//------------------------------// // Rainy Days // Story: What Changes May Come // by Bluegrass Brooke //------------------------------// "Sorry we're late." The heavy oak door of the house swung open, and the two party ponies walked in. A thick layer of bandages had been applied to Cheese's chest where the collar had dug in. He gave a less than convincing smile of assurance and sat down at the table. "Yeah, but boy do we have a surprise for you!" Pinkie sauntering up to her family with the air of some victorious general. "We've got it all figured out." Marble's eyes rolled clean over, and she snorted into the stew. "Really? What, you two discover the perfect juggling technique?" A wave of irritation stretched across Pinkie's face, distorting her smile into a grimace. Grump! With a decisive smirk, she slowly stuck out her tongue, issuing a Pinkie challenge. Cloudy clucked disapprovingly, and shot her daughters a trademark "drop it or take it outside" look. Delaying their sparring match, Pinkie set to filling up a plate with the lukewarm stew. Igneous had stopped eating to regard the couple with interest. "So, what did you figure out, Pinkamena, Cheese?" He focused his attention on the quiet stallion. "You got something to ask me, Cheese?" "WHAT?" Stew spilled all over the table, as Cheese toppled his bowl over with a clatter. Flushing crimson, he walked over to the sink to retrieve a rag. "No, nothing like that. Just-" He sat down, mopping up the mess. "-Pinkie and I are planning a special party for Grandma Pie day." "Oooh." Limestone's eyes sparkled with anticipation and she clapped her lilac hooves together. "Sounds awesome! Pinkie's parties are always great, but I can't imagine how fun a party planned by you two will be." Marble puffed out her lower lip, turning back to her stew. She hated to admit it, but it did sound way better than them trying to plan it like usual. "Whatever, guess it'll be all right." Igneous beamed at them. "It's a good idea. If Cheese is going to be a part of the family, he needs to be part of our traditions. Besides-" He clapped Cheese affectionately on the back. "-my mother really would have loved to meet you." Cheese's face felt like melting off at all the unexpected praise. Struggling for something to say, his mind drifted back to the mountain of work to be done, and he turned to Cloudy. "So, what's next on the to do list?" "Well, we can let Marble and Limestone work on their orders, and you can help Igneous with the odd and end jobs." "That won't work." Igneous stood, walking over to the window, and staring intently at the sky. "It's going to rain tomorrow. We need to work on the fields now." Curious about what the older pony was getting at, Cheese trotted to join him. The grey mash of clouds looked the same as it did the day before. "It looks like it does every day." "That's because you're not looking for the right stuff." He watched Cheese's emerald eyes dart across the sky, trying to find the secret to his prediction. Chuckling, he ruffled the stallion's sweat stained mane. "Relax kid, it takes years to learn how to read the wild weather around here. But, if you want, I'll teach you to read the basics before you leave." "Really? That'd be great." "Sorry to break up your little bonding moment but-" A small twitch started behind Marble's eyes, as she flicked her tail irritably. "-Mom said we could work on the projects after we moved those rocks. I need to finish!" "It can wait, Marble." Cloudy stared exasperatedly at her daughter. "You know the fields will be unworkable for at least a day after the rain stops." "But-" Frustrated tears smeared the fine features of the grey mare. "-It's not FAIR!" "Quit being a foal, Marble. Don't you think I've got projects too?" Limestone stared helplessly at Pinkie for support. Pinkie gave her younger sister a big hug. "I'm sure it'll be okey dokey, Marble. I'll help you with the projects when we get time." She pressed her muzzle to the distraught mare's forehead. "Trust your big sis on this. Kay?" Snuffling softly, Marble hugged her sister tightly. "Kay." As they walked back out to the fields, Cheese found his mind racing with a storm of thoughts. He thought he knew most everything about Pinkie, but he was wrong. Pinkie seemed kinda angry at Marble. But, why was she so nice just now? Do all siblings act like that? He shook his head, accepting defeat. Guess I'll never understand mares. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… Snuggling under the quilt that night, Cloudy began to contemplate the day, as was her routine. Tonight however, her mind raced out of control, trying to place the uneasy feeling in her chest. Apart from the unusually backbreaking work, she could not think of what could have caused it. Then, it came to her. Pinkie. Cloudy had come to expect the unexpected from Pinkie, but today she seemed almost predictable. What's gotten into that girl? She turned to her husband. "Igneous, I'm worried about Pinkamena." Igneous released a long suffering sigh. "What now? Don't tell me she was singing the whole time again?" "No, but-" She paused, staring hard at the family picture on her bedside table. "-that's just it, Igneous. Pinkamena wasn't herself." Champing on the straw, he sized up the worried wrinkles on his wife's face. "Well, what?" "She was so quiet. You know I didn't hear a sentence out of her the entire morning." Cloudy slipped the small spectacles from her muzzle. "She's depressed." "Hmmm, guess we did put her to work as soon as she got home." "It's not her, Igneous. Cheese is the same way." "Dear, they're party ponies, they aren't going to enjoy staying here no matter how hard you want them to. It's not like either of them can help it." The creases on Cloudy's face deepened, and he knew that he had upset her. "Listen. It's not your fault, we've just got to find something they can enjoy helping out with. Other than that ridiculous party." Cloudy raised an eyebrow, "And how do we do that?" "Oh, well now..." Good question. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… It was nearly midnight, and instead of sleeping, Cheese found himself tossing and turning on the straw. He never had been bothered by sleeping on straw before, and it was more than a little luxurious compared to the rambling life he had led. And yet, he found every ache, every cut, and every blister being magnified a hundred fold in the still coolness of the darkened barn. Stupid bed's been spoiling me. His tongue kept catching on the roof of his mouth, and he smacked his lips to no avail. Wincing, he stood shakily and sparked the kerosine lantern to life. The darkened farm was as silent as the grave, and Cheese found himself flinching as each hoof beat dug into the dry earth with a resounding thud. A strange, soft light peeked its way through the dense clouds overhead, casting the farm in an alien light. If anypony was making a horror film, this would be a place. Right about now I'd be picked off by the monster. Checking behind him for any intruders, he leaned against the stones of the well, looking down at the black depths. Be a nasty long way to fall. He rubbed his temple with a shaking hoof. Geeze, I've got to stop thinking so much. It's a well, not a crime scene. Hoisting the worn bucket down the hole, he listened for the distant slash, and pulled upwards. After a long drink, he noticed a strange light in the distance. An involuntary wave of fear crashed over him as he stared out across the fields. Lighting. And a lot of it. Traveling as much as he had over the years, he had seen more than his fair share of lightning. But, whenever he caught sight of it, he had always been prepared for it, as the pegasi were always informing ponies of impending storms. But, Cheese's whole perspective on storms had changed after the incident in the Everfree. The lighting there was different. It was a wild, unfeeling, unchanging force of nature bent on striking whatever and whoever got in its way. And this storm's going to be just like it. The very memory of it sent chills up his spine, and he shook his head, trying to blot it out. The streaks of light and flashes intensified as he watched. It was still too far away for the thunder to reach, but it was coming closer. His knees knocked together as a massive fork of the stuff lit up the entire horizon. It was much worse than the Everfree storm. Celestia help us. A soft something brushed against his leg, and he jumped skyward. Wheeling around, he stared, wide eyed at the source of it. "Pinkie? What…what are you doing here?" The mare smiled softly under her nest of curly bed hair. "Outhouse. You?" "Water." Cheese's attention turned back to the impending storm, now keenly aware of the damp heaviness of the air around them. Try as he may to control it, his voice still shook like a leaf. "They always this bad?" "No, mostly they're smaller. But, sometimes they're worse." Pinkie pressed her side to his, feeling his racing heartbeat, and quivering sides. "It'll be okay, Cheesie." "I guess I'm just a little scared." He turned to her, eyes shaking as much as his legs. "I can't help it. Pathetic, huh?" "No it's not." She kissed him on the cheek, tears streaming down her muzzle. "I'm scared too." The moonlight danced off of the scar, making it stand out even more than normal. "I can't stop thinking about that night." Cheese was startled to feel the mare's heat beating as fast as his own. Sighing, he nuzzled her softly on the cheek. "It's okay, it'll all be okay." A loud crescendo of thunder split the stillness, and both ponies flinched. In the distance, the lighting had strengthened, and a sheet of rain was now visible. "Let's go back, I'll walk you there." "Kay, but what about you?" "I'll go back to the barn." Cheese gulped, trying not to imagine trying to sleep through the storm in the empty barn. "Nope. You'll be too scared to sleep." Pinkie dragged him closer to the front door. "Dad and Mom won't mind if you sleep in the living room tonight. Come on." Another clap of thunder, much closer than the first sounded, sending a ripple through the dry earth. "Okay, but just for one night." ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… Rain was not uncommon on the Pie farm, but torrents of the stuff every hour was highly unusual. Igneous glowered out the window as yet another sheet stuck the pane with spectacular force. Curse it all, the fields are going to be underwater if this keeps up. He traced the bristling lines of his sideburns, attempting to think of something useful they could do during the storm. If there was one thing Igneous hated, it was idleness. Settling on a long put off cabinet project, he turned to inform the family. "Listen up, I've got today's agenda." To his dismay, half the family appeared to be missing. His amber eyes darted from his wife knitting on the rocking chair and the pair of party ponies lounging on the floor. "What the? Where's Marble and Limestone?" "Silly, they're working on their projects in the barn." Pinkie giggled as she continued coloring her drawing. Seizing what little control he had of the situation, Igneous strode over to his daughter. "And why aren't you helping Marble like you promised, Pinkamena?" It was Cheese's turn to chuckle uncontrollably. "Pinkie, with a rock pick and power tools. I can't imagine what could go wrong." "Cheesie. I'm great at that kind of stuff." The mare staunched an onset of giggles with her hoof, and stared up at her father. "Actually, I went out to help her, but-" She felt her ears droop, and she started to fidget with the crayons. "-She said she didn't want my help and to get out." "Really?" He clapped a hoof to his forehead. Celestia give me strength. "You'll go and help her tomorrow. You can't lollygag around with Cheese when your sisters are hard at work." "But Dad, we're not lollygagging. We're planning." She held up a childish drawing of the family smiling and playing some sort of ball game. Cheese rolled his eyes. Pinkie was great with ideas, but lousy at drawing. Sighing, he held up his detailed summary of the game with carefully written out instructions. "This is what we're planning." "Oh. Well, it looks like you've got things figured out. So-" He gestured grandly to the pair. "-up and at em you two." "Yes sir." Dejectedly, Cheese stood up, pulling Pinkie along with him. "Since Marble seems to think she's fine without help, you'll be doing housework with your mother." "Okey dokey." Pinkie hopped excitedly at the prospect of house work. Anything's better than rocks. Igneous turned to the stallion. "And you're going to be working on a project with me." "A project?" What now? Another chance to get crushed? "Yup. We're building a cabinet." Pushing Cheese out the door, he winked knowingly at Cloudy. Today's going to be interesting. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… "It's done!" Pinkie danced triumphantly around the dining room that evening. They had just finished dinner, and now Pinkie seemed to think it was time for the show. Cheese cheerfully clapped along to the beat humming some random tune. Marble and Limestone shared a nervous look, and gulped. One was bad enough, but two marginally insane ponies was a little much. Taking a deep breath, Limestone spoke up. "What's done?" Pinkie did not respond, but turned to her stallion. "You ready for the big reveal, Cheesie?" "Yup." He stood up, going into the pantry and drawing out a covered dish. "What?" Marble gaped, dreading whatever manner of food her big sister had come up with. "It's dessert!" Pinkie gave a fantastic twirl in midair, landing smoothly next to Cheese. "But this just isn't any dessert. It's Mom's super-duper secret recipe peach cobbler. I helped make it." A smile stretched across Cloudy's lined face, as she leaned softly against her husband's side. It had been her idea to bake together. She knew how much the mare loved sweets, and it had been so refreshing to watch her laugh and talk like nothing could possibly wrong with the world. "Well, show them, Pinkamena." "Kay!" With a dramatic flourish, she whipped the cover off to reveal the piece of art that was the Pie family cobbler. It looked like it belonged in a magazine, and the younger sisters oohed and awed at the golden crust and artistic sprinkling of powdered sugar on top. "Yum." Cheese beamed at Pinkie. "It looks really tasty, Pinkie. Way better than any other cobbler I've seen." "Thanks. But-" She dragged him away from the table and towards the living room. "-we've got one more job." "Do we?" "Duh, silly." Trotting over to the corner of the room, she pulled out an old fiddle and harmonica. "We're going to serenade the family." "Oooh, great idea." Cheese picked up the harmonica, and began to tap out a lively beat on the wooden floor. The entire family became transfixed at the natural harmonization between the pair. Every note, every word blended together as though they had been rehearsing for weeks. Igneous stared knowingly at the two party ponies. He knew, just knew he had a new family member. Smirking, he found himself imagining the wedding and the foals. Well, there are worse ponies to have in the family. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… The streets of Ponyville reverberated from the hundreds of hooves pounding the earth and the earsplitting racket of dozens of separate conversations occurring at once. And yet, the dusty interior of the Golden Oaks library was as quiet as if it were midnight. Twilight lay nestled among a stack of spell books, humming a cheery tune. For the first time in weeks, she was free. Free from royal duties, free from disasters and untimely incidents, and free at last to read in peace. Inwardly, she blessed the silencing spell she had cast on the library and absorbed herself in the pages. A kind of shock hit the heavy oak door, but was left unnoticed by the bewitched alicorn. It was not until it flung open and an older pony charged in did she look up. Why me? Standing up, she turned to face the perpetrator of the disturbance. Mayor Mare stood, glasses askew and face beet red. What now? Clearing her throat, she mediated the frustration in her voice as best she could. "Can I help?" The mayor attempted to round up the stray strands of mane that had escaped her bun, but to no avail. "Princess, there's an issue that needs your attention." "Issue?" Great, what kind of magical force of destruction is hitting Ponyville today? "It's Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich." "Huh?" Shuffling her hooves uncomfortably, the mayor gestured to the street outside. "The fall festival's coming up." "Oh, is that all?" Twilight let out a huge sigh, and smiled kindly at the mayor. "I'm certain two premier party ponies can handle setting up one festival. They're more than capable." "That's not the issue, Princess Twilight." "Not the issue? Then what is?" Tread lightly, these are her friends we're talking about. "How long will Pinkie and Cheese be gone? We need them back." Twilight raised a hoof to her chin, contemplating. "Well, in the letter Cheese left, they said they'd be gone until Igneous' leg heals." An embarrassed smile stretched across her face. "Guess I really don't know when they'll be back." The mayor's breathing increased, and she pressed a handkerchief to her sweat streaked face. "This isn't good. The festival is in two weeks! What am I going to do without anypony to run it?" "Oh-" Twilight felt her teeth clench uncomfortably together. She looked around the room, trying to remember any books that might help in this situation. Her eyes focused on the baby dragon placidly reading his comic book near the stairs. "Spike! I need you." "Yeah, yeah." Tossing the comic with an obvious air of annoyance, the dragon trundled over. "What?" "Did Pinkie or Cheese say when exactly they're going to be back?" "No, be just got that letter from Cheese. Maybe-" His eyes sparkled playfully, and he elbowed Twilight knowingly in the hocks. "-Maybe they're not even at the rock farm. Maybe they eloped." Mayor Mare actually gasped, clasping her soiled handkerchief to her face. "You don't think-" "-No." Twilight glowered at the baby dragon. "That is the last time I let you read light romance. They are not eloping! If Cheese says they're going to the rock farm, then they're going to the rock farm. He's honest like that." "Well, what are we to do, Princess? Should I try to find another party planner?" The mayor paced nervously across the wooden floor, trying to steady her racing heart. "This is terrible!" "Relax, mayor. I'll figure this out." Twilight turned to Spike, voice decisive. "Let's get the others." "What? We really going to go all the way out there?" "That's the plan." Levitating the book back onto the shelf, she strode out the door with Mayor Mare. "I'll try to sort this out. If I can't convince them to come back, maybe I can get a basic outline of the festival to go on." "Thanks, Princess. And good luck." "Yeah." Somehow, the thought of going out to the farm was disturbing her. Why? It's no big deal, we came out there after the Maud incident. Why's it such a big deal now? Shaking her short mane, she struggled to wrap her head around the storm of emotions she was feeling. Get a grip, Twilight. It'll work out. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… Work on the rock farm was more than slowed by the rivers of mud flowing freely across the fields. Though the muck appeared benign, it proved to be immensely dangerous. Igneous knew they'd have to wait at least a day for the slurry to harden, but he simply could not stop the innate determination to give it one good try. "You ready, Cheese?" "Isn't it a little early to be swimming in the mud?" Cheese took yet another gigantic leap to suction himself free from the earth. It was early dawn, and the entirety of the farm was bathed in the now familiar, if mildly disturbing orange haze that passed for a sunrise. Igneous snorted, adjusting his hat as he nearly toppled head first into the mud. "Ooof. It's never too early to get started, Cheese. Besides, we've got lots of work." "I thought we're waiting for a day, and working on the cabinet." Yesterday's project had proved to be vastly entertaining, and he hoped to gain more carpentry tips from Igneous. "Well, if this doesn't work, then we'll go back to plan B. But, I've got a theory that'll help us get started at least." Igneous walked into a darkened corner of the barn, fidgeting with something under a tarp. "Still intact. Perfect. Come on over and get harnessed up." What now? Reluctantly, he slipped on the uncomfortable collar and turned to Igneous. "Where are we moving the rocks today?" The stallion chuckled, and shook his head at the collar. "Take that one off." Hobbling over to the other end of the barn where the carpentry tools resided, he returned with another, smaller collar. It was carefully sanded and shaped to a different pattern than Igneous'. He winked at the stallion, and placed it over his neck. "How is it?" "What?" The wood of the collar fit smoothly over his muscles, and rested comfortably in just the right place. "It's perfect. When did you have time to...did you make it?" "Yup, every Pie stallion gets his own collar." He pointed to the far wall where a set of collars hung neatly on hooks. "My Dad, Uncles, and Grandad all had one." Cheese felt his face burning, and he looked away, pawing at the ground. Me? Part of the family? "Thanks, Igneous. It means a lot." "Sure thing, now for the big reveal." "What? Another wagon?" "Nope, this is a something special. Truth be told, I don't use it very often. It's a touch heavy." With a wink, he threw off the moldering tarp to reveal a dusty, strange looking plow. At least it looked like a plow, but instead of a large blade, there was a long, thin vertical rod.The entire contraption was built with heavy wood and strange metal plating. What was most unusual about the thing was a pale yellow light emanating from the rod itself. "Magic?" Cheese snorted in disbelief, leaning down to examine the now distinct aura of magic. "How'd you end up with something like this?" "I won it from an old chap of mine in a bar. You like it?" To Igneous' surprise, the stallion's expression darkened, and he turned away. "What? You got a thing against magic?" "Not against magic, but-" Guess it won't hurt to explain. The bitterness in his next words struck hard on Igneous' nerves. "My Dad, he liked to use his magic to punish me." His Dad's a unicorn? I never would have guessed. "You don't like him then?" "Yeah. You could say that." Cheese stamped hard against the dirt, ears pinned and teeth clenched. "He's not the kind of pony to take things in stride. Whatever I did wrong, no matter how small, was a good enough excuse. The pain is what he enjoyed." A heavy sigh escaped him, "I suppose I should just forgive and move on, but it's never as easy as that." "You don't have to force it." It felt like he had lost some kind of battle with the younger pony, and it worried him immensely. Just what kind of father hurts his own colt? By Celestia, what is the world coming to? "I know, I know." Swallowing, Cheese turned his attention to the device. "How do we use it? What does it do?" "It's supposed to detect deposits of magic in the earth. The rod's bewitched to go through the ground easily. But, it conducts best with mud." "Why do we need to find magic deposits?" "Because, those are what give the rocks their special properties. Unicorns will pay top bit for a good magic conducting rock. But, we'd better hope for a miracle. The thing doesn't always work like it's supposed to." Igneous winked slyly, "My buddy's not the most reliable pony out there. Bit of an eccentric." Cheese's ears perked up at that. "Sounds fun, let's give it a shot." "All right, but I warned you." ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… Pinkie was having a lot of fun. An emotion not shared by her two youngest siblings. Marble glowered at her big sister as yet another chunk of rock dislodged from the block. "Pinkie! You can't chip so much off. I just want you to get a little so I can start the detail work." "Ooopsies, sorry." Her hips swung happily to an imaginary tune as she took up the chisel and started chipping away once more. They were in the barn, and Pinkie was finally getting to help her little sisters out. She especially loved to help with the projects. Marble specialized in statues and anything large and impressive. It fit her pillar cutie mark perfectly, and Pinkie could not help but smile. "Say, Marble did I ever tell you how neat your cutie mark is?" "Yes, Pinkie. Several times." Marble adjusted her apron and continued to work on the marble headstone she had been commissioned to build. "How's the mayor like the pillars?" "He loves them!" Limestone chirped up from behind her magnification spectacles. Her knack for turning relatively cheap stones into gorgeous accessories had brought her a lot of business. "Guess what, Pinkie?" "What, Limestone?" "The mayor's son asked her out." "No way!" Pinkie dropped the heavy pick on her hooves and she jumped backwards. "You got asked out?" "Yeah she did, but she turned him down." "WHY?" She gasped, "Was he ugly?" Marble rolled her eyes at her sister and tried to ignore the large chunk missing from the valuable rock. Breathe, just breathe, she's trying to help. A loud clunk sounded as Pinkie hacked another piece off. I can't take this anymore! I'm telling Mom, I'm going to do it. "Pinkie, stop chiseling. You're butchering the stone." "Ooops, sorry Marble." Pinkie stared innocently at her. "But, why'd you turn him down?" "I don't need to answer your stupid question." "Oooh, touchy." Limestone giggled, and pointed to a bucket of tiny rocks. "Say, since Marble doesn't need your help, can you look through that and find some emerald ones?" "Okey dokey then." The childlike enthusiasm Pinkie had for every little task amazed Marble. But the most frustrating thing about Pinkie was not her innocence or zest for life, it was her lack of motivation. Pinkie relished spontaneity, but also seemed to cling to what was familiar. After settling in Ponyville, she never once thought of what came next. She was seemingly content staying in stasis. But now, now, she's got a chance. Will she take it? "Pinkie, do you and Cheese have any goals for the future? I mean, with Cheese?" Pinkie snorted, giggling loudly and sending a shower of stones into the air. "Well, not really. We're taking it slow for now. But-" Her azure eyes sparkled with excitement, "-I've got a really cool goal I've been working on." "You?" Limestone nearly cut the delicate gold leafing she was placing over the broach. "What?" Pinkie's chest expanded twice its normal size. "I'm starting a business." "You?" Marble snorted into her work. "You've got to be kidding. What, is it a competing cupcake business? Or are you selling gag gifts with your stallion?" "No! It's an event hall." "Event hall?" "Yeah, a place where we can host parties without having to rent space. I'm going to charge per party, and offer a catering and planning service. What do you think?" Marble's mouth opened and close several times before she could speak. "It's great, a really solid idea, Pinkie. Good luck." "Thanks. I can't wait to get started."