The Secret of Manehattan Mall

by Dee Pad

Part 2 - The Setup

The Secret of Manehattan Mall

By Dee Pad

Part 2: The Setup

Going against everything she ever believed in, Rainbow Dash was taking her time as her wings carried her through Manehattan Mall’s corridors, swooping up and over and down and under all the interconnecting walkways of the upper levels. The sound of her continuously beating wings was all but drowned out by the cacophony of conversing ponies above and below her. It was still amazing to her just how many ponies were here; this place may as well be a city all on its own.

Even though she had yet to reach her destination, she was already having fun. The many walkways and hanging signs advertising nearby businesses made the place feel like an impromptu obstacle course. Rainbow Dash spun and looped through the hall, diving low occasionally to rile up excited foals that had been admiring her feats of aerial prowess from the ground.

She was enjoying herself and all, but she did have a destination in mind, something that she needed to remind herself of in order to keep her from getting caught up in her stunts and making a wrong turn somewhere. Near the ground she spotted another large map positioned near a souvenir stand. She swooped down and made a running landing, gradually slowing to a steady trot until she stopped just in front of the map. It didn’t take long to ascertain her location, indicated by a big, red circle and the words “You are here.” She was relieved to see that she was still on track and her destination wasn’t far from here—around the next corner in fact. There wasn’t much point in flying such a short distance. Besides, she wanted to conserve her stamina; if the map was any indication, this mall contained a full sized cloudball court, the official sport of Cloudsdale. She was definitely looking forward to that.

A short trot later and she had made it. Rainbow Dash stood before the doors of Manehattan Mall’s indoor stadium, the same title spelled out in large, red letters over the door. Rainbow Dash inhaled deeply, puffed out her chest, and put on her best game face, one that exuded confidence and experience.

She shoved the doors wide open. Her game face instantly faltered to make way for one of utter amazement. The room was absolutely enormous, she almost felt as though she were actually outside. That feeling was heightened by the extremely high ceiling which was painted a bright blue and decorated with images of fluffy, white clouds and even a round, orange sun. They had obviously gone all out to make this place seem as outdoorsy as possible without actually being outdoors.

Of course, the highlight here were the courts. Set up to her left were four regulation sized tennis courts. Two pairs of unicorns occupied one of the courts with a game of doubles, rallying the soft, yellow ball back and forth with the rackets they held in their multi-colored auras.

To Rainbow Dash’s right were a pair of basketball courts. A group of six stallions were busy with a game of three-on-three. They seemed to be amateurs, high school freshmen who weren’t cut out for the school’s team so they had to come here to play. They may not have been very good, but they certainly seemed like they were having fun.

Rainbow Dash could see adjoining hallways that appeared to lead to locker rooms where ponies could change into their exercise clothes, and showers where they could clean the sweat out of their coats and manes. Nothing felt better than a cool shower after stomping somepony in a good game.

None of this really held Rainbow Dash’s attention however. She never had an interest in sports like tennis and basketball, mainly because they had strict rules regarding pegasi. Pegasi were prohibited to use their wings in most sports as that would allow them an unfair advantage over earth ponies. The same applied to unicorn magic as well, but the rules were a little more lenient in that regard, allowing them to use their magic to hold equipment such as tennis rackets but not to dribble a basketball. Rainbow Dash was a mare who liked to spread her wings. These other sports were too restrictive for her, having to remain grounded and jump with only the power in your legs.

For these reasons, her focus was on the court towards the back of the stadium: the cloudball court.

Spanning almost the entire length of the stadium, the cloudball court was certainly gigantic. As the name would suggest, this sport could only be played by pegasi and took place entirely in the air; if you didn’t have strong wings, playing this sport would be like setting your wings on fire as games tended to run for quite some time. The field needed to be big considering that a pegasus can cover a larger distance more easily than earth ponies and unicorns.

On either side of the field were two striped goal posts suspended on clouds. The object of the game was to carry the ball through your opponents goal, with throwing the ball through netting less points than if you were to fly through with it in your grasp.

Of course, the game couldn’t be called cloudball without clouds. Many of the puffy cumulous were scattered throughout the field. They acted as obstacles and advantages provided one knew how to properly utilize them. The game was also prone to being struck by weather systems. Rain, snow, even hurricanes weren’t enough to postpone a game of cloudball, they just made the game more exciting.

Normally a game would be played high above the ground as well, but in the event a court was set up at ground level as this one was, touching the ground was considered out of bounds. The creators of this game went out of their way to ensure that the sport could be played only by the best fliers in Equestria.

And it just so happened that the best of the best was here today.

Rainbow Dash approached the court. Her eyes drifted up to a commotion amongst the artificial clouds. Four burly, pegasus stallions were darting from cloud to cloud, tackling one another and attempting to take possession of the white, oval-shaped ball.

The spectating mare sat beyond the court’s boundaries and watched in earnest as they carried out their game. They were skilled to be sure—aspiring professionals no doubt—but Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but notice that they made more than one amateur mistake here and there; they seemed to be more intent on inflicting physical harm on one another rather than actually trying to score. Typical jocks.

One of the stallions managed to commandeer the ball and had set his eyes on the opponents goal. Seeing an opening, he bolted forward, but halted after just a few feet. Rainbow Dash found his gaze had turned in her direction. She checked behind her to see if perhaps he had been looking at somepony else, but seeing nopony else there, she looked back at him.

The distracted stallion was about to be sacked by one of his opponents when he made a gesture with his forelegs, forcing his attacker to stop in his tracks. “Time out!”

The rest of his friends stopped and shared vexed expressions. Without bothering to give an explanation, the stallion that had declared the time out casually flapped down to the ground and landed in front of Rainbow Dash. He knit his eyebrows in unexplained irritation. “You got a problem or something?”

Rainbow Dash stood up wearing a confident grin. “Me? Nah, you guys just looked like you were having fun, so I thought I’d watch you play. Why? Something wrong?”

“We don’t need an audience,” he snapped as his friends touched down behind him. “Besides, this is cloudball. It’s the most masculine sport there is. You’d be better off playing hopscotch or something, little missy.”

Rainbow Dash didn’t know whether to bear her teeth in fury or burst out laughing; these guys were probably younger than she was. She decided to keep her temper in check for the time being. “Oh? Is that right? Well, it might interest you to know that I was team captain of the Junior Speedsters Flight Camp Cloudball Team.” Rainbow Dash flared her wings in a display of haughty superiority.

The four stallions tried and failed to suppress their laughter, much to Rainbow Dash’s annoyance. “‘Junior Speedsters’? That’s peewee stuff! And everypony knows mare’s sports aren’t nearly as intense as the real thing. What, did you apologize when you stole the ball?” Their laughter became more uncontrollable and significantly more aggravating.

Rainbow Dash grit her teeth behind her lips. “I wouldn’t laugh if I were you. Do you even have any idea who you’re talking to?”

The lead stallion forced himself to stop laughing long enough to respond. “You just told us: captain of the Junior Toddlers Cloudball Team.”

His hazing only proved to heighten his friends’ mirth as well as Rainbow Dash’s rage. The chromatic mare was never good at taking insults. “I was just trying to enjoy a good game of cloudball, but if you want things to get serious, then I can make things serious,” she said, accenting her anger with a sharp snort through her nostrils.

The stallion waved a hoof dismissively, completely unfazed by her threat. “Hey, look, if you want to stand on the sidelines and be a cheerleader or something, that’s cool. But why don’t you leave the actual sports to the actual athletes, Skittles.”

Rainbow Dash’s eye twitched. Her tone turned dark and foreboding. “What did you just call me?”

“Hey, dude,” one of the others piped up, still trying to contain his amusement, “I think you made her mad.”

The stallion smiled confidently. “Yeah? And what’s she gonna do about it?”

He was basically asking for a swift hoof to the jaw, and up until now, that’s exactly what she had planned to do. However, she once more forced her anger to the wayside, closing her eyes and taking in a deep breath. Her eyes reopened again, accompanied by a cocksure grin. “I’ll tell what I’m gonna do about it. I’m gonna wipe the court with your sorry flanks, that’s what!”

Once more, her response was met with their insulting laughter. “Are you seriously challenging us?” She gave a simple, unwavering nod. “Alright, I think we can humor you. You got some pretty little friends to help you out?”

Rainbow Dash shrugged, but retained her smug smile. “I do, but I don’t think I’ll need ‘em. I can take you on myself.”

She was expecting another round of hysterical chortles, but instead they remained silent. They simply wore amused grins. “You against us? You don’t think that’s a little unfair?”

Rainbow Dash’s smile faded, making way for a more worried expression as she sized up the competition. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. That would be a little unfair...” Upon seeing their triumphant smirks, satisfied that they had asserted their dominance, she faked them out as her own grin returned to its original position on her muzzle. “...for you.”

The lead stallion chuckled. “Heh, you got fire in your belly, I’ll give you that. Tell you what, we’ll take it easy on you. I promise we won’t hit you too hard,” he said in a patronizing tone.

Rainbow Dash flapped her wings and glided over them smugly. “Can’t say I’ll do the same for you.”

The four stallions followed her into the air, all five of them taking up positions in the center of the court with the four stallions facing down Rainbow Dash. As a final show of sportsmanship—or perhaps pity—the lead stallion offered her the ball first. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, she accepted; if they were willing to give up the one advantage they had, that was their loss.

“Let’s just make this a quick one, okay?” the stallion said. “First to score a point by flying through their opponent’s goal wins. That sound good?”

The mare gave a short nod in agreement. With the ball snugly nestled in her foreleg, Rainbow Dash poised herself for the first play. She had no team with her, so she needed to rely solely on her own skills. That only served to boost her confidence further.

The lead stallion hovered at the ready. “All set?” Rainbow Dash gave a firm nod. “Alright, on three, we’ll start. One. Two. Three!”

The last thing the four punks saw was Rainbow Dash’s cocky grin and a multi-colored blur zooming past them before they were sent into a dizzying spin. Finally spinning to a stop, they all attempted to regain their bearings and set their eyes to darting about for the cyan mare. A sharp whistle blew from behind the quartet of befuddled stallions and they all turned towards their own goal.

Sitting casually upon the cloud where her opponent’s goalposts were planted was the mare in question, lazily flipping the ball into the air. “What’s the matter?” she said in a blatantly mocking tone. “Too fast for ya?” The stallions gritted their teeth at Rainbow Dash’s taunt, furious that they were being shown up by one little mare. “Tell you what,” she continued, “I’ll give you your advantage back so this game’s a little more fair. Here.”

Rainbow Dash hurled the ball towards the captain with a perfect spiral. The burly pegasus, though vexed as to why she would pass up the opportunity to score, held out his hooves to catch the ball. When it was just mere inches from his possession, it suddenly vanished in a flash of color. Following the trajectory of the rainbow-hued streak, they were once again greeted by the smug smirk of Rainbow Dash as she spun the ball expertly on her hoof.

“Oh, come on, don’t look at me like that. You might make me feel guilty about messing with you guys.”

Rainbow Dash waited for their witless responses, but when none came she cast another glance at her opponents. They didn’t seem as intimidated as she had hoped. In fact, the three of them looked pretty confident.

Wait, three?

Without warning, Rainbow Dash was tackled from behind, causing her to drop the ball to her opponents waiting below. The fourth stallion had used the cover of the clouds to sneak up behind, pinning her and preventing her from diving after the ball. The captain caught the falling ball and offered Rainbow Dash a mocking salute as he made a brisk pace for her goal. She could only watch as she let her arrogance lead to an early end of the game.

But they seemed to forget that cloudball was a contact sport.

With a loud grunt, Rainbow Dash swung her head backwards, the back of her skull connecting firmly with the stallion’s muzzle. His grip loosened as his instincts told him that nursing his nose was more important than holding down the female pegasus. Without wasting another moment, she took off after the ball. The captain was closing in on her goal. She just needed a little more speed...

An idea struck. Rainbow Dash dipped her head down into a nose dive, allowing gravity to help her pick up the pace. When she felt she had enough speed, she pulled up in a sharp curve, using the additional momentum to launch herself across the field like a stone from a sling.

Her trajectory was a little off, zooming a few feet in front of the pegasus carrying the ball. It was probably for the best anyway; at that speed, they would both likely suffer some serious injury. What it did do, however, was surprise the stallion, forcing him to stop abruptly just yards from Rainbow Dash’s goal. The mare looped in the air behind the confused stallion, popping up in front of him once more, this time swiping the ball from his grip as he continued to attempt to comprehend what had just happened.

She wasn’t about to risk gloating again after seeing where it got her the first time. Rainbow Dash made a beeline for their goal in hopes of ending this before she let her arrogance cost her the game.

But fate would have another say in the matter.

A loud crack of thunder boomed over the court. Rainbow Dash halted mid-flight to ascertain the source of the noise; how could their be thunder indoors? Her eyes drifted up as a large, dark storm cloud began to form overhead. Within seconds, rain began to pour and the air filled with static electricity.

A weather machine? Cool.

She had to admire the detail put into this court; whoever built it went all out to make the game feel authentic.

Another thunderclap sounded, this one accompanied by the sting of a lightning bolt as it grazed her flank. Rainbow Dash flinched and yelped, her eyes tracing the bolt’s path to a dark cloud where one of the stallions was preparing another buck to zap her again. She was no stranger to dealing with lightning and managed to deftly dodge the bolt. However, her momentary lapse of concentration had led her to be surrounded by her opponents.

She was trapped. With all four stallions taking up positions around her, she couldn’t find an escape route. Trying to fly over them would bring her too close to the enormous thunderhead looming above, going below would only mean there were even more clouds above that could zap her, and just blowing through at top speed would give her little time to react if a wayward bolt came her way. Not to mention being soaked by the rain basically made her a cyan lightning rod.

Only one option left then.

Rainbow Dash began flying in small circles while remaining within the boundaries that her opponents had set up. The four stallions were bewildered, but amused, by the display as she looked to be simply panicking. Their amusement faded, however, as a gentle breeze picked up, gradually growing in force. They knew for a fact that the court’s weather machine couldn’t create gusts of wind.

As Rainbow Dash circled at dizzying speeds, a vacuum was beginning to form. The storm clouds were being sucked into the growing vortex that the mare was building. Her face was contorted from the stress of her speed, her vision blurred from a combination of the rain and her watery eyes.

The four stallions soon found even their heftier weight being affected by the pull of the small, pegasus-powered twister. Before they knew it, they found themselves being helplessly pulled into the ever-expanding tornado and sent careening into an uncontrollable spin.

The other athletes in the stadium had stopped what they were doing to gaze at the spectacle taking place over the cloudball court. A now-gigantic, black whirlwind swirling maniacally and accompanied by crackling lightning, booming thunder, and the panicked shrieks of four stallions.

Rainbow Dash had almost completely lost track of what she was doing. For a moment, she thought she was simply performing an impressive aerial feat or practicing a routine until she noticed the ball that was still in her possession. While still maintaining her circular flight path, Rainbow Dash tried to peer out of the tornado she had created.

There, for just the briefest of moments, she could see her opponents’ goalposts. They almost seemed to light up as a beacon to her victory. With each revolution she tried to pinpoint exactly how long it took for the posts to come into view again. Another pass, then another, and another.

Three. Two. One. Now!

Rainbow Dash flared her wings and rocketed out of the twister. With the source gone, the tornado quickly died down, the storm clouds being flung at the stadium walls and disappearing with a puff. Rain water sprayed out in every direction, soaking even the spectating ponies below. It took all of half a second for Rainbow Dash to clear the goal and secure her victory. She turned sharply and made steadily slowing circles as she came in for a landing in the middle of the court where an unceremonious pile of stallions were groaning and trying to keep their eyes from spinning out of their sockets.

Rainbow Dash ran a hoof through her rain-soaked mane and cantered up to the upside-down captain, leaning in close with a triumphant smirk. The look of pure astonishment on the meatheaded stallion’s face only fueled her pride further. “And that’s Ms. Skittles to you, bub.”

She dropped the ball to the floor as she turned toward the exit and, with a haughty flick of her tail, casually trotted out of the stadium, leaving the four stallions, and even the other on-looking ponies, in a silent daze.

***** ***** *****

Manehattan Mall was practically an enormous aquarium, a large tank full of exotic fish that floated about the myriad landmarks, minding their own business with no concept of time. A veritable sea of shoppers traipsed here, there and everywhere, some with destinations in mind and others who had no idea where they even were at the moment.

One fish, however, stood out from the rest.

Pinkie Pie bounced and bobbed her way through the crowd, happily humming and paying no mind to where she was even going. The mob of ponies may as well not even exist to her as she leapt and skipped over their heads, miraculously avoiding any collisions, especially considering her eyes were closed.

She wasn’t exactly enthused about separating from her friends; having fun together was why she suggested they come here in the first place after all. She did find some solace in knowing that, wherever her friends ended up, they were no doubt having a blast. Her own destination shouldn’t have been too much further as well.

Pinkie Pie froze mid-bounce and her carefree smile disappeared to make way for curiosity. She turned to her left and craned her neck skyward at what lay before her. Her hooves finally touched the ground.

Arching over a rather large opening was a huge, plastic rainbow, its seven colors shining brightly as the mall’s lights reflected off of them. In a very child-like font, the words “Playground Paradise” were spelled out.

Pinkie Pie’s inner child was intrigued by the sight. The bright colors were no doubt intended to attract the attention of a simple-minded foal, and Pinkie just happened to be a simple-minded mare. She needed to investigate.

Stepping cautiously inside, Pinkie Pie’s ears were greeted by the overpowering roar of innumerable laughing children. Her eyes were then treated to just what was invoking that laughter, and they grew large in wonderment. Surrounding her on all sides were countless activity centers: slides, jungle gyms, and even a fully functional carousel occupied by smiling colts and fillies decorated the area with every color imaginable. A gargantuan maze of colorful tubes snaked its way throughout the whole area, full of foals playing hide and seek or embarking on make-believe adventures. It was a hub for all things fun. A whimsical wonderland.

Pinkie Pie was right at home here.

Contrary to what somepony who knew the mare would expect her to do, Pinkie Pie simply trotted slowly through, staring in amazement with a wide smile and taking in everything around her. She did notice, however, that there was a distinct lack of adults present. No doubt this was where parents dumped their nagging or whiny children so they could get some shopping done in peace.

Pinkie Pie stopped in her tracks once again, catching sight of something just ahead of her. It was a big, inflatable castle, colored mostly red with spires of blue and decorated with yellow stripes. Approximately a dozen foals were mindlessly bouncing about inside of it, laughing and carrying on without a care in the world.

Pinkie Pie’s smile grew as wide as her cheeks would allow and she let out an excited gasp.

“Bouncy Castle!”

The pink pony instantly shot upwards like a fun-seeking missile. She flipped and tucked and rolled repeatedly with the grace and poise of a professional high-diver, but as she passed the apex of her launch trajectory she ultimately decided to land with a good, old-fashioned cannonball.

The curled up mass of pink struck the center of the inflatable castle and was immediately swallowed up by it. The massive buildup of tension forced the foals to halt their bouncing, stopping to gaze in curiosity at the unidentified object until the castle finally decided to spit up the live projectile, the immense stress of the stretched rubber rocketing her body back into the air. Pinkie Pie unfurled mid-bounce, allowing herself to belly-flop back into the castle as if it were a pool of water.

“Woo!” she exclaimed excitedly. “That was awesome!”

Satisfied that her entrance was indeed grand, she slowed to a leisurely bounce of no more than a few feet high. The surrounding foals giggled and bounced along with her, Pinkie Pie’s superior weight tossing them around erratically much to their enjoyment. They were all thoroughly amused by the sight of a full grown mare acting so silly.

“Ahem.”

Pinkie Pie’s bouncing came to a stand still. The castle offered no resistance against her hooves, allowing her to stand properly. She peered outside to see a large stallion wearing a blue uniform and casting a rather stern look her way.

“Miss, would you mind stepping out of there?” he asked, though it sounded more like a demand.

Pinkie Pie looked around. The dozen or so foals present had also stopped playing, wondering what the problem was. “Why? We were having fun,” she said with a small pout.

“Please step outside, ma’am,” he repeated, his tone a tad harsher than it had been previously.

Upon hearing the magic word, Pinkie Pie complied with the order and hopped down onto solid ground. She could hear several of the foals groan with disappointment. “What’s the problem, officer?” she asked, hoping that showing him as much respect as possible would convince him to be a little more lenient about whatever it was she had done.

“You’re too big to be in there.”

Pinkie Pie blinked. “What?”

“This attraction has a height limit and you’re too tall,” he declared.

The pink pony gasped in shock. “Prejudice!” She stuck out her hoof against his nose; he looked none too amused. “How dare you deny me access to the bouncy castle solely because of my height! Why should one of the vertically inclined not have the same rights as those who are not?! Is that fair? Is that your so-called justice, officer?! You should be ashamed! To think that a place as wondrous as Manehattan Mall would be host to such a vile hate crime! I should sue the non-existent pants of you, mister.”

Pinkie Pie’s rant did absolutely nothing to remove the stuffy, annoyed expression from his face. He simply stood there, looking down the length of the leg pressed against his nose and glared at the body and face it was attached to. “It’s a safety precaution, miss,” he stated blandly.

Pinkie Pie’s glower vanished and she placed her hoof back onto the floor. “Oh. Well, why didn’t just say so in the first place?” she giggled. “Would have saved you the embarrassment.”

Satisfied by his simple response, Pinkie Pie happily skipped past him and back towards the playground’s entrance. Several foals waved goodbye to the quirky adult as she disappeared around the corner.

The security guard let out an aggravated groan. “Why do I always get the crazy ones?”

Even if her time was brief, the laughter of the foals made those few, fleeting minutes more than worth it. After all, spreading joy and happiness is what being the Element of Laughter is all about. Satisfied that she had put wide, toothy smiles on a group of innocent, young faces, Pinkie Pie set back on the path to her original destination.

Which just so happened to be twenty feet away from the playground.

Pinkie Pie’s pupils enlarged in an attempt to take in the majesty of the sight before her, a beacon of light shining down from the skylights above and a chorus of angels singing a melody only she could hear.

The food court was glorious.

An enormous, circular area lined with food stands, candy shops, snack bars and any other type of food-based business. Hungry ponies lined up in droves to get their fill, taking seats on nearby benches or upon the patio deck setup in the very center of the area mimicking the atmosphere of a backyard picnic.

And the aromas. Sweet Celestia, the aromas.

Pinkie Pie’s nostrils were invaded by all manner intoxicating fragrances, from salty pretzels to veggie-lover’s pizza; from caramel apples to lemon meringue pie. This place must have had absolutely everything.

Pinkie Pie had to fight back the urge to dive straight in and gobble up whatever food happened to be in hoof’s reach at the time. Instead she painstakingly trotted towards the deck area where she noticed that there were waiters delivering dishes to the customers. This area, in and of itself, was actually a restaurant, the kitchen hidden inside a small building attached to the deck. Pinkie Pie took a seat at an empty table, though one large enough to seat six ponies.

A waitress, noticing a new arrival, timely made her way to the pink mare’s table. “Good evening, miss,” she said courteously. “Would you like a menu?”

Pinkie Pie hadn’t even realized it was evening. How long had she been aimlessly bouncing about in the crowded halls? “Yes, please,” she answered politely. Despite her unorthodox behavior most of the time, Pinkie Pie was actually quite well versed in proper table manners and dining etiquette. Whether or not she chose to incorporate them into her meals was another story entirely.

With a curt nod and without wasting a moment, the waitress delivered a menu to her customer before leaving her to make her decision and tend to the other diners.

Pinkie Pie opened the menu and perused it’s contents. Everything certainly sounded tasty. Yup, absolutely everything sounded yummy...

She closed the menu and waved to the same waitress that had given it to her. The employee raised an eyebrow quizzically; she had decided her order so quickly. She put her smile back on and stepped over to the pink mare’s table once more. “Have you come to a decision?”

Pinkie Pie closed her eyes and nodded, her expression exuding an air of sophistication that her friends have probably never been privy to. She held the menu out to the waitress to return it. “Yes.”

There was a long pause. The waitress looked around in confusion, having expected more than just a simple affirmation. “And?” It was clear her patience was starting to develop a few holes.

Pinkie Pie popped one eye open. “‘And’ what? I said ‘yes.’” She pointed to the menu’s cover.

The waitress had to take a moment to decipher the mare’s meaning. She desperately hoped that she wasn’t implying what she thought she was implying. “Yes to what?”

“The menu,” Pinkie Pie stated matter-of-factly.

The waitress blinked. “The menu?” She gulped rather audibly.

“Yup, one of everything please.”

That’s exactly what she was afraid of. The waitress shakily retrieved the menu and warily made her way to the kitchen, double-taking a few times along the way to ensure she wasn’t having some lucid dream.

Pinkie Pie sat quietly and patiently for some time. The other seated customers could easily hear the cooks in the kitchen grumbling and cursing under their breath. Pinkie Pie, however, was completely oblivious to the mountain of work she had just given them.

After what seemed like hours, the doors to the kitchen flew open, making way for a line of waiters and waitresses carrying plates and platters of everything the menu had to offer, taking them straight to the table for six seating one. The table’s surface was covered immediately and there were still more waiting for room to clear, but they would have to wait until their recipient had finished what was already there. The table creaked and groaned under all of the calories stacked atop it; it was a wonder it remained standing at all.

Pinkie Pie’s tongue would not be contained. The sweet smell of so much delectable sustenance made her mouth literally water. Realizing that every pair of eyes at the restaurant was staring at her, she hastily sucked her tongue back in and wiped her mouth clean. She reached down to her saddlebags resting next to her chair, rooting around inside past all the random doodads and thingamajigs she brought with her “just in case.”

Finally, she pulled out a small, ornate, lacquer case, as well as a golden key. She gently placed the case on the table and carefully and deliberately inserted the key. With a tiny click, the latch on the front popped opened. Everypony that had gathered around fell silent and leaned forward in anticipation. Pinkie Pie slowly opened the lid and a flash of silver light filled the food court, forcing the diners to shield their eyes.

It amazed even Pinkie Pie every time she saw it. Resting inside, placed within perfectly molded, felt-lined grooves, were a silver fork and knife, polished to an immaculate shine. It was only on very special occasions that she ever used them. Today felt like one of those days.

Pinkie Pie reached into her saddlebags for a second time, this time pulling out a white bib with her cutie mark emblazoned upon it, and tied it around her neck. She cautiously took hold of her prized utensils, the fork in her left hoof and the knife in her right, pausing to gaze at the well-polished metal. Satisfied that her reflection was clearer than if it were a mirror, she looked over the smörgåsbord laid out before her and deeply inhaled the fusion of scents through her nostrils. An eager smile played across her lips.

“Bon appetite.”

***** ***** *****

Fluttershy nervously shuffled her hooves across the floor, desperately trying to avoid eye contact with the strange ponies that surrounded her on all sides. Ever since she separated from her friends her mind had begun to fill itself with all manner of terrible scenarios that could possibly play out with nopony there to help her. She could get mugged, with some delinquent making off with her saddlebags even though she wasn’t carry anything of value other than about thirty bits. What if somepony foalnapped her and held her for ransom? Would her friends have enough money to save her? Would the foalnapper even want money, or would they want something even more valuable?

Fluttershy’s shoulder brushed against a random passerby. The meek pegasus flinched in fear, awaiting the stranger’s harsh reaction. She cracked one eye open cautiously. Everypony was going about their business as usual. Nopony scolded her or glared at her. She breathed a relieved sigh. That had been the third time she did that, and her resolve wasn’t getting any stronger. She desperately regretted not going with one of her friends.

To make things worse, she was pretty sure she had gotten lost, just as she had feared. This mall had so many twists, turns, stairs, and hallways that it was nearly impossible to tell where you were going and where you’ve been. The constant wall of passing ponies didn’t make it any easier for a mare who kept her head hanging low either. At this point Fluttershy was contemplating just trying to find her way back to the fountain and wait for Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash to return.

Fluttershy’s ears suddenly perked up as a noise not too far away caught her attention. The sounds of hundreds of hooves clacking against the tile floor seemed to disappear to allow the mare to better analyze the noise. But it wasn’t just one noise, it was many. It was the sound of kittens meowing, puppies barking, and birds squawking.

Her mouth curved into an enormous and grateful smile. She quickly followed the source of the noise, curving and weaving through the thicket of ponies until her destination was within sight. Eager to escape the suffocating atmosphere of the mall’s crowded corridors, Fluttershy hastily slipped through the doorway of the pet shop. Her grin widened even further and her eyes sparkled as she now found herself completely surrounded on all sides by hordes of adorable animals.

She didn’t know where to start. She heard the kittens’ tiny mewls first, so should she start there? But that wouldn’t be fair to the other animals. She didn’t want to seem like she was playing favorites. It was at times like this that she wished she had access to the Mirror Pool.

Ultimately it was a commotion on the far end of the store that garnered her attention. However, it wasn’t the sound of exuberant animals that drew her there, but the snarky laughter of a trio of small colts. The three tots were gathered around a cage housing a few puppies. Fluttershy gasped as she witnessed what exactly it was they were doing. They weren’t laughing because they were playing with the puppies, they were laughing at the puppies and teasing them, rattling the cage and dangling sugary snacks just out of their reach. The puppies had all started huddling together at the back of the cage to distance themselves from their abusers.

Fluttershy wouldn’t stand for such grievous behavior and callous disregard for the poor canines’ feelings. She stomped over to the colts and stood firmly behind them. “Excuse me,” she said with a stern voice.

The colts turned around wearing annoyed expressions. “Whadda ya want, grandma. Leave us alone.”

Fluttershy ignored the insult. “I can’t help but notice how poorly you’re treating those helpless, little puppies. Don’t you know that kind of treatment can be very traumatic when they’re so young? It could be hard for them to trust anypony.”

“So?” one of the colts said. “They’re not our puppies. Why should we care?”

Fluttershy narrowed her eyes. “What if somepony treated you like that? I bet you wouldn’t like to be teased and laughed at, would you?”

Another colt scoffed. “They’re just dogs. It’s not like they matter or anything. They ain’t people.”

The adult mare had to stifle a shocked gasp. “You take that back. A puppy’s life is just as valuable as a pony’s. They have feelings just like us.”

The third colt shook his head defiantly. “No, they don’t!”

Fluttershy felt anger boiling inside her, a feeling she didn’t experience very often. “Yes, they do.”

“No, they don’t!”

“Yes. They do.”

“No. They. Don’t!”

Fluttershy couldn’t take anymore of these colts’ attitude. If they hated animals so much, they shouldn’t be here in the first place, and Fluttershy was intent on reprimanding that.

“Please. Leave. You three don’t belong in here.”

“You can’t tell us what to do, granny!”

Fluttershy ground her teeth behind tightly closed lips. That was it. Even a pony as passive as Fluttershy had her limits, especially when animals were involved. If it meant protecting those defenseless puppies from these abusive colts, she was willing to break out her secret weapon.

Fluttershy loomed menacingly over the three foals. Her eyes shot wide open and her brow knit tightly. The three colts gazed directly into the older pony’s dilated pupils, and a sudden sense of fear and dread fell over them as they slunk back and away from her, looking much like the very puppies they teased. They couldn’t accurately describe why, but something about her eyes frightened them.

“Leave,” Fluttershy said to the cowering colts. “Now.”

The trio could only silently nod their heads as they scrambled to escape from the pet store and get away from the scary adult that had scolded them. When the coast was clear, Fluttershy let out a relieved sigh.

“Thank goodness. I never like using The Stare, but sometimes it’s really all I can do.” She turned her attention to the frightened puppies in the cage. “Are you all okay in there?” she asked in a motherly tone, accented by a soft smile.

The litter of puppies, seeing the comforting expression on the strange mare’s face, cautiously stepped forward.

Fluttershy leaned in close to the cage. “That’s right, those mean bullies are gone now. It’s safe. I’m not going to hurt you.”

The fear left the puppies’ eyes in an instant, somehow feeling that this mare, although they had just met her, was entirely trustworthy. They bolted forward and began to gratefully lick their savior’s nose and cheeks.

Fluttershy giggled. “Aww, you’re very welcome. I just can’t stand to see cute, little animals teased and abused like that. Ponies are supposed to play with their animal friends and have fun.”

“Squrawk! Fun! Fun!”

Fluttershy turned her head around to the source of the strange voice. Gazing up, she noticed a large, brightly colored parrot perched in a cage staring down at her. Her face lit up with a wide smile and she flapped her wings to see eye to eye with her fellow winged creature.

“Was that you who said that just now?” she asked in enthusiastic wonderment.

The bird simply tilted its head at Fluttershy. Not much of a response, but that wasn’t going to stop her from continuing the “conversation.”

“My, my. You’re such a pretty bird, aren’t you?” she giggled.

“Pretty bird! Pretty bird!” the parrot echoed, finishing with a whistle.

Fluttershy scratched the back of her head and laughed. “Not very modest though. That’s okay, it’s good to take pride in one’s self. By the way, my name’s Fluttershy. What’s your name?”

“Fluttershy!” the bird squawked.

Fluttershy gasped. “You have the same name as me? That’s quite a coincidence. I guess that makes us two birds of a feather, huh?” she giggled. She was a little disappointed that Pinkie Pie wasn’t around for that; she was always up for a good pun, and bad ones for that matter. The parrot didn’t seem to comprehend the joke however and absentmindedly preened its wing.

Fluttershy examined the bird’s cage. It seemed unusually small for such a large bird; there wasn’t even enough room to fully spread its wings. “It must be awfully uncomfortable in such a cramped space, especially since you’re a bird. Bird’s need to be free so they can fly. Just ask my friend Rainbow Dash. I’m sure she’d be just as concerned to see you cooped up like this.” Fluttershy chuckled at her unintentional pun before awaiting a response. This time she actually received one.

“Cooped up! Fly free! Squrawk!”

Fluttershy nodded. “You’re right. At the very least you should be able to step outside your cage every now and then.” The pegasus scratched her chin as a thought coalesced in her brain. She looked to the left, then to the right, to see if anypony was watching. “I guess there’s no harm in letting you out for a minute or two, right? But you have to promise that you’ll behave yourself. Understand?” she asked in a more stern, yet still quiet, tone.

“Squrawk! Promise! Promise!”

Fluttershy grinned. “Good! Now let’s just get this cage open and—”

No sooner had she removed the latch, the parrot bolted out of the cage, past Fluttershy and straight out the door of the pet shop.

“Oh no!” the pegasus gasped. “Wait, Fluttershy! Come back! You promised!”

The store clerk, hearing Fluttershy’s panicked shouting, stepped over to investigate. “What’s going on here?” the mare inquired.

“I’m so sorry!” Fluttershy hurriedly apologized. “I let your parrot out to stretch his wings and he just flew away!”

“What?!” The clerk looked absolutely livid. “What were you thinking, young lady?! Didn’t you stop to think for a moment that there was a reason it was in that cage?!”

“I’m sorry, I-I’ll go get him back, I promise.”

“You’d better,” the mare huffed grumpily.

With as much speed as her wings would allow, Fluttershy bolted out the door in search of her wayward friend. It didn’t take long to spot the zigzagging, red avian, very much annoying the other mall-goers as it swooped all around.

“Fluttershy! Come back please!” Fluttershy called out.

Hearing the kind mare’s voice, the parrot turned to face her then zipped off in the opposite direction. Fluttershy made chase after the bird, doing her best to keep up with its erratic flight patterns. It almost seemed as though it were trying to lose her.

Fluttershy bobbed and weaved her way through the mall in hot pursuit of the parrot, harkening back to all the times she had watched Rainbow Dash practicing her flight routines. Though she wasn’t nearly as fast as her prismatic friend, she also was no stranger to chasing mischievous critters and had actually developed quite good reaction times; it took only a fraction of a second for her to register that the bird had made a move and she made to follow it.

Things got complicated, however, when the parrot decided to take a detour into a nearby clothing outlet. By the time Fluttershy had flown through the door, the bird had vanished.

“Oh dear.” Fluttershy looked to and fro in a panic, hoping for some sign to where the escapist bird was hiding.

Her attention was drawn when she spotted a red feather poking out of a clothing rack. She cautiously approached, silencing her hoofsteps as much as possible, before pouncing into the rack. The customers present all watched in confusion as the strange mare wrestled with some unknown entity within the coat rack. A particularly indifferent parrot also watched from his perch atop a different rack.

Fluttershy rolled out of the rack, looking at her hooves to see if she had indeed caught the troublemaker. Instead, she found herself now wearing a red, feathered cardigan. “Huh? Wait, this isn’t—” She was cut off by what sounded to her like an amused squawk from her very target that sat above her, whistling tauntingly at her.

Fluttershy furrowed her brow. “Alright, no more Ms. Nice Mare.”

The pegasus, in one swift movement, leapt out of the garment and dove at the parrot. With a surprised squawk, both Fluttershys fell into the coat rack and began to struggle. The onlookers were still just as confused as they had been before, but nopony made to stop them, even the store clerk.

After about a minute, the parrot bolted from the pile of clothes, shortly followed by a mare who was now wearing a frilly, powder blue dress. Fluttershy threw off the dress and tried to use it to scoop up the parrot, only to miss and land herself in a bin of discount clothes. She erupted forth once more, sending fabric and various articles of clothing in all directions and somehow managing to get herself decked out in a karate gi complete with bandana. True to her attire, she performed a flying kick at the next rack that the parrot was now flying near, knocking it, and herself, to the ground.

Fluttershy stood up slowly from the pile of clothes, her gi replaced by full gothic attire; fishnet stockings, plaid skirt, t-shirt decorated with a skull, the works. If the other customers had thought about trying to stop her, they weren’t now; they were more worried about what would happen to them if they tried.

Fluttershy caught sight of the parrot making a beeline for the exit and turning the corner.

“Get back here!”

She bolted out the door, moving too quickly for her clothes to follow, and continued the chase. It had been a long time since an animal had pushed her so far as to raise her voice to such a level, but the sheer frustration she felt trying to catch this bird pushed her over the edge.

Fluttershy’s anger soon transitioned to curiosity, though, when she noticed that they had passed by the central fountain where she and her friends were supposed to meet up later. More than that, they were flying in the direction they came when they arrived.

Right to the mall’s entrance...

Uh oh.

Fluttershy knew that the parrot had limited mobility, even in an expansive place like Manehattan Mall, but if it managed to get outside, it would have limitless freedom. As much as she wanted the bird to be free, she had an obligation to return it to the pet store.

The large, glass doors of the mall were within sight, and the parrot made straight for them. To make matters worse, a mare and her son were about to enter and leave the door wide open.

Fluttershy kicked her wings into overdrive. She rarely pushed herself this hard, but in this case she felt it was necessary. There was no way she could catch the parrot—it was far too wily—so her only option was to overtake it and force it to change direction, perhaps even herd it back to the pet shop.

The parrot looked back at the struggling pegasus. As fast as it was flying itself, the mare was closing the distance. The parrot flared its wings suddenly and stopped abruptly.

“Huh?” Fluttershy shot past it in an instant, looking behind her to see the parrot flying stationary in one spot, watching as she continued to careen forward at breakneck speed.

Fluttershy focused her eyes ahead just in time to register her close proximity to the doors, but not quickly enough to do anything about it. With a resounding smack, Fluttershy collided with the door, the reinforced glass putting up a surprising amount of resistance. The mare and colt on the opposite side watched in surprise and confusion as the pegasus slid down the glass with a grating squeak until her flank hit the ground and she collapsed onto her back.

Fluttershy’s eyes rolled around in her head, but through the blurriness, the double vision, and her upside-down perspective, she could see the parrot making it’s getaway. At least she had been successful in chasing it away from the door, but now she had to track it down again.

Fluttershy didn’t have the energy to chase anymore, she simply sauntered groggily back to the fountain. She contemplated just going back and paying the pet shop clerk for the bird and giving up; she had been outdone.

When she made it back to the fountain, to her surprise she found the parrot perched on its edge, taking a leisurely sip of the crisp, clear water. And its back was turned.

Fluttershy crouched down, her expression determined and desperate. This is my chance. You’re mine now. She was right behind it. All she needed to do was leap—

As soon as she lunged forward, the parrot flapped its wings, causing Fluttershy to soar straight under it. Her reaction time was good, but being caught off guard like that had a way of bewildering a pony. She splashed ungracefully into the water, eliciting laughter from a few passersby.

Fluttershy sat up, having no will to remove herself from her pool of self-pity, spitting water from her mouth. “Okay, you win,” she admitted dejectedly, hanging her head in shame. “If you want to go, just go. I give up.”

Fluttershy felt something land atop her head. Peeking up, she found the parrot perching casually upon her sopping wet mane.

“Fun! Fun! Squrawk!”

“Fun?” Fluttershy repeated. A small smile creased her lips. “Oh, I get it now. You were just playing, weren’t you? You just wanted to get out and have fun with somepony.”

The bird answered with an affirmative whistle. Fluttershy felt a sudden warmness in her chest as her frustration and disappointment in herself all melted away. She laughed jovially at all the trouble the bird had caused her, realizing, in retrospect, it was pretty funny.

***** ***** *****

Rainbow Dash was feeling good, but such is the norm whenever she experienced an especially satisfying victory. It was the kind of triumph that made one feel unequivocally invincible, like she could take on the world and come out smelling like roses. She would never tire of that feeling. Most of all she was happy to put those four jerks in their place; nothing was more satisfying than beating some thickheaded braggart at their own game, though she was fully aware of the hypocrisy behind the feeling but would never admit to it.

After a thorough workout like that, Rainbow Dash was willing to give her wings a rest, settling to the ground and letting her hooves join in on the unrehearsed symphony started by the other mall-goers. She had actually been wandering about for some time with no particular destination in mind. Now that she had gotten what she wanted to do out of the way, Pinkie Pie’s suggestion to aimlessly explore this commercial labyrinth didn’t seem so unappealing anymore. Rainbow Dash had already made a stop by the central fountain where they had agreed to meet up, but with neither of her friends waiting for her there she quickly grew impatient. It was just as well to kill some more time by wandering around; they would probably be done by the time she got back.

She had no idea where she was going. This mall was like a massive city inside of another, even more massive city. She was starting to wonder if they actually had an apartment complex somewhere in here where ponies lived inside the mall. Of course that was a silly notion, but she would not have been surprised.

She started to feel like she had been wandering around enough. Thinking that perhaps Pinkie Pie or Fluttershy might be waiting at the fountain by now, she doubled back on her path and began to make the long trek back.

She paused. Something fired off in her brain and her mind refused to let her take another step until she investigated this mysterious disturbance. Rainbow Dash backpedaled to one of the countless, non-descript outlets she had passed and quickly checked the sign plastered above it.

“‘Tic Tac’s Toys,’ huh?”

Rainbow Dash had no idea why she had suddenly become drawn to this establishment, but her curiosity wasn’t about to let her leave without finding out.

Stepping inside, Rainbow Dash was suddenly struck by an overwhelming sense of nostalgia. It had been years since she had set hoof in a toy store. The shelves were lined with countless action figures, board games, and stuffed animals. The looks on the faces of all the little foals that were prancing around excitedly reminded her of all the times when her dad would take her out for a daddy-daughter day.

But it wasn’t the trip down memory lane that had lured her here. Something else was tugging at her subconscious as if her brain knew something that she didn’t.

Until it caught her eye.

There, hanging from one of the shelves just in front of her, was the object she had been unknowingly seeking: a Daring Do action figure.

Rainbow Dash hurriedly trotted over to the toy, eyeing it in silent wonder. She had never seen a Daring Do toy before. With how obsessed she had become since she started reading the novels, she had been fixated on anything related to the beloved stories. And this toy just happened to be the last one in stock.

Rainbow Dash shook her head. “Come on, what are you doing? You’re a grown mare, you don’t play with toys anymore. Although, it might make a cool souvenir...for Twilight...since she didn’t get to come.” She nervously glanced left and right, making sure nopony was listening to her monologue, before turning her attention back to the toy. She squinted her eyes; something seemed off. “Wait a minute...”

The pegasus analyzed the packaged toy, her eyes moving to the familiar logo of the character’s name. “‘Daring Doo and the Sapphire Stone’. Wait, ‘Daring Doo’?”

Sure enough, the titular heroine’s name had been spelled incorrectly on the box. How could such a huge error make it to store shelves unnoticed?

“Hold on, I think I remember Twilight mentioning something about this once. The company that makes the toys accidently shipped a bunch of misprinted figures to stores, but after the mistake was reported they ordered a recall or something. These things shouldn’t exist anymore, so why’s this one here?”

Any ignorant foal wouldn’t care less about something so trivial, after all it was the toy the kids were after. So why did she suddenly feel even more interested in it now than before?

“These things must be super rare. I wonder how many people managed to get their hooves on one before the recall. They might even be worth a lot of money.” That thought began to rattle around in her head. A smile creased her interested lips. “I’d be pretty stupid not to jump on this opportunity.”

Rainbow Dash hesitated briefly. She scratched her chin in thought. “Hmm...if these things are really that rare, I’d bet Twilight or any Daring Do fan would be pretty jealous to see this on my shelf.”

Rainbow Dash stopped herself, realizing exactly what she was thinking. “Whoa, whoa, what am doing? I’m not some collector, that stuff’s for dorks.”

She glanced back at the toy. It was an extremely rare Daring Do action figure.

“I have better things to do than collect kid’s toys.”

It was the last one in stock.

“I am not a dork!”

It was only five bits.

She let out a disgruntled groan. Her eyes shifted left and right once more, paranoid that somepony was silently watching her every move. In a quick, hopefully imperceptible motion, Rainbow Dash pulled the toy from the shelf and begrudgingly dragged it over to the checkout counter. After parting with the necessary bits, she finally exited the store and planted herself on a nearby bench. She held up the toy in her hooves, staring at it with personal disdain.

“I can’t believe I actually bought this thing. Sure, it’s Daring Do, but I’m an adult, dang it. What use do I have for some stupid toy?”

The laughter of a small colt garnered her attention. The child was hopping around gleefully with a brand new toy in his mouth, no doubt contemplating all of the adventures he would go on with his new best friend.

Rainbow Dash looked back to her latest purchase. A small smile eked its way onto her muzzle. She pulled the toy close and let out a giddy giggle. She snapped to attention with a light blush, having forgotten just how many ponies may have been watching. She slipped the toy into her saddlebags and started making her way back to the fountain with a childish grin plastered on her face and an energetic spring in her step.

“Daring Do and Rainbow Dash. The world can’t handle that much awesome.”

As she made her way back towards the rendezvous point she and her friends had established, a soft bing bong sound echoed from above throughout the mall. Rainbow Dash peered up to investigate. The perky voice of a mare was emitted from speakers installed all throughout the building.

“Attention, shoppers: Manehattan Mall will be closing in ten minutes. We hope you enjoyed your visit and we look forward to seeing you again tomorrow. Once again, the mall will be closing in ten minutes. Have a nice day.”

Though the mare sounded friendly, Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but feel like her enthusiasm was somewhat forced. It must have been a pretty mundane job to simply sit there a talk through a speaker all day.

But the voice did bring a good point to Rainbow Dash’s attention: it was getting a tad late. Looking out the windows she could see the soft, orange sky on the horizon. Had they really been here that long?

“Huh. Guess time really does fly when you’re having fun.”

The sound of the central fountain’s gently trickling water soon became audible. That also brought something to her attention: the crowd had certainly thinned out. Just an hour earlier and she wouldn’t be able to discern her own hoofsteps from the rest of the crowd. Thankfully though, that made spotting her friends all the more easy. Both Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were waiting for her at the fountain.

“Hey, girls,” Rainbow Dash greeted with a grin. “Hope you weren’t waiting lo—” She paused to examine the odd scene laid out before her.

Fluttershy was sitting quietly at the fountain’s edge, her mane dripping wet and a large, red parrot perched atop her head. Despite that, she wore a rather content smile. Pinkie Pie, on the other hoof, looked to be in much worse condition. She, too, was waiting on the fountain’s edge, but lying on her back with legs sprawled out, groaning with discomfort, and sporting a rather full looking belly.

Rainbow Dash cocked an eyebrow. “The hay happened to you two?”

Fluttershy glanced over to the bloated form of her pink friend. “I think she ate too much.”

“Should’ve...skipped...gluten menu...oogh,” Pinkie Pie groaned.

Rainbow Dash seemed slightly taken aback, but smirked teasingly. “So, the ‘bottomless pit’ finally bit off more than she could chew, huh?” she chuckled.

Fluttershy stifled a small giggle, but the engorged earth pony seemed none too amused surprisingly, only groaning loudly to express her displeasure and lazily flicking a hoof in Dash's general direction.

The cyan mare took another peek at the sky outside. “As funny as this is, we should probably be heading out.” She eyed Pinkie Pie’s protruding stomach. “Guess I’m gonna have to carry you, huh?”

A loud gurgle reverberated from the party pony’s belly.

“What was that?” Fluttershy asked.

Pinkie Pie’s lethargic eyes opened slightly. “That would be the fiber menu kicking in.”

“And what does that mean?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“It means I have to use the bathroom. Like, right now.”

“Can’t you wait ‘til we get back to the hotel?”

Another, even louder, rumble sounded. The two pegasi could almost feel the floor vibrate.

“Nope,” Pinkie Pie responded in a strained voice. “Gotta go. Right now.”

Rainbow Dash pressed her hoof against the bridge of her nose and sighed. “Alright, but make it quick.”

***** ***** *****

The two pegasus mares sat quietly outside the door to the little filly’s room. They were both extremely thankful that they were able to find a bathroom when they did; Pinkie Pie had sounded like she was going to explode. The bathroom was out of the way in a narrow and plain, white hallway branched off from the mall proper. They could see this as a good place for somepony to escape the excessive noise of the mall’s corridors. But right now they were simply playing the waiting game.

Rainbow Dash glanced over to the other side of the door where Fluttershy sat, eyeing the parrot on her head. It was about time she got that question off her mind. “What’s with the bird?”

Fluttershy glanced up. “Oh, that’s Fluttershy. I bought him from the pet store. He wasn’t happy being locked up in a cramped cage, so I decided to give him a new home. He was a little expensive, but I think a new friend is worth any price. Though I’m still not looking forward to finding that bill in my mailbox.”

Rainbow Dash blinked. “You named it Fluttershy? Why would you give it your name.”

“Oh no, I didn’t name him. That was already his name,” she answered innocently.

“How do you know that?”

“He told me.”

The cyan mare paused for a moment, casting a skeptical gaze at her friend. “It...’told’ you.”

Fluttershy nodded her head. “Mm-hm. Go ahead, Fluttershy. Say hello to my friend, Rainbow Dash.”

The bird mindlessly preened its wing, paying no attention whatsoever to its new owner.

“Huh, that’s strange. He was quite chatty earlier.”

Rainbow Dash blinked again, wondering if she was really the only normal person in her little circle of friends before turning towards the bathroom door. “Hey, Pinkie. You almost done in there or wha—”

The pegasus was cut off when the door flew open, smacking her squarely in the muzzle. Pinkie Pie stepped out with a long, relieved sigh. “Ahhhh, that’s sooooooo much better,” she said, patting her tummy which had now returned to its original, slender shape.

Rainbow Dash pushed the door back, rubbing her sore nose with her hoof. “What took you so long?”

“Sorry, Dashie, but I can tell you from experience that eating that much food does not do the digestive system any favors,” Pinkie Pie explained.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Let’s just get back to the hotel.”

As the three mares exited the adjoining hallway, they noticed exactly how empty the mall felt. As a matter of fact, it was completely empty with not another pony in sight. It was almost eerie. The trio walked cautiously through the spacious complex, half-expecting something to jump out at them at any moment.

“T-This place got really quiet really fast,” Fluttershy stammered. “Where’d everypony go?”

Pinkie Pie gasped. “Maybe they were all ghosts who reside in the mall! And when the sun goes down, they go into hiding. Ooooo, spoooooky.”

Fluttershy shivered. “G-Ghosts?”

“Pinkie, they weren’t ghosts. Everypony just went home, that’s all,” Rainbow Dash assured. “Besides, what ghosts only come out during the day?”

The pink mare tapped her chinned. “Ghosts who are tired of the graveyard shift?”

Rainbow Dash glared dryly at her friend’s toothy grin. Fluttershy attempted to stifle a loud snort and blushed as she found herself unable to hide her amusement, much to Pinkie Pie’s satisfaction.

The athletic mare just groaned and rolled her eyes. “Can we please just go? I’d like to get out of here before—”

She was cut of by an echoing click, and suddenly the three mares found themselves standing in total darkness; every light in the mall had been shut off. Fluttershy scrambled in fear behind her friends, hoping to shield herself from whatever danger the darkness was concealing.

Rainbow Dash looked up worriedly at the extinguished lights and listening intently to the deafening silence.

“Uh oh.”

Comments

[DualKitsune]

That actually sounds fun....except all the shops are locked.

Also, thank you for the joke. I will use it unwisely.