"So, Shining Armor thinks that if we can get Pinkie Pie to laugh," Pumpkin finished, "we can remind her about being The Element of Laughter and get her back to being her normal self."
Mrs. Cake stared at her daughter, letting the story sink in. Pumpkin had explained what she knew about things and Shining Armor's plan while Pound had been helping Mr. Cake deal with the over-sized ants.
The entire thing was disconcerting to Mrs. Cake. The idea that a second threat that had been unheard of for over a thousand years would once more return was strange in and of itself. The fact that this creature could bend reality and manipulate ponies was frightening. That this same creature would use these powers to hurt someone that Mrs. Cake cared about... well... that mostly made her furious. Unfortunately she could do nothing to the one responsible, but at least she could do something for Pinkie.
"Pumpkin, do you still have that record Pinkie made you when you were younger?"
"Yeah," Pumpkin said slowly, raising an eyebrow. "Why?"
"Get it for me, please," Mrs. Cake told her as she stood up. "I would like to try and help Pinkie Pie myself before we resort to your idea." She then headed for the stairs, Pumpkin quickly following after her.
*****
Pinkie Pie laid sprawled out on her bed, Gummy resting on her stomach while she stared up at her room. She had never noticed how bright and colorful it was, with the yellow walls and ever present pink streamers always strewn about. Normally, it made her feel happy to live here: a bright, colorful room in shaped like a giant cupcake that was above a bakery.
Now, not so much. The whole thing just seemed... pointless and silly. The Cakes said that she could decorate it how she liked while she stayed there. Maybe she would re-paint the whole place. Give it a duller, more subdued tone. Except that sounded like too much work. As much as she disliked the color, it really did not seem worth the effort to change it. Maybe she could just toss a thick blanket or something over the window. At least that way, the room would not look so bright during the day.
A gentle tapping sound came from her door.
"Pinkie?" Mrs. Cake called out. "Can I come in?"
"I guess," Pinkie said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Several seconds passed before there was another knock.
"Pinkie, I'm just going to come in if you don't have any objections. Okay?"
Several more seconds passed before the door opened. Pinkie tilted her head just enough that she could see Mrs. Cake. The matronly blue baker was carrying something with her as she came in. As she came closer, Mrs. Cake smiled at Pinkie around what looked like a record sleeve. It was a smile that Pinkie had become very familiar with. She had been on the receiving end of it numerous times, and had seen it given to Mr. Cake as well as the twins. It was warm, gentle, comforting, and hard not to return.
Pinkie's lips pressed together. Not quite a smile, but closer than it had been. It was the best she could do for the time being.
Moving past the bed, Mrs. Cake made her way over to Pinkie Pie's record player. After taking the current record off the player and setting it away, she pulled out the one she had brought with her. Gently, she set it down, and started the player.
A faint hum of static filled the air for a second before instruments started to play. The song had a positive, upbeat sound to it. Something about it sounded familiar. It was a song Pinkie had heard before somewhere. It was connected to... something. Something important. It was somehow tied to a part of her.
"When I was just a filly, and the sun was going doooowwwn," Pinkie's own voice sang out from the speaker. That was why it had sounded familiar, because it was her song.
"Remember this?" Mrs. Cake asked as she walked over the bed. "How you recorded it for Pumpkin?"
"Yeah," Pinkie replied. "Pumpkin had me sing it every night for her before bed, so we had a record of it made. That way she could listen to it as much as she wanted." Her lips twisted up a little more, her coat becoming less gray and more pink.
"She looks up to you, you know." Moving closer, Mrs. Cake sat down on the edge of the bed. "She may not be as hyper or funny, but she does want to make other ponies happy. You're a hero to her, and a big sister." She reached out, placing a hoof on Pinkie's shoulder. "You've been like a big sister to both of them."
Pinkie shifted and looked at Mrs. Cake more, but said nothing.
"Speaking of Pumpkin and Pound," Mrs. Cake continued, "they told me what they found out about what happened to you. That Shining Armor thinks Discord did something to you to make you sad."
Pinkie shifted, pulling away from the other mare's touch. She rolled away from Mrs. Cake, her ears pulling back once again.
"Pinkie--"
An ear-splitting boom filled the air, the window shattering as the entire building shook. Dazzling, rainbow colored light filled the room, blinding the two mares as everything turned bright and colorful. It was all so overwhelming.
It had passed as soon as it had happened, leaving Mrs. Cake extremely confused and shocked. She blinked rapidly, trying to clear the bright white spots from her eyes. She gave her head a shake and rubbed at her ears, trying to get the metallic whistling sound to vanish. Once her senses had returned, she felt like there was no permanent damage to her.
"Pinkie?" she asked. "Are you hurt?"
"No," Pinkie answered. Her eyes were wide as she stared at the remains of the window, her mouth hanging slightly open. What she had seen was amazing. Simply mind-blowing. Just like it had been when she was a filly on the rock farm.
Although not the same as she normally looked, Mrs. Cake noticed that Pinkie Pie did look more like herself. The coat was more pink than gray, and her hair was puffier. Not the completely poofy mess it normally was, but not completely flat either.
"Pinkie." Reaching out, Mrs. Cake took a hold of the other mare's face and gently turned it to look at her. "Listen to me. A lot of ponies care for you, and don't like to see you sad." She held up a hoof. "Now that doesn't mean you can't be. We don't want you to pretend you're happy when you're not either. So if you really feel sad, if you need to cry or be alone, then go right ahead. Just remember, there are ponies here that love you no matter what, and want to help you. So if you ever need somepony to talk to, or a shoulder to cry on, we're here."
"Really?" Pinkie asked, wiping at the tears at the edges of her eyes.
"Right now, there are two young ponies downstairs ready to dump flour all over themselves just because they think that it would make you laugh."
Pinkie Pie blinked at Mrs. Cake, letting the statement sink in. The edges of her lips twisted up as she started to snicker. The snicker turned into a chuckle, then a full giggle. Soon, Pinkie Pie was rolling onto her back, laughing with all of her might. As her laugh grew louder and strong, her coat turned pinker and her main puffed out more. Finally, Pinkie laid on her bed, looking like her old self as she tried to catch her breath.
Pulling out the necklace that held The Element of Laughter, Mrs. Cake set it down beside Pinkie.
"I know this isn't the best time, but this is yours. When you feel up for it, your friends could use your help." Mrs. Cake bit her lip. She felt a little guilty. She had meant what she had said, but it felt a little hypocritical to also be pushing -- however gently -- for Pinkie to use her element and help stop Discord. After what she had been through, Pinkie deserved time to deal with it and genuinely feel better. Unfortunately, the longer they waited, the more that creature could do, and Mrs. Cake could not think of another way to stop him.
"Don't worry Mrs. Cake," Pinkie announced as she grabbed her necklace and put it on. "I'll teach that mean old grumpy grump that it's not nice to laugh at other ponies and make them feel bad about themselves." With that, she leaped off the bed, bounced once across the floor, and vanished out the doorway.
That's my-- Mrs. Cake was thinking before she suddenly remembered something.
"Pinkie, wait!" Jumping up, she chased after the the other mare. "They're coming here to meet up."