Life amidst the others

Lyra tried to rephrase the question but that one word still floated in my mind. Is this what I am, a pony? I asked Lyra if I could have a moment alone, and she respected my privacy and left me in the kitchen for a moment. I was unsure of how long I would be a pony for, why I was presented this opportunity, or even who sent that package to me. All I know is that I've got to try to fit in and try my best to not act suspicious. I looked back at my tube-like hands, they were hooves. My hair, it was my mane. I also had wings; I must be some sort of flying pony, a Pegasus?  I turned my head around and saw Lyra heading back to the table.

"Are you alright?" She said in a remorseful tone.

"I'm fine," I lied.

I noticed an image on her outer thighs; it appeared to be lyre, a musical instrument played a very long time ago in my world. It wasn't surprising because of her name, but what surprised me is how it got there. I didn't want to look stupid, asking her how she got it and making me look suspicious. Lyra offered me some more fruit, but I declined while being lost in my thoughts of this land and being a pony.

A few days later, I managed to get in the hang of walking and Lyra wanted to show me into town. I was unsure if I wanted to but if I wanted to fit in, I'd most likely have to get used to it, it would also be a good opportunity to get a job. I accepted her offer and she took me to a town called 'ponyville'. Once we got there, I saw a bunch of mares and stallions of several different colors. One thing I noticed, they all had images on their outer thighs just like Lyra. When I looked back at my thigh, I didn't have one. I was hoping 'nopony' would see me without one.

Lyra said that she needed to run some errands and to meet me back at her house by 6 P.M. I didn't have a watch but luckily there was a clock tower near the town square. I looked around for some nearby businesses to see if I could get a job. I saw a help wanted sign on what appeared to be a child's ride at an amusement park, a carousel like store. It was the first business-like place I've seen today, but it's as good as a place to start as any. I opened the door and entered to see a front desk, there were stairs leading upwards, and the rest of the place looked like an average house. I noticed a bell on the counter; I reached the top of the counter and rang it.

"Just a minute," A female like voice said coming from upstairs.

A female pony with violet a mane curled up and had white fur came walking down the stairs. She too, had an image on her outer thigh, it was 3 diamonds.

"May I help you?" She said as a grin entered her face.

"Yes, can I apply for a job?" I asked with a nervous grin on my face.

The white pony went off to her desk to organize some papers using a horn of hers; she telekinetically levitated one of the papers in the desk and handed it to me.

"I'm hiring, but first I need to see if you fit good qualifications, and then I will consider hiring you," she said as she levitated one of the papers into my mouth.

Is this how I am supposed to carry things, with my mouth? I was unsure if this was sanitary or not, but I continued acting like it was natural for ponies to do so.

"I'm sorry, forgive me for the rudeness, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Rarity." She said.

I almost forgot to introduce myself to Lyra, I've got to think of a better name, and Shane seems too much of a human name to be a pony's name. I began to digress and I wanted to further think about the matter later.

"Now, you best be along, I've got some important orders to fill." She said as she trotted up the stairs.

As I began despite the disgusting thought of how ponies carry things without the use of levitation, I thanked her as I carried it back to Lyra's house and looked at the clock tower. It was nearly 4 o'clock; I had plenty of time to continue roaming about the town. I headed back to the town, and met some unfamiliar ponies. I was told to never talk to strangers but somehow this place seemed peaceful enough to allow my self-security to fade away. Around 15 till' 6 o'clock, I started to head back to Lyra's house and waited for her. Once she got home, she placed some groceries on the counter in the kitchen.

"Have you gotten around to meeting some of the pony folk?" She said.

I nodded as I grabbed a cup with my mouth and placed it in the sink; I turned on the faucet and waited a couple of seconds for the glass to fill up. I then took the cup and placed it on the table.

"So how have you been...?" She paused for a moment.

"I'm sorry; I never got your name." She said as she sat down to talk with me.

I knew I'd eventually be asked for my name. My heart sank as she looked into my eyes. I was curious as to whether I should tell the truth or come up with a name, but doing either of those would be an insanely hard task. I clutched my hooves against the glass of water and took a big gulp almost spilling my glass on the floor.

"My name is Shane." I said nervously as I tried to take another gulp of water.