Canterlot Heat Wave (Private ATTN: IceStormX)

[Lux]

"It's perfectly fine. I actually run two stores, one here and one in Ponyville, so I'll be okay for a while. Plus my shop is doing well enough that I can afford to take a loss to help a fellow business pony out. Especially in an emergency case like this. To which if not as a business pony to business pony, then I give it to you as a friend." 

 

Sweet's spirits hearing that Ice called her friend. It was bad to have something like this happen, but if there were no friends to help her or at least comfort her it would be the worst possible thing! 

 

"Thanks friends, both of you. I have to admit something, this is the first time I had a new store. I came to Canterlot and met a nice older pony named Mr. Cocoa who i asked to be an apprentice to. He took me in and treated me less like an employee and more like the daughter he never had. We were such a great team working in the store as easy as dancing. But then one day he didn't wake up, and Mr. Cocoa was usually up before I was. Then I realized he died! Oh I miss him so much! But right after the funeral I learned he gave the store to me as his wife died before I ever knew him and he had no kids. Now I feel unsure I can do this alone especially with something like this happening!" 

[IceStorm]

After mentioning that Ice was giving Sweet the bits as a friend, it didn't seem like she was against the idea anymore, and she left pouch of them sitting on the counter and smiled at her as she began to freeze some of the chocolate on the floor. Her thoughts were put on hold though as the mare told her about how she came into owning this shop. Apparently this used to belong to a Mr. Cocoa and he had took her as an apprentice in his work and were very close. She told Ice that Mr. Cocoa had left Sweet the shop when he died, and how she was wondering if now that was such a good idea, or at least trying to run it alone with something like this happening. She paused freeze and walked over to the mare and draped a hoof over her.

 

"Hey, I think that you've done quite well with the place. I don't really know how long you've been running it, but if this is the first thing that you've had gone wrong in the shop then I'd say that you're incredibly lucky. I've seen things far worse happen. Like complete plumbing failure after somepony cracked the water main while trying to fix a leaky faucet. I was closed for several weeks during that time, but loyal customers won't let a business die if they cherish it. I'm sure that you will do just fine, and the one thing that you have to remember. You're never alone. There's always somepony willing to help somewhere. You just have to find them," she smiled.

[Lux]

Sweet Surprise was normally a pony that was very optimistic, not sweating any minor issues and always keeping a positive spin on things. When things got tough she tried to think about things that made her happy, which by default was usually candy. But lately though she found that not even thinking of her amazing fudge pulled her mind out of an abyss, especially when everything seemed to be collapsing around her.

 

"Hey, I think that you've done quite well with the place. I don't really know how long you've been running it, but if this is the first thing that you've had gone wrong in the shop then I'd say that you're incredibly lucky. I've seen things far worse happen. Like complete plumbing failure after somepony cracked the water main while trying to fix a leaky faucet. I was closed for several weeks during that time, but loyal customers won't let a business die if they cherish it. I'm sure that you will do just fine, and the one thing that you have to remember. You're never alone. There's always somepony willing to help somewhere. You just have to find them," 

 

"Thanks, I'm usually not upset like this. I try to be super optimistic and not let things bother me but lately things have been just... blah! I guess you don't how great things are meeting a pony until they are gone. And I'm really trying to make this place just like Mr. Cocoa was still around. But now I realize something that no matter what I do he's not coming back. So maybe he wouldn't want me to keep things as they are but make it my own. That water main break story sounded bad. Hope it wasn't in a really hot summer like this." 

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm listened and smiled as the mare told her that she wasn't usually upset like she was. That she normally tries to be super optimistic and tries to not let things bother her too much. She said that lately though things have just been sour, and that a pony never really knew how great meeting somepony was until they were gone. She added that she was trying as hard as she could to keep the image that Mr. Cocoa had for the place, but realized that no matter what she did that he wouldn't be coming back. She walked over to the mare and gave her a long, friendly hug. "Mr. Cocoa may not be coming back, but the most important thing to remember is he is not truly gone yet. He rests with you in here," she said placing a hoof on Sweet's chest. "In your heart, and as long as you remember him, he will always have a presence. Use his ideas to influence the store, but at the same time, don't be afraid to add your own spin on it. I think you're right that he would want you to make the store your own, and as long as you cherish all of the good memories that you had with Mr. Cocoa, he will always be a part of this store, cause he will always be a part of you," she smiled.

 

When Sweet commented on the water main break, Ice nodded. "Oh, it was a nightmare. It was made even worse from the fact that it happened when I was in Ponyville, and my shop in Ponyville was also my home! My living quarters was on the second floor of the establishment. I had to rent a hotel for three weeks! Of course, the plumbing company that messed up my water lines paid for it, but it was still an interesting experience considering some of the other issues I have. Thankfully it was in spring when this happened, but that was still really bad because spring is usually when I start getting really busy again. It was a sad sight to see little ones crying when they couldn't get into the shop because it was closed for repairs. Of course, I would still give them snow cones because I never go anywhere without paper cones, water and some flavoring," she smiled at the mare.

[Lux]

Sweet Surprise began to wonder if she had painted herself as this mare who was incapable of controlling her emotions, fluctuating between extreme happiness and sadness over the loss of somepony she considered a father figure to her. But to her surprise rather than being rejected the blue unicorn gave her a big hug. Instantly her body relaxed, turning into more of the consistency of the once melted chocolate.

 

 "Mr. Cocoa may not be coming back, but the most important thing to remember is he is not truly gone yet. He rests with you in here," she said placing a hoof on Sweet's chest. "In your heart, and as long as you remember him, he will always have a presence. Use his ideas to influence the store, but at the same time, don't be afraid to add your own spin on it. I think you're right that he would want you to make the store your own, and as long as you cherish all of the good memories that you had with Mr. Cocoa, he will always be a part of this store, cause he will always be a part of you,"

 

"You're right," she said softly and thoughtfully, "That's what Mr. Cocoa would have wanted me to do. Now I remember how he always used to tell me that he could only teach me the basics of candy making, but that the true sign of a great maker of candy came when I could come up with my own ideas. I guess I wanted to please him so much that I often stuck to his own ideas as they were what worked. But my mind is filled with tons of ideas for candy, and I've even tried some and they worked! Thank you for reminding me to make this store my own Ice!" 

 

"I sure would like to see what you've thought of!"

 

Sweet then heard how Ice suffered a greater issue with her store because it was also her home. 

 

"Wow, that is really bad. I know that being without power is bad, but it must have been really bad to wake up and find you couldn't wash your hooves or take a bath or do the laundry, or even get a glass of water! To not only lose your business for a few weeks but your house, that would be terrible. Actually this place is the same way. On the first floor is the shop and the candy kitchen, but upstairs is where Mr. Cocoa and I lived. There's two bedrooms, a bathroom, a small living room, and even a kitchen! Oh and those poor foals who couldn't get something sweet! Well this pony isn't going to deprive others of their dandy candy no matter how hot it is! And I have an idea! We gather up the candy, don't worry the floor is clean to do this as I made sure of it last night, and we'll break it apart and put each type into different pots. Chocolate, fudge, peppermint, sour, all of it will go into different ones. Then when that's done we'll let the heat in! That'll melt the candy down again, and right after it's poured into molds the candy can be hardened again with your ice! I don't want to make it that bad for you with the heat though, so if you're not comfortable with the whole sun melting thing I can get towels from the upstairs and soak them in water to cool you two off. So, want to help me make some candy?" 

 

"I'd like to! How about you Ice?" 

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm smiled as the chocolaty mare agreed with her in saying that making the shop her own, but still remembering her close friend would be what he wanted her to do. That she wanted to please him so much that she wanted to try to stick as close to his ideas as possible. She couldn't fault her on that. It was a great sentiment and it showed how much she cared for her departed mentor. Now though, she had to try to come up with a few new things to add into what her mentor had already taught her. It was going to be a bit harder starting out, but hey, Ice would be here to help her out.

 

She then listened to Sweet as she talked about how bad her issue had been, not being able to wash her hooves or take a shower or do anything. She figured it would get quite annoying after a while to which Ice nodded. "That's exactly why I had to stay at a hotel while it was getting fixed. So that wash up and wouldn't have to go for a week without taking a shower. I can barely handle one day without a shower," she shuddered. When she spoke about her idea to make some more candy, Ice was a bit hesitant. Sure it would be fun, but ultimately, would herself and Snow Dancer be able to withstand the heat long enough for the chocolate to melt? It seemed Snow was quite excited about the idea so reluctantly Ice nodded. "Sure, we'd be able to do that, and if it starts to get too hot for the two of us, I can just make a box of ice around us for a few minutes until we cooled down," she giggled.

[Lux]

 "That's exactly why I had to stay at a hotel while it was getting fixed. So that wash up and wouldn't have to go for a week without taking a shower. I can barely handle one day without a shower," 

 

"Oh that is exactly how I feel! Plus I couldn't make any candy without water. Candymaking may look nice but it is a dirty job. You could only imagine the chocolate, peanut butter and other stuff on me when the day was over! And don't get me started on the taffy. That stuff will make your tail stick to your legs if you don't wash it off quickly." 

 

Sweet Surprise and Snow Dancer could see that Ice Storm was a little worried about letting in the sun out of fear of the two getting overheated again. 

 

"Sure, we'd be able to do that, and if it starts to get too hot for the two of us, I can just make a box of ice around us for a few minutes until we cooled down," 

 

"I'm fine with that," Snow said as she prepared for the candy salvaging. 

 

"Alright, well letting in the sun won't be until later so don't worry about the heat right now. First thing's first, getting the candy off the floor starting with anything chocolate as that melts the fastest. I'll go get a few mixing pots from the kitchen while you start breaking apart the chocolate into smaller pieces. Oh, and there will be three types of chocolate: white, dark and milk, and these will all have to go into separate pots. If we get any that are too mixed to separate I'll sell them as what I call Oops Candy which are ones that aren't quite right." 

 

As Sweet Surprise bounced into the back room, taking care not to slip again, Snow Dancer began to try and break the hardened chocolate pieces with her hooves which thankfully broke apart easily. 

[IceStorm]

At the mention of the chocolate mare talking about how lack of water would be bad for her, Ice Storm began to imagine the mare in the situation that she described, all sticky with many different types of candy in her coat, mane, and tail. It would definitely be quite the sticky situation. Things definitely could have been a lot worse and true, she could technically make water with her ice, although it would require much more magic, she figured than she was used to using.

 

When she moved on to the candy making part of the conversation, she said that actually melting the candy wouldn't be until quite a bit later. She said that she would run into her kitchen to get some melting pots to put the chocolates and other candies in while they were cleaning it up so that they could melt them down, and that she would prefer them to separate them as best as possible but if they couldn't be separated then to just put it in a separate pot and they would sell it as an "oops candy". Ice Storm nodded and start freezing all of the chocolate on the ground so that they could get under it easily enough. Once she got underneath it, she started using her magic to lift up segments of it, cracking them up along the different colors of chocolate and placing them into the designated pots. "So, do you have any idea what might have caused the refrigerators to go out? Perhaps that could give us some insight as to what shut off the power so we can get it back on as well," she stated.

[Lux]

Ice Storm and Snow Dancer set to work picking up the frozen pieces. Ice would freeze the sugary pieces while Snow Dancer spread the ice with her wings. She then used her hooves to break the large piece into several manageable parts for Ice to carry. Sweet Surprise returned with several pots, a few stacked on her back and some on her head. 

 

"There we go! These are the ones I can find that were clean." 

 

"So, do you have any idea what might have caused the refrigerators to go out? Perhaps that could give us some insight as to what shut off the power so we can get it back on as well," 

 

"Hmm... well, everything in Canterlot I know is powered magically, although when it got hot with everypony using fans and things like that maybe it was too much and the power went out. There is a switch that trips when there's a dramatic spike in power to make sure none of the refrigerators or other appliances get damaged. That's the only thing I can think of happened to make everything turn off at the same time. I'll go check while you two can keep with putting the candy in the pots. Even if I do get the power back on, the candy still has to get off the floor and melted."

 

Setting all the pots down, Sweet disappeared back into the kitchen, searching for the all important switch.

 

"Well the good news is the candy looks it's ready to go into the pots, and maybe if Sweet finds that switch we won't have to use the heat outside to melt the candy."

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm nodded as the chocolate mare explained that most of everything that was powered was actually powered by magic, and whenever something went wrong, there was a switch that would cut out to prevent damage from occurring to the other appliances that were on the same circuit. Sweet then said that she would run to the back and check the switch to see if that might have been the problem with the devices and would have been why the power was out. She nodded once more and then turned to Snow Dancer who had already acquired most of the frozen chocolate and confirmed that it was indeed ready for the pots. Ice Storm made sure to get what she could off of the ground with her levitation as well so that the ground itself wouldn't turn into a slimey mess once they started working on the chocolates.

 

"Yup, I don't really see much more on the ground, so hopefully we got all of it. I would hate to find out that we missed a spot the hard way. I'll admit, I would much prefer it if that switch turns out to be the problem. Even with my magic, I don't know how long the Ice will last with that much heat coming in. I am quite looking forward to making some candy though. It can't be that much different from what I already do. Except substituting ice for other sweet treats," she giggled with a smile.

[Lux]

"Yup, I don't really see much more on the ground, so hopefully we got all of it. I would hate to find out that we missed a spot the hard way. I'll admit, I would much prefer it if that switch turns out to be the problem. Even with my magic, I don't know how long the Ice will last with that much heat coming in. I am quite looking forward to making some candy though. It can't be that much different from what I already do. Except substituting ice for other sweet treats," 

 

"It looks like we got everything," Snow Dancer said as she looked around the store. There were some candy types that were intact due to how they were made, but any of the melted candies were removed from the shelves and put into the pots. 

 

"I really want to learn too. I'm not much of a baker, but it shouldn't be that bad." 

 

Meanwhile in the kitchen, Sweet Surprise looked around the dimly lit room, trying to find the switch. 

 

"Where are you Mr. Switch?" Sweet Surprise asked as if the device would call to her, "It must be somewhere easy to find." 

 

Her eyes then focused on a metal box with a door that she opened. Inside there were several switches, one for each room in the shop/ house, but one caught her eye was a red switch with the word "Master" on it. She flicked the switch while turning away as if she expected for it to explode. Instead the panel did nothing but the entire kitchen came to life. All the lights suddenly turned on as the fans in the glass shelves and refrigerator gave a low humming sound. 

 

"Looks like'we're back in business girls!" Sweet Surprise exclaimed to her friends, "Are you ready to help me make some candy?" 

[IceStorm]

Only a few moments had passed since Snow and Ice had begun talking as the sounds of all the fans and everything whirred back into existence. Immediately she felt it circulating the air around them and she knew that they wouldn't have to worry about the outside temperature now for at least a little bit. "Well, hopefully you and I are both right in that it will be fairly easy. The last thing I wanna do is try to walk home in this heat covered in taffy," she giggled to herself as Sweet came back from the back room

 

"Yup," Ice Storm answered as the mare asked if they were ready to start making candies. "It appears we got most of everything off of the floor. We'll find out if we missed anything a bit later if we try to walk and find a spot where our hooves won't leave the ground," she giggled partially imagining herself being the one to find the sticky spot on the floor. Oh she could only imagine what her friends would think if she had some how managed to get stuck on an open floor. "So, which pot are we going to assort which in?"

[Lux]

"Well, hopefully you and I are both right in that it will be fairly easy. The last thing I wanna do is try to walk home in this heat covered in taffy," 

 

"You're right, I'd rather eat it than wear it," she said with a giggle. 

 

Just then Sweet Surprise returned back to see that everything was working perfectly. Well the refrigerator was still broken but compared to what she thought that was minor. And best of all the candy was off the floor and in their respective pots. 

 

"It appears we got most of everything off of the floor. We'll find out if we missed anything a bit later if we try to walk and find a spot where our hooves won't leave the ground," 

 

"Well now the fun starts! Each pot needs to have the same type of candy in it, so first let's do the easiest: peppermint! Once we have that we'll melt the candy back down again and reform it!" 

[IceStorm]

When Sweet told them that the peppermint would be the easiest thing to start with, Ice Storm nodded and began looking through her selection of candy that she had salvaged to try to find the different pieces of peppermint that she had obtained. "Okay, I've gotten all of the obvious pieces of peppermint that I've found, but are there any that I have here that are peppermint that don't look like normal peppermints?" she asked. She wasn't anywhere near the level of trying to make candy as she was frozen stuff so she had a bit of a hard time telling what from what, other than the obvious red and white mints.

[Lux]

Sweet Surprise gave a curious look at the blue unicorn who although having collected all the peppermint pieces questioned whether she truly got them all or if there were others.

 

"Peppermints in disguise? How can a peppermint be a peppermint without looking like a peppermint? Surely you made peppermint drinks in your shop, right?"

 

The candy pony was not opposed to helping ponies select choice candies, but this was the first time that she had to explain the candy making process to others. Perhaps that was the problem, that although Ice Storm knew what peppermints were she didn't know if they existed in other things. 

 

"Well let me teach you a little about candy then and hopefully this will make things go smoother. Peppermint really is just sugar infused with oil. The stripes on the candy help me and ponies buying the candy determine what type of mint the candies are. The ones with red are peppermint and the green ones are spearmint! So now that we have these in one pot we need to take them ans separate them into the two types. As for whether these are in any candies, mint flavoring can be found in chocolate too as well as gummy mint candies, so I guess you're right with your question. But we don't have to worry about those until later. Onto the kitchen then!" 

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm shook her head when she asked about making peppermint drinks at her shop. While she loved peppermint herself, she also knew that peppermint, like all mints, had a chemical in them that reacted with the cold receptors on a pony's tongue, causing them to feel a chill, and will super chill any beverage that they drink after eating a mint, or that might have mint in it. If she made one of her frozen treats out of mint, she feared that it may create a possible health hazard to a pony. She knew brain freezes hurt really badly even if she wasn't attuned to getting them herself, but she didn't know if the mint would also enhance that. If it did, there could be a potential of putting a pony into hypothermic shock. Something that she personally didn't want to have to try to explain to her insurance or anypony else that had questions about it.

 

She did listen though as Sweet explained all of the different types of mint that there was, and how they were really just sugar filled with oil, and the stripes showed what kind of mint they were. She could have sworn that the mint itself came from a plant, but she wasn't one to say anything. After all, this mare's profession was candy after all. She would know a lot more about the ingredients that she uses in her candy shop a lot more than she would. When she told her that would be something that they would worry about later though she nodded and followed her into the kitchen. "Right behind ya!" she smiled.

[Lux]

As the trio of ponies made their way into the kitchen, Sweet Surprise wondered why Ice Storm chose not to put mint into her snow cone treats. Wasn't there mint chocolate chip ice cream or mint smoothies? Maybe it was her particular type of drink. Passing by the counter Snow Dancer noticed an opened glass container of mint leaves and a blender. 

 

"So that's how you get the mint into your candy?" 

 

"Yep, that where the oils come from. The leaves are crushed and then strained, leaving just the oil which it the most potent part of the plant."

 

The candy mare turned on a heater and then set a large pot with water on it. 

 

"So to make candy, or in this case remake it, normally all the ingredients would be added together and mixed, but since we have them here we can skip gathering them. So next we put the pot of the mint candy into the pot of water as it helps melt the candy without burning it. Because whoever likes burnt candy? Yuck! That tastes as bad a super charred marshmallows! So once this gets to a boil we put the pot in the pot!" 

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm facehoofed a bit when she heard Snow point out the glass containers that held the mint leaves in them. To think that she had actually considered to second guess something like that. Sugar and Oil. Naturally her mind had gone to cooking oil for some reason and didn't even consider the fact that the oils from the mint plants would be what is being used to create the candies. When she looked up and saw the surprise though that she didn't offer any mint products at her store, she nodded. "I will use some mint flavorings, bur very lightly. Everything that I serve is already frozen, so it already hard on the cold receptors in a pony's mouth. I know that mint enhances those receptors so I don't know if mixing the two together in any heavy concentration would be a good idea. I don't want to serve a smoothie that's as dangerous as it is delicious," she giggled.
 

She then smiled a bit more as Sweets explained the process, and how in this instance, they could skip the mixing part and go straight to the melting part. She explained that to do this, it required a pot of boiling water that they would then put the pot of mint candy in to melt it down. She explained that two pots were used to help keep the candy from burning, and that burnt candy tasted as bad as a super charred marshmallow! Ice Storm shuddered at the comparison "I've had over-charred marshmallows before... they... aren't really good... Of course, I don't usually mix well with anything fire or heat related, my super special somepony being an exception," she giggled as her thoughts briefly thought back to Fire Heart. She wondered what she was doing on a day like today. She wondered if maybe it would even be too hot for her. She giggled at the thought.

[Lux]

Sweet Surprise listened as Ice Storm explained how she used mint in her ice treats, mentioning that she didn't like over using the plant out of worry of making ponies hurt.

 

"Ah, so you do use mint in your treats! I knew it. Well you're right, mint does that to ponies. You should see when a pony tries something minty for the first time. Some of them just get a surprised expression while others look like they had their breath taken away! But yeah, making something that ponies hurt as well as be tasty isn't good. I once made a super cinnamon candy but most ponies ended up couching from it or even spitting out the candy. Well I guess candy is like science and sometimes certain experiments don't go as planned." 

 

Sweet Surprise waited as the water in the pot started to hiss but not boil just yet for her to add the other pot filled with mint candy pieces as Ice explained her experience with marshmallows. 

 

I've had over-charred marshmallows before... they... aren't really good... Of course, I don't usually mix well with anything fire or heat related, my super special somepony being an exception,"

 

"Your special somepony is a marshmallow? I heard that name given to ponies who are white and have a sweet personality like me! Well there was that one pony that thought I was actually some kind of living candy, a colt actually, and he latched onto my tail and wouldn't let go! It took his parents and I to pull him free, and with the help of a little candy as a distraction."

 

Looking over the water finally reached a boil in the giant pot to which Sweet said, "Time to put the pot into the pot. Snow Dancer and Ice Storm will you do the honors?" 

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm giggled and nodded as Sweet confirmed what she had heard about mint and told her that it was in fact possible for it to do something like that to ponies if there was too much involved. She also told her of a story about when she made a cinnamon candy that had so much cinnamon in it that it was practically inedible from ponies either coughing at the intensity of the spice or just spitting it out because they couldn't handle it. "That sounds like it had to have been quite the sweet surprise," she giggled at her own pun.

 

When she asked about her special somepony she shook her head. "Na, my special somepony isn't a marshmallow, although I'm sure she could toast them with ease. She's a unicorn like myself but her special talent revolves around fire instead of ice, and she's super sweet and adorable." She finished with a smile her thoughts now thinking back to Fire and what she might be doing today. She began to wonder if maybe it was even too hot for her outside, but then thought about how hot would it have to be to be too hot for the hot mare. She giggled once more as her own puns started lining up. When she asked if they would like to put the mint in the pot because it was ready, Ice nodded. Using a bit of her levitation magic, she gently lowered the pot into the boiling water. "How long does it normally take?"

[Lux]

Sweet giggled at the pun that Ice Storm made, as even though she heard it, to the candy maker it never seemed to get old. 

 

Na, my special somepony isn't a marshmallow, although I'm sure she could toast them with ease. She's a unicorn like myself but her special talent revolves around fire instead of ice, and she's super sweet and adorable."

 

"She'd be great making candy then as she can melt all the candy easily! It's neat that you two have the same talent and met each other. I actually met a couple of candy making ponies both here and other places. I can tell that you really, really like this pony. It's nice to have a special somepony in your life isn't it? I don't really have one right now, but someday I hope. As for the candy it takes just a few minutes, which gives us time to talk. So Ice, have you lived in Canterlot you're entire life?" 

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm giggled a bit as she heard Sweet talk about Fire and how she'd be great at making candy because she could melt it so easily. She was right, and in combination with the two of them, she was sure that they could make candies pretty quickly because Fire could melt them and she could cool them. When she spoke about it being nice to have a special somepony she nodded. "Oh it's the most wonderful feeling in the world. I don't know what I would ever do without her," she replied, but shook her head when Sweets asked if she had lived here her whole life.

 

"I was actually born in Fillydelphia, but came here after some family troubles and didn't do too well here the first time. I then moved to Ponyville for a few years. I only recently came back to Canterlot because of my new job at the castle. I've also opened up my own store though while I'm awaiting more information on what I'm actually going to be doing," she smiled.

[Lux]

Sweet smiled as Ice explained her feelings towards her special somepony. The chocolate mare could only hope that one day she would feel those same experiences that the blue unicorn had. 

 

"I was actually born in Fillydelphia, but came here after some family troubles and didn't do too well here the first time. I then moved to Ponyville for a few years. I only recently came back to Canterlot because of my new job at the castle. I've also opened up my own store though while I'm awaiting more information on what I'm actually going to be doing," she smiled.

 

"Sorry to hear you had such a bad time in Fillydelphia. I've never been there so I don't know how ponies are. I'm glad to hear you are happy here now. What job do you have at the castle, selling snow cones to those visiting. Oh, what about making it snow in the castle or make a skating rink! That would be cool, literally! Do you help too Snow Dancer." 

 

"I've never been to the castle actually."

 

"Oh it's a super neat place. I'd love to work there as the Princesses's official candy confectioner! I'm even making candy based off of what their favorite treats are!" 

[IceStorm]

"I actually don't remember much of Fillydelphia myself actually and what little bit I do remember has probably changed drastically since I was only a filly when I lived there before. I haven't been back since except once when I was trying to reunite with my estranged mother that I hadn't seen in many, many years. She wasn't there, but it didn't seem like the Tartartus awful place that I remembered it being when I was little. The ponies I spoke with there were sensible for the most part. As far as what I do at the Castle, I don't really know yet. Princess Luna gave me a position as one of her Stewardesses, but I'm not sure what that entirely covers yet. I would presume helping with some of the more mundane tasks around the castle and being at any important events that she would need me at, but I haven't really heard one way or another yet," she finished. She then looked to the pot of Candy that they had boiling. "How long do we have to let this sit for? Is there a special way to check if it's all melted without burning a hoof or getting something sticky?

[Lux]

"Things do change after a while, don't they?" Sweet Surprise said as she alternated her gaze between the other ponies and the melting chocolate, "I have to say I really understand not getting along with parents. Well mine is probably different from your history, but it happened to me. See, I was born in Manehttan, oh that's a great place! Lots of things to see and do! Anyway, my parents are dentists so they weren't big fans of me eating candy as a filly. They thought candy was a waste of money and it rotted ponies' teeth. It was only when I ate a candy without them knowing that I fell in love with it. So I tried lots of candy and then I began asking candy makers how they made the sweet stuff. But when I made my own that was when I got my cutie mark! Well my parents weren't too happy with me sneaking candy behind their backs, but they tolerated my cutie mark. Still I didn't think that they were accepting of my talent so I left and moved here. Thankfully Mr. Cocoa took me in as an apprentice. It wasn't until recently that I realize that despite my parents being dentists they did support me! So you never know how things change with time."

 

The mare bent down and sniffed the aroma that wafted from the pot of melting peppermint.

 

"It's done now! So now we let it cool a little then we mold it. That's the fun part! Anyway, if you're going to help Princess Luna then you should know this one thing about her."

 

The mare took out of the freezer, which still had some ice accumulated in it, what looked like a small cake.

 

"This is Luna's favorite treat, white chocolate moon pie! Here have some! Just don't tell everypony you meet that secret or else the Princess might have a pile of pies!"