One Shot Alley

by Grey Faerie

Dancing on my toes

Twilight tried to block out the percussion of the music in the room. She was looking at a rather complicated set of steps in one of her books. It was vitally necessary that she learned the contents of the book if she wasn't to make a fool of herself at her own ball to celebrate her new castle and the defeat of Tirek.

Twilight held up the book closer to her face as if it would help her to understand the picture better only to audibly groan.

"What's wrong?" Rarity said from one of the couches. They were in one of the rooms in Twilight's new castle with the two couches pushed into a corner. A table nearby held the main system from which the speakers were controlled.

"I just don't get it! It's so, so, complicated." Twilight groaned again as she pulled at her face.

Pinkie Pie, who was on the other couch with Discord, spoke up. "Well duh, you can't learn to dance from a book alone, silly. It takes practice!" She gave a flare of the hoof.

Twilight grimaced and huddled a little closer to the book.. "I think I should at least understand the basic principles before moving on to the testing stage."

Rarity shook her head. "Tsk, horse apples. Pinkie is right, oddly enough. Dancing can only be properly learned through practice. You can read all you want about how to fly but that won't help you flap your wings. You should know that from experience." She pointed out. "Now, come on. Let's dance."

Rarity got up from the couch and walked over to the stereo. The music changed to something with a beat that's easier to follow. Twilight bit her lip for a moment then got up herself.

"It's simple, darling! It's all about working with the music. Move your body to the beat. Sway with the crescendos." The white unicorn started to sway in an elegant waltz as she spoke.

Twilight tried to move her feet along with Rarity. It started out okay until Rarity forgot about letting Twilight follow the movements and moved around in one of her fantasies. Twilight thought to herself as Rarity started to sway around the room humming to herself, Hmm, this shouldn't be too hard. Just follow the beat.

"Hmm, hm, hmmmm, ahh! What are you doing?" Rarity opened her eyes when something bumped into her. It was her friend doing what could only be described at a cross between hopscotch and stretching out a cramp.

Twilight looked at her innocently, "But you said to move to the music!"

"Yes, but not like that!" Rarity blushed at the outburst. "Let's start over and please, never do that... jig, again."

She gave up after ten minutes.

"I'm sorry." Twilight said.

"It's okay! Really. I just don't think I'm the right teacher for you." Rarity waved her hoof dismissively and collapsed on the couch in a dramatic fashion.

"Yeah! It's like that time with Rainbow Dash! Only she learns weirdly." Pinkie had taken the chance while Twilight was practicing to dance around with Discord. She was currently being draped over Discord's arm before being pulled back up and spun in a blur. She was caught in a second then danced on like she hadn't just been spun like a top.

Twilight grumbled. She had tried to forget those two were here as the danced around so perfectly. She remembered their, unnecessarily, elaborate ice skating performance at Winter Wrap up. Did ice cutting really need that many lifts? It took her two hours to get everyone back to work and not wandering over to see what they were doing next.

"Maybe Dizzy can help you." Pinkie said. "Can you do it?" She asked when Discord pulled her flush to him.

"Hmm, I don't know. Dancing is like a skill some are just born with." He replied with an upturned nose and side stepped with Pinkie.

Twilight facepalmed. This would take some blows to her pride. "Please? I need to know this."

"Ooo, a please." Discord's lips curled upwards." Alright then."

He curled and uncurled Pinkie from him one last time and they posed to sound of an audience of clapping. He bowed several times and blew kisses to the empty room. Pinkie giggled and trotted off to the couches.

---

"No no, step there, Ow! There, not my foot. Step step ouch! Try to at least step anywhere but my foot. A whole entire empty floor and you find my hoof." Discord whispered the last part with a strong ting of annoyance. If Twilight was so smart, why couldn't she understand a simple waltz? Step, step, turn. The basics! "How about we try individual dancing for a moment?"

Twilight sighed and nodded in such a down trotted way the he felt a punch of guilt. He also felt the pain in his toes. Discord sat on the floor and rubbed his poor abused feet.

He looked up at her, "Well? Dance! Practice on your own for a moment."

What came next frightened him a little. "What the tartarus is that?"

"I'm, um, dancing?" Twilight responded.

"Is that a question or a statement?" He deadpanned. Stupid cute girlfriends and their left-footed friends. Why am I even trying to help this boring pony learn to dance?

"A statement?" she said in the same questioning tone. Discord responded by rubbed his face with both hands.

Twilight sat on the ground looking near to tears. Rarity and Pinkie peeked up from the catalogs they were searching through for ideas for their dresses.

"It's okay Twilight! Pinkie called out. "You don't need to dance. You can just say you're still tired from the move." Twilight hiccuped and rubbed her cheeks.

Discord grimaced from his spot on the floor and yelled,"This is stupid! Can't you just use a spell? You were so keen on using a reforming spell on me before instead of doing it the hard way. Use a spell. Even if it's just for one night."

Twilight sat on the ground and look at the ceiling, "I don't want to do that. I want to learn. It wouldn't be the same."

Discord scratched his head. What to do? What to do. "Let's just call it a night. Sometimes it's like a good massage. You can only work the muscles so much before you overwork them. We'll continue this tomorrow." He said.

"Okay." Twilight nodded.

---

Discord sat on the sidelines of the ball with Pinkie as the opening dance started. Pinkie would look up at him and smile. He returned it with only a hint of pain from his poor, poor toes. They looked out over the dancefloor to where Twilight was spun around by her brother. Shining had come all the way out just to celebrate his sister's triumph.

"Wow, when did you learn to dance? I would have already been sidelined by now from you stepping on my hooves." Shining laughed.

"Well, it took a week and a good friend to learn. But here I am!"

Author's Note:

Fixed this one up too.

103-C: Dancing on my toes

More talking heads, which creates some confusion this time. At first, it seems like Twilight and Rarity are the only ones present, but Rarity’s speech is entirely out-of-character for her. It’s only after a few hundred words of totally-unattributed dialogue that we learn Pinkie and Discord are present, and would presumably be the sources of those OOC lines. After that, the story again has a number of spelling/grammar problems, particularly choppy writing and telling, until the sudden wrap-up kills any humor or forward momentum the story had going for it. (1/5)