A frightened grey earth pony hurried down the dark streets of Canterlot. Tonight was supposed to have been her greatest triumph. Octavia had already earned a magnificent name for herself; she was known all over Equestria as the premier cello player of her generation. But tonight was special. It was a rare thing for a new opera to emerge – and especially from such a notable composer. Octavia had spent weeks preparing for opening night, where she would perform in front of the nation’s most elite ponies. It was all she could think about.
Which is exactly what brought about her downfall.
The pony clutched her black cello case tightly and darted beneath a lamp-post that emitted an unsteady, flickering light. The clouds were low in the sky and obscured the light of Luna’s moon. It should have been a well-lit evening, but it wasn’t. A low fog had crept in from somewhere and obscured the city streets. It was difficult to see more than a few feet – which meant the nightmare could be hiding anywhere.
Surely she wouldn’t dare to strike me down in public, Octavia thought to herself. After all, these are the streets of Canterlot. The castle of the princesses themselves towers over me! Is it even possible for evil to take place in their shadow?
That’s when she heard it – the noise. Clop. Clop. Clop clop. Clop.
Octavia shrieked. She dropped her cello case and darted down the street as fast as she could gallop. In her haste she ran blindly. She didn’t know where she was going and she didn’t care. She just knew that she had to escape the monster that was after her.
The performance itself had gone well. The weeks of practice had paid off and Octavia was at her very best. She was so enthralled by the opera that she lost herself in the music. It was enchanting – a true triumph of the arts. The crowd had agreed; they gave an ovation that lasted for more than five minutes. It wasn’t until the applause was finally dying down that she spotted it, near the ceiling: a single pink balloon.
It was the most terrifying thing she had ever seen.
Octavia raced down street after deserted street. There was darkness and shadow everywhere, which increased her terror. After all, any alleyway could hide the pony that hunted her. Octavia was desperate to find some place of safety – some refuge where she might be protected. There was only place that came to her panicked mind. Octavia lived in Ponyville, but she had been raised in the capitol. Her parents still lived in the city. Perhaps she would find safety in their home. Surely Pinkie would not strike her down in front of her own parents – would she?
The grey earth pony arrived at last at the house where she had been raised. She nervously looked up and down the street. There was a single figure in the distance, cloaked in fog. It looked like a unicorn, which meant she was safe – or perhaps it was just a trick of the light.
Octavia pounded on the door. “Mother! Father! Are you home?”
There was no answer.
In the distance Octavia heard the noise of hooves striking the pavement. Somepony was coming. As her heart raced, she suddenly remembered that her parents had gone out for dinner after the opera. They had invited her to join them, but she had declined. She was so scared that she couldn’t even remember where they were dining. If only she had gone with them! Then she might be safe. Unless the pink one decided to attacked them as well, Octavia thought in a panic. Or perhaps she has already reached my family and is now coming after me. Have I put them in danger?
The hoofsteps were getting closer. Octavia couldn’t wait any longer. She took out the key to their front door, opened it, ran inside, and slammed it shut. She then bolted it tightly – and not a moment too soon. As she backed away from the entrance she heard an ominous knock on the door. Someone wanted inside – and Octavia knew who it was.
Octavia had not meant to break her promise. When she told Pinkie Pie that she would play at her sister Maud’s birthday in Ponyville she truly meant it – but when Octavia was invited to perform in the opera she accepted it without checking her calendar. It was only when she saw the balloon that she realized the terrible blunder she had made. She had missed Maud’s party entirely, without giving Pinkie any warning or even an apology. And now vengeance was coming.
Perhaps she didn’t see me, Octavia thought. The earth pony was so terrified that she found it difficult to breathe. She knew she was on the verge of passing out. Perhaps she doesn’t know I am home and will just go away.
Her hopes were dashed when a familiar voice boomed through the door. “Open up, Octavia! I know you’re in there. We need to talk!”
Octavia screamed and ran up the stairs as fast as her hooves could carry her. She had never been so frightened in her entire life.
The cellist had heard stories about Pinkie. It was said that the pink pony was one of the most powerful forces in Equestria. Even though Pinkie was just an earth pony she could somehow perform great feats of magic. When she was in a good mood she could join with her friends and take down the greatest threats that the world had ever seen. But when she was in a bad mood –
Octavia had heard stories about that as well. It seemed that Pinkie was always on the verge of a mental breakdown. With her it was either feast or famine. When the laughter died it turned into something very dark – and this time Pinkie would not be laughing. Octavia had committed the gravest of sins: she had broken her promise. Not just any promise, but a Pinkie promise. And a nightmare was coming to take its vengeance.
While the pink one pounded on the front door, Octavia ran up to the second story of her parent’s home. In their bedroom was a walk-in closet. In the corner of that closet, in the ceiling, was an unobtrusive access panel that led to the little-used attic of their home. Octavia desperately climbed through that small hole and darted into the attic. She frantically looked around for some piece of heavy furniture that she could drag over the access entrance, so that Pinkie could not follow her.
But the attic was empty.
Down below, Octavia heard the front door slowly creak open. “Octavia?” the voice said. “Hello? Where are you? I’ve got something for you!”
Octavia was so frightened that she was crying. Her vision was blurry and she could barely stand up. How could Pinkie have possibly opened the locked front door? Why did the attic have to be empty? There was nothing around but cobwebs and a dusty floor. A single open window overlooked the street below, three floors down. There was no way out, and Pinkie was coming. The nightmare was going to find her.
She’s going to kill me, Octavia thought. If my parents try to prosecute her, Pinkie will tell Celestia it was justifiable. No jury would ever convict a national hero. I wonder if there will be enough of me left behind to bury. Oh, why did I have to forget that appointment? Why did I not check my calendar?
Octavia heard the sharp patter of hoofsteps echo through the house. “Octavia? Where are you?”
The grey earth pony did her very best not to scream. She quietly crawled as far away from the access hatch as possible, until she was right next to the open window. Surely Pinkie won’t notice the hole that leads up here. She will just turn around and leave. It will be fine.
But the hoofsteps grew closer and the voice grew louder. Octavia heard Pinkie climb up the stairs. She heard Pinkie walk down the hallway and step into the bedroom below. The voice was getting closer, and closer, and then–
The access hatch opened and Pinkie climbed into the attic. The pink pony was carrying Octavia’s cello case, which the musician had dropped back at the lamp-post. The pony was smiling – which made her a thousand times scarier.
Octavia stared at her, stunned. I can’t believe it. She’s going to kill me with my own cello case. How did it come to this?
The cellist screamed in pure, blind panic. She turned and, in a desperate bid to escape, jumped out the window behind her.
* * * * *
They say that, on a cold and still night, you can still hear her screams. If you listen just right, you can hear them echo down that lonely street.
When Pinkie looked out the window and saw Octavia lying in the street below, she immediately raced to get her medical help. It did not take her long to track down Canterlot’s emergency medical team and bring them to the side of her unconscious friend.
“How is she going to be, doctor?” Pinkie asked.
“She’ll be in a lot of pain for a while, but I think she’ll fully recover,” the paramedic replied, as they loaded her unconscious form onto the ambulance. “She’s broken three of her legs, which is going to make it difficult to get around. In six months, though, she should be as good as new. Do you have any idea what happened?”
“Beats me,” Pinkie replied. “I just stopped by her house to give Octavia her cello case back. She dropped it on her way home – I guess she was in a hurry or something. Oh – and I also wanted to tell her that Maud wasn’t going to be in town until next Tuesday, so we had to move her party to a different day. I tried writing to her but I guess she’s been busy. I was kinda hoping we could reschedule, but it looks like that’s not going to happen.”
“Definitely not,” the paramedic said. “She is not going to be playing any more instruments for a long time.”
“That’s really sad. She was so great at the opera tonight! It was really magical. Do you think when she recovers she’ll be able to play the violin?”
“I don’t see why not.”
“That’s great! She’ll be so excited. She was never able to play it before.”
Pinkie pulled a pink balloon out of nowhere in particular and gave it to him. “When she wakes up, can you give this to her? Tell her that I’m really sorry she’s not feeling well and I hope to see her again real soon.”
“I’ll do that,” he promised. “You know, it’s a lucky thing you were there when this happened! You probably saved her life.”
“But what was she even doing in the attic?” Pinkie asked. “She was clearly terrified of something.”
The paramedic shrugged. “A mouse, maybe? A lot of ponies can’t stand mice. For me it’s spiders. I hate the creepy little things.”
Pinkie smiled. “Aw, they’re nothing to be afraid of. You just have to learn to giggle at the ghostlies, you know?”
“You can’t be serious! You know that there are lots of scary things in life, right? Why would you just laugh at them?”
“Oh, I dunno. Maybe so you don’t jump out of third-story windows for no reason.”
The pink earth pony then turned and hopped off into the fog.