C1_On_The_Subject_Of_Arrivals
C1_On_The_Subject_Of_Arrivals
Pressing Rapids
A collaboration between Viking Hoof and Digital_Hex
On The Subject Of Arrivals
The sun over Manehatten peaked in between the clouds as it rose in the sky, beginning the new day in the big city. Ponies all over the city were waking as those already awake gave a sigh of relief, their night shifts coming to a close. And at one particular train depot, a particular gray unicorn trotted nervously in place, turning circles.
“When is the train going to get here, when is the train going to get here?”
The unicorn, one Crisp Press, continued pacing, a bead of sweat developing on the young pony's forehead. A passerby trotted by, accidentally bumping into Press.
“Oops, my apologies miss,” the mare apologized before trotting away, leaving Crisp Press standing back, unamused.
“I'm a colt,” he huffed, rubbing his shoulder.
Turning, Crisp was faced with a panel of clean glass along the walls of the train depot, his reflection staring back at him.
He was a smaller stallion of seventeen, lithe stature with rather feminine curves along his form, his cutie mark a proud origami swan of pure white. His face could have fooled even the most hetero of stallions, a face blessed with a rather curious beauty. A face that, when combined with his figure and rather silky mane, had led many to believe he was a mare, as evident of his latest encounter. Even his own voice sounded like a mare's, a quality that did not help him in the least.
He hated being mistaken for a mare, but every attempt to look more masculine just backfired. He messed up his mane? Then he became a punk girl. He cut it short? Tomboy. He wore a suit?
He wasn't quite sure how, but that made him even more feminine.
A sound off in the distance piqued his attention, his ears flicking in tune with the gentle rocking of pistons on the horizon. His hopes grew; she was almost back.
Crisp ran a hoof down his hide, making sure his hide was clean and calm. His heart was beating rapidly, his mouth going dry. He hadn't seen her in almost five months, and it killed him. She had been his best friend, ever since they were small. Press had graduated from grade school a year before her, but that hadn't changed anything. At least not to her.
Unbeknownst to the mare on his mind, Crisp Press had, in the more traditional sense, fallen for her. He'd been taken with her beauty from a young age, but it took the sudden fluctuation of hormones and puberty for him to realize just why he longed for her company, why he felt so secure and safe around her. She was a strong-minded and able-bodied mare, with beautiful curves and a charisma unlike any he'd ever seen.
And he was crazy for her.
The train pulled into the train station with an agonizing lack of urgency, slowly creaking along until it finally came to a stop in it's resting place, belching out a last puff of choking smog from the pipes.
“She's here, she's here, she'shereshe'shereshe'shereshe's-”
“Press!”
He felt his heart soar. She'd spotted him before he'd been able to spot her. Completely oblivious to the fact he was only one of three ponies on the depot floor, thus easy to spot, his heart raced at what he had interpreted as her longing for him. Had it been as powerful as his for her? Had she laid awake for hours, unable to get him out of her mind as he had done for the past months?
Press was suddenly wrapped in a tight, crushing hug, jarring him from his thoughts.
“I missed you so much!” Rapid Souffle chirped as she held her precious colt in her legs, taking his breath away.
Press gasped, squirming in her gasp as his face glowed bright red.
“I- missed you... too!” Crisp Press choked out, gasping as his dream mare let go of him. He instantly doubled over, huffing desperately for oxygen. Rapid Souffle blushed slightly, the sierra-toned mare surprised by her sudden outburst. It seemed as though her short trip before returning home had brushed off on her a little more than she'd expected.
“So how's my favourite little colt?” she asked with a giggle, giving his head a familial noogie her hoof. He immediately froze up.
“She just... no no no, things were supposed to change!” he yelled at himself, unable to verbalize his thoughts. He settled for a slight scowl.
Rapid pawed at her cherry mane, the curled tips bobbing along with her hoof. Press was down for an awfully long time, she hoped she hadn't hurt him. She blinked her luminous green eyes, cocking an eyebrow. She really hoped she hadn't hurt the poor colt.
“Yo Press, y'alright?” she asked, her Manehatten quickly returning to her. Her accent was a curious one: when she focused, she could pass for the upper-class mare her parents had dreamed for her to become, but she could quickly drop it, whether intentionally or not, and revert to a more earthy slang that Manehatten was famous all over Equestria for.
“Never better,” Press choked out, clutching himself as he willed his blush to disappear.
Rapid draped a hoof along Press, trying to help him stand.
“So how was Ponyville?” Crisp Press asked his friend, desperate to start a conversation to mask his screaming red face.
“Oh, it was a drag, but I was able to hang out with Pumpkin a lot, so that was fun!”
“Pumpkin,” Press started as the two began trotting away from the train, “that was the mare you... mentioned, in your letters, right?”
“Yeah, she was one fine mare. I'll have to visit her again soon,” she giggled. Press groaned to himself.
Fine mare. Press was aware that Rapid was more into mares lately, but... surely she could be interested in him, right? Right?
Rapid glanced at her little friend, frowning. He seemed rather upset, which in turn upset her. She didn't like seeing him upset, he was too sweet deserve being upset. Perhaps if he met a special stallion while at the mall, maybe...
“Hey,” Rapid said with a smile, “Ponyville was pretty dull... how about we go shopping, just the two of us? It'll be fun!”
Now, an interesting tid-bit of information: Rapid thought that Press was gay. He loved hanging out with her, talked with her about everything, even would paint her hooves for her when she asked him. He was her gay best friend forever, at least in her mind.
Press couldn't help but smile sadly. He'd made the mistake of telling her one time that he enjoyed shopping with her, which she had apparently taken to heart, as she insisted he accompany her to the mall every time following.
Sighing, Press nodded his head.
“Alright, but can we drop off your bags first? They're kind of heavy.”
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
After learning where her new house was, Rapid Souffle made her way there with Crisp Pres in tow, dropping her things off and kissing her mother before taking off again, in high spirits.
Crisp Press, however, was not as high in spirit. He was rather low and quiet, silently following after Rapid as she led him towards a rather large department mall located near the edges of the shopping district.
“First things first, clothing!” Rapid declared as she strutted ahead, taking in the sights. Not much had changed in the past near-five months, but for her it was an entirely new scene. The massive store housed hundreds of separate clothing outlets, each of them awaiting Rapid for her shopping pleasure.
As Rapid Souffle giggled on ahead, Press groaned to himself. Why did he let himself get roped in to such things? He knew the drill by now: she'd shop herself silly, hit up a bar, get drunk, move on to a lez bar, get even more drunk, and wake up in a motel room with a mare she'd never see again. Oh, and Press would be watching guard for her the entire fragging night.
Press groaned again. Why did he let himself get roped in to such things?
Following Rapid in to the store, he caught sight of her immediately jumping at the nearest dress, her eyes sparkling as she looked it over with a certain fascination that Press couldn't help but smile at.
That look right there, he told himself, that's why I come along with her.
The love-drunk colt looked after his dream mare with next to no attention to his immediate surroundings. An instant later, he was blindsided by a loose display cart.
“OOOF!” he cried out as the cart toppled over him, showering a range of skirts and dresses over top of him, burying him beneath.
“My bad, miss!” Press heard a store attendant call, rushing over to him.
Press growled.
He hated being mistaken for a mare.
Struggling to push himself up, Press popped up out of the stack of clothes, glowering.
“Could you be a little more careful there, please?” he asked with an attitude. The white store attendant chuckled.
“Sorry, ma'am, it was an accident. Won't happen again."
Press grumbled about as he pulled himself from the pile, feeling fabric pull and tug at him. He was suddenly aware of multiple ponies staring at him rather... powerfully.
Stopping mid-pull, he glanced around. Of the few customers in the room, several of them were staring at him with a smirk and a cock to their brows.
All of them were stallions.
Rolling his eyes, Press continued to pry himself loose.
No, I'm not gay, don't even try and ask me- he started, but was cut short at something he dreaded.
It also happened to be something he was definitely not expecting.
“Hey, miss, the modeling stands are out in the window!” one of the stallions hollered at Press while another colt hooted at him.
Miss? They can't be that thick, right? Ri-
Then he felt it. The way the fabric contorted to him, rode along his body.
With a quick flash of his magic, he shot out of the pile, stumbling into the assistant from earlier. And in a stroke of fate, he landed in such a way that his face was rubbing a small mirror attached to the counter.
He was wearing a thin white dress. Nothing fancy, nothing frilly, just a plain, white dress.
And suddenly he knew why the stallions were hooting at him. He even felt himself blush slightly, a feat which confused him.
He looked damn hot. His mane was, instead of the usual shag, tossed in front of his eyes, and the dress clung to his shallow curves far more sensually than he would have expected.
And suddenly, he was extremely aware of himself. But not in the way one would expect.
He literally looked every bit like a mare. Not as in the usual “Oh hey miss- whoops, my bad” way. No, no, no, he was unrecognizable as a stallion at this point unless he suddenly was forced to have an erection, something that was thankfully a rarity for him.
He was, for all intents and purposed, a mare. And for some reason... he liked it.
“Miss, are you alright?” the white stallion manning the counter asked while helping Crisp up.
Crisp coughed slightly, nodding.
“Y-yeah, I'm fine. Thank you, though.”
“Sure thing- woah, that dress suits you fine,” the stallion obliviously commented, looking Press up and down. Press tried to hide behind his mane at the sudden attention he was receiving.
“Um... th-thank you?” Press squeaked.
OHMYGOSH THIS IS SO FRAGGING AWKWARD... Crisp Press screamed in his mind.
“If you want to purchase that, it would be my pleasure to see you through the check-out,” the stallion winked before trotting around Crisp and beginning to pick back up the rack of fallen clothing.
Meanwhile, Crisp Press was hyperventilating.
Did that stallion just HIT ON ME?! That was so weird, please never let that again happen! What would Rapid think if-
Suddenly, he had an idea. A rather twisted, demented idea, but an idea nonetheless.
Rapid liked mares, this he knew. As he was now, he could hardly recognize himself as the stallion he once was. If he was able to fool the other colts in the room into thinking he was a mare...
Well, why couldn't he fool Rapid Souffle? It would take a lot of time making himself look different in order to be sure she couldn't recognize him, but he could do it.
Then he had another idea. It was even more twisted then the last, and he hated himself for thinking it, but he thought it nonetheless.
They were going to a bar later. She would be getting inebriated to hit on mares at bars. He would be unrecognizable in a dress if she was looking through beer goggles. She might just hit on him. He could say yes.
Now Crisp Press had been dealing with his crush on Rapid for years now. He was a desperate colt devising desperate plans, and like most plans, this one didn't factor what came after the plan. It wasn't important, only the plan was.
Gulping hard, Crisp Press slowly trotted over towards Rapid, head low and focused. Rapid was still ogling over the peach dress she'd spotted upon entering the store, having witnessed absolutely nothing since stepping hoof beyond the doors save the magnificent assortment of fabric and art.
Press sidled up next to Rapid, keeping a very short distance between the two of them as he pretended to be interested in the dress rack next to Rapid. His eyes were carefully cocked to the left, keeping a lookout for any reaction on Rapid's part.
Nothing. She hardly even noticed anypony was there.
Sighing, Press trotted away, heading for the rack to return the dress. He was going to hear an earful about strutting around with it on and was sure he'd get thrown out of the store as soon as the attendant learned Press was really a guy, but it was fine-
Press stopped as he passed by the mirror again.
His gaze wandered over his figure, his body. He had to admit, he really did look like a mare in the dress. An attractive mare, at that. And, oddly enough... it made himself feel better about himself.
As much as he hated to admit it, he kinda did like the dress. It was comfortable. It suited him.
Smiling in sick disgust, Press sighed as he let his judgment cloud over. Pulling out his bit bag, he trotted over to the counter.
“Is it okay if I wear this out?” he asked the attendant sweetly, hoping he wasn't laying the false charm on too thick.
If he had been, it had went way over the attendant's head.
“It's no problem at all, miss,” he assured Press before taking a quick glance at the dress as if trying to find the price tag. Press was all too aware that his eyes lingered a little too long on his flank.
“It was on the 30 bit rack,” Press coughed, passing over the correct number of bits. The stallion coughed, excusing himself as he collected the money.
“Thank you miss,” he said with a way to friendly smile. “Have a nice day now, y'hear?”
Press grinned, nodding with a sweet curtsey as he left the store.
Once out of the store, he whooped loudly.
“THAT WAS SO WEIRD BUT FUN!” he cried in bliss.
Thinking back, he couldn't help but feel the rush of excitement as he wondered what could have happened if he'd been caught, how wrong it was to enjoy pretending to be a mare.
He whinnied in giddy, never before having felt such taboo joy. He had found a new hobby, it seemed.
As he trotted off to find another store to test out his disguise, he was completely unaware of a light shimmering along both sides of his flank.
Back at the store, Rapid Souffle snapped out of her trance, finally deciding to purchase the dress. She would look perfect in it for... later. Hey, she was allowed to dress up for bars! There would be some cute mares there for sure, perhaps even a stallion or two that really caught her eye-
“Hey,” she said aloud, looking around. “Where's Press?”
C2_All's_Well_That_Dresses_Well
C2_All's_Well_That_Dresses_Well
Pressing Rapids
A collaboration between Viking Hoof and Digital_Hex
All's Well That Dresses Well
Rapid Souffle sighed as she downed another shot, her vision spinning temporarily. She felt so empty, so hollow. She needed something, anything.
A quick scan around the room showed a number of mares, stallions, and questionables. She could have asked any of them to a dance, gotten frisky, and went down on them all within five minutes, but...
She downed the next shot in the line.
Something was missing.
“Three more, babe,” the barkeeper pressured her. Rapid scowled, focusing on the remaining shot glasses. Three more, and all the drinks were on the house.
Three.
She quickly grabbed another, downing it with a grimace.
Two.
Another one went down her throat, the burning liquid almost making her gag. It hurt now.
One.
She braced herself against the counter as her eyes dropped heavily, ears crackling as she felt her tummy flip-flop all sorts of directions. One more to go, one more to go.
Clenching her eyes shut, Rapid grabbed the final shot and forced it down, slamming the empty glass on the table.
The barkeeper smirked.
“Good job,” he said as he removed the glasses, wiping the table clean after them.
Rapid, however, couldn't feel the usual sense of victory. Something was wrong. It felt like something was missing...
She was alone at the bar, in a frilly peach dress. She should have been having fun out on the dance floor, letting loose and flirting with all of the mares she could find. This was the third bar she'd been to so far, but...
She was alone at the bar.
She was never alone at the bar.
She sighed, waving for another shot.
“You sure?” the bartender asked. Rapid nodded vigorously.
Smirking, the bartender readied another round.
“You're paying for these ones, just to let you know,” he laughed as he set up three more shots.
Rapid replied by downing a shot forcefully, coughing as she smacked the glass back down while passing over a few bits to cover the drinks.
“Take care there.”
Rapid's right ear flicked in response to the voice. It was oddly familiar to her, yet alien at the same time.
She was never alone at the bar.
Glancing right, she could make out a gray-ish, silver-ish mare in a... was it a white dress? Her vision was pretty hazy by now. That was a mare, right? Rapid took the whole pony into her blurred vision. That was a mare.
“You, uh... you alright?”
Rapid cocked her head. Who was the mare talking to, her?
Rapid Souffle raised a delirious hoof to her face.
“M-Me?” she asked shakily.
The mare nodded. Rapid gulped.
She was never alone at the bar.
Was she alright? Was she really alright? She felt alright. Not good, but... alright.
“I'm uh... fine.”
“You come here often?”
Rapid shook her head no.
“N-No, I'm... usually with somepony else.”
Who was she usually with? She couldn't remember.
She was never alone at the bar.
“Oh?” the silvery mare asked. Her coat was really shiny. Shiny shiny shiny-
“It's a shame that somepony couldn't make it,” the mare flirted.
Even in her inebriated state, Rapid could catch the hints. The mare was interested.
As the mare ran a hoof through her short mane, Rapid saw that the mare was a unicorn. Rapid knew a unicorn, didn't she?
No, she didn't know this mare. She was really pretty. And shiny.
She was never alone at the bar. Her guest just took a little while to arrive.
Rapid smiled drunkenly as she sidled up along to the mare.
“Yeah, a real shame,” Rapid said with a heavy charm. The mare giggled. This was going to be fun.
The mare waved for a drink. Rapid couldn't make out what she ordered, but it sounded fruity. And familiar. But how was it familiar? She just met the mare, and she'd never ordered that drink! It was too fruity.
The mare drank slowly, savouring the flavours. Rapid watched her carefully, savouring the beauty.
The mare was hot. Very hot. And shiny. Very shiny.
“So how 'bout you, come here often yourself?” Rapid asked.
“No, I, uh... I'm usually working and-”
“Wow you're successful,” Rapid blurted out. She never had a job before. Having a job must have meant she was successful. Maybe it was because she was so shiny. And hot. But probably the shinies.
“Oh, ah- thank you kindly, miss-”
“Souffle!” Rapid informed her. “Rapid Souffle, that is, ahahaha...” Rapid chuckled nervously. Why was she getting so flustered all of a sudden with this mare? She seemed familiar. Maybe because she was so shiny. Had she known any other pony so shiny? She couldn't have.
“Well it's a pleasure to meet you, Souffle,” the shiny pony said with a smile, carefully slipping her hoof over to Rapid's and taking it gently, planting a tender kiss on to her hoof.
Rapid just giggled like a school-filly. She was drunk.
“Say...” the silver mare suddenly said, bobbing her head to the faint music in the room, “would you... care for a dance?”
Rapid felt herself blush deeply. She was usually the one asking to dance... this was different.
She smiled. Maybe she could like different. And shiny.
Quickly downing the last two shots, Rapid took the hoof of the mystery mare and let her pull her on to the dance floor. As they took a dancing pose, the bartender smirked deviously while switching the song to one a little more... fitting.
Beauty queen of only eighteen
She had some trouble with herself...
He was always there to help her
She always belonged to someone else...
The mare wrapped a hoof around Rapid, slowly spinning the two in a neat circle, eyes locked ahead. The mare's face was blushing slightly, her blazing blue eyes staring longfully into Rapid's luminous green orbs. Rapid was only subtly aware that she was a short amount taller than the mare.
The mare sung along with the lines as they continued their dance across the floor. Both of them were barely aware that they were no longer the only couple embracing each other.
“I drove for miles and miles and wound up at your door
I've had you so many times but somehow I want more...”
Rapid saw a shimmer in the mare's eyes. She knew that shimmer. Where did she know that shimmer? Was it like the shiny, the sense of familiarity?
“I don't mind spending every day...
Out on your corner in the pouring rain;
Look for the mare with the broken smile...
Ask her if she wants to stay awhile...
And she will be loved,
And she will be loved, ooo-oh...”
Rapid Souffle let herself be swooped away by the mare, enjoyed the serenade of her voice. Such a familiar voice. Maybe it was the drink that was confusing her. She couldn't have known the mare.
But that voice reminded her so much of another voice. A voice that sang to her when she was down, or upset. Who was the one who sang to her?
She couldn't remember. Leaning forward, she brushed her chin along the top of the gray mare's head.
She could remember tender moments like these. She didn't share them with other mares. It was always a quick buck it and quit it. She almost never saw the mares again after, very rarely catching a few at bars weeks later, but it was never more than a couple times with the same mare. They were always so... desperate was a good word to use. Like she had been, in Ponyville.
But standing there, dancing with this mare she hardly even know, feeling the care the mare was giving her... this was something new. And she liked it.
This mare was... calm. Almost nervously calm, refusing to so much as skip a step. She could feel the mature tension resonating within the mare's body.
What was she worried about? Any mare would love to have her as their partner.
Any mare...
Through her alcohol-clouded mind, Rapid could think of a mare in particular that would love some company with the mare in her hooves.
She was never alone at the bar. Today was no exception.
Rapid leaned down to whisper in the mare's ear.
“Do you think we could go someplace a little more... private?” she asked lustfully.
The mare was now the one on the defensive as Rapid flipped the tables on her.
“S-sure,” she squeaked out cutely. “Wh-where did you have in mind?”
Rapid pulled the mare along with her as she led her stumbling through the bar, leading her out of the bar and into the streets. Rapid made sure she grabbed her bags from the day's shopping spree with her as they galloped out of the bar.
Sure enough, there was a motel not far from where they were.
Perfect.
The events following it were rushed and loud with Rapid's giggles as she purchased a room for the night. The mare behind the counter didn't so much as bat an eye at Rapid; this wasn't the first time the drunken mare had used this particular hotel before.
“Room Eleven, here's your-”
Rapid Souffle grabbed the key from the deskmare and led the now obviously nervous gray mare up to room she was given.
“... key.”
Opening the door, Rapid trotted confidently inside, tossing her bags in the corner before turning around.
The poor gray mare stood outside, shivering in fear.
“My- what's wrong?” Rapid suddenly asked.
“I-I've n-never, you know...” she trailed off.
“Oh- oooh...” she said quietly.
The mare stood outside the door, rubbing a hoof along her leg nervously.
“It's... this isn't what you normally do with mares you meet, is it?” Rapid said, trying to put the pieces together.
“N-no,” the mare squeaked out, trying (and failing) to hide behind her short mane.
“I... I'm sorry,” Rapid said, trying not to let her lust get the best of her. The mare was scared, for Faust's sake, she couldn't just pressure her into... that. Not like this.
“No, no it's... it's fine,” the mare said while swallowing hard, trying to wear a brave face as she strutted in with her chest held high. She was obviously trying too hard to look confident. “I just... this is new for me, is all.”
“Being with a mare?” Rapid giggled, sitting on the bed.
“Being with anypony,” the mare confessed, hopping up next to her. “I... I had a mare on my eye for a while, though. I... I never really could work up the courage to say anything to her though.”
“That... that's a shame,” Rapid said honestly as she let a hoof settle on the mare's shoulder.
“Y-yeah, it's... difficult to explain,” the mare said.
“You... you can explain it to me,” Rapid said, trying to get the mare to open up to her.
… Not in that way. Get your mind out of the gutter.
“It's... I...”
Tears welled up in the mare's eyes. Nervous tears.
“What is it?” Rapid asked softly.
That's when the mare turned to her. It was the tears that really got through to her.
The blue eyes. The gray coat. The silver mane. The voice. The care. The love.
And it was the tears that she could actually recognize.
Rapid wanted to say something. She really did.
But she found her mouth suddenly occupied as the gray pony lunged at her, pressing their lips firmly together.
Rapid didn't quite know what to think. But at the same time, so many thoughts were running through her mind.
Why... tell me... when... how...
The orange mare slowly let her hooves creep around the gray pony as she laid back, pulling the pony atop her.
As the two broke away, bright, icy blue eyes were all she could see.
“Press...” Rapid whispered.
“You really must have been drunk if you're just now figuring this out,” Press breathed, trying to keep any emotion out of his voice.
“I- you look very convincing as a mare, Press. Not my fault.”
Press blushed even more furiously, something Rapid hadn't thought possible.
“How long?” she asked him.
Press tried to look away, but Rapid traced a hoof along his face, bringing her back to his focus.
“How long?” she repeated.
“Years...” Press confessed. “I... I'm sorr-MMMPH!”
Rapid smartly interrupted Press with a deep, meaningful kiss. She didn't know what it felt like for him, to have loved her for all that time and had to be so close yet so far from her.
She wasn't a bad pony. At least, she didn't try to be.
But she could feel, slightly, just how much pain Press had to have felt. He was a good pony. It just took her a while to notice it, was all.
Rapid Souffle let her hooves slide around Press, making sure she was careful of the dress-
Wait.
A dress?
What was Press doing wearing a dress?
Rapid pulled away, a hazy and confused expression on her face.
“Why... why are you in a dress?”
“Oh, I-” Press stammered. “I thought, I- well you see-”
Press sighed before clearing his throat.
“I thought you only liked mares, so... I thought I'd try and get your attention like this, heh, heh...” he chuckled nervously, face still bright red.
Rapid was stunned to say the least. He'd do that much for her, really?
Rapid pressed her lips right back against his.
She loved him so much. He was her best friend, and she was never going to let him forget that. He was her shiny, hers and hers only.
Rapid slowly lifted Press up in her grasp, flipping their bodies around until she was the one atop of him. Then she grabbed the bottom hem of the dress.
Before Press could so much as yelp in surprise, Rapid tilted her head away and pulled up, undressing the small colt in one swift motion.
He instinctively threw his hooves over himself, trying to cover his body.
Rapid grinned before leaning back in for another kiss, stroking his body tenderly. Press was tense at first, but slowly relaxed. This was what he'd been waiting for all those years. It was going to be one long, fun night.
Neither of them noticed the origami swan that had adorned Crisp's flank was now a paper rose.
--END--
Author's Note
Vikinga Hooves here, just wanted to say I LOVE YOU ALL!
Waldo here, saying GET ^ BACK ^ IN ^ THE ^ BOX!!!
