Raven Mystery

Chapter 2

“Ya’ know don’t ya’?” Raven accused as she sat down and stared into Braeburn’s eyes.

“Know what?” Braeburn chuckled and again suggested he knew something was going on.

“You told Pinkie, it’s my birthday today, didn’t you?” Raven sighed and didn’t want her quiet abode mobbed by partying ponies.

“Uh… no, though I admit a visit to Applejack last week to settle a bit of a grudge. Suffice it to say, Applejack understood why I was a bit sour, but let me challenge her to a hoof wrestling match which I lost,” Braeburn admitted with an honest frown at him yet again losing to his Ponyville cousin.

“You lost a hoof wrestling match to Applejack?” Raven commented with surprise. She didn’t think Braeburn would let himself lose and therefore he was being honest about it.

“Applejack is one of my hardier and more stubborn cousins, though we share country believes and we both sometimes get our pride hurt,” Braeburn explained with a slight grimace across his face.

“Did you go easy on her?” Raven asked to confirm her suspicion that Braeburn had fairly tussled with Applejack and lost fair and square.

  “Eenope,” Braeburn answered as if trying quite hard to copy the country accent of his cousin, Big Macintosh, who Raven knew was Applejack’s big brother and had a reputation for saying nope with a distinct country accent.

Raven exchanged a look at Braeburn’s face and noticed a little bit of sweat. She then knew Braeburn was trying too hard to sound like his pony cousin.

“But don’t ya’ worry about my pride. After losing the hoof wrestle and a feeling a bit sorry for mah’ self, Applejack invited me to pie and I remembered just what Granny Smith’s cooking is like when tantalising your taste buds, it sure cheered me up just fine,” Braeburn explained with a happier smile.

“Though, now you mention it, during a meal shared, Pinkie Pie came around in a joyful manner and said she had smelt the pie and wondered if she could have some. Applejack said sure, invited her in and I guess somewhere between eating and a light-heartened meal time chat, I might had said something about your upcoming birthday,” Braeburn continued with honesty, but stopped when he made himself look guilty for perhaps saying a little too much during that conversation.

“So, you did say something,” Raven stepped up closer to Braeburn and looked down his pistachio green eyes.

“All right, I admit I might had let something slip,” Braeburn admitted with a bit of awkwardness and took a step back away from Raven.

“But hay, I suspect your party tonight will be swell, Pinkie Pie has already given me an invite,” Braeburn then said with a smile and produced a pink envelope with a party invitation on the inside.

“Well, uh….” Raven paused for thought, but thought in the end, she didn’t particularly mind Braeburn showing up for her birthday party, she was much more concerned about other ponies showing up she didn’t know so well.

“You would be welcome anyway as well as Sheriff Silver Star and his deputy, I just prefer not to have too many guests,” Raven admitted and shivered in the thought of being surrounded by a lot of strangers.

“Oh, don’t ya’ fret, Pinkie is known for arranging the best parties in Equestria. She won’t let ya’ down and I suspect she’ll only invite ponies that are friendly, enjoy socialising and be happy to be part of a partying posse,” Braeburn smiled and tried to inspire some confidence in Raven.

“Let’s just hope that posse doesn’t turn into an outright crowded for space, wild raving hoe-down,” Raven flinched in a bit of shyness and was still worried.

“Well, I got to catch up with Golden Harvest at Buffalo Orchards, so I’ll crash into your party later,” Braeburn joked with a grin and left for the orchards.

“Oh, now wait do I do?” Raven asked herself as she had seen Pinkie’s speedy bouncing get away from her once already. She knew she couldn’t stop Pinkie from inviting ponies unless she re-encountered her again. Still, at her speed, she had likely already invited Sheriff Silver Star and his deputies. Maybe, she should head over to where Appaloosa held its rodeos where it was a good bet Pinkie Pie was trying to gather up more party guests. Raven thought this was likely as most Appaloosa locals passed by the rodeo staging area quite often. She immediately trotted with haste and got over there quite fast.

When she arrived, she was proved right about being a popular area to trot past as many locals trotted past and gossiped banter about the next upcoming rodeo, who they thought might win some prizes and who might not be so lucky. Though, some also exchanged happy chuckles about the entertainment of rodeo clowns too.

“Oh, hi, Raven,” called a voice. Raven turned and noticed Apple Cider waving to her. She was standing in front of a small fizzy apple cider stand and hoping to sell some cider to a couple of customers.

Raven trotted over with a bit of awkwardness. Though she knew who Apple Cider was as a member of Braeburn’s extended family, she didn’t know her that well.

“I just wanted to say thanks for the invite, Pinkie Pie invited me to your party tonight and who knew it was your eighteenth birthday,” Apple Cider exchanged an enthusiastic greeting grin.

“Pinkie Pie’s been here already,” Raven sighed and thought she had failed to intercept Pinkie.

“Yeah, but she didn’t stay to chat, she just hooved me an invite and said you’re welcome and I’ll see you later and bounced away,” Apple Cider commented and lowered her head slightly and sighed.

Raven thought Apple Cider was hoping Pinkie might had stopped for a few seconds to buy a fizzy cider or a quick chat, but it seemed the energetic mare was on a speedy mission.

Raven frowned and it was about ten minutes past seven by now. However, when she thought this, Raven thought Apple Cider was here on the street with a stall set up already, still a little early for any great number of potential customers to pass by.

“Whoa, you’re set up early,” Raven commented and stated a thought aloud.

“Heh, we Apples love our early morning wake up calls, Applejack told me she’s normally up as soon as the sun rises, so that can be as early as six or even half five in the morning in Ponyville,” Apple Cider shrugged it off, but let on a slight yawn.

“Ooh, I forgot, silly, silly me,” said Pinkie’s voice in a bit of a rush. Raven turned and couldn’t believe her luck to intercept Pinkie after all.

“I forgot you need an invite to your own party and by the way, are ya’ thinking of cooking up or preparing party grub or do you want me to pop back to Ponyville to see what I can whip up?” Pinkie asked in a hurried voice and panted a bit.

“Uh… I usually have something small and a quiet meal with…” Raven paused and thought about her last birthday. It was a bit of a lonely one. Both of her parents had passed away soon after her sixteenth birthday. It had been a particularly troubling time for her and she had her seventeenth birthday completely alone.

“I suppose it was just with myself last year,” Raven frowned and remembered through a tear or two of how lonely that had felt.

“Aww,” Pinkie said in sympathy.

“I’ll get Mr and Mrs. Cake to whip something up in Ponyville, Applejack probably won’t mind to contribute a few of her family’s famous apple pies and maybe even Rarity might take upon herself to design a most elegant and yummy cake,” Pinkie declared happily and seemed keen to bounce back to the train.

Raven thought that mighty kind of Pinkie and forgot to tell her about limiting the number of guests. She smiled at the thoughtful gesture.

“Then, it’s decided!” Pinkie bounced up and down once on the spot with joy and then bounced away to the train station.

“Huh? No, wait!” Raven remembered wanting to intercept Pinkie, but Pinkie had bounced away again.

“Oh, you might get an elegant cake designed by Rarity? I remember when I got a cake designed by her. The attention to detail on her frosting was exquisite, though I didn’t expect her to tell me to indulge myself like an animal possessed, she seemed so proud of her cake and its intent to induce an appetite, she seemed to forget about lecturing about cultured manners,” Apple Cider talked about when she had received a cake designed by Rarity and by her comments, Raven judged she had met Rarity and knew her to some small or bigger extent.

“So, you’ve met Rarity?” Raven asked, hoping for more info.

“Oh, right, she’s wasn’t part of the Ponyville team that came to Appaloosa and narrowly defeated our home team. I kinda thought that a little odd until I saw what the lucky unicorn that was on their team was capable of with catching any loose balls,” Apple Cider commented.

Raven thought back to the buck-ball match and then realised Apple Cider was right about an unfamiliar unicorn being on the Ponyville team. However, then she realised she was becoming distracted.

  “Oh, maybe there’s a slim hope I can intercept Pinkie at the train station, I’ve gotta run!” Raven panicked and galloped to the train station.

“Good luck, the first train out of here leaves at half seven!” Apple Cider called out with encouragement. Afterwards, though she paused for thought and wondered how did Pinkie get to Appaloosa before the first train had left and had come back?