Love of the librarian

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Epilogue

Chapter 1

George looks off towards the horizon as the sun slowly rises, pushing back the night Luna brought forth and warming the land to set the tone for the rest of the day. Another day in Equestria for him, another day learning the ins and outs of their society. George lets out a sigh as he thinks over everything that’s happened. It’s crazy to think that his once normal life back on earth could change so drastically. One moment he’s taking in the local scenery at the park and then he’s suddenly in another world. Jarring as that was, he managed to keep his cool throughout it all.

He’d be lying if he didn’t admit to missing more than a few things from his old life. His family, friends and even job. Sure he had the thought once in awhile on what it would be like to start over, to see another world, yet he never thought it would actually happen. Things haven’t been handed to him either. From day one he’s worked his ass off to get to where he is now. Perhaps not the life of luxury but he’s content with how things are. Still... He looks down to his feet for a moment. It would be nice to go home, back to earth. A place where he belongs. Where he isn’t looked down upon, despite being a giant here.

There’s no time for him to waste thought. He needs to head on over to the Canterlot library or else he’ll be late.

George enters the library without any problems. A mare is sitting there in wait for him. Strict Rule is her name and she takes her job seriously. Since he got his job here she’s always made sure to guide him, even teaching him the things he did not know. As strict as she is, she’s a good pony at heart. When she spots George a small frown starts to cross her face.

“You were almost late.”

George nods. “Sorry. I just got caught up in thought.”

“You seem to be coming in early less and less these days. What happened to that can do attitude you had before?” She scolds lightly.

“I still got it, Mrs. Rule.” George say trying to convince her.

She studies him for a few seconds before looking away.

“We have a lot to do and sitting here talking is wasting time. You know your station?”

George nods. “Yes. Section 5a, magic fusion and theory crafting.”

That puts a small smile on Strict Rule’s muzzle, if only for a moment.

“I expect those books to be as pristine as the day they were made. Then move onto the new catalog system.”

“Can do, Mrs. Rule.”

Nothing else is needed to be said between the two as they quickly head off to their sections. The entire library has been going through a renovation of sorts. For the past few months they’ve not only been getting new books but also cleaning the olds ones. The next major thing is that Celestia took great interest in the dewey decimal system George told her about. It’s what landed him this job to begin with. So the work is plentiful and considering how large this collection is, it may take ten or even twenty years to complete. George does feel a sense of pride knowing that a piece of his world will soon become the standard for all libraries. The system before was odd and almost random at times. So it’s a change that benefits everyone.

George is working hard as he cleans the relics of the past. Not only that but he’s making sure they are still high quality. If not, then he’ll need to put them aside to be restored by a mage later. Magic is a weird thing that he barely understands. It can do so many great things and yet it can’t solve the simplest of problems ponies have. George constantly thinks about bringing other items from his world here to Equestria to improve it a bit. Like replacing inkwells and quills with a pen. He’s sure that would become a huge hit.

George notices a small tear in the book he’s looking over and sets it aside. Well, enough pondering on how he can improve the world. If he picks up the pace he can probably get an early lunch. As George works he notices the sound of somepony walking behind him.

“Not quite done yet, Mrs. Rule.”

The response he gets isn’t one he expected. He hears a small gasp of sorts, not something he would hear come from Strict Rule. George sets the book he’s holding down and turns around. His eyes widen as he gazes upon a pony the likes he’s never seen before. A purple alicorn stands there. She’s not tall like Celestia, she’s not even as tall as Luna. If anything she’s about the same size as a regular pony. George doesn’t recognize her. Is she another princess?

“Oh... I wasn’t aware we’d get a customer today.” George quickly regains his professional attitude. He gets up from the floor to properly address the pony. “Are you interested in checking out a book from the magic fusion section?”

The pony looks at him in awe. George isn’t surprised by her reaction. He’s still an oddity in this world, not to mention most pony’s heads only go up to his waist. The pony notices her staring and quickly turns away in embarrassment.

“I’m sorry for staring. Yes, I’m looking for Magehoof the Magnificents bo-”

“Book of magenificent spells? Volume one or two?”

The pony looks surprised that George knew the book she spoke of. He’s spent a lot of time learning this library. Sure he doesn’t know it all but this section in particular is his to work on, so he knows it like the back of his hand.

“There’s a volume two?”

“Yeah, we just got it in.” George walks over to a box full of books and digs through it. “It was found at the border of Equestria, right before entering death valley. Weird story that one is.” George catches himself before he starts to ramble. This pony doesn’t want to hear about a story on how they found a book. “Sorry... ummm.” He finds the book and pulls it out. “Here it is.” George hands the book over to the pony and walks over to get his clipboard. “Mind if I get your name? The usual checkout system is out of order until Mrs. Rule and I get this library in order.”

The pony seems lost in thought but shakes her head clear to regain focus.

“Oh? My name’s Twilight Sparkle.”

George writes down her name. It sounds familiar for some reason. He could’ve swore he’s heard that name before.

“Alright, Twilight Sparkle, checking out magenificent spells volume two.” He sets his clipboard down and returns his attention to Twilight. “Do you need anything else?” She looks hesitant to say something. It’s probably about him. It wouldn’t be the first or last time a pony wanted to ask something about him. “I’m a human, by the way.”

That seems to calm her but a spark of curiosity within her eye starts to shine.

“Human? I’ve never heard of your kind before.”

“Yeah. I come from another planet, actually. It’s a long story.”

That curious look in her eye seems to grow more.

“I have the free time!” She shouts in excitement.

It’s startling to both George and Twilight. He wasn’t expecting her to be so enthusiastic.

“What’s going on over there!” A voice shouts from within the library.

“Nothing, Mrs. Rule!” George replies.

“Don’t go slacking off! We still have a lot of work to do!”

“I’m on it!” George looks back at Twilight. Her face now completely red. “I’ve got work right now but if you really want to know, I should be getting a lunch break in a few hours.”

Twilight nods her head as she puts the book away in a saddle bag that matches her fur color.

“I’ll meet you here?”

George nods. “Yup. See you then.”

Twilight gives one last nod as she trots towards the front of the library. For the time being, George tries to ignore that he’s seen that pony’s name somewhere before. Man! This is going to bug him for awhile.

He gets it now. Lunch time is here and George finally remembers why he knew that pony’s name. It’s Twilight Sparkle! The strongest known mage on this planet. He’s read stories about her and her friends. You know, seeing as that’s his job for the most part. She’s really important to this world. She’s saved Equestria dozens of times. This is the first time he’s met her in person. George vaguely remembers Celestia wanting to schedule a meeting between him and her, so that Twilight could be in the loop about his arrival but decided against it as George had a lot of work to do since bringing the decimal system to Equestria.

He’s really nervous. She’s practically a celebrity. While Celestia seems rather normal, considering her royal status, George knows next to nothing about Twilight, other than she’s a pretty big deal.

“What’s got you all in a tizzy?”

George looks behind him and finds Mrs. Rule standing there with a raised brow.

“I just agreed to have lunch with one of the most important ponies on this planet.”

She looks at him with a raised brow. “Really? Who would that be?”

“Twilight Sparkle.”

Mrs. Rule rolls her eyes. “Really? You’re all worked up over having lunch with Twilight?”

“Who wouldn’t?! She’s only the single most important pony on the planet!”

Mrs. Rule gives George a deadpanned expression. “I’ve known Twilight since she was a filly. She’s just like everypony else. No need to blow everything out of proportion.”

“You’ve known Twilight for that long?”

She nods. “Yup. When she became a student directly under Princess Celestia, this library was her home for awhile. She practically lived on one of the shelves. Reading every moment she was given. I doubt the filly that used to come here would change into a ego filled pony.”

George lets out a sigh. “I just can’t help it, Mrs. Rule. There’s just so much I don’t understand in this world. All I know is what I’ve read.”

That gets a chuckle out of Strict Rule. “Sounds like you two have a lot in common.”

Before George can question that the door to the library opens and Twilight comes trotting in with a large smile on her face. She instantly spots George and walks up to him. The first thing that George notices is that Twilight’s bag is filled with what looks like quills, ink wells and parchment. George has a bad feeling about this. Twilight’s about to speak but turns to face Strict Rule.

“Oh! Hello, Rule. It’s been awhile.”

“It has. How have things been with you?”

“Great! A few things happened in the empire but it’s all worked out.”

“It’s always nice to hear that Equestria is safe with you around.”

Twilight blushed deeply at that. “You know I don’t do it for the recognition.”

“Of course.” Strict Rule looks over at George. “You’re free to have lunch but remember we still have a job to do.”

“I understand, Mrs. Rule.” George looks over at Twilight. “Are you ready?”

She nods with enthusiasm. “Definitely!”

George gets up from his seat and motions for Twilight to lead. The two of them exit the library and all George can do is follow Twilight. Usually he has his meals here at the castle but based on the direction Twilight is taking, they aren’t going to the dining hall.

“It sure looks like you’re busy in the library. Is it because of this new Dooby decim system?” Twilight asks.

“Dewey decimal and yes.”

“Such an odd and yet efficient system. It makes me wonder why I haven't thought of it before!”

“Well, it took us humans a long time to figure it out too.”

Twilight stops in her tracks and slowly turns to face George, a certain twinkle in her eye.

“Y-You’re the one that created the system?” She asks.

“Well, no. My people did. I just talked to Celestia about it and she liked the idea.”

Twilight instantly closes the gap between them, their faces only inches away from one another. She’s staring deeply into his eyes and George is starting to feel uncomfortable.

“This is amazing!” Twilight shouts with Glee. “This system is reshaping how libraries are run all over Equestria! Do you understand how much impact this system has on Eques- no, the world!”

“Well, I mean... It probably doesn’t impact the world as much as you.” George says honestly.

He notices a large blush cross Twilight's cheeks as she drops onto all fours and faces away from him.

“I’m not really that important. Your system will last far longer than I ever will.”

“But the stories about you will last just as long.” George chuckles. “If someone writes a book, they’ll use the system to store all of the great things you’ve done for Equestria.” George looks down to his feet a sobering thought comes to mind. “Me though, I’m a nobody. Just the guy that brought the system to your world. I didn’t create it. I’m just George the human.”

George has accepted this fact. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. In a world like this, where magic is real and battles are had. What can one human do to make a name for himself? Then again, George was never one to seek glory. He’s perfectly content with being in the library. Doing small things that don’t have much impact.

“But if you weren’t here, then the system never would’ve been known.” That makes George’s heart stop. “I used the Elements of Harmony to win most of my battles but never once did I feel as if I gave any less than my all. Just by being here you’ve already changed our world for the better. Regardless of the fact that you may be using the knowledge of your people to make a change in our world.”

Wow... That was deep. George wasn’t expecting to hear something like that.

“Thank you, Twilight. I guess I never thought of it in that way.”

“No problem!” Twilight continues walking as George follows.

“So where are we going? I usually eat in the dining hall.”

“I hope you don’t mind but one of my friends told me about a small restaurant she’s been going to and it has a two pony minimum.”

“I don’t mind. I just haven’t gotten my pay for this week. Just a few bits in my pocket.”

“No worries! I invited you to talk so it’s my treat.”

“Um, thank you.”

George and Twilight continue to walk through the castle on their way to the streets of Canterlot. George will admit it’s been awhile since he’s been out and about but having Twilight with him makes him feel at ease. In fact, he thinks this’ll be a great day.

They finally make it to the restaurant that Twilight’s friend talked about. As Twilight and George walk in the first thing they both notice is how intimate the establishment looks. It’s covered in deep reds and pink colors. Hearts adorn the walls. The entire place looks fit for a first date.

“Ummm.” George looks around unsure what to say.

“I-I... Maybe I got the address wrong?” Twilight asks just as confused by what she sees.

“Should we leave?”

“Y-yeah. I know of another pla-”

“Twilight!”

Twilight and George look over to the source of the noise and find a white mare with a purple mane waving at them from her seat.

“Do you know her?” George asks.

Twilight puts a hoof to her face trying to hide her blush.

“Yes, that’s Rarity.”

“R-Rarity? The element of Generosity? That Rarity?”

“Yup.”

More important ponies. George has to keep his cool. He looks over and can see Rarity waving for them to come over. Twilight just lets out a small sigh as she walks further into the restaurant, George following behind her. They make it over to Rarity and George can easily tell that her sights are on him.

“My, my and whom is this strong and tall looking creature that’s with you, Twilight?”

“This is George. He works at Canterlot library.”

“Well, I must say that I’m surprised you’ve found a stallion of your own. Worst thing is you haven’t even told me!”

Both Twilight and George can’t stop the heat from filling their cheeks.

“W-We just met!” Twilight sputters out.

“Just met!? I never knew you were so bold, Twilight!”

Twilight’s jaw is on the floor now as she tries her best to make words but nothing intelligible comes out. George needs to take control here.

“It’s kind of a funny story. Twilight wanted to talk to me at lunch about my world and I guess you recommended this place. We honestly didn’t know it was of a romantic setting and were just about to leave until you called us over.”

Rarity gives a titter. “I know, Darling. I was just messing with Twilight. I must say I appreciate you coming to her rescue like a true stallion should.”

“I just thought we should be clear. Still.” George looks around the room. “We probably shouldn’t be here.”

“Nonsense! I wasn’t lying when I said this place was good. Please, have a seat you two.”

Twilight calms down and takes a seat. George does the same and soon a waiter comes to take their orders. George manages to find something that doesn’t have hay and orders that while the other girls order various pony things that George could never hope to digest. Once the waiter is gone the three of them are left alone.

“I must say that you’re a unique creature, George. Where do you come from?” Rarity asks.

George can see Twilight use her magic to pull out a quill, some ink and a large piece of parchment paper from her saddle bag. George returns his attention to Rarity.

“Another planet. I appeared in Equestria about five months ago and since then have been working in the library.”

“Oh my and there’s no way for you to return home?”

He shakes his head. “No. Celestia tried her best but wasn’t able to create a connection to my planet. She said something about time deteriorating the magic something.”

“The magic tremera?” Twilight comes in.

“Yeah, whatever that is. We don’t have that word on our world so I don’t know what it means.”

“It’s the connection between two things. To make it simple. If a pony teleports, they create a connection from one point to the other, for a limited time that connection could be reopened to return them where they came from, it’s often used to save energy as reopening an already made hole is easier than making a new one.”

That makes sense, kinda.

“Anyways. Celestia couldn’t help me. So I’ve been living my life here ever since. ”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Rarity comes in.

“It’s not all bad. All the ponies at the castle are nice to me. Canterlot, not so much but at least they don’t run away in fear, anymore.”

“Well, I must say that you’ve been nothing but a gentlestallion since we’ve met. I dare say that I would call you a friend with how nice you are.”

Woah... George was not expecting her to say that.

“Um, well, thank you, Rarity.”

“There’s no reason to thank somepony for being your friend, Darling.”

“I guess you’re right.” George looks over at Twilight as she furiously writes something. “Um, are you alright, Twilight?”

“Perfectly fine.” She states as she writes more.

Rarity rolls her eyes. “Alright, Twilight. You can talk to him now.”

“Finally!” She quickly covers her muzzle with a blush. “S-Sorry.”

“No need to be sorry. I was the one that invited you two over when you’ve already made plans. Please, continue as if I’m not even here.”

“Alright.” Twilight looks over at George. “So, what kind of magic do you use?”

“I actually don’t use magic. There’s no such thing as magic on my world.”

Twilight’s eyes widen. “No magic?” George shakes his head. “None at all?”

“Not a single bit.”

“How does your planet even work? How does the sun and moon move? How can you survive on a world without magic?”

“Well, I know for a fact our race is highly advance when it comes to technology. No offense but if you compared our technology to yours, you’d be in the dark ages.”

“What’s a dark age? Do you have a Nightmare Moon where you’re from?”

“What?” It takes a moment for George to understand where he messed up. Of course they didn’t have a dark age, at least not one like humanity. “Um, you know how Starswirl pretty much revolutionised magic for all ponies?” Twilight nods. “Your technology compared to ours is like magic before Starswirl came around.”

Twilight gets it now. She honestly can’t even fathom what he could mean by that. How far can technology go? At one point ponies thought the same thing about magic and then Starswirl came around to show them it was far more complex and expansive than they knew. So what George is talking about could be something that no pony could ever hope to understand.

“Oh... C-Can you explain a piece of technology to me?”

George thinks that over. There’s just so many things he could talk about. Computers, phones, game consoles, cameras... Yet he thinks those are things he can save for later. So he’ll talk about something Twilight would enjoy.

“Alright, Twilight. Here’s something I know you ponies don’t have. Imagine having a piece of glass the size of a book.”

Twilight cocks her head slightly. “Glass?”

“Mmhmm. Now, imagine that within that piece of glass there are thousands of books.”

Her eyes are sparkling again. “Thousands of books?”

“Yup and all you have to do is tell the glass what book you want, touch the glass and it’ll open that book up. Swipe your hoof from right to left and it’ll flip the page.”

Twilight looks down to her parchment for a moment in confusion. She then looks back up to George.

“How can that even work?”

“That’s sadly one thing I can’t answer. It’s so complex that most people don’t know how their technology works, it just does but that’s only one of many things we had.”

“Wow.” Twilight returns to scribbling notes. “So wha-”

“You’re meals are ready.” A waiter pony speaks up with a tray held in his magic.

“Perfect timing!” Rarity speaks up, using her own magic to give everyone their plates. “I’m absolutely starving!”

George is about to agree with Rarity but finds that his stomach has done that for him, a large growl filling the silence. He quickly covers his stomach in embarrassment, yet as he looks up he notices that Twilight is also holding her stomach with a red face. Rarity can only sit there and cover her muzzle as she tries to hold back her laughter.

“I haven’t ate breakfast.” George puts out there.

“Same.” Twilight comes in.

“Well, let’s not wait and enjoy our meals.” Rarity says.

They can agree to that as they look over their meals. It looks nice as far as George can tell. Then again most things in Equestria look nice. Doesn’t really mean it’s better than anything else but everything tends to have a nice shine to it. He picks up his veggie sandwich and takes a large bite. It tastes alright. He’s probably used to the chefs that make his meal at the castle. Not only that but they have meat there too. It’s one of the perks of needing to host various creatures with different tastes every so often, the kitchens are stocked up on all types of foods.

Doesn’t mean George isn’t enjoying himself. It’s nice to have company. Most of the time he eats alone. He looks over at Rarity as she eats very daintily. Taking small piece from her plate with a fork and using magic to place it into her mouth. A very elegant way of eating, befitting of the Canterlot lifestyle. However, when George looks over at Twilight, he’s surprised by what he sees. She’s just shoving food indiscriminately into her mouth. Bits and pieces of lettuce from her salad flying all over the place.

He was expecting her to eat along the same line as Rarity, seeing as she was a pupil of the princess, he thought she would have some manners. Yet George can only sit there and watch with wide eyes as she wolfs away her food. Twilight seems to notice George’s gaze and stops mid-shovel. She smiles awkwardly, her cheeks full of food, face covered in a blush while she slowly swallows all of her food.

“Um, is there something wrong?” She asks.

George snaps out of his gaze.

“No, I’m just surprised is all.”

“Well, it’s just that I’m hungry and,”

“No, I understand. I just, I don’t know, found it cute is all.”

“C-cute?”

“Yeah... There are so many ponies here in Canterlot that are too afraid to be themselves. It’s kinda nice to see a pony that’s willing to be themselves.”

“Oh... Well, thank you.”

Rarity is starting to crack at the seams as she starts chuckling.

“My you two are simply precious!” Rarity turns her attention to George. “You simply must come to visit in Ponyville sometime.”

George rubs the back of his neck nervously.

“I don’t know, Rarity. I’m really busy with the library.”

“No, I will hear none of that! Come, this friday. I simply must show you off to the girls.”

This is all weird and sudden. Still, Rarity seems like a nice enough pony. Besides that, he kinda wants to know if Twilight is going to be there.

“Are you going to be there, Twilight?”

She nods her head. “Yes, I live in Ponyville.”

“Oh?” George doesn’t remember reading where the elements live, then again maybe that’s for a good reason. “I’ll have to talk to Celestia and Strict Rule first.”

“You leave Celestia to me.” Rarity comes in. “I’m sure she’ll be more than happy to know that Twilight will be showing her new friend off to everypony in Ponyville.”

Twilight snaps her head towards Rarity. “What?!”

Rarity quickly covers Twilight’s muzzle.

“Now I just remembered that Twilight and I had something very important we needed to do. Sorry to be leaving so abruptly.”

George looks between the two confused but decides to let it go.

“No worries. It was nice meeting you, Rarity.” He then looks over at Twilight. “I hope we can speak some more when I head on over to Ponyville.”

Rarity is still covering Twilight mouth as she answers for her.

“Of course you two will! Tata!”

In a puff of smoke the two are gone, only leaving behind enough bits to pay for the meal.

“I guess I got the tip.” George states as he fishes out a nice tip for the waiter.

Once Twilight and Rarity are far from the restaurant, Rarity lets go of Twilight.

“What the hay, Rarity! Why did you say all that stuff back there?”

“Don’t you want him to come visit Ponyville?”

“W-Well...” Twilight looks at her hooves. “It would be nice.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“You invited him!” Twilight looks back up at Rarity.

“Because you were too nervous to do it on your own.”

Twilight rubs a hoof over her foreleg.

“I was going to do it.”

“Twilight, I really am proud that you’ve found a stallion you like.”

“Rarity, I don’t like him... He’s nice but we’ve just met.” Twilight sits on her rump and twiddles her hooves a bit. “Don’t you think this is too fast to know if you like somepony or not?”

Rarity can only smirk as she shakes her head.

“Twilight, you’ve never had a date in your entire life.” Twilight’s face covers in a large blush but she can’t say anything to deny it. “It’s perfectly fine to get a crush on somepony quickly. However, you just need to act normal and see how things go. If you think you really like them, then don’t be afraid to be assertive, stallions like that.”

“Rarity you’re embarrassing me.” Twilight covers her face.

“Come now, Twi. We’re both grown mares. You don’t need to hide your feelings from me. I’ll always be there to listen to whatever troubles you have.”

Twilight removes her hooves from her face.

“Thanks, Rarity.”

“Anytime, Twi. Now, let’s go talk to the princess about George. I’m sure there’s lots of things you two can do in Ponyville.”

Twilight can only nod as Rarity and her walk back to the castle. Twilight would like to show him how the system from his world has shaped her own library and made things better. She also really likes the idea of him meeting her friends. She didn’t want to say it but when she looks at George she almost sees a younger version of herself. How she used to lock herself away in the library and only had meals in the castle. Maybe Rarity is right that she has a bit of a crush on him but she also wants to help him from becoming what she once was all those years ago.

Chapter 2

George is sitting at the trainstation in wait for his train to Ponyville. It’s been a few days since he last spoke to Twilight and Rarity but, from the letter he received yesterday, they were able to talk Celestia into letting him visit Ponyville. Not that he isn’t allowed to go wherever he wants but due to his lack of knowledge on most of the dangers here, Celestia tends to be worrisome over any trips he wants to make. He can only guess it’s in her motherly nature to care about her subjects, even one that came from another world.

He’s grateful for that and appreciates her concern. Now, convincing Strict Rule was a challenge all on its own. Asking to skip a workday was considered blasphemy for Strict Rule. So it took him some time to explain the situation before she finally let up and allowed him to go. He has a feeling that the letter from Celestia was the final push needed to convince her. So here George sits. There are a few ponies here and there waiting at the platform as well. He’s got his ticket, bag of bits and clothes on his back.

He’s not expecting to stay longer than the day so no need for a change of clothes. George can hear the train approach from afar. It’s finally here. He’ll admit it’s kinda exciting to be leaving Canterlot for the first time. He wonders what Ponyville looks like?

The train has finally reached its destination. George can feel his heart rapidly beating in his chest as he gets out of his seat and makes his way to the exit. As soon as he walks out of the train door does he find himself surprised by what he sees. Twilight is standing in wait for him. It’s easy enough to spot her considering his height advantage and it’s just as easy for her to spot him. He feels a smile on his face at seeing her, a looks she mirrors. George walks towards Twilight as she meets him halfway.

“I didn’t know you were going to meet me at the station.” George says with surprise.

“I knew this was your first time in Ponyville. Wouldn’t be much of a visit if you got lost.”

That is a thing that could’ve happen. Seems like Twilight has been thinking about this just as much as he has.

“Thanks for taking the time to come here.”

Twilight perks up at that.

“It’s no problem at all. Are you ready to see Ponyville?”

George nods. “Yup.”

“Alright, follow me.”

Twilight walks off towards town as George follows behind her. The first thing that he notices is that this place is a far cry from Canterlot. Yet he can’t deny that it fits along the same theme. Canterlot appears to reflect a certain medieval style. The castle and all surrounding places looking to be made of high grade stones and other various materials. Yet Ponyville has a look that George would assume a smaller village would have. The houses look sturdy but obviously not made of the same materials found in Canterlot. It’s just got a very middle ages vibe to it.

“I have to say this place looks different compared to Canterlot.” George breaks the silence.

“Yeah, Ponyville looks rustic but it’s a cozy place to call home. Away from the hustle and bustle of the modern Equestria most ponies know. A place where you can relax.”

“It certaining looks like a relaxing place to live.”

Twilight chuckles slightly. “It can get rather interesting at times too.” Twilight points off towards a forest to the right. “That’s the Everfree forest. A lot of dangerous animals call it home and they sometimes like to wander into town. No pony has been harmed but it can put the fright into anypony not paying attention.”

Sounds like the typical problems of someone who lives next to nature. Animals have their own places they wander and sometimes that’s where you happen to live. Usually nothing bad happens but sometimes the worst thing can happen. George has heard a few horror stories about people who’ve left their homes at night to take out the trash only to be mauled by a bear. Scary thought but statistically unlikely.

“Yeah, that sort of thing happens with humans too. At least for those that live close to nature.”

George can see that curious glint in Twilight’s eye whenever he speaks about his world. She’s a very curious pony.

“May I ask what creatures you have on earth?”

George scratches the back of his head. “I... I’ll be honest, Twilight. I don’t know what animals live here in Equestria. Do you have a bestiary I can take a look at?”

She nods with a large smile. “Of course! Let’s head on over to my castle right now!”

George can’t get another word in as Twilight grabs his hand with her magic and starts running. All he can do is match her pace and see where it takes him.

So, George is standing in front of what he can only describe as a tree made of crystal. This is not a typical home. In fact it’s almost on par with Celestia’s castle. George knows that Twilight is a princess but he didn’t know she lived in her own castle. It makes sense, seeing as Cadance has her own castle as well. Twilight had led him to a throne room and left him there as she ran off to get the book he requested. He looks around a bit and finds a large crystal table in the center, six large thrones surrounding it with symbols at the top.

He recognizes them as the cutie marks of the elements of harmony. So this is a round table of some kind. Do those six conduct business here? George wonders what kinds of adventures they get into. He spent most of his time reading up on them after meeting Twilight and yet what those six have done is rarely talked about or published. Just the biggest moments are written into history. Surely they get into other smaller adventures as well?

His thoughts will have to wait as Twilight enters the room with a book held in her magic. She takes a seat at her throne and waves for George to join her. George stands beside her, unsure where to sit. She rolls her eyes and points to the seat next to her.

“You can sit there. No pony will get mad.”

George doesn’t feel right about this but he takes his seat next to Twilight.

“Here’s the book you asked for.” She floats it over to him.

He nods. “Thank you.”

George takes the book and looks over its contents. After flipping through the pages for awhile he finds a lot of disturbing things. There are many animals that are exactly the same as the ones on earth, not only that but there are even mythical creatures from earth that exist here. This is disturbing on so many levels. George isn’t sure how to process this.

“Is everything alright?” Twilight asks having noticed his mood change.

“Yeah... It’s just that all of these creatures are exactly the same as the ones on my planet.”

Twilight looks just as surprised to hear this.

“Exactly the same?”

George nods. “Not to mention.” He shows her a picture of a dragon. “We had myths about dragons but none were ever confirmed. Yet it says here that they actually have territory of their own.”

“There’s still a lot that isn’t known about dragons but I can assure you that they are real.”

“This is so odd. What are the chances of something like this happening?”

“Are you simply asking or would you like to do the math?”

George looks directly at Twilight. “I would like to do the math.”

“Hey, Twilight. Weren’t you supposed to come over to Pinki-”

Spike stops mid stride into the throne room and stands in awe of what he finds. There laying on the floor is Twilight and some kind of giant creature. They’re both panting heavily as they are covered from head to hoof in paper. Spike looks around to see that there’s paper everywhere! Each piece has various numbers with equations on it. What the hay is going on!? Who the hay is this creature!? There’s just too much for his young mind to understand.

Twilight looks up at Spike as she lays on her back on the floor.

“O-Oh... Hey, Spike. Sorry I’m a little late but George and I kinda got preoccupied.”

“You’re telling me.” Spike says glancing around.

Twilight chuckles with a blush. “Can you help us clean this mess? Then we can head on over to Sugarcube corner.”

Spike just grumbles a bit to himself as he starts collecting the mass of papers. George is confused by what he sees. A small lizard of some kind? A baby dragon? What the hell is it? Twilight notices George staring at Spike and remembers that she hasn’t introduced them yet.

“Spike, this if George, he works at the royal library.”

Spike just keeps working. “Hey.”

Twilight chuckles nervously as she looks at George.

“George, that’s Spike. I’ve been taking care of him since he hatched from his egg.”

“So, you’re like his mother?”

“Pfft, as if.” Spike remarks.

“Not really, more like a sister.” Twilight comes in.

“What is he exactly?”

“I’m a dragon.” Spike answers.

“baby dragon.” Twilight adds.

George is confused by all this. He doesn’t look anything like what the bestiary shows.

“Don’t dragon's have wings?”

“They’ll grow in!” Spike says self consciously. “Eventually.”

Spike doesn’t say anything else as he storms off to another part of the throne room to clean.

“Did I say something wrong?” George whispers to Twilight.

“No, Spike is just sensitive about things related to dragons. The truth is he doesn’t know much about them either.”

“Sounds rough.”

“It is at times. Though he has a lot of friends here and that’s what matters the most.”

George gives a small nod at that as he turns his attention to all the papers scattered about on the walls and floors.

“We should probably help clean this.”

Twilight nods in agreement and they set off to help clean the place up.

“So where are we headed off to now?” George asks as Twilight, Spike and him walk down the street.

“We’re headed over to Sugarcube corner, my friend Pinkie works there.”

“Alright.” George looks around to the relatively barren town. “Any reason as to why there aren’t many ponies out and about?”

Twilight chuckles nervously. “Oh, well they’re probably somewhere around. We should hurry, we’re already late.”

It’s not like George can stop to question Twilight as she runs off, forcing him to give chase. Though she doesn’t run for long as she stops in front of a building that stands against all others around it. If George had to guess he would think a witch waits inside for children to cook up. Though he’s no Hansel and Twilight is a pony. Regardless of those thoughts, Twilight has a large smile on her face.

“We’re here!” She shouts for no reason.

“I’m standing right here.” George remarks.

She blushes some. “Sorry, I’m just excited you get to meet my friends.”

“Oh? Well, let's not keep them waiting.”

Twilight extends her hoof to the door. “After you.”

With a raised brow George walks ahead of Twilight and lets himself into the establishment. It’s dark, too dark. Realization hits him too late as lights turn on, blinding him briefly, while many ponies shout in unison.

“Surprise!”

Once George regains his vision he finally understands why the town was empty. There are a lot of ponies here and a pink one walks up to him giggling.

“I hoped you were surprised!”

“Yeah, I had no idea.” He answers.

“That’s great! Twilight and I have been planning this for awhile. So enjoy yourself! Refreshments are over there.” She points to a table that has a punch bowl on top, a small alligator swimming in it. “Snacks are there.” Another table with various treats for everyone to enjoy. “Lastly our friends are over there!”

George follows her hoof to a booth in the corner of the shop where he finds Twilight, Rarity and a few other mares sitting in wait. They wave for him to join, even a pink one that looks just like the mare he’s talking to. George looks down and finds the pony that was talking to him is gone... Wait, is that the same pony? He decides not to linger on it much and leaves it as something magic related. George walks past the crowd of ponies, many of them looking his way.

There’s something odd about this gathering. Where are all the males? George remembers learning about how females outnumber males almost three to one but there's literally no males he can spot here. It’s very odd but he puts his thoughts aside as he reaches the table where the girls are waiting.

“Hello.”

“It’s so good to see you again, Darling.” Rarity speaks up. “Please, have a seat.”

George takes the open seat next to Twilight. He can see that just like everyone else at this party, all these mares are looking directly at him. Seeing as no one is talking, he’ll try to break the ice.

“I don’t know how much Twilight or Rarity has told you about me but my name is George. May I have your names?”

That seems to shake each mare out of their stupor.

“Well, mah name is Applejack.”

“I’m Rainbow Dash.”

“F-Fluttershy.”

“Pinkie Pie!”

So he has their names. At least that part’s out of the way. Still, he can see a certain look in their eyes. A look of uncertainty and questioning.

“Would you like to know something about me?” George offers them.

“I guess if I had to know, I’d like to hear on how you and Twi met?” Applejack asks.

“Oh, that’s easy. I was working at the royal library, sorting books, checking their contents to ensure they were still in proper condition. I heard someone behind me and at first I thought it was my boss. As it turns out it was Twilight. She was looking to check out Magehoof the Magnificents: Book of magenificent spells. She was interested in what I am and asked to talk over lunch.”

“That sounds like something Twilight would do.” Applejack accepts that answer.

“Oooh, oooh, me!” Pinkie says waving her hoof in the air.

“Yes?” George turns to face her.

“How come you’re all tall and strong looking?”

George looks down at himself. It’s true he’s a bit tall by his people’s standards, so when you put him into a place where ponies are tiny, he tends to look like a giant. Still, strong? He works about as much as any other average person on earth. He’s not ripped by any means but at least lightly toned. Then again, George has noticed that muscular features aren’t really as prominent in Equestria. Ponies almost look detaillees. It’s odd to even see stallions with muscle outlines under their fur. What’s prominent in Equestria tends to be how full or round a pony looks. Not really fat per se but just a little extra cushion here and there.

So add the fact that his arms show slight cuts of his muscle probably makes it a prominent feature to everypony.

“That’s just the way my people look. Given, I’m probably not that strong but I do take care of myself.”

“I’ll say.” Rainbow whispers under her breath.

“What was that?” George asks.

“U-Um... Well, you just look really good is all.”

Applejack pulls Rainbow close and whispers into her ear.

“Dang, Rainbow. Can you even control yourself?”

“Are you kidding me? I’m a day away from my heat and I’m about to lose it! How in the hay did Twilight snatch him up so quickly?”

“There’s something wrong with you, Rainbow. You’ve been round that griffin friend of yours too much lately. Would you really jump in the hay with a creature like that?”

“Say that to every mare here. They’re eyeing him just as much as me.”

Applejack looks up and can see that all the ponies here are looking over at George from the corner of their eye. She returns to whispering to Rainbow. George has no idea what they’re talking about but decides to ignore it. He looks over at the shy looking pony as she only slightly has her hoof raised, barely even noticeable from under the table.

“Yes?” George turns his attention to her.

“Where do you come from?” She asks in an almost inaudible volume.

“Another planet. I can’t explain how I got to Equestria but somehow I did.”

Rarity is looking at Applejack and Rainbow in disgust. She can’t believe they are having this conversation in front of George. Yet it looks like George hasn’t noticed what they are talking about yet. Not to mention, Twilight doesn’t look happy about what they’re saying either and Rarity is sure that she’ll develop crows feet in no time with a frown like that. It appears that none other than Rarity can put a stop to this, less a marefight should break out.

“Applejack, Rainbow Dash!” Rarity shouts loud enough to grab their attention. “Did you two forget that we have company? I would say that what you two are discussing is best kept to yourselves.”

The both of them notice how everypony at the table is looking their way. Not to mention a few of them don’t look rather happy. Applejack is the first to respond.

“Sorry about that, Everypony. Just got lost in thought is all.”

“Yeah,” Rainbow speaks up. “Just one of those things.”

Rarity adjusts her curl as she looks back at George.

“George, may I ask you a personal question?”

“Sure. I don’t mind.”

“Who makes your clothes?”

George looks down to his simple t-shirt and pants. Nothing special about them at all. Then again, that isn’t why he wears them.

“Somepony in Canterlot. My boss told me about her and I decided to give her a try.”

“I hope you don’t take offense to this but don’t you think your clothes are rather bland?”

Ah, he’s heard this question before.

”Why do you wear clothes all the time” or “Why such plain clothes?”.

Most ponies don’t get the concept of casual wear, as most of them prefer being naked or only wearing clothes for important events, business transactions or showing their societal status. However, seeing a naked pony at work or home isn’t uncommon.

“Humans wear clothes all the time.”

Rarity’s eyes start to sparkle some, the same look of curiosity Twilight has right now.

“A-All the time?”

George nods. “Yeah. We don’t have fur like you to keep us warm, so clothes act as our fur. Since we wear clothes all the time, we don’t really waste much on making it fancy or anything, just functional.”

“That’s really interesting to hear.” Twilight comes in.

“Are there times where you do wear something a bit more spruced up?” Rarity asks.

“Sometimes. If I go out to special occasions. It kinda works in four ways, when we’re by ourselves we tend to wear clothes that are the most comfortable. When we go out, we’ll wear something that’s a bit higher quality, when we meet friends we’ll dress nicer and for let’s say meeting the princess or going out to a fancy party, we’ll wear something like a suit.”

“And what would you class as what you’re wearing now?”

George looks down at himself. “I guess I’ve dress for a meeting with friends. A step down from fancy party.”

Rarity is finding how he approaches clothes very interesting.

“I hope you don’t mind but can we speak more on this subject later? I have to go but I would love for Twilight to bring you to my home around the evening time.”

“Sure, I might have time.”

“Great!” Rarity looks to her friends “I forgot I have a few dresses I need to work on. Have fun without me!”

“See you later, Rarity.” All the girls say as Rarity leaves.

“So what should we do now?” George asks

“Well you haven’t had any of my cupcakes yet!” Pinkie shouts.

Before George could even blink he notices a plate lined with many cupcakes placed in front of him. It’s so weird and a bit disorienting, kinda like when you see a magic trick. George shakes away the feeling and just chalks it up to magic again. He’s not sure how an earth pony can use it but he wouldn’t be surprised if they have some way of doing it. So with that put to the back of his mind does he look down at the plate. Well, they look really pretty. It seems no effort was spared in its design and presentation.

George picks one up and takes a bite. He immediately regrets that. He can taste the hay that’s in it. He doesn’t blame them for not knowing, it used to happen a lot when he first arrived at the castle. Hay is just a large part of what they eat. It’s oddly enough used to fill out whatever food they eat, as it’s supposed to have a very light taste that compliments mosts dishes. Kinda like salt. However, to a human, it just tastes awful. Still, to be polite he eats what's in his mouth.

“Soooooo... Whatcha think!” Pinkie asks with excitement.

“Well, most of it was fine. Though I should tell you that humans can’t eat hay. So that kinda threw me off a bit.”

“You can’t eat hay?” Twilight asks.

“We can’t process it.”

“So what can you eat?”

This question. George needs to play his cards right. He knows that most ponies have an aversion to meat eaters. It’s not that he’s afraid of getting lynched or anything. He just doesn’t like the weird looks it gets him whenever he tells ponies about it.

“A lot of things that you can. I just can’t eat things like hay, flowers and grass. Everything else I’m fine with.”

“This is interesting.” Twilight starts writing a few things down.

“Well good thing I made these!” Pinkie shouts.

George looks down to see a new plate set before him. It looks just like his first plate but the cupcake he bit is gone. He looks at Pinkie with a raised brow as she looks at him, then points at the cupcakes with her eyes, while looking at him the entire time. It’s as disturbing as it sounds but he gets the gist of what she’s saying. He decides to grab a different looking cupcake this time and takes a bite. He’s surprised to find that there’s no hay in it. It definitely tastes good too.

“Do you also eat meat?” George hears a whisper ask.

All the ponies look over to see that Fluttershy is looking right at him. He wasn’t expecting one of the ponies to ask him that question. Everyone at the table returns their gaze to him. Well, he doesn’t want to lie to them. He slowly sets the cupcake down and clears his throat some.

“Y-Yes.” He answers with some hesitance.

It’s slight but he can see how some of the ponies at the table move away from him by a few inches. The only ponies that don’t move are Rainbow, Twilight and Fluttershy.

“Y-Ya eat meat?” Applejack asks, a look of fear about her.

“Yeah. It’s a part of being healthy.”

Applejack leans over to Rainbow Dash.

“Think he’s attractive now?” She whispers.

“I wouldn’t mind him eating me.”

“I have no idea what you two are talking about but I think it’s kinda weird.” Pinkie is between the both of them as they jerk away from her in surprise. “He’s nice but for some reason down in my tummy I feel uneasy. It’s not something I can laugh away and I don’t know why.”

George can’t hear what those three are talking about but from the looks of it it’s about what he just told them. It’s not that big of a surprise, a lot of ponies become uneasy when they hear about his eating habits. With the exception of Celestia, as she caters to a large variety of carnivores throughout the nation, she was by far the most tame when she learned of George’s needs. It’s not something that usually comes up in conversations so it’s not something that he really needs to worry about on a day by day.

George looks over to find Twilight is writing up a storm. At least she’s not taking this the wrong way. Looking away from her and towards the others, he finds that Fluttershy is another pony that doesn’t look too concerned. Weird, considering that she looked like the type of pony to be the most frightened by this news. Despite that, he can sense an unease in the air now. He looks over towards the party and notices how everyone at the party is keeping him within their vision, even if it’s just the corner of their eye.

He might have overstayed his welcome. George gets up from his seat, drawing the attention of everyone at the table and in the room.

“Hey, Twilight.”

She looks up from her parchment to face George.

“Yes?”

“How about you show me the rest of the town?” George looks over at a clock. “You can show me everything before we meet Rarity.”

Twilight looks surprised by this but smiles widely at him.

“Great idea!” Twilight faces her friends. “Thanks again for the party, Girls. George is right, he’s only here for the day and it would be a waste for him not to see everything Ponyville has to offer.”

All of her friends give a nod as Twilight leaves the booth. George is already out the door by the time Twilight starts saying goodbye. He didn’t want to cause anymore trouble so he left without saying anything.

“Well, that was mighty rude of him not to say goodbye.” Applejack states as Twilight follows after George.

“We were kinda whispering about him.” Rainbow throws in.

“I guess that’s true. Still, don’t you feel even a bit nervous now knowing he’s a meat eater?”

Rainbow rolls her eyes. “Not one bit! Gilda ate meat all the time around me. I’ve got no problem with it.”

“But it’s another animal, Rainbow. That doesn't sound right to me.”

“Gilda kinda put it into perspective. She said that nothing on Equestria is made for eating, we simply decide to eat it. Apples aren’t designed as food, we just found out they taste good a long time ago and started eating it.”

“How can you compare an apple to a living creature?”

“It’s what they need to eat to be healthy. What’s wrong with that?”

“What if they want to eat Scootaloo?”

“Really, Applejack? They don’t eat ponies.”

Applejack is starting to get herself worked up.

“Maybe that’s true for Gilda but what about George? What if he used to eat ponies all the time on his planet?”

Rainbow opens her mouth and then rubs her chin in thought.

“Well, I don’t know about that but he’s been living here for awhile so wouldn't he have ate somepony already?”

“He hasn’t because of Celestia keeping him underhoof. Now that he’s here there’s no telling what he might do!”

“That’s silly, Applejack.” Pinkie states having been sitting there listening the entire time. “Despite the weird feeling in my tummy. I know George is a nice creature. My Pinkie sense didn’t throw off any alarms.”

“Think what you want but I worry about my sister and I’m going to make sure that nothing happens while Twilight’s friend is here.” Applejack says moving from her seat.

“You’re just paranoid.” Rainbow follows while Pinkie is right behind them.

“Yeah, Applejack. Super paranoid.”

“It’s better to be safe than sorry.”

The three of them walk away having left Fluttershy by herself at the booth.

“Oh my... I knew I shouldn’t have asked him that while at the table.” She scolds herself. “I gotta make it up to him.”

Fluttershy gets out of her seat and walks towards the door. She doesn’t really know much about George other than he likes meat. Fluttershy’s eyes widen as an idea comes to her. She quickly runs out of the shop and towards her home. She knows exactly what to give George to make up for what she did.

George has been following Twilight for a while now as she shows him various places around town. She’s brought up a few interesting things but George finds his thoughts wandering. What once was a barren village is now full of ponies and that isn’t what is causing his mind to wander. No, it’s the fact that all of the ponies are keeping an eye on him. Not the usual eye of interest but one of caution.

Word must’ve gotten out about him eating meat. He’s honestly kinda impressed at the speed of which word has spread. Now in Canterlot you don’t get many looks, as those ponies are so posh they’ll keep the illusion of normality under stressful times. Eventually they just stopped caring and gone about their lives.

These ponies though are rural, so chances are they operate with different rules. There’s really no social status here so none of the ponies worry about what the ponies next to them are thinking about them. So this is why they’re looking at him, because some of them are afraid but that isn’t the entire story either, a few of them are giving him an entirely different look. Celestia has warned him about this other look just before he left to visit... These ponies are going into heat soon. He wasn’t sure about it before but now it’s too obvious to ignore. So it’s a good thing he’ll be out of here by the end of the day.

It also makes sense why he hasn’t seen any males around. They probably packed up at the first sign of these mares showing how close they were to heat. George has only heard about heat from Celestia but it sounds rather dangerous to any males caught out in the open. Though Celestia assured that George would always be safe at her castle, as she has a weird type of heat that makes her extra motherly. Weird thing to talk about to a horse, even weirder for her to explain it to you.

So George needs to tread cautiously. What he does find odd is that Twilight shows indifference to everything. Is it not her time of heat? George shakes that thought away. He can’t be thinking about her adult functions! It’s just weird... George’s gaze moves to Twilight. She is really cute though. How she’s constantly writing down things, even while walking. How she has a slight hop to her gait. How her saddle bag droops slightly to the left as she takes out more and more pieces of parchment and the unused inkwells start to weigh their side down.

George shakes his head with a slight smile as he lifts her saddle slightly, adjusts it to sit squarely on her back and then tighten the straps some. When he’s done he looks over to see Twilight looking at him with a blush as she continues to walk. George too can feel his face redden at what he just did.

“Sorry, your bag was starting to slouch.”

Twilight clears her throat. “A-As I was saying. That’s the pony spa.” She stops to point at a rather large and luxurious looking building.

George is about to compliment how it looks but someone else speaks before him.

“U-Um... Hello, Twilight.” Both Twilight and George look behind them and find Fluttershy. “Hello, George.”

“Hi.” George says surprised to see Fluttershy here.

“What brings you around here, Fluttershy?” Twilight asks.

“I’ve been looking for you two. Can you place come over to my place?”

“Is something the matter?” Twilight asks with concern.

“Oh, no... I would just like some company.” She then looks up at Twilight. “B-but if you’re already busy then I understand.”

Twilight looks at Fluttershy, then at George. Well, she was pretty much done showing him Ponyville. So why not go over to Fluttershy’s place? This would put them at the correct time to see Rarity.

“Sure.” Twilight looks over at George. “You’re alright with that, right?”

“It’s fine.” George really has no reason not to go.

“Wonderful!” Fluttershy says in a small shout. “I’ll go make some tea. See you soon!”

Well, this is an interesting turn of events for George. Twilight also has no idea what’s going on but she gets the feeling that Fluttershy wants them over there for reasons other than just a friendly visit. Still, no reason to think Fluttershy is going to do anything crazy.

George, Twilight and Fluttershy are sitting in her living room. George has to admit that Fluttershy’s place is really nice. Though it’s also odd that her home is so close to the Everfree. She comes off as an easily scared pony, so why would she live so close to a place known for its danger? Then again she also does have quite a few animals walking about. Various woodland creatures, all in different sizes. George is pretty sure he saw a bear outback before Fluttershy showed him in.

Other than that Fluttershy has been a great hostess. She’s given each of them a cup of tea. George isn’t too sure what it is but it doesn’t taste bad, so that’s a plus. So far no one has really been saying much. It just seems like everyone is kinda enjoying the silence. It’s a nice break from all the stares he was getting earlier.

“It’s nice having company.” Fluttershy says with a gentle smile.

“I know I said it before but I think your home is beautiful.” George compliments.

“I’m sure you’ve seen better in Canterlot. There are so many nice places there.”

“I appreciate the change of pace, it’s nice to be somewhere relaxing like this as opposed to a noisy city.”

“I know what you mean.” Twilight comes in. “You get so used to life in Canterlot that even a simple place like Ponyville can provide something worth anypony’s time.”

“Yeah, it’s nice when you can just sit down and not have to worry about things. It’s why I like working at the library so much. I’m just there with the books. I can learn so many things about this world and there’s nothing but silence.”

“I used to do the same thing when I lived in Canterlot. The library is such a great place.”

“I think your library in the castle is pretty cool too. Must be nice to have a library close by.”

Twilight’s eyes sparkle a bit at hearing that.

“It’s great! I get to read whenever I want or have any book at my hoof just before bedtime.”

“Too bad I can’t do the same thing. Celestia made a rule that I can’t enter the library before or after work. She thinks I spend too much time there.”

Twilight’s smile slips some. She knows George is so different from everything on this world but she can’t stop herself from drawing comparisons between him and herself. Celestia didn’t ask for Twilight to help George become social but she gets the feeling that he may be falling onto a path she once walked so many years ago. Not to mention what happened earlier at Sugarcube corner, he must get that isolated feeling a lot because of his differences. Still, she wants to show him that he’s got friends!

“I...” Both Twilight and George looks over at Fluttershy. “I wanted to say I’m sorry for bringing up your eating habits today.”

George wasn’t expecting to hear that from Fluttershy.

“Oh... Well, It’s no problem. You were curious.”

“That’s very kind of you but I should’ve known everypony would react badly to hearing your answer. I never seen a creature like you before and I started to notice so many things about you pointing towards a more predatory lifestyle and it made me want to ask.”

“Again, it’s no problem. I’m happy you don’t think I’m a monster because of it.”

“Of course I know you aren’t. I take care of many animals, so it’s no surprise to me that you eat meat. In fact...” Fluttershy gets out of her seat and walks off into a back room for a few moments before coming back with a plate. “Enjoy.”

Both George and Twilight’s eyes widen as they look at the plate Fluttershy brought in. There’s no doubt in George's mind that what he’s looking at right now is jerky. He’s not sure about what type but that’s dried meat.

“W-Where did you get that?” Twilight asks Fluttershy surprised she had that in her home.

“Sometimes the wolves from the north come and visit every few years. It’s cold up there and I learned from Gilda that griffins have a style of preserving meat for a long time. I usually only give this to the wolves but it’s fine if a few pieces are gone.”

“But where did the meat come from?” Twilight adds.

“Gilda. I’m so happy that Rainbow and her made up. She’s the only griffin I know that can get me all types of fresh meat. Before then, I either had to fish or tell my little friends I didn’t have anything for them.” She twiddles her hooves a bit.

This is an awkward situation. Not wanting to be rude, George decides to take one piece and gives it a try. He has to admit that it’s been awhile since he’s had something so simple and yet he can’t deny that it tastes great. It’s true that he gets meat from the cooks but snack related stuff is a no go. So it’s an odd thing to experience something he thought was lost long ago.

“So, how is it?” Fluttershy asks.

“It’s actually rather nice. Who ever this Gilda is, she knows how to cure meat.”

“I’m sure she’ll be glad to hear that.”

George looks over at Twilight and finds she isn’t writing but instead looking at him. He can’t really place the look she’s giving him.

“How does it taste?” She asks.

“That’s a really hard question to answer. It’s salty but has a few hints of spice here and there. The meat is surprisingly moist and tender. I’m not too sure how to explain it.”

Twilight goes back to writing. This entire thing is weird. George looks back over to Fluttershy.

“Thank you for inviting us. However, I think it’s about time we spoke with Rarity.”

“No, thank you for spending time at my home.”

Twilight and George get up from their seats and leave Fluttershy’s home. He has to say that while it was weird he thinks that was a pleasant experience.

“So, we off to see Rarity next?” Twilight asks.

“Yup.”

Now this is another odd thing for George. Rarity’s home looks kinda like a carousel. Considering they’re ponies, this just makes it all the odder for George. Twilight is already knocking on the door as he stands behind her looking over the place. He can’t really understand how this world works. It’s almost like there’s human influence everywhere he looks. He doesn’t even want to think about all the door handles he finds himself opening on a day by day.

“Perfect timing you two!”

George is brought from thought as Rarity’s voice calls out. He looks over and find that she doesn’t look too good. Her mane’s a mess and she looks really tired. She only left an hour or so before them. What could’ve done this much damage to her? Rarity seems to notice George’s gaze. She blushes slightly as she tries to brush her mane back into proper place.

“Sorry for my appearance. I’ve been working nonstop on a few things I needed to get done.”

“Is this a bad time?” Twilight asks.

“Not at all! I could really use a small break before getting back to work.”

“Do you need any help?” George offers.

“Certainly not. You are guests in my home and I won’t have you two working.”

“I honestly don’t mind, as long it’s something I can help with.” George looks at Twilight. “What do you think?”

Twilight looks at George then over to Rarity. “I agree with George. What’s the harm in helping a friend?”

Rarity looks skeptical but lets out a large sigh as her mane becomes messy again.

“Are you two sure you don’t mind?” She asks.

“I really don’t like sitting around too much. I prefer working most of the time.” George states.

“Same.” Twilight agrees.

“Alright. Please come in.”

Rarity shows the two of them into her home. He has to say that the front of the place looks like a store. There are weird pony mannequins, a section of mirrors to look yourself over in and a register. George keeps following Twilight and Rarity as she takes them up a set of stairs and into another room. When George enters this room he finds a workshop. Linens, a sewing machine and dress patterns everywhere.

“Twilight, please sort the colors with seasons in mind. I haven’t had the time to do that yet and it’ll help immensely.”

“Got it!” Twilight sets her saddle down as she casts her magic and goes to work.

“George.”

“Yes?”

“I need you as a model.”

That throws George off.

“A model?”

Rarity nods. “Yes. Your unique body type is close to a minotaurs. This may be the only chance I get to practice making clothes for their type.”

“Well, alright.”

Rarity clops her hooves in delight.

“Great! Please, just stand here.” She points to a small stage surrounded by mirrors.

George gets up and takes his place.

“Right here?”

“Yes but can you disrobe for me?” Rarity asks without pause.

George gulps some. This is weird.

“Uhh.”

“Oh! One moment!” Rarity walks out of the room for a second, the entire place becomes warmer as she returns. “There we are! I know you said you wear clothes to stay warm, so now it shouldn’t be uncomfortable for you.”

Crap... She doesn’t understand. Well, she does but she doesn’t at the same time. Then again George didn’t explain every reason as to why he wears clothes. Still, just standing there looking at those large sparkling eyes, it’s enough to melt the heart of any man... Well, he’s fine with just his underwear... That should work out fine. George disrobes, making sure to keep his underwear on. When he looks up he finds Twilight and Rarity looking at him, one has a large blush and the other is confused.

“Darling, may I ask what those small things are?” Rarity uses her magic to tug on the waistband of his underwear.

“Well, um...” He was hoping she wouldn’t ask but he knew this was coming. “Do you know how ponies have fur to keep them warm but I don't?” She nods. “Stallions have sheaths to keep modest but I don't.”

Rarity’s eyes slowly grow wider as realization sets in.

“I-I had no idea! I hope this wasn’t uncouth of me to ask you!”

“No, it’s fine. Again, we’re so different. There are bound to be some things that don’t add up.”

“So your...” Twilight speaks up but quickly realises what she was going to ask.

George looks over to her holding a quill and parchment but looks away in embarrassment.

George clears his throat. “To answer your question, yes. I guess it works the same way as any other male, blood and the like but mine doesn’t go back into a sheath or anything. So that’s another reason why we wear clothes all the time too.”

“Well I hope I’m not asking too much of you.” Rarity comes in again.

“I think I can manage. So what should I do?”

“Just stretch your arms and legs as much as you can.” Rarity instructs.

George does as he’s told and stretches his arms out and takes a wider stance. Despite all this embarrassing stuff, his calm attitude is enough to keep everyone from feeling awkward. He watches as Rarity uses a tape measure held in her magic to get his measurements. George has never had a suit made for him before so this is a new experience for him. He looks over to find Twilight is no longer looking at her notes and instead looking at him.

He’s not too sure how he feels about her constant gaze. Rarity takes notice of George looking at something from the corner of his eye. She briefly looks behind her and finds Twilight ogling him. Rarity clears her throat to catch everyone's attention.

“Twilight, have you sorted my fabric yet?”

That snaps Twilight out of her staring as she looks at Rarity in confusion for a moment, having forgot what Rarity asked her when they came into her room.

“Oh! Sorry, I just got lost in thought.”

Twilight quickly turns around with a huge blush on her face as she goes back to sorting fabrics. Rarity just shakes her head with a small smirk. That mare is head over hooves. Well, Rarity is on the case to help out her friend in this adventure of love.

“George. I know you’ve spoken of your people and the like but I want to know more about you. What do you do when you’re not in the library?”

“Um... I guess I talk to Celestia sometimes, if she’s not busy. I also like to read various books to learn about Equestria. Other than that I don’t really do much else.”

“I swear you sound just like Twilight. She spends most of her free time reading.”

“Not all my free time.” Twilight mumbles.

“So do you have any friends you like to spend time with?” Rarity asks.

George shakes his head. “Not really. I mostly spend time at the library working, so I don’t get out much to socialize.”

“Not even a single friend?”

“I guess you could say I’m friends with Celestia.”

“But you said she’s busy.”

“Yeah but that’s fine with me.”

“Darling, you need more friends to spend time with.”

“Well, I’m spending time with you and Twilight, aren’t I?”

He’s not wrong but that’s not the point Rarity is trying to make.

“Yes but we’ve only spoken for such a small amount of time.”

“True but didn’t you and the rest of the elements only know Twilight for less than a day before becoming friends?”

Rats... He’s really smart.

“That’s true...”

“So aren’t we friends?”

“There’s really no reason for us not to be.” Rarity admits.

“Plus I’d like to think Twilight and I are friends as well. So I have three friends.”

“Still, don’t you get bored spending so much time in a library and not outside?”

“Nope. There’s so much about Equestria that I don’t understand and learning about it is helpful.”

Hmm... Rarity has an idea to turn this in Twilight’s favor.

“Well, why don’t you and Twilight have a study session? I doubt there’s a pony out there that knows as much as Twilight. Other than Celestia but you said she was busy.”

“You do have a point, Rarity.” George states as he looks over at Twilight. “I do actually have some questions about Equestrian etiquette and a few other things too. I’ve tried to find books to get them answered but that’s rarely worked.”

Twilight seems to perk up at that suggestion.

“I do have the free time. Despite being a princess, there’s not much work for me most of the time.”

“So what days are you free?”

“Most of them. How about once we’re done here we can talk about it? I don’t want to be rude to Rarity.”

George nods. “Yes,” He looks back to Rarity. “Sorry, Rarity.”

“No apologies needed. I’m sure given enough time Twilight can even show you some things around Equestria. It’s one thing to read about it in a book, it’s another thing entirely to actually see it.”

Twilight smiles with excitement as her eyes start to twinkle at the thought.

“Have you ever seen the crystal cavern below the castle?” She asks George.

“I didn’t even know there was one.”

“It’s so beautiful. I would like to visit it again but I’ve never had a reason to.”

“All done with the measurements!” Rarity announces.

George gives Rarity a nod as he gets dressed.

“Though maybe we should talk about field trips later. For now,” He’s fully clothed as he looks at Twilight. “When’s our first study session?”

Author's Note

Did you know that reporting my story to admins doesn't actually make me release chapters faster? It's true! So, instead of acting like a privileged little shit, consider donating to my Patreon! Or, you know, wait like everyone else.

Chapter 3

It’s been a week since George visited Ponyville and now he’s been locked away in the castle. Why? It’s because of the heat. It’s finally reached Canterlot and it’s going to be a tough one. All the usual maids have been replaced with males. A few stallions from around Canterlot that had no place to go are taking refuge here as well. The gates have been locked and all the guards brought within and out of the public's vision. As for the sisters, they seem normal enough. Luna hasn’t changed much during this time and when asked she simply stated that she has no desire to lay with anyone at this time. All things considered, she’s got an iron will.

However, it appears that Celestia was true to her word when it came to her heat. George is lying in bed as Celestia holds onto him tightly. He has no idea how this has happened but she was here when he woke up. Weird, seeing as he knows he went to bed last night alone.

“Why are you in bed with me?” George asks.

“I need somepony to hold.” She says.

“Go hold Luna.”

“She locked her door.”

Damn, the one time he doesn’t lock the door and this happens.

“Celestia, It’s bad enough I’m stuck in the castle, worse that you won’t even let me work in the library but now this?”

She wraps her wings around him as she pulls him to her chest. George looks up as Celestia looks down at him, her face covered in a blush.

“You know, I can’t have any children of my own but I’m old enough to be your mother.”

“Aren’t you over two thousand yea-?”

She rests a hoof onto his lips.

“Shhhh... Hush now my sweet.” She wraps her hooves behind George's head and gently rests his head against her chest. “It’s still early, mommy will let you sleep in a little longer.”

Oh god... This has got to be the weirdest thing ever. Considering the situation and how strong Celestia is, George really doesn’t have a fighting chance. He just shakes his head as he tries to get a few more minutes of sleep.

“Rise and shine, Sweetheart!”

George feels his mind instantly click back to reality. He finds that Celestia isn’t holding him anymore but instead is standing at the foot of his bed with a tray in her magic. He lets out a groan.

“What is it this time?” He whisper to himself.

“I brought your breakfast!” She says with glee as she uses her magic to sit George up and places the tray on his lap.

George looks down to his tray and find that it’s the usual breakfast he has while in the library, eggs, hashbrowns and some bacon. How does Celestia even know what he eats? Sure this is her castle but she’s usually too busy to have breakfast with him in the morning. It’s why he usually brings his meal into the library.

“Uh... Thank you?” George says while still looking at the plate.

“No trouble, sweetie.” George jerks slightly as he feels something nuzzle into his neck. When did Celestia move right next to him? “Did I frighten you? Sorry about that. I just love when you’re around. It’s so rare for me to see you outside of the library.”

George knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that Celestia is under the influence of her heat. While he’s thankful it’s not physical like all the other mares, it’s still making him feel really uncomfortable but the least he can do is play the part, if only not stir things up too much.

“There’s a lot of work to do, with the new system and all, you know?”

Celestia lets out a love filled sigh as she rests her head on the side of the bed, still looking up at George.

“You’re doing great things, George. This system of yours is changing how education works in Equestria. Everything is easier for both teachers and students to find. I’ve gotten a status update from the school for gifted unicorns praising this new system. You’re helping a lot of ponies grow up fast.” George is about to say something but Celestia quickly wraps him into a hug. “But you’ll always be my baby.”

Oh man...

“Um... I shouldn’t let my food get cold... M-m-mmom..”

George can feel as if the heat of Celestia’ body quickly rises. She pulls away from him with a huge blush on her face and a large smile.

“O-Of course...” She clears her throat. “I have a few things I need to take care of but I’ll be back by lunch in a few hours. So stay out of trouble.”

With a squee of delight Celestia quickly runs out of the door without saying anything else. George is left there in shock. He doesn’t even know how many times he can admit how weird this is but it’s the only thing that seems to be on his mind. The only reason he called her mom was to play her game and maybe calm her down a bit but he’s not too sure how well that will work out for him in the end. He looks down to his plate, well, no point in wasting food.

George has been locked in this room for too long. He’ll probably walk around the castle for a little to stretch his legs. As he gets up out of bed he hears someone knock on his door.

“Sweetie! You have a friend here to visit you!”

That’s definitely Celestia’s voice. Yet that doesn’t matter. Who could be here to pay him a visit?

“Come in?”

George waits sitting on his bed as Celestia opens the door and walks inside. Walking behind her is Twilight. George instantly hops up and takes a few steps away.

“Are you crazy?! What’s Twilight doing here?!”

“Calm down.” Celestia giggles a little. “Twilight is fine. I would never bring any horny mares to try and bed my little sunshine.”

This can’t be happening right now. George’s face is completely red with embarrassment.

“Why do you have to say it like that?”

“Hmmm? Do the colts these days have a different word for it?”

“J-Just... Can you bring us something?”

Celestia beams at hearing this. “Right! Refreshments. I’ll be back in just a moment!”

Celestia quickly runs out of George's room as he runs over to slam the door. He takes a moment to catch his breath just as he hears Twilight giggling behind him.

“I almost forgot what happens to the princess during her heat. It must be nice to have the ruler of this land treating you like her baby.” She remarks with a smirk.

“Nice wouldn’t be the word I’d use.” He lets out a sigh as he turns to face Twilight. “So... You’re not like the others out there?”

Twilight shakes her head. “Nope. My heat is a bit mixed up after a few things that happened recently. It’ll probably happen a year or so from now, then slowly sync with the others.”

“Huh... So what brings you here?”

“Well, my friends aren’t the best conversationalists at the moment. So I thought we could hang out for a bit? Maybe even start our study session a little early?”

“I’m up for anything to take my mind off this situation.”

Twilight can feel a blush start to grow on her face as she thinks of where she wants to take George. Most of her friends are out of their wits because of the heat but Rarity in particular was an interesting change. She’s the reason Twilight is even here right now. After having sent Spike with her brother, there wasn’t much for her to do other than clean the castle and organize her new library.

Rarity came barging into her home and pulled Twilight aside. She looked rather ragged and unkempt when compared to her usual looks. She told Twilight that she couldn’t stop thinking about George but despite being in heat, she didn’t want to take him away from Twilight. So she came up with a plan. A plan to get George into a situation where Twilight can admit her feelings and possibly even try going on a date.

It was crazy but Twilight couldn’t deny that Rarity had spent a lot of time thinking this plan through. Not to mention that Twilight was also thinking about George more as the days went on. So Rarity didn’t really have to convince Twilight all that much to come to Canterlot to give her plan a shot but she is really nervous on how it’ll go. She timidly scuffs her hoof on the floor, trying to work up the courage to tell him her idea or at least part of it.

“W-Well...” She clear her throat some. “It must be rather stressful being locked up in this room for as long as you have. I know of one place we can go that’s private. No pony will bother us and I think it’ll be the perfect place for us to have a study session.”

George raises a brow. “Really? Yeah, if I can get out of this room then that’s a great plan.”

Twilight nods her head some. “Alright... First we need to tell Celestia. It wouldn’t hurt to pack a few provisions as well.”

“Oh, that’ll be easy.” George remarks as he walks over to the door and opens it.

Celestia falls into the room ungracefully. She was obviously eavesdropping on George and Twilight. She gets to her hooves and acts as if that didn’t just happen.

“You called?” She asks.

“Twilight and I are planning a field trip. We won’t be gone for long.”

Celestia looks over to Twilight with a questioning gaze. “And where will you be taking George?”

“I want to show him the crystal cavern below the castle. It’s probably the only place right now that isn’t full of mares.”

Celestia rubs her chin in thought. “I guess you’re right.” Celestia looks at George with a large smile. “Is this what you want?”

“I could use some fresh air. Do you mind packing us something for the trip?”

That smile of hers seems to grow as her entire face becomes red. “Of course, of course. What kind of mother would I be if I didn’t make sure my baby wasn’t ready for a trip?”

“Alright, then it’s set-”

“Just one rule.” Celestia cuts in.

“Yeah?”

“You must be home before eleven.”

George rolls his eyes. “Can do, mom.”

Celestia wraps George into her wings with a squee of delight. “I’ll be back in just a moment.”

With that said, Celestia teleports out of the room. Once again Twilight giggles at George’s predicament. Still, she can’t wait to see the cavern with him. She can feel her heart flutter a bit at the thought of being in such a romantic place. Even though it was once part of a villain's plan to take over Equestria, Twilight found the cavern to truly be beautiful.

“I’m just going to change my clothes before Celestia comes back. Then we can head out.”

“Alright.” Twilight watches as George walks off towards the bathroom.

It may not be her time for heat but she can’t deny that the thought of seeing George disrobed has knocked a few months off the waiting period.

“So this is the place?” George asks looking at a large cavern.

Twilight nods. “The crystals are deeper inside. Are you ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” George responds after adjusting the bag on his shoulder.

Twilight walks into the cave and George follows behind her. She makes sure to cast a light spell so they can see where they’re walking. To George, this look just like any old cave. No signs of crystals anywhere. Then again, if the ponies were mining the place, then obviously the front entrance would be clean of any minerals.

“There’s something peaceful about this place, despite the history.” Twilight breaks the silence.

“History?”

“Yeah. A long time ago, before I was a princess, even before I was an alicorn... A changeling by the name of Chrysalis locked Cadance and I deep within this cavern.”

“Wait... You weren’t born an alicorn?” George asks confused.

“Nope, I was just a unicorn.”

“Huh... I guess that explains why you didn’t have wings in those paintings I saw.”

“Yeah, they mark who I was then and not who I am now. It can be a bit confusing, even to ponies.” Twilight quickly gets back on topic. “Anyways... Cadance is th-”

“Princess of love. I’ve read about her.”

“That’s right but before she even ruled the crystal empire, she was getting married to my brother. What do you know about Changelings?”

“Not much, actually. Other than ponies and griffons, I haven’t read much on the other races here.”

Twilight chuckles some. “There are almost too many to count. There are actually many different pony races. Most of them far different than the ones you’ve come to know. As well as other non-pony races. Such as Minotaur, Dragon, Cervine and even hybrids.”

Hybrids? So all of these species can actually create offspring with one another? That’s an odd thought for George.

“Back to my story.” Twilight brings George from his thoughts. “Changelings are a subrace of ponies. Insect like in body, with the ability to shapeshift. What they feed off of is the emotions a pony can feel, love being the most potent.”

“That’s an odd thing.” George admits.

Twilight lets out a sad sigh. “That day is still painful for me to remember. My brother was getting married. It was out of the blue for me. Yet I found out he was marrying Cadance, so I was happy. I’ve known Cadance since I was a filly and I knew she would treat my brother right. However, I started to notice that something was wrong with her, it wasn’t the Cadance that I grew up with.”

George notices the pained look on Twilight's face.

“You don’t have to tell me this story if you don’t want to.”

Twilight shakes her head. “No, it’s fine.” She takes a deep breath to steady herself. “I tried to tell everyone that something was wrong, at first I was subtle but then I became desperate. No one believed me, not my friends, my mentor or even my family. They turned their backs on me, I understand in a way why they didn’t believe me bu-”

“You shouldn’t have to rationalise betrayal.” George states.

“What?” Twilight looks up at him as they continue to walk.

“I wasn’t there, so I don’t really have a right to say this but I have to speak my mind... I think it’s rather crummy that not a single pony at least humored you. If you were wrong, then you were wrong and you could all move on from there... However, to not even give you a chance... That doesn’t seem right at all and you shouldn’t rationalise why your friends decided to ignore your plea. Though I’m sure it’s a decision that haunts them just as much, if not more than you.”

Twilight can feel her eyes water a bit as she listened to George talk. It’s true in many ways that she’s been struggling to understand why her friends didn’t listen to her in that moment. They’ve faced so many things together and yet in that moment Twilight was truly alone.

“If I was there... I would’ve believed you.” George adds.

“Really?”

“Of course. I always take my friends word, until proven otherwise.”

Twilight is about to say something but she notices George’s eyes widen. She looks over to see that they’ve finally made it to the crystal cavern. Twilight uses a hoof to clear her eyes as she smiles at the sight before her.

“Welcome to the crystal cavern, George.”

George has never seen something like this before in his entire life. He appears to be inside of a geode like structure, yet he can easily tell that there are other tunnels leading to other places within the cave. However, there are crystals everywhere. The entire wall is layered with crystals so fine it looks like fresh snow and scattered every which way is crystals of varying sizes. Some are small clusters no bigger than George’s hand and others far larger than his own body.

The soft glow from Twilight’s magic grows almost tenfold as the entire cavern becomes dimly lit. It seems that the mirror quality of these crystals is causing the entire room to be illuminated by her spell as the rays of light bounce between each crystal. It creates an odd twinkling effect as each crystal shifts slightly in color, as if a living rainbow were inside of them.

“This is unbelieveable.” George whispers to himself.

“Well, believe it.” Twilight says as she walks into the center of the cavern. She opens her saddle bag and pulls out a blanket and lays it on the floor. She takes her seat and looks over at George as she pats the spot beside her. “Let’s get comfortable.”

George takes a moment to compose himself before he walks over and has a seat next to Twilight. He removes his backpack and sets it onto the blanket as well.

“I still can’t believe this was under Canterlot castle the entire time.”

“It’s a relic forgotten by many. Since the rise of the crystal empire, there’s no need to reopen this mine.”

“That’s good news.” George admits. “I’d hate to see something so beautiful destroyed.”

“I agree.” Twilight can feel her heart flutter some as the entire scene sets itself, still, it’s too soon to ask about dating. “So, is there anything you want to know about Equestria?”

George snaps back to reality and gives Twilight his full attention.

“Actually,” George pulls out a list from his pocket. “I have a list, if you don’t mind me asking so many questions.”

Twilight giggles some as she too pulls out a list from her saddle bag.

“I have my own questions as well.”

“How about we trade? I ask one, then you ask one? After we exhaust the subject of course.”

“That’s a fair compromise.”

“Alright.” George looks at the first question on his list. “You answered my first question about different races but could you go into detail about hybrids?”

Twilight nods. “Of course! Hybrids are, well, just as it sounds. A mix between two different races. It’s not very common but it does happen from time to time.”

“So you’re saying that all creatures can get pregnant outside of their species?”

“Well, I’m not too sure about all creatures but we know that a lot of the current races are compatible enough that there’s a slim chance they could have offspring.”

“That’s really strange.”

“My turn!” Twilight looks over her list. “So, you spoke briefly on human technology, could you go into detail on that?”

“Sure, that’s easy enough.”

George and Twilight have been talking for hours. Since they are in this cave, they have no idea how much time has passed, not like either of them cared. They’ve been enjoying the time they’re spending together. After everything they’ve talked about their lists were finally coming to an end, Twilight was the only one left and her last question is the reason she brought him here. She learned a lot about George and his people but her nerves are on edge over taking this step.

“So what’s your last question, Twi?”

He’s comfortable with her. She told him to call her that, seeing as they were getting to know each other, yet when he says it, Twilight can feel a skip in her heart.

“Um...” Twilight looks to her list, there isn’t anything there, she didn’t want to write it down. “You’ve been here for a while, George. Have you ever given thought about dating a pony?”

“Uh...”

This is an odd question for George, in the sense that it’s something he’s only recently been thinking about. Twilight has been on his mind a lot. Since they’ve met, spent time in Ponyville, everything. He finds her to be smart, funny and even beautiful. She’s the only pony that he feels comfortable to be around. They relate on so many levels and that’s why he’s humored the thought of what it would be like to date her. The fact she’s a pony doesn’t bother him, he’s lived here long enough to see past what these ponies look like.

Not that Twilight is ugly by any means. She’s got the looks and more than a few curves that put any doubt of attraction in his mind at ease. Still... he wonders what she would think if she knew how he felt?

“Well...” George clears his throat. “Yeah, I think I’d be open to the idea but not with just any pony.”

Twilight is alarmed to hear him say that. Is he interested in a mare? She can feel all the doubts in her mind starting to pile up... Maybe this wasn’t a good idea? No! She’s come this far and she’s not going to give up without trying.

“So... Would I have a chance?” Twilight asks.

George’s eye widen as he hears Twilight ask that, he even notices a large blush on her face and even a slight inkling of fear in the questioning gaze in her eyes. This can’t be happening, right? Is she actually asking him out? This isn’t how he expect this to go. Yet he won’t let this chance slip by him.

“Yeah.” George answers.

Twilight’s heart skips once more as all of her nerves settle. She can feel a smile on her lips as she looks to her hooves, she feels so embarrassed but this isn’t over yet.

“Do you... Would you like to go out sometime?”

“Sure.” George is almost speechless by what is happening right now. “How about next week? You know, when all this heat stuff is over?”

“I have the free time.”

There’s a brief moment of silence between the two as they process what has just happened.

“It’s probably getting late. We should head back to the castle before Celestia comes looking for me.” George says breaking the silence.

“That’s a good idea.”

Twilight and George pack up everything and walk in silence all the way back to the castle. As soon as they leave the cave, George notices that it’s already late afternoon. Before he can even turn to say anything to Twilight, he gets tackled to the ground.

“I was so worried about you!” Celestia says with tears in her eyes as she nuzzles George.

“It’s not even eleven!” He shouts past her fur.

“I know and I couldn’t bare to be away from you any longer!” She removes George from her neck as she looks down at him with a smile. “You’re back home and that’s what matters most.”

George just shakes his head as he looks over at Twilight.

“I had a great time, Twi...” He then feels his nerves kick in. “See you next week?”

Twilight was caught up in Celestia’s reaction as well, as soon as George says that her face covers in a blush.

“I’ll send a letter before I visit.” Twilight gives a bow to Celestia. “I’m going to head over to see Spike and my brother. Thank you for allowing me to take George outside.”

“Yes...” Celestia responds seriously. “No harm was done. We will speak after a few days.”

“Very well.” Twilight waves at George. “See you later.”

“See you.” He responds while still being held by Celestia.

Twilight quickly trots off before she starts jumping around in joy. She can’t believe it, she actually asked him out and he said yes! Twilight lets out a squee of joy as she skips merrily towards the edge of Canterlot so she can she how those two are doing. George watches as Twilight slowly disappears into the streets of Canterlot. He lets out a breath he wasn’t even aware he was holding.

“Does somehuman have a crush?” Celestia teases.

“Is that a problem?”

Celestia smiles some. “Well, Twilight is a sweet mare. I wouldn’t be too upset if you two decided to date.”

“Really, Mom? You’d let your son just date willy nilly?”

Celestia chuckles some as she leans over and whispers into George’s ear.

“My heat ended a few moments ago.” George feels his face turn completely red. “Thank you for humoring me during my time of need.”

“How about we act like it didn’t happen?”

Celestia lets go of George and get to her hooves.

“Easy enough. So, you and Twilight?” She asks with a smirk and raised brow.

“She asked me out, so, yeah... I guess.”

“I wish you two the best of luck.”

Celestia walks away back to the castle, leaving George by himself. Man, this entire day has been exhausting. Despite how tired he feels, he can’t fight the excitement of his date with Twilight. Looks like this week of waiting will feel like a long one.

Chapter 4

Rarity is standing in place as she watches Twilight pace around the room. It’s been like this for a few hours now. Ever since she called her over to help her get ready for her date she hasn’t stood still for even a moment.

“Twilight you’re simply worrying over nothing.” Rarity says with a titter.

Twilight’s mind is somewhere else right now as she starts muttering to herself.

“I knew I should’ve made those reservations... Why did I think that inviting him over to my home for dinner was a good idea?”

“I think it’s rather sweet.” Rarity remarks.

“He’ll think I’m a whorse!” Twilight shouts at Rarity.

Rarity looks offended. “Really, Twilight? I doubt George would think of you in such a way. He seems like a very nice person.”

Twilight faces away from Rarity as her mind starts thinking of the worst possible outcomes.

“I’ve probably scared him away. He’ll think I’m just a broodmare in heat! It was stupid of me to think this would work.”

“Twilight!” Rarity grabs ahold of Twilight and shakes her a bit. “Will you snap out of it! I will hear no such words from you any longer!”

Twilight come to her senses a bit. “S-Sorry, Rarity. I... I’ve never dated anypony before. I don’t know what to do.”

Twilight covers her face feeling lost. This is her first date and she doesn’t want to ruin it. If it was with any other pony she probably wouldn’t mind so much but she really likes George and she wants everything to be perfect.

“I know you like him a lot, Twi, but you simply must control yourself.” Rarity lets out a sigh. “I’m sure he’s just as nervous, Dear. So just take it easy and be yourself.”

Twilight takes a few breaths, using the technique Cadance taught her. It helps a little but she’s still got a lot of butterflies in her stomach.

“Yeah, it’s not like you’re going this alone.” A cocky voice says beside her.

Twilight and Rarity flinch in surprise as they look up to see Rainbow Dash flying there.

“W-What are you doing here?!” Twilight asks.

“Duh, to help you with your date?” She states matter of factly.

“I...You...How?!”

“Everypony in Ponyville could hear you gushing to yourself last week about your date.”

Twilight face covers in a blush. She wasn’t talking that loud, was she?

“How rude!” Rarity comes in. “If Twilight wanted help then she’d ask you for it. So run along now.”

Rarity tries to wave Rainbow off but it doesn’t work. Rainbow rolls her eyes as she lands onto the ground next to Twilight.

“Listen, Twi. I think George is a cool guy. So if you’re into him, that’s fine by me. However, what Rarity doesn’t get is that he’s a meat eater. I can get Gilda here in five minutes to help make him a meal he’d never forget.”

That is a really good idea that Twilight didn’t think of. Rainbow’s right. George does eat meat and if they are going to have a meal together then she wants to make sure he enjoys it just as much as her. It’s not what she expected from her friend Rainbow but if she’s willing to help then who is she to deny her?

“Ok, call Gilda. Just, please, Rainbow... I really want this to work out.”

Rainbow chuckles. “With Gilda and I working the food, you don’t have to worry about that.”

“Do you mind if I help?” A timid voice calls out.

They all look over to see Fluttershy is standing there.

“Fluttershy, you too?” Twilight asks surprised.

Fluttershy nods. “Of course. I want you to be happy, Twilight.”

Twilight is about to burst into tears but then she gets a weird feeling.

“Um... Anypony else here?”

“Present!” Pinkie pops out from behind a pillar. “I’ll handle the ambiance. Super romantic.”

“Ahem.” Applejack shows herself too. “I don’t quite get what you see in him, Twi, but you’re my friend and I’m here to help. I’ll handle the drinks.”

“Thank you, thank you all.” Twilight says with a few tears. “Alright, let’s make this date perfect.”

“Why are you so nervous?” Celestia asks George.

“A lot is happening. It feels like I just came to Equestria yesterday and yet in a few hours I’m about to have a date with a pony.”

“Does that bother you?”

“No.” George adjusts his tie the best he can but his hands are shaking too much. “I just don’t want to screw things up. There’s so many things I don’t understand about pony culture.”

George stops with trying to fix his tie as he notices a golden glow surrounds and fixes it for him. He looks over to see Celestia giving him a smile.

“You’ll do fine. I’ll be honest, George. I’ve been worrying about you since you came to Equestria. You were always locked away in that library, content with simply being with those books. Yet here you are, about to go out and have a date. All it took was a few visits from Twilight.”

George lets out a sigh. “It’s surreal. There’s just something about her I can’t quite explain. When she’s around I just feel like I can go anywhere and not have a single care in the world.”

“There is so much you’ve yet to see, George. I hope she can show you the things that I could not.” Celestia turns to look at a clock on the wall. “It’s almost time for you to leave and I have work to do.”

Celestia turns away to leave but stops when she feels something rest onto her back.

“Thank you, for everything.”

Celestia smiles some as she continues to walk towards the door.

“Just be yourself and you’ll do fine.”

George is left by himself as he looks back at the mirror. Everything is ready, now all he has to do is get to Ponyville. By the time he arrives, it should be just on time.

George is now standing before Twilight’s castle. The evening has already set in, most of the ponies in town having went off to their own homes. There aren’t any guards at the front of the castle, so George simply knocks on the door. He waits a moment and soon the door is answered but not by the pony he expected. It’s Rarity.

“Perfect timing!” Rarity says with glee. “Please come in.”

George can’t even get a single word in as Rarity drags him inside with her magic.

“What are you doing here?”

“Hmm? Oh, Twilight needed a new dress and she came to me for help. I’ve actually just finished up.”

That makes sense. George remembers Rarity being into fashion. Rarity walks past him but stop briefly to say one thing.

“~Have fun~”

With that said Rarity trots off back to her home. She knows the rest of the girls have everything under control. George can only shake that little thing off as he looks around the empty main room of the castle. Should he call for someone or just wait?

“Ahem.” A small voice calls out next to him.

George looks over to his side to see Fluttershy standing there. She’s here too? Not only that but why is she wearing the top half of a tuxedo?

“Fluttershy?”

“Hi, George.” Fluttershy says before she remembers why she’s here. “Uh... I’ll be showing you to your seat. Twilight thought it would be nice to have a waiter to help out with your date.”

This is weird on so many different levels. If it was just some random pony serving him food, that’s one thing but a pony he knows? Still, maybe this is just a way for Twilight to not feel as nervous? That’s understandable and George wants to make sure Twilight is comfortable about this date.

Fluttershy leads George to the throne room, the center table now covered in a silk sheet of some kind. Not only that but the table appears to be far smaller than before and the thrones that sat around it have been removed and replaced with two large pillows. George takes his seat at the table and looks over at Fluttershy.

“Where’s Twilight?”

“She’ll be out in just a moment. Would you like anything to drink while you wait?”

“Water is fine.”

“Ok. I’ll be back in a moment.”

Fluttershy walks away leaving George to himself. This is going to be an interesting date for sure.

“Twilight?” Fluttershy pokes her head into Twilight’s room.

“Yes?” Twilight answers, putting on the finishing touches to her dress.

“George is here.”

Twilight freezes slightly in place. She can feel a bit of sweat on the top of her brow. She needs to calm down.

“T-Thank you, Fluttershy. I’ll be out in just a moment.”

“That’s fine. I’m bringing George a glass of water. Would you like some too?”

“Please, thank you.”

“Good luck!” Fluttershy says just before she closes the door.

“Luck...”

Yeah, she’ll need as much as she can get.

George is sitting in wait for Twilight. There’s not really much else he can do considering the situation. So when the door to the room opens, he’s excited to see who it is. Twilight walks into the room and finds George is looking at her eagerly. He’s probably been waiting for awhile.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.” Twilight says with a blush.

“No problem.”

George can feel his own face become red as he looks at Twilight. Her dress is rather pretty, nothing over the top, some would call it plain but he thinks it fits her well. She appears to be just as nervous as he is as she walks over to the table and takes her seat. The both of them are silent for a few moments.

“So, you had your friends help with today?” George asks.

Twilight nods some. “Yeah... I wanted it to be perfect.”

“So far so good...” Once again they fall silent but George tries to find a way to keep the conversation going. “I’ll be honest, Twi... I have no idea how dates are supposed to go. We’ve already talked a lot about ourselves, so what is there to talk about?”

“I guess it couldn’t hurt to talk about our dreams for the future?”

“That’s true... What do you expect for yourself in the future?”

Twilight takes a second to give it some thought. She’s had many thoughts about this subject, there are things she wishes to do before she grows old but she has no idea if those are things she can do with George or not, that’s assuming this even works out.

“I would like to travel. See things I’ve never seen before. I spent most of my life in Canterlot and when I came to Ponyville a lot of new things were shown to me. If that can happen with only a few miles, what else can I find with an entire world to explore?”

That’s an interesting thing for George to hear. He’s never really thought much about going out to see the world. Mostly content with the idea of reading about them rather than seeing them first hand.

“What about you?” Twilight adds.

Him? Hmm... There is one thing that George has in mind. Though it’s not really something he thought about too much until recently.

“I guess I’d like to bring a few items from my world to Equestria. You know, make things easier for all the ponies here.”

Twilight gets a sparkle in her eye hearing this.

“Really?” George nods. “Do you have a certain item in mind already?”

He does. Since talking to Twilight it’s been an item that he can’t get out of his head.

“Actually, yeah. I’m sure you’d love it too.”

Twilight has a large smile on her face as she looks excitedly at George.

“What is it?”

“Well, I guess you could say it’s a self contained quill and inkwell.”

“Self contained? I don’t think I understand...” Twilight looks confused.

“So, the idea behind it is that the inkwell and quill are merged together into one item. So you don’t need to constantly dip your quill into the ink and there’s no worries over spilling your ink.”

Twilight’s eyes widen at hearing that.

“How is that possible?”

“Do you have a quill and some ink laying around?”

Twilight instantly brings them. “Always.”

“Hand it over.”

Twilight gives George the items, he then pulls out a piece of parchment from his pocket. He gives a very rough sketch of a pen, detailing the inside that holds the ink and pointing out the tip that has a metal ball.

“This is the basic idea.” George hands over his sketch.

Twilight takes a second to look it over, taking in the detail. Her eyes seem to widen as everything comes together.

“This is so simple.” She states breathlessly.

“Yeah, I’m sure it’d be easy to make.”

“Easy to make?” Twilight looks at George with an almost bewildered look. “I can make this right now!”

“Really?”

“Of course! With the raw materials in my castle, I can create a prototype. With that, you could take it to a manufacturing pony to mass produce it.” Twilight looks a bit flustered. “T-This can change everything!”

“I wouldn’t say everything. It’s just convenient.”

“Convenient? Convenient?! This is groundbreaking!” Twilight seems to lose herself in thought. “I can imagine all of the ink I’ll save. How much time I can dedicate to writing instead of worrying about dipping my quill. There’s so many possi-”

“Dinner is ready!” A pony calls out.

Twilight and George looks over to see Fluttershy standing there with a tray on her back. She stops as she looks over at them with a blush on her face.

“Oh, um...” She walks over to them quietly as she sets their meals in front of them. “Dinner is served.”

With that said, she quickly walks out of the room. She knew she said something wrong. She should’ve let Rainbow Dash do this. She’s not fit to be a waitress. Twilight gets a large blush on her face once she realises how zealous she became about George's invention.

“Sorry, George. I-I just can’t believe I’ve never thought about an item like this before.”

“It’s alright. It took us awhile to figure it out too.”

Twilight decides to try and get back on track.

“Is it something you want to sell?” She asks.

That’s an interesting thought. “I’ll be honest, I haven’t thought that far.”

“I’m sure you’d become very wealthy.” Twilight assures him.

“It’s odd, having money on my world had a lot more meaning.” George remenises. “I can think of all the things I’d buy if I were rich there. Here, it’s not really the same. What could I do with money?”

“Lots of things.” Twilight comes in. “You could watch plays. Invest in a business. Maybe even travel?”

George has no idea if any of that stuff interests him. The fact is, money isn’t something he needs. He can maybe buy a home, which is nice but after that he doesn’t know what he’ll do. His thoughts wander over to Twilight. Her suggestions... He wouldn’t want to do them alone.

“I guess if you came with me I’d like that.” George says.

Twilight feels her face cover in a blush.

“I-I’d like that too.”

“So is there anything else you are interested in?”

“I’ve always wanted to write my own book on magic.” Twilight states. “A collection for all ages and skill ranges. I remember when I was a filly, some of those books weren’t easy to understand. Too complex than they needed to be. Since then, I’ve not seen a book that simplifies things for younger ponies.”

“So in a way, you want more ponies getting into magic?”

Twilight nods. “I realised that it was a problem when I met Rarity’s sister, Sweetie Belle. She can barely lift a broom, something all unicorns should know naturally. Who knows how many unicorns are out there that can’t even cast simple spells because they weren’t taught by a teacher.”

“Sounds rough.”

“It can be. Though with my book, I’d hope to help many unicorns.”

“Maybe your first book will be written with my pen?” George jokes.

Twilight smiles at that. “I’d like that. I’m sure it’d save me a lot of time.”

The mood feels considerably lighter than it was before. George looks down to his food remembering why they’re here. What he first lays eyes on is a bit of a shock to him. That’s meat, without a doubt. Not only that but it’s cooked too.

“I wanted to make sure you enjoyed this meal just as much as I did.” Twilight remarks noticing his shocked expression.

“Are you sure you’re alright with this?” George asks.

“Of course I’m alright with it. My friend Rainbow and Gilda worked really hard on making it for you. Gilda is a griffon and they know a lot about meat related foods.”

Gilda? Wait a second.

“The one Fluttershy talked about?”

Twilight nods with a large smile. “The very same. I don’t know too much about preparing meat, so I left it to someone who could.”

George is touched that Twilight would go so far just to make sure this date was perfect. So, he just gives her a large smile.

“We better not let our food get cold then. I’m sure they worked hard on it.”

Twilight too can feel herself smile. “That’s true.”

George and Twilight fall silent as they enjoy their meal. There’s a content feeling in the air between them.

The evening is finally coming to an end. All things considered, both Twilight and George think it went off without a hitch. After eating they spoke about a few other things and even went as far as to produce a prototype of that pen George talked about. They got so lost spending time with one another, that neither of them noticed when Twilight’s friends left for home to give them some privacy. Not to mention, that George didn’t realise that the last train to Canterlot had left hours ago.

So here George stands looking at the clock in some shock, Twilight in many ways feeling the same way as him but also a bit of excitement from what it entails.

“You know...” Twilight speaks to grab George's attention. “You can stay here with me. This castle may not be as big as Celestia’s but it has enough room for you to spend the night.”

George would be against such an idea, staying with a stranger, but Twilight is anything but that. Not to mention, he feels at ease around her.

“Sure.”

Twilight smiles widely at hearing that.

“Let me show you your room.”

Twilight walks the halls, it’s still new to her having such a big home but it didn’t take long for her to remember every door and room to this place. She stops before a door, an empty room for guests.

“This is your room.” She then points to a door that’s two doors down. “That’s my room, just in case you need anything.”

George opens the door and walks inside of his temporary room. It looks nice. The crystal aesthetic makes everything look rather fancy, so despite there not being much in the room, it has a rather high class feel. Twilight stands at the door unsure if she should walk in or not. Sure, this is her castle and all but this is his room. Plus it’s getting late and she’s not sure if he’s in the mood to talk anymore or is just plain tired.

Twilight feels exhausted but she doesn’t want to leave him. The thought of being away actually scares her a little. George notices that there’s a bookshelf in the room, curious he walks over and looks them over. There are actually many books here he’s never read before. It seems that Twilight went through the trouble of providing a large variety of books that any guest would like. However, one book catches his eye.

Twilight notices George reach for a book. She instantly recognises the cover. This isn’t a book that George has ever read before. He opens it and looks inside. It appears to be a picture book of some kind. Perhaps for foals? It’s a rather thick book but the first image he sees is something he recognises, Celestia and Luna. Albeit drawn but still recognizable.

“The tale of the two sisters.” Twilight speaks out.

George looks over to see she’s still standing at the door. Now that he thinks about it, it’s rather late and she probably doesn’t want to intrude... Still, he kinda doesn’t want her to leave. He can feel the book weigh heavy in his hand.

“Wanna read with me?” George asks.

Twilight’s eyes light up at hearing that. She nods quickly as she trots into his room. George looks around and finds there aren’t any seats here, so he heads over to the bed to get comfortable. Twilight follows after him and stands beside him as he takes a seat. He opens the book to the front page and notices out of the corner of his eye Twilight straining to look at the book, largely due to his height while sitting on the bed and the awkward angle. So, George does something he never expected himself to do, something bold.

He sets the book down to his side, reaches over, picks Twilight up and sits her between his legs. Twilight was completely shocked when this entire thing went down. Her face now covered in a blush as she looks up at George who is now sitting behind her.

“Better?” He asks.

“Y-Yeah.”

George picks up the book and opens it to the first page again. He’s never read this story before but since it’s a kids story it’s rather easy to follow. Another idea comes to him as the silence builds in the room.

“There once were two sisters.” He speaks calmly.

Twilight fills her heart flutter as George speaks. H-he’s actually reading to her? She’s read this story over a thousand times and yet hearing him read it to her makes it feels like it’s the first time she’s ever heard of the tale of the two sisters. She feels frantic and yet her heart is calm. George is being rather bold but Twilight can be just as bold! She leans back until her back is resting against George’s chest.

George wasn’t expecting Twilight to get so comfortable but that’s fine with him. He leans back a bit more too, allowing him to rest his back on the headboard. He notices that Twilight is a bit unstable while leaning back so far, so he moves his hand below her forelegs to better support her while he reads. Twilight can feel that redness on her face continue to grow. They’re almost laying in bed together. She’s so lost in the moment that she almost forgot George was reading.

His voice is soothing. Twilight can already feel the entire day starting to take its toll. Her eyes start to fall, her thoughts slipping. After a few minutes, George hears something. He looks down and can hear Twilight snoring lightly. It had been a rather exciting day and George feels just as tired. Yet, now he’s faced with a new dilemma... Does he wake Twilight up, take her to her room or simply get comfortable and follow her lead?

If this were any other pony. He’d wake them up, maybe even take them to their room but this isn’t any other pony. George feels comfortable around Twilight and the fact that she’s sleeping right now must means she feels the same way. Not to mention, the thought of Twilight not being here feels wrong in a way. So, George closes the book, sets it aside and moves Twilight to the other side of the bed.

Spooning would be too much but it’s fine if she’s on the other side. George lays down and turns his back to Twilight. This feels alright but still a bi-. George freezes some as he feels something wrap around him from behind. He can hear Twilight mumble something in her sleep. Well, it appears he’ll be the little spoon for tonight.

Chapter 5

George sits in his living room and looks out a window lost in thought. So much has been going on lately that he rarely gets the time to just sit and think on the past. It’s been months since Twilight and him had their first date and now things are so different. George looks over to one of his couches and finds Twilight resting there. It’s weird to think that they live together now in a house just outside of Ponyville. It was rather sudden but not something either of them felt was forced. They just wanted to be together and that was that.

As for the castle? A portion of it was converted into a library, with the throne room being left in place for official Element business. Spike takes care of the place now, as he’s been growing large as of late and Twilight thought it was time to give him his space. Not like the kid wanted to see his sister being all lovey dovey with her special someone, so he didn’t object to Twilight moving out. He still visits and Twilight also checks on the castle from time to time.

As for the rest of the elements? They’ve been nothing but supportive. Well, for the most part. George still gets the feeling that Applejack doesn’t like him but is willing to tolerate his presence for Twilight’s sake. They don’t really see each other much so it’s not that big of a deal to George. However, a good friend of his is actually Rainbow Dash. They got to talking one day and quickly became friends. Not to mention he got to meet Gilda and that put him into contact with a meat seller.

So, it’s actually been really great for George. He still rides the train over to Canterlot every morning to help Strict Rule with all the sorting. Not to mention that Twilight has made contacts with a few manufacturers in Canterlot to help George get his pen produced. Though George made her promise to work on her book while this entire deal was being hashed out. Helping her with the process has been interesting too.

Basically, George is a good analogue for gauging if what Twilight is talking about is simple to understand or not. Seeing as he knows next to nothing about magic. So every so often Twilight would come to him with a chapter on some kind of spell and give it to George. He would read it, not really trying too hard to understand it but seeing if it made sense. The chapter on levitation was the first he got from Twilight and after a few rewrites it actually made a lot of sense to George.

While the chances of him being able to cast a spell is literally zero, he at least understood the concept. That’s why the both of them are so exhausted lately. Just a lot of stuff going on, almost too much to deal with. However they’ve been taking it one day at a time and helping the other wherever they could. George doesn’t even want to think about all the stuff they’ll need to do when Twilight’s ready to publish her book. He just hopes his pen production stuff is finished, if only to spare them the extra load.

George lets out a sigh as he finds the morning sun starting to rise just beyond the horizon. He’s happy it’s the weekend. That means he doesn’t need to go to the royal library today but that doesn’t mean he can relax either. Twilight and him have a very important thing happening today. Something the two of them have been putting off for awhile now. It’s time for George to meet Twilight’s family.

George adjusts his tie a bit as he’s starting to feel hot under the collar.

“Relax, George. You’re acting like we’re about to face down a dragon.” Twilight remarks as the both of them sit side by side on a train to Canterlot.

“These are your parents, Twi. What if they don’t like me?”

“I love you and what my parents think won’t change how I feel.”

George feels his face heat up a bit. “Why do you have to say it like that, Twi?”

She nuzzles him with a smile. “Because it’s true. I love my parents but if they can’t accept you then that’s their problem. I don’t want to keep them in the dark about what’s happening between us, everything after that isn’t really important.” She then looks up at George. “Don’t get me wrong. If they like you then that’s fantastic but if they don’t then it’s nothing to worry about.”

“I know, I just want to make sure things are good between you and your family.”

“Well, I’m not sure about my parents but I know you really need to watch out for my brother. He’s very protective.”

“Brother, right... Shining Armor if I remember correctly?”

She nods. “Yup, captain of the solar guard.”

Yeah, George has seen him every so often walking around the castle. He even came into the library to borrow a book a few times but the things he requested fell into Strict Rule’s area, so George never spoke to him personally. The only reason he even knew that he was related to Twilight was because she told him the story with the Changelings.

“This is going to be a long day.” George remarks.

“Well, how about this. If you try your best today, then I’ll try my best tonight.~”

Now George is feeling hot under the collar for a different reason.

“Are you sure you’re not in heat?”

Twilight giggles at that. “No but you’ve taught me a lot about human mating habits.”

It goes without saying that they’ve grown really close since their first date. After a few weeks, Twilight asked about humans and when they go into heat. To say that Twilight was surprised to hear that humans are always ready to mate is putting it lightly. Soon her curiosity grew and they decided to try and see if ponies were the same way. It was a very interesting night for both George and Twilight. To make a sexy story short, they did it and it was amazing.

A lot was learned about their differences and how those differences made sex mind blowing. In the end, Twilight found out that having sex was great, even outside of her heat. So to say the both of them have been active in the bedroom is putting it lightly.

“Don’t get me worked up before seeing your parents. That’s a new level of awkward I don’t want to deal with.”

“Of course. Just remember what I said, everything will be just fine.”

George takes a breath to calm himself. “I’ll try, Twi.”

Twilight leans up for a kiss and George returns it without hesitating. Twilight’s right. It doesn’t matter what her parents think. He loves Twilight and that’s all that matters.

They’re finally here. Twilight and George stand before a small home nestled between two others. A common way of making homes here in Canterlot. There’s not much George can say about the building but he knows that homes here in Canterlot are expensive, so Twilight’s parents must have a bit of money. Twilight walks up to the door and gives it a few knocks.

George really wished Twilight told him something about her parents. Damn... He doesn’t want to worry so much but how can he not? It’s probably just the fact he’s meeting new ponies and those ponies happen to be the parents of his lover. Oh man, this is weird and really bothering him. George feels something rest on his leg and he looks down to see Twilight giving him a smile. It helps calm him down considerably, he just needs to play this by ear and see what happens.

The door opens to reveal a mare that sorta looks like Twilight, albeit different colors for her fur and mane.

“You’ve finally made it!” The mare says with glee as she quickly hugs Twilight.

“Hey, Mom. How have things been?”

“Great, as always.” Twilight’s mother pulls away and looks up to George. He can see how surprised she is as she looks back to Twilight. “This is him?”

“Yup! George, this is my mother, Twilight Velvet. Mom, this is George.”

“Hi.” George gives her a small wave.

She looks unsure about all this as she ignores George and looks at Twilight.

“I, um... I thought he was a pony?”

The happy demeanor Twilight had slipped away as her face falls to one of annoyance.

“Mom, don’t do this, not right now.”

Twilight Velvet chuckles nervously. “Y-Yes... Of course. Please, come in.”

George and Twilight walk into the living room as Velvet closes the door behind them. She walks around him, keeping a large distance between them as she heads over to the kitchen. This isn’t the reaction George was expecting but it’s not uncommon. Still, he doesn’t want to point out the obvious.

“E-Everyone is waiting already.” She remarks.

Once she leaves them alone, George looks down and notices the frown on Twilight’s face. He rests his hand onto her withers to help calm her. She snaps out of it for a bit as she looks up at George.

“I love you.” He says.

She smiles back at him. “I love you too.”

That’s all that is said as they walk into the kitchen, ready for whatever is to come. George lets Twilight enter before him and as soon as he enters all eyes are on him. Not a single pony at the table is anything less than shocked. Twilight ignores their looks and takes her seat, looking up to George as she pats the empty seat next to her. He doesn’t linger as he sits beside her, everyone now looking nervous instead of shocked.

“T-This is George?” Cadance breaks the silence.

“Yup.” Twilight nods.

“He’s, certainly not what I expected.” She admits as she turns her attention to George. “Are you perhaps the creature my aunt spoke to me about a few months ago?”

“Most likely.” George can feel how tense everything is right now.

Everyone falls silent again. This has got to be a worst case scenario and George has no idea what to say right now to make everything better.

“George isn’t a pony. Alright?” Twilight speaks out. “Can we move on?”

George notices that during this entire thing, Twilight’s father has been rubbing his chin in thought.

“George? Why does that name sound familiar?” He asks to himself.

Twilight leans over to George and whispers. “That’s my dad, Nightlight.”

“Oh! I remember now! You’re the one that created how libraries are organized, right?”

This is odd for George to actually see someone at this table looking excited about something related to him.

“I didn’t create it personally. It’s a system that we use on my planet.”

Nightlight’s eyes widen. “Y-Your planet? You come from another planet?”

Oh no... Maybe he shouldn’t have said that?

“Yeah.”

“This... This is amazing!” Nightlight looks over to Twilight with a huge smile. “My theory! This changes everything!”

Ok... George is lost. Twilight for the first time today actually feels a genuine smile on her face. She notices George's confusion and leans over to whisper something to him again.

“My father’s an astronomer. I guess you could say he’s kinda like a scientist from your world. He’s been creating these theories that there are other planets like ours, places where life can exist.”

“Dad, calm down.” Shining comes in. “You’ll give yourself a heart attack.”

Nightlight regains his composure.

“S-Sorry about that. It’s just, I’ve been working on this for a very long time and now I have actual proof!” He then looks over at George. “Can we talk later?”

This is all so sudden but certainly a nice change of pace.

“Uh... Sure?”

“Great! I-uh...” He quickly gets out of his seat. “I gotta write this down!”

Without pause, Nightlight gallops out of the room and to places unknown to George. Now, the five of them are left alone. Seems it’s time for the awkward to return.

“I-I don’t like this.” Velvet speaks out. “First you bring home a non-pony and now I find out it’s not even from our world?”

“Mom, I said don’t do this.” Twilight warns.

“I thought I taught you better.” She says in disappointment.

Twilight is shaking in anger. She can’t believe her mother is saying these things in front of George. Of all the times for her to do this she has to do it right now?

“Mom, chill out.” Shining comes in. “There’s no reason to act like that.”

“At least your brother brought home a pony.” Velvet says ignoring Shining.

“Well... If they love each other, does it really matter?” Cadance tries to defuse the situation.

“It does!” Velvet shouts. “The thought of that creature putting its dirty appendages on my daughter makes me sick!”

George doesn’t know what to do. This has just gone full shitstorm. He wants to call Velvet out on what she’s saying but that’ll only make things worse. However, if he does nothing then this is going to get out of hand quickly.

“How dare you?!” Twilight shouts as she stand up from her seat. “Don’t you speak about my special someone like that!”

“Twilight, it’s alright.” George tries to calm her.

“It’s not alright, George!” Twilight shouts never looking away from her mother. “I knew you’d act this way! Even when I was a filly I still remember all those terrible things you tried to teach me. How dangerous griffins were and how only ponies could be trusted! I thought you’d change but I was wrong!”

Oh no... George can see that this is about to turn ugly. What can he do to help?

“Everypony calm down!” Shining shouts loud enough to grab both Twilight and Velvet’s attention. “Sit down, both of you!” They follow his command without a word. “Dad! Get out here!”

George can hear hoofsteps from above as they slowly come down what he can only guess is stairs and towards the kitchen.

“Yes?” Nightlight asks as he pops his head in. Shining just waves over to his sister and mother. It takes him a moment to understand what’s going on. “Not this again.” He shakes his head as he enters into the kitchen. “I leave for one second and you two are at each other's throats.” He takes his seat again. “So, what is it this time?”

“Mom is mad that George isn’t a pony.” Twilight remarks.

Nightlight looks confused for a moment until he really gives George a good look. He rubs his eyes a bit and even pulls out his glasses. Until then, he’ll be honest, he thought George was a weirdly tall pony. Then again, that’s probably why he should always wear his glasses. He gets it now.

“I see...” He lets out a sigh as he looks over to his wife. “Velvet, this is our daughter's special somepony... You can’t do this right now.”

“He’s not a pony, Nightlight.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that what you’re doing now is only going to hurt your relationship with our daughter and nothing more.”

Velvet doesn’t say anything as she lets out a snort and quickly leaves the kitchen. All that does is make Nightlight give a sigh in response. He looks over to Twilight with some sorrow in his eyes.

“I’ll talk to her, Honey.” He then looks up at George. “I uh... Guess this wasn’t a very good first meeting? Sorry about that.”

“It’s not your fault.” George says. “I’ll be honest... It’s about as bad as I imagined.” He tries to joke but it does little to help the mood.

“Can we do this another time?” Nightlight asks. “I think your mother needs some time.”

“Fine by me.” Twilight says in an almost hollow tone. “Let’s go, George.”

She doesn’t say anything else as she gets up from her seat and quickly leaves. George is stuck there for a moment, left alone with Cadance, Shining and Nightlight. This isn’t how he wants it to end, not like this. He looks over to Cadance as she desperately holds herself back from going after Twilight and her brother who has a sneer on his face, just looking at the table.

“Are you two staying in Canterlot?” George asks.

Cadance looks up at him and nods. “Yes, Hotel Canter.”

George gives her a nod in return before following after Twilight. He quickly walks out into the streets and can see Twilight storming off in no particular direction. He has no idea where she’s headed but he runs to her side to try and stop her.

“Twi, where are you going?” She doesn’t respond as she just keeps walking. George lays a firm hand on her withers to stop her and she freezes in place. “Tw-”

It’s subtle but he can see a few teardrops fall from her cheek and onto the cobbled stone below. She’s starting to shake in place as he hears her trying her best to choke down her sobs. Thinking isn’t something he needs right now as he quickly gets to his knees and pulls Twilight to his chest. She wraps her hooves around him and doesn’t hold back any longer.

George doesn’t know what else he can do other than hold onto Twilight and let her cry. He certainly wanted things to go better than they did but he’s not going to let this day be spoiled. He’ll salvage as much as he can and make this day something Twilight won’t regret.

Twilight is now resting in bed as she’s sound asleep. George took her to the very same hotel Cadance and Shining are staying at and got themselves a room. Meeting Twilight’s parents didn’t go so well but he hopes that the same won’t happen when he meets with Twi’s brother. George gave a message to the pony at the front desk to give to Cadance, asking her to meet him and Twilight for dinner later with Shining.

Of course, Twilight doesn’t know about any of this but George wants something to go right for Twilight today and he gets the feeling that Cadance will provide that. Her brother on the other hand, well, he just hopes it doesn’t go south like with her mother. All things considered, Nightlight seemed like a nice pony and Shining did try to calm his mother.

George lets out a sigh. He’s thinking too much about this stuff. He takes off his jacket and sets it onto a nearby chair and crawls into bed with Twilight. He’s just as exhausted as she is and just having her close like this is helping him greatly.

“We should just go home.” Twilight says as they walk towards the restaurant. “Pretend that none of this happened.”

“You know we can’t do that, Twi. This is just a problem we have to face together. I’m sure Cadance won’t be as bad...” At least that’s what George hopes.

“Yeah, I’m sure Cadance will be fine but what about my brother? It’s bad enough that I had to hear all that stuff from my mother... If I hear the same thing from Shining too, I don’t know what I’ll do.”

George can see Twilight’s eyes starting to glisten. He rests a hand on her withers as she looks up at him.

“No need to worry before we even get there. If your brother was going to say some nasty things about me, I’m sure he would’ve done it when your mother was there.”

Twilight nods at that. “Y-Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

George looks up to see that they’ve made it to the restaurant. It took a bit of doing but he managed to get the four of them a seat. Nothing like having Celestia as an emergency contact for whenever you need to smooth things over. They walk into the restaurant where a pony waits at a desk.

“You must be George?” The pony asks with a raised brow.

George nods. “Yeah, are our guests here?”

“They’ve already arrived and are waiting. Please, follow me.”

The waiter, showing utmost professionalism, doesn’t even react to George's appearance and simply grabs a few menus and shows the both of them to their seats. There sitting in wait is Shining and Cadance. George can already feel the awkward tension in the air.

“May I take your orders?” The waiter asks.

George is glad for the save there. The four of them look over their menus and give the waiter their orders. They’re going to be having a long chat so they might as well make sure dinner is on its way. However, the silence between the four of them is strong. Not a single one wants to say anything.

“So...” George speaks out. “I guess we should get the elephant in the room out of the way.”

“Elephant in the room?” Cadance looks confused.

“It’s a saying his people use. It means there’s a problem he wants to address.” Twilight answers.

“Yeah, so about what happened... It sucked and there’s not much else that can be said.” George says. “So, let’s pretend that didn’t happen and act like we’re meeting each other for the first time. It’s just easier this way.”

Cadance and Shining look at one another and give a small nod before they return their attention to Twilight and George.

“We can get behind that idea.” Cadance remarks.

“Good... So, I’m George.” George starts to feel that nervousness coming back. “Twilight and I have been dating for three or so months now and she even moved into my house about two weeks back.”

“You both live together?” Shining comes in.

“Yeah, just outside of Ponyville.”

Shining looks over to Twilight. “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

“Why didn’t you tell me about your wedding?” Twilight shoots back.

Shining winces at hearing her say that. That seemed uncalled for. George leans down and whispers to Twilight.

“Twi, it’s alright. Calm down.”

He rests his hand onto her hoof and gives it a light squeeze. Twilight comes to her senses a bit. She’s really on edge about what happened with her mother. It’s understandable.

“S-Sorry, Shining... I’m just still mad about what happened.”

He gets it. It’s stressful enough to bring somepony you love to your parents... It’s another thing entirely when everything falls apart so quickly.

“Yeah, I’d be pretty upset too if mom said those things about Cadance.” Shining then looks over to George. “Sorry about all that. I know it sucks meeting your special somepony’s parents but what happened was over the line.”

“I won’t deny that but in the end it doesn’t really matter. Just as long as I have Twilight then I’m fine.”

“It’s nice to know you love Twilight so much.” Cadance comes in.

Oh yeah, she’s the princess of love. She can probably sense how much he loves Twilight.

“It’s been a crazy ride. I used to just work at the library but since meeting Twilight we’ve been doing a lot of things together.”

“Like?” Shining asks.

“Well, I’ve been helping George with an invention of his.” Twilight replies.

“Invention?” Shining raises a brow. “Oh, what did dad say? He made the weird library thing?”

“Dewey decimal system.” Twilight corrects him. “But that’s not what I’m talking about. It’s currently hush hush but you’ll find out what it is soon enough. Maybe I’ll even send you an early version?” Twilight teases.

Shining rolls his eyes. “Fine, keep your secrets. Just make sure it doesn’t explode, like that one time you tried making your own spell.” He jokes.

“That only happened the one time.” Twilight says with a frown. “It would’ve worked if you didn’t break my concentration!”

He gives a mock laugh. “That spell was unstable. You nearly blew the roof off the house.”

The both of them get out of their seats, lean over the table and locks eyes for a moment but despite what they’re saying, George gets the feeling this is actually normal.

“Calm down you two.” Cadance says with a small giggle. “So, George... I don’t mean to intrude but could you go into more detail about where you come from?”

Shining seems to be interested in this subject as well as he takes his seat and turns his attention to George. It’s an understandable question to ask and he feels no reason to keep it to himself.

“Sure. So, I come from a world that in many ways is similar to Equestria but also has other differences as well.”

Well, this is going a lot better than with Twilight’s parents. As far as George is concerned, neither Cadance or Shining seem to dislike him. After talking for awhile, their food came out and they enjoyed their meal together. As the hours went by George noticed how much Twilight relaxed and while it did take time eventually her smile came back in full force. Shining and her would tell stories from their childhood to George and it was very interesting how each of them had a different view on what happened.

It was like the morning never happened and things were better than before. George then notices Twilight let out a yawn.

“Well, I guess it’s time for us to call it a night.” George says.

Shining nods. “It’s getting late.” He then looks over to George. “Thanks for watching out for my little sis. You’re a good guy and that’s all that matters.”

“Thanks, Shining Armor.”

“It was nice meeting you.” Cadance also come in. She then looks over to Twilight. “Let’s do this again sometime. Maybe at the crystal empire next time?”

Twilight nods her head. “That sounds nice. George hasn’t been there yet. I’m sure it’ll be fun.”

Cadance and Shining get up first to leave. George pays for the meal and tips the waiter as well. Once he’s all done with that Twilight and him set off into the cool night of Canterlot.

“Thank you for doing this, George.” Twilight says honestly. “I was really upset by what happened and just wanted to get out of here but it’s nice knowing I have ponies who support me.”

“We’re still not done yet, Twi.”

She raises a brow at that. “What?”

George smiles at her as he waves for her to follow. She doesn’t say anything as George has one last thing he wants to do.

“George, we shouldn’t be here.” Twilight says seriously. “This isn’t going to end well.”

George and Twilight are standing before her parents home once again. However, George came here for a reason and he’s not going to back down.

“Trust me, Twi.” He says while looking at her.

She lets out a small sigh. “Alright.”

George walks up to the door and knocks loudly. It only takes a moment before the door is answer by none other than Twilight Velvet. This is just the pony he was hoping would answer. She looks up at George, as Twilight is behind him, she gives a look of disgust and is about to turn to look at Twilight but George speaks up to grab her attention.

“I love your daughter.” He says in a dead serious tone.

Velvet looks at him with a sneer. “I don’t ca-”

“And there’s nothing you can say or do that will change that.” George cuts her off. “Honestly, I don’t even care if you bad mouth me but if what you say hurts Twilight then that’s a problem. I love her with all my heart and that’ll never change.” George notices her face soften a bit but he’s not giving her a chance to say anything. “One day, we’ll get married.” He hears a gasp from behind him but doesn’t lose concentration. “Maybe not today or tomorrow but someday we will.”

He takes a moment to gather his thoughts before continuing. “On that day, I hope you’re there because I know deep down that if you’re not, then you’ll regret that decision for the rest of your life. You don’t need to like me, you can hate me for all I care but you’re still Twilight’s mother and...” George is trying to find the right words to say. “You’re family in the end. That’s not something I have anymore and I don’t want Twilight to be without her family.” George lets out a sigh. “That’s all I have to say. Let’s go, Twi.”

Now it’s George that walks away as Twilight and her mother are left there unsure what to do. Twilight simply looks at her mother, seeing a bit of regret in her eyes and decides to say her peace.

“I do love him, Mom... He’s right... I hope you are there for our wedding, just like you were there for my brother.”

Twilight can see George is further away now and doesn’t wait for her mother to say anything as she takes off after him. Twilight Velvet is left there confused by what just happened.

“That was pretty brave of him.” A voice speaks up next to her. She looks over to see Nightlight standing there. “There’s no reason for you to be worried. Our daughter is doing fine... She always has.”

Velvet doesn’t say anything as she simply looks off to where she can see her daughter walking side by side with that creature. She doesn’t know what to think but she doesn’t want her daughter to hate her. She feels Nightlight rest a hoof onto her withers... She has a lot of thinking to do.

George and Twilight are walking down the streets of Canterlot. Neither of them saying a thing. Twilight bumps his legs slightly as he looks down at her.

“So... We’re going to get married?” She asks with a blush.

That causes some heat to rise on George’s face as well.

“Um... Yeah, one day... I mean, is it something you’d like too?”

She smiles at him and nods. “It is.”

“Great. So, I’ll just leave the asking to you then. You know, when you’re ready.”

George stops as he feels some kind of magic hold him in place. He looks down at Twilight as she looks up at him.

“How about now?” She asks.

Despite his face being completely red, he feels a smile also grow on his face. Well, there’s only one answer to the question.

“Sure.” Then George remembers something important. “Maybe after all our work is done?”

Twilight chuckles at that. “Yeah... We’ve already got a lot on our plate right now.”

They continue walking towards their hotel. It’s weird in a way how natural this all feels for the both of them. Twilight basically asked George if he wanted to get married and he was fine with it. George can only chalk it up to how weird this world is but deep down he knows Twilight and him were meant to be... Afterall, why else was he chosen to come to Equestria? It doesn’t matter, all he knows is that he loves Twilight and nothing will ever change that.

Epilogue

“So, how are you feeling?”

“Surprisingly calm.” George answers.

Today is the day and despite everything that’s happening, George is calm. Mrs. Rule is walking in circles, looking very nervous, a side of her that George has never seen before but it doesn’t bother him. Afterall, he asked her to be his best mare. There were a lot of ponies he considered but in the end he wanted no other pony to be there by his side than Strict Rule. They’ve worked with one another for a long time but Rule has always been more than a boss.

She was the only pony, besides Celestia, who didn’t react negatively to his appearance. Not only that but she took it upon herself in a way to teach George about their world. While it was never direct, she would send him to sections of the library that held information about their culture and what not. It’s odd but she acted strict in a motherly kind of way. Not mention she was the same way with Twilight when she was younger and it wouldn’t feel right if she wasn’t there for this moment.

What moment? Well, George is about to get married. Only a few minutes until it’s his time to walk down the hall and enter into the chapel. Twilight and him have been planning this wedding for months now. After they worked on a few things, such as Twilight’s book and George’s pen. It goes without saying that the pen was a smash hit for ponies. It quickly replaced quills and ink but there are still a few ponies that prefer the old way of writing.

As for Twilight’s book? Now that’s something worth mentioning. Her first copy she gave to Sweetie Belle as a test of sorts. She told her to read the entire book and to come back to her when she was done. Both Twilight and George were surprised when she came back only after a week and not only that but she could cast all the spells in the book. She could levitate objects and even teleport a short distance. This is from a filly that knew next to nothing about how magic worked, being able to use it after one week with Twilight’s book.

That was the first volume, simple spells that all unicorns should know and once it was published it quickly spread around. Twilight gets a letter every so often from a pony thanking her for the book. Usually detailing how they never got a proper education when it came to magic but how her book was simple enough to help them understand what they were deprived of from a young age. Twilight keeps each letter she gets and George knows it’s the reason she’s been so excited to work on the next volume for her series.

George lets out a sigh... How long has he been in Equestria? He thinks it’s been about a year or close to it. So much has happened and in so little time. He adjusts his tie to make sure it’s perfect. He’s ready to walk down that aisle and see his special somepony.

“I think I’m ready.” George speaks up.

Strict gives him a nod as she walks out of the room to inform everypony that George is ready.

George can already hear the music being played as he waits behind the double doors. He was calm before but now his heart is pounding. This is it, as soon as the doors open then he’ll finally see her. His thoughts don’t have time to wander as the door starts to open. His eyes look to none other than Twilight and in this moment, as she locks eyes with him, he feels his heart stop. It’s odd in a way how beautiful she looks... She always looks beautiful but right now, in this moment, there’s something special about her. Maybe it’s the long white dress or the veil that slightly covers her face... He doesn’t know, he’s at a loss for words but all he does know is that he loves her.

His mind returns as he starts walking down the aisle towards the front stage. Celestia is at the center of the stage acting as their pastor of sorts. Twilight chose Cadance as her best mare and it’s kinda funny to see how hard she’s trying to hold back her tears of joy. George briefly scans the room and finds a lot of ponies came. The elements and their family fill out most of the seats but what George really finds his sights falling on is Twilight’s parents.

They decided to come today. That makes him really happy. The fact is that Twilight and him briefly went back to visit her parents at a later date and not too much changed... George knows her mother hates him but at least she kept her silence on the matter while they visited. It was better than when they first met and that was an improvement. After their visit, that’s when Twilight handed them the wedding invitation and told them they were free to come or not.

George returns his attention to Twilight, now he takes his few steps up to the altar and gives Twilight a smile.

“You look beautiful.” He says.

She smiles at that. “You look handsome too.”

“Are you two ready?” Celestia asks. George and Twilight give her a nod. “Then I’ll start.” Celestia turns her attention the crowd. “Today we all gather here to share in the love of these two that stand before us. To hear their promises of eternal love and affection. For what these two share cannot be broken, a bond so strong that it can cut through the darkest of times and heal wounds that have long since passed. Love so pure that none can taint it.” Celestia then looks over to George. “Do you take Twilight to be your mare, in sickness and in health?”

“I do.” He answers.

“And do you, Twilight. Take George to be your stallion. To care for him when he is ill and help him when he is not?”

“I do.”

Celestia smiles a she turns her attention back to the crowd.

“If anyone would like to object this union, speak now or forever hold your peace.”

George and Twilight looks over to Velvet... They can see her shake in place but she doesn’t say a single thing.

“Very well.” Celestia continue as no one speaks out. “By the power invested in me, I now pronounce you man and pony. You may kiss the bride.”

George doesn’t even get the chance to lean down as Twilight launches up into his arms and mashes her lips against his. The entire crowd now gives a cheer as they share their first kiss together as man and pony. They pull away from one another and can’t help the swell of love they feel inside of them. George sweeps Twilight up into his arms and carries her down the aisle and towards the carriage that’s waiting for them. All of Twilight’s friends are cheering their hearts out and Twilight throws her bouquet as they near the carriage.

It’s funny for George to see out of the corner of his eye how Rarity goes for the bouquet. They enter into the carriage and Twilight has a large smile on her face as she waves to everyone. As the carriage takes off, George can see standing in the back are Twilight’s parents and while it’s not obvious, he can see a small smile on Velvet’s lips as tears start falling from her eyes. Soon, the both of them are now traveling towards the hotel in Canterlot.

“We’re finally married.” George says.

Twilight nuzzles into him. “This is the happiest day of my life.”

George chuckles as he hugs Twilight. “Yeah, it sure is.”

Twilight looks up at George. “So, what are we going to do when we get to the hotel?”

George smiles as he reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a list. Twilight chuckles at that as she too produces a list of her own. The both of them are now laughing as they hold one another. George has been here in Equestria for awhile and while he does miss all the things he lost, he’s found something much better in return.

Author's Note

Thank again to FallenAngel for making this Patreon story possible.