The house was indeed cleaned up as mother had instructed them, and Amethyst and Dinky were quite pleased with their work. Conquest had made some motions of trying to help, but Amethyst didn't feel it would be proper for him to work on his own party. He managed to contented himself with a book while they worked around him. Dinky complained a bit about this though, but Amethyst managed to convince her it was for the better. She appeared to be today's mediator.
The main problem were all the paper flying devices from the night before. Every time they thought they had collected them all, they found a few more laying around. Amethyst then asked Dinky to watch Conquest to make sure he wasn't making more while she collected the rest. The final count came to 119 paper flyers. She didn't have to heart to throw them away, so she put them in Dinky's room by the colt's bed. They could all be happy that way.
Pinkie showed up after noon with a veritable wagon of supplies for the party, food included. The pink earth pony was a blur of motion as she hung up streamers, firing her party cannon to decorate walls and furniture, after giving Conquest some warning of course. No need to scare him out of his wits. It took all of an inconceivable amount of time. Just Pinkie being Pinkie. Lastly was a triple layer Prench chocolate cake with strawberry frosting.
"So, Amethyst, how are things?" Pinkie asked with her usual smile as she sat down on a couch to admire her work. More blues and yellows with some reds, perfect for a colt Conquest's age. She should know, she studied for years.
"Oh, so-so," Amethyst responded, taking the floor and giving the earth pony a friendly smile. "Can't really complain all that much. Just cleaned up around the house, waiting for mom and the rest of the guests to arrive."
"Ooh, that reminds me," Pinkie said as she produced a small red-banded sombrero from some ethereal dimension. "Where's the guest of honor?"
Amethyst giggled at the sight of Pinkie's excitability. "Follow me, he should still be with Dinky."
They wandered into Dinky's room, finding her playing with a couple of her dolls, and Conquest, somehow, had gotten atop of a bookcase to read another encyclopedia. Because of this it took a moment to actually locate him.
"Aaah," Amethyst almost screamed at the sight. She used her magic to envelope him and bring him down softly. He struggled and cried out in alarm and discomfort in the magic aura. "What were you thinking? Good foals don't climb in furniture."
Conquest cringed under her gaze and verbal onslaught. "Sorry."
"You could have hurt yourself," Amethyst continued. "Do you know what my mom would say if you got hurt on my watch?"
Cinquest refused to meet her eyes, shaking a little now. "I said I was sorry."
"You're sorry?" Amethyst shouted, making him back away. She was about to list off a few more reasons when Pinkie covered her mouth with her hoof.
Pinkie retained a smile though her eyes were firm. "Amethyst, he's a pegasus. Perching behavior is natural and expected of a pegasus foal. It teaches them to balance and self-confidence. I had to learn that while babysitting the Cake twins, if only I had learned that before hand. Would have taken a lot of stress off."
Amethyst put her on hoof to her lips in embarrassment now. "Oh my. I-I didn't realize. Oh, I'm so sorry, Conquest. I didn't realize. But still, you shouldn't be climbing up high, you... don't have... wings anymore. Oooh, there's no good way to say that."
"Enough of this sad talk," Pinkie burst out with a smile, bounding over to the colt and dropping the sombrero on his head. "There's a party today, and, by golly, everypony's gonna smile."
the sombrero was a little large and Conquest had to tilt his head back quite a ways to peer under it and look at the strange pink mare. He began breathing hard as nervousness overtook him, verging on panic. Fortunately, Pinkie seemed to have anticipated this.
"Oh, and a little party favor before the party," Pinkie said enthusiastically as she produced a checkered cupcake. "I made this especially for you, it's a vanilla and chocolate cupcake. I didn't know which you liked better, so I mixed them both together so I couldn't get it wrong. I'm Pinkie Pie, by the way, the premiere party pony in Ponyville. Say that ten times fast. So you see, there is no reason to be scared of me you cute little thing. Enjoy your cupcake, nice and messy like, or clean and proper, whichever you prefer. It is your party after all. You can do whatever you want. Except climb up high, we don't want you to get hurt, now do we? Of course not, and you wouldn't want to make us sad would you."
Conquest had finished his cupcake long before Pinkie stopped talking, and was now just watching her with wrapped attention and a small smile at her energetic behavior. But she was still a stranger, and that made him a little uncomfortable.
"I didn't forget you, Dinky," Pinkie said as she produced a yellow pointy party hat for her, slipping it onto the giggling filly in a flash and then putting a red one on Amethyst's head. For Amethyst she gave it a scrutinizing gaze before shaking her head and removing it, replacing it with a blue one with a purple ball on top and streamers on the side. "Perfect. Now all we need are the CMC, the elements and Derpy. This welcome-to-Ponyville-glad-you're-getting-better-we-want-to-be-your-friends-party is going to be the best one yet. I had to change the name, because the original one I thought up wouldn't fit anymore. But, anyway, let's march out and await the rest of the guests."
Conquest hesitantly, though willingly following after the bouncing earth pony with Amethyst and Dinky. Dinky was still giggling, and Amethyst was rolling her eyes and shaking her head to get the streamers out of her eyes. Conquest tripped a couple times because of the sombrero, but he picked himself right back up and kept walking without need of assistance. He was actually proud of his own progress adapting to his amputations.
* * *
Twilight showed up next with spike, bearing a couple saddlebags of film reels and a projector. Introductions were made, Conquest was amazed and nonverbally curious about the dragon, and Pinkie helped Twilight set up the projector. Spike felt a little awkward around the two-legged colt that didn't seem in the least bit wary around him, poking and prodding the small dragon questioningly. It didn't help any that Twilight and Amethyst were laughing at his discomfort.
"Is he going to stop any time soon?" Spike asked is desperation.
"According to Mysterious Mental Medical Mysteries that's a definite... maybe," Twilight chuckled as he put in the battery, as electrical power wasn't too prevalent in Equestria those days. "Try boring him, maybe that'll make him lose interest."
"Oh, goody," Pinkie said as she say the little light bulb come on. "Let's see what reels you brought."
Pinkie opened the saddlebag and pulled out the reels one by one. "Yep, yep, good one, nope, yepparooni, yes, no, definitely, absolutely, yep, and nooo."
Twilight cocked her head and looked at the two reels that Pinkie put back into the saddle bags. "What's wrong with those ones?"
"Those," Pinkie said with an accusing glare at the bag, "are nothing but crotch hits."
"But, those are funny," Twilight reasoned.
Pinkie gave her a sideways look. "I love slapstick, but I do not find something that implies severely harming stallions or mares funny in the least."
"But those other ones have ponies being hospitalized," Twilight pointed to the others reels Pinkie left by the projector."
"But everypony knows hospitals are serious, so they won't take it seriously," Pinkie said with a wave of her hoof. "But you show something like these two to a bunch of fillies, at least a few of them will think colts and stallions are quick to recover from it."
"Oh, come on," Twilight rolled her eyes. "How many fillies do you know who..."
"Applejack was once suspended from school for punching a couple fillies who thought it would be funny to kick Big Mac repeatedly," Pinkie Pie said with a serious expression on her face, making Twilight cringe at the thought. "I won't name names, but at least Big Mac's fine. I mean have you seen him? That stallion's testosterone central."
"Well, I guess it could be taken of context," Twilight conceded.
"Besides," Pinkie said, leaning in close to Twilight's ears, "do you really think it would be the best idea for a little colt to be surrounded by a group of mares laughing at stallions getting hurt like that?"
Twilight's eyes went wide at that realization. "I-I guess I didn't think about it that way before."
"No worries," Pinkie said giving her a friendly pat in the head, "just an honest mistake."
Rainbow Dash showed up after the screen was set up, Scootaloo in tow. Amazingly, Rainbow Dash was actually controlled in meeting Conquest, making sure to speak in a, somewhat, softer tone, bet still peppering it with her normal bragging flare. Conquest laughed a bit at her attitude, confusing Rainbow Dash to no end. But she continued, the bragging seeming to entertain him, making him more comfortable with her presence. He practically ignored Scootaloo, who didn't mind so much, as the sight of him made her wings hurt.
"Hi, I-I'm, S-Scootaloo," she said, not wanting to be completely left out, and show Rainbow Dash she wasn't scared. She held out her hoof and cringed when Conquest fell down when he lost balance trying to shake back. Yet, even from the floor, he proceeded to complete his action.
"Conquest," he said bluntly, rubbing his hoof on the floor.
"Why are you doing that?" Scootaloo asked, leaning down to get a closer look at his hoof.
"Don't like being touched much," he replied simplistically as he continued to rub his hoof on the floor.
"Oh," Scootaloo said. "What about hugs? You don't even like those?"
Conquest stopped for a moment and looked at the ceiling in contemplation. "From some."
"Hey, Scootaloo, stop asking him questions," Rainbow Dash said a playful roll of her eyes. "Why don't you play some games together or something? Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom will be here soon too."
Dinky wandered over and sat beside Scootaloo. "It won't do much good. I've tried to get him to play plenty of times. But he really does weird things, like stacking all the cans in the kitchen a couple days ago, or rearranging the books in order of color."
"Really?" Scootaloo asked, cocking her eyes and looking at the colt, who was still rubbing his hoof on the floor. She scowled and cleared her throat. "Not today. Come on you, let's find something you can do."
Conquest wasn't sure what happened, one moment he was trying to get the sensation of somepony's touch, and the next he was back in Dinky's room on his bed with his wooden sword in his mouth facing the other bed with the two fillies on it in pirate costumes. They had armed themselves with pillows and seemed about ready to throw them at him.
"Ahoy Mexicolt ship," Scootaloo shouted in her best pirate voice, "Surrender to the Dashite Pirates or be sunk unto the depths."
Truly, Conquest didn't know what came over him. "Nay, ye young fillies of the Dashite shores golden. Come hither unto thy despairing demise to join the kraken and leviathan in deeps yet unknown to ponykind since the dawn of time. Cometh now if ye dares test the fates."
Scootaloo and Dinky's eyes were wide at the sudden utterance of old Equish. "Does that mean you refuse to be boarded or what?"
Conquest was baffled that they didn't understand what he just said. he let out a heavy sigh and nodded, "means take your best shot."
"You just might be worse than Sweetie Belle," Scootaloo muttered as she launched a pillow at him, which he managed to dodge. "Attack, Dinky, sink the Mexicolts."
"Yeeaah," Dinky cried out, launching another pillow.
After a while though, Scootaloo noticed something was amiss. "Um, First Mate Dinky... how many pillows do we have left?"
Dinky gulped as she looked at the yet untouched Conquest standing triumphantly on the end of his own bed, smiling devilishly. "None, Captain Scootaloo. Do you think he's..."
"You wouldn't attack a couple of defenseless fillies, would you?" Scootaloo asked, hoping for some mercy from the deformed colt.
"Yeah, what she said," Dinky said, hiding behind her captain.
But it was to no avail. Conquest was off in his own little world now. He was standing on the bow of a grand Mexicoltan ship, the colorful flag waving in a salty breeze. He could smell the smoke of the cannon, the gentle rocking of the ship, and his prey dead ahead. The Dashite pirates, though where that was he did not know, laid open before him, having missed him in their haste to thwart his mission of justice upon the high seas. They would receive no mercy from him, and he would be awarded great medals from his king.
"Dose thou believe this to be the face of mercy," he said with a glare underneath the sombrero, imagining a cape of blue and gold upon his back. "For thy crimes against innocent seafarers, I shalt be the one to bring your demise. Prepare thyselves against our steel, and pray unto your gods, for now begins our contest for the honor and glory."
"I don't think that means he'll play nice," Scootaloo squeaked.
Dinky dropped down and covered her head in anticipation.
Conquest turned about and grabbed three pillows in his mouth and whirled about, throwing them across the space between the beds, one hitting Scootaloo and the other two hitting the wall. In an instant he had grabbed another three and repeated the process until he had no more left. Scootaloo and Dinky dug their way out of the hill of pillows and glared back at Captain Conquest.
"This calls for a rethink of our strategy."
"I'll get my plushies," Dinky said with a scowl.
Scootaloo nodded in approval. "Yes, force him to fire back before he gets swamped. Good thinking First Mate Dinky."
"Do not fire until we see the whites of their eyes," Conquest shouted to his imagined crew.
"You're taking this pretty seriously," Scootaloo said as she began stacking plushies that Dinky tossed to her. A smile spread across her face. "I like it. Hurry up Dinky, there's no way we'll be beaten by these imperial dogs."
"Aye-aye, Captain," Dinky said as she grabbed her last plushie and hopped back upon the bed.
"Strike now, Dashite Pirates," Scootaloo roared, "for freedom, for gold, and for... whatever else pirates like."
Conquest took a few hits, but remained standing with a smile upon his face. "You do not scare the Mexicoltan navy. I return fire."
"I thought you said to wait till you saw the whites of our eyes," Dinky shouted back at him.
"Your eyes to are too big miss," Conquest returned with an awkward buck that deflected a stuffed elephant back at the pirates.
Scootaloo was about to retaliate, but then shrugged. He was right.
The battle carried on. Captain Conquest vs. the Dashite Pirates. Neither side really gaining any leeway. Did anypony ever really win one of these? The Dashites scored six more hits, and the Mexicolt was getting better at deflecting the soft projectiles with his one hind leg as it carried on. Dinky would make occasional runs down onto the floor to gather spare ammo, and Scootaloo did her best to cover her. Conquest then took a hit in the face and he lost his balance, falling down ungracefully, making himself a prime target.
"Hey, what's going on?"
Scootaloo and Dinky paused pelting the fallen Conquest to find Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. They looked excited, probably because of the pillow fight.
"Hurry up and join us," Scootaloo and Dinky said in unison.
"Join the Dashite Pirates against the Mexicolt," Dinky said, bounding with excitement.
Sweetie Belle eagerly leapt onto the bed to join the other fillies, receiving a pirate hat in the process. But Apple Bloom had other ideas.
"Conquest, I'm joinin' yer side," she said with short sprint and jump onto the mattress. She watched as he got up, trying to keep from gagged at the sight of his stubs. "But, can I be Equestrian?"
Conquest blinked at her and took on what he deemed a triumphant pose as he faced the Dashites. "Quake in fear, Dashites, for tartarus has been unleashed. The Equestrian Royal Marines hath joined us. Taste the wrath of our tempest."
"Yer worse than Sweetie Belle," Applebloom laughed as she tossed a plushie at the pirates.
"Hey," Sweetie cried just as the plushie hit her. "Oh, it's on now."
The room was filled with flying objects in an instant amidst the sounds of good-natured insults.
"Imperial lackeys."
"Pirate scum."
"Royal pains."
"Buccaneer bumpkins."
"Noble narcissists."
"Wave hogs."
"Proper prissy."
"Mast manes."
"Soft shoes."
"Scurvy dogs."
"Clichéd curiours."
"Sunday raiders."
"I think you five should stop soon or you'll miss cake and ice cream."
"Hey, that's a good insult."
"It wasn't us."
All fighting ceased as they all turned to face the door, seven mares and a dragon were peering in with smiles on their faces. Sweetie Belle was slightly embarrassed, and Dinky was slightly ashamed for messing up the room after cleaning earlier. But the mares made no pretentions of annoyance or otherwise, just giggles and some smiles. Spike, however was not amused.
"Aawe, I missed the big pillow fight?"
"Sorry, Spike," said Scootaloo, leaping down from her porch on the bedpost and heading for the door. "We'll give you this one, Conquest, since it's your party. Last one to the kitchen's a rotten egg."
"Like the one you hatched from?" Sweetie teased as she and Dinky chased after the orange filly.
Apple Bloom laughed as she saw them go and turned to Conquest to see if he was about ready to give chase. He didn't look like it. "Uuuh, Conquest are you alright?"
Conquest was covered in sweat, the sombrero was crooked upon his head, and he was panting hard.
"Ooh, that doesn't look good," Fluttershy said, hurrying to Conquest's side and placing a hoof on his brow. He didn't even notice he was so heavy with sweat and fatigue.
"Is he alright?" Derpy as in concern, darted next to Fluttershy.
Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief when she concluded her diagnosis. "Yes, just very tired. Poor thing. The pillow fight must have been a lot of strain on his... weakened body. A wet towel and some water and ice cream to cool him down should do just fine. And a lot of rest."
"Well, he can sleep later," Derpy said with a chuckle as she took a wet towel the Pinkie had rushed to get. She rubbed Conquest down to get rid of the sweat and cool him down. When she was done, however, he looked absolutely fluffy. Laughter was stifled to save his dignity. "Come on Conquest, these ponies want to meet you, and I think the victor of the battle deserves some treats."
Derpy gathered Conquest into his forelimbs and felt her heart flutter when he actually snuggled against her chest, eliciting a long "Awe" from the gathered mares. "No sleeping," Derpy told him with withering firmness, he just looked so peaceful. But Derpy had resolve. She changed his position so that he was more dangling her grasp, just uncomfortable enough so he wouldn't just drift off to sleep.
"The little dear seems to really like you, darling," Rarity said as Derpy passed.
Derpy paused moment and nodded slowly, feeling a twinge in her heart. "Yes, he sure does." She shook the fog from her head and turned back to the others with a broad smile. "He just needs to stay up a few more hours, then I'll let him sleep nice and long tomorrow."