Ch. 2
Party Every Day
or: The Calm Before the Storm
BY: cleverpun
"Uh, Twilight, why is Pinkie moving in with us, again?"
"Because the Cakes don't have enough room for me Spike. That should be obvious. And I told you; I’m going by Twinkie now, it reminds me of—!”
“Yeah, yeah. Your new favorite color, I got that part. Are you sure you’re ok, Twilight? You’ve been acting weird since you messed up that spell yesterday. Like, really weird. Like—”
“Pinkie? I know, isn’t it great! You’ve got nothing to worry about, Spike. Nothing weird is going on. You know what’s weird, though? The word ‘weird.’ It’s a weird word! And ‘thwart!’ Say thwart six times in succession, it’s hilarious; thwart thwart thwart thwart thwart thwart! Hahaha!”
The library’s door opened, and Pinkie walked in, pushing a large, pink cart piled with bags, and carrying Gummy on her back.
“Hello fellows! Miss me much?”
“You know I did! Me and Spike just finished clearing out your new room!”
“Eeeeee! Twinkie, being roommates is going to be so much fun! We can stay up all night telling ghost stories and making up songs, and we can spend all day planning parties and making food!”
“And in between all that we can actually throw the parties, and eat the food, and sing the songs and—!”
“Look, this sounds like a great fun fest and all, but Pinkie, why are you even moving in here? What’s wrong with your room at the Cakes?”
“The problem with living with the Cakes is that they’re too far from Twinkie! You see, Spike,” Pinkie flung a hoof over Spike’s shoulder. “During a series of events yesterday, well mostly one convoluted event, me and Twinkie realized we were meant to best friends forever. So obviously we had to move in with each other right away!”
“Obviously.”
“Oh Spikey, you’re so delightfully dour sometimes! C’mon Pinkie, let’s go unpack your stuff, and then we can finish putting away the “R” section!”
“Oh boy!”
“What’s so fun about putting away books?”
“Well, normally not much, but that’s why I brought my catapult collection!”
“Awesome! And my cupcakes are almost finished, we can calibrate them with cupcakes first!
“Cupcake calibration! That’s the best words I’ve ever heard!”
“Pull!”
“Is that what you say when you fire a catapult?”
“I dunno, I just always wanted to say it!”
“Haha!”
Pinkie pulled the lever back and with a loud THUNK, Rustproofing Your Gutters arced through the air and wedged in between Ruminations of a Railroad Tycoon and Sabbaticals and You.
“Well that was fun! Maybe next time we should do it normally though, the misses did a lot of damage for books…”
“You fixed the vase, didn’t you? You can’t shelve some books without breaking a few vases!”
“Hey that’s a pretty good saying, I should use that!”
“That was the last book, whatcha wanna do now? ”
“I was thinking I should get to the manedresser, I’ve been meaning to get my mane dyed pink.”
“Ooh I love it! I could use a touch-up myself.”
As the two of them left, Spike came out of the kitchen, popping a third cupcake into his mouth.
Hmm… Even though I do like free cupcakes, something is definitely off about Twilight. I’d better ask somepony for help; they’re clearly not going to tell me what’s going on, The dragon thought to himself.
He grabbed a cupcake for the road and went off to find Rarity. Magic was clearly the cause, plus, it was an excuse to talk to Rarity.
As Pinkie and Twinkie ate their sundaes, Twinkie couldn’t help but flip her mane around every so often. The curls would sweep across her face and then bounce back into place, giving her a tiny glimpse of the new color in the corner of her eye. They had hopped from the manedresser to the ice cream parlor, and every leap had caused the same chain of effects. It was just so much fun; every time it happened it made her feel bubbly and upbeat.
“Whatcha thinkin’ about Twinkie?”
“I was just thinking about my new mane; every time I flip it, it bounces in this amazing, satisfying way.”
“Oh yeah, I love it when my mane does that!” Pinkie flung her hair to side the same way Twinkie had been doing.
“And I know my mane never did that before, but it’s such a familiar feeling. Ever since yesterday all these little things are so wonderful!”
“It’s great, isn’t it? The little things keep me entertained in between the big things, and the big hold me over until the medium things.”
“Yeah, it’s all so uplifting…” Twinkie continued eating her ice cream, periodically flinging her mane and staring at nothing in particular.
A few yards from the ice cream parlor, Rarity and Spike walked slowly.
“And so, ever since yesterday, Twilight’s been acting really weird. Baking cupcakes, dying her mane, and Pinkie moved in to the library this morning!”
“Well, Spike, that certainly does seem…odd, but not necessarily suspicious. What would you have me do?”
“Just ask Pinkie about it, I keep getting the feeling they’re not telling me something.”
“Very well, Spike; there have been some rumors circulating about Twilight’s odd behavior, I suppose some inquiry from a close friend couldn’t hurt.”
“Aha, here’s the ice cream parlor the barber said they were at.”
“Oh my. Well, her manecut certainly makes a statement, I suppose.”
“Told you something was off.”
“Worry not, Spike, I’m sure I’ll get to the bottom of this.”
Rarity opened the glass door, and the bell above the door caused Pinkie and Twinkie to notice her immediately.
“Oh, hi, Rarity!” The two of them said simultaneously.
“Why hello, Pinkie, Twilight.”
“Oh, I’m going by Twinkie now. It reminds me of my new favorite color!”
“So I have heard. I wonder, Pinkie, could we speak privately for a moment?”
“Sure thing! Hey everypony! Do me a favor and cover your ears for a moment please?”
Surprisingly, the handful of ponies in the ice cream parlor all obliged, and the sound of humming and whispering filled the room.
“So what’s up?”
“Well, I actually wanted to ask you about Twilight’s sudden…personality shift.”
“Why? She’s right there!”
“Well, yes, but Spike seemed to think you might know something about what happened to her. Apparently that errant spell yesterday was the last time she was acting like herself, and you and Spike were the only ones there. Perhaps she said something to you that might be a clue to her new behavior?”
“Well, after the spell backfired she said she needed some time to herself, so I went to go check on my bulk confetti order at the party supply shop. After I had been there a while Twilight walked in.”
“And what did she say to you?”
“Hmm…” Pinkie looked off to the left and put a hoof up to her mouth, doing her best not to overact. After looking quizzical for a moment she turned back to Rarity.
“She told me she was tired of being so stressed out all the time, and I told her I’m good at avoiding stress.”
“And that’s all?”
“Yep. Mostly, anyways. It’s a bit vague.”
“I see… Thank you Pinkie. If you remember anything else, please let me know, ok?”
Rarity left to let know Spike what Pinkie had said, and Pinkie stamped her hoof to let everypony know they could uncover their ears.
“Thanks, Allie, Bob, Jim, Lily and Rick! You may resume your regularly scheduled ice cream!
“No problem, Pinkie!”
“Yeah, you’re welcome.”
“What was that about, Pinkie?”
“Oh, nothing, Twinkie. Rarity was just asking about yesterday, nothing important.”
Twinkie returned to her ice cream, but Pinkie couldn’t help but feel a little worried, perhaps even guilty.
I can’t keep lying to my friends about this, She thought. And why should I have to? Twinkie is much happier this way, isn’t she? Maybe nopony likes the new her? I’ve been hearing gossip about her since yesterday, but that’s just because she’s different, isn’t it? She’s just like me now, and everypony likes me!
Of course they do, they’re just a little suspicious of change, that’s all. And they might even be jealous of how happy Twinkie is! I just need to show them how much better off she is this way. It was for her own good after all.
“Well, that was a tip-top-tasty sundae! Ready to go, Pinkie?”
“Oh, yeah.”
As they left, Pinkie’s mind continued to wander, and to wonder.
But how do I prove to everypony that I helped Twinkie change for the better?
“Why so thinky, Pinkie?”
“Oh I dunno, I’m just a melancholy dolly today, I guess. Hey Twinkie, I just had an idea!”
“Yea?”
“Do you think that memory spell from yesterday could work on ponies besides the one who uses it?"
"Proooooooooobably! Why?"
“Well, I think I just came up with a marvelous, magical, mentally magnificent plan!”