//------------------------------//
// Shaman in Common 
// Story: Appledashery 
// by Just Essay 
//------------------------------//

	Rainbow Dash hovered in place, her cheeks rosy as she stared at the tree branches hanging low.  After a few seconds she blinked, tilted her head, and looked down.

Zecora was gazing steadily at her.

Rainbow bit her lip.  "Uhm... my bad.  I kind of zoned out there."  She gulped.  "Didn't get much... uh... sleep last night.  Yeah."

With a nod, the zebra turned and trotted beyond the Everfree Forest's edge.  "I don't think it's exhaustion that leads you to distraction."

"Look, uhm.  What I was trying to get at was—"

"Your loyalty to your companions is beyond compare.  You are certainly one extraordinary mare."

"Eheh... yeah, sure."  Rainbow gulped as she followed Zecora into Ponyville city limits.  "That's certainly nice of you to say.  But y'know, Zecora, you're pretty darn snazzy yourself."

"Truly...?"

"Totally!"  Rainbow nodded, drifting right above her.  "I mean, you're selfless, smart.  You've got this wicked cool accent.  You always have a fix for ponies and what ails them."

Zecora's muzzle scrunched at that.

"Well, most of what ails them," Rainbow said, gazing dully at her dangling hooves.

"I've always felt that the harmony of life is best preserved through the least amount of strife."

"Still, I bet you could buck the strongest pony into next year if they put up a fight!"

"Better to avoid conflict lest much pain I intend to inflict."

"True.  True.  But don't sell yourself short, girl."  Rainbow winked.  "You're one strong filly."

"And does Rainbow Dash judge ponies on how they act out a grudge?"

"Well, no.  Fighting isn't everything.  It certainly isn't magic.  Just saying... you're a capable, dependable pony."  Rainbow Dash fiddled with her numb forelimbs.  "That's something I've always admired."

"I believe you absolutely.  No doubt it's something you strive to be."

"Er... yeah.  Sure."  Rainbow Dash gazed over the rooftops at the hazy farmlands west of town.  "We'll just run with that."

"Well, I certainly appreciate your admiration, not to mention your knack for conversation."

"Say, could I ask you something?"

"Certainly."

Rainbow squinted down at her.  "Why do you talk in a rhyme all of the time?"

"Hmmm?"

"Don't be coy."  The pegasus smirked as the two passed the first row of houses and shops.  "Zebras can't be all about poetry and lyrics n'jazz."

"I fear music is not one of my strong suits, regardless of what most ponies think of zebra roots."

"I just wanna know:  were you—like—cursed by some sort of Evil Dire Rhyme Sphinx when you were foaled or something?"

Zecora chuckled, smirking as she trotted along with her saddlebag.  "I'm sorry to disappoint your colorful imagination.  My mode of speech is simply a social mechanization."

"Uhhhhh..."

The zebra clarified, "Zebraharan natives are bound by one voice.  To speak in another is an unorthodox choice.  We believe in blessing all races with our alchemic ingenuity, but such a practice is best performed with utmost humility.  Thus, we formed the Shamanistic Code so that our talents won't make us too bold.  By forcing all foreign words into a careful rhyme, we uphold the local culture's language as sublime.  This reinforces kindness and respect while also keeping our hubris in check."

"So... this shaman business..."  Rainbow Dash squinted down at her as the two entered the Ponyville marketplace.  "It's sort of like being a traveling monk?"

"Indeed."

"Did you choose this place?  I mean... was it your idea to come to Ponyville?  Or was it decided back at... uh... the STC?"

"STC?"

"Yeah.  Shaman Training Center?  I guess?"

Zecora laughed.  "Rainbow Dash, don't be brash.  There simply is no such place.  A group of elders decided in my case."

"Soooo... Ponyville wasn't your choice when you set out?"

"Choice or not, I've been glad to serve here, even if I was initially greeted with much fear."

"Yeahhhhhh..."  Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head while wincing.  "I'm really, really sorry about that."

"All apologies have long been said.  I'm simply glad to have moved beyond typical pony dread."

"Yeah.  We're a skittish bunch of melon fudges, aren't we?"

"You appear to be quite the exception, if I might make such an objection."

"I try."  Rainbow Dash shrugged.  "Being different is kind of a hooves-off job, though."

"Of that, I can relate.  But I'm quite fine with my reclusive fate."

"I dunno how you handle it.  Being alone in the Everfree Forest all the time.  It must drive you batty."

"It has its highs and its lows, but lonesome isn't how it always goes."  Zecora flashed a smile.  "I've had an enjoyable time speaking with you, and I feel more than fate drawing me to prepare this brew."

"Well, great... right?"  Rainbow Dash fidgeted slightly.  "But... uhm... we are going to make a brew, right?"

"All in good time, my feathered friend.  Upon a specific ingredient we do depend."

"Yeah?  What ingredient is that—?"

"Shhhh..."  Zecora gestured politely for silence as she trotted up to a thin spectacle'd stallion standing behind a market vendor.