So far I was having a very nice first night in my new home. I was sleeping peacefully, but it was kind of boring since I wasn’t really dreaming. Luna was nowhere to be seen so I could only assume that she was busy helping someone else that was having nightmares. I didn’t mind being alone in my own dream world, as it gave me time to reflect on my day. There was a few things that I could sort through, but everything else was on assumptions.

Fleetfoot was a nice mare and she seemed to have the potential to be a great friend. The only problem was the way she acted towards me. Many of the ponies were very expressive when talking with me, and they even made a few jokes to help fight against an awkward situation. I could only assume that she was probably unsure of how to act around me since reading notes and dealing with the real thing are two different experiences. I pushed aside some thoughts about what the mare and I could do for now as I focused on the other pegasus.

Spitfire was the complete opposite of her friend. She could easily hold a grudge for a long time, and I’m certain that if I don’t watch my back, she would pounce on me like a lioness. I was surprised with how hard she could hit, but it wasn’t that surprising since she was part of the Wonderbolts. Dash explained some of the Wonderbolts’ training routine, but it seemed like there was more that the prismatic mare didn’t know of. Fleetfoot makes Spitfire sound like she’s a fun mare to hang with, but seeing that the golden mare wasn’t satisfied with sending me to the hospital the first time, I would need to just remain off her radar.

I also became aware of another thing about my situation. As far as I understood my situation, the mares didn’t have to keep housing me. From what Celestia told me, the entire thing was voluntary. If Spitfire was still mad at me after the shower incident, and sending me into the hospital wasn’t enough, then why was I still around? All she needed to do was send a letter to either of the princesses and I would be out of their manes. I continued to ponder on this thought before a sharp pain rushed through my head. I started overthinking my situation, and now I had a splitting headache. I rubbed my temples as I pushed aside the thoughts for now until I could get some answers.

Still left with little understanding about the mares and my situation, I drifted along the empty space until I woke up. It didn’t seem to take long for me to wake up as everything started to shake. As everything shook, though, I felt something wet land on my head. I ran my hand through my hazel hair to find where I was hit. Pulling my hand away, I didn’t see anything that caused any alarm. Another two drips landed on my head, and I looked up to see what was causing it. There was nothing above me, but I caught sight of the water droplets as they fell towards me. I looked at the falling droplets with a raised brow, confused as to what was happening.

“What the heck is this?” I asked openly, but I was soon going to regret asking.

Bedroom

“Wake up you lazy human!” Spitfire shouted as she dumped another bucket of water.

My eyes shot wide open after getting hit with the water. I tried to jump out of my bed, fearing that I was drowning. As I jumped, though, I ended up tangled in my bedsheets. I fell from the side of my bed and hit the wooden flooring. Hard. Very hard. I shut my eyes tight as I groaned loudly in pain. I could hear the soft flaps of wings above me. I rolled over to my side to see the golden mare hovering above me. Usually, I wouldn’t be scared of seeing a pegasus flying above, but the glare Spitfire was giving me caused my entire body to freeze.

Spitfire dropped the bucket that she held in her hooves next to my head. I looked at the bucket before turning back to the mare as she spoke in a stern tone. “Good to see you’re finally awake. Now stop messing around and get downstairs before breakfast gets cold.”

“What time is it?” I asked groggily, grabbing my head in slight pain.

“Time for you to get up and eat something,” Spitfire stated sternly before flying out of the room.

It took a lot of willpower to not yell at the retreating mare. There was also the fact that she would tackle me to the ground again if I did such a thing, so I just kept quiet. Mumbling under my breath as I clawed my way to my feet, I saw out the window that the sun was rising. I groaned internally at how early it was, but didn’t yell to avoid having the golden pegasus fly up to my room again. I gave a small laugh at my current predicament before going to my dresser and grabbing some clothes. I slipped out of my pajamas and got dressed before joining to the two mares downstairs.

I ran my hands over my face, trying to rub away more of the sleep as I descended the stairs. Halfway down the stairs, I could smell something sweet in the air. I instantly recognized the scent as pancakes and quickened my pace for the kitchen. I walked into the kitchen to see Spitfire eating away at her own stack of pancakes, while Fleetfoot was busy cooking her own batch. Spitfire noticed me at the door, and after giving a quick glance at her friend, gave a low growl. It was interesting to hear a pony growl, but at the same time a little frightening.

I was certain that if Spitfire had any sharp teeth, then her growl would make her seem exactly like a lioness. I quickly shook that thought away as I took a seat at the table. I saw Fleetfoot’s ears swivel before she turned around and saw me. She seemed a little surprised at my presence, but gave a small smile as she greeted me.

“Good morning, Mark. Did you sleep well?”

I was tempted to tell her that I was having a peaceful sleep, until Spitfire ruined it, but a glare from the golden pegasus had me think otherwise.

“I slept very well, thanks for asking.” Spitfire gave a slow nod before going back to her breakfast.

“Would you care for some breakfast?” Fleetfoot asked as she went for more ingredients.

“Sure,” I answered. Fleetfoot gave a single nod before getting to work. I sat in silence as Fleetfoot cooked and ate her food and Spitfire devoured hers. I thought now would be as a good a time as any to get to know the mares better. “I know you said that you got up early for work, but I didn’t think it would be this early.”

Fleetfoot gave a small laugh as she transferred my pancakes to a plate. “It’s usually never this early, but we need to be at the castle before the other ponies wake up.” Fleetfoot placed my plate in front of me, setting a bottle of syrup and a fork to the side.

I drowned my pancakes in syrup as I continued from where she left off. “I thought the two of you worked at Cloudsdale?”

Spitfire removed herself from the table to clean the dishes while Fleetfoot explained what their job entailed. “We do work at the Wonderbolts academy, but there are times that we need to train with the guard.”

I was still chewing a piece of pancake in my mouth, and I gestured with my hand to elaborate what she meant.

Thankfully, Fleetfoot understood my motion and continued. “There are some performances that we do with the guard during certain festivals. These performances aren’t as extravagant as the ones we do during our travels, but it keeps the ponies entertained.”

I swallowed my last bit of food and took my plate over to the sink. Spitfire hopped away from the sink, leaving me to clean my own dish. This didn’t bother me much since I cleaned my dishes before when I was at the castle. As I cleaned away the vast amount of syrup that was still on my plate, I glanced behind me to see the two mares whispering to each other. I couldn’t catch a single word about what they were talking about, but if the small looks that Spitfire gave were anything to go by, then I was the topic in some form. I finished cleaning off my plate, and the sound of clopping hooves brought me back around to the mares.

Fleetfoot stood in front of me, a small smile on her face as she spoke. “Hey, since you’re already up, I was wondering if you would like to come with us to the castle? If not, then it’s fine, but could you head to the market to get some groceries?”

I looked at the mare as I weighed the two options. Going to the market allowed me some ample time away from Spitfire, and it would probably help calm her down. Going to the castle, though, also allowed me to speak with the princesses again. I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was another reason these two decided to house me, and the princesses were the only ones that could probably answer this question. Going to the castle also gave me a chance to see one of their many routines that they have, and getting to know the mares better wasn’t such a bad thing. I hoped.

After a few more seconds of thinking, I came to my decision and knew that a certain pegasus wasn’t going to like this. “I’ll come with you to the castle.”

I swore I heard some wood crack after I said that. I didn’t risk looking at Spitfire, fearing that she was daring me to look her way. Fleetfoot, thankfully, gave a few nods before turning around. She walked out of the kitchen, and a few seconds later, I heard Spitfire stomp her way out. I was really hoping that I could make it to the castle before something bad happens to me. I walked out of the kitchen, hearing the mares’ hooves clopping above. I assumed that they were grabbing their gear, so I took a seat on the couch as I waited for them to come down. I didn’t have to wait long as I heard the soft flapping of their wings.

I looked behind me to see the two mares dressed in their uniforms. The blue latex suit clung to their bodies, but not tightly enough to show certain areas of their body. I was glad for that because I was still trying to come to terms with these ponies walking around naked. Their goggles were around their neck, swaying side to side as they floated in the air. They both had saddlebags that I assumed was carrying the rest of their gear. I heard a pair of hooves clopping together to get my attention.

“Ready to go?” Fleetfoot asked, her smile still present.

I gave a small shrug of my shoulders. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

Fleetfoot gave a single nod before heading for the door. She opened the door and Spitfire was the first to exit. I waited a few seconds after the golden pegasus left before exiting the house as well. Once I was outside, Fleetfoot closed the door behind us, locking it with a key. Fleetfoot placed the key in her saddlebag. She looked at both Spitfire and I before flying off for the castle. Spitfire was at her friend’s side while I stayed in the back, looking around the city.

The middle part of the city was about how I expected it to be. None of the buildings were overly extravagant, but neither were they run down. Most of the buildings seemed to share the same two story plan, but thankfully they all had color variations. Many of the homes also seemed to be able to house a specific type of pony. Houses that I could assume have pegasi would have a few clouds hanging around them, while earth pony houses catered more to an earthly feel with vast amounts of flowers or small gardens. Unicorn houses were hard to discern because there wasn’t really a way to show an affinity to magic. I could only guess that a house that had less of a garden and no clouds would have the unicorns.

A few ponies were leaving their homes, probably off to work or school as my only guess. Some of these ponies greeted me as I walked by, even giving a hello to the two mares in front of me. There were a few ponies that gave me weird looks, but it was nothing compared to the ones I got in the upper city. I let those ponies give me weird looks as much as they want, since I already have great friends that I made. If these ponies wanted to be judgmental about what I was, then so be it. Those ponies get to lose out on knowing me, while the ones that do approach me get to see that I’m not such a bad, or even a scary person.

The walk to the castle was fairly slow, Spitfire and Fleetfoot hardly flapping their wings to keep afloat. I began wonder why they weren’t flying off to the castle at full speed. I easily knew my way back to the castle, thanks to Twilight and two weeks of my life I’m never getting back, but it seemed like they were treating me like I didn’t know the city. I could also assume that they might end up late because the sun was visible now. I wasn’t sure what time they needed to be there, but I guess we had enough if they weren’t speeding for their destination.

As we continued to walk, I found it very hard to look forward. The two mares were flying at eye level with me, so if I tried to look forward, then all I would see would be their flanks. I knew I would never get a chance to explain myself if Spitfire turned around and jumped to another conclusion about what I was doing. So to avoid any problems, I either looked towards the ground or to the side of them. The mares themselves were occupied with their own conversation as I kept my eyes away from their backsides.

We finally made it to the castle after about half an hour of walking. I was glad none of the snobs were up yet, so I was able to avoid any confrontation. We walked up to the gate where the two unicorn mare guards waved us through. The two mare guards said nothing to the Wonderbolts, but when they saw me, they waved happily. I happily returned their wave as the one on the left trotted up to me.

“What’s up, Mark?” The mare asked.

“Nothing much, except for the clouds,” I joked.

The mare gave a slight frown at my poor joke. “Do you feel proud of yourself now?”

I looked at the mare with hurt eyes. “What’s wrong with that one? Everyone likes that joke.”

The mare rolled her eyes as she poked at my shin playfully. “Come on, even Shield thinks that joke was terrible.”

I looked over at Shield, and she tensed as I looked at her. She tried to act like nothing was going on, but her shaking body proved otherwise.

Seeing that I wasn’t going to look away, she let out a heavy sigh. “Strongheart’s right, Mark. I mean seriously, you’ve hung out with Pinkie long enough that you should know what a good joke is.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at her line of thinking. “You seem to forget that Pinkie also laughs at almost anything.”

“Maybe you can just walk into the mares’ barracks like last time,” Shield said as she gave a big grin.

“I did that one time and nobody seems to let that go.” I sigh heavily from that past mistake.

Both mares were laughing loudly as they remembered that scene. Strongheart was the first to control her laughter to form an actual sentence. “Your face back then… was… PRICELESS!” Strongheart went back to laughing again.

Shield was able to control her laughter to add her own thoughts. “You acted like you’ve never seen a mare naked.” Shield went back to laughing at my embarrassment.

Both mares were still laughing, but their eyes were on me still. I gestured to myself with my hands. “That’s because I’m human. We don’t walk around naked like it’s a normal thing.”

“Then why don’t you try it out?” Shield suggested.

“Because I don’t want my junk flying around for everyone here to see. I get enough of seeing everyone’s genitalia on display,” I said as I started to rub my head.

“Are you saying you don’t find us attractive?” Strongheart asked, her eyes getting big as small tears started to form.

I was very aware of the trick she was trying to pull. Fluttershy used her sad puppy dog eyes on me, and word spread around the castle that it worked. Strongheart was one of the few guards that use this trick on me, even though I’m not really hurting their feelings at all. The only problem right now was the question that she asked. I could only answer with silence because saying either yes or no had their own set of consequences. Silence was starting to settle between us, but thankfully it was broken when a voice called out to me.

“Mark, are you coming or not?” Spitfire asked as she flew straight towards me.

“Sure, I’ll be there in a second,” I called back.

Spitfire stopped her flight towards me as she gave a small nod. The pegasus went back to the castle, entering through the front door. I saw her make a left before she was completely out of my sight. I had a pretty good idea where she went, so it would be unlikely for me to get lost. I felt someone poking my shin, and looking down, I saw it was Strongheart.

“You should probably head on inside,” Strongheart said with a warm smile.

“Yeah, it’s time for our shift change and you probably don’t want to keep her waiting,” Shield added as she gave a small laugh.

“Thanks, but before you go, do you know if either of the princesses are in?” I asked the retreating mares.

“Celestia’s in the throne room right now and doesn’t have any appointments for a bit. If you want to speak with her, make it quick before she starts her meetings,” Strongheart called back.

Watching the two mares walk off for a bit, I turned towards the large doors and walked in. Once I was inside, I made the immediate left that Spitfire did. I decided to stop by where the mares were so I could let them know where I was going to be at. During my walk I passed many of the maids and guards that I have gotten to know. Each one of them greeted me warmly, and a maid was kind enough to hand me a cider and a cinnamon roll as I passed by. I took the many twists and turns I needed to make before I was finally standing outside in one of the open fields. I guessed right in where the mares were going to be as I noticed Fleetfoot talking with a few guards. I walked over to the mare, who saw me coming and waved at me.

I waved back as I reached her. “Hey, I’m going to speak with Celestia real quick before she starts her meetings.”

“Okay, just make sure to come back here when you’re done. If we’re not here when you get back, we might be in the dining hall,” Fleetfoot said.

I nodded to the pegasus before she went back to speaking with the guards. As I headed back in the castle, I saw Spitfire flying in the air. Even with her attitude, she was a pretty graceful flier. The mare seemed at peace as she flew, and I barely caught sight of a smile as she flew by. I watched as she did a few barrel rolls and hard banks, mesmerized at how easy it came to her. I shook my head to focus back at my task, knowing that I can watch her later. Once I was inside again, I looked left and right to decide the best route to Celestia. Giving a shrug, I headed down the left hallway.

I passed a few more maids and guards before finally reaching the throne room. The large golden doors were as imposing as ever as I stood outside the throne room. Two pegasus guards were stationed in front of the double doors, smiling as they looked at me. I was able to speak openly and casually with all the princesses, but it doesn’t help my nerves when I have to walk through these large doors. The guards noticed my nervousness, well aware that I kind of froze when I came here, and pushed the doors open. The guard on the left walked behind me and pushed me inside.

Once inside, the guards closed the door behind me. A loud slam from the doors echoed in the expansive room as I looked around. Nothing really changed much from my visits to the throne room. The same red carpet leading up to the two thrones in the middle of the room looked as clean as always. The golden trim on the side reflecting the sunlight onto the marble columns. The columns gave a simple sparkle from the small amount of light, but they were beautiful like always. I looked over at the thrones to see Celetia leaning on one of her hooves, looking bored like always. When she noticed me, her sour attitude soon brightened.

“Mark, it’s lovely to see you. How’s your day been going?” Celestia asked as she rose from her seat and started trotting towards me.

“It’s been pretty good. I’m here with Spitfire and Fleetfoot as they work out a routine with the guards,” I answered.

I walked towards the alicorn as she invited me for a hug. I happily gave her the hug, her fur still as warm as always. I don’t know how she stayed warm, but I assumed it had something to do with magic and accepted that as my answer. Celestia and I held our hug for a few more seconds before pulling apart.

Celestia’s smile was still bright and motherly, her tone caring as she spoke. “I’m glad to see the three of you getting along so well. Did you have any problems during your first day there?”

I let out a heavy sigh as I was going to have to explain everything that happened yesterday. “It could have gone a bit better.” I saw Celestia’s smile lower a bit as she looked at me with a bit of concern.

Celestia placed a hoof on my shoulder as she spoke in a calm, even tone. “Is Spitfire still upset about the incident from a few months back?”

I looked at the alicorn with a raised brow. “How do you know about that?” I knew that the question was probably stupid, but I didn’t hear from anyone that the princess was contacted about the incident.

Celestia gave a comforting smile as her voice took on a motherly tone. “Redheart sent the files about your visit. She also left a few choice notes about how you answer a simple question.” Celestia laughed lightly and I couldn’t help but laugh a little as well.

I rubbed the back of my head in embarrassment as I remembered that incident. “Yeah, I think I hit my head harder than I thought.”

Celestia laughed a little at my embarrassment before becoming concerned again. “I do hope she didn’t hurt you that badly.” Celestia grabbed at my head, pulling me down so she could inspect it.

It was nice to see Celestia in such a caring mood, but she was overreacting slightly. I grabbed at her hooves and pulled them away from head. “From what others have told me, I guess I got off a little easier.” I smiled at her and this seemed to calm her down some.

“I’ve read about some of her fights. It’s a little unsettling, but I can understand why she acts like that.” Celestia seemed to become sad again, but shook her head before adorning her same caring smile.

“This kinds of leads into what I wanted to ask you,” I said, rubbing my neck nervously.

Celestia easily noticed my nerves and moved to sit next to me. Once she was seated on her haunches, she draped a wing over my back as she spoke in her motherly tone. “There’s nothing to be worried about. I told you that you could come to either myself, my sister, Cadence, or Twilight and her friends. So please, ask away and I’ll answer the best I can.”

I remained silent for a few seconds, enjoying the comfort Celestia’s wing brought me. I swallowed a lump in my throat that I wasn’t aware was forming before speaking. “Why is it that Spitfire and Fleetfoot took me in? Also, how could Spitfire not know that it was me that she was going to be housing?”

Celestia looked at me with a serious expression before speaking. “Both of those have complex answers, to which I’m not allowed to say. The best answer I can give is to your second question and that is because I didn’t specify exactly who would be staying with them.”
I looked at Celestia with a raised brow. “Why didn’t you tell them?”

Celestia let out a heavy sigh before turning to look out the window. “I wanted to see Spitfire’s reaction.” She turned back to look me in the eyes. “I never intended for you to get hurt, but I’m trying to help her as well as you. I wish I could tell you more, but it’s personal matters between Spitfire and you.”

Celestia seemed a little disappointed that she couldn’t give me more, but I could understand wanting to keep it all a secret. I ran my hand along her slender neck, hearing her let out a small sigh of comfort. She pulled her wing off my back, allowing me to get to my feet. Once I was standing, she gave me one last hug before heading back to the throne. I walked back to the large golden doors, but before I left, I turned back to Celestia.

“Hey, Tia,” I called out.

“Yes,” Celestia responded.

“I was wondering what you thought about my joke telling?” I asked with general curiosity.

Celestia placed a hoof on her chin as she thought about her answer. After a few seconds, she looked at me with a small smile. “I think you could probably use some new material. Shield told me that bad joke you said to her.”

My hand was placed on the door, a small chuckle escaping my lips as I gave a slight shake of my head. I could hear the princess trying to cover her own laughter, but ultimately failing as she couldn’t control it. I bid the princess farewell and wished her luck with her meetings. On my way out of the door, I ran into her first client of the day. I accidently ran into the stallion, and he looked at me like I just assaulted him. His eyes held the same disgust that most of these nobles looked at me with, but I ignored it. I turned away from the stallion, hearing the clopping of his hooves as he went to speak with Celestia.

Leaving with at least some kind of answer, I began walking back towards the open field. This walk was a little uneventful as I didn’t run into anyone. I wouldn’t say I was friends with everyone in the castle, but we all had enough conversations that we could enjoy each other’s company. A few minutes after walking, I arrived at the open field. Fleetfoot and Spitfire were flying around in the air. I looked at the far end to see the guards resting under some shady trees. The mares didn’t seem to have noticed my arrival, so I took a seat on a bench under a tree.

I watched as the mares flew around each other in circles. They did a few dives and twirls, but nothing like what Rainbow described they could do. I did notice their electric smoke streak a little, so it should mean they were putting in some kind of practice. Seeing that they may be flying for a bit longer, I laid down on the bench to catch a little nap. I’m not sure how long I was asleep for, but I was rudely awaken by someone giving me a charley horse. I grabbed at my leg as I bit my lower lip to keep from screaming. I looked to my side to see Spitfire looking at me with a neutral expression.

As she spoke, her tone was neutral. “We have some lunch if you’re hungry.”

“Than-” I didn’t get to finish as the mare flew off.

I just ignored that bit of rudeness as I stretched along the bench. I saw the guards, Spitfire, and Fleetfoot eating in the middle of the field, and it seemed like they were given a simple lunch. Rolling to my feet, I gave on final stretch before heading to join the group. The guards happily waved me over to join them while Fleetfoot offered me a smile. There were some sandwiches, fruit, and some cake they were picking from, and I grabbed my own little lunch.

Conversation for my part was relatively quiet as the mares and guards spoke about different ways to show off during their performance. Now that I actually thought about it, I wasn’t sure what celebration they were preparing for. The only thing I could catch from the conversation was that it was about Celestia in some way. Everyone finished their meals, while I slowly finished off mine.

“I think we’ll call it for today,” Fleetfoot said as she gave a few stretches.

All the guards nodded their heads before leaving. Spitfire and Fleetfoot stretched their bodies and wings before looking towards me. They saw that I was still eating and waited as I finished off my last few bites.

“So, what else are we going to do?” I asked as I cleaned off my hands.

The two mares glanced at each other before Fleetfoot spoke up. “We’re going to change out of our uniforms first. After that, we’re heading for the market to pick up our groceries.”

I gave a small nod as I rose to my feet. “I’ll be here after you finish getting dressed.”

The two mares shared a confused look before giving a slight shrug. I was expecting them to head for a changing room, or even a bathroom, but they seem fine getting changed in front of me. Seeing that they were changing right before me, I turned around so my back was facing them. I rocked back and forth on my feet as I listened to the mares shuffle out of their uniforms. A few flaps of their wings gave me the assumption that they were somewhat out of their suits. I kept my back turned to them, until I felt a hoof poking the back of my leg. I took that as my signal to turn around, when I did, both mares were looking at me with confusion.

Surprisingly, Spitfire was the one to speak up about what I did. “Any reason why you turned around?”

I let out a heavy a sigh, not really wanting to explain the entire situation to them. I hoped that giving a smaller explanation would answer her question. “It’s just a human thing.”

This didn’t seem to satisfy either mare as Fleetfoot spoke. “What’s that supposed to mean?” One of her brows was still raised in confusion.

I’ve explained this situation well over a hundred times that I thought Celestia would have mentioned something about it. “It’s just very rude to watch someone change.”

Spitfire looked at me with a raised brow, her eyes showing a little anger. “So what? We’re naked all the time, and it’s not like we’re doing anything provocative. Do you get off watching ponies change out of clothes?” The last question came out a little accusatory.

I rubbed the bridge of my nose as I answered her questions. “I know that you’re naked all the time. Really hard not to notice something like that. It’s just about privacy is all.”

Spitfire gave a slight roll of her eyes as she grabbed her saddlebags. I only shook my head as Fleetfoot just remained silent. She looked between us for a few seconds before lifting herself into the air. Spitfire joined her as they started to leave the open field. I followed behind the two of them, keeping my eyes off their backsides. I could hear Spitfire whisper harshly at Fleetfoot, but I couldn’t make out what she was saying. If anything, I would guess that it was something about me being a pervert or deviant. The mares kept to their own conversation while I waved goodbye to some of the guards and maids.

Once we walked out of the front of the castle, we started back for the middle district. The walk was a little bothersome as the nobles were out. None of them hid their disgust about me as I walked by. I picked up my pace, walking past the two mares as I tried to get back to the middle district. I could hear the mares flap their wings a little more to keep pace with me. Spitfire gave a confused stare, while Fleetfoot seemed a little concerned. Fleetfoot would poke my arm a few times, but I didn’t want to talk about anything until we were somewhere away from all the nobles.

The walk back to the middle district was short, thanks to my speed walking. We were back in the middle district, but I didn’t stop walking until we were in the market area. The mares were able to easily keep pace, but their looks didn’t change at all. Fleetfoot was still poking my arm, while Spitfire was still staring at me with confusion. I took a few seconds to compose myself before facing Fleetfoot.

“Yes?” I asked, rubbing the bridge of my nose.

“What happened back there?” Fleetfoot asked, her voice laced with slight concern.

“I just don’t like being stared at. I got enough looks when I was on Earth, I don’t need to deal with it here,” I answered, my voice slightly harsh.

It seemed that Fleetfoot wanted to say something more, but thought otherwise. She gave a slight nod, and I was glad to have that subject dropped quickly. She pulled open one of the flaps on her saddlebag, digging through it for something. Her head popped out with a brown bag in her muzzle. Fleetfoot grabbed my hand with her hooves, pulling it out and dropping the bag in my open palm. I heard the metallic clink of coins when the bag landed in my hand. I opened the bag to see there was a decent amount of bits. I looked at the mare with a raised brow, but before I could ask what it was for, she beat me to it.

“This is for your ‘other’ part of your diet.”

I looked at her a little hesitantly before looking at Spitfire, who didn’t seem to mind much. “So, you’re aware of my ‘special’ diet.” I wasn’t sure why I was a little hesitant that they knew, but so far their reactions were a little more positive than before.

“It was mentioned in your notes. We have a few griffons on the team, so the idea of a creature eating meat isn’t entirely foreign to us. Plus, most pegasi eat fish to help keep our wings healthy.” Fleetfoot showed this point by presenting her wing.

I had to hand it to her. Her wings seemed positively healthy, and they glowed a little in the afternoon sun. I gave a few more looks at her majestic wings before moving on with the conversation.

“Do you know where I can get my food?” I rubbed the back of my neck in embarrassment.

Fleetfoot nodded as she pointed towards the back of the market. “Just head down that way. There’s a griffon stand that sells everything that you need.”

I nodded to the two mares before setting off for where I needed to go. As I walked down to the griffon stand, a few ponies that were shopping stopped and stared. Their stares didn’t last long as they gave me a once over and then went back to whatever they were doing. A couple foals seemed interested in me as they followed me. I could hear them whispering to each other and gave a small laugh at their childish intrigue. As I neared the griffon stand, the foals stopped following. I didn’t blame them for not wanting to go further, since it seemed a good portion of the ponies here avoided the griffoness. As I got closer to the stand, the griffoness seemed to take interest in me.

“So you’re the strange creature that I’ve been hearing these ponies talk about,” the griffoness smiled as she presented her talon.

I gripped her talon and shook it. “Seeing as there aren’t many other bipedal creatures around here, I guess that’s me.”

The griffoness released her grip on my hand as she went about checking her stock. I’ve only seen a few griffons, but she seemed to have a few more vibrant colors. Her body was covered in brown feathers that traveled to her wings. At her wings, the feathers started from brown to a dark orange. Her neck feathers were white, but the tips were a deep purple. The feathers around her beak and eyes were pink.

I was pulled from my inspection of the griffoness as she spoke up. “So, what can I get you?”

I took a few seconds to look around her stand. There were a few things that I recognized and pointed to them. “I’ll take some of those steaks, some pork chops, and a few chicken breasts.”

The griffoness nodded as she went about picking up my order. She packed everything away in a brown bag with a griffon emblem on the front. She placed the bag on the counter before looking at me with a bright smile. “This would usually cost about fifty-five bits, but because you’re new and seem like you’ll be stopping by for more, this will only be twenty bits.” She extended her left talon, her smile still warm and kind.

I gave a confused look at the griffoness as I pulled out the bit pouch. I dug through the bits until I counted out twenty. I grabbed an extra ten to give to her as a tip. I placed the bits in her talon and grabbed the bag.

The griffoness started to count through the bits, but called out to me before I could leave. “Sir, you gave me more than what I asked for.” She tried to hand back the extra ten bits.

I smiled at the griffoness as I pushed her talon back. “I wanted to give you a tip. You also didn’t freak-out or try to attack me after seeing me. Also, since I’m going to be stopping by for food, can I get your name?”

“The name’s Razor Wing.” Razor smiled. “Don’t be intimidated by the name. I’m a lot nicer compared to other griffons.”

“It’s good to meet you, Razor. The name’s Mark.” I smiled back.

Razor and I gave a final shake before I left. I actually liked her, since out of the few griffons that I met, she didn’t try to challenge me to a fight or buy me like a slave. I kind of hoped we could become friends, because being friends with a griffon would actually be pretty cool. I continued to walk through the market, reaching the area where I split off from the mares. Seeing there was no sight of them, I took a seat on the bench. I watched as the ponies went from stand to stand, buying groceries or bartering for better prices on other goods. I waved to a few ponies as they passed me.

I leaned against the back of the bench, staring into the sky as I waited for the mares to return. Several minutes passed by until I could hear the soft beating of wings. I lifted my head up to see the two mares floating in front of me. Their saddlebags were full with the groceries that they bought, a few extra bags on their back and in their mouths. They both landed on the ground, placing the bags in front of me.

“So, did you get everything that you need?” Fleetfoot asked.

“Yeah, the griffoness running the stand over there was really nice,” I said.

Fleetfoot’s eyes went wide at that. “Oh, is Razor working the stand today?”

I raised a brow at the mare. “How do you know her?”

“Her sister is part of the team. Her name is Steel Wing. If it wasn’t for their opposite color schemes, nopony would be able to tell them apart,” Fleetfoot explained, laughing a little.

“That’s cool, but yeah, Razor is working the stand,” I replied.

Fleetfoot gave a quick nod. “That’s good. As long as she’s working the stand, then you shouldn’t have a problem getting anything.”

The mares were about to grab the bags again when I grabbed them myself. Spitfire was about to say something, but I cut her off as I raised a hand. “You have enough stuff to carry. Let me get these.”

The mares gave a quick nod before backing away. I grabbed the two bags that were on the ground and gestured for them to lead the way. They jumped into the air, flying out of the market. I followed behind the two mares, looking through the bags. It was pretty much what I expected to be in there. There were assorted fruits, vegetables, and cleaning products. The cleaning products were probably gotten because whenever they would leave on one of their trips, I would be the only one in the house.

The walk back to the house was pretty quiet. The only noise that I could hear was the beating of the mares’ wings. We reached the house as the sun started to set. I was still amazed that the sun and moon were still controlled by magic, though. I did also amaze the princesses when I told them it occurred naturally back on Earth. Fleetfoot unlocked the door and allowed Spitfire and myself to enter. I placed the bags in the kitchen and started to sort through them. As I sorted through the two bags, I found a few things that I could use to make dinner with.

I stepped away from all the bags, putting away my meat first before going to make dinner. The mares continued to put things away while I made a few sandwiches. The sandwiches weren’t anything special, but they would be filling nonetheless. The mares finished putting away all the groceries and sat at the table. I placed the plates in front of them and they happily accepted the meal. The three of us ate in silence until all the plates were clean of crumbs. Fleetfoot took the dishes away for cleaning, while Spitfire headed for her room and I headed for mine.

I grabbed my sleeping clothes and headed for the shower. I took a quick warm shower, reflecting on past events. I didn’t get much for answers, but I at least had something to go off of. Whatever the reasons were why these mares took me in, I wasn’t going to pester them about it. They could tell me on their own time. As I walked out of the shower, I saw Spitfire’s door open wider than before. Going against better judgement, I walked towards the golden mare’s room and looked inside. I saw Fleetfoot sleeping peacefully in bed, but Spitfire was sitting at a desk at the other end of the room.

Spitfire’s back was turned to me, but I could hear the scratches of a quill on parchment. She seemed deep in thought as she wrote on that parchment. I didn’t think much about it since it was probably personal, and headed for my room. I closed the door behind me and crawled under the sheets, letting sleep take me over.