I'd like to thank the author Najee for giving me the idea for this chapter. This chapter was written for him.

Note to Najee: Hope you enjoy this Brony Bro :D

Chapter 28: Helping the CMC

It's been 2 days since I won the race in Cloudsdale and unfortunately had to pay for the orders Rainbow Dash and I made at the café. Our drinks cost one bit for each, I was fine with that but Rainbow Dash then ordered a large smoothie which cost me another 4 bits.

….4 bits for one freakin' smoothie, it was a damn rip-off.

Ponyville streets

I walking through Ponyville streets with Jeff on my back, I had already finished my deliveries for Applejack and she gave me my usual pay of 100 bits.

Foe the last few days, I'd been saving up for something very special that I was planning to give to Twilight at the Grand Galloping Gala coming next week; I bought it yesterday and hid it somewhere safe in the library where Twilight wouldn't find it.

I smiled as I looked around Ponyville; it was so beautiful when it was really warm and sunny. I breathed in the fresh air through my nostrils before I exhaled through my mouth. "Relaxing day, isn't it Jeff?" I asked as I kept walking.

Jeff was lying face up on my back with his wings behind his head. "Totally dude, I love it when it's this hot. Can you believe it's almost here? The Grand Galloping Gala in all its glory. I gotta tell ya Matt, I'm pretty excited about this. I've never been to a pony gala before….actually; I've never been to any type gala at all. What's it like?" Jeff asked as he continued to look up at the sky.

"Well….it like a big party, only it doesn't play have wild music like disco or anything like that. It's more like a party with fancy dining, VIP sections for honoured guests and posh music, every high-class pony in Canterlot attends it. If you look at it a certain way, it's kinda like a royal ball." I explained the best I could.

Jeff leaned up to look at the back of my head. "Wow, that sounds….really boring. And we're goin'? I mean, we don't like that stuff." she said with a confused look.

I stopped walking and turned my head around to face Jeff. "I know it sounds boring dude, but it's really a very big and popular party. Everypony in town wants to go, but they can't because they don't have tickets. You, me, Twilight and the others are the only ones here who're going." I said before a smirk came on my face.

Besides…when we get there and get settled into the party, it won't be boring for long." I said before I turned my attention back on the path and continued walking.

Jeff raised his eye brow and got up on his feet. "What do ya mean?" he asked curiously.

I looked back at him with the smirk still on my face. "Because we've been ask by the Princess to liven the place up once we get there, it said so in the letter the Princess sent. Remember? The one that came with our tickets.

"Oh yeah, so how do we plan to do that?" Jeff asked curiously.

I tuned my head back to the path while still walking. "Don't you worry about that! I have everything planned. Haha, those high-class ponies are in for a real surprise when we step in."

Jeff raised his eye brow. "Yeah, except you haven't filled me in on any of your plans. How am I supposed to help liven things up when you won't tell me how we're gonna do it?" she said in irritated tone.

"Jeff, we have a week to plan things. We'll go through the plans together, but to be honest, I'm trying to plan more on what I'm going do with Twilight there. I'm going to do something special but I have no idea how I'm going to do it." I said with a slightly worried tone.

"Dose this involve what you bought yesterday? Because I saw you hiding something in the quest room." Jeff said.

I started to walk a bit slower. "Well….kinda, it's something I want to surprise her with. So don't tell her where it is, ok?" I asked in a calm voice.

Jeff then flew off my back and landed in front of me; which made me to stop in my path. "Why dude? What is it? And why do you want to keep it a big secret from Twilight?" he asked as he crossed his wings.

I hesitated to tell him what I was planning; it was a big thing that I didn't really want anypony to know about yet. "I'll tell you, but you have to promise you won't tell anypony about it, especially Twilight." I said in a firm voice.

"Yeah dude, I promise." Jeff said in a normal voice.

"Pinkie promise?" I said still in a firm voice.

Jeff rolled his eyes. "Fine….cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." He sang in a groaning voice as he covered his right eye with his right wing.

I then believed he was true to his word, nopony can break a Pinkie promise. Plus, he's one of my best friends and I trust him. I took a deep breath and prepared to tell him. "Well, when Twilight and I are at the gala…I'm gonna-"

"LOOK OUT!" a female voice yelled; interrupting me.

The moment I turned my head to the direction the voice came from, something ramming into my side and knocking me over onto my back. "Whow, you ok dude?" Jeff asked.

I leaned up while rubbing my head with my hoof. "Yeah, I'm fine. What hit me?" I asked before I searched around for what or who knocked me down. I was then surprised to see Applebloom get up off the ground while rubbing her head, next to her was a wooden skateboard that was lying upside down on the ground and she was wearing a red skateboard helmet.

I got back up onto my hooves and looked down at her. "Applebloom?...are you alright?" I asked in a slightly concerned tone.

"Yeah, I'm alright. Sorry 'bout that Matt." Applebloom said as she looked up at me.

"It's ok." I said before I walked over to her skateboard and used my hoof to flip it over back onto its wheels. I then looked back at Applebloom. "What are you doing anyway?" I asked with a raised eye brow.

Applebloom then walked over to her skateboard and stood up on it. "We're tryin' to see if we could get our cutie marks bein' perfection skateboarders." She explained before the skateboard started shifting back and forth; making it difficult for Applebloom to keep her balance.

"Whow, whow, whoooow." She cried as the skateboard shifted forward and she fell backwards. I quickly caught her on my snout before she could hit the ground; I then gently pushed her back on her hooves.

"Emm, we?" I asked curiously. Before she could answer, I heard a sound behind me that sounded like more skateboards rolling along the ground. I turned my head around to see Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo coming this way on skateboards. However, they were both wobbling on them. They were both wearing skateboard helmets; Sweetie Belle had a light velvet helmet while Scootaloo had a dark blue helmet.

Once they reached us, Scootaloo stumbled off the skateboard but managed to keep herself from falling over while Sweetie Belle continued to slowly move towards me on her skateboard. "Err…I don't think I know how to stop. Little help!...please?" she said as she slowly rolled along past me.

My sight never left her; causing my head to slowly turn as I watched her slowly go by. I didn't worry about being fast enough to stop her because she was going so slow, I just placed of my left hoof on the back of the skateboard and it came to a gentle stop before Sweetie Belle stepped off it.

Sweetie Belle then turned around to look up at me. "Thanks Matt." She said in her sweet little voice. I just smiled warmly down at her. "No problem." I responded.

Scootaloo and Applebloom then walked up to Sweetie Belle. "So much for getting our cutie marks as skateboarders, huh?" Scootaloo said with a slight disappointed look.

Sweetie Belle nodded in agreement. "Yeah, skateboarding probably isn't the best thing for us; it's too wobbly and difficult."

"Not to mention, painful." Applebloom added.

"Girls, you shouldn't push yourselves into doing something dangerous just to get your cutie marks. Don't you think it's better to wait for your talent to come instead of going through all this? Trust me! Your marks will come eventually; you just need to be a little patient before they do. Ya get me?" I said with an honest face.

Applebloom looked up at me. "That's what everypony keeps telling us, but we really want our cutie marks Matt. We're tired of being called blank flanks at school." She said as she looked down at the ground with her ears slightly low.

I couldn't help but feel bad for her and I placed my hoof on her shoulder. "Aww, who calls you something as insensitive as that?" I asked.

Applebloom looked back up at me. "Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon." She answered with slight sadness in her eyes.

"Oh, that figures." I said in an unsurprised voice. "But you know there's other ways to get your cutie marks besides falling off skateboards, maybe you should try something a little safer." I suggested.

Scootaloo then smiled. "Yeah, maybe we should try wrestling." She said in an excited tone.

"Or house building." Sweetie Belle added.

"Or mountain climbin'." Applebloom added.

I was slightly frightened by these suggestions because I was concerned for their safety. "Whow, those are NOT what I had in mind. I meant something like cooking, or art, or something like that. You know, something not so dangerous." I said hoping they'd agree.

Applebloom tapped her chin with her hoof as she thought about it. "Well….I guess we could try bakin' at Sugar Cube Corner…"

"Hey, maybe Matt could help us get our cutie marks." Sweetie Belle said in excitement.

Scootaloo turned her head to face Sweetie Belle with a large smile on her face. "Yeah, what better pony to help us than the hero of Canterlot?"

A smile then grew on Applebloom's face. "Hey yeah, good thinkin' there Sweetie Belle." She then looked up at me. "You'd you say Matt? Can you come with us?" she said with an excited smile.

My eyes widened slightly in surprise, I wasn't expecting them to want me to go with them. "Oh…err…sorry girls….I'm kinda busy today, I have a lot of planning to do for the Grand Galloping Gala coming soon. I'm really sorry."

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo then walked up beside Applebloom and they all looked at me with big puppy dog eyes. "Pleeeeese." They said at the same time.

Somehow, I couldn't say no to those eyes. "Oooh…what the hay? I'll help." I said with a small smile.

Their eyes then returned to normal as they all smiled in delight and excitement. "Great, so should we start headin' over to Sugar Cube Corner?" Applebloom asked.

I put my hoof up. "Hold on! We have to go to the library first; I need to pick up some stuff."

"Oh….ok, but let's make it fast!" Scootaloo said before she, Applebloom and Sweetie Belle walked past me and headed to the library. Jeff flew back onto my back and I started following the girls.

Later: library

After arriving at the library, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were waiting for me in the front room while I was getting supplies for our day. They passed the time by reading some of the books, they each had a book and Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were taking interest in theirs while Scootaloo wasn't, she was holding up the book she had in one hoof while resting her cheek against the other with a board look on her face.

Meanwhile, I was in the other room placing items that we might need in to my saddle bag. I had already placed inside some apples, a flashlight (in case we stay out too late) and a set of rain-coats (in case it starts to rain or if one of the girls get cold).

Twilight then came into the room with Jeff on her back, she then noticed me packing my saddle bag. She walked up beside me. "Matt, what are you going?" she asked with a confused look on her face.

I turned my head to face her and smiled. "Applebloom and her friends want me to spend the day with them to help them get their cutie marks; I'm just packing stuff we might need while we're out." I explained.

Twilight raised her eye brow in confusion. "That's nice, but how does you being with them help them earn their cutie marks?" She asked.

I shrugged. "I don't know, they wanted me to come with them, I said I was busy, they gave me the big adorable eyes look, I caved in and here I am." I said before I went back to packing my saddle bag. "Huh, what else can I pack in here?" I asked myself while rubbing my chin with my hoof.

Twilight just simply rolled her eyes. "When will these three learn that they have to just be patient and their cutie marks will appear when they're ready?"

I looked back at her and smiled. "I know Twi, but let's play along with them! Who knows, I might end up enjoying myself today." I said before I fastened up my saddle bag and picked it up with my mouth, I then placed it onto my back.

"Alright Matt, you go hang out with the girls, just don't let them do anything dangerous!...you know what they're like." Twilight joked with a smile.

"Don't worry! I won't." I said before I looked at Jeff on her back. "Coming Jeff?" I asked.

"No thanks, I have a lot of things to do today, important things." Jeff said as he crossed his wings.

I looked at him with narrow eyes. "No you don't."

Jeff was silent for a moment before he let out an annoyed sigh. "Ok, I don't. I just don't want to go, all right?" Jeff said as he crossed his wings.

I just rolled my eyes. "Fine, have it your way! I'm going." I said before I walked passed Twilight and Jeff.

I entered the front room and once Scootaloo noticed me, she couldn't put the book down fast enough before she shot up in front of me. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle then joined her. "Alright, so was it Sugar Cube Corner first?" I asked.

Applebloom nodded. "Yeah, you said we should try our luck out on cookin'!"

Sweetie Belle turned her head to face her. "So what are we waiting for? Let's get going!" she said before they all galloped to the door, I smiling in amusement before I followed them calmly.

Once we reached the door, Applebloom opened it and she galloped out the doorway with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo galloping behind in excitement. I stopped at the doorway and Twilight walked up beside me with Jeff still on her back.

I turned my head to face her. "I'll see ya later Twi. Don't worry; I'll look after the girls."

Twilight nodded. "Ok Matt, be back soon! Alright?"

I gave her a small smile. "Ok, love ya Twi."

Twilight smiled warmly at me. "I Love you too, Matt." She said before she gave me a small kiss on my cheek.

"Awwww." Applebloom and Sweetie Belle said with big smiles as they watched us. "Eeeewww." Scootaloo moaned in disgust.

"I know how you feel Scoot; it gets me like that every time." Jeff said with narrow eyes.

"Can we just go to Sugar Cube Corner already? It feels like we've been here forever." Scootaloo said in a slightly frustrated tone.

I looked down at her and chuckled slightly. "Ok, little miss pushy. We can go now if all of you are ready."

Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo then grew large smiles. "CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS QUEST WITH MATTHEW, YAY." They all yelled together before they shot off into town.

My eyes widened slightly as this caught me by surprise, I turned my head to face Twilight. "Well, I guess I'm going. I'll be back later Twi." I said before I galloped after the Crusaders. "Hey, wait for me!" I yelled.

Twilight just shook her head in amusement before she walked back into the inside the library and closed the door behind her.

Sugar Cube Corner

After finally catching up with the girls, we all arrived at Sugar Cube Corner.

We all then walked inside. While the Crusaders looked around the shop; admiring all the delicious looking food, I walked up to the counter to see there was nopony behind it. I stood in front of the counter and looked around before I used my hoof to ring the small bell on the counter.

At that moment, Miss Cake walked in through the swinging doors before she noticed me in front of the counter. She then walked up to the counter with a smile on her face. "Oh, well hello Matthew. Can I help you?" she asked politely.

I nodded. "Yeah, is Pinkie Pie here?" I asked.

"Yes, I think she's in the kitchen. If you want to see her, feel free to go in." Miss Cake said kindly.

I smiled at this. "Alright thanks." I said before I turned my head around to see Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo still admiring the food. "Come on you three! We're going in the kitchen." I said before I walked around the counter. "Thanks again, Miss Cake. Say hi to Mr Cake for me!"

"Oh I will." Miss Cake said as she watched me go passed her.

"Comin'." Applebloom said as she, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo followed me towards the kitchen. Once we were in the kitchen, I looked around to see that nopony was here. "Wired, Miss Cake said Pinkie was in here. Guess we'll have to wait for her." I said before we all sat down at the kitchen table.

Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo then then started talking amongst themselves "Did you see all that food back there? Cupcakes, ginger-bread ponies, it all looks awesome." Scootaloo said.

"I know, I still can't believe Pinkie Pie actually lives here, she's so lucky." Sweetie Belle said.

Applebloom then looked at her with a raised eye brow. "Speakin' of which, where is Pinkie Pie anyway? She should have been here by now" she asked as she looked around the shop.

I started to think that myself so I looked around as well. "Huh, I don't know, she's usually here. In fact, this is usually the time were she jumps out of nowhere and yells-"

"SURPRISE." A happy toned voice yelled behind me; causing me to let out a loud yelp in fright. I held my hoof to my heart as I turned my head around to see Pinkie Pie laughing loudly.

"Damn it Pinkie, what are you trying to do? Give me a heart attack? Because I don't need one of those." I said in a slightly angered tone.

Pinkie Pie then stopped laughing but the smile was still on her face. "Sorry Mattie, I couldn't resist. You were there, the opportunity came up, and I took it. I hope I didn't scare you too much."

I then tried to calm down by taking deep breaths. "It's ok Pinkie…..I'm alright…." I said between breaths before I finally calmed down. "So anyway, can I ask you something Pinkie?" I said.

Pinkie Pie's smile grew. "Sure Mattie, I love questions. Especially when they're questions in a knock-knock joke." She said while jumping up and down on the spot.

"Ok, well the girls want to try and earn their cutie marks by cooking something. Do you mind if we try to make something here?" I asked.

Pinkie's smiled then grew even larger. "Sure, I can even help. Wait here! I'll get a cook book! She said before she shot out of the kitchen. After a few seconds, she shot back in with a book in her mouth.

She then placed it down on the table before she used her hoof to flip through the pages until she stopped on a page with cupcakes on it. "Oh, oh, let's make these!" she said in excitement.

We all looked at the page before Applebloom looked at Pinkie Pie. "Didn't I try to make cupcakes once before?" she asked.

Pinkie Pie nodded. "Yep, but there's always time for a second try, right?"

Applebloom then looked back down at the book before she made her decision. "Well…I guess there's no harm in tryin' it again." she said with a voice that sounded like she was unsure.

"Hmm…yeah, I'm alright with doing it." I said.

"Ok, wait here again! I'm gonna get you guys some chef hats." Pinkie Pie said before she shot out of the room again.

"Chef hats?...yeah, I can already see this going bad." I thought with narrow eyes.

A few minutes later, me and the Crusaders were standing in a line with chef hats on our heads. "I can't believe I'm wearing this thing." I thought with an unexcited look on my face.

Pinkie Pie walked left and right in front of us while talking like a general would do, mostly because she was acting like one. "Alright team; we have a mission in this kitchen. It is important that we stick to the task and stay focused, there is no room for weakness in this kitchen, and there is no room for failure." She said in a firm voice.

I then looked at her with a raised eye brow. "Pinkie, we're just making cupcakes. What's with the army talk?" I asked.

Pinkie Pie suddenly pushed her face against mine. "There's no room for questions either, Mister." She said as I was forced to look into her big blue eyes. She then pulled her face away and continued pacing; leaving me a bit stunned and….slightly frightened. I then shook it off and continued watching Pinkie Pie.

"So team; are you ready?" Pinkie Pie asked as she stopped pacing. We all then nodded. "Alright then, dismiss!" she said before we all split up to different parts of the kitchen to begin.

Applebloom read the recipe, Sweetie Belle collected the ingredients when they were needed and Scootaloo poured the mixer into the paper cases. Unfortunately, it was a messy job. I didn't blame them of cause, but the girls didn't really know how to work things right or to be careful.

When Applebloom put the bowl of batter under the mixer, she left it on full-blast and batter flung out of the bowl; making a mess on the table the machine was on.

Sweetie Belle sometimes made a mess when she was gathered the ingredients, like when she had to drag a sack of flour over to the others. She grabbed the sack with her mouth and dragged it over. However, she didn't notice that some flour was leaking out from a hole in the back of the sack.

And after they made the batter and placed the paper cases on the 12 cup cake tray, Scootaloo tried to pore it in with the bowl in her hooves, but she sometimes missed the paper cases and accidently spilled some batter onto the tray.

Meanwhile, I was sitting by the kitchen table with Pinkie Pie, I thought that the girls would want to try doing things themselves, seeing how they wanted to earn their cutie marks by themselves. So I just watch and waited to help the girls when they ask me to.

After a few minutes, the Crusaders were all staring at the oven while waiting for their cupcakes to cook. It wasn't long until the oven made a ping noise; the girls smiled in excitement before Applebloom pulled down the oven door and grabbed an oven-mitt in her mouth. She then reached into the oven and pulled out the hot tray of steaming cupcakes.

However, the cupcakes looked black and crusty. Applebloom placed them on the floor and she, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo looked down at them in disappointment. "Oh, not again." Applebloom said.

I then walked up to them. "Hey, it alright girls, they…don't look that bad….anyway, it's not how they look, it's how they taste that matters, right?" I said hoping to liven up their spirits.

Sweetie Belle then grew a confident smile. "Yeah, Matt's right. Here, I'll go first." She said before she leaded her to the burnt cupcakes and took a bite out of one.

"So, how are they?" Scootaloo asked curiously before Sweetie Belle's eyes widened and she held her hoof against her mouth as if she was trying to hold back vomit. "They're…fine…one second!" she said before she shot past me and out the back door before she made a puking sound.

She then walked back in with an ill look on her face. "Like I said…fine…" she said before she held her stomach while groaning.

Applebloom and Scootaloo then looked at each other. "Maybe cookin' isn't right for us after all." Applebloom said. Scootaloo nodded in agreement before she and Applebloom too their chef hats off and placed them aside.

"What are you talking about?" I heard Pinkie say behind me, I turned my head around to see her eating the burnt cupcakes. "These are great, do you mind coming back and making more sometime?" she asked before she went back to eating the cupcakes.

"Err...I think we're gonna lay off cooking for a while. Let's try something else!" Scootaloo said as she walked past Sweetie Belle and out the door with Applebloom following. "Yeah, I kinda figured we wouldn't be any good at it." she added.

I then followed them with Sweetie Belle behind me with sick look on her face; leaving Pinkie Pie who was still eating the burnt cupcakes with a smile on her face.

Ponyville Streets

We were now walking through the streets looking for something else to do, Sweetie Belle looked a little better but she says her stomach still feels bad. Being caring, I decided to watch over her for the rest of the day in case she felt sick again.

"Well that didn't go as well as I expected." Scootaloo said with her head handing as we walked.

"I know, I mean, how hard can it be to make simple cupcakes?" Sweetie Belle added with her head hanging also.

I then walked up beside them. "Don't worry, girls! I'm sure there's plenty of other things to do around tow-UNF." I couldn't finish my sentence as I bumped into something which caused me to stumble back a bit with my eyes closed.

I shook my head before I opened my eyes to see a bunch of envelopes lightly falling to the ground around me like snow. I then noticed a grey pony sitting on the ground in front of me with a light brown mailbag over its head.

I then walked up to the pony. "Oh, sorry about that. Let me get that off!" I said before I grabbed the top of the bag with my mouth and pulled it off the pony's head. I then looked at the pony and I recognized her as Derpy who was looking at me….at least I think she was looking at me; it was hard to tell with those crossed-eyes.

I was slightly surprised to see her now; I've never seen her while I've been living here. I then hooked the handle of the mailbag onto my hoof so I could speak. "Oh, it's you….Derpy, right?" I asked.

Derpy then got back onto her hooves. "Yep, that's me…" she said before I gave her mailbag back to her. She then grabbed the handle with her mouth before she threw the handle over her head and it landed on her shoulder so she was wearing it right.

I smiled. "Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm Matthew, I don't know if you've hear of-"

"Of cause I've heard of you, who hasn't?" Derpy interrupted. She then took my hoof in both of her's and shook it up and down really fast. "I can't believe I'm finally meeting you, I'm your biggest fan, Matthew."

I gave her a small smile. "Really? That's cool; you've got quite a grip." I said while looking down at her hooves still shaking mine.

"Oh, sorry." Derpy said before she released my hoof. "No problem, let me help you pick up these letters!" I said before I lowered my head down and started to pick up the fallen letters one by one.

Derpy smiled. "Wow, you're just as nice as they say you are."

I couldn't help but chuckle at her comment. "Well, I do try." I muffled while holding a few letters in my mouth. Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo started to help pick up the letters and place them into Derpy's bag. "There you go, Derpy. Sorry for the bump." I said.

Derpy just kept smiling. "That's ok; I hit my head on stuff lots of times." She said.

I then got an idea on how to help Derpy and the girls. "Hey Derpy, do you want help delivering those? The girls here want to earn their cutie marks in….well, pretty much anything."

Derpy then nodded. "Sure, that would be awesome."

I then turned my head to face the Crusaders with a smile. "What do you think, girls? Want to see if you can get cutie mark being mail-ponies?"

Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo then looked at each other with large smiles. "CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS MAIL CALL, YAY." They yelled.

After that, I rubbed the inside of my left ear with my left hoof in slight pain. "I'll take that as a yes."

Meanwhile: Library

Twilight was lying on a cushion on the floor while using her magic to hover a book in front of her. While she was reading, Jeff and Peewee were playing chess on the table across the room.

The room was quiet, the only sounds that were heard was Twilight turning the ages of her book and the two birds moving their chess pieces. Jeff then looked over to Twilight. "Sooo…this is what you do all day? Sit around reading books?" he asked in a bored tone.

Twilight didn't take her eyes off the book. "….Yep…" she answered.

"You just study all day?...nothing else?" Jeff asked with the same tone.

"….Nope…" Twilight answered with her eyes still glued to the book.

Jeff then let out a bored sigh before he looked back at the chess board. "It's your move, Peewee." He said.

(Seeing how he was small.) Peewee walked onto the board and picked up one of his bishops and took one of Jeff's pieces; leaving Peewee with a smirk and Jeff wide-eyed. "That's a good move...I can't believe it, I'm losing to a baby bird." Jeff said out loud.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door that got all their attention. Twilight placed the book down, got up off the cushion and walked towards the door. Once she got there, she used her magic to open the door to reveal Rarity.

Twilight smiled. "Oh, hi Rarity. I'm surprised to see you here, what's up?"

Rarity had a slight nervous look on her face. "Well, there is something rather….up." she said as she walked through the doorway; passing Twilight.

Twilight then gave her a concerned look once she noticed the sound of her voice and closed the door. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

Rarity walked to the centre of the room and looked around. "Em, well there's nothing wrong per say. I'd just call it a curious thought."

Twilight raised her eye brow in confusion. "Oh? Well, can I help in any way?"

Rarity turned around to face her. "Oh no, I just need to see Spike. Is he here by any chance?"

Twilight shook her head slightly. "No, he went out to buy new scrolls. We keep running out for some reason and I don't know why."

Jeff then looked over to the two ponies. "Really Twilight? You don't know why? Are you bein' serious?" she said with a raised eye brow.

Twilight then looked over to him with a slightly irritated look. "Shouldn't you be focusing on your game?" she said. Jeff then groaned before he turned his attention back to the chess board in front of him.

Twilight then turned her attention back to Rarity. "Why do you want to see Spike?" she asked curiously.

Rarity then grew nervous. "I…err…I just wanted to know if he's….err…" Rarity was trying to think of something to say before she came up with something. "If he's going to accompany us at the Grand Galloping Gala." She said.

Twilight gave her a confused look. "Yeah, a cause he's going. He has a ticket, remember?"

Rarity then laughed nervously. "Oh, of cause. It's been bothering me all day, you see. I wouldn't want to leave the little sweetie here all alone, after all. But I feel better now that I know he's coming."

Twilight then came closer to her with a serious look. "That's not the only thing that was bothering you, is it?"

Rarity then looked at the ground before she let out a sigh; she then looked back up to Twilight with her ears slightly low. "Twilight, I want to tell you something, but you have to promise not to tell anypony!"

Twilight nodded. "Sure Rarity, I promise."

Rarity gave her a slight serious look. "Pinkie promise?"

Twilight nodded again. "Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." She said as she covered her eye with one of her front hooves; without poking her eye this time.

Rarity then took a deep breath before she spoke. "I…I think I know who my secret admirer is. You know, the one who's been sending me all those gifts and poems."

Twilight then grew a large smile. "That's great Rarity, who is it? Is it somepony I know?" she asked.

Rarity's eyes went slightly wide. "Oh no, what do I tell her? I can't tell her I suspect Spike, she'll probably think that would be just weird. Calm yourself, Rarity! Just say something that won't give it away!" she thought as she started to sweat.

"Well….sort of, but that's just the point, I don't really know if this…errr…boy is my admirer, it's just a hunch that I have. I don't know what to do Twilight, should I wait for him to tell me up front? Or ask him myself? Because if I do ask him and he says he's not my admirer, not only will it embarrass me, it'll embarrass poor little Spi-….I mean, the poor dear also. Oh Twilight, what ever should I do?" Rarity asked; hoping Twilight didn't hear her almost say Spike's name.

Twilight thought about it for a moment before she spoke. "Well, I think you should give it a shot and ask him. But if you're really unsure, maybe you should wait a little longer until you have enough evidence that proves he's your admirer."

Rarity then walked over to the table that Jeff and Peewee were on and looked down at their game. "Hmm…maybe I should do that; I wouldn't want to go jumping to conclusions about something like this."

Twilight gave her a small smile. "Exactly, and don't worry! I'm sure the truth will come eventually. And who knows, maybe he'll step up and tell you himself." She said hoping to make it easier for her.

Rarity then turned her head around to face her. "You're absolutely right, Twilight. I just need to be patient until I find out for sure who he is, or until he tells me himself. Either way, I'll find out who he is."

Rarity then looked back down at Jeff and Peewee's chess board before her horn glowed and one of Peewee's pieces moved to a different square. "Check-mate." She said with a giggly smile before she trotted towards the front door; leaving Peewee with a joyed smile and Jeff with his beak hanging wide.

"Thank you ever so much, Twilight. I feel much better now." Rarity said as she trotted out the doorway and into the streets.

Twilight then walked over to the doorway and watched Rarity go. "You're welcome." She called as she watched Rarity disappear into the streets. "I guess." she said to herself with a raised eye brow before she used her magic to close the door.

As Twilight walked back over to her cushion to continue reading her book, Jeff was still stunned by his sudden loss. "How the hay did this happen?" He asked out loud.

Peewee chuckled. "Guess I was just lucky, huh?"

"But you didn't make the move; it was…." Jeff then decided to give it up and admit defeat "Ah, to heck with it! Chess is a dull game anyway, let's play something else!" he groaned with his wings crossed.

Twilight heard this and giggled silently in amusement before she used her magic to turn to the next page of her book.

Meanwhile: Fluttershy's cottage

After Derpy had gotten us all our own mailbags and delivered a few letters to a small number of houses, Me, Derpy and the Crusaders approached Fluttershy's cottage.

Once we got close enough, we all stopped and Derpy shoved her head into her mailbag and pulled out a few letters in her mouth. She then walked across the bridge and up to the cottage. "Hey Derpy, wait up! I might as well see Fluttershy while we're here." I said before I looked down at the Crusaders. "You three stay here! I'll be back in a minute." I said before I followed Derpy.

The Crusaders the sat down on the ground and each of them let out a big sigh. "Oh, this is so boring." Scootaloo moaned.

Applebloom looked over to her. "I know, remember when I once said I would do anythin' to get my cutie mark? Well I take that back now."

"Come on girls, it's not that bad. Sure, it's not the most interesting thing in the world, but it's better than sitting around doing nothing." Sweetie Belle stated.

"But we are sittin' around doin' nothin', how are we supposed to earn our cutie marks like this?" Applebloom asked.

Sweetie Belle then lowered her head and shook her mailbag off her body. Once it fell off, she looked down at it. "Maybe we can go to the other houses and deliver their letters while Matt and Derpy finish up here." She suggested.

Scootaloo then nodded. "Yeah, let's do that! If we're gonna earn our cutie marks, we have to do things ourselves." She said before she and Applebloom lowered their heads and their mailbags fell to the ground as well. They each then shoved their faces into their bags and searched around in them.

Meanwhile, Derpy opened Fluttershy's mailbox with her hoof before she placed the letters inside and closed the mailbox, she then pushed her hoof on the mailbox flag until it was pointing upwards. Once she was done with that, I then walked up to the door of Fluttershy's cottage and knocked on it.

After a few seconds, the door opened to reveal Fluttershy, she then smiled once she saw it was me. "Hello Matt, what brings you by?" she asked kindly.

I then smiled back. "Nothing, just thought I'd say hi while dropping off your mail."

Fluttershy then looked over to her mailbox to see the mail flag up and Derpy standing next to it. "Hi Fluttershy." Derpy said as she waved her hoof.

Fluttershy then looked back to me with a raised eye brow. "But Matt, I thought you delivered supplies for Applejack." She then gasped slightly before she gave me a concerned look. "Oh no, did you get fired? Did you quit? What happened?"

I chuckled slightly. "Fluttershy, calm down! I didn't get fired and I didn't quit, I still work for Applejack. I'm just helping Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo earn their cutie marks by delivering mail."

Once Fluttershy heard those names, she giggled slightly. "Well, you'd better be careful! Those girls can be quite the hoof full. Believe me!"

While I was talking to Fluttershy, the Crusaders were still looking through their bags. "Find any letters for the next house, Applebloom?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"No, keep lookin'!" Applebloom responded before she went back to digging through her mailbag.

"Ah-ha." Scootaloo said before she pulled her head out of her bag with a letter in her mouth. "Found one." She muffled. Just then, the wind blew hard and the letter slipped out of her mouth and blew away in the wind.

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle tried to catch it, but they weren't fast enough. "Hey, get back her, you!" Applebloom called before she, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo chased after it. The letter was blown past Fluttershy's chicken pen and straight into the Ever Free Forest. And without hesitation, the girls went in after it.

Meanwhile, I was still with Fluttershy. "So you haven't had any problems with the girls yet?" Fluttershy asked curiously.

I shook my head. "Nope, no problem at all. I know the girls can sometimes be a hoof full, but today they're being little angels." I said.

I then turned my head around and looked across the bridge, only to see that the girls were gone. "Oh, where'd the little monsters go now?" I yelled in frustrated tone.

Fluttershy then looked at the spot I was looking at. "Where are they?" she asked in a worried tone.

"I don't know, they were there a minute ago." I answered.

"Err; is this a bad time to tell you that I saw the girls chase one of the letters into the Ever Free Forest?" Derpy said.

"THEY WHAT?" me and Fluttershy yelled in shock. "Derpy, why didn't you say anything sooner?" I asked.

"I didn't want to be rude." Derpy answered.

I then face-hooved myself before I looked back at Fluttershy. "I have to go after them before something bad happens to them, stay here in case they come back!" i said to her, Fluttershy then nodded.

I then turned my head to face Derpy. "Derpy, you stay here and….be Derpy!" I said before she nodded, I still couldn't tell if she was looking at me with those crossed eyes of hers.

I then quickly turned around and galloped away, I galloped across the bridge and headed towards the chicken pen were the path to the forest was. "Be careful, Matt! The forest is really dangerous." I heard Fluttershy call out.

I turned my head around while I was continuing to gallop forward. "I'm always careful." I called back with a smirk, but my words were proven wrong when I accidently galloped into a small tree. "I'm ok." I said in a daze.

I then shook off the daze and galloped around the tree, past the chicken pen and up to the entrance of the Ever Free Forest. I looked at the forest in awe before I took a deep breath and galloped into the darkness.

Later:inside the Ever Free Forest

Even in the day, it was dark inside the Ever Free Forest. I'm not going to lie; I was creeped out by not only the darkness, but the weird sounds. I heard twigs snap even though there wasn't any in my path, owl's hooting and what sounded like moaning in the wind. I was also stunned by the trees, the hollows formed faces. It was as if they were watching me, this truly was the most terrifying place in Ponyville.

But that wasn't going to stop me from bring the girls home safely. I spent what felt like an hour searching for the Crusaders but I didn't find any sign of them, I was starting to fear the worst.

I tried shouting their names but I didn't get any response. "Oh this is bad, this is very bad. I can't find them anywhere. I wish there was an easier way to do this." I thought. At that moment, I realized something. "Duh, I'm a Pegasus; I'll just fly above the forest to look for them." I said to myself.

I then flapped my wings and took off into the air. Once high enough, I flew along above the forest while looking down at it to see if I could find the girls. After a few minutes, still nothing.

Just then, I saw what looked like a hut up ahead. I figured it must be Zecora's hut, seeing how she's the only one who lives in this forest. I then flew down to it and landed in front of the window. I looked through it and I was relieved to see Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo inside.

I then galloped over to the front door and burst through it; surprising the girls and Zecora. "This gets old more and more, for ponies keep bursting through my door." She said.

I ignored he comment and walked up to the girls. "Girls, are you alright? Are you hurt in anyway?" I asked in concern.

Applebloom looked at me in confusion. "No, we're fine. What's got you so huffed up?"

I then exhaled in relief. "All of you do me a favour, never do that again! You all had me worried sick." I said in a firm voice.

The girls then hung their heads in sadness. "We're sorry, Matt." Applebloom said. "Yeah, sorry." Scootaloo added.

"We were trying to catch a letter that blew away in the wind but….we kinda lost it." Sweetie Belle said.

"Not to mention, we lost our way back to town. But I knew how to find Zecora's place, so we all came here until somepony came lookin' for us." Applebloom explained.

After hearing this, I calmed down and shook my head. I then smiled before I sat down and opened my arms to let the girls in for a hug, the girls then gave me small smiles before they walked up to me and we all shared a warm group hug. "I'm just glad you're all safe." I said calmly.

We then broke the hug and Zecora walked up to us, she then looked at me as if she was examining my face. "My dear pony, you gave me such a fright. For you are not a familiar sight." She said to me.

I then realized what she meant and I smiled sheepishly. "Oh, sorry if I startled you when I barged in like that." I then stuck my hoof out to her. "I'm Matthew, but most ponies call me Matt."

Zecora didn't shake my hoof; instead a small smile grew on her face. "Your name is Matthew, you say? Oh, how long I've waited for this day."

I then placed my hoof back on the floor. "What? You've heard of me too?" I asked in surprise.

Zecora nodded slightly. "Your victory in Canterlot is very well known, when you stopped the evil Thorn from stealing the royal throne. For it was that night which began your fame, despite the fact of your weird name."

Once I heard that, I narrowed my eyes in annoyance. "Great, now even Zecora's saying that." I thought. I then forgot about that and calmed myself down before I spoke. "Well, I was just doing what was right." I then looked out of the window and noticed the sun going lower; I then turned my head around to face the Crusaders. "It's getting dark; we'd better head back to town."

Zecora then nodded in agreement. "Yes, it's time for you to head home. For it is at night when the dangerous creatures roam."

I then walked towards the door with Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo following behind. "See ya, Zecora. You should come into town some time." Applebloom said as we left the hut.

As we walked away, Zecora walked up to her doorway to see us off. "Remember, young fillies. To earn your cutie mark, you must take things slow and steady. Then you will get your marks when you are ready."

"We will…" the girls groaned before I stopped in front of them.

I then lowered my body down to them. "We'll get there faster if I fly us there, climb on my back!" I said before the girls climbed onto my back and I took off into the skies above the trees with Zecora waving us goodbye.

Streets of Ponyville

After a short flight, I landed back in Ponyville and the Crusaders climbed off my back. I then looked down at them with a serious look. "Now girls, I don't want you doing that again, you could have gotten yourselves hurt. What would I do if that happened?"

"We know, Matt. And we're mighty sorry; we promise we won't go into the forest unless we have somepony with us." Applebloom said.

I then gave her a proud smile and ruffled the top of her head with my hoof. "Good, now I think it's time we all call it a day."

Applebloom and Scootaloo then let out small sighs before they nodded in agreement. Just then, they heard a groan from Sweetie Belle. I looked over to her to see she had a sickly look on her face with her arms wrapped around her stomach. "Sweetie Belle, are you alright?" I asked in concern.

She looked up at me. "I…I think those bad cupcakes are…coming back on me." she answered weakly before she placed her left hoof over her mouth.

I then walked up to her. "That ain't good. Come on, Sweetie! I'll take you to Rarity's." I said before I lowered myself down to let Sweetie Belle climb on my back. Once she was on, I carefully started making my way to Rarity's boutique with Applebloom and Scootaloo following behind.

Meanwhile: Canterlot Castle

Celestia was in the ballroom watching her maids put up decorations for the Grand Galloping Gala. Just then, Luna walked in and sat beside her sister. "You wanted to see me, Sister?"

Celestia looked down at her with a smile. "Yes, I wanted to ask you if you would join us at the Gala this year."

Luna was slightly surprised by this offer. "You want me to come?...well…I'm not sure."

"It would mean a lot to me if you came. Everypony's excited about it, even Twilight, Matthew and their friends are excited about coming." Celestia said.

Once Luna heard what she said, her eyes widened slightly. "Matthew? You mean...he's coming to the Gala?"

Celestia nodded, Luna secretly grew excited but her face didn't show it. She then smiled up at Celestia. "You know, maybe I will come. Seeing is how they're all going to be here, I might as well join them, it'll be like a friend reunion."

Celestia's smile grew. "That's great news, Luna. I look forward to seeing you here."

"Yes…well, I must go. I have to raise the moon before it gets too late." Luna said as she backed away towards the door while Celestia continued to watch her maids decorate.

As Luna walked down the long hallway, she couldn't help but smile in excitement. "This is wonderful; Matthew's going to the Gala. It'll be the perfect place to tell him how I feel." She thought as she trotted down towards the castle lobby.

That night: Library

After taking Sweetie Belle to Rarity's place and escorting Scootaloo and Applebloom back to their homes, I got back to the library and I was beyond ready for bed.

I went up the stairs to see Spike in his basket and Twilight sleeping on our bed; I quietly walked up to the bed and got in under the covers beside Twilight. At that moment, she slowly opened her eyes and saw me next to her. "Where have you been all day?" she asked in a sleepy voice.

"Hmm…you know…helping the girls get their cutie marks, no luck by the way….met Zecora for the first time….cooked with Pinkie Pie." I said with my eyes closed as I tried to sleep.

Twilight closed her eyes again and yawned. "That sounds good…what else did you do?" she asked as she slowly drifted back to sleep.

As I started drifting to sleep as well, I thought about what else I did today and a shocking fact hit me like a lightning bolt and my eyes shot wide open. "Holy crap, I forgot Derpy." I said out loud.

Meanwhile: Fluttershy's cottage

Derpy was still sitting beside Fluttershy's mailbox waiting for me to come back; she then looked left and right. "Matt?...girls?...anypony?" she called.

Just then, Fluttershy opened her door to see Derpy. She let out a large yawn before she spoke. "Derpy, what are you still doing here? It's the middle of the night."

Derpy then turned her head it face her. "Waiting for Matt to come back." She answered.

Fluttershy then raised her eye row in confusion. "But…Matt's probably gone home by…." She then decided to not try and she let out a small sight. "Would you like to spend the night here, Derpy?"

Derpy then grew a large smile. "Yeah, that'd be great." She said before she trotted past Fluttershy and into her cottage. Fluttershy then let out another sigh before she gently closed her front door and went back to bed with Derpy as her guest.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Note to readers: Hey everypony, I'm gonna make a contest for all of you. Whoever sends my 205th review, they will win the right to know what the next villain song will be. Guest reviews can't win because quests don't have profiles so I can't send PM's or reply to their reviews, so sorry to the guest readers. Good luck.

Please remember to review!

Next chapter will be up soon. If not soon, then the 25th of September. Depends on how quick it's done.