Chapter Three – Vanhoover Bound
A few days had passed since the incident involving the gargilly tea. Fluttershy had been lucky enough that Pinkie Pie was needed most days at Sugarcube Corner, even with the sugar mites having made a home of her room, so their time spent together was short. Woefully and thankfully, Fluttershy felt. A strange combination of the two.
On the eighth day since Pinkie arrived at Fluttershy’s cottage, all the mares had planned a two-day getaway to Vanhoover.
In the morning, Pinkie and Fluttershy rolled out of bed and prepared their belongings. The animals needed tending to, which Fluttershy was all-too-happy to take care of, and Pinkie felt most helpful double-checking that they had everything they needed for the trip. Their teamwork was flawless — the duo did not even need to exchange words. When the chores were taken care of, both mares met up downstairs.
Fluttershy was wrapped in a green-and-white stripped scarf and wool socks of the same pattern that went past her knees. Pinkie Pie wore similar attire, though hers was blue with white stripes. Their luggage was reasonable — each mare had saddlebags tied to her backside.
“All set to go, then, Pinkie?” Fluttershy asked. Pinkie nodded and smiled wide.
“Totes McGotes, Fluttershy!”
Fluttershy turned around and looked down. A smug Angel Bunny stood with his paws at his hips.
“Now Angel,” Fluttershy began, “remember when I said last time you couldn’t be trusted to take care of things yourself?” Angel Bunny rolled his eyes and threw out his little bunny paws as if to say, ‘So what?’ Fluttershy cleared her throat. “Because of that, I arranged for a petsitter. Be nice, now!”
After Fluttershy said ‘now’, a giant mass of swirling energy and matter appeared in the cottage living area. A furry, goat-like head poked out of the energy and called out.
“Helloooo everypony!” The rest of the figure’s body slithered out and the energy mass poofed out of existence. A blast of confetti erupted out of the top of the figure’s head and rained down on Angel Bunny, who wore a deadpan expression. Pinkie had a fit of giggles.
“Discord! Haha, I love when you do that!”
Discord closed his eyes and brushed some dust off his chest.
“Yes, yes, I am quite good at making an entrance — common knowledge, dear Pinkie Pie. And at just the right time too!”
He leaned over and bulged one eye out, staring just an inch away from Angel’s angry stare.
“This little fellow, uhhh” — Discord pulled out a large tome from thin air and flipped through the pages — “Angel Bear… Angel Blair… Angel Boss… Ah, here you are. Angel Bunny, right?” He closed the tome with a curt laugh and it disappeared. “Fluttershy, it shan't be an issue, this whole petsitting thing!”
A beach chair with an umbrella poof’d into existence underneath Discord and he flopped down onto it. Sunglasses and a sunhat materialized onto his face and head, and a little sun formed above the umbrella and bathed him in sunlight. With a snap of his fingers, another Discord appeared.
“Reporting for duty, Mr. Discord!” the new Discord announced. The original Discord waved his paw as he started to flip through a magazine.
“Yes, yes, go about with the petsitting, Number Two. I have a very important article on afternoon tea to catch up on.” The original Discord lowered his sunglasses and winked over at Fluttershy. The new Discord chased after Angel Bunny, who had blown a cheeky raspberry in defiance and ran off. Fluttershy shook her head and laughed as her and Pinkie left the cottage.
“He might seem a bit… unorthodox,” Fluttershy explained as they walked down the snow-covered lane, “But I trust him. He would never let anything happen to the animals.” Pinkie bounced with extra-abundant joy.
“Are you KIDDING me, Fluttershy? I’d let him petsit ME! Well, foalsit. Discord’s a whole barrel of monkeys full of fun!”
Fluttershy’s mind produced a strange image of a baby Pinkie Pie pulling Discord’s nose and dumping baby powder on his head. She laughed out loud. Pinkie laughed too, not knowing why, but going along with it because Pinkie Pie.
A few minutes into their trot, Fluttershy shot a sideways glance at Pinkie during a lull in their conversation.
Still nothing about that other night… and, well, I didn’t SAY anything about it, but…
Fluttershy turned pink in the cheeks when Pinkie caught her staring. Fluttershy looked away with a goofy smile.
You’d think SHE would have said something…
Indeed, nopony had brought up the bedroom antics of the night of the blizzard. Of course, Fluttershy assumed that to Pinkie it was all just fun and games — it wasn’t like Pinkie could read her mind. But Fluttershy knew better. She knew that it meant something. The way she had acted wasn’t normal.
Still, whatever it was, Fluttershy was becoming more comfortable with Pinkie around, and as long as they didn’t drink any gargilly tea or stare at eachother too long, living with Pinkie was a ton of fun and a lot of help. Fluttershy felt little reason to broach the subject herself.
Plus, it’s not like she’ll be around forever! She’ll go back to Sugarcube Corner at some point, and everything will be back to normal!
The thought caused a sudden twang of pain in Fluttershy’s chest. She involuntarily frowned and stopped moving. She stared at a patch of snow.
Everything… will just be normal again.
“Fluttershy?” Pinkie asked, leaning into Fluttershy’s field of vision and staring at her with a simple, bewildered expression. Fluttershy managed to look into Pinkie’s bright, happy blue irises before forcing a smile and turning away.
“Oh, um, i-it’s nothing, Pinkie.”
The two started moving again, Pinkie with her usual bounce.
“You sure? Causeeee if it is not nothing, and is actually something — well, you know you can tell me, Fluttershy!”
Fluttershy replied quietly, “Thanks Pinkie.”
A nearby train chugged into the Ponyville station. Pinkie and Fluttershy went inside the station, acquired their tickets, and stepped onto the boarding platform. Their other friends were already there, equally as well-dressed for the winter weather, except Rarity, who was MORE well-dressed. A hoof stitched winter hat of bright pink wool sat on her head, and a winter coat of the same material hugged her form to a T.
“Howdy Pinkie, Fluttershy,” said a peppy Applejack. She didn’t have any saddlebags with her. Rarity, however, had a mountain of suitcases, which one of the train attendants was struggling to get on board.
“…And do be a dear and make sure the larger suitcases are placed in first, followed by the smaller ones so they don’t get crushed.” Rarity batted her eyes at the attendant and he hurried along with his first load of Rarity’s luggage. Rarity turned to Fluttershy and Pinkie. “Good morning, ladies.”
Everypony said their hellos and greetings. Rainbow Dash was flying just above the ground, carrying a hockey stick in her hooves. A tether tied to the stick was wrapped around her midsection.
“I can’t WAIT to play pegasus hockey and show those Vanhoovans how ponies from Cloudsdale tear up the ice!”
Twilight Sparkle raised a single eyebrow.
“Rainbow, do you even KNOW how to play pegasus hockey? I don’t think Cloudsdale has a team. Ponyville definitely doesn’t.”
Rainbow Dash shrugged and waved the hockey stick around, a fire brewing behind her magenta eyes.
“I’ll figure it out pretty quick! How hard can it be? Flying with the Wonderbolts has got to be 100 TIMES harder!”
Pinkie bounced in place.
“Oh, oh! Do you girls think they have any bakeries in Vanhoover?” Pinkie stopped bouncing and rubbed her chin with her hoof. “Orrrr… do you think it’s too cold? Maybe they have ICE bakeries! Haha, what an idea!”
When the attendants had finished bringing all of the girls’ luggage onto the train, the mares started to shuffle into the train along with some other passengers. Twilight snickered at Pinkie’s silliness and replied with an encyclopedic succinctness.
“Actually Pinkie, the Vanhoovans love baked goods! Well, specifically donut holes — for some reason. They call them Tombites, after the famous Vanhoover hockey champion, Tom Horseton! They’re also quite fond of coffee and hockey, as you can probably guess.” Twilight pointed at some of the other passengers. Each stallion and mare was dressed in a knitted winter hat and a hockey jersey. Their fur was thicker than the average pony Pinkie or Fluttershy had seen in the southern parts of Equestria. Twilight continued.
“Those ponies are all from Vanhoover – you can tell because their fur is thicker and, well, the outfits. Vanhoover is pretty cold all year round, being so close to the Frozen North, so they’re always well equipped for it!”
Rarity hummed in approval at Twilight’s explanation as everypony took their seats.
“Well, Twilight, I guess it’s no surprise you know so much about Vanhoover and its inhabitants already — I suppose you were up until midnight planning this trip, hmm?”
Twilight blushed and smiled sheepishly.
“Just past midnight, heh heh.”
Fluttershy looked out the train window as she scuttled into the inner seat. Pinkie sat next to her. In the bench across from them were Rainbow and Applejack, and just in front were Rarity and Twilight. The train started to move as a light snow fall cascaded outside.
Rainbow waved her hockey stick around like a pretend sword and made battle noises. Applejack leaned away slightly and grimaced.
“Rainbow, do ya gotta do that when Ah’m sittin’ right here? Just hold yer horses til we get to the dang place! Ah’m sure every pony in Vanhoover will be happy to watch you get yer flank whooped at hockey.”
Applejack smiled sideways at Rainbow, smugly. Rainbow blew air out of her mouth.
“Pff, like you could do any better. This is pegasus hockey! You don’t even have any wings!”
Applejack crossed her hooves and shrugged.
“Guess we won’t ever find out. Ah’m makin’ a beeline to the frost apple plantations soon as we get there — shoot, Ah hope that doesn’t interfere with yer plans or nothing, Twi.” She turned to the mentioned mare with apprehension.
Rarity spoke up.
“Yes, I also was hoping I could visit Vanhoover main street to check out what kind of fashion boutiques they have. Especially with the weather being so frigid all the time! I bet it will be a fascinating and inspirational excursion,” she batted her eyes at Twilight. “Of course, assuming we will have some time to split up for a bit?”
Twilight giggled.
“Of course, everypony. I put two hours for individual exploration onto the schedule. I figured we’d all have our own interests to pursue.” She turned around to Pinkie and Fluttershy.
“Pinkie, Fluttershy, do you have someplace you want to visit?”
Fluttershy spoke first, her face coming alive, ears twitching.
“Oh yes! I’m pretty excited to check out the Vanhoovan Zoo! The pamphlet you gave to all of us last week said they have so many different animals that aren’t found anywhere else in Equestria!” Fluttershy moved her hooves about as she talked, enraptured in a fervor. “And they treat them so well, they’ve won every Society for Better Living with Animals award for animal care of the last five years!” Pinkie smiled with approval at Fluttershy. She threw her hooves up.
“Woooo! That sounds like a blast! I’m gonna go with Fluttershy!”
Fluttershy quickly jerked her head and a flash of heat struck her cheeks. She shakily spoke to Pinkie.
“O-oh, are you sure? I wouldn’t want you to be bored, Pinkie…”
Pinkie laughed out loud.
“Bored? With YOU Fluttershy? Haha, you’re a real hoot sometimes!” She slapped Fluttershy on the shoulder, causing the yellow pegasus to jump out of shock. Fluttershy nestled her hooves between her thighs and stared at the floor.
Just the two of us at the zoo… it’s kind of almost like a…
Fluttershy put her head even further down and felt her cheeks burn. A whisper of a squee escaped her lips. Pinkie leaned down to get her attention.
“Uhh, Fluttershy?” she asked. Fluttershy looked up. All her friends were staring at her expectantly. She felt her face become even hotter. Her ears flopped down against her mane and she smiled wide and awkwardly.
“H-haha, nothing! J-just trying to keep warm.” Thinking quickly, Fluttershy’s ears popped up again and she turned to Twilight. “Oh, Twilight. Y-you haven’t told us where you will be going once we reach Vanhoover.”
Twilight closed her eyes and put her hoof against her heart.
“I will be visiting the Sigilstone of Polaris, an ancient artifact that contains the writing of a scholar from old times known as Polaris. He apparently discovered the secret to living in the North that was lost when the original pony tribes moved away when the Windingos attacked. His writing has never been interpreted yet, but I thought…”
Twilight opened her eyes. The sound of snoring filled the air. She turned to the side to see Rainbow Dash and Applejack fast asleep, with the former’s head back against her seat and the latter having her stetson pulled out in front of her face. Twilight threw up her hooves.
“OH COME ON IT WASN’T THAT BORING!”
The remaining, awake mares giggled. Rarity poked Twilight’s shoulder.
“Don’t worry about it, Twilight, dear. They’ve got the right idea, after all. It will be a bit of a journey before we reach Vanhoover. A nap will make for a shorter trip, in a sense.”
After that, Rarity and Twilight got more comfortable and shut their eyes. Fluttershy stared out her window, assuming Pinkie was asleep. She watched the snow make its way to the ground, carried by a slight breeze. The sun was bright enough above the grey snow clouds to illuminate the earth below, so Fluttershy could see the wide stretch of the Equestrian wilds from the train’s position as it steamed ahead past a mountain range.
White blankets of snow covered the evergreen trees that made up most of the landscape. In the distance were rolling hills of white and rocky light grey. Fluttershy leaned against her hoof and sighed.
Maybe I should talk with Pinkie and clear things up after all. She could have an explanation for how I’m feeling, and it’s just so awkward to be feeling this way around a good friend.
Something caught Fluttershy’s eye outside the window. To her surprise, it was a pink butterfly. A lone butterfly bitterly flapping its wings against the cold and the snowfall.
“Oh my, a butterfly in this climate?” she said aloud, forgetting the snoozing friends nearby. A familiar voice beside her made her jump in surprise.
“It looks like one of the butterflies on your Cutie Mark, Fluttershy.”
Fluttershy swerved around. Pinkie was staring just past her, gentle smile gracing her face. Fluttershy's stomach felt like it had a butterfly inside it.
“Pinkie! I t-thought you’d be asleep like the others.”
Pinkie shook her head.
“We slept pretty good last night, right? I’m not tired. I'm more excited than anything! Don’t you agree about the butterfly, though?”
Pinkie pointed at the window and the butterfly just beyond. Fluttershy looked back and hummed in thought.
“Like my Cutie Mark? Hmm, I guess so. That’s an interesting observation, Pinkie. What made you think of my Cutie Mark?”
Pinkie shot Fluttershy a sly smile and winked.
“Cause I like to look at your butt.”
Fluttershy almost choked on her saliva. Her eyes bugged out.
“W-W-W-WHAT?” she squeaked in utter disbelief. Pinkie was hysterical with laughter and nearly fell out of the bench. It was a wonder none of their friends woke up, though the other passengers were less than pleased.
“Fluttershy — ahahahahah — I’m just pulling — hahahahah — your hoof!”
Fluttershy puffed out her lips and frowned.
“Wasn’t very funny,” she pouted. Pinkie wiped a tear out of her eye.
“Sorry Fluttershy, haha. The reason I thought of your Cutie Mark was because I always thought it suited you well! You and that butterfly are the same!”
Fluttershy was intrigued. She cocked her head, and for a rare moment she could look into Pinkie’s bright blue eyes without feeling strange.
“Oh?” she asked simply. Pinkie nodded with an ‘mhm!’ She continued.
“Even if the going gets tough, you and that butterfly keep on flapping and don’t give up! And you’re really graceful, too. Well — and fragile. But not in, like, a bad way, you know?” Pinkie smiled super wide like she was worried she had said too much. Fluttershy kept staring into Pinkie’s eyes, her mouth becoming a small O. After a few moments of the two mares blinking back and forth at one another, Fluttershy broke the stare and looked at her hooves.
“N-no, I think you’re wrong,” Fluttershy said quietly, “I give up way too easy, I’m scared of a lot of things… and graceful?” She shook her head, an unbelieving smile flashing across her face. “I’m definitely not graceful. Clumsy, maybe. Slow, maybe. But not graceful… but t-thank you, um, anyway, Pinkie.” Fluttershy quickly looked up at Pinkie, flashed an awkward smile, and looked back to the window. She cleared her throat.
“Fragile is a good word for what I am, and I do mean in a bad way. It’s gotten us all into trouble before, after all...”
Pinkie placed her hooves on Fluttershy’s shoulders and pivoted her around. They were so close at that point that Fluttershy could have stuck out her tongue and touched it to Pinkie’s snout.
“But you’ve also gotten us out of trouble, too!” Pinkie said encouragingly. She was more serious than the normal Pinkie. Fluttershy lost her breath from being so close, feeling Pinkie’s hooves on her shoulders, holding her as if they were about to embrace.
Or, something more intimate that involved their lips. Fluttershy shuddered.
WhatamI…
Pinkie continued, “Remember the manticore? And then there was that time you saved the CMCs from the clockatriceps” — Fluttershy raised a hoof to correct Pinkie, but reasoned against interrupting — “And there was the dragon in the mountain, and the way you handled Iron Will when he was being a big jerk face, and let’s not forget that you stepped up and helped stop that big tornado that one time! I mean, I could go on and on!”
Pinkie caught her breath and slowly let her hooves slide off Fluttershy’s shoulders and rest on the bench just in front of her. Fluttershy felt the heat return to her cheeks. Her heart thumped against her ribcage. She looked at Pinkie’s chest, slowly heaving in and out as the lungs just inside inflated with air. The soft, pink fur looked more inviting than ever before. Fluttershy looked back up into Pinkie’s eyes and smiled warmly.
“T-thank you, Pinkie. I get caught up in the negativity sometimes — well, a lot of the time, to be honest with you.”
Pinkie giggled.
“That’s what friends are for, silly! To pick you up when you’re down!”
The next couple of hours passed quickly for Pinkie and Fluttershy, who partook in conversation about what Vanhoover was going to be like. Eventually Rarity and Twilight woke up and joined in. As the girls saw the skyline of Vanhoover’s tall skyscrapers appear in the distance, Applejack awoke with a snort.
“Wuh — huh? Oh, right, we’re on the train.” She shook her head and looked over at Rainbow, who was still snoring up a storm, her head hanging over the back of the bench and a huge snot bubble shrinking or expanding as she breathed. Applejack lightly jabbed her bench buddy in the ribs.
“Hey, Rainbow Snooze, up and at ‘em! We’re almost there!”
Rainbow awoke with a jolt and flew into the air, eyes wide.
“NO IT’S MY SPITFIRE PLUSHIE, YOU CAN’T HAVE IT!” she shouted. Everypony in the train looked over at her, and Rainbow quickly turned redder than Fluttershy had been at any point over the past week or so. She dropped back down into her seat and cleared her throat, smiling sheepishly.
“Uuuhhhhhh I mean, heh heh — oh hey is that Vanhoover?!” she said, changing the subject and pointing toward the window. The girls all laughed. Applejack threw her hoof around Rainbow’s shoulders.
“What was all that about the Spitfire plushie, hmm?”
Rainbow made a terrible attempt at laughing it off.
“I was just goofin’ to make you guys laugh, that’s all! As if I’d have a dream about something lame like that!”
The train plowed along on its tracks, reaching the Vanhoover station right on time: 12 o’clock.
“Alright, everypony!” Twilight said enthusiastically with a clopping of her hooves, “Let’s get our luggage to the hotel, check in, and then get the day started!”
Everypony hollered in agreement. The poor train attendants were suckered into helping Rarity with her suitcases, since she was awfully persuasive with the opposite sex, and soon the six mares plus a caravan of stallions with suitcases were trudging through the Vanhoover snow to reach the hotel.
All six mares’ heads were on a swivel, taking in as much of the strange city as they could. Vanhoover was much different than what they were used to, being covered in a persistent load of snow that never melted. The skyscrapers of the downtown core were close enough that each mare had to crane her neck to see the top, though there wasn’t much to see but accumulated snow and ice on grey windowsills built into large, concrete structures.
Closer to normal eyelevel, the common buildings of Vanhoover were similar in appearance and style to Manehatten, except, again, they were snowlogged. The streets were neatly plowed, seemingly every few minutes, by odd, fuzzy, white creatures with large, iron plows.
“Whoa!” Rainbow Dash cried, her face alive with excitement as she watched a monkey-like behemoth drive a mass of snow down the road with two muscle-bound arms. “What the hay IS that thing?”
Twilight explained matter-of-factly.
“That was a yeti. Vanhoovan legends used to speak about how they were terrifying monsters, but once the Vanhoovans met them and gave them a chance, it turned out they were big fans of eating donut holes, not ponies, and their partnership has lasted ever since!”
Every mare “oooo”d upon hearing the tidbit of knowledge. Vanhoovans were walking up or down the sidewalks, occasionally going inside shops or restaurants, of which there was the usual distribution in a city of Vanhoover’s size (about as big as Manehatten). The grey sky didn’t add much to the city’s charisma, although Twilight and her friends found it quaint given it was a city built on a winter wonderland backdrop.
“So what kinda digs we lookin’ at here, Twi?” asked Applejack. Twilight stopped in her tracks, carefully looking from her magically floating map to the building to everypony’s right, and then back to the map. She had an “a-ha” moment and pointed at the building.
“See for yourself! We’re here!”
The caravan of stallions carrying Rarity’s luggage breathed sighs of relief and one of them said, “Thank Celestia…”
Everypony shuffled forward, making sure to get as much of the snow out of their boots as they could manage before walking into the foyer. Once inside, the mares took turns displaying their pleasure.
“Swankier than a five-star Canterlot hotel!” Applejack cheered. Rarity was less than impressed, letting her hoof brush against a potted fern and giving it a stern glare.
“Hmm, I wouldn’t say that…” She smiled and lightened up. “But nonetheless, you chose well, Twilight, dear.”
Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie looked at eachother, ready to burst.
“I’m just wondering one thing — you know what it is, Pinkie?” Rainbow asked. Pinkie bit her lip to contain her excitement.
“I think so, on the count of three… one, two, three—”
“POOOOOOOOL!” both mares shouted, running further into the foyer to investigate. Twilight snickered.
“Yep, there’s a pool, but I guess they’ll find out for themselves. Fluttershy?”
Twilight nudged Fluttershy, who had spaced out.
“Oh, um, yes. It’s… nice.”
The reason for Fluttershy’s odd behavior was a sign sitting on a wooden foldout stand. A stallion and mare were holding hooves together as they skated on an ice rink, a pink and red heart forming the background. The words, “COUPLES SKATING COMPETITION” were written in bold white, with a mass of smaller words just below that Fluttershy couldn’t read from her distance. She generated an image of her and Pinkie skating together in place of the couple on the sign, causing her tail to start waving back and forth.
Maybe we could… I mean, we’re not a couple but… I mean, would Pinkie find it weird? Why does it make me feel so… giddy?
“Earth to Fluttershy!” It was Twilight, waving her hoof in front of Fluttershy’s face. “Woo-who! Fluttershy! You sure you okay?”
Fluttershy was brought back to reality. Her face grew even redder when she realized she had spaced out. She shook her head and her fantasies away.
“Y-yes! I am! Promise! Sorry, I was just… um, thinking about… the pool! Yes! A swim will be nice later, heh heh.”
Twilight smiled.
“Yeah! I agree! So do you actually like the look of the hotel so far?”
Fluttershy took a look around, avoiding getting drawn into the sign again.
The floors were shiny, reflective tile of a tan, floral design. The molding where the walls and floor met was made of a rich, dark brown oak carved into an intricate, flowing pattern. The walls themselves were fine marble, with an inset pillar of oak here and there for artistic effect. Fancy paintings and photographs were spaced out along the walls, which was common at most fine hotels. Looking up, Fluttershy saw the tiled ceiling meet in the middle of the foyer where a huge, gold chandelier bathed light on the ponies below.
Fluttershy lost her breath.
“Wow, this really IS nice!”
She smiled and looked back down. Rarity checked everypony in at the front desk as the tired train attendants debriefed the wary bellhops.
“Good luck,” one of the train attendants grumbled as he passed over the suitcase he had been carrying. Before they all turned to leave, Rarity broke her conversation with the front desk pony and stopped the stallions with a sing-song voice.
“Oh boys! Don’t go just yet, I have a gift for you nice, strong stallions for bringing my luggage here safe and sound.” She pulled out her purse from her saddlebag and deposited some bits in each stallion’s hoof, instantly turning their frowns upside down. They all tipped their train attendant caps and said, “Thank you, ma’am.”
Rarity beamed. Fluttershy and Twilight exchanged a knowing look and smiled. Applejack, off to the side, chuckled and shook her head.
“Still, only Rarity could get a whole slew of ponies to do something like that, heh.”
The bellhops stood expectedly, now with eager expressions and wide, giddy smiles on their faces as they happily snatched up the suitcases and prepared them for transport. Twilight and Fluttershy met up with Applejack, and when Rarity finished and retrieved the room keys, they set off. As expected, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash had wound up down a hallway that was on the way to where the girls’ rooms were. They were staring in through a huge window into a room with foal-like, face-consuming grins on their faces.
“IT HAS THE BIGGEST SLIDE I’VE EVER SEEN!” Rainbow cheered. Pinkie was vibrating.
“I KNOW I KNOW! AND IT HAS FIVE SETS OF LADDERS TO GET IN AND OUT OF THE POOL! FIVE, RAINBOW!”
“YEAH, THAT’S — Wait, that’s not that exciting, Pinkie.”
Pinkie chuckled and resumed shouting.
“I KNOW BUT YOU TOOK THE SLIDE PART SO THERE WAS NOTHING ELSE TO GET EXCITED ABOUT! WOOOOO!”
Twilight snickered as the group passed Rainbow and Pinkie. She playfully rolled her eyes.
“Alright you two, we can go swimming later. Let’s get settled in a bit and then head out. I want everypony to meet for an early supper at 4 o’clock, so the sooner we get started on our own activities, the more time we have for them!”
Once they had gathered Pinkie and Rainbow, the gang continued on their way down the hallway. When they reached the end of the hallway, Rarity stopped in the middle of two rooms and retrieved the room keys from her saddlebag. She held them out to the circle of her friends.
“Right, one of the rooms has two king size beds, and the other has one. Since the maximum capacity per room is 4 ponies, two of us will go in one room and the other 4 in the other room. So, with whom are we all bunking up?”
Fluttershy looked straight down at the red carpet floor and awkwardly shuffled on her hooves.
Should I… should I suggest Pinkie and I go—
“Oh, that’s an easy decision!” she heard Pinkie say in a happy-go-lucky tone, “Fluttershy and I will share the room with one bed! We already sleep in the same bed at the cottage, so it just makes sense!”
Fluttershy prepared herself to become more embarrassed, but then realized Pinkie had a point and raised her head.
I guess it ISN’T any weirder than it has been…
She smiled and nodded in the affirmative towards Rarity.
“Right, that’s that, then!” Rarity cheered, “Let’s drop this stuff off and hit the road, ladies!”