//------------------------------// // A Mammoth of a Problem XXVI // Story: Rainbow Dash's Unstoppable Ego // by MagicS //------------------------------// Rainbow Dash waited until the dead of night to say goodbye to Abalun and fly back to Larkon’s house in the city proper. Now she knew everything and it set her mind at ease. The nagging suspicions she had about things turned out to be at least partially justified. It was good to know Larkon and Abalun were definitely the good guys, and now she knew everything she needed to know about the bad guys too. Rainbow Dash smiled to herself as she flew. The adventure in the city of mammoths was taking shape, and she was really happy with herself for not ditching out like she had planned. Not like it was her fault things seemed so boring around here at first glance though. When she made it back to Larkon’s house she slipped in through the front door, it was unlocked, likely due to Larkon expecting her to come back tonight, and quietly made her way to her bedroom. After sleeping on top of a table last night and staying up much later than normal this night she was ready for that big comfortable mammoth bed. She wasn’t sure what tomorrow would be like, or what Larkon really planned to do. She wanted to knock Karkona’s block off but there were a lot of things making that difficult. Who knows? Hopefully she got her fun adventure and her satisfaction. She had a smile on her face, thinking about beating up mammoths, as she climbed into her bed and crawled under the covers. In less than a minute she was snoring and out like a light. Samarkon was quieter than normal. Not just that but more reserved all around. He didn’t shoot Rainbow Dash any nasty looks, he didn’t say anything to his sister and parents, he just ate and closed himself up in his room. She knew he was angry, and probably biding his time before he did something else stupid, but at least it was nicer than him being constantly mean. Rainbow could tell how upset Larkon was about the whole affair though, during the silent breakfast she attended after coming back there was a noticeable coldness between father and son. But there was nothing that could be done about that right now. Maybe Samarkon just needed to grow up and experience more of life. Rainbow Dash had dealt with bullies and kids like him before, sometimes time was the only real cure. Rainbow Dash thought it was going to be a quiet and melancholy day because of this but little did she know, Shibu had other plans… “Wow, I didn’t know you guys had hair salons at all up here,” Dash said as she, Shibu, and Alykon walked inside the store. She looked around at all the pictures on the wall showing a variety of mammoths with their woolly fur cut in certain ways, or specially groomed, some of them with hair ties and bows and other stuff on the tops of their heads to make it more unique. While the fur that covered a mammoth’s entire body was much longer and thicker than the fur for ponies they didn’t have long manes or tails so it looked like if they wanted to do something stylish and not just get a trim they really had to improvise. At the moment there were a few barbers/stylists and some empty chairs in the salon but no other customers. Shibu had told them she was bringing Rainbow Dash earlier so they closed their doors for this special occasion. “Everyone needs a trim at least every now and then,” Shibu said. “And you can tell that some mammoths here like to get a little more.” “Yeah...” Rainbow said as she looked at the garish picture of a mammoth with the hair on top of her head done up like the leaves of a pineapple. “Alykon and I needed a regular cut so I figured it would be lovely to bring you along too,” Shibu smiled. Rainbow Dash shrugged. “Well sure, I’m all about seeing more of your city. Sort of. Larkon still really wants me to do stuff like this at least.” “Come here, come here!” One of the stylists said and herded Shibu and Alykon to the chairs. She was a mammoth whose weight surpassed Shibu’s along with a healthy amount of lipstick on her lips. “I’m happy to have you two again, and it’s such a special day too!” Another stylist came up behind the chair Alykon climbed into. She was younger, maybe a teenager only a few years older than Alykon, with an almost blond coloration to her fur and ribbons tied up all over her head. “I know, mom! Did you ever think the pony would come right here to our shop?” Rainbow Dash looked between them. “So you two are mother and daughter?” “That’s right!” The mother confirmed. “My name’s Bollam, and this is my daughter, Ollakon.” “Nice to meet you,” Rainbow Dash said and waved to them. “Nice to meet you too!” Ollakon said, practically squeeing. Bollam patted her daughter on the head with her trunk and smiled at Rainbow Dash. “Alright, now we’ll show you what we do here.” Two black capes were thrown over the mother and daughter waiting to get their woolly fur trimmed and the stylists got to work. One of the walls had a long mirror up on it and the chairs were turned to face them so everyone could see exactly what was going on the whole time. Rainbow Dash floated up overhead so she could watch the both of them too. Using their dexterous trunks, Bollam and Ollakon grabbed some trimmers (that would’ve been the equivalent of hedge trimmers back in Equestria) and got to work quickly and precisely cutting Shibu and Alykon’s hair. To be honest, Rainbow Dash had trouble really seeing the difference even as more and more locks of shaggy hair fell onto the ground. There was just so much of it. The stylists were really efficient in their work though, going over every inch of their customers’ big heads and keeping focus on their work despite the blue pony buzzing around right next to them. Ollakon pulled out a comb and started running it through Alykon’s fur, at first it caught on a number of knots but Ollakon kept at it and straightened it all out. Despite the pained winces from Alykon and the hard tugging that caused her head to be yanked down a few times. “You need to wash your hair better like your mother,” Ollakon clicked her tongue. Alykon merely grumbled and frowned at herself in the mirror. Rainbow Dash could respect that. “We’ll give you some nice shampoo to take with you when we’re done,” Bollam said as she worked on the much more manageable hair of Shibu. The two finished up in just a few minutes, getting their hair slightly washed and dried after the trimming was done. Since Shibu and Alykon both went in for standard trims they didn’t get anything fancy done with their hair. Although Rainbow Dash could tell Ollakon was really eager to do that with Alykon. Shibu and Alykon threw their capes off and stood up from their chairs, checking themselves out in the mirror. “As perfect as ever, Bollam,” Shibu said. “Oh please, stop!” Bollam playfully smacked her with her trunk. “Besides, I should be the one thanking you for this special opportunity. I’m so excited to style Miss Rainbow Dash’s lovely mane and tail!” Rainbow Dash paused in midair and her face immediately paled. “Wait, what?” Shibu giggled, flashing her a mischievous eye. “Oh, dear me, did I forget to mention that? I told Bollam and Ollakon that they would get the chance to cut your hair and, oh, do whatever they wanted with it really.” Rainbow’s eyes widened and she tensed up to fly out of the store—but before she could make it, Shibu’s powerful trunk wrapped around her barrel and pushed her down into the huge seat she had just vacated. “I don’t need a manecut!” Rainbow Dash protested. “But think of how much cuter you could look? There are all sorts of styles for you to try out,” Shibu said. “Look, if you just wanna clean my mane and tail, that’s fine, but no way am I letting anybody cut them!” Rainbow said, trying to fight her way out of Shibu’s grip to no avail. At last she looked at Alykon, hoping for some support from the teenager. But Alykon only grinned at her and waved. Once more, Rainbow could respect that. “Let’s get started!” Ollakon shouted and came at her with a brush while Bollam closed in with a pair of clippers. Rainbow leaned back, trying to keep away. “No! Nooooo!” “Bwahahahahaha! Ahahahaha!” Larkon laughed hysterically at Rainbow Dash when they all returned home. At least she was able to lift his spirits a little thanks to this. Even Samarkon did a double-take when he first saw her before his face morphed into an expression that said he felt like she had grown a second head. Rainbow Dash’s mane had been braided. Furthermore it had been flattened and smoothed out beforehand, and enough shampoo and conditioner was used to make it silky smooth. Her bangs were cut in a straight line right above her eyes and the long braid was pulled down around her neck and rested on her right shoulder. Complete with a pink bow tying it together at the end. Her tail went through a similar treatment, smoothed and fluffed out, trimmed to get rid of any jagged ends and stray hairs, and then tied together again with another pink bow to keep it from getting messy. “Please… please tell me you’ll keep it like this the rest of your stay?” Larkon was able to speak in-between his bouts of raucous laughter. Rainbow Dash glared at him. “No way.”