"Uh...Where're we goin', again?" Applejack asked, awkwardly climbing into the back seat of Gray's minivan. Okay, it was his mom's, but he drives it around when he needs to.
"The mall," I grumbled in reply, looking over at Gray in the driver's seat. Why he decided on this little field trip, I'll never know. But, the girls did need clothes if they were to be normal.
Or, rather. As normal as they could be in my world.
"What's a mall? Do they have candy? Or, maybe muffins and cupcakes and pies?!" Pinkie Pie asked excitedly. I sighed and rolled my eyes.
"Actually, they do." I replied with a slight yawn. I looked back at the girls, who were all looking around the van with curious and excited faces, save for Fluttershy of course, who sat there, staring down at her hands that were laced neatly atop her lap. "Everything alright, Fluttershy?" I asked her.
"What?" She replied in a mumble, looking up at me. She gave me a hesitant smile, and nodded. "Oh, yes. I'm fine." She said quietly, almost in a whisper. I frowned a bit at her response, but sighed, shaking my head and sitting straight again.
"Alright, to the mall shopping center!" Gray announced, starting the engine and driving off.
It only took about fifteen minutes to get to the shopping center, but the drive over there was the scenic route, and the girls all stared outside the window in wonder. I couldn't help but smile as they pointed out the various cows, birds, and other wildlife. Even Fluttershy would gaze out at the occasional bird or butterfly. It really made me happy that something in this world could even lighten these girls in their dark times.
I was snapped out of my thoughts when Gray slammed on the brakes and pounded his horn. "Gray, what the hell?!" I snapped, looking ahead through the windshield. "Ah, ruttin' hell..." I grumbled, applying my palm to my face when I saw who had just cut us off.
"What the hay just happened?!" Applejack asked, picking up her hat that had fallen off in the sudden stop.
"Those guys in front of us just cut us off," I grumbled.
"Is that Jake and Aaron?" I heard Gray whisper to himself.
"Whattaya mean, cut us off?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Same concept as when someone jerks in front of you in a race, Dashie." I replied, seeing the two mooks in front of us high five and look to turn at us. I glared at them and crossed my arms.
Jake and Aaron were your classic neighborhood bullies. Well, clincher is, they were physical bullies to those who couldn't defend myself, unlike me and Gray. With us, they're verbally abusive. I actually used to hunt them down in my younger days and catch them in the act. That was never a pretty outcome, for me or them. Unfortunately, my mom and school counselor ended my little vigilante days.
"Oh...Those jerks!" Dash cried out in anger.
"Simmer down there, Rainbow. Ain't gonna get anywhere lettin' yourself get all worked up." Applejack scolded, earning a huff from Dashie.
"She's right," Gray chimed in. "Besides, they're...Oh, nope. They're heading to the Galleria as well." He mumbled in annoyance, turning into the parking lot of the galleria. As usual, it was filled with shoppers, mainly teens our age. Gray parked near the shoe store, which was thankfully having a large sale.
"Alright, girls. First thing's first, let's get you some footwear. You can't walk around barefoot while you're here," I said, unbuckling my seatbelt and exiting the car. Gray followed, opening the door on his side, and I followed suit on my side. Applejack, Rarity and Fluttershy exited my side, and Twilight, Dash and Pinkie exited on Gray's side.
"So, remember, Gray. Don't let me spend too much. A couple hundred, max. Shoes, a single outfit for each..." I started counting off different limits using my fingers, but was stopped by Gray.
"Dude, don't worry. We'll be out of here in an hour. Besides, this feels weird anyway. It's like I'm helping you shop for your children," He joked.
"Ha. Ha." I muttered dryly. We walked into the shoe store, and I could swear that there was some sort of female pheromone in there that caused all girls to go wild with shoes. The six of them were going to and fro between different sneakers and sandals, heels and flats, picking out their favorites. I facepalmed, and sat down near the back, where we'd be out of people's ways.
We'd barely been in there for ten minutes when the girls came back to me with their decisions. Unfortunately, none of them knew their own shoe sizes, so I had to help them with that, which only added on more time. It's strange, each girl picked a style unique to their own...Okay, that wasn't entirely strange, but it caught my attention.
Rarity was first, coming to me at first with black high heels. I rejected them faster than she found them, and she returned with lightly heeled pixie boots. They were cheap, and not as bad as her previous pair, so I approved.
Twilight was next, coming to me with plain black flats that you slip on. Fluttershy was after her, with the same style of flats, only in a pearl color, with velcro straps. They both fit the two and their tastes, so that made three altogether.
Dashie just about fell in love with a pair of sky blue Huck Taylor Konverse sneakers, that even had clouds as the design. Needless to say, I was proud of her decision.
Applejack nearly killed me with laughter when she saw a pair of shin high and pointed boots that were reminiscent of a cowgirls, so instead, I bought her a brown pair of shin high Doc Martini boots. A little more expensive than what I was going for, but she was hellbent on buying boots.
And that left Pinkie. I was terrified, since she was gone the longest, and was dreading what awful decision she was to make. "Alex!" She sang out from behind me. I cringed, and turned, completely surprised by what I saw. She was holding a plain pair of bubblegum pink Huck Taylor's, that almost seemed made just for her. I happily agreed, and paid for it all.
Let me tell you, thank God for sales week. Six pairs of shoes cost me just a little over 150 dollars, but that all came out of my wallet, so it wasn't a big deal.
Yet.
"Thanks a bunch, Alex! These things rock!" Rainbow Dash gleamed, as I helped them each put on their shoes. They had no problem putting them on, actually. It was just the lacing they needed help with.
"Don't mention it. Like I said, you all need to get used to this world, until you can find your way back." I replied with a smile, finishing the lacing on her shoes, finishing up the rest of them. I noticed Applejack try and readjust her hat, only to see her awkwardly twitch her fingers. "Among other things, we'' get you adjusted," I then added with a slight smirk.
"What next?" Gray asked. I thought for a moment, rubbing my hand across my chin. In the slight silence, I observed the dresses that the girls had appeared in. They weren't in bad condition. If anything, just a few dirt and dust stains.
"I suppose...Clothing." I replied with a shrug.
"Oh, finally! I can get out of this and into some different clothing! I just cannot wait to see this fashion!" Rarity announced happily, awkwardly clapping her clenched fists together.
"...Rarity? Try it like this," I said, demonstrating a human clap.
"Oh," She replied simply, chuckling to herself and clapping normally.
"Anyway, yes. Let's go to MidSun, they have decent clothing there. Nothing too revealing, too expensive, or too simple. Perfect blend." I said, leading them all to the store that was on the other side of the shopping center.
We entered the rather large outlet store, and I reminded myself to thank Celestia that it wasn't too crowded. I turned to look at the six, and tried to get their attention.
"Alright, girls, this place actually has people that can help you look for clothes. Don't answer too difficult questions. Like, if they ask your size, say you forgot. Or what style you want, tell them to decide for you. And if they name a bunch of weird things, just smile and nod. But remember, tell them only one outfit each. I dunno, say it's a birthday gift, this one outfit," I instructed, crossing my arms when I finished. They all gave nods of understanding, and I sighed.
"Way to go, den mother," Gray snarked quietly, earning a smack to the back of the head from me.
"Anyway, girl's clothing is down there. Don't take too long." I said, and they all took off in their own direction.
Worst idea, that was. I learned to never leave a girl unattended in a clothing outlet.
Me and Gray were waiting for nearly an hour this time before they had me pay. My eyes widened at the bill, as it nearly broke 220 dollars.
"Remember, Alex...It's for the girls..." I mumbled to myself, as I swiped my card and entered the pin. After I signed, I perked my ears when I heard something.
"Well, boys...How do we look?" Rarity asked. Gray and I turned around to see the girls, and our jaws nearly dropped like one-ton anvils.
Rarity was the first to step up, bouncing and fluffing her hair. She had taken a classy, yet modern style, choosing a sibil dress that was a beautiful white in color. In fact, it matched perfectly with her style.
"It took me a while to find something I liked..." Twilight then said. I looked over at her, and smiled. She had gone with a deep purple skirt that stopped at her mid-thigh, with black tights underneath. On her torso, she wore a black long-sleeved tee with pockets on the front.
"Looks great, Twi. You probably had an easier time than I did," Applejack said next. Her style wasn't all that surprising, as she wore an orange flannel shirt over a white tank-top. On her waist was a brown leather belt that held up a pair of denim blue-jeans, fashionably cowgirl of her.
"I could swear I told them to make it 20% cooler...But, it'll do," Dashie muttered, sticking her hands in the pockets of her dark and light blue hoodie. What I liked about Rainbow Dash's outfit, was that she had worn blue jeans, but her sweater caught my attention. It was thin and slimming, but the sleeves and hood were royal blue, whereas the rest of the sweater was a baby blue color.
"I think you look great, girls! Myself included!" Pinkie said in excitement. Pinkie's was unique, because there was really nothing special about it. She just wore a candy pink long sleeved tee, with dark pink striped going horizontally across. On her legs, she decided upon blue denim capris. Gray and I gave her a thumbs up, and I looked around.
"Hey, where's Fluttershy?" I asked. A small blue of pink hair caught my attention, and I surmised that she was hiding behind a clothing rack.
"Fluttershy, come on out. Let's see what you chose," Rarity encouraged. She thought about it, and eventually Fluttershy came out from behind the clothes rack.
"Does it...Look nice?" She asked shyly, looking away a bit, and blushing madly. My eyes widened in admiration, and I looked at her outfit choice. She chose a slightly baggy long sleeved tee, that actually had the sleeves end a bit past the elbow and into the forearm, that was a slightly off-white in color...Maybe even a really pale yellow. She also had a long skirt that reached down to about her ankles, and it's color was closely resembling her light pink hair color, and I couldn't help but smile at that.
"It looks great, Fluttershy..." I replied with another smile, and couldn't help but notice the look the clerk gave me. "Definitely gonna need new names, as well..." I thought to myself.
"Oh...Th-thank you very much..." Fluttershy replied, nearly inaudibly. Her blush deepened, and she looked to the ground with a smile.
"Anytime. Now, let's go home,"
After the girls' little demonstration of their new fashion, we exited the store, when an all too familiar voice stopped me.
"Well, if it ain't the loner and the prep. How's it going, chumps?"
"Aaron. Jake. It's a pleasure," I said dryly. "Oh, seven hells..." I then muttered, turning around to see the two, who were staring at us with cocky smirks on their faces. "This'll end well..." I whispered to Gray, who crossed his arms and glared at the two boys as well.
This 'verse just loves to throw awkward or just plain bad situations in my way, I decided.