A Shoe Problem

by EquestrianKnight97

Chapter 6: The Long Wait

"What do you mean she wasn't there?!?" Pipp asked hysterically. Though Zipp was not as panicked as her sister, she still shared Pipp's worries with a frown.

"I'm sorry, sis, but she wasn't at Zephyr Heights when we got there. Mom helped us find Rainbow's folks, but they all said that she left sometime this morning to look for more antiques in Old Equestria."

Pipp nearly tore her mane out. "Where in Old Equestria?!? Did you at least---"

"We asked them the same thing," Sunny interrupted, though she seemed concerned for the pink pegasus. "But she never really told them exactly where she was going."

After the fiasco that happened this morning, the first thing that Pipp wanted upon returning home was to retreat to her bed and rest her legs. Once that was taken care of, Pipp decided that she would just a nice little nap until Sunny and Zipp returned with Rainbow, and hopefully a solution to solve the issues with the shoes. But the arrival of her sister and friend brought little comfort to her once they told her about the storekeeper's whereabouts.

The shoes were gone, that was true, but Pipp doubted that those menaces would simply stay in that trashcan until garbage day. For all she knew, they may have been on their way to the Brighthouse right now, just planning on forcing themselves on her hooves.

The younger princess nearly curled into a fetal position on the bed. "They could be here any moment! And there won't be anything that I can do to stop them! Oh --- why did I even buy them in the first place?"

Sunny moved forward to put a hoof on Pipp's shoulder. "If it means anything, we put a note on the shop's door so that Rainbow might know what you've been through. If she read it by the time we visit her tomorrow, maybe she would have found a solution."

Pipp rose her head from her huddled forelegs, a small twinkle of hope in her eyes. "Really? You think so?"

Smiling, Sunny nodded. "Of course. She seems like a very knowledgeable pony. I'm sure that she must have book or something that could help us figure out how to damper the magic on those shoes."

"Now that I'm thinking about it, there could be another way to get those shoes off in case they really do come back," Zipp said.

"How's so?" Pipp asked.

"You said that the shoes came off once you fell to the ground, right?"

"Right..."

"Well, if I can take a guess, you probably slipped on the cobblestones due to the rain. So, what I'm thinking is that if those shoes do get a hold of you again, all we need to do is splash some water on the floor to make it all slippery. That way, when you dance in the right spot, you'll fall again and those will come off."

Pipp immediately put up a hoof. "Hard pass! I'm not risking getting a black eye or a chipped tooth just to get those shoes off of me."

Zipp groaned. "We got to have some type of backup plan, Pipp. If these things can swim out of the ocean, they can definitely get themselves out of the trash."

"I know, I know. I just wished that this was all over."

"Don't worry, Pipp," Sunny said. "Like I said before, we just have to wait until tomorrow for Rainbow to get back, then we'll got over to the shop together and tell her about the shoes. But until then, I think it's only right that me and the other girls take turns watching over you and the house tonight."

The younger was helpless against the grateful smile that formed upon her lips. "Wow... Thanks, Sunny. I don't know what I did to deserve you guys."

The earth pony grinned back. "Don't mention it. I'm gonna go check on Izzy and see if she has anything to help board the doors and windows."

Sunny went away from Pipp's bed and headed downstairs. With her gone, the two sisters were left alone in the room to stare at each other.

"So..., you're not leaving the bed at all?" Zipp asked.

"Nope," Pipp answered. "Not only do my hooves still hurt, but I need to give my mind a break after the embarrassment I went through."

"What about dinner?"

"Izzy's taking care of that. She said that she knows just the thing to perk me up after today."

Zipp shrugged. "At least you'll be comfortable. I'm going to go do some reading. Maybe I'll even do some research on magical artifacts if I get the chance."

With her sister turning away, PIpp looked outside of the window. It was still raining, but the approach of the night made the grey sky darker than it was before she came to the Brighthouse. Below the sky was the churning sea, whose waves were oily black with streaks of white foam. Soon, the pegasus became enamored with the tossings and turnings of the waves, but would try her best not to fall slumber to the ocean's rhythm.

Despite being in bed, there was much the princess wanted to do before the day was over.

---

The spotlight from above came on and shone its beam down on Pipp. Once her eyes adjusted to the brightness, she saw herself before a huge crowd while at the bottom of an amphitheater. Before her were ponies of all races and ages, but most covered in shadows for her to clearly distinguish them. In the front rows, though, were her friends, her sister, her regal mother, and a certain winged pomeranian. Nopony made a sound or moved out of their seats, making the atmosphere eerie.

Looking down at herself, Pipp understood why the audience was staring at her. She was wearing a mulberry and cream-colored ballet dress that she must admit looked fabulous on her, but that self-admiration was watered down by the sight of those dreaded red shoes.

"Please. No," was all that the pegasus could muster before the inevitable happened.

On their own accord, Pipp's forelegs raised themselves up into the air, making her stand on her hindlegs. Immediately, her bottom hooves worked their magic as they tapped against the floor. In order to match up with similar energy, her forelegs waved around in such a manner that the pegasus was amazed that she didn't hit herself as she twirled around and jumped occasionally.

There was no exhaustion on Pipp's part in this affair. In fact, she felt like such a lightweight that she could barely feel her hooves press against the surface. But she was far from fine, as evident by her pinpricked eyes and clenched teeth. She hoped that somepony in the audience would come to her aid and stop her from dancing.

"Somepony! Please help! I don't want to dance anymore!"

But Pipp did not get the response that she sought. It started off small, but soon somepony in the crowd laughed. A second laugh was added in, then a few more, and then nearly a dozen. By the end, everypony in the amphitheater was cracking up at the sight of the dancing princess, even her friends and family --- a sight which sunk her heart.

"Look at her go!" somepony shouted. "That's quite a sight!"

"Man, she must be really loving all of this attention!" somepony else commented.

"I can't wait to see this trend on ClipTrot!" yelled another pony.

Small dots of light came from the rows of the amphitheater, which PIpp registered as being cellphone lights. Enough lights populated the darkened crowd that they resembled stars shining in the night sky, and as Pipp twirled around once more those blurs of lights and the drowning sounds of laughter and jeers gave her mind a spinning headache.

"Please! Stop!" Pipp cried, trying her best not to let a tear leave the corner of her eye. "I don't want to do this!"

"But you have to keep dancing! We can't let you stop!"

The newest voice caught her attention as it was different from the roaring sounds of the audience. It was loud but at the same time very squeaky and high-pitched. If she was correct, the being who talked to her was right next to her.

"Yes! You must keep dancing! You're doing so great!"

Another voice spoke out. This one sounded just like the previous being, except this voice came from the other side of her head. Turning her head to the right, as she did a tippy-hoof dance movement, Pipp saw the shoe on her right forehoof clapping its white bowtie, even though no sound came from the action. At the pink tip of shoe was a weird crease or wrinkle that looked like a crescent moon, which suddenly began to shift.

"Yes!" the shoe shouted from its tip. "Beautiful! Magnificent! Your pose is so elegant!"

Pipp's eyes widen, and a scowl came over her face. "You! You need to stop this and leave me alone! You can't do this to me!"

The shoe on her left forehoof spoke up. "No! You must keep going! The show goes on! It does not matter what you think!"

"Yes!" said the right shoe. "We want to see you dance ---- FOREVER!"

"FOREVER!"

"FOREVER!"

"FOREVER!"

---

Pipp opened her eyes and found herself staring at the ceiling of her bedroom. In a haste, she zoomed her sight all over the room to see if anything was out of place. Though the area was dimly lit, the pegasus had a good enough memory to recognize that everything was exactly where it was supposed to be. Zipp's and Sunny's beds were left alone --- with Izzy sleeping in her own --- all the girls' belongings were undisturbed, and the windows were covered with blankets and duct tape.

With her observation done, Pipp looked down at herself. Through the blankets, her chest was heaving up and down, which was embarrassing enough for her to slow down her breathing. Luckily for her, nothing about her bed appeared out of the ordinary.

"Such a freaky dream. Hopefully, I can---"

The sound was faint, but a shatter could be heard from downstairs just as Pipp readied herself back to sleep. Sitting straight up in a shock, she stared at the stairs.

"Zipp? Sunny?" she asked as softly as possible to not wake up Izzy. "Was that one of you guys?"

Half a minute had passed by, and no response was given. Anxious, Pipp got out of her bed and floated toward the stairs. She stopped midair to look at Izzy, considering whether or not she should ask her friend for assistance, but in the end she declined. If whatever was happening downstairs was not that important, she did not want to waste her friend's beauty sleep.

Slowly, Pipp descended down the stairs, trying her best not to touch them as her hooves were probably still delicate. Nothing seemed wrong at first for her as she observed the living room, but once she reach the bottom of the stairs she came to a stop.

She could see through one of the windows, and the blanket meant to cover it was laying on the floor. But the blanket was not the only thing on the floor. Though they were small, there were four critters scurrying around the living room, perhaps mice or squirrels that were looking for food. However, there was something off those animals, as Pipp was quick to notice. The four creatures were huddled together, barely distancing themselves from each other, and weird of all was that they would move in the same direction, as if they were searching for the same thing.

It was only when a flash of lightning from the window, accompanied by a thunderous boom, partially illuminated the room that Pipp knew what they really were. They were far from animals, but were instead four shoes that moved around without an owner. But as quickly as the flash came, it went away just as fast, casting the room under darkness once more.

Comments

[StarzGecko]

Fly Pipp! Fly away!!!

[Mr cold ghost]

Got to admit. That last scene with the shoes looking for her creeped me out. Thanks for the update!

[Phetiamwantip]

This is very good. I'm giving you six stars for doing a great job. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[EquestrianKnight97]

11456294
You’re welcome!

[EquestrianKnight97]

11456539
Really? Wow! Thanks for doing that!

[Phetiamwantip]

11456703
You're welcome

[Axolotl222]

Dang, being forced to dance for hours on end is on thing, but being stalked by sentient dance shoes?
What a sick world.

[EquestrianKnight97]

11457021
I agree

[RushingWind-01]

Why in the heck isn't Pipp just flying away or simply burying these cursed shoes under concrete? Use your fricking wings, Pipp!

Anyway, I can't wait to see what's next. I honestly fear the worst for Pipp, if you ask me.

[EquestrianKnight97]

11457818
I'm sure Pipp will come up with something, or at least I hope.

[Phetiamwantip]

Hope to see more of your chapters and remember: Never give up on what you really want to do. The person with big dreams is more powerful than one with all the facts.

[EquestrianKnight97]

11458431
Thank you for saying that! I'll be sure to remember that!

[Phetiamwantip]

11458443
You're welcome

[arc5162]

Are you going to do a new chapter soon?

[EquestrianKnight97]

11474681
Yep. Should be here by the end of the month.