Don Mane De Polo and the centermare

Chapter three: ‘I hope they like him.’

The next day Fluttershy set off into Ponyville with her handsome guest in tow. They talked all the way there, though Fluttershy couldn’t really remember what about. She was just happy to be with him. His strong fetlocks grazed against hers every so often, quite by mistake of course, and his gentle green eyes stayed on her at all time. His soft violet mane fell about his broad shoulders and when he laughed his teeth glinted in the sun like freshly-fallen snow. Fluttershy was so wrapped up in him that she didn’t notice that every single mare that they passed stopped dead in their tracks to stare at him; their jaws slack and their eyes wide. Derpy’s eyes even momentarily went into focus just to ogle him.

“Donna Fluttershy,” said Don Mane, sounding somewhat puzzled. “I thought we were going to run some errands in Ponyville today-but we seem to be walking out of town.”

“Oh; I have to stop off at Applejack’s first to check on her rooster. He’s been a bit under the weather lately. That’s Applejack’s family farm up there.” She indicated sweet Apple acres on the near horizon and her companions face lit up with understanding.

“Ah: I see,” he said. “So your friend runs a farm. How industrious!”

Fluttershy beamed at this remark, but her expression quickly fell into one of concern.

“What is wrong Dona Fluttershy?” said Don Mane. “Have I said something wrong?”

‘Oh, it’s nothing,” muttered Fluttershy. “It‘s…it’s just….oh: I do hope you get on with my friends,” said Fluttershy all in a rush. “ I just couldn’t stand it if you didn’t like them! I mean of course they’ll like you but…”

Don Mane silenced her by gently closing her mouth with his hoof.

“Dona Fluttershy,” he said smiling at her with cotton-soft eyes. “You have absolutely nothing to worry about.”

Fluttershy sighed with relief and rested against the warm side of her companion who put his wing around her and starting steering her towards sweet apple acres.

“I’m sure I’m going to love them.”

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

Applejack noticed Don Mane before she noticed Fluttershy. She thought he was handsome, sure, but nothing remarkable. She smiled when she noticed her friend trotting next to him and waved her over.

“Hey there sugar cube,” she called happily, and Fluttershy ran up to meet her. Don Mane, the perfect gentleman that he was, hung back to let the girls get reacquainted.

“You ready to give old Raymond the old  once-over ?” asked Applejack, holding up a very sorry-looking rooster. “He just hasn’t been himself lately.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” said Fluttershy, taking the bedraggled bird very gently off of Applejack. “Now then Raymond; what seems to be the problem?” The rooster made a noise like a dying chainsaw and then flopped against Fluttershy’s chest. “Oh dear! Well you can’t tell me what’s wrong with a sore throat like that!” She turned to Applejack. “Where do you keep the cough medicine?”

“Beneath the sink in the kitchen.”

“Thanks jack. I’ll be right back.”

She began to hover away until Applejack piped up with “aren’t you going to introduce me to your new friend?”

“Oh; of course. Applejack this is Don Mane De Marco.” Fluttershy said the stallion’s name as if it was the single most glorious sound ever uttered. Don Mane gave her yet another tender glance and Fluttershy blushed on cue. Applejack looked from one to the other and cocked an eyebrow.

“Don Mane is a traveling pony who saved me from a gorge in the everfree forest. He was passing through Ponyville but he didn’t have anywhere to stay the night so…” With this Fluttershy sort of shrugged and grinned shyly. Applejack nodded in understanding. ”And this, Don Mane, is my friend Applejack.”

“Hey,” said Applejack, slightly more cautiously than usual. Still; she extended a hoof to the newcomer and smiled. “Always nice to see a new face around these parts.”

Fluttershy expected Don Mane to kiss Applejack’s hoof like he did with hers but, much to her surprise, he instead took Applejack’s hoof in his and shook it firmly.

“It is a pleasure Dona Applejack.”

Quite satisfied, Fluttershy floated off towards the kitchen to find the cough medicine. Once she was out of sight Applejack turned to Don Mane and said gently, but with a slight edge to her voice “now look here handsome. I hate for it to seem like I’m accusing you, and you do seem to be on the straight and narrow, but I must tell you now that you better not be playing our Fluttershy for a silly-filly. ‘Cause if you are; you and I are going to have a problem.”

Don Mane looked into Applejack’s eyes and said “Dona Applejack: I promise you now that I have no intention of hurting Dona Fluttershy in any way. I am perfectly aware that it would be no way to repay her kindness.”

Applejack and Don Mane stared at each other for a long, hard time. Little beads of perspiration had just started to form on Don Mane’s brow when Applejack beamed and slapped him on the shoulder. “Ah: you’re alright. Sorry to get on your case there, but Fluttershy can be very trusting sometimes, and I just wanted to make sure she wasn’t hitching her star to the wrong carriage, you know?”

“I understand,” said Don Mane, smiling and tipping his hat back. “I suppose I am somewhat suspicious.” He smiled gently at Applejack; a different, more-earnest-less-smoulder-y gentle smile than the ones he gave Fluttershy, but a gentle smile nonetheless. “You’re a good friend Applejack,” he said softly. Applejack faltered at this an ducked behind her hat slightly. “Well…you know…”

After a moment of silence she said “I’m just going to buck some apples now…you’re welcome to go inside if you want; granny Smith’ll make you some cocoa…”

“I want to help you with the bucking of the apples Dona Applejack,” said Don Mane brightly, lifting up a nearby basket with his magic.

“Uh, I don’t know…” said Applejack, shifting awkwardly from one hoof to the other.

“Please let me help,” was the reply. “I feel so rude: standing idle while taking advantage of your hospitality. Let me buck the apples with you.”

“I appreciate the help but uh…”

“What is it Dona Applejack?”

Applejack sighed. “Look: you’re an Alicorn…”

“Correct.”

“Well…that means you have a horn…”

“Dona Applejack,” cried Don Mane in mock indignation. “You are an unusually prejudiced pony indeed. Most mares have nothing but the greatest appreciation for my horn.” To demonstrate he playfully tapped the tip of his horn with his hoof and winked at Applejack, who rolled her eyes but still couldn’t suppress a smile.

“It’s just…you’ll pick every apple in an instant using your magic and I won’t have anything left to buck.”

Don Mane seemed to consider this for a moment before saying “well then; I shall simply have to buck the apples like you do.” Before Applejack could object, he had kicked a nearby tree with his back hooves and several apples fell into the adjacent basket. He grinned at Applejack, who grinned back. She knew a challenge when she saw it.

The two set about bucking apples at a ferocious pace. They were level-necking for a while until Applejack started to pull ahead. Before either of them knew it there was only one tree with apples still on it. They both thundered towards it, each trying to get there before the other. Suddenly, Don Mane spread out his wings and propelled himself forward, colliding with Applejack in the process. The two fell in a sore, laughing heap on the ground. After their giggles had subsided Don Mane stood up and offered a hoof to the orange mare lying on the ground. Applejack looked up at him and the sun haloed around his violet head as he grinned down at her.

‘Dang,’ thought Applejack to herself. ‘I can see what Fluttershy sees in him.’

Once she was on her feet Applejack said to Don Mane “you cheated! You used your alicorn powers. That means I win.”

“Fair enough,” shrugged the stallion. “Though if I recall, it was my horn you told me not to use.”

“Even so; I still win,” said Applejack, proudly indication her twenty full baskets as opposed to Don Mane’s seventeen. Don Mane nodded defeatedly and smiled at Applejack. “You are a pretty formidable mare Dona Applejack,” he said softly. “You remind me of a statue of an ancient mare-goddess I saw back in Saddle Arabia. So strong and beautiful. Like an empire that could never fall. You even have the same golden hair as her.” Here he smoldered dangerously at her and though Applejack knew he was speaking nonsense, she didn’t much care. “Not bad yourself,” she said dreamily as Flutteshy came out of the house carrying a relieved-looking rooster.

“Raymond is feeling much better,” she said brightly. “His throat is less sore and his temperature’s gone down. He tells me he has the sniffles because there’s a leak in the roof of his coop.” Here she handed the rooster back to Applejack.

“I’ll get on it right away,“ said Applejack chirpily, trying her hardest not to look at Don Mane. “Thank you kindly Fluttershy: once again your natural affinity with critters has saved the day!”

The two mares were so busy conversing that they didn’t notice that Raymond was glaring at Don Mane who simply stared back contemptuously. Suddenly, and seemingly out of nowhere, the bird started to squawk raucously and flap his wings frenziedly at the dark stallion.

“Whoa there Ray; what’s gotten into you?” said Applejack clutching at the struggling bird.

“It’s possible it could be me,” said Don Mane apologetically. “I never did understand roosters, ganders, game or goslings.” Here he shot a devilish look at the mares and said “ I have always was more of a friend to female animals.” Applejack and Fluttershy blushed accordingly.

A few moments later Fluttershy found herself trotting happily down the road out of Sweet Apple Acres with Don Mane chivalrously carrying a basket of apples for her with his magic.

“I’m sooo glad you like her,” she said, beaming and resting her head on his shoulder. “And that she likes you. I always thought that anyone Applejack approves of couldn’t ever really be that bad.”

Don Mane said nothing but pulled her close to him with his wing.

“Where to next Donna Fluttershy?” he said after some time. The sun was almost at it’s highest point in the sky and it warmed Fluttershy to the roots of her feathers.

“Hm? Oh: we’re going to sugar-cube corner next!”

“Sugar-cube…”

“It’s the bakery. I have to pick up some honey scones for Angel. My friend Pinkie Pie works there; so you’ll get to meet her too!”

“Good.” said Don Mane, smiling at nothing in particular. “Good.”

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Pinkie pie was icing cupcakes when the two arrived at the bakery. She was doing a surprisingly efficient job of it too, but Fluttershy couldn’t help but notice that some of the cupcakes at the back of the tray had the occasional sneaky bite taken out of them. Fluttershy smiled and shook her head affectionately.

“Hey Pinkie,” she said taking a small pouch out of her saddle-bag and emptying three bits onto the counter. “Are those scones ready?”

“Sure are!” beamed Pinkie extending her tongue out to lick some icing off her cheek. She then held out her icing bag and said “want some frosting as an appetizer?”

“No thank you Pinkie,” her customer smiled. Pinkie shrugged.

“Suit yourself.” And with this she rolled out her tongue like a carpet and emptied half the contents of the piping bag onto it.

“The scones are out back in the fridge,” she said indistinctly through a mouthful of frosting. She then swallowed and said “I’ll go get them for you.”

She clumsily tried to wipe some of the frosting off her hooves and struggled with her apron.

“Oh, it’s okay Pinkie; I’ll go get them. I know where they are.”

“Thanks Fluttershy! I‘m kinda busy with these cupcakes.”

Fluttershy was just about to walk through the saloon doors and into the back room when Pinkie noticed Don Mane.

“Hey; who’s the hunk?” she said, smiling and winking. Don Mane gave her a shadow of a mysterious smile in return.

“Oh, that’s Don Mane,” was the reply. “He’s staying with me for a few days.

“Oh, okay,” chirped Pinkie as Fluttershy disappeared into the back room. “Howdy doody Don Mane!”

“Howdy doody Dona Pinkie,” he replied with the glimmer of laughter in his eyes. Pinkie giggled.

“It sounds so silly with your accent.”

“I could say the same about you.” And with this Don Mane proceeded to inspect the various baked goods in the display cabinets while Pinkie continued with her cupcake icing.

Subtly and without looking Don Mane turned the cupcake tray round with his magic so that the cupcake that Pinkie had just iced was facing her again. Humming happily to herself, Pinkie turned to the tray and hastily squirted some icing onto the cupcake which hung sloppily off the icing that was already there. Pinkie looked befuddled for a moment before turning the tray around again to an un-iced cake and returning to her mixture. Don Mane did this four more times until Pinkie was quite confused. By this point the cupcake was piled so high with icing that it had doubled in height. Pinkie picked it up and glared at it accusingly. Don Mane started whistling to himself and Pinkie Pie, looking from the cake Don Mane and back again, gave a wicked little smile. Don Mane was just inspecting a really rather fabulous-looking éclair when he felt something wet and mushy smack against his ear. He whipped round to see Pinkie grinning like a jack-o-lantern and holding her bowl of icing behind her back. Smiling sweetly, Don Mane levitated a big glob of mixture out of the bowl and smacked it into the back Pinkie’s head. Pinkie shrieked with delight and before either of them knew it they were both running round the bakery, laughing and hurling globs of icing at each other. An unobserved glob of icing on the floor was suddenly illuminated with green magic and slipped into the path of Pinkie’s hurried hooves which she then tripped over and landed with a thump on the bakery floor. Don Mane then promptly tripped on it too and landed neatly on top of Pinkie. The two stared into each others faces for a moment, flushed and panting. Don Mane looked as though he was going to say something when Fluttershy came in through the swing doors holding a brown paper bag in her mouth. Being greeted with the sight of the object of her maidenly affections astride one of her best friends and covered in cupcake icing, Fluttershy stood stock still while she tried to think about how to react to the situation. Don Mane, however, was quick to react.

“Thank you for letting me help with the icing, Donna Pinkie Pie,” he said smoothly, helping Pinkie up. “I must say; I have done a great deal of traveling in my time but I’ve never seen it done like that before.”

Dazed Pinkie Pie returned to her post, as Don Mane began to usher Fluttershy out of the shop. Through her daze, Pinkie Pie noticed that Fluttershy was trying her hardest not to look at her.

“Hey wait!” she called after the retreating couple. “Since I got you all dirty Don Mane; why don’t you take a free cupcake as an apology.” She smiled warmly at her frowning friend. “You have one too Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy smiled and took a cupcake from the tray and put it in her saddle-bag. Pinkie offered the tray to Don Mane who, without thinking, took the cupcake with the mountain of icing. The icing was bright pink and was piled high on the cake in uncontrollable swirls.

“It looks like your mane,” he said softly. Pinkie Pie flushed deeply at this (not that anyone could tell) and busied herself with making more icing.

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Once out of the bakery, Fluttershy stormed ahead of Don Mane, glaring at her shopping list and trying her hardest to look at anyone but him. Don Mane made a pretense to struggle to keep up but after a while he grew weary of the silent treatment and quickly closed the gap between them with a few strides.

“Dona Fluttershy…”

“Don’t start with me,” snapped Fluttershy, still not looking at him. There was another length of silence before Dona Mane spoke again.

“Dona Fluttershy, why are you so angry?”

“You have the nerve to ask me that!” cried Fluttershy, spinning round to face him, tears in her eyes. “To stand there and ask me why I’m angry that you were all over my friend and covered in goop on the floor of a bakery!” After this the only sounds that came out of Fluttershy’s mouth were inaudible squeaks of despair. Don Mane waited for them to calm down before talking.

“Dona Fluttershy,” he said in a steady, calm voice. “I don’t want you to get me wrong. What you saw in the bakery was not what it seemed.”

Fluttershy scoffed at this but Don Mane silenced her and continued.

“I did not want to say anything in front of you or your friend in case I embarrassed you both but the truth of the matter is…what you saw in there was all your friends doing.”

Fluttershy was dumbstruck. That Pinkie could be so forward with somepony she just met was…Fluttershy was bout to think the world ‘inconceivable’ when she realized that it really wasn’t.

“She started flicking globs of frosting at my head,” said Don Mane, flushing slightly. “I didn’t want to say anything about it because I thought it would be rude, but before I knew it she was chasing me round the bakery and then she…” Don Mane averted his gaze from Fluttershy’s and said “she pulled me on top of her.” He looked up at her again; his eyes pleading. “I honestly wouldn’t have taken advantage of the situation Donna Fluttershy; not after all your hospitality. The truth is…” he paused a moment and the looked away again, blushing deeply. “The truth is…you’re the best thing that’s happened to me in a very long time.”

When Fluttershy heard this she felt as though a sun blazing throughout her entire body and words quite simply failed her. Instead she reached out with her hoof, tugged on Don Mane’s cape and pulled him in the direction of carousel boutique.

The two trotted side by side for a while when Fluttershy decided to break the silence.

“We’re going to my friend Rarity’s boutique next,” she said. “I have to return her umbrella now that the rainy-season is over.” With this she took it out of her saddle-bag and opened it over their heads to shield them from the sun.

“Very well,” said Don Mane and they trotted in silence once more. Fluttershy, once again, was the one to break the silence.

“I’m sorry I yelled at you,” she said in a tiny voice. Don Mane smiled warmly and put his wing around her.

“It’s quite  alright Dona Fluttershy,” he said. “I would have done the same thing. And you know; I really hope you’re not angry at your friend. I’m sure she didn’t mean to be rude. She’s just friendly. Like Applejack!”

Fluttershy thought about Applejack and the way she had smiled at Don Mane that morning at sweet apple acres. A million doubts suddenly buzzed in her mind like angry parasprites. She didn’t have much time to reflect on them though, for at that very moment a lightning bolt flashed out of the heavens and sent a huge shock right through the bodies of the two unsuspecting ponies.