//------------------------------// // Experimentation // Story: Becoming Pinkie Pie // by Alaborn //------------------------------// Becoming Pinkie Pie By Alaborn Standard disclaimer: This is a not for profit fan work. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is copyright Hasbro, Inc. I make no claim to any copyrighted material mentioned herein. Chapter 2: Experimentation Twilight Sparkle stepped back, separating herself from Applejack. “All right, Applejack. I will help you,” she said. “But first, how did you get in my pantry?” “Ah don’t know,” Applejack said. “Let’s approach this logically,” Twilight Sparkle said. “What were you doing before you came here?” “Ah was headin’ inside for dinner, but when Ah walked through the door, it was all dark-like. Then you opened the door. But Ah was glad to see you, ‘cause Ah wanted to talk to you.” “Why is that?” Twilight Sparkle asked. Applejack started describing all the strange experiences she encountered that day. Pails of water whenever she was thirsty, the feeling of being watched, the sudden desire to laugh and sing. “So after Ah finished up mah apple buckin’, Ah tried to feel mah magic, and it’s wrong. That’s why Ah thought about seein’ you.” “And then you opened the door, and appeared here?” “Yeah,” Applejack said. Again, she grabbed Twilight Sparkle. “Now what am Ah supposed to do?” Twilight Sparkle stepped back. This situation would require some care. “Now, the first rule in a crisis situation is to stay calm. Can you do that?” “Ah don’t know,” Applejack admitted. “Ah mean, Ah’m used to sayin’ ‘That’s just Pinkie Pie’, but it’s somethin’ else to have it happen to you!” “Don’t worry, Applejack. I think I know what to do. Follow me,” Twilight Sparkle said, smiling. “Not too long ago, I was rereading my old friendship reports. I came across the letter where I told Princess Celestia about how I came to accept Pinkie Sense for what it is.” Twilight Sparkle opened the door to the library’s basement. “This way.” “What’s down in the basement?” Applejack asked. “Earlier that day, I had tried some tests, attempting to learn more about Pinkie Sense worked,” Twilight Sparkle continued. “I wasn’t able to get any evidence.” Twilight Sparkle pulled a book out of one of the basement’s bookcases. The bookcase swung outwards, revealing a concealed door. “Right through here.” “Uh, Twi, why is there a secret door in your basement?” Applejack asked, nervous. She followed Twilight Sparkle as she opened the door, but only because she had come to trust the librarian implicitly. That, and she didn’t feel any twitches. “So I’m glad you came to me, Applejack. Not only will I be able to help you, but you’ll be able to help me, by uncovering this mystery,” Twilight Sparkle concluded. Applejack wondered if Twilight Sparkle had even heard anything she had said. The two ponies entered a musty chamber, dimly lit by torches and a strange multicolored glow. As they headed down another set of stairs, they reached a laboratory, something straight out of a mad scientist’s lair. “Twi, why is there a creepy lab in a hidden chamber in the library?” Applejack inquired, now even more nervous. Twilight Sparkle finally turned to Applejack, looking her in the eye. “Applejack, you know I’m a student of the magic of friendship. And students need laboratories,” Twilight Sparkle said, in a matter of fact manner, as if the monstrosity concealed in this subbasement was a typical laboratory. “Now, why don’t you sit over there, and rest your forelegs on that device?” Applejack did as Twilight Sparkle asked. It seemed so wrong, but at the same time, she felt everything would be fine. It was bound to be funny for them to watch! Applejack clutched her head. “No, not again!” she moaned. “What is it?” wondered Twilight Sparkle. “Ah can feel us being watched.” Twilight Sparkle looked around. “I don’t see anything.” Applejack pointed a hoof to the wall. “It’s them!” Twilight Sparkle peered intently at the wall, shaped from the roots of the great tree that housed the library. “I still don’t see anything. Wait. Do I have termites? That would be terrible! And I never studied an extermination spell. Do I even have a book with that kind of spell in the library?” “Twi, calm down! You don’t have termites!” Applejack said. “Oh, phew,” Twilight Sparkle said, relieved. “But, then, what did you mean by them?” “Twi, you ever notice Pinkie staring at space, or talkin’ like somepony’s there?” Twilight Sparkle nodded. “That’s just Pinkie being Pinkie.” “Ah think she’s actually seein’ somethin’. Or she thinks she is. And now Ah’m feelin’… whatever it is.” Still seeing nothing, Twilight Sparkle nevertheless concentrated, her horn glowing, until a faint lavender aura spread into the walls. “There. A simple warding spell will keep us safe.” Applejack looked to the wall. “You know as well as Ah do that it won’t help.” Twilight Sparkle seemed unaware of what Applejack had just said. “Now, could you put your forelegs back down?” she asked. “Oh, sure.” Applejack complied, and then metal cuffs extended, entrapping her forelegs. She reflexively struggled against the bindings. “Now what in tarnation is this for?” Twilight Sparkle happily trotted over, carrying in her telekinetic aura a strange metal contraption made of wires and flashing lights. She quickly swapped Applejack’s Stetson for the device. “This is to help you, of course.” Applejack snorted. “More like you’re helping yourself.” “Now I admit I do desire to figure out just how Pinkie Sense works,” Twilight Sparkle acknowledged. “But I’m being honest when I say I’m doing this to help you. Part of accepting Pinkie Pie for what she is meant accepting not knowing what Pinkie Sense is. And until I know that, I can’t create a remedy for you. Am I dealing with an enchantment? A curse? Pollen? Spores? Something in the water? I have so many questions.” Applejack scowled. Her eyes opened wide when she saw a particularly large book hanging over her head. “Uh, Twi?” Twilight Sparkle spared a glance at one of her machines, examining the jagged lines being traced as a roll of paper was fed through it. “This is one of Pinkie Pie’s more common expressions of her Pinkie Sense. Is your tail a-twitchin’, as she would say?” “Eenope,” Applejack replied. “Peculiar. Perhaps the sensations you’re experiencing are different from Pinkie’s.” “Or maybe it’s because Ah know that book’s not gonna fall as long as you’re concentratin’ on it.” Twilight Sparkle floated the book back to her; it hovered above her head. “You may be right. I’ll need to try something different.” Applejack’s tail suddenly convulsed. “TWITCH!” she shouted. Above, the door to the subbasement flew open, smacking the wall. Twilight Sparkle reminded herself that she needed to do something about that door, before realizing that she had forgotten to maintain her telekinesis. The book came crashing down on her head, knocking her to the floor. “Twilight? You down there?” Spike called. Twilight Sparkle groaned as she stood up. “Yes, Spike. I’m in the middle of studying, so could you please attend to your chores by yourself?” “Sure thing,” the dragon called, closing the door with another slam. Twilight Sparkle grinned as she looked at the paper. “We did it! The first record of Pinkie Sense in action!” “Great,” Applejack huffed. “Now can Ah go?” “My research would go much better with more data points,” she replied. Twilight Sparkle heard a low rumble. “Was that your Pinkie Sense again?” “No. That was mah stomach. Ah was supposed to eat dinner half an hour ago.” Twilight Sparkle’s own stomach reminded her that Applejack’s surprise appearance had interrupted her own supper plans. “Let’s call it a night, then. I’ll research what I have, but I’d like you to come back, so that I can do more tests. And I won’t use the cuffs.” She reached over to undo them, only to find Applejack already standing and donning her hat. “Ah promise to come by tomorrow evening, but Ah don’t have much time to spare,” Applejack said. “We’ll do what we can, then,” Twilight Sparkle said. “Do you want to head out the same way you came in?” “Ah don’t trust anything other than my four legs to get me home, Twi.” Applejack laughed. “Wouldn’t want to appear in Princess Celestia’s private bathroom, now would Ah?” In distant Canterlot, the princess of the sun involuntarily shuddered. Fortunately, Applejack’s family accepted her explanation about an emergency meeting with Twilight Sparkle. It was the honest truth, but it wasn’t anything she wanted to discuss in further detail. Reheated pie was a small price to pay for avoiding an awkward conversation. The next morning, Applejack headed to the barn bright and early. She had expected Big McIntosh would already be running, pressing the first batch of cider. Instead, the cider press was sitting outside, one of its side panels open, with a pair of small yellow legs sticking out of it. Big McIntosh paced next to the machine. “Apple Bloom? What are you doin’ to our cider press?” Applejack asked. The filly pushed herself out of the compartment. “Hi, Sis! Ah’m puttin’ in an apple sorter!” She wiped the grease off her hooves with a dirty rag. Applejack trotted around to the other side of the cider press. “So that’s what this other conveyor belt is?” “Uh-huh!” Apple Bloom responded cheerily. “Ah got the idea from that Flim-Flam machine. Ah can’t do any magic-like sortin’, but Ah can separate out the plump apples from the tiny ones that Granny Smith always throws out. It should help us make cider a little quicker once we start sellin’.” Applejack examined her sister’s work. The new addition was a series of three elevated conveyor belts. The middle one could pivot downwards; Applejack guessed it triggered by weight. She could picture two buckets under the belt, one in the middle for the selected apples, and one at the end for the rejected fruit. “Ah appreciate your help, little sis, but we’ve got a lot of work to do, and we can’t go without our cider press,” Big McIntosh said. “But Ah’ve been busy with school, and this is my first free day,” Apple Bloom explained. “Ah got up real early to do this work, but Ah’m havin’ trouble gettin’ the gears and shafts tied together.” The filly’s eyes started to water. “Ah only wanted to help.” “Now, Big McIntosh, you shouldn’t be too hard on Apple Bloom,” Applejack chided. “In fact, we should be supporting her doin’ somethin’ that will get her her cutie mark.” Apple Bloom smiled. “You really think so?” Applejack hugged her sister. “Ah do. Now let me help you get this here machine fixed.” As Apple Bloom crawled back into the cider press, Applejack opened the panel on the other side. She paused. Why was she so confident that mechanics was her sister’s special talent? She hadn’t really thought about it much, but at the same time, it felt like everypony knew. Applejack shook her head and examined her sister’s work. “Ah think Ah see the problem,” she said, pointing to a misaligned gear. Applejack looked at her sister. The filly was just staring at her. “Applejack,” she said slowly, “how did you fit in there?” Turning her head, Applejack saw she had worked her way into the middle of the machine, a space too small for a full grown mare, and which required twisting her body in a way that pony bodies just didn’t move. “Uh, Ah better get to mah apple buckin’,” she said as she retreated. Applejack mentally chastised herself for not paying closer attention. It was bad enough turning into Pinkie Pie; she didn’t want to frighten her family as well. The damage might already be done. Still, there was plenty of work to be done, and a day’s worth of apple bucking provided her a chance to think up an explanation. Working her way through the east orchard, she was relieved to not feel those strange eyes upon her. “Must be somethin’ more interesting goin’ on somewhere else,” she mused. That was another statement that made perfect sense until Applejack started thinking about it again. In any case, the first twelve trees yielded their bounty of fruit easily. Bucking the thirteenth tree caused one hundred and sixty apples and one sleeping pegasus to fall from the branches. “Of course. Ah don’t feel somepony there when there’s really somepony there,” Applejack muttered. Rainbow Dash rubbed her head. “What was that?” she asked sleepily. “Nothin’,” Applejack replied. “Say, don’t you have a sky to clear?” “Yeah, yeah, I got it covered,” Rainbow Dash said, waving off her friend’s concerns. “I need to be rested so I can get in line tomorrow. And that branch is the perfect place to catch the morning sun.” Applejack looked up to the sky. “Ah’d hate for there to be some unexpected rain tomorrow. It’d be mighty hard to produce enough cider if we had to roll barrels through the mud.” “Relax,” Rainbow Dash replied. “As Ponyville weather manager, I put perfect weather onto the schedule for every cider season.” She picked up her fallen pillow and returned to her favorite branch. “Now if you don’t mind, I’ve got… preparations to do.” Applejack felt a twinge in one of her shoulders, a tickle in her throat, and a tug on her tail. “You’d better be in line by 4:38 tomorrow morning!” she warned Rainbow Dash. A light blue foreleg waved from the autumn-hued foliage. “Yeah, yeah.” By the time Applejack returned with another full cart of apples, Big Macintosh was on the treadmill, powering the large cider press. Six barrels were already filled, stacked and ready for tomorrow’s opening of cider season. On the other side, Apple Bloom and Granny Smith were inspecting the apples. Apple Bloom’s addition was working fine, but Granny Smith still went through each of the rejected apples. “No good, no good, too rotten, too soft, no good,” she said. The neat bucket of bad apples was turning into a messy pile of discarded fruit. The elderly mare looked up as her granddaughter returned. “Yer back! Once you get those apples inside, Ah think it’s time to feed the pigs,” she said. “Sure thing, Granny,” Applejack replied. Applejack poured the harvested apples into the recently emptied barrels. Afterwards, she took one of the empty buckets back outside. Carefully, to avoid splitting any of the more overripe apples, she scooped them into the waiting bucket. Balancing the now-full bucket on her back, she trotted into the barn, then into the back room with the animal pens. The pigs squealed in excitement as lunch awaited them. “Now hold your horses, there’s plenty for all,” Applejack said. As she opened the door to one of the pens, Applejack thought briefly about what Twilight Sparkle might tell her tonight. But wouldn’t it make more sense to talk to Pinkie Pie? With one step into the pen, Applejack realized her mistake, as things went dark. In the kitchen of Sugarcube Corner, Pinkie Pie marveled at her latest culinary creation. A giant cake, all for the Apples, to celebrate cider season! She particularly loved the cider press, hoof-made with marzipan, as the cake topper. The cake just needed some garnish. Pinkie Pie reached into a wooden bin, pulling fruit and placing it on the island in the center of the kitchen. “One apple, two apples, three apples, four apples!” she counted happily. She frowned as she stared at the four apples on the island, placing her hoof to her chin. “Hmmm. One of these apples is not like the others,” she said. “Aha!” she announced, pointing at the second apple. “That’s a Fuji, not a Red Delicious!” Sitting in the position of the fourth apple, Applejack tapped her hoof on the island. “Sugarcube? You mind tellin’ me how Ah got here?” “Oh, hi, Applejack!” Pinkie Pie responded. “Well, to answer your question, in the beginning, there was nothing but a void. Then, the Creator said….” Applejack placed her hoof over Pinkie Pie’s mouth. “Pinkie, Ah’m bein’ serious here. Ever since yesterday, things have been happenin’ to me that if you’d been doin’ them, Ah’d say it’s just Pinkie being Pinkie. But Ah’m not you.” Pinkie Pie inhaled with excitement before unleashing a rapid stream of words. “Oh! Yesterday, I had one doozy of a combo! Tail twitch, hoof itch, eye bugging out, left ear twitch, right ear flop. I knew something interesting and fun would happen! And it’s happening to you, and it sounds like fun, and we have so much to talk about….” “Wait a minute. Ah thought a doozy was a combo,” Applejack interrupted. “Well, a doozy is always a combo, but there are lots of combos, and some of them are doozies, but some aren’t, and a doozy is a combo that’s always a doozy, except for that one time, because I don’t think the griffins were impressed by the pants we gave them….” “Pinkie, wait. We’re gettin’ off track,” Applejack said. “Somethin’s wrong. Ah think Ah’m turnin’ into you!” Pinkie Pie bounced around the kitchen. “That sounds like super-duper fun!” “It’s not!” Applejack exclaimed. “Not for me. Like appearin’ in this here kitchen when a minute ago, I was in mah barn. That’s just not honest.” Pinkie Pie’s lower lip quivered. “Are you saying I’m not honest?” “No! Ah mean Ah’m… all us Apples are proud of the honest work we do with our own four hooves. And doin’ things like appearin’ halfway across Ponyville… well, that feels a little like cheatin’.” Applejack looked her friend in the eye. “Is there anythin’ you can do to help me?” “Are you having trouble doing your work around the farm?” Pinkie Pie looked genuinely concerned. “Well, no, but….” “Is it bothering your family?” “Ah guess not….” Pinkie Pie smiled, one of those huge grins that seemed larger than her face. “Then what are you worried about? There’s so much good magic in Equestria, and even if we don’t understand it, we can enjoy it! You should have fun!” Applejack looked unconvinced. “Ah’ve just got so much to do, and Ah wasn’t expecting this.” “That’s right! It’s cider season! And I have so much to do!” Pinkie Pie said. “I have to send out invitations to the let’s-all-wait-for-cider-and-camp-under-the-stars party! I need new decorations for my tent. And balloons! Lots of balloons, because it’s a party, but not too many, because I don’t want my tent to float away! And I need to finish my surprise cake for you, which isn’t a surprise anymore, because you popped into the kitchen! I know! Why don’t you take the cake back with you? I just need to finish up the garnish!” Before Applejack could reply, Pinkie Pie was moving around the kitchen in a blur. She grabbed two more apples, peeled them, chopped them into straws, dipped the pieces in lemon juice, and using just the apples and some frosting, constructed a little fence around the edge of the cake. She held up the cake to Applejack, smiling. “Wow, that’s mighty impressive,” Applejack admitted. “And it’s all for you and your family, to say thanks for making cider season the best time of year!” Pinkie Pie placed the cake on Applejack’s back. “Ah’d love to stay and chat, but it’s a long way back to the farm,” Applejack said. “Why don’t you go back the way you came?” Pinkie Pie suggested, opening the bin where the Cakes stored their apples. “Uh… ah…” Applejack stuttered. Pinkie Pie’s smile was warm and understanding. “Just think how super-duper fun it would be to be back home, and show your family this deeeee-licious cake!” she said, motioning to the bin with one foreleg. I really should get back to my chores as fast as I can, Applejack thought, rationalizing her actions as she stepped into the tiny bin. Applejack stepped out of the door to the barn, seeing her family at work. Unsurprisingly, the youngest Apple was first to notice the tempting treat Applejack carried, unmarred even though, just like her, it was too big to fit through that bin. Her siblings and grandmother crowded around her. “Where’d you get that?” Apple Bloom wondered. “It’s a gift from Pinkie Pie,” Applejack said. “Ah didn’t see her come by the farm,” Big McIntosh observed. “Well, ah, you know how Pinkie is,” Applejack said. Granny Smith peered at the lettering on the cake. “Thank you for ader tune? Now what kind of newfangled music is an ader tune?” “Ah think that says cider time,” Applejack suggested. “Now, who’s up for cake?” As the Apples finished enjoying slices of the delicious cake, Big McIntosh asked, “The pigs all fed, Applejack?” Applejack dropped her fork. “Ah forgot!” The young mare hurried back to the barn. That big bucket of apples didn’t follow her when she made her strange trip to Sugarcube Corner, so she feared the worse. She found it spilled into one of the stalls, and one pig had taken it upon herself to eat as many as possible. Unfortunately, she overindulged; the pig lay with a distended belly amidst apple scraps. Big McIntosh followed her sister into the barn. “This is no good,” he said. “Sorry. Ah… um, got distracted by Pinkie Pie,” Applejack said sheepishly. She looked at the pig. “Poor Miss Plumpley. Ah’ll go get Fluttershy.” Suddenly, she had a better idea. “Or why don’t you go fetch her? Ah think Ah can handle the treadmill for a while.” “Don’t you worry about me, sis. Ah’m fine workin’ here,” Big McIntosh replied, looking away. “Ah insist, big brother. Ah’m goin’ on the treadmill, and that’s final.” Applejack trotted off, and stood on the treadmill that powered the cider press. Big McIntosh followed his sister and stared her down. But he was no match for her stubbornness. “Fine,” he said. “Ah’ll go get Miss Fluttershy.” Applejack smiled smugly. “And that’s what they all want to see.” After just an hour working the cider press, Applejack discovered a new respect for her brother’s endurance. She had never been happier to get back to apple bucking. She first confirmed that Fluttershy didn’t need anything else, and then headed back to the orchard. An afternoon without anything strange happening almost made Applejack forget about her troubles. But as she enjoyed dinner with her family and Fluttershy, she remembered her promise to return to Twilight Sparkle’s creepy laboratory. She excused herself after dinner and walked into Ponyville. Twilight Sparkle looked just a little too happy to see Applejack return. “Let’s get started!” “Can we talk, here, before we go into the lab?” Applejack asked. “I suppose so,” Twilight Sparkle replied. “What do you want to talk about?” “Just tell it to me straight. What do Ah have?” “To be honest, I don’t know yet. In studying the manifestation of the twitch I recorded, the magical patterns are consistent with earth pony magic,” Twilight Sparkle explained. “But I still have no idea how it works, or more importantly, why you’re suddenly showing this magic.” Applejack walked slowly to the basement door. “Ah guess we need to go back to the lab.” Soon, Applejack was hooked up to Twilight Sparkle’s machines, but nothing was happening. “This is a consistent problem,” Twilight Sparkle concluded. “A watched Pinkie never twitches.” “Now, Ah won’t speak for her, but do you really think Pinkie wanted to let you record her Pinkie Sense?” Applejack offered. “That is possible,” Twilight Sparkle suggested. “If she recognized that I would then follow her, she might have found that funny, which would be all the reason she would want to do that.” “Well, Ah won’t hold back. Ah’ll talk about anything.” “Let’s talk about every twitch you’ve experienced over the last two days. Perhaps by focusing on them, we could trigger them again,” Twilight Sparkle said. “Ah knew when it was time for lunch. That won’t help now. Wait, Ah got a sense of when we’d run out of cider tomorrow. Ah told Rainbow Dash that she’d better be here by....” Applejack felt a twinge in one of her shoulders, a tickle in her throat, and a tug on her tail. “It’s still 4:38 in the morning.” Twilight Sparkle beamed as she captured more of Pinkie Sense in action. “Wait. You said what time a pony would need to get in line. When will you serve that last mug of cider?” This time, Applejack felt a pinch in the shoulder of her left foreleg, then a pinch in the elbow of her right foreleg, all followed by three flops of her right ear. “2:13 in the afternoon,” she said. Twilight Sparkle’s machine beeped, and its metal arms moved pens wildly across the paper. “Yes, yes!” Twilight Sparkle cheered. “Anything else?” “No more twitches.” Applejack replayed the day in her mind. “Ah encouraged Apple Bloom to fix up our cider press, and Big McIntosh to go talk to Fluttershy. That give you anything?” Twilight Sparkle watched the machine. “That sounds like common sense, but it’s not causing any reaction.” “Ah somehow found a way to get from our barn to the kitchen of Sugarcube Corner,” Applejack recalled. “Just like findin’ my way into your pantry.” “Nothing from the sensors. Oh, I bet it would show some powerful magic if you did that right now, but these sensors wouldn’t go with you.” Applejack sat in silence for a few more minutes, hoping for another twitch, or some unexplainable event. But nothing happened. “I have an idea,” Twilight Sparkle said. She ran upstairs, returning with a plate of corn chips and a bowl of salsa in her telekinetic aura. “Have a snack, Applejack.” “Ah just ate, Twilight.” “Please, just try it,” Twilight Sparkle urged. Applejack dipped a chip into the salsa and popped it into her mouth. “Good,” she said. Then the heat kicked in. “That’s spicy.” “Have a few more,” Twilight Sparkle suggested. Applejack complied with her friend’s request, but soon had to drink from a mug of water. The machine recorded something, and Applejack realized that mug of water wasn’t there before. “Yes!” Twilight Sparkle yelled, jumping in the air. “Ah guess that was there for thirst-related emergencies,” Applejack suggested. The two ponies sat in silence, save for the slurping sounds as Applejack guzzled water. The earth pony set down the mug. “So, can you fix me?” Applejack finally asked. “I haven’t found anything yet. There’s one ritual, but let’s just say it’s not a good idea,” Twilight Sparkle said. “You can tell it to me straight, Twi.” “There are some rare magical diseases, where power flows through a pony at such high and uncontrollable levels that it will eventually kill her. This ritual cures the disease by severing all magical connections.” “That sounds like what Ah need,” Applejack said. “I said all magical connections, Applejack. If I were to use this ritual on you, you wouldn’t experience Pinkie Sense, but you wouldn’t be able to buck apples. You’d have to learn how, all over again,” she explained. “You might never be the same pony.” Twilight Sparkle forced a smile to her face. “Besides, isn’t this a fun little happenstance? Pinkie Pie has these powers, and it’s never bothered her. Why is it bothering you?” “Ah don’t know. It just worries me,” Applejack admitted. “And what if this is contagious?” Twilight Sparkle’s jaw dropped. “I will redouble my research efforts.”