Rhino slowly eases his eyes open, smiling at the source of the familiar and welcome weight on his chest. He lightly kisses the changeling's nose. "Rise and shine my little firefly~."

She doesn't respond at first, just laying upon him. A small blush form on her cheeks, though, from the nickname, betraying the fact that she is awake.

He smiles wider as he rubs noses with her. "Since when are you the sleepy one in this relationship?"

She peeks open an eye, embarrassed. "...o-only because of what happened yesterday..." She sighs, absently flicking her tail across his hind legs. "...I'm still a little drained from that...as well as mentally, from last night..." She winks playfully at him.

He raises an eyebrow. "Oh? Since when are you so worn out from our usual little dream adventures?" He looks at the clock. "At least we managed to wake up on time..." He smirks as he raises a hoof to her ribs. "Come on you... you know what you have to do..."

She rolls her eyes and climbs off him and the couch. She pauses momentarily, stretching her forelegs out, her tail naturally raising at the same time. This would've been considered an accident, if she didn't give him a sultry smile over her shoulder.

He blushes at the view, hoping he never takes it for granted. His lower half shifts under the covers as he gazes at her. "I-I take it you're feeling a bit... warm this morning?"

She immediately straightens up, embarrassed. "...m-maybe...t-thankfully, I'm not in heat..." She glances back at herself, frowning at her flagging tail. "...now if only my tail would get the message..."

Rhino politely looks away. "Well, ignoring our apparently same minded nethers... umm, actually you bring up something I had a quick question about... you were in heat not long ago... do changelings have the same heats as ponies?"

"That depends on what you mean by 'same heats'." She puts on her glasses, going into 'tutor mode'. "The sensations are the same for both of us, but last a shorter amount of time for changelings - about half the length - but happen more often." She shrugs a bit. "I told you about the potions I use to control most of the symptoms." She turns away, muttering quietly to herself. "...need to get more of those before my next one..." She looks back at him, curious. "Is there anyone here who makes potions?"

He thinks a moment. "I think Manila mentioned something about an herbalist zebra in the Everfree... but first... how often are we talking?"

She waves a forehoof dismissively. "Oh, every three months. Now, this zebra..." She narrows her eyes slightly, leaning close to him. "...when can we go see her?"

He grimaces at the thought of having to go into the Everfree. "Umm... I guess whenever you want? We'll just have to be careful..."

She smiles softly, kissing him tenderly before turning back away, taking the blanket off him and folding it. "...okay, love...how does Sunday sound?" She heads towards the hallway, ignorant of her still-flagging tail.

He blushes again. "Umm... you might want to act on it now..."

She opens the door to the hall closet, putting the blanket away. Figuring she's too far away to be heard, she uses their link. What do you mean, love?

He rolls over onto his stomach to cover himself. Umm... your... tail...

She glances over her shoulder, frowning slightly. ...oh, that...like I said, the potion doesn't really help with libido...so it's stuck like this until I calm down or take a cold shower... She re-enters the living room, her scrubs following her moments later. She pauses mid-step, seeing his current position. "...do you need one, too?"

His face is red as he shoves it into the couch. Well it's not like you're exactly helping... why did you have to be sexy...

She quirks an eyebrow at this, her tail lowering over her plot. "...I'm going to take that as a compliment." She sighs, walking over and gently nuzzling his cheek. "...well...the good news is your hearing's back..."

He smiles, nuzzling her back before a sound outside causes his ears to perk up. "Is that... wings?" He turns to the window and peeks out the curtains they keep closed so Gel can walk freely. "Oh, it's the mailmare."

Gel sighs, quickly shifting into Angel in a burst of flame. Quickly putting on her scrubs, she makes her way to the door, opening it just as the pegasus was about to knock. She gives a surprised look before smiling kindly. "Good morning..." She glances at the rising sun, honestly confused. "...may I ask why you're here so early?"

The grey pegasus smiles. "I'm just trying my route backwards for a while, keeps things interesting. Plus I get to see all the ponies I'm usually too late to see!" She dips her head into her bags and comes up with two letters. She takes them out of her mouth with a wing so she can speak. "Here you go! Two letters for the Rhino residence!"

Gel nods and smiles kindly, taking the letters in her magic. "Thank you, Miss Doo. You have a nice day, okay?"

Ditzy's eyes cross momentarily as she gives a salute. "The same to you Mrs. Rhino!" She takes off, heading down the street.

Gel blushes brightly. "...Mrs. Rhino..." She smiles softly as she closes the door. "...I like the sound of that..." She enters the living room, mail in tow.

Rhino is still laying on his stomach, but has procured himself a glass of milk to focus his mind. He looks up as Gel walks back into the room. "Anything good?"

She glances at the envelopes before looking up at him, surprised. "...they're for you...one from Cloudsdale..." She shifts through them, blinking quietly. "...and one from Canterlot..." She floats them over to him.

His mouth twitches in an unreadable expression. "I bet I know who these are from..." He slits them open with magic and reads them one after another, his expression unchanging. "Yep, I was right..." He looks up. "Well, good news... My parents are coming into town..."

She beams brightly at him. "That's great news!" She falters, seeing his lack of expression. "...i-is...something wrong, Rhino?"

He shifts to a sitting position before slowly letting out a breath and leaning back. "No no, it's nothing." He puts on a smile. "I'm sure it'll be fine... no stopping it now..."

She quirks an eyebrow, bemused. "...you know, we eat love...but we can sense other emotions, too..." She falters, glancing away momentarily. "...well, experienced or gifted changelings can, at least..." She nervously clears her throat. "...a-anyways, you seem worried...anxious..." She places a hoof on his back. "...please...tell me what the matter is..."

He covers his eyes with his hooves as he groans. "The matter is that I'm paranoid... I've got countless scenarios running in my head from this that if I even tried to vocalize more than one would make me sound like a gibbering idiot! Every constant, every variable runs through my head as I try to envision things but the bad are the ones that come up the most because they are what I fear!" He hunches forward. "I just..." His speech devolves into inscrutable noises until he finally yanks a pillow off the couch, buries his face into it, and screams. Afterwards, he comes back up gasping for air.

She stares, completely stunned by this. "...usually that doesn't happen, in my novels..." She clears her throat. "...so you just...fear the worst..." She rubs the back of her neck, unsure of what to say. "...well...I'm certain they'll be happy for us...even if they aren't..." She places a hoof on his chin, turning his head to face hers. "...that's not the end of the world...I'll still love you, no matter what others say...even if they are your parents...or even the whole of Ponyville..."

He averts his eyes and sighs. "Sorry... I just tend to bottle stress... even if most of the time I'm minimizing the stress itself." He hugs her, resting his head on her shoulder. "It... probably won't be as bad as I was thinking... it's the fact that it could that scares me... and the fact that I won't be able to give us the best life possible if it does..." He sits up and takes a long drink of his milk, until the glass runs dry. He sets it down and looks over to her. "Sorry again... and... thank you." He nuzzles her lovingly. "I really do love you, you know that? I feel like I don't say it enough sometimes..."

She smiles, gently nuzzling him back. "...I know, love..." She wraps a hoof around his shoulder and pulls carefully on him. "...it's time to get ready for work, though...so no more lounging about..." She winks playfully at him.

"Alright, alright..." He gets up, sorting out his thoughts. "A nice walk will be good for clearing my head anyway." He begins his usual ritual to get ready for the day.

***

The day thankfully passes by normally and without stress after that. The usual boredom associated with a slow flow of customers in the early morning, is eagerly filled by the antics of the little pets and idle conversation. Partially during the shift, Rhino is in the back taking stock on the usual shots for pets while Gel mans the front desk. The door slides open, announcing the entrance of a familiar purple-maned yellow pegasus.

The white mare looks up, smiling kindly and reflexively speaking. "Hello, there! How may I help-" She cuts herself off, finally recognizing the pony in front of her. "...S-Silk?"

Her former employer's smile doesn't waver, but she does raise an eyebrow at seeing Gel. "Angel? What a coincidence. Do you work here now?"

"...um...y-yes, I do..." She averts her eyes, shame starting to fill her. "...listen...a-about the other day..." She rubs the back of her neck. "...s-so much had happened...I-I guess the stress of it all just got to me...what I mean is..." She quietly sighs. "...I'm sorry for exploding at you like that..."

Silk's smile stays but something about her tone is... off. Her words are kind but it's as if... the intent is not as perceived. "Yes well, it was a stressful day for everypony. I would apologize and perhaps offer you the chance to earn your job back, but I somehow think you've found a better place, especially considering if your boss is who I think it is." Her tongue sticks out a moment as she wets her lip.

Gel gives her a small frown, hurt at the negative emotions coming off the pegasus. "...Silk...I'm trying, here..." Her gaze falls to the desk. "...please...I-I want us to be friends, again..."

The pegasus simply keeps smiling away. "I suppose we'll have to see what happens then, won't we? But enough chatter." She takes the pet carrier from her back and places it on the desk, letting the kitten out. "Mittens has an appointment."

She sighs, searching for the folder. Rhino, there's another patient waiting for you. "You'll have to wait a little bit. Doctor Rhino is on his way..."

Silk nods. "Very well." She turns towards the hallway and simply waits.

Meanwhile, a certain gray-blue kitten walks around the typewriter, tilting her head curiously at the other cat. 'Hello. Who might you be?'

The calico kitten tilts her head curiously at the other feline. 'Mittens, who are you?'

'Selena.' She looks over at her owner, watching as she pulls out the right folder before continuing, holding a paw out. 'Charmed.'

Mittens looks at the offered paw before slowly raising her own paw and touching the outstretched one. 'Umm, nice to meet you.'

Rhino comes out from the back and sees the client. "Ah... hello Silk. Is mittens ready?" As a vet, he has the excuse to focus more on the pet than the owner.

Silk nods as she gathers up the calico and follows the stallion to the examination room.

Mittens meows in protest. 'Hey! I was in the middle of a conversation!'

'Hey!' Selena leaps off the desk and chases after the retreating ponies.

The group arrives at the exam room and Silk sets Mittens on the table as Rhino begins his examination. "So, any problems lately?"

Silk's smile is more genuine now. "No, but thank you for asking."

Mitten's back arches as the stallion starts rubbing her down to check her muscles. 'Oh~ that feels good~.'

The gray-blue kitten leaped up onto the table, smiling brightly. 'Isn't it just? Dad's great when it comes to this.'

The calico purrs as the rubbing ends. 'This is your dad? Lucky.' She looks up at the ponies talking when suddenly Rhino goes to one of the jars and comes back with a fish-shaped treat, putting it in front of Mittens. 'Hello tasty!' She looks over to Selena before crunching the treat into two pieces and sliding one over.

She purrs, smiling softly at the other kitten. 'Thank you so much.' She leans down, gratefully taking the tail piece offered.

Mittens munches on her own treat before replying. 'You're welcome! I wonder why he gave that to me anyway-' Suddenly she is held in place by magic. 'Uh oh... I don't like this part...' She braces herself as Rhino comes over with the shots.

Selena gently places a paw on one of Mittens'. 'Don't worry. He'll be done before you know it.' She looks up at Rhino, mewing at him.

He looks down at the mewing kitten. "Awww, supporting your friend Selena? That's my girl." He pets her before getting back to work. He quickly gives the calico her few shots and then lets her go after giving her a new treat.

Mittens meows as she shakes her slightly sore rump. 'Ow... I'll be glad when I don't have to get these anymore...'

'You and me both, friend.' Selena pauses to lick her paw before looking at the other feline, curious. 'We are friends, right?'

Mittens tilts her head. 'Well of course we are! The only thing we haven't done is share a ball of yarn!'

The gray-blue kitten smiles, nodding happily. 'That does sound exquisite. I'm sure we have one around here, somewhere...' She looks off into the distance, thinking a bit. 'It'd be so much easier if we could just communicate with them.'

Mittens snickers. 'Yeah... but how would we ever do that?'

She shakes her head, sighing softly. 'I haven't the slightest idea.'

At that moment, Gel turns to put a paper in the typewriter but stops, curious. There, already written on a piece of parchment, was some words. She tilts her head to the side, reading them out loud. "...the quick silver fox jumped over the drowsy blue mare..." She puts a hoof to her chin, pushing the 'z' key. Nothing happens. "Oh, I see. It's broken." She turns away, muttering to herself. "I should see about getting that fixed...but who typed that?"

***

The appointment goes as well as can be expected. Mittens and Selena pal around while Silk says polite things while thinking other things. Rhino maintains neutrality but switches to comfort mode afterwards. Luckily the rest of the shift goes normally and the two drop the pets off at home as usual before heading out on their errands, the only one for today being at Carousel Boutique.

Gel walks alongside her stallion, pressing her side against his as she leans on him. She spent most of the walk brooding and the last three minutes thinking to him about Silk. ...I feel terrible, and she still... She groans in exasperation. ...you know?

He nuzzles her to convey his feelings. I know, love... I know... At least she's not hostile though, right?

She sighs, giving him a half-smile. ...I guess... She looks up at the building in front of them, playfully bumping him. You'll help me try them on, right?

He lightly blushes. Umm... well... I mean if you have trouble getting them on I suppose I could help.. but it might give the wrong impression...

She giggles, moving ahead and brushing her tail along his cheek. It'll be fine, love. Trust me.

His nose huffs as the tail hairs cross it. He smirks at her. Alright then, lead the way.

She leads him to the door and knocks before realizing what she did. She groans, covering her face with a hoof to hide her embarrassment. ...I did it again...

He quirks an eyebrow as he can hear the owner of the shop calling out that she is on her way. Did what?

Knocked on a public building. She lowers her hoof, looking at him. I do that far too often.

He shrugs. It's just polite.

The fabulous alabaster unicorn answers the door. "Hello, oh Angel! Good to see you darling, come in come in!" As she stands aside she sees Rhino behind the mare. "Of course you are welcome in as well, sir!"

"Thank you, Miss Rarity." She steps inside and turns, smiling kindly at the mare. "I was wondering, what styles of swimsuits do you have in stock?"

Rarity's smiles lowers a small amount. "Oh... my apologies Angel, but I'm afraid with it being the beginning of summer, the initial rush took most of my premade stock... Honestly I was about to start restocking it on my next slow day..."

Gel blinks, stunned by this. "...oh...okay, then..." She turns to Rhino, nervous. ...I-I didn't plan for this...w-what are we going to do?

He smiles calmly at her. Don't worry. He turns to the fashionista. "Miss Rarity, though we have not met, I do know of your reputation. Would you be willing to do a custom order swimsuit?"

Rarity's eyes light up. "Oh, that could be fun! I would be most willing to do that Mister... Oh dear me, I never asked your name, how rude of me."

He supplies it with a small bow. "Doctor Rhino, ma'am. A pleasure to meet you."

She giggles. "Oh, a gentlecolt... Very nice to make your acquaintance as well..." She looks over in Gel's direction and whispers. "Dare I assume this is the stallion you spoke of all those weeks ago?"

She blushes brightly, nodding and smiling softly. "...y-yes, he is...a-and my coltfriend..."

Rarity's eyes practically sparkle at that information. She giggles before responding with a fire in her eyes. "Oh, we'll have to make that swimsuit something to really astound him then!" She goes back to her normal volume, her red glasses floating over onto her muzzle. "So, darling, did you have anything specific in mind?"

She blushes even more, nervous. "...something...f-form fitting...light blue primary color...maybe a size small, because...I-I want to lose a bit of weight before swimsuit season..." She glances at Rhino before leaning in close, whispering into the other mare's ear. "...and...c-could you add a snap, please?"

The dressmaker nods understandingly. "Oh yes, I see. Certainly, dear." She gives Angel a once over before nodding again and stepping into her workshop and starting to have her materials dance around her. "Was that all you needed today?"

"...well..." She taps her chin, thinking a bit. "...I can't think of anything, at the moment..." She turns to Rhino. "...what about you, love?"

He puts a hoof to his chin as the materials float around them. "No thank you, I'm content with what I have."

Rarity quickly whips up a base suit on one of the mannequins. It's a simple solid light blue, one piece swimsuit with the snap in the back for easier putting on or removal. She levitates it off and over to Gel. "Here you are, Angel. Let's get the size right first, and then we can worry about the design."

She nods, heading over to one of the changing rooms. ...care to join me, love?

He starts heading over. Alright, but let me make it look less odd for Rarity. He stands with his back to the screen. "Let me know if you need any help."

A white foreleg reaches out and pulls him into the tiny room. She spins him around, revealing that she'd changed back into her normal form, aside from one leg - the one she pulled him in with. "I could really use your help." She quickly yet carefully slips the outfit on, closing the snap with a burst of magic. "...so, w-what do you think?"

His gazes washes over her. "Hmm..." He walks around her, making sure to see all of it, even if once he passed her backside he had a blush. "The neck seems a bit loose... Flanks are a bit tight..." What do you want to do about your wings?

She nods quietly, taking the swimsuit off. "Thank you, Rhino..." There's a good thing about having thin wings. They can fit right up against your sides. She puts the outfit on his back as she calls to the dressmaker. "I think that's about it, Miss Rarity."

Rhino walks out and passes the garment to the fashionista. She shifts it in her magic as she looks at it from different angles. "I heard what you said about it, let me just make the appropriate adjustments..." She doesn't bring out a mannequin but instead simply holds the swimsuit as she adjusts it. After a moment, the needles, thread, and scissors ceasing moving and she passes it back to him. "Here, see if this fits any better."

He smiles as he takes it back ."Thank you very much Miss Rarity." He re-enters the dressing room with the swimsuit and holds it out to Gel.

The changeling takes it and puts it back on. She smiles brightly, doing a little spin. "This is perfect! Miss Rarity, you are amazing!" She looks to Rhino, giving him a lidded look. "Don't you agree, love?"

He smiles and nods appreciatively. "Perfect." I can't wait to see it once it's finished.

She smiles, nodding as well. Neither can I. She carefully takes it off and moves to exit the changing room.

Rhino's eyes widen and he grabs her shoulder with his magic. Woah! You can't go out there like that!

She blinks, looking at him in confusion. Why not? Ponies go about without clothes all the time, right?

He sighs. Yes love, but you aren't, and certainly don't currently look like, a pony.

She finally glances down at herself, blushing brightly in embarrassment. ...o-oh... She quickly changes back into Angel. She rubs the back of her neck. ...s-sorry, I was a little...e-excited, there...

He shakes his head. It's fine, but you need to be careful, love, I don't want to lose you.

She nods, gently kissing his cheek. ...I'll be more careful...I don't want to lose you, either... She steps out into the main room, smiling kindly at the other mare. "...s-so, when do you think it'll be ready?"

Rarity takes the basic suit from her. "Darling, don't you know? For orders like this, I can do them while you wait. In fact... I think I already have a plan for what I want the design to be. You're welcome to watch while i fix it up." Her horn lights up and all the pieces of the room begin to slowly rotate around her. Golden fabric flows like a river towards the main piece. Scissors glide along various parts as the shape is refined. Needles flit like hummingbirds as they dive into the fabric. All in all, one can see that this is truly the mare's element. After a mesmerizing few minutes, she covers the completed piece with a cloth and turns to the stunned couple. "Ready to see the completed piece? I dare say it turned out better than I hoped!"

Gel nods numbly, still too shocked for words.

Rarity whips off the cloth to reveal the suit. The base color is still obviously the light blue, but now there is far more to it. The neckline has plunged into a v-neck. At the point of the neck are the beginnings of two golden stripes that glide back over the shoulders and slim out to non-existence just before reaching the cutie marks. The bottom also has similar swishes of color, though these are dark blue and instead of flowing down the body, it runs down the sternum and flows out into branches that circle into the holes for the legs. The whole thing has that sleek and sexy look, designed to accentuate the curves while still maintaining a sleek figure. Finally, of course there is the snap at the back above the tail so that the garment may be put on head first instead of tail first.

Gel, seeing this, beams, rushing forward in excitement. "Miss Rarity, this is simply divine!" She turns to her, eyes shining with awe. "You are truly an artist of clothes!" She realizes how bold she's being and shrinks back a bit in embarrassment. "...um...w-what I mean is...thank you..."

Rarity does a ladylike titter. "I'm glad you like it dear. Much better than a premade one don't you agree?" She takes her glasses off as her smile becomes more business-like. "Now, about payment..."

Rhino raises his hoof. "I'll take care of that."

The blonde unicorn turns to him, shaking her head. "No, love, I'll pay it." She turns to Rarity, tilting her head to one side. "...how much is it?"

The other mare puts a hoof to her chin as she thinks. "Well... considering fabric cost, labor, custom order fee..." She walks over and says the number in a low tone so Rhino can't hear.

Gel nods slowly. "...that seems reasonable...more than I expected, but not too much..." She pulls out a medium-sized bag of bits, pulling one out before giving her the rest. "That should be the right amount..."

Rarity levitates the coins and shakes the bag once before nodding. "That it is, did you want me to wrap it up for you?" She heads to a chest in the corner and puts the bits in it.

She shakes her head, smiling softly at her. "No thank you..." She gently nuzzles her stallion's cheek and giggles softly. "...he already knows what his surprise is...so I'll just take it home in my saddlebags..."

The fashionista smiles knowingly. "Very well darling." She levitates the suit over to Gel who promptly stows it in her saddlebags. "Well, thank you very much for your patronage." She opens the door and holds it for them. As the two pass by her, she whispers to Gel. "Be sure to let me know if you ever find out he has a brother." She winks.

She smiles back, nodding kindly. "You'll be the first." She sidles up next to him, entwining her tail in his. ...do you have a brother? Or any siblings, for that matter?

He chuckles as they begin their journey home. Sorry, only child. So, looking more forward to swimming lessons now that you have an outfit for it?

...not really... She averts her eyes, her cheeks flushed with color. ...I still have a...strong aversion to standing water...

He nuzzles her gently as they walk. Well, good thing we're starting off small tonight, huh?

She tenses, an eye twitching slightly. ...oh, right...