Looking out of the window of a cloud house was difficult.
Not the act in and of itself, of course. All one had to do was turn their head–or even their entire body if they were so inclined–towards said window and make sure that their eyes were open. Checking how high the window was placed was also helpful. All in all, the act by itself was quite easy and required no additional exertion on the part of the looker. It was when somepony added the caveat of wanting to view ponies on the ground that the difficulty really started to shine through. That, of course, was the situation in which Rainbow Dash found herself today and, if she could be frank, it was quite irritating.
The perturbed pegasus stared with contempt at the ground below once she'd bothered to lean out her window enough to do so. She normally didn't dislike the ground as much as her current expression and mood indicated. In fact, even though she was a very air-oriented pony, she tended to hold the ground with very high regard most of the time. The ground was where most of her friends lived, after all. Oddly enough, the fact that her friends were on the ground was the main driving point behind the disdain that she currently held for it.
A knock on her bedroom door jolted Dash out of her frustrated purveyance. She pulled her head away from the window, pausing for only the briefest of moments to ponder how odd it was that one could knock on a cloud before deciding that it was better not to think about some things too much. Blue wings, powerful despite not really feeling so at the moment, propelled the pegasus doorward.
"Who is it?" Dash demanded.
"Dashie," a kind yet insistent voice answered. "You know you shouldn't speak to your mother like that."
Dash rolled her eyes slightly. It was entirely like her mother to pop in unannounced. She just didn't expect her to be doing so right at this moment. At the same time, she was used to her mom showing up when she didn't expect her, so in a way she kind of did expect it.
Dash decided not to dwell on it any further. Her head was already starting to hurt. Instead, she opted to simply open the door. She made sure to put on a small, fake smile before she did so. Her mom would be insufferable if she had even the slightest inkling that something was wrong.
"Hey mom," Dash said. Had there been an award for "Most Convincing Performance While Pretending To Be Happy," Dash was positive she would have beaten all her competition handily. Not too subtle, not too over-the-top. It was a moment of pure acting brilliance, one the lines of which ponykind would never see again.
"Something's wrong, isn't it?" Windy Whistles asked.
Clearly the scoundrel had witnessed many a performance in her day.
"Ugh..." Dash groaned, stepping aside to allow Windy passage. "Nothing's wrong, Mom."
"Is that so?" Windy asked, briefly tut-tutting over the general disheveled state of her daughter's room as she trotted towards the bed. "Because from the things I've heard, that's simply not the case."
"What things?" Dash asked. She narrowed her eyes. Her mom was probably trying to trick her. She was probably expecting her to hear this accusation and immediately crack like an egg. Little did she know that Dash had grown quite a bit since the last time that had worked.
"Darn," Windy said, having herself a seat on the bed. "I'd hoped that would work like it did when you accidentally broke my vase last month."
"I've grown since then," Dash stated simply.
"Have you grown too much to sit and talk with your mom?" Windy asked, patting the space next to her on the bed. Dash kept her tough act up for a few moments longer before finally acquiescing and going to sit next to her mom. She felt her mom's wing reach out and wrap around her back, gently suggesting with a slight pull that she cuddle up close. Despite the clear hit she would take to her bravado by doing so, Dash allowed the wing to pull her nice and close against Windy's warm body. It took a fair amount of willpower not to rest her head on Windy's shoulder. With the mood she was in, she needed all the comfort that could be afforded to her, but to do that would very clearly give away the fact that something was wrong, and she wasn't quite ready to relent on that.
"Come on, Dashie-Poo," Windy cooed. "What's bothering you?"
"The fact that you just called me Dashie-Poo, for one," Dash replied.
"Point taken," Windy said, chuckling lightly. "But come on now. It's obvious something is wrong. It's not like you to completely avoid your friends for days."
"You know about that?" Dash said, nearly sitting up from her comfortable embrace. She quickly cleared her throat, then attempted to play it cool. "I mean...why would you think that? Who told you that?"
"I dropped by Ponyville today to pick up some fresh produce from the market," Windy told her, gently drumming on Dash's belly with her wingtips. "And your friend Twilight said you hadn't been around in days."
"Least she noticed that," Dash grumbled quietly.
"Ah, so it's something with her," Windy said knowingly.
"I didn't say that!" Dash was quick to retort.
"I heard what you said," Windy said with a grin. "You didn't win the Loudest Mumble Award because you're so quiet, you know." An annoyed Dash tried to wriggle away from the comfort of her mom's wing, but a foreleg quickly joined it, intensifying the maternal cuddles. "Come on, Dashie. You can talk to me about anything."
Dash let out a sigh. No matter how old she got, no matter how much of a pain her mother could be, she still loved her and felt comfortable around her. She felt almost like a little filly again as Windy held her close, feeling small even though they were the same size now. She looked over and met her mother’s concerned gaze, and the love and concern easily broke through what little resistance she had left.
"Mom?" Dash asked, her voice a bit quieter now. "Am I pretty?"
"Of course!" Windy exclaimed without a moment's hesitation. "Why, you're the prettiest mare in the world!"
The stare Dash gave her mom was nearly flat enough to set their conversation into a whole new key signature.
"Yeah," Dash said. "Remind me not to ask you those kinds of questions."
"Oh come on, Rainbow Dash," Windy said with a giggle. "Maybe I'm exaggerating just the tiniest bit, but I really mean it."
"Uh huh," Dash muttered. Her grumpiness was met with a little squeeze from Windy's wing.
"What made you even ask that anyway?" Windy asked. "You normally don't even care about that kind of thing. You would barely even let me dress you up when you were a filly."
"Yeah..." Dash replied, letting out a sigh and looking away. "And that sure is biting me in the flank now, isn't it?"
"How so?" Windy asked. Her usual optimism was starting to subside in the face of the very real disappointment her daughter was experiencing, no matter how little she understood it.
"Just look at what happened with Applejack!" Dash said with a huff.
"Come on, Dashie," Windy said, a bit frustrated with herself that she hadn't figured that to be part of it. "You two had a nice little relationship, but not everything lasts forever. And you two are still wonderful friends, aren't you?"
"Yeah," Dash replied. "But it's not the same. She was the one who said things weren't working out and she wanted to go back to just being friends, not me. And now look at her. She's dating Rarity! And she's totally pretty! Obviously she was looking for a prettier marefriend."
"Don't be ridiculous, Dashie!" Windy insisted. "Just because things didn't work out with you two doesn't mean..."
"And that's not even all!" Dash interjected. "I've been trying to get Twilight's attention for weeks! I've been flirting with her constantly, doing everything but grabbing her and telling her exactly what I want to do with her. And she doesn't respond at all! I might as well be flirting with a really hot wall." The frustrated pegasus let out a groan, slumping against her mom.
"Dashie, I really think you're overreacting..." Windy tried to interrupt. Dash's momentum, however, was just too great.
"And I could have sworn I heard about her having a thing for Fluttershy at one point, and she’s totally pretty!" Dash lamented. "I'm not pretty enough for them. I know it. Like, I'm totally awesome and cool in every other way, but being pretty and girly just ain't one of them. And when all the mares I like are into girly mares, that totally blows."
The prismatic pegasus groaned loudly. "Maybe I should just start dressing in stupid frilly dresses and wearing makeup and junk. Maybe then ponies will notice me."
Windy let out a deep sigh, the kind of sigh reserved for parents whose adult Wonderbolt daughter was going through a mildly silly crisis. Rainbow Dash wasn't always the type to overreact to things, but when she did, the extent to which she did so was fascinating. There was a reason that she was voted Best Overreactor, and it wasn't just because the judges were biased and the number of entries was severely lacking.
"Rainbow Dash," Windy said, releasing her grip on her daughter so she could move back and get a good look in her eyes. "Don't get me wrong; you're definitely a lovely mare. At the same time, you should realize that you don't have to worry about this kind of thing. You don't have to be like the other mares who worry so much about their appearance. You are Rainbow Dash, dear. You're awesome! If some mares seem more interested in others...well, put simply, they're missing out. You'll find a mare that likes you for you, and you'll do it without having to change yourself."
Silence filled the room for a good ten seconds as Dash stared into the gentle eyes of her mom. Finally, the little frown on her face faded, replaced with a weak smile.
"Thanks, Mom," Dash said, renewing the recently-broken hug.
"Any time, dear," Windy replied, drawing her close and ruffling her mane with a hoof. "Now get out there and stop worrying your friends, alright?"
"Heh...you got it," Dash said. She gave her mom another little squeeze before letting go. Watching Windy depart, she felt renewed vigor course through her body. Maybe Applejack did dump her and end up going out with what many around her thought of as the embodiment of beauty. Maybe Twilight, the sweet and kind Twilight whose heart she wanted so badly to win, did completely ignore her advances while having made her interest in a classic beauty and former fashion model very clear in the past. Maybe those two things were endlessly, endlessly frustrating. But at the same time, her mom was right. She was awesome, and she could find somepony that liked her for her.
Rainbow Dash flew out of her house, full of vim and vigor and ready to take on anything. The world was her oyster, and she was ready to crack it. Or whatever one normally did with oysters. She wasn't big on seafood. Fluttershy would probably keep one as a pet. The world was Dash's oyster, and she was ready to keep it as a pet.
As Dash approached the ground, she felt her chest fill with pride. She knew how fantastic she was, and nothing was going to change that. Or at least that was how she felt before setting her eyes on Twilight Sparkle.
There Twilight was, sitting on a park bench, reading a novel. Dash's attention to detail while flying normally would have allowed her to notice what book it was that she was reading, but that would have meant taking her attention off of Twilight herself, and that wasn't exactly what she wanted at the moment. Exactly what she wanted at the moment was Twilight.
Dash took a deep breath before making her approach. Sure, Twilight had ignored all previous flirting attempts in the past, but that was in the past. That was when Dash's confidence was already partially shot from the goings-on with Applejack. Now that Dash had full confidence in herself, there was no chance that Twilight could spurn her attempts.
"Hey Twilight!" Dash called out as she approached her from behind. She thanked Celestia for the day's warm weather, as it would pay perfectly into a flirty line that she had in store for the alicorn. It was a little more direct them her usual fare, but maybe it couldn't hurt to be more direct than usual. "Is it hot out here, or is it just..."
The next word, quite clearly the most integral one in the pickup line she'd nearly finished, got caught in her throat as she finally caught sight of just what Twilight was reading. It was entirely unlike Twilight to read a book on fashion, so much so that it almost felt like the fact that she was doing so was set up specifically for this situation. Pictures of stunning mares, manes impeccably styled and dressed in extravagant gowns, adorned the pages of the book, and there Twilight was, seemingly quite engaged in all of it.
Dash's confidence was blown away in an instant. She barely even noticed as Twilight turned to her.
"Oh, hi Rainbow!" Twilight said with a smile. "Yeah, it's pretty hot out, but I'm sure we'll all be wishing for this weather again in December. How are you?"
Dash's eyes rested on the book in Twilight's possession. That was clearly the solution. If she was to be pretty enough to gain Twilight's attention, then she knew what she needed to do.
"Not much," Dash answered hurriedly, earning an inquisitive raise of a single eyebrow from Twilight. "Say, is it okay if I go use your library for a bit?"
"You want to use the library?" Twilight asked. "There isn't even a new Daring Do book out for a good few months."
"I know!" Dash replied."But I want to...expand my horizons!"
Twilight's expression brightened visibly, but Dash was so focused that she barely noticed.
"Well of course you can!" Twilight responded. "I could come with in a few minutes if you.."
"Great thanks!" Dash shouted. Before Twilight could finish her sentence, Dash was gone.
"Huh..." Twilight said, then shrugged it off. She only had a moment to glance back at the book before she was interrupted once more.
"Twilight, darling!" Rarity exclaimed as she approached. "Thank you ever so much for keeping an eye on my book for me!"
"Happy to help!" Twilight responded, smiling warmly at her friend as she returned the book to its rightful owner. "You know how I am with books and all."
~~~~~~~~~~
Dash felt like she didn't belong as she walked the halls of Twilight's library. It had been ages since she learned her lesson about how reading didn't necessarily make one an egghead and how being an egghead wasn't even necessarily a bad thing in the first place. Still, being in a place so utterly saturated with books just felt alien to her. She would have to spend a whole lot of time at the gym later to counteract the extreme levels of studiousness that she was experiencing here. Of course, that would have to wait until she was done with the things she'd come here for.
Dash found herself wishing that she'd paid even the slightest bit of attention to all of Twilight's lessons on the organization behind the shelves of the library. She'd honestly tried to pay attention once, but it was so boring, and she had quickly found herself distracted by the way that Twilight's bangs bounced cutely each time her head bobbed. She found herself cursing those cute little bangs as she found herself completely lost in the endless labyrinthine halls of the library. She remembered Twilight saying something about a Dewey Decimal System in that discussion, but with how little she remembered about it, it might as well have been called the Don't-We Decimal System.
"Heh...Don't-We Decimal System," Dash chuckled to nopony in particular as she continued her search. The halls were beginning to get darker and creepier. A less brave pony would have likely been shaking like a leaf at the general spookiness of the situation, but Dash was a brave mare, and her trembling was simply sympathy trembling for the benefit of others in case anypony else happened to be wandering by. If they saw a brave pony like Dash pretending to be scared, they'd surely feel better about themselves. Yes, that was the ticket.
If Dash could be honest with herself, she was getting to the point where she was nearly ready to give up on her plan. The section of the library that she had found herself in felt a little too forboding to contain the books on fashion and style that she was looking for. To be fair, though, she knew very little about library organization. Maybe books on fashion and style were unpopular enough that they ended up in a rarely-visited area like this. That explanation made perfect sense to Dash. She certainly wouldn't have been looking for something so boring if she didn't want to impress Twilight.
"I have what you seek..."
Dash definitely didn't shriek. She was simply testing her vocal cords at a time that coincided with an event that would have scared more timid ponies.
"Who said that?" Dash asked, her voice wavering in pitch for the sole purpose of throwing this mystery voice off of her trail and not out of nervousness.
"I have what you seek..." the voice repeated. "Everything you could ever want is within my pages. Just open me and I'll make your dreams come true."
Dash was not a stupid pony. She knew a creepy and dangerous voice when she heard it. Her totally-not-fear quickly gave way to annoyed bravado as she tried to follow the sound of the breathy voice that was still calling out to her. She had to locate the source so she wouldn't end up grabbing the evil book it likely belonged to by mistake. Keen ears sought out the voice, quickly leading the intrepid pegasus to a lone bookshelf.
"I have what you seek..." the voice repeated once more. Dash's eyes zoomed straight to its location, and she couldn't help but shake her head as they rested on the book that was certainly the source of it. The book's binding was tattered and worn, but she could still make out the blood-red text against the black background.
"Dark Desires and Fearful Fulfillments," Dash read, before letting out a derisive scoff. "Seriously? You think I'm gonna fall for that? I wasn't born yesterday, you know."
"I have what you seek..." the voice repeated a final time.
"Yeah yeah, not happening," Dash said, making a rude gesture with a wing towards the book. All the signs there pointed to danger, and there was no way that Dash was going to fall for something so blatantly troublesome. She was far more savvy than that.
"Oh hey!" Dash exclaimed as her eyes wandered to the book next to the evil one. This one had a pink cover, and the words in the binding were written in a flowery purple font. "Pony Prettification: A Proper Mare's Guide to Landing the Pony of Your Dreams."
Dash couldn't believe her luck. After all of that searching, nearly giving up, and having an evil book try to tempt her, she had finally found exactly what she was looking for. Without a moment's hesitation, she scooped the book up into her hooves.
"Rainbow Dash: one. Don't-We Decimal System: zero!" Dash stated gleefully as she clutched the book close to her chest. "And heck, while we're at it, Evil Book: zero too! Hah!"
With that, Dash left the shelf, tracing her steps back to find her way out of the library. Part of her thought she heard a quiet, yet sinister laugh as she was leaving, but she was probably imagining it..