//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 - Preparations // Story: Pinkie The Match-Maker // by Ficta_Scriptor //------------------------------// Chapter 5 – Preparations “A party?” asked Fluttershy bewilderedly. “Pinkie, not every problem can be solved with a party.” “True, very true,” the pink pony commented as she paced back and forth in Fluttershy’s cottage. “But this one can! Have a think, Fluttershy. What am I always missing from my parties?” “I have absolutely no ide—” “That’s right! Meat! I mean… stallions!” Pinkie leapt up onto Fluttershy’s coffee table. “When Scratchy was telling me about it I wasn’t really listening, but now I see exactly what she meant! What’s the easiest way to meet new ponies?” “Um… parties?” “Correct! Star prize! Ding, ding, ding!” Pinkie shouted as she rang imaginary bells. “Mares plus stallions plus parties plus dancing plus alcohol equals the absolute perfect way to find that very special somepony! I can’t believe I never even considered it before!” Pinkie jumped down from the table, almost on top of poor Fluttershy. The timid pegasus was getting even more worried about her friend’s plan now that she thought of the crowds, the noise, the ponies staring at her, judging her… “I don’t know, Pinkie. This sounds kind of… scary.” “But think about it, Fluttershy! You won’t have to go through all the worry of walking up to him all alone and feeling awkward. It’s a party, so everypony can just relax and have a good time. Not to mention that a bit of Paardian courage will go a long way.” “Pardon?” “No, Paardian. You know, alcohol.” “But Pinkie, I’m not really much of a drinker.” Pinkie Pie rolled her eyes. “That’s not the attitude I want to hear from you! Do you want a chance with Ponyville’s sexiest bachelor or not?” I wish she’d stop using the ‘S’ word, Fluttershy thought to herself, feeling her cheeks burn. “Sure I do, but—” “Terrific!” Pinkie bellowed, leaping into the air. “And I’ll be there to make sure everything goes smoothly. I’ll keep Big Mac occupied and take care of any pesky mares who make a move on him, and all you have to do is show up looking beautiful, then I’ll make sure you two get to spend some time together. I’ll keep everything under control, oh bestest pal o’ mine!” “But how do you know he’ll even come to the party?” Pinkie stopped jumping around and fell sharply to the floor, stroking her chin pensively. “Good point… Well, I guess we just need to invite him! He’s bound to want to come! I don’t expect he gets invited to parties all that much, and if he knows that you’ll be there, how could he possibly say ‘no’?” “I… I guess…” Fluttershy sighed, her mind torn between the overwhelming fear and giddy excitement. “Pinkie, I just want to say something.” “Oh yeah? What is it?” A smile crept onto the pegasus’ face. “If you hadn’t tried to help me, I wouldn’t have accomplished anything. I’d still be doing the same thing every day, just wishing for some kind of romantic scenario to happen by magic. Now you’re doing all this for me and I… I wouldn’t have even tried asking him out on a date or anything like that if it weren’t for you. I guess what I’m trying to say is… thank you. Even if I fail, I want you to know how happy I am that you would do something so thoughtful and kind just for me.” “Um… that’s okay, Fluttershy,” the now flustered party pony said in response, averting her friend’s gaze with embarrassment. “But… you don’t get to thank me yet! Not until you and Big Mac share your first kiss.” “If you say so,” Fluttershy chuckled. “So what’s next for the plan? Wouldn’t it be a bit strange if Big Mac was the only stallion there?” “A most impressive observation, Constable Flutter-Tree!” Pinkie exclaimed, quickly coming back to her usual self. “Keep that up and you’ll make Sergeant! We need the perfect guest list for this perfect party… Who knows? Maybe you won’t be the only one who ends up finding that special somepony…” “This is for real? You’re not playin’ me just so I’ll bring my decks again?” “No way!” Pinkie cried. “You were totally right about bringing stallions to the party. In fact, Fluttershy and I are gonna be asking some more along today!” Vinyl Scratch nodded with approval as she leant against the door frame. “Sounds good. Hey, Tavia!” she called over her shoulder. “Yes?” the earth pony called back from within the house. “Pinkie’s having another party this Friday and it’s gonna be packin’ meat! You in?” There was a moment’s pause before Octavia responded. “Will Twilight be there?” Vinyl stifled a laugh, holding a hoof to her lips in an effort to hide her mirth. “Octavia’s totally been carpet-scouting the bookworm,” she whispered. “Yup! Twilight’s gonna be there too!” Pinkie called back, seemingly oblivious to Vinyl’s comment. “Okay, I was just wondering,” Octavia replied casually, still out of sight of the other three mares. “I’ll see if I have a gap in my schedule.” “Well there you go!” Vinyl said cheerfully. “That’s another one for the beef brigade. You know, Pinkie, I’m so glad you’re finally taking my advice. This reminds me of the time I met my ex Woody at a party a couple years back. I swear, I can remember it like it was yesterday…” “But Pinkie,” Fluttershy whispered with a fake grin as Vinyl continued to blabber on. “We haven’t invited any stallions yet.” “Be quiet,” Pinkie whispered back, mimicking Fluttershy’s polite smile. “We’ll get to that soon.” “… and by the end of it I could’ve been passed off as a plasterer’s radio. You know, ‘cause I play music and I was cov—” “That’s really interesting, Scratchy, but we’ve gotta get to it!” Pinkie chimed, cutting off the unicorn in the nick of time. “See you at the party!” After ‘escaping’ from the eccentric DJ, Pinkie and Fluttershy carried on through their tour of Ponyville, a basket of invites in wing and hoof. So far, however, only a few names were checked off the list, and they’d made no headway regarding the ‘stallion hunt.’ For some reason, Pinkie’s method of leaping out at strangers and shouting about cake was proving to be ineffective, and Fluttershy was having trouble getting anypony’s attention at all. “Maybe we should split up,” Pinkie suggested as the two mares trotted along. “It’s gonna take too long otherwise, and the less time I have to spend inviting everypony the more time I can spend getting excited about the party!” “But Pinkie, I’m no good at talking to strangers,” Fluttershy replied timidly. “In that case, you can go invite Twilight and Rainbow Dash while I invite everyone else! Unless of course, you want to invite Big Mac yourself?” Pinkie said with a wry smile. “I… I don’t know if I could do that…” Fluttershy mumbled. “Oh, gosh… I’m nervous all over again!” “Don’t sweat it! I’ll make sure Romeo shows up.” “You… you will?” “Darn straight!” Pinkie said with an affirmative nod. “Now you take care of your last two invites and let your old pal Pinkie sort out the rest. I’ll meet you back at the cottage once I’m done, then we can plan out the perfect night together.” Fluttershy smiled, feeling relieved that she wouldn’t yet have to face the object of her affections. As much as she wanted him to be there, her nerves would probably make for the most awkward party invite in Equestrian history. “Okay. Once again, thank you, Pinkie.” “What did I say before?” Pinkie said as she stuck her tongue out, sprinting off towards Sweet Apple Acres with apparent glee. Fluttershy sighed, setting her sights on Twilight’s library. She had faith in Pinkie, but she wasn’t sure if she had faith in herself. Going by her limited knowledge of romance stories, the idea of dazzling Big Mac with her beauty and being swept off her hooves just didn’t seem all that plausible. Neither of them were very talkative ponies, so long-winded confessions of feelings and poetic speeches were out of the question too. I hope it all goes okay, she thought to herself as she rapped on Twilight’s front door. The purple unicorn quickly came to greet her with a wide grin. “Hi, Fluttershy. How can I help?” “Hi, Twilight. I’m just inviting you to a party on Pinkie’s behalf. She’s busy at the moment setting things up and invi—” “Will Octavia be there?” Twilight interrupted, an eyebrow raised. “No reason, I just… wondered.” Pinkie galloped along to Sweet Apple Acres, the vision of her future party already invading her thoughts. So long as Big Mac was there, everything would be just fine. Fluttershy might be incredibly shy most of the time but when it came down it, she had more backbone and gusto than just about anypony. Who else could stand up to a fully grown dragon? Or a cockatrice? Or Iron Will? Just imagining Fluttershy and Big Mac wrapped in a tender embrace warmed Pinkie’s heart. To think that she would be helping her friend find true happiness was just about the best feeling in the world, even more so than being drenched in chocolate rain. If they were happy, she was happy. All that was left to do was get the ball rolling! She quickly spotted Applejack and Big Mac traipsing up and down the orchard, bucking trees as they went. Now’s my chance, she thought, and sped up into a full-powered sprint, effortlessly leaping over the fence and bounding over to the two siblings. It had crossed her mind that Applejack might have some kind of overreaction to all this, but as far as she was concerned, that would just make things a little more interesting. “Howdy, sugarcubes!” Pinkie called in her best southern accent, gaining the attention of the two ponies. “How’s it going?” “Hey, Pinkie!” Applejack called back, wiping sweat from her brow. “Hey,” Big Mac replied, giving a respectful nod. He didn’t seem to understand that Pinkie was here to talk to him too, as he continued his work, merely flashing a friendly smile as he bucked against another tree. “So, let me guess,” Applejack began, looking curiously at the basket of envelopes. “You’re givin’ out party invites?” “That’s right!” the party pony said cheerfully. “But not for this afternoon, this afternoon. Friday at Sugarcube Corner? There should be an even bigger turn-out than last time!” “Sounds good,” the peach-coated mare replied, taking the invitation and slipping it into a wicker basket half-filled with apples. Upon turning back to her friend, Pinkie had disappeared. “Pinkie, where are…” Several yards away, Pinkie had bounced over to the unsuspecting stallion. “And here’s an invite for you!” she cried, startling Big Mac into misjudging his buck, the pony’s hind legs splaying out as they hit the tree trunk. “Ow,” he said morosely, putting his hooves back down and wincing with pain. “What did you say, Pinkie?” “I said… Here’s an invite for you!” she repeated, pushing the pink envelope practically into his face. “Party. Friday. Sugarcube Corner. You in?” Big Mac opened up the envelope and blushed an even brighter shade of red than his coat. “Me? Come to a party?” “What in tarnation?” Applejack interjected as she paced towards the two other ponies, sounding strangely displeased. “You’re invitin’ Mac?” “Why not?” asked Pinkie with a shrug. “We all know each other, we’re all friends, and it’s high time Big Mac got to go to a party for once. Just about everypony is gonna be there! Scratchy, Octavia, Twilight…” Pinkie emitted a short cough. “And Fluttershy. So, what’s it gonna be? Come on, Big Mac. I have a feeling that somepony wants you to be there…” The stallion glanced nervously between the written invite, the unfathomably cheerful mare in front of him and his apparently confused sister. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “You can’t go in wondering if things like that could happen. Instead, you should be wondering if you’ll find happiness. So the next time you get a chance to spend time with her, grab it by the hooves! Deal?” Well, looks like Ah finally got my chance, he thought to himself, a grin slowly emerging. Ah ain’t backed out on a deal before and Ah sure ain’t lookin’ to make a habit. “Eeyup,” he answered simply, nodding to the pink mare. “Party. Friday. Sugarcube Corner. Ah’m in.” “Wonderful!” Pinkie screamed, leaping almost the height of the apple tree they were stood beside. She wanted to leap onto Big Mac an give him the cuddle of a lifetime for agreeing to come, but considered that that might not be the best plan as of right now. He was reserved for Fluttershy, as far as she was concerned. He’d get more than enough hugs when the time came. “Thanks ever so much! I’ll see you Friday! Goodbye!” she shouted, bouncing back the way she’d come and off towards Fluttershy’s cottage. “But wait a second,” Applejack muttered. “Ah didn’t even say if Ah was gonna be there.” She looked up at her brother, his attempt at hiding his mirth proving to be ineffective. “Would you just wipe that dumb grin off your face and get to it? We’ve got trees to buck!” she instructed sternly, hurling a basket at the stallion’s face. “Sure,” he replied with a chuckle, batting the basket away and moving on to the next tree. He stopped for a moment to look at the invitation once again. For once, things were looking up. “I’m back!” Pinkie cried as she battered on the door to Fluttershy’s cottage. “And you’ll never guess what happened!” Fluttershy opened up the door, allowing her friend inside. “What? What happened? Is Big Mac going to be there?” she asked worriedly. “You betcha! Told you I wouldn’t let you down.” Pinkie raised a single hoof triumphantly. “Oh wow… Okay… This is really going to happen isn’t it?” Fluttershy said nervously, pacing back and forth across the living room. “I just need to take it easy and stay calm. That’s right, calm. I can do calm. I do calm all the time. It’s really easy... Oh, Pinkie, why can’t I stay calm!? What if he’s only coming out of politeness? What if—” Pinkie grabbed the worry-ridden pegasus and threw her onto the sofa. “Don’t get your panties in a twist!” she instructed, holding the trembling pony still. “I’ll have you know that I happened to drop your name when I invited him and he looked pretty happy about it.” Fluttershy clasped a hoof over her mouth. “Oh my gosh, really?” She closed her eyes and took a series of deep breaths before looking back up at her friend again, a tear rolling down her left cheek. “I’m scared, Pinkie. I’m happy, but… I’m so very scared.” “There’s nothing to be afraid of,” Pinkie chirped as she patted Fluttershy on the head. “Every time you feel a little bit scared, just imagine Big Mac with his legs wrapped around you in a big cuddly cuddle. And also remember that your old pal Pinkie will do anything to help you reach that happy ever after.” Fluttershy wiped a tear from her eye and smiled. “Thank you, Pinkie.” She pulled herself forward and gave her friend a warm embrace, one that was gladly accepted by the excitable earth pony. They sat there for a few moments, brimming with raw happiness for each other, when Fluttershy pulled back and shot Pinkie a confused look. “But wait… You said you invited Big Mac, but what about the other stallions?” “Oh, don’t you worry about that,” Pinkie replied with a sly grin. “That’s being taken care of as we speak.” Meanwhile, on the other side of Ponyville “Oh, it would mean the world to have such a handsome chap come to my party,” Rarity said as she ran a hoof across the stallion’s left wing, causing him to sway giddily. “I dare say you might help liven things up a bit, including me.” She turned on her hoof, wafting her coiled tail across the young pony’s face. “That… would be… nice,” the dumbstruck stallion replied between sharp breaths, his tongue hanging out. “Oh, let me just grab you an invite. Let’s see here…” Rarity perched over the basket of envelopes, holding her posterior in the air and wiggling slightly as she pretended to sift through them. “Oh, here’s one!” she exclaimed, turning back to her new acquaintance and tucking it under his wing. “See you there, I hope…” “Y-y-y-yes…” the stallion mumbled, pushing a hoof between his hind legs and smiling awkwardly. “Great,” Rarity said softly, flashing a playful wink before prancing down the street. The young pegasus — seemingly hypnotized — watched as Rarity trotted her way to the end of the street. Once she was out of sight, he immediately darted for home. Ignoring the front door, he flicked open his bedroom window, leapt inside and drew the curtains. Two days later Big Mac brushed his mane back as he stood in front of his bedroom mirror, trying desperately to tame his unruly hair. It was nothing like hers… That beautiful pink mane… How much Ah want to just run my hoof through it and see that sweet smile. He’d missed two chances before. The first was when he’d collected Applejack from the previous party at Sugarcube Corner. All Ah had to do was ask her if she wanted to spend some time with me… Ah saw that face, that look in her eyes and Ah did nothing… The second was two days ago at Sweet Apple Acres. Why did Ah say Ah was meeting Cheerilee? Why did Ah have to rush off like that and just leave her? Why didn’t Ah just… No… Ah’m not dwelling on the past no more. Ah’m not gonna let my nerves get a hold of me. Not today. With his mind set, he walked slowly and deliberately out of his bedroom and up towards the front door. Applejack was busy putting some more logs onto the fire. She turned and smiled as her brother walked past. “You have fun, ya hear?” “You sure yer not comin’?” Big Mac asked, feigning concern. In truth, he didn’t want his sister there at all. Applejack shook her head. “Ah just don’t really feel like it. You go on ahead now.” “Eeyup.” Big Mac nodded and headed outside, letting the cool, wintry air wash over him. Tonight would be a night to remember. Inside the Apple family home, Applejack watched as her brother made his way down the dirt track that led to the rest of Ponyville. She sighed, taking a pew in front of the now roaring fire. She wanted to go, but she knew that she shouldn’t. Big Mac’s reasons for going to the party were obvious, and she knew that if she was there, she could ruin it all for him. She knew that Big Mac had every right to date whoever he wanted, but for it to be one of her closest friends terrified her. No, she didn’t want any of her friends dating her big brother, no matter how well they might treat each other, no matter how happy they might be. It meant that she was a terrible, selfish pony. And that’s why she knew that she couldn’t go tonight. She had to let whatever might happen, happen. It was the right thing to do. Just on the outskirts of the Everfree forest, a young pegasus had just finished putting on the beautiful red dress that Rarity had made. She paused for a moment, turning to a group of critters that had been helping her. They each gave a mixture of nods, smiles and chirps. “You really think I look good?” Fluttershy said aloud, running her hoof across the smooth fabric. Wearing this made her feel more than just beautiful. She felt like a goddess. Her heart was going crazy, her stomach lurched, her legs trembled and her breathing was erratic, but this all felt right. She was being fuelled by hope and adrenaline now. Yes, she was scared, but Pinkie’s advice was working. As she looked up at her reflection she imagined Big Mac stood at her side, gently nuzzling her cheek. Her very future was at stake, but instead of cowering away into a corner like a coward she was ready to face this head on, filled with a new-found confidence that she didn’t even know she had. Thank you, Pinkie. I won’t let you down. “Hey, Pinks. How’s it hanging?” “Sweet as sugar,” Pinkie replied, allowing the frizzy-maned DJ inside. “Octavia will be here as soon as she’s sorted her game-plan for the purple wonder,” Vinyl said as she hooked up her decks and speakers. “You know, it’s funny. That’s the first time I’ve been able to use that line when talking about a mare.” Pinkie giggled at the unicorn’s comment and took a swig of Griffonian rum. She hadn’t been this happy — this carefree — in a long time. She smiled to herself, watching through the windows of Sugarcube Corner as more guests were about to arrive. This really would be the best party ever. And so it begins, she thought to herself. Let operation Fluttermac commence!