Growing Pains

by Sixes_And_Sevens

Sunday Afternoon

Starlight pushed her way past Davenport, leaving Quills and Sofas despite his frenetic offers for a buy-one-get-one-free sale on cushions. She had to finish the rest of her errands, after all, and she could hardly do that lugging around a great heavy sofa. Davenport ran out after her, shouting about false economies and trade until he was distracted by a more prospective customer.

She made her way down the road towards Carousel Boutique. She was anxious to see Rarity again and apologize for last night’s rudeness. Sure, Rarity might have been a little thoughtless when she made two irreconcilable plans, but she had been good enough to lend Spike her bed. Everypony could be a little thoughtless every now and again. That was no reason to leap down their throats, Starlight told herself.

Although, wasn’t she sticking up for a friend? Wasn’t that a good thing? And she had been trying to teach Rarity a lesson about not letting your friends down, which was something Twilight did all the time anyway. Should she apologize for that? She thought not!

***

Button adjusted his binoculars. “He just did a barrel roll, followed by a sharp dive and a flick of the ear.”

Dinky paged through the reference book. “Starlight is having an internal debate,” she read out. “Well, what else is new?”

***

Starlight huffed lightly. Lesson or not, she shouldn’t have been so snappish. She would apologize for that, but stress that Rarity should remember her responsibilities to fulfil her promises. That ought to be an acceptable compromise, shouldn’t it? She caught her reflection in a shop window as she passed, and she stopped abruptly.

Starlight Glimmer was many things. She was not, however, subtle. She didn’t so much wear her heart on her sleeve as put it on a sandwich board and parade around downtown. She and Twilight both theorized that this constant undercurrent of powerful emotion was what made her such a potent spellcaster. However, it did have its downsides. Her mane was frizzed, her jaw was set, and she generally looked like she wanted to punch somepony in the throat. Glancing around, she realized that nopony else was walking beside her. They had all crossed to the other side of the street. All except one colt, currently looking very interested in a shop window down the road.

She shook her head and took a minute to fix her mane in the window and calm down. There was nothing to be upset about, was there? Rarity was a friend. Spike was also a friend. Both of them were also one another’s friends, and they weren’t going to fall out over a little thing like this. She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, tension leaving her withers.

Satisfied with her appearance, Starlight continued down the road. She just felt so protective of Spike. Twilight’s habit of treating him like a hybrid son and little brother had rubbed off on her pupil. She knew, intellectually, that he was officially an adult by pony standards. In terms of cynicism, he must have been about middle-aged. Nevertheless, she looked at him and saw a child to protect. The outside did not, perhaps, match the inside very well; no child could do the kind of work Spike had done yesterday, or the work he did every day for that matter. However, she still slipped into that same old trap.

***

“He’s started on an epic air guitar solo.”

“Blues or country?”

“Uh, I can’t tell.”

“Well, that means either Starlight’s started another magical catastrophe, or she’s internally monologuing. Which is it?”

“The second one, probably?”

Dinky grunted and slumped forwards over the book. “At least a magical catastrophe would liven things up.”

***

Starlight arrived at the Carousel Boutique and tried to push open the door. ‘Tried’, however, was the operative word. The sign in the window read ‘closed’, all the lights were off, and the door was latched tight. Starlight huffed. She had to get in to pick up Twilight’s dress for the diplomatic affair. She glowered at the door, seriously considering just teleporting through to the shop.

No. Save that as a last resort. The police probably wouldn’t look too kindly on her tripping the magical alarm system Twilight had installed on the building. Plan B, then. She trotted around the boutique to the back entrance. Success! It wasn’t even locked. She loved it in Ponyville, but sometimes she couldn’t help but wonder if the ponies here were too trusting for their own good.

She trotted quickly through the kitchen. The pantry door hung open, revealing almost-empty shelves. Small wonder Rarity had gone out if she had to do all that shopping. Then, she entered the store itself.

Carousel Boutique was extremely creepy with all the lights out. Layers of gauze and fine fabric smothered the sunlight, sending the room into artificial dusk. The dresses and suits seemed to move in an unfelt breeze, almost bringing new meaning to ‘breathable fabric.’ Worst of all were the dress-forms themselves. Pale, eyeless faces stared out at her from among the hanging fabrics like lions peering through tall grass.

Starlight shuddered and hurried forth to the counter, where Rarity kept her finished orders for easy access. She bent to look at the shelf, flipping through layers of fabric to find the dress she was searching for. That was when she heard the noise.

It was very quiet, and quite regular. A sort of sktchsktchsktchsktchsktch, like a gnawing rodent, or a very large termite. She glanced around, looking for the source, then rose from behind the desk and trotted along the wall of the shop. The noise grew louder.

Sktchsktchsktchsktchsktch. She was getting closer, she could tell. The chewing noise was growing steadily more clear. By the sound off it, it was too big to be an insect, or even a rat, not unless it was the size of Rarity’s cat. The notion of a cat-sized rat sent a shudder down Starlight’s spine, and she thought of a few good offensive spells to use if it came to a confrontation.

Sktchsktchsktchsktchsktch. Celestia’s tits, did it never stop? It must have teeth as sharp and tough as needles to make such a sound, and jaws working like a machine to keep it up so long. Outside an unassuming wooden door, she stopped. The noise was coming right from the other side.

Sktchsktchsktchsktchsktch. Starlight took in a breath to steady her nerves.

Sktchsktchsktchsktchsktch. She lit her horn.

Sktchsktchsktchsktchsktch. She put a hoof on the door.

Sktchsktchskt-- She froze, not even daring to breathe as a new bevy of fears overwhelmed her mind. Had it heard her? Did it know where she was? Was it even now preparing to attack? She took a step back from the door.

There was a long pause. Her spit was as dust. Every muscle tensed. Sktchsktchsktchsktchsktch. She let out a quiet sigh of relief. Then, “HAI!” she shouted, blasting the door open.

Rarity screamed. Starlight screamed. There was a moment of silence, both mares working their mouths silently as they worked through their shock. Starlight recovered first. “Rarity? What are you doing here?”

Rarity sputtered into life with indignation. “I happen to live here, Starlight Glimmer! What, might I ask, are you doing here?”

Starlight was wronghoofed. “I, uh, came to pick up Twilight’s dress for her.”

“And that means barging in on me, gung ho and horn ablaze?” Rarity asked, voice rising.

“I thought I heard something, like a rat. Something, something chewing!”

Rarity gave Starlight a long, flat look. Then, she turned her sewing machine on. Sktchsktchsktchsktchsktch.

“Oh.” Starlight shuffled her hooves. “Oops?”

“Hmph,” Rarity huffed. “You’re here quite early for the dress. I thought you were meant to pick it up around two.”

“Rarity, it’s two-fifteen.”

“Nonsense, darling, it’s only…” Rarity glanced up at the wall clock, then went very still. “Oh dear. I must have lost track of time.” She rose quickly from her work table. “I must get to the market, I have a great deal of food to pick up, and then make dinner for Sweetie Belle tonight while I’m on my date…”

“Rarity, the dress.”

“What? Oh, yes, let me get that for you.” Rarity pushed past Starlight and into the shop, flicking on a couple of lights along the way.

“So, you’re going on a date?”

“With Lotus, yes. I was quite surprised, but not at all displeased. We’re going to Grazie, you know, the new Neightalian place on the other side of town?”

“Oh. Good luck.”

“Thank you, darling.” Rarity pulled a plastic-wrapped garment from underneath the counter.

Starlight caught her breath. “Is that the new fabric you wanted to show Twilight? It’s beautiful.”

Rarity smiled. “Yes, it does rather suit her, does it not? That should be the role of a dress, you know. To fit a wearer well enough as to appear seamless between body and cloth, between nature and art. The appearance is paramount, after all.”

Starlight gave a nervous grin. “Well, I didn’t think the main point would be the smell.”

“Smell?” Rarity sniffed. “I don’t smell anything. What are you talking about, darling?”

“No, I was saying--”

“It’s not the intention behind it, nor the emotion that matters in life, it seems. Much as I’d like for it to be the thought that counts, there are so many others that feel differently.” Rarity stared at the dress, seemingly hypnotized by its beautiful, shimmering colors. “Perhaps it is irony that we are judged more for wearing the wrong clothes than we are for wearing no clothes at all…”

“Are we still talking about the dress?”

Rarity blinked back to the present. “I do apologize, darling. I hadn’t realized how I was rambling. I’ve just had a great deal on my mind, of late.”

Starlight gave her a worried smile. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“No, no, it’s nothing I’d wish to concern you with. Merely an idle fancy.” She laughed, and warm though it was, Starlight felt it was forced.

“Alright. If you change your mind…”

“I know where you live,” Rarity concluded with a smile. “Thank you dear. As I said, I feel it is the thought that counts, is it not?”

Starlight didn’t remember her monologue being exactly like that. However, she decided that discretion was the better part of valor. “The check should be in tomorrow,” was her only reply as she took the dress and laid it across her back. “See you, Rarity. Good luck on your date.”

Rarity waved as Starlight unlocked the front door and trotted out into the sun again. Then, she turned away. “Shopping,” she murmured, trotting purposefully towards the kitchen to formulate a list. However, as she passed by the door to her sewing room, she hesitated. The client would be picking it up later today. Perhaps she had better finish, first?

No, that was how she’d wasted half the day already. She was very nearly finished; she could go and do her big shop, then hurry back and finish up the final stitches in plenty off time.

She hurried off, leaving the door to the room ajar, and leaving the almost-finished suit in plain view of the shop.

***

Spike stumbled down the road. Nothing seemed quite real right now. It was as though he could stick out a claw and find that, say, that market stall, was no less yielding than a rainbow, or a fogbank. He did so. His claw met hard wood. Well, so much for that theory.

“Uh, Spike, sugarcube?”

Spike glanced up. Applejack was leaning over the edge of her stand, peering at him with concern. “Y’all alright, there?”

“Fine,” Spike replied. “Just a little frazzled.”

“An’ Ah’m pretty okay at farmin’. Sit down, rest yerself.”

Spike did as he was told, and Applejack studied him closely. “Get enough sleep last night?”

“Not really.”

“Eat a good breakfast this mornin’?”

“I kinda got interrupted midway through.”

“Had a good last few days?”

“They were a little bit stressful.”

Applejack nodded philosophically. “Know what you need?”

“A nap?”

“That too,” she agreed. “But fer now, have a candy apple on th’ house.”

Spike took the proffered treat listlessly, then fumbled around and pulled out a few bits. “On th’ house, Ah said.”

Spike shrugged. “Twilight told me I should go buy a treat, and she told me first. C’mon, take it.”

Applejack huffed, but swept the bits into the till. “So, what happened?”

“Magic lessons,” Spike said simply. “I tried too hard and nearly melted a wall.”

“Melted?”

“Well, I charred it a little,” Spike allowed. “Semantics.”

“Uh-huh,” Applejack said, only slightly lost. “So, what, ya overdid it?”

A vision flashed through Spike’s mind; Ponyville in flames, houses stomped into the ground, wild stampedes as the Everfree burned… “Yeah. You know how I get when I overdo it.”

Applejack nodded wisely, though she was thinking of baked bads, rabbit stampedes, failed stunts, and a half-asleep farmer mare. “Never wise. Ya gotta take some time fer yerself, or you’ll go crazier than a box full of bullfrogs.”

Spike took a bite of candy apple. It was good. He perked up a little. “So, the well’s working alright now?”

“Yep. Thanks again fer th’ help the other day.”

“It was nothing.”

Applejack scoffed. “It certainly was not! You were a big help, Spike, so don’t go sellin’ yerself short. Bein’ humble’s good an’ all, but sometimes, ya gotta be big.”

Spike stopped in mid-bite, his face turning slightly more purple than usual as he choked on the candy apple. “Uh-oh,” Applejack said before quickly turning him around and giving him a tight squeeze from behind, once, twice, three times.

The offending bite shot out of Spike’s mouth and fell to the ground. He groaned, taking in a deep breath. “Thanks, Applejack. You saved my life.”

“Weren’t nothin’,” she said dismissively. Then, she paused. “Uh, that is ta say, yer welcome.”

Spike smirked slightly. “So, I guess under noble dragon code, that means I--”

Applejack raised a brow. Spike stopped midsentence. “That’s the thing, though,” he continued. “Whenever I try to be, y’know, something special, ponies around me get hurt. I tried to save Rarity from the Diamond Dogs, I tried to be in a life-debt to you, I tried to run Twilight’s castle. They all ended in disaster. Then there was my… birthday.” He shook his head. “Nah. I think I’ll stay small for now, thanks.”

“Crystal Empire?” Applejack returned. “Defeat of Sombra, hero of th’ Empire… ringin’ any bells?”

Spike looked away. “That’s different. They’re far away enough for it not to get to my head.”

Applejack sighed. “Well, it’s your choice,” she said.

Spike rose from his seat. “I feel better now. Thanks, Applejack.”

“No problem, sugarcube,” she said as the little dragon waddled back towards the castle. She looked thoughtful for a moment, then cupped her hooves over her mouth. “Hey, Spike!”

He turned back. “Jes’ remember. All things in moderation. Including moderation!”

He grinned weakly and waved before turning around again and crossing the road. She turned away for a moment to sell an apple pie, and when she glanced back again, he had gone.

***

Ditzy was resting at home; her morning mail route was over, and it would be about an hour before she had to make her evening rounds. She’d curled up with a good book on thermodynamics, and was anticipating a quiet afternoon.

That expectation was utterly shattered by a sharp knock at the door. She put down her book warily and trotted to the door. She wasn’t expecting visitors, and the Crusaders tended not to knock so much as barge. Had her academic rivals at the university found her out at last? Had one of her sister’s enemies tracked her down? Or was it just somepony here to complain about her daughter and the other Crusaders?

She peered through the gauzy curtains in the foyer as best she could. She could make out a shadow with a horn, but that was all. She sighed. Better to face whoever it was head-on. She flung open the door. “Oh. Hi, Twilight!”

Her visitor’s face twisted into a sort of rictus grin. “Hello, Ditzy. How’ve you been?”

“Oh, keeping,” she replied with a vague wave of the hoof. “Would you like to come inside?”

Twilight’s grimace lessened slightly. It was hard to be angry around Ditzy. She possessed a natural buoyancy that seemed to lighten even the heaviest of burdens. Though, the one time somepony had told her that, they had received a very interesting two-hour lecture on what buoyancy actually was and why Ditzy didn’t have that much more than an average pony really. She had a brilliant mind, Twilight reflected, but she could be distressingly literal. “Thank you, but no,” she said. “Is Dinky here?”

Ditzy deflated. “Oh. I suppose it was a little optimistic to think this was a social call. What’s she done?”

Twilight took a deep breath. “I can’t be certain,” she said, “but somepony stole a boxful of magic-damping crystals from my basement and replaced them with ordinary gravel. Dinky was passing through the castle talking about her geology specimens.”

Ditzy rubbed her muzzle. “Hm,” she said, staring off into the distance.

After a few minutes, Twilight waved a hoof in front of Ditzy’s crossed eyes. “Are you okay, Ditzy?”

She blinked back to life. “Sorry, just drifted off there. You know how it is.”

Twilight frowned. “I understand. You have been remembering to take your pills?”

“Oh, yes,” Ditzy agreed breezily. “Dinky’s always sure to double-check on that. But to answer your question, no, she’s not around. She went out Crusading early this morning, and hasn’t been back since.”

“I was afraid you’d say that. I don’t suppose you know what they were trying to do?”

“Not in any real detail, no. But yesterday, Dinky was asking me some unusual questions about her father. Her birth father,” she added quickly. “She didn’t mention Ponet, and I didn’t bring him up.”

Twilight’s frown deepened, grew more thoughtful. “What, specifically, did she ask?”

Ditzy chuckled briefly. “When I knew that I was in love with him. Maybe that’s why she didn’t mention Ponet. She still can’t quite make herself believe I ever loved him.”

Twilight eyed the other mare. “You’re trying to soften me up so I won’t be as mad at your daughter, aren’t you?”

Ditzy looked up, half-grinning.“Is it working?”

“You never mention Ponet if you can help it.”

Ditzy laughed, loud and earnest. “Alright, you got me. I’m a manipulative old mare. But really, don’t go too hard on her. I’ll make sure she understands that stealing is wrong, don’t worry.”

Twilight’s frown dissolved. “Okay, fine. I won’t lecture her harder than any of the others, fair?”

“Perfectly,” Ditzy replied warmly. “Are you sure you can’t stay for a cup of tea and a muffin?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, thanks. Those crystals could be dangerous if the Crusaders aren’t careful. I’d like to get them back before they happen to anypony.”

Ditzy looked rather grave, suddenly. “Dangerous? How?”

Twilight backpedaled. “Well, it isn’t very likely, of course. But you know, if they pass too near somepony casting a powerful spell, or flying very fast, or something, that could pose a problem. And if the crystals absorb too much magic, they’re liable to explode.” She caught sight of Ditzy’s stricken expression and hastily continued, “But that’s almost impossible to generate. If, say, Starlight and I were to just bombard the crystals with magic, we might be able to pull it off, but even then it would take awhile, and living beings just can’t handle that kind of strain for that long. We don’t have to worry about anything exploding.”

***

Meanwhile, in the restaurant Grazie, the soup chef frowned at the stovetop. Head Chef Tiramasu had been casting glances in his direction for some time now, and she was starting to wonder what was taking him so long.

“Something the matter, Minestrone?” she asked, trotting over.

He shook his head. “I don’t get it,” he said. “I’ve had the stove up as high as it can go for almost ten minutes, and the broth is hardly even simmering. It’s barely warm!”

Tiramasu frowned and held her hoof close to the pot. Closer. Closer still. She was touching it now, and indeed, she could barely feel any heat coming off it. She scowled thoughtfully. “Must be a problem with the power,” she decided. “Hey, Spaghetti Oh!”

The busboy glanced up, surprised at being addressed directly by the head chef. She nodded to the door to the boiler room. “Go and turn up the furnace, huh? We’re only getting a trickle of power!”

He nodded quickly and galloped through the door. Tiramasu sighed. “I dunno. They say modern technology is good, saves us having to get a unicorn in just to power the kitchen. They say the generator’s got enough magic power in it to stun an alicorn! But does it get the food cooked?”

Minestrone nodded, only half-listening. The flames under his soup were not confidence-inspiring. If anything, they looked smaller than before.

***

Starlight was halfway to the stationery shop when she found herself bowled over for the second time that day. “Hey, Miss Glimmer! Miss Glimmer! Miss Glimmer!”

The unicorn blinked, gazing up at the sky for a moment before peering up to see Scootaloo bouncing over her, grinning from ear to ear. “Gah,” Starlight said eruditely.

“You’ll never guess what I just found!”

“Erk.”

“It’s really cool!”

“Ook!”

Scootaloo stopped bouncing and peered down at her. “Aren’t you even gonna guess?”

“I will-- as soon as-- you get off-- my chest!” Starlight wheezed.

“Oh. Oops.” Scootaloo climbed off the mare, who gasped for air. “Sorry. Now c’mon, come and see! It’s really really cool!”

She bounced off, leaving Starlight, still winded, to peel herself off the ground and chase after her. She could feel the grass stains in her coat as she half-limped, half-jogged along. Whatever it was had better be cool, she thought grimly. She’d done more research into sleep spells, and she wasn’t above using them on overexcited fillies.

After a few minutes of jogging, Starlight caught up to Scootaloo, who was bouncing in place in front of a door behind some restaurant. “Well?” Starlight demanded. “What is it?”

Scootaloo grinned hugely. “It’s downstairs. Go on, you’ll know it when you see it!”

Starlight glared at the filly for a moment. “Fine,” she huffed, starting down the stairs. She had only gotten halfway when she heard the door slam shut behind her, followed by the scrape of a key in the lock.

“Wait, what?” Starlight spun around and pounded up the stairs. “Scootaloo, this isn’t funny, let me out!”

“Keep yer britches on,” said a voice that was not Scootaloo’s. “This is fer yer own good.”

Starlight swallowed the urge to curse out a filly. “Apple Bloom, what the Tartarus do you think you’re doing? Let me out of here right now, or I’ll make sure you’re both grounded for a year.”

“Don’t worry. You’ll be gettin’ some company real soon,” Bloom assured her, chuckling grimly. There was the sound of hoofsteps, fading slowly away.

Starlight glowered at the door. They wanted to play that game? Alright, fine. Sharpsand’s Shattering would put paid to this door quickly enough. She lit her horn and blasted the door. The spell, however, flew off in a different direction altogether, sucked off into a corner. She gawped for a second, then screwed up her face and tried again, inclining her head a few degrees to the left. The spell flew off and hit the wall, where it disappeared utterly.

Starlight scowled. She wasn’t going to give up that easily.

Behind her, attached to the furnace, a piece of crystal had begun to glow with an unearthly octarine glow…

***

Fluttershy pushed open the spa door. It was quiet at the moment; the busiest time was right after the workday had ended and a majority-earth pony crowd descended on the spa heck-bent for pampering. However, on the weekends, most ponies had better ways to occupy themselves.

Neither Aloe nor Lotus was at the desk. Instead, Fluttershy recognized the new mare from the other day. “Oh, um, good morning, Jasmine.”

The pale green mare glanced up from her books and offered a hesitant smile. “Ah, hello, Miz… Butterfly?”

“Fluttershy,” she corrected gently. “I’m here to redeem this?” She passed over the coupon, and Jasmine frowned.

“I did not know we had coupons,” she murmured. She took a closer look, and her eyebrows rose. “I certainly did not know we did that!”

She glanced up at Fluttershy. “I will go and get Miz Aloe,” she said before hurrying off.

Fluttershy settled in to wait. For a moment, she wondered what Angel had done for him to be so insistent she come here. She shook her head. No. She was here to relax, not fret over what mischief he might have gotten up to this time. She trusted him to have it all cleaned up by the time she was home.

***

Angel stared at the pile of scraps before him and despaired. Those bird-brains had ruined the suit, torn it to shreds! The largest piece was smaller than he was! There was no way he could fix it in time. Not alone, anyway.

Not alone. But he wasn’t alone, was he? Fluttershy had left him in charge, and that meant he had underlings.

He turned to Harry, his bearing like a general before his troops. The bear eyed him and gave a grudging grunt before plodding off to rally the army.

***

Aloe arrived a few moments later, her practiced smile slightly forced. “I see my sister finally got around to giving you that coupon,” she said, nodding stiffly. “And you are redeeming it today?”

“Oh, yes,” Fluttershy replied. “I’m going out tonight, and I want to feel relaxed enough to enjoy myself.”

“Of course,” Aloe muttered. “Vell, if you vill just follow me, I vill give you your massage.”

She turned abruptly, and Fluttershy hurried after her. Jasmine watched them go, confused. All Aloe had said was that the best laid plans often went astray before hurrying off to the foyer. Ponies in this town, she reflected as she turned back to the waiting room, were crazy.

***

Angel watched the assembled animals at their labors. The spiders provided the thread, naturally, though the thin strands had to be woven together. The beavers had built a loom for that very purpose. The raccoons, with their clever little paws, had puzzled together the pieces of the suit, and a flock of various birds was stitching it all back together, helped by the porcupines sticking the finished pieces to the floor. Slowly but surely, the suit was coming together.

***

Fluttershy felt her spine turn to jelly under Aloe’s magical hooves. “So,” the masseuse said. “Vhere are you going out?”

“Grazie,” Fluttershy sighed. “Discord-- ooh! Wants me to go with a friend of theirs.”

“Vhat a coincidence! Miz Rarity and my sister are going on a date there zis very evening.”

“Hmm,” Fluttershy sighed. “Yes, I heard as much. Maybe we’ll run into one another there.”

Aloe frowned. This was not the reaction she had expected. Maybe the massage was cancelling out the stress of knowing one’s marefriend or crush or whatever was dating somepony else. She laid it on thicker.

“Perhaps so. I hope ze date goes vell, do you not? It vould be so nice to see zem togezzer.”

“Mmm, mhm,” Fluttershy sighed, practically molding to Aloe’s magic touch.

Curse these hooves! They’re too relaxing! Aloe frowned. Well, no matter. It would all come to a head at the restaurant. She would make sure of that. She pulled back, and Fluttershy peered up at her. “Aren’t you meant to give me a happy ending?”

Aloe stalled. “One moment, please.”

***

Angel studied the suit as Harry held it up to the fading afternoon light, paw rubbing his jaw, foot tapping thoughtfully as he examined. Nearly perfect. What was it missing?

The assembled animals watched with bated breath. Angel straightened and smacked his paws together. He snatched some flowers away from a scurry of squirrels and rifled through them. Rose? No. Lily? No. Tulip, carnation, cornflower… aha!

Tossing the others aside, he hopped up with the chosen decoration and shoved it through the buttonhole. The others stared. After a moment, they burst into hoots and howls and squeaks of approval. Angel glanced up smugly at the dandelion that so completed the suit and buffed his paw against his chest.

And if the howls of the wolves that had been sent to stand guard were any indication, they had all finished just in time. Fluttershy was on the road up to the cottage.

Angel squeaked for them all to scatter. They scattered in a great yelping stampede that would only occur in nature under threat of a forest fire. Angel took one last look over the suit, giving the sleeve a firm tug. The spider silk, stronger than its equivalent thickness in steel, did not break. Angel nodded, satisfied, and hopped downstairs to greet his mistress.

He opened the door to see Fluttershy coming up the path, giggling as the wolves dogged her sides and nuzzled her wings. “Alright, Lysander. Down, Bigby. Good girl, Lupa, but no licking please. I’m already all clean for my date.”

The wolves fell away as Fluttershy’s gaze fell on Angel. She smiled at him thoughtfully, the sort of smile that says, I know you’ve been naughty, but you cleaned it up yourself, and I still love you. She had very expressive eyes.

Angel gave his most winning grin, asking with his eyes if she had had a nice time at the spa. He had very expressive eyes as well.

“Oh, yes, it was very nice. I finally found out what a happy ending is!”

“...Ent then Squirrelly ze Squirrel went ‘neep, neep, neep,” ent they all lived happily ever after in ze old oak tree.”

Fluttershy nibbled a cookie from underneath her blanket. “That was a very happy ending, Aloe, thank you.”

“Ve pride ourselves on service here.”

He nodded and ushered her inside. He bowed deeply, gesturing to the stairs. Fluttershy trotted past, giving him a gauging look. However, she made her way upstairs, into her room. “Oh, Angel Bunny! Did you do this?”

Angel grinned up at the pegasus and nodded. There was a soft cough from behind him, and he turned to see Harry the Bear, the squirrels, the spiders, the birds, the raccoons, the beavers, Watson the Cricket, and a swarm of bees staring down at him.

He sighed and gestured to the pack. “All of you?” Fluttershy asked, incredulous. “Oh, thank you, all of you! I didn’t know how I was going to get it done in time.” She looked it over. “The dandelion is a nice touch,” she said. “Oh, Angel, I’m sorry if I ever doubted you.”

The rabbit waved his paw in a ‘go on,’ sort of gesture. Then he noticed Fluttershy was looking away. No, really. Go on. Sing my praises.

“Alright. I’ll get everyone’s dinner real quick, then I’m off to dinner myself. Angel, for doing such a good job, I’m leaving you in charge again.”

If Angel grinned any wider, he was in serious danger of chopping off the top of his own head. But as Fluttershy left, he couldn’t help but return his attention to the suit. It would be a shame to have put all that work in for nothing. Maybe he’d just tag along and make sure the date went well. And if he managed to sneak a few roast greens or something off a fellow diner’s plate, well, that would just be the icing on the carrot cake.

***

A peryton poked her head through the door of the Carousel Boutique. It’s fortunate that nopony was looking at her too closely. It can be rather distressing to see one duck their head through a locked door as though it were no more resistant than a bucket of water.

Seeing nopony, Eris went inside anyway. “Oi, Rarity! Rarity! Ra-ra sis-boom-bah!”

No reply. Eris sighed and let herself dissolve back into Discord. “Thank chaos,” they muttered. “That voice was murder on the throat.”

With a snap of the claw, the shop’s lights turned on. Because it was Discord, of course, the light they cast was a deep shade of puce that cast hideously clashing salmon-colored shadows. They picked through the outfits behind the desk which were delightfully disordered. Uncharacteristic of the proprietor, Discord supposed, but they weren’t about to complain.

They might, however, complain about the lack of the desired suit. They scowled, glancing around the shop. Nothing, nothing, nothing… they supposed they could always snap up a suit of their own, but they had seen Rarity’s prowess. Chaos could probably make an objectively better outfit. It could certainly make a more complex one. She was an artist as much as Discord was, and Fluttershy seemed to prefer her work. So Discord had swallowed their pride for once and without even a glass of water to wash it down, too, and where did that get him? She wasn’t even here!

A piece of lime green caught their eye, though it was more discolored than ever thanks to the altered lighting. They strolled over to the door and picked up the garment. Almost finished, but not quite. A few buttons were still missing, and the shirtsleeves weren’t yet attached. Unfortunate. Discord needed this suit, now, so they could go and finish setting up the groundwork for the perfect evening out, but going to dinner in an unfinished suit was… probably not the best way to put Fluttershy at ease with ‘Eris’.

Of course, the suit was mostly done. Just needed a few finishing touches, and Rarity had done more or less everything…

Discord snapped their fingers, and their frown twisted into a grin as the suit flew together. It was a tad orderly for their magic generally, but they made up for it by having the buttons fly into place to Flight of the Bumblebee.

In a single fluid motion, Discord slipped into the suit and the ‘Eris’ persona, leaving a pretty brown doe in the brightest green suit in the world, looking oddly right under the puce light. She looked herself over with a rather smug smirk, then vanished in a puff of air that smelled of garlic buttercream frosting.

***

Starlight slumped against the coolest wall of the boiler room. It was the sort of humidity that made manes frizz and flesh stick to itself uncomfortably. She didn’t know how long she’d been down here. Three hours? Four? Five, spent utterly alone and with only the obscenely muggy air for company?

One ear flicked lazily upwards as she heard a faint click. Some piece of machinery turning on again, surely. But then, voices! “Sweetie Belle, why are we here again?”

A girlish giggle. “Go on, you’ll see…”

Starlight struggled to pull herself upright, though her limbs were weak from heat exhaustion and dehydration. “Spike?” she gasped, loudly as she could.

There was a silence you could cut with a knife as Starlight staggered into the light and glared up the stairs. Spike stood frozen on the stairs, nonplussed. Behind him, Sweetie Belle completed the tableau, one hoof on the door.

With a scream of incoherent rage, Starlight cast a freezing spell towards the filly. Ironically enough, that was what galvanized her into action, slamming the door and locking it as Starlight’s spell was drawn off and absorbed by a patch of wall. They were in darkness and silence once more.

Spike scratched his head. “So, uh, I was told there was cake.”

Starlight let out a groan that shook the walls.

Comments

[Armyidiot]

All of this is going to end in disaster, I'm calling it right now.

[SideWinder]

Well at least there is no container of 'nasty burger' sauce ready to explode causing you to move in with VALD

[Avogadro]

We’re going to Grazie, you know, the new Neightalian place on the other side of town?”

Earlier in the story you called Grazie a Neighponese restaurant.

Before that, you mixed up Dahlias and Marigolds at the flower shop.

And in the first chapter, You use Twilight's name as the mare contemplating Spike's growth situation before it switches over to Rarity.

I didn't want to comment on this, but ya done it thrice.

[Sixes_And_Sevens]

9604332
Good catches! I'll fix them right away, thank you.