MLP: Conquering the Odds. Part 1
"Not one of my better jobs, but it's way too muggy to go on!"
Off to the east, within one of the more intact vales of vegetation and plant life of Equestria, lay the abode of the Apple family. As of this day, Equestria found itself under the influence of a life-withering heat wave, which had unfortunately resulted in a lack of work for both Applejack and her sister, Applebloom.
The two siblings had retreated to the confines of their house, desperate for salvation from this unacceptable weather, and were forced to spend the remainder of their day indoors. Applejack panted exhaustedly whilst wiping her brow of the gathering sweat, pouring forth from her currently lank hair and dripping upon the wooden floor, before she willingly collapsed on her living room sofa.
"This… was… too much…" she wheezed, unaware of her solitude within the room, but remained unwilling to consider such a petty concern. Applebloom, for her part, had collapsed carelessly on the bed in her bedroom, almost immediately falling asleep from the fatigue that the weather had inflicted upon them.
Eventually, Applejack followed suit and lost herself to her overwhelming exhaustion, resulting in the passing of two hours devoted to their recuperation.
Suddenly, Applejack was awakened by a loud 'Slam!', surprising her enough for her to lose her balance and land headfirst against the floor. "Argh! Who…" she questioned in frustration. Soon enough, the cause of the sudden onslaught against her ears had revealed herself, as Twilight hesitantly rushed to Applejack's side.
"Applejack, are you awake?!" soon rang in Applejack straining ears, before she eventually stood up from the floor and held her head within her wrapped arms to quell the trauma.
"Yes… What is it, Twilight?" she asked out of both curiosity and irritation. "It's Pinkie Pie! She's not at her house, and I couldn't find her in town. So I thought she might be here!" Twilight blabbered nervously, before Applejack answered "Well, I haven't seen her today". Applejack then pondered Twilight's actions and asked "Why are ya so worried anyway?"
Twilight simply stared at her as if she was insane and answered "What!? What if she's Pinkamena again?!" Unlike Twilight, Applejack had considered the later encounters with the devious entity, and replied "Well, Pinkamena hasn't appeared for a while… after we've rescued Pinkie Pie last time".
"How does that make a difference?" Twilight asked, an expression of confusion on her face as she awaited Applejack's response. Applejack paused to think to herself and stated "Well, we did save Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena knows it". Twilight considered this and Applejack finished "Maybe Pinkamena will start trusting us after this".
"Possibly…" Twilight began, before shaking her head and rebutting "But we can't take that chance". Applejack then reluctantly agreed and followed Twilight as she left through the front door, the pair making their way towards Ponyville to begin their search.
"We should at least make sure she hasn't gone and hurt herself".
Meanwhile, somewhere along the outskirts of Ponyville, there was a large an expansive plain that's borders ran for several miles. Tall grass swarmed across the landscape and swayed gently in the breeze. Along the edge of the plain sat a large hill, sporting several tall trees with shadows looming over the plains.
Beneath the shade of this collection of vegetation sat a lone figure, her head bowed and eyes shut as she brooded to herself. She faced out towards the plain, a majority of Ponyville sitting in her view from the yonder distance, and was lost in thought as she contemplated her situation.
Pinkie Pie's hair was hanging downwards over her shoulders, the left of her fringe covering the left half of her face. Her skin was somewhat paler than it's more natural healthy glow. But her face was the most diverting aspect of her features. Her eyes were wide open and her pupils had shrunken to disturbing measures. Her grin covered a majority of her cheeks, showing a large, white smile.
Ever since the events of two months ago, Pinkamena had been left incredibly confused about her situation. From the very beginning, Pinkamena had desired to reap her vengeance upon Pinkie Pie's colleagues for what they had done to her. Rainbow Dash's deceitful trick during April Fool's Day, Twilight spying on them and documenting their split personality, and now Maud returning out of the blue to scold Pinkie for her dilemma.
Of course, Pinkamena felt justified in harassing, abusing and harming Pinkie Pie's friends for these misdeeds.
And yet, in light of recent events, Pinkamena had no clue of what to believe. Pinkie had disappeared entirely and left Pinkamena on her own, sending the latter spiraling with dismay. And to her astonishment, Pinkie's friends went out of their way to bring her back, without any motivation or necessity to do so.
Since then, Pinkie had begun living with Maud in Sugarcube Corner, and seemed to be happier than ever before. To a great extent, Pinkamena began believing that she was wrong all along.
"NO!"
Pinkamena's eyes went wide as she leapt to her hooves, shouting openly "I can't think that! Never!" She clenched her teeth with hate, growling "All of these nice things they do… all just another trick!" before glances to the yonder Ponyville.
"I'm not convinced! I won't fall for it!" she snarled as she stepped out of the shade, making her way across the field and back towards the streets of her cherub's home. Pinkamena felt satisfied with her conclusion, her spite having provided a reason to pursue her goal.
It was midday by the time Pinkamena made her way back to Ponyville, and the streets were bustling with activity. Pedestrians crossed paths and conversed with eachother as they went about their daily business.
Pinkamena quietly meandered her way through the crowds with her eyes on the ground, avoiding eye contact with any passerby around her. She knew that some would look upon her with curiosity, either recognizing her as Pinkie Pie or a complete stranger they'd never seen before.
Pinkamena felt more and more uncomfortable as she eventually made it into the heart of the Ponyville.
However, as she carelessly wandered through to Sugarcube Corner, she had soon noticed the lack of pedestrians that would surround her like before; she wondered "Wait… Where did everypony go?" Pinkamena soon turned to examine her surroundings, realizing that the town was suddenly devoid of inhabitance, leaving the irresponsible pedestrian confused by this strange sense of solitude that surrounded her.
She turned to face the opposite direction of the intersection from whence she came, discovering that the once populated suburb had become nothing more than an abandoned street. She ran through the street and rounded a corner to her left, before stopping to find a lack of inhabitance in the following suburb.
"Excuse me, miss?" said a voice suddenly. She turned to face the opposite direction for the call, only to find nopony in her view. "Miss, are you okay there?" a second voice asked. Pinkamena clutched the sides of her head in frustration and grunted to herself. Before she even knew what had occurred, she was leaning against a wall in an alleyway, desperately gasping for breath.
"What… what's going on?!" Pinkamena stammered, a bizarre sense of confusion sweeping through her mind as her heart began beating at an uncomfortable rate.
"Pinkie Pie? Is that you?"
A faint and distant call had filled the air and infested Pinkamena's ears, filling her with a sudden sense of relief, before returning to question the affiliation of who it was that addressed her. She turned to peer towards her entrance into this foreboding neighborhood once again, to find Twilight and Applejack sprinting towards her in great hesitation.
"Ack! Not them again!" she thought to herself, before ducking behind the corner into a nearby alley way in a panic. As she gasped in fear, she had quickly concocted a scheme to prevent any evidence against her involvement. After grinning to herself in satisfaction, she suddenly lost all strength in her body as she slid down the wall and collapsed in the dirt.
And with that, by the time the distressed duo had happened upon Pinkie Pie, she was laying in torment against the brick wall to the left of the alleyway. "Pinkie Pie!?" Applejack screamed in horror before rushing to her companion's aid, while Pinkie stirred into being and tilted her head towards the pair.
"Wh… am… What the-?" Pinkie stuttered dizzily before regaining her senses and focused a single, open eye on Applejack.
"How… did I get here?" she asked Applejack with eager expectance for an answer, which was unfortunately, but inevitably, a futile pursuit. "What do ya mean, gal? We just saw ya standin' in the middle of the path here" Applejack answered in confusion.
Twilight was standing on the sidelines as Applejack tended to Pinkie, suspiciously pondering this peculiar action and questioned the cause to be either a simple action of panic, or that it was portrayed to appear that way.
As she pondered this, she soon noticed the sound of hoofsteps behind her, encouraging her to face the oncoming figure for assurance of its identity. To her surprise, an unknown pony was running franticly towards her and stopped right in front of Twilight, hesitantly pulling a bag from behind her and searching it of a specific artifact of importance.
"SorryI'malreadylateIneedtogo!" the flustered messenger blabbered in a panic, before pulling out an envelope with a thick wax seal.
"What?! Where's it fro-" the equally flustered Twilight asked, only for the messenger to interrupt "It'sfromCanterlotandtheysentmetogivethistoyouExcusemeHaveagooddayBye!" before clumsily spinning to face the opposite direction and disappearing into the street. Just listening to such an increased pace of dialogue was enough for Twilight to suffer a swiftly emerging headache.
"Who the heck was that?" Applejack exclaimed, whilst simultaneously supporting the stricken Pinkie Pie from underneath her arm. "I have no clue, but she gave me a letter from Canterlot" Twilight replied, before opening the letter and extracting the note from inside.
However, upon reading it, she discovered a mere blank piece of paper in her grasp, devoid of any writing, illustration or attachment. Twilight sat and pondered in confusion of what relevance this 'letter' could have, before suddenly having an idea; she retrieved a pen and levitated it to write upon the top-left corner of the paper.
'This is Twilight Sparkle' was written upon the paper, which resulted in the paper itself to begin glowing faintly as writing began appearing below her statement.
'Good afternoon, Miss Sparkle. This is Celestia writing to you'.
Twilight gasped in shock and quickly replied 'Your Ladyship! This is an honor to speak to you again'. 'I'm afraid there is little time to negotiate. I need you to come visit me in Canterlot'. Despite the lack of an explanation for this summoning, Twilight obliged and replied 'I'll be there by tonight, but is it alright if my friends join me?'
An unexpected pause had stretched for an extended period of time before a reply returned, 'Very well, but be sure to be here by tonight. This is of the utmost importance'. Twilight raised her eyebrow in concern for what Celestia required her for, considering her current predicament with Pinkie Pie, but inevitably obliged.
'I will be there'.
By this time, night had engulfed the town and cloaked the environment in its volatile darkness, and Twilight, Pinkie Pie and Applejack were forced to travel for almost two hours until Canterlot was in their sights. During this journey, Pinkie had fully recovered from her strange ordeal and was perfectly willing, and somewhat excited, to have the chance to meet Celestia in her abode.
However, an overwhelming sense of regret had lingered in Pinkie's subconscious, as she had neither the chance nor the consideration to inform her sister. She was afraid for Maud to discover Pinkie's absence from home and fear for her safety, just as Twilight ironically did a few hours ago.
As they finally came towards the gates to this luminescent palace, Twilight discovered the gates themselves to be oddly wide open, with a single, formally dressed pegasus standing before them to greet them. "Good evening, Miss Sparkle. We have been expecting you" the suitor informed the group, before furrowing his eyebrows in confusion; "But we were not expecting additional guests to join you".
Twilight became as equally confused as the suitor before answering "Oh! Celestia told me that they could come with me". The suitor eyed upon the two exhausted followers, before noticing Pinkie Pie and staring at her indignantly.
"Now, now. I shall handle this matter!" called a feminine voice from behind the suitor, inquiring him to turn to face this commander. Standing before them with her typical grace, as well as her impressive height, was the host of the palace herself, Princess Celestia; the representative of Equestria and Twilight's personal teacher.
"Be on your way now, if you please" she ordered the suitor, who bowed in obligation and swiftly took his leave, allowing the guests to converse in privacy. "Please, Miss Sparkle. I would not have summoned you at such a time without a just reason" she informed, as to expel any ill assumptions that may linger within this ensemble.
"I believe you, but what was it that you needed me for?" Twilight asked. Before answering, Celestia quickly held her tongue and peered upon the guests in suspicion, before confessing "I'm sorry, but I must tell this to you, and only you. We can discuss it in my conservatory".
Celestia then concentrated on Pinkie Pie and Applejack, suggesting "Meanwhile, your friends can seek comfort in my library. There will be food and drinks provided for them".
As she stated this, her attention was immediately drawn to Pinkie Pie, who had suddenly begun shaking uncontrollably while breathing heavily.
"Goodness me; are you okay, Miss Pie?" Celestia asked in genuine concern, only for Pinkie Pie to ignore this question. As soon as Twilight noticed this, her heart was instantly filled with dread, terrified of what would ensue from this unforeseen behavior.
Soon though, her bizarre shaking eventually ceased and Pinkie found herself surrounded by multiple fearful expressions. "Huh? What did you say?" Pinkie muttered unconfidently, which proved to only further concern her observers.
"Miss Pie… Is there something you wish to tell me?" Celestia questioned, inviting an opportunity to explain any situations or causes for her strange actions, which Pinkie Pie was forced to unfortunately take advantage of. "N-nothing. It was just kinda… cold outside, and the chill just caught up with me, I guess" Pinkie lied, immediately drawing Applejack's attention.
Thankfully, this response was sufficient to avoid any unwanted attention as Celestia replied "Ah… Well then, you may find many hot meals being prepared in the kitchen, and I'll have them delivered to you in the library".
"Ooh, Yum! Thanks so much, um… your ladyship?" Pinkie stumbled before finishing her sentence to judge how she would address somepony of Celestia's authority. Celestia herself merely blushed in amusement and assured "Oh, that's alright, Miss Pie. You can call me Celestia".
Pinkie sighed in relief as Twilight quickly intervened and warned the duo "You two should get to the library quickly, before your food gets cold".
Because of this, Applejack and Pinkie Pie looked at eachother mischievously before quickly making their way to the aforementioned library, while Twilight accompanied her tutor to the conservatory to converse. Suddenly they stopped and looked towards eachother in confusion, before calling out, "Um… which way's the library again?"
Several moments and directions later, the pair had finally arrived at the main door to the library. Even as she came closer to the door, the pair could smell the delicious scent of various meals and treats, exciting the ponies to the verge of salivation. Without a moment to lose, they burst through the door and made their way inside, delighted by the sight that lay before them.
Along the central table lay a series of prepared pastries and beverages for the princess's guests to consume during their stay. Without even a glace or a word to be said, the pair immediately seated themselves and began their feast.
Half an hour later, the table had been cleared of its contents, whether beverage, pastry or otherwise. A pie tin and several plates littered with various crumbs were spread across the wooden expanse, while several glasses and bottles had been emptied of their contents. As for the guests, they had retired to a pair of luxurious sofas to rest on, contently overfed from their feast.
Applejack had already fallen asleep on her back with her head against the armrest, a bottle of cider balancing sideways on her slightly distended girth. Pinkie Pie, in the meantime, was still awake, though her eyes began to droop as she yawned to herself.
She looked towards the window and found the night sky, the last sight she saw before she fell asleep.
To be continued…