Fillies and colts exit the small wooden school house, awaiting their parents/escorts or traveling home on their own. The Cutie Mark Crusaders navigate through the crowd of parents and students.

"Apple Bloom, you said he'd meet us here after school. Where is he?" Scootaloo huffs as she searches through the crowd around her.

"Give ‘im some time, Ms. Cheerilee let us go a little early today," the yellow earth pony responds, causing the orange pegasus to let out a loud groan.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" a voice says snootily from behind the three. "It’s the Blank Flank Crusaders." A set of high pitched giggles follows, signifying another pony is there besides the one who made the remark. Apple Bloom face-hoofs at the two pony's jeers as Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle turn towards their origin.

"Ah ain't in the mood for trouble from you two. So if ya’ll would kindly leave..."

The small pink filly smirks at the request and turns to the gray filly beside her. "You hear that, Silver Spoon?" The gray earth pony nods.

"I sure did, Diamond Tiara. She wants us to leave her and her wittle friends alone." Silver Spoon mocks in a childish tone.

"That's a pretty big demand from a couple of..."

"Blank flanks!" they say in unison, giggling at the three fillies in front of them.

"What's a 'blank flank’?” a familiar voice asks from behind the two ponies, causing them to rear back in surprise and whip around to face the mysterious arrival. A bewildered Sonic stands before the two fillies, scratching his head in confusion.

"It-it m-m-m-means..." Diamond Tiara stutters as she stares at the blue hedgehog, unable to get the words out.

“I didn't quite catch that," Sonic says as he lowers to a half kneeling position, though he still towers over the small ponies.

"It’s what you call a loser pony without a cutie mark!" Silver Spoon snaps as she squats on the ground.

The blue hedgehog returns to a standing position and crosses his arms with a stern look on his face. "So, by not having a ‘mark’," Sonic uses finger quotes on the last part, "that symbolizes your special talent makes you inferior?" the blue hedgehog asks, raising an eyebrow at the fillies.

"According to those two, it is!" Scootaloo chimes in as she glares at the two cowering ponies in front of her.

Sonic lets a low hum as he scratches his chin. "Well, I don't have one of those marks,” he states as he kneels in front of the two fillies. "Does that make me any less of a hedgehog?" The pink pony jerks her head back as the blue hedgehog glares at her as he finishes the question while the gray pony besides her, raises an eyebrow and takes a few steps towards the hedgehog.

"Actually, you do have a cutie mark." Silver Spoon states as she notions towards Sonic's side with her hoof. The blue hedgehog springs to his feet and attempts to find this marking.

"Really? Where? What does it look like?" he asks, spinning in circles.

Adjusting her glasses, the gray pony stares intently at the hedgehog's leg. "It's a white storm cloud, with a three colored lightning bolt jutting from the bottom of it."

"HEY! That's just like Rainbow Dash's Cutie mark!" Scootaloo interjects as her wings flare out.

Sonic gives the small filly a perplexed look, before letting out an amused chuckle. "Oh, I forgot all about that,” he recalls as he wipes the mark away with his hand. "I ran into Dash earlier today, and she must have slapped that on there when she zoomed by." The hedgehog shrugs. "I guess that's what she meant when she said, 'You've just been Rainbow Dashed'."

The cutie mark crusaders giggle at the bad joke, while Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon slowly inch away.

"This reminds me of an old saying. ‘Life is a journey, not a destination. Discovering who you are is a journey in itself’." The two small fillies’ terrified expressions fade as they mow over the statement. "So, good for whatever a crown and spoon means. But just because some ponies haven't found what their 'special talents’ are yet doesn't make them any less of ponies."

Sonic walks past the two fillies and motions the three crusaders to follow. "C'mon, let’s go. You're sisters will have my head if I don't get you back soon." The three fillies nod and cheerfully follow the blue hedgehog.

------

The door of Golden Oaks Library violently swings open as an enraged and dolled up Twilight stands on the other side of it. "Uh, welcome back," Spike says cautiously as he peers down at the lavender pony from the top of the stairs.

Twilight lets out a loud snort as she slides the now decorated saddle bags off her back. "I take it, not everything went as planned,” the purple dragon adds as he walks down the staircase. The lavender unicorn glares at the dragon's question.

"Remember when I said, Rarity wanted to do something specific to a certain era?" Spike nods. "Well she didn't tell me which part of it, so I brought all the books I could find and..."
"This is what you got?" the dragon says as he points at the unicorn’s new look.

Twilight nods as she lets out a long sigh. "Well at least you look nice, I'm sure a certain someone will like it." Spike says teasingly as he gestures towards the mare, causing her glare at the baby dragon.
"Spike."

The dragon holds his hand up in defeat. "Ok, I'm done." He grabs something from behind his back. "Oh, by the way, this letter came for you while you were gone."

Twilight stares at the scroll for a moment, before using her magic to take it from Spike's hand.

------

Atop a low hanging cloud, a certain cyan mare sleeps peacefully, blissfully unaware of the world below her. Letting out a loud yawn, she stretches her wings and back before slumping back onto the cloud.
"Another exciting day in Ponyville," the mare says sarcastically with a sigh. "I wonder where Sonic went. I bet he could make things more exciting." Rainbow Dash raises an eyebrow at her statement. "Or are things just exciting when I'm around him?" The pegasus ponders the question for a moment, till a loud crack breaks her train of thought and a blue streak zips by below her.

"Ah, yeah. Now that's what I'm talking about. A race against him will get me outta this funk," Rainbow Dash says excitedly as she leaps from the cloud, only to see no sign of the blue hedgehog.

"Son of a...*groan* where'd he go?"

------

In the orchards of Sweet Apple Acres, a wheat-colored earth pony wearing a brown Stetson hat furiously bucks a large apple tree, causing a plethora of red apples to shower from its branches into the buckets below.
"Pheeew!" the pony says as she uses her foreleg to wipe the sweat from her brow. "At this rate, it’s gonna take all week to get ‘er done." The mare adds as she stares off at the ever-expanding apple orchard.

"Sup, AJ?" Sonic waves as he appears besides the wheat mare, causing her to jump back a bit.

"Oh. Hey, sugar hog. Where did you come from?"

"That-a-way." Sonic states as he points to his right with his thumb.

Applejack lets out a sarcastic laugh. "Very funny. Ah take it ya picked up mah sis and her friends already?"

Sonic nods. "Yep, there having some 'crusaders meeting' in the club house right now."

"Thank ya kindly. Ya’ll saved me a trip into town."

"Don't worry about it," the blue hedgehog says as he bats the air with his hand. "So, uh, you gonna buck all them apples?" He asks as he gestures towards the orchard spread across the horizon.

"Yessir, every year."

"How long does it typically take?"

"A couple of weeks, sometimes longer. A lot less if Big Mac helps with the buckin'."

Sonic crosses his arms and turns to the wheat mare. "What if I were to do it in less than a day...for, let’s say, all the apples I could eat?"

Applejack lets out an amused snort. "Let's make this a bit more interesting. How ‘bout all the apples ya could ever want, and, if ya really do finish before sun down, Ah'll even give ya mah hat."

The blue hedgehog grins at this and holds out his hand, giving the mare's hoof a hearty shake."You got yourself a bet."

------

Twilight rests on her stomach as she uses her magic to levitate the scroll in front of her and reads it with a shocked expression. Finally, she lets it fall to the ground as she places her hooves over her head.

------

Applejack's right eyelid twitches as she looks upon the now barren apple orchard. Rows upon rows of trees now sit bare, void of any fruit. "T-that's..."

"Impossible? Amazing? Spectacular? Feel free to stop me at any time," Sonic chimes as he appears in front of the awestruck mare.

"Oh, Sonic Ah-"

"-could just kiss you?" Sonic teases as he gives the mare an amused expression, causing her to let out an angry grunt and charge the hedgehog, shoving him to the ground and standing above him.

"Consarn it, Sonic. Ah'm getting mighty tired of that buckin' joke," Applejack snaps as she narrows her eyes at the blue hedgehog below her. "If Ah do this, will ya stop bringing it up?"

Sonic stares at the yellow mare, unable to respond to the question.

Applejack swallows hard and lets out a low sigh. "Might as well get this over with," she says as she closes her eyes and starts to lower her head towards the hedgehog.

"Hey, wait a minute, what are you-" Sonic's words are cut off as Applejack places her lips against his. The blue hedgehog tenses up for a moment as his eyes shoot open in shock and scan the area around him, only to relax a moment later and place his hand on the back of the wheat mare's head.

Applejack breaks away from the kiss and smiles at the hedgehog below her. "Ah rather enjoyed that, y’all’re a pretty good kisser."

Sonic smiles at this and lets his arms fall to his side. "You're not so bad yourself."

The mare's expression turns serious as she slides off the hedgehog and holds out her hoof to help him up. "Now then, we had a deal, and-"

Leaping to his feet, the blue hedgehog dusts himself off and gives the mare a stern look. "For the record, I was just teasing you about the kiss." Sonic states as he crosses his arms. "I didn't actually expect you to do it."

Applejack's head rears back at the comment. "Come again, sugar hog?"

"I'm saying that you didn't have to do that."

"Horse apples!" The yellow mare stomps angrily as she turns her attention towards the ground. "Sugar hog, Ah'm so sorry. This ain't going to make things all weird now, is it?" She adds turning her attention back towards Sonic. He shrugs in response.

"Only if you make it that way. I'm willing to sum it up as a 'heat of the moment' thing... unless I missed something and-"

"Nope, ‘heat o’ the moment’ is fine. There’s no need to go turning this into something it ain’t."

Sonic raises an eyebrow at the mare's hasty response, only to through his arms up in air in confusion and then cross them behind his head. "Ok then… moving on," he says taking a few steps past the wheat earth pony. "If I remember correctly, a certain apple-buckin' mare owes me some apples."

"And Ah have just the thing," Applejack says as she trots towards the hedgehog, stops, and places her hat on his head.

"What's this?" Sonic asks, tilting the brim of the hat upward.

"A deal’s a deal, sugar hog." She sighs and looks sorrowfully at the ground. "Take good care of the old girl, she was mah pa's."

"AJ, I can't take this!" the hedgehog protest.

"Ah'm a mare of my word. Ah ain't backing down ‘cuz I lost."

"But-"

"No buts. She’s all yours now." Applejack's head snaps back up as she starts to trot towards the family home. "Now then, you said you wanted some apples. Granny Smith just baked some of her famous apple pie. Y’all're welcome to some, if ya want it."

------

A purple dragon cautiously walks towards Twilight, who’s still lying on the floor with her hooves on her head. "Hey, you alright?"

Silence.

"Twilight?"

"Go away!" the lavender mare snaps as she buries her face in her forelegs.

"But-"

"Please, Spike, just leave. I want to be left alone."

------

Apple Bloom peers out the front window at the approaching hedgehog and wheat mare, a wide grin on her face as she bounces up and down on the couch, leaping from it as the front door swings open.

"Howdy there."

"Sup."

"Hey, Apple Bloom. Yer meetin' end early today or somethin’?" Applejack inquires as she steps into the kitchen and pours herself a glass of water.

"Yes'm. Also, can Ah ask ya a question?"

Applejack gives the filly a nod as she takes a swig from the glass of water.

"Are you two dating now or something?"

"WHAT?!?" Sonic shouts as he takes a step backwards.

"PPFFFFTTT!" Applejack spits out the water she was about to consume, coughing a bit afterwards.

"Uh, Apple Bloom..." Sonic begins.

"Where in the hay didja hear that!" The yellow mare snaps as she slams the empty glass on the counter.

Apple Bloom fidgets for a moment before responding. "Ah saw you two kissing in the orchard." She points to Sonic. "Plus, he's got yer favorite hat on, so Ah figured that you two were a thing now and..." The filly trails off.

The blue hedgehog glances up at the hat, then back down at Apple Bloom. "Oh, this? Applejack bet me it that I couldn't clear the orchard by sun down," he states, gesturing at the wheat mare. "And as for what you saw, your sis was just being a silly pony."

Applejack glares at Sonic as he finishes his sentence.

♪"Who's a silly pony? You’re a silly pony! Who is? You is..."♪ He points to the infuriated mare. ♪"...Applejack. Bumping into gates and knocking over fences, who is? You is, Applejack!"♪

Apple Boom rolls on the floor in laughter, as her sister glares daggers at the blue hedgehog, then takes a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself. "Couldja kindly not sing that?"

"Huh, why?"

"Ah buckin' hate that song!" Applejack snaps, jostling Apple Bloom from her fit of laughter.

Sonic smirks at the wheat earth pony, much to her annoyance. "Fine, fine, I'll quit."

Applejack smiles in response and opens her mouth to speak, but is cut off by a voice calling out from behind her, "Who wants some apple pie?"

The trio turns to an elderly female earth pony, holding a large pie in her hoof.

------

The sun sets in the horizon as Applejack and Sonic travel along the long dirt trail from Sweet Apple Acres towards the main road.

"Aaaw, ya sure ya have to leave?" Applejack whines as the duo passes under the large arch to the farm.

"Yeah, it’s getting late. I’d better head back."

"Well, don't be a stranger, sugar hog. It was mighty nice havin' ya here."

"Glad I could help."

The two exchange nods and head towards their respective locations, with Sonic abruptly stopping as he glances at the Stetson on his head. "Hold a sec," he calls out, running towards Applejack.

"What the-" The blue hedgehog places the hat on the mare's head. "Hey!"

"There you go."

Applejack narrows her eyes at the hedgehog. "What in tarnation do ya think yer doing? This ain't mine anymore."

"And that is why I am giving it to you, on permanent loan."

"Say what?"

"It's a loophole, since you're so gung-ho about keeping your word, I'm loaning this to you for as long as you’d like." He grins. "Besides, it looks better on you anyway.

Applejack tilts the hat down to hide her expression, revealing a long blue quill tucked into the brim of the Stetson, causing Sonic to smile. "Thank ya kindly, Ah'll be sure to take good care of ‘er."

Sonic lets out an amused chuckle. "I'm sure you will."

The two exchange nod once more and depart, each towards there predetermined location.

------

Leaving Sweet Apple Acres in his dust, the blue hedgehog closes the gap between himself and Ponyville, only to abruptly stop as he reaches the outskirts of the town, noticing a peculiar rumbling of the ground below his feet.

"What is that-GAH!" Something crashes in to the unsuspecting hedgehog, sending him tumbling across the ground in a whirl of pink and blue.

"Pinkie! What are you doing?" the hedgehog snaps as he opens his eyes to see the pink party pony on top of him.

"Just saying hello, silly," the pink pony states, flashing the blue hedgehog a large grin.

"Most people- er, ponies- greet me with a wave or give a simple howdy-do, not a game of hedgehog bowling."

"Silly Spiky, don't you know what a glomp is?"

"A what?"

"A glomp! It’s sort of like an enthusiastic sneaky hug."

"So, what you just did was a 'glomp?'"

Pinkie nods enthusiastically. "Yessiree!"

"Well, I don't like it."

The pink mare's smile fades. "What?"

"How about a friendly hello or a wave?"

Pinkie's smile returns. "But that would be lame, and you always ways say you don't like 'lame things'."

Sonic smirks at the mare. "Touché, but there’s gotta be a better way to-"

"Oh my gosh, I totally forgot! I was actually trying to find you for something," the pink earth pony recalls, springing to her feet.

The blue hedgehog rises to his feet. "Really? What for?"

"My Pinkie Sense has been going crazy all day, with all the twitchy-twitches and springy-springs and-" She's shakes her tail. "-tinglingly-binglingings that-"

"C'mon Pinkie, you know I still don't understand that sixth sense of yours."

"But the tail, and the twitching-"

"Look, if you can pinpoint what’s causing your Pinkie Sense to spazz out, you know where to find me. I’m calling it a night."

"Okie-dokie-lokie!" The pink mare salutes as she zips away, leaving a pink streak behind her.

Sonic shakes his head in the direction of the mare's departure. "What a strange pony."

------

Upon entering the dimly lit library, Sonic spots a lumpy something resting in the middle of the floor. Upon closer inspection, he realizes that the lumpy thing is actually Twilight, lying curled up with her head hiding under her tail, trembling slightly.

"Twilight!" the blue hedgehog shouts in alarm as he runs towards the lavender mare. She slowly raises her head at the hedgehog's outburst.
"S-Sonic?" she sniffles.

The hedgehog smiles as he kneels next to the unicorn and places his hand gently on her shoulder. "Yeah, I'm here."

Tears stream down Twilight’s face as she turns her head away from Sonic. Sonic places his hand under her chin and gently lifts her face into view, making her look into a pair of sympathetic emerald eyes. "What's wrong?"

Twilight loses what little composure she has and wraps her forelegs around Sonic's torso, burying her face into his chest and crying softly.

"What am I going to do?" the mare asks through her tears. "No word in almost a week, and now the Princess wants to see me regarding my lack of reports."

Sonic cradles the small pony in his arms and places his hand on the back of her head. "Just tell her the truth."

"The truth?"

"Yeah, that you've had your hands...er hooves full helping me get settled here."

"I doubt Celestia will believe me at this point."

"Why wouldn't she? The way you always talk about her, you'd think she'd at least give you a chance to explain."

Twilight wipes a tear away with her foreleg. "You really think so?"

"I know so. I'll even go with you so that she know you're not yanking her chain."

The lavender unicorn wipes the last of her tears away and looks up into the kind face of the hedgehog before smiling and resting her head on his chest. "Thank you, Sonic."

------

Darkness overtakes the land as the last of the sun’s rays disappear behind the horizon. A now less grief-stricken Twilight, sits next to Sonic, resting her head on his side.

"Feel better?" The hedgehog inquires as he strokes the side of the mare’s head.

"Much, thank you."

Sonic smiles. "I’m glad to hear it," he says warmly. His smile fades. "I don't like seeing you like that."

Twilight smiles as she nuzzles up against the hedgehog's chest. "I don't have to worry about that happening when you're around." She looks up at Sonic. "You really have a way with words. You always know just what to say to cheer a pony up when she’s feeling down."

The blue hedgehog lets out a heavy sigh as the mare's words and lets his arm fall next to the his side.

"What's wrong?" Twilight asks, a look of concern spreading across her face.

"That's all I've been doing lately: saying a few words of encouragement or kindness, and everything seems to work out fine after that."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"It's not, it’s just… I mean, it's just not me... I suppose you wouldn't understand."

Twilight rises to her hooves and looks down at the blue hedgehog. "That's where you're wrong. I understand completely. You've saved your world countless times from the constant threats that plague it, as something always seemed to want to conquer or destroy it. You haven’t saved your world though acts of diplomacy or debates, but through taking action." She smiles. "Something of which you've been severely deprived of as of late."

The mare's words bring a smile to Sonic's face.

"Which is part of the reason why I...I..." Twilight stutters as she attempts to force out the rest of the sentence. "That is to say that I...*sigh* think you're magnificent."

Sonic rises from the floor. "Thanks, you're a pretty rad gal yourself."

Twilight rears back at this, making Sonic let out an amused laugh.

"Relax, it's a good thing," he says, patting the top of the mare's head and causing her to blush slightly.

The mare turns away, trying to hide her face.

"I keep forgetting you have all that info about me floating around in that head of yours," he says tapping on the unicorn's forehead.

"W-well I'm always happy to help."

"And that, you have," Sonic states as he arches is back, causing it to let out a series of snaps and pops, the last one making him wince slightly. He follow up by doing a series of stretches and warm up movements.

"Where are you going?"

"Have to get out of here for a minute, stretch my legs. Been cooped up here a little too long... wanna come?"

The mare shakes her head. "That’s okay, you go on ahead. I'll stay here."

"Suit yourself. Also, I'll let everyone know to meet you at the station tomorrow."

"Thank you."

Sonic flashes Twilight a quick thumbs up and flings the front door open. "I'll be back in a dash...er flash."

Twilight nods and uses her magic to close the door behind him, letting out a sigh as he departs.

"You blew it, didn’t you, Twilight?" a familiar voice asks as a certain purple dragon enters the room.

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, you know exactly what I mean."

------

Next Time!

Rarity: "Ah Sonic, as always it’s such a pleasure to see you. Though I must ask, what would prompt you to visit at such an hour? Some of us do need our beauty sleep after such a stressful day."

Rainbow Dash: "I'm heading home. Want to come by and hang out for a little bit?"

Twilight: "P-Princess Luna!"

Luna: "You have committed grave taboo!"

Author's Notes:

Our hero assists a certain apple bucking mare with her harvest, while Twilight discovers the gravity of her actions. Seeking the blue hedgehog's help.

What was in that letter, what did Spike mean, and why am i asking all these questions? Find out next time.