A Very Special Day

by OneLonelyPickle

White

I poke my head through the window of my front door. I look outside my home.

Something is different today.

Yes, something's very different.

I can feel it in the tips of my hooves and at the apex of my mane. It's like a spark of new life. Something is definitely happening today!

As I glance around the area surrounding my home, a warm feeling rushes through me. This place is both present and nostalgic.

Of course, I have lived here all my life, or at least as far as I can remember, so there is no surprise there. But what is it about today that just seems to spring with potential?

I am positive.

I'm practically glowing with an energy that's tangible, pleasant, and passionate. I feel like a million bits!

One of my friends walks by.

"Good morning, Spring Lily!" I chirp.

My friend has a peaceful smile on her face. She's always so chipper! All of my friends are!

"And a super good morning to you, Miss Happy Pants!" my friend chimes in return. I can't help it, but my grin devours my face. The muscles of my mouth would tear apart at the seams if I smiled any harder!

My friend walks away. She always wears white, and her clothes are always spotless. What care!

I just know that today something huge is going to happen!

I bring my head back inside my home and look off to one side of my room. My favourite tomes sit, waiting, without one single speck of dust on any of them. They’re organized to perfection. They love their home, too! And I love them!

Dictionaries and thesauruses are the best. I’m not a fan of any other types of books. There’s something magical about words. I want to write something one day. I’ve always thought there was a story inside me, waiting to jump out and latch onto somepony. It would bite and scratch at them, then it would rip its way inside and—

I don’t like that thought anymore. Nevermind.

I walk over to my only window to admire the sun peeping down at my home. As I do, I reminisce about all the times I spent with the sun. There are little etches on the sill, eighteen of them in all. The ones that have been there the longest are worn and barely noticeable anymore.

I've always loved the sun, though we have scarcely intermingled in the ways I would like. As I lay my head against the sill, the hot orb above kisses and bathes me, and it starts to lull me into a nap, despite my uncomfortable position.

When I wake up it’s with a startle. Drool is pooled outside my mouth. Somepony manages to open my front door. There’s a jingly metal sound.

Oh! My friends are here!

I just knew today was special!

"Happy Pants! How are you this fine day?"

This friend of mine is like the leader of the community, you could say. He's the eldest and the nicest. His wrinkles and wizened gaze always calm me down. When I was younger, sometimes I would get really mad, and the leader would make it all better with just a look and a stroke of my mane!

"I'm awesome! And how are you?" I reply. As if I need to ask! My friends are all happy as can be, and always are!

The leader is floating a clipboard in front of him with magic. He stares at me with an expression that soothes my body. I feel my heart float to the stars.

"Today is a special day, Happy Pants. We're going to help you move to a new home!"

I feel my mouth open into an O. My head is vibrating and I can only manage gasps and odd throat noises. My friends look more happy than I've ever seen.

"N-New home?"

The very thought makes switches in my brain flicker. I tilt my head one way and then the other. Another of my friends speaks up. He’s a stallion, much younger than the leader, but almost as nice and kind! His name is Concord.

"I know it might sound scary, Happy Pants, but we're going to make sure the move is quick and simple! You're going to love your new home!"

I look outside my window, up at the sun. The sun has always been one of my best pals. As long as wherever I was going had the sun, I could be happy, and wouldn’t ever think of bad things! Wait—

I vocalize the hopeful thought.

"Will I be somewhere closer to the sun?"

The leader steps forward until he is close to me. He strokes my back with the tenderest of hooves. I feel like napping again.

"Yes, dear, you can run around outside and play as much as you want. And we won't forget your books, either."

Electricity in my brain sends signals as my consciousness attempts to piece feelings and facts together into coherence. My breathing picks up. I bite my lower lip and my eyes start to flutter. My mouth quivers.

“R-Really?” I manage, tears of bliss streaking down my sunkissed face. The leader’s old eyes are full of sincerity as he nods. I need ask no more.

The next moments drift by like dreams. My friends lead me outside of my home and down the street. It's one of those streets with white walls on either side. All of my friends love white.

They lead me to an expansive, open area that reminds me of back home, in how it makes me feel, though it looks different. But the sensation here is so much more nostalgic. I see a set of doors illuminated by a soft glow just beyond.

Swarms of angry, crimson images attack my vision. I've seen them before. There's screaming. A tiny filly, enraptured with repugnant hate and vicious madness is bucking wild like a trapped deer. There's something bad covering most of her body.

I don't feel so joyful anymore. But the leader pulls me into him with a hoof around my shoulder, and the world returns to how it should.

"Are you ready, Happy Pants?" he asks. I feel the second wind of my happiness and I beam.

"Let's go!"

Comments

[Violet_09]

I'm confused, what's happening

[OneLonelyPickle]

10262569
Moving day for Happy Pants!

[Odd_Sarge]

It took me a moment—up until the end, specifically—but wow. This is great. I love and hate that it ends right there; it's dreadfully perfect timing.

Very well done.

[NaiadSagaIotaOar]

I, hmm. I’ll echo what Excalibur said, the ending left me mostly confused. Please do correct me if I’m missing something—I get the impression that something bad is happening or that something’s not right, but it feels like there’s not much in the way of specifics. The emphasis on whiteness and the narrator’s apparent mental instability made me think of some kind of asylum, but I’m not certain that’s what was intended.

I’m actually impressed how well the story worked with those minimal suggestions, but I have to say the ending came as a letdown.

The prose could have been tightened up in a few places, too. Mainly with regards to eliminating redundancies. There’re things like this:

I'm practically glowing with an energy that's tangible, pleasant, and passionate.

Where you have two descriptors (“practically glowing,” “tangible”) that both convey very similar ideas, that a normally immaterial thing is almost material.

A similar thing happened here:

This friend of mine is like the leader of the community, you could say.

Where “like” and “you could say” both suggest that the friend’s leadership status isn’t entirely formal.

So, yeah, overall mixed feelings. But it kept me entertained, so have an upvote.

[OneLonelyPickle]

10262706
I appreciate that it worked for at least one person! Thank you!

10262711
Thank you for the review. My goal was to give just the right amount of information so that it was apparent Happy Pants was in an asylum or something similar, but not so much that it was on the nose and in your face. Clearly for at least you and one other, I missed the mark a bit. At least you were able to deduce that it was probably an asylum and most importantly you were entertained

Yeah that first sentence you quoted was always iffy to me. The first time I wrote it it flowed better but had redundancies. I didn't catch in the rewrite that it did as well. I should have worked on it a bit more. Good advice!

I see your point about the second sentence as well. Considering I didn't put too much time or effort into polishing this very short story, I am happy with how it turned out.

Cheers!

[Pete100]

I’m so confused.