//------------------------------// // Secrets To Keep (Slice of Life) // Story: Equestria's Tales // by DouglasTrotter //------------------------------// "Ok, Pinkie Pie. You can do this. You. Can. Do this," she glanced at her reflection in the window while washing her hooves, "I know you can do this. The reward. A surprise you've saved for yourself to surprise yourself with." The pony said. She stopped. The tip of her hoof scratched against her mane before rubbing it against her chin. She tapped the hoof against her mouth. "Wait, if it's a surprise I made myself then how is it a surprise. Was I sleep trotting at night, made myself something, and forgot about it so it would be a surprise? Creeeeepppppyyyyyy..." The pink pony shrugged and turned off the water, soon drying her hooves. She giggled to herself then pulled out a list. A set of careful blue eyes skimmed over the sheet on the counter. With the paper place near the mixer, Pinkie Pie nodded to her reflection in the mirror one final time. The reflection nodded back in return. Two eggs were laid out on the preparation counter with a sack of flour pulled from the cupboard. A set of metal teaspoons and measuring cups clanged against one another as they were removed from the drawer. Three cups of flour were placed into a container with a teaspoon of salt added to it. With the one and a half teaspoons of baking soda added in, the pony shook for a second before resuming her task. "Coming..." Pinkie Pie said, turning her attention away from the mixer. She moved towards the swinging doors and peered around the corner. Near the doorway, the pink pony whispered to herself, "Twilight? She back early." "Girls, please understand. We need to keep this a secret." Twilight said in a hushed tone. "Why? We're fine." Apple Bloom said. "..." Pinkie Pie remained silent while she continued to peer around the corner. "You promised me, remember. I didn't get a chance to fully study the stone before Mr. Sine knocked me out." Twilight said. "You were knocked out by a doorknob." Scootaloo said. "No. He knocked me out with a doorknob made of that weird Unihalcon metal," Twilight groaned then turned towards the Cutie Mark Crusaders, "however, that being beside the point, I need you three to remember your promise to me, please. Those crystals from that meteorite are somehow inside you, a part of you now. I've got to figure out how to retrieve them. There's no telling what they'll do to you. Maybe I can learn why you were able to absorb them when you aren't in danger." Pinkie Pie backed up. She placed a hoof over her mouth. Through a muffled voice she said, "Ok. Ok," she began to hyperventilate, "I can... not do this right now. I can't keep a super secret like that one. It's too soon. I'm not even into part 1 of section A of the start of my Pinkie Pie Private Secrets Provision Keeping Strategy for my first secret." "Hello?" Twilight said. A deep breath escaped the pink pony. "Hi!" Pinkie Pie said. Nervous hooves guided the pink pony out from the kitchen. She trotted towards the counter and smiled at her friends. Her eyes darted about. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead then dripped down her cheek. Tense, silent moments followed. "Ya alright there, Pinkie Pie?" Apple Bloom said. "Yea! I'm fine. Fine a fine, fine, fine... Heh, heh. So, you need two chocolate cakes, some cookies, and a... 'baker's dozen of lime scones?'" Pinkie Pie said. "Yes. They're for Shining Armor." Twilight said, shaking her head afterwards. "Ok, that'll be fifteen bits." Pinkie said. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and said to herself, "Good thing that's all." "Where's my -- horse feathers, my bit purse is gone. It's probably in my bag. I'll go back and --" Twilight said. Pinkie Pie wrapped up the parcels. She darted to Twilight and strapped the three boxes to her friend's flank. "No worries. I'll cover you." "Thank you. I'll be sure to pay you back." Twilight said. She walked towards the exit. "Actually, mind if I have a --" "Here's a super supreme, Pinkie Pie chocolate chip cookie." Pinkie Pie said, placing the cookie in Twilight's mouth. Twilight levitated the cookie out of her mouth. She raised an eyebrow at her pink pony friend. After a shrug, and a smirk, the pony trotted outside while munching on the cookie. Pinkie Pie wiped the final beads of sweat from her forehead, and then stood in a stalwart position. "I will keep what I heard a secret, on top of the one I'm already keeping. I, 'Pinkie Pie,' will master my new technique. It has to happen. Still, I wonder if Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack should know about this. It kinda sounds dangerous." The clock on the back wall continued to tick on. Pinkie Pie trotted back into the kitchen, washed her hooves again, and resumed her work at the counter. With its switch flipped, the mixer sprang to life. As it hummed away, the two eggs, cracked into the mixing bowl, creamed together with a cup of white sugar and a cup of brown sugar. The pink pony stopped herself. She chuckled then added the teaspoon of vanilla almost left out of the mix. Her eyes followed the beaters while they spun the cup of butter with the other ingredients. One minute passed. A nervous twitch came to Pinkie Pie's right eye. She shook her head and focused on the powder ingredients. "So far, so good. Just gotta focus on these ingredients." Pinkie Pie said. She turned towards the cupboard and retrieved a bag of chocolate chips. The pony waved to the container of salt in the corner, "It'll be ready in a second, Discord." Two eyes formed on the container of salt before it floated into the air. Misshapen arms and legs stretched out as the container turned into the form of the chaotic god. "Phooey. I'm not playing hide and seek again." Discord said. He slinked around the floor. The chaotic god soon shrunk down and sat on the pony's back. He smiled, "Do tell, Pinkie Pie. What is this I heard about a 'secret?'" "None of my business. I'm making chocolate chip cookies. The ones 'you' asked me to make." Pinkie Pie said. "O come now, Pinkie. I am good at keeping secrets." Discord said. "And the loudspeaker outside?" Pinkie Pie said, raising an eyebrow at the microphone around her neck. The two gazed at each other before the chaotic god shrugged. "Now, I just need to add the -- hey. Don't eat the spoon. I still need that to stir in the chips after I add in the flour." Pinkie Pie said. She pointed towards the oven. "If you want to help, make sure to set the oven to Three hundred Seventy Five." "O my, you have quite the knack for this little 'secret' keeping -- oops, I mean baking." Discord said, grumbling under his breath. He snapped his talon, setting the oven's temperature. "O come on, just between us friends. What was that little secret?" Pinkie Pie's ears twitched at the hum of the mixer while she portioned the flour into the contents of the mixer's bowl. "Well, if you're not going to tell me then I'll just be off." Discord said before he vanished in a flash of light. Pinkie Pie chuckled to herself. Her hoof switched the mixer off. She dumped the chocolate chips into a bowl, "Found ya. We'll play hide and seek again some time. Right now, I need to finish these cookies." "Spoil sport. O well, I wonder if Celestia will play." Discord said. "Now, stir in the chips. And we're done. Set the timer to twelve minutes. Done. Yes. I did it. I did it! Pinkie ol' Girl, you managed to complete your secret keeping test." The pony said before she sighed. She looked at the clock in the corner, "This'll never work. I can't lock myself away in the kitchen while never ever, ever, ever, ever, coming out until the end of the day. What do I do?" "You should tell your secret," A shrill voice said. Pinkie Pie gazed up to see a brilliant flash of light illuminating the kitchen. She snickered. Her hooves gave out as she rolled onto her back, laughing at the Princess Celestia imitation that floated above her. "I need a new writer for my shtick. This one stinks." Discord said, ripping off the crown. "Thanks," Pinkie Pie wiped away a tear, "I needed a good laugh. I'm trying to keep 'your' secret safe too, remember? Not to mention this dozy of one to keep." Discord sighed. He laid on his back, gazing at the ceiling next to the pony. "This 'friendship' thing still feels weird to me, but... thanks, for, you know, keeping that little secret between us. Princess Luna wasn't too thrilled about what I did. As for 'your' secret, just tell Twilight you overheard her talk." "You knew the whole time?!" Pinkie Pie said. "Eeyup," Discord's right talon in the visage of Big Macintosh said. His talon returned to normal before he snapped it. The timer turned off on the oven. The tray floated out with the cookies placed onto the table. Discord nibbled on the tray for a second, and then consumed it in a single bite. "Here's some bits for the treat. Always enjoy chocolate chip crumbs on the serving tray. Now, I'll be sure these get to Fluttershy, pronto." The chaotic god smirked at the pink pony before vanishing in a flash of light. "Perhaps he's right. I managed to keep his secret a secret, but this secret, it isn't something I can keep a secret. I better talk to Twilight about it before I become a nasty bean spilling spiller." Pinkie Pie said. She turned to her left, "Gummy. There's my gator. At least I know my baking technique to keep my mind off the little secrets works." Gummy stuck out his tongue. "O. My. Gosh! That's it! Thanks Gummy. You're the best pet a pony could have." Pinkie Pie said. The pony smiled at the almost infinite reflection of her eyes reflecting off of her pet gator's eyes. "I just need to visualize myself baking things. It'll keep my mind off of things, but, I'll wait and test it out on an easier secret to keep. I've got to do better about knowing which secrets are good to keep, and knowing which ones need to be told. Time to talk to Twilight."