An Important Question
Deep in her (not so secret) party planning cave, Pinkie Pie was bouncing around and sorting through her various files on everypony and nonpony that she knew. One couldn't be a party planner without a proper filing system that was right up to date. If even a single file was out of place it could throw the entire system out of order, and that would never do.
So Pinkie was devoting a great deal of time to going through every file she had, checking to make sure everything was in its proper place and updating whatever needed to be updated. There was one file in particular she was very eager to add to, the one on her special somepony. To think it had been almost a month since she had helped him get his laugh back, and inspired him to get back on the road.
The pink party pony pranced about, a bright smile plastered perfectly on her pristine face. "Oh Cheese, you're a stallion any mare would consider herself lucky to have," She said out loud as a dreamy sigh escaped her lips. "Hard to believe we've been a couple for more than a year now. Time sure does fly."
That brought a thought to the forefront of the party planner's mind. The anniversary of her and Cheese entering into a relationship was coming up. She hadn't exchanged letters with him since he'd gone back on the road, but Pinkie was certain that even he knew about the important milestone. "I should totally do something for him when he comes back to Ponyville! Our anniversary is a special occasion, especially when you're in a long distance relationship." She thought to herself, and made a mental note to ask the Cakes for advice later on. They seemed to have plenty of romantic advice that they were willing to give Pinkie.
But that could wait. For right now, Pinkie needed to focus on updating Cheese Sandwich's file. She hadn't touched it in quite some time and it was among the files most in need of adding onto. "Gotta make sure to include the fact that he never goes anywhere without Boneless Two," She said with a giggle. "He even sleeps with that rubber chicken by his side. Of course, he doesn't know I know, that's just a little secret Boneless Two and I share." A goofy grin broke out across her face upon thinking about that. Especially since that wasn't the only secret Boneless Two had told her about Cheese Sandwich.
As Pinkie was hard at work in her party planning cave, she was unaware that her special somepony was closer than she might have assumed. Cheese was equally aware of the coming anniversary, and had already secretly arrived in Ponyville. "Well, Boneless Two, we made it," The stallion spoke while adorned in his cowpony get up. "Good old Ponyville, the place where it all began."
Boneless Two said nothing, he just rested his head against his traveling partner's neck.
"Yeah, I know it's a long trip, buddy. But it'll all be worth it," Cheese reassured the rubber chicken. "Now come on, there's a little something we need to tend to for tomorrow. Something that'll make this an anniversary to remember, if all goes well." Had one been watching closely, they might have seen what appeared to be a gulp form upon the party pony's face, if only for a second or two.
The next day dawned with Pinkie unaware of what lay in store for her. All she knew was that it marked the official two year anniversary of her and Cheese Sandwich being together. An anniversary that wouldn't be complete without a certified Pinkie Pie party to be held that evening at Sugarcube Corner, with guests that would include Maud and her boyfriend Mud Briar, Sugar Belle, and even some of the students from Twilight's School of Friendship.
But evening was a long way away, so after breakfast Pinkie bounced away to find something to do to pass the time. Plus, this would give everypony else time to get ready for the big celebration that evening (and maybe get some last minute shopping done, both for the anniversary celebration and for Pinkie's birthday which was coming up just after the anniversary).
Pinkie hadn't been bouncing for very long when she suddenly ran smack into something, or rather someone. Her blue eyes looked up, and immediately locked onto the familiar green eyes of her special somepony, Cheese Sandwich.
Cheese was still wearing his cowpony attire, so he spoke in a low tone of voice. "This is a funny way of saying howdy, Miss. Pie."
Pinkie giggled as a faint blush formed on her cheeks. "Sorry, Cheese, I didn't see you there."
Cheese raised the tone of his voice just a little as he lifted his black cowpony hat, offering his marefriend a helping hoof. "Well to be fair, you probably weren't expecting me to be back so soon. I just got back on the road not that long ago, so you probably figured I'd be working extra hard to catch up on all the joy I missed out on spreading," Then he smiled. "But I figured that can wait. I didn't miss our anniversary last year, and I most certainly didn't wanna miss it this year. Especially because I've got something extra special planned for the two of us. Something that's gonna change everything."
"Ooh, a surprise!" Pinkie chirped and bounced all around. "What is it?! What is it?! What is it?! Come on, Cheese, tell me!"
The stallion with a coat of light brilliant gamboge just smiled, admiring the way his special somepony displayed her excitement. That was just the sort of thing he liked about her. "Oh, I can't do that, Pinkie. I'd spoil the surprise. And you know that's a big party planning no no."
At that, the party pony ceased her bouncing. "Ooh, I hate it when you make a point!" She playfully pouted. "How long do I have to wait for the surprise?"
"Well actually, I've got everything all set up," Cheese happily explained to Pinkie. "And I think you're very much going to like it. If you've got nowhere else to be, I'll take you to it now."
"I've got time! Our anniversary bash isn't until this evening, and it's totally gonna freak everyone's frizz!" Pinkie proudly exclaimed.
Cheese just smiled more. "With you, Pinkie, I'm sure it will. Your parties are always top notch."
"Stop it, Cheese, you're gonna make me blush more. Besides, there's no need to be humble, your parties are every bit as spectacular as mine. And you're a certified party pony to boot." Pinkie grinned as she gave Cheese a hug.
Now it was Cheese's turn to blush and get flustered. Fortunately, his hat was there to shield his face so no one but him and Boneless Two could see it. Once he had regained his composure though, he led Pinkie away.
The two party ponies trotted through Ponyville together, admiring the fine weather the pegasi had brought forth for this day. But their destination was actually on a hilltop overlooking the town, a hilltop similar to the one that Pinkie had sat on with Maud and Mudbriar during Maud's last surprise birthday party (since then the parties for Maud had been a quieter affair with just a few close friends).
And atop the hill rested a lovely red and white checkered picnic blanket, with a beautiful wicker basket with a couple of balloons tied to it. Not to mention a huge assortment of treats, along with plates and cups.
"A picnic lunch of all your favorite foods," Cheese explained to Pinkie. "I got it all set up yesterday." "And that's not the only thing my surprise consists of," He thought to himself. "But no need to rush into it just yet. Gotta wait and play my cards when the time is right."
"Oh Cheese, you really shouldn't have!" The mare happily exclaimed. "Just being around you is special enough! But I guess it would be a shame to let all that yummy food go to waste."
Cheese laughed as he moved to the picnic blanket and sat down, Boneless Two being seated by his side. "I knew you would say that, Pinkie. But then, few know you better than I do."
Pinkie bounced over, sitting down on the other side of the blanket. "Well duh, we wouldn't be in a relationship if that wasn't the case. Can you believe it's been two whole years since we got together? Seems like only yesterday we shared our first kiss."
"Yeah, time sure does fly, doesn't it?" The party stallion giggled. "But enough chit chat, let's just enjoy this fine picnic lunch together. And then we can just spend the afternoon hanging out together, unless you've got somewhere you need to be?"
Pinkie shook her head. "Nopearooni. No classes to teach, no foals to foalsit, and no parties to plan. My schedule is officially, one hundred percent cleared."
"Good, that means I've got all the time in the world to work on how to best break the question to her," Cheese thought. "I'm only gonna get one shot at this, so it has to be good!"
The picnic lunch came and went without fanfare for the two party ponies, though every so often Pinkie could've sworn she saw Cheese glancing at her with uncertainty. But even when she so much as blinked the glance would no longer be there, and she would be convinced she was just imagining things.
For a while afterward neither spoke a word. They just laid there on the grass, gazing up at the sky and watching the clouds pass by overhead.
Eventually though, they had to pack up the picnic stuff and depart from the hilltop. They gathered up all the empty dishes and cups, putting them into the basket with the blanket and then watching as the balloons carried it away.
There was still some time before the big anniversary celebration Pinkie had planned, so the two opted to spend that time simply trotting through Ponyville and taking in the sights and sounds.
Throughout it all Pinkie noticed that Cheese was being awfully quiet, as though something was on his mind. But he didn't seem to be anywhere close to how he had been the last time she'd met him, when he was stuck at that gag factory and had lost his laugh completely.
But maybe that just meant something else was going on inside him, something that he wasn't telling her for fear she might worry herself sick over it. Well, Pinkie wasn't a mind reader (though at times she wished she could be), but she knew her special somepony enough to know that if she got him talking long enough he would usually confess. "So, Cheese, what's it like to be back on the road after being away from it for so long?" She innocently asked.
"Oh, it took some getting used to, but by now I think I can safely say I'm back in the swing of things. Cheese Sandwich is back and better than ever!" Cheese proudly proclaimed.
"Really? You don't seem to be acting like it," Pinkie not so subtly ribbed her coltfriend. "Something on your mind?"
The stallion shook his head. "No, nothing. I've just been doing some... thinking, that's all."
"Thinking? About what?" Pinkie questioned further.
"W-well," Cheese fought back a gulp. "It's something... really important, something extra special. It's a huge undertaking that could change our lives forever. And I want to make sure I get it just right, because I know I'm only gonna get one shot at it. So I don't wanna mess it up."
At that Pinkie stopped dead in her tracks, spun around, and looked Cheese square in the eyes. "Cheese, are you saying what I think you're trying to say?" She felt her heart start to flutter. Truth be told she had dreamed of something like this for a while.
"Well that depends," Cheese vaguely replied as his eyes darted around. "What do you think I'm trying to say, Pinkie?"
"Would it help if we went somewhere a little more private?" Pinkie suggested. "We're just approaching the park, and the gazebo's unoccupied. If you have something you wanna say to me, you can say it there. And that way it'll just be you, I, and Boneless Two of course."
The stallion slowly and somewhat nervously nodded his head. It was sooner than he would've liked, but in his heart he knew that the time had come. He couldn't put it off any longer (well technically he could, but there'd be no point in doing so). So he allowed himself to be led along by his special somepony, his mind was operating almost entirely on auto-pilot at this point.
It was only a matter of minutes before Cheese was alone with Pinkie (and Boneless Two), standing in the gazebo in the middle of the park. He took a deep breath to try and steady his nerves. It mostly worked but not completely.
"Okay, Cheese, it's time to confess!" Pinkie demanded of her special somepony as she pressed her snout up to his. "If you've got something to say, you'd better say it now."
Cheese took another deep breath. This was it, the moment he'd been both dreading but also silently planning for. "Pinkie, there's no easy way for me to say this," He began as he kept his eyes fixated on hers. "You mean the world to me. I didn't like who I was originally. Back in Manehattan I was the shy, weird little colt that nopony ever wanted to make friends with. I was a nopony. Then I stumbled into Ponyville in the middle of one of your parties, and that was the day my life changed. The day I decided to become a super duper party pony and make a name for myself."
"Cheese, I already know this. You told me all about it after the goof-off before Rainbow Dash's birthaversary." Pinkie giggled.
"I know, Pinkie. But I'm not done," Cheese cautioned as he paused for a moment. "You've been my idol and my inspiration. I could never imagine what my life would be like if I never met you. Whenever I'm with you, I feel like I'm on top of the world. And after you helped bring back my laugh, made me realize how much I longed to spread joy and see the smiles on everyone's faces, I started to realize that what we had was special. You complete me in a way that not even Boneless Two or any of his brothers ever could," He started to dig into his yellow shirt, looking for something. "Hold on, I know I put that thing somewhere. Maybe I put it in my other pocket? Or maybe I stashed it in my mane?" He put a hoof to his mane and started to rummage through it as various objects tumbled out, but not the one he was looking for.
By now, even to a pony like Pinkie who didn't always pick up on the obvious, there was no doubt as to what Cheese was trying to do. "Oh Cheese, you don't need to ask, my answer is yes!"
"But Pinkie, you don't know what I'm going to say! Just give me a moment, please!" Cheese insisted as he kept digging. "Of all the things to misplace, it had to be the one thing I absolutely needed!"
"What do you mean? It's right here, silly!" Pinkie declared with a grin as she pulled out a small, dark blue colored box. "Wasn't hard to notice it sticking out of your shirt pocket. You didn't even notice when it fell out, good thing I did. What would you ever do without me? Don't answer that, I already know!"
Cheese rushed over and grabbed the box! "Hey! Uh... you didn't open it, did you?!" He asked with concern.
The pink coated earth pony shook her head. "Nopearooni, I didn't peek! But I know what it is, I know what you're asking."
Cheese didn't pay any notice to Pinkie's comment, he just dropped to his knees and held up the box as he opened it. "Pinkie Pie, will you marry me?"
A sparkling, dazzling diamond ring greeted Pinkie's blue eyes! She immediately squealed with delight! "Cheese, I already told you, my answer is yes! And now I'm even more sure of it! Of course I'll marry you! How could I possibly say no?! You and I, we were meant to be!"
"Indeed we were, Pinkie," Cheese smiled as he slipped the ring onto his intended's front left hoof. "But I hope you realize we're gonna have to work extra hard to plan a wedding now."
"Are you kidding?! You're looking at the pony who made Shining Armor and Princess Cadence's royal wedding a night to remember, even after the changeling invasion!" Pinkie boasted. "And if not for a bugbear attack, I'd have had the honor of hosting Cranky and Matilda's wedding too. Not that Sparkler did a bad job, but it takes a party pony to outdo another party pony. Unless, you're boneless."
The stallion blinked in surprise. "Hey, I told you nopony calls me boneless! Right Boneless Two?" The rubber chicken on his back didn't reply, so he turned back to Pinkie. "I didn't know you were that skilled at planning weddings. That's one thing I've never been drafted to plan."
"Oh, there's a lot you still don't know about me, Cheese," Pinkie said with a grin, kissing her soon to be husband on the cheek. "And now you've got a lifetime to find out. And I have the same time to find out all there is to know about you," Then she added with a chuckle. "I already know who we can make the best man at our wedding, Boneless Two. He'll totally say yes!"
"But won't Gummy be jealous?" Cheese questioned.
Pinkie waved a hoof. "Gummy will be one of the groom's helpers, the chief one in fact. I'm sure he won't mind."