Disclaimer: My Little Ponies and their friends are owned by Hasbro, not me!
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Brightly colored balloons and ribbons decorated the halls of Paradise Estate. The sun was gently shining down on the pink building as laughter echoed through open windows. It was a birthday party that couldn't be closer to perfect.
"Wow!" Baby Quackers exclaimed, pulling a set of stacking ring toys from a box. The other baby ponies also gasped and giggled at the gift.
"Great choice, Surprise!" Truly said to the yellow pony next to her.
Surprise giggled. "Well, I had to get an extra special surprise for Baby Quackers' birthday."
"Can ya believe the little honey pie has already gotten her first tooth?" Truly remarked, shaking her head. "It seems like only yesterday that she was a newborn."
"Now, now," said a voice from behind them, "Don't you fillies be gettin' all sentimental." Surprise and Truly turned to see a smiling yellow pony wearing a cowboy hat.
"What a fantastic surprise!" Surprise gasped.
"Tex!" Truly cried. "Ya made it!"
"Sure we did," Steamer said, coming up behind Tex. "We couldn't miss the little caboose's birthday party." The other Big Brother ponies were also coming into the room, mingling with the other ponies.
"Well, make sure ya say hello to Megan," Truly reminded Steamer and Tex. "I'm sure she'd love to see you charmin' gentlemen."
Megan was sitting next to Baby Quackers in the center of the room, passing her another gift. Baby Quackers opened it, this time revealing a large beach ball. The other baby ponies jumped up in excitement, all calling to Baby Quackers to toss the call to them. All except one, that is.
A white baby pony was sitting close to Megan's side, as if she were trying to blend into her shadow. The girl ran her fingers through the pony's pink hair and looked down at her.
"Why don't you go play with the other baby ponies, Baby Sundance?" Megan asked.
Baby Sundance just shook her head. "Don't want to," she said quietly. But her eyes continued to watch the beach ball longingly. Megan sighed. Baby Sundance was very sweet, but she was too shy to play with the other ponies. The only two she really spoke to were Megan and Sundance, her mother.
Suddenly there was a loud crash. Baby Glory had tried to toss the ball to a flying Baby Lofty, but had poor aim. Baby Lofty dove for the ball, but it flew past her into a vase on a nearby bookshelf. The ponies all gasped as Whizzer zoomed over two others to catch the vase, barely saving it from crashing into the floor. Baby Lofty fell into Megan's lap, causing a startled Baby Sundance to jump back.
"I think we should move this party outside," Megan said after making sure Baby Lofty was unhurt. The baby ponies gathered up the new toys and followed Megan out. The other ponies followed too, with Baby Sundance staying close to her mother's side.
In the yard, 4-Speed and Mimic played Follow the Leader with some of the babies, while North Star and Slugger lead a game of catch with the beach ball. Cupcake was busy cutting the cake.
"Doesn't Follow the Leader look like fun?" Sundance said, trying to urge her daughter to go play. "I'm sure Mimic would teach you how." But Baby Sundance just looked at the ground, saying nothing. Sundance sighed, feeling sad for her baby. She looked around for Megan, hoping Baby Sundance could play a game with her, but she was busy talking to a blue Big Brother pony.
"Look at Posey," Sundance said, trying again. "She's giving away flowers." Baby Sundance glanced over to see the peach pony placing a rose in Baby Moondancer's mane. "Do you want to go get one?" her mother asked.
"No, I don't need one," Baby Sundance replied. Sundance frowned, running out of ideas.
"Wow, what a perfect day for a party!" a voice came from nearby.
Sundance turned to see the Big Brother pony that had been talking to Megan standing next to her.
"Um, oh yes," she said politely. "It's really lovely out."
The blue pony tossed his mane and looked down at Baby Sundance. "And just why are you not playing?" he asked.
Baby Sundance sized him up for a moment. "Mama says not to talk to strangers," she finally replied.
The pony laughed, and Sundance found herself smiling too. He certainly is friendly, she thought to herself.
"Well your Mama must be very smart to tell you that," the newcomer said. "My name's Quarterback. And I hear you are Baby Sundance. So we're not strangers now, are we?"
Baby Sundance seemed to think about it for a moment. "I guess not."
Quarterback smiled. "Great!" he said. "So, how come you're here on the sidelines? Are you a cheerleader?"
Sundance watched her daughter in surprise. She was actually giggling at Quarterback's teasing!
"No," Baby Sundance replied. "I just… I just don't like those games."
"I see. So what do you like to do?" her new friend pushed.
"I guess…" Baby Sundance pawed at the ground, feeling a bit shy again. "I guess I like to run."
"Running?" Quarterback repeated. "Are you fast?"
Baby Sundance blushed. "Uh-huh."
Sundance glanced down at her baby, then up a Quarterback. She thought she suddenly understood what he was doing. "She's probably the fastest baby pony," she chimed in proudly. Quarterback gave Sundance a quick wink, and she thought she felt her heart skip a beat.
"Is that so?" he said. "How 'bout we have a race then?"
Baby Sundance looked up sharply. "A race? With the other baby ponies?" Quarterback nodded, and Sundance held her breath, waiting for her baby's answer.
"I promise it will be fun," Quarterback coaxed.
Finally Baby Sundance quietly said, "Okay."
It only took a few minutes to organize the race. Baby Quackers lined up at the start, along with Baby Gusty, Baby Lofty, Baby Tic-Tac-Toe, and of course, Baby Sundance.
"Remember, no winking to the finish, and no flying!" Megan reminded them from the finish line where she was judging.
Quarterback moved next to Sundance to watch. Sundance was biting her lip in anticipation. She was hoping that her daughter did well, but was hoping even more that she would have fun. She glanced up at Quarterback, and the Big Brother pony gave her a reassuring smile.
"Go!" Megan cried. The baby ponies took off, all running as quickly as their little hooves could carry them to the finish. But, just as Sundance had claimed, Baby Sundance was by far the fastest. She crossed the finish line before all of the others. Quarterback and Sundance cheered. Sundance began to run over to congratulate her daughter, but Quarterback stopped her with his hoof on hers.
"Wait a minute," he said, nodding towards the baby ponies.
Sundance followed his gaze and gasped. Baby Glory was walking up to Baby Sundance.
"Wow! That was great!" the little unicorn said, still panting.
"Yeah," Baby Tic-Tac-Toe added. "You are really fast!"
Baby Sundance blushed, but didn't turn away or look down at the ground like she normally did. "Thanks," she said, smiling.
"I know," Baby Quackers cried. "Let's play tag! Baby Sundance, do you want to be it, since you're so fast?"
Baby Sundance's smile grew even bigger. She looked over at her mother, who nodded. "Sure!" she replied.
Sundance laughed, turning back to Quarterback as the baby ponies ran off. "I can't thank you enough," she said. "How did you know to have a race?"
Quarterback cleared his throat. "Actually, it was mostly Megan's idea. We have good teamwork, I guess."
Sundance shook her head, still amazed. "I'll have to thank her too." She glanced up into Quarterback's big blue eyes, suddenly getting butterflies in her stomach. "So," she said, "Megan asked you for help getting Baby Sundance to play with the other babies?"
"Um… well," Quarterback shifted his weight from one side to the other. "I'm the one who went to Megan for help." He suddenly blushed. "I asked her to introduce me to you, and she came up with the idea."
Sundance was shocked. The butterflies in her stomach seemed to be doing back flips now. She glanced over at Megan, who just smiled and waved back.
"Well, we aren't strangers anymore," she said, stealing his words from earlier.
Quarterback laughed. "I guess not," he said, seeming more at ease. "Want to go have some cake?"
Sundance nodded and walked with Quarterback to the cake table. They sat for almost two hours, just talking and getting to know each other. Sundance enjoyed herself quite a bit, feeling relieved that she didn't have to worry about Baby Sundance not leaving her side. A few other ponies, especially Heart Throb and Truly, would giggle and speak in hushed voices as they walked by, but Quarterback and Sundance hardly heard them. The two didn't seem to notice anything until they heard frantic cries coming from the other ponies.
"It's Baby Lofty!" one pony yelped. "She just collapsed!"
"Baby Gusty fainted too!" another said, running by.
"What? What happened?" Sundance cried, looking out at the baby ponies. Four were lying on the ground. Just then, Baby Quackers groaned and fell also.
Quarterback shook his head. "It looks like something's wrong with the baby ponies!"
Sundance suddenly felt panicked. Her daughter was standing with the other babies with a confused look on her face. But quickly the puzzled look turned to one of pain. Sundance watched in horror as Baby Sundance's knees buckled under her, and she swooned into the grass.
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Ok, so the first chapter was a bit slow. It will get more exciting though, I promise!