John was content. Despite the slight breeze that seemed to cut through the smol bug’s exoskeleton, he was happy to be cuddled into Lorraine’s fluffy fur.
It had been an interesting, and oddly normal few days for the pair. It was mostly spent in front of the TV, with John sneaking out in the morning to get a few things, including exercise. However, due to Lorraine’s curiosity, John documented the details of his luck dragon girlfriend.
She had four paws covered in pink scales. Said scales continued up her legs and cut off at the shoulders, which were covered in fluffy pink fur. Most of her long body was covered in the same fluffy, pink fur, with a few exceptions. The front of her chest and front of her neck were covered in the same pink scales. The tail was slightly fluffier than the rest of her body, and the tip had an orange tuft of fur that matched her lion-like mane.
They quickly found that some things carried over from their previous lives. Lorraine apparently had terrible balance if she tried to do anything on her hind legs. It was quite the scene watching the luck dragon wiggle and wobble like a long noodle. John’s issue was more mental. He tended to just stare off into space for minutes at a time. Fortunately, if he was already doing something, his body seemed to go automatic pilot to keep doing whatever his task was.
Thus, John was sitting quite comfortably on the luck dragon’s back, between her shoulders, as she plodded through town. He looked around. He got stares. Not stares of want, thankfully. Mainly stares of curiosity. As if the town thought. “Where’d that stallion that was with her go?”
He grinned toothily, apparently spooking a trio of mares with his sharp teeth and prominent fangs. He didn’t even try to stop his laugh. “Hey.” He spoke up to the luck dragon. “How are you doing? Lemme know if you need directions.”
“I don’t know how we didn’t get lost on our first day here.” Lorraine commented. “I did make sure to get directions, we should be good.”
“Just making sure.” John said, returning to bug loaf position.
“Ummm hey. I came up to you the other day.” Lorraine stopped and turned her head towards the speaker. It was the mint green unicorn again. “Sorry. Lyra Heartstrings. I was a bit of a dick to your stallion, and on the note of your stallion, where is he?”
“Yo.” A holey, black hoof emerged from the pink fur.
“Gah!” Lyra yelped.
“Turns out he was a changeling.” Lorraine stated rather bluntly.
“Yup. Too lazy to figure out shapeshifting, for now.” Came the reply from the black lump.
“Oh, well.” Lyra blinked. “Huh… That’s actually interesting. Sorry if I’m interrupting you two going somewhere, I just thought to ask ‘cause I was curious.”
“Hey, so long as you’re not looking at me like I’m a piece of meat.” John commented.
“Well, yeah. But- Eh, nevermind, you two are obviously busy.” Lyra shook her head. “I may come by later to hang out or something, and not in the I want to be part of a herd kind of way. Bon Bon kinda let me have it after I kinda just came out and blurted the other day.”
“Cool.” Lorraine said with a small shrug.
“Welp, later. Enjoy… whatever you two are doing.” Lyra gave a small wave and trotted off.
“Oh my God, there’s hope for mare’s yet.” John said with faux sarcasm.
“Yep.” Lorraine nodded and continued on her way.
Lorraine knocked on the library door, and it was immediately opened by Twilight.
“You came!” The unicorn said happily. “But, where’s John?” She blinked.
“One sec.” Came the voice from Lorraine’s back. “Hup.” The smol bug hit the ground. At full height he came up to just above Lorraine’s knees. The drone smiled happily at the unicorn. “Hey-yo.” He waved a holey hoof.
Twilight blinked as she appeared to be processing.
“Turns out I was a changeling.” John started to explain. “In case you don’t know, and as far as I know myself, I run off of emotion, primarily love. I do not know why I am small, but I think it just adds to the cute factor. I am not dangerous despite what the teeth may hint at.”
Twilight shook her head and got a proper look at John. “Huh. fascinating.” Then she paused. “What am I doing, come on in.” She stepped out of the way letting the two in.
“Thanks.” Lorraine said as she walked in.
“And thank you… can I call you Twi?” John asked.
“Uhhh, sure?” Twilight blinked.
“Sweet…” The smol bug cooed as he followed his girlfriend inside.
There were a couple fold out tables full of snack food, a punch bowl, cups and plates off to the side by the stairs. At the back of the room was a CD player quietly playing something that oddly sounded like Weird ‘Al. Rainbow Dash was hovering by the snack food. Rarity was sitting on a couch and seemed to be checking herself in a pocket mirror. Fluttershy sat next to her, looking strangely nervous. The voices of Applejack and Pinkie Pie could be heard from the kitchen.
“I’m honestly surprised you agreed to come.” Twilight admitted as she shut the door. “From what Celestia said, you two aren’t really pony people.”
“Well, it depends.” John shrugged. “I can turn on the extravert.”
“I spent uhhhh…. Several years, looking after my mum, and not really needing or wanting to go out since I didn’t have any friends in the area. But, that’s changed now, I think.” Lorraine added.
“Oh darling it’s fine.” There was a snap as Rarity closed her mirror. “Oh, you are just beautiful- What is that?” She pointed a hoof at John.
“What do you mea- Gah!” Rainbow yelped as she jumped in midair, dropping her plate.
There was a loud eep that had to be Fluttershy.
“That’s a lot tamer than I expected.” John said, somewhat deadpan.
“It’s okay. This is John.” Lorraine explained as she made her way over to the food.
“It… It is?” Rarity blinked.
“That is?” Rainbow added.
“I am? … wait.” John said before snickering a little. “Yes. Hello. I am John. Turns out, I am a bug pony.”
“Oh, that’s… wonderful?” Rarity sounded like she was trying to be polite.
“I mean, I think I’m pretty fuckin’ cute.” John nodded happily.
“John. Language.” Lorraine chidded as she piled a plate full of snacks.
“Right. Sorry. Apologies.” He said with an awkward smile.
“Oh, quite alright, I understand if there’s the errant social faux pas.” Rarity gave a soft titter.
“I’m sorry!” There was a yelp as John’s face was full of yellow.
“Bluuuh!” John leaned away immediately, only to be pulled into a strong hug. “Lorraine, aggressively apologetic pony! Halp!”
However, Lorraine was zonked out as she was focusing on eating. “Huh? You say something?”
“Yellow pony, in face. Hugging pony. Halp.” John managed to get out. “Aggressive apology.”
Lorraine looked over at the yellow mare hugging the bug with both her forelegs and her wings. “Fluttershy, what are you doing?”
“I’m sorry! You were taken and I was so aggressive and I was holding you against your will and you had a mare already and-” Flutteshy started babbling.
“Cover all answer. It’s okay. I understand.” John patted her head. “You were just doing what you thought was right.”
Fluttershy pulled away. “Really.”
“Really really. It’s no big deal. I’m just taken.” He nodded.
Lorraine watched, torn between wanting to comment and wanting to keep eating.
John looked over at her. “We’re good, enjoy your food.”
“Okay.” Lorraine said and returned to enjoying her snacks.
“That was weird.” Rainbow said bluntly.
“Yeah…” Twilight agreed trotting over to the couch opposite Rarity’s as Fluttershy returned to her spot.
“Ummm… Why did you do that?” Fluttershy asked.
“Do what?” John asked, still sitting on the floor.
“You, a stallion, told a mare what to do.” Twilight explained.
“Yeah. So- Oh right. I almost forgot.” John sighed, the lighter blue in his eyes rolled.
“I’m confused. You’re weird.” Rainbow pointed a hoof at the bug as she flew over to hover above Rarity and Fluttershy’s couch.
“And I am proud of my weirdness.” John grinned toothily.
“Oooo! Such sharp fangs.” Fluttershy commented, though the others seemed a bit unnerved by the grin.
“So, darlings, you two are in a relationship, yes?” Rarity asked politely.
“Uh huh.” John nodded, still not moving from his spot on the floor.
Lorraine perked up, glancing between the mare and her boyfriend.
“Well, how did you two meet?” Rarity asked. This seemed to get the attention of the others.
“Well we met online through a fanfiction website.” John did not want to open that can of worms regarding the show, if he could help it. “We both write as a hobby, to varying degrees of success.”
“If I remember correctly, I messaged you about a collab, and then we kinda just kept messaging each other from there for about a year. And then we finally got voice chat figured out aaaaandd….” Lorraine trailed off, looking lost in thought.
“I will fully admit, I was smitten pretty early, but I didn’t want to screw anything up.” John said with a chuckle and a somewhat shy smile towards his girlfriend.
“Oh how romantic!” Rarity said with a gasp. “Lovers, finding each other across the sea of the internet.”
“Blech.” Rainbow made a disgust face.
Lorraine snorted a laugh. “And then there’s me, dense as a rock. It took this guy to slip up before I realized, oh shit. Somebody actually likes me. And the thought wasn’t as terrifying as I thought it would be. So we talked it out like adults, and here we are like a year later.”
“Awwww…” Rarity and Fluttershy cooed. Twilight appeared to be taking notes and Rainbow seemed almost uninterested.
“I heard something about rocks a second ago.” Pinkie Pie announced herself happily, trotting into the room and shifting a steaming plate of nachos. It was quite the pile too.
“Oh my god nachos…” John drooled and trotted over to the table. “Pink pone is best food pony.”
“Why thank you!” Pinkie grinned. “So, cute bug, noodle dragon, would you be interested in adding another pony to your little thing you’ve got going on?”
John paused as he propped himself up on the table like a begging dog. He looked at the mare.
Lorraine blinked for a moment then stared at the pink pony.
“No.” They said in unison.
“Awwww… Well standing offer!” Pinkie grinned and bounced over to the couches.
“Pinkie, that was quite rude.” Rarity chided the mare. “There are politer ways you could have broached the topic.”
“Hey, I was just curious.” Pinkie giggled.
“Don’t mind me, but where’s Applejack?” John asked batting at a plate like a cat. “Ugh, small bug problems.”
“Oh, she’s still working on some drinks.” Pinkie replied. “I got the feeling that you two make her uneasy.”
“Eh?” John asked, craned his head around to look at the small group on the couches. “Why?”
“Her family is very… traditional in regards to stallions, mares, relationships, and courtship.” Twilight replied, looking up from her notes. “So you two, being a mixed race couple, more than likely make her…. Hmmm… Uneasy?”
Lorraine sat there for a second. “How does courtship work in Equestria anyway?”
“Counter question, how does courtship work in your world?” Rarity asked.
“Says the Coltymare.” Rainbow said with a snorting laugh.
“Oh hush, I’m simply interested in finding the right stallion.” Rarity shot a glare at the pegasus.
“To answer your question.” John gave up and sat next to the table. “I have no fuckin’ idea how relationships work on our end. There’s so many conflicting ideas of what’s right that we kinda just narrowed it down to. If there’s issues, we can talk them out. We’re adults. We support each other. That sort of thing.”
“To be fair, the most common portrayal of a relationship is simply guy asking out the girl and sort of just hanging out. Granted that was commonplace when we were younger. Not so much nowadays.” Lorraine chimed in. “Now it’s just, you either find someone attractive and you ask them out using the dates to get to know them, or you end up developing feelings for someone you already care about.” She shrugged. “I don’t know, modern media also kinda screwed us over a little bit.”
“That all sounds delightfully romantic.” Rarity said with a sigh.
“There’s also a bit of an emphasis on having sex. The media kinda just doesn’t shut up about it being part of a healthy relationship.” Lorraine added.
“Yeah, I mean, to be perfectly honest, sex should be an expression of love between two people.” John spoke up. “It, however, really isn’t shown in that light at all really.”
“Fascinating.” Twilight said aloud, returning to her notes.
“To be fair, I’m more of a traditional mindset, but that doesn’t mean that I’m blind to the fact that sex is seen as more of a leisure activity, or a form of enjoyment, nowadays. Everyone’s different after all.” Lorraine added to John’s commentary.
“To be perfectly blunt for Note Pony over there.” John gestured to Twilight. “Lorraine’s more prudish and I am more of a…. What’s a polite term….”
“He has a sex drive, I usually don’t.” Lorraine said bluntly.
“That.” John pointed a holey hoof at the dragon.
“Huh. Well how does that work between the two of you?” Fluttershy spoke up, sounding curious.
“I am perfectly fine with him fantasizing about me or whatever. I just tend to not get in the mood.” Lorraine explained. “Are ponies any different?”
“Too add, she does have a sex drive, it’s just very well hidden. So her doing anything whatsoever is really a once in a blue moon kinda thing.” John added.
“Well ponies have heat cycles.” Twilight explained.
“Pretend we know nothing.” John said flatly.
Fluttershy actually cleared her throat. “Ponies go into heat twice a year, in the middle of summer and in the middle of spring. It can last from four to ten days depending on the mare. During that time, mare’s bodies are ready for reproduction. They can give off pheromones that affect stallions, as well as other mares. This causes the stallions to be more docile and mares to be more aggressive. This can lead to fights between mares at times, but it doesn’t interrupt society as much as it does in erotic fiction. During these times, herds will lock up their stallions indoors, for their safety more than anything else.”
“So, this whole thing is one part societal and one part biological.” Lorraine said aloud.
“What do you mean by thing?” Rainbow asked, cocking a brow.
“Well, imagine a world where the mares act like stallions, and the stallions act like mares.” Lorraine explained.
“That’s weird, you’re weird.” Rainbow pointed a hoof at Lorraine.
“Rainbow, darling, don’t be rude to our guests.” Rarity rolled her eyes.
“I know I’m weird.” Lorraine shrugged. “To be fair, you guys are weird to me.”
“Guys?” Rainbow blinked.
“It’s slang. In general it means everyone.” Lorraine added.
“Hell, I can be aggressive at times. I can keep it in my pants so to speak, but… yeah.” John commented.
“Oh how fascinating.” Rarity commented. “I may be a coltymare outlier, but I find the thought of a more aggressive stallion somewhat thrilling.”
“Rarity is the most normal one here.” Lorraine said, pointing at the white mare. “So, seriously, how does courtship work in Equestria?”
“And should I start worrying now, or later?” John added.
“Well, to be blunt.” Fluttershy spoke up. “When there’s a free stallion, mares tend to gang up on him to convince him to join their herd. They can be pretty aggressive, especially if there are herds who are desperate for a stallion. To counter this, stallions who don’t want to be in a herd, will band together and traditionally live together to protect each others backs.”
“So are herds purely for reproductive purposes, or is there an actual relationship involved.” Lorraine asked.
“Honestly,” Twilight looked up from her notes, “It depends on the herd. Each herd will have a head mare. Said head mare will determine if she wants the herd to be purely for reproduction or if there’s a relationship between two or more of the members. There is an emphasis on reproduction regardless of the relationship status of each herdmate. Colts are actually raised and taught that they will need to enter a herd someday. Fillies are raised to basically get along with other mares and protect colts. Herds are encouraged, if not expected, from a societal standpoint.”
“This is all kinda fascinating, but should I be worried?” John asked.
“Should I be worried?” Lorraine added.
“No actually.” Twilight shook her head. “So far there has been little to no offspring from mixed race couples. In fact, mixed race couples are looked down on. The same for same sex and monogamous relationships. While there may be the more open-minded mare or stallion, you will probably be looked down on, to be honest. You can’t reproduce, as far as we know, so from a societal standpoint, what use are you?”
“Well, we can reproduce, we just don’t want to.” Lorraine said.
“You probably won’t want to say that outloud.” Twilight said with a wince.
“That’s kinda a taboo phrase.” Pinkie said shaking her head.
“Seriously?” Lorraine blinked.
“Why wouldn’t you want to fuck?” Rainbow asked.
“Hey, that’s between us.” John said, buzzing his wings in irritation. “Everyone’s different.”
“You both are still weird.” Rainbow rolled her eyes.
Lorraine rolled her own eyes at the pegasus.
“Wellllll…. This has been interesting, and kinda informative, but…. Does anypony wanna play some games?” Pinkie spoke up. “This is supposed to be a party.”
“Yeah, we can leave the heavy stuff behind.” John nodded.
“Okay, sure.” Lorraine shrugged and set her empty plate on the table.
“Yay!” Pinkie cheered.
John sat on Lorraine’s back as she walked through town. He sat between the dragon’s shoulders and in front of the two pairs of saddlebags that the long dragon wore. He held a pad of paper in his hooves.
“So, we got… whole grain bread, soy milk if they have it, cheese, garlic mayo again if they have it, bananas, snacks, ummmm my side… white bread, I doubt they have ham but it’s on the list, sliced cheese, milk, cereal for the both of us, see if they have any microwave rice, and lastly see if they have anything worth it in any kind of frozen section.” John listed, half-rambling.
“I hope they have pizza, I haven’t had pizza in a year.” Lorraine chimed in.
“Huh… I should see if I could make pizza… Oh fuck…. We need pasta and bread and sauce and garlic salt. I am totally making you pasta with garlic bread.” John said excitedly. “I know what I’m making you for dinner~” He sang.
“Garlic bread for tea, sweet.” Lorraine smiled.
“Holy shit.” John said aloud looking up. “They weren’t kidding.”
Barnyard Bargains, their first destination, was literally a giant barn. At least on the outside. Red walls, white trim, a pair of large painted barn doors masked the actual double doors inside. One of the two smaller doors were open, showing the inside. From what they could tell, it looked like an old fashioned general store.
“Soooo…” John said as Lorraine trotted inside. “Aisle by aisle, that way we don’t miss anything?”
“Sure.” The noodle dragon replied.
John hopped off her back and found a cart. The smol bug looked like a child as he tried to push the cart. “This place isn’t small person friendly.” He complained as he trotted on his back legs back to the dragon.
“You know you have wings, right?” Lorraine raised a brow.
“That’s another thing that I need to figure out.” John grumbled.
“Maybe Luna can help?” Lorraine offered.
“Of all times to not have a cellphone.” John shook his head. “Meh. Want the cart or should I keep pushing?”
“I like pushing the cart.” She replied.
He let go of the bar and stepped aside, only for Lorraine to rest her neck on said bar to start pushing the cart. John followed as they went down the first aisle, which happened to be fruits and vegetables. And the noodle dragon immediately went for the bananas. Of which, she grabbed a bunch of six.
Since they only had so much room in their bags, they were going light-ish on what they were getting. Stock for a week until they could get a cart of their own.
John was sad that there wasn’t enough meat, because ponies, but he was content when he found hummus. Might not have been as protein filled, but it made for good snacks and sandwiches.
They were able to find everything on their respective lists, and went to check out. Only to find a rather bored looking pink mare at the register. A pink mare, with a styled purple mane, a nose that looked like it had a surgery or two, wearing a green apron.
As the pair, mainly Lorraine, unpacked the cart. The mare looked up. She looked from dragon to bug, blinked, then gave a small, “ugh,” as she started to ring up their groceries.
Lorraine didn’t care.
John didn’t want to say anything.
Everything was fine for a moment.
“Can’t believe they allowed you in here.” The mare said under her breath.
“Hmmm, you say something?” John pretended he didn’t hear her.
Lorraine still didn’t care.
“Pfft, nothing.” The mare snarked. “That’ll be… seventy bits.” She had this look on her face like she’d just won some kind of argument.
“Here.” Lorraine replied setting down stacks of bits. The mare blinked in confusion at the bits.
“Huh. Seems a bit much, maybe some things weren’t on sale?” John shrugged. “Then again I’m used to paying, something like a hundred or more for a months worth of food.”
“Thank… you…” The mare seemed somewhat irritated.
“Hey, honey? Thanks for coming to help out again.” A brown-coated, black-maned stallion said walking up behind from some back room.
“Oh, it’s no problem.” Instantly the mare was cheery.
“We good?” Lorraine asked.
“Receipt?” John added.
“Oh, sure thi-” The mare looked back to the register.
“Wait a sec.” The stallion said as he looked at the rung up receipt. “Spoiled, you overcharged them.”
“Huh. Thought so.” John shrugged. “Didn’t want to be rude.”
“It’s not like we’re hurting for bits.” Lorraine commented. “It doesn’t matter. I just want to get the stuff home.”
“Are you sure?” The stallion asked, shooting a glance at Spoiled.
“Want me to just take it home and I’ll meet you at the market?” Lorraine asked.
“Sure.” John shrugged yet again.
Lorraine plodded through the open air farmer’s market. It wasn’t hard to spot smol bug, as a splotch of black stood out from the sea of vibrant colors. Said bug was sitting on a bench, lazing with his back legs hanging off the bench, right between Lyra Heartstrings and Pinkie Pie. Instantly the luck dragon was wary of the pink one.
“Hey.” She called out as she approached the bench.
“Heyyo.” The changeling replied with a wave. “I have a protector.” He gestured to Lyra. “And a… ponk.” He gestured to Pinkie. “They’ve been keeping me company while waiting for you. Apparently, nobody wants to serve the bug.”
“Because ponies are racist by nature.” Lyra said bluntly.
“We’re not all that bad.” Pinkie countered.
John noticed the irritated look in Lorraine’s eyes. “Hey. You good?” He asked, concerned.
“Yeah. Eventually.” She nodded.
“At least we’re not the only one.” John gestured a hoof to his right.
At a stall not far away an irritated griffon was trying to buy some carrots. She had an eagle’s head, forelegs and wings, and a lioness’s hindquarters. She was also wearing a set of blue saddle bags. The yellow-coated, frizzy orange-maned, mare didn’t seem to want to sell to the griffon however.
“Huh…” Lorraine said, blinking. “Should we help?”
“I was going to, but I got a- and there she is.” John replied as a rainbow-maned pegasus landed next to the griffon, bought a bushel of carrots, stuffed them in the griffon’s bags, then pointed a hoof directly towards Lorraine and John.
“And this is going to be fun.” John huffed.
“I wanna watch.” Pinkie grinned.
“Trainwreck incoming.” Lyra rolled her eyes.
“Don’t worry, I got this.” Lorraine replied. John could see the dragon’s gears shifting around in her head. This was going to be interesting.
“See!” Rainbow Dash announced as she landed in front of the luck dragon with the griffon in tow. “They’re in a weird relationship.”
“Hi Dash.” John halfheartedly waved a hoof.
“Hey.” Dash half-acknowledged the bug. “So, see Gilda. It’s a bug and a dragon in a herd. So there are weirder herds.” She said confidently.
“We’re not in a herd.” Lorraine said flatly. “We are in a relationship.”
“Same thing.” Dash waved a hoof dismissively.
“No. No it is not the same thing.” Lorraine countered.
“Dash.” ‘Gilda’ face-taloned. She groaned and let her talon fall. “I’m going to say again, what I said this morning. I do not want to be in a herd. I just want a singular male, or whatever species, to be in a one-to-one relationship.”
“But that’s so weeeiiiirrrrd…” Dash said with a drawn out whine. “And I like you.”
“And I like you too, but not in that way… at all.” Gilda countered. “Hi, by the way, I’m Gilda. Old friend of Dash here.” She gestured to herself and then to Dash, addressing the small “friend group.”
“Hiya!” Pinkie grinned.
“Hi there.” Lyra waved.
“Hello Gilda. I’m John.” The bug put a hoof to his chest. He gestured at the luck dragon. “This is Lorraine.” He then gestured to Lyra and Pinkie. “And these are Lyra and Pinkie. We’re new here too, so we get the general weirdness of ponies. Lorraine, wanna say hi?”
“Hi.” Lorraine said flatly.
“I’ll take it.” John shrugged.
“Hey, ponies aren’t weird. You two are weird.” Dash countered gesturing at Lorraine and John.
“Do you have any idea how rude that is?” Lorraine said, somewhat stunned.
“Dash! Not okay!” Gilda snapped at the pegasus flaring her wings out. “What is your deal?”
“They’re just… weird.” Dash said, sputtering a little.
“Ya know, I might find another place to stay Dash.” Gilda shook her head. “If I knew you’d be this pushy and rude before I left, I wouldn’t have come.”
“Come on, don’t be like that.” Dash groaned. “It’s not my fault if they don’t fit into Ponyville society.”
“Okay.” Lorraine stated to the pegasus. “Quit talking shit about us please.”
“I’m just saying-” Dash started.
“Gilda!” John said in an almost happy tone as he slid off the bench to his hooves. “Wanna come over and play some video games? We got DOOM.”
“Ya know, fuck it. Sure.” Gilda shrugged and walked over to the bug.
“Gilda- Hey!” Dash craned her head around the luck dragon to yell at the griffon.
“Can I come?” Lyra asked. “If it’s just gaming, I think everything would be okay.”
“Sure. Why not.” John shrugged.
“Can I?” Pinkie asked, bouncing up in front of the bug pony.
“You make me nervous. I’m sorry Pinkie. I’d prefer you not, at least at the moment.” John replied honestly.
“Awww playing hard to get.” Pinkie giggled as she bounced back towards Dash.
“Dammit Pinkie.” John sighed.
“Wow… And I thought some mare’s were thirsty enough already.” Gilda blinked then frowned.
Lorraine took a deep breath. “Pinkie. Dash. Get the fuck out of here, before I say something I regret.”
“Alrighty!” Pinkie grinned and bounced off like there wasn’t any problem whatsoever.
“You know what, fine.” Dash snorted and shot off into the sky.
“I’ll be at the library if you need me.” Lorraine announced as she started off.
“Try to find something to relax to.” John called out. He sighed and shook his head. “So, gaming.” He nodded and started off, leading the griffon and unicorn behind him.
A pair of dragons sat on a couch in the library. One was long; the other short. One was pink and orange; the other purple and green.
They both were reading comics.
Lorraine, the luck dragon, was being introduced to the Power Ponies. Which just so happened to be some kind of Justice League / Avengers fusion comic.
Spike, the dragon, was deep into his own Power Ponies comic. “So... what do you think?” He asked glancing over at the luck dragon.
“I’ve never been able to read any of these as a kid, since we didn’t have the money, so this is great.” She turned the page and blinked. “Wait… Is that?”
Spike leaned over and saw what she was looking at. “Oh yeah. That’s Gabriel, Saddle-Arabian pony raised by griffons, fights with hoof claws and various martial arts. This specific issue is a Power Ponies / Teen Titans crossover. Don’t tell Twilight, but I have a collection of more mature comics I have hidden. Gabriel is the colt-friendly version of DC’s Deathstroke. The comic creators didn’t want to have Death in the name, so they used his real name.”
“This mirrors something from my world, so this is both amazing and mind blowing.” Lorraine responded.
“Yeah. Oh, so there’s a rumor that the Power Ponies are real, and they live in Manehatten. Or so the online rumor community says. It’s both awesome to think about but also terrifying, because some of the villains…” He paused. “Can I swear? Twilight doesn’t let me swear.”
“How old are you?” Lorraine asked.
“Seventeen.” He replied. “Twi thinks I’m the right size, but I think I might be stunted, because some dragon books mention some stuff about diet and dragon magic. They’re written by griffons too so I know they’re reliable.”
“Have you not asked Celestia for help?” Lorraine asked.
“That’s… well that feels kinda awkward. I mean, Twi is kinda my sister in a way, and she takes care of me, and raised me. So, maybe I’m just overthinking things. Twi says I do that a lot.” Spike shrugged. “But maybe… Eh. Fuck if I know.” He said. Then he blinked and gasped. “Sorry! That just slipped out!”
“See here’s the thing with swearing, you gotta know when to do it and when not to do it. You have to know if you’re in the right company, and if others are okay with swearing, but never swear at someone as an insult. Basically, learn to filter yourself.” Lorraine explained to the smaller dragon.
“Huh. Okay. Thanks.” Spike said with a smile. “Twilight just tells me to never swear, even though I hear her swear all the time when something goes wrong.”
“Well it’s okay to swear around me, just not at me.” The luck dragon nodded.
“Fuck yeah!” Spike pumped his fist happily.
“If you ever wanna come over and hang out, you can.” Lorraine offered. “Where is Twilight anyway?”
“She’s off helping the Apples with Applebuck Season. I get to watch the house-library-thing. It’s apparently safer here. Whatever that means.” Spike shrugged.
“What’s the legal age in Equestria?” Lorraine asked out of curiosity.
“Eighteen.” Spike replied. “I’ll be eighteen in…” He seemed to think for a moment. “A week. Huh… Weird.”
“So, Twilight left a minor home alone. What the fuck?” Lorraine blinked.
“Hey. The library’s protected. It’s pretty safe.” Spike shrugged. “Colt’s need to be safe and protected, or so the popular opinion says.”
“Do you like this?” She asked, gesturing to the library in general.
“I mean, it can get lonely sometimes. I don’t really have anyone else my age. I don’t really have any friends outside or Twilight and her friends.” Spike shrugged.
“Well wanna come back to my place?” Lorraine asked. “We can write Twilight a note.”
“Yeah that should work. I write her notes all the time if I’m off somewhere else. Then again, that was Canterlot, but it should be fine.” Spike got up, and rummaged around until he found a piece of paper and a quill. He scribbled away at it, rolled it up, and took a deep breath. He let out a stream of purple-blue flames, which quickly consumed the impromptu scroll.
“Okay and now we wait.” He trotted back over to the couch and sat down.
“Let’s just wait for the response.” She said with a nod.
“Oka-” Spike started, only to cough. He then burped out a stream of purple smoke that morphed into another scroll. “And Twilight says. Okay. Just be careful. Have fun with John and Lorraine.” He held out the scroll for her to have a look at.
“Ask her if she wants to join us for dinner.” She asked, then frowned. “It’s so weird to say dinner instead of tea.”
“Sure.” He shrugged, flipped the paper over, scribbled, and sent the letter off.
After a minute. ~burp~ “And she says. I’d love to.” Spike read.
“Okay, feel free to bring what you want with you, and we’ll head out.” Lorraine said with a nod.
“I’m just gonna clean up a little bit.” He said, starting to pack his comics back up, sliding them back in their packaging, and putting the packaged comics back in their box.
The walk home was… interesting for the two dragons.
On more than one occasion, a mare would stop Lorraine and ask why she had a colt, or small dragon in Spike’s case. Her response was basically does it matter, then talk her way out of said conversation.
It was starting to get on her nerves at about the time when she got back home. Even outside she could hear the laughing and yelling.
“Ah! HA! Fuck you!” Came John’s shout.
“Oh come on I landed that hit!” Came a Gilda complaint.
“The AI says no featherbrain!” John’s bark came in response.
Lorraine walked in. “Hey guys, chill.”
The griffon sitting on the floor on her haunches, the unicorn on the couch, and the bug on the floor all looked over at her.
“Sorry for being loud.” John apologised right as the griffon looked back to the screen. A blue pony with an arm cannon shot a long coat wearing pony with a white mask and a knife off of the edge of the stage.
“Hey!” John snapped as he looked back to the screen.
“It’s what you get for not paying attention dweeb.” Gilda snorted, grinning smugly.
“They’ve been going at it for awhile. It’s been more fun just seeing they’re reactions rather than the gameplay. Might need to invest in a decent camera.” Lyra snickered from the couch.
“Well, as long as they’re not angry at each other.” Lorraine said with a shrug. “Also, I brought a friend over.”
Spike slid off Lorraine’s side and waddled into the living room. “Oh sweet, is this Smash?”
“Oh! Hey Spike!” John grinned as he saw him.
“Hey little dude.” Gilda nodded with a smile.
Lyra just waved.
John looked back to Lorraine. “Feeling better?”
“I found more stuff to be pissed at.” She said with a sigh.
“You can vent to me later. Come sit and decompress. Wanna join us, or should we do something like Mario Kart?” John asked glancing around and Spike pulled himself up onto the couch. “Oh, and when should I start dinner?”
“Well it’s like three something.” Gilda shrugged.
“And it doesn’t take all that long, so I’ll start it at maybe four-thirty-ish. Probably four-twenty to get the water started.” John tapped his chin with a hoof.
“Make sure there’s enough for everyone, because Twilight and Spike are staying for dinner.” Lorraine stated.
“Oh, gotcha. A little extra then. No worries.” John nodded. “Hell, I used to just make a massive pot of spaghetti and sauce at the beginning of the week and feed myself off it all week.”
“Sounds like a good idea.” Lyra shrugged.
“So, we can keep gaming for a bit.” Gilda said with a nod.
“Lorraine, Spike, want in to… whatever we end up doing?” John asked the two.
“I’d love to.” Spike grinned.
“Nah, I’ll pass.” The noodle dragon as she plodded over to pick up her PonyStation Vita. “I’ll see if Luna’s on.” She turned it on, while plodding off down the hallway towards her bedroom.
“Right. Have fun.” John called out. “So, more Smash?”
Gilda ended up crashing on their couch that night after dinner, after Twilight, Spike, and Lyra all left. Neither dragon nor bug minded in the least.
John even made breakfast in the morning. Breakfast being scrambled eggs and toast. He found that both Lorraine and Gilda were not morning people. As evidenced by their sleepy demeanors and lack of basic verbal communication.
So, breakfast was had in mostly silence. A quiet, comfortable, relaxed silence.
Which was broken by a knock at the door.
“Got it.” John said getting up.
On opening the door, he got a face full of confetti. He blinked at the overly-peppy pink pony perched on the porch. “Helllllo!~” Pinkie sang. “Gilda, Lorraine, and yourself are cordially invited to a party this afternoon at Sugarcube corner!” She held out an invitation, which the still somewhat stunned bug took.
“Thanks…” John said stupidly as the pink pony bounced away, leaving the porch and the bug, covered in confetti. The bug plodded back in and set the invitation on the table. “Invitation. Pinkie Party.”
“Huh?” Gilda blinked at the invitation.
Lorraine looked up from her plate of food. “Heads up, it’ll probably go to shit.”
“Probably.” John shrugged, then shook himself. There was now confetti all over the floor. “Great.” He grumbled at his mess. “Dammit Pinkie. Now I have to vacuum that.”
“I’ll get the dustpan.” The noodle dragon said, getting up.
Sugarcube Corner was brightly decorated with multi-colored streamers and balloons. There was a large table of food and what looked like party games. Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, all the streamers and balloons were Rainbow Dash colors.
“Oh this is going to end terribly.” John deadpanned as he glanced around. There were a few other ponies, but it seemed that the main people involved were the three of them, and the main six.
“Oh my God!” Lorraine called out. John looked over in time to see Lorraine stare at what looked like small pot pies. “Party Pies!” She immediately piled a bunch on a plate.
“Wow.” Gilda spoke up. “Dash really can’t take a hint.”
“Just so you know, if this ends in a fight, you can still crash at our place.” John commented as the noodle dragon’s tail wagged happily as she ate.
“Thanks.” Gilda nodded. “And knowing Dash, she’s going to take it personally. Let’s just rip the band-aid off quickly.” She said with a groan as Dash made her way over.
“You made it!” Dash said happily. “This is your Welcome to Ponyville Party.”
Gilda took a breath. “Dash. Stop. I know what this is.”
Dash seemed to pale a bit. “What- Ahem. What are you talking about?”
“Dash. Just, say what you want to say.” Gilda said, seeming to steel herself as John put a hoof on her side. Lorraine wandered back over to sit on the other side of the griffon, her food abandoned.
“But- You know what, fine. Gilda. I want to be in a herd with you. You are my best friend and I want you to be part of the herd I’m going to start. We can find ourselves a guy we can share and we can be a happy family.” Rainbow blurted out.
Gilda winced a little. “Dash. I’m sorry. But I’ve already said that I am not into females and I am not interested in a herd. You are one of my best friends, and I would do anything for you, but I do not want to be in a herd with you.”
Dash blushed as she blinked tears out of her eyes. “But. I love you.”
“And I love you too Dash, just not in the same way you love me. I’m sorry.” Gilda said slowly.
Dash looked down at the ground.
“Hey, you guys can still be friends, it’s not all bad.” Lorraine offered as Gilda reached out a talon.
Dash batted it aside with a hoof. “Fuck you!” The pegasus snapped at the griffon, causing the hen to recoil. “I pour out my heart and this is how you treat me?!”
“Dash. Please. Calm down.” Gilda looked shaken.
“So you’re just going to break everything off just like that, when she’s trying to salvage something with you?” Lorraine said and barked a mirthless laugh. “And you call yourself the Element of Loyalty.”
“I don’t remember asking you, you freak!” Dash snapped at the luck dragon, her face red. Lorraine immediately turned and left.
“Don’t. You dare.” The small changeling virtually roared at the pegasus, he was actually glowing. “Talk to my girl. Like that.”
Dash made to snarl at the changeling.
“Dash! Stop!” Gilda snapped. “We’ll leave.”
Dash refocused on the griffon. “Fine! Get out of here!”
Without another word, Gilda got up, picked up the still steaming small bug and set him on her back, and walked out.
“Calm down.” Gilda said when they got outside. “It’s going to be okay.” She sniffled. “I-it’s going to be okay.”
Turned out that Lorraine just walked outside and rounded the corner. She sat, calmly for the most part and got up when she saw them. “I heard that are you guys okay?”
The steaming changeling was passed off to the luck dragon’s back. “No.” Gilda said. “But, I don’t wanna process right now. Let’s just… go home and watch movies or something.”
“You two don’t worry about anything, I’ll have this mess sorted out.” Lorraine said with a nod as the three made their way back home.
The next day found Lorraine looking for the prismatic pegasus. The mare wasn’t hard to find. A rainbow tail hung down from a gray cloud, not too subtly floating near the dragon’s and bug’s home.
“Hey, Rainbow can we talk?” The luck dragon asked.
The cloud turned around with a flap of cyan wings, revealing a quite depressed looking Rainbow Dash. “Sure…”
“I want to apologise about yesterday but… I was right when I said you two could still be friends.” Lorraine said slowly.
“Yeah right. After what I said?” Dash snorted mirthlessly.
“You care. It’s better than what I got.” Lorraine said with a sigh.
“What do you mean?” Dash blinked.
“Well… Let’s just say I’ve lost a lot of friends for no reason. One day people just didn’t like me anymore. Even though I tried reaching out to them.” Lorraine explained. “Gilda still wants to be friends with you. She’s still trying. She’s still trying to reach out.”
“Think she’d forgive me for what I said?” Dash asked.
“Uhhh… It’d take awhile. No offense, but John and I won’t forgive you for awhile yet either.” Lorraine said with a frown.
“I figured.” Dash nodded. “I guess… all I can do for now is apologise and wait.”
“Just take it slow and just be mindful of what you say. I mean, the only reason I decided to help is because Gilda’s my friend, and she still cares about you. And maybe because, heh, I have too much faith in people.” Lorraine chuckled. “Just make sure to apologise to her and John.”
“I will.” Dash nodded. “Just… Not right now… Everything’s… fresh.”
“That’s why we’re having the talk now so we can figure out our actions later.” Lorraine nodded back.
“Thanks…” Dash replied slowly. “Thanks for trying. You’re not a freak. Sorry I said that.”
“Eh, don’t worry about it.” Lorraine shrugged. “Kinda used to it at this point.”
“Well…. Thanks again, for the talk.” Dash turned her cloud around. “I’m just going to… go this way… and think…” The cloud floated away with a slow beat of wings.
“Lorraine?” John called from the front door. “You out here? Your hot chocolate’s getting cold.”
Lorraine turned back to the house.
“Coming.”