"So," Rarity began asking Sterling as Morgan and Rarity's other five friends enjoyed a brunch together at Applejack's house the morning after. "There were a couple things about your story that I had some questions about."
"Like what?" Sterling brusquely responded, not even looking up from her apple cobbler. She had removed her armor, and they could see her pale silver coat and her short, off-white mane, which she had pulled into a lazy ponytail. Her cobalt blue eyes fixed Rarity with a stare that said, 'Word your next words carefully or I'll shove that horn where the sun don't shine.'
"Well, like why you were suspended for pretending to be a colt." Rarity carefully worded her questions so she didn't draw the ire of the incredibly muscular mare. Applejack looked petite in comparison. "It wasn't like you forged documents or anything of that sort right?"
Sterling released a booming laugh when she heard what Rarity said, drawing the attention of everyone at the table. "Goddess, no!" Sterling cheerfully explained. "Think about it. For three years I was on the Canterlot High hoofball team. For three years no one noticed I was a girl. What is one thing I must have done to avoid suspicion?" Everyone at the table began to think over what Sterling had said.
"I can't figure it out." Twilight said.
Rainbow spoke up next,"Well, the only thing that doesn't make sense to me is how they never noticed that you had to use the filly's locker..." Then it dawned on everyone at the table, while Sterling just smiled.
Sterling then hammered it home. "It was a bit of a bonus, being able to see all the guy's 'equipment', so to speak."
All the mares and Morgan suddenly had furious blushes, and Sterling had a good laugh on their part. "It's so great to finally be able to talk about it with someone else!" Sterling sighed in contentment. "If it weren't for the birth control pills I would've lost it with all the meat that was flying around."
"Well, it a least answered my next question," Rarity meekly commented to herself.
"What was that?" Sterling said as she dug into her food.
"Your sexual preference." Sterling let out another booming laugh whilst everyone else chuckled along weakly.
"You know what, your great Rarity." Rarity offered a weak smile in thanks as she tried to quell her embarrassment. Sterling leaned her head on her hoof while she ate and talked. "You know, I thought that the Elements of Harmony would be a little more, I don't know, heroic? I'm not sure, it's just that your nothing like what I expected." She knocked her heavy hoof onto the table, sending a couple more fritters onto her plate.
"Me too," Morgan commented. "For such highly praised heroes, I didn't expect you all to be so... modest I would guess is the best word."
"Pfft! Rainbow Dash? Modest?" Applejack said. "Have you seen 'er? She's sure is alot'a things, but modest ain't one of 'em."
"Hey!" Rainbow Dash interjected. "I'm plenty modest! I'm tons modest!" She leaned over to Twilight and asked in a hushed voice, "What's modest?" Earning an eye-roll from the purple alicorn.
"All joking aside," Twilight said as she pushed Rainbow out of her face. "We don't like to consider ourselves any better thatn everyone else. We're still ponies."
"Oh no, I don't think it's a bad thing!" Sterling quickly said. "I just found it funny is all."
"Twilight," Morgan cut in, "I understand that your first act as the Element of Magic was to purge Princess Luna of the Nightmare that possessed her."
"Yes, I guess you could say that's what we did." Twilight raised a curious eyebrow and asked, "Why?"
"You have met my friend Kenny, correct?" Twilight nodded. Everyone else heard the name of the now famous human ambassador and tuned in to their conversation. "As a shaman, he is trained in the interaction with the spirit world and all that inhabit it, the good and the bad. These Nightmare Beings appear to harbor powers not unlike those of other malevolent spirits on our home world. I need to know if they will target Kenny, and, if they do, what the chances are of stopping them."
"I wouldn't worry about them, darling," Rarity suddenly spoke up. "We have insured that they will not be returning anytime soon."
"Rarity's right, Morgan," Twilight said. "The Nightmares aren't a threat anymore, and if they do come back we know how to stop them."
"Thanks, that's just what I wanted to hear." Morgan finished her plate and went to the kitchen to wash her dishes. When she was gone Twilight twisted around to Sterling.
"Sterling," Twilight began, urgency in her voice, "Have you seen or heard from Kenny, personally?"
Sterling jumped to attention and said, "No ma'm."
"I need you to do something for me, contact Flash Sentry and tell him that I need him to observe Kenny. If he starts to experience any nightmares that he should report it immediately to me. Do not let Morgan know. This is an order, understood?"
Sterling nodded stiffly and saluted her Princess. She rushed off to carry out her orders.
Rarity took on a look of worry and asked in a shaky voice, "Twilight, surely you don't think that-"
"You said it yourself," Twilight cut her off. "But I don't want to take chances. If he is a target, we have to insure his safety. We have to keep this a secret. I don't want to worry anyone until I'm absolutely sure that there is a problem."
"If you say so Twi'," Applejack and the other girls nodded in agreement.
"So," Morgan had returned and all the mares quickly shut up and acted natural. "I was thinking, today is only my second day and I haven't even seen what the rest of the town is like. Do you girls have any ideas?"
"Oh, Oh, Oh! I have an idea!" Pinkie spoke up. "Rarity and Fluttershy were gonna go to the spa today! You could go with them!"
Rarity beamed. "That's a great idea! We should all go! It has been forever since the last time we got together for a little pampering! It would be great way to bond!"
"I would love to!" Morgan clapped her hands together to punctuate her words when she noticed that a burly pegasus mare was gone. "Where's Sterling Saber?"
"Oh! She's sending a message to-hfmm!" Applejack barely put her hoof in Pinkie's mouth.
Morgan raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
"She said she, er, forgot something... at the library!" Rainbow covered. "Yeah! Something about her annual report to the Princess! I'll head over and tell her where to meet us."
"Okay?" Morgan said. "So, are we heading out?"
"Yuperooni!" Pinkie answered.
"This is the liiiiife!" Sterling was in complete bliss as Aloe worked at her rippling muscles. "Ohhhhh yeeeah...."
"You mean to tell me you've never been to a spa before?" Morgan asked. She was enjoying a mud-bath with Rarity and Twilight. The others were off in other parts of the spa.
"They were always a little too girly sounding to me. Plus, I didn't like others feeling up my body, but this is wonderfuuuullll!" She moaned in bliss as Aloe worked her over.
"You are harder than a rock," Aloe said in her silky, accented voice. "You hold lots of tension all over your body. It is good you have come." She gripped her hind-leg and bent it sharply at the knee. A loud crack was emitted and Sterling melted with another shaky moan into the cushions she was laying on.
"If this keeps up, she might fall in love with you Aloe!" Rarity spoke with a lilting giggle. Sterling tried to frown but was experiencing to much bliss to do so.
"Actually that brings to mind an idea!" Morgan said with a look of girlish glee.
"What would that be?" Rarity asked.
"When was the last time you had a, what do you call it? Oh, yes, a colt-friend?" Morgan coyly asked. Sterling sat up and eyed Morgan warily.
"I don't like where this conversation is steering..."
"Rarity, surely you know all of the eligible bachelors in Ponyville. Do you think any of them would be interested in Sterling here?"
"Morgan what are doing?"
Rarity quickly caught on. "As a matter of fact I know a stallion who would love to meet Miss Sterling." Rarity sent a sly look over to the very nervous Sterling. "He's quite a fan of more athletic mares."
"Rarity, Morgan please!"
"He's even a pegasus like you!" Rarity clapped her hooves in excitement. "I'll ring him up after we're done here and get a blind date set! Oh, you'll love him! He's just the sweetest!"
"Stop!" Sterling's voice had become desperate.
"But first!" Rarity and Morgan locked eyes and turned to the thoroughly frightened Sterling.
"Oh no!" Sterling's pupils shrank.
"MAKEOVER!!!"
Sterling tried to run, but Morgan grabbed the frantic mare in her magic before she could fly off. "Umm, girls?" Twilight finally spoke up, "It doesn't look like she wants to." Sterling nodded wildly and pointed at Twilight.
"Nonsense!" Rarity rebuffed, "A stallion is exactly what she needs to help get past the past and instill her with the self-confidence she desperately needs." Sterling shook her head so hard her face was a blur.
"I don't know..." Sterling's pleading eyes made it difficult for Twilight to agree.
"Twilight, trust us. What she needs is a stallion who will appreciate her for who she is," Rarity said in a confident, lady-like tone. "You heard her story. She was on the brink and the words of one young colt brought her back. This is exactly what she needs."
Apparently Rarity's speech had rung true, for both Twilight and Sterling had visibly calmed. They were both still a little unsure, but what Rarity had said made sense. "Fine," Sterling practically grunted. Rarity and Morgan squee'd and quickly finished up their mud-bath. After, the two mares and lady went straight for Rarity's boutique. Rarity sent a letter to the potential stallion saying to meet Sterling at a nearby cafe that night at eight. Once, the blind date was set up they got to work on Sterling.
"First things first," Morgan said as she circled around the nervous Sterling, observing her from every angle available. "We need to figure out what you're going to wear..."
"Why?" Sterling asked. "I brought my formal dress with me. I'll just wear that."
"Goddess, No!" Rarity called from where she was rooting through her collection. "If you wear your suit you'll only intimidate him! That and it will only serve to make it easier for him to mistake you for a stallion. No, we must instead accentuate your femininity."
"I don't know, it sounds like your going to stick me in some girly dress."
"Oh no, that would be like trying to put makeup on a rhino. No matter how much I put on, I'll only be making it worse."
"....That hurt you know..."
"It's the truth, darling," Rarity simply stated as she pulled out a dress, gave it look over and threw it into the growing pile of rejects. "Instead of hiding what isn't feminine about you, I plan to use it to make what is pop!" She pulled out a simple black dress, a one piece affair that was made from silk. Rarity nodded and brought it over to Sterling. "Try this on. It should be a little big at first, but I'll fix it before the date."
Sterling pulled on the dress with a little help from Morgan. It hugged her muscular body snugly, like a sock. Rarity's eyes widened when she saw how the dress fit her. "It is a little tight in some areas," Morgan noted as she looked over Sterling."But I think it will be fine."
"If we had more time I would have preferred it didn't grip her flank so." Rarity as she eyed over the area in question. Sterling squirmed under her gaze. "But, as you said, it will have to do." Rarity and Morgan then dragged Sterling to the bathroom to get the rest of her ready.
"All done!" Rarity and Morgan said in unity as they pulled away the last brush from Sterling's face. Morgan conjured up a mirror for Sterling and revealed their handiwork. Sterling's scruffy mane was now silky smooth and styled till she had a wind-blown look. Little makeup was actually used on her face. There was a tiny tinge of charcoal gray eye shadow that made her cobalt eyes pop a little more. She wore no lipstick and no blush.
"We thought that less is more with a mare of your looks," Rarity said. "Your strong, masculine features give you a foreign look that can work in your favor. To attempt to hide it would do more harm than good."
"Now, it's getting towards eight," Morgan said, getting the stunned Sterling to her feet. "Rarity will take you to meet your date."
"What about you?" Sterling asked, a hint of fear in her voice.
"I can't go, I'll draw to much attention. Do you wanna start your date off with the entire town watching?"
"No..." Sterling admitted.
"It'll be fine Sterling." Morgan said, pulling the pegasus into a comforting hug. She pulled back before saying. "It's just a date, if things don't work out it's not a big deal. I just want you t open up and be happy, okay?" Sterling nodded. "Now go get him, tiger!" Sterling nodded, putting on a visage of determination for her best friend. Morgan released Sterling and watched with joy as she left with Rarity to meet her date.
Morgan reclined onto one of Rarity's couches and retrieved a large hand-mirror from her storage space. She cast a scrying spell over its reflective surface and an image of Sterling and Rarity walking down the moon-lit street to Ponyville's premier diner, the Trough. The Trough was an old establishment that dated back to Ponyville's founding. It was set up by an Apple and so featured a large menu of apple dishes as well as other normal foods. The family run restaurant was as much a part of Ponyville as the residents themselves.
Rarity directed Sterling into the old, worn looking building with a warm encouraging smile. The restaurant's rustic exterior betrayed it's highly renovated interior. Sterling gazed in wonder at the surprising level of modern lighting and the black marble bar with glass shelves filled with every liquor imaginable. The large dining space was lined by red-cushioned booths and filled with round black-stained tables of various sizes. Sterling gazed over the light crowd in hopes of finding her date as Rarity approached a waiter so they could be seated. Rarity gently tugged on Sterling's dress motioning to the pegasus mare to follow her. The waiter lead them up a flight of stairs to an open air dining area built on the roof of the establishment. He brought them to a booth with a single, grey pegasus stallion seated on it. He was currently turned away from them, looking out over Ponyville. He wore a simple black sports coat and the collar of a white shirt poked out the top.
"Oh!" Rarity called, "Thunderlane!" Sterling froze when she heard Rarity say his name. She shook as the silver maned stallion turned and she saw him in full. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw her. "Your here earlier than I thought! This is-"
"Sterling?" Thunderlane beat her to the punch, surprising the white unicorn. He had risen from his seat and was slowly trotting towards them. "Is that really you?"
"Oh, have you two already met?" Rarity asked.
"You can't be here." Sterling mimicked Thunderlane's movements, approaching him slowly and carefully. "You're supposed to be back at Vanhoover, training up to be a hotshot Wonderbolt. What are you doing here?"
"Is that a yes?" Rarity interjected.
Thunderlane ignored Rarity and said, "I was, I mean I am. It's a long story, but I'm still trying to wrap my head around why you're in Ponyville. You disappeared years ago. I sent a letter asking your parents where you went and they said you joined the guard and that they haven't seen you since. What happened?"
"I'll just be going now." Rarity awkwardly spoke as she carefully left. "Have fun!"
"Well," Sterling answered, her attention never wavering from Thunderlane. "I guess I should say you're looking at the first female guard since Nightwing."
"No way!" Thunderlane said with apparent joy over his friends success. "Let's sit down, I wanna hear the story behind that!" Sterling quickly joined Thunderlane at the table. The waiter came around and brought a couple beers to drink as well as taking their orders. Once the waiter had taken their menus and left they began chatting again.
"Aren't you a little young to be drinking?" Sterling teased.
"I'm only four years younger than you, Sterling." Thunderlane countered. "And you're not as young as you would like to believe." Sterling raucously laughed at Thunderlane's jab. "Besides, you still haven't told me why your here in Ponyville."
"I'm in charge of the safety of Morgan Le Feu, a human visitor," Sterling inattentively answered taking a sip from her bottle. "She's here on buisness with Princess Twilight."
"Oh! I heard about her! The whole town's an uproar over her. She's practically a celebrity. I heard that you caused a little scene at the party too." He struck her with a coy smile that made her fume.
"Just because the ponies in this town don't treat Princess Twilight with the respect she deserves doesn't mean I shouldn't." Thunderlane recoiled at the harsh way she spoke.
"Jeez," Thuderlane said. "Don't get your bridle in a twist, Twilight just doesn't like the special treatment. We all still see her as the book worm who moved in from Canterlot."
"Let's just drop it." Sterling frustratingly answered.
"Goddess, you take your job seriously." Thunderlane's eyes wandered over Sterling's muscular body. "In more ways than one..."
Sterling's eyes narrowed into dangerous slits. "What's that supposed to mean?" She growled.
"Have you looked at yourself?" Thunderlane spoke. "You look like you could bench press me without breaking a sweat. It's kinda hot, actually." Sterling blushed furiously at the compliment. "I bet you could even beat Bulk in a hoof wrestle."
"I don't know who that is."
"He's the most ripped stallion I've ever met, kinda like you but not nearly as sexy." He included an eyebrow waggle to maximize his suaveness.
"What happened to the poor little colt I saved from the freshponies all those years ago?" Sterling reminisced. "You're nothing like the shy, awkward colt I knew back then. You've grown up Thunderlane. I'm actually starting to miss the colt that practically fainted when I gave him a little kiss."
It was Thunderlane's turn to blush when he remembered that moment in their history, but he was no less quick in procuring a come-back, "Be that as it may be, New Thunderlane happens to know that you were a horrible kisser." He smiled proudly when Sterling grew a little more than perturbed by his comment on her kissing skills.
"Like you would know!" Sterling yelled back at him.
"I'll have you know that I have kissed many mares." Thunderlane idly shined his hoof on his jacket. He added in a mocking tone, "And you were always the worst."
Sterling lifted herself over the table with two strong forehooves and yelled,"Like you could be any better!"
Thunderlane stood over the table as well and yelled, "I could do tons better!"
"Prove it!"
"I'd be glad to!"
"Excuse me?" They both turned to see a new mare and stallion standing by the table staring at them awkwardly. Sterling and Thunderlane both quickly returned to their seats whilst embarrassed blushes spread over their cheeks.
Thunderlane cleared his throat to break the tension and said, "Sterling, this is my marefriend Cloudkicker. Cloudkicker, this is and old friend of mine and Caramel's date, Sterling." Sterling's eyes widened when she remembered why she was here. She had been so caught up in catching up with Thunderlane that she had forgotten that it was supposed to be a date. Her blush became all the more intense when she realized she had nearly kissed another mare's coltfriend. Cloudkicker, Sterling saw, was giving her a wary glare. It seemed to say, 'Touch my stallion and I'll lay you out.' She offered an apologetic smile and Cloudkicker simply nodded before sliding in next to Thunderlane.
"Wow..." Sterling suddenly remembered that her date was here and turned to the one she remembered as 'Caramel'. He wore a charming blue tux that went well with his orange coat and matching blue eyes. He smiled nervously as he slid in next to her. He added, "You look great."
"Oh, um... Thanks..." Thunderlane complimenting her was one thing, for another mystery stallion to he liked her appearance was much more reassuring. She felt her embarrassed blush fade. "You do too," She added. Caramel smiled and Sterling smiled in return.
There was a quiet snickering and the two turned to find that Thunderlane was failing to hold back little snickers. When he caught the incredibly furious look he was getting from Sterling he quickly stopped. "What?" He said. "Two great friends of mine are hooking up, I can't help but laugh at the absurdity of it." Thunderlane felt a powerful hoof collide with his leg underneath the table. He stifled the cry of pain as best he could. When Caramel and Cloudkicker asked him what was wrong he waved it off. What they didn't notice was the dark glare Thunderlane was getting from Sterling. He got the message loud and clear and decided to stay quiet.
"So, Sterling was it?" Cloudkicker asked with an innocent smile. She received a nod in return from Sterling, who had decided then was an excellent time to take another pull from her drink. "Thunderlane said you were an old friend of his, but he's never mentioned you before. I'm curious, how did you two meet." Sterling's eyebrow raised at her questioning. It was joined by its twin shortly when she saw Thunderlane mouth, 'Careful' just before returning to drinking casually when Cloudkicker's eyes returned to him.
Sterling cleared her throat and calmly closed her eyes before saying, "We both used to live in Vanhoover way back in the day. I saved him from getting bullied by a couple of troublemakers and he took me home to dinner. We've been friends since." Sterling opened her eyes to find that Cloudkicker's smile was suddenly much more menacing and Thunderlane making frantic gestures to shut up. She even felt Caramel tense up next to her. Sterling then realized she had done something wrong, a conclusion only reaffirmed by Cloudkicker's next question.
"Oh? Dinner? So you two were an item?" Cloudkicker's voice was like poisoned honey, dripping with a gooey sweetness that hid the waiting fury within.
"Oh no," Sterling tried to recover, keeping her voice level and preventing any form of fear or nervousness from showing. "He was like ten. By dinner I meant he brought me to his parents house so he could show off his glorious savior. Either way, I would never go on a date with him. He's much to green for my tastes." She poked her tongue out at the pegasus, though he seemed quite pleased with the comment.
"What do you mean by that?" The sweetness in Cloudkicker's voice was replaced by a mild anger.
"He's way to young for me. I prefer my stallions to be a little more mature than he is." Sterling let a note of mocking in her voice. "I'm not like those other mares, what do they call them? I think it was colt-chasers? What do you think, Caramel?" Caramel, fell into a stuttering mess when she put the spotlight on him. She patted the stallion on the head and said, "You're cute. It's a wonder you don't already have a mare-friend."
"How old are you?" Cloudkicker asked.
"Twenty-five," Sterling answered. She saw the looks of surprise on Cloudkicker's and Caramel's faces and asked, "What? You guys didn't seriously think I was your age did you?"
"Rule twenty-three in the Book of Dating: a mare always shaves a couple years off her age, dress size, and weight when asked." Caramel recited. "Which means that you would have to be close to hitting your thirties."
"What?!" Sterling said, "That's ridiculous! Age is just a number, why would I lie about it?"
"So you look more attractive to stallions!" Cloudkicker yelled. "Haven't you ever been on a date?"
"No, this is my first." Sterling said. All the ponies at the tables' jaws dropped.
"Don't say that in front of him!" Cloudkicker's said while pointing a hoof at Caramel.
"Why not?" Sterling asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You'll look undesirable!"
"He already said I looked good, I don't think he sees me as undesirable. Right Caramel?" She turned to the orange earth pony who suddenly blushed and nodded his head. "Rarity told me you liked athletic mares, wanna tell me why?"
Caramel's blush deepened and he nervously touched his hooves together before saying, "It's just that, I grew up in a farming family and I was constantly surrounded by strong mares. I just kinda developed a taste for it, ya know?"
"So you like strong mares, cool." Sterling said with a nod. "Well I don't really know my type, but I like you so far. Where do you work?"
"Um, here actually." Caramel scratched behind his head while he spoke. "My sister is the executive chef and my aunt owns the business. We moved here from Appaloosa a couple years back because Aunt Cobbler said she needed help running the place. When I'm not here I'm helping my cousins down at the farm."
"Rarity's right, you are just the sweetest thing I've ever met!" Sterling said, pulling Caramel into a crushing hug. "If only I could get you to stop being so shy with me."
"Caramel just got out of another relationship." Thunderlane cut in. "He hasn't exactly taken it well."
"Oh, poor guy." Sterling cooed. "Well if it's any consolation, you've got little ol' me now."
"Little?" Thunderlane mocked.
"Shut up, or I'll break your teeth in." Sterling quickly replied.
"Now I believe you two are friends." Cloudkicker announced. "I swear Miss Sterling, if I didn't know better I'd think you were a stallion."
Six mares and one woman surrounded a mirror hung up on a wall in Rarity's boutique. They watched with excited glee at the successes and failures of Sterling Saber's date as it played out in front of them on the enchanted glass's surface. They groaned when Sterling revealed her surprisingly high weight. They laughed at jokes she made and tiny slip ups she had. They cheered when, as they left the restaurant, Caramel summed up the courage to give Sterling a peck on the cheek and ask her out again later that week. Now, the date was over and the mares all headed home. Morgan and Twilight teleported to the library to meet up with Sterling, Applejack and Pinkie walked home, Rainbow carried the sleeping form of Fluttershy to her cottage before heading out to her own cloud castle and Rarity bid them all a farewell before heading to her bed upstairs.
When Sterling arrived back at the Library, she was met with applause from Morgan and words of praise over a successful first date. Morgan helped the mare out of her dress and makeup and into bed.
Sterling slept soundly, though her friend and charge Morgan suffered from a terrible nightmare.
Morgan watched in horror from the castle in Canterlot as the Harbinger crashed into the docks below her, the flaming wreckage no doubt holding Kenny within.