//------------------------------// // Pinkie Pie: Ratatat ch 2 // Story: L.I.P: Pinkie Pie- Ratatat // by PegasYs //------------------------------// Ten till seven. Vinyl and I vacated the stage and left to join the rest of the ponies to watch the raising of the sun. This time I was sure the entire town was here, the crowd was huge. I left Vinyl, who had given me the silent treatment the rest of the night, and made my way through the gathering to try to find my date. She shouldn’t be this hard to find. She’s bright pink. I made it to the end of the crowd and, thoroughly convinced that she wasn’t over here, turned around to check the other side, when I nearly crashed into her. I back pedaled, surprised and a little shaken by the sudden wall of pink in front of me. She gave me a wide grin, and then looked confused by my sudden shock. “Warn me next time you do that!” “Oh, sorry! I’m just so excited to see Celestia raise the sun I mean I‘ve seen it once before but this only comes around once a year and I’m just so excited and…” She stopped and, more slowly, said, “Come on, let’s get a better view of the stage.” We walked side by side to the middle of the crowd, within perfect view of the pedestal. She kept glancing over at me and smiling, but whenever I looked back she would turn back to the stage. Her excitement was showing all throughout her whole body, her eyes were wide; she was shaking with apprehension, or was it nerves? It was cute how excited she was getting over the ceremony. A hush fell over the crowd. The same official pony from last night got on the stage, and addressed the silent ponies in the audience, “Good morning everypony! As the mayor of Ponyville, I would like to welcome you to this years’ Summer Sun Celebration! For a thousand years, Celestia has raised the sun every morning so that the ponies of Equestia can bask in its glory! This day, on the longest day of the year, we show appreciation to our beloved Princess with a party, to say thanks for bringing us the light to end our night! So, without further ado, I welcome to the stage, Princess Celestia!” The formerly silent crowd let out a huge cheer as the majestic white alicorn stepped out on stage, her breezy mane flowing through the nonexistent wind. She stepped in front of the pedestal and rose into the air. As if it was somehow connected to her being, the sun itself rose over the horizon with her, shining its rays over the gathering. There was uproar as everybody took in the beauty of the new day. I turned to Pinkie, and this time her watery blue eyes met mine. She looked magnificent in the quiet light of dawn, her pink coat illuminated and stunningly bright, smiling cheek to cheek. I probably won’t forget that moment for the rest of my life. Other ponies started filing out of the square until about half the crowd had left, returning to work or to sleep. Pinkie looked at the ground, and began kicking her hoof at the dirt. “…H-hey Ratamacue? Y-you wanna… maybe… meet me at Sugar Cube Corner later today? Maybe… grab some lunch?” She was looking everywhere but at me, she was blushing hard. I didn’t know what to say… scratch that, I knew exactly what to say. But I didn’t know how to say it. She had caught me completely off-guard. I was expecting that I would have to be the one to ask her about seeing each other again. There was no way I could say no. “…That would be great.” I gave her a warm smile, and she instantly calmed down, “Let’s meet, say, about 11-ish?” “Okay! I gotta go home now, but I’ll see ya later!” she turned around and… bounced? How could she bounce on her hooves like that? Anyway, she bounced away down one of the streets to her home. I watched her go, both in admiration of her nice looking backside and out of sheer disbelief. I was walking on air the entire way back to my apartment. I had a real date with the mare I had fallen in love with at first sight. With the other guys of my band, I was never seen as the lady killer of the group. I couldn’t wait until the rest of the guys heard about this. Sure, I had fans, but I wasn’t the one that all the mares would want to see after the show. Such is the life of a drummer… My mind focused on pony-watching, a habit that had really become prominent ever since joining the band. I gazed at the ponies walking down the street, ponies sitting in shops and talking to their friends, ponies getting ready for the day ahead, opening shops and sweeping and making morning preparations. Pegasi were flying overhead, clearing the clouds, letting the brightest sun on the longest day of the year shine down in all its glory on the quaint but sound little town of Ponyville. My eyes drifted to one couple in particular. They were sitting at a table in front of a small bistro on the side of the street. They were leaned in close, their heads resting in their hooves, gazing into each other’s eyes. It was such a nice looking scene. When you see two ponies with that kind of synergy, you can’t help but wonder the circumstances in which they meet, and what the story is behind their love. It’s something that I had always wanted, and had always admired those who had it for themselves. It suddenly hit me how exhausted I was. I hadn’t slept since I left for the party. My mood was only slightly dampened by my lack of sleep. I trudged the rest of the way to my apartment, went inside, and took the rest I really needed after a night like that. I met Pinkie Pie at Sugar Cube Corner, a little catering shop that was on the opposite side of town from my apartment. We met outside the shop and walked in together. It was then that I learned that Pinkie Pie actually works there, and lived in the housing area above the shop. She was off work, so we got our lunch and decided to take it to the park. Pinkie was looking at me like she had a question on her mind, “What’s up Pinkie?” “I just… You seem really familiar for some reason. I know everypony in Ponyville, so I knooow you’re not from around here. But I felt like I’ve seen you before.” I could have said the same about her. I felt like I had known her for a very long time, even though I knew very little about her. “I’m in a band that’s pretty famous around Equestria nowadays, it’s called the Mane Street Band, maybe you’ve heard about us or heard us on the radio.” “Hmmm… Never heard of Ya!” She said with a wink that sent a wave of affection throughout me. She stopped in place and inspected my flank as I walked by. “I’m guessing by your cutie mark that you’re the drummer, huh? I’m sort of a musician myself.” She caught back up to me. My flank was emblazoned with the image of two crossed drumsticks, making an X. “Really? Are you in a band?” “No… but one time I got rid of a little parasprite problem we had in Ponyville by leading them into the forest with my one pony band act!” She exclaimed proudly. I laughed at the idea of Pinkie leading a parade of parasprites into a forest with a plethora of instruments being played at once. We were about halfway to the park; we had just passed a dress shop that had a stunning display of dresses in the front windows. I tried to imagine Pinkie in one of the dresses, but the only one that did her any justice was the pink one with candy on the trimming. The thought of her in that dress made my stomach flutter. “So what about you? What’s the story behind your cutie mark?” “Oh, I’ll tell you, but I think you should skip this part, most of the people reading this have already heard this story...” I had no idea what she was talking about. Before I could question it she delved into her story. I was listening intently, holding on to every word. It was great to get to know a little more about her than what was on the surface. “And that’s how Equestria was made!” …What… “Wow Pinkie, that’s amazing, way more inspiring than the way I got my cutie mark. I was messing around in my kitchen when I was colt and started banging spoons on her pots and it appeared on my flank.” She giggled at that remark, “I can just imagine that! You must have been an adorable foal!” She seemed to think that was an awkward thing to say. She looked ahead and her cheeks went deeper pink. We had approached the edge of the park. The sun played across the grassy fields and filled the air with warmth and light. The park was a completely different place during the daytime. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Ponies were playing in the fields, or enjoying picnics in the sun. If there was any day in the year to do it, this would be the best. I made my move. I gave her a quick sideways glance and wrapped my tail around hers. She made a small sound of surprise, and turned to meet my smiling face. She smiled back and, blushing harder than ever, returned the embrace. We stepped into the park and tried to find a place to enjoy our lunch. She turned to speak, then stopped and looked down at the ground, and gave a nervous laugh. “Hey, is there something wrong Pinkie?” I didn’t want her to feel nervous around me. “I’m just… I have a reputation around in Ponyville. Ever since I got a cutie mark, ponies have seen me as nothing but a party pony. I love my special talent and all, but sometimes ponies only see me as what I wear on my flank. Nopony in Ponyville has ever liked me for anything other than my party attitude. ‘Hey, you know Pinkie?’ ‘Yeah, she’s great at parties, but I’ve never really taken the time to get to know her very well!’ Every time I ever liked a pony they would never see me as somepony that they would, you know, get to know better. They call me a ‘one trick pony’ just because they haven’t talked to me about anything besides parties. I feel like the only ponies in this town who really know me are my closest mare friends, and they’re not exactly good for relationships. Then you came along. I know everypony in Ponyville and not very many ponies come around from other places anymore. You were just so… I wasn’t used to seeing anypony new. I’m not very good at… being romantic because I never got the chance. I get nervous when I like a stallion. I… like you a lot, and I thought maybe if I showed you my other side of me, I could have something that I’ve wanted a long time.” She waited for me to say something; I knew it must be hard for her to tell anypony so much about herself. I didn’t have any words to say. Instead I gave her an understanding look, and wrapped a foreleg around her, and held her close to me for a while. I knew at that moment that I had probably heard something that she had never told anypony before. I released her and said, “Let’s find a place to eat.” We found a nice shady place and laid out our lunch underneath the leafy tree cover. The rest of the afternoon was spent talking about nothing, laughing at each other’s jokes, and looking at the ponies around us. The sun was starting to get closer to the horizon, but there was still a lot of daylight left. It was the best day of my life. I had danced with the mare of my dreams, enjoyed an afternoon with her, and found love (although I didn’t tell her so at the time) all in one day. We laid in the field and looked at each other, playing absent-minded games with our hooves, each getting a good look into each other’s eyes. I considered myself the luckiest pony in all of Equestria. Love doesn’t always come to everypony, and it almost never is shared between two. Everything that happened before today didn’t seem to matter at that moment. My mind was absent, only for a moment. I was still tired from the night before, so before I knew it I had drifted off to sleep. I awoke an unknown time later. A sliver of the sun was still visible over the horizon. Pinkie Pie was still in front of me; she had fallen asleep as well. Her soft, minty breath was washing over me, delicately playing against my coat. I let her lie there for a little while, taking in her cuteness. The sunset was making her coat look slightly orange in coloration. There was a soft breeze blowing across the park. Most of the ponies had returned to their homes, and the park was much quieter and peaceful than I had ever seen it. I had no worries. There was nothing on my mind other than Pinkie Pie and the sunset. It seemed like there wouldn't be a single moment that I would ever forget that day. It was a lot to take in in less than 24 hours. I was happier than I had been in a long time, and there was just nothing that mattered more than that day at that very moment. I woke her gently before the sun sunk below the horizon. She stood up and stretched, and turned to look at the sun as it waved goodbye to Equestria for another night of Luna’s elegant moon. I suddenly felt really poetic and kind of cheesy at the same time. I had watched the sunrise, and the sunset with Pinkie Pie. We packed to go, and I offered to walk her back to Sugar Cube Corner. I would have to walk back home alone in the dark, but Ponyville didn’t seem like a very dangerous place, and I knew I wouldn’t get into any trouble. The night was inky black and silent. The stars twinkled brightly; I had never seen so many before. There were always too many lights in Seaddle to see more than two or three stars in the sky. Luna’s moon lit the way back to Sugar Cube Corner. I made sure she had made it safely home, and she said goodnight. I leaned in, and gave her a short, sweet kiss on the end of her muzzle. My heart rate doubled, and the butterflies in my stomach took off. She returned the kiss with a slightly longer one, and I nearly doubled over in ecstasy. I whispered goodnight and watched her close the door behind her. My heart was racing all the way the way to the apartment. I practically grew wings and flew home I was so excited about what had just happened. I reached the door and saw a letter resting outside on the placemat. Who would send me mail? Only a few ponies knew I was staying at this apartment in Ponyville. I picked it up with my magic and took it inside with me. The letter was addressed to me from Sunny Mane, the lead singer of the Mane Street Band. Sudden realization washed over me. I opened it up slowly and looked it over: Hey Buddy! Don’t forget we have a tour launch in 3 days from the Summer Sun Celebration. We need you to be here in Canterlot a day in advance so we can prepare. The first show will be in Fillydelphia. I hope you’re excited to see your old buddies again and get to jam with us for the rest of the summer! We’ve already bought you train tickets, so get your ass up here! Your best bud, Sunny Mane. I had completely forgotten about the band, let alone the tour, since Pinkie and I stepped into the park! I was struck with a conflict. This complicated things a bit. How was I going to make it there in time? How was supposed to get over there with only two days to get all the way from Ponyville to Canterlot. Abrupt dread spread over me. How was I going to break this to Pinkie Pie…