We looked up to the open door to see Aiko, but she had changed. She had a creamy-yellow snout protruding from her face, and she looked stuck between crying and fury. "What have you brought into my house?!" She demanded of me with an accusing point. "I'm becoming some kind of... bakemono!" A monster. "Why aren't I more upset about this? What are you doing!?"

I rolled up to my haunches and smiled at her. "Calm down, Aiko. You're not alone."

Aiko calmed almost immediately, then tensed up. "Oh god, you're mind controlling me! Why? What did I ever do to you?" She put her hands over her snouted face and began to weep. "I don't want to be a monster. I want to finish school, and get a real job, and see places."

Emma hurried over to Aiko and put a hand on her shoulder. Aiko flinched away, "She's already got you. You're ready to be a monster. I'm not! I don't want to. I don't want to. I don't want to!" Emma drew Aiko in for a hug and Aiko cried against her, shuddering with powerful emotions. "Can't you see? Do you want to be a horse?"

I shook my head quickly. "I'm not here to turn you all into monsters. I said I'd go where you wanted me to go. Let's see that doctor person. Maybe they can help?"

Emma pointed back at me. "See? She's on our side. Do you have a private doctor? It'll be easier to talk one on one instead of walking into a hospital."

Aiko suddenly pushed Emma back and fell to her knees in front of me. "Just turn me back, please! Did I offend you, or is this how you work? Are you going to try to turn all humans into monsters?"

Aw, she looked so sad. But what could I do to help? I didn't even know how she was turning into a pony, not that being a pony was that awful, but sure, yeah, asking first would be nice, if I had any idea how it happened! I looked towards Emma. "Did you change anymore?"

Emma gave a shaky little nod. "I didn't want to make a big deal about it..."

Aiko peered at Emma. "Big deal? We're turning into monsters! This doesn't get much bigger than this..." She rose to her feet. "Do I have to defeat you? Are you waiting for us to get brave enough to challenge you?"

I blinked at that. "Don't be silly. I said I'm your friend and I meant it." Despite that, she suddenly lunged for me, but I sprung to the side and jumped through her arms to land on the other side of her. "Calm down, Aiko." She calmed a moment before she got even angrier and she started chasing me around the room, at least until Homer got involved. I mean, I was kind of having fun playing with Aiko, but Homer didn't see it that way.

He suddenly nipped Aiko in the leg, making her yelp. "Stop chasing her!"

Aiko backed away from Homer with her hands held up. "Stay away from me, monster dog."

Homer tilted his head. "My name is Homer."

Emma sighed gently. "He's a dog. A talking dog, sure, but a dog. Isn't that right, boy?" Homer accepted the soft ear scritches with a wagging tail.

Aiko scowled at me. "I'll figure out how to get around your vicious little demon. I won't be turned into a monster without a fight. I won't!" She retreated into her room and locked the door.

Emma reached for me next and gave me some of those ear scritches, mmm. "Guess we aren't seeing the doctor today."

"We don't have to go with her," I pointed out and stood up on my hind legs. "We'll go and have a good time together. Oh, what, you know, changed? You look the same?"

Emma lowered her pants a little to show off where fur had sprouted up around her hips. Hers was a deep blackish color. So severe! At least her attitude didn't match. "I'm alright. I mean, besides being a little fuzzier..." She trailed off as she looked towards Aiko's room. "She isn't wrong, you know. I really should be freaking the hell out right now." She glanced back at me. "You'll be my friend forever, right?"

"Right!" I smiled happily. "We're best buds."

She let out a little sigh of relief. "Then it'll be OK, I think. Even if I do become a pony, at least I'll have company."

I brought my forehooves together in a clop. "Of course you will, but we have to help Aiko. She's super sad, and I don't want her to be, and I don't want you to turn into a pony if you don't want to turn into a pony. Friends don't turn friends into ponies, unless they really want that. Do you want that? Cause I mean it's totally OK if you do!"

She giggled softly and gently ran her fingers over my snout. "I feel like being a pony with you wouldn't be so bad. Is that weird?"

I shrugged softly. "You're asking the wrong pony for that opinion, but I'm happy to help either way." I looked to Aiko's locked door, then back at Emma. "So how do we get you to a doctor? I don't know where anything is around here. If this was Ponyville, I could tell you right away."

Emma dug out her phone. Was that a cell phone? She started playing with it. "There's a little practice not that far from here. Do you want to try it?"

I nodded quickly. "Sure! If it might help your friend, we should try."

Homer looked up hopefully. "I'll come along."

Emma shook her head at Homer. "They don't usually let dogs into those kinds of places, even really nice talking dogs."

Homer pouted at the news, but settled down to wait.

As we opened the door to leave, Aiko peeked out from her room. "Where are you going?"

Emma pointed at me. "We're going to see a doctor, like you asked."

"Take me with you..." She sounded sad and crushed. She emerged from her room and slowly edged around Homer. Along the way, she grabbed a hankie and covered her new snout with it, just like I had done.

I smiled behind my own mask. "We'll get this figured out, don't worry! Homer, you be a good doggie and protect the house."

"Yes!" Homer hopped to his paws and gave the doggy version of a salute, looking ready to do battle with anyone silly enough to intrude on Aiko's house.

With a fresh supply of cupcakes and my two new friends beside me, I felt ready to take on the world! Or at least get to the doctor's. As we walked down the hallway, Aiko kept glancing at me. "Are you a sex demon? Are you collecting a harem of little pony girls to obey your perverted desires?"

The idea sounded way better than it should have, and I had to rearrange things quickly as certain parts got all stiff and throbby. "No! Sheesh. I'm on your side, remember? Besides, you're pretty as humans." I didn't mean that the way it came out, but I learned a long time ago that you can't take back words.

Emma and Aiko both blushed, with Emma looking curious, and Aiko shied away. I got the idea that Emma wouldn't say no, if I asked her one more time. We would probably have that private party, and thinking about it made my heart drum in my ears. I was so hard and ready. I wanted to start playing with her right then, but... No. I would be good! They were both counting on me to keep my head on straight. That's a silly saying, by the way. My head goes this way and that way, and I don't stop having good ideas when it's tilted or anything, so why do they say keeping it straight?

We rode a small elevator down to the ground floor, and we were quickly out onto the street. No taxi that time. "It's really close," insisted Emma. "We can walk there, no problem."

I didn't have any problem walking, so that's exactly what I did. We went past a display of televisions and the news was playing. "--bold break in on air liner has experts considering security protocols." Was that about me? They had a picture of the plane I snuck onto on the screen. I wanted to point, but that'd be showing off a hoof.

Emma was a smart girl. She looked at the airplane and back at me. "Is that the one you got here on?"

"Uh huh. I rode in the bottom, with Homer."

Aiko frowned. "Did he talk before you got there?"

I considered that a moment. "He didn't say anything until I was about to leave."

Aiko sighed. "You're the kind of monster that terrorizes people without even knowing it. You made him talk without even thinking about it. It's your nature."

Was that my nature? "I don't remember making dogs talk back home. I'd remember something like that, for sure."

Aiko looked around for listeners as she walked ahead. "And where is that? Home, that is. Are there a lot of talking horses there?"

I nodded quickly. "Oh, sure. I have tons of friends there. There's Twilight and Apple--"

"How would you know?" Aiko sighed gently. "You can't turn a horse into a horse."

"A curfew has been announced," spoke the television through the thick glass. I wondered how loud it was to reach us so easily.

Emma looked surprised. "A curfew? Does that happen often?"

Aiko shook her head slowly. "N-no..."

The television talked about not approaching strangers, and to head to the doctor if you felt sick. Aiko looked more and more angry. "They're talking about you, pink monster. They're scared of you."

Emma rubbed behind her head with confusion all over her face. "They don't even know she's here. How can they be reacting to her?"

It was then that I noticed the street did seem a lot less crowded than it was the first time I walked through the city. Was something going on? "We should get to that doctor."

"On this, we agree." Aiko led the way swiftly down the road. We approached a pretty-looking two-story house.

A sign on the front announced in intricate Japanese that it belonged to two doctors that shared it. The time was right for it to be open, I could see from the clock built into the sign. Aiko was already on her way inside by the time I caught up with a hasty clip-clop.

Author's Notes:

They arrive at the doctors' offices. Surely an answer awaits them there, but is it the answer they're hoping for, or more typos of destiny?