All Her Fault
One late spring day, actually moments after Twilight Sparkle charged out of library to do away with the Rosy Pink issue, Applejack stood in an empty library. She looked after her fleeing friend, who had just left seconds ago, for the Rift site no doubt.
“Ah got a bad feelin’ about this,” the orange pony said, with something less than approval, turning down the brim of her hat and heading out of the library, but in a different direction from the purple princess’s destination. AJ was worried about Twilight and all, but first she had to complete her sworn duty.
Trotting past her apple stand, where Bubblegum was ponying the helm, Applejack continued on down the road, trotting her fuzzy orange butt right up to town hall. The cylindrical building was full of ponies and papers, and ponies pushing papers. Records of everypony’s business, as much as everypony needed to record them. Spotting the mayor, Applejack headed up to her saying, “Excuse me mayor, moment of your time?”
“Certainly, Applejack!” the mayor said gladly, the grey haired mare looking up from the scrolls she was reading through. “What can I do for you?”
“Well now, ah want you to know this is probably just a pre-cautionry measure,” Applejack said, “But ah said I’d say it, and I’m gonna say it.” She lowered her voice then, and said, “Ah wanna report a Purple Alert.”
The mayor’s smile faded, and Applejack lifted a hoof saying, “N-now ah ain’t sure of nothin’ going wrong just yet, but the princess’s been under a lot of stress lately, and ah just think she might be doin’ it again.”
“Thank you for bringing this to my attention,” the mayor said seriously. “I’ll notify the proper parties to move to Purple Alert on an advisory basis. Rest assured the last thing I want to do is panic the populace. That’s what these alerts are for, to help us assess the situation, and prepare for action.”
“Thank you kindly, Ms. Mare,” Applejack said with a grateful smile. “Me and the gang should be able to keep her in the clear. Just thought I’d warn you. This whole Starlight thing spooked her pretty bad.”
“I haven’t heard the details,” the mayor said curiously.
“Not really mah tale to tell,” Applejack said with a blush at her own lack of tact. “Suffice to say, Twilight saw a lot of herself in that mare. There but for the grace of Harmony go ah, an’ the like.”
“Well, I won’t press you for those details,” the mayor replied sounding dissatisfied. But she urged Applejack, “But do go take care of your friend. I’ll handle Ponyville.”
Applejack didn’t waste any time. She went and got the two ponies who could give Twilight Sparkle, if not what she wanted, what she needed. Rainbow Dash, Applejack found out practicing above a beautifully green, grassy field. Applejack looked up at the pegasus packing and busting clouds, and shouted out, “Rainbow Dash! Take ten y’hear?”
Rainbow Dash descended to the earth, hovering before her apple loving friend, saying, “Hey there Applejack. What’s up?”
“Twilight’s doin’ it again,” Applejack replied shortly, “Need you and Pinkie to go talk sense into her.”
“Is it that time of year already?” Rainbow replied derisively.
“Eyup,” Applejack said. “You’ll probably find her at that riftamagig out in the woods.”
“Huh, wonder what she’s doing with that lately,” Rainbow said curiously.
“Ah don’t exactly know,” Applejack said gravely, “But if’n we don’t want her to do something she regrets regarding a certain Rosy Pink, best to nip this in the bud. Find Pinkie, head to the Rift, talk some sense into Twilight.”
“Got it,” Rainbow Dash said, shooting off into the sky, and that was all Applejack could really do about that.
Applejack helped pony her apple cart for a mite afterwards, but kept an eye out for any sign of the purple princess, for good or ill. Thankfully it wasn’t long before Twilight Sparkle came trotting along down through town, together with Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. They were talking amongst themselves and—to everypony’s relief—laughing. Applejack gave a sigh of relief at that, at least. She left the cart to Bubblegum again, apologizing for the trouble. Bubblegum just shrugged. She was on the clock, so she was there. Then, Applejack went trotting on towards the library.
“And then Miracle Max said ‘Go through his clothes, and look for loose change!’” Applejack could hear Twilight saying to Pinkie Pie’s delighted laughter, as the farm pony entered this giant room full of books. Hearing Applejack’s hooves thunk on the wood, the lilac winged unicorn turned to face Applejack, with a smile. Rainbow Dash was perched atop a bookcase looking amused, and Pinkie Pie loafing around looking just amused in general.
“Oh, hello, Applejack!” Twilight said pleasantly. “Sorry about earlier. I guess I was getting a little carried away with the whole ‘human’ thing.”
“Yeah, we can leave Rosy be for now. I’m sure she can wait a little longer to go home,” Pinkie Pie added hopefully. “No reason to stress out so soon after what happened to us out there!”
“I’m sure Rosy has a really good reason for staying in Equestria,” Rainbow Dash added. “We’ll all be laughing about it when you find out what her problem is, but she’s safe now, so it’s no biggie.”
“Yeah, no... biggie,” Twilight said with a shaky laugh. “Don’t know what I was so worried about before.”
“That’s good to hear,” Applejack said, laying a forehoof on Twilight’s shoulder, “We all went through a lot, you an’ Rainbow especially. I think you can give it a week’s rest before tryin’ to tackle another problem?”
“No problem, Applejack. I am absolutely fine with taking a week’s rest,” Twilight said wearily, “Matter of fact all this joking around has me a bit worn out. I don’t suppose you could...”
“Don’t worry Twilight, we’re on top of it!” Pinkie said, hopping over to Applejack. “Me and Dashie will go with AJ and you can get some sleep, and maybe catch up with Spike?”
“Oh, right, Spike will want to hear all about this,” Twilight said wide eyed. “Yes I should go talk to him. Sorry for worrying everypony.”
“Ain’t no thang, Twi,” Applejack said, turning to head out. “Thanks for listenin’ to your friends, and taking us seriously.”
“Thank you for being such good friends,” Twilight said gratefully, with just a tinge of unease, “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Tell Spike you’re okay, duh!” Pinkie said, grinning, “Then go get some sleep!”
Twilight laughed at that and said, “Okay, I admit that’s literally what I’m going to do without you. I’ll just get to it then. See you later, you three!”
“Bye, Twi!” the three of them chorused, heading out.
Applejack settled down to sleep in her own bed that night, surrounded by the sounds of her old house, and her family settling down. She felt pretty good about herself, and hopeful that Twilight could maybe just... get over this whole Rosy thing. And maybe even one day, Rosy’d feel safe enough to befriend Applejack again. Applejack just hoped Rosy’d be okay on her own until then.
As the evening dimmed, the lights turned out in the library, and in the dusky twilight, a princess poked her head out the front door. Scanning the skies, and the area around her devoid of ponies except the occasional carouser, a cloaked Twilight Sparkle stepped furtively out the library. The lights in Sugarcube Corner were off, and it was going to be a clear, uneventful night. She hurried through town, not even lighting up her horn until she was over by the wheat fields on the west side of town. Trotting past them, Twilight vanished into the forest, heading without fanfare back down the deer trail into White Tail Wood.
Several days later, Fluttershy was feeling especially nervous, not just because of her status as a single mare, as one does, but because not only did Twilight call them all to assemble at her library, the princess wouldn’t explain what they were being called together for. Not until they’d all gotten together, with Rarity standing next to Applejack, who was next to Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and then Fluttershy, did Twilight tell them what was going on.
“Now, I’ve brought you here today about a very important subject,” Twilight said as she stood before them with an easel pad mounted beside her, betraying a nervousness in her ears. “The issue of Rosy Pink.”
“Nuts, Twilight!” Applejack immediately swore, with a betrayed look in her green eyes, “Ah thought you were gonna give that a rest for a while!”
“I was, and I...” Twilight glanced at an also glaring Rainbow Dash, “...apologize for the deception. But I really did stop ‘doing it again’ as you like to put it. I had a very good reason to continue this time, and I think when you’ve heard what I found, you’ll agree with me on what we need to do about the Traveller.”
“Well? What did you find?” Rarity asked testily. “And I do hope it involves ending this silly infatuation with the human world.”
“Completely and totally,” Twilight assured her. “What I found is solid proof that Rosy has no right to be here, and cannot be expected to be of sound mind and body to make her own decisions in that regard.”
Fluttershy trembled in fear at the implications that were rushing through her head. Surely Twilight couldn’t be talking about... that. There’s no way Rosy would have ever told her!
“With Rarity’s help, I founded a perfunctory corporation known as Benecoin™” Twilight continued, flipping the pad open to show a drawing of a factory with the sign for bennies over it, and a number of stick figures around it. “The purpose of this was to gain access to employee profiling and background checks,” she explained. “I had the Traveler’s real name, which was found by the researchers studying the rift, and Rosy of course has been making herself busy in Equestria, so there was no problem in faking her employment application.”
Twilight flipped a page, and there was a lot of information there, including the photograph of one of the human creatures, a dull looking heavily clothed ape with squared shoulders and short, brown hair. “Or should I say,” she continued dramatically, “His employment application!”
“Uh, but Rosy’s a girl, ” Pinkie Pie said critically.
“Bruce is 100% male,” Twilight insisted. “Rosy’s legal name in the human world is Bruce Connell. When I asked for his background information, I was shocked to see a mocking reply, because in the human world, Bruce is a name only given to their males! Bruce Connell, born in a land called Indiana in a kingdom known as the U.S.A., he had a perfectly normal upbringing. He has two loving parents, who consistently oversaw and participated in his education. After doing relatively well in a school known as a community college, he became a certified accountant.”
She turned a page, showing a drawing of a sad looking Bruce, pulling his pockets inside out. Fluttershy didn’t know humans sewed pockets into the sides of their shirts. She listened with worry, then alarm, as Twilight said, “Then Bruce allowed the certification to expire, and began ignoring his family, for no reason other than being unsatisfied with his lack of a mate at the current time. Rather than getting one, or finding healthy ways to deal with his issues, Bruce came under a very dangerous delusion.”
Twilight paused before turning the next page, and looked at them saying, “Now, what I’m about to tell you may shock you. Bruce is a very disturbed human, and he cannot be allowed to continue his unhealthy habits.” She turned the page, and it was...
...
Fluttershy found herself looking at a grainy enlargement of Rarity and Rainbow Dash, holding each other close and k-k-kissing...
“This is an example of the sheer debauchery among this group of human beings,” Twilight explained, “They have no qualms about unnatural affections, pairing us together whether or not we are a stallion or a mare, and trust me sometimes one of us is not a mare! Without permission, they put their lewd drawings of all of us out in public, for stallions, and even young foals to see!”
Fluttershy dared a look at Rainbow Dash, and there was a blush in her cheeks, as she looked skeptically at the p-p-picture that Fluttershy really wished she could... she didn’t dare even think about it. Then Rainbow Dash looked at Fluttershy, and... and smirked at her! Rainbow Dash then rolled her eyes, the smirk slipping into a sympathetic smile, because to her this was all a big joke, not anything s-serious. Fluttershy looked away.
“Bruce began watching the show that some of us are familiar with,” Twilight related hotly, “And the reason the show is so inoffensive and simplified is because in the human world, it is intended only for very young girls!” She turned another page, and it showed some... well... adorable looking human children, with long curly hair, who must have been girls from the dresses they wore. “He became obsessed with young girls, envying them jealously, and watching their show in secret, until he and his ilk twisted it to terrible ends.”
She turned another page, and it showed... oh my... Pinkie Pie was... was threatening Rainbow Dash with a carrot cleaver?! And what was that patchwork outfit she wore?
Rarity fainted at the sight of it.
“I wish I could tell you the horrors I’ve seen in my research...” Twilight said in a haunted tone, “This is only the barest edge to their murderous debauchery. I didn’t want to expose you to these things, but now I feel it’s important for you to know. I found the portable computer Bruce once owned, since repurposed by a family member. In it there was a file folder with no less than hundreds of images: of us and other ponies. Dozens of them were racy, even obscene, and he even had a few of the less... disturbing murderous ones. He wasn’t the worst of these demented individuals, but he was one who found a way into our world. The humans recorded very little about the process by which he did that, but I believe he has been using his transformation into a mare, to take advantage of us!”
She turned a page, which showed um... a drawing Twilight herself had made of Rosy walking behind the onetwo of them, staring at their rears while everypony was lifting their... tails. Twilight continued to explain, “Bruce was taking advantage of his marehood to become close to other mares. Mares would never suspect his intentions were that of a stallion that way. He could catch them off guard when they were most vulnerable. His whole reason for coming here and deceiving us with a female form was to take advantage of us.”
“That cain’t be true!” Applejack exclaimed miserably, “He was such a nice pony... m-mare. You seriously think she was a—a stallion before?”
“Oh, it is true,” Twilight replied seethingly, while Rarity climbed unsteadily to her hooves, “No females in the alien world have the name Bruce, and the male Bruce Connell I found was the very one who owned the apartment that his portal was created in. He’s just a creep, taking the guise of a mare and lying to everypony about it so he can take advantage of us when our guard was down. He has no family issues, no abusive employers, or evil influences. The only reason he has to stay here is so he can continue living out his twisted fantasies.”
“He never... but he... he really had that picture... of me and... Dashie? ” Pinkie Pie said, looking utterly crushed from what she’d seen.
“Hey, hey don’t take any of that stuff seriously,” Rainbow Dash said, rounding on Pinkie. “Those humans are just a bunch of jerks, who are trying to mess with you. I know you would never, ever, ever do anything like that.”
“But... but Rosy...” Pinkie murmured.
“Rosy is a danger to herself and others, as long as she is allowed to remain a pony,” Twilight Sparkle reiterated. “Her presence here puts all of Equestria at risk, by exposing our realm to the Rift, and all the Void dangers that come with it. She has no reason to be here, just a nefarious desire to corner ponies and do terrible things to them. She concealed it well. She had us all fooled. But the fact remains that Rosy is not supposed to be a mare. ”
“Well, what are we waiting for?” Rarity said, with a disgusted sneer, having since recovered from fainting quite admirably. “Why should we let this... monster enjoy one more second of his ill gotten marehood?”
“A–ah just... ah didn’t think Rosy was all that bad...” Applejack said, shaking her head and staring at the picture of the evil Rosy sneaking around and looking under everypony’s tail. “S-she weren’t trying to get close to me, more like push me away...”
“That’s because you were at risk of learning the truth,” Twilight contested, “Rosy—Bruce wants helpless victims, who don’t know what they’re up against. Like any coward, a bully will always act nicely to ponies in positions of authority. It’s ponies like Blueberry and... and whoever Bruce is friends with who are in danger, if he hasn’t already tried something with them!”
“How do you know Rosy isn’t just a girl who Bruce tricked?” Pinkie Pie asked desperately. “He threw her through the portal instead, so she could... do... something!”
“Surely you noticed Rosy was a little different from all the other mares?” Twilight replied in a calculated tone, “She didn’t know how to deal with feminine emotions at first, always saying how different it was? Afraid to tell us the truth, that we might figure out her scheme?”
“I just can’t believe that Rosy was a...” Pinkie Pie gulped, “A stallion? How do you know she isn’t just some girl he tricked, and the reason she’s weird is because... because she’s Rosy!”
In the unsettled murmur of the ponies present, Fluttershy finally spoke up. “Twilight is right,” she said sorrowfully. Everypony turned to look at her. Shrinking back, Fluttershy said, “I-it was when Rosy... Bruce was still volunteering at the shelter. He let it... slip once.”
Back before all this happened, Fluttershy was starting to like this mare known as Rosy Pink. Other ponies, even the ones helping at the shelter, were gruff to Fluttershy, or rude, or just ignoring her because she didn’t speak much. But Rosy was... different. Rosy didn’t push herself on Fluttershy, but she didn’t ignore her either. When Rosy seemed to be ignoring her, and they were both working to fold towels that had come out of the laundry, Rosy said out of the blue,
“It’s really amazing what you’re doing here.”
Fluttershy was afraid to ask what was so special about folding towels, but Rosy added, “You don’t even have to be here, but you come here every week, helping ponies even when they’re scary. It’s a real inspiration to me.” Then Rosy just went back to folding the towels, barely able to fold them right with how clumsy and uncertain her grip was, but she was determined to get it right. She didn’t say anything more, but Fluttershy had a warm feeling in her heart for hours after that.
Rosy was having trouble with the plates after that, and a curse escaped her as the one she had been scrubbing fell into the dishwater... again. “You can curl your hoof under them,” Fluttershy suggested. Rosy looked at her worriedly, but Fluttershy said, “Like this,” and demonstrated. Soon, Rosy Pink had the plate gripped in her hoof and laid against her forelock, while the brush strapped to the other hoof scraped off the soap.
“Oh, thank you Fluttershy!” Rosy said looking at the soapy plate in surprise, before putting it into the rinse bucket.
“Don’t mention it,” Fluttershy mumbled with a blush, and Rosy turned to look at her, clearly not having heard her.
Then the pink haired pony just smiled gladly, and said, “No really, thank you,” and went back to the dishes. She didn’t ask Fluttershy to repeat herself, or get upset at Fluttershy not speaking loudly enough. Either Rosy’s sense of hearing was very keen, or she was a genuinely nice pony.
Some time later, the homeless volunteers were getting their soup, and Rosy unfortunately couldn’t balance the tray on her rump, so she carried it in her mouth, over to where Fluttershy was sitting. Another pony, Fluttershy would have shied away from, but Rosy, Fluttershy merely looked at her in confusion.
Putting the tray down on the stone fence Fluttershy was resting on, Rosy said, “Hey Fluttershy, mind if I sit here?”
Fluttershy didn’t have to answer, just smile, before Rosy settled her smooth, firm looking rump right next to Fluttershy’s. Rosy went about eating her soup, first biting on the bread loaf and soaking it in the broth, then lifting the bowl and slightly tilting her head back so the warm soup slid into her mouth. One thing she was getting pretty good at is eating soup.
Rosy just sat there quietly eating for a while, until Fluttershy started getting curious. “So what, um...” Fluttershy said, not sure what she should say, or what she even wanted to know.
“What are my plans for the future?” Rosy suggested. Fluttershy nodded. That was a good a question as anything she could have thought up. “I want to get a house for myself,” Rosy said thoughtfully, “Real estate in your world is just amazing. If I can help the right ponies... that’s my plan, I guess. Can’t stay at this shelter forever, after all. What about you?”
“Me?” Fluttershy asked in surprise.
“Yes, do you have any plans for the future?” Rosy said.
Fluttershy wasn’t sure she had an answer to that question!
“Well, um...” she fumbled with her words, “The summer months are coming, and my animal friends will need to begin gathering their food stores for the winter. As for me... try to be more assertive I suppose, and visit my parents more often, perhaps. Thank you for asking.”
Fluttershy knew Rosy was valuable then, and she steeled her resolve to form a friendship with the pink-haired mare.
Rosy said glumly to Fluttershy one day, with lowered ears around her captivatingly adorable blue eyes, “There’s so much to do here in Ponyville, I don’t know how much time I can spend at the shelter, after I’m out of here.”
“Oh, that’s okay,” Fluttershy replied. “Ponies here are in trouble, and don’t have much to offer others. Many aren’t the kind you would make friends with. I don’t think anypony could blame you for spending time with your friends, even if you yourself didn’t have any extra time for ponies here. The friends you help may have that extra time, or they may surprise you by helping you so much, that you have plenty of time here for ponies in need.”
“That’s really insightful, Fluttershy,” Rosy said in honest admiration. “You aren’t exactly what I expected. I didn’t think you’d be so... thoughtful.”
“I have a lot of time to myself, to think,” Fluttershy said, in a noncommital murmur, blushing heavily at this mare’s heartfelt praise. “Would you...” No Fluttershy! Keep talking, steel your resolve! “Like to come over for... tea sometime?” she asked, a blush tinting her cheeks.
“That would be wonderful!” Rosy said gladly. “I know what I said, but I’m really not all that busy just yet. When do you usually have tea time?”
“Early evening,” Fluttershy said in blessed relief, “It’s a wonderful time to relax, and chat over a hot drink. I have a lovely chamomile blend...” a tea that she had yet to have an opportunity to share with anypony besides Rarity, but Fluttershy didn’t want Rosy to think she was lonely.
“Chamomile is actually one of my favorite teas,” Rosy replied, “Along with ginger, mint, and lemongrass. I actually haven’t had tea since I became a...” she blushed and hesitated before looking at herself and saying, “...pony, so my tastes may have changed.”
Tea led to... more tea, which led to evenings of talking about their lives. Fluttershy’s seemed relatively exciting compared to Rosy’s own, but Rosy had her own set of odd tales. “My family never understood me,” she confessed quietly, “They loved me, and tried to be supportive, but they were supporting me in something I just didn’t want to have.”
“What was it?” Fluttershy asked.
Rosy blushed, and said demurely, “I’d r-rather not say. Suffice to say, it’s hard when people give you gifts that you can’t accept without pain.”
“Oh, I know what you mean,” Fluttershy said sadly, “When my parents got me accepted into a prestigious flight camp, I... I just couldn’t disappoint them. They were just trying to help me. Is that something like what you went through?”
“Something like that, yeah,” Rosy mumbled into her tea.
When they kissed, it was... frightening and spontaneous. “I’m sorry,” Rosy blushed, having pulled away from Fluttershy, turning aside and almost hiding under her raised hoof. “That wasn’t... I didn’t mean to g-go that far.”
Fluttershy tried to tell Rosy that she had been the one longing for that kiss, that Rosy hadn’t herself initiated, but Fluttershy just didn’t have the nerve to tell her. She figured Rosy understood that already, because Rosy was there, wasn’t she? She had to have noticed a devilishly yearning Fluttershy leaning towards Rosy’s soft lips. Rosy was just being... nice about it.
“It’s okay,” Fluttershy said, putting a hoof on Rosy’s poll. “I... kind of liked it.”
“...really?” Rosy asked nervously, blushing up a storm. “I don’t... I mean... I liked it too.”
Fluttershy leaned forward, and they kissed again, more confidently this time. Rosy settled back after their soft lips had met, stuttering, “Y-you should know that was my first k-kiss. T-technically my second, but y-you just had the first one too.”
“You know, you remind me a lot of Twilight,” Fluttershy said with a smile, settling back to herself for now. “So technical, it’s... kind of adorable.”
“W-well I was an accountant and...” the mare trailed off, then squeaked in amazement, “Really? You like Twilight? ”
Fluttershy immediately blushed. “T-that came out wrong,” she mumbled, “Twilight would never... I’m not that close to her. We’re... friends.” What surprised Fluttershy was the undertone of resentment that invaded her voice upon saying that.
“So... you want me to be more than friends?” Rosy asked with a wary look that Fluttershy knew well from adopting herself, from time to time.
“I’m not sure,” Fluttershy said, despite her heart saying differently, “I do get v-very lonely sometimes, having no special somepony, and I think you’re... very nice. But I still haven’t heard much about your old life, and I really don’t know much about you.”
“I just want my old life to go away,” Rosy said with a snort of frustration. “It’s just bad memories for me. Can’t I just start over? I’m a mare now I’m not even... can’t I just start over?”
“I know you want to... escape your past,” Fluttershy said, “But the solution isn’t to hide from it. You’ll have to face up to it someday, if you really want to heal.”
“I can face up to it, I’m just...” Rosy looked at Fluttershy with worry, “I’m just worried you will think differently about me if you know.”
“Well, I’m not comfortable with getting in a relationship with somepony who has a secret that could change the way I think of them,” Fluttershy replied somewhat resentfully.
They sat at a stalemate there for a while, before Rosy said, “Sorry, I just... can’t,” staring down into her tea.
“We can still be... friends, just...” Fluttershy said, feeling like she wasn’t the pony who should be saying this, “I’m just not ready for that kind of emotional committment.”
“I understand,” Rosy said evenly, making Fluttershy’s ears tip up as the pink haired mare gave a shaky laugh. “We don’t have to be that close, just to have tea.” She looked at Fluttershy with warm, blue eyes, saying, “I really do enjoy talking with you. It’s fine if anything... racy is off the table. Honestly I’m relieved we got that out of the way. I’m the last pony who should be doing those things.”
“Will you still come visit on Thursday?” Fluttershy asked with a small smile.
“You can count on it,” Rosy replied confidently.
Rosy was very secretive, it’s true. She knew things that, self admitted, could make Fluttershy think less of her. That combined with the seductively soft beauty of her creamy furred curves made her a bad influence, with consequences for befriending her that Fluttershy might never know until it was too late. So it was a good idea to keep their relationship platonic, saving both of them a lot of heartache overall. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before they were kissing again.
Fluttershy just found Rosy’s situation so fascinating. Every pony Fluttershy had interacted with had always been a pony, but this pony had once been a creature. Fluttershy always identified with all the creatures in the world, more than other ponies did. And now there was a creature who identified with her, an alien mistress, but also a familiar pony. It was impossible not to think of her that way. Especially as springtime wore on...
Fluttershy broke free from the kiss, gasping in the quiet of her cottage. “We should stop,” Fluttershy said breathlessly, refusing to look Rosy in the eyes. When Fluttershy’s lips locked with Rosy’s again, Fluttershy felt a dizzy thrill as she pressed against the other mare, like she was falling forever into Rosy. Now free from the other pony, Fluttershy’s body ached for attention. She felt hungry and confused, and regretful that she was making Rosy feel all of that desire too.
“F-Fluttershy, I want this,” Rosy whined urgently, in an admonishing terror, a hair’s breadth from outright presenting to the other mare. “I don’t see why we can’t—we’re so close now!”
“That’s just your season talking,” Fluttershy shakily explained to the quivering mare. “You see how it can... um...”
“I-it’s not!” Rosy replied unconfidently. “I feel... I didn’t think it would ache this much.”
“You have never even been through this before,” Fluttershy replied to the flustered mare, her own femininity crying out in sympathy for Rosy. “It must be so different as a human female. N-no estrus...”
“More like constant estrus, but—but I mean...” Rosy closed her eyes and shuddered. “How do you deal with this?”
“It isn’t as bad if unprovoked,” Fluttershy said. “We simply must stop... kissing, and give each other some space. Then you’ll calm down.”
“I don’t want to calm down though,” Rosy said hotly, “I want...” She trailed off, looking in anxious sorrow at Fluttershy. “You really don’t want to do this...” she said in a defeated tone.
“N-not if you keep hurtful secrets,” Fluttershy said, feeling a serious lack of conviction in her words. If she were to kiss Rosy again... Fluttershy wouldn’t want to stop.
Rosy took a step towards Fluttershy, and then took a step back. Then she sat down on her haunches with a huff and scrunched her eyes shut saying, “Fine. I was a... I used to be a ...man. Like, a stallion. I turned into a mare when I entered Equestria. But my whole life, I wanted to be a girl. I don’t know why, it just... I was just like that. And then my little pony happened, and I—I wanted to be like you. Like ponies, like a... girl pony.”
Fluttershy’s pupils continued to shrink, as Rosy said flush faced, “When I turned into a mare I was so happy. I didn’t have to—I didn’t have to be a man anymore! I never wanted to be one. I—I was so happy. I am so happy.” Rosy’s eyes were glimmering with tears when she said, “T-that’s why I’m afraid to go back. I never want to be that again. Fluttershy, I’m a mare I have a—a marehood, and a womb. I feel good about myself now. I feel right. I’d have to give that all up if I went back, f-for a... just for a stupid penis!”
They stared at each other silently for a while, before Rosy wiped at her eyes with a fetlock, saying shakily, “S-sorry for unloading on you. I-it’s not something I talk about a lot. It’s really embarassing... you know, for ponies to think I had a... a dick at one point.”
“You used to be a... stallion?” Fluttershy squeaked.
Rosy nodded, adding sadly, “I’m trying to be the best mare that I can, but—I don’t care if it’s hard. It’s just wonderful feeling like myself, even if...” she whimpered, and forced her tail down.
“I-is that why you’re attracted to me?” Fluttershy asked, feeling faint from how much she was blushing, “Because you’re—because you were a stallion?”
“Yes! No! I don’t know!” Rosy said, stomping in confoundment. “I just... I like you, Fluttershy. You’re kind, and smart and beautiful and—and just fun to be around. I shouldn’t like you because... I’m trying not to be a typical stallion, just going all lesbian as if nothing changed about him. I s-shouldn’t be doing any of this stuff. But I just can’t stop wanting you and... I don’t know if it’s because I was a stallion, or if it’s because of you. I just... do.”
Fluttershy swallowed dryly, and said in a quiet voice, “I think you need to leave.”
“What?!” Rosy squeaked in terrified surprise.
“I’m just...” Fluttershy backed away from... from him, “I just need some time to think about this. I thought... I thought you were a mare!”
“I am a mare!” Rosy protested, stepping forward. Fluttershy’s rump hit the wall, and she turned her head, afraid to look at Rosy, at just how feminine Rosy appeared to be. Was it all just an act? It was just a disguise, to pretend to not be a stallion?
“Please leave,” Fluttershy squeaked, but there was no way Rosy could have heard her.
“Fluttershy, I’m sorry,” Rosy said, a hoof outstretched, but then pulled back, “I’ll just... give you some space. That’s what a... what a mare would do, isn’t it?”
Fluttershy couldn’t answer. She just cowered in the corner like the little filly who couldn’t stand up for herself or stop it from happening to her, until he walked out the door, quietly closed it behind him, and left Fluttershy alone forever, surrounded by her frightened animal friends. They were not frightened by Rosy, but frightened by Fluttershy’s behavior.
It was all her fault.
“Rosy may have become close to me, because of her marehood, just a teensy bit...” Fluttershy said. She couldn’t tell them the exact truth. They would hate her, if she admitted it! If they knew how much she wanted... some ponies....
Fluttershy was the one who had kissed Rosy, but Fluttershy merely said, “She only told me her secret after we... we kissed. I told her I wasn’t comfortable g-going further while she kept secrets from me. T-then she told me, that she used to be a s-stallion. She acted like it didn’t even matter, and... I told her to leave. She didn’t want to leave, but she did. She hasn’t spoken with me since.”
Fluttershy choked back a sob. It was her fault, not Rosy. It wasn’t because Rosy didn’t try, but because Fluttershy couldn’t overcome her fear, couldn’t stop seeing a stallion looking out from those deep blue eyes. Couldn’t stop running away. Rosy asked and asked, and no matter what Fluttershy always had to have her tea alone. Eventually, she just stopped asking. Fluttershy wished she could tell her friends that, but she was already at her wit’s end. Fluttershy just couldn’t... she didn’t want her friends to hate her!
“Twilight,” Applejack said evenly, though with Fluttershy hiding behind her own mane, she couldn’t see her face, “Y’all need to get Rosy to walk through that there portal right away, or ah’m gonna make it so she cain’t.”
“What?” Fluttershy asked in confusion. Couldn’t they see it was she who—
“I’ll throw her through that portal myself!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “Nopony does that to Fluttershy!”
“No, I...” Fluttershy didn’t want to say it! She couldn’t! They were her only friends!
“I knew that mare was trouble,” Rarity seethed. “Thank you so much for doing that tireless research, Twilight. She—no, he will think twice about abusing our good nature.”
Fluttershy whimpered.
“Yes, I think it’s past time to take care of Bruce Connell,” Twilight agreed, “Putting his bad behavior back in the alien world, where it belongs.”
“So what’re we gonna do?” Pinkie Pie asked. “Just grab her?”
“Can I beat her up?” Rainbow Dash asked eagerly.
“We’re going to confront him, and tell him what we all learned,” Twilight said, shaking her head at Rainbow Dash. “If and when he cannot defend himself, I have full authority to send him straight to the dungeon, pending a full investigation that will get him sent home anyway. Even without me involved, we all have authority to save Equestria by avoiding all that, and closing the Rift in a timely manner. It should be a simple matter of escorting Bruce to the Rift, and if he resists, we’ll have the option to take more severe measures into our hooves.”
“Then can I beat her up?” Rainbow Dash asked eagerly.
Twilight shook her head, “No, just restrain her—him, if need be. I still think a peaceful solution can be achieved, but we can’t let this monster lurk among us any longer. I need you all to meet me at Rosy—Bruce’s house this afternoon, when he returns from shopping. I need to arrange things at the Rift site to expediate matters, but otherwise we should have everything back as it should be as early as tomorrow morning!”
So that’s what they did. The end. No wait.
Rosy Pink stopped short on seeing the Bearers all assembled right outside her front door. She backed up a step, and her bag of groceries slid right off her rump, landing forgotten on the earth.
“Well hello there, ‘Rosy Pink,’” Twilight told her in cold politeness. “Why don’t you come inside? I think you’ll be very interested in what we have to say.”
It looked like Rosy was going to run, but Rosy then stomped angrily and said, “Fine! Let’s get this over with!” she turned to bite on her bag handles, picking up most of her dropped groceries, then trotted boldly forward, pushing past the onetwo of them, walking into the conservative little cottage she’d worked out for herself.
She barely got the groceries put down on a table, when she spun and shouted at the Bearers walking in after her, “Why can’t you just leave me alone? I don’t care what you have to say, or anything! I’m not going back, and that’s that!”
“You seem to think you have a choice in the matter, darling,” Rarity said in a disgusted tone.
Rosy’s ears went back, guiltily no doubt, and she raised a hoof, saying, “What? What do you mean?”
“You sure are an ornery critter, if’n you don’t remember what you did to Fluttershy,” Applejack said, glaring at the pink haired mare.
“F...what?” Rosy said, still lost as she looked at Fluttershy fearfully. “I didn’t do anything to her! It had to have been somepony else! What’d they do to her?”
“Don’t try to lie!” Rainbow Dash said, getting in Rosy’s face from up in the air there. “Fluttershy told us everything, already, and that’s not even the half of it!”
“Rosy,” Twilight said diplomatically, pulling Rainbow Dash back a ways. “I’m sorry, but it’s time for you to return home. You’ve overstayed your welcome, and you’re hurting other ponies and yourself by pursuing these unhealthy fixations.”
“Fixations?” Rosy said, perturbed. “Fluttershy and I just—” she glanced at Fluttershy, then blurted out, “We just kissed! That’s it!”
“Well tell me then, Rosy,” Twilight replied, “Are you familiar with the name Bruce Connell?”
Rosy’s irises shrank to pinpricks. That was the only movement she made. It didn’t even look like she was breathing. It looked like she had to force herself to, in order to say, in a haunted tone, “How do you know that? I never told anypony that name, not ever.”
Something broke in Pinkie’s fierceness at that, but Twilight easily replied, “You didn’t think we would go looking around in the human world? We found all about you, Bruce. About your show. About the pictures you had of us.”
“Oh, no no... that was because you weren’t real I didn’t know I don’t have anything now...” Rosy whimpered miserably, in insincere and deceitful apology.
Rarity took a step forward, saying testily, “Imagine our surprise, when we find that the mare who has been walking among us was once... a stallion!”
“Um... yes?” Rosy attempted, looking from face to face with a desperate grin, “That’s not so bad, is it?”
“Not so bad?!” Twilight squawked, “It’s sick! How many mares have you deceived, thinking they could trust you?”
Rosy stared, speechless.
“I can’t believe you said yes!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “Are you for real? You’ve been a stallion all this time? We trusted you!”
“Ah let mah little sister around you!” Applejack spat in horrified rage. “Alone!”
“I wouldn’t let you spend one minute around Sweetie Belle!” Rarity asserted righteously, “To think what you might have done with her!”
“I...” Rosy’s tail sank between her shaking legs. “Fluttershy, tell them what I told you!” she said with a desperate look at the butter yellow pegasus, crocodile tears running down her cheeks, “I really want to be a mare!”
“Um... what they are saying is true,” Fluttershy said regretfully, “You have a problem.”
“I really do want to be a mare!” Rosy demanded to them all, “I’m not just doing it to... to molest ponies!”
Twilight’s hackles went up at that word. That awful, awful word that filled her head with images she could never erase. “It doesn’t matter what you want!” she shouted at Rosy, “You abused our trust, and the trust of everypony, lying just to get your way, to hide your corruption and sickness. Well we’re sick of it! We want you, and your stupid obsession with mares, to go home already!”
“Don’t you realize how horrible you all sound?” Rosy begged, “Whatever happened to love and tolerance?”
“Love and what now?” Applejack asked blankly.
Rosy spluttered, and had backed up so far she was butting against the wall.
“Rosy... Bruce,” Twilight said in a sympathetic tone, “You don’t have to fight this. You have a family who loves you, and misses you. You have a career, and a special talent in accounting. You have a friend who shared a drink with you every Friday after work. Remember Andy? I’m sure he would love to see you again.”
In a darker tone, Twilight added, “The Rift won’t close until you leave. You’re upsetting the balance, the harmony of our land. You have no reason to be here, and your decisions are clouded by your perversion and delusions. I’m afraid you have run out of time to choose. You can either go through the portal now, or go to the dungeon and then go through the portal. Please, try to overcome your mental instability, and see reason. We’re trying to help you, Bruce!”
“Oh fuck this,” Rosy murmured.
“What?” Twilight asked, cocking her ears. “Strike what now?”
“I said you have no right to talk, because you’re basically the worst friend ever,” Rosy told Twilight with a steady glare in her bloodshot, blue eyes.
“What?!” Twilight squawked, fluttering back, “No I’m not!”
“How did you trick them into siding with you this time?” Rosy asked Twilight, stalking towards the princess. “Some lecture that convinced them I’m the devil incarnate? Choosing the facts you want them to hear, and hiding the rest? It’s not like it would be hard to fool any of these idiots, right princess? ”
“Hey!” Rainbow Dash shouted, getting in Rosy’s way, “Don’t talk about us—yeah, her and us like that!”
“Everypony knows you’re not a normal pegasus!” Rosy said angrily to Rainbow Dash, who jerked back in the air, “It’s obvious! But you just keep lying about it and lying about it. Nopony knows what you really are, but they know you think they’re idiots. You think we’ll believe anything!”
She glared at Rarity, saying, “And you want me out of here so bad, you pretend I’m a monster, just so you can take everything away from me, and feel good about it. You want this beautiful land all to yourself, and all you’ll let me have is shit, you greedy—!”
She tore her gaze away from Rarity, instead glaring at—of all ponies—Applejack. “You’re so true to your friends and family, you can’t even admit when they’re full of shit!” she shouted at Applejack. “They’ll do terrible things, and you’ll just blindly help them because oh, they couldn’t possibly be total jerks!”
“You think I’m joking,” she accused Pinkie Pie, “Because you’re so much of a traumatized psychotic mess that you can’t even face your friends missing a single party, because you think they don’t like you. Well they don’t. Nopony likes you! You’re fucking insane!”
“And you!” she shrieked at Fluttershy, who couldn’t look away. “I never did anything to you! I don’t even care that you took my first kiss, but I bet it’s a big deal for you total prudes.” She looked around saying, “Yeah, that’s right. She tried to have sex with me, and—and I was in season! I didn’t know how to deal with that! And the only thing that saved me is she was scared that I was a stallion, when I’m not! You are a total...” she said, glaring at Fluttershy, seeming to struggle for the word, “Witch!”
Then Rosy ran for the kitchen.
Everypony just stood there, or hovered there in shock, until Rosy ran out clumsily with her forearm wrapped around an open can of baking soda. “This is too easy,” she grumbled in disgust, then swung her arm, hurling the entire contents of the can into Twilight Sparkle’s face.
Rosy bounded for the door, while everypony rushed to Twilight’s aid. Twilight cried out in surprise, then pain, flapping her wings and of course that blasted the baking soda away from her, flooding the entire living room with a cloud of biting, stinging dust. Except the dust which got in her eyes, which were weeping, and burning and she had to find a sink, but she couldn’t open her eyes to see anything!
“Go! Stop him!” Twilight shouted, fumbling blindly for the kitchen. The sound of rushing wings, sobbing, and galloping hooves was all around her. She felt somepony wrap their arm around her back, leading Twilight stumbling forward, until at last the sound of a faucet turning on could be heard. Twilight then found her head shoved into the kitchen sink, water pouring onto her face and snout, washing away the stinging dust in her eyes.
Three very painful minutes of rinsing later, Twilight pulled her head out of the sink. Pinkie Pie was here with Twilight, helping wipe off her face. Rarity was trying to help, but didn’t look very confident in her ability to do much of anything at this point, other than whimper and cry. Rainbow Dash had blasted out to go get Rosy again, followed by Applejack, sorta. And Fluttershy was still laying in the living room, covered in a fine coating of baking soda. The only indication she hadn’t fainted were the slight quivers in her chest as she sobbed too quietly to be heard.
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Someone's gonna die.
I'd say that this escalated quickly but we're already on Mars.
8267229
C'mon, would I do that?
8267233
Baking soda to the face has to be some kind of violation of the Geneva Conventions!
No, no ones going to die.
If Princess Luna has proved anything, its that no matter how beaten down the ponies wrapped up in this nonsense get, they aren't allowed to die.
That being said I could be totally wrong.
for fuck's sake Twilight you and your friends are gonna get a very stern lecture from every other Princess after this mess is over - you fucked up, this is really morally out there even by scientific standards
Gotta say I'm feeling far more sympathetic towards rosy than the bearers at this point.
Okay, I was not expecting that...
Can't wait for the next chapter.
"Applejack said laying a forehoof on"
"said, laying"?
"not just because of her status as a single mare, as one does"
...Um. That seems rather an odd thing to specifically mention without prompting. Hm...
"Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and then Fluttershy"
"Pinkie Pie, and then Fluttershy"?
"was still laying in the living room"
"lying"?
...Well. That went... well.
"Well, at least things can’t get any worse."
...I think I might be more surprised if they didn't get worse, in fact.
Not so much commentary on this one; the words weren't flowing as they sometimes do. I did enjoy the chapter, though!
I'm honestly not sure what to make of this story. It's fascinating to read, but most of the characters are somewhat unlikable. Their traits twisted slightly or lost as time goes onwards and the story's plot deepens. Twilight herself is becoming a bigot in multiple ways.
I can't tell if these ideas that Rosy brings are novel to Equestria or something that has been there all along but relatively hidden. If they indeed are novel ideas, it could be why Twilight and a few of the others sound like bigots calling Rosy out on her gender swap and declaring her a pervert. And the others don't speak up against this, wanting to just put the situation behind them.
8267366
I know! How could they have let her get away?
8267393
Yeah... the Bearers aren't doing so well, that's for sure. I'm sure they'll have no problem in the next chapter though. What could possibly go wrong?
8267412
Eeee thank youuu I will write it as good as I can!
8267452
Maybe I shouldn't go that far, but it makes sense to say that in context. Anyway, Fluttershy has some... odd insecurities. She thinks she's a single mare, for the safety of everypony else.
Thanks I really appreciate it! Also the commas, which I'll fix,,, eventually.
8267498
Well, they have their problems, but I don't know if I'd call them unlikable. I mean, most of them are up in arms about defending their friend, Fluttershy. That's pretty honorable, even if they're doing it in such a hurtful way.
That's what Rosy would like to know!
Keep in mind that the difference between ignorance and bigotry is that when you're ignorant, you can learn better. So it's not certain that the characters are utterly irredeemable just yet.
i have the strangest feeling celestia wouldn't be happy with twilight and the others at this point. i mena, how many times has twilight informed celestia about rosy at all?
8268177
"Maybe I shouldn't go that far, but it makes sense to say that in context. Anyway, Fluttershy has some... odd insecurities. She thinks she's a single mare, for the safety of everypony else."
...Interesting...
"Thanks I really appreciate it!"
You're welcome. :)
"Also the commas, which I'll fix,,, eventually."
Is that a joke comma error or a new mark combining a comma and an ellipsis? Either way, :)
8268315
Celestia's not her mom! Gawd!
But seriously, there is some implied communication that isn't exactly announced. Celestia certainly knows about the show, and therefore the Rift. Keep in mind that outside of S01E01, Twilight has only ever written Princess Celestia at the end of the episode, after the adventure is over, not at the beginning asking for advice. Otherwise... it's not clear how much Celestia knows about this stuff yet.
8268710
Putting Your Hoof Down
8268769
...Hm. I'd think it'd be more than that, but it's also possible that she's placing more weight on that then I am. Though that still doesn't seem to quite fit with her line about being nervous... so I'm still suspecting that there's something more.
8268769
true, also there seemed to be an implied 'flutter rapist' moment there.
and Androphobia..
I was hesitant to post my thoughts about this, because I know most of us don't come to FiMFiction to engage in RL politics at all. Still, the subject matter of this story begs it. So...
That is the same rationale as the "bathroom laws" enacted and being considered in some parts of the USA now. The argument is that if you allow transgender women to use women's bathrooms, then some male sexual predators (AKA deviated preverts) will pretend to be transgender just so they can go into women's bathrooms and molest real women. (And yes, the promoters of this laws do seem unaware that transgender men even exist.)
Now, I'm not aware that this has ever been a real problem, and it seems quite far-fetched to me that it ever would be. What has been a real problem is transgender people getting molested in bathrooms, which seems to happen fairly often and which no politician seems particularly bothered about. And of course, there's also the unspoken insinuation that not only could deviated preverts pretend to be transgender, but that anyone transgender probably is a deviated prevert who's just waiting for a chance to molest some innocent normal person.
To hear our Twilight Sparkle spouting this rubbish is painful. However... I have a lot of sympathy for Twilight in this situation. She's in a society that obviously has never had to acknowledge or deal with this subject before. Equestria appears to be one of the most advanced and progressive nations in Pony World, maybe even number one. However, they're still a monarchy where steam trains and electric lights are cutting edge technology. They're more than a hundred years behind us, more like Edwardian England than today's society. From our perspective, most of us would regard Equestria as a quite conservative society, and Twilight Sparkle is about as deeply embedded in The Establishment as you can get. To expect her to be exposed to this issue and immediately be enlightened about the whole thing is just completely unreasonable. It's not possible for her.
We can see this in the next chapter, where Twilight sticks by her guns yet seems increasingly uncomfortable and unhappy with the whole situation. She knows this all is not right somehow, but she just doesn't have the context to understand, and it's the same way with her friends. Kudos to the author for depicting their confusion and their confused feelings on the subject so well!
I kinda expect Twilight to have an emotional breakdown at the point where she realizes that she has directly caused the death of numerous sentient beings. Remember, she was explicitly, openly gleeful about her magically computed super-Bitcoins destabilizing several governments and causing armed conflict. . . because she clearly doesn't realize that in the human world, armed conflict means people actually die.
As to the part about gender. . . as a transgender girl, I find this part of the story horribly depressing and am hoping it gets resolved sooner rather than later. Right now, it's pretty much coming off as Twilight gaslighting the fuck out of the situation because her Equestrian point of view is so rose-colored that she can't understand Rose's motives for not wanting to be in the human world.
Remember, Twilight pretty much had a does-not-compute screaming breakdown over Pinkie Pie's family dying in a mine accident. In the human world, thousands of miners die every year and society shrugs it off as the price of doing business. She honestly has NO comprehension of how rough our world is.
8283168
Thank you for giving your thoughts. I will try not to be too snarky in my response.
Segregate bathrooms and what d'ya get? Perverts dying to bust into the other bathroom! Hyper-sensitization from sex deprivation has caused more deviant behavior than free love ever has. "bathroom laws" are what create perverts who sneak into women's restrooms.
That's what I was trying to imply, yes. Even Fluttershy's basically stranded and alone, with no idea how to get support for her own deviation.
Seems a fair enough comparison. That time period is too close to those stupid wars though, so I'm not especially familiar with it, just to warn you.
Wow, thanks... that's really the thing I love most about this story, so I'm really glad I've been able to share a little bit of what I feel.
8283342
You think she'll hold out that long, huh?
I... have some really negative emotions about that sort of thing, sorry. I'm so sorry if it's hurting you, or bringing up bad memories. It's a bit in desperation that I explore this stuff, even the... bad stuff. I really don't know what else to do.
Worse than that, many of those deaths are entirely preventable through affordable means, and they happen anyway because the people with the money get to make the decisions, and the people who value money more than human life are the ones who get all the money.
Basically much of the suffering in this world only happens because money itself is broken. If it wasn't, then things would be a lot easier, for... everyone.
Twilight is very sheltered, even by Equestrian standards...
This chapter hit me... hard. I'm literally feeling sick. Like, a pit in my stomach.
And then Rosy told them off, and I feel loads better! Hot damn, that was cathartic!
Beautiful