Ponies in the Human World: Rarity and I

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Epilogue

Chapter 1

Rarity and I

"Put your arm around me, like so... Now follow my lead. Left. Forward. Right. Back. Follow the tempo of the music. Good."

I followed The pony's directions. She was swaying back and forth on her hind legs, her forelegs were around my waist. Shostakovich's "Second Waltz" played in the background.

"Now you've got it! You're a natural," she told me, "This is a typical ballroom dance in Equestria. That is to say, a proper dance. And this human music fits it quite well!"

"I can hardly believe a pony is teaching me to dance," I smiled, looking down into her soft blue eyes.

To this the pony said nothing. She merely smiled back and continued swaying to the waltz music. Her hooves felt strange, yet familiar. She felt so real. Her eyes and purple mane sparkled in the lighted room, creating a sharp contrast with the darkness outside the windows. It almost seemed like a dream. Hold on a second, this is a dream!

Consciousness flooded back into my mind, and I woke up. The memory had been so clear, it seemed like it happened just yesterday. It had actually happened three months ago. let me tell you the story of a friend of mine. A friend who, in only two weeks, changed my whole life around. Her name was Rarity, and she was a pony from Equestria. Here is the story of Rarity and I.

It was 9:30 on a Thursday night, and it was cold. The sun had set, turning everything to darkness, and I was driving home in my truck. My mind started wandering and I thought about my direction in life, or rather the lack of it. I wasn't in school, I didn't have a job, and I needed to get some exercise. But laziness and lack of motivation usually got the better of me. I had graduated from college last year, and had only made half-hearted efforts to get a job. Also, I still lived at home (My mom died of cancer a few years ago so I was living with my dad). I kept myself busy with video games, and thinking of ways to waste time, and feeling sorry for myself. My friends and I had been drifting apart and our reunions seemed to dwindle every year. Very few of my friends worked in town. I always had a feeling of loneliness when they left and I remained behind. I had this feeling now.

I turned off the freeway, drove the road alongside the creek, and arrived at the little community of houses. The roads outside the community were dark and deserted, but the ones inside seemed even more so. Trees and hedges shot up alongside the broad and empty road, and long driveways veered off into the darkness of the trees. I drove slowly, taking my time. There was an occasional light from a house or the glint of my headlights off darkened windows. The stars shone brightly overhead through the cold winter night. It didn't snow here, but the Winters were still cold.

As I looked up at the sky, I was startled by a sudden bright flash. I slammed on the brakes and looked forward, squinting my eyes. I didn't know what had just happened. As my eyes readjusted, I saw something in the beam of my headlights. It's bright white coat gleamed in the light. My immediate thought was of a large white dog, but something was different. The creature, which seemed horrified, quickly dashed off the road into thick trees and bushes. I guess I didn't get a close enough look at it. Brushing of the encounter, I cautiously turned into my driveway, which was the next one on the left.

"What was that thing?"

I parked in front of the house and entered via the unlocked front door. I had always had a habit of not locking doors -you never needed to in this community- it was sleepy, quiet, and full of good-hearted people. Shaking the cold off, I threw my jacket over a nearby chair, felt my way through the darkness to my room, and slipped into bed.

Day One:

The soft light of the day woke me. I had woken up early, which I do sometimes do. I turned on my computer first thing, as usual, even before using my bathroom. My bathroom was a mess as usual. I made my way out of my room, and down the hallway to the kitchen to get some water. With a bottle of cold water in hand I closed the refrigerator and turned around with the intent of heading back to my room, but the image of an open front door, which I could see through the living room, caught my attention. It was open just a sliver.

"What the..." I quietly said aloud, "I swear I closed it."

I walked through the living room and hit it with the palm of my hand, which closed it. With the loud sound, something stirred to the left of me. I turned and froze in shock at what was sitting on the living room couch. The creature from last night opened its eyes suddenly, saw me, and screamed, "Wahahaaaaha!"The creature jumped backwards over the couch. I jumped back as well, startled by its sudden movement. The creature tripped backwards over the couch, which stifled it's scream, and landed with a thud on the hardwood floor behind it. My adrenaline was going now. I quickly grabbed one of my dad's golf irons resting next to the door and steadily made my way to where I could see the creature again. I didn't know what this thing was, but I would fend it off, or even kill it if necessary. I cursed my habit of not locking doors. I could see the white-furred creature now, but I lowered the golf club as I heard it let out a surprisingly human groan. This was followed by an even more surprising "Owwww." I set the club down and slowly approached the creature. It turned towards me, it's massive eyes startling me and making me jump a second time. What the heck was this thing? It looked like a pony, just a bit smaller. Although, the anatomy was still strange. The creature seemed to have hit the side of its head on the floor, right next to its horn... It's horn?! Now I was even more confused than before. What happened next was even worse. It spoke!

"I'm so sorry! Please, please don't hurt me. I was freezing outside and... and I had to find someplace warm."

"What.... What are you?" I said, still not believing what I saw before me.

"I am a Pony," she quickly responded. "A unicorn pony to be exact. And you are a human, are you not?"

My body relaxed a little. Someone was playing a prank on me, a very expensive and well planned one, surely a television prank show or something. I glanced at the windows and the corners of the room looking for the hidden cameras. I approached the "unicorn pony," looking for signs that it was a well disguised robot. Surely I would see a control panel on her underside. She looked at me strangely, and then backed away.

"What are you doing?" She said, uncertainty in her voice. Her coat was ruffled and dirty. Her eyes were bloodshot, yet very moist. What appeared to be her mane had sticks and leaves in it, and was torn in places.

I looked at the floor, closed me eyes, and then looked back to her.

"You're real, aren't you?"

"Hmmph! ... You humans are a tad slow, aren't you?" She retorted.

I ignored her comment, still bewildered by her sudden appearance in my house.

"I just... I've never seen anything like you before," I said.

"... Likewise, I suppose... Oh my! What's the matter with me? I enter your home, the dirty mess that I am, and go about being rude. I'm terribly sorry, I've had a long night and I'm not myself at the moment. I will show myself out. Again, I sincerely apologize for my..."

I cut her off there. "Hold on a second. How is it that you can talk? And how did you get here?"

"Oh..." her ears drooped down and she lowered her head. I could see tears appearing in her eyes.

I walked up to her and leaned down. She cautiously raised her head and stared at me, her mouth hanging open. She seemed both confused and deeply upset.

"Come on. Let's get you cleaned up," I said calmly.

A smiled appeared on her face, "Oh, thank you. Thank you..."

What now? How do you clean a pony? I couldn't think straight. "Bathtub" was the first thought that came to mind. My dad had the only bathtub, and his room was on the far side of the house. I walked along, glancing back at the pony a few times. She followed me along, looking a bit anxious.

"Do you have a name?" I asked her.

"I am Rarity," She said, her face brightening up a little. A red lump was now visible on her temple, when she had hit the floor.

"Here we are," I said, entering my dad's bathroom. "... I'm not sure what to do now."

Rarity chuckled. "What is there to do?" The pony walked past me and stood up, putting her forelegs on the bathroom counter. She gasped in horror as she saw herself in the mirror. "Oh sweet Celestia!"

"What? What's wrong?" I asked.

She seemed to ignore my question, "And where did this lump on my head come from? That is why my head was throbbing!"

"I think that happened when you fell over the couch," I replied simply.

"I think you are right," she said. Suddenly her head turned and she shot a piercing glance at me. I opened my eyes wide in surprise and returned her stare.

"I am hideous, I must not be seen like this!" She moved her foreleg in front of her face so I couldn't see her. "You must not see me like this! Please... if you wouldn't mind, let me do my work and I will be ready in a jiffy."

"Ok..." I said. She went back to muttering to herself as she explored her face in the mirror, poking her hair from time to time. I walked back down the hallway to my room. What was going on? Was this really happening? I still hadn't given up the idea that this was an elaborate prank of some sort. I was a practical person. I thought I understood the workings of the world around me. So how was there a talking pony my house at this very moment? Maybe there wasn't. I blinked and shook my head. I seemed to be awake. I splashed cold water on my face. Had I imagined it? I walked out of my room. There were a couple leaves in the hallway that Rarity had dragged into the house... I walked back into my room and turned off my computer. What was I to do now? Whatever this pony was doing in my home, it was my guest, and I needed to look presentable. I had bed-hair, and to be quite honest I hadn't bathed in four days since my father left on his business trip. I had just been sitting here, "letting myself go", as they say. I could risk taking a quick shower, I suspected that the pony would take a long time to clean herself up anyways. I jumped into the hot shower, and stepped out clean a few minutes later. I grabbed the towel from the nearby rack, turned around and closed the shower door.

"Pardon me."

I was startled. I turned around quickly to see the pony standing beside my bathroom door, which, out of habit, I hadn't even closed. I covered my lower regions with the towel.

"Yes, of course. What is it?" I said. Her hair was now mostly void of twigs and leaves, and the lump on her temple had gone down a bit. Her fur was still dirty.

"I hope I did not startle you... I would just like to inquire if you have a brush."

"A brush," I thought, "I don't have a brush."

"Is something wrong?" asked the pony, looking at the towel I held over my lower region.

"No... I'm sorry, but I don't have a brush."

"Oh," She said, looking sad again, "That is alright, I will manage. Thank you."

She turned around and walked out. There was now no doubt in my mind that she was real. I dried off quickly and started putting my clothes on. I stopped. Theses were the clothes I had on yesterday... The clothes I had on these last four days for that matter. I walked across my room to my closet. I thought I should wear something that would make me seem less strange to the pony. Something simple. I have two closets in my room. Half of the clothes are dress pants, suits, and dress shirts, upon my dad's insistence. I don't know where many of them came from. The other closet (which I open nine out of ten times) contains my old T-shirts and jeans which I wore constantly throughout college. I quickly slipped on some clothes from this closet. I sat on my bed for a minute thinking about the situation. The pony wanted a brush... Nope, I had never seen a brush in this house. I suddenly felt like I should clean my room, I did have a guest after-all. It wasn't a long process, and I cleaned up my bathroom a bit too. What should I do now? Maybe I should go check up on my guest. I walked into the hallway. I could hear the pony's distant voice. But something didn't sound right. I walked into my dad's room, and clearly heard the sound of crying. My dad's bathroom and closet are open to the bedroom; I slowly walked across the threshold. The pony was sitting in the bathtub! What's more, she was lying on her back with her head out of the water, like a human would! She seemed to have just cleaned her mane, and the bathwater had a grayish tint from all the dirt. Three bottles of shampoo or something lay open on the bathroom floor, their contents collecting in thick pools. I felt it wasn't a good time to question the pony about this.

"I couldn't help but hear you. Is something the matter?"

Her crying subsided. "Oh," she sniffed, "That's alright, thank you. There's nothing that can be done about it."

"Please tell me, I'd... I'd like to help you."

"Oh you are a dear, aren't you? ... Well, where to begin? I suppose you could say I've lost my friends."

"Are there others like you?" I asked as I sat on the step beside the tub.

"Oh yes. I come from a world of ponies. I didn't know there was any other world until yesterday."

"What happened yesterday?"

"Well a couple weeks ago there was an accident. My friend, Twilight Sparkle, somehow managed to send my other friend, Rainbow dash into your world. It was a magical mishap; she was working on a new spell. We went to Princess Celestia immediately and..."

"Are these other ponies, like yourself?"

"Yes, now please don't interrupt... The princess didn't even know what to do at first. It took her two weeks to figure out where Rainbow Dash had been sent to, and to figure out a spell to get there and bring her back. So yesterday she teleported my four friends and I, and herself, to this world. She used another spell to find Rainbow Dash. We didn't know what to expect from this world, and stuck close to the princess. Anyways, we found Rainbow Dash, but she didn't remember us! From what Rainbow Dash... and her um, human friend said, time seemed to pass differently here. It had only been fifteen days in Equestria, yet Rainbow Dash had been in this world for fifteen years! I didn't quite understand it!"

The pony's voice suddenly became harsh, and her eyes took on an angry look, "One thing's for certain! Magic hardly works in this filthy world!" She blushed and her voice became apologetic, "Not to say that the inhabitants of this world are filthy, I mean..."

"That's alright, I understand you," I said, "Please go on."

"My magic doesn't work, and I think Celestia made a terrible mistake bringing us all here to find Rainbow Dash. Celestia instructed Twilight to teleport us back to Equestria right then and there. We went through the same procedure we had gone through to get here. There was a flash of light, like before, but this time I was merely teleported to elsewhere in this same world. I was so surprised, I... I panicked. That was last night. And then I couldn't find my friends..."

The pony's eyes started to tear up again. I didn't have much experience giving emotional support before. Probably because I'd never been in a relationship before, and now my stomach tightened up. I felt like I needed to do something to comfort the pony, but I didn't know what to do.

"There there," I said, scooting closer to her. Should I pat her on the head or something? No. What should I do? The pony then put her hoof up to her face to wipe her teary eyes. I gently took hold of her hoof. She looked at me with the saddest eye's I've ever seen.

"If your princess was able to find your friend, I'm sure she won't have any trouble finding you."

"But I don't know what happened to the princess. Did she make it back to our world, or is she still here? Or... or did something else happen to her? Magic isn't the same here, that's probably why Twilight's spell failed. Maybe if Celestia had casted the spell instead... Oh, I'm so scared!"

"It's alright, it's alright," I tried to comfort her. "This world is a very safe place, this part of it anyways... You're perfectly safe here um..." I then realized I had forgotten the pony's name. It started with an R... Rare something?

"Rarity," She said, sensing that I had forgotten.

"Rarity," I said.

She sniffed again, "Oh thank you. You are truly a kind creature." Her ears still drooped down and she still seemed very sad. she peered over the side of the tub at the bottles on the floor.

"I must apologize once again. I... As I said, my magic doesn't seem to work. I couldn't levitate the bottles, and they slipped from my hooves when I tried that method."

"Levitate?" I asked.

"Yes, it's one of the basic spells. Normally I would be able to move things about hooves-free, as it were! But here, even the simplest spells I cannot perform!"

"But you managed to clean you hair, right?"

"My mane? No, I merely got it wet."

Her mane looked silky, I could hardly believe she had only gotten it wet.

"I could help you, if you like?" I said.

Rarity looked at me with some uncertainty, but after a moment tipped her nose up and said, "Very well."

The only thing I could relate to about her behavior, was how she seemed like royalty. Her demeanor, her proper gestures, and her way of speaking, made me wonder if perhaps she was a princess herself in this Equestria she came from. There was one shampoo bottle left; I grabbed it. Rarity had adjusted her position in the tub. She was now standing upright in it, the water nearly touching her underside.

"I think this should make it easier for you," she said. "By the way, what is your name? I'm sorry not to have asked yet."

I told her.

"Well thank you. I doubt any stranger has done something so nice for me before... Oh! Watch it there, be careful. I could not brush it, so you must run your fingers through it ever so gently."

I now got a first hand taste of her perfectionist and demanding demeanor. It was cute though, and I smiled.

"Yes, that's very good, just like that. Ouch! Careful please, you must untangle the knots oh so gently! Oh how dreadful, I abhor knots!"

She was so cute! She was the most lady-like pony I had ever met. Well, the most lady-like creature I had ever met. Why was her mane purple anyways? My thoughts were cut off.

"Well done, deary! I believe we may now apply the shampoo..."

It turned out to be a relatively quick process. Apparently I had done everything to her liking. I stood back as the pony maneuvered herself out of the tub. She brought a great quantity of water out of the tub with her, and more poured from her drenched mane and fur. I blinked, and stood gaping at her. She was... She was beautiful. Her wet hair flowed down her neck and back, and her long eyelashes blinked up and down on top of her huge, shining blue eyes. I noticed she was staring back at me. I looked away awkwardly. She glanced at the towel on the nearby rack, and a small spark emanated from her horn! She frowned and glared at the towel, still hanging on the rack. Her ears drooped down again. Perhaps she had wanted to levitate the towel and dry herself off with it. I took the towel and splashed over to her through the puddle she had made.

She sighed and said, "Thank you. Oh, do be gentle with my mane, will you? Just pat it down I suppose, otherwise you will ruffle it!"

When she was mostly dry, she said, "I don't suppose you have a curling iron?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't," I said, trying to sound slightly disappointed in my voice.

To this she didn't respond. She smelled like a wet animal. I'm sure it was entirely normal where she came from.

She walked to the counter and reared up to look in the mirror. She nearly slipped when she did so. I walked over to the mirror. I thought I might be able to detach it and set it on the floor leaning against he wall for her, but it was strongly connected by something.

"Oh I promise I will clean this mess up... I never make a mess at home because I have magic, but I..."

I cut her off, "That's OK, I'll take care of it. I have these handy erm... hands." I smiled awkwardly at her. She looked uncertainly at me.

"If you insist," she said.

"I can detach the mirror in my bathroom and set it at your height, if you like," I said.

"Oh aren't you sweet! That would be lovely!"

We journeyed to my bathroom. I left her there and went back to my dad's bathroom to clean up. I didn't have much cleaning experience; we've always had a weekly house-cleaner. I wasn't even sure if we had a mop, but I ended up finding one in a hallway closet. The cleaning took longer than I thought. I was probably not very efficient, but it was done eventually. I hoped my dad wouldn't notice the missing bottles of shampoo when he came home in a few weeks. There were also long, purple hairs in the bathtub after I drained it. I was not too happy about that. Maybe I should have washed Rarity off with a hose outside? Would she have found that insulting, she did seem to have a human brain and human personality after all? I looked at a clock on the wall, it was only 10:05am!

I returned to my bathroom.

"You're bathroom is very clean and organized!" She stated happily.

That was probably because the only things I ever touched were my toothbrush, toothpaste, and razor, but I didn't tell her that.

The rest of that first day was very eventful. I had been in the kitchen watching TV, when Rarity came out of my bathroom. Her hair had changed, it seemed to have some natural curl to it. Rarity was upset about it, but I thought it looked fine. By this point, Rarity had spent the entire morning making herself "presentable." Between the bath and the drying and the hair and everything else, she had been beautifying herself for several hours, and I felt somewhat annoyed at her over-the-top grooming needs. It reminded me of my mom. Thankfully that was just the first day; once she had recovered from her first night in this world, her grooming habits have been much more toned-down, and it only took her half an hour to get ready in the morning in preceding days. I turned off the TV when she came in, I thought it might confuse or startle her. She asked if I had been talking to someone and came to stand next to me. I supposed I might as well show her the TV. She found the humans on TV much more interesting than the TV itself.

"Do I look strange to you?" I asked her.

"Well... I suppose so... Yes, yes you do look strange to me."

"I thought so. Well you look strange to me too."

In a couple minutes, Rarity asked me if it was too late for breakfast. I hadn't thought about feeding this pony, and now I had no solution. What did ponies eat besides hay? I told her I usually didn't eat breakfast.

"Why, breakfast is the most important meal of the day! One must have energy for the day ahead!" she exclaimed.

"I just don't like cooking," I stated plainly.

Rarity looked surprised.

"Oh surely you don't need to cook breakfast every morning, you have a whole lawn full of grass right outside." She looked at the lawn curiously and asked a moment later, "What do humans eat?"

"We are omnivores," I said.

Rarity seemed to understand the term, because after a moment she tensed up and shot me a very serious glance. She backed away from me a couple steps.

"What meat do humans eat?" She said cautiously. She now looked threatened.

"Please Rarity, take it easy. Calm down."

"What meat do humans eat?!" She said in a harsher tone.

Her meaning then occurred to me.

"Rarity, you don't think... you don't think we eat horses, do you?"

Rarity said nothing. I opened my mouth to list off animals we generally eat, but stopped. If there were talking ponies in her world, could there not also be talking cows, or sheep, or pigs? I couldn't go back now, I had told her that humans eat meat.

"We eat fish, Rarity. We eat fish. Also, grass isn't our favorite."

I crossed my fingers. I seemed to have said the right thing because Rarity relaxed, breathed a sigh of relief, and returned to my side.

The rest of the day was quite relaxed. Rarity asked about the giant rectangle on the other side of the patio. It was a pool cover, I told her, as I flipped the switch to retract it.

"Oh a pool!" She said excitedly, "We don't have many of these in Equestria. And none with pool covers that I can think of. We only have small, warm pools, which we call hot-tubs."

"I have one of those too!" I pointed to the hot tub and it's cover on the other side of the pool.

"And what is over there?" Rarity pointed across the pool and lawn to the other part of the house.

"My dad's office and the guest rooms," I said.

"Your father? So you don't live here alone?" Asked the pony.

"No, my dad's on business in England for a month. He comes back in three weeks," I said.

"So there are different lands in this world? What is this land called that we are in now?" She asked.

"The United States," I replied.

"Hmm. That's an odd name." Said the pony, and left it at that.

Later we sat outside, in front of the pool, and talked about her ordeal and how she wound up here. She had a feeling that Princess Celestia had managed to return to Equestria; if she had managed to take any of Rarity's friends along with her, she could not tell. By the end we had managed to put some things in perspective. Now that Princess Celestia knew how to enter this world, she could do the spell with only a few minutes of preparation. If the princess had made it back to Rarity's home world, therefore, Rarity expected that she would return for her immediately. That whole thing about the altered time lost me, but, by Rarity's figuring, one day in Equestria was like one year in this world. This meant that if Celestia was able to return to this world again after one hour in Equestria, that would be like two weeks here. Celestia might return in ten minutes (two days our time), or it might take her a whole day (one year our time). Anyways, we figured Rarity might as well settle in for now. I didn't tell Rarity, but I really hoped it wouldn't be longer than three weeks, when my dad would return.

Rarity felt much better after we talked. She was happy, trotting, even prancing around the yard and house. She was absolutely positive that this Princess of hers would return to get her. I let her wander the property as she pleased, I didn't worry about her being seen. There were either stone walls or thick hedges on all sides. Besides, there were few people around; our neighbors might not even be in town. I accompanied Rarity for an hour as she trotted around the property, showing her flowers that she found interesting, and picking fruits from our trees to feed her. We had no apple trees unfortunately, which she said were the favorite fruit of ponies. At one point, I looked out the kitchen window to see Rarity in the far corner of the property. She had stopped by a young fruit tree, but she was looking at something.

"Oh no..." I said and hurried out the door and towards her.

Our neighbors had a small stable and ponies, two Shetland Ponies to be exact. They were sometimes there and sometimes not there. Today, one of them at least, was there. It had meandered its way through the trees and bushes between the properties and now stretched it's head over our fence, a clump of flowers in its mouth. Rarity saw me approaching and gazed back at the Shetland Pony.

I now stood next to her.

"What... What's wrong with him?" She said in a very concerned voice.

"That's what ponies in this world look like, Rarity." I walked over to the Shetland pony and stroked its mane. The pony looked at me, then back at Rarity, who was still keeping her distance.

"There is something wrong with his eyes! They are so small! I... I feel very uncomfortable. He won't respond to me, does he have a... mental problem?" she asked with a sickened look on her face.

Explaining everything to Rarity took a while! The Shetland Pony incident had wiped away Rarity's happy attitude of mid-day. Now it was nearly evening, and I had not eaten all day. What was I supposed to eat again? Fruits or vegetables? There was a problem, I didn't like salad or vegetables. I supposed I could eat fruit, although eating nothing but fruit seemed like it might get old after a while. I ate fruit anyways. I ate some oranges that Rarity and I had picked earlier in the day. The pony had been eating grass and fruit all day and wasn't very hungry.

"Ice cream?!" Said the pony excitedly, as she stuck her head into the freezer.

"I didn't realize ponies ate ice cream," I responded

We both sat at the kitchen counter and had a bowl of chocolate ice cream. Well, I lifted her up onto the counter and she sat on that, rather. We had grape and orange juice in the refrigerator, but Rarity just wanted water. I wasn't sure how she would drink it. She said she usually used a glass and levitated it to her mouth. I offered to do this for her, but she declined respectfully.

"I will not have you lift another finger for me today. I have been such a burden!" She said in that same tone that made my smile again.

She put her hooves up on the sink, turned on the faucet, placed her mouth under it, and drank.

An unpleasant thought suddenly occurred to me... surely Equestria ponies had bodily functions as ponies in this world do. Do they use toilets, or do they just "do their duty" wherever they happen to be at the time? Was this clean, proper-mannered pony was more civil than that? I let that question go for now, and asked Rarity something else.

I asked her where she would sleep that night. I offered the guest rooms to the pony. Did this pony sleep on the floor, or in a bed? Rarity looked through the window across the dark lawn to the even darker windows of the guest rooms. She did not seem to like the idea. The poor thing was still scared! It seemed to me that she was scared of this still-alien world. What sort of predators lurked outside at night?

"Um. Would this be an acceptable place for me to sleep?" asked the pony and pointed to the living room.

"That's great. The rug is very comfortable. I'll help you get settled in."

Worries went through my mind as I thought about the pony sleeping. Would she nibble at the threads of the rug, or pee on it? Ponies from this world would do it, why wouldn't Rarity? I was relieved when Rarity daintily jumped up onto the couch. She certainly seemed more human than pony. I brought blankets for her. She seemed content for the time being. She smiled and blinked her big eyes at me.

"Goodnight," She said.

"Goodnight, Rarity," I said.

It took me a while to fall asleep. My mind was racing from what had happened that day. What would tomorrow have in store for me and my new friend? I couldn't tell. I did fall asleep eventually, but was woken up not long after by the distant howling of coyotes. I had grown up knowing their familiar howls. Ever since I was a child, their voices woke me, or soothed me to sleep at night. Their packs were always hunting late at night. Engulfed in nostalgia, I allowed the howls to sooth me to sleep again, and they soon became part of my dreams. In my sleep, I suddenly remembered the pony in my living room. The screams and howls have probably terrified her half to death! I woke up suddenly but as I rolled over, something stirred at my feet. Diffused moonlight lit up my bed. At my feet, I clearly made out Rarity, who was nestled in a ball. She breathed in deeply and adjusted her shoulder slightly. Now I felt her body warmth against my feet. I relaxed. This was no ordinary pony, she was human if anything. I closed my eyes and dosed off with a smile my face.

Chapter 2

Day two:

I groaned and turned over in my bed. As the fog of sleep began to clear from my mind, my eyes shot open. Was there still a pony in my house? She was on my bed last night! I turned and moved my eyes to the feet of my bed. The white pony that had been there late last night was gone. Was yesterday a dream? No, no, I remembered it too clearly. It was grey and cold outside. I heard something in the kitchen. I threw some clothes on quickly, and made my way down the hallway to the kitchen. I walked around the corner, and stopped, blinking tiredly in the bright room.

"Good mooooorning!" sung a sweet voice from somewhere. I spotted Rarity's head above the counter top. She let go with her forelegs and dropped back down on all fours. Her whole body came into view as she walked around the island counter towards me.

"Good morning Rarity!" I said, the bright smile on her face making me smile as

well. "What are you doing?" I asked, although I already knew the answer. I could see that she was making breakfast.

"I am making you breakfast! It is nearly ready," she said.

"You didn't have to do that."

"Oh, but I did! You have been such a wonderful host, I must repay you in some form or another. I must!"

To this, I said nothing. I merely smiled and looked down at her big eyes, which were now blinking up at me. Now, being a bit more awake, I looked over to the stove to see what the pony could possibly be cooking.

"Are those... pancakes?"

"They most certainly are! Oh, you do like pancakes, don't you?"

"Sure. Sure I do. It's just... I didn't expect that ponies would eat such things."

"Of course we do, silly. Why wouldn't we?"

"May I help you?" I asked after a few moments.

"No you may not. This is my treat. You just sit there, and Rarity will make you a delicious and nutritious breakfast."

I couldn't argue with that, so I took a seat at the counter. There were patches of cooking flour here and there, the cupboards were all open and pans were lying about the place. The poor creature must have had a tough time without the use of her magic, which, from what she had told me, she relied on for almost everything in her daily life. In my mind, this made the breakfast an even greater gesture.

Rarity hummed softly as she poured the orange juice and mumbled to herself as she flipped the pancakes.

"There!" she exclaimed. "Breakfast is ready!"

"It looks delicious, Rarity."

"Oh, just wait until you try it!" She said happily.

Grasping a plate of food in her teeth, she came over to me and I took it from her. She came back with her plate; I took it and put that next to mine on the counter. Then I lifted her up and set her on the counter. She was really very heavy, and I was barely able to get her up.

"Oh! Be careful with me!" Her front hooves clinked against the counter-top as she scrambled to steady herself on something. I gave her a push from behind and she was up. A loud squeak emanated from her mouth as I did this, which I thought was a rather odd sound for a pony to make. She crawled forward and laid down, her face above her plate. "Mmmm," she murmured. It did look quite good actually. I had never liked breakfast right after waking up, but I wouldn't say anything after Rarity had gone through so much trouble to make it.

"Rarity, if ponies eat pancakes, do they eat other types of cakes? Or any baked goods for that matter?"

"Oh yes, we love cakes. Carrot cakes, chocolate cakes, cupcakes. Do you have any of those in this world."

"Yea, we have all that."

I was fascinated by how the pony ate. Very carefully, and with great difficulty, she took little nibbles from the cake. Several times she tried to take larger bites, and got syrup on her muzzle. I looked strangely at her. She sighed exasperatedly. It became apparent to me that she was, again, realizing how difficult things were without the use of her horn's magic. I bet that Rarity used her magic even to eat. I thought about offering to help her, I could have cut up the pancakes with a fork and fed her bite by bite. But it seemed to me that it would be more demeaning than helpful. Also, it didn't seem she wanted to hear anything about it. I commented on how tasty the breakfast was. She smiled and thanked me for the compliment. I looked at the clock; it was already 11:00am. Rarity stood up and promptly slipped on the smoother counter-top. She managed to catch herself, thankfully.

"Could you give me a hoof? Um... a hand, as it were?" Asked the pony politely.

I grabbed her just behind her forelegs and set her down on the floor, with some difficulty.

"Your dish, please," She said. I handed her my plate.

"Can't I help with the dishes?" I asked.

I could tell Rarity did not want to clean up, simply because of the difficulties she knew she'd have without her magic.

"Absolutely not! I will take care of everything. It is no problem, no problem at all! Please, do not lift a hoof... um, finger... I insist!" She said in her usual tone.

She was content on making things hard for herself. I watched her as she began her cleanup. She was struggling alright, but she was so careful and delicate with everything. I had been afraid she'd break a dish, but now I felt reassured by her gentle and careful manner.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. I froze and my hairs stood on end. Who would possibly be at the door? It seemed that Rarity heard the knock too, but she wasn't very concerned.

"Rarity," I said.

"MmmHmmm?" said the pony as she struggled to maneuver the plate in her mouth under the faucet.

"You need to hide. There's somebody here."

"Hide?"

"Yes, hide. You can't be seen! There's no time to explain. Please, just run to my room. Quick!"

Rarity hesitated a second, but then set down the dish and quickly ran down the hallway towards my room. I hurried to the door and opened it. It was the pool cleaner. We exchanged a few words and he went off to work. I walked back towards my room. The layout of the house was that it sort of curved around the pool and patio. One whole side of the hallway had windows which faced the pool; Rarity would have to stay in my room to stay out of sight. I couldn't imagine what would happen if someone found out about Rarity, but it wouldn't be good.

Rarity was sitting on my bed with her legs tucked beneath her, she looked at me curiously. How was I to tell her that she couldn't be seen?

"Remember how you startled me yesterday morning?" I said, entering the room.

"I startled you? Perhaps I did, but do recall that that you also startled me!"

Suddenly a stream of questions flowed from the pony's mouth. She sounded distressed.

"What's going on? Who was at the door? Why won't you let anypony see me? I'm a social pony -the pony everypony should know! It's not like I would embarrass you, or something..."

"Rarity. If any other humans saw you, they would be very startled. Maybe much more than I was."

"Oh... I understand. I will hide myself from the light of day," said the pony, in an almost sarcastic tone.

"The pool cleaner will be here for a while, I'm sorry but you have to stay in here until he leaves," I said.

"Of course," the pony said with a forced smile. Her ears drooped a bit.

I hoped I hadn't hurt her feelings. Maybe she was just being dramatic? I hoped so. I left Rarity in my room and returned to the kitchen, where the big glass doors made the room clearly visible to someone outside by the pool. I waved to the pool guy when he walked by. Maybe I was being overcautious, "No talking unicorns here, just me!" I wanted to yell out. I turned on the TV and tried to act natural. But I wasn't very interested in the TV, I couldn't help thinking I had hurt Rarity's feelings. Finally the pool cleaner finished and walked back to his car. I immediately went to check up on Rarity.

Rarity was still sitting on my bed, looking downtrodden.

"Oh, hello," said the pony sadly.

It was worse than I thought. Was she really upset for being told not to be seen? Surely she understood why she had to stay out of sight, right? I wasn't sure what to say to her, but she spoke again before I could.

"I used to be the prettiest pony in Ponyville. Colts swooned over me in public, and mares gossiped about my beautiful complexion. And now, for the first time in my life, someone has desired me to hide myself, and to not be seen!"

The pony suddenly broke out crying. The cry quickly turned to a high pitched wail.

I ran over and sat beside her on the bed. "No, no, Rarity. You've got it all wrong! That guy wouldn't have known what to think or do! Believe me, things would not have ended well if he saw a strange creature living here with me."

"Strange creature? STRANGE CREATURE?! I am a beautiful pony! And I deserve to be treated as one!" Her words were lost in tears again.

"Rarity," I said, lifting her head up with my hands. Her huge eyes now gazed into mine, a sad and confused look in them. "You are the most beautiful pony I have ever seen... and the kindest, and sweetest."

Rarity sniffed a few times, tears still in her eyes. "You... You aren't just saying that, are you?"

"No. No I am not just saying that."

She looked down for a moment, then back up to me. "But... The only ponies you've known are the ones of this world. And they are ugly... Ugly!"

I had to think of something fast, her eyes were welling up with tears again.

"No Rarity. You aren't the most beautiful pony I've seen. You're the most beautiful creature, of all ponies and all humans I've seen."

It felt very strange saying that; I had never thought of any non-human animal as beautiful, but come to think of it... Rarity was beautiful, and she wasn't human. In any case, I felt that my words had a positive effect this time. Rarity dabbed her muzzle and her eyes with a tissue. She smiled as her dark blue eyes gazed up into mine. She put her head over my shoulder and nuzzled the back of my neck, still snuffling her muzzle. I assumed this was how ponies gave hugs. I put my arm around her neck and stroked her mane.

"There, there, Rarity," I said soothingly.

She removed herself from the embrace, and hopped off the bed.

"You have been very kind to me," She smiled up at me. "Considering how I... broke into your home, muddled and filthy, you have been extraordinarily selfless. You opened your home to me, and helped me, and asked nothing in return. I think I shall move on. I thank you, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I need only grass and water to be self sufficient, and this world has an abundance. I wish I could give you something, but I lost my saddle bag the night I arrived here."

"Rarity, wait... Where will you go?"

"I shall wander the fields and meadows of your world. The princess will return for me in a few days time," she said confidently.

"Don't you remember? We thought it might take the princess months to return for you. And what you've seen around here isn't like most of this world. There are cities, and busy streets, and... And lot's of sad places and unfriendly people."

"Oh, I certainly hope that will not be the case... As for cities and such, we have them in Equestria as well. I am an adult pony, and I am perfectly capable of handling myself... Besides, us ponies belong out in the open air. I feel I have been a burden to you. As kind as you are, I know very well I have interfered with your life. I am not dumb."

Rarity didn't seem to understand that she couldn't just go walking around the human world.

"Oh no, Rarity, you are not a burden at all!" I silently recalled the mess the night she arrived, and the mess in the bathroom, and the mess in the kitchen... and the current situation, which was making my stomach churn a bit. But I shook my head, I didn't mind having Rarity here. I don't think I minded it at all.

"Enough," She said, "I shall take my leave. Do not worry about me, I beg you. I will be perfectly fine."

She walked to the door, pushed the handle down with her horn, and pushed the door open. I watched the door close and sat for a minute, not really knowing what to do next. Was that it? Was that the end of this very strange encounter with a talking unicorn? My eyes shifted to the indent her hooves had left in my bed. And there was her tear-soaked tissue. She had been real alright. I suddenly felt very lonely. I felt like when I had let girls, whom I liked, slip through my hands in the past, just because I was too timid to speak my mind or confront them. This was just a pony, there was no reason for me to act like this. Besides, Rarity needed my protection! I could still do the right thing, come of it what may.

I spotted hoof prints in the gravel driveway. I started up my truck, and took off. It was hard to see the prints in the gravel, and I lost them rather quickly. I slowed down and leaned my head out the window to look for them. I couldn't see them any more, but I heard a rustling in the trees to the side of the drive. The rump of a white pony stuck out from between some bushes and a purple tail swished about behind it. I jumped out and ran towards Rarity. Rarity emerged from the bush as she heard me coming.

"Rarity!" I said happily.

Her eyes opened wide in bewilderment at my sudden appearance.

"Could you help me?" she asked as she turned to something hanging from a low tree branch. These must be her saddle bags. I pushed my way through the bush and untangled the saddlebags from the branches.

I said, as I placed the bags on her back, "Rarity, you shouldn't leave. I've realized something... I really enjoy you being here. When you left, I felt... I felt alone. More alone than usual..."

To my surprise, my eyes started welling up with tears. Frustrated, I gulped and did my best to hide them.

"I didn't realize it until you walked out that door, but I was really happy to have you here with me. I don't think I've ever felt like that before."

"Even after the messes I made, you... you were happy to have me there with you?" asked the surprised pony.

"Yes," I said nearly choking on my tears. This was so painful, I just wanted her to come back, so things could be like they were yesterday.

"Celestia! I didn't know you humans were such emotional creatures. Of course I will come back with you! I would not have left if I knew it would bring you such sadness."

I was kneeling on the grass in front of her at this point. I smiled and looked at the ground. I wiped my eyes and looked at her again.

"I must look like such a fool," I said.

"Come now," She said, putting one of her hooves up to my face. "I doubt I could last half a week without a pedicure anyways."

Now ponies had pedicures? I put my questions aside and laughed aloud, smiling at her. I stood up.

"Well let's go then," I said, walking back to the car. "Don't you humans ever walk?" She asked, "Your abode is right there."

The house was visible from here. I knew what she meant by the odd question.

"I took my truck because I didn't know how far you had run off. Why don't you walk back; I need to go to the store anyways. I'll be back soon."

"Very well," she said. She adjusted the saddle bags with her mouth and trotted back towards the house. Watching her in the rear view mirror, I smiled. She had wanted to stay with me! I guess you could say she was now my little pony.

I did not drive to the grocery. It was open late, and I had another stop to make first. There were still a few minutes until most businesses closed in the nearby strip of restaurants and stores. I parked in front of the pet store. It was still open.

"Do you have horse products?" I asked. I was directed to the display of horse products. I took the softest brush I could find, horse shampoo, a file for hooves, other grooming brushes, and a handful of other things. I paid for my items and headed to the grocery store. What to buy? I picked out some apples for Rarity, lots of lettuce and salad dressing, and finally a huge chocolate carrot cake from the store's bakery. I got some more ice cream and a dozen cupcakes. The grocer gave me a funny look in the check out line; I didn't blame him. I suddenly realized I had forgotten something.

"Could you hold my stuff for a minute? I forgot to get something."

He rolled his eyes and moved my things off to the side to help the next customer. The grocery store was a supermarket, and should have what I was looking for. I wasn't entirely sure what a "facial" was, -which Rarity had spoken of at one point- but I suspected it was that strange mud mask that women put on their faces. I found something that seemed to be just that. I also picked up a bottle that said "bubble bath" on it, since Rarity had also mentioned she liked bubble baths. When I returned to the cash register, the grocer produced a fake smile and rung up the items. Lettuce, cupcakes, and bubble bath bubbles? He clearly thought I was insane.

I came through the front door with the bags in my hands. Yesterday, seeing a white pony walking about the kitchen and humming to herself would probably have scared the crap out of me. But now, I felt warm all over. I couldn't be happier to see her. I didn't try to hide my gleeful smile as I walked into the kitchen. Rarity seemed to be making dinner with what little we had in the refrigerator.

"Oh my," Exclaimed the pony as I set the bags down on the counter. I put the grooming supplies to the side and put the grocery bags and cake on the floor in front of her. Rarity gasped at the cake.

"Celestia, that does look delicious! ... And fresh lettuce, and fruits, and cupcakes, Oh my! We can save them for later, I have already prepared dinner. I have made us fruit salad!"

"That's terrific, Rarity," I said. My stomach grumbled. I needed real food. A big steak, or a pizza... My mouth watered at the thought. "Yes, I do love... fruit salad."

"I am glad to hear it! Perhaps we will have some of this marvelous cake for desert... We are in the dining room tonight. Please sit down, I shall bring everything out."

Rarity had already set two places at the table. I sat down. Rarity brought out the dinner one item at a time.

"Are you sure you don't want help, Rarity?"

"No, that is quite alright, thank you."

I then noticed there were glasses of water on the table. That must have been a difficult feat for the pony, I was impressed. But what was this? Wine glasses? I picked up the glass. It had horse saliva on the stem. My plate also had some saliva on its rim. The poor pony couldn't help it, I figured, having to do everything with her mouth. Rarity came into the room with a chilled bottle of white wine in her mouth. She walked up to me and I took the bottle from her mouth and set it on the table.

"I wouldn't have thought that ponies drank wine," I said.

"Oh please," She said in a sarcastic tone, "I nearly fell over backwards when I saw this in your refrigerator. I didn't think you humans were sophisticated enough for fine wines..." She said haughtily. "No offense intended to you of course," she added apologetically. Some of the bottle had been drunk prior to Rarity's arrival, and it was only half full. Rarity surprised me yet again by sitting in the chair.

"Is something amiss?" She asked, seeing the expression on my face.

"Doesn't that feel awkward? Sitting like that," I asked.

"Of course not," She retorted, "This is the proper way to sit for proper meals."

"Is there anything us humans do, that ponies don't do?" I asked.

"I'm not sure. I haven't seen enough of your world to say, but it seems to me that we are quite similar after all!" she said happily.

During the course of our dinner and the cake, I told her about my world, and she told me about hers. She told me she owned her own business; she was a fashion designer and dress maker! She told me of the two monarchs of her world, and how they controlled the transition between night and day. And she told me about the different ponies in Equestria and about her friends.

She sighed deeply, "Oh I do hope they are alright."

She proceeded to tell me about them in greater detail.

"So let me get this straight," I said, "Besides your seemingly immortal princesses, there are three races of ponies in your world? Earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi?"

"Yes, that's right," she said.

I thought for a minute before asking another question.

"So if you unicorns are the only ponies capable of using magic, and magic is necessary for many things in your world such as writing, crafting, and pretty much everything else... are you considered more important than the other ponies?"

"Oh no... Every pony does his or her part for the community. Earth ponies generally tend to gardening and harvesting -manual labor, as it were. The pegasi are in charge of the weather and, along with the unicorns, help to change the seasons. And us unicorns, we um... well, we take care of many things. I make dresses, some study magic... You could say we have the clean jobs."

"Without the use of magic, are pagassi and earth ponies often less um... proper than yourself?" I asked.

The pony jumped up excitedly, putting her hooves on the table, "Oh yes! They are positively improper! And often rude mannered! My friends Pinkie Pie and Applejack are earth ponies, and they are often quite filthy! Pinkie can get away with it, but Applejack seems to make a point of being unclean. She often spits! And slobbers on anything she picks up in her mouth!"

I figured it would be a bad idea to tell Rarity about the saliva that was on my plate and wine glass.

"Rainbow Dash simply showers herself in rain clouds, and Fluttershy's animal friends help to bathe her. But I, of course, am the cleanliest of all my friends," she said proudly.

"That reminds me," I said smiling, "I have a surprise for you!" I got the bag of grooming supplies from the kitchen and brought it back to the table. I laid out the items in front of the curious pony.

"I bought these for you today."

"Oh!" She gasped, "A brush!" She squealed, "And this file is perfect! I can have a proper pedicure now! And is this a mud mask?"

The pony was ecstatic, much more than I thought she'd be. I was even a bit surprised by her loud squeals of joy.

The pony jumped up, putting her forelegs around my waist and nuzzled her head against my chest, "Oh thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"You are very welcome, Rarity," I said. I patted her back.

"I must try these at once!" She said joyfully. She quickly collected the items in her mouth and ran off down the hallway.

I suspected she'd be running back any minute apologizing for not clearing the table, so I did it myself before she'd have the chance to. It didn't take long to clean up, and Rarity had not made a mess at all fixing the dinner.

Rarity was not in my room or my bathroom. I instead found her in my dad's bathtub again, mountains of pink bubbles floating about the water's surface. The unicorn-pony sighed happily. Her face around her eyes and nostrils was covered with a thick mud mask. She opened her eyes, and her smiling face looked at me as I came in.

"You wouldn't happen to have any cucumbers, would you dear?"

"Cucumbers? No, I don't think so," I said, scratching my head at the odd request.

"Oh that is no problem, no problem at all. This is nonetheless exquisite!"

"Will you need help with your hair, and drying off again?" I asked.

"Oh... I didn't think of that. I suppose I will, if you wouldn't mind that is."

The pony leaned her head back and closed her eyes again.

"I wouldn't mind at all," I said, sitting on the step next to the tub.

I sat there, looking at Rarity from time to time. We talked a bit here and there. After about half an hour, Rarity felt that she had soaked long enough. She maneuvered herself to stand upright in the tub, and I shampooed her hair. I then set down towels all over the bathroom floor, mainly so that she wouldn't slip on the stone floor, but also to keep it from becoming a giant pool of water, like it had the previous night. We went through the same routine, but this time I used the brush for her mane and tail, instead of my fingers. Rarity refrained from giving me hints or advice while I did this, like she had yesterday. She was still in a state of bliss from her relaxing bath. Finally she was all dried off and her mane hung down her neck, waving slightly. She bounced one of the locks of her hair with her hoof, and frowned. I left her there and returned to my room. Rarity came in soon afterwards and walked into the bathroom, where I had set up a mirror at her height. I could hear her talking to herself.

"I suppose I can wear my hair down while I am here. I would hate to have him buy me curlers. Besides, I haven't changed my hair style for eons."

The thought of a pony with curlers in its mane frightened me a little. I came into the bathroom after a few minutes. Rarity turned towards me. I stood in the doorway, looking at Rarity with my mouth gaping open. The unicorn's white fur shined brightly, her purple mane, also shining and now dry, hung in wavy strands about her neck and forelegs. But there was something else. Her eyelashes stood out more, as if she had used eyeliner on them. The lashes now clumped together in several groups, curling upwards. And her eyelids had a sparkling blue substance on them. This pony never ceased to surprise me!

"How... How did you do that?" I asked.

"I carry an emergency makeup kit in my saddlebag of course!" She said happily.

She looked at me through the corner of her eye and smirked. She could tell I was taken aback by her beauty. She now blinked slowly and moved her head back and forth, her hair swaying from side to side as she did so.

"I've always had that effect on colts, but on a different species? ... I must say I am quite flattered." Said the unicorn, smiling seductively.

I blushed and made a fake coughing noise.

"Wh... What effect is that? I'm not sure what you're talking about."

Rarity just smiled, and walked past me, deliberately brushing her tail hard against my leg as she did so. I stood there for a few moments. My chest seemed to be tingling; I touched my hand to it. My heart was beating very quickly. I shook my head.

"Stop it. Stop it, this is ridiculous. She's only playing. Calm down you fool," I repeated a couple times to myself.

Rarity was not in my room. I found her in the kitchen, with a plate of ice cream. Not being able to bring a spoon to her mouth, like in her world, she had found it easier to just lick the ice cream from a plate. I got a bowl of ice cream for myself and sat besides the pony on the floor.

"Would you like to eat on the counter? I could give you a lift."

We had high counters in the kitchen, and Rarity couldn't jump up on her own.

"That's quite alright, thank you."

She seemed very calm and acted like her normal self. I relaxed a little; perhaps she hadn't meant anything by the gesture in the bathroom?

"Where are you going to sleep tonight, Rarity?" I asked.

"You tell me. I'm am merely a guest," she said, licking up the last of her ice cream.

"You're welcome to stay in my room again, if you like."

Rarity blushed a little. "Oh... I thought you had been asleep and hadn't noticed me... Those dreadful howls I heard last night made my fur stand on end. I was just a little frightened is all... Were those howling creatures dangerous?" She asked.

"Those were coyotes," I explained. I knew that coyotes hunted small animals; only in great desperation would they attack something as large as a pony.

"It was a good thing you were inside last night. They have been known to attack ponies," I said.

"Oh my Celestia!" cried Rarity, her pupils narrowing and her body tightening up.

Oops. I had really scared her. Why had I said that? I wondered what kind of predators ponies had in Equestria. Maybe the predators Rarity was thinking of were much worse.

"I said they have been known to attack ponies, but it hasn't happened often. And ponies never get more than a few nips and scratches from them."

"Oh..." Said the unicorn, immediately relaxing. I put our dishes in the dishwasher and headed towards my room, but turned back before leaving the kitchen.

"Rarity. You may sleep wherever you like. The house is yours," I called to her.

I got undressed and jumped into bed. I had left my light on, I had a feeling somepony might be joining me. I saw, from the crack under the door, the lights going off in the hall. The door opened and Rarity came in.

Once inside, she stopped, "I was quite comfortable in here last night. If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to sleep here with you again."

I sat up and patted a spot next to me on the bed. Rarity jumped up onto the bed. Her hoof pushed into my leg, hurting a little. I kept forgetting how heavy she was. She pawed around on top of the bed for a few seconds before sitting down next to me, her legs folded beneath her. It was a large bed, so there was no question about lack of room.

"Will you be warm enough? I asked"

"Of course. My fur is like a natural blanket, thank you." She said, adjusting on top of the covers.

I turned off the light and closed my eyes, and I fell asleep with a dumb grin on my face. I was awoken again sometime in the middle of the night by Rarity's movement. I waited for her to stop moving before turning my head to look at her. The white unicorn had disappeared and had been replaced by a huge lump in the covers. A white ear and horn stuck out from under the covers next to me. The rest of her head was covered by her wavy purple mane, now shining with faint hints of moonlight streaming in through gaps in the shutters.

Chapter 3

Day Three:

Rarity had gotten up before me again. Her side of the bed had been neatly made. I did not find her in the kitchen. But the kitchen door to the patio was open. I looked outside and didn't see her, but instead heard soft singing. Then I spotted her on the other side of the lawn in the rose garden.

"Ahh, such an exquisite scent," I thought I heard her say.

I watched her for a minute. She saw me and trotted over.

"Good moooorning!" She sang out, like she had yesterday.

"And good morning to you, Rarity."

"Deary... what in Equestria are you wearing?"

"Pajama bottoms," I said.

"Those simply will not do!" She said, now standing directly in front of me.

Before I could ask her what she meant, she was urging me back inside, and nudging me with her muzzle.

"Go on now. Let us have a look at your wardrobe. You simply cannot walk around in that. I will have you looking neat and dapper in no time!"

"I was going to change out of them," I protested.

She poked me with her horn as I stepped though the door.

"Alright, alright," I said. I realized there would be no use arguing with her.

Once inside my room, I turned on the lights and opened up my closets.

"Here," I said, taking out a pair of shorts.

"No," replied the pony, sounding frustrated.

"Alright, how about this?" I held up a pair of jeans.

Rarity grabbed hold of the jeans with her teeth, and yanked them out of my hands onto the floor.

"That one!" She said, pointing with her horn to something in my other closet.

I removed a white dress shirt, and held it up. Rarity smiled and nodded her head in approval. I didn't like where this was going. A few minutes later I looked in the mirror. I looked like a waiter at a cocktail bar.

"And the final touch!" Said Rarity, holding a black bow-tie in her teeth.

I sighed unhappily, and put the tie on.

"Now we are nearly finished!" She exclaimed happily.

"There's more?!"

"Patience, my dear. Now come with me."

In the bathroom, I sat down on the floor in front of the mirror, in accordance with the pony's orders. Rarity, her horse brush in mouth, began fixing my bed hair. She directed me to shave and rinse my mouth out. Why was she doing this all of a sudden? Perhaps she was just compulsive; she had said she was a fashion designer after all.

"Let us take a look at you in the light... Oh, you look splendid! I bet you didn't know you could look so good. What a handsome fellow you are."

I looked in the mirror, and I had to admit, thanks to Rarity, I now looked "quite dapper" and "well groomed," as rarity put it.

"Are we going to a ballroom dance or something?" I asked sarcastically.

"Well no, not that I know of... Are we? Oh I would love to attend a ball!"

"Sorry to disappoint you, but we don't really have many "balls" or dances in this town..."

"Oh," she said.

"Um, Rarity... How long do I have to stay like this?" I asked, adjusting the uncomfortable bowtie.

"Oh you!" Rarity laughed softly, "You may change anytime you like, of course."

"Oh... Well what was the point of putting it on then?"

"What ever do you mean? The point was to dress you up and see how you looked," said Rarity.

I understood it all now. The unicorn had been playing dress-up with me! Just like a little girl playing with her dolls.

I laughed. "Are you done dressing me up? Or would you like me to try on something else?"

"I think this was enough. Unless you'd like my fashion expertise to pick out a new outfit for you?"

"Oh, I think I'm um... pleased with this outfit... for now."

"Suit yourself," said the pony as she trotted out of my room.

I decided to remain a cocktail waiter for a little while, to not take a chance of insulting Rarity's selection of clothes. "Did ponies wear clothes?" I asked myself. Of course, Rarity was a dress maker. I tried to imagine a pony wearing a dress, but couldn't quite see the image in my mind.

On the living room table, Rarity had placed fresh roses from the garden in a vase.

"Oh, you decided to keep your outfit on! You really like it then?"

"Of course," I said automatically.

The pony reared up and put her hooves on the wall, and adjusted a picture frame with her horn.

"So, what do you have planned for us today?" Rarity asked, as her fore-hooves landed back on the ground.

"I didn't really have anything planned. Can you think of anything?" I asked.

"Well," she said right away, "I would very much like to take a dip in your pool."

"Sure," I said. "It should be heated."

I went outside and opened the pool cover. It was warmer today than it had been this whole week, certainly warm enough for a swim. Rarity came out onto the patio and approached the edge of the pool. She dipped her hoof in.

"The water is quite nice. Won't you come in as well?" she asked.

I noticed I still had my cocktail waiter garb on.

"I'll... be right back," I said, embarrassed.

When in returned in my swim trunks, Rarity had just descended the last step into the pool and was happily paddling about in the shallow end.

"I generally don't like being wet, that is to say, getting rained on. But a relaxing swim is different, and I find it to be quite refreshing!" She said happily.

"I thought you were coming in?" She asked in her usual tone.

"I am. Ready? Here I come!" I got ready for a running jump into the pool.

"Oh you are such a joker!" She laughed.

"Sorry... what?" I asked, stopping in my tracks.

"Why, you are still wearing clothes, silly! You can't seriously tell me that you humans swim in your clothes as well, Can you?"

"Yes, this is my bathing suit," I explained.

Rarity's expression became more serious. "You aren't serious, are you? A "bathing suit"? Well if that isn't the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard!"

I stood there for a second. Why the heck not? No neighbors could see me.

"Hah, gotcha! You thought we wore clothes to swim!" I said as I stepped out of my trunks.

"I did not!" started the unicorn, "A bathing suit... how ridiculous, I didn't' believe it for a second!"

I jumped in. The awkward feeling of nakedness receded now that I was in the water. Rarity continued to paddle back and forth. Her paddling reminded me of my dog's, which my parents had had when I much younger. I now stood there, curiously observing the pony that swam back and forth in front of me.

"Can't humans swim?" Asked the bobbing white head.

"Of course, I was just... getting used to the water," I said.

I swam around and then over to the deep end. Rarity followed me, her head bobbing up and down and back and forth. I smiled and laughed.

"What's so funny?" She asked in a serious tone.

"Nothing," I said, "You are just very cute when you swim."

"Cute? ... Perhaps you mean graceful?"

"Oh, but you are graceful too!" I exclaimed. Rarity now reached the ledge of the pool next to me, and threw her forelegs up onto it. She was panting a little. I took off suddenly towards the other side, leaving Rarity behind. I had soon reached the other side of the pool.

"You may be faster than me, but your style is crude!" Called the panting unicorn, swimming after me. I stood in the shallow end, urging her on.

"Come on Rarity, nearly there!"

"I do not need to be patronized by you!" said Rarity as she swam past me.

Rarity reached the ledge of the pool, panting more heavily now.

"Besides," she continued, now paddling in front of me, "I must remain afloat, while you have the luxury of standing."

I dove down, and sat at the bottom for a moment. looking up, I saw Rarity's kicking legs, and her blurred head. She looked this way and that into the water below her, wondering where I had gone and why. I positioned myself and stood up on my knees, lifting Rarity along with me. My head was just above the water's surface.

"Wahahaaaha!" Yelled the surprised unicorn. Her rear legs held her above my shoulders, and her hooves dangled in the water in front of my chest. My neck was gripped between her thighs; basically, she was sitting on my shoulders. I propped her chest upright with my arms. She then balanced herself with some difficulty.

"What are you doing? Set me down at once!" cried the unicorn.

"Now you are standing in the water like me!" I said.

I stood up to my full height while Rarity continued her protests. Her soaking tail clung to me and ran down my lower back and into the water. She swished her tail and it tickled so much that a shiver ran up my spine. Her fur held a lot of water, and it continued to run down my body. Rarity calmed down as I began wading around.

"We often do this for fun in our world, we call this a piggy back ride." I said.

"I don't quite see the fun in this," Said Rarity, clearly annoyed.

"Go on, jump off my shoulders into the water."

"Celestia no! Why in Equestria would I do a thing like that?"

"For fun!" I said.

I realized she wasn't going to jump.

I grabbed her rear hooves with my hands, and pushed her up and over my head, throwing her into the water in front of me. Her yell was cut short this time as she splashed into the water. Rarity emerged a moment later, gasping and spitting water. She looked around and her soaked eyelids blinked rapidly as she tried to get her bearings. I took a couple strokes towards her. She turned to me with a confused and then angry expression. A good deal of her mane was hanging down in front of her face. I smiled and laughed kindly, parting the hair in front of her face so we could see each other clearly.

"Ooh! You, you!" Spouted the wet pony. The good-hearted expression in my face calmed her down, and she got a grip on the fun-and-games of it all.

"Oh haha," she said sarcastically. She paddled by me towards the shallow end and hopped up the stairs, bringing streams of water with her. I swam back to the ledge and watched her. She stopped, and turned to me. She did not look very amused.

"Could you um... Dry my off... Please?" She asked.

I hoped out, and suddenly remembered I was naked. I grabbed a towel from the pool's edge and dried Rarity off.

"You might want to take a quick shower, to wash off the chlorine from the pool."

"Chlorine? What's that?" She asked.

"It um... it dries out your skin," I said.

"Oh! Thank you for the warning. I will do that right away," she said and promptly walked inside.

I picked up my bathing suit and considered it for a moment. I walked into my room and put it back in the drawer.

"I should take a quick shower too," I thought. But I found Rarity in my shower. Maybe I should have told her to use my dad's shower. I just stood there for a moment, naked, looking into the bathroom.

"Well?" She asked from behind the shower door, "You do have Chlorine on you, do you not?"

Was bathing not thought of as a private activity in Equestria? I wondered if maybe the ponies used communal bathrooms and showers; it seemed likely to me. I opened the door and stepped in. I actually had quite a large shower, and there was ample room for both of us to stand. I rubbed soap down Rarity's back and legs. When I ran my hand over her flank, she twitched.

"Ooh!" She said.

"I'm sorry..." I said, not knowing what I had done.

"That is OK. A pony's flank as a very sensitive area, especially around the cutie mark. You couldn't possibly have known that."

"Cutie mark? I had thought it was some sort of branding... I didn't want to bring it up."

"A branding? Oh my! Of course not."

The warm water splashed down on Rarity and on tiled floor, mingling with the pony's voice.

"Every pony's cutie mark is unique, usually. It symbolizes the pony's special talent, or something they absolutely love."

Before I could ask what her cutie mark meant, Rarity spoke again.

"I think we are quite clean enough," she turned the shower's handle with her teeth and stepped out into my bathroom. I dried her off yet again, and she wandered off into the house. I returned to my room, and figured it was about time to put on some comfortable clothes.

I found Rarity stretched out on the living room floor.

"Ooh!" She exclaimed.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"In the midst of your horseplay in the pool, I tweaked my shoulder. I told you to set me down gently, but no!"

Rarity started trotting in a circle around the living room.

"Oh this will not do at all, what I need is a good masseuse! I am heading straight to the spa the moment I'm back in Equestria!"

I brushed aside the strange image of a spa full of ponies, and leaned down towards Rarity.

"Would you like me to try? Giving you a massage, that is..."

Rarity looked at me with a surprised look. "You? But do you know how to give a massage?" She asked.

"My mother once tried to get a massage license, and she practiced on me back when I played sports in high school. I learned, at least, where to apply pressure for tight muscles."

"I'm not so sure..." said the pony.

"Rarity, what if you can't return to Equestria for a month? Or more? Just let me help you. It could save you from some discomfort. Wouldn't you like to feel better by this evening... Oh, and I'm sorry about the "horseplay" in the pool."

Rarity smiled up at me, "Oh, you need not apologize, deary... I am usually very particular about my masseuse, but given the current situation, I suppose I may allow you to try," She said, teasingly. Her face then grew tense.

"But you must use just the right amount of pressure, and not too much in one place. And you must not jab and push too suddenly, and..."

I cut her off, placing my hand gently on her muzzle, "Rarity, the most important thing in a massage, is for the person -er, pony- receiving it to be completely relaxed."

"Oh... Yes, of course... You're right."

"Let's do it on the patio, the chairs we have out there can fold down," I said.

"Chairs? My dear, those are not chairs, those are chaise lounges. Outdoor versions, of course," She said, in a somewhat arrogant tone.

How did she know that? I didn't even know that.

"Well I suppose we can give this a shot. It can't hurt anything after all, right?" Said Rarity as she stretched out her front legs. "But you do have message oil, do you not?"

Of course I didn't have massage oil...

"Um... Why don't you go pick out something in my bathroom that looks like it will work?"

I set down a towel on the sunny chair, and adjusted it to be flat. I figured the afternoon sun might be uncomfortably hot for Rarity, so I moved it under the awning, next to the pool. Rarity returned in a minute with a bottle in her mouth. I took it from her and set it at my feet. Some sort of skin moisturizing lotion. I supposed it would work, but I wasn't really sure; I had never given a massage before.

"Ah, alright. Shall we begin?" Asked the unicorn.

Rarity laid down on her stomach on the lounger in much the same way a human would.

"OK now. My right shoulder has a knot in it, I think, and my back is a little stiff. And my left thigh is just a little sore. That's about it."

The strange symbols on Rarity's flanks were both visible from where I stood.

"Rarity, I didn't ask earlier, but what does your cutie mark mean?"

The unicorn proceeded to tell me the story of how she got her cutie mark. She lost me when she got to something about a "sonic rainboom." I had finished applying the lotion to her back, shoulders and thighs. I had been very gentle around her cutie marks, and she didn't twitch or anything like before, so I figured I had been gentle enough. I began rubbing her back, and Rarity directed me to the problem area.

"Oh that is too hard! ... Yes, much better... Now a little to the left... Now you may use a little more force, loosen up that muscle-knot."

"My goodness! Being massaged by hooves is nothing like being massaged by hands!" She exclaimed.

"Is that good or bad?" I asked.

"I think it is good. Hooves are clumsy and you can never quite get to the precise spot you need to... And hands are so much smoother..."

She was silent for a long while after that. I moved onto her shoulder, but she didn't give me any more directions. Her tailed stopped swishing between her legs as she relaxed more and more. Now it was time for her thigh. Some of the lotion had dried and I poured on some more from the bottle. I moved her tail off to the side and put my hand on the inside of her right thigh. I rubbed up and down, in the direction of the muscle. I thought I felt the tense spot.

"Is this the spot?" I asked her.

"Mmmmhmmm. Yes... quite..." Came Rarity's reply, which I could barely make out.

It seemed she was half asleep!

"Rarity?"

"Mmmmhmmm," came the muffled reply again.

Did that mean I was doing a good job? Rarity's wavy tail returned to it's original position and swished slowly back and forth. I tried to gently move it away again, but this time it did not move as easily. I let the tail stay, where it brushed against my arm, and I continued to push on Rarity's thigh until I felt the knot loosen up. I stood back and looked at the pony. She looked so happy and peaceful. Rarity stirred, and wiggled her body slightly. She was still completely relaxed. Why was I doing so many nice things for Rarity? And why did I enjoy it?

"Rarity," I said calmly, patting her on the back, "That was it. It's over. I'm done."

Rarity didn't answer, she was asleep. I wondered how long she had been asleep; and what she was thinking about, if anything. I leaned down in front of her. I could hear her breathing softly. I ran my fingers through her soft mane for a minute before getting up and going inside.

I washed my hands and laid down on my bed. I closed my eyes and dozed off to sleep. After about an hour I woke up from my nap. I returned to the living room and looked out the door onto the patio. Rarity was not laying where I had left her. I searched the Living room and kitchen, but didn't find her there either. I now saw her, out the window of the living room. She was at the far side of the lawn walking among the flowers, or trotting here and there to look at something. Is this what ponies did all day in Ponyville? Anyways, I was glad Rarity had come to me. She wouldn't have been happy with a human who lived in a city, or in a place where she couldn't roam outside at her will. Rarity lowered her head to smell a patch of daffodils; then nibbled their heads off, chewing them with a triumphant smile on her face. Watching her was mesmerizing, she was truly beautiful. Such beauty! My chest was tingling again. Why was my chest tingling? Rarity started trotting back towards the house, a bright smile on her face and her mane bouncing up and down. My heart seemed to stop.

"Stop it, stop it!" I said aloud to myself, and walked away from the window.

I went into the kitchen and turned on the TV, but I had no interest in it. I heard the front door open and immediately turned it off, got up and went to greet my little pony.

"Rarity!" I called.

"Hello! I was just taking a little walk outside... I'm sorry to say I fell asleep during the massage. How rude of me!"

"Never mind that. How are you feeling?" I asked.

"Oh I feel wonderful! You did a wonderful job for your first massage! I'm very impressed. Now I'm as good as new," Said the unicorn, walking past me. "I still have lotion on me, I must wash myself off."

"Do you need any help?" I asked, turning as she walked past.

"Oh, perhaps I will need assistance drying off again," she said.

I returned to my room, and sat down on my bed I could hear water running in my bathroom. My closet door was open and I was reminded of this morning, when the pony had used me to play dress-up. It's too bad there weren't any women's clothes in the house, or I would have given her something to play around with. Was there nothing, not even a piece of plain fabric? I thought about it for a minute but couldn't think of anything. I could just go buy her a dress tomorrow, if I still thought she'd really like it. How about any jewelry? ... That's it! It would be perfect! But as I hopped off my bed, Rarity suddenly called to me.

"Oh yoo-hoo!" she sang out.

I stuck my head into the bathroom.

"Could you perhaps dry me off once again?" Asked the pony, standing soaking wet on the bathroom floor.

"Of course," I said, patting her head and grabbing the towel from the rack.

"You will mind my mane, won't you? I have it just how I like it."

The whole bathroom smelled like a wet animal. I'm sure that in Ponyville, it was negligible. Maybe to Rarity, humans smelled strange when wet? I dawned on me that I really didn't mind the smell all that much; in fact, I kinda liked it.

"Now," said Rarity as I dried off her neck, "That wouldn't happen be a piano in your living room, would it?"

Was she about to tell me that ponies played instruments now too!? I had had enough surprises like this the last couple days, and now I just accepted it, as strange as it seemed. I chuckled and told Rarity that it was.

"Let me guess," I said, "You can play the piano."

"Well, no..." Said the pony, "but I do sing."

"You are a singer? I should have known! I've heard you humming a few times," I said.

"I certainly am! And you are a pianist, I take it? Oh, we could have the loveliest duet this evening! It will be divine!" Said the pony excitedly as I finished drying her fur.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you Rarity, but I'm not the best piano player."

"Oh nonsense. You can't be all that bad if you have a piano. Surely it can't hurt to simply give it a go, as it were?"

I smiled at her.

"Sure thing," I said, "Should we go practice or something?"

"Very well. Lead the way," She said as we walked out of the bathroom.

I remembered the thing I had wanted her to try on.

"Rarity," I said, stopping and turning to her, "Remember our game of uh... dress-up this morning?"

"Yes... Would you like to play again?" she asked sincerely.

"Uh.... no. Not right now. But listen; I have something for you to try on," I said, kneeling down so my face was in front of hers."

"Oh my! What is it?" Said the unicorn, her face brightening up.

"Just a second," I said as I stood up.

"Oh what is it! Tell me! tell me!" Cried Rarity, now jumping up and down.

Her excitement made my smile. I walked over to my bed, and took out an old box from underneath it. I removed my mother's necklace from a hidden compartment in the bottom of the box and hid it behind my back as I walked back towards the prancing unicorn.

"Well, what is it!?" Said the pony, curiosity engulfing her expression.

I leaned in close to her and placed the necklace around her neck, latched the back of it, and sat back to look at her. Rarity gasped excitedly and jumped up and down again. She ran back into the bathroom to look at it in the mirror; I followed.

"Oh my Celestia! Doesn't that look marvelous?" Said the white unicorn, now admiring herself in the mirror.

I sat on my haunches beside her and rested my arm on her back, stroking her mane.

"Is this gold?! It compliments my fur perfectly," said the unicorn excitedly.

"And your eyes," I said, smiling at her in the mirror.

"Pardon?" said the unicorn, turning to look at my face.

"It matches your eyes," I repeated.

"... I suppose it does, doesn't it?"

"Your story about your cutie mark made me think of it," I said.

"It is magnificent! Thank you! I would like to wear it this whole evening! ... If that's alright with you?" She said, now looking back at me.

"I would be very happy if you did," I said.

"Are you still interested in that duet?" I asked.

"Of course. Let us make music! But first, I must beautify myself," Said Rarity, now searching through her saddle bags.

I left her in the bathroom. I stopped in the doorway of my bedroom. "I'll put on something she'll like," I thought. I picked out a pair of slacks, and a black dress-shirt from the closet. I walked out of my room and down the hallway. The sun had just gone down, and I turned on the lights in the living and dinning rooms. I sat down at the piano. Rarity had put a rose filled vase on top of it. What would I do now? I knew lots of bits and pieces of songs, but only a handful I knew the whole length of. Rarity came into the room a few minutes later, walking gracefully towards me, holding her chin upwards and smiling. She had fixed up her eyelashes again like yesterday. Her white coat and purple mane gleamed in the light. The gold and sapphires of the necklace added a certain elegance to her whole persona. I could tell she felt more like herself this way, clean and regal-looking. And for a moment, I could almost picture her in a dress. Tonight was the most beautiful I had seen her. Rarity stopped next to the piano bench.

"Good evening, my lady," I said, lifting up her fore-hoof and kissing it.

Rarity blushed and retracted her hoof.

"Oh my..." Said the unicorn, blinking at me, "And good evening to you gentlecolt... or rather gentle-human, as it were," Rarity smiled.

"Shall we begin?" She asked.

"ahem!" She cleared her throat, "Do re mi fa so la ti do! Do re mi fa so la ti do, ti la so fa mi re do! Mi mi mi mi mi mi mi mi mi! La la la la la la la la la!"

"You're not going to sit there, are you?" I asked the unicorn who was sitting on her rump on the floor next to me.

"Why, where else would be more appropriate?"

"Up here," I said gently.

I put my arms under the pony's fore legs, and lifted her up. Our noses were touching. The unicorn's huge eyes blinked at me, and her back legs dangled against my thighs. I turned her around and lifted her onto the piano. I moved the vase off to the side. Rarity stood stiff legged on the slick surface, perhaps trying not to scratch it with her hooves. She carefully adjusted herself and laid down, folding her legs beneath her.

"One more thing!" I said, and ran over to the door leading to the garage.

"Where in Equestria are you going?" Asked the unicorn in her usual voice.

I didn't answer, but instead went into the garage, and opened up the wine cooler. I selected a pinot noir from the bottom rack, where hopefully my dad wouldn't see it missing when he came home in a few weeks. The pony on my piano stared at me blankly as I walked back into the room. But she smiled with delight as she saw the bottle of wine in my hands.

"Don't you move an inch. I'll get us some glasses," I said, setting the bottle on the piano.

I returned and poured us both a glass of wine.

"The wine is marvelous," said Rarity, as she sipped from the glass I held up to her mouth. "I dare say it is better than any equestrian wines I've had. You humans never cease to amaze me!"

"I doubt we know any of the same songs," I said, sitting down on the piano bench.

"Hmmm, yes that would be a problem... I'll teach you a song I wrote. Be a dear and play these for me, will you?" Said Rarity. "D, Dsus4, D, and Dsus2."

One thing I did know was chords, and I found them pretty fast.

"Alright then. Now follow along," said the unicorn, "I'll sing slowly... here were go!"

"Thread by thread, stitching it together..." began the pony.

After a couple of repeats, I got the timing down correctly, and was doing a little improvisation with my right hand.

"Hmmm. This song doesn't quite have the right mood... Let's try this one,"

Said Rarity.

Rarity told me the new chords.

"Da da da da __ da da da da," I played.

"Very good. Here we go, slowly," The pony took a deep breath and began, "At the Gala, all the royals, they will meet fair Rarity," she sang, "Have you got all that?"

"Yes, I've got the basics down," I said.

"Ok, here we go, full speed this time... At the Gala, all the royals, they will meet fair Rarity. They will see I'm just as regal at the Gala!"

I was blown away by her voice! It was soft, and yet strong, and it was as sweet as an angel's. Rarity smiled at me, her eyes and the necklace both gleaming. She closed her eyes slightly, showing off the sparkly blue makeup on her eyelids.

"I will find him, my prince charming, and how gallant he will be! He will treat me, like a lady, tonight at the Gala!"

"Rarity," I said, "You have the most beautiful voice I've ever heard.

Rarity blushed, "Oh, you are exaggerating, I'm sure."

"No," I said, "I'm sure you have the best voice in Equestria."

"Well," said Rarity, raising her chin up, "I suppose my voice IS quite lovely... I've been giving my sister, Sweetie Belle, lessons, and she is turning into quite a singer herself."

"I didn't know you had a sister, Rarity," I said.

Rarity sighed, "I wish I didn't sometimes... But when it comes down to it, I truly do love her."

Now it was my turn to choose a song. I chose one of the few I knew, Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton. I recited the lyrics to her, and then, going measure by measure, I showed her which notes to hit with her voice. I gave her another sip of wine. We went through my song slowly; and when Rarity thought she had it all down, we tried it once through. Rarity did very well, but couldn't remember one of the verses.

Feeling abnormally confident in my own singing, I finished it for her.

"I feel wonderful because I see the love light in your eyes. And the wonder of it all... is that you just don't realize how much I love you." The song was finished.

"I don't know what you meant when you said you weren't a good pianist. You did very well," Said the pony, "and your voice was not bad either!"

"It would have been nothing without your voice. You carried both of us the whole time," I protested.

"Oh not at all! I could not have know what notes to hit without your playing. Let's just say we complimented each other; two necessary elements to a lovely duet!"

"Fine. But I still say you are the true talent," I said, lifting Rarity up and setting her back on the floor. We had each had a glass and a half of wine by this point.

"Dear me... I am simply famished. What shall we do for dinner?"

"I have something for us tonight," I said. "I'll go get it ready."

I entered the kitchen and removed the frozen lasagna, void of meat of course, from the freezer. Lasagna wasn't my favorite, but it was better than fruit salad, and it was filling. I put the dish in the oven, which I had turned on earlier. I know, lasagna is probably the last thing you'd think of as "a special dinner," but give me a break, I've never cooked before! Then, walking in through the kitchen door, came my beautiful little pony. I walked to meet her. I sat down on my haunches in front of her and stroked her mane.

"You seem to like doing that," Said Rarity plainly.

"It's just... very soft. I won't do it if it bothers you," I said, pulling my hand back.

"I thought it was a bit strange at first... but actually I find it oddly soothing," she said.

"And do you mind me petting you like this?" I asked, stroking the fur on her cheeks and petting her head.

Rarity shook her head, indicating a "No."

"The dinner shouldn't take too long," I said, standing up.

"Excuse me a moment, will you? I must use the powder room," Said the unicorn as she walked down the hall, her wavy tail swishing behind her. I dimmed the lights slightly in the living room and dinning room. When she came back, we sat at the dinning room table and talked. Rarity told me about her sister and her sister's friends. She also told me about princess Luna's transition to Nightmare moon and back, and how she and her friends had helped save Equestria. I was very impressed! The oven finally beeped. I brought out the Lasagna.

"Oh my stars! Did you make this?!" Asked the pony excitedly.

I couldn't lie... "Well... Not really, no. I bought it from the store."

Rarity's excited smile faded slightly.

"But I did make these," I said, "Bringing out a couple plates of salad."

I was no chef, I hardly knew how to cook anything without the oven or microwave. But I told myself, right then, that tomorrow I would cook dinner for Rarity from scratch. Even if it took me all day, I would make a point of doing it. Rarity's smile returned and we began eating.

"My goodness, you are hungry!" she exclaimed, as she notice how fast I was eating.

I was extremely hungry, I couldn't live on fruit salad. I leaned over the table from time to time to lift Rarity's wine glass up to her mouth. Halfway though the dinner we finished the bottle of wine.

"Would you like to split another bottle," I asked the elegant unicorn sitting across from me.

"Oh... Well I suppose so," she said.

"Great. Would you like the same wine? Or something different."

"Oh the same one please, it was simply divine!"

I retrieved another bottle. When I came back into the dinning room, I noticed Rarity admiring my mother's necklace around her neck. I poured the wine for us. The pony spoke as she took another sip from the glass in my hand.

"I must say, when the princess' spell misfired and I lost my friends, I was terrified. More terrified than I have ever been! And without the use of my magic, a unicorn's only self-assurance, I knew I was done for. I would be eaten by beasts, or starve, or freeze... That was only a few days ago. I would not have guessed that the next three days would be like a weekend at the spa! I am given a warm bed to sleep in, bathed, pampered, fed by hoof -hand I mean-, serenaded, and massaged of all things!"

I blushed, but did not take my eyes from the pony who stared at me from across the table.

"I don't know what to say, or how I can ever repay you," said the unicorn sincerely.

"Don't worry about that," I said, "It's not a chore... I was unsure at first, but now I'm happy to do things for you. I want to do everything possible to make you as happy as can be."

"I'm afraid I don't understand," said the pony, genuinely confused.

"I'm not sure I do either," I said, after a lengthy pause, "I don't understand it myself..."

"You know... If you were a colt..." Rarity's thoughts trailed off and she didn't finish.

"What if I were a colt?" I asked.

"Never mind... It's nothing," she said.

Rarity let the subject drop, and returned to her smiling self. Soon we had finished dinner, and had another piece of the cake from last night. We were laughing happily as Rarity told me more about her world, and about the humorous happenings in Ponyville. I cleared the table. When I returned I noticed that Rarity was swaying from side to side, blinking blankly at the wine glass in front of her. The alcohol was showing in her. There was still more wine in the bottle.

"Now what?" I asked her.

She blinked at me and then hopped down the floor, nearly knocking her chair over as she did so.

"There is one thing I haven't done yet," She said.

"What's that?" I asked.

"I'd like to take a dip in your hot tub. Do you think that would be alright?"

"Of course," I said, "Here. Let's take that necklace off first."

I knelt down and leaned over Rarity's neck to unlatch the necklace.

"There," I said, "Now you're all set to go."

"Will you not join me?" She asked.

"Of course. I'll be right there," I said, setting the necklace on the table.

Rarity opened the kitchen door and walked out onto the patio. I remembered the wine, and jogged over to grab the bottle and a glass. I turned on the outside lights and climbed out of my clothes, again feeling the awkwardness of being naked. Outside, I set the wine down and lifted off the hot tub cover. I climbed in and sat down, Rarity dropped her two front hooves onto the first step with a "plunk" sound.

"Come on," I said reassuringly, and helped her to step down into the hot water.

"Oh, the water is superb! ... You do not put chlorine in your hot tub as well, do you?"

"No, not in ours," I said.

A hot tub is an awkward place for a pony to stand in. Rarity now turned around on the seat-ledge, trying to find footing. I suggested she sit down in the human fashion. I helped her to sit down on the step next to me. Rarity pawed at her mane, trying to keep it out of the water.

"This is so soothing. Ah... This is perfect after that massage earlier," Said Rarity, sinking further down into the water.

She wiggled herself from side to side, muttering her little noises and sighs. I filled the wine glass and brought it between us. She noticed it, and turned her attention to me. I took a sip and then held it up to Rarity's mouth. She sipped the wine as I tilted the glass forward. I brought the glass back to my mouth, took another sip, and set it on the edge of the hot tub. We sat there in silence for several minutes, listening to crickets that lurked nearby in the darkness. Besides the crickets, it was dead quiet. We gazed up at the constellations above and watched the vapors rise off the dark surface of the water. I broke the silence by giving us both another sip of wine.

"What are you thinking about, Rarity?" I asked

"My friends," she said after a pause.

"Wherever they are right now, I have a feeling they're safe," I reassured her.

"I have just the same feeling. I do hope the feeling is accurate..." Said the pony.

I gave her another sip of wine, and emptied the last little bit of the bottle into the glass. I ran my fingers through her mane a couple of times, then started rubbing her ear closest to me.

"Ah, I cannot remember the last time I had an ear rub," Said the pony in a very relaxed voice.

When I had stopped, Rarity turned to me and said, "Enough massages for me, I'd like to give you one. How about a back massage?"

Rarity tried to maneuver herself into a standing position. But one of her hooves slipped off the submerged step and the pony disappeared under the water with a soft splash. She uttered a quick "Eek!" as she went down.

I quickly fished Rarity out of the water. The wet pony climbed onto the seat to my left. She spat water out of her mouth, frustrated by the soaked mane hanging over her eyes. I cleared her mane from her eyes, and combed it down her back with my fingers.

She was too cute; I just couldn't resist anymore. I threw my arms around the wet unicorn sitting beside, and hugged her. Rarity still said nothing. She leaned against me and nuzzled my neck. I nuzzled my chin against Rarity's head and patted her back. She let out a relaxed sigh. For a couple minutes we embraced in the hug.

"I am a little too warm," Said the unicorn after a minute. "I think I'll get out now."

I didn't say anything, but let the pony get up. She climbed out of the tub. I climbed out after her and put the cover back on. We went inside and I dried her off in my bathroom. I put my pajamas on. I left my room to turn out the lights and put away a few things, which only took a minute. When I returned, Rarity was already on my bed. She stretched her fore-hooves out on the bed and yawned. She climbed under the covers and adjusted herself to her liking. I crawled into bed with her; we were laying next to each other.

"I'd just like you to know that I had a wonderful evening. I really appreciate the trouble you went through to make it special," spoke Rarity.

"Well, I enjoyed your company too. I'm glad we could have a nice evening together," I said.

"Yes, yes... I as well," Said Rarity, "Good night, gentle-human."

Rarity leaned over and nuzzled her nose against my cheek. I blushed, but nobody could have seen it in the darkness.

"Goodnight Rarity," I said.

Did Rarity just kiss me? Is that how ponies kiss? My head was swimming with questions that I had no answers for. Eventually my mind calmed down and I dozed off to sleep, again with a smile on my face.

Days Four - Fifteen:

The days that passed were much like the first few. Rarity and I swam, and we played. I bathed her and brushed her. She taught me to cook; they were all vegetarian meals, but it was cooking nonetheless. We also baked cookies a couple times. I spent every hour of everyday with her; and we both enjoyed it very much. We got in the habit of taking my truck out for a drive late at night, when no people were around. From the car, I showed her the town and the hills around it. We listened to the classical music station on the car radio, that was her favorite thing. I received no more "pony kisses" after the first occurrence; nonetheless, Rarity and I understood that we both liked each other very much as friends. We usually drank one bottle of wine each day, so I went to the store and got a whole case for us.

Rarity had also taught me to dance! On three occasions, she had dressed me up and we pretended we were at a ball. I cleared the center of the living room and we danced to music from our CD collection. Rarity always chose classical music (not my favorite), but it helped create the atmosphere of a ball. The chandelier hanging above us helped the atmosphere too. Sometimes Rarity would sing, and I would play piano. At those balls we had danced into the night. The other thing I had started doing, was grooming myself. I actually made an effort to get rid of my bed head in the morning. I showered and shaved everyday and I put on clean clothes each morning. I started exercising too, and I worked out with some weights I had. And I swam everyday, usually with Rarity. I even started using cologne in the evenings. I felt more confident in myself and my appearance. I felt motivated like I had never been before. And it was all because of the unicorn-pony who had come into my life.

Rarity had had a profound impact on me for sure. I felt confident and excited for what each new day would bring. I questioned why I had just been sitting at home for so long. Why had I been content on hiding away in my room and missing out on life? I wanted to go out and see what life had in store for me. For once, I even thought it might be kind of fun to have a job. But for now, it was just my little pony and I spending these days in timeless bliss. The days seemed to go by like I was in a dream. I had never been happier. My friendship with Rarity had changed my life around.

Eventually the day came when Rarity went home. The sun had already gone down and we were in the living room. I had cleared the center of the living room, for the "ball" that we had dressed up for. I was sitting this dance out, and watched Rarity happily prance back and forth on the floor. She was truly remarkable. She had my mother's necklace on, which sparkled on her neck as she spun around. Suddenly there was a loud thud on the roof above us. Rarity dropped down on all fours and looked at me with a frightened look. I didn't know what it was either. There was an odd knock on the door. I wasn't sure what to do. Rarity ran into the dinning room to stay out of sight.

"Who is it?" I yelled. The door wasn't locked, but the knocker clearly didn't know that.

"I WILL ASK THE QUESTIONS HERE. NOW OPEN THIS DOOR!" boomed a thunderous voice from outside.

My hair was standing on end, and I backed away from the door. Rarity came scurrying in from the dinning room anxiously, her hooves slipping on the floor.

Rarity ran past me and opened the door. She returned to my side and bowed down as the door opened. A full-sized dark-blue horse walked through the door and shot me an icy glance. The horse had both a horn and wings. Her mane was fluorescent and sparkled strangely. Was this the princess Rarity had spoken of?

"Princess Luna!" said Rarity.

"Hello Rarity," said the mare, speaking softer now, "Art thou alright? Has this creature harmed you?"

"I am perfectly fine," said Rarity as she stood up.

"You must be wondering why I am here," said Luna. "The non-magical properties of this world caused my sister's spell to misfire when she attempted to teleport you all back to Equestria. Only the one called Rainbow Dash arrived at Canterlot. My sister arrived a moment later, having teleported herself. Her magic, too, was weakened in this world, and she could only teleport one pony at a time. She implored me to assist her in finding you and your friends. I am to retrieve you and Fluttershy while Celestia finds the others. My sister also explained that time passes differently in this world. How long have you been here?"

"Two weeks," replied Rarity.

"You see, for us only one hour has passed," said Luna.

Rarity was silent.

The princess spoke again, "We must make haste. I shall send you back immediately. Then I must find Fluttershy. She is not a great ways off."

"May I say goodbye to my friend, princess?" asked Rarity, looking at me.

"Your friend? ... Very well," said the princess, observing us.

I knelt down and Rarity jumped into my arms. I hugged her.

"Well I suppose this is goodbye then," said Rarity.

"Rarity," I said, "I'd like you to keep my mother's necklace."

The unicorn gasped, "Oh no! I couldn't possibly..."

"I use to imagine I'd give it to the perfect girl, if I ever found her. Someone sweet, intelligent, kind, and beautiful... Recently I started thinking I'd never find her. But I did when you came into my life... and I know that I want you to have it."

Tears welled up in the unicorn's eyes and she nuzzled her cheek against mine.

"One day you will find that girl of your dreams... But it can't be me. I'm sorry," cried Rarity as she looked away, tears now streaming down her cheeks.

I started crying now too. The princess' stern look had turned into one of curiosity and compassion.

"I have something for you," said Rarity, and she ran to the hallway and to my room.

The princess smiled at me as I knelt on the floor awkwardly. I scratched my head blankly. Oh my God, this was awkward! Thankfully Rarity came back in in just a few moments, her saddle bags in her mouth.

She set them before me, stuck her muzzle in, and rummaged through them. She had something in her mouth. She dropped three giant blue sapphires between my legs. I stared open-mouthed at them.

"I don't remember how these got in my bags, but they are from my special collection at home. I only use them in dresses for very well-to-do clients! They'll remind you of me, since they are like my cutie mark. Please have them."

"Oh of course Rarity!" I said, leaning forward and hugging her again. "I love them, thank you. I'll think of you everyday. I'll never forget."

"Oh, and I will do the same with your necklace! I'll never forget you either, as long as I live! This I promise," said Rarity.

Princess Luna stepped forward.

"It is time for me to go, darling," said the teary-eyed pony, backing out of our embrace.

Then, as the princess bent her horn down towards her, Rarity turned back and gave me a quick kiss. Not a nuzzle like before, but an actual kiss. It was only a split second, but it said so much and meant so much to me.

"I am ready," Said Rarity to the princess.

"Think of Canterlot. It will make this easier," said Princess Luna.

Rarity closed her eyes, tears still flowing from them. The princess lowered her horn down to touch Rarity's forehead. Princess Luna's horn sparked and began to glow. A sparkling, purple mist began to swirl around Rarity. Princess Luna gritted her teeth, as she concentrating her magic. A few moments later Rarity disappeared in a bright flash of light, the necklace along with her. The princess exhaled deeply and contemplated her work for a few seconds before turning and walking out the door. I ran outside after her. Her horn glowed again, and she turned around as if finding directions to something. She then stretched her wings and disappeared into the night sky.

Epilogue

Three months later (Today)

It's been three months since Rarity left. I had that brief dream about Rarity last night, which I mentioned at the start of the story. I miss her. I have cherished the gems she gave me. I'm sure they're worth a lot of money, but for now their sentimental value is my greatest treasure.

But Time moves on, and so must I. After that fateful night when Rarity had to leave, I did not slump back into my old habits. Instead I've kept myself physically fit and well groomed, the things that being around Rarity had enticed me to do. When my dad returned from his business trip, he was surprised that I wanted to work. I recently got a paid internship at an office downtown. My dad knew someone at the company who was able to get me in. I wasn't sure what my first job would have in store for me. Rarity had taught me to be confident about life, and I was excited about my first day on the job.

That day is today. I now stand at office doors, adjusting my tie. The glass doors are too dark to see through. "This is it," I say to myself. I open the doors and walk in. In the well-lit entry room, there is a reception desk against one of the walls. Here sits whom I assumed to be the receptionist, a girl about my age. She's turns sideways towards me so I can just see her profile. She's looking into a handheld mirror, and examining her hair, which is hanging down from her head in big curls and seems to shimmer in the light. I approached the desk.

"Yes, how may I help you?" She said, putting down the mirror and turning to me.

I pause for a moment to "soak in" her appearance. He has on a bright white blouse -simple yet stylish-, and also a long, purple skirt. She's also wearing a simple necklace with a small blue sapphire in the middle, with matching earrings. She's not wearing any makeup other than a little something on her eyes and eyelashes. Her eyes are dark blue. I thought she was kind of pretty.

"Hi," I say, "I'm starting an internship here today."

"Is that with Mr. Douglas?" She asks.

"Yes, that's right."

"Well, welcome to the company," She says, smiling, "I'll let him know you're here."

"Mr. Douglas, someone's here to see you for the internship," She now says into an intercom.

"He'll be out in a minute," she says, "So what's your name?"

I told her.

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Chastity."

Now we're talking about casual things. She makes a joke and we're laughing. I smile at her and she smiles back at me. Suddenly I realize that she's not just pretty, she's downright gorgeous. And such a sweet voice! Now she's looking me over!

"You know, it's good to see someone around here who takes pride in his appearance," she's saying. She leans towards me and whispers, "You wouldn't know it, but some of the our employees around here have THE WORST body odor..."

I smile at her and laugh.

"You remind me of someone I used to know," I say, "I think we're going to get along together just fine."