//------------------------------// // Chapter One - Like she's never danced before... // Story: Leap of Faith: Generosity Vs. Laughter // by Wolokai //------------------------------// "Spring...a peaceful time of year...a beautiful time of year. Temperatures are just right...not too hot...not too cold, and are just perfect for outdoor outings and enjoying a good time with your friends. It's the season of joy...season of life...season of love. Love...as beautiful as a rainbow, and as sweet as candy. How does love even work, one wonders. In mysterious ways I suppose. It has various forms...I know. Love for a friend, love for a pet, love for...somepony. It's not fair...now that I really think about it...it's just not fa-" KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!!!! "Pinkie please answer me!!!! PLEASE! You're worrying me darling please open the door!" Rarity shouted and screamed, trying her best to shove her shoulder against the door to bust it open. Being a mare of grace and more mental focus then of physical, this particular task was too much for the fashion diva, and was instead forced to scream at the door instead, trying her hardest to reach the distraught mare on the other side. "I'm fine Rarity! Just...just go away!" Pinkie Pie shouted back, hugging and rocking herself back and forth slightly. She sniffed as she looked towards her bathroom, tears flowing from her eyes as Rarity continued to shout and bang on the door. She quietly slumped to the floor, her straight, pink mane flowing over her body and face as she whimpered "How could this have happened.....?" Leap of Faith: Generosity Vs. Laughter One Month Earlier... It was just the beginning of Spring in the good town of Ponyville, around the days of late March and early April. Birds were coming home in swarms to rebuild their lives from their winter pilgrimage to the south, animals of all shapes and sizes emerged from dens to start anew and gather food for the next winter, and even the ponies of Ponyville mimicked (in a way) the same ways, shops opening and farms tilled and planted for the next season. It was only the very start of day, with the sun only having just peaked the treetops of the Everfree Forest. A beautiful, breath-taking red glow had begun to shine over the small, tranquil town, leaving ponies to gasp and stare up into the ruby sky as if they were watching fireworks. For one pony in particular, a mare with a fashion sense as keen as Pinkie's Pinkie Sense, the glow gave not only astonishment and wonder...but inspiration. Rarity Geminavi sighed, her small blindfold like mask hanging off of her horn and her mane what most would describe as "Leaf Blower". She was enjoying a warm sip of hot coffee, staring outwards towards the beautiful streets of town from her bedroom window on the second floor of the Carousel Boutique, her fashion shop and home. "Oh how beautiful...yes...yes I could do such wonders with this...a new line perhaps?" She muttered quietly to herself, her eyes narrowed in concentration and thought as she took another sip of coffee and swallowed with a slight grimace. "More salt licks..." she grunted slightly, eyes flicking down to her magically levitated cup for only a brief moment before they looked back up to stare over the rosy morning. "Well..." she sighed, turning her head towards her bed and smiling "Maybe a new dress for the little one...". Sweetie Belle was still curled up in the safety of Rarity's blankets, her small face relaxed and free of troubles. The elder sister could not help but smile as the sun rose higher and higher up into the air, spreading its glow into her bedroom and over the face of her younger sister. She giggled as the young filly rolled over and groaned slightly "Just five more minutes Rarity..." At this, the fashion mare flicked her head to the right, flinging the blindfold mask onto her nightstand and turning to trot down the stairs and into the kitchen. "Some breakfast is in order I believe" She smiled, looking forward to a brand new day, with brand new dresses! ~~~ All was quiet in the bakery known famously...and infamously, as Sugar Cube Corner. Sweets, candies, cakes, and all other manners of baked goods rested perfectly and neatly in rows on shelves and display cases in the lower floor of the shop. They were all magically preserved with a simple charm, one that faded once a product left the safety of the bakery. Besides, how awful would it be if such a delicious and beautiful treat just went to waste on a shelf, with nopony getting the chance to sink their teeth into such a tasty, scrumptious morsel? The thought was not even conceivable for the Party Pony of Ponyville, Pinkie Pie herself who was sprawled out over her bed upstairs in her quiet, tiny bedroom. While indeed it was silent in her room (apart from her light snoring), her room screamed 'LOUD!'. Streamers, balloons, her Party Cannon for Celestia's sake, all littered the slightly cramped room. A massive chalkboard rested itself along one of the walls, pink scrawls and jumbles of words littering the entire expanse of the board. The only real thing discernible that could be read out of the pink, chaotic mess were the three words 'NEW PARTY IDEAS!!!!'. Yes...all was quiet...and then the twins woke up. As if on instinct, Pinkie Pie flung her hooves up to her ears and groaned, rolling over to face the window, her back turned to the wailing noise. This didn't really have much of an effect as Pinkie now suddenly hissed at the red glow of the sun that had just reached the peak of her bedside window. She hissed "The light!!! It burnssssssss!!!!!!" and rolled back over to face the wailing, which she could only label with as much sanity as she of all ponies had, 'The Lesser of Two Evils'. Her headache was expected, the furious pounding at her skull informing her that she needed some coffee and a LOT of water, stat! It had been a late night for the mare...from what she could remember. The voices of Mrs.Cake only briefly met Pinkie's ears as she made a slow walk towards her dresser's mirror, staring at her own Aqua Blue eyes, thin lines of red etching themselves in the once pearly whiteness of them. "Now now dearies! No need to cry...mama's got ya!" Mrs.Cake cooed to her children from down the hall, drawing Pinkie Pie to smile as she thought about how wonderful the Cakes were being to her lately. She knew it was only out of comfort...reassurance more like. Her eyes slowly looked over towards the left, no longer lingering over the several strands of straight, dark pink hair that blended into her usual bubbling mess of a mane. The calender marked today as yet another visit...another diagnosis...another miserable evening that would most likely end up with her going back to the Corral. She didn't know what drew there...to those dark halls and the overcrowded dance floor. Perhaps it was the music DJ-PON3 and DJ-0CT4V1A played around the clock, or the booze...or maybe just to get away from the realization that things probably were NOT going to be ok. Her train of thought was broken, her eyes shifting towards her bedroom door as Mr.Cake's voice echoed from the nearby hallway "Pinkie dear! We're having some breakfast soon if you'd like to join us!". Pinkie didn't respond, simply walking towards her door with a bit of a limp in her step. As she descended the stairs, the memories of the previous night poked and prodded at her throbbing skull, forcing her to relive them over and over. ~*~ Vinyl's Cage Corral - The Previous Night "WOOHOO! Work it girl!!!" A colt shouted to a mare next to Pinkie Pie, who was trying her best to push through the swelling, throbbing crowd that took up the entire dance floor in the Corral. She had only just arrived to the establishment, her hair threatening to deflate and fall over her shoulders at a moments notice. She had only come back from the scheduled appointment, the doctors demanding she return the next day for another few checkups to confirm their suspicions. The entire ordeal had taken a lot out of the poor Party Pony...and for the first time since she left the rock farm...she couldn't find the strength to make herself smile, or even conceive of the thought of partying. No...there would be no partying for her tonight, she decided...only haze. A drunken haze that she could lose herself in, to escape the pain of the past few days. She pushed through the final barrier of fleshy dancers, heaving herself into one of the stools and holding up one of her hooves. DJ Shake n' Bake, resident Bartender of the Corral, smiled and made his way over, cleaning a glass with magic. "Hey Pinks!" he shouted over the thudding bass of Vinyl's equipment "What brings you to the party park!? You looking for a good time?!!" Pinkie shook her head, shouting back "Nah! I'm looking to get good and wasted! Give me a shot of Cider-Six with three drops of Braeburned, hold the ice!" Shake blinked in surprise, his eyes widening as he yelled "By Celestia's Mane Pinkie what the hell you need that strong a hit for!? Somepony in your family die!?" Pinkie chuckled slightly, pushing her now straightened hair out of her face and shouting over the noise "Not really! I'm just looking to take a break from the world, you know?!" Shake nodded, smiling and levitating the desired bottles over to a small glass as he spoke "Yeah I hear ya!!! You better down this quick and get out there, I hear one of your fav's is coming on!!!" Pinkie nodded to him, picking up the glass in a carefully balanced hoof once it was filled. She was thankful Shake and Vinyl had managed to score the 'HEAVY ALCOHOL's LICENSE' from Canterlot, the only permit that allowed stronger then average drinks to be sold at the Corral. It was a purely 'Drink at your own risk' type of deal, with ponies having to sign a waiver before they were permitted to get into the strong stuff...which included Cider-Six and Braeburned. She had only once had such a volatile mixture before from Applejack, who was the original developer of the smashing drink. It was as close to an equivalent as Cousin Braeburn's Braeburned then anything else, with just one advantage: Cider-Six could hammer you faster then Braeburned as long as it had a few drops from the drink accompanying it. It was this secret mixture that Pinkie found herself drinking, slinging back the glass and sloshing the brown froth into her mouth. She downed it with a swift gulped and immediately started to giggle, her mind and vision partially blurring. It was quite a feat, according to Applejack, creating a drink that could instantly bring the most alcohol-hardened mare like Pinkie or Berry Punch to being tipsy. Pinkie flipped her hoof twice more, getting two more shots slid towards her which she downed with such posture that you think she was some kind of professional. Despite her suddenly feeling lightheaded and sick...Pinkie couldn't help but giggle, and even laugh slightly. All worries and thoughts of the day and the depressing one that was sure to follow evaporated from her brain, the only thing filling it now being the thudding bass and the screaming hoots and hollers of the dancers. She spun in her stool as she heard Vinyl Scratch tap the microphone above her turntable and shout "YOOOO EVERYPONY IN THE CORRAL LET ME HEAR YA SCREAAAAAAAAAAAM!!!!" Pinkie's screams were drowned out by the thunderous roars and shouts from the rest of the corral, Vinyl's voice barely audible over the noise "Buck yeah that's what I'm talking about! You've just finished listening to DJ-0CT4V1A's track Xephyr, the very same track we played at the Canterlot Music Gala thingy a few months ago! It's my turn now everypony, but I need to know if you're ready!!!!" The thunderous screams of the crowd met the DJ mare's ears and brought a wide smile across her face as Octavia gave Vinyl a small hug and made her way off stage. "Alright then!" Vinyl shouted, slipping on her headphones and turning up the Bass on her turntable to 'RAPE' setting (A label she had made herself with a small roll of duct-tape). She looked up as Pinkie Pie made her way to the middle of the crowd, finding a small clearing on the floor to where she could finally get her mind off of EVERYTHING. "Hey hey!!!" Vinyl Scratch shouted, catching sight of Pinkie "Look's like we got Ponyville's resident Party Pony here tonight! Let's get things shaking ya'll!!! Come on, let me see ya dance like a MANE-IAC!!!" A light synth-like noise starting to play through the speakers, followed by the loud thudding base of the speakers. The crowd started to get into the rhythm of the beat, dancing slightly and cheering as Pinkie went right into the groove. She hopped up on her rear hooves and held out her front hooves at her side, her middle swinging in a circle and her head bobbing back and forth to the beat. As the lyrics flew from Vinyl's mouth on stage, Pinkie's rear hooves began to slide with snappy movements on the floor, doing a dance that everypony knew as 'Shuffling' "Just a Party Pony on a Saturday night, looking for the time of her life! In Ponyville noone hates her at all, they all say she's craaazy! Like the rhythms to the beat of her hooves, changing parties into life! She has danced into the party zone, where the pony becomes the dance! "She can dance into the night, with her mane free and so light! Let us get down to the dance she rocks toniiight!" "It's Pinkie Pie, Piiiinkie Pie's on the floor! And she's dancing like she's never danced befoooore!!! Yeah it's Pinkie Pie, Piiiinkie Pie's on the floor!!!! And she's dancing like she's never danced befoooore!!!!" The crowd screamed with delight as several ponies quickly rushed up next to her, getting into her groove and mimicking her wild movements as the music continued. "From the light of day to the dark of night, there's a place most never see! It is dominated by a pony we know, you can see her bouncing all daaay! You work all damn day with no peace at all, you just need sweet reeeealease!!! It's the beats of the hooves of a bubblegum mare, dancing without much caaare." "She can dance into the night, with her mane free and so light! Let us get down to the dance she rocks toniiight!" "It's Pinkie Pie, Piiiinkie Pie's on the floor! And she's dancing like she's never danced befoooore!!! Yeah it's Pinkie Pie, Piiiinkie Pie's on the floor!!!! And she's dancing like she's never danced befoooore!!!!" The last thing Pinkie remembered was finishing her dance with heaving breath and hearing nothing but solid ringing as ponies screamed and cheered for her. ~~~ Pinkie thought about the previous night as she sat at the kitchen table with the Cakes, watching as Mrs.Cake spoon fed the twins. She smiled slightly as the mother made small little airplane noises to try and get the twins to take their food. The tiny filly seemed all for the idea...but the foal had other ideas, choosing instead to bang on his high-chair until his tiny bowl of baby food fell to the ground. Pinkie's smile faded quickly as Mr. Cake looked over from his place across from her and smiled slightly...a comforting smile at his best. "So..." he muttered, swallowing a bite of his cereal "Let us know if there's anything we can do Pinkie...let us know how the appointment goes, ok?" 'Oh right...' Pinkie thought, staring down at her bowl of cold, wet, depressing cereal and fighting the urge to cry 'Reality does exist...'