Warmth and darkness enveloped her, and Rebecca did her best to embrace them as questions filled her head. Really? Here, now, of all places? Wait, did they plan this? I don't think they would, but I wouldn't put it past them. Then again, would they really go through the trouble? I guess it could just be coincidence that they all just happened to show up in the same place at the same time. Then again, Pinkie did try to peek up my skirt that one time, and- Oh crap, out of air.

"Oh my, h-how long has she been down there?" asked Fluttershy.

"Going on three minutes!" Rarity exclaimed, looking down at the still-submerged woman.

"D-do you think we should-" A sudden spray of water and held breath shot up between them, cutting Fluttershy off, and catching them both in the face.

"Whoa," Rebecca exclaimed with a cough, "I haven't done that since high school."

As Rebecca was finding her seat in the tub again, her two companions were doing their best to wash the spray out of their eyes. "Eew, gross," Rarity squealed, dunking her face under the water of the tub for a moment, "My mouth was open!"

"Sorry," Rebecca offered, as she wiped her hair from her face. "But I swear, if you guys set this up..." she gave the ponies next to her a suspicious look as she let the statement hang in the air.

"Oh, we wouldn't do anything like that. This was just a happy coincidence." Fluttershy put on her best smile in an effort to divert any ire that might be coming from the woman seated next to her.

"I'll bet," Rebecca grumbled, turning to see why the new arrivals hadn't made their way up to the tub yet. To her surprise, Lero and his friends were nowhere to be seen. However, she was able to make out their voices coming from behind a nearby blind; said voices were getting steadily louder. "What are they doing over there?" she asked.

"Oh, they're probably trying to convince Lero to come into the tub; the poor dear is a little on the shy side," said Fluttershy.

Unable to form a proper response to what she had just heard, coupled with who she had heard it from, Rebecca turned her attention to the blind between her and the newcomers.

"Come on, big guy, I thought we were over this," said Rainbow Dash.

"Nope," came the quick reply.

"But, Lero, you made such good progress the last time," Twilight cooed, in her most reassuring tone.

"Yeah, with close friends," replied Lero, crossing his arms. "And it was hard enough just doing that. Nobody said anything about getting in a tub with a woman I just met a month ago."

"Aw, come on, handy, what are ya frettin' over. It ain't gonna disappear if she sees it," added Applejack.

"Yeah," Pinkie chimed in, "You're just going to be standing there, naked, in front of a near-stranger while she silently judges you. Critiques you. Decides whether you measure up to her standards. Then when you're at your most vulnerable she'll start to laugh, softly at first, then louder and louder, until she's shredded every last trace of your confidence, leaving you a whimpering emasculated wreck, incapable of ever showing his stalionhood in public again!"

"Pinkie!" scolded Twilight, and Rainbow, as Lero prepared to bolt for the door.

"Or!" Rebecca's voice rang out from the other side of the blind, catching their attention, "And I'm just throwing this out there. You could just keep your towel wrapped around you in the tub, like I did."

"Oh yeah, that works to," Pinkie giggled.

A few moments later, everyone had managed to find a seat in the tub. Lero sat opposite Rebecca with Rainbow Dash and Pinkie on his right and Twilight and Applejack on his left. While the Ponies immediately struck up conversations with each other, the two humans had fallen silent. This seemed odd to Rebecca, after all the talking she and Lero had done while she was still in the hospital. Another thing that seemed odd, was the fact that he seemed to be doing his best to look everywhere, except at her. As he added his thoughts to the conversations going on around them, each time his gaze landed on her he would seem to pause for a moment before quickly turning to face elsewhere. It wasn't until she noticed that he was starting to blush that realization hit her.

While she had been in the changing room, Rebecca had to look high and low for a towel that was wide enough to cover herself with. The one she had found had worked, but just barely. In fact, she had had to pull the thing so far down to cover her nethers that she'd been worried it might just slip off her top when she traversed the stairs. Looking down now, Rebecca saw just what it was that Lero was trying to avoid looking at, and her eyes widened. If anything, the water had only made the towel slip lower, putting her ample cleavage on display for all to see.

All the conversations in the tub immediately stopped, as Rebecca once more disappeared beneath the water. "How long do think she'll be under this time?" Rarity asked, backing up a bit as she remembered what had happened the last time.

"What is she doing?" Rainbow asked, turning to Lero.

"Not sure, love." From what they could see through the bubbling surface, Rebecca seemed to be twisting back and forth under the water.

"She isn't stuck is she?" Twilight asked, concern rising in her voice.

"Stuck on what?" Rainbow replied.

Before Twilight could respond, the bubbles between Rarity and Fluttershy parted, as Rebecca poked her head back up through the water.

"Uh, you okay there?" Applejack asked, with a nervous smile.

"Fine, fine, just covering my shame," Rebecca replied. As she got back into her seat in the tub, it became obvious to all just what she had been doing under water. Rebecca's towel now sat much higher on her chest.

"Wait, you mean you have to keep your teats covered too?" Rainbow asked, gesturing towards Rebecca's chest.

"Yeah, those are another part that are generally kept covered," Lero answered.

"Now hold on a sec," said Applejack, "I can understand wantin' to keep your dangly bits to yourself, especially if you can't pull 'em inside, but why would ya' need to keep them covered?" she asked, pointing a hoof at Rebecca's chest.

"Look it's just the way we do things," Rebecca replied. "Now can we please stop talking about my boobs; I had more than enough people asking about them at work."

"The ponies at Cedar Shaving's carpentry?" Twilight asked.

"Ugh, every one of them. 'Why are they up there? Why are they so big? Are you expecting? Why do you keep them covered? Can we see them?' Jeez, you'd think they had never seen a pair of breasts before."

Twilight did her best to stifle a giggle. "Well, given that most of them have probably never seen a female minotaur before, I kind of doubt it."

"They have minotaurs here too?" Rebecca asked, a look of disbelief on her face.

"Trust me, they have a lot more than that here," Lero replied. "But, at least most of it's harmless."

"Anyway," Twilight interrupted, not wanting to dwell on where the conversation was about to head. "I hope you won't hold it against your coworkers. Some ponies are just overly curious."

"Well, they did back off a bit after Cedar told them to knock it off, so I guess it wasn't that big a deal," Rebecca replied.

"Oh yeah, what's it like workin' for Cedar Shavings anyway?" Applejack asked.

"Not too bad, I suppose. A bit of a slave-driver at times, but other than that, it's pretty much the same work I was doing back... home." As the last word left her mouth, Rebecca's gaze shifted back to the surface of the water, where it lingered for several moments.

"Err, sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine," Rebecca replied. "Just something I still need to get used to. Anyway, I was actually pretty surprised how easily I got the job. There wasn't even much of an interview; I just told her that I did similar work back on earth and she hired me on the spot."

"Well, you can thank Lero here for that," said Rainbow, as she nuzzled Lero's shoulder. "He does a lot of stuff like that to."

"Well, I do what I can to help out," said Lero, with a smile.

"Yeah, Cedar mentioned that, actually," said Rebecca.

"Oh?" Lero looked up with a smile.

"Yeah, something about business dropping off a bit when you moved into town," she answered, with a smirk.

"Oh..." Lero's smile quickly faded, along with most of the others in the tub. "I take it I don't have many fans over there?"

"I wouldn't expect her to invite you to dinner, no," she replied.

"I guess I didn't really consider whether I'd be stepping on anyone's toes when I started doing those jobs," Lero admitter, now taking his turn to stare at the water.

"Hey, don't go getting all mopey like that, big guy, you didn't do anything wrong." Rainbow did her best to reassure him. She knew how hard he worked to get ponies to like him.

"I wouldn't worry too much about it," Rebecca agreed. "It's not like you're putting them out of business or anything. In fact, from what I've been told, this town's been growing so fast lately that they might just start looking for new hires before too much longer."

"Oh, I don't know if I'd be cut out for that, I'm not a professional or anything. Most of the jobs I do are just basic repairs and maintenance," Lero replied, with a chuckle.

"Hey, that's where half of my pay check used to come from," Rebecca said, with a smile.

"I'll keep it in mind." Lero smiled back.

"Well, it's good to hear that work is going well," Rarity chimed in. "Although, I must admit, I'm surprised that you chose such a physically demanding job. I mean, just a week ago you were still in the hospital."

"Yeah, I'll admit I probably won't be running any marathons for a while yet, but between the physical rehab, and magic, I'm in good enough shape to handle the basic stuff," Rebecca replied. "Besides, the only way to get stronger is to stay active. If I can do that on the job, then I don't have to work out as much in my off time."

"Oh, is that why you chose the rejuvenation bath, darling?" asked Rarity.

"Rejuvenation bath?"

"Why, this here mix of minerals," said Applejack. "Me and Big Mac sometimes swing by, after a rough day on the farm, for a soak in one of these." As she spoke, Applejack leaned back in the tub until the water was up to her chin. "Nothing like it, for helping with cuts, bruises, and sore muscles," she said, with a contented sigh.

"Oh, well, that is part of it," Rebecca answered, with a nervous smile.

"Only part?" asked Twilight.

"There is another reason, besides work, that I chose this bath." As she spoke Rebecca's face started to redden.

"Oh dear, you didn't hurt yourself did you?" asked Fluttershy, concern rising in her voice.

"Well, that depends on your definition of hurt," replied Rebecca.

"Well, don't keep us in the dark," Rainbow demanded. "Did you trip, or something?"

"Well..." Rebecca slowly sank into the tub, until the water was just below her nose. Then, in response to questioning stares, slowly lifted her right leg out of the water in a way that might have been considered sexy, if it were not for the half-dozen semi-fresh cuts crisscrossing it.

"Sweet Celestia."

"Whoa nelly!"

"Good heavens."

"Oh my..."

"Jeezy peezy!"

"Holy crap! What happened?" Lero exclaimed.

Once the initial shock had worn off, Rebecca lowered her leg and rose back to her sitting position. "Well, you try shaving your legs with a straight razor, and see how you turn out," she replied.

Lero cringed at the thought. "No thank you, I had enough trouble just learning to do this," he said, motioning to his beard.

"Wait a minute, so humans shave their legs to?" Rainbow asked, raising her eyebrow at Lero.

"Some of them do, mostly women, but some men too," Lero explained.

"Well, why? I mean what the hay's the point?" asked Applejack.

"It's a cultural thing," replied Lero. "Excess body hair is generally considered unsightly in most countries; particularly on women."

"Although, God knows, there are plenty of guys out there who could stand to read up on a little thing called 'manscaping'," Rebecca muttered.

"Okay, so it's something y'all do back home; I can understand that. But, why bother doing it here? I mean, the whole no fur thing is already weird enough without ya making it worse," said Applejack. "Besides, ain't nopony gonna care if ya got a little fuzz on ya."

"Oh, I don't know. Habit, I guess," replied Rebecca. "I've been doing it since I was thirteen; just feels normal now. And besides, if it's so weird, why have I seen some of you ponies walking around with extra-long fur around your hooves?"

"Unshorn fetlocks?" asked Rarity.

"Yeah, I think that's what they're called," replied Rebecca, trying to remember the names of a horse's body parts.

"Well, that's more of a matter of fashion then culture, darling. Every few years they come back into style, usually for older stallions wanting to look a little more distinguished; or younger ones wanting to look more mature than they are. Although, there are some mares who manage to pull them off too. Why I remember one time, a few years ago, when Princess Celestia actually let hers grow out; she made them look stunning. Of course, she could probably dump paint on herself and make it look good, but that's beside the point. Unfortunately, practically every mare in Equestria decided to give it a try after that."

"What's wrong with that?" asked Rebecca.

"Well, nothing if you work indoors, or live in an area with paved roads. Sadly, many of the mares that I saw trying it, didn't. Do you realize just how much dirt a pony can pick up with in their fetlocks while walking around in a place like Ponyville?"

"I'm guessing a lot?" Offered Lero.

"More than a lot, darling, they looked filthy. And, not only was it a crime against fashion, it was also terribly unsanitary." As she finished, Rarity let out a shuddering groan at the memory. She had taken it upon herself to inform a few of the mares she had seen sporting the travesties around Ponyville of just what they were doing, and then left it to them to spread the word. It had still taken almost a month, before they had all come to their senses.

"Well, even if I didn't shave, I doubt I'd ever get to that point," said Rebecca. "At least, not with my legs."

"Here's hoping," replied Lero, as the two of them shared a chuckle; much to the confusion of the ponies around them.

"Well, this has been fun, but I have some things that I need to get done before the day's out," said Rebecca.

"Aw, I thought today was your day off. I was hoping I could throw you a 'congratulations on your first week at work' party," Pinkie said, with a frown.

"Well, it is my day off, Pinkie, but I still need to hit the market, before it closes."

"Oh, you're heading to the market after this?" asked Twilight.

"Why, yes," answered Rarity. "Fluttershy and I were going to show her the ins and outs of bargaining, after we were finished here."

"Would you like a little extra company?" asked Twilight.

"Yeah, it helps to have a few friends with you the first couple of times," added Lero, with a blush.

"So I've heard," replied Rebecca, as she did her best to ignore Lero's reddening face. "But, you guys just got here, you don't need to rush because of me."

"Are you kiddin'?" asked Applejack. "We just swung by to chat with Rarity, and Fluttershy, here. If y'all are fixin' to go then we can take this talk on the road."

"Well, if you guys are sure, then no time like the present," said Rebecca as she stood to leave the tub.

"Oh my!" exclaimed Lero, as he quickly turned his head to the side.

"What's wrong?" asked Rebecca.

"Uh-oh, looks like you missed a spot," exclaimed Pinkie, pointing to Rebecca.

As Pinkie's words registered inside her head, a sudden sinking feeling washed over Rebecca as she looked down to where the pony was pointing; and what her hiked up towel had left on display.

A sudden splash caught all of the ponies in the face as Rebecca disappeared beneath the water in a flash. "How long ya recon she'll be down this time?" asked Applejack.

"I'd say, at least five," offered Rarity.

****

A gentle breeze blew through Ponyville as the group made it's way toward the center of town, and Rebecca quickly began to feel the eyes of more and more ponies upon her. So far her job had kept her away from any large gatherings of them. With her workday starting early, and most construction jobs taking place on the outskirts of town, it was easy for her to make it to work, put in her time, and make it back to town hall via the back streets without running into too many of them at once. Now, however, as she walked towards the center of town, on a busy day, in the middle of the afternoon, she was beginning to notice more and more of them; and they were beginning to notice her.

Some of them tried to hide the fact that they were looking at her, others were far less subtle, some even went so far as to point. Rebecca did her best not to notice, focusing instead on keeping her breathing level, but let herself steal a couple of glances back when she noticed something strange. Most of the ones that were staring were afraid.

Many of them tried to hide it, but Rebecca could see it. The way their eyes widened when she looked straight at them. The way their ears flattened when she smiled at them. Or, the way the stallions stepped behind the mares when they passed close by, that turned her smile into a grimace.

"Is it always like this?" she asked, turning to Lero.

"It'll get better once they get used to you. Just give them some time," he replied. "For now look sharp, we're coming up on a good one for you to warm up on." Lero motioned his head forward at a fairly small stand painted in various shades of orange.

As Golden Harvest finished wrapping up a small bundle of carrots, she paused to take in the sight of the market. Virtually everypony in town had turned out for the first real market of the year. Mares and stallions mingled and weaved through a veritable maze of market stands that were piled high with every kind of fruit and veggie that the local farmers were able to coax from the earth.

"Whatcha lookin' at, Carrot Top?"

Golden nearly jumped as her train of thought was interrupted. Turning to once again regard her customer she said, "Oh, nothing, Lily, just admiring the view."

As Golden finished wrapping up her carrots, a sly smile spread across Lily's face. "Admiring the view of anypony in particular?" Turning to see just what, or who, had brought the dreamy expression to her friend's face Lily froze as all the mirth drained from her in an instant. There, trotting right down the center of the main avenue of the market, were the six most famous ponies in Ponyville. Yet, Lily barely noticed them. Instead, her eyes were fixed on the two tall, bipedal, creatures walking in their midst.

"Well, here you are, Lily. That'll be three bits for the-"

"The horror, the horror!"

Golden turned and watched as Lily sped off deeper into the market, wondering what had set the mare off this time. She didn't have much time to worry about it before the, rather deep, voice of a mare spoke up in front of her stall.

"Excuse me, how much for a bundle of carrots?"

Turning, Golden's gaze slowly rose higher, and higher, until it finally came to rest on the face of the tallest creature she had ever seen at such a close distance; with the possible exception of Princess Celestia. "A-another one?"

"Hey, Carrot Top," greeted Applejack. "I see ya done noticed our new friend here."

Golden's eyes quickly fell to the cluster of ponies standing around the strange creature, before she answered, "This is a friend of yours, Applejack?"

"Sure is, this here's Rebecca; the new human that showed up last winter," Applejack explained.

"We're showing her the ins and outs of the market," Twilight added.

"I-I had heard that ponies had been seeing a new one around town recently. I wasn't expecting it to be so... big," Golden stammered, still taken back by the bizarre creatures sudden appearance.

"Well, you try laying in bed all winter, and see how you turn out," said Rebecca, doing her best to make her voice sound playful, and ignore the pony's rather thoughtless comment.

At that, Golden shook her head trying her best to clear it. "I'm so sorry, where are my manners? I'm Golden Harvest, but my friends call me Carrot Top," she said, putting on her best smile.

"Rebecca Lancaster."

"My, you humans have such exotic names," Golden mused. "So, what brings you to my stall, Rebecca?"

"I hear you sell carrots," said Rebecca, looking at the many baskets of veggies behind the counter.

"I sure do, would you like to try one; only ten bits per bundle." Golden pushed one of the smaller bundles of carrots, as well as a loose one, toward Rebecca.

"Ten bits?!" barked Rainbow Dash. "Those had better be the best carrots she ever ate!"

"Uh, yeah," said Rebecca, more than a little surprised by the sudden outburst. Picking up the lone carrot, she quickly bit into it and savored the sudden rush of juicy flavor that accompanied the crisp crunch between her teeth. "Alright then," she said, as she took the bundle of carrots and set down a fistful of bits and turning to leave.

Golden stared, wide-eyed, at the small pile of coins on her counter for a moment. By the time she looked up again, Applejack and the others were already halfway down the lane hollering something at their new friend. "Uh, your welcome?" she called after them.

"I can't believe you just did that!" Rainbow barked.

"Did what?" Rebecca asked.

"Ten bits for some carrots?" Rainbow asked.

"Well, next time don't put words in my mouth," replied Rebecca, as she bit down on her second carrot. "Man these things are good."

"Yeah, Harvest grows good stuff; that doesn’t mean you have to pay a foreleg for it though," said Dash.

"Well, it would help if I had some measure of value to go on here," said Rebecca, as she fished a single bit out of her bag, and rolled the half-dollar sized coin around in her hand. "I mean, where I'm from a gold coin this size would have bought that entire carrot stand; never mind the veggies."

"Lero said something like that, too, when he first arrived in Equestria," said Twilight, glancing up at her stallion.

Lero blushed a bit at her words. "Yeah, before I got my first job here, they gave me an allowance of bits to get by on. When I first saw that bag of gold, I thought it was supposed to last me all year; boy, was I wrong. It wasn't until Twilight and Rainbow took me shopping that I managed to get a feel for haggling." Lero rested a hand on each of his mare's necks, causing them to lean into him with contented sighs.

"Hey, room for one more in there?" called a familiar voice.

Turning to regard the newcomer, the group was greeted by the sight of Lyra making her way through the crowd.

"Lyra!" called out Twilight, as she and Rainbow trotted up to greet their herd-mate with a nuzzle.

"Hey, horny," quipped Lero, as he came up beside the trio to wrap them all in hug. "What brings you to market today? I thought you were on patrol."

"Well, I am, fingers. And, where else would I patrol on market day, than the market?" Lyra replied, as she gestured to her surroundings with a hoof. "What about you guys? I thought you were going to spend the afternoon at the spa."

"Well, we spent part of it there," replied Rainbow Dash. "But, we ran into Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rebecca and found out that they were going to take Rebecca on her first real trip to market, so we decided to cut it short."

"Really, her first trip to market, huh?" Lyra turned to speak to the rest of the group. "So what do you think of it so fa- where is she?"

Looking amongst themselves, the friends quickly realized that Rebecca was no longer among them.

"Hey, where'd she go?" asked Rainbow.

"I don't know," answered Applejack.

"I didn't even hear her leave," offered Fluttershy.

Stomping her hoof to get her friend's attention, Twilight said, "Alright, everypony, don't panic. She couldn't have gone very fa-"

"Hey, guys!" Rebecca's voice called out from behind Twilight, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin. Turning to see what had become of their newest human friend, the assembled ponies saw her coming toward them from one street over, carrying what looked like two large bags of groceries.

"Rebecca!" Twilight called. "Where were you, and where did you get those," she asked, pointing to the bags of produce in Rebecca's hands.

"Oh, I just hit that little mini-mart over there," said Rebecca, glancing behind her.

"Mini-mart?" asked Lero.

Moments earlier.

"I can't believe you actually did this," Spring Breeze said, flatly.

"Thank you, honey, I heard you the first five times." As he spoke, Wallflower finished hammering the last nail into the new sign on his market stall, then after levitating his hammer back into the toolbox on the ground, the navy-blue unicorn proceeded to make his way down the stepladder and turned to regard the light-green pegasus hovering in the air above him. "I keep telling you, it's a perfectly sound business strategy."

"Yeah, on an alien planet," Breeze griped, as she folded her forelegs in front of her.

"Look, just because he's an alien, doesn't mean Lero doesn't know what he's talking about. And he says that this, right here, is how some of the best businesses on his world got started." Wallflower tapped his stall's counter for emphases.

"Going around to all the outlaying farms, buying one bag of their crop, then turning around and trying to resell it for next to no markup? Meanwhile, we have perfectly good alfalfa growing in our field that you didn't even touch." Spring Breeze rolled her eyes at her stallion's antics for what seemed like the hundredth time.

"Oh, now simmer down breeze," came a voice from behind the two.

"Thank you, Brook," replied Wallflower. As he watched the light-brown earth-pony mare approach, he noticed that she was carrying a rather large sack on her back.

"Besides," Brook continued, flatly. "If it falls through, then all we've lost is one day at market."

"Gee, it's nice to know that my herd has such faith in me," Wallflower deadpanned. "What's with the bag?"

At that, Brook reached back and tossed the sack to the ground in front of him, where it opened to reveal it's contents. "Figured you can try to push some of this while you're at it," said Brook.

"Alfalfa?" Wallflower asked.

"Just in case," Brook replied, with her usual seriousness.

"Yeah, maybe you can make a little money while you're out here," Breeze added.

"I take it neither of you are going to stay and help me run the stall?" Wallflower asked.

"Oh, no, this is all you, dear, we'll just be waiting at home with a heaping helping of I told you so. Come on, Babbles," said Spring Breeze, as she turned and flew off.

"You know I don't like it when you call me that," Brook called, as she began trotting after her.

Wallflower let out a snort of aggravation as he watched his mares depart. Picking up the sack in front of him, he made his way into his stall and deposited it, none too gently, behind the counter before giving his little pet project the final onceover. Inside, the stall was set up much like any other, save that the shelves lining the back and side walls were adorned with small clay plates, each of which held a single piece of one kind of produce or another, and all of which had a small label with a price written on it affixed to the shelf just below them. Various sacks and barrels of the same produce could be found stashed beneath the counter, and a simple cash register sat on top of it.

Outside, the stall was painted in deep blue and gold stripes that matched its owners coat and mane. The most striking feature of the structure, however, was the new sign that had just been hammered into place above the counter. The sign read 'Wallflower's Mini Market. We Take Care Of The Haggling So You Don't Have To'. A much smaller sign in front of the register read 'Prices non-negotiable'.

As Wallflower was checking to make sure his display produce was laid out as neatly as possible, the voice of a mare called out from the counter, "Hey, do you have any lettuce left?"

Ha! no sooner do I put up the sign, then the customers start rolling in. Wallflower turned to greet his first customer of the day. "We sure doo-oh my!" Wallflower couldn't help but step back as he regarded the unmistakable shape of a human. While he had run into Lero around town often enough to become accustomed to him, never in his wildest dreams had Wallflower expected to encounter another of the bizarre creatures; and the one before him was even bigger than Lero. "Can I help you, um, miss?"

"Yeah, like I said, I need some lettuce, tomatoes-" As the mare proceeded to rattle of items, Wallflower quickly snared a paper bag from the pile behind the counter with his magic, and began filling it with the requested items.

In short order, two bags were filled and tallied. "That'll be thirty-seven bits, miss," said Wallflower, as he did his best to keep his smile steady as the human counted out her bits.

"Thank you. You know, I really wasn't expecting to find a convenience store around here. This really saves me a lot of time," she said, as she pushed the pile of bits across the counter.

Perking up a bit at the praise, Wallflower said, "Oh, why thank you. I actually got the idea from another human. Um, how does it compare to the ones where you're from, if you don't mind me asking."

"Not too bad. Decent selection, good presentation," she replied, as she looked up at the sign above her. "Name is a little long-winded, but other than that not bad."

"Well, thank you, it's nice to know I at least got part of it right," said Wallflower.

"Yeah, just slim the name down and you'll be good to go."

With that, Wallflower watched as his first customer gathered up her purchase and turned to leave. Once she was out of sight, he made his way around to the front of his stall and regarded the sign he had just put into place. Hmm, it is a bit of a mouth-full isn't it? Maybe something simpler like Wallflower's Market, or Wally's World.

The present.

"Yeah, the owner said something about it being your idea," replied Rebecca.

"Wow, so Wallflower actually got his store up and running?" Lero asked.

"Yep, had pretty much everything on my list too. All that's left is fish and milk, and the mayor already told me where to get those so, I think I'm pretty much done with my shopping," said Rebecca, with a smile.

"Aww, but I was looking forward to explaining the intricacies of Equestrian economics," said Twilight, as she pawed at the ground, mirroring the looks of disappointment among the rest of the group

"Yeah, and we were going to take you shopping too," Pinkie added, giving Rebecca her best puppy-dog eyes.

As she watched the ponies, Rebecca couldn't help but feel the tug of her heartstrings, and let out a defeated sigh. "Okay, okay, next time I need groceries I'll be sure to track the lot of you down, and we'll do it your way, alright? In the mean time, I don't really have anything else on my plate today, so what do you guys do for fun around here?"

At the mention of fun, the entire group perked up. "Ooh, ooh, we have tons of ways to have fun in Ponyville," Pinkie squealed.

"Aww yeah, now you're talking," Rainbow piped up, as she leaped into the air. "Finally, some excitement."

"Alright, alright, but can we at least swing by town hall so I can drop these off?" Rebecca asked, holding up the bags of groceries.

"Okay, but then fun!" Pinkie cried.

****

The thundering cacophony of balls rumbling down lanes and colliding with pins filled the air of the Ponyville bowling alley as thickly as the smell of flash-fried snacks and freshly waxed floors. Up and down the lanes, ponies laughed, cheered, and occasionally cursed the odd gutter ball. All in all, it was music to the ears one pony in particular.

Allie Way surveyed her domain the way Celestia might survey her court. Not a difficult task, all things considered, being a full head taller than the average mare did have some advantages, and when Allie reared up and put her fore hooves on the counter by the cash register she could easily see over even the thickest crowd. Today, the beige unicorn liked what she saw.

"Looks like another profitable day," came a familiar voice from beside her.

"Yep, another winner, just like every one before it," Replied Allie, with a smile. "Hard to believe it's already been two years since we opened the place."

"And still going as strong as day one."

"And to think you didn't believe it would catch on in a little town like this. Maybe next time you'll have a little more faith in me, Kingpin." As she spoke, Allie Way quickly turned her head away from him, causing her long blue mane to gently swat the older stallion upside the head.

As the two friends shared a laugh together, the sudden sound of the front doors opening caused Allie's ears to perk up. "And this is what we call a bowling alley!"

Allie Way recognized the squeaky, upbeat voice immediately. "Sounds like Pinkie Pie is back," she said, as she turned to greet her favorite customer; and froze.

Pinkie, she had expected. The other elements of harmony, she had expected. What Allie Way had not expected, were the two creatures that walked in behind them. One of them she recognized as Lero; the strange furless alien who had appeared a while back, and been living in Ponyville ever since. The other one was new, and while it was clearly the same species there was something different about it.

"Bowling, you say? Well, you magical talking ponies will have to show me how it's done," said Rebecca, giving Lero a wink.

Allie could hardly believe her ears, but the rich deep voice that came out of its mouth was definitely that of a mare.

"Huh, so now there's two of them," she heard Kingpin say. "Well, aren’t you going to go greet them?"

"Me?" Allie snapped back to her senses.

"Yes, you. Or don't you remember? 'It'll be fun in Ponyville. There's lots of opportunity, and all kinds of interesting folks to meet'," Kingpin teased.

"I didn't think I'd be meeting aliens," Allie retorted.

"Well, somepony had better go meet them, because the rest of our customers are starting to notice them too," said Kingpin, his voice once again going serious.

Allie Way glanced around, and sure enough the noise level in the building had dropped off considerably as many ponies started whispering amongst themselves at the sudden appearance of the two tall bipeds. "Okay, okay," she said, taking a deep breath and putting on her best smile before heading over to the group.

As she approached, Allie quickly caught Pinkie's eyes. "Hi there, Allie, got any open lanes?"

"Hey, Pinkie, you got a new, uh, friend with you?" Allie could feel her smile starting to slip as she got closer to the newcomers. Especially when Lero and the new one started coming towards her.

"Sure do," Pinkie answered. "This is Rebecca, she's new in town, and she was wondering what we do for fun in Ponyville, so we took her to the park, the tea house, Sugar Cube Corner, and now we're here."

"It's been a busy afternoon," said Rebecca. As she spoke, Rebecca couldn't help but notice how much taller this pony was than the others; its head reaching all the way up to her chest.

"So, what do you say, can you show her the ropes?" Pinkie asked.

"Well, I suppose I can give it a try," Allie offered. "Kingpin! Open the last couple of lanes will ya?" As Kingpin headed toward the back of the building to get the machines running, Allie led the group of friends to their prepared lanes, and was pleased to see most of the other customers relax as they passed. By the time they reached their lanes the first sets of pins were just being put into place. "Okay, everypony who already knows how to play can go ahead and start warming up on that lane," said Allie, gesturing to the second to last lane. "The rest of you, gather round and I'll show you how it's done."

The group quickly split in two, with Twilight, Rarity, Lero, Rebecca, and Fluttershy all making their way towards her while their friends made for the other lane. "Alright, now, the object of the game is quite simple," Allie explained, as she seized one of the nearby house-balls in her magic. "Using either magic, or some part of your body, you want to throw, or push, the ball down the lane and knock over as many pins as you can." With a quick wave of her head, Allie spun the ball in a semicircle and sent it hurtling down the lane and into the pins with a resounding crash, leaving only a single pin standing.

While the other ponies watched the display in awe, the two humans just stood with wide smiles on their faces, and Allie couldn't help but notice the sharp points of teeth peeking out from under their lips. Just as she felt herself beginning to sweat, Rarity's voice caught her attention.

"It seems you missed one, dear."

"Not to worry," Allie replied. "You get two throws per turn on the lane." As she spoke, Allie levitated another ball over and set it down behind her. Lifting her left hind leg, she spared a glance behind her before letting it snap back to connect squarely with the center of the ball. Once more the ball hurtled down the lane straight towards its target. Allie's ear twitched at the sound of the collision before a proud smile spread across her face.

"Wow, you didn't spare a single one," said Rebecca.

Allie's smile fell slightly at the comment. "Um, thanks," she said, figuring it was just a lucky guess.

"I don't know, I think it'd be more impressive if she could strike them all at once," added Lero.

Allie Way's smile was replaced by a bemused stare for a moment as the wheels in her head finished turning, and a knowing smirk spread across her face. "You guys have bowling where you're from, don't you?" she asked, pointing a hoof at the mischievous pair.

"Maybe," said Rebecca, with a smile.

"Well, why didn't you two say so?" asked Twilight.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't resist," offered Rebecca. "I wanted to see if a pony teaching me how to bowl would be as cute as I thought it would be."

"And I just wanted to see how far we could get, before someone caught us," added Lero.

Allie's cheeks reddened a bit at the revelation. "Well, you could have just asked. Humph, cute indeed," she said turning her nose up from the two.

"Aww, come on now, we didn't mean anything by it," offered Lero.

"Yeah, Allie, it was just a little joke," called Pinkie, from the next lane.

Turning to her friend, and then back to the two aliens, Allie let out a huff. "Fine, but if you guys really do have bowling where you're from, then why don't you show us ponies how it's done?" she said, with a challenging tone.

Lero and Rebecca looked at each other for a moment. "Ladies first?" Lero asked.

"Oh, great, throw me under the bus," Rebecca whispered back, as she stepped up to select a ball.

The ponies, including those who had been playing in the next lane, all took seats behind her, eager to see how the game was played by such tall creatures. Twilight in particular was rapt with curiosity. "Oh, this is so exciting. Is she going to push it? How will she get down low enough? Maybe she's going to kick it, but won't that hurt her toes?"

A soft shush filled her ear as Lero took a seat between her and Rainbow Dash. "Let's watch and see," he said softly, as he wrapped his arms around them.

From her seat at the end of the group, Allie couldn't help but notice the interaction between Lero and the mares, and wonder where they found the courage to let him wrap his arms around their necks like that. Turning away from the display beside her, to focus on the one in front of her, Allie found herself wondering the same things Twilight had; how was the strange creature in front of her going to get a ball down the lane?

Meanwhile, Rebecca had finished selecting her ball; a hefty twelve-pounder, but it was the only one she could fit her fingers into comfortably. Going to have to ask them just what these holes are for. With ball in hand, Rebecca took her place on the lane and did her best to line up the shot. Okay, here we go. Step up, swing arm back, cry of alarm behind me, bring it forward, and let her fly. Rebecca let go, and the ball was sent speeding down the lane to connect soundly with the pins, nocking over all but two.

"Hey, not bad for my fist shot in years-" Rebecca trailed off as she turned to the ponies behind her, who all had their hooves up and eyes closed, except for Twilight, Rainbow, and Lyra who had thrown themselves on top of Lero. "Um, you guys can open your eyes now."

"Sheesh, warn a pony before you do that," griped Applejack.

"Yeah, you could have hurt somepony," added Rainbow Dash, as her wings tightened around Lero.

"Oh, I had a perfectly good grip on it," Rebecca began. "And besides I-"

"How did you do that?" Allie Way blurted out.

"What?" asked Rebecca.

"The ball looked like it just stuck to your hand."

"Oh, did I go too quick for you?" asked Rebecca, as she walked over to the ball rack. "Like this." Rebecca proceeded to lift another of the house balls, and hold it up for the ponies to see.

"Allie Way stepped forward to take a closer look. "You're using the shining slots?"

"Shining slots?"

"Yeah, the holes that the support pegs in the ball shining machine slide into."

"Oh, is that what they’re for? I was wondering why ponies would put holes in bowling balls," said Rebecca.

"But, aren’t you worried about breaking your fingers?" asked Allie.

"Oh, there's no real danger of that, as long as you know what you're doing. Besides, these things are stronger than you might think." Rebecca held up her hand and wiggled her fingers.

"Huh, you wouldn't think they could hold up something as heavy as a bowling ball," Allie thought out loud. "Too bad you ended up with a seven-ten split," she added, glancing down the lane.

"Don't worry, I know of a trick to take care of that," Rebecca replied, picking up another ball and glaring at the two pins as the other ponies quickly got out from behind her. With another quick throw the ball headed down the lane towards the left pin, and right into the gutter without so much as skimming it. "Maybe one day I'll even learn how to do it," she said, with a sheepish grin.

With the initial shock of human bowling techniques behind them, the rest of the ponies were able to begin practicing in earnest. With Allie Way's guidance, and a few bags of freshly ordered hay fries, all the ponies seemed to be getting the hang of the game. All but one.

As she looked over the score cards that she had started keeping, Allie let out a frustrated snort. "Twilight: ninety-four, Rarity: hundred and five, Rebecca: one-thirty-four; not bad for a beginner, and Fluttershy with... ten." Never in all her years of bowling had Allie seen such an abysmal score. She had tried to help Fluttershy get a feel for the game, but the timid mare seemed bound and determined to do everything she could wrong. When she tried to push the ball with her hooves, she flinched at the last minute. When she tried to push it with her head, she kept her eyes closed the entire time. And when she tried to kick the ball, her legs seemed to freeze up and she barely tapped it.

Fluttershy's friends had told her that she suffered from stage fright, but this was ridiculous. Even now as she took her place on the lane for her next shot, Allie couldn't tell if she was more afraid of the crowd or her own ball. Allie watched as Fluttershy raised her fore hooves to push the ball, only for her to flinch and close her eyes, sending it swerving once again into the gutter.

"Boy, she really needs help."

Allie turned to Rebecca sitting beside her, "I've tried everything I can think of, short of throwing the ball for her, but she's so scared of everything going on around her that she can't focus on her shots. Heck, she's even scared of the ball she's using."

As Fluttershy made her way back to the group, the rest of her friends tried to encourage her.

"Come on, sugar cube, you can do better than that."

"Indeed, darling, you must put more oomph into it."

As Rebecca watched the ponies try get their friend into the game, a thought popped into her head. Hmm, scared of the ball huh?

"Oh, thank you all for putting up with me," said Fluttershy, as she looked at the floor.

"Oh, come on, Fluttershy, you'd like the game if you would just stop worrying about everything," said Rainbow.

"I'm sorry, Rainbow, but I just can't stop thinking about the crowd, I mean what if they all laugh at me?"

"Fluttershy, nopony is going to laugh at you," Twilight assured.

"Yeah, nopony but us is even paying attention," piped in Pinkie.

"I'm sorry, everypony, but I just don't think this game is for me," Fluttershy sighed.

"Hey, Fluttershy?" Rebecca called. "If you don't want to play again that's fine, but you're on your last frame, are you sure you don't want to take your last shot? I bet it would mean a lot to Allie here if you at least got through you're first game for her," she said, in her most reassuring tone.

Allie Way looked at Rebecca, wondering why she was being brought into this, but aside from a slight smile at the corners of her lips she just couldn't read Rebecca's features; the human's face was like a mask. Turning to Fluttershy she was about to tell the mare that it was okay if she didn't want to continue, but was cut off before she could say anything.

"Oh, alright, if it means that much to her," said Fluttershy, as she headed for the lane one last time.

Allie was about to protest before she noticed movement at the edge of her vision. Looking at Rebecca, she saw that the human had slipped her sandals off, and grabbed one of the empty hay fry bags sitting on the table they were gathered around before holding it up to her mouth and filling it with air. The others had noticed what she was doing as well, but before any of them could ask about it Rebecca held up a finger to her lips to quiet them, then in one fluid motion rose to her feet and began making her way towards Fluttershy so quietly that Allie almost couldn't believe it.

"How can something that big be making no noise?" she whispered.

"Oh, you'd be surprised how easily a human can sneak up on you." Allie turned to see Lyra give her a coy smile, before leaning into Lero's side.

With her cheeks reddening at the bizarre images flowing through her mind, Allie turned back to the lane only to find that Rebecca had already closed the distance between her and Fluttershy, who was just lining up her shot. As Allie watched, Fluttershy raised her fore hooves and closed her eyes as Rebecca raised her arms and let a smile spread across her face. Rebecca's arms became a blur as they snapped closed, and a loud bang filled the air as her hand connected with the inflated paper bag. Fluttershy's eyes shot open as her hooves snapped out to strike the ball in front of her squarely in the center.

Everyone held their breath as the ball hurtled down the lane and connected with the pins, sending them flying with a resounding crash. When it was over not a single one remained standing. "Now you're getting it," said Rebecca, as she knelt down next to Fluttershy, who had fallen to the floor covering her head with her fore hooves.

At the sound of her friends cheering, Fluttershy peeked out from under her mane and saw the pile of pins being swept away. "I, I did it?" she asked nopony in particular.

"Sure did, with a little help," Rebecca answered.

Fluttershy turned to Rebecca as the elation of her first strike started filling up inside her. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Fluttershy suddenly lunged at Rebecca, eyes closed and arms wide. Before she could stand up, Rebecca felt soft forelegs wrap around her neck and pull her into a tight hug. As her body began to shake, Rebecca bit down on her lip and drew in breath with a sharp hiss. Her fingers bent to resemble claws and as they made their way up toward Fluttershy's neck. Determined not to push the little pony down, Rebecca bit down harder on her lip in an attempt to muscle through the revulsion creeping under her skin. Her hands came to rest on Fluttershy's shoulders and, with great effort, began applying steady pressure.

Fortunately, Fluttershy quickly realized what she was doing, and released her grip, causing Rebecca to fall backward onto her seat. "Oh, dear, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" she asked, as the rest of her friends gathered around them.

"What happened?" Allie Way asked, her face a mask of confusion.

"She doesn’t like being touched," Rainbow Dash answered.

"Rebecca, are you alright?" asked Lero.

"Yeah, I'm fine," replied Rebecca, though she was still shivering.

"We really need to do something about that," said Twilight.

Rebecca paused to look at the ponies gathered around her. "That would make it a lot easier to make friends," she replied.

"Don't worry, I think I have an idea that just might work," said Twilight, as a mischievous grin worked its way across her face.

Rebecca cast a nervous look at Lero. "Why is she looking at me like that?"

Author's Note

Well, not even half-way through February and my new years resolution is already shot . Sorry this chapter took so long, hopefully the next one won't get sidetracked so much. Thanks again to Sausage for pre-reading, but as always feel free to point out anything we might have missed.
Until next time.