> Behind Her Smile > by Malice In Wonderland > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Introduction > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- I once knew somepony who I thought was normal. I thought she was happy, she sure acted like it. She trotted around Ponyville, laughing and joking and making everypony laugh and smile. She had a pink, curly mane and tail, and her coat was bright pink. Her cutie mark was three balloons. Everything about her seemed completely normal, I never even thought what she might be compensating for. One day, I was really upset, and she came up and talked to me, “Turn that frown upside down you silly little pony!” She said happily, a huge smile across her face. Seeing her smile caused my lips to turn upwards slightly. She was so ecstatic that she made me smile that she hugged me. I was surprised at first, but hugged her back. “Hoof bump!” She shouted, playfully bumping my hoof with hers before skipping away from me happily. That was my very first interaction with her. After that, I wanted to get to know her better, to become her close friend. I spent the rest of the day following her around, waiting for her to stop talking to everypony else and waiting until she was alone for a moment so that I could talk to her. And what happened was something I had never expected, especially not from Pinkie Pie. > Her Secret > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- I had finally decided to talk to Pinkie Pie and get to know her a little better. Of course, she was very open to the idea of becoming friends. We talked until Princess Celestia lowered the sun and Princess Luna raised the moon. We said our goodbyes, promised to meet up tomorrow, and parted ways. I went home, and I couldn’t stop thinking about her. I had never thought it possible for anypony to smile that much. I then realized I had never seen her not smiling. Did she ever feel sadness? I shook it off and was able to easily get to sleep that night. A few days went by and Pinkie and I grew closer and closer. The more we talked, the more I realized that she really didn’t ever stop smiling. Something about it was wrong to me, I just couldn’t place it. It wasn’t wrong for somepony to smile, it was just strange to me that she never stopped. A few weeks flew by quickly. Pinkie and I had been talking almost everyday. We had grown so close, that we visited each other by surprise often. It was like she had a sixth sense for sadness, because when I even started to feel sad, she would show up at my door with a cupcake and a smile. When I was around Pinkie Pie, I couldn’t not smile. The way she talked and the way she was always smiling and laughing kept my smile from fading, day after day. I quickly picked up on her happiness, and it was soon hard for me to become sad anymore. I had been a pessimist, but I had been turned into an optimist. I started seeing the glass as half full. I woke up late one night, and decided to give Pinkie a special visit. She had confided in me before that sometimes she couldn’t sleep, and I hoped that tonight was one of those nights. I hopped out of my house and made my way to Pinkie’s. I made sure to be quiet enough not to wake anyone, but not so quiet as to be mistaken for a thief. I opened the door to Pinkie’s room and saw her sitting on her bed. There were no lights on, so I flicked on the light switch and closed the door. Pinkie jumped at the sudden flash of light and quickly hid under the covers. “Pinkie? What’s wrong?” “Oh… It’s just you,” She let out a soft sigh of relief. “It’s nothing really. What’s hanging?” She asked me. I wanted to answer, but before I could, I couldn’t help but notice that she was so obviously forcing her smile. I tilted my head, and she noticed. She sighed and her smile fell. We both stayed quiet for a minute, me staring at her, and her staring at the blanket covering her body. She sighed again, and I grew the courage to walk over to her. I sat on her bed next to her. “What is it?” I asked. She bit her lower lip and swallowed nervously. “Ummm…” She said awkwardly. I grew impatient and pulled down the covers. I gasped and jumped off her bed, startled by what I had seem. “Sweet Celestia, Pinkie!” I screamed at her. She pulled the covers back over her, this time covering her head in shame. Her body was quivering under the blanket, and there were tiny squeaking sounds emanating from her quivering form. I took a few deep breaths to steady myself. I stepped back onto the bed and pulled down the covers. Pinkie’s eyes were closed with tears streaming down her face, “I always try to act happy so nobody knows….” She sniffed and looked up at me. I looked down at her, and then back down at her forelegs. There were several bright red cuts that seemed to be really deep. Droplets of blood were oozing out and running down her legs. Some of the blood was smeared across her fur, I assumed from hiding under the covers. She looked up at me with her big, blue eyes, “Please don’t tell anypony else… I can’t let anypony know about this. Nopony will ever smile again, and seeing other ponies smiling is the only thing that keeps me going…” I stared at her, speechless. “I promise. I won’t ever tell anypony else,” I said, once I had found my voice. “Pinkie Promise?” She asked. I smiled, because I knew that Pinkie Pie was still the same Pinkie Pie I had met before, even if she did have a secret that nopony could know about, “Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” She smiled at me and wiped away her tears, leaving a few blood droplets on her face, “Pinkie, let me bandage your legs for you.” At first she hesitated, and then agreed to let me bandage her forelegs. Pinkie and I remained friends for a long time. I never told anypony about her secret, and she tried her hardest to stop for me. After all, that’s what real best friends do for each other.