Pinkie Pie
Adjusting
Having read all the books about rock farming she could possibly stand, Pinkie Pie did her best to keep herself entertained. But, after painting her walls with rainbows and sunbeams, making her bed six times and practicing walking on two legs, she was getting tired of being by herself. And her nose was hurting from falling over on her face so often. In the end, she simply gave up and decided to go and play with her sisters.
Pinkie trotted toward her sister's room, calling for them.
“Inky! Blinky! What are you guys doing?”
The twins rolled their eyes at the sound of her voice as it echoed through the hall.
“Pinkamina, for the hundredth time, call us by our real names,” said Isabella as Pinkie entered their bedroom.
“Yeah, don't use those cutesy nicknames,” said Bellamina.
“But this way all our names rhyme! We're Pinkie, Blinky and Inky!”
“No! I don't like it!” said Isabella, folding her forelegs. “Call me by my real name.”
“Yeah,” said Bellamina.
Pinkie sighed. “Fine. If it doesn't make you happy, I’ll stop. So, what are you doing?”
“Organizing our rock collection,” said Bellamina. She swept a hoof over the table, which was covered with small rocks, books and charts. “I've been meaning to update our igneous collection for a while now.”
“Booo-ring!” said Pinkie. “Let's do something else. Like tag! Let's go play tag outside!”
“I don't want to play tag,” said Isabella. She turned her back and began sorting rocks.
“Blink- I mean, Bellamina, what about you?”
“No.” She also turned away.
Pinkie's head drooped a little. “Golly, why are you two being such grumpy-pantses today?” She suddenly perked up. “Hey, I know what'll put you in a better mood – a party!”
The twins groaned in frustration and covered their ears.
“Not another stupid party!” said Bellamina, throwing her hooves in the air.
“What?” Pinkie's enthusiasm wavered.
“Everything is about parties with you, isn't it? Don't you even care about rocks anymore?” Bellamina leaned forward, staring Pinkie in the eyes. “What's so great about parties anyway?”
“I just want to make everyone happy!” said Pinkie. “I like it when you guys smile, and I know parties are the best way to do that.”
“But you don't have to have one twice a week,” said Isabella. “We have to keep moving rocks around, you know.”
“Yeah, I'm getting sick of them,” agreed Bellamina. “Too much candy and loud music. We have to set everything up and then take it all down – it's wasting all our chore time.”
Her parties weren't making them happy? Her sisters thought they were a waste of time? Pinkie couldn't believe what she was hearing. She turned and walked out of the room, trying to hold back her tears. She hid in her bedroom and said nothing the rest of the evening.
The next morning found Mrs. Pie trying her hardest to comb her youngest daughter's mane. She often complained that it refused to stay flat the way it used to. No matter what she did, it kept popping back up into a giant curled mess. But it was a ritual they both enjoyed, no matter how troublesome it had become, and Pinkie often used the time to ask her mother questions, because here, her sisters couldn't interrupt.
“Mom, do you and Dad think my parties are a waste of time?” Pinkie asked.
“Pinkamina, we know your parties are very important to you,” her mother said, “and we're happy that you're trying to make us happy.”
Pinkie smiled a little. Maybe her sisters were wrong, after all.
“But,” her mother continued, “When you throw parties twice a week that take two or three hours at a time, it does cut into our work schedule.”
“So they are wasting your time.” The filly sighed.
“Dear, I didn't say that. I would prefer it if we had the parties less often, though. If you keep having them so often, they won't be special anymore. Because then it just becomes something you do, not something that you can look forward to.” Her mother tugged the comb through her mane again, then gave up with a shrug. “I suppose that's as good as it's going to get. Run along now, there are chores to be done.”
Pinkie scampered off, headed for the rock fields. She and her family spent hours gathering and sorting different types of rocks, moving them from place to place and carefully watching for signs of change. Every now and again, they would come across a stone with a glimmering band. The spot where it was found was carefully marked, the rock was noted in the log, then carried inside. More rocks were rotated into its place, so that the currents of magic in the earth might produce more glimmering rocks. Such rocks were prized, as they contained a special mineral that had certain properties in the presence of magic. The Pie family sold them to magic schools throughout Equestria, where young unicorns could use the minerals to practice complicated spells they weren’t strong enough to try on their own. Magical researchers also found the mineral helpful in studying magical theory. It was slow, tedious process of getting the gems to form, but a necessary one. After all, some spells couldn't happen without the specific kinds of rock gems the Pie family grew.
Once the day's work was over, the three sisters ran off. Pinkie put the idea of throwing another party out of her mind and tried to think of other things that might make her sisters happy. Nothing other than 'party' came to mind, so she decided to simply ask them. She skipped to their room and knocked on the door.
“Bellamina? Isabella? Can I come in?”
“Sure,” called Isabella. “What do you want?”
“I just want to see what you're doing. Maybe even play with you!”
The twins exchanged a glance. “Maybe.”
Pinkie joined them at their table, smiling. Pebbles of all colors and sizes sat in small groups across the surface. Notebooks and charts laid between the piles.
“Right now we're sorting the sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous rocks,” said Isabella. “You know the difference, right?”
“One kind is from the surface, one kind is from deep underground and one kind is from way deep underground where it's so hot the rocks melt,” said Pinkie.
“Huh. I didn't think you knew that.”
“Why not? I paid attention to Dad's lessons. So, which rocks are which?”
Bellamina gaped at her. “You just said you knew the difference!”
“I do, but all the rocks look the same to me. Ooh! Maybe you should paint them different colors! That way you could tell them apart and they'd be all pretty!”
Pinkie ran to her room and came back carrying a jar of green paint in her mouth.
“No, the rocks are fine,” said Isabella, trying to block her approach.
“Jus' a li'l bit an' they'll be gor-gus,” said Pinkie, her words mangled by the jar.
“They're already gorgeous, don't-”
It was too late. Pinkie tripped over a stray pillow and crashed into the table. Green paint splattered across the rocks and charts, as well as most of Bellamina.
“Pinkamina!” she shouted. “Look at this mess! You ruined my notebook!”
“I'm sorry,” said Pinkie, setting the empty jar down. “It was an accident – I'll clean it up.”
“Well, what are you waiting for?” said Bellamina, trying in vain to move her things out of the puddle of paint on the desk. “Go get a rag or something before it sets in my coat.”
Pinkie dashed out to grab the cleaning supplies. When she came back, the ruined charts and notebooks were in the trashcan and both sisters were trying to wipe the paint off the rocks. They snatched up the rags she had brought without a word and started scrubbing.
After several long minutes, Isabella grumbled something about having to replace her whole notebook. Pinkie's sharp ears caught it.
“Oh! Can I help? I can draw pretty pictures and write really neat and-”
“No!” snapped Bellamina. Pinkie flinched at the anger in her voice. “I mean, we should take a little break. Let's play a game.”
“What game? What game?” said Pinkie, bouncing with excitement.
“Hide and seek. You hide, and I'll count to a hundred,” said Bellamina. Isabella gave her a strange look, but then she smiled.
“Yeah, and hide in the best place you can think of,” Isabella added with a smirk. “Don't make it easy for us!”
“You got it!” said Pinkie. Bellamina gave a small smile, then covered her eyes with her hooves.
“One, two, three...”
Pinkie tore out of the room before her sister reached eight. She ran outside the house and glanced around, trying to think of the best possible spot. Then she saw it – the door to the root cellar. She pried it open just wide enough to jump inside, then let it fall shut behind her. Inside, the cellar was dark and scary, but Pinkie merely hummed to herself as she made her way to the farthest wall in the back. A pile of potato sacks sat near the wall and she squeezed in behind them. Perfect! It would be a long time before either of them thought to look here.
Bellamina used to tell Pinkie that a ghost lived in the root cellar, and for a long time, the pink pony had been too scared to go inside. But when Granny Pie, her most favorite pony in the whole world, taught her how to laugh at the ghosts and the dark, Pinkie found that the cellar was actually kind of neat. It was quiet and cool, perfect for if she wanted to be alone. That didn’t happen very often. Her sisters probably thought she was too scared to hide in the cellar.
Actually, it was kind of cozy behind the potatoes. The empty sack underneath her made the floor soft and she wiggled against the potato sacks to move them away from the wall. Now she felt less like she was being squished and more like she was receiving a very lumpy hug. She could wait here all day.
Pinkie’s sisters sure were happy to play with her today. Not like usual. Usually, they just wanted her to leave them alone. They used to want to play with her all the time, but ever since she had gotten her cutie mark, they didn't seem to like her as much anymore. Maybe they were just tired of parties. Pinkie scoffed at her own thoughts. Tired of parties? Impossible! Pinkie knew she would never tire of parties.
But others might lose interest. Her mother was right when she had said that parties were supposed to be special. Pinkie remembered a story her mother used to read to her about a pony who once wished it could be Hearth's Warming Eve all year round. At first, he had loved it. There had been presents and singing and plays every day, but soon it wasn't as good. After a week, there hadn’t been any presents in the stores to buy anymore and everypony had a sore throat from singing so much. Then the little colt learned that without spring, the crops wouldn't grow. It wasn't long before he unwished his wish and things went back to normal. Now Pinkie understood his situation. Just like Hearth's Warming Eve, parties were special only if they didn't happen very often. And besides, with less parties, it gave her more time to plan them.
Still no sign of her sisters. No sounds of whispers or hoof-steps approaching outside the door. Pinkie smiled to herself. They were probably going crazy trying to find her. It was taking a long time. She had really picked a good spot. Cool and dark and quiet and very relaxing. It was as dark as night in here. In fact, it was kind of making her sleepy. Maybe she could just close her eyes for a few minutes. She was a light sleeper. She'd hear anyone that came in.
*
Pinkie startled awake to the sound of hoofsteps outside the door. Oops. She hadn't meant to fall asleep. But the fact that she was able to fall asleep at all just proved how good her spot really was.
She readjusted the sack on the ground, trying to find the most comfortable position. She shifted until she was comfortably seated instead of lying down. She didn't want to be asleep when they finally found her. Although she was starting to wish that they had by now. This had been fun at first, but she was getting bored, sitting here in the dark. And kind of hungry, too. A snack sounded like a good idea. Like a plate of cookies, or a slice of pie or even some ice cream. But her family never had those kinds of things. Dessert was only served on special occasions. Usually they just got fruit after dinner. Fruit wouldn't be so bad either. Something like some grapes or an apple. Or maybe a banana or two-
The door to the cellar creaked open and Pinkie ducked behind the potato sacks. She peered through the gaps to see a figure slowly walking in. This was it! Inkamina or Bellamina was only seconds away from finding her at last. She held as still as she could, not even daring to breathe loudly.
Whoever it was took their time, moving slowly across the cellar. Pinkie couldn't tell which of her sisters it was, nor why they seemed to be selecting vegetables and putting them in a basket. Oh well, she'd know soon enough. The figure approached her position and Pinkie hunkered low. She was going to wait for her sister to uncover her, but she decided to surprise her sister as payback for making her wait so long. She waited until the figure was right in front of her, tensed her legs, then-
“SURPRISE!”
“WAAAGUH!”
The basket of vegetables went flying, scattering produce across the floor. Pinkie's thrill turned to confusion when she saw whom she had scared.
“Mom? I didn't know you were playing with us.”
“Pinkamina, what in Equestria are you doing back there?”
“Hiding! I'm the best hider ever – Isabella and Bellamina still haven't found me.”
Her mother glanced out the open door. Pinkie was surprised to see that the sun had set.
“How long have you been down here?” her mother asked.
“Since just after we finished our chores.”
“You've been down here all afternoon?” Her mother frowned. “Bellamina said you were out rock collecting. Said you packed some food and wouldn't be back until bedtime.”
“No, we were playing hide-and-seek. Why would she think I was out collecting rocks?”
Her mother thought hard about something, then sighed. “Well, you missed dinner at any rate. I hope you did pack yourself a meal.”
Pinkie heard her stomach rumble. She missed dinner? She never missed a meal. Why hadn't Bellamina told her? Had she hidden that well?
“Is there any dinner left?” asked Pinkie, climbing out from behind the potatoes.
“A little bit,” replied her mother, picking up the vegetables she had flung everywhere. “These are for a stew for tomorrow night. Granny Pie is coming for a visit.”
Pinkie squealed with delight. “Yay! Granny's coming! Granny's coming! I'm so excited I could-”
Her stomach let out a much louder and harder-to-ignore growl.
“- eat something!”
Pinkie and her mother headed back inside and into the kitchen. She happily devoured the remains of the meal – fruit and vegetable salad with dandelions on top – while her mother spoke with the twins. Once she was finished, Pinkie dashed up to her room and began to clean it. Everything had to be perfect for Granny Pie.
Even though Pinkie loved her parents and her sisters with all her heart, Granny Pie was the only one to whom she could relate. She was always smiling about something, or singing a song, or telling jokes. The rest of her family was nice to Granny, but it seemed only Pinkie went out of her way to make Granny feel at home. Granny always repaid her for it too, either by giving her some of her special hoof-made candy or by telling her a new joke or something equally fun. Her visits made life on the dull farm a little bit brighter. Pinkie organized and sorted her collection of toys (there weren't many), neatly folded both her pretty dresses and then swept the floor until there wasn't a speck of dust left. Perfect. Granny would love it now!
But, she knew that the rest of the house wasn't clean. Especially not her sisters' room. They had so many rocks that it looked like they lived out in the fields. Pinkie didn't understand why they were so in love with plain old rocks when they could be coloring or painting with bright and happy colors. Oh, well. At the very least, she could try and help organize the rocks again. If they were put away neatly, the room could look nice. She trotted over to their room.
“Hey guys,” she called as she walked in. “Granny Pie's coming over tomorrow and we have to make everything nice and clean for her so I came to help! Also, I hid pretty good, didn't I? You didn't find me all day! I wish you would have told me about dinner, though.”
Her sisters sat on their beds, reading books. Both of them looked up as she came in, wearing unhappy expressions. Bellamina groaned.
“We don't need your help cleaning,” she said. “Granny's not going to come up here anyway.”
“Why not?” said Pinkie. “Don't you want to show her your room?”
“No,” said Isabella. “She'll just tell us it's boring and needs color.”
“But it is boring and it does need color!” said Pinkie.
“Our room is fine the way it is. Why do you always have to make everything look all weird?”
“Colors aren't weird, they're pretty.”
“Rocks are pretty,” said Bellamina, “and if you were really part of the family, you'd know that.”
Pinkie was stunned. “What?”
Bellamina closed her book and glared at her little sister. “You don't care about rocks or our farm at all, do you?”
“I – I do!”
“Oh yeah? Then why is your cutie mark some balloons instead of a crystal or something?” Bellamina climbed off her bed and approached Pinkie.
“I don't know. It just came like that. That doesn't mean I don't care about the farm! I'm still part of the family!” Pinkie felt her eyes beginning to sting.
“Well, mom and dad's cutie marks are about rock farming and when we get ours, they'll be about rock farming, but you're the only one that's different.” Now Bellamina drew herself up to her full height, staring down at Pinkie.
Pinkie began backing away.“But -”
“You aren't really one of us anymore,” said Bellamina, moving in so their muzzles were only inches apart. “So just go away. And don't ask us to play anymore either.”
“Yeah, no weirdos allowed,” said Isabella, sneering.
Pinkie ran back to her room, her oddly straight mane falling across her face and blocking her vision. They were right. She was different. And she would be different forever and they would never play with her again. She threw herself on the bed and cried herself to sleep.
*
Pinkie woke up the next morning still feeling heartbroken. It was probably only a matter of time before mom and dad told her she was too different from the family. Would they make her leave? Could she find a new family? The thought brought fresh tears to her eyes. She didn't want a new family – she wanted hers to love her again!
Maybe if she cut back on the parties for a while, her family might start to like her again. Maybe she could get really good at farming and then she'd get a new cutie mark. Was that possible? Could a pony change their cutie mark once they got it?
She got out of bed and went down to breakfast, still keeping quiet. Neither her parents nor her sisters said anything over their oatmeal, but Pinkie kept a wary eye on them all the same. If her sisters talked her mother and father into making her leave the farm, there probably wasn't anything she could do to stop them. But maybe she could convince them to let her stay if she spoke first.
Her chance came a little while later, while her mother was brushing her mane.
“Pinkamina, I don't know what you did to get your mane all neat and straight again, but I am grateful for it,” said her mother. “It must feel nice not to have all those tangles anymore.”
“Mom, am I weird?” Pinkie asked.
“Weird?”
“Yeah, Isabella and Bellamina said I was weird because my cutie mark wasn't about rock farming like yours and dad's.”
“Well, I admit it wasn't quite what we were expecting. We thought that you'd find a place here and stay on, like every Pie in our family has before. Now, I don't know what we can do for you.”
“So, does that mean I'll have to leave the farm?”
“Maybe one day. If you aren't meant to be here, then you aren't. We'll just have to wait and see.”
Before Pinkie could respond to that, somepony knocked on the front door. It opened with a squeak and then her father spoke.
“Hi mom! Good to see you!”
Pinkie jumped up and ran to the front door, her sadness temporarily forgotten. In the back of her mind, she thought she heard a sound like a party horn going off, but she paid no attention to it. Her mother let out a yelp of surprise.
“Granny's here! Granny's here!” Pinkie cheered as she ran.
“Pinkamina, get back here! You're mane's all tangled again!”
Pinkie raced out to see an older light purple pony at the front door. She was old and stiff, but her eyes sparkled with laughter.
“Hello Clyde! Good to see you too,” Granny said, giving him a hug. “Now, who's that I hear calling my name? Could it be my favorite granddaughter?”
“Hi Granny!” cried Pinkie, running up for a hug.
“There's my Pinkie Pie!” Granny said, scooping Pinkie up in her forelegs. “You get bigger every time I see you. And what's- oh my goodness me, you got your cutie mark!”
Pinkie beamed. “I sure did, Granny! Isn't it cool?”
“It's absolutely wonderful! And I think we ought to have a party to celebrate, don't you?”
“Yeah! I love parties!” said Pinkie.
“No! No more parties!” cried a voice from the hall. Pinkie and her granny turned to see a very grumpy looking Bellamina standing at the other end of the room. Isabella didn't say anything, but her expression mirrored her sister.
“Bellamina!” scolded her mother. “That's enough.”
Granny leaned over and whispered in Pinkie's ear. “There's a present for you out in my wagon. Why don't you go get it?”
Pinkie gave her granny another hug and headed outside. Granny's wagon was parked near the door and covered with a checkered cloth. She pulled it back to reveal boxes and baskets of different shapes and sizes. There, near the top, sat a small paper bag with her name on it. She grabbed it and nearly ripped it in her haste to get it open.
Candy! All her favorite candies were inside – sugar canes and sugar cubes and taffy and lollipops and gummy worms – there was so much and it was all for her. She ate everything that could be chewed, then pulled the biggest lolipop free of the bag and happily started licking it. It was nearly as big as her head. She thought as she ate.
Maybe instead of parties, she could make candy. Candy made ponies happy, right? Who didn't like the taste of different flavored sugars? Especially in desserts, like cookies and pies. Maybe Granny could teach her how to bake desserts.
The door to the house swung open and Granny emerged.
“Your mom tells me you all are a little burned out on parties,” she said. “So why don't we make this a two-pony affair? You and me can have a picnic up on the hilltop.”
“Sure!” said Pinkie. “And thanks for all the candy. I love candy!”
“I know you do,” said Granny, hitching herself to the wagon. “So, what have you been up to since my last visit?”
Pinkie happily told Granny everything interesting that had happened on the farm for the last several months. How she saw a huge rainbow that stretched across the entire sky, how happy her family was when she threw her first party, and how excited they were when her cutie mark appeared. She told Granny about how she threw parties whenever she got a new idea about how to throw them – surprise parties, costume parties, holiday parties, parties-for-no-reason-at-all parties. Her tone changed from excitement to confusion as she told how her family started leaving her parties earlier and earlier, ignoring the snacks and games, how they making excuses not to come, how upset her sisters had been recently and how it seemed like the only good thing that happened the last few days was finding out her granny was coming.
Granny Pie listened patiently as she spread the picnic blanket over the ground. She pulled plates full of treats out of the wagon and laid them out, inviting Pinkie to sit next to her.
“And then Bellamina called me a weirdo because I didn't have a rock farming cutie mark like mom or dad,” said Pinkie. “She and Isabella didn't used to be so mean. They used to want to play with me all the time, but now they just tell me to go away.”
“Sounds to me like they're jealous,” said Granny, reaching for a cookie.
“Jealous?”
“Yep. You got your cutie mark before either of them did and since you're the youngest, they don't think it's fair.”
Granny set the cookie plate between them, but Pinkie didn't even reach for it.
“But it wasn't my fault. It just showed up one day. If I knew they wanted to go first, I totally would have let them.”
“It's not up to you, sweetheart,” said Granny. “Cutie marks are a kind of magic we don't understand. They appear when they appear and that's that.”
“I wish I could change it,” said Pinkie, frowning at her flank. “Then everything would go back to the way it was. Bellamina and Isabella might like me better and they wouldn't say I was weird and didn't fit in.”
Her lip began to tremble.
“I'd change it to a rock farming cutie mark right now, just like mom's. If it was a rock or something, then I'd still be part of the family and I wouldn't have to leave!” A few tears fell. “I don't want to be different! If I have to leave my family, then I don't want my cutie mark!”
She started scraping at it, as if she could tear it off. “I hate it! I don't want it anymore!”
A gentle hoof stilled her motions and another wrapped around her chest. Granny pulled her in close, shushing her.
“Sweetheart, where did you ever get an idea like that? Why wouldn't you be part of your family anymore?”
Pinkie sniffled. “Bellamina told me it was because my cutie mark wasn't about a rock. She said I didn't belong with them anymore.”
“I'm going to have a talk with that filly. Sweetie, nothing could make you stop being a part of your family. That's why it's called a family. Because you're stuck with them. Bellamina told you something she shouldn't have because she was upset. Your parents aren't going to make you leave the farm unless you want to.”
“But I don't want to!”
“Why not?”
“Because-” Pinkie suddenly realized she didn't know why. “I don't know. I'm scared, I guess?”
“Do you have any friends you could go meet if you did leave?”
“Not really. Dad says I should be in school with other fillies, but there's so much to do on the farm that it's easier if he teaches me here at home.”
Granny nodded. “I see. You're scared of leaving because the only ponies you really know are here.”
“Yeah.”
They sat in silence for a few minutes, listening to the birds in the distance.
“What if you traveled around with me for a while?” said Granny.
Pinkie looked up at her granny, eyes wide. Leave the farm? Go someplace she had never been, ever? The very idea gave her a fluttery feeling in her stomach, but at the same time, she was very curious.
“Where would we go?” asked Pinkie.
“All over the place! I sell my candy to lots of different places. You could help me sell it and meet new ponies in all those towns. It'll be an adventure. What do you think?”
Pinkie, for once, sat quietly and thought about it. Leaving the farm was still something of a scary prospect, but she wouldn't be going alone. Granny Pie was her favorite pony in the world and she had already been traveling far and wide; she'd know how to handle herself from place to place. Who knew? It might even be fun to meet new ponies from different places and find out what they were like. She might even get the chance to throw them parties, too.
“I wanna go,” said Pinkie, smiling again. “I've never had an adventure before. It could be fun.”
“Oh, it is!” said Granny, hugging her granddaughter again. “We'll go places you've never imagined! We could find ourselves in Manehattan or Las Pegasus. We might even wind up in Canterlot if I play my cards right.”
“Will there be parties?” asked Pinkie.
“More than you can count. You'll make friends at every one of them.”
“And make them all laugh and smile?”
“Of course! You might even find new ways to make ponies happy aside from parties.”
Granny nuzzled Pinkie, then retrieved a tin of fudge and a sealed pitcher of peach juice from the wagon. She poured two glasses of it, then lifted hers for a toast.
“To big adventures and new friends!” said Granny. Pinkie laughed as they clinked their glasses.
“I think our first stop should be Ponyville,” said Granny as Pinkie took a bite of fudge. “There's a darling couple living there that would love to meet you. They're bakers, you know. Own their own place; Sugarcube Corner, it's called.”
Granny spoke for a while about how welcoming and cozy Ponyville was, but Pinkie didn’t hear much. She couldn’t get her sisters out of her mind. She glanced up at her granny.
“And the town library has the largest selection of recipe books I’ve ever seen!”
“Granny?” said Pinkie.
“Yes?”
“I don’t think I want to leave with my sisters still mad at me.”
Granny nuzzled her again. “It’s not your fault they’re mad, sweetie.”
“I know, but I want to at least try to make them happy. I just don’t know how.”
“Well, what do they like?”
“Rocks, but rocks aren’t fun like parties.”
“You don’t think rocks are fun, but they do. Everypony is different and likes different things. The trick is learning to make them happy with the things they like.”
Pinkie scratched her chin, thinking hard. Whatever she did would have to have something to do with rocks. But what would they like?
“Could we make a cake that’s shaped like different kinds of rocks?” asked Pinkie.
“We could, or I could teach you how to make rock candy,” said Granny.
Pinkie’s face lit up. “Candy made out of rocks? Can you really do that?”
“Not quite. It has to do with something called crystallization, or turning sugar into crystals. It’ll take a few days to do, though.”
“Crystals?” Pinkie’s grin grew even wider. “That gives me another idea!”
*
Three days later, Pinkie stood in the living room with two suitcases. Her mother occasionally dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief as her father helped Pinkie put on her saddlebags.
“You’re sure you have everything?” he asked.
Pinkie nodded with a grin. “I double checked! I’m totally ready to go travelling with Granny!”
The front door swung open. “Hurry it up, Clyde!” called Granny Pie. “We’ve places to be, you know.”
"Coming, mom," said Clyde, hefting the suitcase out the door.
“Pinkie, promise me you’ll stay out of trouble,” said Mrs. Pie, hugging the pink pony close.
“I will, Mom. Cross my heart and hope to fly.”
As they broke apart, the twins came into the living room, wearing the same flat expression. They and Pinkie hadn’t spoken much over the last few days, but Pinkie hadn’t had the time with all her preparations. She wasn’t surprised to see that they hadn’t really changed their attitudes.
“So,” said Isabella, looking away, “have a good trip, or whatever.”
“Yeah,” said Bellamina with a shrug. “What she said.”
“You bet I will!” said Pinkie. Her father and grandmother stepped back inside.
Pinkie turned to face them. “Oh! Granny, is it ready? Is it?”
“Sure is,” said Granny, passing her a box. “It’s all right here.”
Pinkie took the box over to her sisters.
“Listen,” she said. “I know you guys are kind of mad that I got my cutie mark first.”
The twins fidgeted a little.
“But I can understand why. Anyway, I didn’t want to leave with you still mad at me, so I made you something.”
She pulled out a pair of sticks with a clumpy pink substance on the ends.
“It’s rock candy!” said Pinkie. “You boil water and sugar until it melts, then you let it get hard again around a stick. It’s pink because I like pink and it kinda tastes like strawberries.”
Isabella gave hers a lick and made a noise of approval. Bellamina examined hers but didn’t taste it.
“And one more thing,” said Pinkie, reaching into the box again. “I know I said your room was boring, and should have some color in it, but you said you didn’t want anything painted, so I had another idea.”
She pulled out two hollow rocks that glittered inside. Thousands of crystals inside the rocks caught the light and sparkled like stars. Isabella’s shone a deep purple while Bellamina’s was a rich green.
“Geodes!” said Pinkie. “They’re colorful and they’re rocks! Now your room will be super pretty! I was saving them for your birthday, but then I thought, ‘That room needs color now.’”
Isabella smiled at Pinkie for the first time in days. She sprang forward and gave her a hug.
“Pinkie, it’s beautiful!” she said. “Thank you so much!”
“Hey, you called me Pinkie! Does this mean I can call you Inky?”
Inky grinned. “Sure you can!”
Pinkie released her and turned to the other twin.
“Do you like it, Bellamina? I know you’ve always wanted one.”
Bellamina looked up. “You knew?”
“Sure! A couple months ago, you said ‘Geodes are beautiful. I’d love to have one.’ So, I started exploring out on the edges of the farm until I found a really nice one for you and Inky. It took me a few weeks, but I found two and brought them back home and hid them for your birthday, but then I changed my mind and gave it to you today.”
“You went to all that trouble for something I said months ago?”
“Well, you’re my sister. Of course I did.”
Bellamina gave Pinkie the tightest hug she could manage. “Thanks, Pinkie. And I’m really sorry about telling you you weren’t part of the family anymore. That was mean.”
“Aw, it’s okay,” said Pinkie as they broke apart. “Can I start calling you Blinky now?”
“Yeah!” said Blinky, grinning.
The sisters never noticed their parents and grandmother looking on, watching with pride as their children grew up just a little more. Pinkie turned to face them.
“Okay, I’m ready! Let’s go, Granny!”
One last round of hugs and goodbyes, and Pinkie and Granny Pie headed outside. Granny hitched herself to the wagon and Pinkie jumped on the back, waving at her family.
“Bye, everypony! See you soon!” she said.
“Next stop, Ponyville!” said Granny.
They made their way down to the main road, turning east and smiling as the sun rose over what promised to be a wonderful day.
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Awww! Your stories are heartwarming!
Rarity chapter soon please.
edit: fuck am I retarded
Can't wait to read the next one. Wonder who's it gonna be!
YAY an update!
I Loved this chapter because I think poor Pinkie's past is not explored in enough detail, ever. You did a fabulous job showing part of it.
Keep up the good work.
Both fantastic stories, I wonder who is gonna be next.
I see the Pie family's names are very much head cannon now :D
Great story!
Ooh, a lecture on how petriculture works!
I'd rewrite the sentence about the "slow, tedious process", though; it seems a bit oddly put together.
Oh, dear.
Nice detail on the root cellar. I like that you give the rock farm and the Pie family some history with the recollection of Granny Pie and the supposed ghost.
The story of Hearth's Warming all year round is fun too. I wonder if that's a deliberate Fairly Odd Parents reference or just one of those stories that anyone can think up in order to prove a point.
There's an extra word in the sentence featuring "grapes".
Huh. Again it looks like you're expanding the story beyond the boundaries of my expectations by including more family members. If that pattern keeps up, Rainbow Dash's and Fluttershy's stories should be very interesting indeed. Not to mention Twilight Sparkle and her new dragon companion.
I like the implications the phrase "both her pretty dresses" brings to mind... but on a similar note, if Pinkie has so few toys, why don't we get to know what they are? I'm curious now.
The sentence that references Isabella and Bellamina's love of plain old rocks has two spaces in a row.
Ow. I mean, I saw that coming, kind of, and I understand what it's like not to want to clean your room for someone who's not going to spend time in it anyway, but still... ow.
When Pinkie's mane tangles up again, her mother uses the wrong word to tell her so- "your" means belonging to you; "you're" is short for "you are".
I think you mean "to a rock farming cutie mark".
I think you mean "make you stop".
Damn. That ending was adorable. I like that Pinkie Pie learns several lessons in rapid succession, but in a way that feels very organic, with all of them applying to her situation in different ways.
For the sake of racial parity (not purity), the next chapter should be about a pegasus.
That reminds me- do you think you'll tie these stories together somehow, or will publishing them as one story just be like an anthology format?
One last thing. If you still want to know what Apple Cinnamon did, PM me and I'll tell you.
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Thanks for all your little catches. My editor didn't spot those, so I probably would have kept on ignoring them forever. I don't know what you're referring to about Fairly Oddparents, but the reference is from a story called, "The Week of Sundays."
Thanks! I figured somepony as sweet as Pinkie deserved an equally sweet ending. (terrible pun is terrible) As for the next chapter, I agree and I'm already working on it. Progress has been slow, since I've been doing Newbie Artist Training Grounds over on EQD and haven't been inspired to write much.
I don't plan on tying the stories together really at all. They're supposed to be short little stories of the mane 6, a little after they got their cutie marks. Thanks for all your comments.