Rainbow kicked her hooves onto the nearest table and leaned her chair against the wall as she howled with laughter.

"You did not say that... Did you?"

"Ah sure did." Applejack slammed her empty cider mug on the table and grinned.  "Though Ah doubt he took mah suggestion to heart.  After all, apples were made to be shoved in a different hole all together."

"I bet the message got through to him, though."

"Eeyup, he stopped tryin' ta hit on me after that."

Rainbow grinned as she tipped her own glass to her lips.  Two short gulps later it was empty.  She reached further along the table, her hoof trying to find the nearest filled mug, but it turned up short.

Tearing herself away from Applejack's tale about Trenderhoof, she turned her head and saw the bare stretch of polished oak.

"Hey," Rainbow called over the pulsating dance music filling the room.  "Are we out of cider?"

Applejack glanced at the table.  "Looks like it, but what did ya expect?  Darn near all of Ponyville here; even with all the cider Pinkie bought, it wouldn't hold out forever."

"I'm going to go find her," Rainbow declared, shifting out of the chair.  "Maybe she's got some extra stored in case of emergencies."  Applejack didn't object, knowing the dangers of getting between Rainbow and a keg of cider.

"Check the dance floor first!"  she called.  Rainbow nodded her acknowledgment as she wormed her way through the crowd.

When she got the invitation four hours earlier for what could only be described as a last minute party, Rainbow expected it to be nothing more than a small get together of her friends.  Never did the thought cross her mind that Pinkie invited all of Ponyville to Sugar Cube Corner.  Granted, not everypony showed up, but it was still crammed to the point that ponies poured out of the building and onto the street.

It was tightly packed, both inside and out.  Just walking down the hall meant subjecting herself to an array of rubbing against bodies, accidental gropes, and the kind of hair-in-your-mouth closeness that would drive a claustrophobic insane, sane, and insane again.  Luckily it was barely noticeable through all the fun ponies were having.

The funny thing was, nopony seemed to know exactly what this party was for.  Dash had asked around, and only come up with vague rumors.  She even asked Pinkie herself, but the only response offered was, “I can’t tell you that, it would spoil the surprise!”  Pinkie had then proceeded to boop Dash on the nose, and dash off to stick her nose in the cupcakes.

Following that, Dash simply shrugged and adopted the “It’s Pinkie Pie Don’t Question It” mentality.  Knowing her, the entire party was probably just a monument to partying in general anyway.

As she neared the dance floor, the music turned from pulsating to downright pounding.  She could feel her bones rattling as she rounded the corner and appeared at the edge of the dance floor.  A quick scan of the area let Rainbow know her friend was not there.  She decided to ask around, and tapped a mint green unicorn on the shoulder.

“Hey, Lyra!” Rainbow hollered over the music.  Lyra stopped her spasmodic limb flinging and turned around.

“Hi, Rainbow!” she loudly replied, a smile plastered onto her sweaty face.

“Have you seen Pinkie Pie anywhere?”  

Lyra’s smile faltered as she cocked her head.  “What?”

“HAVE YOU SEEN PINKIE PIE ANYWHERE?”

“Oh… nope.”  Lyra turned her head around, giving about half the ponies in the room a passing glance.  “Haven’t seen her.”

“Thanks anyway,” Rainbow said, though her words never reached Lyra’s ears.  The mare was already back to what could laughably be called dancing.  Rainbow had half a mind to step in and show her how it was done, but didn’t.  She was much more concerned about her quest for cider.

I guess Lyra’s bad dancing gets a pass from me this time.  Dash turned, ready to look elsewhere for Pinkie, and rammed into another pony instead.  When she recovered, Dash looked and saw the pile of purple she’d bumped into.  Huh, speaking of bad dancers.

“‘Sup, Twilight.”

“Hi, Rainbow.” Twilight had practically all of her lower lip in her mouth, and her eyes were darting about in anxiety.

“You doing okay?”

“Me?  I’ve, uh… I’m fine…”

“Cool.  Have you seen Pinkie anywhere?”

The mention of Pinkie’s name sent waves of discomfort across Twilight.  Her body stiffened, and head hung in a slight burst of shame.  “I… I think she’s upstairs.”

“You think or you know?  Come on Twilight, this is important.”

“She’s upstairs.”  Twilight started moving, pushing past Rainbow and at least a dozen other ponies with her telekinesis.  

        That’s unusual.  “Hey, Twilight, is everything all right?”

        Her friend froze, and turned halfway around.  “I-I… you know…”  she slowly began backing away.  “I just really need to get home.”  

        Rainbow watched as Twilight bolted, turning the hallway into a life-sized bowling alley as she left.  Her eyes narrowed in confusion, but when her tongue cried out from lack of cider she let her friend’s odd behavior slide for now.

        Back on the hunt for Pinkie, Dash made her way towards the stairs.  It was a motley of passed out ponies, but she merely opened her wings and flew to the top step.  Looking around, Dash tried to discern which room was Pinkie’s.  It didn’t help that this floor was nearly as crowded as below.

        Dash wormed her way through another barrage of bodies and began looking for the door that led to Pinkie’s room.  She thought the one at the end of the hall was it, but when she opened it she only found the Cake Twins sleeping peacefully.  How that was possible with the ear-shattering music, Dash would never know.

        Closing that door behind her, Rainbow tried to find a different one to take her to Pinkie.  The body count was getting her turned around, and so Rainbow promptly thought, screw manners, and began to push everypony she came across, be it to the ground or simply out of her way, until she reached the next door.

        Nudging it open, she found it to be Pinkie’s room.  It was an empty, dark space, and just as soon as she’d opened the door Dash began to close it.  That is, until a pink figure caught her eye.

        With the door half open, Dash looked a little closer and saw what could only be Pinkie Pie standing out on the balcony.  If she had been thinking about it at the time, Rainbow would have found it strange that her friend was up here opposed to partying with the rest of the town.  Instead, Dash was more focused on getting some cider.

        She shut the door behind her with a soft click, and there was a sudden and noticeable change in the room.  All the dance music blaring from downstairs found itself muffled and subjected to the background.  The bright lights and colorful decorations were also absent now, making the room seen almost grim.

        "Pinkie?" Dash softly asked.  Her friend showed no sign of hearing.  She walked forward, her hooves lightly treading over the wooden floor.  

        Halfway through the room, Rainbow bumped into a desk.  Unconsciously, she glanced down for a moment before moving on.  Her eyes glazed over what looked like a hastily-scrawled note.

        To whoever cares whoever finds this letter,

        Her eyes peeled away from the paper then, and she kept moving.  Under normal circumstances, Rainbow would be curious at this point, but a parched tongue at the party of the year wasn't quite the usual for her.  

        Focusing back to Pinkie Pie, Dash saw her place her front hooves on the railing.  She pushed herself up, and swung all four hooves onto the edge.  Wobbling, she stood upright on her hind legs.

        Rainbow, watching with a growing concern, stepped onto the balcony and said, "Pinkie?"

        The sudden noise startled Pinkie, sending a jolt through her body.  Dash's heart skipped a beat until Pinkie fell to the side and wrapped her front hooves around the railing.

        Her head turned, revealing her face.  Pinkie's usual blue eyes were red and puffy from what could only be crying.  The trail of tears running down her cheeks confirmed this.

"R-Rainbow?"

She moved her hoof forward.  "Pink-"

"Don't come any closer!"

Dash froze, and then retracted her hoof.  "Pinkie... What are you doing?"

Pinkie glanced over the side of the balcony; a single teardrop fell before she looked back at Dash and sniffled.  "I...I..."

        "You were going to jump," Dash realized.  Her head swiveled back to the room, focusing on the lonely sheet of paper she had passed.  “You… you wrote a suicide note!”  Pinkie blinked away the water in her eyes, and nodded.  Rainbow moved forward slightly, not even thinking about it.

        "I said don't come any closer!"  Pinkie's voice was pained.  Her entire body was shaking, and Rainbow could see her grip on the rail was loosening.  As a response, she took a slight step back, hoping it would appease her.  Pinkie appeared to calm down slightly; her grip on the rail became just a little firmer.  Dash allowed herself the smallest sigh of relief.

        Concern suddenly exploded in her as the initial shock faded.  She opened her mouth, but no words came out.  Her mind was a total blank.  Finally she managed a shaky, "W-why?"

        "I... I just can't..."  Pinkie rested her forehead on the balustrade and sobbed.

        Seeing an opportunity, Dash inched forward.  "Pinkie, please, what's the matter?"

        "TWILIGHT HATES ME!"  Dash flinched at the sudden outburst.  Pinkie turned her face away, weeping.

        "No she doesn't,"  Dash assured her.  The thought of the Princess of Friendship hating one of her best friends was borderline ridiculous.  Rainbow wondered where Pinkie got that idea from.  "Come on, this is Twilight we're talking about.  There's no way she–"

        "Yes she does."  Pinkie turned, her expression a cross between crushing sadness and blatant anger.  "I know she does... and it's all my fault."

        "What did you do, burn a book or something?"  It came out sounding way more jokingly insensitive than Dash meant.

        Pinkie clenched her teeth.  "No."

        Dash felt a cold sweat on her brow.  Pinkie was clearly still willing to jump over the edge of the balcony, and at this distance Rainbow wouldn't be able to catch her in time.  She needed to keep Pinkie talking.  "Then tell me why, Pinks.  Please?"

        "I... I just can't.  It hurts too much."

        Dash inched herself forward stealthily.  "Maybe talking about it will make you feel better."

        "I doubt it."

        She scooted closer.  "I might be able to help you if you tell me."

        "Maybe I don't want your help," Pinkie spat, bitterness laced her voice.  "I just want it to end."  She looked down.  

        Dash covered another foot of distance before Pinkie noticed.  That should be close enough.  "No you don't.  Come on, Pinkie, you know you don't want to jump.  I know you don't want to."

        "You don't know anything."

        "Then enlighten me."  

        Pinkie glanced up and realized how close Dash was.  "I told you to stay back!"  she yelled, her voice climbing a full octave with surprise.  She stood up swiftly, her balance far from perfect.  "I'll do it!"  Pinkie threatened.  Her body leaned backwards.

        "And if you do, I'll catch you."  Dash unfolded her wings, ready to rocket forward.  "You know I'm faster than gravity."

        Pinkie's eyes narrowed.  "You've been drinking."  It wasn't a guess, it was a fact. "There's no way you'll catch me.  Your coordination is shot."

        "I can do it," Rainbow affirmed with unwavering confidence.  "If your life is on the line, then you know I can."

        They stood in an icy stalemate for a moment.  Every Time Pinkie wobbled or swayed Dash felt her muscles tighten with anticipation.  After a moment she realized she was holding her breath, and took in a gulp of air.  Pinkie was visibly chewing on the inside of her cheek, likely debating what to do.

        "Please, just talk to me,"  Dash pleaded.

        Finally, Pinkie lowered her head with a soft sigh.  "O-Okay."  She didn't leave the balcony rail, so Dash didn't tuck in her wings.  "I... I'm in love with Twilight."

        Rainbow blinked.  She – like most of Ponyville – had known about Pinkie's proclivity for mares for a while now.  What she hadn't suspected was Pinkie would have feelings for one of her close friends.  "All right..."

        "I've liked her since the moment I first saw her.  Way back when she first came to Ponyville."  The faintest of smiles broke out onto Pinkie's face as she remembered.  "I gasped so loud when I first saw her.  She was just so beautiful that I couldn't help myself.  Then I ran away out of embarrassment... but it was okay because I threw her that party to make up for it."

        Dash nodded in remembrance, but didn't allow memories to distract her.  Pinkie's precarious position hadn't changed in the slightest.

        "Every time I'm around her, I just... babble like an idiot because I don’t know what to say to her.  I mean… she's so smart and fun to be around, and sweet and..."  Pinkie shut her eyes.  "And I really wanted to tell her how I felt."

        Rainbow’s eyes widened.  Twilight’s behavior from earlier suddenly began making sense to her.  “I take it things didn’t go very well.”

        Pinkie shook her head, fighting back more tears.  “I asked her up here so I could finally tell her… and when I said ‘I love you’ she…”  She uttered choked sob instead of completing the sentence.

        “What did she say?”

        “She didn’t say anything.”  Pinkie buried her head in her hooves.  “She just looked at me with nothing but pity!”

        “...”

        “I knew then… she didn’t love me.  She probably didn’t even like me.”

        “Pinkie...”  

        “So I lost it,” Pinkie continued, her voice deepening with regret.  “I… I screamed a lot.  I don’t even really know all of what I said, but I know it wasn’t good.”

        “Get out of here!”

        “But, Pinkie…”

        “No!  I don’t want to hear it.  I don’t want to hear anything you have to say, Twilight!  How dare you look at me like that!  Like this is just some school yard crush!  My feelings for you aren’t something you can just shrug your shoulders at and say ‘oh well, time for you to move on’.  I love you!  And I at least thought you’d have the decency to turn me down with dignity.”

        “But I didn’t mean…”

        “Just get the hell out!  I never want to see you again!”

        “...Pinkie… I’m sorry…”

        Dash couldn’t think of anything to say.  Pinkie heaved out a few more sobs before she was coherent enough to understand.

        “And when I…” She sniffled.  “When I finally realized what I’d done...  All the awful things I must’ve said…  I realized how much she probably hates me now.”  Pinkie looked like she wanted to say more, but her tears came back in full force.

        Dash took to the air, zipping around Pinkie Pie so she was hovering just in front of the balcony.  Tentatively, she placed a hoof on her friend’s shaking shoulder.

        “Pinkie, I get it.  You’re hurt, but this isn’t something you should kill yourself over.  Remember how I was when I learned Soarin-”

        “How dare you compare the time you found out your celebrity crush was gay to my feelings for Twilight!” Pinkie snapped.  Her outburst made Rainbow fly backwards slightly and Pinkie’s face softened as she realized what she’d done.  “I’m sorry… I just keep screwing up my friendships today, don’t I?”

        “What?  No, of course not.”  Dash hovered closer, her hoof back on Pinkie.

        “Maybe the world would just be better off without me,” Pinkie murmured miserably.

        “Come on, Pinks, don’t say stuff like that.  The world would suck without you.”

“The world would be fine without me.  Ponyville would be fine without me.  You and Twilight… everypony would be right as rain if I jumped right now.”

“That’s a lie,” Dash exclaimed.  “Pinkie, we’d be miserable without you.”

“For how long?” Pinkie looked right into Rainbow’s eyes.  “A week?  A month?  A year?  You’d get over my death eventually.  You might even be happier without me pestering you all the time.”

“Hey now, that’s not true.  I get annoyed with Rarity sometimes when she keeps trying to drag me over to the spa, but does that I mean I want her to jump off the edge of a cliff?”

        “I guess not.”  Pinkie’s voice was softer, but still full of melancholy.  

        Rainbow struggled to find something to say next.  It felt like she had almost talked Pinkie down, but at the same time her friend’s hooves were still on the railing.  “Why don’t we get out of here and get back to your awesome party, okay?”

        Pinkie took in a shaky intake of breath, and immediately Dash realized she’d made some sort of mistake.

        “Not the party…  I… can’t go down there.”

        “What?  Why not?”

        “…This was supposed to be our party.”  Dash blinked with confusion, so Pinkie begrudgingly elaborated.  “Mine and Twilight’s.  I… my plan was that once Twilight returned my feelings we’d be special someponies… I’d reveal to everypony that this party was to celebrate the start of our relationship.”  There was silence between them as Rainbow absorbed this.  Below there was fervent laughter below them as the denizens of Ponyville continued to party.  Dash knew those sounds weren't exactly helping Pinkie’s mood.

        “Pinks… I don’t really know what to say to all of this.  I can’t imagine what you're feeling, and I’m sorry for even trying.... but listen to me for a second.”  Pinkie’s teary eyes gave their attention to Rainbow.  “There is no way that Twilight hates you.  Nopony could hate you.  Maybe… maybe if we just find Twilight and you two talk things out, you’ll realize it’s not as bad as it seems.”

        “I don’t know if I can face her, Rainbow.”

        Rainbow swooped back around and landed on the balcony.  She turned to Pinkie and kept her wings outstretched just in case.  “It doesn’t have to be right now if you aren’t ready.  But I know you don’t want to leave things with Twilight the way they currently are, and if you kill yourself you’ll never be able to change it.”  She extended her hoof.

        Pinkie hesitated, giving one last forlorn glance over her shoulder and towards the ground.  “Okay,” she whispered, accepting Rainbow’s hoof.

        She climbed down from the railing slowly, Dash not breathing until all four of her hooves were firmly planted on the ground.

        They walked back inside, Pinkie’s eyes becoming a little drier with each step they took.