Rumble could not have fully prepared himself for what his eyes held before him. Here he was, standing besides Flitter; mere inches away from his crush, and in front of the Ponyville Spa of all places. This was a place, the one place Rumble never could believe in his wildest dreams and hopes that he would be there and with Flitter. Without saying a word, Flitter walked inside, Rumble nervously and shyly following after. The waiting room interior was all Rumble knew it could be. It was a rather spacious waiting room, but with almost nopony waiting. Could the place not be busy? Or did they attend to their clients so quickly that nopony need wait long for their treatment.
“Welcome to the Ponyville Spa.” Called the welcoming voice of either Aloe or Lotus. Rumble could never really tell the difference between the two. He knew which was which in terms of color and voice. But he always had difficulty remembering which name went to which mare. Though he always did enjoy looking at their hooves and how well maintained they were. “How can we help you today?”
“My name is Flitter, I have an afternoon mane, tail, and hoof treatment.” Flitter answered, her almost professional sounding voice caused Rumble to shiver a little in delight. He couldn’t help but admire how mature Flitter was when she spoke like that.
“Ah here we are.” The Spa mare smiled, looking through the schedule. “Just head down to room 34 and we’ll have somepony begin shortly.”
“Thank you, come on Rumble.” Flitter smiled at Rumble, causing the colt to blush again.
Walking further into the Spa, Rumble’s eyes bore witness to the spectacles around him. So many mares and stallions, Unicorns, Pegasi, and Earth Ponies all getting various treatments. A couple Pegasi were getting their wings gently massaged, some Earth Ponies were getting hot stone deep tissue massages, and he could vaguely see a few Unicorns getting their hooves buffed and polished. Rumble couldn’t help but swallow nervously as he could see the unicorn spa mare buffing and rubbing what looked like soft nylon over the polished hoof, while another mare applied a fresh coat of a shade of red on her hooves.
‘This is amazing!’ Rumble thought to himself, his head darting around as his sparkling eyes gazed upon everything the spa seemed to offer. ‘This is like a magical world where everypony can get anything done!’ But as he continued to walk, he also remembered who he was with. ‘That’s right! I’m here...here with Flitter...you can do it Rumble. Just asked her out. Wait! Isn’t this the date? Do I even need to ask her out? Did she somehow ask me out?!’
“Here we are.” Flitter said, her honeyed words waking Rumble from his thoughts. “Room 34.” She then turned her head and looked to Rumble. “This should be fun.”
Entering the room, Rumble’s eyes widened in shock and awe. The room was filled with everything he could ever have hoped for. There were numerous reclining seats and couches, a way for the ponies to feel relaxed during their treatments. A relatively large sized pool of what he could only assume is warm water, with a small panel nearby that looks like it can control the water temperature. But it was the numerous hoof racks and what looked to be an endless number of hoof polish that made Rumble almost faint. The racks were clean and seemed to shine in the room’s light. And the polish, Rumble’s lips trembled at the sight. There were more variants of color that Rumble could count on his hooves or Flitter’s hooves put together.
“This will do.” Flitter commented, looking about the room. Laying back in one of the couches, Flitter started flipping through numerous possible treatments. “Hmm, I’m thinking of a good wing massage as a starter and maybe get my hooves redone. What do you think Rumble?”
‘I really wish I was the one doing your hooves.’ Rumble really wanted to say but could only nod his head. The only amounts of courage in his mouth could only emit the words. “Sounds good.”
“Then that’s the plan.” Flitter smiled, turning to press an intercom button. There was a buzzing sound, followed by what sounded like a mare’s voice. “Hello, this is Room 34, we’re ready for our treatment.”
“Thank you, we shall send somepony over shortly.” The voice replied. “Thank you again for choosing Ponyville Spa.”
For the minutes that the two waited, it felt as though it were an eternity. Rumble was only a few feet away from Flitter, he could smell her sweet smelling body from such a distance. Just one sound, a sentence, even the most subtle of breaths is all it would take for Rumble to ask Flitter out, confess her feelings, or do anything. But he couldn’t do it, she was there, he could just let it out, confess everything. But her couldn’t. His words only stayed lodged in his throat.
“U...uh Flitter…” Rumble let out, his face red with a scarlet blush.
“Yes Rumble?” Flitter replied, her eyes looking deep into Rumbles.
“Well...you see...I...I…” Rumble tried to confess, but just as the words escaped his lips, there was a knock on the door; the sound nearly making Rumble jump out of his coat.
“Hello?” Called what sounded like a mare’s voice. “We’re here for the massage treatment. May we come in?”
“You can.” Flitter replied, smiling towards the door.
Opening the door, two mares casually walked into the room. One of them was red with a short black mane, while the other was blue with a long white mane. Both were Earth Ponies and were fairly attractive, but Rumble’s attention towards them was only in a mix of frustration and embarrassment; for they had ruined the best possible chance he had to confess. But nonetheless, Rumble tried to calm down; there would be other times.
“Thank you you selection Ponyville Spa as your choice of relaxation.” The red mare commented, bowing her head.
“So what massage have you considered?” The blue mare added. “We do offer numerous selections and options. Let us know if you’d like any suggestions.”
“Well for starters.” Flitter said, putting down the massage packet. “I’m thinking some gentle wing massage for both of us. Then we can go from there.”
“Sounds good!” Both mares replied with gentle smiles. “Let’s begin.”
Both mares walked to their customers. Flitter had the red mare and Rumble had the blue. Knowing what was to come, Flitter stretched her arms and legs, laying flat on her stomach. Rumble, watching this, followed in suit, laying on his stomach but kept his wings along his back just like Flitter. As the red mare adjusted herself, she lifted herself up and gently placed her forehooves atop Flitter’s wings.
Starting with the scapulars, the spa mare rubbed her hooves along the the length of the joint muscles. Flitter let out a small moaning sound as she felt herself loosen up at the spa mare’s delicate touch. She could feel her stiff wings loosen as the hooves slowly rubbed their way along her marginal coverts, stopping short of her alula. Flitter’s primary coverts shivered with delight, she could feel the tips of her feathers tingle with the sensation of her muscles. The tightening, followed by the loosening of her wing joints only made her body shiver slightly.
Rumble, watching all of this, only could feel envious of the masseuse. Sure, the wing massage looked relaxing beyond what he could ever imagine. But it was the look on Flitter’s face. The sheer expression of pleasure and relaxation. That was what he wanted to do to her. That was what he wanted. He wanted to make her feel that way. He wanted to be the reason she made those noises. But for now, he had to settle on watching a professional masseuse do their job.
Speaking of professional masseuse, Rumble’s small body almost jumped when he felt his own spa mare press her hooves against his back. Starting more at the shoulder blades, Rumble felt her hooves rub along his back and then faintly touch his smaller scapulars. Because of his smaller size, the spa mare had to be much gentler with him. Rumble’s wings were much smaller than Flitter’s and thus the spa mare’s hooves covered more space much faster.
Rumble shivered slightly, his more sensitive, developing wing muscles and joints were not accustomed to anypony touching them, especially in the manner they were. He could feel his wings tense up, only to be released and relaxed a moment later. His small body seemed to only submit to the tender touch of the masseuse; yearning to be touched more. It was embarrassing, so much so that Rumble’s face became a scarlet blush as he could only imagine how he must look to Flitter at this moment. His squeezed his eyes shut at the mere thought, trying to compose himself; failing to do so.
“Relax, everything is fine.” The spa mare whispered to Rumble, noticing the colt was tensing up too much. “It’s always a little...different feeling at first, but just relax, take some deep breaths, and everything will be fine.”
Listening to her words, Rumble let in a few breaths, relaxing and forming his thoughts. His response must’ve have earned him a reward, for when he finally opened his eyes again, they widened and sparkled. Flitter’s spa mare seemed to have finished working the wings and was now propping up Flitter’s hooves in the polish brackets. Rumble swallowed in anticipation. He could watch Flitter’s hooves be touched up and polished all at once.
“This was a very good polish.” The spa mare commented, examining Flitter’s hooves. “It held it’s form and color much longer than we thought.”
“It really did.” Flitter added, taking the compliment. “But let’s give it a good touching up.”
“No, no, no my dear.” The spa mare said, clicking her tongue as she spoke. “We need to get the old layer off, clean the hoof, and then apply a fresh coat.”
“I’ll let it to you.” Flitter replied with a calming smile, laying back as she let the spa mare work.
Some Alicorn Princess must’ve been really looking out for Rumble. The spa mare wasn’t blocking anything, giving Rumble the perfect view. He could see everything, every detail of Flitter’s hooves. Taking a clean cloth, the spa mare poured what looked like polish remover, it had a distinguishable aroma, one Rumble knew all too well. It tingled his nostrils as he took each heavy breath. It was almost intoxicating as he took in each breath of air through his nose.
“Okay.” The spa mare said, explaining the process. “First, we apply a sparing amount of the remover.” She then proceeded to rub the rag against one of Flitter’s hooves. “Almost instantly, the remover should be doing its job at dissolving the residue polish and allowing us to wipe it away.”
Rumble watched as the spa mare seemed to only focus on one of Flitter’s hooves. Was she going to do them all at once, or was she going to do one at a time? The thoughts and fantasies filled Rumble with more thrills than that time we walked into the Carousel Boutique during the hoof fashion season. His memories would have to wait though, for now, Rumble wanted to burn every detail of this event into his mind. When the spa mare finished wiping away the remover, she gently placed the cloth in a small bin full of water, possibly to wash off the remover.
“Now to do a quick dry.” The spa mare continued, grabbing at a dry, clean cloth to the side. “We just need to get any remaining polish and remover off and to dry the area for the next step.”
Rumble could almost hear the moisture being wiped away from Flitter’s hoof. His eyes were so focused on Flitter’s hooves that he could almost see the smallest of water trailing down her drying hoof. He wanted to be the one to do it, he could almost feel a small sorrow build in his stomach and mind as he longed to be the one to polish and paint Flitter’s hooves. But for now, he was content to simply watch, to marvel, and to learn. He had faith that one day he’d paint her hooves, and when that day came, he wanted to make it perfect.
“With the hoof good and dry.” The spa mare said, sliding the cloth to underneath Flitter’s hoof. “Now we can apply the polish. By the way, what color would you like today?”
“A good, bright pink.” Flitter replied with a smile. “I really loved how it shined in the sunlight and wanted to see it again.”
“Pink, coming up.” The spa mare nodded with a grin, reaching to the bottle of pink hoof nail polish. “Now, let’s apply the first layer, something to set the boundaries.”
This was the moment Rumble had been waiting for. Slightly poking his head forward, Rumble didn’t want to miss a single moment. So intense was Rumble’s stare that he wasn’t even sure he was blinking anymore. The spa mare continued, raising the brush and slowly placing it on Flitter’s bare hoof nail. There was no hesitation, no worry, no sloppy strokes. The amount of polish was a perfect balance of polish and brush. The strokes were defined and over all solid, not even a single drop touched her coat.
‘That is so amazing!’ Rumble thought to himself, licking his lips. ‘How long did she do this to have such technique?’
“Now that the first layer is done.” The spa mare said, gently moving her hoof away from Flitter’s. “Let me work on your next hoof while this one dries.”
Flitter only nodded with a smile, letting the spa mare do her work. Rumble, so focused on the hoof polishing, that he had all but forgotten the spa mare still working his relaxing back, shoulders, and wings. Flitter’s spa mare repeated her previous steps, gently and professionally applying and removing polish remover, making Flitter’s once shining hooves bare and dull. She then washed them, dried them, and then applied the dazzling pink colored polish. Rumble wasn’t sure how much longer he’d be able to take watching all of this, but watch on he did; not willing to let anything distract him.
“Okay, with all four now given a fresh coat.” The spa mare commented, looking at her handywork so far. “We can begin the next step.”
Taking what looked like a strip of nylon, the spa mare began to gently run the fabric along the painted hoof. Rumble was in sheer awe as he could see the mare was buffing the dried polish, bringing out its shine. Flitter also seemed to be engrossed in the process, almost cooing as she saw how much brighter and fuller the polish was becoming.
“Now.” The spa mare said, fully sliding the nylon off. “We've buffed the initial layer, this will allow us to see if we've missed any places, and to bring out the fuller color.” Reaching to the bottles, the spa mare took a clear, sparkling liquid and gently brushed it against the dried polish. “Now this is our latest in waterproof covers and should not only keep your polish vivid, but keep it colorful.”
When Flitter’s hoof was well coated, the spa mare grabbed what looked like a buff brush, a rectangular brush usually used to brush a pony’s coat. Quickly and what looked like a well skilled aim, the spa mare began to brush the hoof. Quick and precise at first, the spa mare started at a side to side motion, allowing the hoof to be struck by every bristle of the brush at least once. Rumble could not look away as he watched each bristle of the brush seem to dance over Flitter’s hoof. But as he watched, he noticed something spectacular. As the spa mare continued to buff and brush, Flitter’s hoof seemed to slowly become shinier and shinier.
“As you can see.” The spa mare explained, running the brush now in an up and down motion. “With the polish now colored, and the waterproof coating applied, I can finish with the rest and we can give it a final buff.”
Rumble’s body began to finally ease and relax. It was more than enough for him to watch and learn the best way to properly care and polish a well maintained hoof nail. The spa mare then took the clear liquid across Flitter’s other hooves. The sight of the liquid running along her hooves, followed by the most precise and flawless execution of the spa mare’s brush strokes and buffing was like watching an artist at work. It wasn’t until she had finished had Rumble realized that the spa mare over him had long stopped massaging his own body.
‘Looks like she’s done.’ Rumble thought to himself, getting ready to get up. But it was the sight of Flitter’s spa mare grabbing an especially short strip of thick nylon that kept him laying flat. ‘Why would she need nylon that short, or that thick?’
“Now for this final buff.” The spa mare told. “I will need you to sit fully upwards with both your fore and rear hooves facing me.” Flitter did as she was told, adjusting her position where she was no on her flank rather than her side, both her forehooves and rear hooves were facing the spa mare. “Now, this is always a favorite of our clients, and I hope you enjoy this as well.”
Rumble wiggled his body slightly, try to get a better view as the spa mare’s body was blocking his previously unobstructed angle. After some more adjusting, Rumble was able to get the perfect view; and what a view it was. The spa mare’s motion was like a thing of beauty. The nylon struck at the hoof, covering one at one moment, and striking another in the next. The speed was far more than he could’ve ever expected or thought himself capable of. As the nylon moved around, a loud slapping sound echoed. For a few seconds, Rumble couldn’t tell where the sound came from.
But it was upon further watching, that he realized that as the nylon was loosened and then pulled straight, it would make a slapping, almost cracking sound. The noise blended beautify with the fluid, well curved motions of the spa mare’s body. It was not just a simple hoof nail polishing at this point. No, it was far more beautiful, far more perfect. It was art at its purest form, an art that one could not look away from when it was so well displayed in front. Rumble’s eyes were almost brought to tears at the beauty and grace the spa mare showed.
“And there we go!” The spa mare said with pride, stopping her motions, revealing her handywork. She had all the reason to be proud, Flitter’s eyes sparkled at how perfect the hooves had come out. They almost glowed in a light of pure brilliance when the light touched them. “I hope you are satisfied.”
“Oh Celestia yes!” Flitter all but cheered as she dazzled at them. “This was so worth it.”
With her hooves well polished, and Rumble’s back massaged; though he cared more about Flitter’s hooves, Flitter paid the bill and the two were off on their merry way. As they merrily trotted, both ponies could not speak. Flitter was far too excited over her newly polished hooves to have anything to say. And Rumble was even more dazzled at Flitter’s hooves to even think of anything to say.
“Oh! That reminds me.” Flitter finally said, as the two were nearing Rumble’s house. “Your mom told me that Thunderlane was off somewhere, probably with his friends, and she was busy with some of her own friends, so it looks like I’m sitting you tonight.”
Rumble could almost do flying backflips from the revelation. He knew about his mother’s plans, but with news of Thunderlane being gone too, he had the whole place to himself...with Flitter; and her freshly polished hooves. When they finally reached the house, Rumble all but knocked the door wide open with his excitement. Flitter, unaware of the reasoning behind all his energy, closed the door behind them and situated herself on the nearby couch. This was a habit of hers. Once she was either home or sitting Rumble after visiting the spa, Flitter wanted to spend the rest of her evening relaxing.
“So, what would you like to do tonight.” Flitter asked, seeing Rumble was already flying a little in the air.
“Well…” Rumble paused for a second, before an idea sparked in his head. Taking off like a little bolt, Rumble went and came back holding a book in his hooves. “Can you read this?”
“Let’s see…” Flitter replied, taking the book from Rumble. “The Princess of Cloud Castle...sounds good.” She then gently pat her hoof against the couch cushion. “Come, join me.”
“C-c-c-c-can I possibly...sit on your lap tonight?” Rumble asked, ready to drop from the embarrassment of the question.
“Sure.” Flitter replied with a kind and warm smile. Rumble could almost die from the joy he felt. Without hesitation, he flew towards the mare, delicately landing on her lap. With the little colt situated, Flitter was ready to read. But she just wanted to make sure Rumble was ready. “Anything else you’d like while sitting?”
“W-w-w-well…” Rumble gulped nervously, this was his chance and it was now do or die time for him. “C-c-c-could I...well...what I mean is...c-c-can I suckle your hoof?”
“My hoof?” Flitter’s reply wasn’t one of disgust, so Rumble felt he had a chance, despite how red with embarrassment he was. Flitter looked at one of her hooves for a moment, pondering; her expression giving Rumble mixed feelings and fears. “Well, I don’t think it’s toxic, so I don’t see why not.”
“Oh thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!” Rumble cheered, taking no time to breathe as he took one of Flitter’s hooves in his small mouth. Not the entire thing, but only a little past the tip. The feeling was beyond ecstatic. Rumble felt his entire body shudder and almost shiver with delight. It was certainly a pleasurable feeling he once thought he was too young to feel, but there it was; his body almost becoming intoxicated by Flitter’s texture and flavor.
“There you go little guy.” Flitter smiled, her expression only making Rumble so at peace and happy. “Let’s begin...A long time ago, there was a beautiful Pegasus Princess who lived in a Cloud Castle…”
Despite the story being one of, if not his favorite tale, Rumble couldn’t care less. His attention was on Flitter and only Flitter. How she spoke, how she looked, how her perfect lips uttered each word like an angelic muse. Rumble knew this was the day. He was going to confess his true feelings. His one nervous demeanor was slowly melting away, fueled by the pleasurable courage he obtained through Flitter’s own smooth hoof. But it was before Rumble could fully conceive any plan of way to word his feelings, Flitter seemed to have finished the story.
“That was a good story.” Flitter commented, putting the book down to her side. “I always liked the part when the Prince defeats the Griffon Sorcerer. What was your favorite part?”
“Hearing you read it.” Rumble said, his words coming from the heart as he looked up at Flitter with shining eyes.
“Awe! You’re just so cute.” Flitter cooed, lifting up Rumble as if she were holding a small foal in her arms. “I could just kiss you...in fact…” Flitter leaned in and gave Rumble a quick peek on the cheek. The colt’s ears perking up straight at the feeling of her lips on his face.
“C-c-can I have another?” Rumble asked, throwing all caution to the wind and wanting to test his luck even further. “B-b-but can I have it longer?”
“Awe, for being such a little cutie, sure.” Flitter replied, leaning in and giving Rumble another little kiss on his cheek, but this time she held it on a little longer. Rumble shivered as he felt her softness against him. It was nearly an eternity later before Flitter moved her face away. “So, what did you think of that?”
“F-f-flitter.” Rumble cooed, almost cuddling up against Flitter’s chest, keeping part of her hoof suckled in his mouth. “I-I-I-I-I...well you see...I-I-I-I...I just want to say that…” It was now of never, Rumble had to do it. “I love you!”
“Awe, that's so sweet of you to say that.” Flitter’s words were like an audible honey to Rumble’s ears.
“C-c-can I...kiss you?” Rumble asked, hoping for the best possible-
“Sure.” Flitter replied with a smile, tilting her head slightly, assuming Rumble meant the cheek.
But what Flitter did not expect, was Rumble pressed his head upwards, but didn’t place his lips on her cheek, but instead gently pressed his small lips against Flitter’s own soft lips. Flitter’s eyes opened a little wider at the surprise, but didn’t show any resistance. In fact, it was almost the opposite. Flitter seemed to press her lips back, gently kissing Rumble’s lips as well. This was not the kiss of a passionate mare, or a caring lover, but this was the kiss of a mare who wanted to let the colt in her arms know how cute he was.
Rumble, on the other hand, was in heaven. It was the greatest moment of his life. Flitter, the mare of his crush and dreams, was holding him in her arms, and pressing her soft and delicate lips against his. She tasted better than anything he had ever hoped for and it was better than anything he could’ve ever dreamed. It was perfect, and he could only hope that this was not another dream.