Of Cellos, Bubbles, and Moonbeams

by Eyvind


Chapter 6

Octavia stood in the doorway of Sugar Cube Corner with an askew party hat atop her head as she looked at all the faces of ponies who had been told a lie. A very embarrassing and altogether untrue lie about her and Ditzy's relationship. Ditzy, on the other hoof, showed no signs that she even cared as she just looked at it all with an ever-growing smile. Octavia wondered if she even knew what everyone thought about them.

Octavia's embarrassment quickly turned to anger as she realized that Pinkie Pie had not understood at all what she was trying to tell her earlier. In some subconscious part of her brain, she understood that it was only an error in communication that had brought about this unfortunate event, but she still felt an irrational anger towards Pinkie for telling everypony that her and Ditzy were a couple. Or, at least they were now if she understood the term minute-iversary correctly.

The pink culprit was still standing beside her, watching her expression with a look of happy expectations, like a foal waiting for somepony to hand them an ice cream cone.

"Pinkie Pie..." Octavia hissed through gritted teeth.

Pinkie's smile faltered when she heard her tone of voice. "What is it, Octy? Don't you like the color pink?"

Before she could reply, Octavia was assaulted by the rest of the ponies in attendance. In a wave of well-wishes and congratulations, she was swept off her hooves and into the party, Ditzy floating after her in a state of bliss. Pinkie Pie remained near the door, her mane and tail drooping in sadness as she tried to understand Octavia's reaction.

~ ~ ~

Octavia was not enjoying herself. Everypony was constantly congratulating her on her new relationship status, so much so that she couldn't get a single word in edge wise. Ditzy had disappeared as well, leaving her to be devoured by the happy mob.

"I'm so happy for you two!"

"So, when's the wedding?"

"Aren't anniversaries just so romantic?"

"So you're the mare Derpy's been fooling around with."

That last comment set Octavia's cheeks on fire. She whirled around to find the most colorful mare she had ever seen staring directly at her. Her mane was literally a rainbow of colors, and her magenta eyes spoke of a confidence all too foreign to the quiet musician. Needless to say, Octavia was intimidated.

Not a moment passed before an orange hoof brought itself up and smacked the prismatic mare over the head. "Mind you're manners, Rainbow." Octavia immediately recognized the voice of the sales pony who had pointed her to Sugar Cube Corner just the other day.

"Come on, AJ, I was just having some fun" Rainbow replied defensively.

"Well stop havin' fun, then. No need ta go embarrassin' the love birds."

The heat in Octavia's cheeks intensified. She had to put a stop to this misunderstanding quickly, before it got any more out of hoof. "Um, actually--"

"TAVI!!!"

A grey blur crashed into Octavia, tackling her to the ground. The world spun around her and the air was knocked from her lungs as she was crushed between the floor and something heavy. As her vision came back into focus, she realized that Ditzy was lying on top of her, wearing a huge smile with tears in her eyes.

"Is it true, Tavi?"

Octavia was too dazed, confused, and utterly bewildered to make any sort of coherent reply. "Wha-- huh?"

"Did you really throw this party for me?" she clarified. Ditzy's face was uncomfortably close to her own as she waited for an answer. Octavia realized that the whole party had grown quiet as everypony was waiting to hear her answer as well. They had the entire room's attention. She realized she could clear up everything right then if she only said the words "we are not together"... No more embarrassment... No more awkwardness... But as she gazed into Ditzy's eyes--those beautiful, golden, misty, mismatched orbs--she realized that she couldn't.

No. Not that she couldn't, but that she didn't want to. She would go on bearing all the embarrassment and the awkwardness and the insinuations if she could only make Ditzy happy in this single moment.

So she smiled softly and nodded her head.

Ditzy's reaction was immediate. The tears that had been building finally broke free. She smiled and laughed, bringing Octavia into a tight hug as she lifted them both off the floor with happy wing beats. Everypony in the room stomped their approval, cheering for their public display of affection. Ditzy's happiness was so contagious, Octavia actually forgot for a moment why they were cheering as she returned her hug.

"Alright, alright, enough of the sappy junk!" Rainbow Shouted over the dying cheers. "It's time to get this party really going! DJ, you know what to do!"

The white unicorn at the turn tables merely put her hoof in the air in response as she began playing the track she had selected.

Ditzy lowered them both to the ground as the lights in the room dimmed, creating more of a club aesthetic. All the ponies began bouncing, moving and swaying to the music. Octavia could tell that everyone was really enjoying themselves.

As soon as all four of Ditzy's hooves touched the floor, she began swaying her hips slightly as well, closing her eyes as she felt the beat resonate inside of her. Each time the kick came in, she would bounce her rump slightly, swishing her tail back and forth in time to the music. Octavia found the movements to be cute, yet strangely alluring as well.

"What are you doing?" Octavia asked as she pulled her eyes away from Ditzy's flank.

"Huh?"

"I said what are you doing?" she asked again, a little louder this time.

"It's called dancing, silly!"

Octavia merely blinked. Well of course it was dancing. It just wasn't any sort of dancing that she was used to. All the parties she had ever attended were for the elite of Canterlot, where Ballroom Dancing was the norm. Ditzy's movements were free and instinctive, and for some reason Octavia just couldn't get enough of it.

"Hey, Ditzy?" Octavia half-shouted over the music, a thought suddenly occurring to her. "Who told you that I threw this party for you?"

"Pinkie Pie told me" she replied.

Pinkie Pie? Octavia realized that she hadn't seen the official party planner since the start of the party. She craned her neck and scanned the darkness for her fluffy pink mane, but she was nowhere to be found.

"Do you know where she went?" Octavia asked her, but Ditzy merely shook her head.

The memory of seeing Pinkie near the door earlier came back to her. She looked confused and hurt. Octavia felt a lump in her stomach as she remembered how angry she felt then towards her. Did she leave the party because of her?

"I'm going to go look for her," she informed Ditzy. Ditzy paused mid-sway as she looked her in the eyes for a brief moment. Some unknown emotion was held within them, but then it vanished and she nodded her head as she continued her dance. Octavia hesitated as she tried to figure out what had been in Ditzy's eyes, but she realized she had to find Pinkie. Ditzy's eyes could wait.

Shuffling across the dance floor, Octavia made her way to the nearest wall before heading for the exit. She opened the door and slipped outside, the music becoming muffled once she closed it behind her.

The sun was already nearing the horizon, its orange rays falling softly over the cobblestones of the street. There, in the rays of the setting sun, was Pinkie Pie, sitting at one of the outside tables of the store, making little circles in the dirt with her hoof. It seemed like she had not yet realized Octavia was there.

"Pinkie?" Octavia said as she walked over to her.

She started when she heard her name. "Oh, hey Octy." Pinkie tried to put on one of her carefree smiles, but Octavia saw through it in a heart beat.

"How come you're sitting out here all alone?" she asked with a concerned frown.

Pinkie merely sighed. "I'm sorry, Octavia."

She blinked in confusion. "Sorry? What for?"

"You were mad at me earlier because I changed all of the decorations, right? I should have known you wouldn't want all that lovey dovey stuff at your minute-iversary party. Of course you want to wait a little longer before you pull out all the stops."

Octavia started laughing. She just couldn't help herself. Pinkie's rationalization for her anger earlier was just too outrageous.

Pinkie tilted her head in confusion. "What's the joke?"

Octavia clarified as soon as she caught her breath. "I wasn't mad that you replaced all the decorations, Pinkie. I was mad that you told everyone that Ditzy's my special somepony."

Pinkie looked more confused than ever. "But... she is your special somepony. Isn't she?"

Octavia shook her head. "Nope. We're only friends."

Pinkie looked thoughtful for a moment before she started laughing, too. "Alright, I can see why you were a little mad at me."

"Don't worry, I'm over it," Octavia reassured her with a smile. She raised her hoof towards Pinkie. "Friends?"

"Friends!" Pinkie bumped her hoof against Octavia's enthusiastically. "Now come on, we got a party to get back too!"