"I still can't believe I forgot my own birthday," Pinkie said with a giggle as she walked along side Twilight. They were on walking along the road back to Ponyville after Pinkie's surprise seventeenth birthday party. "That was the best party I've never thrown! You guys had all my favorite things!"

Twilight looked over at her friend. "We tried to make sure you would like it. How did you forget your own birthday? You never forget anything."

"I forget things sometimes. Like…"

Pinkie began telling Twilight of all the times she had forgotten things. Allowing her mind to wonder, she thought about Pinkie's earlier reaction.

After a few moments, Pinkie stopped her tales and beamed at Twilight. "See, I forget things all the time."

Twilight nodded. "Yeah. Pinkie, can I ask you a personal question?"

"Sure Twilight." Pinkie grinned, her ears perking up. "What is it?"

"Why did you think…" Twilight sighed, shaking her head. "Why did you think we would abandon you just like that?"

"Oh." Pinkie's ears drooped. "That." They walked along in silence for a while. Normally, Twilight would have appreciated the quiet, but she couldn't think of a time Pinkie had ever been this long without at least making a noise. "Twilight, did anyone ever tell you your cutie mark wasn't important?"

"Well, before I had one I was worried, but my mom—"

"No, not like that. After you had it. You remember the story I told everyone of how I got mine, right?" She glanced over at Twilight before looking back to the ground. "Well, it was true. Mostly."

"Mostly?"

"Yeah. Everyone liked the party well enough. But dad, well…"

Clyde Pie looked around the building his oldest daughter had used to plan a party. "Pinkamena?" he said as she took down the streamers. "Where did you get all of these supplies?"

"At the store in town," she said. She grinned at her father, overjoyed that he had liked her first party.

"How? Where did you get the money?" He helped her reach a particularly high streamer.

"I've been saving it. I was going to do something different, but then I saw the rainbow explosion in the sky and I just…I felt happier than ever, daddy."

Clyde stopped helping with the clean up, studying his daughter. "It was fun, but I wish you hadn't. What are you supposed to do with a cutie mark like that?" He pointed her flank, where the three balloons rested."It's useless here on the farm."

Pinkie furrowed her brow. "I can still work. I mean, Inkie, Blinkie, and I still have the south field to start on tomorrow."

He didn't say anything else as they continued the clean up. Pinkie moved slower as she cleaned, her father's words sticking into her brain. Useless.

She had perked up again before bedtime. The three sisters ran around the living room trying to stop a balloon from touching the floor. Pinkie tried headbutting it to Inkie. The balloon seemed to have other plans as it floated to high up and hit the ceiling. The balloon popped, causing a chorus of 'Awws' from the fillies.

"Pinkie, Inkie, Blinkie," called a soft voice, "it is time that all good fillies were in bed."

The sisters shared a gasp as they ran to the single room they shared and jumped into bed. A moment later, their mother walked into the room. "Good night, my little angles." She kissed them each once on the forehead before walking out of the room. Inkie whimpered as she closed the door.

"I'll get it, Inkie," Pinkie said. "Mom just forgets you're afraid of the dark." She opened the door enough so that a thin line of light fell into the room. "Is that okay?" she whispered.

"Yeah," came a sleepy reply.

Realizing she had forgotten to use the bathroom, Pinkie walked out of the room and down a dark hallway. She wasn't fond of the dark herself, so she did what she needed to quickly before hurrying back to her room.

She paused before going in. Her mother and father were in the living room just around the corner. "I just don't understand why she would have such a useless cutie mark."

"Maybe it isn't useless?"

Clyde sighed. "What is she supposed to do, make the gems smile? She needed a solid farming mark. Goddess knows she's not very good at it anyway. Even when I give her the easy tasks." Another sigh from her father. "I hope Inkie and Blinkie turn out normal."

"Clyde!"

"What? I do. She is nothing like us. She can't far;, most of our neighbors think she's adopted. I thought maybe, if she got a useful cutie mark, instead of it being for something as unimportant as parties…"

"I understand. We just have to…deal with it."

Pinkie swallowed. She wasn't useful.

"That is horrible, Pinkie. I think your cutie mark is very important. It's…" Twilight trailed off, grasping for words. "It isn't useless."

Pinkie smiled. "I know that now. Still, to hear that on the day I got it…"

Twilight nodded. "I don't understand why you thought we'd just turn away though."

"After that, my family…well, it wasn't pretty. " She swallowed."The cakes took me in when I was just twelve. I'd ran away. Inky had gotten her cutie mark in music. She's really good at playing the chello, even though she's an earth pony. Mom and dad had us all playing music, and she was really good. She moved to Canterlot and changed her name, though. We haven't talked in years. I did see her at the Gala though."

"I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have asked." Twilight's ears laid flat.

Pinkie shook her head, giving Twilight a small smile. "No, it's okay. It feels…good, to tell you."

"Well, what about Blinkie?"

Pinkie's smile widened a little. "She was the only one of us dad was proud of. She has a farming cutie mark. But…she moved to one of the western settlements." Pinkie shrugged. "Mom and dad loved us, to be sure. It just wasn't a happy place to live. I always felt like I wasn't a good pony because of my mark, and Inkie did too for a while."

Twilight shook her head. "Do you want to come to the Library with me?" she asked. They had finally made it into Ponyville proper. "I could make us dinner."

Pinkie grinned at Twilight. "Can we have cupcakes?"

"For dinner?"

Pinkie nodded.

"No, Pinkie. Dessert, maybe."

Twilght pushed the door to the Library open, letting Pinkie go through first. She was just about to head into the kitchen when a pair of pink hooves stopped her. Pinkie held her in a tight hug, which she quickly returned. "Thank you, Twilight."

"For what?"

"For being the best friend."

Twilight shook her head. "No, Pinkie. You're the best friend I could ever have."

Pinkie squeezed her tighter and smiled.