Blue Frosting

She felt them before she heard them. Hooves on dirt, running fast.

"Scootaloo! Sweetie Belle!" a stallion yelled outside the cellar door. "Apple Bloom, are you there?" The lone survivor of the Cutie Mark Crusaders recognized the familar drawl of her sister.

She heard the ponies pull up outside the door. A mare's voice screamed "look out!" There was a whistling sound followed by an explosion of wood and light. Apple Bloom stepped back behind the couch as the room was showered with splinters. A blue blur slammed into the steps, hard, and bounced once onto the dirt floor. Applejack barrelled her way behind, shoulders widening the opening. She jumped onto the floor, almost crushing Rainbow.

"App... Applejack?" called the wounded filly, standing up.

The older sister spun around and saw her sibling. "Applebloom!" The older sister almost her knocked over she enfolded the wretch in a big hug.

"How did you find me...?"

"That's a long story, sis." She noticed the collar around her neck, and reached down and bit right through the bolt holding it on. It fell to the ground with a clatter.

Just then the room darkened as a figure stood in the entry way. "Sweetie Belle! Sweetie Belle! Your big sister is here to rescue you!"

******

Aloe dropped her jar of apple-milkweed facial mask when they dragged Pinkie through the front door of the spa. She was thrashing around wildly and yelling about parties and cupcakes. Something was seriously wrong with Ponyville's happiest resident.

"What's going on?" yelled Lotus, worried that the stampede of ponies was going to destroy the massage tables.

Donut Joe, always looking for a chance to hit on either of the spa ponies, trotted over, panting heavily. "Nobody knows. Pinkie was shopping in town when she suddenly started talking nonsense to anypony passing by. Everpony thought it was one of her silly games, but then she started screaming and hitting fillies in the town square. The Mayor and I wrestled her to the ground and Applejack managed to get a rope on her. This was the closest place so they dragged her in here."

Mr. Cake's voice could be heard over the din. "Pinkie? What's wrong! Stop struggling; you're going to hurt someone!" The maniacal pony ignored his pleadings and continued her rantings.

"You're trying to steal my blue frosted cupcakes! The blue cupcakes are only for the Party Ponies! The blue cupcakes are only for the Party Ponies and you can't have any!" Pinkie threw herself against the rope but Applejack's knots held tight.

"What's she talking about?" asked Applejack, fighting to keep the maniacal mare under control.

"I don't know," said Mr. Cake, very worried about his virtually-adopted daughter. "Wait. She used to make blue cupcakes as a special treat for those three fillies before they disappeared. Those kids were crazy about them. That's all they talked about when they came in the store."

Mr. Cake got a very strange expression on his face.

"What?" asked Applejack.

"Well, the other day I came home early from a delivery and I found Pinkie making a couple dozen of those blue cupcakes. I didn't think anything of it."

"Did you sell any of them in the store?"

"No, Pinkie said they were special and kept them for herself."

"All two dozen?"

"Actually, it was probably closer to three or four dozen. She had both ovens going and a really big bowl of frosting."

Applejack put two and two together and became scared. Really scared. She grabbed Pinkie's shoulders and got right into her face.

"Pinkie, did you make blue cupcakes for your party pony friends?"

"Party pony party pony. Blue cupcakes on the dessert plates, but only for bad pony party haters."

Applejack thought for a moment. "Pinkie," she began hesitantly, "is Apple Bloom a party pony hater?"

"Little Miss Just Right. Little Miss Just Right," sang Pinkie to no particular tune.

Applejack gasped. "Oh my god. Pinkie, where are they?" Applejack shook the hysterical mare's shoulders. "Where did you put the party pony haters?"

"Nobody likes a hater," she said with an exaggerated frown. "They fell into the party pony palace but party pony haters were cheaters. So no party hats and no candles."

"Falling..." muttered Mr. Cake to himself, then his eyes widened. "I think she's talking about our cellar. She's been playing out there a lot, taking her basket with her. I never thought anything of it."

Applejack passed the rope to the pony standing next to her and started barking out orders. "Hold that rope! Don't let her loose! Mayor," she continued as started running toward the door, "keep her talking and see if she says anything else."

Just then Twilight poked her head in "What's going on? Where's Pinkie?"

"No time!" shouted Applejack as she burst out the door, almost knocking the purple mare over. Rainbow was less than a wingbeat behind her. "Use your magic on Pinkie!" yelled Applejack. Twilight stood there, not sure what to make of the situation. She started in, almost knocked down again by Mr. Cake as he took off at a full gallop toward the cellar behind his house.