"You're coming along very well Dusk," Rarity informed him, as they sat down to take tea after another one of her dancing lessons. "You've advanced admirably, compared to how you were when we first began."
"Don't I know it," remarked Dusk, taking a sip from it.
"You still need to improve a little bit more, but by the time Gala is upon us, you'll be able to sweep Twilight off her hooves with effortless ease," she said proudly.
"I hope so." He levitated the sugar across to her, expressing his gratitude in his smile. "Thanks for your patience in teaching me Rare."
"It was my pleasure dear," she insisted, returning the smile.
Dusk still remembered how embarrassed he was when these impromptu lessons had first begun. Drinking his tea, he began recalling how he had stood on her hooves quite a few times and knocked her over more than once. His own lack of confidence and being in such close proximity to a mare had meant that he had been largely unfocused and clumsy. Rarity's tolerance had been pushed to its limits at times, along with his own feelings of not liking to let his friends down or be the source of their anger. However, Dusk had gradually relaxed and picked up what Rarity was teaching. His movements were still rather jerky and he still stumbled, but he had to admit he was certainly better at waltzing that he had been.
He wondered how he would do at the Gala, provided he could actually pluck up the courage to ask Twilight to share a dance with him in the first place. Would it really be as romantic as Rarity claimed it would be? He hoped it would be… he imagined himself dressed in the suit Rarity had made for him, guiding Twilight across a sparkling dance floor, dressed in a spectacular gown, while the orchestra played a slow, romantic ballad. Encircling each other like feathers in a gentle breeze, having eyes for nopony else but the other. They would lean in, closer and closer, until their lips would meet. It would be perfect…
Dusk blinked and shook away those thoughts. One step at a time Dusk, he reminded himself, patience, just like Rarity had told him. It might not even work, she might not even want to dance with him in the first place… not that he wouldn't blame her.
He noticed Rarity was giving him that knowing smile across the table. "What's on your mind, darling?"
"Nothing… just uh…" Dusk felt his face become red. He decided to perhaps change the subject. "I've been thinking about um… getting a pet."
"Really? A pet?" She seemed a little surprised at this statement, but her smile brightened. "Well, that's just marvellous. What did you have in mind?"
"I'm not really sure yet, I'm still thinking about it." Something brushed against his leg and he looked to see Rarity's cat, Opalescence curl up under the table between them. "Would you say it's worth getting one?"
"Oh yes, of course, I couldn't imagine the Boutique without Opal here. Isn't that right Opal?" The cat opened her eyes lazily in acknowledgement and drifted back off to sleep again. "You see?"
"I certainly do." He would have reached to stroke her, but the last time he did he just received a nasty scratch. "What made you pick Opal?"
"I suppose… I never really thought about it," she admitted, gazing fondly at her pet. "As soon as I saw little Opal as a tiny kitten, I just knew that she was the one for me. It's one of those things that you just know at once."
"Intuition," said Dusk simply.
"That's it exactly. I'm sorry I can't be more help Dusk."
"It's okay, in fact…" He paused to take a sip from his tea, "you've given me something to think about at any rate, so thanks."
"I'm glad I could help. Biscuit?"
Dusk thought long and hard about what would make a good pet for him. There were thousands of different species of animal in Equestria, but only some of those were able to be adopted by ponies as companions. At the minute, he didn't have any kind of particular preference and maybe that was his problem. He didn't know exactly what he wanted from a pet and so he couldn't decide as a result. So, he eventually realised that he would need to get information from another source before trying to make up his mind, one who knew more about animals and pets than anypony else that he knew. So he was now arriving at Fluttershy's cottage, which was as lively with animal life as it always was.
He approached the door and knocked politely on it. Seconds later, Fluttershy's timid head emerged slowly, until she realised who it was. "Oh, hello Dusk. Please, come in…"
"I'm not bothering you, am I?" he asked her, as he usually did when he visited.
"Of course not. Can I make you some tea?"
"That would be nice, but I came here to request your assistance on a personal matter."
"Really?" She paused to give a nut to a squirrel, who chirped her thanks. "What do you need my help with?"
"Well, due to recent events, I have considered getting a pet, but am relatively unsure as to where to start looking." He smiled as her face lit up at the mention of the word 'pet'. "I was wondering if you could advise me as to where to start."
"A pet? For you? Yes, yes of course I can help!" She sounded positively ecstatic at the idea. "In fact, I can do much more than that. Come on!"
With that, she grabbed his hoof and took him outside to the garden behind her house. Here, Dusk could see that there were literally dozens of different animals to choose from, mammals, reptiles, birds, they were all gathered here in a kind of strange showcase of wildlife. Fluttershy floated gently up to the centre of them, spreading her hooves out wide at them all.
"You can choose a pet from all of the ones here! Don't you just love them? Isn't it wonderful?" He couldn't help but laugh at how happy she was at the prospect of it.
"It certainly is," he admitted. "Very well then, let's see what you've got."
"Oh my goodness, just you wait. I have so many wonderful choices for you to decide." Still in a bit of a happy daze, Fluttershy began to show him around all of the assembled creatures present.
First she showed him a few pets that most ponies would commonly own, such as dogs, cats and hamsters. While these were all cute, adorable and friendly, Dusk didn't really feel anything definitive for them. Something told him that he would prefer something a little beyond the norm, but not something too extraordinary. It didn't stop him feeling bad from turning down a rather friendly looking kitten though.
Next, she showed him a collection of reptiles, lizards, snakes and tortoises, slithering and hissing. Again, while these were interesting and not really commonly chosen as pets, Dusk declined once more. They were cold-blooded and scaly, not really what he was looking for. At one point, a rather hopeful tortoise plodded over and gazed up at him, giving him a rather wrinkly smile, as if saying 'please pick me.'
"Oh he's always hoped to be somepony's pet," Fluttershy explained.
Dusk smiled sadly back at him. "Sorry little fellow, but you're not what I had in mind. Besides, I think you were meant for somepony else. Your time will come."
The shelled reptile looked a little disheartened, but still kept that smile as he slowly plodded off once more.
Despite his rather difficult compliance, Fluttershy didn't seem in anyway perturbed or hopeless at this. In fact, it only seemed to make her more determined to find the perfect companion for him. It was like everything he said 'no' to just gave her a better idea of what exactly to look for. When he declined having an insect, or arachnid, as a pet, she stopped to think for a moment and suggested that perhaps he would like a bird as a pet. Feeling intrigued by this, Dusk obliged and was soon looking at all manner of creatures that flew or had feathers.
"Hmm… I don't think a flamingo," he declined, as the pink bird waddled by. "It's too… flashy."
"Don't worry, there's still plenty of choices," she said encouragingly. "Would you consider something along the lines of maybe a sparrow or a finch?"
"Too small. Maybe something a little larger."
"Like a falcon or an eagle, perhaps?" As she prompted this, the birds of prey landed beside her, glaring at him with fierce eyes.
"I don't think so… too aggressive for my taste, sorry." The birds bowed and soared off again. "This is harder than I thought…"
"Don't worry," she dismissed, "there's something here for you. I just know it. Think about something that you think would really suit you and appeal to you."
Now it was his turn to stop and think, his hoof touching his chin. A pet that truly reflected him… something with a degree of intelligence, but also capable of defending itself. Something that also had an aspect that was unique only to its particular species. Perhaps, if he found it, the animal might have a little bit of himself reflected in it. Really, there was only one type of animal he could think of that might have what he was looking for.
"I'd really like an owl, now that I think about it…"
"Like Twilight?"
"Indeed, though not the same breed, of course," he clarified. "Do you have any?"
Within seconds, he was carefully looking over what looked like every species of owl on offer. He was rather drawn to a barn owl, but eventually decided it wasn't quite right. The screech owl too was discarded, along with a tawny. Like the others similar to it, the eagle owl looked too fierce that he'd be comfortable with it. When it seemed like they were reaching the end of the choices, Fluttershy said that she had one more on offer. They crossed over to a tree, where there was a hole in the trunk, large enough for a bird to make its home.
"Come on out, there's somepony here to see you," she coaxed gently. There was no movement within. "I'm sorry, this one's a little shy."
"Really?" This alone appealed to Dusk. "May I try?" She nodded and he peered into the darkness. "Hello? Are you in there? Its okay, I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to see you."
He thought he could see something stir in there and knew he was making progress. Taking the advantage, he pressed on, as gently as he could.
"I understand you're a little shy, I can be too you know. Maybe that's something we have in common. There's no reason to hide, I'm an okay guy. Come on out… please?"
At first, there was nothing. Then, a pair of amber eyes opened and shone in the dark. Tentavively and shyly, the occupant of the tree stepped out. As soon as the bird was in the light, Dusk knew instantly that he'd found the pet for him.
"Wow, even I have difficulty getting her to come out," remarked Fluttershy. "I think she really likes you."
"I think so too," agreed Dusk, offering his foreleg for the owl to climb on. She stared at it for a few seconds, as if it might bite her. Then, she stepped out slowly and perched herself on it, giving a quiet little hoot.
"Perfect! Oh this is wonderful, you're going to be the best of friends, I just know it!" Grinning at her success, she gazed fondly at the two of them. "We're having a pet play date tomorrow you know. You can come along to that and show her to everypony."
"Well that depends… do you mind?" The owl seemed to hide behind her wing, but she shook her head. "Okay then, we will. Thanks Fluttershy."
"It was my pleasure. Oh, what are you going to call her?"
Dusk looked over his new companion, as she shyly hid behind her wing. "I'll tell you tomorrow…"
"Here we are Owlowiscious," Twilight said, as the two of them approached the group of ponies with pets.
They'd all gathered here for their first play date, or rather Twilight's first play date, with their pets. She had Owlowiscious perched on her back, Rarity sat proudly with Opalescence, Applejack was playing with her dog Winona, Pinkie had Gummy biting onto her head and Fluttershy was just arriving too with her rabbit Angel. Twilight could tell already this was going to be a fun day. It was just a shame Rainbow Dash and Dusk couldn't come along…
"That all-a us?" Applejack asked, as Twilight joined them.
"Not quite, Dusk is just coming now," Fluttershy told them.
"Really? Dusk has a pet?" asked Twilight, surprised at this news.
"Yes, he just got one yesterday. He wanted to keep it a surprise for today."
"Ooh, a new friend for Gummy!" exclaimed Pinkie excitedly.
"Oh, wait till you see… look, here he comes." She pointed to their one male friend trotting over. There was no sign of any animal with him though.
"Hey Dusky!" greeted Pinkie, still having Gummy clamped to her head. "Where's your pet?"
"Oh she's…" He looked around, bewildered. "She must be hiding again, hold on…" He turned around and called out. "Ophelia, come on out! I want you to meet my friends!"
They waited a few minutes after this call and soon heard the flapping of wings. They looked up and Twilight actually gasped. Whiter than winter's snow and sailing majestically on the breeze was a beautiful snowy owl, with a small, pointed black beak and brilliant yellow eyes. The way she flew it was more like a cloud was floating down from the sky, having taken on some strange life of its own.
She flew onto Dusk's outstretched leg and promptly hid her face behind her wing. Immediately, Twilight could see why he had picked this owl as his pet, treating her with a special kind of care and respect. It suited him so well.
"There we go, it's okay," he said in a gentle tone. "Ladies and pets, I'd like you to meet my pet, Ophelia."
"Oh Dusk, she's gorgeous," remarked Rarity, gazing with awe at the bird. "Oh isn't she a treasure?"
"Dad gum," commented Applejack. "Now that's a fine owl, if ever ah saw one."
"See, I told you they'd like you." At Dusk's word, Ophelia peeked out from behind her wing.
Gently prompted, she hopped off his leg and onto the ground, her amber eyes fixed on the floor. She let out a quiet little hoot by way of greeting, the other animals seeming to recognise her tentativeness and treating her with a gentle care and respect, as Dusk had done. Owlowiscious approached the closest, giving a more confident hoot of greeting. Ophelia dared to look up and returned the hoot as best she could, but looked shyly at the floor again.
All the while, Twilight just couldn't keep the smile off her face. Just when she thought Dusk couldn't get anymore remarkable, here he was, gently coaxing a shy owl into making some friends. It was rather like a reflection of how he once was. Watching as Ophelia retreated to Dusk's back, she knew the two of them worked together just perfectly.
"Good girl," he murmured to her, stroking her feathers. "Just give others a chance to be your friend and they will. I learned that a long time ago and I've never regretted it."
"You've definitely found something special with this little darling," agreed Rarity. "What made you choose her?"
"Well, owls are generally associated with being intelligent, not meaning to sound like I'm blowing my own trumpet," he added modestly.
"You might have at least told us you have a trumpet. I love trumpets!" Everypony stared at Pinkie. "What? I do!"
"Clearly. Anyway," he continued, "I also wanted something that had a unique aspect about itself. With Ophelia, it's her unique feather colour, with me it's... well..." He created a blur of colour, which his owl followed with a kind of entranced stare. "In a way, I suppose I was looking for... well, me. Just so I might take care of her and help her until she might become something even more beautiful."
"Aw, ain't that sweet?" remarked Applejack, Winona wagging her tail behind her.
"Well... I thought so..." Dusk's cheeks went pink. "I just want to show her she can be cared for and doesn't need to hide, like I once did."
"I'm sure you'll do a great job and we'll help you along with it too," encouraged Twilight proudly, her own owl hooting in agreement.
He gave her one of his warm smiles that he seemed to reserve just for her. "Thanks Twi, that means a lot..."
"Well come on then!" yelled Pinkie. "Let's go and have some fun." Bouncing off, the six of them set off to play with their pets together.
As they did, Twilight watched as Owlowiscious took off and flew alongside Ophelia, who had also taken to the sky. She let him fly in close and the two of them soared off into the sky, their respective owners watching.
"Looks like someone's found a friend," remarked Twilight to Dusk happily.
He just smiled, in a way that said he knew something that she didn't. "Yes, I guess she has…"