//------------------------------// // Pre-Flight Checks And Some Thoughts On Humanity // Story: Blossoming: Learning How To Fly // by nanashi_jones //------------------------------// Day 11 Waking at 6:00 am, I blinked in the darkness of our bedroom. For a brief second, everything was a little off. A little not quite right. Like I’d forgotten to lock the door or pack my toothbrush on a soul-crushing level. Then it all settled out. “Weird,” I muttered, rubbing at my mane. Jess/Cloud Kicker dozed beside me. She was splayed in the more comfortable position for any pegasi using a bed not made of clouds, but she still had Jess’s sleepy smile on her face. I moved my pillow over and her forelegs clutched absently. I smiled. I loved her. I really did. Floating out, I coaxed Phouka along and shut the door so I could turn on the kitchen and living room lights without disturbing the sleeping pony girlfriend. Which is a sentence that says a lot about my life now. After I adjusted to the light, I flew over to the calendar Jess drew up and looked at her forseeable schedule. She was off today, so we’d have her call at noon to clear the rest of the time off. That was before her boss’s lunch and guaranteed a contact she could work with. Next, I powered up my laptop after that and took the plunge on learning how to better use it. We couldn’t both just mooch off Jess’s iPad. It took a little dexterity and I had to resort to a hunt-and-peck method I hadn’t used since I was 12, but eventually I was typing, if at a quarter of my old speed. First up, map travel. I set up a map that would take us through the Midwest over to California then back across the country toward New York. I was hoping by that time, everything would settle or at least with something more certain than Walnutday or whatever. Then, I built a Facebook page: Cloud Kicker and Blossomforth - Cross Country Pegasi. I put out that we were willing to work with the Guards and set up an e-mail to handle new pony sightings and support. I preferred playing Oracle and organizing from afar, but Cloud- I mean, Jess, would want to be hooves on if she could manage it. Wait, no. I wanted hooves on and Jess wanted distance. Wait... I shook my head. Okay, weird. Hey, Janu- Er. Blossomforth, you awake? I thought, knocking on my head. Yeah, yeah. Did we even sleep? Maybe? I thought. I shook my head. Dreamtalks are weird. Word. I quickly activated the group page, then got my wallet and cell phone. Then, I slapped on Jess’s rigged utility belt, preparing to fly to the grocery store. I paused as I finished buckling the belt. I knew that back in the bedroom my wrist cuff was on the dresser next to my yin-yang pendant necklace. I’d gone au-natural the day before as a way of getting used to being a pony and, okay, if I can avoid having to deal with clothes, it is a good day, but the cuff was as much a part of me as my necklace. Mind made up, I slipped into the still dark room and slapped the cuff around my right foreleg, then slid the necklace easily around my head. The yin-yang pendant rested just above the curve of my trunk, my thick neck making up for any lack of chest I now possessed. I snatched my driver’s cap off the hat rack, picked up the fabric grocery bags we kept and flew to the grocery. When I returned with the full bag, I found Jess up and staring at the tea kettle. “Morning,” I said, cheerfully. She blinked over at me, smiled slightly. “Morning, you,” she replied. She fluttered over and kissed me. Warmly. I was a little hesitant, but then relented and reciprocated in full. We separated and she smiled coyly to flutter back to the tea. “How’d you sleep?” I asked, setting out the provisions on our table. Phouka danced around below me, hoping to con an extra walk out of my return. I gave her a hard look, but she just danced more. “Uh...” Jess said. “Weird. Definitely weird.” “Oh?” She stared quietly at the tea again. “I met Cloud Kicker...?” she said. “And?” She was quiet again, though this time was due to coordinating the pouring of tea without burning herself. Satisfied with her task, she leaned against the counter to look at me, her expression thoughtful. “I... Can’t really describe it. We’re good. But. Wow.” She shook her head. “I wasn’t expecting it like that.” “Yeah, the dreamtalks are weird like that.” “And I woke up with your pillow in my mouth.” “Also to be expected for the first time,” I replied with a warm smile. “What did you get?” “Provisions!” I said with a flourish. “Also started a Facebook page so we could communicate with others and laid in a loose flight path. If nothing else, we can stay out of planes’ ways, but I don’t think we’d classify as anything other than really big birds. I also figured you could talk with your boss around noon while we were flying out. “As for Phouka, since she can’t come with us, I picked out three likely-” Jess started waving her forelegs about, attempting to slow me down. “Sorry. Too early?” I asked. “Not that. Love, I appreciate the effort, but how did you...” She gestured as if to encompass the room. I shrugged. “I dunno. I just... I got up and these seemed like the things to do.” My brow furrowed. “Why?” Jess shrugged. “You don’t usually go this all out?” “I don’t?” Jess shook her head. “Huh.” That may have been me, Blossomforth thought. We merged more than we thought? I responded. Seems like. We’re also getting terse to the point of monosyllabism, I noted. That’s from you, Blossomforth thought back with a grin. I like witty dialogue, I defended. It is fast, Blossomforth admitted. Funny. Sorkin style. Psssh. “January?” Jess asked. “Sorry?” “You had this... Little smile on your face.” “Sorry. Blossomforth and I were bonding.” For the briefest instant, Jess’s face clouded, but then it parted and she nodded, amused. “Well, let me make the dog calls. She’s my responsibility.” “Yeah, but I help.” “You certainly do,” she said warmly. “While you’re doing that, I’ll take her for a quick run.” Since we’d been skimping on Phouka’s walks for the past few weeks due to the cold snap and our jobs, I walked Phouka up to the dog path, fluttering along just above and behind her. Once she’d done her business, I paused, looking at her wagging her tail. A thought occurred. “Hey Phouka...” I crooned. “Wanna run?” She danced a little at that. Securing the leash on my foreleg, I checked the path ahead to ensure it was clear. “Okay...” I said, changing to an air start position I learned from Flight Camp. “On three.” Oddly enough, the dog got ready, her body bent low, her tail wagging as if she were at a starting line. Ignoring the appropriate reaction, I started the countdown. “One... Two... THREE!” And we were off. Phouka is a really nervous dog. She’s been known to get spooked by her food bowl if she knocks it with her leg. She does have one absolute favorite past time that gets a lot of that nervous energy out though: running. She was Jessica’s dog before they moved in with me and Jess used to live in the boonies of Middle-of-Nowhere, Georgia, so she used to take Phouka with her on two mile runs. Since moving in with me and my more suburban preferences, Phouka hadn’t gotten that regular exercise in a while. So every now and then, we’d cut her loose to let her get a good run in. Now, though, I could keep up. Which I did pretty easily. While running, human me may have struggled for breath (my sport had been swimming and that was a longer time ago than it wasn’t), flying, Blossomforth me was able to keep a pretty good speed next to the pooch all through the dog path. I shouldn’t have been surprised since I’d kept up with a freaking car on the freeway, but I’d never run along next to a car. I had run along next to the dog and nearly given myself a heart attack though. Memories are weird like that I guess. When Phouka was sufficiently runned out, I trotted along next to her as we returned to the apartment. I smiled and nodded to the joggers on the path. They paid me the same respect. Never underestimate humanity’s ability to adapt. Sure there was that PAPA group and I was certain I’d run into all manner of pony love and hate on the cross country trip, but the everyday people? The ones who were just going through their lives of wake up, work, maybe eat out once a week, talk with friends, come home, rinse, repeat? They knew their world now included talking ponies and as long as nopony got in their face about it, they’d go about their business and do us the same kindness. I’d even heard it in the grocery store that morning with my keen pegasus ears. “Is that one of them pony things I’ve heard about on the news?” “Yep and she’s here for granola bars. Completely interesting, Kay. Now quit staring, it’s rude.” I think that’s kind of awesome. Back at the apartment, Phouka sat obediently, went to drain her water bowl, then passed out on her spot on the loveseat. “Wow,” Jess said from her iPad. “She looks tuckered out.” “I ran her,” I replied proudly. “Well, she ran, I flew. More pegasus advantages.” Jess nodded and returned to her pecking on the iPad. “I joined your group.” “Thanks!” “And Dustin said he could take the dog for the next few weeks. He was actually looking forward to it.” I looked at Phouka and smiled at her. Dustin was a friend from our weekly gaming group. He had more energy than he knew what to do with and had recently been talking about getting a pet as he was feeling kind of lonely. Considering that last year his pet ferret of many years died and his longtime girlfriend had called it quits, I could understand where he was coming from. A little Phouka time would do him good. “He’s coming here, right?” I asked. “We don’t know any unicorns to cast the cloud-walking spell on Phouka. Yet.” “Yes, he’s coming here,” Jess confirmed. “Super. Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m going to shower.” Going to the porch door, I opened it, flew out and up into the cloudline and started washing up for the day. We had a long trip ahead of us, after all.