After we had our dinner, Fleur paid for the food with tip before we left the extravagant restaurant. It was dark now, despite the lights from street lamps and buildings that lit up the city. When I looked up, there weren’t very many stars in the sky, which made sense with the lights and all. Even so, it was a great evening, but that was probably because I was in a great mood after getting a job offer of being a famous model’s secretary. It felt like a dream, and for me being in a world full of pastel colored ponies that could fly and do magic just adds into how surreal this fantasy-like reality can be.

“Have you checked in at a hotel yet?” Fleur asked, which snapped my attention back to full circle.

“I have, yes,” I answered. “I have all my things over there, and I already paid for tonight’s stay.”

“Well now, I do think it’s about time we check you out early then,” she said. “I’d like to get you settled into your new home, and show you around. I’ll give you the money owed to pay for your stay if we somehow can’t get you a refund.”

“Oh Fleur, there’s no need for you to do that,” I said while waving my hands out front. “You’ve done so much for me already, a couple of bits lost doesn’t mean much for me. I don’t want to impose.”

“How sweet, but it’s of no trouble Ozzy,” she replied. “If you really want to pay back the worth, you can do that as my new secretary. Taxiiii~!” She sang to the oncoming taxi carriage before it slowed down to a stop in front of the restaurant’s entrance.

I took the initiative to open the door for my new boss to let her inside first. “After you Fleur.”

“Why thank you,” she replied before stepping inside. I followed suit before I shut the door.

It took a while to get back to the hotel, and gather my things from the room before I checked myself out. The hotel was nice enough to give me a refund, but it may have been because Fleur was with me. It was a good thing I didn’t bring much with me to Equestria, or I’d have a hard time lugging around all my things. After I loaded my case to the taxi carriage, we went on our way to Fleur’s home.

“So do you have any ponies that keep your house and belongings clean while you’re gone?” I asked Fleur as we rode.

“Indeed,” she responded. “My maids come by once a week, sometimes twice if I have guests coming over for something at the last minute. One thing I’m glad with humans coexisting with us ponies here is bringing their advanced technology to Equestria, especially cell phones and computers.”

“You like those things huh?” I asked.

“Oh yes, it makes communicating long distances and keeping schedules SO much easier and convenient,” she replied. “It’s also nice to have a place to keep all of my photos, but I still have the physical copies. I must say though, some of the things I’ve seen on the internet is… Questionable.”

“Yeaaaah, the internet can have some strange and inappropriate things. That’s why there are settings to block content you don’t want to see,” I commented.

“You can DO that?!” She gasped.

“I can set it up for you if you’d like. I’m pretty good with computers.”

“Please do so! I’ll leave a list of things I don’t want to see, and I’ll leave the rest up to you. That will be your first assignment as my secretary.”

“I still need to go through the interview though right? Will that be with your manager?” I asked. “Is she staying with you as well?”

“Yes, yes, and no,” Fleur answered. “She actually lives next door, and I do admit she tends to be… High strung. She and my old secretary bickered a lot, but that’s only because the latter didn’t do her job correctly. She’s nice once you get to know her though. She has always put me and my health first before my career, and I’m grateful for that.”

Well that’s good to hear. It sounds like this manager knows what she’s doing, and not just exploiting Fleur’s looks for money like I expected most would do back on Earth. I swear, I feel part of the reason why some popular icons hit the ground so hard was because of how badly they worked with their managers. Some have made it big and became awesome people like Michael Buble (one of my favorite artists I might add), just letting their hard work and talents making them well known instead of going through some dramatic scandal, or getting divorced two to three months after marriage to grab all the attention like Kim Bitchface Kardashian.

“Here we are Ms. De Lis,” the driver said, which snapped me out of my thoughts. Fleur reached into her purse to pay the bits needed for the ride before I stopped her.

“Please, allow me,” I said as I took out the right currency to pay while she smiled. After I got out and grabbed my luggage, I looked at the building before me, and my jaw dropped to the street. “Sweet Mother of God,” was all I could say at that moment.

Fleur de Lis’ home was like any home you’d expect a celebrity would stay in. It was a large, uniquely designed, amazing two-story building. It was painted the same color as Fleur’s fur, mane, and tail. The outside walls were white, while the two roofs that separated the two floors were in two barely distinct shades of pink. On the side, I could also see a swimming pool that lit up from the lights under water, while the surface was glimmering under the half-moon’s nightly rays in the night sky that was riddled with more stars compared to when I was in the main city. There were also a couple lounging chairs along the poolside, and a hot tub that was currently turned off.

A fit of giggles snapped me out of my awe-induced trance before I turned to Fleur who was making them. “I hate to interrupt, but I’d like to get inside so I can show you around if you don’t mind,” she said.

“Y-yes… Of course,” I replied before I gulped in nervousness, and followed her to the front door.

Oh man… I’m not so sure about this anymore, and I haven’t even gotten inside yet. This all just seems too good to be true, and I can’t shake this feeling that something equally bad is going to happen anytime soon to balance out my atmosphere.

Fleur unlocked the door before we went inside, and she flicked the lights on. What I saw in the room just left me speechless once more. The floors had a soft, purple carpeting that filled most of the floor, including the stairs that led to the upper level. After I took off my shoes and set them by the door, I went to what I assumed was the living room that had some comfortable leather chairs and matching couches that I’d probably be okay just sleeping in for the rest of my life. The floor changes to white tiles as the kitchen neighboring the living room was quite big to walk around. There was also a sliding door that led to the pool in the back, and along the walls were some expensive looking paintings. There was even a widescreen T.V. above the fire place, probably another one of the few things humanity gave to Equestria. On a lone, small table to the corner there were smaller, personal photos that had Fleur and another unicorn that had white fur like hers, a styled blue mane and mustache, and a monocle over his left eye. They looked close as some pictures portrayed them having a good time in different locations that looked very extravagant.

“That stallion who’s with you in the photos… Is he your coltfriend?” I asked as I made a closer inspection on them.

Fleur giggled in response before answering. “You’d be surprised how many times we’ve been mistaken for such. No, he’s actually my older brother named Fancy Pants. He’s the one who owns the restaurant we went to earlier.”

Well that certainly explains a lot. Having the staff know a famous model being the sister of the owner would definitely give her special treatment. Makes sense for why none of them commented on me being there. I must have looked… Plain compared to her, if not completely strange considering I was a human.

“He’s very nice, and we’re very close. I must introduce you to him soon,” Fleur continued. “He’s always welcome to meet new ponies who are new to around these parts. Like one time he made friends with a fashionista from Ponyville who is well acquainted with the Princess. I think her name was Rarity I believe.”

Sounds like how the social network functions around here show’s one’s worth to the community, or popularity no less. I’m not sure what else Fancy Pants is known for besides owning a restaurant, but all I’m getting is this: If you want to get anywhere, brown nosing is the way to go… Huh, somehow there’s something here that’s not so different compared on Earth.

“So what else is there in this house?” I asked, trying to keep the conversation going.

“There’s the kitchen, a bathroom, and the dining room left on this floor,” she replied. “Let me take you upstairs to your room so you can settle your things,”

“Of course,” I said before she led me upstairs, and I followed with my luggage in hand. The first room she led me to was my new bedroom. It was pretty empty except for the bed, desk, and chair inside. There was also a closet that had a decent space for those who don’t have a big wardrobe.

“Once we have you on board, you’re welcome to decorate this room as you please,” Fleur said as I walked inside, and set my luggage against the wall. “If you’ll follow me to the other rooms please,” she requested, which I nodded before I followed her out.

She showed me another bathroom that had a shower, and a workout room that had a treadmill, some dumbbells of different weights, a yoga mat, an exercise ball, and a stereo to play music. None of them looked dusty, so they must have been used regularly.

“And now for the last room in this household: my room,” Fleur said before she opened the door, and I looked inside. I couldn’t find a word to describe the room, as there was so much to say about it. It was definitely the master bedroom, as it was the biggest room I’ve seen on this floor. Next to the nightstand with a decorative lamp, her queen size bed was almost regal-like with the purple, silk blankets that matched the carpeting, and stylish decoration pillows with insignias that were the same symbol as her cutie mark. There was also a desk and chair in her room, with a computer that looked to be still new since she bought it, and a bookshelf next to it that had a variety of books in different genres, magazines, and a few photo albums judging by their large size. She had a personal bathroom that was bigger than the one in the hallway, a walk in closet that had loads of stylish dresses, a drawer for what I assumed to be casual clothing, and a large window next to it with purple curtains. Finally, all the walls and ceiling were painted a shade of purple that was the same as Fleur’s eyes, which complimented the darker shade that made up the floor.

“So that’s everything I have here in my home, and you may use anything within these boundaries to do as you wish within reason,” Fleur said with a smile. “What do you think Ozzy?”

“It’s great. Fantastic even… And that’s what I’m worried about,” I replied.

“What do you mean?” She asked with confusion and concern in her gesture.

“I’ve wanted to live in a good home for a long time… Nothing too showy, fancy, or expensive, just a place with a roof that I could stay in while I go about my daily living,” I explained. “I wasn’t one who had high hopes or dreams to achieve back in my world. All I wanted was a stable lifestyle after all the work and effort I put myself through to get to this point. It’s what I had in mind when I came to Equestria, even in a city like Canterlot. When I came here, I was prepared to work my way into such a lifestyle, to live in a stable home after all the stress and struggle I’ve experienced.

“This… It just seems too good to be true. I mean I understand you need a secretary close by to keep track of your busy daily schedule, but… I just don’t think I deserve to live in a place like this with you. Everything that I wouldn’t even DREAM of owning is right here, and I feel all of that just dropped right onto my lap out of nowhere. There’s a nagging voice in my head that there’s some sort of big catch in all of this, even after everything I’ve been through to get here that some would think they deserve such treatment… But I don’t. All of the things I have received as rewards, gifts, and possessions I bought before I got here, I saw them as privileges, with no expectations that things would get better than that.”

I looked into Fleur’s enchanting purple eyes as I continued. “Fleur, I have never been given such luxury in my whole life like you have for me today. I just need to know… Why me? You could have anypony from this city, from this world that’s better suited to be your secretary, especially one that’s of the same species as yours who’ve known your work SO much more than me who had just got here today. The dinner was one thing despite how ridiculously expensive it was, but a job offer, AND a place to stay from one of Equestria’s top models such as yourself? I just can’t think that you’re doing all of this just because I saved your life today. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed some of the stares the locals in this city gave me, especially the host and the waitress at the restaurant, but they looked like they were wondering, pardon my language, ‘what the fuck is he even doing here?’ I had expected to receive such looks since I’m totally different compared to them, like I was some sort of weed in a patch of grass that doesn’t belong there. Even if I became your secretary, I’ll STILL be getting those looks just because of the fact that I’m human, and they may even question why you even let me tag along.

“This may be because of how things worked back on my world, but I just got to know Fleur… Why are you doing all of this? What would you gain from all of this? What made you decide to hire what most ponies around here would describe me as a hairless ape?”

Fleur stood there in silence with an attentive look even after drinking in everything I’ve explained. She looked to the side for a moment to think of a response before returning her gaze back to me. “Ozzy, would you please take a seat on my bed for a moment?” She asked.

I was taken aback from such a request, but I nodded in response before I complied and sat on the edge of Fleur’s bed, which felt quite soft for me to sink myself into. She followed suit next to me, and unexpectedly took off my glasses before setting them on her nightstand. She then turned my gaze toward her eyes with my face between her delicate hands. For what felt like an hour, we just stared into each other’s eyes. I was getting lost in her amazing purple eyes while Fleur looked like she was looking for something inside my bluish-green ones.

“When I first set my eyes on you, there was something about you that I found different compared to other ponies, despite you being a human,” Fleur explained. “Looking into them now without those glasses… I can see that there’s something about you that’s unique, something I’ve never seen from other ponies before, even if you WERE one of us as a species. I don’t know why, but I feel like I want to get to know you more, especially after you confessed your concerns to me,” she then pulled back and looked down to her floor as she tried to come up with more things to say. “As for what I might gain from this… While I do need a new secretary, I also need… A friend.”

I raised an eyebrow at that last statement. “Um… Don’t you have plenty of friends here already? I would think with someone being a model, they would have quite a social network around them.”

“But they’re only there because I AM a model,” she replied, to which I raised my eyebrow again. “What I mean is… They usually get acquainted with me because they want me to give a good word to the public such as their businesses and products. My manager’s the closest pony of a friend I have who cares for me, and get together from time to time on my off days. Of course there’s also my brother who I love dearly that I like to spend time with, but other than that, anypony else I get acquainted with don’t really make the time to get to know me, ask me how I’m doing, or just spend time with me when there’s not a big party or something to attend. Even my old secretary didn’t want to make the time as she only saw me as her boss, and would go off with her own friends.”

“So… Has everything you’ve done so far been because you want to make friends with me?” I asked. “I mean yeah, I was in deep shit then, and I appreciate you doing all of this, but you didn’t need to do it if you were just wanting to make friends. During that low time I had, I think I actually NEEDED a friend to help me feel better. Even if you weren’t intending to help me out, it was nice that I was able to just talk about my troubles with someone, er, somepony. I rarely even did something like that back on Earth, as most people I know wouldn’t really want to hear about my day.”

“I think I can understand why you would want to move here,” Fleur commented. “Excuse me for saying this, but your world doesn’t sound all that great.”

“It’s no problem,” I replied with a wave. “Anyway, going back to making friends with you, whether you were a model or not, you’re the first pony I’ve met since I got here who even made me feel, well, welcome. I was going to ask later on if I could see you again and get to know you, but uh… I guess that won’t be an issue if I get this job.”

Fleur looked at me with widened eyes from my comment. “You wanted to get to know me?” She asked.

“Well, yeah,” I replied. “I was kind of hesitant at first, because even if I didn’t know you were a model when we met, you looked… Well, very beautiful compared to other ponies I’ve seen here, and I’m just, well… Plain. Not to mention an entirely different species.”

“Ozzy, from what you did earlier, you’re anything BUT plain dearie,” Fleur said. “And I’ve actually been wanting to meet a human since I first heard about them. You’re actually the first I’ve met.”

“I’m honored,” I replied. “So, even if my interview doesn’t work out, and I don’t end up being a good secretary… You think we can still be friends?” I asked as I held my hand out.

Fleur looked down at my hand held out before glancing back to me. “… I should probably tell you, but we don’t shake hands for that around here,” she said, which left me kind of hurt for a moment before she hugged me. I sat there shocked and taken aback at the gesture. “We settle things with hugs, if that’s alright with you?” She asked.

I let go of the tensions I didn’t know I had as I hugged her back with a small smile. “Yeah, I’d like that very much,” I replied.

Funny… I don’t think I remember the last time I had hugged like this… It feels nice, and her fur is so soft, which makes this all the better. If this is normal in Equestria, I think I could get used to this.

We savored the moment before fast doorbell rings and knocks snapped us back to reality. It sounded like whoever was at the front door, they were in quite a panic. Fleur looked at the time on a clock hanging against the wall, which told that it was 11:45. “Huh, I wonder who’d be here THIS late at night?” She asked before she got up, and left the room while I followed after I put my glasses on. When she got to the door, I stood from a distance to be sure that whoever was there they wouldn’t be surprised about a stranger in her home.

She opened the door, and suddenly a light purple blur rushed inside and closed the door behind it before it stood in front of Fleur and quickly checked her body. Upon closer inspection, it was an earth pony mare with not only a light purple coat, but also a light blue mane that was tied in a bun. She wore big, round glasses with a white frame while wearing a blue business jacket and matching skirt with a black undershirt. “Fleur! Are you alright?! Any scratches?! Bruises?! How’s your mane?!” She asked quickly without giving Fleur time to answer.

“Calm down Shiny, I’m perfectly fine,” Fleur responded. “What got you this riled up?”

“The CARRIAGE incident Fleur! Your rescue is all over the news!” She replied before sprinting to the remote on the coffee table, and turning on the T.V. where the news popped up, showing a video footage of the scene where I saved Fleur from the carriage.

“Earlier today, one of Equestria’s newly arrived humans have proven themselves to be more chivalrous than what we had expected, as a male heroically moved one Canterlot’s finest models, Fleur de Lis, out of the path of a runaway carriage that might have been the end of her career. We went to the driver who was trying to stop the carriage to get further details,” the newspony explained before a gray stallion with a driver’s uniform appeared.

“The brakes broke down, and I couldn’t budge the emergency one until it broke off,” he explained. “I wouldn’t know WHAT I’d do if I had hit Ms. De Lis if it weren’t for that ape-looking thing that saved her.”

“We couldn’t find the pair at the scene to answer more questions, but they were last seen having dinner at the Golden Crown,” the newspony continued. “When we get ahold of these two, we’ll catch the full scoop on what’s going on with these two individuals, and whether they’ll press charges on the carriage driver,” she finished before the purple pony turned off the T.V.

“Why didn’t you press any charges on that pony for almost running you over?!” The mare asked. “You could have been killed!”

“I had to treat my new friend to some dinner, I was actually getting hungry myself,” Fleur explained. “Anyway, it doesn’t seem like anypony else got hurt from that, so as long as it’s so, I’ll let it slide. I’m in a good mood tonight anyway.”

“SERIOUSLY?!”

“It’s the least I could do after he saved my life. Speaking of who, Ozzy, come on out of there and meet my manager,” Fleur requested.

I peeked behind the wall to see the two mares, and the first thing that I saw was a deathly glare Fleur’s manager was giving me.

… Uh oh. I am NOT liking where this is going.