//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: For The One You Love // by bahatumay //------------------------------// Fluttershy steeled herself. She had to come clean. She had to tell Mac everything. This is why she had sneaked away under cover of going to the market. She had to let him know the truth. Unfortunately, he was not so easily found, even for an enormous stallion. She soon found him outside Sugarcube Corner, heading towards Pinkie Pie, who was currently playing with the twins. She got close enough to hear their conversation, and then froze as she heard unexpected words. “You seen Rainbow Dash?” he asked. R- Rainbow Dash? Why was Macintosh looking for Rainbow Dash? Pinkie Pie nodded as she tried to hold Pumpkin away from her even as the filly chewed happily on her mane. “I've seen her quite often, actually.” A pause. “Where?” Mac asked. Pinkie tossed Pumpkin into the air. “Oh, I've seen her here, at Sweet Apple Acres, I've seen her in Canterlot and in Cloudsdale and I've even seen her in the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters and I’ve seen her…” Mac shoved a hoof in her mouth. “Ah meant, where's Rainbow Dash right now?” “Hmm… Second cloud from the right over the third apple tree in the fifteenth row of the south orchard,” Pinkie said proudly. Mac stared. “What? I'm good with directions!” Pinkie shrugged. Mac considered this, and then shrugged. Pinkie had rarely been wrong before, and it was definitely worth a try, and so he mumbled his thanks and headed out to find Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy watched him leave under cover of a plant. This could only mean one thing: He had lost his marefriend, so he had gone after her best friend. That's how all the romance novels Rarity had worked, weren’t they? He probably just had a thing for pegasi. He might not have even loved her at all. She really could be a hoofful at times, after all. “All our nights together... I knew it was too good to be true.” Ears down and head lowered, she slowly returned back home, back to her fiancée. “Don't wander like that, Bri,” he chided as he ate another bite of his sandwich. “You know you're not smart enough to handle the market alone.” “Sorry,” Fluttershy whispered. “And make me another one of these.” Completely ignorant of the plight of the yellow pegasus, Mac walked back to the Acres. He counted his trees and was only mildly surprised when Pinkie's prediction was right. He went over to where Rainbow slept, right over an apple tree. Turning around, he kicked it lightly, only hard enough to get a single apple for some ammunition. With perfect aim, he tossed the apple up, gently bopping the sleeping pegasus right on the nose. She shook her head and opened one eye. Then she raised an eyebrow. “Mac? What are you doing here?” Mac ignored that, as this was his property, and he had every right to be here and do whatever he wanted on it. "Ah need to know. Is it just me, or has Fluttershy been actin' strange recently?" “Well, yeah, I guess,” Rainbow said, stretching her back until it popped. She cracked her neck and then dropped to the ground. “But really, wouldn’t you be?” Big Mac thought for a second. “Nope.” “Yeah. I really don’t understand the whole ‘wedding craze’ thing, either,” Rainbow continued. “Some mares get all worked up about it and the only thing I’m thinking is, if I ever get married, there better be an awesome cake. And good presents.” Macintosh wasn’t sure if he wanted to ask the next question, but sometimes the only way to know is to ask. Besides, he needed closure. “When did she meet him?” Rainbow shrugged, her mind still on cake and presents. Hopefully Wonderbolt Memorabilia. Signed, preferably. Or what if they were put together? Or... What if the Wonderbolts themselves came? That'd be pretty sweet. And then, if Spitfire gave her something signed? That would be even cooler. And as for the food... what if they were all combined? What if Spitfire was inside the cake, and she had autographed stuff with her? That would be world-bendingly awesome. Oh, right. Mac had asked her a question. “Prolly since before she can remember. She’s been bathrobed or something like that since she was a filly.” Big Mac squinted. “She’s been what?” Rainbow blinked. The sensation of knowing something that somepony else didn’t wasn’t one she often experienced. It was a good feeling, actually. She really should try this more often. She didn't say anything right away; she just kindof closed her eyes and savored the moment. Eventually, though, she had mercy on him and explained herself. “Means she’s got to marry somepony her parents picked out.” Macintosh stood in shock, which quickly turned into indignation. “And what right do her parents have on her choice on who t' marry?” he demanded. If Rainbow Dash noticed his strange talkativeness today, she didn’t react. “I know, right? But hey, when you’re nobility, they have ‘traditions’. Gag,” Rainbow said, sticking her tongue out in exaggerated disgust. “Can't imagine what it's like knowing you've got to marry somepony you barely know. I'm so glad I don't have noble blood. Low town represent!” Big Mac's jaw dropped. "N- nobility?" he stammered. Rainbow didn’t notice his reaction to this news, and continued chatting nonchalantly. “Yeah, but she won’t tell anypony, so you better not either. She gets so embarrassed. She never wanted it, she'd rather stay down here on the ground; but you can’t help what you’re born into, right?” “Nope,” Big Mac managed to say. He could only stare in shock. One thought stuck firmly in his mind. I’ve been cuddling with pegasus nobility! "Luck of the roll, I guess,” Rainbow agreed. Nobility! Him and nobility! He was just a simple farmpony! Nobility! “And she rolled high. Apparently, she’s third in line for the leadership of House Cloudhammer, so she's got to marry someone from another house to 'concentrate their power'.” Rainbow stuck out her tongue. “Ugh.” “Who’re they?” Big Mac was almost afraid to ask. “Only the third most powerful house in pegasus culture and history,” Rainbow Dash said dismissively. “They say it was founded by a direct descendant of Commander Hurricane, and carried a lot of clout-” (here she swung a hoof for emphasis), “-but it’s more power in name these days.” Big Mac didn’t hear that last bit, as his mind was newly occupied by a more urgent thought. I’ve been cuddling with high pegasus nobility! “It makes sense, though. They say Commander Hurricane had a voice that could inspire fear, and have you seen Fluttershy angry?” Big Mac paused. He had seen Fluttershy in many states—happy, sad, content, frustrated, pleased, hungry, full, sleepy—but never truly angry. He shook his head. “It’s scary,” Rainbow said. "I've seen it once, and I hope I'll never see that again." She shuddered. "You know, of all my friends, I think Fluttershy can be the scariest." “Ah think you’re full of it,” Big Mac said. Rainbow Dash responded to this with a question. “Do you know Fluttershy’s cutie mark story?” Mac nodded. “Eeyup. Apple Bloom told me.” “And you know that part where she gets caught by butterflies before hitting the ground?” Mac nodded. “That's not exactly what happened. I dunno if that's what she wanted to happen or if she was just making the story nice for the trio, but she didn’t get caught by butterflies. Even as small as she was, pegasi just aren't that light. She hit the ground, bang!” She smacked her hooves together demonstratively. “And survived?” "Yep." Mac shook his head, not believing what he was hearing. He knew how high Cloudsdale was. A pony who couldn't fly couldn't survive that. No way. "I was there not ten minutes after the race. I wanted to show her my cutie mark, but she had disappeared so I went looking for her. Wasn't too hard; just followed the trajectory of the clouds with holes in them. I found her in the middle of a field, talking to all these animals that she somehow knew the names of, and there was this giant filly-sized indent in the ground." "Nope." "It's true. I swear on my cutie mark. She's descended from a long line of pegasi warriors. She's a lot tougher than she looks." It was at this point that Big Mac realized that she was not lying. Unfortunately, the coup de grâce was still yet to come. “Then again, her given name is Warbringer Bloodbath, so I guess that makes some kind of sense that she'd marry some warrior dude. I mean, I've watched her face down a dragon. She's pretty tough when she wants to be.” Mac stood dumbstruck, his jaw moving mutely as he desperately tried to think of words to say. He couldn't find any. "Ah guess that's that, then," he finally said softly. He turned and walked away. Rainbow watched him go. She had the distinct impression that she was missing something very important , but she couldn't think of what. Eventually, she shrugged, and hopped back up to resume her nap. Mac continued walking, frustration growing in his chest. Who cared where she came from? Fluttershy was the best thing that had ever happened to him, and he had half a mind to march up to Cloudsdale himself and tell her parents so. He skidded to a stop. Maybe he could do just that. Didn't Applejack just get back from a trip up to Cloudsdale? He could go talk to Twilight Sparkle. Applejack said she was the smartest unicorn to ever come out of Canterlot. He could ask her about getting up there; and if betrothing had an escape clause. Twilight shook her head. “I'm sorry, Mac; pegasi don't write down their laws very well. When they do, they write them on ice and keep them frozen, and only pull them out when they need to check. I don't think I have any copies of any laws, let alone nobility marriage laws; but I'd be willing to check.” “Thanks,” Mac murmured. He felt as though his fields had just been snowed on, and then rained on. Twilight brushed up against him comfortingly. She tried to, anyway. This friendship thing was still fairly new to her, and it felt somewhat awkward to her. “It's ok, Mac. I'll do my best to find something.” From his seat in the kitchen, Spike sighed and shoved the rest of the gem into his mouth. He knew when he was about to be summoned. Twilight gave Mac a hug, because friends did things like that. Mac returned it. Fluttershy, who had been walking by the window carrying supplies often used in sandwich-making, bit her lower lip and walked on. Mac had moved on… she could, too.