Author's Notes
I did not create My Little Pony, I'm just using the characters for a fanfiction story. This story focuses specifically on characters from the toyline, including background ponies from the show who are also part of the toyline in some fashion. As a warning, some of my interpretations of the more popular background ponies from the show may be different from the common fanon interpretations of their personalities and lives. I would rather not simply copy other people's interpretations of background ponies, and would prefer to create my own versions of what they are like based off of how I interpret what is shown in the TV series and show in the backcard descriptions for the ponies who are only in the toys and not on the show itself. This story is set sometime during season 4, so after Twilight has become an alicorn.
Chapter 1: Sour Cherries
It was a busy afternoon at Sugarcube Corner. Not only was there a long line of ponies buying various treats, but Pinkie Pie had her hooves full with taking care of Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake. The two little foals were in an especially mischevious mood that day, and they had managed to sneak out into the kitchen where there were some cakes baking. Pinkie, who had been looking for them in the nursery, suddenly felt her tail twitching as she peeked into the kitchen, a sure sign that something was going to fall very soon. Sure enough, a box of cookie cutters was mysteriously scooting off of the highest shelf, as if it had decided to make a jump all on its own. Pinkie leaped and managed to catch the box as it fell, stumbling a bit and nearly crashing into a rack of cooling cupcakes. She heard a very familiar giggle that told her who the culprit was.
"Pound Cake! Get back here! I'll let you play catch outside if you promise to stop dropping things on everypony's head!" Pinkie pleaded as she saw a small, cream-colored pegasus colt fly off of the shelf where the cookie cutters had been and zoom out of the kitchen, heading into the main area where the customers were. She galloped out of the kitchen and saw Pound Cake swoop down and grab a huge container of cherries that were meant for topping sundaes. She made another leap, but was unable to prevent him from dumping all the cherries on top of an aqua blue unicorn mare who had just entered the shop. Pinkie made another leap and this time caught Pound Cake, who was distracted by giggling at the surprised, cherry-covered unicorn.
"That is enough! I don't mind pouring stuff like flour on myself to entertain you, but that doesn't mean everypony else likes getting all messy! Imagine if that had been Rarity you had dumped those on, she would be so angry at me!" Pinkie scolded.
"I don't mind, I get messy all the time. I wanted to talk to you anyway, Pinkie Pie," the unicorn mare said.
"Dewdrop Dazzle! Let me guess...your sister's birthday? It's a week from now, I know!" Pinkie said, getting excited about the idea of planning a party. Pound Cake started to sneak away, but this time, Mrs. Cake caught him, having seen what he had done.
"How did you...well, I guess that's to be expected from Ponyville's best party planner. I don't know how you remember all the birthdays of everypony in town, though. Yes, I would like you to help plan a surprise party for my younger sister, Snowcatcher," Dewdrop Dazzle answered, lowering her voice to a whisper on the last sentence.
"I will give you my special Pinkie Promise that she will have the best surprise party ever," Pinkie stated, solemnly and quietly at first, but then she let her excitement creep into her voice as she recited, "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!"
"I knew I could count on you. If we're going to keep this a secret from Snowcatcher, then we need to go someplace secret to discuss the ideas I had," Dewdrop Dazzle said, realizing that several customers kept staring at them, probably because she was covered in cherry juice. She had never planned a surprise party for anypony before, and wasn't quite sure how secretive she would have to be in order to make sure Snowcatcher didn't find out until it was the right time. Pinkie Pie nodded, made a zipping motion with her hoof over her mouth, and bounced very lightly and quietly out the door, waving for Dewdrop Dazzle to follow her lead.
Cherry Berry, who had been waiting in line for a sundae, glared at the ponies who had just left. How dare they let all those delicious cherries go to waste on the floor without even cleaning them up! She had been looking forward to having a cherry or two on her sundae, and now they were all over the dirty floor!
"I'll make them pay for not cleaning that up!" she roared, and she dashed out of Sugarcube Corner in pursuit of Pinkie and Dewdrop Dazzle. Unfortunately, she didn't see them anymore, but she did notice something that could allow her to follow and find them. There was a very distinct trail of cherry juice that had dripped off of Dewdrop Dazzle's fur, and it seemed to be leading into an alley behind a nearby flower shop.
As Cherry Berry had guessed, Pinkie Pie and Dewdrop Dazzle were hiding in that alley, busy discussing ideas for Snowcatcher's birthday party.
"Do you think you could get DJ Pon3 to be in charge of the music? I know Snowcatcher is a big fan of hers," Dewdrop Dazzle requested.
"Of course I can! I was the one who brought her to Princess Cadance's wedding in Canterlot," Pinkie Pie bragged.
"I found you! You better clean up all those cherries and get me a fresh one for my sundae for free!" shouted Cherry Berry as she burst into the alley, startling both Dewdrop and Pinkie, who didn't expect anypony to be following them.
"Ooops! I'm sorry, I just got so excited when I heard Dewdrop Dazzle wanted me to plan a party and I forgot that Pound Cake had left a big mess back at the shop!" Pinkie squeaked, ashamed that it was somewhat her fault that a regular customer of Sugarcube Corner was so angry at her.
"Plan a party, you say?" Cherry Berry said, suddenly smirking, "What if you just let me perform a comedy act for this party? And in return, I might be willing to forgive you and that little pegasus brat you were supposed to be watching." Pinkie was about to agree, being relieved that Cherry Berry didn't seem as angry anymore, but she quickly closed her mouth when she noticed that Dewdrop Dazzle didn't seem as excited by the prospect.
"It's a surprise birthday party for my sister Snowcatcher. Which means you can't do anything in your act that would offend her," Dewdrop Dazzle warned. Cherry Berry's mood soured again upon hearing who the party was for.
"I remember who SHE is. She's the one who booed my joke about the donkey and the mule and said it was 'offensive!' I didn't see any donkeys or mules complaining, so I don't know what HER problem is!" Cherry Berry snapped.
"What if you just didn't do that joke? I could teach you some new jokes that she might like better," Pinkie suggested, hoping to prevent a fight from breaking out.
"If she can't handle my humor, then it's her fault for having no sense of humor," Cherry Berry huffed.
"Excuse me, but my sister does have a sense of humor. It just happens to be different from yours," Dewdrop Dazzle interrupted icily.
"Yeah, imagine if everypony just told the same jokes over and over. BO-RING! It'll make things a lot more fun for you and your audience if you just think up some new jokes that Snowcatcher would like!" Pinkie declared perkily.
"You're one to talk. All YOUR jokes are lame and for little baby foals," Cherry Berry snapped.
"Cherry Berry, you are definitely not going to be performing at my sister's party. Not with that rude attitude. Come on, Pinkie, let's just go to my house and plan there. Snowcatcher's off helping the weather pegasi today so she won't be home until much later tonight," Dewdrop Dazzle said, noticing tears filling Pinkie's big blue eyes upon hearing Cherry Berry's insult to her jokes. She led Pinkie out of the alley; Pinkie followed her almost robotically, completely having lost the usual bounce in her step. Cherry Berry stuck her tongue out at them as she watched them leave.
"Pinkie Pie is going to be sorry she ever let my cherry sundae get ruined. And how DARE she tell me how to do comedy! My jokes aren't the problem, Snowcatcher's just too sensitive," she muttered angrily to herself. She wanted to get revenge, but how? Simply spoiling the surprise and telling Snowcatcher about the party wouldn't be enough. She had to do something that would make Pinkie Pie the laughingstock of Ponyville, and not in the way that Pinkie would want it. But who would be the best pony for her to choose to help her plan her revenge? She then thought of somepony who she knew was good at pranks, at least, and who always supported her efforts to be a comedian, and grinned wickedly before trotting off to find her potential conspirator.
Meanwhile, Dewdrop Dazzle and Pinkie Pie had arrived at the house that Dewdrop Dazzle shared with her sister Snowcatcher, as it was not too far from the alley they had been talking in. Dewdrop Dazzle was rather disturbed at how quiet Pinkie Pie was being. She hadn't spoken at all while they were walking back, all she had done was follow along obediently while tears fell out of her dazed-looking eyes. Even her usually poofy mane had gone limp, although it wasn't as completely straight as it was when she was a filly on the rock farm.
"Pinkie, almost everypony loves your parties, and your jokes aren't boring at all. Cherry Berry doesn't know what she's talking about," Dewdrop Dazzle said, hoping to get a positive reaction from the usually hyperactive party pony. Pinkie did seem to perk up a bit upon hearing this reassurance, and she wiped her tears with her hoof.
"She's never been that...that mean to me before. I always thought Cherry Berry LIKED my parties and my comedy acts," Pinkie Pie sniffled.
"Maybe she was just having a bad day. I don't know her that well, but from what she said at first, I think she's just angry because of all the cherries Pound Cake dumped on me, since she said she wanted a free cherry sundae when she found us. Maybe she'll stop being angry at you if you promise her she can have a free sundae next time she comes to Sugarcube Corner," Dewdrop Dazzle suggested.
"Yeah, you're right! I completely forgot about that! And you still have cherry juice all over your mane!" Pinkie exclaimed, now suddenly reverting to her usual demeanor, "I'M the only other pony I know who doesn't mind being covered in food, because hey, it's food, I can just lick it off myself!"
"Like I said, I don't care much about getting messy. It's not like I was planning on going to the Grand Galloping Gala or anything. I'll just take a shower later," Dewdrop Dazzle shrugged.
"Okay then, let's make some plans for your sister's party before she comes home!" Pinkie declared cheerfully.
