From a distance, it was clear to the ponies in Ponyville that the weather teams were gathering storm clouds in the sky. Once again, the one heading up the Ponyville weather schedule had dropped the ball, and allowed for a few too many sunny days. This was unfortunate timing, really, for at the edge of town, a scarlet unicorn in a black shroud slowly trotted into town, towing behind him a covered cart made of dim polished black walnut wood.
One of the pegasai noticed him as he crossed over the bridge into town. The sky blue mare held up a hoof to one of her team members. "Hold up, everypony! Gimmie a few extra minutes." The winged ponies listened to her, and she bolted down from the sky, stopping only yards before the stranger.
Upon seeing her, he stopped and looked up. His golden eyes met her rose hued ones. She had a look of concern, but when she opened her mouth to speak, she was abruptly interrupted by a nearby pony. A pink one who made a loud and over-dramatic gasping noise before crying out; "I've never seen you before!" Her voice was cheerful with a child-like glee. She cut in front of the pegasus, who was easily more annoyed than before.
As the pink pony put her face very close to the unicorn, he responded in a deep and casual tone. "Today I am moving in. At least for a while." He grinned, seeming un-fazed by how the pony almost put her nose against his. He could actually feel her breath.
She gasped and cooed as she tilted her head to the side, and eyed up his cart with her energetic blue eyes. "Wow! A new friend!" She suddenly began to bounce, first to the right, then to the left, and behind her the unicorn could see the pegasus smacking her face with her hoof. The pink pony excitedly proclaimed. "My name's Pinkie Pie!" Then, without losing a single spring into the air, she asked: "What's your name?"
He chuckled lightly before giving a short formal bow with one hoof extended forward. "My name is Eight Star. More than happy to make your acquaintance." He attempted to keep following Pinkie Pie with his eyes, but her bouncing almost made him dizzy.
Pinkie stopped and stared at him and grinned. Then she began to sing, "I once found Eight Star rolling into town~"
This time, it was Pinkie's turn to be interrupted abruptly as the pegasus used physical intervention by shoving almost her whole fore-hoof into Pinkie's mouth. "Pinkie! We don't have time for that!" After a muffled apology, she removed her hoof and huffed. "It's fine, you'll just have to welcome him later! Just help him find his house for now."
Pinkie Pie stood on her hind legs and saluted. "Roger!"
Eight Star appeared confused, and took a few steps forward with his cart. "I thought that was what you came down to assist me with, exceptionally colorful winged mare."
The pegasus seemed agitated by his use of words. As if she had heard way too much of that already. "The name is Rainbow Dash." A name that matched her mane and tail for colors. She turned to Pinkie. "Anyway, I thought he was Zekora, but... I was wrong." She rolled her hoof and eyes as she hovered in air and radiated attitude. "Storm starts in like... five minutes ago, so get a move on." After that, she displayed the second part of her name, as she bolted off back into the sky.
Eight Star's eyes narrowed. "Grand." Though, he couldn't stay mad, as the pink pony with the cotton-fluff mane and tail was standing next to him grinning so hard it almost made his mouth hurt. "Right, well, 4 Compass Way."
Pinkie cooed again, as her eyes lit up. "Near Mayor Mare's place and the market!" She began to bounce as she lead the way there. "You must be getting a store front home!"
"I suppose you are exceptionally knowledgeable when it comes to matters in Ponyville," Eight Star deduced. "I'm not sure where else one would get that just by an address."
Pinkie stopped bouncing, but she continued to lead the way. She gave an exaggerated flutter of her lips. "Pfft... I don't even know what that first part means!"
Eight Star groaned, and began to pick up the pace when he heard thunder roll through the clouds above them like an ultimatum.
Pinkie came to a stop in front of a three story building that looked a lot like a potion bottle if viewed from afar. It had a large rounded gourd shape for the base, only to come up to a small single room on the top floor that had a circular balcony and a tall clay smoke stack coming from the top. She remembered seeing this building here before... and she remembered some ponies entering and maintaining the place, but she never remembered anypony actually living here before. "Wow! Here we are, my new friend Eight Star!"
"Thrilling," he said in sarcastic admiration. As the rain began to fall lightly at first, he nodded to Pinkie while levitating a long old key from the inside of his cloak. "If you help me get in before it pours too much, you can stick around until it calms down!" Only a split second after making the offer did he think that perhaps that was actually not the best idea.
Pinkie squealed in delight and grinned as she took the key in her hoof, and through a feat of impossible dexterity, unlocked and opened the front door. Eight Star, slightly befuddled, pulled the cart up to the side and ducked into the door. He turned and pulled his shroud off, using his magic to levitate it over to cover the cart. He turned to Pinkie, who was inside with him. She looked confused, and he shrugged. "I usually try to keep the wood in the best condition. My cloak is water-proof."
"Ooohhh... I see." The windows began to ring with the cacophony of noise which was the downpour occurring just outside. Actually, she couldn’t see that well. In fact, looking at Eight Star now, she wouldn’t be able to tell he was a colt from his feminine frame. Why, even his mane and tail reminded her of her friend Fluttershy’s, but it was obvious that he did not brush it nearly as often as she did. If Eight Star hadn’t spoken to her earlier on, she probably would’ve been convinced he was a mare, with those long eyelashes. Of course, the creepy way his golden eyes lit up as rings in the dim light was a little unnerving, especially while he was staring at her staring at him.
“So…” he started, hoping to break the painfully awkward silence once he noticed her eyeing him up, “how long have you been in Ponyville?”
Pinkie snorted with a giggle and grinned. “Oh, since I was an itty bitty filly, silly!” She bounced around a little, but kept her horizontal movement more limited than before, not knowing the intricacies of this room. “I’ve never seen you before though, but they’ve been keeping this house really nice all this time!”
Eight Star feigned intrigue. “So even though there were no occupants, the city organization kept the structure in working condition?”
Pinkie stopped and gave him an awkward look of confusion. After a few moments she merely decided “You’d get along with my friend Twilight. She knows a lot of big confusing words!”
“Oh!” he exclaimed, “I didn’t even realize I was doing it!” Chuckling he closed the door with the magic of his horn, leaving them without any amount of usable light. “I’m afraid I’ve been in my studies too much, and those books use a lot of… big words.” With a grin, he concentrated, and a white spark spiraled up his horn. Hitting the tip, it flared brightly and brought light to the room.
During his display, Pinkie could see that his horn was a bit different from any of the unicorns she had known before. Rather than a simple straight horn with a small spiral groove, his was bumpy, and there were no grooves, but it was like his horn was twisted into shape, giving it a corkscrew-like appearance. With all the curiosities of this unicorn, she had to take a glance at his cutie mark. What she saw was simply strange! It was like a letter from a foreign alphabet, or perhaps it was a mark!
“Oh!” She bounced again. “I wanna guess what your cutie mark is!”
He blinked a little, and shrugged, glancing over. “Well, I see yours is a trio of colorful balloons. So go ahead and guess mine…” He held up a hoof with a warning. “However, you only get one guess.” He turned his head and let his magic light shine better on his flank.
She hopped around him in a circle a few times as she pondered. “Hmm… uhh… uhm… err… whee! I mean, uhm! Oh, oh, a mask! Is it a mask?!”
He looked astounded as he stared upon her wide grin. “Well… yes! I believe you’re the first pony to get it right.”
“WOOHOO!” Pinkie just about exploded with delight, but tried not to explode too much… it was wet outside!
“Pinkie!” He held his hoof up again and got her attention, as he smiled. “I would ask that you, as my new friend please keep this a tight-lipped secret! Why, if ponies knew what my cutie mark was, then they might see the surprise coming!”
She gasped and sat down, then tilted her head. “What surprise?”
He rolled his eyes with a huff. “Would it be a surprise if I told you?”
“Oh! Right! I promise!” As she sat she made a crossing motion with her fore-hooves, then mimicked sticking one in her eye as she spoke the words; “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!”
“That was an interesting way to promise,” he commented.
“It’s a Pinkie Promise!” She threw her forelegs in the air with child-like animation in her body language. “Geez, don’t you even know a Pinkie Promise?! You must be new here!”
His eyes drifted back towards the windows and the rain. “Just got here, actually.” He sighed heavily, and turned back to Pinkie. “Alright, I’m going to make sure the house is in the condition I was previously promised, and ensure that there are no leaks due to the precipitation.”
Pinkie Pie looks at him for a few moment. She opened her mouth slowly in confusion.
He groaned and smacked his forehead with his fore-hoof. “Ugh. I’m gonna check out the house.”
“Well why didn’t you say so?” She asked with a wild expression of her fore-hooves. “Oh, I think I know what you need to turn that grumpy face into a big smile!”
He gave her a flat stare and asked “What?” with a voice that was as dull as a statement.
“CUPCAKES!” She threw up her arms with a giggle, dancing about. “We can hold a party, and everypony can come, and we can have cupcakes, and cookies, and music, and dancing, and-“
Eight Star interjected by holding up a hoof. “Cupcakes? Party? What are you babbling about? Is there some sort of celebration I should be aware of?”
She rolled her eyes with a giggle. “Well DUH!” She threw her arms around his shoulders and got really close to his face. “We got a new pony in town! So everypony has to meet you, and greet you, and eat with you, and have a PARTY!!!” She threw her arms up and danced around some more, excited at the prospect.
He sighed lightly and looked down. “Goodie.”
