Pinkamena

by SyntheticEarth

Rating: teen
Tags: Dark, Sad, Adventure, Tragedy
Length: 5716

A story of a struggle between the inconvenient truths and the balance of society.

Pinkamena is the story of an Equestrian Galileo. Pinkie Pie's hidden resourcefulness and technological prowess lead her to a discovery that cracks the fragile guise of magical friendship in Equestria, and sends the country spiraling into civil war.

While involving a war, however, the fanfic is centered around Pinkie Pie's own dilemma with the truth she had exposed and the consequences she must therefore face and the philosophical decisions she must make as the impromptu leader of the revolution.

Warning: This is a long fiction with long chapters, and isn't a light read. Don't walk into this unprepared.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2011-12-02 12:13:09 UTC

Chapter 1

Diary of Pinkamena Diane Pie

June 22nd, 1003.

Dear diary,

Today was fantastic! So excited! I made sunflower cupcakes for the celebration tomorrow. Sweet and moist and tasty - apparently the seeds make the cupcakes absolutely delicious...

===

The sky was clear and blue; neither the sweat on the brow nor the noise of the market square could put down the mood. Everypony bustled around and set up for the momentous celebration and the incredible festivities that would take place in Ponyville on the following day. Shops around the streets sold sunny trinkets of every manner: necklaces, bangles, hats, tiaras, rings - all golden and white and glistening in the sun.

Perched upon the roof of the town hall, the turquoise pegasus observes the busy town below, her outsretched wings and coat baking in the sun and her rainbow mane wafting up gently in the breeze. Through the town ran a shimmering river of gold flowing through the streets and the hearts of every pony. Some stocked their shops with fresh fruits and baked breads and cakes for the occasion. Others swept the streets and pitched bright, pastel colored activity tents for the land's best excuse for merriment and diversion.

Rainbow Dash prodded at the roof with her hoof and sighed. The most fantastic flying team in Equestria would be performing a flyover show the next day. These Pegasi received the adoration of thousands of screaming fans at their jam-packed performances. They, the legendary Wonderbolts, were to visit Ponyville at some point, for Rainbow's sake.

She imagines the "oohs" and "aahs" of the audience as she and those dazzling pegasi would fly over. She would burst away to join them in their flight, and the crowd would go wild, hooting and hollering and chanting, "Rainbow! Rainbow!" The crowds were so easy to please. They'd shower her with praise and honor and love and fame. The mere thought of it sent shivers to her wings, itching to move.

But Rainbow Dash was definitely not the most excited pony in Ponyville, not by a long shot. She shook her mane and grinned at the scene of the plaza. The place reminded her of a carnival of sorts. Every year, a celebration. A party of the grandest proportions. The people would sigh and laugh and party hard. And there was no harder partier than Pinkie Pie.

===

Two stories below and across the plaza towered the infamous Sugarcube Corner,all sorts of confections and sweets and treats were manufactured by the Earth ponies Mr. and Mrs. Cake. The delightfully ebullient and perky pink party pony, who, today, seemed to be everywhere - in the market plaza, at Sweet Apple Acres, in the flower fields, in the kitchen - beamed widely as she collected ingredients for the tall order of sweets for the upcoming celebration. Pinkie's living in Ponyville was dominated by her love of sweets and cake - she made a living off of doing what she loved - cooking and throwing parties, making ponies happy.

Her bright blue eyes emitted a scream of excitement without uttering a word as she bounced around town on all of her hooves, her incredibly curly pink hair bouncing with her. Her mouth couldn't claim the same - it was running off expressions of how totally excited she was ("Are you guys as totally excited as me about this? I mean I can't remember the last time I was so excited about a party, except, well, the last celebration, but I mean that was then and this is now and how could you compare those two things? They're not even at the same time!"). It was said that Pinkie Pie was a boundless source of energy and happiness, perhaps due to her incredibly large intake of sugar and her seemingly infinite ability to retain a sugar high.

And by the goddess, was it contagious. Those whom she dropped by to see were greeted and responded with a laugh and a grin, and all quite happily sent Pinkie Pie on her way with their merchandise. She may have sent chills down their spines at some moments of hyperactivity, and some of the more reserved were even mildly annoyed by her constant cheer, but no pony could help but smile just a bit with her around.

"Thanks again for the flour!" she shouted as she bounced away from a stall in the plaza with a burlap sack strapped to her flank. Inside, her supplies shuffled and clinked and shifted. The sunflower seeds, the flour, the milk, the butter, and the sugar all jostled about in the bag as Pinkie hopped on all fours, glancing here and there, musing at the colorful surroundings. I couldn't possibly think of a better day for baking, or anything else, she thought.

The breeze carried the taste of apple pie, most probably from the stall of the folks over at Sweet Apple Acres. The scent smelled of freshly ground cinnamon and sweet caramel mixed with apples, and the most delightful of daisies. The scent rolled through the air and perfumed the town with sugary happiness, singing of delight to come soon. She fell into a hum and adjusted her pace to her own rhythm, a ditty cheery and sweet. On the other side of the bridge ahead of her lay a lightly residential and quieter Ponyville. Pinkie could hear the birds singing to each other and the babbling of the stream that reflected shimmering silver from the sun.

Overhead, the pegasi of the town tied banners to the modest buildings and streets. The banners were marked with symbols of the sun and featured cornucopias of food and ponies dancing; they held hoofs and threw their heads back into the air in silent laughter, and the Princess Celestia stood front and center. "Pretty," she mumbled, staring at the banners, blissfully unaware of the unfortunately large rut in the road in which her hoof was about to be caught.

Pinkie squealed and flailed her legs wildly as she fell to the ground, as if trying to prevent herself from falling by flying away. Alas, with no wings, the effort was fruitless, to say the least, and she fell face-first into the dust.

===

Two regal pegasi clad in brilliant golden armor pulled in just outside of Ponyville and ground the chariot to a careful halt. A magnificent bright white equine mistress, both horned and winged, with the most beautiful of flowing hair displaying the colors of dawn, sprang from the passenger compartment and nodded to the guards, who took their cue and drew the chariot to the safety of the local bank. She smiled at her subjects, who quickly and efficiently went about their work, smiling and humming, although she could see the sweat on their brows and the strain in their legs. They would have a well deserved rest the next day.

The Princess-Goddess Celestia trotted toward the noise and commotion of the market plaza. It was always a pleasure to visit her student Twilight Sparkle in Ponyville, and Ponyville was no big detour from her rounds across Equestria. Every so often, it was nice to stop by to see how the unicorn Twilight and her friends were coming along. To Celestia, this was the source of the real magic she sought to teach to all the ponies in her kingdom. A magic even Earth and Pegasus ponies could harness. The magic that held Equestria together in its delicate balance. What kind of world would she govern if the power of this pure connection between ponies was forgotten?

As she trotted by, the ponies reverently bowed on all fours, silencing momentarily before returning to work, and resuming the noisy preparations that made their celebrations special. As she slowly headed toward the library, she caught the brilliant sugary perfume that permeated the air with cinnamon, apples, and sunflower seed oil. The food was being prepared for what was probably the biggest party of the year. She salivated and looked into the distance wondering where exactly the smell had come from - perhaps Sugarcube Corner, where quite often the most delicious pastries and candies were made, or even just the market plaza ahead just across the bridge. She had always had a sweet tooth, perhaps from the nights she spent playing with her sister and stealing from the pantry to enjoy a savory snack in secret.

Then, she heard the squeal. For a split second all she could see was a hoof. The impact came crashing into her right jawbone. The teeth rent a gash on the inside of her cheek.

Celestia winced as it drew blood from within her mouth. She spat out the blood on the road and focused her energy on a dime. Her long and elegant horn glowed for a split second before the wound was sealed up and the bleeding eliminated. She shook her head and laughed lightheartedly at the prone pony. "Good afternoon, Pinkie Pie," she said, offering her hoof to help her up. "That's an awfully strange way to bow," she added with a giggle.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!" Pinkie exclaimed as she scrambled to her feet after realizing that she'd hit something, barely noticing the hoof offered in support, and picked up all her baking supplies. Only then did she notice who exactly she collided with, upon which moment she threw herself to the ground again, casting down her eyes in apology. "Hi, Princess Celestia! I'm really, really, really sorry about crashing into you like that, that was really silly of me," she responded, springing back to her hooves once again.

"That's quite alright, Pinkie," Celestia replied, unable to resist smiling at the curious pink pony. "I hope you're having a fantastic day preparing for the party tonight and tomorrow."

The party pony nodded. "I am! We've been baking all day! I can't wait to eat all of the cakes and cookies and cupcakes..." Suddenly, Pinkie's eyes lit up, and she rifled through her packs to retrieve the perfect gift for her beautiful princess. It was one of many sunflower seed cupcakes that emitted a scent so enticing and sweet that Celestia's eyes widened slightly, having found a source of that most sweet and beautiful scent. "I can't believe I did that, but I know of at least one thing that solves every pony's problems, more or less!" Pinkie quickly explained, and held the cupcake out to her princess with gleaming blue eyes blinking sweetly, hoping that this offer would correct her mistake in her own mind. It had corrected many mistakes in her own mind before, after all. The gift of sweets and music and dancing and laughing and playing, of fun in general, had been infused into her bubbly character since she was only a filly. "I made this cupcake today, just as a sample for Mr. and Mrs. Cake. I think they approved of it, because they said it was the best batch ever! Which was funny because that was the third batch they tasted and they said the same thing, but..."

As Pinkie babbled on about so and so pastry and pony, Princess Celestia nodded at her and gingerly levitated the cupcake to her mouth. How sweet of her - to be expected of course, she thought as she took her first bite. It is Pinkie Pie after all. As the taste buds sang the sweetness to her brain, she hungrily took another bite from the cupcake, feeling the tingling sensation of the distinctive sunflower seed expertly prepared by the pony before her. "This is very good, Pinkie," she said between bites of the luscious sweet wheat pastry, her synapses popping wildly in delight. She brushed the slight injury from her mind and nodded at Pinkie. "The sunflower seeds give the cake a great flavor. As always, you make the best pastries I've ever had."

Pinkie Pie grinned ear to ear and clapped her hooves together. "You think so? Yes! These little babies will be a hay of a hit during the celebration," she said, staring at the burlap sack on her flank and stroking it delicately, as of it were some subdued housecat. There was nothing more satisfying to her than satisfying another's craving for sweets, or anypony's craving for anything, especially the Princess's. Pinkie always aimed to please. Besides, happiness was no good if it wasn't shared. Celestia chuckled and finished the cupcake, patting Pinkie on the head with her hoof.

"Well, I'm off to check up on Twilight and the rest of the celebration," she said as she began to trot away, satisfied with the innocuous outcome of the chance encounter. "Have fun, and good luck with those cupcakes, Pinkie." The pink pony waved to princess and began to trot away as well. The only chicken coop in Ponyville was near the edge of the town after all. But visiting her friend was never any big problem. The incorrectly strapped sack, however, was. Her rear left leg caught in the satchel's strap and she once again tumbled with a squeal face-first into the ground.

She pushed herself up from the ground and dusted herself off once again huffily. "I really have to stop doing that...especially when I get the eggs," she mused to herself. Her face felt a little wet, but she dismissed it, and with a quick wipe of her hoof she continued on her path. Time was ticking, and Sugarcube Corner was short a few hundred cupcakes. Fluttershy's house wasn't too far away now, and the eggs were just the right thing for the most delicious cupcakes that would ever be made. She was absolutely sure of it.

===

All was silent in the treehouse. Midday having begun, the rabbits and squirrels had scrounged up some vegetables and berries from the forest. The pale yellow pegasus pony was dusting off the house and putting the baby bunnies to sleep for their nap, tucking in each of them in their respective rabbit holes. They slept soundly, warm and cozy and fuzzy in the middle of the incredibly busy and noisy day that Fluttershy honestly would rather not participate in.

She reclined on her soft couch as Angel's bunny paws ran through her pink mane that fell gently over her face in a smooth, curved taper. She hummed a lullaby to herself as she settled in to nap. The feeling of total serenity, the sight of the blooming and maturing plants and the sound of sleeping critters were the best perks of living away from the center of the town. She liked to keep it that way, almost always – except when her friends invited her on their exciting and often dangerous escapades. And when these escapades were dangerous, they were really, really, dangerous. She shuddered to think of them.

As if right on cue, Fluttershy jumped at the sound of a rapid, impatient knocking at the door. Rainbow Dash or Pinkie Pie. Rainbow had mentioned wanting to go out for a flight before the sunset. It was always extreme flying, extreme running, extreme dragon kicking - it was all too extreme for her. Pinkie said she would pick up some eggs for her cupcakes earlier. And Everything Pinkie did, she did loudly, and that simply would not fly (unlike Rainbow). The shouting and partying was okay in moderation, controlled, and most of all, quiet.

Either way, it required skipping on her nap, probably for the rest of the day. But that was fine – she was more than happy to help out. She blinked and stepped up to the door, looking through the window. "Oh, hi, Pinkie," she murmured, opening the door to see her friend. She managed a sweet, but tired, smile.

"Hey Fluttershy!" Pinkie shouted in response. The quiet pony opposite her winced, and the little animals within her house stirred from the noise. "Oh, sorry," Pinkie apologized in a forced whisper. "Do you have those eggs for me yet?" She pointed insistently at the satchel at her side, in case her friend hadn't heard her, eyes wide open.

"Well... Yes, um..." Fluttershy began. Pinkie was a fairly regular visitor to her place; she was pretty sure eggs were a key ingredient in baking food. She raised her eyes to Pinkie's, and promptly flinched from the endless stared the other pony. Pinkie Pie often gave her the chills. She could be so... weird. And she always looked somewhat strange. Especially when Pinkie had a reddish liquid smeared on her face. Fluttershy yelped softly and averted her gaze from the crimson-brown crust on her friend's face. "Are you...okay?"

"What? What is it?" asked Pinkie. Fluttershy shielded her eyes and pointed at the smear on Pinkie's cheek with a quivering hoof. "What? Is there something on my face?" Pinkie felt around her face and tried to find the source of her friend's concern, and happened upon something sticky and warm caking up on her left cheek. Generally for Pinkie Pie this was the remnants of a particularly juicy candy or fruit that she had sloppily eaten not long ago. For good measure, however, pony licked her cheek clean and tasted the caked liquid.

It wasn't candy.

It was salt and sugar and a sharp bitterness, like a cold spoon incubating in her mouth. Fluttershy's pupils shrunk to a dot, trying to process exactly what her dear Pinkie Pie had just done. She found it fairly difficult, of course, and promptly gave up trying to comprehend why Pinkie's demeanor was what it was. However, the space where the smear once was was clean and pink as always. "Oh... It was-" she began again.

"Blood!" Pinkie finished her friend's sentence loudly. Fluttershy cringed and yelped at the word, and the creatures within stirred. Pinkie felt her cheek with her hooves. Clearly it wasn't Pinkie's blood. No open wounds, and she sure didn't get socked in the face. But whose, if not hers? She lifted her hoof up. The remainder of the caked blood was smeared across it. But this was after I...

"Oh... I'm glad you're not bleeding," Fluttershy said with a sigh. Someone else's blood on her face? She would rather not know. It scared her, if only a little, but she figured it was some sort of accident - or maybe Pinkie had indeed cut herself somewhere else, like on her hoof, and she might have maybe just wiped her face with the bleeding hoof. That was a sensible explanation. "Do you want co come in? I mean, if that's okay with you?"

Pinkie snapped out of her staring focus on her hoof and grinned at Fluttershy, shaking her head. "I'd love to, Fluttershy, but I really need those eggs!" she said, pointing toward the chicken coop. Fluttershy's house was a quiet sanctuary, and neither Pinkie nor Fluttershy actually wanted Pinkie to enter the home at that point in time. It was much better for Pinkie to go about her business outside without disturbing the sleeping animals. And maybe the mystery of whose blood was on her face and hoof could wait for a while. She had more important things to do, after all.

Fluttershy grinned meekly and opened her mouth, but stopped short with her jaw open and her pupils dilated. "What?" questioned Pinkie. She frantically looked around herself to see what else was wrong with her, and waved her hoof in front of Fluttershy's face, somewhat confused. No response. In that moment, Pinkie decided to turn around.

Too late.

Again, Pinkie found herself on the floor, face in the ground, with only the memory of a brief rainbow flash in her eyes, groaning and sighing. "Number four," she grumbled into the floor. The rest of her body lay on top of another pony, the now petrified Fluttershy, who had just given up and had resigned to just being quiet while the mess worked itself out. Pinkie attempted to raise her sore body up, but was instantly pulled upright by a very frantic Rainbow Dash, causing Pinkie to suffer a molten shock up her spine, from which a squeal ensued, after which she dropped back to the ground.

"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Dash said, attempting to brush herself off and lift Fluttershy, to no avail; Fluttershy had chosen this perfect moment to fall unconscious and take her midday nap right there and then. Clearly, someone had some serious fright issues. "Didn't see you there, Pinkie..." She chuckled and cast her eyes down in guilt and dug at the ground with her hoof. Careless, absolutely careless. She could even have veered out of the way had she been paying attention. She was the best flier in all of Equestria, for Celestia's sake.

Still recovering, Pinkie waved the matter off matter-of-factly, and gathered her supplies once again, not bothering to brush herself off. "It's fine, Rainbow," she replied. "I think Fluttershy is a teensy-weeny bit tired," she continued with a giggle. She watched her surroundings very carefully, eyeing the shelves and the rabbits and other woodland creatures suspiciously. She could be attacked by anything. Falling leaves. Rocks on the floor. She was no careless pony. Well, as far as she knew. She could trust absolutely nothing. Those tree roots near the carpet were looking at her funny. Ensuring that her satchel was properly secured, she assisted Equestria's best flier in lifting Fluttershy onto her couch.

"Yeah, I guess," Rainbow answered with a shake of the head. She eyed all the terrified animals from the corners of her eyes and sighed, looking at the sorry sight of Fluttershy. Rainbow generally had some sort of control over her flight, but the sights and sounds and smells just got her in the mood, excited, happy, silly. But in the performing world, the allure of the environment, of the air, of the sounds, the smells, and the sights was so much greater - so maybe she wasn't quite ready for all that? "So, what are you doing here, Pinkie?"

"Eggs, Rainbow. No time now, gotta go," Pinkie responded, hopping out the door and heading toward the coop. The air was still, broken only by the cheeping of chicks and the chirping of birds in the trees. Flower vines and bushes crept up the sides of her treehouse and bloomed brilliantly off the sides, and the lawns were reminiscent of idyllic meadows where flowers waved in the wind and rippled their pastel colors. The place smelled of nature; of the dampness of flora and fancy perfumes that cooled the head and relaxed the body. The breeze blew gently and rustled the trees and flowers, bearing the scent of the flowers.

The coop was entirely nonthreatening; almost like a playhouse barn for little fillies: the colors were bright pinks and cheery yellows, and Pinkie wouldn't have been surprised if it was padded with pillows and had smiley faces painted all around the inside. Not that that was a bad thing; in fact, Pinkie would rather like that. Nothing like nice, safe fun with plenty of happiness. Like safety pins with yellow happy-face heads. It was surrounded by a wire fence. however, since the meek pegasus couldn't bear to see her animals hurt, the fence was neither barbed nor charged with any magic, which often ended in chickens running away and escaping into the Everfree.

"Eggs...?" Rainbow flew to Pinkie's side and landed at a trot next to her. "Pinkie, I wouldn't touch Fluttershy's chickens without her permission, you know," she suggested, "Their bite is way worse than their bark." But Pinkie could not be stopped. It probably wasn't the best idea, rummaging through the coop of hyperactive chickens, but she really did need to get those eggs before day's end so that they could begin baking for the next day; besides, the quicker she finished this, the quicker she could get to solving that blood mystery, which floated in her mind aimlessly, quite like everything else.

"Oh, no, Rainbow, I've got lots to do and not much time to do it!" she responded. Pinkie could handle anything, after all. Pinkie Pie style. She stopped and turned her head. "Besides. They don't bark, they're chickens, not dogs, silly." Pinkie giggled and continued on to the coop, hopping over the harmless fence and waltzing casually into the coop.

"Eh, whatever. Your loss," Rainbow said as she glided back into Fluttershy's house to see how she was doing. Angel was quietly scuttling about checking her vitals and temperature. Dash smiled sheepishly at the rabbit, who returned a sneer and went about his nurse work. It wouldn't be too bad to take a quick nap at the quiet house. She was pretty roughed up after that crash after all, and the night time wasn't for a while and the skies were clear already, so she had more than enough excuse (and a good one, too) to sit back and enjoy herself.

===

Those chickens were party animals. In the bouncing coop the hens sat about a table with Pinkie, holding their hands of cards and peeking about, nervous, shaking, and antsy as they awaited her move; others were limboing to a positively chic tune of beats and clucks. Some naughty chicken poured hot sauce in the punch and caused a good number of innocent hens to douse their heads in the water tank, and gave the rest of the chickens a great clucking laugh.

The stakes were high at so low a table. Bwukarine, Hennrietta, and Elizabeak all trembled, looking at each other nervously. There were only two other players, and they had used their hands well throughout the games. They couldn't imagine the stakes. There were one hundred eggs, four pounds of chicken feed, and three sample cupcakes in the pot; the party pony had thrown all of her money in, and the three hens folded, leaving Pinkie and the other hen at odds with each other. "The time for games is over, Cluckrissa," Pinkie said gruffly. "Now, it's all about the money. This here is real clucking life, chicken, and if you can't take the heat, don't go anywhere near the Pinkie pot Pie." Pinkie took a long draw from her candy cane and grinned sinisterly at the hen opposite her.

"Bwuk," replied Cluckrissa, leering into Pinkie's deep blue eyes, which seemed to bore right back into the chicken's skull. But there was too much at stake, and this hen wouldn't go down without a fight. Her hand was poor; two fours, a five, and a jack. But even then she could play psychologically. Those were her almost babies after all. She shoved the remaining twenty of her eggs onto the table and was dealt her card, and Pinkie was dealt hers. Cluckrissa's pupils dilated. A two. Bwuk bwuuk, she thought morosely. Pinkie's confident and condescending smile that burned into her  eyes with the intensity of a thousand suns in return was too much for this chicken to handle. Woefully, she folded her hand and turned away, shielding her eyes from seeing her precious eggs lost.

Pinkie grinned and presented her cards: a king, a four, a ten, and two nines - equally worthless. She winked at the now sobbing chicken and rose from the table packing all the eggs carefully into her satchel with the cartons the chickens so delightfully offered to her earlier. "Hey, it really isn't so bad! They weren't babies yet!" she said, chewing on the candy cane. "Like I said, this here ain't a cluckin' game no more. Pleasure doin' business with you, partners." Pinkie dropped the four pounds of seed onto the ground for the chickens and walked out through the door, whistling a western tune to herself, cantering happily out with her heavy load. The chickens now pecked at each other for bites of the delicious feed and forgot quickly about the obscenely large number of eggs they had lost to Pinkie. Pinkie Pie style, she thought, satisfied.

===

Her animal companions waited expectantly for her to come to, and Rainbow Dash casually lounged in her hammock, napping soundly, sweetly. The yellow pegasus blinked, grasping consciousness once again. Everything seemed normal, and Dash had arrived. But it was Dash after all, and for that brashness she couldn't help but love her. Shaking her aching head which still rang with the loudest and quietest noise at the same time and blinking a few times, the pale yellow pony fluttered over to her sleeping friend and patted her on the head. She entered her kitchen to brew some chamomile tea for herself and Rainbow. She found that tea cooled her worried head, and she often sat down for a quiet cup when she felt stressed or confused. The bitterness woke her up but relaxed her, and she could always recline back and appreciate that the terror of the previous moments was over.

She hummed another lullaby to herself as she worked, quietly, safely, and it was only when she heard the chickens fighting that she remembered that Pinkie had stopped by as well, and was nowhere to be seen. The chickens were raising a ruckus, and she had a funny feeling that the party pony was involved.

Fluttershy trotted quickly to her chicken coop, minding not to disturb the sleeping Rainbow Dash, who probably wouldn't help the situation much. The suspect was nowhere to be seen. She frowned slightly at the sight of the chickens bickering like children over broken toys, angered and fussy and noisy and insufferable. "Girls, if you could please calm down-" she managed, firmly but softly, before she was cut off by more shrieking and clucking and bwuking.

"Girls..." she attempted again, but no effect. Taking a breath, she gulped and dug at the floor for a moment before shouting at the top of her lungs, "Girls! In your nests, NOW! If I have to tell you one more time, I'll..." she trailed off back into her quietude as her chickens settled down back into their nests. A murmur was heard amongst the chickens, and some shuddered in fear. A hen squealed slightly as the stress popped an egg out of her. They knew precisely what she would do, and they wouldn't dare tempt her to do so. Fluttershy's scrunched up face was burnt into their minds and they became utterly silent. "Now, girls. Tell me what happened."

Cluckrissa advanced and clucked frantically the entire situation. "Mhm... yes... yes... alright... I see," Fluttershy responded between bursts of clucks. She shook her head and decided against her own will that she would let it all slide. "After all, girls. She did beat you fair and square; you shouldn't have been playing that game anyway. Now, as you were. If I catch you fighting again, you know what will happen." The chickens all nodded obediently and returned to their normal activity of clucking and eating, more quietly than before. That's weird, she thought. She'd never heard of any pony gambling and playing poker before.

Fluttershy trotted out to meet a smirking Rainbow Dash outside the coop door. "You know, it's always kinda weirded me out when you do that," Dash said, giggling. She began to walk with her friend back to the door of the house.

"Do what?" asked Fluttershy, absentmindedly, preoccupied with the missing 120 eggs. Her concern was only superficial, she decided; it would not matter how many eggs were taken from the coop; they were meant for Pinkie after all. But then again, they were just babies...

She shook her head. She would look forward to a relaxing, slow flight over Ponyville with her bright blue pegasus friend. On second thought, it probably wasn't going to be slow and relaxing. Her body ached badly from the crash earlier. For her friend, though, she wasn't entirely opposed to stretching her wings a little. Then again, it did hurt just to walk. She could only imagine how difficult it would be to fly.

"Oh, I dunno, talking to chickens, maybe?" Dash replied playfully. "So, you still up for our little ride? I have a totally awesome route planned out for us." Her friend winced a little at the use of her legs, and Rainbow blushed and remembered what she had done earlier. "Listen, I'm really sorry about what happened earlier, I just spaced out I guess. No hard feelings, right?"

Fluttershy shook her head and smiled. "Um, do you still want to fly? I think I can make it," she said, wincing once again. Given that was probably a lie, she tried her best to put on an honest face, although her eyes betrayed the pleading for a negative response.

"Nah, I think I'll pass for today, Fluttershy. You rest up for the party tonight, okay?" said Rainbow, who patted her friend on the back and spread her aerodynamic wings for takeoff.

Fluttershy nodded and waved with her hoof, and turned away as Dash burst out into the sky trailing a rainbow behind her. Fluttershy's ears still rang from her unfortunate accident; it was a long day already, and this nature-fond, peace-loving pony needed some quality time with her bed before she could walk properly, let alone party, again.

===

...and the party was absolutely positively extravagantly amazing! We had punch and sarsaparilla and pin the tail on the pony and karaoke and all sorts of fun stuff, and everypony was there, too! Twilight and Rainbow and Fluttershy and Rarity and Applejack and Spike and it was so exciting! Gummy and Spike had a dancing duet and the fillies around town got together to sing some holiday songs and I couldn't help but join in...We even got Fluttershy to bust a move! Maybe we gave her a bit too much sugar. Who am I kidding? There's no such thing as too much sugar! I spent a long time making those cupcakes, but they're ready now, at least - and holy gumdrops they're delicious! Celestia was totally right; not to toot my own horn or anything, though (only unicorns have horns and I really hope they don't toot them in public). As for the mystery, there's time for that later - the party isn't even a teeny bit close to over!

Signing out,

~Pinkie

P.S. Chickens are really bad at mind games.