A Lesson in Laughter

"So what do ya wanna do first, Princess?" Pinkie asked in the most excited manner possible, "We've got all sorts of stuff we can do. Video games, board games, word games, and even staring contests!"

"I.. Actually, I have a question for you first, if you would not mind answering it," Luna said tentatively. Even when speaking to her subjects, she still felt a sense of unease when making requests, for fear of coming off as too forceful.

"Go right ahead!" Pinkie exclaimed, adding emphasis by extending her forehooves outwards and giving a rather large grin. Well, at least she didn't look intimidating. At the very least, that might help put Luna's worrying to rest.

"I wish to understand just how you were put into this burdened position," Luna requested. "Undoubtedly you were called upon by my sister in order to entertain me, or otherwise just watch over me?" The tone of her voice was growing more and more annoyed, but it also grew to become rather quiet. That ache in her chest was ever-present even now.

"Nope!" Pinkie claimed simply. "Well, you're right about one itty bitty bit. Princess Celestia did call me on over and she said," before she went on, Pinkie made sure to put on her best 'royal accent', and kept alternating between that voice and her own when she found it appropriate, " 'Pinkie Pie! I understand that you are good at parties.' And I said, 'Of course! I love parties!' And then she said, 'Well my sister has been a bit sad lately, so I was wondering if you could cheer her up.' And I said-"

"Wait," Luna said, holding out a hoof to catch Pinkie's attention. "My sister told you I was sad? Usually she doesn't discuss this sort of thing with anyone." To say she was surprised would be an understatement; Luna was rather baffled at it. Celestia made it a point to keep such things between the two of them as sisters. She was the type to enjoy bonding much more than anything else.

"She sure did," Pinkie Pie replied honestly, but then got a bit quiet. Her expression went from overjoyed to moderately depressed in a matter of seconds, and the transition took Luna by surprise. "Was I not supposed to know? I don't want to make you any MORE sad! That's the OPPOSITE of what I want to do!"

"No, no!" Luna said in a sudden moment of sympathy. She had the strongest urge to reach out and hug the candy-pink mare across her, with the expression she had on her face. She would have, if she didn't believe it would make both of them feel overwhelmingly awkward. "I am just surprised that she entrusted you with the task of, well, cheering me up."

In another instant, Pinkie's expression turned from sadness to one of pure determination. She raised a hoof to her forehead in a salute, "She - and you, too - can count on me! I love making ponies laugh, and I hear that your laugh is really pretty!"

The mare was certainly full of surprises, that much was definitely true. Luna could feel her face warming up at the compliment, but she managed to shyly ask the question, "May I ask who said that?" It was true, she wasn't much for asking for praise; that did not mean she didn't like hearing it every once in a while. But not many ponies would have heard her laugh, so she figured it had to be someone in the castle.

"Twilight!" Pinkie admitted happily, "She said your laugh is quiet, but happy. And kind of sad, too. I've never heard a sad laugh, so I want to make sure your laugh changes from sad to full-on-ready-to-burst-at-the-seams happy!" She finished that sentence with flourish, tossing her arms up into the air and giving a wide grin.

It was all a bit amusing, really, and Luna covered her mouth to stifle a quiet giggle. In response to this, Pinkie softly whispered, "Your laugh is quiet!"

"I will have to thank Twilight Sparkle soon. Thank you for telling me, Pinkie Pie," Luna said graciously, bowing her head in respect. When she saw the look of confusion on Pinkie's face, she went on to explain, "My apologies. I'm accustomed to discussing such things with my sister. I act rather courtly with her, so forgive me if I get a bit mixed up."

"No worries! I really like it, actually!" Pinkie said, mimicking the bow a bit too quickly and rather stiffly. "I did that wrong, didn't I?" Pinkie said with a nervous laugh after seeing Luna's expression.

"You did it well for your first try. It's not so hard when someone teaches you, though," Luna said, hoping the mare might catch on to her subtle offer. It wasn't much of a party starter, but teaching Pinkie to bow like royalty could be a bit interesting.

"Hmm," Pinkie hummed as she looked to the side, and Luna was worried she may not have gotten the hint. But as soon as Luna had the thought to outright offer to her, Pinkie looked back to her with an expression of pure excitement. She leaned forward as she asked, "Could ya teach me? Please? I think it'd be really neat to know, because Twilight's a princess now, and when she bows to me I can bow to her and she'll say, 'Wow, Pinkie, that's a really good bow!' and I'll say, 'Thanks! Princess Luna taught me!' and she'll have to thank you too!"

Luna's thought process was slightly thrown off at Pinkie's reasoning, but eventually reached her original train of thought once again. "It would be my pleasure!" Luna said, her voice filled with glee. She felt giddy at the prospect of sharing knowledge; it's something she loved to do.

For the next few minutes, she began teaching Pinkie the steps: Don't be in a hurry, relax your muscles, try not to stare at the person you're bowing to. Simple steps slowly transitioned into finely-pointed movements as Pinkie caught on remarkably quickly.

"Yes, just like that!" Luna said happily as she observed Pinkie performing a near-perfect bow. She was an incredibly good student, Luna found, and she couldn't help but tell her so.

"Well you're a very good teacher!" Pinkie replied, and even went on to say, "Probably the best."

"I don't know about being the best, but I know I'm good because Celie taught me," Luna said, not catching her blunder before it was too late. She thought about what she said afterwards and covered her mouth.

"Celie?" Pinkie asked, then a grin began to grow on her face. "You mean Celestia? Is that her nickname?" Pinkie let out a giggle and a snort, and Luna began to wonder if she was laughing at her, rather than with her. Her smile began to fade, and that same ache in her chest slowly returned back to her.

"I like it. I wish I had a cool nickname like that!" Pinkie Pie said, much to Luna's surprise. Perhaps she was indeed just laughing. Her words seemed earnest, anyway. Still, however, she decided to test the waters.

"You don't think it's silly?" she asked tentatively. If she did, Luna believed she did not want to know. She'd rather think of Pinkie Pie as an enigma - a pony who has nothing on their mind but to make others happy. Perhaps that was a bit selfish of her, she thought, but it was certainly nicer than the alternative.

"Why would I?" Pinkie asked. Luna could see it - the mare's expression was genuinely confused at her question. She wasn't yet another source of sadness for Luna to bear, and she wasn't part of some elaborate prank to make Luna cry. Rather, she was likely part of a very simple plan to make Luna smile.

"Nevermind," Luna said with a shake of her head, attempting to dismiss the worries of the mare across from her. It'd be better if they both just forgot about the temporary moment of doubt that was invisible between them.

"Aww, come on. You can tell old Pinkie Pie! I'm a really good listener, I promise!" Pinkie said, but after a moment's hesitation she held up a hoof and began to chant something while doing some strange movements. "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."

"What is that?" Luna asked, curious as to what such a thing could possibly mean. She tried doing the movements from memory, but knew she failed halfway through and instead awaited an explanation.

"That's a Pinkie Promise! I never break a Pinkie Promise!" she said proudly, then took notice of Luna's gesturing. "I could teach you how to do it, if you want! You taught me how to bow, and now I can teach you how to Pinkie Promise!"

"I'd like that," Luna said with a nod and a grateful smile. "But first, I suppose I should tell you, huh?"

"I'd like that," Pinkie replied with a smile of her own.

Luna went on to explain what had been bothering her these past few days - or rather, these past few weeks, months, and even years. "Stuck all alone in a world that has passed me up by years. I didn't really socialize well even before I.. Well, changed," she said sadly, looking away.

"It's okay," Pinkie Pie said soothingly, "I know you're a lot different now. There's no need to focus on all the bad stuff when you've got plenty of good stuff to look at, too!"

"Like what?" Luna asked curiously. The mare seemed to have a keen eye for the good things in life, and Luna wished to understand what she thought of, well, her. She highly valued other ponies' opinions of her, and Pinkie Pie's opinion seemed even more valuable.

"Well for one," she began, "you're very smart. Apparently you read even more than Twilight, and she reads a lot. Not only that, but you're really nice. You didn't get mad at all when Princess Celestia told you I'd be sleeping over! On top of both of those, you're really pretty, too!

While Luna's face began to warm, Pinkie continued, "Like.. Like a full moon! And full moons are really pretty! The prettiest thing in the sky! And that's saying something, considering the stars are really pretty, too."

Not only did she compliment Luna, but she also complimented the very thing Luna worked her hardest on. The compliments filled her with a sense of satisfaction and an even deeper sense of gratitude. Above all else, however, she noticed that the aching in her chest had faded away - something that hadn't happened since she befriended Fluttershy.

With the sudden moment of gratitude, Luna reached over and pulled Pinkie into a tight hug - not too tight, as she learned her lesson from Fluttershy - and softly said, "Thank you."

She felt the hug returned in Pinkie's arms wrapping around her and heard the cheery mare's voice chime out a soft, "You're welcome."

The hug lasted just long enough for Luna to stop having the strong urge to cry tears of joy, and she now had a genuinely happy grin on her face. "Now, I really would like to learn the steps of your 'Pinkie Promise'. It is intriguing," Luna commented, eagerly awaiting Pinkie's teaching.

The mare's reply came in a quick, "Sure!" and she began immediately. The night had only just begun, but Luna felt it was passing by all-too-quickly, in her eyes, and she could only wonder at what was to come. Good things, she knew, but Pinkie was a mare that never ceased to amaze her, and she was giddy to find out what happened next.