Staying Put

Escape! Stretch your fucking legs, you've been in the house too long. Forest paths are getting familiar, everything's looking the same, it wouldn't hurt to explore a little civilisation.

Jason left home that morning with Ponyville in mind, determined to get a good feel for the place, give the locals a little more of a chance. There was always the possibility that those that actually came to greet him were the most fanatical of the bunch, and that the rest were comparatively normal, right?

A slim one, at least. The walk had been without incident so far, and crossing the short expanse of green between the forest and the outskirts of town was actually rather pleasant. The sun was high, beating down on his coat and causing him to squint his eyes, but he'd grown so used to the shade that he rather enjoyed the need to.

Jason was rather directionless. He wasn't entirely sure what he planned to do with his day, and the only thought on his mind was that of taking in more of his surroundings, becoming accustomed to this strange place that was tethered to his home.

There didn't seem to be many stallions out, which he only found more odd. He supposed that with what he understood of how mares acted in this culture, it made sense for mares to be doing a majority of the labour intensive work, but that didn't seem an excuse for spotting one stallion for every eight or so mares. Even those that just seemed to be going about the day to day, shopping for groceries or relaxing in the park, a majority of them were female.

Were there just many less stallions than mares in Ponyville? Seemed a possibility. In fact, maybe that's why the mares he'd entertained so far seemed so interested in him. Slim pickings, and all that. Was a little bit of a hit to the ego, the possibility that he was only considered appealing when there was hardly anything else around, but Jason wasn't particularly fussed. After all, there were more important parts of his holiday than being something alluring or desirable, things like relaxing.

And for once, walking down the road with a small smile, his mane being blown about by a light gust of wind, Jason felt as if he was doing just that. It was downplayed only slightly by the eyes he felt on him—he'd expected to be ogled.

Still, there were a lot of them, mares looking at him with expressions that he couldn't plainly read, no matter how he tried. Whether it was intrigue, arousal, shock, or something else entirely that they were displaying, he couldn't deduce it. They seemed to look him up and down a lot, as if they were seeing a stallion for a first time. One or two of them just stood there dumbly with their mouths open. Jason slowed down for a second, waiting for somepony to say something, but no noise came and he swiftly continued on.

Maybe it was the way he walked? Long strides, withers squared, head high. He imagined there was something about his posture and gait that was fairly noticeable, but even if that was the case, was this level of attention seriously warranted?

Once again, he was beginning to grow a little irritated. All he wanted to do was fit in today, he wasn't looking to be an outlier. Jason began to snarl at others beside himself, the hint of a growl emanating in the base of his throat as once more he felt eyes lingering on his form. It made him feel as if he was an anomaly, like he couldn't go anywhere and just be himself without it being some kind of issue.

Tired of walking, tired of feeling like the centre of attention, Jason stopped off at a small cafe. It was a small, intimate place, and there weren't many ponies about. Perhaps he could sit here and have a nice, calming beverage, a small respite. It worried him that he'd managed to get tired out so easily, but it felt as if it was more mental exasperation than anything else.

The mare that walked up to him stared like the rest, but she managed to get over her stammers quickly enough. "Can I get you anything, sir?"

"Vanilla latte, thanks. Two sugars."

"And anything for your partner?" the mare asked, her smile the embodiment of customer service, even if her eyes felt a little too intense on him.

Still, it was her words that caught Jason off-guard. "My... partner?"

She raised a hoof, fiddling with the ends of her curly mane. "W-well, yes, I just assumed that you were going to be here with somepony."

There was that growl again; he managed to keep it contained, barely. "Did you see me walk in here with anyone?"

Rather than answering, the mare thought over the question for a moment, and her eyes widened. "So... you're here alone?"

"I am indeed, is that an issue?" Jason blinked hard, just long enough to hide his eye roll, and found the mare looking at him looking doubly intrigued compared to only moments before.

"No, it's just..." she bit her lip, lowering her hoof and pointing it in his direction. "You're available, then?"

"Just get my damn coffee."

"O-oh! Right, I'm sorry. One vanilla latte, coming right up!" The mare turned to leave, turned back to grab the notepad she'd been writing orders on, almost knocked it off the table, blushed hotly, made a mad grab for it and ran off. Seriously, such a debacle just from ordering a fucking coffee?

Jason almost felt bad for snapping, but someone had it coming. It was ridiculous just how little it took for one of these ponies to bite, honestly. It was almost as if he was being punished simply for being a male in this environment, something he just couldn't wrap his head around for the life of him. Why should something as insignificant as gender influence normal social interaction in such a hefty way?

His eyes scanned the cafe once more, feeling harder than usual if only for his current annoyance. The barista from earlier was nowhere in sight, and the only other patrons were two mares sat on the opposite side of the garden, both looking at him, and a snow white unicorn holding a dainty cup in a blue aura, sipping at the thing.

Funnily enough, she seemed to be the only one not captivated by him. Perhaps she hadn't noticed him yet, seeing as she hadn't felt it necessary to eye rape him just yet. Jason knew he was borderline stereotyping by now, but they seemed to do the exact same, so that justified it a little, right? Probably not. Either way, there was something interesting about this situation if only for its obscurity.

What he was witnessing—and it almost felt as if it was for the first time—was a mare simply going about her day, enjoying a warm beverage and relaxing, just as he'd be doing soon enough. After so many strange and negative experiences, it felt reaffirming to see a mare acting in a natural manner, even if it was because she simply hadn't noticed him yet. It was certainly a rarity, he knew that much.

Feeling like a hypocrite for staring himself, Jason averted his eyes, looking back to his table and beginning to fiddle with the menu sat in the rack. The parasol above him did a good job of keeping the sun out, but he'd soon resorted to spinning it under the table with one of his back hooves if only to pass the time.

He was distracted from his reverie by the return of the mare, who placed a saucer and cup in front of him. The drink smelled as good as it looked, and in that moment, Jason forgot his prior irritation. "Thank you. How much does that come to?"

"It doesn't." The mare shrugged her withers, gesturing to the side with her head. "The mare over there told me to put it on her bill."

Jason's eyes didn't even need to follow the barista's signals. "The white one?"

"Yeah, her. Probably trying to score with you, if I had to guess."

"You mean like you were a moment ago?"

She quickly shut up at that, shuffling off in a hurry. Jason looked down at his cup, thankful for the quiet. He looked behind him, but still the white unicorn was sipping at her drink without a care in the world, and it was hard for Jason to believe that she even knew he was there.

But apparently, she'd bought this drink for him. He was fairly conflicted by that. For a moment, he'd thought that she might be different to all the other mares he'd encountered, even if it was more of a gut feeling than anything, but this development only seemed to strip away that notion. It was like the barista said: this was most likely just another opportunity to hit on him, those which he'd grown so accustomed to, increasingly sick of.

Well, time to do something about it. Walking over to the mare's table, barely sparing her a glance, he opened up his bit bag, counted out a few, and placed them right in front of her. "Thanks, but no thanks."

"Now, was that really necessary?" the white unicorn responded, placing down her cup but not looking up from it. "I can understand a refusal of hospitality from strangers, but it's only a cup of coffee, dear." She seemed to chuckle the last few words, which only made Jason question himself more. Was he reacting too strongly?

Jason rubbed one foreleg with the other as he looked at her, attempting to keep his face stern. "I just don't need charity from mares I don't know, alright?"

When her eyes met his, they bore this little twinkle that matched her smirk. "Well, if you're so adamant, I'll refrain from doing without asking next time. But on this occasion, I insist, keep your money, enjoy your drink. You don't look familiar, so call it a welcome to Ponyville, if you must." With that, she was back to nursing her drink, a light and milky thing with marshmallows and chocolate sprinkles inside.

Jason tried to think of a retort, but the only thing that came was a response that... actually felt genuine. "I appreciate it, thank you." He turned to leave then, and she made no move to pursue conversation, but thought better at the last second, turning back to face her.

"Yes?" She had an eyebrow raised now, an accompaniment to that little smile, as if she'd anticipated his exact actions.

"I just feel I owe you an apology." Jason rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes averted. "I was pretty rude just now, and I didn't really consider how what I said would come out."

"Oh, trust me, darling, you aren't the only one lacking in tact and decorum around here," the unicorn laughed, a musical thing that seemed to jostle the liquid held in her cup, as if her magic responded to its owner's jubilance. "That said, at least you had the common decency to own up to it." A small grin, a tut. "Well, they ought to rename that at some point—decency is anything but common these days."

Jason could feel himself laughing despite his trepidation, it was almost as if he was actually enjoying this mare's presence, somehow. "I've noticed. It's almost as if every pony I meet is lacking in social skills. That or they're doing everything with some kind of agenda."

"The way of the world, unfortunately," the white mare sighed, leaning back in her chair. "Still, you seem to be one of the good ones. Might I ask your name?"

"Jason. Jason Moors." He extended a hoof to shake, and the moment she extended hers in response, he couldn't help but notice how well-kempt her hooves were, almost polished with how they shone. "And yourself?"

"Rarity, but I'm afraid you'll have to excuse my lack of a surname. Parents never saw it fit to give me one."

"Ironic," Jason half-blurted, the word coming out before he could process how he was going to explain it.

Of course, it piqued her interest. "Do tell?"

"It's nothing, it's just..." Jason looked around him, then back to his drink, as if desperate for something that would do the talking for him. Rarity waited patiently the entire time, and eventually, he found words. "You're quite different from the rest of the mares I've encountered around here, in a couple of aspects, at least."

Her smile was genuine, and her eyelids fluttered in approval. "You're too kind, darling, you really are." Another sip, and she looked past him before allowing her eyes to return to his face. "I suppose I should be letting you get back to your drink, hmm?"

In his appreciation of what felt like the first actual, genuine conversation he'd had in a long long time, Jason had almost completely forgotten that he did in fact have a drink, one that she'd been kind enough to pay for. "Oh, Christ, you're right. Let me just grab that."

"Oh? You're coming over here, then?" She blinked twice, as if she was feigning confusion.

Jason smirked, realising how easily his words could have been taken that way. "Isn't that what you wanted in the first place?"

"Now, I'd call that awfully presumptuous, Jason, but I'd be happy for your company nevertheless." Rarity flicked her mane back as she spoke, stretching outwards and allowing her curves to be accentuated by her pose. She was in rather good shape, but unlike Rainbow Dash who was athletic or Twilight who carried a little weight, Rarity looked as if she only carried weight where it mattered, an hourglass figure on a pony if he'd ever seen one with wide hips and a slim barrel.

Jason took his seat opposite her, scooping up the bits from earlier and placing them back in his saddlebags. Her expression for how inviting it was carried an air of reticence, and Jason was genuinely intrigued to work out just what this beautiful, enigmatic pony was all about.

Hell, maybe she wasn't even into stallions, or something.