Prince Mark Wells was clearly not a happy pony. As he entered the conference room of the Ponyville factory where the probationary managers had initially met him, his expression told everyone that this was not going to be the pleasant meeting the first had been. He sat at the head of the table with the Martines flanking him and Penumbra taking her watch position behind and to his left. Mark let the silence linger for a moment as he took the opportunity to scowl at each of the humans in turn, as well as the factory managers. Finally, he spoke.
“Well, this has been a fine fuck-up. I’ll start with the good news. Blue Collar has regained consciousness and his prognosis isn’t as bad as feared. Make no mistake – his recovery will be long and hard, and he may never regain his full capabilities. As he was injured on the job, Harmonic Composites will cover all his medical expenses. Today, we are going to make sure that will never be required again.”
Michelle started to apologize, but a glare from the alicorn made her shrink back and shut up.
Mark continued. “While I am part owner and chief of operations in Equestria for Harmonic Composites, I am also a Triarch and must dedicate the majority of my attention to the needs of the nation. As such, I cannot devote as much time to the company as I would like. That is why I went to special effort to recruit the best beings in their fields to try to ensure that processes are followed and safety concerns addressed. That applies to everyone from foreponies and factory managers to you four interdimensional coordinating managers. However, it is clear that the system has failed. Accidents are seldom isolated events – they are usually the result of a series of minor issues that add up into a major one. In this case, while Ms. Van Dijk’s ill-considered incentive program was the cause of the accident, it actually started with her mistreatment of a stallion due to her biases.”
Michelle wondered if she was going to have a job after all despite Rosa Martine’s assurances and she felt tears welling in her eyes.
Mark held up a folder. “This is the report on the accident. While no species likes to be belittled, ponies tend to react emotionally to a greater degree than any other race. While most eventually put that first incident aside, a few had lingering issues with Ms. Van Dijk. One, in particular, was personally responsible for mitigating safety concerns. As the unicorns went to ever greater lengths to beat the other teams’ production records, it was clear that there were major problems brewing and Blue Collar was concealing his struggles to keep up. However, rather than reporting the problem, the pony in question withheld that information in the hopes of getting Ms. Van Dijk into trouble. This came to light when my wife’s changeling investigators interviewed everyone involved. The serious consequences suffered by Blue Collar may not have been intended but should have been anticipated. As such, not only has Protective Gaze been fired, criminal negligence charges have been laid.”
Mark leaned back in his chair and folded his forelegs across his chest. He looked at Michelle and his expression softened. “This incident is nowhere near entirely your fault, so you’re not going to be fired. Your idea was good up to a point but you had no idea of the repercussions of it being pursued to the extreme. I believe Rosa has arranged for you to learn more about not only ponies but also all the other species that work for Harmonic Composites. You won’t be the only one though. The rest of you probationary managers will also be undergoing further training on these matters. However, you, Ms. Van Dijk, will be required to head up a safety audit and present a report with suggestions for any possible improvements in the system. That will be the penalty for your actions.”
The alicorn turned his attention to Precious Goods. “But she isn’t the only person at fault here. As the factory manager, you are ultimately responsible for what happens there. While Ms. Van Dijk can claim a certain amount of ignorance due to unfamiliarity with unicorn capabilities, you cannot. You should have noticed the fatigue exhibited by the superconductor team and investigated it. You will be written up for this failure. Fast Mover and Sharp Bends did belatedly order their teams to dial back their efforts which allowed the Baltimare team to surge ahead, lending justification to their extreme efforts. This situation was never escalated to top management though, and thus the opportunity to nip the accident in the bud was lost. You two will cooperate fully with Ms. Van Dijk’s safety review to ensure that this does not happen again.”
Tyrone spoke up. “Michelle’s access was still limited. Isn’t that a bit unfair to expect to have seen and understood all that was happening?”
The woman shot her colleague a grateful look. However, Mark frowned in response. “You, however, had unrestricted access. According to the report, Ms. Van Dijk showed you exactly what she intended to do, but you were not seen to be monitoring the situation. In fact, it seems that you have been distracted from your job by family issues on several occasions.”
It was the man’s turn to frown. “You have more wives and kids than me, so don’t tell me that you don’t have family problems too. However, most of mine come down to the fact that I have to keep secrets from my children, and it’s causing issues with Makena too. I have extremely limited opportunities to spend time in Equestria outside of work and that is frustrating. I want to take Jadyn to a hoofball game! I want Faraja to have a Pinkie Pie Party. Give me these and I will be able to give the company more of my time.”
Mark was silent at the rebuke but Phil Martine spoke up.
“He’s right, Mark. We’d be hypocrites if we denied him this. Our daughter and her best friend have unfettered access to Equestria, after all.”
Mark sighed. “And Yolanda’s other former friend showed us why we can’t just allow that for anyone.” He looked back at Tyrone. “But I can understand the problem. Managing both a job and a family isn’t easy. However, since Makena knows about Equestria, I’ll make it both your jobs to ensure that your children don’t cause us any problems. I’ll get back to you on how we’ll go about it. And since both you and Ms. Van Dijk will be extra busy, I’ll give you some extra help. I want you to introduce Estelle López to this world as soon as possible so she can lend you both a hoof. Actually, is Makena looking for a part-time job? She could be of assistance too. Business is certainly good enough at your branch to justify another employee.”
Tyrone was surprised by that suggestion. “I… will put it to her tonight and let you know.”
“Excellent.” The alicorn got up from his chair and looked toward the Martines. “I’ll see you both in Canterlot tonight for dinner. We can discuss Mr. Davis’ family’s introduction to Equestria then.”
Phil nodded and Rosa said, “We’ll bring along Yolanda. She may have some insight that we older folk don’t.”
“Not a bad idea.” He faced the others again. “Are there any questions?” Mark saw a bunch of heads shaking side to side.
“Now, if I have suitably impressed you all with the gravity of this incident, I will get back to my main job of trying to herd cats. I look forward to seeing your report, Ms. Van Dijk. Good morning, everypony.” Mark then left with his ever-attentive bodyguard close behind.
Michelle slumped in her seat with a groan. “I thought I was dead.”
“Not as bad as all that, chica,” Rosa said. “Believe it or not, Mark is taking this almost as hard as you.” At the woman’s surprised look, the griffoness continued. “This company is Mark’s pet project for continuing Equestria’s growth and a stepping stone toward free exchange with Earth. To have someone almost die here was a terrible shock to him.”
Michelle slowly nodded. “I see. He really is looking at the people and not just the products.” She looked over at Tyrone. “Speaking of people, thanks for having my back. I don’t know if I deserve it.”
Her colleague replied, “Like Prince Mark said, we have to all work together for everybody’s benefit.”
“Yeah. I’ve been a bitch but I’ll try hard not to let that happen anymore.”
Precious Goods headed for the door. “I think we’ve all learned a lesson today, so let’s get to it, everybeing.”
There was a murmur of agreement as everyone headed for their respective factories.
“I am the terror that flaps in the night! I am the passive-aggressive note left on the breakroom refrigerator! I am whoops!” The batpony’s flailing wing knocked several objects off the security guard’s desk.
Femur caught them all in his magic as Estelle stumbled off-balance. The changeling grinned. “Ha! You’ll have to try harder than that to inconvenience this bug!”
Tyrone steadied the team’s new pony. “Careful, Darkwing Dork. The adaptation spell might give you the ability to control your new limbs, but it doesn’t grant you the experience to use them properly. Take it from me – you need to learn how to utilize those wings as intended.”
“Sorry, Mr. Davis, but this is so cool! I mean, look at these fangs!” Estelle used a hoof to lift her lip to better show off the long and pointy teeth.
Michelle chuckled and grinned, displaying her own canines. “Aren’t they great?” the cat woman asked.
Estelle was struck by a thought. “Hey! You told me about Ms. Harris and Ms. Petit, but what did Imani become?”
Tyrone answered, “An Ornithian.” At Estelle’s blank look, he expounded. “A bird woman – a blue and gold parrot, to be precise.”
“Whoa! They have bird people here too? This place is awesome!”
Michelle shared an amused look with Tyrone. “Looks like we have another convert to the Equestrian experience. Aside from Shariq who never even tried a new form, it seems that the adaptation spell makes everyone feel their best in their Equian forms.”
“No argument from me. While I was a bit ambivalent at first, I now understand why the Martines never come here in their human forms.”
Estelle nodded eagerly. “Why be a human when you can be an awesome bat?!”
Tyrone gave her a mock glare. “You can’t do your job back at Houston as a batpony.”
“Aww! Rats!” Estelle giggled. “My boyfriend might not be as thrilled about dating a bat though.”
“Probably not,” Michelle agreed. “Anyway, you have the rest of the afternoon off to enjoy yourself and learn a bit about this world until we take you out to dinner in Ponyville tonight.”
The batpony giggled again. “Ponyville is such a silly name, even if it’s accurate. Imagine us introducing ourselves as coming from Humanopolis.”
“Not as bad as this city named Baltimare though,” Tyrone pointed out.
“Yep. That’s going to be stuck in my head all day now, y’know?”
“You get used to it,” Michelle said. “Time is wasting. Let’s get going. Tyrone gets to hold down the fort while we girls have fun in town.”
“Mover, dear, could you make us mares coffee and snacks?” Golden Touch asked.
The stallion nodded and got up out of his chair. “Sure thing, darling.” He trotted away to the kitchen.
“I’m not really thirsty yet,” Jewel said.
Golden smiled and shook her head. “It was just an excuse to have our stallion let us mares talk in private. You and Joy have been regular visitors to our home for months now, and we already regard you both as part of our family. Our foals especially have grown attached to you, Jewel. As your cutie mark shows, you truly have the instincts to be a great mother, and that is why Breezy and I want you to formally ask Mover to join our herd tonight.”
Jewel’s eyes widened and she gasped. “You really want me as your herdmate?”
Subtle Breeze said, “Actually, we’ve wanted it for a long time. Goldie and I knew you would be a good fit weeks ago. Heck, we saw your potential the first time Mover brought you home for dinner. We’ve only left it this long for you to grow into your new life as a mare. Once you became female over on Earth too, we knew that you were almost ready for the next step.”
The supermodel unicorn blushed. “I was uncertain back then, and I still don’t know why I became such a gorgeous mare.”
Joy grinned and said, “That’s easy. The adaptation spell changed you to fit your needs, and you needed to attract a stallion. With so many mares competin’ for the interest of the available stallions, let alone ones who were already mated, you needed to stand out. And by being such a beautiful sexy female, the transformation built up your self-confidence and social skills. You’re powerful different from the man that I knew back then. You’re now the person you and your future herdmates need you to be.”
“We concur with everything that Joy said,” Golden agreed with a smile. “You may still have lingering doubts but we can’t have you putting off asking for much longer.”
Jewel’s eyebrows lifted. “Huh? Why not?”
“Mating season is almost here. You expressed a desire for having a foal so deeply that you got your cutie mark from it. If you are ready to be a part of our family and add foals to the herd, your chance to conceive your first will be here very soon.”
“And what does Fast Mover think of this idea? It’s not as if we’ve ever discussed it.”
Golden replied, “Mover understands that it’s his wive’s obligation to determine suitable additions to the herd. He has brought home potential mares before but none were an instant hit with us as you were. He likes you a lot and wants to move on to the next level. He knows why I sent him to make coffee for us, and right now he’s hoping that we can persuade you to accept our invitation to join the herd.”
“I thought you said that I was supposed to ask him if I can join?”
“That’s the formality that our society requires. The stallion’s mares decide that a candidate is desirable, but it’s still up to the stallion to accept. Just because this is a foregone conclusion doesn’t change anything.”
“Please say you will,” Subtle Breeze begged.
“Go for it, girl,” Joy added.
Jewel blushed again. “I don’t know what to say. It’s not something that I ever planned for, but it feels right. Yes, I would love to join your herd.”
The mares squealed with delight and hugged their future herdmate. When they parted, Golden Touch looked over to Joy.
“We know that foals are not likely to ever be in your plans, but you bring other benefits to our family. Would you be interested in joining the herd also?”
Joy gasped and her eyebrows shot up. Then she smiled and shook her head. “Ah’m right honored to be asked, and Ah can’t say that Ah’m not tempted. However, for now, Ah want to leave my options open. Ah love to share my life with everyone, both here in Equestria and back home on Earth. Ah don’t feel Ah’m ready to commit to a herd as yet.”
Golden nodded with a gentle smile. “We thought as much, but the invitation remains open. And you will always be welcome in our home, Joy Leap.”
“Thank you. Ah appreciate it.”
The lead mare turned back to Jewel. “When Mover comes back, there’s a formal question you must ask him.” She instructed the fashion-model mare in the wording and made sure that she had it down pat before she called out in a loud voice, “Hey, Mover! Where’s that coffee? We’re dying of thirst here!”
The stallion was apparently waiting for his cue because the door immediately opened and he pushed a tea trolley bearing mugs of coffee and carrot cake ahead of him. “At your service, ladies.” He passed around the mugs and the cake with a smile.
Jewel set hers aside to walk up to face Mover and the stallion looked at her expectantly. “Fast Mover – will you do me the honor of allowing me to join your herd and being my stallion?”
Mover gazed at the beautiful mare fondly. “Jewel Petit – it would delight me for you to join my herd and to sire your foals.” He then used his foreleg to pull the mare in to kiss her.
Jewel was surprised by the move, but she quickly melted into the experience. She was his mare and he was her stallion, and they sealed their commitment with the heartfelt kiss. They parted breathlessly to the applause of the others in the room, and then there was another group hug.
Jewel did not return to her apartment that night. In a very real way, she was already home. It still did not assuage her nerves when Fast Mover led her into the bedroom that night.
“I have a confession to make,” she said.
Mover raised an eyebrow. “Oh? What is it?”
“I… I’m a virgin.”
“You’ve only been a mare for a few months, so that’s hardly surprising.”
Jewel frowned at him for his apparent cluelessness. “No, I mean ever. Even as a man, I only ever masturbated. I’ve never had sex with anyone before.”
“I was only joking. Why should that matter to me though?”
“I… I don’t want to disappoint you.”
Mover cupped Jewel’s cheek with a hoof and gazed into her eyes. “Do you think I’m so shallow that I only care about your prowess in bed? I care for you deeply, Jewel, and I want to make love to you. Please let me take the lead. I promise to make your first time beautiful and a memory to cherish.” He lifted her in his magic and placed her on the bed before climbing up next to her. “If you want to get pointers from our wives later, that’s fine, but tonight is just for us.”
Jewel breathed in his masculine scent and admired his strong but lithe form. “Yes, just for us.” She pulled him into a kiss and felt his arousal. A thrill went through her at the thought that this stallion was about to take her and, soon, she was a virgin no longer.
Mating Season started a week later. The factories did not shut down completely, however. The shifts were much reduced though and were strictly gender-separated. The Earthside operations continued virtually unabated. However, no human with a pony or hippogriff alter form visited Equestria during that period except Jewel. After all, she was actively trying to get pregnant. And while it was very likely that she was successful on the first night, it did not stop her and Fast Mover from enthusiastically ensuring it each of the following nights.
By the time the Season had passed, she was smugly overjoyed to be expecting. Her only worry was transforming between worlds. However, Rosa Martine was quick to reassure her.
“Prince Mark’s wife Rarity was pregnant with Pearl for weeks before learning that she was with foal, and in that period, she transformed between her usual self and anthro form several times. Despite that, Pearl turned out as a perfectly normal, albeit anthro, foal. As she had been conceived over there, that outcome was not a big surprise. A similar thing happened to me when I was pregnant with Yolanda. I traveled between Earth and Equus many times before learning that I was expecting. Reassured by Rarity’s experience, not to mention figuring it was too late to worry about it by then, I continued to visit Equestria while pregnant and still had a perfectly normal human girl. The same was true later with Miguel. While I don’t know whether the fetus transforms in the womb, I don’t believe the adaptation spell affects it negatively.” She smiled and chuckled. “So, I expect that you will continue to turn up for your job in Los Angeles until such time as you need to take maternity leave.”
Jewel giggled. “Yes, ma’am!”
“And I have something that will help you be the mujer you truly are on Earth.” Rosa handed Jewel a thumb drive. “On that is everything you need to know and do to be legally registered as female. We had our team research the optimal way of doing so that would raise the fewest questions and cause the least problems. The one catch is that you won’t be able to say you transitioned from being male because it would be difficult to explain when your pregnancy starts showing.”
Jewel stared at the USB device. It represented the final step toward leaving her old life behind. “Thank you, Rosa. This means a lot to me.”
As the weeks passed, both Imani and Estelle took on greater roles at their branches, with pay raises to suit. Makena accepted the offer to work part-time at the Houston office. That still left Tyrone’s wife enough opportunity to cope with their children’s needs. However, those had changed too since they were given access to a whole new magical world. Tyrone and Makena had given permission for a geas to be put on the children preventing accidental disclosure of the existence of Equus and interdimensional travel. Their son, Jadyn, was miffed at first that he couldn’t tell his friends but forgave his parents as soon as his father took him to his first hoofball match. Their daughter, Faraja, would agree to anything that let her play with her new pony friends.
The day came when the probationary period was up. The four managers and their executive assistants were instructed to dress formally and meet up at the Charlotte headquarters. There, they gathered in the conference room with Phil and Rosa and made small talk before the scheduled hour. However, as the time arrived with no sign of getting down to business, Tyrone spoke up.
“Is there any reason why we can’t get the meeting underway?”
“We’re just waiting for – oh! Here he is.”
A short man with dark skin entered the room carrying a special cupholder tray bearing ten large take-out cups of coffee. “Sorry I’m late – the barista was a bit slow. I hope I got everyone’s preferred brews right.” He started passing out the drinks as a woman with an Amazonian build followed him carrying a couple of paper bags with the name of Amy’s Donuts emblazoned on them. When everyone got their drinks, the man sat down with one of the coffees and grabbed a donut.
Michelle looked at what she thought was the office’s gofer curiously. “Pardon me, but are you supposed to be at this meeting?”
Jolene’s laugh drew the attention of the others. She grinned and said, “Don’t you recognize royalty, Michelle? That’s Prince Mark Wells. And that must be his bodyguard. Hi, Penny!”
The Amazon smiled. “Good to see you, Joy.”
Michelle’s eyes widened and she gasped. “Oh! I’m so sorry, Your Highness! I didn’t realize it was you.”
Mark grinned and chuckled. “No problem, Ms. Van Dijk. You’ve never seen me in human form before, so it’s understandable. I thought it was pretty funny, actually.”
Michelle sighed with relief. “So, I guess we were waiting for you to start this meeting?”
“Correct. And I’ll begin by saying congratulations to all four of you. Your probationary period is over and Phil, Rosa, and I are very happy with your performance. There were several missteps and setbacks, but also some wonderful gains. You’ve all settled into your roles as well as expected; better in some cases. Estelle and Imani are also doing excellent support work and you are both in line for promotions when the opportunities open up.”
“Thank you, sir,” Imani said, echoed by Estelle.
Phil took up the reins of the meeting. “As you knew when you started at your facilities, at the end of the probationary period, we would examine if any of you would be better suited to another site before finalizing your roles. However, Rosa, Mark, and I see no reason to change the current set-up. We now have to appoint one at each facility to be the senior manager. Michelle, while you have done excellent work lately and the new safety procedures you implemented are very satisfactory, you still need to be overseen. As such, Tyrone will take the senior position. Congratulations, Tyrone.”
“Thank you, Mr. Martine.”
Michelle had already accepted that she was not going to get the promotion after what Rosa had told her. For once, she did not resent that a man had gotten what she had hoped to achieve. “My congratulations too,” she said. “Can’t say that I’m not disappointed, but you deserve it.”
Rosa took the next turn at speaking. “When it came to deciding for the Los Angeles/Vanhoover position, well, there really wasn’t any choosing to do. Both Jewel and Jolene fell naturally into the places they excelled. Jolene’s outgoing personality worked extremely well in place of the harder and more formal persona that we expected for someone in her front-facing role. Meanwhile, Jewel’s adept management of manufacturing issues saw her work best on the Equian side of the business. The position of senior manager goes to Jolene but, frankly, you two are compañeras perfectas, a well-oiled team, and I doubt that either of you would work as well without the other.”
Jewel gave Jolene a hug and said, “Congrats, boss.”
Jolene giggled and said, “Ah’m not your boss, Jewel. Ah’m your partner, okay?”
“Okay, boss!”
Both women laughed.
Rosa said, “A couple more things before we get down to the other items on the agenda. As a consequence of Jewel’s pregnancy, we have put into place a new policy concerning cross-universal relationships. Harmonic Composites is happy to support them but expects employees to do their fair share with regards to any compromises and extra work involved. Please read up on this new policy and give us feedback if necessary.” She looked over to Mark. “The floor is yours.”
“Thanks, Rosa. The main purpose of this meeting is to plan our goals for the next six months. As you six are best familiar with your facilities, I expect that you’ll be able to give us good feedback on our expectations.”
The meeting continued for a couple more hours before concluding. Phil Martine had one more thing to announce.
“It’s time to take team photos.” He took out a professional digital camera from his briefcase. “I want to get you into two groups for the separate branches, and then get all six of you into one team pic.”
“So, that’s why you wanted us to dress so formally today,” Jolene said.
“Yep.” Phil spent a few minutes taking several shots for each grouping to ensure getting the perfect pose. “Okay, everyone head over to the portal and we’ll do this again, only in your Equian forms.”
Minutes later, they all gathered in the Ponyville conference room to take another series of photographs.
While everyone ended up getting prints to put on their desks on each side of the portal, Prince Mark Wells proudly displayed the latest addition next to the others on the wall of his Canterlot office.
“One step closer to building a bridge between our two worlds,” he murmured with great satisfaction.
# # # # # # # # #
→ Estelle López – Michelle Van Dijk – Tyrone Davis – Jewel Petit – Jolene “Joy Leap” Harris – Imani Williams