Of Mares and Machines

by Razalon The Lizardman


Chapter 9

Mavis’ dreams normally had to do with her work in the quarry and making Toby look foolish or, if she was lucky, she’d find herself running with a long line of trucks on the main line to a faraway place on Sodor, enjoying the strange and exotic sights around her.

That night, however, she found herself standing in the middle of a grassy field underneath a clear blue sky. Directly in front of her was Big Mac, facing away from her. Nothing else was in the field apart from the two of them.

Mavis was sad that they were as far apart as they were. The desire to stand by his side soared within her for some reason. She began walking closer, but with each step she took, Big Mac seemed to drift farther and farther away. She broke out into a gallop, but try as she might, she couldn’t get any closer to him. She gave up and sat down on her rump, head slouched over as tears began spilling from her eyes and choked sobs wracked her throat.

Through her weeping, she heard faint hoofsteps approaching her, but it wasn’t until she felt a hoof press up against her chin that she managed to calm down and her eyes were lifted to meet Big Mac’s compassionate own. They locked gazes for a solid minute, with Mavis at a loss for what to do or say. She was happy to be with him, at least.

Finally, Big Mac winked at her and said, “Keep bein’ yourself.”

Mavis woke up at that moment. Sunlight streamed through her bedroom window, spilling over her bed. Birdsong could faintly be heard outside. She sat up in bed, taking a moment to stretch before getting out and beginning her daily routine. Breakfast went along as normal, as did the daily chores and work in the orchard. Every now and then she caught Big Mac flashing her a soft, genuine smile, and she always returned it with her own. She also caught Applejack trying to stifle bouts of laughter more than a few times at their silent exchanges, much to her indignation. It also made running the stall more awkward than usual.

Her dream stayed in her thoughts throughout the day; she couldn’t help but think it meant something important. Applejack was being too rude, so Mavis decided to visit Rarity on her way back from helping Fluttershy that day to ask her.

Her volunteer work at Fluttershy’s cottage was also fairly uneventful. The only notable thing to happen occurred when she first arrived, finding Fluttershy with her head in her chicken coop. She came out of the coop a moment later and a couple of chickens came walking out, heads hung down in obvious shame.

Mavis reached the property just as Fluttershy was finished talking to the chickens and they returned to the coop, their heads remaining hung.

“Oh hello, Mavis,” Fluttershy said kindly upon noticing her.

“Hello, Fluttershy,” she replied kindly in turn. She glanced at the chicken coop. “What was that?”

Fluttershy cast an exasperated glance at the coop. “My chickens have been very naughty lately. They’ve been wandering off on their own without me knowing where they are.” She sighed. “I don’t like having to punish them, but sometimes it’s the only way to effectively get your point across.”

Mavis felt sympathy for the chickens, but she knew Fluttershy was right. She was only glad that she wouldn’t have to learn that lesson again.


“So, did your date go along well last night, dear?” Rarity asked as she poured tea for both of them.

“I think so, yes,” Mavis said, taking one of the cups from the ‘coffee table’ and bringing it up to her mouth. Tea still tasted funny to her, but as long as it didn’t make her sick she couldn’t complain. That is unless it tasted completely horrible. “Big Mac made a wish on a shooting star that the rest of my stay here was pleasant.”

“Oh, that’s so lovely of him.” Rarity’s eyes looked funny when she said this, almost like they were literally shining like diamonds. “Well, considering how well you’ve been working and gotten along with everypony, I do believe his wish will come true.”

Mavis nodded. They chatted for a little while about other things after that; mostly Rarity explaining pony fashion to Mavis, most of which she couldn’t relate to, being an engine. She could understand the idea of looking one’s best, at least; all engines needed to be washed down after a long day of dirty work.

Mavis decided to speak her mind after Rarity had run out of things to talk about. “I had a dream about Big Mac last night.”

Rarity’s eyes shone again. “Did you now? I hope it was a pleasant one.”

Mavis gave her a rundown of how the dream played out. The more she explained, the more weirdly happy Rarity seemed to get.

“I do believe you’re in the full throes of love, darling!” she cried jovially when Mavis finished.

“Is that what it means?” Mavis asked.

“What it means is that you’re ready to take your budding romance to the next level.” Rarity gulped down all her tea in one swallow and set the cup back on the table. She smacked her lips, savouring the taste, and continued speaking. “The time has come for you to pour your heart out to him, to express your true feelings to him.”

True feelings? Mavis thought for a short while what those were. Big Mac was kind, complimentary, strong, hard-working, and just, in general, she enjoyed being around him. But according to Applejack and Rarity, feelings of romance like she was experiencing were supposed to lead to ‘marriage’ and ‘having foals’, but she wasn’t interested in those two things (she still didn’t know what the latter actually meant) even if they were possible to achieve.

What were her true feelings? If she had no interest in marriage than was her crush real? She would’ve been perfectly happy to just consider Big Mac nothing more than a great friend, but getting cozy with him had been such a great experience last night that she wanted to experience it again. Never before in her life was she so conflicted.

“Mavis? Are you okay?”

Rarity’s voice snapped Mavis from her thoughts. “Uh, I’m fine, of course,” she lied. She decided to put aside her questions for now. “How do I express my true feelings?”

“Well, first things first, you need to put yourself in an equally romantic situation as last night. Another round of stargazing will suffice.”

Mavis nodded her understanding.

“Do everything you did last night: get close, talk often— communicate with your body language that you want to be with him. Once you’ve gotten cozy with each other, stare into his eyes and tell him exactly how you feel about him. Hold nothing back; if you want to spend the rest of your waking days by his side, you tell him that! Put your honest feelings out in the open!”

Mavis nodded again.

“Furthermore,” Rarity continued, a cheeky grin splitting her muzzle, “no proper second date can end on anything other than a kiss.”

“You mean that thing people do at the end of weddings?” Mavis asked, once again recalling her driver’s story from last year.

“Not just at weddings, dear Mavis. Any two people that grow attached are destined to kiss to seal their true, undying love for each other!”

Mavis was starting to feel uneasy. She wasn’t sure what her feelings for Big Mac were and she didn’t want to do anything that he wouldn’t approve of. She relaxed a little when Rarity’s grin disappeared and she laughed heartily.

“Ah, I’m only teasing you, darling,” Rarity explained. “But seriously, a kiss under the star-filled night sky—” She gave a dramatic sigh and held a hoof up to her forehead, “—There is no better way to cap off a second date, believe me.”

Mavis didn’t much appreciate the teasing, or at all, really, but Rarity’s continued advice she did appreciate.

“Thank you, Rarity. I’ll follow your advice again.”

“Glad to hear it.” She lifted the tea kettle with her magic. “Another round of tea?” she asked.

They spent a little more time chatting about other things and drinking tea until the sun started setting. Mavis left Carousel Boutique with a lot on her mind, but also with great anticipation for her second date with Big Mac that night.


Dinner went by uneventfully as it usually did with the Apples. Afterward, Mavis had to make her fifth trip to the bathroom in a hurry to excrete— the smell never got any better, and likely never would. She also took the opportunity to wash and straighten her mane, to get rid of the tangles and make it clean and presentable as befitting the Pride of the Line. Once she was neat and clean she went to her closet to fetch her dress. She was fairly positive a big reason why the date went so well last night was because she wore it, so of course she would wear it again for this next one.

She quickly slipped it on and headed downstairs. Granny Smith and Apple Bloom were in their usual places in the living room, doing their usual activities of napping and drawing, respectively. Mavis once again found Applejack washing dishes in the kitchen and once again she told her that Big Mac was out on the front porch. Sure enough, that’s exactly where Mavis found the stallion; he must’ve made it a habit to come out here after every dinner.

“Hello, Big Mac,” she greeted.

Big Mac looked over to her and once again he was awestruck by the sight of her in a dress, but not to the same degree as last night. He quickly shook off his amazement and replied, “Evenin’.”

“Would you like to do some more stargazing?” she asked, getting straight to the point. “I had such a wonderful time last night; I would like to do it again if you wouldn’t mind.”

Big Mac was quick to reply with, “Eeyup.”

The two of them made their way into the barn, up the ladder to the loft, and onto the roof again. The air was warm tonight, which was nice in Mavis’ eyes. They sat next to each other, but Mavis scooted closer so she was less than half a body’s length away from Big Mac. For a brief moment, Mavis thought she saw his eyes flicker her way at the action. That was good.

They were quiet for a few moments. Mavis looked up at the stars. Like before, she began making random shapes with them, connecting them as her mind saw fit with no rhyme or reason. One benefit to having movable limbs was that she could point and trace patterns instead of having to use her memory for everything, something she was limited with as an engine. Between legs and wheels, however, she would still always choose the latter if given the choice.

After a minute or two of making shapes with the stars, Mavis noticed something peculiar. Some of the stars off to one side of the sky looked like they were arranged in a specific formation already. A closer look revealed it was in the shape of an alicorn; she could make out wings, a horn, a snout, and even a tail. That was odd.

“You’re looking confused, Mavis,” Big Mac remarked.

Mavis pointed at the sky. “Those stars look like they’re organized.”

Big Mac followed her hoof. “That’s a constellation,” he said.

Mavis looked at him curiously. “‘Constellation’?”

Big Mac nodded. “Eeyup. Sometimes stars look like they’re arranged in specific shapes, like ponies or legendary creatures. Ancient ponyfolk thought they actually were, but nowadays we know it’s all just a coincidence.”

That was fascinating! “Do you know what that one is?”

Big Mac shook his head. “Twilight’s the one to ask about that stuff.” Then a thoughtful look crossed his face as he took a closer look at the constellation. “Actually, I think I do know that one: Helios the Selfless.”

Mavis didn’t say anything, confused by the name. Big Mac must’ve caught on to her confusion, as he began elaborating.

“Now, I dunno how much of this I believe myself, but here’s the gist of it: Back when Princess Celestia and Princess Luna first appeared, ponies weren’t sure where they came from; even nowadays they still won’t say anythin’ about that. That led to all kinds of rumours about where they came from, and one of them ties to that constellation.” He pointed up at it. “That constellation existed even before the princesses, but it wasn’t until they showed up that it got a name: Helios the Selfless. We don’t know where the name itself came from, but myth has it that Helios is the father of the princesses and that he’s the ruler of the cosmos. Those stars are supposedly him watching over space, but facing away from the planet since he’s too busy doing that to keep an eye on his children.” He laughed. “Eeyup, ponies come up with the strangest stories sometimes.”

Mavis listened the entire time with great interest. The story didn’t make complete sense to her, but she liked it, even if she wasn’t sure exactly why. But one question of hers she wanted a clear answer to.

“What does ‘selfless’ mean?”

“It means putting the well-being of others before your own,” Big Mac explained. “The myth also says that Helios doesn’t like having to watch over the cosmos, that he’d like to meet with his daughters, but he does the job anyway because otherwise, the cosmos would fall apart. But again, that’s all just a myth.”

There was a lull in the conversation. Mavis decided to scoot closer to Big Mac so there was little more than a hoof’s length between them. He didn’t react to the action.

“That sounds horrible,” she finally said.

“Sometimes you gotta make hard decisions in life,” Big Mac said. “But when your decision ends up saving others, you know you chose right.”

Mavis finally closed the distance between them, her side gently pressing against his. She didn’t look to see if he reacted this time. In truth, she wasn’t entirely paying attention to the conversation; she was busy repeating Rarity’s advice over and over in her head, which was difficult to focus on with her rising symptoms. Big Mac wasn’t moving away after she got close; she took that as encouragement to press forward.

“Am I selfless?” she asked.

There was a moment of silence. Mavis looked up to see that Big Mac was smiling down at her brightly. He reached a hoof up and patted her back; her heartbeat quickened even more at the action.

“I think any pony, or engine, who’s as hard workin’ as you are is a good pony,” he said sweetly. “‘Selfless’? Can’t say fer sure unless you got put in a situation where you had to decide between your safety an’ somepony else’s.” A knowing glimmer flashed in his eye. “But if I had ta guess, sure, you’d make the selfless choice.”

Mavis’ heart was pounding inside her chest. Everything was going perfect! She smiled and pressed herself harder against him. Now was her chance!

“I like how nice you are to me, Big Mac,” she said. Her words came out soft-spoken; trying to talk normally while her body was acting up proved troublesome. “I wouldn’t have enjoyed my stay here if it weren’t for you. I was scared to be here without my wheels at first, but whenever I’m around you I feel happy. These dates have been the best part of my visit here.”

Big Mac smiled coyly. “‘Dates’, huh? Well, I’m glad you like havin’ my company, then.”

Their gazes locked with each other. Mavis recalled the last bit of Rarity’s advice about kissing Big Mac to end the date. How was she supposed to go about it? Did she need to ask for permission first? How long was she supposed to do it for? These questions and more rang through her mind before she decided to throw caution to the wind.

She raised her head towards Big Mac’s face and puckered her lips. Big Mac didn’t move, but the look in his eyes was one of shock and disbelief. Mavis worried for a moment that this meant she should stop, but she promised Rarity she would follow her advice perfectly, so she kept going. Closer and closer she got— Big Mac didn’t move, but his cheeks grew bright pink. Her heartbeat became nearly unbearable, and the funny feeling in her chest spread throughout her entire body.

She was about two inches away from Big Mac’s mouth when something happened. All the confidence she was feeling a second ago was, near instantly, replaced with discomfort. It happened for seemingly no reason, almost like someone had pulled a lever on her feelings. Her lips pursed and she pulled herself away from Big Mac, who continued staring at her in shock.

All her discomfort went away as soon as she pulled back, but what followed was a long stretch of awkward silence between them. Doubt clouded Mavis’ mind. Something wasn’t right, a thought now reinforced by Big Mac’s face. She wilted under his shocked gaze, feeling guilty that she’d almost done something potentially bad.

“I’m s-sorry,” she eventually managed to stutter.

Big Mac said nothing in reply, but his face softened somewhat. Mavis cast her gaze downward, unable to meet his eyes any longer.

“Could you not mention this to anyone?” she asked, hating how weak her voice came out.

Another few moments of silence passed before he responded with, “Eeyup.”

“Thank you,” Mavis replied before she got up and headed down the roof, intending to make for her bed. Never once did she look back at Big Mac, too ashamed of herself. He said nothing, but she could feel his eyes watching her the whole time; she pictured him looking crossly at her.

Mavis didn’t sleep well that night at all. Questions she couldn’t answer played repeatedly in her mind, making her toss and turn in her bedsheets. Through the chaos in her mind, however, one thing was perfectly clear: She didn’t truly love Big Mac.