The Trottingham train station was a busy place. Ponies were packed together so thick that their colors all blended together. In Artex' eyes they were a multicolored ocean of talking, living things. He slid the strap of his shoulder bag over his head, while the mares merely had to carry their saddlebags. He envied them, 'What do you really need to pack if you don't wear clothes?'

He looked out the windows at the thick crowd waiting to board the train, 'It's O.K. I've done this before. When I first arrived in Ponyville it was like this... kind of. Twilight said to smile and wave,' he slid his teeth over his upper lip, 'And it DID work... hmm... I bet it would help if I looked really happy. The girls are always saying that I'm hard to understand because my ears and so forth don't move. Heh, and they think I never overhear things.' So decided, he stood behind his mares and plastered on the happiest grin he could think of. Specifically one that did not show any teeth, 'I feel like one of the penguins from Madagascar: smile and wave boys, smile and wave.'

The conductor trotted up and slid open the door then smoothly moved on to the next car. The mares quickly trotted out and began making their way through the tightly packed ocean of Ponies. It did not take the mares long to realize that the crowd had fallen utterly silent. Razor kept moving, but turned her head over her shoulder hoping to catch a glimpse of what had arrested the attention of the Ponies in her home town. She had to stifle laughter as she saw Artex smiling broadly and waving energetically to nearly every Pony he passed. He received almost no smiles and return waves were few and far between, but he just kept smiling and waving like he had been dosed with too much of a medical grade pain killer. Razor turned back around and continued forward, trying not to laugh at just how ridiculous Artex looked.

They made it out of the station and onto the street. The mares stopped and waited for their boyfriend to join them. Artex walked down the stairs and stepped onto the ground, the smile vanishing as if it had never been there, "That could have gone worse I suppose." He said.

Razor finally let her giggling shine through, "You looked so silly! That smile was so wide it must have hurt your mouth! Did you wave to every Pony in the station?" The other mares all joined in adding their own mirth.

Artex laughed sheepishly, "I think I might have." He spoke again as the laughter died down, "I guess they've never seen a Human before." He stopped and thought for a moment before adding, "Wait a second, Chris surely has a shipping center here. Has he not made any personal appearances?"

Oriana shrugged, "Maybe not. He probably hired different Ponies to run the satellite locations so he could focus on the finances and so forth. It's what I would do."

Artex scratched his chin and nodded, "Yeah, that makes sense." He clapped his hands together, "So, is this where we split up?"

Razor nodded, "Yep. I will take Oriana, Vaiawa, and Rose to meet my family and we'll find you later on at the hotel near the house. Do you remember the name of it?"

Artex smiled, "The Incandescent Silver Star. And yes, I remember your family's address as well."

Razor grinned and turned toward the Southern side of Trottingham. The train station was on the Northern side so her family's home was on the far side of town, "See you tonight Artex." The rest of the mares bid him their own good-byes and followed behind the tan Unicorn mare.

Artex sighed contentedly as he watched four swaying sets of hips walk away. He enjoyed the sight a great deal, perhaps a bit too much if the sudden tightness in his pants was any indication. Glad to have his robe to conceal his raging boner, Artex made his way toward the Southern part of Trottingham. He walked just fast enough to continue enjoying the backside view of his four girlfriends from a distance.

He followed them right down the middle of the street for nearly half an hour before he saw the sign for The Incandescent Silver Star hotel out of the corner of his right eye. He reluctantly veered away from following behind his girlfriends' shapely posteriors and jaunted toward the rather charmingly pink painted, four story, red brick hotel.

Artex pushed open the stout wooden front door and walked into the lobby. Behind the counter, only about four and half Fathoms away from the front door, was a dark yellow Unicorn mare who had an auburn mane and tail. She had her eyes cast down while a quill floated in her magical grip writing in a large open book in front of her.

"Hello." Artex cheerfully addressed her as he pulled back the hood of his cloak, "Are there any rooms available?"

The mare did not look up, "Rooms are ten Bits per night for a single, fifteen for a double. We're practically empty right now so there are plenty of rooms available, sir."

Artex pulled his shoulder bag around to his front and reached in for his Bit purse, 'I need to make sure there is room for Vaiawa in case the family doesn't like her and hotel beds might be small here. Besides, I have plenty of Bits.' He withdrew his hand holding the purse, "Alright then, I would like a double, please. I can pay for three nights in advance." He said as he counted out five of the eight Bit coins and five of the single Bit coins and laid them on the counter.

The mare's eyes flickered to the Bits briefly and quickly moved to his hand. Eyes widening, she slowly looked up at the rest of him. Her large eyes met his and she gasped loudly. Artex assumed the reaction was one she did not intend, decided to play it off. He looked down at his robe, "Ooh," he groaned, "Please don't tell me I have a stain on my clothes."

The mare blinked and pulled her forehooves back against her chest, "W-w-we don't have any r-rooms available." She said quickly.

Artex hid his cringe, 'Let's see if we can rectify this.' He looked back up at the mare, "I must have misheard you, ma'am. I thought you said there were no rooms available just now. You told me not two minutes ago that the hotel was nearly empt..."

"I misspoke!" She interrupted him quickly.

Artex' face fell and he decided to be direct, "Ma'am, I know you're lying. Whatever it is you're afraid of, I assure you, I won't cause any trouble." He gestured to the Bits on the counter, "Look, I even paid in advance."

The mare reached forward and shoved the Bits off the counter, "I don't want your money." She quickly withdrew her hoof.

"Or my patronage, either, I take it." He sighed, "Alright, I would like to speak with your manager immediately."

"I want you to leave." She dropped down to all fours and took several steps back as if she were afraid that he would come over the counter.

Artex took a deep breath to calm down, "I am a citizen of Equestria and I will wait for your manager outside." He knelt down and scooped the Bits up in his hand.

"You'll be waiting all night." The mare said.

Artex stood up feeling his temper rise as he dumped the Bits back into his shoulder bag. Not wanting to cause a scene, he decided to leave. He had a few parting words for her as he made his way to the door, "Madam, if I may he so bold, your customer service skills are severely lacking." He stopped at the door and said his final peace, "Good day, ma'am."

Artex left the hotel and began wandering around trying to find another close hotel. While he had been following his girlfriends around earlier he had been too distracted to notice all the stares he got. Now that he was not thusly distracted, he realized that even though he was doing nothing except walking, he was still a spectacle. Ponies stopped what they were doing to stare at him no matter where he went. He grumbled under his breath, "Don't be sour. They probably never saw a Human before. I'm used to that, just be friendly and they'll get used to you. Act like you belong and they will assume that you do." He kept his hood down and smiled brightly, waving to the Ponies he walked past. He received the same lack of positive response he had experienced at the train station. Sighing quietly he pulled up his hood and sped up his walk, 'I don't have time for this. I need to find another hotel, then figure out how to let the girls know where the room is.'

After a few more minutes he spied a six story grey stone hotel with the sign 'The Traveler's Lodging' sticking out of the cobblestones of the road. He walked right on in and lowered his hood again. The viridian colored Pegasus mare behind the counter looked up immediately. Her wings spread slightly and she gasped.

Artex sighed loudly, "Are you going to turn me away because I'm not a Kavim?"

The mare shook her head and seemed to remember to smile, "Not at all sir... uh..." she stumbled over her words, "I mean no offense, but it is 'sir' isn't it?"

Artex returned her smile, 'At least she's trying.' He nodded as he reached into his shoulder bag, "Yes, ma'am, it is. I would like a room with two beds or one very large one, if at all possible."

The mare passed her hooves over the opened ledger book, keeping her face blank and looking straight ahead. Artex noticed that she was looking past him, 'Why isn't she looking at... she's blind!' After a moment her expression changed to a warm smile, "That will be thirteen Bits per night please. I'm afraid we do not have a complimentary breakfast available. I can direct you some excellent nearby cafes, if you want."

Artex nodded as he counted out the forty-five Bits that were jangling around loosely within his shoulder bag, "That won't be a problem. I'm planning to go out and explore the town a bit to get my bearings anyway." He held out his hand, "Here are the forty-five Bits I was going to pay the first hotel with. Keep the change as a tip for good customer service."

The mare's expression fell, "They turned you away, huh. I'm sorry about that. Well at least you can spread the word to other Humans that we'll serve them without question." She suddenly shook her head as if clearing away cobwebs, "Oh I forgot, all of our rooms are multiple species compatible. You should only need a single sir. Would you like me to refund you and give you the single? The beds can fit up to a fully grown Minotaur so you should have no problem." She quickly put her hooves back down on her book, "I'm sorry, we so rarely get non-Pony customers that it completely slipped my mind."

Artex smiled all the more, "The current room will be fine ma'am. I appreciate your dedication though miss..."

The mare looked lowered her forehooves, "Feather Tip, but my friends just call me Tip."

"The second bed is kind of necessary. I'm here to meet my..." he trailed off as something suddenly occurred to him, "Wait a second. I never told you I was a Human. How did you know?"

Tip giggled and flapped her wings, "Pegasus magic. I can... perceive every current of wind that's not blocked by a solid object in about a ten Fathom radius around me. If there is no moving air, I cannot perceive the world. Fortunately there is always moving air so I can 'see' in my own way."

Artex whistled in appreciation as she passed him a room key with the number 218 written on it, "That is impressive, and let me tell you, I have seen some impressive things since I came to Equestria. I'm actually here to meet one of my girlfriends' family."

Tip perked her ears forward, "Your girlfriends are Ponies?" She asked, "The museum's exhibit on Humans never mentioned that you were interspecies compatible."

Artex made a mental note of the fact that a museum had an exhibit on Humans but filed it away in the back of his mind, "Normally we aren't. I received a blood transfusion from a Pony to save my life and it changed my insides to match that of Kavim biology. I can have foals with mares but not other Humans now." Another thought occurred to him, "Any idea how many Ponies I should expect to treat me like dirt here in Trottingham?"

Tip sighed sadly, "Half of them at least. The incident at Flankfurt left a lot of angry Ponies. Don't expect friendly faces and you won't be disappointed."

Artex felt his brow crease, "Flankfurt? What happened in Flankfurt?"

"Some Humans broke into a house um... about a year and a half ago I think. Anyway, one broke into a house and was about to murder a filly in her bed when her Father stopped the Human. There are a lot of Ponies who commute from Flankfurt to Trottingham every day for work so the story spread to here. A lot of Ponies are scared of Humans. I mean, how many species could face crazed Diamond Dogs in open combat and actually win?"

Artex groaned, "I'll explain later about that. Right now I need to go find a shop that sells paper and pencils so I can leave a note for Razor, err, my girlfriend. I need to let her know that I'm at a different hotel than we planned for."

Tip's ears perked up, "Razor? As in Razor Wit?"

Artex blinked, "Y-yes?"

Tip smiled broadly, "She's really nice. I went to school with her. She's famous around here! Her Diamond Dog friends come and trade with us once a week. You know her Mom..." Tip stopped talking for a second, "... her Moooooom... that's why you got the room isn't it." Tip rolled her neck, "Oh she is going to FLIP when she meets YOU."

Artex grumbled again not wanting to hear any more on the subject, "Well, I'll see you later." He said abruptly and turned and walked out the door.

He pointedly ignored the sound of Tip calling after him as he lifted his hood and strode moodily down the street grumbling to himself, "Well at least now I know why the Ponies here hate Humans. And I'm certain that the opinion of the city has absolutely no bearing on Razor's Mother's opinion of other species, either." He said sarcastically. He decided to distract himself. He knew the more he thought about it, the more it would bug him.

The impact of a tomato against his green cloak brought his attention back to the present. He looked up and saw a purple Earth Pony colt dart away down a narrow alley to his left. He bit his lower lip and raised his eyes to the heavens, "Give me patience." He wiped the dripping juices off his cloak and gritted his teeth as it smeared. He channeled his magic through his hands and pulled the tomato remnants out of his cloak. He turned and continued down the street feeling even more irritated, 'I need to be careful, I'm starting to cascade. I have to relieve the stress, but I can't just hide in the hotel. The girls would never find me.'

After a few more minutes he came to a huge open courtyard surrounded by cafes and other businesses. The courtyard seemed to be an intersection for ten roads, all leading off in different directions. On the far side of the courtyard was a store which had the symbol for books on it. Artex quickly jogged across the courtyard and headed toward the bookstore, hoping to get away from all the piercing eyes.

He stopped as he reached the door of the bookstore. He saw four young Pegasi stallions had landed several Fathoms to his left and they did not look friendly. He stayed put and turned his head toward them, watching silently. The four young stallions stopped a short distance away and just stared at him. Artex sighed and pulled open the door. He entered the bookstore, 'As long as they don't try anything, I won't make trouble either.' The bell above the door chimed as the door closed behind him.

The inside was wall to wall tall rows of books but there was nopony behind the counter at the back of the store. Artex shrugged and began browsing the book selection. The store was deep and narrow, he estimated only three Fathoms wide but at least twelve Fathoms deep. He perused the selections, hoping that something would stick out and catch his attention. After a few minutes, something did. He reached out and lifted the thick volume from its shelf reading the title out loud, "The Exhaustive Guide To Kavim Biology." He opened the book and was pleasantly surprised, "It's fully illustrated, too." He had been having more and more concerns about how the physical aspects of the relationships with his wives would go, that plus he was not comfortable with the tiny bit of knowledge he had about conception, gestation, and foal birth. He figured much of it was familiar, but he wanted to be sure and he was not comfortable asking one of his mares. The book seemed like a good direction to go. He smiled, feeling slightly better about the day and looked at the price-range tag on it, "Between twenty and forty Bits. Pricy, but worth it. Let's see if I can haggle the owner down to twenty." He had become knowledgeable about haggling during his time in Ponyville and he felt he could at least get the owner down to twenty-five. He carried his selection to the counter at the back of the store and still did not see anypony.

He set the book down and rapped his knuckles against the wooden counter, "Hello? Paying customer here to buy an expensive book." He figured it would draw out any good salespony.

He was correct, "Just a moment please." Came a mare's voice from the back room. A few moments later an orange Unicorn mare trotted out of the back, "How may I help yooooouuuow!" She leaped back against the wall behind her which separated the back room from the front.

Artex put on his best, strained smile, "I would like to buy this book please."

The mare's horn lit up, but Artex could not see what she was doing, "Seventy-five Bits." She said nervously.

Artex blinked in confusion, "The price-range tag says twenty to forty Bits. How about I give you fifteen and I recommend your store to my friends?"

"Sixty and you leave immediately." The mare shot back.

"Twenty-five and I leave immediately." Artex returned.

"Forty-five and I don't call the Civil Guard." The mare said.

Artex was becoming upset, "Thirty and I prove that I'm an Equestrian citizen." He said between gritted teeth.

"Thirty-five and I won't club you." The mare replied levitating a stout wooden rug beater out from under the counter.

Artex felt his left eye twitch, "Thirty-five and I won't have you arrested for threatening a royally sanctioned Emissary with a weapon."

"GET OUT OF MY STORE!" The mare bellowed.

Artex slammed six of the eight Bit coins down on the counter, "Here! Forty-eight Bits, more than the listed maximum price." He grabbed the book and slid it into his shoulder bag.

He barged out of the store with his fists clenched and ended up walking right into the four young Pegasus stallions. He struggled to correct his balance before he fell over from his sudden stop. He managed to halt his fall and even managed not to touch any of them. He straightened his cloak and lifted the hood over his head, "Pardon me." He said as he made to step around them.

He took a single step to his right but was halted by an almost metallic clanging sound as a single wing barred his way. He could not squeeze by and nor was he in the mood for being bullied. He followed the light brown wing to the light brown Pegasus it belonged to. The young stallion had a mane and tail that were dark red and both cut short. Artex met the young stallion's eyes and took a deep, slow breath before speaking, "I do not know who you are, but whatever you may have heard about humans is likely incorrect. I am not your enemy. I have not threatened anypony, I have not hurt anypony, I have not even intentionally frightened anypony. What did I do to you?"

The young stallion narrowed his eyes, "We don't want you Humans doing the same thing you did in Flankfurt. Your kind isn't welcome here." The Pegasus spat contemptuously.

Artex rolled his eyes, "That much, at least seems glaringly obvious. I'm not here to cause any trouble. I'm only here to visit somepo..."

"They don't want to see you." The young stallion interrupted.

Artex held his temper in check only through sheer force of will, "That is very presumptuous of you and it is not for you to decide."

"Leave town. Now." The Pegasus ordered.

"Simply put young stallion, no. I'm staying for three nights and four days. Now, if you will excuse me, I would like to look around some more." Artex said. He held his hands up and pressed his stomach against the stallion's wing to push by.

The young stallion smirked, "Is it true that Humans have skin harder than diamond?"

Artex nearly screamed in frustration. He rolled his head and pressed his hard abs harder against the Pegasus' wing, "Yes," he spat, "Our skin is harder than diamond and we can climb trees like monkeys!"

In a blur of motion, the stallion twisted his body and slid his wing across Artex' stomach with a sickening slicing sound. Artex froze as his body registered an injury so severe he could not even feel it. He clasped both his hands against his stomach and felt sticky warmth spreading down his crotch and thighs.

The Pegasus stallion and his friends all took to the air puffing themselves up and yelling for Artex to leave town. They stopped after a few seconds when they saw him not moving and holding his stomach. A large crowd of dozens of Ponies had gathered around by that point. Artex slowly lifted his right hand only to see that it was covered with blood.

The Pegasi all dropped to the ground, with the three others looking at the one who had cut the Human, "You actually hurt him!" One yelled.

Another spoke up, "We're only going to scare him away!"

"I'm not going down for murder!" The third said.

Artex could not hear them. His ears were ringing as fiery agony seared through his abdomen, "Hospital..." he said quietly.

The young stallion who wounded Artex could only stare at the Human in shock, "I... I didn't... I mean..."

"HOSPITAL!" He roared.

The light brown stallion pointed to the left with a shaking hoof, "Th-that way..."

Artex took slow, stumbling steps in the direction the Pegasus indicated. His mind was racing. He had to find the hospital. He could feel the blood soaking his clothes and he could swear he felt a slimy, rope-like thing squishing inside his hands. Every step was agony, 'One foot... in front... of the other... breathe slowly... hands tight... against the wound... breathe slowly... stay calm...' he stopped and took a shuddering breath, 'It hurts... so much... stay calm...' he clenched his eyes shut, tears streaming down his face from the torment, 'You're going to... die here... now... MOVE!'

He cracked open his eyes and took another step in hell. It hurt beyond words. Every step, every breath, every second it hurt more and more. His vision lost focus as he slowly inched his way down the street. He no longer registered seeing what his eyes took in. His body just moved on its own.

He was only vaguely aware of some kind of sound around him. He heard shouting but he could not register the words. He felt pressure on his back and sides, but he ignored it and just kept walking. His mind was numb to sensation and his mind detached itself from his pain, 'Now they're yelling and throwing things? I hate this place. I HATE this place!'

He blinked and tried to focus his eyes but the refused to cooperate, 'I can tell the yelling is growing louder, but I can't make out the words.' He felt more pressure as his balance teetered. Half a second later he felt something impact his left shoulder, 'Thank God I'm too numb to feel anything... wait a second... isn't it supposed to be a bad thing if you can't feel anything? Oh yeah, I'm falling now aren't I?' He attempted to correct his balance, but in his state he only ended up tripping himself, 'Hello mister cobblestone street, I'm coming for a visit. Might mush up my face a bit more, so be gentle, Mister Street.' He saw his vision filled with white, 'Oh Mister Street I asked you to be gentle and now you've gone and blinded me. That hurts my feelings." Random thoughts began filtering through his mind, as he felt himself being pushed and pulled, 'If I survive this I'll be able to handle pain like Harry Dresden, Grath Longfletch, or even Rand Al'thor... maybe not Rand...' he felt himself turned over onto his back, 'Oh come on guys! Haven't you assholes done enough!'

He tried to curl up into the fetal position and lay on his side. He could not curl up or turn onto his side. Something was holding him back. After a few seconds he felt something pulling against his skin, 'Don't take my clothes off guys... if that's what you're doing... I can't tell anymore... now I'm getting sleepy... damnit, I need to stop getting hurt...' it was the last thing he conscientiously thought. He was still awake, but he was not aware as his mind closed off.

Author's Notes:

Let me know if you spot ant typos.