As I stomped into the library, I shook my shoulders, trying to dislodge the snow that had slowly accumulated upon them during my time outside. Tossing my shovel aside, I quickly closed the door behind me before any snow could blow in. Once I was sure that the door was shut tight, I turned, blowing on my hands to warm them.
At the sound of the door closing, Twilight looked up from her desk, a surprised expression flitting across her face.
“Did you finish clearing off the entire front walk already?” she asked, glancing over at the clock on the wall. I nodded, running a hand through my frozen hair, trying to knock some of the small chucks of ice loose. Reluctantly, I removed my warm coat and hung it upon the coat rack. Kicking off my enchanted sandals, I made my way quickly to the fireplace, and the crackling fire within.
Crouching down, I sighed happily as the warmth of the fire washed over me, warming my frozen limbs.
It had been snowing nonstop for the past three days, a clear indication that Ponyville’s weather team was apparently trying to beat the record for snowfall. The blanket of snow across the town was becoming deeper and deeper. At the moment, it was currently up to my knees in some places. While I normally wouldn’t find that troublesome, that meant that the snow was chest-high to the ponies. Unicorns, with their magic, could easily clear a path through the snow, but the others could not. In order for all ponies to successfully come and go, the snow had to be cleared from the paths.
Twilight was having me go out and clear the front walk of the library every few hours as my punishment for “cheating” during the human show. I had to make sure that the path was clear, and that any ice had been either chipped away, or properly taken care of. I was just glad she hadn’t found out about the bits I had won yet, or I'd probably have it worse.
I had been shoveling the snow all day, but at the rate the snow was coming down, my work would be completely covered within an hour of so. Nonetheless, I continued clearing it faithfully whenever she asked.
As I continued to warm myself by the fire, my teeth chattering, I heard movement coming from behind me. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Twilight approaching with a concerned look on her face.
“Here,” she said softly, levitating a steaming mug of hot chocolate over to me. I took the mug in my hands, cooing happily as the heat from the cup began to seep into my skin. I took a small sip, reveling in the sensation of the hot liquid flowing down my throat and into my stomach.
As I took another sip of life-giving hot chocolate, Twilight gave me an apologetic look, her ears splaying backwards.
“You can stop shoveling if you want,” she said. “I keep forgetting you aren’t as resistant to the cold as Equestrian humans. I don’t want you getting frostbite.” Smiling, I reached out and poked her nose with my finger, causing her eyes to go crossed as she scrunched up her face.
Lowering the mug to the floor, I signed out, ~If I didn’t do it, we’d be stuck in here within a few hours~
“True,” she said. “But I could always make Spike do it if it got to that point.” I gave her a blank look, shaking my head slowly.
~You’d make the cold-blooded dragon go out in this weather to shovel snow?~
“He could always use his fire to melt it,” Twilight said with a shrug.
~Yeah, and then the water from the melted snow turns to ice~
“Fine,” Twilight huffed, rolling her eyes. “Have it your way. Just please remember to come in to warm up if it gets too cold for you.” I smirked and reached back down for the steaming mug. Picking it up, I then stood up and slowly made my way to the couch.
As I collapsed upon the comfy cushions, the basement door cracked open and Primrose stuck her head out. She glanced around, her red eyes narrowing as they landed on me. Tsking softly, she shook her head in annoyance.
“You were outside again, weren’t you?” she huffed, pushing the door open further and slipping into the room. “You keep this up and you’re going to get hypothermia.”
~I’m not made of glass~ I quipped, holding the mug in between my legs, where it began to warm my lap. ~I’ve managed to survive twenty years without the help of three pony guards, and I’m pretty sure I can survive a little cold while I shovel snow~
“That may be true,” Primrose said, stopping in front of me. “But if you do get injured, it’s our flanks that get chewed out by the princesses, not yours, so just humor me, alright?”
~That depends on the princess~ I signed smirking as I cast a quick glance over at Twilight, who had returned to her desk.
“Yeah, yeah,” Primrose scoffed, rolling her eyes. She pulled a strange-looking device out from under her leathery wing and held in up in front of her. It looked like a thermometer you shoved in someone’s ear, but instead of the small cone-like part that entered the ear canal, it had a large black pad on the front.
“Now, shut up and hold still,” the batpony commanded as she reached up and pressed the pad against my forehead. I winced slightly at the strange, rubbery feel, but did as instructed. About half a minute later, the device beeped and Primrose lowered it, glancing at the results.
“Temperature is a few degrees lower than normal, but well within an acceptable margin,” she muttered as she placed the thermometer-like device back beneath her wing. “Now, if you would be so kind, please stop going out there every other hour. The last thing we need right now is you getting sick, or frostbitten.”
“That’s what I said!” Twilight called from her desk, keeping her head lowered. Primrose turned back to look at me, a large smirk on her face. Fixing her with a deadpan look, I slowly lifted my closed fist up until it was at eye level. As I took a long, slow sip of hot chocolate, I extended my middle finger, giving Primrose the bird.
She just stared at the digit, blinking occasionally.
“You know, none of us know what that means unless you tell us,” she said. Lowering the mug from my lips, I just smirked at her. This caused her red eyes to narrow, and her ear twitched in annoyance.
“Although, I think I could take a stab at its meaning,” she growled under her breath. I just wiggled the digit at her as I took another sip of the hot liquid. With a huff, the batpony turned and headed back towards the basement door. Opening it, she descended the stairs and closed the door behind her, but not before some snippets of conversation floated up from below.
“No, no, no! You’re supposed to ease it in gently, not shove it in all at once! You’re going to end up damaging something important!”
“Well, excuse me! It’s rather… uff, hard to control it in this position!”
“Just hold it steady. I’ll do it myself—”
As the door closed with a click, silencing the voices, I turned and looked over at Twilight. She was staring at the closed door, a confused look on her face. Her eyes slowly drifted over to me, and her muzzle suddenly took on a red tinge. She quickly returned her gaze back to her desk.
Scrunching up my face slightly, I glanced around the library before looking down at the steaming cup in my hands. Slowly, I began to nod my head. My life has become weird.
Finishing off the mug of hot chocolate, I placed the empty cup on the table beside me. I stretched, groaning happily as my back cracked loudly. Lowering my arms, I reached for a book that sat upon the coffee table in front of me. I picked it up and immediately flipped to the bookmarked page, continuing where I had left off.
The story was basically this world’s version of Beauty and the Beast, only Belle was a pony, and the Beast was a griffin. Luckily, there was enough difference between the two stories to at least make the story somewhat interesting, although it still felt like a cheesy romance novel.
I had only been reading for a few minutes when Twilight suddenly stood up with a groan. Stretching her wings, she closed the book she had been reading with a soft thump.
“That’s it,” she sighed, stepping away from her desk and walking over to the couch. “I’m done. I can’t find a single reference to anything—deity, legend, or myth—that refers to a ‘Radeck’ or anywhere. I think that Lyra may have just been crazier than we first thought, and the name is made up.” I glanced over at her as she flopped upon the couch beside me.
As she stretched out across the couch, she glanced up at the book in my hands, humming softly.
“Looks like you’re almost done with that,” she said. “I’m going to need to find the sequel for you.” I cocked an eyebrow, looking down at her as I placed the book in my lap.
~There’s a sequel?~
“Oh, yes,” she said, nodding lazily. “I believe there are five more books in the series, with a sixth on its way.” As she spoke, Twilight wiggled around till she was lying on her back, her head resting against my hip. Her horn poked my side gently as she breathed. Reaching down, I scratched the side of her head as I returned to my book.
Twilight hummed happily as I scratched, tilting her head to allow me better access.
“Oh, that’s nice,” she murmured softly, her eyes closing.
We stayed that way for a long time, neither of us wanting to move. I smiled softly as I read, enjoying the warm presence of the lavender pony beside me, as well as the fire crackling in front of me. Twilight just laid there, rubbing my knee with a hoof every now and then. The silence was broken only occasionally by the sound of me turning a page.
Eventually, we were snapped out of our silent daze by the sound of someone knocking on the front door. I raised my gaze from my book, looking around in confusion. Twilight blinked groggily as she sat up, glancing at the door.
“Who’s out in this weather?” she said, slurring slightly as she blinked sleep from her eyes. Standing, she stretched before walking unsteadily to the door and opened it. Yelping in surprise, she jumped back as Rarity and Fluttershy staggered inside, both shivering horribly, both covered in snow.
“Rarity!?” Twilight cried, closing the door behind the pair, blocking the winter wind. She looked at her two friends in surprise, worry etching across her face. “Fluttershy? What’s wrong? Why are you two outside in this weather?”
“W-we were c-coming to see you, actually,” Rarity replied, her teeth chattering. Beside her, Fluttershy nodded, her face half-buried in her scarf. The part I could see was red from the cold. Snow clung to the pair’s manes and tails, falling to the floor as they brushed it off of them.
“What were you coming to see me for?” Twilight asked, her face scrunching up. “Unless it’s something important, couldn’t it wait until the storm passes?”
“We’ve come to take you out to dinner, darling,” Rarity said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Both of you, actually.” She glanced over at me, a sly smile touching her lips briefly. Twilight and I exchanged incredulous looks before looking at the two mares.
“Out to dinner?” Twilight repeated, raising an eyebrow. “Why? What’s the occasion?”
“Does one need an occasion in order to treat friends to a dinner out?”
“Usually, yes,” Twilight deadpanned, glancing out the window. “Especially with the weather that is currently going on outside.” Rarity huffed, batting her mane with a hoof.
“If you must know,” she said. “Scratchers is having a special tonight—four ponies and your meal is half-off—and I thought we might take advantage of it.”
“Really? Scratchers?” Twilight asked, looking at Rarity like she had grown a second head. “I didn’t think that was a restaurant you went to, Rarity.”
“While I’ll admit that it isn’t the most high-end establishment, that doesn’t mean that I don’t like getting a good scratch every now and then,” Rarity said, not looking Twilight in the eye. I just looked between the two of them, confused. What’s Scratchers? And why do I have a sudden craving for buffalo wings?
“You’ve hated humans ever since Sweetie Belle got attacked,” Twilight said, a blank look on her face. Rarity’s eyes narrowed and she finally turned her head, glaring at Twilight.
“We are taking you out to eat, darling,” she said, her tone thin. “And you are going to enjoy it!”
“But you said the special was for four ponies,” Twilight argued, her eyes narrowing as well. “We currently have only three.”
“Then ask one of your guards to come with,” Rarity countered. Twilight just scoffed, shaking her head.
“I’m not going to ask one of Max’s guards to—"
“I’m in,” came a voice from the basement stairs. Glancing over my shoulders, I saw that Ebony had entered the room during the conversation and was watching the two mares with a small smile on her face.
Twilight blinked, eyeing the unicorn unsuredly. “You’re in?”
“Sure,” Ebony said with a shrug. “It’s been a while since I went to Scratchers. I really like their Cinnamon Apple Cider!” For a moment, her eyes became unfocused and she drooled slightly, murmuring “Cinnamon Apple” softly to herself. I just eyed her, trying not to laugh.
After a few seconds, Ebony blinked, shaking her head before smiling sheepishly. “Sorry.” As she recovered and started to walk forward, I glanced around at the other mares.
~Okay, what is Scratchers exactly?~ I asked. Twilight opened her mouth to answer, but Ebony quickly silenced her with a hoof.
“You’ll see when we get there,” she said with a smirk. “They have really good food and drinks. You’ll like it, I promise.”
“Indeed,” Rarity added, adjusting her scarf. “This shall be an interesting experience, to be sure.”
“But we don’t even know if outside humans are allowed inside,” Twilight said, pushing Ebony’s hoof away from her mouth, grimacing slightly at the taste. “And I’m not making Max stand out in the snow, or walk home alone.”
“They’re allowed,” Rarity said, smirking at Twilight. “I double-checked before coming. They’re actually encouraged, as long as they’re well behaved, and I do believe that Max may be the most well-mannered human in Equestria.”
Twilight hung her head in defeat. “Fine, just let me get my things, but this better not be anything like that little stunt you pulled with the human show,” she added, glaring at Rarity.
“Excellent!” Rarity said happily. Twilight trotted over to her desk and began searching the contents for her bitbag. Looking down at my book, I sighed heavily before closing it and setting it back down on the coffee table. Standing, I made my way over to the coat rack and began to pull on my winter gear. As I did that, Ebony opened the basement door.
“Hey, Avera!” she shouted down. “We’re going out! You’re on snow duty!”
“Where are you going?” shouted the pegasus from the basement.
“Scratchers!”
“Oh, bring me some hayfries, will ya?”
“Anything for Primrose?” Ebony shouted back down.
“Are you crazy?” came the batpony’s reply. “That stuff goes straight to your thighs!”
“I’ll take her hayfries then!” Avera shouted happily.
“I’ll see what I can do.” Ebony chuckled. With that, she closed the door and moved to grab her scarf.
Once everyone was ready, I opened the door and we headed out into the snowy landscape.
~ ~ ~ ~ > > < < ~ ~ ~ ~
I stared up at the building in front of us, squinting slightly due to the snow swirling around on the wind. Our group was standing in front of a large building in a part of town I had never really been before. Surprisingly enough, there were ponies coming and going through the front door, chatting happily with one another. Of course, we were near the residential area of Ponyville, so they probably didn’t have to go far to get home.
Despite the snow doing its best to blind me, I saw that there was a large, illuminated sign above the front door, the orange letters proudly reading:
Scratchers
We aim to please!
The heat generated by the glowing letters was enough to keep snow from accumulating on the sign, and the area around the front of the building appeared to have been cleared out several minutes ago.
Tearing my gaze from the sign, I made my way to the front door and held it open for the rest of the group. Eager to get out of the cold, the ponies hurried past me and into the warmth of the restaurant.
As we entered, the pegasus mare behind the host stand glanced up and gave us a warm smile.
“Hi, welcome to Scratchers!” she chirped happily, giving a slight bow to Twilight as she spoke. “How many are in your party?”
“Five. Four ponies, one human,” Rarity replied as she loosened her scarf from around her neck.
“Is he well behaved?” the mare asked, glancing up at me.
“The best there is,” Ebony said with a smirk. “I dare you to find a more docile human anywhere.” I clicked my teeth together softly, cocking my head to the side.
“Excellent!” Reaching down, the mare grabbed several menus and tucked them beneath her wing. Trotting out from behind the stand, she motioned for us to follow her, a bounce in her step.
As she led us to our table, I couldn’t help but glance around at the surrounding tables. Despite the horrible weather outside, the restaurant was fairly packed. Groups of ponies sat around circular tables, chatting happily with one another as they enjoyed the food in the warm atmosphere.
There were a few humans mixed in with the ponies. Some were sitting with their owners, eating some food that was provided to them. However, there were also humans walking around through the sea of tables, carrying trays of food. These humans were dressed in similar uniforms of orange and white.
These uniformed humans would place their food-laden trays in the center the round table, leaving the ponies sitting there to sort the food out amongst themselves. After that, the human would either pick up the tray and carry it back to the kitchen, or stay behind and begin to scratch the ponies behind the ears and down their necks.
Noticing my confused look as I observed this behavior, Ebony bumped my hip with her shoulder, causing me to look down.
“Scratchers is famous for training humans to serve food, and provide brief massages, or ‘scratches’ to customers who order them,” she explained in an undertone. I blinked, glancing around the restaurant again.
“It’s actually pretty popular,” she continued as the hostess led us towards the back corner. “There are at least three Scratchers around the nightclubs of Canterlot. I hear that Princess Luna will occasionally visit them if she’s feeling too stressed. Despite their somewhat aggressive behavior on occasion, those fingers can work miracles.”
Ebony fell silent as the hostess stopped in front of a circular booth. Placing the menus around the table, she stepped back and gave us all a large smile.
“Your server will be with you shortly,” she said, giving Twilight another quick bow before trotting off. As the mares slipped into the booth, I removed my jacket and tossed it into an empty corner of the booth before sliding in as well. The booth itself was quite spacious, seeming to be made for eight ponies maximum.
As soon as we had gotten comfortable, a pink unicorn in an orange apron sidled up to our table.
“Hello, my name is Sable Breath and I’ll be taking care of you this evening!” she said, a warm smile on her face. Her violet eyes drifted over to me and her smile grew. Moving quickly—and before I could move to stop her—she reached up and placed a hoof on my upper back, giving it a quick push and twist.
I inhaled sharply, my eyes widening at the sudden spike of pleasure that zipped up my spine. What the hell was that? I thought as I moved to look back over my shoulder. Before I could, however, the mare gave another twist. My breath hitched in my throat as another flash of pleasure ran up my back.
As the mare lowered her hoof, she turned her attention back to the others.
“Can I start you off with something to drink? Cider, ale, a salt lick?” Nobody answered. They were too busy looking between the server and me, the confusion clear on their faces.
“What was that you just did?” Ebony asked, pointing a hoof at me. “I’ve never seen him react like that before.”
Sable Breath blinked, glancing back at me as well.
“What? You mean this?” With that, she reached up and placed her hoof in the exact same spot and twisted it again. Another wave of pleasure flowed up my spine, and for the briefest of seconds a smile flashed across my face before I could help it. Luckily, the server didn’t seem to have seen it, but the rest of my group had.
“It’s just a small technique that we use to help relax visiting humans,” Sable explained, lowering her hoof. “It actually feels good for the humans. We’ve had several fall asleep afterwards.”
“I see,” Ebony said, studying me briefly before turning her gaze back to the menu.
“What was it you did exactly?” Twilight asked, giving the mare a weird look. I noted dimly that her horn was glowing softly, but I didn’t see what she was using magic on.
“Just put your hoof in the middle of either shoulder blade, push, and twist. Most humans will be putty in your hooves within seconds. The harder the pressure, the more intense the feeling.” I sat there in confusion, trying to figure out what had just happened. The spot that she had pressed on had never been sensitive before, so why did it feel so good now?
“Really?” Twilight asked, her face lighting up. Her eyes flicked down, and a small smile touched her face. After a few seconds, she looked back up at the server and nodded happily. “Thank you very much for explaining.”
“You’re welcome,” Sable chirped happily. “Now, can I get anypony something to drink?”
“I’ll have a mug of Apple Acres Cider,” Rarity said, adjusting her mane. “The freshest you have.”
“Make that two,” Twilight said.
“W-water, please,” Fluttershy whispered, hiding behind her mane.
“I’ll have a pint of your Cinnamon Apple Cider,” Ebony said happily. Sable quickly scratched down everyone’s orders on the notepad held in her magic. Once she was done, she glanced over at me.
“Anything for your human? Water?”
“He’ll have a Dragon’s Breath,” Ebony said quickly, a smirk playing across her face. Sable paused, giving her a confused look.
“You’re buying your human a specialty drink?”
“Eeyup,” Ebony chirped happily. The server continued to stare at her for several seconds before shrugging.
“Well, I guess I can do that for you, if you’d like.” She wrote down the drink before tucking the notepad into a small pouch on her uniform. She gave us a quick smile and a nod of her head. “I’ll have your drinks out in a moment.”
As she trotted off, Rarity glanced over at me.
“Are you alright, darling? She didn’t hurt you, did she?” Lazily, I shook my head and let out a content sigh. I didn’t know what the server had done, or why it had affected me, but my back muscles felt as though someone had been kneading them continuously for several minutes. It was glorious.
“Well,” Ebony chuckled, shaking her head. “It seems somepony is already enjoying himself.” I stuck my tongue out at her, but chuckled softly nonetheless.
As the others began to chat quietly amongst themselves, I allowed my eyes to drift over the restaurant. A few tables away, a young human female was approaching the table, a tray of food in her hands. Placing the tray on the table, the female then reached down and began to scratch behind one of the ponies’ ears.
Perking up slightly in interest, I watched the human work. She would alternate between short, quick scratches at the base of the ear, and long, deliberate strokes up the edges of the mare’s ear. Every time the human reached the tip of the mare’s ear, she gave it a light pinch, which caused the ear to twitch slightly.
As the human worked, the mare slowly began to lean her head into the human’s hand, cooing softly. After a minute or so, the human stopped scratching. Picking up the tray, she made her way back towards the kitchens, leaving the ponies to their meal.
As I watched her leave, I chewed on the inside of my cheek, humming softly. I was so lost in thought that I didn’t hear our server approach until she was standing right beside me.
“Here we are,” she said, causing me to jump slightly. Setting the serving tray down on the table, she began to pass out the drinks. “Apple Acres, Apple Acres, Water, Cinnamon Apple, aaaaand Dragon’s Breath.” Picking up her now empty tray, she looked around the table at everyone.
“I’ll be back in a second to take your orders,” she said before trotting off. As the others reached for their beverage of choice, I glanced down at my drink in confusion. The glass was smoking slightly, almost filled to the brim with a strange, red liquid that glowed softly. Sugar lined the edge of the glass, and cherries floated around the bottom of the drink.
“It’s called Dragon’s Breath,” Ebony said as I continued to stare at the drink. A smile touched her lips as she lifted her own glass to her lips. “Try it; you’ll like it!”
Picking the glass up, I gave it a tentative sniff. Smells fruity, I thought, staring down at the glowing liquid. Shrugging mentally, I lifted the glass to my lips and took a small sip. My eyes widened and a small smile touched my lips as the taste flooded my mouth. This is delicious!
I happily took another, bigger sip of the drink, before lowering it.
“Told you you’d like it,” Ebony smirked. I was going to reply, but at that moment our server returned.
“Alright, is everypony ready to order?”
“I think we are,” Rarity said, eyeing the menu quickly before nodding. “We’re going to be taking advantage of your “four-for-half-off” deal.”
“Do you know of our other special?” Sable asked, her eyes flicking over to me.
“No, what’s the other special?” Twilight asked, cocking her head to the side.
“It’s a human-based special, actually,” Sable explained, a smile touching her lips. “It’s called the ‘Firebreather Challenge’. If your human can eat twenty-five spicy wings in under a half-an-hour, your entire meal is on the house, and it’s all you can eat and drink.”
“Wings?” Fluttershy asked, giving the unicorn a concerned look. “As in meat?”
“Not to worry,” Sable said quickly. “All our meat is artificial. We’ve had griffins try it and it tastes the same as regular meat, but no creatures were killed in it’s making. The humans can’t tell the difference.”
“Wait,” Ebony said, a smile slowly spreading across her muzzle. “So you’re saying that if our human can eat twenty-five wings in thirty minutes, everything’s free?”
“Eeyup,” Sable said with a nod. “But as I said before, they’re rather spicy.” The others looked at me, silently asking my opinion. After a second, I gave a small, almost imperceptible nod of my head.
“We’ll do it!” Ebony said, slamming her hooves on the table, a large smile on her face. “And I’ll be having three more Cinnamon Apple Ciders!”
“Shouldn’t you at least wait to see if your human can finish the challenge?” our server asked, chuckling.
“Nope,” Ebony replied. “It’ll be fine. He’ll eat anything!”
“Okay,” Sable said, pulling out her notepad. “That’ll be the Firebreather Challenge for the human. What can I get the rest of you girls?” As the others gave their orders, I took another sip of my glowing drink.
I wonder how spicy she’s talking about, I mused as I enjoyed the fruity beverage.
~ ~ ~ ~ > > Twilight Sparkle < < ~ ~ ~ ~
As the server headed back to put the orders in, Rarity leaned towards her friend.
“Do you really think Max can eat twenty-five of those… things?” she asked, her voice quiet.
“I’m not sure,” Twilight replied. “Guess we’ll find out.” Rarity hummed softly, lifting her mug of cider to her lips. Twilight took a sip of her own beverage, watching as her human happily enjoyed his glowing drink.
“I’ve got to say,” she said as she lowered her mug. “I’m glad you talked us into this, Rarity.”
“Think nothing of it, darling,” Rarity said, waving her hoof.
Placing her drink back down on the table, Twilight watched as one of the servers walked by, heading towards a nearby table, one with a human. Once there, the mare lifted a forehoof and placed it upon the human’s back, right in the middle of the left shoulder blade. One push and twist later, the human slumped in her seat, groaning happily. The server then proceeded to run the tip of her hoof up the human’s spine, which caused said human to shiver violently.
Humans appear to enjoy having their backs massaged, Twilight thought as she observed the interaction. Max enjoyed Lotus’s massage, he enjoys cracking his back, and putting pressure on center parts of the back brings pleasure.
As Twilight continued to watch the server closely, Rarity leaned in, trying to see what Twilight was studying so intensely. When she caught sight of the server and what she was doing, a small smile grew on the white unicorn’s face.
“What are you looking at, darling?” she asked, a playful tone in her voice. Twilight jerked suddenly, not aware of Rarity’s close proximity to her.
“N-nothing!” she said quickly, a small blush appearing on her face.
“Oh, you were certainly looking at something,” Rarity continued softly, making sure that the others couldn’t hear her. “Possibly looking for ways to make your human happier, hmm?” Twilight’s cheeks turned redder, and she buried her muzzle in her mug.
Rarity chuckled, a smile touching her face. She lifted her own mug up to her lips, but paused when she caught sight of her friend’s horn.
“Twilight, why is your horn glowing?” she asked.
“N-no reason,” Twilight replied quickly, her eyes fixed on another table where one of the patron ponies was petting a service human. Rarity’s eyes narrowed as she stared at her friend. Her ear twitched and Rarity could have sworn that she heard something coming from beneath the table.
Straining her ears, she could make out the faint sound of something scratching… on paper.
“Twilight, darling,” Rarity said slowly, lowering her gaze. “Are you... taking notes under the table?” Twilight froze, her eyes going wide as the scratching stopped suddenly.
“You are, aren’t you?” Rarity deadpanned. Twilight was silent for several seconds before responding.
“Yes,” she said softly as the scratching noise started up again.
“Any particular reason why?” Rarity asked, raising an eyebrow as she took a sip of her cider.
“For science.”
“Just for science?” Rarity asked, placing her drink back down. Twilight’s ears splayed back at the question.
“Yes,” she said defensively. “I’m writing notes on the differences in human-pony interactions, and how they affect those involved.”
“And this has nothing to do with a certain… human?” Rarity asked, her eyes flicking over to Max, who was currently blowing air on Fluttershy through a straw, causing the timid pegasus to giggle.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Twilight said, glancing over at the pair as well. A small smile touched her muzzle, and her gaze softened. Rarity gave Twilight a sideways look, frowning slightly.
“Have you tried talking to him about this?” she asked softly. Twilight smile slowly vanished, and she hung her head.
“I have,” she sighed softly. “Something either interrupts me before I can, or I get cold hooves. I thought it would be easy to do, but… I’m beginning to have my doubts.”
“Are you worried about how he will take it?”
“Yes,” Twilight nodded, not looking up. “I want to tell him, I really do, but I don’t want to scare him away. Cadance has talked to me about it, but whenever I go to talk to him, I lose my courage. I’m not sure if he feels the same way, and I don’t want to lose what I already have.”
“I don’t think you have to worry about scaring him away,” Rarity tsked, shaking her head. “From what I’ve seen of him, he isn’t one to simply throw you aside because of what you feel. He put the Crusaders’ safety above his own when running from the manticores. He’s loyal enough to put Rainbow to shame.”
“But it doesn’t bother you that he’s a human?” Twilight asked, giving Rarity a nervous look before lowering her gaze again, her ears splaying back.
“I thought I made it clear that I had apologized for treating him in such a manner,” Rarity huffed.
“That’s not what I meant,” Twilight muttered. “I meant, it doesn’t bother you that I… l-love a human?” She stuttered slightly at the word ‘love’, a red blush touching her cheeks. “You aren’t going to think less of me for it?” Rarity stared at the timid-looking alicorn in shock.
“Darling, you know that neither I, nor the other girls, would ever think any less of you for having feelings for Max,” she chided softly, leaning against Twilight.
“So, you don’t care that he’s not a pony?” Twilight asked hopefully, looking up.
“Twilight, you’re asking the mare who has a dragon trying to woo her,” Rarity tittered, her eyes shining with mirth.
Both mares turned their gaze back towards their friends. During their discussion, Max had finished his drink and had fished the cherries out of the empty cup. Taking the sticky fruit, he had started to stack them, one on top of the other, in a small tower on top of Ebony’s muzzle. The unicorn was cross-eyed, trying to keep her head perfectly still in order to not disturb the stack. Fluttershy was watching the two of them, giggling at their antics.
“Rarity,” Twilight said softly, a small smile on her face.
“Hmm?” Rarity hummed, flicking an ear towards Twilight without taking her eyes off of the scene before her.
“...thanks.” Shifting slightly, the unicorn leaned against her friends.
As she watched Max balance the fifth cherry on the tower, Rarity frowned slightly, her ears twitching.
“Twilight,” she whispered. “Are you planning on taking notes all through dinner?”
“...yes.” Rarity opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by a human bringing their food.
~ ~ ~ ~ > > Max < < ~ ~ ~ ~
As the human that brought our food picked up his empty tray, I stared at the large platter of food in front of me, my mouth watering slightly. While the server had said that the meat was fake, my nose claimed that it was real, and my stomach really didn’t care either way.
The wings looked oddly like wings from back home, with only one major difference: the size. You ever seen the size difference between soft drinks served at fast food restaurants in the US compared to those served in Europe?
Yeah, it was like that. Each wing was at least a third the size of wings I had had back on Earth. There was no way I could not finish twenty-five of them within a half-an-hour. The only deciding factor was how spicy they were going to be.
“Alright,” Sable said as she sidled up to the table. “Everypony’s dish look okay?” When everyone nodded, the unicorn smiled happily. “Excellent! Now, the Firebreather Challenge starts when your human takes his first bite, and if he can eat all of them within the time limit, everything’s free!”
“How many humans have actually finished the challenge in time?” Rarity asked, eyeing the platter in front of me with trepidation.
“In this establishment?” Sable smirked. “Three.” This statement caused everyone, Ebony included, to suddenly look nervous. I resisted the urge to smirk. Oh, ye of little faith.
Reaching out, I picked up the first piece of meat in my fingers. Lifting it, I studied it closely for several seconds before popping it in my mouth.
The server was right: it tasted similar to meat, even if it wasn’t. As I chewed, I noticed that the sauce had a bit of a bite to it, but not much. If I had to rate the spiciness, I’d say it was somewhere between mild and hot. Perfectly manageable, in my opinion, even if my tongue began to sting slightly. Biting my cheek as to stop from laughing, I swallowed the wing before picking up another one.
The ponies watched me eat, their eyes widening with each wing I shoved in my mouth. Their own food was completely forgotten as I shoveled the meat into my waiting maw. I paused every few wings to lick my fingers clean, but I managed to keep a steady pace. I sweated slightly due to the heat, but kept eating regardless.
Despite the speed at which I was eating, I still managed to enjoy the meaty treat I had been given. I made a mental note to thank Rarity for taking us out to eat, even if I was about to make it so she didn't have to pay.
Popping the last two wings into my mouth, I chewed them quickly, and then swallowed. For good measure, I picked up the platter and, indulging my inner animal, licked it clean with a flourish. Once I was finished, I placed the edge of the platter on the table, and with a flick of my wrist, I spun the platter.
As the metal disk continued to spin, I turned to look at the ponies, a blank look on my face. Shocked faces stared back at me, jaws hanging open. It took all my willpower not to laugh at their expressions.
“I… I don’t believe it,” Sable stammered, glancing down at the stopwatch in her hoof. “That was five minutes, fifteen seconds…”
“Does that mean everything’s free?” Ebony perked up. Sable nodded her head absentmindedly, her eyes locked on the still spinning platter. “Sweet! I’ll have some more Cinnamon Apple Cider!” I reached out and slapped my hand down on the platter, causing it to stop spinning. I pointed my finger at the empty platter, staring at the startled server.
“And more wings for the human,” Ebony snickered. As Sable wandered off towards the kitchen, Twilight closed her jaw with a snap, staring over at me.
“Did you even taste that?” she asked weakly. I just gave her a smug look and licked my lips.
“Well,” Rarity said, blinking several times. “Despite that rather… disturbing and uncouth display, it appears that our meal is now free. Since that is the case, I think I’ll be ordering some more cider.”
As the ponies slowly dug into their own meals, I allowed a small smile to touch my face. Reaching out, I grabbed one of the discarded cherries. Popping it in my mouth, I chewed happily, humming softly to myself as it quelled the slight burning in my tongue and cheeks.
~ ~ ~ ~ > > < < ~ ~ ~ ~
“Well, that certainly was an interesting experience,” Rarity said was we walked back to the library. The sun had set and the streetlights were glowing in the darkness. The snowstorm had died down during our dinner, and patches of starry sky could be seen through the cloud cover.
“I still can’t believe you ate ninety-six wings!” Ebony cackled beside me. Her face was flushed, and she was swaying ever so slightly as she walked. She carried a box of hayfries in her magic, steam coming from the slits in the box. I belched loudly in response, a content smile on my face.
“Well, I hope you were satisfied,” Twilight said. “Because I’m pretty sure we can’t go back there ever again.”
“What do you mean?” Rarity asked, giving her a confused look.
“Didn't you see the manager put Max’s picture up by the host stand?” Twilight deadpanned. “It had a big, red ‘X’ through it. I don’t think they’ll be letting him back in any time soon.”
“I don’t know why they’re so upset. He only had four servings of the Firebreather Challenge,” Ebony huffed, rolling her eyes as she giggled loudly. “Which reminds me, how can you eat that much?” she asked, turning to look at me. “Are you a bottomless pit?”
“You clearly aren’t feeding him enough, Twilight,” Fluttershy said softly, a small smile touching her muzzle. “You really shouldn’t starve him.”
“I give him plenty to eat,” Twilight growled, her tail flicking in annoyance. “I’ve caught him raiding the fridge occasionally during the night.”
“Well, we’ll just have to go without him next time,” Ebony said, closing her eyes and nodding sagely.
“I don’t think that’s possible either,” Twilight said with a smirk.
“Why’s that?” the battlemage asked, blinking in confusion.
“Your picture is up there next to his.” Ebony stopped, her jaw dropping open in shock. Her eyes watered as she looked at Twilight, whimpering slightly.
“What? Why?!” she cried, her ears playing backwards. “I didn’t do anything!”
“Except order eleven mugs of Cinnamon Apple Cider,” Twilight snickered.
“...but, they’re really, really good,” Ebony muttered as she began walking again. “And the meal was free.”
“Is that why you asked for those?” Rarity asked, waving a hoof at the two barrels of cider I had flung over my shoulders.
“Hey, free’s free, and I’m taking my cider on the road,” Ebony snorted, sticking her nose in the air. “If they didn’t want to give stuff away for free, they shouldn’t have made the challenge.”
“I don’t think that’s what they had in mind when they made the free meal offer,” Twilight said, looking back at Ebony.
“They should have been more specific,” she huffed, sticking her nose in the air..
“I’m pretty sure they didn’t know they’d have to deal with you and Max when they came up with that challenge.”
“Just be glad Avera wasn’t with us,” Ebony snickered. “She eats more than me!”
“Indeed,” Twilight said before turning to Rarity. “Thanks again for taking us out to eat. It was indeed an interesting experience, gluttony aside.”
“Yeah, thanks!” Ebony chirped. I belched loudly again, earning a snicker from the battlemage. “Max says ‘thank you’ as well.” I nodded my head happily. Rarity gave me a smile, although it appeared somewhat strained.
“Think nothing of it, darling,” she said, adjusting her scarf. As we rounded the corner of a building, the library came into view. A lit lantern hung from the library’s sign, illuminating our way.
“Well, this is where we part,” Rarity said, turning to look at Twilight. The pair hugged quickly and Rarity whispered something to Twilight, to which she just nodded, a small frown on her face.
As Fluttershy moved to hug Twilight, Rarity turned to look at Ebony and me.
“As fun as this has been, I must get Fluttershy home,” she said, smiling at us. “You know how she is about the dark.” I smiled and nodded my head, shifting my shoulders to keep the barrels from falling.
With that, the pair departed, Fluttershy waving back at us as they walked off. We watched them go until they disappeared into the darkness.
“Well, I don’t know about you two, but I’m exhausted,” Twilight said, stifling a yawn. “How about we head inside and get comfortable around the fire?” She looked up at me, giving me a pleading look, complete with puppy dog eyes.
“Works for me,” Ebony said as I nodded my head. Trotting happily to the front door, Twilight opened it with a burst of her magic, ushering us inside.
A familiar sweet scent hit my nose as I crossed the threshold. As Twilight closed the door behind her, Avera and Primrose glanced up from their position on the couch. The smell, combined with the look on their faces, told me that Primrose was probably spending some quality time with her “precious”.
As we started discarding our winter gear, Avera’s eyes slowly drifted from the barrels in my arms, to Ebony’s slightly flushed face.
“Why do I feel like I missed out on the fun times?” she asked, pouting slightly.
A loud belch was the only response she got.