Ting!

Cheerilee tapped the bell on the front counter of Sugarcube Corner for a third time, craning her neck to try and see into the back room for some sign of activity. She could hear Pinkie Pie chattering away somewhere back there, but she didn’t seem to be hearing the bell.

“Hello?” Cheerilee called towards the back room.

A bit of commotion on the order of a pot falling to the floor and a shout from Mr. Cake signalled that they had probably taken note of their waiting customer. A second later, the swinging doors to the kitchen blasted open as Pinkie herself came bounding out to the front room with a bit of flour in her mane and a stained apron hanging from her neck but not attached around her barrel.

“Hiya, Cheerilee! Sorry about that; I didn’t hear you out here.” Pinkie punctuated her sentence with a giggle as she crossed to the counter.

“It’s fine, Pinkie. I understand things can be busy.”

“I know, I know! Things have been crazy without Mrs. Cake here to help. Me and Mr. Cake have been chasing our tails all day!”

“Oh really? Where is she today?” asked Cheerilee.

“She had to take the twins to the doctor to get their shots. She shoulda been back two hours ago!”

“I’m sure they’re just stuck in the waiting room,” Cheerilee offered. Her smile faltering slightly as she took a closer look at Pinkie. There were noticeable lines around her eyes, and her mane was a bit more frazzled than usual.

“Yeah, I hope so. You’re here for that big cupcake order, right?”

“Yes I am. Is it all ready to go?”

“Yep-aroonie! I’ll go and get that for you.” Pinkie turned face and raced back into the kitchen.

With Pinkie gone, Cheerilee took a moment to inspect the case of sweets that made up the main counter. Several cakes for sale by the slice were present, one labeled “Luscious Lemon Layers” and another that caught her eye called “Chocolate Overload”. A rack of chocolate chip cookies filled the shelf above the cakes, and they looked to still be warm from the oven.

Feeling her sweet tooth beginning to awaken, Cheerilee tore her gaze from the racks of treats. She didn’t need any of those sweets, no matter how delicious and enticing they may have looked. Instead, she chose to search for something else to distract her from her hunger.

The first thing she noticed was the return of Pinkie’s chatter coming from the back room. She turned her head and cocked an ear towards the doorway, trying to focus on what was being said.

“...the boulder took forever to push back up that hill! I almost pulled a muscle in my back from that. Can you believe it?” said Pinkie.

Was it wrong to eavesdrop on them? After all, she might wind up hearing about something she really didn't want or need to know.

A well-timed growl from her stomach told Cheerilee to keep listening to forget about that tantalizing chocolate cake with the chocolate mousse layers and chocolate shavings sprinkled on top…

No, no, no! Focus on the eavesdropping!

“...got the boulder up the hill, we were all reeeaaally really tired, so we all went in the house and rested for a while.”

“So I take it that you all got along well after that?” asked Mr. Cake.

“Things went super-duper after that! Ma and Pa really started hitting it off with Granny Smith, and I think my sister Marble Pie finally found herself a stallion!”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, she and Big Mac kept looking at each other and hanging out a lot after that...”

Wait a second…

Big Macintosh was getting a crush on Pinkie Pie’s sister?

“...while Maud was singing her Hearth’s Warming carols, I noticed two certain someponies leaning up against each other! It was sooooo cute!”

So, Big Mac had a special somepony now?

Hoofsteps approached the doorway, and a moment later, Pinkie emerged through the swinging doors, though this time much more carefully due to the large, flat box perched on her back. Cheerilee put on a smile and tried to give the air that she hadn’t been listening in.

“So, did everypony get good grades on their tests?”

“Wait, how did you know about that?”

“Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo came in here two weeks ago and told me about how you promised you’d buy everypony cupcakes on the first day of school if the class test scores averaged out to a B.”

No wonder. Pinkie always remembered little details like that. “Yes, they did it. The class averaged to eighty-four percent,” Cheerilee answered.

“Maybe you should do that more often! Everypony works harder when there’s cupcakes involved!” Pinkie gave her trademark chirp of laughter to end the sentence, though it seemed a little less enthusiastic than usual. Probably from how hard she’d been working.

“Maybe so,” Cheerilee agreed, giving a chuckle of her own. “How much do I owe you, Pinkie?”

“For the cupcakes, that’ll be thirty-two bits. Since you’re a totally awesome teacher and even better friend, I can knock it to thirty flat.”

“Oh, Pinkie, you don’t have to.”

“Nope, you’re getting this deal based on article fifteen, section three of the Pinkie Pie Friendship Plan.” Pinkie produced a ridiculously thick book from somewhere behind the counter, flipping it open and turning to a certain page with astonishing speed and precision. She tapped a hoof to the page and began to read aloud, or rather recite since she wasn’t even looking at the book. “It specifically states that any pony who is deemed eligible of the titles of both an awesome teacher and awesome friend is entitled to a discount of six-point-two-five percent on any bulk orders from Sugarcube Corner. This discount does not apply to orders that include white chocolate macadamia nut cookies.” Pinkie promptly closed the book and replaced it down below the counter, leaving Cheerilee with her brow furrowed and her ears laid back on her head.

“Uh…” Cheerilee started, her tone thick with confusion.

Pinkie didn’t even allow a second for awkward silence to develop. “So, thirty bits for the cupcakes. Can I get you anything else?”

Cheerilee stared at the pink mare for a few moments, her mouth hanging just slightly open as she tried to process what exactly had just happened. Her thoughts finally began to gather themselves together again, and she managed an answer.

“And a slice of Chocolate Overload cake, wrapped up to go.”

Cheerilee sighed as she walked through the front doorway and into her foyer, kicking the door closed with a hind hoof while carefully maintaining control over the box perched on her back. She immediately took a left into the kitchen, where she slid the box on her back onto the closest available countertop space with practiced ease. The paper plate and foil that housed her slice of Chocolate Overload cake was perched on top of the box, which she immediately took and placed in the refrigerator, making sure to partially hide it with some of the fruits and vegetables already in the shelf. Satisfied that she wouldn’t come running to that piece of cake anytime soon, she flipped the door closed and exited the kitchen, kicking off her snow boots and draping her scarf on a hook on the wall before she climbed the stairs.

She and dropped her saddlebags near the door to her room. She looked at the stack of assignments that stood proudly on her desk, all squared away and ready to go for class tomorrow. The clock on the wall above the desk read seven o’clock.

For the first time in a week, Cheerilee could safely say that she had nothing to do. The long-unfinished book on her nightstand seemed to call her name, beckoning her to curl up and read more about the adventures of the shipwrecked family of ponies. She could hardly wait to get started, and she plopped on the bed with a content smile on her face.

Before she picked up the book, Cheerilee decided to run through her mental checklist one last time. The students’ assignments for tomorrow were ready to go, she had gotten the broken magilight in the den replaced, the bathroom had been cleaned yesterday, and she had gotten the cupcakes for the students’ party tomorrow.

With that last thought, Pinkie Pie’s voice played through her head. “While Maud was singing her Hearth’s Warming carols, I noticed two certain someponies leaning up against each other. It was sooooo cute!”

“So, Big Macintosh found himself a very special somepony,” Cheerilee muttered, leaning her head back into her pillow and staring up at the ceiling. It was amazing how fast things moved. Just a little under a year before, she had almost wound up married to Big Mac because of the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

I wonder what this Marble Pie looks like, anyway. Come to think of it, Cheerilee hadn’t ever seen a picture of this mare. Was Marble Pie one of those mares that was just beautiful by nature? Was she headstrong? Timid? Cute?

Judging by the way Pinkie is, I’m going to guess headstrong and cute. Big Mac always was sort of a shy stallion, so it made sense that the mare he was going for would be of the stronger, more independent type. Opposites attract, after all.

But what did this mare look like? What were her special talents? Was she nice? How about her—

Cheerilee blinked, suddenly realizing where her thoughts were going. Why did it matter so much to her what Big Macintosh’s girl was like? They were just friends, so she should be happy for the fact that he was getting out there and finding himself somepony special.

I bet she’s not so great. Cheerilee’s eyes widened after that last sentence crossed her mind.

Was she… jealous?

No, no. Cheerilee decided that she wasn’t even going to go down that path. She picked up her book and flipped it open to the marked page.

Chapter Seven. The storm raged through the night, lashing the island with its howling winds and boiling surf. It almost seemed that the shelter wouldn’t hold up under the storm’s assault.

Though the shelter seemed rickety, it held. The storm began to wane, and by sunrise, it had largely subsided. The rain was still coming down in sheets, but the winds had died down to below a gale. The waters of the ocean around them were much less turbulent, and it seemed as though the danger had passed.

And Big Macintosh was falling for another mare.

Cheerilee shook her head, rereading the last line. She had started thinking about Big Mac again. Resolving not to think of the new couple anymore, Cheerilee dove back into the story.

But the knot she felt deep inside her chest would not go away. It was a feeling all too familiar, one that worried Cheerilee deeply.

Author's Notes:

Eavesdropping is a dangerous game. You might gain valuable insight into something, or you might just learn something you would have been better off not knowing.

Can you guess which one it is for Cheerilee?

Next chapter posts tomorrow! Be on the lookout!

Revised 12/12/15