//------------------------------// // Adventures in Ponyville: Party Hard // Story: Courage // by scion //------------------------------// Link walked nearly silently in the growing dark towards the farm where the party he had been invited to was being held. The party was at the barn, according to Midna. He honestly couldn't make out the writing, but he trusted her. Besides, that's where Epona was, so it made sense to him to hold it there. He was looking forward to it, as having it in the barn meant that once it was all over he'd get a nice soft bed again. As he approached, he saw that the barn doors were wide open. Light and sound leaked out, and it was not hard to tell that there were quite a few ponies there and that the festivities had already started. Link approached slowly. He was very aware of the reactions of the ponies during his last visit to Ponyville. With his appearance, he was surprised they were giving him a chance. He wasn't exactly the kind of animal a pony would like to see around town. How many ponies could there really be here? "Hey, he's here! Everypony, one, two, three!" "Welcome to Ponyville, Link!" A giggle came from his shadow at his look of utter bewilderment. --- "Ah! Good, he's here, now I can ask him–" "Silly Twilight!" Pinkie cut off. Twilight looked around frantically as the stack of papers she had suddenly disappeared. "This is a party, not an interrogation!" "I know that Pinkie, I just wanted to ask him some questions! I need more information and this might be the only time I can get him and Fluttershy in a room together long enough–" Twilight found herself cut off by a pink hoof in her mouth. "Nope. We are here to give him a great big warm welcome to our town, not ask him pointed questions about things he doesn't know the answer to. This party is about letting everypony get to know him!" "But–" "Nope! No questions. He needs to meet some ponies, and relax, and he can't do either of them if you're being a party-pooper." Twilight lowered her head. She raised it with a determined grin on her muzzle. "You're right Pinkie, I'm sorry. I should be enjoying the party, not badgering him for answ– NOT THAT BOTTLE!" Twilight raised her voice to be heard over the din of the DJ just in time to prevent Applebloom from pouring part of a bottle of hot sauce into a dog bowl that they were using to give Link punch. "Sorry!" came Applebloom's voice back. Twilight shook her head. "Why do you even put a bottle of hot sauce near the punch?" Twilight asked Pinkie. In all the parties she had been to, it had appeared at a disturbing amount. Pinkie just giggled and bounced away. --- "Bon Bon, why are we here?" Lyra hissed at her friend. Her eyes were wide as she carefully watched Link, her tail swishing nervously behind her. "Because he saved me from the diamond dogs," Bon Bon replied, finishing her punch. A tail swish betrayed her nervousness despite her calm reply. "Besides, Pinkie and the others aren't scared." "Fluttershy is," Lyra shot back. The pegasus in question was uneasily looking around, as though something could pounce on her at any moment. "She looks like that every time she comes to town," Bon Bon argued back. She swished her tail nervously. Both mares watched as the wolf everypony was calling Link approached the yellow pegasus. She then proceeded to chat with him more than she had to most ponies in town. "Huh," Lyra said. "See? He can't be that bad," Bon Bon told her friend. "I hope." "What was that?" "Nothing!" Link, his 'conversation' with Fluttershy finished, was heading their way. Lyra drew back a bit but Bon Bon stood firm. "Hey," she greeted. Lyra drew up several cautious steps behind her friend. Link regarded them curiously. "So... uh... how do you like the party?" Bon Bon asked with a forced smile. Link cocked his head. "Yea.... anyways, I brought over some homemade candy as a 'thank you' for saving me from those diamond dogs," she continued. She offered him a hoof with a bag of hard-boiled sweets in it, neatly wrapped with a small bow. Link eyed it for a minute. Then he sniffed it. His ears perked up at that. He gave Bon Bon a little whuf, then picked it up and continued on, his tail wagging ever so slightly as he did so. "See? Not bad at all." --- "Link!" Link's ears perked at the call. There were many equines here in this barn, but there was only one horse. He would know her anywhere. "There's a game you need to play!" she said, bumping him with her head to try to get him up. Link whined. He wasn't done with his cupcake yet. The little pink confection was only half devoured. "You can finish your cupcake on the way over," she assured him with another head bump. Link rolled his eyes as he rocked back onto his belly. Then he got to his paws and, with a single bite, inhaled the rest of the cupcake. He licked his lips as he followed his friend through the path she cleared. "PIN THE TAIL ON THE PONY!" Link found himself involuntarily pushed into a small clearing in the party. Then his vision went dark. Link yelped in surprise as a blindfold was tied around his head, obscuring his vision. He shrunk back, tail between his legs, even as he felt something that tasted like hair shoved into his mouth just as firm hooves grasped him and spun him around. He'd played a variant of this game before, so he knew what to do. He just wished he hadn't been led into an ambush for it. His ears pricked and swiveled– there was no noise in front of him, that must be where the target was. He guessed the picture was in the center, and since they had all called out pin the tail on the pony, he assumed it would be slightly off center, he guessed to the right. He hadn't gotten a good look. With that, he began cautiously walking forward. When he felt he was getting near, he began probing with his forepaw, trying to get a sense of where the wall was. He felt it soon enough, and stretched out his neck, cautiously shuffling forward so he didn't slam his nose into the wall– His nose bumped wall and he pinned the tail– it must have really been tailhairs at some point– to the wall, hopefully near where it was supposed to go. Laughter told him he must not have hit his mark even before he managed to get the blindfold off his eyes. A single look confirmed it. The pony on the wall now sported a straw-yellow moustache that reached below its hooves. Link yelped as he was dragged back to the clearing. "You get three tries!" came the enthusiastic voice as it tied the blindfold around his eyes again. --- Link was wiped out. The night had passed in a blur of ponies, especially one particular pink one. His stomach was filled with sugary treats and tasty drinks. He had played games. He had watched others play games. He had been petted (and had managed to discourage repeats with a few growls. Except for the foals. Those huge eyes were just too much even for him). It had been a long night. But now, the party was at it's end. Most of the ponies had left more than an hour ago, and the party planner Pinkie had taken his attempt to rest his eyes as a signal that it was time to end the party. And so, the last of the party goers headed out the door just as Pinkie herself gathered the last of the decorations, threw them in a barrel that was stuffed full of trash, and closed the barn door behind her, Link found himself alone at last with his friend. Epona nickered, then walked over to a large pile of hay that was serving as her bed and settled herself. It took Link a few moments to get himself up, but he followed his good friend to her warm, soft bed. As his friend flopped onto her side, he climbed up the hay behind her, circled once, then lay down. He stretched out, rolling until he was back to back with his horse. One great big yawn later, Link was well on his way to being fast asleep.