Xenophilia part VIII

Rainbow woke the next morning when Lero climbed out of the bed.  She cracked one eye, noting the gray light of dawn pouring through the windows.  She grumbled, tucking her head under her wing and burrowing deeper under the covers, and mumbled, “Mmf.  Five more minutes.”

	The pegasus heard a quiet chuckle.  “Take as long as you want.  I’ve got an early shift today, though, so I’ve gotta go.”

	She grumbled again.  The sheets and blankets, still wonderfully warm from both her body heat and his, were so seductively comfy.  Pegasi might not feel the cold, (else they’d likely freeze at their preferred altitudes) but that didn’t mean she couldn’t feel the comfortable warmth of the bed.  Still, she had stuff to do this morning, plus she needed to go by the library and see Twilight.  She pulled her head out from under her wing, blinking owlishly in the dim light from her cozy nest of blankets and pillows.  Lero was in the closet, already pulling on his clothes.  Rainbow sighed.  She *so* preferred the days when neither of them had to do anything in the morning, and they could wake up gradually, spending some time drowsing and snuggling while the light in the bedroom slowly got brighter.  And sometimes having a little fun once they’d woken up enough.

	Rainbow pushed herself up into a sitting position, stretching her back and her wings and blinking blearily.  ::*So* early…  Have to get up, but don’t want to…::  Lero glanced at her over his shoulder.  “You can stay in bed, Rainbow.  Just because I’m getting up early doesn’t mean you have to.”

	The pegasus yawned, rubbing her eyes and fanning her wings to help wake herself up.  “Nah, I’ve gotta clean up after the rain last night.  ‘S gonna be all humid, and there’ll be some clouds still hanging around that we need to get rid of.  Plus, I need to talk to Twilight and set up that date.  You’ve still got tomorrow off, right?”

	“Yep,” he said, pulling his shirt on.  “And there’s no one needing a handyman, so I’ve got pretty much the whole day free.”

	“Cool.  Oh, um.”  She blinked, brain processing a bit slowly still as she stared at his simple grey shirt and tried to remember what had just pinged in her head.  She scrubbed at her eyes again.  “Oh, right!  You’ve got some, y’know, fancier clothes, right?”

	“Oh, yes.”  He chuckled.  “Rarity came by the spa less than a week after I started working there and asked if I’d be willing to trade a nice suit for a free massage.  She said she’d been wanting to pick my brain on what I remembered of human formal wear, and I thought, you know, why not?  It wound up being a *really* nice suit, so nice that I felt like I was ripping her off.  I wanted to pay her for it, but she argued with me and we finally settled on two more free spa trips.  I still felt like I was ripping her off, but that’s as low as I could get her to go.”

	Rainbow shook her head in disbelief.  “Wow.  No wonder you’re so bad at haggling; you do it backwards.”  Three free massages from the human was actually worth a fair amount; between the strength and dexterity of his hands and the fact that he was the only member of his species in the world, his talents were in high demand among the rich.  Aloe and Lotus had sent him to Manehattan before he started at the spa, to be taught by the highly-acclaimed griffon masseuse, Gretna Bluntclaw, and he’d picked the skill up extremely quickly. He’d refused to raise his fees above a certain level, insisting that he didn’t want to deal *only* with the rich, but it was still a fairly tidy amount.  And since it *was* well within the reach of most of Ponyville’s citizens, his schedule was always booked weeks in advance, sometimes as much as a month.  The spa owners had tried to convince him to come in more, but he really liked the handyman jobs he’d started with and still spent a couple of days a week helping out around town.

	Lero laughed again.  “Yeah, guess so.  It’ll be nice to have a chance to wear that suit, though; I don’t think it’s come out of my closet since Rarity gave it to me, and I actually do like it.”

	The pegasus stifled another yawn.  “I kinda want to see it, now.  Uh, do you have any restaurants in mind?”

	“Any of ‘em but the Bale.”

	Rainbow laughed.  “Aw, come on!  I thought you loved the Bale!” she teased, knowing full well that there was nothing that restaurant served that he could eat.

	He gave her a level look.  “Everything at the Bale is made from hay.  Even the
*drinks.*”

	She stuck her tongue out at him.  “Fine.  No Bale.  Don’t worry, I know what you like.  See you this afternoon?”

	“Absolutely.”  He bent down and kissed her, brushing her sleep-tousled forelock back out of her eyes.  They smiled at each other, and he waved goodbye as he stepped out of the bedroom.  Rainbow stretched some more as she heard the front door open and shut, and finally forced herself to get up off of the bed, regretfully leaving the comfortable tangle of sheets behind.

	A quick glance at the sky when she stepped out the door assured her that she didn’t need to start work on the weather right away.  The shreds of last night’s rainstorm still lingered, but they weren’t threatening to clump up again.  At least, not yet.  And the extra humidity in the air wasn’t hugely unpleasant; it’d clear out when she cleared the remaining clouds.  Plus, none of the other weatherponies were up there working yet, (probably because they all knew the boss tended to sleep late) so she didn’t have to feel guilty about going to the library first.

	The quick flight across town to the library helped wake Rainbow up further, the mild exertion getting her blood pumping a little faster.  She landed in front of the big hollow tree, noting the light on in the main room.  Rainbow tried the front door, finding it unlocked, and poked her head in.  “Hey, Twilight, you up?”

	“Yes, I’m over here,” Rainbow stepped inside, glancing around the stacks of books on the floor large enough to hide a pony behind.  “Over at the desk!”  The pegasus followed the voice of her friend, finally locating her at a desk so heaped with books and scrolls that it might have been intentionally constructed as some kind of paper-walled fort.  Twilight didn’t glance up from the scroll she was scribbling on.  “One second, please.”

	“Sure thing.”  Rainbow glanced around.  The library was an even bigger mess than she was used to seeing; Twilight must not have been kidding about having a project to work on.  Poor Spike was gonna have a heck of a job to do once he woke up, and Rainbow wondered if Twilight had actually gotten any sleep last night.  “Wow, this place is a wreck.”

	Twilight ignored her statement, her writing quill flicking quickly across the page, pausing occasionally to dip in the inkwell.  Finally, she finished, placing the quill carefully on the desk and looking up, the purple glow fading from her horn.  “Good morning, Rainbow Dash!  My, you’re up early.”

	Rainbow snorted.  “Yeah, and so are you.  Or are you up late?”

	Twilight gave an airy wave of her forehoof.  “I got some sleep last night.  I just got up really early because I had this dream that pointed me *exactly* at what I needed to look for!  I just needed to invert the third thaumic resonance frequency of…”

	“Woah, Twilight!”  The pegasus interrupted.  “You don’t need to explain, ‘cause I’d never get it anyway.”

	“Oh, yes, it is rather complicated.”  Twilight blinked, her large violet eyes going distant for a moment.  “Oh!  Right!  Yes!  You were going to ask Lero if he’d be interested in a date!”  The unicorn’s expression turned hopeful.  “What did he say?”

	“He said yes.  So we’re good to go!”

	Twilight sat up on her haunches, tapping her forehooves together excitedly.  “Ooooh, I’m so happy to hear that, Rainbow Dash!”  She beamed at the pegasus, who returned the smile.  “Wonderful!  What day are you both free?”

	“The big guy’s got a day off tomorrow.  That too soon?”

	“No, no, not at all!  Tomorrow would be perfect!”  Twilight’s horn glowed again, and a violet aura engulfed a nearby blank piece of parchment and her writing quill, both of which levitated out in front of her.  “How does six o’ clock sound?”

	“Sounds fine to me,” Rainbow said, cocking an eyebrow in amusement.  ::She isn’t seriously going to… yes she is, she’s actually writing it down.  That’s hilarious.::  “He didn’t suggest any restaurants, but Crispy’s is a good bet, if you’re cool with it.”

	Twilight cocked her head.  “Crispy’s, that’s the place over on Peppermint Lane that caters to pegasi, right?”

	Rainbow nodded.  “Yeah, that’s the place.  He and I go there all the time; it’s the only place in town that has fish.”  In a town whose population was composed primarily of earth ponies, it was *not easy* to find fish.  That had actually been a major concern of Lero’s early on; humans evidently needed some source of animal protein to be healthy, and the fact that pegasi tended to like fish had been a lifesaver for the poor guy.  It had also helped get Rainbow and several of her friends on his side; somepony had asked him if there was any chance his diet could make him dangerous, and he’d been so visibly horrified at the thought of eating anything that could talk that she’d immediately warmed to the strange-looking alien.  When she’d asked if fish would work, he’d been both visibly relieved and grateful for the suggestion.  With Rainbow’s help, he’d made arrangements to buy from Crispy Carrot’s supplier, and he visited the restaurant fairly often.  Most of Ponyville’s pegasi visited the place occasionally, too, especially the ones who rarely travelled.  “And it’s not just a pegasus hangout.  I see earth ponies and unicorns in there all the time, their food’s pretty good.”

	The unicorn chewed her lip hesitantly.  “Well… it’s not very fancy, though. Are you sure?  I’d be happy to take the two of you to one of the really nice places!”

	Rainbow shrugged.  “If you really want to.  He doesn’t really like most of the fancy places, though.”  Not that there were all that many, in a town this small.  “I suggested it ‘cause I *know* he likes it, but if you want to go somewhere else he’ll probably be fine.”

	Twilight tapped her nose with the quill, thinking.  “You’re sure he likes it?  I don’t want to make a bad impression.”

	“A bad impression?”  The pegasus laughed.  “Twilight, you’ve been friends with him as long as he’s been here, same as me.  I don’t think you’ve gotta worry about him thinking less of you ‘cause you took him to a restaurant he likes instead of a fancy one.”

	Twilight nodded decisively.  “All right, Crispy’s it is, then. You like it too, right?”  At Rainbow’s nod, she jotted down something else on the parchment.  The pegasus had to suppress a laugh.  ::Does she seriously think she’s not gonna remember?::  “I’ll meet the two of you at Lero’s house tomorrow, then?”

	“Sounds like a plan.  I’m looking forward to it.”

	“Oh, me too!”  Twilight grinned happily.  “It’s been *forever* since I’ve been on a date!  *Thank* you, Rainbow Dash, this is going to be so much fun!”  The unicorn pulled her friend into a close embrace, which Rainbow warmly returned.  As they broke the hug, Twilight gave her a kiss on the cheek, much as she’d done the day before.  And, as before, Rainbow found herself smiling.  There weren’t a lot of ponies that she’d let do that, but Twilight was definitely one of them.

	“Aw, you don’t need to thank me, Twilight.  It’ll be fun for me, too.”  Rainbow wagered that it had been a heck of a lot longer since her last date than it had been since Twilight’s.  “I’ve gotta go take care of some weather stuff.  See ya tomorrow!”

	“It’s a date!”  Twilight said, grinning, as the pegasus trotted back outside.

***

	Late the next day, Rainbow flew back up to her cloud home to get ready for her date with Twilight.  Lero was probably already getting ready, it took guys a while.  She was actually really looking forward to seeing how he looked when he got dressed up; he looked so darn sexy with his clothes off that she *really* wanted to see how good he could look when he was trying.  She was going to get dressed up, too; Rainbow Dash wasn’t Applejack, and she liked to at least try to look pretty sometimes.

	She glided through the spacious halls of her home, reflecting that she hadn’t been spending much time here in the last couple of months.  She’d built this house herself, assembling it Cloudsdale-style bit by bit until it had become the mansion she’d been proud to call home, but, well, her coltfriend couldn’t exactly visit her here.  It was the one downside of her relationship.  She wouldn’t trade him for *anything,* but she did kinda wish he could come up to her home.  Instead, she’d all but moved in with him, and she wondered what she was going to wind up doing with this place, since this relationship really felt like a permanent one.  She could move it, set it up over his home so it’d be closer… but she’d still be spending most of her time closer to the ground.  Odd that the filly who’d always disliked the feel of dirt on her hooves had wound up spending so much time landed.  ::Oh well, guess that’s what love does,:: she reflected with a quiet smile.  Maybe she could trade this place to one of the other pegasi in town.  Trouble was, most of them came from ground-dwelling families, and had never really understood the appeal of living up in the clouds.  Cloudsdale natives were rare out here.

	Rainbow shrugged to herself.  ::I’ll find something to do with it.::  The relationship she’d found was worth some changes.  She thought of the way he smiled at her, the *amazing* feeling of making love to him, and most importantly, knowing that there was someone she could absolutely, unreservedly trust.

	She finally reached her bedroom, and went immediately to her closet.  There wasn’t a *lot* in there, but there was some stuff she thought she looked good in.  She dug around, looking for her favorites.  A pair of gold hoof-socks, with lacing that wrapped around her hind legs up to the first joint, pretty much the same as the ones she‘d worn to the Gala except these were made for her back hooves.  A sort of off-the-shoulder multicolored cape that went with her mane and tail but didn’t get in the way of her wings.  A slender gold circlet, reminiscent of the crown she’d won at the Best Young Fliers’ competition, and a slim necklace that went along with it.  She tossed her various items of clothing onto the bed and trotted into the bathroom.

	It actually took her a couple of minutes to find her brush; she almost never used the thing, preferring to simply let the wind straighten out her hair as she flew.  *Finally*, she located it, squirreled away in a cabinet she never used.  ::How the heck did you wind up there?  Stupid thing.::  She stuck her hoof through the loop on the back and set to work, grimacing as she tugged at the recalcitrant tangles in her mane.  The pegasus rather wished, just for a moment, that she was a unicorn.  Unicorns could braid their own darn hair without having to use tools and skills that she flat-out didn’t have, and she kinda thought she’d look good with her tail braided, the various colored stripes threading around each other.  She’d never gotten around to actually seeing what it looked like, but she really thought the effect would be nice.

	A bit of wincing and tugging later, she finished with her mane, looking in the mirror with some satisfaction.  It always looked so much longer in the back when she brushed it, for some reason.  She nodded to her reflection, pleased with the effect of the cooler-colored stripes spilling down her shoulder, and set to work on her tail.  That was much easier for her to reach and work with, and brushing it didn’t involve the awkward stretches and shoulder-twists that brushing her mane required.

	No longer needing the brush, she tossed it aside and immediately forgot about it again.  She checked her feathers, just in case, but those didn’t need any extra work.  Unlike her mane and tail, her feathers had a strong impact on her aerial performance, and she worked diligently to keep them in good shape, preening them at least once a day.

	Putting her clothing on took considerably less time than had been consumed by that darn brush.  Getting the ribbonlike laces wound around her hind legs took the longest, (and required a frustrating three tries to get right) but even that was fairly quick.  Finally done, she gave herself another look in the mirror.  ::Not bad, Rainbow, not bad.::  Oh, sure, Fluttershy still looked about ten times better without even getting dressed up.  And about a *thousand* times better when she did dress up, but Rainbow wasn’t jealous.  She checked the hoofsocks one last time, wiggling her hooves around and bending her knees and ankles just to be sure they were secure.  Rainbow kinda wished she could put her foreleg set on as well, but those were freaking *impossible* to put on by herself.  Like, the *real* kind of impossible, not the kind where she could just grit her teeth and try harder and manage to do it anyway because she was just that cool.

	She shook herself out of her thoughts and ran her gaze over her reflection, trying to think of anything she might have missed.  ::Lookin’ pretty good there,:: she thought, satisfied with the fit of her leggings and cape, and the slight glint of gold from her forehead and neck that she thought went well with her cyan fur and rose-colored eyes.  That glint nudged something at the back of her mind, something she’d forgotten about.  ::What the heck does that remind me of…::  She stared hard, trying to remember.  ::Oh, right!::

	She ducked back into her closet, going all the way into the back to retrieve a small box that had been back there for a long time.  She set it on her bed and flipped the lid open, and stood there staring at the contents, chewing her lip as she debated with herself.  ::Should I?  Nah, this is too much.  But they go with the other stuff I’m wearing…::

	A couple of years back, during a visit to Cloudsdale, Rainbow had come across a jewelry vendor selling some pretty nice stuff.  This box had been one of the things in his store; a set of gilded false-feathers designed to sit amongst a pegasus’s natural feathers.  They were mostly an upper-class thing; they screwed with a flier’s airflow and made it harder to fly, but they provided a really gorgeous highlight to her wings.  And, well, that salescolt had made a really good pitch, and he’d been really cute and kinda flirty, and Rainbow had wound up buying the things, much to her later chagrin.  She’d never actually worn them; they were hilariously impractical for a working pegasus, and she hadn’t been to any events where she’d been both sufficiently dressed up to warrant the gilded pseudofeathers *and* where she expected not to fly much.  But, well, this date kinda qualified.  She wouldn’t be flying around too much since both of her dates were groundbound, so some reduced capability wouldn’t have any impact, and she *was* trying to look good…

	Feeling daring, she picked one of the longer ones out of the box, spread her wing out a bit, and tucked it into the outer feathers that were about the same size.  The little wires protruding from the shaft of the false feather fit between the feathers on either side, keeping it reasonably firmly secured.  It still fit fairly comfortably, as it had when she’d hesitantly tried them on in the store, and she had to admit the gold amongst her cyan feathers actually did look pretty good.  At least, she thought so.  ::Well… I’ll just see how they look,:: she thought, and went ahead and tucked the ones that were supposed to go on the right into the feathers of her right wing.  She spread and folded the wing several times, making sure they wouldn’t fall out, and bit her lip again.  ::Eh, what the heck.  I’ll put ‘em on and see what Lero thinks; if he thinks they’re goofy I can just take ‘em back off and leave ‘em at his house.::  She quickly fit the rest of the false feathers into her left wing, and ducked into the bathroom for a final look in the mirror.  The pegasus had to admit that she really liked the effect, with the gold highlights glittering in her wings, and really, really hoped that she didn’t just look silly and couldn’t see it.

	It had taken longer than she’d planned, but she still had plenty of time, and figured that Lero would be a while still getting ready.  She could just hang out at his place until Twilight came by to meet them.  Rainbow hopped off of the cloud, gliding slowly down to the human’s home so as not to mess up her mane or tail; she didn’t want to waste all the time she’d spent brushing!

	Rainbow also had to admit she was really curious about what this suit of Lero’s looked like.  Her imagination had invented about a bazillion possibilities, ranging from really minimalist things that left most of his pinkish skin exposed all the way to huge fabric tents that enclosed him completely and left only his eyes peeking out like a mobile tipi.  He probably would have showed her if she’d asked, but she was having so much fun speculating that she preferred to just imagine possibilities instead of doing something so boring as *asking.*

	She landed on his doorstep and folded her wings, pleased that the pseudofeathers still fit well after the fairly long glide.  To her shock, she found Lero sitting in his living room reading a book, already dressed and ready.  He looked up as she entered, and blinked.  “Wow, Rainbow.  Wow, you look… really good.”

	“So do *you,*” she said, her eyebrows climbing.  “Hey, could you stand up so I can get a good look?”  He did so, setting his book aside, and she admired what was in fact a *very* nice suit.  It was close-fitting though not especially tight, made of dark fabric, either really dark blue or black, and it covered him even more completely than his normal clothing did.  Most of what he wore left his arms bare, and sometimes his lower legs as well, but this outfit covered his arms and legs, leaving only his head and hands not covered by cloth.  The trim incorporated what looked like fine silver wire, and there was a row of silver buttons down his chest.  A short cape hung from his shoulders, falling to a little above his knees.  The cut and color of the suit emphasized his height and his broad shoulders, making him look even bigger than he actually was.  It also looked slightly intimidating… and *darn* sexy, at least in Rainbow’s opinion.  The feather braided into his hair fit oddly well.

	“Wow, dude.  You weren’t kidding about that being a nice suit.”  She blinked at him in surprise, feeling a slight tingling in her nethers.  She bit her lip.  “Oh, dude, you’re *so* gonna be in charge when we get home tonight.”

	Lero grinned.  “That good, huh?”  She nodded enthusiastically, and he ran his eyes over her.  “You look pretty good yourself, Rainbow.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen you wear your mane like that before, and I really like the way those Roman sandal looking things emphasize your legs.”

	Rainbow grinned back.  She had no idea what “Roman” or “sandal” was, but that didn’t really matter.  She knew he liked her back legs and butt, and she’d picked those socks because they drew attention to what he liked.  She might personally think it was a little weird, since her legs were way too skinny and muscular to be pretty, but she wasn’t going to argue with him.

	The thought of “a little weird” sent her mind wandering in some interesting places.  “Uh, Lero?  Just had an idea.  You know how I just said I wanted you to be in charge tonight?”  He nodded, and she continued, “Well…  What do you think about playing a little pretend?”

	His eyebrow climbed interrogatively.  “Well, you won the game the other night, so you do get to pick.  What kind of pretend?”

	She felt her face heat a bit.  “Well… you look kinda intimidating dressed like that, and I was thinking… Y’know, we could both pretend to be, like, characters.  Acting, y’know?”

	Lero’s head tilted.  “I *think* I follow you,” he said cautiously, “What kind of characters did you have in mind?”

	She caught her lip in her teeth again.  “Well, like, you could be the evil warlord’s son.  You know, who’s been sort of her enforcer, done her evil stuff when she was busy, but deep down you’re not actually evil.  You’re not really happy with what you do, but you’re good at it, and she’s your mom so you do it ‘cause you love her.  But you’ve got this secret thing for the hero…”

	Lero laughed.  “Here, let me see if I can guess, huh?  You’re the noble hero, the warlord’s arch-nemesis who’s fought for years to put a stop to hi… to *her* villainy, but you’ve finally been captured and brought to the warlord’s fortress.  You and the warlord’s son have sparred for a long time, neither able to get the better of the other, so I come down to the dungeon to gloat.  But we finally realize that we’ve been in love for a long time, you appeal to me to start a new path and be better, finally convincing me to turn on the warlord and make the world a better place, and we have a passionate encounter before I help you escape the fortress?”

	Now it was Rainbow’s turn to laugh.  “Ha ha, I didn’t realize you’d read it!  Otherwise I’d’ve just said ‘we could play out the dungeon scene from *Silverwing*!’”  Twilight had given her that book shortly after she’d finished the Daring Do series, telling her that if she liked the Daring Do books, she’d *probably* like *Silverwing*, and oh boy had she ever been right.  It had been *packed* with adventure, action, great fight scenes, and good-versus-evil hero stuff, and Rainbow had *loved* the main character, the pegasus knight Silverwing.  She was just *so* awesome.  Rainbow had pretended to Twilight that she’d skipped the love scene in the dungeon with the warlord Ebonhorn’s son Hammer Strike, but in truth she’d actually read it several times.  She’d thought Hammer Strike was *dead* sexy, evil and all, even before she’d gotten to that scene.  Tough, smart, honorable, in a lot of ways he’d been like an evil guy version of Silverwing.  And *man* that scene in the dungeon had been steamy!  “Um, I’m not sure you’re remembering right, though.  Silverwing’s only been fighting Ebonhorn for like a year by then.  And you don’t really turn on her right then; I just convince you to leave and *later* you decide to help me.”

	Lero grinned.  “I actually haven’t read that particular book.  There have been… shall we say a *few* like that written where I come from too; I was actually generalizing.”

	The pegasus blinked in surprise.  “Wow, really?  You were scary-close, then.  And that scene’s really hot, I think it’d be a load of fun to do.”

	“Sure, I’ll give it a try.”  He gave her another long look.  “How in the world do you manage to look so much sexier with clothes on than you look naked?”

	“Well, duh,” she said, feeling a rush of pleasure at the compliment and posing a bit, “It’s ‘cause I’m *trying* to look good.  Wait ‘till Twilight gets here; she’ll look sexier too.”

	“I’ll be looking forward to it, then,” Lero said with a grin.  “Hey, c’mere.”

	Rainbow stood up on her back legs to hug him, spreading her wings a bit for balance.  “Careful with my wings, big guy.  You don’t wanna knock those fake feathers out.”

	“I’ll be careful.”  They stood there holding each other for a few heartbeats, while Lero ran his fingers slowly through Rainbow’s mane.  “Your hair feels nice.  Smoother than normal.”

	Rainbow giggled.  “I brushed it.  If you really like it, I could do that more.”  Maybe it wouldn’t be quite so uncomfortable to do if she did it regularly.  “Hey, do you like these gold feather things?  I couldn’t figure out if they looked good or if they looked dumb.”

	He drew back a bit to look and brushed a hand along her feathers, careful not to dislodge her jewelry.  “I think they look good, myself.  You may want to check with Twilight, though.”

	She nodded.  “Yeah.”  He wasn’t exactly the best judge of attractiveness, (he thought *she* was pretty, for crying out loud) but she was glad that he liked them.  They stood there for a few more moments, swaying slightly in a sort of impromptu dance, and Rainbow spoke up again.  “Hey, could you do me a favor?”

	“Sure thing.  What do you need?”

	“Well, you know I can kinda be a jerk sometimes.”

	He shrugged.  “A little bit, but you’re not mean about it.”

	“Whatever.  The thing is, it’s kinda intimidating trying to court a group that’s already together.  I just don’t want Twilight having to deal with that and me being a jerk at the same time, so if I start acting up, can you just, like, tell me?”

	“Sure, Rainbow.  I can do that.”

	“Thanks.”  She laid her head against his chest, still swaying in place.

	A few moments later, they were both startled by a soft knock at the door.

	They both froze in place for a heartbeat, staring at each other.  Then they both giggled.  “Sounds like Twilight’s a little early,” Rainbow observed.  “I’ll get the door.”  She dropped back to all fours, trotting quickly over to open the door.  Twilight was standing outside, one hoof raised to knock again.  The unicorn blinked in surprise.

	“Oh, Rainbow Dash!  Hello!”  Twilight fidgeted nervously.  “I thought I’d come by a little early and wait here while Lero gets ready.  I guess we had the same idea!”

	Rainbow laughed.  “Yeah, guess so!  He’s already all dressed, though.”  She examined her friend’s getup.  It looked a little old, but not bad; stuff that Twilight had probably had when she was studying in the Magic Academy.  What really caught the pegasus’s eye was an intricate wire filigree that wound around Twilight’s horn.  Rainbow had never seen anything quite like it.

	Twilight caught the direction of her gaze, and dipped her head shyly.  “You like it?”

	Rainbow shrugged a bit.  “Yeah, it looks kinda cool.”

	The unicorn smiled.  “Rarity’s idea.  Mostly.  Well, it was based on something I was building to help enhance my magic ability, and she liked the way it looked and suggested making an inert version to be decorative.”  Her smile took on a slightly shy edge.  “You look good, Rainbow.”

	Rainbow grinned.  “Think so?”  She spread her wing, showing off the gilded feathers.  “These aren’t too much?  Like, not too goofy?”

	“Goofy?”  The unicorn sounded surprised.  “No, not at all.  I’m a little surprised you even have those.”

	“Heh, yeah, that makes two of us.”  Rainbow suddenly realized that she was keeping her friend waiting on the doorstep.  “Oh, duh, c’mon in.  Sorry.”  She stepped aside, letting Twilight in with an apologetic look.  The unicorn stepped inside with a smile and stopped short.

	“Oh, my,” she said under her breath, looking at Lero with wide violet eyes.  “I’ve never seen you dress up before.”

	The human twirled in place, a surprisingly graceful motion for the topheavy-looking biped.  “Like it?”

	Twilight nodded, watching the short cape billow outward.  “Yes, it looks very good on you.”

	He grinned at her.  “Thanks, Twilight.  You look pretty good yourself.”  The human glanced at a clock on the wall.  “Well, ladies, it looks like all of us are ready.  Do you feel like going a little early?”

	Twilight fidgeted a bit.  “Well, I was actually expecting to have to wait a half-hour or so while you got ready, Lero.  If you want to go ahead and go now, I’d be okay with it, though.”

	They both turned to look at Rainbow Dash.  She looked blankly between them.  “What?”

	Lero chuckled.  “Would you like to go eat a bit early?”

	Rainbow blinked.  “Oh!  Yeah, sure, why not?”

	Twilight shifted her weight uncertainly.  “Well, if we’re leaving now, um…”  Her horn glowed, and the small bag she carried at her hip opened.  The unicorn levitated out a pair of lavender blossoms, one of which floated gently toward Lero and the second toward Rainbow.

	The pegasus grinned.  “Thanks, Twilight, those’re really pretty.”  She tilted her head slightly, and the flower gently tucked itself into her mane just in front of her ear.  She looked at Lero as the other flower glided toward him.  The human caught the bloom gently in his fingers and tucked it behind his ear, on the opposite side from where the cyan feather hung.  He glanced over at Rainbow for approval, and she nodded.  She hadn’t remembered to tell him you were supposed to put the flower on the other side on the first date, but either he knew or he’d guessed.  He flashed her a quick smile, thanking her for confirming he’d done it correctly.

	Twilight didn’t notice the exchange, which took less than a second anyway.  She relaxed imperceptibly; Rainbow knew why.  When you offer someone a flower, there’s *always* that fear that they’ll turn it down, even at that late point.  It was confirmation for the unicorn that Rainbow and Lero really were interested in letting her into their relationship.  Twilight grinned.  “Well, shall we go, then?”

	The three made their way down the street, cracking jokes to one another as Twilight started to relax.  Rainbow caught more than one glare from the ponies on the street as they noticed the flowers in Lero and Rainbow’s manes, and the feather in Lero’s braid, but she ignored them.  If any of them felt like saying anything she’d happily kick the snot out of ‘em, but until then she really didn’t care.  If they decided to mess with Lero later she’d deal with it then.

	The head waitress at Crispy’s, on the other hoof, greeted them with a smile that grew more brilliant as the older mare noticed the flowers and feather.  “Hey, Gem, how’s things?”  Rainbow asked cheerily.

	“Not bad, Rainbow Dash, not bad,” Sky Gem glanced back into the dining room.  “Table for three?”

	“Yeah.”  The older pegasus led the three to an unoccupied table, a nice private one in a corner without nearby neighbors, and left them with their menus.

	Twilight cleared her throat and glanced at something under the table.  “So, Lero… does your family have many enemies?”

	The human blinked in surprise, trading a confused glance with Rainbow.  “Er… enemies?”

	The unicorn fidgeted nervously.  “Yes… foes, rivals, things like that.”

	Lero stared for a long second before glancing at Rainbow and receiving a baffled shrug.  “Erm, no, I suppose they don’t.  Didn’t.  They may now, I have no idea.  Doesn’t really seem likely, though.”

	Rainbow cleared her throat.  She knew Lero didn’t especially like to be reminded that he had no way to contact his family.  “Uh, Twilight…”

	Twilight ignored her, bulling on with a slightly desperate smile.  “Oh!  Good!  That’s good!  So, d-did you destroy them, then?”  The unicorn glanced surreptitiously at something under the table.

	Rainbow had had enough.  “Twilight, what the hay?  Where the heck did this come from?”  She ducked her head under the table, spotting a piece of parchment that was somehow hovering there, encased in the soft glow of Twilight’s telekinesis even though her horn was dormant.  Stretching out a forehoof, the pegasus snatched the parchment, disrupting the spell that held it.  Ignoring Twilight’s squeak of dismay, Rainbow pulled the parchment out from under the table to look at it.  “Family enemies… feuds… What the heck, Twilight, it sounds like you’ve been talking to Gilda about her home life or something!”  Twilight tried to snatch the list back, her horn glowing as she tugged at it, but Rainbow pinned the bottom of the short scroll to the table with both forehooves and kept reading.  “Dude, he doesn’t even live in a cave, you know that!”  The next entry made her do an actual doubletake, not quite believing what she’d read at first.  The pegasus made a strangled noise, trying not to laugh.  “*How big is your hoard?*”  she finally exclaimed, barely managing to keep the guffaws from slipping out.  Rainbow grinned at Lero and wiggled her eyebrows with exaggerated lasciviousness.  “Well, I mean, it’s not *that* big, but it’s big enough to get the job done!”

	Twilight gurgled in embarrassment, her face bright red under her lavender fur. She finally managed to tug the parchment away from Rainbow, and Lero gave the pegasus a reproving look.  “Rainbow.  Remember what you asked me to do before we left?  Right now kind of applies.”  Rainbow blinked, belatedly remembering her request.  ::Oh.  Duh.  Way to be a jerk and embarrass your date, Rainbow!::  This was part of the reason she’d been so bad at courting.  The human turned to Twilight, who was staring at the table, face still bright red.  “Twilight?  You okay?”

	“Fine,”  Twilight said in a tiny voice.  ::Aw, dangit,:: Rainbow thought, chagrined, ::I really didn’t mean to humiliate her like that.::

	“I’m curious,” Lero said gently, “where did you get those questions?  They seem a bit… well, not-Equestrian.”

	Twilight sniffed, peeking up through her pink-streaked forelock.  “Well… it took some looking, but I found this book…”

	Now Rainbow was curious.  “What kinda book would tell you to ask *that?*”

	The unicorn sniffed again.  “It…  I… there was only one book on interspecies courting…  It didn’t even have sections on everyone, just the ones that were the least ponylike.  Griffons, dragons, sea serpents, a couple others.  There was even a little section on trolls even if it just said ‘don’t bother,’ but I couldn’t find anything close to human and I just thought…”

	“Oh.”  Rainbow blinked.  “Yeah, I get it, those questions were from…”

	“The griffon and dragon sections of the book, yes.”  Twilight interrupted.  “I thought they might be the right parts, since griffons are omnivores and dragons are patriarchal, and, well, since Lero’s told me humans are omnivorous and patriarchal…”  She trailed off.

	“Ah, I think I understand.  You were looking for an Equestrian analog of human society, right?”  Lero asked.

	“Yes,”  Twilight said, “I mean, thinking about it now, neither one is all that close, but it was all I could find…”

	“And you wanted a reference, right?”  The human’s voice was gentle.  He looked at Rainbow and gave her a wink.

	Reassured that her coltfriend could probably fix what she’d screwed up, (a side benefit to the relationship that she hadn’t considered before now) Rainbow hopped out of her seat.  “Hey, guys, I’m gonna hit the little fillies’ room real quick.”  She figured she’d give Lero some time to try and get Twilight back to normal.

	Twilight nodded, and Lero gave her another covert wink.  “Wait,” he said to the unicorn, “there’s a section on courting *dragons*?  How does *that* work?”

	The unicorn looked up, finally. “Oh, you’re only supposed to even try with postadolescent young adults.  Any younger and they don’t have the emotional development for a relationship, any older and, well, it can get you hurt.  And not just emotionally!  But at that point they’re only a little bigger than a big pony, and since a young adult dragon is the age of a fairly elderly pony, they’ve got enough life experience to…”  Rainbow lost the sound of Twilight’s voice as she trotted away.  The pegasus shook her head in bemusement.  ::Wow, get her lecturing and she perks right up. Good going, big guy.::

	Rainbow stepped around a corner and leaned against the wall.  She didn’t actually need to use the restroom; that had just been an excuse to get out of her friends’ hair for a minute and let Lero smooth the air currents.  Behind her, she heard a voice speak up.  “Oh, hey there, dear.  Was just headed to your table to see if you were ready to order; should I hold off?”

	The pegasus turned to see Gem smiling at her.  “Uh, yeah, better wait a couplea minutes.”   The older mare nodded and started to turn away, but Rainbow stopped her.  “Hey, Gem, you didn’t look surprised when we came in…”  Rainbow trailed off, unsure of how to ask what she wanted to ask.

	“Well, of course not, dear!  You and Lero come by here all the time!  It’s hardly a surprise to see the two of you, and I’m always glad to see a third customer!”  She grinned mischeviously.  Rainbow was about to clarify when the waitress continued, “Sorry, just teasing you.  But honestly, no, I’m not surprised in the least, because I *have* seen the two of you together so often.”  The older pegasus winked.  “Some of us here, me and Crispy included, have known how you two felt about each other for quite a while now.  Longer than the two of you have known, I’d wager.  I’m just glad you’re finally admitting it!  And I’m glad to see that bright young lady courting the two of you, too; you three make such a cute group.”  Gem glanced around before leaning close to whisper conspiratorially, “So how long have you *actually* been courting him?”

	Rainbow stared in shock, making the other pegasus chortle again.  “Er, a little under two months now,” she said, awkwardly, and Gem nodded, her grin taking on a satisfied edge. “Wait, you knew?  Seriously?”  Gem nodded again, happily.  “And you don’t have a problem with it?”

	“I don’t.  I know there are a few ponies who do, but who cares about them?  Grumpy bunch.”  Rainbow cracked a smile at that.  Gem continued, more seriously, “Don’t you pay any attention to them.  There’s some who don’t like Lero, you probably know most of them already.”  The younger pegasus nodded.  In spite of the human’s earnest attempts to fit into Equestrian society, there were several ponies in Ponyville who just flat didn’t like him.  Most of the townsponies had an attitude more like Applejack’s, though; they got along with him okay, and thought he was nice enough, but just didn’t quite understand him.  Even most of his clients at the spa felt that way, but it didn’t seem to bother him much.  “And there’s some who just plain don’t care for ponies courting anything but other ponies.”  Sky Gem craned her neck to look out at the dining room, then turned to look back at Rainbow.  “Listen, honey; if anypony gives you three trouble while you’re here, you let me know, okay?  I’ll handle it.”

	Rainbow felt a rush of gratitude.  “Thanks, Gem.  You’re awesome.”  She chuckled.  “Heh, and it’d probably be better not to start a fight in my coltfriend’s favorite restaurant.”  The pegasus felt a complicated rush of feelings, realizing that this was the first time she’d referred to Lero as her coltfriend out loud.

	“Heaven forbid,” the waitress said feelingly.  “I’ve seen what you can do when you’re miffed, dear.  And what your fillyfriend there can do, come to think of it.  The two of you defending your stallion’s honor?  Gracious, we’d have to rebuild the place.”

	Rainbow couldn’t help but laugh.  “Don’t worry, Gem.  I like this place, too, I’m not gonna act like we’re in an Appleloosan salt bar or anything.”

	“I’d appreciate that.”

	The athlete glanced out, looking at their table.  Twilight was smiling and looking much more relaxed.  “No problem, Gem.  I’m gonna head back, you could probably swing by in a couple of minutes.”  Rainbow headed back, and was greeted by smiles from both her friends.  “Hey, guys.”  She hopped up into her chair and turned to Twilight.  “Sorry, Twilight, I kinda got carried away.”

	“Oh, no problem!  I was being a little silly myself.”  Twilight kissed Rainbow on the cheek and giggled, which the pegasus took as a good sign.

	The date went swimmingly after that, all three cracking jokes and telling stories.  They were in the middle of a spirited discussion about forms of government (and Rainbow’s head was spinning slightly with all she’d learned just hanging around the periphery of the discussion with her two friends) and had pretty much finished their meal, though they didn’t really feel like leaving yet.  Rainbow had caught a couple of nasty glares from other patrons, but she didn’t think Lero or Twilight had noticed.  She’d fired right back with a glare of her own whenever she’d seen one aimed their way, which had served to hastily redirect the attention of the disapproving ponies.  She *probably* should have told Gem instead, but hey, they’d backed down, so it wasn’t like she’d started a fight, right?

	A mass of pink in Rainbow’s peripheral vision distracted her from the debate between Twilight and Lero.  She turned in her seat to see Pinkie Pie grinning widely at her.  The pink-coated earth pony bounced over to their table.  “Hey, you guys, what’s going on?  Oooo,” Pinkie’s eyes got big, “Oo, oo, are you on a *date*?  Oh, that’s *great*!  Dashie, I know you’ve been single for, like, for*ever* and now you’re not and that’s so unbelievably awesomely fantastic!”  Pinkie bounced in place next to the table.  “And since this is Twilight’s first date with you I’ll be able to remember!  We can have a party on your anniversary!  Well, assuming you’re still together in a year, but you probably will be since you all look so happy!  Oo, Rainbow Dash, when did you and Lero hook up?”

	Rainbow glanced at Lero, who was looking a little blank at the verbal onslaught.  She chuckled.  “About, what, two months or so, right big guy?”

	Lero shook himself.  “Yeah, about that.”

	Pinkie beamed.  “Oh, neato speedo!  Wow, you guys were all sneaky and secretive, I didn’t even know!  Okay, if you remember the day, make sure to tell me so I can have a party for you, too!”

	Rainbow nudged Lero with a wing and winked at him.  He always looked a little overwhelmed when talking to Pinkie, which the pegasus thought was *hilarious* since he was normally so composed.  “Sure thing, Pinkie,” she said to her friend, “I’ll try and remember the exact day and get back to you.”

	“Thanks, Rainbow Dash, that’d be just super duper!”  Pinkie gasped suddenly.  “Oh!  Sorry girls and guy, I’ve got an *urgent* party emergency that I was on my way to, so I’ve gotta go!  See ya!”  Pinkie vanished in a pink blur.

	Lero blinked a couple of times, and then his brow furrowed.  “Wait… how does she know about speedos?”

	Rainbow tilted her head and exchanged a look with Twilight.  “Wait, that’s actually a word?  I thought it was just something Pinkie said when she’s being Pinkie.  Next you’re gonna say that ‘lokey’ is actually a thing, too.”

	The human laughed.  “Er, actually, yeah.  Loki’s the trickster god of Norse mythology.”

	“No way, really?”  Rainbow blinked in astonishment.  “Wow, I wonder how many other nonsense words Pinkie uses aren’t actually nonsense.”

	“What kind of trickster?”  Twilight asked, an expression of curiosity on her face.

	“What, you mean Loki?”  The unicorn nodded.  “Er, that’s kind of a long story…”

	Twilight looked pleadingly at Rainbow, and the pegasus shrugged.  “Well, we don’t really have anywhere else to be,” Rainbow said, “and, I mean, those stories about the Greek gods were kinda cool.  Even though it sounds like they were a bunch of huge jerks.”  She’d gotten him talking about the legends his name came from, (there were a *lot* of them) and she could remember thinking that she wished Odysseus had beaten up Poseidon or something.  Most of those gods struck her as being really mean, especially the chief god Zeus.  And the big bully Ares.  The only one she’d liked was Hephaestus.  It was weird that all the really mean ones were guys; she’d have expected Ares, at least, to be female.

	Lero shrugged.  “Well, if you both actually want to hear some of those stories, there’s one at least that you’ll probably get a kick out of.”

	A few minutes later, Rainbow and Twilight were both laughing.  “Wait… so he’s Sleipnir’s *mother*?  Ha ha, that’s hilarious!”  Rainbow exclaimed.

	Twilight wiped her eyes.  “It takes a special kind of mind to disrupt a worker’s efforts by seducing the *horse*.  A very *perverse* kind of mind.”  Rainbow shuddered at Twilight’s observation, still laughing.

	Lero looked a little surprised by the response.  “I have to admit, I didn’t expect you ladies to find that story as funny as you do.”

	“What, because we look a little like horses?”  Twilight snickered again.  “Turn it around, then.  A pony mare messing up a worker by turning into a male monkey to seduce the worker’s female monkey helper.”

	Rainbow snorted.  “I dunno, Twi.  I think seducing a horse is even more perverted than seducing a monkey.  Monkeys look funny, horses just look *creepy*.  That little head on a great big body, with itty-bitty eyes *waay* out to the side?  Creepy.”

	“You actually have horses here?”  Lero asked, “I’ve never seen any sign of them!”

	Twilight nodded.  “Yes, they’re rather rare, but they do still exist.  They seem to be some kind of remnant ancestor species that never absorbed any kind of magic.  There are all *kinds* of debates over how closely related they are to us.  Most ponies feel the same way Rainbow Dash feels about them, so they generally aren’t kept near Equestrian towns except in zoos.”  The unicorn shrugged.  “They’re not intelligent, and they’re considered a bit unsettling.”

	“Huh.  I wonder why that is?”

	“Expressions, mostly.   Or at least, that’s my theory.”  Twilight shrugged again.  “The same reason why you’re more comfortable for us than they are, even though your basic body layout is so different.”

	Rainbow fidgeted.  “Uh, guys?  Can we change the subject?”  Horses had always creeped her out a bit, and it wasn’t just the expressionless faces.  Something about them weirded her out in a way that other creatures never had.  Give her a griffon, a buffalo, a donkey, an antelope… anything that could talk, and she’d be okay with it, just not a horse.

	“Oh, of course, Rainbow.”  Lero reached out and caressed her cheek in apology.  She tilted her head a bit, accepting the gesture.  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to bother you.”

	They were interrupted again by the arrival of two more ponies.  “Darlings!”  Rarity said without preamble, “Pinkie Pie passed us on the street, and we just *had* to drop in and say hello!  *Do* please forgive us if we’re intruding!”  The elegant white-coated unicorn was smiling delightedly.  Fluttershy, trailing quietly behind her more dramatic friend like a pink-maned shadow, nodded in agreement.

	“Oh, I don’t think you’re intruding, Rarity,” Twilight said, glancing at Rainbow and Lero for confirmation.  “We were just talking.”

	“Well, I’m glad we’re not interrupting, then!”  Rarity gave Lero an evaluative look.  “And I’m *so* glad to see you finally wearing that suit, Lero, darling!  I was beginning to worry that you didn’t like it!”

	The human laughed.  “I told you when you gave it to me how much I liked it, Rarity.”

	The unicorn waved a hoof dismissively.  “Yes, and then you never wore it.  I told you, it makes you look *very* good if I say so myself!  And I did put *so* much work into it.  You should wear it more often!  Everyone deserves the chance to *shine* every once in a while!”  She looked more closely.  “Oh, and those flowers complement it delightfully, too!  Oh, wait, that’s not a flower…”  She peered at the feather braided into Lero’s mane, looked at Rainbow’s wings, then back to the feather, and gasped.  “Rainbow Dash!  Is that feather yours?”

	The athlete glanced nervously at her dates, receiving a wink from Lero and an encouraging smile from Twilight.  “Uh, yeah, actually.”

	“Oh!”  Rarity sat down on her haunches, hugging her forehooves to her chest and looking dramatically up at the ceiling.  “How *unbearably* romantic!  I didn’t think you had it in you!”

	“Wait, you actually know about that tradition?”  Rainbow asked.

	“Why of *course*, darling.  I’ve read a few romance stories set in the old pegasus cities.”  She sighed happily.  “Oh, *how* I wished we unicorns had a tradition so *delightfully* personal.  The exchanging of horn-rings is romantic enough, but giving your lover a part of yourself like that?  Oh *my*.”  Rarity’s blue eyes glistened with emotion.  “As I said, I honestly didn’t think you had it in you!”

	Rainbow rubbed her neck awkwardly, but couldn’t keep a smile off her face as she glanced at Lero.  “Yeah… I kinda didn’t either.”

	“Until you met the right person!”  Rarity gasped dramatically and nearly swooned.  “Oh, it really *is* like a delightful romance story!”  She looked at Rainbow more closely.  “Oh, and look at *you*.  Gracious, are those gold feathers?”

	“*I told you they looked good,*” Twilight whispered in her ear.

	Rainbow spread a wing out.  “Yeah.   I don’t even know why I had ‘em…”

	“I wish you’d told me you had them sooner, dear.  They would have gone *gorgeously* with your Gala dress.”  Rarity blinked.  “Oh, Twilight, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to ignore you!  I was distracted by your dates; *congratulations*, darling.”

	“Thank you,” Twilight said shyly, darting a look at Rainbow and Lero.  “I feel *awfully* lucky that they agreed to let me take them out to dinner tonight.”

	“Psh.”  Rainbow scoffed.  “You say that like we haven’t had fun, too, Twilight.”

	“Indeed,” Lero put in, “This has been a delightful evening for me, too.”

	“Oh, *my*,” Rarity exclaimed theatrically, “I feel even *worse* for interrupting, now!  I’ll get out of your hair.  But first!  Next time you three go out, you should come by the Boutique first!  You all look *smashing*, but you could look even better if you let me help coordinate!  It will be *stunning!*  Ta-ta!”  The fashionista turned to leave, dramatically.

	Fluttershy paused before following her more flamboyant friend.  She gave the three a gentle smile, peeking out from behind her long pink mane.  Rainbow felt the slightest, tiniest pang of envy; Fluttershy was a friend she’d known since childhood, but the other mare always made her feel a little awkward.  She was probably the prettiest pegasus Rainbow had ever met in her life, but she always had the feeling that Fluttershy didn’t realize how beautiful she was.  It was hard to be jealous of somepony who clearly thought she wasn’t pretty.  And, of course, her personality made it impossible to resent her, as she proceeded to demonstrate.  “You all look so happy together,” Fluttershy observed, in her quiet voice that seemed to try to hide behind the other sounds in the room.  She closed her eyes, her smile widening with honest delight.  “Oh, it makes me feel all warm just being in the same room with that kind of happiness.”  Her eyes opened again.  “I hope you all have a *wonderful* evening.”  The other pegasus quietly turned and followed Rarity out.

	Rainbow smiled, delighted by the reactions of her friends.  She looked at her dates, seeing similar smiles on both of them.  ::Well,:: she thought, ::as long as my friends are happy, everyone else can just go jump down a well.::  Her smile grew to a grin.  ::We’re happy, and our friends are happy for us. That’s pretty much all that matters, right?::