[Ponyville] Despair and Panic! The Missing Cake Twin (Finished)

[Rosewind]

Shafts of warm sunlight wisped against the eyelids of the young unicorn foal, Pumpkin Cake. She was wrapped snuggly in her crib in a pink blanky, fighting against the urge to wake up. A slight, chilly breeze of fresh morning air against her nose sealed the deal. Her blue eyes popped open, and she yawned ever-so-cutely, popping her little hoof into her mouth. She nudged the mounded blanket next to her, urging her twin brother, Pound, to wake up.

Nudge nudge nudge. No movement. Her brother's smiling face did not appear. Pumpkin perked one of her ears, suckling her front hoof. She tilted her head to the side quizzically, drool running down her arm. She pulled the blanket aside where her brother's body previously resided, only to uncover...a stack of blocks!

Waaaah?! Pumpkin gasped. Pound was missing!

She pulled her damp hoof out of her mouth, knocking the blocks aside to see if her brother was underneath those. Nope. Pumpkin crawled up the sides of her crib, dragging her blanky along with her. She stuffed the end of it into her mouth and began to search all over her room. The closet door handle was too high for her to reach, so she abandoned looking in there. Plus, it was kind of scary! Underneath the changing table? No Pound. The ceiling? Nope.

Pumpkin crossed her arms, suckling her blanky. She scratched the side of her head, confused and worried all at once. Her eyes wandered to the source of the chilly morning air that originally woke her up. The window was open! She knew full well that Pound could sometimes fly...or was he foalnapped?! Pumpkin had no idea, but she wasn't going to wait in the nursery to find out! She crawled back into her crib and grabbed a block, tying it around her blanky. She whirled it over her head, and flung it over the side of the window. The block lodged into the underside of the ledge. She tested her new "rope" several times, before climbing up to the window.

Fresh air greeted her yellow face, as well as the brightness and beauty of a very busy Ponyville morning. She looked down, biting her lower lip. She extracted her makeshift rope from the ledge and discarded the block, stuffing her pink blanket back into her mouth.

Pumpkin closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and jumped out of the window of Sugarcube Corner! Her landing was not gentle at all. She landed face-first into a cluster of pink flowers, lodging her little horn into the ground in a scatter of petals. She tugged herself against the ground, extracting herself from the dirt with an elastic snap. She shook dust off of her orange ducktail mane, and wandered off into the streets to find her brother, Pound...

[Solaria]

Princess Cadence cantered down one of Ponyville's main avenues, almost constantly flicking her mane from side to side to keep from trailing it in smaller ponies' faces. There was something to be said for this town: there was always something happening. It was much busier than Canterlot, where ponies would usually wander slowly from place to place and stick to the sides of the streets. Occasionally passerby would look up from their various tasks and recognize her, and the pink mare would call out happy greetings with a smile. It never became tedious, she was truly happy to meet each new shining face. Speaking of which...

That couldn't be right, could it? A small unicorn foal was crawling down the road, looking as though she had no idea where she was going. Dirt decorated her tiny horn, and she looked a little scuffled. A look of shock crossed Cadence's face, and she stood momentarily frozen in the middle of the street as other ponies jostled by with mumbled apologies.

"Hey hey hey!" the alicorn recovered with a startled gasp, galloping forward with a staccato click of hooves before folding her legs and kneeling before Pumpkin, spreading her wings protectively so that other pedestrians would give them a wide berth. "Hello cutie!" Cadence continued in a much more soothing tone, reaching forward to tug the blanket free from a persistent flower. "What are you doing out here all alone?"

A quick glance around didn't show the princess anypony that looked remotely like they might be the baby's parents, so she placed the dislodged blossom into Pumpkin's mane while she tried unsuccessfully to place the foal herself. They'd never met before, so that wouldn't work. That settled it then. Rather than attending a day out to Ponyville with some stuffy nobles, which she was late for anyway, she'd help this little unicorn out. Once a foalsitter, always a foalsitter! Cadence had even spoken her own personal oath when she was younger, promising to do her best for the little ones around her. A smile broke across her face as she offered a hoof to her new charge. Some things never changed.

[Rosewind]

Pumpkin blinked her azure eyes quizzically at the Princess, her cute orange ducktail mane waving up and down as she tilted her head to the side. She had never seen such a pretty pony before! Something about her was soothing and warm, which seemed to melt away her fear and anxiety the moment she heard her kind words. Pumpkin giggled as Cadence stuck the flower in her mane.

The unicorn foal looked to Cadance's hoof, then up to her pretty pink horn. With a small hop, she happily pounced the Princess' face and stuck her horn straight into her mouth.

Num nom num!

[Solaria]

Cadence always melted at the sound of a foal's laughter. It was so innocent and pure, full of joy and... what was that look in the baby's eye?

"Mmmph!" the princess sputtered in surprise as the tiny horn popped into her mouth.

The princess could only smile and give a muffled laugh as she recovered. Her younger self would have seen that coming in a heartbeat. She really had been out of practice! The soft little appendage that tickled her tongue hadn't hardened yet, and tasted earthy from the soil that still clung to it. With a gentle caress Cadence wrapped her hooves around Pumpkin and plucked the excited unicorn free from her lips.

"Well aren't you fun!" the rose alicorn cooed, conjuring a soft supportive cradle of magic to ferry the baby over to her back.

Cadence angled her wings outward slightly, giving Pumpkin something to tumble into should she lose her balance and fall when the princess walked. As she began to move, the foalsitter started looking from pony to pony for any recognition of her new passenger. No faces lit up in happiness at finding their child, with only the occasional formal greeting thrown out. She looked back at the foal.

"Well, I don't suppose you can give me a hint here can you? Do you know any words? Mama? Dada?"

[Rosewind]

Pumpkin looked up at Cadance as she pulled her away from her face. She grinned widely, her quest to find her twin brother temporarily forgotten. It seems the Princess had greatly impressed upon the young unicorn foal, as she cheered with delight when Cadance set her on her back. She sat on her haunches, quite amused at the bustle of Ponyville activity from her new vantage point. The flowers! The trees! The breeze! The bugs! A ladybug landed on Pumpkin's damp horn and spread its wings out. She sneezed cutely, and the insect buzzed away, slightly perturbed.

As the new friends set out, Pumpkin looked from pony to pony -- they were all adult ponies, or, at the very least, much older than her or Pound. She spotted an outline of Pound in a windowsill, but as she got closer, the object in question turned out to be a potted plant. Pumpkin frowned, as Cadance turned around to ask her if she could speak. Pumpkin responded by sticking one of the Princess' pretty curly locks into her mouth. She tugged lightly on the pretty mane, drool oozing out of her little mouth.

Mrrrfl! Waaaaaah?

[Solaria]

A smile and a tiny cheer? This foal was almost too cute to handle. In the true fashion of a young mind with almost no attention span, Cadance's little companion looked this way and that almost without pause. It sometimes made the alicorn wish she could still see the world that way. Each window and door held a new surprise, each object a fresh wonder... or potential food. A smile broke across her face as she felt one her curls go taut and grow wet. A quick glance backward confirmed Cadance's suspicions: her mane had replaced the blanket on the menu.

Using her magic to animate the tiny coverlet enough that it wrapped Pumpkin in a warm cocoon against the chilly morning air, the princess followed the foal's excited look to a potted plant in a window. The baby soon looked disappointed, and the Cadance furrowed her brow in thought. Apparently her new friend was looking for something, but she didn't know what. At this point, all she could do was trot around and either hope to find her parents or whatever it was the unicorn was looking for. Which, considering how a ladybug had entranced the foal so far, could be something as simple as a lost bottle.

"Hang on," Cadance said sweetly, setting off down the road at a mild canter while keeping her head tilted slightly backward so as not to throw Pumpkin off balance with her mane. "If you see what we're looking for, just give me a hiccup or a gurgle okay?"

[Rosewind]

Pumpkin bounced up and down on the Princess alicorn's back, the coverlet magically twirling around her. The leftover magic made her little horn tingle, and it was a curious sensation for her. She perked one of her wheat-colored ears, straining to hear if her twin brother was somewhere close. Was he alone or in trouble?

The gentle bustle of the Ponyville Marketplace greeted her ears, along with the smell of the various food offerings and vegetables, freshly made soap, and beeswax candles, the pounding of hammers, the sawing of saws, the clink and chink of small-town industry; the various morning business conversations from the vendors and their customers gently droned in the background. Pumpkin couldn't made heads or tails of it, but it was a curious place to be. She smelled an especially delicious apple pie coming from one of the vendors, and her little tummy grumbled. In her haste to escape and find her twin brother, she hadn't eaten. She tugged on Cadance's mane with her mouth, cooing ever so cutely.

[Solaria]

Cadance swayed her flanks subconsciously with each of Pumpkin's bounces, keeping her back under the boisterous little foal no matter which way she wiggled. Between the hold on the alicorn's mane and the support of her wings and haunches, it would be a challenge all in itself for an accidental tumble to occur. The unicorn still seemed to be looking for something, occasionally glancing around or flicking her ears at a noise with a look of consternation, so Cadance was relatively sure they hadn't reached their destination yet.

With tender care the princess began weaving through the crowds at the market, her own attention admittedly snared by the bustle and level of activity there. At this point, Cadance was nearly as overwhelmed as Pumpkin. Smells, sounds, laughter, shouts, and various other results of harried ponyfolk came from all directions, not to mention the ponies themselves pushing by. The foalsitter took extra caution to keep her little companion squarely on her back, just in case somepony bumped into Cadance and jostled the pair.

There was a tiny grumble and a tug on the alicorn's mane, prompting her to look back at the foal. The baby's mouth was full of more drool than usual, and a beatific look settled into her expression while her little nose twitched away. Cadance lifted her muzzle and took an inquisitive sniff herself, only to salivate to the smell of fresh apple pie. It didn't take long for her to find the stall selling the delectable dessert. With a smile and a snippet of pleasant small talk the royal mare tossed a few bits onto the counter; she picked out the most tempting pie and moved to the side where she and Pumpkin were less likely to be bumped into. It took some concentration, but the princess managed to slice out a tiny wedge of the treat before offering it to the young pony riding her.

"Well, we can't find what you're looking for on empty stomachs can we?"

[Rosewind]

Pumpkin blinked at the pastry the kind Princess set it in front of her. It was still warm from the oven, and wafted steam into the air. She tilted her head to the side, examining the perfect lattice crust. She then smashed it with her little hoof, sending bits of apple and crust flying every which way. She licked gooey clump of the pie off of her hoof, and her eyes suddenly brightened. The tart, albeit soft apples...the crumbles of rich crust, the spicy cinnamon, the sweetness! Pumpkin tucked into her smooshed pie with gusto, her little blue bowed ducktail waving around as she devoured the rest of the pie with no further hesitation.

When Pumpkin finished, she looked up at Cadance, bits of pie clinging to her face. She gave an appreciative burp, satisfied, and stuck her hoof into her mouth, trying her best to get every last bit of the sticky pie remains into her mouth. It was heaven!

Mmmmmmmmmm!

[Solaria]

Cadance stared at Pumpkin with a mixture of fascination, confusion, and mild amusement. Her slice of pie hovered in the air before her, momentarily forgotten while she watched the foal devour her treat. Such a well-crafted dessert smashed into a gooey, though apparently delicious, splat. If the baby's reaction was any indication, it was quite the treat. After all, pies were meant to be eaten right? At best they were edible art, enjoyed first by the eye then the tastebuds!

Without further ado, the princess took a big bite of her slice and closed her eyes in ecstasy. It was like earth ponies had raised a special tree, pegasi had flown it to the sun for golden kisses, and the unicorns had enchanted it with their magic so that the combined efforts produced the most wonderful apples ever from its boughs. How did these Ponyville bakers do it? With a slightly sheepish look Cadance finished her pie in a manner similar to Pumpkin, continuing to take large bites and swallowing happily.

Afterwards she levitated a clean napkin to wipe both her lips and the unicorn foal's entire face. The princess finished with a smile and the light tap of a hoof on the baby's nose before thinking again. Why had the plant sparked a reaction? Did her little pony cohort have a fascination with flowers? She had been crawling around in a flowerbed after all. Maybe the plant had looked like something else?

"Are you looking for a lost toy?" Cadance asked, tapping her crown where it sat behind her horn. "Something fun? Shiny?"

[Rosewind]

Pumpkin (now with a clean face) blinked at Cadance as she tapped her shiny crown, considering the Princess' question. The golden crown was so ever shiny. She wanted to stick it in her mouth, badly. Unfortunately it was out of reach. Her attention turned back to her twin brother. Was this older pony trying to help her? She tapped her little chin, lost in her thoughts, when an idea came to her. She pounded both her hooves, her face twisted in a heart-wrenching frown. Pound pound pound.

Eee...eh? She conceded, shrugging and sticking her hoof back in her mouth, sucking on it quietly. Drool ran down her arm. A gentle breeze picked up, puffy white clouds rolling across the sky as the last chill of the late morning gave way for the warmth of the midday. Pumpkin's blue-bowed ducktail mane flicked to the side with the breeze. She felt frustrated, but equally calmed by Cadance's presence. With her empty hoof, she pointed toward a section of Ponyville the pair hadn't ventured to yet. She grabbed the back of Cadance's pretty mane, giving a firm tug. Giddyup!

[Solaria]

Cadance watched with interest as all sorts of thoughts seemed to run through the foal's mind. First it appeared that she was transfixed with the princess's crown, then like she was contemplating the entire reason behind their search. It was almost as if there were a visible lightbuib when the little unicorn finshed her thoughts. Pound. What in the world was she doing? Pound. Pound pound pound.Maybe it had something to do with the way she'd eaten her pie?

The alicorn shrugged as Celestia's sun grew in warmth and intensity, bathing the piar in gowing light. Pumpkin seemed to have given up her charades match, and was instead tugging on Cadance's mane while pointing in a further direction. And the princess became the noble steed for the Foal of Droolblossom. The mare snickered to herself at the description and set off at a quick trot, constantly swaying to make it through the crowd and out the frar side of the market.

[Rosewind]

Pumpkin bumped up and down as she rode the Princess, her right hoof stuffed in her mouth, her other hoof gripping Cadance's amazing tri-colored mane. She scanned around Ponyville, finding herself distracted by several butterflies, a cricket trying to escape from a hungry spider, and a tulip the color of bright cotton candy. The serenity was quickly broken. She heard the cries of another foal, and it was coming from a nearby park! Pumpkin jumped up and down on top of Cadance, tugging on her mane frantically. She pulled her hoof out of her mouth, tendrils of drool spilling all over the place. Her face was twisted in frightful concern.

Pumpkin pointed her damp hoof in the direction of the cries.

Waah! Aaah! Aaaaah!

[Bronynumber299]

Rainy Splash was NOT having a good day.He was trotting around ponyville bored and sad.There was just nothing to do so he was reduced to walking around.Rainy sighed.Then he heard a baby crying and a pony trotting his way."What in the hay?"He said as he took to the skies looking around.Rainy saw princess Candence trotting to where just was.Rainy flew down and landed a few feet infront of her."Hey what's going on Princess is there something wrong?"He asked the running mare.

[Latte]

Books 'Latte'

The tall Pegasus paused for a moment, looking left to right. Where was he, exactly? One moment he was.. Didn't the stallion just pass that place? Though Ponyville wasn't too small, or too large, or anything like he was used to, Books still found himself getting lost. A few Ponies had tried helping him, though they were always unable to give him correct directions. Like, which left did he go? At the first stop, or the second? Around what corner? It was always so.. So.. Confusing! A few direct directions would be fine, really, but no, everyone gave him blunt ones!

I ask for directions to the park, and I'm not even given that correctly.. Ugh! I should have stayed home today, possibly have some tea or whatever..

The stallion grumbled some unidentified curses beneath his breath for a moment before sighing. Usually, parks were very noisy, though he had made an exception in going on this small trip. The scenery in Solstice Heights was beautiful, though it was just.. The same thing. He needed something different to visit, he guessed. Nothing should ever be the same.

Books perked up after a few moments of thinking. In another direction, he heard crying-- Most likely that of a foal. Poor thing. He should go and see what was up, though.. Maybe the guarding of the foal was doing the job well? Hm, who knew. Right now, he only wanted to find the park. After a moment, he paused-- Maybe the crying was from the park! Or, well, who knew.. The Pegasus rounded a corner, and trotted after the crying. He stopped in his tracks once he realized it was just a small filly on the back of an Alicorn, and a Pegasus. An odd trio indeed.

".. I need to follow my gut less often.." He mumbled. Nope. Not the park. It never occurred to him that the Alicorn was Royalty. Honestly, he didn't pay much attention to that type of stuff.. Though the only Alicorns he'd heard of were Celestia and Luna, (and they were royal!), maybe this was just a special case.. Meh!

[Bronynumber299]

((Rainy Splash and I will wait for Rosewind and Solaria.Okay?))

[Solaria]

Cadance let out a small sigh of relief as she and Pumpkin left the market behind. Not that it wasn't fun, it was just... intense. The foal at least seemed to be having fun, keeping a grip on the princess's mane while bouncing as though she were in a saddle. She spotted a park not far ahead, and had just rounded a corner when plaintive wails reached her pricked ears. Pumpkin apparently noticed as well, because she became very agitated and pointed in the direction of the cries while tugging over and over.

"We're going!" Cadance agreed, starting to trot forward at a good clip before a pegasus fell from the sky to land right in from of her, asking if she knew what was going on. "Oh, well that's what I'm trying to find out," the mare replied in a concerned tone, peeking around the stallion's shoulder at the park. "It's coming from over there."

Another pegasus stopped nearby and muttered about his gut feelings, but Cadance's foalsitter protective instincts were in overdrive as she jostled past the pair and practically galloped forward to the park, looking for the source of the distressed noise with widened eyes. She couldn't see anything yet, but apparently Pumpkin knew exactly where to go, and the alicorn was relying on the baby to hopefully at least point her in the right direction.

[Bronynumber299]

Rainy Splash was worried.Something was ahoof."Wait!Princess wait for me!I want to help you too!"He galloped after her.Finally something was happening!As Rainy galloped after Cadence he felt somepony was following him too.

[Rosewind]

Pumpkin blinked at her new entourage -- two new pegasi! She had never seen older ones (unless Cadance counted), but she was curious about their arrival nonetheless. More ponies to assist with the search? She hoped so. Apparently a foal crying around here could get a very strong reaction. She filed that new information away for later, perking her ears. Her little bowed ducktail waved around as she tilted her head.

Pumpkin picked up more wailing from the park, and yanked on the back of Cadance's mane. She watched her new guardian brush past the two new pegasi as the duo made for the park. She waved to her new friends atop her Princess mount, grinning widely. Pumpkin turned herself around and climbed up Cadance's neck, up to the tippy top of her head. She ignored the delicious-looking crown for the moment and wrapped her little legs around the Princess' large, pink horn. She held on tight, trying to get a good view of the park. Was Pound there?!

She scanned the sandbox, the fountain, and a very fun-looking wooden slide. Squat trees peppered the outer rim of the play area, along with several benches that had flower vines wrapped around their stout wooden frames. The source of the crying was coming from behind one of the benches! Pumpkin wrapped her legs around the huge, pink horn and lowered her upper half in front of Cadance's gaze, her upside-down face twisted in worry.

[Bronynumber299]

Rainy Splash found the location of the crying it was from under a bench."It's late morning why would there be two babies out and about?"He asked himself as he carefully trotted towards the bench.Then he saw Cadence flying towards the bench."Uh oh sorry princess didn''t know you wanted to sit here!"Rainy said as he dove out of the way.What is going on with the princess today?He thought.

[Solaria]

Just as Pumpkin had climbed to Cadance's horn and was using it as a makeshift watchpost, the princess's eyes were flitting from place to place in the park. Nopony in the sandbox or on the slide. As a matter of fact, there really wasn't anypony in the park at all aside from the searching pair and the two pegasi that had joined them, at least as far as she could see. That seemed awfully strange, especially with the crying sound.

Slowing down from her fast pace, Cadance tilted her head with perked ears and finally discerned that the needy whimpers were coming from a bench at the other end of the play area. She started to move that way just as the first pony from before reached the wooden structure and looked her way. In a slightly alarmed tone he apologized to her and moved quickly out of her path while the foal clutching her horn leaned down to fill her gaze with a concerned look of her own.

"It's okay sweetheart, we'll help whoever it is," the royal mare said soothingly to the tiny face, carefully coming to a stop next to the bench so as not to dislodge Pumpkin. "I'm sorry," she added to Rainy in a louder tone so he could hear her. "I don't want to sit there, I'm trying to see who's crying. I didn't mean to startle you."

Without waiting any longer, the princess bent her knees and peered around the bench to put an end to the mystery of where the sound was coming from and to offer her aid.

[Rosewind]

Pumpkin's eyes widened as she gripped Cadance's horn, following the Princess' gaze with her own as both peered behind the bench to reveal...

A frog.

It was a chubby, deep green frog, its mottled skin covered in little pimples and warts. It blinked its eyes at the three ponies -- one eye at a time, not at all interested that it was just discovered. It slowly took in a deep breath, extending the air sack of its throat, and let out a wail: Waaaaaah! Aaaaah! It croaked. The sound was eerily similar to the cries of a foal.

Pumpkin rolled her blue eyes and facehooved herself, thoroughly disheartened. She dropped off of Cadance's head and crawled over to the frog, poking it with her hoof to see if Pound was, perhaps, hiding inside it. The amphibian didn't seem terribly interested that she was there, or she was even prodding it. She turned to Cadance, her eyes welling up with tears. She sniffled once, twice. Oh yes, it was coming.

Pumpkin cried! This time with real foal crying. The loss of her brother, the search...it was just too much for the young unicorn. Hot tears streamed down her wheat-colored cheeks. The frog joined in the chorus of lament, only adding to the horrible caterwaul.

[Solaria]

When Cadance beheld the frog, she had to struggle not to drag a hoof down her own face. Her features did settle into an unamused frown at the bulbous creature while Pumpkin crawled over to it.

"Really," she muttered, sighing and dropping the rest of the way to the ground while supporting her chin on her forehooves. "Pretty talented frog if you ask me."

Now that the princess thought about it, the creature really was a little creepy. How many animals did she know that could so closely imitate the sounds of ponies? Her gaze was drawn to her little foal friend as the unicorn turned with big watery eyes and sniffed. Oh no. The foalsitter knew exactly what that meant.

"Oh it's okay!" she whispered soothingly, trying to avert the point of no return.

It was too late, however, and Pumpkin began to wail in despair. Cadance couldn't fathom what would cause her companion to cry with such intensity, but then again with babies everything could be important. She might even just be scared of the frog after touching it. Either way, it didn't matter. It obviously meant something to Pumpkin, and the alicorn scooped the tiny pony into her hooves and held her close, humming in calming tones. She even used her magic to levitate her crown down to the foal's level if she wanted to play with it.

"Shhh, there's no need for tears honey hooves," Cadance continued to murmur, rocking her forelegs gently back and forth.

A thought began to occur to the princess, and her eyes widened slightly as the things Pumpkin had done thus far started to make sense in a very odd way. The potted plant in the window. The constant glances around. The excitement and then extreme disappointment with hearing and finding the frog.

"Are you... Are you looking for another baby?" Cadance asked hesitantly, not even sure she believed it herself. After all, baby logic could have changed since she last foalsat.

[Rosewind]

Hot, wet tears streamed down Pumpkin's face as the Princess scooped her up. Her warmth and touch was overwhelmingly soothing, and her tears quickly began to dry up. She sniffled several times, her nose leaking, her blue eyes still irritated and narrowed. The crown offering sealed the deal, and the little unicorn foal popped the tip of the golden headpiece into her mouth. She suckled on it, her sadness quickly replaced with relish. She blinked as Cadance asked her if she was looking for another baby.

Pumpkin's face lit up. She spat the crown out, nodding frantically, her orange ducktail mane waving back and forth her with head movements . Finally, her chance guardian understood! Yes yes yes!

[Solaria]

Cadance continued to hold Pumpkin close to her chest while her wails started to fade to sniffles and hiccups. Apparently the baby liked to be cradled, and when she took the crown with an eager suckle the princess could only roll her eyes in amusement. That had been rather easy.

Ah, the art of distraction, she thought.

At the mention of looking for another foal Pumpkin nearly went berserk, nodding so quickly that Cadance was afraid she'd hurt herself. Not only that, but the royal mare was now very concerned. She'd been lucky to happen across this little unicorn before anything bad had happened, but now it appeared she'd had a partner in crime that was very likely still lost. The alicorn stood quickly, tilting her head to flip Pumpkin up and over to nestle on her back again while cushioning the landing with magic. Her crown assumed its normal position as well while Cadance called out to the two pegasi nearby.

"Have either of you seen a young foal going around on its own? It could be in a lot of trouble!"