It's All Fun and Games
It's All Fun and Games...
The sun's glow illuminated Ponyville and warmed the air to correspond perfectly with the breeze that blew through the rainbow bullet’s mane. Rainbow Dash soared above the town full of bustling ponies, although the speeding pegasus would have wagered that they were simply colorful ants. Tears trickled from the corners of her eyes as Rainbow Dash rushed through air and focused directly forward. The shining sea that hovered eternally above the mare gradually shifted into a grey, dreary sump. Rainbow Dash ceased her flight and turned around to face away from the Everfree Forest.
As the flyer panted heavily, catching a bit of breath, she prepared herself and huffed, “It only took me. Nine seconds to. Get from Sweet Apple Acres. To the Everfree Forest. Amazing as always, Dash!” With that she did a brief, victorious back flip. Regaining her composure, she challenged herself, “Let’s make it eight this time!” She took a deep breath, and began to raced back towards the farm. Within three seconds, Dash had zoomed by the library. Another second withered away as the Rainbow Dash crossed the Carousel Boutique.
Approaching the end of the fifth second, Rainbow Dash was sure she would break her recent record. Nearing Sugarcube Corner, the pegasus saw a small blob shooting upwards. It was a… pink blob. Over the rushing wind on her ears, Rainbow Dash could hear faint shouting from the blob. The flying mare tried to concentrate on the apple orchard and ignore the rose-hued blob; however, her deep focus was ruined once Rainbow Dash noticed that the blob was actually a giggling earth pony, and that the pony was shouting her name. Before Rainbow Dash knew it, Pinkie Pie had reached her height, and latched onto Rainbow Dash with all of her hooves.
“Hi Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie Pie cried as she squeezed her airborne friend.
Upon realizing that Pinkie Pie had completely restricted Rainbow Dash's wings, the halted pegasus yelled, “Pinkie...”, but as the couple began to meteor towards the streets of Ponyville, her shout extended to “... Pie!” Rainbow Dash couldn't keep herself from screaming, while Pinkie Pie on the other hoof, guffawed during their freefall.
As the two ponies approached the ground at full speed, Pinkie Pie quit laughing for a moment to warn her friend. “Here we go, Rainbow Dash!” The terrified pegasus stopped shouting and braced herself for the kiss her body was about to have with the dirt.
*PLOP*
Rainbow Dash felt a soft halt only a few inches above the ground, and quickly inspected her surroundings to see what just happened. Had time froze for a moment so she could reflect on her life? Was she dead and about to be sent to the big cloud in the sky? Rainbow Dash, whose heart was beating rapidly and every ounce of strength she had was grasping onto the party pony out of fear, examined Pinkie Pie, who also stayed still above the floor with a unfamiliar frown on her face. “Aww, it didn’t work!”
“Wha- huh- ho- Pinkie, what didn’t work?” Rainbow Dash questioned, distorted.
“Well I was trying out the new toy I made, but it didn’t work.”
“What new toy?” Rainbow Dash now felt the sweat building up in between her and her friend's fur, and added “Would you mind letting go of me too?”
Releasing her friend, Pinkie explained, “Well I have always wanted to go back to Cloudsdale ever since we went to see you in the Young Flyer’s Competition, so I was thinking all day how to get back up there using stuff I had. Then it hit me! Marshmallows!”
Staring at Pinkie Pie, who stood cheerfully with her front hooves in the air, the Rainbow Dash asked, “Marshmallows?”
“Yes-a-doodle-doo,” Pinkie replied.
“Why, Pinkie?”
“Because I wanted to go to Cloudsdale. Weren’t you listening, silly-filly?”
A bit agitated by Pinkie's misunderstanding, the pegasus clarified, “No, I mean why use marshmallows to get to Cloudsdale?”
“Oh, that’s what you meant!” Pinkie Pie let out a tiny giggle before collecting her thoughts. “Well I made a list of what I needed to get up to a place that is so so, so, so, so high, but still be as light and fluffy as I usually am to not fall through the clouds. Then a bag of marshmallows fell out of the cupboard and bopped me on my noggin!”
She wasn’t kidding when she said that the marshmallows just hit her. Rainbow Dash thought.
"Pinkie Pie, did you really think that marshmallows would keep you from falling through the clouds? I’m not great at math, but I’m pretty sure that the marshmallows would only add weight to you.”
“Well of course I did! Marshmallows and clouds are like the same thing, and since I'm just about as fluffy as both clouds and marshmallows, there would be no problem.” Rainbow Dash facehooved herself and sighed, giving up on that question.
Moving on to her next query, the flyer asked, “How did you even get so high in the air with marshmallows?”
The party pony pointed one of her hoofs upwards and answered, “I hopped from the roof!” Pinkie Pie saw the puzzled look on Rainbow Dash's face and began to elaborate. “Oh Rainbow Dash,” Pinkie Pie giggled. “I inflated two marshmallows until they were really, really ginormously big, and put my back hooves into them. Then I went up onto the roof of Sugarcube Corner and that’s when I saw you flying. I called out to you, but I don’t think you could hear me. That's when I leaped off the roof to catch you. I had to make sure I could make my body super aerodangerous so that I co---”
“You mean aerodynamic?” Rainbow Dash guessed, interrupting Pinkie Pie.
Pinkie slouched and argued, “That’s what I said: Aerodactly!” After a peeved moan, the fluffy mare continued her tale. “Well anyway, I went super high into the air and made it just in time to get my first flying hug from you!” Rainbow Dash grunted painfully as she was pulled into her friends embrace again. “I was hoping that when we landed that we could jump around s’more, but the marshmallows only stuck to the ground.” Pinkie Pie frowned, turning her face towards her back hooves.
Rainbow Dash, only now noticing the white goop that covered Pinkie’s hooves and glued Pinkie to the dirt street, grew a devious smirk and chuckled slightly to herself. “So you’re stuck there?”
Pinkie Pie agreed with an “mm-hmm,” as she demonstrated by attempting to move her hind legs. They would move a few inches before being jerked back into the goop.
Rainbow Dash’s grin only grew wider. "Would you like me to help you out of it Pinkie?"
“Ha ha, that would be great, Rainbow Dash!”
Rainbow Dash whispered, “Okay Pinkie,” sneaking in a sly chuckle at the end. Rainbow Dash trotted behind the party pony and out of her sight.
“Where are you going, Dash?” Pinkie Pie pivoted, attempting to keep an eye on her friend, but couldn't turn all the way. “Dash! Rainbow Dash, what are you doing back---”
Pinkie Pie felt a soft feather brushing against her thigh, titillating her nerves. The sticky mare burst out into a fit of chortling and convulsed uncontrollably. “Da- Dash- st-stop please! Bah ha ha!” The tickle torture continued on for another minute, Pinkie’s body thrashing harder with each stroke from the feather. In one forceful jerk, Pinkie Pie ripped her hind legs from the glue-like globs. Pinkie Pie fell backwards onto her rump, her laughter not ceasing for a second.
Rainbow Dash couldn't hold back snickering herself, infected by Pinkie's contagious laughter. The pegasus threw her front hooves over Pinkie in an attempt to calm them both. "P- Pinkie, ch-chill out! You're too funny!" Rainbow Dash's chuckling came to a halt, leaving only a mirthful tear on her cheek. Pinkie's merriment lasted a lot longer than Dash's, but suddenly ended with a brief snort.
Recovering her breathe, Pinkie panted, "That was. Fun Dash!"
"Yeah it was," Rainbow Dash agreed. "Who knew one of my feathers could be such an awesome prank?" At that moment, something clicked in Rainbow Dash's mind. The pegasus raised a hoof to her chin, and hummed a plotting, "Hmm..."
"What is it, Rainbow?" Pinkie Pie merrily questioned.
With a burst of inspiration, the rainbow mare riddled to her friend, "Pinkie, whose the one pony that we have never ever pranked?"
"Oh, oh, I know this one! Um... Princess Celesia? No, no... Trixie... hmm, maybe---"
"Pinkie Pie," Rainbow Dash began, afraid of how long Pinkie would guess for. "I mean of the ponies that live in Ponyville!"
"Oh... um..."
Rolling her eyes Rainbow Dash grumbled "Just follow me."
~~~~~
"Oh! Now I get it," Pinkie giggled, realizing her friend's scheme.
"Good. Now we're almost there Pinkie, so quit laughing so much." Pinkie Pie stifled her chortling at Dash's request by biting her lower lip.
The two mares spotted their target's cottage that stood bravely, and ironically, in front of the Everfree Forest. The couple of pranksters sneaked up to a window of the cottage. Rainbow Dash peered inside only to find one lamp's light solitarily brightening the room. No pony was inside the house.
The duo proceeded to snake around the side of the cottage. Bingo! Rainbow Dash thought as both her and Pinkie Pie caught sight of their blonde-furred friend. Upon closer inspection, they discovered that Fluttershy was conversing with her favorite bunny, Angel.
"Rainbow Dash..."
The pegasus turned around to her friend who seemed a bit down. "What is it Pinkie?" Rainbow Dash whispered.
"I'm just now sure if we should do this. I mean, we did agree before that Fluttershy was too sensitive for pranking," Pinkie Pie said with a worried expression.
"I know we did Pinkie, but think of it this way. If we want to go down as Ponyville's best pranksters then we have to prank everypony." The flyer could see that this didn't alleviate any of the anxiety Pinkie Pie had about this minor prank, so she added, "Plus, in a way, we're helping her out."
"We are?" Pinkie Pie questioned.
"Of course we are, Pinkie. If we never prank Fluttershy, then eventually she will get pranked by somepony else. And when it happens, that prank could be a lot worse than what we're doing, so by pranking her now, we're essentially preparing her for larger pranks."
"Oh, so it's like when I was younger, I only ate small cupcakes because anything bigger would give me a tummy ache, but now that I've eaten more sweets, I can eat a whole cake without a problem?" Pinkie Pie licked her lips as she finished her analogy.
"Uh... sure, I guess. So are you in?"
Pinkie nodded her head vigorously just to show how much she agreed with the plan. "Oh this is gonna be a really good one, Dash! She's never going to see us coming!"
Shoving a hoof into Pinkie's mouth, the annoyed pegasus whispered, "She will if you keep talking so loud!"
"Right. Sorry," Pinkie softly apologized, offering an innocent smile with it.
The duo peeked once more at Fluttershy, who was still talking with Angel. "Wait here, Pinkie," Rainbow Dash ordered.
Preparing to strike, Rainbow Dash plucked another loose feather from one of her wings and gripped it firmly in her mouth. The mare gently glided towards Fluttershy's back as Pinkie watched from father away. Standing directly behind the unsuspecting pony, Rainbow Dash rushed into tickling Fluttershy's flank.
The tantalizing stimulation paired with the sheer spook of being touched by somepony from behind caused Fluttershy to gasp emphatically and swing out her front legs. Rainbow Dash desisted from her tickling as Fluttershy fell forward. Rainbow Dash fell back, cackling at Fluttershy's spastic reaction. Pinkie Pie was also giggling loudly as she ran over to see Fluttershy. However, the two jokers did not notice what had happened.
"Angel!" Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash immediately stopped their laughing when they heard this alarmingly intense cry from Fluttershy. The two stared at their friend with heartaches, unsure of what had happened. "Oh Angel..." Fluttershy sniffled, tears collecting in her eyes.
Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie moved in to get a closer look at Angel. They heard tiny whimpers coming from the bunny that laid there, holding its tiny arm in agony. "W-why..." Fluttershy faced the culprits. "Why would you two do this?" A tone of both melancholy and guilt lingered within her question. A pit in the pranksters' stomachs left them speechless "You made me fall on him..." Fluttershy could no longer form coherent words, for if she tried, her voice became muddled by murmuring sobs. Her tear ducts flooding, Fluttershy hastily snatched up Angel and galloped inside her home.
The mares' hearts were shaken by the sound of the door slamming shut. They stood there for what seemed like hours, just staring at the house, hoping that everything would magically heal itself. A soft breeze that rustled through surrounding trees broke the silence between the two. "Dash, I don't feel too good..."
"Me neither."
"What are we going to do?"
"Hmm..." Rainbow Dash patted her chin with her hoof contemplatively. "Pinkie Pie, what one thing in Ponyville does everypony love?"
"Oh oh oh!" Pinkie Pie, now perkier than before, began to list possible answers with not one pause to be found. "Dafodils butterflies apple cider kumquats oregano toasters ladders..." The party filly's list trailed off onto a tangent.
Rainbow Dash sighed at her friend's naivety. "Just follow me Pinkie."
~~~~~
As the day grew later and later, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were left with little daylight to carefully traverse to Fluttershy's home. "C'mon Pinkie, we got to hurry before it gets too dark!" The pegasus soared a few feet above the earth pony that cantered below her. Caressed by Rainbow Dash's front hooves was a horseshoe box with a piece of confetti messily tied into a bow around it.
"Don't shake up the box too much, Rainbow Dash. We want this to be perfect for Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash groaned, shrugging off the advice from the cheerily serious mare. The weather pony halted for a moment and squinted her eyes, gazing farther along the trail. Pinkie Pie yelled up to Rainbow Dash, "What's wrong, Rainbow?"
"Somepony is coming this way."
Panicking slightly, Pinkie Pie asked, "Is it Fluttershy?"
"No it looks like... Applejack." Swooping down to ground level, Rainbow Dash waited on the trail for Applejack, whose face was shielded by her hat. When Applejack came near enough, Rainbow Dash greeted her. "Hey App---"
"Ah don't wanna talk t' you!" The angered mare stomped by the pegasus, giving a loud huff as she passed.
Pinkie Pie sprinted over fast enough to hear Rainbow Dash boorishly exclaim, "What the hay did I do?!"
"Aww, don't even git me started!" Turning her gaze towards Pinkie Pie, she punishingly questioned, "What in tarnation were y'all two thinkin'?" Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash each knew what she was referring to. Knowing that she was at fault, Pinkie Pie lowered her head in shame.
In competitive retaliation, Rainbow Dash argued, "It was just a little prank! We didn't me for this to happen!"
Retaining the same fiery fury, Applejack scolded, "Y'all should know better than t' prank Fluttershy!"
Unable to restrain her true emotions, Rainbow's fierce pride became replaced by disgrace. The pegasus lowered her eyes, droplets starting to blur her vision. Applejack realized this change and softened her tone. Placing a warm hoof around Rainbow Dash's shoulder, the apple mare started to lecture. "Sugarcube, ah know y'all like pullin' pranks, but ya need t' think 'fore ya act. Fluttershy's pretty bent out of shape 'bout the whole thing, so y'all better have one heck of an apology."
Remembering the box, Pinkie Pie livened somewhat and chimed in. "That's what we were on our way to do. Rainbow Dash, show her!"
Snapping out of her grief, the weather mare promptly wiped the forming tears out of her eyes. Rainbow Dash placed the horseshoe box in front of Applejack and tugged the bow loose. Rainbow Dash flipped the box's lid off the container, revealing their "apology". Applejack looked down puzzled. "What's that s'pposed t' be?"
The three mares now sat around the box that contained two pieces of crinkled paper trapped in a pile of mush. "They were supposed to be cupcakes..." The flyer drooped, depressed at the sight of the ruined treats.
"If only somepony hadn't shaken up the box so much," Pinkie Pie softly implied, obviously referring to Rainbow Dash.
"Yeah, well... it's not like this is all my fault!"
Hearing the two begin to dispute, Applejack retrieved a couple of apples out of her saddlebag. In one brisk motion, the apple farmer crammed a whole apple into Rainbow Dash's mouth. Pinkie Pie began chuckling, until receiving the same treatment.
"Now y'all listen t' me! Fluttershy's real upset, and cupcakes ain't 'nough t' fix this. Y'all need t' stop yellin' at each other and come up with a better plan." The gagged fillies raised their heads and stared at one another with sullen eyes. Applejack began to march away, but not before leaving the two with one last thought. "How much does her friendship mean t' y'all?"
In an instant, Applejack had left Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash to contemplate their next move. Rainbow Dash spat out the apple. Watching the fruit roll across the dirt floor, she moaned out of frustration. Rainbow Dash threw herself onto the ground and uttered, "Got any ideas Pinkie?"
With the red delicious still in between her teeth, Pinkie Pie incoherently muttered, "Huh hff hnn hae haa ha hah?"
"Take the apple out of your mouth Pinkie."
Pinkie Pie forcefully blew the fruit out of her mouth. The apple shot through the air and nailed Rainbow Dash on her forehead.
The kaleidoscopic pegasus exerted a grunt and rubbed the top of her head. "Pinkie, that hurt!"
Frowning playfully at her friend's mild pain, Pinkie Pie reiterated, "I was just going to suggest that we could sing her a song."
"You'll sing songs for any reason; this apology needs to be special."
Another moment passed, leaving the irritating issue to fester in Rainbow Dash's mind. Kicking one of the apples on the ground, the aggravated mare shouted, "Celesta, this is difficult!" Just as the apple had struck her before, so did a new idea. Rainbow Dash's disposition brightened, assured that this new plan was surefire. "Pinkie, I know what we need to do!"
"Well let's get going! We want to give it to Fluttershy before we break curfew."
"No, Pinkie. Let's just get back to Sugarcube Corner, because we've got a long night ahead of us."
~~~~~
Pinkie Pie lazily sauntered out of Ponyville's bakery, bags plastered under her eyes. She tied a string around the door knob and then carefully shut the door to Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie Pie examined the town's plaza, seeing all the ponies bustling around. The exhausted mare put on a small grin and yawned, "Looks like there'll be plenty of ponies to see this."
A few minutes passed before Pinkie Pie's much needed break was interrupted. "She's coming! Pinkie, she's coming!" Rainbow Dash's warning lifted Pinkie's tired eyes with alarm. The pegasus soared swiftly towards the bakery, just as sleep deprived as Pinkie Pie. Rainbow Dash dove and landed in front of Pinkie Pie. "You got the finishing touches done right?"
The party pony nodded her head and answered, "Yep-er-ooni! I just tied the string to the door."
"Great, Fluttershy should be here any moment now. I slid the note under her door and watched her leave her house." The two mares contently rested, watching the pathway from Fluttershy's house.
"There she is, Rainbow Dash!" Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash stood on one side of the bakery, acting as though they didn't see the yellow pegasus in the distance. Fluttershy was carrying a saddlebag and a small, white hare with some gauze wrapped around its arm. The two started to whistle and looked in any direction besides Fluttershy's. Fluttershy approached Sugarcube Corner further, finally noticing Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash outside the bakery.
The nervous pegasus apprehensively trotted on the opposite side of Sugarcube Corner and pulled a letter out of her saddlebag.
Dear Fluttershy, I was hoping that we could get together at Sugarcube Corner before heading to the spa today. I'll be waiting for you outside Sugarcube Corner at 11:30. Yours truly, Rarity. Oh, and bring Angel with you. There is a pet's special today! See you there!
Fluttershy glimpsed over at the whistling mares again, then gazed around for a clock. Angel was tugging on Fluttershy's fur, pointing for the pegasus to go somewhere else.
Their chance not getting any better, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash set their scheme in motion. "Rainbow Dash, would you like to go into Sugarcube Corner?" Pinkie's words were oddly stated, the mare apparently reciting a script.
"Why yes, Pinkie. I would like to go into Sugarcube Corner. Here, let me go first." Rainbow Dash stepped towards the door, peering out the corner of her eye to ensure that Fluttershy was watching. She was. "Okay, here I go." With one twist of her hoof, the door creaked open and Rainbow Dash waltz in further, flinching a bit at what was expected to happen next.
The string that was connected to the doorknob tilted a bucket that hung from the ceiling, causing gallons of water to drench the pegasus below. Rainbow Dash stumbled forward until tripping onto a space marked by an 'X'.
Pinkie Pie trotted in next, exclaiming "Oh no! Rainbow Dash, let me get the lights." Fluttershy poked her head into bakery, checking out what had happened to Rainbow Dash. Pinkie Pie flicked the light switch. The lights popped on, but Pinkie Pie was given a startling shock. Disoriented from the electrical jolt, Pinkie Pie staggered towards a large rack of drawers and ran into it hard. The cabinets were knocked over and caused bags of flour to fall and coat the fallen pegasus.
Rainbow Dash, now coated in flour, stood up and wobbled around until reaching the counter and squashing four bags of icing. The frosting shot out of the bags and hit Pinkie Pie, painting her in a multitude of colored frostings.
For the grand finale, Pinkie Pie groped a rope that dangled from the roof. As she gripped the rope, Pinkie slipped and fell to the floor, taking the length of rope with her. The rope above released thousands of feathers to cover the two mares, along with the rest of the bakery's inside. The feathered duo struggled to rise up and put there hooves around one another.
Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie smiled from ear to ear as Pinkie Pie giggled, "Well I guess we look like a couple of fowls now, don't we? Do you get it Fluttershy? Fowls sounds like foals..."
The two remained in that position, awaiting a reaction from Fluttershy who faced them from the doorway. Fluttershy only stared, mouth agape, at the two feather covered mares. The two panted heavily, just wishing that Fluttershy would laugh, or smirk, or say anything! A light murmur was heard from within the bakery... but it wasn't Fluttershy.
The noise was coming from Angel. Angel was on his back, laughing up a storm. Fluttershy turned to her chortling bunny and began to giggle herself. The laughter that resonated throughout the room was like a rain of relief washing over the two mares. The weary ponies crawled over to Fluttershy. Fluttershy collected her composure and pivoted her sight away from her friends.
Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie peered up at their friend with apologetic puppy dog eyes. Rainbow Dash softly questioned, "Does this mean we're cool Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy turned her attention fully to her friends and whispered, "S-sorry..."
Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie both stared quizzically at Fluttershy as Rainbow Dash responded, "Why are you sorry?"
Fluttershy huffed, more serious now, and clarified, "No, I'm not sorry. Sorry is all I've wanted to hear." Fluttershy laid down and cuddled her rabbit friend, Angel not too pleased with the tight, affectionate squeeze. "After Angel got hurt, I went inside to bandage his arm. When you two just left, I thought you guys didn't care about Angel and... why didn't you say sorry?"
Pinkie Pie inhaled deeply, then began her explanation. "After you ran off we thought that you didn't want to see us so we went to bake you cupcakes, but Rainbow Dash kept shaking the cupcakes on the way over so those got messed up, and Applejack told us to do something better, so we planned this whole fiasco to make you forgive us!"
As Pinkie caught her breathe, Rainbow Dash added, "We thought you hated us..."
"Hated you? Why no. I could never hate you two. I... I was really mad that you two made me harm Angel, but I would always forgive you." Fluttershy hugged Rainbow Dash and pressed their faces cheek to cheek, caking her body in the feathers and wet flour in the process.
"Thanks Fluttershy. Oh, and I'm sorry. I'm really sorry..."
Pinkie Pie jammed her head in between Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, and embraced her two surrounding friends, all three now dirtied with feathers, wet flour, and frosting. "And I'm really, really sorry too Fluttershy!"
Fluttershy closed her eyes, grinned gleefully, and giggled, "apologies accepted!"
Pinkie Pie withdrew from the hug and shouted out, "Cupcakes are on the house!"
Rainbow Dash, checking out their bodies, added, "Maybe after a nice, long shower."
Angel guffawed at the sight of all three messy mares. Rainbow Dash promptly flung a glob of frosting at Angel, coating the bunny in the sticky icing. Everypony chuckled, flooding the room with the ecstasy that is friendship.
~~~~~
Dear Princess Celestia,
Today, my friend, Pinkie Pie, and I learned the true glory of friendship. No matter how harmless any prank or action may seem, there are still consequences that need to be taken into consideration. Pranks are fun, but it's all fun and games until somepony gets hurt, specially a friend. Now while friendship may be magic, it can still be broken. However, if that friendship is truly great, it can be mended by one magical word: Sorry. Sorry may be said a lot, but that doesn't make it any less effective than baking somepony cupcakes or creating crazy contraptions. Everypony should know that sorry is all a real friend wants to hear.
Yours truly, Rainbow Dash.