Rarity smiled as she waved to Adalricus and Fluttershy, taking quick note of Fluttershy’s grip on him. “Why hello you two, you seem to be growing closer by the minute,” she observed with a giggle.

Spike, who never met Adalricus before, smiled as he also waved. “Hi Fluttershy!” He looked at Adalricus who kept a calm smile and seemingly not surprised to meet a dragon. It was actually nice to see that a new pony wasn’t intimidated by him. “Hi, I am Spike,” he introduced himself, standing reaching out to shake Adalricus’ hand.

Adalricus happily shook his head, never experiencing socialization with an actual dragon. He only heard stories from Raúl over how dragons were, and found the texture of his hand to be odd. However, what else did he expect from making contact with scales? “Pleasure to meet you Spike, I am Adalricus,” he introduced himself.

After the exchanges of greetings, Adalricus conveniently managed to find two empty chairs nearby. He happily pulled it for Fluttershy, who smiled brightly as she sat down. As for him, he reached for his own chair only to instead touch another pony. A pony who yelped as he almost touched her breast. “I am so sorry!” he quickly said, embarrassed that he wasn’t looking.

“T-That’s fine!” Twilight quickly said, not wanting to make things turn out ugly. She was already trying to patch things up with Raúl and clearly this was also a new friend of her friends as well. “P-Pleasure to meet you Adalricus!” she quickly said, laughing nervously. “I am T-Twilight Sparkle!” With that, she held out her hand to shake his just as Spike did. Much to her relief, Adalricus didn’t hesitate.

“Pleasure’s all mine!” Adalricus quickly said, as this was becoming a crazy day. Taking a quick observation, he acknowledged the traits of an alicorn. It was odd because he was meeting a real alicorn and not a fake. It became more awkward for him when he recognized the pony responsible for his mother’s defeat…she wasn’t as ugly as her mother claimed.

Twilight nodded with a smile. “So…I see you know everypony else!” she giggled awkwardly. “And you also know Raúl?”

Trying to keep things simple, he nodded. “He’s my roommate actually; we both live here in Sugarcube Corner,” Adalricus explained as he glanced at Raúl who nodded with a ‘smirk’.

“Ah, I didn’t realize that you two came here together,” Twilight said.

Rarity nodded as well. “Yes Twilight, they’re actually moving here as Raúl explained earlier when we ate at that classical diner for lunch.” she explained as she wiped her face from crumbs.

“Really, that’s quite nice!” Twilight said cheerfully, as her wings spread and was happy that things were going quite well. “It’s nice to always meet new ponies from different places,” she added. Naturally she would also do best in avoiding the question of where they were both from, as she didn’t want to make either of them feel uncomfortable.

“Yeah it is! Be liken’ with how Raúl and Adalricus seem to be enjoying themselves, as well as other ponies being fond of them and such,” Applejack commented with a big smile.

While everypony was agreeing, Rarity pointed out an obvious issue. “Well maybe not EVERY pony around here; Scootaloo is still acting quite rudely around Raúl,”

“What?” Adalricus asked, hearing this for the first time as he looked at Rarity in confusion. “Who is Scootaloo, and what do you mean by ‘acting rudely’ around Raúl?”

Instead of simply explaining, Rarity’s horn glowed indicating the intent to use magic. The table lifted into the air, much to everypony’s surprise as the filly appeared to be hiding under it. This time, she was using metal tongs.

“Um…” This time, she was just stunned by how easily she was being discovered.

“Scootaloo!” Applejack said angrily. “Wait, did you follow me and Twilight?!”

“I-I-” Scootaloo started.

Twilight, who was now just starting to enjoy her day for the first time, glared angrily at the orange filly. As she was about to say something, Raúl intervene.

“Come now everyone; she’s just a filly.” Raúl said, as he surprised Scootaloo by lifting her upwards and onto his lap, controlling the situation for the time being.

“Oh don’t be soft on her Raúl; she’s the one who started those awful rumors about you and Adalricus being changelings!” Rarity pointed out with disgust, as she lowered the table back to its original position. “Making horrible stories of how you were going to eat her and she refuses to apologize-”

Raúl however interrupted. “Actually, I should be the one apologizing…” Raúl ‘frowned’ as Scootaloo was shaking nervously on his lap.

“What?” Twilight said, as she became quite confused.

“Yeah I actually did say something along those lines,” he confessed. Before anypony could say anything, he continued on. “You see, Scootaloo here was obsessed with me and Adalricus because we were foreign. Thus, she started asking more and more questions about us repeatedly and I…” This time, Raúl looked at Adalricus, who kept a calm expression despite the fact that he was likely shocked to learn about this for the first time. “…I lied to her in order to scare her off. We were stressed and tired from our travels, and I let my anger get the best of me. I am sorry for the situation that was created; I do hope you can all forgive a dummy like me,” he explained, giving a hopeful smile as he rubbed his head with a guilt expression. “And I am sorry for being mean to you…Scootaloo. I didn’t mean to make an asshole out of myself. Can you forgive me and stop spreading rumors? I really like Ponyville…and I don’t really hate you or anything…”

Silence surrounded the table as Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack were stunned. Spike was confused but eventually understood everything, as he leaned back and was able to handle this with ease. Fluttershy was also quite surprised, because this was the first she had heard of such a thing, just as Spike. Adalricus was also surprised, but he kept the same expression, not wanting draw attention in such a matter. Silence lasted for nearly a minute, as no pony could think of anything to say at the present moment. And as for Scootaloo…

“…You’re lying!” was what she managed to shout.

This time, Raúl frowned legitimately. “What?”

“I don’t trust you! Y-You’re just lying so that you can actually eat me! I know that changelings do that-”

“Ok, Rarity was right; I am being too nice…” Raúl stood up, lifting Scootaloo over her shoulder much to her surprise. “Pinkie?”

“Yes?” Pinkie Pie asked cheerfully, as she appeared with a tray holding a mug of coffee.

“Thank you sweetie~” Raúl sung happily, as he took the mug with his free hand and kissed Pinkie Pie on the cheek. “Do the Cakes have a discipline paddle by any chance?”

“Oh yeah, in their room!” Pinkie Pie giggled.

“Perfect,” Raúl said as he turned to face every other pony. “Call me old fashion, but spanking seems affective, no?”

While Adalricus wanted to protest, not wanting to see Raúl do anything rash, the one pony who agreed with Raúl had shocked Adalricus and everypony else.

“O-Oh yes! T-Teach her to stop lying horrible things a-about you two!” Fluttershy agreed loudly.

“Say what?!” Scootaloo asked loudly, before the other ponies could.

“Thanks Fluttershy!” Raúl said, carrying the struggling Scootaloo wards the kitchen. She kicked and struggled to break free, calling for help in a comedic fashion before they disappeared.

Adalricus looked at Fluttershy with great confusion; he never expected her to support discipline. Then again, she was full of surprises today as she only smiled and moved closer against him, not wanting him to go away. Wait, was she…protecting him?

Rarity, who was embarrassed that Scootaloo was actually telling the truth, simply continued to drink her tea, hoping that no other pony would point out her mistake and request her apology towards Scootaloo. Of course, that didn’t mean that she wouldn’t eventually; she was waiting until the appropriate time came. Meanwhile, Spike just went ahead and accepted it; his previous experiences taught him to just not question what the situation is for a previous issue. He chuckled as he stood up and stretched out his wings and arms. Applejack excused herself to use the restroom, as everything that occurred was too much for her to comprehend. And for Twilight, she simply shook her head and sat down.

As for the lovely couple of Adalricus and Fluttershy, they simply shared a chair because Fluttershy was being quite affectionate. Her open affection was still odd to Adalricus, as the small amount of time that they’ve been together seemed to really take a huge turning point. Little did he know, this was likely because Fluttershy was never in a serious relationship before in her life and was completely new to this. Then again, was it really that bad? Would anything of negative consequences occur if Adalricus and Fluttershy allow things to go on at such a rate?

“…” Adalricus wrapped his arms around Fluttershy’s stomach before he moved his chin on her shoulder. He smiled softy, as he could tell that Fluttershy really liked him…him.

Fluttershy frowned as Adalricus gestured her to move off of him after only fifteen minutes. He gave her a sad smile, which made Fluttershy return the gesture with a frown. “Adalricus…?”

“Hey, I am feeling not myself right now…I am going to use the restroom now.” Adalricus explained, smiling as he released her hand and made his way to the restrooms and leaving a confused Fluttershy. As he moved in the direction of the restrooms, he gave a nod to the rest of the ponies before disappearing.

Fluttershy placed a small fist between her breasts, unsure on how to react as she looked to her friends. “What is wrong with him?”

While her friends wanted to give the answer that Fluttershy wanted, they too were confused. However, “Um Fluttershy? How long have you been with Adalricus…?” Twilight asked. She naturally to believed that Fluttershy must have known Adalricus long enough that she was acting so relax around him. However, her jaw dropped after Applejack pointed out the actual amount of time that they’ve been ‘together’. “Not even a week??” Twilight asked, thunderstruck by what she had heard.

Slightly embarrassed and confused, “D-D-Did I r-r-rush things? I re-re-really like him a-and-”

“Fluttershy, two days of getting to know a pony isn’t enough to justify a committed relationship!” Twilight said with concern, as she was standing up and trying her best to stay calm. “Why do you even feel-”

“Twilight,” Spike interrupted, wanting to avoid an emotional conversation. “Look, I get your concern but maybe we shouldn’t get involved.”

Twilight couldn’t believe what Spike just said; out of all ponies- or dragon in this case, she expected him to be on her side. Especially when he was quite protective over the ponies that he knew. “S-Spike…how can you-” she stuttered.

“Look, I am also worried about Fluttershy taking things ‘fast’, don’t get me wrong,” Spike explained, wanting to clarify. “But maybe she should figure out things on her own,” he added.

“Spike!” This time, Rarity got involved in the conversation again, she was also feeling betrayed by Spike’s nature. “How could you say that you’re ‘worried’ about her when you don’t want us to help her-”

“Maybe because we’re ALWAYS helping her?”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Say what now?”

Spike gave them a displeased expression. “Every one of you keeps treating her like a filly! Each and every time she does something that would be not so ‘concerning’ to others if it wasn’t her, you all hold her hand as if she doesn’t know the difference between day and night! The way you all acted when you found out that I was sleeping with her, you thought that I was putting pressure on her as if she couldn’t really decide for herself! Fluttershy is stronger than you think and you have to trust her with the decisions that she makes, like a true friend would!”

“I-” Applejack started, but then closed her mouth to consider what Spike said. Looking at the others, they too realized what Spike was trying to point out as Fluttershy remained silent.

“You know…I think he has a point…” Twilight frowned as she said those words, realizing that she was often overprotective. The others seemed to agree, although they wondered if Rainbow Dash would feel the same if she were here. “Fluttershy…” Twilight turned to face her friend but looked down. “…I-” Her words were interrupted as Fluttershy hugged her, making her even more stunned and confused.

“I…a so lucky…” There was a sniffle. “…I am so lucky to have you as a friend!” she managed to cry.

Twilight was so touched to hear those words, as she returned the hug nice and tightly, enjoying this moment as she smiled while holding back a few tears. The rest of her friends smiled on, also touched by what Fluttershy said. After they hugged, Twilight decided to press on the subject over Fluttershy’s concern. “Anyway…you think that maybe things are happening too fast between you and Adalricus that he’s bothered by it? Maybe he’s just surprised with how you’re so affectionate towards him?” she suggested, as it would be a likely explanation.

However, it turned out to be more complicated than that as Adalricus washed his face for perhaps the tenth time in a row in the restroom. He looked at himself in the mirror for at least another minute, as he blinked only once, perhaps twice. Conveniently, the private stall was not occupied and he was able to give himself that desired privacy. He allowed his hands to dry without paper towels, drip drying on the side of his hips.

“…” His expression seemed calm but also somewhat sad. Why should it be sad? After all, he was finding pleasure in ways that he never came to experience prior to his visit to Ponyville. And Fluttershy was really something special…her voice, her appearance, her…kindness. Yes she was acting differently than he expected, but he believed it was because she felt safe and secure with him well enough to not feel timid. However, one thing did worry and stress him more than his own mother.

“She likes me…” Adalricus engulfed himself in green fire to reveal his true self. It had honestly been quite some time since he took a good long look at his changeling-self. His expression remained the same despite the change. “…right?” he finished, as displeasure began to show across his face…

***********************************************

The next two weeks were quite pleasant for Adalricus, as he saw Fluttershy every single day. They would either spend most of the day at her home, or spend time traveling for important errands that Fluttershy needed to tend to. And of course, the occasional socializing with the mane six and their male friends. It was all too well for Adalricus, as Fluttershy oddly enough started to become more humble; not as confident as she did during the first few days but overall comfortable enough for things not to be ‘odd’ between either of their standards.

“Ahhhh,” Raúl yawned, as he walked out of the shower and dried himself properly for a few minutes. “Nothing beats a hot stream shower,” he commented in relief. He smiled as he ran his hand through his wet mane.

“Eyup~!” Pinkie Pie agreed, as she finished drying her own body and winked at Raúl before she opened the door. Both wrapped in towels, she gave him a kiss. “Have a good night honey,” she said sweetly.

“You too my crazy pink devil,” Raúl said with a big smile. He waved back as he made his way to his room. By the gods, I am actually falling for her! he realized with a chuckle. It was true: Raúl was indeed falling for Pinkie Pie, which was not something that he could have foreseen after his previous experiences with ponies for so many years. He opened the door into his bedroom and acknowledged Adalricus who was leaning against the open widow. “Hola Parce~” he sung cheerfully.

However, Adalricus said nothing as he continued to look into the dark sky. The stars were out and the moon was barely visible due to the clouds. Yet, the cool breeze had little effect on the changeling.

“Hey, are you alive your highness?” Raúl teased.

“Very funny,” Adalricus remarked, without turning to face him.

Raúl’s smile lightened a bit. “What’s on your mind Adalricus?” he asked as he started to change.

Adalricus said nothing. He only watched the sky for another minute before Raúl repeated his question.

“Something is seriously bugging you?” Raúl asked, as he put on a white shirt and started to dry his mane even more with his towel. “Or are you thinking about Fluttershy?”

“Actually, yes I am.”

“Oh? You two should move in together at her home so that I can have this room for myself,” Raúl remarked with a grin.

This time, Adalricus scoffed at what Raúl said. “Would she welcome a changeling to spend the night with her?”

Raúl’s grin slowly vanished. “What?”

“Raúl…” Adalricus turned to face him this time and moved closer. “…how can I continue on like this with Fluttershy if she doesn’t know who or what I truly am?”

Raúl was not liking where Adalricus was going with this. “You don’t mean…”

“But I do,” Adalricus confirmed with displeasure. “Every time I am with her, I feel…more than happy. It feels like I am REALLY happy when I am around her,”

“Ah…” Raúl crossed his arms, as his prediction came true. “So you are truly in love with her after all,” he observed. “And not just as a small crush either…”

Adalricus rolled his eyes. “I think that’s already been established.”

“And yet you didn’t realize it until only recently,” Raúl pointed out. “As to the fact that Fluttershy shares the same feelings towards you…perhaps even more.”

“What?”

Raúl showed a serious expression. “Those symptoms that you had before: frequent pain, the inconsistency with your transformations, I wasn’t entirely sure at first but after taking note of how you’ve been in the last three weeks, but it’s clear now,” Raúl explained as he sat on his bed and continued to dry his mane. “Those signs are commonly believed to be because that changeling is making themselves vulnerable: loving a creature that doesn’t exchange the same feeling, results in the opposite of what happens between a changeling and a creature in the case of ‘love’.”

“I-” Adalricus started, but stopped in order to understand what Raúl was getting at. “Wait, so instead of me taking energy from a non-changeling by the form of love, I was giving away my own?” he asked, before running his hand through his mane.

Raúl confirmed with a nod. “It may be difficult to believe since the case is so rare, but it’s true. I heard of this case happening only once before so I wasn’t entirely sure,” Raúl explained. “In any case, given that your symptoms vanished a week after you started dating Fluttershy, you’re both keeping each other healthy and well.”

“Wait, is that why Fluttershy has been so confident around me at times?” Adalricus asked. After what happened between him and her on the day of that trip, he did ask the others about Fluttershy’s nature based on his experiences. It was true: Fluttershy did seem different, as if she was feeling ‘alive’ for the first time in her life. Whereas he stopped experiencing those symptoms that were causing issues in his body. Adalricus than shook his head, as it mattered little by the issue that he was having. “Regardless, I can’t keep living his lie,” he argued, as he sat on his bed and looked to the ground. “The female servants have no personality of their own back at our kingdom, my mother doesn’t respect my wishes and refuses to take me seriously, and now, I figured out why these strange things have been happening between me and Fluttershy…why are females so complicated?”

Adalricus looked at Raúl with a soft expression. “I can’t understand them at all…at least, not well enough to where I know that Fluttershy, or the others would accept me for who I am.”

As if expecting that statement, Raúl sighed loudly. “Adalricus, did you seriously expect females to be that simple?”

“Well…yes?” Adalricus confessed.

Raúl stared at Adalricus with a blank expression. “Come here,” he said as he stood up and walked over to the opened window. “I want to show you something.”

Confused by Raúl’s actions, Adalricus stood up and walked over to the window right next to him, where he then pointed at a certain direction. Adalricus looked at one of the homes where neighboring ponies stayed. “Just watch,” said Raúl. Suddenly, one of the doors opened and a naked mare walked out in an angry mood.

“I am not doing that Fro!” said a mare who covered her naked body with clothing as she glared at the doorway. She appeared quite attractive from what Adalricus could judge from his view, mostly based on her figure

“Oh come on beautiful; keep an open-mind!” a stallion remarked, following her in his boxers as he stood in his doorway. Funny enough, he did have a curly mane and seemed physically attractive enough.

“No, you’re a sick animal!” the mare argued with disgust.

“Hey keep it down; I don’t want my neighbors to wake up and see a big old fat dirty whore screaming at me in front of my home,” the curly maned stallion argued back, giving a colder response despite not yelling like her.

“Whore?!” she asked, completely dumbfounded. “Well, maybe I should come in,” she ‘realized’ before calmly walking back into his home. She didn’t seem upset or bothered at all??

“Well maybe you should!” he responded calmly with a glare as he slammed the door behind them.

Obviously stunned, Adalricus was trying to figure out what just happened. “What the buck- WHY would she respond positively to what he just said?? Unless-” Adalricus then stopped as his expression changed. “Raúl, are you saying that females LOVE it when you treat them like shit?” he asked.

“Well I don’t know if you want to be that black and white about it; I wouldn’t say THAT,” Raúl started as he kinda laughed, but quickly dropped the joke. “Look, the point is that most females are quite complicated, unpredictable, and a gamble; you won’t know how Fluttershy feels unless you take the chance to be honest with her. You’ll at least be at peace knowing that you did whatever felt right.”

“…” Adalricus carefully thought about what he said. “You’re right…you’re right Raúl,” Adalricus admitted. “Good thing you just happen to be a good advisor when I need you to be,” Adalricus joked, smiling at his closest of friends.

Raúl smirked. “Well that’s good to know,” he laughed.

Author's Notes:

End is near~ But how near? ;)