//------------------------------//
// Chapter 8: Back to Work 
// Story: The Start of Something New 
// by Rhino 
//------------------------------//

Soon, Monday some around, signaling the start of the work week. As has been the habit half the time these days, Ruby can be found in bed between her parents, put there after her pre-dawn feeding.

The little pink foal yawns as she wakes to the sight of the sun filtering through her mother's transparent wings to shine a light blue light on her. She looks to both her parents, seeing that they are still asleep. Working herself to her hooves, she toddles over to Rhino's muzzle, rearing up and pushing on it with her front hooves and making small noises to wake him up. She then moves over to Gel and repeats the process. She does this once more to both of them before she sees signs of waking from Gel. 

The nymph's eyes slowly flutter open, confused. "...what..." Her eyes eventually focus on the tiny filly on her muzzle and she smiles warmly. "...good morning, Ruby...did you sleep well?" 

She makes various baby noises back at her before nuzzling her and toddling back over to Rhino to try and get him up as well. She rears up again and climbs up onto his muzzle, looking down at his closed eye and making sound at it. 

Gel playfully smirks and puts a hoof on her stallion's shoulder. She gently shakes him, leaning in close enough for her hair to fall around his face. "Wake up, Rhino." She kisses his forehead, giggling quietly. "We need to get ready." 

His body shifts a bit as he opens his eyes slowly. He gazes in awe at the beautiful sights before him of his daughter and wife. Slowly, so as not to disturb the filly's footing, he raises his head enough to kiss Gel on the lips. "You look lovely this morning." 

She rolls her eyes, pulling away from him. "You always say that, love." 

He smiles at her. "Doesn't make it any less true." 

She sticks her tongue out at him. "Flatterer." She gets up off the bed, stretching quickly. "We should get ready, though. We have work today, after all." 

He gently levitates Ruby off his nose, the filly blowing him a raspberry for that, and looks to Gel. "When was this decided? I told you I didn't put a definitive amount of time off from work, so we don't have to go back today. The week comment was just an estimate." 

"I know that." She walks into the closet, closing the door behind her. "Still, there's three reasons I want to go back. One, I'd like to show our daughter where we work." There's the sound of elastic snapping against chitin, immediately followed by a squeak. "T-two, it's about time for our pets to get a check-up. And three," she steps out, dressed in her sky-blue scrubs with the cloud patterns, "I don't want to keep you from something you enjoy doing." 

He sticks out his tongue, which makes Ruby laugh. "You and your figuring out of exactly how to make me see things your way..." 

She giggles, walking forward and tenderly kissing him, leaning over the bed. "It's one of the things I do best." She winks playfully at him before heading to the bathroom. "I just need to get a few items out of here before you shower." 

He nuzzles Ruby as he responds cheekily. "Oh no! You might see me naked! Such a scandal!" 

"Actually, I was more concerned with Ruby needing something when neither of us are available." She pokes her head out, smirking slightly. "I enjoy seeing you naked. I enjoy it even more when you're excited." She disappears for a moment before returning with earrings and glasses on. "All yours, love." 

He quickly gets out of the bed and walks over to her, flicking her side with his tail. He whispers into her ear. "Good to know..." 

She blushes and hurries over to the bed. She carefully picks up Ruby and hurries out the bedroom door. "Let's go wake the others up." 

The morning proceeds normally, with all the family getting ready and heading out to town. Pinchy is once again in her sling and the pets are piled onto the stallion and nymph in various arrangements. Rhino smiles as they reach the small veterinary clinic, pulling out his key and opening the door for Gel. 

She steps inside, smiling softly at the atmosphere of the waiting room. "Just like I remember...except for this..." She walks over to the desk, picking up an apple-shaped picture frame. She turns it over and smiles at the photo. "Look, Rhino. It's Manila and Big Mac." 

He chuckles as he looks at the photo. "About time she put something like that on her desk. Only took her, what? A year? I guess she wanted to wait until they got engaged, and then she finally got that great photo from the reunion." 

"It seems like it." She giggles and looks at the picture as well. She blinks, frowning and squinting at something in the background. "...is...is it me or...is the Apple Family barn just a wooden frame?" 

He shrugs as he heads towards his office to put his stuff in there and retrieve the tools of his trade. "Maybe it was a new barn?"

"...maybe." She shrugs and puts the frame back down. "Still, that doesn't explain why Luster is fiddling behind them." She stretches, carefully placing Mercury and Ruby on the floor. "Keep an eye on her, little one. I want to be sure she won't get hurt." 

He nods and curls protectively around Ruby, the foal laughing and nuzzling him.

She smiles and gently nuzzles him. "That's my kit." She starts setting up her workspace, placing the typewriters in the correct spots and turning to glance at the hallway. Did you see that balloon floating overhead, earlier? I could swear that no one was in it... 

Test balloon maybe? He comes back in wearing his white coat with a few items in the pockets. Selena and Specter follow a moment later, having dismounted him when he needed to get dressed. 

Maybe... She turns to him and stops, blushing brightly. "...y-you look great." She quickly averts her eyes, busying herself with the ribbon on the larger of the two typewriters. 

He smirks as he saunters up to her, rubbing against her side. "Surely you're used to seeing me like this? Both at work and at home for special occasions?" 

She meekly nods, glancing up at him. "...y-yes...b-but that doesn't stop my...a-attraction to doctors..." 

"Well, lucky me then." He nibbles her ear teasingly as he moves to stand next to her. 

She shivers from the action before playfully pushing him with a hoof. "You're lucky the little ones are watching." I'd be jumping your bones, otherwise. 

I know. He winks at her and gives her a kiss on the cheek before turning and smiling down at Ruby, who has shifted in mercury's grip so she is now laying on top of him. 

Gel smiles warmly at this little scene. "They really do get along quite well..." She turns her attention to the schedule next to the picture frame, reading off the list of morning appointments. She soon pauses, however, brow furrowing in confusion. "...I...I don't think I know this pony...I certainly don't recognize the name..." 

Rhino peeks at the schedule, the name not ringing any bells for him either. "I guess we'll see who it is when they get here. Frankly, it's that first appointment that concerns me." 

The nymph blinks, turning her attention to the first pony's name. Her eyes almost immediately widen, and she turns to him, accidentally bopping their noses together. She winces, rubbing her snout as she speaks. "I didn't even know she had a pet. What species is..." She trails off, realizing the pet's name wasn't on the appointment notice. 

He shrugs. "No clue, last time she was here, I wasn't working here. It's probably in her file though." 

She sighs, rubbing the back of her neck. "I suppose that's true..." Her ear twitches as the clock tower chimes, the bell sounding off eight more times before stopping. "It's nine o'clock. She'll be here, soon..." 

At that moment, Gel suddenly feels her chair barely move. A series of small sounds comes from the floor in front of her. A look down reveals her daughter, eyes wide as she tries to get her attention. 

She smiles warmly at her, leaning down and carefully picking her up. She nuzzles her belly, giggling quietly. "Did you want your mommy?" 

Ruby laughs and hugs Gel's muzzle with all four hooves before starting to try and wiggle out of her grasp. Her head is very pointedly directed at a specific part of her mother's lower anatomy. 

Realization quickly crosses her face. "Oh, you're hungry." She glances around and brings over a stool. She places it in front of her chair, and her daughter on top of that, at the same level as her teats. "There you go. Drink up!" She pushes her glasses back up her nose with a hoof, the other gently stroking Ruby's mane. 

The filly heads straight for her goal, but stops and whines as she reaches Gel. She nudges the scrubs the changeling is wearing with her head, then switches to pawing at them with a tiny hoof, trying to figure out how to get past them. 

The nymph blushes softly, embarrassed. She glances around to make sure no one is watching before standing up slightly, pulling the bottom half of her scrubs down far enough to expose the small mounds. "S-sorry about that, sweetie." 

The filly doesn't show any sign of a grudge as she eagerly latches onto one and begins suckling. Her tail swishes back and forth slowly as it often does when she feeds.

Rhino smiles lovingly at the scene. "Decided to go with the non-bottle route until clients arrive?" 

Gel smiles at him, nodding quietly. "I just hope she finishes before our first one shows up." 

He chuckles. "Yeah... something tells me she won't be happy if you try to remove her before she's done." He strokes Ruby's mane fondly before tilting his head and looking at her closely. He hums to himself before quickly heading back to his office.

Gel blinks, watching him leave before turning to their daughter. "...I wonder what that was about...maybe Daddy's just being silly." She giggles at her comment. 

Ruby's only response is to stop nursing a moment to make some satisfied sounds before getting back to it, a small amount of milk dribbling down her chin. 

Rhino returns in about a minute, a ruler and scale both floating in his magic. 

Gel can only stare at him in confusion. She can't even think of a response to his newly-acquired measuring devices. 

He sees her questioning look. "What? I wanted to check something." He sets the scale on the desk and fiddles with it to zero it out. Then, he takes the ruler and sets it next to the prone filly who stays nicely still, occupied as she is. 

She watches in silence for a few moments before cracking a smile. "You're going to measure her weight right after a meal? Is that wise?" 

He continues looking at the ruler. "Well, it's definitely not the usual tactic, but I want to do this while I'm thinking about it before it slips my mind. Plus, this is mostly for my own curiosity. I should probably start an official growth chart for her though... I know Twilight would eat that up." He takes the ruler away and nods. "She's only a week old so it's not like I expected that much. She looks like she's grown a little less than half an inch from nose to tail base." 

The nymph blinks, considering this. "...I have no idea what to think of that...I'm glad she's growing, though." 

He nods, sitting back and leaning against Gel while he waits for Ruby to finish her meal. He lets the silence stay for a moment before voicing a thought to Gel. "Do you think... we'll do alright with her?" 

She smiles warmly, leaning up to gently kiss him on the lips. "I'm certain we will. After all, you've proven yourself capable of rescuing me from Mimic. This'll be a walk in the park!" She sticks her tongue out at him teasingly. 

Although not quite the answer he expected, her words still make him smile. "Maybe..." He lets out a breath as he looks back down at their daughter. "I guess we just take it one step at a time..." 

She nods, leaning up against his fluffy side. "The first step's always the hardest. The journey will be worth it. Trust me." She glances down, catching sight of his watch. "Fifteen minutes until she gets here..." 

As Gel finishes her comment, the door to the clinic opens and two familiar earth pony sisters walk in. One of them looking excitedly to the desk, the already open clinic tipping her off as to what she might find. "You're back!" 

The navy nymph giggles brightly and waves at them. "Yep! Rhino took a bit of convincing, though." She teasingly elbows his side. 

Manila narrows her eyes at him. "Oh? Didn't you want to come back to work and see us? Didn't you miss us?" By the end, she is very nearly pouting.

Rhino just chuckles and takes it in stride. "Well, sure but you know how many distractions there can be at home."

The mare sticks her tongue out at him. "I ignore you and your logic." Her tongue zips back in her mouth. "So, where the little pink ponified essence of cute?"

Gel blushes softly, tapping her forehooves together nervously. "W-well, she's nearby..." 

Manila tilts her head, but Mane seems to understand as she carefully watches the changeling's face. Her facial expressions and her eyes darting downward give her away. "Ah, I see. Don't worry Gel, every mother has to do it, nothing to be ashamed of." 

"I-I guess..." She rubs the back of her neck. In an attempt to change the subject, she picks up the picture frame and turns it towards them. "This is a cute picture, isn't it? Especially with how Big Mac's embracing you." 

The female vet giggles as she looks at the picture then turns to her sister. "Oh yes, I seem to recall the first time you told me about that picture. Something about how you always enjoy the feeling of his big strong forelegs around you and how you sometimes imagine..."

"Mane!" The other mare pushes her to make her stop talking, which only makes the vet laugh.

Gel giggles, pulling the green unicorn next to her closer with a hoof. "I feel the same way about Rhino...at least, from what I heard." She winks playfully at them. 

As Manila blushes, Gel feels the familiar sensation of Ruby separating herself from her. The little foal looks up at her mother with a smile and milk on half her face. 

She smiles back, picking her up and gently dabbing the milk off her fur. "Did you enjoy your meal, sweetie?" 

Ruby responds by babbling back in her usual array of baby noises as the two sisters 'aww' in the background. 

Gel giggles, nuzzling her belly softly before turning to Rhino. "Would you like to hold her a little while?" 

He nods as he takes the filly. "Let me just check something first." He puts Ruby on the scale for a few seconds before nodding and taking her off, holding her in his forelegs as he loves doing. Her responding nuzzling into his chest shows she enjoys it just as much. 

The changeling quirks an eyebrow at him. "So, what's the ruling, love?" 

He focuses on their daughter as he responds. "Nothing too exciting, or even more accurate than a rough guess because of when I did it, but she has definitely gained some ounces. Exact amount unknown of course, I just wanted to make sure and get a rough idea."

Manila giggles as she walks closer and looks at Ruby. "It's kind of sad knowing she won't be this tiny and adorable for that long..."

"Maybe." Gel shrugs, standing up slightly to pull her scrubs back up. "I'd like to think she'll still be adorable when she grows up."

Rhino comments as Ruby starts nibbling on the tip of one of his hooves. "She will if I have anything to say about it." 

She smiles and gently kisses his cheek. "I knew you'd say that." She turns to the siblings, tilting her head to one side. "Are you going to stay here this morning?" 

Manila shrugs. "Eh, what the hay, why not? It just means we get paid overtime." She scoots another chair behind the desk and looks to Gel teasingly. "You don't mind sharing, do you?" 

"Not at all." She gestures to the smaller typewriter, where a certain feline is currently typing away. "You'll have to share with Selena, though." 

Manila looks to the kitten whose odd tendency had become a normal part of life. "Anything to say today, Little Grey?"

She looks up at her and mews, pawing at her mane.

Gel looks at the page she was working on, readjusting her glasses as she does so. "'I could really use some milk right now.'" 

Manila blushes slightly. "Umm... she does mean hers, right? Not yours?" 

"I believe so." She looks to the cat as she rubs up against her body and purrs. "She's only ever had dairy milk." 

The mare nods. "Just making sure."

A few minutes pass and as the second the clock hits the time of their first appointment, the front doors open and the town's party pony bounces through the door with a wicker basket on her head, eyes closed as she heads for the front desk.

Hesitation flickers across the nymph's face, but she smiles warmly at the approaching mare. "Good morning. How have you been so far, today?" 

The pink pony opens her blue eyes and smiles winningly at Gel. "Just peachy pinkie keen! What about you? I hope you've had a good morning, especially because Gummy's been looking forward to his appointment and everything always goes so much better if everypony's had a good morning!"

She shrugs, relaxing slightly. "I'm feeling quite well. The fact I'm getting back to work is helping a lot, too." 

Pinkie nods. "I understand. I love my job at Sugarcube Corner and can't wait to get to it some days! But of course, the most important thing that should be making you happy is your new baby! Can I see her? I've only heard a few things around town, mostly that she's tiny and pink, but all foals are tiny, and some of them are going to be pink, so that really didn't help much! So can I see her, huh huh huh?" The party pony is practically bouncing in place.

Gel blinks but nods. "S-sure. One second." She turns to her stallion. "Rhino?" 

He looks up from where he had been contently sitting and holding Ruby for the last few minutes. After looking at Pinkie thoughtfully for a moment, he nods and stands up, walking over and tilting his foreleg.

Ruby lays on her stomach on top of his leg, gnawing on his hoof until she notices the large pink mass staring at her. She looks up, her green eyes meeting Pinkie's blue ones.

Surprisingly, Pinkie moves quite slowly as she approaches the foal. "Wow... she really is tiny... and pink." She waves a hoof at the filly with a cheery smile. "Hey there! Nice to finally meet you!"

Ruby sits up and starts sucking on one of her own hooves while looking at the large curious mare.

This only makes Pinkie giggle. "Aww... she's a cutie. What do you think, Gummy?"

A scaly green head pokes out of her basket and looks at the foal, unblinking.

Gel squeaks, backing away in shock. "I-is that an alligator? Y-your pet is an alligator?" 

Rhino has a similar reaction as he quickly withdraws Ruby protectively against his chest, narrowing his eyes at the reptile.

Pinkie looks at both parents in confusion before her eyes widen in realization. "Oh, no no no no no no, you don't have to worry about Gummy!" She takes the alligator out of the basket and holds him out towards Gel. "See? He's nice. Plus he has no teeth." The baby gator opens his mouth and sure enough, not a single tooth can be seen in its maw. 

She calms down at this and, audibly swallowing, carefully reaches out to pat the reptile on his head.

He doesn't even react to the touch, simply staring at nothing in particular before slowly blinking once.

Gel pulls her hoof back, awkwardly standing in behind the desk. "...s-so, you're here for an appointment, right?" 

"Yep!" Gummy clamps onto her mane before she bounces back over to the desk. "Gummy's got a checkup!"

As Gel goes through the usual small questions with Pinkie, Mane comes back into the waiting room and looks over to Rhino as he holds Ruby. The stallion matches her gaze and tilts his head towards Pinkie as he mouths at the other vet. 'Are you taking this one or am I?'

She simply smiles and giggles before mouthing back. 'I took her last time she came, it's your turn.'

He sighs and looks back to the client as Gel finishes up. 

The nymph appears to be quite confused. "I'm afraid I don't follow." 

Pinkie tilts her head. "I know, right? I thought they just mixed it up since they named blueberries and blackberries after their color and they didn't want to call something redberries, but I have no idea why they called them strawberries! They taste nothing like straw, and they make terrible straws! Too many seeds..." 

She slowly nods, pressing a few keys on her typewriter. "Why not call them 'roseberries'? They're part of the rose family, after all..."

This actually stops the pink pony in her tracks. "Wait, they are?" 

She nods, holding up a glass of water. "True story." She brings it up and sips at it. 

"Huh... I should ask Twilight about that, she smart about this kind of stuff. Well, she smart about everything, but she'll probably be smart about this too." She nods to herself. "Maybe I can throw a berry party afterwards..."

She nods, turning to Rhino. "Are you ready for her?" 

He nods as he comes over and offer Ruby to her. "Just waiting for you to be done." 

She smiles warmly, gingerly taking their daughter and cradling her in her forelegs. "Thank you for being so considerate, love." 

He gives her a quick kiss before motioning for Pinkie to follow him to the back. In the examination room, Pinkie sets Gummy down on the metal table in the center. Rhino pulls out his stethoscope and starts to listen to the gator's heart and lungs, generally staying away from his mouth.

Pinkie only manages to stay still a few seconds before she starts bouncing in place and talking. "So, what's the word? Good, bad, okay, pickle, kumkwat?"

Sifting through the verbal assault, Rhino answers what he actual question is. "I'll know soon enough. He does seem fine at a casual glance, though." He starts peering closely at the scales on the gator's claws and tail.

She bounces over and stands next to him. "And at a formal glance? Semi-formal glance? Business casual glance?"

He finishes up and nods. "At all levels of glancing, he is fine. Though, I feel the need to ask: Since you saw Doctor Goodall last time you were here, I assume you talked to her about his, well, lack of teeth?"

She nods quickly. "Oh yeah, not really much to say though. I found him that way, and he's never complained. He's just my special Gummy Gator!" She brings the reptile into a hug, though his only reaction is a slight wag of his tail.

Rhino makes a few notes on the pet's chart before nodding and opening the door back to the front. "Well, that was everything, quick and easy. Just make sure to keep his mouth and scales clean and he should stay nice and healthy."

"Okie dokie lokie!" She salutes before snorting and bouncing back towards the front.

The party pony is checked out and soon the clinic returns to its usual quiet state it has when no clients are present. 

Off to one side, Mercury has curled protectively around Ruby, the two of them sleeping as everyone else was focused elsewhere. 

***

The small pink forms stirs from her short nap, her tiny tongue sticking out as she yawns. She looks down at her silver-furred bed and smiles, rubbing it with a hoof before crawling off him and getting to her hooves. She looks around the room, so different from her home that she is used to. She spies her mother exactly where she left her, but where could her father be? Her little legs start moving as she goes to find him. 

The fox's ear twitches at the sound of hoofsteps, and he peeks open an eye just in time to see her wandering around the edge of the desk. Curious and concerned, he stands up and follows, glancing up at Gel as he passes by.

The nymph in question sees them walking off but smiles and waves a hoof. She obviously trusts him to keep the tiny filly safe, turning back to her typewriter and leaving them to their own devices. 

Ruby walks along the wall down the hallway, looking around for Rhino. Surely he is around here somewhere? He's never too far away for too long. Unfortunately, all she can see is the large doors that will let her into other rooms. She stops at the first one she comes to, but quickly realizes a problem. How is she going to get in? The door is closed and only big ponies are tall enough to open it. She scuffs the bottom of the door to see if there is maybe another way. 

Mercury stops right next to her, staying silent for a moment as she tries to open a door. He stares up at it, noticing the lack of a handle and the sign with a pony on the front. He shrugs and pushes it open, revealing the room beyond to himself and the little pony.

Ruby immediately toddles in, looking around the room. It looks similar to some they have in their house, with its tiled floor and porcelain seat, but there are two major differences. For one thing, it's much smaller, and for another, there is no green unicorn in it, which is the most important thing. She spies some smaller doors under the counter. Maybe they lead to where he is. She walks over and pushes her nose against them, seeing how one end moves and moving to it before trying it again. Slowly the door eases open enough for her to slip in, so she does. The door closes shut behind her, leaving her in almost complete darkness. She spins in place, but can't seem to find the door she came in. Thinking that she is trapped, the foal sits in place and starts to whine, hoping someone will find her. 

Hearing this, the fox hurries over, his bushy tail pulling the main door with him, and bites the edge of the door. Slowly moving backwards, he successfully pulls it open, letting a yip escape as he tries to keep from slipping on the tile. 

Ruby quickly stumbles out of the cabinet, not even bothering to look behind her in her haste to get out. She quickly toddles out of the bathroom and back into the hall, moving to the next door. As Mercury finishes shutting the first door, she looks at him and scuffs her hoof against this one, asking him to open it.

He looks up and sees a handle on this one. Considering it for a moment, he leaps up and wraps his foreleg around the bar-shaped metal. When it turns with his weight, he uses his hindlegs as leverage against the doorframe and pushes it open.

The room is larger than the last one, with a metal table occupying the center space. There are cabinets in this room too, but Ruby shies away from those after the last time. She walks further in, looking around for her daddy. Seeing nopony around, she sticks her tongue out and blows a raspberry. Suddenly, a flash of green catches her eye. She looks up and sees the color through a square hole in the wall, unfortunately, it's so high up there's no way she could reach it normally. She looks around again and smiles as she spies something that could help her. 

Mercury drops down from the door handle, looking around for his charge. As he spies her, he yips, rushing over to the base of the counter, and the series of steps formed there, usually used to help larger pets onto the exam table. 

Ruby stops and looks the kit at the noise he made, tiling her head at him. 

He scurries up next to her, nuzzling her before turning back to the door, nodding to it. 

She looks to the door, but then looks back to the fox, babbling to him before looking back at the stairs that can lead her to the bit of green she saw. Each step is approximately the height of her whole being. She rears up and places her hooves on the lip of the first step, but can't pull herself up and her rear hooves scrambled for purchase. She sets back on four hooves before glaring at the step with a look of concentration. Her horn is absorbed inside her head as a rustle along her back announces the return of her feathery appendages. She tries again to get up the step, her tiny wings flapping quickly. The tiny bit of lift is all she needs as she slips onto that first stair before rearing up and starting on the next.

The fox can only watch in silence, fidgeting a little more with each step she climbs. As she reaches the fourth step, he steps up behind her to make sure she is safe.

Although she has a few unsuccessful tries at some steps, the filly eventually makes it to the top of the counter. She shakes herself as her wings go back into her back and her horn returns. With that little change, she immediately heads for the hole in the wall where she spotted the color. 

Mercury simply walks behind her, looking at the hole with the tall, leafy object on the other side. His moderate pace slows slightly as he notices a border to it, his head tilting in confusion. 

The filly walks happily towards the familiar color. as she reaches the hole, though, she squeaks as she suddenly bounces off something. She falls back onto her rump and rubs her nose with a hoof as she looks up but doesn't see what she ran into. She tries again, but slow, and stops when she feels something blocking her. She whines and hits at it with a hoof, making a soft 'clink' sound. 

The kit walks up next to her and sits down, wrapping his tail reassuringly around her.

Right at that moment, a brown head pokes out from the green mass, its cheeks bulging with nuts. It appears to stare at them a second before disappearing back into the foliage. 

Ruby sinks as she realizes that the green mass isn't her father. She lets out a long raspberry before heading back down the stairs to the floor. Toddling out into the hallway, she stops at the next door and waits for Mercury. 

The fox walks right next to her and easily pushes the door open with a paw. He gives her a small grin, his tail flicking behind him happily. 

She smiles and walks forward to hug him, thanking him for his help. She looks around the room as she holds onto the silver fox. The room is fairly boring compared to the last one. The walls are lined with shelves containing boxes, supplies, and files with not much spare space to be found. A trashcan can be seen in one corner along with a few different trashcans for different things, but there is really only one thing in the room that catches her attention. A few white coats hang off to one side. Remembering what her dad was wearing last time she saw him, she heads towards them. Maybe he'll come to her if she has one.

Mercury watches her from the doorway, wondering what she's up to. He raises a paw, as if to approach her, but hesitates, unsure if she even needs the help. 

Ruby reaches the coats and latches onto the bottom of one with her mouth. She starts yanking it every which way as hard as she can. Due to her size though, this doesn't really do much other than make the coat look like it's flapping in the breeze. However, she yanks it at just the right angle that to top flicks off the hook it was on and the entire coat floats downward, covering the filly. 

Startled, the silver kit rushes forward and works his way underneath the cloth. He searches briskly, wanting more than anything to make sure she is safe. To an outside observer, he looks like a lump circling a smaller one, slowly moving inwards.

A silver nose pokes out of the expanse of white, making the filly smile and laugh as she pokes it with a hoof. As more of Mercury reveals itself, she walks over to him and climbs on his back, babbling to him and looking forward. 

Glad she is fine, Mercury stands up and feels his way out of the room, knocking a mop and two brooms over on the way. He does get back out to the hall, the coat covering both of them completely.

As the two sit under the coat, Ruby's ears perk up as she hears a door opening close to them and hoofsteps approaching. Suddenly, the coat is lifted up and a large green stallion is smiling down at them.

Rhino chuckles as he speaks to the kit and foal. "Just what have you two been up to in order to make all that racket?"

Ruby of course, doesn't answer as she beams and holds out her hooves to her dad, who gladly picks her up, cradling her against his chest.

Rhino pets Mercury as the filly snuggles up against him. "Good job sticking with her." 

He yips, tail wagging happily as he leans into the stallion's hoof. 

The foal takes a moment from cuddling her dad to reach a hoof out towards the kit. Rhino, seeing this, crouches down so she can reach him. Much like her father, Ruby pets the silver fox while cooing at him. 

Mercury smiles and leaps up, bracing his paws against Rhino's foreleg so he can more easily nuzzle the filly. 

This little cuddle-fest continues until Rhino decides to stand back up and head towards the front, filly in grip and kit in tow. He calls to Gel and Manila as he enters the main room. "Hey, look who I found wandering around back there, making messes and getting into things." 

Gel turns to him, smiling warmly at the three of them. "I see. It must've been an adventure, huh?" 

Ruby just smiles as she looks down at the kit, snuggling against her prize. 

Later that day, the shift at work is almost over. Rhino and Ruby are in his office as he takes care of a few things. Mercury, of course, is with them, keeping an eye on the foal. Specter and Selena are on the front desk, the latter  using her tiny typewriter. Finally, Manila and Gel are happily sitting side by side as they do their job.

The door opens to signal that another customer is arriving. 

The nymph turns to the door on instinct, smiling brightly. "Good morning! How are...you..." Her voice trails off as she sees the pony who arrived, her anxiety immediately rising. 

The entering orange unicorn's eyes widen as well upon seeing the changeling. She takes a look towards the door, but sighs before begrudgingly turning back towards the nymph and approaching the desk, her eyes firmly locked on Manila. "Hello, I have an appointment." She gestures towards the red parrot on her back.

Manila nods she looks down at the schedule. "Ah yes, a new customer. Please fill out the basic information forms and we'll get your bird seen to." She motions to Gel, who is closer to the forms than she is. 

She nods and grabs the paper, holding it out to the unicorn awkwardly in her magic. "H-here you go." 

The unicorn glares at Gel before snatching the paper with her own magic. She goes to one of the chairs and starts filling it out, the sound of her quill scratching is one of the few things breaking the silence of the room.

Gel keeps her eyes down on her typewriter, filling out a form for a previous client's visit. She can't bring herself to do anything else, wanting to avoid any kind of malice from the unicorn. 

The red-maned mare stand back up and walks over to Mania, floating the paper to her and doing her best to ignore Gel's existence for as long as possible.

The earth pony nods as she files the paper away. "Alright Miss... Hearth Warmer, Doctor Rhino will see your pet. One moment while we call him." She looks to Gel. 

She nods and turns to the back, her mind reaching out to Rhino. Love, you have a new customer. Please stay calm when you meet her, though...I don't want Ruby getting upset. 

Why would you say something like tha- His mental voice cuts off as he realizes exactly what might make her say that. I'll do my best... Rhino walks into the waiting room, Ruby carried in one foreleg and Mercury walking to the side. He tenses up as he sees the mare, but keeps his face straight. Walking over to the desk, he gently passes Ruby to Gel.

Hearth, who had maintained a mostly neutral demeanor until this point, grimaces quite noticeably as she sees the foal. One can easily see the disgust conveyed in her expression. 

Gel, noticing the mare's expression, holds her daughter close. She gives the orange mare an even look, almost daring her to try and say something off-color about the filly. "This," she gestures to her stallion, "is Doctor Rhino. He'll be seeing to your pet, today."

Mercury stands at the side of the desk, staring up at the unicorn. He definitely recognizes her, and he doesn't like that she's here one bit. 

Specter, sensing the tension, bounds over to the stallion, who relaxes as the black critter climbs up and onto his mane in his usual spot. Rhino gives the mare a very clear and impossible to misunderstand look that says, in short: 'You don't like me, I don't like you. Let's try to be civil about this, because if you aren't, you are outnumbered here.'

Hearth  sees the look, but keeps her usual neutrality as she follows him. 

The exam that follows is easily the most tense and quiet one Rhino has ever performed. Rhino only speaks to Hearth in short, direct sentences. Each time she starts to speak and he hasn't said anything, he shoots her an intense look and taps his hoof next to her pet. Of course, he'd never do anything to endanger her parrot, but she doesn't know this so it serves as a way to shut her up. Throughout it all, a pair of golden eyes from within Rhino's mane constantly stare at the mare, like the piercing gazes found in the darkness of so many foal's nightmares.

Eventually, the exam concludes and the mare swiftly gathers her parrot and heads to the front, not waiting for Rhino's order to do so. 

Gel looks up as she rounds the corner, nodding to her. "That was quick. Are you ready to pay for the appointment, Miss Warmer?" 

She sneers at the nymph and opens her mouth to respond, but the sound of Rhino clearing his throat right behind her makes her shut it quickly. She settles for a stiff nod. 

The blue changeling takes a piece of paper and moves it over to the mare. "This is how much you owe." 

Hearth puts down the required bits with more force than strictly necessary and heads towards the exit without another word. Mercury hisses in her direction as she exits the clinic.

Rhino exhales, trying to let the tension flow out of his body after that encounter. "Well... I think that went fairly well." 

Gel nods before resting her head on the desk. "...considering who it was, I have to agree..." 

Manila looks between the two of them. "Did I miss something?"