"Mama, Mama!"
Shimmer looked down at her son, who was tugging on the sleeve of her dress. "Yes, Shard?"
"Look, a pony!" He pointed excitedly at a large stuffed toy hanging from the rafters of a booth. It was big and blue, with wings sewn onto its sides and a mane and tail made out of string of every colour. "I want it!"
Shimmer glanced at the booth, where the carnie was shouting out with a megaphone, "Step right up and test your skill to win some fabulous prizes! All you have to do is knock over all the bottles!" He gestured at the stack of ten bottles stacked in a triangle on a wooden platform.
"That's just a trick." She said, shaking her head. Just because she had some money to spend now with her second job, didn't mean she had to waste it like that. "Why don't we get some cotton candy instead?" At some point, she needed to teach Shard about all the different ways people tried to trick you out of your money, or worse. The Sapphire was safe enough, but there was a whole world out there ready to take advantage of anyone they could get their hands on.
"Aww, c'mon." That included Rainbow Dash, apparently, as she grabbed Shimmer on her other sleeve like she was Shard's age. Shimmer turned to find the bodyguard staring at her with a cocky smile. "That's a pretty awesome plushie. Kid's got good taste."
Shimmer noted the similarities in the multicoloured hair on the plushie and on her companion's head. "Of course you'd think that," she teased. "But I guess it does look nice."
"So let's go get it!" Before anyone could react, Dash ran off towards the booth.
"Mama, let's go!"
Shimmer looked down at Shard, saw his wide eyes and the pleading look on his face, and decided that it would be easier to just go with it and explain why these sorts of things were scams afterwards. "Alright, Shard."
Making sure to keep her grip on her son so as to not lose him in the crowd, she walked up to the booth, where Rainbow Dash had already settled in, standing in front of one of the tables. "One pony plushie, coming right up!" The bodyguard said as she slammed down some coins on the table, her voice filled with its usual confident swagger that Shimmer was fast becoming enamoured with.
The carnie smiled in a way that Shimmer had seen many times before, all false promises and dazzling lights. "Ah, I see we have a brave player right here!" He leaned down and fake-whispered at Dash. "So, you trying to impress your girl here?"
"She's just a friend." The speed at which Dash gave her response sent an odd pang through Shimmer's heart. Not that they were dating or anything, but the instant rejection hurt for some reason. "Now, are we gonna do this?"
"You got spunk, kid," the carnie replied with a boisterous laugh. "I like it!" With a grand gesture, he swept away the coins and replaced them with a pile of worn, wooden balls.
Shimmer suppressed a sigh as she watched the bodyguard pick up one of them, testing their weight in her hands. She didn't like disappointing Shard, but there was no way she was going to waste all of her spending money on this fool's errand, or let Dash waste hers.
And maybe this would teach her some humility, though Shimmer doubted it.
"Alright, let me show you how it's done!" With a large wind-up, Rainbow let the ball fly, striking right below the center of the tower with a meaty thud.
To both Shimmer and the carnie's surprise, the entre tower toppled over in a cacophony of clacking noises. Dash let out a cheer and pumped her fist into the air, looking unbearably smug at Shimmer's shocked expression.
The carnie recovered first, laughing again as he slapped an arm around Rainbow's shoulder. He turned to face the onlooking crowd. "And we already have a winner!" he announced, before addressing Rainbow. "So, what'll it be? Since you're the first winner of the night, you can have anything you want."
Rainbow pointed at the stuffed pony without hesitation. "That one."
The carnie pulled down the toy and handed it over to Dash, before ignoring her and trying to attract the crowd with promises of sharing in Dash's luck and skill. Shimmer wanted to ask her about what had just happened, but there was something more important to do first.
Rainbow Dash leaned down, holding the plushie out. "Here, kid. Something almost as awesome as your mom to keep you company at night when she's working."
"Thanks Miss Rainbow!" Shard said before grabbing the pony and happily smooshing his cheek against its head. "You're the best!"
Dash chuckled. "Yeah, I know. So, what're you gonna name her?"
Shard's face scrunched up in thought as he pondered the question. Then he glanced at the multicoloured mane on the pegasus pony, and the similarly-coloured hair on his favourite aunt, and seemed to come to a decision. "I'm gonna name her Speedy. Because she's the fastest pony in the world!" he declared proudly, holding Speedy up like it was a trophy.
"Oh, really?" Dash raised an eyebrow. "The fastest, huh? Maybe I should race her some time so we know if the fastest pony is faster than the fastest human."
"Speedy is faster than anyone!" Shard said with the conviction of a child's belief.
"Heh, with you helping her train, I'm sure she'll have no problem beating anyone in a race." As she liked to do whenever she could get away with it, Dash ruffled Shard's hair, then did the same to the plush. "Now, are we just gonna stand here, or are we gonna have some fun tonight?"
They set off again, Shard chattering excitedly to his new stuffed friend about a training regime to make her the fastest pegasus ever. Shimmer let him go on as she leaned in to speak to Rainbow Dash. "So, you wanna tell me how you did that?"
"I knew a carnie once who told me that since they put something in the bottom bottles to make them heavier, you gotta throw the ball lower to, uhh, 'account for the difference in centre of gravity.'" Dash shrugged. "He was a real egghead, but he knew some pretty cool tricks too. I usually don't do stuff like that since people get mad if you play too well, but I figured I'd make an exception today."
Shimmer smirked. "You know, you don't have to impress me more if you want to get me into bed." There was no hesitation in her voice, not after all the teasing she'd already shared with her. "I already know you're pretty awesome, and anytime you want me I'll find a slot for you in my schedule."
"Pssh, like I did it for you," Dash replied with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Did you see Shard's face when I gave him that pony? That's why I did it. But if seeing me pull off amazing feats of strength and dexterity gets you all hot and bothered, I'm not gonna complain."
That got a laugh from Shimmer. "You really know how to make a lady feel special, huh?"
"You have no idea." The smoulder in Dash's voice was unexpected, and made Shimmer's heart skip a beat and her mouth part slightly in shock until Shard tugged at her again.
"Can we get cotton candy, mom? Please?" her son asked, and Shimmer's maternal instincts quickly kicked in again.
"As long as you don't eat too much and ruin dinner," she said.
A few minutes later, and each of them had their own cone of candy, with Shard struggling to find some way to eat it all while Rainbow didn't seem to care at all and simply started biting wherever she felt like.
Shimmer, for her part, tried to be a little more deliberate as she slowly licked her way around the comically large ball of sweet fluff.
"Heh, bet you've got a lot of practice doing that, huh?" Dash teased, smirking at her.
Shimmer took a moment to make sure that Shard was too busy with his own treat to be looking at her, then turned back towards Dash and slowly, sensually ran her tongue along the edge of the cone, batting her eyelashes as she gave her reply. "I sure do," she said, her voice dropping low and sultry. "It's okay, Dash, you can admit that you wish this was you I had my tongue on."
The smirk never faded from Dash's expression. "And you can admit that you'd rather have your mouth on me than some random ball of fluff."
"This ball of fluff is a lot sweeter than you." Shimmer stuck her tongue out. "Well, on most days, anyways." Warmth filled her heart at the banter. This had become a ritual of sorts for them ever since her first night with Fancy and Fleur. Dash was someone she felt safe with, could flirt with without having to worry that she'd get the wrong message. After all, Dash didn't want her that way, so Shimmer could say whatever she wanted knowing that Dash wouldn't take her seriously, and likewise, Shimmer knew Dash was just joking.
As long as she reminded her heart of that fact, everything was fine.
Before Dash could reply, Shimer felt a tug on her shirt as Shard tried to race off again. By unspoken agreement, the two of them stopped their back-and-forth before it became too inappropriate for her son, and followed him across the packed fairground until they reached the edge of the field.
"A Fairy Wheel!" Shard exclaimed, pointing excitedly up at the large circular structure in front of them.
Shimmer's heart dropped. "It's called a Ferris Wheel, Shard," she corrected gently, trying not to show her unease.
"Can we ride it?" Ignoring her correction, he looked up at her with wide eyes. "Please, mama?"
"Umm..." Shimmer faltered, and Dash pulled her aside.
"Why don't you finish that first?" she said, pointing at the colourful cone of sugar in his hand. When Shard complied, she turned her attention back to Shimmer and whispered, "You're scared of heights, right?"
Shimmer swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded. "It doesn't matter, though. Shard's wanted to ride a Ferris Wheel for so long, and we can finally afford it. I can do it for a few minutes." Even as she said those words, she could hear her heart pounding in fear at what she would have to endure.
"Don't worry about it," Dash replied. "Hey, kid!" she called out at Shard. "Why don't we ride the Ferris Wheel while your mom finishes her cotton candy?"
Shard looked to Shimmer for permission, and Shimmer smiled. "That sounds like a wonderful idea," she said without hesitation. If there was anyone she trusted her son with, it was the bodyguard who had made her feel safe for the first time in far too long. Rainbow Dash wouldn't let anything happen to him.
Dash grinned. "C'mon, kid, let's fly!"
The three of them joined the line for the ride, and Shimmer let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you," she told Rainbow, the previous warmth in her heart returning in full force.
"Don't mention it." Dash reached out and slung an arm around her. "Try not to be too sad that you don't get to share a romantic moment with me at the top of the Ferris Wheel. I know it's tragic, but we can always have fun together later."
"I think I'll survive," Shimmer replied dryly.
"Next!"
As they reached the front of the line, Shimmer stepped aside and waved to them. "Have fun, you two!" she called out before they sat down in the seats and were strapped in.
The operator cranked the mechanism, and the wheel turned again, pulling them up and away. Too far to hear their words, Shimmer could still see how her son was laughing at something Dash said, and the smile on Dash's face spoke of a sense of contentment that Shimmer had come to associate with taking care of Shard.
The two of them had grown quite close in the past couple years and, for a moment, Shimmer let herself think of the possibility of them being a family. It was an idle fantasy she tried her best not to indulge in too often, since she didn't want to risk the friendship she had with Dash now. But she couldn't deny that the feelings she had towards the bodyguard had changed, from disgust and fear to cautious acceptance to friendship and admiration and then finally to something more.
She could be happy with Rainbow Dash, and Shard liked her as well, which was vital. No matter where her heart led her, he was the most important person in her life, and Dash respected that.
But at the end of the day, she knew that Dash would never see her as more than a friend, and she couldn't blame her. She hardly stood out among all the wonderful girls at the Sapphire, and there was no reason for Dash to choose her or to ever want to settle down with anyone and stop being the free spirit she was. Still, a little fantasizing never hurt anyone.
And so, as the woman she had grown to care for so much soared into the sky with her son, Shimmer stayed grounded and let her imagination fly.