//------------------------------// // The Next Day (Complete section!) // Story: Away From The Acres // by Machiniman20 //------------------------------// I'm, unsure why I didn't do this before, but here it is. The Next Day, in its entirety. You can reread the original Perspectives if you want, or you can skip past them, but instead of working backwards, and not being able to continue work on an already published chapter, I shall move forward, and finish work on this, the complete Next Day chapter. I suppose it is both good and bad news that later chapters will probably be done in this style, therefore they will be longer, but they'll also be slower to arrive (though that isn't saying much with my production rate). Twilight Sparkle sat in her room, looking over the same book she'd been "studying" all night. She'd only unlocked the door once, to let Spike in so he could go to bed. As soon as he'd fallen asleep, however, she left the room, and had a late night reading session in the main area of the library, which, much to her chagrin, hadn't helped her in the slightest. Quietly, so as not to disturb Spike, she solemnly headed back to her room, and put the book under her pillow. Twilight begrudgingly set herself to try to sleep, but nothing was coming of it. She sighed, and pulled the book out again. Looking at the vibrant purple cover with golden letters, she found herself unable to think that this wasn't at least a little childish. She was a grown mare, and she should be able to deal with this sort of thing on her own... Shouldn't she? After sighing irritably again, she replaced the book under her pillow, and got up, silently preparing to leave the library. It was still dark when Twilight left the building, but she already knew where she was going. If she couldn't sleep, she would go to the one pony that could sympathize with her, to a point. Twilight meandered slowly through the streets of Ponyville, heading toward the only building that always had one light on. Upon arrival, however, she found that the door to Sugarcube Corner was open, all of the lights were on, and Pinkie Pie sat in the middle of the main room, staring into space, looking very... lost, in the middle of what looked like an empty party. A plate held crumbs where a cake must have been, confetti was strewn about the floor, and there were boxes and a letter on the same table as the plate. As she looked over the scene, Pinkie Pie nonchalantly reached around herself and scratched her back. She shuddered, as if coming to a stark realization, and her facial expression suddenly changed from lost, to downtrodden. She looked down, and her coloration seemed to fade. Her mane and tail began to fall downward, straightening and flattening as it did so. It was as if someone had untied the knot on a balloon, and it was deflating in slow motion. Twilight wasn't quite sure what to do, but she quickly moved to her friend's side as tears started to hit the floor. The last time Pinkie's hair was like this, she had been mad, in more ways than one. Now, she was clearly in excruciating sadness. What for, Twilight couldn't tell, all she knew was that her friend needed help. She carefully nuzzled her friend, in an attempt to calm her, and to get her attention. Pinkie Pie looked up at Twilight, comprehension dawning on her face. She quickly looked away as her eyes began to water again. Twilight didn't know what this was about, but she quickly pulled her friend into a tight hug, allowing her to cry. She'd only seen Pinkie like this once before, but she knew that without some care from a friend, Pinkie would put herself into a state of depression that she wouldn't soon get out of... She could only hope her friend wouldn't go insane again. On the fateful day of the surprise birthday party, according to Rainbow Dash, she'd completely lost her mind. That was a story she wouldn't soon forget. Offering a hoof to her friend, she slowly helped her up the stairs, making sure she didn't fall between sobs. This was bad, Pinkie had been sad before, but never like this. She looked as if she'd seen something so scary, not even she could laugh at it. Upon reaching her room, Twilight sat down nervously in front of Pinkie, looking very worried, but curious at the same time. She wanted to know what could have caused this. Pinkie looked up as Twilight began to speak, gently and carefully. "Pinkie... what happened? I've never seen you this sad before..." Pinkie looked up at her, and she slowly stopped crying. When she actually began to speak, her voice was so horribly downtrodden that it made Twilight want to burst into tears. It was just as high pitched as usual, but it had no energy. It was hollow, empty, as if this were a shell of the Pinkie Pie that Twilight knew. "Well... It started when I wanted to throw a party for Big Macintosh..." Rarity lie in bed sleeping, comfortably. She was having a comfortable dream about a comfortable dress, one she would comfortably design, as she had no orders for the day, and she was planning on a comfortable session of searching her rooms for inspiration. After waking up comfortably, and even though it was technically morning, it was still dark. She walked comfortably downstairs, as if to prepare for the day. She was about to get a cup of tea, when she saw a tag on the floor. A tag for a suit. It triggered a sequence of memories that made her extremely uncomfortable. "Oh... oh my." That tag was for a suit she'd given away yesterday. A suit she'd given away to Big Macintosh. A suit that had looked so good on him, she had to give it away. When he'd insisted on payment, she couldn't completely refuse him, could she? He'd just looked so marvelous in that suit that she got carried away in the moment, and her romantic nature had gotten the better of her. She had kissed him. It was just a peck on the cheek, but it was so foolish. Oh, no. No no no. Her mind rattled. She'd really done that. She had gone to bed in the love-stricken haze of a dream, and woken up to the harsh reality of her foolish actions. Of all of the things that could happen... This was the WORST. POSSIBLE. THING. She reeled with the realization of what she'd done. She quickly used a burst of magic to drag a couch over, before promptly fainting onto it. When she came to, it was still extremely early in the morning, and the sun had just begun to peek over the horizon, cascading a beautiful array of light over the sleeping town of Ponyville, and into the windows of her boutique. Even in her distraught state, she had to admit, Celestia knew how to make a morning beautiful for all of Equestria. Watching the spectacle of morning unfold, she began to calm down. As long as she apologized, and took every precaution she could, it would be fine. She could apologize to Big Mac and be on her way. Rarity slowly meandered into the bathroom and looked into the mirror. She was about to turn to leave when she noticed a single blemish on her face, just underneath her right eye. Rarity prepared to shriek in horror, but she realized it was a spot on the mirror, and not her face. Sweet Celestia... she thought to herself. This stress cannot be good for my complexion. she then made up her mind, that before any apologizing was done, she had to look her best. She attempted to look her best before doing anything, and this was no exception. Rarity quickly used a flurry of magic and brushed her mane to what she deemed as perfect, and then set out, heading towards the spa. She didn't know what time it was, but she was comfortable in her knowledge that she'd never seen the spa closed to a mare in need. Sure enough, the door was open and the light was on, though it didn't need to be. The sun seemed more vibrant than ever, shining over and into anything that it could, as though Celestia herself was feeling more generous than usual, and wanted to give everypony a bit of light.It shone through the windows of the spa's windows, seemingly flooding the room with a warm glow. Rarity gracefully paced over to the counter, and asked for her "usual". She knew she didn't need to elaborate. She'd been here so many times, she knew all of the staff by name, and could talk to most of them about their personal lives. The pink mare behind the counter, who's name was Aloe, quickly nodded and took Rarity back into the spa. "So, Aloe, have there been any goings on recently that I haven't yet heard of? I'd hate to be misinformed of any occasions, and you always seem to know what's going on around town." At this, Aloe stopped for a moment, and looked pensively at Rarity, clearly indicating that she was thinking. "Nothing that I know of, but I'll be the first to let you know of anything next time you visit, Miss Rarity..." At the words "Miss Rarity", Rarity's mind was swept up in thoughts of the big red stallion again, and the rashness of what she'd done. She truly needed to apologize to him before things got out of hoof. Thanks to this rampant train of thought, she entirely lost focus on the conversation, and she only managed to realize that Aloe had still been talking after her last few words floated through the air. Something about a friend. "I'm terribly sorry darling, could you run that by me again? I'm not in the most focused state right now." Aloe nodded and spoke, The beautician's words bringing a smile to Rarity's face. "I was wondering if you would like to be with Miss Fluttershy, as she is here as well." Rarity beamed, and nodded, speaking happily. "Oh, that would be simply fabulous, darling! I'd love it ever so much." She meant it, too. If anyone could empathize with her about her situation, it would be Fluttershy. Rarity had to admit, she was surprised that Fluttershy was here so early, as their usual sessions were just after lunch. She walked after Aloe, and upon entering the room she gestured towards, her jaw dropped. "F-F-F-Fluttershy?" The name garbled out of Rarity's mouth like a river of idiocy, halted by a dam of stutters. "Oh, hello Rarity. It's so nice to see you again!" came the quiet, yet cheerful reply. Rainbow Dash was alone, relaxing in a cloud as she so commonly did. The late morning sun shed light on her face, showing all of the tiredness that she had accumulated over the night. Now she had this sort of vision running through her imagination, and it was all because of one conversation she'd had the day before. Ever since she discovered how much she like reading, she learned that she was very good at visualizing things in her head. Unfortunately, it wasn't just something that you could turn off. She had to admit, stories were a lot more interesting than she thought they'd be, what with a sort of movie playing through her head every time she read a book, but now her imagination itself had become a lot more distracting. Staring out into space, she lost focus on her thoughts again as dramatic images rampaged through her mind. A shadowy figure stood off in the distance, while the rain fell like a curtain in the torrential downpour that was the night. The distant rumble of thunder, a bright flash of lightning, and suddenly, a tree fell towards the shadow. CRACK! Louder than the thunder, a deafening snap could be heard, as the figure turned, and forcefully kicked the tree with it's hind legs. The entire tree was seemingly cut in two, and one of the pieces fell harmlessly to the ground. The other half, however, proved to be a much more dangerous entity. It collapsed on top of the figure, and a deep, roaring howl of pain came from the shadow as he fell to the ground, crushed under the top half of the tree. For a brief moment, another flash of lightning revealed the shadow's face. It was Big Macintosh, his expression one of pain and terror. "Hold on! I'm coming!" A strangely familiar voice sounded through the chaos. Another shadow, leaving an unidentifiable trail behind it, flew down through the clouds. This mystery pegasus flew extremely fast, and turning at the last second, delivered a full force kick to the chunk of tree pinning Big Mac to the ground, sending it a good twenty feet away. The stallion, however, remained on the ground. He was obviously hurt, fairly badly. The pegasus moved in closer to Big Macintosh and whispered something into his ear. In the darkness and rain, it was impossible to see a reaction, but the two moved closer, engaging in a passionate kiss that seemed to slow time. The rain seemed to fall more slowly, the wind seemed less severe. And the lightning that revealed Rainbow Dash's face was slower, more drawn out, allowing every detail of bliss and passion to be seen on her face, as she and Big Mac shared a moment in the dark, chaotic night. Rainbow Dash snapped back to reality, shaking her head to clear the image from her mind, and stretching to try to disperse the strange, clenched feeling in her chest. These imaginations had been happening all night, and into the morning. Rainbow hadn't even been able to sleep, her imagination had just run wild. She needed something to separate her mind from all of this. Spreading her wings, Rainbow Dash decided to try the only release that worked for her. She propelled herself off of the cloud, and she flew through her most complex maneuvers. The rush of the wind, the adrenaline of motion moved through her like wildfire, and she quickly began doing improvised maneuvers that were so complex they would make the Wonderbolts cry. Finally, she thought she'd give a final effort to put on a nice show for all of Ponyville. Climing up as high as she dared, Rainbow began to dart straight down, and as a cone of air formed around her and narrowed to the point of release, she prepared for her favorite part. An explosion of sound, a burst of speed, and then... a wave of color washed over the landscape, and as Rainbow continued to fly downward towards Sweet Apple Acres, she prepared to pull up. Wait... Sweet Apple Acres? In her momentary distraction, Rainbow Dash managed to close the distance between her and the farmland. With a resounding THUD, Rainbow dash slammed headfirst into the ground, and blacked out. "...Rainbow..." "...Rainbow! You all right? Speak to me!" As she faded painfully into consciousness, Rainbow immediately grabbed her head, and quickly curled up into a ball. The pain in her head was almost unbearable. She'd been launched and crashed in all sorts of places and situations, but she'd never smashed into the ground at the full speed of a Sonic Rainboom. "Rainbow, you okay? Rainbow!" The panicked words finally began to form in her mind, and she registered a southern drawl. She felt like she just wanted to go back to being unconscious again. Still, with a huge effort, she lifted her head to look at her caretaker. "Oh, thank Celestia you're all right. I saw you do that Sonic Rainboom, an' then you went slammin' into the ground... I thought you were a goner for sure." Applejack looked down at Rainbow, looking extremely concerned. Rainbow tried to speak, but she found her voice was raspy and her throat was dry. She was still in severe pain, but she had some slightly more pressing concerns. "Water..." Applejack simply nodded at this, and ran headlong into the kitchen, coming back with a large jug of water. After taking a long drink from the jug, she felt able to speak again. Her headache was beginning to subside. "How long was I out?" Rainbow said, as she tried to stand up. Her brain reminded her that it might not have been the best course of action, as a sharp sting of pain shot through her entire body, and she collapsed. Applejack caught her before she hit the floor, and lifted her, carefully, back up onto the cart. The throbbing headache returned tenfold, tormenting Rainbow, daring her to move. "Rainbow, you've only been out for an hour or so. You hit some freshly tilled farmland, so the dirt was a mite softer. Thanks to that, I don't rightly think you'll need to go to the hospital again. Still, that was a pretty bad hit you took, so you might want to rest for a few." A thought crossed Rainbow's mind, but her head was still throbbing. The pained whisper that came out of her mouth was an unfortunate Freudian slip. "Big... Mac?" Hearing this, Applejack's eyes widened. "You seen him, Rainbow? He disappeared yesterday, after I sent him out to meet with y'all. I'm just worried that-" Before Applejack could finish her sentence, there was a dainty knock at the door. Applejack sauntered over to the door, looking very tired, and opened the door. "Rarity, what are you doin' here?" "F-F-F-Fluttershy?" The name garbled out of Rarity's mouth like a river of idiocy, halted by a dam of stutters. "Oh, hello Rarity. It's so nice to see you again!" came the quiet, yet cheerful reply. Fluttershy was not herself. This was evident, not only in her posture, which was strong, upright, and confident; but in her clothing as well. She was wearing a dress that Rarity had never seen, much less thought of designing. It seemed to accentuate her unusual confidence, flowing back in a shade of dazzling green that seemed to resemble the essence of nature itself. Her mane, which was normally in a natural, heart shaped curl off of her head, was straightened, and it flowed down, waving softly over her right eye, and flowing downward over her, looking almost like a of bright pink liquid, flowing from a waterfall in a utopia of color and peace. Rarity's continued silence seemed to unnerve Fluttershy slightly. "Um... Rarity, is everything... all right? You seem slightly..." Fluttershy began to say, but Rarity, coming to her senses, preempted Fluttershy, shaking her head to remove the daze that this unexpected visage had caused. Rarity smiled genuinely. Fluttershy was standing more confidently, and was dressing well, but she was still the calm, quiet Fluttershy she had always known. "Oh, no! Not at all, dear. I'm just surprised, that's all. I've never seen you looking so... well dressed! No offense intended of course." Rarity said. Fluttershy, though as calm and peaceful as always on the outside, had many a thought running through her head, as she always did. "Oh, no offense taken, Rarity. You don't need to worry about that." Fluttershy gave her normal, gentle smile, and she started to walk out of the spa, but Rarity called over to the door, stopping her momentarily. "Oh, you're leaving then? What a shame, I was hoping to spend some time at the spa with you. Ah well, have a nice day!" Fluttershy looked back and gave one more smile, in a much more confident fashion than she felt she could, and she trotted back towards her home. As she automatically plodded her way home, her mind seemed to ponder the meeting which had just occurred, wandering to and fro as she continued toward her destination. Well, it's nice that Rarity noticed my dress... I don't see why she would think she was offending me, though. I could never take offense to anything she said, we've always been so honest to each other as friends! Well... aside from the time with Photo Finish. I'd like to pretend that never happened. Still, with such a trustworthy friend, maybe I could tell her about... She stopped, and stared blankly ahead for a moment or two. Looking directly at Sweet Apple Acres, she felt herself slightly detached from her thoughts for a moment. It may have been just a single moment, but it was still enough to solidify her confidence, however minimal it may have been. no, never mind. This is one thing I need to deal with on my own. However, My day today is mostly full, I have so much to do, so many animals to care for! Maybe I could visit later... She quickly entered her home, and began to make preparations to feed her animals breakfast. On the other side of Ponyville, near the spa, a dainty, white figure moved quietly towards Sweet Apple Acres, knocking gently on the door of the house and slipping inside quickly. New content starts HERE! By the by, note that the only tear that Twilight has ever truly dropped in the show was when all of her friends had left, in the Discord episodes. It's important. Though this story is not truly canonical, I like to think it retains some bounds of semblance to points in the show.I will have different comments on each of the little subchapters from now on, they will always be in bold. "Well... It started when I wanted to throw a party for Big Macintosh..." Pinkie Pie recounted the story of what happened that night with Big Macintosh, how her back had been itching, and how she had assumed that it meant her feelings for the large, red stallion were shared. After Big Mac's flight, however, her back continued to itch, and, by her sense, that meant that she was wrong, and that her luck had yet to arrive. She felt horrible, for multiple reasons, all of which were understandable. During the retelling of these events, the story was registering in Twilight's mind, but as soon as Pinkie's feelings for Big Macintosh ran through her conscious, she felt a wave of depression sweep over her. It was just as it had always been before, though it was true that she had friends now. Every time she'd fallen for somepony, be it a colt or a filly, stallion or a mare, somepony else had always gotten there first, for she'd never talked to them, and she'd never built up the confidence to try. And now, seeing that Pinkie had feelings for Macintosh, Twilight forced her thoughts of the big red stallion to the back of her mind, hopefully hiding away in her subconscious. It was no use. As with any hopeless feelings, they returned, grasping at her mind as though they were about to fall into the endless abyss of lost memories. In the back of her mind, she decided that she wouldn't let these feelings go, she wouldn't let them be forgotten. In one of the first times that she could remember, she was completely open with her emotions. She couldn't allow herself to go mad, holding everything in. A single tear fell from her eye, a drop of liquid that had not graced her cheek since the return of Discord. With a light splish, the teardrop hit the floor. Pinkie Pie, seeing this, suddenly stopped talking. Pinkamina Diane Pie did not make a sound. She simply stared at this single puddle of emotion that lay on the floor, from a friend she'd never seen truly cry before. Looking up at Twilight's face, Pinkie stared into Twilight's eyes, which were cast away, looking through the floor to her own imaginary Tartarus down below. Her mind, which was incredible to any who would just look in, began to analyze the situation, in a poetic sense. Deep depression, lost hope; the darkest blue. A sense of things in the past, a tinge of regret, a willingness for sacrifice; a magenta stain on the fabric of your joy. Twilight Sparkle, you are giving up on your feelings for Big Macintosh for the sole purpose of giving me a chance. In the depths of your eyes, I see into what lies within your conscious and subconscious minds. Two worlds, twisted and tied; you never forget that which has occurred, your past mistakes, your losses, all that has been sacrificed for your friends. You never truly pushed for what it is you wanted. Even now, you contemplate the cruelties of reality, in the sole hope that, in some way, you can find some way to have me succeed in your place. Sweet Celestia, I'm good at this. What Pinkie Pie wasn't so good at, though, was hiding her own emotions. Her hair, which was matted and dark, had exploded outward once more, supposedly in the middle of her thought process, and she was now grinning from ear to ear. Twilight stared at her, realizing how awkward thirty seconds can be when you're staring at someone who has managed to temporarily detach from reality. Pinkie Pie, now in the process of refocusing, realized exactly how strange a degree in philosophical poetry would look. Shaking her head rapidly, she centered back into Twilight, with a grin still plastered on her face. "Come on, Twilight!" Twilight, shocked by this sudden outburst, lurched back into reality and complete confusion. "Where are we going, Pinkie? What are you talking ab-OOF!" Pinkie sprinted into her, knocking the wind out of her and tossing her onto her back. She giggled, looking up at Twilight with an enormous smile on her face, and joy in her eyes. "We're going to Sweet Apple Acres!" Got a little poetic there, but I think that went quite well! I really enjoy writing like that.