Moving On, Hand In Hand

Anything that had once been vaguely recognizable about the Canterlot High gymnasium was now completely suffocated in  corkscrew ribbons and neon posters.

Taking a step back to admire the product of her and Pinkie's work, Applejack could neither love or hate the excessive decor spewing out from every available area like the aftermath of a carnival explosion. Taking pleasure in looking at the baskets  of freshly picked apples after a rough harvest day had to be the most rewarding feeling in the world, and though this would ordinarily be considered the more enjoyable task, turning an otherwise ship-shape vicinity into a gigantic Christmas present didn't exactly  have the same appeal. She rubbed the back of her neck, quietly chuckling at her friend's gaudy taste. Only for Pinkie Pie. . .

Finishing up decorating a party with Pinkie was practically a ticking time-bomb. The pink package of hyperactivity simply couldn't contain herself around bright colors, or really anything relating to a party. Considering all the frills and bows covering the gym fit this criteria, Applejack was as a good as a sitting duck waiting to be knocked over by an overly-charged hug. Or "pounce" might've been a better term. She took an uneasy glance at her friend, who luckily hadn't started shaking like a broken lawn-mower yet. That had to be a good sign. She traipsed over to Pinkie, the hard soles of her cowgirl boots creating a loud echo across the gym. Such a large room only being occupied by two people somehow didn't seem right. It didn't seem right that the usually exuberant Pinkie had her shoulders slumped like a wilted flower, either.

"Somethin' botherin' ya, Pinkie? You look a might glum." Like Applejack had jerked a reflex, the dejected girl plastered a ridiculously huge grin onto her face.

"What? I don't know what you mean!" She kept the robotic smile, humming a frantic tune that Applejack would've believed to be a real song as soon as soon as gumdrops started growing on trees. She rolled her eyes.

"Nice try, but I ain't exactly gullible. You look more downtrodden than a worm on a rainy day." At least she had a second ago, but now she resembled an over-starched t-shirt more than anything.

"Oh, don't you worry," Pinkie chirped, skipping away to hang up yet another unnecessary streamer, "These dang decorations just aren't doing justice to how fabulous everything is supposed to look. Tonight is the last time we'll ever be walking through this gym, so everything has to be absolutely perfect!" Being known as the resident 'go-with-the-flow' chick, Pinkie never struck Applejack as a perfectionist. Either way, her guise of needing to burden the poor gym with more extravagance couldn't have been more transparent if she had been trying.

"Do ya even have an extra inch to fit in any more ribbon?" Applejack snorted, a smirk finding its way onto her face as she crossed her arms. Better not to press the point to heavy-handedly with a girl like Pinkie. A genuine glint returned to Pinkie's round baby blues, framed perfectly by her mess of fuchsia curls which Applejack could've sworn got fluffier when she was in high spirits.

"There's always room for more ribbon, doofus! You just have to believe in your skills as an interior designer."

"I'd rather believe in my skills as a heavy-lifter. Them snack tables sure didn't plan on walkin' over themselves."  Applejack tried not to squirm as Pinkie  put her in a headlock, delivering a hard noogie on top of her blonde head. Dang, that girl is stronger than she looks.

"And the tables thank you for your hard work!" Pinkie giggled. AJ couldn't help but grin, absorbing her friend's contagious jubilation. Maybe she had been wrong and Pinkie was really fine as junebug in summer, but then again, the insatiable extrovert knew how to smile away the blues better than anyone. Whether Pinkie's skills were to hide it from the public or herself, she couldn't quite tell, but had long since given up on the fruitless task of trying to wrap her head around it all.

Applejack cleared her throat. "So. . .that's really all that was ailin' ya?"

"Yup! I'm about as ailed as you are purple polka-dotted. No worries here!"

A lingering sense that she was being fed a falsehood stuck in the air, but AJ was raised better than to doubt the word of a good family friend. She stared for a good few moments before forcing herself to shrug it off. "Alrightie then. I guess I'll be seein' ya at tonight's graduation." Pinkie took on an uncharacteristically feeble expression at this.

"You're leaving already?" Her visible disappointment was enough to tug at the heartstrings of even a cynical person such as herself. Heavens to betsy, this girl could be like a wind-up doll. Energetic at one moment and completely drooped over the next. Sometimes all she needed was assurance that someone would come along to wind her up again.

"Unless there's suddenly more work to do here, I gotta get changed into my fancy robes. I reckon you do the same thing before the students come floodin' in."

"Right. . ."

That was it. She wouldn't take another fabricated assurance that Pinkie was anything close to 'alright' when she was screaming quite the opposite in all physical respects. She placed her hands on her hips.

"Darlin', now I know somethin's up. You care to tell me or are ya gonna keep beatin' around this dismal bush?"

Pinkie's eyes fell to her white-laced boots, her shoulders slumping like a puppet who just lost its' strings. She slowly returned her gaze to Applejack. "I. . . well, I really don't want to be alone right now. I hate being alone." It was only once in a blue moon that she took on that tone of voice. A small, hushed tone that she had gotten used to hearing from Fluttershy, but sounded fragile and melancholy when used by Pinkie. Frankly it was quite alarming. Placing her arm around her crestfallen friend, she ushered Pinkie to sit down.

"Hey now. You ain't usually like this before a party. Trust me, when this whole shindig gets started, you'll be the dictionary-defined opposite of 'alone'."

"But what about when the party's over?"

"Well, ya--" Applejack opened her mouth to reply, but found the question stuck like molasses. Normally words of encouragement were to her as bread was to a baker, but no obvious answer manifested in her head this time. What about when the party's over? Any other day in their lives, it would have been such an easy question. There would always be more after school study sessions, impromptu trips to the cafe, and unexpected adventures. Band gatherings. School bake sales. The thought of reminiscing on those everyday occurrences as memories left a pit in her stomach. "--ya ain't exactly gonna be starin' at the blank walls all day, I can tell ya that."

Some comfort she was. Pinkie simply continued on her fretful tangent like AJ's words have gone through one ear and out the other.

"Twilight and Rarity are going to Manehatten University, Dash's already enlisted, and Fluttershy's going far away to get her veterinary degree!" It all seemed to come out of Pinkie's mouth like a gush of water that had been behind a dam for far too long. "What about me?"

Applejack would be lying if she said it didn't sting just a little that she hadn't been mentioned, but it couldn't surprise her either. She made the choice on her own to stick to the back of the pack and not make much of a splash. It wouldn't be too far off from the realm of plausibility if her friends saw as a chaperone more than one of the girls, but the creeping thought couldn't matter at this point. It was Pinkie's turn to be upset.

"It's not like you won't be seein' them again." AJ assured, chewing her words carefully, "Besides. . .I know you'll have friends wherever you go."

Pinkie sighed, letting her head fall onto her friend's shoulder. "But that's the problem. . ."

"Havin' friends is a problem?"

"No. The problem's that I don't know where to go. What am I gonna do?"

There it was, the  age-old question that ailed teens across the globe every year. Pinkie had really dropped a big one on her. Applejack shifted her weight uncomfortably and rifled through the depths of her mind to find something remotely appropriate to say. Nothing put a kink an otherwise good day like not having the right answer, though fortunately AJ had the feeling that the distressed party girl's quandaries were rhetorical.

". . .Well, that's somethin' you're gonna have to figure out for yourself. You're one lucky girl, sugarcube, so I can safely assure ya that you'll be happy once you work it all out." She smiled, hoping to radiate the same warmth that Pinkie did on a daily basis, but only received a half-grin that lasted a few seconds before fading as a response. Pinkie Pie let out an elongated sigh.

"I'm just so happy here, y'know? So many friends I get to see everyday, school events, clubs I'm part of. . .and it's all going away."

"Everythin' goes away eventually, I suppose." Applejack reflected, more to herself than Pinkie. Upon realizing how morose that sounded, she quickly added "But not right now. Now you've just got a bad case of the jitters 'cause everything's changin'."

Pinkie rolled her eyes. "Tsh. Maybe for them. Nothing's changing for us besides the fact that our best friends are leaving." She paused, turning to AJ with sudden alarm. "Wait, you're not leaving, are you?" Applejack shook her head.

"Same town, same farm. I wouldn't have it any other way." With so many people relying on her, even the thought of going off to some faraway college left her with a pang of guilt. Yet there was a unique comfort in being of use, a comfort that was warm and made her feel like a puzzle piece that fit perfectly. If Pinkie wanted to be part of the puzzle, than she would be welcomed with opened arms.

"Doesn't that make you. . .I dunno. . .sad?"

AJ cringed at the big, uncomfortable spotlight Pinkie had just put her under. Talking about others' feelings, that was easy. But Miss out-of-nowhere had hardly given her a moment's time to mentally prepare for talking about her own. Bemoaning about what could and couldn't be wouldn't provide any solid advice for the confused girl, either. She was on the verge of laughing it off when a trace of genuine curiosity and concern in Pinkie's eyes stopped her. Perhaps it wasn't only answers she was looking for.

"A little bit." She managed to mumble, rubbing the back of her neck. "I've gotta admit, Pinkie,  there are days when I wish I could be spontaneous like you. Everythin' changes for the better when you show up. I just. . .everythin's plain and simple with me, so a plain and simple life is the best route to go. I really don't mind."

Applejack flushed a little. She had surprised even herself with letting her guard down like that, but her embarrassment didn't last long before Pinkie's loud, shrill voice pierced her ears.  "Applejack! Without you, everything would be a crazy mess!"

She laughed. "Shucks. I'd deny it for the sake of humility if I didn't think it were true." At this, Pinkie gasped in exaggerated mock offense.

"You goober!"

The two of them sat together on the gym floor for awhile, both chuckling and enjoying each other's company, and in Applejack's case, the rare but cherished silence. Whether they had worked out the problem or not, she felt a weight had been lifted off her chest. Once their laughter began to dwindle, AJ stood back up and cleared her throat. The big event was still imminent, after all. "So, uh. . .I'd really like to continue this conversation, but we'd better wait till after graduation. Gotta practice my speech one more time n' all that. Talk later?"

Pinkie nodded, also standing up. "Sure thing." Giving her an encouraging pat on the back, AJ jogged off towards the direction of the exit. She had made it about six feet away when Pinkie stopped her with a sudden "Wait, AJ!" What now? Applejack turned around to see her companion with a rather sheepish look on her face.

"My speech. . .I-I don't have it."

Seriously? She crossed her arms, trying to give a dry look which ended up twisting into an amused smirk. "You mean with a whole month, you didn't have the time to memorize a few paragraphs?"

Pinkie shoved her hands in her pockets, rolling back on forth on the balls of her feet. "It's not that. I . . .to be honest, I avoided writing it all month. All I have is bits and pieces." Made sense. From what AJ could gather, Pinkie's entire clockwork was made up of 'bits and pieces'. She was right, however, that it wouldn't do for something as important as a graduation speech. Halfway between laughing and groaning in exasperation, AJ settled on a neutral sigh.

"Maybe you're the goober in this situation."

"A big idiot-ball is what I am."

Poor thing. She must have been eaten up to the bone with worry if someone as talkative as her couldn't find the right words for a speech. AJ softened her expression to a gentler smile, a spark of an idea forming as she walked back to Pinkie Pie. True friends work together, don't they? "Hey, don't cut yerself short. I've got an idea. . ."

The resounding applause that followed Rainbow Dash's speech could be heard from even outside the building , a cacophony of  enthusiastic cheers and distressed sobs over the departure of Canterlot High's most popular student definitely on a louder scale than the crowd's reception had ever been before. Applejack snickered, not bothering to imagine what such a reception must have done for the girl's already gigantic ego. Let her have her glory days while they last. She looked back at Pinkie Pie, who had already wrapped herself in her massive puff of vibrant hair in order to keep warm.

"You ready? I'm supposed to be next on the list."

Pinkie nodded vigorously. "Absolutely! It's freezing out here!" AJ nodded right back, pushing open the door to the CHS gym. Immediately, she was surrounded in a whole different world. In the dim nighttime lighting, all of the bells and whistles created a fantastical ambiance,  every unnecessary shiny ribbon sparkling under the artificial spotlights like twinkling stars. Pinkie really did know what she was doing! She had been so distracted by the sudden change of environment that she almost failed to notice every eye in the crowd was focused on her and Pinkie. She shrunk into herself at all the attention and Pinkie just beamed widely.

Principal Celestia, who stood behind the podium on the stage,  blinked a few times in surprise. "You two! This is. . .rather impromptu. Pinkie Pie has already been marked absent from the ceremony."

"We ran into some complications, principal, but I hope you'll still let me go up and have my turn. Pinkie had to help me with some revisions to my speech." She looked up imploringly at her elder, doing her best to ignore the staring audience. Celestia must have seen hundreds of student speeches over her years at CHS, but AJ liked to think each one was special in its own right.

Principal Celestia smiled, stepping aside from the podium. "Of course. Thank goodness you're just on time."

"Oh, and. . ." Applejack grinned shyly, "Would ya mind terribly if Pinkie was my partner in deliverin' this thing too?" A few of the freshmen in the back laughed, who AJ promptly ignored.

"I don't see why not. Come on up."

Flashing a smile at her friend, she ascended up the stairs and onto the stage. Truth be told, Applejack couldn't remember the last time she'd been in front of an audience, let alone under a spotlight, which only made Pinkie Pie's presence all the more appreciated. Somewhere in the colorful ocean of students and their family members, her gaze fixed upon five teenage girls smiled brightly at the two, especially a certain pale-yellow girl in flowery mini skirt who went against her reserved nature to wave excitedly at them. Allowing the unknown faces in front of her to melt away, AJ focused on the four friendly faces and began her speech.

"Howdy, I'm Applejack." She gave a feeble wave, keenly aware of how the introduction fell flat. Glancing back at Pinkie Pie's encouraging smile, she continued. "And this here's my friend, Pinkie Pie. Personally, I think I can speak for all of us when I say the past years here at CHS haven't exactly been normal, or heck, even all that safe. But without a doubt, we're both gonna cherish the memories we've made at this school no matter what happens next. No matter how scary or upsettin' things got durin' our time on this campus, that ain't ever gonna take away the fact that this'll always be the same place where I met some of the best people I've ever known. Sure, they can be crazy, bombastic, and sometimes even confusin'; but they're the people who make this place feel like a community. I might not know if much is gonna change now that I'm graduatin', but I know for a fact that I've been inspired to make anywhere I go feel like a community of friends, just like some certain gals did for me."

She stood aside to make room for Pinkie, her heart heavy in her chest. Not in a bad way. It was like having a heart full of warm chocolate fudge. Pinkie faced the crowd with considerably more confidence than AJ had at first, grabbing the microphone. "Like Applejack said, our friends are the bestest friends anyone could ask for! That's why tonight hurts more than anything I've been through, and trust me, I've been through a lot at this place. All my life, I've been told that friends are forever; that when you meet someone you really connect with, that connection will never go away. Today . . .today I reconsidered that."

Hearing her friend's voice waver slightly, AJ interlaced her fingers with Pinkie's, nodding for her to go on. Pinkie returned the gesture with her signature smile, albeit a more toned-down one.  "However, Applejack helped remind me that I didn't have to reconsider. Friendship is forever. It doesn't matter if you might not see the people you love everyday, the impact that friends have in our lives is much bigger than we are. When we think about how uniquely wonderful each of our friends are, even if they are gone, that connection remains. It stays in you and spreads to others. It's a special kind of love that I think a lot of people forget about, but it's the truest, most real kind of love I know." She handed the microphone back to Applejack, who now felt content facing the entire audience.

"While we can't ask all of our friends to hold back from bein' everythin' they can be just 'cause we don't want 'em to go, there is a certain sense of fulfillment ya get from stayin' right where you are to support those you care about. To know that same person's always gonna be there for you, even if you do have to let 'em go at some point. I guess what we've really been tryin' to say this whole time is that friends will come and go, but in spirit they ain't goin' nowhere. Sure it sounds straight outta a fortune cookie, but if I've learned anythin' in these past four years, I've learned that it's true."

"So while it might Applejack and I a little while to feel better again, we will be moving on, thanks to you guys. And best of all, we'll be doing it together! Happy graduation night, everybody!"  Pinkie Pie finished the speech in an upbeat, fruity tone than only she could pull off.

The overwhelming applause and cheers they received all seemed too unreal, the collective empty praise floating away into the air like bubbles. Standing in the front row, the exclamations of Rarity, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Twilight, and Sunset Shimmer stood out clearer than anything else, their mutual joyous emotions practically making them glow. Or were they literally glowing. . .? AJ swiveled around to see that Pinkie now emitted a familiar blue luminescence and sported two soft pink pony ears. Oh nuts. . .not in public again.

"Way to say goodbye with a bang, huh?" Applejack chuckled, groping the top of her head to feel her own equine ears. Lands above, she would never get used to it. Pinkie Pie allowed herself to float slightly above her embarrassed friend, sparkles showering down from her magical aura onto the stage.

"We haven't said goodbye just yet, silly. There's still a whole lot of party to get through!"

"It's good to have ya back, Pinks. Good to have ya back."

Though it required it some effort of Principal Celestia's part, the crowd eventually managed to calm itself after witnessing another instance of Canterlot High's famous "pony girl transformations", allowing Pinkie Pie and Applejack to exit the stage. Almost immediately, they ran into their friends' arms for a big, silent group hug. No words were required. Each of their radiant expressions were worth more than any amount of talking. When the seven of them eventually broke the embrace off, Rarity wiped away a tear and gave AJ a knowing grin.

"My, my. I didn't know you could be so sentimental, Applejack."

"Hey," The blonde retorted, "usually it's you tellin' me to quit ruinin' the moment. What happened?"

Rarity placed a dainty finger on her lower lip in the playful way that she always did. "You said it yourself, darling, things change."

They laughed the night away.