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Turbulence2,103 words
Breathlessly1,069 words
Flightless (Almost)1,421 words
Ice Cream and Pin Ball1,432 words
Out of the Blue931 words
Stolen Life1,069 words
More Tea1,095 words
Now Tealess1,277 words

Ice Cream and Pin Ball

The grey morning light filled the plain room, teardrops still visible on the old bedding the filly slept on. Fluttershy usually woke to the gentle songbirds praising the prismatic dawn, but this morning it was the lack thereof. Light rain patted the roof of the campus house, A thin fog coating the road outside.

Her house was plain. She had no memorabilia, no art, no decor. Her home was, by all accounts, no ponies home. This was obvious to all that had seen the insides of her home. This was also the prevailing thought of herself. She didn’t think she was special, and everypony else said so.

The way she moved about that morning was more akin to a husk rather than a real pony. She got up to wash her face from the sleep and tears, the soft sound of rain hitting the roof of her house. Every action devoid of thought, every moment trying to delay. Tears welled in her eyes as thoughts from last night filled her mind.

"No! They were mean ponies and gryphons." Said Fluttershy, trying to muster the courage to deny her tears that ached to be released. But the small dam that held them at bay overflowed easily.

A simple sob came out, as she reached for the teapot in her modest kitchen. The eggshell white walls and similarly colored counters, the cheap china and all cloud furniture, as well as being spotlessly clean, really spoke of a distinct lack of ownership. The only visible item that could be considered non generic, was the delicate teapot. It too, was an eggshell white, but it was also decorated. Cute little flowering vines of soft green and pink littered the exterior of the pot, giving off a serene sense of grace as steams of swirling hot water was poured from it.

The relaxing sensation the tea provided was wonderful to Fluttershy. The tears slowly dissipated as the therapeutic drink did its work.

Fluttershy had decided not to go to school that day. She tried not to abuse that power often, but she didn't find the courage to go to school that day. Rainbow Dash was in the same main classroom as her, she couldn’t imagine meeting, or talking, to her today.

"W... Why do I help those p... ponies. I... I... Oh why do I feel so bad after helping anypony! It... It only makes you c-cry and hurt, Fluttershy!

She approached the soda shop, carefully looking inside before stepping in and headed towards the counter as quietly as she could muster.

“Hello?” Fluttershy asks patiently. The patron working the counter didn’t hear her.

“Uhm, p-pardon?” A little louder this time.

“Excuse me.” A very small, yet immense, amount of frustration and anticipation lurched in her voice, forcing her words to carry themselves to the patron.”

"Oh, Fluttershy! How are ya today?"

Fluttershy was a common customer. It was a small, old fashioned shop. The wooden furnishing giving off a pleasant oak-y aroma, dark greens used to decorate the soft, yellow wall paint. It used to be an antique shop and tea house, but went out of business when the school moved in. Though renovated with some newer equipment and furniture, the cafe held its old charm with its big windows over looking the landscape below, the classic wooden floors and panels, and non cloud cushions.

“G... Good. Thank... You.” Replies Fluttershy,

The patrons had gotten used to seeing Fluttershy, though most interactions tended to be a bit lop sided.

"Wonderful! So what can I get you today? The usual perhaps?"

Fluttershy, nodded... Then sweetly smiled. For such a simple emotion to express, it was rare for Fluttershy to actually be happy with other ponies around. This shop was one of those places she felt almost comfortable.

“Th... Thank you...”

Dave gathered the supplies required for Fluttershy’s order, as she went to go sit, giving a hoof pump to himself in his personal victory for getting her to smile.

Her normal booth was a corner near the back of the shop. The ice cream parlor sat a bit on a hill, overlooking the Academy, and a bit further, actual green hills. She could watch the birds, the sun and the weather ponies, from the safety of the shop as they all worked, or sang, or rose.

She had sat there a while when her desert magically appeared on her table. Dave smiled as she waved thanks to him, starting on the massive desert. She didn’t always order something, sometimes escaping into a book, just enjoying the peace the old shop gave.

~~~~~~~

“Haha Dash, you’re never gonna beat my high score!”

“Wanna bet G? I’m on a roll now, it’s cake walk from here!”

“5 bits says you can’t beat my highscore!"

Rainbow Dash was staring intensely, as if she could control the little metal ball with her eyes. Jabbing at the control buttons with all her might, all of her concentration focused on the speeding object. Her eyes were on fire, jaw set, and tongue was pressed between her lips.

*Dinglangbingdishswooshding*

The iron sphere ricocheted off the score pegs, racking in the points. Gilda watched, sweat starting to collect on her brow. Higher and higher the score rose, the display started to collect a group at the pinball machine.

The arcade at that time in the day was always packed, and pinball was one of the more popular machines. A line had formed a while Rainbow was playing, her goal set to destroy Gilda’s score. Gilda had crushed the previous high, and had set a nearly unbeatable score.

The crowd started to cheer for her as Rainbow’s score inched towards the record the gryphon had set.

Rainbow Dash was in her own world. All that mattered at this point was the game, the pressure was in a state of elevation, connected directly with the score as the record drew near. Tap tap tap, the little ball flew across the board as Dash hit the control sticks.

The crowd watched in horror as the ball dropped straight down the center of the board. Time slowed as the Dash jabbed as fast as she could, to prevent the ball from going down on the course it was destined to follow.

A collective groan rose from the crowd as the ball fell. “Game over.” The machine told the gathered group of ponies. Rainbow’s heart sank as she stared at the machine.

“Tough luck Dash, but I think other ponies are in line to try at my amazing record.” Gilda pronounced smugly.

“Hey, miss, I think you set a new record!” Somepony who had just initiated the game said.

Pushing him aside, Dash stared as the screen:
“New High Score! How Would You Like To Be Remembered? _ _ _.”

“Yes!” Yelled Rainbow Dash, typing in RBD, as the the crowd cheered for her. It was rare for a high score to be beaten, and was an occasion when it happened.

The Rainbow maned Pony and gryphon step out of the arcade both smiling, laughing and shoving each other as they made their sober way towards nothing.

“Oh, Gilda, time to pay up!”

In the chaos that ensued after Dash beat her high score, both had completely forgotten about the bet. Gilda grumbles as she pulls out five bit and gives them to Rainbow Dash.

“Watcha wanna do now eh Dash? We could go get beignets.”

Dash sighs audibly.

“Not again G. We always get those greasy, delicious, sugary treats! We need to change it up.”

“Okay, how about ice cream. I hear Dave’s Donuts makes killer sundeas.”

“I could live with a sundae.”

“Cool, your treat right?” This provokes a response that leads Gilda to a mouth filled with cloud, and a laughing Rainbow Dash.

~~~~~~~

Making it to the shop was a objective neither thought could be so hard. After a hard lost wrestling match, Dash plucked a feather from Gilda, causing a high speed chase, ending with a ticket for Rainbow.

It was starting to be late when they reached the prized place of frozen cream and fried circles, both were so tired they just went and sat down. Seeing how tired they were, Dave himself walked over and took their order.

“And when he finally got to the third envelope, it said, ‘“Make three envelopes.”’ Both laughed till their sides ached. In their exhaustion and joyful banter, they didn’t notice the gentle tune being sung by peacefully sleeping Fluttershy.

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