SteelEagle

Some ponies, their calendar revolved around hard-dates and times, maybe holidays. Apple Bloom's revolved around the reunion.

Apple Bloom's excitement was palatable. More than that,even. Infectious like a virus, spreading from pony to pony as she leapt about since the break of dawn. She loved her Apple family the most, but right behind them was the entire tree of Apples that she belonged to. As she told her somewhat confused schoolmates, today was the day when the whole tree would come by to visit and she had every intention of playin' with every conceivable branch of it. Bumpkin was coming by and she'd be shocked and offended if everypony around didn't know plainly that she was not only her favorite cousin, but best friend besides her Cutie Mark Crusader friends. And Applejack. And Big Mac. And Granny Smith. Maybe Winona. But still, Bumpkin was right up there! She was excited to see Caramel Apple as well, though Apple Bloom couldn't claim to have the same type of relationship with her as Bumpkin.

Her great uncle Apple Strudel! He would be there too! She didn't get see much of her silly 'ol Uncle, but he always had such a fine way with the little ones that she couldn't help but love him more every time. And Braeburn, that smooth talkin' settler, he was more fun than a whole barrel of apples. And barrels of apples were fun! And that strong stallion uncle of hers, Red Delicious, he always gave Apple Bloom a full bushel of those tiny and delicious crab apples whenever he showed his strong self 'round these parts and Apple Bloom had no intention of letting him get away without doing it this time too. Valen wasn't gonna stop by, seeing as how he was an Orange and had Orangy type business in the big cities, but he had sent a card that was awkwardly hoof written. That was nice!

Bounce bounce bounce!

Apple Bloom did her best Pinkie Pie impersonation that day as she bounced around the farm, too giddy for speech at times. She eventually found a spot in the Red Delicious orchard where at the top of her bounce, she could see down on Ponyville, down on the road that led to the farm. She jumped up and down in place, hoping against hope that at the apex of her giddy leap, she would see an Apple strolling down the road.

"Why of course Valen. I visit these hills outside Ponyville frequently to collect gems. I know them almost as well as I know Ponyville itself to be honest. Why, I even found my cutie mark out here in these roughs."

That was more than a little wonderful to hear, seeing as how the entire hunt depended on it. More importantly, she had got her cutie mark outside of town, which was something that Valen could admit to some shock at learning. He had figured her for the type to have learned it while making some sort of dress- the fact it had happened out of town engendered some curiosity.

"Oh, well that's simple. I'm not sure how much you know about us unicorns, but each of us has a magical skill which we're naturally attuned to perform."

Valen knew a fair bit about Unicorns. One of the few things he could stamp as a truth was his education being of a high caliber, and it would be simply silly for a pony school to not explain the difference between the species.

"That is, of course, unless your name is Twilight Sparkle, in which case you can pretty much do it all when it comes to magic, but I do digress...you might assume my magical talent has something to do with fashion design, but au contraire my dear, that is not so. One look at my cutie mark should make it perfectly clear. My magical skill allows me to effortlessly locate buried gems."

That blew Valen away, visibly as well as internally. If she had gotten to this stage of her fashion career without it being tied in directly with her special talent, that made her abilities and success in that field far more impressive. It was rare to meet a mare who held such an arena of success about herself in a field that was only tangibly related to her pony-given talents, as without those innate gifts, one's desire, drive, dedication, and hoof-taught skills had to be the bulwark of success. Here, she had achieved such success without the aid of her cutie mark, at least directly, nor from what he knew any sort of advantage gifted her by birth. More inspirational as he thought about it.

"That's stunning, Miss Rarity! I thought your cutie mark meant you were blessed with the ability to make beauty. It seemed only right, seeing as that is what you do so effortlessly! Wow, to know finding gems is your special talent, that would make fashion your passion. That would also mean you have no natural gifts IN fashion, meaning it's ALL because of your hard work. I know plenty of fashion ponies who would kill to have your fashion sense and skills, and they have cutie marks more directly related to it! It appears that you are even greater at your craft than I had previously thought, Miss Rarity. I do apologize, sin-cerely!

You look absolutely stunning, your smile is wonderful, and you work so hard to produce such beauty, I had thought it all tied into your cutie mark but no! It's just you, and that makes all of it even more impressive, which is hard considering how impressive you were before anyway. How'd you earn your cutie mark, if I may be so bold as to ask? I hope to get my cutie mark soon, though if I were to be honest I would prefer it not being doing farm labor," Valen spoke in a rapid, almost breathless tone as his tail excitedly swished around. The sheer excitement of his speech also propelled him forward down the path, settling down to a healthy trot.

"After all that, I'm half tempted just to fly across...but that would be the easy way out..."

How very true! It was the easy way out. And the smart way out. Contrary to popular belief, adventurers weren't dumb. If this was a real trap, Pathfinder would have advised her to just fly over. Luckily, this was all fake and therefore the only trouble would be if she messed up. Like Pathfinder had messed up. But then again, that was fun so maybe it'd be fun of Snowy messed up? Nah, because then she might get scared because she wasn't as experienced and Pathfinder was sure fear was supposed to be delayed until at least the fifth date. Or was it third? She wasn't sure about the etiquette of adventurers and dating, to be honest.

As she was contemplating the facets of a dating adventurer's life, Snowy moved well through the quicksand. Until the end, when a moment of panic ended her near-perfect run, her front hooves extended over to open ground.

"Sorry... I.. guess I couldn't make it all the way across without- You think you could help me up somehow?"

Pathfinder looked at her date for a second blankly, before settling on a somewhat mischievous grin. She patted Snowy on the head.

"Well, I'm not so sure I shouldn't just let you pull yourself out. I mean, it isn't like you did anything for me!" Pathfinder added at the end of this her tongue sticking out of her mouth, followed by a giggle as she turned away from Snowy dramatically for a moment. She then wrapped her tail around Snowy's front hooves and pulled with all the strength she could for a few seconds.

"I'll get you out now, but now you take the lead!"

Valen smiled broadly and kicked his hooves in the air with the greatest of excitement, neighing absurdly before leaping forward to start the journey. Well, he wanted to start the journey, anyway. He leapt forward before being mindful of the weight of the wagon and his saddlebag and fell back to the ground without his hooves stable beneath him. He immediately got back up and, with an embarrassed smirk and blush, pulled the wagon appropriately. Well, he figured he was allowed one moment of foalish foolishness before they got into the nitty gritty.

Hopefully there would be time for talk, though. Rarity was an immensely exquisite and charming mare, well-spoken and read ad knowledgeable in manners unrelating to the running of a farm. While Valen most certainly appreciated such things, at least from the perspective of an admirer of the work that went into it if not necessarily a fan of the work itself, he did not think he could have lasted as long as he had were it not for an outlet. And Rarity, being of a generous nature and intelligent and fluid mindset, was one of his outlets in Ponyville. Truly, a remarkable coincidence that he was allowed to meet and in some ways befriend a mare of her stature. It made him giddy. Nervous. Appreciative. It was not, however, responsible for his slow gait that he had a habit of slipping into when lost in thought. He shook his head and pushed himself faster, ending up in a nice trot as they made their way down the winding path next to Sweet Apple Acres. Both paths looped back into Ponyville, but small trails broke off from the path and led to places outside of town. A few minutes after leaving Sweet Apple Acres and on the other side of the forest that it straddled, they reached the turn to the southeast and the hills that poked off in that direction.

Valen slowed, being less aware of the land beyond this trail. He bowed and moved out of her way.

"After you, Miss Rarity. I believe you know more of this area's routes than I do; at least, I hope so, or else we may find ourselves in a spot of trouble," The colt said with great cheer, assuming for the sake of hope that she was well-versed in the area. He took position behind her.

"So, Miss Rarity, how exactly do we find the gems? I've never been on a hunt before," He asked with all the wide-eyed curiosity that the youth could muster.

"Oh, I think we have a bottle of that somewhere. This is chartreuse. Chartreuse is chartreuse, but it's not called chartreuse because it's chartreuse, in fact, the color chartreuse is called chartreuse after the chartreuse liqour chartreuse. Chartreuse chartreuse chartreuse chartreuse chartreuse! Isn't it a fun word to say?"

Apple Bloom's head couldn't keep up with the speed of Pinkie's speech, like a speeding train chargin' down a tunnel and then smacking into her head continiously. She was pretty sure chartreuse was made up, if only because Pinkie seemed so happy to be saying the word. Or maybe she just had no reason to say it normally and finally had the excuse to say it? She didn't give it much thought as she followed the liquid.

"Hay, what's that a bottle of, Pinkie? Can ah have some? Ah'm mighty thirsty," The recently parched filly asked of the older mare before turning her attention to

"Huh... I never knew that chartruse was a liquid. I just knew chartruse was a color. Personally I like the color perriwinkle. It has such a cute name! Perriwinkle, perriwinkle, perriwinkle."

Yeah, Apple Bloom could see why Pinkie picked her.

"Anyway, you said your grandmother likes Granny Smiths. Ok. How about icing? I know cakes are sweeter with icing. Does she want a certain kind or color? How about decorations? Does she like chocolates? I'm a pretty good chocolate making pony you know. How about games or entertainment? Really I need anything you can give me about what would make her birthday the best possible!"

Apple Bloom brought her hoof to her chin, lost in thought and then still doing so as she started to speak.

"Hmm, well, she ain't too picky on color, but red or green's 'er favorite, though I can't say which one for sure. She loves chocolates, but her teeth ain't so strong anymore, so we can't normally have her eat some of 'ur favorite cakes on account of us placing fried apples on 'em as toppings, so we can have chocolates and frostin' but its best we make it fresh on th day so as ta make sure it don't get all hard. And she likes all sorts of stuff, open to anythin' really, but we gotta make sure to keep it safe- she's old as all get out and her hip ain't all good, ah swear sometimes ah can hear it so ah don't think anythin' too exciting is in order, ah reckon," She said, finishing her thoughts on her flank, chin still being tapped upon by hoof.

Pathfinder could hear nothing but the increasingly frantic pulsing of her own blood through her oxygen deprived brain, and felt nothing but the soft granulites of the artificial quicksand pourously rushing over and under her body. They sure had gone to the trouble of making it feel right, even if it didn't work right. You know what would have been better, Pathfinder thought to herself as she felt the first harsh tug of the saddlebag pulling her head up.

After a few more tugs, her face breached the surface and she took in a huge breath of twelve, her eyes boggly and swirly as oxygen rushed back into whatever available opening there was. Snowy may not have been the strongest of all the mares, but she wasn't weak. pathfinder appreciated that. Oh yeah, and she liked being alive. As Snowy continued doing what she did, Pathfinder's back hooves touched the ground. Soon, Snowy had pulled Pathfinder right side up and she was standing on her back hooves awkwardly.

"Good job, Snowy! You can stop pulling now!" Pathfinder said with all the proud momentum of a momma bear to a cub.She shrugged off the saddlebag and slowly but surely made her way across the quicksand. It had been built with four hooves in mind, not two, and as she stood high above on her two back hooves, she could only imagine how awkward it looked. It certainly felt awkward as she slowly made her way across the quicksand and finally over the other side. She took a few deep breaths before her head perked back up.

"Whew! Well, that was a LOT more fun than it was gonna be, for sure! Okay Snowy, all you gotta do is take it all very slowly, and then you won't sink as fast. Don't stop, it tries to sink you if you do that, too," Pathfinder said, chuckling as she started brushing off the caked on quicksand.

Caramel was invested in her short rest, her hard day of work being rewarded with some moments of relaxation. It was only fair, after all. But she had promised to see the flowers and if she was anything, she was a mare of her word. That constantly energetic mare was more than a pleasure to share her life with but Celestia above, sometimes Caramel thought she needed to invest some time to be bored. A healthy mind alloted time for one to be bored, anyhoof, but as Bumpkin charged out of the house following words with a pony, Caramel knew there was little chance of that. Her curiosity was piqued, but she wasn't in any hurry to follow. Her legs hurt.

Then she remembered who ran this place, and sighed. Responsibility never took time off, and she soon followed the very loudly beaten hoofpath of her younger sister. She was in no great hurry, however, and a spot of tea on a saucer on her back accompanied her on her slow walk to the barn.

"Apple Bumpkin, what's going on here?" She yelled towards her sister, whose hoofclops in the cellar were easily heard., She then smiled at the other pony.

"Hello there, my name is Caramel Apple, owner of Tiny Apple Valley. How may I help you?" She said, gently placing her tea on the ground and extending her hoof for a shake.

"finder! I'm going to-my-you. Try-a-of-you up!"

If only Pathfinder could understand what her date was saying, she guessed it would be a lot better. In an adventure story, usually the hero would miss out on some important detail in this scenario. And this was turning into some sort of adventure story, if a little silly and un-exciting. Better than before, but still, somewhat boring. She tried shaking her head to clear her mind, but found that movement rewarded her with the awareness that she was close to drowning in fake quicksand. Disconcerting and entirely without any sort of excitement, as she doubted books would be written about the awesome adventure who was killed by a tourist trap. Well, that was just one possibility.

The saddlebag slammed close by, and Pathfinder pieced together the plan. It wasn't the best, but they had little else. Great exertion of effort led to her launching the saddlebag under her chin. She then did what was one supposed to do when in quicksand: Wiggle the legs as slowly as possible in order to reduce viscosity, slowly spread her arms and legs far apart and lying prone to increase her surface area, which should allow her to float. And if that failed, her wings would help. She smiled, though that let a little of the decidedly cinnamon texture to seep into her mouth- she'd allow Snowy to try and rescue her first.

Why, she was starting to get so excited, she was completely ignoring her increasing lack of oxygen!

I watched the opening two-parter. I'd say that they are the slowest-building of all the two-parters, but still very entertaining.

As a dentist, Sunrise's worries were well-placed. She had just worked on his admittedly wonderful smile; if it was broken again, poor Sunrise would have to redouble her efforts to repair what amounted to a repair. Her worries were well-placed. Valen's decision, however, was already made.

He shook his head woozily.

"Madame Sunrise, iiiiiiiiiiiiiiifffffffffffff I don't get back soooon, I'll probably sleep...here....in the dirt. Best if I got back to the farm and unpack all of my belongings, madame," He said quickly and lowly, losing steam as the drugs wore off and his sore body started to throb. Misery was never worse when your faculties weren't your own. Nor were his hooves, that got caught up with one another and forced him to the ground face first. He hardly felt it.

"Unff."

"I wouldn't mind taking it for you, Valen darling,"

She was always quite generous, made plain as day when she took the burden off of the colt's shoulders and put it on herself. She may not have been the strongest mare around, but she was a mare and by definition he was much weaker than she. Plus, she simply had more experience with saddlebags. As for her lilting laugh regarding his rodeo skills, it was something he himself would laugh at when the time came. He was more liable to tie himself up or her than the target.

Soon, Applejack moved the two gem hunting ponies out and into the farm, where after a short jaunt they found Apple Bloom's wagon, upside down. Valen didn't really give any thought as to why the wagon was the way it was, as knowing the filly who used it, the possibilities were endless yet the result was predictable. He was just happy it was in working order, impressed as he was by Applejack flipping it right side up and inspecting it. Valen could spot only the customary dings, dents, and scratches of filly-fueled adventures. It was to be expected, as was what followed. Applejack tightly attached the girth around his waist, the handle of the wagon tied and now attached firmly to him. Initially, he was going to protest another pony having her hands so rudely on him for any reason. Then he realized that Applejack was Applejack, and only she could get that on properly.

"There ya go, Valen, Rarity!" His cousin tipped her hat and sauntered back to the kitchen. They were ready, for the most part. The combination of saddlebag and wagon was heavy, but if he had learned anything, he had learned that the only thing complaining got him was a slight, awkward delay in having to do it anyway. He placed one hoof in front of the other, grunted a tiny little grunt, and after a few seconds he was moving ahead with the wagon. A few seconds after that, and he was moving around with some fluidity.

He started trotting in a circle, taking in some deep breathes as he started but generally feeling stronger. He slowed down and smiled at Rarity.

"Haha! Why, Miss Rarity, I think we are quite ready to go hunt some gems!" He said, inadverntatntly giving out a squee of delight as his grin grew wide enough to shut his eyes, flank down in the ground.

"Oh! Before you guys take off..."

Valen didn't open his eyes immediately, even as he heard his cousin draw close.

"Mmmmwwa!"

Applejack gave Valen a big 'ol smooch on the cheek, which shook his eyes open. He gave an embarassed giggle, sheepishly pawing away the wetness of his counsin's kiss as he stood back up.

"Well, cousin Applejack, that was...unexpected of you!" Valen said, eyes shifting from Applejack's fading form to Rarity and then back. It was a little embarassing, though he didn't know why. After a few seconds, it was all done and he started trotting away from the farm, returning Applejack's wave.

I'm in. Tonight, you say? It's 9:08 PST, when do we kick off the sillyness?

Can't say i'm too big a fan of it, Wilgrove, but I'm mighty happy to see you here.

Long and short of it is that if a Lunar Guard and a regular old Royal Guard were to sit down and have tea together, it'd be like if someone from the 1st and 4th ID did. Different formations, same 'army'.

They were all very confused. I didn't give any philosophical answers. I just played a handful of episodes during my bday party and a few joined the herd. Others at least understood how it could appeal.

"It's a delight to see you're prepared for the occasion Valen, and your scarf is just darling. As for my day, so far it's certainly looking up. Especially given how delicious this food your cousin has prepared is."

"But we'll need more than just a cleaning towel and picnic supplies for this...to start with, I trust you have a quality shovel you'd be willing to let me borrow, Applejack, dear?"

Valen's little heart still beat excitedly and with great earnestness, as he had expected some manner of tool would be required for this job. He had initially thought of using one of the larger spoons but considered it silly for a whole host of reasons, most vividly that it was too small and difficult to penetrate the earth with. He had then taken in hoof the largest and sharpest of the forks, but stopped and gave the image thought. He decided to cover his momentary idiocy by collecting other utensils and plates, and soon, a wonderful picnic set was collected as if it had been the intent all along. Nopony would know of his lapse in all sense. Nopony.

"Oh, of course! We got several shovels and other yard tools outside restin' on the barn side. In fact, I'd even let Valen borrow mah little sis' crusadin' wagon if y'alls wanted it. It'll help you haul them heapin' piles of shiny gems back home. Apple Bloom wont even miss it," Applejack expressed towards Valen and winked, "as long as you bring it back in one piece."

That sounded just fine by Valen. He figured that if anypony in town would have a strong shovel, it'd be his cousin Applejack and as far as the wagon was concerned he would take better care of it than Apple Bloom. Valen swore that the filly woke up every day under the misguided belief that each and every inch of Equestria existed for her own personal brand of innocent destruction. While there was a certain amount of charm to that and he could detect within her a strain of active, brimming, a corny colt may say blooming, intelligence, both of those things were wasted when her wide and joy-filled eyes seemed to reflect all manner of broken objects.

Further thoughts on the subject were curtailed by the heavy, apple-laden saddlebag that almost broke his back due to the sheer unpreparedness of his form. His eyes bulged out as it was tied on and it took a second to correct himself. If it had been the first week he was here, it'd take a full minute. Whether or not getting used to his body being beaten in minor matters was a good or bad thing was open for debate. Valen smirked awkwardly, as he had already packed essential items and other foodstuffs. Better to be over-prepared than under-prepared, he guessed.

"And here's a rope in case y'all need to tie up some misbehavin' critters. You just tie that lasso knot like I taught you and you can show Rarity all the rodeo skills you've learned since you've been here."

Valen gave a weak chuckle. Yes, skills. He had them, but not in anything to do with a rope. He was more liable to tie himself up or somehow start a forest fire with it than tie up the intended target, even with Applejack's patient and consistent efforts to teach him. Still, he guessed some manner of protection was superior to none.

But he really hoped it wouldn't come to that. He would be useless and though he was sure they'd both try their hardest, he didn't exactly peg rarity as being the most effective against the creatures of the wild either. In short, if they ran into something rather than somepony, it was likely their best option was to run really, really fast. In Valen's case, run really fast, slow down, panic, run fast some more, and then cry. Sounded about right, which made him only slightly nervous. Not too nervous, since any negativity was being overridden by thoughts of finding pretty gems with a pretty mare.

"Maybe..." Valen began as he loosened the saddlebag, wheezing his way through the next sentence, "Miss Rarity can take this one?" The saddlebag finally came off, allowing him to take a few deep, quick breaths.

"I've already packed for the trip, Applejack. Still, we can always use more...apples...and a rope, of course. Thank you very much, and tell Apple Bloom that I'll take very good care of her wagon while it is in my possession," The colt said politely as his chest slowly puffed back out as if before it had been crushed quite literally by the saddlebag.

As someone who had their interest in ponies piqued for the very first time listing to this live on the radio, let me tell you that I wasn't able to guess all the questions right. Sure they sound obvious to me now after obsessing over the series for 5 months, but back then they ALL sounded fake.

Maybe. but take the Rarity one: Loving "My Even Tinier Ponies", Makeovers, and eating paste. XD

The second question was better, as the first two answers were reasonable.

Ponies most powerful enemy: Gluemaker(too dark for a kids show), evil Pony Nightmare Moon, Cynical grownup...Chester.

Come on.

"Hmm... so how do these scenes go for Daring Do... you don't struggle against it or it pulls you in deeper. Instead you have somepony pull you up by force, right? But what should I use to pull you out? I don't think I have any rope or anything..."

Pathfinder nodded as if a proud momma, as her date was quite right on both counts. These things were commonly used earlier on in the Daring Do novels, each with a variation. It eventually became difficult to come up with a scenario where she couldn't use a rope or wings to power her way out and it ended, but it was a re-occurring fan device, especially one powered with unicorn magic that could cause some sort of distortion field. Pathfinder had a re-occurring villain, Neighdowell, use just that in several instances to fix Daring Do in place. Then it usually detoured swiftly into more carnal territory she'd blush at and then have to keep to her private journal. Pathfinder shook herself to re-purify her thoughts, which worked well enough mentally but had a rather foolish physical setback.

She sank a little faster. Okay, it was really artificial- she wasn't struggling anymore and it still pulled her down! For all the money they sunk into this place, couldn't they have invested more into their fake traps? Pathfinder sighed.

"I'm not even moving and its still sinking. This is very lame Snowy! You'd think they'd at least try to make it realistic!" She pouted as if a petulant child, desparately wishing she could paw her way out of the quicksand so she could forget such a rapid disappointment.

Pathfinder racked her brain trying to find a solution without wingpower and without the contents in the saddlebag, as she needed them for real adventures. She continued to sink until she was buried up to her stomach on all fours. The fact she was still stinking caused her to lower her head in shame-

-Directly into the artificial quicksand. The realization she had basically dunked her head into the mixture had come too late to the disappointed pony, and her efforts to free herself fell short of successful. The pressure was intense and ear-splitting as the artificial mix poured into every available crevice. A moment's panic set in before Pathfinder's more steeled backbone kicked in, unwilling or unable to admit the danger. She could feel it rising; she had maybe ten seconds before her wings would be inoperable. If Snowy couldn't figure a way out by then, she'd have to wingpower her way out. It may have been dishonorable but she'd take that after fainting in this stuff.

Well, that assumed she had enough oxygen! Ooooh, this was becoming fun! Hear heart started skipping and if she could have smiled, Pathfinder's grin would have been broad.

here's the clinton thing. Hear and decide for yourself:

again, vague questions.

Plus, the questions features one real answer and two obviously fake ones.

"Apple Bloom! What in tarnation are you doin' here!? I thought I told ya ta..."

Her big sis's anger subsided for some reason Apple Bloom couldn't quite grasp- what had been talked about before Apple Bloom had arrived? It didn't quite matter as Apple Bloom was sure that any anger Applejack would have felt was bound to have been fleeting in any case. AJ just wasn't a pony with a reserve of anger for use against her family, as the most she could summon in the worst instance was a shallow, pety silence. That stung Apple Bloom more than angry words ever could have, and as Applejack spoke, the filly's heart was at worst content with whatever verbal lashing she was bound to receive later as a rebuke for her coming to the farm. It was worth it.

"Heh. Heh. She's so spontaneous."

It was true! She was and wore it as a badge of honor, even if Apple Bloom could see through AJ's weak smile. Her sister was never no good at hiding herself, which made her wonder why she was feeling the need to hide any of it. Apple Bloom's timing had to have been highly unfortunate for Applejack's awkward smile to appear on her face like that, which did nothing but increase the filly's curiosity. That came to a short end when her big sis leaned in and whispered in a somewhat forceful manner, as was her most favored tone in use against the filly.

"Y'all better be on your best behavior, ya hear?"

Applejack sure was a silly pony. Okay, So Apple Bloom had nearly destroyed the barn earlier- why, that wasn't no indication that she was destined to cause trouble! It had been nothing more than a mishap, and one she had more than made up for as far as she was concerned.

"Ah know, ah know. Ah'll be on mah best behavior, Applejack and act like a good pony, 'cause I am one and ya know it. 'Sides, I ain't nearly so unlucky as to destroy more than building in a day!" She enthusiastically and confidently replied, her smile wide and broad as she imagined this building remaining completely upright for as long as she was in it, at least. That already sounded better than any other alternative.

"Ah think..." Big Mac's low rumble of a voice grew stronger after he cleared it, allowing him to gain a sense of dominance in the room- a sif that wouldn't be apparent by comparing one of his backs legs to the entirety of Apple Bloom.

"We should move things along - an' seein' as our hosts have somethin' prepared for us t'take a sample of, ah reckon it'd be mighty rude of us t'let anythin' these folks have done go cold."

Yes, it would be very, very rude of them to not partake in whatever deliciousness the hosts had devised for them. As usual, Big Mac was the voice of reason, which was more or less his role whenever he did manage to open that big 'ol mouth of his. Often, she would lean on him for support on those rare occassions that she and Applejack were found at odds. He was mighty strong, mighty quiet, and rigtly the best big brother in the whole world and then some.

"Hiya, Apple Bloom!"

"Hiya, Purple Haze!" Apple Bloom exclaimed with her hoof waving wildly towards the other farm filly. Purple was a mighty nice pony, and as a fellow farmer-type, Apple Bloom had plans for the two to get together some time and hang out in a more personal setting. Who knows, maybe one day Purple Haze would be as cool as her CMC compatriots? Tall order for any filly, but she just might be able to complete it.

"Oi swear, big brae, if'n Oi was nae here tae take care of ye, who knows where ye'd be? if'n ye were ginnae give away yer favorite poster, why nae tae th' pretty pegasus yer seein' who's a big fan? Ye dinnae have tae do everythin' th' filly next door says jes cause ye think she's a looker! Oi-"

"N-now Purple, generosity is a bonnie thing, an' so many helped us hie up tae this town, so it's good tae give a neighbor a gift an' all!"

Apple Bloom was a little confused as to what was going on with a pegasus and whatever was being given away, but she wasn't quite so dense as to not know what had just happened. She giggled almost uncontrollably for a moment before trying and failing to regain herself entirely. That awfully cute stallion had the vapors rising for her big sis, wasn't that just the cutest thing! She shot Applejack a quick look, coupled with a wink, and giggled again. If they became each other's special someponies, then they wouldn't even need to walk very far to pick each other up for a date.

"Err ... Now, Purple ye're. um, keeping our guests from samplin' yer delicious food! We invited 'em fer lunch, after all! Ye know how foals kin be, ah-heh, ah-heh, saying' all sorts of silly things. She's just enthusiastic 'bout finally having th' neighbors over, a bit excitable. Oi think she's had a few too many sugarcubes!"

Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. Why did the older ponies always think that the foals and such were so easy to fool? Of course, maybe Purple was a little excitable, them sugarcubes could throw anypony for a loop! That'd explain why he was so defensive too, cause it'd be a shame to get AJ all worked up over nothin' and being a kind stallion he wouldn't want that. Made sense to Bloom, even if the flustered stallion only seemed to throw more hay on the fire telling Apple Bloom that the vapors 'round his cheeks weren't the reason for their color. He turned and left and after a few moments, the trailing of his voice fading until all that remained was long-gone whispers.

That left Apple Bloom alone with her older siblings. She didn't want to give her sister the time she needed, and she wouldn't need much at all, to leap down her throat about sneaking off the farm. There was only one solution: Talk fast and talk a lot.

"Applejack, I know you're mighteh sore 'bout me showing up here and all on account of me almost destroyin' the barn earlier and such, but ah really did do whatcha asked me ta do and got all them weeds outta th' orchard! Why, it's cleaner than a braeburn in mid-summer! Ah got all the weeds in all Equestria, ah bet! ah worked real hard and did sucha good job, and it aint like ah'm doing any sort of tomfillery, ah'm here with y'all to meet th' neighbors. Ah even brought an apple pie, 'cause y'all forgot to bring one and if we don't give'm a good pie they might not think much of Sweet Apple Acres, and that'd be just the worst, worse than a million caterpillars tryin' to take down a single tree! Pleeeeeeaaaaaasssseeeeee can ah stay?" Apple Bloom asked as she fell on her haunches, eyes wide and adorable and lips quavering- the puppy dog look if it ever existed. She'd learned it from Winona when she was a puppy, but by golly if Apple Bloom hadn't perfected it.

Can someone put up the PTI segment? I usually watch it, but was nappin'.

Pinkie sure had faith in this pony in terms of party planning and if there was anything you could trust in this big world, it was Pinkie's faith in partying and all related materials. Why, Apple Bloom found the concept of a party in Equestria not being planned or otherwise touched by Pinkie to be quite ridiculous. Silly, even, but not as silly as Pinkie, which made the entire thing somewhat of a headache to think about. Sweet Surprise released Pinkie from what Apple Bloom could equate to a death grip, approaching the little Earth filly with enthusiasm to match the famous party planner.

"Hi there Apple Bloom. I'm Sweet Surprise, Pinkie's party planner in training. I like your accent, and your bow. Oooo! Maybe I can when I get back to Canterlot I can make something chocolatey in the shape of a bow..."

Apple Bloom smiled, eyes closing as she did so for extra effect. She did love her bow, always wore one every single day, she did. She'd been told she was rather adorable with one and felt it was the right phrasing, and the thought of a chocolate bow was a pretty tasty one. Could she wear one? Nah, it'd melt. But maybe during winter.

"Anyway, you said that you're planning a party for your grandmother, right? That's really nice. So, what are looking to do? Does your grandmother like certain food? How about colors: Purple, pink, chartruse, plaid?"

"What the hay's chartruse? Ah ain't never heard of a color called chartruse before, and ah've heard of plenty o' colors, like red and green and yellow and such but never before have ah heard chartruse before," Apple Bloom said with a giggle, thinkin' that this pony was probably from out of town or something similar. She was sure nopony around here would say chartruse.

"As for food, well, we run an apple orchard so we all love all 'em apples. Granny Smith's favorite apples are Granny Smiths, who woulda thunk it? I mean, it ain't like Big Mac like's em Big Macintosh apples th' best, and Applejack doesn't drink any Applejack!" Apple Bloom said in a stream of consciousness fashion, lightly tapping her chin.

It does look very nice. i like how it flips. I didn't expect that.

Produce content.

Name : Caramel Apple

Gender : Mare

Gender preference (Optional) : Stallion

Location : Tiny Apple Valley outside Fillydelphia

Age : Mare

Species : Earth pony

Cutie-Mark (Optional) : Caramel Apples

How would you describe yourself, physically?

As an Apple, I am fit due to my labor. However, I am not one of those legendary Apple mares who can buck everything all the time. I am tone, fit, if smaller than perhaps others in my family.

How would you describe your personality?

I think of myself as a kind-hearted and trusting mare, but I also work hard and do not tolerate laziness.

What things in life are important to you?

My family, my farm, and a nice back rub once in a while.

What's your idea of the ideal first date?

A nice dinner and a play, want to see how much of a gentlecolt you can be.

What are you looking for?

A stallion who knows how to treat a mare and has the heart to support the

Anything else you think we should know?

I operate Tiny Apple Valley and my thoughts will always be with it, so anypony I am paired with must make his peace with that fact.