character rub the pink earth pony’s back as I say, “Let’s just get going back to my house. You can rest while you’re there, and I can get my bedding unpacked again. Then, when you’re ready, we’ll head back to Ponyville.”

Pinkie Pie doesn’t say anything in response, just continues to sob.

As my character continues on his way back to his house, I can’t help thinking about something I read from the Book of Isaiah in the Bible, something about a health benefit attached to a proper fast. I wouldn’t be surprised if that would be helpful to Pinkie Pie and her diabetes. I’ll have to look that up and see for sure, then maybe suggest it to Pinkie Pie. I have programmed this game and the characters in it with realistic actions and reactions to things, such as obedience to laws that work just as well on humans, although also with the specific needs of the various characters.

The time it takes for my character, carrying Pinkie Pie, to walk through the forest really doesn’t change at all. And, Lyra and Weed Whacker, still worried, are there to meet Pinkie Pie and my character when they arrive.

And, by that time, Pinkie Pie has fallen asleep in her position on my character’s shoulder.

As soon as she sees the two are close enough, Lyra uses her magic to open the gate and allow the human, carrying the earth pony, to go through. Then, as she closes the gate again, she asks, “I-is Pinkie Pie alright?”

As my character proceeds to put the pink earth pony back down on the ground on her hooves again, I say, “She will be. She just needs some rest.”

As Pinkie stumbles into alertness, Weed Whacker walks up to her and nuzzles her shoulder, then asks, “So, what’s wrong with her?”

At this point, Pinkie Pie looks around and realizes she’s back at my character’s house. Without saying anything, she walks up to the front door, opens it with the curl in her forehead, and goes inside.

In the mean time, I say, “I’m thinking that’s a question for Pinkie to answer when she’s ready. In the mean time, why don’t we follow her inside?”

Neither Lyra nor Weed Whacker vocalize agreement, they just turn and head for the still-open door.

The march to the door is slow enough to make an outsider think there is or was a funeral. It takes about a minute for pony, dinosaur, and human to enter the house, at which point my character closes the door after them. Then, he goes to his room and unties his bedding, then puts the blanket and pillow back on his bed. After that, he prepares to take a shower, then goes across the hallway to the bathroom and takes his shower. Then, when he’s finished, he returns to his room and puts on clean clothes.

As my character heads back into the hallway, he meets Lyra, who says, “Oh, Mormon, the Royal Guard came asking about Philomena. They said she’s disappeared. I told them I didn’t know anything, and so they left.”

Now, if I hadn’t seen Fluttershy giving the phoenix a ride on her back to her cottage, I’d still know from the episode that she took her to try to take care of her. I say, “I know Fluttershy’s just trying to take care of Philomena the best she can. Where’s Pinkie Pie?”

Then, from behind my character, I hear the pink earth pony say, “I’m right here, Mormy.” Then, as he turns to her, she asks, “You wanna go back to Ponyville, right? To the fountain?”

I answer, “That’s right.” Then, I ask, “Do you feel up to it?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “I sure do. I’m ready when you are.”

I then have my character turn to Lyra, and notice, behind her, peering from the front of the fridge, Weed Whacker. I say, “Well, in that case, if you’ll get Weed Whacker there in the kitchen, we’ll be on our way as soon as possible.”

The pale-green unicorn nods in agreement, then turns and trots into the kitchen. Seeing the herbivorous dinosaur in front of the fridge, she uses her magic to lift Weed Whacker up and set her on her back.

Seeing that all are ready, I have my character lead the group from that hallway to the front door, then to the front gate, opening and closing doors as necessary.

On the way back to Ponyville, a reasonably concerned Weed Whacker asks Pinkie Pie about her “sickness,” which Pinkie Pie answers by telling Weed Whacker in so many words not to be concerned about it.

Back in Ponyville, as the group walks down one street, I can’t help noticing one of the royal guard stallions puts up a drawing of Philomena, and a moment later the phoenix approaching the picture and drawing a big, bushy mustache and matching eyebrows on the drawing. For a supposedly sick bird, Philomena isn’t letting the sickness interfere with her intelligence or sense of humor.

As the four arrive at the fountain, just ahead of Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, and just after Applejack and Rarity, Pinkie Pie produces a green-iced cupcake and starts eating it.

Before I can even think to say anything about it, I watch as Fluttershy dives under the pink earth pony, hoisting her up on her back. The yellow pegasa searches the ground, then looks up at her pink earth pony friend and says, “Uh, excuse me.”

Pinkie Pie simply squeaks, “Hi.”

With my character focused on the yellow pegasa and the pink earth pony, I only hear Twilight say, “Beg your pardon.” But, my character focuses his attention on the purple unicorn to show me she’s holding up her white unicorn friend and searching under her.

Rarity indignantly says, “Put me down,” immediately after which Twilight obeys.

Then, Applejack starts to ask, “What in tarnation—”

Presently, Fluttershy answers, “Sorry, but we’ve gotta find—”

Then, we hear the voice of a royal guard stallion say, “The princess’s pet bird!”

I suppose my character is the first to look up at the top of the fountain, where I can see, through his eyes, Philomena, now looking like a plucked chicken, perched on top of the pony statue’s head. She coughs, and the last remaining feathers on her torso, those that I can see anyway, drop off.

I hear Fluttershy call out, “Philomena, come down from there! You’ll hurt yourself!”

But, instead, the now naked phoenix turns her back to her audience, and I can see one last feather on her tail. Then, she turns and watches that last feather fall off. After that, she grabs her neck and performs a brief “This is the end of me” dance and falls over the head of the statue. Then, it’s all I can do to keep from laughing as Philomena gets up and performs the dance again, this time stumbling and falling off of the statue.

Ponies and dragons gasp, and Fluttershy gallops ahead to try to catch the falling phoenix, vocally promising as much.

But, as Philomena falls, she bursts into flames which consume her in seconds, leaving Fluttershy to catch a pile of ashes. At least, I know that from the episode, “A Bird in the Hoof.” Since I'm seeing Fluttershy from behind, I don’t actually see her through my character’s eyes catch the phoenix's ashes.

As the yellow pegasa starts whimpering in frustration, my character’s view is suddenly filled with the upside-down face of Weed Whacker.

My character turns to the evidently-concerned herbivorous dinosaur on his shoulder, and I say, “I don’t know about anyone else, but it seems to me that Philomena’s performance would’ve been so much more convincing if she’d fallen from a far greater height. But, I guess you work with what you’ve got.”

Then, I hear Princess Celestia’s voice ask, “What is going on here?” and my character’s attention, as well as that of Weed Whacker, is drawn to the daytime princess as she approaches from between her two guards. A second or two later, I hear her say, “Twilight?”

My character’s attention then turns to six ponies who are now bowing to their daytime princess.

And, Fluttershy, in the mean time, has her back to the daytime alicorn, and is evidently still preoccupied with Philomena’s ashes.

Twilight rises and, slowly marching forward, head lowered, mournfully says, “Yes, Your Majesty, there’s been a terrible accident.”

Then, Fluttershy rises, turns around, and ambles up to Twilight, then says, “It’s all my fault.”

Twilight steps in front of her yellow pegasa friend and says, “No, Princess, Fluttershy didn’t know any better. It was my fault.”

For the next few seconds, Fluttershy and Twilight proceed to argue over which of the two of them should take the blame, that is until Pinkie Pie jumps in and says, smiling, “No, it’s my fault.” She then looks uncertainly toward her friends and asks, “Wait, what’re we talkin’ about?”

Then, as the pink earth pony sprints out of the way, Fluttershy marches toward Princess Celestia and says, looking at the purple unicorn, “Thanks for trying to protect me, Twilight,” then turns to the daytime alicorn again as she continues, “but, Princess Celestia, I’m the one that took your pet bird.” I’m not quite sure how to interpret the princess’s blink as Fluttershy continues, “I really was only trying to help the poor little thing, then I was going to bring it right back to you, honest.” Then, as Princess Celestia walks past the yellow pegasa and up to the pile of ashes, evidently the remains of Philomena, Fluttershy concludes, “So, if you wanna banish me and then throw me in a dungeon in the place where you banish me to, then that’s what I deserve.”

The daytime princess bows, eyes closed for a second or two, then opens them again and says, “Oh, stop fooling around, Philomena. You’re scaring everypony.”

Considering what I’ve seen, Princess Celestia is right about Philomena’s recent behavior scaring every pony, and for that matter every dragon, especially considering the reactions of the element bearers and Lyra. Even Weed Whacker was alarmed by the sight of a bird suddenly igniting and turning into a pile of ashes. But, like I said to Weed Whacker, Philomena hadn’t fallen from a sufficient height to convince me. And, I might as well add that her performance before that was more comedic to me than anything else.

In the mean time, the pile of ashes starts to tremble, then rise up in a miniature tornado, which combines the ashes and bursts into a beautifully flame-colored bird. And, while unicorns, pegasae, and earth ponies “Ooh” and “Ah” over the sight, Philomena descends toward Princess Celestia, who provides a forelimb as a perch for her.

But, before Philomena can land, Fluttershy says, “But, I don’t understand.” Then, after the phoenix lands, Fluttershy asks, “What is that thing? What happened to Philomena?”

Then, to Fluttershy’s evident surprise, Princess Celestia answers, “This is Philomena.” Then, as her pet starts preening a wing, the daytime alicorn continues, “She’s quite a sight, as I said, but nothing unusual for a phoenix. Isn’t that right, Philomena?”

The red, orange, and yellow bird turns to the white alicorn and nods and softly screeches in affirmation.

Still surprised and confused, Fluttershy asks, “Uh, a phoenix?”

As Philomena nods to the yellow pegasa, her owner continues, “The phoenix is a majestic and magical bird.” Then, as the fire-colored bird flies off, Princess Celestia continues, “While it appears healthy and happy most of the time, every so often it must renew itself by shedding all of its feathers, and bursting into flame.” Then, she leans toward Fluttershy and says under her breath, “Rather melodramatic if you ask me.” Returning to her previous stance again, but holding out a forelimb again to provide Philomena a place to land, Princess Celestia continues, “It then rises from the ashes, fresh as a daisy. All just a normal part of a life cycle for a phoenix.” Then, Philomena disgracedly covers her beak with a wing as her owner moves the forelimb she perched on toward Fluttershy and says, “I’m afraid mischievous little Philomena here took the occasion to have a little fun with you, Fluttershy.” She then says to her pet, “Say you’re sorry, young lady.”

Obediently, Philomena uncovers her beak, turns to the yellow pegasa, and squawks repentantly.

Still concerned about her situation, Fluttershy asks, “So, aren’t you going to banish me, or throw me in a dungeon, or banish me and then throw me in a dungeon in the place where you banished me to?”

Princess Celestia smiles and answers, “Of course not, my little pony. Where on earth would you get such an idea?”

Fluttershy and Twilight Sparkle trade looks, then Fluttershy turns back to the daytime princess and answers, “I guess I have some imagination.”

Twilight takes a step forward and adds, “Fluttershy really did everything she could to try to take care of Philomena for you.”

Princess Celestia replies, “And, I do appreciate that your heart was in the right place, child. But, all you had to do was ask me, and I would’ve told you Philomena was a phoenix, and saved you all this trouble.”

Fluttershy responds, “I know. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions.” She then turns to my character, who’s taken a position next to the fountain, and says, “Uh, Mormon, I remember you tried to tell me something before you had to follow Pinkie Pie into the forest. Was it that Philomena’s a phoenix?”

I answer, “That’s right. Unfortunately, another matter emerged, and I didn’t get a chance to tell you.”

Then, I hear Pinkie Pie’s voice say, “Yeah, I’m sorry about that, Mormon.”

As my character’s attention turns to the pink earth pony, I have him kneel down next to her and put a hand on the back of her neck; and I say, “Now, don’t think I’m blaming you, because I’m not. At least Fluttershy knows now.”

From the edge of my character’s periphery, I see Fluttershy smile, eyes closed, nod, and say, “That’s right.”

Just then, Philomena takes off once again, then flies at my character. Taking a hovering position so that she’s all my character can see, and thus all I can see, she lets out a series of squawks, some of which sound angry, and ending in a chirp that sounds like she’s asking my character a question.

I’m sure I have a good idea of what the phoenix is trying to communicate to my character, but still I decide to ask first, “Uh, translation?”

Since Philomena is still all I can see, I can only hear Princess Celestia say, “I heard this myself as I was approaching. You said that Philomena’s performance would’ve been so much more convincing if she’d fallen from a far greater height. She wants to know if that means that you already knew about her being a phoenix.”

Having that as confirmation, I answer Philomena, “Oh, well, as a matter of fact, yes, I do know.”

Philomena then nods and squawks in affirmation, then returns and lands on the daytime princess’s back, grumbling. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was saying something about working on her performance.

And, almost as if in confirmation of my thought, Princess Celestia laughs.

I see Fluttershy take a step toward Princess Celestia, but I decide to address Philomena one more time as I say, “But, I think you should know something about me in return. When I die, I won’t burst into flames; but my spirit will separate from my body. And, after that, there’ll be a time when my body will deteriorate. But, then my spirit will reunite with my body, which will become complete; and my body and spirit will never to be separated again. This reunion of spirit and body is what’s called resurrection, and it’ll happen to all humans, at least, after they die.

“Just to let you know, seeing you burst into flames and fall into a pile of ashes on the ground, then rise again into your present, whole form, reminded me of that.”

Philomena hears me out, then tilts her head and chirps out a question, which I seem to understand as her asking me of that means I’m not offended by her actions.

I smile and answer, “No, I’m not.”

Presently, Philomena jumps off of her owner’s back, then flies toward my character. Occupying the shoulder opposite Weed Whacker, she then nuzzles his face, which I can’t help but laugh at.

Now, taking the opportunity to speak, Fluttershy says, “Next time, I’ll ask before taking matters into my own hooves.”

Then, something seems to dawn on Twilight, and she asks, “Should I write you a letter about Fluttershy’s lesson, Princess?”

As the royal guard canter into view, carrying Philomena’s bird cage, the daytime alicorn answers, “No, that’s quite alright. I think I can remember.”

The phoenix draws my character’s attention again as she flies off of his shoulder, then hovers over Fluttershy and plucks a feather from her tail, dropping it into the yellow pegasa’s mane, then cooing.

In response, Fluttershy looks up at the phoenix and, smiling, says, “It’s beautiful. Thank you, Philomena. No hard feelings.”

Receiving these words from the yellow pegasa, Philomena flies off again towards the guards.

I can’t help noticing that Rainbow Dash seems to get an idea. She flies off toward the phoenix and whispers something to her.

Philomena nods in agreement, then lands on the birdcage, then uses the edges of the feathers on her wings to tickle the noses of the guard ponies.

While I would expect them to either sneeze or brush the phoenix’s wings away in annoyance, instead the two ponies respond by laughing uncontrollably. Evidently the nose on an Equestrian pony is not unlike the sole of a human foot, a ticklish spot.

Having evidently completed her mission, Philomena flies up to and high-fives Rainbow Dash.

Then, the rest of the ponies present join in on the laughter of the guards.

After a few seconds when the laughter quiets down, I think aloud, “You know, I wonder how the readings have been going at the town hall since my friends and I have been gone.”

In response, Princess Celestia approaches my character and says, “Oh, over the past couple days, my sister and I and your stallion friends have taken over conducting the readings. Also, the group has divided up into three, with Cheerilee taking over readings with the foals, the Mayor taking charge of readings among the mares, and Filthy Rich taking over readings among the stallions. None of them have been reading more than a chapter a day, but the readings do continue.”

I state, “Well, it’s good to hear that the readings continue without me. And, also, if you want to set up readings in Canterlot, you’re welcome to do that.”

The daytime princess nods and smiles and says, “Thank you. I have wanted to do that for some time now. But, in order to do that, I’m going to need to get some copies of the Book of Mormon from you. Is that alright?”

I answer, “Sure, no problem.”

Then, Pinkie Pie says, “Oh, and there’s one more thing.” She then canters a step or two toward the daytime princess as she continues, “Mormon wants to continue readings at his house, but he doesn’t want a large group like there has been. He wants to keep it among those of us living in his house, the other element bearers, and the Princesses.”

You know, that’s one thing that’d slipped my mind. Thank goodness Pinkie Pie remembered. But, I do feel the need to add, “And, Twilight, your dragon assistant, Spike, is welcome to join in the readings at my house as well.”

Princess Celestia says, “Yes, I can understand you wanting to have a smaller reading group. While we have covered a lot of material in the readings, we’ve rarely been discussing what we’ve read. You want the quality of the reading time back, and not so much quantity.”

I reply, “That’s right.”

Princess Celestia then pauses and hums in thought, then says to my character, “I’ll have to discuss it with my sister, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she agrees. In the mean time, shall we head over to your house and get those copies of the Book of Mormon?”

I have my character look around in search of Lyra and Weed Whacker, only to find them right next to him. After that, I have my character look at the daytime princess again, and I say, “We’re ready to go when you are.”

Princess Celestia nods and smiles and says, “Very well then.” Then, she closes her eyes, and her horn starts glowing.

One frame later, Princess Celestia, my character, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker are in front of my character’s house.

I then ask, “So, how many copies do you need?”

The daytime princess answers, “I suppose two dozen copies will be good for a start.”

I plot a course for my character to follow as I say, “Well, then, if you’ll give me a few minutes, I’ll get the copies ready for you.” Then, I enter the list of commands, and my character proceeds into the house and to the closet to gather the books for Princess Celestia.

Actually, the process, in real time, takes less than a minute. But, in the game’s time, it does take a few minutes for my character to take out each of twenty-four books and place them on the couch, then distribute them so that ponies, dinosaur, and human have enough that they can carry their load easily.

Back on the front lawn, I have my character stack the books four tall, three wide, and two long, so that the stack comes as close to the shape of a cube as possible.

When he’s finished, I have him step back; and the daytime alicorn stands over the stack and thanks me for the books. Then, she closes her eyes, and her horn starts to glow again. One frame later, she and the books are gone.

Then, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “So, Mormon, I guess that means we still have an hour or so before the reading. So, what do you wanna do?”

You know, I hadn’t really thought about what I could or needed to do after the event with Princess Celestia’s pet phoenix. I answer by asking, “Well, is there anything in particular you wanna do while we wait?”

Pinkie Pie looks down and hums in thought, then looks up at my character again and answers, “Well, unless we prepare snacks for the reading, I can’t think of anything.”

It has been a few days since my character and those living with him have provided snacks for guests to eat for the reading. It’s never been a requirement, although it has become something of a tradition. But, since it’s going to be back to the four creatures living here, the other five element bearers and Spike, and Princesses Celestia and Luna, I decide it’s not a bad plan to go back to preparing snacks for twelve readers. So, I say, “That does sound like a good plan. So, shall we go for it?”

Lyra and Weed Whacker don’t say anything, just turn and head for the vineyard and vegetable garden, respectively.

Pinkie Pie, on the other hand, says, “Okie dokie lokie. Let’s do it.”

I add, “Now, let’s remember that we’re just going to prepare enough snacks for the four of us, Princesses Luna and Celestia, …”

Pinkie Pie concludes, “And Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Applejack.”

I state, “And, let’s not forget about Spike.”

Then, as my character makes his way to the orchard, Pinkie Pie says, “You know, unless Spike brings some gems with him, i suppose you’re right about that.”

In the orchard, Diane takes over Pinkie Pie, chooses a tree, pauses for a moment in thought, then turns her back to the tree and kicks it.

In response, six apples fall from the tree.

Diane then turns to my character and asks, “Do you suppose that’ll be enough?”

I have my character collect the half-dozen apples, then turn back to Pinkie “Diane” Pie; and I answer, “Yeah, that should be enough. The reading is only going to be one chapter, and we won’t be preparing a banquet for our guests. Just something for them to snack on while they read.”

Pinkie “Diane” Pie nods and says, “Agreed. So, let’s get the apples back to the house.” And, with that, she proceeds toward the fence again, where Pinkamena takes over Pinkie Pie before hopping over the fence.

With the pink party pony’s encouragement, I take three apples out of my character's arms and drop them near Pinkie Pie, and she collects them in her mane. With the load equally distributed, I then have my character climb over the fence, then follow Pinkie Pie to the front porch of the house.

My character and Pinkie Pie wait for Lyra and Weed Whacker to approach before my character reaches out to grab the doorknob, only to show me, through his eyes, that Pinkie Pie already had it in the curl in her forehead.

Once Pinkie Pie opens the door, she leads the way inside; and my character lingers behind to close the front door after Lyra and Weed Whacker have entered. Then, he follows the group to the kitchen door, where Pinkie Pie opens it again with her curl; and my character, the last to enter, closes it behind him.

Once in the kitchen, I notice that Lyra and Weed Whacker have harvested smaller loads, which I find appropriate for the number of guests that are going to come.

The group gets to work, with Weed Whacker in the sink cleaning the fruits and vegetables, my character handing them to Lyra, who cuts them up and hands them to Pinkie Pie, who places them on a platter. And, she still manages to stack the fruits and vegetables so they look like a crown of sorts. Just a smaller one.

Seeing that the process has taken only a few minutes, I have my character take Weed Whacker out of the sink; then I think aloud, “You know, I wonder if we have enough time to set up a small table for the snack tray.”

Evidently uncertain, Pinkie Pie says, “I don’t know about that.”

Then, Lyra adds, “Pinkie Pie’s right. After all, we want everypony that's coming to be able to reach the snacks.”

While I can understand what Pinkie and Lyra are talking about, I’m not entirely sure they understood me. I say, “Even so, if the snack tray can be elevated just enough so that it isn’t such a problem for you to pick it back up again, while still keeping it within the reach of pony and dragon, it should still be just fine."

Lyra emits an extremely brief “Oh,” after which Pinkie Pie says, “Well, in that case, why not just stack a few more plates?”

I answer the pink earth pony, “That’d just create more work. I just want to make the cleanup as quick and simple as possible.”

Pinkie Pie looks down and says, “Oh, I see what you mean.”

Then, Lyra asks, “Do you have a table you think you could use for that?”

I answer, “I think so. I just need a test subject or two to be sure.” I then have my character go to his work room in search of a table that’d hold a plate above the ground, just high enough to keep crawling insects off of it, but low enough that my shortest guests could reach over it.

It takes a few minutes, but my character does find a short-legged TV tray, which he brings out to the ponies and dinosaur waiting for him in the front room. And, he sets it down in front of them, legs pointing downward.

The earth pony and unicorn take opposite sides of the small table and start circling it.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie says, “Oh, this is what you meant.”

Lyra adds, “I just hope the snack tray can go on there without tipping over.”

As I watch, through my character’s eyes, the two ponies, I say, “You may want to try it out just to—” I then groan in sympathy and ask, “Are you two alright?”

I can’t say for sure if they’d accepted my invitation, or if they’d taken the initiative. All I know is that the two, on the closest opposing sides, decided, at the same time, to try to reach the center of the tray, and ended up running into each other head-first.

Lyra, who’s rubbing her forehead right now, looks up at my character and says, “Yeah, we’re both fine.”

I ask, “So, what do you think? Will this table do?”

Pinkie, who’s also rubbing her forehead, turns to my character and answers, “Yeah, it should be just fine. Thanks, Mormon.” Then, she turns to Lyra and says, “Uh, Lyra, if you’ll help me, I need to get the snacks moved to a smaller plate. The snack tray I was gonna use is too big.”

The pale-green unicorn nods, then follows Pinkie Pie into the kitchen.

In the mean time, I have my character pick up the TV tray again and take it with him to and out the front door, then onto the lawn, where he sets it up approximately in the center.

Not long after he’s done so, I hear Twilight’s voice from the front gate ask, “Mormon, what’re you doing?”

As my character’s attention is drawn to the purple unicorn, I answer, “I was just setting up a table for the snack tray.”

As my character stands up, I can see, through his eyes, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Rarity right behind her, and Rainbow Dash hovering over them, not to mention Spike riding on Twilight’s back.

I have my character walk to the gate to allow the group in, and I say, “Lyra and Pinkie Pie put their heads together and decided it’d be just fine.”

Before they go through the gate, Rainbow Dash lands next to Twilight and says, under her breath, “Yea, knowing Pinkie Pie, I’m betting that’s what literally happened.” And, the two of them laugh.

Little does Rainbow Dash know she’d win that bet.

In the mean time, the element bearers and Spike enter through the gate, then take their positions around the table, and set up their copies of the Book of Mormon.

As my character closes the door behind the last of them to enter, Rarity, I’m suddenly aware of two more presences in the yard. As my character turns back to the house, I see Princesses Celestia and Luna as they turn and approach the element bearers and Spike, who have already taken positions around the TV tray.

I say “Hello” to the two princesses, and they return the salute; and I have my character go up the porch to the front door to go inside and see how Lyra and Pinkie are doing. And, wouldn’t you know it, my character opens the door just in time for the pale-green unicorn and the pink earth pony, as well as Weed Whacker, who come out carrying a smaller plate with the snacks on it past him and toward the TV tray, which is now surrounded by Pinkie’s other friends and the two princesses.

As I watch the three at work, I comment, “I guess that means Pinkie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker are ready for the reading, then.” And, I have my character follow them to the TV table.

It’s only after the plate is in place that Lyra turns to my character and says, “I just need to go in and get my Book of Mormon, and Weed Whacker’s, and we’ll be ready.”

As the pale-green unicorn heads inside again, I notice Pinkie Pie has already taken her place between Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle. And, seeing an unusually wide space between Fluttershy and Princess Luna, I decide to have my character take the position as close to the middle as possible between the two of them. I then have my character turn to Princess Luna, and I ask, “So, how have things been going?”

It’s Princess Celestia who answers, at least first, “Princess Luna hasn’t been feeling well, and she chooses to say nothing to me about it. I have seen her taking an interest in a human from the Book of Mormon, one known as Ammon.”

Princess Luna turns to her sister, inhales deeply, then exhales slowly, then says, “We would speak with Mormon alone about it.”

I think I know what Princess Luna’s thinking about, but I decide not to say anything.

Which is just as well, since Lyra is coming out with the two copies for her and Weed Whacker; and while Weed Whacker takes a position between my character and Princess Luna, Lyra takes a position between my character and Fluttershy.

While the ponies are delving into the snacks, I have my character look around at each of them; and I say, "Since we've evidently read the first two chapters of the Book of Mosiah, I suggest we start this reading with chapter three." I then have my character turn to the blue, rainbow-haired pegasa, and I ask, "Rainbow Dash, will you begin by reading the first verse?"

Rainbow Dash nods, then looks down and reads, "And again my brethren, I would call your attention, for I have somewhat more to speak unto you; for behold, I have things to tell you concerning that which is to come."

Pinkie Pie then reads, "And the things which I shall tell you are made known unto me by an angel from God. And he said unto me: Awake; and I awoke, and behold he stood before me."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And he said unto me: Awake, and hear the words which I shall tell thee; for behold, I am come to declare unto you the glad tidings of great joy."

Spike reads, "For the Lord hath heard thy prayers, and hath judged of thy righteousness, and hath sent me to declare unto thee that thou mayest rejoice; and that thou mayest declare unto thy people, that they may also be filled with joy."

Rarity reads, "For behold, the time cometh, and is not far distant, that with power, the Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, who was, and is from all eternity to all eternity, shall come down from heaven among the children of men, and shall dwell in a tabernacle of clay, and shall go forth amongst men, working mighty miracles, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and curing all manner of diseases." She then looks up and asks, "What does he mean when he says, 'The Lord Omnipotent ... shall dwell in a tabernacle of clay?'"

I answer, "When he talks about the Lord Omnipotent, he's talking about the Christ. And, when he talks about him dwelling in a tabernacle of clay, he refers to the Christ being born just like all humans, with his own physical body." I then turn to the orange earth pony, and I have my character nod for her to read the next verse.

Applejack nods back, then reads, "And he shall cast out devils, or the evil spirits which dwell in the hearts of the children of men."

Fluttershy reads, "And lo, he shall suffer temptations, and pain of body, hunger, thirst, and fatigue, even more than man can suffer, except it be unto death; for behold, blood cometh from every pore, so great shall be his anguish for the wickedness and the abominations of his people."

Lyra reads, "And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and his mother shall be called Mary."

At this point, as my character automatically looks up, I say, "Now, here's something that isn't found in the old or new testaments of the Bible. And, I think I can understand why.

"In Judah, where the things prophesied here took place, the people there could witness it first-hand. But, the Nephites and Lamanites were separated from Judah at least by an ocean. And, with that level of separation, whatever secrets they'd be told were going to be safe from the Jews.

"The Christ was born in Bethlehem of Judea, and the king of Judea at that time, Herod, wouldn't know about it for two years, when wise men from the east would come asking for the newly-born king of the Jews. Not wanting to be replaced, Herod consulted with his priests on where this new king was to be born, and it was written among them that he would be born in Bethlehem. The only piece of information that Herod was missing was this new king's name, and the name of one of his parents; otherwise, he would've been able to zero in and kill the Christ as an infant. But, because he didn't have an identity, all he could do was order the death of all infants that were as old as two years. And, the wise men that had come to see the child were told by an angel to leave by a different route, so that they couldn't inform Herod of the child's identity.

"There is one prophet in the old testament that said that the Lord God would do nothing until he revealed his secrets to his servants the prophets. In this case, since Lehi had been a loyal servant and done what God had asked him to do, the Nephites had all they needed in order to receive the identity of the Christ, and keep it safe from the Jews, and especially King Herod.

"And, besides, since they weren't going to be able to witness the events for themselves, just get a visit from the Christ when He was resurrected, it was appropriate for them to get this information." I then have my character look into his book again, and I read, "And lo, he cometh unto his own, that salvation might come unto the children of men even through faith on his name; and even after all this they shall consider him a man, and say that he hath a devil, and shall scourge him, and shall crucify him."

Weed Whacker reads, "And he shall rise the third day from the dead; and behold, he standeth to judge the world; and behold, all these things are done that a righteous judgment might come upon the children of men."

Princess Luna reads, "For behold, and also his blood atoneth for the sins of those who have fallen by the transgression of Adam, who have died not knowing the will of God concerning them, or who have ignorantly sinned."

Princess Celestia reads, "But wo, wo unto him who knoweth that he rebelleth against God! For salvation cometh to none such except it be through repentance and faith on the Lord Jesus Christ."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And the Lord God hath sent his holy prophets among all the children of men, to declare these things to every kindred, nation, and tongue, that thereby whosoever should believe that Christ should come, the same might receive remission of their sins, and rejoice with exceedingly great joy, even as though he had already come among them."

Pinkie Pie reads, "Yet the Lord God saw that his people were a stiffnecked people, and he appointed unto them a law, even the law of Moses."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And many signs, and wonders, and types, and shadows showed he unto them, concerning his coming; and also holy prophets spake unto them concerning his coming; and yet they hardened their hearts, and understood not that the law of Moses availeth nothing except it were through the atonement of his blood."

Spike reads, "And even if it were possible that little children could sin they could not be saved; but I say unto you they are blessed; for behold, as in Adam, or by nature, they fall, even so the blood of Christ atoneth for their sins." He then looks up and asks, "Uh, what's this about little children sinning?"

I answer, "It seems that even among the Nephites some believed that children could sin, and needed to be baptized. And, that belief persisted in all sorts of different religions. But, until a human reaches the age of accountablility, that is eight years, that human can't sin." I then turn to Rarity and say, "You can go ahead with verse seventeen."

Rarity reads, "And moreover, I say unto you, that there shall be no other name given nor any other way nor means whereby salvation can come unto the children of men, only in and through the name of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent." She then looks up and says, "I suppose that makes sense. After all, if there were more than one source, that'd lead to confusion."

Applejack reads, "For behold he judgeth, and his judgment is just; and the infant perisheth not that dieth in his infancy; but men drink damnation to their own souls except they humble themselves and become as little children, and believe that salvation was, and is, and is to come, in and through the atoning blood of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent."

Fluttershy reads, "For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father."

Lyra reads, "And moreover, I say unto you, that the time shall come when the knowledge of a Savior shall spread throughout every nation, kindred, tongue, and people."

I read, "And behold, when that time cometh, none shall be found blameless before God, except it be little children, only through repentance and faith on the name of the Lord God Omnipotent."

Weed Whacker reads, "And even at this time, when thou shalt have taught thy people the things which the Lord thy God hath commanded thee, even then are they found no more blameless in the sight of God, only according to the words which I have spoken unto thee."

Princess Luna reads, "And now I have spoken the words which the Lord God hath commanded me."

Princess Celestia reads, "And thus saith the Lord: They shall stand as a bright testimony against this people, at the judgment day; whereof they shall be judged, every man according to his works, whether they be good, or whether they be evil."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And if they be evil they are consigned to an awful view of their own guilt and abominations, which doth cause them to shrink from the presence of the Lord into a state of misery and endless torment, from whence they can no more return; therefore they have drunk damnation to their own souls."

Pinkie Pie reads, "Therefore, they have drunk out of the cup of the wrath of God, which justice could no more deny unto them than it could deny that Adam should fall because of his partaking of the forbidden fruit; therefore, mercy could have claim on them no more forever."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And their torment is as a lake of fire and brimstone, whose flames are unquenchable, and whose smoke ascendeth up forever and ever. Thus hath the Lord commanded me. Amen."

At this point, I have my character stand up, and I say, "And, with that, let's end the reading for today. Tomorrow, we'll read chapter four. Until then, thank you for coming, and hope you have a safe trip back to your homes."

As ponies and dragons around the circle rise, I notice Princess Luna says something to her sister, who nods back to her, then disappears.

The element bearers, along with Spike and except for Pinkie Pie, head out through the gate, as Pinkie Pie salutes them goodbye.

In the mean time, Princess Luna approaches my character and says, “We’ve been studying the human thou mentionedst to us in Pinkie’s dream. He and his friends are first mentioned in the Book of Mosiah.”

I reply, “That’s right. I’d kind of forgotten about that point. So, do you have any questions about him?”

The nighttime princess nods, then says, “He and his friends were a destructive influence before an angel visited them.” She then asks, “How did they live with themselves after being so destructive?”

I take some time to plot a course for my character to follow into the back yard of his property. Then, before I hit Enter, I say, “Come with me. Let’s go for a walk into my back yard.”

As I hit enter and my character starts walking, Princess Luna nods and walks next to him.

It’s not until the two get to the trail that heads into the back yard that I answer, “It seems to me that one of the things that motivated Ammon and his friends, more than anything else, was gratitude. Instead of dwelling on what they’d done wrong, they remembered that God had shown them mercy by sending an angel to them to let them know that they were on the wrong course, and that there was a better course for them to follow. They learned from what they’d done wrong, did what they could to correct it, and went further by building up the church instead of trying to destroy it.”

At this point, the nighttime alicorn stops and says, “Alright, we’re confused. How does that relate to us? As Nightmare Moon, we caused much destruction, and because of that we were trapped on the moon for a thousand years. How do we not dwell on that?”

As my character stops walking and turns and focuses on Princess Luna, I can see, through his eyes, that her eyes are starting to water. I ask, “Well, do you plan on becoming Nightmare Moon again, causing any more destruction?”

She shakes her head and answers, “No, we do not.”

I say, “Remember your mistakes. But, learn from them. Remember that you’re still alive, and capable of doing a lot of good. And, above all, be grateful for that.”

Princess Luna asks, “But, how? How do we repent to the ponies we offended, that have been dead for a thousand years?”

I honestly answer, “That is a question I don’t have the answer to. But, there are ponies here that you can be of service to, ponies you can help, the way you helped Pinkie Pie.”

The nighttime princess forces a laugh before saying, “You were of more help to her than we were.”

I respond, “But, without your help, I wouldn’t have been able to help her.”

I notice Princess Luna’s voice starts to shake as she says, “But, we still know not what we can do. We can’t go back and change what we did wrong to those ponies a thousand years ago.”

I reply, “That’s true. But, you can remember the mercies that’ve been shown to you thus far. You can be grateful for the opportunities you've been given to do good to the ponies living in Ponyville, Canterlot, and everywhere else in Equestria.” I then have my character start walking again, and gesture for Princess Luna to follow him, as I continue, “In the ninth chapter of the Book of Mormon, verse thirty-one, his son, Moroni, warns us not to condemn him or his father, or any of his people, for any of their weaknesses, but to be grateful that we have a record of them, so we can learn to do better than they did. I think that goes just as well for us and the weaknesses we see in ourselves, or the sins we committed in the past. We shouldn’t keep punishing ourselves for what we did wrong, we should just remember to learn from our past sins, be grateful for our memory which serves as our personal record, and learn how we can be better than we’ve been.”

Princess Luna inhales deeply, then exhales slowly, then says, “Thou hast given us much to think about. But, we have one question left. The Book of Mormon?”

I answer, “Yes. The entire record of the Nephites is named for the prophet who abridged their record from the time of the end of King Benjamin’s reign to his own time, where he records the destruction of his own people. And, the book containing the record of his own time is also named for him. It may sound confusing to refer to the Book of Mormon in the Book of Mormon, but, like his son Moroni said, instead of being angry about the naming, we should be grateful that we have this record.”

I think I hear a smile in Princess Luna’s voice as she says, “I can see that thou art grateful for their record.”

I can’t help smiling as well as I say, “I”m also happy that I could be of service to you. Is there anything else you need help with?”

Princess Luna answers, “No. Thou hast answered all the questions we had. Now, we shall return to Canterlot.” And, with that, she disappears.

Having apparently satisfied the nighttime princess with my answers to her questions, I cancel the rest of my character’s walk, and have him return to his house and go inside.

In the front room, I see Pinkie Pie on one of the couches, and Lyra on the other one, sitting next to Weed Whacker.

Pinkie Pie asks, “So, what did Princess Luna want to talk about, Mormon?”

I answer, “She just had some questions about some things she’d read in the Book of Mormon.”

Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “And, knowing you, you had the answers, right?”

I answer, “I answered her questions the best I could.”

Then, Lyra asks, “So, what do we do now?”

I answer, “Good question. Any ideas?”

Pinkie Pie turns to her pet alligator, who has attached himself to the end of her tail, then back to my character, and says, “I suppose we could have another of our pet play dates, just until the sun goes down.”

Then, Lyra says, “Yeah, I don’t know. It’s been some time since I’ve slept in my own bed, and I’m kinda lookin’ forward to that right now.”

I have my character focus on Pinkie Pie, and I say, “You know, I think Lyra may have a point. Maybe we should retire right now, get our letters written, and just go to bed. We’ll have plenty to occupy our time tomorrow.”

This time, Pinkie Pie frowns as she turns back to her alligator friend, then back to my character again, and says, “Yeah, you’re probably right.” She then rises from her position on the couch, trots to the arm she’s facing, the one closest to my character, then jumps over it. Once on the floor, she turns to my character and yawns, then says, “I’m kinda tired, too. I just thought there might be a little more for us to do before we went to bed.”

The thought occurs to me, and I say, “Well, we haven’t had dinner yet. We could prepare and have that first, then write our letters and go to bed.” I then have my character look towards the window to show me that there is still plenty of light outside.

Then, I hear Lyra say, “Yeah, I’m too tired to eat right now. Maybe later.”

Pinkie Pie and I watch as the pale-green unicorn stumbles off of the couch (how she does that without getting hurt is a wonder to me), then ambles to the kitchen, where she pushes the door open, goes through, and, I assume, kicks the door closed behind her. Then, as the pink earth pony and my character turn their attentions to each other again, I say, “Well, I guess that means Lyra’s heading to bed then. So, shall we prepare and have dinner before heading to bed, or shall we go to bed right now?”

Pinkie Pie looks down and sighs, then looks up at my character again and says, “I suppose we could go ahead and prepare and eat dinner, maybe prepare some food for Lyra when she’s ready to eat. Then, after that, we can go to bed.”

From the edge of my character’s periphery, I see Weed Whacker come from behind the couch and settle down next to Pinkie Pie, then turn to my character and say, “Yeah, that sounds good to me. I guess that means you’ll be taking over Lyra’s harvesting in the vineyard, then.”

I reply, “Nothing I haven’t done before.” I then have my character head for the front door as I ask, “So, shall we go ahead with that then?”

Pony and dinosaur turn to each other and nod, then they turn to my character and, together, say, “Sure, let’s do it.” And, with that, Weed Whacker climbs off of the couch; and the two approach my character, ready to follow him outside.

Well, from that point on, Weed Whacker goes to the vegetable garden, my character goes to the vineyard, and Pinkie Pie goes to the orchard. The three harvest enough for the four of them for dinner, then meet again on the front porch before heading back inside.

In the kitchen, Pinkie Pie replaces Lyra on drying duty, with Weed Whacker still on washing duty and my character handing fruits and vegetables to Pinkie Pie. Then, after that, while some harvested fruits and vegetables are left for Lyra for when she wakes up, the other three dine on the fruits and vegetables distributed to them. And, after the cleanup, while Weed Whacker goes to Lyra’s room, Pinkie Pie and my character go to their rooms.

My letter to the princesses is mainly about the small part I played in Fluttershy’s abduction of Philomena, basically as an observer. I decide not to mention Pinkie Pie’s diabetic episode, nor do I mention the conversation I had with Princess Luna. I figure the matter between the nighttime princess and me is best for her to discuss when she decides she’s ready. And, if I’ve learned anything about unicorns, those in this video game anyway, it’s that they aren’t too much different from other ponies, or from humans for that matter. But, before I close the letter, I do decide to write one question: “Do ponies consider non-equines, at least, lower lifeforms?”

When I’m finished with the letter, I have my character deliver it to Weed Whacker so she can send it to the princesses, then I have him return to his room and prepare for and go to bed.

As I save and close the game for the present, I really have not that much more to say or write than I’ve already written. I suppose I do have a project to get to work on, meaning searching for those verses from the Book of Isaiah where he talks about fasting. But, experience lets me know that those verses shouldn’t be too difficult to find. So, until then.

Chapter 27: We Are All Connected by a Sonic Rainboom

View Online

Before I resume the game, let me just mention that I have found and downloaded the verses from the Book of Isaiah, the ones where he talks about fasting, and I plan on presenting them to Pinkie Pie. I just need to decide whether it’ll be tonight after dinner, or the first thing tomorrow morning. The verses are from chapter 58, starting with the third one, and ending with the twelfth; and I have them on a white rectangle ready to give to Pinkie Pie. Perhaps she’ll help me decide. But, now it’s time to resume the game.

As I do so, I find my character waking up to silence. I have him get out of bed and leave his room, then turn to look into the kitchen, to find that there seems to be no one there. My guess is that they’re all outside, harvesting fruits and vegetables for breakfast. So, I have my character head through the kitchen, then through the front room, to the front door to either meet Pinkie Pie, Lyra and Weed Whacker coming back in, or to go out and, hopefully, help Pinkie Pie with her harvesting.

It seems that my character’s timing is perfect, as he’s just in time to open the front door for Pinkie Pie just as she’s about to open it.

But, it seems that Pinkie Pie was waiting for him. As she trots through, she looks up at my character and says, “Hi, Mormy.”

I greet her in return, then have my character look out to see that Lyra and Weed Whacker aren’t far behind her. So, I wait for them to enter, exchanging greetings with them, then allow my character to close the door behind Weed Whacker, the last to enter, before moving ahead of the short line and opening the kitchen door for them to enter.

When all are in the kitchen, Pinkie Pie and Lyra line up side-by-side at the table, while my character puts Weed Whacker and the harvested fruits and vegetables in the sink. After that, as has become normal, Weed Whacker cleans the fruits and vegetables and hands them to my character, who hands them to either Pinkie Pie or Lyra, who dry them off with dish cloths that Pinkie Pie produced, then put them in the middle of the table. Then, after that, the four sit at the table and eat the picked and cleaned fruits and vegetables, after which they leave and head towards Ponyville.

An uneventful hour later, the group has arrived at Sugar Cube Corner, where the Cakes put the four to work making various pastries.

Perhaps a couple hours, and as many loaves of bread, into the work day, I hear Fluttershy’s voice, after the sound effects of a bell ringing and a door closing, say, “Oh, hi, Mrs. Cake. Is Pinkie Pie here?”

I then hear Mrs. Cake answer, “Why, yes she is, Dearie. She’s just in the kitchen.”

Fluttershy’s voice then says, “Oh, thank you. May I see her?”

Before Mrs. Cake can answer, I hear Pinkie Pie sing out, “Just a minute!” Then, I hear her say something to Weed Whacker about mixing batter, then her galloping past my character. From the main room of the bakery, I hear the pink earth pony ask, “So, what’s up, Fluttershy?”

I hear the yellow pegasa answer, “I was helping a small group of ducklings cross the pathway from my cottage, and Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo stopped short of running into me. They wanted to hear how Rainbow Dash got her cutie mark, so I told them how I got mine.”

Just then, again there’s the sound effect of a bell ringing, followed by a door closing; then I hear Applejack’s voice say, “Oh, hi, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie. Ah had a run-in with the Crusaders, while Ah was a-tryin’ t’ catch a couple theivin’ varmints.”

I hear Fluttershy say worriedly, “Oh, dear. Did anypony get hurt?”

Applejack answers, “No, we’re all fine. The Crusaders wanted to hear Rainbow Dash’s cutie mark story, and Ah told ‘em mine.”

Pinkie Pie asks, “So, where are they now?”

Applejack answers, “Still lookin’ for Rainbow Dash, Ah reckon.”

Pinkie Pie says, “Well, my story’s a real gem. Maybe they’d like to hear it.” And, with that, and a sound effect indicating the start of a high-speed dash for someplace else, followed by the ringing bell and the door closing again, it’s evident that Pinkie Pie is off to find the Cutie Mark Crusaders and tell them about how she got her cutie mark. That, or how Equestria was made.

At any rate, after a few seconds, I hear Fluttershy ask, “Shouldn’t we follow her?”

Applejack answers, “Neh, let’s just wait here for her to come back.”

Fluttershy asks, “So, what do we do in the mean time?”

At this point, two things happen at the same time.

In the kitchen, my character’s been supervising a pie in the oven, and a timer has just chimed, indicating to me that the pie is ready to come out.

In the front room, the bell over the door rings again, followed by the door closing again, and I hear Rainbow Dash’s voice say, “Oh, hi, Fluttershy, Applejack. What’s goin’ on?”

Fluttershy answers, “Oh, well, you see, the Cutie Mark Crusaders have been asking for you. You see, they want to hear the story about how you got your cutie mark.”

Rainbow Dash says, “Oh, cool. Where are they right now?”

Applejack answers, “You just missed Pinkie Pie, goin’ out t' find ‘em. As for the Crusaders, Ah can’t rightly say.”

As my character takes out the pie and sets it on the island, I decide to answer, “You shouldn’t worry too much. Knowing Pinkie Pie, she’ll find 'em and tell 'em her story. And, by the time she’s finished, she and the Cutie Mark Crusaders’ll be here.”

Fluttershy says, “Mormon’s right. We can just wait for Pinkie Pie to come with the Cutie Mark Crusaders.”

Applejack then asks, “So, what do we do in the mean time?”

Then, Rainbow Dash asks, “Uh, Mormon, have you heard how each of us got our cutie marks?”

The fact of the matter is I have, from the episode, “Cutie Mark Chronicles.” But, I see no reason why I should reveal that to the ponies at the bakery, or anywhere else for that matter. Besides, I figure it’d be interesting to hear the stories from each of the element bearers.

In the mean time, Mrs. Cake comes in and, seeing my character still watching over the cooling pie, says, “You go on ahead and visit with Pinkie Pie’s friends, Dearie. I and your other friends can handle things in here.”

I have my character focus on the blue earth mare, and I say, “Thanks, Mrs. Cake.” I then have him enter the main room of the bakery, opposite the counter from the two pegasae and one earth pony; and I say, “I would like to hear your stories.” I then have my character focus on the orange earth mare as I ask, “Applejack, why don’t you go first?”

Applejack smiles as she says, “Well, Ah’d be honored. Ya see, it all started when Ah was just a filly, and Ah went to live with my Aunt and Uncle Orange in Manehattan. Ya see, Ah wanted to live the sophisticated life, and Ah thought livin’ with them’d be the best way. What Ah didn’t realize, until Ah got there, was just how hard it was a’gonna be. Ah didn’t mind the ponies there bein’ rude to me. After all, Ah was new. And, Ah didn’t mind my aunt and uncle learnin’ me how ta talk and act like a Manehattanite. After all, that’s why Ah was there. Then, there was my first dinner with the high mucky-mucks.

“Ah didn’t think Ah was a’gonna have ta explain what a rooster is, Ah thought ever’pony knew. And, the meal they served was just garnish. And, that seemed to be all they ate.

“That next mornin’, Ah was a’lookin’ out the window, feelin’ mighty homesick, when Ah saw a rainbow that lead right back to Ponyville. Ah knew then that Ah was supposed to be in Ponyville, not in Manehattan. So, Ah galloped all the way home. And, it was when Ah was with my folks again that Ah got my cutie mark.”

I thank Applejack for her story, then have my character turn to the yellow pegasa; and I say, “Your turn, Fluttershy.”

She nods, then says, “My story starts in Cloudsdale, when I was in flight school. I was very timid at the time, and not a very good flier. In fact, it was all I could do just to get to one ring. And, then, I wasn’t strong enough to stand on it; so I fell off, slid down a roof, and into a flag. And, to make matters worse, if you’ll remember those three bullies you met in Cloudsdale, the ones you nicknamed Basket Case, Touch Down, and Dumb Bell, they saw the whole thing. They called me ‘Klutzershy.’ I never felt so humiliated in my whole life.

“Then, I saw Rainbow Dash, and she came and defended me against those three. She challenged them to a race, and I was the flag filly.

“I guess I should’ve known I was too close to the racetrack to get out of the way in time. I was knocked off of the cloud I was on.”

I can’t help noticing, at this point, that Rainbow Dash seems to be getting upset. On hearing about how Fluttershy was knocked off the cloud, she turns to her fellow pegasa and says, “I’m so sorry, Fluttershy. I was the one that knocked you off of the cloud.” She then looks down, and I see a tear roll from one eye, as she says, “No wonder I was kicked out of flight school after that race.”

Fluttershy turns to Rainbow Dash and hears her out, then replies, “Oh, you don’t need to feel sorry about that. After all, it’s because of your race that I found out what my special talent is, and got my cutie mark.” She then turns back to my character and continues, “You see, yes, it was a long fall, and yes, I was scared. But, then a flock of butterflies rescued me. I’d never seen such beautiful creatures before. Butterflies don’t fly very high, and I’d never been near the ground before.”

At this point, a song starts playing.

But, just before Fluttershy can start singing, Applejack puts a front hoof in her muzzle and says, “Uh, Fluttershy, just describe. Ah don’t think we have time for a song.”

Fluttershy turns to her orange earth pony friend and grins sheepishly before saying, “Oh, alright then.” She then turns back to my character and continues, “I don’t know what it was about being so close to the ground, but I was able to fly better there than I had ever been able to in Cloudsdale. And I was surrounded by all sorts of woodland creatures. Squirrels, bunnies, bees, birds, frogs, all sorts of creatures. I never felt so happy. I just had to sing about it.

“Then, there was this explosion, and I looked up and saw a rainbow-colored shock wave. All pegasi have heard about the sonic rainboom, but that was the first time I ever saw one. And, it scared away all the woodland creatures. I had to go around to the trees, the bushes, the clouds, even the stream, and let all of them know that it was alright.

“It was then that I realized I had the ability to communicate with the animals on their level. And, that’s when my cutie mark appeared.”

With an honestly relieved look on her face, Rainbow Dash says to her fellow pegasa, “I’m glad things worked out for you, Fluttershy.”

Just then, I notice the front door open, and Twilight Sparkle and Rarity walk in.

The orange earth pony and two pegasae turn and see the two unicorns, and, simultaneously, offer their unique greetings, which the two unicorns respond to with their own.

Then, Applejack says, “We were just tellin’ Mormon here how we got our cutie marks.”

Twilight then says, “Oh, really. I just got finished telling the Cutie Mark Crusaders about how I got mine.” She then chuckles nervously as she adds, “I didn’t think I’d cause such a disturbance at the restaurant.”

Having watched the episode, “Cutie Mark Chronicles,” I’ve heard each of the element bearers tell their stories, assisted by flashbacks. I deliberately designed this game so that the characters in it would tell their stories without the assistance of such visuals. That way, I’d get the whole stories from the horses’ mouths, or the ponies’ mouths in this case.

Having said that, I have my character focus on the purple unicorn; and I say, “How interesting. I'd like to hear it.”

Twilight smiles and says, “Sure. You see, it all started when I went to the Summer Sun Celebration, in Canterlot where I lived, for the first time to see Princess Celestia raise the sun. I’d always wanted to go there and see it. And, it was all I hoped it’d be. Seeing the Princess silhouetted in front of that statue with the sun rising behind her was the most amazing thing I’d ever seen. And, from that day on, I poured myself into learning everything I could about magic. And, at that age, learning how to use magic to turn a page was a challenge. But, I managed to do it. I read every book on magic I could find.

“Then, my parents decided to enroll me in Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. It was the happiest day of my life. That is, until I realized I had to pass an entrance exam.

“All I had to do was levitate an egg. No problem, right? Wrong. What I didn’t know was it was a dragon egg that suppressed magic. And, it didn’t help that I was really nervous at the time. As much as I tried, I couldn’t get my magic to work. All I could do was get sparks to come out of my horn. Finally, I said I was sorry for wasting their time.

“Then, I heard this explosion behind me, and my magic went into overdrive. I couldn’t control it. Before I knew what’d happened, I’d turned my parents into potted plants and levitated the unicorns testing me. And, I not only levitated the egg, I also hatched it, and supersized the dragon I’d hatched.

“Thank goodness Princess Celestia was there, or who knows what would’ve happened next. She put her front hoof on my shoulder, and I was finally able to get control of my magic.

“My parents became unicorns again, and I dropped the examiners. The dragon even went back to being his hatchling size. But, once a dragon is hatched, it can’t go back into its egg again.

“I started to say I was sorry for the trouble I’d caused, but then Princess Celestia told me I had a very special gift, and that she’d never come across a unicorn with my special abilities. All I could do was grunt in confusion as she added that I needed to learn to tame my abilities through focused study. But, then she told me she wanted to make me her own personal protege at her school, and it was the happiest day of my life. I was so excited about it that Princess Celestia had to stop me and show me I’d gotten my cutie mark.” And, with that, Twilight starts gleefully hopping around the bakery, at the rate, I’d say, of at least four “yes”es per hop. Not only that, but she’s also reminding me, at least, of Pinkie Pie.

And, it seems that I’m not the only one she’s reminding of the pink party pony, as Rarity stops her and says, “Yes, darling, we’re all happy for you.”

Twilight settles down, looks sheepishly at her audience, and chuckles nervously as she says, “Oh, sorry about that, girls.”

I then have my character focus on the white unicorn, and I ask, “So, Rarity, what about your cutie mark story?”

She turns to my character and, taking a step or two toward him, answers, “Well, mine starts with a stage play for which I was working on the costumes. You see, I'd always wanted to be a fashionista, and I thought the play would be my big start. Well, the dresses were shaped the way they were meant to be, and my teacher, Miss Honey Wheat, only said that they were very nice. Well, I wanted them to be more than just nice, I wanted them to be spectacular. But, the play was going to be the next evening. Well, I tried to make the costumes all over again, I worked all night on them; but the new dresses weren't coming out any better.

I began to question whether I was meant to be a fashionista, when my horn lit up and dragged me out of the house. I had no idea what was happening, but I knew there was a reason for it. Still, all I could do was let my horn drag me where it wanted me to go.

“I knew it had something to do with my love of fashion, maybe even my cutie mark. I knew this was my destiny! And, my destiny … was a rock. If I’d been able to see right away what was inside that rock, I wouldn’t have been so disappointed. But, a huge boulder was all I saw, and it frustrated me. Then, I heard an explosion, and, thinking it came from the rock, I backed away from it. Then, I saw multi-colored flames from behind the boulder, and it split in two. And, inside the boulder were more gems than I’d ever seen in my whole life.

“Well, I took the gems home and incorporated them into the new costumes. And, let me tell you, those gems made all the difference.

“That night, the stage play was a smashing success thanks to the new dresses I’d incorporated into them. And, that’s when my cutie mark appeared, when I saw my teacher smile at me, and heard the ‘ooh’s and ‘ah’s from the students in the audience.”

Presently, I hear Rainbow Dash say, “Yeah, yeah, yeah.” As my character turns his focus on the blue pegasa, her eyes, which had been pointing upwards, focus on him; and she puts down a front hoof she’d been waving in the air. Smiling, she asks, “So, you wanna hear my cutie mark story now?”

I answer, “I would like to hear your story, yes; but I figure I can wait until the Crusaders and Pinkie Pie get here, so they can hear your story as well.”

Rainbow Dash seems disappointed as she says, “Well, if you wanna wait that long.”

Just then, from the front door, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Next time, I’ll tell you my cutie mark story. It’s a gem.” And, the door opens, revealing the pink party pony as the one opening it, and Scootaloo on his scooter, with Sweetie Belle and Applebloom in the red wagon behind her.

The three fillies abandon the vehicles and canter up the stairs and into the bakery.

Then, Scootaloo focuses on her heroine and calls out, “Rainbow Dash, you’re here!”

In the episode “Cutie Mark Chronicles,” it was just Twilight between the Crusaders and Rainbow Dash. At this point in the video game, Rarity and Fluttershy are also in the way.

The three mares back up a few steps to give the trio of fillies a clear view and path to the blue, rainbow-colored pegasa.

And, as they approach, Rainbow Dash turns to them and says, “I hear you’re looking for my cutie mark story.”

As Pinkie Pie, still at the back door, closes it behind the Crusaders, Scootaloo sighs, “You have no idea what I’ve been through today to hear that story.” And, seemingly exhausted, she plops down into a canine-style sitting position.

Rainbow Dash turns away from the three fillies and blinks, then turns back to them and says, “It all happened during the race at flight camp, where I stood alone at all odds to defend Fluttershy’s honor. Fluttershy waved the flag to begin the race, … and things happened so fast that I didn’t realize I’d knocked her off of the starting cloud. All I cared about was racing.

“Dumb Bell hadn’t gotten his cutie mark yet, and he dropped out early. I guess he’d misjudged a turn, and ended up crashing into a pillar. It was just Basket Case and me.

“I’d never flown like that before. The freedom was unlike anything I’d ever felt. The speed, the adrenaline, the wind in my mane, I liked it. A lot.

“Then, Basket Case knocked me off course, and I learned that he doesn't play fair. Turns out the only thing I liked more than flying fast was winning! I zoomed past Basket Case and flew faster than I’d ever flown before, and heard an explosion as I hit the last hoop and headed for the finish line.

“Most people thought that the sonic rainboom was just an old mares’ tale. But that day, the day I discovered racing, I proved that the legends were true. I made the impossible happen. Needless to say, I won the race. And that, little ones, is how you earn a cutie mark.”

The Cutie Mark Crusaders “ooh” and “ah”, after which Fluttershy approaches the blue pegasa and says, “Wait a second.” Then, as Rainbow Dash turns to focus on her, she continues, “I heard that explosion, and I saw the rainbow too. Rainbow Dash, if you hadn’t scared the animals, I never would’ve learned I could communicate with them and gotten my cutie mark.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie takes a few steps toward Rainbow Dash and says, “I heard that boom, and immediately afterwards there was this amazing rainbow that taught me to smile.”

Next, Applejack says, “When Ah got my cutie mark, Ah saw a rainbow that pointed me home. Ah bet it was your sonic rainboom!”

Rarity adds, “There was an explosion I couldn’t explain when I got my cutie mark.”

Twilight Sparkle scratches her head with a front hoof as she says, “This is uncanny!” She then puts the hoof down again as she continues, “If that explosion hadn’t happened when it did, I would’ve blown my entrance exam. Rainbow Dash, I think you helped me earn my cutie mark, too.”

Then, Pinkie Pie jumps at and knocks over the blue pegasa, then says, “We all owe our cutie marks to you!”

Then, Fluttershy asks, “Do you realize what this means?” Answering her own question, she continues, “All of us had a special connection before we even met.”

Then, Rarity adds, “We’ve been BFF’s forever and we didn’t even know it.”

I don’t say this aloud, mainly because I don’t get a chance to. But, even hearing that line in the episode, I have to wonder if the ones that used the abbreviation BFF understood what it means. I, knowing that it stands for "Best Friends Forever," find that using the word “forever” immediately after that makes it kind of strange, and definitely unnecessary. But, maybe that’s the way it was intended to sound.

At any rate, as Rainbow Dash tries to roll over and rise to all fours again, Applejack says, “Come here, y’all.”

And, it seems that Rainbow Dash surrenders as she becomes the center of a group hug by the other five, who immediately start cooing.

The shared emotion doesn’t go unnoticed by the Cutie Mark Crusaders, as Sweetie Belle and Applebloom also start cooing contendedly.

On the other hand, Scootaloo groans in disgust and says, “Give me a break.” She then turns to the door and pushes it open as she says, “Come on, Crusaders. Maybe we just need to try zip-lining again.”

But, before she can escape, her fellow Crusaders sandwich her in their own group hug. Unlike her heroine, though, she begrudgingly tolerates the attention.

Then, to the cheers of Sweetie Belle and Applebloom, Fluttershy approaches the trio of fillies and suggests, “Hey, how about a song?”

Again on the other hand, Scootaloo cries, “Nooooooooooooooo!”

Noting the orange pegasa filly’s negative vote, Fluttershy lowers her head and backs away a couple steps before saying, “Oh. Well, if you don’t want, then, I suppose, that’s alright.”

Sweetie Belle and Applebloom let go of Scootaloo and glare at her, growling her name.

As a means of defending herself, Scootaloo responds, “What? I just think we have better things to do than listen to sappy songs and watch these six get all mushy.”

At this point, I speak up and say, “Now, Scootaloo, remember, among ‘these six’ is your hero.”

At my statement, Scootaloo groans in frustration and says, “Let’s just get out of here.”

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle follow Scootaloo out the door, and Rainbow Dash starts to follow them.

That is, until I say, “Why don’t you let them go? Give Scootaloo a chance to think about what she said. And, I’m sure her friends, the other Crusaders, will have some things of their own to say. And, who knows? It may be Scootaloo who comes to you.”

I think I see understanding in Rainbow Dash’s face as she marches away from the door saying, “I hope you’re right, Mormon. It’s just that … what she said hurt me. And, it hurt Fluttershy, too.”

My character focuses on Fluttershy, and she does seem to be about ready to cry. He then turns back to Rainbow Dash, showing me, through his eyes, her full-faced frown.

I reply, “I’m sure that, when she’s ready, Scootaloo will come to you and express her sorrow for having hurt your feelings. In the mean time, might I suggest you still treat her kindly, as though the incident didn’t happen. Don’t hold it against her.”

Rainbow Dash sighs and says, “Yeah, you’re probably right. I suppose if I’d been in her place, I would’ve reacted the same way.” She then approaches and nuzzles Fluttershy.

Then, Twilight Sparkle says, “Well, I better go to the library and get a letter written to Princess Celestia. I’m sure she’ll want to know about this.”

As the purple unicorn heads for and out the door, Applejack says, “Ah’d better head back to Sweet Apple Acres.” And, she follows Twilight out the door.

As she watches her two friends leave, Rarity says, “Well, I should be getting back to Carousel Boutique. I have some clothes to make.” And, she proceeds out the front door, following Applejack.

Presently, Rainbow Dash says, “Let’s go, Fluttershy. I’ll walk you back to your cottage, then I’ll go back to my home.”

Fluttershy doesn’t say anything, just allows her fellow pegasa to guide her out the front door, following the other three element bearers.

I watch, through my character’s eyes, as the two pegasae leave; then I have my character turn to Pinkie Pie, and I ask, “So, shall we get back to baking then?”

The pink earth pony sighs, then smiles and says, “Sure.”

My character then follows her back into the kitchen, where she takes over the duties she'd given to Weed Whacker; and my character resumes watching over whatever’s cooking in the oven.

I decide to ask, “So, Pinkie Pie, are you alright?”

I hear activity from her direction stop for a moment, then I hear her sigh again before she says, “I just hate seeing one of my friends sad, you know? I hope you’re right, and Scootaloo will say she’s sorry to Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy.”

I state, “Applebloom and Sweetie Belle are good influences on her. I’m sure they’ll lead her to do the right thing.”

Pinkie Pie says, “I hope so,” and the rhythmic sounds of activity from her position resume.

For the rest of the time there, it’s a regular work day at the bakery. Pastries are prepared and baked, then delivered to displays in the front room, and eventually sold.

Then, in the mid afternoon, my character and his friends are dismissed, and head back through Ponyville, and back into the Everfree forest.

On the way to my character’s house, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “So, you’ve heard my friends tell their cutie mark stories.” As my character turns to the pink earth pony, she asks, “Would you like to hear mine?”

I answer, “Sure. Of the element bearers, your story is the only one I haven’t heard yet.”

Pinkie Pie clears her throat, smiles, and says, “It all happened after the parasprite incident on my parents’ rock farm. We spent our days working the fields. There was no talking. There was no smiling. Thanks to those parasprites, there were only rocks.

“We were in the south field preparing to rotate the rocks to the east field, when all of a sudden, I heard this explosion, and I turned to the silo and saw this really weird rainbow. I didn’t know at the time that it was a sonic rainboom that Rainbow Dash caused, all I knew was it was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. The wind that came from it curled my hair. Then, I saw this beautiful rainbow. I never felt joy like that before. It felt so good, I just wanted to keep smiling forever. And, I wanted everyone I knew to smile too, but rainbows don’t come around that often. I wondered, how else could I create some smiles?

“Then, it dawned on me what I could do. I ran into the silo and worked all night on foods and things that I knew would be brightly colored, like the rainbow I saw.

“The next morning, I started this old phonograph I found playing this music I thought sounded like so much fun. Then, I heard my mom call out, 'Pinkamena Diane Pie, is that you?' Well, that is my name, of course; so I came out and, when I saw my parents and sisters, I waved them over.

“When they came in, I showed them what I’d done, and I called it a party.

“Well, everypony just looked at each other surprised. I asked them if they liked it, but they didn’t say anything. I thought they were going to tell me off or something. Then, just when I thought they hated what I’d done, it happened: they all smiled!

“Since the parasprite attack, I knew I had to do something to cheer everypony up; and if they’d all been outside when the explosion occurred and seen the rainboom, I just know they’d’ve smiled at that. But, now they had this party to cheer them up. And, on a rock farm, at a time when nopony had been smiling for so long, everypony was smiling at the party I threw. We danced, and that’s when I got my cutie—oh, shoot!”

I ask, “What’s wrong, Pinkie?”

The pink party pony, distraught, answers, “When I told the story to the Crusaders, I told them that’s how Equestria was made. I meant to tell them that was how I got my cutie mark.”

I state, “I’m sure they understood.”

Pinkie Pie sighs and says, “Sweetie Belle passed it off as ‘Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie.’”

I have my character stop, prompting the two ponies and the dinosaur to do the same. I then have him kneel on one knee and stroke Pinkie Pie’s back as I say, “I think I understand. When you’ve built your life on something that no one takes seriously, it’s hard when you finally do want to be taken seriously, and something like that happens, and you aren’t.”

Pinkie Pie looks up at my character and forces a smile, then says, “Thanks, Mormon.”

I then have my character stand up again and resume the walk to his house.

Then, Lyra catches up to him and asks, “So, Mormon, would you like to hear my cutie mark story?”

After watching all the seasons of My Little Pony Friendship is Magic, at the least those that I got on disc, I hadn’t heard any of the stories of how the background ponies with cutie marks got theirs, although there is Twist, whose story is in the progress of "Call of the Cutie." So, considering the important roll she plays in this game, I gave such a back story to Lyra. I also gave back stories of that nature to other ponies, some based on fan fictions I’ve heard or read, where the stories made sense to me. But, because I’m sure those reading these notes will be interested in Lyra’s story, the one I gave her anyway, I have my character turn to her, and I answer, “Sure.”

The pale-green unicorn smiles, then closes her eyes and inhales and exhales, then opens her eyes again and says, “My story starts before I went to school. You see, I wanted to be a storyteller when I grew up.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie say, “A storyteller?”

Lyra nods and says, “That’s right.”

Then, I see Pinkie Pie come into my character’s view, next to Lyra, and ask, “So, you became a bard? Is that what your cutie mark is about?”

The pale-green unicorn shakes her head, sighs, and answers, “No, I’m afraid not. You see, I went to the Summer Sun Celebration to get inspiration from Princess Celestia because my stories weren’t all that good. Well, I saw the same display Twilight saw, and in fact it was the same festival she’d attended. But, when I went home and tried writing and telling stories again, well, they weren’t any better.

“I read all sorts of books, trying to find out how the writers got their inspiration, but that didn’t help any.

“I guess my parents only saw my interest in books, because they enrolled me in Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. My entrance exam must’ve come after Twilight’s exam, because I was given a magic-resistant rock to levitate, not a dragon egg. But, I had no problem levitating it with my magic.

“I wanted to take a story-telling class, but it was all filled up; so, I ended up taking a music class instead. And, I chose a small harp as my musical instrument.

“And, wouldn’t you know it, when I picked up that stringed instrument and played it, and I put all my feelings into it, I found I had a real talent for it. Whereas my stories were terrible, the music I played from that harp was beautiful. And, when I was finished, that’s when my cutie mark appeared.

“I’d seen the sonic rainboom, but that isn’t what got me my cutie mark. I did feel happiness playing that harp; but I still wonder, if I’d worked at it just a little harder, if I could’ve gotten into that story-telling class, could I have been a storyteller instead of a musician?”

Again I have my character stop walking, and again it prompts the ponies and dinosaur to stop with him. I then have him kneel on one knee, still focused on the pale-green unicorn, and put a hand on her back; and I say, “There’s no reason why you couldn’t mix the two.”

Lyra looks up at my character and, frowning, asks, “What, tell stories with my music?” I have my character nod before she continues, “How am I supposed to do that? My stories aren’t any good.”

I answer, “Your stories don’t have to be fictional. I’m sure you’ve had experiences that others’d want to hear about. Or, if you’ll remember how things worked out for Trixie, you could choose a story from the Book of Mormon, your favorite, and put that to music. Or, it could be a favorite story of yours from Equestrian history. And, I’m sure I could help you find a way to tell your stories in a way that’d go along with your music.”

At this point, Lyra starts to smile as she says, “I would appreciate any help you could give me.” She then frowns again as she adds, “I’m just not sure how that’d work.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie grunts in uncertainty, then asks, “Mormon, will you tell us how you became interested in making video games?”

My guess is Pinkie Pie wants to get Lyra’s mind off of her problems, and wants to get back to my character’s house. So, I have him stand up again and start walking, which prompts the others in the group to join him; and I say, “Well, I think my introduction to video games came with a primitive entertainment system called the Odyssey 2. It allowed for primitive graphics and very few colors, with characters that looked very blocky and generic, but that didn’t make the games any less fun. One of the games for the system, I think it was called Showdown in 2100 AD, had two old-West gunslingers that could each be controlled by a gamer. Although, if a gamer didn't take one of the controls after a few seconds, the game would take over and play for either one of them. If no one took control of either character, then the computer would take control of both. All in all, it was as much fun to watch as it was to play.

“I came in contact with other entertainment systems, some of which were designed to only ever play one game. But, the games I played on them were all generally fun to play. And, early in my life, or at least early in the history of video games, the games never had a definitive beginning or ending, except for the Odyssey 2 games, which ended when a set maximum score was reached or the time ran out. Later entertainment systems had games that had something of a story to them, with a definite beginning and ending. And, as the systems became more advanced, they allowed for 3-dimensional graphics and hundreds of thousands, even millions, of colors to appear at one time. But, along the way, it seems that the interactive entertainment industry has forgotten the entertainment component of gaming. In fact, some games seem to have been designed with the idea that interactive entertainment should not be entertaining.

“I don’t know if the games I design are going to be fun for other gamers, but I do know that I have had fun making and playing them. Maybe some day I’ll publish my games so that others can play them, and maybe I won’t. But, my reason for making games is for that missing element of fun. If I do publish my games, it’ll be to show the big video game companies, or at least give them an idea of, what I’m looking for in a video game.”

Smiling up at my character, Pinkie Pie says, “You know what, you should publish at least one of your games. That way, you can let others know what kind of games you’re looking for, and what you’re looking for in the kind of video games you want to play. Even if you just publish your notes on this game, maybe that’ll be enough to let those video game companies know what kind of games you want to play.”

I can’t argue with Pinkie Pie’s logic on the matter. But, before I can say that much to her, she asks, “So, Weed Whacker, what about you? What was life like before you joined us?”

With the two ponies on my character’s right side, I’m somewhat surprised to hear Weed Whacker’s voice on his left side saying, “Well, there’s really not that much to tell.” As my character’s attention tuns to her, she continues, “When I hatched, as far as I could tell, I was the only one of my kind. I just wandered around, not even knowing what kind of creature I was. The first thing I tried to eat was the poison joke, and I ended up regretting that. Then, Princess Celestia took me in, healed me, and took care of me, until she turned me over to you three, and gave me the ability to send and receive letters between you and her and her sister. I’ve been living with you ever since, and you’re the closest thing to a family I’ve ever known.”

I lose track of what’s said after that, and the group arrives at my character’s house not long afterwards anyway.

When they get there, Weed Whacker goes to the vegetable garden, Lyra to the vineyard, and Pinkie Pie and my character to the orchard, to harvest fruits and vegetables for the circle of twelve readers.

It doesn’t take long to harvest the fruits and vegetables, nor does it take long to prepare them for snacks for the readers. And, the preparation is complete just in time for a knock on the door to signal the arrival of Pinkie Pie’s friends.

As the group gathers around the snack tray, I can’t help notice they take the same positions they had the game’s yesterday. So, considering I remember that Rainbow Dash had started the reading that previous time, I turn to my pink earth pony friend and ask, "Pinkie Pie, will you begin the reading?"

As the ponies around the circle, including Pinkie Pie, open their books and turn to the correct page, the pink party pony turns to my character and answers, "Sure, Mormon." Then, she looks down and flips through the pages. As soon as she's at the right page, she reads, "And now, it came to pass that when king Benjamin had made an end of speaking the words which had been delivered unto him by the angel of the Lord, that he cast his eyes round about on the multitude, and behold they had fallen to the earth, for the fear of the Lord had come upon them."

Then, Twilight Sparkle reads, "And they had viewed themselves in their own carnal state, even less than the dust of the earth. And they all cried aloud with one voice, saying: O have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified; for we believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who created heaven and earth, and all things; who shall come down among the children of men."

Spike reads, "And it came to pass that after they had spoken these words the Spirit of the Lord came upon them, and they were filled with joy, having received a remission of their sins, and having peace of conscience, because of the exceeding faith which they had in Jesus Christ who should come, according to the words which king Benjamin had spoken unto them."

Rarity reads, "And king Benjamin again opened his mouth and began to speak unto them, saying: My friends and my brethren, my kindred and my people, I would again call your attention, that ye may hear and understand the remainder of my words which I shall speak unto you."

Applejack reads, "For behold, if the knowledge of the goodness of God at this time has awakened you to a sense of your nothingness, and your worthless and fallen state—"

Fluttershy reads, "I say unto you, if ye have come to a knowledge of the goodness of God, and his matchless power, and his wisdom, and his patience, and his long-suffering towards the children of men; and also, the atonement which has been prepared from the foundation of the world, that thereby salvation might come to him that should put his trust in the Lord, and should be diligent in keeping his commandments, and continue in the faith even unto the end of his life, I mean the life of the mortal body—"

Lyra reads, "I say, that this is the man who receiveth salvation, through the atonement which was prepared from the foundation of the world for all mankind, which ever were since the fall of Adam, or who are, or who ever shall be, even unto the end of the world."

I read, "And this is the means whereby salvation cometh. And there is none other salvation save this which hath been spoken of; neither are there any conditions whereby man can be saved except the conditions which I have told you."

Weed Whacker reads, "Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend."

Princess Luna reads, "And again, believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them."

Princess Celestia reads, "And again I say unto you as I have said before, that as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, or if ye have known of his goodness and have tasted of his love, and have received a remission of your sins, which causeth such exceedingly great joy in your souls, even so I would that ye should remember, and always retain in remembrance, the greatness of God, and your own nothingness, and his goodness and long-suffering towards you, unworthy creatures, and humble yourselves even in the depths of humility, calling on the name of the Lord daily, and standing steadfastly in the faith of that which is to come, which was spoken by the mouth of the angel."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And behold, I say unto you that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And ye will not have a mind to injure one another, but to live peaceably, and to render to every man according to that which is his due."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked; neither will ye suffer that they transgress the laws of God, and fight and quarrel one with another, and serve the devil, who is the master of sin, or who is the evil spirit which hath been spoken of by our fathers, he being an enemy to all righteousness."

Spike reads, "But ye will teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another."

Rarity reads, "And also, ye yourselves will succor those that stand in need of your succor; ye will administer of your substance unto him that standeth in need; and ye will not suffer that the beggar putteth up his petition to you in vain, and turn him out to perish."

Applejack reads, "Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just—"

Fluttershy reads, "But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God."

Lyra reads, "For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have, for both food and raiment, and for gold, and for silver, and for all the riches which we have of every kind?"

At this point, i hear Applejack grunt in interest and say, "Ya know, Ah hadn't really thought 'bout it that way."

I read, "And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay; he has poured out his Spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy."

Weed Whacker reads, "And now, if God, who has created you, on whom you are dependent for your lives and for all that ye have and are, doth grant unto you whatsoever ye ask that is right, in faith, believing that ye shall receive, O then, how ye ought to impart of the substance that ye have one to another."

Princess Luna reads, "And if ye judge the man who putteth up his petition to you for your substance that he perish not, and condemn him, how much more just will be your condemnation for withholding your substance, which doth not belong to you but to God, to whom also your life belongeth; and yet ye put up no petition, nor repent of the thing which thou hast done."

Princess Celestia reads, "I say unto you, wo be unto that man, for his substance shall perish with him; and now, I say these things unto those who are rich as pertaining to the things of this world."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And again, I say unto the poor, ye who have not and yet have sufficient, that ye remain from day to day; I mean all you who deny the beggar, because ye have not; I would that ye say in your hearts that: I give not because I have not, but if I had I would give."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And now, if ye say this in your hearts ye remain guiltless, otherwise ye are condemned; and your condemnation is just for ye covet that which ye have not received."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And now, for the sake of these things which I have spoken unto you—that is, for the sake of retaining a remission of your sins from day to day, that ye may walk guiltless before God—I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants."

Spike reads, "And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order."

Rarity reads, "And I would that ye should remember, that whosoever among you borroweth of his neighbor should return the thing that he borroweth, according as he doth agree, or else thou shalt commit sin; and perhaps thou shalt cause thy neighbor to commit sin also."

Applejack reads, "And finally, I cannot tell you all the things whereby ye may commit sin; for there are divers ways and means, even so many that I cannot number them."

Fluttershy reads, "But this much I can tell you, that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts, and your words, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and continue in the faith of what ye have heard concerning the coming of our Lord, even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish. And now, O man, remember, and perish not."

At this point, I have my character stand up; and I say, "And, I think that should conclude today's reading. Tomorrow, we'll be reading chapter five in the Book of Mosiah. But, until then, thank you for coming, and have a safe trip to your homes."

Ponies and dragons rise around the circle and collect their books.

Princesses Celestia and Luna salute my character and others around the circle, and disappear.

Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker head up the stairs to the porch of my character’s house.

Spike and the rest of the ponies head to the front gate, where my character lets them out to return to their homes in Ponyville.

Then, once that group of six have disappeared from view, my character goes back to the house, where Pinkie Pie opens the door and allows all to enter.

Once inside, Pinkie Pie turns to Lyra and Weed Whacker and says, “If you don’t mind, I have some questions for Mormon. We’ll go to his work room, just me and him. You two can do what you want in the mean time.”

I see the unicorn and dinosaur look at each other in confusion as my character follows the pink earth pony to his work room.

Once the two are inside the room, Pinkie Pie closes the door, then turns to my character, to me, and says, “So, about this plan of yours.”

I know what she’s talking about; and, although I was hoping the matter would come up after dinner, since Pinkie Pie brought it up, I suppose now’s the best time to talk about it. I nod and say, “I’m going to need your help with some of the details, but I do have the scriptural reference. Would you like to read it?”

Pinkie Pie nods and answers, “Yes, please.”

I have my character remove the white rectangle from his inventory and hand it to the pink earth pony.

Pinkie Pie accepts the rectangle, looks at it, then clears her throat and reads, “Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.

“Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high.” She then looks up, tilts her head, and says, “Alright, two questions. First of all, what does it mean to fast? Second of all, what does Isaiah mean when he talks about fasting ‘for strife and debate?’”

I answer, “To answer your first question, to fast means to keep from eating and drinking for a period of time.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie straightens her head and gasps, then her eyes tremble and her ears fold back against her head as she asks, “Y-you want me to s-starve?”

I shake my head and answer, “No, that’s not what I want at all.” I then stop shaking my head and continue, “Going without anything to eat or drink for anything other than a goodly cause is starving. And, that’s not what I intend for you. And, to answer your second question, evidently Isaiah had observed that Jews weren’t fasting for a good purpose, and without a good objective to fast for, they were becoming irritable, and were likely taking that irritability out on each other.”

Pinkie Pie, listening to me, points her ears upward again. She relaxes after hearing me out, then looks at the rectangle again as she says, “Oh, I see.” She then continues reading, “Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord?

“Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?” At this point, Pinkie Pie grunts with interest, and perhaps understanding, and says, “It sounds to me like Isaiah’s warning those who read this against how he’s seen the fast observed, and offering advice on how it should be done.”

I nod and say, “That’s how I understand it.”

Pinkie Pie continues, “Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?” She then says, “‘Deal bread to the hungry.’ Isn’t the one fasting going to be hungry after a while?”

I answer, “My experience is that’s not necessarily the case.”

At this statement from me, Pinkie Pie lowers the rectangle and looks at my character, at me, and asks, “You’ve done this before?”

I answer, “I have. And, I can tell you that, when done properly, a fast doesn’t mean starving to death; and it's been my experience that a proper fast means the one fasting is too occupied with other things to even worry about feeling hungry. Besides, it is a good idea, every now and then, to give the digestive system a chance to rest and recuperate. And, a proper fast can, and should, be a real growing experience for the one fasting.”

Again, Pinkie Pie grunts with interest. She then returns to the reading: “Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rearward.” She then slowly lowers the rectangle and looks up at my character, at me, again, and says, “You know, I was beginning to wonder if you thought I was getting fat or something, overweight. Now, there’s this part, ‘thine health shall spring forth speedily.’ Have you had health benefits from fasting?”

I answer, “As a matter of fact, I have. Like I said, it’s a good idea to give the digestive system a break every now and then to recover. At least, that’s been my experience. And, there have been scientists that have observed that a proper fast can, at least, make many health problems more manageable, not the least of which is diabetes. I don’t know if yours will clear up completely with just one fast, such a case as yours may require a few separate times. And, it won’t mean you’ll be able to go back to eating candy like it’s going out of style. You’ll still have to limit yourself on how much you eat. But, I imagine you will be able to eat candy again, in small amounts, without it making you sick.”

Pinkie Pie adds, “And, without you having to stab me with needles every time I eat candy.”

I nod and answer, “That’s right.”

Again the pink earth pony grunts with interest, then continues reading, “Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;

“And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday:

“And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

“And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.” She then puts the rectangle away in her mane; then, smiling at my character, she says, “You know, I think I would like to try this. So, when do you think I should start, and how long do you think it should last?”

I also smile as I answer, “Generally, when I fast, it’s for two meals, breakfast and lunch. I’m thinking that should work for you. And, I’m thinking you should start tomorrow.”

I watch as Pinkie Pie’s eyes shift right and left as though she’s reading, then she looks up at my character again and says, “Yeah, that sounds good to me. Just one question. Does it mean that I can start eating after the lunch hour is over?”

I answer, “That is one possible interpretation. But, it seems to me that if you can wait until after lunch, you should also be able to wait until dinner to eat. I know that’s been the case for me.”

Pinkie Pie states, “Well, if you can go for a day with your only meal being the the last one, then I can too. Okie dokie. I’ll fast tomorrow for two meals, and I won’t eat until dinner. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

Seeing the pink party pony perform and recite her Pinkie promise, I wonder to myself if it was absolutely necessary; although, it’s evident that she seemed to think so. I ask, “So, in the mean time, shall we go out and join Lyra and Weed Whacker in harvesting fruits and vegetables for dinner?”

At my question, Pinkie Pie hops in place, and, with each hop, says, “Yes!”

I can’t help laughing to myself as I have my character go to the door and open it.

Pinkie Pie stops hopping as the door starts to open, then gallops out of it as soon as there’s just enough room for her.

My character follows her through the hall and the front room, after closing the door to his work room, then out the front door, closing that one behind him. He then follows the pink earth pony to the orchard, where Pinkie “Diane” Pie kicks four apples out of a tree. She then gathers them in her mane, and Pinkie “Pinkamena” Pie and my character return to the house just in time to meet up with Lyra and Weed Whacker.

My character opens the front door to allow the two ponies and the dinosaur to enter first, then follows them inside, closing the door behind him.

Once again, it’s Pinkie Pie who, arriving at the kitchen door first, opens it for her and the others to enter; and my character, the last to enter, closes the door behind him.

It takes only a short time to organize the group and get the fruits and vegetables cleaned and ready to eat.

During this time, I hear Lyra ask Pinkie if everything is alright, and Pinkie answer affirmatively, saying something about me having a plan for her.

Nothing much beyond that is said as the four eat the fruits and vegetables that have been prepared, then go to their rooms.

I have my character write to the princesses about how I got to hear the stories of how each of the element bearers got their cutie marks, as well as how Lyra got hers. I decide not to write the stories themselves, just that I heard them. I also decide not to add anything about Pinkie Pie trying a fast, figuring that it's for her to mention it if she wants to. Once the letter’s finished, I have my character leave his room to deliver the rolled-up parchment to Weed Whacker to send to the princesses.

As my character returns to his room, I’m not aware, until my character reaches for his door, and until she says something, that Pinkie Pie is following him.

As my character opens his door, I hear Pinkie Pie behind him ask, “Uh, Mormon, may I come in?” Then, as my character turns around to see her, she adds, “I have one or two more questions I need answered.”

I have my character hold the door open for her as I answer, “Sure, come on in.” Then, after the pink earth pony enters, my character follows her inside and closes the door behind him.

Pinkie Pie gallops to and jumps onto his bed, then turns around to face him, then settles into a sphinx-style position. Once she’s comfortable, she asks, “About the fast, is there a particular procedure for it?”

I ask in response, “You mean for starting one?”

Pinkie Pie nods and answers, “And ending it.”

I have my character approach the pink earth pony and kneel on one knee next to the bed, in front of her; and I answer, “I know a proper fast is similar to a church meeting, in that it starts and ends with a prayer.”

Pinkie Pie then asks, “And, does it matter what I fast for?”

I answer, “As long as it’s for a good reason, no, not really.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie rises to all fours and says, “Thanks, Mormon. That’s all I needed to know.” And, with that, she jumps off my character’s bed and canters to the door.

Automatically, my character also rises to his feet, then follows the pink earth pony to the door, then opens it for her, waits for Pinkie Pie to exit and head to her room, then closes the door behind her. After that, he goes to his bed and proceeds to go to sleep.

I can think of one more thing I'd like to add at this point. When Pinkie Pie, in telling her cutie mark story, mentioned her hair curling after seeing the rainbow, I know it was PInkamena talking about how her sister, Diane, handed control of PInkie to her to see the rainbow.

I hope that the fast will be a good experience for Pinkie Pie. I guess I’ll find out in the game’s tomorrow. In the mean time, I save and close the game.

Chapter 28: As Fast as is Healthy

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As I resume the game, I find my character awakened to knocking at his door. I have him rise and go to his door, to hear Pinkie Pie’s alarmed moan from the other side. Then, as my character opens his door, I see, through his eyes, the pink earth pony rolling onto her front, facing away from him. As she gets back up on her hooves, I ask, “Is there something I can help you with?”

Pinkie Pie doesn’t say anything at first. She trots into my character’s bedroom and, with the curl in her forehead, grabs the doorknob and, backing away, pulls the door closed. She then looks up at my character and says, “I started my fast when I got back to my room after talking to you. But, now I’m not sure if I should help harvest fruits and vegetables or not.”

I answer, “One thing about the fast is it’s not intended for public display. Just because you’re fasting doesn’t necessarily mean your behavior should change any, except for not eating and drinking. You can go ahead and help with what you’d normally do without letting others know you’re fasting. In fact, it’s best that way.”

Pinkie Pie tilts her head and asks, “So, I should go out and harvest apples then?”

I answer, “I see no reason why not.”

The pink earth pony straightens her head again and, smiling, says, “Okie dokie.” And, with that, she uses the curl in her forehead to open the door, then pushes her way through it.

My character follows her through the house and out the front door, closing doors behind him along the way.

In the orchard, Diane takes over Pinkie Pie, chooses a tree, and kicks four apples out of it. Then, Pinkamena takes control again, takes two of the apples, and jumps over the fence again, then trots back to the house.

In the mean time, my character collects the other two apples, then follows the pink earth pony back to the house. And, by the time he gets there, Lyra and Weed Whacker, with their harvests, have joined Pinkie Pie on the front porch.

As soon as my character has arrived, Pinkie Pie opens the door and leads the group through the front room into the kitchen.

My character follows the two ponies and the dinosaur, closing the front and kitchen doors in turn behind him.

In the kitchen, the preparation of the fruits and vegetables for breakfast proceeds as normal, except that Pinkie Pie, instead of eating with the human, the unicorn, and the dinosaur, produces a small paper bag and puts the fruits and vegetables for her in it.

As the pink earth pony, holding the bag in her mouth, trots through the kitchen door into the front room, a curious Lyra turns to my character and asks, “Is Pinkie Pie alright? I’ve never known her to do something like that.”

Before I can answer, Weed Whacker affirms, “Neither have I.”

Now that I have the chance, I answer, “She’s fine. She’ll eat when she’s ready to.”

With a carrot, possessed by her magic, hovering in front of her face, Lyra sighs and says, “I hope you’re right. Seeing her just put her food in a bag like that, it makes me nervous.”

I state, “Now, there’s nothing to worry about.”

No more is said among the group as each of the three eats the food in front of them. Then, after the cleanup, the three go into the front room where Pinkie Pie is.

I can’t help noticing Pinkie Pie looks worried as she tells Lyra and Weed Whacker, “If you two’ll wait here, Mormon and I have one more thing to talk about. Then the four of us will head for Ponyville again.” Then, before the unicorn and the dinosaur can respond, the pink earth pony grabs my character’s wrist in her curl and drags him to his work room.

I think I have a good idea about what Pinkie Pie’s going to ask me. So, once in front of his work room, I have my character open the door, then close it behind him after Pinkie Pie drags him inside.

And, I’m not surprised when she releases my character’s wrist and says, “Last night, when you talked about your experience with fasting, you said that you didn’t feel hungry. Well, you’re used to it. This is my first time. What if I start feeling hungry?”

I answer, “Well, it’s something you’ll just have to tolerate, either until it goes away, or until dinner.”

I see the pink earth pony’s eyes vibrate as she asks, “But, what if I can’t?”

I have my character reach out his hand and stroke Pinkie Pie’s mane as I say, “Don’t forget, I’ll be there to help you. You’re not alone in this.”

At this point, Pinkie falls into a canine-style sitting position, points a front hoof at my character, and says, “But, you’re not fasting." She then points the hoof at herself as she adds, "I am.”

I respond, “That doesn’t mean I can’t support you.”

At my response, the pink earth pony relaxes her hoof and, looking toward the ground, rubs her chin with the hoof for a second or two. Then she sighs heavily, then puts the hoof down again, looks up at my character, and says, “Alright. And, just to let you know, I’ve decided to dedicate this fast to helping Lyra write a ballad.”

I have my character reach for the doorknob as I say, “That sounds like a good cause. And, just to help you out, when you’re fasting for something, it requires you to take an active part in getting it done.”

Pinkie Pie nods and says, “I figured as much. You can go ahead and open the door now.”

I nod in agreement, then have my character open the door, at which point Pinkie Pie trots on ahead of him into the hallway.

From the hallway, I hear Lyra ask, “So, are you and Mormon going to take your pets with you to Ponyville? This is the day of the week when you and Mormon and your other friends bring their pets for your play dates.”

As my character leaves his work room, I hear Pinkie Pie gasp and say, “That’s right! I need to bring Gummy, and Mormon needs to bring Scout.”

My character closes the door behind him, then focuses on the pink earth pony; and I state, “So, I guess that means we wait here while you go get Gummy then.”

And, evidently taking my words as permission, Pinkie gallops through the front room, through the kitchen door, and, I assume, to her room.

In the mean time, Lyra approaches my character and asks, “Are you sure Pinkie Pie’s alright? I’ve never seen her behave this way, and it’s really starting to bother me.”

I have my character reach out and stroke the pale-green unicorn’s mane as I state, “You really have nothing to worry about. She’s fine. And, I hear she’s going to help you write a song.”

At this statement, Lyra perks up and says, “Really?”

I answer, “That’s what she told me.”

Lyra rubs her chin with a front hoof as she says, “I’ll have to thank her, then. If anypony can help me write a song, she can.”

And, it’s at that point when Pinkie Pie enters the front room, with Gummy attached to her tail.

Seeing the group ready to go, I have my character take a step toward the front door and open it again, allowing the two ponies and the dinosaur to exit ahead of him; after which my character exits and closes the door behind him. Then, the group follows a similar procedure at the front gate, where my character opens it and watches the ponies and dinosaur exit ahead of him. Then, remembering the pet play date that I expect to take place in the park, I have my character turn to the front porch of his house, where his, my, pet timber wolf is; and I call out, “Scout, come here boy!”

The timber wolf lifts his head up, opens his mouth in what I consider the biggest smile I’ve ever seen in a creature, then rises to all fours and gallops toward my character and friends, then jumps over the fence, landing just behind Weed Whacker.

Presently, the startled dinosaur jumps on to Lyra’s back.

I can’t help laughing to myself for a few seconds as I have my character go through the front gate, then close it behind him. With that done, I say, “Well, let’s go on ahead to Ponyville then.”

The only signs of agreement are that Scout, Pinkie Pie, and Lyra follow my character on their trip through the Everfree forest, while Weed Whacker rides on Lyra’s back, and Gummy remains attached to Pinkie Pie’s tail.

In Ponyville, the group heads for the park where they meet up with Applejack and her dog Winona, Fluttershy and her rabbit Angel, and Rarity and her cat Opalescence.

But, instead of playing with her alligator pet, Pinkie Pie settles into a sphinx-style sitting position next to Lyra and starts talking with her about experiences she had, either before she met my character, or living with him.

In the mean time, a puzzled Weed Whacker asks the pink earth pony, “Uh, Pinkie, shouldn’t you be playing with Gummy now?”

Pinkie Pie turns to her and says, “You can play with him for a while. Right now, I’m going to help Lyra write a song.”

Weed Whacker turns to look at the alligator, who immediately lets go of Pinkie Pie’s tail. She then turns back to Pinkie and says, “Uh, if you think it’s alright, I suppose I could play with your lizard for a while.” Then, as the hatchling alligator approaches her, Weed Whacker wonders aloud, “What games can I play with Gummy?”

While the herbivorous dinosaur ponders over her predicament, I have my character produce the disc from his inventory and toss it across the field, at which point Scout runs ahead to retrieve and return the disc.

Eventually, Gummy makes the first move, snapping at one of Weed Whacker’s legs.

At first Weed Whacker is alarmed by the hatchling alligator’s move, as is easily identified by her scream. Then, she realizes that it doesn’t hurt, and starts to enjoy Gummy grabbing her limbs and tail and even her head in his toothless mouth.

For the next hour or two, Pinkie Pie and Lyra settle on the experience of my first contact with the pale-green unicorn and start composing lyrics and music based on that experience, while ponies, human, and dinosaur play with pets.

It isn’t long into the third hour of play before I notice a colt appear, galloping across the open field. And, following him are two fillies, who I recognize as Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. I have my character focus on the colt they’re evidently pursuing, and I recognize him as Namby Pamby. And, he seems to be carrying an apple and a carrot in his mouth.

The two fillies catch up to Namby Pamby and tackle him, causing him to let go of the fruit and vegetable, in favor of yelping in surprise, and perhaps in pain as well.

The two fillies laugh at the plight of their prey, and Diamond Tiara gallops ahead and collects the apple and carrot in her own mouth. She then gallops back to Silver Spoon, who immediately hops off of Namby Pamby; and the two fillies gallop off back into the wooded area with their prize.

Namby Pamby stumbles to his hooves, then turns in the direction of the trees where Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon disappeared, calls their names, and demands, “Come back here with my lunch!” He even tries pursuing them for a few steps before he trips and falls. Then, in apparent defeat, he buries his face between his forelimbs and starts bawling.

I don’t see her because my character is focused on the crying colt; but, I do hear Pinkie Pie ask, “Uh, Mormon, what’s going on?”

My character automatically turns to the pink earth pony, and I answer, “Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon just stole Namby Pamby’s lunch from him.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie rises to all fours, turns in the direction where my character had been looking; and, seeing Namby Pamby, says, “That’s terrible. I’d better go see if he’s alright.” And, with that, she gallops off toward the colt.

From my character’s position I’m unable to hear very well what Pinkie Pie and Namby Pamby talk about. My best guess is that Pinkie Pie comforts the little colt, then encourages him to follow her to where she and Lyra and my character are. I watch the pink earth pony and the little colt approach, then Pinkie Pie give her breakfast to Namby Pamby and say, “You can have my food.”

Surprised, Namby Pamby asks, “Really!?”

Pinkie Pie nods and answers, “Sure, go ahead. You need it more than I do.”

I must say, I approve of the action I've just seen Pinkie Pie take.

And, as the little colt reaches into the bag and starts pulling out fruits and vegetables, he’s continually saying, “Thank you, Miss Pinkie Pie. Thank you so much.”

I get a good look at Pinkie Pie’s face as she turns to my character; and I can see that, while she looks like she may start crying any time, she’s also smiling. If anything, she’s clearly happy with the decision she made. As she turns back to Namby Pamby to supervise him while he eats, I wouldn’t be surprised if this experience is part of the report I expect to get from her this evening on her experience with the fast.

Then, I hear Scout growling nearby; and my character turns toward him to show me that Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon have apparently been following Pinkie Pie, and may be preparing to steal the food Namby Pamby is eating. But, clearly the first of their problems in getting to him is the timber wolf immediately in front of them.

I open my mouth to say something to the two fillies; but then Silver Spoon says, “Diamond Tiara, let’s just get out of here. We’ve already gotten what we wanted. If Pinkie Pie wants to give away her food and starve to death, let’s let her.”

Diamond Tiara turns to her gray earth pony friend, then back to the timber wolf and my character, then back to her friend, then says, “Alright, Silver Spoon, let’s just get outta here.” And, with that, and with the gray earth filly following her, she gallops off.

As I see my timber wolf friend start to pursue them, I call out, “Scout, let them go. I don’t think they’ll be bothering us anymore.”

Scout returns to my character and takes a position just behind Namby Pamby, sitting sphinx-style more or less between him and my character.

It takes a few minutes for Namby Pamby to eat the lunch Pinkie Pie gave him, after which he thanks her again, then rises and gallops off for the area where he and the two school bullies had come from.

With that now passed, Pinkie Pie returns to helping Lyra write her song.

In the mean time, Scout maintains his vigil, that is, until I take the disc and toss it again. Then, he runs and catches it, then returns with it in his mouth.

I’m not sure, as the hours pass, how far into their project Lyra and Pinkie Pie get. But, eventually the time comes when the play date ends, and it’s time for all involved in the date to return to their homes.

Pinkie Pie with Gummy attached to her tail, Lyra with Weed Whacker on her back, and my character with Scout leading the way leave Ponyville and head through the Everfree forest and back to his house.

When they get there, Scout takes his position on the front porch, while the rest of the group goes inside.

Once my character, the last to enter, closes the door behind him, Pinkie Pie approaches him and asks if she and I can talk in my room.

I agree, and my character follows her to his room.

Once there in my character’s bedroom, as he closes the door, Pinkie Pie gallops to and jumps onto his bed, then turns and settles into a sphinx-style sitting position. Then, when my character turns and approaches her, she says, “You know, when I started this fast, I was hoping for a good experience. And, I did have one. I wasn’t expecting to have to give my meal to a foal; but, when I did, I knew it was the right thing to do. I knew it when I saw Namby Pamby smiling and eating, and heard him thanking me.” She looks down and sighs, then looks up at my character again and says, “So, is it alright if I end my fast now?”

I have my character kneel on one knee in front of the pink earth pony, and I say, “That is your option. But, as I remember, you did Pinkie promise not to end your fast until dinner.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie closes her eyes, tightly, then buries her face in her forelimbs, and says, “Oh, yeah, that’s right.” After a second or two, she looks up at my character again, eyes open, and says, “Thanks for reminding me, Mormon.”

I smile and answer, “I’m glad I could help.”

Then, Pinkie Pie rises to all fours again and says, “We need to go and get ready for the reading.”

I nod in agreement, then have my character stand up again and go to the door.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie, as soon as her way is clear, jumps off my character’s bed and follows him to the door.

I have my character allow Pinkie to leave first, then follow behind her, closing his bedroom door behind him.

By the time the human and the earth pony are in the front room, it seems that Lyra and Weed Whacker have disappeared.

Pinkie Pie vocalizes my assumption, as she turns to my character and says, “Lyra and Weed Whacker must’ve gone out to the veggie garden and vineyard. Let’s go out to the orchard.”

I only nod in agreement, and Pinkie leads the way through the front room to the door, while my character follows behind her, closing doors along the way.

In the orchard, as usual, Pinkie “Diane” Pie chooses an apple tree and kicks it, and knocks some half a dozen apples out of it. Then, Pinkie “Pinkamena” Pie gathers three of the apples, while my character gathers the other three; and the human and the earth pony return to the front porch of the house, where they meet up with Lyra and Weed Whacker.

My character opens the door, and the two ponies and the dinosaur enter, at which point my character follows, closing the front door behind them.

This time, Pinkie chooses to cut the fruits and vegetables, using the curl in her forehead to hold the knife, while Lyra takes the sliced fruits and vegetables and arranges them on a small platter she produced from a cupboard. And, whereas Pinkie Pie’s arrangements tended to look like some type of crown, Lyra’s arrangement reminds me of a rounded hill or something like that. And, the group is once again ready just in time for guests to start arriving for the reading.

Again the two ponies and the dinosaur help get the platter out the door, while my character gets the TV tray to put in place for them to put the platter on.

The readers settle in the same positions around the circle they’ve been sitting in for the previous two days, making it easy for me to decide who should read next.

As soon as the readers in the group have shown that they've found the right page in their books, I have my character turn to the purple unicorn; and I ask, "Twilight Sparkle, will you read the first verse of chapter five?"

She nods in agreement, then looks down and reads, "And now, it came to pass that when king Benjamin had thus spoken to his people, he sent among them, desiring to know of his people if they believed the words which he had spoken unto them."

Spike then reads, "And they all cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually." He then looks up and wonders aloud, "When he says 'they cried with one voice,' does he mean they called out in unison, like, all at the same time?"

I answer, "I suppose that's one possibility. But, it's also possible that they all said the same thing, or at least had the same concept or concepts to communicate to King Benjamin."

Rarity reads, "And we, ourselves, also, through the infinite goodness of God, and the manifestations of his Spirit, have great views of that which is to come; and were it expedient, we could prophesy of all things."

Applejack reads, "And it is the faith which we have had on the things which our king has spoken unto us that has brought us to this great knowledge, whereby we do rejoice with such exceedingly great joy."

Fluttershy reads, "And we are willing to enter into a covenant with our God to do his will, and to be obedient to his commandments in all things that he shall command us, all the remainder of our days, that we may not bring upon ourselves a never-ending torment, as has been spoken by the angel, that we may not drink out of the cup of the wrath of God."

Lyra reads, "And now, these are the words which king Benjamin desired of them; and therefore he said unto them: Ye have spoken the words that I desired; and the covenant which ye have made is a righteous covenant."

I read, "And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters."

Weed Whacker reads, "And under this head ye are made free, and there is no other head whereby ye can be made free. There is no other name given whereby salvation cometh; therefore, I would that ye should take upon you the name of Christ, all you that have entered into the covenant with God that ye should be obedient unto the end of your lives."

Princess Luna reads, "And it shall come to pass that whosoever doeth this shall be found at the right hand of God, for he shall know the name by which he is called; for he shall be called by the name of Christ."

Princess Celestia reads, "And now it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall not take upon him the name of Christ must be called by some other name; therefore, he findeth himself on the left hand of God."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And I would that ye should remember also, that this is the name that I said I should give unto you that never should be blotted out, except it be through transgression; therefore, take heed that ye do not transgress, that the name be not blotted out of your hearts."

Pinkie Pie reads, "I say unto you, I would that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts, that ye are not found on the left hand of God, but that ye hear and know the voice by which ye shall be called, and also, the name by which he shall call you."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?"

Spike reads, "And again, doth a man take an ass which belongeth to his neighbor, and keep him? I say unto you, Nay; he will not even suffer that he shall feed among his flocks, but will drive him away, and cast him out. I say unto you, that even so shall it be among you if ye know not the name by which ye are called."

Rarity reads, "Therefore, I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in good works, that Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his, that you may be brought to heaven, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life, through the wisdom, and power, and justice, and mercy of him who created all things, in heaven and in earth, who is God above all. Amen."

Applejack then looks up and says, "Ah s'pose that means Ah get to start readin' chapter six." She then looks down again and reads, "And now, king Benjamin thought it was expedient, after having finished speaking to the people, that he should take the names of all those who had entered into a covenant with God to keep his commandments."

Fluttershy reads, "And it came to pass that there was not one soul, except it were little children, but who had entered into the covenant and had taken upon them the name of Christ."

Lyra reads, "And again, it came to pass that when king Benjamin had made an end of all these things, and had consecrated his son Mosiah to be a ruler and a king over his people, and had given him all the charges concerning the kingdom, and also had appointed priests to teach the people, that thereby they might hear and know the commandments of God, and to stir them up in remembrance of the oath which they had made, he dismissed the multitude, and they returned, every one, according to their families, to their own houses."

I read, "And Mosiah began to reign in his father’s stead. And he began to reign in the thirtieth year of his age, making in the whole, about four hundred and seventy-six years from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem."

Weed Whacker reads, "And king Benjamin lived three years and he died."

At this point, Spike speaks up again and says, "I'm assuming that Mormon means that King Benjamin lived three years after this before he died."

Princess Luna turns to the purple dragon and says, "That does make sense." She then looks down at her book and reads, "And it came to pass that king Mosiah did walk in the ways of the Lord, and did observe his judgments and his statutes, and did keep his commandments in all things whatsoever he commanded him."

Princess Celestia reads, "And king Mosiah did cause his people that they should till the earth. And he also, himself, did till the earth, that thereby he might not become burdensome to his people, that he might do according to that which his father had done in all things. And there was no contention among all his people for the space of three years." She then looks up and says, "The best kind of leader is the one that leads by example."

At this point, before Rainbow Dash can mention the seventh chapter, I have my character stand up; and I say, "Now, let me just mention that there's something of an odd situation here. I'm aware that, while everyone here has had a chance to read at least one verse, there are only two who haven't had a chance to read two verses. Chapter seven has thirty-three verses in it. So, my question right now is, do you want to end the reading with chapter six for tonight, or do you want to read chapter seven tonight as well, and we can read, or at least start with, chapter eight tomorrow?"

There seems to be a debate that lasts for a few seconds, that is until I hear Pinkie Pie loudly suggest, "Let's go ahead and read chapter seven!" Then, there seems to be general agreement.

So, as my character sits down again, Rainbow Dash reads, "And now, it came to pass that after king Mosiah had had continual peace for the space of three years, he was desirous to know concerning the people who went up to dwell in the land of Lehi-Nephi, or in the city of Lehi-Nephi; for his people had heard nothing from them from the time they left the land of Zarahemla; therefore, they wearied him with their teasings." She then looks up and says, "I'm guessing the people had been making jokes about this group that had disappeared. That, or they were frequently asking questions about them. Whatever the case was, King Mosiah was getting tired of it."

Pinkie Pie then reads, "And it came to pass that king Mosiah granted that sixteen of their strong men might go up to the land of Lehi-Nephi, to inquire concerning their brethren."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And it came to pass that on the morrow they started to go up, having with them one Ammon, he being a strong and mighty man, and a descendant of Zarahemla; and he was also their leader."

Spike reads, "And now, they knew not the course they should travel in the wilderness to go up to the land of Lehi-Nephi; therefore they wandered many days in the wilderness, even forty days did they wander." The little purple dragon then looks up, shrugs, and says, "I guess they didn't have any good trails to follow. It must've been years since the group had left, and the trail they followed was overgrown with weeds and stuff."

Rarity reads, "And when they had wandered forty days they came to a hill, which is north of the land of Shilom, and there they pitched their tents."

Applejack reads, "And Ammon took three of his brethren, and their names were Amaleki, Helem, and Hem, and they went down into the land of Nephi."

Fluttershy reads, "And behold, they met the king of the people who were in the land of Nephi, and in the land of Shilom; and they were surrounded by the king’s guard, and were taken, and were bound, and were committed to prison." She then looks up and says, "I'm sure these people living in the land of Shilom had their reasons for taking Ammon and the three that were with him and throwing them in jail. But, still, it wasn't very nice of them."

Lyra reads, "And it came to pass when they had been in prison two days they were again brought before the king, and their bands were loosed; and they stood before the king, and were permitted, or rather commanded, that they should answer the questions which he should ask them."

I read, "And he said unto them: Behold, I am Limhi, the son of Noah, who was the son of Zeniff, who came up out of the land of Zarahemla to inherit this land, which was the land of their fathers, who was made a king by the voice of the people."

Weed Whacker reads, "And now, I desire to know the cause whereby ye were so bold as to come near the walls of the city, when I, myself, was with my guards without the gate?"

Princess Luna reads, "And now, for this cause have I suffered that ye should be preserved, that I might inquire of you, or else I should have caused that my guards should have put you to death. Ye are permitted to speak."

Princess Celestia reads, "And now, when Ammon saw that he was permitted to speak, he went forth and bowed himself before the king; and rising again he said: O king, I am very thankful before God this day that I am yet alive, and am permitted to speak; and I will endeavor to speak with boldness;"

Rainbow Dash reads, "For I am assured that if ye had known me ye would not have suffered that I should have worn these bands. For I am Ammon, and am a descendant of Zarahemla, and have come up out of the land of Zarahemla to inquire concerning our brethren, whom Zeniff brought up out of that land."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And now, it came to pass that after Limhi had heard the words of Ammon, he was exceedingly glad, and said: Now, I know of a surety that my brethren who were in the land of Zarahemla are yet alive. And now, I will rejoice; and on the morrow I will cause that my people shall rejoice also."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "For behold, we are in bondage to the Lamanites, and are taxed with a tax which is grievous to be borne. And now, behold, our brethren will deliver us out of our bondage, or out of the hands of the Lamanites, and we will be their slaves; for it is better that we be slaves to the Nephites than to pay tribute to the king of the Lamanites." She then looks up and wonders aloud, "Did Limhi really think he and his people were going to be slaves to the Nephites? From what I've read about Ammon up to this point, he doesn't seem like the type to make slaves of anypony."

Spike answers, "I don't think so either." He then reads, "And now, king Limhi commanded his guards that they should no more bind Ammon nor his brethren, but caused that they should go to the hill which was north of Shilom, and bring their brethren into the city, that thereby they might eat, and drink, and rest themselves from the labors of their journey; for they had suffered many things; they had suffered hunger, thirst, and fatigue." He then looks up and says, "Well, it's good that that was cleared up."

Rarity reads, "And now, it came to pass on the morrow that king Limhi sent a proclamation among all his people, that thereby they might gather themselves together to the temple, to hear the words which he should speak unto them."

Applejack reads, "And it came to pass that when they had gathered themselves together that he spake unto them in this wise, saying: O ye, my people, lift up your heads and be comforted; for behold, the time is at hand, or is not far distant, when we shall no longer be in subjection to our enemies, notwithstanding our many strugglings, which have been in vain; yet I trust there remaineth an effectual struggle to be made." She then looks up, tilts her head, and wonders aloud, "What the hay does 'effectual' mean?"

Pinkie Pie answers, "Simply put, Limhi is saying that there are still some tough times ahead for him and his people before they can escape from their troubles with the Lamanites."

Fluttershy reads, "Therefore, lift up your heads, and rejoice, and put your trust in God, in that God who was the God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob; and also, that God who brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, and caused that they should walk through the Red Sea on dry ground, and fed them with manna that they might not perish in the wilderness; and many more things did he do for them."

Lyra reads, "And again, that same God has brought our fathers out of the land of Jerusalem, and has kept and preserved his people even until now; and behold, it is because of our iniquities and abominations that he has brought us into bondage."

I read, "And ye all are witnesses this day, that Zeniff, who was made king over this people, he being over-zealous to inherit the land of his fathers, therefore being deceived by the cunning and craftiness of king Laman, who having entered into a treaty with king Zeniff, and having yielded up into his hands the possessions of a part of the land, or even the city of Lehi-Nephi, and the city of Shilom; and the land round about—" At this point, I add, "Evidently, Ammon and his party had found what they were looking for."

Weed Whacker reads. "And all this he did, for the sole purpose of bringing this people into subjection or into bondage. And behold, we at this time do pay tribute to the king of the Lamanites, to the amount of one half of our corn, and our barley, and even all our grain of every kind, and one half of the increase of our flocks and our herds; and even one half of all we have or possess the king of the Lamanites doth exact of us, or our lives."

Princess Luna reads. "And now, is not this grievous to be borne? And is not this, our affliction, great? Now behold, how great reason we have to mourn."

Princess Celestia reads, "Yea, I say unto you, great are the reasons which we have to mourn; for behold how many of our brethren have been slain, and their blood has been spilt in vain, and all because of iniquity."

Rainbow Dash reads, "For if this people had not fallen into transgression the Lord would not have suffered that this great evil should come upon them. But behold, they would not hearken unto his words; but there arose contentions among them, even so much that they did shed blood among themselves."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And a prophet of the Lord have they slain; yea, a chosen man of God, who told them of their wickedness and abominations, and prophesied of many things which are to come, yea, even the coming of Christ."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And because he said unto them that Christ was the God, the Father of all things, and said that he should take upon him the image of man, and it should be the image after which man was created in the beginning; or in other words, he said that man was created after the image of God, and that God should come down among the children of men, and take upon him flesh and blood, and go forth upon the face of the earth—"

Spike reads, "And now, because he said this, they did put him to death; and many more things did they do which brought down the wrath of God upon them. Therefore, who wondereth that they are in bondage, and that they are smitten with sore afflictions?"

Rarity reads, "For behold, the Lord hath said: I will not succor my people in the day of their transgression; but I will hedge up their ways that they prosper not; and their doings shall be as a stumbling block before them."

Applejack reads, "And again, he saith: If my people shall sow filthiness they shall reap the chaff thereof in the whirlwind; and the effect thereof is poison."

Fluttershy reads, "And again he saith: If my people shall sow filthiness they shall reap the east wind, which bringeth immediate destruction."

Lyra reads, "And now, behold, the promise of the Lord is fulfilled, and ye are smitten and afflicted."

I read, "But if ye will turn to the Lord with full purpose of heart, and put your trust in him, and serve him with all diligence of mind, if ye do this, he will, according to his own will and pleasure, deliver you out of bondage." I then have my character stand up again, and I say, "And, that concludes the reading for this evening. I hope you enjoyed it. Thank you for coming, and I hope you have a safe trip to your homes."

As ponies and dragons rise and the circle breaks up, Princess Celestia approaches my character and says, “I’ve noticed that Pinkie Pie is the only one that hasn’t eaten anything before or during the reading.” She then tilts her head and asks, “Is she alright?”

I can see, through my character’s eyes, the worry in those of the daytime princess. I answer, “I can assure you she’s fine. I’m sure she’ll explain her reasons for not eating when she’s ready, most likely in a report to you.”

Princess Celestia’s worried look doesn’t change as she straightens her head and says, “I hope you’re right.” Then, she joins her sister, and the two disappear.

In the mean time, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and Pinkie Pie eventually filter out of the group and gather on the front porch, while the other six line up at the front gate, ready to leave.

I have my character go to the front gate and open it, allowing the five ponies and one dragon to exit through it, then close the gate behind the last to leave, Applejack. Then, after the group of six disappears into the forest, I have my character turn and head back to the front porch.

Pinkie Pie opens the front door with the curl in her forehead, then leads the group inside.

My character, the last to enter, closes the door behind him; then I hear Pinkie Pie say, “If the rest of you will wait here, I’ll be back in a minute or two.” My character then turns to show me, through his eyes, the pink earth pony disappear through the kitchen door.

I then hear Lyra say, “Mormon, I’m as worried about Pinkie Pie as Princess Celestia is. Are you sure there’s nothing wrong with her?”

My character automatically focuses on the pale-green unicorn, and I answer, “Yes, I’m sure. Just give her enough time to come back out again, and she’ll join us in harvesting food for dinner, and she’ll also join us in eating.”

Lyra looks down at the floor immediately in front of her and sighs, then says, “I’ve never had a reason to doubt you before.” She then looks up at my character again and adds, “I hope I don’t get that reason now.”

I see, through my character’s eyes, Weed Whacker look up at him and open her mouth; but, before she can say anything, the kitchen door opens; and Pinkie Pie comes back into the front room.

Smiling, the pink earth pony says, “Well, it looks like everypony’s ready. Let’s go get some food!” And, with that, she proceeds toward the front door.

The pale-green unicorn and the dinosaur watch Pinkie Pie as she passes between them, then start to follow her once she’s a few inches ahead of them.

Yet, I can’t help noticing that, from what I can see of Lyra’s face, she still looks worried. As my character steps aside and allows Pinkie Pie to open the front door with her curl, I have my character wait for the two ponies and the dinosaur to go ahead of him before he follows them.

In the orchard, Pinkie “Diane” Pie chooses a tree and kicks it, knocking four apples out of it.

In the mean time, I decide to have my character pick a few summer fruits from the peach and apricot trees.

When Pinkie “Pinkamena” Pie has gathered the apples in her mane, she jumps over the fence and gallops back to the porch, while my character follows behind her, to join up with her, Lyra, and Weed Whacker.

I have my character open the door for the ponies and dinosaur to enter ahead of him, then close the door after he’s entered. Then, he automatically goes ahead of the ponies and dinosaur and opens the kitchen door for them, allowing them to enter first before following them and closing the door behind him again.

From there, it’s pretty much business as usual. Weed Whacker, in the sink, cleans the fruits and vegetables, which my character hands to Pinkie Pie and Lyra to dry off and place in the middle of the table. When all the fruits and vegetables are cleaned, the two ponies, the dinosaur, and the human take their places around the table and eat the meal they’ve gathered.

It’s clear to me, watching Lyra and Weed Whacker as they watch Pinkie Pie eat, that they’re relieved to see her eating again. I wonder if I should mention to them why Pinkie Pie was neither eating nor drinking anything until now.

But, it seems I’m not the only one that’s noticed the attention Lyra and Weed Whacker have been giving their pink friend. Pinkie Pie, evidently noticing them, puts down the apple she’s been eating and says, looking at the apple, “I’m guessing you’re wondering why I haven’t been eating today.” She watches the unicorn and the dinosaur nod, then says, looking and pointing at my character, “Mormon here introduced me to an idea last night, called fasting, and I thought I’d try it out.” I then see her smile as she continues, “I can’t say how well it worked, I can just say that it has. I’ve been able to help you, Lyra, write your song, and I got a really good feeling when I gave my food to Namby Pamby after Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon stole his from him. I know that was the right thing to do." She then turns to my character, to me, and says, "Thanks, Mormon.”

I nod and answer, “I’m glad I could help.”

Pinkie then divides her attention between Lyra and Weed Whacker as she says, “After dinner, if you want, I’ll explain it to you the way Mormon explained it to me, and maybe some day you’ll want to try it.”

I can’t help noticing the doubtful looks the unicorn and the dinosaur are giving each other. Evidently, neither of the two is sure they want to try this fasting thing Pinkie Pie mentioned for any period of time.

After dinner, each of the four goes to his or her room, and I have my character write his letter to the princess. I don’t have my character write that Pinkie Pie was fasting, I leave that up to Pinkie Pie to decide if she wants to mention it or not. I do mention, though, that she helped Lyra write a song, and that she gave a meal to a foal that had his stolen from him by a couple of school bullies. Again, whatever emotions Pinkie Pie felt during that time I leave up to her to write about. I leave such information out of my letter. At any rate, I have my character sign and roll up the letter, after which he delivers it to Weed Whacker to send to the princesses. Then, he returns to his room and goes to bed.

Once again, I can think of no more to write about this game day. So, I save and close the game, looking forward to the next time I play.

Actually, there is one thing I think I should mention. The next few game days will be episode-based days, the first four of which will each be two days based on an episode. After that, well, we shall see what I get from what I’ve invested in Pinkie Pie up to that point. But, I can wait for that.

Chapter 29: Comet-ology

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I resume the game, and my character wakes up, once again, to silence. Experience tells me that Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker must be harvesting fruits and vegetables in the orchard, the vineyard, and the vegetable garden, respectively; and that, by the time my character gets to the front door, Pinkie Pie will most likely be waiting for him there. Deciding to go ahead with that plan, I have my character leave his bed, exit his room, closing the door behind him, and proceed to the front door.

And, sure enough, as soon as he opens it, I see, through his eyes, the pink party pony there waiting for him.

Pinkie Pie looks up at him and says, “Oh, hi, Mormy. Nice to see you.”

I reply, “Hi, Pinkie.”

As she canters through the front door and past my character, Pinkie Pie says, “As soon as we get to Sugar Cube Corner, there’s something I’d like to do. Do you think you could help the Cakes until I come back?”

I have a sneaking suspicion I know what Pinkie Pie’s planning, but I see no reason to interfere. I answer, “Sure, no problem. Be sure to come back as soon as you can.”

By the time I’m finished answering the pink earth pony, she’s already disappeared behind the couch closest to the kitchen, so, I can only hear her answer, “Okie dokie, Mormy.”

I watch, through my character’s eyes, as the door to the kitchen opens, then closes, then have him turn back to the front door to close it again. But, before I can order him to do so, I see Lyra and Weed Whacker approaching. So, I have my character remain in his place as I say, “Oh, hi, Lyra, Weed Whacker.”

Lyra responds, “Mormon, you’re awake.”

Weed Whacker asks, “So, what’s the plan after we eat?”

I answer the dinosaur, “Well, as usual, we head to Ponyville, and help the Cakes out at Sugar Cube Corner.”

As the pony and the dinosaur pass my character at the front door, Weed Whacker continues, “I hope we leave soon. I’ve been sensing a predator in the forest, one that could eat me.”

Considering the number and variety of predators and other creatures I’ve met in the forest, I find Weed Whacker’s description rather vague. I have my character close the door behind the herbivorous dinosaur, the last to enter; and I ask, “Could you be more specific?”

As my character turns to Weed Whacker, she turns to him as well; and I can see, through his eyes, she sniffles long enough to make me think she’s about to start crying, then says, “I think there’s a grown-up, rock-eating dragon in the forest, and I think he may be coming to your house.”

Considering this day is the first based on the episode “Owl’s Well That Ends Well,” that doesn’t surprise me. What does surprise me is that I haven’t encountered this dragon before. Whatever reason he has to make himself known at this point is a mystery I’m sure will be solved before the day is over. I decide to respond, “I’m sure it’ll be alright. Did you sense anger from the dragon?”

Weed Whacker whimpers, “No. I just get really nervous when I sense predators like that around.”

I say, “Let’s just get breakfast ready and eat. We’ll decide what to do after that.”

The herbivorous dinosaur only nods before turning and heading into the kitchen, where it turns out Pinkie Pie is waiting, holding the door open for the dinosaur and the unicorn.

Preparation doesn’t take long; and soon the ponies, the dinosaur, and the human are eating.

It’s actually not until the group of four are each on their last item of food that the house is suddenly shaken by a loud, heavy thud.

Immediately, Weed Whacker drops the carrot she was eating and cries out, “What was that?”

I have my character rise from his chair, and I say, “I’ll go and find out. The rest of you, just wait here.”

Lyra reaches out to Weed Whacker to nuzzle her.

But, instead of accepting the unicorn’s attempt to comfort her, the herbivorous dinosaur jumps off of her chair and runs in front of my character, positioning herself between him and the door. Holding her arms out to block my character, she looks up at him and cries, “Please, Mormon, don’t go out there. I don’t want to lose you.”

I have my character kneel on one knee in front of Weed Whacker, and I say, “At this point, we can do one of two things. We can either stay trapped in here for … who knows how long, or one of us can go out there and face whatever danger is out there. And, since this is my house, I think it’s best if I go out there and see what's going on. If it is that dragon you’ve been sensing, well, you said you didn’t sense he was angry; so, I shouldn’t have anything to fear from him. He may simply be curious. Whatever the case is, it’s better to face the problem now than be held captive by it, maybe for the rest of our lives.”

As soon as my character’s finished speaking, the herbivorous dinosaur jumps into his arms, then, through her sniffling and whimpering, says, “Alright, Mormon. J-just be c-careful out th-there.”

I have my character stroke her back and set her back in her chair, and I say, “I will be careful. Thanks for the advice.” And, as soon as Weed Whacker's back in her chair, I have my character proceed out the kitchen door, closing it behind him, through the front room and to the front door. As he opens the door, I see, through his eyes, a dragon that looks like the one Fluttershy convinced to leave, standing on the opposite side of the trail from my character’s house. The only difference is this one is green instead of red.

Before I can say anything, the dragon says, as soon as he sees me, “You must be the human that was with the ponies that convinced a friend of mine to go to another mountain to sleep.”

I respond, “That’s right. My name …”

Before I can say anything more, the dragon looks away from my character, closes his eyes, holds out a hand, palm facing my character, and says, “Name’s aren’t important right now.” He then puts the hand down, opens his eyes again, turns back to my character, and continues, “What is important is that I have the opportunity to meet the human my friend talked about.”

I open my mouth to speak, but then I notice the dragon sniffing. So, I decide not to say anything.

Just as well, since I see the dragon pull a face, making me think he may be disgusted with whatever he smelled, after which he asks, “Why do I smell the deteriorating remains of a griffon, and … burned oats?”

I have an idea of what the green dragon is talking about. But, I decide to answer, “That’s kind of a long story.” Then, in an attempt to return to the subject he had brought up before, I ask, “So, you’re friends with the red dragon that was on the mountain over there?” And, I have my character point to the mountain where the dragon had chosen to sleep before Fluttershy convinced him to leave.

The dragon looks in the direction where my character is pointing, then back at him again, and answers, “That’s correct. He was hoping to sleep there, but was interrupted when a group of ponies, accompanied by a human, entered his cave. He said one of the ponies, a white unicorn, tried to steal his gems; the human sang to him; a blue pegasus with rainbow-colored hair kicked him in the nose; and a yellow pegasus with pink hair was the one that told him off, and convinced him to go somewhere else.

"He came to me and asked if he could sleep in my cave. I told him he could, after I moved my supplies out. Since then, I moved to the forest here, and dug out another cave for myself. I hope you don’t mind if I spend some time here.”

I state, “I can’t speak for the ponies that live in the nearby village; but, as long as you don’t cause a disturbance, no one should bother you here.”

The dragon nods and says, “Good. I may visit again.” He then flies off, over my character’s house, and further into the forest.

With that dragon gone, at least for the time being, I have my character close the front door, then return to the kitchen. I notice that Weed Whacker is being comforted by Lyra. I say, "I think I may have made a new friend here in the forest.”

Weed Whacker whimpers, “Please tell me he’s not coming back here.”

I reply, “He probably will.” Then, as I see the little herbivorous dinosaur start to sob again, I add, “I’m sure it’ll be alright. He won’t be coming to eat you.”

Weed Whacker manages to stammer out, “B-but, h-he’s a b-b-big d-d-dragon.”

I state, “And, I’ve made friends with him. And, as long as I maintain that friendship with him, I’m sure he won’t eat any of my other friends, including you. Besides, he eats rocks, remember?”

Weed Whacker continues to whimper, “And—w-what—if—h-he—w-wants—m-meat?”

I answer, “My house isn’t the only source of food, and is hardly the largest. That dragon has the whole forest to choose from, more and larger creatures than what live here to hunt for food if he wants meat. If he comes here again, which is a possibility, it’ll more likely be because he wants to learn more about me. If you’ll remember that dragon Fluttershy convinced to leave a few weeks ago, it turns out the one that visited me is a friend of that dragon. Apparently one of the reasons for him coming here was because he wanted to meet me. His friend told him about how I sang to him.”

Weed Whacker relaxes somewhat, and I’m sure the next question is more out of curiosity than fear: “Do you think he’ll ask you to sing to him?”

I answer, “It’s a possibility. I guess I’ll find out the next time he comes by for a visit.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and says, “Well, the rest of us have finished eating. As soon as you’re done, we can head out to Ponyville.”

My character turns to his place at the table and shows me, through his eyes, that he still has an apple he has yet to finish eating. So, with my permission, he goes ahead and eats the rest of the apple. Then, after the cleanup, Pinkie Pie leads the group while my character follows at the end of the line to close doors that are opened, as they proceed out of the house and through the front gate. And, from there on, they head through the forest and into Ponyville.

As soon as the four enter Sugar Cube Corner through the back door, Pinkie Pie notices Mrs. Cake putting a freshly-baked loaf of bread on the island. She says to the blue earth mare, “If it’s alright with you, I need to go into town for a few minutes. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Mrs. Cake turns to the pink earth pony, smiles, and says, “Sure, dearie, you can go right on ahead.”

Pinkie Pie takes only a second to smile back and say, “Thank you, Mrs. Cake,” before she turns around and gallops out the still-open back door.

As my character proceeds to close the door once it’s clear, I ask, “So, Mrs. Cake, what do you want us to do?”

As my character turns to her again, the blue earth mare smiles as she says, “Oh, the same things you’ve been doing the last few times you were here.”

Accepting that as an invitation, the unicorn, the dinosaur and the human take their positions and proceed with their tasks.

It’s about the time that my character puts a loaf of bread in the oven when Pinkie Pie enters and approaches him. She says, “If you’ll follow me to my room, I have something to talk with you about.”

I can guess what it’s going to be, but I can also guess why Pinkie Pie wants to keep it between me and her.

Before I can respond, though, Pinkie Pie turns toward the doorway between the kitchen and the main room and says, “Mr. Cake, Mormon and I have something we need to talk about. Is it alright if we use my old room upstairs?”

As my character focuses on the doorway, I can see the orange earth stallion smile as he says, “Sure, Pinkie Pie. Go right ahead.”

Pinkie Pie takes only a moment to sing, “Thank you,” before trotting past Mr. Cake, to the stairs in the main room, and to the door of her old bedroom, where she opens it and enters, with my character following close behind her.

Once the two are inside, and the door is closed, Pinkie Pie turns to my character, sits canine-style, and says, “Now, if you’ll use that ‘soundproof’ cheat on this room, we can talk.”

Agreeing with the pink earth pony, I click on the room and say, “Soundproof on” to keep the conversation between the two of us inside the room. After that, I ask, “So, Pinkie, what did you want to talk about?”

Pinkie answers, “I went to the clinic to get a blood test. They have all the equipment there so they got the results back in a few seconds. Well, as it turns out, my blood-sugar level is where it should be for a healthy pony. But, the doctor pony said something else that made me laugh.” And, she covers her mouth with the joint of a front hoof and giggles.

I ask, “And, what was that?”

Pinkie Pie puts her hoof down again and, smiling, says, “Well, do you remember when you said that fasting was meant to be a growth experience?” Not waiting for an answer, she continues, “Well the doctor pony said he found a lot of pony growth hormone in my blood.”

That doesn’t surprise me at all, considering what I’ve heard about experiments with humans fasting. I seem to remember hearing somewhere in a scientific study that humans that did a proper fast would have a lot of human growth hormone in their blood. It doesn’t surprise me, it wouldn’t surprise me, to find that other creatures that would do a proper fast, as Pinkie Pie did, would likely have their own version of growth hormone in their blood, in fact more than usual. Evidently it worked that way with Pinkie Pie and pony growth hormone.

Before I can say as much, Pinkie Pie asks, “Is that what you meant when you said that fasting was going to be a growing experience for me?”

I answer, “Pretty much. I’ve heard that humans that have a proper fast not only have a decrease in health problems, but they also have a lot of human growth hormone in their blood. I’m not surprised that it worked similarly on you. And besides, God did promise, through Isaiah, that a proper fast would mean that the health of the one who fasted would ‘spring forth speedily’.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie does surprise me by jumping into my character’s arms and hugging him, sobbing as she says, “Thank you, Mormon. I didn’t doubt at all that I’d have a good experience fasting. I just wanna thank you for helping me through it.”

My character automatically closes his arms around the pink earth pony and hugs her in return, and I say, “I’m glad I could be of service.” Then, as she pushes away from my character, and he lets her go, I ask, “So, shall we go back downstairs again?”

Pinkie Pie slides down my character’s front to the floor again, then shakes herself out, then looks up at my character and answers, “Sure. Just remember to turn off the soundproof cheat for this room before we leave.”

I respond, “No problem,” then click on the room again and say, “Soundproof off,” then have my character open the door for Pinkie Pie and him to exit again.

As my character follows the pink earth pony down the stairs, I happen to notice, from about the upper half of my character’s periphery, the front door open, and Twilight Sparkle enter.

The purple unicorn also notices the pink earth pony and the human making their way down the stairs, as she says, “Oh, hi, Pinkie, Mormon.”

At the same time, Pinkie Pie and I say “hello” to Twilight, after which Pinkie Pie asks, “How are you?”

Smiling, the purple unicorn answers, “I’m fine. I just came by to tell you about the meteor shower tonight, and ask if you’d like to watch it with us on the hill just outside of Ponyville, just off the path to the Everfree forest.”

Pinkie Pie responds by bouncing off the stairs and toward Twilight, saying, “Oh, oh, I wanna go, I wanna go.”

I’ve seen the meteor shower in the episode, “Owl’s Well That Ends Well,” but I have yet to see it in this video game setting. And, I figure, why not? So, I answer, “Sure. As long as Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker are willing, I’ll be happy to come along.”

Twilight Sparkle smiles as she says, “Well, we know that Pinkie wants to go. So, all we need to do is find out if Lyra and Weed Whacker also want to go.”

At this point, Lyra emerges from the kitchen and asks, “Go where?”

I open my mouth to answer, but Twilight answers ahead of me, “There’s a meteor shower tonight, and I just came by to ask if anypony here wanted to see it. Pinkie wants to go, and Mormon said he’s willing as long as you and Weed Whacker also want to.”

Lyra’s first response is to rub her chin with a front hoof while saying, “Meteor showers don’t come along that often.” She then puts the hoof down and turns to the purple unicorn and says, “Just a minute. I’ll go get Weed Whacker.” And, she disappears from the doorway, only to appear a second later with Weed Whacker on her back. She then asks, “What was your question again, Twilight?”

The purple unicorn answers, “I just wanted to know, how many here want to come and see the meteor shower tonight? We’ll be watching it on the hill just outside of Ponyville, near the path to the Everfree forest.”

Weed Whacker answers, “I’ve never seen a meteor shower before. Sure, I wanna see it.”

Lyra, who’s attention had been on the herbivorous dinosaur, turns back to Twilight and, smiling, answers, “I’d like to go, too.”

At this point, I say, “Well, I guess the vote’s unanimous, then.”

Smiling back, Twilight says, “Excellent.” She then turns to the orange earth stallion at the cash register and asks, “Mr. Cake, would you and Mrs. Cake like to come and see the meteor shower?”

Mr. Cake also smiles as he answers, “We appreciate the invitation. But, after the reading at Town Hall, well, we need to get the foals home and back to bed, and we just can’t leave them alone. We’re sorry.”

Twilight replies, “That’s alright, Mr. Cake. I understand.” She then turns back to the front door and says, “Well, I guess I’d better tell Spike to expect Pinkie Pie, Mormon, Lyra, and Weed Whacker to join us.” And, with that, she leaves through the front door.

Led by Pinkie Pie, my character returns to the kitchen and joins in with baking pastries.

Thus passes the rest of the day, with Lyra and Weed Whacker preparing the batter and my character putting the prepared loaves of bread and other pastries in the oven, then removing them when they’re ready.

And, in the mean time, Pinkie Pie taste tests the batter or dough to make sure it’s alright. And, as proof that she remembers the advice I gave her, she only takes small samples of the dough or batter.

After the Cakes close down Sugar Cube Corner, the group of four make their way out of Ponyville, through the Everfree forest, and back to my character’s house. And, along the way, of the things talked about among the two ponies and the dinosaur, I remember Pinkie Pie saying something about being happy that she can eat sweets without feeling sick, even if she has to limit herself.

Back at my character’s house, the four split up and harvest fruits and vegetables, then take them inside and prepare them for the reading. And, anymore, I don’t find it surprising that the visitors for the reading arrive just as the treats are ready for them. Whether intentional or not, the two events are very well timed.

This time, it’s Pinkie Pie who greets guests at the gate, while my character takes the short TV table out so that Lyra and Weed Whacker can place the tray of snacks they carry onto it.

And, as seems to have become normal over the past few days, at least since coming back from Appleoosa, the ponies and dragons have taken familiar positions around the elevated snack tray.

As soon as I see that everyone is ready to read, I have my character turn to the purple dragon, and I ask, "Spike, will you read verse one of chapter eight of Mosiah?"

The purple dragon smiles and says, "Well, I'd be happy to," before looking down into his book and reading, "And it came to pass that after king Limhi had made an end of speaking to his people, for he spake many things unto them and only a few of them have I written in this book, he told his people all the things concerning their brethren who were in the land of Zarahemla."

Rarity then reads, "And he caused that Ammon should stand up before the multitude, and rehearse unto them all that had happened unto their brethren from the time that Zeniff went up out of the land even until the time that he himself came up out of the land." She then looks up and says, "I wonder how many of those were individuals asking questions for Ammon to answer."

Applejack reads, "And he also rehearsed unto them the last words which king Benjamin had taught them, and explained them to the people of king Limhi, so that they might understand all the words which he spake."

Fluttershy reads, "And it came to pass that after he had done all this, that king Limhi dismissed the multitude, and caused that they should return every one unto his own house."

Lyra reads, "And it came to pass that he caused that the plates which contained the record of his people from the time that they left the land of Zarahemla, should be brought before Ammon, that he might read them." She then grunts with interest as she looks up, then says, "Evidently, it was important to the people of Lehi-Nephi to keep records."

I read, "Now, as soon as Ammon had read the record, the king inquired of him to know if he could interpret languages, and Ammon told him that he could not."

Weed Whacker reads, "And the king said unto him: Being grieved for the afflictions of my people, I caused that forty and three of my people should take a journey into the wilderness, that thereby they might find the land of Zarahemla, that we might appeal unto our brethren to deliver us out of bondage."

Princess Luna reads, "And they were lost in the wilderness for the space of many days, yet they were diligent, and found not the land of Zarahemla but returned to this land, having traveled in a land among many waters, having discovered a land which was covered with bones of men, and of beasts, and was also covered with ruins of buildings of every kind, having discovered a land which had been peopled with a people who were as numerous as the hosts of Israel."

Princess Celestia reads, "And for a testimony that the things that they had said are true they have brought twenty-four plates which are filled with engravings, and they are of pure gold." She then looks up and says, "We'll find out, at the end of this record of the Nephites, that Moroni, the last of the Nephites, abridged the record on the twenty-four plates, and named it the Book of Ether."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And behold, also, they have brought breastplates, which are large, and they are of brass and of copper, and are perfectly sound."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And again, they have brought swords, the hilts thereof have perished, and the blades thereof were cankered with rust; and there is no one in the land that is able to interpret the language or the engravings that are on the plates. Therefore I said unto thee: Canst thou translate?"

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And I say unto thee again: Knowest thou of any one that can translate? For I am desirous that these records should be translated into our language; for, perhaps, they will give us a knowledge of a remnant of the people who have been destroyed, from whence these records came; or, perhaps, they will give us a knowledge of this very people who have been destroyed; and I am desirous to know the cause of their destruction."

Spike reads, "Now Ammon said unto him: I can assuredly tell thee, O king, of a man that can translate the records; for he has wherewith that he can look, and translate all records that are of ancient date; and it is a gift from God. And the things are called interpreters, and no man can look in them except he be commanded, lest he should look for that he ought not and he should perish. And whosoever is commanded to look in them, the same is called seer."

Rarity reads, "And behold, the king of the people who are in the land of Zarahemla is the man that is commanded to do these things, and who has this high gift from God."

Applejack reads, "And the king said that a seer is greater than a prophet." At this point, she looks up and says, "Ah'm a'guessin' that the king mentioned here is King Limhi."

Fluttershy reads, "And Ammon said that a seer is a revelator and a prophet also; and a gift which is greater can no man have, except he should possess the power of God, which no man can; yet a man may have great power given him from God."

Lyra reads, "But a seer can know of things which are past, and also of things which are to come, and by them shall all things be revealed, or, rather, shall secret things be made manifest, and hidden things shall come to light, and things which are not known shall be made known by them, and also things shall be made known by them which otherwise could not be known."

I read, "Thus God has provided a means that man, through faith, might work mighty miracles; therefore he becometh a great benefit to his fellow beings."

Weed Whacker reads, "And now, when Ammon had made an end of speaking these words the king rejoiced exceedingly, and gave thanks to God, saying: Doubtless a great mystery is contained within these plates, and these interpreters were doubtless prepared for the purpose of unfolding all such mysteries to the children of men."

Princess Luna reads, "O how marvelous are the works of the Lord, and how long doth he suffer with his people; yea, and how blind and impenetrable are the understandings of the children of men; for they will not seek wisdom, neither do they desire that she should rule over them!"

At this point, Applejack asks, "Uh, why does it say 'she should rule over them?' What 'she' is King Limhi a'talkin' 'bout?"

It takes me a moment to look at the reference, after which I answer, "In this context, King Limhi's referring to wisdom, which, in the Nephite language, is apparently feminine."

Noting that Applejack seems to be satisfied with the answer, Princess Celestia reads, "Yea, they are as a wild flock which fleeth from the shepherd, and scattereth, and are driven, and are devoured by the beasts of the forest."

Rainbow Dash looks up and says, "I guess that means I start chapter nine." Then, before anyone can stop her, she looks into her book again and reads, "I, Zeniff, having been taught in all the language of the Nephites, and having had a knowledge of the land of Nephi, or of the land of our fathers’ first inheritance, and having been sent as a spy among the Lamanites that I might spy out their forces, that our army might come upon them and destroy them—but when I saw that which was good among them I was desirous that they should not be destroyed."

Pinkie Pie reads, "Therefore, I contended with my brethren in the wilderness, for I would that our ruler should make a treaty with them; but he being an austere and a blood-thirsty man commanded that I should be slain; but I was rescued by the shedding of much blood; for father fought against father, and brother against brother, until the greater number of our army was destroyed in the wilderness; and we returned, those of us that were spared, to the land of Zarahemla, to relate that tale to their wives and their children."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And yet, I being over-zealous to inherit the land of our fathers, collected as many as were desirous to go up to possess the land, and started again on our journey into the wilderness to go up to the land; but we were smitten with famine and sore afflictions; for we were slow to remember the Lord our God." She then looks up and says, "So, this Zeniff wanted to go and get the land where Lehi and his family, and Ishmael's family, had landed, I'm guessing?"

i answer, "That's probably right."

Spike reads, "Nevertheless, after many days’ wandering in the wilderness we pitched our tents in the place where our brethren were slain, which was near to the land of our fathers."

Rarity reads, "And it came to pass that I went again with four of my men into the city, in unto the king, that I might know of the disposition of the king, and that I might know if I might go in with my people and possess the land in peace."

Applejack reads, "And I went in unto the king, and he covenanted with me that I might possess the land of Lehi-Nephi, and the land of Shilom."

Fluttershy reads, "And he also commanded that his people should depart out of the land, and I and my people went into the land that we might possess it."

Lyra reads, "And we began to build buildings, and to repair the walls of the city, yea, even the walls of the city of Lehi-Nephi, and the city of Shilom." She then looks up and says, "I'm guessing this is when Zeniff fell into the trap."

I read, "And we began to till the ground, yea, even with all manner of seeds, with seeds of corn, and of wheat, and of barley, and with neas, and with sheum, and with seeds of all manner of fruits; and we did begin to multiply and prosper in the land." I then state, "I'm guessing that neas and sheum are either types of grain, or maybe types of vegetables."

Weed Whacker reads, "Now it was the cunning and the craftiness of king Laman, to bring my people into bondage, that he yielded up the land that we might possess it."

Princess Luna reads, "Therefore it came to pass, that after we had dwelt in the land for the space of twelve years that king Laman began to grow uneasy, lest by any means my people should wax strong in the land, and that they could not overpower them and bring them into bondage."

Princess Celestia reads, "Now they were a lazy and an idolatrous people; therefore they were desirous to bring us into bondage, that they might glut themselves with the labors of our hands; yea, that they might feast themselves upon the flocks of our fields."

Rainbow Dash reads, "Therefore it came to pass that king Laman began to stir up his people that they should contend with my people; therefore there began to be wars and contentions in the land."

Pinkie Pie reads, "For, in the thirteenth year of my reign in the land of Nephi, away on the south of the land of Shilom, when my people were watering and feeding their flocks, and tilling their lands, a numerous host of Lamanites came upon them and began to slay them, and to take off their flocks, and the corn of their fields."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "Yea, and it came to pass that they fled, all that were not overtaken, even into the city of Nephi, and did call upon me for protection."

Spike reads, "And it came to pass that I did arm them with bows, and with arrows, with swords, and with cimeters, and with clubs, and with slings, and with all manner of weapons which we could invent, and I and my people did go forth against the Lamanites to battle."

Rarity reads, "Yea, in the strength of the Lord did we go forth to battle against the Lamanites; for I and my people did cry mightily to the Lord that he would deliver us out of the hands of our enemies, for we were awakened to a remembrance of the deliverance of our fathers."

Applejack reads, "And God did hear our cries and did answer our prayers; and we did go forth in his might; yea, we did go forth against the Lamanites, and in one day and a night we did slay three thousand and forty-three; we did slay them even until we had driven them out of our land." She then grunts and says, "Int'restin'. God didn't git 'em outta the land, He just gave 'em the strength to drive the Lamanites away."

I reply, "My guess is that's what the people there wanted. They didn't want to leave, they just wanted to drive the Lamanites out. As I said before, God gives His people what they want, whether it leads to their benefit or their destruction. That way, hopefully in time they'll learn whether they really wanted it or not."

Fluttershy reads, "And I, myself, with mine own hands, did help to bury their dead. And behold, to our great sorrow and lamentation, two hundred and seventy-nine of our brethren were slain." She then says, "It was nice of Zeniff to help bury the dead of the Lamanites that he'd killed after they'd attacked him and his people."

I respond, "Evidently, one of the things Zeniff wanted was to keep friendly relations between his people and the neighboring Lamanites." Then, before Lyra can start chapter ten, I have my character stand up; and I say, "And, I think that should be the end of the reading for tonight."

Twilight Sparkle also rises, and she says, “Mormon’s right. We need to get ready to watch the meteor shower tonight.”

As the other ponies, as well as Spike and Weed Whacker, rise, I can’t help noticing a smile on Princess Luna’s face. But, before I can mention it, I hear Princess Celestia say, “My sister and I will be watching the meteor shower from the castle in Canterlot.” And, before anyone can respond, the two sister alicorns disappear.

With the two princesses gone, I have my character turn to the purple unicorn; and I say, “I suppose my friends and I here have some preparations to make as well. We’ll meet you on that hill.” And, with that, I have my character proceed to the gate to allow the other element holders, as well as Spike, to exit.

When those six have disappeared into the forest, I have my character close the gate again, then turn to the remaining two ponies and dinosaur, who by now are on the front porch; and I say, “Well, whatever preparations we need to make we’d best get to it, then head out as soon as we’re ready.”

As my character approaches the porch, I notice Pinkie Pie rubs her chin with a front hoof and hums in uncertainty. Then, as my character gets to the first step, Pinkie asks, “Do you think we should harvest dinner now, so we can eat it while we watch the meteor shower?”

All things considered, Pinkie Pie may have a point. I have my character stop in front of the lower step, and I ask, “Lyra, Weed Whacker, what do you think? Should we harvest fruits and vegetables and clean them now so we can eat while we watch the meteor shower?”

The pale-green unicorn and the dinosaur look at each other, then back at my character; and Lyra says, “Well, since we don’t know how long the meteor shower’s going to be, that’s probably a good idea. Sure, let’s do that.” And, acting as though hers is the only one that matters, she canters down the steps, followed by Weed Whacker, on her way to the vineyard.

Pinkie Pie watches her friends move on ahead, then turns to my character and says, “Okie dokie, then. Let’s go to the orchard and harvest some fruits. You get what other fruits you want, and I’ll get the apples.”

I nod in agreement, then allow Pinkie Pie to go on ahead of my character, then have him follow her to the orchard to harvest fruits there.

As soon as Pinkie Pie is in the orchard, Diane takes over, chooses a tree, and kicks once, causing four apples to fall from it.

In the mean time, I have my character go to the apricot tree and harvest two fruits from it, then the peach tree to harvest some fruits from it, then the nectarine tree to do the same, and finally to harvest a few fruits from the pear tree. After that, I have him follow Pinkie Pie, who is now back under the control of Pinkamena, back to the house, to meet up with Lyra and Weed Whacker, who are once again on the front porch. And, it’s Pinkie Pie who opens the front door, using the curl in her forehead and allowing the group of four to enter the house.

My character has to empty his arms in the kitchen before he can go back and close the front and kitchen doors. But, after that, he joins in the team effort of cleaning and preparing the fruits and vegetables for transport to the hill where the group of four, as well as other ponies, will be watching the meteor shower. And, after that, the group proceeds out of the house and out the front gate, with my character closing doors behind them. And, from there on, it’s a trip through the Everfree forest. But, as the group exits, they turn toward the hill to their left, where they meet up with Twilight Sparkle, who’s ascending the hill, followed by Spike, to join the other ponies present to watch the display in the sky.

At this point, my main hope is that I’ve programmed the flying rocks so they all fly in the same direction. I guess I’ll find out soon enough.

As the two groups unite, I hear Twilight mention something about an almanac that’s come up missing. Having seen the episode, I know what happened; but, as usual, I see no reason to mention it. Twilight’ll find out what happened in time anyway.

In the mean time, Spike is saying, “Well, maybe someone borrowed it. Besides, you don’t need that book. You can already name all the planets and stars, ‘cause you’re super smart, and astronomically awesome.”

The purple dragon’s compliments cause Twilight to giggle before she says, “Thanks, Spike. You’re such a flatterer.”

Spike replies, “Yeah, I’m a sweet-talker.”

As the united group of six arrive on the summit of the hill, Twilight adds, “And, my number one assistant, right?”

Spike playfully points to her and answers, “Check,” then gets to work setting up a picnic complete with blanket, fruit bowl, punch bowl, and tea cups.

I, for one, find it surprising that he was able to get a bowl full of punch up this hill, especially considering that angle. Then again, video game physics.

In the mean time, I decide to follow the little dragon’s example and have my character set up a picnic for him and the two ponies and one dinosaur with him.

While he’s setting things up, I hear Twilight say, “Oh, Mormon, you didn’t have to do that.”

My character, after placing a pile of fruits and vegetables in the middle of the blanket he provided, looks up at the purple unicorn; and I say, “That’s alright. This is generally what we have for dinner anyway, and I figure we can enjoy it while we watch the meteor shower.”

Twilight smiles as she says, “Not a bad idea.” She then looks down at the pile of fruits and vegetables that have been provided and says, “Uh, so, you brought your own apples.”

I reply, “And, a few other fruits grown from trees and vines.”

Twilight adds, “And, apparently, some vegetables.”

I state, “Pinkie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker have been really helpful when it comes to gathering fruits and vegetables for meals.”

Before either of us can say anymore, I hear crunching sounds from nearby. My character turns just in time to see Rainbow Dash holding an apple with a bite taken out of it in a front hoof, as she says, “Wow, Twilight, you’re lucky to have such a rad assistant. I wish I had somepony to do whatever I told ‘em.”

Presently, I hear the eager grunting of Scootaloo, evidently not far from the rainbow-haired pegasa. My character’s attention shifts to the orange pegasa as she says, “I’ll do whatever you want, Rainbow Dash.”

My character’s attention switches back to the azure pegasa as she, with a sly expression, says, “Oh, yeah, pipsqueak? How about takin’ out the trash?” then tosses towards her the core of the apple she’s just finished eating.

Scootaloo jumps in excitement and says, “Yes, ma’am,” then grabs and runs off with the core.

I can’t help noticing the change in Rainbow Dash’s expression, leading me to wonder if she’s feeling guilty for putting Scootaloo on cleanup duty.

Then, as Lyra grabs a carrot and Weed Whacker grabs a turnip and the two start eating, Rarity approaches Twilight and asks, “Do we have Spike to thank again for this amazing spread? Isn’t he simply amazing?”

In fake humility, Spike says, “Aw, come on.” Then, after he scratches his chin for a few seconds without hearing any more remarks about him, he says, “I said, come on.”

Then, Pinkie Pie, with a front hoof, rubs the purple dragon’s head, which, based on how deep she’s getting, could include a thick layer of fat between the skin and skull, as she says, “Little Spikey-wikey. Who knew that a big, ferocious dragon could start off so cutesy-wootesy?”

Spike evidently takes it in stride.

Then, Rarity says, “Spike, you are such a little star that I had to make this little bow tie for you.” And, she produces a red bow tie studded somewhat randomly with the remnants of jewels and attached to a choker of sorts, and attaches it to the little purple dragon’s neck.

Spike eagerly accepts the gift, then says, “Gosh, you guys are embarrassing me. Stop it.” Then, he seems to realize what he just said, and apparently decides to negate it by pointing to the purple unicorn and adding, “Twilight, you’re turn.”

At this point, I’d like to mention that I’m aware that in an episode in a later season Spike’s birthday is celebrated, and he receives a bunch of presents. Then, his greedy nature takes over; and, as he starts hoarding things, he grows very rapidly. I have to wonder if Twilight is aware of this possibility, as she, focused on her assistant, says, reprovingly, “Spike, that’s enough.”

Presently, Spike agrees, “Right, that’s enough.”

Then, apparently from somewhere near the picnic area my character set up, Sweetie Belle says, “Hey, everypony, the show’s starting.”

As the six element bearers gallop to the summit of the hill, as well as Lyra and Weed Whacker, I find that I finally get the chance to see if I programmed the meteors properly. But, first, noticing that Bon-Bon is also there, next to Lyra, to watch the display in the sky, and also noticing that Applebloom jumps up on Applejack’s back, Sweetie Belle on Rarity’s back, and Scootaloo on Rainbow Dash’s back, I decide to help by picking Spike up and putting him on Twilight’s back, then picking up Weed Whacker and putting her on Lyra’s back.

The two in turn offer thanks, and I decide it’s time to see how my programming turned out. And, watching the display, well, I realize something isn’t right.

While the placement of the starting positions of the particle meteors works out well in apparent randomness, well, the ending positions turn out to be equally random. There are still “oohs” and “ahs” from the crowd watching the display, but I’m finding it troubling that the meteors aren’t all headed in the same general direction. In fact, I just noticed three meteors pass through each other without any evidence of collision. I’m going to have to go back into the programming and see if I can’t correct the problem.

It could be that I’ve vocalized my concern at the display, or it could be that Pinkie Pie just noticed my silence. All I know is I hear her voice just about under my character as she says, worriedly, “That’s not how the meteors are supposed to move, is it?”

My character turns from the meteor shower down at the pink earth pony, and I can see the look of worry on her face. I have my character pick her up in his arms; then I say, just loud enough so only she can hear, “They should be heading in the same direction, or at least radiating just slightly away from each other.”

I hear Pinkie Pie suggest, “Maybe you should make the particles follow the same path length and angle.”

I reply, “That’s what I’m thinking.”

As programmed, the shower lasts for some twenty minutes, at least in real time, during which I notice Spike starts to doze off. He even falls off Twilight, who’s apparently too absorbed in watching the display in the sky to notice the absence of her assistant from her back, then wanders over to the picnic blanket he'd set up and falls asleep—just on the edge of the punch bowl, which tips over.

When the last meteor has disappeared, I have my character place Pinkie Pie back on her hooves on the ground, and proceed to his picnic blanket to choose a fruit or vegetable to eat.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie selects a cookie from the place on Twilight’s picnic blanket and starts eating it. Then, she hums with happiness, finishes the cookie in one bite, then says, “Hmm, wow, these cookies are de-lish!” She then turns to my character and says, “Mormon, you should have one.”

As my character’s attention turns to the pink earth pony, I reply, “Sure, don’t mind if I do.” I then have him select a tan cookie with a large, chocolate-chip-shaped, cream-colored candy on top of it and take a bite out of it.

At the bottom of the screen, I see a message box that reads, “Oatmeal cookie, vanilla drop.”

I then have my character turn to the purple unicorn, and I say, “Pinkie Pie’s right. These cookies are good.”

Smiling, Twilight replies, “Spike made them.” She then turns to her picnic setup and asks, “Speaking of, Spike, can you bring us some punch?”

I already know the answer to that question. But, just to reinforce the point, my character turns to the purple dragon, to show me that he’s curled up, snoring away, with his head in the tipped-over punch bowl. And, the glass immediately in front of his nose clouds and unclouds as he exhales and inhales, respectively.

I hear Rarity say, “Oh, poor little thing.”

My character’s attention shifts to the white unicorn, and the purple one she approaches, as Twilight sighs and says, “He’s worked himself to the bone.”

And, even I join in the laughter after Pinkie Pie says, “And now the punch has been—Spiked.”

Then, when the laughter dies down, Twilight says, “I guess that means I better get him back to the library.” She then raises the plate with the cookies and offers them to each of her friends, even offers them to Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character.

Each one offered accepts a cookie, and, under my instructions, my character takes the cream-colored cookie with pink sprinkles.

Pinkie takes the remaining cookie, one that’s dark brown.

With all the cookies gone, Twilight then uses her magic to gather up her picnic gear and place them in the wagon that she and Spike brought with them to carry the supplies.

Ponies say their farewells and depart from the hill until only my character, the pink earth pony, the pale-green unicorn, and the dinosaur are left.

I ask, “So, shall we finish out dinner here and then head back?”

Pinkie Pie hums with uncertainty before saying, “I don’t know. We really don’t have any reason to stay here.”

Weed Whacker says, “I don’t like the idea of heading back through the Everfree forest when it’s this dark.”

Lyra states, “I can teleport us all back to Mormon’s house.”

For confirmation, I ask, “So, do you want to eat here and then go back, or go back and then eat?”

Pinkie Pie turns to Lyra and asks, “Do you think you can light your horn while we eat here?”

Lyra nods and answers, “Sure,” then closes her eyes until her horn starts glowing.

With Lyra’s pale-green aura lighting the picnic area, Pinkie smiles and says, “So, let’s have our dinner here, and then Lyra can teleport us all back.”

Lyra and Weed Whacker nod in agreement, and so the four settle down on each corner of the blanket and take what’s left of the pile of fruits and vegetables and eat until nothing remains but the parts that none of them can eat. After that, Lyra and Weed Whacker take the remains and dispose of them, then return; and Lyra teleports the group, equipment and all, back to my character’s house.

From there, once inside, each of the four heads to their rooms, giving them the opportunity to write their reports to the princesses.

In my letter, I dictate to my character about how work at Sugar Cube Corner was nothing unusual, except for Twilight coming to invite us to the meteor shower. I then dictate about how the meteor shower was an enjoyable event to watch, and how, after everyone else had departed, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and I enjoyed a picnic dinner together before returning home again. After that, I have my character sign the letter, then roll it up and deliver it to Weed Whacker to send to the princesses. Finally, I have him return to his room and go to bed.

Once again, I have no more to say than what I’ve already said, except that I look forward to the game’s tomorrow. So, until then, I save and close the game.

Chapter 30: Dragon vs. Owl

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Before I start the game, let me state that I was able to track down the bug that was causing the meteors to fly so randomly. I now have it programmed so that the meteors fly more-or-less parallel to each other, though at different speeds and for different lengths of time and different altitudes no closer than, say, a kilometer from the highest point of terrain. I played the game at the point in time when the meteor shower should show up, and it looks just fine now.

With that out of the way, as I start the game this time, I find my character waking up to knocking on his bedroom door, followed by Pinkie Pie calling out, “Mormy, you’re wanted at the front door!”

I have my character rise and walk to his bedroom door in time to hear Pinkie Pie moan as though she’s going to fall, followed by a light thud. As my character opens his door, I have him look downward in the direction of the kitchen. There, I can see, through his eyes, Pinkie Pie on her side on the floor, getting back up on her hooves.

She turns to my character as soon as she’s on all fours and says, “Fluttershy’s at the front door. She asked me, Lyra, and Weed Whacker if we’d seen an owl flying around last night, and none of us have.”

I conclude, “And, she wants to know if I saw an owl.”

Pinkie Pie nods her head vigorously and says, “That’s right.” She then turns toward the kitchen and says, “Let’s get going.” And, with that, she gallops to the kitchen and to the door there.

Let me state, as my character follows the pink earth pony through the house, that, in the context of the cartoon show, and the episode, “Owl’s Well That Ends Well,” I have seen the owl that’s no doubt in question. And, this is the last day based on that episode. But, in the context of this video game, I have yet to see the owl. And, as Pinkie Pie and my character arrive at the front door, it is in the context of the video game that I go by when Fluttershy asks me if I saw an owl flying around last night, and I answer that I haven’t and ask why she’s asking.

The yellow pegasa lowers her head, and her face melts into an expression of sadness, as she says, “Well, when I got home, I had trouble getting to sleep. So, I went outside, and I noticed a paper flying over my cottage. I saw an owl chase and catch it, then head back to Ponyville. I just wanted to know if anypony else saw it.”

I answer, “I’m sorry, I haven’t.” What I don’t say is that I expect to see the owl later today when Twilight shows off her new pet. At any rate, I continue, “My friends and I will be having breakfast as soon as we harvest it, and then we’ll be heading through the Everfree forest to town.”

Fluttershy turns away from the doorway and says, “I’ve eaten already. I just wanted to know if anypony else saw that owl.” As she points herself off of the porch, I hear her say under her breath, “I couldn’t have been the only one that saw the owl. Maybe Rainbow Dash saw it.” She then turns enough to see my character and Pinkie Pie at the door and says, “Thanks, Mormon, Pinkie Pie. I’ll see you in Ponyville.” And, with that, she flies off in the direction of her cottage.

A second or two after Fluttershy has disappeared from the view of my character, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Now, Mormon, you know as well as I do that you did see the owl Fluttershy was talking about.”

I have my character close the door, then turn to Pinkie Pie; and I say, “In the cartoon show, yes. But, not in this video game.” I figure the fourth wall doesn’t matter that much when it comes to Pinkie Pie. I can talk to her about “My Little Pony Friendship is Magic” and “Hey, Batter!” without causing too much damage.

Speaking of which, Pinkie Pie looks down and to the right as she says, “Yeah, I suppose it’s alright to answer in the context of this game.”

I then ask, “Oh, by the way, Pinkie Pie, have you harvested any fruits from the orchard yet?”

The pink earth pony focuses on my character again and answers, “No, I haven’t. But, Lyra’s already in the vineyard, and Weed Whacker’s in the vegetable garden.”

I nod and suggest, “So, let’s go to the orchard and harvest some fruits, then.”

In response, Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “Okie dokie lokie.” And, before I can have my character do so, she opens the door, using the curl in her forehead, then leads the way to the orchard.

On the way there, I hear her ask, “Why didn’t we see an owl flying around?”

I answer, “Well, it was dark last night.”

Pinkie Pie turns her head so she can see me with one eye and ahead of her with the other, then says, “I know. But, it wasn’t that dark. Especially since Lyra lit up our picnic area with her horn.”

By this point, Pinkie Pie and my character have reached the fence to the orchard.

As Pinkie Pie hops over the fence and my character climbs over it, I suggest, “Well, we were rather focused on our picnic. And, if the owl had wanted us to know it was there, I’m sure it would’ve vocalized, or something.”

Pinkie Pie approaches a tree with yellow apples in it. But, before Pinkamena hands control over to Diane, she turns to my character, to me, and asks, “Are you sure an owl could hide itself so well?”

I answer, “I suppose it’s possible. It could be that owl knows better than we do how it could hide itself, or at least how to keep from being noticed.” I then have my character approach the pear tree and start harvesting fruits from it before I continue, “In at least one human culture, the owl is a symbol of knowledge and/or wisdom. And, I’m sure that, in the past, at least one owl has done something to earn that kind of a reputation.”

In the mean time, I hear a wooden thud and a rattling of leaves, then a few more lighter thuds, four I’d say, before I hear Pinkie Pie say, “I hadn’t thought about it that way. Do you think all predatory birds are that way?”

I have my character stop after he’s harvested four pears, and I answer, “I suppose that certain predatory birds symbolize knowledge or wisdom in different cultures. But, I’d also imagine that, based at least on size, some birds can hide themselves better than others.” And, by the time my character turns to look at Pinkie Pie again, based on her curly mane and tail, it's evident to me that Pinkamena is back in control again.

She turns and takes a few steps toward the fence, then turns to my character again and says, “Well, I’ve got all the apples Diane kicked out of the tree. Shall we head back to the house now?”

I smile as I answer, “Sure, let’s go.”

I then watch as the pink earth pony backs up a few steps, then bounces a couple times, then takes a bouncing leap over the fence. As she stops on the other side, she turns to my character again and says, “So, come on, Mormy.”

I only respond by having my character approach and climb over the fence again, carrying the four pears in his arms.

Now that both are out of the orchard, Pinkie Pie leads the way back to the house, where they find that Lyra and Weed Whacker are there waiting for them. And, once there, Pinkie Pie uses the curl in her forehead to open the door and allow the other three to enter.

Once the four of them are in the kitchen, it’s the normal process of cleaning and drying the fruits, then the four eating them, then cleaning up what wasn't eaten. Then, before the group heads out, I have my character take a few pens from my work room and put them in the pocket of his shirt. Then, I have him join the rest of the group as they leave his property, then head through the Everfree forest, and on into Ponyville again.

As the four are approaching Sugar Cube Corner, we notice Twilight Sparkle approaching the front door to enter.

Pinkie Pie turns to my character and asks, “Do you suppose she’s going to ask about me?”

I answer, “Could be. If that’s the case, we need to get there as soon as possible.”

Pinkie Pie only answers, “Agreed,” before galloping ahead to the back door of the gingerbread bakery, leaving the other three to run or gallop to keep up with her.

As the four enter through the back door, I hear Twilight’s voice ask, “… here?”

As my character, the last to enter, closes the door behind him, I hear Mrs. Cake’s voice answer, “You know, I think she may have just come in. You just wait right here, dearie.” And, about a second later, the blue earth mare enters the kitchen and sees the human, the two ponies, and the dinosaur. Seeing the pink earth mare, she focuses on her and says, “Oh, Pinkie Pie, there you are. Twilight was just asking about you.”

Pinkie bounces toward Mrs. Cake and says, “I guess I better talk to her, then.” And, she bounces past the blue earth mare, and into the main room of the bakery.

Mrs. Cake moves to the side to allow Pinkie Pie to pass, then enters the kitchen again and, looking at the remaining three, says, “You three may wanna wait and see. Twilight said something about wanting to show Pinkie Pie something. And, knowing Pinkie Pie, she’ll want you there to see it, too.”

Considering I’m the one that made this game, and I’ve seen the episode on which this and the previous day are based, I know what Twilight is going to want to show her friends. In the context of the episode, I’ve seen it already. But, I have yet to see Twilight’s new pet owl in this video game, even though I did model, texture, and animate it for the game. Still, as usual, I see no reason why I should let the characters in this game know about that.

In the mean time, I hear the conversation between the two element bearers in the main room, Twilight saying that she wants to show Pinkie Pie her new assistant, and Pinkie Pie eagerly accepting and requesting that Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character come and see the new assistant as well. Twilight agrees, and the conversation ends.

Then, as I hear the bell ringing from the main room, Pinkie Pie appears in the doorway and says, “Twily wants to show us her new assistant. You wanna come?”

I answer, “I’d be honored to.”

Lyra turns to Mrs. Cake, who has moved into the kitchen to allow Pinkie Pie to enter, and asks, “Are you sure about us leaving right now?”

The blue earth mare answers, “Yes, we’ll be fine while you’re meeting up with Twilight and her new assistant.”

At this answer, Lyra shrugs and says, “Well, if you’re sure,” then turns back to Pinkie Pie and says, “then, I’d welcome the chance to see Twilight’s new assistant.”

Presently, an eager Weed Whacker runs to Lyra and says, “Oh, I wanna go, I wanna go.”

I can’t help chuckling as I say, “We wouldn’t leave you behind.” Then, as Lyra uses her magic to lift the herbivorous dinosaur onto her back, I have my character focus on the blue earth mare; and I say, “We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

In response, Mrs. Cake, smiling, nods and says, “Yes, I know you will.”

Then, as the two ponies and the dinosaur head out the front door, I have my character head out the back door again; and he and the three others in the group meet in front of the bakery made of gingerbread.

In a matter of minutes, the group of four arrives at the library, where Twilight is surrounded by Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Rarity, and has an owl on her back.

Seeing the group of four approaching, Twilight says, “Oh, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Mormon, you’re here just in time.” Then, when each of the four have filled in spaces in the circle around her, the purple unicorn continues, “I’d like you all to meet my new junior assistant, Owlowiscious.”

I have my character turn away from the owl to focus his attention on an open window, evidently on a high floor of the library, where I can clearly see Spike reading a book. While, in the episode, the book is shown to have a picture of an owl on the front cover, I’ve never been sure if the picture means that the book is specifically about owls, or if it could be more generally about predatory birds, or about nocturnal creatures. For all I know, I could be a book of wise sayings from various ponies throughout Equestrian history.

After a second or two, Pinkie Pie attracts my character’s attention again as she says, “Oh, what a fantastical, fluff-alicious, feathery little friend! I’m foof!”

I’m never able to understand that last word Pinkie Pie says, so I can only make my best educated guess. Whatever it is, the other ponies, and Weed Whacker, laugh about it.

When the laughter settles down, Fluttershy says, “He’s just wonderful.”

Then, I hear Spike say, mockingly, “He’s just wonderful.” Then, as the attention of the group is centered on him, he adds, “Uh, yes, he is quite … the charmer.”

At this point, I’m finding it obvious that there are some feelings of envy from the purple dragon toward the owl.

Then, Rarity says, “And, Owlowiscious is such a star, I just had to make a little bow for you.”

As much based on the episode as on my memories of the previous night of this game, I’m sure those are nearly the exact same words Rarity said about Spike before presenting him with a bow tie. And, the one she’s giving Owlowiscious looks pretty much exactly like the one she gave Spike that previous night. All things considered, I don’t find it that surprising when Spike growls and snorts in anger and frustration and jumps back into the library from the window, slamming it closed.

As my character’s attention returns to the group, Applejack asks, “What’s he so saddle-sore about?”

Rainbow Dash answers, “He’s probably just jealous of Owlowiscious.”

Then, Fluttershy adds, “Maybe Spike feels threatened, or worried that Owlowiscious will replace him.”

At this point, I have my character approach the door to the library as I say, “Maybe I should go in and talk to him.” And, before the ponies or dinosaur can stop him, my character opens the door and enters.

Once inside, I have my character look for Spike. And, he finds him approaching the staircase, mumbling something about being replaced. I have my character approach the purple dragon, and I ask, “Spike, are you alright?”

The little purple dragon turns his glare on my character and angrily asks, “What do you think?” He then starts descending the stairs as he continues, “I’m bein’ replaced by a pile of feathers.”

I ask, “Have you ever considered that, with Owlowiscious being the new junior assistant, that’d make you the senior assistant?”

At my question Spike stops in his place, the fourth or fifth step from the bottom; and his expression morphs into one of surprise as he says, “You know, I hadn’t thought of that.” Then, as I hear the door open and close behind my character, I watch, through my character’s eyes, as Spike’s attention shifts to whoever it was that entered behind my character, and asks, “Twilight, is what Mormon just said true?”

Immediately my character turns around and focuses on the purple unicorn approaching what appears to be a wooden perch, as she asks in response, “What was that?”

I then hear Spike answer, “Mormon said that, if Owlowiscious is your new junior assistant, that makes me your senior assistant.”

As the owl jumps off of Twilight’s back and onto his perch, the purple unicorn rubs her chin with a front hoof and hums with interest. Then, she puts the hoof down again and answers, “You know, I think Mormon’s right. After all, I can’t very well have two junior assistants.” She then smiles and says, “Congratulations, Spike. You’ve just been promoted.”

I then have my character turn back to the purple dragon, and I continue, “I’m sure there are some jobs that Owlowiscious can do that you couldn’t, maybe some jobs the both of you can do that Owlowiscious can do better. Of course, on the other hand, there may be jobs that a baby dragon can do that an owl couldn’t, or jobs that a baby dragon could do better. As long as the two of you can learn to delegate the workload between the two of you, I’m sure the two of you can find a way to work together.”

At this point, Spike, looking confused, points to my character and asks, “Delegate the what now?”

Then, from behind my character, I hear Twilight answer, “He just means that if the two of you can divide the jobs between you based on which one can do the job best, the two of you should be just fine. And, who knows? Maybe there are jobs that the two of you can work together on to complete.”

Considering Twilight interpreted what I’d said so well, I see no reason to say anything more.

And, perhaps to add emphasis to Twilight’s statement, or to affirm it, Owlowiscious hoots a couple times.

Spike then confirms the clarity of the explanation by saying, “Oh, I see what you mean.”

Presently, I hear the front door slam open, then I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Mormon, we need to be getting back to Sugar Cube Corner now.”

Automatically my character’s attention turns to the pink earth pony, allowing me to hear her out. After that, I have him turn to Twilight; and I say, “I guess that means I’d better get going then.”

Twilight simply says, “I guess so.”

As I click on the door to have my character exit through it, I hear Spike say, “Thanks for helpin’ out, Mormon.”

As my character approaches the door, I have him turn to the purple dragon; and I say, “I”m glad I could help. I hope things to well between you and Owlowiscious.”

And, before my character closes the door, I hear Twilight say, “Goodbye.”

Then, as the human, the two ponies, and the dinosaur head to the bakery, Pinkie Pie asks, “So, Mormon, what did you help Spike with?”

I answer, “I just gave him a suggestion on what it would mean for Twilight to have another assistant.”

Pinkie Pie grunts “Oh,” then asks, “Do you think he’ll follow your advice?”

I answer, “I hope so. Whether he does or not is up to him.”

After that, the rest of the trip is occupied with the two ponies and Weed Whacker talking about Twilight’s new pet.

When they get back to Sugar Cube Corner, Mrs. Cake is there to let them know who gets what jobs. And, thus informed, each gets to work on their job.

It’s not long after my character has put a loaf of bread in the oven that I hear Spike’s voice at the back door asking, “Pinkie Pie, are you there?”

I then hear Pinkie Pie answer, “Yeah, Spike. What do you want?”

I hear Spike answer, “I need a quill.”

I don’t need to hear anymore to know what’s going on. Apparently Twilight has broken her last quill, and Spike’s out looking for a new one. What Spike doesn’t know is that Owlowiscious has donated one of his feathers for a quill for the purple unicorn.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie answers, “I swore I had one around here somewhere.”

I have my character turn to her, and I jokingly respond, “You know it’s not nice to swear.”

The pink earth pony giggles at my joke, then backs a little into the kitchen, searching her mane for something. She then produces what looks to me like a yellow pear and, handing it to Spike, says, “Here it is, a quince.”

The purple dragon looks at the fruit, then tosses it behind him out the doorway, and growls, “Not a quince, a quill.”

Pinkie Pie then starts searching her mane again as she says, “Right.” She then produces a small, brown bird with a black crown of feathers, including a single plume sticking up out of the top of its head, and, as it flies toward Spike, says, “A quail.”

Well, at least quail sounds like quill.

However, Spike, not satisfied, waves the bird away, then glares at the pink earth pony.

After that, Pinkie Pie produces and names a qüesadilla, a quilt, and a qüiche.

From what I’ve seen of a quesadilla, they’re not that difficult or time-consuming to make. And, perhaps a quiche isn’t that difficult or time-consuming to make either.

And, there's one more thing. I have to wonder, if Spike were to approach Twilight with a quesadilla, would she freak out about it? After all, in season five, in the episode Party Pooped, it's revealed that Twilight Sparkle is scared of quesadillas. Since Pinkie Pie is offering one to Spike, would this mean that she knows about Twilight's fear of them, and that Spike likely doesn't share that fear? Maybe I'll have to assume that my pink earth pony friend doesn't know, and I'll have to make up a back story for the purple unicorn explaining that. But, once again, I've gotten off topic.

In the mean time, the only two of the items he receives from the pink earth pony are the quilt and the quiche, and neither of them happily. Finally, glaring and growling in frustration, he says, “Not a quiche, a quill.”

Pinkie Pie lets her smile fade just a little as she says, “No, sorry, all outta quills.”

Spike looks down at the quiche and groans in disappointment, then takes the fork in the food and puts it in his mouth.

I guess that means he’s just disqualified himself from Ernest’s description of a real man.

I hear Pinkie Pie start to giggle as I say, “Well, I have a few pens if Twilight could use one.”

The purple dragon looks up at my character, still frowning, and asks, “A pen?”

I have my character remove one from his shirt pocket and hand it to him as I say, “It’s a human invention. It contains a well of ink inside of it.”

Spike whines, “But, Twilight already has plenty of ink. She just needs a quill to write with.” He then puts the fork back into the quiche and receives the pen. After studying it for a few seconds, he looks up at my character again and asks, “Can this thing write on parchment?”

In response, Pinkie Pie hums for a second, then says, “Let me see.” She then searches in her mane again and produces a tan square and hands it to my character, saying, “Here, try this.”

As my character receives the square from the pink earth pony, I’m left wondering how she managed to store so many items in her mane. But, then, once again, video game physics.

At any rate, I have my character take the pen from Spike and try to draw a circle on the parchment, to no effect. I then have him turn to the purple dragon and show him the failed attempt, and I say, “Sorry. I guess the surface was too oily.” I then have him put the pen back in his shirt pocket and hand the parchment back to Pinkie Pie as I add, “Pens work on the principle of friction. If the surface isn’t something the ball at the writing end of the pen can connect to, then it’s not going to be able write on it.”

At this point, Spike hands the quiche back to Pinkie Pie and, head hanging, says, “Well, Thanks for offering, anyway.”

As she watches the purple dragon wander away from the back door, Pinkie Pie emits a sympathetic “Aw,” then says, more happily, “You know, Fluttershy has lots of birds at her cottage. Maybe one of them could donate a feather for Twilight.”

At the pink earth pony’s last statement I can’t help chuckling to myself, remembering Fluttershy’s “flying feather” remark from a later season and episode.

That is, until Pinkie Pie turns to my character and, glaring, growls, “Mormon, I know what you’re thinking. So, stop it!”

I do stop chuckling. But, I can’t help smiling as I say, “Yeah, sorry about that.”

As the pink earth pony marches past my character, she says, under her breath, “No, you’re not.”

As she passes my character, and he continues to watch her, I can’t help noticing something: are those billows of smoke coming out of her ears? I decide to say, “I guess I’ll get back to work now.”

Eventually Pinkie Pie calms down, then cleans up the quesadilla mess on the floor of the kitchen.

After a few seconds, my character is given a cake to put in the oven.

As he’s placing it in there, Mrs. Cake says, “Now, this is a special cake to be delivered to the home of Octavia and Vinyl.”

Then, I hear Pinkie’s excited voice say, “Oh, that’s right!” As my character’s attention shifts to the pink earth pony, she continues, “If I’m not mistaken, it was five years ago today that the two of them moved in together. They celebrate that anniversary every year on this day.”

Well, that explains the importance of the cake. And, I find it interesting that it comes two days before the anniversary of Pinkie Pie’s birth. But, that’s just one more thing I decide to keep to myself.

In the mean time, the cake takes no more than ten minutes, I’d say, to bake, after which I have my character take it out of the oven and put it on the island. Then, after a few more minutes cooling time, I have him remove it from the pan, at which point Pinkie Pie takes over and covers the cake with frosting of a similar color to the cake. She also writes "Happy Anniversary" on the cake. Then, after that, she turns to my character and asks, “Uh, Mormon, could you deliver this to Vinyl and Octavia? This cake has given me an idea, and I want to discuss it with Mr. and Mrs. Cake.”

I nod and answer, “Sure, no problem.’

Pinkie Pie produces a box and slides the cake into it as she sings, “Thank you.”

With the pastry evidently ready for travel, I have my character take it and exit through the back door, then make his way to the residence of the two musician ponies.

The two ponies receive the cake graciously, and it’s Octavia that pays two bits for it.

My character stores the two coins away in his shirt pocket, among the pens, and starts heading back toward Sugar Cube Corner, when I notice Spike exiting the library, appearing distraught.

I decide to have my character approach the purple dragon; and, when he’s close enough, I ask, “Spike, what’s wrong?”

Spike doesn’t take his attention from the path a few inches in front of him as he says, “Aw, Twilight’s pet owl found a book I accidentally incinerated.” But, he does take the time to look up at my character as he adds, “You’d think she’d never seen a dragon sneeze before.”

I say, “You know, you could’ve brought it to her attention when it happened, instead of waiting until someone else found out and told her about it. Then, you wouldn’t have this problem now.” During this time, my character’s walking next to the hatchling dragon.

He looks back down again and says, “I’m tellin’ you, that bird set me up. He’s after my job! Well, if he thinks he can get it that way, I’ll show him. I can set him up, too.”

I state, “I really don’t think that’s going to help anything. Remember, Twilight knows you well, and she’ll likely know what you’re doing.” And, it’s about the time I finish talking that I hear a mouse squeak.

And, of course, so does Spike. And, it clearly gives the hatchling dragon an idea, as he says, “Aha, that’s it! Owl’s eat mice, right?”

I know, from the episode, what Spike’s planning on doing. But, at the very least, I can prove how committed he is to his plan. I say, “Spike, I really don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

I’m sure anyone that plays this game, if they didn’t already know because of the episode, would be able to see in Spike’s eyes that he’s planning something really bad, as he turns to my character and says, “Why not? If I can make it look like Owlowiscious murdered a mouse and left its dead body on the floor of the library, then that bird’d know he can’t just go around pinning crimes on me.”

At this point, I have my character kneel on one knee and place a hand on the little dragon’s closest shoulder; and I say, “Trust me, Spike, this is not the way to get on Twilight’s good side. She’ll catch you in the act.”

Spike’s expression morphs into a glare as he asks, “And, what would you have me do, then, let it go?” And, he says the last three words mockingly.

I simply answer, “Exactly.”

Presently, Spike shoves my hand away and says, “Well, I can’t. I’ve got to let that flying quill factory know his place.” And, with that, he turns and marches off in the direction of Rarity’s clothing store.

Seeing how dedicated the little purple dragon is to his cause, I decide I’ve said enough; and I have my character return to Sugar Cube Corner.

As my character enters through the back door, I see Pinkie Pie approach my character as she asks, “So, did the delivery go well?”

I answer, “The delivery went just fine.” And, I have my character search in his pocket for the two bits to give to Mr. or Mrs. Cake.

Is that fear or concern I see in Pinkie’s expression now? She asks, “What happened?”

As my character finds the coins, I answer, “Well, after I delivered the cake to Octavia and Vinyl, I came across Spike as he was leaving the library. Apparently, Twilight found a book Spike had accidentally incinerated, and he thinks Owlowiscious set him up.”

Now, Pinkie’s face expresses shock, then sadness, I think, before she says, “And, he’s seeking revenge for it, I’m guessing.”

I answer, “He’s going to make it look like Owlowiscious killed a mouse and left it on the library floor.”

Pinkie asks, “You did warn him that his plan won’t work, didn’t you?”

I answer, “Yes, I did.”

At this point, Pinkie smiles as she says, “You know, Mormon, it’s nice to know you care so much about what happens to me and my friends.”

At the pink party pony’s comment, I smile as well as I say, “Thanks, Pinkie. I’m ready to go back to work now.”

Before I take my position at the oven, though, Pinkie Pie, seeing the coins in my character’s hand, says, “If you want, I’ll take those bits to Mr. Cake now.”

Deciding to accept the pink earth pony’s offer, I have my character hand the coins over to her as I say, “Thanks, Pinkie.” Then, as Pinkie Pie heads to the main room of the bakery, I have my character take his position in front of the oven.

When Pinkie returns from delivering the coins to Mr. Cake, she approaches my character and says, “Uh, Mormon, could you go back to your house? I’d like you to catch a fish from your pond, then bring it back here. I wanna see if I can bake it into a cake for Gummy’s birthday party tomorrow.”

At this point, I can’t help sensing something familiar about this. Still, I answer, “Sure, no problem,” and I have my character head out the back door again.

Before my character can get very far, Pinkie follows him out there. I know because I hear her say, “Oh, and you don’t need to worry. This isn’t going to be a repeat of the first game.” And, my character turns around just in time to see the back door to the bakery close.

I appreciate the pink earth pony addressing my concern that way. The fact of the matter is, after all the work I put into her, all the attention, I don’t expect her to take the fish I catch and process it the way she did two ponies and a griffon in the first game, one of those ponies being her friend Rainbow Dash. And, she’s shown me that she’s committed to following my plan to make her the best pony she can be. I have to wonder if she’s just going to process the meat of the fish, or at least try to, into a cake for her alligator pet. If that’s the case, she’ll most likely make one cake for Gummy, and another cake for her friends.

Thus are my thoughts as I have my character head out of Ponyville, to and through the Everfree forest, and to his house, to get his fishing gear and catch a fish from his pond. From there, it doesn’t take long for him to catch a fish, after which he, under my directions, guts it, then takes it, in a box, back to Sugar Cube Corner for Pinkie Pie to process it into a cake for Gummy for his birthday party the game’s tomorrow.

Again Pinkie Pie’s there at the back door to meet my character. Seeing the box, she turns around and says, “If you’ll follow me upstairs, I have a room set up where my closest friends and I would normally have our parties. We should be able to use that room to see if we can make that fish into a cake.”

I decide not to say anything, just have my character follow the pink earth pony through the kitchen, into the main room of the bakery, to the staircase, and to the door at the end of it. Then, after Pinkie Pie opens the door, my character automatically follows her through it, taking a moment to close the door behind him, then follows her up a spiraling staircase to a room that reminds me of a belfry, without the bell. There, I notice an oven and some cooking equipment waiting, even a bag of flour, some eggs, some milk, a small brick of butter, a bowl of sugar, and a small bottle of, I think, vanilla. My best guess is that, while I was gone fishing, or while my character was gone fishing, Pinkie Pie was busy here, first talking to the Cakes about her plan, then getting things set up for baking the unusual cake. And, considering all the equipment present, my guess is she wanted to respect the feelings of the Cakes and their customers, as well as other herbivores that work at or might buy food from Sugar Cube Corner. If I hadn’t designed the bakery this way, I might ask the question, how did Pinkie Pie get an oven up here, or did she have that here all along? And, as I have done thus far, I might attribute the process to video game physics again.

At any rate, Pinkie Pie and my character get to work, Pinkie Pie preparing the batter for the cake, and my character preparing the fish. And, the two of us agree that the meat of the fish is what’s important; so, I have my character skin and fillet the fish before mincing the meat and putting it in the batter that Pinkie Pie has ready for it. And, after thoroughly mixing the fish into the batter, she offers my character a spoonful to test taste it.

And, according to the message box at the bottom of the screen, the flavor of the fish is present, at least in the batter.

With my confirmation, Pinkie Pie proceeds to pour the batter into the cake pan she has prepared, then puts it into the oven. From then on, it’s maybe a matter of a half hour, or however long it takes to bake a minced-fish-meat cake. All I know is, after some time, another message box appears at the bottom of the screen, reading, “The scent of fish, mixed with vanilla, fills the air.”

And, while Pinkie Pie is tolerating the scent, still, it’s clear, as time passes, that it’s taking its toll on her.

At any rate, when the cake comes out, while there is evidence that the fish hasn’t completely mixed with the batter before baking, to me anyway, it still looks appetizing.

On the other hand, Pinkie Pie takes a whiff of the pie and immediately gags. As she gallops down the stairs again, it’s clear to me that the strength of her stomach has reached its limit. Whether or not she would’ve been able to tolerate pony or griffon meat, she’s made it clear that she can’t stomach baked fish, even mixed with oat flour, eggs, sugar, butter, and vanilla.

When the pink earth pony returns, she asks me to prepare and apply the frosting to the cake, which I agree to have my character do. She then heads back downstairs again, I assume, to rest for a bit and get a box.

In the mean time, my character mixes the rest of the ingredients together to make the icing, then paints the cake with it using an available rubber spatula. And, by the time he’s finished, the cake is hidden, at least visually, by the frosting. A message box informs me, though, that the scent of the fish, while not as strong, is still present, coming from the cake.

And, it’s about that time that Pinkie Pie shows up with the box.

As she shakily places it next to the cake, I ask, “Are you alright, Pinkie?”

The pink earth pony plops into a canine-style sitting position and says, “I will be. I just didn’t expect fish, oat flour, eggs, sugar, butter, and vanilla, all baked together, to smell like that.” And, when she says “that,” she points a front hoof at the cake.

I state, “If you need to go back downstairs, then go on ahead. I can finish taking care of the cake.” I then watch as Pinkie rises to all fours before I ask, “Do you think I should air out this room?”

I watch, through my character’s eyes, the look on Pinkie’s face morph into an expression of fear before she says, “And expose all of Ponyville to that smell? I don’t think so.” She then produces something that looks like a vase from her mane, opens it with her front hooves, then passes it to my character, saying, “Just set this up next to where the cake is. It should take care of the smell.” She then turns to and heads down the stairs again.

My character follows the pink earth pony’s instructions, then places the cake in the box. After that, I’m not sure if my character should leave the cake where it is, then bring it with him on the way back home, or just leave it in that room for the party tomorrow. I guess I’ll find out soon enough.

At the bottom of the spiral staircase, my character runs into Twilight Sparkle, who has a worried expression on her face. I ask her, “What’s wrong?” And, I notice Owlowiscious on her back.

The purple unicorn answers, “It’s Spike. He isn’t in the library. I can’t find him anywhere.” And, while she speaks, I notice her trotting rapidly in her place.

At this point, I may not be sure exactly where he is, but I do have a good idea of where Spike is headed. I say, “Now, calm down. I’ll be happy to help you search for clues as to where he is and why he’s not at the library.”

At my declaration, Twilight sniffles heavily, then says, “Thanks, Mormon. I could use all the help I can get.” She then turns one hundred eighty degrees in her spot, then focuses on my character now behind her and says, “Let’s get going.” And, with that, she gallops toward, then down, the stairs, and to the front door.

And, in the mean time, my character follows her, running with her out of the bakery and to the library.

Once there, the purple unicorn opens the door with her magic, takes a step inside, and, pointing to the mess on the floor, says, “That’s where he tried to make it look like Owlowiscious killed a mouse.”

I notice the purple stuffed mouse with lime-green tail and ears, button eyes, stiff string whiskers, and the open faded-blue patch on its back. Around the mouse is some of its stuffing, as well as ketchup on and around it, with his footprints leading to, then away from, the crime scene.

While the prints will likely lead to where Spike is at present, what interests me is the open blue book on the steps on the opposite side of the library. I have my character follow Twilight into the library, then move past her, around the mess on the floor, and to the book.

In the mean time, Twilight makes it clear to me that she sees where my character is headed, as she says, “Oh, that’s the book I’d asked Spike to get for me last night, The Astronomical Astronomer's Guide to All Things Astronomy. Owlowiscious found it where it should be, but with all the pages burned.”

I have my character close the book as I say, “I noticed Spike earlier today, coming out of the library, after I delivered a cake to Vinyl and Octavia. He said something about Owlowiscious setting him up.” I then notice that the front cover has a covering of gray, except for in the center, where it looks like a small, draconian hand had rubbed some of it away.

From behind my character, I hear Twilight say, “Spike said something about sneezing.”

I respond, “I’m not surprised. This book is covered with dust, except for where it looks like Spike rubbed it away.”

I hear Twilight say, “Let me see,” then hear galloping toward my character. At about the time the sound stops next to him, at about the base of the steps, I also notice, on the edge of my character’s periphery, Owlowiscious coming in for a landing right next to him, on the other side.

I have my character turn his attention to the owl, and I ask, “You noticed this too, didn’t you? What looks like a reptilian hand must’ve tried rubbing away the dust?”

Owlowiscious nods and hoots, then leans forward somewhat and points a feather from one of his wings at the cover, turning so that the feather follows the print on the cover, and hoots a couple more times.

I then hear Twilight directly under my character’s head say, “You’re right.” As my character automatically turns his attention to the purple unicorn, she continues, “With all that dust, if he was trying to rub it away, …” She trails off, and for a few seconds is silent. Then, she gasps and says, “He was telling the truth when he suggested he’d sneezed.”

Owlowiscious simply hoots twice more.

Then, Twilight continues, “And, I didn’t believe him. I accused him of lying.”

I open my mouth to mention that Spike had suggested that someone had borrowed the book. Then, I decide against it. First of all, there’s no need to let Twilight know that I know that much about him. Also, Spike may already be in enough trouble. No need to justify suspicions, and add to the trouble the little dragon is already in.

Just as well, since Twilight then says, “But, why didn’t he just tell me about this? Why did he lie to me?”

I answer, “He was probably scared about how you might react.”

The purple unicorn turns to my character, and I can see the worry in her face as she asks, “But, what could I have done that would’ve scared him?”

And, wouldn’t you know it, the first thing that comes to my mind is the instance when, a couple weeks ago, Twilight had burst into flames. It was that day when she’d decided to make a deep study of Pinkie Pie’s Pinkie sense, and I’d been there to keep her safe. Diane’s communications to Pinkamena had led the two of them, as well as Applejack, to Froggy Bottom Bog to rescue Fluttershy from a doozy, or so they thought. As it turned out, the doozy was not the hydra that’d chased the group, including my character, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and Spike, across a series of pillars to safety on an opposing cliff over a swamp, but Twilight finally believing in the Pinkie sense. But, just before that, Twilight’s temper had flared up to the extent that she’d burst into flames, reminding me of a small, very young rapidash.

The questions that cross my mind don’t include whether or not Spike was there at the time, because I know he was. My questions are, did I program him with a memory that’d go back that far? What kind of an effect would witnessing such a thing have had on Spike? Would the baby dragon have been scared of his pony mother bursting into flames again?

I’m sure there are other examples. But, before I can think of more than this one, I hear Twilight ask, “Where did he go?”

Then, I hear the flapping of wings, and an owl hoot a couple times. As my character turns his attention to the origin of the hooting, I see, through his eyes, Owlowiscious point with one of his wing feathers to the trail of ketchup footprints leading to the mess on the floor, then out the door. And, as he points to each footprint, he hoots once.

Twilight doesn’t say anything, just goes ahead and follows the trail out the door and into the street, with my character and Owlowiscious following her.

Outside, I’m sure I’m not the only one that notices the trail heading out of Ponyville and toward the Everfree forest.

I have my character turn to Twilight, and I can clearly see the look of worry on her face. I say, “If Spike’s headed into the Everfree forest, then there’s something you need to know. Just yesterday, I had a visit from a dragon that most recently moved into a cave there. He’s a friend of the dragon Princess Celestia wanted us to chase out of a mountain weeks ago, the one that was going to sleep for a thousand years, and cover Ponyville, at least, in a cloud of smoke for that time if he’d stayed.”

Presently, Twilight shouts, “I need to rescue Spike!” She then turns to her owl assistant and calls out, “Come on, Owlowiscious! We need to get going!” She then gallops a few paces, her new pet following her, then stops and turns to my character and says, “Thanks, Mormon, you’ve been a real help. I won’t be able to make it to the reading tonight.”

I reply, “That’s alright, Twilight. Like you said, you need to go rescue Spike. I understand, and I’m sure everyone else will, too.”

Twilight just nods, then turns and allows enough time for Owlowiscious to land on her back, then gallops off toward the Everfree forest again.

Seeing that my service to the purple unicorn is over for the present, I have my character return to Sugar Cube Corner to continue helping Pinkie Pie there.

As my character arrives, I notice the pink earth pony just outside the front door. She approaches and says, “Hi, Mormon. Is everything alright with Twily?”

I answer, “She’s headed into the Everfree forest with Owlowiscious to find and rescue Spike from the dragon that’s living there.”

Pinkie Pie restates, “The dragon you made friends with yesterday.” Then, after I grunt in affirmation, she adds, “She’ll rescue Spike, no problem. But, that means she’ll miss the reading tonight.”

I state, “That’s alright. Right now, the safety of her senior assistant takes precedence over the reading. I’m sure she’ll be there tomorrow.”

Pinkie nods and says, “Yeah, I know you’re right. I’ll just miss her this time, that’s all.”

Then, the thought crosses my mind, and I ask, “Oh, one thing. What about that cake?”

Pinkie’s face seems to melt into an expression of disgust as she says, “Yeah, about that.” She then answers, “If you’ll bring it downstairs, the Cakes are about ready to close up for the day. Lyra can use her magic to help you take it with us back to your house.” She then tilts her head, and her expression lightens as she asks, “Do you have a place where we can store the cake until tomorrow?”

I answer, “I do have the refrigerator.”

Pinkie Pie hums in thoughtful interest for a moment, then says, “You know, that should work out just fine. From what I’ve seen, we don’t use it very often, so it’s pretty much empty.” Presently, she smiles and says, “Okie dokie lokie. We’ll keep the cake in your fridge, and we’ll have the party at your house. Is that alright?”

I smile as I say, “Sure, no problem.” And, in my thoughts, I add, just so long as Pinkie Pie remembers her birthday is the day immediately after that.

Just then, the front door opens behind Pinkie Pie; and Mr. and Mrs. Cake, with their twins in their foal-carrying saddle, come out.

Pinkie Pie turns to the orange stallion and asks, “Mr. Cake, is it alright if Mormon here goes inside to get something real quick?”

Smiling, Mr. Cake answers, “Sure, Pinkie. We can wait for another minute or two.”

Taking that as his cue, my character goes inside and heads for the staircase on the other side of the main room.

On his way there, I can’t help noticing, from the edge of his periphery, that the kitchen seems to be empty. My guess is that Lyra and Weed Whacker most likely exited while Pinkie and the Cakes were talking, and are most likely with them right now.

In the mean time, my character ascends the staircase, goes to the door at the end of the balcony hallway, opens the door, heads up the spiral staircase to the room up there, retrieves the cake, then heads back down, closing the door he’d opened on his way there. He then returns the way he came to the front door, with Mr. Cake holding the door open for him. And, sure enough, as soon as he’s out the door, I notice, through his eyes, Lyra and Weed Whacker have joined the group.

Before I can say anything to the Cakes, Pinkie Pie says, “Thank you, Mr. Cake, for waiting until Mormon got the cake for Gummy’s birthday party tomorrow.”

Mr. Cake nods and says, “No problem, Pinkie.”

I lose track of the rest of the conversation as the Cakes close down Sugar Cube Corner and head to Town Hall, and my character’s group heads to and through the Everfree forest, and on to my character’s house.

Once we arrive, my character's first action is to store the fish cake away in the fridge, after which he joins Pinkie Pie in harvesting fruit from the orchard. Then, after that, the group of four reunites on the front porch; and my character opens the front door to allow them to enter. He then lingers long enough to close the front door behind him, while Pinkie leads the rest of the group to the kitchen door, which she holds open until my character catches up and enters, after which she closes the door behind her.

After that, once the fruits and vegetables are in the sink, once again it’s Weed Whacker in the sink cleaning them off, then handing them to my character, who hands them to Lyra to cut up then hand to Pinkie Pie, who places them on a platter for the reading this evening. And, while I do hear rain during this time of preparation, when my character looks out the nearest window, I don’t notice any evidence of rain. I can only guess that it’s isolated to approximately where Spike is. I have to wonder if that’s Twilight’s doing.

In the mean time, once again, as if timed, there’s a knock at the door once the last of the snacks has been placed.

Pinkie moves on ahead to greet guests, Lyra and Weed Whacker handle the platter, and my character handles the tray where the platter will be placed.

With all but Twilight and Spike in attendance, it’s Pinkie Pie that informs the rest of the group about why the purple unicorn and her dragon assistant aren’t going to be able to attend the reading this time.

The eight ponies, one dinosaur, and one human that form the circle around the snack tray seat themselves, save for Twilight and Spike, where they’ve normally been for the past few days.

I turn to the white unicorn and ask, "Rarity, will you read verse one of Mosiah chapter ten?"

Rarity nods and smiles and answers, "I would be most honored, Mormon," then looks down into her book and reads, "And it came to pass that we again began to establish the kingdom and we again began to possess the land in peace. And I caused that there should be weapons of war made of every kind, that thereby I might have weapons for my people against the time the Lamanites should come up again to war against my people." She then looks up and says, "I suppose the logic would be that once somepony does something, he or she will do that thing again. And, I suppose it does make sense."

Applejack then reads, "And I set guards round about the land, that the Lamanites might not come upon us again unawares and destroy us; and thus I did guard my people and my flocks, and keep them from falling into the hands of our enemies."

Fluttershy reads, "And it came to pass that we did inherit the land of our fathers for many years, yea, for the space of twenty and two years."

Lyra reads, "And I did cause that the men should till the ground, and raise all manner of grain and all manner of fruit of every kind."

I read, "And I did cause that the women should spin, and toil, and work, and work all manner of fine linen, yea, and cloth of every kind, that we might clothe our nakedness; and thus we did prosper in the land—thus we did have continual peace in the land for the space of twenty and two years."

Weed Whacker reads, "And it came to pass that king Laman died, and his son began to reign in his stead. And he began to stir his people up in rebellion against my people; therefore they began to prepare for war, and to come up to battle against my people." She then grunts and says, "King Laman learned his lesson, but I guess his son had to try at least once."

Princess Luna reads, "But I had sent my spies out round about the land of Shemlon, that I might discover their preparations, that I might guard against them, that they might not come upon my people and destroy them."

Princess Celestia reads, "And it came to pass that they came up upon the north of the land of Shilom, with their numerous hosts, men armed with bows, and with arrows, and with swords, and with cimeters, and with stones, and with slings; and they had their heads shaved that they were naked; and they were girded with a leathern girdle about their loins." She then grunts before asking, "Did they want to get themselves killed?"

I answer, "Like Weed Whacker suggested, apparently king Laman's son had yet to learn his lesson. Maybe he thought that just their numbers'd be enough to overcome the defenses Zeniff and his people had set up."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And it came to pass that I caused that the women and children of my people should be hid in the wilderness; and I also caused that all my old men that could bear arms, and also all my young men that were able to bear arms, should gather themselves together to go to battle against the Lamanites; and I did place them in their ranks, every man according to his age."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And it came to pass that we did go up to battle against the Lamanites; and I, even I, in my old age, did go up to battle against the Lamanites. And it came to pass that we did go up in the strength of the Lord to battle."

Rarity reads, "Now, the Lamanites knew nothing concerning the Lord, nor the strength of the Lord, therefore they depended upon their own strength. Yet they were a strong people, as to the strength of men."

Applejack reads, "They were a wild, and ferocious, and a blood-thirsty people, believing in the tradition of their fathers, which is this—Believing that they were driven out of the land of Jerusalem because of the iniquities of their fathers, and that they were wronged in the wilderness by their brethren, and they were also wronged while crossing the sea;"

Fluttershy reads, "And again, that they were wronged while in the land of their first inheritance, after they had crossed the sea, and all this because that Nephi was more faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord—therefore he was favored of the Lord, for the Lord heard his prayers and answered them, and he took the lead of their journey in the wilderness."

Lyra reads, "And his brethren were wroth with him because they understood not the dealings of the Lord; they were also wroth with him upon the waters because they hardened their hearts against the Lord."

I read, "And again, they were wroth with him when they had arrived in the promised land, because they said that he had taken the ruling of the people out of their hands; and they sought to kill him."

Weed Whacker reads, "And again, they were wroth with him because he departed into the wilderness as the Lord had commanded him, and took the records which were engraven on the plates of brass, for they said that he robbed them."

Princess Luna reads, "And thus they have taught their children that they should hate them, and that they should murder them, and that they should rob and plunder them, and do all they could to destroy them; therefore they have an eternal hatred towards the children of Nephi." She then looks up and says, "So, they go out and attack Zeniff and his people, exposing all of themselves except their ... loins? Something about that doesn't make sense to me."

Princess Celestia reads, "For this very cause has king Laman, by his cunning, and lying craftiness, and his fair promises, deceived me, that I have brought this my people up into this land, that they may destroy them; yea, and we have suffered these many years in the land."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And now I, Zeniff, after having told all these things unto my people concerning the Lamanites, I did stimulate them to go to battle with their might, putting their trust in the Lord; therefore, we did contend with them, face to face."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And it came to pass that we did drive them again out of our land; and we slew them with a great slaughter, even so many that we did not number them." She then looks up and says, "Kinda makes sense, considering how badly the Lamanites defended themselves."

Rarity reads, "And it came to pass that we returned again to our own land, and my people again began to tend their flocks, and to till their ground."

Applejack reads, "And now I, being old, did confer the kingdom upon one of my sons; therefore, I say no more. And may the Lord bless my people. Amen."

At this point, I prepare to have my character close his book and look up.

But, before I can enter the commands, Fluttershy reads, "And now it came to pass that Zeniff conferred the kingdom upon Noah, one of his sons; therefore Noah began to reign in his stead; and he did not walk in the ways of his father." She then says, "That can't be good."

Lyra reads, "For behold, he did not keep the commandments of God, but he did walk after the desires of his own heart. And he had many wives and concubines. And he did cause his people to commit sin, and do that which was abominable in the sight of the Lord. Yea, and they did commit whoredoms and all manner of wickedness." She then turns to Fluttershy and says, "Definitely not good."

I decide to go ahead and read, "And he laid a tax of one fifth part of all they possessed, a fifth part of their gold and of their silver, and a fifth part of their ziff, and of their copper, and of their brass and their iron; and a fifth part of their fatlings; and also a fifth part of all their grain." At this point, I look up and say, "I'm guessing ziff is some type of metal. I don't know of any description for it, so I have no idea what it is."

Weed Whacker reads, "And all this did he take to support himself, and his wives and his concubines; and also his priests, and their wives and their concubines; thus he had changed the affairs of the kingdom."

Princess Luna reads, "For he put down all the priests that had been consecrated by his father, and consecrated new ones in their stead, such as were lifted up in the pride of their hearts."

Princess Celestia reads, "Yea, and thus they were supported in their laziness, and in their idolatry, and in their whoredoms, by the taxes which king Noah had put upon his people; thus did the people labor exceedingly to support iniquity."

Rainbow Dash reads, "Yea, and they also became idolatrous, because they were deceived by the vain and flattering words of the king and priests; for they did speak flattering things unto them."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And it came to pass that king Noah built many elegant and spacious buildings; and he ornamented them with fine work of wood, and of all manner of precious things, of gold, and of silver, and of iron, and of brass, and of ziff, and of copper;"

Rarity reads, "And he also built him a spacious palace, and a throne in the midst thereof, all of which was of fine wood and was ornamented with gold and silver and with precious things."

Applejack reads, "And he also caused that his workmen should work all manner of fine work within the walls of the temple, of fine wood, and of copper, and of brass."

Fluttershy reads, "And the seats which were set apart for the high priests, which were above all the other seats, he did ornament with pure gold; and he caused a breastwork to be built before them, that they might rest their bodies and their arms upon while they should speak lying and vain words to his people."

Lyra reads, "And it came to pass that he built a tower near the temple; yea, a very high tower, even so high that he could stand upon the top thereof and overlook the land of Shilom, and also the land of Shemlon, which was possessed by the Lamanites; and he could even look over all the land round about."

I read, "And it came to pass that he caused many buildings to be built in the land Shilom; and he caused a great tower to be built on the hill north of the land Shilom, which had been a resort for the children of Nephi at the time they fled out of the land; and thus he did do with the riches which he obtained by the taxation of his people."

Weed Whacker reads, "And it came to pass that he placed his heart upon his riches, and he spent his time in riotous living with his wives and his concubines; and so did also his priests spend their time with harlots."

Princess Luna reads, "And it came to pass that he planted vineyards round about in the land; and he built wine-presses, and made wine in abundance; and therefore he became a wine-bibber, and also his people."

Princess Celestia reads, "And it came to pass that the Lamanites began to come in upon his people, upon small numbers, and to slay them in their fields, and while they were tending their flocks."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And king Noah sent guards round about the land to keep them off; but he did not send a sufficient number, and the Lamanites came upon them and killed them, and drove many of their flocks out of the land; thus the Lamanites began to destroy them, and to exercise their hatred upon them." She then looks up and says, "Sounds like this king Noah underestimated the strength of the Lamanites, or overestimated the strength of his guards, or both."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And it came to pass that king Noah sent his armies against them, and they were driven back, or they drove them back for a time; therefore, they returned rejoicing in their spoil."

Rarity reads, "And now, because of this great victory they were lifted up in the pride of their hearts; they did boast in their own strength, saying that their fifty could stand against thousands of the Lamanites; and thus they did boast, and did delight in blood, and the shedding of the blood of their brethren, and this because of the wickedness of their king and priests." She then emits a grunt of foreboding before saying, "Whenever somepony starts to think highly of himself or herself, and forgets why he or she was successful, that's when things start to go wrong for that somepony."

Applejack reads, "And it came to pass that there was a man among them whose name was Abinadi; and he went forth among them, and began to prophesy, saying: Behold, thus saith the Lord, and thus hath he commanded me, saying, Go forth, and say unto this people, thus saith the Lord—Wo be unto this people, for I have seen their abominations, and their wickedness, and their whoredoms; and except they repent I will visit them in mine anger." She then looks up and says, "Just the right time for somepony to warn 'em that they ain't doin' good."

Fluttershy reads, "And except they repent and turn to the Lord their God, behold, I will deliver them into the hands of their enemies; yea, and they shall be brought into bondage; and they shall be afflicted by the hand of their enemies."

Lyra reads, "And it shall come to pass that they shall know that I am the Lord their God, and am a jealous God, visiting the iniquities of my people."

I read, "And it shall come to pass that except this people repent and turn unto the Lord their God, they shall be brought into bondage; and none shall deliver them, except it be the Lord the Almighty God."

Weed Whacker reads, "Yea, and it shall come to pass that when they shall cry unto me I will be slow to hear their cries; yea, and I will suffer them that they be smitten by their enemies."

Princess Luna reads, "And except they repent in sackcloth and ashes, and cry mightily to the Lord their God, I will not hear their prayers, neither will I deliver them out of their afflictions; and thus saith the Lord, and thus hath he commanded me."

It’s about this time that two deep, loud roars are heard from the forest, roars that vibrate the ground, or so I’m guessing based on the vibrations of my character’s perspective, and alarm Weed Whacker.

For a few seconds no one reads; that is, until I say, “Well, we’ve gotten this far in the chapter, and there isn’t a whole lot left of it. Let’s finish the chapter, and we’ll call it a night.”

Princess Celestia reads, "Now it came to pass that when Abinadi had spoken these words unto them they were wroth with him, and sought to take away his life; but the Lord delivered him out of their hands."

Rainbow Dash reads, "Now when king Noah had heard of the words which Abinadi had spoken unto the people, he was also wroth; and he said: Who is Abinadi, that I and my people should be judged of him, or who is the Lord, that shall bring upon my people such great affliction?" She then looks up and says, "Wow, he forgot everything his dad taught him."

Pinkie Pie reads, "I command you to bring Abinadi hither, that I may slay him, for he has said these things that he might stir up my people to anger one with another, and to raise contentions among my people; therefore I will slay him." She then looks up and asks, "Isn't king Noah being a little harsh? After all, Abinadi's just warning him and his people that they've gotten off track. He's not trying to turn them against each other."

At this point, Princess Celestia says, "Unfortunately, that's the way somepony thinks that prefers to do his or her own thing, and not the right thing. When somepony warns him or her, that somepony feels threatened, and will do whatever he or she can to get rid of that threat."

Rarity reads, "Now the eyes of the people were blinded; therefore they hardened their hearts against the words of Abinadi, and they sought from that time forward to take him. And king Noah hardened his heart against the word of the Lord, and he did not repent of his evil doings."

This time, before Applejack can start reading, I say, "And, I think that should be all for tonight."

But, before I can say more, the green dragon lands just outside my character’s property with a thunderous, literally ground-shaking thud, points his head toward the sky, and roars, spewing fire upward.

Instinctively, Weed Whacker jumps behind my character and starts screaming.

I have my character focus on Lyra, and I say, “You take Weed Whacker and go back inside.” Before she can answer, I then have my character turn to the pink earth pony; and I continue, “Pinkie Pie, you follow Lyra and Weed Whacker into the house.” I then have my character turn to the two alicorns, and I conclude, “I think it’s best if you teleport everyone else back to Ponyville. I’ll stay here and find out what’s wrong with the green dragon.” The fact of the matter is I’m sure I already know why the green dragon is upset.

In the mean time, Princess Celestia says, “Very well then. You just be careful.” And, with that, she and her sister and four of the element bearers disappear.

When my character is the only one in the front yard, I have him approach the green dragon; and I ask, “What’s wrong?”

In response, the green dragon glares down at my character and answers, “A purple hatchling invaded my cave. I found him … eating my gems!” He takes a moment to roar into the sky again before continuing, “And, I would’ve killed him too, if I hadn’t been distracted by an owl!”

At this point, I ask, “So, why are you here?”

The dragon continues, “The hatchling’s rescuer was a purple unicorn pony. Yesterday afternoon, I observed you reading with ponies, and I thought you might know about the purple one with the hatchling. If I hadn’t been trapped by a bunch of trees, I would’ve gotten both the unicorn and the hatchling invader.”

I see nothing wrong with admitting it when I say, “I am familiar with the hatchling and the unicorn you’re talking about.” I then continue, “From what I understand, you were just indirectly involved in a misunderstanding between the hatchling and the unicorn. Suffice it to say the two have cleared up their misunderstanding by now, so it’s unlikely your cave will be invaded by the hatchling again.”

The green dragon hears me out, then grumbles for a bit before saying, “I hope you’re right. There’s just one thing about him that bothers me.”

I ask, “And, what’s that?”

The green dragon asks, “Why is he still so young, so small? I sensed he’s been living for a few years now. But, there he was eating my gems, and he hadn’t grown even then. What happened to his greed?”

I pause for a moment before answering, “I’m guessing his pony mother, the purple unicorn, is probably keeping that in check.”

The green dragon, evidently focusing on one particular thing I said, lowers his head to approximately my character’s level and asks, “His pony mother? The purple unicorn has been raising him?”

I answer, “That’s right.”

The dragon then raises himself up to his previous stance and states, “Well, that explains it. If a pony raises a dragon from the time he or she hatches, and gives him or her enough to keep him or her alive and puts limits on what he or she receives, that dragon will likely stay a hatchling for many years. But, it takes only a little extra for a dragon’s greed to be activated.” He then inhales and exhales before concluding, “I shall return to my cave now, although I may visit again. Just be sure that the hatchling keeps away from my cave from now on.” And, with that, he flies off.

As I watch the green dragon fly over my character’s house, assisted by my character remaining focused on him until he disappears back into the forest, I find myself remembering the red dragon that Fluttershy had humbled, then convinced to move out of the mountain above Ponyville. Indeed, she had humbled a dragon. But, I have to wonder how many ponies have ever calmed one that was raging, especially the way I just did.

In the mean time, after the dragon has disappeared back into the forest, my character automatically heads into his house, where Weed Whacker’s sobbing pulls me out of my thoughts.

At that point, I have my character approach the little herbivorous dinosaur; and I say, “It’s alright now. The green dragon is back in the forest again.”

Weed Whacker jumps into my character’s arms, buries her face in his shoulder, and cries, “Good. I hope he stays there.”

I answer, “I’m sure he will for tonight. But, I also wouldn’t be surprised if he pays us a visit again some day.”

Angrily, Weed Whacker cries, “Why? Why can’t he just stay in the forest forever?”

I have my character stroke her neck as I answer, “The green dragon and I are friends. I don’t know if he’ll visit me frequently, but I’m sure it won’t be to hurt me or any of my friends.” Weed Whacker looks up at my character at this point as I continue, “He came here because Spike had invaded his cave and eaten some of his gems. I assured him Spike won’t be doing that anymore. And, I’m sure he won’t.”

Weed Whacker whimpers, “So, Spike is fine then?”

I answer, “I’m sure he is. When we visit Ponyville tomorrow, you’ll see. I suppose we could visit the library, and you’ll see for yourself that Spike is still alive and well.”

From behind my character, I hear Lyra ask, “Speaking of alive and well, shouldn’t we go out and harvest fruits and vegetables for dinner now?”

I answer, “That’s right. And, we also need to bring in the platter and tray from the reading.” I then ask, “Weed Whacker, do you want to go out and harvest vegetables, or would you prefer to stay inside?”

Weed Whacker turns toward the door, then back to my character, then says, “I think I’ll stay inside this time. I’m still too scared to go outside.”

At the herbivorous dinosaur’s answer, I state, “I guess that means I harvest vegetables again tonight.”

I then hear Pinkie Pie say, “And, I harvest fruits in the orchard.”

As my character places Weed Whacker on the couch, I hear Lyra say, “So, with that settled, let’s go on ahead.”

With the little herbivorous dinosaur reclined on the couch, I have my character stand up and follow the two ponies outside, where my character heads to the vegetable garden, Lyra to the vineyard, and Pinkie Pie to the orchard. And, after harvesting fruits and vegetables, the three reunite on the front porch, although Lyra diverges for a moment to collect the platter and the tray from the lawn.

Thinking about it, I’m guessing perhaps Pinkie Pie and/or Lyra, maybe even Weed Whacker, were the ones that collected the tray and platter over the past few days.

At any rate, Weed Whacker does join in the preparation of the fruits and vegetables, then in eating them. Then, the four retire to their rooms.

Knowing Pinkie Pie, in preparation for tomorrow, she’s undoubtedly preparing invitations for the other element bearers to come to Gummy’s birthday party tomorrow.

In the mean time, I have my character write to the princesses about how the arrival of a new assistant for Twilight affected Spike, at least until I suggested that he was going to be the senior assistant while Owlowiscious, Twilight’s new pet owl, was going to be the junior. I also have my character write about how I was able to show how Spike had damaged a book Twilight’d been looking for, and finally how I managed to calm down the dragon that payed me a visit this evening. After that, I have my character sign and roll up the letter, then deliver it to Weed Whacker, who bites on it, sending it to the princesses. After that, my character automatically returns to his room and goes to bed.

If there’s anything I can add, anything I feel I should add, it’s just that, as much as I plan on reminding Pinkie Pie about the event immediately following tomorrow, I still expect her to forget. But, I also expect a situation similar to what I’ve been in. So, until the game’s tomorrow, I save and close the game.

Chapter 31: Gummy's Birthday

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I find myself looking forward as much this time as previous times to starting the game, although, at the same time, I have this sense of foreboding concerning what’s going to happen over the next couple of days in the game. I know that Pinkie Pie has planned to celebrate the anniversary of her pet alligator’s birth, or hatching, the day before her birthday; but I also know she’s going to forget her own birthday immediately follows. I also know that, as one of her friends, I plan on being there to help her, as much as possible, to remember. And, I do have a plan to help her out when she doesn’t remember. Thus, with that in mind, I start my game.

As I do, I find my character waking up to the sound of knocking on his door, followed by Pinkie Pie screaming, “Mormon, time to wake up! It’s Gummy’s birthday today!”

As my character rises from his bed, I reply, “Thanks, Pinkie! I’m awake!” And, as soon as my character is up, he walks to his door and opens it. And, considering I hear no moaning from Pinkie Pie, my guess is she’s far enough away from my character’s bedroom door that Diane sees no reason to warn Pinkamena about it. I have him look toward the kitchen, and I see, through his eyes, that the pink earth pony is already about to enter the kitchen. I ask, “So, Pinkie, shall we go out and harvest fruits in the orchard?”

Pinkie Pie turns and smiles at my character, at me, and answers, “Okie dokie, Mormon! Let’s go!” And, she leads the way through the kitchen and front room, outside and into the orchard.

And, on the way, my character lingers long enough to close the doors behind them.

In the orchard, before Pinkamena hands control over to Diane, she turns to my character and says, “Ah, Mormon, you don’t have to worry. Remember, I’ve planned on having Gummy’s birthday first so I wouldn’t forget, and so I wouldn’t forget my own birthday. You’ll see. Everything’s gonna be fine.”

I smile and answer, “Just so long as you remember. And, I’ll be there to help you remember in case you forget.” And, I proceed to the pear tree and start searching for ripe fruits.

About the time my character has picked four pears from the tree, I hear Diane say, “I appreciate you helping my sister remember her birthday. I will try to do the same. After all, it is mine as well.” And, immediately afterward, I hear a thud, followed by the rattling of leaves, then four more, lighter thuds.

As my character focuses on Pinkie Pie again, I watch as her hair curls again, letting me know that Pinkamena is back in control.

As she takes the apples Diane bucked out of the tree and attaches them to her mane the way I might attach ornaments to a Christmas tree, she giggles and says, “Ah, you and Diane worry about me too much. I promise I’ll remember.”

I wonder to myself if I should get her to Pinkie promise. Of course, when she does forget, the Pinkie promise will likely make things even worse for her.

Then, as I watch, she says, “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye,” and even acts out her promise as she speaks.

In a later episode, one from the next season, of “My Little Pony Friendship is Magic,” one of Pinkie Pie’s friends, Applejack, makes a Pinkie promise, then breaks it. In response, as soon as she finds out, Pinkie Pie does the best impression I’ve seen a pony do of Katy Kaboom. But, right now, she’s made a Pinkie promise; and I know she won’t be able to keep it. I wonder what’s going to happen when, most likely just before her birthday party tomorrow, which I know her friends are planning for her, she realizes that she’s broken the Pinkie promise she just made. Of course, that’s yet to happen. Right now, it’s time to get back to the house with our harvests and get them cleaned up.

Pinkie Pie, who, while I’ve been lost in thought, has evidently already bounced over the fence and is waiting on the other side, calls out, “Mormon, are you comin’, or not?”

Immediately, I have my character approach and climb over the fence with his harvest; and I say, “I’m comin’, Pinkie, I’m comin’.”

This time, Pinkie keeps pace with my character as we make our way to the house, and she asks, “This means a lot to you, doesn’t it?”

I have my character focus on the pink earth pony, and I say, “You mean a lot to me.”

I think I see Pinkie Pie tear up as she says, “Aw, Mormon, you're so sweet.”

And, by this time, my character and the pink earth pony have made it to the steps of the front porch.

Lyra, who’s also there, uses her magic to open the door, allowing the other three to enter.

Pinkie, as soon as she’s inside, gallops to the kitchen door and opens it with the curl in her forehead.

In the mean time, my character lingers behind to close each of the doors.

Once all four are in the kitchen, the process of cleaning and preparing the fruits and vegetables for breakfast is the same as it’s pretty much always been. And, it takes just a few minutes for the group of four to eat them. Then, after breakfast, Pinkie Pie turns to my character, to me, and says, “Oh, I have some things I’ve been working on for singing telegrams for my friends. If it’s alright with you, I’d like to get them now so, once we’re at Sugar Cube Corner, I can get dressed in each of ‘em, and be ready to invite each of my friends to Gummy’s birthday party.”

I nod and answer, “Sure, go on ahead. We can wait.”

Pinkie Pie smiles and says, “Thank you, Mormy,” then gallops through the hallway to her room.

In the mean time, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character linger in the kitchen to clean up what the four didn’t eat.

I have to wonder if I should have my character get a box for all the costumes Pinkie Pie has ready for all her friends. Considering it for a moment, I decide it’s a good idea, and have my character head to his work room and get a box ready for Pinkie Pie when she comes out with her costumes. As it turns out, there is a minor problem, in that the only box in the room is occupied by musical instruments from the parasprite incident. So, I have my character remove each of the instruments and place them carefully to the right or left of the box, then take the now-empty box and carry it into the front room.

In the mean time, it seems that Pinkie Pie has gotten all her costumes, and is waiting for my character, for me, in the front room. As soon as she sees the box my character is carrying, she asks, “That’s the box that held the musical instruments, isn’t it?”

I answer, “That’s right. I figured you could use it to hold your invitations for your friends.”

Pinkie only half-smiles as she says, “Well, thanks.” I then hear her say, under her breath, “I hope the instruments will be alright.”

I reply, “I’m sure they will be. In the mean time, let’s get your supplies in the box, alright?”

Pinkie Pie nods in agreement, and the four all join in putting Pinkie’s costumes in the box. After that, with Pinkie and Lyra carrying the box between them on their backs, the group leaves the house, then makes their way through the Everfree forest and on into Ponyville.

As the group enters town, Pinkie Pie turns to my character and asks, “Oh, shouldn’t we head to the library so we can see how Spike’s doin’?”

I answer, “It’s probably a good idea to go to Sugar Cube Corner first, so we can drop off your box of supplies. Then we can head over to the library.”

Pinkie turns to eye the load that she and Lyra have been sharing, then turns back to my character and says, “Yeah, that’s probably the better idea. Then, I could dress up for inviting Twilight first.”

I pause for a moment in thought before saying, “Yeah, I suppose I could wait for a few more minutes. Alright then. As soon as we get to Sugar Cube Corner, you can go to your room and get dressed; then we’ll head over to the library so you can invite Twilight to Gummy’s birthday party, and afterwards I can see how Spike’s doing.” And, about that time I start seeing the bakery.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie corrects me by saying, “We can see how Spike’s doing.”

I smile and nod as I say, “Very well, we can see.”

Then, Lyra says, “I must admit, I missed Twilight and Spike at the reading last night. I’d like to visit with them for a while.”

I open my mouth to speak; but before I can say anything, Weed Whacker says, “I wanna visit Spike, too.”

Well, since everyone has spoken, I say, “Well, I guess that means that all of us visit Twilight and Spike at the library, then.”

The other three cheer in excitement and agreement as the group of four makes its way to Sugar Cube Corner. This time, though, when they arrive, the group enters through the front door.

Mr. Cake at the cash register, as soon as he sees the group of four, says, “Hi, Pinkie Pie, Mormon, Lyra, Weed Whacker. it’s nice to see you. We could use your help in the kitchen.”

Pinkie Pie bounces up to the orange stallion and says, “Hey, Mr. Cake. We need to make a stop off at the library first, if that’s alright with you. Also, I’m having a party I wanna invite all my friends to. Could I use my old room to get the invites ready?”

Mr. Cake nods and says, “Sure, Pinkie. Go right ahead.”

At the orange earth stallion’s acceptance, Pinkie Pie bounces up to my character’s eye level, I’d say, as she shouts, “Yes!” Then, when she lands again, she turns to Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character and says, “Come on. Let’s get that box up to my room.” And, with that, she takes her position under her previous corner of the box, and the group of four makes their way to and up the stairs.

Or at least Lyra and Pinkie Pie head that way. I have my character head into the kitchen to help Mrs Cake with baking pastries, and Weed Whacker follows him.

At about the time my character has put maybe two loaves of bread in the oven, Pinkie and Lyra show up at the entrance to the kitchen, Pinkie Pie wearing a blue-and-yellow-striped party hat with red dots in the yellow and yellow dots in the blue, and a big red clown’s nose.

The pink party pony says, “We’re ready to go when you are, Mormy.”

As my character turns and focuses on Pinkie, I say, “Well, in that case, let’s go.” I then have my character focus on Mrs. Cake as I add, “We’ll be back as soon as possible.”

Mrs. Cake smiles and says, “Alright, dearie. We’ll be waiting for you.”

As my character proceeds out the back door, followed by Weed Whacker, then Pinkie Pie, and finally Lyra, the dinosaur and two ponies each say their farewells to the blue earth mare before exiting. And, it’s about this time that I notice the birthday alligator riding on Pinkie’s back.

In the mean time, the pink earth pony says, “Now, as soon as Twily shows up, I wanna sing to her first. Then everypony else can say hello, and we can visit for a while.”

Presently, I say, “Sounds good to me.”

Lyra and Weed Whacker also agree with Pinkie’s arrangement.

And, a few minutes later, the group of four arrive at the library; and Pinkie Pie knocks on the door four times, much the same way Woody Woodpecker or the Road Runner would. A few seconds later, Twilight opens the door and says, “Oh, hi,” and immediately Pinkie starts singing. And, unlike in the show where it suggests that Pinkie sings two lines for each of her friends, in the game I have her singing the entire song for Twilight. She’ll do the same thing for each of the rest of her friends.

In the mean time, Pinkie’s invitation song lasts for maybe twenty seconds or so, after which Lyra, Weed Whacker, and I say hello to Twilight.

When the greetings are over, I say, “The invitation to Gummy’s birthday party is just one reason why we’re here. We also wanted to come and see how Spike’s doing.”

Smiling, Twilight steps out of the way of the door to allow her guests to enter and says, “Spike’s making breakfast in the kitchen. I’ll let him know you’re here to visit.” And, with that, she turns and heads to the kitchen.

As the group enters the library, Pinkie turns to my character and says, “Well, I’d say this first singing telegram went well.”

I open my mouth to speak, but it’s Lyra who beats me to it, as she says, “Yeah, just don’t overdo it. You don’t want to wear yourself out before the party.”

Pinkie Pie just smiles and giggles and says, “Thanks, Lyra.”

And, it’s at this point that Twilight enters the main room of the library, followed by Spike.

The purple dragon, seeing the four, no make that five, visitors, takes a step forward and, holding and wringing his tail, says, “Uh, hi everypony. How are you?” And, he laughs nervously.

I answer, “We’re fine. We just came to see how you’re doing.”

Lyra adds, “Yeah. We missed you and Twilight at the reading last night.”

Twilight then coos with gratitude before saying, “That’s so nice.”

At this point, Spike lets go of his tail and looks down at the ground in front of him before saying, “Ah, well, you didn’t need to worry about me. As you can see, I’m alright.” He then looks up at my character before adding, “You were right, Mormon. I shouldn’t have tried to set up Owlowiscious the way I did. Twilight walked right in on me, and she knew exactly what I was doing.” He then smiles as he adds, “But, you did see the mouse, didn’t you? Didn’t it look real?”

Sarcastically I say, “Yeah. Because, you know, there are so many purple mice runnin’ around out there with lime-green ears and tails and faded-blue patches on their backs.”

My guess is Spike’s grimace is as much in response to the tone in my voice as to what I say. When I finish talking, Spike looks down again and says, “Yeah. Anyway, like I said, you were right about everything. I know now that Owlowiscious wasn’t trying to set me up. I’m senior assistant now, and I should’ve been responsible enough to let Twilight know about what had happened to that astronomical almanac thing when it happened.”

I have my character kneel in front of the purple dragon and stroke his head with my character’s closest hand as I say, “Well, as long as you’ve learned your lesson, I’d say the whole experience was worth it.”

At my statement, Spike looks up at my character and pushes his hand away, then says, “Oh, and the next time I go into the Everfree forest, I’m gonna stick to the trail from now on. I had no idea there was a dragon living there.”

I state, “Well, as it turns out, the dragon’s a friend of the one we had to convince to leave a few weeks ago. It seems that the green dragon’s allowing the red one to stay in his cave wherever he lived before, and decided to move into the Everfree forest, partly to meet the human that had sung to his friend.”

Spike grunts with interest, then says, “And, I’m guessing you are that human?”

I answer, “That’s right.”

Just then, Pinkie Pie says, “Oh, we need to get back to Sugar Cube Corner. Mormon, Lyra, and Weed Whacker need to get back to helping the Cakes, and I need to get ready and invite my other friends.”

Smiling, Twilight says, “Well, then, we won’t hold you up any longer.”

So, with Pinkie Pie leading the way, the quartet makes its way out of the library.

Then, as my character makes his way out the door, the purple unicorn says, “Oh, Mormon, if you could wait a moment, I’d like to have a word with you.”

Since my character’s the last to leave, I decide to have him wait at the door. I have him turn to the two ponies and the dinosaur, and I say, “I’ll catch up to you in a moment.” I then have my character turn back to the purple unicorn, and I ask, “So, Twilight, what do you want to talk to me about?”

Twilight’s first response is to motion my character down to where she can talk into his ear. Then, once my character is in that position, she says, under her breath, “Tomorrow is Pinkie Pie’s birthday.”

I state, in an equally quiet voice, “I know. Pinkie Pie planned to celebrate her pet’s birthday the day before her own.”

Twilight’s ears fold back for a moment, and I can see, through my character’s eyes, the look of concern on her face. When her ears are open toward my character again, she says, “Well, the rest of us five are planning a surprise party for her on Sweet Apple Acres, in the extra barn. I just thought you might like to be involved.”

I state, “Well, as much as I appreciate the invitation, I’m thinking I should stay out of it this time.” Seeing the look of disappointment on the purple unicorn’s face, I add, “Trust me, it’ll be better this way.”

Twilight looks away from my character and says, “Oh, alright, if you think that’s best.”

I don’t say anymore, just have my character leave the library. It’s about then that I find out that the two ponies and the dinosaur didn’t go that far away, and are waiting for my character to catch up to them.

When my character reunites with the rest of the group, Pinkie Pie says, “Mormon, I’m surprised you didn’t mention that you calmed down the green dragon.”

I reply, “I didn’t feel like I needed to.”

And, that seems to be all that’s said, at least between me and Pinkie Pie, as the group heads back to the bakery.

Once the group gets there and enters through the back door, Pinkie proceeds through the kitchen, into the main room, and on up to her own room to get ready to invite her next friend, Rarity.

In the mean time, Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character proceed to their assigned duties in the kitchen.

When Pinkie Pie comes back through the kitchen, she’s wearing a tuxedo, a top hat, and shoes that almost look like a human would wear them.

The four in the kitchen wish the pink party pony luck as she marches through and on her way out the back door.

A few minutes later, Pinkie Pie returns, bouncing through the kitchen on her way to change costumes. When she comes back through, she’s wearing a purplish-pink saddle with what look like firework cylinders and a hat with one more such cylinder. This, no doubt, is the costume she wears to invite her friend Applejack to Gummy’s birthday party. When she comes back, a few minutes later, it’s evident to me that the singing telegrams are starting to take their toll on her. Instead of bouncing, she just canters through the kitchen on her way to her room to change costumes.

This time, when she comes back through the kitchen, she’s not wearing anything.

I notice this and ask, “You don’t have a costume to wear to invite Rainbow Dash?”

Pinkie Pie turns to my character and answers, “Not this time. I’m goin’ over to the library to borrow Twilight’s balloon.” And, without a further word, she heads out the back door. And, when she returns a few minutes later, I can see her sweating and panting.

As I watch her, through my character’s eyes, stumbling through the kitchen, I ask, “Shouldn’t you take a break for a few minutes to catch your breath before inviting Fluttershy?”

As she looks up at my character, her smile seems forced to me. She answers, “Nah. Fluttershy’s the last on the list, and then I’ll take a break.” And, once again before anyone can say anything more, the pink party pony goes on ahead through the kitchen.

When she comes back through, she seems to be wearing two cakes, one over her torso, and one on her head. And, while Gummy’s sitting on her neck between the two cakes, Pinkie Pie has her head lowered, making me wonder how heavy that cake hat on her head is. She seems to struggle to lift her head up to look at my character before she says, “You know, taking … a break … is sounding … better … and better … right now.” And, she starts to slump down.

I reply, “I’m sure Fluttershy won’t mind if you take a few minutes to catch your breath before you visit her.”

Again Pinkie Pie seems to force a smile as she says, “Maybe … you’re right, … Mormon. But, … I can … have a … break … after … I invite … Fluttershy.” And, once again she rises, and shakily proceeds toward the door.

I’m sure Pinkie Pie will survive the ordeal she’s putting herself through. And, I’m sure it’ll all be worth it when all her friends show up to celebrate the anniversary of Gummy’s hatching with her. Still, I think it wouldn’t have hurt her to rest for just a few minutes before going to visit Fluttershy.

It’s ten or fifteen minutes before the pink party pony returns from visiting her yellow pegasa friend, and she takes just a few steps into the kitchen before collapsing on the floor.

At this point, I decide it’s time for me, that is my character, to step in and help her out. As he, as per my instructions, approaches her and picks her up, I ask, “Are you going to need help getting that costume off?”

Pinkie Pie doesn’t even look up at my character as she wheezes, “Next time, I think I’ll just hand out written invitations.”

Evidently Pinkie’s energy isn’t so limitless after all.

In the mean time, I notice, as my character starts to stand up again, Gummy, who has fallen on the ground next to the exhausted pink party pony, looks up at him and licks each of his, that is Gummy’s, eyeballs.

I have my character focus on the little toothless alligator, and I say, “I’m sure Pinkie Pie’ll be fine. She just needs to rest for a while.” Then, as my character proceeds to carry the pink earth pony through the rest of the kitchen, through the main room of the bakery, and up to her room, I say, “And, once we get to your room, I’ll help you remove your costume so you can rest for a while.”

Lethargic, Pinkie Pie manages to say, “Thank you, Mormon.”

When my character gets Pinkie Pie back into her room, I have him close the door behind them, then proceed to search for the belt that’s no doubt securing the larger cake to Pinkie Pie’s back. When he does find the belt buckle, I can see, through his eyes, that it’s on pretty much as tight as it can be. I ask, “How are you able to breathe with that belt on so tight?”

Pinkie Pie slowly turns to have a look at the belt, then says, “Breathe … belt … tight?”

I immediately order my character to do what he can to remove, or at least loosen, the belt as I say, “I need to get that belt off of you as soon as possible.” It takes, I’d say, a minute for my character to loosen the belt enough to be able to slip the cake costume off of Pinkie Pie.

When the cake is finally removed, Pinkie Pie shows signs of being able to breathe again by inhaling deeply, then exhaling deeply, almost sounding like she’s braying. Twice more she does that before focusing on my character and saying, “It feels good to be able to breathe again. Thank you, Mormon. I didn’t realize I had that thing on so tight. I knew it wasn’t that heavy.”

As my character proceeds to remove the cake hat from Pinkie’s head, I respond, “Something you need to be aware of from now on when wearing a costume like that. While it’s a good idea to make sure the costume isn’t going to fall off, you also want to be able to breathe.”

Pinkie Pie forces a chuckle before she says, “Right.” Then, when the hat’s removed, she says, “I think I’ll take your advice now and rest for a while before I go back downstairs and help with the baking.” And, with that, she rises to all fours just long enough to stroll to her bed, jump up onto it, and lie down and fall asleep.

In the mean time, I have my character leave the party pony and head back downstairs and to the kitchen.

As my character takes his position in front of the oven again, I hear Lyra ask, “Is Pinkie going to be alright?”

I answer, “I’m sure she’ll be fine. Like I said to Gummy, she just needs time to rest and recuperate.”

And, thus the group continues to work, producing more loaves of bread, as well as cookies and other pastries, until Pinkie Pie enters the kitchen again, evidently rested and ready to help out.

The rest of the day continues on that way, with no notable incident.

When the time comes for the Cakes to close down the bakery, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Gummy and my character exit through the back door to find that Twilight, Spike, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy are there waiting for them.

The purple unicorn steps forward and says, “We thought we’d join you, along with the birthday alligator, on your way through the Everfree forest to your home.”

Then, Fluttershy asks, “Are you going to have the reading first, and then the party?”

Pinkie Pie answers, “That’s right.”

Then, Spike, sitting on Twilight’s back, says, “Well, in that case, let’s get going.” And, he points toward the Everfree forest.

Evidently none of the members of the group has a reason to argue with the purple dragon, as the group of now ten, lead by my character, proceeds away from Sugar Cube Corner.

After a few paces, Pinkie Pie turns around and says, “Wait!”

Then, as the group collectively stops and turns around to see the front door, and the “Closed” sign in front of it, I hear Pinkie Pie sigh and say, “Never mind.” As my character focuses on her, she continues, “I was hoping to get my costumes and take ‘em back again. But, it’s too late now.” Then, she perks up again as she says, “Oh, well. We can always come back tomorrow and collect ‘em.”

With that much apparently figured out, the group once again proceeds out of Ponyville, through the Everfree forest, and to my character’s house.

Once there, I happen to notice a few things. For one thing, there’s a wooden tub filled with water, with apples floating on top of it. There’s also a table with a bowl full of punch, with cups next to it, and a cake next to the punch bowl. And, I can’t help noticing that the punch bowl and cups resemble the ones that Twilight and Spike had available a couple days ago for that meteor shower, leading me to wonder if Pinkie Pie borrowed them from the purple unicorn. There’s also some kind of stereo system on the front porch. And, the tub and table are on one side of the lawn, providing plenty of room on the other side for the reading to take place.

As the group enters and the members notice the new items in the yard and how they’re set up, Pinkie Pie says, “I thought it’d be a good idea to have things ready this way. Now, we don’t have to wait to get things set up between the reading and the party, because everything’s already ready.”

I couldn’t argue with the pink party pony’s logic. I agree, “Good thinking, Pinkie.”

And, before Pinkie can thank me for my compliment, the two princesses appear maybe a few inches from the refreshment table.

Princess Celestia, looking around and seeing the setup, says, “Well, this is the first time we've gotten this kind of reception. What’s the occasion?”

Pinkie Pie, grinning ear-to-ear, approaches the daytime princess and says, “We’re going to be celebrating Gummy’s birthday party this evening, after the reading. You and Princess Luna can stay and party with us if you want.”

Princess Celestia smiles and says, “That’s very kind of you to offer. But, we’re only here for the reading. After that, we have duties back at the castle.”

I notice that Pinkie Pie looks down and sighs before looking up again and saying, “That’s alright. It was worth offering anyway.”

At this point, I ask, “So, is everyone ready?”

Nine ponies and two dragons answer the question by producing their copies of the Book of Mormon and taking their familiar places in the circle.

I ask, as my character takes his position, “Twilight, Spike, do you need to be brought up-to-date on what we read last night?”

The purple unicorn smiles and answers, “No, that’s alright. Fluttershy told us about what you read, so Spike and I were able to read the two chapters between the two of us, when we weren’t having to get books for ponies that came in, or putting books away when ponies left ‘em out.”

I nod and say, “Well, in that case, I guess we’re ready.” I have my character focus on the orange earth mare, and I ask, "Applejack, will you read verse one of Mosiah chapter twelve?"

The orange earth pony smiles and nods, then looks down into her book and reads, "And it came to pass that after the space of two years that Abinadi came among them in disguise, that they knew him not, and began to prophesy among them, saying: Thus has the Lord commanded me, saying—Abinadi, go and prophesy unto this my people, for they have hardened their hearts against my words; they have repented not of their evil doings; therefore, I will visit them in my anger, yea, in my fierce anger will I visit them in their iniquities and abominations."

Fluttershy then reads, "Yea, wo be unto this generation! And the Lord said unto me: Stretch forth thy hand and prophesy, saying: Thus saith the Lord, it shall come to pass that this generation, because of their iniquities, shall be brought into bondage, and shall be smitten on the cheek; yea, and shall be driven by men, and shall be slain; and the vultures of the air, and the dogs, yea, and the wild beasts, shall devour their flesh."

Lyra reads, "And it shall come to pass that the life of king Noah shall be valued even as a garment in a hot furnace; for he shall know that I am the Lord."

I read, "And it shall come to pass that I will smite this my people with sore afflictions, yea, with famine and with pestilence; and I will cause that they shall howl all the day long."

Weed Whacker reads, "Yea, and I will cause that they shall have burdens lashed upon their backs; and they shall be driven before like a dumb ass."

Princess Luna reads, "And it shall come to pass that I will send forth hail among them, and it shall smite them; and they shall also be smitten with the east wind; and insects shall pester their land also, and devour their grain."

Princess Celestia reads, "And they shall be smitten with a great pestilence—and all this will I do because of their iniquities and abominations."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And it shall come to pass that except they repent I will utterly destroy them from off the face of the earth; yet they shall leave a record behind them, and I will preserve them for other nations which shall possess the land; yea, even this will I do that I may discover the abominations of this people to other nations. And many things did Abinadi prophesy against this people."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And it came to pass that they were angry with him; and they took him and carried him bound before the king, and said unto the king: Behold, we have brought a man before thee who has prophesied evil concerning thy people, and saith that God will destroy them."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And he also prophesieth evil concerning thy life, and saith that thy life shall be as a garment in a furnace of fire." She then looks up and says, "Well, Abinadi did say that King Noah's life would be valued as a garment in a hot furnace."

Spike reads, "And again, he saith that thou shalt be as a stalk, even as a dry stalk of the field, which is run over by the beasts and trodden under foot."

Rarity reads, "And again, he saith thou shalt be as the blossoms of a thistle, which, when it is fully ripe, if the wind bloweth, it is driven forth upon the face of the land. And he pretendeth the Lord hath spoken it. And he saith all this shall come upon thee except thou repent, and this because of thine iniquities." She then looks up and says, "Now, based on what we've read about King Noah thus far, Abinadi wasn't pretending anything. He was warning the people, just as God told him to."

Applejack reads, "And now, O king, what great evil hast thou done, or what great sins have thy people committed, that we should be condemned of God or judged of this man?" She then looks up and scoffs before saying, "Ah wonder."

Fluttershy reads, "And now, O king, behold, we are guiltless, and thou, O king, hast not sinned; therefore, this man has lied concerning you, and he has prophesied in vain." She then looks up and grunts in confusion and disbelief.

At this point, I reply, "Clearly, by this point, this people, under King Noah's administration, had forgotten everything they'd learned from Zeniff, or at least were refusing to pay attention to it. Either way, they were refusing to acknowledge that they'd done anything wrong."

Lyra looks and waits for my character to nod to her before she reads, "And behold, we are strong, we shall not come into bondage, or be taken captive by our enemies; yea, and thou hast prospered in the land, and thou shalt also prosper."

I read, "Behold, here is the man, we deliver him into thy hands; thou mayest do with him as seemeth thee good."

Weed Whacker reads, "And it came to pass that king Noah caused that Abinadi should be cast into prison; and he commanded that the priests should gather themselves together that he might hold a council with them what he should do with him."

Princess Luna reads, "And it came to pass that they said unto the king: Bring him hither that we may question him; and the king commanded that he should be brought before them."

Princess Celestia reads, "And they began to question him, that they might cross him, that thereby they might have wherewith to accuse him; but he answered them boldly, and withstood all their questions, yea, to their astonishment; for he did withstand them in all their questions, and did confound them in all their words." She then looks up and says, "You know, I'm beginning to really like Abinadi, and I'm really disliking this King Noah."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And it came to pass that one of them said unto him: What meaneth the words which are written, and which have been taught by our fathers, saying:"

Pinkie Pie reads, "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings; that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good; that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth;"

Twilight Sparkle reads, "Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing; for they shall see eye to eye when the Lord shall bring again Zion;"

Spike reads, "Break forth into joy; sing together ye waste places of Jerusalem; for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem;"

Rarity reads, "The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God?"

Applejack reads, "And now Abinadi said unto them: Are you priests, and pretend to teach this people, and to understand the spirit of prophesying, and yet desire to know of me what these things mean?" She then looks up and says, "If those priests don't understand those scriptures, then they're doin' more pretendin' than the people said Abinadi was a'doin'."

Fluttershy reads, "I say unto you, wo be unto you for perverting the ways of the Lord! For if ye understand these things ye have not taught them; therefore, ye have perverted the ways of the Lord."

Lyra reads, "Ye have not applied your hearts to understanding; therefore, ye have not been wise. Therefore, what teach ye this people?"

I read, "And they said: We teach the law of Moses."

Weed Whacker reads, "And again he said unto them: If ye teach the law of Moses why do ye not keep it? Why do ye set your hearts upon riches? Why do ye commit whoredoms and spend your strength with harlots, yea, and cause this people to commit sin, that the Lord has cause to send me to prophesy against this people, yea, even a great evil against this people?" She then looks up and says, "Those sound like valid questions to me."

Princess Luna reads, "Know ye not that I speak the truth? Yea, ye know that I speak the truth; and you ought to tremble before God."

Princess Celestia reads, "And it shall come to pass that ye shall be smitten for your iniquities, for ye have said that ye teach the law of Moses. And what know ye concerning the law of Moses? Doth salvation come by the law of Moses? What say ye?"

Rainbow Dash reads, "And they answered and said that salvation did come by the law of Moses."

Pinkie Pie reads, "But now Abinadi said unto them: I know if ye keep the commandments of God ye shall be saved; yea, if ye keep the commandments which the Lord delivered unto Moses in the mount of Sinai, saying:"

Twilight Sparkle reads, "I am the Lord thy God, who hath brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage."

Spike reads, "Thou shalt have no other God before me."

Rarity reads, "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing in heaven above, or things which are in the earth beneath."

Applejack reads, "Now Abinadi said unto them, Have ye done all this? I say unto you, Nay, ye have not. And have ye taught this people that they should do all these things? I say unto you, Nay, ye have not."

At this point, I have my character close his book and stand up; and I say, "And, I think that should be the end of the reading for tonight."

Presently, Pinkie Pie shouts, “Yes!” She then approaches the princesses and asks, “Princess Luna, Princess Celestia, I’m sorry you can’t stay for Gummy’s birthday party.”

Princess Celestia nods and says, “We do appreciate the invitation, though. But, we may just come and stay for your birthday party.”

Humbly and sincerely, Pinkie replies, “Well, thank you, Princess. I’d be honored.”

The two alicorns smile, and Princess Celestia says, “Well, we must be going now. Until tomorrow.” And, before anyone can reply, the two princesses disappear.

At this point, Pinkie Pie turns to the other nine and says, “Well, now it’s time for dancing and games and cake and drinks!”

I order my character to approach the stereo system to turn it on, and I say, “I’ll get the music started.”

Then, while my character follows my orders, my guess is that Rainbow Dash and Applejack approach the wooden tub with the apples, and Rarity approaches the refreshment table. And, I’m surprised that, as soon as the stereo system is turned on, I immediately hear bagpipes playing, signaling the start of the song, “You Make Us Want to Sing.” At this point, I’m left to wonder what other surprises Pinkie Pie has in store for me and the rest of her friends, although I have an idea of what she’s provided for Rainbow Dash and Applejack.

My character turns to the front yard to show me, through his eyes, Pinkie, Lyra and Twilight dancing together, Rainbow Dash and Applejack taking turns bobbing for apples, and Rarity and Fluttershy talking at the refreshment table. Even Spike and Weed Whacker seem to be having fun conversing with each other.

Then, Pinkie Pie looks up at my character and says, “Come on down, Mormon! Join us in dancin’!”

I smile as I reply, “Thanks for the invite, but the only dance I know is a Maori war dance, and I don’t think that’d be appropriate for this situation.”

At my response, the pink party pony says, “Aw, well, you can at least come down and talk with some of my friends, like Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash or Applejack.”

Considering she’s right, I decide to have my character leave the front porch and approach the refreshment table. If anything, maybe I can catch Gummy before he ends up in the punch bowl.

In the mean time, from the tub with the swimming apples in it, I hear chomping sounds, followed by Rainbow Dash saying, “Nice one.” My character turns his attention to the blue pegasa as she continues, “Now, let me show you how it’s really done.”

In the mean time, I see Pinkie Pie, with a slight limp, approaching the tub, opposite the azure pegasa and the orange earth mare. Seeing her two friends, she says, “Hey, girls!”

Rainbow Dash replies, “Hey, Pinkie Pie.”

Then, Applejack also responds, “Hey.”

I can hear the pink party pony smile as she grunts and says, “Just wanted to tell you how happy I am that you could make it to Gummy’s party.”

Applejack replies, “Are you kiddin’? Ah wouldn’t’a missed it for the world.”

Then, Rainbow Dash says, “Me neither. When Pinkie Pie throws a party, I am there.” And, with that, she plunges her head into the water, then pulls it back out holding another apple in her mouth and sings, “Ta-da!”

Seeing this, Pinkie says, “Aw, it’s just a boring old apple. Don’t worry. There are plenty of other surprises in there.”

Rainbow Dash spits out the apple, into Applejack’s head, and asks, “What kind of surprises?”

Pinkie giggles and answers, “I can’t tell you that, silly. Then it wouldn’t be a surprise.” Then, she trots away, but still with a slight, although evident, limp.

As the pink party pony approaches my character, I have him kneel down in front of her, and I ask, “Are you alright?”

Pinkie leans in toward my character and answers, “My shoulder’s aching a little.”

I have my character stand up again in time to see, through his eyes, the azure pegasa and the orange earth mare plunge their heads into the tub of water and apples, and, apparently, surprises.

When Applejack pulls her head out again, in her mouth she has a green apple with a spring attached to its bottom. Then, the spring, demanding to keep hold of the apple, pulls it back, taking Applejack with it.

Then Rainbow Dash pulls her head out again, but with Gummy attached to her muzzle.

At this point, I can’t help laughing a little when I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Oh, ache’s gone.”

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash grimaces, then frowns, then shakes her head vigorously until the hatchling alligator lets go.

Fortunately, I have my character in just the right spot to catch the airborne alligator before he can end up in the punch bowl. As my character holds the toothless reptile, I say, “I’ll get you some punch.” I then have my character get a cup from next to the punch bowl, take the ladle and transfer some of the punch into the cup, then grab a straw from a pile, also next to the punch bowl.

It’s Scout that provides a small stump for Gummy to use as something of a platform so he can reach the straw without having to stand or sit up.

After thanking my timber wolf friend for the stump, I have my character place it on the table, then Gummy on the stump, and slide the cup of punch, straw and all, up to him. I then ask, “How’s that?”

Gummy responds by licking my character’s nose, I assume, then grabbing the straw and sucking on it.

In the mean time, Pinkie Pie takes over use of the ladle, pouring more punch for the white unicorn.

Putting on her best show of grace, Rarity says, “This punch is simply divine. Is this the same recipe you used for your ‘Spring Has Sprung’ party?”

Smiling, the pink earth pony answers, “Nope, somethin’ new.” Then, as the two ponies turn and see Gummy drinking from his own cup, Pinkie continues, “It’s Gummy’s favorite.”

In this game, it’s the surprise of seeing the little toothless alligator drinking the same liquid that causes Rarity to spit her mouthful of the punch into Pinkie Pie’s face as the pink party pony speaks. But then, seeing Pinkie smiling expectantly at her, Rarity shakily proceeds to take another mouthful of the punch.

As Pinkie Pie trots off satisfied, I watch Rarity prepare to spit her mouthful of punch into the lawn as I say, “You don’t need to worry about it. There’s no meat in the punch.” I then have my character take an empty cup, fill it with the punch using the ladle, then drink it directly from the cup.

At the bottom of the screen, a message box pops up, saying, “Various kinds of fruit, including citrus.”

Noticing the last word, I hum contentedly and say, “Citrussy.”

Seeing that I approve of the punch, Rarity, with relief, swallows her mouthful, then says, “Thank you, Mormon. I was hoping I wasn’t tasting baby alligator in the punch.”

I then hear the song end, and a different, but familiar melody start playing, one I remember from the parasprite incident, which Lyra, Pinkie and I had marched to, to lead the parasprites away from Ponyville and back into the Everfree forest.

As “Stick Figures” starts playing, Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy move away from the refreshment table and start dancing at Pinkie Pie’s encouragement.

I watch as Pinkie Pie, a little too energetically, dances, knocking the yellow pegasa and the purple unicorn away from her, Twilight toward the orchard, and Fluttershy almost out of the front yard. I then have my character turn to Gummy on his log perch, and notice the little alligator’s wagging his tail in time with the music. So, I ask, “Would you like to join Pinkie Pie in dancing?”

Gummy just looks up at my character and continues to rhythmically wag his tail.

Taking this as affirmation, I have my character pick the alligator up from his perch, then carry him over to Pinkie Pie, who’s hopping around in her place, landing on one, two, or three of her legs each time.

Then, as I put Gummy down a few feet away from her, as much for my character’s safety as that of Gummy, Pinkie Pie stops hopping around long enough to take notice. Seeing her alligator pet keeping time with the music with his tail, she smiles and says, “Come on, everypony! Gummy wants to dance!”

At this point, as I notice other ponies accepting the pink party pony’s invitation, I have my character back away.

It’s not until the Animusic melody ends and a clearly Celtic melody starts playing, that Twilight and Fluttershy recover enough to join in the circle of ponies dancing around Pinkie’s pet alligator.

Seeing that all of her friends have joined her in dancing around her reptilian friend, Pinkie Pie starts chanting, “Go, Gummy. It’s your birthday.”

After a few hours and several songs, it’s gotten dark enough that, without Twilight and Rarity lighting their horns with their magic, it’s difficult to see the objects in the yard. But, it’s still clear that the ponies, at least, have plenty of energy to keep partying.

Still, it’s Twilight who, noticing how dark it is, looks around and says, “Well, it’s getting late, and we need to be getting back to Ponyville now.”

Then, Applejack stops and says, “Oh, that’s right! Ah need to get back to Sweet Apple Acres.”

Fluttershy worriedly states, “I need to get back to my cottage. Oh, I hope my creatures don’t think I’ve forgotten about them.”

Rarity says, “And, I need to get back to the boutique. Sweetie Belle and her friends have been planning a sleepover there, and Celestia only knows what they’ve been getting up to.”

I hear a little suspicion in Pinkie Pie’s voice as she asks, “Wait, I thought Princess Celestia had duties back in Canterlot. Why’s she taking care of three foals at your boutique?”

At her pink friend’s question, Rarity giggles. Then, she answers, “Oh, Pinkie Pie, it’s just a figure of speech.”

At the white unicorn’s statement, Pinkie lowers her head somewhat and says, “Oh,” then forces a couple chuckles.

I state, “Yeah, I’m sure even Rainbow Dash has some duties she needs to attend to tomorrow, and probably needs her rest right now.”

My suggestion seems to dawn on the rainbow-haired pegasa, as she flies directly upward and says, “Oh, that’s right!” When she lands, she adds, “I have to help out at Sweet Apple—Ow!”

As Rainbow Dash glares at Applejack for interrupting her, Pinkie Pie tilts her head in curiosity and wonders aloud, “That’s strange. I’ve never heard of Sweet Apple Ow. Where is it?”

Then, Applejack, with a smile that demonstrates her nervousness as much as her forced chuckle does, starts backing toward the gate. After some four paces, I’d say, she answers, “Nothin’ you need to be worryin’ about.” I then happen to notice Rainbow Dash cover her face with a forelimb, evidently realizing how she’d nearly let something slip, as Applejack continues, “We’d better be a’mosyin’ on home now,” and forces a few more nervous chuckles.

But, before the orange earth mare can get any closer to the gate, Pinkie Pie shouts, “Wait!” Then, as Applejack stops moving and all eyes focus on the pink party pony, Pinkie says, “We haven’t had our group hug yet.”

It’s Lyra who says, “Oh, that’s right.”

Rainbow Dash adds, “We can’t end the party without a group hug.”

I decide to have my character join in on the evident party-ending tradition, and Pinkie Pie picks up Gummy by the scruff of his neck and puts him on her shoulder so he can be part of the group hug.

Even Weed Whacker and Spike join in, Spike between Rarity and Twilight, and Weed Whacker between my character and Lyra.

After a few seconds the ponies, reptiles, and human separate; and I have my character proceed to the front gate to allow the party guests to leave.

And, as my character looks up to see five ponies and one dragon leave through the gate, I notice, through his eyes, Pinkie on the other side of the gate, ready to say goodbye to them.

The first out of the gate, Applejack, says, “Woowie! Ah am beat. Ah haven’t danced that much since, well, since your last party. Thanks again for the invite.”

I respond, “It’s been an honor having you here.”

The next one to leave, Rainbow Dash, focuses on Gummy, who’s on Pinkie’s back, and says, “See you later, birthday alligator.”

Gummy just responds by licking each of his eyes.

Then, Rarity, who along with Fluttershy follows close behind the azure pegasa, says something about “another delightful soiree.” As many times as I’ve watched the episode, I’ve never been able to catch all of what she said about it.

At any rate, Fluttershy adds, “It’s been lovely.”

Finally, Twilight, the last in line to leave, with Spike fighting to stay awake on her back, says, “We should do this again soon.”

Now, I know in the episode there was more to the conversation between Pinkie and Twilight. But, considering the situation and the fact that Twilight was already the first to speak up and call an end to the party, I figured her last words on leaving the party were enough.

At any rate, I notice an idea seems to dawn on the pink party pony, as she gasps and says, looking up at my character, “Twilight’s right. We should do this again soon.”

As I look at the pink earth pony’s face, I can already tell she’s starting to forget the importance of tomorrow, and why she had Gummy’s birthday party planned for tonight. I have my character close the gate behind Twilight and, once the five ponies and one dragon disappear into the forest, I say, “Just so long as you don’t forget why you wanted to celebrate Gummy’s hatching this evening.”

Pinkie Pie smiles and giggles as she says, “Oh, you don’t need to worry about that. I remember exactly why I wanted to celebrate his birthday this afternoon.”

In an effort to encourage the answer, I ask, “And, that is?”

Pinkie Pie closes her eyes and squeals, “So, I can celebrate his after-birthday party tomorrow!”

Now, it’s clear to me that Pinkie Pie has forgotten her own birthday. And, knowing that she Pinkie promised to remember, I get the feeling she’s going to be really hard on herself when she finally does remember.

In the mean time, Pinkie continues, “You don’t have to worry about a thing. We still have that cake in your fridge, and Gummy can eat that while the rest of us have the other cake. It’ll be just as much fun tomorrow as it was tonight.”

I open my mouth to say something, but Lyra’s the first to say, “Let’s go harvest some food for dinner. We’ll discuss the party while we eat.”

Still smiling, Pinkie sings, “Okie dokie lokie.”

Deciding to go along for the present time, I decide to wait until Pinkie and I are in the orchard before I say, “I’m sure you Pinkie promised to remember why tomorrow is so important to you.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie gives me a strange look before asking, “Now, Mormon, why would I need to Pinkie promise to remember my pet’s after-birthday party?”

Now, I know I programmed Pinkie Pie to forget her own birthday. But, I didn't program her to make a Pinkie promise to remember it first. And, I have to wonder, if this were a real case, would there have been a situation, say when my character was freeing her from that cake costume, that she might’ve gotten some kind of brain damage that would’ve caused her to forget her birthday? And, right now, would it help if I were to tell her directly about her birthday tomorrow?

Those are the thoughts running through my mind right now as I harvest fruits from other trees while Pinkie “Diane” Pie kicks apples out of the tree she chose. Come to think of it, does Diane remember their birthday?

I have my character turn to the straight-haired mare to ask her the question, but I notice that Pinkamena has already taken control after Diane kicked four apples out of the tree.

After the harvest, the four reunite on the front porch, where Lyra uses her magic to open the door for the other four.

Then, Pinkie, the first to enter, gallops ahead to the kitchen door and opens it, holding it open for the rest of the group.

Lyra, as soon as my character, the last to enter, enters, follows him inside and closes the door behind her, then follows him into the kitchen, where, after she and my character enter, Pinkie follows them in and closes the door behind her.

Then, the group takes their positions and prepares the fruits and vegetables for dinner, then takes their positions in their chairs and eats the fruits and vegetables. Then, after dinner, they clean up the remains and return to their rooms.

For my character’s letter to the princesses, I mention the way Pinkie invited each of her friends, differing in costume while singing the same song to each of them. I add events that took place during the party, the celebration of Gummy’s hatching, and mention my concerns about Pinkie Pie having forgotten her own birthday party. I don't mention the Pinkie promise she made, that can come tomorrow. When the letter is finished, my character rolls it up, then delivers it to Weed Whacker for her to bite and send to the princesses.

I know what Pinkie’s going to do tomorrow, because I know today and tomorrow are based on the episode, “Party of One.” But, I also remember what happened in the episode, “Last Roundup,” when Applejack broke her Pinkie promise. The only question is, how do I help her come to terms with the fact she made a Pinkie promise she couldn't keep? I suppose I’ll figure it out by the end of the game’s tomorrow. So, until then, I wait until my character is in his bed before I save and close the game.

Author's Notes:

At the beginning of this chapter, Pinkie Pie made a Pinkie promise that she wouldn't forget her birthday, and that it was tomorrow, that is the day following Gummy's birthday. Then, at the end of the chapter, she's demonstrated her inability to keep that promise, due to programming in the game.

In the next chapter, the last of the two based on the episode "Party of One," Mormon has to come to the rescue of the pink party pony as she struggles to understand why her friends don't want to celebrate Gummy's after-birthday party. Then, when it dawns on her why, Pinkie must face the fact that she couldn't keep her Pinkie promise relating to her own birthday. And, that's one more thing Mormon will have to help her with. Thus the adventure continues in Chapter 32: Pinkie Pie's Birthday.

The reading at the end of that chapter will be the Book of Mosiah chapter 13.

Chapter 32: Pinkie Pie's Birthday

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I must admit, right now I’m feeling some foreboding and trepidation at what I know is going to happen on this day in the game. But, at the same time, seeing that I’m so close to winning the game, I’m also feeling excited. And, those are my thoughts and feelings as I reopen and resume my second playthrough of my game.

As the game starts, I find my character awakened to the sound of pounding on his door, followed by Pinkie Pie joyfully shouting, “It’s Gummy’s after-birthday today!”

I’m finding it difficult to find any words. I know Pinkie’s forgotten her birthday, after all that’s how I programmed her. And, in the “My Little Pony Friendship is Magic” animated series, in the episode “Party of One,” on which this and the previous day are based, Pinkie is portrayed as having forgotten her birthday any way. But, I also know she Pinkie promised that she’d remember, and she hasn’t been able to keep that promise. Chances are I’m going to have to try to remind her, hopefully before her birthday party. But, right now, since my character’s already risen from his bed and is heading toward his door, I suppose I’ll have to deal with that situation, as well as others, as they arise.

This time, when my character opens his door, Pinkie, not far from it, is still on her hooves, though out of range of where the door swings. With a concerned look on her face, she asks, “Mormon, is there something wrong?”

I answer, “I just have this feeling that you’ve forgotten an important event today, a personal anniversary of yours.”

Pinkie looks at my character, at me, confused for a second or two, then bursts into giggles. When she’s finished, she says, “Ah, Mormon, I haven’t forgotten anything. If I had, I would’ve remembered.”

Now, Pinkie’s closest Ponyvillian friends accept her eccentricities as Pinkie being Pinkie; and, if they’d ever tried to find the piece they’re missing, they've likely given up on it. I, on the other hand, have that piece, and have been able to make some sense of what she’d said, up until now. When someone forgets something, it means that someone doesn’t remember. I’m sure Pinkie Pie will eventually remember her birthday, either with my help, or with that of her Ponyvillian friends, the other element bearers. In the mean time, I’m definitely concerned about Pinkie Pie. But, I decide to say, “Let’s just go out to the orchard and harvest some breakfast.”

Pinkie pauses for a second, then says, “Okie dokie,” then turns and heads for the kitchen.

My character follows her, closing his door behind him, as well as that of the kitchen, and the front door, as the human and the pink earth pony make their way through the house and outside. And, Pinkie Pie continues to lead the way to the orchard, where she leaps over the fence, then chooses a tree.

As my character climbs over the fence, I decide it’s worth a shot; and I say, “I’m thinking you’ve forgotten your own b—”

But, before I can finish my statement, Pinkie “Pinkamena” Pie turns to me and says, “Just a moment. I need Diane to take over for a second so she can buck some apples out of the tree.”

Evidently, reminding Pinkamena about her birthday is going to be a little more difficult than I thought. This is the first time I’ve tried to remind her directly about her birthday, and she’s decided to hand control over to Diane before I could inform her. Maybe I can inform Pinkamena when she’s back in control. In the mean time, I decide my character should get to work harvesting pears, and maybe a few summer fruits.

As it turns out, my character only has enough time to harvest four pears before I hear Pinkie say, “Well, Mormon, I’m ready to go back to the house when you are.”

As my character approaches the pink earth pony, who’s now back under Pinkamena’s control, I ask, “Don’t you remember scheduling Gummy’s birthday before …”

And, once again, before I can mention the pink party pony’s birthday, I’m interrupted as Pinkie Pie, seeing the pale-green unicorn and the dinosaur, says, “Lyra, Weed Whacker, were you waiting for me and Mormon?”

Lyra answers, “No, not exactly. We just finished harvesting breakfast from the vineyard and vegetable garden.”

Weed Whacker adds, “Lyra just got back from the vineyard, and I just got out of the vegetable garden.”

When Weed Whacker’s finished speaking, a suspicious Pinkie Pie leans toward Lyra and says, under her breath, “I get the feeling Mormon’s been tryin' to tell me something all morning, but he just hasn’t said it yet. Is there something wrong with him?”

Lyra repeats, “Something wrong?” Then she adds, “What do you mean?”

Pinkie answers, again under her breath, “Actually, it started last night. He keeps talking to me about Gummy’s birthday party, and says I planned it to be just before an anniversary that’s really important to me. Do you know what he’s talking about?”

Lyra hums for a second or two, then asks, “Wait, isn’t today supposed to be your—”

But, before Lyra can finish her question, Pinkie Pie suddenly growls, “Ah, please, Lyra, you too?”

Lyra recoils a bit from the pink earth pony’s outburst, then says, “Oh, Pinkie, you have forgotten, haven’t you?”

Pinkie growls before saying, “I don’t understand what you and Mormon are talking about. All I know is that today is when we’re celebrating Gummy’s after-birthday party, and I plan on inviting all my friends to it.” And, with that, she moves on ahead of Lyra and Weed Whacker and heads for the front porch.

Lyra waits until my character has caught up to her, then, as she starts cantering again, she says, “I’m worried about Pinkie Pie. Today’s her birthday, and she’s completely forgotten about it. I’m beginning to wonder if she even wants to remember.”

I respond, “I know. We’ll just have to take things as they come. If we can’t remind her about her birthday, then maybe the other element bearers can.” I pause before continuing, “Of course, that may take a while, since they have their own surprise for Pinkie Pie.”

Lyra groans worriedly, then asks, “Do you think they’ll be able to jog Pinkie’s memory?”

I answer, “I’m sure they will, once Pinkie sees the surprise they have planned for her.”

Lyra stops before asking, “And, what then? Didn’t I hear Pinkie make a Pinkie promise about not forgetting her birthday?” Not waiting for an answer, she continues, “What happens when she remembers? Will she be able to live with herself knowing she broke a promise that's so important to her?”

My character also stops, then turns to Lyra; and I answer, “I’m sure she’ll learn to live with that mistake, as long as we’re there to help her. In the mean time, we’ll have to take situations as they come.”

By this time, my character, Lyra, and Weed Whacker arrive on the front porch, where Pinkie Pie is holding the door open with her forehead curl.

Lyra gallops on ahead to the kitchen door and opens it with her magic while the rest of the group enter the front door.

Then Weed Whacker, my character, and Pinkie Pie make their way through the front room, after Pinkie Pie has lingered behind long enough to close the front door, past Lyra, and into the kitchen.

From there on, final preparation for breakfast goes normally, after which the group takes their places around the table and eats. Then, when breakfast is eaten and cleaned up, Pinkie Pie gallops to her room, saying something about getting her invitations for her friends.

Lyra gives my character a worried look, and I can’t blame her for feeling that way. And, even Weed Whacker looks worried.

In a second or two, Pinkie Pie has returned, wearing a wicker basket on her head like a hat with a wicker rope securing it around her head. She trots behind Weed Whacker, picks her up by her tail, and tosses her onto Lyra’s back. She then says, “Well, it’s time to head out for Ponyville. Let’s a-go!”

As I watch the pink party pony with the wicker basket on her head make her way out of the kitchen, I can’t help chuckling to myself at her reference to the Mario games, at least as early as Mario 64.

On the other hand, I doubt even the Lyra from the animated series would’ve gotten the reference, or, for that matter, Weed Whacker. So, I’m not surprised that Lyra ambles past my character with her head in line with her torso, and doesn’t even look up at my character.

From on top of the pale-green unicorn’s back, Weed Whacker just glares up at my character for a moment before turning back ahead to see where her ride’s taking her.

I just sigh and say, “Let’s just get going to Ponyville.” And, I have my character follow the two ponies as they make their way through the house, closing doors behind him. Then, from the gate, the trip to Ponyville takes an uneventful half hour.

As the group approaches the bakery, Pinkie turns to the other three members and says, “You three can stay here at Sugar Cube Corner. I’m gonna invite my friends to Gummy’s after-birthday party.”

I just say, “Alright, Pinkie.”

Lyra responds, “Best of luck.”

Weed Whacker says, “See you when you get back.”

Smiling, Pinkie bounces off toward the library. And, I do notice Gummy attached to her tail.

My character leads Lyra, still carrying Weed Whacker, into the back door of Sugar Cube Corner, then lingers long enough to close the door behind her.

Once the three are inside, Mrs. Cake, there to meet them, assigns them to tasks, after getting an explanation from Lyra about why Pinkie Pie isn’t with them. And, somehow, I’m not surprised to hear as much worry in the blue earth mare’s voice as Lyra, Weed Whacker, and I have been feeling.

At any rate, it’s about the time that my character puts a raw loaf of bread in the oven that Pinkie Pie shows up, with a look of confusion and worry of her own.

I ask, “So, Pinkie, how did it go?”

The pink earth pony looks up at my character and answers, “None of my friends can make it. Everypony has a reason for not coming to Gummy’s after-birthday party.” She then sighs before continuing, “Twilight said she’d fallen behind on her studies and had to hit the books. I still think she should just read them.

“Applejack said she has to pick apples. But, she was pulling three carts stacked way over the top with apples already.

“Rarity said she needed to wash her hair. But, her hair wasn’t dirty until she stuck her head in the garbage can. Then, after that, she galloped back into her boutique.

“Then there were Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. They said they had to house-sit for a bear named Harry, and the bear kept his cave so well, it was almost like a house. They said the bear was going on vacation at the beach.”

At this point, I say, “Well, I guess it’s nice to know there’s a bear out there that believes in sandy claws.”

My guess is the pink party pony is too preoccupied with her friends being absent from her party to appreciate my joke, as she continues, “Did Rainbow Dash think I wouldn’t notice she drew a watch on her hoof before referring to the time? And, what are the chances that all of my friends would have reasons not to come to a party I was throwing? Especially after a couple of 'em said she’d come to any party I’d throw.” And again she sighs as she looks down.

I have my character reach out for one of the remaining pink envelopes as I ask, “May I have a look at one of the invitations?”

Pinkie Pie looks up at my character, at me, and answers, “It’s an invitation to Gummy’s after-birthday party, this afternoon. They all are.”

I say, as I have my character pull his empty hand away from the basket, “And, you mean this afternoon, this afternoon?”

Presently, Pinkie Pie answers, “Yes, I mean …” She then gasps, and I can see her eyes vibrate as she asks, her voice trembling, “Oh, Mormon, don’t tell me you can’t make it either.”

I respond, “Oh, I’ll gladly attend.”

Before I can say more, Pinkie Pie jumps into my character’s arms and says, “Oh, thank you, Mormon. I hoped I could count on you to come, at least.”

As my character automatically receives the hug from the pink earth pony, I continue, “I’m just not sure that this afternoon is the right time for it.”

At this statement from me, Pinkie Pie melts out of my character’s arms. She then looks up at him, at me, and says, “Well, I can’t very well have it tomorrow, because that’s when the Grand Galloping Gala is. And, if I put it off for too long, then it won’t be soon. I might forget the reason why I’m having the party in the first place.”

This statement from the pink earth pony makes me wonder if perhaps she does remember her birthday, and just wants to celebrate her alligator’s birthday again.

The pink earth pony moves away from my character, looking downward and away from his face, as she says, “You know, the more I think about what my friends said, the more it sounds like—” Then, as though the idea dawns on her, which it probably does, she gasps before concluding, “They’re making excuses.” She then looks up at my character, at me, again, and says, “Mormon, I want you to stay here and keep helping the Cakes in the kitchen. I need to look into this further.” And, with that, before anyone can say or do anything to stop her, she gallops out of the kitchen, through the main room of the bakery, and, based on the sound of a bell ringing, out the front door.

I then hear Lyra ask incredulously, “Sandy claws?” Then, after my character automatically turns to the pale-green unicorn, I can see her glare at my character as she adds, “Really, Mormon?”

I shrug and say, “Well, it was worth a shot.” And, I begin to wonder again if Pinkie Pie has forgotten her birthday, and especially that it’s today.

But, I’m given no time to think about that right now, as I hear Mr. Cake call out, “Mormon, could you go into the basement and get the cake from down there?”

I answer, “Sure, no problem.” And, automatically, my character heads down into the Sugar Cube Corner basement to retrieve a cake, evidently the only one, down there. And, as my character turns the light on to light the place up, then heads to and opens the freezer there, I see, through his eyes, a yellow-frosted cake outlined on the top and bottom with pink frosting, with the pink party pony’s smiling face in the middle, a white frosting rose in each of two most distant corners and two pink valentines near each of the most distant sides, and the words, clearly written in frosting, “Happy Birthday” above Pinkie Pie’s face, and her name under it.

I then hear Mrs. Cake behind my character say, “We need you to deliver it to Sweet Apple Acres.”

My character turns to the blue earth mare, and I say, “Sure, it shouldn’t be a problem. As long as Pinkie Pie’s friends can distract her long enough, I should have no problem delivering this cake.”

Mrs. Cake smiles back at my character and says, “Thanks, Mormon.” And, with that, she turns and heads back up the steps to the kitchen. And, she leaves behind a box for my character to put the cake in.

The cake is frozen, so it’s no problem for my character to remove it from the freezer and place it into the box. Then, after that, my character closes the box, then takes it upstairs, only to run into Pinkie Pie in the kitchen.

The pink earth pony, seeing me with the box, asks, “Uh, Mormon, whatcha doin’?”

I answer, “The Cakes have sent me to make a delivery over to Sweet Apple Acres.”

As my character continues to make forward progress out of the basement, Pinkie Pie steps backward, keeping her distance, but still remains in his path. She asks, “So, whatcha deliverin’?”

I have to pause for a moment, as my character closes the basement door; and I wonder aloud, “How do I answer that question without making the Cakes or Apples sound cannibalistic?”

At my question, Pinkie Pie tilts her head and asks, “Uh, an apple cake?”

As my character turns back to the pink earth pony, I answer, “I can’t say for sure if it’s made of or contains apples, but it is a cake. At any rate, I have to deliver it to Sweet Apple Acres; and, in the mean time, the Cakes are going to need your help here to keep things running while I’m gone.”

Now, it’s Pinkie Pie’s turn to pause before she asks, “Now, how am I going to continue my investigation of my friends if I’m helping the Cakes here at Sugar Cube Corner?”

As my character maneuvers around the pink earth pony toward the doorway between the kitchen and the main room, I answer, “That’s something you’re going to have to figure out on your own. In the mean time, I have to make this delivery.” And, my character turns around to enter the main room of the bakery.

And, wouldn’t you know it, as my character enters that room, the front door opens, ringing the bell over it, and Twilight Sparkle enters the room. Seeing my character holding a box, she says, “Oh, hi, Mormon. Nice to meet you.”

I reply, “Nice to meet you, too.”

The purple unicorn then asks, “So, where are you going?”

I answer, “The Cakes have assigned me to make a delivery to Sweet Apple Acres.”

Then, I hear Mrs. Cake, who I didn’t realize until this point was following my character, say, “Oh, Miss Twilight, you must be here for …”

As my character progresses toward the front door, Twilight shushes the blue earth mare before saying, “I don’t want Pinkie Pie to know …”

Just then, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “Twilight, I thought you were supposed to be hitting books.”

At this point, with my character heading for the door anyway, I say, “Well, I’ll just go ahead and make this delivery.” And, taking my statement as instructions, my character starts following a course to the apple orchard.

And, as the door closes behind my character, I hear Mrs. Cake invite the pink party pony to take over my position while I’m making the delivery.

Among the good things about the cake being frozen is that, based on how ponies I see along the way are sweating, it’s evidently warm outside. It’s very likely that, by the time my character gets to Sweet Apple Acres with the cake, it’ll be thawed out. And, as it turns out, it takes maybe ten minutes or so for my character to get there.

When my character arrives, Applejack is at the front gate to meet him. She motions to him to follow her, saying, “We’re a-havin’ the party in the barn over here. It’s a good thing you arrived when ya did.” Then, as she leads the way, she asks, “So, by the way, where’s Twilight?”

I answer, “Last I saw, she was being held up by Pinkie Pie.”

Worried, the orange earth mare asks, under her breath, “Uh oh, she doesn’t know ‘bout the party, does she?”

I answer, “All she knows is I’m delivering a cake here.”

Applejack sighs with relief before saying, “Good. Hopefully we can keep it a secret 'til we reveal it t’her.”

A minute later, as I’m entering the barn, I hear Rainbow Dash urgently call out, “Applejack, we have a problem!”

Applejack emits a grunt of foreboding, then circles around behind my character and closes the door to the barn.

Maybe a frame later, I see the blue pegasa land on a bale of hay.

At the door, I hear the sound of wood rapidly pounding on wood, followed by Pinkie Pie shouting, “I know you’re in there!”

At this point, my character places the cake, box and all, on a giant wooden spool, which has been set on one side for use as a table, then proceeds to hide behind a stack of hay bales, where I also find Fluttershy and Rarity.

As soon as my character is hidden, for the most part, from the view of the door, Applejack opens the top part of it and, evidently seeing Pinkie Pie there, says, “Oh, uh, howdy, pardner.”

Pinkie, making attempts to look inside, attempts which are blocked by Applejack, asks, “Mind if I … take a look inside the barn?”

The orange earth mare, fumbling for a moment, says, “No, uh, Ah mean, yes, Ah mean, … ya can’t come in here.”

One thing I’ll say about Pinkie Pie, she’s persistent. She responds, “Rainbow Dash went in there.”

Applejack excuses, or at least attempts to excuse, the blue pegasa’s entrance by nervously replying, “Oh, well, she was just bringin’ in some, uh, supplies. Yep, supplies for the, uh, renovation. Fixin’ up the whole thing, top to bottom.” She then calls into the barn, “Uh, lots of construction goin’ on in there right now!”

At this point, Rainbow Dash, from the neighboring bale of hay, gestures toward my character and the two mares with him and whispers, “You heard her, construction.”

And, with that, she, as well as Fluttershy and Rarity, start imitating sounds, rather unconvincingly I might add, of machines associated with construction sites.

It’s during this time that I hear a more convincing pounding sound coming from the back door of the barn, and my character goes to answer it.

As Twilight enters through the door, she notices the other three mares already making sounds like those in a construction zone, and she goes to the bale stack with Fluttershy and Rarity. Then, after my character closes the door and returns to his position, I hear Twilight grunt uncertainly; and I can only guess she must be tapping my character in the arm, based on the motions, as she says, “Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!” And, she coordinates her calling out “Bang!” with tapping my character.

When the sounds seem to be an adequate cover, I hear a door slam, followed a few seconds later by Applejack saying, “Yep, construction. That’s my story, and Ah’m stickin’ to it.” And, she follows her statement with a nervous chuckle.

At this point, the four mares hiding behind bales of hay stop making their construction sounds.

It takes a few more awkward seconds, but the clearly unconvinced pink earth mare slowly says, “Okie dokie lokie,” and, after another second, backs off.

Applejack sighs in relief and closes the top part of the door.

As the orange earth mare turns and gestures for the other four element bearers to come out of hiding, Rarity turns to my character and asks, “Mormon, why didn’t you make construction noises like the rest of us?”

I answer, “I didn’t want Pinkie Pie to think I was in on this.”

Rainbow Dash states, “Well, you are now.”

I reply, “I know that. But, Pinkie Pie doesn’t, and she doesn't need to know.”

I then hear Applejack ask, “Now, how is you making construction noises gonna make Pinkie Pie think yer in on our party prep, huh?”

I open my mouth to speak, but it’s Twilight who answers, “Mormon’s right. Pinkie Pie’s familiar with his voice, and could tell it from our voices. He didn’t want to play a role in our surprise party for Pinkie Pie because, … well, …” After trailing off, she turns to my character and asks, “Uh, why didn’t you want to be part of the surprise?”

I pause for a moment, then answer, “Actually, the fact of the matter is I have nothing against being part of the surprise party. It's just the preparation I don't want to be a part of. I can’t get into any details, but I just don’t want Pinkie to feel like she’s being completely isolated. She knows something’s going on, but she doesn’t know exactly what it is. She needs one friend, at least, that isn’t going to make her feel left out of everything.”

At my answer, Applejack looks down and says, “Oh, Ah, hadn’t thought ‘bout it that way.”

I then hear Fluttershy say, “Poor Pinkie.”

I add, “I’ll get her to come here, I just won’t tell her why. I’ll leave that surprise for you to reveal.”

Twilight attracts my character’s attention before saying, “Well, in that case, you’d better get back to Sugar Cube Corner. We’ll make the final preparations here.”

I have my character nod in agreement, then proceed to the door where Pinkie Pie and Applejack had been arguing.

Then, Rainbow Dash points to the closer door, the one I’d allowed Twilight to enter, and says, “Uh, maybe you should use the back door here.”

I reply, “Good idea,” as my character turns around and accepts the blue, rainbow-haired pegasa’s invitation.

Whether this surprises people or not, as it turns out, the walk from the barn back to Sugar Cube Corner takes as much time as it did to get to the barn on Sweet Apple Acres. And, my character is there in time to see a worried-looking Spike leave the front porch, heading back to the library.

At this point, I have my character catch up to the little purple dragon, and, when he’s caught up to him, I ask, “So, Spike, is everything alright?”

As my character slows to match pace with the purple dragon, he answers, looking up at my character, “I’m not really sure. She gave me the gems she promised, but, well, I just can’t help thinking something’s wrong with her.”

I ask, “Her, who?”

Spike answers, “Pinkie Pie.”

As usual, even though I already know the answer, I still ask, “What happened?”

Spike looks ahead of him, although towards the ground not much more than a foot ahead of him, and answers, “She and her alligator pet invited me into Sugar Cube Corner, where she said she had gems for me. And, sure enough, she did. Then, she said I just had to talk in order to get the gems, so I started making small talk. But, Pinkie Pie wasn’t satisfied with that. She said she wanted me to talk about our friends, so I started talking about Twilight and the other element bearers. Then, she started bein’ scary, said she wanted me to confess. Well, I won’t get into details, I’ll just say I confessed about things I’d done in the past few days. And, still Pinkie wasn’t satisfied. Finally, she told me to tell her that her friends were all lying to her and avoiding her because they don’t like her parties and they don’t want to be her friends anymore. So, that’s exactly what I said to her. So, I finally got the gems, but Pinkie started looking different. Her mane and tail went all flat, and she even looks darker now. She said something about her friends not liking her anymore.”

By this point, the human and the dragon have made it to the library.

As Spike opens the door, I say, “Well, thanks for letting me know about it.”

Spike slowly walks in as he says, “I hope you can help her. I just said what she wanted me to say.” And, without saying another word, he closes the door behind him.

Well, since I have the information I need from Spike, I decide that it’s time for my character to return to Sugar Cube Corner so I can talk to Pinkie Pie. And, based on what I’ve heard from Spike, Diane’s in control. No doubt I’ll have to see if I can talk to Pinkamena somehow.

The walk back to the bakery takes less than a minute, and Pinkie “Diane” Pie is there to meet my character at the front door.

As soon as she sees my character, Diane says, “Mormon, we have a problem.”

I respond, “I know. I heard the story from Spike.”

Diane turns a full one hundred eighty degrees in her spot and starts walking toward the staircase as she says, “We’ll talk more in my room.”

The two of us say no more until she and my character are in the bedroom that Pinkie Pie had when she lived at Sugar Cube Corner with the Cakes. But, once again, this is something I knew was going to happen, based as much on my replication of the “Party of One” episode as on what I know of the pink earth pony. While in the episode it was clear to me that Diane was trying to bring Pinkamena out with a party involving a bucket of turnips, a stack of rocks, a dust bunny, and a bag of flour; in the game I’m a resource, or at least the gamer is, that Diane can turn to. If I can’t get Pinkamena to come out, I can at least bring Pinkie Pie along to the barn in Sweet Apple Acres so her friends can explain things to her and get the more energetic spirit to take control of Pinkie.

Once the human and the earth pony are in her room, Diane closes the door, then turns to my character and says, “Now, use that ‘soundproof’ cheat.”

I nod, then click on the room and say, “Soundproof on.”

Satisfied, Diane ambles to the bed and jumps onto it, then turns one hundred eighty degrees and sits down canine-style, then turns her head to look at my character, and says, “Good. I need your help getting through to Pinkamena. She’s withdrawn, and I don’t know what to do about it. She's not listening to me, but I hope she’ll listen to you.”

I have my character take the few steps toward the pink earth pony and kneel on one knee in front of her, and I say, “I’ll see what I can do.” I then have my character look directly into the pink earth pony’s eyes, and I say, “Pinkamena, come out. Pinkamena, it’s me, Mormon. I just had a talk with Spike, and I know what’s troubling you.”

At this point, the pink earth pony’s appearance doesn’t change; but I do see her mouth move; and Pinkamena whispers, “Oh, Mormon, what do I do? My friends don’t want me around anymore. They hate my parties.”

Now, I have my character stroke Pinkie’s mane as I say, “From what Spike told me, it sounds like you gave him a script to read and motivation to read it, both positive and negative, and he just read the script.”

At this point, I see tears start to stream from Pinkie’s eyes as she says, “B-but, Mormon, it was m-more than that. M-my f-f-friends …” At this point, she sobs and sniffles before continuing, “They’ve been avoiding me all day, making excuses, trying to hide something from me. What if they’re … what if …” She stops talking, and sobs some more.

I have my character hug the pink earth pony as I say, “Now, Pinkamena, I’m sure it’s not what you think. Just because you made Spike say exactly what you wanted to hear from him, that doesn’t mean it’s true. You still have your friends to explain the situation to you. I seriously doubt it’s as bad as you think it is.”

Presently, Pinkamena asks, “B-but, what if th-they d-don’t want to b-be my f-friends anymore?”

Well, it’s clear to me that I have been able to speak to Pinkamena. And, it’s also clear to me that she still doesn’t remember her birthday. I decide to say, “Come. Let’s go to Sweet Apple Acres.” And, I have my character stand up and prepare to pick the pink earth pony up in his arms.

But, Pinkamena evidently takes control of Pinkie’s legs, as she rises to all fours, then backs away from my character’s arms and asks, “B-but, I’ve been there already. Applejack, sh-she slammed my head in the d-door. Why would I wanna go back there?”

As my character makes another attempt to pick up the pink earth pony, I say, “Now, I’ve given you every reason to trust me before. So, you should have no trouble trusting me now. If I have to, if it’s your preference, then I’ll carry you to Sweet Apple Acres.” And, taking that as his cue, my character once again tries, and this time he's successful in picking up the pink earth pony.

And, just then, the door opens; and I hear Rainbow Dash ask, “Is Pinkie Pie in here?”

My character automatically turns to the rainbow-haired pegasa, and I answer, “I’ve got her. I’m ready to go back now.”

Rainbow Dash looks at the pink earth pony in my character’s arms and, tilting her head, asks, “Is Pinkie Pie alright?”

As my character stands up again, I answer, “She will be. She just had a misunderstanding. So, let’s get back to Sweet Apple Acres.” Then, I have him pause for a moment; and I say, “If you’ll wait for me outside, I just have one more thing to take care of. And, bring Gummy with you.”

Somewhat hesitant, the azure pegasa straightens her head again and says, “Well, alright,” then grabs the hatchling toothless alligator in her mouth by his tail and tosses him onto her back and backs out of the room.

At this point, I click on the room and say, “Soundproof off.” Then, I have my character carry the pink earth pony out of the bedroom, closing the door behind him, then follow Rainbow Dash down the stairs, to the main room of the bakery.

Once there, I see that Lyra and Weed Whacker are already present, just outside the doorway to the kitchen.

Lyra asks, “Is Pinkie alright?”

I answer, “I'm sure she’ll be fine.”

Rainbow Dash adds, “Mormon said she had a misunderstanding, whatever that means.”

I continue, “If you two will to go the library and pick up Spike, the three of us will head over to Sweet Apple Acres; and you can meet up with us there.”

Lyra nods in agreement as Weed Whacker climbs onto her back, and the two head through the kitchen to the back door.

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash and my character, with Pinkie Pie and Gummy in tow, leave the bakery and resume their journey back to Sweet Apple Acres.

A few minutes later, once they’ve arrived at the barn where my character delivered the cake, I have him place the pink earth pony on the ground on her hooves, at which point Rainbow Dash opens the door to the barn and calls out, “We’re here!” and backs away.

I have my character stay in his place behind Pinkie Pie, to block her retreat.

Once the azure pegasa is out of the way of the opening to the barn, it suddenly lights up; and, from inside, the other four element bearers call out, “Surprise!”

At this point, my character kneels on one knee behind Pinkie and nudges her forward; and I say, “Well, go on inside.”

In response, the pink earth pony sighs before cantering into the barn. Once inside, as soon as she gets a clear view of her friends, and my character is right next to her, I notice, through his eyes, that her sad expression morphs into one of anger; and she starts growling.

I hear Fluttershy say, “I really thought she’d be more excited.”

Presently, Pinkie growls, “Excited?” then repeats the word, this time screaming, before asking, no, demanding, “Why would I be excited to be attending my own farewell party?”

At this point, considering that her hair remains straight, I can only guess that Pinkamena is not in complete control of Pinkie Pie.

In the mean time, a confused, incredulous Twilight asks, “Farewell party?”

Immediately, Pinkamena answers, “Yes!” She then makes it clear that she’s controlling Pinkie’s limbs as well as she kicks and falls into a canine-style sitting position as she continues, “You don’t like me anymore, so you decided to kick me out of the group and throw a great big party to celebrate, a farewell-to-Pinkie party.” She then looks up at my character, and I can see the tears well up in her eyes as she says, “Oh, Mormon, I thought for sure you’d still be with me.” And, she starts sobbing.

I have my character reach out to stroke Pinkie’s mane, but Pinkamena pushes his hand away with a front hoof.

Then, Applejack approaches her and, clearly concerned, asks, “Why, in the world, would you think we didn’t like you anymore, Sugar Cube?”

Evidently, the orange earth mare has her moments.

In the mean time, a once-again furious Pinkie Pie asks, “Why?” Then, she thrusts her face into that of Rarity and, louder, repeats, “Why?” She then screams the question at Fluttershy, causing the yellow pegasa to fall backwards. Finally, she answers, “Because you’ve been lying to me and avoiding me all day, that’s why!” And, while she answers, she seems, for those few seconds, to hover in the air. Finally she lands, concluding her rant.

Rainbow Dash, who approached the yellow pegasa to make sure she was alright, replies, “Uh, yeah, we couldn’t attend Gummy’s party so that we could get ready for yours.”

Then, Twilight, pointing to the cake on the spool table, now evidently free from its box, asks, “If this is a farewell party, why does the cake Mormon delivered from Sugar Cube Corner say, ‘Happy Birthday Pinkie Pie?’”

For a few seconds, the pink party pony takes time to look around at the presents on one table, then the decorations hanging from the posts and borders of the hay loft, then the cake and the inscription on it. After a few more seconds, Pinkamena suddenly takes full control of Pinkie Pie and says, “Because, it’s my birthday!” She then looks up at my character, at me, and she seems to melt once again as she whimpers, “Oh, Mormon, I’m so sorry,” before running out of the barn.

My character’s attention follows her as she turns to the left and disappears, then I have him turn back to the other element bearers; and I say, “I’ll go get her and bring her back.” I then have him follow the course the pink earth pony took as she ran out of the barn, and I call after her, “Pinkie?”

I hear the pink earth pony answer back, “Please, Mormon, just let me be!”

Instead, I have my character follow the direction of Pinkie’s voice until I see her running toward a gully where an older barn is barely standing nearby. As my character continues to follow her, once he can see her, I notice she finds an outcropping rock and settles down on top of it. I again call out, “Pinkie?”

She turns toward my character and calls back, “Mormon, please, just go back to the party!” And, I see her produce a cupcake from her mane.

Once again, instead of heeding the pink earth pony’s plea, I have my character continue to run toward her until he’s next to the rock where she’s sitting human-style, staring at a cupcake in her front hooves.

As my character settles down next to her, Pinkie Pie sniffles, then sighs, and says, “This is the cupcake I made specially in case I broke a Pinkie promise.”

I notice the coloring of the cupcake is something of a greenish-brown. The question of what would happen if Pinkie Pie actually broke one of her special promises has stuck in the back of my mind every time I heard it. I figured there was a reason for the last half of her poetic promise, and I figured this might be it.

I have my character reach out and cover the top of the cupcake with his closest hand, and I say, “I suppose, if anyone deserves this cupcake, I do.”

Pinkie Pie turns to look up at my character and whimpers, “Why?”

I answer, “I was the one that programmed you to forget your birthday. After all, it was in the show.”

The pink earth pony turns back to the cupcake, sniffles, and says, “I thought, if I just made my most sacred promise, then I’d be able to remember.” She then grunts, which sounds to me like a forced, derisive laugh, and adds, “A lot of good that did.” She then turns to my character again and asks, “How am I gonna live with myself now that I’ve broken my sacred promise?” And, she starts sobbing.

I have my character remove his hand from the cupcake and drape his arm over Pinkie Pie’s shoulder, and I answer, “You won’t be alone in this. I’ll be there with you.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie fumbles and drops the cupcake, then turns to my character and jumps into his arms, and bawls, “Oh, Mormon, why can’t you just … hate me?”

My character catches and holds onto the pink earth pony, and I have him stroke her mane as I answer, “You’ve shown me that we have a few more things in common now. I’ve made promises I couldn’t keep, and I’ve also jumped to the wrong conclusion at times. If I turn against you for doing things that I’ve done, I might as well turn against myself. Remember, I’m not perfect either.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie sobs, “B-but, aren’t—you—g-gonna—p-punish—m-me?”

I ask, “How?”

Pinkie Pie cries, “The—cupcake!”

I state, “The cupcake’s gone.”

Pinkie Pie sobs, “Then, just—kill—me.”

I state, “I won’t do that. Your friends still need you. And besides, killing you would mean I’ve given up on you, and I’ve invested too much into you to do that.” Hearing the pink earth pony start to calm down now, I continue, “You’ve made mistakes, mistakes I most likely would’ve made in your place. I’m not gonna hold it against you for doing something I most likely would’ve done.”

Then, before either Pinkie or I can say more, I hear Rainbow Dash ask, “Is Pinkie Pie okay?”

My character automatically turns to the azure pegasa, and I answer, “It’s just something between the two of us. She’ll be fine.”

Rainbow Dash turns around and sighs, then looks back at my character and says, “Well, the party’s waiting for her when she’s ready to come back in.” And, with that, she heads back to the front of, and, I assume, into, the barn.

With the rainbow-haired pegasa no longer in view, I say, “You hear that? Your friends are still waiting for you in the barn. Let’s go in and enjoy the party.”

Pinkie Pie sniffles once more and sighs, then says, “Well, alright then. I guess I owe them that much. But, I do have a few things to say to them first.”

I reply, “Well then, let’s go. You can say what you want to them, and then the party can get started.” And, I have my character put the pink earth pony down on her hooves again on the ground.

Pinkie Pie shakes herself out before leading the way back to and into the barn, with my character following close behind her. When the pink earth pony is just a step inside, she settles down canine-style and says, “Thanks for waiting for me, everypony. Before we get started, I’d just like to say that I’m sorry for the way I acted earlier. I should’ve trusted you girls. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions the way I did. You’re my friends, and I should’ve known you weren’t going to kick me out or replace me.”

The other five element bearers approach and hug the pink party pony, simultaneously offering words of acceptance to what she said.

Pinkie’s change in tone indicates she’s feeling better as she says, “So, what do you girls have planned for the party first?”

It’s about this time that I notice Lyra, Weed Whacker, and Spike are also present. And, not long after I notice this, the princesses also show up.

At this point, as ponies, human and dragons start producing their books, Rainbow Dash approaches my character and says, “I don’t know why Pinkie Pie was so upset, but I’m glad you were there to help her get through it.”

I reply, “So am I, Rainbow Dash. So am I.” What I don’t mention, what I don’t feel the need to mention, is that I don’t think this part of my duty to her is over just yet.

At any rate, the group gathers around in the middle of the barn and forms a circle.

Once all have taken their normal places in the circle, I have my character focus on the yellow pegasa, and I ask, "Fluttershy will you read the first verse of Mosiah chapter thirteen?"

My guess is that my directly addressing the yellow pegasa startled her, as she emits a quiet, but high-pitched "Eep." Then, when she hears my question, she calms down and says, "I'd be honored, Mormon." And, with that, she looks down and reads, "And now when the king had heard these words, he said unto his priests: Away with this fellow, and slay him; for what have we to do with him, for he is mad." She then looks up and says, "The only reason I can think of that they'd say something like that is because they don't want to hear him anymore."

Then, Lyra reads, "And they stood forth and attempted to lay their hands on him; but he withstood them, and said unto them:"

I say, "Now, here are some words I'm sure a lot of people would like to say so that other people will leave them alone, especially those that weren't very nice to them." I then read, "Touch me not, for God shall smite you if ye lay your hands upon me," and I wait for the laughter to die down before I continue, "for I have not delivered the message which the Lord sent me to deliver; neither have I told you that which ye requested that I should tell; therefore, God will not suffer that I shall be destroyed at this time."

Weed Whacker reads, "But I must fulfil the commandments wherewith God has commanded me; and because I have told you the truth ye are angry with me. And again, because I have spoken the word of God ye have judged me that I am mad."

Princess Luna reads, "Now it came to pass after Abinadi had spoken these words that the people of king Noah durst not lay their hands on him, for the Spirit of the Lord was upon him; and his face shone with exceeding luster, even as Moses’ did while in the mount of Sinai, while speaking with the Lord."

Princess Celestia reads, "And he spake with power and authority from God; and he continued his words, saying:"

Rainbow Dash reads, "Ye see that ye have not power to slay me, therefore I finish my message. Yea, and I perceive that it cuts you to your hearts because I tell you the truth concerning your iniquities."

Pinkie Pie reads, "Yea, and my words fill you with wonder and amazement, and with anger."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "But I finish my message; and then it matters not whither I go, if it so be that I am saved."

Spike reads, "But this much I tell you, what you do with me, after this, shall be as a type and a shadow of things which are to come."

Rarity reads, "And now I read unto you the remainder of the commandments of God, for I perceive that they are not written in your hearts; I perceive that ye have studied and taught iniquity the most part of your lives."

Applejack reads, "And now, ye remember that I said unto you: Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of things which are in heaven above, or which are in the earth beneath, or which are in the water under the earth."

Fluttershy reads, "And again: Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them; for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquities of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generations of them that hate me;"

Lyra reads, "And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments."

I read, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain."

Weed Whacker reads, "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy."

Princess Luna reads, "Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work;"

Princess Celestia reads, "But the seventh day, the sabbath of the Lord thy God, thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates;"

Rainbow Dash reads, "For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is; wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it."

Pinkie Pie reads, "Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "Thou shalt not kill."

Spike reads, "Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal."

Rarity reads, "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor."

Applejack reads, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his man-servant, nor his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s."

Fluttershy reads, "And it came to pass that after Abinadi had made an end of these sayings that he said unto them: Have ye taught this people that they should observe to do all these things for to keep these commandments?"

Lyra reads, "I say unto you, Nay; for if ye had, the Lord would not have caused me to come forth and to prophesy evil concerning this people."

I read, "And now ye have said that salvation cometh by the law of Moses. I say unto you that it is expedient that ye should keep the law of Moses as yet; but I say unto you, that the time shall come when it shall no more be expedient to keep the law of Moses."

Weed Whacker reads, "And moreover, I say unto you, that salvation doth not come by the law alone; and were it not for the atonement, which God himself shall make for the sins and iniquities of his people, that they must unavoidably perish, notwithstanding the law of Moses."

Princess Luna reads, "And now I say unto you that it was expedient that there should be a law given to the children of Israel, yea, even a very strict law; for they were a stiffnecked people, quick to do iniquity, and slow to remember the Lord their God;"

Princess Celestia reads, "Therefore there was a law given them, yea, a law of performances and of ordinances, a law which they were to observe strictly from day to day, to keep them in remembrance of God and their duty towards him."

Rainbow Dash reads, "But behold, I say unto you, that all these things were types of things to come."

Pinkie Pie reads, "And now, did they understand the law? I say unto you, Nay, they did not all understand the law; and this because of the hardness of their hearts; for they understood not that there could not any man be saved except it were through the redemption of God."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "For behold, did not Moses prophesy unto them concerning the coming of the Messiah, and that God should redeem his people? Yea, and even all the prophets who have prophesied ever since the world began—have they not spoken more or less concerning these things?"

Spike reads, "Have they not said that God himself should come down among the children of men, and take upon him the form of man, and go forth in mighty power upon the face of the earth?"

Rarity reads, "Yea, and have they not said also that he should bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, and that he, himself, should be oppressed and afflicted?"

At this point, it's Pinkie Pie who jumps up and says, "Now, it's time to start the music and dance!" She then approaches my character and says, under her breath, “Uh, Mormon, could you go back to your place and get that … cake from the fridge?” She whispers the last part after the pause.

I nod and answer, “Sure, no problem.”

The pink party pony smiles and asks, “You promise?”

It’s clear to me that Pinkie wants Gummy’s fish cake there as soon as possible.

I answer, “Ki tahi au.” And, with that, everything, and all the characters present, except for my character, freeze in their places. And, with that, I have my character proceed from the barn at Sweet Apple Acres to the trail between the Everfree forest and Ponyville, and along the trial to my character’s house. And, once he arrives there, he automatically goes inside and into the kitchen and retrieves the cake from the fridge. Then, from there, closing the doors behind him, he leaves his house and follows the course in reverse, back to Sweet Apple Acres.

When my character arrives and places the cake on an unoccupied bale of hay near Pinkie Pie, I then say, “Continue.” And, after that, everything and every creature that had been moving before I’d paused the game resumes their activity after I unpause.

Pinkie Pie has evidently expected my character to be in a different position from where he was when he paused the game, as she approaches my character and says, “Thanks, Mormy. Gummy really appreciates it.”

I reply, “No problem, Pinkie.”

Just then, from where my character placed the cake, I hear Rainbow Dash ask, “Uh, what’s this?”

My character automatically turns to the curious pegasa, and I answer, “It’s a cake I’m sure only Gummy and I will be able to eat. It’s made from one of the fish from my pond.”

Rainbow Dash turns away from the pastry and shudders and groans in disgust. She then says, “Well, then, you two have that cake. We’ll have the other one.” And, with that, she moves away from the fish pastry.

At about this time, music starts playing, a violin melody accompanied by other instruments.

And, as the music starts, I notice Pinkie Pie doing an all-fours march to the beat.

As the pink party pony passes Twilight, the purple unicorn follows her, then jumps up, placing her hooves on Pinkie’s hips and walking on her hind legs.

The next to join the pony conga line is Rarity, followed by Fluttershy, then Applejack, then Rainbow Dash, and finally Lyra.

I decide that my character should stay near the fish cake.

Which is just as well, as Princess Celestia, seeing the pastry on the bale of hay, says, “That looks like an interesting cake. What kind is it?”

My character turns to her, and I answer, “The main ingredient is fish.” I watch the daytime princess take a step back, and I continue, “Pinkie and I made it a couple days ago so Gummy could have it for his birthday, but we never got to it. So, Pinkie decided he could have the cake for his after-birthday party while the rest of us had another cake.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie pauses and looks at Twilight and the rest of the conga line members behind her and says, “Oh, that reminds me.” She then asks, “Is it alright if we celebrate Gummy’s after-birthday party too?” She explains, “He didn't have it, and he’s pretty upset about it.”

I suppose Pinkie Pie would understand her pet better than anyone else would. After all, she has spent more time with him. Still, I have to wonder about that. Considering how he’s biting on a balloon, I can’t say for sure.

In the mean time, the other members of the conga line volunteer agreement, and Pinkie resumes her march, smiling as she looks ahead.

In the mean time, the sister princesses proceed toward Pinkie Pie’s birthday cake; and Princess Celestia proceeds to cut it into square pieces for all to enjoy. That is, all ponies and others that can eat it.

When the music ends, the pony conga line breaks up; and the ponies gather around the spool table to receive slices of cake.

In the mean time, Gummy approaches my character, wags his tail, and licks his lips. I’m assuming that means he wants some of the fish cake.

Evidently, Pinkie has noticed this. She also approaches, but with a butter knife in her mouth. Then, when my character receives the knife, she says, “You go ahead and eat this cake. I’ll go get a plate for you, and another one for Gummy.”

I reply, “Thanks, Pinkie.”

Then, when the pink party pony is getting the plates, I hear Twilight say, “So, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, how are you enjoying the party so far?”

I hear the daytime princess smile as she answers, “It’s always an honor and a pleasure to attend a party like this.” She then asks, “So, do you have a report for me?”

I hear Twilight answer, “I do. I learned from Pinkie Pie that I should always expect the best from my friends, and never expect the worst.”

I hear Princess Celestia say, “That’s a good lesson to learn.”

The two ponies, no, three ponies, continue conversing; but I lose track of what they say when Pinkie arrives with the plates. At that point, I have my character cut one quarter of the cake for Gummy, then one quarter for himself. As he starts eating his piece, the message box at the bottom of the screen reads, “Somewhat salty, but the flavor of the fish comes through.”

In the mean time, Gummy bites his piece of cake and swallows the chunk he bites off, then does so a few more times until his piece is gone. My guess is he likes the fish cake.

Then, music starts playing again, a festive piano melody, and this time ponies start dancing separately.

Even Gummy keeps time with the music by wagging his tail.

Like Gummy’s birthday party the game’s yesterday, Pinkie Pie’s birthday party lasts for hours, accompanied by the music. And, it’s after the cakes and punch are gone that the ponies gather around and offer Pinkie presents for her to open.

One that evidently came from Rarity is a hat to go with Pinkie’s dress for the Gala.

The one I’m guessing is from Rainbow Dash is a Wonderbolt’s campaign badge.

The one from Twilight Sparkle is a book of some kind.

Fluttershy’s present is evidently a container of food specially prepared for a toothless alligator.

Applejack’s present is, as it turns out, a jar of zap-apple jam.

The two princesses offer their gratitude for the opportunity of attending Pinkie Pie’s birthday party.

Finally, Lyra sings the song she and Pinkie Pie wrote, about the pale-green unicorn’s first encounter with my character, for all intents and purposes, with me. It's either that, or about harvesting, and finding a treasure in an apple orchard.

Whichever the case is, when all the presents have been opened, Pinkie approaches my character and says, “Mormon, I think you gave me the best present of all today. You stood by me when I thought my other friends didn’t want to be my friends anymore. You let me know that you’re not going to give up on me. Thank you, Mormon, thank you for that.” And, with that, she bounces up into my character’s arms, and hugs him; and he reciprocates.

After a few seconds, she pushes away; and my character kneels down on one knee and places the pink party pony on her hooves on the floor.

Then, all the attendants of the party join in a group hug. And, after a few more seconds, once they separate, the party ends.

The princesses say their farewells and disappear, no doubt to return to the castle.

Then, the other element bearers each take their present for Pinkie Pie, who leads the group on their way back to my character’s house.

Once they arrive, my character opens the gate, then approaches and opens the front door, to allow the guests to enter. And, once they’ve put their gifts on the coffee table, they dismiss themselves with the reasonable purpose of returning to their own homes so they can get some sleep. I don’t doubt that Rarity, in particular, is going to have to get the dresses ready for the Gala tomorrow.

As the guests leave, my character and Pinkie follow them to the front gate, ready to close it behind them. Then, after the farewells and the closing of the gate, the human and the pink earth pony return to the house, where Pinkie closes the door behind them. And, considering the refreshments served at the party, it’s decided that dinner isn’t necessary this time; and each member of the group heads to their rooms.

I have my character prepare to write his report to the princesses, but then I hear a knock at the door to my character’s room, followed by Pinkie asking, “Uh, Mormon, may I come in?”

Automatically, my character puts the writing equipment down and walks over to his bedroom door and opens it.

The pink earth pony, just out of range of the door, as soon as there’s room enough for her to get through, ambles in, past my character, and to his bed, where she jumps up and onto it, then settles down into a canine-style sitting position. Then, as my character closes his bedroom door, she says, “I guess I should’ve known that you’d want me to live so you could win this time.”

I have my character approach the pink earth pony, and I say, “Your surivial is important to me.”

Pinkie continues, head bowed, “I really did mess up big time today. I forgot my birthday, in spite of my Pinkie promise; I threatened Spike into telling me that my friends were avoiding me and refusing to attend Gummy’s after-birthday party because they hated me and didn’t want to be my friends anymore; and then I went and took that out on my friends, who, I realized, had been planning a surprise birthday party for me.” She then looks up at my character, at me, and says, “And, after all that, you still aren’t giving up on me. Why?”

By this time, my character is standing in front of the pink earth pony, not far from his bed. I have him kneel on one knee and start stroking Pinkie’s mane as I say, “Like I said, you’re not the only one who’s ever made mistakes like that. I’ve jumped to wrong conclusions, and I haven’t always been true to my promises. But, God looks at me and chooses not to give up; so, why should I give up on you? You’re not perfect, you have weaknesses. But, like me, you also have great strengths. And, that’s why I choose not to give up on you.”

Pinkie Pie pushes my character’s hand away, then slumps down into a sphinx-style sitting position and turns her head away from him, and says, “B-but, I b-broke my m-most … my most sacred p-p-promise.” She then turns to my character again, to me, and whispers, “H-how can you trust me after that?”

At this point, I have my character sit on the bed next to the pink earth pony and put his closest hand on her back; and I answer, “I think you already know the answer to that question, Pinkie. I’m not giving up on you that easily. Besides, in this case, it was a promise you weren’t programmed to be able to keep. It was sweet that you wanted to continue the celebration of the anniversary of your pet alligator’s hatching, …”

Presently, Pinkie interrupts, “And, that’s another thing. I didn’t even pick up on the clues you and Lyra were dropping. Was I programmed for that, and for acting defensively when you tried to tell me directly?”

I answer, “That was part of your programming, yes. And, evidently, it worked.”

Now, Pinkie inhales, then exhales, in a ragged, unsteady sigh. After a second, she looks ahead of her, toward the floor, and says, “I shouldn’t have made that Pinkie promise.” Then, before I can say anything, the pink earth pony looks at the door, then rises and jumps off of the bed, then says, “I’m ready to go back to my room now.”

I just say, “Alright,” as my character rises and walks to the door, then opens it.

Pinkie ambles to and through the door, then to her room again.

Again my character closes the door, then goes to the desk and prepares to write the letter.

As he writes, I dictate about how Pinkie had forgotten the previous morning about her birthday, and so had become suspicious of her friends when they made excuses for not coming to the after-birthday party she’d planned for her alligator pet. I leave out the part about her getting Spike to tell her what she wanted to hear, as I figure it best that she write about it. I also leave out the part about finding Pinkie Pie being controlled by Diane, and having to draw out Pinkamena again. I also leave out the part about Pinkie having made one of her Pinkie promises, once again because I think she should reveal that. What I do dictate is that, when I brought her to the barn at Sweet Apple Acres, everything was revealed by each side. And, since the princesses were at the party, I see no reason to mention anything that happened during that time. Seeing that all the information I want is written on the parchment, I have my character roll it up, then deliver it to Weed Whacker for her to bite and send to the princesses. Then, automatically my character returns to his room and goes to bed.

I think this is one of the most difficult struggles I’ve had to help Pinkie Pie through. I had programmed her to forget her own birthday, but I hadn’t expected her to Pinkie promise to not forget. I’m hoping she can learn to trust herself after this incident. And, I plan on helping her any way I can. But, over the next few days, I guess we’ll just have to see what happens. In the mean time, I save and close the game.

Chapter 33: The Party at the Castle

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As I resume the game, and as my character wakes up, I notice a message box at the bottom of the screen that reads, “The smell of baked feces.” Then, I remember events from the previous day, including seeing Pinkie Pie with the cupcake as she sat on that rock. I remember the color being a greenish brown, and then it dawns on me what must be going on. Presently, I have my character rise from his bed and move as quickly and carefully as possible from there to the kitchen.

As my character arrives, I see, through his eyes, Pinkie, controlled by Pinkamena, sitting somewhat human-style and holding something in her front hooves. I can’t see exactly what it is, as Weed Whacker is standing between me and it; but I have a sneaking suspicion I already know.

And, if my suspicion isn’t enough, the herbivorous dinosaur lets me know what it is; as she innocently asks, “Pinkie, what are you going to do with that cupcake?”

Clearly, the broken-Pinkie-promise thing isn’t over yet.

The pink earth pony turns to the herbivorous dinosaur and says, “Please, Weed Whacker, leave me alone. I have to do this.” Then, she turns to the pastry in her front hooves, closes the eye I can see, and takes a deep breath.

As the pink mare starts to move her front hooves toward the eye I can’t see, Weed Whacker lunges toward them and pushes the cupcake away, calling out, “No, Pinkie, no!”

I hear a soft squishing sound as the cupcake hits the floor, then watch as Pinkie Pie, noticing she’s no longer holding the cupcake, gasps in surprise. She then turns and glares at the herbivorous dinosaur and growls, “Weed Whacker, why did you do that?”

Before the little dinosaur can answer, I ask, “Pinkie Pie, what are you doing?”

The surprised earth pony turns and looks up at my character and says, “Mormon, I didn’t know you were there.”

At this point, I have my character search for and find the cupcake.

As he picks it up with his right hand, Pinkie Pie stammers, “I-I h-haven’t punished m-myself f-for breaking m-my P-pinkie p-promise.”

My character holds the pastry up to his eye level, out of reach of either Pinkie Pie or Weed Whacker; and I ask, “This is really important to you, isn’t it?”

Presently, Pinkie rises up and stands on her hind legs, reaching out for the cupcake, and nervously says, “M-mormon, give me back the cupcake.”

I respond, “No. Don’t you remember what I said yesterday, that if anyone deserved the cupcake I did?”

At this point, Pinkie Pie’s face looks bleached. She shakes her head and says, “No, Mormon, please don’t.”

I state, “If this is the only way that this can be settled, then so be it.”

As I input the instructions into the computer, I hear the pink earth pony plead, “No, Mormon, you don’t have to do this. You didn’t make the promise, I did.”

I press Enter, then say, “But, I’m the one that programmed you.” And, immediately my character closes his left eye and thrusts the cupcake into his right eye.

I’m pretty sure it’s Weed Whacker I hear gag and retch, while at the same time Pinkie Pie starts screaming.

When my character opens his closed eye, I see Pinkie covering her own eyes, a fountain from the outer corner of each spraying upward and outward, as she continues to sob.

My character then searches for Weed Whacker and finds her facing away from him, at his feet, on all fours, her nose pointed at a puddle of what must be her vomit.

I have my character focus on the pink earth pony, and I say, “Now, let this be the end of it.”

Pinkie Pie lifts her head from her front hooves, looks up at my character, at me, and, sniffling, whimpers, “Oh, Mormon, you didn’t have to do that.”

I respond, “Well, you made it clear that it was either going to be you or me, and I didn’t want you to hurt yourself that way. So, the only thing left for me to do was to stick the cupcake into my own eye.” I then have my character turn toward the hallway, and I add, “Now, I’m going to get this cleaned up. And, it looks like you and Weed Whacker have your own messes to clean up. Then, when that’s done, we’ll head out to the vegetable garden and the orchard and harvest some breakfast.” I don’t wait for a response before I have my character head for, then into, the bathroom.

It takes a few minutes for my character to clean the cupcake out of his eye, at which point I can see the damage caused appears to be minimal. Still, it looks like my character’s going to have to wear a patch over the eye for a few days so it can heal properly.

When my character finishes in the bathroom and comes out again and returns to the kitchen, I see, through his still-usable eye, that indeed Pinkie and Weed Whacker have joined forces, first in cleaning up Weed Whacker’s vomit, then in cleaning up Pinkie Pie’s tear puddles, and finally the crumbs that apparently fell from what I had my character do. I say, “Well, as soon as you’re ready to go, we’ll head out.”

The still-distraught Pinkie Pie looks up at my character, at me, and says, “I’m so sorry, Mormon. I promise, I’ll be more careful with my promises from now on. I won’t make a Pinkie promise that goes against my programming ever again.”

I have my character kneel down on one knee, and I say, “Just as long as you’ve learned your lesson, that’s what matters to me. It’s alright for you to make a Pinkie promise, just so long as you know you can keep it.” I then have my character hold out his arms to the pink earth pony, and I say, “Now, come here, Pinkie.”

Presently, Pinkie Pie bounces into my character’s open arms, and the two hug.

When the two separate, I hear Weed Whacker ask, “Could I have a hug, too?”

Once Pinkie Pie’s safely on the floor again, I have my character hold his arms open for the herbivorous dinosaur; and I say, “Sure, Weed Whacker, come here.”

At the invitation, the herbivorous dinosaur jumps into my character’s arms, and those two hug.

When Weed Whacker and my character separate, and Weed Whacker is on the floor again, I say, “Now, let’s go out and harvest some breakfast.”

The dinosaur and the pink earth pony nod, at which point my character automatically stands up again and proceeds to the kitchen door. He allows Weed Whacker and Pinkie Pie to leave, after which he follows, closing the door behind him, then heads the group to the front door, where he follows the same procedure.

On the way down the stairs, the trio meets Lyra, who’s coming with fruits from the vineyard.

The pale-green unicorn, seeing my character, asks, “Mormon, what happened?”

It’s Pinkie who shakily answers, “I-it’s a long story. I’ll t-tell you about it later.”

Lyra doesn’t say anything more, just proceeds to climb the steps onto the porch.

In the mean time, the group of three proceeds until they get to the vegetable garden, at which point Weed Whacker separates and heads in that direction, leaving the human and the pink earth pony to go to and into the orchard.

After Pinkamena chooses a tree and Diane takes over Pinkie Pie, the now straight-haired pink earth mare says, “Thank you, Mormon. I didn’t want my sister to injure herself.”

As my character approaches the pear tree and starts harvesting pears, I say, “I didn’t want to see that, either. I just hope she's learned her lesson.”

Diane responds, “As do I, Mormon. I understand that you programmed her to forget her birthday, our birthday, but I also understand that she tried to counteract that with her Pinkie promise.” I then hear a thud and shaking of leaves, followed by four more quiet thuds, then Diane continues, “In the end, your programming won out. But, Pinkamena still felt responsible for making a Pinkie promise, the first one in her life, in our life, that she couldn’t keep. If you hadn’t stuck the cupcake in one of your avatar’s eyes, then Pinkamena would’ve stuck it in one of Pinkie’s eyes. You saved Pinkie’s eye sight by sacrificing that of your avatar. Both of us will remember that. Again, thank you.”

By this point, my character has picked four pears. When he turns back to the pink earth pony, it’s evident to me that Pinkamena has taken over Pinkie again, as the pink earth pony’s mane is curly again. And, wouldn’t you know it, that’s when I remember the biblical saying, “An eye for an eye.” And, that’s when it dawns on me, perhaps, with the help of my character, I just demonstrated the intended meaning of that saying. It’s always been assumed that the saying was an allowance for vengeance, perhaps just so long as it’s limited to me, for instance, doing as much damage to someone else as that someone else did to me. But, what if it had been intended to mean, "I'll pay the price for you that you can't pay. Then, all you have to do is accept, and you can go free."? In effect, what if the idea could have been better expressed by "My eye for your eye?" This wouldn’t be the first case of a scripture being misinterpreted, if what I suspect has really been the case.

In the mean time, Pinkie “Pinkamena” Pie has gathered up the four apples and attached them to her mane, and is ready to return to the house. She interrupts my thoughts by calling out, “So, Mormy, are you coming?”

I answer, “Sure, Pinkie, right behind you.” And, with that, my character automatically follows the pink earth pony to the fence, where she bounces over it, and my character climbs over it. The two then return to the front porch, where they meet up with Weed Whacker.

My character opens the door and allows the dinosaur and the pony to enter, then follows them inside, closing the door behind him. And, it’s when he turns to the kitchen entrance that I notice that Lyra seems to have left the kitchen door open, evidently to allow the dinosaur, human, and earth pony to enter unimpeded.

That seems to be the way Pinkie Pie and Weed Whacker interpret the action, as they immediately make their way to and into the kitchen, leaving the door open for my character to follow them in, then close the door behind him.

When the four are all in the kitchen, the group take their places and prepare the fruits and vegetables for breakfast. Then, they gather around the table and join forces to eat the harvest.

After breakfast and cleanup, the group proceeds back through the front room, out the front door, then through the front yard to and through the gate, with my character bringing up the rear to close doors behind the group.

It’s on the way to Ponyville through the Everfree forest that Pinkie Pie tells Lyra about what she’d tried to do to punish herself for breaking her Pinkie promise, and what I did, what I had my character do, to prevent her from harming herself.

Lyra demonstrates concern for my character, asking if I’m going to be alright.

Pinkie replies that she hopes I will be, and that she won’t forget what I did for her.

This time, I believe her.

When the group gets out of the main forest and passes in front of Fluttershy’s cottage, the yellow pegasa, evidently seeing my character with a patch over one eye, flies toward him and asks, “Oh, Mormon, are you alright?”

Again, it’s Pinkie Pie who answers, “Mormon’s fine. Let’s just say that he did something for me that he didn’t wanna see me do to myself.”

With the group now stopped, Fluttershy proceeds to land in front of the bearer of laughter, then says, “Well, whatever it was he did, it looks like it hurt him.”

A loud sniffle from the pink earth pony draws my character’s attention to her.

Probably refusing to notice, she says, “I never expected a human to do what Mormon did. I wonder if all humans would do that, or something like it, for their friends.” And, with that, she smiles up at my character.

I answer, “Maybe, maybe not. But, one thing I know right now is that we need to get into town right now, so we can head for and meet with Twilight.”

At this point, Pinkie Pie gasps, then says, “Oh, that’s right. After all, tonight’s the Grand Galloping Gala.” She then pauses for a moment before adding, “And, that reminds me.” She then reaches into her mane and produces … my character’s suit, and hands it to him, saying, “I had a feeling you might forget your suit, so I brought it with me.”

My character accepts the suit from her and puts it into his inventory, during which time I offer her a word of gratitude. In the mean time, I’m left wondering, when did Pinkie Pie get into my character’s room and get his suit? Clearly she has her own inventory, and evidently it’s large enough to hold a suit that would fit my character. But, did Diane decide to have Pinkamena bring the suit with, then give it to my character at this point?

But, I’m given no time to think about that, as Pinkie continues, “Well, we better get to Ponyville now. Fluttershy, you wanna join us?”

The yellow pegasa smiles and answers, “Oh, well, thanks for the invitation. But, I need to take care of my creatures first.”

The pink earth pony asks, “Do you need help with that?”

Fluttershy smiles as she answers, “Oh, no, I’ll be fine. I just have a few more to feed and water, then I’ll head to Ponyville.”

Pinkie Pie offers, “Well, we could wait for you here.”

I think I hear a giggle from the yellow pegasa as she says, “Oh, no, you go on ahead. Like I said before, I’ll be done in just a few minutes. I don’t want to hold you up or anything.”

The pink party pony shrugs as she says, “Well, if you insist. See you later, Fluttershy.”

The yellow pegasa replies, “See you later, Pinkie.” And, with that, she proceeds back to her cottage.

With that conversation out of the way, the group of four proceeds completely out of the forest, and on into Ponyville.

Once the group has entered the town, Pinkie Pie pauses and says, “Hmm, you know, I think it’s more likely that Twilight’s reading in that field near Carousel Boutique. So, let’s go over there.”

I pause before saying, “Sounds good to me.” I then have my character turn to Lyra, and I ask, “That sound alright to you?”

The pale-green unicorn answers, “That’s fine with me. Let’s get going.”

Weed Whacker voices her agreement, after which Pinkie Pie takes the lead, bouncing ahead on a course for the cylindrical clothing store.

After a few minutes of crossing intersections, on the opposite side of a bridge, on one side of the nearby river, I see, through my character’s eyes, Carousel Boutique. On the other side, I can only see a tree. That is, until my character is close enough to the bridge, at which point I see Twilight resting sphinx-style on the grass opposite the tree, reading a book.

The purple unicorn is evidently so absorbed in reading the book, she doesn’t notice the group of four approaching her until they’re right behind her, and Pinkie Pie says, “Hi, Twily!”

Clearly startled, the purple unicorn jumps to her hooves and yelps. Then, when she turns and sees each of the four, she sighs and, smiling, says, “Oh, hi, Pinkie, Lyra, Weed Whacker, Mormon.” She then notices the patch over my character’s eye and, tilting her head, asks, “Mormon, what happened to your eye?”

At this point, Pinkie stops bouncing and lowers her head, and her smile melts into a frown. Her ears fold back against her head, and she starts drawing circles slowly in the grass as she says, “Uh, well, that’s kind of my fault. I’d rather not go into details right now, but let’s just say that Mormon helped clear up a matter for me.”

Presently, Lyra, looking curiously into the book Twilight was reading, asks, “Uh, why are you reading about transformation spells?”

Twilight answers, “It’s a project I’m working on for the Grand Galloping Gala. I’ll show you and the rest of the girls as soon as they get here.”

Having seen the episode, “The Best Night Ever,” on which this day is based, I already know that Twilight plans on creating something of a Cinderella effect, except with an apple instead of a pumpkin, and the dresses have already been made. I also remember that the transformation of the mice into horses isn’t going to be complete in Twilight’s case. I’ve seen the transformation in the cartoon, but I have yet to see it in this game.

In the mean time, nearby, Pinkie Pie produces a trampoline from her mane and starts jumping on it, calling out, “I … can’t … believe … the Grand … Galloping … Gala … is … tonight!” And, as happens in the animated series, she splits up the sentence this way as she bounces.

At about the same time, Twilight has returned to her book, and is starting to study, or at least trying to study, the transformation spell again.

Noticing the noise Pinkie Pie seems to be generating for the purple unicorn, I have my character turn to her; and I say, “Uh, Pinkie, maybe you should calm down. Twilight’s trying to study that spell, and you’re distracting her.”

My mention of the pink earth pony distracting the purple unicorn comes at the highest point in her last jump, which she indicates by stopping in mid air, then slowly drifting to the top of the trampoline so she doesn’t bounce again. She then looks up at my character, at me, and says, giggling nervously, “Oh, uh, sorry about that.” And, again she giggles nervously.

I open my mouth to speak, but then I hear Rarity add, “And, I simply will not allow you to put on your dress while you’re all sweaty.”

My character turns his attention to the white unicorn, at which point I say, “Oh, hi, Rarity.”

The white unicorn looks up at my character and says, “Hello, Mormon.” Then, as she sees my character’s face, she says, “A rather odd accessory. Uh, what’s the occasion?”

Pinkie Pie says, “It’s … a long story.” She then leans toward Rarity and whispers, “It’s kind of technical.”

After a second, Rarity says, “Oh,” then continues, “Well, I suppose I can wait until later for an explanation.” And, she emits a nervous laugh.

I can’t help laughing more sincerely at the reference to a certain science fiction comedy movie.

In the mean time, my character turns back to Twilight’s position; and I notice Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Applejack approaching. And, I notice Applejack is carrying an apple in her mouth by its stem.

The orange earth mare says, “We’re here with the things you ordered.”

Immediately, Twilight rises to a canine-style sitting position and says, “Perfect. I’m ready.”

Rainbow Dash asks, “For what?”

Applejack passes the apple to Spike, who sets it down in front of Twilight.

On receiving the fruit, the purple unicorn turns to her assistant and says, “Thank you, Spike.”

Pinkie sounds surprised when she says, “An apple.” She then asks, “Are we having pie?”

I have my character kneel on one knee and stroke Pinkie’s back, and I say, “I doubt it. Let’s just watch.”

And, it seems that, at the same time, Spike shushes the pink earth pony and says, along with my character, “Watch.”

The other ponies start to back away as Twilight’s horn starts to glow and sparkle, along with the apple, which, in seconds, enlarges and turns into a carriage, which still maintains the shape and color of the apple.

Something about this gets me to wondering. In the story of Cinderella, everything would turn back to what they were before when the clock struck midnight, making it essential that Cinderella return home by then. Does that restriction apply here as well?

I guess I’ll have to wait for that answer, as, after the expressions of congratulations from the other element bearers, as well as Lyra and Weed Whacker, Twilight says, “Thanks, but that’s just the start.” She then approaches the bearer of kindness and asks, “Fluttershy, did you bring your friends?”

As four mice immediately unveil themselves from her mane, the yellow pegasa answers, “Yes.” Then, as she lowers her head to allow the mice to jump down onto the grass, she nervously asks, “Uh, will they be safe, Twilight?”

At about this time, near the tree, I notice, through my character’s eyes, Opalescence sneaking around behind a bush.

In the mean time, Twilight answers, “You have my word.”

Presently, the mice line up and look around.

Then, while Twilight once again focuses, and her horn starts glowing and sparkling again, I decide to have my character stand up and start moving toward the bush where I know Rarity’s cat is hiding.

I don’t get to see the transformation itself, I just hear the minute ringing, followed by the flap-of-cloth sound effect and the upward-slurred ringing that signals that the mice have been transformed into horses, with mouse-shaped snouts.

And, Twilight signals the success of the transformation by singing “Ta-da!”

It’s clear, by the uncertain vocalizations of Twilight’s audience, that they’ve noticed the imperfection of the transformation, and may not know what to say about it.

Then, Opalescence jumps out of the bush, screeching, claws exposed, ready to catch at least one mouse.

The good news is that my character is in the right position, and catches the feline before she can succeed.

The bad news is that the horse-mice are still mice at heart; and, when they turn and see the cat my character managed to stop from attacking them, they squeak loudly, then turn and run off. Evidently, the transformation didn’t include instincts.

The group watches Twilight's handiwork (hoofy-work, maybe?) run off into the park, and Twilight calls out, “No, wait, come back!” She then turns to the rest of the group and says, worriedly, “Those horses were supposed to pull our carriage.”

I have my character proceed to put a now growling Opalescence down on the ground again as I say, “Well, at least Rarity’s cat didn’t hurt any of them, and wasn’t hurt herself.”

As soon as the white Persian cat is back on the ground, she snarls and, claws exposed, swipes at my character’s hand with a front paw.

Fortunately, my character’s fast enough that the paw misses its target.

In the mean time, Twilight says, “But, we don’t have any way of getting this carriage to the Gala now.”

Then, Rarity over-dramatically raises a front hoof to her forehead and says, “Oh, whatever shall we do?”

I have a lot of fun watching Rarity’s melodrama, even if her friends don’t.

After a second or two of awkward silence, Rarity puts down the front hoof and, after clearing her throat, approaches a group of stallions. Flirting with two of them, she asks, “Uh, would you two boys mind pulling our carriage to the Gala?”

One of the stallions, tan with brown hair, blue-green eyes, and a three-horseshoe cutie mark, and the one next to him, gray with graphite hair, blue eyes, and a cutie mark of three four-leaf clovers, nod in eager agreement.

As the two stallions follow Rarity to the carriage, Twilight flatly says, “Oh, yeah, right.” Then, as the stallions get themselves hitched up to the carriage, the purple unicorn turns to my character and says, “Uh, unfortunately, the carriage can only carry six ponies. If you plan on going to the Grand Galloping Gala, you’ll have to find some other means of transportation.”

I state, “Well, there is a train that heads to Canterlot, isn’t there?”

Twilight smiles and nods as she answers, “That’s right.” She then looks away from my character and continues, “I guess we could go ahead now and see if the train to Canterlot is available.”

The rest of the members of the group voice agreement, after which the group heads to the train station.

On arrival, Twilight approaches the stallion at the booth and asks, “When does the train to Canterlot get here, and when does it leave?”

Scratching the back of his head with a front hoof, the stallion nervously answers, “Well, uh, it already left.” Then, after groans of disappointment from the group, the stallion adds, “Uh, but, there’s another train heading to Canterlot that’ll arrive this afternoon. It’ll stay for two hours until all the passengers are on board, then it’ll head out.”

This bit of information is met with cheers of excitement.

Then, Twilight asks, “So, when will the train arrive, exactly?”

The stallion looks down, evidently checking the schedule, then looks up again and answers, “It should arrive at approximately one this afternoon.”

At this news, Twilight excitedly shouts, “Great!” She then eagerly asks, “So, we can get tickets now, then?”

The stallion answers, “All those who are going by train, yes.”

At this point, I say, “So, that means that, since Pinkie’s going with the rest of the element bearers, it’ll be me, Lyra, and Weed Whacker.” I then ask, “So, how much will that be for three passengers?”

The stallion hums in thought for a moment, then answers, “Tickets are two bits per passenger.”

I conclude, “So, for three passengers, that’d be six bits.” I then have my character produce the six gold coins from his inventory and hand them to the stallion; and I say, “Here you go.”

The stallion accepts the money, then, while passing my character the tickets, responds, “Thanks. And, here are your three tickets.” Then, as my character puts them in his inventory, the stallion asks, “So, will you be waiting here for the train to arrive?”

I have my character turn to the group of ponies and dragons, then back to the stallion; and I say, “Actually, I’m sure I’ll have things to do while I’m in town. But, I and those going with me to Canterlot will be here not too long after one.”

The stallion nods and says, “Well, in that case, good luck.”

Thus, with the train tickets in my character’s inventory, he and the ponies and dragons start walking away from the train station.

As the group takes their first steps away from the station, Twilight asks, “So, where should we go next?”

Rarity answers, “There’s a mane-and-tail-styling salon not far from the boutique. We could go over there to get ready.”

Spike, seeming disappointed, answers, “Yeah, I suppose it’s better than waiting here.”

I then turn my character’s attention to Weed Whacker and ask, “And, what about you?”

The herbivorous dinosaur answers, “I think I’ll wait at the salon with Lyra and Pinkie Pie. You and Spike can go ahead to the boutique.”

Then, Pinkie Pie says, “Oh, that’s right. Mormon has a suit he needs to put on to get ready for the Gala.”

Hearing Pinkie Pie, Rarity turns to my character and says, “Well, in that case, you should head to Carousel Boutique. You can use the dressing room in the back.”

So, after I give a word of gratitude to the white unicorn, my character and Spike proceed out of the salon and on to the boutique.

As Spike opens the door, I take a moment to check my inventory; and I notice that the only tickets I have are for the train to Canterlot. I then have my character focus on Spike, and I say, “Uh, if you’ll wait here, I just realized I forgot something.”

The purple dragon closes his eyes and plants a hand between them, just above his snout, and growls, “Ugh, what is it now?”

I have my character hand him his suit, then I answer, “Just something I forgot back at my house. Not to worry, you won’t even know I'm gone. Ki tahi au.” And, with that, as soon as I see that everything that had been moving before is no longer moving, I have my character run back to his house on the opposite side of the Everfree forest, go inside, then through to his bedroom, then claim the tickets from the top of his dresser. Then, from there, I have him go to the front room, open the closet there, and remove thirty copies of the Book of Mormon from there and put them in his inventory. After that, I have him close the doors that were left open, on his way out of the house, then head back through the Everfree forest and back to where Spike’s waiting for him in front of Carousel Boutique. I then say, “Continue,” then ask, “So, Spike, did you miss me?”

The purple dragon removes his hand from his face and opens his eyes again, then starts and yelps when he sees my character there, then says, “Wow, Mormon, I thought you’d be gone longer than that.”

Presently, I ask, “So, shall we go inside so I can get dressed?”

Spike smiles and answers, “Sure, no problem.” And, he enters the boutique, with my character following close behind him.

Once inside, the dragon and the human proceed into the dressing room that the six element bearers had used for the fashion show a few weeks ago; and my character proceeds to take off his pants and shirt, then dress in his suit.

In the mean time, Spike says, “You know, I’m still not sure I’ll have anything to do there.”

I reply, “Well, I’m sure you’ll find something to do. But, could you do me a favor and take Weed Whacker with you?”

I think I hear a tone of skepticism in the purple dragon’s voice as he answers, “I guess so.” He then asks, “So, what’ll you be doin’ there?”

I answer, “I suppose the first thing I’ll be doing is getting things set up for a reading there at the castle. I’m guessing it’ll be some time before the reading takes place, which should leave me with time to do what I want. And, I’m sure I’ll have at least one opportunity to put that time to good use.”

Spike continues, “Yeah, Rarity thinks Prince Blue Blood’s gonna fall in love with her. Twilight wants to spend time with Princess Celestia. Rainbow Dash hopes she’ll get to spend time with the Wonderbolts. Applejack thinks she’s gonna sell a bunch of stuff there.”

At this point, I speak up and say, “I don’t know about Applejack’s idea. Personally, when I think about fancy parties, like the one we’ll be attending, vendors aren’t the first thing that come to my mind. Where I come from, people usually sell things at a fair or a carnival or something like that.”

Spike responds, “My thoughts exactly.” He then continues, “Then, there’s Pinkie Pie. She’s just goin’ to have fun at the party. Then, there’s Fluttershy, who wants to meet all the critters in the garden.”

I wait for a moment for the purple dragon to say more. When he doesn’t, I say, “You know, Fluttershy may be the one I can help the most, if not the only one I can help.”

Spike, confused, asks, “You have a way with animals?”

I answer, “Not the gift that Fluttershy has, but I do think I can help her. And, I think she may need my help more than Pinkie Pie will at the Gala.”

At this point, my character only has his shoes and jacket left to put on.

In the mean time, Spike groans in disappointment and says, “I was hoping you could join me at the doughnut shop. Doughnut Joe, over there, serves these great doughnuts, and hot chocolate to go with them. But, it sounds like you’d rather go take care of ponies that probably won’t need your help.”

I respond, “I guess we’ll see which, if any, of them need my help when we get there.”

As my character puts on and ties his last shoe, Spike asks, “So, what’ll Lyra be doin’ there?”

I answer, “You know, I’m not really sure. Maybe she’ll play her lyre, maybe she’ll sing the song she and Pinkie Pie wrote. You know, the one she sang at Pinkie Pie’s birthday party last night?”

I don’t have to see Spike smile, I hear it in his voice when he says, “Oh, yeah. That was a really good song, too.”

Since my character, by this time, is fully dressed, except for his jacket, I have him put that on as I say, “Well, I’m pretty much ready now.”

At this point, Spike smiles and says, “Great.” He then waddles to the door, then turns to my character, and says, “Well, as soon as you’re ready, I’m ready.”

I ask, “You don’t have any clothes to wear to the event, or anything?”

Spike looks down and around himself as he answers, “I’ve never needed clothes before.” He then looks up at my character again and asks, “Why do you ask?”

I answer, “Nothing. Just curious.”

Now, the purple dragon opens the door and says, “Well, let’s head back to the salon, then.”

Now that my character has his dress jacket on, I say, “Go ahead, Spike. Lead the way.” And, with that, with my character following the purple dragon, he goes through the dressing room door, then on to the front door of the boutique.

From there, the dragon and the human make their way back to the salon.

Once inside, Spike approaches and knocks on the door and calls out, “Twilight, Rarity, will you let us in?”

I can’t resist. Under my breath, I say, “Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin.”

As Spike turns and gives me a curious look with a grunt of confusion, from the other side of the door I hear Rarity answer, “I’m afraid not, Spike. We girls are still getting dressed.”

I then hear giggling from Weed Whacker just before Applejack says, “Dressed? Uh, beg pardon, Rarity, but, uh, we don’t normally wear clothes.”

I then hear Rarity groan before the door opens, and she says, “Oh, very well.” Looking at the human and the dragon, she continues, “Come on in. I’m sorry, but some of us do have standards.”

About a second after Spike and my character enter the main room of the salon, I hear the door close behind my character. As he automatically turns to look behind him, I see, through his eyes, that it was Weed Whacker that followed him in, and closed the door.

Before I can respond, I hear Spike say, “I still can’t believe we’re going to be in Canterlot tonight. Our home town, Twilight!” As my character turns to the purple dragon, who’s standing between Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie, he continues, “The best part is we get to hang out together, all night long!”

I then hear Rainbow Dash say, “Uh, I don’t know, Spike.” My character turns to the azure pegasa to show me she’s sitting, sphinx-style, on a comfortable-looking crimson bed of sorts. But, she does look worried.

A few seconds later, I hear Rarity say, “We’ll just have to see.”

Then, before my character can turn his attention to the white unicorn, I hear Applejack spit. My character manages to focus on the orange earth pony just in time to hear her say, “We’re gonna be a mite busy.”

And, it looks like Fluttershy doesn’t appreciate the orange earth mare giving a front hoof of hers a literal spit shine.

My character’s once again distracted by Pinkie Pie saying, “Yeah.” He again focuses his attention on the pink earth pony just in time for her to add, “Busy having fun.” And, my guess is, at least for the time she was under the hair dryer, mane dryer in the case of the ponies, Diane had taken control over Pinkie’s head. Then, a second after the dryer retracts, Pinkamena resumes control. Then, as she gets a look at my character, she says, “Ooh, Mormon, you look great in that suit!”

I reply, “Well, thank you, Pinkie.”

Evidently the next to notice is Rarity, who says, “Pinkie Pie is right. That suit looks like it was made specifically for you.”

Then, Fluttershy says, “You look better in that suit than you do in your regular clothes.”

Then, I hear Rarity say, “Oh, that reminds me. I made a suit for Spike, and a dress for Weed Whacker, just for the Gala.”

At the same time, Spike calls out, “Great!” and Weed Whacker calls out, “Excellent!”

The white unicorn then produces a tuxedo and a dress, each evidently designed for Spike and Weed Whacker, respectively.

Once they receive their clothes, they immediately proceed to put them on.

I find it most surprising that Weed Whacker is putting on her dress with such ease. And, the colors Rarity chose for it complement the herbivorous dinosaur’s natural colors. In fact, I say as much to the little dinosaur when she asks me how she looks in her dress.

I’m sure I hear Pinkie Pie giggle after Rainbow Dash says, “Now, the only ones in here not wearing clothes are ponies.”

And, this is when Lyra says, “Oh, that’s right.” She then asks the white unicorn, “So, Rarity, where are the dresses you made for us?”

Rarity answers, pointing to a closed door opposite the one Spike, Weed Whacker, and my character entered, “I brought them in and put them in that closet so they’d be ready for us when we’re ready to put them on.”

At this point, Rainbow Dash reaches up with her front hooves and pushes the towel off of her head, then says, “Well, I’m ready to get dressed when everypony else is.”

With my character focused on the rainbow-haired pegasa, I only hear Lyra say, “Well, I figure I should get dressed as soon as possible so I can be ready to board the train with Mormon and Weed Whacker.”

Hearing this, Rarity gasps and says, “Oh, you’re right.” She then looks around and asks, “Uh, what time is it?”

Lyra points to the clock between and above two mirrors and says, “That clock reads a quarter to one.”

Rarity seems almost panicked as she says, “Oh, then we don’t have much time if you’re to get there at the same time as the train.”

As the closet door opens, possessed by Rarity’s magic, I decide to state, “Well, I hope the dress isn’t going to be too complicated to put on.”

Lyra sighs and says, “Well, it is in multiple pieces. So, it will be a little complicated.”

I ask, “So, how long is it going to take to put the dress on?”

Lyra answers, “The first time I put it on, it took, what, half an hour?”

I have my character turn to Rarity to see her nod, after which I state, “Well, just so long as you’re ready and we get there before the train leaves.”

Then, Twilight says, “Mormon’s right. The stallion at the booth said the train would come at one in the afternoon, and would stay for two hours. Which sounds like you should have plenty of time if you start getting dressed now.”

At this point, Lyra approaches the white unicorn and says, “Well, in that case, Rarity, let’s get started.”

Rarity nods and says, “Very well then.” She then turns to my character and says, “You may stay here and help Lyra get dressed, or you may wait for her out in the waiting room.”

I reply, “Well, although I’m not in too much of a hurry, that doesn’t mean I can’t be of service here. What’ll I be needed for?”

Rarity levitates the cylindrical part of the dress toward my character and says, “When I've put the cushioning on her back, you will need to strap this saddle under her rib cage. Just enough so it’s secure. We don’t want her to suffocate.”

I have my character take a look under the saddle, and I see a couple frilled ribbons that look like two parts of the same belt, with the rest hidden in the middle. Those, I’m guessing, are the straps Rarity wants me to use to secure the saddle onto the pale-green unicorn. I then have my character turn back to Lyra, and I can see, through his eyes, that the padding is already on her back. So, I have my character place the saddle on the padding, then use the straps as a belt under the pale-green unicorn’s chest.

The next is the skirt, which my character helps place by attaching one side to the side of the saddle closest to him, while Rarity goes to work attaching the other side to her side of the saddle. After that are extra frills around the neck and at the base of the skirt. And, there also seem to be a few ribbons, which, as Weed Whacker’s dress is doing for her scale coloring, compliment Lyra’s hair and body fur coloring.

With my character joining forces to dress the pale-green unicorn, she is completely dressed in twenty minutes, instead of the thirty Lyra had predicted. And, as my character steps back to give me a full view of her, I can see she looks really good in her dress.

After I compliment her on her looks, Lyra turns to Rarity and says, “Well, I guess that means I’m ready to go. I’ll see you ladies at the Gala, then.” And, with that, she proceeds toward the door, which has been guarded, more or less, by Weed Whacker.

Farewells are exchanged as Lyra, Weed Whacker, and my character proceed to, then out of, the door. And, after that, the trip to the train station takes only a few minutes.

The stallion at the booth, who it turns out was the one that gave my character the tickets when he came with the element bearers and Spike as well as Lyra and Weed Whacker, takes the train tickets, stamps each one, then hands them back.

The unicorn, the dinosaur, and the human then proceed to board the train. And, once they take their seats, it’s just a matter of waiting for something like an hour for the train to get moving.

In the mean time, the unicorn, the dinosaur, and I talk about different things, including the events of the past three days.

Then, as the train moves, the conversation turns to expectations and plans for what to do at the Grand Galloping Gala.

I have plans to get things set up for the reading, then, expecting for there to be some time between the completion of the set up and the reading itself, very likely plenty of time for me to provide some assistance. I don’t mention that I plan to direct my attention, during that time, to helping Fluttershy make friends with the creatures in the garden.

In the mean time, Lyra talks about how her plans do include joining the orchestra in entertaining the guests, playing her lyre and singing the song she and Pinkie Pie wrote together.

Weed Whacker doesn’t have any specific plans, just keeping an eye on Lyra and Pinkie Pie, making sure they don’t get into too much trouble. I can only wish her the best of luck with that, at least with keeping Pinkie Pie out of trouble.

Excitement grows as the train approaches Canterlot, and I must admit I’m looking forward to the event myself.

When the train arrives at the Canterlot station, and the unicorn, the dinosaur, and the human exit; I’m not entirely surprised to see that the trio are the first of the ten to arrive.

But, as it turns out, that doesn’t mean there’s no one to meet the trio there. As the unicorn, the human, and the dinosaur exit the train, Princess Luna is there to meet them.

The nighttime princess, on seeing my character, says, “Greetings, Mormon. Our sister has sent us to escort thee and thy friends to the castle.” She looks serious, and, while she speaks calmly, her voice is still surprisingly loud. My guess is she’s using her royal Canterlot voice to announce her purpose here.

As Weed Whacker takes a position between my character and Lyra, I say, “Well, great. Let’s get going.”

Princess Luna nods and says, “Agreed.” And, with that, she closes her eyes; and her horn starts to glow and sparkle.

In one frame, the group of four go from the train station to the ballroom of the castle.

As the unicorn, the dinosaur, and the human adjust to the new environment, I ask, “So, where is the reading going to take place?”

The nighttime alicorn looks and points with a front hoof to a white stone structure out next to the garden and says, “It will be out there under that pavilion.”

Considering most of the readings outside of Canterlot have taken place outside, this doesn’t surprise me. I say, “Excellent. So, shall I go outside and get things set up then?”

Princess Luna takes the front hoof she was pointing at the pavilion and points it in my character’s path, then shakes her head, closes her eyes, and says, “Not yet. There are fireworks that are prepared to go off from there first.” She then opens her eyes again and concludes, “But, after that, thou mayest go and prepare for the reading.”

I then ask, “And, when will the reading take place?”

Princess Luna puts the hoof down again and answers, “Princess Celestia will be greeting arriving guests, which will most likely take two hours. Then, after that, the reading will take place.”

I state, “That makes sense, although I suspect it’ll be an obstacle to Twilight getting to spend time talking with her.” I then ask, “In the mean time, I have several copies of the Book of Mormon with me. Is there a place I can put them for now?”

The nighttime alicorn uses the hoof she’d used to point out the pavilion to tap her chin in thought as she looks around, then points to a glass door leading out of the ball room, one opening to a path that leads to the pavilion, and says, “Thou mayest put the books next to that door over there. Guests may take copies of the book from there, those that so choose, so that they may read with us, or follow along with the reading, whatever they choose.”

As my character starts to walk toward that door, I say, “That sounds good to me.” And, as he walks through the room, I can’t help noticing how, except for the servant ponies getting things ready, it seems very empty. Then, once my character reaches the doorway, he automatically produces copies of the Book of Mormon from his inventory and places them in a stack on the floor.

When he’s produced five books that way, I hear a female voice, pleasant but almost rushed, say, “Oh, sir, there’s no need for you to be putting books on the floor.” As my character turns to the source of the voice, I see a unicorn mare, white with blue eyes and yellow mane and tail, as she continues, “Let me get you a table so you can put the books on that.”

Instantly, my character picks the books up again, and I say, “Very well, then. Thanks.”

As the white unicorn mare leaves the room to get a table, I hear Lyra’s voice say, “That was very nice of her to offer.”

As my character turns and focuses on the pale-green unicorn, I reply, “I thought so.”

Lyra continues, “So, based on my experience with these types of events, the Gala should start as soon as the sun goes down. After you get things set up here, if you want, I could give you a tour, show you some things that might interest you.”

I nod and say, “That does sound good.”

And, it’s approximately that time when the white unicorn mare comes back in, a table floating ahead of her, possessed by her white magic. She places the table next to the door, approximately where my character had been putting the books, then takes a step back and says, “You may place the books on this table, as soon as I place a cloth on it.” She then produces a table cloth and, using her magic, unwraps it and places it, stretched out, over the table.

As soon as I see the table cloth stop glowing with the white unicorn’s magic, I have my character put the stack of books he’s been holding on the table; and I say, “Thanks for your assistance, ma’am.”

I hear the mare smile as she replies, “You’re quite welcome, sir.” And, I hear her trot away.

As my character starts producing more books and placing them in stacks next to the first one, Lyra says, “Well, as soon as you’re finished setting up the books here, I’ll take you on that tour.”

I reply, “Thanks, Lyra. This shouldn’t take very long.”

And, as far as I can tell, the process only takes a few minutes.

After that, Lyra leads Weed Whacker and my character out of the castle and to the school she attended with Twilight, Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.

After she shows me rooms where she and Twilight attended classes together with other unicorns, I ask, “I wonder, are there also schools for gifted pegasi, and gifted earth ponies?”

Lyra, who by now is leading my character and Weed Whacker away from the school, answers, “You know, I wouldn't be surprised if there are. It would make sense. The thing is, you’d have to ask pegasi and earth ponies that live here. Or, maybe Princess Celestia. You see, since I’m a unicorn, and I never had a reason to even think about schools other than the one I attended, the one for gifted unicorns.”

If she says anything after that, I loose track of it. The next place where she leads the group is a pastry shop not far outside the castle grounds.

As the group enters, I’m not surprised to see a familiar-looking stallion who’s evidently selling pastries to customers. I’ve always found it interesting that the stallions have different snout designs, while the mares’ snouts are all generally the same. This stallion’s snout is, I’d say, somewhat rounded, tapering from his forehead down to his nose. He’s tan-colored, with brown mane and tail, greenish eyes, and a pink doughnut as a cutie mark. He’s wearing a short baker’s hat on his head, and a white shirt with a red line an inch, I’d say, above its base. He focuses on the pale-green unicorn and says, “Oh, hi, Lyra. Who’re your friends?”

Lyra answers, “This human is Mormon. And, this dragon is Weed Whacker.”

Presently, the stallion asks, “So, what may I do for you?”

Lyra answers, “I’m just giving my friends a tour around town, until the Gala starts.”

The stallion smiles as he says, “Well, if you want, you can stay here for a while and have a doughnut. Oh, and by the way, my name is Doughnut Joe.”

Lyra chuckles respectfully and says, “We may take you up on that later. But, right now, there are other places I want to show Mormon and Weed Whacker.”

Doughnut Joe continues to smile as he says, “Well, alright then. You’re welcome here anytime, Lyra. You and your friends.”

The three of us offer thanks and farewells before the group leaves the bakery to head elsewhere.

The next place Lyra takes us to is the home of a friend of hers and Twilight's, known as Moon Dancer.

I can only guess, on seeing the house at this point, and remembering how, when Twilight knocks on the door in the fifth season, that it must be more than neglect that contributes to the fragile state of the door then. Lyra seems to be able to knock pretty hard on the door without damaging it.

In fact, she has to knock a few times before we hear an angry voice from the other side call out, “I’m coming already!” And, a minute or so later, a bespectacled unicorn mare, looking something like a living negative photo of Twilight, opens the door. She looks at each of her visitors, then asks, almost in a monotone voice, “So, what do you want?”

Now, she is named in the first episode, but is never mentioned again until an episode in the fifth season, when Twilight returns to Canterlot to reconnect with old friends. Based on that episode, she’d planned a party, evidently particularly hoping Twilight would come; and, when she didn’t, Moon Dancer took it as a very personal insult. According to the episode, Twilight made things right with her, with Pinkie Pie’s help.

At this point, I’ve designed this video game to go only as far as the end of the first season, where I am right now pretty much, with the reward of seeing Pinkie Pie’s transformation on the day that immediately follows. And, you know, considering how much I’ve enjoyed playing this game so far, I may decide to work on an expansion that would stretch the game to the second season. Maybe I’ll work on other expansions that’ll stretch the game to all five that I’ve seen. But, I’ve gotten off track.

At this point, Lyra answers, “Hi, Moon Dancer. I brought some friends of mine from Ponyville, and I’m showing them around Canterlot. This here is my human friend, …”

Before the pale-green unicorn could introduce me, that is my character, Moon Dancer disappeared behind the door and slammed it shut.

A confused Lyra turns to the now-closed door, drops under her the front hoof she was pointing at my character, and concludes, “Mormon.”

From the opposite side of the door, I hear Moon Dancer’s voice growl, “I’m not a tourist attraction, Lyra.”

Lyra’s voice takes on a concerned tone as she responds, “Of course not, Moon Dancer, you’re one of my friends.”

At this point, I have my character kneel on one knee and focus on the pale-green unicorn; and I say, “Let me try, Lyra.” Then, after seeing her nod, I have my character focus on the door; and I ask, “You’re one of Twilight’s friends, aren’t you?”

After a second, I hear Moon Dancer answer quietly, “I thought I was.”

I continue, “I’m also one of her friends.”

I hear Moon Dancer grumble, “Well, consider yourself lucky that she hasn’t abandoned you yet.”

I respond, “Now, Twilight didn’t mean to make you feel abandoned, I’m sure. She just had other matters on her mind, matters that she felt required her immediate attention.”

Presently, I hear Moon Dancer growl, “And, that’s her excuse for not attending my party … the party I hoped she’d have the decency to show up to, or at least tell me why she couldn’t come?” And, I hear her start sniffling.

As the yellow unicorn starts sobbing, I state, “I can’t speak for Twilight, that isn’t why I’m here. But, I can tell you she’s going to be attending the Gala party.”

Moon Dancer mockingly says, “Oh, great. That makes me feel so much better. The princess’s parties are more important than her best friend’s party.”

Presently, my character shifts his attention to near his leg, where it’s evident Weed Whacker was trying to draw his attention to her. And, evidently she succeeded. Noting her success, she says, holding out a book with a dark blue cover, “Try giving her this.”

My character accepts the book from the herbivorous dinosaur and looks at the cover, and I can see it’s a copy of the Book of Mormon. I also notice the new condition of the cover. I can only guess that, somehow, Weed Whacker managed to get one of the copies from the table where my character had put the copies in the ballroom of the castle. But, the little dinosaur has given me a good idea. I have my character turn to the door, and I say, “I’d like to offer you a gift, Moon Dancer. It’s a book that’s come to mean a lot to me over the years.”

Presently but slowly, the door opens; and a teary-eyed Moon Dancer peers through the opening. Then, as my character offers her the book, she accepts it with her magic. Looking at the cover, then at my character again, she asks, “Your autobiography?”

I answer, “Not exactly. I’m just named after the prophet that contributed the most to this book. I just thought you might like to have it.”

Moon Dancer focuses on the cover again and says, “Well, … thanks.” She then looks at my character again and asks, “So, if this book means so much to you, why are you giving it to me?”

I answer, “Well, you look like you need it. Besides, I have more copies where this one came from.”

Moon Dancer says, “And, it means a lot to you, even though you have so many copies of it?”

I answer, “That’s right. The Book of Mormon is one of those things that doesn’t diminish in value even if there are hundreds, or even thousands, of copies of it. In fact, it just makes it all the more valuable.”

At this point, Moon Dancer grunts with mild interest. She then asks, “Does Twilight have a copy of this book?”

I answer, “As a matter of fact, yes she does.”

Hearing my response, the yellow unicorn releases her magic hold the book, allowing it to fall on the ground, and says, “Then, I don’t want it,” before disappearing behind and slamming the door again.

Now, I say, “Now, Moon Dancer, let me say a few more words, and then my friends and I will be off.” When I hear only silence, I continue, “It may take more than a year, but Twilight will return to make things right with you. I just hope you’ll be open when she does come back. In the mean time, I’m leaving this copy of the Book of Mormon at your doorstep.” And, with that, my character rises to his feet again, turns, and walks away from the door. And, hoof falls and muffled footsteps indicate to me that Lyra and Weed Whacker are following him.

When the group is back in the street, Lyra asks, “Do you think Moon Dancer’ll accept your gift?”

My character turns to the pale-green unicorn, and I answer, “That’s up to her now. The copy’s there for her to accept if she chooses.” I then ask, “So, where are we headed next?”

Smiling, Lyra answers, “Well, there are also Minuet, Twinkle Shine, and Lemon Hearts. Minuet has a twin sister that lives in Ponyville, Colgate. So, let’s go visit Minuet next.”

I reply, “Sounds good to me.”

And, a few minutes later, the trio arrives at what looks like an apartment dwelling, where Lyra takes the lead and knocks on a certain door.

The door opens a second later, and a unicorn that bears a striking resemblance to Colgate in Ponyville appears in the doorway. She immediately focuses on the pale-green one and says, “Lyra, long time no see. Come on in.” She then looks up at the human, then down again at the dinosaur, and asks, “And, who are your friends?”

Pointing to the human and then the dinosaur, Lyra answers, “This is my human friend Mormon, and this is his dragon assistant, Weed Whacker.”

As Lyra follows Minuet into her home, and is in turn followed by Weed Whacker, then my character, the blue unicorn asks, “So, what brings you to Canterlot?”

Lyra answers, “We’re here for the Grand Galloping Gala.”

Minuet turns around just enough to get a look at Lyra in her dress, then says, “Well, now the dress makes more sense. We ponies don’t usually get dressed just to visit friends.”

My character, after entering the structure, turns and closes the door behind him.

In the mean time, Minuet continues, “So, I guess you were right. Humans do still exist.”

As my character turns back to the host, I can’t help noticing, through his eyes, two more unicorn mares on the couch under the window. One is white with pink hair and blue eyes; and in spite of the fact she’s sitting canine-style on the couch, I can still see her cutie mark, three blue five-point stars in the familiar equilateral triangle formation. The other one is yellow with hair of two tones of blue and dark-pink eyes. She rises uncomfortably to all-fours position on the couch to show me her cutie mark, three valentines, two blue and one green, arranged in something of a rounded trapezoid shape. And, not long after rising, she falls forward off of the couch.

Noticing this, Minuet gallops toward her asking, “Oh, Lemon Hearts, are you alright?”

It's at this time that I notice Minuet's cutie mark, an hour glass with a pile of sand at its bottom.

At any rate, accepting assistance to get back on her hooves, the yellow unicorn mare nervously answers, “Uh, yeah, I’m fine.” She then hops back to her position on the couch and grins sheepishly at my character.

As Lemon Hearts makes herself comfortable again, Minuet points to her and says, “Uh, I guess you know now that this is Lemon Hearts.” The blue unicorn mare then points to the white one and says, “And, this is Twinkle Shine.” As Minuet puts her hoof down again, she continues, approaching my character, “It’s nice to meet you, Mormon. The last time my sister visited, she mentioned you. She said a lot of nice things about you.”

I have my character hold out his hand to shake the blue unicorn mare’s hoof, and I reply, “It’s nice to meet you, too.”

For a moment Minuet hesitates, then she holds out the front hoof opposite the one she used to point out her friends, allowing my character to shake it.

In the mean time, Lyra approaches each of the unicorn mares on the couch and exchanges greetings with and bro-hoofs each of them.

Back to Minuet, after my character lets her hoof go, she then approaches the herbivorous dinosaur and says, “And, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Weed Whacker.”

The little dinosaur simply nods to her host and says, “Same here.”

Turning her attention back to my character, Minuet says, “So, this’ll be the first time a human has attended the Grand Galloping Gala.” She then asks, “Do you think that’ll be a problem?”

Lyra answers, “He’s a friend of Twilight, and of the princesses. And, he’ll be hosting a reading from the Book of Mormon in the garden pavilion. And, considering how well he’s treated me, Pinkie Pie, and Weed Whacker, I seriously doubt he’ll cause any problems. I don’t know if all humans are like he is, but I know Mormon’s a good human.”

I find myself smiling at Lyra’s compliment.

In the mean time, Minuet asks, “The Book of Mormon? Is that his autobiography?”

The pale-green unicorn starts to answer, “It’s interesting, everypony that’s seen or heard of the book, particularly from Mormon, asks that question.”

At this point, I add, “Actually, I’m named after one of the prophets in the Book of Mormon, one of the last two, in fact, the one that contributed the most to it. The prophet for whom the book is named abbreviated most of the history of his people, starting with over a century before the first coming of the Christ, and ending at his time, about four hundred years after the Christ’s first coming.”

Lemon Hearts raises a hoof and asks, “So, it’s a period of five hundred, or six hundred, years?”

I answer, “More or less.”

Twinkle Shine asks, “So, are there other humans besides you, or are you the only one?”

I answer, “Where I come from, there are a lot more humans than just me.”

Minuet, looking surprised, asks, “Really? Then how did you escape the destruction Discord caused more than a thousand years ago?”

I pause for a bit before I slowly answer, “It’s kind of a long story. Suffice it to say, there was a small group of humans that were well defended against Discord’s influence. And, I’m descended from them.”

More than any of the other ponies, Lyra seems disappointed by my condensed response. My guess is she wanted to hear more of the story.

But, before she can say anything, which it looks to me like she’s getting ready to do, Lemon Hearts says, “Well, if you’re going to be attending the Grand Galloping Gala tonight, my experience is that it starts when the sun goes down. And, that’s about to happen. You three should be heading to the castle now.”

My character looks out the window to show me that it does seem to be getting dark outside.

In the mean time, Lyra says, “Well, we still have some time. We can leave in two hours, and still be there for the reading.”

I have my character focus on the pale-green unicorn, and I state, “But, I’m sure we’ll still have friends waiting for us there if we don’t get there ahead of them. For their sakes, at least, we don’t want to be late. And, besides, just because I have some time before the reading doesn’t mean there isn’t something for me to do while I’m there.”

Lyra seems to have a full-body twitch as she says, “Oh.” She then seems to melt before she adds, “Well, if you think you really need to be there, …” and proceeds to amble toward the door again. When she gets there, she turns to the three other unicorns in the room, who are focused on her, with looks of concern on their faces, and says, “I guess this is goodbye for now.” And, using her magic, she opens the door and proceeds to exit.

Weed Whacker, and then my character, follow the pale-green unicorn out the door, with her three friends calling out farewells behind her.

Weed Whacker and I return the farewells, after which, after my character closes the door and catches up to Lyra, I say, “You don’t seem to be looking forward to attending the Gala.”

Before I can ask, the pale-green unicorn responds, “It’s not that I don’t want to attend, it’s just that, well, with all my friends there, well, I wanted to spend more time with them. I didn’t realize we’d used up that much time.” She then looks up at my character, and I can see the look of sadness on her face as she asks, “Are you sure there’s more you need to do there than just host the reading?”

I answer, “I’m sure something will happen that’ll require my attention. The element bearers have a lot of expectations, and I have a sneaking suspicion that they’re likely to be disappointed.”

Lyra starts to smile as she says, “You mentioned that Applejack was probably going to try to sell her apple treats there, and, in a way, ponies and humans aren’t all that different. Like humans, ponies don’t attend the Grand Galloping Gala to buy food, they go to meet Princess Celestia and other celebrities.” She then frowns again and tilts her head in curiosity as she asks, “But, what about the others? Do you suspect they’ll be disappointed in some way?”

I answer, “Pinkie Pie’s attending the Gala expecting it to be the kind of party she’s used to, and she’s likely in for a rude awakening when she finds it a very different kind of party. But still, she’ll do what she can to turn the party into the kind she’s used to. I don’t see how I’ll be able to influence that very much.

“Twilight’s expecting to spend time with Princess Celestia, but I’m guessing she’s not expecting to spend the whole time greeting guests. But, she will spend time with her mentor; and, again, I see no way for me to make a difference.

“Similarly, Rainbow Dash will get her chance to spend time with the Wonderbolts; it just won’t be the kind of time she expects to spend with them. And, once again, I don’t see how I can make any difference there.

“Rarity expects to meet Prince Charming at the Gala. She’ll meet Prince Blue Blood, but she’ll find him quite the opposite of charming. But, she’ll handle herself just fine without me there to influence her.”

Lyra stops for a second or two, evidently in thought, before asking, “And, what about Fluttershy?”

I answer, “I’m thinking she’ll be the one in most need of my help, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I can help her the most anyway. She plans to go into the garden and meet the creatures that live there. She’ll see a bird, but she’ll meet the groundskeeper first. And, she’ll find that the creatures living in the garden are afraid of her.”

Lyra groans with foreboding before saying, “That’s going to be a problem for her.”

I reply, “I know. It’s behavior she’s not used to from animals; and, unless she has someone to help her, it’s going to cause a major disruption in the ball room.”

Again Lyra stops, which I figure out when I hear her voice behind my character ask, “How do you know all this?”

As my character stops and turns to the pale-green unicorn, I answer, “I have a good source for my information.”

Lyra makes it clear she was expecting that response from me, as she joins in my answer, saying with me, “… a good source for your information.”

When we finish the answer, I add, “Exactly.”

Lyra nods and grunts in agreement or affirmation, then adds, “Well, I hope your good source can help Fluttershy out before she causes such a disruption. If she chases the garden creatures into the ball room, there’s no telling what kind of mess the custodians are going to have to clean up.”

I respond, “Agreed.”

And, about that time, the human and the unicorn arrive at the trail leading to the castle. And, not surprising, there’s already a long line of carriages there, leading to and from that trail along the pathway in front.

I must admit, looking at the line of carriages, it reminds me of the long line of vehicles of people attending a local pageant.

And, standing out among the carriages, is the apple carriage containing the element bearers, and evidently being driven by Spike.

Lyra, Weed Whacker and I agree to meet the seven at the intersection, but it soon becomes clear that we’ve also been noticed.

Pinkie Pie, evidently needing to be restrained by her friends, leans out the window to the carriage door and calls out, “Mormon! Lyra! Weed Whacker! We’re over here!”

I laugh as I answer back, “I know, Pinkie Pie!”

Lyra says, “I’m guessing we’d better get to that intersection to meet those six before Pinkie Pie causes an accident or something.”

I reply, “I’m guessing you’re right.”

The human, the unicorn, and the dinosaur arrive at the intersection before the apple carriage, and I’m given the honor of opening the door for the six ponies inside.

In the mean time, Spike jumps off of the driver’s seat of the carriage, landing opposite the element bearers from my character. Thus hidden, I only hear him say, a few seconds later, “Whoa! You look … amazing!”

I have my character nod, and I say, “I have to agree with Spike on that. I’m thinking we should all fit right in.”

Presently, trumpets start playing, and the first to sing, after a brief introduction by Twilight, is Fluttershy, singing about how she plans to meet the creatures living in the castle garden.

When she finishes, and after a brief interlude, next is Applejack, singing about how she plans on selling her apple treats.

Next is Rarity, singing about how she’ll meet her Prince Charming, followed by Rainbow Dash singing about how she’ll get to spend time with the Wonderbolts, then Pinkie Pie about how she expects to dance and play games with the ponies here.

During the interlude, Lyra leans toward my character and says, “Your turn, Mormon.”

As the interlude concludes, I respond, “Oh, yes, of course,” then I start singing:

“I’ll attend a special reading,

“Outside under the pavilion,

“With my friends and others who decide to join in.

“But, there’ll be a couple hours

“During which I’ll have some time

“And, perhaps I’ll help a friend out, here tonight … at the Gala!”

I call out the last three words, which ponies around my character call back.

I hear Lyra smile as she says, “Thank you, Mormon, now it’s my turn.” And, she sings:

“At the Gala, in the ballroom,

“Is where I plan to be,

“I’ll sing and play my lyre for everypony.

“I’ll sing the song Pinkie Pie and

“I wrote for my human friend,

“And, I’ll get congratulations, right here at the Gala!”

Well, now I suppose everyone knows what Lyra expects from this evening.

In the mean time, Twilight sings about how she expects to spend time with Princess Celestia, talking about various things, like the lessons she’s learned.

Then, the song wraps up with each of the element bearers, as well as me and Lyra, each summarizing their plans in two or three words. And, after the explosion of nine fireworks, Lyra and I join in the conclusion of the song, just in time for the united group of ten to enter the ballroom.

There in the entranceway, I hear Spike say, “Yeah! This really is gonna be the best night ever! Yah know why! ‘Cause, we’re all gonna spent time at the gala, …” But, before Spike can get out his last word, the seven ponies dart off in different directions. Still, that doesn’t stop the purple dragon from saying, although a bit deflated now, “together.”

My character approaches the purple dragon, and I say, “If you’ve heard my verse, I have my own reasons for being here. I hope you don’t mind me leaving Weed Whacker with you while I go take care of the business I need to take care of.”

Almost depressed, Spike looks down at his feet and says, “Yeah, sure, whatever.”

As I have my character walk toward the table with the copies of the Book of Mormon on it, I hear Spike ask Weed Whacker about the local doughnut shop, then Weed Whacker mention she’s already been to a doughnut shop with Mormon and Lyra, but didn’t get a chance to try any of the doughnuts there. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if the two head to Doughnut Joe's bakery.

In the mean time, as my character approaches the table, I notice Pinkie Pie, from behind, evidently fascinated by the display. I can only guess she hears my character approaching her, as she turns to him, to me, and says, “Mormon, I didn’t know you’d already brought so many books with you.” She then looks down, seeming sad, and, drawing circles on the floor with a front hoof, says, “I guess I didn’t need to bring copies of my own.”

I have my character kneel on one knee in front of the pink earth pony, and I say, “That’s perfectly alright. If you want to add your collection to the stack, then go right ahead.”

Pinkie looks up at my character, at me, and smiles as she says, “Oh, thank you, Mormon.” She then asks, “So, could you help me stack the books?”

I reply, “Sure, no problem.”

It takes only a few minutes of Pinkie handing my character one book at a time, then my character placing each one strategically on the stack, before the job is completed.

As my character places the last book on top of the stack, I hear Pinkie Pie say, “I’m gonna go exploring the ball room.” As my character focuses on the pink party pony, she concludes, “You can go ahead and follow Fluttershy into the garden.” And, with that, she turns and bounces off.

So, it seems that not only does Pinkie Pie know what I plan to do, I also have her approval to proceed. So, with that in mind, I have my character proceed out the door and head into the garden. And, all my character has to do is follow the singing and whistling until I see the yellow pegasa follow the whistles to the groundskeeper pony. I keep a careful distance so as to not alert Fluttershy to my character’s presence, and to make sure I can tell when he can step forward, and I can offer assistance. It’ll mean missing Pinkie Pie’s Pony Pokey; but, knowing I have her permission anyway, I’m guessing she won’t mind.

I have my character follow Fluttershy, keeping shrubs between him and her, until she finds a doorway in the shrubs, evidently leading into a roof-less room, where I hear her talk about various creatures she sees inside. I then watch her fly into there, then talk about being a loud mouth. Evidenly, she’s scared off all the creatures she noticed, and that noticed her.

I don’t make the presence of my character known to the yellow pegasa until after she sets a trap using a box, a stick, a piece of string, and a carrot. And, this after watching her disappointment, and saying something about making it the best night ever.

Knowing what Fluttershy is up to, I have my character step forward, apparently when she’s heading out the doorway to hide, and I ask, The way an innocent child would, “Fluttershy, what are you doing?”

Alarmed, the yellow pegasa abandons the end of the string and jumps into the hedge, over one side of the doorway. She then peaks through the doorway and, seeing my character, asks, “Mormon, what’re you doing here? I thought you’d be with Pinkie Pie and Lyra.”

I reply, “I had a sneaking suspicion you’d need my help more than they would.” I then have my character remove the carrot from the trap and hold it up to his eye level; and I add, “And, it looks like I may be right.”

Worriedly, the yellow pegasa takes two rapid paces through the doorway and says, “Oh, I wasn’t gonna hurt any of ‘em. I just wanted to catch one of them so they wouldn’t have a chance to run away.”

I state, “I can understand why you’d do this, I just don’t think it’s the right approach.”

Fluttershy slumps down into a canine-style sitting position, and, looking down, says, “It’s the only one I could think of.”

I have my character toss the carrot aside, and I ask, “Have you met the groundskeeper yet?”

Evidently disgraced, the yellow pegasa answers, “I did. I mistook him for a meadow lark.”

I continue, “Maybe he can help you. He must know the creatures here better than you do. Maybe he has advice on how you can introduce yourself to them without scaring them away.”

Presently, a mature, western-sounding voice asks, “Scarin’ who away?”

My character’s attention is drawn downward to a cream-colored stallion with white hair. I answer, “Fluttershy, here, has been trying to introduce herself to the animals that live here, but they keep running away from her.”

The elderly-looking stallion simply replies, “Oh,” before adding, “Well, you see, most of the creatures here are used to ponies coming in and chasing them away. Some were mistreated by ponies, and they’re just barely beginning to learn to trust me.”

I hear a hint of anger in Fluttershy’s voice as she says, “That’s terrible.” My character’s attention is then drawn to her as she continues, “It’s no wonder they ran away from me, then. So, I just need to let them know that I won’t hurt them.”

The stallion slowly says, “Uh, well, it’s a little more complicated than that.”

At this point, I ask, “So, you’re the groundskeeper, right?”

The stallion looks up at my character and answers, “That’s me, Grounds Keeper. And, what might your name be?”

I answer, “You may call me Mormon.”

Grounds Keeper nods and says, “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Mormon. I’m guessin’ you’re not from around here.”

I reply, “I’m living in a house on the opposite side of the Everfree forest from Ponyville.”

The elderly stallion grunts before saying, “I ain’t been outside of Canterlot for many years now.”

At this point, Fluttershy hovers toward the stallion and asks, “Uh, Mr. Grounds Keeper, sir, do you know of a way I can meet the creatures without having to trap them?”

The stallion turns to the hovering pegasa as he says, “You know, your friend Mormon, here, might be able to help.” Pointing to one side of my character, Grounds Keeper continues, “It looks like one of the squirrels has already taken an interest in him.”

My character turns to where the stallion is pointing, to show me, through his eyes, indeed, a brown squirrel is sitting on his shoulder.

The little long-tailed rodent chatters at him for a second or two, then proceeds to gallop down one of my character’s arms, then jumps off and runs under a bush.

I have my character turn back to the two ponies, and it looks to me like Fluttershy might cry any minute. I say, “My guess is that humans have been absent from this environment for so long, there are no creatures here that even know what humans were like before.”

Fluttershy asks, “What do you mean?”

I answer, “Where I come from, there are records of humans being very cruel to creatures like that squirrel. Some were known for killing creatures like that for sport.” Seeing Fluttershy’s expression morph into one of anger, I add, “It’s not something I’d do. And, perhaps that little squirrel understood that.”

At my last statement, Fluttershy seems to calm down. Having been hovering all this time, she gently lands on the ground, then asks the elderly pony, “So, Grounds Keeper, what’s the first thing I can do to let these creatures know that I won’t harm them?”

Nodding toward her trap, the stallion answers, “Well, the first thing you can do is get rid of the box, string, and stick. Then, when that’s done, since one of the critters seems to have taken a liking to your human friend here, I suppose the next step is for him to make contact with the alpha critter here. When he’s gained the trust of the alpha, then he can introduce him to you, Fluttershy, and you can prove to him that you won’t hurt any of the creatures here.”

Sniffling and whimpering, Fluttershy goes to her trap and kicks the stick away, causing the box to fall. She then turns the box over, then puts the stick, string and all, in it, then drags the box through the doorway. My guess, based on the sound, is that Fluttershy must have tossed the box, stick and string over the garden wall. Anyway, a few seconds later, she once again enters through the doorway.

I notice, from the edge of my character’s periphery, the elderly stallion nod before he says, “Good. Now, if you’ll stay here, I’ll take your human friend to meet the alpha, and he can introduce himself to him. Then, when he's earned his trust, he’ll come out with the alpha and introduce you to him, and the two of you can get acquainted.”

As Grounds Keeper leads my character further into the garden, I hear Fluttershy say, “Please let the alpha know I didn’t mean to scare any of the creatures here.”

I ask, “So, who is the alpha?”

Grounds Keeper answers, “It’s the spider monkey. He’s the first one to make this garden his home, and he adopts the creatures that move in here. He’s very protective of them.” And, he finishes his statement just in time to enter a small grove where several of the animals are gathered, evidently including the squirrel that introduced itself to my character.

Before my character can enter, Grounds Keeper turns to him and says, “Mormon, if you’ll wait here, I’ll go and introduce myself to the alpha, the spider monkey. Then, I’ll bring him to you.” And, with that, he approaches the spider monkey, who’s hanging by his tail from a tree branch.

Seeing the elderly pony approach, the spider monkey reaches a hand and grabs the tree branch he’s hanging from, then grunts a couple times.

Grounds Keeper approaches the spider monkey, head bowed, and gives a couple closed-mouth grunts. He then turns one hundred eighty degrees in his place so he’s facing my character.

In the mean time, the squirrel approaches the spider monkey and, focusing on my character, chatters for a second or two.

The spider monkey looks at my character, then reaches with the other hand to grab the branch, then releases his tail from it, then drops down on to Grounds Keeper’s back.

The elderly earth stallion then focuses on my character and says, “Now, Mormon, if you’ll either sit on the ground there or, at least, kneel on one knee, then I’ll bring the alpha to you, and the two of you can get acquainted. Just be sure not to show him your teeth. He’ll take that as a challenge, and likely attack you for it.”

I don’t say anything, just have my character kneel on one knee. I have heard that, in reality, there are species of monkeys that’ll take bared teeth as a challenge, and attack without warning. Also, I have had experience with creatures approaching me, creatures that normally wouldn’t, after seeing me physically lower myself to their level. Thus, I’ve programmed the creatures in this game with those kinds of characteristics, and others I’ve observed real creatures do.

In the mean time, seeing my character lowering his head to his level, the spider monkey immediately jumps off of Grounds Keeper and runs up to my character. The spider monkey then proceeds to climb his arm and disappear behind his head.

The elderly earth stallion chuckles as he says, “It looks like the alpha’s taken a liking to you already. He’s getting ready to groom you.”

I decide to allow the behavior, which seems to take a few minutes, after which the spider monkey climbs down my character, evident from the minute vibrations that I notice, then jumps on Grounds Keeper’s back, then turns his back to my character.

As the little monkey turns to my character and hoots a couple times, Grounds Keeper says, “He wants you to groom him now.”

I say, “I suppose fair’s fair,” before having my character use his fingers to search through each of the spider monkey’s hairs for dead skin or loose hairs to remove, or maybe even insects. And, I can’t help noticing the spider monkey seems to enjoy the attention.

As my character does this, I suddenly hear Pinkie Pie sing:

“You reach your fingers in, you pull your fingers out,

“You reach your fingers in, and you pull a dead hair out.

“You do the pony pokey, acting like a big boy scout.

“That’s what I’m singin’ about.”

I suppose I don’t miss out on Pinkie Pie’s Pony Pokey after all. At least I get to hear one verse of it. And, for that moment in time, the pink earth mare does seem to be singing about what precisely my character is doing. And, moreover, I find that her description of my behavior as that of “a big boy scout” is kind of sweet. I can’t help saying under my breath, “Thank you, Pinkie.”

Then, the spider monkey and Grounds Keeper demonstrate that they didn’t hear the verse, as they turn to my character.

Grounds Keeper grunts in curiosity.

Seeing the monkey and the earth pony staring curiously at my character, I say, “Nothing. I just thought I heard someone say something nice to me.”

At this point, the spider monkey decides he’s had enough of my character grooming him, and he climbs onto my character’s shoulder.

Seeing this, Grounds Keeper says, “Well, it looks like the alpha’s accepted you. Maybe you can show him that he can trust your pegasa friend, Fluttershy, was it?”

I answer, “That’s right.”

But, the elderly earth stallion’s already moving in the yellow pegasa’s direction.

But, it seems that the spider monkey doesn’t trust Fluttershy less than maybe a yard or two away from him, as he immediately jumps off my character’s shoulder and onto Grounds Keeper’s back.

Seeing the little monkey trembling as he points and grunts at the yellow pegasa, I have my character focus on the elderly earth pony; and I say, “Since the alpha trusts me, maybe I should go ahead and approach Fluttershy, and let him know he can trust her.”

Grounds Keeper nods and says, “Go right ahead. I’m sure, when the alpha sees that the one he trusts isn’t afraid of Fluttershy, he won’t be afraid of her either.”

Taking that as affirmation, I have my character approach the yellow pegasa, then put a hand on her head and stroke her mane.

As my character turns and focuses on the spider monkey, he seems unsure at first. Then, he dismounts from Grounds Keeper and starts walking toward the human and the pegasa, arms up in the air as though hanging from an invisible branch. Close enough to touch Fluttershy’s nose, the spider monkey stops and folds his arms over his head, then looks up at my character and hoots a few times.

My character then turns his attention to Fluttershy, who seems to be bowing to the spider monkey.

When the spider monkey sees this behavior, he takes two more steps forward, reaches out a hand, and taps the yellow pegasa on the side of her head with the palm of his hand.

I can only guess this is as close as he’s going to get to gently stroking Fluttershy’s mane.

Fluttershy responds by giggling under her breath, then nuzzling the spider monkey.

At first the spider monkey jumps back. Then, seeing that my character’s not scared of the response, he approaches Fluttershy again and hugs her face.

The yellow pegasa turns to my character in a way that I, at least, would think would be uncomfortable for an equine, and says, “Thank you, Mormon. I wouldn’t have been able to do this without your help.” And, I see a tear roll down her face.

At this point, the monkey lets go of Fluttershy’s face, then jumps onto her back. He then stands up and screeches loudly.

In response, various creatures come from behind trees and bushes and shrubs and approach the two ponies and the human.

Surrounded by creatures that immediately proceed to nuzzle and sniff at her, Fluttershy turns to my character and says, “Thank you, Mormon. It’s because of you that this really is my best night ever.”

Presently, Grounds Keeper nods and says, “Well, if my job’s done here, then I’d better get back to cleanin’ up the leaves and stuff.” And, not waiting for a response, he proceeds on his way.

I have my character keep his attention on the earth pony, and I say, “Thank you for your assistance.” I then have my character turn back to the yellow pegasa, and I ask, “So, shall we head back to the ball room now?”

A smiling Fluttershy answers, “Maybe in a minute. Right now, I just want to get acquainted with these critters.”

I see no reason why I shouldn’t allow the yellow pegasa a little more time with the creatures I helped her befriend. That is, until I look toward the ball room and see the equine statue tipping over. Based on what I remember from the episode, I know what I’m seeing is part of a chain reaction that started with Pinkie Pie jumping off of the orchestra stage onto the wheeled table Applejack had brought in, holding a tall, nine-layer cake. At least, that’s as many layers as I could count when I paused the episode and counted the layers. I have my character turn to the yellow pegasa, and I say, “Actually, Fluttershy, now may be the right time to go back to the ball room.”

Fluttershy sighs, then says, “Oh, alright.”

But, as she starts moving, the creatures she befriended refuse to leave her.

Turning and smiling at the spider monkey, she asks, “Do you want to come with me?”

The spider monkey grins, then screeches and nods vigorously.

Fluttershy continues to smile as she says, “Well, then, let’s get going.”

I decide, at that moment, to have my character start the march toward the ball room, and the doorway where the copies of the Book of Mormon are still on the table.

Fluttershy manages to catch up with my character just as they arrive at the door; and, as my character is opening the door, she says, “Oh, Mormon, I knew these creatures were going to love me. I just didn’t know I’d need your help with that.”

I have my character look around to survey the damage around the room, and I say, “I’m glad I could help, Fluttershy.”

After a few seconds, Rainbow Dash rises from among the ruins of the fallen statue and pillars and says, “Mormon, I can explain everything.”

It’s almost all I can do to keep from laughing.

Just then, an aristocratic-sounding adult female voice gasps and says, “What are those wild creatures doing in here?”

And, as if on cue, the creatures that had been on and around Fluttershy run into the ball room. Some attack or chase ponies around the room. A few rodents run to the ruined cake and start eating it. The birds search the highest places in the ball room for a place to roost. But, it’s clear the result is complete and utter chaos.

I have a sneaking suspicion that if Discord could see this, he’d want to be a part of it.

In the mean time, I see Princess Celestia, in the doorway on the other side of the room, signal to Twilight, who whistles and calls out, “Follow me!”

Taking the signal from the bearer of the element of magic, Fluttershy and my character try their best to make it through the growing disaster that the ball room has turned into.

For a moment, I hear Fluttershy say, “Oh, I’m so sorry that this happened.” My character turns and focuses on the yellow pegasa as she continues, “I didn’t know that all your friends were going to start attacking everypony. Can you forgive me?”

My character shifts his attention to show me she’s talking to the spider monkey, who simply salutes Fluttershy like a soldier, then gives her a thumbs up.

Eventually, the party of nine, including Princess Celestia, make it out of the room and into the hallway. From there on, it’s a basic stampede to the front gate of the castle, and down a flight of stairs.

On the way down, Pinkie Pie stops for a moment, points to the step immediately ahead of her, and says, “Ooh, Rarity, your glass slipper! Now your prince is sure to find you!”

But, evidently to the pink party pony’s surprise, Rarity turns back and screams, then runs to the glass slipper and stomps on it, smashing it to pieces. She then says, “Let’s go!” and heads back down the stairs again.

Frozen in surprise, Pinkie doesn’t notice my character and Fluttershy approaching her rapidly. That is, not until I call out, “Rarity’s right! We better get going!”

The pink party pony takes a moment to turn and see my character and Fluttershy, then says, “Uh, oh, right.” And, instantly she goes back to galloping down the stairs.

In a matter of seconds, the group is back at the intersection, where Twilight’s apple carriage is waiting for the six element bearers.

As Twilight and the other bearers enter the carriage, I have my character turn to Princess Celestia; and I say, “Well, I guess this means there won’t be a reading at the pavilion after all.”

The white alicorn sighs and says, “Unfortunately not.”

I nod and say, “Well, that’s alright. Whatever’s left of those copies of the Book of Mormon Pinkie Pie and I brought, you can keep them and do whatever you want with them.”

Evidently, my invitation makes the daytime alicorn smile as she says, “Why, thank you, Mormon.”

By this time, the six element bearers have all entered the carriage.

Then, Twilight leans out the door window and asks, “Oh, wait, where’s Spike? Isn’t he supposed to be driving the carriage?”

One of the stallions looks back and says, “That’s alright. Just tell us where you want to go, and we’ll head in that direction.”

At this comment, there seem to be statements of agreement from inside the carriage.

Then, Twilight asks, “So, where is Spike right now?”

Presently, I answer, “Knowing him, he’s likely with Weed Whacker at that doughnut shop.”

Twilight taps her chin as she says, “Doughnut shop, doughnut shop.”

Then, Lyra says, “I know where it is. You can follow me.” And, with that, she gallops ahead of the stallions, and in the direction of the bakery.

The stallions follow Lyra, and in turn the carriage they pull is followed by my character and Princess Celestia.

It takes a few minutes to get to the bakery, at which point my character gets to the door and opens it, allowing the six mares inside to exit.

Twilight leads the group to the door of the doughnut shop, and holds it open for the others to enter.

As my character enters behind Pinkie Pie and ahead of Lyra, I hear Weed Whacker call out, “Mormon, Pinkie Pie, Lyra! You’re here!”

I answer, “It’s nice to see you, too.”

Then, a curious Spike asks, “Twilight, what happened?” And, I can see him, as well as Weed Whacker, each sitting over a broken-up doughnut and a mug of hot chocolate at the bar.

Twilight groans and says, “It was a disaster.”

Then, Princess Celestia says, “Now, it wasn’t so bad.”

I notice Doughnut Joe disappear behind the display bar as he says, “You take a seat at your favorite table. I’ll get you some fresh doughnuts and drinks.”

Then, before I know it, my character’s arms are full of herbivorous dinosaur, licking his face and hugging him.

In the mean time, Twilight approaches the table apparently closest to the bar and sits canine-style closest to the window, while the rest of the ponies, as well as the human and the dragons, take positions around it, in a curiously familiar pattern.

Spike, somewhat subdued, turns to the purple unicorn and asks, “So, Twilight, what happened?”

Twilight sighs and answers, “Well, I got my chance to be with Princess Celestia, just not the way I wanted. Instead of getting some one-on-one time with her, I had to stand there for an hour or two greeting guests at the Gala. Then we heard crashing sounds, and we got to the ball room to see the mess that had been made.”

Spike then turns to the white unicorn and asks, “And, Rarity, what about you?”

Rarity sighs, much like Twilight did, and answers, “Well, I met my prince, alright. But, he was more interested in making himself look 'pretty' than he was in me.”

At this point, Princess Celestia gives a halfhearted laugh as she says, “Yeah, that sounds like Prince Blueblood.”

Rarity continues, “I complimented a rose, and he thanked me. He then put the rose in his collar, and said it went with his eyes. I could’ve shown him something else I thought might go with his eyes, but then I thought I’d give him another chance. One time, I thought he placed a pillow for me; until he sat on it. And, the last straw was when he stuck me between himself and a falling cake.”

At this point, I hear Applejack chuckle nervously. As my character, and the other creatures around the table, focus on the orange earth pony, she says, “Yeah, that cake was kinda my fault.”

At this time, I almost feel like singing an old song from an old western variety show, “Blues, Despair, and Agony on Me.” But, I decide to hold off on that.

In the mean time, Rarity continues, “Well, I wasn’t about to let a stallion treat me like that. So, I gave him a piece of my mind. Then, when he looked scared of getting dirty, I shook the cake off of me and onto him.”

I can’t help laughing about the end of Rarity’s story. I’ve seen the event on the episode, “The Best Night Ever,” but the way Rarity told the story just made it all the funnier.

And, I’m evidently not the only one that thinks so. Everyone else at the table, even Rarity after a moment, is also laughing.

Rarity concludes her story by saying, “Yes, Prince Blueblood did look funny all covered in cake, and stumbling backward into that platform that was holding the statue.”

Next, Pinkie Pie says, “Well, I came to the Gala expecting to have fun. But, it turns out the only fun I had was the fun I had to make. I started dancing as soon as I was there, but then everypony looked at me like I’d done something wrong; so, I stopped. Then, after Lyra got up on the stage and sang her song and played her lyre, I decided to follow her up on the stage and sing my ‘Pony Pokey’ song. They told me it wasn’t that kind of party, so I decided to liven things up with a turntable I borrowed from Vinyl. I played it for a while, then jumped off the stage, and … right into the cake that Applejack brought in.”

Now, Applejack says, “Ah only brought in that cake after Prince Blueblood said that all Ah was a’sellin’ was just common carnival food. So, Ah decided to dress it up a bit so those highfalutin ponies might like it. But, that ended up causin’ a whole new set of problems.” She then sighs as she concludes, “The only sales Ah made were an apple pie, and the fritters Prince Blueblood said was carnival food.”

As the orange earth mare rests her head on the table, Rainbow Dash says, “Well, I got my chance to hang with the Wonderbolts after saving Soarin’s pie from a rough landing. Or, I thought I was gonna hang with them. As it turns out, ponies were talking so loud that nopony could hear me, not even when I tried my best to get them to notice me. I thought I had my chance to show the Wonderbolts how awesome I am when I saw the pony statue fall, and I tried to catch it. But, all that happened there was I ended up dropping the statue, and causing all the pillars to fall.”

Next, Lyra says, “Well, I did get my chance to sing for the ponies at the Gala, but they were as harsh on me as they were on Pinkie Pie. They didn’t throw things at me, they just glared at me and made me feel like I’d committed some kind of crime. I did accompany my song by playing on my lyre, but I thought I was gonna get a better response than that.”

At this point, Spike says, “Wow. It sounds like it was the worst night ever.”

Six of the ponies at the table say, “It was,” and start giggling.

And, it’s at this point that Doughnut Joe arrives with the doughnuts and drinks.

As the unicorns in the group help place the platter of doughnuts, and all around the table receive their drinks; Fluttershy says, “Well, it wasn’t bad for me.” As sets of eyes start to focus on the yellow pegasa, she continues, “Well, not with Mormon’s help, anyway.” Then, after talking about her initial struggles and how I helped her, she concludes, “I guess Mormon figured I needed his help more than anypony else. And, from what I heard of your stories, I guess he was right.” She then turns to my character and says, “Mormon, thanks again for your help.”

I nod and say, “Like I said, I was glad to help.”

Pinkie Pie then turns to my character and asks, “And what about you, Mormon? Was the Gala everything you expected it to be?”

I answer, “Well, not quite all of it. I didn’t host a reading at the Gala, but I did get a chance to help a friend that needed it. And, I think that makes the party good enough for me, even if I wasn’t able to avoid a catastrophe.”

Twilight then turns to the daytime princess and says, “I just hope you can forgive us for ruining the Gala.”

As my character focuses on Princess Celestia, she smiles and says, “Oh, you’re kidding. That was the best Grand Galloping Gala ever.”

Still somewhat depressed, Twilight says, “Pardon me, Princess, but tonight was just … awful.”

The white alicorn emits a genuine chuckle before saying, “Oh, Twilight, the Grand Galloping Gala is always awful.”

In the time it takes for the purple unicorn to tilt her head, her expression goes from depressed to quizzical. She asks, “It is?”

Princess Celestia continues, “That’s why I was thrilled you were all attending. I was hoping you could liven things up a bit. And, while the evening might not have gone as you planned, I’m sure you’ll agree that, in the end, it didn’t turn out so bad for this group of friends.”

Twilight, relieved, replies, “You’re right, Princess. Friends have a way of making even the worst of times into something pret-ty great.”

Rainbow Dash adds, “Yeah, hangin’ out with friends.”

Fluttershy adds, “Talking.”

Pinkie Pie raises her forelimbs into the air and shouts, “Laughing!”

Then, Spike asks, “You mean, doing exactly what I wanted to do the whole time?”

Evidently humbled, Twilight answers, “Yes, Spike. You were right.”

Even Applejack has perked up as she says, “As horrible as our night was, …”

Rarity continues, “Being together here has made it all better.”

Then, Pinkie Pie says, “In fact, it’s made it …”

And, even I join in as ponies and dragons around the table call out, “The best night ever!” I even join in the laughter.

Then, after a second or two when the laughter has died down, I ask, “So, shall we complete the evening by having the reading here?”

Twilight asks, “You mean here, like in a doughnut shop?”

Before I can answer, Princess Celestia turns to the owner and asks, “Is that alright with you, Doughnut Joe?”

Evidently uncertain, the stallion asks, “That depends. What’ll you be reading?”

The daytime alicorn answers, “It’s a record of a family of humans that lived and died out a long time ago. Mormon has been sharing it with us for a little over a month now.”

At this point, Doughnut Joe canters from behind the display bar and says, “Well, it’s after hours now, but I suppose I could keep this place open for just a little longer. What’s this record called?”

I answer, “It’s called the Book of Mormon.”

The stallion eyes my character suspiciously for a moment, then says, “Well, if the princess says it’s a record of a long-dead family, then I’ll believe her.” He then asks, “Is there a chance I could join in?”

I answer, “Sure, I can’t see why not.”

Then, Princess Celestia says, “I’ll just send word to my sister that we’ll be reading here at Doughnut Joe’s bakery, and to bring some extra copies with her from the table.” And, with that, she closes her eyes, and for a moment her horn glows and sparkles.

Perhaps a few seconds later, Princess Luna appears, supporting maybe ten books with her magic. She hands one of them to Doughnut Joe, then one each to other creatures that apparently haven't brought theirs, then takes a position between Weed Whacker and her sister.

As the stallion host takes a position between Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash; and those that did bring their own copies of the Book of Mormon produce them and turn to the right page, with Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash helping Doughnut Joe; Princess Celestia gives a summary of what the group has read, starting with events from First Nephi, and ending with what the group has read up to this point. She then says, "We'll be starting in the Book of Mosiah," then, turning to my character, she asks, "Chapter fourteen?"

I nod and say, "Yeah, let's include chapter fifteen in that."

The daytime princess nods and smiles, then turns to the host and asks, "Doughnut Joe, will you start with the first verse?"

Doughnut Joe nods and smiles and says, "Sure." He then looks down into his copy and reads, "Yea, even doth not Isaiah say: Who hath believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?" He then looks up again and says, "I'd like to keep this copy so I can read all of this story."

I reply, "You're quite welcome to. I have plenty more where that came from."

Taking my reply as her signal, Pinkie Pie then reads, "For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground; he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him there is no beauty that we should desire him." She then looks up and asks, "Does 'no beauty' mean he was ... ugly?"

I answer, "Physically, he might have been. Or, just plain-looking. His purpose was to provide a way for God's children to return to Him, including a code of conduct for them, including me, to follow so that we show Him that we do want to return to our Heavenly Father. Attaching physical beauty to him would've detracted from that. So, he wasn't going to be physically attractive."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not."

Spike reads, "Surely he has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted."

At this point, Princess Luna says, "This is something we need to be careful about. When we see somepony going through hard times, we shouldn't assume that pony, that creature, has brought it on him- or herself. After all, even I have had difficult times. And, while it is true that I brought them on myself, that doesn't mean that everypony does." She then turns and nods to the white unicorn.

Rarity nods back, then reads, "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."

Now, I speak up and say, "I must admit, I find it appealing how Isaiah put this. He talks about what the Christ went through, and then why he went through it. He went through times more difficult than I could have gone through, but he did it to give God's children, as I said before, a way to return to Him."

Applejack reads, "All we, like sheep, have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquities of us all."

Fluttershy reads, "He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb so he opened not his mouth."

Lyra reads, "He was taken from prison and from judgment; and who shall declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living; for the transgressions of my people was he stricken."

I read, "And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no evil, neither was any deceit in his mouth."

Weed Whacker reads, "Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief; when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand." She then looks up at my character and asks, "What does that mean, 'he shall see his seed'?"

i answer, "I'm not entirely sure myself; but, when I see the words 'his seed,' my first thought is a reference to the Savior's family, those of his spiritual brothers and sisters who accept his sacrifice for them, and choose to live as he prescribed."

Princess Luna reads, "He shall see the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied; by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities."

Princess Celestia reads, "Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death; and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bore the sins of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."

Rainbow Dash looks up and says, "I guess that means I get to start chapter fifteen." She then looks down again and reads, "And now Abinadi said unto them: I would that ye should understand that God himself shall come down among the children of men, and shall redeem his people."

Doughnut Joe reads, "And because he dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son—"

Presently, Pinkie Pie reads, "The Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and Son—"

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth."

Spike reads, "And thus the flesh becoming subject to the Spirit, or the Son to the Father, being one God, suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to the temptation, but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people."

Rarity reads, "And after all this, after working many mighty miracles among the children of men, he shall be led, yea, even as Isaiah said, as a sheep before the shearer is dumb, so he opened not his mouth."

Applejack reads, "Yea, even so he shall be led, crucified, and slain, the flesh becoming subject even unto death, the will of the Son being swallowed up in the will of the Father."

Fluttershy reads, "And thus God breaketh the bands of death, having gained the victory over death; giving the Son power to make intercession for the children of men—"

Lyra reads, "Having ascended into heaven, having the bowels of mercy; being filled with compassion towards the children of men; standing betwixt them and justice; having broken the bands of death, taken upon himself their iniquity and their transgressions, having redeemed them, and satisfied the demands of justice."

I read, "And now I say unto you, who shall declare his generation? Behold, I say unto you, that when his soul has been made an offering for sin he shall see his seed. And now what say ye? And who shall be his seed?"

Weed Whacker reads, "Behold I say unto you, that whosoever has heard the words of the prophets, yea, all the holy prophets who have prophesied concerning the coming of the Lord—I say unto you, that all those who have hearkened unto their words, and believed that the Lord would redeem his people, and have looked forward to that day for a remission of their sins, I say unto you, that these are his seed, or they are the heirs of the kingdom of God."

Princess Luna reads, "For these are they whose sins he has borne; these are they for whom he has died, to redeem them from their transgressions. And now, are they not his seed?"

Princess Celestia reads, "Yea, and are not the prophets, every one that has opened his mouth to prophesy, that has not fallen into transgression, I mean all the holy prophets ever since the world began? I say unto you that they are his seed."

Rainbow Dash reads, "And these are they who have published peace, who have brought good tidings of good, who have published salvation; and said unto Zion: Thy God reigneth!"

Doughnut Joe reads, "And O how beautiful upon the mountains were their feet!"

Pinkie Pie reads, "And again, how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those that are still publishing peace!"

Twilight Sparkle reads, "And again, how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those who shall hereafter publish peace, yea, from this time henceforth and forever!"

Spike reads, "And behold, I say unto you, this is not all. For O how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that is the founder of peace, yea, even the Lord, who has redeemed his people; yea, him who has granted salvation unto his people;"

Rarity reads, "For were it not for the redemption which he hath made for his people, which was prepared from the foundation of the world, I say unto you, were it not for this, all mankind must have perished."

Applejack reads, "But behold, the bands of death shall be broken, and the Son reigneth, and hath power over the dead; therefore, he bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead."

Fluttershy reads, "And there cometh a resurrection, even a first resurrection; yea, even a resurrection of those that have been, and who are, and who shall be, even until the resurrection of Christ—for so shall he be called."

Lyra reads, "And now, the resurrection of all the prophets, and all those that have believed in their words, or all those that have kept the commandments of God, shall come forth in the first resurrection; therefore, they are the first resurrection."

I read, "They are raised to dwell with God who has redeemed them; thus they have eternal life through Christ, who has broken the bands of death."

Weed Whacker reads, "And these are those who have part in the first resurrection; and these are they that have died before Christ came, in their ignorance, not having salvation declared unto them. And thus the Lord bringeth about the restoration of these; and they have a part in the first resurrection, or have eternal life, being redeemed by the Lord."

Princess Luna reads, "And little children also have eternal life."

Princess Celestia reads, "But behold, and fear, and tremble before God, for ye ought to tremble; for the Lord redeemeth none such that rebel against him and die in their sins; yea, even all those that have perished in their sins ever since the world began, that have wilfully rebelled against God, that have known the commandments of God, and would not keep them; these are they that have no part in the first resurrection."

Rainbow Dash reads, "Therefore ought ye not to tremble? For salvation cometh to none such; for the Lord hath redeemed none such; yea, neither can the Lord redeem such; for he cannot deny himself; for he cannot deny justice when it has its claim."

Doughnut Joe reads, "And now I say unto you that the time shall come that the salvation of the Lord shall be declared to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people."

Pinkie Pie reads, "Yea, Lord, thy watchmen shall lift up their voice; with the voice together shall they sing; for they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion."

Twilight Sparkle reads, "Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem; for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem."

Spike reads, "The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God."

It takes a few seconds after all have closed and put away their books, but eventually Doughnut Joe says, "Well, everypony, thanks for allowing me to host this reading in my bakery. I'm glad I did so. And, I would like to keep this book, so I can at least read all of this story that we read tonight. And, who knows? Maybe I'll host readings with my regular customers."

As my character focuses on the earth stallion, I reply, "I'm glad you enjoyed it. This particular story starts in chapter nine with a man named Zeniff, who lead a group of Nephites into hostile territory to reclaim what he thought was the Nephites' rightful inheritance. All the records of the events end with chapter twenty-four, although this specific record we read ends with chapter twenty-two. Whether it's among your regular customers, or by yourself, I hope you continue to enjoy what you read."

Princess Celestia adds, “If you want to start with the origins of King Noah, who Abinadi is talking to, then start by reading chapter eleven of Mosiah. If you want to start with where Abinadi is first mentioned, then start at about the middle of chapter eleven. But, like Mormon said, you can start reading wherever in the book you want.”

Doughnut Joe nods to my character and Princess Celestia before saying, “Thanks for the advice. I’ll most likely start reading the story with chapter nine, as Mormon suggested. But, in the mean time, it’s time for me to close up shop. So, if you’ll forgive me, I’m going to have to ask you to leave now.”

Princess Celestia nods to the stallion, then says, “Yes, of course. We won’t keep you any longer.” She then proceeds to lead the group of twelve out of the bakery. Then, once all are outside, she turns to my character and asks, “Oh, Mormon, I’ve been meaning to ask you, why do you have a patch over one of your eyes?”

Presently, Pinkie Pie lowers her head and starts trembling. She says, “Uh, P-princess C-celestia, if you’ll r-return m-me, M-mormon, L-lyra, and Weed W-whacker to M-mormon’s house, I’ll explain wh-why he h-has the p-patch.”

The daytime princess simply nods to the pink earth pony, then turns to her sister and says, “Luna, you return these others to their homes. I’ll deliver Mormon, Pinkie Pie, Lyra, and Weed Whacker to Mormon’s house.”

Princess Luna nods, then closes her eyes; and her horn starts to glow and sparkle. A second later, the only element bearer left is Pinkie Pie; and the carriage and the two stallions pulling it have also disappeared.

Then, Princess Celestia closes her eyes, and her horn starts to glow and sparkle. One frame later, the group is back in front of my character’s house. Then, once there, the white alicorn settles down into a position that reminds me of how a deer would rest, then looks at the pink earth pony and asks, “Now, Pinkie Pie, will you tell me what happened?”

Pinkie Pie closes her eyes and inhales deeply, then exhales slowly, then opens her eyes again and says, “Alright. You see, it started a couple days ago, the day of Gummy’s birthday party. Mormon here had concerns that I was going to forget my own birthday after we celebrated Gummy’s, so I … I … made a P-pinkie promise to not forget.” Her voice starts vibrating as she continues, “I thought I’d be able to remember if I had that kind of motivation. But, as it turns out, the Pinkie promise wasn’t enough. I f-forgot m-m-my own b-birthday.” Now, she sniffles before continuing, “M-mormon and L-lyra tried to remind me, b-but I wouldn’t listen to them. I just w-went ahead and m-made preparations for G-gummy’s after-birthday party.

“Everypony made excuses for why they couldn’t attend, and Mormon even suggested I move the party to another day; but I didn’t listen. I thought they didn’t like my parties anymore, that they didn’t even like me anymore. B-but, thanks to Mormon, I learned that they do still like me and my parties, and were just planning a surprise birthday party for me. And, … th-that’s wh-when I remembered.

“I’d prepared a cupcake for myself, made from my own poop, so that I’d have that reminder if I ever broke a Pinkie promise. I ran away and brought out that cupcake, and I was about to stick it in my eye when Mormon came and stopped me. He … he let me know … h-he wasn’t gonna g-give up on me.

“I couldn’t forget that this was the first time I’d b-broken a P-pinkie p-promise, so I … made another poop, … and made another cupcake from it, … and I was about to stick that cupcake in my eye. Then, just as I was about to, …”

Princess Celestia continues, “Mormon grabbed the cupcake from you and stuck it in his own eye.”

Pinkie Pie shakes her head, tossing tears to each side, as she says, “No, not then. Weed Whacker was there, and she knocked the cupcake out of my hooves. And, … and I was angry with her for stopping me.

“Then, Mormon came in the kitchen and saw the two of us and the cupcake.” Again she sniffles before continuing, “He took the cupcake away. He s-said … he s-said …”

At this point, I speak up and say, “I’d said that I was the one that made her forget. I was the reason why she couldn’t keep her Pinkie promise.”

Princess Celestia looks up at my character and says, “And then you stuck the cupcake into your eye.”

I have my character nod as I respond, “That’s right.”

Now, Pinkie Pie closes her eyes and covers them with her front hooves and sobs, “If only I hadn’t made that Pinkie promise, Mormon wouldn’t have stuck that poop cupcake in his eye! He might’ve lost that eye, and it’s all my fault!” And, the pink earth pony continues to sob.

At this point, Princess Celestia rises to all fours and approaches the crying pink earth pony, then nuzzles her and says, “Mormon doesn’t seem to think so.”

Pinkie uncovers her eyes and looks at the daytime alicorn and says, “B-but, it is my fault! I made that cupcake for me, not him. Now, he might not be able to use that eye ever again.” And, once again she closes her eyes and covers them with her front hooves, and streams of tears erupt from their outer edges as the pink earth pony resumes her sobbing.

Calmly, Princess Celestia turns to my character and nods, then turns back to Pinkie Pie and says, “Mormon wouldn’t have made that kind of sacrifice for you if he didn’t think you were worth it. Now, you need to show him that he was right. Remember what he did for you. Your Pinkie promises are important to you, and Mormon understands that. And, he chose to take the hit himself rather than see you get hurt. You’ve learned that there are promises, even Pinkie promises, that you can’t keep; situations that you can’t avoid. And, Mormon doesn’t hold them against you.” She then approaches my character and points her horn to one side of his head, evidently at the covered eye, and her horn starts to glow and sparkle. When it stops, maybe a second or two later, and the daytime princess backs away; she says, “You may remove the eye patch. Your eye is healed.”

Automatically my character reaches up and removes the patch, and it's clear that he can see equally well through both eyes again.

I say, “Thank you, Princess Celestia.”

The daytime alicorn nods, then turns back to the bearer of the element of laughter, and says, “Always remember what Mormon did for you, Pinkie. It is alright to make Pinkie promises, just so long as you know you can keep them.” And, with that, she disappears.

And, that’s when Pinkie uncovers her eyes and opens them, then looks up into my character’s eyes. Seeing that they are indeed whole, she jumps into my character’s arms and barely vocalizes my name.

As my character catches the pink earth pony in his arms, I say, “Let’s go inside now. I think we’ve had plenty of excitement for one day.”

Lyra takes my statement as her signal, and gallops to and up the stairs to the front porch, then opens the door with her magic.

Weed Whacker follows Lyra, and is followed by my character, who's carrying Pinkie Pie.

Once the four are inside, I have my character close the door behind him; and I say, “You know, I think things out worked, uh, that is to say, worked out, for the best after all.”

Puzzled, Lyra asks, “Uh, how did things out work for the best?”

I chuckle as I have my character settle down on the nearest couch. Then, I answer, “I have to wonder, if the reading had been among all those aristocratic ponies at the Gala, at the pavilion, how many of them would’ve appreciated the message I was giving? Which was more appropriate for the reading: the royal pavilion, or the doughnut shop?”

Weed Whacker, after climbing on the couch opposite where my character is sitting, still holding Pinkie Pie, turns to my character and asks, “You think it was a good thing the animals you and Fluttershy brought in to the ball room went wild in there? You think they were meant to do that?”

I shrug as I answer, “Who knows? Maybe they were. What happened may have actually been for the best. It could be that the best place for reading the Book of Mormon was under the most humble of circumstances.”

At this point, Lyra grunts in interest before saying, “You know, I hadn’t thought about it that way. Maybe you’re right.”

By this time, Pinkie Pie has calmed down to just sniffling.

I say, “In the mean time, I think we should just go to bed tonight. We can have breakfast tomorrow morning, and plan out what we want to do next.”

Lyra nods and says, “Good idea. I’m tired anyway.” And, with that, she turns and makes her way behind the couch to the kitchen door.

At the same time, Weed Whacker stands up on the couch and waddles to the other side, climbing over the arm and falling onto the floor just below it.

In spite of knowing it’s in vain, I automatically start to reach out my arms to try to stop the little dinosaur from falling.

And, still the dinosaur shows no signs of being hurt. She just follows Lyra through the kitchen door and into the hallway.

In the mean time, my character rises, still carrying the pink earth pony, and follows the dinosaur and the unicorn through the kitchen and into the hallway. From there, while the dinosaur and the unicorn proceed into Lyra’s room, I have my character carry Pinkie Pie into her room, then place her carefully on her bed. And, after that, I have my character cover Pinkie with the closest available blanket, then leave her room.

And, it’s there, in the hallway, that I find Weed Whacker waiting for my character, holding the clipboard up to him.

My character automatically takes the clipboard from her, then takes it to his room and closes the door behind him.

I decide, since Princess Celestia already knows, that my character doesn’t need to write about how he stopped Pinkie Pie from damaging her own eye by sticking her cupcake into his, although, I do feel the need to dictate my gratitude for her healing the injured eye. She might not have needed to do that, but it was still a nice gesture on her part. I do dictate about the events leading up to my attending the Gala, including the tour Lyra gave me, which in turn included visits to the unicorn friends of her and Twilight Sparkle. I also dictate how I helped Fluttershy out in the garden, helping her get acquainted with the creatures that live there. The last thing I dictate is my wonderment about it being for the best that the reading didn’t take place at the pavilion, but at Doughnut Joe’s bakery instead.

As soon as I indicate the letter is complete, my character signs the letter and rolls it up, then delivers it, as well as the clipboard, to Weed Whacker, who bites down on the rolled-up letter to send it to the princesses. And, with that completed, he returns to his room and prepares for and goes to bed, which includes changing out of his suit and into some regular clothes.

Well, all in all, this has been quite the journey. Considering it started, for all intents and purposes, with the deliberate failure in the first game, and has concluded in this near completion of the second game, I expect to find out tomorrow how well I’ve influenced Pinkie Pie. Will she wake up with wings? With a horn? With both? I’m going to have to wait until the game’s tomorrow to find out. But, as I save and close the game, I must admit, I’m looking forward to it.

Hey, Batter! Volume 2: Success

by A_Mormon Brony

Introduction

Chapter 1: Minor Differences

Chapter 2: Game Changer in the Basement

Chapter 3: Experience with Two Unicorn Mares

Chapter 4: DJ Poison3

Chapter 5: Of Dragons and Griffons

Chapter 6: Not Quite a Day Off

Chapter 7: Pinkie Pie's New Pet

Chapter 8: My Friend Zecora

Chapter 9: Plant Humor

Chapter 10: We'll Always Have Parasprites (Or Not)

Chapter 11: Let the Crusade Begin

Chapter 12: Rarity a'Dressin' Her Friends

Chapter 13: Rarity Addressin' Her Failure

Chapter 14: Twilight, Pinkie's ... Student?

Chapter 15: Return of the Musicians

Chapter 16: The Icarus Effect

Chapter 17: Avian Medusa

Chapter 18: The Crusaders, the Human, the Party Pony, and the Mint Unicorn

Chapter 19: A Number on the Music

Chapter 20: Diamond Doggone It!

Chapter 21: Know Your ... Mormon?

Chapter 22: The Defender of Promises

Chapter 23: The Complaint of the Bison

Chapter 24: The Complaint and the Settlement

Chapter 25: Silent Ponyville, Holy Ponyville

Chapter 26: One Way to View Resurrection

Chapter 27: We Are All Connected by a Sonic Rainboom

Chapter 28: As Fast as is Healthy

Chapter 29: Comet-ology

Chapter 30: Dragon vs. Owl

Chapter 31: Gummy's Birthday

Chapter 32: Pinkie Pie's Birthday

Chapter 33: The Party at the Castle

Chapter 34: Wings, Horns, and the Earth

Conclusion