Chapter 2
“Consarnit,” Macintosh muttered to himself, trying for the fifth time to fashion the green silk tie around his collar. Though he loved being an earth pony and the special bond he had with plants, there were some moments when he thought he might not mind being a unicorn. A low chuckle came from behind him.
“Need a hoof?” Applejack asked, quickly forming a neat knot with all the skill of a practiced lasso champion and tucking the tie into his brown jacket. “Can’t have ya runnin’ ‘round Canterlot lookin’ like a right mess, can we now?”
“Nnope,” Big Mac replied, flattening his orange mane. He checked for what must have been the second time in the last minute to make sure the small velvet box was still securely in his left pocket. AJ eyed his movement warily before saying,
“Mac, Ah know y’all want this ta be perfect an’ all, but don’t ya think this might be, uh, overdoin’ it just a tad?” Big Macintosh gave his sister a look of slight confusion which he did not have to voice for her to understand. “Look sugarcube, Ah just think y’all might have a better time if ya did somethin’ simpler. Yer an easygoin’ farm stallion, and Fluttershy hates being ‘round tons o’ ponies she don’t know.” A trickle of doubt crept into Mac’s heart; had he been so wrapped up in planning his proposal that he had not considered if she would like it?
‘No,’ he thought stubbornly, ‘she deserves the very best, an’ Ah’ll give her no less.’ Applejack lowered her head, recognizing the determination on his face and knowing it was a lost cause.
“If ya insist, Ah suppose t’ain’t nothin’ Ah can do ‘bout it. Good luck, big brother.” She wrapped a hoof briefly around his withers and trotted upstairs, leaving him to give himself one final once-over in the hall mirror before setting out towards Fluttershy’s cottage. On a whim he plucked a peony from the garden and trotted away with it in his mouth, knowing that she loved the silky petals of these particular flowers.
Taking deep breaths to soothe his frazzled nerves, Mac ran over the plan in his head yet again. They were to take the 6 o’clock train to Canterlot and have dinner at The Gilded Gelding, the fanciest (and most expensive) restaurant in the city. He had had to reserve their table six months before, but it would be worth it. Then, they would ride to the very top of the Shears Tower, the tallest building in Equestria; he would get down on one knee and—
“He’s here darling!” A ringing voice disrupted his thoughts and he realized that he had reached the front door of the cottage. He knocked once before the door was thrown open to reveal Rarity, who beamed up at him. “Oh my stars, don’t you look handsome Big Macintosh!” She nodded approvingly as she looked over his outfit, “brown is definitely the new black.” Mac hadn’t the slightest idea what she meant, but accepted the compliment with a nod of his large head before following her into the cottage.
Rarity called up the stairs again, and the next moment Fluttershy appeared; she was dressed in an effortless coral and tangerine gown that shimmered like dew in the evening light. Her mane was half pulled up into a loose, elegant twist at the nape of her neck and several tendrils of hair draped themselves in curls down her withers. As she descended the steps, Mac realized that the intricate swirls of orange on her dress formed the wings of a butterfly on either side of her, making her seem as though she were floating rather than walking down to him. He was not a stallion of many words anyhow, but at that moment he was struck speechless. Thankfully, Rarity more than made up for his sudden muteness.
“Smashing! Just positively gorgeous, you look like a brilliant sunset,” the white unicorn gushed, admiring her own handiwork. Fluttershy gave him a small smile and Macintosh felt his heart dissolve into bliss; the dress was truly spectacular, but what made it beautiful was the pony wearing it. He offered her the flower in his mouth, which Rarity snatched and arranged in Fluttershy’s mane; the pink flower was just a shade paler than her hair and it rested there perfectly, appearing as though it had simply sprouted from her head along with the curls in which it was nestled. “Perfect,” Rarity declared, shooing them out the door. “Now go on, dears, and have a magical evening!” She winked knowingly at Big Mac, who felt a stab of panic in his stomach. Did she know what he was planning? Had she told Fluttershy? He had so wanted everything to be a surprise. A glance at his marefriend’s innocent, tranquil expression calmed him, and he assured himself that Rarity was well-versed in both romance and attention to detail, and as such she was bound to notice that he was up to something.
Their trot through Ponyville to the train station was a pleasant one, as many of their friends and acquaintances were still out enjoying the balmy early summer’s eve and paused for a quick greeting or compliment on the couple’s attire. After they had first started dating it had taken months for Fluttershy to become accustomed to being out in public as a couple, and only after careful reassurance from Mac had she accepted that nopony else was staring at them as she felt they were, nor did anypony judge them for being together. “Jus’ look at Spike an’ Rarity,” he had told her. “They’re not even the same species an’ there ain’t nopony who gives a hoot that they’re tagether.”
The couple reached the train station at last and Mac withdrew the two tickets he had purchased earlier that day. When they reached the appropriate platform, however, they found it void of both the train and fellow travelers. Mac peered up at the large clock, the face of which read 5:49. ‘We are a little early,’ he thought, but it was still strange that no other passengers were waiting on the platform. As the minute hand of the clock jumped closer to the hour mark, he became more and more anxious; their dinner reservations were for 7:30, and the train took nearly an hour to get to the city. At five past six, he approached the ticketing window, knocking more heavily than he might have done under other circumstances. After what felt like hours the ticket pony appeared.
“And how may I help you, youngin?” He was an elderly stallion with a faded purple coat and a thinning grey mane.
“Howdy, sir, Ah was just hopin’ to inquire after the 6 o’clock train ta Canterlot?”
“Beg pardon, son? You’ll have to speak up for these old ears.”
“The 6 o’clock train ta Canterlot. Is it comin’ soon?” Mac asked again, raising his voice several notches.
“What’s that? You need a loon?”
“No,” Mac replied, speaking more loudly and slowly, “Ah was askin’ ‘bout the 6 o’clock train ta Canterlot.”
“There’s grain in your pot? Might as well eat it, then!”
“THE 6 O’CLOCK TRAIN TA CANTERLOT!” Mac bellowed back at the top of his voice.
“No need to shout, youngin. There’s no train to Canterlot at 6 tonight.” The old stallion said, lighting his pipe and puffing away calmly, completely unaware of the panic that was slowly building in Mac’s stomach.
“But Ah bought tickets for the train to Canterlot at 6 o’clock tonight,” he held the tickets out for the stallion to see. The stallion took them and examined them briefly under a thick eyeglass before pushing them back across the counter to Big Mac.
“That’s for tomorrow’s train, son.” The color seemed to drain from Mac’s vision as quickly as it left his face; he could not have possibly been so stupid to have gotten tickets for the wrong day. But as he glanced down at the tickets with frantic breath, he saw that the ticket stallion was right. Many choice curse words came to mind and Mac was on the verge of employing several of them when a feather-light touch caressed his trembling hoof. Fluttershy gave him a soft smile before approaching the counter herself.
“Um, excuse me, um sir?” She asked timidly, though she was using what Mac knew was her shouting voice. “Could you possibly tell us, I mean, if you’re not too busy, if there are any other trains to Canterlot tonight?”
“Well of course, miss, anything for a pretty filly like you,” he replied, winking at her. Fluttershy’s face turned as dark as Mac’s coat, but the ticket stallion was too busy checking the schedule to notice. “There’s a train to Canterlot at 6:45 this evening, would you like to buy tickets, Miss?” Fluttershy nodded and tried to hide behind her mane, a feat that proved impossible in its current updo. Mac quickly pulled six bits from his pocket and placed them on the counter. “Planning on riding in the cargo hold, son?”
“Pardon?”
“The weekend train to Canterlot is five bits each, not three.”
“But mah tickets fer tamorrow, Sunday, were only three each.” Mac protested weakly, eager to end the conversation.
“That’ll be the Sunday discount,” the lilac stallion replied, “Friday evening and all day Saturday is five bits.”
“Do you, um, need help paying?” Fluttershy asked, “I brought my bits—”
Mac gazed down at his marefriend, all vestiges of frustration leaving his face. “’Course not, darlin’” he replied before placing four more bits on the counter, “though Ah appreciate the offer nonetheless.”
The pair gladly took leave of the ticket window and returned to the platform. Even after their trying interactions with the ticket stallion they had thirty minutes before their train was due, but they passed the time easily with stories of their days. Mac never tired of listening to Fluttershy speak tenderly about her animals, or the way her gentle voice rose dramatically when describing a particularly drastic critter rescue or Angel’s latest outburst. The tension that had accumulated in his withers gradually dissipated as he forgot all about the extra bits he had had to spend and the tiresome ticket stallion.
The train pulled into the station a few minutes early, and Mac sincerely hoped that the engineer would remain swift in their journey, as they would lose their reservation if they were more than twenty minutes late to the restaurant. It would be close, but The Gilded Gelding wasn’t far from the train station downtown, and they should be able to just make it in time. ‘It’ll be fine,’ Mac told himself, ‘everythin’ else will be perfect.’
They did indeed reach the capital city in just fifty minutes, and after briefly consulting a map outside the station, Mac delightfully announced that the restaurant was a mere three blocks away.
“Oh thank goodness,” Fluttershy said as they made their way through the crowded streets, “I’m so hungry I think I could eat a – a whole bale of hay!” Mac chuckled deeply and Fluttershy joined in his laughter, letting her eyes close and her head tip back in her moment of mirth.
“Oh my Celestia, is that Fluttershy?!” An unfamiliar voice rang out several paces away before its owner pushed through the crowd of ponies waiting to cross the street into Mac and Fluttershy’s field of vision. She was a pale blue mare with a blonde mane styled in the trendiest Canterlot fashion, and the friend who trotted up behind her was equally chic.
“You’re right! The mare who was the top model in all of Equestria three years ago!” The second mare exclaimed. Fluttershy waved uncomfortably as more ponies started to look at her with interest.
“I worship the spread you did for Fillydelphia Fashion,” the blue mare said, grasping Fluttershy’s hoof. “Can I get an autograph? Oh I just can’t believe I got to meet the famous Fluttershy!”
The group of ponies on the sidewalk had turned into a crowd, all jostling to get a look at the cowering pony still being held tightly by the azure mare. Shouts began ringing out up and down the sidewalk,
“I love your dress!”
“Can I have a picture?”
“Oh, I want to shake her hoof next!”
Before either Mac or Fluttershy knew what was happening, several dozen ponies were elbowing each other to get to her, reaching for her hoof, trying to stroke her mane, snatching at her dress. Mac stepped in front of her but more simply came up from the other side, all desperate to touch the smallest bit of a famous pony. Cameras were flashing wildly, ponies were screaming for her attention from every direction, and then he heard a sickening tear followed by a cry of utter terror from the yellow pegasus whom he was attempting to shield. Rearing wildly, he threw Fluttershy over his back and used every ounce of brute strength he possessed to break through the sea of adoring fans and gallop away as quickly as his hooves would allow him.
Mac didn’t break his stride until he was able to duck into a small shop with Fluttershy still thrown over his back; he crouched low under the counter until he was sure the herd of rabid fans had run past. Sighing heavily, Mac felt Fluttershy slide off his back. As he turned to her to suggest finding a back road to the restaurant, his words became stuck in his throat; her beautiful dress was in tatters, no more than a few stomped-on rags that clung weakly to her trembling frame. Her mane was mangled in a way that looked horribly as though somepony had grabbed it in their mouth, and several feathers had been plucked from her left wing.
“Oh darlin’,” Mac said, pulling her into the gentlest embrace he could manage, “Ah’m so sorry. Ah shoulda done more ta stop ‘em.”
“I-it’s ok-kay,” Fluttershy sniffled into his chest. “I’m sorry I couldn’t fight them off myself.” Mac gripped her all the more tenderly, his heart aching for her.
He offered her his hoofkerchief which she accepted, daintily blowing her nose before returning it to him. “Do ya wanna just head home? We could still catch the last train back—”
“Oh no!” Fluttershy exclaimed, blushing a moment later at her outburst, which of course had been no louder than a field mouse’s sneeze. “I mean, uh, unless you want to, that is.” When Mac did not object, she continued, “it’s just, I was having such a lovely time before those fan ponies came along, and I would hate for such a nice evening to be ruined just because of them.” Mac grinned, kissing her lightly on the forehead.
“Let’s get ya cleaned up and get goin’ then, we still have five minutes before we lose our reservation.”
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D'aww. They better get engaged, or we might have one author less around here
Oh god, i hope they dont lose their reservation!
Hoofkerchief? I think that's stretching it a little too far. Otherwise great chapter.
4 people, Y U NO LIKE FLUTTERMAC!? (as I'm sure that's the only reason for those thumbs down)
This is looking to be yet another sweet and adorable Fluttermac story. Can't wait for moar!
1032172
Well they can't have a handkerchief, seeing as they don't have hands.
1032986 That is true. It just still sounds a lot weirder then something like everypony.
rlv.zcache.com/no_paparazzi_safe_zone_sticker-p217735019116207337envb3_400.jpg
The issue with Spike/Rarity is not to do with it being interspecies. It is that he is a child and she is an adult.
That said, this is good FlutterMac!
Lovely chapter. I love how Fluttershy comforted Big Mac in her quiet way and of course Big Mac's stampede warmed my heart. That train scene made me chuckle a bit.