//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 Mane problems // Story: Twilight adopts a foal. The adventures of Comet Dust // by Itztli FP //------------------------------// Chapter 3. Mane problems. After spend the resto of the morning buying at Ponyville’s Market, with a hidden Comet every time they got close to a stand, although, not as nervous as before, they made a little stop at Sugarcube Corner to rest a little bit, eat something and, perhaps, dink a milkshake. Twilight was amazed with Comet’s magic ability. Although his short age, he could easily carry several of the bags and boxes they carried with theirselves, some quite heavy, just with the force of his horn. Remembering Cary told her that Comet had learned by himself. “Yeah, she liked to say that”. Comet answered with an unconvinced tone when Twilight told him about it. “Actually, she helped me a bit. She told me the basics to cast a simple spell, the rest, I deduced it by myself”. “Then, why did she say you leaned by yourself?” Twilight asked in dismay. “I don’t know. I guess she tried to amazed the prospective parents”. He answered trying to not giving to much importance. “… or maybe she thought she hadn’t taught me well”. “I see. How may spells do you know”. “Not many. There weren’t too much places where I could practice, so I’ve only learned the basic ones; levitation, teleporting and manipulating objects; nothing any other pony can’t do”. “It’s true. But, not many ponies of your age could carry so many objects and so much weight, it requires a lot of concentration”. “I spent a lot of time on my own in my bedroom, practicing with my partners’ beds. It’s easy to concentrate when no pony bothers you”. “On your own? What about your friends?” Twilight asked, thinking she knew the answer. “The majority of the other foals just bothered me or avoided me, also, many of them leaved a few months later since them arrive, so, it didn’t make any sense make friends if they weren’t going to last”. “Then, you didn’t make any friends?” “Not really. Actually, the pony I became to talk the most was Cary. The rest didn’t want to stay with me, thus the books and the magic were my only company”. “I’m so sorry. I know how hard could be being alone” “You don’t have to. Over the time I got used to not needing the company from the others. Although, sometimes…” Comet interrupted himself when momentarily he turned to the entrance of Sugarcube Corner, when a group of fillies entered laughing into the bakery. Twilight, noticing that, told Comet to go to talk to them. That would be a great opportunity to start with friendship. Comet flatly refused, claiming that was only going to cause the same thing to happen as many time, mockery and rejection by his contemporaries. For that, he preferred to be alone. He didn’t need friends. Twilight sighed resigned. She knew how important friends were and even more in a foal’s life, but, Comet had his point to avoid get close to somepony. His previous experiences worked against him and Twilight couldn’t force him to talk to anyone if he didn’t want it. The better was, by the moment, leaving the topic aside and giving Comet time to get used to the life in Ponyville and let him to make friends when he would be ready, at the moment, she would have to wait. “Did you learned any other spells besides of the basic ones?” She asked, returning to the previous topic, being something Comet seemed to be interested in, and that would work to not make him tense. “Umm… well… I learned how to dememorized some pony… Oh, and I can make some illusions and holograms”. He said a little proudly of himself, feeling flattered by Twilight by showing interest in his magic abilities, making him forget about friends and friendship. “Wow. That’s very impressive, I would never imagine…” Twilight stopped, and started thinking a little about what he just heard, hoping it would be just a misheard. “What did you say? Again”. She said with a nervous voice. “Eh?... Oh, I can make some illusions and holograms, wanna see them? They aren’t very good yet but with a little of… “No, no, no, the other. What was the other thing you said?” “Oh, I know how to dememorized somepony”. He said again proudly and a little excited. “But, I can only erase specific memories about an event, object or situation. Also, I tried to make a pony sleep in sometime, but it didn’t work very well, the pony started meowing and acting like a cat for a whole week, I guess I made a mistake on…” Comet was so abstracted in his own thoughts he didn’t noticed the horror face Twilight was making, just from hearing he knew how to use one of the direst spells that existed. There were few ponies who could use dememorizing spells and for that a special ability was needed in legilimency, being so, how a pony of that age could use such dangerous magic. “How is that you can do that? When did you learn it?” She asked a little frightened. “A few months ago in the Canterlot library. I sneaked into the restricted section and toke the first book I found, it was one about spells of the mind or something like that; it explained with detail how to cast them, I started for the easiest one, I think it was called Momemtum Obliviscetur...” “But, you hadn’t used it on anypony, right?” She interrupted him with a vague hope the colt would mistake that knowing how to cast a spell didn’t mean he could really cast it. “Well, let’s just say that nopony remember the day I broke the hot water tube”. He said proudly. “What?! Are you crazy”. She yelled at the foal’s revelation and all the problems he would have by used that kind of magic. “Do you know how dangerous it could be?” “Nope”. He answered innocently. “They caught me and took me out of there before I could get to that part, who put the advertencies after the spells, anyway? I was lucky they didn’t expulse me from the library, they just scolded me. I suppose they thought I was too young to understand magic and took me to the children’s section. As if the “three little pigs” was a gripping read”. Saying the latter sarcastically. “And it seems little to you?” Twilight said, upset by the irresponsible way he was taking all the matter, taking Comet by surprise, he thought all the time Twilight was flattering his ability. “A pony mind isn’t something you could play as your wish. Those spells are restricted for a good reason. If you erase the wrong memory the results could be disastrous, it isn’t something to rake careless. I don’t want you to use that spell anymore, that kind of magic is forbidden. Besides, how did you know what memory erase?” “Don´t worry, Cary made me promise the same when she found out. And, about knowing what memory erase, I just concentrated in erase the memory I knew they knew. I don’t know how to read minds, Twilight, I´m only six years old, that magic is way too advanced”. Twilight couldn’t help but do an expression of wonder and disbelief of how absurd that heard coming from the pony who learned to use a dememorizing spell after read once about it, a basic one, true, but it was something Twilight never could do and Comet had used it more than once. “Besides, Twilight, that kind of magic isn’t forbidden, not if you know how to use it. The laws only state that it should be used with caution”. He added, giving Twilight a malicious and playful glance, getting up of his seat going to toss the trash of his food. The alicorn couldn’t help but stay still as a shiver ran through his back from seeing that different look on Comet’s face. She didn’t know how to interpret what Comet just said, could be something he just added after promising he won’t use that spell or a subtle way to say that he would use it at his whim. Although, he never said he promised. “Where do we going now?” He asked, returning to his innocent and sweet expression, waking up Twilight from her thoughts, confusing her even more by his sudden change of mood. It was that innocence which made what he said before even creepier. “Ah… With Rarity”. She answered, shaking her head, thinking she was just overthinking the matter. “We need her to help you with that”. She said pointing the stick still stuck on his hair, making look he has two horns instead of one. The road to Rarity’s house was very calm, being sited in a low-traffic area of Ponyville, Comet hadn’t problems relaxing, he even dares to play around Twilight a bit, getting a few feet away from her when something called his attention. They got into a peculiar building of two or three floors height, adorned in a very feminine and showy way with crystals, gems and some mannequins on the higher parts simulating a carousel, like the ones in the fairs. “Hello?” Twilight called a little confused to see there was nopony in there, even though the signboard in the door said it was open. “Welcome to the Carousel Boutique, how can I hel…?” Said a unicorn of white fur, stylized purple mane and blue eyes, speaking in an elegant and pompous tone of voice. “Ah, Twilight, I´m glad you are here. Sorry about the mess, I’ve been a little busy lately. Did you arrive from Canterlot today?” Comet felt curious about the familiarity the mare talked to Twilight, unlike the other ponies they met that day, who always spoke in a very respectful way and referred to her as “Princess”” “Hi, Rarity”. She returned the greeting while both of them hugged each other. “Actually, we arrived a few day ago, but we were a little busy, so I couldn’t visit you earlier”. “Well, It seem both of us had a lot of work this days”. Rarity giggled. “Wait, ¿we? If I remember, Spike didn’t go with you. “No”. Twilight said with a nervous giggle, containing the excitement of telling her the good news. “Rarity, let me introduce you to Comet Dust”. She said moving aside to uncover Comet. Rarity, just stood there, confused. She didn’t understand why Twilight was introducing her to somepony who wasn’t there. “Twilight, is this a kind of joke?” She said, confused. “Because I don’t get it”. “What? No. It´s not a joke”. She replied confused as well by Rarity’s answer, turning to where she thought comet would be. “Comet! Where are you? She said searching for the foal. “I’m right here”. He answered a little confused, being standing, literally, next to both of two of them. Surprising them. “There you are”. Twilight said, excited. “Comet, I want to introduce you to my friend Rarity, the best fashionista in Ponyville. Rarity, he is Comet Dust”. Twilight approached a nervous Comet to her friend. He tried to trust in her, since she was friends with his mother, trying to give her a slightly forced smile. The moment Rarity saw him, she dramatically screamed, for Twilight surprise, although not for Comet. He expected that reaction from almost everypony he would met. “Darling, what happen to your hair?” Rarity said immediately after scream, confusing him. Of all things she could had screamed for, even the most obvious, she did it for the hair. Leaving Comet with an expression of “Are you serious?” in his face. “It’s just a little tangled and messy”. Comet replied, still confused at the mare’s unexpected reaction. “Comet, darling, Twilight’s mane is a little tangled and messy…” “Hey…” Twilight replied a little offended by her friend’s comment. “…this is a disaster”. Rarity answered Comet comment. “That’s why we came here. We need your help”. Twilight said. “Well, you came to the right place. I’m not going to allow a colt like him to walk around looking that way”. She answered heroically. Rarity started to get a lot of brushes, combs and hair products from a little room next to the lobby they were, which one she used as her store, and finally, she carries with herself a pair of scissors, a hair dryer and some towels. “Tell me, Twilight, who’s this charming little gentlecolt?” She asked while she was accommodating some stuff she will going to work with. “Is it a relative of yours?” Charming little gentlecolt? Did Comet heard well? It was the first time somepony called him in that kind –and corny- the moment they knew each other, even Twilight had been surprised a little, but this mare has accepted him without even judged him, who would do that? “Well, yeah. Something like that”. Twilight said, making Rarity guess it. “Is he a kind of distant cousin or nephew?” She asked again a little confused by his friend’s strange answer. “Nope”. Twilight answered playing with her. “Then, who is he, Twilight?” Rarity replied, a little annoyed at her friend’s tricks. “Well, it could be say that he is my son”. Twilight answered with a big smile on her face as she pulled Comet closer to her, also happy just because Twilight said she was his mother. In that moment, all the objects Rarity was levitating fell due to her loss of concentration at the surprising news. “Ah… ¿What?” That was the only thing Rarity could say, trying to process what she had just heard. “Well, he is not my son, my son…” Twilight explained, not noticing Rarity wasn’t paying attention to her. “This is a joke, right, Twilight? When did it happen? Who’s his father?” Asked Rarity hysterically. “What? No. Rarity, he is not my son”. Both ponies, Comet and Rarity, tuned in surprised at Twilight by his new affirmation, realizing the mistake she made in her choice of words. “But, you said he was your son…” Rarity said, very confused. “Yes, I did”. “I… think I’m confused”. Rarity said not understanding a single word. “Me too, and I was there”. Comet agreed. “He is not my biological son”. Twilight explained, thinking better her words. “I adopted Comet in Canterlot a few days ago”. “You didn’t’ tell us anything about it, I thought you went to Canterlot on royal business”. Rarity said, offended by the fact that her friend hadn’t told her about such an important decision. “It wasn’t something I had planned”. She explained, for both ponies’ surprise, more for Comet, he thought that wasn’t something he didn’t want to hear. “I went to Canterlot for royal business with Princess Celestia. Luckily, we finished earlier than we thought, so I went for a walk around town. Then, I passed near the orphanage and I felt a strange sensation, like if something was calling me from the inside. First, I thought it was just my imagination, but that night, I couldn’t sleep, I still felt the calling. I don’t understand very well what happen, but it felt like something inside me wanted me to enter that place. The next morning, I decided to follow my instincts and went to the orphanage again. I talked to someponies there and stayed with a lot of foals and fillies, but any of them couldn’t calm the sensation. It was then when they took me to a secluded room, where I met Comet. I fell in love with him in the instant I saw him and, without noticing it, the sensation stopped”. She said while hugging Comet. “Thus, I decided to take him with me and rise him as my son”. Twilight finished, omitting the parts about the problems of Comet, as she thought it was something very personal end he should share them when he chooses to do it. “Aww. What a lovely story, Twilight”. Rarity said giving them a tender look. “It seems like both of you were destined to know each other”. “Perhaps”. The two ponies answered as they were looking to each other. “But, are you sure about this? Raising a foal is a great responsibility” “Absolutely. Besides, after had raised Spike, how hard a foal could be?” She said, forgetting one of the most important differences, Spike was a dragon, lonely creatures by nature and with a faster growth than a foal, also, Twilight hadn’t raised Spike by herself, she had a lot of help from his mother and Princess Celestia. “Well, Twilight, I think we can trust that you’re going to do the better for him. Even so, you know you can count on us when you needed”. “Thanks Rarity”. Twilight said with a sincere smile on her face. “Who else knows about this?” Rarity asked. “Beside you, just Spike”. Twilight answered. “I have no idea how I’m going to tell my family”. “Well, you should hurry up. Time’s over you”. Rarity indicated, returning to pick up some of the stuff she had brought with. “Now, where we were on? Ah, yes, we were about to fix up your mane, dear Comet”. “Good luck trying to”. Comet mumbled, unconvinced getting up on a chair. “Don’t challenge me, darling”. Rarity said arrogantly. “I’ve got a lot of tricks up my sleeve”. Ipso facto, Rarity sat Comet on an elegant chair as she analyzed Comet’s hair, seeing how severe it was the problem. It would seem the hair with a dark blue color wasn’t that bad, with a few brushes it will be ready, on the other hand, the white hair in the left side of his head was another matter; it looked dry, it was completely tangled and there might be other things trapped in it than just the branch. Rarity started levitating the brush near Comet´s head trying to find where she should start. She was surprised. She couldn’t imagine how careless the colt must have had to reach that state. She had been in uncountable capillary crisis before, but nothing like this one. In the meantime, Comet started to be impatient at the mare’s doubting. “It’s rare we haven’t seen Pinkie Pie in all they”. Twilight said, trying to make conversation with Rarity in a tend to not get bored. “We were through all town and she didn’t appear anywhere, even in Sugarcube Corner. At this time, she will be planning Comet’s welcome party”. “It’s true, darling”. Rarity answered, without looking away from Comet, brushing his dark blue hair. “Although that would be if Pinkie Pie were in Ponyville”. “She left?” Twilight answered concerned. “Oh, don’t worry, she will come back in a few days. She went to his family farm, a problem with parasprites if I remember. But she wasn’t the only one, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy also left. They went to Cloudsdale to visit Fluttershy’s parents, they’ll will be back for tomorrow”. She said finishing coumb the easiest hair of Comet. “That explains why I didn’t see anyone of them. What about Applejack?” Twilight asked, curious. “In the farm, working. She said they’re having a good harvest this month, so she hadn’t gone a lot to town this week”. “Wow, Rarity. You know of everything”. Twilight said with a slight mockering tone. “Well, darling, a lady has to know what happens around her, over of all if it’s about his friends and, in my job, it’s useful to entertaining the clients”. “Gossip”. Comet mumbled in the middle of a giggle, so Rarity would be the only one who heard him. Rarity blushed in embarrassment to heard the way the colt had called her. It was obvious she got all that information gossiping with other mares at town, but she’ll never accept it because it wasn’t proper from a lady. “Darling, it is not gossip, it’s more like a …”. She answered. “You don’t have to be ashamed, everypony do it, even those idle mares of high society in Carterlot”. Comet interrupted her with a sarcastic tone with the clearly intention of teasing Rarity. “You know, little one, it is rude to intrude on somepony else’s conversation”. She said trying to keep composure. “It’s a little bit hard to not intrude if I can hear everything you’re talking about. Besides, I’m just sitting here, I’m boring”. Comet claim. “Oh, don’t worry about that, darling, the fun it is just about to start”. Rarity said giving him a malicious glance, making comet felt a shiver though down his back. Maybe he had gone too far with Rarity. Then, Rarity tried to give the first brush on Comet’s mop of white hair. The moment she dug the brush bristles on his hair, it got stuck not moving an inch no matter how much Rarity pulled. “Wow, what did you put on your hair, it is completely…” Rarity stopped when she saw Twilight making her signs to keep in silence. “Ahem… you’ve got a very rebel hair”. “It grows like that… Ouch!... but just in the white patches… Ouch! It hurts!” The colt explained, complaining at the pulls Rarity was giving him, even he knew it was a little excessive for how upset Rarity was. “I’m sorry, darling”. Rarity sincerely apologized. “My brush got trapped in your hair and I can’t even pull it out”. She explained as in his voice it could be notice the struggle she was doing. “Twilight, could you help me?” The lavender alicorn united the strength of his magic with her friend’s. pulling with all of his strength the brush that Comet’s hair didn’t want to release. Clink! A crystalline sound was heard making the two of them stop pulling. When Rarity saw what was happen she almost fainted. She brought the handle of the brush to her face, though without the head. “My brush!” She yelled horrified. “I brought it from the Crystal Empire, it cost me a fortune”. “I´m sorry Rarity, I should’t have pulled so hard”. Twilight apologized, feeling guilty. “Well, there goes another one”. Comet said appearing a hologram with several groups of four lines slashed by a fifth one. Twilight and Rarity got close to Comet to see the hologram he had created, watching how he draw another one in a group of three and then disappeared it. “Another what?” Rarity asked a little annoyed. “Another brush”. Comet answered. “Say what now” Twilight said. “See this?” Comet said reappearing the hologram. This is my count of broken brushes when somepony tried to “fix” my hair. You don’t think I had my mane like this just because I liked it? I’m sorry Rarity, but I tried to warned you”. “Darling, the difference is that I don’t give up so easily. I’m not goig to let a mane beat me”. She said determinately. “Now, if strength is not enough, I will have to use heavy artillery”. She raised behind her a lot of bottles and jars of hair products with her magic, so differents that it was difficult to say what was the purpose of each one, meanwhile she looked at him with a dark glance. Comet, intimidated by the mare’s stare, tried to run away, being captured by her magic, sitting him again on the chair and starting to make an extremely perfumed mixture on the foal’s head. The time passed. Rarity had already made a good progress, all the products had managed to make Comet’s hair more malleable, making the branch and the brush finally free from their capillary prison, unfortunately, those would be the easiest to remove. Inside that tangle of hair Rarity found a crayon, a strange kind of green putty, seeds, lots of plants trash and bubble gum, which was taking her forever to clean up. It was taking so long that Twilight fell asleep on Rarity’s drama’s couch. “You have been so quite the las minutes, Comet, something is happening?” Rarity asked when she noticed how calm he was. “Eh?... I was just thinking. From all the things you could get scared at me, you did it of my mane, why?” “What do you mean, darling?” “You could be scared because the spots of my skin, my horn and my eye, the ponies always got scared when they see my eye, but, why my hair? Nopony had ever noticed before”. “Oh darling, I noticed everything you’ve said, but besides your color, you are not different from me or another pony”. Rarity explained. “It’s true that your eye is very impressing when you see it the first time, but it’s just appearance. There’ is nothing to be afraid of. But I have to admit I’ve never have seen hair like this before, It’s too… shaggy”. She said trying to not sound so rude. Working with that hair was like trying to untangle a scourer”. “It grows like that…”. Comet replied a little tired. “…but only in the white spots, the rest is normal. Also, it grows longer than the rest, so I have to constantly trim it. It’s annoying”. That explains the uneven hair strands. Rarity thought. “It’s not a big deal if you asked me”. Rarity said. “It isn’t”. Comet agreed. “The biggest problem is the eye”. He turned to Rarity so she could see it better. It was the first time he did that without fear of being rejected. “The rest is not important until they don’t see my eye”. “Like I said, it’s impressing the first time you saw it, but it’s nothing to be afraid of. I think it suit you very well, it gives you a certain distinctive”. “That wasn’t what my partners on the orphanage thought or the mare’s in the furniture store”. “Those mares, were an orange Pegasus and a minty unicorn?” Rarity asked, intuiting who he was talking about. “Yes, did you saw them?” “Oh, you don’t have to worry about them, they exaggerate everything. Twilight didn’t tell you?” “I think she mention it”. “About the other foals, I think they were afraid of something they couldn’t understand”. They continued talking a long time while Rarity continued her job on Comet’s hair. He was speaking with more fluency and quickly learned to trust in her. After hours of hair pulls, dozens of hair products and uncountable rinses, his mane was finally free of tangles. Although, it was still impossible to comb due to its rigidity, Rarity managed to make it see acceptable, trimming and matching the tips, all with the help of a powerful conditioner Zecora had given to her. It was in such good conditions now that was possible to see beneath that shaggy white hair, some thin strands of smooth and silky mint and aqua green hair, which she arrange to stand out among all that white. His tail wasn’t a big problem, the with hair on it was on the top and it was short, probably by Comet’s work, and it wasn’t as bad as his mane. “Bye Rarity, see you this weekend”. Twilight said goodbye leaving his friend’s house. It took more time than she imagined, it was evening and they have to go home for dinner, arrange furniture and stuff they bought. At least, she had managed to rest, Comet’s mane was mucho better than before and he looked happy, so it was worth it. “Remember, not a word to the girls”. “Bye, Miss Rarity ant thanks”. Comet wave his hoof. “Good bye, see you soon”. Rarity wave her hoof as well. “Don’t worry Twilight, mi lips are sealed and Comet, remember to brush your mane at least once per day so it doesn’t get tangled again”. She entered again to his home just to see the mess there was. Now she had to clean up. No matter how tired she was, she couldn’t overlook it, so she started to pick up the empty bottles and towels from the floor. Then, in the chair Comet had been sitting, she found his brush, the same one she broke when she tried to comb Comet. The foal had tried to repair it with his magic, leaving the handle a little crooked, but the intention was what counted. He left it on the chair on purpose so Rarity would find it, near a note that said “One less”. By reading it, she couldn’t help but draw a smile in her face. “What a lovely boy”. She mumbled.