“Well, here we are, room sweet room! Make yourself at home.”
He steps aside and I give a thoughtful hum as I trot by, scanning the posters of ponies playing wintertime sports that line his walls. A purple helmet, one that looks just like the ones in the posters, sits at an angle on the back of his bed, along with a matching pair of skis. Even his bed matches, with white and purple blankets and snowflake-patterned pillows.
“It’s cute!” I chirp, turning around and showing him my smile. I’m still digging for his—that small dorky smile that I saw earlier. “I’m guessing skiing is your favorite sport? Is there a lot of snow in this part of Equestria?”
He still looks flustered, but I don’t take it personally. From what I’ve learned about pony culture so far, inviting others into your nest chamber is stressful.
“Yeah, skiing is my passion,” he says, closing the door behind us. “I first moved here because of the mountain ranges. This village sits at the foot of the Crystal Mountains, which extend all the way out west, past Yakyakistan. Sometimes, the Equestria Games hosts winter sporting competitions in these mountains over by Rainbow Falls. It’s kind of a dream of mine to compete in one of those, someday.”
Walking over to his bed, I lay down and loaf myself on the end of it. He has this really cute polar bear plushie there, and I just have to have it between my hooves.
“That sounds amazing! I could never live in a climate this cold, let alone play sports in it. I bet having a coat helps with that a lot.”
He starts to meander over, only to stop short and rub the back of his head.
“Changelings can turn into anything they want, can’t they? That seems even better than having fur.”
“You’d think so, but the climate affects our bodies long-term, even when we’re transformed. Our wings get brittle and can crack or tear if we’re in cold temperatures too long. That’s why we’ve always lived in hot climates.”
I hold his polar bear up and make it do a little tap dance. He chuckles, then pulls out a stool at his desk and sits down, facing me.
I think he can tell how ready I am to curl up with him in these cozy-looking blankets. Maybe that’s why he’s still nervous?
“You guys used to live in the south, right?”
“In the Badlands desert, yeah. Plants started to bloom all over after we transformed though, so, there’s no desert anymore.”
“Oh, that’s great! But it’s still hot, I take it?”
“Still hot.”
We’re quiet for a time. He looks away, and I let myself become distracted by some of the collectibles scattered about. There are sock puppets and other little craft projects sprinkled among the sport items, all with crinkled tags that read ‘To DD.’ Most of them are written in red or purple crayon, and are very scribbly.
There’s a series of pictures on the far side of the room. Most are of him with ponies who look like friends of his, but there is one that catches my eye. It’s of a filly with a coat as white as his, covered in snow but still laughing for the camera.
I giggle too softly for him to hear.
“...we do have lots of rain storms now, though.”
He looks up at me again.
“They’re better than the cold but they can be bad for us too if it’s pouring,“ I continue. “Heavy rain can waterlog our wings and keep us from flying. It’s funny, in a way. Thorax always gets super worried about us when it rains. He’s kind of like our collective dad.”
“Aww, that’s nice. I’ve heard Princess Celestia can be like that sometimes, and Princess Cadance, too. I’ve never personally met either of them, though.”
“Yeah, Thorax likes to make sure everyling is safe. That’s sorta how we first discovered how to share love magic through touch. Our hive had been lacking compassion for so long that Thorax encouraged us to sleep together in groups just to force us to spend time together. And now look at us—most of the hive is full of literal cuddlebugs.”
Silence. My heart skips a beat.
Shell wax. That wasn’t subtle at all.
Darn it, Tenenci, you just had to go and blow it, didn’t you? What happened to ‘just be attentive and wait for him to—’
“I bet being cuddly on top of being cute is working out pretty well for you guys, huh? I mean, you’ve certainly won me over so far.”
My heart rebounds into my throat. I double take. There’s something behind his eyes, now. Something in his smile. It’s more forward, more relaxed.
A weight sloughs off my back as a playful grin pulls at my cheeks.
“Speaking of, I still haven’t given you a demonstration. Not that you need one. I bet ponies who play a lot of winter sports really know how to keep warm.”
I roll onto my back and stretch, exposing my abdomen, and it gets him off his stool. I vibrate my wings excitedly against his bed, and it draws him over to it. More confident in his steps now, he flops onto his bed with a bounce and shakes the both of us. His mane, messy and disheveled, obscures his eye at just the right angle when he looks at me, and I feel my face flush.
"You're welcome to come find out," he murmurs.
He turns onto his back too, and I join him, lowering myself on top of him until that tired, suave smile starts to waver again. I lay my hooves on either side of his head and dust his tail with mine. When his eyes flicker away, I press our snouts together and draw his attention right back.
"You realize you've signed up for being a teddy bear all afternoon, right?"
My voice is a whisper, my mouth inches from his. I feel his hooves gently locking me in place, sandwiching me against his chest.
I shiver. Ponies are so warm.
"Yeah, that’s about what I was expecting," he says, just as quietly. "Not to worry, I've been known to be a fan of the occasional afternoon nap. You won't have to convince me."
I nuzzle the crux of his neck and bury my snout there, pressing up against his head. He presses back and lets out a long, deep sigh.
"You seem much more relaxed now, you know."
"Do I?"
I squeeze his belly. He shifts his leg around mine.
"Sorry, I don't usually do this sort of thing, is all. Guess I’m kinda out of my element."
"What made you want to try?"
"Well, a cute changeling walked into town, and when I said hello, he said he liked my mane and started talking about how his culture kinda revolves around hugs now. What’s a pony to do but be curious and ask questions?"
He winks, and I nuzzle his chin to make him giggle. I nuzzle lower, seeing which parts of his neck get the biggest response, and I cling to him tighter when he starts to squirm.
"You mean questions like, ‘can you show me?’” I purr in his ear. “Or, ‘will you come back to my room with me and squeeze me tight till I fall asleep?'"
“I did not say it like that,” he defends, rolling onto his side and taking me with him. "I recall you offering to get breakfast and then showing me how hug magic worked."
"Don't leave out how you turned red when I offered. Were you embarrassed? Ponies turn red when they’re embarrassed, right?"
I grin. He’s flustered again.
“Anyway, I'm showing you now.” I bury my nose into his fluffy chest and close my eyes. "Hopefully you enjoy it as much as you enjoyed breakfast."
There are birds chirping outside his window. I can hear them, muffled yet still so distinct through the glass. Even fainter are the sounds of the other townsponies, going about their afternoon in the sun. It's so soothing to listen to when you're tucked away and hidden from it all.
I breathe in, then out again. Breathing is harder with his chest pressing into mine, but I don’t mind. In fact, it makes me squeeze him tighter. He’s used his one free leg to lift and pull his comforter over us, and now I don’t want a single part of us uncovered or unheld.
“...do you still visit her?”
“Who?”
“The filly. The one who looks like you.”
He’s quiet for a moment. Then I feel his chin behind my horn, gently searching for that perfect spot.
“Of course I do, she’s my little sister. I love her more than anything else in Equestria.”
I beam. I've never felt this warm before.
Ponies sure are full of love, aren’t they?
Author's Note
Here's a little something to dust off the creative cobwebs. 
I usually focus on depicting intimacy outside of romance in my works. Here's an exploration of something in-between the two. 
I wanted to depict the often awkward but unique experience of engaging with someone intimately for the first time. Speaking from experience, the slow build to a threshold of comfort and sequential action is very real. 
Are you going to Ciderfest next month? So am I. 
I'm currently trying to get a panel with Admiral Biscuit that goes over the importance of platonic affection in humans, and how adept MLP and its fandoms are at showing that in their stories. Keep an eye on my blog over the coming week as panelists get announced.
