> R3B0UNd > by Page Turner > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > A Bad Split > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fan fiction By Page Turner My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and all related characters owned by Hasbro, Lauren Faust, and studio B ‘Party with Pinkie’ Image by TwilightSquare, used with permission. Part 1 A Bad Split Vinyl Scratch was in a bad mood. Mrs. Cake could tell because she wasn't as flamboyant as usual. That, and she was frowning, which was about as common as Celestia forgetting to raise the sun. She had entered Sugar Cube Corner nearly half an hour ago and ordered a dozen chocolate cupcakes. Now she sat at one of the round tables, staring into the box. She had yet to so much as touch her food. Mrs. Cake didn't like to pry, but this looked like it might be serious.                 “Is something the matter dear? You aren't acting like yourself.” She asked hesitantly.         The white and electric blue unicorn sighed. “Octavia kicked me out.”         “Again?”         The DJ threw the older mare a murderous look. “I think she means it this time.”         “You say that every time”         “I mean it this time.”         “What makes you so sure?”         Vinyl put her head down on the table. “She said... How did she put it? 'You self centered ego-maniacal pig! Why don't you go take a long walk off a short pier? Or better yet, lie down in front of an oncoming train!'”         Mrs. Cake pretended to be shocked, but so far this sounded like every argument the young couple had had. “Oh dearie me...”         “And then when I came back to get my stuff, instead of accepting my apology and taking me back like she usually does, she introduced me to her new coltfriend.”         This time the shock on the Matronly Patron's face was not pretend. “Oh dear! I'm so sorry! The cupcakes are on the house.”         “No they aren't! They're on the table!” said a voice from the doorway.         Mrs. Cake turned to find the source of the voice. “Oh Pinkie Pie, you're back. Did you get the Daffodils?”         “Yuppie uppie! Rose said she threw in a few extra too.” the bouncing pink pony replied. Hopping over to the counter, she put down a bag which she did not seem to have when she entered. Her attention then turned to the lone customer in the shop. Vinyl looked up to find the happy face of Pinkie looking back at her from the opposite side of the table. “Hi!” The blue haired unicorn nearly lost her sunglasses as she recoiled in surprise. “Why so downy wouny Scratchy?” inquired the party pony, reaching for the box of cupcakes.         Vinyl straightened her shades and regained her composure. “Octavia kicked me out.”         “Again?”         Vinyl sighed heavily. “I think she means it this time.”         “You say that every time”         “I mean it this time.”         “What did you do to make her so mad?” Pinkie asked through a mouthful of cupcake.         Scratch's voice suddenly became defensive. “Nothing! Well, okay I might have kinda sat on her cello by accident and broke it just the least little bit...”         “Oh my...” the swirly haired mare put a hoof to her mouth.         “I know what you need!” Pinkie exclaimed. “Gee. I wonder what it could be.” the DJ muttered darkly. “A PARTY!” “I am blown away by your originality.” “Thanks!” “I was being sarcastic.” “Huh?” “No offence Pinkie, but I’m not exactly in a ‘party’ mood right now.” “And that’s when you need it most of all!” Pinkie Pressed. “Let me explain it to you in a song.” “When Life gets you down down down,  and all you can do is frown frown frown. Pinkie Pie knows the bestest waaay, to make your sadness go awaaaaaay!” “Have a party! Have some Fun! Gather you friends and have a sing-a-long! Before you know it, it is true, you’ll feel better than brand new! Open your Heart-y! Let in the sun! You’re in a place you know that you belong! It’s just like I always say, the laughter will drive your tears awaaaaaaay!” “Yay!” Pinkie looked at Vinyl expectantly. Vinyl looked back at her for a moment before letting out a sigh of resignation.         “Okay, I’ll give it a try.”         “Woohoo!” Pinkie bagan pushing Vinyl towards the door. “Come on! We have to go invite everypony!” “Okay, okay, I’m going! There’s no need to push!” “Pinkie!” Mrs’ Cake called. “Yes Ma’am?”           “You’re shift is about to start.”         “Oh...” pinkie looked put out for a nanosecond before replying. “Can I have the day off?”         “Now Pinkie-”         “Pleeeease Mrs. Cake! This is a friendship emergency!”         Mrs. Cake Sighed. “Oh alright then.”         Pinkie was suddenly hugging her. “Thank you Mrs. Cake! I’ll stay extra late tomorrow!” and with that, both she and Vinyl were out the door. Mrs. Cake was shaking her head as she returned to work, but she was smiling. +++++           There was a knock on the library door. Twilight Sparkle peeked around a large stack of books curiously. Who could that be? She wasn’t expecting anypony, and her friends knew to just let themselves in. Twilight concluded that it must be either somepony she didn’t know, or Pinkie Pie with an invitation to another party.         She stood up and trotted to the door, bracing herself for the possibility of Pinkie. She didn’t flinch when she opened the door to a face full of confetti. “Hello Pinkie.” “Hi Twilight! I’m throwing a great big feel better party for Vinyl!” the hyperactive equine exclaimed, throwing a foreleg around her companion’s shoulders. “What happened?” Twilight asked the other unicorn. “Octavia kicked me out.”         “Again?”         Vinyl facehoofed. “I think she means it this time.”         “You say that every time.”         “I mean it this time.” Twilight decided not to press. The white unicorn was clearly not in the mood to elaborate. “Well alright then. I’ll be there.” “Great!” pinkie pie enthused, “Actually, I also have a favor I need to ask you.” “What do you need?” “Well, this is kind of a last minute deal, so I have a lot to put together.  I have to reserve the venue, plan the events, book the entertainment... speaking of which... Vinyl, you feel up to doing that DJ thing you do?” Vinyl shrugged “Well it is my party and I will only except the best.  And wouldn’t you know it? It’s me.” “Well that’s one down.” Pinkie said. “Anyway, the point is I’m going to be super-duper busy, so I was hoping that you could send Spike to spread the word.” Twilight nodded “I’ll call him.  SPIKE! PINKIE NEEDS A FAVOR!  He’ll be right down.” Sure enough, the small dragon was by Twilight’s Side in a matter of moments. “Yes?” Twilight turned to him “Pinkie needs your help inviting ponies to Vinyl’s feel better party.” “Why does Vinyl need to feel better?” “Octavia kicked her out.”         “Again?”         Twilight nodded. “She thinks she means it this time.”         “She says that every time”         “She-”         “Okay, this is getting really old.” Vinyl cut in.         “Sorry.” the purple duo replied.         “Okie-dokie-lokie!” Pinkie interjected. “We’re off to Sweet Apple Acres.  Applejack has a gajillion empty barns that I’m sure she wouldn’t mind letting us use.”         Twilight frowned. “She has two, and one’s not finished yet.” But the two ponies were already gone. ++++++ Vinyl had no idea how they had gotten here so fast.  One minute they were in the library, and the next thing she knew they were in the middle of an apple orchard. She was beginning to suspect that the pink earth pony had some sort of weird teleportation power, or the ability to interrupt the space time continuum.  Either way it was unsettling, and awesome. “Hi Applejack!” The excited voice of her companion snapped Vinyl out of her thoughts. “Howdy Pinky. What brings y’all out here?” the orange cowpony replied. “I need a barn.” “What fer?” “Vinyl’s feel better party.” “Oh?  Why can’t y’all use Sugar Cube Corner like ya usually do, sugar cube?” “This is gonna be the biggest party ever! And Sugar Cube Corner just isn’t big enough for what I have in mind” Applejack nodded. “I hear ya. I guess ya’ll can use the barn where we had your surprise party that one time.” “Perfect!” “What’s Vinyl need cheerin’ up for anyway?” “Octavia kicked her out.” “Again?” Vinyl lost it. “That’s it! the next pony who says ‘again’ is going to get it!” Pinkie and AJ exchanged a glance. “Eh, sorry ‘bout that, I wasn’t-” Applejack began, but was cut off by the sudden appearance of her little sister. “Wha’s all the ruckus out here? We could here ya all the way from the clubhouse.” the little yellow filly inquired. “Octavia kicked Vinyl out.” Pinkie explained. “Again?” ++++++         Octavia meant it this time, She could not believe how stupid she had been. She had given up her life and her livelihood to move to Ponyville with some crazy unicorn. Sure, they had had that radio show for awhile, but that had finally been booted off the air after five years. Octavia had sacrificed everything for Vinyl, and what had Vinyl sacrificed? Nothing. The ungrateful, tactless hooligan had somehow managed to draw her in with her bad filly routine and her hypnotic gaze. Silly little Octavia had waltzed right into her trap. Well, no more of that.  She was done with Vinyl for good this time. This time she had no intention of letting her stupid sentimental side send her running back to that Philistine.         There was a knock on the door. “ Miss Octavia. Are you there?” called a deep, sophisticated-sounding voice. “Coming!” Octavia called back, trotting quickly to allow her visitor entry. She opened the door to reveal a muted blue unicorn stallion with a silver mane and tail dressed in a fancy suit which covered most of his body. Octavia had no idea why he chose to dress himself so austerely, but she liked the air of professionalism it gave him. “Ah, Silver Bright, what did Tinker say?” Octavia’s new manager and coltfriend sighed. “She said it would be cheaper to just buy a new Bass than to try to repair the old one.” “I don’t care!” Octavia snapped. “That Double Bass has been my most prized possession since I was in school! I will not accept any other!” Silver smiled “I told her you’d say that, so she gave me this.” His horn glowed brightly for a moment as he summoned a clipboard from which he extracted a slip of paper. “This is an estimate of how much it will cost to repair your Bass.” Octavia took the paper in one hoof and looked at it. She cursed quietly. “That is a lot.” she admitted. “More than I can afford.” Silver placed a hoof on her shoulder. “Don’t you worry Octy, I’ll help you cover it since it means that much to you.” “Don’t do that” “Do what?” “Call me ‘Octy’. That’s what she always called me.” “Sorry” Octavia smiled. That was a word she hadn’t heard in a while.   ++++++ “Okay, the next grownup pony who says ’again’ is going to get it.” Vinyl amended.  She and Pinkie were in the barn. The cotton candy pony had pulled a large cannon from... Vinyl couldn’t guess, and began firing decorations everywhere. Upon request, the decorations were in black and white, complemented by florescent green, yellow, orange, purple and blue. The regular hanging bulb had been replaced by a black light, and smaller lamps were set up along the walls. A stage had been erected from loose boards and bales of hay, and covered in a midnight blue sheet. It wasn’t the most professional looking set up, but it was more than satisfactory on such short notice.  The stage was already set with Vinyl’s turntable and amps. “This is going to be the best party ever!” Pinkie said happily. Firing the cannon again caused a board propped up on sawhorses to be transformed into a fully stocked refreshment table complete with a full punch bowl. All of these physical impossibilities were making Vinyl’s brain hurt. Still, she had to admit, this idea was looking better all the time. Vinyl turned her attention away from the logic defying decorations to the pony who was setting them up.  All of this trouble just for her? Why? Pinkie had thrown an incalculable number of parties before, but this was on a whole other level. Why go to all the extra effort? Could it be? No. That would be ridiculous. There was a knock at the door. “Delivery for Pinkamina Dianne Pie.” a voice called. “Oh! That must be the ice sculpture!” the party pony piped as she went to answer the door. Ice sculpture? “Sign here please. what’s this for anyway?” “Vinyl Scratch’s feel better party.” “What’s the matter?” “Octavia kicked her out” “Ag-”the delivery pony suddenly found a pink hoof in his mouth. “Don’t say it! Trust me.” the pink pony warned. The delivery pony nodded. and Pinkie removed her hoof. “Where do you want this?” he asked. “Far end of the refreshment table please.” Pinkie pointed.  The delivery pony disappeared and Pinkie looked over at Vinyl, who looked away quickly, looking slightly red in the face. Pinkie giggled. It looked like Vinyl was beginning to loosen up a little. > The Part Where Things Get Interesting > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part 2 The Part Where Things Get Interesting Twilight was the first to arrive, knocking gently on the barn door. She was answered almost instantly by Pinkie Pie, who threw open the barn door, causing several party horns to go off and tipping a bucket of confetti onto the surprised purple unicorn’s head. “Hi Twilight! Glad you could be here!” Pinkie proclaimed. “I wouldn’t want to miss the biggest party ever.” Twilight replied. “Where’s Spike?” the pink one inquired, searching the doorway in vain for a second purple body. “He’s still out, I’m sure he’ll be along soon.” Twilight replied. “Well better late than never.” The pink one replied. Just then there was another knock, which the party pony rushed to answer, allowing Rarity and Fluttershy to enter. “Hi Girls!” Pinkie exclaimed over the sounds of the party horns. “Eep!” “Oh sorry Fluttershy, I didn’t mean to scare you.” the magenta mare said apologetically. “That’s okay Pinkie” the shuddering yellow pegusus replied in her quiet way. “Oh! I love what you’ve done with the place, darling!” Enthused the yellow one’s companion. “Thanks! Vinyl was very specific about what she wanted.” Pinkie replied. “And is that an ice sculpture I see?” the white unicorn inquired. “Oh, a phoenix! How nice.” Fluttershy added. “And symbolic!” Twilight interjected ”The phoenix is clearly a symbol of how Vinyl will rise above her hard times and come out better for it, in the same way a phoenix is reborn from it’s own ashes!” All three of her friends fell silent, giving her blank stares. “What?” She asked defensively. Knock, knock, knock. “I’ll get it!” Pinkie said, going quickly to the door. ++++++ “Wh-what?” Octavia gasped. “Will you come back to Canterlot with me?” Silver Bright repeated. “I was thinking that maybe you would like a chance to start over. You clearly don’t belong here in Ponyville.  I know a mare who can get you a good price on an apartment, or you could move in with me, I have plenty of room.” The gray mare’s head was spinning, this was all happening so fast! “I, I’ll need to think about it.” she replied haltingly. “I’m not sure I’m ready for another serious commitment quite so soon.” The blue stallion nodded, “I understand, take all the time you need.” Knock, knock, knock. “I wonder who that could be.” Octavia muttered. She opened the door to see an extremely winded baby dragon. “Yes?” “Pinkie Pie... *huff* Is throwing the... Biggest party Ponyville has ever... *gasp* Seen. This afternoon at... Sweet Apple Acres...” the small purple biped panted. Silver joined Octavia at the door “Woah now, slow down little fella. Take a moment to breathe. We aren’t going anywh-” Octavia shut the door. “Not interested!” Silver looked over at her. “What was that about?” “I am not in a ‘party’ mood right now.” “Well that’s a shame, I was going to ask if you wanted to go together.” “I have no time for... wait. You want to go on a date?” Silver shrugged. “It’s fine if you don’t want to, I suppose I can go on my own...” Octavia rushed to her room. “I’ll be ready in five minutes!” Silver smiled. ++++++ Pony Rock is in the house tonight! Everypony just have a good time! And we’re gonna make you lose your mind! We just wanna see you... Shake that! Vinyl Scratch allowed a smile to touch her lips as she looked out at the crowded dance floor. Pinkie had been right, this did make her feel better. This was Vinyl’s true passion, the pounding beat of the music she loved so much, the lingering smells of sugar and sweat, the endless motion of the gyrating ponies on the dance floor, what more could a pony ask for than this? “HI!” Vinyl nearly jumped out of her skin as Pinkie appeared seemingly out of nowhere. “Oh, hey Pinkie!” she recovered quickly. “Great party, you really outdid yourself!” The out of control party animal shrugged. “Only the best for the best pony!” The DJ found herself blushing slightly, and mentally slapped herself. Gotta be cool. “Heh, well, I guess I am pretty awesome...” Pinkie’s smile got even wider (how was that even possible?). “I have a song request!” Vinyl lowered her shades and looked at Pinkie in a way that she hoped looked cool. “Let’s hear it.” Pinkie opened her mouth to speak, but just then a scream rang out from the crowd. The two on stage looked over to see that the ice sculpture was on fire. “Sorry! That’s my fault!” a familiar voice called. “Nice going Derpy!” “I just don’t know what went wrong!” “How the hay do you catch an ice sculpture on fire?” Pinkie Gave Vinyl an apologetic glance. “Teehee, lemme just take care of this...” In a flash, Pinkie was over by the sculpture. “Nopony panic! I’ve got this!” She called, grabbing the punch bowl. She quickly jumped up on the table next to the sculpture, emptying the punch bowl onto it. Instead of dousing the flames, however, the punch seemed to add fuel to them. pinkie looked at the empty punch bowl in confusion, then shrugged, tossing it over her shoulder. “Okie dokie. NOW you can all panic.” Before anypony could start screaming, a well placed buck from Applejack sent the bobbing for apples tub flying onto the sculpture, dousing both the flames and anypony who had been standing within a three foot radius. “Thar, prob’m solved.” Silence reigned for several moments before Pinkie broke the silence. “Aww. I always wanted to have a panic at the disco, rave, party, thing.” “Oh my, how, erm, charming.” came a voice from the doorway.  Several heads turned to see the pony who had spoken, a posh looking blue stallion with a silver mane. The newcomer looked around with amusement before entering. An audible gasp went through the crowd as they saw the pony behind Silver, a gray pony in a bow tie. Octavia. “Hoo boy,” a reddish stallion said to his yellow companion. “This is the part where things get interesting."  Vinyl stood frozen on the stage as Octavia and her Coltfriend stood at the door, surveying the shambles that the party had become. What the BUCK was she doing here? Pinkie had said that everypony was invited, but why would Octavia want to come to Vinyl’s party? To apologize and take her back? Not likely.  If that was it, she wouldn’t have brought HIM with her. Vinyl grimaced, ‘She’s probably here to make me pay for the bass I broke.’ She thought.         Octavia’s well dressed unicorn companion stepped forward, levitating a smallish purple lump off of his back. “Did somepony lose a dragon?” He called. “We found him passed out in the middle of the street.”         “Spike!” Twilight pushed through the crowd, eliciting shouts of disapproval from the ponies she knocked aside. “Sorry about that Bon-Bon, oh, June Bug are you okay? No, Daisy, I just stepped on your tail, don’t freak out.” She was panting by the time she stood before the stallion. “Thank you for bringing him to me. Sir, my name’s Twilight Sparkle, what’s yours?”         “Silver Bright, pleased to meet you.” He replied, inclining his head. He then used his magic to levitate the sleeping dragon over to Twilight, who turned to the side and allowed the hovering form to settle onto her back.         A pink form suddenly appeared between the two unicorns. “Twilight! Don’t talk to him! He’s the enemy!”         Twilight gave her overactive friend a hard look. “Pinkie, that’s no way to treat somepony you just met.”                 “But Twilight! He’s the cause of Vine-y and Oct-y’s problems!”         “No he’s not. They-” Twilight began, but before she could continue her argument, the voice of Vinyl Scratch burst out over the entire crowd, amplified by the stage’s sound setup.         “OCTAVIA! What the hay are you doing here!?!”         “I was invited” The bassist called.         Vinyl cursed under her breath; there would be words between her and that dragon later. “Well that was clearly an accident. I am un-inviting you. Please leave immediately!”         “Why should I?”         “Because it’s my party and I can un-invite whoever I like! Bouncer! Please escort Miss Octavia to the exit.” Pinkie Pie put on her serious face and bounced over to Octavia. “Alright, missy. Move it!” Octavia stared blankly at Pinkie for a long moment as the magenta maned mare continued to bounce up and down. Then she called up to the stage. “That pun is atrocious!” Up on the stage Vinyl shrugged. “Take it up with the author.” “Who?” “I have no idea but that’s where Pinkie says she got the idea from.” “What are- don’t change the subject!” “From what?” “Hold it!” a new voice cut through the argument as a red stallion leapt onto the stage, snatching the mic away from Vinyl. “Hi, I’m Apple Cider of Chef and Cider’s Eatery and Drinkery.” The stallion introduced himself to the crowd, who were all staring at him in disbelief. A yellow pony near the back slammed a hoof to his face “Cider, what are you doing?” “Now, I can see y’all are having a bit of an argument,” Apple Cider continued. Vinyl raised an eyebrow. “Ya think?” “...and I’mma let you finish, but first just think for a moment.” the talkative pony continued as if he hadn’t been interrupted. “Is this really that big a deal?” “YES!” the two antagonists shouted in tandem. “Oh? Well that’s a shame, you two compliment each other so well.  You’re like two sides of a coin. I mean sure, you have your disagreements, but everypony has fights! Heck, Starry and me fight all the time!” He turned his attention to the crowd “Ain’t that right, Starry?” “Don’t you dare drag me into this!” came the reply from somewhere in the back of the crowd. Cider continued unperturbed. “Just think about that.  Ya don’t want to be saying things you’ll regret later when you inevitably make up.” Having said his piece, he held the mic out to Vinyl, who took it with her magic and placed it back on it’s stand. “The interloper does have a point, as much as I hate to admit it. We do have a history of this, and we did complement each other well when we weren’t at each other’s throats, BUT, all that is over now! I’m tired of being your... your yo-yo! It’s over! I don’t need you anymore! You have been replaced! Because, I’M IN LOVE WITH PINKIE PIE!!!” “WHAT?” Octavia demanded. “WHAT?” Twilight gasped. “WHAT?” the crowd exclaimed. “Geez louise,” Pinkie chattered. “That was a bit too easy.  I had this whole big eleven step plan to make her like me and it only took three.  I mean I had heard she fell fast, but wow.” She looked around at the weird looks her friends were giving her. “Uh, I mean, WHAT?  That came out of nowhere!”   > Twilight Explains The Plot > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part 3 Twilight Explains The Plot         Twilight was pacing. Again. Anypony who didn’t know Twilight well would wonder how a unicorn who spent so much time indoors stayed so fit. Spike would be able to tell them that she gets a lit of exercise pacing around the library all day and all night. The disgruntled dragon dragged his bedraggled body down the stairs, glaring at his employer and totally not owner as she circled the room.         “Twilight, your pacing woke me up. Why are you at this so early?” “Oh, hi Spike, It’s not early, its eight o’clock already.” twilight replied, not breaking stride for an instant. “okay, let me rephrase that. Why are you at this so early?” “because Vinyl and Pinkie are seeing each other.” Spike blinked a couple of times. “Huh? When did this happen?” “While you were asleep.” “Dang it, I always miss the good stuff.” Twilight finally stopped pacing and thrust her face into spike’s “It’s NOT good! This is very bad!” “Umm, why?” “Because Vinyl is Octavia’s marefriend!” “No, she WAS Octavia’s marefriend, they broke up remember?” “Spike! Those two are always breaking up!” “Then maybe they shouldn’t have been together in the first place.” Twilight’s eye twitched. “You don’t get it! This Isn’t about...” CRASH! Twilight and spike both hit the floor as a multicolored blur shot into the room and crashed into the bookshelves on the other side, sending all the books tumbling down onto the cowering pony and dragon. “Oops. Sorry.” The blur, who was, of course, Rainbow Dash, apologized. “Rainbow!” Twilight grumbled, dislodging herself from the impromptu book fort. “Don’t you ever use the door?” “What’s the fun in that?” “Ugh.” Spike grunted. His face fell as he assessed the situation. “great, another mess that I have to clean up.” “Don’t worry Spike, I’m sure Rainbow Dash will be more than willing to help out.” The unicorn replied “What? Why me?” Dash protested. “You made the mess, you clean it up.” “All I wanted was the next Daring Do book...” “Then you should have used the door like everypony else” The multi-hued Pegasus groaned. “This is so uncool.” Twilight resumed her pacing, pushing books out of the way with her magic, as the others began putting books back on the shelves. After a while, Rainbow picked up a particularly thick volume and looked at it perplexedly. “Does ‘The Life and Recipes of Chef Gourmet Cuisine’ go under biographies or cookbooks?” “It goes in ‘biographical cookbooks’” Twilight Replied. “That’s a Section?” the cyan mare scratched her head. Spike shrugged “Yup, Twilight couldn’t decide which section to put it in either, so she gave it it’s own section." “Of course she did.” “Will you just put them away please? And stop talking, I’m trying to think.” Twilight Grumped. “About what?” Inquired the prismatic pegusus. “Pinkie.” “Don’t do that! You’ll hurt yourself!” Spike tried not to laugh. “Am I the only pony who thinks that this whole situaton with Vinyl is bad?” “yes” spike replied. Rainbow, however,  just looked confused. “Why would it be?” “because-” knock knock knock “Oh what NOW?” Twilight groaned, turning toward the door. “Oh. I’m sorry.” a small voice called from the other side. “I’ll just come back later.” “Fluttershy! Wait!” Twilight called hurriedly, rushing to the door. she threw it open to reveal the backside of a retreating yellow mare. “please come in, I didn’t mean to snap at you.” Fluttershy turned around and whimpered. “Are you sure? I don’t want to be a bother...” “Positive.”twilight reassured her. “Um... Okay...” “Twilight was just talking about Pinkie and Vinyl.” “Oh yes. I heard about that. Isn’t it wonderful?” Twilight Facehoofed “Et tu Fluttershy?” Rainbow tilted her head to the side. “Say what now?” “Never mind. The point is that Vinyl and Pinkie don’t belong together!” “Why not?” the Pegasi and dragon all asked in tandem. “Because together they could destroy Equestria!” ++++++         Silver was seated on the couch in the apartment he was sharing with Octavia, Dressed up as usual in his full custom suit.         “do you ever take that suit off?” Octavia said, coming out of her bedroom.         “only when I bathe and sleep, call it a security blanket.” he replied.         Octavia chuckled “If you say so.” she then moved around to position herself on the couch next to him. “I’ve made my decision.” She said.         Silver turned to look at the gray mare. “what decision?”         “Yesterday you asked me to go back to Canterlot with you.”         Silver felt a lump forming in his throat. “Oh. What have you decided?”         “My answer is yes. I will Return with you. I have already started to pack.”         Silver leapt up from the couch “Really! you mean it?” “Yes, of course I do. I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it.” “Hooray!”Silver leaped up and clapped his front hooves together. “do you think we can leave tomorrow morning?” Octavia nodded. “That sounds perfect.” ++++++ The Silence in the library was absolute. No pony moved, no pony said a word, no pony even breathed for a good fifteen seconds, more or less. finally, Rainbow Dash could not hold it in any longer. “BWA HA HA HA HA HA HA!”Rainbow Dash laughed so hard she fell over. Twilight flushed. “This Isn’t a joke!” “Oh come onnn Twilight, get real! How could Pinkie and Vinyl possibly destroy Equestria?” The Floored Flyer replied between bouts of laughter. “Chaos energy.” Twilight Replied Curtly. “What’s that?” Spike Inquired. “I’m Glad you asked that, number one assistant. Chaos energy is the force that Discord uses in order to bend the universe to his will, Some ponies, as well as certain animals, also posses an affinity for this energy, which manifests itself as Extreme hyperactivity, otherwise unexplainable abilities, and/or defiance of the laws of physics. Bumblebees for example, how can an insect of that size fly on wings that small? the answer is chaos energy.” “and Pinkie and Vinyl are both Connected to this... um... Chaos energy?” Fluttershy chimed. “Exactly!” Twilight proclaimed smugly. “Their combined Chaos energy could cause a chaotic cataclysm that will wipe out all reason in Equestria, creating disharmony and madness  that would make Discord look like nothing.” “It’s a nice theory Twilight.” Rainbow said, picking herself up off the floor. “and by ‘nice’ I mean ‘not very nice at all’, but what evidence do you have?” “Yesterday’s party.” “What about it?” “Why do you think it was such a disaster?” “Because Derpy caught the Ice sculpture on fire.”  “Rainbow, I’ve told you not to call her that, It’s rude.” “She Doesn’t care.” Twilight sighed “Fine, the point is, how is it possible that Ditzy Do managed to set an Ice sculpture on fire?” Dash shrugged “Chaos energy?” “YES!” Twilight Exclaimed. “For a moment, Pinkie and Vinyl’s chaos wavelengths resonated, causing the Ice sculpture to burst into flame, poor Ditzy happened to be close to it at the time, and thought it was something she had done.” Rainbow took a moment to think. “Are you sure you haven’t been watching too much My Little Enterprise?” “Rainbow Dash. Do you remember the last time you didn’t listen to me?” “oh yeah, the wedding...” “Um...I Believe You, Twilight.” Fluttershy offered. “So do I.” spike said. “But what are we going to do about it?” Twilight smiled “Fluttershy, go find Applejack and Rarity and bring them back here, Rainbow Dash, go and run interference between Pinkie and Vinyl while the rest of us come up with a plan.” “On It!” Dash Saluted before flying out the window. Spike looked at Twilight expectantly. “Spike... go make breakfast.” “Awww.” ++++++ “Yeah.” Dash Agreed. “Really crazy.” “Ooh! Ooh! Guess what! I have a date with Vinyl this afternoon!” The party pony cheered. “Oh really? I was hoping that we could hang out.” Rainbow dipped her head in mock sadness. “Oh. I’m Sorry Dashie, maybe tomorrow.” “Okay.”Dash Said with an exaggerated sigh. “what time will Vinyl be here for you?” “Well I’m working a double shift today because I skipped yesterday, so I Don’t get off until six, so that’s when She’s picking me up.” “Can I tag along?” Pinkie Gave Dash an uncharacteristically hard look. “Dashie. It’s a date.” “Oh yeah.” “Sorry Dashie.” “Not as sorry as I am.” Dash muttered. “What was that?” “Oh nothing. Have fun on your date.” “Thanks Dashie!” ++++++ “I Would Like to thank you all for coming at such short notice.” Twilight said to her assembled friends. “No Prob’m Sugarcube.” Applejack replied. “I am always ready to help out a friend.” said Rarity. “I made sandwiches.” Spike announced, holding up a tray. Fluttershy just nodded. “as Fluttershy explained, Equestria is in terrible danger from the chaos energy that is being generated by Pinkie Pie and Vinyl Scratch.” “Oh, Is that what she was sayin’?” “It was a bit difficult to make out.” “I’m sorry.” Fluttershy squeaked. the Four ponies were seated in a circle around the table in the center of the main room of the library. the statue that usually occupied the table had been removed in favor of the tray of sandwiches that spike had just delivered. Twilight Cleared her throat. “as I was saying, we have to stop this chaotic cataclysm, which I shall refer to from now on as the Chaoclysm, from taking place, In order to do that, we must first find a way to split up Pinkie and Vinyl, and then get Vinyl and Octavia back together,  any questions?” she moved her gaza eround the table, finally settling on... “Fluttershy, You don’t have to raise your hoof.” “oh. I’m sorry. I was just wondering... why do we need to get Vinyl and Octavia together again?” “That is an excellent question. the fact is that Chaos energy wants to fill any space it is given, this is why it explodes when two ponies who are full of chaos energy come together, however, some ponies, like Octavia, are Immune to the affects of wild Chaos energy, and can cancel it out with thier presence. This is why Vinyl has shown fewer signs of chaos energy than pinkie, her relationship with Octavia suppresses it. without Octavia, It’s possible that Vinyl may begin to exhibit more Pinkie-like behaviors, and Celestia knows we don’t need two of them.” “Sorry Twilight, but this is important! Pinkie and Vinyl are going on a date tonight!” Twilight felt her blood freeze. “when?” “six” Twilight looked out the window at the clock tower. ten. “okay, this should work, we have eight hours to come up with a plan to wreck Pinkie and Vinyl’s date. for the good of Equestria.” > Date With Disaster > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part 4 Date with Disaster Vinyl Scratch blinked her eyes in confusion. The last thing she remembered was thinking that she was going to be late meeting Pinkie Pie, and now here she was in front of Sugar Cube Corner with no memory of traveling more than a step between here and her hotel room. It was as though she had teleported, or perhaps Interrupted the space-time continuum. It was unsettling, but also kind of awesome. All of these thoughts were driven out of her mind, however, when a certain cotton candy colored character burst out of the door. “Hi Vine-y! I’m excited! Are you excited? ‘cause I’m excited! I’m super duper excited! Excited!” Pinkie Pie rattled, bouncing up and down in excitement. I wonder if she’s excited. Vinyl thought. “yeah, I’m really excited to, sorry if i’m not quite so, um, energetic about it though.” “That’s okay! I’m used to having more energy than everypony else, I think It’s the Sugar, I eat a lot of sugar because I work in a bakery, but even if I didn’t, I’d still eat a lot of sugar because I love sugar so so much! Do you Like sugar Vine-y? Of course you do, everypony loves sugar! It’s a good thing Diabetes doesn’t exist in Equestria, otherwise we’d all be in trouble!” “What’s ‘die-oh-bee-dees’?” Vinyl asked perplexedly. “Oh, It’s Nothing, just something that doesn’t exist. Ooh! Ooh! I brought cupcakes! you Want some cupcakes Vine-y? I made them especially for you!” “Pinkie baby! Slow down a bit! I’d love to have some of your cupcakes, but let’s at least wait until we get to the park.” Vinyl reasoned. Pinkie Pie stopped. “You just called me ‘baby.’” Vinyl removed her shades, looking right into Pinkie’s big blue eyes. “Is that a problem?” “Umm...” For the first time in a long time, gazing into Vinyl’s beautiful magenta eyes, Pinke found herself speechless. “No, I think it’s sweet!” she said finally. “Can I call you ‘sugar?’” “You can call me whatever you like Pinkie baby.” “‘Cause I really love sugar.” “Does that mean you love me?” “OH NO! NOT AGAIN!” Vinyl and Pinkie were jolted back to reality by the anguished shout coming from the nearby bushes. Looking over to see what caused the disturbance, the pair caught a glimpse of a white unicorn with a ratty puke-green mane running away as full speed. “Was that Rarity?” The pink pony questioned. “Looked like it.” Vinyl replied, a bit miffed that their tender moment had been ruined. “It also looked like Trixie got a hold of her again.” Pinkie shrugged “Oh well, I'm sure she'll get it back to normal again soon.” ++++++ In the bushes that rarity had been hiding in, a purple unicorn and an orange earth pony exchanged looks of panic. “This is not good.” Twilight whispered. “It's already starting.” “Twi, Do y’all really think this is the best idea?” Applejack whispered back. “I mean, Pinkie may be insane, but she ain't dumb, I'm sure if we just sat 'er down and explained things-” “No.” Twilight cut her off. “We don't know what will happen, telling her would only upset her.” “An' messin' up her date won't?” “It will, but at least she won't be upset at us.” The purple unicorn pondered that for a moment. “That... sounded worse than I meant it...” “Explain.” Twilight rolled her eyes in frustration, why did she always have to be the exposition pony? “The chaos energy seems to be triggered by spikes of strong emotion, such as love, joy, or anger, if one of those emotions has a focus, the chaos energy becomes more dangerous, for example, right now Pinkie is focusing her love on Vinyl. if she's upset about something, that will only affect things the way Pinkie normally does, however, if she's upset at somepony...” “I get it.” AJ whispered. “But I still don't know how your plan is gonna work without Rarity.” “It's not.” Twilight admitted. “we will have to find a substitute.” ++++++ Pinkie Pie and Vinyl Scratch arrived at the Ponyville park, followed at a distance by Twilight Sparkle and Applejack. Vinyl picked out a spot and spread out a blue and white picnic blanket. Pinkie Pie then began to pull snacks out of a basket that nopony would have believed could hold so much. “Oh, Vine-y, just so you know, Twilight and Applejack are following us.” pinkie stated matter-of-factly. “How can you tell?” “My flank is itchy, that means I'm being followed!” “How do you know who it is?” “I read the first sentence of this scene!” “You did what now?” “I mean... Um, I saw them a couple of times! Yeah, that was it!” Vinyl knew that she was lying, but she decided not to press, after all, everypony knew it was pointless to try to understand pinkie's weird abilities. Besides, she noted. I seem to be developing a few powers of my own. “whatever you say honey.” “Ooh! I like honey too! It's like liquid sugar!” ++++++ Elsewhere in the park, a mint colored unicorn and a cream earth pony sat side by side on a bench. “I honestly don't know how you can sit like that Lyra, It doesn't look comfortable at all.” said Bon-Bon in a High pitched whiny voice. “And I don't know how you can change your voice every time you talk.” Lyra Heartstrings replied. “I still don't know which is your real voice, and I live with you.” “I have to stay in practice for when my voice talents are finally discovered and I become a famous voice actress.” Bon-Bon's replied in a flawless cockney accent. Lyra smirked “Voice actresses don't get to be famous.” “Sure they do,” Bon-Bon argued, her voice now had a southern twang similar to that of the Apple family “everpony knows who Marked Hammy is.” “Who?” “He played the Jester on Batmane the animated series.” “Oh, that guy.” “And what about Tara Streams from that little filly's show you watch so religiously?” “'My Little Human' is not a little filly's show!” “It so is.” “you watch it too!” “only because you make me!” The two mare's argument was cut short by the pop of a teleportation spell. They looked over to see Twilight Sparkle standing behind their bench. “Lyra, I need your help.” “what's up Twilight?” asked the minty mare. “Equestria is in danger.” Twilight informed her. That statement earned her the full attention of both ponies, who turned fully around to face her. “I knew it! The humans are invading aren't they?” Lyra said excitedly. Twilight gave her a glare. “Lyra, I've told you that there's no such thing as humans, you really watch that little filly's show way too much.” “Told you it was a little filly's show.” Bon-Bon muttered. ++++++ Having filled the roommates in on the situation, Twilight returned to the bush with her new helpers in tow. “How's it going AJ?” She asked quietly. “They’re lookin' into each others' eyes again.” Applejack reported. “Oh dear.” just then all the bushes in the park turned into bunches of balloons. “Trees!” Applejack whispered quickly, leaping behind a nearby tree as the balloons that were concealing them started to float away. The others picked up quickly enough, and moved to positions behind other nearby trees. It's getting worse, Twilight thought. We need to move now! She looked up into the branches of the tree nearest the lovestruck couple, who hadn't even noticed the transfiguration that had just occurred. She was relieved to see Rainbow Dash hovering overhead. The unicorn gave the pegusus a signal. Go! Dash snapped a salute before tucking her wings and falling into a vertical dive. ++++++ Vinyl's tail twitched, and she suddenly knew beyond a doubt that something was about to fall. She could tell by looking at pinkie that she felt it too. Without a moment's hesitation, the DJ leaped forward, tackling her date to the ground just as a multicolored projectile crashed to the ground right where the two had been sitting. “That did not feel good.” Rainbow Dash groaned. “I bet it didn't! Are you okay?” Vinyl asked with concern. “Oh! I think I sprained my wing! The pain!” dash moaned, a tad melodramatically. “It's lucky you didn't break your neck.” Vinyl noted. “Yeah! Paralytic pegusus may be fun to say, but it's not fun at all for realsies!” Pinkie added. Rainbow dash made a show of trying to get up. “OW! It hurts so bad I can't move!” Pinkie looked at Vinyl “We need to get Dashie to the hospital Pronto!” “Agreed! I'll go call an ambulance, You stay with Dash!” Vinyl said, rushing of to find a public phone. Behind her tree, Twilight rubbed her hooves together with glee, so far things were going perfectly. She looked over at Applejack and nodded. Taking her cue, the apple farmer ran ran over to the place where Rainbow had fallen. “Dash! Are y'all alright? I seen you falling...” “My Wing is ruined!” Dash Cried. “I'll never fly again! Oh the Anguish! Oh the Trauma!” Applejack raised an eyebrow “Ain't you milkin' this a bit much?” “You say that, but how would you feel if you broke your wings?” “AJ doesn't have wings silly!” Pinkie pointed out. ++++++ While Pinkie was distracted by AJ and RD, Twilight made her way around to Lyra. “Are you ready?” The purple unicorn asked. Lyra nodded. “Let's do it.” Power transference is an advanced unicorn skill, it allows for a powerful magic user to give a portion of her power to a weaker comrade, allowing that unicorn to perform spells that they would normally be incapable of. Twilight had never attempted this before, there was a chance that she could transfer too much of her energy and pass out, but she was confident that she could pull it off. She lowered her head and touched horns with Lyra. She felt the familiar surge of magic as she cast the spell. As the spell did it's work twilight felt the energy leave her body, it made her feel weak and tired and a little bit sick. Conversely, Lyra had never felt more energetic in her life, it felt as though the blood in her veins had been replaced with electrified liquid fire. She felt Like she could take on the world, and then go take on the human world too for good measure. Twilight ended the spell, then immediately hit the ground, exhausted. “You okay?” Lyra asked, concern in her voice. “you look like you just ran a mareathon.” “I’m... fine.” twilight huffed. “The spell... took more... out of me... than I anticipated.” “Can you still do the disguise spell?” “one minute... I need to catch my breath.” “‘kay” ++++++ “Scratchy!” Vinyl turned to see a particular pink pony prancing over to her. “what’s up Pinkie?” “I just came to tell you that you don’t need to call the hospital, Dashy’s fine.” “Are you sure?” “Sure I’m sure! Pinkie Pie is always sure! I AM Pinkie Pie as you can clearly see, and not Lyra disguised as her-that is, me. That would just be silly!” Vinyl looked a bit confused for a moment. “why would you even say...” she began, then seemed to remember who she was talking to. “You are so random.” Lyra-disguised-as-Pinkie breathed a sigh of relief. ++++++ “You know, All of a sudden I feel a lot better!” Rainbow Dash said, flexing her wings to show that they were in their proper condition. “Ya’ll sure?” Applejack asked. “It sure did look like ya’ll took quite a tumble.” “Yeah! I’m good as new!” Dash insisted. “Okay!” Pinkie proclaimed. “I’ll go tell Scratchy not to call the hospital!” “No need.” a voice called. “I’m right here.” Everypony turned to look as a pony who was clearly Vinyl Scratch approached. Pinkie’s left rear hoof tapped once Involuntarily. She frowned, she’d only felt this particular pinkie sense once before, at the royal wedding in Canterlot. She hadn’t known what it meant then, but now she had a hunch. “The phone wasn’t working, so I came back. I’m glad to see it was nothing serious.” Twilight-as-Vinyl explained. “Hey Vine-y!” Pinkie Said, the image of unsuspecting lack of suspicion. No use making a scene just yet. > The Pinkie is a Spy > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part 5 The Pinkie is a spy! Octavia placed the last of her belongings into the box. A part of her was sad to be leaving, but she was sure that not living with that insane DJ would make her life easier. no more Vinyl; no more bad music puns, no more noise complaints, no more waking up in the morning to the whole building shaking from the beat of too-loud dubtrot. all the bass player had to do was keep telling herself that she was over Vinyl. Maybe eventually she would convince herself. “I’m glad you decided to come with me Octavia. The old house gets awfully lonely.” Octavia looked over at her new coltfriend, he was still fully dressed in his suit and tie. Octavia idly wondered if he ever took the thing off, which gave rise to a ridiculous image of him wearing that suit in the shower. The grey mare giggled, causing her companion to look uncomfortable. “what? did a do something weird?” “No, no, no, It wasn’t anything you did, I just had an amusing thought.” Octavia explained. “oh good.” “just- why do you always dress so formal?” Silver looked thoughtful for a moment. “I suppose it makes me feel important.” he admitted. “All through my childhood i was picked on for not being special, everyone else in my class got their cutie mark before I did, so I suppose that made me feel a bit plain.” Octavia turned to fully face Silver. “You’re not plain, you did get your mark eventually, that’s what’s important.” Silver looked back at the embroidered symbol on his pants. “yes.” he said. “I suppose so.” “And for what it’s worth, you’re special to me.” the dark maned musician said sweetly.” The unicorn smiled “I love you.” Octavia snorted with laughter. “what now?” asked a bemused Silver. “Nothing, I’m just remembering how my ex used to say ‘I wub you’ she thought she was so terribly clever.” Silver laughed. “Wow, that’s bad.” “tell me about it.” The two ponies shared a good laugh, but Octavia’s heart wasn’t fully in it, some small part of her, the part that missed Vinyl, felt bad for laughing at the DJ’s expense. ++++++ Lyra was feeling very self conscious, she knew that to the rest of the world she looked and sounded like Pinkie Pie, but from her perspectie, the only thing between her and the rest of the world was a simple paper mask with the pink pony’s face on it. “Uh, Pinks? you feeling alright?” Vinyl asked, looking concerned. “Of course! why Wouldn’t I be?” The Pretend Pinkie Replied with as much enthusiasm as she could muster. It wasn’t enough. “you sure? you seem a lot less... Pink... than usual.” Lyra was on the verge of panic. “What? I’m definitely not turning mint! I’m Just as Pink as ever! see? ~My name is Pinkie Piiie~” Fortunately, Vinyl took this as Pinkie just being random. “no, I mean you seem less energetic, almost like you're sick or something.” That was when Lyra got an idea. the point of her mission was to keep the real Vinyl and Pinkie separated, and The DJ’s statement had given her An Idea as to how to go about it. She sighed. “Oh you noticed.” She allowed her head to droop. “I’ve been trying to hide it for a while now because I didn’t want to ruin our date, but you’re just too smart. You’re right. I am sick. It feels like the Viruses are having a party inside my head, and not the fun kind of party that everypony loves, the kind with Jokey smokes and too much cider that ends with the royal guards coming to investigate the neighbor’s noise complaints.” Lyra but a hoof to her mouth and faked a cough in order to hide the small grin at her little pinkie-ism. “Oh no! We should get you to a doctor!” Vinyl said worriedly. Lyra’s panic returned in full force, If a doctor examined her too closely they would see through her disguise and she’d be stuck having to explain to Vinyl why she had been impersonating Pinkie... “A-actually, I think I should just go home...” she tried. “Don’t be stupid Pinks. You obviously need help!” the white unicorn countered. “I am taking you to the hospital whether you like it or not.” Lyra Pie lowered her head in resignation. “Alright Scratchy.” she replied. “we’ll go to the hospital.” She would just have to think of a way to get away from vinyl before they got there. ++++++ Pinkie Followed Totally-Not-Twilight to another part of the park. still unable to calm her twitchy hoof. “I got the message!” She exclaimed. “What?” The “Oh, I’m just talking to myself.” the pink pony replied. “You are a real conundrum you know?” “What’s that? What’s a conundrum? is it tasty?” “Not really.” Pinkie tilted her head to one side, studying the white unicorn carefully. “What’s wrong Scratchy? you’re so quiet.” Okay, Twilight thought, Acting time, make it convincing. “Well Pinks, It’s... us. I don’t think it’s going to work.” “Why not? I’m Having a superiffic wonderfultastc time with you! And that’s saying something because I usually just have a supertastic wonderiffic time! but a superiffic wonderfultastc time is way, way, waaay Better!” “Well. I’m not. I’m sorry but... well, It’s Octavia.” “What’s Octavia? A conundrum? Octavia is a conundrum? what was a Conundrum again? I mean, other than Octavia-” “NO!” Twilight-as-Vinyl snapped. “I mean I still Have Feelings for Octavia! and Conundrum means ‘mystery.’” “So...” Pinkie sat down and adopted a thoughtful pose. “Octavia... is a mystery?” “Augh! you don’t get it! I’m breaking up with you!” “Oh! Ok!” “Ok? that’s it?” “Weeell, there is one itty bitty little thingy I want to ask, and you have to Pinkie Promise that you’ll tell me the truth.” Twinyl began going through the hoof motions as she recited “Cross my hear and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my AUGH! why do I always do that?” she grumbled rubbing her sore eye. she looked up at Pinkie, and the minute she saw the look on the party pony’s face, she knew she had made a mistake. “Twilight.” Pinkie pie said. her tone more serious than the unicorn had ever heard. “Why are you trying to ruin my date?” ++++++ There was a knock at the door. If that light, almost imperceptible tapping could qualify as a knock. It was a wonder that Octavia had heard it at all. she opened the door to see a butter yellow pegusus standing, or rather, cowering on her doorstep. “Um... Sorry to bother you miss Octavia, But... Um... I need you to come with me to the park.” fluttershy stammered. “Oh.” Octavia frowned “I’m kind of busy...” “Oh... But... It’s... Um... Really Important.” Just then Silver joined Octavia at the door. “What’s going on?” “EEP!” Fluttershy squealed. “Oh, I’m sorry... I didn’t realize you had company...” “Oh, Silver’s not company.” Octavia replied. “He’s helping me move out.” “Mmmmmmove out?” “Yes, I’m going back to Canterlot.” “NO! um... i mean... you need to come with me right now.” “You Still Haven’t told me what it is that’s so important.” Octavia pointed out. “Oh... Right... It’s Vinyl. There’s been an accident...” “What?” Octavia shouted. “EEP!” “What happened?” Silver interjected. “I... I don’t know...” Silver Turned to Octavia. “You should go, I can finish up here.” “Are you sure?” “Sure I’m sure, You go help your... um... Ex” “Well alright.” Octavia relented. “Lead the way Fluttershy.” ++++++ Bon-Bon was glad she had decided to keep tabs on Lyra. That crazy mare had managed to get herself into a tight spot and she was going to need help getting out. She kept following them from a distance, waiting for just the right moment to strike. the moment came as her marks passed an alley. “Hey Scratchy! look at This!” The cream coated pony called, her voice taking on a high pitched tone that was a spot on match for Pinkie Pie. The DJ whipped around to look back at the alley. “What the Hay? Pinkie Why does your voice sound like it’s way over-” she turned back to see that Pinkie Had Vanished. in her place, stood Lyra. “Hi Vinyl!” Lyra said. “How’s it going?” “Wha- Huh? what happened to Pinkie?” Lyra pointed toward Bon-Bon’s alley. “I think she went that way.” “Feathers!” Vinyl muttered, turning again to rush toward the alley, only to run headlong into Bon-Bon. “Ouch!” The earth pony groaned. “watch where you’re going!” “Sorry. I didn’t see you there, I’m in a hurry, gotta catch my date! gotta go!” Vinyl said as she rushed away down the alley. As soon as the coast was clear, Lyra and Bon-Bon burst out laughing. ++++++ “Soooo, Let me make sure I have this right.” Pinkie said. “I am full of this stuff called Chaos energy which makes everything around me go all crazy.” Twilight, now out of her disguise, nodded. “And Scratchy is full of the same Cuckoo juice.” Twilight nodded. “And when wacko meets wonky, everything around them goes wonko.” Twilight Nodded “Which is why you Decided to play dress up as Scratchy so you could prevent us from making the whole world go bonkers.” Twilight nodded. “Okie dokie loki. In that case...” Pinkie suddenly lashed out with a hoof, smacking a very stunned twilight. “You big Silly! Why didn’t you just tell me? did you think I was too dumb to understand? Just because I do crazy things sometimes... well, okay, ALL the time. Doesn’t mean I don’t know when a problem is bigger than me!” “Pinkie, I just didn’t want to hurt your-” “Didn’t want to hurt my feelings? So you planned this elaborate stunt behind my back? THAT hurts!” “Pinkie... I’m... Sorry.” Twilight looked like she was on the verge of tears. “Okay. I forgive you Twilight.” and just like that, Pinkie was back to her normal self. “I’m really really- wait, just like that?” “Yup!” “you’re not mad?” “Nope. You said you were sorry, so it’s fine.” “I... don’t know what to say.” “you don’t need to say anything, It’s done, Hot Chocolate under the Licorice bridge! what’s important now is getting Scratchy and Octavia back together!” Twilight nodded. “We’re already working on it.” “Oh really?” a voice called from neaby. Both ponies looked around, trying to find the source. A stallion stepped out from behind the nearest tree. “well, I’m afraid I can’t let you do that.” said Silver Bright. > So Much For My Happy Ending > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part 6 So Much For My Happy Ending “Hey! I know you! You’re Octavia’s new coltfriend! What are you doing here?” The well dressed unicorn gave Pinkie a very creepy smile, the kind of smile that says ‘I’m insane and evil and I love it.’ “Simple, Miss Pie. I’m here to make sure you don’t interfere with my plans for Octavia.” Twilight Stepped forward and took a defensive stance. “What plans for Octavia?” “why, the wedding plans of course.” Pinkie Gasped “You’re getting married? Omygosh! I have to start planning the Reception!” “Pinkie!” Twilight snapped. “Focus. we’re trying to get Octavia back with Vinyl, remember?” “Oh yeah.” “But why?” Silver asked. “That dyke DJ could never love Miss Octavia as much as I do.” “HEY! Nopony calls Scratchy a dyke!” Pinkie exclaimed. She turned to Twilight.“what’s a dyke?” “It’s a derogatory way to refer to a lesbian.” Twilight replied. “A dooby whaty who now?” “It’s a rude way of saying she likes other mares.” “Ohhh.” Pinkie nodded turning back toward Silver “That’s mean!” “I only want what’s best for Miss Octavia. She deserves better than some crude slut who spins records for a living.” “Like you?” Twilight Challenged. “Well... Yes.” Twilight scoffed. “and what makes you so special?” “Because I want it more!” Silver ranted. “I have worked my entire life for this! From the moment I laid eyes on Miss Octavia I have struggled to become worthy of her! Now that she is mine I will NOT let you ruin it for me!” He lowered his head and his horn began to glow with a silvery aura. “I’m truly sorry about this, But I can’t let you get in my way.” A bolt of magic shot from his horn, rushing toward Twilight with malicious intent. Twilight magically shoved Pinkie out of the way and threw up a bubble shield around herself just in time to block the crazed stallion’s attack. “Is that the best you can do?” Twilight grinned. “Hardly.” Silver sent two more magic bolts, each twice as strong as the one before it. “I only meant to stun you, but since you have chosen to fight back i can use full power!” Twilight’s shield flickered when the Silver bolts made contact. “Do you even know who you’re dealing with here?” Twilight growled, returning with a magical volley of her own. “I am Twilight Sparkle! Bearer of the element of magic, and personal student of Princess Celestia herself!” Silver put up a shield of his own to block Twilight’s attack. “True, ordinarily I wouldn’t stand a chance against you, but you are still weak from giving half of your power to that other unicorn.” It was true, Twilight could feel her magic draining at an alarming rate. “I still have more than enough power to beat you!” Twilight grunted, using her magic to send a large rock in the direction of her opponent. “You Talk a good game Miss Sparkle, but you’re already losing steam. and I’m just getting warmed up!” With another mighty bolt of silver magic Twilight’s shield shattered. Silver took the opportunity to teleport behind her and deliver a swift kick to her flank, sending her face first into the dirt. “So much for Celestia’s prize pupil.” Silver proclaimed triumphantly. charging his horn for a final blow. “It’s such a shame. Had this gone differently you and I could have been friends.” “I don’t need your friendship.” Twilight Spat. “I have Pinkie.” Silver cocked his head in confusion. “What are you-” He was interrupted by a tap on his back. he turned around to find himself looking down the business end of Pinkie Pie’s Party Cannon. “Surprise!” Pinkie exclaimed. ++++++ The Three ponies had been searching for Pinkie Pie for an hour now, at least, Vinyl had been searching for her. Lyra and Bon-Bon had been doing their best to pretend to help by making suggestions of places to search. ‘keep her busy for one hour, then bring her back to the same place where we split them up.’ Twilight had said. Well, it had been an hour. “Maybe she went back to the park.” Lyra suggested. “Why would she do that?” Vinyl asked. “She’s Pinkie Pie, Why does she do anything?” Bon-Bon pointed out. “Fair enough.” The Trio began trotting in the direction of the Park. “So what’s the deal with you and Octavia?” Lyra asked. “Lyra!” Bon-Bon Scolded. “You Don’t just come out and ask something like that!” “Why not? you’re wondering too.” “It’s fine.” Vinyl interjected. “There’s not much to tell really. We had a fight and she decided she didn’t want me anymore.” “How does that make you feel?” Lyra asked. “What are you a psychiatrist?” Bon-Bon scoffed. “Y’know they ask questions like that for a reason.” Lyra Defended. “I was upset about it at first.” Vinyl replied. “but then Pinkie came along. and I realized that I don’t need Octy, sure I kinda miss her, but I’m sure that will solve itself in time.” Lyra and Bon-Bon exchanged a knowing look. “So, If Octavia decided she wanted you back, would you go back to her?” Asked Bon-Bon Vinyl shrugged. “I dunno, maybe. I have Pinkie now.” “But if you didn’t have Pinkie?” Lyra Pressed. Vinyl Sighed “I have no Idea what I would do then. The fact is that I do have Pinkie now.” Lyra gave Bon-Bon a questioning look, which the cream coated mare replied to with a slight nod. “Um, Vinyl,” Lyra began “about Pinkie...” ++++++ Silver Bright would have never believed that confetti could hurt so much, of course a large part of the pain could possibly be attributed to being flung into and then falling out of a tree. That Cannon was a dangerous weapon. “Hey Twilight check it out! I hit him so hard his cutie mark came off!” “Pinkie, That’s not possi- oh.” The Wounded stallion opened his eyes. taking stock of his injuries. All four limbs were still attached, so that was something. Of course all four limbs, as well as the rest of him were also in excruciating pain from the many cuts and scratches that told of his journey through the branches of the tree he was currently sprawled under. “Ugh. You ruined my suit! It was custom!” he muttered thickly, noting that what had once been a finely tailored and extremely expensive suit now hung off his body in tatters, his Flanks bare for all to see. He had no cutie mark. Silver Climbed painfully to his hooves. “Well, there you have it.” he stated. the venom had gone from his voice, he now sounded pathetic and broken. “You’ve found out my secret shame. Go ahead. Laugh.” Neither Twilight nor Pinkie were laughing, however, and instead were looking at him with interest and concern. “Are you sure you should be moving?” Twilight asked. “I’ll be fine. I won’t be running any mareathons any time soon, no thanks to you, but I’ll live.” “Why don’t you have your cutie mark?” Pinkie asked. “Because I’m Nopony!” Silver snapped. “everything that I am is a lie! even my name is made up!” “I thought it sounded a bit off.” Pinkie noted. “My Real Name is Clear Specter. I’m a dropout and a failure, I never got my cutie mark because nothing about me is special! So I crafted myself a new Identity! one that was worthy of the attention of my one true love!” Specter continued. “Ever since I was a colt I’ve watched her from afar, seen her grow into the most beautiful mare in all of Equestria, I knew I wasn’t worthy to so much as look at her. I knew exactly who I wanted to be, I wanted to be the stallion she deserved. I dyed my coat, and changed my name. I became the epitome of the perfect stallion. then when I returned, I found her with that DJ. So I made a plan, I planted seeds of dissent between them, subtle hints whispered by a passerby every so often. Then when they split, I came in and swept her away. I always believed that once Miss Octavia and I were one, I would finally have found my place. This was supposed to be my happy ending!” “Maybe the Problem isn’t that you aren’t good enough.” Specter whipped his head around to see who had spoken. “Maybe It’s that you were so busy trying to be the stallion I deserved, that you forgot to be yourself.” Octavia walked over to him and put a hoof on his back. “I heard everything.” “Yeah, me too.” Everyone turned to see Vinyl strolling up to the group. “If I hadn’t heard it myself I never would have believed it.” She Turned To Twilight “Lyra and Bon-Bon Filled me in on the Pinkie situation on the way over. So this jerk nearly destroyed Equestria in pursuit of his own selfish need to get jiggy with my mare.” “I was ever only thinking of Octavia!” Specter protested. “And what do you mean destroy Equestria?” And so Twilight explained about the Chaos Energy. When she Finished. Specter fell back into a sitting position with a look of shock. “I... I had no idea... I never meant...” “Well of course you Didn’t!” Pinkie piped. “we all make mistakes! You just made a really huge one that almost doomed us all!” “Gee thanks. I feel so much better now.” Specter deadpanned. “Your welcome!” “So um...” The group turned to fluttershy, who had been standing quietly a little ways off. “What happens now?” “I’m Going to Canterlot.” Octavia Proclaimed. “What?” Vinyl exclaimed. “What?” Twilight gasped. “Really?” Specter said hopefully. “I’m Going to Canterlot.” Octavia Repeated. “After all that has Happened, I need some time to myself to figure things out. Besides, I’m already packed. Vinyl looked shocked and dismayed when she heard this. “well then...” her gaze hardened. “I’m going to canterlot too!” “No you are not!” Octavia barked. “Excuse me? I’m my own mare! I’ll go wherever I feel like! Besides, I hear the music scene out there needs some serious TLC.” “Oh Celestia Kill me now.” “Oh C’mon Octy! I thought I had taught you to loosen up a little!” The Two continued to argue as Twilight, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Specter slowly crept away. “Do...Do you think they will be alright?” Fluttershy asked. “Sure They will!” Pinkie Pie assured. “You can’t split up a pair like that for long, just wait, they’ll be Smooching any minute now!” Twilight looked at Pinkie. “If you knew that then why did you agree to go out with Vinyl?” “Because it was what she needed! I knew I was just a rebound, but Scratchy needed it to feel better. I knew she’d end up back with Octavia eventually, but it was still fun while it lasted.” “Pinkie Pie, you are so random.” “I know.” The End > Epilogue > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Epilogue Dear Princess Celestia, Today I learned two things about friendship. Firstly, I learned that you should be able to confide in your friends if you think they are doing something wrong. A true friend will understand and respect you for taking it to them. Resorting to underhanded trickery will only lead to hurt feelings all around. Speaking of underhanded trickery, I also learned that nothing good can come of pretending to be somepony you’re not. A real friend is one who respects you for who you are, even if you don’t think who you are is good enough. Trying to hard to be somepony else only robs you of your own identity, and also makes you really creepy and nutty. Sorry, That last bit was Pinkie. Your Faithful Student, Twilight Sparkle.