Tragedy

Twilight prepared herself as Rainbow Dash began to tell of what happened. "Pinkie Pie, she kind of... well, she was always so random and crazy but, remember what you told her? Remember when you said you would be back in a few months. Well, she decided to throw a party every week in your honor until you came back."

Twilight managed to crack a small smile. "That sure sounds like Pinkie Pie," she said and Rainbow Dash nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, heh. It wasn't weird at first. It was kinda fun, for a while, but by the sixth week or so, it started to get annoying. But, well, after a while, when more than a few months had passed and you were still gone, we kinda told her to stop." Fluttershy nodded slightly. "But she said no. She said you were coming back and that you were just late, that's all, and although we all believed that, well the longer it went on, the less... sure we all were..." Rainbow Dash frowned as her eyes began to water.

Twilight frowned too. "In all honesty, Dash, I wasn't sure myself. I can understand how it must have seemed with the reports."

Rainbow Dash gave a nervous smile and continued, holding back her tears as she did. "Well, Pinkie kept at it, but you could see she was starting to crack. And then that day came when we all heard about... Princess Celestia. Pinkie refused to believe you were dead too; she said you promised you would come back, and that 'Twilight would NEVER break a promise, silly!'" Sadness and guilt began to weigh on Twilight and it showed in her face, but Rainbow Dash continued. "She kept holding a party for you, every week, even through the mourning period. Eventually, ponies started to avoid her and we were all worried so we had to try to put a stop to it, so, we went to see her, only she wasn't home but she had left a note on the front door."

Dear Meanies,

Twilight isn't here anymore. I couldn't figure out why she wouldn't come home to Ponyville so I thunk and I thinked and I thoughted and I tried to figure out where she would go if not back to Ponyville. I checked Canterlot, but Princess Luna wouldn't tell me where she went. So, I thoughted and thinked some more. 'Where would a unicorn who loves magic go to hide?' And then it hit me! The most magicalist place we had been; the old castle in Everfree Forest! So, I have gone to see her. I guess you meanies who don't believe she's okay can come visit us so I'm leaving this note.

Love,

Pinkie Pie

OH

P.S. BRING CAKE

After Rainbow Dash finished reading the letter verbatim, she and and Fluttershy looked at other then both turned their gaze to Twilight. "When we got there... Pinkie -"

Twilight gasped in horror, cutting Rainbow Dash off, "NO! Pinkie can't be dead!" Tears began to spout up immediately.

Rainbow Dash shook her hoof while Fluttershy tried to calm Twilight down by patting her on the back. "No, no, Twilight, she's fi... Alive... It's just... she's happy."

Twilight stopped crying enough to ask, "What? Happy? What do you mean, that makes no sense."

Rainbow Dash scooted closer to Twilight and softly spoke. "She's with you now; you are having one everlasting party".

Twilight was very confused now. "With me?" she asked nervously.

"When went to see her... we tried to tell her you weren't there, but she wouldn't believe us. She threatened us to leave before we upset... you. She's completely snapped, Twilight, but she was content." Twilight bolted up and began to pace a little, uncomfortable at the news she just heard.

"We would continually check up on her every so often, but with everyone having to deal with their own things, well, it was becoming difficult. Eventually we all promised to each other that we would never speak of Pinkie Pie again, for her sake. We... we all believed she was happy and we wanted to keep it that way." Rainbow Dash let her words sink in for a moment before continuing. She shifted in her place, uneasy with sitting still and more uneasy that Twilight was silent, but she continued. "If you go to meet her and she sees you, or two of you. If you told her what happened and she knows you were alive all this time and never came back... it might destroy her; send her over the edge. We didn't want to hurt her or endanger you. You saw how she was that time we missed Gummy's after-party. Something like this..." Rainbow Dash couldn't finish the sentence. Small drops of tears began to roll down her face as Twilight stood there, not knowing how to even react.

"But, you're telling me this now. Why?" Twilight asked, her voice was soft and barely audible.

Rainbow Dash sighed before looking up to Twilight to explain. "I think it's gone on long enough. It's been too long since anypony visited her and... it might be better to risk it. Maybe it'll work out, and if it doesn't, well..."

Twilight snapped to as if from a long daze. "I'm going to see her. This is wrong; it's cruel. I have to see her." Rainbow Dash slowly nodded in agreement and tried to stand up to join Twilight, but found she was too injured from her earlier brawl with Applejack. Twilight shook her head and gave Rainbow Dash and light-hearted smile. "It's okay, Dash, you're still badly hurt, and if it gets dangerous, I don't want to have your life on my conscious too." Twilight turned to Fluttershy who was stroking Rainbow Dash's bruised body. "Fluttershy, will you please look after Rainbow for me?" Fluttershy put a leg around Rainbow Dash and nodded at Twilight. "Thank you, Fluttershy... and Rainbow Dash, thank you for telling me."

Rainbow Dash grimaced in pain as she spoke. "Twilight, just be careful, okay?"

Twilight nodded and began to walk away towards the ruins that Rainbow Dash spoke of but paused a moment and turned around back to the two ponies. "If I don't see you again...I want you to know, I love you all. Tell Applejack if you see her again... and... Rarity, I can't forgive her yet, but I still love her." Twilight broke into a sprint down the road, running as fast as she could.

The journey to the ruins in Everfree Forest took time but was uneventful. The time was spent wondering how bad it actually was, but Twilight feared the worse. She soon found herself following a familiar path; pass the cliff, down the slope, through the manticore den, past the creepy trees, over the serpent's river and finally to the rope bridge, where the fog was thickest and where a large figure was standing, waiting.

Applejack stood there, blocking the small pass with her brawny body. "Ah figured you would come eventually, Twilight. You know Ah can't let ya cross this here bridge."

Twilight stood her ground. "Applejack, please, I have to see her."

Applejack shook her head lightly. "Twilight, look at us; after all you seen today, after all the pain an hurt an everythang... you haven't learnt a thing? If you go an' see Pinkie Pie, you throw away what little happiness either of you two have."

Twilight took a few steps toward Applejack. "I can save her. I can explain to her... I WILL save her, please, just get out of my way Applejack, I don't want to fight you."

Applejack gave a sarcastic laugh. "You think it'd be much of a fight, Twi?"

Twilight didn't move, but looked up to Applejack with pity and distress in her eyes. "Do you... enjoy hurting your friends, Applejack? You want me to end up like Dash?" She paused a moment, unable to wrap her mind around the knowledge that her friend had become so bitter. "Do you want to kill me too?"

Applejack didn't flinch at the question but gave a sigh thinking back on what she did to Rainbow Dash. "You know ah never meant fer her to -"

"You never MEANT to cause that fire, but your recklessness when you're angry... you don't think. We are on the edge of a cliff. Maybe you won't MEAN to knock me off it to my death... but I'm not going to be stopped from seeing Pinkie. It's your call." Twilight began walking slowly towards the bridge and Applejack.

Applejack turned her head to look at the rickety rope bridge and the drop. She gritted her teeth and sword under her breath before turning back to Twilight. "DAGNABBIT, Twilight! You both better come outta there, YA HEAR ME?" she yelled at Twilight before reluctantly moving to the side, allowing Twilight to pass. Twilight walked up to Applejack and gave her a big hug and thanked her before walking across the bridge and disappearing into the thick fog.