Prairie Heart drew quick, shallow breaths as she galloped around the empty black stage, a barren setup without even a single microphone. Try as she might to stay calm, her poise failed her each time she looked out at all of those chairs. The annoyed, crackling voice in her headset grew louder and more desperate, talking over the tan earth pony at every opportunity. Gathering her wits, Prairie Heart ground her teeth and shook out her green mane before forcing herself back into the conversation. “Yes, okay, but does the video… Of course we need it today! Maybe the sound ponies could… How can they ALL be sick?” She stopped running and turned to the stallion that she’d been galloping around. “Snow Drift, help me out here!”
The white stallion with the black and grey mane remained wooden and motionless, unblinking, frozen except for the persistent, almost rhythmic twitching under his left eye. Prairie Heart dashed up to him, grabbing both sides of his face and shaking furiously as she shouted, “Don’t freeze up on me now, Drift! We need every working neuron we can get.”
Snow Drift’s eyes focused back on Prairie Heart. His usually calm, baritone voice conveyed a sharp edge of desperation. “Well, maybe nopony will notice that we don’t have an opening ceremony.” He cracked a goofy smile, stealing a glance at the chairs.
Prairie Heart dropped her hooves to the stage, a loud thud resonating through the open space. Her eyes narrowed and her voice flattened. “You’re kidding, right?”
Snow Drift continued grinning, eyes darting away for a moment. “Uh… yes?”
“Good grief,” she sighed, lowering her head. “Drift, these folks – OUR GUESTS – are already checking into their rooms and flying through registration, and this,” she gestured to the vacant room, “is where they’re all headed.” She surveyed the bare stage again. “We only get one first impression at a new convention, and I do NOT intend to blow it.”
“We can fix this. We can fix this!" Snow Drift galloped in place, looking around. "There’s gotta be somepony that can...”
"Of course! I’ll find our hotel liaison. And you,” she stressed, poking Snow Drift's nose, “find us some lighting – the flashier, the better.”
Snow Drift paused before taking a deep breath. A determined look on his face, he nodded and saluted with his right hoof. “Aye aye, captain! You can count on me!”
Prairie Heart's voice softened a bit as a smile appeared. “I know I can. Let’s go!” Prairie Heart dashed down the aisle and into the hallway, leaving her friend to his work.
Loud, roiling masses of multi-colored ponies dominated her field of vision the moment she stepped out the door. She pressed the button on her headset, talking over the crowd. “Pillow Mint, it’s Prairie. Meet me at the front desk ASAP!” She took a deep breath before charging into the chaos, bumping into several hotel guests but maintaining a friendly smile. “Sorry! Oh, pardon me. Welcome to the convention! Oh, my bad.”
After several minutes of polite pushing and shoving, she arrived at the lobby, spotting Pillow Mint on the opposite side of the sea of bodies. "Perfect! Now I just need to..."
“Hey, do you work here?” A small, nasally voice and a hoof on her shoulder stopped Prairie Heart in her tracks. She turned. An adolescent sky-blue colt looked up at her. “I’m having some trouble finding my room.” Prairie Heart stared, biting her lip. Everything in her conscious mind told her to run. There were more important things to take care of. It pained her to suffer such a distraction, but she silently reminded herself that, as co-chair, it was her duty to help everypony have a good time at the convention.
Everypony.
She sighed, a little louder than she wanted. “Yes, sweetie. I’m the co-chair. Let’s find you your room.”
“Hey, the co-chair!” A gruff voice came from behind her, and Prairie Heart slowly turned her head to see dozens of ponies, all smiling, with pleading eyes. “Can you give us a hoof, too?”
“Ugh,” she thought. “Let’s hope Snow Drift is having better luck than me.”
* * * * *
“Hm…”
*Click*
Sitting in the cramped, silent utility closet, Snow Drift looked contemplatively at the black plastic flashlight in his hooves. A dim, yellow light flooded out the end.
"Hm."
*Click click click click click*
The flashlight weakly flickered off and on and off again.
“Hm?”
*Click-fzzzt*
There was a fizzling noise, and the flashlight failed to turn back on. Snow Drift stared at it, an eyebrow raised and his lower lip protruding.
“...hmmmm.”
* * * * *
Prairie Heart galloped through the hotel, mumbling to herself. “Okay, so Pillow Mint was no help. Maybe I can find a sound pony out here.” She scanned each pony she passed, desperately searching for a cutie mark in the shape of a speaker or microphone. “Carrots? Nope. Lightning bolt? No good. Ferret in hospital scrubs?” He expression became quizzical. "I'll have to ask about that one." Looking over the crowd, she spotted a dejected Snow Drift sitting on a bench. She trotted up to him, exasperated. “Drift! Please tell me you have something.”
The stallion continued looking at the floor. “Just a bunch of dead batteries.”
“What?”
“Never mind.” Snow Drift patted the seat to his right, and Prairie Heart took the hint. After a few moments, Snow Drift spoke up, an artificial cheeriness in his tone. “Well, at least it gives everypony something to look forward to next year.” He looked at his friend, the same goofy smile reappearing. “Don’t wanna set the bar too high the first year, right?” Prairie Heart frowned and looked away as Snow Drift heard a small squeak.
He turned his head. Another pony had sat next to him, a pink mare with a fluffy mane and tail. He cutie mark, one yellow balloon and two blue ones, suggested that this pony loved to party, but she looked just as downtrodden as the co-chairs. Snow Drift cast a glance back at Prairie Heart, who looked completely defeated. He turned back to the pink stranger, gesturing half-heartedly with one hoof. “Hey, don’t be sad. Welcome to the con! Is there something we can help you with, Miss…?”
The pink earth pony cheered up a bit. “Well, hello! My name’s Pinkie Pie. It’s very nice to meet you.” Her tone dropped again. “…but I don’t think you can help me.”
Snow Drift smiled warmly. “We’re here to help everypony have a good time. Try me.”
Pinkie took in a deep breath and began speaking faster than anypony Snow Drift had ever heard. “Well, my new friend told me about how he travels everywhere throwing parties and making everypony happy so I thought, ‘Hey, I should try that,’ but this is my first city and when I got here the whole hotel was booked for some kind of biiiiiiig party that I wasn’t even invited to and everypony seems too busy to make a new friend and now I have all these streamers and confetti and lights and speakers and music ready to go and nopony to share it with.” Prairie Heart and Snow Drift stared at her, dumbfounded. “So yeah, that’s why I’m down.”
The co-chairs' heads snapped towards one-another, then back to Pinkie Pie. Snow Drift smiled broadly. “I think we can help.”
* * * * *
The crowd roared their approval as dazzling lights danced in time with the loud, upbeat music, filling the gigantic room with energy and excitement. Prairie Heart lowered her head to the microphone again. “I can’t hear you! I said, are you ready to party!?” The noise from the audience swelled to a deafening wave, crashing all around a packed room that could barely contain it. “Then on behalf of myself, Snow Drift, and all the staff…” She nodded to Snow Drift, who took in a deep breath before they both raised a welcoming hoof and shouted in unison.
“Welcome to the first ever MLP MSP!”
