Nightmare Night was drawing to a close in Ponyville, and Twilight Sparkle glanced around the crowd. Something seemed to be missing.

"Hey, has anyone seen Rarity tonight?"

Applejack frowned.

"Come to think of it she ain't been around the past few days..."

"We could ask Sweetie Belle?" Spike suggested.

Sadly, a rational conclusion to events was interrupted by a pink pony dressed as a chicken.

"Ooh! Ooh! I know where she is! She's scared!"

"...What?" Applejack, Twilight, and Spike said all together.

"Don't be silly, they said what, not all together!"

"...What?"

"Pinkie being Pinkie." Spike quickly interjected.

"Oh. Well, sugarcube, yer gonna have to explain... why is Rarity scared?" Applejack wondered.

"Oh, that's easy... What happens on Nightmare Night?"

"Everyone wears costumes and... Aha! I know where she is!" Twilight realised.

In Carousel Boutique, Rarity trembled, hugging her dresses.

"There there, Darlings. Mummy still loves you. Mummy loves you all. Mummy won't let nasty wire hangers near you..."

"Uh, Rarity, I've finished my costume..."

"Oh, yes, whatever, that's a very nice domino..."

"I'm a ladybug?"

"Whatever. Leave me to comfort my poor dresses and wallow in self-pity... Which by the way, I looked it up, ponies can wallow in that. Anyway, The one night of the year everypony wears a costume and no one thread was my work!"

She then burst into tears, and Sweetie Belle shrugged, walking out the door.

"None of them were made by her! I get it now!" Twilight said happily.

"Nope!" Pinkie Pie said.

"Ah'm glad she's stopped sayin' dawt avey aye after that now... Besides, Sweetie Belle is dressed as a vampire. " Applejack muttered.

"Uh... I know!" The dragon dressed as a dragon said.

In Carousel Boutique, Rarity trembled, looking out the window as a pony threw a pumpkin at a target.

A splash of the pumpkin hit a nearby filly, who barely even cared at the fact her costume would be stained by the fruit...

"The mess..."

A pony ducked for apples. The water splashed on the soil, causing a large puddle of mud to be forming below the basin of apples. The pony trotted off, trailing mud from his hooves.

"The mess!"

Another pony was trying to eat cotton candy. It was everywhere, stuck in her mane, stuck to her fur, but she giggled as she tried to eat it.

"THE MESS!"

We all play games... Messy games! She's afraid of the mess! The terrifying mess!" Spike concluded.

"Celestia in Canterlot how horrifying." Twilight said in a monotone.

"Nooooope!"

"Oh! Ah know! She's afraid of spiders!" Applejack suggested.

"Nope! Here's how it really goes!"

In Carousel Boutique, Rarity trembled, the door bolted, windows locked, and signs protesting there was no candy here.

Especially not...

"They're not getting you this year like they got mother, Rarity. You'll be safe. None of them know. None of them can know..."

There was a knock at the door.

"Go away! Can't you read the signs?" She screamed.

"Uh, yes, but I don't want any of those..."

"That candy mentioned is merely a specific reference! If you read properly you'll note there is no candy here at all!"

"Oh, okay. Well, happy Nightmare Night and... QUICK, HIT IT WITH THE BATTERING RAM!"

Rarity screamed as her door flew in, and a dozen ponies in black clothing and gas masks stormed in. She tried to run, but the windows exploded and more ponies entered, surrounding her.

"W-what do you want? What do you want?" Rarity screamed.

The ponies in black were silent, and motionless. Except for one.

Who produced a packet of Graham Crackers and a bar of chocolate.

"Miss Rarity Belle, we have determined you are part marshmallow. It is time that you are harvested... S'mores must be made, for the good of Equestria!"

Rarity blinked, and then screamed as the ponies pounced, holding her down.

"Burn the dresses for the campfire..." The lead pony ordered.

"...What." Twilight wondered.

"She's part marshmallow! She's afraid she'll be eaten!"

"Pinkie, your story, which was no less horrifying for bein' obviously made up, might ah add, had 'er get killed and eaten already." Applejack pointed out.

"Oh. Well then she was eaten!" Pinkie Pie grinned.

"Ugh, never mind, let's just ask Sweetie Belle after all." Spike fumed.

The four approached the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

"Sweetie Belle, where's your sister?" Twilight asked directly.

"Uh... I'm not sure I should say..." Sweetie Belle said nervously.

"Aha, upset that no one wears her costumes!" Twilight beamed.

"The mess!" Spike grinned.

"Spiders!" Applejack cheered.

"Smores! Hey, Sweetie Belle, are YOU part marshmallow too?" Pinkie Pie said.

"...What? No, it's none of that, she... She's just tired tonight! She was working a lot the past few days making all the costumes! Like every year!" The younger of the unicorns said.

"Oh, so she did make costumes for tonight." Twilight sighed.

"Of course she does, silly, who do you think made my chicken suit?" Pinkie bounced up and down.

"What? You mean you could have told me my theory was wrong right away?"

"So, that's it then, she's just gettin' some shut-eye? She was awful busy with all them dresses and her pumpkin patch come to think of it..." Applejack said.

Sweetie Belle nodded.

"Yeah! That's it! Same as last year! Uh, so I don't disturb her... can I stay over at yours with Apple Bloom, please, Applejack?"

"If she says no you can just stay in the clubhouse with Scootaloo!" Pinkie Pie happily suggested.

"...Pinkie, for the last time, I'm not an orphan. My mother is over there. She used to work on your parent's rock farm during summer harvest." Scootaloo sighed.

"Ignore her, Scootaloo, she's just being Pinkie Pie." Twilight sighed, and began to push her slightly insane friend away.

"Well, ah guess it won't hurt too much... Aw, hay, Scoots, why don't ya'll see if your parents will let you stay over?" Applejack said.

Even pushing Pinkie away, Twilight winced as the crusaders shouted happily.

"...Hey, I just realised something else. If Luna is here, where's Princess Celestia?"

Spike shrugged.

"I'm not sure. I never saw her around on Nightmare Night in Canterlot come to think of it..."

In Carousel Boutique, the Cutie Mark warcry could be heard, but not understood.

"Wha? Wha whash that noishe?" Rarity pondered.

"Dunno." A second pony said, whilst drinking from a glass bottle.

"Ah, doeshn't matter. I got aaaaaall my coshtumes done for my cushtomers and I made up nexsht yearsh batsh of wine sho I'm happy. And and and I've got like lotsh of Pumpkin wine... Though I had lotsh more earlier... and and and I'm havin' fun with all the wine..."

The other pony nodded.

"I'm having fun too... It'sh niche to do thish tonight and not be doin' it cosh I'm shad or cosh my sishter ish hidin' away in the libery... libla.. booky thing. And it's nichey good to be drinkin' wish shomepony elshe. Do you know how musch it takesh for me to get... thing? With the shlurry voice and not bein' able to walk?"

"Oh, lotsh. I remember lasht year after the Shummer Sholsht...thingy. You came here that Nightmare thingy lasht year ash well becaushe you don't like it musch. But I'm not that thing yet..." Rarity slurred.

"What thing?"

"No, the... shlurry voice and the no walk thing you shaid about. I'm on thish floor cosh I chooshe to be... And my voiche is completely normal... 'm not drunk. You'll shee what I'm like when 'm drunk."

"Drunk! That'sh it! I'm drunk! Wheee!"

"You are? Hey, am I drunk?"

"Yesh! You are! We're drunk buddiesh!"

"Yaaaay!" Both ponies said, raising a hoof in the air in celebration.

They paused to contemplate how they'd crawl over to the bottles that were left.

"I wonder if I can get shomeone elshe to put the... thingy... up..." The other pony pondered.

"The thingy?"

"It'sh the thing that'sh all warm and in the shky..."

"Oh, the Shun! You... Your shister! She could do it. Or Twilight! She'sh a really powerful unicorn!"

"She'sh not that powerful... She'sh a good shtudent but she'sh not an alicorn." Princhessh Cheleshtia admitted.