And then there were two...

When Rarity and Applejack had left the room, Rainbow Dash noticed that she hadn’t seen Pinkie Pie for ages, and started to get a little wound up Where is that harebrained pony, she should be here helping to comfort everypony she fumed to herself.

She got up and trotted towards the door “Hey girls, I’m just going to see if Pinkie Pie is okay” and before anypony had a chance to answer she was already flying off on the hunt. However, it didn’t take long for the pegasus to find her friend as Pinkie Pie was sat in plain sight, right in the middle of the main waiting room. Rainbow Dash landed right in front of the earth pony with the intention of confronting her in her usual blunt way. She however noticed that the usually springy pink mane was flat, and only having seen that once before, she knew something was wrong.

She sat down next to her friend without being acknowledged, so had to speak first, a very unusual situation to be in “Hey Pinkie, you okay?”

The earth mare slowly turned her head towards her friend, and spoke in a dejected tone “Am I okay? Of course not! My friends are hurting, and what can I do? I’m the Element of Laughter, and this is no time for laughing!” the earth mare threw her hooves in the air for emphasis “Rarity and Sweetie Belle’s parents are dead! Daisy Dreams is dead! There are other ponies in the hospital injured. Ponyville will never be the same place again!” the mare wept as she looked around the ponies waiting in the hospital for news about various loved ones.

Rainbow grabbed hold of the depressed mare and gave her a comforting hug “I understand Pinkie, I really do. We are all suffering right now -” she rubbed her friend on the back “- It may not seem it to you, but now more then ever Rarity needs you!” Pinkie scoffed in response, but the pegasus continued undeterred “And they need you…not party animal you, not balloons and confetti cannon you... they just need you. Their friend. They don’t need to laugh, but the just need their friend, you, Pinkie Pie.”

The earth mare shuddered a little in her friends arms as she tried to suppress her tears “What should I say, what should I do? I’ve got two families and I’ve lost nopony I love in my life. I just don’t know…” Pinkie trailed off.

Rainbow pulled out of the hug and swept a few stray straight bangs off her friends face “Hey, I lost my parents years ago, but right now I don’t know what to say either. If something comes to mind, say it. If it doesn't, don't worry about that. You don’t need to say anything, you just need to be there for them!”

Pinkie Pie slowly stood up, without her usual bounce but at least with some purpose. “Wow Rainbow Dash, you’re right. I should be there for ponies that need cheering up, even if it's in ways I can't really help with!” She looked at her friend who just smiled and nodded in the direction of the family room, and the pair started the slow walk down the corridor back towards their friends.

“Thanks Dashie, you’re truly a loyal friend to us all, you know!” Pinkie sniffed as she walked along.

“I can’t believe you just said that!” Rainbow half joked in response and the pair shared a half smile as they approached the room. However, a sound from the room opposite caught their attention just before they opened the door. With her instincts kicking in, Pinkie went over and nudged open the door on the room opposite and sticking her head in the room she saw Daisy’s husband sat alone in the room, crying.

Turning back to Rainbow Dash she still had a depressed manner but had a new gleam in her eye “Rainbow, I think somepony else needs me right now!” Rainbow Dash looked in the room at the distraught stallion “No Pinkie…he needs us” and the peagsus knocked on the door.

“Cloudy Dreams, do you mind if we come in?” Rainbow asked in a reserved tone - despite not knowing Cloudy very well, both of the mares knew everypony needs somepony in their hour of need. The stallion looked up, and the relief in his eyes at seeing them was clear to the pair so they entered the room without words being said, closing the door behind them.

Pinkie sat next to the grey pegasus, and put a comforting hoof round his shoulder, the pony just collapsing into her arms in response. Pinkie just gathered him up in her arms and let the elder stallion just weep into her body. Rainbow sat down a little awkwardly the other side, being the less comfortable when it came to feelings and such.

After quite a few minutes of weeping into Pinkie's mane, Cloudy pulled himself away from the mare a little flustered “Sorry about that!”

“Don’t be silly,” Pinkie smiled at him, holding his hoof “there’s nothing to be sorry for!”

“Totally!” Rainbow added, before practically giving herself a facehoof, but Cloudy just sort of smiled at her awkwardness.

“How come you’re here by yourself?” Pinkie asked gingerly, and after noticing a scowl from Rainbow continued “I mean, isn’isn't there some family or something that should be here with you?”

“Daisy’s family are on their way from Manehatten, they took the first train but won’t be here for a few hours. The nurses seemed overworked as it is so I told them not to bother waiting with me” Cloudy fake smiled at the pair, but they knew he was hurting inside.

“What about your family?” Rainbow asked, glad to come out with a sensible question.

“My parents live in Las Pegasus, but they never liked Daisy or her family so we don’t really get on anymore. So there’s not much point in getting them involved right now...” the stallion trailed off.

“Do you want some company until Daisy’s family arrive?” Pinkie asked, wiping a tear away from the stallions eye.

“There’s no need…” Cloudy began, but seeing the caring eyes of the towns most popular pony, he just smiled and took another hug from Pinkie. The stallion was grateful for somepony to hold right now, but it was being much more use to Pinkie. She had always thought that she could only cheer ponies up by acting silly and throwing parties, but it was days like today, and moments like this, when she even had to admit to herself that there was more to her than that.

Rainbow Dash sat there a little stiffly as she felt she had to do something, but wasn't really sure what. She wanted to go and be with Scootaloo, both as the filly probably needed her but also becuase she was the one pony the pegasus felt she could be natural around. However, Cloudy needed her right now so she scratched her head until she thought of something  “Is there anything else you need?”

“I could really do with a drink” Cloudy replied a little hoarsely.

“There’s some water over there” Rainbow noted “do you want a glass?”

“No, a real drink!” Cloudy replied with a bit of a chuckle.

“What, a milkshake?” Pinkie asked innocently.

“I think he’s referring to something alcoholic Pinkie,” and turning to the Stallion “I’ll see what I can find.”

Rainbow quickly left the room and tracked down a nearby nurse who was restocking some shelves. The pegasus asked if there was anywhere she could get a alcoholic drink from and the nurse explained the hospital did keep a few small bottles about for days such as today. Whilst they wouldn’t normally give it out to the underage mare, when Rainbow advised it was for Cloudy Dreams the nurse said to follow her and she would find some.

When they got to the staffroom, the nurse turned to the pegasus, the effort of the day clear on her face “We’re sorry that we've not spent much time with him, but it’s been chaos in here today”

“No problem, me and Pinkie’s got this”

“Did you know Daisy or Cloud?” the nurse asked as she checked the staff room cupboards for supplies.

“Not really. Pinkie probably does, she knews everypony, but Cloudy is one of the few pegasi who don’t work in the weather team. Which is strange given his name when you think about it?”

Finding a nearby tray, the nurse passed Rainbow a small half full bottle of scotch, along with a few glasses. “Here you go…don’t let anypony know if you or Pinkie take a drink okay, and don’t let him drink too much.”

“Yeah yeah, I know all the dangers of drinking, I went to school you know” Rainbow dismissed the nurses concern “I think he just wants to toast to his wife’s memory or something” The nurses eyes began to water in response to this, and Rainbow found her eyes joining in for company. Casting a quick look at each other, Rainbow left and trotted back to the family room, knocking gently before entering. Pinkie was still sat next to Cloudy, who seemed to be regaling the mare with some story about Daisy’s recent flower competition entry.

Rainbow passed the glasses to Pinkie who took the bottle of scotch, pulled out the cork and poured the three of them a small serving of the strong fluid. Cloudy and Rainbow took a glass from the party pony and a silence fell over the room, before Cloudy stood up with Pinkie and Rainbow Dash following suit.

“Daisy, you were the love of my life and I didn’t deserve to have a mare as fantastic as you” The stallion sniffed “I’m just happy you’ve gone to the big flower patch in the sky. To Daisy!” he concluded

“To Daisy” Pinkie and Rainbow replied to made a solemn toast, the three of them sipping the strong liquor together.