Act I: Expressing your feelings
Soon after lunch, the weather team commenced with the cleanup of the storm clouds. Big Mac and Applejack took this as a sign to survey the orchard and check for any damage. Taking the greater part of the afternoon, they met up once all the damage was assessed.
"Anythin' worth mentionin' ?" Applejack spoke first.
"Nope!" Mac used his standard reply. Of course there was some damage, like a few broken branches and some vegetables that didn't make it, but overall he had nothing worth reporting.
"Well, a lighting bolt took out one of the older trees and the wind uprooted another!" Applejack berated. "When I see Rainbow Dash, Ah swear ah'm gonna take one of them branches and knock some sense into her! What was she thinkin', callin' up a storm that size! Ah'm gonna take it outta her cider priv'leges that's what! That'll learn 'er!"
Mac just responded with a stoic stare that seemed to tell her to just let it go. Seeing this, Applejack exhaled a calming sigh. " Yer right... as usual," she scraped her hoof along the ground, slightly annoyed. "No sense cryin' over spilled cider, I'll leave that to Dash!" she snickered. "Anyways, now'd be a good time to write that letter."
Big Mac was hoping she'd forget about that. It may have seemed a trivial thing, but even just writing the words down seemed to fill him with trepidation. Still, he might as well get it over with just to get AJ off his back. She might have been the element of honesty, but even that was second to her tenacity.
"Well..." she shooed waving her front leg. "GO ON! GET!" Big Mac turned toward the farmhouse and lowered his head showing he'd, once again, submitted to his little sister's will. Maybe that's my problem, he thought. I'm afraid of disappointing mares to the point where I just cow to them.
As Big Mac slowly made his way inside, Applejack's friends -minus Rainbow Dash- trotted up to greet her. "Hi Applejack!" Greeted Twilight Sparkle. "Ready to go? I'm really looking forward to the play!"
"Play?" Applejack seemed confused. "Oh right! The play about that windy lady"
"Lady Windermare's Fan," Twilight corrected. "I know you're not really thrilled about seeing it, but I think you might like it".
"Well, we still have to wait on Rainbow Dash, She sent one doozy of a storm earlier," Applejack was still annoyed.
"Well she'd better hurry up," Rarity chimed in, overdressed for the occasion as usual; which in this case was difficult to do. "I'm not going to look this good to only be turned away for being late!"
"Relax Rarity," Twilight reassured. "We still have plenty of time".
After a brief moment, Twilight recalled the scene she observed when they walked up. "Applejack, if you don't mind me asking, what was it you were yelling at Big Macintosh about?"
"Huh?" Applejack looked confused. "I wasn't yelling".
"It sure looked like you were yelling..." Fluttershy quietly added.
"Yeah!" quickly exclaimed Pinkie Pie. "And not the kind of yelling that's like 'ahhh!' like you're excited to see somepony, but like 'AHHHHH' like you're ready to pounce on somepony and pound them into pieces and then pound those pieces into smaller pieces and those pieces into even smaller pieces until they are nothing but smithereens and then you sweep those smithereens into a box and mail it far away only to have it fall out and splash into the ocean NEVER TO BE SEEN AGAAAAAAIIIIIIIN!!!!!!!"
"Calm down, Pinkie!" Applejack interrupted. " 'tweren't nuthin' like that! He just had somethin' that needs doin' and I was just makin' sure he did it!"
"Well, you could have been a little more Débonnaire about it," Rarity made an attempt to sound sophisticated.
"Oh, C'mon Rares! I've seen you snap at him plenty!" AJ accused.
Rarity gasped. "Moi?! I most certainly have not! A lady does not snap. I merely and calmly correct him when he is late or misses his cues!" referring to their work in the Ponytones.
"Uh huh, and I'm an Alicorn Princess," AJ spoke sarcastically. "No offense, Twi".
Twilight smirked and rolled her eyes. A good natured argument like this is one of the things that made her unique group of friends so special. Finally, as if to put an end to this, Rainbow Dash flew in, still wearing her weather goggles.
"All right girls! Now we can go!" She greeted. "Sorry about the storm earlier, we had a lot of catching up to do".
"It's all right, Sugarcube. You only ruined two of my trees. I'll just take it out of yer cider". Applejack joked as they started walking away.
Dash's eyes widened, "NOT THE CIDER!"
Big Mac slowly made his way up to his room. With his sisters out and Granny Smith asleep on her rocking chair, he more or less had the farmhouse to himself. Normally he wouldn't mind being by himself, but tonight he just wanted to go out so as to avoid his current task. Something inside filled him with anxiety at the thought of bearing out his feelings, even if it was to just a piece of paper. He also felt like what he was doing was a mistake; like he needs to just go out and announce his intentions directly, come what may. Part of him also believed what he was doing was cowardly and no good would come from it. However, he implied a promise to Applejack that he would get it done.
Mac entered his room and locked the door to prevent any unexpected interruptions. Clearing a space off his desk, he placed a clean sheet of paper and sat down in front of it. Most ponies would write with their mouths or, if they were unicorns, use magic to write. But Mac hated the taste of erasers, especially after they'd been used. He opened the drawer and pulled out his writing bracelet. It was a simple metal band fitted to wear around his front hoof with a clip so he could attach a writing utensil to it. This made his writing far more legible than other ponies, though still not as good as Spike's. There is something to be said for having opposable thumbs. After attaching a quill and checking the ink, he was now prepared to pour out his feelings.
He sat. He stared at the paper. Then the pen. After all this buildup, he now couldn't figure out what to say. Might as well start with the greeting.
Dear ,
He crossed out her name. Even seeing it on paper filled him with anxiety. He thought it better to leave it out or start with some general greeting, at least for now.
To the sweetest, most beautiful pony I know,
There. That will work for now. But now the hard part. Mac took a few moments to think of the most romantic words to say. He thought maybe he could flatter or charm her with his exceptional vocabulary. But if he did that it might confuse her in that it contradicted Mac's personality. She might be disappointed to find him behave opposite his writing. In the end, he decided to be himself and write from the heart.
My heart can remain silent no longer. Thoughts of you have ensconced themselves at the forefront of my mind. I wake, only to continue dreaming of your radiant image. The Sun and Moon shine brighter as if only to enhance your glory. The birds of the sky are shamed by the melody in your voice. And yet, your beauty is surpassed only by your character. The mere thought of your name can embolden me to conquer the world, yet also to cower. You make me want to achieve better, you make me want to surrender. Only you can fill me with hope and dismay simultaneously. You deserve no less than the best this world can provide and if it will not, I will surely take it only to see your smile. My desire is to be near you, to build a love and increase it by a hundred fold the next day, and a hundred fold the day after that until the numbers themselves cease to exist. But if I am too humble, I wish only for someone greater to make you happy. If I am worthy, I steadfastly await your reply to end this torment of uncertainty.
Macintosh
"That should do it," Mac said to himself. He inspected the letter and proofread for any mistakes. Satisfied, he nodded in approval. Opening a drawer to his left, he took out an envelope and folded the letter into it. He kept it unsealed as he still had to write her name if and when he was ready to send it. For now at least, he just wrote the address on the envelope and put it in his memento drawer.
Before closing his memento drawer, he took a minute to go through it. Here he kept treasures from those close to him, should there have been an opportunity to collect. On top was Smartypants as he often took that out to take care of. There was also one of Apple Bloom's bows, one of Applejacks old hats from when she was a filly, a ribbon Granny Smith use to wear in hear mane, a well chewed toy Winona would play with, and a fragment of metal from his first yoke. He also had a few more items he collected from ponies he thought special such as a deflated balloon and bag of confetti from Pinkie, his bowtie from his first time singing with Rarity in the Ponytones, a stone carving from Marble Pie, and a few Cyan feathers left over from when Rainbow Dash would nap in one of his trees. Tucked away in a corner on the bottom was the pièce de résistance: a jewelry box containing the engagement ring he bought for Cheerilee while under the influence of the Love Poison. He spent so much of his savings to buy it and he vowed one day he would use it.
After reminiscing, he closed the drawer and locked it, keeping the key in a secret location under his bed. Satisfied, he yawned and stretched his mighty legs as he prepared for bed. With Luna's moon beginning its ascent, he figured he might as well hit the hay early. He removed his yoke, turned out the light, and crawled into bed feeling as if a tremendous weight was lifted off his chest.
"I guess AJ was right...."
A few weeks later
"Applejaaaaack!" Apple Bloom moaned. "I can't find my bow!" She darted from wall to wall, room to room frantically looking for a bow to wear. "I can't go outside without it, Ah'll feel naked!"
She wanted to meet her friends Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle in order to find new ponies who needed help understanding or getting their Cutie Marks.
"Where'd y'all leave it? Where's the last place you remember havin' it?" Applejack shouted back.
"I dunnoooo!" Apple bloom started to whine back.
"Well your just gonna have to go without it today! Ah'll have Granny getcha a new one tomorrow!"
Apple Bloom did not want to go out without it. Her bow was a part of who she was. It would be like asking a unicorn to go without her horn or asking Rainbow Dash to forget about her wings.
"I caaaan't! Don't you have any extras?"
Applejack, tired of putting up with the whining that could rival Rarity's, finally capitulated. "I think Big Mac has one in his desk drawer".
Thankfully, Big Mac got an early start to his day so he could miss the latest round of Applejack vs. Apple Bloom.
"The locked one? How am I s'posed to get it?!" Apple Bloom continued.
"LAND SAKES!" Applejack shouted. "It ain't that hard ta figure out! Mac's terrible at hidin' things. The dang key's under his bed!"
Satisfied, Apple Bloom dashed up to Big Mac's room. She never questioned why he would have one of her bows, she was just happy that he had one. She quickly found the key and rushed to open the drawer. Upon opening, she noticed the doll and some other junk along side her bow. As she grabbed the bow, she noticed the undelivered letter Big Mac had written a few weeks ago. She realized this must be the letter Applejack was talking to him about.
Curious, she opened it and started to read. "BLEH!" It was some sappy love letter. Despite wearing a bow -present time excluded of course- Apple Bloom was very much a tomcolt. She didn't like all that mushy lovey dovey stuff. She wanted to gag almost as much as she did when she tricked him into taking the Love Poison. Still, it gave her another idea on what she could do today. She quickly grabbed the envelope and the bow, then rushed out the front door to meet up with her friends.
"YOUR WELCOME!" yelled Applejack sarcastically.
Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were already waiting for Apple Bloom in their Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse. They had started formulating ideas on where to find ponies who needed their help and strategies on how to help them. Adjusting her newly found bow, Apple Bloom entered the clubhouse. "Sorry ah'm late girls, I couldn't find a bow."
"That's all right Apple Bloom, we were just going over how we're going to help other ponies realize their Cutie Marks!" exclaimed Scootaloo.
"Yeah," added Sweetie Belle. "You ready to go out and see who we could find?"
"Soon enough, Ah've just got one stop to make first," Apple Bloom hoped they wouldn't inquire as to the specifics of their new task.
"Where?" asked Sweetie Belle.
"Oh, I just gotta stop by the post office and send out a letter from Big Mac".
"Well, let's get going and get it out of the way!" Scootaloo replied eagerly, excited to start her day.
Entering the post office, The Cutie Mark Crusaders were greeted with an enthusiastic wave from their favorite mailmare. She was a gray pegasus with a light blonde mane and eyes that looked in different directions. Apple Bloom approached as she handed her the envelope.
"Howdy Ma'am, can you send this letter?"
"Nooo problem!" the mailmare answered with glee. "I'll take care of this personally!"
Satisfied, Apple Bloom handed her the bits necessary for postage and started to turn around to be on her way.
"See, Ah told ya that wouldn't take lo- OOF!"
While trying to talk to her friends, Apple Bloom blindly bumped into Pinkie Pie.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Pinkie quickly apologized.
"For what? Apple Bloom's the one that ran into you," commented Sweetie Belle while Scootaloo helped Apple Bloom up.
"Really?" inquired Pinkie "I guess I'm just so use to the being the pony causing accidents that I just apologize out of habit! Isn't that silly..." she added with a grin and a squee.
Apple Bloom rubbed the back of her head as she got back up "It's alright Pinkie. What brings you to the post office anyway?"
Pinkie walked over to the counter where the mailmare was. "Why, I'm sending out invitations for the anniversary of Ponyville's founding next week and I'm going to throw a huuuuuge PARTY! It's not every year Ponyville gets to celebrate an anniversary! Although I guess it does and that's why it's an anniversary. But THIS anniversary is going to be suuuuuper special! I'm going to invite the Princesses, my family, I'm even going to invite The Wonderbolts to perform! And of course, I'm sending out super special invitations to everypony -and donkey- in TOWN!"
"That sounds great Pinkie!" Apple Bloom got an idea. "Say Miss, can ah get mah letter back real quick. I just wanna add somethin'." She took back the letter and added a single line at the bottom.
If you want to talk, let's meet in town hall during Ponyville's anniversary celebration.
"Thanks Ma'am," Apple Bloom returned the note onto the counter without putting it back in the envelope. Saying their goodbyes, the Cutie Mark Crusaders left the post office to commence their plans for the day.
Pinkie got out her note, decorated with confetti and pictures of balloons, and set it on the counter. "And here's MY invitation. Be sure to send a copy to everypony in town! As well as my family, the Princesses, and The Wonderbolts! This party is going to be AAAAAAWESOOOOOOME!" She inexplicably acquired her party cannon and fires streamers and confetti all over the mailmare, causing both letters to blow onto the floor. "Oops, sorry!"
The startled mailmare picked up the letters and stacked them together. "Nooo problem! I'll take care of this personally! Everypony will get a copy!" She smiled and gave a salute to reassure Pinkie. Happy, Pinkie paid the postage, as well as a little extra for having to add a "Pinkie Surprise".
"And I hope to see you there too!" Pinkie replied before bouncing back out the door.
Act II: Upon Delivery
Apple Bloom just wanted the school day to end. Celestia's Sun was shining and it was too nice of a day to be cooped up in a tiny school house. She had also been antsy to see if Mac's mystery mare received his letter. Was it Marble Pie? Fluttershy? Rarity? Maybe even Princess Twilight! I can't take this suspense! She'd been watching Miss Cheerilee all day for any signs or changes in her behavior. Whoever it is, I bet they'll be so happy! Maybe they'll even ask me to be their Mare of Honor!
Finally, the school bell rang. All the colts and fillies gave a cheer as they rushed out the doors eager to enjoy this beautiful day. Apple Bloom remained behind to question her teacher. "So, Miss Cheerilee..."
"Yes Apple Bloom, what is it?" Her violet-colored teacher replied.
"Have you, uh, gotten any interestin' letters lately? In the mail, Ah mean," she inquired with a forced smile.
"No, although I haven't checked today. Why do you ask?"
"Ohhhh, no reason," Apple Bloom seemed somewhat disappointed. She had always liked Miss Cheerilee and would love it if, maybe one day, they could be sisters-in-law. "Ah gotta get goin' now.... important.... farmin' business!" With that, she too dashed out the doors of the school. Sweetie Bell and Scootaloo were waiting just outside the doors.
"Hey, Apple Bloom!" called Scootaloo "wanna-"
"CAN'T!" interrupted Apple Bloom. "Important farmin' business!" She didn't really have any farming business. She just wanted to search around town to see which pony received Mac's secret love letter. Maybe even the Mailmare was still delivering it so she could just follow her. She had originally seemed disinterested, but in the last few days this romantic mystery seemed to grow on her. Passing by the first few ponies she found, she indeed saw a change in their attitudes. Most were smiling and giggling. Some even appeared to be singing. Confused, she asked the first pony why she was so happy.
"Oh, I'm just excited for the Ponyville Anniversary Party!" responded Sea Swirl.
"The Anniversary?" Apple Bloom asked.
"Yeah, I have a feeling it's going to be the most magical, romantic night!" Sea Swirl trailed off with a sigh, lost in her thoughts.
Apple Bloom let her be and started walking away. It wasn't long before she started noticing other ponies behaving in very much the same way. Something funny is going on here... she thought. There's no way I'm going to find Mac's mystery mare with every pony making googly-eyes. It was no use, she might as well go home and see if her friends were doing anything interesting.
Arriving back at Sweet Apple Acres, Apple Bloom saw the gray mailmare just delivering today's letters. She too seemed unusually happy. She tried puckering her lips together in a failed attempt to whistle a joyful tune. Instead, she spit and sounded like she was trying to blow out a bunch of candles. Completed with her current task, she took the air and flew away.
"WAIT!" she yelled, hoping the mailmare could tell her to whom she had delivered the letter. She was too far away however, the mailmare took off to finish her rounds. "Shucks! Now Ah'll never know!"
Apple Bloom walked toward the mailbox to inspect today's mail. She noticed that each member of her family received their own letter. "These must be Pinkie's party invitations," she assumed correctly. She opened her letter, only to have streamers and confetti explode into her face. "Yep..." She took out the invitation and inspected it for the details. "Next week....outside Town Hall....starts mid-morning", everything seemed normal.
A second letter fell out of the envelope. Confused, Apple Bloom bent down to pick it up. "Huh? What's this?" She unfolded it and inspected the words.
To the sweetest, most beautiful Pony I know,
"Uhhh.....?" It was Big Mac's letter, and it was still not addressed to anypony specifically. "Why did I get this unless...uh oh.....WAIT!" She started to put the pieces together. "THIS WAS IN WITH PINKIE'S INVITATION! AND PINKIE'S INVITATION WAS SENT TO THE WHOLE TOWN! EVEN THE PRINCESSES ARE GETTING THIS! EVERYPONY IS GOING TO THINK BIG MAC IS SENDING THEM A LOVE LETTER!"
Apple Bloom felt as if she was going to faint. She was in SO much trouble when Big Mac found out; worse, when APPLEJACK found out. Poor Mac would probably never be able to show his face again! "What am I going to do?!"
Sweetie Belle approached the farm with an adorable skip in her step and a note in her mouth. Like most young fillies, she had an innocent crush on Apple Bloom's large but gentle big brother. She came to Sweet Apple Acres to see if Big Mac was home before noticing Apple Bloom sitting forlorn on the ground. "Hiiiii Apple Blooooom!" She greeted melodically. "Is Big Mac ho- , what's wrong? While are you sitting on the ground?"
"Sweetie Belle, it's horrible! Remember that letter Ah sent to the post office the other day?"
"Yeah..." answered Sweetie Belle.
"Well it seems the mailmare mixed it in with Pinkie's party invitation and now everypony's gonna think Big Mac wrote them a love letter and it's all mah fault and he's never gonna forgive me and go into hidin' , never to show his face AGAIN!" She started to cry. Sweetie Belle started to approach her friend to console her when Apple Bloom noticed the letter. "SWEETIE BELLE! NOT YOU TOO!"
Sweetie Belle tried in vain to hide the letter. "O-o-o-o-f course not! This... is for something else entirely!" she gave a false grin, though inside was very much disappointed that the love letter was not intended for her. "Come on," she helped Apple Bloom up. "Let's see if we can stop any more letters or at least warn Big Mac". Apple Bloom nodded. As they turned around they noticed Scootaloo gleefully skating toward them performing effortless spins and tricks while holding her copy of the note in her mouth.
"Hey Sweetie Belle! Hey, Apple Blooooom!" she greeted with a wink. "What's up!"
"Don't ask!" Sweetie Belle said plainly.
Big Macintosh trotted through the streets of Ponyville with a very pleasant disposition. He had a skip in his step despite pulling a wagon full of supplies needed back at the farm. Ever since he got his feelings out, he attacked each day with a fierce determination. He could not remember one day where he wasn't happy to live his life. Applejack's advice actually seemed to work! That letter really did the trick, even though he never had to send it. In fact, all of Ponyville seemed to share in his exuberance. Everywhere he looked, ponies were smiling and waving at him; some even seemed to be giggling. It was a great day to be alive and a great day to be a citizen of Ponyville!
Trotting by a bench, he heard a familiar whistle. Looking around, he identified it as belonging to Bon Bon. Upon seeing Mac, she would occasionally whistle her approval at the sight of him, to which Big Mac always took as a sign of just being friendly. Sitting next to her was her inseparable friend Lyra, sitting in her awkward position like some strange bipedal ape. She too winked at Mac as he passed by. Those two always seemed to be up to something when he was around, however today it seemed much more overt.
"We gonna see you at the Ponyville Anniversary celebration, Big Mac?" both asked in unison.
"Eeyup!"
Both giggled to each other as Big Mac continued on his way. Must be some celebration they have planned. Everypony keeps on talking to me about it. Continuing his stroll through town, he noticed the stares and smiles from Berry Punch, Flitter and Cloudchaser, the Flower Ponies, even Octavia and Vinyl noticed him walking by their house and changed the tune they were rehearsing to a romantic serenade. Oblivious as usual, Big Mac assumed everypony was just having a terrific day as well and continued on his merry way.
Coming close to the end of the market area, Big Mac caught the scent one of his favorite snacks. Turning his head he located exactly what he was looking for. Off to the side of the road there happened to be a small cart with an extremely large, white Pegasus with a Mohawk and comically tiny wings. It was Bulk Biceps and today he was selling freshly roasted peanuts! He even had the costume, complete with an apron, an incredibly tight shirt with red vertical stripes and the sleeves ripped off, and a paper hat that was much too small for his oversized cranium. Mac approached the cart excited to obtain this delicious treat.
"I'll take a pound of nuts!" Mac requested.
"THAT'S A LOT OF NUTS!!!" Biceps screamed back.
Mac flinched back. As often as Bulk Biceps screams, Mac will never get use to it. He recovered as Biceps took a bag and filled it with delicious, freshly roasted peanuts.
"THAT'LL BE FOUR BITS BABY!! YOU WANT FRIES WITH THAT?!!!
Mac shook his head as he just wanted the peanuts. He paid Biceps the four bits -and an extra one as a tip- and grabbed his snack to munch on his way home. Now that he had to use one of his front legs to hold the peanuts, it made it that much more impressive to see him pull the fully loaded cart with only three legs, all while still making it look effortless. This display did not go unnoticed by the ponies staring longingly at him while he enjoyed his tasty snack, oblivious to the extra attention.
Apple Bloom sprinted through the market area, frantically trying to find her big brother. She split from the other Cutie Mark Crusaders so they could cover more ground. Finally, she came across Bulk Biceps at his peanut cart. "Bulk Biceps! Have you seen mah brother?! It's an emergency!"
"HE JUST LEFT!!! WITH NUTS!!!"
When Big Mac returned to Sweet Apple Acres he saw Applejack standing at the mailbox with an expression of disbelief. He smiled to greet his little sister and maybe even share the events of his wonderful day. She returned his pleasant grin with a stern sneer as she marched right over to him.
"BIG MACINTOSH!"
Uh oh, my full name! What did I do now? he thought.
"What in tarnation is the meanin' of this!" she berated, holding a letter.
Big Mac looked confused. He tried to examine the strange letter while Applejack waved it in front of his face. Unfortunately, it was upside-down and he couldn't make any of it out.
"IT'S NOT HIS FAULT!" Apple Bloom came running up the road, finally catching up to her big brother.
"What did you say, Apple Bloom?" questioned her sister.
Apple Bloom still tried to catch her breath as she explained. "It's not his fault. I took the note! I took it 'cause Ah heard you two talkin' 'bout it the other day. Then Ah saw it in his drawer and I thought he'd be too shy to send it. So I did! Then there was a mix-up at the post office and now everypony who's gettin' an invitation to the anniversary party is also gettin' a copy of that letter!"
All the color seemed to disappear from Big Mac's face. He didn't move. His eyes were open as wide as possible at this realization and his body stiffened into a complete catatonic state. The immobility was so complete that it was as if he were directly connected with the ground like a great stone monolith. Applejack tried to stir him.
"You all right there, Big Mac?" but to no avail.
Unbeknownst to them, Granny Smith surprisingly dragged herself up to the mailbox. "Oh, lookie here! I got my invitation to the Ponyville Anniversary celebration!"
"NO!" both sisters shouted in unison.
Bonus Scenes: Reactions
Twilight
Spike walked slowly through the halls of Princess Twilight's Castle. In his claws he was going through the mail that had just been delivered. "Bill, bill, junk mail, bill. You'd think being a Princess would be enough to stop the bill collectors. Bill, science magazine, letter from fictitious Griffon Prince asking for bits to free up his bank account, Ah! Here we are!"
"Here's what, Spike?" answered Twilight Sparkle as he entered the library. She was, once again, rearranging the books in her collection; a task she enjoyed so much that she would occasionally disregard the outside world.
"The invitation for the anniversary of Ponyville's founding!" he held it up for Twilight to see.
"Well, open it up! Let's see!" Twilight knew what was coming next. She held her hoof up to her face to hide her snickering from Spike. As Spike opened the envelope, streamers and confetti exploded out and landed all over his head. Twilight erupted in laughter at poor Spike's expense.
"Yeah, real funny," he stoically replied as he spit a confetto from his mouth. As he reached for the invitation, he noticed a second letter in the envelope. "Huh, what's this?"
"What's what, Spike?" Twilight inquired, already returning to her task.
"There's a second note in here"
"Well, what's it say?"
"To the sweetest, most beautiful pony I know," Spike drooped his shoulders. "I guess it's for you," he held the note out for Twilight to take.
Surprised, Twilight grabbed the letter with her magical aura and quickly floated it toward her. Immediately, she started reading the love note.
"I wish Rarity would send me a love note..." Spike sighed as he skipped away to give Twilight some privacy. "Raaaarityyy....."
Twilight became enthralled with the letter. The student in her noticed the grammatical errors, but she could tell somepony was writing from their heart, about her. Nopony had ever expressed their feelings to her before in such a way. The closest she had ever encountered was some blushing and awful flirting from a clichéd cool prettyboy/colt with spikey hair. But this felt genuine. Her heart melted as she felt this pony bear their soul to her. Finishing the letter, she finally found the name of its author.
"Big Macintosh?" she asked disbelievingly. "Applejack's brother? I...I've never even thought of him in that way. I don't know what to think!" She read the postscript. "He wants to meet at the Ponyville Anniversary celebration? What do I do? What do I say?" She started to panic. "How do I feel??"
Rainbow Dash
Rainbow Dash flew to her cloud home after finishing another day on weather patrol. "Another day, another example of me being awesome!" She was indeed great at her job, which mainly consisted of constant napping interrupted by the occasional kicking of a stray cloud. She noticed her mailbox, which was once again knocked over by the mailmare.
"She did it AGAIN! I swear, next time I'll...." she noticed Pinkie's invitation fall out. "Here we go!" She picked up the letter and carefully held it out from her. Knowing what was coming next, she opened it with the top facing away from her and grimaced as if it would lessen the blow. Once opened, she noticed nothing happened. Confident it was a false alarm, she proceeded to brag.
"HA! Pinkie Pie, you have to get up pretty early in the morning to get one over on ol' Rainbow Da-"
POP!
Streamers and confetti flew all over Rainbow Dash's face in a delayed explosion. She sneered, covered in party decorations. "You win this round, Pinkie..."
As Rainbow Dash walked into her home, Tank flew in to greet her while she inspected the invitation. It seemed very standard, as far as Pinkie was concerned. Then she noticed the second letter.
"What's this?" she started to read. "BLEH!" sharing the same reaction as Apple Bloom, "it's some gross, sappy love letter. I mean, I know why somepony would write me a love letter - I AM awesome- but really! Do they think I'm going to fall head over hooves for them?!" Rainbow Dash crumpled up the letter and threw it on the floor as she started to walk away.
She almost entered the next room when curiosity got the better of her. "Still... it couldn't hurt to just look at it...for laughs I mean!" she attempted to justify to her pet. She walked back and picked up the letter, straightened it and started to read. "There! See! It starts out sooo clichéd!" She continued on, "well that's nice..." The further she read, the more she felt as if she were special, and not the regular kind of special she constantly boasted about. She started to feel as if she were truly special, to some other pony! She almost felt a tear coming on as she finished.
"I'M NOT CRYING!" she tried to convince the stoic tortoise. "I just... had some cloud hit my eye!"
She looked down to find the author of this note. "Big Macintosh?! EW!" She tried to act as if she were too cool to be mentioned in the same sentence with the draft pony. "He's so quiet... and boring... and scruffy... and sensitive... and hard-working....." her tone subtly started to change, "...and gentle... and kind... and strong... and loyal... and handsome..."
It's a terrible thing for Rainbow Dash to be in love. It's a far, far worse thing for her to admit it.
Fluttershy
Fluttershy cautiously walked out from her cottage. She was eager to receive Pinkie's invitation, but not eager to go out and get the mail. Usually it meant either listening to the elderly mail-stallion ramble on about stories that never went anywhere, or waiting for the younger mail-mare to deliver it with her usual frightening crash. Fortunately, Fluttershy could already tell that the mailmare had already delivered the post today as her mailbox was already knocked askew from an earlier impact. She quickly retrieved her invitation and fluttered back into her cottage.
Fluttershy's woodland friends came out to console her as they seemed to know she did not like her confrontations with the post-ponies.
"It's alright, my friends," Fluttershy cooed while opening the letter. "The mail had already been delivered today, there's nothing to be afr-"
POP! The letter exploded sending streamers and confetti flying all over the place.
"EEP!" shrieked the sensitive pony as she jumped into midair, then drop the note and dove under the nearby couch. Angel Bunny hopped out carrying a wooden spoon with which he proceeded to whack the note several times as punishment for scaring his timid caregiver. Satisfied that the inanimate object had been defeated, he carried it over to Fluttershy and dropped it at her hind legs, which were sticking out from beneath the couch. Fluttershy turned around and tapped at the note a couple of times to make certain it was safe before forcing an embarrassed smile, to which Angel replied with an annoyed thumping of his foot.
As she started to read the invitation, Angel noticed a second letter still in the envelope. He could not read the strange symbols on the page but he figured he Fluttershy should be made aware of it, just in case it was important. "What do you have there, Angel Bunny?" she softly inquired.
As she started to read, a confused look came over her face. Fluttershy had no experience when it came to love letters and didn't even realize what it was until she had almost finished reading. "Oh my," she commented. "Th-there must have been a mistake, this must be for somepony else, nopony would ever write something so nice about me".
The pale yellow pegasus thought the polite thing to do would be to stop out of respect for the pony for whom the letter was intended. Still, her curiosity won out as she continued on. Finally, she identified the author. "I-it's from Big Macintosh!" she quietly exclaimed. That reaction seemed to become more common with every pony reading it. "Oh my.."
Big Macintosh had always been nice to her and she did find him attractive, but Fluttershy had always been shy of the large and quiet farm pony, relatively speaking. Their rehearsals with the Ponytones helped a little, but she was still more or less afraid of him. However, part of her did feel jealous for the lucky pony who was the object of his affection.
"U-u-unless this letter is actually m-m-meant for me..." she trembled as she hid back under the couch.
Rarity and "The Mail-Mare"
The Carousel Boutique was a mess. Fabric and dress-making instruments were strewn about in a random manner. Rarity was already overwhelmed with the amount of orders incoming for the anniversary celebration. Now, ponies were coming in all day requesting alterations and ordering new and fancier dresses. "I'm NEVER going to get caught up with all this! This is the WORST. POSSIBLE. THING!" She had been so obsessed with her orders, she barely noticed the tapping at her front door.
"What? Is somepony there?" she looked and found the gray-coated mailmare, now finished with her rounds. "Yes, yes. Do come in. Have a seat, I'll be with you in a- NOT THERE!" she shrieked as the pegasus nearly sat on Rarity's pin cushion. Thankful her cushion remained undamaged, and possibly the new client for what it's worth, Rarity grabbed the object and held a pin in her mouth as she went back to work on her current dress. "Now then, what can I do for you?"
The pegasus pulled out a torn, shabby looking dress from a then unnoticed clothing box she had brought in with her. "NOT YOU TOOOOO!" Rarity whined. "This is the WORST. POSSIBLE. THING!" The gray pegasus seemed devastated. She hadn't seen this dress in a while and it had been even longer since having any need of it. She wanted nothing less than to look the best she possibly could for the celebration. She started to drag herself back toward the door in dismay.
"I'm sorry, darling." Rarity interjected. "It's not your fault. I've just been sooo backed up with all of these orders that I've just about lost it." She walked over and inspected the dress. "Now, let's see what we can do with your....errrr....dress".
The dress itself was in rough shape. It looked like an old bridesmaids dress for a bride that needed extra help to look good. It was a torn, wrinkled teal-colored abomination with frilly sleeves and a long, wide length reminiscent of an ancient, ultra-formal ball gown. Rarity half expected it to come with a large powdered wig with a fake bird in it. "Well..." Rarity tried to act supportive. I-it's...lovely". Her client seemed to grin with pride and a squee. "But let's see if we can find something a little more....how I can I put this delicately...acceptable!" The gray pegasus looked confused, but soon eager as Rarity added "Let's try on some of my best designs!"
The process seemed to be quite exhausting for both ponies. Rarity couldn't get her client to sit still in any of her dresses and the accessories her client requested made her look much like a rodeo clown. When Rarity would search for another dress, the pegasus would often wander, whether to ride the mannequin or skip-rope with the measuring tape. With the time growing late and Rarity tiring, she finally asked, "if you don't mind me asking, what's so important with this dress anyway?" referring to the teal abomination.
Her client finally spoke up as she looked Rarity in the eye, then slowly drifted one eye away. "It's always been my nicest dress. I just wanted to look nice for the big celebration, it's gonna be a very special night, after all!" Something about the look in her...eye...struck a chord with Rarity. The pegasus had always seemed so inattentive and carefree, but she could now see a glimpse of seriousness previously unknown to her. She wanted nothing less than to help her out with whatever she needed.
"Tell you what," Rarity offered, holding the original dress. "I'll do my best with... this, you just worry about having a the night of your life! I hope you have a wonderful time". She started escorting her client out of the boutique. "Thanks Rarity!" the pegasus replied. "Oh, wait! you never picked up your mail!" she picked it up and handed it to Rarity.
"No, I guess I never did! I've just been sooo busy today!" Rarity flipped through before finding the invitation. "Well, so long, and I'll see you at the party!" They waved their goodbyes as she shut the door.
"Well, let's look at Pinkie's invitation," she opened it with her magic as the envelope shot out streamers and confetti. Rarity, however, did not react as she stoically grabbed a dustpan and broom with her aura and cleaned the litter into a trash can without so much as diverting her attention from the letter. "This must be one special party..."
She then noticed the second letter and quickly skimmed through. She instantly recognized it as a love letter but still had no change from her stoic expression. "Meh, I've seen better," she commented when finished. One would think Rarity would show some reaction either from the letter or the explosion, but clearly Rarity was experienced with both. It wasn't until she saw the name did she show any emotion.
"BIG MAC??!!"
That was the last pony in Equestria she expected. She'd rarely heard the stallion speak, even though she spent so much time around him with The Ponytones or around Applejack. She couldn't even imagine him saying the words he'd written in the letter. But she still felt her heart leap in her chest at this sudden realization. She had felt this way about Big Mac before. She once had an enormous crush on him; in fact, he was her first crush.
Rarity hadn't even gotten her Cutie Mark yet when she followed her new friend Applejack back to her farm. She did not have much in common with this orange pony, but she liked coming over to play just to get close to her cute brother. When she finally kissed him to confess her feelings... he fled away yelling "eeeewww, cooties!" It devastated her at the time, but now she can look back on it and laugh.
"I suppose not every pony wants to find their soul-mate that young. Maybe..." she reflected, "maybe he feels now the way I did back then!" She could only hope and wait for the anniversary celebration. "Maybe it will be a magical evening".
Cheerilee
The school bell rang, sending all of Cheerilee's students out the door, save one. Apple Bloom had been awkwardly staring at her all day and now stayed behind to ask her teacher a question.
"So, Miss Cheerilee..."
"Yes Apple Bloom, what is it?" Her violet-colored teacher replied.
"Have you, uh, gotten any interestin' letters lately? In the mail Ah mean," she inquired with a forced smile.
"No, although I haven't checked today. Why do you ask?"
"Ohhhh, no reason," Apple Bloom seemed somewhat disappointed. "Ah gotta get goin' now.... important.... farmin' business!" With that, she too dashed out the doors of the school.
Well that was weird, even for her! She was used to the Cutie Mark Crusaders' antics and soon she'd put that out of her mind. "As long as she doesn't try to set me up with her brother again," she mumbled alone. "We're just good friends".
The eccentricities seemed to continue as every pony she passed seemed to have their heads in the clouds. Passing by one, she greeted "Hello, Nurse Redheart! Beautiful day we're having!"
"Yes... his eyes are dreamy..." she replied, oblivious to the question.
Cheerilee stared in bewilderment. It seemed everypony behaved in a similar fashion. "The entire town must be in love! Oh, why am I the ONLY pony who seems to be alone? When will I find my Princely Stallion?"
She made a quick stop by the market area to pick up groceries before heading home. She chuckled as she spotted Bulk Biceps in a ridiculous Peanut Vendor's outfit yelling, as usual, to some unknown pony at the front end of an over-packed supply cart. Being behind the cart, she gave little thought as to the identity of its occupant as she continued on her way home. Reaching her front door, she tried to unlock and open it while carrying her supplies in the other foreleg and balancing on her hind legs. Finally, the door swung open causing her to fall forward and drop many of her items on the floor.
"OH, TARTARUS!" she yelled, angry at her misfortune. If only I had a big strong stallion to carry these for me she thought, now lonelier than ever. She picked up her "meals for one" and ice cream as she slammed the door with her back leg. She also noticed her mail on the floor, which see inspected after setting her grocery bag down.
"Well, here's my invitation to the Ponyville Anniversary Celebration. Wouldn't call this 'interesting', but it is nice," she commented on her earlier conversation with Apple Bloom. She then noticed the second letter, "well this is interesting!"
She read the love letter with increasing emotion from each line. By the end, she had her hoof on her heart and tears in her eyes in a near swoon. She finally felt like the most special pony in Equestria! She just might have found her Princely Stallion after all! "Oh, who is my romantic admirer?"
"BIG MAC???!!!" she screamed. "Oh, NO! No, no, no, no, no! Not again!" She started to panic, running in place. "We're just good friends! This can't be!" Confused, annoyed, and in denial, Cheerilie pondered why Mac would do this again and how she was going to respond. He was a good friend and she was afraid a relationship would ruin it.
"I'll just avoid him!" she exclaimed. "Yes, I just won't go to the celebration!" Realizing she couldn't avoid him forever, she decided against that. "No, I should go and let him down easy. He's a good friend and I don't want to lose that!"
Marble Pie
Maud had just returned from acquiring the family mail from the box beside the road to the rock farm. The sisters were gathered at the table while their parents nearly had their supper prepared, tonight they would be enjoying Rock Lobster! Despite the name, it was not actually a lobster, just rocks they trapped from under the water like a lobster.
While the sisters waited, Maud went through the mail. "This must be Pinkie's invitation," she said unenthused about the letter covered in pink and sparkles. Opening it, she ignored the POP while Marble flinched; Limestone just seemed to angrily roll her eyes. Maud quickly read the invitation and moved to the second. Taking about a second to read the entire letter, she monotoned to her sister Marble, "this is for you".
Marble seemed confused as she rarely got any letters, but at least this one should be from Pinkie. Maud moved onto the next letter as she pulled out her pet rock. "Look Boulder, you got a letter too. From your cousin, Rubble". Marble read her letter as a slight blush came to her face. Once finished, Limestone grew jealous being the only pony without correspondence. She decided to intrude onto Marble, "WELL?? ANYTHING INTERESTING??!!"
"Mmm-hmm!"
Zecora
Zecora was beside her hut meditating on a beautiful day. She was relaxing and enjoying the peace and quiet when it was interupted with a loud CRASH. Calmly, she remarked,
"Here comes the post, I see,
somepony has written to me".
Before Zecora could greet the mailmare, it seemed the scary mask beside the door to her hut had frightened her away... again. Zecora found but a single letter on the ground in front of her tree-hut.
"Letters for me there is only one,
but still, it is better than none.
From Pinkie this must be; an invitation,
No doubt for the big celebration!"
Opening the invitation, the streamers and confetti seemed to fail to explode, perhaps Zecora had some Zebra magic forbidding anything from alarming her. Moving into the hut she inspected the letter. She didn't get out much but she still, on occasion, enjoyed the company of others, even though they weren't zebras like her. Hiding behind the unused confetti, she located the second letter.
"What is this that hid from my sight,
it must be a second letter alright".
She quickly read the first line.
"For me this letter cannot be,
for I am not a pony.
But please allow me to intrude,
I intend to be curious, not rude.
A love letter to charm the romantics,
while I can appreciate the semantics".
As she read, she could admire the author and how he expressed his feelings to his secret love. She might be able to write one better, but she was still amused at the imagery and metaphors. Surprising to her was the name at the bottom.
"Big Macintosh?......i-i-is the name of this bard," she looked around to ensure nopony caught her nearly missing a rhyme.
"Whomever she is, he has fallen for her hard!"
She knew a bit of Big Mac, but most of that was second-hoof information she got from his sister Apple Bloom while teaching her potion making. She knew Mac was strong, loyal, hard-working, and quiet, very quiet. In fact, the only interaction they had, he never said anything to her. However, that was because he couldn't say anything as he lost his voice. Still, she could see first-hoof how big, handsome, and gentle he was.
Her emotions started to stir. She began to realize how desirable a stallion like Big Mac could be, and how much she missed affection. Part of her began to hope the letter had indeed been meant for her and he just wrote "pony" out of habit. She made up her mind, she will go to the celebration and meet up with Big Mac anyway.
"Of the stallions around, Macintosh is best,
I will go meet him, I will take this test.
Ambiguous writing, this note will show,
But if I do not try, the answer is already 'No'."
Caramel TRIXIE!!!
Caramel started to return home from the fringes of the Everfree Forest. He'd been hired to collect wildflower seeds to prepare for the next winter wrap-up. His mind wandered, for he had received a most peculiar letter today with his invitation to the upcoming celebration. It appeared as if his friend Big Mac had sent him a love letter! Caramel knew Mac better than this; there must have been a mistake. The tan earth-pony already had a green pegasus marefriend, and Mac would occasionally comment on wanting a marefriend of his own. When he finished with his chore, Caramel would visit his friend to see if anything was wrong and how he could help.
Shortly after beginning his trek back to Ponyville, Caramel was beset by a ferocious Timber Wolf! Fearing for his life, he dropped everything he had to beat a hasty retreat back into town. Applejack will sure be cross with him for leaving the seeds behind again, but at least he'd be able to escape with his life.
After the tan Earth-pony fled, the Timber Wolf fell to the ground followed by the strings attached at various spots. The master of this lifeless marionette soon revealed herself. "Ha ha haaa..." a blue unicorn appeared from out of the bushes. "Yet another pony proves no match to the magical superiority of The Great and Powerful Tr-r-r-r-rixie!" She trotted over to her newly won prize only to be disappointed by the humble spoils. "SEEDS?! The Great and Powerful Trixie demands a greater tribute for such a clever and masterful illusion!"
Looking away from the litter of seeds, she spotted a note. "Trixie hopes this was important to you, then she can regain some small satisfaction for you wasting her time!" she chided as if the escaped Caramel had any choice in the matter. Reading the note, she began to fill with emotion, that emotion being humor. Rarely before had the showmare laughed so heartily, at least genuinely. "This is, without a doubt, the single most ridiculous thing Trixie has ever read! Trixie is amused!"
After several more moments of hysterical laughter, Trixie began to concoct a most diabolical plan. "The Great and Powerful Trixie will meet this..." she read the name, "...Macintosh in disguise. Then, when he expects his 'beloved', Trixie will reveal herself so he could see what a real mare looks like! Then he'll surely fall in love with Trixie only to have Trixie reject him, leaving him and his mare heartbroken. That will show everypony that The Great and Powerful Trixie is BEST!"
The Wonderbolts
Fleetfoot gathered the mail as she headed into the break room of the Wonderbolts Academy. Spitfire and Soarin' were already there, sort of. They had been training some new recruits and trying to rehearse one of their new routines. The three top flyers could barely drag themselves into service today. Spitfire was hunched over her morning coffee while Soarin' laid back, already snoring back to sleep with his tongue hanging out of his open mouth.
"That today's mail?" asked Spitfire, eyes struggling to stay open.
"Yeah..." replied Fleetfoot. "Looks like more fanmail and an invitation from Ponyville".
"Ugh... Rainbow Dash..." the Captain of the Wonderbolts was in no mood to put up with the obsessive pegasus today. "Probably wants us to perform or is asking to fill in again".
Fleefoot opened the letter with the now routine explosion of the invitation, sending streamers and confetti all over the break room table and startling the expert fliers.
"I AM SOMEPONY'S MOMMY!!!" screamed Soarin', delirious at being awoken so abruptly.
"I don't think this is from Dash," Fleetfoot obviously stated. She took a moment to read the invitation. "But it looks like you are correct. It's an invitation to the Ponyville Anniversary. Naturally they're going to want us to perform."
Spitfire groaned at this news. This meant even more overtime or falling behind on their current duties. "See if you can find some way to get out of this, will you?"
It was then that Fleetfoot noticed the second letter in the envelope. She quickly read through until she noticed the name at the bottom. Her hooves started to tremble as the rest of her seemed to lock-up, frozen in place.
"Fleetfoot? Can you do that?" reiterated Spitfire.
"All the bridesmaids will wear salmon..." Fleetfoot trailed off.
"Fleetfoot? Snap out of it!" commanded her captain.
"Huh? Sorry!" she apologized. "I...uh, think we should do the show..."
Naturally, Spitfire was confused. She looked over to Soarin' for reassurance only to find him hunched over and back asleep. "Wait a sec Fleetfoot, a moment ago you seemed against it like I did. Why the sudden change?"
"Uh... err..." she stammered looking for any excuse. "I... just think it'll be good for morale! After all, it's our duty to perform! Right?" the white-maned pegasus stared back at her captain expectantly, hoping that will convince her.
"Fiiiine!" Spitfire relented. "Let Rainbow Dash know we'll..."
Fleetfoot never heard the end of that sentence. She quickly bolted to her private office and made her way to the locker. Opening it revealed a treasury of artifacts pertaining to Big Macintosh. His portrait that she purchased filled the back wall with the custom pony toy Spike made set in front. Her favorite item had to be the plushie modeled after Pinkie Pie which had an oversized head. She remembered how Big Mac destroyed an entire carnival game with his impressive display of power and emotion just to win this for her, or so she thought. Whenever she felt down, she would give this toy an embrace and reassure herself that her one true love was out there.
Now she had a new treasure! A note written by Macintosh himself declaring his feelings for her. Soon she would be able to retire and use the bits she saved up as a Wonderbolt to travel the world seeking adventure and romance with her gallant stallion! Setting the tiny toy aside, she made way for the note to take its position as her centerpiece. She hugged the giant Pinkie as she lost herself in thoughts of fancy.
"Honeymoon in Las Pegasus...."
The Princess Sisters
Princess Celestia eagerly sat in the throne room as she awaited the arrival of today's mail. She knew the invitation was coming, she just wanted to play a quick prank on her younger sister Luna. She struggled to keep her straight face as Luna entered.
"You appear impatient. Is something the matter, my sister?" the blue younger Alicorn queried.
"Oh, it's nothing. Just waiting for today's mail; seeing if anything interesting arrives," she calmly replied. The sisters already let Princess Twilight know they would be attending, but it was still nice to receive a formal invitation.
"Well, the sooner we get out of Canterlot, the better," Luna stated matter-of-factly. "The temporary guard Cadence sent on loan is severely trying my patience!" The castle had a few guards fall ill and Cadance seemed much too eager to send a temporary replacement. "If I have to put up with him much longer, I will have him replace Cerberus! That will strike fear into the heart of every villain in Tartarus!"
"Surely he can't be that bad," Celestia believed all her subjects were good and inherently honorable. There is no way one of her own Royal Guards could fill her sister with such disdain.
"You shall see for yourself!" Luna scoffed. The object of her contempt stood at the doorway to the throne room. He was trying to woo a castle attendant who looked obviously uncomfortable and hoped for any polite way to cease the conversation, to no success. "GUARD!" Luna screamed. "Have you any messages for us!" With the momentary distraction, the frightened attendant fled through the doors as fast as her four legs could carry her.
"Oh, ch- yah!" The spikey-haired pegasus flew over to the Royal sisters. "THE ROYAL MAIL HAS ARRIVED....." he stood in a heroic pose with his foreleg extended. ".........." He said nothing as he kept his pose. "........"
The sisters stared at each in awkward silence, disbelieving one of their own personal guards could be this dense. "AND..." Luna finally spoke up, "What IS it?!"
"Oh, RIGHT!" the orange pegasus snapped out of it. He pulled out Pinkie's invitation and presented it to the Princesses with a prideful grin. When Luna reached out to grab the letter, the guard gave her a flirtatious wink and bobbed his brow. She retracted her foreleg, rolled her eyes, and grabbed the letter using her magic instead.
Celestia seemed in mild disbelief. "Guard, do you realize that attendant is happily married?" referring to his earlier attempt.
"What about it, Bro?" he seemed ignorantly confused.
"GUARD! THIS IS PRINCESS CELESTIA! SOVEREIGN OF ALL EQUSTRIA! YOU DO NOT CALL HER...'BRO'!" Luna screamed, fed up with the insolent pegasus.
"Sorry Bro! Er, I mean your highness!" he begged.
"ENOUGH! AWAY WITH YOU!" Luna seemed to snap. "LEST WE SEND YOU TO SPEND A THOUSAND YEARS ON THE MOON WITH NONE BUT THE MOST ANNOYING INHABITANTS OF YAKYAKISTAN!"
The terrified, blue-maned pegasus did his best to leave in a flash. Celestia looked over at her enraged sister apologetically, "please forgive me, my sister. I should not have doubted you".
"It's all right," Luna calmed down. "Perhaps we can just leave early and be rid of this nonsense".
"Of course," Celestia added as she pointed to the invitation. "Just don't forget to open the mail," still trying to hide her laughter, she waited for her younger sister.
Luna opened the envelope with a startling POP. Streamers and confetti now adorned her regal crown. Celestia couldn't help but burst into laughter at the sight of her "Royal Sister".
"Really?" Luna chastised. "Is this how the 'Sovereign of all Equestria' behaves?" She sat up from her throne and started to walk away. "Well, I'm going to go pack, and I'm keeping the letter. She marched onto her quarters, leaving her sister laughing on the throne.
As Luna stomped into her quarters, she threw the invitation onto her canopy bed. After setting her luggage beside it, she finally opened the invitation to inspect the letter. The princess smiled as she looked forward to the festivities. Sticking out of the envelope was an unnoticed second letter. "There is more?" she asked envelope.
Reading the new letter, her anger seemed to return at the thought of a new admirer attempting to woo the Alicorn princess. "Stallions never change..." She was ready to give up on love altogether until she noticed the signature. "Macintosh," she pondered to herself. "Macintosh, where do I know that name?" It sounded familiar, but she just couldn't place it. "Oh yes! Now we remember!" the joyful princess exclaimed. "Big Mac! The 'Alicorn Prince' who helped me with the Tantabus!" She started to recall other encounters with the shy earth-pony. "We also teamed up at that fair one time! We defeated many rivals! Huzzah!"
Her expression changed from anger to retrospection. "He seemed a very quiet and sensitive pony, it does my heart good to know that there are at least some honorable stallions out there". Being The Princess, many stallions would vie for her attention, though she ignored them all. Big Mac was a stallion that seemed genuine, if not a little fearful. She liked him, even going so far as to steal a kiss; an action condemned by her elder sister. Luna sighed, "maybe I will go see him..."
"See whom?" Celestia inquired as she entered the room.
Surprised, Luna tried hiding the note, "NOPONY! I-I-I meant to say her...Twilight, I mean! Maybe I will visit Twilight Sparkle!" Luna was a terrible liar.
"Sister," Celestia started to lecture, "I know what you are planning. I followed shortly after you to apologize. But we both know we can not become involved with our subjects. The pain would be too great with their inevitable death."
"I know," Luna lamented, "but I spent so much time alone. And now that I'm back, I can enter everypony's dreams, see their thoughts and desires yet still not become involved unless absolutely necessary. I feel lonelier than ever!" She began to sob in a state of self pity.
Her emotions were not lost on Celestia. "You will always have me, but I know that can not always be enough. It's a blessing to live so long, but also a curse." She paused for a moment of self reflection. "Very well," she relinquished, "Let us at least meet with this stallion and hear what he has to say!"
Luna leapt as she gave her elder sister an approving hug. Celestia was still uneasy as she too knew of Big Macintosh. He was more than Applejack's brother or an integral cog of the economical infrastructure of Equestria. He was a deep, sensitive, and intelligent pony worthy of any mare, including a princess. Part of her grew jealous with Luna's sudden infatuation of the large earth-pony.
After all, wasn't the letter was addressed to both of them?
