Warm Hearts

by Rhino

Chapter 4: Camping

The following day goes back to normal for the two children as they leave in the morning to have another delightful time of making believe. Sticks are swung, reality enhanced, and imaginations run wild all morning to the sound of their laughter. Eventually though, the sun sits straight overhead as they both finish lunch, Rhino having brought three sandwiches this time, one for her and two for him.

With their backs against a fallen log, the two of them let their food settle while they read a few more chapters of their book. After some time, the colt eases the pages closed. "I think that's a good stopping point, with them going to sleep for the night."

"I suppose..." She turns her gaze up to the sky, absently moving her hand to hold his. "Hey, Rhino?"

"Hmm?" He replies as he stows the book in his bag before turning his full attention to her. "What is it?"

"I was wondering..." She glances at him, visible only because she tilted her head his direction. "What is camping like? I mean, is it fun?"

"Umm..." He blinks, tilting his head. "I don't really know... I've never been camping before. I mean, you hear about it, but I've never done it."

"Then... would you like to, tonight?" She smiles at him, clearly hoping he'll say yes.

His brow furrows, behind it, his mind trying to double check what he's interpreting she means. "Just like that? Just go somewhere and camp?"

"Well... yea!" She giggles brightly, squeezing his hand gently. "I've never done it, before, and I wanted to try it out with you!" Her smile falters slightly before she gestures to him. "Of course, you don't have to if you don't want to."

"Wait..." One facet of her sentence makes him pause. "Weren't you lost for a week before I met you? How did you get along then if it wasn't camping?"

"That doesn't count." She turns away, pouting with a small blush on her cheeks. "I didn't even have a, um..." She frowns, tapping her forehead as though it'd jog her memory. "Sleeping bag, I think it was? What kind of bag is that, anyways?"

Nodding the colt replies. "Yes, usually sleeping bags are involved, tents too to keep bugs and rain on you when you're sleeping. Campfires are nice though... especially when you make smores." His head slowly begins to nod. "That does sound fun, but... do we have to go far away from the house?"

She shrugs, sheepishly smiling. "Um... as long as your parents won't see me, I don't think we have to... why?"

His eyes avert to the ground as he twiddles his thumbs, his voice quiet. "I just... don't want to be too far away..."

"That's fine, Rhino." She moves over and sits on his lap side-saddle, hugging him gently. "I want it to be fun for both of us. Can't be fun if you're worrying, right?"

"Heh, yeah I guess." His arms embrace her. "We can camp just inside the woods I think. "There's enough space in some spots for a campfire and tent, but it's still close enough so we can go back to the house if we need to."

"Perfect!" She giggles, nuzzling his cheek. "Of course, I'd have to sneak in, but still!" She smirks, appearing to playfully roll her eyes.

"Yep!" He laughs as she nuzzles him. "Now I just need to ask my parents if they have camping stuff..."

"Later, right?" She shyly smiles, bringing a hoof up to gently cup one cheek as she pecks the other. "For now, I was hoping we could, well... sit here and watch nature for a bit..."

Biting his tongue when he almost makes another comment on how touchy she is, he nods. "Sure, that sounds nice. Maybe in a bit we can look for a good spot for us to camp in later."

She sighs softly, turning and sitting right next to him, leaning up against his side. "I think that's a good plan..."

Later that day, Gel watches from just inside the borders of the woods as her friend goes inside to ask his parents. Unfortunately, she can't really tell much from here other than seeing the occasional shape pass in front of windows. The only exception to this is when his mother comes outside and flies off, only to return about fifteen minutes later with a small grocery bag in hand. Things go quiet again for a time before the sound of the door opening makes her ears perk up and she looks to see him coming towards her, now laden a box, a thick roll of some kind of fabric thing, and a bag on top of those. All of this is held in both of the colt's arms, forcing him to crane his neck around them to see where he is going.

As soon as he gets close, she grabs the fabric roll and bag from him. "I got these..." Holding one in each arm, she starts walking, talking over her shoulder to him. "What's in the box?"

"A tent." He replies simply at first. "I mentioned the idea of camping outside for the night to them and they were all for it. It was kind of weird actually. They said it was just something a lot of little ponies do at least once, so they just gave me some of dad's old Colt Scout stuff while Mom went and got food."

She glances at the bag in her hand, an eyebrow raising curiously. "I suppose that explains this..." She carefully steps over an exposed root, pausing so he'd stop walking a moment. "Watch your step."

Lifting his leg high, he steps over. "Got it. There's also some matches in the bag too, for when we make the fire."

"Don't need them." The girl carefully pushes a branch to the side, gesturing with her less-burdened arm to the clearing beyond. "Here we are. Not too far, not too close."

"Yeah, it is..." Setting down the box and sitting next to it, he looks to her with an eyebrow raised. "What do you mean we don't need the matches though?"

"Simply put, we don't need them." She shrugs, placing a few stones in a small circle.

"That doesn't really answer the question though..." He mutters as he opens the box and slides the contents out, fabric and poles hitting the forest floor as the colt's face goes blank. "I just remembered... I have no idea how to put up a tent..."

Gel stares at him blankly, pointing at a pamphlet still at the bottom of the box. "Aren't those the directions, Rhino?"

"Huh?" He peeks into the box, reaching in and pulling out the paper, unfolding it. "Oh, they are. Ok... doesn't look too bad..."

"Thought so." She shakes her head, carefully laying a few sticks down. "Let me just get this started, and I'll help you with that." She touches the tip of one of the dry branches, closing her eyes and scrunching her face in concentration.

He watches, curious as to what exactly she is doing.

After a few seconds, a wisp of smoke forms from the center of the pit, the herald for a small blue flame. Gel opens an eye and instantly squeals in excitement, hands up to her mouth. "It worked!"

The colt's mouth falls open for a brief moment as he looks at her incredulously. "You know fire magic?"

"Yep!" She turns to him, gesturing to the slowly-growing fire proudly. "Mom said it was my element!" She pauses, tapping her chin in confusion. "Not sure how, exactly, she meant that, though..."

He shrugs. "No idea, but I guess that makes that part easy. Now we just have to deal with this." He gestures to the pile of items from the box. "Doesn't look too bad though... we just set this up, put the sleeping bag inside, keep the food out here with us and we're done. Huh... easier than I thought."

"Got it!" She opens the fabric, tilting her head to one side. She stares in silence at the contents before turning to him, blushing softly. "I have no idea what these are..."

"Let's see..." His eyes dart around the instruction paper for a moment before his horn lights up, covering the items in magic. These... are pieces of the poles..." he moves the majority of the pieces of the stack to one side, "and these are the stakes..." the rest go to a different spot. "Everything else is the tent. We just... lay it out flat, put the poles together, slide them in the correct spots, and stake it down once we're done."

She shuffles her hooves awkwardly, her gaze focused on a leaf on the ground before her. "I, um... I think I understand..."

He looks over the instructions a bit more before nodding and laying them out on the ground so she can see them. His horn lights up again as he brings the poles over to himself, beginning to fit them together. "Take a look, the pictures are very self-explanatory."

She takes a step forward, carefully examining the directions and accompanying diagrams. She slowly nods, picking up the stakes in her own magic as she spreads out the tent. "Seems simple enough..." She carefully positions one of the pieces of metal and stomps it into the ground with a hoof, flinching and whimpering softly before moving on to the next one.

Rhino's ears flick as he hears the high-pitched sound. He looks over to her, seeing her raise her hoof for the next one. "Hey!" He zips to her side, holding one of her arms. "Don't hurt yourself... there are other ways to put those down you know..."

She yelps as her balance is completely thrown off, and she falls against his chest. "S-sorry!" She quickly straightens back up and looks at him, nervously rubbing her arm. "W-what other way is there?"

He wordlessly floats over one of the rocks she had thought of using for the firepit, but didn't.

She blushes brightly, a small wisp of steam trailing off the top of her head. "O-oh... right..." She grabs it in her hand and kneels down, swiftly anchoring down the tent with that stake and a few strong, well-placed blows.

"Alright then... just don't hit your other hand with it or something, or at least hit soft when that hand is close." With that warning, he goes back to putting together one of the two long poles, standing it up and seeing how high it is out of pure curiosity once it is complete.

Gel decides to be more careful, like he said. She walks in a circle around the tent, hammering in each stake in turn. As she nears the last one, she glances up at him, wanting to see how he's doing.

The colt is entertaining himself, the two completed poles held in each hand as he stares upward, just tapping their ends together as he sways them.

The navy girl, seeing how he's distracted, smirks slightly, slowly extending her wings as to not get his attention. Then, quietly sneaking behind him, she flaps them as fast as she can, making a buzzing sound fill the air.

The colt jumps, the fur along his spine standing straight up. Letting the poles fall to the ground with a thump, he whirls around wide-eyed only to see the girl standing there with a mischievous smile on her face. He deflates as he lets out a breath and a chuckle. "Phew, it's just you... you got me good there."

"Yep!" She giggles, pulling him into a quick hug. "You're kinda silly when startled... I like it." She playfully sticks her tongue out at him.

He laughs as he presses lightly on her nose with the tip of a finger. "Ok... just don't go doing it too big or too often, alright?"

"Wouldn't dream of it." She winks at him, slowly pulling away. "Doing it too often would make it not work, anyways... and less special."

"I guess that's true..." he thinks out loud as he picks up the poles again. "Come on, let's slide these in and get the tent set up, the sun's starting to go down." As if in response, his horn lights up and a few more sticks are flicked onto the fire.

The girl's attention is drawn to the fire as she slowly threads the pole into its guide, a thoughtful look on her face. She secures her side and glances over at him, tilting her head to one side. "Rhino? Do you think we should try to make it a bit bigger?"

He shakes his head as he threads his pole. "No, Dad being a firepony means he's told me a lot about fires. He says that you always start small and you just slowly add bigger and bigger sticks, it'll get hotter and hotter even if it's the same size."

She blinks, confused. "I... I don't get it..."

"Umm..." He scratches his head a moment. "We start small, so it can get hot. When it's hot, it can burn bigger things. It burns bigger things longer and slightly hotter. That's why you can’t hold a match to like... a tree and do anything. It's too big and the fire's not hot enough."

"Oh." She sits on the ground, glancing at the fire. "I guess that makes sense... should I move the rocks a bit further out, then?"

"If you want to." He shrugs. "We just have to makes sure the fire stays inside." He finishes sliding his pole in. "Ok, now we just bend these up and put them in the sleeve at the bottom of the tent." He peeks over at the instructions, smiling that he remembered correctly.

She looks down at the end of the pole she's sitting at, seeing it's already in. "Um... I think I already did my side..."

He blinks. "Oh... ok, I'll just do this side and then we'll do the other pole." He starts trying to fit the pole in, soon realizing that he has to bend it to do so. Bracing himself, he pushes the pole so that the bend goes up, forming half the frame of the tent as his slightly shaky hand gets the end of the pole where it needs to go, the other pole just hanging in the air now with it's ends sticking out. "Not so bad at all..."

"Yep." She moves to the next one, carefully slipping it into the right spot. "Can't wait to see the fully-complete version, though."

"The pictures say it's just a green dome, but still, I know what you mean." Bracing himself again, he gets his side set, the first half of the tent already up making it easier. As it is complete, the fabric of the tent goes taut, as if signifying it is complete.

She squeals in delight, clapping her hands together. "Last one in's a moldy carrot!" She dashes inside the tent before he can even comprehend what she's saying, zipping it closed. After a moment, it opens back up partially, the bag of food and sleeping bag slipping in through the opening before it's reclosed.

Smirking, he walks around to the front, tapping on the door. "I know the box said it's a one pony tent, but that's adults! I'm sure we could both fit in there..."

Her voice comes from inside, slightly muffled from the fabric. "What's the password?"

This causes him pause as he thinks a moment. "Umm... hugs?"

There is silence for a couple seconds before she speaks up again. "What's the second password?"

Wondering whether he got the first one right, he tries another shot in the dark. "Book?"

She laughs brightly, shaking her head as she lays out the sleeping bag. "You got that one wrong, silly!"

The pony remains outside the tent, tapping his hoof in thought. "Hmm... fluffy?"

"Nope!" She slips the zipper open slightly, smiling warmly at him. "It's green." She points at herself. "Gel." Then turns the finger to him. "And Rhino Nexus."

It takes a moment for this to click for him. "Oh, our initials! That's really cool. I hadn't thought of that..."

"It was a spur of the moment thing." She reaches out, gently taking his hand. "Originally, it's because of my new favorite color..." She opens the tent and pulls him inside, the two of them landing on the soft sleeping bag and causing the girl to momentarily lose her breath as he lands on top of her.

Planting his hands in the cushy material, Rhino raises himself up so that his weight is off her. Looking down, his brow furrows in worry. "You okay?"

She nods quickly, placing her hands on his shoulders. "Yes... b-but what about you?"

He tilts his head. "What about me? I had a soft landing."

"Yes. Me." She sticks her tongue out and pushes up against him. "I'd like to see what your mom got. Kinda hard to do when pinned..."

"Oh, right..." He moves to one side, sitting down because there's no way he can stand up in the small space. He brings the bag over and offers it to her.

She graciously takes it and opens it up, angling it so he could also see the contents. "So... what all is in here?"

He looks upwards as he recalls what his mom said she packed for him. "Should be... chocolate, graham crackers, marshmallows, some thin rods to roast the marshmallows with, and some bug candles if we need them."

She tilts her head, picking up a metal container and a thermos from the bag. "What about these?"

"Oh right, that's dinner." He points to the container. "Mom made some sliced carrots and twice-baked potatoes. Dad said we just set this near the fire and it should get warm. The thermos is milk."

She scrunches up her nose, confused. "Twice-baked potatoes? How does that work?"

"I saw Dad do it once," he begins, "He baked them like normal baked potatoes, then he took them out, chopped them up and mixed them in a pan with butter, cheese, green onions, diced tomatoes, salt, and pepper. Then he just baked it again." He shrugs. "Not sure why anypony would think of doing that, but it tastes good."

"Um... okay?" She scratches the side of her head, unsure what to think. She grabs up the metal container, slowly opening the tent's zipper. "So... put it by the fire, right?"

"Yep! The forks are in that extra part on the side though, so you probably want to take them out and put them by the thermos or something so they don't get hot." He peeks out as she opens the zipper, seeing the sky colored a blazing orange as Celestia lowers the sun.

She pulls the extra compartment off and tosses it onto the sleeping bag. Then, glancing at him, she follows his gaze, her eyes widening in surprise. "Wow... that's so beautiful..."

He nods along. "Yeah... someponies at school once said they saw Princess Celestia on her balcony when she put the sun down, but I think she would just do it from the comfort of her own room."

She doesn't say a word, moving forward and sitting down on a fallen log near the fire. She puts the tin down and turns to him, smiling softly and patting the spot next to her. "Would you... l-like to watch it with me?"

The colt nods, walking over and sitting down next to her, turning to the horizon. "You know, I don't think I've ever just sat down and watched the sun go down before."

"Neither have I..." She leans against his shoulder and takes his hand, sighing softly. "Seeing it, now... I can't imagine why..."

He casts a glance down at her before looking back at the orb in the sky. "Probably too busy doing other things I guess... Still, we're watching now."

"True..." They sit there for a while longer, enjoying the scene and each other's company until it vanishes beyond the horizon. She opts to stay like they are, bringing a few more branches over in the soft blue of her magic. She adds them to the fire before sitting back upright, turning to look at him. "That was... really nice..." She pecks his cheek, giggling quietly. "Thank you..."

He smiles widely at her, giving her a quick nuzzle. "You're welcome, that was nice." He looks around them. "This has all been very nice so far, just quiet and relaxing."

"Yes, it has..." She glances at the container before looking back at him, curious. "Should we eat now, or later?"

Shrugging, the colt bends down, poking the container with a finger to see the temperature. "That's up to you, though I would like to eat early enough to have room for the fun dessert."

She blinks, scrunching up her nose slightly. "How can dessert be fun?"

"Have you ever had s'mores before?" He asks simply,

She stares blankly at him. "No. I've never heard of that, before."

"Oh, you'll like them when we make them for dessert. Trust me on that." He winks as he brings the container towards them with magic.

She grabs a fork from the separated side compartment, twirling it in her fingers. "I guess I'll have to wait, then..."

"It's not like you don't have something else to eat in the meantime." He lifts the lid off the container, letting out a puff of steam as the contents are revealed, the potatoes taking up the majority of the room while the carrots are about a quarter of it. The orange vegetables glisten with juices as they lay stacked on top of each other. The potatoes are a more random assortment of colors, but the scent is delicious as it wafts off their fluffy forms.

She glances at the tin and pokes one of the carrots. She brings it up to look at it before turning to Rhino with a small smile, holding it out for him.

He tilts his head for a moment, wondering why she's feeding him like a foal, but the smell of the food makes him shrug before biting down on the veggy. Sliding his mouth off the fork, he chews with a smile on his face before swallowing. "Yep, still good."

"Good to hear." She picks a forkful of potatoes up and pops it into her mouth. "I... wow, that tastes really good..." She loses her train of thought, lost in the taste as she is.

"Heh, yeah. I never go for normal baked potatoes when they can make some of these." He grabs the other fork, taking a bite of them himself and humming happily.

She quickly takes a few more bites before a 'hurk' escapes her. She slams a fist against her chest, gasping after a few moments. "T-too much..."

Seeing this, Rhino floats the thermos over, taking a swig himself before offering it to her. "Here."

She gratefully takes it, gulping a large mouthful down and signing in relief. "Thank you..."

"No problem." He takes the thermos back, weighing it for a moment before setting it back down and resuming eating.

"You're right, by the way." She picks a couple carrots up, smiling softly. "Milk is delicious, too. Not as much as apple juice, though." She playfully sticks her tongue out at him.

"Nah, milk's better." He replies as he sticks his own out at her. "To me, anyway." More eating ensues.

Soon enough, the two younglings finish eat and the colt comes up with the obvious question. "Now what?"

"Well..." She shrugs, sheepishly smiling. "I was hoping you'd know... um..." She taps her chin, trying to think of something. "Maybe we could... tell stories?"

Easing one of their larger logs into the blazing fire with a bit of magic, he tilts his head at her. "What kind of stories?"

"I guess it depends." She leans slightly away, propping herself up with an arm. "Do you want to tell ghost stories, or do you want to tell family stories?"

He answers immediately. "Family stories. I don't really like ghost stories... being scared isn't fun."

"Point taken." She gestures to him, smiling softly as she brings the bag out of the tent in her magical aura. "Would you like to go first?"

"Okay." His hand goes to his chin as he looks upward at the few stars one can see this close to the city. "Umm... oh! Mom told me that was I was a little foal and I wouldn't go to sleep, she would always take me flying and I would be out in a few minutes." He winces a bit. "I don't really like flying now... but whenever I do something like that, or ride a train I always seem to fall asleep really quick, even if I'm not tired."

"How sweet." She giggles, clapping her hands together. "Okay! So, where I came from, I had two friends... at least, until they had to leave." She shakes her head. "Anyways, they were like complete opposites. One would act silly, and his sister would berate him and apologize to whoever he was talking to." She pauses, frowning slightly. "That was more of a friend story than a family story, wasn't it? Sorry..."

He waves her off. "I think it still counts. Were they like you then, blue changelings?"

"No, actually." She smirks, holding up a finger as if pointing at something overhead. "The drone, Flick, was goldenrod. The nymph, Luster, was indigo." She blinks. "Or, hopefully, is, not was... it's been a while since they left my old school..."

The colt raises an eyebrow at her. "Would they really change color?"

"No, I mean..." She trails off, shaking her head. "N-never mind. Y-your turn, right?"

"Oh, alright. Umm..." It takes him a little longer to think of another one. When I was little, I would sometimes hide in Mom's plants when she was gardening, and because of my coat, she wouldn’t see me until I reached out and scared her." He laughs at the memory. "She screamed really loud one time."

Gel laughs, almost tumbling off the log. "R-really? Wow!"

"Yeah..." He just sits there with a big smile on his face. "It's kind of like what you did to me earlier, but that's the only way i scare her. Doesn't mean it's not fun though."

"So true." She sighs softly, fighting to get her giggles under control. "D-did you know... my mom met my dad as his... i-instructor?"

"Really?" Rhino's face clearly expresses curiosity. "What does she teach?"

"She says she teaches self-defense..." She shrugs, turning to lay on the log and, coincidentally, her head on his lap. "I ask her to teach me, but she says something about how I need to be older before then..."

His hands start playing with her mane as it splays out beneath her. "Cool... she sounds like a tough lady then."

"You're more accurate than you think..." She sighs softly and closes her eyes, the tips of her hair curling slightly from his ministrations.

He notices this. "Huh? Hey... your mane moved... does it do that a lot?"

"Sometimes..." She peeks an eye open, curious. "Does that not happen to ponies?"

He shakes his head, but stops and tilts it to one side. "Well... I think earth ponies can move their tails a bit... but other than that, no."

"Huh." She smirks, her mane gently wrapping around his hand. "I guess that this is a unique talent of mine, then?"

"Is it a changeling thing?" He asks, unsure.

"I... I guess?" She scratches her cheek, thoughtful. "I haven't seen many others do it, myself..."

He shrugs, stroking her mane a bit more. "Still neat either way. Not really sure what you would do with it besides keep it from getting tangled though..."

She sighs, relaxing as his hand brushes over her cerulean hair, an ear twitching slightly. "I guess that's true... it's really sensitive, though..."

"Is it?" His voice takes on a playful tone. "So, like, is it... Ticklish?" He starts wiggling his fingers in her mane.

She squeaks, her body tensing up at the motion. "Um... m-maybe?"

"It's either yes or no..." He continues the action with a smirk on his face.

She bites her lip, squirming and nodding shyly at him.

The colt just chuckles and continues. "Come on, you know you want to laugh..."

"N-no I d-don't..." She clasps her hands over her mouth, struggling to keep it in.

"Are you sure?" His voice and fingers are teasing as the digits move faster.

Finally, she can't hold it in any longer. She bursts out laughing, holding her sides tightly. She tries to scold him, but she can't get enough air to do so.

His face is beaming as he gets the reward of her laughter. Stopping his tickling actions after a moment so she can breathe, he wears a look on his face clearly stating 'I win'.

She pants softly, her body finally relaxing since he began. "T-thank you for... s-stopping..."

"Hey, it's not like I wanted to hurt you, just tickle you." He smiles sincerely down at her. "Should I let you do something to get me back?"

"M-maybe later..." She gulps a few more lungfuls of air down before shakily pointing to the bag by her legs. "F-for now... how about that dessert?"

"Sounds good to me. Let me show you how s'mores work..." Staying where he is, he starts unpacking the chocolate, crackers, and marshmallows, laying them in a row on the log with magic. He brings out the two rods as well, offering one to her.

She takes it in her hand, staring at it blankly before looking up at him, confused. "S'mores? What are those?"

"Watch." He spears one of the sugar fluffs on the rod and moves it toward the fire. As they watch, the white pillow appears to shimmer before suddenly turning golden the. Starting to turn brown all in the span of a few seconds. The colt quickly retracts the warm treat, bringing it back and squishing it between two halves of a graham cracker, one with a square of chocolate on it. He offers the complete desert to the nymph. "Taste it."

She takes it, unsure, and carefully bites into it. Almost immediately, her eyes light up and she beams brightly, her attention now on the treat. "Delicious!" She looks up at her friend, smiling warmly. "Here, you should try it!" As he opens his mouth to respond, she pushes the half of it left into his mouth, eager for him to taste it.

The sweet flavored explode into his mouth, robbing him of thought for a few seconds as he chews. Once he swallows he looks at her with a goofy smile. "Wow... I heard they were good and I knew how to make them... but that was great!"

"I know, right?" She giggles, wiping a bit of marshmallow from his cheek. She sucks her finger clean as her magic brings a marshmallow over, pushing it onto the metal rod and holding it over the fire. "That was tasty, too."

"Yeah..." He watches as Gel holds the treat a little too low in the fire, causing it to catch fire itself. "Woah!"

She brings it up closer, puffing it out. Seeing it look half-black, she pouts, her ears flattening against her head. "Aw... I messed it up..."

"No you didn't. Mom and Dad said that would probably happen." He fixes up the s'more again. "See? Still white on the inside, it's just crunchier now I bet."

She picks it up and takes a bite just like before, swallowing before giving a small sigh. "Not... bad. Not as good as yours, but I suppose it could be worse..."

"Well..." He motions to the rest of the supplies. "We've got plenty to practice with." He floats his own marshmallow into the fire, pulling it out a few seconds later to reveal a dark brown version, which he promptly eats as a s'more.

She sticks another one over the flames, looking up at him from his lap. "So... do you have any other friends?" She nonchalantly waves at him. "Just for curiosity's sake."

He shrugs a bit. "Not sure really... I mean, I talk to some of the ponies at school a little, but I think mostly it's just being nice to each other. I don't really hang out with them much, just sort of talk to a few of them regularly. Mom's worried about me not bringing anypony home for some reason, I wish I could show her you."

"I do, too..." She pauses, tapping her chin in thought. "Actually... I think there might be a way for that to happen..." Meanwhile, as her mind is currently occupied, her marshmallow has caught fire and melted off the rod, falling into the fire below.

Smiling, Rhino lights up his horn and replaces her ruined marshmallow with a new one. "What's this idea?"

"Now, keep in mind, this is a shot in the dark..." She slowly sits up, lodging the rod and its perfectly golden pillow in a knot of the log. "But I can disguise myself as another pony, and introduce myself that way." She gestures to him, shyly smiling. "What do you think?"

He puts on a thoughtful expression. "But... How would we ever disguise... well, a lot of things? Your teeth, wings, eyes, lack of a coat..."

"Well, I-" She looks about ready to do something, but pauses, glancing down at the clothes currently on her. She squirms slightly, nervous. "I-I'd show you, but I'm worried it might ruin the clothes you leant me..."

"Huh?" He tilts his head. "Aren't clothes usually part of disguises?"

"Yes," she holds up a hand, "but the way I put on my disguise could possibly mess them up... here, one sec." She peels off the shirt, tossing it into the tent behind them. She stands and places a hand on her pant's tail button, fumbling it slightly for a second. She sighs and turns away, looking at him over her shoulder shyly. "Could you undo that for me, please?"

Eager to see her disguise idea, he walks over. "Is that the tricky pair? I know one of the ones I own is a pain to get off... Maybe you got them." He bends down, struggling with the button a moment before it finally comes loose. "Yep, this is them."

"Thanks." She quickly removes both shorts and underwear, putting them to the side as she turns to him, smiling warmly. "Now you see me." She is briefly engulfed in flames, posing with her hands on her hips. "Now who do you see?"

Now before Rhino stands the very strange sight of a pony who is like him in every way except for one key difference: she is still female. Everything else from the fluffy fur to the eye color is spot on. The colt can really only stare in shock. "Wow... That's some good magic..."

"Thanks!" She giggles, moving to sit down next to him on the clothes she'd just been wearing. "It's not entirely perfect, though... I mean, your parents would be really confused if there's suddenly two of you," she glances down along her body, "and one is a filly... and the other me." She playfully sticks her tongue out at him.

His eyes roll. "Oh hah hah." Sitting down next to her, he looks her over again. "This still seems so weird... And yet cool. How did you do that?"

Gel opens her mouth to respond, but stops, looking down at her hands. "I... I just did what my mom said... picture a pony, and imagine I was them..."

"Wait so... She can do it too? All of you can do it?" His mind races as he tries to comprehend an entire race of shapeshifters.

"Yep!" She pauses, faltering slightly at his expression. "That's not a bad thing... is it?"

"Are you kidding? That's awesome! I didn't think you could get cooler than you were already, but you did!" His hands are waving up in his excitement.

The girl lets out a sigh of relief, smiling softly at him. "Thank goodness... I was worried I shocked you too much, for a moment, there..." She glances down at her slender hands, flexing them as she thought out loud. "I need a different form, though... maybe I could make one up..." She looks to him, apprehensive. "What do you think?"

One hand scratches the back of his head. "I guess... Just pick a tribe, colors, and name, right?"

"You don't understand." She sighs, resting her head on her hand. "I have to envision what the pony looks like... and 'Gel' doesn't really sound like a pony's name, does it?" She scrunches her nose up, muttering to herself. "I certainly don't want to be called 'Gelatin'..."

"Just use your imagination and make one like I said." He insists. "Like umm... Unicorn, pegasus, or earth pony?"

She replies almost immediately. "Unicorn."

"Ok, then you just think of colors and manestyle, easy." He nods succinctly.

She taps him on the nose. "And personality."

He frowns. "You're not going to act like you?"

She blinks, tilting her head to one side. "I... I guess I don't have to make one... if you really don't want me to..."

The colt hesitates a moment to try and find the right words. "I just... don't feel it would be you anymore, you know? I like you, so... I don't want you to be anypony else."

She stays silent for a moment, staring at her hands folded in her lap. She slowly stands, nodding to herself. "I... I guess that makes sense... here I go..." The azure fire engulfs her once more, dispersing to reveal, instead of a female Rhino, a blonde, white-furred unicorn. She opens her eyes, now more like his aside from the lashes and cerulean color, and looks at him, giving a small twirl. "What do you think?"

Rhino gives a round of applause. "Wow... You look like you would fit right in anywhere in Canterlot. Nice job!"

"Thanks!" She giggles, sitting back down on the log next to him. "So..." She takes the golden marshmallow off her stick, pressing it into his mouth. "What name do you think would fit me? Don't talk with your mouth full, though."

Having to chew the sugary substance gives him time to think, so he at least has something ready when he swallows. "Something to do with 'Grace' maybe? It seems like it would fit."

"Grace... I like it..." She taps her chin. "How about... Angelic Grace? You know, since my fur's white, like their clothes?"

His head bobs approvingly. "I like it! Have a s'more for your success." He offers her the one he had just made.

She happily squeals, taking the treat and eagerly eating it. Her tail wags behind her in her excitement.

"So... this is the disguise you meant, right? You make yourself look like this and we introduce you to my parents that way?" He pauses a moment before continuing. "Although... I think we'll still have to sneak you in at night..."

"I know..." She sighs, leaning against his side once more. "Still, it'll be nice to finally meet your parents..."

"Yeah..." The last word sparks a question in his mind. "Umm... what are you going to say if they ask you where you live and where your parents are and stuff?"

She blinks at this, frowning slightly after a moment. "I... I guess I'll have to think about that, for a bit..."

Frowning himself and putting an arm around her, he speaks softly. "Hey, I didn't mean to make you sad by making you think about all that stuff... it's just something I thought my parents might say."

"I know..." She looks up at him, smiling softly. "I'm glad you brought it up, too... I just don't know what I'd say, yet..."

"Oh... I guess we can't show them 'Angel' yet then, huh?" After a moment he smiles, despite that thought, giving her a quick nuzzle. "At least I can still have Gel in the meantime."

"True." She giggles, nuzzling him back a moment before pulling away slightly. She touches her now-fangless mouth and then looks into his eyes, softly blushing. "Can I... try something, Rhino?"

His eyes betraying his curiosity for another of her ideas, he nods. "Umm... sure. You've had plenty of good ideas so far today, so this is probably just another one."

She gently cups his cheek, smiling warmly as she leans in closer. She closes her eyes and gently brushes her lips against his, sending a small tingle through her body. She quickly pulls away, her cheeks a vibrant pink, and touches her face, confused by the sudden warmth there.

The colt's eyes are wide as he blinks, stunned by what he believes easily counts as his first kiss. His own cheeks feel warm and flushed, but he has no idea why. His now cloudy mind takes a minute to form words as it tries to recover from the brand new experience. "Why... why did you... kiss me?"

"I..." She gulps, her mouth suddenly feeling dry. "I saw your mom give one to your dad... and my mom and dad do that, too... s-so I just thought..." Her gaze falls to her hands, and her ears flatten against her head. "I mean... i-isn't that what special someponies do?"

Her logic does seem sound to the colt. "I... guess that makes sense." His brow furrows after a bit more thinking. "Does it still count if you look like this, though? Since this isn't you, I mean."

"It's still me, silly." She giggles, tucking a lock of her golden mane behind her ear. "I just... have makeup on. That's all. Besides..." Her smile falters slightly. "I don't want my fangs to hurt you..."

"Hmm... I don't really think your fangs would hurt me," he says, his logic correct in his mind. "I mean, your mouth would have to be open or something for that to be an issue."

She blinks blankly, rubbing the back of her neck. "I guess that's true..." She laughs, her hand covering her mouth. "Who'd kiss with their mouth open, anyways? That just sounds silly!"

He laughs with her. "Yeah, that'd be really weird! It'd look like they were trying to eat each other's face!"

She laughs even more, almost falling off the log if it weren't for his arm around her. After forcing herself to calm back down, she nuzzles his cheek, still trembling slightly with the aftershocks of her mirth.

The colt lets out a few more chuckles as he calms down. His fingers drawing his attention as they lay in the filly's coat. "Hey, can you change back to normal now? I still like that look best."

She blushes and quickly stands, nodding briefly. "Of course." A burst of fire later, she's back to her normal form, slowly extending her wings as she stretches lazily, groaning in relief. "Much better... don't you think?" She turns to him and leans a little forward, her hands clasped together behind her back.

Rhino nods, agreeing. "Yeah, I like blue better than white or yellow anyway. Plus you're more special this way."

Gel giggles, tilting his chin up and leaning down a little further. "Personally, I prefer green... and thank you." She kisses him once more before turning and heading towards the tent, clothes in hand. "N-now if you'll excuse me, I'm starting to get a little cold..."

He looks to the source of their light and warmth. "Isn't that what the fire is for?"

"Maybe..." She looks up at the moon, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "I suppose a little longer shouldn't hurt..." She places the shorts back down on the log and sits once more, taking his hand in hers like she normally does.

He squeezes her hand lightly as he looks to her curiously. "Oh wait, were you wanting to go to bed? I thought you were cold, not tired."

"Honestly, I was hoping to cuddle a bit..." She blushes softly, fidgeting slightly in her seat. "I like feeling how fluffy your fur is against me..."

A sly smirk forms while he raises an eyebrow at her. "Is that why you haven't put your clothes 1back on? So I could be your warm blanket or something?"

She shyly nods, averting her gaze. "I-if it's alright with you, of course..."

"Sounds good to me. I like cuddling, remember?" He chuckles as he hugs her to himself. "Good thing we only have one sleeping bag, huh?"

She laughs as well, putting her hand over his. "I think we'd be sharing one, regardless... speaking of, did you bring your sleep clothes?" She looks up at him, her blush lessening as her curiosity grows.

He nods toward the tent. "Yeah, my sleeping pants should have been rolled up in the sleeping bag."

"Oh." She sits there a moment in silence before looking up at him, shyly smiling. "Is it alright if I want to sleep like this?" She gently strokes the fur of his forearm, giggling a bit. "I just... want to feel your warmth... and fluffiness..."

The colt seems to puff himself up a bit at the praise to his fluffiness be he shrugs. "Doesn't really matter to me how you sleep. I'm fine with whatever."

"Good..." She relaxes slightly, playfully nipping his jawline. "I think this calls for another s'more." The navy girl takes a marshmallow and spears it on a rod, easing it into his hand. She then gently holds his, tilting the sweet pillow just over the flames and humming softly to herself.

The feeling of both their hands guiding some is... odd, but he likes it. Her cool chitin is always enjoyable and in this case, a direct contrast to the golden sugar fluff they withdraw from the flames.

She squeals in delight, her wings excitedly buzzing behind her. "Perfect!" She leans across him and grabs a graham cracker and chocolate, placing the marshmallow on top of that. She stares at it, tapping her chin. "I think it's missing something." She turns to him, smiling teasingly at him. "What about you?"

Looking at the treat with an analyzing glance, he replies slowly. "I don't see anything wrong with it... I mean it's the same as all the others..."

She sighs, breaking the dessert cleanly in half. "I think I know." She puts one of them in his hand, lifting the other up to her lips. "Someone special to share it with..."

"Oh... right. That does make it better." He gives her a sheepish smile before eating his half.

She giggles, resting her head on his shoulder as she eats her own. She looks up at the sky, smiling softly at the stars shining there.

He speaks after a moment. "This was a good idea you had, this whole camping thing. It's been fun."

"Agreed..." She hums brightly, nuzzling at his neck. "More so since I'm with you..."

He feels a small bit of warmth in his cheeks again as he smiles. "Heh... yeah, wouldn't be as fun if both of us weren't here." His rolls his tongue around in his mouth a moment before bringing the milk over, offering it to her. "Do you... want any more of this before I drink the rest?"

"Maybe a little..." She gratefully grabs it and takes a gulp, squeaking as a drop escapes the corner of her mouth. She quickly swipes it up with a couple fingers, blushing brightly. "S-sorry... I guess I was a little too eager, there..."

Laughing, he takes the thermos, not saying a word as he drinks down the entirety of what's left, an amount even greater than both of them had drank out of it already. With a lick of the small bit of white liquid on his lips after, he gives her a smile. "Nothing wrong with liking milk, especially after chocolate."

She smirks, playfully tapping his nose. "Whatever you say, silly..." She trails off as her eyes grow wide, staring right at the tip of his snout.

His eyes cross as they look down, seeing the small bit of white on his nose now. "Hey..." He sticks his tongue out, trying to lick the liquid off, but failing to reach it and instead only succeeds in looking silly with his eyes crossed and tongue out.

She laughs brightly, reaching over and cupping his cheek. "Hold still, silly..." She brushes her free hand over his nose, frowning slightly when this only spreads the liquid through his fur. She tries a few more times, stopping with a pout, his whole muzzle now slightly matted. "I thought that would work... sorry, Rhino..."

His muzzle twitches as the feeling of fur going the wrong way makes it feel off. "No big deal, just a drop or two..." He brushes his fur all back the right way, the only differences now is a barely noticeable dampness. "There, see? All better."

She sheepishly smiles, licking her fingers clean before responding. "Are you sure? I mean, it wo-" She cuts herself off with a small burp, her cheeks swiftly turning electric blue afterwards. "Um... p-pardon me?"

What starts as a sort of rumbling chuckle from the colt, soon evolves into full out laughter as he slips off the log onto the earth, holding his stomach as his laughs echo around the woods.

"It's not that funny..." She pouts, placing a hoof on his chest. "I have half a mind to not help you up after that..." She hesitates and turns away, blushing softly. "Okay, an eighth of a mind... but still!"

His guffaws calm down after a moment, at least enough so he can speak. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry... it's just the timing, and it's always so funny when a girl burps."

She blinks, staring down at him in confusion. "How is a girl burping different from a boy doing the same?"

He lets out a few more chuckles. "Because you never expect them from girls, they're so small and quiet, and the girl is always so embarrassed."

She frowns at this, promptly standing only to move over and plop herself down on his chest. "Small, are we?" She smiles teasingly, tapping his nose with the tip of her tail. "What about now, Rhino?"

"I meant the burps you know, heh." He smiles up at her a thought flicking through his head even as he shakes his muzzle from the small tickle she gave him.

She blushes, turning her head away in embarrassment. "M-maybe you should make that clear, next time..."

"You are smaller than me you know." He comments as he reaches up and places his hands on her sides. He starts sitting up.

She squeaks in surprise as she's moved from her spot. She immediately hugs his head, the closest part of him, to herself, not used to being lifted like this.

The colt pushes his young body, constantly changing and growing, to do something he had never attempted before, to most it was small, but to him it was still an accomplishment. Shifting, his arms go around her as he stands, her still clinging to him as he rises to his full height. A wide smile dons his face in victory, only to become more of a smirk as he realizes something. "Ok... I can pick you up, but I can't really walk while doing that."

She nervously laughs, her body trembling. "G-good to know... c-could you not breathe so heavily, though? I-it feels weird against my c-chest..."

"Sorry," the colts mutters, realized he is breathing hard from the exertion of lifting a body, "here, let me put you down..." He shakily bends down, trying to maintain his center of gravity so that he doesn't fall over.

She lowers her legs, her hooves soon touching the ground beneath them. She doesn't move away, however, leaning up and tenderly kissing him once more. "Thank you... I was worried, for a second, there..."

He feels his face becoming warm once more and some part of him tells him that this will not be the last time she causes that. "About what?"

"Falling down." She smiles, nodding at him. "You know... your lips are really soft..."

"Heh... so are yours. That's not a weird thing to say, right?" He looks a little concerned.

"I don't think so." She sticks her tongue out at him. "Just stating facts, right?"

"Yeah," he nods, "another fact: I think it's getting later and colder."

She nods, a large shudder running through her body. "W-we should get inside the t-tent, huh?"

Another entry into the nodding contest follows her statement. The two walk over to the shelter, Rhino unzipping it and motioning inside. "Ladies first."

She nearly bolts inside, only taking enough time to grab her shorts and underwear. "Thank you!" She dives into the sleeping bag, shivering from how cold she'd gotten.

The colt is about to step inside as well when he notices the dirt on the back of his pant legs and can only guess there is more on his short from his roll on the ground. "Umm, can you toss me my sleeping pants please? I need to change out here since my clothes are dirty."

She looks at him, smirking teasingly and putting the clothes in question on her head. "And if I don't want to?"

"Well... I can't get dirt in the bag..." He looks down and tries to dust off his clothes, but the effort is mostly ineffective. "Guess I'd have to leave mine out here and come in anyway."

"Then do that. These aren't as fluffy as you, anyways." She playfully sticks her tongue out at him and disappears back into the sleeping bag, taking the pants with her.

A small growl comes from the colt, but he resigns himself to his fate, stripping down to his underwear and leaving the rest in a pile outside. Stepping into the shelter he ips the door closed behind him, already making the room noticeably warmer without the chilling effect of the wind. Able to see a lump in the sleeping bag from the flickering light of the fire, he crouches down and starts crawling over to it.

She peeks out, smiling warmly at him. "There you are..." She folds the edge back, patting the spot it reveals.

"Aww... I was kinda hoping to sneak up on you. Oh well." He crawls over to the spot, sliding next to her inside the bag and immediately liking the sort of light grip the bag has that makes it feel like one is constantly tucked in.

She pulls herself up against his side, nuzzling his cheek as her hand plays with the fur of his chest. "Still want your sleep pants?" Her leg moves up against one of his, cooing softly at the feel of his fur against more of her body.

"I don't think you'd actually let me put them on if I said yes." He comments as he shifts a little lower into the bag. "Hey... are you poking my side with one of your fingers?"

She blinks, staring at him in confusion. "No... my hands are here..." She wiggled her fingers, mussing his mane and tapping his chest.

He shifts a little more. "Then what's in my side?"

She squeaks, pulling away and blushing brightly. "C-careful... those are tender..."

"What are you talking about?" He cranes his neck to see what she could possibly be talking about.

He sees her with an arm between him and her chest, unsuccessfully covering herself. "I-it was cold out there... t-they're sensitive when cold..."

He tilts his head upon seeing the two small spots of lighter blue on her chest. "Those... whatevers... are what were poking me?"

She nods, her body still trembling slightly from the lack of warmth. "S-sorry about that..."

"It's fine... I was just wondering what was doing it, and why. Still not quite sure on specific answers to either question, but I guess I know more than I did..." The last part is muttered, but still audible.

She quirks an eyebrow, tapping his forehead. "I thought it was perfectly clear. My nipples, and because it's cold." She glances at his chest, curious. "Though I wonder whether or not you have them, too... I certainly can't see any..." She runs her hand along his chest, seeing if she could find any sign of something similar.

Underneath his fur however, proves t be perfectly smooth. Further more, his quizzical expression also serves as an answer. "Is that just a part girls have that guys don't? I've never really heard of it before."

"I guess it is... huh..." She sheepishly giggles, bowing her head. "Learn something new every day?"

"I guess so..." Seeing her shiver again, he extends his arm and brings her up against his side once more. "Well, odd poking things or not, we still need to sleep."

She smiles softly, resting her head on his shoulder and her leg across his hips. Her horn lights up and the bag zips closed, further insulating them from the cold. She yawns and hums brightly, her eyes slowly drifting shut. "Good night, Rhino..."

The warmth of another body quickly lulling him to sleep, the colt replies beerily. "Good night, Gel..."

***

As the two children fly off to the land of dreams, inside the nearby house a certain red pegasus hums to herself as she cleans the room of her growing boy. As she tugs a blanket out from where it sits on the floor, halfway under the bed, she receives a small bonus for the effort.

Picking up the black container, she peers at it curiously. "Now what's this?" A small shake and a peek inside seems to confirm her suspicions. "Of course, milk. It must have rolled under his bed when he was packing for his little camping night." Giggling softly to herself,s he calls out across the house. "Bio, could you come here a moment?""

The unicorn stallion appears a few moments later in the doorway, his expression curious. "Yes dear?"

She holds out the container to him. "Could you do me a favor and put this is the fridge? It looks like Rhino forgot it and he's probably asleep by now."

"Sure thing, Mist." Her husband responds, taking the thermos from her and making his way to the kitchen. As he opens the cooling appliance though, he smacks his dry lips, taking a look down at the thermos. Knowing very well that his son got his love of milk from him, even if the boy's seems a bit stronger, Bio decides a quick drink is in order.

His drinking is stopped after a few sips though, as he puts the cap back on and looks at the black canister strangely. "Huh... taste is a bit off. Must be a new brand. Gotta remember to get the old one next time." Putting the drink in the fridge and shutting it, the unicorn writes off the strange feeling in his stomach as the organ simply getting used to the abnormalities in the drink.

Still, he finds himself distracted as he passes by the open door of his son's room. The view of his wife bending over and swishing her tail as she cleans sends another strange feeling through his stomach as he quickly approaches.

Mist lets out a squeak, her wings flaring in surprise as she finds herself embraced from behind before her neck is graced with loving kisses. "Bio, you scared me!" Another squeak escapes her, this time accompanied by a blush as she feels her flank grabbed by her husband's strong hand. "Well, somepony's feeling frisky tonight." Her next sound is a coo as she feels his other hand rub her belly.

"What can I say, honey?" His voice whispers huskily into her ear. "Sometimes I just can't help but think about how much I love you... and you know, Rhino not being in the house tonight does give us plenty of time to ourselves."

The last part of his statement is like a growl that sends shivers down her spine. She smirks and whirls around, throwing her arms around him and planting her lips on his.

Comments

[Dleifragcat]

This is really adorable

[Rhino]

4227757 Yep!

[Son of Sun]

My experience with fiction is telling me that a younger sibling might be in the cards for Rhino.

[tsaukpaetra]

Of course he would sample the "milk",just to make sure it didn't spoil or something!
Still, it seems Gel will soon be able to feed off Rhino anyways, right?
This chapter made us crave smores, and we don't even like marshmallows all that much...
Keep going! ;)

[Rhino]

4231579 In a strictly dietary sense, at the moment she is using him as a supplement to her love supply. With him around supplying the intense friendship, she doesn't need to drink nearly as much of the love, though still a little.

[tsaukpaetra]

4232393 yes, it did seem like she's getting a bit off him, even if its subconscious rather than intentional.

[Rhino]

4232733 Yes, she's not exactly old enough to know about active harvesting yet.

[tsaukpaetra]

4232772 it makes me wonder how he'll react when he finds out. I predict Gel will take it harder than he will....

[Rhino]

4233363 Personally, I don't see what's wrong with it. She just gets a health benefit from beings friends with him.

[tsaukpaetra]

4233442 it's not that it's wrong, and they will probably never think about it this way, but the philosophy is: are you just doing it to eat or do you really love me?

[Rhino]

4236698 Fair enough, common enough question for those who come into a relationship with a changeling and have doubts about its legitimacy.

[tsaukpaetra]

4236716. Yes, we're pretty sure that scenario is on the "standard scenes any changeling-fic must have" list.; p

[Rhino]

4236731 And yet I somehow avoid it. :P

[tsaukpaetra]

4236752 yes, the mark of a good writer to avoid falling into stereotypes or flipping them on their heads.

[Rhino]

4325954 Correct.

[akumamattata]

excellent story so far and also the first ive seen with zero dislikes so congrats, have some more likes

[Rhino]

4425199 Thank you very much! New chapter soon.

[BeastialMoon]

Gosh dang this fic is adorable.

[Tonyd5736]

4002327 what's mossflower ?

[New Spark]

this is borderline foalcone, but thankfully you haven't crossed that line yet and <i can still love this story.