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13th Candle

Pinkie Pie was the best party planner in Ponyville, maybe even in all of Equestria. She would not let anything or anyone stop her from throwing parties if there was a face that needed a smile put on it or a disposition that needed lifting. Joy was one of those odd things where it wasn’t required for living – like food or water or air or having all your blood inside your body – but it was barely ‘living’ if you didn’t have it.

Knowing this and how important joy was, Pinkie took it upon herself – not just as the Element of Laughter, but as Pinkie Pie – to try her best to make everyone smile no matter the situation.

Even when it was as dark as one like this.

Pinkie’s attention shifted from her musings as she saw Cheerilee. She stopped, smiled, and drew a circle against her chest before pushing her hooves out.

“Hello. You’re doing great.”

Cheerilee’s eyes were darker than they were yesterday, but she smiled and returned the gesture, mouthing the words.

“You’re doing great.”

Since the Ear appeared, it was risky to let conversations carry on for too long, if they called even be called ‘conversations’ – missing a key component for that kind of a thing to happen.

But they made do.

Pinkie waved Cheerilee goodbye and carried on towards her destination.

Thankfully, the Ear’s power only applied to certain sounds, so Pinkie was free to bounce wherever she pleased. She liked to think the boing-boing-boing was in some way comforting amidst a town so used to noise but now restricted to near-complete silence.

Pinkie found herself at the library in no time. She glanced at the sign posted on the door’s frame.

If there was ever a time to obey the golden rule of a library, then it is preferably now. For everypony’s sake, PLEASE KEEP QUIET!!

The limit on ponies inside a public building STILL APPLIES – NO MORE THAN 15!

Pinkie opened the door and went inside. The smell of paper filled her nostrils as she surveyed the room for anything new to get excited about – nothing – then walked over to the checkout desk.

Spike was holding the fort down. Again. He looked up at her tiredly and shook his head.

“She’s at it again.”

Pinkie told him he was doing great, then gestured to the basement door.

“Can I go down?”

Spike nodded and went back to using his arms as a pillow.

Twilight wouldn’t be happy about that, but there were even less ponies coming to the library and he looked tired. Pinkie decided to keep quiet about him – not too hard, ha ha!

She went to the basement, opened the door, and went down the stairs. Reaching the lower floor, she could see how cluttered and disorganized everything was – not the ‘organized chaos’ that was Rarity’s room, but the ‘I’ve got more important things to do than worry about appearances’ kind of messy.

Twilight was at one of her work desks looking at a truly spectacular piece of complicated equipment and a puzzle piece of lab apparatuses. Her mane was frizzy and unbrushed and there was a rather… sweaty smell to the lab.

Pinkie almost called out to her, but stopped in time, thank Faust. She stomped her feet as she walked over.

No response.

Pinkie blew air through her nostrils and chose to walk around to the other side of the table. She had to be careful to not startle Twilight and make her produce a vocal noise.

A few lab beakers were filled with mysterious liquids; Pinkie swore the purple one was the same from three days ago when she was last down here. She peered through the glass and stuck her tongue out at Twilight’s warped image.

Twilight’s bloodshot eyes finally focused on her and she blinked rapidly, fortunately maintaining her silence. She shook her head and rubbed at her eyes before coming around the desk and giving a ghost of a smile.

“Hello. You’re doing great.”

Pinkie returned it, then gave a theatre-worthy shrug.

“How is the research going?”

Twilight lit her horn and levitated a notebook and pen over. She started to write.

If you’re wondering about the research, then I’ve made some progress, but nothing completely conclusive.”

Pinkie nodded. She pointed to the notebook, then at herself. Twilight gave her the pen.

You know, it’s your birthday tomorrow! I was thin

Twilight shook her head before Pinkie could finish. She took the pen back.

I’m too busy. It’s not the time or place for a party.

Pinkie, in a rare moment of anger, snatched the pen and the notebook. She held the book to her chest to guard it until she was finished.

You need a break. You’re exhausted. I’ve got way more energy than you, but if I try throwing parties when I’m tired, it doesn’t go well. You work better when you’re rested. Please, Twilight, I’m worried about you.

Twilight slapped the book away with a growl. A second later, she realized her mistake and lit her horn to grab it. She wrote, her writing getting sloppy.

I cant jus stop Pinkie im the only one in the vllage that cn do this!

Pinkie took a deep breath. This usually wasn’t her role – she wasn’t usually the voice of reason when she was with Twilight, but the Ear changed a lot of things.

She gently took the pen back.

Do you know what day it is? When did you last eat? Do you know how Spike is doing?

Pinkie watched Twilight’s face as it softened, creased, then crumpled. Twilight put her hoof against her mouth and breathed in and out through her nose.

Pinkie stepped forward and hugged her, grimacing. Faust, she wanted to tell Twilight it was okay to cry, but right now, it just wasn’t – not full-out crying anyway. The silent holding-it-in-with-tears-flowing crying was fine, but that wasn’t healthy in her opinion.

Twilight trembled in her hold for a few minutes before calming down. She took a step back, wiped her face, and nodded.

Okay, I’ll take a small break.

Pinkie’s smile came back full-force. Little things – they were easily missed, and it was a travesty when you didn’t take joy in them because they did add up.

She made sure to get a Pinkie Promise from Twilight that she would take a break, then set off to gather what she needed for the surprise party.

Well… it wasn’t much of a surprise party when you tell the special pony what to expect, where to expect it, and when, but the Ear changed a lot of things.

The Ear had a misleading name; Pinkie would have just named it ‘Weird Tree’, but apparently a lot of ponies thought the hole in its trunk was in the shape of a pony’s ear, so it stuck.

It mysteriously appeared two weeks ago right smack dab in the middle of Ponyville. It was two stories tall, barren, and had a gnarled, creepy look, but the odd part was that it grew out of solid concrete with roots that were impossible to scratch or cut with blade or magic – they literally bounced off. Twilight hypothesized that the Ear used magic to form a microscopic barrier that nullified kinetic energy… whatever that meant.

The hole in the trunk was nothing special except for a foul odour that was not unlike fresh blood. Snips and Snails made a game of tossing some rocks in from a distance, enjoying the satisfying thunk when they got a score.

If anypony in the town made a sound with their voice and at least one other pony was around to hear it, the poor soul that heard it would be afflicted in the form of a laceration appearing on their body. The size, location, and severity of the wound varied, but no one was sure what the factors that affected it were. They only knew that the lacerations varied because of all the ponies that got hurt while they were in the stages of discovering the Ear’s power.

Sadly, six ponies died before Mayor Mare’s warning got out – five from blood loss and one unfortunate mare from decapitation; it was her filly’s first word, too.

They knew that what the Ear considered a ‘sound’ was broad enough to encompass things like grunts and screams, though sighs and snorts were in the safe. Also, every ‘sound’ inflicted a laceration, but if there were more than one pony present to hear it, it was random who would be affected.

Through bravery and a lot of recklessness, Pinkie discovered that if nopony was around to hear you, then you could talk as much as you want. Also, you needed to consciously register sounds for the lacerations to appear – Twilight escaped harm from Spike talking aloud because she was too focused on her book.

That was all they knew about the Ear currently, and until they discovered how to make the Ear go away, they had to live with it.

Understandably, not many ponies came to Sugarcube Corner, but they still had their regulars.

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon still came in for milkshakes. Thank Faust Diamond Tiara learned to be quiet after a careless, ‘Hey, Blank Flanks’ gave her friend three cuts.

Rainbow Dash stopped by for her lunch break and ordered fries and a hay sandwich. She picked at her sandwich while daydreaming, then hurriedly scoffed it all down realizing how little of her break she had left. Same old, same old.

Fluttershy slinked in meekly and had a few donuts in the afternoon, then stared out the window with a distant look in her eyes.

Caramel walked in through the door, waved to Pinkie-

-and stopped as his nose started to twitch.

Pinkie’s eyes widened in alarm, as did Caramel’s. He turned to leave, but it was too late; his eyes watered and his head drew back, and Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon noticed at that same time and their eyes widened in horror as Caramel-

Pinkie lunged forward, dropping a tray with a mug of hot chocolate. It shattered behind her as she pushed a napkin she pulled out of her hair against his muzzle.

Caramel shuddered… then sighed.

Pinkie cautiously pulled away and sighed as well. She and Caramel shared a silent laugh of relief and he gestured ‘thanks’. Pinkie turned around and took one step forward-

-and a shard of the mug jabbed into the underside of her hoof.

“OUCH!!”

Pinkie slapped her hoof over her mouth, but-

“AH!” Diamond Tiara jolted and grabbed her foreleg.

Agony slashed open Pinkie’s back. It was all she could do to keep quiet; she bit her lip and felt warmth spill down her chin.

Distantly, like she was hearing it through a tunnel, footsteps surrounded her. She could see legs closing in from her position on the floor. She didn’t remember falling, though. Warmth seeped into her fur as the wound on her back radiated pain. It hurt so much.

Eventually, through a lot of sweat, tears, and clenched teeth, Pinkie found herself in her bed with fresh gauze wound around her. The pain was at least bearable.

Mr and Mrs. Cake came inside, frowning in concern. Pinkie managed a weary smile, wishing that alone could make the heartache on their faces disappear. She knew things hadn’t been easy for them since the twins didn’t understand how important it was for them to be quiet. They had to separate them from one another for the time being, and the Cakes bore plasters and bandages all over their bodies as evidence of the twins’ innocent ignorance.

Pinkie didn’t want to add to their burden.

Mr. Cake gave her some medicine to swallow and asked if she was okay. She thought, at least. Honestly, she sort of just gave meanings to gestures rather than them being any sort of official. A lot of ponies were using them, so that was cool – she was a trendsetter!

The medicine helped dull the pain even further, but now she felt sleepy. She hoped this wouldn’t affect her ability to throw Twilight’s party.

Pinkie woke to a scream.

She shot up, swallowing a shriek as a laceration appeared on her belly. It wasn’t deep, but it hurt.

She heard another scream and braced herself, but nothing happened – somepony else must have gotten cut instead.

Pinkie looked out her window and, ignoring the pain, limped over to it. It was a moonless night, but the street lights provided adequate lighting for her to see several ponies running about, making sure to keep quiet; they communicated with gestures and points instead.

Something was going down.

Pinkie ran downstairs and went outside, grimacing and starting to sweat. She looked overhead and saw Rainbow Dash paint a prismatic trail as she zipped to the centre of the town. Pinkie ran after her.

She arrived to a horrible sight.

The tree, the Ear, was alive in a way it shouldn’t have been.

The branches were writhing like snakes, shedding bark like a second skin as they grew to extraordinary lengths and smashed through the windows of neighbouring buildings. The ground beneath it shifted and cracked as the roots undulated and extended outwards. The hole in its trunk…

It cracked and widened further and let out a piercing scream.

A stallion watching the ordeal not too far from Pinkie was rent in half by nothing.

Pinkie’s vision swam and she forced herself not to think about what she had just seen. She focused on Twilight, who was close to the tree and casting spell after spell while a few other ponies tried to hack away at the tree’s roots and branches.

Throughout all of this, not one pony made a sound.

Pinkie stumbled, still woozy, and caught Twilight’s attention by grabbing her shoulder. She shrugged, aware of how strange it looked considering the urgency, but she had no other way of asking,

“What do we do?”

Wondering why the Ear was acting like this now after so long being inactive wasn’t going to solve the problem – they needed to act now to survive.

The Ear shrieked again and a pegasus plummeted with a sickening crunch, their severed wind landing a second after.

Twilight grimaced and shook her head.

Pinkie took that as a bad sign.

Suddenly, Caramel ran past her with something in hoof – a bottle with a rag stuffed into the neck. As she watched, he brought out a match and went to light it.

In response, the Ear sprouted several more holes and emitted a volley of howls and shrieks.

Pinkie felt two cuts appear on her flanks, but she barely noticed them as Caramel convulsed, blood shooting from his body as one of his forelegs fell, then his ears, and then finally his head.

Twilight screamed in horror and another pegasus fell.

Pinkie dropped to her knees.

They were going to die.

As she despaired, a glint her eye. She looked up and noticed the flammable cocktail Caramel had improvised.

She started to think: why did the Ear react so strongly to the fire? They already tried doing that to its branches and roots, but the flames were instantly snuffed out. Was it somehow weaker during this active phase?

As Pinkie thought, her gaze wandered to the hole in its trunk.

Snips and Snails made a game of tossing some rocks in from a distance, enjoying the satisfying thunk when they got a score.

Eyes widening, Pinkie turned to Twilight and grabbed her face, forcing their eyes to meet. Blue glaring into purple, she mouthed her words.

Twilight gaped in shock.

Pinkie mouthed the words again, added another one: NOW.

Twilight hesitated, but one glance at the Ear and the destruction it was causing strengthened her resolve. With a whimper, she lit her horn.

Pinkie felt an unfamiliar pressure on her ears-

-then a spike of white-hot pain that pierced straight to her brain. It was brief and she recoiled, blinking.

And then she was aware of the silence.

Pinkie looked around and saw ponies being cut, but did not hear their cries of pain.

Pinkie looked back at Twilight and saw her lips moving – she got the impression Twilight wasn’t mouthing them this time, yet she heard nothing.

‘Okay, this will work.’

Pinkie put on her best smile and hugged Twilight.

‘I’ll make everyone smile again. You’ll see.’

And then she ran forward.

Pinkie snatched up the molotov and the match. She saw the Ear’s mouths stretching and twisting, more pegasi falling, but she ignored it and kept running. This had to stop before it could grow any further.

Running, hearing nothing, Pinkie dodged and weaved as the Ear’s attention shifted to her and it started swinging its branches. One of the tips drew a line along her side and another almost knocked her down, but she kept running.

Close enough.

Pinkie lit the match and used it to burn the rag. She saw another branch zoom toward her and ducked at the last second. Rising, she took aim, prayed to whomever was listening, and threw.

The bottle spun in mid-air. The Ear’s branches snapped as they tried to bend far enough inwards to knock it away.

But it wasn’t enough.

The bottle landed inside the main hole of the trunk and the flames roared to life, ravenously devouring the Ear’s insides.

The Ear seemed to be shrieking, but when Pinkie looked, no one was being cut. The branches twitched and flailed, the roots coiled and slashed at the ground, but the flames continued to rise and eat until the Ear’s form could barely be made out amidst the inferno.

Dazed, Pinkie turned around, feeling the inferno’s heat against her back and staggered back to Twilight, who rushed to catch her as she fell.

Twilight’s lips were moving; she was crying, smiling.

“You did it.”

Pinkie forgot how much she missed seeing a genuine smile.

"Another interesting one, Rarity," Twilight checked off her list. "And just three more to go."

While Rarity went to blow out a candle, Pinkie rocked back and forth in excitement. "Ooh, this means we might be getting a visit from some spooky spirits. Do you think they like candy?"

"Hmm, well, they would have to be partially constructed of magical energy to exist, so if they're able to manipulate the density of their molecules..."

"I just hope they're nice and don't try to eat our souls and take our bodies as puppets," Fluttershy sighed. "Gosh, I think I just gave myself nightmares for the week."

"Enough!" Trixie held her hoof up. "For it is time for the Fluent and Articulated Trixie's encore!"

Author's Note:

So, this came from something I read a while back. I can't remember the name, sadly, but it was about a tree that sprouted leaves that transferred the ailments of one who blows a tune through it to another who hears it.

Crazy, huh?

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