• Published 20th Jan 2014
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Warm Hearts - Rhino



Friendships are known to easily change lives. The earlier they start, the earlier their effects can be seen. So, what happens when a changeling and pony form this bond before anyone around them can stop it?

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Chapter 2: Bedtime reading

A day and a half pass for the two younglings. This doesn't particularly phase either of them though, seeing as the sun and moon really only determine what they will be doing together. Having eaten dinner and made the excuse to his father about 'going to bed early' the emerald colt turns out his lights and covers the bottom of his door frame in preparation for letting in his friend. With a quick ear to the door and the relative silence heard, he nods happily, quickly walking over to the window and opening it, waving a green hand out to show it's him.

A pair of sapphire eyes soon peer over the window sill, glancing around before the girl they belong to stands up fully. She holds out her own smooth hand to him, smiling warmly up at him. "So, what are we going to do tonight, Rhino?"

"Well," he begins as he takes her hand in his own, bracing himself against the wall, "I though later we could maybe read together if you want."

"Reading sounds nice." She brings one leg over the edge, helping him pull her inside. "But I was talking about now..."

He brings his other hand into play to wrap around her waist as he both lifts and pulls. Unfortunately, he still isn't quite used to this, so they both end up falling in when he can't balance on the one hoof he has on the ground. Luckily the pillow he tossed onto the floor makes an excellent landing cushion.

She giggles, carefully rolling off him. "Nice to see you're planning ahead." She stretches her arms over her head, quietly groaning as she does. "I'd ask you if you're alright, but we both know how durable you are." She playfully sticks her tongue out at him.

"Heheh, yeah..." A low glow from his horn clicks on his lantern, illuminating the two of them. He gets a good look at her as she stretches, more specifically, the various bits of grass, leaves, and dirt stains on the outfit she has on. "Hey, did you want something new to wear? It's been a few days so we could always put those in the laundry to be washed."

She blinks, looking down at herself. "I wouldn't want to bother you for more clothes. This is good enough, for me." She smiles and brushes a couple leaves off, shaking her head at his offer. "I would like these cleaned, though... if that's fine with you, of course."

He sits up, moving off the pillow and tossing it back onto the bed. "Well, Mom will probably wash all the clothes tomorrow when she gets home from her trip. It's good to have two sets of clothes though so you can wear one when the other is dirty. Plus, you don't want all that stuff to get in the bed."

She tilts her head, confused. "But... I only like to sleep in underwear... you know that, Rhino..." She slides her jeans off, sighing softly. "You're right, though... I guess another shirt and shorts would be fine..." She gestures to him. "I mean, since you're offering, and all..."

"Yep." He nods affirmatively as he gets up and heads to get her the clothes. "Umm... I think I have another pair of the same shorts, and does a purple shirt work?"

"That sounds great, Rhino." She kicks the jeans off her leg and to one side of the room. "So... what's your mom like? Is she nice?" She starts to remove her shirt, but the cloth gets caught around her head. She squirms in her spot on the floor, struggling to free herself from the self-imposed trap.

Head still in the drawer, he doesn't notice her plight. "Yeah, she's actually a pegasus with a pretty red coat. She's really nice, like you, but different..."

She stops, whimpering softly. "Rhino? H-help, please?"

"Huh?" He turns around with the clothes in hand. He sees her stuck with her arms in the air and the cloth of the shirt covering her face and chest. "Now how did that happen?" He comes over, going behind her. As he does this, he notices that instead of the blue skin her belly has, her back is all chitin, with two odd sections starting at her shoulder blades on going down. Shaking his head, he reasons to deal with that after he frees her. He moves her arms a little bit before helping her successfully get the shirt over her head. "There we go. Feel better?"

She gasps softly as her head is freed, shuddering slightly, a bit of blue peeking out from under the sections as she does this. "Y-yes, much better. That wasn't fun at all..." She crosses her arms over her chest, shivering a bit. "S-still cold..."

The colt tilts his head. "Hey Gel... what's with your back? It's like you've got some things under it."

She looks over her shoulder at him, confused. "What... do you mean my wings?"

"Wings?" He looks down at her relatively smooth back, seeing no signs of feathers. "Since when do you have wings?"

"Since... as far as I can remember?" She scratches her head, thinking a bit. "Don't you have wings, too, Rhino?"

"Umm... no, I'm not an alicorn." He takes off his shirt and walks around so she can see his back. "See? Nothing but fur, no feathers of any kind. I asked Mom why I didn't have wings like hers and she said it's because only the princess gets both wings and a horn."

"I... don't understand that..." She tilts her head to one side, letting her wings slowly extend behind her. "Do her wings... look like mine?"

The two membranous wings spread out fully, the dim light of the lantern going through them and being tinted blue on the wall. Rhino blinks quietly as he takes them in. "Not even close... Mom has feathers... you don't. How were you hiding those?"

"I, um, have a cover..." She turns around, pointing to the two navy items between her shoulder blades, her magic holding her hair out of the way so he can see.

"Huh..." He peers curiously at the slots in her back. "That's really neat! They kinda look like bug wings actually, but you know... better!"

"T-thank you." She smiles softly at him, her wings slipping back inside their casing. "I think everyone back home have them, too... mine are just too weak to lift me, right now..."

"Is that normal?" He asks. "I know some pegasi have problems flying until they grow big enough, but I thought around our age is when they actually manage to do it. Is it different for changelings?"

"No, I'm just... not experienced enough." She taps her chin thoughtfully. "I think I have another year before they're ready..." She shrugs, standing up to flop back on the bed. "It also differs between nymphs and drones, but... I don't know how big it is..."

"Still, that's cool that you're gonna be able to fly one day. Plus it's like your wings are secret since you don't actually show them unless you're using them." He points to the clothes she just flopped onto before slipping on his own shirt. "Those are your clothes by the way, if you want to put them on."

She looks up at him, giggling brightly. "Why would I put these on if I'm going to sleep in a few minutes?" She props herself up with one arm, her free hand tapping his nose as she speaks to him in a sing-song voice. "Silly Rhino."

He laughs lightly as he rubs his nose. "Yeah, that makes sense." He looks back up at her tilting his head after a moment. "Actually, I meant to ask you: How is it, sleeping without a shirt? Is it comfortable? I mean, I've only ever slept in my shirt and pajama pants since I was little, so I was just wondering what it's like and if you sleep well."

"I find it comfortable, but it might just be me..." She shrugs, examining his clothes. "I never had the luxury of an extra set of clothes to sleep in... besides, recently they've started to chafe..." She turns her gaze to her chest, frowning slightly. "I don't understand why, though..."

The colt shrugs, his own experience with clothes doing that being fairly limited. "Maybe you're just growing out of them? I mean, that's why I gave you those shirts, because they were too small for me, but are they too small for you too?"

"Maybe..." She sighs, laying back on the bed, her hands behind her head. "But I've hardly grown this past year, and it's still happening..." She absently places a hand on her stomach, nervous. "Am... am I getting fat?"

He looks at her stomach, noting the blue flesh doesn't actually protrude out at all past where it becomes chitin again. "You're not fat, you're nowhere near fat."

"That's good..." She groans, turning onto her side. "Sorry for moping. We're supposed to do something together, right?"

"Talking is something." He looks down at his own shirt a moment, debating before he shrugs and takes it off, tossing it into the dirty clothes basket in his closet. He climbs up onto the bed next to her. "Besides, I like talking with you. It's interesting."

She smiles softly, gently hugging him. "I enjoy our talks, too... and wow, your chest is fluffy." She pulls away slightly, one hand running through the emerald green fur. "Much softer than any shirt I've had..."

He lets out a few laughs as he shivers. "Yeah... hehe, that tickles a bit. Not bad though, otherwise I'd be worried about Dad hearing us."

She giggles, nuzzling his chest. "That'd definitely be troublesome..." She closes her eyes and rests her head against him, absently holding his hand. "I wonder how soft you'll get... though it'd be hard to imagine anything softer than this..."

"I don't know..." His other hand comes up and lightly strokes her mane. "I can barely tell how soft I am since I'm covered with it. I still like how smooth you are though, it feels nice."

"Thank you..." The two of them stay like that, neither knowing just how long, before the navy girl peeks an eye open, looking at him with an innocent curiosity. "Rhino?"

"Hmm?" The colt rouses himself from the slight meditative state he had put himself into as he had stayed there concentrating on the repetitive action of stroking her mane.

"When we are older..." She squeezes his hand, which she was still holding. "Would you be my... what did the book call it..." The last part is muttered to herself as she tries to recall a certain phrase. "My 'special somepony'? I mean... that's like a best friend, right? Someone you care deeply for?"

"I think so..." He recalls the words from the times he has heard them. "Mom and Dad are each other's special someponies and they said they're each other's friend... and I know Hearts and Hooves day is about your special someponies. I always see ponies hanging out in pairs that day, adults mostly but they seem to be happy."

Gel nuzzles his cheek, smiling warmly up at him. "So... would you be mine, Rhino? My special somepony?"

He laughs quietly, nuzzling her back. "I'd like that. I don't really see what the difference is between special someponies now and when we're older though. Why can't we be special someponies now?"

She tilts her head to one side, curious. "Well... I don't see why that wouldn't be alright..." She giggles, taking his hand and gently squeezing it. "I'd be happy to be your special somepony."

He smiles, squeezing back. "Me too, to be yours, I mean. Though... I don't really know what special someponies do besides hang out a lot and have fun. Is that okay?"

"That's definitely fine with me." The girl sighs, resting her head on his shoulder. "Can you read another story for me, Rhino? Like you did last night?"

The colt nods. "Sure I can. Same book?" He looks toward the pillows on the bed, wondering if he should move up there or continue to just lay across it like they both are.

She nods, pulling a little closer to him. "Yes, please."

He smiles, looking down at her as his horn light up and the particular book floats over from the shelf. "Did you want to move up to the pillows and under the covers or just stay like this?"

"I think pillows sound better... I'd like to be more comfortable while snuggling with you." She playfully sticks her tongue out at him.

He sticks his tongue out in response. "Sounds good to me. You're gonna have to let go of me so we can move though."

Gel pouts, reluctantly letting go of him. "But you feel so fluffy..."

He gives her a quick nuzzle as he moves up on the bed. "I'll still be just as fluffy in a moment when we're more comfortable."

She sighs, smirking teasingly as she watches him. "Fine... I expect you to come up with our first activity tomorrow, though."

Folding the covers back halfway, he looks back at her. "Alright, if you want me to, I will." He slips himself under the covers and waits for her.

She happily joins him, wrapping her arms around his chest as she settles herself in place. She presses her body up against his side, gently sighing. "I really would like you to..."

"I'll try to think of something." He smiles as he feels her cool touch on him as he floats the book over. "Any comments or requests before we start?"

"I don't know..." She frowns slightly, tapping her chin before resting her hand on his fluffy belly. "What was the mouse trying to do, again?"

"He was traveling to have his sword fixed and get reinforcements so he could save the others from the evil overlord." He reminds her, having read the book before himself but still enjoying going back through it.

"I see..." She smiles softly, nuzzling his chest gently. "Well, then... please continue..."

He holds the book, flipping through until he finds the page they were on. Clearing his throat a moment, he begins to read.

***

A while into the story, Gel jumps slightly, her eyes and ears trained on the door. She slowly turns to the colt, whispering softly to him. "D-did you... hear something, Rhino?"

Cutting himself off in mid-sentence, he looks at her. "What did you say?"

As he speaks the knob on the door rattles as it is twisted, the door barely opening before it's movement is stopped by the towel. The voice from beyond it is heard. "What the? Rhino?"

The colt's eyes widen as he turns to Gel, mouthing one word to her. 'Hide!'

She quickly slides over him, almost kneeing him in the stomach as she hurries under the bed.

The shuffling noises are clearly heard by Rhino's father as he moves the blanket blocking the door with a bit of magic. Setting it off to the side, he enters to see his son sitting up in bed, reading a book by the light of his lantern.

The colt struggles and fails to not have a guilt-ridden face. "Umm... hey Dad."

The older unicorn crosses his arms. "Didn't your mother and I tell you that reading by dim light is bad for your eyes, especially when you're tired?"

His little green ears fold back. "Yes sir... I wasn't trying to stay up reading, I just got to a good part and I couldn't stop."

The room is silent for a moment before small chuckles are heard from his father. "Just like your mother... you love reading before bed but you can't put it down." He takes a few steps towards the bed, picking up the lantern a moment. "We really need to get you a better one of these... One second." He exits the room, leaving the colt and his guest in semi-darkness for a moment before he returns, holding something extra alongside the toy lantern. "Here, your old one is an okay light source, but why don't you use this one instead?" He sets down the full-sized lantern, clicking it on and bathing the room in a light at least two or three times as bright as the toy one produces. "Try not to stay up reading too much longer, okay?"

"Alright, Dad." Rhino says, smiling.

"Goodnight, Rhino." His father says as he heads back to the door.

"Goodnight!" With that final word, the door clicks shut and a few hoofsteps can be heard before the door across the hall shuts as well. The colt holds his breath a little longer before he sighs heavily. "Phew..."

The navy changeling peers over the edge of the bed, whispering with a noticeably nervous tone. "T-that was close, wasn't it?"

He flops back onto his pillow. "Yeah it was..." He closes his eyes as the tension drains out of him. "You okay?"

"Aside from bumping my elbow on the way down?" She carefully gets up, making sure her hooves don't make a sound, and sits on the edge of the bed, facing him. "I think I'm okay..."

"Good..." He replies, eyes still closed. "How is your elbow?"

"Fine... it wasn't a big thing..." She crawls her way over to him, laying down by his side on his arm. "So... should we continue, or should we just sleep?"

He peeks at her. "I think we should finish the chapter, but maybe we can talk a little more before we sleep once we turn the light out?"

Gel giggles, leaning over and happily nuzzling his cheek. "I think I'd like that very much..."

One of his arms snakes around her, bringing her in for a hug. "Good. Comfy?"

"Very." She smiles, running her hand through the fur of his chest. "Because I have the fluffiest colt as my pillow..." She sticks her tongue out at him and rests her head on his chest, snuggling up as close as she can to him. "So... where were we, again?"

He cracks open the book. "Well... our heroes had just been rescued from the waterfall by bats..."

***

Rhino closes the book. "And that I think, is where we can stop tonight." He looks to Gel. "That okay with you?"

She pouts, though she can't hold it long before smirking slightly. "I suppose it's fine... I'd like to see how the story ends, but it is getting late..."

"Yeah..." He set the book on the shelf and lights up his horn, taking a moment to look at the new lantern to figure out how to turn it off. He finds the switch and flicks it off, plunging the room into darkness. Feeling the nymph still next to him, he snuggles further down into the sheets to get comfortable.

Gel smiles in the darkness, playfully nipping the tip of his ear. "Still feel like talking a bit more, before we sleep?"

His ears flicks a few times, but a few escaped chuckles show he liked it. "Yeah, though... not sure what about right now... I just like talking to you."

"So do I..." She scoots down in the bed, laying up against him and nuzzling his chest. "Just out of curiosity... why does your mom read at night? I mean, you dad said that, so, you know..."

"She said it's because she enjoys reading and it helps her relax before bed so she can sleep." He rests his head on top of hers, lightly nuzzling. "I started doing the same thing after a while because I wanted to try it. It works."

"I agree..." She sighs blissfully, gently stroking his chest. "I'm glad he gave you that lantern... you look kinda cute when focused like that..."

He smirks. "What, you just like the new lantern so you can see me better?"

"It's definitely a plus to having it..." She sticks her tongue out, playfully winking at him.

Grinning he lightly touches her nose with a finger, though it takes him a few tries to find it. "You're silly." He laughs as he hugs her tightly to him. "But part of the reason I like you."

She gently nips his finger, giggling brightly. "You're just as silly as me, Rhino."

"Maybe... being silly is fun though." He moves his hand to her back. "How come you play bite so much? I don't mind, I'm just wondering."

"I do it to show affection..." She closes her eyes to the darkness, hugging him close to her. "It's something my mom and dad do with each other... and mom said I did it with her when I was younger..."

"Aww..." He coos. "That's cute..."

"That's what mom said..." She yawns softly, relaxing against him. "Can you... stroke my mane, please? Mom... she always does that... to help me sleep..."

"Sure, I can do that." One of his hands moves upwards, petting her mane from the top of her head all the way down her neck and repeating. "Like this?"

The small girl coos softly, pressing back against his hand with each pass. "Yes... just like that..."

"Goodnight, Rhino..." She sighs happily, drifting off into a blissful sleep in the arms of her friend.