"Hey! New girl!"

Pinkie Pie looked over her shoulder and down the dirt road that led back to the schoolhouse. A pair of brightly colored fillies were running after her, wearing the same school uniforms and carrying the same tiny saddlebags.

"Oh, hey." Pinkie Pie stopped and waited for them. She stroked her long, straight hair away from her eyes—an old habit. "You're, uh... Flicker Flash, right?"

"Yeah, that's me."

The other filly smiled at her and waited patiently.

"Em... Emerald, uh..." Pinkie Pie rubbed her nose. "It starts with an 'e', right?"

Her ears drooped. "Emberleaf," she said. "I sit right behind you."

Pinkie managed a half-hearted smile. "Sorry. I'm not too good with names."

Flicker Flash smiled back at her. "Don't worry. It's your first day, is all. You'll get the hang of it."

"Yeah. Sure."

Pinkie Pie continued walking down the dirt road, and the two fillies fell in beside her. She paused to look back at them, then quickened her pace. They followed suit.

"What are you doing?"

They glanced at each other, then back at her.

"Didn't you have any friends at your last school?"

"Not really."

Emberleaf's eyes widened. "No friends? Not even one?"

Pinkie Pie turned away. "I never went to a school before. I was homeschooled."

"Why? Are you stupid or something?"

Flicker Flash slapped Emberleaf's shoulder. "Ember! How could you?"

"I just wanna know! That's all!"

Pinkie shrugged. "So what if I am?"

"Hey," said Emberleaf, "what's nine times seven?"

"Sixty three," Pinkie said, "but the nines are all really easy."

"...Really?"

"There's a trick. The first number is always one less than the operand, and the two digits always add up to nine."

"Huh?"

"Lets do nine times seven. One less than seven is six, so the answer has to be sixty-something. Six less from nine is three, and that gives you sixty three."

Emberleaf stared off into the distance for a moment.

"...Whoa."

"Yeah. It's fun once you figure it out."

"So, okay. Can you add up all the numbers from one to a hundred?"

"Five thousand and fifty."

Emberleaf gasped.

"Lemme guess," said Flicker Flash, "there's a trick to that too?"

Pinkie Pie smirked. "Of course there is. That's what math is about."

They walked in silence for a moment.

Emberleaf squinted at Pinkie "...What number am I thinking of?"

Pinkie Pie rolled her eyes.

Flicker Flash gave a polite cough. "So, why didn't you take the school bus home?"

"I live right nearby. It's just a ten minute walk." She nodded ahead. "It's that road right there, actually. See the white mailbox?"

Flicker Flash frowned. "The bus goes past there every day. Isn't it a rock farm or something?"

"Yeah."

"So why are you going to a rock farm?"

Pinkie nodded. "Maybe because I live on a rock farm."

Flicker Flash frowned. "Seriously? You're not just making that up?"

Pinkie Pie shrugged. "Believe it or don't. Doesn't make a difference to me either way."

"You might regret it later. I still remember Puddle Jumper's first day at school..." She nodded to Emberleaf. "Do you remember?"

Emberleaf nodded. "Do I ever. Nopony's going to let him forget it."

Pinkie arched an eyebrow. "Really? What happened?"

"He stood up in front of the whole class and said his dad was a royal guard at the palace. He was, like, the coolest kid in the whole school for about a week. Then—'

Flicker Flash nodded. "Then they had bring-a-parent-to-school day. Turns out his dad was just an accountant or something."

Ember scowled at her. "I thought I was telling the story!"

"Yeah, you probably were."

Pinkie turned to look at them both. "He lied about a royal guard? I thought you could get in real trouble for that. Like... grown-up trouble."

"Big time," said Emberleaf. She leaned close and whispered "I heard he got a talking to from his parents and the principal... at the same time!"

Flicker Flash shrugged. "Even worse, everypony was calling him a loser and a liar for weeks. He still hasn't gotten over it. Always sits alone at lunch."

Pinkie Pie glanced between them. "Why didn't anypony talk to him?"

"Whaddya mean? What for?"

"I dunno. To make him feel better. Or something."

Flicker shook her head. "He was pretty grumpy after that. He wouldn't listen to anypony."

"Besides," said Emberleaf, "what would you have said?"

Pinkie Pie stared at the road ahead.

They came to the white mailbox. Pinkie Pie nodded to the rough dirt road that led south. "So."

"This is your place?" said Emberleaf.

"Yeah."

"Hey, I've never seen a rock farm before. It sounds kinda cool!"

Pinkie Pie looked at her. "I hope you like disappointment."

"Well... do you think we could visit for a little while?"

"Ehh..."

Flicker flash nodded to her. "It's okay. We can take a hint. Maybe we can hang out some other time."

"Yeah, sure."

Pinkie tugged at the strap of her own saddlebag, then jogged down the road by herself. Halfway down, she saw an elderly mare walking out to meet her. She was dressed in the same outfit as always: a frumpy, black and brown dress that was rugged and plain and covered with age-old dirt stains.

"Pinkie!" She rushed out to meet her and gave her a big, strong hug. "Are you all right, sweetie? They didn't bully you, did they?"

"I'm fine, Granny Pie. Really."

Granny set her down and straightened out her school uniform. "Oh, my poor little baby! You forgot the lunch I made for you—you were so nervous, you left it right on the porch before you left!"

"Right. Forgot."

"I made a special trip and took it to the schoolhouse. Did they give it to you?"

Pinkie Pie winced as Granny Pie fussed over her mane. "Everything was fine, Gramma. The school gave us all lunch anyways."

"Well I'm sure it wasn't enough. You're a growing filly, you know. I made a fresh tray of cornbread just this morning. Would you like some?"

Pinkie Pie's ears perked up. "Really? That'd be nice, actually."

Granny Pie turned back towards the farmstead and led her down the path. "So how was your first day? Was the teacher mean to you?"

"Would you relax, already? Everyone was really nice to me. Honest."

"Well, that's a relief. Did you make any friends?"

She stared at the dirt road. "Eh."

"Well it was just your first day, is all. I'm sure you'll have lots of friends in no time."

They reached the end of the path and walked past a small wooden gate, home at last.

Pinkie Pie pawed at the dirt. "Actually, Granny..."

"Yes, sweetie?"

"Is it okay if I have a friend over tomorrow? Or... whenever?"

Granny Pie smiled at her. "You certainly may!"

The next day after school, Pinkie Pie led Flicker Flash and Emberleaf along a narrow path through rough, bramble-choked forest. The ground here was hard earth littered with grey rocks that had been sanded smooth on top by countless rainy seasons. The path was full of twists and turns that led over and around all sorts of tiny hills and outcroppings.

Emberleaf stared up at the branches of a massive ash tree, covered with curtains of ivy and moss. "Oooh... I bet that's spooky at night!"

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" said Flicker Flash.

Pinkie Pie nodded. "I could find my way through here blindfolded," she said. "It's not much farther."

"But it's so wild! It's like a jungle and a mountain got smooshed together."

They kinda did, actually. Our farm is near the edge of the Everfree forest."

Emberleaf gasped. "The Everfree forest!? Why would anypony live anywhere near there?"

Pinkie Pie shrugged. "If you want to grow the best rocks, you gotta do it somewhere rough and tumble. The rougher the better."

"Besides," said Flicker Flash, "She said it was near the forest. Not in it."

Emberleaf jogged ahead and walked next to Pinkie Pie. "Do monsters ever wander out and chase after you?"

"Not so far."

"What about ghosts? Any of those?"

"Nope."

"There's gotta be something scary around here. I mean, just look at this place! What's the scariest thing you've ever seen?"

"Can't think of anything, really. I don't get scared anymore."

"Aww!"

Flicker Flash frowned at her. "Whaddya mean you don't get scared? Everypony does once in a while."

"Not me," said Pinkie Pie. "Not anymore, at least. Not since my granny taught me how not to be scared."

Flicker Flash arched an eyebrow. "What'd she teach you?"

Pinkie smirked. "That's a secret."

Flicker Flash opened her mouth to speak, but Emberleaf cut her off with a shout. "Hey! What's that over there?"

They looked at the side of the road and saw a side path that was even rougher than the one they were on now: the trees closed in around it so tightly that it looked like a tunnel, and the ground was choked with weeds and vines.

"It looks like a secret way!" Emberleaf hopped over and peered in. "Where d'you think it goes?"

Pinkie Pie glanced at the sunny sky above. "North... must be one of the other farms. Not sure whose."

Flicker Flash went to a faded wooden signpost—barely visible through the leaves—and pulled aside a thick curtain of moss. "It says something about... brambles?"

"What? No!" Pinkie Pie rushed ahead and stood in the way. "That must be old mare Bramble's farm. We can't go there. She hates trespassers."

"Whats-a-matter?" said Flicker Flash. "Are you afraid of her?"

"Of course not."

Emberleaf hopped in place. "What's she like? Is she mean and nasty? Does she yell a lot?"

"I don't know. I've never actually met her before."

"What about her farm, huh? What's it like? What's she grow there?"

"Well it's not like I've ever been there before."

Flicker Flash tilted her head. "...So what do you know about her?"

"Well, she... she's... old."

They waited, eagerly.

"...And she hates trespassers."

"That's all?" said Flicker Flash, "You lived here your whole life and you never even met your neighbor?"

"Never mind that," Pinkie Pie said as she waved them back towards the main path. "Farm neighbors aren't like city neighbors. We're like a million miles away from each other."

Emberleaf tilted her head. "Y'mean farmers ain't friendly?"

"Grownups visit all the time. It's just too far for little kids." Pinkie Pie smiled back at her. "We don't visit often... but when we do, we're the friendliest folks you'll ever meet."

They continued on down the main path. Eventually, Pinkie Pie led them through a wooden gate and into a small clearing between a pair of farmhouses. The buildings looked old and faded, made of wind worn wood and covered with ivy streamers. There was an elderly mare standing on the front porch to their left, sweeping up at a leisurely pace. The mare looked up as they approached and smiled warmly.

"Good afternoon, Pinkie! And who are these lovely ponies? Are these your friends from school?"

Pinkie nodded to each of her friends in turn. "This is Emberleaf, and this is Flicker Flash."

Both of them curtseyed together. "Good afternoon, Missus Pie!"

"Well don't you two know your manners? Please, make yourselves at home. Is there anything you'd like? We have a fresh pot of stew and some homemade bread, if you'd like."

Emberleaf's eyes widened. "Homemade bread?"

"Maybe later," said Pinkie. "Is it okay if we go play in the barn? I wanna show 'em the big rope swing over the hay loft."

"Yes, but you'd best not go alone." Granny Pie looked up at the house's second story window and called out. "Inky? Are you there, Inky Pie? Your little sister needs you."

Pinkie Pie's ears drooped. "Aw, come on!"

"You know the rules." Granny turned back to the window above. "Now now, Inky! I know you can hear me."

"Not now," a disgruntled voice called back. "I don't have time for baby stuff."

"This is important. Pinkie brought some friends over, and you know the rules. Little ponies can't play in the barn without a big pony watching."

A teenaged filly with a black mane and a light grey coat stuck her head out the window. She looked down at them with a puzzled frown. "Wait. Pinkie has friends?"

Granny gave her a stern look. "Yes, she does. Now come down and be neighborly."

Inky Pie rolled her eyes. "Won't last," she muttered to herself.