//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: Pinkie's Suprise // by vincent5000x //------------------------------// “Put him in the guard house till he gets sober, put him in the guard house till he gets sober, put him the guard house till he gets sober, early in the morning,” Scootaloo sang her verse; her voice jagged and scratchy. “What shall we do with a drunken sailor, what shall we do with a drunken sailor, what shall we do with a drunken sailor, early in the morning,” the other three fillies sang in reply. Surprise and the crusaders couldn’t help but laugh as they finished their first shanty. They didn’t understand what most of it meant, but enjoyed singing it anyways. “Let’s sing the next one!” Apple Bloom called from her post over the apple sheet mast. “Wait, I wanna be Navigator now!” Sweetie Belle yelled back from the front of their makeshift ship, placing her slingshot down in front of her. “There’s nothing to shoot and I’m getting bored!” “Then I wanna be the Quartermaster,” Apple Bloom replied. “No way!” Scootaloo began from her position next to the wheel and Surprise. “I like being the Quartermaster!” “Only because you get to tell us what to do,” Sweetie Belle scolded. “I only tell you what the Captain tells me to tell you,” Scootaloo replied matter-of-factly. “But we don’t have a Captain,” Surprise interjected. “Oh,” Scootaloo mumbled. After a few moments of thought, she finally nodded in agreement. “Surprise, you go take over the cannon.” “You mean the sling shot?” Surprise asked as she moved aside, letting Scootaloo take the wheel. “It’s a pirate ship, so it’s a cannon. I’ll be Helmsmare now,” Scootaloo replied. “Just make sure no other pirates try to flank us.” “But the shore is only two feet away on each side, how are they going to flank us?” Sweetie Belle questioned after finally reaching the roost. “Sky pirates, duh!” Scootaloo replied with a smug grin. “Y’all think Applejack will be mad that we used my bed sheet for our mast?” Apple Bloom asked out of nowhere. “I don’t know,” Scootaloo shrugged, randomly turning the wheel. “Surprise, lead us in our next adventurous shanty, arrr!” “Okay,” Surprise said before she began her rehearsed part. “Oh the times were hard and wages low, Leave her, Johnny, leave her And the grub was bad and the gales did blow, And it’s time for us to leave her!” Skipping the carouse, Scootaloo sang the next verse. “I thought I heard the old man say, Leave her, Johnny, leave her You can go ashore and take your pay, And it’s time for us to leave her!” Sweetie Belle sang the next verse, her voice being too soft for a shanty. “Oh her stern was foul and the voyage was long Leave her, Johnny, leave her The winds was bad and the gales was strong And it’s time for us to leave her!” Finally, it was Apple Bloom’s turn. Before she began, she made sure to clear her throat several times. “And we’ll leave her tight and we’ll… Gah!” Apple Bloom was interrupted mid line as the ship hit something, causing all four fillies to almost fall over board. “Land ho!” Sweetie Belle called several moments later. “Aww… I didn’t even get to finish my verse,” Apple Bloom sighed after regaining her bearings; the disappointment in her voice being clearly obvious to the others. “You can start it next time,” Scootaloo groaned as she rubbed the back of her head with a hoof. “All ashore that’s going ashore!” Sweetie belle called as she rushed off the makeshift ship first. A few moments later, all four fillies stood on the muddy shore, each wondering where they had ended up. “Where do you think we are?” Scootaloo asked as the four of them looked at the mass of muddy ponds and trees in front of them. “I think we’re near the swamp,” Apple Bloom, pulling her hoofs out of some mud. “I think we should get back on the ship,” Sweetie Belle replied as the fur turned back around. All four fillies’ hearts began to sink as they watched the makeshift ship drift away, slowly sinking in the process. “Now what?” Surprise asked as she became more and more worried. “We’ll just follow the river back,” Scootaloo replied with a confident grin. “We gotta be careful though,” Apple Bloom said as the four of them began to walk. “Applejack says that a lot of these rivers just curve back around and what not.” “Oh…” Scootaloo mumbled as they walked up to a fork in the river. “So which one do we take?” “Let’s take this one,” Apple Bloom said, leading the group down the closest river. But before the group could get far, Gummy jumped out of Surprise’s bag and swam over to the other side of the river; stopping once he made it to shore. “Gummy, what are you doing?!” Surprise called, stopping in her tracks. “What’s he doin?” Apple Bloom asked as the other three looked over at the alligator in confusion. “Should we go get him?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Maybe he’s trying to tell us something,” Scootaloo said as she looked around. Soon enough, she noticed a point in the river shallow enough for them all to cross. “Come on, let’s go get him.” After a few minutes and some wet manes, all four fillies made it to the other side of the river. But just as they were about to grab Gummy, he rushed off, following alongside the river. “I guess he wants us to follow him,” Apple Bloom guessed, following the small alligator. For a few minutes, the fillies followed Gummy in silence. Several times’ they had to cross the river at shallow points, only to follow a different river. “So, Surprise?” Sweetie Belle said, breaking the silence first and catching the youngest filly’s attention. “How do you like Ponyville so far?” “It’s okay,” Surprise mumbled, frowning as she walked. “I’d rather be back home though…” “And where’s that?” Scootaloo asked. “Manehattan,” Surprise replied. “What happened?” Apple Bloom asked. Instantly, Surprise stopped where she was, her eye’s closing as she began to fight back tears. “There was an accident…” Surprise began to sob. Before she could stop herself, she felt her own mental wall break as she collapsed to the ground in tears. Like she had so many times already, Surprise cried into her foreleg’s, barely noticing as the crusaders tried to comfort her. “We’re sorry Surprise, we didn’t mean to make you sad,” Sweetie Bell began to apologize. “I know,” Surprise chocked out. A few minutes later, Surprises tears subsided as she stood back up, wiping her face with a hoof. “I’m sorry everypony, I didn’t mean to cry.” “It’s okay, Surprise,” Apple Bloom assured, pulling Surprise into a warm hug. “Sometimes ponies cry, and there aint nothing wrong with that.” “Yeah,” Sweetie Belle said, joining the hug. “Sometimes, crying helps a lot more then somepony would think.” For several minutes, the two crusaders continued to hug Surprise. Each hoping to ease their new friends pain. Soon enough, even Scootaloo joined in the hug. “Thanks everypony,” Surprise said as the fillies ended the hug. Even she had to admit that she felt a little better. “Come on,” Apple Bloom said, walking a few steps down the river. “We should get back to the farm before my sister starts to worry.” “Okay,” the others replied. Gummy, who had waited silently and motionless just a few feet away, continued to lead the group back up the river. * * * “And I can’t help but worry about her Twilight,” Rarity finished. “Rarity…” Twilight sighed. “I know you’re worried, and you have plenty of reason to be. But I promised Pinkie that I wouldn’t tell anypony until she was ready.” “So then you know what’s wrong?!” Rarity just about yelled, causing Twilight to jump back slightly. “Well, yes… but—“ “Twilight, you have to tell me what it is!” Rarity just about begged. “Even if you ‘Pinkie Promised’.” “Rarity…” Twilight tried to begin, only to fall silent to Rarity’s firm gaze. “Twilight, I will not leave here until you tell me something, understood?” Rarity huffed, flicking her mane in defiance. “… Okay,” Twilight relented. “I don’t know the whole story, but I guess Surprise’s parents died in a fire.” “Oh the poor dear,” Rarity replied, taken aback by what she had heard. “Yes, by what I read, there was a electrical fire in the middle of the night and only, Surprise made it out,” Twilight continued. “Oh, no wonder Pinkie Pie was so sad,” Rarity wailed. “She must be so worried about that little filly.” “Yes, she is,” Twilight replied with a sigh. “Pinkie Pie said that she won’t talk to anypony about what happened.” “Is there anything we can do?” Rarity asked out of concern. “I’m not sure,” Twilight replied, levitating a nearby book closer to them. “I’ve read a few books, but the best we can do, since we're not professionals, is to show, Surprise that there are ponies that care for her.” “Yes Twilight, I suppose your right,” Rarity agreed with a nod. “Is there anything else.” “There is…” Twilight began with some hesitation. “Well, what is it?” Rarity inquired. “I’m sorry Rarity,” Twilight replied, not even flinching at Rarity’s harsh gaze. “But this is something, Pinkie Pie needs to tell everypony on her own.” “Okay, Twilight,” Rarity sighed, getting up to leave. “Thank you for at least helping me to understand what’s wrong with our friend.” “Just promise me, you won’t go telling everypony about Surprise,” Twilight pleaded. “She doesn’t need everypony acting strangely towards her.” “Oh, Twilight,” Rarity giggled as she headed out the library door. “She’s going to tell the whole town, isn’t she?” Spike asked from the kitchen door. “Most likely,” Twilight sighed, her head dropping. “I really hope this doesn’t come back to bite me in the flank.” * * * “So did you have a nice day today, sweetie?” Cup Cake asked Surprise as the family ate dinner. “It was fun,” Surprise said with a light smile. “We made a ship and sailed down a river on the farm, singing these things called shanties.” “Well that sounds fun, right Pinkie?” Carrot Cake said, drawing Pinkie Pie into the conversation. “Yep,” Pinkie Pie replied with a smile. “So what happened then?” Cup Cake asked. “Well, we got kinda lost,” Surprise admitted. “But, Gummy lead us all back to, Apple Bloom’s house where we had lunched and played games for the rest of the day.” “Yay, Gummy!” Pinkie Pie cheered as she pulled said alligator out of nowhere and proceeded to toss him up and down a few times. “So what are you going to do tomorrow?” Cup Cake asked. “Well, I was hoping to spend the day with the Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo again,” Surprise replied with a hopeful smile. “I’m sorry, Surprise,” Pinkie Pie began. “But they have school tomorrow, so they won’t be able to play until well after lunch.” “Oh…” Surprise sighed, disappointment clear on her face. “But we can hang out if you want!” Pinkie Pie quickly began. “We can play games, and I can show you the best spots in town to hide things, or we can even go prank somepony. How does that sound?” “No thanks,” Surprise sighed, slowly picking at her food. “Oh, okay…” Pinkie Pie replied, a clear look of disappointment on her face. “You could spend the day helping us in the shop if you want,” Carrot Cake offered. “No thank you,” Surprise replied before turning her attention to Cup Cake. “Can’t I just go to school to?” “Uh,” Cup Cake began, clearly caught off guard. “I’m sorry sweetie, but you can’t start school until next year.” “But how come?” Surprise asked. “Because the school years almost over, and you only just turned five,” Pinkie Pie replied. “I’m sorry, but we can still do stuff tomorrow.” “Whatever,” Surprise huffed. With that, the room fell to near silence as the only sounds came from the twins; who had begun to throw food at each other once again. “I got it!” Pinkie Pie suddenly snapped, causing everypony to jump slightly. Before anypony could stop her, Pinkie Pie rushed out of a nearby window and out into the street. “Does she do stuff like that often?” Surprise asked. “Yep,” Cup Cake and Carrot Cake replied; both twins nodding in agreement as well. * * * “Okay,” Rainbow Dash said as she looked up at the poster she had just hung. It was a special Wonderbolt collectible, signed by over half the team. The entire room, Rainbow Dash was in had similar posters hung all around her. There was also a cloud desk with a few action figures and a cloud bed with a Wonderbolt sleeping set on one side of the room. On the other side was a bookcase that held a copy of every Daring Do book up to date and a small dresser. “I hope this is enough…” Rainbow Dash sighed as she gazed around the room. She couldn’t help but chuckle at the memory of the room once being a oversized storage closet. “I still cant believe I’m actually doing this.” “Rainbow Dash!” a loud and energetic voice called. “Wha… Pinkie Pie?!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, completely caught off guard as the pink mare floated up through the floor, carried by several balloons tied to her back. “Good, you’re still here,” Pinkie Pie smiled at her friend. “I need to ask you something.” “Pinkie, how many times do I have to tell you not to float up through my floor!” Rainbow Dash nearly yelled. “It softens the cloud and if its not tough enough, the inspector could hit me for it!” “I’m sorry, Rainbow Dash,” Pinkie Pie replied as she slowly spun. “But I have to ask you something.” “Ug… what is it, Pinkie?” Rainbow Dash asked. “I know you don’t have work tomorrow, so I was wondering if, Surprise could spend the morning with you?” Pinkie Pie asked. “Uh, well I guess I could,” Rainbow stuttered, not sure where the question had come from. “But, why ask me?” “Well, you’re both pegasi, and I know, Surprise would like it,” Pinkie Pie began to reply. “So, will you do it?” “Fine, fine,” Rainbow Dash replied. “Just come find me in the morning or something, okay?” “Oh, thank you so much!” Pinkie Pie cheered as she pulled Rainbow Dash into a hug. “I know she’s just going to love it!” “Whatever,” Rainbow Dash sighed as she pulled out of the hug. “Now is that it, or is there something else you wanna talk about?” “Not really,” Pinkie pie said as she took a good look around the room. “Wow, is this going to be Scoot’s new room?” “Yep, last inspection is in a few days,” Rainbow Dash replied with a smile. “Then, all I need is final signature or two and it’s all as good as done.” “That is so awesome! I can’t wait to throw you two a party!” Pinkie Pie cheered. “Thanks Pinkie,” Rainbow Dash chuckled, glad to see her friend so excited. “Well, I’m gonna hit the hay, if you know what I mean.” “Wait,” Pinkie Pie called before Rainbow Dash could leave the room. “What, want me to fly you back home or something?” Rainbow Dash asked with a chuckle. “No, I was just wondering if you could help me get a cloud bed for, Surprise,” Pinkie Pie replied as she inspected the bed with her eyes. “It’ll cost a bit, but I think I know a guy,” Rainbow Dash replied with a wave of her hoof. “Now If you’ll excuse me, this pony needs her shut eye.” “Okay, good night Dashie,” Pinkie Pie said, popping one of her balloons. Slowly, she began to sink under the clouds, disappearing from sight. “I don’t even know why I bother scolding her anymore,” Rainbow Dash facehoofed, hoping the spot in the floor hadn’t weakened too much, if at all. * * * “I don’t feel very comfortable with you watching me bathe,” Surprise told the small alligator standing on the nearby sink. Ever since she had happed into the bubbly water, Gummy had been watching her with his unblinking eyes. It wasn’t that she really cared, she just didn't want him randomly jumping in for no reason. “You alright in there sweetie?” Cup Cake asked through the bathroom door. “Gummy won’t stop staring at me!” Surprise yelled back, chucking a hoof full of bubbles at the alligator. “Yeah… he does that,” Cup Cake audibly sighed. “Just try to ignore him.” “But I can’t!” Surprise replied. “Oh, Gummy!” Pinkie’s voice suddenly called. Almost instantly, the little alligator hopped off the sink and headed out of the slowly opening door. A few second later, Pinkie Pie made her way in, a green tail disappearing into her mane. “What do you want?” Surprise asked as she hid behind a mound of bubbles. “I just thought you’d like to know that I found something for you to do tomorrow,” Pinkie Pie replied with a smile. “I already said I didn’t want to do anything with you,” Surprise grumbled. “Then it’s a good thing I asked my awesome friend, Rainbow Dash if she wanted to hang out with you,” Pinkie Pie said with a teasing grin. “Really?” Surprise chirped, her head popping out of the bubbles. “Yep,” Pinkie Pie nodded. “She said she would, but if you happen to change your mind, we could—“ “Cool!” Surprise interrupted, squealing in delight, not noticing Pinkie’s look of disappointment. “Yeah, well,” Pinkie Pie began stuttering. “Once breakfast is over, we’ll go find her and then you two can spend the morning together, okay?” “This is going to be so cool!” Surprise squealed in delight. “Miss Cake also made some snacks if you’re hungry,” Pinkie Pie continued, trying to catch Surprises attention. “Maybe she’ll show me a Sonic Rainboom,” Surprised mussed, forgetting all about the other mare in the room. With a reluctant sigh, Pinkie Pie left and headed back down into the shop. With the lights off and the bakery closed, nopony noticed as Pinkie Pie slowly made her way behind the counter, hiding herself from view. After a few minutes of silence, she reached into her mane and pulled out the small alligator. Gummy simply blinked as Pinkie Pie hugged him tightly against her body, a few tears dripping onto his head.