Big Mac and Dinky walked Cheerilee home. After saying good night, they started the trek to Sweet Apple Acres. The sun was setting, and Dinky was beginning to yawn. They walked in silence, Big Mac unsure what to say to the diminutive unicorn walking beside him.

“Uh- do ya play with Apple Bloom much?” he asked, awkwardly.

Dinky looked at her hooves. “Not really” she muttered, barely audibly.

“Who do you play with at school then?”

“Don’t play with anyone,” she whispered.

“Hmm,” he responded.

They fell back into silence.

Dinky continued to yawn, and started to stumble. Big Mac stopped, and laid down on the ground.

“Come on,” he gestured for her to climb onto his back.

Dinky sat down as they stopped, but turned to him and shook her head.

“I can do it,” she told him, determination in her eyes.

Big Mac smiled at her, and got back up. “Okay. Let’s get movin’ then. But if you do get tired, let me know.”

Dinky managed to walk all the way to Sweet Apple Acres, and Big Mac led them into the house.

“Where in tarnation have you been?” Applejack bore down on Big Mac. “Ah had to work the south field all by mahself!”

“Ahem,” Big Mac coughed as Dinky walked in beside him. Applejack looked down, confused.

“Apple Bloom,” he hollered. “You got a friend visiting.”

“Coming!” Crashes were heard coming from upstairs. The small yellow filly crashed as she hit the bottom of the stairs.

“Who’s here?” she squealed with joy. “Is it Sweetie Belle? Or Scootaloo? or–” She broke off. “Why's Dinky here?”

Dinky hid behind Big MacIntosh.

"Dinky’s here to stay the night,” Big Mac answered both the questioning looks from Applejack and Apple Bloom. “Her mother had a bit of an accident and has to stay in the hospital tonight.”

“Apple Bloom, can you go upstairs and set up a bed while Ah talk to yer brother?”

Applejack looked down at Dinky. “Hey darlin, m’ah name’s Applejack. You had anything for dinner?”

Dinky shook her head, still partially hiding behind Big Mac.

“Well come on in, and let’s get you somethin’,” she smiled. “How about some apple pie?”

Applejack went to the kitchen, and served up a slice of apple pie, and brought it to the table where Dinky was sitting. “Now you eat up, sugarcube!”

She left Dinky eating the pie and turned towards her brother. “Now, d’yah mind explainin’ ta me what in the hay happened?”

“Eesh, that must have been one hay of a tumble,” Applejack exclaimed, after Big Mac had told her what happened. “And she’s gon’ an broken her wing.”

“Eeyup.”

“Wait- Ditzy? You mean Derpy?”

Big Mac frowned. “Huh?”

“The mailmare. It’s what everypony calls her. Derpy or summit. S’what Rainbow called her. Remember she was the one who messed up Town Hall before I went to the Canterlot Rodeo? From what Ah hear from RD, she’s always crashin’ in ta stuff.”

At that moment, Apple Bloom returned downstairs.

“Bed’s been made up,” Apple Bloom muttered. “Ah’m goin’ ta bed.”

“Didn’ ya want ta stay up and play with yer little friend?” Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow.

Apple Bloom looked over at Dinky, who was still slowly prodding and dissecting her pie.

“Nah, Ah’m plum tuckered,” she replied, eyes darting about. “Ah just think Ah’ll go get some sleep.” Apple Bloom turned and went back up to her room.

Applejack and Big Mac just looked at each other.

After Dinky had finished her pie (she had evidently separated the crust from the apples, and had eaten them separately), Applejack took her to wash up while Big Mac cleaned her plate. Applejack trotted back down the stairs.

“She’s all tuckered out. Ah put her in the guest bedroom,” Applejack sighed, “poor li’l darlin.”

“Eeyup”

Big Mac climbed the stairs wearily, he’d just finished a bottle of cider with Applejack. He meandered his way to his own room, when he heard soft sobs. He knocked on the door to the guest room, and then made his way in.

“You okay?” he asked, cursing himself for sounding as gruff as he did.

Dinky sniffed in response.

Big Mac made his way to the bed, and sat down next to it.

“You miss yer ma?”

More quiet sniffs, followed by sobs.

"Wait here!” Big Mac got up, and went into his room, and grabbed a small grey doll with blue and white spotted pants.

“This here is Miss Smarty Pants,” he said, dropping the doll on the bed. “She’s a very special, very clever doll. She kept a princess company when she was a lonely little filly.”

Dinky rolled over, eyeing the doll.

“A princess?” she whispered.

“Eeyup!” he smiled. “Princess Twilight Sparkle!”

“How come you have her?”

Big Mac choked back a cough. “She, uhh, gave her to me, and now, Ah’m giving her to you. She’ll keep you safe, and she’ll make sure your mom gets better very soon.”

Dinky reached towards the doll, pulling it in close to her chest.

“She’ll make momma better?”

“Eeyup. You just cuddle her tight, and she’ll help your momma get better.”

Dinky closed her eyes, holding the doll as tight as she could. Big Mac pulled Dinky’s small pink blanket over her shoulders, and tucked her in.

Big Mac turned to leave, only to find his sister looking at him from the door, barely stifling a laugh.

The next morning, Big Mac was up early, heading out into the fields to catch up on the work he’d had to leave the previous day.

“Now ain’t you jus’ a big ol’ sweetie,” Applejack laughed behind him.

A sharp buck to the trunk of the tree he was working on, and the autumn leaves came down. Right on top of the smirking Applejack.

“What th’ hay?”

“Gotta catch up with these leaves,” Big Mac just looked at his sister with a grin. “Can’t leave all the work to my sister. Who knows who might get hurt if you try to do everything on your own again?”

Applejack frowned.

“Ah jes came here ta tell ya lunch is ready!”

Big Mac looked up at the sky. Had he really been out here that long? He’d been out here not long after dawn.

He followed Applejack back to the house. Sitting out the front, alone, was Dinky. She was picking up rocks with her magic, looking at them, then putting them back down again. He trotted up to her and looked down. She had been arranging the rocks by size and colour. There were four neat piles, and she had delicately stacked the smaller rocks on top of the larger rocks. They looked like the small cairns used to make the trails into the Everfree Forest.

“G’mornin’ Dinky”

Dinky looked up, startled by Big Mac’s sudden presence. “G-good morning,” she replied, looking back down at the piles at her feet.

Big Mac looked around for his little sister. “You not playing with Apple Bloom?”

Dinky shook her head. “She went off with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.”

Big Mac frowned. “How did you sleep last night? Did Miss Smarty Pants help?”

“She did!” Dinky looked up at Big Mac, with a wide grin. “I just know momma’s going to come home tonight!”

“Well, did you want to come in for some lunch?”

“No thank you, I’m okay. Granny Smith made me some apple slices.”

At least somepony was making an effort to make Dinky feel welcome. He turned and went inside, as Dinky returned to sorting and stacking her rocks.

Apple Bloom came bounding in with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, and they fell upon the lunch with the voracity of a pack of timberwolves. Shouting their thanks, the three dashed for the door. Big Mac called Apple Bloom back as the others went outside.

“What’s up, Big Mac?” Apple Bloom smiled, as Applejack sat down next to her.

“Just wondering why Dinky’s all alone out there.”

“Huh?” Apple Bloom asked, eyebrow raised. “She’s always like that. Playin’ with her rocks.”

“Ah think what Big Mac is askin’, is why yah didn’t ask her to play with y’all?” Applejack added.

“Well-” Apple Bloom shifted uncomfortably. “She’s jus’ kinda weird. Don’t nobody really play with her, she just plays with those rocks. Ah mean, who does that? Rocks?”

Applejack continued. “Maybe she only plays with rocks because nopony invites her to play?”

“Don’t nopony ask her to play cause she’s” - Apple Bloom looked out the window - “weird!”

“Apple Bloom!” Big Mac raised his voice.

“Now hold on there jus a moment, Big Mac,” Applejack interjected again. “If Ah remember, it weren’t too long ago you were struggling with friends. Some kids at school were teasin ya for being a blank flank?”

“Yeah?” Apple Bloom responded, cautiously.

“And yah remember how lonely y’all felt, before Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle came along?”

“Yeeeeah.” Apple Bloom frowned, obviously thinking more about it.

“And Ah don’t know if y’all noticed, but Dinky don’t have a cutie mark either, and might be feelin a bit lonely-”

The words sunk in, and it dawned on Apple Bloom. “WE SHOULD ASK HER TO BE A CUTIE MARK CRUSADER!”

“There yah go,” Applejack smiled.

Apple Bloom jumped off the seat and bound out the door.

They could hear outside a loud, “Heya Dinky. Wanna come and be a cutie mark crusader with me, and Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo?”

Applejack laughed, and Big Mac put a hoof to his face, as they heard the quiet Dinky stammer out a yes.

“Ah don’t know if I helped her, or landed her in a whole heap o’ trouble.”

“Eeyup.”

Later in the day, Apple Bloom returned, beaming, with a nervous looking Dinky in her tow.

“And tomorrow, we’re goin’ ta try getting our cutie marks in gee-ol-ogy,” Apple Bloom yelled as she burst through the door.

Big Mac had packed the small brown saddle bag, a certain small doll poking out the top.

“Time to go see your mom, Dinky.”

A thoroughly exhausted Dinky looked up at him, and smiled. “Momma’s going to come home?”

Big Mac nodded. “Cheerilee’s at the gate, we’ll be heading out soon.”

“Oh, Dinky! Make sure you come to the club house tomorrow. We gotta make you an official member!”

Dinky smiled wearily, and Big Mac hid a chuckle. “Whelp, it’s time to go.” Next Chapter: Chapter 4 Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 19 Minutes