The deep rumble of the bowling ball echoed through the ally as it flew down the lane, only to claim a single pin for its trouble. Looking at the score card in front of her, Allie Way marked off the point with a sour grimace. Seven frames in and a score of thirty would have most regular bowlers kicking and screaming by now. But, looking up at the player in front of her, the only thing she heard was the sharp tapping of fingernails on metal as she leaned on the return chute and waited for it to spit out her ball.

"You know, Rebecca, if it's that frustrating, we can inflate the bumpers for you," Allie offered.

"Frustrating?" Rebecca asked, calmly. "Frustrating is a woman who just wants to be able to shake someone's hand without breaking out in a cold sweat. So she lets a purple unicorn poke and prod at her for two weeks... two weeks! Just so that she can tell me that I need to practice being tactile. I mean, I could have thought of that!" As she spoke, Rebecca grabbed another ball and threw it down the lane, only to have it go wide once again.

At that Allie set the score card aside, stood up, and took a step forward. "Okay, you don't need to get all shouty," she said, her own voice starting to rise.

"I know!-" Rebecca took a deep breath "-I know," she finished, in a much more even tone. "I'm sorry, Allie."

With the apology made, Allie Way once more took her seat at the scoring table, before motioning for Rebecca to join her. Allie generally made it a point not to get too personal with her customers, but since her first visit, Rebecca had been showing up almost every other day. Once the initial surprise of having an alien as a regular customer had worn off, Allie had actually found that she enjoyed playing with her. While not on the same level as Allie in terms of skill, Rebecca had shown steady improvement since she had started coming by; and whether they were talking about the weather or the current state of affaires in Equestria, a conversation with her was always interesting. So, as the weeks had passed, Allie had found herself growing closer to Rebecca until she came to think of her as a friend instead of a customer. And, while Rebecca still pulled back every time Allie tried to move in for a friendly bump or nuzzle, she was fairly sure that the feeling was mutual.

"Look, Rebecca, I'm no doctor, but even I know that therapy takes time," said Allie, as her friend took a seat beside her.

"I realize that it takes time, but why dose it have to take so much? I mean, I never had any trouble touching people before I came here."

"Look, you can't explain an irrational fear; that's what makes it irrational," said Allie.

"That's also what makes it so aggravating," replied Rebecca. "If I just knew what caused it, then maybe it wouldn't be such a trial to get over it."

"Maybe. Or, you might just be better off not knowing what happened, if it was bad enough to give you a crippling phobia," Allie offered.

The two sat in silence for a moment, both content to let that dark train of thought pass them by.

"But, in all honesty, have you made any progress so far?" asked Allie.

Turning to look at her friend, Rebecca slowly reached out and placed her hand on Allie's shoulder. Looking down at Rebecca's hand, Allie almost pulled away, but stopped when she noticed how gentle the touch was. Having seen the way Rebecca and Lero had thrown bowling balls around with them, Allie had expected their hands to be as hard as rock. Yet, as the hand rested upon her, she was amazed by how soft it felt.

"And that," Rebecca began, pulling her hand away. "Is about as far as we've gotten. If I initiate it, then I can just barely handle light contact."

"Well, that's good, isn't it?" asked Allie.

"Two weeks of practicing, and I can just barely touch someone," Rebecca replied, with an angry huff. "At this rate it'll take years to get over this."

"Oh, come on now, don't be like that," said Allie, scooting as close as she could to her friend without touching her. "At least you're making progress; and Twilight is right you know? The only way to get better at something is to practice."

"I have been practicing, Allie," replied Rebecca, as an all too familiar feeling of anxiety began to creep up her spine at how close Allie was. Almost instinctively, Rebecca began inching away.

"Well, if you're really progressing as slowly as you say, then you obviously need more. And you aren’t going to get it by moving away from the problem." Allie Way's voice was level, but firm, and despite her best efforts Rebecca had no counter for them. So, doing her best to ignore the butterflies in her stomach, Rebecca slowly forced herself to scoot back to her spot next to her friend.

"Okay, now what?" Rebecca asked, through gritted teeth.

"Now, tag me in," Allie replied, holding up her fore hoof with a confident smile.

"Pardon?"

"You've been throwing balls around left and right for the better part of an hour, let somepony else onto the lane for a while," Allie explained.

Looking around, Rebecca noted that more than half of the lanes in the ally were empty. "Um, why don't you just use one of the other lanes?"

"Because, somepony needs to keep score for me," Allie replied, with a smirk.

With a roll of her eyes, Rebecca decided it was just easier to let Allie win the argument, and raised a fist up to tap against Allie's hoof.

"Alright, now watch a pro at work," said Allie, as she cantered up to the lane.

As Allie was racking up strike after strike, Rebecca once again noticed the strange lack of ponies in the building. "Hey, Allie, where is everyone? It's only a little after two, this place is usually jumping by now."

Allie paused to look around the building before letting another ball fly. "Oh, that's probably because heat season is coming up in another week or so. Most mares are probably out stoking up for the long haul."

"Heat season?" Rebecca wondered out loud. "I think Lero, or Twilight, mentioned that at some point. Something about all the girls suddenly going guy-crazy?"

Allie Way let out a laugh at the words. "Well, that's one way to put it, I... Wait a minute, are you saying that you don't have heat?"

"Nope, we humans don't work like that."

"Huh, well, lucky you," said Allie, a hint of bitterness in her voice.

Sensing the shift in her friend's mood, Rebecca asked, "Is it really that bad?"

"Depends on if you have a friend to help you get through it. If you do, then it's not so bad. If you don't, well, that's not a place any mare wants to be." Allie released her levitation and let her current ball go flying only to have it clip a single pin. Allie let out agitated snort.

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

"Don't worry about it, Becky, you didn't know." As she spoke, Allie turned to make her way back to her spot next to Rebecca. "But, seriously, you should make sure your kitchen is good and stocked before the season starts. Depending on how many mares it hits at once, the market and stores might be closed down for a while."

"Well, it sounds like I know what I'm going to be doing for the next couple of days," replied Rebecca.

The sound of doors being kicked open suddenly filled the building, and drew everyone's attention to the front door. Standing in the entryway was Twilight Sparkle, who, upon spotting Rebecca, came racing toward her at a full gallop. "There you are!" she cried, as she skidded to a halt in front of her.

"Hey, Twilight, what's the hurry?" asked Rebecca.

"Rebecca, we need to talk; a letter just arrived for you," said Twilight, panting.

"I swear, if it's those spa sisters again-" Rebecca began.

"Rebecca, it's from the Princess!"

****

The sound of beating wings filled Golden Oaks Library as their owner paced in midair. Rainbow Dash hated waiting, almost as much as she hated loosing. "Shouldn't they be here by now? What's taking them so long?" she griped.

Looking up from the book he was reading, Lero glanced at the nearest clock. "Love, Twilight's only been gone for five minutes," he said.

"Yeah, and I could have gotten there and back by now."

"Yes, but could Rebecca keep up with you?" A third voice chimed from the doorway to the living area. Both Lero and Rainbow turned to see Lyra stepping into the reading area. "Twilight can teleport both of them here in the blink of an eye," she said.

"Then what's taking so long?" Rainbow threw her fore legs up in frustration.

Before any answer could be given, the library was filled with a bright purple flash, and Twilight and Rebecca were standing in the center of the room.

"Gah! How many times do I half to tell you; don't do that!" yelled Rebecca.

"I'm sorry, but it was the fastest way to get us here," countered Twilight.

"There you are," cried Rainbow. "I was starting to think you got lost."

"We would have been here sooner, if somepony hadn't kept trying to dodge my teleportation spell," said Twilight, giving Rebecca a dirty look.

"Remind me to tell you the story of The Fly sometime, Twilight," said Rebecca. "Now, where's this letter you mentioned?"

"Got it right here," said Lyra, levitating the rolled up scroll over to Rebecca.

"Wait, you didn't even read it?" she asked.

"Rebecca!" Twilight gasped. "You do not read royal mail that is addressed to somepony else."

Rolling her eyes, Rebecca unrolled the piece of paper and began to read out loud. "Dear, Rebecca. I hope this letter finds you well, as I have some very important news that you need to be made aware of. Recently, several breakthroughs have been made at the Department of Advanced Magics, and I believe we may be close to reversing what was done to you prior to your arrival in Equestria. I realize that this is likely a matter of great importance to you, and as such have taken the liberty of arranging transportation for you, so that you may arrive as soon as possible. I hope to see you soon. Sincerely, Princess Celestia of Equestria."

The library was silent for a moment before, "WOOHOO!" cried Rainbow Dash, as she and the others all gathered around Rebecca.

"Rebecca, that's wonderful news," said Twilight.

"I'll say," added Lyra.

"Rebecca are you alright?" asked Lero.

Rebecca had slumped back against the center table, a stunned look painted across her face as her breath came in long deep gasps. "They can change me back." Her voice came out in a whisper, and before everyone's eyes she slowly slid to her seat on the floor.

"Rebecca!" They all called.

Holding up a reassuring hand, Rebecca cleared her throat before saying, "I'm okay, I'm okay. I just... thought she had forgotten about me or something."

"Rebecca," Twilight said softly, as she took a seat beside her. "Princess Celestia wouldn't just forget about you."

"Yeah, she doesn’t leave her friends hanging," added Rainbow.

"She's probably had her people working on this since the day she met you," said Lero, as he sat down on her other side. "As someone who's spent a little more time with her I can assure you that, as trite as it might sound, she really does seem to care about every person she meets."

"Wait, you've spent time with her?" Rebecca asked.

"Well, more than most, anyway. Granted our first meeting didn't exactly go smoothly, but since then I think I've gotten a pretty good feel for her; and she doesn’t strike me as the type to stand by and do nothing when she sees someone in trouble."

"Wow." Once again, Rebecca was at a loss as to how these ponies treated others. "Maybe I should offer to buy her dinner some time."

"Why, I bet she'd love tha- WHAT!" cried Twilight, almost jumping to the ceiling.

"Or, you know, maybe just a heartfelt thank you," Rebecca finished with a chuckle.

Rebecca's laughter soon proved to be contagious as everyone in the room shared in the mirth. It wasn't until the sound of the door opening caught their attention that it finally died down, and they turned to see a familiar purple and green dragon regarding them with raised eyebrows.

"Uh, what's going on?" Spike asked. "Did I miss something fun?"

"Oh, Spike, you're back," greeted Twilight. "Did you get the supplies?"

"Sure did," replied Spike, holding up a large sack.

"Good, because I need you to take a letter."

"Well, okay," replied Spike, as he reached into the bag and pulled out a vial of ink and a quill. "But, before we start, did you know that there's a palace chariot parked on the front lawn?"

"Huh," came the unanimous reply.

Once outside, the group was met by a sight that most ponies only ever dreamt of seeing. Sitting there on the lawn, drawn by two pure white pegusi in matching armor, was a gleaming golden chariot.

"Aww yeah, now this is awesome!" cried Rainbow Dash, rushing over to admire the vehicle. "It's not everyday you get to see one of these babies."

"I take it, this thing is important?" Rebecca asked.

"I'll say," Twilight agreed. "Usually only the Princess's confidants, or the extremely wealthy are able to afford one."

"To be lent one is a sure sign that you have the personal attention of the princess," Lyra added.

"Really? Aww man, now I feel even worse," said Rebecca, with a hint of sorrow.

"Huh, why's that," asked Lero.

"Because there is no way that I am getting in that thing."

Author's Note

Well, here we are with chapter fourteen. As always, big thanks to Sausage for prereading.

This chapter may seem a little short, but after how long the last one took me to finish, I've decided to try going with shorter chapters for this next segment of the story. Hopefully I'll be able to crank them out a little bit faster this way.