"Where is she?"

Twilight searched the library anxiously but spotted neither mane nor tail of the party pony.

This was just great. Today was Spike's tenth birthday! He was currently at the schoolhouse, helping Ms. Cheerilee with her class. In truth, it was just a ploy to get the baby dragon out of the house for the morning while they prepared the party.

Everything else was already in place. Rainbow Dash had just finished setting up the games and was now snoozing on the couch, a quick pre-party nap as she had called it. Rarity was putting the finishing touches on the party decorations. Applejack had just finished preparing the food for the snack table and Fluttershy was now sweeping the remaining dust bunnies out of the room.

Everything was perfect! All they needed now was a cake.

"Girls, do you know where Pinkie Pie is at? She's the one in charge of the cake!"

Applejack shook her head. "Sorry Twilight. I'm afraid I haven't seen her all day. I'm sure she's coming. The day she misses a party will be the day I miss a harvest!" she chuckled.

Twilight felt her world crumbling around her. She had been preparing for this occasion for two weeks and everything had been going according to plan! But now her schedule had been obliterated by one tardy pink pony!

"Oh, I can't believe this is happening!" Twilight yelled as she fidgeted, stomping her hooves on the hard wood floor of the library. The others looked at her with concern. Rarity cleared her throat and spoke.

"Now darling, I'm sure Pinkie Pie has a good reason for her delay. I've known her for several years now. She's not the type to disappoint her friends." she spoke reassuringly.

Twilight didn't hear her. Her mind was racing. Trickles of sweat started to drop from her forehead as her body began to heat up and her friends stepped back when they noticed a couple strands of hair pop up in her mane.

"Erh, Twi?" Applejack asked, her voice shaking nervously.

A piercing whistle wailed through the room as steam erupted from Twilight's ears.

"Twilight!" her friends screamed in unison, waking Rainbow Dash up from her nap. The cyan pegasus shot up into the air.

"Huh! Wha? What the hay?" Rainbow panicked as she tried to get her bearings.

Sploosh! Twilight gasped as she was engulfed in a torrent of water from above her, snapping her out of her hysteria.

Everypony looked up to see Fluttershy hovering above Twilight, holding a now empty pail.

"Oh! I'm sorry, Twilight, But I couldn't let you set the library on fire. You might have burnt the tree down, and that would have been terrible!"

Twilight sighed and stared at the ground, her breathing now relaxing. Ice cold water dripped from her mane and fell into a puddle around her. Rarity shook her head and walked into the kitchen. When she came back, she was levitating a blue towel with her magic which she brought over to Twilight. As she dried off the purple unicorn, she began to speak.

"Now Twilight, listen to me. I am well aware that Pinkie Pie can act a bit uncouth at times with her actions. But her devotion to her friends is paramount. I'm sure that if she is late, something must have come up that she could not avoid. Otherwise she would have been over here before we started preparations."

Applejack nodded in agreement. "I reckon I couldn't have said it better myself, Rarity. Twilight, trust me. Any moment now Pinkie is going to knock down that door in a storm of confetti and streamers."

Twilight shook her head. "I appreciate your support, girls. It's just…this isn't the only time she's been late for something important like this. She's been acting weird these last few weeks and honestly, it's really inconsiderate of her." Rarity stepped back as she finished drying her off.

Twilight shook herself, flinging water droplets everywhere. She looked at the others and noticed that she had covered Rarity in water. The alabaster mare did not look amused. Twilight chuckled hesitantly. "Oops. Sorry."

"Oh, its quite alright dear. I can take care of it." Rarity said as she walked back into the kitchen. Twilight looked back at the others before continuing. "I just don't understand her at times, girls. I know everypony in Ponyville likes her, and I do too. I just wish she could be more respectful and organized when it comes to keep promises.."

Applejack's ears perked up. "Twilight, Pinkie Pie is probably one of the most considerate ponies in town. She always works hard to make sure everypony is having a good day, no matter how under the weather they may be."

Fluttershy landed next to Applejack and nodded in agreement. "Oh yes, and she is so kind and charitable. Last week, she helped me take care of the animals at my cottage. She took time off from her break just to lend me an extra hoof."

Twilight sighed. "I know she means well girls, believe me I know. But the way she's been treating me these days is really peculiar. For the last two weeks she's been late for events that she's promised to help me with! Also sometimes I would bump into her in town and try to strike up a conversation with her, but she would just try to get away from me as quickly as possible. Its just so hard for me to talk to her these days. Well, harder than usual, that is."

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure sugarcube? I haven't noticed anything strange about her lately. Too me she's just the same ol Pinkie that I knew when she first moved to Ponyville."

Rainbow chucked. "I haven't noticed anything wrong with her, unless you count her being Pinkie Pie as something wro...OW!"

She yelped as Applejack playfully jabbed her in the side. "Careful there Rainbow."

Rarity walked out of the kitchen, her mane and coat dried off. She looked at Twilight. "Twilight dear, Pinkie Pie is Pinkie Pie and she will always be. There is nothing you can do about that. Perhaps it is you who is seeing Pinkie acting differently simply because you want her to act differently. But the truth is you can not change the way somepony behaves, no matter how much you may disagree with their ways. You'll just have to learn to accept her for who she is."

Twilight sighed. As much as the pink pony's antics frustrated her at times, she knew that Rarity was right. She couldn't just hold a grudge against her because her actions were unorthodox. She may not always understand what went through her mind, but her spirit was the life of the town. "I'm sorry girls. I guess I'm just stressed right now. I just want this to be the best day for Spike. He's like a brother for me and he looks up to me all the time. He deserves a party like this."

Twilight grinned. "Plus he's turning ten! The smallest two digit number! The base of the decimal numeral system! Isn't that great?" She said excitedly.

Rarity smiled. "Twilight, Spike is just as much a brother to all of us as he is to you, and I can safely say that you are going to give him a delightful birthday today! And I can assure you that Pinkie Pie will meet her end as well."

Twilight smiled. It was times like this that really made her realise how lucky she was to have such great friends as the ones standing before her.

"She chuckled. "I don't know what I would do without you girls."

Rainbow laughed. "I don't think we want to know OOF!" She yelped as Applejack and punched her in the side. "Oh come on!"

Applejack chuckled. "Personally Rainbow, I don't want to see how you would act without us around."

"Oh yeah? What's the worst that could happen?"

"Oh, I don't know. I'm guessing that Ponyville will probably be off the map thanks to you."

"Har har, very funny."

"Um, girls."

The mares turned to see Fluttershy looking at the clock.

"I don't mean to interrupt, but it's three o'clock now and I'm sure Cheerilee has let the kids out of school."

Twilight gasped. "We don't have much time, girls! Everypony get ready! Unless Cheerilee needs him to assist her after classes he'll be here any minute!"

Her friends nodded as they rushed around the treehouse, doing final inspections for the party. Twilight felt the cold water around her hooves and looked down at the puddle on the floor.

"Uh girls? How are we going to clean thi-?"

She was cut off when a rainbow streak carrying a towel zipped around her, orbiting her at an incredible velocity before zipping away into the bathroom. When it left, the floor around Twilight was completely moistureless.

"What t- Oh. Thanks, Rainbow."

She looked around the library as her friends made the final inspections of the party décor. Her eyes eventually focused on the snack table which was full of food ranging from cookies and pies to a basket of gems specifically made for the party dragon himself.

All that was missing was the centerpiece.

She turned her head towards the window and looked in the direction of Sugarcube Corner.

"Oh, Pinkie Pie. I hope they're right."

-At Sugarcube Corner-

The ding of a timer bell went off in the kitchen of Sugarcube Corner, causing Pinkie Pie to squeel in delight.

"Ooooo! It's finally ready!"

Pinkie Pie bounced over to the oven and opened it up, the sweet smell of vanilla wafting out of the oven. Inside the oven was the top portion of a five foot tall cake extravaganza which Pinkie had been preparing since she had woken up that morning. Finally, after a long day's work, it was nearing completion.

The rest of the cake stood on the counter, already decorated and ready to go. It was coated with purple and green icing and showered with sprinkles and succulent gum drops. Each layer was also encrusted with sparkling gems, thanks to the generosity of Rarity.

Pinkie pulled the top layer out of the oven and closed the door behind her, using her tail to wrap around the lever and shut it. As she brought the cake over to the counter, she noticed the time on the kitchen clock. It was 5 till 3. She gasped.

"Oh no! Spike's party is going to be starting soon! I better hurry!"

She quickly began putting the final touches on the top layer, working quickly with precision. She layered the cake with icing and decorated it with the leftover gems and gumdrops. She smiled as she finished her work.

"This took forever to make, but Spike is going to love this!" she squealed in delight as she admired her creation.

She looked at the time again. 1 minute till. She gulped as her face turned glum.

"I hope Twilight isn't upset at me right now." However her doubt was banished as she looked at the cake that she thought for sure could rival the Marzipan Mascarpone Meringue Madness. "I'm sure she'll forgive me when she sees this humongous mammoth mondo masterpiece! This will make up for everything, I'm sure of it!"

Everything was ready to go. She struck a noble pose.

"Okay! Let's do this!"

Her eyes darted over to the door, then back to the cake. A sudden realization came to her. Her ears drooped and her smile flipped upside down as she noticed a problem she hadn't prepared for.

The cake was taller than the doorway.

"Uh oh."

She felt a wave of dizziness come over her and she collapsed to the floor in defeat. All of her excitement was flushed away as she faced the inevitable.

"Sorry, Twilight. Looks like I'm going to be late again." She sniffed.

"Please forgive me."

-Back at the Library-

"Here he comes!" Rainbow whispered to the girls as she saw Spike appear on the horizon. "Everypony get ready!"

Fluttershy squeaked. "Oh my! He's here earlier than I thought!"

Twilight looked around the room franticly. "Quick! Turn off the lights!"

"On it Sugarcube!"

Twilight quickly got in position, hiding behind the couch in the middle of the room. As she did she took one last glance at the food table, the center still devoid of its centerpiece. She groaned.

"Pinkie Pie, why?" she, huffed as the lights in the treehouse went out.

Twilight could hear Rarity panicking on the other side of the room. "Oh dear, I hope I didn't forget to fix my mane," Rarity gasped. "It must look awful! Applejack darling, could you be so kind as to turn on the lights?"

"Too late for that, Sugarcube! He's almost here!"

Everypony in the room fell silent. The only sounds were the scuffling of scaly feet outside the front door.

knock knock knock

On instinct, Fluttershy started to answer. "Come inngggth!" Rainbow Dash quickly cupped her mouth before she could finish.

The front door opened and the mares could make out Spike's shadow in the doorway. They waited as he moved into the middle of the treehouse. Twilight looked at the others and nodded to them, signaling them.

"SURPRISE!"

Everypony jumped out of their hiding spots as Applejack turned on the library lights, revealing a shocked baby dragon in the middle of the room.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY SPIKE!"

Twilight rushed out from behind the couch and tackled the baby dragon, embracing him.

"Happy Birthday Spike!"

Spike laughed. "Wow Twilight! This is wonderful! Is this why you sent me to Cheerilee's today?"

"Hmm, you could say that."

Applejack chuckled. "Hey, we had to find some way to get you out of the library." Twilight let go of Spike as Applejack gave him a slight noogie. "Happy Birthday buddy."

"Aw yeah! Ten years old!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, pumping her hoof in the air.

"Happy Birthday, Spike. You must be really excited." Fluttershy grinned.

Rarity was the last one to congratulate him. "Oh my little Spikey Wikey is growing up so fast!" She gave the baby dragon a small kiss on the cheek, causing him to blush a little bit. The room filled with giggles as the others laughed at his reaction.

Spike eventually snapped out of his trance and noticed something about his friends. One of them was missing.

"Hey, where is Pinkie Pie? Knowing her, I'd think she would be behind all this."

Twilight let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm sorry Spike. I'm afraid we don't know where Pinkie is. She was supposed to come today but…"

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY SPIKE!"

Twilight and the others turned to the door where they saw Pinkie Pie bouncing up and down in pure excitement. Streamers and confetti filled the door away thanks to her famous party cannon.

"Pinkie Pie! Glad to see you made sugarcube!" Applejack greeted.

Pinkie smiled. "Are you kidding! I would never ever ever miss out on a birthday!" As she bounced into the library she noticed an irritated Twilight staring at her out of the corner of her eyes. She gulped and her bounce lost a bit of its usual stride.

"So, what did I miss?"

Twilight spoke up. "Well Pinkie let's see, you missed…" She was cut off by Rarity.

"Don't worry darling, you didn't miss anything. Spike just arrived a minute ago, nothing else."

"Oh great! I'm so happy!" she cheered. Twilight still wasn't amused.

Pinkie began to worry. She's really mad this time, isn't she?

"Okay everypony! Let's get this party started right!" she yelled, getting some cheers from the other guests.

All except Twilight.

As the rest of the guests spread through the library, Pinkie turned and headed back out the door. She had something to get.

The cake stood about 6 meters away from the front door. It was placed on a cart Pinkie had pulled all the way from the bakery. Due to its height, the party pony had been forced to move each section individually through the door, and she was going to have to do the same thing again.

She got behind the cart and was about to start pushing it closer to the door when she heard an irritated voice come from the house.

"Pinkie, what took you so long?"

Pinkie looked around the corner of the cake. Twilight was standing by the side of the door with a look of annoyance on her face.

"Sorry Twilight. I really didn't mean to. I just wanted to make it perfect!" She gave her a huge smile of reassurance. It worked, if only slightly.

Twilight sighed. "Well at least you're here. But please try to be on time in the future. It would really make things easier."

Pinkie nodded vigorously. "You betcha Twilight! I promise I won' disappoint you next time!"

Twilight turned back towards the door. "That's what you said last time," she mumbled under her breath.

Pinkie didn't hear her. Instead she started pushing the cart closer to the front entrance of the library. She could hear the others coming outside, probably wondering where she had disappeared off to. Spike was the first to speak.

"Wow Pinkie! Did you make that all by yourself?"

"Yessiree Spike! This cake is all yours an-" The cart hit a pothole in the pathway, causing it to tilt forward and sending the whole cake tumbling over the front.

"Spike look out!" Twilight called from the front entrance.

Splat

Everypony gasped. Pinkie jumped to side of the cart and looked at what she had just done. Her jaw dropped to the ground in horror; the cake had landed right on top of the baby dragon.

"Oh my gosh! Spike I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to!" She looked up at the girls, more specifically Twilight, who was starting to fume in the ears. Pinkie felt a cold lump form in her chest.

The bottom layer of the cake wiggled as the baby dragon popped up, smearing vanilla filling and colored icing all over the ground. He had a couple of gems in his claws and a huge smile plastered across his face. What he said caught everypony by surprise. "Wow, Pinkie! I've never had a huge gem cake before! This is the best birthday ever!" He smiled before popping one of the gems into his mouth.

Pinkie felt a wave of relief spread through her body as she realized the crisis had been averted. Everypony starting laughing at Spike's antics. All but one.

Pinkie noticed Twilight at the entrance to the library. While she had a smile on her face, Pinkie could tell that it was forced.

The party was a success, but Pinkie was not off the leash yet.