//------------------------------//
// Something was wrong 
// Story: Rise of the Elements Episode 1: Pinkie's Little Problem 
// by Dream Volt 
//------------------------------//

	I frowned.  Something was wrong.  The Party was coming together great.  Vinyl was happy to help me and couldn't wait for tonight.  I totally got Shadow Crash to come and invited Luna and all her friends personally.  I ordered a little extra food since I knew I couldn't cook all the food I would need on such short notice.  But I know all the good places so it was easy.  Something was still wrong though, I was sure of it.

"What is it, what is it.  I haven't forgotten anything.  I mean I haven't started cooking anything yet, but I know I haven't and have time.  It's something else."

"WE ARE CONFUSED." Said Luna  "Why are you still in my room and how did thee gain entry in the first place."

Luna was just staring at me.  I don't think I had anything in my mane, I could even see most of myself in the mirror behind Luna.  I wonder why she's doing that.  Hmm, though I guess I don't know her that well.  Maybe I could work on that.  I then smacked myself in the side of the head.

"Oh, don't be a silly filly Pinkie, you have a party to prepare.  I'll have to do that tomorrow.  Ooo, or tonight at the party.  Best party ever."

"It was almost like you…"  Luna then gasped.  "Oh dear, it was exactly like that.  I need to find that book right away."

Then she teleported away.  That was rude.  Or I thought it was rude.  Unicorns have a bunch of rules for all sorts of proper behavior, so there is probably some sort of proper etiquette for teleporting too, but I totally don't know anything about that.  I then decided even though I know something was wrong I couldn't figure out so I turned around and hopped out of Luna's room and into the kitchen of sugar cube corner.

"What the?  Where the hay did ya come from Pinkie." Said Applebloom

"Well you were right about her showing up soon." Said Scootaloo

"Are you sure this is a good idea?"

I spun around to see the three foals.  Sweetie Belle looked really worried for some reason.  That was just silly, kitchen's are tons of fun and if you remember the fire safety rules it's really unlikely anything will explode or catch fire.  I smiled.

"So what are you three here for?"

"Well I figure that maybe I could give cooking another try, and maybe the crusaders will do better as a group."

"Better?  I know you didn't get your cutie mark, but those Cajun muffins were great.  I mean maybe cooking isn't your talent, but you're plenty good.  I mean it's not really my talent either ya know, but then I said to myself.  Pinkie, how can you be the perfect party pony if you can't make food.  Every party needs food.  So then I went to France."

"Huh?" all three crusaders said

"So, you wanna learn to cook?  I have a lot of work to do, but I would love to have three little helpers.  That sound like fun?"

"Cutie mark crusaders bakers."

I smiled brightly.  It was so cute how they yelled so loudly.  It wasn't as loud as Inky could yell, but it was still loud.  They clapped their hooves together.  Then they lined up in front of me, and saluted.  Something seemed odd about that somehow, but I couldn’t quite put my hoof on it.  Then I laughed.  I was beeing silly, how badly could the crusaders mess things up really.  This is going to be fun.





I couldn't figure out how to put out the water, so I just drank it with the fire.  Fire swallowing comes in handy once again.  Though the pony that taught me said I was doing it wrong, but I don't know what he's talking about.  I swallowed the fire just like he did, how could that be wrong?  I looked at the mess in the kitchen.  I frowned a little.  The crusaders ran off to get some help yelling apologies as they left.  It wasn't that bad really, but I was way behind now.  Then I smiled.  If you have too much work for one pony, you get a friend to help.  I then jumped into the kitchen's apple bin and pushed my way though the bottom until I came up in the one in Applejack's farm.

"OOO, I need to be extra special careful to make sure she's not tired though.  One batch of baked bads was one too many."

"Ah know ah might not bother askin' you, but what you doing in my apples Pinkie?"

"I dunno.  Sometimes I wonder why it works the way it does, but I still don't know so I just ignore it for now."

"Yep, that was a waste a breath alright.  Okay, so why you here then?"

"Oh, I want your help making enough food for the party.  I'm like way behind, and you're good and I know it isn't applebucking season so…"

"You figured I ain't gonna ruin no food this time?"

"Oh, well, yea, that too, but I was going to say I just figured you're not that busy."

"This is a farm and we're plenty busy year round, but I guess I have time.  Seems like I been getting some stuff done a bit faster lately.  There is this weird problem with the trees though.  I guess it can wait but..."

"OOO, let me see.  Let me see."

"Pinkie I doubt…"

"You doubt the powers of…"

I then pulled a detective hat out of my mane and flopped it on my head.  It was all weird looking and floopy.  It also had these little flaps that fell down on the side of my head.  Which was so weird, I mean what are they supposed to cover down there?  I then pulled out a magnifying glass.

"Detective Pinkie.  Come AJ, the game is a hoof."  Then I put a hoof to my chin.  "Though I don't really know what game, or how a game can be a hoof."

"Uh, that mean you want me to show you the trees?"

"Oh, yea.  I guess so."

I then followed AJ out of the barn, and to the closest tree.  It looked a little off, like it was leaning or something.  Also there was two odd round areas of bark disturbed on the side of the trunk.  I rolled my eyes and turned around."

"Vhis if mo oblious I midn't emem meet ty lagmifyimg gleff."

"Pardon?"

I then threw up my magnifying glass and took a step forward so it landed in my mane.  "I said it's so obvious I didn't even need my magnifying glass."  I then glared at AJ though I didn't stop smiling.  Then I turned up my nose.  "In fact it's far beneath the skills of detective Pinkie."

"What you talking about you silly filly?"

"Obviously you're bucking them too hard.  I mean duh."

"Pinkie, that don't make no sense.  Ah been bucking these trees for years, and Ah know just how hard to hit them."

"But then what else would make two hoof marks on the bark like that."

"Pinkie, that's just plum loco.  Ah mean maybe if ah bucked as hard as ah could ah could ah might damage the bark, but ah couldn't tilt the trees."

"Awww, really?  But I was so sure I solved the case."

"Ah guess ah gotta get Twilight out here one of these days.  She is mighty busy helping that weird sister of yours setting up that party though."

"Yea, I'll have to make sure the decorations look right, but I'm sure they can make it look sciencey enough by themselves."

"Ah reckon so.  The apples been friendly like with the Pies for long as they been in this neck of the woods, but ah still worry 'bout that sister o yours sometimes.

I rolled my eyes.  "She isn't going to murder anyone in their sleep silly.  I'm the one that watches horror movies.  So you don't have to worry about that at all."

"Yea, uh, sure."

Then I blinked, narrowing my eyes.  "Hey, this isn't a maneonite thing, is it?  I mean the whole forsaking technology always seemed silly to me, along with some other stuff but I still follow the old ways, well, mostly, kinda, sorta, well, at least a little."

"That sure ain't it.  Nah, it's just the whole quiet and bleakness of them folks.  Grandma said her momma remembered the Pie farm as a happy place, which don't sound right."

"Well rock farming sorta kills everything alive.  I mean it wasn't always that bleak I'm sure.  It was much better once father let us talk, but…"

Then I looked down.  In the end it all worked out okay.  I even started visiting father and mother fairly often before they gave the farm to Blinkie and Inky and left.  They never really understood why Inky and I had to leave, and never understood or knew what Blinkie was doing, but they accepted it.  They accepted that we couldn't be happy with things as they were, even if they were happy.

"So really, it's okay.  I don't see them much anymore, but we're all happy."

"Uh, yea.  That's great sugar cube.  Still seems strange as all get out that rock farming is a real thing.  Still don't quite get how that could work."

I rolled my eyes. "What's to get.  Roll rocks to collect mana, let sit, repeat.  Simple."

"Mana?"

"Yea, I mean dad called it earth essence, but it's, ya know, magic.  Magic is in everything and earth ponies can gather it up and make it so a little rock of gold ore sucks up some dirt once it's ready and become a big rock of gold ore."

Applejack went wide eyed.  "That's what you're doing?"

"Duh, I mean why would we bother making run of the mill rocks bigger.  I mean it's not just gold and gems, but it's always something somehow special."

"Ah think ah really get it now.  Yea, that makes a might bit ah sense."

I looked at Applejack.  She was shaking a little.  It almost looked like she was afraid.  What would AJ be afraid of?  She's like toughest pony ever.  Then she stopped shaking and laughed.

"AJ, you okay?"

"Yea sugarcube, just you making that much sense don't sit right with me.  Also ah know all ponies have magic, but ah never really thought we can do anything with it."

"But there are the apples.  So many apples."

"That's just good ol tender loving care.  Nothin' more."

I squinted my left eye a little and looked right at her.  "Are you sure?"

"Er, I guess not Pinkie.  So how about we get to working on these treats of yours.  Not that ah'm thinking your right but there ain't no use to be harvesting right now, and Twilight should get some free time any day now."

"Okie doki loki.  You wanna come to sugar cube corner, or use your kitchen?"

"Ah think we'll start here, make some apple dishes, then move to sugar cube corner for some more of your sugary things."

"Whooo!"

I then hopped off in the direction of AJ's house.  I always love baking with Applejack.  It's so fun.  Just like it's fun playing pranks with Rainbow Dash, and trying to help Twilight doing her sciencey things to me, and with Rarity I have the tea parties.  I then gasped.

"Omigosh, I don't have a thing with Fluttershy."

"I can't say I'm too surprised you ain't the choosy type, but is that really a surprise that shy girl would be a bit terrified of that sort of thing, even with a stallion?"

"Huh?"

"Oh, that ain't what you meant, is it?  What did you mean by that?"

I rolled my eyes.  "Duh, isn't it obvious?  I mean unlike all my other friends I don't have some thing both Fluttershy and I do together.  Ya know, like with you its' baking."

"What in the hay could you and Rarity do.  I'm sorry but it just seems like that overly properly mare and you…"

"Oh, party training.  Right now it's just tea but soon we might move on to even more boring stuff."

AJ blinked.  "And you want to do this?"

"Sorta."  I then sighed.  "I mean yea it's really boring, but a tea party or fancy party is still a party, and I vowed to be the master of all parties, even the boring ones."

"Well I can see you might need a bit of practice for that.  This is cause of the gala right?"

I nodded so hard I fell forward.  "Ooops."  I then stood up again.  "I mean it wasn't until days later that Rarity told me the gala was supposed to be boring."

"I doubt that royal in all but fact mare said that."

"Ooo, probably not, but I remember lots of things wrong all the time.  Like I bet that speech she gave me about the gophers didn't happen at all."

"Ah reckon so."

I laughed.  AJ had such a funny look on her face.  Her mouth was opened wide, but her eyes were wider.  She looked so silly.