The house turned out to be an orphanage. Orphans with nowhere to go were rare in Equestria, as most foals would be taken in by a family member or a close friend, but they did exist.
Many of them specialize in taking in terran children that crossed over alone. That was one of them. Of the four foals there, three were terran. The only native was the one the mare from the Spire tried taking.
The foals were all gathered around one of their own, a unicorn filly that had just gotten her cutie mark. Apparently, Cedric had some help rescuing them.
The filly had already picked the locks of the cages before Cedric got there and was waiting for a distraction. Once Cedric threw the pegasus he was wrestling at two of the ponies guarding the foals, she blasted the other two with a stun spell.
After that, she opened fire on the group that was pursuing me before the dragon stepped in, stunning five of them.
Thus, the sparking stun gun cutie mark.
It was fitting as not only was she quite skilled with the spell, but she was already considering a career in the guard even before all that happened.
I was happy for her, but she wasn't who my attention was on. No, my attention was on Midnight Star.
"So, what's with the creepy look you're giving the kid?" Cedric asked as he landed beside me.
"Huh? Is it creepy?" I asked, pulled from my thoughts.
"A little," Cedric said. "So, why are you looking at him as if he's the ghost of your dead brother?"
I laughed. "You're actually not that far off. Back when Ah was on Earth, Ah tried mah hand at writin' fan fiction."
"I'm so sorry," Cedric teased.
I rolled my eyes. "Anyway, Ah only really wrote one. Well, it was a couple, but it was one series, and they all stared a character Ah made up myself. He was a dark blue earth pony with a black mane, red eyes, and a white star on his forehead named Midnight Star."
Cedric's eyes widened. "Oh... damn. That's gotta be... surreal."
"Yeah."
We sat there for several seconds in silence, just watching the guard work.
"So..." Cedric said, casually after a time. "Fluttershy..."
I released a heavy breath. "Yeah."
"She flew away pretty fast," he said, giving me an appraising look. "She looked like she did something wrong, but from what I heard, she scared off that dragon. I wouldn't mind knowing how."
"That's her business," I said.
"I won't pry, then," he said. "But you should probably go see her. She seemed upset."
"Yeah, I should." I walked toward the guard sergeant. "Hey, Iron Shoe, right?"
The sergeant turned toward me. "Yes?"
"You still need me?" I asked.
He shook his head. "Nah, but if you gotta leave Ponyville, leave a note letting me know where to find you."
"Will do," I said as I turned back to Cedric. "You comin' with or stayin' here?"
"I'll stay, in case they need me for anything."
I ran back as quickly as I could. It took a good two hours, but I got back about an hour before sundown.
I slowed down as I entered town. I didn't want to be too busy trying to breathe to talk to Fluttershy.
By the time I was crossing the bridge, my breathing was calm, so I made my way to her door and knocked.
"Wh-who is it?" she said, sounding more nervous than usual.
"It's Shiro," I replied.
"O-oh... um... I'm getting ready for bed," she said.
It was clear she was trying to get rid of me, but I couldn't let her go to sleep worried about what I thought of her.
"That's fine," I said. "Ah won't take much of your time... please."
She opened the door, but she kept her head down, not letting me see her eyes. "C-come in."
I stepped inside as she turned toward the kitchen and asked, "Would you like some tea? I was already making some."
"Please. Thank you," I replied.
I took a seat on the couch as she went into the kitchen just as the kettle whistled. Well, she did say she was already making some.
A minute later, she came out with two cups, placing one in front of me and the other in front of herself as she sat on the other end of the couch.
I took a sip before speaking. "So, Ah wanted to thank you for saving mah life out there. Ah don't know if Ah could've beat that dragon on mah own."
Fluttershy didn't respond for several seconds. When she did, it was with resignation. "You can just ask."
I set down my tea and reached over to take her hoof in my paw. "Yeah, Ah could... but Ah won't."
Fluttershy looked up at me in surprise. "But... why not?"
I scooted over so I could put an arm around her withers. "Because Ah don't want you to think Ah expect an answer. Ah already told you, you can tell me when you're ready."
We sat in silence for at least a good five minutes before Fluttershy finally spoke.
"My grandmother is a dragon," she said. "Usually, only dragons hundreds of years old can polymorph, but seeing as I'm mostly pony, I've been able to do it since I was five. I can only turn into a pony, though."
"So, what Ah saw out there is your true form?" I asked.
Fluttershy nodded. "I'm sorry I lied to you. I'm not even really a pony. I'm just some half-breed freak."
I laughed. "Well, hey, me too."
Fluttershy looked surprised at that. "No, you aren't! You're a brave, caring person."
"Sure Ah am. That Chronos guy made us from tigers and some other bits and bobs. The princess even said there was some pony thrown in," I stated. "And you are a kind, loving person. Just because you can change to look like something else doesn't change who you are."
"But I still lied to you and everyone else in Ponyville," she insisted.
"Really? How so?" I asked.
"I made you all think I'm a pony," she stated.
"But you are a pony." I pulled her into a hug. "Sure, you got a little dragon in you, but you're still three quarters pony, so you didn't lie to anyone."
Fluttershy nuzzled into my fur. "Still, ponies and dragons don't exactly get along. If ponies found out what I am-"
"They'll either not care or their opinions don't matter," I interrupted. "Besides, ponies like Spike and he's a full dragon. Heck, they like me, and mah kind were made specifically to make ponies lives hell."
"Sh-shiro... thank you," Fluttershy said. "Thank you for... being such a wonderful friend."
I cocked an eyebrow. "Ah thought we were more than friends."
Fluttershy winced. "I... I know, but-"
I leaned in and gave her a peck on the lips to stop that thought. "If you think Ah'm gonna break it off for this, you can go ahead and quash that."
"Y-you mean it?" she asked, looking at me with hopeful eyes. "You really don't mind that I'm part dragon?"
I chuckled. "Do Ah mind that mah special someone can choose to be awesome and sexy, or adorable and snuggly? Not a chance."
Shy blushed and smiled. "Do... do you really think I'm... sexy like that?"
"Shy," I said, giving her another peck. "You're always sexy."
She blushed and looked away, smiling. "I-it's getting kind of late. You can... stay the night if you'd like."
I smiled. "Ah'd like that."
Fluttershy stood and made her way to the stairs, swaying her hips just a bit more than usual. She looked over her shoulder with a blush and a smile.
She didn't have to say a thing for me to follow.
The next morning I awoke to the sight of an adorable dragon pony laying on top of me, snoring lightly.
I knew I had to get up, but I couldn't bring myself to wake her. Instead, I just softly stroked her mane.
Even like this, her mane was as silky smooth as ever. Everything about her was smooth, her fur, her scales, her rump.
The last one caused her to stir as my paws confirmed it.
"Angel, I'll feed you in a bit," she muttered. "I was having a lovely dream."
I grinned. "Oh? Was Ah in it, by chance?"
Fluttershy's eyes shot open and met mine.
"Oh... it wasn't a dream," she affirmed with a smile.
"Nah, it was a dream alright... a dream come true," I said.
Shy snorted in amusement, and snuggled into me. "That was really corny... but thank you. For everything you said last night... and for... you know."
"And thank you for havin' me," I replied. "But, as much as Ah want to stay for an encore, Ah gotta get goin'."
"I thought you were off today," she said.
"Ah am," I confirmed. "But... the mayor's gonna be askin' folks to foster the kids we rescued and Ah'm gonna volunteer."
Fluttershy sat up with a huge smile. "Oh, that's so sweet of you."
I gave her a quick kiss before asking, "You want to come with me?"
Fluttershy giggled and replied, "I thought you didn't have time for that."
I blinked, dumbly, before pouncing. I could stand to be ten minutes late.
I handed the filled form to Miss Scroll, the mayor's aide, who examined it.
"Everything seems to be in order," she said. "If you'll wait in the reception area, Miss Mare will be with you shortly."
I nodded and took a seat.
I grabbed a magazine from the nearby table and began flipping through. I was never one to read magazines back on Earth, but I was still somewhat new here and was learning the culture.
There were articles with celebrity interviews and gossip, product announcements, and a particularly amusing article speculating who Celestia's mystery daughter was.
That last one had me laughing. It was talking about which celebrity or noble had the poise and grace ro be the princess.
"Ah, yes. I found that article quite amusing, too," Mayor Mare said as she approached. "I only wish I could see their faces when they learn the truth."
I looked up at the mayor with a grin and said, "Yeah, that'll be hilarious."
Mayor Mare chuckled. "Anyway, I'm actually glad you're here. One of the foals has been talking about you."
I raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"Yes, the one that the mare tried to take away, Midnight Star."
That surprised me. "You don't say..."
"Apparently, you're a great hero that can defeat a dragon with one punch," Mare said with a cheeky grin.
I laughed. "Well, he'll be happy to know that he was the one I was wanting to foster."
"Oh? Well, that makes things easier. I don't have to try to convince you to take him in," she said.
"Glad to make your day a bit easier," I said.
"I'll let Midnight know the good news," the mayor said. "Until then, why don't you get some furniture for him." She handed me a slip of paper. "This is a voucher for five hundred bits towards foal's furniture. Try to have a room set up for him by five this afternoon."
"Will do."