//------------------------------// // Chapter Fifty-Three: A Familiar Face // Story: The Lion and the Lamb // by CrazyChickenLady //------------------------------// Chapter Fifty-Three: A Familiar Face Chenoa squealed, emitting another “Mama” as she scooted closer to the ice cream dish. Though, she wanted the contents within the bowl, she kept her loving eyes on Fluttershy, amber orbs twinkling with the desire for more. “She certainly loves that sundae,” Smokey commented with a brief chuckle directed at the baby griffon. Fluttershy released a giggle and nodded. “She sure does.” Pushing the bowl right up to her, she clicked her tongue. “Here you go, have the rest.” Gasping, the small chick performed a face plant into the small amount that was left, causing the dragon to laugh in amusement. For the next few minutes, Chenoa practically inhaled the remnants, getting her face coated like she always did. She tried pawing at her face, but her own legs were too short to allow her to do so. “Hang on, Chenoa, I’ll get that for you.” Laughing as well, Fluttershy snagged a napkin from the stack located in the middle of the table and promptly began wiping her face. Chuckling a second time as the child wriggled, Smokey shook his head at the sight of them. “She may need a bath when we get home.” “Oh, she might!” Dropping the napkin into the empty glass dish, the mare furled her forelegs around the chick to pull her into an embrace with a nuzzle to her fluffy cranium. “Doesn’t a bath sound nice, Chenoa? You love baths.” The small party’s attention was stolen by the bell that announced a new arrival. A pegasus mare trotted in, a small pegasus colt perched on her back, smiled at them as she passed by. Fluttershy smiled back and returned her eyes to the baby -- though, as the mare went behind the counter, her head snapped over to get another look at her before she disappeared into the back room with the colt. She furrowed her brows, believing she looked familiar… then realization dawned. She was the same mare who she and Smokey helped find her son! “Miss Fluttershy! That was her again! Pure Heart, right?” Smokey inquired in an excited intonation, a broad smile plastering itself to his maw. “I… believe so.” A couple of minutes later saw Pure Heart emerging from the back room with Sweet Leaf at her side, the baby now on his father’s back. The unicorn appeared to be quite happy, reaching back to nuzzle his boy, who giggled and wrapped his small forelegs around his neck as best as he could. “Oh!” Pure Heart’s eyes rested upon the other pegasus, recognizing her. “Hello, I remember you!” “Yes. You’re… Pure Heart, right?” Fluttershy tentatively asked. “Yes, yes!” the other mare beamed. “Oh! You’re Fluttershy!” “Hmm, friends of yours, dear?” Tea Leaf questioned as he came over to collect the bowl and spoons. “More than that! She’s a hero! Leaf, she’s one of the ones who saved Sweet Tum!” “I knew it!” Smokey exclaimed, reaching up to remove the head of his costume to reveal his true identity. “Recognize me now?” “Ohh!” Pure Heart gasped, slapping a hoof to her mouth. “Yes! I DO! You’re the one! Leaf!” She turned to Sweet Leaf, the stallion staring with his eyes wide and his jaw agape. He moved his mouth trying to speak, but found he was unable to. Their son, however, seemed to recognize the dragon, and giggled happily at the sight of him. “Your son recognizes me,” the scaly beast chuckled, setting the mask down on the floor. He felt relieved he could sit in a public establishment and show his real face. Soon, his attention was grasped by Chenoa. The chick’s eyes were on the other child, burbling. “Want to let the children play together?” “You’re a dra-dra-dra -- a duh-drauh--” Sweet Leaf stammered. “Sure.” Flapping her wings and lifting herself off of her hooves, she picked up her son off her husband’s back to place him down on the tiled floor while Fluttershy did the same for Chenoa. As Sweet Tum crawled over to the chick, his mother turned back to Smokey. Tilting her body inward, Chenoa splayed her eagle paws over Sweet Tum’s cheeks to feel his fur. Delighting in the softness, she released a squeal then wrapped her short forelegs around the foal in a hug. “Oh, sir, I forgot.” Without any hesitation holding her back, she hovered up to him and threw her forelegs around his neck to press her lips to his cheek. Pulling away, a light blush tinted her cheeks. “That’s… another thank you. From me. For saving my son.” Smokey tilted his body back slightly, his own cheeks growing pink at the gesture. While he was flattered, that kind of physical contact was unwanted -- especially in front of Fluttershy. “You’re… welcome, ma’am,” he said, feeling a bit awkward. As Pure Heart drew back, she spun around to face her husband, the unicorn apparently was staring at her still completely baffled and unable to figure out what was going on. She then glanced over at Fluttershy… … and leaned away from the dagger-like glare. Switching back to her husband, she touched back to the floor beside him to plant a kiss on his cheek. “I’ll, uh, go make us some tea.” With that, the pink equine retreated into the back room. Smokey had caught the icy glare Fluttershy had shot Pure Heart out of the corner of his eye. Worried, he pushed away from his chair to approach her. Sliding his arm around her shoulders, he lowered his head to nuzzle her cheek. “What’s wrong, Miss Fluttershy?” Almost immediately, the pale yellow equine snapped out of her glare. Blinking, she glanced up at him with a blush, settling against his body. “Oh… Uh… Nothing. It’s nothing, Smokey.” “Are you sure? I never seen that look on your face before…” he stated, his voice heavy with concern. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she assured, reaching up to pat his cheek as Sweet Leaf pulled up a chair next to the table and collapsed onto it. Purring to the mare, his eyes traveled to the pair of children on the floor. Chenoa giggled harder as the other child palpitated his hooves over her down and fur curiously. Scooting closer, the bundle of white gave him another hug. “They’re so cute, aren’t they?” Fluttershy cooed, her soft eyes down on the youngsters. “Alright… alright, I think I can think without freaking out now,” said Sweet Leaf. “So… you… The two of you were the ones who saved my son?” “Yes, it was painful, but I couldn’t let him get crushed by all those logs.” Smokey nodded, settling himself on the floor with the children, watching as Chenoa squealed at the attention and nuzzled her cheek against Sweet Tum’s. “Those two have already become fast friends it seems.” “… I…” Sweet Leaf breathed, looking down at his boy. “You know, I have to admit, I… Well… I’m still overwhelmed. I mean, you’re… you’re a DRAGON. I… I never…” At that particular point, Pure Heart came out carrying a tray of tea, four cups, a small bowl of sugar, and some cream on her back. Sliding it onto the table, she pulled up another chair to sit next to her spouse. “I’m sorry, but… we only intended on purchasing ice cream,” said Smokey, eyeing the tea nervously. He only had enough bits to pay for the sundae, let alone the additional refreshment. “Don’t worry about the tea. It’s on the house,” Pure Heart insisted. “Least I can do for… uh… saving my son.” She shot an apologetic, yet wary, glance at Fluttershy -- who was now returning her gaze with a cautionary stare of her own. As she began pouring the tea and handing it out, Sweet Leaf cleared his throat. “Yes, I… I have to admit, I’m… surprised. I honestly didn’t believe at first -- still kind of didn’t afterwards.” He paused at his wife’s shocked and hurtful glare. “I’m sorry, honey, but, no, I didn’t! You said a DRAGON saved our baby. A full GROWN dragon. The only dragon I know of is that Spike kid who wanders in here from time to time. And I KNOW he’s not strong enough to shield Sweet Tum from an avalanche of logs.” “Which I thank you for,” Pure Heart said. “Again… I don’t want to sound like I’m hero worshipping or anything, but… “Please understand. My son is my life. My family is my life. If anything happened to Sweet Tum… I would be… I would be devastated. I don’t think I would have any will to live…” “I believe I understand. Fluttershy and I would be devastated, too, if anything happened to our sweet little Chenoa,” Smokey claimed. “So, really, what’s up with this, anyway?” Sweet Leaf spoke up. “You two say you’re… raising this child together, but… you’re not… together?” “That’s right,” Fluttershy said. “Um…” The waiter glanced at his wife. “Call me an idiot, but… how exactly does that WORK? A pegasus, a dragon, and… a griffon? I understand you adopted her, obviously, I’d hate to think how the two of you would have otherwise--” “Leaf, let’s not dwell on that topic, shall we?” prompted his spouse. “… Erm, yes, quite.” The stallion dropped the subject, noting Fluttershy and Smokey’s mortified blushes. “Yes, please. We’ve discussed this enough with our friends. We would appreciate it if we didn’t discuss this again,” the dragon informed the ponies next to him and his companion. Returning his eyes to the still embracing children, he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Your son is a real ladies’ man.” “Still, I’m just… Well, whatever,” Sweet Leaf said, upon receiving another piercing stare, from Fluttershy this time. Following Smokey’s gaze, he blinked. “Erh… I suppose? I think this is the only time Tum-Tum ever had contact with a baby filly -- er, chick.” “All they’ve been doing is hugging,” Pure Heart mused, before smirking at her husband. “Are we perhaps looking at a possible future daughter-in-law?” Fluttershy stared at the other mare in astonishment, nearly spitting out her mouthful of tea. “… Isn’t it a little EARLY for that sort of talk?” “I don’t even want to think about her dating or getting married. Not until she is at least twenty or so years old.” Smokey sighed, stroking his fingers over Chenoa’s head as she yawned. “It’s getting close to lunch and her naptime.” “True.” Horn glowing, Sweet Leaf gently lifted his son into the air, rocking him back and forth as the colt began to sniffle and whimper. “Come, little one, time for your nap.” As her new friend was separated from her, Chenoa extended her arms in a vain attempt to grasp onto him. Scrunching up her face, she subsequently began to cry. “Awww. Don’t cry, Chenoa,” Smokey crooned, picking up the baby and drawing her into a comforting cuddle. “It’s okay, sweetie.” Setting down her cup, Fluttershy slid off of the chair and leaned in on her hooves. “It’s nearly sleepytimes, and you’ll see your friend again.” “Mommy’s right, darling. We’ll make sure you get to play with your new friend,” the dragon promised, pulling the head of his costume back onto his head with one hand. Turning to the foal’s parents, he offered them a gracious nod. “Thank you for the sundae and tea.” “Of course,” Sweet Leaf said, still a bit taken aback by the fact there was another dragon in town -- and in disguise, no less -- and had been among them for some time. “Please don’t tell anypony about this,” Fluttershy requested. “If it got out that a full grown dragon was living among us…” “We won’t say a word,” Pure Heart cut her off, turning to her husband. “Won’t we, dearest?” “Thank you so much! This means a lot to us. Who knows how the populous would react if they knew I was living nearby?” Smokey inquired, but pushed all possible outcomes out of his mind. “Uhh…” Sweet Leaf seemed like he wanted to say something, burning with the desire to burst out with what was on his mind, but upon being pinned by the stares of all three of them, he settled down and nodded. “Yes. Nothing at all.” “We appreciate it.” Placing Chenoa on Fluttershy’s back, the draconic being lowered himself on all fours. “Don’t worry about the sundae either,” Leaf said. “You DID save Sweet Tum. I don’t think we can ever thank you enough.” “Are you certain?” Smokey pressed with surprise laced in his tone. “Absolutely. No amount of bits would ever cover what we would have lost had you not saved our little colt. Some tea and a bowl of ice cream is really nothing -- a pittance of a reward you really deserve.” “Well, thank you very much! We’ll be certain to come back again!” He turned to Fluttershy again. “We just may have to make a regular visit, if we can afford it.” “I’m sure we could,” Fluttershy said with a small smile. “The prices didn’t seem unreasonable and it’s really very good!” “That’s settled then! How does every Saturday sound?” Smokey asked, lowering his head to the mare’s for a quick nuzzle. Blushing lightly and nuzzling him back on his side rather than his head, the pegasus nodded. “Every Saturday sounds lovely. We’ll get some soft treats, and Chenoa can play with her new friend…” “It’s a date then.” Smokey smirked, administering a playful nudge against her shoulder. Blushing harder, she arched her eyebrow. “Do you mean that? Like, an actual, honest-to-goodness date? Or are you just using that as a phrase?” “Uh… I, uh… s-suppose so,” the dragon stuttered, feeling nervousness stirring within him. He hadn’t been expecting Fluttershy to think he had actually meant a real date. But, if she wanted one, he would be elated to call their next outing a date. The equine giggled. It seemed apparent that she was only really just teasing him. In truth, she felt the same way -- she would’ve loved to have gone on an actual date with him outside of taking care of Chenoa and not at the “help” of her friends. Bless them, they had wanted to make sure they were happy, but… Fluttershy shook her head. No, if she wanted to plan something, she would have to be discreet about it. Observing that shake of her head, the dragon’s ear frills dropped -- or they would have if they hadn’t been taped down -- , thinking that she didn’t want to go out on a date with him. “Oh… Well… if it is still too early for you to go on a date with me, then that’s fine,” he said in a saddened voice. “Oh.” Fluttershy picked up on the depression in his voice and pressed the side of her body against his for a moment. “I wouldn’t mind! I would… certainly agree to one, but… who would watch Chenoa for us? The first pony that comes to mind is--” “Hiiiii!” Fluttershy and Smokey didn’t even have to turn around to know who that was.