//------------------------------// // Of Ice Cream and Plans // Story: Into the Light // by nutcase4real //------------------------------// "I'm going to the dining car for ice cream! Anypony want to join me?" Pinkie asked excitedly as she lightly tapped Dash's leg. "Ah'm good." Applejack responded from under her hat, which was shielding the light of the waking world from her eyes. "I need to watch my figure darling." Rarity stated as she tried to stifle a yawn but failed. "If it's ok with you, I'd like to try to get some sleep." Fluttershy said as she began to curl up. "I need to analize this letter again." Twilight said without removing her eyes from the parchment they had received earlier. "Nah." Rainbow yawned as she stretched out. Pinkie Pie glared daggers for a single moment at the mare the last remark came from and kicked her slightly harder. "Ow! Pinkie!" Dash, who now realized why her friend was kicking her, stood up and awkwardly chuckled before saying, "I mean, sure. I'd love some ice cream!" she said with an unconvincing smile. Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash stepped out of the traveler's car and into the dining car rather quickly. They took up the seat on the far side of the car so they could keep an eye on the door they entered from and waited. Pinkie busied herself by staring at the ceiling, the floor, out the window, basically everything. Dash stared at Pinkie Pie with a questioning look for a few moments before she finally voiced what she was thinking. "So Pinkie?" "Yes Dashie?" "Why are we really in the dining car?" "I wanted some ice cream! I already said that silly!" Dash's hoof found her cerulean face and planted itself on her forehead. "Pinkie I thought we were going to talk about the you know what." "The whatsit whosey?" "The not friend Pinkie! You know the one who has replaced one of our friends with a changeling or whatever in Tartarus that thing is!" Dash almost shouted. "The one who helped kidnap one of our friends for Celestia knows what reason," Dash was getting fumed, "sent them to Celestia knows where," she had begun to shake a little, "to do Celestia knows what to them!" she slammed her hooves down on the table and forced her eyes to stay closed. Pinkie Pie just smiled pleasantly back at Dash who has recovering from her little episode. Dash rubbed her temples and did some deep breathing exercises that Rarity had shown her. Eventually she wasn't seeing red anymore and the shaking had almost stopped. "Feeling better?" Pinkie asked casually. "How... how can you be so calm about this Pinkie?" "The not friend has nowhere to go." Pinkie Pie explained as she tried to hail a waitress, who had just entered the car, to no avail. She deflated a little before continuing, "Besides, who knows our friends better than us?" Dash thought about it for a moment and shrugged. "We will find out who it is," the waitress reentered and this time Pinkie Pie got her attention. She then added, "But we can't do it on an empty stomach!" in a singsong tone. Pinkie began placing her order as the waitress walked up. The mare quickly jotted down the order and turned with expectant eyes towards Rainbow Dash. She smiled a little awkwardly at first, but then her stomach made its presence known; just so it could remind Dash of just how hungry she really was. *Meanwhile back in the traveler's car* "I'm going to the restroom." Fluttershy said quietly. "Ok darling, but please don't be too long." Rarity replied. Fluttershy stepped out of the room and made her way to the nearest restroom. She knocked and waited for a response. When none came she quickly zipped into the room, but stopped as soon as the door closed behind her. She couldn't believe that the restroom was this incredibly small. Even a pony as sleek and dainty as herself would have had problems navigating it. She quietly entertained the thought of Bulk Biceps trying to fit inside and allowed herself a quiet giggle. After finishing her business, Fluttershy came out of the restroom and began making her way back to her group's booth, when a sudden suggestion came from her tummy. 'I guess another salad couldn't hurt.' she thought to herself as her face tinted the color of a rose. She made her way past the booth her friends were in and entered the dining car to see Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie at the counter talking with a cashier. She gingerly walked up to them. "Hey Pinkie, hey Rainbow." she said quietly. "Hey Flutters." Dash greeted. "Um what are you girls doing?" Fluttershy asked seeing Pinkie almost glaring at the cashier. "Pinkie Pie ordered ice cream." "Um... ok? And?" "They brought her soft serve instead." "Oh..." "Yeah. This little stare down stared when the cashier said that they were the same thing." "Um... soft serve is a type of ice cream though." Pinkie Pie turned on her heels and was soon snout to snout with Fluttershy. "They are not the same thing!" Fluttershy reeled back and Pinkie Pie relented. "You're right Pinkie. They're not the same thing," Fluttershy found her footing and stopped back pedaling, "but soft serve is still ice cream. The only difference is that more air was introduced while it was freezing." "But they're not the same thing!" Pinkie turned and faced the cashier again. "I asked for ice cream, not soft serve." Finally the cashier threw up her hooves, "Ok, ok! I'll check the freezer car for ice cream!" Pinkie Pie instantly pepped up, "Thanks a bunch!" The mare walked through a door behind her and Pinkie Pie turned back to her friends, "Lets go sit down." The small group of ponies sat at the table Pinkie and Dash had sat at earlier. Dash leaned over to Pinkie and began whispering in her ear while looking over at Fluttershy. "Um... is something wrong?" Fluttershy asked cautiously. Suddenly Pinkie threw confetti at Fluttershy. She never saw it coming and panicked. She froze up instantly and fell out of her seat. She landed on the floor with her wings splayed under her. "She's her." Pinkie said confidently. "Pinkie! You didn't need to scare the life out of her!" Dash shot at her while pointing to a stiff Fluttershy on the floor. "Only Fluttershy would do that when surprised." Pinkie quickly stated with a hoof roll. "Well yeah, but... um... I guess you're right actually." Rainbow said thoughtfully. Ten minutes later "So... how long is she going to be like that?" Pinkie asked while looking over the table at her yellow friend. "Could be minutes, could be hours." Rainbow answered, "One time I threw a snowball at her when we where foals and she still brings it up like she was a war vet or something." Pinkie Pie raised a questioning eyebrow. "Yeah she does take some things like that very seriously." Finally Fluttershy retook her seat. "And what was that for!" she quietly demanded. "It was a test!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed with outstretched forehooves. "A test? A test! A test for what!?" Fluttershy asked. "To make sure that you are Fluttershy. The real one that is." Dash responded. "Wha?" "One of our friends isn't our friend, and we needed to make sure that you were you." Pinkie stated. "Wha?" "Look! One of our friends has been replaced by a changeling or something okay?" Dash responded. "How do you know that?" Fluttershy asked with a quivering voice. "Pinkie Sense." "Oh my!" Fluttershy said as her eyes grew wide with realization. "So where is our friend then?" "We don't know, but the best thing we can do is find the fake friend. Then we can try to find out where our real friend is." "Yeah! Even if we have to beat it out of 'em" Dash said while punching her other hoof. "Oh my, oh my, oh my." "Calm down Fluttershy. Everything will be ok. Just trust you're Auntie Pinkie!" "But, I'm older than..." she sighed, "never mind." "So what should be our next move?" Dash wondered aloud. "Well we have three down, and three to go. We should just get the others one on one with us!" "What?" Fluttershy asked. "Dashie, you take AJ, I'll get Twilight, and Fluttershy gets Rarity!" The waitress came through the door and walked over to their table, "I'm sorry miss but all we have is soft serve." Pinkie Pie beamed at the waitress, "Ok that's fine. It doesn't really matter anyway. They're kinda the same thing right?" Fluttershy's look of confusion was mirrored by Dash, who mumbled, "But, that, I don't, I can't understand her sometimes." "What was that Dashie?" "Nothing Pinkie, just... nothing."