"They are definitely up to no good, that's for sure." Dash was in the middle of explaining to the rest of the girls her encounter with Indigo just a few days prior. She and the rest of the girls, minus Sunset, who'd left to get to the party early, were on their way to the local arcade where the celebration was being held, presents in hand. With the exception of Pinkie Pie, everyone else in the group was in agreement that the Crystal Prep girls had ill intentions for being Twilight's "friends".
"I think so too Dash, but do you really think it was the best idea to go over and confront Indigo like that?" Fluttershy asked.
"Of course. It was the only way to show those Crystal Prep girls we mean business." Dash strode ahead of the group triumphantly as they approached their destination. "I bet none of them even show up." Her confident demeanor changed once she rounded the street corner to the front of the arcade and saw the very girls she'd been talking about the whole way there just arriving as well.
"So, how much were you betting?" Pinkie said with a smile on her face as the two groups eyed each other up for a considerable amount of time.
"What are you doing here?" Dash inquired.
"It should be obvious from the presents in our hands and the fact that we're standing in front of this establishment that we're here for the birthday party." Sugarcoat responded.
"Yeah," Indigo chose to chime in. "And it's a free country, so we..." She was cut short as an annoyed Sugarcoat covered her mouth.
"So what exactly did you get Twilight for her birthday?" Sour Sweet asked with a smirk.
"Well, if you must know," Rarity answered. "it's something so unique, one of a kind that..."
"You made it yourself, didn't you?" Indigo interrupted. "Way to dig deep for a friend."
"Gah...Well I never!" Rarity fumed as the two groups prepared to tear into one another. The only thing that stopped any physical altercation was the front doors of the building sliding open as Sunset walked out.
"There you girls are. Come on. Twilight's been waiting for everyone."
"Y'all had better behave yourselves, understand?" Applejack whispered to Sunny as the group filed inside.
"Could say the same thing, hayseed." the Crystal Prep student countered with a smug expression on her face.
The group made their way through the arcade where they eventually reached where Twilight sat, a blindfold over her eyes and sound canceling headphones on her ears. "She's been sitting like that for the last hour." Sunset walked over and prepared to remove both the tools impairing the other girl's senses. "I'm honestly surprised she's waited this long but now that everyone is here..."
"Surprise!" The group said in disjointedly as many of them were giving their counterparts angry glares, though each one managed to put on a convincing smile for the birthday girl. Twilight had an excited smile on her face as she beheld all of her friends in one place as well as a table full of assorted snacks and drinks which Pinkie Pie had surely supplied along with the traditional cake in the center.
"Wow!" Twilight said as she jumped up from her seat. "This looks great and I'm so glad you could all make it." She hugged the nearest one, Indigo in this case.
"Wouldn't have missed this, Sparkle. That's what real friends are for, right?" The blue haired girl said as she and the other CP girls gathered around Twilight. This action did nothing to garner them any favor with the girls from CHS who seemed a few seconds away from jumping on the group, minus Twilight.
"Are you girls alright?" Sunset asked as the others realized that the looks on their faces fully expressed what they felt inside. A few seconds later they calmed down and, following Rarity's lead, composed themselves.
"Absolutely fine, darling. Why do you ask?"
"Look, I know you're all feeling a little...jealous that Twilight is hanging out with Indigo and the others..." She received a scoff as a response from Dash. "Anyway, she's just trying to get to know them and they want to get to know her too. Can't we all just be happy for her and try to get along, even if it's just for today?"
The mumbles and grumbles from the group sufficed for an answer to Sunset as Pinkie joined in and pulled a cupcake out of her hair. "Yeah, come on girls. Let's party hardy!"
"That's the spirit, Pinkie. Now let's go and give Twilight a birthday she'll never forget."
Sunset departed as the group made their way out to the game floor where Twi and the other girls were playing any game that caught their attention. "Pinkie, don't you realize what this means?" Dash whispered as Pinkie stared blankly forward, which the Rainbow haired girl could only assume was some form of thought process. "Listen, I know you think that nothing bad is going to happen but wake up and smell the cupcakes. Even if the Crystal Prep girls aren't trying to prank her, think what that'll mean for Twilight. She'll have less and less time to spend with us if she's always hanging out with them. That means no more spontaneous party invites from you."
Pinkie Pie froze in her tracks as she envisioned the horror.
Pinkie's Imagination Zone
"La la la la." Pinkie sung happily as she skipped down the street with a basket full of party invites. She spotted Twilight in the back of a red convertible with the Shadowbolts filling the rest of the seats. "Hey, Twilight. I'm throwing a huge party and you're invited." She handed a specially decorated invite to the girl who looked it over with disinterest.
"Oh gee...thanks, Pimkie Pie but me and the girls had plans today. In fact, we'll be pretty busy for the foreseeable future so..." Twilight crumpled up the invitation and chucked it back as it bounced off Pinkie's head. The vehicle peeled out and left Pinkie choking on a cloud of smoke. Out of nowhere it began to rain, drenching the girl and causing her hair to droop down.
Reality
"Noooooo!" Pinkie shouted as the cupcake in her hands went flying through the air, giving Dash a cause for alarm.
"Pinkie, was that a sugary cupcake you just hurled away while you were wearing your geode?" The girl responded with a confirming nod. "Mm hmm, I see. And we're moving." She guided the other girls away in a hurry as the pastry soared through the air.
At a nearby table, Mr. Cranky Doodle sat as he attempted to enjoy a large pizza. The cupcake landed in the center of it and promptly detonated, coating the man in sauce, cheese and various toppings. "Why do I even bother?"
In the arcade area the girls disembarked to try and enjoy the many games available to them. Fluttershy stepped up to a machine with holes all over it's surface. Attacked to the side by a cord was a foam covered stick. She looked at it curiously before depositing her two quarters as the game started up. Immediately furry heads popped out and sink back into the wholes, randomly and much to sudden for the girl who ducked in fear for a moment. Indigo stood beside her, shaking her head in shame as the other girl noticed her looming overhead.
"What, you've never seen a whack-a-mole machine before?" she asked as she rolled her eyes. "Let me show you how it's done." Indigo took the foam mallet and inserted her coins. Once the game started she took to hitting the moles as they popped out of their holes, never missing one as Fluttershy watched. Soon afterward, a large stream of tickets came out of the port on the front of the machine. Indigo promptly snatched them up. "And that's how it's done."
"Oh my. This game seems awfully...violent."
"Well, aren't you a delicate little flower?" Indigo promptly took her tickets and walked off. Fluttershy stood there for a moment as one of the moles popped up suddenly which caused her to shriek in terror.
Across the arcade, Lemon Zest and Sunny Flare were showing off their best moves on one of the two duel dancing machines as Rainbow Dash and Applejack headed to the shooter games section. "What the heck is that?!" Dash shouted, making sure she was loud enough for the CP girls to hear her over the sound of the music and stomping foot movements. The noise momentarily distracted Sunny, which made lose her focus and fall flat on the seat of her pants. Dash laughed loudly at the girl's misfortune. Applejack herself couldn't help but share in her friend's jubilation.
"Don't you two have anything better to do?" Sunny asked as she got back to her feet and the song ended.
"Well, we were going to head to the ski ball table but we had some extra time." Dash joked as she gave Applejack a high-five.
"You've had your laughs," Sunny dusted off her clothing as she leaned over the back rail of the platform. She took notice of the large collection of tickets in the girl's hand. "I'd like to see you do any better."
"Please, I'd destroy you." Dash said confidently.
"Then put up or shut up." Lemon said.
"Okay, but how about a real challenge? A one on one dance off. We win, you leave right now and don't bother Twilight ever again."
"I-I don't know about that. Isn't that a little too..." Sunny said hesitantly as she fidgeted with her fingers.
"Fine, but if we win you hand over all your tickets." Lemon chimed in confidently. "Let's make things a little more interesting. Tootie fruity hair and me get our eyes covered and the other two shout out the steps. How about it?"
"Lemon, are you nuts?" Sunny shouted as she grabbed her by the shoulders.
"Relax, we got this."
Applejack and Rainbow traded looks before smiling as they turned back to the girls. "Let's do it."
Lemon and Dash we're promptly blindfolded as they were lead onto the dance pads. Applejack and Sunny deposited the coins and the contest began. "Alright, left, right, forward, uh...left, left with the extended bar thingy..." Applejack attempted to instruct her friend as Rainbow did her best to react as swiftly as she could.
On the other side, Sunny calmly called out the steps and Lemon, with military discipline, followed each instructed step without hesitation. The Crystal Prep girl stood back as she casually picked her nails as AJ nervously did her best to help out Dash. The farm girl found it difficult to follow the ever descending stream of steps and call them out to her partner.
"Ah forget this." Dash said as she gripped the geode around her neck and used her super speed in an attempt to pick up the slack in Applejack's instructions. Sunny is shocked as she witnessed the girls feet move at incredible speed. She soon snapped out of it and got back to instructing her compatriot. Rainbow got a bit overzealous and actually rocketed off the dance pad, slammed into the screen and slid off like a bug off a windshield.
"Well that's that I suppose." Sunny said as the song wrapped up and Lemon removed her blindfold. "Good job, Lemon. And thank you Dash." The girl stood over the fallen girl and relieved her of the tickets.
"Why do I get the feeling we got taken for a ride?" Dash asked as Applejack helped her to her feet.
"I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that Lemon Zest here comes from a military family. She can follow commands like nobody's business." Sunny said.
Lemon immediately dropped to the floor and performed several one armed push-ups. "Army Cadet Corps, suckers! Serves you right." She popped back up and gave Sunny a high five as the two departed which left the none too pleased CHS students.
After a series of humiliating ordeals at the hands of their rivals, the girls of CHS sat across from the Shadowbolts as Twilight blew out the candles of her cake. The two groups clapped, all the while leering at one another. "So, what did you wish for?" Sunset asked.
"Come on, Sunset, you know how it works. I can't tell you or it won't come true."
"Well, for now what do you say we focus on opening some presents?" Sour Sweet suggested as she reached over to pull her gift closest to Twilight.
"Splendid idea," Rarity commented as she pushed her present over as well. "Why don't you open mine first?"
"I'm sure she'll get to all the presents, so she might as well open the best ones first."
"So why is yours first?" Dash cut in as she moved Sour to the side.
"Um, maybe she could open..." Fluttershy squeaked out before being drowned out by the other quarreling girls. "Never mind."
"Girls, please." Twilight pleaded as the arguments escalated. Soon everyone, sans Twilight, Fluttershy, who took cover below the table and Sugarcoat, had left their seats and were squaring off against each other.
"Hey, let go!" Sunny ordered as Rarity held onto the other end of Flare's present. The two wrestled with the box until it finally ripped in half, the teal dress inside along with it. "Look what you did!"
"Everybody just calm down." Sunset did her best to break up the various scuffles as a member of the staff tried to aid her.
"I'm sick of you thinking we're the bad guys when you're the problem here!" Indigo said as she glared at Pinkie Pie.
"Yeah, well...well you take the fun out of funnel cake!" Pinkie spotted as she held up the aforementioned treat.
"That makes like zero sense." Lemon said.
"YOU MAKES ZERO SENSE!" the pink haired girl flung the pastry at Lemon who quickly ducked under it. Unfortunately for them it landed squarely in Twilight's cake, to the dismay of everyone.
"Oh boy." Dash said nervously as the funnel cake exploded, taking the cake with it.
"Twilight!" The group shouted in unison as they rushed over to where the birthday girl was seated, her face and clothes covered with cake. Across from her was Sugarcoat, ironically coated in the remains of the baked good and Fluttershy, who sheepishly emerged from beneath the table.
"Are you okay?" Indigo asked as everyone gathered around.
"Here, let us help..." Rarity attempted to help Twilight with a handkerchief only for her hand to be smacked away by the girl.
"I can't believe you, any of you." Twilight got to her feet and looked at all present. "You want to know what I wished for? I wished that you all could get along and be friends, but I guess it was too much to ask for."
"Come on, Twi..." Lemon tried to place a reassuring hand to her shoulder only to have it pushed away.
"Don't! Just leave me alone." She shook off what little cake would come off and headed for the door.
The two groups looked at each other angrily as they started to argue once again. "Are you all serious?" Sunset spoke out. "You're all call yourselves her friends but you couldn't put aside your differences for her for one day. Twilight, wait up."
"Ah, jeez..." Rainbow cast her gaze downward as she rubbed the back of her head in shame as the other girls did similar.
Outside the building, Twilight had run several blocks to get away from her so called friends and found a spot on a nearby bench. "You look like you've had an...interesting day." Twi took notice as a girl with purple hair sat next to her. She sported a powder blue top with black pants and white sneakers.
"You could say that." Twilight had a small cloth that she used in an attempt to clean the residue from her lenses. "Had some trouble with some of my...friends."
"Believe me, I've had some experience with that kind of trouble." The girl snapped her finger in realization. "Hey, why don't you let me treat you to some food and get you cleaned up. Looks like you could use it."
Twi sat for a moment to think before she smiled at the girl and responded. "You know what? Yeah, sounds great. I really appreciate it Miss..."
"Call me Starlight, Starlight Glimmer."