Note: Hasbro's My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic was created by Lauren Faust.

Maud Pie was Pinkie Pie's favorite sister. However, Maud was a pony, that most ponies didn't understand. Although Maud was a kind and devoted sister, who had a good sense of humor, most ponies thought she was off-putting. This was because Maud had a serious expression on her face and spoke in a monotone voice. When Pinkie Pie's friends met Maud, they thought she was depressed or shy. However, Maud just didn't express her emotions, like everyone else did. She seemed like Pinkie's complete opposite, because Pinkie was energetic and cheerful, while Maud was quiet and reserved.

Like the rest of the Pie family, Maud was born next to a rock farm. The Pie family had always worked on a rock farm, except for Pinkie, who worked in a bakery. Out of the entire Pie family, Maud was the one, who was the biggest fan of rocks. Maud considered rocks to be more, than a profession. Collecting rocks was a hobby, for her. In fact, her pet was a rock, named Boulder. Most ponies thought that Boulder was an inanimate object, but Maud seemed to think otherwise, since she often talked to it.

One day, Maud was going for a walk, around Ponyville. Boulder was in the pocket of her frock. A majority of the ponies didn't wear clothes, but Maud usually wore her frock. Despite her stern-looking appearance, Maud cared about fashion. Rarity, who was Ponyville's number-one fashion fangirl, thought the frock was a bit plain and dreary, but Maud didn't care. She was happy with her appearance and was happy with who she was, in general. However, it was hard to tell if she was happy, due to her rarely smiling.

Maud Pie walked to Sugarcube Corner, the place where Pinkie worked. Maud walked inside and as usual, she had a gloomy look on her face. Maud walked to the front counter and looked at Mr. Cake, while saying, "Hello, sir."

Mr. Cake was quickly intimidated, by Maud's expression. He tried to avoid looking nervous, while saying, "Hello, lady. Can I help you?"

Maud said, "I'm looking for my sister, Pinkie."

Mr. Cake went into the kitchen, where Pinkie was baking cupcakes and said, "Pinkie, your scary-looking sister is here."

Pinkie Pie had an excited look on her face, while replying, "I love my scary-looking sister." Pinkie ran to the front counter and quickly greeted her sister.

Maud looked at Pinkie, while saying, "Hi, sister."

Pinkie replied, "Hi, scary-looking sister. It's so good, to see you. Did you scare any fillies, on the way here?"

Maud was confused, while asking, "What are you talking about?"

Pinkie chuckled and said, "Mr. Cake just made a little joke, about you being scary. Of course, he doesn't mean it."

Mr. Cake walked by, while Maud asked, "Do you think I'm scary?"

Mr. Cake wiped some sweat off his face, while saying, "Um, no." Looking at Maud, for a short amount of time, made the overly sensitive Mr. Cake pass out.

Maud asked, "Is he okay?"

Pinkie said, "Yes, he tends to go to sleep, whenever anything mildly-frightening happens."

Maud asked, "Does that mean I'm frightening?"

Pinkie stood closer to Maud and said, "No way. I guess Mr. Cake was just a little surprised, by the way you look."

Maud asked, "Do I look bad?"

Pinkie shook her head and said, "You're one of the most stylish ponies. You just need to smile, more often."

Maud replied, "I don't really like expressing my emotions, with my face. I prefer to look blank, just like a rock."

Pinkie said, "Well, that's certainly creative and your creativity is one of your best attributes."

Maud replied, "Thank you."

Pinkie put her hoof on Maud's shoulder, while saying, "So, what's going on? Care for a cupcake?"

Maud replied, "No, thank you. I have something, that I want to ask you."

A minute later, Pinkie and Maud started sitting at one of the tables. Since Pinkie was hanging out with her sister and Mr. Cake was passed-out, Mrs. Cake had to do more work, than usual. Mrs. Cake was always glad, to see Pinkie bond with her sister, but she was getting tired of Mr. Cake passing-out, all the time.

Pinkie drank a smoothie, before looking at Maud and asking, "What do you want to ask me?"

Maud said, "There's a rock show, that I'm going to go to. I was wondering, if you'd like to attend."

Pinkie hopped around, in excitement, while saying, "That sounds great. Rock concerts are so charming."

Maud raised an eyebrow and said, "Rock concerts? That's not what I'm talking about. I'm going to a rock show. A special guest is going to present several kinds of rocks, from various points of time. I think it's going to be a fascinating show."

Pinkie replied, "That's not what I was expecting, but that still sounds great. I'd love to go. When is the show?"

Maud said, "Tonight."

Pinkie nervously asked, "This night?"

Maud nodded and asked, "Is that okay?"

Pinkie started looking guilty, while saying, "I'm afraid not. You see, I told Mrs. Cake, that I would do some overtime work, tonight. I'm really sorry." She paused and said, "You know what? I could tell Mrs. Cake, that I'll do the overtime work, on a different night."

Maud replied, "Don't cancel your plans, for me. Your job is important to you, and I know that Mr. and Mrs. Cake are like a second group of parents, to you. I would never want to take away an opportunity, for you to make them proud."

Pinkie responded, "Aww, you're the best sister." She gave Maud and Boulder a big hug.

Maud said, "Thank you, Pinkie. Boulder and I always appreciate your hugs."

Pinkie asked, "If I can't come, who will accompany you, to the rock show?"

Maud calmly replied, "It's going to be okay. Boulder will keep me company, tonight."

Pinkie said, "Well, I hope you have a wonderful time. I want to hear all about the show, tomorrow."

Maud replied, "Sounds good."

That evening, Maud went to a grassy field, which was the area, that the rock show was taking place at. It was an unconventional place, for a special event, but Maud didn't mind that.

Maud was expecting a big crowd, because she thought that rocks were the most fascinating thing, in all of Equestria. However, most ponies didn't feel the same way. Because of that, there weren't that many ponies, at the show. Maud looked around and saw that there were only four guests, not including her. The guests included Filthy Rich, Snips, Snails and a pony, that Maud didn't know.

About ten-minutes later, the show's host arrived. The host was named Dr. Hooves, and he was an eccentric fan of time-related things. A group of his employees brought in a crate, which contained several kinds of rocks. Dr. Hooves looked around and saw how small the crowd was. He whispered, "These ponies better buy a lot of rocks."

Maud stared at the crate, while saying, "Nice-looking box. I'm hoping there's a lot of rare rocks, inside of it."

The pony, that Maud didn't know, replied, "Technically, it's a crate, not a box. Secondly, the rocks aren't the most exciting part, of this show. It's the sticks, that fascinate me."

Maud raised an eyebrow and said, "Sticks?"

The pony nodded his head and said, "Yes, I collect sticks. Sticks often get stuck in rocks, so I'm hoping to find sticks, from various parts of history, inside of those rocks."

Maud said, "I've never heard of a rock collector, before."

The pony replied, "I'm a rare breed, I'm afraid. I'm Mudbriar."

Maud responded, "I'm Maud."

A few minutes later, Dr. Hooves looked at the crowd, while saying, "Thank you, for coming. I'm Dr. Hooves and I'm one of the few ponies, who's seen centuries of Equestria's history. You're probably wondering, how such a thing is possible." Dr. Hooves started looking proud of himself, while saying, "Most ponies didn't believe in time travel, but I knew it was real. I was able to go back in time and collect treasures, from several timelines. I've been selling various collectibles, so I can afford to settle-down with my girlfriend, Lilac Tyler."

Dr. Hooves signaled to his employees, who opened the crate. The crate contained rocks, that were decades old. Some of them were older, than any of Ponyville's residents. A lot of the rocks looked damaged and odd, but they were still worth lots of money.

Dr. Hooves pulled out a gray rock and said, "This rock may look like any gray rock, that you see, but it's been around, for over two centuries. Because of that, it's worth a lot of dough."

Snails smiled, while saying, "I like eating dough."

Snips replied, "Me, too, but I don't like eating the paper dough."

Dr. Hooves said, "Let's start the bidding, for this fabulous rock. The bidding will start at two-hundred dollars."

Filthy Rich had very little interest, when it came to rocks. His plan was to buy the rocks, so he could sell them, for a much higher price. He said, "I'll pay two hundred."

Maud was surprised, by how expensive the rock was. She knew the collectible rocks would cost more, than regular rocks, but two-hundred dollars was a lot more, than she was expecting. She wanted to buy the rock, but not at that price.

Dr. Hooves asked, "Will anybody attempt to bid, against Filthy Rich?"

Mudbriar said, "That rock doesn't have any sticks, so I don't need it."

Snips asked, "The rock costs two-hundred dollars? That's crazy. Snails and I just want some cheap rocks, that we can throw at our rivals."

Snails said, "Yeah, we like throwing rocks, for fun."

Maud gave Snips and Snails a disapproving look, while saying, "That's a very poor use, of perfectly good rocks. Also, if that's all you want to do with rocks, why are you here? You could just throw pebbles, which are easy to get."

Snips said, "You make a good point." Snips and Snails started walking away.

Dr. Hooves sighed, before looking at Maud and saying, "You're scaring away my customers."

Maud replied, "I'm sorry, but they didn't appreciate the true eloquence, of rocks."

Dr. Hooves whispered, "Why do collectors have to be the weirdest ponies, in all of Equestria?"

Nobody else bid on the rock, so Filthy Rich got it. He grabbed it and smiled, while saying, "It seems like I'll be making a lot of dough."

Dr. Hooves said, "Our next rock is something, that's going to blow your socks off."

Mudbriar replied, "Technically, none of us are wearing socks."

Dr. Hooves pulled out a yellow rock and said, "Anyways, this rock is from 1938. It's yellow, because it fell in some paint, which makes it more valuable and rarer. I'm going to start the bid, at a reasonable price. How about three-hundred dollars?"

Filthy Rich shook his head and replied, "That's outrageous. I'm only going to two hundred, for that rock. If you charge more than that, I won't buy it."

Dr. Hooves looked at Maud and Mudbriar. They didn't appear to be very wealthy, but Dr. Hooves asked, "Would either of you be willing to pay three hundred, for this beautiful rock?"

Maud said, "I wish I could, but it's out of my price range."

Mudbriar folded his arms and said, "There's no stick, so I have no interest."

Dr. Hooves sighed and said, "Filthy Rich, you can have the rock, for two-hundred dollars."

Filthy Rich replied, "That's great to hear." He walked up to Dr. Hooves and paid him. He grabbed the yellow rock and said, "Well, I got two valuable rocks, that I can sell. I better get going."

Dr. Hooves nervously responded, "Hold on, Mr. Rich. I have other rocks."

Filthy Rich explained, "I only wanted a couple. You see, I want to sell a variety of things, so I have a bigger chance, of being richer." He started walking away.

Dr. Hooves said, "This show is turning into a disaster."

Mudbriar replied, "Considering the lack of sticks, I'd have to agree with you."

Dr. Hooves walked up to his employees and started digging through the rocks. He tried to speak, in a quiet voice, so that Mudbriar couldn't hear him. He looked at one of the employees, while asking, "Do we have any rocks, that have sticks attached to them? We have a weird guest, who actually thinks that sticks are important."

The employee replied, "We have quite a few."

Dr. Hooves responded, "That's good. I'll sell them, at once. I'm sure that gullible stick-lover will pay quite a lot, for the silly sticks."

A few minutes later, Dr. Hooves walked back to Maud and Mudbriar, while saying, "I'm guessing that you millennials don't want to bid on rocks all night. I'll make things nice and easy, by selling a collection of rocks, at the same time."

Mudbriar asked, "Will this collection include sticks?"

Dr. Hooves answered, "Yes it will."

Mudbriar usually had a serious, blank expression on his face, like Maud. However, he started looking excited, after hearing about the sticks. Mudbriar said, "I'm glad I saved my money, because I think I'm about to obtain the greatest collection of sticks, in all of Equestria."

Dr. Hooves unveiled a dozen rocks, which had a stick tapped to them. All of the rocks and sticks were painted a different color, in order to fool ponies, into thinking that the sticks were rare collectibles, from the past. Dr. Hooves said, "This collection is unlike any bundle, that you've ever seen. It includes twelve rocks and twelve sticks. Plus, they're all different colors. You can't beat a deal, as good as this one. I'm expecting some high bids, for this bundle."

Maud said, "I want those rocks, but I'm not really that interested, in getting those sticks."

Mudbriar replied, "I have the opposite problem. I want the sticks, but not the rocks."

Dr. Hooves said, "As always, I'm going to give a good deal, to my customers. How about you pay four-hundred, for the entire collection?"

Mudbriar replied, "That's a lot more money, than I want to pay."

Maud said, "There's no way, that I'm going to pay four-hundred, for a dozen rocks. Even though they're rare and valuable, you can't charge that much."

Dr. Hooves sighed and said, "I'm going to give you an offer, that's two generous. How about two-hundred, for the collection?"

Maud said, "That's not a bad deal, but I'm betting that the rocks would only be a hundred, if they didn't come with sticks."

Mudbriar thought about the situation, before looking at Maud and said, "We could help each other."

Maud asked, "How?"

Mudbriar explained, "We split the cost. We both pay a hundred dollars, each. I'll get the sticks and you'll get the rocks."

Maud replied, "Actually, that's a good deal."

Maud and Mudbriar explained their agreement, to Dr. Hooves. Dr. Hooves said, "I suppose that's an acceptable deal." Maud and Mudbriar paid Dr. Hooves.

Mudbriar grabbed the sticks, while saying, "These look amazing."

Maud looked at the rocks, while saying, "Nice set of collectibles."

Dr. Hooves started walking away, while whispering, "I'm glad I was able to trick those silly ponies, into wasting their money."

Maud looked at Mudbriar, while saying, "Thank you, for saving the day."

Mudbriar replied, "Technically, it's nighttime, not daytime. Also, I didn't really save anything, but I appreciate the sentiment."

Maud said, "You seem to say technically, a lot."

Mudbriar replied, "I guess it's a habit, that I can't break."

Maud stared at Mudbriar's face and noticed he had a blank expression, just like her. She said, "You've got a face, that makes it hard, to decipher what emotion you're feeling."

Mudbriar replied, "The same could be said, about your face."

Maud said, "Yeah, I don't really like using my face, to convey how I'm feeling. Is that weird?"

Mudbriar replied, "If it is, I'm a weirdo and I think I'm a perfectly normal pony."

Maud said, "You seem like a cool pony. I mean, I've never been the biggest fan of sticks, but I can admire a dedicated collector."

Mudbriar replied, "Why, thank you and I can admire a pony, who has a nice sense of fashion. Your frock looks beautiful."

Maud said, "Thank you." Like most ponies, Mudbriar wasn't wearing anything. That made it hard, for Maud to compliment his attire. She said, "Your body looks beautiful." The usually deadpan Maud looked embarrassed, while saying, "I can't believe I said that. I didn't mean it."

Mudbriar said, "Oh, really? Does that mean my body isn't beautiful?"

Maud replied, "It is, but um, I didn't want to admit that, out loud."

Mudbriar asked, "Why not?"

Maud said, "To be honest, I don't know. I usually say what I want, without fear. I'm acting weird. I don't normally act like this. I'm sorry."

Mudbriar replied, "It's fine. In fact, I think you're being cute."

Maud asked, "Really?"

Mudbriar said, "Technically, I've never seen a cuter pony." He paused and said, "Wow, I can't believe I said that."

Maud replied, "It seems like we're quite alike."

Mudbriar responded, "Technically, everybody's different, but I do relate to you."

Maud and Mudbriar took a break, from their deadpan expressions. Instead, they started smiling. However, their tender moment was interrupted by the rain. The rain started pouring on the rocks and sticks, which made the paint go away.

Maud looked down and said, "The rocks have become gray. They weren't special rocks. They're regular rocks, that were painted, in order to trick me."

Mudbriar replied, "The sticks are just regular sticks."

Maud sighed and said, "We both wasted a one-hundred dollars. What a disappointing evening."

Mudbriar replied, "Technically, I'm rather upset, when it comes to the wasted money. However, this evening isn't a disappointment, because I met you."

Maud responded, "You have a point. Maybe this night wasn't a waste, after all."

Mudbriar said, "We'll both have to go, soon, because we're getting soaked. However, I'd like to see you, in the near future."

Maud replied, "Tomorrow, I have to visit my sister and check on the rock-farm, but other than that, I'm free."

Mudbriar said, "Then I'll see you, tomorrow. We could get a drink or something. I live a few blocks, from here."

Maud replied, "Sounds nice."

Maud and Mudbriar started walking away. Maud looked at Boulder, while saying, "This night wasn't what I expected it to be, but I'm still happy."

Mudbriar started walking home, while saying, "Technically, I had a good evening." Mudbriar was smiling and so was Maud. They could hardly wait for the next day.