After the first day the colt had found his new changeling friend, things proceeded fine for the two. While some might see the friendship between these two beings as odd, for them it was completely normal. For the next few days, the two simply enjoyed themselves as children their age do, not having a care in the world. Rhino would let her in through the window every night and they would sleep comfortably, sneaking her out the next morning. He never did get around to introducing her to anypony else, but everytime he went outside and they started playing, he found he didn't mind. He began to bring bottles of water, lunch, and a blanket, and the two were set for a day of play. He would occasionally bring a snack, but she always said she wasn't hungry. Again, his slightly worried thoughts would always be drowned out in the simple pleasure of spending time with his new friend.

Another day comes, and Rhino finishes his breakfast, immediately getting dressed and heading towards the door. His father, a dark blue unicorn stallion, doesn't say a word, but smiles happily at the thought of his son spending more time outside instead of cooped up in his room.

The colt grins wide as he walks through the yard towards the woods, the bottles of water wrapped up in the blanket under his arm as they usually are. He starts peering through the trees, trying to spot Gel.

Suddenly he's knocked to the ground, tumbling in a mass of blue and green before ending up on his back. On top of him, and currently hugging him, is the girl that he's looking for. She buries her face in the fur of his shoulder, a happy hum coming from her. "Morning." She sits up on his belly, smiling playfully at him. "Did I surprise you?"

He laughs from his position, having gotten used to how physical she can be when she's happy over the last few days. "Yep, it was one of the best surprises I could have gotten."

"Glad you liked it." She giggles, moving to the side so he could sit up. "What would you like to do today? Play hide and seek? Go collect flowers?" She beams brightly, her wings buzzing in her excitement.

"Well, I picked hide and seek yesterday, why don't you pick today?" He sits up, brushing a few leaves out of his mane and tail.

She blinks, clearly caught by surprise. "...b-but... I don't know if I could come up with something good, with all we’ve done before..." She frowns, tapping her chin as she thinks. Her gaze falls to her hand and she straightens up, eyes twinkling. "Would you like to see a trick of mine?"

"Sure! Oh, one sec." He gently pulls a few leaves out of her mane before nodding. "There we go."

She takes one of the leaves and holds it in her palm. She winks at him and turns to it, frowning in concentration. Sweat forms on her brow as the very tip of the leaf starts to smolder.

The colt stares, entranced as he sees the tell-tale spots of light signaling what is about to happen.

She grits her teeth and scrunches her eyes shut, focusing with all her might on it. A moment later, a bright blue flame flickers to life at the tip, though she doesn't seem to realize this. The fire slowly starts to work its way down the leaf, closer to her bare palm.

Rhino stays quiet so he doesn't interrupt her concentration, but as the flame gets closer, he starts to worry. He voices this quietly. "Umm... Gel?"

"Hmm?" She opens her eyes, turning to him in mild confusion. "I-is something w-" Right at that moment, the fire reaches her hand. Her eyes widen instantly and she yelps, flailing her arm in an attempt to stop what had already happened.

The leaf sails through the air, it's flame turning to a normal yellow-orange color as it lands, starting to spread to the other dry loam before a green hoof suddenly stomps and grinds the flame away. Rhino withdraws his hoof and waits a moment, making sure the fire went out before turning to Gel, concerned as he look at her. "You okay?"

She whimpers, holding her injured hand by the wrist. "T-that never happened, before... i-is something wrong with me?" She turns to him, tears welling up in her sapphire eyes. "W-what do I do?"

He holds out his hand to her. "Can I see? Dad's a firepony, and he always said to be careful with it. Maybe I can help."

She nods, taking a step closer to him. "A-alright... I trust you, Rhino..." She gingerly places her hand in his, making certain the burn is facing upwards.

He rotates her hand slowly, looking at the spot where the fire had connected. While the chitin on the back of her hand is fine, the palm side where it turns into her light blue flesh is another story. He notes the purple coloration and nods, glad it's not serious. His horn lights up and the blanket and water bottles float over. He takes a corner of the blankets and soaks it by dumping water onto it. The now wet fabric floats over and he wraps it around her hand, letting the dry part hang down. "That should help... it's what he said to do..."

She sniffles, staring at the cloth. She tentatively glances up at him, fidgeting a bit. "H-how long until... it no longer hurts?"

He thinks. "I... don't know. I mean, this just makes it better, but when I get burn I can always sort of feel them for a few days..." His ears fold down. "Sorry... I'm not sure what else to do..."

She stands silently, fidgeting apprehensively as her cheeks gain a soft blue hue. "...I-I might... b-but I'm not sure it'll work..."

His ears perk up as he looks at her. "What did you have in mind?"

Gel audibly gulps, reaching out with her good hand for a moment before pausing, gently biting her lip. "B-before I try it, I want to ask you something..."

He tilts his head, his ears flicking at her to let her know he's listening.

She shyly smiles, cupping his cheek with her hand. "...w-will you wait for me?"

There's what feels like a half hour of silence and then she turns away, blushing even more. "I-I'm sorry, I read it in a book once, and I thought it'd be the right thing to say now, and-" She covers her mouth to cut herself off, her eyes squeezing shut from her mortification and the pain of putting her injured hand against her muzzle.

His eyes widen as he takes her hand back so she stops hurting herself. "Careful! You're hurt... and silly." He lets out a small laugh. "I don’t think I’ve read a book that said that yet... I’ll wait… but what did you want me to wait for?"

She squirms, nervously bowing her head. "...w-when we're older..." She turns back to him and accidentally brushes her lips against his, quickly backing up in shock. "O-oh my. I-I didn't mean for that to happen... I-I just wanted a hug, I swear!" She squeaks and covers her face with her uninjured hand, ashamed and embarrassed.

The colt blinks, his ten-year old mind not exactly sure how to process what just happened, but eventually deciding to brush it off. "It's fine. Here," he brings her into a hug, "is that better?"

She nods, smiling softly. "Y-yes... thank you… Since you'll wait for me... I'll wait for you." She closes her eyes, feeling the warmth of his body against hers. At the same time, the tingling sensation from before fills the air once more, slowly entering her small form. She sighs softly, feeling the ache from her hand gradually fade away. "I... I think it's working..."

He smiles. "Good, I guess I did the right thing then." He shifts a little to get more comfortable in the hug. "Heh... Mom always tells me to let go if I hug her this long..."

"I don't mind..." She giggles, nuzzling up against his chest. "...I actually prefer long hugs... but-"

"Gel!"

She jumps, squeaking in surprise. She quickly turns to the source of the voice, flinching at the sight of the silver figure. "...oh no..."

The tall, uniformed lady strides forward, crossing her graceful arms over her chest. "I finally found you... but what happened to your clothes? I gave you a perfectly good dress a month ago, and now you’re wearing colt’s clothing?" She turns to the green colt, a perfectly-shaped eyebrow arching in distaste. "And who is your friend?" After a moment of silence, she huffs. "What's the matter, boy? Cat got your tongue?"

"Umm..." His mind blanks for a moment as he takes in the taller changeling. Where Gel is shades of blue, this woman is shades of silver and white, though her expression is not near the ones he has come to associate with his friend. He shrinks a little bit as he responds reflexively. "No ma'am."

She holds a hand out to him, expectant, clinking the medal on her chest in the process. "Then tell me your name."

Gel lets go of her friend, stepping in front of him. "M-mom, it's okay. He-"

The lady frowns, moving her hand to her hip. "He can answer for himself. You've got to worry about your punishment later." She points at him, now scowling in anger as she acts more like the officer her uniform shows her to be. "Name. Now."

He gulps and remains sitting. "Rhino of the clan Nexus... ma'am."

"Nexus?" She taps her chin, thinking to herself for a moment. "I see." She turns away, pulling her daughter away with a hand on the small of her back. "Let's hope we never meet again, Rhino of the clan Nexus. For your sake." She smirks and starts off into the woods, her daughter in tow.

Gel, meanwhile, looks longingly over her shoulder at him, her ears flat against her head. She sniffles, waving to him, forcing out a single word through her emotion-choked throat. "...b-bye..."

The colt waves his own hand in return, mouthing the word back at her sadly. As the two changelings are lost from sight and sound, he sighs and picks the wet blanket from where it had fallen on the ground. Trudging back towards his home, he wonders if he'll ever see his friend again.

He misses her already.