Chapter 24 - Changing Pace

written by Fire Soul

The arrival in Ponyville was nothing special. With Spike riding on my back and our modest amount of luggage in tow within my magic, we ventured into Ponyville in search of a hotel we'd be able to stay at. Little did I know that was easier said than done.

Ponyville was a strange place with strange standards, and one of those strange standards included the fact that the place didn't have a Celestia-damned hotel. It wasn't a place that was known for being a center of commerce, tourism or anything of the sort, so apparently no one saw fit to at least have a tiny hotel built here. I was willing to bet that Mayor Mare was in the process of getting one built lickety-split thanks to the whole Nightmare Moon incident, but for the time being, I was out of luck.

I had to make a decision quick, and I didn't intend for our first visit to Ponyville to end with Spike and I sleeping in the park. We'd arrived around mid-afternoon, and I'd rather have a place to stay before it got dark out. Considering I intended to get the phone numbers of my friends either way, I could knock two birds out with one stone. I didn't like the idea of just showing up out of the blue asking for a place to stay, but what else could I do?

Our first stop was Applejack's farm. She had the most space I reasoned, so she'd probably have room for us to stay with her. Considering Pinkie was living in a single rented room at Sugarcube Corner, she wasn't a great choice, and staying at Rarity's would really make it hard to avoid being in her way. Plus, I didn't think at the time she actually had a spare room.

You can probably guess why Rainbow wasn't an optimal choice.

The scent of manure was far more subdued, this time around. Then again, that was probably due to the sound of hooves bucking against trees in one specific direction of the orchard. The overall scent leaned more towards a distinct scent of red delicious apples, and despite getting something to eat earlier, I felt like I could stomach two or three of them with ease. Nobody grows 'em like the Apple Family does.

About halfway up the road, I noticed Big Macintosh outside, a distinct white wrapping covering his barrel and back. A very brief conversation with him, consisting mostly of eeyups and yups where applicable, indicated that he'd pulled a muscle while trying to pull the old rusty plow they hadn't replaced as of late. Yeah, I could see how that'd do it. Trying to till a field with a rusted and dulled plow blade? You're asking for a hernea. With that in mind, I think he got off easy just overstraining a few muscles.

He also told me that AJ was out in the western section of the orchard, being real stubborn about getting the work done herself. Sounded about right, though admittedly I didn't know her as well back then. Still, the 'stubborn farmer' shtick seemed very appropriate for someone like Applejack.

I followed the noises through the orchard until I ran across her, bucking at a tree that was half-picked as far as I could tell. Only a few of the buckets set underneath it were full, and the others just had a few stray apples sitting in them. Applejack's kicks were proving less and less effective as time went on, probably due to the fact that the longer I observed her working, the more her eyelids began to slide shut.

When I saw her standing still and her head hanging low, I figured it was time to make my presence known. Not to mention she was snoring in the cutest way! She was actually neighing every time she exhaled, like this wispy sort of neigh that made her sound like a little filly. Oh geez, what if she snored like that every time she slept?

"Applejack!" I called out from a short distance away, causing her to jolt awake. "You alright?"

"What?! Who's alright? Oh, uh, yeah, m'fine," she said, looking back at the tree she still needed to finish. "Just workin'. How 'bout yo-oh, wow sugarcube, what happened to yer face?!"

"Wrong place wrong time, no big deal," I said quickly, frowning a bit. "What about you? You've got bags under your eyes big enough to warrant a fee on the train."

"Wrong place wrong time can't be the whole story if'n your muzzle's so busted ya need a brace...."

"Have you read the newspapers?"

AJ shook her head slowly. "Nope. Ain't got time for it. Big Mac hurt 'imself at the worst possible time, so I gotta make up for it."

"Okay, first...you both do this entire orchard by yourselves?" I asked, quirking a brow.

"Eeyup! This is just Applebuck Season as we like to call it, so our workload's usually more heavy around this time, but when it's both of us we manage just fine."

"Alright. Second, with that in mind, you're willingly overworking yourself?" I asked, although I already knew the answer. "Seems like a lot for a single pony to do, I don't care how much strength and stamina you've got. Why not just hire some workers this season?"

"Excuuuuse me?!" she drawled out at me, rearing up and bucking the tree after taking a moment to align herself. "Ah told mah brother I could do this all by myself! You sayin' ah'm makin' promises mah legs can't keep?"

"Uh, phrasing, and secondly, no I'm not. I'm just saying that you need some help." I said slowly, in hopes of placating her.

Applejack hmph'ed and gave me a small glare, but it softened when she realized I had Spike on my back still. "Well, I don't need no help from nopony."

I sighed and shrugged a little, leaving it be. Drug addicts and stubborn ponies had one thing in common: you needed to let them hit rock-bottom before they even considered getting some help. Though, when it comes to addicts, sometimes they actually like rock-bottom, like pigs rolling in mud...eh, you know what I meant. Point is, I'd have to let Applejack wear herself down to the bone before she'd finally break under her own prideful hubris, and then I could convince her to get some help.

After a moment of silence, punctuated by hooves impacting trees, Applejack spoke up again. "So, was that it? You musta come here for somethin' aside from watchin' me work."

"Ah, well, yes," I said, rubbing the back of my head. "Actually, I came here thinking Ponyville had a small inn or hotel I could stay at. Turns out no such thing exists."

"So ya need a place to stay, right? Well, I could set ya up, long as yer fine with sleepin' outdoors." she said, pushing the buckets around and loading the full ones onto a nearby cart.

"Uh...whaddaya mean?" I asked, discreetly floating a few of the buckets into the air and out of AJ's sight, quietly setting them down into the cart so she didn't notice my helping her.

She took a moment to remove her hat and wipe the sweat from her brow. "Well y'see, the farmhouse is big n' all, but it wasn't built with overnight visitors in mind. Been meanin' ta build some additions to it, but this is the first year in the past three that we've had such a big quality crop. Might be able to afford an extension this time around, long as nothin' unexpected comes up."

"What about all your family members that were here during the reunion?"

"Pff, what, you think my family has problems sleepin' outdoors? Half of 'em do it without so much as a bedroll!" she said, hitching herself up to the cart.

"Makes sense, I suppose...still," I said, walking up alongside her as she began to move. "I'm going to ask Fluttershy if there's any way Spike and I can stay at her place during our visit. Not that your offer isn't generous given how unexpected our arrival was, but I'd prefer to stay indoors."

"Hey, no problem. It's not for everypony. If 'Shy can't put ya up, just c'mon back an' we'll get ya squared away in a good spot."

"That's all I can ask, really."

I walked with her back to the barn, conversing all the way about what happened in Stalliongrad. You know, without all of the details regarding my more illicit dealings. AJ really did look bedraggled, with how her tail was sagging and her head was hanging lower than it normally would for most ponies. Hopefully it wouldn't take her long to realize she'd bitten off more than she could chew.

"Sounds like quite a party ya had," she said, unhitching herself from her cart. "Good thing ya had that Gadget mare around."

"Mmmhmm. Might've been dead if she wasn't." I said, shrugging.

Applejack threw a bucket onto her back with a small grunt. "Where's she at now?"

"Joining the Royal Guard, actually. She's got the skills and the physique for it. It's just her magic that'll be a problem," I said, picking a bucket up in my magic. "Being a unicorn means that your physical prowess doesn't matter much in comparison to what you can do with your horn, and she's severely lacking in that department."

"Put that down." Applejack stated firmly, pointing to the bucket I had floating next to myself.

With a roll of my eyes, I gingerly set the bucket down...right next to the barn door. Applejack gave me the stink-eye for that, but she didn't say anything. Sheesh, irate farmer is irate when she's tired. Fortunately, her little sister showed up to defuse the situation before any harsh words could be spoken between us.

"Heya Twilight! Hey Spike!" she called out while running over towards us. "Whatcha doin' here?"

Spike was almost immediately waving and clambering off my back to greet his new friend. Considering how he had none in Canterlot outside of occasional acquaintances, his eagerness at getting to spend time with a pony his age shouldn't have been all that surprising. I guess by then, some part of me expected him to be entirely introverted since he spent a good chunk of his time with me or other adults.

"Just visiting," Spike said, flashing a sharp-toothed grin. "What're you doing?"

Apple Bloom pointed off past the barn. "Well, I was just gonna go n' cool off at the pond, but I saw y'all over here an' figured I'd say hello."

"Ooh! Mom, can I go?!" he asked suddenly, turning to look up at me.

I shrugged. "Dunno. Is that okay with you, Apple Bloom?"

"Sure! Uh," she said, reaching to tap on his shoulder. "You can swim, right?"

Spike spun around and nodded. "Yeah! Mom showed me how. She had to read up on how griffons swim to teach me. It was weird."

"Uh, why griffons?" she asked, turning to walk away.

"Claws." he responded, holding a hand up and flexing his fingers a few times where she could see them.

"Oh, right. So what's...."

Whatever she said after that faded into the distance. I was a bit miffed that they both forgot to ask if they could run off like that, but I had a reasonable amount of trust in Apple Bloom's ability to keep him out of trouble. I mean, she had Applejack for a big sister! Surely she was the responsible sort, right?

Still....

"...Spike'll be fine alone with her, right?" I asked as Applejack walked out of the barn again.

"Huh? Oh yeah, sure, he'll be fine." she said dismissively, loading another bucket onto her back.

"You sure? I mean I don't really-"

"Sugarcube, he'll be just fine! 'Sides, he's a lil' kid," she said, huffing as she carried another bucket towards the barn. "If'n he comes back with some scuffed scales, that's just him bein' a kid."

I took a deep breath and slowly let it out through my nostrils, nodding a few times. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'm just not used to leaving him unattended like this."

Applejack walked back out of the barn with several empty buckets stacked together. "Don't tell me ya never hired a foalsitter for 'im?"

"No, I did! This is just...different, you know?" I said, motioning a hoof towards where the two had walked off. "Foalsitters are young adults. This feels more like letting him run off with nothing more than a peer watching over him."

"What, he don't got friends over in Canterlot or somethin'?" she asked, taking a moment to catch her breath.

"Not...really. Foals get a few scratches on their sides from a game of tag, and suddenly Spike's not allowed to play with them anymore," I responded, stamping a hoof against the dirt. "It's not fair to him. Just because he wasn't more careful with his claws growing up....!"

"Ah, I gitcha. Dragons ain't exactly common in Equestria. Plus they got those sharp meat-munchin' teeth and they can eat gems," she said, loading the empty buckets back into her cart. "S'pose I can see why they're afraid."

"So can I, and that's what's frustrating for me because I know he'd never willingly hurt anyone!" I said to her, clenching my jaw. "But they don't see it the way I do, and I can't change that."

"Eeyup. Anyway, I gotta get back to work. Nice talkin' with ya Twi," she said, heading back into the barn to get the rest of the empty buckets she'd carried in there. "C'mon back after ya talked with Fluttershy. You know where to find me."

I walked off back down the dirt path while Applejack wandered off into the orchard alone. I was admittedly worried about her current state, being as exhausted as she was, but she was a strong pony. She still had plenty in her before she'd give in. For now, I had my own affairs to get in order.

I still had our luggage in my magic this entire time. Honestly I'd forgotten I was lugging it around until I began wandering down the outer paths of Ponyville, trying to recall the way to Fluttershy's cottage. I had to stop at one house to ask for directions, but eventually I managed to find my way there.

She was already outside when I got there, a picnic basket laid out next to her in front of her cottage and...uh. Harry was dressed up in a moomoo. My brain needed a moment to process that, actually. Even now I need some time to really...comprehend. That's an image that sticks with you, and you'd best treasure it because it's unlikely many others have seen such an amazing thing.

Harry seemed to spot me in the distance however, and when Fluttershy turned after his gesture, I continued my approach. No reason to just stand by the path watching like some creep. As I got closer, I noticed that several other animals of hers were there. A few squirrels, a couple of small cats...aaand I think even an owl was there. They were all drinking tea. Did I take on the role of Alice without realizing it, and this is Wonderland?

Would that make Fluttershy the Mad Hatter? I mean, she already has her bunny companion, grumpy and prone to kicking ponies in the nuts as he may be....

"I didn't expect you today, Twilight! Um, do you want to join us? I'm sure there's plenty of tea..." she offered, motioning for a spot next to herself.

"Uh...sure, alright."

I walked up to the small table she'd set out and took a seat next to it. After a few of the animals made room for me, of course. It would be very unfortunate to wind up sitting on one of the squirrels, or heaven forbid, the mice. One of them looked like he was in a tiny-yup, that was an itty-bitty adorable wheelchair he was rolling around on top of the table.

"Did...did you make a wheelchair for mice?" I asked her, pointing to the mouse with a hoof.

She had a tea biscuit halfway in her mouth before she spoke up. "Hm? Oh! No no, there's a unicorn in town called Little Set that tinkers with tiny figurines as a hobby. I asked him if he could make a wheelchair for me, and he just, kinda...took off with it."

"How so?" I asked, tentatively picking up one of the tea biscuits while Harry poured a cup of tea for me. Surreal doesn't even fully describe that moment.

She took a bite of her biscuit and quickly chewed it up. "Well, I just needed a wheelchair, but then I started getting tiny stretchers and beds...I didn't have the heart to ask him to stop, but he did at least accept payment for it. He said there'd never been a market for that sort of stuff outside of very niche collectors. It was a nice change of pace for him."

"Huh. That was nice of him," I mused, turning when a claw tapped me on my wither. "Oh. Um...thank you."

Harry was holding the cup of tea out to me, carefully balanced on his upturned paw. I didn't think that bears could turn their paws upside-down like that, but it's not like I can remember everything I've ever read, so...okay. I carefully accepted the cup and saucer from him with my hooves and set them down in front of myself.

Once again, the thought of sanitation came to me. Mice were chattering together in their little squeaky language while sharing their own cup of tea, the squirrels were doing the same, not to mention Harry was right next to me. I think he was moreso there for the companionship than the tea. His big paws weren't exactly made for holding teacups, and I doubt a creature as big as he was would get much out of a cup of tea the way a pony would.

Mustering my courage against the plethora of bacterial sicknesses I might be ingesting, I took a sip from my cup. It was...not bad, actually. I was somewhat surprised that Fluttershy had some competence with tea. I'd expected to taste some of that disgusting instant tea Gadget had mentioned before. No, this was definitely brewed from tea leaves. I couldn't pick out the flavor though, nor did I want to at the time. I had other issues on my mind, such as the familiar white rabbit that hopped over in front of me again and gave me a once-over.

Flashbacks of the last time I was there flooded my mind, and I discreetly squeezed my hindlegs together on reflex.

Fortunately my tenders seemed to be safe from the little ball-buster, as he turned with a little wiggle of his nose and ran off to...I dunno, probably torture some other hapless victim. Not really my business anyways. I was far more interested in the fact that Fluttershy had scooted over at some point to lean against my side. I certainly wasn't going to turn away that kind of affection, even if a lot of her animals were looking directly at me now.

"So...why'd you show up out of the blue like this?" she asked, smiling a little wider than she was before.

I smirked and gave her a playful nudge. "I'm surprised you didn't ask about the brace on my muzzle."

"I read the newspapers," she said, looking to me with some concern. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said dismissively. "Wrong place wrong time, nothing more."

"Oh, um, I know you're safe, but I mean...are you okay?" she asked, sitting up and moving her weight off of me.

I didn't really get what she was trying to ask me at first, as was evidenced by my owlish blinking. How are being safe and being okay two different things? That's not how it works on the streets, at least, not in my experience. We don't concern ourselves with psychological wellness. What, you can't take the pressure? Drink it off, you pussy.

Still, I could see why it would matter to her. She didn't know my life, she couldn't comprehend it the same way a pony raised on the streets could. She didn't know what it meant to plot and scheme and fight for your life. To someone like me, 'being safe' is the same as 'being okay'. To her, they couldn't be more different.

"Fluttershy, I'm fine, I promise," I said, taking another sip of my tea. "If I can face down Nightmare Moon, I can certainly deal with a surprise like that."

"But you could have died!" she said, tapping her hoof against the edge of the table nervously. "Doesn't that scare you?"

"Of course. But I didn't," I said, shrugging a little. "So I'm fine."

She looked down at her tea and turned the cup left and right between her hooves. "...It's that easy for you to dismiss something like that?"

"Mmmhmm," I hummed, setting my own cup down. "No reason to linger on it. That's how fear takes root in your mind, and then, well...next time I might not be able to get over my fear fast enough to stay alive."

Her eyes darted to me for a moment, then back to her teacup. "So either you're very brave, or you don't value your life as much as you should...."

"I'm going to let that last part slide because you don't know me," I muttered, scowling at the table. "But I'd appreciate in the future that you don't insinuate that I don't value my life just as much as the next pony. I have a son to raise, thank you very much."

I could tell from the look on her face that she wanted to say more on the matter, but after some careful consideration on her part in the silence that followed between us, I think she made the wiser choice. This wasn't exactly a 'tea party' topic after all.

After we both emptied our cups, she finally spoke up again. "So, uh, you never answered...."

"Huh?"

"What brings you here without any notice ahead of time?"

"Oh! Right. Well, it's kinda a perfect storm of misfortune and forgetfulness," I said, rubbing the back of my head. "I never got anyone's phone number before I went back to Canterlot, aaand I didn't know that Ponyville didn't have a hotel, so...."

"Oh, goodness," she said, barely hiding her amusement behind a foreleg. "So you came here and realized you had nowhere to stay?"

"Yeah, pretty much," I sighed, pointing off in the direction of Applejack's farm. "Spike's currently swimming with Apple Bloom, and Applejack's offered to put us up in a camping spot, but I'd prefer to stay in a house. My rich pony privilege is showing, I know."

"Sooo, you'd like to stay here?"

"That would be appreciated, but if you don't have the space, it's fine." I said, waving it off.

"No no! It's fine! I'm sure we could figure something out," she said hurriedly, shaking her head. "I mean, I don't have a guest room, b-but...."

There was a blush on her cheeks that I hadn't noticed before, and it only became apparent to me that Angel was paying particularly close attention to the two of us instead of...I dunno, talking to the other animals that were littering the table. The way he was letting out squeaking almost sounded like an attempt at words, too. Whatever he said, it certainly had an effect on Fluttershy. She lit up an even brighter shade of red and hid her face behind that luxuriously silky mane of hers while I just looked between them, confused.

"Uh...what'd he say?" I asked, turning to face her better.

She bit her lip and shook her head. "I-I'd rather not say...."

"Alright...what were you going to suggest then? Before he interrupted, I mean."

"Um...w-well, I was going to say that, since we already slept together, you could..." she muttered, shrinking in on herself more and more with every word. "...You could, maybe, sleep in my room? If you want to?"

I pondered on that for a moment. It wasn't exactly a bad deal, though admittedly I wasn't all that used to sleeping in a bed with someone else, at least, not in this sense. I certainly wouldn't be screwing around with her while Spike's in the same house. What if he walked in on us while I'm going at her and she's moaning her pretty head off like last time? That would require some explaining I'm just not ready to do for him.

"Sure, I can...I can work with that," I said, tilting my head to the side. "You were much more confident last time I was here."

"W-well, it was just, you were walking out the door and we-we hadn't talked about anything," she said, pressing her forehooves together and rubbing them against one another. "I didn't want to make things awkward or weird, and the last time you slept in my bed was, well...nice."

"Just nice?" I asked, smirking faintly.

Fluttershy cracked a bashful smile. "Really nice."

"Eh, I'll take it," I said, reaching into my pocket for my cigar case. "Actually, I've been meaning to ask...for such a shy mare, you seem really casual about what we did. You understand that we're not dating or anything...right?"

"Oh! Oh, of course I know that!" she said quickly, letting out a breath as she relaxed. "It would be kinda strange if we were. I barely even know you."

"Yet you were more than willing to take me to bed?"

"That's...that's different," she said, pouting a little. "A mare has needs, and she won't get them fulfilled by being timid. I should know, I'm timid all the time."

"Plus, we were drunk." I noted.

She giggled and nodded. "That too."

"So alright, I can just sleep with you in your bed," I said, taking note of how that seemed to make her smile more. "Spike can sleep in the living room?"

"Would he be okay, sleeping with so many small animals in the living room?" she asked.

"I don't know, but I guess we'll find out, huh?"

She simply nodded to me and stood up, quickly dismissing herself from the table before heading off towards the cottage. I did the same, though I doubted the animals could actually understand what I was saying. Then again, the way some of them looked at me when I spoke to them...eugh. It's still a bit creepy to me.

I figured that Spike was probably still having fun with Apple Bloom, so taking some time to relax and just spend some time with one of my friends sounded like a plan to me. The fact that my eyes were drawn to Fluttershy's flanks had nothing to do with it. Though I may have had ideas, if she didn't have anything else to do.

It would've been rude to just try to jump her or get under her tail right off the bat though. Admittedly I wasn't well-versed in this whole 'friends with benefits' thing, or having actual friends in general. I think maybe Fluttershy and I sped through step one and jumped straight into bed with step two by accident. That's alcohol for you, not that I have anything negative to say about the results.

"Thanks, by the way. For letting us stay I mean," I said as I walked up next to her. "Camping would've been fine, but...yeah."

"I'm sure Spike would've enjoyed it, but I understand. It's no trouble at all as long as you don't mind the animals." she said, pushing her front door open.

The lack of locks still astounded me in this day and age. How can anyone feel even remotely safe without locks on their doors? That was something I had to come to terms with whenever I visited Ponyville after that. At least the hotel had locks when it was finished. You don't realize how safe something so basic makes you feel until you just don't have it available anymore.

When we stepped inside, I had more of a mind to actually look around this time. There were small houses for various critters hanging from the ceiling, fairly out of the way in the corners with areas for the animals to climb down between them. A few mouse holes here and there, and I could only be fortunate that I wasn't a pony that really got creeped out by mice, a few small beds for cats and dogs...there was a lot to take in. Such as several pictures on the walls, clearly meant for decoration. One in particular sitting on the table next to her sofa caught my eye however.

The picture showed a group of three mares crowding around a single stallion, all smiles and hugs while a backdrop of Cloudsdale sat behind them. All four were pegasi of varying colors, and they all looked around the same age. I couldn't make out any of their cutie marks, but this photo was one of those far less common colored ones. Those things took time to make, and depending on how old this photo was, it could've taken quite some time to make.

The stallion himself, despite his rather enjoyable position, looked just a bit nervous. His mane looked as if it were coiled atop his head, the color being similar to Fluttershy's but more faded in intensity, that seafoam green color of his fur rather well-suited to the faded color of his mane and tail. He even had a mustache. The blue eyes really rounded the look out.

"Is this your family?" I asked, lifting the picture frame up in my magic.

She froze in place for a moment when she noticed the picture I was looking at, hesitation inherent in her features. She really wasn't good at hiding what she was feeling, at least when it came to fear or bashfulness. Something about that picture made her worry, which made me question why she'd have it on display in the first place.

"Oh, um, that, well..." she said, glancing off to the side. "Promise you won't be weirded out?"

I blinked a few times. "I promise. So, is this your family?"

"Um, yes. Before my brother and I were born," she said, pointing to the stallion. "That's my Father right there, and the mare just below him in the picture is my Mother. The other two are my stepmoms."

Her Mother seemed so young in the photo! Then again all four of the ponies did, now that I took a closer look at it. She had a very long and flowing rose-colored mane, something that I was guessing ran in the family if Fluttershy was any indication. She had a very pale beige coat of fur and lively purple-ish eyes, the dimples in her smile giving it a sense of genuine joy that made me want to smile as well.

I tried to figure out what Fluttershy meant. Two stepmoms? What, did her parents divorce, marry those other two, then reconcile? It was a stretch, but it wasn't impossible I figured. Wouldn't be the strangest thing I've ever heard.

Then it clicked.

"You're from a herd family?" I asked slowly, only mildly surprised.

"Uh-huh," she said quietly, taking the picture out of the air and looking it over. "This was taken when they were much younger. I didn't get to take a newer family picture before I moved to Ponyville, so they let me have this one."

"Oh. What was that like?"

"It was kinda strange, actually," she muttered, setting the picture down and smiling faintly. "But they were my family, and you know what they say. You can choose your friends, but family's for life."

"Ain't that the truth...." I mumbled, my thoughts drifting to my parents for the briefest of moments.

Fluttershy looked to me curiously. "What about you? What's your family like?"

"Mom and Dad are working all the time, and my brother's rapidly rising through the ranks of the Royal Guard, so he's not home all that often," I stated curtly. "Usually the only people home are Spike and I."

"Oh my. That sounds very lonely," she said, her smile fading. "I mean, you couldn't have had Spike when you were younger, right?"

"Yeah, but I traveled a lot when I was younger, and I was content to be left alone to study," I retorted, waving it off. "So it wasn't a big deal."

"You traveled around Equestria when you were a little filly? Alone?"

"Yeah. It wasn't so bad."

"O-oh, my. That's really dangerous," she said, scuffing the floor with her hoof. "I never could've done that."

I reached up and tapped the side of my horn. "It helps to be really good with magic. Never encountered a problem my magic couldn't fix."

She thought on it for a moment before nodding to me. "I...suppose that would be useful. You were good with magic even back then?"

"Mmmhmm. I still travel around here and there. Like my visit to Stalliongrad," I said, smirking a little. "You know I've been to Zebrica a few times? Wanted to learn their language, so Celestia suggested a few months of both immersion and study."

"How interesting!" she said. "Did it work?"

I cleared my throat and grinned. "<You tell me, lovely little pegasus.>"

"That's so impressive! I actually know how to speak Breezy, myself," she said, seeming to brighten at the very mention of them. "That was a struggle in and of itself! It was hard to find books for it."

I quirked a brow at her. "Speaking Breezy, huh? I guess I shouldn't be surprised by the fact that you of all ponies would be interested in being able to talk to tiny, fragile, adorable things."

"I can't help it if their pollen migration leaves them so vulnerable and I want to be able to help them if I can. It takes them right through Ponyville, you know." she said, faking a pout.

"Could that be because you are adorable and fragile yourself?" I teased, grinning at her.

She blushed at the insinuation, but there was a twinkle in her eyes. Something I hadn't expected to see from her, really. Not without vast amounts of alcohol in her system, anyways.

"I wasn't so fragile l-last time you were here...if you remember," she spoke so quietly, her face reddening with each word. "I-I-I was shocked you could even keep up with me. It was probably the cider helping you out."

I stared at her for a moment in surprise. "...Did you just insinuate that I wouldn't be able to handle you if I were sober?"

She shrunk back away from me for a moment, but there was a playfulness to it. The way she looked at me was almost catty, and the faint upward curl of the corners of her muzzle seemed far too mischievous to be unintentional. She made a point of turning to head into the kitchen, that long tail of hers flicking upward so the end of it batted me under my chin, sending a small gust of air over my muzzle. The faint scent of aroused mare lingered in it.

"Maybe."

I stood there, genuinely dumbfounded for a minute. She was far more casual about this than I initially expected! She was in the kitchen by the time I snapped out of it, a bulging sensation in my sheath forcing me to take some time to calm myself down and take a few breaths to keep myself under control. It certainly wasn't estrus, but that didn't change the fact that I just got a blast of horny mare scent straight up my nostrils. Any red-blooded stallion or herm would want to be all over that.

I'm sure if Gadget were there, Fluttershy would've already been bent over the kitchen table.

I stepped into the kitchen, watching her get herself a glass of water. "You know, for a mare that's so shy and timid, you can be very saucy."

"Yes, I know," she said, taking a moment to drink down half of the glass. "When you grow up in a herd, your perspective on things sort of...differs, from most other ponies."

"How so?" I asked, taking a seat at her kitchen table.

She sat down next to me and placed her glass down in front of herself. "W-well, for one, the idea of having multiple lovers never seemed very strange to me. It only seemed more normal to me when our neighbors got a divorce because they'd both cheated on each other."

"How so? I mean if they cheated on each other, they cheated on each other."

"Well yes, they were wrong to go having sex without each other's permission, but...if they both wanted more ponies in their love life, why didn't they just sit down and talk about it?" she asked, shrugging to herself. "Maybe if they'd had more ponies to turn to when they wanted attention, it never would've been a problem for either of them...."

I shrugged as well. "Maybe. Could just be that they were seeking companionship because they didn't care about each other anymore. Everything decays, and if you don't put the time into giving a relationship the proper upkeep, it just kinda falls apart."

"I guess," she said, staring down at her glass. "I just think it never would have happened if they'd had others as close to them as they once were to each other."

"So...that's why you're fine with having sex with your friends?" I asked, not quite seeing the relevance of the whole thing.

"Oh! Um, no, that's not just it, but it's how I started down my line of thinking," she said, sitting back. "The other reason is a friend of mine that I met around a year ago. She's a really free-spirited pony called Tree Hugger."

"Geez, what a name to give your foal." I said, trying and failing to hide my amusement.

Fluttershy giggled and nodded. "Hee, I know! But she's really nice, and very open with her heart."

"And her body?"

"Um, kiiind of. I spent some time with her last year during the summer, and she said a lot of things that made sense to me."

I shifted in my seat and rested a foreleg on the table. "Like what?"

"Well, she said that mares have lots of wants and needs to, and sometimes, a mare just has to go out and get those things she wants. Or the-the fact that, being slutty is just a viewpoint of society, and we shouldn't be afraid to share ourselves with the ponies we care about the most," she explained, then cringed. "Except with your family. She made that very clear."

"Well, I can't exactly disagree with her. She's lucky she can have that kind of freedom with herself," I said, snorting in irritation. "If I ran around doing that sort of thing openly, I'd be judged for it at every turn."

"Oh. Right, you're a noble," she said, frowning ever-so-slightly. "That must be hard for you, being a hermaphrodite."

I waved it off. "I'm on suppressants, it's fine. I can deal, and if it ever really becomes an issue, I've got magic and hooves to take care of the problem."

Fluttershy blushed once more. "And toys?"

"Not nearly as many as you, but yeah." I said, giving her a wicked little grin.

We sat there for a moment while she drank her water to cool herself off. I noticed her tail was swishing this way and that, her excitement finding an outlet through it. She was fanning her scent around without realizing it, and it didn't escape my notice. Suppressants or not, it was having an effect on me.

"So! Your friend, Tree Hugger," I said, perking up a little. "Does she smoke pot, too?"

Fluttershy coughed a little mid-drink, covering her muzzle with a hoof. It took her a moment to get herself under control, but when she did, she gave me a dirty look. I'm sure she didn't appreciate that, but it was too funny for me to care at the time.

"You did that on-*cough*-purpose!" she said, trying to clear her throat.

I just shook my head. "You can prove nothing."

She frowned and reached over to bat me on my foreleg. "And shame on you for believing in such stereotypes! Not everypony that believes in the things she does makes a habit of smoking pot!"

There was silence for a moment as we stared at each other.

"But yes, she smokes pot quite a bit. It helps her relax."

I snickered and tapped my hoof against the table. "Called it! Did you ever try any?"

"A few times, usually when she visits," she said, looking nervous. "That's not a problem, is it?"

"Nah. It's better than sticking needles full of heroin in your veins, and it's certainly better than smoking cigarettes."

"...Would you like to join us, next time she stops in for a visit?" she asked, sounding hopeful. "I'm sure she'd love to meet you."

I gave it a moment of thought before nodding. "Sure, why not? No reason not to."

She nodded to that and finished off her water, glancing at me just as the glass touched her lips to make sure I didn't try to get her to choke again before downing what was left. She seemed like she'd calmed down at least a little bit, and I wasn't sure if I should be thankful or not. How fortunate that I was wrong.

"So, um, I mean, sorry if this is too forward but..." she said, curling in on herself a little. "Do you have to pick up Spike anytime soon? Or did you have any plans for today?"

"No, not really...." I said, staring at her as she turned to face me.

"Then, maybe you'd like to...?" she said, pointing a hoof up towards the ceiling.

"Is that a proposition or a suggestion, miss Fluttershy?" I asked, slipping out of my seat and stepping aside.

She got down from her own seat and walked over to me, boldly nipping my ear and giving it a tug. "A bit of both."

I shuddered a little and felt the bulge in my pants getting bigger. "I would like to reiterate that we are not in a relationship."

"We don't need to be in a relationship to rut." she said casually, nudging under my jawline.

"I know, but you're being uncharacteristically aggressive about this." I said, stumbling a little as we both began to walk out of the kitchen and towards the stairs.

"Mares have needs," she said, nibbling at the side of my neck. "You don't have to fulfill those needs if you really don't want to, but I think you do."

She lifted her head and nipped my ear again, just the very tip of it, holding it in place while involuntary spasms made it try to twitch away from her teeth. I could hear her breath so clearly, and I could feel the warmth of her wing as it laid over my back, giving me the lightest of squeezes while her side pressed against mine. That bulge was becoming all the more insistent that I set it free.

"I'd really appreciate it." she whispered in my ear.

I stood there for a moment. Only a few moments actually. Then I stepped back, and she almost looked dejected. I think she thought that I was going to deny her. Then I turned my head sharply and nipped her right on her cutie mark, causing her to squeak and jump into the air in surprise.

"Up those stairs, filly." I demanded, smirking at her.

It only took her a moment to react, but she climbed those stairs far faster than I ever would've expected. It's always the quiet ones, I swear. I took a few seconds to get the time from a clock hanging on the wall before I headed up after her, a bit of swagger in my step. Nothing like a mare wanting what you've got to put some pep in your step.

In any case, I was hoping that Apple Bloom could keep Spike busy for a while. I needed time to make this pegasus sing. Mm, this vacation was off to a fantastic start...!

Author's Note

What a coincidence it is that I would cover the subject of Fluttershy's family right around the time an episode about her family is airing!

No really, I intended to bring this up since the start, this was all a huge coincidence. It weirded me out.