Love and Toleranceby pix3dustChaptersChapter OneChapter TwoChapter ThreeChapter OneLove and Tolerance - Chapter One Pinkie Pie drew in a deep breath and slowly let it out, trying desperately to get rid of some of the butterflies invading her stomach. It wasn't like the energetic pink pony to be this nervous, but this night was different. This was the night, the night where she was finally going to announce her feelings to a special somepony of hers, on whom she'd had a crush on since the moment she saw them. But it wasn't just anypony. It was one of Pinkie's best friends, whom she had known for almost 4 years now, Twilight Sparkle. Many a night had passed, where, cast under the spell of Luna's beautiful and romantic night, Pinkie had dreamed of the beautiful mare. Her perfectly combed mane, her shiny coat, the flowery aroma she always cast when she entered the room. . . she was truly enchanting. But Twilight's beauty wasn't the only thing that made the pink mare fall so deeply in love with her. No, Twilight Sparkle was much more than just that. She was also one of the smartest ponies in all of Ponyville--no, all of Equestria! Not to mention her amazing magic ability! Among all of these qualities is the kindness the purple unicorn seemed to emanate. She cared deeply for all five of her best friends. Pinkie wanted to be something more than a friend to Twilight. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with her. The pink-coated earth pony could see it now-- living in a quiet(well, except for when Pinkie was throwing parties!) little cottage in a corner of Ponyville, where they could live happy. Adopt a foal, maybe, and raise it as their own. It didn't matter to Pinkie. All she wanted was to be with her until she was as old as Granny Smith--hay, maybe even older, and be the one Twilight loved the most. Nopony knew of her secret feelings for her close friend. Nopony even knew that she was gay. She didn't even know if they would accept her for who she was. All she knew was that if they were true friends, they would support her and have her back when she needed them the most. Pinkie drew a deep breath once more and put the finishing touches on the table decorations. Once she was done, she stood in the doorway of Sugarcube Corner, surveying her handiwork. The wood floor was covered with a light purple carpet, the wallpaper was hot pink, and the tablecloths were a dark blue--all subtle reminders of the reason for this gathering of friends. She gave a shy half-smile, a drastic change from her usual ear-to-ear beam. Once she was done checking over every last inch of the candy shop, making sure everything was perfect for her marefriend-to-be, she sat down on one of the fluffy pink couches and awaited her friends' arrivals. About fifteen minutes passed when there was a knock at the door of Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie prayed to Celestia that it wasn't Twilight, and when she answered the door, she found her prayers to be ineffective. There she was, in all her beauty, the magnificent Twilight Sparkle. She seemed to fall in love with her all over again every second that passed. Twilight was wearing a simple dress the color of her Gala dress, which complemented her mane. Pinkie put on a mask of happiness and greeted her crush with her usual enthusiasm. "Hey Twilight! I'm so so SO super duper happyglad you could make it! I've got punch, snacks, and music!!! I hope you have a great time!" "Hi, Pinkie. I'll only be able to stay for a little while. I'll tell you why later, when everyone's here. I have splendid news!" Twilight smiled and sauntered in. Pinkie's giant fake smile started to fade. Surely the news couldn't be. . . no, she wasn't going to let this ruin her party. Twilight must have learned a new spell, or had a special meeting with Princess Celestia, or something. It was going to be okay. It's going to be alright. Pinkie was going to be okay. Just then, the doorbell rang again. When the door was opened, it revealed Pinkie's other four best friends: Apple Jack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity. She felt her smile grow again. Pinkie's friends were also dressed beautifully. Fluttershy wore a green flowing dress with a butterfly hair clip putting back her beautiful light pink mane, Rainbow had on a cyan blue skirt with a white shirt, Apple Jack had bothered to put on some modest overalls and her Stetson, and Rarity had a maroon cocktail dress on. All of them looked absolutely spectacular! "Hello, everypony! Let's get this party started!" Pinkie turned up the music. "Yeah! This is my jam!" Everypony was dancing around and having a great time, when Pinkie suddenly remembered the reason for this particular party. She felt the butterflies return to her stomach once more, and cleared her throat. "Um. . . can I have your attention? Everypony?" The pink earth pony started to turn down the music. The other ponies directed their attention to her and she began to blush. "I have some news for you guys, and it might change all of our friendships. I don't know whether it is for the better or for the worse. . . that's up to you, I guess. Well first things first, I guess." Pinkie could see the confused expressions on her friends' faces. She swallowed the lump in her throat and opened her mouth to speak. "I'm. . .I'm gay." Chapter TwoLove and Tolerance - Chapter Two Dead silence was what followed Pinkie Pie's declaration. A mixture of reactions were among her friends. Rarity spit out her juice all over her dress(something that wasn't usual for her), Apple Jack's eyes were wide, but Twilight, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash seemed to be accepting. Thank Celestia. Pinkie bit her lip and offered a half smile. Some of her friends' reactions caused her to lower her head once more and stare blankly at the floor. She waited for someone to break the silence, to reassure her that she was still loved, still cared for, but no one did. "Um. . ." Pinkie tried. Her voice cracked, but that was the least of her worries at the moment. She just hoped she hadn't ruined the night for anypony. "It's okay, Pinkie. We still love you. Right everypony?" Fluttershy told her, attempting to live up to her Element of Harmony. "Yeah! No sweat!" Rainbow added, putting her hoof around Pinkie's neck for good measure. "We still love you, Pink." Twilight smiled. Rarity tried to speak, but whatever she choked out was incoherent and inaudible. Meanwhile, her mind was racing. How could one of her friends be. . . homosexual?! What had happened to turn her friend to this lifestyle? Was there anything that could be done to fix this, before it was too late?! "Somethin' wrong, Rares?" Apple Jack asked. "I just-It's so disgusting! You're disgusting!" Rarity cried out in a fit of pain and fury. In the spur of the moment, Rarity did not realize what she had said and ran off, out of Sugarcube Corner, away from her best friends. Pinkie's worst suspicions were turning out to be correct; she really did ruin somepony's night. And that was the night of the pony she expected to love and tolerate her the most. Pinkie felt her eyes filling with tears. She shut her eyes tightly, causing the salty tears to brim over her eyelids and flow down her cheeks. She was supposed to make everypony smile and be happy, not ruin their night and separate a whole group of friends from each other! She should have kept her mouth shut. She shouldn't have said anything. Then, they would still be having fun, dancing, and smiling. Then she wouldn't be experiencing all of this pain. "Pinkie, it's okay. I still love and accept you." Twilight trotted closer to her friend and embraced her in a friendly hug. Even though this kind of embrace, from exactly the right person was what she had been hoping for all night, Pinkie's spirits still remained low. She had caused pain in one of her best friends. How could she ever fix that? How could she ever look at Rarity right again, after she had said all those mean things to her? How could she-- "I'm gay, too." Pinkie's eyes grew wide and her mouth fell agape. What?! Was it possible that there might be a chance? She felt her smile grow wider and wider into a real grin. She didn't have to even try to make it look real this time. "R-really? I mean- awesome! In fact, was just about to ask you-" Pinkie prepared to spill the beans for Twilight. There was no doubt in her mind now that she and Twilight could be together. She began to see the visions of them growing old together, adopting a foal, snuggling near the fire. . . "I have a marefriend!" Twilight announced joyfully, blissfully unaware of the pain she had just caused. Pinkie's honest grin faded along with her high spirits and joy. So she already had a marefriend. . . Her heart felt like it was being torn in a million different directions and shattered to pieces like a glass jar dropped from a balcony. Her hopes and dreams were mercilessly being crushed and stomped on by the world; her outlook on life started to droop. But Pinkie was supposed to be happy all the time, so she had to plaster on yet another fake smile and carry on. "Oh, super dooper wooper! Hee hee! Who is it? They must be sooo lucky to have you, Twily!" Twilight gave another warm smile. "Believe it or not, it's Trixie! We bumped into each other at the coffee shop downtown and started talking. It turns out that we have a lot more in common than we thought! I guess that just goes to show how you shouldn't judge somepony based on first impressions, and you should only make conclusions about their character after really getting to know them. Hey! What a great idea for a letter to the princess! Well, I'd better get going. Have fun you guys! And good luck getting your own marefriend, Pinkie!" With that, Twilight trotted out of Sugarcube Corner, letting the door close behind her, making the bell on the door jingle like an old tune. Pinkie called out a half-spirited goodbye to her friend. Even though she was down in the dumps(majorly), she had to carry on. Maybe she could find an equally awesome marefriend. But then again, why should she take no for an answer? Nopony else was as beautiful as Twilight. Nopony was as intelligent as Twilight. Nopony would do except Twilight. That, Pinkie knew for sure. Chapter ThreeLove and Tolerance - Chapter Three Pinkie Pie woke up to a loud knocking at the door at Sugarcube Corner. Raising her head slowly up from her tear-soaked pillow, she glanced at the alarm clock sitting on the vibrant neon-pink cabinet next to her bed. Oh no. 10:32 AM?! Pinkie was almost 3 hours late to work! Oh, Celestia. . . how was she supposed to explain this to the Cakes? She had never slept in this late a day in her life, but she had stayed up so late last night thinking about what had happened so quickly in those few hours. Last night. . . Soon, the flashbacks came back to her in waves of sadness. "I just-It's so disgusting!" The look on Rarity's face. A friend she had known for almost four years. Betraying her feelings like this. Pinkie felt the tears welling up in her eyes once more. "You're disgusting!" Before she knew it, she was hugging her already-soaked pillow in her hooves, sobbing loudly, harder than she had sobbed in her entire life. This was one of the ponies she considered her very best friends. Considering how Pinkie was friends with everypony, this was saying a lot. And now she would probably never talk to her the same way ever again. Rarity spitting out her drink. That disgusted look in her eyes. Would they ever be friends again? Could they confront each other? Disgusting. You're disgusting. "I'm. . .disgusting." Pinkie said softly to herself. "I'm disgusting." she repeated, more firmly this time. The impatient knock at the door brought the pink earth mare back to reality once more. She slugged out of bed(a significant change from the usual skip in her step) and slowly walked downstairs to the entrance of Sugarcube Corner. Not really caring about her haggard appearance, she opened the door grumpily. "Hello. . . welcome to Sugarcube Corner." Pinkie began her usual speech with her eyes still half-closed. "How. . .may I help--" She opened her eyes, and what she saw wasn't near what she expected. Her assumed ex-best friend, Miss Rarity. For what seemed like hours, they stood there, staring at each other; a heavy, awkward silence blanketing the air. Pinkie immediately snapped her head down to the floor so she wouldn't have to look her in the eye. "I just-It's so disgusting!" Disgusting. Freak. Unnatural. Pinkie felt another wave of sadness pass over her as she wondered what Rarity wanted. To yell at her again? To call her some more names? To officially call off their friendship, forever? "Pinkie, I, erm. . ." Rarity was the first to break the uncomfortable silence. "I just wanted to say, that. . ." The purple-maned unicorn shut her eyes and sighed softly. "I'm sorry, about. . .last night. I couldn't control myself. I was just under so much pressure and, I always get stressed when I hear such news, and--" Rarity sighed once more and embraced her friend in a giant hug. It felt almost natural to embrace her like this, but . . . not quite. Soon enough, she estimated. "I know nothing I can do can really make up for the. . .events of last night, but, at least we can still be friends, right? Right? . . . please . . ." Rarity stammered. Pinkie could think of nothing to say, but the tears streaming down her face spoke for her. Rarity had said so many horrible things to her, and now she thinks that a simple apology will do? "I. . .cried myself . . to sleep." the pink mare muttered between sniffles. "You. . .made me feel . . . worthless. P-pathetic. Useless. Disgusting. H-how will one apology fix it?" "I'm dreadfully sorry, Pinkie, but if you could please forgi--" "Not another word. You say you're my friend, but once I turn around, you stab me in the back, and now you're asking for my forgiveness? Are you being serious? How can I ever forgive you? How will things ever be--" Pinkie was interrupted mid-sentence by a kiss on the lips.
Chapter OneLove and Tolerance - Chapter One Pinkie Pie drew in a deep breath and slowly let it out, trying desperately to get rid of some of the butterflies invading her stomach. It wasn't like the energetic pink pony to be this nervous, but this night was different. This was the night, the night where she was finally going to announce her feelings to a special somepony of hers, on whom she'd had a crush on since the moment she saw them. But it wasn't just anypony. It was one of Pinkie's best friends, whom she had known for almost 4 years now, Twilight Sparkle. Many a night had passed, where, cast under the spell of Luna's beautiful and romantic night, Pinkie had dreamed of the beautiful mare. Her perfectly combed mane, her shiny coat, the flowery aroma she always cast when she entered the room. . . she was truly enchanting. But Twilight's beauty wasn't the only thing that made the pink mare fall so deeply in love with her. No, Twilight Sparkle was much more than just that. She was also one of the smartest ponies in all of Ponyville--no, all of Equestria! Not to mention her amazing magic ability! Among all of these qualities is the kindness the purple unicorn seemed to emanate. She cared deeply for all five of her best friends. Pinkie wanted to be something more than a friend to Twilight. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with her. The pink-coated earth pony could see it now-- living in a quiet(well, except for when Pinkie was throwing parties!) little cottage in a corner of Ponyville, where they could live happy. Adopt a foal, maybe, and raise it as their own. It didn't matter to Pinkie. All she wanted was to be with her until she was as old as Granny Smith--hay, maybe even older, and be the one Twilight loved the most. Nopony knew of her secret feelings for her close friend. Nopony even knew that she was gay. She didn't even know if they would accept her for who she was. All she knew was that if they were true friends, they would support her and have her back when she needed them the most. Pinkie drew a deep breath once more and put the finishing touches on the table decorations. Once she was done, she stood in the doorway of Sugarcube Corner, surveying her handiwork. The wood floor was covered with a light purple carpet, the wallpaper was hot pink, and the tablecloths were a dark blue--all subtle reminders of the reason for this gathering of friends. She gave a shy half-smile, a drastic change from her usual ear-to-ear beam. Once she was done checking over every last inch of the candy shop, making sure everything was perfect for her marefriend-to-be, she sat down on one of the fluffy pink couches and awaited her friends' arrivals. About fifteen minutes passed when there was a knock at the door of Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie prayed to Celestia that it wasn't Twilight, and when she answered the door, she found her prayers to be ineffective. There she was, in all her beauty, the magnificent Twilight Sparkle. She seemed to fall in love with her all over again every second that passed. Twilight was wearing a simple dress the color of her Gala dress, which complemented her mane. Pinkie put on a mask of happiness and greeted her crush with her usual enthusiasm. "Hey Twilight! I'm so so SO super duper happyglad you could make it! I've got punch, snacks, and music!!! I hope you have a great time!" "Hi, Pinkie. I'll only be able to stay for a little while. I'll tell you why later, when everyone's here. I have splendid news!" Twilight smiled and sauntered in. Pinkie's giant fake smile started to fade. Surely the news couldn't be. . . no, she wasn't going to let this ruin her party. Twilight must have learned a new spell, or had a special meeting with Princess Celestia, or something. It was going to be okay. It's going to be alright. Pinkie was going to be okay. Just then, the doorbell rang again. When the door was opened, it revealed Pinkie's other four best friends: Apple Jack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity. She felt her smile grow again. Pinkie's friends were also dressed beautifully. Fluttershy wore a green flowing dress with a butterfly hair clip putting back her beautiful light pink mane, Rainbow had on a cyan blue skirt with a white shirt, Apple Jack had bothered to put on some modest overalls and her Stetson, and Rarity had a maroon cocktail dress on. All of them looked absolutely spectacular! "Hello, everypony! Let's get this party started!" Pinkie turned up the music. "Yeah! This is my jam!" Everypony was dancing around and having a great time, when Pinkie suddenly remembered the reason for this particular party. She felt the butterflies return to her stomach once more, and cleared her throat. "Um. . . can I have your attention? Everypony?" The pink earth pony started to turn down the music. The other ponies directed their attention to her and she began to blush. "I have some news for you guys, and it might change all of our friendships. I don't know whether it is for the better or for the worse. . . that's up to you, I guess. Well first things first, I guess." Pinkie could see the confused expressions on her friends' faces. She swallowed the lump in her throat and opened her mouth to speak. "I'm. . .I'm gay."
Chapter TwoLove and Tolerance - Chapter Two Dead silence was what followed Pinkie Pie's declaration. A mixture of reactions were among her friends. Rarity spit out her juice all over her dress(something that wasn't usual for her), Apple Jack's eyes were wide, but Twilight, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash seemed to be accepting. Thank Celestia. Pinkie bit her lip and offered a half smile. Some of her friends' reactions caused her to lower her head once more and stare blankly at the floor. She waited for someone to break the silence, to reassure her that she was still loved, still cared for, but no one did. "Um. . ." Pinkie tried. Her voice cracked, but that was the least of her worries at the moment. She just hoped she hadn't ruined the night for anypony. "It's okay, Pinkie. We still love you. Right everypony?" Fluttershy told her, attempting to live up to her Element of Harmony. "Yeah! No sweat!" Rainbow added, putting her hoof around Pinkie's neck for good measure. "We still love you, Pink." Twilight smiled. Rarity tried to speak, but whatever she choked out was incoherent and inaudible. Meanwhile, her mind was racing. How could one of her friends be. . . homosexual?! What had happened to turn her friend to this lifestyle? Was there anything that could be done to fix this, before it was too late?! "Somethin' wrong, Rares?" Apple Jack asked. "I just-It's so disgusting! You're disgusting!" Rarity cried out in a fit of pain and fury. In the spur of the moment, Rarity did not realize what she had said and ran off, out of Sugarcube Corner, away from her best friends. Pinkie's worst suspicions were turning out to be correct; she really did ruin somepony's night. And that was the night of the pony she expected to love and tolerate her the most. Pinkie felt her eyes filling with tears. She shut her eyes tightly, causing the salty tears to brim over her eyelids and flow down her cheeks. She was supposed to make everypony smile and be happy, not ruin their night and separate a whole group of friends from each other! She should have kept her mouth shut. She shouldn't have said anything. Then, they would still be having fun, dancing, and smiling. Then she wouldn't be experiencing all of this pain. "Pinkie, it's okay. I still love and accept you." Twilight trotted closer to her friend and embraced her in a friendly hug. Even though this kind of embrace, from exactly the right person was what she had been hoping for all night, Pinkie's spirits still remained low. She had caused pain in one of her best friends. How could she ever fix that? How could she ever look at Rarity right again, after she had said all those mean things to her? How could she-- "I'm gay, too." Pinkie's eyes grew wide and her mouth fell agape. What?! Was it possible that there might be a chance? She felt her smile grow wider and wider into a real grin. She didn't have to even try to make it look real this time. "R-really? I mean- awesome! In fact, was just about to ask you-" Pinkie prepared to spill the beans for Twilight. There was no doubt in her mind now that she and Twilight could be together. She began to see the visions of them growing old together, adopting a foal, snuggling near the fire. . . "I have a marefriend!" Twilight announced joyfully, blissfully unaware of the pain she had just caused. Pinkie's honest grin faded along with her high spirits and joy. So she already had a marefriend. . . Her heart felt like it was being torn in a million different directions and shattered to pieces like a glass jar dropped from a balcony. Her hopes and dreams were mercilessly being crushed and stomped on by the world; her outlook on life started to droop. But Pinkie was supposed to be happy all the time, so she had to plaster on yet another fake smile and carry on. "Oh, super dooper wooper! Hee hee! Who is it? They must be sooo lucky to have you, Twily!" Twilight gave another warm smile. "Believe it or not, it's Trixie! We bumped into each other at the coffee shop downtown and started talking. It turns out that we have a lot more in common than we thought! I guess that just goes to show how you shouldn't judge somepony based on first impressions, and you should only make conclusions about their character after really getting to know them. Hey! What a great idea for a letter to the princess! Well, I'd better get going. Have fun you guys! And good luck getting your own marefriend, Pinkie!" With that, Twilight trotted out of Sugarcube Corner, letting the door close behind her, making the bell on the door jingle like an old tune. Pinkie called out a half-spirited goodbye to her friend. Even though she was down in the dumps(majorly), she had to carry on. Maybe she could find an equally awesome marefriend. But then again, why should she take no for an answer? Nopony else was as beautiful as Twilight. Nopony was as intelligent as Twilight. Nopony would do except Twilight. That, Pinkie knew for sure.
Chapter ThreeLove and Tolerance - Chapter Three Pinkie Pie woke up to a loud knocking at the door at Sugarcube Corner. Raising her head slowly up from her tear-soaked pillow, she glanced at the alarm clock sitting on the vibrant neon-pink cabinet next to her bed. Oh no. 10:32 AM?! Pinkie was almost 3 hours late to work! Oh, Celestia. . . how was she supposed to explain this to the Cakes? She had never slept in this late a day in her life, but she had stayed up so late last night thinking about what had happened so quickly in those few hours. Last night. . . Soon, the flashbacks came back to her in waves of sadness. "I just-It's so disgusting!" The look on Rarity's face. A friend she had known for almost four years. Betraying her feelings like this. Pinkie felt the tears welling up in her eyes once more. "You're disgusting!" Before she knew it, she was hugging her already-soaked pillow in her hooves, sobbing loudly, harder than she had sobbed in her entire life. This was one of the ponies she considered her very best friends. Considering how Pinkie was friends with everypony, this was saying a lot. And now she would probably never talk to her the same way ever again. Rarity spitting out her drink. That disgusted look in her eyes. Would they ever be friends again? Could they confront each other? Disgusting. You're disgusting. "I'm. . .disgusting." Pinkie said softly to herself. "I'm disgusting." she repeated, more firmly this time. The impatient knock at the door brought the pink earth mare back to reality once more. She slugged out of bed(a significant change from the usual skip in her step) and slowly walked downstairs to the entrance of Sugarcube Corner. Not really caring about her haggard appearance, she opened the door grumpily. "Hello. . . welcome to Sugarcube Corner." Pinkie began her usual speech with her eyes still half-closed. "How. . .may I help--" She opened her eyes, and what she saw wasn't near what she expected. Her assumed ex-best friend, Miss Rarity. For what seemed like hours, they stood there, staring at each other; a heavy, awkward silence blanketing the air. Pinkie immediately snapped her head down to the floor so she wouldn't have to look her in the eye. "I just-It's so disgusting!" Disgusting. Freak. Unnatural. Pinkie felt another wave of sadness pass over her as she wondered what Rarity wanted. To yell at her again? To call her some more names? To officially call off their friendship, forever? "Pinkie, I, erm. . ." Rarity was the first to break the uncomfortable silence. "I just wanted to say, that. . ." The purple-maned unicorn shut her eyes and sighed softly. "I'm sorry, about. . .last night. I couldn't control myself. I was just under so much pressure and, I always get stressed when I hear such news, and--" Rarity sighed once more and embraced her friend in a giant hug. It felt almost natural to embrace her like this, but . . . not quite. Soon enough, she estimated. "I know nothing I can do can really make up for the. . .events of last night, but, at least we can still be friends, right? Right? . . . please . . ." Rarity stammered. Pinkie could think of nothing to say, but the tears streaming down her face spoke for her. Rarity had said so many horrible things to her, and now she thinks that a simple apology will do? "I. . .cried myself . . to sleep." the pink mare muttered between sniffles. "You. . .made me feel . . . worthless. P-pathetic. Useless. Disgusting. H-how will one apology fix it?" "I'm dreadfully sorry, Pinkie, but if you could please forgi--" "Not another word. You say you're my friend, but once I turn around, you stab me in the back, and now you're asking for my forgiveness? Are you being serious? How can I ever forgive you? How will things ever be--" Pinkie was interrupted mid-sentence by a kiss on the lips.
