I woke up to a gentle rumbling noise. It was warm and deep and I could feel it reverberate throughout my body. I think Mac is snoring. I rolled over in his hooves and forced my eyes open. Sunlight was streaming in through the busted wall. Why isn't Mac awake yet? And why am I? This is so comfortable, laying like this. I shouldn't have woken up until at least noon. But here I am, it's just after sunrise and I can't get back to sleep.
I turned a little more and spotted something next to the bed. It was that book. Staring at the thing, I found it kind of hard to believe that I had let it affect me so much. But now that I see it again, it looks familiar. I think I've seen it before. But where?
Fluttershy.
Fluttershy has a copy of it on her coffee table. But why? Why would Fluttershy have something like that? And not keep it locked as far from sunlight as possible? Well, it is a relationship book. And Fluttershy is in a relationship. But page 5? It can only get worse right? But I don't think Fluttershy would own something like that. Maybe that's the only page with something like that.
I picked up the book and flipped to a random page. Nope. I was wrong, that wasn't the only page. I was about to toss the book when I felt Mac tighten his hooves around me. Just a little though, it was like a light hug, but he was still asleep. After everything he said yesterday, I'm a lot more comfortable around him. Especially that part about no pressure or expectations. He also said he was going to ask me something in one year, and I can only think of one thing it could be. It's funny, yesterday, I would have been scared stiff at the prospect, but now? I actually think it could be kind of nice. It's also helpful to know that I don't have to worry about it for a long time.
But that doesn't mean I don't have to think about it. Knowing there has to be more to the book if Fluttershy owns a copy, I opened it to another random page. Fortunately, this one didn't have any pictures.
Page 71:
This book is intended for distribution by medical facilities and contains only the necessary health and safety information. The following contains excerpts from other books in the Earth and Sky series.
Of Shifting Winds and Changing Hearts. (Excerpt from book one)
Hello, Mr. Earth Pony and Ms., or Mrs., Pegasus. Thank you for giving this book a chance. But you may be wondering why I address you as I have. Especially if I was correct.
The answer to that is simple, this book is written for earth pony/pegasi couples, most of which consist of a male earth pony and a female pegasus. Nopony is sure why, but the leading guess is that there is a dual attraction of the Pegasus to the strength and stability of the earth pony, and of the earth pony to the exotic nature and inherent sense of freedom possessed by the pegasus. This may help create a stronger than usual initial attraction. You might call it a crush, or maybe you'd call it love at first sight. This allows the couple to emotionally bond in a rather short amount of time. Usually a few weeks, but it is known to occur faster if subjects have highly compatible personalities or deeply rooted emotional similarities. In the end however, love is love, and no amount of science or psychology or magic will ever explain it.
This accelerated bonding process has led to many long-lasting and fulfilling relationships. One in particular, that of myself and my wife, the co-author, has lead to this book being in your hooves. We have found during our research though, that for every successful relationship of this type, there seem to be hundreds of examples where couples simply drift apart.
It is by no means complete, but we have done our best to catalogue the hurdles that face what we call 'earth and sky' couples. Hopefully this will give new couples the chance to avoid, or at least recognize, things that have torn other couples apart in the past. If even one couple finds help through our words, then our years of work and dedication will have validated in the only way we could ask for.
My hero (Excerpt from book one)
Nearly half of the failed relationships that we encountered during our research began as the direct result of an earth pony coming to the aid of an injured Pegasus. Less common is some other, perhaps inconsequential, need on the part of the Pegasus. This need is met by the earth pony in some manner.
This is in fact how my wife and I began our relationship. While we were still in university, my wife had broken her last pencil during a closed exam. I had foolishly risked failing to pass her one of mine. I did it because I thought she was cute, and I liked how she would just jump out of the nearest window when class let out. After the exam, she ran up to me and gave me a hug. I asked her out to lunch, and a month later, we were sitting in line at a fly-through chapel in Las Pegasus. We got cold hooves and left, but as we left, we started to question things. Why did we chicken out? Why were we there in the first place? How had it only been a month when it seemed like so much longer? We returned to university and continued to question. I went into psychology, and she went into medicine, but we stayed together. Years later, after receiving our doctorates, we returned to that same fly through chapel to start both our lives together and our research for the earth and sky project.
If our relationship was successfully built on a single pencil, it seems that a bond based on helping somepony through an injury, or saving their life would be stronger. Sadly, we have not found this to be case. Usually, the ponies involved in these more serious cases are much less likely to have things in common, specifically small day-to-day relatable occurrences. My wife and I had university happenings to talk about, small, inconsequential small talk that helped root our similarities while still allowing us enough differences for the relationship to be exciting.
page 72:
My hero: continued,
Much more rare is a case in which the earth pony is the one injured or in need, and rarer still when both ponies must come together for mutual benefit. Sadly this can lead to misplaced feelings of guilt or resentment, and the often mistaken belief that the other partner is better than you are, or nicer than you deserve, or doing more than you are.
The best way to overcome these problems, or to keep yourselves from falling too hard, is to stop and question your relationship, really question it. Do you have something in common with your somepony? Did you know each other before the event? Would you have met even without the event? Even if the answer is no, do you love them? Truly love them, enough to work through whatever may come?
Location, location, location (Excerpt from book three)
One hurdle earth and sky couples must face is geographic location. Living in Canterlot, my wife and I went to the same shops and restaurants. Cloud buildings were exceedingly rare, and usually temporary. I was always able to call in a favor from a unicorn friend and get a cloud-walking spell. This allowed us live in the same world, whereas more cloud-dense cities such as Cloudsdale, Las Pegasus or the Clouderado region would be much more difficult to navigate in this manner, requiring instead the constant companionship of a unicorn or repeated doses of a featherweight potion. I have learned from experience though that repeated spell casting or potion use can lead to spontaneous failure, therefore a parachute is recommended for all earth ponies attempting long term cloud inhabitation.
Page 73:
Location, Location, Location: continued,
This problem is often related to an earth and sky couple's first meeting in that an injured pegasus may suddenly find themselves unable to return to their homes, or in rare cases, completely alone in a new and possibly frightening land due to never having been on the ground before. In these cases, the earth pony usually offers their home for use until the pegasus can return to their own.
Location-based problems can be difficult to overcome, but it can be done. Moving to a ground-based mountain location such as Canterlot, or a high rise city such as Manehattan or Seaddle can be the easiest and safest way to provide both the necessary earth pony accessibility and the desired pegasus altitude. However merely being aware that geographical separation can lead to emotional separation may allow you to take measures against this. Take a little extra care with travel plans, calling ahead to see which hotels are cloud-based, earth-based, or a combination of both is a good idea. As is traveling with groups of friends that include unicorns. And if you're an earth pony like me, that parachute can go a long way towards making your trip more enjoyable.
All work and no play (Excerpt from book two)
In any comparison of two different ponies, the subjects of career and recreation prove interesting. They may vary drastically or be nearly identical.
My wife and I are both doctors and authors, our careers are identical and intertwined. This book is proof of that. However our special talents and cutie marks are drastically different. My wife loves sports, cloudball the most and her mark is a flaming cloudball hoop. I prefer music and hold a metronome upon my flank. As university students, we could either afford to go to a ball game, or to a concert, rarely ever both. We found a middle-ground in the most unlikely of places. A young mapmaker and friend of ours introduced us to the local video arcade. We would take turns choosing which games to play, I would find ones with nice music and rhythmic pacing, and she would always choose the ones with the most action. We have moved to personal gaming systems now, but they still provide as much of a bridge between our hobbies as ever.
page 74:
All Work and No Play: continued,
Rarely if ever do two ponies share the same interests completely, in our case, we allowed our love and mutual goal to override what we once thought to be destiny. This may not work for everypony, so keep in mind that the one you love may not love the same things you love. It is sometimes possible to find another activity that incorporates elements of things you both enjoy, or something new entirely.
While the subject of hobbies may seem inconsequential to some, to an earth and sky couple it can be quite important. It is much easier to try a new hobby than it is to switch careers.
On the subject of careers, an earth and sky couple is less likely to be compatible than any other combination of ponies. A Pegasus may have any number of careers not suited to an earth pony, from express postal delivery, to weather control, to cloud architecture. Similarly, earth pony work is often too difficult for most Pegasi, from farming, to mining, to construction. This can be especially stressful if you or your partner own or are part of a family based business as one may feel pressured into helping regardless of whether or not they are capable of it. It is important that, if you find yourself in this situation, that you take it slow and find out whether or not you or your partner is suited for and truly enjoys the task at hoof. And more than anything else, do not pressure, or feel pressured, or get upset if things don't work the way you think they should. Part of a relationship is being able to adapt to changes and accept differences.
More to Think About (a personal message from the authors)
We could keep listing the various problems you might face as an earth and sky couple, and in many parts of this book and the others in the series, we do. But these book are designed to be read a little at a time as you grow into your new relationship. So after reading this section of the book, we hope that you will keep these things in mind.
Be honest with yourself and your partner. Trying to be something you're not, or forcing them to do so is not going to lead you anywhere worth going.
Don't be afraid to be different, but be ready to accept the differences in others.
Talk to each other, talk about little things, talk about big things, your day, your past, your hopes for the future. Everything you talk about is something you've shared.
Things will not always work out. It may hurt, and you may not like it, but try not to let a failed romance destroy your friendship as well.
Love is the most important thing of all. During our research we had a lot of ponies ask us, "What good is a relationship if it couldn't work without your little book?" We will give you the same answer we gave them. A book is a book. Without somepony to read it, it is wasted space. All of our experiences, our research, our advice is pointless if nopony cares. You can read this book and forget every word. Or you can read it and take the advice and put more thought and effort into your relationship. But the only ponies who would care enough to do so, together, are those that truly love each other. It will not always be easy, and there will be times of pain. But like all things, great reward only comes with great effort. You must decide for yourself what is worth that effort. You must decide,
Page 75:
Do you two love each other?
Something fell onto the page and a red-coated hoof wiped it away, leaving a faint, wet streak under the words.
"Rainbow," Mac said softly. I looked over at him. Has it really only been a day and a half? "Ya don't have to read that if it's gonna make you cry. Ah'm here for ya." It felt like forever. I want it to be forever.
"I want the answer to be yes." I could feel tears running down my face. Funny, I'm not sad.
He lifted a hoof to my face and wiped away the tears. "What are ya talking about, Rainbow?" He said it so softly, so gently. He's always so gentle with me.
I sat up, removing myself from his hooves before offering him the book. "Read it."
"Why?" He sat up, took the book, and closed it. "And why did the hospital even give ya that?" He set it down on the bed.
"Because it's us Mac," I picked the book back up and offered it to him again, "page 71. Read it, it's us. And we figured it out. I love you, and I want the answer to your question to be yes."
He looked me in the eyes for a few moments then took the book from my hooves. "If ya want me to, I will."