Twilight Sparkle strolled through the streets of Ponyville, making her way towards Sugarcube Corner. As usual, Pinkie Pie had invited her to her latest party, and insisted that she show up at four o'clock sharp. Glancing at the clock tower revealed that Twilight had ten minutes to make it to the sweet shop, and the last thing she wanted was to leave Pinkie hanging. I'd better pick up the pace if I want to get there on time, she thought as she moved from a stroll to a brisk trot. As she made her way through town, she noticed that the streets, bustling and full of life on any given day, were all but deserted. A stray tumbleweed blew across her path just to embellish this oddness. And while it may have been odd, Twilight wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

It had been a year since she and Spike first arrived in Ponyville, her initial hesitance and awkwardness melting away with help from her friends. As she drew closer to Pinkie's house, Twilight couldn't help but smile at the memories-Rainbow Dash pulling off the Sonic Rainboom, Fluttershy giving that dragon what for, Rarity's dresses she made them for the Gala, Applejack's willingness to always lend a helping hand, and, of course, Pinkie's parties. Numerous and neverending, she always marveled at how her cheerful mood never wavered (except for that freak occurrence with her surprise birthday party) and at her ability to maintain a maximum level of enjoyment at every party she threw. The old cliche proved true in this case: when it came to throwing parties, Pinkie Pie was a force of nature.

When she got close enough to Sugarcube Corner, Twilight could hear muffled music coming from the shop, the initial sound a lot louder than Pinkie's turntable. Puzzled, the purple pony opened the door to reveal an epic party underway, balloons and streamers everywhere and packed to capacity with everypony in town in attendance. Scanning the room revealed that DJ P0N-3 was behind the throbbing cadence she heard on her way in, and it was a darned catchy cadence at that, evidenced by the fact that Rainbow Dash, Rarity and even Fluttershy were dancing to it. Twilight smiled and headed upstairs, chuckling as she caught sight of Spike singing "Everypony Needs Somepony To Love" on a karaoke machine. Three tables were set up and filled with sweets, punch and snacks of all kinds, and when Applejack went to grab another glass of punch, Twilight went to join her.

"What's the occasion?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, hey, Twilight!" Applejack said, putting her glass down. "You made it with two minutes to spare! How ya doin', sugarcube?"

"Great! It looks like Pinkie really pulled out all the stops for this one!"

"She sure did, didn't she? It's almost time for her speech, so let's get movin'!"

"Speech? What speech?"

Applejack smiled and replied, "You'll see."