Chapter Sixty: A Problem Arises

Eager ponies gathered around the long line of cages, transfixed by the unusual coloration the animals prominently displayed. Fluttershy herself was quite struck by these creatures, having never seen most of them up close before - or rather, most of them with such pigments (or lack of pigmentation with the albinos).

Gripping the reins controlling the bovines was none other than a middle-aged unicorn stallion of a burnt ochre coloration with a frizzy orange mane and tail and a short beard, with a golden pocket watch on a chain branded on his flanks and dressed in a crimson dress coat with golden trimmings that matched his carriage-train. Pulling the reins, the vehicle came to a stoppage. The unicorn stood upon his seat, overlooking the steadily growing crowd flocking in curiosity.

"Greetin's lassies and gentlecoolts!" he cried out in a thick Shetland accent. "The great Pendulum 'as gathered the rarest creatures in Equestria! Feel free to gaze upoon my coollection to your 'eart's coontent!"

There was a murmur of interest and excitement among the amassed equines.

"Rare animals…?" the yellow-pelted mare breathed, hovering in place next to Smokey. "… Collection?"

"They're amazing," Smokey said.

While the rest of the crowd got an eyeful, the stallion went into detail about genetics, pigments, and color mutations in order to explain how his animals obtained their colors.

Fluttershy frowned, as she wasn't sure they were quite fully taken care of. Her eyes scanning from creature to creature, she acknowledged that they were in fairly good condition, but something seemed… off. It was like…

… They weren't truly happy.

Smokey seemed to catch on that something wasn't right, but not to the extent as Fluttershy. Before he could even say anything to her, the owner's Shetland accent sounded from his opposite side, startling him a little.

"What's the matter, lassie? Noot enjooying my creatures?" he asked, gently pushing Smokey aside to approach the pegasus.

"No," she answered sternly. "I don't like how you're treating your animals."

She raised a hoof to point a hoof at the white lion.

"That lion is not receiving the right dosage of vitamins he needs to maintain his coat's shiny luster." Fluttershy moved her hoof around to the black tigers. "You're clearly not giving the cub the tools he needs to learn how to hunt and the mother's fur looks like she hasn't been properly grooming herself. The panda is obviously constipated, the leopards look like they need sleep, and above all else-"

The mare finally turned to Pendulum.

"They all look a little underfed."

"She's right," the disguised dragon pointed out, feeling vexed that he had been pushed aside. "You can see some ribs on a couple of them."

Those who had heard them were beginning to mutter among each other, looking upon the stallion in disapproval. Stroking his beard, impressed with Fluttershy's intimate knowledge, he pushed the reptilian completely away and tossed a foreleg around her shoulders to pull her close.

"Well… I am oopen to suggestioons. After all, I want my animals 'ealthy."

Fluttershy looked mildly put off that Smokey was shoved aside, but let out a squeak as this unicorn suddenly closed in and wrapped his foreleg around her. Locking up, not at all used to such close proximity of a complete stranger, she gulped.

"Um… W-well," she began. "You could… could start… feeding them more often… and I'd check their nutritional dietary plans to… make sure they're getting… what they need."

"I will be sure to talk to whooever feeds them. And make sure they get the best," he reassured with a look of annoyance. It was true he appointed the feeding of his animals to someone else, he did feel partially responsible. It was then he decided he would personally see to it that his creatures looked their best.

"Ummm. Good," Fluttershy said, slinking out of the stallion's grasp and backing off towards Smokey's side, pressing her flank against his. "I'm… I'm glad. I can't bear to see animals mistreated."

"You can rest easy, lassie. They woon't be mistreated any loonger."

It was then he shifted his attention to the small griffon in her foreleg. He had never heard of a griffon with a pure white pelt before, aside from an albino - and this one wasn't albino, he noticed.

This had to be a rarity.

"Who's the wee oone?"

"Oh?" Fluttershy dropped her eyes to the baby. "Th-this? This is Chenoa… She's… um…"

She felt a little odd saying what she was about to say next - considering that Chenoa wasn't really her baby. Not officially, at any rate, as far as the court of law was concerned when it came to the adoption process.

Still, she felt too close to the chick to deny otherwise. Her maternal instincts towards her had never been stronger. Not to mention the baby identified her as her mother. The mare even doubted the little one would even remember or recognize her true parents at this point.

"She's… my daughter."

"And…" Smokey piped up to gain Pendulum's attention. "I'm her father."

The stallion was confused at first, before the conclusion that she was adopted swiftly dawned on him.

"She's a darlin'."

"Thank you. She is our pride and joy," the draconic being tacked on, then lowered his head to nuzzle the little baby.

Fluttershy smiled, reaching to press her head against Smokey's as she finished nuzzling the child.

"She's such a sweetie. And a true bundle. We've been blessed to have her, even if it's only been a short while."

"That's very sweet." The unicorn nodded once with a warm smile. "Noow, if you'll excuse me, I must be 'avin' a talk with whooever feeds my animals."

Turning around and slipping between cars to disappear behind the carriage-train, he did just that, questioning various workers to refer him to the right pony.

"What do you think of that pony?" Smokey questioned the mare at his side.

Fluttershy rotated her ears and flattened them against her head.

"I don't really get a good feeling from him… I don't know why… Something seems… off."

"He doesn't seem to know much about his own animals. I don't think he should even have them, if that is the case," he surmised at a volume only his friend would hear.

"I would like to think he's got a caretaker for them," Fluttershy whispered back. "Somepony he hired to look after them, but that worries me… If they're in this condition…"

The rosy-maned equine cut trailed off and shook her head.

"I hope he really does give a good talking to whomever takes care of them," he said as he analyzed the animals a second time.

"I'm sure he will," Fluttershy responded with rising agitation, her voice amplifying enough to gain the attention of the approaching Twilight Sparkle. "… He'd better. Or I'll… I'll…"

"Alright, Fluttershy," Twilight Sparkle coaxed, smiling calmly at her to defuse the situation. "Let's calm down."

Fluttershy was normally a very non-violent pony, and she preferred to talk over matters more than anything else. She hated coming to blows if she absolutely had to avoid it, but when the subject came to animals and their well-being, she would not hesitate to get aggressive.

When Twilight Sparkle had practiced levitating animals in choreographed sequences for entertainment, she recalled Fluttershy shaking a hoof at her in case one of them got hurt. While she knew her timid friend would never do anything of the sort under other circumstances, and she didn't put it past her that she would have made good on her implied threat if something did go wrong.

"Yes, let us just see what happens. The animals' conditions may improve," Smokey stated in an effort to further soothe Fluttershy's impending anger. "If they don't, we will report him."

The pegasus trembled lightly and exhumed a sigh.

"Alright. But, if they doesn't, so help me-"

"If they don't we'll deal with him then." The lavender alicorn extended a wing to drape it over the yellow-furred mare's back. "You already pointed everything out to him. He said he would rectify it."

"I know…" Fluttershy relaxed further, her body ceasing its trembling. "I'm sorry… It just burns me up so badly to see such cute critters mistreated in any way… Nothing gets me angrier than that."

"Everything will be all right, Miss Fluttershy. I promise if they don't get better, I will personally see to it that they get the care they need," Smokey reassured as he lifted a hand to place it upon the mare's shoulder.

As Chenoa's vision left one of the leopards, she squealed loudly at the sight of the sepia panda, reminding her of her stuffed toy.

"Baba-ba!"

A smile tipped Fluttershy's lips, feeling a bit more cheered at this promise. Then, Chenoa's squeal lifted her spirits even higher, especially as she attempted to speak.

"Yes, sweetheart." Fluttershy nodded once, slowly enunciating her next words for the baby. "Pan-da bear."

"Baba-brr!" the child tried to pronounce, throwing in another mirthful squeal that melted the hearts of her adoptive parents.

"You almost got it," the dragon chuckled with a burst of pride, grinning from ear frill to ear frill underneath his mask.

Fluttershy giggled and lowered her head to nuzzle the child.

"You're getting better, Chenoa! A little more practice, and you'll be able to say it no problem!"

"She is right, little princess." Leaning in, he delivered another nuzzle to the chick, purring all the while. "Are we done here, Miss Fluttershy, or do you want to look at the animals some more?"

"Is there anything else here aside from the animals?" Fluttershy queried, here eyes wary and surveying their surroundings. "Otherwise, yes, I'd say we should probably go."

As soon as Fluttershy uttered those words, a pair of acrobatic earth ponies burst from one of the cars behind the line of cages, one leaping on top of the other as another worker placed a ramp down. A series of clowns followed, a couple walking out on stilts, a few rolling on unicycles, and one carrying a tiny carriage where five more far to big to fit inside of it piled out.

The yellow winged mare squeaked, shuffling closer to Smokey as her remaining friends joined her side, Pinkie Pie laughing at the clowns - especially as they broke out into a pie and water bottle fight. Not only was the pink party pony laughing, but Chenoa was practically bursting her gut giggling so hard. Smokey chuckled softly at the baby's enjoyment, shaking his head once.

"I suppose this gives us a reason to stay."

Fluttershy was nervous of the clowns surrounding the area. One in particular sprang up near them, having noticed Chenoa laughing and had decided to come over to entertain her. Grinning, emitting a goofy laugh and spinning his bowtie, he honked his red nose.

In reaction, the pale yellow pegasus let out a panicked cry and buried her head in Smokey's side.

With her timorous nature, Smokey half suspected she would respond in such a manner. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders to quickly reassure her, he lifted his eyes to the clown to gently admonish him.

"Sir, please don't do that. She is easy to frighten."

The clown's ears drooped, his brow sagged, and his nose deflated with a dying "HOOOooonnk".

He smiled a second later and beeped his nose twice more before he coddled off to amuse some of the other children nearby who where significantly more open to him than Fluttershy.

"I'm sorry," Fluttershy said as she removed her face from Smokey's side, a frown tugging at her features. "I'm really sorry…"

"Ah, shucks, 'Shy, it was just a clown!" Applejack stated with a wide smile. "T'ain't nothing but a harmless-"

"You don't understand," the pegasus interjected. "I'm… I have coulrophobia."

"Color a what now?" the farmer ventured, arching a brow.

"Coulrophobia," Twilight Sparkle repeated, slower to enunciate the syllables. "It means fear of clowns."

In an effort to make his companion feel better, the dragon leaned in to whisper his thoughts on the clown.

"To tell you the truth, I thought the clown was a little creepy myself."

Fluttershy smiled faintly at him, glad to know that she was not alone in her views.

"Now, lemme get this straight," Applejack started. "Y'all are afraid of CLOWNS?"

"Oh, yes." Fluttershy shivered, her frown returning. "Clowns… creep me out. Those white faces, all that makeup… Ugggh."

"… Why?"

"It happened when I was a small filly," the yellow mare whimpered. "I got scared by a clown at a circus my parents took me to. It scared me so much I couldn't calm down until after we got home. I… never really got over it."

"I just find clowns a little creepy. There is no story behind that." Still holding the pegasus, Smokey turned his attention to the baby in her foreleg, who was laughing to the point of tearing up. "At least she's finding them enjoyable."