Discount Stores and Metaphors
The little bell on the side of the door let out a chipper ring as Rainbow pushed the door open. The sound echoed throughout the barren aisles and faded away, saddened that it passed unrecognized.
Rainbow stepped inside, trying not to tremble. She looked about the store, past the metal detectors at the entrance and past the empty cashier kiosks. A sea of aisles and clothing awaits her, and a strange smell filled the air.
It reminded her of old dusty books she might find at the back of the library, or of those strange ancient file folders in Spitfire’s filing cabinet. The ones that always looked like they would fall apart if you dropped them.
Rainbow ventured into the store floor. Jaunty, upbeat pop songs filled the air from the speakers, muffled to the point where they were barely decipherable. Looking up, Rainbow noticed that some of the lights overhead had burned out, leaving the store in a strange, dim state.
Near the front of the store were several circular racks field with marked down clothes, most of them second-hoof. Rainbow ran a hoof through some of the clothes, taking in the colors and designs listlessly.
The colors almost blurred together as she watched. The bright hues mixed with dull metal, and reds, yellows, blues, and greens danced across her vision. She rubbed her eyes and the world sorted itself out again.
Turning away from the rack, Rainbow made her way over to the shelves. The aisles were numbered and divided into categories, like household supplies, toys, and technology. Her eyes lingered over knock-off brands and cheap, plastic packages that littered the shelves. It made her want to cry.
She picked up a packaged action figure, marked down from three bits to two and a half. It felt light on her hoof, yet heavy all the same as she imagined the story behind it. Somewhere, this very toy was in a foal’s out, and it was the only thing their parents could afford. But what did the foal know? To them, they had a toy, and that was enough.
Rainbow set the package back on the shelf and tilted her head, gazing upon row after row of the same box. The rows stood side by side and stood at attention, waiting for some silent command that would never come.
There was no life here. She only felt despair. Rainbow turned away from the colored boxes with disgust, proceeding down the aisles. She came across a row of stationery items, ranging from pens and pencils to papers and clipboards.
Rainbow picked up a colored pen and rolled it around in her hoof. She noted there was a piece of paper mounted on the shelf, so that ponies could test the quality of their writing supplies before buying them.
The paper itself was covered in scribbles and crude sketches, mixed with some rather vulgar words. The colors melded together and lept out at her, not unlike her own mane. Blues and reds flew past her face, merging and blending together. Yellow lines streaked across the page like a plane through the sky, and red dots filled the surface like stars in a dreary sky.
It was too much for her. She stepped back, overwhelmed, and let the colors fade away as she regained her composure. The world returned to normal.
Rainbow returned the pen to its home and sighed, turning away from the bright display. The colors were making her head spin. Rainbow hazarded a glance at the paper again to see that the markings were bleeding now, with color dripping off of the page and into the world around it.
It felt oversaturated to her. She blinked and the color returned into the paper, vanishing from her view. It was too much for her. The colors reminded her of the past, and how vivid the world used to be back then.
Rainbow accidentally kicked a basket by her hooves. She looked down to see that it was full of miscellaneous items, including a stuffed pony plushie in the shape of a mushroom. She picked it up and studied it curiously, finding a tag on the bottom that read ‘Liminal Spaces.’
Something about it made her anxious. It reminded her of old friends and familiar faces, and of long empty hallways and empty houses. She set the plushie back in the basket and gave it a pat on the head before continuing onwards.
A noise echoed from the produce section. Rainbow glanced over to see that the refrigerator door was open, and a pink pony was rummaging inside. Pinkie Pie was humming a strange song and swishing her tail to the beat as she pulled out a bottle of juice from within.
Pinkie slammed the door shut and turned to face Rainbow before beaming at her. “Hiya Dashie!” she exclaimed, waving at her.
Rainbow froze, unsure of how to respond. She raised her hoof half-way before pausing.
“Since when were you socially awkward, Dashie?” Pinkie laughed, bouncing her way over and slinging her arm around her neck. “Cat got your tongue?”
“I just… wasn’t expecting to see you here,” Rainbow confessed.
Pinkie giggled. “Well of course, silly! I know that! We all do!”
Rainbow raised her eyebrow. “You all did?”
“Well, sort of. I mean, I guess some of us felt it more than others. But we knew you were coming.” Pinkie danced across the aisles before turning again to face her. The pony knelt down by the basket Rainbow had kicked and picked up the mushroom plush. “Aw! Isn’t it adorable? It’s so illegally fluffy!”
Rainbow smiled softly and nodded. “Sure, Pinks. Sure.”
Pinkie continued her walk, taking a swig from the juice bottle. “So tell me, Dashie, how’ve ya been lately? We haven’t talked in forever!”
“I’ve been…” Rainbow trailed off, her squinting at the fluorescent lights above her. “I’ve been better, I guess.”
Pinkie pulled her in tight to a hug. “Well that’s just dandy! I’ve been feeling pretty great myself! And the juice here’s a big ol’ plus.”
Rainbow let Pinkie lead her around, taking in the ambiance of the discount store. Something about everything just rubbed her the wrong way. It made her feel delusional in a way.
But she wasn’t about to dump her delusionalisms on Pinkie. Not now anyways. “Hey, Pinkie… do you ever miss home sometimes?”
“Oh, always, Dashie,” Pinkie said. She seemed to hug her just a little bit tighter. “And everyone there misses you too. You know that, don’t you, Dashie?”
Rainbow sighed, closing her eyes. She saw a coat of blue far in front of her, bright as the sky and lighter than air. She saw a rainbow mane bellowing in the wind, ready to face another day. And she saw herself standing in the dawn of snow, a drop of blue against a world of white.
“I miss home too,” Rainbow confessed.
Pinkie nodded solemnly, the party pony sobering up a little bit. “It’s not a bad thing to miss home,” Pinkie said.
It felt very warm in the store. As if the ancient air conditioning unit had finally given up hope, like a stranded traveler lying in the desert sun. “I think… I think I want to go home,” Rainbow said aloud.
“You should try,” Pinkie said encouragingly. “We miss you.”
Those words left her feeling in some sort of way. As if everything that had happened was connected in a way. She wasn’t sure if the world had planned it this way, but frankly she didn’t quite care.
“You really think I should?”
Pinkie put a hoof on her shoulder. “Yeppers! You really, really should. We miss you. I miss you.”
Rainbow didn’t feel very tired anymore. Memories flew through the streets like sports cars, flying by so quickly that Rainbow only caught glimpses before they were gone.
With a smile, Rainbow pushed open the door and stepped outside, back into the ever-empty streets and forlorn buildings. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Well… I think I’m going to try.”
“Yay!” Pinkie said, hugging her again. “Go, Dashie, go! We’re all rooting for you!”
Rainbow nodded and took off into the air. Alone, but unafraid. She never looked back.