The mare ran her hoof around the lid of the coffee cup, her hind hooves tapping on the floor with a thumping rhythm. Her eyes were grilling me with the intensity of the sun, small beads of sweat permeated my skin as I thought about a proper icebreaker. Although, you can imagine that it isn’t easy when somepony is searing you with her own eyes. I grabbed my cup of water and took a few wimpy sips from it, bringing my hands together. A steady stream of steam rose from her cup of coffee, joining her own collected breaths.

Snowflakes landed atop of her winter hat and coat, showing off their crystalline structure one last time before melting into thin air. Her blonde hair flickered subtly in the cold breeze, her jacket, brown and bold. She carried with her the undeniable sense of professionalism that one would expect from a government official. She took a hefty sip of her coffee, superficial indents and creases appeared as she tightened her grip on the cup. Her badge dangled from her neck, a portrait just as stern as the one that’s showing on her visage.

She was calm, calculated, and had that cunning look.

Those pictures weren’t lying. I thought.

I fiddled with my fingers one last time, my eyes looking around for one final escape until they returned to meet her gaze, “Uh, fancy to meet you Miss-”

She slammed her hoof on the table with frightening authority.

“You’ve got 10 seconds to explain yourself before I throw this coffee on you,” she said, her eyebrows furrowing as they continued to burn through my corneas. The scowl on her face deepened as the corners of her mouth tugged itself downwards. I was almost certain that this would be the last thing I’d get to see.

“Ofcoursemissdelegate, Uh- I was- I was-”

“Spit it out already!” She said out loud, attracting the attention of some bewildered passersby.

“Well- Miss Delegate, I was uh- sent here on official terms to meet with you, the representative of Whinnyapolis-”

“Nonsense! I can tell just by looking at ‘cha ugly mug that what you’re saying is a heap of balooney. It says right here on my schedule that I’ve got nothing ‘official’ planned today, much less meeting such a strange creature pretending otherwise!” Like the Minnesotan girls back home, this mare’s got that cadence in her tone that’s unmistakably so, “You’re lucky I’m in a good mood today, because if I wasn’t, I’d have emptied this cup on you a long time ago.” She took another sip of her coffee, her eyes still fixated on me.

Good mood.

Really?

I tried to clear my voice using the best businessman-like tone I could muster up. “Ahem. According to this document here, it says that you’re obliged to be here at this location at this exact time,” I handed her the paper, she took one quick glance at it before ripping it clean in half and pushing it back my way. She rubbed her eyes with both of her hooves, as disinterested as ever.

“Oh please, what’s so important about this meeting that I have to be here in this dinky little coffee shop on a Sunday? I’ve seen fillies come up with better things in their letters to us for their classroom assignments. Look at this mess, the font’s wrong, this signature’s all out of whack, and Ponyville doesn’t have a delegate or representative for crying out loud!” She picked up one half of the paper and smacked it with her hooves, disapproving of my cheap attempts to forge an official letter. “Who are you, what are you, and what is your business here?”

Her rapid-fire questions took me aback, and I found myself stammering as I tackled the ever so blunt questions. “Well, my name is Anonymous, Anon for short, and I came from this place called Earth.”

“Earth?” She asked, the name not ringing any bells for her.

“Earth. It’s… a place where there are many more of us, I’m not even sure how I ended up here, the last thing I remember is blacking out after 20 hours of being awake and I woke up in this pony place– but that’s beside the point.” I could see her face shifting into total confusion as I carried on, “And I’m here to uh… meet you. Like you pointed out, not really on official terms, but I’m still here to meet you.”

“So you got my info from Celestia knows where, forge an official request, tell me to come here just so you could meet me?” She repeated each clause with a big delay, as if to emphasize to me the ridiculousness of my sole purpose for being here.

“That’s right, ma’am.”

“Are you proud of yourself?”

“Not particularly.”

“...” Her jaw hung open, I could tell that she was trying to muster up something besides a slew of anger-fueled dialogue.

“Just– look, I’ll pay for your coffee.” Her eyes widened a little as I slapped a couple bits on the table, her expression shifted to one of acceptance.

“Should’ve started with that.” She slid the bits into her jacket pockets and took a more at-ease position, dusting off some snowflakes on her hat and coat, “Very well then, so tell me, what are you enjoying about Whinnyapolis so far?” She suddenly took on a more friendly demeanor, leaning forwards and placing a hoof on the table.

As far as I could tell, it was a genuine smile, and a much appreciated change from her terrifying look earlier. I scratched my head as I searched for the right words to say. Ones that wouldn’t cause her to return to her fiery inferno mere moments ago.

On one hand, I was completely charmed by the snow-swept city, it was an atmosphere that I’d come to associate with evergreen forests. It was quieter than Manehattan’s constant hustle and bustle and more consistently chilly than Ponyville. I’d come to enjoy all the scarf-wearing ponies walking around in their winter attire. Needless to say, this was more my speed.

On the other hand, there was something about her eyes that completely captured me when I was looking through the records in the Ponyville town hall; as one does. I saw a smidgen of personal/official data and jumped the gun, impulsively writing and telegraphing that document to try and meet up with her. Hopped on a train to Whinnyapolis, sat here waiting for the better part of the hour and here I was, sitting next to the mare herself, at a loss of words as I didn’t expect for my attempt to make it this far.

“I like your hair and eyes, they’re really pretty,” she was a little taken-aback but responded in her usual tone,

“I said Whinnyapolis, not me,” she said, her smile turning into a look of annoyance. She looked me up and down, scanning to see if there was something fundamentally wrong with the creature in front of her.

“I like the atmosphere here, it’s quite nice and I really enjoy the snow. I looked through some brochures and this place seemed the most alluring, so that’s why I came here. Plus, being able to see you would draw anypony to Whinnyapolis,” I cringed on the inside, I was never good with women, much less mares. But something inside of me kept on urging me to throw out these corny lines until something stuck.

“Listen, mister, we aren’t on a date, so stop acting like it,” she said, unamused with my attempt, “But I have to agree, this weather keeps me fresh, I can’t imagine having to deal with some hot and humid tropical weather all the time, I’d probably go insane!” She combed through her hair briefly, enjoying the flow of wind through the strands of her mane. It’s quite a mystery to me how somepony can look so effortlessly pretty.

Well played.

“Well um, are there any places around here that you suggest I visit? I haven’t really had the chance to explore around much.” I say, steering the conversation in a different direction.

“I’m no tour guide but there’s a neat place you can skate in once the pond’s frozen over and you can always visit the roadside venues, they make delicious stuff. Hayburgers, hay fries, Manehattan pizza, and whatever else suits you really, although we don’t have much in terms of entertainment.”

She gestured towards the row of restaurants that bordered our street. They were particularly bright spots that shone out towards the streets, vendors moved about, selling what I can only assume to be Whinnyapolis delicacies. My eyes narrowed as I tried to study the strange food from a distance, not making it any easier on myself.

“You never seen a plate of cheese curds in your life or what?” She asked, a look of confusion on her face.

“Not really, I mean, I know what they are, I’ve just never had them before.”

“You oughta try some one day, nopony makes it better than us Whinnyapolis ponies,” she added, sipping on her coffee.

“By the way, what do you usually do here if there isn’t much entertainment? Maybe something at home or… at work, anything?” I asked, and she responded promptly with a shrug.

“I wake up, I do my work, I go back home, I go to sleep. All day, every day. Unless it’s the weekend, then I like to keep myself occupied with a nice cup of coffee. Honest to Celestia, I’d like to do more but by the time I get to that point I’m already drained. Government business and stuff, you know the drill,” she had that “it-is-what-it-is” attitude, and I don’t blame her one bit.

“You mentioned that pond, do you ever go ice-skating? I could probably show you a thing or two, I was the best skater in my elementary class,” this prompted a minuscule chuckle from her.

“Not really, but I still have my pair of skates that I received years ago, been collecting dust in my attic ever since. But I might be up for a go, not that I’m very busy today regardless,” she took a large swill of her coffee and crumpled it up, throwing it in the bin closest to her.

“Sure! I’m itching to do something myself.”

“Alright, I’ll go get them, meet me back here in a minute,” she said as she made her way around the coffee store’s corner, heading elsewhere to retrieve her pairs of skates. I didn’t have anything on me, and I doubt that the ponies here would be very willing to make tailor made skates for a human, but I can probably fare well with just my pair of slippery shoes.

Eventually, I was kicked off of my table for sitting there for so long and not ordering anything, but that was fine as I heard a few grunts and stumbling noises around the corner. Through the windows of the store, I could see a familiar silhouette approaching.

“Goddamn- stupid skates-” the same mare from earlier hopped into view, trying to put on the last boot out of her pair. It probably wouldn’t have been wrong to assume that this was what delayed her trip back from her home to here. She panted, leaning against the wall with her hoof as she managed to get the last boot on her front hoof, kicking it against the wall to set it in place.

“You good?” I asked, walking over to her.

“Yeah, it’s just these skates are-” she panted, “-tighter than I remember… Wait, where are your skates?” She asked, looking almost betrayed at my lack of skating gear.

“I don’t got any, but I can skate just fine with these bad boys here,” She scoffed as I kicked my heels together.

“Whatever you say. Lake’s somewhere over there, follow me,” she said, awkwardly trying to maintain balance with her new found predicament. I offered to help by extending my hand, but she shook her head and slapped it away.

She stopped at an intersection on the way and straightened her tie and readjusted her hat. She still wore that professional expression as she stood still, trying not to topple over or slip away on the snow.

“Don’t you think it would’ve been better to put those things on once we got there?” Another playful jab at her.

“In hindsight, yes, but I might as well keep these on because we’re already too far along,” she groaned and mumbled something under her breath as the pedestrian crossing light switched on, forcing her to continue trekking. I tried my best to walk at her same pace, but it felt more like I was accompanying an elderly mare across the street.

This solicited a platitude of laughs and jesting remarks as we walked towards our destination, in no small part because of my unusual appearance, but she managed to keep an unbothered face and carried on. Upon arriving at the lake, I was met with the sight of ponies skating about on the frosted surface, some going out of their way to practice tricks and turns.

“You ready?” I turned over to look at her, she was prodding the ice with her skates, testing how slippery it is with gentle sliding motions. Definitely a mare that hasn’t skated in a very long time.

“Yeah, I just have to- Ack!” She slipped forwards onto the ice, her front hooves fully extending, turning her body into a glorified arch bridge. She inched her hindhooves backwards bit by bit, trying to reel in her hooves, but it wasn’t working. “Ope, a little help here?” She asked, straining to keep herself away from face planting into the ice. I ran over to her and with one swift motion, pulled her towards safety. She took a few moments to recuperate, shaking off the soreness that occurred as a result of dangling over ice.

“I’m good to go whenever you’re ready,” I say, stretching my legs and shaking my foot.

She walked toward the ice again, this time with extra caution in her steps. One hoof after the other, she made her way onto the ice, her hoofing even shakier than before. I shuffled in front of her, she was still looking straight down at the ground, trying to not become a contorted mess on the ground. “C’mon, you gotta look upwards, you’re gonna fall on your flank if you keep on staring at the ground,” She craned her neck upwards, letting out a big exhale as she finally feels more stable.

“Is this better?” She said, it looked like she was using everything in herself to not look back down at the ground.

“You’re doing great. Okay, now I want you to use your left hooves and kick off the ground slowly. Put your weight on your right hooves as you kick, if anything happens I’ll catch you,” she placed her hooves into position, gulping as she tried to kick herself forwards. The first few attempts were like striking a match in rain, and she only moved up a tiny distance. But, with every next push, she went a little further.

“I think I’m… getting the hang of this, but it’s still really hard and my hooves are starting to ache,” she bent her forehoof upward, grimacing a bit before placing it back down on the ice, “I apologize for being slowish, this stuff’s really not my specialty.”

“Hey no worries, as long as you’re having fun,” she gave me a tiny smile and pushed forwards again, this time, she glided across the ice with extra speed, her eyes widened in panic as she tumbled towards me.

“Holymotherof-”

“Make a V! Make a V with your hooves!” I cried out in protest, but it was a futile attempt. I braced myself as we made impact, the collision sending the both of us tumbling towards the ground. Upon regaining my bearings, I found my arm being clutched by hers, and just as quickly as I noticed, she retracted her hooves and immediately tried to stand up again.

“Not the smoothest landing I’ve ever seen; But fun as hell, wanna do it again?”

“What, are you crazy? My shoulders are sore from that!” She denied my preposterous suggestion and scoffed as she kicked herself closer to shore, I followed closely behind.

“C’mon, one more time?”

“Do you want me to kick you or not?” She turned her head around, face as stern as ever as she marched on forwards.

“I suppose not, but here, let me help,” Seeing that she was still having a little bit of trouble moving, I placed a hand on her jacket and gently guided her forwards. She unstiffened herself, relieved that somepony else could take charge for a second as she took a breather. Once we got off of the ice, she sat down on the snow and sighed, turning over to look at me.

“That was a ride alright, phew…” She half said half exhaled, taking off her skating shoes one by one.

“Yup, I gotta say, that was not a half-bad experience,” I said, she nodded in agreement.

“It’s been quite a bit since I’ve been out here, thanks for the idea. But I’m really winded now, dontcha know,” She gave a soft chuckle, tying her skate-strings together.

“Ya’ done for today?” I asked.

“You betcha, I got a lot of things to get to tomorrow, so I probably can’t spend too much time fooling around. My name’s March Snowgust, but you can just call me March,” She stood up, “Obviously, I cannot disclose to you my personal residence, but you can write to our city hall and I’ll write you back. I’ll be free next weekend if you’re up for another ‘official meeting’,” she added with a playful smile.

“Sounds good, it was really nice meeting you today,” I shook her hoof, forgetting that I’d never introduced my name to her throughout the entire time. She nodded and slung the skates over her back, trotting off into the distance.

I brought my hands together and stood in place, feeling the contours and bumps of my own hands. As I walk back to the train station to head back to my temporary residence in Ponyville, there was only one thought on my mind.

Could this be the start of something more?

Author's Note

Hi hi!

Just writing a story to show some love for a very beautiful and pretty mare.

All feedback/criticism appreciated, this is an incomplete story, and their romance is only about to bud.

Hope you enjoyed the read!