//------------------------------// // Chapter Nine: A New Opponent // Story: Shut Up And Dance // by TheVClaw //------------------------------// With the Baltimare Regional Round of the ENDC only a day away, the train from Ponyville was chugging along the tracks at a comfortable speed to make it to the city by nightfall. Elusive and Rainbow Blitz were comfortably seated in one of the higher class cars near the rear of the train, which had much wider bench seats and more amenities than the basic travel cars. Even though the two could've easily taken a deluxe train to their destination due to their royal status, it was one of those things that the Elements of Harmony rarely ever used, if at all. Fortunately though, the two stallions were seated near the back of the car while the few other passengers were up at the front. Elusive had his horn lit while holding up a piece of neon pink fabric in his blue aura. With a thread and needle poking through the material with utmost precision, the unicorn had his tongue out in concentration as he made the last few stitches on the garment for their costumes. Meanwhile, Blitz had his forelegs crossed as he looked away from his friend with a bitter pout. Even though Elusive didn’t like his friend’s attitude, it’s been going on long enough for him to ignore it during their train ride. After getting the final stitches tied up, the white stallion smiled in satisfaction at his work. “Voila! It’s finally finished!” While putting the final costume piece into his luggage case with the others, Elusive overheard his friend mumble sarcastically, “Oh, that’s just great…” The unicorn huffed as he zipped up his case before looking back at him. “You know, you should be thankful that I decided not to add glitter to our garments at the last minute.” Blitz’s glare intensified as he turned to look at Elusive wide-eyed. “You wouldn’t dare.” “Try me,” he replied with a coy smirk on his muzzle. Elusive then turned away to grab his portable mirror and mane-brush from his travel bag. “Honestly, I wish you would stop moping about it already. It’s only one song, Blitz! And it’s not even a bad one! I’m still giving you free reign on all the other songs for this competition -- which is not easy for me to agree with, I might add!” While the unicorn began brushing his mane to make sure there weren’t any knots, Blitz rolled his eyes with an unenthusiastic groan. “Yeah, that is if we’re able to actually do any more songs after this one!” “Oh, don’t be such a sour grape!” chastised the unicorn while keeping his sights on his mirror. “Despite your feelings about Bubble Berry’s musical tastes, I do think that the songs he picked are far more presentable than anything from your collection. Furthermore, the one I approved will go perfect with our routine, so we’ll be sure to dazzle the judges tomorrow!” Even with Elusive’s optimistic smile back at him, all that Blitz could give the unicorn was a flat stare of unamusement. “Dude. I do NOT dazzle.” “Well you’re going to dazzle tomorrow whether you like it or not,” threatened Elusive with his eyes narrowed on him, “and I would highly recommend smiling when doing so.” That last detail just made Blitz’s pout sour up even more. Fortunately, any tension between the two was broken when three new ponies entered the train car. Twinkle Toes, who came in with two stallions behind her, ran up to Blitz and Elusive excitedly. “Hey guys!” she shouted with a big smile on her face. “There’s a big buffet happening in the snack car! They have a taco bar!” “Taco bar?” Rainbow Blitz’s ears raised up with great interest, making him look like Elusive’s cat when catching the scent of catnip. Before he could rush out to see for himself, the pegasus was stopped by Elusive’s foreleg that came out across his chest. “Ah, ah, ahhhh,” chimed the unicorn daintily enough to make Blitz’s bitter face reappear. “We’re sticking to our diet, remember? I already made us salad wraps to enjoy on the train.” Rainbow growled with a sneer in response, but didn’t say anything audible while Elusive looked through one of his other travel cases for their lunch. Even though Elusive wasn’t a bad cook by any means, Blitz was really getting pissed at how strict his diet regiment was. Even trying to add some hot sauce to anything was enough to make the unicorn give him a raised brow like he was being judged. Twinkle seemed to notice how the pegasus looked, and rolled her eyes as she tried to change Elusive’s mind. “Oh, come on! I’m sure Blitz can burn off any calories those tacos have!” “I’m sorry, Twinkle Toes,” began the unicorn as he pulled out a couple of tupperware bowls from his luggage, “but that was one of the conditions Rainbow Blitz agreed to when he agreed to be my dancing partner. I chose his diet and exercise, and he got to choose the music.” Rainbow narrowed his eyes on him and retorted, “Yeah, but I didn’t choose the music this time, did I?” “No,” answered Elusive dutifully before handing him his lunch, “but that was because you lost a bet with Bubble Berry. So to quote that ridiculous tank-top you still keep in your closet, ‘Deal With It.’” Another growl came out from Blitz’s pursed lips. Before Twinkle Toes could start to sense the tension between them, she was nudged from behind by the yellow unicorn with a blue mane who came in with her. “It’s alright, sweetie,” he said with a casual smile on his thin muzzle. “If they don’t want to break their diet, they shouldn’t be forced to. Not everypony has a metabolism like yours.” Elusive and Blitz both took notice of the tall stallion, figuring that he was Twinkle’s father. However, the other stallion with a shorter and stockier build (as well as a shaggy salt-and-pepper mane) came up to the filly’s other side. “Yeah, you should see how this kid eats!” he said towards the other couple. “I swear, Twinkle Toes has a bottomless pit in her stomach sometimes.” “Pop, come on!” groaned Twinkle with an embarrassed blush away from the white earth pony. Even though she tried to look upset, there was a clear hint of a smile on her wrinkled muzzle. “Oh, honey,” said the yellow stallion towards the other while motioning towards Elusive and Blitz, “we should probably introduce ourselves.” He then held out his hoof for the two to shake while carrying a cheerful smile. “We’re Twinkle Toes’ parents. I’m Press Bar, and he’s Curtain Call. It’s a pleasure to meet you guys.” “Oh!” Elusive smiled right back at the two as he shook their hooves with no hesitation. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you both as well.” Rainbow Blitz did the same, but he looked a little more surprised about the parents than his friend did. Nevertheless, he didn’t say anything about it when he heard Elusive ask, “So, you two are chaperoning for Twinkle Toes and Apple Buck this weekend?” “Pretty much, yeah,” answered Curtain Call with a shrug. “We booked a double suite for us and Twinkle anyway, so it wasn’t any issue when the Apples asked us to watch him.” “Oh, right…” Remembering that Zap Apple season just begun a couple days before, Elusive’s ears lowered sadly. “I hope he’s going to be alright performing without his family attending.” “Yeah, I hope so too,” said Press Bar while rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. “After all that balance training I gave him, I’d hate to think of something like this affecting him.” Even though Twinkle Toes looked upset as well, she added in a more optimistic voice, “Well, Silver Bell and Scootaroll promised to see him tomorrow at the show, so maybe that’ll help.” Elusive smiled at that reminder, remembering that his own parents were going to be attending as well. Meanwhile, Blitz asked curiously, “Wait, where is he now?” Curtain Call replied, “Back in the sleeper car. The little guy must’ve been doing as many chores as he could on that farm to help ease the load before he had to leave.” Press Bar looked back at the front of the train car for a brief second before asking his daughter, “Hey Twinkle, how about you go check on him, huh? We’ll be back at the snack car in a few minutes.” “Alright, Daddy.” After giving both of her Dads kisses on the cheek, the filly happily trotted off to check on the colt. Meanwhile, the two stallions sat down on the bench opposite of Elusive and Rainbow Blitz. Elusive blinked a couple times as he stared at the white stallion curiously. “Correct me if I’m wrong,” began Elusive with a raised brow towards Curtain Call, “but I could’ve sworn I met you somewhere before.” The earth pony huffed with a smirk back at him. “Well, I believe that was back in Manehattan when you offered to make all the costumes for a show I was managing, only to hand it off to somepony else at the last second.” Elusive’s eyes widened as a look of worry immediately swept across his face. Meanwhile, Rainbow Blitz’s eyes widened when he asked, “Wait a minute! You were managing Hinny of the Hills?!” “Mmhmm,” beamed the stallion with a look of pride. He also made sure to add for Elusive’s sake, “And just for the record, I’m not upset about your friend giving that job to Cocoa Cantle. He did a fantastic job!” Elusive sighed out in a brief bout of relief, but that was short-lived before hearing Press Bar say, “Although you should’ve seen how he was acting before seeing Cocoa’s work. I mean, oooohhhhh! He was maaaad!” “Honey!” snapped Curtain towards his husband. “What? You were! I’m actually kinda surprised you didn’t take a swing at Elusive.” “W-Well, the past is in the past,” interrupted Elusive in a hasty tone. “I-I don’t think we need t-to bring up past discrepancies about that weekend.” “Yeah,” said Blitz in agreement while smirking at his friend. “Especially since that wasn’t the biggest dick-move he pulled during that trip.” “HEY!” Both stallions chuckled at that reaction, which left Elusive to sit with a pout pointed at his friend. Rainbow Blitz laughed a little as well while getting his salad wrap. “I swear,” he began while opening his tupperware bowl, “sometimes it’s really easy to press Elusive’s buttons.” While Blitz ignored the nasty glare his dancing partner was giving him, Curtain Call responded with a roll of his eyes, “Oh, you think you know his buttons now? Just wait until you two get married!” Curtain and Press Bar laughed at that observation, and Blitz almost dropped his bowl as he put out a hoof to stop the two. “W-Whoa, whoa, wait a minute!” The two stopped giggling when they saw the frazzled look the pegasus had on them. Elusive leaned in to speak on Blit’z behalf. “Umm, gentlemen?” he said in a more polite tone of voice. “Rainbow Blitz and I are just friends. There isn’t anything more than that happening off the dance floor.” “O-Oh!” Press Bar had a hoof up to his chest as he blushed guiltily. “I-I’m sorry, guys. We didn’t mean to assume anything.” Curtain Call had his head tilted as he peered at the two with narrowed eyes. “Wait, really?” he asked rather bluntly. After seeing how quickly Rainbow Blitz’s expression soured towards him, the stallion huffed with a surprised smile. “Wow, I guess those Element things aren’t just for show!” Elusive and Blitz both rolled their eyes while the pony chuckled to himself. Curtain’s husband nudged him warningly and said to the dancers, “I’m sorry, guys. He doesn’t exactly have a filter between his brain and his muzzle.” “No, it’s alright,” assured Elusive. “Believe me, we’ve gotten more than our fair share of assumptions from ponies because of us competing together. And being Elements doesn’t exactly help either.” Rainbow Blitz just growled under his breath and leaned his head back to brood up at the ceiling. Curtain Call took a breath to settle down and said sympathetically, “Well, if it means anything to you guys, we totally respect you two having the guts to do this kind of competition together! Most ponies wouldn’t have gone through with being the first for this sort of thing, you know?” “Yes, we’re aware of that,” replied Elusive with a smile back at him, “but it does mean a lot to hear we’re being respected for it.” “Oh, it’s not just that,” added Press Bar with a smile and his brows raised. “You guys are getting a lot of buzz in the gay communities for doing this! All of our friends are talking about it like crazy!” “Yeah!” added Curtain Call, “Heck, a lot of my friends weren’t even fans of the EDNC before hearing you two were competing as a couple! I mean, they’re obviously rooting for our daughter more, but you two are still getting a lot of positive press outside of those papers.” While Rainbow Blitz sighed without putting his head down, Elusive had a much more grateful smile on his muzzle as he nodded to the couple. “Well, I certainly appreciate hearing that. And if I wasn’t competing myself, I’d most definitely be rooting for Twinkle Toes as well.” The door at the front of the train car opened again, and Twinkle Toes ran in with a portable radio on her back. “Guys, GUYS!” she shouted frantically. “They’re gonna talk about us on the radio!” That got Blitz’s attention enough to make him pull his head back down. “Wait what?!” Apple Buck groggily entered the train car as well, rubbing his eyes with a hoof as he shambled over to the others like a zombie. “Mrrrrgh… why’d ya take the radio for?” Twinkle Toes was adjusting the antenna, and got the signal back up by the time her partner came up beside her to listen in. The static slowly went away as a stallion’s voice came in through the speaker. “... to Baltimare Talk Radio, everypony! I’m Watergate, and joining me as always are Static Fuzz and Coffee Break.” The voices of another stallion and a mare came in to give a happy “Hello!” and “Hi there!” Twinkle Toes sat in between her Dads with the radio in her lap, while Apple Buck slumped in between Blitz and Elusive. Blitz started to eat his wrap as they listened in. “Alright, as we all know, the Equestrian National Dance Competition is holding one of its Regional rounds right here in town tomorrow! What are your guys’ thoughts on this?” “Honestly, I barely ever paid attention to the competition until this year.” “I was always more off and on when it came to it. But I gotta say, it got my interest now!” “Well, I think a lot of ponies would have to agree with you there! It seems like there’s been a lot of press about it ever since some of the competition was announced for regionals.” “Well, I wouldn’t exactly say I’m too surprised.” “Although to be fair, it’s not like there’s ONLY one couple to talk about nowadays.” “Ooh, who should we talk about first?!” “I just wanna say, those kids from the Ponyville round were sooooo adorable! Did you guys see them?” While a round of “Dawws” came in from the speakers, both Twinkle Toes and Apple Buck blushed a little while looking at each other. Twinkle’s Dads both nuzzled her affectionately. “I swear, those two are gonna be hard to beat! I saw a recording of their dance through my unicorn friend, and they did a great job!” “Didn’t they actually win first in that round?” “They did! And they totally deserved it in my opinion! Those kids are going places!” “Honestly, with the chemistry those two had, I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re a couple.” Apple Buck’s tired eyes shot wide open after hearing that quip, along with the laughter from the DJs. Twinkle Toes averted her eyes from her partner as her face grew a very deep shade of red. Meanwhile, all the adults tried their hardest not to snicker at their reactions. Of course, Elusive and Blitz were the first to stop laughing when they heard the main DJ add cheekily: “Speaking of dancers who might be couples…” “Oh, come on, man!” “Let me guess. You’re going to bring up the elephant in the room?” “Well, the fact that two stallions are competing is a pretty big elephant!” “Okay guys, come on! I think it’s really sweet that those two are competing together. They’re also Elements of Harmony, so maybe it’s just an example of their friendship. Plus, they actually got second in the Ponyville preliminaries.” “I have to agree with her there. Those two were really good!” “I’m just saying, this whole thing smells kinda fishy to me!” “Fishy?” “I mean, think about it! The ENDC hasn’t exactly been the most popular thing for ponies to attend since the Hoofingtons retired. But now that two guys are dancing together, who are ALSO big names in Equestria who have connections with Solaris, ticket vendors are selling out on seats in a matter of hours! If you ask me, I think it’s a big publicity stunt.” “Oh, don’t go there, Watergate!” “Do I need to get your tin-foil helmet again?” “I’m just saying, it’s all very coincidental! I don’t think this is a big ‘gay rights’ thing more than it is a giant ploy to sell seats! If it was a guy and a girl who happened to be Elements that joined, there wouldn’t be nearly as much attention on this!” “Well, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with two guys dancing. I don’t know if they’re gonna win, but that’s just because of the competition. NOT because of their genders!” “And to add to that, I’d be worried for ANY couple who’s going up against the Hoofingtons this year.” “Wait, what?!” “What, you guys didn’t know? They actually came out of retirement this year!” “WHAT?!” Elusive, Twinkle Toes, and her parents all shouted in shared shock. Meanwhile, Rainbow Blitz and Apple Buck just stared at the group in confusion. “Ummm… who are--” “SHHHH!!!” hissed all four of them before Blitz could finish his question. Meanwhile, the radio broadcast continued: “No way, really?!” “I swear to Solaris, it’s true! They actually won first in the Crystal Empire Preliminaries!” “Well, isn’t THAT a big shock.” “So wait, they’re actually going up against Blitz and Elusive? Because if so, those guys are gonna get slaughtered!” “Hey, who knows? Technically speaking, they dealt with a LOT worse.” “But still, I wouldn’t put my bets on those two. If Derek and Julianne Hoofington are really back in this, I won’t be surprised if it’s their sixth win!” “Oh, I feel so bad for those kids now!” That was when Press Bar turned off the radio. “Okay, I think that’s enough for now.” Curtain Call put a hoof around his daughter, who now looked a lot sadder than she did before. Elusive looked worried as well with a fretful twitch of his muzzle. Meanwhile, Apple Buck looked around before asking, “Alright, can somepony please tell me what the big deal is?” “Well,” began Curtain Call with an awkward roll of his eyes, “Derek and Julianne Hoofington are one of the biggest couples the ENDC ever had.” Elusive sighed disheartedly and added, “One of the biggest?! They won five years in a ROW! There was actually a petition to make them stop because it seemed like nopony else had a chance.” Rainbow Blitz whistled to himself. “Dang, that’s a lot of prize money.” “Yeah, it is,” said Press Bar with a sigh. “They actually retired early and opened up a Crystal Berry winery a couple years ago. I can’t believe they’re actually coming back!” “Well, I doubt that they’re doing it for the money.” Elusive slumped against the window of the train as his saddened look increased with each passing second. “Oh… I can’t believe this is happening…” Rainbow Blitz took notice of how his friend was looking, but had no idea what he could do or say to cheer him up. While he may have known nothing about those Hoofington ponies, they had to have been pretty good to get Elusive this worked up. For the first time since they started, Blitz could actually see that the unicorn was looking worried. Twinkle Toes looked distraught as well as she hung her lead low while between her parents. Apple Buck bit his lip before reaching forward to put a hoof on her shoulder. “Hey, come on, Twinkle,” he said while giving her a compassionate smile. “It ain’t the end of the world. Ah mean, if ponies really tried to get them to stop before, then maybe the judges won’t be too happy to see them again.” Blitz decided to add to the colt’s comment with a smile of his own. “I think Buck has a point there. Plus, if they’ve been busy with a winery for the past few years, I doubt they’ve been keeping up with practice. Maybe they’ll be rusty.” Twinkle huffed with a pout. “They JUST said they won first in the Crystal Empire!” “So?” asked Apple Buck with his hooves raised. “Maybe everypony else stunk! Remember how bad some of the ponies we competed against were?” Twinkle just exhaled with her forelegs crossed, averting her eyes from her partner. Blitz looked between her and Elusive, not liking how upset both of them looked at this news. He eventually rolled his eyes and bluntly proclaimed, “Oh, come on, guys! Are you two seriously gonna get so hung up on a couple of good dancers?! This is a competition, remember? There’s going to be good dancers besides us no matter what!” Press Bar shrugged and nudged his daughter before saying, “He kinda has a point there, sweetie.” “Besides,” continued Blitz as his tone became more confident with each passing word, “do you guys really think we should give up after one round?! We won first and second placein Ponyville, for bu--umm... for crying out loud! We were both underdog teams there, and we kicked major butt! If we can dance our way to Baltimare, then we can certainly make it to the end! If we don’t put in our best now, then when will we ever get another chance?!” Apple Buck and Twinkle Toes, along with her parents, all seemed rather surprised and impressed by Blitz’s tangent. It may have been a bit clichèd, but he certainly wasn’t wrong either. The pegasus turned his attention towards Elusive, who still seemed apprehensive while looking out the window. “Dude, come on,” said Rainbow earnestly, “we’ve saved Equestria like, over half a dozen times. Those DJs were right about us dealing with way worse stuff. Do you really think that some fruity dance couple is too much for us to handle?” It took a few seconds, but Elusive eventually breathed out slowly before looking back at his friend. There was still a clear sheen of worry in his eyes, but he still gave a slight smile as he replied back to Blitz, “Well… I suppose it would be silly to feel overwhelmed now, wouldn’t it?” That made Blitz smile and punch the unicorn on the shoulder lightly. “That’s what I like to hear!” However, as soon as he looked back ahead of him, Blitz’s smile dropped when he saw the flat stares Press Bar and Curtain Call were giving him. Curtain was the first to ask condescendingly, “Fruity?” Blitz instantly regretted that choice of an adjective. While Elusive tried not to chuckle at his friend’s mistake, Rainbow grew a worried smile while tapping his hooves together. “Uhhh, heh heh heh… I... meant it in a different way?” The stallions sighed with matching rolled eyes and got out of their seats. “Well, whatever you may have meant,” said Press Bar as he took Twinkle with him, “I think we’re gonna get us some lunch.” With that, Press Bar and Curtain call began to exit the train car. “Ooh! Wait for me!” Even though Apple Buck was still obviously tired, it was clear that hunger was overtaking any fatigue he may have had. He quickly hopped off his seat and ran off after them, leaving Elusive and Blitz alone at their seats once more. “Well, that was awkward,” Blitz muttered in embarrassment. "Oh, don't worry about that." Elusive's smile was more relaxed as he finally went to eat his lunch. "At least you cheered me up."