Another beautiful morning dawned in Ponyville. As was usual in the summertime, the sky was clear and blue, with the occasional cloud floating by. Birds sung, the market bustled, all was normal. Well, almost. Pinkie Pie paced nervously in her bedroom. Today was the day. In just a few hours, her best friends would be coming to Sugarcube Corner at her request. She had invited them all at the end of Angel's party. Some part of her had hoped that they would refuse, say they had other plans- but it seems that her friends were all too happy for a get-together the day after a party. Of course, the last time she had made such an invitation and been refused, she had ended up going slightly cuckoo, so they were probably trying to avoid a similar situation. Either that, or they had noticed the slight faltering of her usual smile. Nopony had said anything though, so the first option was more likely. Probably.
Twilight had been the last to leave Fluttershy's except herself, and the reassuring look the alicorn had given Pinkie had done wonders for her composure. After Twilight had left the cottage, Pinkie had cleaned up the mess of the party quickly with help from Fluttershy, dodging any questions the timid pegasus had managed to ask with her specialised brand of hyper chatter.
Then, it had been back to Sugarcube Corner for the night. Sleep had not been the easiest to achieve, her nerves having begun to act up again, but a glass of warm milk had fortunately aided in hastening its arrival. Now it was morning. She idly wondered whether the Cakes had noticed the tension in her actions at breakfast. They hadn't said anything if they had.
With another look at the clock, confirming that time was indeed going painfully slow, Pinkie crossed the room to her door and headed downstairs. That morning she was supposed to be manning the counter until her friends arrived. Of course, her mind was elsewhere, and her normally positive attitude had become rather subdued. She didn't notice or care though, simply ringing up the customer's purchases with little comment- until Berry Punch asked her why she wasn't smiling. That was a shock to the system. She brushed the comment off, gave a big cheesy smile to the customer, and then went into the back room to have a quick breather. Which meant taking rather a lot of breaths quickly.
"Do you want me to take over? I bet I could smile all day long and all night too!"
"Y-yeah..thanks Surprise..."
"You're welcome!" beamed Surprise, trotting out to the counter again.
"Pinkie, it's going to be ok. They're going to be fine with this, you know they will."
"I know. I'm...I'm fine. Just a little nervous, that's all." Her quavering voice said otherwise.
"A little?" Pinkamena's tone was full of disbelief for a moment. "Pinkie, I think you just had a panic attack! That isn't something you should brush off!"
"I'm just a bit nervous about this, that's all!" Pinkie protested. In the material world, Surprise hummed merrily as she bagged some muffins for the local mailmare. She gave no indication that she was listening to the internal conversation, but was in fact following it closely. She was as worried about Pinkie as Pinkamena was.
"I think you're more than a little nervous. Come on, you know you can trust me. Tell me what you're feeling, truthfully." Pinkamena gently pressed Pinkie, in an attempt to get her to open up.
"I...I..." Pinkie took a deep 'breath'. "I'm scared because I'm about to tell ponies about my biggest ever secret and they're my friends and I know I should trust them but I'm not sure they'll be alright with you and I don't want to go back to a hospital and I think somepony might think I should and then they might not go to my old one or they might not remember me and I'd be stuck there!!!" One of the benefits of speaking with your mind was that it allowed for somepony to say a lot quickly. Of course, one of the downsides of this was that it was easy to forget to use things like separate sentences.
"So you're nervous about talking about Surprise and I, and you're also scared that your friends won't be as understanding as Twilight, and that they'll take you to a hospital. And then, once you were at the hospital, you're afraid that you won't be able to get out for a while, and have to relive your first time in a psychiatric ward.
"Yeah...That sounds right."
"Impossible." stated Pinkamena flatly.
"Huh? Wh-what do you mean?"
Pinkamena sighed. "Pinkie, you're scared. I get that. But nothing like that could possibly happen. Worst case scenario, somepony will need some time to warm up to us. That's it. You know you can trust your friends, especially after what the six of you have already been through. And on top of that, Twilight already knows everything! She knows that a hospital is the last place you want, or need, to be. Even if somepony tried to force us into a psyche ward, the staff would easily be able to get your file and would soon let you go! And it wouldn't even come to that, because Twilight is a PRINCESS for crying out loud- she can easily stop anything like that from happening!"
This speech had the desired effect. Pinkie's spirits began to lift, and Pinkamena breathed a sigh of relief.
"Are you sure?" asked Pinkie quietly. She was still anxious, but her panic had died down.
"Yes Pinkie, I'm sure." reassured Pinkamena.
"Great!" whispered Surprise. She then, in a much louder voice, called across the shop to the latest group to enter the shop. "Hi girls!"
Pinkie and Pinkamena's heads snapped up to the 'screen' that hung in their shared mindscape. The gang was here. Surprise bounded over to them.
"I'm so happy you all made it! Unless one of you is a changeling, in which case I'm not so happy and please give us back our friend! Oh, but that doesn't mean that you can't be my friend as well mister-or-missus hypothetical changeling! HUGS FOR EVERYONE!!" She reared up onto her hind legs, held her forelegs wide, and beamed.
This outburst was followed by a few seconds of slightly awkward silence, which was eventually broken by Rainbow Dash.
"Uh, Pinkie? Didn't you want to talk to us?"
"Yup!" smiled Surprise, dropping back down onto all fours. "And it's really, REALLY important, and also really REALLY secret, so follow me!" She sped upstairs.
"Is it me or is Pinkie acting...weird?" asked Rainbow.
"You do realise this is Pinkie Pie we're talkin' bout here, right? She's always actin a mite strange." Applejack shook her head, smiling. "Still, ah wonder what's so important?"
"I just hope she isn't exaggerating." commented Rarity, heading to the stairs. "Shall we go see what all the fuss is about?"
Pinkie was sweating. She had switched with Surprise the moment they had reached the bedroom, and was now waiting for her friends to catch up. All too soon, the door swung open. Rarity was leading, closely followed by Twilight. Next came Applejack and Rainbow, with Fluttershy bringing up the rear.
"Hey girls!" she smiled. Applejack frowned.
"Pinkie? Y'all all right, sugarcube?" Everyone in the room had picked up on the sudden change in mood.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I've...I've got something I need to tell you. It's really important that you keep this a secret, all right? I...I don't want everypony to know about this." Giving each other worried glances, the group made an unbidden Pinkie Promise.
"Now, Pinkie dear, whatever's the matter?" asked Rarity.
"U-um..Is there something you need help with?" asked Fluttershy.
"Well, I..." Pinkie steadied her nerves with a deep breath. "I've got a...a mental condition. Multiple personality disorder." There. She'd said it. Now for the backlash.
"Multiple what-now?" Applejack tilted her head to one side, confused.
"Never heard of it." shrugged Rainbow. "What's she talking about, Twilight?"
"Well, it's a condition where the pony develops...multiple personalities." Twilight answered, already knowing that Rainbow would need more explanation, but unsure how to describe it. Sure enough, Rainbow gave her a half-annoyed look.
"I got that. What're multiple personalities?"
"Well, they're-"
"They're a serious mental illness. Pinkie dear, you should be in hospital!" Rarity interrupted Twilight, wide-eyed in shock. This was, of course, the worst possible reaction.
"NO!" shouted Pinkie. The others jumped. "I-I mean..No. I'm not sick. Their names are Pinkamena and Surprise. They...they aren't harmful! I've got a weird brain that does stuff to make it okay!"
Perturbed, Rarity pressed Pinkie. "Darling, what do you mean? I'm sure your brain is perfectly fine!"
Pinkie was panicking again. Fortunately, Twilight stepped in to take control of the degrading situation. "Rarity, Pinkie has already spent time in a psychiatric hospital for this. She was released because her condition wasn't harmful. She has a unique brain structure which had a hand in the development of this condition, and which also ensures her mental stability." she stated, carefully glossing over the circumstances of Pinkie's discharge.
"But Twilight-"
"She's fine, Rarity. They all are."
Rarity looked at Pinkie. To her surprise, she found that Pinkie was glaring at her.
"Pinkie, darling- are you all right?"
"She's panicking." said Pinkamena, scowling at the fashionista. "Thanks for that. I've spent the last hour trying to cheer her up, and now she's relapsed."
"Pinkie? Wh-why are you talking like that?" asked Rarity, worried at the sudden change in her friend.
"I'm not Pinkie." This statement was met with silence for a moment or two. Rarity looked at Pinkamena in dawning realisation and growing shock. Then, Applejack and Rainbow started pelting the angry pink pony with questions. Fluttershy just looked on in silent concern for her friend.
"QUIET!" yelled Twilight. As the noise died down, she looked over at Pinkamena. She was angry at Rarity, that much was obvious. Pinkie had apparently been unable to stand up to the pressure, and switched out. She devised a plan of action: First, work with Pinkamena and get the facts across. Exposition was all that was needed for understanding here. She glanced at Fluttershy. Maybe gloss over the part concerning that...stallion who called himself a doctor. Next, introduce Surprise. Reassure all present of Pinkie's mental health. And finally, make sure to give Pinkie some space to recover from this turn of events. She nodded to herself. Yes, that would work. Time to get started, then!
"So, let me get this straight. That was YOU, not Pinkie?" Rainbow grinned. "Cool!" Surprise giggled.
"Yep! And that's not the only time either- remember that day with the sneezing powder?"
The situation had finally calmed down somewhat. Overall, reflected Twilight, things had turned out alright. There had been a little hiccup when Twilight had revealed her knowledge of the situation, but that had been resolved after explaining how she had been sworn to secrecy. Rarity was still a little untrusting of Pinkamena and Surprise, but now was at least more understanding of the situation. Rainbow was clearly over the initial shock, having found that she had spent many a day playing pranks with Surprise and now animatedly chatting to the personality. Fluttershy, despite remaining rather quiet, had actually been the first to approach Pinkamena after things had been explained. She had hugged the irritated earth pony, and given her a gentle smile. This broke the ice and calmed Pinkamena down, and soon Pinkamena had been talking amiably to the others. After that, there had been a little get-to-know session, and then Pinkamena had switched with Surprise. The hyperactive mare had quickly started chatting away, and soon Rainbow and Applejack had begun to warm up to her. Again, Fluttershy was the most accepting of the group.
All of a sudden, Surprise sat up straight. "Pinkie's ready to come out again now!" she announced. "Be nice!" The suddenness threw everyone off for a second, which Surprise took advantage of. The change was obvious. The smile drooped, shoulders sank, and suddenly Pinkie was in control of her body again.
"H-hey guys..."
"Pinkie! How are you feeling?" asked Twilight.
"I'm ok. I think..."
Having confirmed that it was indeed Pinkie, Rarity walked over, her head low. "Pinkie, I want to apologise for how I treated you earlier. I'll admit that I'm not exactly comfortable with the situation at present, but I will endeavour to change this!"
"Th-thanks Rarity." said Pinkie.
"U-um...I like Pinkamena and Surprise...they seem nice." said Fluttershy softly.
"Same here!" announced Rainbow. The group, already knowing Twilight's outlook, turned to Applejack to hear her take on the matter. The farm pony sighed.
"Ah'll admit, I'm not exactly comfortable with this at the moment. It's just hard to wrap ma head around, ya know? Ah aint too sure what to make of this, to be honest..." Applejack trailed off, looking sorrowful. This turned to shame as she caught sight of Pinkie's downcast expression. "Look, ah aint condemmin' ya or nothin'." she said, in an attempt to comfort the party pony. "It's just that ah...what's the word...ah'm just not used to this yet. Just give me some time, alright sugarcube?"
"Yeah...thanks Applejack." Pinkie managed a small but genuine smile.
Silence retuned to the room. Pinkie began to rest easy in the knowledge that things weren't as bad as they first seemed. Twilight relaxed. The others enjoyed the quiet, peaceful moment. Which was then sadly interrupted by Pinkie's body erupting into what appeared to be a mild seizure.
"DOOZY!" shrieked Pinkie. The reactions were almost instant. Far away, a mad charge for safety began.
Alarms. Shouting. I need to get away!
Still trembling like crazy, Pinkie backed into a corner, fearing that some sort of attack was imminent. Her sadness at the situation with Rarity and Applejack now brushed aside for the time being, she prayed that the doozy would turn out to be something good.
Hooves burning. Can't stop. They're right behind me!
Pinkie's bed barricaded her door for the second time that week, as Twilight dragged it across the room with telekinesis. She then followed this up with a shield spell over the entire building.
Trees. Forest. Shelter.
Rarity, looking around nervously, took shelter under the table. Unaware of Twilight's shield, she reasoned that at least this way she had some protection if anything fell through the roof. 'Please don't let it be another hydra' she prayed.
Bush- Hide!
Fluttershy had seemingly disappeared. However, as Pinkie's eyes cast around frantically, searching for any sign of anything amiss in the world around her, she caught a glimpse of a pink tail peeking out from under her closet door.
.........Gone.
Slowly, as an evil entity recently escaped from a thousand-year long imprisonment failed to show up and nothing exploded, the ponies in the room started to relax. Twilight took down her shield spell, Rarity began the long process of coaxing Fluttershy out of hiding, and Rainbow began vehemently denying that she had been hugging Applejack for dear life. The farmer herself wisely kept her mouth shut, well aware of her inability to lie with a straight face. As her tremors died down, Pinkie herself recovered fairly quickly from the new wave of terror- apart from the doozy, nothing had come up on her pinkie sense to indicate any kind of trouble. Pinkamena was quiet, clearly thinking over the new problem. Surprise started babbling away about possible doozies, many of which involving various forms of confectionery coming to life via nuclear waste- whatever that was.
"Pinkie, do you know what happened?" asked Twilight, as confused and worried as the others were.
Shaken, Pinkie looked out the window. She didn't know. The doozy had happened, but the event itself had apparently not been a local one. Everything was as peaceful as it had been before. There was no way to tell what had happened. And yet...she shuddered.
"I don't know," she admitted "but I've got a baaaad feeling..."
I'm free
The thought echoed through the stallion's mind. He revelled in the knowledge. The escape hadn't gone as well as planned, but that was irrelevant now. He was free.
He would have to lie low for a while, of course. No point in breaking out if the first thing he did was get himself arrested again. No, he would lie low. Not for too long, though. He had work to do. His hypothesis needed finalising. Investigation. Testing. That would be the hardest part. But then, he already knew where she was. The newspapers had been very helpful with that. Retrieving his little research subject shouldn't be too difficult. He would find her, and prove his theory. This would be ground-breaking, a revelation in the world of psychology. And after he had no more use for her, he would of course take his revenge. It would be slow, he decided. And painful. Just what she deserved.
Aw shit
Oh that son of a bitch better stay away from the pinks!
And on my birthday too! Wonderful.
ooooooh dear. THIS guy was the doozy.
Damn. Things from the past just don't stay where they belong.
if i have one complaint to lodge about the story is that it took a bit too long to get to this point.
Interesting, but I kinda doubt the "doctor" knows what he's in for. The main 6 aren't exactly pushovers and everyone in Ponyville loves Pinkie. I look forward to where this is going.
/me imagines the Dr having an encounter with Rainbow and AJ...
No more Doctor
..... Fuck.
I'll admit though, I'm kinda dissappointed that it wasn't a " Left Field Doozy."
I'll say one thing: shit's 'bout to hit the fan.
4840780 Birthday?! Happy birthday!
Mmm...delicious.
I better savor this while I can before the inevitable defeat shows up. There's only been a very small handful of FIMfics I've read where the good guy doesn't win. Or fiction in general.
Watch out Pinkie.Things are gonna get rough.
You keep this story nice! You have that mad ex-doctor fail utterly! You better not hurt a hair on Pinkie's head! She's been through enough!
LEAVE PINKIE ALOOOONE!
Call Onomonopia. We need every hero and villain he's ever written on this guy's trail.
The part where Twilight planned how to act reminded me of Sherlock Holmes.
Anyway, I wonder how the story will evolve now that we have an obvious antagonist. I kind of like the current somewhat slice of life tone , especially as it should give time for the romance to evolve . With an antagonist well... It mean that either he is going to be deal with rather quickly , or he is going to act in the shadows for quite some time. Most likely the latter if he is not Sombra grade stupid (he just escaped from somewhere after all) .
Oh well , time will tell.
This won't end well for him, especially because discord and other mane 5
too cliche /unfav
Ha! Jokes on the doctor! Against Pinkie you will always be ONE AGAINST THREE!
Also, I like where this story is going. Carry on!
4840908 I don't know what to say, so have a space walken
i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/5175517440/hD0358A10/
Meanwhile, I love this story... even though I haven't read it yet...
I'LL GET TO IT!
Ooooohh shitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshit
4840861 But he might make induce enough rage/despair to make a new personality
4840803 Don't forget about Discord!
...
What the stallion doesn't realize...
Is that there are a lot of ponies around her..And if you..hurt her...
You suffer wrath.
You suffer the wrath of a town that has survived an Ursa Minor. A town that survived Parasprites. A town that survived Nightmare Moon AND Discord. A town that survived the Alicorn Amulet on a powerful Unicorn. The town that hasn't been badly upset by practically ANYTHING.
He is about to attack the most joyous mares in Ponyville. He is about to attack Laughter personified. He is about to attack three national heroes in one.
He is about to get bucked up.
Oh, that armchair psychiatrist is in for a whole world of pain.
Lets see how many die before he gets to pinkie
Well OHSHITALICORN and apart from that, pinkamena isn't afraid to use extreme violence when needed. Then you're just getting started, do not forget to mention the two godesses who are always on watch. This stallion is dead.
4840844
Thank you!
24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mc46nvKsg81rwtoyuo1_500.jpg
RUN PINKIE, RUN!
I felt that this was relevant.
4841148 Awesome profile pic
Hurray for updates!!
...well, crap. Psycho Analyst (durr hurr I am clever) has broken out of prison.
4841021 ARMCHAIR!!!!! HA!!!! You obviously have no idea what psychiatrists did back in the day then!!!! They locked you up in cells like a psych ward, which is called a psych ward not because thats where the psychos go but because back in the day that is where the psychiatrists worked!!!! They would use "methods" that now a days would be called torture and inhumane!!! He is not an armchair psychiatrist!!! He is a old fashioned nutjob!!!! I would rather be in the same room as the Scarecrow!!!!
I sort of saw this doozy. As for the italics, they did a good job.
As for the reactions of the other 4 of the Mane 6, decently realistic reactions other than maybe who had them. Rarity's reaction that they needed to be in a hospital is a reaction I have heard of (and it sort of fits Rarity actually). A more common one is the milder "you need to see a therapist." Of course, a worse one, which does happen is a reaction of fear and anger and contacting authorities to have the people in question involuntarily commited (against their will) to a psych ward. Saying that one doesn't get it and needs time to warm up to it, like AJ said, is a common reaction as well. Very accepting and comforting reactions, like Fluttershy, also happen. Rainbow's reaction of finding it rather cool that she already knew Surprise and had good times with her is also something that can happen. Another reaction is saying that the one the person thinks they know should ignore, wall off, or kill their headmates. These reactions are often combined, too.
Only issue I have here is that, like in way too many LGBT+ themed stories, AJ always ends up reacting with something like "I don't rightly understand it and I have some issues. It will take some time for me to get used to it." I would venture to say that it is a bit out of character for her. She is someone who is really grounded in what matters, so I would have a hard time seeing her not being accepting.
The Doctor is Coming.
fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2013/291/b/4/discord_whooves__doctor__crazy_face_by_go0re-d6qywdm.png
4841645
She's always struck me as being the highly conservative one, with her feelings about family, home, the Earth Pony way and apple pie.
4841193 not to mention he has no idea about the pinkie sense or the reality bending she has been up to since her discharge. talk about blindly going angels dare not tread.
Only on sound effect for this revelation.
4841193
Three Princesses. This is set in Twilicorn time.
Which means... *drumroll* Discord is now Pinkie's official friend. More or less.
"Discord! Pinkie is missing! We think someone foalnapped her! Please find her!"
"Can I have fun with whoever took her?"
"Damn straight you can!"
"Your wish is my command!"
"Yay!"
4841396
This guy is correct. Honestly, not very long ago the most common treatment for any psychological issue was a lobotomy. Tapping a spike into the brain using a hammer, usually through the tear duct. Oh, and of course no painkillers.
4841669
Those are the same reasons why I don't see AJ as the conservative one. For the Apples, the family is everything. Which means whatever problems the family has, are overlooked in the face of their bond. Coming from a Southern clan-based family myself, I know that all too well. Faults are something you just forgive so long as the person stays true to the clan, their loyalty shows that the clan and the families in it are important enough to them that the least you can do is forgive them for their mistakes and issues, and focus on your bond with them.
Even ignoring Pinkie Apple Pie, the girls are essentially family to AJ. They're adoptive Ponyville-Apples, if nothing else. Plus AJ is typically the one with all four hooves on the ground, so to speak. Rarity being the one with the larger issue with this was actually more the direction I agree with - with how much of herself she bases on the way society thinks and behaves, the thought "You have a mental issue, you should be in the hospital getting it fixed." is commonly circulated and thus more the way her thinking would gravitate towards.
Honestly, I also thought Dash would be the one with a problem, too. With how frustrated she seems to get with anything that doesn't really fit in with her view, as we see in canon. I did expect Fluttershy to respond the way she did - as ever. I may not like her that much, but you can count on her to run away in fear or try to be calming in situations like this.
I am a big fan of Pinkamena not being a psychopath. Stories like this prove that the best pony (to me) can be interesting.
Now it was
themorningThey hadn't said anything they had
""What's she talking about, Twilight?"
1. Extra The.
2. They hadn't said anything if they had.
3. Extra quotation mark.
I agree with Cyborg Pony the reactions are varied and believable. I also agree with ParadigmShift on what the... I would say doctor but I can bet his license was revoked long ago. I may not be a psychiatrist but I think he has something relating to obsession. And he so far as portrayed, has a massive ego and is very... Prideful I think.
Not much else I can say without just looking like I repeated someone else's comment
4841897 Yep!! As well as some were killed in a similar manner to some prisoners, because of the electro shock therapy being applied to the head, causing the brain to fry and thus killing you. And yes these guys were that stupid to not think this would be harmful till some people stepped in and stopped it.
Oh boy, I see that the dark tag is going to be coming in soon enough. Overall I found the reactions to be quite spot on but a little to accepting for my taste. Then again if you had the others overdo the disbelief/suspicion it may have been the opposite. Can't say I'm eager to see the results of the mad doctor escape and kidnapping attempt.
Before I go you may want to see want to fix this part.
They hadn't said anything if they had.
It looks like the doctor that tortured Pinkie originally is now free and is looking to finish what he started, then to slowly torture Pinkie to death. I know he is going to get Pinkie, I just hope the others prevent irreversible damage.
I fully expected that to be the doozy.
The coming issue with Doctor Killpatient aside, I wonder if twilight will devise a way for suprise and pinkamina to have their own bodies.