ONE LAST PARTY
Takes place after Season Two's two-part finale.
Pinkie Pie was laying on her bed, her mane straight, her tail flat, and tears in her eyes. Her stomach churned as she remembered the letter she had just read earlier.
She had been coughing for weeks, and it had been getting progressively worse, so she went to the Ponyville Hospital and gotten an examination done. The results had come in the mail earlier, delivered by Derpyhooves, Pinkie's favorite mailmare. She had opened the packet to see a form reading "Exocrysis". She had removed the form, which also had a letter paper clipped to the bottom.
The paper went over Exocrysis in detail, then gave her five words she would never forget.
"There is no known cure."
That immediately became her death sentence. Her mane and tail had instantly fallen flat, an open gesture of complete hopelessness. Her friends had tried to help her through it, but knowing her own death was imminent was too much, so their help fell short.
Pinkie's eyes once again drifted to the form, which was on her nightstand, and felt the urge to re-read it. Again. She grabbed the paper and turned on her lamp. She coughed a hacking cough before reading.
EXOCRYSIS
The disease Exocrysis is a very rare disease, only brought about by Changelings, and it causes the lungs to develop their own exoskeleton, restricting breath intake until the victim can no longer breath. This disease is hard to spot in early development because it is only a slight tickle in the throat. It eventually develops into coughing as the exoskeleton begins to form. Once it hits mid-development the victim's breaths become shorter and more constricted as the exoskeleton reaches halfway down the lungs. After a few more weeks it eventually turns into a full exoskeleton, encasing the lungs and choking the victim.
This disease is not contagious, and it is safe to be around other ponies with it. This disease is a very deadly disease, and not much is known about it. There is however, one known thing about it other than its physical properties. There is no known cure. We do not know enough to find a cure, and we are still working on figuring out the substance the exoskeleton is made of.
We are sorry that you will have to suffer from this disease. Get well soon!
Pinkie read those last lines and felt a fuming anger rise inside of her. She ripped the paper in half, crumpled it up, and threw it across the room. The prewritten words for that hospital form were trapped in her mind, a second constant reminder she was about to die.
Tears began to roll down her cheeks. She wanted to be happy, she truly did, but there was nothing that could make her happy.
"What can I do?!" she yelled, her tears falling onto her bed.
Her head hung as low as it possibly could, her head trying to think of a way to make her happy. She looked at her Cutie Mark and an idea sprung into her head. She could throw one last party before she died. One to make her friends happy, one to let them remember her by.
She went downstairs to the store, and looked around to find something waiting for her.
"Suprise!"
Five voices spoke in unision, announcing the party. Pinkie looked and saw her friends sitting at a table. Pinkie began to shudder. She felt tears rise to her eyes as she knew what they were doing. It was a goodbye party. A goodbye to life. They were trying to make her feel happy by throwing a party on how she was going to die.
Pinkie ran right back up the stairs and went into her room, slamming the door behind her. A few voices came from downstairs.
"What was that?" Mrs. Cake, who had apparently woken from the cacophony, was asking the five friends downstairs.
Pinkie heard a muffled explanation of the problem followed by hoofsteps coming up the stairs. Pinkie wrapped herself up in her tear-soaked blanket, and began to cry more. She coughed loudly.
"Pinkie?" Mrs. Cake's voice came through the door.
Pinkie didn't respond, her sadness to strong to say anything. She heard the door open and heard hoofsteps appproach her bed.
"They weren't doing anything to make you feel bad, Pinkie," Mrs. Cake said. "They were throwing that party to make you happy."
"Well I was planning something for them, but they interrupted it," Pinkie said. "And as if a party would make me happy now. I feel gray. I feel like I did when Discord came. I don't want anypony happy around me, escpecially myself."
Pinkie looked up from her blanket as she said these words, looking Mrs. Cake in the eyes.
"Can you help me set up my suprise?" Pinkie asked.
"Sure," Mrs. Cake said. "Girls, leave."
The friends left the room and walked down the stairs and out the door to Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie slowly sat up in bed.
"Help me throw one last party," she said, her voice quiet.
Pinkie coughed loudly, then climbed out of bed. She began to walk down the stairs down to the store. She waited at the bottom of the stairs for Mrs. Cake, who came down a minute later.
"Come on," Pinkie said, going straight to the kitchen.
The two bakers worked for hours preparing the treats for a party, and placed them on a table. Pinkie looked at the treats and a frown appeared on her face. She looked outside and saw the setting sun cast a pink glow across the sky. She shivered. She had until midnight until the Exocrysis killed her. The doctor knew when she was to die and told her. So now she had to get word out quickly.
She saw Derpyhooves flying gracelessly across the sky, falling and teetering.
"Derpy!" she called out.
The pegasus flew over and landed, well, more crash-landed, in front of Pinkie.
"What?" the gray peagsus asked.
"Can you send these invatations out to all of my friends?"
"Sure can! I'll go now!"
Pinkie watched the pegasus fly off, her heart heavy. She would never get to tell Derpy how she felt, how much she actually loved that klutzy little pegasus.
She went to her room and laid in bed, waiting for the guests to arrive.
******
The door opened downstairs, the bell signalling their arrival. Pinkie quickly went downstairs to greet the partiers. She went down and found all five of her best friends standing there.
"Hi, Pinkie," Twilight said.
"Hi," Pinkie said sadly. "Welcome to my last party."
"What?" Applejack said. "Now don't say that, sugarcube!"
"But it is," Pinkie said, knowing that she was going to break some bad news to them. "The doctor said I'm going to die at midnight."
The friends looked at each other in shock. They had one more night to spend with their friend.
"Then we'll make this the best party ever," Rainbow Dash said.
Pinkie looked at them and led them to the food. She pointed at it. They took the clue and began to eat. Pinkie went to the record player and played a song. The happy dance song caused a grimace to appear on Pinkie's face for a split second. There was no happiness for her.
******
Pinkie ushered her friends out of the building, midnight drawing near.
"Pinkie!" Twilight yelled. "We want to help you!"
"No," Pinkie Pie said angrily. "I don't want anyone near me."
"Nonsense, sugarcube," Applejack said. "We can't just leave y'ah here!"
"I don't want you to be happy around me," Pinkie replied. "Go be happy somewhere else."
They left, unable to persuade Pinkie to let them stay.
Pinkie went to the middle of the room and sat down. She felt her breathing become harder as the end became closer. The silence was broken every time she took a wheezing breath, and also by her hacking coughs.
A pony knocked on the door.
"Go away," Pinkie said hoarsely, her throat incredibly constricted.
The door opened and the bell rang. The ponies hoofsteps approached Pinkie, who was crying. A gray hoof wrapped around Pinkie's shoulder.
"What's wrong?" Derpy asked.
Pinkie looked at Derpy and felt the need to do one last thing before the end. She kissed Derpy, who nearly fell over in suprise. Derpy put her hooves around Pinkie's neck, hugging her. Pinkie stopped her kiss and wrapped her hooves around Derpy.
She looked at the clock and saw it hit midnight. She felt her lungs become rocks, every breath impossible to take. She began to gasp as her breath slowed.
"Pinkie?" Derpy asked, concerned.
"It's fine," Pinkie lied with a breathless voice.
Pinkie's vision began to gather black spots, and she smiled. Her heart became as light as a feather right then, as she knew she was about to die in her love's embrace. She died in her love's embrace at her last party ever. She closed her eyes to feel Derpy hugging her, then felt her body go limp, and her conscience slip away.
Derpy began to cry, Pinkie's limp body still in her hooves. She shuddered as the breath stopped struggling to come into the party pony's body. She set Pinkie's limp body onto the cold floor. She stood, and went up to Pinkie's room to get something to make her comfortable; Derpy didn't care if she was dead.
She went to the bed and saw a letter on the bed. She picked it up and read it.
Dear, Pinkie,
You were the best pony we've ever met. Your happiness helped the entirety of Ponyville, and has helped us become happier ponies. We wish you could stay, but we cannot prevent Death. We hope you find happiness before the end, and think of us before you die, that you enjoy yourself. That you have fun at your last party, or whatever you decide to do before you die. We will remember you.
Your loving and caring friends,
Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash
Derpy grabbed the blanket and kept the letter in hoof as she walked down the stairs. She laid the blanket on Pinkie's body and set the letter down on top of it. She sat by the body until daylight. She smiled. Pinkie had died hugging her. Pinkie had loved her. It was a great feeling, kissing Pinkie. Derpy looked at her body, and tears began to roll down her cheeks once more.
"Goodnight, my friend."
THE END
