//------------------------------// // Chapter 10: Reading // Story: The Start of Something New // by Rhino //------------------------------// Another day of work passes by uneventfully, and the family soon find themselves passing through the market district of Ponyville. Various venders voice their wares to all who pass by, hoping to strike a deal. Even the flower trio can be seen waving to potential customers and performing the odd eyelash flutter to draw more attention. Gel quirks an eyebrow at the mares but says nothing, scanning the stands and buildings around them. I could swear that one of those flower ponies was eyeing you... He shrugs, his eyes glancing over the stalls but not really paying attention to any of them. His mind is more on enjoying that today is his turn to carry Ruby in her sling and also making sure nopony runs into her. Probably just trying to make a sale. We did give them a fair amount of rose business during your pregnancy. She shrugs, blushing slightly. What can I say? Ruby must love roses. She stops next to a vendor's tent, noticing a few snowglobes on the counter and shelves behind him. She looks over a few for a couple seconds before turning to him. Do you think Mist would like one of these? I mean, her birthday is coming up, soon, right? Friday, actually. Speaking of which... His horn lights up and a piece of parchment slips out of his bag to hover in front of her. When I grabbed the mail on the way to work today, and I got a chance to sort through it in my office, I found this in it. She takes it in her magic, reading it silently. As she does, her expression becomes more and more concerned, and she rolls it up before turning to him. "We have to get her a present. And I need to start tidying up the house for their arrival, Friday." She puts it in her saddlebag before grabbing a Crystal Empire snow globe and examining it closely. "I have no idea what to get her, though..." "Hmm..." Rhino sorts out his thoughts a moment before replying. "Well, I've gotten her quite a few things over the years, but there's one thing I haven't gotten her in a while that I know she enjoys: windchimes." She blinks, glancing around curiously. "Where can we find something like that?" "Umm..." He looks around. "A garden ornaments stall, maybe? It seems like it's that sort of thing, barring the chance we actually stumble across a pony with a wind chime cutie mark." "I suppose that makes sense." She starts to walk off before pausing, looking down at the curio in front of her. "Oh, right." She quickly puts it back on the counter and gives the pony a sheepish smile. The vendor nods thankfully to Gel for not stealing from her, before turning and helping the next potential customer. It turns out, neither one of Rhino's theory's on where to find wind chimes was correct this day. Instead, after walking around a short time, they found what they were looking for on a cart of a pony selling, strangely enough, bells and whistles among other common interesting noise-making devices. Gel inspects each of the many chimes in turn, frowning slightly in confusion. "I never understood the draw of these...why would Mist want one?" Rhino taps a chime with his hoof, listening to the sounds it makes as the bars hit the central section. The sound draws Ruby's attention, and she reaches her hooves out towards it from her sling, smiling as she does so. "Probably because you don't actually know what pattern it's going to make. It's just one of those simple things you can sit back and enjoy whenever you're doing something else outside." He chuckles as he strokes his daughter's mane. "You've gotta make sure to take them down if the wind gets really bad though, otherwise they go crazy and just make a racket." "Oh...if you're sure..." She quietly taps a couple with a hoof. "I guess that makes sense...but why give that as a birthday present? Surely she's thought of getting one, herself..." His smile turns sheepish a moment. "Well, yes, but it's the thought that counts... a particular saying that's been useful for me since you know I'm not great at spontaneously picking out gifts..." She smirks playfully at him, bumping his side. "You did well with your gift to me." He flicks her with his tail. "Well, yes, but I spend more time planning your gifts." He looks down at the foal against his chest and nuzzles her. "Especially this little one." "Glad to know you care." She giggles, shaking her head. "Still, we have a couple days. We can think of a good gift by then, right?" "I guess..." He sighs as he turns away from another small chime. "So, you really don't think one of these would be good?" She shrugs noncommittally. "I just worry that someone else will buy the same thing." Rhino sighs again before muttering, "Why are birthday's so complicated sometimes?" Suddenly, a voice that is clearly not Gel's, comments from next to him. "It's only as hard as you make it, silly! Birthday's aren't supposed to be hard, they're supposed to be fun!" The nymph turns and squeaks, jumping slightly at the the pink mare there. "Pinkie? W-when did you get here?" The party pony tilts her head at the changeling. "Just now, you would have seen me if I was here earlier, right?" "Y-yes, but I didn't see you arrive, either..." She shakes her head, rubbing her temple with a hoof. "...n-never mind..." Pinkie giggles before bouncing in place and turning around in mid air so that she faces Rhino. "So... what was that you were saying about a birthday party? Because I don't think anypony has a birthday coming up in the next few days, and you know I know everypony in Ponyville, so I would know if there was a birthday coming up. So who are you talking then?" Rhino backs a step away at the mare's verbal barrage, but answers her nonetheless. "Well, actually, the pony doesn't live here but my mother is visiting in a few days for her birthday-" She cuts him off with a jump and shout. "She is?! Oh, I don't have much time then, I should get decorations and food and guests and invitations and all sorts of other things!" Her mind seems to be going a mile a minute as she practically vibrates in place. Gel's eyes widen in horror at the energy of the party pony, and she nervously reaches out a hoof to the mare. "I-is that a good idea? I mean, she might not want a big party...r-right?" The stallion holds out a hoof and opens his mouth to speak as well, but is cut off again as Pinkie jumps into the air. "Can't talk! Gotta go!" She quickly starts bouncing down the street. Rhino quickly looks to Gel. We need to catch her. She nods, hurrying off after the mare. Who knows what she might plan if left unchecked! As visions of colorful horror flash through the couple's minds, their pink prey passes around the corner of a building ahead of them. They round it soon after, but the pony is nowhere to be seen. The nymph turns around in a circle, frantically searching for the mare. W-where did she go? H-how did she do that? I have no idea... A flash of pink appears on the edge of Rhino's vision, causing him to turn his head. His eyes widen as he sees the Pink pony a block over, bouncing from a completely different direction. She's... over there... but I don't know how... Okay, let's look at this logically. She flares her wings, smiling brightly. I can follow her from the sky, and help direct you to where she's going. What do you think? Probably a good idea... He chuckles nervously. Because she just disappeared again... On it! She launches into the air, scanning the ground below her. She pauses when a pink form catches sight of a similarly-colored pony and immediately perks up. Her spirits fall when she realizes that it's not the right pony. Well, That one mare just opened her bar for the day, but I don't see Pinkie. Not yet, anyways. Rhino looks around, Ruby giggling from the excitement around her. I swear I keep hearing the sound of her bouncing, but every time I look, she isn't there... Gel turns and gapes, staring in shock. She's...jumping across the rooftops...in the residential area... Try to stick close to her, I'll head there on the ground. He turns quickly and starts heading in the specified direction. The nymph's eyes narrow, focusing on the pink pony. She glides over the rooftops in pursuit. Pinkie bounces happily from house to house, humming a tune as she does so. Suddenly, instead of bouncing to the next roof, she falls down in between the houses. As Gel zips to check on her, Pinkie bursts out of a hay bale in a cart, and continues bouncing on her way out of the alley between the houses. Bewildered, she follows her, flitting above the street. Where is she even going? I mean, this seems like a roundabout route to me. Pinkie rounds another corner with Gel not far behind. Unfortunately, as the nymph goes around the corner herself, she realizes the pony has disappeared again. Her eye twitches as she stares at the empty space in front of her. I lost sight of her... She groans and slams her head against the side of a building. I must be getting rusty. Yea, that has to be it...it's been over a year, after all... Rhino responds as he reaches the area. Over a year since what, love? You know, since I left the military. She pulls herself away from the wall, gingerly rubbing her horn. ...I don't know why I did that... The stallion walks up to her, having spotted her from across the street. Because you're silly. He nuzzles her as Ruby reaches up and hugs her chest due to their proximity. Want some love to make it better? She smiles, gently kissing his cheek. As a matter of fact, I do. She giggles, playfully winking at him. You know that. He merely chuckles as ruby babbles up at her mother, smiling and tapping her hooves on her chitin. Rhino looks down at the filly. "Looks like she wants you to know she loves you too." Gel smiles, leaning down and nuzzling the filly's belly. "I'm glad to hear that, and never forget...I love you, no matter what." As the filly smiles and hugs her mother's muzzle, an 'aww' is heard from right next to them. All three of them turn to see Pinkie just sitting there smiling at the scene. "That's so sweet..." The navy changeling can only blink for a few seconds. "...t-thank you..." She scratches her head, trying to understand what's going on. "...Pinkie...when did you get here?" "When I figured out you stopped chasing me," she says matter-of-factly. "I can't get too far ahead of you, then it's no fun." She stares at her in stunned silence, her glasses sliding down her nose. "...you...thought it was a game?" "Well sure!" She smiles widely as she makes motions with her hooves to emphasize her words. "It's a chasing game! You chase me, I run. Everypony has fun!" Gel raises a hoof, sheepishly smiling. "A-actually, we were trying to talk with you..." "Oh?" She tilts her head, her poofy bangs hanging to one side. "What about?" "W-well, it's about that party..." She rubs the back of her neck. "...you see..." Rhino takes the conversation ball. "We would really just rather it be a small family affair, if you don't mind." Pinkie nods quickly. "Okie Dokie Lokie! That's fine." Gel tilts her head to the side, dumbfounded by the response. I would've thought she'd be more insistent... The stallion raises an eyebrow. "Really? You're giving up just like that?" Pinkie shrugs. "What's there to give up? I understand some ponies jsut want to party with their families. It's not like I'm some crazy pony who throws parties no matter if ponies want them or not. That'd be silly." Gel slowly nods, putting her hoof to her chin. "That's very...mature. Thank you, Pinkie." She glances around before leaning in, curious. "I also heard a rumor...is it true that Spike spent a whole day with Applejack? Or did I hear that wrong?" The party pony nods again. "Oh no, that was true. There was this whole adventure they had with saving each other's lives, timberwolves, debts, codes, and all sorts of things!" The nymph stares at her blankly. "If it wasn't you saying it, I'd say that was a lie." She smiles, her ears perking up a bit. "What kind of codes, though? What encryption was used?" Pinkie puts a hoof to her chin. "Well, Spike said it was his dragon code so... I dunno, would he use encryption for that? Does that make him a spy? Or a secret agent trained by Celestia since birth to forever be disguised as a baby dragon while secretly having a direct line to her?" Realization crosses her face, and she gives the mare an embarrassed smile. "S-sorry, confusion on my part." She clears her throat and waves nonchalantly. "From what you said...I'd say it's like a knight's code." She giggles brightly, tapping her chin in pretend-thought. "I wonder why he chose that as a base..." The pink pony shrugs again. "I have no idea, but if it lets him defeat timberwolf kings, I'm all for it!" She nods and turns to Rhino, pouting. "We missed all the amazing stuff." He snorts. "Frankly I think I can still live quite a full life without ever having to see a timberwolf king..." She sticks her tongue out at him. "What's life without a little excitement?" He opens his mouth to respond, but closes it with a grumble as he realizes he doesn't have a retort to that. Gel giggles, playfully bumping his side. "Glad you agree." She turns to the mare in front of them only to gape in shock, as she is no longer there. "...where did...aw..." She puffs her cheeks out, pouting. "...I wanted to ask her for help with decorations..." Rhino blinks and turns to the nymph. "We're putting up decorations?" "Of course." She shrugs, starting to walk off. "I wasn't going to have a birthday party for Mist without decorations. It would be rude." She sighs wistfully, shaking her head. "Especially after she helped pay for our wedding..." The stallion shrugs and smiles as they stand up. "Well, I guess it'll be fun to decorate for a birthday party, even if it is an adult's one." He chuckles. "And here I'd gotten used to Pinkie being the only one to do that..." "Well, it'd also be when she meets Ruby." She turns to him, grinning slyly. "I want it to be memorable for everyone involved." She taps her chin in thought. "By the way, is Bio coming?" He nods. "Yeah, Mom said she already sent a letter to him and he's just excited as her to meet our little pink joy." He strokes ruby's mane as he talks about her, receiving happy coos in response. "But apparently he has to take care of something at work that morning, so he'll be getting here around noon on the train. Mom's still flying in first thing in the morning." "I suppose that makes sense." She waves at a pony in passing, missing their look of surprise when she turns back to her stallion. "Still, the fact they're both coming is a good thing...I'd appreciate it more if they came together, but that doesn't seem likely, now..." He looks at her curiously. "Why would it matter if they came together or not? I mean, they live in separate towns so it's not really likely that they'll travel the same ways... especially with Mom trying to stay healthy by using her wings to get here." She quirks an eyebrow at him. "Is it too much to ask that your parents be together for Ruby's sake?" She sighs, turning her gaze to the sky. "I worry about how it might affect her thoughts on romance...and yes, I know that's a silly concern, but that doesn't stop me from having it..." "Frankly I'd think by seeing us she'd get quite a good example of romance..." He nuzzles her lovingly. "Besides, it's not like they turned out badly, they're both good friends and freely admit that they cared deeply for each other. Mom even told me on a few occasions that she's never found somepony quite like my dad." She frowns, closing her eyes and leaning up against him. "...I just...I don't like the thought of a happy couple splitting up..." He entwines his tail with hers, as they so love to do when walking together. "Neither do I, but things happen, times get complicated. I don't blame them for doing that, after all I know exactly why they did it. Now come on," he looks around to make sure nopony is watching before leaning down and nipping the tip of her ear once with his teeth, "how about we get back to more cheerful subjects?" She shivers slightly, a soft coo escaping her lips. She immediately covers her mouth with a hoof, her chitin turning a brighter blue as she shyly nods. He simply chuckles as they continue walking. "You and your noises..." *** The couple arrive home, shedding their saddlebags and work clothes before settling down on the couch with Ruby as the pets go off to do their own things. Rhino smiles as he watches his daughter, who has forsaken her teething ring for the moment in favor of playing with the holes in Gel's legs. The nymph looks down at the pink filly, giggling as she pops her head out of one of the holes in her leg. "I'm glad you're having fun, sweetie." Because that still feels a little weird to me... She gently pecks the top of the tiny pony's head. The stallion chuckles as he comments. "At least she'll be too big to do that eventually, right? I'm still not sure why having anything through those holes weirds you out so much." "Honestly, I don't know, either." She scratches her head with her unoccupied hoof. "Maybe it's just one of those irrational things..." "Maybe..." As Ruby gets bored of her mother's leg, Rhino floats over a small stuffed puppy and she grabs onto it eagerly, looking up at him afterwards with wide shimmering eyes. He groans and covers his eyes with a foreleg. "Gel, she's giving me that ultimate adorable face of hers again..." The nymph laughs brightly, shaking her head. "You know you like it, love." She bumps his shoulder. "You're her father. You know you'll be seeing that face quite often." He peeks out from under his hooves to reply, but catches sight of Ruby again and is forced to pick her up and hug her affectionately purely from the power of her looking at him. He can hear Gel laughing at him as he does so and looks over to her as he nuzzles their daughter. "Oh come on, as if you'd do any different when she looks at you like that." "I know I wouldn't." She smirks cheekily at him. "Watching you fawn over her is still unbelievably adorable." "Remind you of when I fawn over you?" He asks as the filly's happy coos make him smile wider. Her cheeks flush with color, and she quickly gets up and heads towards the door. "You feel like reading? I feel like reading. Great way to bond with Ruby!" As she finishes the sentence, she exits the room, the sound of hooves running up the stairs filtering into the room soon after. Rhino chuckles as he looks down at the foal. "Well, that seemed to embarrass her.... Want to help me do it some more?" Whether she actually understands his words, or some combination of the bond between parent and child along with changeling emotion sensing, nopony knows, but Ruby nods nonetheless. Her father smiles more as the two wait for Gel to return. The navy nymph returns after a few minutes, three thin books in her magical aura. "I couldn't decide which one to read. I'm not sure what she would like." She sheepishly smiles, pulling out a fourth book from behind her. "I even brought this Daring Do book, just in case..." He raises an eyebrow. "Isn't that a bit much for a first reading session? I mean, maybe once she starts learning words, but now..." He lets his sentence trail off as he pats the spot next to him. "Of course, you know I'm always happy to hear your thoughts." She rubs the back of her neck, nervous. "I didn't know that..." She moves over to him and climbs atop the couch, laying next to him. "...I never had stories read to me when I was younger..." Rhino looks down at Ruby meaningfully before setting her down in front of her mother. The filly immediately moves to her head and starts nuzzling her mother's mane as her father leans down and does the same. "Well, does that make this story time for you too then? Or would you rather me read you something before bed?" Gel blushes softly, gently kissing his cheek. "Either one works for me, love. I still can't decide which story to go with, though..." She glances at the thicker book and discretely puts it off to the side. "...maybe you could choose one?" "Sure sure, I can do that..." He kisses her lips gently as he continues talking softly. "But right now, Ruby and I just want to know what it is that you want." She gives him a lidded gaze, leaning in close to him. "You know what I want..." She quickly turns and nuzzles Ruby. "I want to read to our daughter. I hear it's important for mental development..." Rhino blows a raspberry very similar to how his daughter does. "And here I was hoping to get you flustered again by fawning over you. I even roped Ruby into helping..." "I know." She giggles, winking at him. "Next time, you should probably whisper." He sticks out his tongue. "Weren't you upstairs?" She rolls her eyes, picking up Ruby and putting her on Rhino's head. "Yes, I was. You're just that loud." She smirks, shaking her head playfully at him. "I also had to come back downstairs because I dropped my glasses." "You and your accessories..." He laughs as Ruby starts snuggling deeper into his mane. "Everypony just loves to snuggle me..." "Of course." She nuzzles his cheek, sighing happily. "You're just so fluffy and huggable..." "Yes I am." He says proudly before levitating the three thin books from the floor. "But before my fluffiness induces sleep, as it does half the time, let's see to these books..." He picks one out and shows it to Gel. "What about one about puppies?" The nymph considers it a moment, hoof on her chin, before nodding. "Sounds cute. Reminds me of those puppies Winona had last year..." She shifts her pose slightly, smiling warmly. "Go ahead." "Alright, let me get everypony situated then." He scoots back on the couch, shifting to a prone position, and floated Ruby down in front of him and Gel. The book hovers on the edge of the couch in front of them all so they can see it. The title reads simply, 'Puppy's Day Out'. The book opens and the first page turns. On the page is the picture of your typical farm, much like that of the Apple family, though there are less apples present among the fields of various foods. "Puppy was a pup who lived on a farm. He and his family were very happy." The page turns, now there is a picture of a mother dog, nudging a pile of her puppies. "His mom woke him, his brothers, and his sisters up one day." Rhino pauses as he looks to Gel. Did you want to voice the mom? She smiles and nods. Yes, though I'd like to hear how you'd say it, first. He clears his throat and speaks in a higher voice, not as high as what he's going for, but definitely more than his usual deep voice. "Wake up my little puppies. It's a new day." His voice goes back to normal as he returns to narrating. "The pile of pups all open their eyes. They yawn and walk over to their mom. 'Good morning Mom!. What are we doing today?' They ask." Gel clears her throat, focusing on the words in front of her. She reads the words with a warm, soothing tone, perfectly mimicking the princess's. "You're going to play outside, today. The farmer wants my help in the fields." She glances at Rhino, smiling nervously as their daughter laughs brightly at her impression. How was that, love? Rhino blinks at her. A flawless imitation of Princess Celestia... it actually surprised me to hear her voice coming out of you... She blushes, squirming in her seat. I-it's a trait all changelings have...n-no big deal... It's still impressive. He nuzzles her before getting back to the story. He turns the page and another picture of the farm is seen, though this time with puppies running in all directions. "Puppy and the others all cheered. They loved playing outside! They all ran around, doing their favorite things." He turns the page again, showing a puppy on a hill. "Puppy went to his favorite hill. He could see everything around from on top of it! The best part about the hill though, was going down it. Puppy laid down, and rolled down the hill, smiling the whole time. 'Wee!'" Ruby squeals, bouncing on the sofa in front of them. She puts her forehooves on the picture and touches her nose to it, almost as if she is trying to nuzzle Puppy. Rhino smiles and nuzzles the filly before continuing. "He rolled all the way to the bottom of the hill. There, he found one of his brothers playing in a puddle. 'Hello Brother!' He said. 'Hello Puppy!' said Brother. Puppy saw what his brother was doing. 'Can I splash with you?' 'Yeah! It's fun!' The two puppies ran and splashed all in the puddle, getting wet and still laughing the whole time. Puppy loved his brother, and loved doing things with him." "Puppy and his brother played all kinds of games together." The pages turn with each activity. "They played in the puddles. They rolled down the hills. They raced in the grass. They even played hide and seek in the hay bales in the barn." The page shows a setting sun. "As the sun went down, they could hear their mom call to them." Gel picks up the next line, using her impression once more. "Alright, my little puppies, it's time to come back inside." "All the puppies around the farm ran back to the house, barking happily. Mom fixed them dinner." The page reveals puppies wagging their tails as they eat. "They even had baths, though most of them didn't like it." The next page shows soaking puppies in a wooden tub getting bathed. "It got late, and it was time for bed." There is a picture of puppies all piled on top of each other in a basket. "Puppy's mom kissed all her pups goodnight before getting in her own bed. Puppy had a great day, and tomorrow would be even better. The end." The book softly closes. Ruby laughs happily, obviously having enjoyed the story. She nestles herself right up against a foreleg, resting her head on it as she reaches a hoof out to the stack next to him. The nymph by his side giggles brightly, shaking her head. "It seems like she wants another." She covers her mouth, realizing that she was still using the Princess's voice. "Another one? Already?" He looks to his wife. "I think we may have made her realize a hunger for reading she didn't know she had. Looks like she got it from both of us." She clears her throat before responding. "That's not necessarily a bad thing, right?" She smirks playfully at him. "It'd definitely drum up more business for Twilight, I think." "Reading is only ever a good thing." He looks down as Ruby makes a noise and points again at the books. "Though at this rate she'll be on those thicker books in no time... Probably be talking our ears off soon after." Gel pales slightly, recalling the books in the study. "...I-I should probably put my romance books, somewhere..." "Maybe just move them to the top shelf and call them 'Mommy's special books'?" He offers as he slides the two remaining books to Ruby so she can pick one. The filly doesn't see her mother nod, too busy reaching for the one that's to the left. Rhino lifts up the book in question curiously. "Clear Skies and her cloud fort?" He looks to the changeling. "Onto fort making already?" Gel shrugs, smiling softly. "Why not? Luster, Flick, and I played with one when we were younger. Pretended we were knights protecting a princess, Ivy." He chuckles as he lets Ruby look at the cover more. "Remind me to get her a nice big box so she can have the traditional foalhood fun with it." "Will do, love." She nudges him, her smile shifting into a smirk. "Go ahead and read it to her." He cracks open the book and begins to read again.