Morning fog hid most of the train station from view. An afternoon, evening, and night of unexpected rain left Ponyville quiet and humid.
Octavia leaned against their pile of luggage and yawned. She was wearing a white collar and pink bow tie, her standard dress for playing a fancy party. “Why’d this gig have to be so early?”
Concerto reached over to straighten her tie. “Because this way we’ll have plenty of time to look for our new apartment.”
She batted his hoof away and set to work on his own crooked tie. “And once we find it we’re sleeping in for a week. After a party like that I think that’s all the honeymoon I can take. My ears are still ringing from… what did she call it? Vinyl’s Fifth Symphony?”
“Maybe we should’ve skipped the encore performance.”
Hooves knocking against the wooden platform drew their attention. Six ponies and one dragon were approaching through the fog.
“Pinkie?”
Pinkie waved. “Surprise. We just came to say goodbye.”
Fluttershy bowed her head. “And that we’re sorry.”
Applejack took her hat in her hooves. “Mighty sorry. Pinkie planned out everything so perfect and we had to go and mess it up.”
Rainbow Dash had bags under her eyes and a sleep-deprived scowl on her face. “Would’ve been fine if the dumb cloud shipment hadn’t been a week early.”
“Come now, Rainbow,” Rarity chided, “we all had a hoof in the disaster.”
Octavia held up a hoof. “You’re forgetting about the good part. Sure, reception didn’t turn out like we expected but you ponies pulled it together in the end. It’s like I said, we wouldn’t even be married if it wasn’t for all of you.”
Twilight blushed. “That’s sweet of you to say, Octavia. I still feel bad about falling asleep.”
Spike stifled a laugh. “And I’m never letting you live it down.”
Twilight glared at him while everypony else laughed.
A bundle of paper rose out of Twilight’s saddlebag and set itself next to their mountain of luggage. “I don’t suppose you have room for one more present.”
Concerto eyed the package. “Oh we couldn’t, not after everything you’ve already done prin–”
“Twilight, just Twilight.”
“err, Twilight. What you said at our wedding was thanks enough.”
Pinkie jumped up and down. “Oh come on. Open it, open it, open it!”
Octavia laughed. “Fine, fine. We’ll open it.”
The package was rectangular and flat, like a book. Once the paper was torn open dozens of photographs slid out into Octavia’s hooves. Everything from the wedding, both the failed reception and the successful party, was captured here on film. The final picture was of them playing their instruments while Vinyl backed them on up on her synthesizer.
“How did you… how did you know? This is just what we wanted.”
Spike smiled and took a bow. “Pinkie asked me to keep an ear out for what you two wanted, so when Concerto here kept talking photos…”
Concerto stared at him. “You asked how I proposed… You said you just wanted some suggestions.”
Spike’s gaze briefly went to Rarity and then his face turned red. “I… uh… it was all part of me being your personal assistant, that’s all!”
The whistle of an oncoming train filled the station. Octavia glanced over to their bags and then to the track. “That’s our train. If we’re not on it we’ll miss our gig.”
Rarity kept trying to look Spike in the face, despite his attempts to turn away. “Why Spikey Wikey, why have you gone all red in the face? What’s the matter?”
“Uh… Let me help you with the bags, Concerto!”
The little dragon ran forward and hefted a load of suitcases twice is own size. “Next stop, Canterlot.”