Pinkie pronked, as was her nature. She bounded from step to step in a manner of motion unlike most other ponies, but it suited her well, and she was pleased to make her way along.
"Do you really think he's there?" asked Rainbow Dash who flew alongside her in a boring straight line. "I mean, they're friends and all, but he isn't there most of the time."
"We won't know until we try." Pinkie nodded softly, eyes closed and not even watching where she was going exactly. She knew the way.
Rainbow flew in a little closer to her friend. "So, if he is there, do you think he'll talk?"
"He always talks." Pinkie rolled her eyes despite them being closed. "Silly."
"Right right, but will he talk about what we want to talk about?"
Pinkie opened her eyes just in time to see Fluttershy's cottage coming into view. "I hope so. How else am I going to find out how my song magic will work if he doesn't give a clue? I mean I know how music magic should work! That doe--"
"--Yeah yeah, music magic." Rainbow shook her head and snorted softly. She came in for a light landing, walking alongside Pinkie instead. "Why'd he have to, you know, change me?"
Pinkie swiveled an ear towards Rainbow. "That's one of his 'things', you know? Everypony was changed! You saw Big Mac's horn. He was having fun with it. So you got a horn too, what's the big deal?"
Rainbow tilted her head as she walked. "Wha? He didn't give me one of those." She stuck out her tongue. "Not that I need a horn. Unicorns can keep it! I have all the magic I need right here." She spread her wings wide in a proud display. "Now if he wanted to try out a griffon, that might be different. I wouldn't mind seeing what that's like. Twilight was stingy with her magic on that." She stuck out her tongue at the memory.
Pinkie bounced up towards Fluttershy's door. "If you had magic, you could make yourself a griffon." She came down perfectly on the welcome mat and raised a hoof, knocking lightly. "Fluttershy! Are you home?"
"Coming," came a melodic voice from within before the door opened to reveal a yellow snout. "Hello Pinkie--" Her eyes moved to spy Rainbow beside her. "Rainbow. How can I help?"
Rainbow stepped forward with a cocky grin. "Wouldn't suppose Discord is visiting right now, would he?"
Fluttershy shook her head in the negative. "Afraid not. Did you need him for something?"
Pinkie bobbed her head energetically. "Uh huh. We wanted to talk about the game!"
"Game?"
"The one you saw." Pinkie pointed towards Twilight's Castle. "Spike and Big Mac were playing too and having a super fun time and I wanted to join and they said alright but I was hoping to talk to Discord and work some things out before the next session!" She took a deep breath to counter her sudden speech without punctuation. "And we couldn't think of a better place to look than here. You two hang out all the time, right?"
Rainbow lifted into the air and crossed her forelegs. "Right, so do you know where to find him?"
Fluttershy shook her head. "He just shows up when he wants to. I've been meaning to ask him about where he lives. I should visit some time." She raised a hoof to her chin before it slid back to the ground. "Sorry, girls. What was that game? It looked... violent."
Rainbow brought her hooves together, rubbing them with thoughts of that violence. Pinkie tilted her head. "Well, I guess kinda, but it's more about playing pretend. You get to be somepony you aren't for a while and just have fun and adventure!"
Fluttershy blinked slowly. "But... we already go on adventures. They're... a little scary at times."
Pinkie waved away the idea of fear. "Being scared is just a funny kind of laughing. That's why when you're scared, you smile, see?" She put on a terrified expression, lips peeled back in an almost-smile. "See?" she said, her words muffled by her awkwardly forced lips.
Rainbow nudged Pinkie aside. "Yeah, well, we're just looking for Discord. How do you reach him when you want to?"
"Well, if I wanted..." She frowned a moment in thought before she sat down on her haunches. "Discord? Are you there?"
A hole unfolded over her head and a head poked free with mismatched horns. "Yes, my dear?" His head span in place in defiance of any body that should be attached to it. "Oh, you have guests."
Pinkie waved excitedly at Discord. "Heya! We were hoping we could talk about the next game."
He slipped through, the hole sealing up behind him as he considered both of the girls. "You caught me at a bad time, but how about this. I'll come visit your places later for a little one-on-one chit-chat. How's about that?"
Pinkie cheered, easily mollified. Rainbow looked less thrilled. "What keeps you busy?"
He snapped his fingers and a second Discord appeared with glasses and a notebook. "Well, you see, he has many important dates with equally important people." The clone flipped open the book. "Why, just today--"
Rainbow held up a hoof suddenly. "No, that's alright. You know where I'll be?"
"I'm sure I can figure it out. With a secretary like this, how can I get confused." He smiled at his double, who returned the gesture, then vanished between one frame of life and the next like a bad editing job. "Well, I'll see you both later, ta-ta." He turned to Fluttershy. "Did you need anything?"
She shook her head. "Thank you for coming. I'm sorry if I interrupted anything."
"As if you could interrupt me," he said in a fond tone. "You just give a call any time you need me." He dove forward into her mane, drawing a surprised yelp from Fluttershy, but he was gone.
Fluttershy shook her head a little. "Well, there you go. I hope everything works out." She took a step back, already reaching for her door.
Pinkie shoved a hoof forward to stop it from closing. "Wait! Why don't you join us?"
"O-oh, thank you, but I don't think that's my kind of game..." She smiled gently. "Have fun though." She closed the door once Pinkie allowed her, leaving her and Rainbow outside.
Rainbow shrugged. "Guess we wait for Discord to have time for us." She lifted into the air. "I'll see you later, right?"
"Righto!" Pinkie saluted before hopping up. She came down facing Ponyville and began her pronking gait back towards civilization. As free as she seemed to be, she had plenty of chores that needed her attention. She bounced back to the bakery and got to making delicious treats for the ponies of Ponyville. She prepared sheets of cookies and trays of muffins when she wasn't selling them at the front counter with a big smile.
Mrs. Cake came in from the front, smiling at Pinkie. "I'll take over the counter if you could run a delivery for me, dear."
"Of course." Pinkie bounced up and came down without her apron, which floated down to a perfectly folded pile on its own. "Give me the 5 Ws! Or, I guess, a few Ws is probably enough."
Misses Cake blinked at that before she reached back with a snout and pulled free a clipboard. She set it down in front of Pinkie. "Here's the order. Get it baked up and delivered as soon as possible."
Pinkie grabbed the board with her athletic mane and held it up with a calculating peer. "I'll have this ready in two shakes of, well, my tail." She gigglesnorted as she retreated into the kitchen and got to cooking. They wanted a big cake, and she wouldn't let them down! Under her trained hooves, she made the batter rise, decorated it with frosting, mmm, and wrote across its top in a joyful message. "Happy Birthday, Cheerilee," it read, which was a bit funny, since it wasn't Cheerilee's birthday. Pinkie would know! She had that written down and indexed for party planning.
Why was someone asking for a birthday cake? Maybe just for fun! What was wrong with that? Pinkie couldn't think of any good reasons not to enjoy a birthday cake any given day, birthday or not. She boxed up the baked good and sprang from the store with it on her back. As much as she wanted to pronk, doing so with a cake onboard had proven to be dangerous at times.
She pulled out the clipboard from her mane with the tip of that very same pink fluff. The address was not one she immediately recognized. She knew the street, but not the number. "The mystery is deepening!" She wanted to know what was going on, so she hastened her step to find some answers.
What she found was a rundown little house that barely qualified for the term. It looked like nopony had lived there for years. "Huh, maybe that's why I didn't remember the address..." But why would someone living in such a place ask for a birthday cake for someone who wasn't having a birthday? Curiosity blooming, she approached the front door, hanging off the hinges as it was, and knocked on it. "Cake delivery!"
"You got the goods?" came a seedy male voice from within the darkness.
Pinkie bobbed her head. "If you have the payment."
A pouch slid out through the crack left by the broken door. Pinkie snatched it up with a hoof and jingled it. Yep. "Sounds good, here you go." She set the cake's box down and slid it forward into the darkness.
There was a moment of quiet. "You're not even going to ask?"
Pinkie tilted her head. "Ask what?"
"Why some suspicious stranger is buying a cake in an abandoned house?"
"I figured you were going to throw a housewarming party to cheer up the place." Pinkie nodded, happy with her logic. "Am I invited?" She suddenly smiled. "Wait, are you a new pony?!"
"That I am not." Discord's head poked out into the light. "You are a very silly pony."
"Whenever I can help it. Hi Discord!" She waved a hoof energetically. "I didn't know you like that flavor of cake."
"Happens to be one of my favorites, actually." He smiled at her even as he drew back into the darkness. "Now, dare you step forward, would-be adventurer?"
"Ooooo!" Pinkie hopped forward a step. "I dare!" She opened the door carefully to avoid it falling completely off and soon stepped forward into the gloomy interior of the building. She couldn't see very well, but was giggling despite it. It was like a haunted house, scary fun instead of 'oh no I am being eaten!' scary. "I was hoping to talk about song magic."
"Well, of course. You are a bard, after all. Performance is your power." She could hear Discord speaking, but not see him anywhere. It was like he was just a floating voice beside her ears. "That is why you have an instrument."
Pinkie felt a tickle all over and felt the clothes of her game character suddenly on her, jewelry included. She reached and found her stringed instrument. "So I make magic music with this?"
"The music is in you, dear adventurer." The voice traveled around her. "Your voice can weave magic, but the instrument is a focus. With it, your spells can reach further and more powerfully. Take care of it, and it will take care of you."
Pinkie broke into giggles, dancing from left to right hoof. "Alrighty! I can do this." She suddenly sprang up onto her hindlegs and strummed her lute-like instrument softly. "If I hadn't gotten into party planning, being a performer would be... maybe #2 or 3? So how do I cast a spell?"
"Aren't we a curious one? Simply sing what you wish to happen."
Pinkie's grin only grew wider. "You know, I was wrong about you. You're a good pony." She bobbed her head. "A little tricky at times, but who isn't." She stuck out her tongue and tickled at the strings. "We're going to make beautiful music together."