//------------------------------//
// The Fourth Favor 
// Story: Pinkie Pie's Bass 
// by MegaTJ 
//------------------------------//


The Fourth Favor


Strings once again snored comfortably in Pinkie Pie's bed. The morning had yet to be set ablaze by sunlight, so all of Sugarcube Corner was still asleep, even the pink mare curled up on the floor next to her bed. The cool air that came in the night brought a light frost that fell upon the dew-covered grass. Unfortunately, there was a window open in her room, letting the outside air come and go as it pleased. Strings was safe underneath Pinkie's many blankets, so the cold air targeted the filly with extreme prejudice instead. Her thin blankets and sheets couldn't contain the precious heat she needed and was viciously bullied by the cold air.

She shivered in her sleep. More and more cold came in, torturing Pinkie Pie by further dropping her outer body temperature. The shivering became more and more violent as the frozen seconds ticked by. Soon, her teeth began to chatter loudly. Her subconscious took control of her body and scooted her closer to the bed. It miscalculated and instead of stopping just against the bed, it threw her hard against the frame.

The jolt knocked Strings right off the side onto the cold floor. He shot awake and sat up groggily. "Sweet Luna, what just happened?" he groaned, giving his sore flank a rub. He yawned and climbed back under Pinkie's blankets. That's when he heard how miserable Pinkie Pie was on the floor. She was shivering pretty badly from what he could tell. While he looked down at her, he knew she was having a horrible time sleeping. She clutched her thin sheets for dear life and was balled up tightly in them. He climbed down from the bed. Focusing a little magic to his horn, he gently lifted Pinkie Pie and set her in the warm spot he had made in the mattress while he slept. A smile came to her face, but her shivering had yet to be evicted. He pulled the comforter over her body and concentrated on another spell. He felt the spell rising to his horn, but it fizzled out almost as soon as it was ready. He sighed in annoyance.

Strings levitated his guitar from the wall. Turning it around, he opened a secret compartment where he kept a composition notebook. In his scratchy hoofwriting were the words "Tour Book". He flipped through the worn book to where he kept notes of the harder spells he knew. In the fifth or six page in the section (he was too drowsy to keep count) he found the instructions for a heat spell. "Tree sap, I always forget to think about kittens", he said to himself. He shook his head and concentrated a second time.

His horn released a delicate ray of warm, glowing heat over the bed. Pinkie Pie's shivering came to a standstill, allowing her to sleep in peace and warmth. She hugged a nearby pillow as she bathed in Strings's heat wave. Once he was sure she would stay toasty, Strings yawned and stretched his drowsiness away. He wanted to go back to sleep, but the cold floor was the exact opposite of inviting. Instead, he offered the room one final yawn, closed the window, and left for downstairs. From somewhere he could hear a baby crying on the second floor. He just happened to pass by that somewhere, and curiously poked his head in the door. Inside, Mrs. Cake was nuzzling her foal back to sleep. He quietly withdrew. He didn't like creeping on ponies. I hafta say hey to the little guy sometime. I love kids, he thought.

He descended the staircase slowly to make sure his hooves didn't clop on the hard wood steps. The first story was even colder than Pinkie Pie's room, but Strings was never bothered with the cold. He yawned one more time. "Sometimes I hate being lazy." He scratched the back of his head.

"Can't sleep?"

Strings opened his eyes to see Mr. Cake awake at the kitchen table. A cup of hot chocolate was nestled in his hooves. The absence of the baker's shirt and hat made him look a little weird. The bassist shrugged. "Not really, but kinda."

"Cocao?" The light amber pony nodded to a kettle on the stove.

Strings shook his head. "Nah. I'm good."

Mr. Cake smiled, "It's Pinkie Pie's special recipe."

There was an instant sign the unicorn's change of mind in his eyes. "Then again, a cup wouldn't hurt", Strings replied quickly.

The older stallion chuckled. "There's a mug waiting for you on the counter."

Strings took a seat opposite of the baker while he levitated the mug over. He took a sip, but immediately regretted it. He almost spat out the molten drink, but forced it down before it came out. He placed the cup in front of him.

"Shoulda warned you about that. I just made it", Mr. Cake apologized.

Strings wiped his mouth. "It's cool."

"Why are you wearing the star?"

"Huh?" Strings frowned in confusion.

"The black one over your eye."

Strings nodded in comprehension. He forgot to wash it off before he passed out last night. "It's a reminder of my old band. We all had a star somewhere."

"You were in a band?"

Strings nodded. "Five of us. We got sorta famous back home. Sold an album or two. That was years ago though."

"For somepony as young as you are that's amazing."

"That's what ponies say."

"You don't do it anymore?"

"I still try to get gigs, but it's hard for just one shredder to get work."

"Is that why you came into Ponyville?"

Strings shook his head. "Sorta, but no. I just drifted in."

"Run away from home?"

Strings chuckled, "No, it's not like that."

"Just traveling?"

Strings nodded. "Yeah. I drop by home when I can, but I'm mostly on the road.

Mr. Cake didn't have any more questions for Strings, so the two fell silent. The unicorn dared to try the hot chocolate again. It had cooled down, leaving only the threat of a very probably cavity. It was super sweet and extra chocolaty. Nothing tastier had ever engulfed his taste buds. Not even chili hay fries were better. He savored the taste and slowly let it drain down to his stomach. The warm spread to his whole body. He paused to breathe, then chugged the drink down as fast as he could. He wiped the milkstache away. "Pretty radical."

"So is this who you really are?"

"What?"

"You act very differently around Pinkie Pie." Mr. Cake noticed immediately that his behavior had changed since they first met. He was using words more specific to his personality.

"Oh, that", Strings sighed. "I'm just slowly getting her used to me a little at a time. Mom told me to behave around fillies. At least until they get to know me. I mean, she almost knows me all the way, but I'm still working on it." He didn't think anypony would've notice he was acting differently. Mr. Cake was the very first.

"Then why not let her get to know your whole real side now?"

He shrugged. "I don't want her to think I'ma music bum or something."

"Trust me", Mr. Cake said with a wink, "Pinkie Pie won't see you like that."

Strings was becoming seriously uncomfortable. "I'll try it and see." He stood up. "Gotta spare bedroom, Mr. Cake?"

"Sorry, Strings. Pinkie's and the babies' were the only ones."

Strings nodded. "Figures", he mumbled to himself. "I gotta find a hotel or something. I can't keep sleeping in Pink's bed while she camps out on the floor. That's totally not radical."

"I have a friend that will help you find a room."

"Thanks, that would be awesome." Strings left the room, muttering something about needing a gig.

The climb back to Pinkie's room was uneventful. The stairs creaked a little, but other than that and his hoofsteps, nothing made a sound. When he made it back, Strings didn't know what to do. The floor was still too cold for him to sleep on, but at least the air was warm now. He looked around the room. Pinkie Pie had a small table in her room with two chairs pulled up to it. He shook his head. They weren't big enough put together for a makeshift bed. He sighed. "To hay with it. I'll just stay up. How long could it be, I mean seriously?"

It turns out it was a three hour wait. Strings used the time to quietly practice a few solos while he waited for Luna's white moon to go down. He almost nodded off a few times, but the feeling of falling out of his chair gave him an instant wake up call. Boredom struck way before dawn, but thankfully, the sun was starting to turn the sky pink. Strings stared at it with quiet inspiration. He quickly levitated his book over and flipped to a fresh page. He removed the pencil from the rubber eyehook and quickly began jotting down new lyrics for a song in the brightening room. He scribbled, erased, smiled, and banged his head on the table in the process.

He was vaguely aware of the sun lighting up the room as he worked. The song took all of his attention and was firmly holding his eyes to the page. Something bumped his chair a little, but he ignored it. A few seconds later, another push scooted him a few inches from his notebook. Expecting to see Pinkie Pie, he looked down, only to have his blood freeze over. Staring him right in the eye was Gummy, watching him blankly. They stared at each other for three seconds before Strings lost it.

"CROCODILE!" Strings screamed at the top of his lungs. He shot straight to the ceiling, and used his magic to stick his hooves to the surface. He shook in terror while Gummy looked inanely up at him. His scream pulled Pinkie Pie right out of REM sleep. She shot up to see the frightened unicorn and Gummy watching him. "C-careful, P-P-Pinkie Pie, there's a crocodile in your room!"

She bounced down from her bed. "Heehee, no silly! Gummy's an alligator!" Pinkie giggled.

"Does that really matter Pinkie Pie?"

Gummy jumped up and planted his jaws around Pinkie Pie's mane. "He doesn't have any teeth, that's why I named him Gummy! He can't eat you!"

Strings still refused to come down. "Th-that doesn't matter. He's a…a…" The accursed word wouldn't come out of his mouth. He was way too terrified to say it.

Pinkie Pie tilted her head at him. "A what?"

"A r-reptile!"

"What's so bad about reptiles? Reptiles are cool! They're cold blooded, they live a long time, they can survive a really long time without food." She stopped her list there in hopes that it would be enough to get him to come down.

"Pinkie Pie, it doesn't matter. I have herpetophobia. I'm scared outta my mind by'em!"

Pinkie Pie pulled Gummy from her mane, and guided him to his bed in the corner of her room. "You stay here, Gummy. Strings needs a little time to get to know you before he can be your friend. Don't worry, I'll work on him for you." She gave the creature a wink.

"I-is it safe?"

"Uh huh, you can come down now you big scaredy-cat!" she laughed.

His cheeks slightly roasted with a warm blush. Strings spread the magic field holding him to the ceiling from his hooves to around his whole body. He levitated himself downward until his hooves were back on the floor. "…Thanks, Pink."

"You're welcome!"

"Let's go get some breakfast", Strings said in an attempt to get as far away from Gummy—and the fact that he had screamed like a girl—as he could.

That idea was perfect in Pinkie Pie's book. The fast food they had the night before wasn't what anypony would call "whole and hearty". Needless to say she was pretty hungry. "Okay! We can have the leftovers from yesterday!"

Strings followed Pinkie Pie back down to the first floor, wondering just how she could be so awake so fast. She bounced happily down, skipping multiple steps on her way down. Strings yawned for the fifth time since they left the room as he sluggishly followed. He hated how he could never wake up in the mornings.

Mr. Cake was no longer in the kitchen, but the memories of Strings conversation with him still were. It made him wonder if it was really true what the baker said about Pinkie Pie not thinking of him badly if he showed his true colors. I could try it…at least to see what happens. I mean, it's just words…

Pinkie Pie grabbed the tray she stowed in one of the fridges the morning before. After a quick heating spell from Strings, they were soon chewing away at the premade breakfast. While Pinkie Pie put a stamp on the day's seemingly forever long to-do list, Strings struggled with his identity dilemma. The main problem was figuring out where to start. Should I just come right out all at once, or ease it faster? Man, I wish her dad was here…he knew what he was talking about.

"And THEN we can go to the prank shop since we didn't go yesterday!" Pinkie finished with only one breath. She chomped down on another pancake.

Strings didn't really hear anything she had said, but it didn't matter since he didn't have anything planned for himself. That and he loved being with Pinkie Pie. She was the ultimate definition of fun. And she's cute too, he added in his head with a blush. He was still caught up in his thoughts until the same mare he was thinking about waved a hoof in his face.

"Hello, anypony in there?" she giggled, giving his head a small knock.

"No pony home", Strings replied with a smirk.

"I'll just come back again some other time, then." She turned around and pretended to walk off. She was aiming to get a few steps away but Strings grabbed her tail and pulled her back.

"Where do you think you're going?" asked through his clenched teeth.

"To Rein Meadow!" Pinkie Pie replied as if it was obvious.

"I don't think so. Not unless I jump on the bus too!"

"Okay! Let's get rolling then!" Pinkie Pie bounced away, pulling Strings behind her. He levitated the last muffin from the table and placed the now-empty tray in the sink. He let go of Pinkie's tail to stuff the muffin in his mouth.

"So, what's in Rein Meadow?" Strings asked through a mouthful of digesting muffin.

"You'll see!"

"Another secret, eh Pink?"

"Nope, just a surprise!"

"And you don't want to ruin it, huh?"

"Nope!"

Strings smiled. She was so cute. He blushed again, but didn't care. There was no shame in finding a girl cute. Fortunately for the two of them, Ponyville had warmed up considerably since morning struck. The frost that had fallen was now merely heavy water droplets on the leaves, giving Strings a creepy sensation in his hooves. The grass and dirt stuck to him, making a chill run through his spine. This is so messed up…

To take his mind off of it, he listened to Pinkie Pie ramble on about the day, picking up a lot of what he missed earlier. From what he could figure, Pinkie Pie was taking him on a final, but grand tour of Ponyville. They were going to visit every place that he had yet to see, and they were going to meet even more of her friends. How she could have planned this all in a few minutes was amazing. Strings knew roadies that couldn't plan the way she did. She would make a radical Star…

They were entering Ponyville's vast open outskirts now, leaving Strings to wonder exactly what could be in Rein Meadow. Knowing Pinkie Pie, though, he knew it wouldn't be disappointing.

"…then we can watch the meteor shower tonight!"

Strings flinched, he was barely listening again. "There's a meteor shower tonight?"

"Twilight said that it should be passing by at seven! Everypony's going to be watching it, and we'll have the best seats in town!"

"Where're we sitting?"

"On Sugarcube Corner's roof!"

"Cool, I haven't seen a meteor shower in forever!" Strings shouted. "We can pop popcorn and get some snacks and stuff!"

"Yeah, we can bake cupcakes too!"

Strings's heart skipped a beat at the sound of "we". "Yeah, and I can do the mixing with my awesome new mixing skills!"

Their excitement kept getting higher and higher until they were passing ideas about baking a full bed to eat while they lay down to watch the shower. Strings was getting so excited that he was soon bouncing alongside Pinkie Pie. He was well aware that he was bouncing, and loved the way it felt. He felt so free and innocent. Does Pinkie Pie always feel like this? he wondered. It's so awesome!

They bounced through the fields until a grove came into view. Strings slowed his bouncing, squeamish of the tall grass. Pinkie Pie started to leave him behind, so he hurried to catch up, but kept a look out for any snakes that might be slithering around. Pinkie Pie navigated her way through the very thin forest and brought him to a place where the trees had stopped growing. There was a crowd of ponies scattered around as they watched the sky. Strings could hear old instrumental music playing somewhere in the field. He turned his gaze to the sky to check out what everypony was staring at.

Six Pegasi were flying in a very neat formation and were dancing in sync to one another in the air. They wore matching outfits consisting of tutus, red bows, and striped stockings. Pinkie Pie bounced to the middle of the field and took a seat in a dry patch of grass. Strings sat next to her. The music was making him nauseous, but the choreography was fantastic. The ballet Pegasi consisted of mostly young fillies flying alongside two older instructors. One instructor, a yellow Pegasus with a pink mane and tail flew one way, letting her half of the ballerinas follow her in twists and jumps around clouds while the other instructor, a dark blue Pegasus sporting a green and yellow ponytail led her fillies into a wide circle pattern underneath the others.

"They're really good", Strings commented.

"Yup. That's the Ponyville Lily Blossom Ballet team!"

Strings watched how into the routine she got. If he didn't know any better, he could have sworn…

"I wish I could fly with them", she said absently. "I'm a ballerina too sometimes, but I can't fly, so I just jump on the ground and dance with my hooves. I have a pedalcopter, but it's not the same as flying like a real Pegasus."

Strings smiled, and almost puked he was so excited. This is gonna hurt, but it's totally worth it! He stealthily scooted away from her. Taking a huge breath, he focused every ounce of magic energy he had into his horn, even taking it from his hooves. The amount of power that was forced into his horn was excruciating. Tears washed from his eyes as he gritted his teeth and concentrated on the most unique spell he had ever learned. Despite the strain he put on his body, the spell simply snaked from his horn and gently phased into Pinkie's body.

The unicorn's vision went blank and the only thing he could hear was a high-pitched ringing. He nearly fell over but managed to spread his hooves out for balance. It took him several seconds before the pressure in his body eased. He soon came to realize that he was breathing heavy, but no pony was paying attention. He closed his eyes to wipe the blurriness of the tears away, and when he opened them, was very satisfied with his work.

Pinkie Pie watched Fluttershy spin again. She was getting really good with all of the practice. She gracefully danced in the sky, occasionally bouncing from one cloud to another. The fillies copying her movements were just as graceful. They all formed up in a flower shape, while the other fillies formed the stem. The music began to fade away, and the fillies bowed for their fans and parents. Pinkie Pie applauded the performers with a classical hoof ground pound.

Fluttershy spotted her friend on the ground and flew down to meet her and the new unicorn she had been hearing about. She landed a few feet away, and happily trotted the rest of the way, but froze upon seeing what had happened to the pink mare. Pinkie Pie frowned at her friend's behavior, but thought it was just the sight of Strings and bounced the rest of the way over.

"You were amazifying!" Pinkie Pie complimented happily, "You danced better than I do after a root beer float!"

Fluttershy refused to say or do anything but stare at the mare in absolute confused horror.

"What's wrong?" Pinkie asked suddenly, "Is there something in my teeth? Is my mane too curly? Am I even ME!? Pinkie Pie started to panic as she went off the list of crazy diagnoses from growing fangs to becoming a disciple of Princess Chrysalis.

Strings laughed at her silliness.

"This is no time for laughing!" Pinkie cried, "I gotta figure out what's going on!"

He trotted up to her. "Maybe it's these." He took his hooves and spread out her new, pink wings to full length.

Pinkie gasped, "These are…are…"

"Favor number four!" he announced to everypony. Pinkie Pie kept stuttering over her words, unable to get a clear sentence out. "You okay, Pink?"

"I…I…I LOVE THEM!" Pinkie Pie launched straight into the air and instinctively began flying around the field as fast as she could, giggling through the air.

Strings was impressed, she was the first pony to get into flying without lessons. She flew above him once more, and his gazed followed her until he caught sight of Fluttershy. The poor mare was still shaking from the shock of Pinkie's wings. He introduced himself. "Heya, there!"

The Pegasus jumped. She turned to see the scraggily-pony warmly holding his hoof out for her to shake. She managed to force herself to take it, and whispered, "I'm Fluttershy…"

"Bass Strings, but just call me Strings!"

"Did you give Pinkie Pie her wings?" she asked softly.

He nodded, "Sure did. It hurt, but she'll get some use outta of'em."

"Will she…"

"No, just for today. I can't give out permanent wings. If I did, then everypony would be messing with me about wanting to fly! The world needs Earthy ponies ya know?"

Fluttershy wanted to know more, but couldn't talk to the empty space where Strings was just standing. Her eyes traced the path where he and Pinkie Pie rolled after she tackled him with a hug.

"THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUU !" Pinkie Pie hugged all of the air right out of the unicorn's lungs. She squeezed even tighter and was very close to snapping his spine when she let go.

He stood up, breathing heavily. "Glad you like'em, Pink", he gasped, "But they're just for today, got it? I'm not strong enough to give you wings forever."

"It doesn't matter! Now I can go visit Rainbow Dash without a balloon, and walk on clouds, and eat cupcakes while I fly and, fly to all of my favorite places in Ponyville, and make it rain and strike lightning from clouds, and, chase birds, and, and…"

Strings put a hoof over her mouth. "I get it", he chuckled.

"Come on, let's go show Rainbow Dash!" The pink now-Pegasus took off without waiting for his reply.

"I'll catch up in a sec!" he yelled after her. "Guess we're cutting this short, Fluttershy", he called, "See ya later!" He left after Pinkie Pie, leaving Fluttershy thoroughly lost for words. He hated losing the chance to make a new friend, but he had to make sure Pinkie Pie stayed out of trouble. He could always talk to Fluttershy later. Pinkie's flight path led him, thankfully, through a small dirt path away from the grass. He galloped across the fields to where Rainbow Dash's house floated. Strings didn't have to run far; her home was closer than he thought. Pinkie Pie was busy flying figure eights in front of a very stunned Rainbow Dash. The blue Pegasus saw the guitarist out of the corner of her eye. She glared at him and was, in a flash, yelling in his face.

"You gave her wings!?" Rainbow screamed. "Are you nuts?!"

"Yeah, cashews." Strings replied cheekily Why?"

"Pinkie Pie was an Earth Pony for a reason! Now she'll never leave me alone and I can't even fly away anymore!"

"Okay, number one: chill, Rainbow", Strings instructed, "And number two, it's only for today. You only have to hide until tonight."

She rolled her eyes. "I guess you're off the hook", she grumbled. "But don't do it again!"

He snickered, "I'll try."

"Hey, whatcha talkin' about over here?" Pinkie Pie asked, having popped in between them flying upside down.

"The next Battle of the Bands", Strings lied. "We're going together!"

For the sake of her feelings, Rainbow followed Strings's lead. "Yeah, I might get the guitar out. I'm probably not going to sing."

"Why not? You've got some awesome vocals." Strings frowned. "Guess Pinkie's our singer then?"

"Really, I can sing for you guys!?"

"Yep!" Strings shot a grin at Rainbow, who mumbled something out of earshot.

"Alright when is it!?"

"Don't know yet. I'll get some numbers and we'll make it a date!"

"Yay!" Pinkie Pie flew upwards and began flipping and cheering.

"What. Have you done?"

"Made a very special pony really happy, that's what."

Rainbow Dash huffed. "Now I have to go practice."

Pinkie Pie flew back down. "Come on, Strings, let's go to Lyra's!"

She grabbed him under his hooves and carried him away. "Haha! I'll see ya later, Rainbow Dash!"

The mare waved them goodbye, the left her home for Applejack's.

Pinkie Pie carried her unicorn cargo all the way to the opposite side of Ponyville. To make sure a fall didn't stunt his life, Strings lightened her load by using a floating spell on himself. Together they landed in front of a peaceful looking two story building. The sign on the shop read "Bon Bon's Confectionaries" in bold blue and pink letters. A mint pony sat on a bench outside plucking the strings of a lyre with her magic.

"Hey, Lyra!" Pinkie fluttered over to her. "Check out my new wings!"

Lyra blinked. "Wow! Where'd you get them?" She stood to get a better look.

"My friend Strings gave'em to me!" the pink mare answered happily.

Lyra looked over her shoulder to see Strings grinning warmly. She hopped off the bench. "Strings…" she said uncertainly. That name had been drifting around Ponyville since the day before, and now she had finally met the new arrival. "Can I have a pair!?"

Here we go… "Sorry. It takes way too much outta me to do it again today."

"Oh…all well, I tried." Lyra shrugged indifferently. "But that's amazing! I thought only Alicorns could do that!"

"It's actually an easy spell. It just kinda sucks the life outta ya when you use it", Strings explained. He scratched the back of his neck, "I really wanted to do something nice for Pinkie Pie today."

"And do he did!" Pinkie commented, "I can FLY FLY FLY!"

"I can see that Pinkie", Lyra giggled.

"Watch this!" Both non-flying ponies gazed upon a trick that she taught herself. She flew straight up and then slowly fell back downwards, flipping and giggling until she was just about to hit the ground. At the last second, she opened her wings and landed on her back.

"She's a natural", Strings stated. "I have never, repeat, never seen somepony just take out and fly like she did."

"That's Pinkie Pie for you."

"What?"

"She never does what you expect her to."

"Got that right", he chuckled.

The pink Pegasus in question stood up. "I have four gold trophies for being random!" she declared, then added, "Sugar muffin!"

Strings laughed. Then he saw how far the sun had moved since they had gone out into the world. He really messed up Pinkie Pie's schedule by giving her wings. She was so fascinated about flying that she really wasn't focused on anything she had planned. It didn't matter to him either way if he got to see the rest of Ponyville. Pinkie Pie's company was more than worth it.

The next several hours flew by faster than Pinkie Pie flew to get them lunch, giving the news of her wings plenty of time to spread like wildfire across the small town. Surprisingly, not many ponies bugged Strings about giving them wings. He was even more surprised, and disappointed, when Pinkie Pie suddenly left him in the park for the library. She insisted that he didn't go with her, making sure that he Pinkie Pie Promised not to go near there until she was finished with whatever it was she was doing.

Only seven seconds passed until he was out of his mind with aggravation. "Man, I'm so bored!" he groaned to himself. "I wish Pink was here." Strings was sitting on a park bench, having nothing to do for entertainment except complain to himself. He looked around the park once again. He saw that it was starting to become packed with picnickers for lunchtime. To him, though, he saw a crowd. "Oh, it's on now." He tuned his horn to a different channel of magic, and teleported his guitar from Sugarcube Corner. "I love a crowd!" He cleared his throat, and turned on his magic amplifier. He had no specific song in mind, so he freehoofed a tune. He struck a couple of notes to start the show off with a low blast of bass.

Some of the ponies turned their heads, but for the most part he was disregarded. The lack of interest didn't affect him, and he launched a few more notes. This time, the ponies that turned their heads didn't turn back around. "That's more like it", he said under his breath. He stringed together more low notes to draw the curious crowds closer. Then, when he had four or five walk up to him, he dropped a bass-filled bomb in the park. The music-loving ponies cheered, but Strings was too focused on his strumming to notice. He picked up the tempo, and really gave Ponyville a one pony rock show.

His music could be heard as far away as the library, but it only barely penetrated the walls of the building, making it insignificant to the ponies inside. Pinkie Pie hated to leave Strings so suddenly, but she had only just caught a glimpse of Twilight and Dream returning from their trip to Canterlot. She didn't know when the next time she would get to talk to the librarian, so she had to get her story to Twilight right then.

Twilight was very intrigued with what Pinkie Pie was telling her. She also barely believed it. Pinkie never seemed like the pony to have a problem like the one she was spilling to the unicorn.

"And yesterday my face got hot like when I get a fever!" Pinkie claimed. "Is my Pinkie Sense going crazy or what?"

Twilight didn't even have to investigate or consult any of her books to know what was going on with her friend. With the widest smile, Twilight said, "Pinkie Pie, you're in love."

Pinkie Pie froze, then giggled. "Pfft! Don't joke Twilight! There's no way I'm in love! Hearts don't float around my head, and Strings isn't the only pony I see when he walks in a room!"

To Twilight it seemed like Pinkie Pie had read one or two romance novels. "Pinkie, love doesn't really work like that. That tickly feeling you keep getting is a direct result of the special feelings you have for Strings. In fact, I bet that you feel really different when you're around him and miss him after just a few seconds. Right?"

Pinkie Pie thought it over. She did feel a little lonely when he wasn't around. And she did feel super happy when he talked to her. But that really couldn't mean what Twilight was saying. Could it?

"I know this is probably confusing for you, Pinkie Pie", Twilight assumed, "But all you have to do is give yourself time get used to these new feelings."

Pinkie Pie put her hoof to her chin in thought. Aside from the intrusive cupcake thoughts, she was trying very hard to comprehend it. "I don't know Twilight, I don't FEEL in love."

"That's because this is probably the first time." Twilight turned around and levitated a book to her friend. "Here, this'll clear up all of the confusion."

"What is Love? The Many Feelings Of?" Pinkie Pie read from the cover. "Twilight, I don't need this."

"Trust me, it'll help."

She shook her head. "If you say I'm in love, then I'm in love no doubt about it. You're a smart pony", Pinkie Pie stated. "Just, what now?"

Twilight choked on her words. What could she tell Pinkie Pie to do now? Confess it? Something told her that Pinkie Pie's personality wouldn't exactly follow the normal criteria for dating. "Umm, well, do you want to tell him?"

"Hmm…I don't know…" Pinkie Pie stopped fluttering and placed her hooves on the floor. "Could anything bad happen?"

"Well, there is always the possibility of rejection." Twilight admitted. "But Strings seems like a good pony, so the worst that could happen would be that he would just want to stay friends."

"Then I'm not telling him a thing!" Pinkie exclaimed, "Friends is good enough for me! Thanks Twilight!" Pinkie Pie flew out of the library, leaving Twilight wondering whether or not she was any help at all. The know-it-all side of her was sure though, that Pinkie Pie would eventually want to be more than friends with Strings.

Pinkie Pie immediately gained altitude when the day's warm breeze streamed through her feathers. The ponies down below looked so different from above. She waved at those who gazed up at her while she returned to the park to gather up Strings. The clouds she soared by suffered minor bites as she playfully got mouthfuls of water vapor from them. The mare flipped, twirled, looped, and twisted in the air and throughout the few obstacles at roof height. It was when she got dizzy from spinning when she finally heard Strings's guitar exploding with chords. Even though the world was still twirling in her head, she looked in the direction of the park to see, in absolute amazement, white lightning shooting into the sky from the middle of a crowd of ponies. She looked closer and saw that they were coming from the bassist's guitar. She dived downward to better listen to him.

Strings was drawing in more and more ponies with every new note he called out of the instrument. He spotted Pinkie Pie flying toward him and got a brilliant idea of a way to make an awesome exit. He played a few more notes in quick succession, and then, in one really loud chord, launched himself off of the ground with a spell he used a lot before he quit the stage. He strapped the guitar to his back and held his hooves up.

Pinkie Pie knew what to do. She flew above him and grabbed his hooves just like the trapeze performers in the circus. She almost fell with the surprise weight, but quickly made up for it. The ponies under them applauded and whistled, with a few of them calling for an encore, but Pinkie and Strings couldn't hear anything but the wind in their ears. Pinkie Pie landed hard in front of a random building, scaring a few of the ponies standing around outside.

"Wow that was so cool! How were you doing that lightning? I didn't see any clouds! Does it hurt? How long hav—"

"Just some special effects I picked up on the road." Strings stretched. "Real simple stuff."

"Did you ever do that on stage?"

"All the time. And today, it brought me back."

Pinkie Pie noticed that there was something different about Strings now. Everything looked the same, but he was different. She stared intently at his face, wondering what was so different about him.

Strings smiled awkwardly. Why is she staring at me? Did I smear the star last night? What's wrong? "Umm, Pinkie Pie?"

She shook her head slightly to get out of her trance, but didn't take her eyes off of him. "Sorry Strings, you just look a little different, but I can't put my hoof on what it is!"

"I look different?" He adjusted his eyes on his mane. It was still a wreck, so that didn't change. Maybe it's because I'm fully me now…

"It could be something, but maybe it's nothing! Sometimes my eyes play tricks on me!"

"If you figure it out, let me know", Strings said, "So, um, what now?"

"We're going to go see my friend Zecora!" Pinkie Pie didn't wait to ask the unicorn if he was ready to go; she just took off, leaving him to stumble and chase after her.

I hope that whatever's different about me, it's a good thing, Strings thought, I don't want to push Pinkie away…