Camaraderie is Sorcery

by FireOfTheNorth

Chapter 4:12 - Mirth

Chapter 4:12 – Mirth

Ponies and bison watched in surprise as the sun peeked over the eastern horizon. Surely there had to be some mistake—there was no way the celebration had lasted the entire night without ceasing. The sun rising at unusual times had become frequent in the past few years, though usually it only occurred around the solstice. However, nothing had gone wrong with the sun in this instance; the revelers had simply been too caught up in the festivities to have gone home when they’d ought to.

It was only the third night festival to be celebrated in Appleoosa, and the townsfolk had expected it to be much like the past two. Though Celestia had decreed an end to the fear-driven Nightmare Night, most ponies still found it hard to celebrate when they were worried about the beasts and cultists that roved the countryside during the accursed night (though the latter had recently decreased rather substantially). This year everything had been different, thanks to the strange newcomer Thane Silver Star had entrusted with the planning. As the designs for the festival had begun to come to light, the McLellan Apples and other ponies of Appleoosa had found themselves joined by the South Equestrian Bison, who were in the area, as well as more distant inhabitants of the south Equestry Valley, including some of the new lords and ladies that had been appointed to oversee the lands of the Prince of the City.

The party had commenced at sundown and hadn’t lulled for a minute as the dark hours passed by. Dancing, feasting, and singing had filled the time, as well as games and stories to keep all entertained. When Regent Luna had arrived in the small hours of the morning, surprised (and secretly pleased) that the festival in her honor was still ongoing, it did nothing to convince the revelers to cease their merriment. In fact, if anything, it seemed to spur them on to a second wind that carried them through the rest of the night. Now, as day dawned, they finally realized how long they’d been at it and how tired they had become. Yet, some reluctance remained, and rather than all dispelling at once, they began to leave in small groups, peeling off to return to homes, inns, or yurts to sleep the morning away.

Atop the town wall lounged the pony responsible for the festivities, having retired from them an hour or so earlier, allowing things to begin to settle down. His mustard-colored coat and springy brown mane and tail were mostly concealed by the monkish gray robes he wore with a hood that covered even the flat-brimmed hat atop his head. Across from him sat a taxidermy chicken whose feathers had been dyed a multitude of colors in no discernable pattern.

“Well, Boneless, what do you think?” the pony asked the chicken.

The chicken slumped to one side, further deforming its body, which had been only partially filled and had no supporting frame to maintain its shape.

“I agree; a successful party, all thanks to me, Cheese Sandwich,” the stallion said.

Boneless, drawn inexorably by gravity, flopped onto its side.

“Okay, Cheese Sandwich and Boneless,” Cheese Sandwich said with a roll of his eyes. “But I get first mention, okay?”

Cheese Sandwich gave Boneless a light kick with a hindhoof, standing it back up into a seated position, legs splayed out to either side.

“Yes, I think our work here is done,” Cheese Sandwich said as he stood and stretched.

As he picked the stuffed chicken off the wall to deposit onto his back, he suddenly began to shiver. The seasons were turning and leaves were preparing to fall from their trees, but it wasn’t the cold that made him shiver. Boneless fell from his hoof to thump on the wall’s walkway, discarded as his owner shook uncontrollably.

“Did you see that, Boneless?” Cheese Sandwich asked excitedly as he bent down to look the awkwardly positioned chicken in the face. “That premonition was a real doozy! I know our next destination now: Ponieville!”

***

Nearly a week later, Pinkamena bounded happily through the streets of Ponieville. The other ponies in the streets, especially those trying to sell wares from their carts, would’ve normally been slightly annoyed by this behavior, even if they would later excuse it; there was no stopping (or reasoning with) the excitable pink pony, and there was generally goodwill toward the village’s resident bard. The extent of this leeway had been widened by the events of the past year’s spring, when the town had been temporarily enclosed in a pocket dimension and Fluttershy had taken on Pinkamena’s role, to disastrous effect. Though the townsponies who had lived through the event remembered little other than hazy recollections of a time when everything had been wrong but had seemed to be right, the sensations and gratitude toward Pinkamena had remained.

Today, there wasn’t any annoyance at Pinkamena’s antics, even a surface-level agitation. Some ponies even preemptively moved aside to let her pass or called out words of greeting and encouragement. The reason for their good nature was that Pinkamena was on a mission that would soon benefit all of them, in more ways than one for many of the vendors. She was planning a party rumored to be her greatest yet, even greater than the celebrations thrown to celebrate the return of Luna or Twilight Sparkle’s ascension to alicornhood, and everypony in Ponieville and the surrounding area was invited to attend. Massive amounts of food and supplies would be required to host such a festive event, and since the bard couldn’t produce such things out of thin air (no matter the rumors), she would be traveling around the village to procure them from others.

“Rainbow Dash!” Pinkamena cried as she hopped around a corner near the Mayoral Keep and spotted the Hunter.

Rainbow Dash had little time to react as her friend plowed into her, bowling her over. As Pinkamena bounced off of her and landed on her hooves, the Hunter also recovered and rose from the ground. The tumble had deposited them near the rest of the Brave Companions, who’d assembled at Pinkamena’s request. For the moment, however, all her attention was on Rainbow Dash.

“Are you excited? I’m so, so, so excited!” Pinkamena said without giving Rainbow Dash a chance to reply to her original question. “Rainbow Dash, do you understand that I’m going to prepare the greatest, most awe-inspiring, most incredible party for you ever?”

“Well … yes,” Rainbow replied, trying to appear suitably excited now that Pinkamena had gone gravely serious. “Of course I know that if you’re in charge of it, Pinkamena, then it’ll be truly incredible.”

“Because this isn’t just any birthday celebration, you know?” Pinkamena said as she got up close and personal with Rainbow Dash.

“I know,” Rainbow said, thinking that was obvious given that it was her birthday.

“It’s your quadranscentennial!” Pinkamena blurted out.

“I know,” Rainbow said again.

“Good!” Pinkamena said, all smiles again, before turning back to the rest of their friends. “There’s a lot to do in the next two days! Who’s ready to help me plan this party?”

“I am,” an unfamiliar voice said from the crowd of ponies that had followed Pinkamena or gathered to see why the Brave Companions were assembling.

Cheese Sandwich stepped out of the crowd, hat brim pulled down to obscure his eyes in shadow.

“Who are you?” Pinkamena asked the strange pony. “I don’t think I’ve seen you in Ponieville before.”

“No, you wouldn’t have,” Cheese Sandwich said mysteriously as he stopped just outside the circle of Brace Companions. “My name is Cheese Sandwich … and I plan parties.”

“Well, what a coincidence! So do I! When I can, anyway; baking and saving Equestria from certain doom take up a lot of time!” Pinkamena rambled. “But, right now, I am planning a party!”

“Yes, I know,” Cheese Sandwich said, remaining aloof. “And it was no coincidence that I arrived when I did. I had a premonition that I would be needed here, so I came immediately after running Appleoosa’s night festival.”

“That was you?” Twilight Sparkle asked.

She had other questions, especially about his premonitions, especially if they were anything like the ones Pinkamena experienced. Were his premonitions born of sorcerous power or, like those of her friend, had they come from another world during the Second Conjunction? That would be a greater shock than nearly anything else, for both Twilight and Celestia had assumed that only the Brave Companions had received powers from that event and the Sonic Rainboom. For the moment, however, the conversation was focused on Cheese Sandwich and his party planning abilities. Luna had spoken highly of the night festival in Appleoosa—so highly, in fact, that not only had Twilight Sparkle heard of it, but she’d also shared it with her friends. If the pony responsible for the event was before them, it was an unexpected opportunity just as they were planning a celebration of their own.

“Yes, indeed,” Cheese Sandwich answered evenly. “Whether it be fête, faire, or festival, I’m the pony you want: the greatest party planner and entertainer in all of Equestria. If a celebration needs my touch, I’ll be there.”

“Well, that’s just perfect!” Pinkamena said, brushing off his claim to be the best at something she’d always considered herself to be preeminent at, “A pair of party planners in Ponieville to presently premiere flawless festivities for Rainbow Dash’s birth!”

“Remember, Pinkamena,” Rainbow Dash reminded her, “It’s not just my birthday we’re celebrating. It’s also the ten-year anniversary of when I became Ponieville’s permanent Hunter.”

Rainbow Dash didn’t tend to celebrate her birthday, no matter what Pinkamena had wanted. Her foalhood years, when such celebrations would have been most meaningful, were not happy memories for her, and she didn’t willingly conjure them up. The year before, she’d been involved in her training and testing at Castle Thorn and had let the day slide right by. This year, however, she’d allowed Pinkamena to celebrate the event, and the pink mare was going all out. It wasn’t her twenty-fifth birthday that Rainbow Dash was most excited to celebrate, it was her ten years of living near Ponieville. It had been ten years since she’d come here after leaving the Order of the Magpie and joining the Order of the Falcon. Ten years since she’d discovered that Fluttershy was still alive. Ten years that she’d fought the monsters of the Everfree Forest and protected this town from them. That was a milestone worth celebrating, and it was why so many ponies were invited to the festivities.

“Oh, I think together we can more than do both celebrations justice,” Pinkamena said happily.

“I don’t think so,” Cheese Sandwich said darkly, causing Pinkamena to recoil in surprise, “I know so!”

As Cheese Sandwich made the exclamation, he threw off his monkish robes and hat, flinging them high into the air (along with Boneless) and revealing the pony beneath. Under his robes, he was garbed in a cloak that looked like a more extravagant version of Pinkamena’s usual attire, composed of hundreds of multicolored patches that atop them had more multicolored patches loosely attached so that they fluttered and flapped as he moved. His mane, no longer confined beneath his hat, sprung to its full extent, nearly as wild and expansive as Pinkamena’s own tresses. From somewhere under his cloak, he produced a hurdy-gurdy and began to play a lively tune.

“The~ best ent’rtainer in Equestria, you see,”

“Is the pony that I always knew that I was meant to be!”

“When I was just a colt, I ne’er wanted play to quit,”

“Tho’ ev’rypony said that there just was no worth in it.”

“But~ when I shared the mirth in me, they finally understood,”

“And saw ov’rflowing revelry could be a force for good!”

“The greatest entertainer in Equestria, you see,”

“Is the one who stands before you now, the pony who’s named Cheese!”

“I’ll~ never let you down when there’s a party to be planned.”

“Ask anyone you like from anywhere across the land!”

“The festivities are always great when Cheese Sandwich is near,”

“The greatest glee you’ll find in this or any other year!”

“There’s~ food and drink and song and dance and prizes you can win,”

“To last you through the day and night until it’s day again!”

“The greatest entertainer in Equestria, you see,”

“Is the one who stands before you now, the pony who’s named Cheese!”

“My~ guarantee is ironclad that laughter will be found,”

“With joy and cheer and happiness for ev’rypony all around,”

“Presented in a celebration never dull or plain,”

“Where cheerfulness is constant, be it under sun or snow or driving rain!”

“You~ know you’ve got the best when good Cheese Sandwich comes your way,”

“To plan a party just for you, be it tomorrow or today!”

“The greatest entertainer in Equestria you see,”

“Is the one who stands before you, the pony who’s named Cheese!”

As Cheese Sandwich concluded his song with a flourish, he got enthusiastic cheers from the gathered ponies, including from some of the Brave Companions.

“All right!” Rainbow Dash said as she swooped into the air and back down. “That sounds great! I’m sure that together, the two of you will throw the best celebration ever!”

“Heh, heh, yeah … together,” Pinkamena laughed uncomfortably as she looked at the grinning Cheese Sandwich.

***

As the day went on and the planning progressed, Pinkamena found that her scheme for Rainbow Dash’s celebration was becoming increasingly transformed. The process seemed to slip out of her hooves as it became more and more co-opted by Cheese Sandwich. Not that it seemed he was deliberately trying to take over (as far as Pinkamena could tell). For all her unease with the stallion, it seemed he truly was willing to work with her; many of the changes came about because Rainbow Dash almost exclusively took his suggestions whenever they conflicted with Pinkamena’s plan. Gradually, she found herself speaking up less and less, until she just let Cheese Sandwich handle everything himself.

“Pinkamena!” Twilight Sparkle called as she tried to slip away. “Where are you going?”

“I’m … just going to head back to Sugar Cube Corner. It looks like Cheese Sandwich has everything under control, and I don’t want to get in his way,” Pinkamena said, forcing a smile.

“Are you sure?” Twilight asked skeptically.

“It’s quite all right,” Pinkamena replied with a forced chuckle, and Twilight reluctantly let her leave while keeping an eye on her. It’s clear that Cheese Sandwich is much better at planning parties than me. I always thought that that was my talent, but I guess not.

Pinkamena did as she’d told Twilight Sparkle, returning to her chambers above Sugar Cube Corner, feeling dejected. The Cakes were busy taking orders for the upcoming festivities at the moment, so there was nopony to bar her way or ask questions as she morosely climbed the stairs. Curled up on her bed, she pitied herself as day slipped into night. Ever since she’d gotten her cutie-mark, she’d thought her destiny had been to bring others joy through planning celebrations. She was (or had been) the bearer of the Element of Mirth, and she’d taken on a particular duty after the defeat of Nightmare Moon to bring that mirth to her newfound inner circle of friends. Now, however, somepony else had stepped in to fill that role and Pinkamena had been pushed aside.

“No!” Pinkamena said as she bolted upright in her bed.

She’d never failed her destiny before. Her first celebrations with her family had brought joy to them of a kind they’d never experienced before. She had traveled across Equestria spreading cheer to many ponies, on her own and then with the Renegades’ Troupe until she’d finally ended up in Ponieville. Twilight Sparkle’s welcome celebration had been her doing, as had the festivities to welcome Luna back after Nightmare Moon’s defeat. She’d also had a hoof in planning Cadence and Shining Armor’s wedding feast, as well as many other events of great or lesser importance in the past four years alone. She had always been the premier party pony, and she wasn’t going to let Cheese Sandwich waltz in and change everything in a single day. She was still more than capable of bringing mirth to her friends, and she was going to fight for her title.

A plan forming in the convoluted passages of her mind, Pinkamena descended from her chambers and found, to her surprise, that a new day had come during her lament and decision. Ponies about town were already up and busy with festive preparations, but Pinkamena ignored them as she made her way past to the Mayoral Keep. It was there that she found the other Brave Companions … clustered around Cheese Sandwich.

“Cheese! Sandwich!” Pinkamena cried out, her voice ringing in the courtyard, causing everypony to turn and see her standing defiantly with a hoof pointed at Cheese Sandwich. “I challenge you a duel!”

Everypony (except Pinkamena and Cheese Sandwich) gasped. They were words nopony had ever expected to come from Pinkamena’s mouth.

“Pinkamena, what are you doing?” Twilight asked worriedly.

“A duel, eh?” Cheese Sandwich said contemplatively. “I’ve never been in a duel before. What’s your preferred weapon?”

“A party,” Pinkamena replied gravely, eyes narrowed.

“Oh, I love it,” Cheese Sandwich said as he clapped his forehooves together. “But do you think you can outparty me?”

“Oh, I don’t think so. I know so!” Pinkamena said seriously.

“Well, I suppose there’s still time before Rainbow Dash’s celebration,” Cheese Sandwich said with a hoof to his chin.

“Those are the stakes,” Pinkamena said. “Tonight, we duel, and whoever wins will plan Rainbow Dash’s party for tomorrow. So, do you accept, Cheese, or are you … boneless?”

“I accept your challenge. Nopony calls me boneless,” Cheese Sandwich replied seriously before turning to his taxidermized chicken. “Isn’t that right, Boneless?”

“Well then, you’d better get ready, because I’m bringing everything I’ve got,” Pinkamena said gravely before hopping away.

***

Ponieville was abuzz with the news that there would be not one, not two, but three celebrations in the next two days. It was also abuzz with activity, even as planning and preparation temporarily halted on Rainbow Dash’s celebration and two new parties sprang up needing supplies and food that very day. Despite her objections to the idea of the duel, even if it didn’t involve anything lethal, and her hope that Pinkamena and Cheese Sandwich could work things out amicably, Twilight Sparkle was roped in to lay down and enforce rules she was entirely unfamiliar with. Both Cheese Sandwich and Pinkamena had been given a designated area of Ponieville in which to conduct their festivities: Pinkamena’s around the square in front of Golden Oak’s laboratory, and Cheese’s around the Mayoral Keep. Since the prize up for grabs (in addition to the title of greatest entertainer in Equestria) was the ability to plan Rainbow Dash’s party, the Hunter had been made the judge of the duel to determine the winner at the end of the night. It was a role she was none too pleased about, but neither Pinkamena nor Cheese Sandwich seemed willing to back down, so she agreed to play her part.

Work proceeded through the day as stages and decorations went up at a rapid rate, food was baked or cooked in massive quantities, and ale was brought in by the cask. Despite Pinkamena’s fears that everypony had abandoned her for Cheese Sandwich, she was able to enlist plenty of help from the townsponies. It meant that everything not related to party business in Ponieville had ceased, but these celebrations were looking to be altogether the party of the century, so most ponies didn’t much mind. Pinkamena had drawn in so much support that she was shocked to find Cheese Sandwich’s preparations moving apace with her. There were rumors that some ponies had seen supplies carried about by multiple colorful taxidermized chickens; however, nopony could ever corroborate the reports, and whenever somepony went to Cheese Sandwich, Boneless was with him and completely lifeless. After reports that some of the chickens had been seen wearing pointed hats, the rumors were dismissed as foals trying to get attention, but Cheese Sandwich managed to complete his preparations by sundown somehow.

Lanterns lit up the dusk as the twin parties began and the duel commenced. Townsponies and some residents from the surrounding area who’d begun to arrive for the celebration tomorrow attended the dual parties, cycling back and forth between them. It was a new experience for everypony involved to have two parties to choose between. Word passed back and forth between groups of what was happening with the other, drawing ponies first one way and then the other. Twilight Sparkle kept watch as the oddest duel she’d ever witnessed took place, keeping track (with the help of Spike) of the rules Pinkamena had shared with her.

While for most attendants it was a glorious prelude to the festivities on the morrow, it was a rough time with a lot of pressure attached for one particular pony. Rainbow Dash found herself constantly yanked back and forth between the two parties, pressured to enjoy herself and display that enjoyment openly in a way that Twilight or any other pony could witness and understand. It wasn’t that the festivities themselves weren’t enjoyable—under any other circumstance, she’d be having a blast—but the constant back-and-forth and the tension of choosing between a good friend and a pony who’d so far only impressed her left her tired out long before the parties were meant to end.

As some of Rainbow Dash’s fellow Hunters dragged her to Pinkamena’s party for the umpteenth time that night, the bard spotted her from the stage in front of Golden Oak’s laboratory and prepared to play a special song just for her. Her hooves stopped before plucking at the lute’s strings, though, as she recognized the expression on Rainbow’s face. She was smiling, but it was a pained expression. She wasn’t enjoying herself; it wasn’t real mirth she was experiencing. She was just putting on a happy face because she didn’t want to upset her friend. Pinkamena stayed silent and observed Rainbow Dash closely as she continued to pretend to be having a good time before being dragged away by another group of ponies to Cheese Sandwich’s party. It was against the rules of the duel Pinkamena had herself declared, but she followed Rainbow Dash to the Mayoral Keep, where she witnessed the same mimicry. Rainbow Dash wasn’t happy, but it wasn’t Pinkamena’s party that was making her so. As the crowd lifted Rainbow Dash in a throne and Cheese Sandwich placed a scepter in her hoof, light shimmered off the scepter’s silver tip and Pinkamena had a revelation.

“The duel’s over!” Pinkamena exclaimed loudly, startling everypony.

The ponies holding Rainbow Dash aloft dropped the throne, though the Hunter was able to use her wings to keep herself in place. Everypony looked to where Pinkamena was standing in the gateway to the Mayoral Keep’s courtyard.

“Pinkamena? You’re not supposed to be here,” Spike said, and he scribbled something down on a long scroll of parchment.

“If the duel’s over, then who won?” one of the ponies in the crowd asked, directed at Rainbow Dash.

“Cheese Sandwich has won,” Pinkamena said painfully. “I forfeit.”

“You do?” Cheese asked, confused as he brushed feathers from his cloak.

“I do,” Pinkamena said as she approached Rainbow Dash and the crowd parted before her. “You’ll plan Rainbow Dash’s party tomorrow … alone.”

“Now wait a minute, Pinkamena,” Rainbow Dash said. “I’ve been talking to Twilight. I know I got carried away with letting Cheese Sandwich help plan my party, and I’m sorry about that—”

“No, I’m the one who’s sorry,” Pinkamena cut her off. “I was so concerned that I wasn’t good enough at bringing you joy that I let the joy slip away entirely. This duel isn’t making you happy, so there’s no reason I should’ve called for it. I shouldn’t have challenged Cheese Sandwich just because you wanted him to plan your party instead of me. It doesn’t matter where the mirth comes from; it’s enough for me to know that my friend is happy.”

“That’s great, Pinkamena, but … that doesn’t mean you have to completely step aside,” Rainbow Dash said as she descended to stand next to her friend. “I never wanted to replace you, and if we’re going to have a big, spectacular party, I still want you to be part of it.”

“You mean it?” Pinkamena asked.

“Of course!” Rainbow Dash said. “And you’ll always be around to spread mirth anyway, party or no.”

Nearby, Cheese Sandwich cleared his throat, drawing their attention.

“I never meant to replace you, Pinkamena,” Cheese Sandwich said haltingly. “I just … wanted to impress you with what I could do.”

“Impress me?” Pinkamena asked, puzzled.

“Yes, you see I … may not have been entirely truthful with you,” Cheese Sandwich said, pausing to look at his hurdy-gurdy before tucking it under his cloak. “With all of you, in fact, if you heard my song, anyway. When I was a little colt, I was never wild or big on parties. Life in the village of Linwood was … well, rather dull. And then, one day, a filly no older than me wandered into town and the whole place came alive! That’s when I knew what I wanted to do with my life: that I wanted to be an entertainer and party planner just like you, Pinkamena. It was you that inspired me to go out and become the greatest entertainer in all of Equestria. It took me a while, but … well, when I finally felt I’d done it, I came here.”

“That’s incredible!” Pinkamena exclaimed. “I had no idea that one of my parties inspired another amazing party pony!”

“Yes, indeed; if it wasn’t for you, I never would’ve come here!” Cheese Sandwich said.

“And you never would have had this ridiculous duel,” Rainbow Dash cut in before they could get trapped in an interminable back-and-forth. “Now that all that’s out of the way, can you two work together to make tomorrow’s party the best ever?”

“Oh, I don’t think we can,” Pinkamena said cheekily.

“I know we can!” Cheese Sandwich finished for her.

***

By all accounts, the celebration for Rainbow Dash’s twenty-fifth birthday and ten years protecting Ponieville was the greatest celebration known, at least at the time. Plenty of planning was still required, but Pinkamena and Cheese Sandwich worked together through the night. By late morning of the next day, the separate parties from the duel had been joined together and further embellished to create a festival that even the inhabitants of the North with their Crystal Faire would be jealous of. It was the most festive, fantastic, and fun celebration the inhabitants of that corner of the Equestry Valley had ever seen, and none were fatigued by the two non-stop days of partying. Not a dull moment passed as everypony celebrated Rainbow Dash, and her smiles this time were completely genuine. As the party charged on toward midnight with no sign of slowing down, Pinkamena spotted Cheese Sandwich slipping away and bounded after him.

“Cheese! Cheese! Where’re you going?” she exclaimed as she caught up with him.

“My work here is done,” he said as he tipped the hat he’d regained, along with his monkish robes. “It’s time for me to move on and find another town, and another party. Before I go, though, here’s something to remember me by, for the pony who taught me my destiny.”

With a shrug of his whole body, Cheese Sandwich bounced Boneless over from his own back to Pinkamena’s.

“You’re giving me your one-of-a-kind chicken … friend?” Pinkamena asked as she observed the taxidermy chicken, and the moonlight seemed to shimmer through its multicolored feathers.

“Oh, Pinkamena, you ought to know,” Cheese Sandwich chuckled, “I have far more than just one ‘friend.’”

From under his cloak and robes, he produced a second chicken with feathers in a slightly different pattern and a ruff around its neck.

“Come on Boneless II, it’s time we were off,” Cheese Sandwich told it as he trotted off into the darkness, jumping from time to time to knock his hooves together.

“What a strange pony,” Pinkamena said admiringly as he vanished into the distance, before returning to the party.