Finding A Way Elsewhere

by Soaring

Rating: teen
Tags: Tempest Shadow, Sex, My Little Pony: The Movie, Slice of Life, Human, Anon, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Romance
Length: 9048

Fizzlepop Berrytwist went to a Pinkie Pie party celebrating Gummy's birthday. She was bored out of her mind, when Anon, Equestria's lone human, walked in. She didn't expect him to be there. She also didn't expect him to make her feel whole again.

Fizzlepop Berrytwist, now acclimated to Ponyville by Twilight's recommendation, was invited to a party for Gummy's birthday. She didn't want to go, but she went anyway, and found herself being alone, again. Like always.

Fortunately for her, a human by the name of Anon was not a fan of being alone. And he was going to make sure she wasn't alone any longer, even if it meant embarrassing her the whole time.

Art by TenebrisNoctus (source for direct link to picture).

Inspired by The Darkest Moment - Say Your Sorries (And Goodbyes).

Pre-read by: Chaospaladin and Rikkity.

Published 2024-02-07 06:10:01 UTC
Last updated 2024-02-07 06:10:01 UTC

Being With You Is All That Matters

Author's Note

Putting this at the top to say the 'Sex' tag is here just in case I went over the line.

I totally did, but hey, here we are!

Additional songs listened to while writing/editing this one:

Invent Animate - Cloud Cascade The non instrumental version this time.

LASTELLE - Coping Without A Cure Shiver-inducing latter half

Currents - How I Fall Apart Yes.

Being With You Is All That Matters

Fizzlepop Berrytwist was bored.

She was currently at a Pinkie Party but wasn’t enjoying herself. This was partially because she didn’t care about it. She had received an invitation for it in the mail and decided to go because ‘free food’ was crudely scribbled all over it, and a way to her heart somedays was through her stomach. However, once she walked up to the Sugarcube Corner, and realized that Pinkie Pie was serious about the actual party being titled Gummy’s Birthday Party Extravaganza (With Berry Punch’s Spiked Punch)!, she knew that she should’ve rain checked this one. She didn’t know Pinkie Pie’s pet alligator that well, and quite frankly, Fizzlepop thought it was extreme to be advertising the party as free food instead of a celebration for her pet gator. Wouldn’t this be better for ponies who knew the little guy? Then again, how many ponies actually knew of Gummy?

To her own surprise, there were too many ponies to count. When she had first arrived, it was almost near capacity. Ponies were talking, bumping into each other, and waiting for Pinkie Pie to give them the signal that the party had started. But then, she found herself looking around, and something felt… off. It was like, somepony was watching her. Watching her intently.

Then, suddenly, the signal was fired out of a cannon (which was Pinkie Pie herself), which made everypony cheer happily. Some ponies near her turned around, and saw her face.

And that’s when Fizzlepop Berrytwist was noticed. She was noticed for something she knew she would be seen as. She stood there, as ponies huddled away from her, her confident smirk probably intimidating them. She felt her face fall as she worriedly looked around.

And then she shook her head, and everypony around her was looking elsewhere. Some were tending to the flameless fireworks display, while some strolled up to the stage where Miss Octavia Melody was about to play. There was a bowling mat set in the opposite corner, and a derby cart or two were sat for the foals to use. Oh, and there was a pin the tail on the pony display, that she saw and recognized from her foalhood and—

Fizzlepop sighed and walked over to a nearby table. A couple ponies were sitting there, talking on a few barrels, but before she could ask if she could sit there, the two saw her and scampered, leaving her to a free table all of her own. It was near the exit/entrance of the party, which made her wonder if she was lucky, if at all.

She was probably bored. Or was she worried? She couldn’t figure it out. All she knew was that she was here, sitting at the table furthest from all the action, from all the noise. And she had been there since the beginning, only briefly walking over to the free food stand where, of course, ponies left her alone to take her share.

Her gaze drifted outside through a nearby window. She could see the moon high in the sky, and she could see the stars too. They were all together, dancing happily. The stars twinkled, the moon… was the moon, and a rogue star was floating by itself. That one twinkled the brightest, beaming down at Fizzlepop like it wanted to say something to her. Like it was a remnant of a past time. She could picture it: she would sit on the deck of the ship, peering out at the expanse that Equestria had to offer, and just then, despite all odds, a star like this would look at her like it was the only one there, and it was there for her—and that one star would carry her to the next objective, and the next.

And now here she was, relying on it once again. She was marveled by how one distant little star could be so happy to see her, while also serving as a purpose to shine light for those on the ground. Yet, they’re so far away…

Perhaps they were like her: an observer. They observed the happiness of others and gave off this confidence that, maybe, just maybe, they’d be happy too.

Or maybe that’s a foal’s tale: the hope of being happy. She just had to accept it. That her jubilation would be one never obtainable in a place like this.

It felt weird to think of herself this way. She was just there, existing, while she listened to the background noise of the remaining party goers. They were playing around with the new pop up attraction Pinkie Pie had set up. Apparently ponies could dunk their heads in the tub that was filled with water, searching for a bunch of Red Delicious apples, which were courteously donated to Pinkie from Sweet Apple Acres, at least, that’s what Fizzlepop gathered from ponies talking about it. It sounded like it would be fun to do, but… something was amiss. Something didn’t feel right. Something in her head, or something in her hooves. Was it her armor? The lack thereof? She felt exposed all the time, so it couldn’t be that. Maybe… maybe it was something else. But what?

What was it?

The only thing that she knew was that the friends she had gained after the Storm King’s Invasion in Canterlot were here along with all the beady eyes in the room. While her friends laughed and cheered as Pinkie Pie pounced her head right into the water, Fizzlepop thought to herself: was this how she was meant to be? Was this her life in Equestria? What she wanted to show ponies?

Or was this how she fell apart?

Her mind crashed into a flash flood as a torrent of water splashed around the area. At first, Fizzlepop didn’t pay it any mind, as she was not expecting it to reach her, but she felt one, then two, and then several more, which made her wince as each droplet slammed right onto her horn. Her poor stump of a horn fizzled for a second, before returning back to normal.

Unfortunately, her ‘normal’ was unlike anypony else’s normal. Her normal was now meant to be lived in her head, where her mind brewed into a thunderstorm. Normally, she’d be able to navigate these without much of a thought, but this was one that plagued her mental state. There was no manual for that.

So, she sighed, and fell right back into recourse. She watched as Pinkie Pie somehow came out victorious with an apple in her maw. Applejack and Rarity pulled her to their side and hugged her, nuzzling happily.

She felt sick. Why did she stay here again? She had gotten some of the food that most ponies like her would’ve come here for, but…

What was her motivation to stay? Boredom? A closeted party connoisseur? No…

Was it because of Twilight? Her friends? No, she didn’t need to worry about them.

Was it for a sense of duty? Obligation? Courtesy?

She couldn’t answer that one. She didn’t know what that obligation could be. She was just there, her eyes drifting towards the green door that nopony had opened for a while. Most ponies had already left the Sugarcube Corner, since it was close to the end of the night, and everypony had something to do tomorrow.

This was how Pinkie Pie parties went: creatures of all kinds joined in droves, and then they left in droves once the moon started creeping up. It was… weird seeing this all occur in real time. Not that she wouldn’t leave either at this point, but maybe she…

Fizzlepop groaned. Her right forehoof clopped right on the table, before the other joined it, giving her a nice place to rest her head.

Unfortunately for her, her head didn’t meet the most comfortable end, yet the soft thud that greeted her skull only shrouded her embarrassment. Her feelings were all over the place, and they were pounding her brain way more than a little faceplant could do to her.

She felt stupid. What excuse did she need to just tell Pinkie, ‘Hey, I’m tired. I’m heading home, thanks for inviting me!’ Was she embarrassed that she hadn’t said a thing that night? Was this just a game of hers to torture herself in a pit of nervousness? She thought she was over this!

Sighing, she held her head up with her forehoof as her gaze drifted back to the window sill. No pony was out, and the moon was trending upward. What a great night.

Too bad she was doing nothing with it. What a wasted opportunity, huh? She wished she could just keep herself together, and maybe if she tried to form some friendships, she could—

“Hey, Tempest!”

She glared at the voice that called her that. Nopony called her that without her having a say in it. “Anon, don’t call me that.”

Anon was Equestria’s only human. He was also her best friend, or rather, everypony’s best friend, if Pinkie Pie had anything to say about it. He was tall, practically furless, and had a headmane that didn’t make sense to her, but hey, she wasn’t a critic of others. She only criticized herself.

The human rolled his eyes. “Okay then, Fizzy. Just wanted to get your attention.”

“My attention?” She tilted her head. “Why?”

Anon snorted. He placed his hands on the table and sat on the barrel opposite of her. “Because I’m your friend? Am I not allowed to talk to you?”

Fizzlepop mentally smacked herself silly, before shaking her head. “No, you’re allowed. Sorry, I’m just…”

Her voice trailed off. What was she going to say there? Was she going to tell him how she felt? How much of a confused pony she was?

How much of a—

“You’re just… what?”

Anon had interrupted her thoughts again. He was staring her down, while his right arm laid down on the table and extended out toward her, his palm open. It was like he was asking her to hold his hoof, something that he had done for Twilight a couple times.

‘He does it to calm me down,’ Twilight had said to Fizzlepop.

It sounded like the opposite thing you do to calm somepony down. But, apparently, it was soothing to Twilight, and since it worked for her, that was something that Anon was attempting to try with Fizzlepop. Safe to say, she wasn’t a fan. It threw her for a loop. That’s not normal for ponies to do. That’s not even what friends would do. Lovers, maybe?

But friends? Hoof-holding? Eh…?

Part of her wanted to reject his offer, but part of her was curious. Maybe it would calm her down too? Agh.

Taking a shaky deep breath, she decided and steeled herself forward, her hoof now placed in his hand. Those fingers of his curled up around her hoof, and now a distinct heat lingered in her forelegs, one that she was not familiar with in the slightest.

She looked up at him and attempted to smile, but her face wasn’t a fan. She could feel her lips tingle and twitch as she spoke, “I… I don’t know. Is this what you normally do for ponies?”

Anon chuckled. “No. I usually do this for Twilight when she’s stressed out. But when I saw you from across the room, I… I think I just felt like you needed someone to keep you company. So, I just… did this.”

“Do your kind usually act like this?”

“Pfft, no. Sometimes, humans can be a bit distant too. Just like you were earlier.”

“Is that wrong? To be distant?”

Anon shook his head, his eyes softly focused on her. “No, but I’m not sure if you realize, but most ponies are happy when they’re at one of these parties. The fact that you’re this far away from it all told me what I needed to do.”

“And that was?”

“To keep you company? Is that a bad thing?”

“No…” her voice trailed off. She frowned and tried to look elsewhere, but everything else looked so foreign to her that Anon’s company made her feel more at home. She wouldn’t tell him that, though. Not one bit.
“Then I guess you’re stuck with me,” Anon started with a smirk, before giving her a grin.

“I see…” Fizzlepop began. She spared a glance over at Pinkie and her friends, who were now having Rarity attempt to dive into the tub next. She nearly groaned inward, but she decided to instead turn back to Anon, his eyes still focused on her. “Well, what did you want to do then?”

He snorted before squeezing her hoof. “Well, for starters, we can talk about why you’re sitting over here alone.”

“Like that would help me much,” Fizzy replied, rolling her eyes. “I’m not even sure how I feel at the moment. I’m just… bored.”

“Bored?”

She curtly bobbed her head. “Out of my wits.”

Anon hummed to himself, his other hand poking at his chin like that movement would help him think more. Fizzlepop chuckled mentally, wondering what went through his mind, but then again, if she knew, she would have to contain it. It could be weaponized. like the newly remodeled armored smoothbore cannon she had drafted in her home, recently.

Not that she was going to tell anypony about that.

“Well, why aren’t you with the rest of the ponies over there?”

His finger pointed right at Twilight, who was apparently now the one taking Rarity’s place. She was hoisted up, with Rainbow Dash propping her hind legs, as she attempted to dip her head into the tub, hoping to find another apple to fish out. However, something was wrong, as Twilight was trying to get Rainbow Dash’s attention. Something about her hindlegs not working the way they should or something, which spurred Rarity and Applejack to ugly laugh together, while Fluttershy looked on in concern. It wasn’t until Twilight buried her head underwater before she came up with an apple in her maw did everypony cheer, some even prancing in place.

Fizzlepop shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t feel like dunking my head in water?”

Anon laughed. “That’s fair. What if we did something else? Would you want to join in?”

“Probably not. Nothing’s interested me.” She propped her head up with her hoof, while the other waved nonchalantly at him. “Is that not allowed either?”

The words had just tumbled out of her, but the worst part was that she had growled rather aggressively at Anon, one that she didn’t even know she had in her. It made her question herself. Did she do that? Was that actually her?

She focused back on Anon and saw that he was shocked. He was slack jawed, like he wasn’t expecting her to belt that one out. However, she couldn’t dwell on the thought any longer, as he decided to surprise her too. Without warning, he took her foreleg and snatched it to his side of the table. She yelped, not expecting the sudden tug, but the tug had actually brought her barrel she was sitting on closer to his, if by closer, it meant that it scooted more to the right.

“What are you—”

“Trying to get you to not do that again.” He rubbed her hoof again with his finger. “Listen, even though you’re allowed to feel how you feel, you shouldn’t. You shouldn’t, not only because you’re here, but also because I care. I care enough that I want you to feel happy, okay? And I want to make sure you’re not feeling this way, because you shouldn’t be. Even though you’re totally allowed to feel that way, you shouldn’t, especially not here.”

“Okay,” Fizzlepop replied lamely, her ears now splayed against her head. She shouldn’t feel this way? Did that make her weird? The odd one out?

She watched as Anon let go of her hoof. He hopped down and walked over to her side of the table. Then, he shocked her a second time. He suddenly grabbed her and set her in his arms.

“A-Anon! What are you doing?” She confusingly exclaimed, her forelegs wrapping around his neck, while her tail flicked down to cover herself.

Her face was on fire right now. He hadn’t done this before, and she was definitely feeling like she was being taken hostage.

“Taking you out for a walk,” he said, before turning to Pinkie, who was orchestrating the bobbing of the apples. “Hey, Ponks.”

Pinkie snapped her attention to Anon, who was still holding Fizzlepop bridal style. She swore she could see Pinkie’s face slightly redden, meaning that she was totally thinking of something that wasn’t appropriate whatsoever. “Hey, Nonny! What’s going on?”

“Taking Fizzy here out for a walk. Do you mind?”

“No, but are you coming back?” Pinkie ‘Ponks’ Pie asked.

“Yeah, don’t leave us hangin’, Anon!” Rainbow Dash joined in, her eyes looking between Anon and Fizzlepop.

Anon shrugged. “I’ll try, Skittles. Really depends on if Fizzy here is done with her pouting and is cool with coming back to the party.”

“Pouting!?” Fizzlepop shouted, pursing her lips. “I’m not pouting.”

He looked up at her before looking back at Pinkie Pie. “See? She’s pouting.”

Pinkie Pie nodded. “Wow, I didn’t know you pouted like that, Fizzlepop!”

“Wow, darling, you do have a distinct pouting face…” Rarity observed.

Applejack raised a brow. “Since when did ya become a pouting expert, Rares?”

“I’m not—agggghhhh!” She looked away from the group, but she spared one glance back in her peripherals before rolling her eyes. “Whatever,” she spat out.

“See, Hoedown, maybe Fizzy here is the pouting expert and—ack!”

Fizzlepop The-Not-Pouting-Twist smacked Anon upside the head with her hoof. The human recoiled from her bap, rubbing his head. “Hey, watch where you’re swinging that thing!”

“That’s what you get for trying to get a rise out of me, Anon,” Fizzlepop declared. She crossed her forehooves and harrumphed, looking at him with a glare she hoped could burn a hole through that dumb skull of his. “Now, apologize!”

“For what?”

“Oh don’t play dumb!” Fizzlepop threw her forehooves in the air, opting to lean closer to Anon’s shoulder for support. “You know what you did.”

Pinkie Pie giggle-snorted and turned to him. “Alright, Anon. I’ll let you two leave. We’ll party it up in your absence, okay? Right, everypony?”

“Right, Pinkie!” Twilight chirped. She flapped her wings and cracked the crick in her neck. However, when she tried to put pressure on one of her hind legs, she winced. “Hey, Rainbow, help me out here! My… my hindlegs are still a bit sore.”

“Have you tried stretching them?” Rainbow asked with a raised brow, before scoochy-ing over to her.

Rarity and Applejack both murmured to each other. Fluttershy smiled at Anon and Fizzlepop. “Glad you could be here, Fizzlepop!”

Fizzlepop felt a little bit of heat pierce her cheeks. “T-Thanks, Fluttershy.”

Anon cleared his throat. “Well, glad everypony is going to have fun figuring out why Twilight’s legs aren’t working. Have a good one, Ponks!”

“Thank you both for coming!” Pinkie began, grinning ear to ear. “And don’t worry, her legs are probably fine. She’s just numb from hanging over the side of the tub for too long!” She squee’d suddenly, before she gave Anon and Fizzlepop one final smile. “Hope you two have a great rest of the night!”

Pinkie Pie waved at Fizzlepop and Anon, before she turned back to her friends, who were much too preoccupied with Twilight’s situation to wave at them too. Fizzlepop felt her heart begin to quell itself from lurching nearly outside her chest, but with Anon still holding onto her, she couldn’t quite get it to stop, but at least it was somewhat less fast. She shakily sighed, keeping her foreleg around his neck, hoping to Celestia that he wasn’t going to drop her.

Thankfully, Anon’s firm grip on her hindlegs kept her propped up, however, as he turned around, his final wave to Pinkie done and over with, he quickly opened the door to the Sugarcube Corner and slipped through it, being extra mindful of her, his passenger. She was thankful that he slightly lowered her down, as she wasn’t a fan of being knocked out by a door frame.

She frowned and patted Anon’s shoulder. “Hey… are you going to put me down?”

“And let you walk back home instead of talking to me about this whole mood you’re in? You better wish for a winning lottery ticket, because that ain’t happening,” Anon put it bluntly, his arms gently holding onto her now, despite what he said. “I want to make sure we talk this out, and I know just the place that’ll make you feel more comfortable.”

Her heart jumped at that. He was… thinking that far ahead? What did she do to deserve that treatment? “Why? Why do you want to help me, Anon?”

He stopped momentarily, checking around to see if anypony was still out and about, before he took her out of the bridal-style grip that he had her in and gently cradled her in his arms. “You’re one of my best friends. Why wouldn’t I want to be there for you?”

Fizzlepop blinked before her voice stuttered out a reply, “I-I’m not sure how I’m supposed to respond to that.”

Anon laughed and walked faster than he was before. “Then don’t. Not now, at least. Let’s just focus on taking you to the place I had in mind.”

“And where would that be?”

“A place where you can calm that head of yours.”

“Calm my head? Do you think I’m a bit on edge or something?”

Anon shrugged. “Not sure. All I know is that I don’t want you beating yourself up. Do you trust me?”

Fizzlepop opened her mouth, but then closed it shortly after. She nodded.

“Good. Don’t worry. We can swing by your place instead, if you’re not comfortable—”

She sighed and nuzzled into his chest. “No, I trust you, Anon.”

For a while, Fizzlepop just stayed that way, her mind wandering through this whole situation. How strange it was, to be held by Anon, the lone human who had basically walked into their world with no recollection of anything. And of all creatures, he decided she was the one that he cared about. They have hung out quite a few times, and they were really best friends, but lately, he had been busy with work, so she had been more alone than she was usually, since, well, ponies did not give her much of a chance to really show that she wasn’t a pony that was going to hurt them.

So they still didn’t trust her, at least not fully. She could feel their glares on her as she would walk by just to get some food for the morning. She’d also feel it when she was walking around with Twilight or Pinkie. And neither of them seemed to mention it to her, so was this them trying to hide it too? Or… were they just not bringing it up so they didn’t embarrass her?

She didn’t know. She didn’t know if she wanted to know.

Letting out a brief blow, Fizzlepop looked skyward and saw that they were no longer in Ponyville’s town center. They were surrounded by trees with dense canopies. Some were fruitless, bearing only thick leaves. Some, however, had fruit in them still. Where were they? They couldn’t be in the Everfree, since Anon didn’t choose to walk in that direction…

Not knowing what to do, she started to nuzzle into his shirt, when she stopped. Her eyes widened. Wasn’t this a very intimate thing to do? Being held like this?

And why was she okay with it?

Her face blossomed forth a delightful color of crimson that bled through her cheeks. Even her horn sparked a bit, but she hoped Anon wouldn’t notice—

“Alright there, Fizzy?”

She sputtered out a reply, “Y-Yes. Sorry, I… I just realized the position you put me in and—”

“Position?”

“You're holding onto me like this. It feels… intimate, for some reason.”

She looked up at Anon and saw his face slightly glow red too. “Oh. I see.”

He paused for a second, which made Fizzlepop wonder if she had broken him, but then he shook his head. “Don’t take it that way then. Think of it like a friend helping a friend.”

“So it is intimate?”

Anon groaned. “No. I’m just making sure we get there in one piece.”

She giggled to herself. “Okay there, Anon. Don’t be so antsy.”

Fizzlepop felt Anon’s breath slow down, and when she looked up at him, he was definitely looking elsewhere. However, it was like he was watching her from his peripherals, as he brought a hand that wasn’t propping her up to her face. With a singular finger, he booped her muzzle. She yelped. Her booped snoot scrunched up and she groaned, which spurred Anon to laugh softly.

She pursed her lips, before choosing to actually pout this time. Goofy human.

She looked out as the trees now grew shorter, and they were now all filled with those apples, the ones that were at the party. She realized, at that moment, where they were.

They were at Sweet Apple Acres. On Applejack’s orchard. Alone. Together.

“A-Anon, why are we here?”

“Pfft, I thought you trusted me?”

“Well, I have to ask. You basically ponynapped me to an apple orchard.”

“Ponynapped is such a harsh word,” Anon said. He curled his lips inward so they weren’t showing, and his nose pushed down, probably because the goofy human was stretching his skin. “To answer your question, though. I brought you here because, while this ain’t a park or anything, there’s this good hill up ahead. It’s a bit more private with it being on Applejack’s orchard and all, and it’s got this big oak tree up at the very top that we can sit by. Applejack showed me it, and I’m pretty sure I took you here once before, right?”

Fizzlepop snorted. “Yeah. You took me here when I was feeling… out of sorts last time.”

Anon hummed to himself. They walked up a little small hill to where the tree was, its large canopy towering over the other apple trees nearby. “I remember that day. And I know for a fact you’ve been here several times after too.”

She felt her jaw go slack. “H-How did you know that I—”

“Go there every week?” Anon finished, smirking all the while. She hated that face he made. “Pick up your jaw, girl. That’s not healthy.”

Fizzlepop ‘Fizzy’ Berrytwist giggle-snorted as she picked up her jaw, her hoof locking it in place. “Shure, Anon. But… how did you know I went here?”

“Best friends, remember? Either that, or I have a spidey sense that I didn’t know about when I walked into Equestria.” He flicked his wrist out, the tips of his fingers pointed upward.

Nothing happened.

He flicked it again, this time grunting.

Nothing happened.

“Okay, so I just imagined the spidey senses then. Either that, or I was scammed, robbed, and smeckledorfed, even. And for what? Just to hold you in one arm while my other one looked stupid?”

“A-Anon, what are you saying?” Fizzlepop Laughtertwist asked. She couldn’t help herself as she kept herself perched on Anon’s arm, while she held her midsection with her forehooves.

“Keep laughing. I know where you live.”

“I-I’m totally not sorry!” She gasped between breaths of uncontrollable laughter. “Oh my gosh, I haven’t—ah—haven’t laughed this h-hard i-in a while!”

Anon rolled his eyes while he put his free hand through his hair. “Glad you’re happy. That’s all that matters.”

Her laughter stopped abruptly, her mind replaying what he said in her head. She raised a brow. “That’s all that matters?”

“Yep, nothing else to it,” he replied, looking at what was in front of them with an intense glare. He sighed and looked at her with a smile on his face. “Well, looks like we’re here. Want me to put you down?”

She shook her head, much to his surprised face. “You already walked us over here, might as well slide down the trunk then.”

Anon nodded and slowly fell against the tree, watching as the moon above them peered down on them. The two laid there, snuggled up against each other, which made Fizzlepop’s mind travel elsewhere.

This was a really strange position…

“You… you want to talk now?” he asked her, his arms looping around her midsection.

“Yeah. Seems right to,” Fizzlepop breathed out. Her mind raced with her heart, the two competing for the gold trophy in the impromptu Feelings-A-Thon. “H-How do you want to do this?”

“Honestly, I’d rather you speak your mind,” he said. She could feel him gently squeeze her, before one of his hands roamed to her neck, where he started to pet her mane. His nimble fingers scratching against her neck made her coo, which she responded by nuzzling further into his form.

“Keep doing that, and I might fall asleep instead.”

Anon chuckled. “Okay, I’ll try not to be too distracting.”

He hadn’t stopped his petting, but he definitely slowed it down, making her feel a bit more comfortable leaning back into him.

However, knowing what was to come, Fizzlepop felt her contentment crawl to a halt. She sighed. “Do you ever feel like you’re so alone even though you have ponies that you could go to?”

“What a question,” Anon said, whistling loudly. “Got a simple answer for it. You ready?”

She nodded, looking up at him, only to worry when his slight smile turned blank.

“All the time.”

“Really?”

“Of course. I’m only human, after all.”

She looked out at the hills that rolled below them, where more trees stood tall.

“Then how do you deal with it?”

“Deal with loneliness?”

“Mm-hmm.”

She watched him navigate through her words. He sighed.

“You just do.”

“I just… do?”

“Yeah. You find another way to deal with it. Sometimes I distract myself. Go for a jog, go out to get something to eat, go to the market to get some groceries; I do something to go talk to someone. Doesn’t have to be someone I know.”

“And the other times?”

Anon’s gaze went downcast. “Then I force myself to talk to somepony that I know. I can’t be stuck in place. Thoughts like that… they can eat you alive.”

Fizzlepop’s throat closed up after hearing that. It hit too close to home. It bothered her, to the point that just gulping down the saliva in her maw felt painful as it slowly meandered down. She blinked and took a deep breath through her nostrils. “I just felt that.”

“Just now?”

“Mm-hmm…” She paused, feeling the urge to run surge through her legs. “I don’t know why.”

“Well, is talking about it helping?”

“A bit,” Fizzlepop replied. She gasped and suddenly, the clogging in her throat dissipated. “Is there anything else I could do?”

“Make plans ahead of time with friends. At least you’ll know you’re not alone because you’ll have something going on during the week.”

She hummed to herself, mulling over what Anon told her. She then took a deep breath and smiled at him. “Thanks, Anon. Sounds like we have one of the worst things in common.”

“And what’s that?”

“We both feel like outcasts.”

Anon snorted. “More like foreigners in a strange land, but I guess that works too.” He grunted as he leaned forward. “So, you were saying?”

She could feel his breath tickle the back of her neck. “R-Right.” She cleared her throat. “While I feel that way all the time, there’s also this other thing. I feel like ponies treat me differently than everyone else. Twilight’s friends are welcomed with open hooves, but me? I think everypony else treats me like I’m a walking bomb that’s waiting to go off at any moment.”

“Can you blame them, Fizzy? You did almost try to—”

“I know, I know.” Fizzlepop interrupted, stopping that whole tirade before it happened. “But it’s been awhile since then! Wouldn’t they, I don’t know, stop glaring at me?”

“Maybe they want you to make the move?”

Her muzzle scrunched up like an accordion. “What move do I have to make?”

Anon tapped his chin with a finger. “Hmm… What moves have you made?”

“I tried talking to a few of them. I also sometimes say hi in passing, and I even try to be nice and open a door for a pony once in a while.”

“And what do they do?”

She licked her lips before frowning. “They usually just avoid me. Or they ignore me. And the one time I opened the door, the pony waited. They waited, Anon.”

“Yikes,” he said, making her roll her eyes. “Seriously, though. Looks like you just need someone who is cool enough to call them out on it.”

She twiddled with her forehooves. “Well, the only ponies who see me for who I am are Twilight, her friends, and… you, although, you’re not a pony.”

“State the obvious, why don’t you?”

She giggled. “Hey, it’s true! Unless you want to be a pony.”

“Thought about it for a couple seconds. Then I remembered that I’m me, and there could be no one else like me. Since addition makes the most sense here, I didn’t have to think much else.”

“So, no pony transformations in your future?”

“Nope,” Anon replied bluntly. “I know somepony has a spell for it and everything, but I’d hate to lose who I am simply because I’m different from everyone else.”

She blinked. “Lose yourself because you're different?”

“Yeah, I’m Anon the human. Not Anon the stallion.”

“Good, because you being a stallion would be extremely strange,” Fizzlepop replied. She turned to take a good look at him. She smiled. “And I like you just the way you are.”

His eyes widened. “You like me?”

Her brain caught up to what she said, and she almost fell backwards, but she caught herself, if by catching herself she had to lean forward to do so, her forelegs wrapping around Anon while her chest fluff smothered his face.

She yelped, this time giving Anon enough room to breathe. “S-Sorry. You caught me off-guard there!”

Anon spat out what hair had gotten in his mouth. “You’re good, you’re good. Just… don’t try to do that again. Not a fan of getting a hairball after being confessed to.”

“Don’t worry, I didn’t mean….”

“Didn’t mean what? The hairball or…?”

“Yeah, I wasn’t a fan of suffocating you with my fur.”

Anon chuckled behind his hand. “Totally understandable. Neither was I. But, I wasn’t finished there.”

“Oh, what do you mean?” Fizzlepop asked, tilting her head. “There was something else?”

The human took a deep breath and closed his eyes. What did she do to get him to look away from her?

He sighed and opened his eyes. “Sorry, I had to make sure I wasn’t going to completely blunder this.”

“Blunder? What do you—”

“Don’t worry, I was just about to get to that.” He adjusted his shirt, tugging it toward his neck. “See, you said something that caught my attention, those three words. You know what I’m talking about?”

Her eyes widened. “Oh,” she muttered, her turn to search for something on the ground that was more interesting than her beating heart, which was racing at this point. “I… I know what you’re talking about.”

Was she supposed to say this? ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to say it so outright?’ There’s steps to these things, Fizzlepop! And now she just skipped twenty pages of a prominent romance novel that Twilight loaned her last week! How did she manage that? Was it her absent-mindedness that still plagued her since the Sugarcube Corner?

She frowned. Wait, how did she just realize that now? Was her mind out for lunch?

Shaking her head, she focused on the task at hoof. Anon thought she meant romance, and well, she was definitely not thinking at all when she said it, but now that she looked at him…

She took a good hard glance at him, if by glance she meant a quick up and down, a quick foray into human biology. Not that she was a reader of that sort of thing—the biology, not the human part—but she was an avid reader of attraction, at least as of late. And he was someone that definitely made her feel a certain way. That mane that looked like a mess? While it was definitely a mess, it was a mess she liked.

Those eyes? Undefined, but they were so… alluring. She could stare at them if she wanted to. Just like the stars.

His neck. Yeah, there was no question she wanted to nuzzle into it.

And his body, his voice, his everything—yeah, there was no doubt he was her type.

She blinked. So, maybe her words had merit. She liked him just the way he was. What else was there to say?

She looked into his eyes. He looked into hers…

“So… what do you think?”

Fizzlepop cleared her throat of whatever fuzzy feelings she had bubbling inside it. “I’m a little bit conflicted.”

“Conflicted?” Anon asked, raising a brow. “Did you mean—”

“Yes, I did. I like you just the way you are, Anon. You are…” Her voice trailed off as she tried to cherry pick her words (what did the main character say here—oh!), before she licked her lips. “You mean a lot to me. A lot more than I realized.”

“More than you realized?”

“Yeah…” She twiddled with her forehooves. “I wasn’t lying when I said you caught me off-guard. You caught me off-guard in more ways than one.”

“I see…” Anon muttered.

Her eyes darted around her face, while her heart was taking a sharp left turn into an alleyway that her brain didn’t have access to. It was like her brain was on auto-pilot, casually strolling through the intersection she thought was friendship, only to veer onto an avenue called love that was in a constant state of chaos, taking the form of a stampede.

And now that her brain was no longer on auto-pilot, she was now catching up, finally understanding what was going on. And, knowing that her heart was in the right place, warming her up to the point of no return, she realized something. Something important.

It was her turn to wait for Anon to give her an answer, one that she wanted to demand forthright, but something told her that she needed to wait. To give him space.

Fizzlepop observed Anon. He had gone quiet. He still was petting her, which made her feel like things were okay, but that all changed when his gaze fell away from her. His eyes peered out at the land behind her. And on top of that, his hand was slowing down to the point that the sensation she once had was about to be lost.

Did she put him on the spot? Should she be more proactive here?

Her thoughts remained unanswered as she continued to watch him carefully. The arm that petted her fell limp to his side, while his other arm kept her from rolling down the hill they were on. While the first worried her, the second, the one that inadvertently kept her close to him, gave her some reassurance. Meanwhile, the legs that she laid on hadn’t moved, and she wondered if she should move to make sure she wasn’t numbing them.

So, she squirmed, choosing to flop a bit away from his legs, and more towards that limp hand of his. This was right. She needed to give him space—

Her mind suddenly stopped working as that hand of his pulled her right back into him, his arms looping to interlock together. She yelped, looking hesitantly back up to see Anon’s reaction, only to see his lips turn upward, while his eyes closed. He hummed happily, which she could feel since his hand had directed her head right into his chest.

She adjusted herself, trying to get a better view of the human who caught her. “A-Anon?”

“Don’t worry, Fizzy,” he began. His eyes fluttered open, as he spoke softly, almost feigning into a whisper. His words tickled her ears. “Just having a moment. Could you just… stay here while I get my thoughts together?”

“Nervous?” she asked.

She asked this because, like her heart, his was beating fast. She could feel it now, with how he had her now facing forward, her face now buried into his chest.

“Very. I…” He groaned before growling out the rest of his words, “Oh, what am I waiting for? I like you, Fizzlepop.”

Fizzlepop’s eyes widened. “You do?”

“Yeah, the cat’s out of the bag. I was trying to keep these feelings I had for you kept in a box, but here I am, opening the Pandora’s Box equivalent right here and—”

“Don’t say that!” She said, waving her forehooves against his chest. “Anon, how long have you felt this way about me?”

“Uh…” Anon blinked rapidly. “A couple months now. I have a thing for mares in uniform.”

She blushed when she thought about it. She remembered her armor, how, despite what it represented, she kept it in her closet, hung up to forget, to be forgotten. Yet, even though she swore off showing it to others, she trusted him since, well, they were best friends. So when he asked her about it, she showed him it. She should’ve known when he asked to see it on her that there was something there festering in the background!

Fizzlepop rolled her eyes. “Why don’t you date a Royal Guardsmare then?”

“Not a fan of the gold armor. Granted, they’re still cool, but your uniform is awesome. It’s not too in your face, but it’s enough to demand respect.”

He… liked her uniform? He was okay with her other side? Tempest…

Anon derailed her thoughts further. “Not to mention, your uniform really emphasized that scar you got, along with your fur. It’s very eye-catching.”

“In a good way?”

"While I’m not a fan of you trying to take over Equestria and… well, siding with a guy who didn’t have your best interests in mind, I can definitely appreciate the positives. Your uniform is one of those positives.”

“There are… more positives?”

Anon perked up, his smirk at full value. “Yeah, the best one is you, but I digress.”

Her heart was now flooded with so many different emotions. She was worried she was going to have heart palpitations. What did she do to deserve this? Why was she the one that is getting this much support?

She shakily exhaled, and closed her eyes. She needed to make a move. A move that Anon needed. A move that Fizzlepop and Tempest needed too. But what was it? She was way off course of the book she had read! The novel wasn’t like a flight manual for a ship! The controls were completely inverted!

“A-Anon?”

“Yeah, Fizzy?”

Fizzlepop could feel her legs shake in their embrace. “W-What do we do now?”

Her nervousness had crept up. Those feelings that affected her are no longer there. She was no longer distant, she was actually way too close to the sun, even if the moon was there as a witness. Her hooves were numb and on fire at the same time, just like her nerves, and just like her voice, which stuttered as she had asked Anon what they should do. She closed her eyes and nuzzled into him, worried that her mask she had worn finally fell off.

Was… was this what love felt like?

Anon made her gasp as his free hand rose to her cheek. He cupped it, gently, and smiled at her. “Well, I have an idea, but I want to make sure you’re okay with it.”

“O-Oh?” she asked, looking up at him. Those eyes of his made her stop her shaking, but they still made her worry. What was he planning? “What d-do you have in mind?”

“I have a contingency plan. One that I want you to trust me with. Do you trust me?”

Do you trust me?

His words echoed in her ears. They fizzled there, popping into her mind. She nodded shakily and said those words, “I trust you, Anon.”

Her saying that to him must’ve spurred him to lean forward, while the hand on her cheek kept her firmly in place. Then, he tilted his head and licked his lips. “Good, because I trust you too.”

“You do?”

His hand that was on her backside hovered just barely above her fur, tickling the fur by her spine as it cradled her side. “Yeah. In more ways than one.”

Fizzlepop craned her neck. “In more ways than—mmph?!”

Anon didn’t give Fizzlepop too much time to even think. His lips were already on hers. She, upon realizing what he was doing, closed her eyes, her heart fluttering as he kissed her softly. She nearly melted into his embrace, but she caught herself, which she uncurled her forelegs from his chest and wrapped them around his neck. However, once she locked those in place, she felt him push further into their kiss, aggressively prodding her lips with his tongue. Whatever message he was sending him, she was hearing it loud and clear, so much so that she wanted to see where this went.

She opened her mouth and met his tongue in earnest. His tongue slid under hers with a sense of urgency, before flicking up to explore her teeth. She shivered as his tongue traveled across each one, filling her with an intense warmth that surged through her body. She moaned rather loudly into the kiss, realizing that, yes, she made the right decision.

She didn’t need to worry—this made her happy. This made her feel like she was whole again. This made her feel… different. A good kind of different.

She breathed in Anon’s scent and smiled as she made her move. She tilted her head a bit more, leaning her body into him. It made him nearly fall backwards, but he kept his ground, choosing to hold her sides instead of her cheeks. She nearly gasped, but kept her plan in motion. She was going to do something that she had never done before (it was referenced in that novel of hers somewhere… was it page two hundred and forty-eight?), one that spoke volumes as to how much she loved this, and how much she liked him.

Without making a noise, she channeled some magic into her horn. She let it slowly trail out a few sparks, which she could feel glaze against her skin, and what she hoped would make Anon take pause to question her about.

At first, the kiss didn’t stop, his hands gripping tightly against her sides. However, once she knew he felt those sparks, he stopped. She opened her eyes to see him opening his, and they stared at each other, only him moving to take in her form.

She pulled apart from the kiss, panting all the while. “Why did you stop?”

“Did I make you do that?” Anon asked, pointing at her horn.

She giggled. “No, not exactly.”

“Not exactly?”

That made her giggle-snort. “I just wanted to show you how happy I was.”

“Your horn sparks when you get happy?”

“Pfft, n-no, Anon!” Her heart ignited too as she laughed, her feelings more than just shot. “It’s something more than that. Think of it as more of a thing we show our partners, the ones we really care about in that way.”

His eyes widened. “Oh. Glad I wasn’t causing a fire hazard—we are near a big tree, you know? And I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty sure Applejack is not a fan of her trees becoming part of a bonfire.”

She laughed and nuzzled his neck. “I’m fully aware of that. Don’t worry, I’m not a fan of causing forest fires.”

“Good. Now, where were we?” Anon asked, cupping her cheek once more.

“I think we were… here!”

She launched back into the kiss, continuing where they left off. She licked at his lips, hoping he was ready for round two, and he was, he was more than ready, meeting her halfway. Their tongues danced together, before hers won the battle, flicking against his teeth with glee. She shivered as her tongue unintentionally flicked against one of his canines, which engaged her flight or fight response more than she thought. And the shape of his lips… wow, she couldn’t be happier than she already was!

She paused as her brain wracked up another scenario.

Or could she?

She shivered as Anon’s hand glided over her cheek, before choosing to settle just under her ear. He gently scratched it, before tilting his head into her. The gesture made her almost moan again, but she caught herself. While she was really into this, Anon was right. They were at Sweet Apple Acres, and she was not a fan of viciously making out if the possibility of Applejack, or even her sister for crying out loud, had stumbled upon them. She was not about to ruin some pony’s innocence.

Fizzlepop opened her eyes and broke the kiss, leaving the two of them panting. Anon looked at her, his eyes wide as can be. He waved his hands at her.

“Uh, what’s wrong?”

“N-Nothing—” She began to say, only to give herself a few moments to catch her breath. “Y-You just said that we were at Applejack’s orchard, and I suddenly found myself wondering if somepony walked up while we were doing this.”

Anon laughed. “Oh, sorry about that. Although, this place is pretty secluded. I don’t think they’ll hear us if they’re at their ranch down there.”

“You think, or you know?”

He shrugged. “Sorry, I’m not an Acoustician. How far sound travels isn’t in my toolbox of things ‘to suddenly know’.”

Fizzlepop rolled her eyes. “Well, next time, we’ll have to ask Twilight how far sound carries.”

“You think she’s an expert?”

She let out a brief blow. “More like an expert on anything. I’m surprised she’s not considered a traveling library.”

Anon sighed and brought his hand back to her mane, petting it ever-so-gently. He nuzzled her cheek. “Glad that we can agree that Twilight is a walking Bookmobile.”

She smiled as her nerves were still on fire all from their kiss. “We probably agree on more things, but we have all the time in the world for that.”

He smirked. “So, I guess we like each other?”

“Yeah,” she breathed. “And I’m happy to explore this with you more.”

“You are?”

“Very,” Fizzlepop cooed. She cuddled into his shoulder. “I’m more than interested in being your mare, especially if you can kiss me like that.”

She watched as his cheeks turned red. “Good, because I’m not going to chart this as a one off thing.” She felt him put his hand back on her ear, and gave it a quick few scritches. “I wasn’t expecting you to be…”

“This way?” she asked, which earned her a very excited nod. She giggled at her human’s antics, which, in all honesty, sounded real good for some reason. “Well, you’re dealing with a pony who was in a very aggressive environment with the Storm King. I was in charge of his guard, who were seen as some of the toughest forces out there.”

“That is true…” Anon said, his voice trailing off. “Still. This wasn’t what I expected.”

“You and I both,” she replied, nuzzling back into him again. This time, she nuzzled into his neck, pushing his back into the tree. His breath hitched as he softly hummed to himself. Was that something he liked?

“So, how are you feeling?”

“About our talk or about the makeout session we just had?”

Anon smirked. “Yes.”

She giggled. “Like I’m a new pony that just got herself a new coltfriend.”

“Coltfriend?”

“You never heard of the term?” She asked with a raised brow.

“So that’s what they meant! I thought they were actually saying cult friend, like a friend that you met outside of their little cult, and now they’re attempting to recruit you to said cult and—what?”

Fizzlepop giggle-snorted behind her forehoof. “Anon, don’t change.”

“I’ll try not to, although if I get forcibly transformed into a pony, you’ll have to bear with me as I probably won’t be able to walk on all four hooves.”

She rolled her eyes. “Alright. So, Anon, should we head back?”

Her question was met with a half-lidded gaze of his own. His hand trailed up the side of her neck, making her shiver. “Well, they’re probably done with their party by now, and to be honest, I’m not a fan of ending this just yet. Are you?”

She shook her head. “N-Not at all.”

“Then how about you stay right here with me and we watch the stars together?”

“Stargazing, huh?” Fizzlepop asked.

“Definitely.”

She nuzzled back into his chest and sighed. “Show me what you know about our stars, Anon.”

She could feel his heartbeat race at that one, but she wasn’t going to point that out.

No, she had all the time in the world to tease him about it. She knew because she wasn’t alone anymore, and life was about to get a whole lot different now that Anon was this close to her now. And she had no problem with that at all.

Not one bit.