//------------------------------// // New Found Hobby // Story: The Past of a Shy Mare // by Songbrony //------------------------------// After I was released from the hospital, I moved in with Rainbow Dash. I never saw much of her parents, but I didn't think too much of it. I forgot about the Doctor and my nightmares. My parents started to feel like a distant memory that I may have just dreamed about. With Rainbow Dash and Felix, I felt like I was wanted and respected, which I had never felt before. I began to search for a hobby, something to keep my mind at ease. While I was looking through a magazine I saw an ad for a free, one month subscription for 'Dress the Best: The Guide to Make Your Own Dress.' I wasn't expecting this to become something I would be interested in, but it turned out to be quite interesting. After a few years, we enrolled into our new high school and had many classes together. Of the few we didn't share, I had Animal Study and Gardening. I wanted to know more about taking care of animals and how to plant food for them. Rainbow Dash took Advanced Flight Techniques. She was the best at the school's entrance exam, getting a perfect score. I was so happy for her. And then a few weeks later for my birthday she got me my very own animal! A little white, baby rabbit that I named Angel. Nopony had ever gotten me a true gift before so he's very special to me. Most of my nights now are spent studying and taking care of Angel. I end up talking to him after Rainbow goes to sleep or isn't around. There is still something that I don't feel like I can tell her just yet. "It's just that...is it normal?" I asked him. "I know it's not traditional, but should it matter?" He shook his head and scratched his head. He jumped onto my desk, moved some of my magazines out of the way, took a pencil, and started to draw a picture on a piece of paper from my notebook. "What are you drawing?" I asked, peeking over his shoulder. He pushed me away with a paw. "Oh. Okay. I'll wait." I said, sitting down on my bed. We shared a room, with my side wallpapered with trees and hers with the Wonderbolts. Angel put the pencil down and brought the drawing to me. "Let's see..." I said, as he held the picture to my face. "What?!" I exclaimed. "Angel, I can't just say it to her. Maybe when the time is right, but now isn't." He went back to the desk and started drawing something else. When he came back he had a picture of me compared to me with a longer tail. "What do you mean?" I asked, confused. he started yanking on my tail, and motioning with his paw to make it longer. "But, the only way to make it longer is for it to grow." I pointed out. He face pawed and pulled me to the desk. He started drawing my tail next to a plus sign with what another drawing of my tail. "Umm..." I said, confused. I think he let out a little bunny groan. "I'm sorry Angel. But the only way for me to get a longer tail is to let it grow or get tail extensions." I said. He looked at me tapping his foot. "Oh." I said, it finally hitting me. "I see what you mean now." I opened the drawer and pulled out an envelope with my allowance money in it. Felix paid Rainbow and I to do chores around the house. I generally did most of them since Rainbow hated chores, but I didn't mind. They were letting me live with them, so I felt obligated to help out in any way I could. I told Felix not to give me the money, but he did so anyways. I was thankful for it now. I wrote a note for Rainbow Dash for when she came home telling her I was getting food for Angel. This way she wouldn't question where I was at. "Thanks for helping Angel. I'll be back after I'm done." I said and walked out of the house. I flew down to Ponyville hoping that Rainbow Dash would be busy at her internship with the Weather Team to be there. I headed into to town and looked for the Beauty Salon. It's not a place I've been to before, so it was a weird walking into this place. It started raining as I walked in. It's been raining for a few days now, and I was hoping today might have been a nice clear day. I went to the front desk and tapped on a bell, suddenly becoming very nervous. What if she doesn't like them? What if I'm wasting my time? She couldn't feel the same for me. It's not like her. I thought, panicking. A pink mare came out from a curtain behind the counter. "Hello, I'm Aloe, and welcome to Aloe and Lotus' Beauty Salon, the finest in Ponyville." she said with a smile. "How can we help you?" "Umm...I was wondering if I could get some tail extensions..." I said quietly. The mare looked at me questioningly. "Why come here then? You can get tail extensions at most mane style shops." "Well...it's just that..." I stammered. "I don't know anything about looking pretty. So I didn't want to get some that didn't fit me..." "Oh. Well, that shouldn't be a problem for us then. We'll take care of you." she said. "And just so you know, you already look very pretty." she told me with a smile. I smiled back. "Thank you." "If you'll follow me, we can get started." she said. She led me behind the curtain to a room where ponies were getting stuff put on their faces. "This is where we give each pony a mud facial. It helps with a pony's complexion." she explained. "How? Isn't mud dirty?" I asked. "Well, it's not really mud. It's just the name we use since it's a thick substance." she said. "Lotus, we have a pony in need of a tail extension." she said as we walked into an adjacent room. "My sister will help you determine the proper color and length for you." she said, motioning to a blue mare across the room. "Thank you, Aloe." I said. "You're welcome, miss..." "Fluttershy." I replied. "Fluttershy. Have a good day. If there's anything else we can help you with today, just ask." she said with a smile and walked out back to the counter. I walked over to her, looking at all the extensions they had lying on the shelves. There were a few that caught my eye, one of which was a rainbow colored one. "Um, excuse me?" I asked Lotus. "Yes? Find one you liked?" she asked. "Well, a few caught my eye, but I was wondering about where you got this certain one." I said, pointing to the rainbow one. "Ah, this one was special ordered. I can't say who, though." she said. "Oh...Ok." I said. Why would Rainbow want one of these? I thought. She was the only one who I knew that had a rainbow colored mane, besides her brother, and I couldn't see her looking for these. "Now, let's see what we can find for you." she said. We spent about 30 minutes looking for the extension that was just the right color for me. We finally found one and when I tried it, I loved it. It was obviously longer, but looked so natural that you wouldn't think about it. "I think we've found it." she said, smiling. "I think so." "If you don't mind me asking, who is this for?" she asked. "What do you mean?" I asked, surprised. "Well, generally with the ponies we work with, they only get mane or tail extensions if they're trying to impress someone." she explained. "Oh...well, I guess you could say that." I said, carefully. "Well, I'm sure he'll love it." she said. I hope she does. I thought. "Lotus, we have a pickup for order R502." I heard Aloe say. "If you want to follow me, we can check you out." she said, taking the rainbow extension off the shelf. She placed it in a box and led me out to the counter. I walked to the front of the counter and stood behind a pony who looked oddly familiar. His spiky mane and brown coat gnawed at me. "You're really going to wear that thing?" a pony by the door asked. "What? You think I couldn't pull it off Jack?" the spikey maned pony asked. "No, I'm afraid you'll attract unwanted attention." Jack said, walking up to the counter. "And hello there, you two beautiful mares." he said to Aloe and Lotus. "Twins, I take it?" he said, kissing both of their hooves. "Stop it." the spikey maned pony said. "What?" Jack asked. "I can't say hello?" "That wasn't saying hello." "Oh, we don't mind." Aloe and Lotus said simultaneously, both blushing and smiling. "Ladies." he said with a wink and followed the spikey maned pony out the door. I recognize them... I thought. But from where? I walked up to the counter, paid for the extension, and walked out the door. "Hey, Fluttershy!" I heard Rainbow Dash call in front of me. "Gah!" I exclaimed. I didn't expect her to be here. "What were you doing there? I thought you needed to get food for Angel?" she asked. "Oh, well I did, but when I went home I saw an ad in one of my magazines. It was supposed to be a surprise, but I didn't know you'd be around here." I said, ducking my head. "Surprise me with what?" she asked. "You mean you can't tell?" I asked. Of course. Why would I expect her to take notice? "No! I can tell!" she said, smiling. Can she? I thought, doubtfully. "Oh, good. I was afraid you didn't notice the tail extensions." I said, testing her. "Are you kidding? They look great and fit your tail color." she said. "What made you decide to get tail extensions?" "Well, I just thought that they would make me look better. All the mares at school are saying they are in this year." I lied. I hadn't heard of anypony talking about them, but I knew that Rainbow would believe it. "Oh! So you're doing this for a certain pony, huh?" she asked. "Ramus? Thunder? Oh! Is it for Daren?" "Oh, not at all. It's a secret." I said with a wink. "Come on, Fluttershy! Tell me!" Rainbow exclaimed. "I won't tell any pony, I swear." "Nope. I'm not telling. Only Angle knows, and he's sworn to secrecy." I told her. "If you got your pet bunny to swear to secrecy, it must be somepony really special." she said, excitedly. "Now just tell me!" "It's not time yet. I'm waiting until they notice me a bit first." I said, turning around and ending the conversation. I wanted to tell her who it was for, but I had a feeling she would be weirded out and leave me. She was the most important pony in my life, and I didn't want to lose her for anything. "Whatever. I'll find out soon enough anyways." she said. We flew to our house talking about our finals. I didn't care for them, but I wasn't going to complain. I knew I needed to do them to pass my classes, but they involved a lot of studying that wore me out. Animal Study is going to be easy for me because I've known most of it for awhile, and what I didn't know I picked up on very quickly. I wasn't sure how Rainbow would do. She rarely studied and had this idea that she was too cool for it. She was very popular at our school, so maybe she'd get someone else to get her the answers for her. I didn't like thinking that, but there were always some classmates who did things for her without her asking them to. We came up to the house and walked in to see Felix talking to a pony in a suit. "Hey Dash! This stallion has something he wants to tell you." Felix said, happily. "What is it? And what are you doing home this early?" Rainbow asked. "I got a day off for working late most nights. But listen to this guy. He's got great news." Felix replied. "Ms. Dash. I'm from the headquarters." the suited pony said. "I heard about the incident with the Apple family and how you went out of your way to help them after work. At the time they came in, the Captain was enjoying a glass of scotch. Due to this, I'm very pleased to congratulate you on becoming Captain of the Weather Team." he said, smiling. I looked over to Rainbow Dash who seemed to be in shock. "Are you serious?" she asked, her voice rising in glee. "As serious as a doctor. Now, I understand you have finals coming up, so you won't have to worry about taking over until after you are finished with testing." he said. "How did you find out about it?" she asked. "Applejack came by and explained the situation. The old Captain has been fired, leaving room for you to move your stuff in once you're ready." he explained. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a letter to deliver. Have a good day you three." he said, walking to the door. As he left I heard Rainbow let out a cute little squeal. "I can't believe it! I'm finally done being cooped up behind a desk! I'm free!" she exclaimed. I doubt it was that bad. I thought. I wouldn't mind a desk job. It's quiet and easy. At least, I thought it was. "Easy there, Dash. Just because you can fly around a little more and have some freedom doesn't mean you get to slack off on your duties as Captain of the Weather Team." Felix pointed out. "Aw come on. How hard can it be?" she asked, flustered. Felix explained everything she would now have to do, and by the look on her face, it didn't seem like she really wanted the job anymore. There were a lot more responsibilities than I thought could exist for one job. "But I thought the Captain could do whatever they wanted?" "Well, in theory you can, but you still have a responsibility to the team. They need direction after what the last Captain was like." he said. Rainbow sighed as she figured out Felix was right. I mean, the last one was a complete jerk to everyone. I never met him, but the stories that Rainbow would tell about him were terrible. "Why don't you make up a list for your team? Like a job list." I suggested, trying to be helpful. "I'll do that right after we celebrate the new promotion!" she exclaimed. "I'll head to the store and get some things to celebrate with. For now, you two need to study for your finals." he said, pointing to her specifically. I chuckled a little bit because I knew she really did need to. If she didn't she may not get out of school. "I'll be fine, Felix. Just go get the stuff so we can celebrate." she said. I started to walk up to our room so I could study some more. I really wanted to do well on these finals. "You know we don't really have to study, right?" I heard Rainbow ask at the bottom of the stairs. "You know all your animal stuff and I know my flying techniques." "There are other classes, Rainbow. Do you know how to find a cosine of an angle and graph without using a calculator?" I asked her. "That's not fair! You know I'm terrible at math!" she shouted. "Well, all the more reason to study then." I said, trying to hide my grin. I walked into our room and sat down at my desk. I was going over my Equestrian History notes. It was the only class I was having some trouble with. I kept confusing dates and times. Not even 10 minutes into studying, I could tell Rainbownwas thinking of something else. When she studies she can't keep still. Simply because she doesn't enjoy it. But when she's in a deep thought, she stays pretty still. Her face was in her math book, but her mind was elsewhere. "Oh! I almost forgot about the dance!" I heard her exclaim. "What dance?" I asked, not really paying attention. "The Spring Dance. You know, the one everypony is going to to celebrate the end of the year?" she said. "Oh. That." I said. I knew about the dance, but I really didn't want to go. "Um, Rainbow? Do we have to go? I mean, we could just stay here and celebrate by ourselves." I suggested. "Are you kidding me? Do you really want to be known as the only pony who didn't show up?" she asked. She was exaggerating on that. I knew a number of ponies who didn't want to go because they were studying. But I thought of something. Maybe now's my chance. I thought. "Ok. Well, who would you go with?" I asked. Maybe she'll go with me if she isn't going with anyone. "Hey, nice try! If you want to know, you have to tell me who you like!" she said, trying to coax me into saying it. But I wasn't going to tell her. Not yet. "Oh. Well I guess we'll never know." I said, hanging my head low. "Alright. I'll tell you. It's Long Horn." she admitted. What?!i thought. Long Horn is a Unicorn that I am not too fond of. He bullies ponies and thinks that he runs to school. And, I'll admit, he does have a good portion of ponies wrapped around his hooves. "You can't be serious? He such a meanie! He doesn't care about anypony but himself." I told her. She had to know that. Right? "Oh come on. He can't be that bad. I'll give him a chance and maybe my awesomeness will rub off on him and stop him from being a jerk." I started to curl up into a ball. "If you say so. But who will I go with? I have nopony to go with and you'll be spending all your time with him." I said. What's the point? I thought. "Maybe I'll just stay here." You can hang with us! I'm sure he'll treat you just fine when he sees that you're a friend of mine." she said. But it won't be the same. I thought sadly. But it's better if I go with her than stay home alone. "What would we wear though? We don't have any dresses, and you hate dresses." "I'm not going to wear a dress." she said. I should've figured that. "It's nothing too formal. It's really just a hang out at school." "If you say so." I said. "Since you're going, I'll go." I really didn't want to go to the dance, but I wanted to keep an eye on Long Horn. He made me very uncomfortable and I wanted to make sure he didn't try anything. "That's the spirit! And who knows, maybe the guy you like will ask you to dance." she said, giving me a slight nudge. It took a lot from me not to cry when she said that. She had no idea who it was and how much I liked them. "I don't think they will." I said. "Why wouldn't they? They'd be crazy not to ask you!" she exclaimed. "You're nice, caring, and always try to make others happy. Why wouldn't ask you to dance?" she asked. "Well, I just recently found out they were going with someone else." I said. "Whatever." she said, with a wave of her hoof. I didn't want her to be upset with me, so I decided I was going to help her out a little. "What are you going to wear?" I asked, trying to see if it was too late. "Probably just a nice shirt. I haven't thought about it too much get." she said. "Oh, no no no. You can't just wear a shirt! It's a dance and you have somepony you're going to be with. I can make you something, you know, if you want me to." I offered. "Since when did you know how to make clothes?" she asked me. "I've been looking for a different hobby. I started looking through more magazines and found tips. I've been practicing with Angel for a few months now." she said. "So, do you want me to make you one?" I asked, hoping she would say yes. "Sure. Why not?" she said. "Just don't make it too girly. I want something that looks cool." "I'm on it!" I said with a smile. I knew just what I was going to do. I ran over to my desk and made a rough sketch of the dress. When I finished, I walked over to Rainbow Dash to see if it looked good, but she had fallen asleep while listening to her music. I could hear it through her headphones. She was listening to a CD that I had given her awhile back. I smiled. I returned to my desk and took out my supplies. I had a big project ahead of me, and I wanted to get started right away. I'll make sure that you look amazing.