Two pieces of horse bacon simmered on the stove, crackling and omitting a smell that was close to actual bacon, but also smelled like death. Pinkie Pie was very aware of the needs of her candy-coated guest, who had made it very clear that she could only ingest flesh. Whether it be wild animal, pony, or some other creature, she was fine. Veggies? Not so much. It just wouldn't digest.

Pinkie hummed as she waited for the guest to come down the stairs. When she had last checked on the Candy Mare this morning, she seemed fast asleep - to a normal pony. The host's sixth sense detected otherwise.

Which was why she had prepared a special breakfast. Muffins made out of organs, "grape juice", and horse bacon laid on a platter on the table behind the pink pony. She needed to help Candy feel safe enough to sleep here. What host wouldn't make sure their guest was safe?

Pinkie couldn't blame her, though - she didn't quite trust the guest either. Something seemed extra fishy, like the mare would stab her in the back the next chance she got. Maybe she would run away in the middle of the night and get the police! But when Pinkie woke today, the guest was still there, "sleeping" in a way that suggested she could not sleep. That only hardened Pinkie's trust, and made her feel sympathy for the Candy Mare.

So this breakfast was a symbol of trust. It fit all of the Candy Mare's needs, and satisfied Pinkie as well. They'd got everything essential covered last night; this morning would just be casual talk and asking each other some questions and deciding where to go from there, and it would be super-duper.

Ponies always said Pinkie was practically a goddess at hospitality (mostly because of the parties), but not for this mare. Even the acting-before-thinking Pinkie knew that this wasn't some regular newcomer. This had let her down quite a bit, but again, she had to establish trust. That was hospitality.

She perked up as she heard hoofsteps descending the creaky stairs. "There she issssss!" she sing-songed.

The Candy Mare stood at the base of the steps, yawning. "Hey."

"I've got an extra extra EXTRA special breakfast for us. Come on, have a seat," Pinkie chirped, as she laid the last of the bacon on the platter.

Candy stood for a moment, looking as if she was contemplating the contents of the food. I hope she likes it, Pinkie found herself thinking - more like hoping.

Finally, Candy sat down. "This looks nice." Hadn't her voice been a little more peppy yesterday? Now it seemed groan-y and raspy. Pinkie didn't know just what had happened for her guest to not sleep, but she was determined to fix it. It's trust. That's it, she reassured herself.

Pinkie began explaining the breakfast as she laid a muffin and two slices of bacon on the Candy Mare's plate, and filled her glass with the red juice. Then she sat down across from her, digging straight in.

Candy waited a moment, then lifted the muffin and took a bite. She froze. Swallowed. "Holy shit."

"What?" Does she not like it?????

"This is rich."

"Is...is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

Candy nodded as she took another bite. "I love it. Thanks, Pinkie Pie."

"Oh, you can just call me Pinkie! Like I can call you Candy."

Candy giggled and gulped down the entire glass of blood. "Guess so."

The silence between them that lingered made Pinkie realize what had to happen next. How would she word this? She didn't want to seem rude! But the question had to be asked, whether she liked it or not. So, she took a deep breath and let it spill out. "How come you're not sleeping?"

Candy froze amidst chewing a slice of bacon. She seemed lost for a moment as she swallowed, then replied curtly, "It's fine."

Pinkie huffed. "It's not fine. I want my guests to feel safe. Was that it? Or something else? Maybe scary dreams? Oh! I know! Jitters, coffee, sugar-"

"No. Uh. I guess I just have trouble sleeping some nights," Candy interjected.

"Okay, that's okay. But if you don't feel safe just tell me."

"I'm okay. It's fine."

"Okie-dokie!" Phew, now that's out of the way. "I also wanna lay out some rules, nothing unusual, not because I don't trust you or anything, and believe me I hate rules myself, but because this is still the property of its owners and I'm not one of the owners. So. First things first, no kicking or punching the walls or anything, that's gonna cost a lot and I'm not sure about this but I think it'll bring our ratings down...."

§

As long as Pinkie's spiel was, Candy felt that she had only listened for about five minutes. That pony could talk fast. And yet, she wasn't even breathless at the end. Candy tried her best to imagine what it was like to save breath like Pinkie Pie. She couldn't - the pain in her chest distracted from that.

She'd gotten maybe an hour of sleep, maybe just a minute more. That has to be it. From now on, she wouldn't be scared of stupid filly nightmares anymore. She would actually let herself sleep. Pinkie could be trusted, anyway. Right? She seemed so supportive, and despite the conditions of their murderous deal, she seemed especially chipper. And reliable. The type to laugh in the face of danger. Honestly, Candy did that too.

No, you didn't. You got angry and threw a stupid tantrum and let it keep you from making any real progress.

So she wouldn't be scared. She'd trust her host like her host trusted her, follow the rules, yadda-yadda. Besides, she needed to sleep so she could gather the energy for Nightmare Night. Just the thought of it made her chest pain swell.

The Candy Mare would make it. She had to.

Author's Note

meme here