In a quaint little cottage in Ponyville, just off of the marketplace, a mare smiled to herself. It had taken weeks to sort this out, but that was fine. It hadn’t been cheap either converting her cottage for this. But money wasn’t an object or everything. It could only bring slight enjoyment for a while. No, this was much better.
-
A bush twitched outside a quaint little cottage near the marketplace of Ponyville. Nopony took any notice of it. A pink tail stuck outside of the bush, which was only part of the spoiler. The other major spoiler was the fact that the bush had apparently grown through the middle of the cobbled path, partly blocking the way.
The lavender unicorn known as Twilight Sparkle trotted up to said foliage and sighed to herself. The badly disguised bush had been there a week now. Birds were actually setting up a nest in it. She went to open her mouth but before any sound could come out, the bush hushed her. An insane pink mane and forehead appeared out of the top of the bush.
“Twilight! Can’t you see I’m on a stake out! I’ve got doughnuts and everything!” the bush said. A doughnut rolled out of the greenery and down the path.
“And WHAT are you staking out exactly? You’ve been watching that cottage for a week Pinkie!” Twilight replied, watching the unhealthy treat roll on through Ponyville.
Suddenly the top half of Pinkies head submerged back into the bush and her legs popped out to drag Twilight in. Before the unicorn could protest or scream a glazed doughnut was crammed into her mouth. Pinkie held her hoof to her mouth and made a slight “shhh” noise.
Twilight took stock of her surroundings and was surprised. The bush outside looked like it could barely hold Pinkie. Instead she found that there was more than enough room for both ponies to stretch, and that was including all the cake boxes, board games and portable oven. It appeared that Pinkies tail just wanted to sit outside. The pink earth pony pointed out of a gap in the bush.
Outside the staked out house a group of pegasai had arrived. One stallion, sporting a baseball cap and nine o’clock shadow positioned himself slightly higher than the building and started barking orders to the others. The unicorn could just about make out local mailmare Bright Eyes, also known as Derpy Hooves, screwing a pole into the wall above the door.
After a short while which involved something heavy dropping, some shouting and somepony asking where slot B was, they dispersed. The cottage now had a sign outside of it, which from their angle; the peeping ponies could just about make it out as a series of wavy lines. It looked almost like a picture of calm water. Twilight gulped down the doughnut in one go.
“It’s a new shop Pinkie...” she sighed, slightly annoyed at all of this.
“But, why all the secrecy? Why haven’t we seen the new pony? I’ve asked everypony I know and none of them know who’s opened it up. And what does it sell? Boating gear?”
Sighing some more, Twilight pulled up a pair of binoculars and peered down them towards the shop. It was hard to see what was inside the building, there seemed to be nothing but darkness in there. What she did spot though was that the sign on the door flipped from closed to open.
“Well, let’s go and have a look” she said, looking for the exit to the bush.
“But, there could be eeeeeevil things in there!” the Earth pony cried, dragging Twilight away from a possible exit.
“Like an evil canoe or lifejacket?”
Twilight forced her way out at last. Pinkie Pie clung on though, being dragged through the partly busy street. Neither pony took any notice of the stares thrown at them as the unicorn marched up to the door.
Gingerly Twilight pushed the door open slightly, peering inside. Pinkie Pie had decided to raise her viewing position by resting her chin on the lavender ponies head. Darkness greeted them. Despite the large lounge windows, the only light to come in was from the door. The student guessed that the curtains hadn’t been drawn yet. The two mares pushed forward, the door silently opening further. Eventually it caught a catch and a bell above chimed.
Both ponies squeaked in fear, Pinkie flying in the air before collapsing onto Twilight. There was a slight gasp heard in the gloom and somepony moving around.
“Just a moment, I wasn’t expecting anypony to come in yet.” A voice sounded out. The mare’s voice was calm despite the minor shock and would be the sound of velvet incarnate.
Suddenly the curtains to the room were flung open, blinding the pony heap for a moment. As their sight returned the two mares looked up to see the pony owner. She was an Earth pony, with a dark brown coat with a lighter brown to beige mane and tail. She wore a red blazer and her Cutie Mark was a mug of coffee with stars surrounding it. The oddest thing about this pony was the wooden pipe that sat in her mouth.
“Oh dear! Are you two okay?” the pony asked. With each syllable she said a bubble or two came out of the pipe and popped a moment later.
“We’re fine, thank you...” said Twilight, just about standing up. As she slowly rose, Pinkie Pie slipped off into her own little pink heap. Her face was a picture of wonder and confusion.
“My names Twilight Sparkle and this is my friend Pinkie Pie. We were wondering what thus shop was.” The unicorn continued, taking note of the room now.
It was obvious it was a former living room that had recently been converted. A counter had been set up with a till near a door to outback. In the centre of the room was a pair of comfy cushions divided by a small coffee table. Shelves stacked with labelled boxed covered the walls and a small fireplace sat in the corner; a single kettle sat waiting to be used.
“Well, my name is Smooth. I recently moved in from Manehatten. This is my Relaxation Shop. It’s to try and help ponies relax.” The blazer wearing pony stated, a stream of bubbles floating around them. Pinkie suddenly shot up, popping a bubble with her nose.
“I remember you!” she cried, causing her friend to stare at her in disbelief.
“Pinkie! You said you didn’t know who owned the shop!” Twilight almost shouted back.
“Well DUH! That’s because I hadn’t seen her! She just said she’s only just moved her. Anyway, when did I last see you...” the party pony trailed off, audible gears whirring from her head.
“It was when we were fillies. I was visiting Ponyville with my mother and sister.” Smooth helped her, slowly sliding towards the fireplace. She left a trail of bubbles behind her.
“Yeah! I had just moved here after getting my Cutie Mark!”
There was a clunk as the kettle was filled up and put over the fire. The new arrival was nodding as she was sifting through some of the boxes.
“A lot has changed since then, but as my first customers, let me make you a drink and have a see if I can help you relax. Please, have a seat.”
As Twilight went to protest, Pinkie Pie had suddenly teleported onto one of the comfy seats. Smooth was coming back round from the counter with a stool, notepad and pencil, looking at her expectantly. Relenting under the pressure, the purple mare sat down.
“So, where do we begin?” Smooth started.
-
It was an hour later when they finally left the shop. At first, Twilight has been unwilling to divulge much information. It wasn’t until the herbal tea had been poured that she had felt relaxed enough to talk. She now found herself with a bag of blended herbs, a recommendation for music and some advice on how to sleep. She wasn’t sure how many Bits it had cost her.
Pinkie on the other hoof hadn’t been affected at all. The only thing she’d left with was a list of goodies Smooth would like and a suggestion to cut down on caffeine.
“So, who should we tell about Smooth first?” the pink pony asked, looking at her list. Through the sea of tranquillity and the sea of insanity, both minds came to the same conclusion at the same time.
“Fluttershy and Rarity!” they both cried.
-
Smooth sighed to herself, leaving one bubble lingering in the air. It had been three days since her first and only customers. She wasn’t sad, nor annoyed at this fact. It was just so, dull, sat in what was her den. She’d had the time to organise everything twice, which made her twitch slightly. A mailmare with a strange eye condition had come by the day before with her post. Smooth had attempted a sale but the grey pegasus had further post to deal with.
Smooth sipped her herbal tea and sighed again. It tasted of strawberries and cream and she could feel some of the tension she’d built up melt away. Placing her pipe on a special stand, she picked up a pencil and attempted to find a blank spot on her notepad. Finding a space in-between two games of noughts and crosses and some doodles, she made a note to ask for tea from her father. She could never make that sort...
There was a gentle thud against the door, making the Earth pony look up. There was somepony out there, she knew it. She pulled the pipe to her mouth and got up to check the door when it slowly opened. Smooth could just about make out a light yellow leg pushing the door open.
The door clicked on its catch, causing the bell to let out a cheerful chime. A female squeak was heard and the leg suddenly retracted. Eyes widening, Smooth leaped to the door, landing too early and sliding the rest of the way. Looking up she saw a slightly frightened pegasus with a long pink mane staring down at her.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I was looking for a pony called Smooth...” a very timid voice mumbled from behind the pink mane.
“That’s me!” Smooth panted. Exercise has been something that happened to other ponies.
“Oh! Well, I, erm, hear that you run a relaxation shop, but I can see you’re busy...” the mare stumbled.
“No! I mean, I’m not buys! Far from it, please, come in.” Smooth said, partly losing her calm facade.
Getting up off of the ground, she opened the door fully, the pegasus meekly stepping in. She was ushered to one of the seats as Smooth quickly grabbed a cup. The Earth pony took her seat and poured the newcomer a cup of her tea.
“So, first of all, what’s your name?” she asked, flipping a page in her notebook.
“Well, I’m Fluttershy...”
Smooth made a quick note, juggling the pipe and pencil in her mouth.
“So, what seems to be the problem?” she asked, somehow ignoring the blatantly obvious for the sake of the pegasus.
“Well, I get very, um, nervous...” the timid one mumbled.
“About anything in particular?”
"Well, the only things that don’t worry me that much are my bunny wunnies, and my animal friends, and sometimes my pony friends...” Fluttershy trailed off again before sipping her tea. Smooth nodded her head.
“Out of interest, have you ever tried deep breathing? That’s usually a good help.” She said, bubbles floating around.
“Well, kind of. Like this really.” Fluttershy started breathing in and out rapidly.
“Well, it’s a start. But that’s actually hyperventilating. It should be like this.” The Earth pony stated, before taking slow deep breathes.
Fluttershy nodded and took another sip of her tea, finishing the dainty cup. She allowed a nervous smile to creep onto her face and put the cup down. Smooth could see the pegasus still had a lot of anxiety, despite drinking an entire cup of HER tea. This was something that had never happened before. She poured Fluttershy another cup.
“Oh, thank you. It’s very nice, did you make it yourself?”
“Yes, I make different flavours and use medicinal herbs to help ponies relax.” Smooth responded, thinking she’d made a breakthrough. “Do you notice anything?”
“Oh yes!” cried the pegasus. The Earth pony screamed for joy in her head.
“It tastes like strawberries and cream!”
Steam gently rose from the pipe as the brown pony maintained a face of pure calm. On the one hoof, this might be harder then she thought. But on the other, this would be a REAL challenge.
-
In the kitchen behind the ship front, Smooth washed the teapot and cups up. She’d been tempted to pile Fluttershy with a large quantity of high dose herbs but had decided against it. She was going to relish this challenge, and she WILL win. Despite her protests, Fluttershy had left some Bits for the tea and herb, so maybe that was progress.
Sitting at her kitchen table, Smooth opened a box she had got at daybreak from Sugarcube Corner. A plate of cookies stared back at her. Smooth would have been the first to admit she had a self control problem with some confectionary; if her mouth wasn’t crammed with cookies that is. Technically these were meant for customers as they talked, but seeing as her one and only customer hadn’t given much time to grab them, well...
Placing the pipe to the side, she picked one up with her teeth and bit down on it. A barrage of flavours hit her mouth and she couldn’t resist inhaling the rest. Triple chocolate cookie goodness washed around her mouth as a single tear came to her eye.
‘Pinkie Pie, you are a deity of bakers...” Smooth thought in her sweet bliss.
As she leant down to grab another treat, her confectionary based euphoria was interrupted by a cheerful jingle in the shop.
“Hello? Is anypony around?” a voice cried out. It sounded to Smooth like the sort of pony her father hated; stuck up, snooty and vain.
After grabbing her pipe, the Earth pony stuck her head through the door to see a white unicorn stood by a shelf, looking at a box of herbs she had levitated down.
‘Father would have sneered at her if she was lucky by the looks of it.’ Smooth thought, noticing the elegantly styled mane and tail. ‘Still, I’m not father.
“Hello there, how may I help you?” she said, stepping out behind the counter.
The unicorn turned and smiled at Smooth, her eyes widening as she took in the Earth pony’s appearance. The azure eyes seem to focus on the bubble pipe a moment more than needed. Smooth smiled back; her father would have described her as a marshmallow with less brains.
“I take it you must be Smooth? My name is Rarity and I was wondering if there was any help you could give me.” The unicorn introduced, not allowing Smoother a moment to confirm her identity.
To the Relaxation Expert, there didn’t seem to be anything wrong with Rarity. There were no physical indicators of stress, her voice seemed calm enough and there was nothing in the eyes. But then again, as Smooth knew too well, stress didn’t always show straight away.
“Well, that’s what I’m here for. Would you like some tea?” she asked, smiling.
“That would be wonderful, thank you!” Rarity responded, no hint of force in her voice. She popped the box back in its place.
Crying on the inside, Smooth bought the cookies out first, followed by a pot of hot water. Judging Rarity to be a pony of class so high she could almost be pegasai, she chose a combination of herbs to give a rich taste but only a slight calming effect. Once it was poured, Rarity sipped her tea politely.
“Mmm, exquisite! I must have the recipe!”
“Of course, on the house naturally.” Smooth's pride took over her sales side. It had seen that Rarity was being honest and couldn’t accept more of a reward.
“Oh but I insist! It’s not every day I meet a pony able to make such a wonderful blend!” the snow coloured unicorn added, silencing both the pride and sales mare in Smooth.
“Well, thank you. So how can I help? I have to admit, so far you are the only pony to trot in here without any real issue.”
“Oh, that’s because I’m not actually working. I’ve found that since I’ve started taking more orders from Manehatten and Canterlot, I’m starting to stress out more easily. And according to my friends, I can’t help but focus on the smaller things too much at times. I have to make sure things are perfect.”
Smooth sat there for a moment rubbing her chin with her hoof. A bubble floated up now and then as the pony thought to herself. In the silence, Rarity took a cookie and gently nibbled it. Eventually the intermittent bubbas ceased and the mare had come to a conclusion.
“Well, I’d say that the latter is a mild form of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Really, nothing wrong with either thing in my opinion. Maybe some mild herbs for your nerves as you work.”
The unicorn nodded and levitated her tea back for another sip.
“Also, you mentioned orders to Canterlot and Manehatten; you’re Rarity of Carousel Boutique?” Smooth continued, an eyebrow raised.
“Why yes! You know of my work?” the unicorn said, her face lighting up.
“Yes, my mother has ordered a few dressed from you. She loved them to bits.”
“Of course! Twilight did say you came from Manehatten! I simple must give you a make at some point, my treat!”
Smooth found her jaw wide open. Did she just get offered a maker over for free? In an attempt to not appear rude, she quickly crammed a cookie in her mouth and gulped it whole.
“Y-you don’t need to do that! Honestly, I’m here trying to help you. Besides, this would just create more work for you!” she said, her stomach making off noises from swallowing the cookie whole.
Ignoring the noises, the two carried on their discussions for some time, Smooth making sure to avoid any of own life. Eventually, the tea fully drained, Rarity rose from her seat and smiled warmly at Smooth.
“Now, let me see, the recipe, the tea, and the advice. I hope this is enough.” some of Bit’s were put down on the coffee table as Smooth handed her a piece of paper. A moment later, a few for Bit’s jingled on the table. “For the herbs to make this up darling, I don’t think I have the ingredients.”
Dumbfounded by the small pile of Bit’s that now sat in front of her, Smooth merely nodded at her customer. Eventually her legs found more sense than her brain and got up to gather a week’s worth of herbs. Once she had passed the paper bag over to unicorn, she had only just gathered enough sense.
“Well, thank you Smooth. I’m sure I’ll be back, don’t you worry!” Rarity said, before leaving.
As the door shut behind the unicorn, Smooth collapsed over the counter, looking at the door, the pile of money and the half eaten plate of cookies one by one. The full force of meeting Rarity was just coming to light.
“What the hay just hit me?”
-
The next morning, Smooth trotted into her den. She was feeling better, that was certain. Her experiences with Fluttershy and Rarity had cheered her up. Who knew what the day would bring. If it was quiet, let it be. After setting the kettle up over the fire and placing muffins she had got earlier on the counter, she made for the door. Breathing in, she unlocked it and flipped the sign on the window. No sooner had she done that it began to open, forcing her back quickly. Looking at the new comer, it was a large stallion with a red coat. Smooth knew big stallions, and even these would hide behind him, with his orange mane and sliced apple cutie mark. A tiny bubble floated from the pipe from her hidden shock.
“Ah, sorry miss. Ah wasn’t expectin’ you to be right there. I had heard about your shop, and Ah need some help.” He said, looking sensible.
“Er, certainly, what’s the problem mister...”
“Macintosh, Big Macintosh Ma’am. And it ain’t mah problem. It’s mah sister. She has an awful stubborn streak, and Ah I heard from her friends ya’ll might be the one to help.”
“Her, friends?” Smooth just about uttered, and heard a murmur behind the giant pony. He stepped in and she could see a small crowd. There was a light green unicorn and a cream earth pony talking hurriedly to one another; a mare who reminded her of a brand of toothpaste; a stallion with an hour glass Cutie Mark and what seemed to be a pink mare with grapes as her Cutie Mark holding her filly tightly. And these were the ones she could see!
“Eeyup. Miss Fluttershy was telling mah sister about you, and Ah heard it in the market as well.”
“I heard it from Rarity as we were looking for formal clothes!” cried the cream coloured mare, her pink and blue mane bobbing up and down as she tried to get inside whilst being held back by her friend.
“I think, I’m going to need to put on another a kettle for you all.” Smooth said, a little smile forming on her calm face. There were so many of them, she’d have to find a way to thank the four whirlwind like mares for attracting this much custom to her.
Outside, among the queues, a single, rolling doughnut finally came to a stop as it nudged against a very obviously fake bush. The bush, in turn, got up and slipped away, as smooth as possible.