Put down those pitchforks! Put out those torches! · 5:43pm Jun 19th, 2016
Okay, okay, I know I said I'd upload today. The truth is, the job thing took longer than anticipated, the animation fell through, and the editing on my story didn't go as fast as I'd have liked. Besides that, I've somehow managed to quit playing Hearthstone altogether, and instead have become addicted to video games in general.
So yeah, I've been slacking off. That's the long and short of it. But don't worry, the story itself is ready enough for publishing, I just need cover art and any editing that still needs to be done can be done last-minute. But I don't want to upload without cover art, so I can't really do it tonight.
I'll whip up something tomorrow, and upload the first full chapter. In the meantime, here's the opening scene.
“Wow, you are just full of surprises, Rumble.” Sweetie Belle did her level best not to blush, with the boy so close to her.
The boy in question didn’t seem to have any emotion in him at all at the moment, just an intense focus. She wasn’t sure if she was allowed to be offended by that.
“Umm, thanks,” he said, keeping her body close to his as he let her dip. His wings were up, his hind hooves steady on the stable floor, one front hoof holding hers, the other on her thigh, just above her cutie mark to show it off.
“Yeah, I thought you said you hated dancing?” Scootaloo said as he carefully raised himself and his dance partner back up, keeping Sweetie Belle at proper gentlecolt distance, of course.
“No, I said I’m not a dancer. But I am gonna be a Wonderbolt one day, and Wonderbolts don’t bail on friends. So, do you want me to do it again?”
Apple Bloom, sitting on a bale of hay, nodded. “I think you’d better. Sweetie Belle ain’t got the hang of it just yet.”
“I do too!” Sweetie Belle said. “Besides, I’m probably not going to have to dance anyway.”
“No, but you might,” Apple Bloom retorted. “It’s your first real trip to Canterlot high society. Who knows, you might find yourself a little prince. You wouldn’t wanna step on his toes then, would ya?”
“We don’t have any toes,” Rumble remarked, his voice a droning monotone. A girly droning monotone, but a monotone nonetheless.
“You know what I mean. Rarity’s countin’ on ya to fit in with the rest of the snobs, so you gotta be prepared. Now, if’n the gentlecolt is ready for another go?”
Rumble nodded. “Simple three-step, faster pace, I know the drill. I’ll lead. Ready? And one-two-three, one-two-three...”
Sweetie Belle had to force herself to look him in the eyes. He used to look a lot cuter, she felt, but why, she couldn’t quite place.
“One-two-three, one-two-three.”
The pair danced around the barn, calmly, quietly.
Sweetie’s mind wandered to how they’d ended up like this. On one hoof, it was Rarity’s fault. She’d offered to take Sweetie Belle to see some Canterlot show, and since Sweetie Belle was developing a fascination for that sort of thing – her cutie mark had something to do with that, she knew that much – the filly had been tickled pink to accept.
Her heart still skipped a beat when she thought about what kind of trust Rarity had in her now. A cutie mark really did make all the difference. She wasn’t about to let her sister down.
But then Apple Bloom and Scootaloo had gotten involved. Apple Bloom had heard the horror stories from Applejack about Canterlot high society, which were… a mix of scary and strange, from Sweetie Belle’s perspective. Apparently the little Apple found it odd that unicorns would have garden parties that did not involve actual gardening. Scootaloo then, always thinking of how to make a good impression, had teased and prodded her about what sort of boys Sweetie might meet in Canterlot. She’d jested at first about jousting matches, but then Apple Bloom had had the bright idea that maybe Sweetie Belle should prepare to actually dance with a boy, just in case.
And that’s how Rumble had gotten dragged into this.
It wasn’t entirely a random choice, seeing as the girls had grown rather fond of the boy the past few weeks. They’d had their ups and downs, mostly regarding a minor nervous breakdown on Rumble’s part: questioning his personal worth, his physical fitness, never being able to measure up, the sort of drama Sweetie Belle had gotten used to from hanging out with her sister. Rainbow Dash had straightened that right out, at least that’s what Rainbow Dash thought. Rumble’s face hadn’t quite gotten back to normal after that, though, but what exactly that meant for a boy was anypony’s guess. Regardless, Rumble was helping Scootaloo out with her flying, he’d been instrumental in getting her off the ground in the first place, and while the future Wonderbolt insisted, even now, that he wasn’t a dancer, there they were, dancing.
All they had to do was ask.
“Would you mind helping us out? It’s a dance thing, and we kind of need a boy for it.”
Strange how easily he’d accepted. Perhaps it was his Wonderbolt stallion pride.
“Sweetie Belle?”
He felt so soft to the touch. Much to her surprise, he didn’t even feel muscular. His thighs and belly were still squishy underneath that taut skin, much like her own. It made her wonder.
“Sweetie Belle?”
“Huh?”
“We’re done,” Rumble said matter-of-factly.
“Oh, sorry. You need to go now, huh?”
He nodded. “Not urgently. But I do need to go get ready. Go practise, I mean. Today’s a spinning day, I only have forty-five minutes before dinner, and tonight’s a pasta night, so I have to make sure I get all my practice in before I eat.”
“Sounds… fun?” Scootaloo said.
He let out a mirthless chuckle. “It’s just training. Wonderbolts work hard. I kinda need to stick to my schedule, that’s all. Gotta stay in shape.”
“Right. Can’t become a Wonderbolt stallion if you skip out on your reps.” Sweetie backed away and got down on all four hooves.
“Nope,” Rumble did the same. “So was there anything else you needed help with? Like, quick?”
“No,” Sweetie Belle said. “I think I’ve got it. You can go, if you want. And thanks again.”
“No problem.”
She gasped when he smiled at her. It was so brief, so bright, so sincere, it stuck out in her mind. But then he turned and left, and she could tell he went back to his usual, ‘schedule this’, ‘Wonderbolt that’ self.
Sweetie Belle had figured the boy out quickly. He was the sort who wanted to be all he could be. But apparently ‘happy’ did not fall under that umbrella just yet.
“Hey, youngins.” Applejack poked her head in just as Rumble was halfway across the orchard. “New friend?”
“Yeah,” Apple Bloom said. “Just somepony to help out with dance lessons for Sweetie Belle.”
“Ain’t Scootaloo good enough?” Applejack nodded to the flying filly.
“I don’t do ballroom dancing,” Scootaloo replied.
“Rarity’s taking me to the opera tomorrow night, I just wanted to be ready in case I meet a prince or something,” Sweetie Belle said.
Applejack furrowed her brow. “You’re practisin’ ballroom dancing in case you meet a prince? Isn’t that a little excessive?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it is a little bit excessive. But, umm, the last few times someone in my family ran into a prince, it didn’t turn out very well. I’d rather make sure I’m good this time.”
Applejack psh-ed. “Oh, come on. Ya got nothin’ to fret over. Last Gallopin’ Gala we-well, okay, that got mucked up by Discord, but the Royal Wedding we-right, changelings, I guess, but the Galloping Gala before that, Rarity err...”
Sweetie Belle shot a glare at Applejack.
“Huh. Gettin’ ready in case you run into a prince. You know what? Forget I said anything, smart idea.”
It will come when it comes, and judging by the preview, it'll be worth the wait.
(Though this is why I stick to offline card games. Finite, scheduled times to play in meatspace help a lot.)