Twist hummed happily as she flipped through the pages of Pinkie's cookbook for the perfect treat to make for Apple Bloom. She had flagged Pinkie down that morning as she was leaving and asked her if she could use it. Pinkie had said she could, but only if she didn't damage it, maim it, spill apple butter on the pages, or in any way deface it.
She paused and examined page 23. Apple Spice Cookies...those sounded good. And she could make some Pumpkin Spice Cookies as well. Those were a bit more seasonal, but they both corresponded to the fall season. She climbed up onto the teal counter and opened the cupboard. Sugar and flour, and the salt shaker. She heaved one bag out of the wooden cupboard, then the other.
The eggs were in the fridge, and so were the apples. Twist gently nudged the eggs onto her back, and placed three apples on top. Walking slowly to make sure nothing fell, she carefully placed her cargo on the counter. She let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. Getting the eggs from the fridge to the counter was always the most stressful part.
Twist also needed a bit of spice. She got some ginger out of the pantry, and after some consideration, apple butter. That always tasted good, no matter what you put it on.
Nightmare Night was coming up, and like always everypony at Sugarcube Corner would be working overtime making candies and other assorted sweets. Twist had only recently started helping there after school, but she had gladly volunteered to make some cookies. Three different kinds.
She planned to set aside two from her best batch. One for her, and one for her former friend. They hadn't fought. They hadn't screamed or thrown things. In a way, that might have been better than...whatever this was. They had unanimously agreed to avoid each other after Diamond Tiara's cuteceanera, when Apple Bloom had met her new friends. Twist was left friendless, but quickly met and befriended a filly named Dinky Doo. And all appeared to be right with the world.
But Twist missed Apple Bloom. She missed her a lot. They had known each other since before they had started school, due to their mothers being good friends. Twist had been there for Apple Bloom when her mother got sick and the atmosphere in the normally-welcoming farmhouse stretched taut. Twist had let Apple Bloom cry on her shoulder when her mother had died, and her father soon after. And now that suddenly didn't matter because of two peppermint sticks on her cream-colored flank when they hadn't been there before?
Twist simply was not going to stand for this. She was going to bring Apple Bloom a cookie, and hopefully go trick-or-treating with her. They were going to make up. Twist swore it. As she thought all this, she got out the other ingredients needed, fetched the bowls and measuring cups, and began to actually make the cookies.
Twist loved this part most of all. Baking was like magic, her own special kind of magic that didn't require a horn. Putting a bunch of raw ingredients into some bowls, mixing it together, putting it in the oven and making something delicious. Pinkie always said that there was no problem that couldn't be solved with a little ingenuity and baked goods. Twist had always humored Pinkie on that point, as there were usually quite a few other things you needed to solve problems, but she believe in that saying now. She had to.
She spooned dollops of batter onto a tray and popped it in the oven, turning it on. It whirred to life, and she leaned against the row of cupboards beneath the counter with satisfaction.
Twist would have to repeat the process twice more with different ingredients; once more with the Pumpkin Spice cookies, and then Pinkie would be back by the time she was ready to start a batch of bat-shaped sugar cookies. But before any of that happened, she had to set aside those two Apple Spices.
While she waited for the Apple Spices to be done, she got out the ingredients for the Pumpkin Spices. Then got the various colors of frosting needed for the sugar cookies so they could warm up for easier spreading. There were still ten minutes on the timer.
Well, best to clean up the mess from the Apple Spices. She'd forgotten that crucial final step.
Five minutes.
Maybe she could work on the Nightmare Night crossword puzzle in the newspaper.
One more minute.
Oh, come on already!
The oven dinged. Twist jumped, then pulled it open with no shortage of effort. She took a plastic cover in her mouth, then reached in the oven and got out the tray. Spitting out the cover and fanning her face, she gazed at the fruits of her admittedly-not-so-hard-anymore labor.
She quickly plucked two from the silver tray and dropped them in a royal purple paper bag, decorated lovingly with fabric stickers from Rarity. Two black cats, wearing witch hats, enjoying a piece of candy together.
I turn to Sonata. She looks so fragile, so sad. Most of the time, she's happy, because she isn't really aware of the world. She's always walking on clouds, talking to the birds and herself. I bring her back down to earth. That's why I think she likes me so much. I keep her grounded when she needs to be.
But girls like her always fall down hard, and Sonata is no exception. She's sitting there in her dirty clothes, wrapped in a blanket but still shivering, looking at me. "Ari."
"Yes, Sonata, I know you're cold. We're all cold." I turn away from her and look out at the city, standing in the open doorway of the abandoned house we claimed for ourselves so we'd have somewhere to rest our heads. Kids are running free, all dressed up in all manner of costumes, carrying bags that look heavy. A few hapless adults are supervising them. Adagio is upstairs, sleeping in the one falling-apart bed. She's been working hard lately. All of us have, but her the most.
I clench my fist. We wouldn't have to live in this awful house if those girls hadn't ruined everything. That girl with the red and yellow hair, she was bad before. Why couldn't she have just stayed that way? It was their fault we were reduced to this. It was their fault my girlfriend was so upset.
I turn back to Sonata, sitting on the floor in the middle of our 'living room'. She looks at me, and she looks like she's going to fall apart at any minute, that's how small and scared and alone she looks. I hate it when she looks like that.
I shut the door and walk over to her, resting my hand on her shoulder as I sit down. She barely notices. "Hey, Sonata. We earned about sixty, maybe seventy dollars this week." She doesn't react. "That's seventy dollars closer to a new, actual house." Normally she would have said something like that. Everything is upside down.
Sonata let her head fall against me. I jerked my hand away and watched her rest. She was so numb, so tired. Again, I felt a jolt of anger. I would not let my girl be so sad.
"Sonata." I poked her. She finally looked up at me. "You have to stop being so sad. It's going to get better. You just have to channel your emotions into your work. They tip you more if you're enthusiastic at that restaurant you work at. I know that for a fact."
"But maybe if I just stay really still, and meditate," Sonata said quietly. "then maybe I'll be reborn, back in Equestria. And I can begin again."
That was so her I wanted to cry. "Sonata, that's not going to work."
"But-" She desperately interjected. This was unlike her. I had known her long enough to know that's how she coped - clinging to some fantasy notion that kept her going - but normally she would rebuff me with a nonsense argument. Deep down, she must have known that it wasn't going to work.
"You aren't an idiot, Sonata, even though you act like one sometimes. You know that the only way in this world is to work and earn money. And we're doing that fine."
Sonata got up and walked over to the window, staring out at the kids dressed up as princesses and DJs. "Halloween." She said lifelessly. "A night of nightmares. That's what they call tonight. Relive that night in my shoes. Then they'll know what a nightmare is."
This was new. She hadn't talked about the Battle of the Bands since it had happened. "Sonata?"
"It was awful, Aria." Her fists clenched. "I was trapped in that ray of magic, all my power being drained away from me. There were so many emotions running through my mind. I was scared, sad, angry, and the kind of passionate that eats you up all at once. And I could see you experiencing that same thing, and I wanted nothing more than to help you, to rush over to you and yank you free. But I couldn't, and it was absolutely terrible."
I was silent. Sonata had always been more touchy-feely out of the two of us; did she really go through with that? I just felt a bolt of pain, intense pain. Did she really love me that much? I know the Creator makes mistakes, but dang. I felt a rush of pity for Sonata.
"This might be a night of nightmares." I said slowly. "But it's also a night of fun. Look how happy they are." I gestured toward the window.
Sonata smiled a tiny little smile that brought my heart to the brink of explosion. "They are pretty happy."
"So maybe we can be happy too." I rested my hand on the small of her back, the place she most likes to be touched. "You wanna go to that karaoke bar down the street? It doesn't cost anything to sing, only drinks deplete our funds."
Sonata's smile widened. "Yes, please."
Even I smiled. "One day, we will begin again, Sonata. I promise."
Diamond Tiara pulled on her fourth black boot. "Silver, are you ready?" She called to Silver Spoon. While she waited for Silver to answer, she turned and looked in the full-length mirror. She was dressed like Blackstone, one half of their favorite superheroine duo. Black lacy shirt and skirt and black boots with little hearts on them. And she couldn't forget the matching pink belt, with the little clip-on purse containing the magical device she used to transform.
"Almost. One second." Silver stepped out from behind Diamond's bed. She was dressed up as Whitehouse. Silver's costume was a frilly white dress, with her silver hair tied in a high ponytail and secured with a white and blue ribbon. A big white bow adorned the bodice, and her boots were white. She gave herself one last once-over to make sure everything was clipped correctly, particularly her belt. "Okay, I'm done. Diamond?"
Diamond continued looking at herself in her costume. Her hair was down, and she was missing her signature tiara. Her outfit was much more suited to action and running than the clothing she wore to fancy events for her father's work, which consisted of dresses nearly impossible to walk in. She felt so...different dressed up as a magical girl. Much more confident. Like she could fight off any evil coming at her.
She could really use some magical powers in her life.
Blackstone had a special power she used alongside Whitehouse - Pulsar. It purged any dark forces possessing a creature. Maybe if she really was Blackstone, and Silver really was Whitehouse, then they could use it on her father. Then he would see how silly he was being staying in his office all the time. Silver's mother was taking them trick-or-treating this year, because he was still too busy. He always went out trick-or-treating with them.
"Diamond, I know I'm working a lot." Filthy Rich told his daughter as she snuggled deeper into the covers. "But that's just how it has to be for now, until I can get things in order. What with your mother leaving..." He wore a faraway look for a minute before snapping back to reality. "Listen, just hold out for a while longer, okay?"
Diamond Tiara nodded.
"Diamond?"
Diamond shook her head to clear away the memory. She wasn't Diamond Tiara tonight. She was action-girl Blackstone, ready for a night of patrolling the streets and getting candy.
She turned to Silver. "Blackstone?" Silver asked. "Are you ready?"
I follow the timid yellow mare as she leads me through her garden, telling me all about the flora that grow here and the fauna that frequent the place. I smile and nod when appropriate, despite not recognizing some of the scientific names. Equestria has flourished under my sister's solitary reign.
I was hardly shy before my banishment. I was the one who knew she was powerful and wasn't afraid to show it. Very much like that Rainbow Dash character who had been sitting on a thundercloud. Celestia was always more reserved than me.
Now? I am quite frightened. Social mores, laws, everything I once knew well has changed so drastically that I am too scared to do anything in public besides stand beside Celestia for fear of doing something wrong. Nopony would dare correct me, of course, but that makes it all the scarier. I don't know what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong. That Twilight Sparkle is truly my savior.
This mare, Fluttershy, she is quite like me. Hiding away in her castle of greenery, quite shy around other ponies but opening up around her close friends. Because of that, she has learned much about being a friend. I could learn a lot from her.
"Oh! You'll like this one a lot." Fluttershy glides ahead a short distance before stopping beside a flower whose name I recall. "This is a lunar trumpet. A trumpet-shaped white blossom tinged with blue around the edges, that only opens up completely during night hours." She is much like one of those blossoms, I find myself thinking.
"I do know that one quite well." My spirit lightens as I see her expression grow curious. She is quite adorable. "It's my favorite flower, actually."
Fluttershy stammered. "I'm sorry if I disrespected you by explaining everything about it. Of course you'd know about them, being the Princess of the Night and everything." She blushes.
"It is alright, Fluttershy." I smile. "You know, right after I returned, I was quite like one of those blossoms during daylight. A hardened bud never betraying my inner spirit to anypony. This night, and catching up with my sister, has helped, and I have taken to opening up more often to more ponies - but I am still quite like that flower."
Fluttershy is silent for a moment as she thinks. "Me too. On both counts. I was a shy little bud for most of my life, only opening around Rainbow Dash. But then Twilight came to town, and nothing was the same." She smiles fondly.
We are both silent, admiring the flowers and listening to the muted sounds of the far-away celebrations before I speak up. "Fluttershy?"
"Yes?"
I gently pluck one of the blooms growing outside the little square she has set apart for them and tuck it behind her ear. "I would very much like to spend some more time with you after tonight."
Rarity paused, threw on her vampire cape, and pulled open the curtains to see who it was. Rainbow Dash, siting atop a thundercloud and dressed up as Spitfire, and Pinkie Pie sitting on top of Rainbow Dash dressed like a jester. Rarity smiled. "Hello, you two."
Rainbow Dash opened her mouth and Pinkie started talking. "We came over around seven o' clock like you said, but you weren't ready yet, so we waited a half hour but you still weren't ready yet, so it was my idea to come up to your window!" Pinkie explained. Rainbow Dash closed her mouth and nodded.
Rarity laughed. "Could I please have five more minutes to apply my makeup? Then I'll join you downstairs, I swear."
Pinkie nodded. "Alrighty, Rare-bear!"
"Just make sure it actually is five minutes and not ten." Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes despite her smile. Rarity closed the curtains as Rainbow Dash directed the cloud down.
Two fillyfriends. Quite rare outside of scandalous flings nobleponies had that Rarity often read about in her magazines, but Rarity was quite happy to be dating both Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. Date night was going to be yesterday, but they had decided to go out to Vinyl Scratch's Nightmare Night party together tonight instead, to both celebrate the holiday and have a lovely date.
Her vampire costume was ready to go and already on her - a purple dress striking a balance between formal and casual, and a black cape. All that was left was her makeup, which was quickly and carefully applied before she hurried downstairs. "See Rainbow Dash, I can get ready remotely quickly."
Rainbow Dash snorted. "This once, you can."
"I wouldn't expect you to know how much time it takes anyway, Miss I-Am-Too-Cool-For-Cosmetics." Rarity said with a playful smirk.
"Dashie. What did you promise when we started dating?" Pinkie said sternly.
"Not to bug Rarity about her makeup and stuff." Rainbow Dash draped her foreleg across Rarity's neck. "Sorry, Rare."
"It's alright, dear." Rarity pecked Rainbow Dash on the cheek.
Pinkie smiled, kissing Rainbow Dash on her other cheek, much to Rainbow Dash's blushing discomfort. "I really do like moments like this."
The three ponies fell into their involuntary line-up, with Rarity in the middle, Pinkie on her left, and Rainbow Dash on her right as they walked out the door. In the beginning, Rarity had been a bit uncomfortable with it, but now it felt quite natural. Nowadays, nopony spared them a second glance as they walked down the street...to a club. Wubsville, Equestria, according to the neon sign Rarity felt distinctly sorry for.
The place radiated dinginess. The aforementioned neon sign had only a few letters still lit up, the window was broken, and the paint job was absolutely hideous. Rarity shuddered to think of the sorts of stains her costume would have by the time they left. Dubstep music could be clearly heard playing within the place, and all in all it was exactly the sort of place Rarity didn't want to be seen in.
"Wait!" Rarity called out as the other two strolled up to the entrance.
Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. "What? Aren't you coming?"
Rarity sighed. "You didn't tell me this party would be at a club!" In the back of her mind she was aware that she was making a bit of a scene, but she didn't want to go in there.
"You mean you didn't hear the name 'Vinyl Scratch' and think it would be at a club?" Pinkie piped up. Her expression softened as Rarity began to look more distressed. "Once we get back to the Boutique, we'll do something quiet, alright?"
"C'mon, Rarity." Rainbow Dash's grin was the reckless variety often found on teenagers. This should have worried Rarity, but she was honestly all too used to it. "Loosen up a little."
Rarity took a deep breath and strode to the entrance to join her two lovers. "Alright, but only because I love you both."
Octavia grunted in frustration as she scratched out a B that would sound horribly out of place. There were far too many scribbles to salvage this bit of paper, so she crumpled it up and tossed it somewhere away from her desk. She took another smooth sheet of paper and lay it flat in front of her, giving it a death glare.
She was supposed to write and perform a piece for Lady Whiteflower's Nightmare Night party. It was a relatively low-key affair compared to other jobs, but one got work wherever they could find it when they were a musician with no consistent income. And she couldn't think of anything.
"Maybe Vinyl could help me out..." She mused before immediately discarding that thought. The day she took music-related advice from her roommate was the day cats and dogs became close friends. Octavia continued to stare at the paper, trying to conjure up inspiration.
"Hey, next time you throw a ball of paper out of frustration, try not to spear it on my horn." Vinyl Scratch spoke up from over on the couch, throwing the paper back at Octavia in retaliation. "And I can help you, if you need it. What does the Lady want you to do?"
Octavia sighed inwardly. "Something to dance to, but also fitting the general Nightmare Night atmosphere."
Vinyl thought for a bit, rubbing her chin, while Octavia continued to stare at her piece of paper. Maybe...She started to doodle a few notes when Vinyl spoke, causing her to scratch an unexpected black line across it.
"Maybe you could listen to some of my music, and then give it an Octavia Melody spin." Vinyl suggested. "I've got a song called 'Right Round' that would sound really cool with a string accompaniment."
Octavia thought about that. Vinyl's music often had fast-paced beats. Combined with a slower intro, then sped up near the middle....A lightbulb appeared above Octavia's head.
"Can I borrow a few of your records? I'd like to try some other songs, too. And if you tell any of your little friends about your newest 'convert to the electronic scene' or whatever then you're going to get it." Octavia added.
Vinyl grinned. "Whatever. And yeah, feel free to take some from my collection whenever, just put them back after. And be careful with 'em, that collection is my pride and joy."
Cadance inserted a set of glow-in-the-dark vampire fangs into her mouth, making a face at the odd feeling of them resting on her teeth. She glanced up the blue crystal stairs that her daughter would come clanking down in her royal guard costume any minute now. Funnily enough, a year before her daughter had no idea what Nightmare Night or trick-or-treating was.
Nightmare Night had been invented during the thousand years the Crystal Empire was obsolete, so the crystal ponies didn't celebrate the holiday. Cadance had been quick to rectify this once she'd heard. It had taken time, patience and no shortage of caffeine, but she had done it. And it was all worth it to see her daughter all dressed up in her silver armor running down the stairs.
Nova was a spirited little pegasus filly with a creamy coat and navy mane, usually tied in a braid but now loose and sticking up out of a shiny silver helmet. Her onyx eyes from which her name found its source glittered with excitement as she spread her growing wings and glided to the bottom of the stairs, landing neatly on her hind legs with her front hooves ready to smack somepony. Just like her father had been so eager to teach her.
She let her front legs fall then whipped her head from side to side eagerly. "Did Dad see that?! Did he?!"
Shining Armor chuckled as he appeared from behind a pillar. "Yes I did, Nova. Excellent job, by the way." Nova's chest puffed out with pride. "I take it she's ready?" He turned to Cadance, his eyes laughing.
Cadance opened her mouth, but Nova answered first. "Yep! Ready to roll!" Her eyes widened once she realized that she had indeed forgotten something. "Wait! Wait just one second I'll be right back!" She ran back up the stairs to grab her candy bag.
Cadance giggled. "I honestly am not sure how we're supposed to keep up with her sometimes."
"That kind of spirit will be valuable in Guard training." Shining noted.
"She's always been your Guard brat, Shiny." Cadance smiled fondly as she recalled the first time Nova had seen her father in full armor. when she was five years old.
Nova looked up at her mother with wide eyes. "Momma?"
"Yes, Nova?" Cadance replied as Shining headed out, the crystalline door slamming behind him.
"Can I do that someday? I wanna be like Daddy."
"Of course you can, sweetheart. Do whatever you want with your life."
Nova's eyes lit up. "So I don't have to be a pretty pretty princess like you?!"
Cadance laughed. "Not if you don't want to." Nova gasped in delight. "You will have to be a princess one day," Cadance added, "but not necessarily a frilly one."
She was seven years old now, and during the two years between then and now she had thrown herself into preparing herself for the Guard. She was Shining's girl through and through, and Cadance couldn't be more proud.
Nova clattered down the stairs once more, candy bag safely hanging on one wing. "Okay, I really am ready this time!"
Cadance's eyes shone. Now she got to be an actress. "Oh, take me away, noble Guard Nova." Cadance's eyelashes fluttered as she magically secured her front and back hooves.
Nova adopted a stern tone as she attempted to imitate Hank, her friend from the ranks of guards that patrolled the castle. "That's right, move along, criminal scum." She pushed Cadance along and out the door. "And don't think your seduction tricks will work on me."
Shining vainly attempted to stifle his laughter as Nova continued to shove her mother. Does she even know what that means?! he mouthed silently to Cadance.
Cadance shook her head no.
Shining sighed as the two left. That didn't make it any less funny. He continued to chuckle as he headed back down the hall toward his office. Foals...
Fluttershy stood in front of the mirror, looking at the new mare reflected back at her.
Her long pink mane no longer covered her face, instead tied back in a loose braid. Her eyes shone with a visible sparkle, instead of a dull gleam barely visible beneath the thick layers of timidity and stuttering. And most importantly, she was dressed up.
Fluttershy had started dating Princess Luna a couple months before Nightmare Night, and both of them had enjoyed having a confidant separate from their other (quite small) social circles. She was a completely different pony around her princess, and Luna had suggested letting this other Fluttershy out amongst the Nightmare Night crowds.
Speaking of Luna...Fluttershy glanced at the clock. She should be here in about two minutes. Fluttershy's ears perked up at the sound of her porcelain tea kettle whistling, and quickly dashed into the kitchen to pour two cups. She inhaled the heady aroma of pumpkin and various other herbs as she tried to suppress the nervous tingles deep inside her. This "breaking out of your shell" business was scary.
There was a royal blue flash in the corner of her vision, and she felt the crackle of magic on the edges of her mind. She had come to recognize the magical shockwave from a long-distance teleportation spell, and she ran to the door to greet Luna. "Hello, Fluttershy." Luna smiled as Fluttershy opened her door. Fluttershy let Luna lean down and kiss her on the nose.
"Hi, Luna." Fluttershy moved to the side so she could let Luna in. Fluttershy flew into the kitchen first so she could hand Luna her cup, which the princess quickly sipped from. The two sat down at the table, Fluttershy's wings twitching.
"Are you sure I have to wear these cat ears?" Luna groused as she adjusted the aforementioned ears.
Fluttershy giggled. "You look so cute in them, though!" They fit Luna's head snugly, and on the princess they appeared as elegant as a masquerade mask.
"You look cuter than I ever could." Luna grinned.
Fluttershy blushed. She was dressed up as a witch, with a tattered black dress and hat and black and white striped leggings that went above her knees. The outfit was topped off with a black choker around her neck and pink tulle around the rims of her front sleeves, Rarity's advice to add. She thought she looked good, but not particularly cute.
"Stop blushing at compliments that are true, Fluttershy." Luna's smile was mysterious. "You'll be - how do you say it nowadays - knocking 'em dead."
"I will not." Fluttershy protested. "And you said I was taking baby steps at first."
"You are." Luna set down her cup and dabbed at her upper lip with a napkin. "And what were your goals for tonight?"
"Talk to at least three ponies I don't know, dance for at least one song, and go to that Nightmare Night party Vinyl Scratch was holding." Fluttershy cringed at the last one. "Do I have to stay there long?"
Luna shook her head. "Just ten or twenty minutes if that's all you're comfortable with for now." Fluttershy sighed with visible relief.
Luna wrapped her wing around the little witch. "You'll do fine, Fluttershy. Though your name may bind your temperament, you do not have to let it do so."
In the embrace of her lover, Fluttershy felt that statement was nothing but true. "Are you ready to go?"
Fancy Pants was many things. Confident. Influential. Famous. Usually "nervous schoolcolt with a crush" was not among those things, but that was shaping up to change if he kept acting like this.
He was going to the Nightmare Night party being held at the castle as a business opportunity, where Fleur de Lis was also going to be. And like always nowadays when he went somewhere she was going to be, he was overly nervous and scared to move for fear of ruining his costume through some unlucky misstep.
The aforementioned costume was of Alucard, a vampire from a series of novels he knew Fleur liked. A blood-red suit, vampire fangs, and a red top hat that covered his horn. He wondered how Fleur would be dressed. No doubt in something that accented her lovely figure beautifully.
Maybe she wouldn't want to court him. That was a very real possibility. Fleur was on the same rung of the social ladder as he was, and she had her pick of fine stallions. Not to mention all of her other positive qualities, including but not limited to endless wit, beauty, and an outgoing nature. He could just turn around and go back inside his home. He didn't have to go to this party and risk everything for a mare.
He briefly took off the hat so he could light up his horn to signal a carriage, and he was headed to the castle with no more time to think.
----
Fleur de Lis was many things. Stunning. Intelligent. An excellent actress. A nervous fangirl she usually was not, but there was a first time for everything.
She was going to the Nightmare Night party being held at the castle in order to gain more opportunities for work, where Fancy Pants was also most likely going to be. A well-known fashion designer and her crush.
Fleur was dressed in the standard Playcolt bunny costume - a black corset, fake bunny ears, a collar complete with bowtie, cuffs not unlike those you would find on a dress shirt, a fluffy hairband tied around the base of her tail, and a pair of fishnet stockings. It was a scandalous fashion choice, and possibly risky, but she looked sexy in it, and that was what was important if she wanted to impress Fancy Pants. She glanced at the pink mirror rimmed with lights one last time before fetching her bag and running outside to catch a carriage.
As she was headed to the palace, she considered the possibility that Fancy Pants wouldn't want her. That maybe he had his eyes set on another mare. These thoughts were quickly dismissed. What if he did? She had to consider the positives.
----
Two unicorns met in the grand ballroom. One was pale pink, dressed like a bunny. One was white, dressed like a vampire.
Sunset glanced in the mirror leaning against the kitchen wall and adjusted her demon-horns headband. The only other changes in her normal attire was the red puffy skirt and the pitchfork she carried, but she still thought it was a good costume. Sometimes it was good to laugh at yourself.
There was a knock at the door. They're here. She still got a surge of warm fuzzies whenever she thought of her friends waiting for her. Her hair whipped back and forth with the appearance of a real flame as she looked for anything she might have forgotten. Right! The wings! She pulled on a set of shimmery red demon wings and hurried to the door to meet her five friends.
"Hi, you guys." Sunset smiled and looked around at the girls. "I like your costumes." Applejack tipped her scarecrow hat, Rarity turned to show off her cat-girl tail, Pinkie waved her wrists in the air to show off her jester's bell bracelets, Rainbow Dash put on her pilot's flight goggles, and Fluttershy smiled shyly in her green druid's dress.
"Yours is really cool too, Sunny!" Pinkie darted to the front of the group to give Sunset a hug.
"...But you do realize that this won't exactly help you live certain events down, right?" Rarity smiled tentatively.
"Yep." Sunset grinned. "I'm laughing at myself."
"Oh." Rarity's smile became full-fledged. "Well then, I suppose we should get going."
"Follow me, everybody!" Pinkie ran to the back of the crowd again, which became the front as they headed out. "I know the best neighborhood for trick-or-treating EVER! There's Applejack's house by the cul-de-sac where Granny Smith is handing out muffins, and Miss Cheerilee hands out Tootsie-Roll Pops every year, and..." Pinkie trailed off. "Let's just go!"
It was fun walking around with five friends, all dressed up, talking and laughing and admiring other people's costumes. Pinkie made sure that they covered all the ideal houses in the shortest amount of time, with the occasional stop to talk to someone from school. Sunset was mostly quiet, only really talking if someone asked her something, because she recognized this neighborhood. This was where Flash lived.
Back there was his neighbor's house with the treehouse they would sneak into at midnight and just talk. And there was the grove of trees they would always go for walks through, and where he would eventually show her what a kiss was.
"Flash, what's a kiss?" Sunset asked, the setting sun lighting her hair on fire. "I've heard people talk about it, but I don't know what it is."
Flash was silent as he thought of an answer to her question. Sunset was silent as she waited for one. Both of them just continued walking. It was now that Sunset realized just how quiet the forest was when neither of them were speaking.
"This is a kiss, Sunset." Flash said suddenly, and then their lips were touching.
Sunset immediately decided that kisses were weird. Warm and wet. After a few seconds, she decided to add "but enjoyable" to that description as Flash gently eased his tongue into her mouth, and they began to wrap their arms around each other so they wouldn't fall. After a few more seconds, they broke away from each other.
"I-it's what two people do when they really like each other." Flash explained, blushing.
"It's nice." Sunset concluded.
Sunset took a deep breath. Part of her was a little sad they had broken it off. It wasn't like they had fought or anything; Old Sunset had just decided to break up with him one day. Deep down inside, she suspected that she had been afraid of damaging her bond with him like she had with Celestia, possibly irreparably.
"Oh! I'm sorry, so sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going." Sunset stammered. She stopped dead when she saw who she had quite literally bumped into. Flash Sentry, with his little brother.
First Base waved up at Sunset. "Hi, Sunset! I haven't seen you in forever!"
She weakly waved back. "Hi, First." She looked back up at Flash, forcing a smile. "Hi, Flash."
Flash nodded cordially. The other five girls stood back awkwardly, not knowing what to do. "Um, Sunset-" Applejack spoke up, but Sunset cut her off.
"It's fine! Fine. Really. You guys can go on ahead, I'll catch up in a second." She continued to smile, somewhat manically, until they had moved on. She looked back at her ex. Who looked back at her. The cycle continued for about two minutes that felt like two separate eternities as the world continued to move around them until Sunset spoke.
"Why did we break it off, anyway?" Sunset whispered.
"You said that...that you were after somebody else." Flash said. "Far be it from me to deprive my beloved of happiness."
Sunset winced. "A filthy liar and a manipulator."
"And quite a few other things." Flash mumbled. First Base tugged at Flash's jeans, but Flash ignored him.
Two more eternities passed before Flash spoke again. "Maybe we could start over. We broke it off before for essentially for no reason before." Flash extended his hand. "Hi. I'm Flash Sentry."
Sunset smiled and took his hand. Warm, with callouses from his guitar. Just like she remembered it. "Sunset Shimmer."
Then, hand in hand with Flash, she joined the rest of her friends, an old flame having been rekindled.
Applejack, clad in a scarecrow costume, tapped her hoof somewhat anxiously while she waited for Twilight to open the door of her leafy sanctuary. She still couldn't believe she was going through with one of Pinkie's plans. When Pinkie had a plan, bad things happened.
Ever since Fluttershy had went and hooked up with Luna, Twilight seemed strangely distant. She had painted on a smile, spewed platitudes of congratulations to Fluttershy, and left for the library as soon as she could, staying there for several weeks. The others had been worried for her, but decided that she would come out when she was ready. Fluttershy was worried she had upset Twilight somehow, but Pinkie had quickly reassured her that everything would be oki-doki-loki and pulled Applejack aside.
Applejack was going to take Twilight out on a walk tonight, maybe take part in a few Nightmare Night games with her, in the hopes of introducing her back into society and helping her accept Fluttershy and Luna. Why Twilight had a problem with Fluttershy and Luna was anypony's guess, but Applejack was just as worried about Twi as everypony else. And this particular plan of Pinkie's didn't seem too outrageous. On the surface it doesn't...
Right when Applejack was considering knocking again, Twilight opened the door, clad in a simple black robe. Part of her mane was tied in a thin ponytail while the rest was loose, and her eyes looked tired and somewhat sunken. Despite this, she smiled. "Hi, Applejack."
"Hi there, Twilight." Applejack tipped her hat in greeting. Twilight nodded in response.
"Is everything okay?" Twilight skimmed a hoof along the ground.
"I was thinkin' we could just go for a walk. You've been locked up in here for a while now." Applejack absently rubbed the back of her neck with one hoof. Maybe it was the fact that this tired Twilight looked remarkably similar to how she looked in the first few stages of insanity before she brainwashed the whole town using a doll, but Applejack was nervous dealing with her. "Who are ya dressed as?"
"Padma Patil. She was a major contributor in the field of Charms. Spells that add certain properties to objects or creatures." Twilight explained to a confused Applejack. "Charming creatures is illegal now unless it's for medical reasons."
"Oh. Well, that's good." Applejack's laugh was breezy. Why had she been so nervous? Twilight was still Twilight, just a bit tired and sad for reasons that were as of yet unclear. "So, are ya wanna go?"
"Sure." Twilight's stomach growled. She blushed. "I really would like to get something to eat before we go walking."
"Well, let's do just that!" Applejack turned to go. "C'mon."
Twilight followed suit, shivering a little from the sudden chill of the outdoors. Soon enough she was saying hello to almost everypony she passed, explaining that she was okay, just a bit under the weather for a while. They had apple muffins and juice near the edge of town at Applejack's booth, which Apple Bloom was running in her stead quite well. Girl's growin' up fast. Pretty soon she was going to be dating, like Granny had been nagging her to do.
Eventually they were headed toward the Acres, circling through the orchards. They looked enchanted in the moonlight, the leaves glowing blue and the apples themselves dark, shadowy red. It was a good place to take a walk. Applejack glanced at Twilight, monitoring her enjoyment of the whole affair, and saw her eyes flash with a bolt of sadness when she saw a yellow pegasus and a dark blue alicorn flying together toward town.
"I suppose you've been wondering why I've been so upset."
"Yeah, we've been kinda worried about ya." Applejack rubbed the back of her neck again. That was becoming a tic.
Twilight's tone was heavy when she spoke. "I had been crushing on Luna for a pretty long time. I admired how regal she was, how knowledgable she was about every inch of the cosmos. I imagined stargazing with her, not saying a word, just enjoying each other's presence. I started spending time not doing anything, just sitting and indulging in these fantasies. I wanted to act on them, so badly it ached sometimes, but she would always be looking over at Fluttershy whenever there was a pause in our conversations. She respected me, and liked me - just not the way I wanted her to like me." Twilight sighed. She looked like a puppet with its strings loose. "I knew she was going to get together with Fluttershy at some point. It was inevitable. Fluttershy liked her too. But I kept denying it, pushing the thought aside, and then Fluttershy told us. I felt this bolt of jealousy shoot through me, startling me a little with its sheer ferocity. I wanted to get back to the library as soon as possible, get over my grief all alone - but that just made it hurt worse."
Applejack rested her hoof across Twilight's withers. "I'm awful sorry. We shoulda realized how badly you were hurtin'."
Twilight brushed the contact away. "No, it's okay. This has helped a lot, Applejack." She looked right into Applejack's eyes, and for the first time the farmer realized just how pink they were. "I'd like to do this again sometime."
Applejack barely noticed the next words that came out of her mouth as she continued to stare into those pretty pink eyes. "I wouldn't mind that."
My mom adjusted her glasses, nodding to show that she had heard me. My dad didn't say a word. My wings twitched in annoyance. "I'm going out. I'll probably be back super-late."
"Mhm." This time my father spoke. He didn't look me in the eye, but neither of them really ever looked me in the eye. It was something.
I snorted and stomped my front hoof. "I might lose my virginity to a stranger at twelve."
"Please don't stamp your hooves on the wood floors, Scootaloo." My mother turned a page in her book.
I stormed out, slamming the door. It was a cloudy night, with a few patches of stars shining through. My parents never cared about anything I did, why would they care about this? They did all the things parents are supposed to do - make sure I was at school on time, fed and watered me, et cetera or however it's pronounced. But they weren't so much parents as they were caretakers. They didn't ask me how my day was or tell me stories before bed or ruffle my mane and give me nicknames. I was always Scootaloo to them, not Scoots or Scoot or dear. Part of the reason I wished Rainbow Dash was my real biological sister was because she did all those things.
As I got my scooter and rolled onto the path to Sweet Apple Acres, where I was going to meet Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom, I recalled a particular conversation I had with Rainbow Dash after I'd managed to make it up to a low-drifting cloud. She had taken it upon herself to teach me to fly, since both my parents were unicorns.
"Could you be my real mom?" I asked, the faint breeze blowing my mane to the sides of my face.
Rainbow Dash was quiet for a second, then laughed, clapping me on the back. Part of me hoped she would say, "Of course, kiddo." but of course that wasn't happening.
"Scoots, I failed at raising the doll my grandma got me, how the hay do you expect me to raise a living, breathing filly? Besides, you've got parents. I bet they take good care of you."
I was quiet, staring down at the ground that seemed so far away on our little perch but was so close. "Yeah. Yeah, they do."
I don't know why I didn't tell Dash about my parents. Maybe it was because I didn't want to seem weak. Maybe deep down I thought that I was being selfish about the whole thing. But in any case, it's my little secret. I don't intend to introduce my parents to Rainbow Dash. They'll inevitably make her boring too.
I rolled up to the front gates of Sweet Apple Acres, waving to Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom. "Hi, you guys!"
"Hey there, Scoots!" Apple Bloom pulled me into a friendly hug. "You ready to go?"
"You know it!" None of that mattered now. Tonight was for fun.
Now I know what ponies mean when they say they have "butterflies in their stomach".
She's looking this way. Please excuse my impudence, O Great Goddess Of The Air, I am not worthy.
Did I say that out loud? I totally said that out loud.
Arg. At least she's not laughing at me. She is dressed as a Goddess of the Air, as she was known in legend. Private Pansy. I love how her eyes light up when she talks about history. Add that to the Mental List Of Things I Like About Sassaflash. It's a long list.
My name sounds so much better when she says it. Caramel. When she says it, it sounds like the sweet, chewy dessert that it is. When anyone else says it, it's a boring moniker. There's a reason Big Mac and his sister prefer to call me Mel.
Yes yes yes I would love to go walking with you and your little sister. That would be wonderful.
We're not talking at all. I don't care; it's enough that I can just stand next to her, breath in the scent of static and fresh rain. It's beautiful. Someone should make that into a perfume. They'd be a rich pony.
Her sister is going on and on about various nonsense. It's charming, in a way.
Sass cut her off. She's blushing. I wonder what stallion Aura was talking about?
Now Sass is talking up a storm. Do I actually like caramel? Yes, I like it quite a bit. It tastes good with apples. Apparently she's always wanted to ask me that. That's weirdly adorable.
Just ask her if she wants to get dinner with you later, you idiot! It's not hard!
Logic is a filthy liar, don't you know. It's the hardest thing in the world to ask a girl you really like out. Your knees turn to water and your throat gets dry. Makes it hard to speak. Or walk.
Yes, I'm okay, Sass. Just a bit nervous.
Why am I nervous? Oh geez. This isn't happening. Not like this.
Her eyes look so soft. Like I could smoosh them. Love really does make you crazy if I'm thinking about smooshing a girl's eyes.
She said yes. I don't know how I feel about this. Ridiculously happy, of course, but there are still nervous tingles. Like something else should be happening.
And she's kissing me. Her mouth tastes like candy. No surprise, considering this is Nightmare Night, but still mmm. And I'm kissing her back...
Yes, sing your little song, Aura. K-I-S-S-I-N-G indeed.
More walking as we hit the last few houses Aura wanted to go to. I'm savoring every inhale.
And we're off to dinner. Score. At Burger Barn, because it's the only place that's open this late, but still. Score.
"It is an obstacle placed in the way of my candy by my cruel marefriend that I must overcome."
"...I thought as much."
"What if I gave you a kiss? Then would you give me some?"
"Lyra, for every piece of candy you eat, you make a foal who wanted that piece very, very sad. Is that what you want?"
"What if I only have two or three?"
"You know as well as I do that two or three eventually turns into five or seven."
"Because in the end, two or three evolves. Like Ponymons! I am helping them grow up, Bon Bon."
"Hello, Ponyville General Hospital? Can you get Lyra a padded room, I want to make sure she doesn't hurt herself."
"You assume that I suffer from my particular brand of insanity."
"The rest of us do. That's good enough for me."
"But do you want to settle for 'good enough', Bon Bon? Don't you want to go for 'absolutely super perfect' instead? Don't you feel the urge, every now and again, to jump into a swimming pool full of vanilla pudding?"
"I can't deny it. That would be kind of nice."
"See?! Now can I have some of those yummy pumpkin-shaped chocolates, so we can ascend to the super-perfection plane?"
"Lyra, you eat too many sweets as it is. You're starting to get a little chubby."
"I'm not chubby! I'm just well-covered."
"Uh-huh."
"Music isn't a very run-around industry, Bons. Speaking of music, you denied my trade of a kiss for some chocolate earlier, if I recall correctly."
"Glad to see your memory is normal."
"So what if I wrote you a song instead? I know you like my music."
"...What kind of song are you referring to?"
"Whatever song you like. A pop song, some of that more classic folk music you like...or I could try a more specialized instrument."
"Eep! Lyra, y-you do realize this is technically blackmail."
"No it's not. Blackmail is forcing someone to do something because if they don't do et cetera, then you'll reveal something personal to the world. I am merely coaxing you. Besides, you've been working way too hard."
"I've been working just as hard as usual."
"Still, I think you deserve me playing you some music. The candy isn't even required to get it."
"...Race you upstairs."
----
"And I really will try and cut down on the sugar."
"That's what you said last week."
"That time was more or less a joke. This time I'm really trying."
"I'll believe it when I see it. But...thank you for this. And thank you for trying."
"No problem at all, Bons. You take real good care of me, I think it's best if I gave a bit back."
"...What are you giving back?"
"Me eating less sweets equals more profits for your bakery."
The doorbell rings just as I'm pulling on my wolf costume. "I'll get it!" I shout down the hall while I'm jamming my wolf mask onto my face. I get a running start and glide to the door, barely avoiding a crash. Progress.
Our house is on the outskirts of town, only about five feet up. The way our doorbell works is that there's a long rope hanging down that you yank, which makes the bell ring up here. I step onto the shelf of cloud that is our porch/takeoff platform and look down. Diamond Tiara is down there. And her friend Silver Spoon.
They both look awesome, but Silver Spoon takes the cake in her floaty white dress, looking like an angel. Her mane that almost glows in the just-emerging moonlight is tied up and cascades down her neck in a wavy tumble. Each one of her boots is polished to perfection. Suddenly the ground that's just a few feet away I've flown down to without thinking ever since my wings developed enough seems so far away.
I get the candy bowl, take a deep breath and jump, unfurling my wings and gliding neatly to the ground. Another deep breath and I turn to them. I feel incredibly dorky in my mask. "Hi, you guys."
"Hi, Rumble." It's Silver that waves first, sending warm tingles all through my body.
"Yeah, hi." Diamond nudges Silver, causing her to blush and give a minute shake of her head.
I hold out the bowl to them. "Take a hoofful."
They both take some candy, Diamond's smile ebbing and flowing while Silver's is consistent. Diamond nudges Silver again. Silver mutters something that I'm pretty sure is "Be patient," though my mask obscures my ears a little bit.
"Well, we'll be moving along. We have to see and be seen." Diamond says haughtily with a toss of the mane. Silver nods in agreement and goes to follow her friend. My stomach sinks. For a second I had entertained the wild fantasy that she would ask me to go with them. I was already headed out anyway.
Halfway to Diamond, who's already almost in town, Silver stops, and hesitantly looks at me. My heart picks up. Diamond jerks her head insistently. Silver opens her mouth to speak, then closes it again.
"Rumble, do you want to go trick-or-treating with us? You look ready to go." Her voice never sounded more like tinkling bells than it did right then.
"Yeah, sure! I'll just- get my- pillowcase..." I stumble on my words and make awkward gestures up towards the porch as I speak. Silver nods. I fly up faster than I've ever gone and get my pillowcase, rushing off to join them.
----
All the other foals who went to Rumble's house to get candy were surprised to find the bowl simply laying there on the ground, but they weren't complaining.
There he was. Talking to Alula. Being insufferably cute. Business as usual.
Why is he going out with Alula, of all ponies?! She's nice and all, and pretty, and a really good runner, and I am none of those things...but honestly! He could do so much better. And by "so much better" I mean "dump that filly and start going out with me." I am clearly the better option. Why? Because I'm me. And she's her. And I love him more than she ever could.
Everypony at school was talking about Pipsqueak and Alula. Pipsqueak and Alula this, Pipsqueak and Alula that, Pipsqueak and freaking Alula. And every time, I mentally substituted Alula for Dinky. Because that's who should be talked about. Pipsqueak and Dinky. That had a far nicer ring to it in any case.
I even rocked a Halloween costume better than her! Sure, her cat costume showed off a bit more flank, and that was probably why all the other colts at the party were ogling her, but my witch costume was far more elegant. It was Lolita. That was apparently in fashion in Canterlot, according to Mom's family, so why wasn't Pipsqueak paying attention to me?! Alula's such a skank anyway, she'll probably run off with one of those colts devouring her with their eyes...
What is wrong with me? Pipsqueak is happy with Alula, we're still friends. It's not like we've stopped talking. And Alula is still my friend, and she most definitely isn't a skank. She's quite flirty, but just as virginal as I am.
Why am I sitting in the corner anyway? I edge closer to Pip and Alula. They're talking about candy. "The only flavor left by the time I got there was lime." Pip sighed as he pointed out the aforementioned lollipop in his sack to Alula. "I knew I should have gone out earlier."
"I like lime." I interject, pulling a grape one from my own sack. "Do you want to trade?"
He jumps a little. "Oh, hi there Dinks. Sure." I use my magic to swap lollipops. Not using mere levitation, oh no - A new spell I learned from Mom's mom. Short-range teleportation of objects. There's still a tiny part of me that loves impressing Pip however and whenever possible.
His eyes widen to a comical degree at the spell. It's quite adorable. "That's really cool, Dinky!"
"Yeah, it really is." Alula chimes in.
"Oh, it's nothing, really." I wave my hoof in a gesture of indifference, but stars above Pip approved of me. "Short-range object teleportation, just a branch of levitation magic."
Both him and Alula look confused. "It's quite simple, really..."
It's fun explaining to Pip and Alula exactly how and why the spell worked the way it did, and answering their questions. I share my dad's talent of easily being able to learn complex things, and distill them down to something simple. And when I don't know exactly how it works, I'll drive myself nuts trying to figure it out. As I'm talking, Alula and Pip are sharing little moments of contact - a little hug here, a tiny kiss there. It really is quite cute, and I'm not quite as jealous as I used to be by the time the party's out.
Did you see that?! Pip brushed my withers as we left. That can't be coincidental. It can't be.
Celestia waved at Luna as she flew towards Ponyville. Dating Fluttershy really was good for her. "Bye..." Once she was sure that Luna was well and truly gone, she dashed out of her quarters and down the halls, giggling madly. She had chosen this particular time to get her noodle implements because this was when the shifts changed and there was the least amount of guards around. She had to maintain Celestia's reputation.
She skidded to a stop in front of an unassuming closet door. Buried behind spare uniforms and cleaning supplies was her ticket to normalcy for one truly magical night. A tulle skirt, fuzzy leg warmers, a cat tail, and cat ears, made for a much smaller pony than she.
Concentrating and catching her breath from the sprint to this loyal closet, she lit her long white horn, smiling as the golden magic enveloped her form, turning her coat pale gold, shortening her horn and temporarily removing her wings, making her body smaller and less gangly, and turning her spectral waves into a brown mane and tail streaked through with blond. Her sun cutie mark became a silver bow and arrow, representing Angel Grace's talent for archery.
She opened her eyes and smiled at her reflection in a dusty full-length mirror. She wasn't Princess Celestia anymore. She was Angel Grace, a teenager out to have some fun on Nightmare Night.
Celestia squealed and jumped into her costume, tying her mane into a Prench braid before heading out, being careful to sneak around any guards she saw on her way to the front gates. They had orders to not disturb her under any circumstances, for she was working on some incredibly important letters. She was in the clear.
She really didn't mind her job ruling over a whole nation. Despite Luna's moaning about how tall the piles of paperwork and forms had gotten over the centuries, Celestia found filling each one out to be quite relaxing. She really wasn't a fan of spontaneity and surprises - those were much more to Luna's liking. Though she didn't mind being the immortal and all-powerful Celestia, being Angel Grace and 'hanging out' as they said with a group of other teenagers she had befriended was quite fun as well.
She leapt through the front gates, unable to keep the bounce out of her step, snickering as she imagined the expressions her guards would wear if they knew that Princess Celestia had left the castle without them to keep her company. She scanned the crowd for her friends. They were supposed to meet her near the castle, then they were off for a night of free sweets, fun, and hopefully debauchery.
Yes, Princess Celestia was a pure and untouchable virgin, but Angel Grace got up to quite a bit. Another perk of having an alternate persona. "Hey, Angel!"
Her ears perked up as she caught sight of Arabella waving to her, Kalos and Sinnoh right behind her. She waved back and hurried over to them. They greeted her with pats on the back and hugs, in Arabella's case.
"You ready to go?" Kalos asked, gesturing toward the streets.
"Look out, Canterlot." She responded confidently, tying her tail with Arabella's, as they strode off.
I sat on the branches of an apple tree beginning to shed its leaves and watched Ponyville come alive for Nightmare Night. I can't be the only one who finds it hilarious that the dying leaves are heralded as being gorgeous for their warm colors. Though I suppose I'd like to be gorgeous in death.
I need no costume, my new form is quite enough. I spread my blue bat-like wings and took off, the twisted brown branch I was sitting on coming close to snapping. I see a little foal dressed as a vampire. I can only imagine their parents' reaction to this costume choice. Aaaw, how cute. She wants to dress up as a dark seductress who sucks every drop of blood from the bodies of ponies on a daily basis.
That was an activity I had partaken in quite a bit since my transformation. It wasn't so bad once you got over the remorse. And I only did sick or elderly ponies. The subsequent dying was a relief for them. What, did you think I lost my morals? I had bent quite a few, but they were still intact. Mostly.
I made a hairpin turn around a cottage near the outskirts, ruffling the manes of a few ponies headed towards the center of town. Then a corkscrew turn up up up - yes, now I was backlit by the moon. Give it a second and ponies would see me. Then the showmare's performance could begin.
I can't really remember much of what happened after I began to fiddle with that one tome I found in a used-book store. I saw that it was a spellbook, decided to buy it and teach myself a few new tricks for when I went back on the circuit, and then I just had this wonderful idea. What better way to become famous than to be in a myth? Better yet, to be in a ghost story? I just had to twist my form enough so it became memorable in the worst way. Then get myself noticed, and eventually ponies would tell their friends, tell stories. Stories about none other than moi, the Great and Powerful Trixie. I would become immortalized in legend.
Yes, now ponies were starting to point. Look up there, they were saying, look up there at the blue unicorn with tattered socks and the wings of some great bat. I bared my fangs in a smile, diving downward toward the ground at a blinding rate. Now going toward the center of town, I glided swiftly just a few feet over the heads of the trick-or-treating ponies, one of my wings accidentally hooking some poor filly's witch hat. Then gliding in an elegant aileron roll to the top of the Town Hall, where I perched, placing the hat atop my head as if my theft was on purpose.
Everypony was looking at me, this unicorn mare with bat wings and red eyes. Oh yes, the red eyes were my very favorite, and I lit my horn to wash a supersensory wave over everypony in the square so they could get a good look at my lovely red eyes.
Murmurs formed a unison hum as ponies wondered who or what I was, and why exactly I was here. Eventually, a tan earth pony strode to the front of the crowd. Dressed as a clown, how remarkably fitting. "Excuse me, but could you please get down from there?"
I nodded, which seemed to relax her. Then I opened my mouth wide in a hiss, no doubt startling her enough to turn her knees to water. I chuckled, then flew off, my work done. They wouldn't be seeing the last of me.
My other visits would have to follow some kind of pattern. And there would have to be some deaths. That tan mare seemed to be a good choice for my first one. The last night of every month sounded good for return visits. There could be changes made as necessary, but for now I touched down behind the Town Hall and found a place to hide.
Not the kind of excited you keep bundled up inside you in a tight round ball like a happy secret, but the infectious kind of excitement that showed in your mannerisms and made everypony else around you happy too. The kind of excited her marefriend perpetually was. Everypony had it around Nightmare Night, but she had it bad. Maybe it was a side effect of spending too much time around Doctor Pinkie. They did tend to get a bit distracted from curing what ailed her during Rarity's checkups...
She blushed as she continued to hum and smile, wearing the frilly apron Pinkie got her last year for her birthday, even though she didn't wear it most of the time. Love triumphs over many things, that was true, but it was no excuse to make terrible fashion choices. Except for today. For today was Rarity and Pinkie Pie's anniversary.
She had prepared an extra-special, quiet little party for two at her Boutique, lighting several of the strawberry candles Pinkie so loved, dimming the lights, preparing chocolate cupcakes with berry frosting and rainbow sprinkles that Pinkie especially loved - the reason for wearing the aforementioned apron - and she had placed a very special song request. Which should be coming on any minute. Rarity bit her lip, allowing a seed of worry to plant itself in her mind.
No, no. It would be alright. Pinkie made absolutely sure that she could get home at the specific time Rarity wanted her to. Rarity had reminded her of the time just before she headed off to Sugarcube Corner. It would be fine. There was the bell alerting her to someone entering the building...trick-or-treaters.
Rarity answered the door, handing out candy bars as quickly as she could to the foals at the door before closing it again.
Right after that, the doorbell rang again, and there was Pinkie bouncing in to give her a hug. She slid the tray of cupcakes in the oven to bake just before Pinkie tackle-hugged her.
"Gooood evening, Miss Equestria and all those yummy cupcakes I smell in the oven!" Pinkie buried her muzzle in Rarity's mane. "Hi."
Rarity giggled. Something about that mare just compelled her to giggle. "Hello, darling." She snuggled a little tighter into Pinkie's embrace before they broke apart.
Pinkie took a deep whiff of the air. "Chocolate, berry frosting. Tastes best when paired with rainbow sprinkles."
"Correct as you always are with these things, but I have a question."
"Fire away."
"How do you know exactly what kind of sprinkles to pair with a specific flavor of cupcake?" Rarity inquired as she glanced at the clock. One more minute until her request came on.
"Simple! I eat lots of 'em." Pinkie maneuvered around Rarity to plunk herself on the kitchen floor and watch the cupcakes bake, as she always did.
Rarity darted to the radio and turned it on, hopping stations until she found their favorite - the one that played Bridleway music.
"Hinny of the Hills, always a classic. And coming up we have Without Love, requested by a pony who wishes to remain anonymous, dedicated to her beloved. It's apparently their third anniversary tonight."
"Aaw."
The slow beats of their favorite song began to start up. Rarity began to sing along. "Once I was a selfish fool, who never understood. Never looked inside myself, but on the outside, I looked good!"
Pinkie jumped up as Rarity began to sing. Her aqua eyes, shining with happiness, spurred Rarity on. "Then we met and you made me, the mare I am today. Pinkie, I'm in love with you, no matter what you weigh!"
"Cause without love," they both sang, "life is like the seasons with no summer. Without love, life is rock 'n' roll without a drummer. Pinkie, I'll be yours forever, cause I never wanna be.." Rarity barely noticed Pinkie replacing Tracy with 'Rare-Bear'.
"Without lo-o-o-o-ove...Pinkie, never set me free."
They continued to dance and sing, all around the kitchen, reveling in the closeness of the other. Rarity knew the neighbors would inevitably hear them, and she really could not find it in her to care. "Darling, I'll be yours forever, cause I never wanna be, without lo-o-o-o-ove..."
The song eventually ended, like all good things, leaving both of them panting with the exertion involved in dancing on one's hind legs. Eventually Pinkie reared up again, wrapping her forelegs around her fillyfriend.
"This is the best anniversary present ever, Rare-Bear. Play it again?"
With a flash of magic, Rarity pushed replay, teleporting the candy bowl outside the door so the trick-or-treaters could take their own and leave Rarity and Pinkie to their bubble of glorious happiness for the years gone by and the years to come.
I slip in through the back door of the karaoke bar and my ears are immediately greeted with the easy first notes of an unidentifiable dance-pop song. Heading down the hallway and peeking into the actual bar part of the building reveals that the evening crowd hasn't come yet. Just five, maybe seven people at the various tables scattered through the place, with Berry Punch on stage singing. I give her a little wave and she nods, then continues singing. Girl's got a good voice.
The DJ sitting at the turntable looks bored when I come in, snatching his glass of amber liquid and hustling out. I can't remember his name - Rising Star? Eh. It doesn't matter. I take the seat he left behind and watch Berry sing. Most people just get up and sing on a dare. Berry pours her heart into it, her eyes shining. It's an escape for her, just like being the disc jockey is an escape for me. As I listen to her sing, my mind wanders back to the days when we first moved here.
My mom has always wanted to be a singer. But nobody gets discovered in the tiny town of Ponyville. Nobody. It just doesn't happen. So she got it into her head that we should move up here, where she went to college. Good idea on paper.
We do not have a ton of money. That's just the reality of things. We have enough to pay the rent on our tiny apartment, and we have enough to sustain ourselves in general. That's not the problem. The problem is that everything is always so tumultuous, going from all of the money to none of the money, and from all of the free time to none of the free time. So I decided to apply to be the disk jockey at this here karaoke club on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, so both me and Mom could take a break.
Funny how some people get shafted and some don't. Berry is an amazing person. But since her family makes wine, there are rumors all around school that she's going to be an alcoholic just like her dad. She will be if you people quit freaking treating her like a druggie. How does that get decided? How does whoever created us choose who gets the short end of the stick? Does he or she or it roll one of those twenty-sided dice Button Mash and his friends mess around with?
The bell above the door rings, and two girls step in. Two of the Dazzlings, from the Battle of the Bands a few weeks back. My memory of that night is kinda fuzzy. Lots of light and sound, and people were singing. That's about it. Their smiles are small and hopeful, the kind of smiles I see often on my mom and Berry and in the mirror. They pick their way around and through the tables, mumbling apologies to anyone they bump into. They're coming over to me. Time to actually do my job. I quit slouching and sit up straight as they come forward. The blue girl looks shy, opening her mouth to speak but not saying anything. The purple one pipes up, "How does this place work?"
"You pick a song from this list," I tap the thin red binder that contains the laminated song list, covered in permanent marker graffiti by the various other people who have occupied my chair. "and you go up on stage to sing it. The lyrics are up on that screen." I point to the aforementioned screen, which is hooked up to the laptop in front of me and currently on a screensaver of colorful swirls. "So you don't have to memorize 'em. The lyrics, that is." I push the binder over to them. "Pick a song, any song."
The blue one pages through it, biting her lip. "I recommend this one." I tapped one song in particular. "Not hard to follow."
"Then...then I guess I'll do that one." The blue one nods, then runs onstage.
"You going up there too?" I ask the purple girl.
She shakes her head. "Sonata told me on the way over that she wanted to sing a song by herself."
So that's her name. Sonata. Okay. Sonata taps the microphone, I scroll through the various PowerPoints saved and pick the one for the song she chose. "Hi, everybody. I'm...I'm Sonata Dusk, and I'm going to sing for you." Her smile receives a syringe full of confidence. "I hope you enjoy."
She starts singing, and smiling because she knows she's got this, and I'm smiling because I am so happy that this girl's found a place she's comfortable. Everybody needs a sweet escape, and I'm really happy that this bar can be hers. She looks like she needs one. Her and her friend both. As my mom says; My prayers go out to the both of them.
About halfway through the song, she starts dancing a little she's so happy, and the purple girl is smiling wider than ever. "Hey." She turns toward me. "If you guys ever need anything, feel free to tell me. I'll do my best to help."
The girl looks like she's about to melt. "Thank you so much."
"It's no problem."
Sonata hits a high note, and everyone's heart soars along with her voice.
Apple Bloom poked her head in Sweetie Belle's doorway. "Hey, Sweets, it's almost time to go - What're you doing?"
Sweetie Belle jumped, then turned around to face Apple Bloom, blinking in surprise. "Oh. Hi, Apple Bloom. Yeah, I'll be down in a sec, just let me finish this one part here." She resumed scribbling. Sheets of notebook paper were strewn everywhere, all of them covered in notes in various colors of ink.
"Whatcha writing?" Apple Bloom looked down to read one of them, but Sweetie Belle quickly snatched it away before she could get very far.
"Nothing! Nothing! It's nothing. Nothing at all." Sweetie grabbed as many sheets as she could with her developing magic and shoved them into a desk drawer, smiling sheepishly.
Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "Doesn't seem like nothing."
"Well, you know what they say about appearances." Sweetie Belle's smile was clearly supposed to be jaunty and winning, but the effect was lost on Apple Bloom. A sheet that had been spared Sweetie's censoring of her hobby writing lay near her desk. Apple Bloom snatched it up, skimming it to the sound of Sweetie's protests. "Is this supposed to be some kind of love story?"
Sweetie Belle slumped to the ground. "Yes. It's fanfiction, you've caught me."
"Between Griffonia and Equestria?"
"Well, I'm kind-of-sort-of a fan of Axis Magic." Sweetie Belle skimmed her hoof against the lavender carpet. "A-and so I started looking into the fanfiction community, and I kind of really like the fan pairing of Griffonia and Equestria. I read a couple fics, and now I'm seeing ship fuel everywhere." Another sheepish grin. "So I decided to write a story of my own."
"Oh. Well, okay." Apple Bloom set the paper gently down on Sweetie Belle's desk. "This looks like the first chapter. Seems alright by me, so far."
"So...you're okay with me being an Otaku?"
"So long as ya don't become one of those insane fangirls who says Neighpon is their waifu or whatever."
Sweetie Belle crushed her friend in a hug. "I was so scared you guys would find out and not like me or something."
"Don't be silly." Apple Bloom struggled to get free of Sweetie Belle's embrace. "Now can ya please let me go?"
Sweetie Belle quickly obeyed. "So does that mean you're okay with me dressing up as Equestria for Nightmare Night?"
Ruby Pinch ignored the calls of Sparkler, her foalsitter whom she had recruited to go with her and grabbed a few books from her miniature library. At least two horror novels in case she got bored, can't forget that book about the specifics of supernatural phenomena, and of course, her very own copy of the legend of the Remnant.
She gave the book a little kiss before shouting down the stairs, "Just give me a second to check my equipment again and then we'll be off, Sparks!"
"Okay, but make it quick before I change my mind!"
Ruby slipped the four books into one of her two saddlebags, the other holding her Supernatural Kit. Magnifying glass (because what self-respecting scientist doesn't have a magnifying glass), foal's powder (for making a protective circle), a few iron charms (to ward off ghosts), a Royal Guard knife (just in case), a camera (for taking pictures of her findings), her notebook and a few spare pens (again, what self-respecting scientist didn't have a notebook and spare pens), baked cheese crackers (because one got hungry), and bottled water (and one got thirsty).
Satisfied with her inventory, Ruby slung one of the charms around her neck, pulled on her lab coat, shoved her reading glasses onto her face, and clattered down the stairs with her saddlebags packed. She headed out the back door and gave Sparkler a charm without stopping, Sparkler accepting it without a word. She had been on enough of Ruby's expeditions to know that iron charms were a must.
"So, what are we doing again?" Sparkler asked as she followed Ruby Pinch down the winding dirt path that led to the Everfree Forest.
"We're seeing if we can find the Remnant, supposedly located in the Castle Of The Two Sisters and rumored to be a fragment of Nightmare Moon's power." Ruby recited from memory as she took out the legend and leafed through its pages.
"And why is a young foal who's barely beginning to develop her magic searching for a fragment of Nightmare Moon's power? Even one who wants to be a supernatural scientist in the future?"
"That's why I brought you along, Sparks. You can do a bunch of cool offensive magic and protect us." Ruby put away the legend and got out her notebook, opening to a new page and scribbling something in it.
"Your mom's going to kill me if she knows we're doing this."
Sparkler, ever a skeptic. "Sparkler, would you rather be out collecting candy? Or contributing to the obscure field of supernatural science?!"
"Getting candy, because then I wouldn't be risking my life, as well as obtaining free food."
"But this is so much more interesting!" Ruby's steps became more calculated as more forest debris began to litter the path.
"Rubes, I think you have a problem. You're addicted to all this horror stuff."
Ruby sighed. "The greatest scientists of past decades started out just like me, Sparkler. Nearly friendless but for those who believed in them, and unfairly persecuted. Someday soon, I'll be your boss."
"So I'm unfairly persecuting you now?" Sparkler began to take care to keep up with Ruby as they went deeper into the forest.
"Continue down this path and you might start. Look up there!""
Ruby yanked Sparkler over to where she was and waved her hoof wildly. Sparkler peered through a gap in the endless vegetation and saw a stone spire piercing the canopy of trees. "We're almost there!"
Ruby squealed and jumped up and down for a moment before setting off again at a brisk trot. "Come on, Sparks!"
Sparkler sighed. "She's going to get herself killed one day."
"I don't know why Twilight does math problems for fun. I'm open to any and all forms of fun, but math just doesn't add up for me, ya know?" Pinkie dissolved into a fit of giggles. Applejack sighed, her smile growing steadily smaller.
She loved her fillyfriend. Really, she did. But she didn't think sitting on top of her and making bad puns while she was bucking apples to make into assorted treats for Nightmare Night was necessary.
"Pinkie?"
"Yeah?"
"Why are ya doin' this?" She kicked another tree, watching the apples fall as she moved onto the next one.
"Because I want to spend some time with my juicy Apple, of course!" Pinkie pecked Applejack on the forehead as the latter blushed from the sensual nickname. "And because I wanted to see how many puns you could endure before asking me why I was telling you so many terrible puns."
"How many did I get?" Applejack's smile widened. That was such a Pinkie thing to do.
"Twenty-seven. More than I expected. But you've always been a stubborn goose."
"A stubborn goose?"
"Ya know, 'cause I'm a silly goose. You're a stubborn goose so we can both be gooses together!" Pinkie explained.
Applejack laughed. "Okay then, silly goose, could you get off and help me buck some trees now?"
"Yes sir, ma'am, sir!" Pinkie saluted and jumped off of Applejack, scurrying over to the tree in front of Applejack.
"By the way, Pinkie..." Applejack turned to Pinkie and winked. "You're pretty punny."
Pinkie burst into laughter, and eventually Applejack joined in. "We're both punny, AJ." Pinkie said as she wiped her eyes. "Even the portmanteau of our names is punny."
"I'm afraid I don't follow." Applejack couldn't wipe the smile off her face no matter how hard she tried.
"ApplePie!" Pinkie exclaimed. "The only kind of dessert you can make better than me."
Applejack giggled. "We're a right punny couple, you and me."
I fastened my purple cloak with a green jewel pin and looked in the lit-up mirror, practicing my most dazzling smile. Some grew nervous from the pressure before they went onstage; I reveled in it. Pressure makes diamonds, don't you know.
Using a highly illegal magical artifact to enslave a town had consequences, and I was caught within a week of going back to Canterlot in the hopes of getting a permanent job there. I was actually brought before the Princesses themselves, and they decided that since the whole enslaving-a-town bit had occurred when I wasn't exactly in my right mind and I hadn't killed anypony, I got a year in prison and six months of community service. This was part of said community service.
I was going to be putting on a special Nightmare Night performance for a crowd of foals from the nearby hospital, to help raise their spirits. I threw myself into preparations for it quite enthusiastically if I do say so myself. The little tykes deserved a night of entertainment in the absence of trick-or-treating, and who better to give it to them than moi?
I jumped as Celestia herself peeked her head into my dressing room. "Oh! Hello, Princess." I began to bow before she placed her hoof beneath my chin and gently but firmly forced my head up.
"There will be no need to bow for me."
"Oh, okay. Yes, Princess." I fumbled. We stood in silence for three seconds that stretched and broke as Celestia whispered to me, "I am very proud of you."
"Proud? Of me?" I snorted. "Celestia, you expelled me from your school for numerous offenses including but not limited to cheating, meddling with things I wasn't supposed to, and acts of minor bullying." As I spoke I lowered my head more and more. "Then I picked a fight with your student and enslaved a town using an illegal magical artifact, which landed us in this mess. If anything, you should be deeply ashamed of me." Now I was saying hello to the floor. Hi there, floor. Looking quite nicely polished this evening.
"But you were willing to atone for your mistakes." Celestia intoned in a voice that could instantly calm the most berserk of griffon warriors. "You pled guilty, Trixie, and you were willing to accept your punishment and finally move on. That means far more to me than any past sins.
"You have always been a performer, Trixie. That is in your very nature, and so when you got out of prison I did my best to find you a job that would play to those strengths. You threw yourself into it with a great deal of enthusiasm, much more than I expected. That showed me that you had changed greatly from the sulky, unkind mare that attended my school so long ago."
"Now." She smiled. "Is Trixie the Sorceress ready to perform?"
I fastened a horn ring and gave the mirror one more smile. "Quite ready indeed, Princess."
"Then why don't you go and do what you were born to do and show those foals a good time?"
"Yes ma'am!" I ran onstage to the cheers of a very young crowd.
I'm dying. A little bit, every day, ever since that fateful Tuesday. Tuesdays are never fateful, I've noticed. It's always Saturdays.
You aren't supposed to have feelings for somepony you broke up with. That's not how it works. You're supposed to...I don't know exactly what you're supposed to do since Lyra was my first girlfriend. But you're not supposed to still be tender and hurting two weeks after the fact. That I know for sure.
I'm not clinically depressed or anything. Just kinda blue. Both literally and figuratively. Medium blue, not dark blue that grabs you in a chokehold and causes you to lock yourself in your house and do nothing but sit around and cry. Sad, but not too sad. Staring at her and Bon Bon standing outside Canter Candies, Lyra leaning on the wooden table, handing out sweets for the youngsters walking by probably isn't helping, but I can't tear my eyes off them.
I had nursed a crush on Lyra for the longest time. What captivated me was her constant bubbliness, almost rivaling Pinkie with how cheerful she was twenty-four-seven. She had a golden trail of light that, while invisible, touched everypony in its path. Including myself.
We never asked each other out. Or formally started a relationship. We just kind of...started hanging out together more often and everypony just accepted that we were an item. It just happened, and it was amazing. Wonderful. Fantastic. Happy. I was so very happy during those three months. I think her cheerfulness rubbed off on me some. We even went on a double date with Fluttershy and Princess Luna. That was a lot of fun. I was robin-egg blue then. Happy happy happy, with the occasional sad day but Lyra always there to cheer me up.
Then Lyra started to get noticed in the music world, and we started getting distant. Not dating as often, or talking as often for that matter, and Lyra being away for concerts and the like nearly all the time. She was very talented with that lyre of hers, and I was happy for her, but I still wanted her here with me, and I would occasionally get snippy with her. We'd have minor fights because of that sometimes, and eventually Lyra decided to break it off.
"We can't do this if we only see each other once in a blue moon. Our schedules just don't leave us enough time to keep this alive. But I really do want to keep being friends with you, alright?"
Our schedules still didn't leave us much time to see each other. Now we've switched places; Lyra's home in Ponyville a lot, I'm spending much more time away due to my music. She's together with Bon Bon now. They're pretty adorable together. I'm glad she's happy.
You know what? I think I'll go and say hello. Blue doesn't go away until you make it go away. That's how it works with rain.
"Hi, Lyra. Hi, Bon Bon."
Lyra jumps. "Oh. Hi, Notes. Bons, have you met Noteworthy before?"
"Yeah, he's over at Canter every few days." She grins.
"I really am trying to curb my sweet tooth." I say defensively. "Though those truffles do look good...Can I have one?"
Everypony laughs. "Help yourself, Noteworthy." Bon Bon slides the tray over to me. "Free of charge."
I blink. "I could just run back across the street and grab some bits."
Bon Bon shakes her head. "Any friend of Lyra's is a friend of mine, and I don't charge my friends unless I'm in business."
"Thank you. Thank you very much." For more than just the truffles.
Canterlot's real pretty at night. I've lived here all my life, but I can't help but notice all the windows lit up and glowing with their own separate light, their own separate universes contained within them. Just...wow. Everything looks even better with all the Nightmare Night decorations around. Little paper bat ponies and strings of pumpkin-shaped lights, and some ponies have taped sheets of orange paper to their windows so the light looks orange. The contrast with the purple night is beautiful. "Classic." I murmur to nopony.
"Hm? Beauty, did you say something?" Frederic looks at me questioningly.
"Oh no. I'm okay. Just kind of talking to myself. Like ya do." Stars above, really?!
"Alright." We lapse into silence after that.
We were performing with Octavia for our school's Nightmare Night Showcase. Since Frederic's place is on the way to mine, we decided to walk home together. That would have been fine in any other circumstance, but in this one, it's kind of awkward. Because we were super-best-friends before, right? Since we were kids. We both applied to Canterlot Musical University so we could be super-best-friends there too. But now...things are different. There's been a shift in the cosmos. Frederic is really awkward around me for some reason, and I've been acting kind of weird too, without even realizing it. I'll look back on a conversation and berate myself for not saying the most perfect or witty thing.
Maybe this would be a good time to clear that stuff up.
"Fred?" I prod him gently.
He jumps about a foot in the air. "What is it, Beauty?"
"You've been acting kinda weird lately. And I have too. Best friends shouldn't act weird with each other. And when they do, they should talk about it. So let's talk about it." Gentle but firm. You have to be careful with emotions - they tend to flip out on you at bad times.
Frederic looks like he wants to throw up. "Say, I...I think I might have forgotten my music book at school. Look at that. I'd better run back and get it-" He turns around. I whip out a hoof and set it on his shoulder. "Fred, your music book is in your saddlebags. Besides, if we aren't going to talk about it now, then when will we?"
Frederic is sweating bullets. He opens his mouth. "I-I..." Then he stops. Takes all his emotions and balls them up inside and buries them in the back of his mind. Then he takes a deep breath, and turns toward me. "Beauty, I don't know how I'm supposed to talk about how I'm feeling lately when I myself have no idea how I'm feeling."
"Describe it to me."
He sighs. "I consider what I'm saying a lot more. Usually, I can just say whatever to you, and you'll get it. I don't need to worry about that." I nod. "But now I'm taking what feels like ages to decide how to appear to you and what to say. And I'll look back on conversations even if they were two minutes long and beat myself up for not saying the best thing."
"That's exactly how I've been feeling." I say. It becomes clear what I might be feeling, but I'm scared to acknowledge it otherwise it'll jump out at me like a ghost in a horror movie. "My house is only a block down from yours. I could run ahead and ask my mom if I can stay with you for the night. Maybe we can put these feelings into a song."
He smiles and nods. "That would be great."
I run ahead, the breeze filling me with clarity. I know that the song we write tonight is going to change everything. Somehow.
Comet Tail raised a hand in greeting. The orchestra group - Frederic, Octavia, and Beauty Brass, who had performed earlier to kick off the Halloween Ball - exchanged awkward glances. "Um...hi, Comet." Beauty forced a smile, and the other two nodded.
"I...I just wanted to tell you...that you were really good." Comet stepped backwards. "I'll just...go now."
He hustled back over to the corner and leaned against the cream-colored stone wall of the cafeteria, sighing. Why were social interactions so difficult? Why couldn't he just jump into a conversation? Why was it so hard to make a new friend?
Whatever. He was okay with being in his corner. It was safe there, and quiet; nobody could touch him. He might be alone there, but that was okay. Friends weren't mandatory. He wasn't that lonely. At least, that's what he told himself.
He looked over at the new girl - Twilight Sparkle, that was her name. She sat on one of a few chairs set up on the edges of the room, and wore no costume save a long white lab coat. She was staring intently at everything, especially the ceiling. Everybody gave her a wide berth, but she didn't seem to mind. Occasionally she would scribble something in a marble composition notebook not unlike the kind beleaguered students often found themselves writing essays in.
Golden says I just need to practice. The orchestra kids are pretty high up on the totem pole. Maybe she could be my friend.
He sat next to her. She refused to react. "Hi."
"You're probably going to end up being the chosen one if my predictions are correct."
"...What?" Comet was already lost.
"Awkward social outcasts ostracized by their peers are always chosen by immensely powerful forces for some reason. Usually he - and believe me, it is practically always a male - ends up falling in love with the token smart girl." She gave him the once-over. "You don't seem all that bad."
"I'm sorry, I'm confused."
She sighed as if Comet was an idiot. "This school has a history of strange happenings. Other highly magical locations in real life and books also happen to have a history of strange happenings. This can't be a coincidence. And if fantasy has taught me anything, then you're going to be a chosen one. Or the plucky comic relief sidekick, either or."
Comet laughed.
She gave him a deadpan look. "I am a fantasy expert. I'm pretty sure I know what I'm talking about."
"Well, I'm Comet Tail." He extended a hand for shaking. "I'm very pleased to meet you." Doing good so far.
She eyed his hand with some apprehension before taking it. "Twilight Sparkle."
"Hey, I know this is a weird question, but will you be my friend?" Twilight looked somewhat alarmed at Comet's pleading expression.
"I guess?"
"Great!" Comet gave a happy little bounce. "You'll have to teach me how to be a better friend as we go, because I'm kind of new to this friendship business." He smiled shyly.
Twilight laughed, a high-pitched screeching cry that drew looks. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm not exactly Miss Popularity either."
Comet took his hand in hers, a gesture that surprised Twilight. "Then we can both become better friends to each other together. I know a girl named Golden, she can help us."
Fluttershy stops just before she heads out the door. "Good-bye, Discord! Watch the house for me, please!" She waves cheerfully before gliding out to celebrate the holiday with Luna. I am quite glad those two have hooked up. They're both so shy and anti-social, respectively. I might possibly have been a little bit worried about them.
"Great. Home alone with this guy."
I look down from my little cranny that's kind of in the ceiling and kind of not to see a cranky little rabbit with a Trottingham accent staring up at me, little bunny arms crossed. He's glaring up at me with ferocity only bunnies possess.
Stop laughing.
"What's so bad about being alone with me?" I smile as innocently as I can. "Does a game of Parcheesi sound fun?"
"Quit being likable, why don't you!" Angel shouts at me, the force nearly knocking him off his feet.
I blink in surprise. I've been told to quit it. I've been told to quit faking it. I've been told to quit lying and quit being a jerk. I have never, ever been told to quit being likable, and I've certainly never given a bunny reason to say that. "Quit being...likable?"
"Yeah! Stop it! I know you're a chaos spirit and all, but there are lines! Lines in the sand!"
"...Can you elaborate on that?"
"Every animal has to act according to its nature. Birds have to fly, bunnies like me have to steal vegetables, and spirits of chaos have to be chaotic! It's natural law, and you're breaking it!"
"Well, what's your definition of chaos?"
Angel waves his paw impatiently. "Anarchy, cotton candy clouds, my mistress actually being assertive for once. Things not happening how they're supposed to."
"So the embodiment of chaos, according to you, is a spirit like myself not acting how they're supposed to act." I grin. Poor thing painted himself into a corner and doesn't even know it yet.
"Exactly!" Angel cries before realizing that I've won. "Wait..."
"So I'm doing what I'm supposed to. No worries." The doorbell rings. I glide over and open the door, where a small herd of foals and Pinkie is waiting. "Trick or treat!" They all shout in glee.
I give them all a candy bar from the bowl Fluttershy set near the door, smiling all the while. I've become quite good friends with the foals - it's amazing how easy it is to impress them. A few parlor tricks and they're bedazzled. They're actually updating me on their school progress. Isn't that precious. "All right, goodbye!" I wave as they run off to weaponize their cuteness to be used in the gaining of more sweets. I look back over at Angel as I close the door.
"It still scares me that something like you is acting so nice. I keep expecting you to end up taking over Equestria anyway and force Fluttershy into being your evil princess."
"Live in the moment, my dear bunny. Now, how about that game of Parcheesi?"
Angel turns away so I can't see his expression, but I can tell he's smiling. Just a little bit, but progress is progress. "Sure. Why not."
Zecora stood at the edge of Ponyville, wearing a shawl, looking at all the ponies without stripes or manes like hers. Some of them looked over at her wonderingly. Even though she was steadily becoming more and more normal in this town, there were still some who were unnerved by her.
She tossed her head. Enough dawdling. Time to go and report to the mayor so they could start the show. She strode into town, slowing to a trot as more and more ponies looked over to her. It was still scary whenever somepony looked over at her, even if it was only to give a friendly nod.
She recalled the days when the boat carrying wandering griffons and changelings who had defected from their hives and herself had landed on the shores of the so-called "Promised Land". This was where opportunities grew on trees, so they said. Where any creature could be anything they wanted. She was seven at the time, hoping to become the village healer, and wanted to go to Equestria to learn about modern medicine and bring that knowledge home. She wanted to be in the history books.
"Do you really have to go, 'Cora?" Little Kari asked, worry etched on her small face.
Zecora patted her younger sibling's head in a manner that was supposed to be reassuring. "I'll be home soon, Kari. If I'm lucky, I'll be back by the time you're bringing home a mate." She smiled at her parents. Her father wore an expression of fatherly pride, a single tear leaking out of one eye. Her mother was unashamedly sobbing into a scrap of fabric.
"Ew, 'Cora! You're gross!" Kari wrinkled her snout.
"Well, I have to go." Zecora cast a quick glance at the dock. "Listen, Kari. Be good for Mama and Papa, alright?"
Kari nodded, tears beginning to stream down her face. "Okay. I will, I promise."
Zecora kissed her sister's forehead, waved to her parents, then ran for the boat.
"We love you! We'll miss you! Take care!"
She had failed to get enough money to go to medical school by the time the year had started, and she eventually wandered until reaching the Everfree Forest. That had been...nearly thirteen years ago. Kari would have joined a herd by now, if she intended to leave the village. Zecora was still living off the forest, occasionally helping that Twilight Sparkle and her friends. Would she ever go home?
Zecora shook her head to snap herself out of it, and found herself in front of the town hall. She pushed open the blue doors to find a slightly frazzled Mayor Mare behind her desk. "Ah! Zecora! I assume you're ready to start?"
Zecora nodded. Mayor Mare tossed her a white wig with fake spiders in it as she stuffed a top hat on her head. Someday, she would be able to get into medical school. She would go home. But for now, she had to go slow. She remembered a bit of wisdom her father had once mentioned to her and Kari. They had wanted to keep going and get to the capital faster, but he insisted on stopping.
"Rest whenever you can when traveling over the mountains. Take it one hill, one village at a time."
I ignored Sweetie Belle and continued to sew a short pink dress, the butterfly wings that went with it finally finished and set aside. I was always busiest around Nightmare Night - there were no other costume shops, and it was expensive to order one from another city. Are those ruffles uneven?
"Shhhh-" Calm down. Don't swear in front of your little sister. Thank Celestia for seam rippers.
"Rarity?"
I focused on the pink fabric and pair of scissors in front of her instead of the yawn in the back of my throat. I haven't slept for two days - I could handle a few more hours. I need to get this and the new pirate costume for that one colt and then I can get some sleep. Glorious, sumptuous, restful sleep in my nice warm bed...
"Rarity?"
There, some nice even ruffles on that princess skirt. Now for the crown. This was always the most nerve-racking part. Did I have to do this right now? I still had the rest of the afternoon, maybe I could get a head start on the pirate costume.
No. I do not procrastinate. A lady does not procrastinate. Here's my jewelry box, yes, and the tiara. Ease an amethyst into that slit right there, then one on the other side...there we go...
"Rarity?"
Can't she see I'm busy? Sprinkle a few of those beautiful pink diamonds I found a week or two ago around the amethysts...ooh, there's that lovely ruby I saved for a special order, that would look lovely...
Easy now...
"Rarity!"
"What do you want!?" I whipped around to see a startled little filly almost dropping a breakfast tray. I sank down onto the floor. "I'm sorry, dear, I shouldn't have shouted. I'm just very stressed right now, you understand?" I smiled weakly at her. She nodded determinedly.
"Which is why I got you some breakfast." She lowered the tray down, not breaking a thing. A cup of tea and cereal had never looked so wonderful. "You need to take a break."
I sipped the tea, savoring the feeling of warmth traveling down my throat. Peppermint tea was really making its case. "All right, I guess a short one would be fine. But you have to do me a favor and wake me up within the next few hours, alright?"
"Alright. Just promise me that you won't think about work at all."
"I promise." I ruffled Sweetie Belle's mane as I headed into my bedroom. Pillow, meet head. Ah, yes...
Pinkie leaned against Twilight's staircase, sighing happily. Contrary to popular belief, she did in fact get tired occasionally.
She looked around the main room of Twilight's library, where the rest of her friends and their younger siblings were gathered. Along with Twist, who had tagged along with her and was talking rather animatedly with Apple Bloom. She grinned and suppressed a squeal.
Twilight and Applejack were talking quietly over near the bowl of punch Spike had whipped up. They were still the bestest of buds they had always been, but there was a new kind of tenderness in their exchange. It warmed her heart. Another Pinkie Pie Plan successful.
Rarity and Dash were on the other side of the punch bowl. Rarity had came out of the club relatively unscathed, but still loudly proclaiming that she didn't want to go in there again anytime soon. Dash of course thought she was being a drama queen. Pinkie did like their playful arguments, and their bond was stronger than it was before. She could tell.
Fluttershy was up at the window exchanging a somewhat tearful goodbye with Luna. Their assertiveness plan had worked out nicely, and Fluttershy was going to try and be more social from this point forward. Dating Luna really was good for her.
Discord and Angel had been fighting when she had headed to Fluttershy's with her group of foals. She hoped they were doing okay. She ate a piece of candy for them.
She ran to one of the lower windows and looked out, up at Canterlot. What were ponies doing up there, she wondered, to celebrate the holiday? What was Princess Celestia doing? If she were the princess, she would have partied anyway, regardless of whether or not she was an all-powerful sun goddess. The musicians were probably busy, performing for the various fancy ponies having parties. Pinkie hoped for a backstage romance to bloom.
And what was happening in the human world Twilight had told them about? She hoped that Sunset Shimmer that had stolen the crown was doing okay. Twilight said that she had tried to reform. Like Discord. And if Discord could reform, then Sunset Shimmer certainly could. Maybe she was making friends!
She turned and squished part of her head against the window so she could barely spot the Crystal Empire, a barely shimmering gem on the horizon. Nova was nine this year; was she having fun? What was she dressed up as? Probably a Royal Guard, if Shining had anything to do with it. Pinkie giggled.
So many bonds had been tested and strengthened and formed over the course of the Nightmare Night season, and on the night itself. Pinkie gave every single one her best from this night onward. Holidays were always a magical time; wasn't that why parties existed?
And if a day was important enough to be a nationally-recognized holiday-and-therefore-party-day, then you bet your flank Pinkie was going to honor it. She darted over to the corner where the radio was and turned it on, then turned it up.
