(Previous day...)

It had taken a few days for Visceral Slaughter and Mason to manage a few days off. They had agreed to go and help plan Razor's wedding. The train from Trottingham had been an early one and they both slept until the train reached Canterlot. Visceral led Mason through Canterlot and up to the Royal Palace. Mason was all eyes. He had been to Canterlot to visit and deal with Visceral Slaughter's family, but the visits had never been particularly pleasant and he had never taken the time to see the Royal Palace up close.

Slaughter was let in smoothly by the E.U.P. Guards and they did not give Mason any trouble either. Slaughter led him to a sky carriage that was already filled partly with other Ponies. Slaughter and Mason boarded the sky carriage and squeezed in next to four other Unicorns. The Guards closed and locked the sky carriage door then ascended into the sky toward New Humansville.

Mason was excited to see the town, "What does it even look like?" He asked openly.

The four other Unicorns laughed quietly. The only stallion out of the four spoke up, "First time to New Humansville?" He asked.

Mason nodded, "Yes, our daughter is getting married there. We're heading over to help her with the planning."

The three other Unicorn mares all gushed over his statement, "That's so sweet." One of them said, "Who's the lucky stallion?"

"Artex Rias." Mason said plainly.

The three mares all froze wide-eyed, while the stallion smiled widely, "Let me guess... you're the parents of Razor Wit then."

Visceral Slaughter sat up straighter, "We are." She said crisply.

The stallion smiled wider, "You should be proud of her. She's accomplished more in her short life than most ever dream of."

"So," Slaughter said in a more relaxed tone, "Why are you four heading to New Humansville?"

Two of the mares and the stallion shared warm looks before one of the mares answered, "We're going there for the weekend. We attended the festival and we just loved it so much we've been back every weekend ever since."

The third mare merely smiled, "I happen to be going there to confer with some of the Human clothing designers and to visit with two dear friends of mine, Fancy Pants and Fleur De Lis."

Mason's eyebrows rose, "I'm not from Canterlot, but I know those are some significant names to be casually throwing around."

The alabaster mare smiled back at Mason, "They would think it a disservice to hear such things. They might have been rich at one point, but from what they have told me, they are much more happy where they are now."

Visceral Slaughter eyed the mare up and down before extending her forehoof, "Visceral Slaughter."

The Unicorn mare accepted her hoof politely, "Rarity. A pleasure to meet you."

Mason tuned out the conversation as he watched the landscape pass by below. Snow littered every surface down below. The ivory white dusting reflected the sun gloriously and the movement of the sky carriage made it seem like a swath of sparkling diamonds had flooded the landscape.

The flight to New Humansville was less than an hour. Mason was startled when the sky carriage dipped below Cloudsdale, which was settled over the town, not yet having any snow. The town came into view and Mason was dumbstruck. He had expected it to still be under construction for having sprung up so quickly. He was shocked by how finished everything looked.

As the sky carriage landed on the roof of Town Hall, Mason and Visceral Slaughter said their goodbyes to Rarity and the other Unicorns. They departed first and his wife led him quickly down the stairs of Town Hall. She was quick and moved at a brisk pace. Descending to the third floor, she stopped at the reception desk near the top of the stairs for the next floor down.

There was a Human woman sitting behind the desk and four Humans and Ponies dressed in strange metal armor standing around the next set of stairs. The Humans woman slid paper forms toward Mason and his wife, "Please read and sign these forms carefully. If you have never been to New Humansville before, feel free to ask any questions you have and I will be more than happy to answer them. If your name is already in the registry, please present your passport now."

Mason began reading the form while his wife levitated her passport out of her saddlebags, "Visceral Slaughter." She said setting the small booklet down on the desk, "I trained here at the beginning of the year, with the Community Welfare Guardians."

The Human woman turned in her chair and opened a filing cabinet, "V, v, v, v... not many in here... ah, here we are." She slid the folder out of its envelope and read through it before looking up, "You are cleared to enter the town. There have been no new laws enacted since you were here last, ma'am." She slid Slaughter's passport back to the mare right when Mason finished filling out his form. He slid it back over the desk and the woman began making out a passport for him, "Please take a seat in the waiting room to the right while I fill this out. Feel free to help yourselves to the complimentary coffee and pastries while you wait. There are information booklets and maps in there if you want them. I will call you when I finish."

Mason and Slaughter trotted into the waiting room while Rarity and the other Unicorns presented their passports and were let in. Mason poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down next to his wife, "The laws here are fairly similar to the rest of Equestria, but some of the written laws have me nervous." He admitted.

His wife turned her head and nuzzled him, "Which ones?"

"The weapons laws were a big surprise. I wasn't expecting there to even be a mention of it, but apparently it's legal for anybody to carry weapons." Mason said.

Slaughter giggled at his statement, "Did you completely miss the fact that Artex had a weapon when he came to visit?"

Mason whipped his head toward his wife, "What? Where? I never saw it."

"He kept it in his belt." Visceral Slaughter said, "He never used it, even against Cutter. And just so you know, it's legal for Humans to carry weapons anywhere in Equestria, not just here. Anything else stand out to you?"

"Yeah, the law about Bloodmages was a shocker." Mason admitted.

Visceral Slaughter nodded, "It was for me as well. I never expected to have any dealings with those murderers outside of fighting one or running for my life... I hate to admit it, but while I was here I can honestly say that I never had any trouble with them."

The Human woman walked in and held Mason's passport out to him, "Here you go sir. In the future, just show us the passport and we can let you in much faster. Enjoy your stay here in New Humansville."

Mason took the offered passport and slipped it into his saddlebags then followed his wife down the stairs to the bottom floor and out the doors. Mason was all eyes as they made their way through the town. He felt as if his brain was about to explode. Undisguised Changelings moved around the town, going about their business as if nothing were out of place. And the Humans. The Humans were everywhere. They did not come in as wide an array of colors as Ponies did, but the differences in height, weight, and build were far more varied than one normally saw with Ponies.

Visceral Slaughter led them to a building which had a strange symbol on the front of it. The symbol was that of a weight scale, except the cross bar was an elongated infinity symbol. Each side of the scale had, instead of weights, a sword on one side and a heart on the other. The two balanced almost perfectly, with the heart seemingly just a little heavier than the sword.

Slaughter led him inside the building and up to a desk, behind which sat a red haired Human woman wearing intimidating metal armor. Her helmet sat on the desk, occasionally crackling with messages. Mason's wife trotted right up to the desk and reared back on her hind legs. She planted her forehooves on the metal edge of the desk, metal specifically placed there for such a purpose, "I neglected to ask when I trained here, officer McNeil, could you tell me where my daughter's house is?"

The woman looked up from her work and recognition flashed across her face, it was not the pleasant kind of recognition either, "I remember you. You're the Unicorn who never talked to any of us outside the classroom."

Visceral Slaughter lifted her right forehoof and rubbed the back of her neck, "Erm, well that is to say... uh..." she sighed and took a deep breath, "Officer McNeil... Maggie, may I call you Maggie?" She did not wait for the woman to respond before she continued, "Look, I messed up pretty badly, okay? I was mean to everybody who wasn't a Pony and that wasn't fair to any of you. I'm trying to get to my daughter's house so we can help her organize and plan her wedding to Artex Rias. This isn't easy for me, but I'm really trying. Why don't you just give me a break and tell me where my daughter lives?"

Maggie McNeil, being of Scottish descent, was predisposed to holding grudges. However, the sincere, albeit blunt words of the mare convinced her to acquiesce, "She lives just outside of town. Follow Centre Ave. West and you'll run right into it. You can't miss it. It's the only house outside of town and it has a big, stone shed off to the side." She paused and tapped the index finger of her right hand against her chin, "Actually, I can do you one better. Hold on a second," she reached over and picked up the helmet off the desk and set it on her head, "Officer McNeil to Rifin." She called over the comm system.

A deep, rumble responded in the helmet's receiver, "Rifin here, go for McNeil."

"Rifin, Razor Wit's parents are here. Would you be willing to take them to her place?" McNeil asked in a mischievous tone.

"Not a problem. Suey is here with me at the playground though. Want me to send her instead since she lives there?" Rifin asked.

McNeil decided not to be too mean to Slaughter, "Yes please."

"10-4. Rifin out." He said, cutting the transmission.

Officer McNeil removed her helmet and set it back on the desk, "Suey will be here in a few minutes. She lives at their house. Just watch for the big pig by the front doors, that's Suey."

Visceral Slaughter pushed herself off the desk and back onto the floor, "Thank you, Maggie."

"You can call me Officer McNeil. But... you're welcome." She replied begrudgingly.

Mason and Visceral Slaughter waited by the front doors until a huge pig trotted up to the doors. She was so tall her back was almost level with the top of the doorways. Suey lowered her huge head and nudged open the left door. Officer McNeil casually pointed to the two Ponies with the bulging eyes. Suey turned her head to them, snorted, and backed out of the doors while Officer McNeil called to them from her desk, "Just be glad it was Suey who came instead of Rifin. He's almost five times her size. We're going to wait until she's done growing before we make a comm system for her. Otherwise we'll end up replacing it every two weeks." She waved at the two Ponies while wearing a shit-eating grin, "Bye-bye."

* * *

Visceral Slaughter was getting the third degree from Mason the entire time Suey was leading them to the house. The Great Pig had said nothing and the two Ponies were ignorant of the fact that she could speak. Mason grilled his wife about her previous behavior, "... and furthermore, it seems pretty obvious to me that you had to have been pretty nasty when you were here for that Human mare to still be upset."

"Human females are called women." She corrected her husband.

Mason ignored her correction, "You had the perfect chance to get to know the newest species on the planet who, I hasten to add, not only provided a way for you to fulfill your dream of being a Guard but also PAID for your room, board, and training?"

For her part, Visceral Slaughter merely nodded her head patiently, "Yes, yes I know. I messed up. I know it wasn't logical but... since when is species oriented prejudice a logical thing? I know I was unpleasant when I was here before, but we're here to help our daughter achieve one of her own dreams. A dream which involves he marrying a Human." She turned puppy-dog eyes on her husband, "Can we PLEASE focus on our little filly?" Mason sighed and nodded silently in reply.

Suey stopped outside, next to the door and motioned toward it with her snout. Visceral Slaughter and Mason still did not know what to make of her. They nervously trotted up to the door and knocked. A few moments later the door opened, revealing Oriana. The smiling Zebra stepped to the side, holding the door for them, "Come on in." She suddenly spotted the Great Pig standing right next to the door, "Oh hi Suey, I would have thought you were busy stalking Rifin." She said with a cheesy grin.

Suey rolled her eyes and snorted, "I watch him. I do not stalk."

Oriana snickered as Visceral Slaughter and Mason stared with wide eyes and open mouths, "Whatever you say, Suey. Come tell me when you're willing to admit you have a crush on him."

Suey turned and trotted back toward town, "If it ever happens, I will." She called over her shoulder.

Oriana closed the door with a giggle and finally noticed the expressions on the faces of the two Ponies. The Zebra mare tilted her head in confusion, "What?"

A yell from the direction of the stairs alerted the three of them that Razor had spotted them, "Lamine, Lamane!" She charged down the stairs and collided with her parents, knocking them over in a Pony-pile hug. The three of them exchanged tight, squeezy hugs as Vaiawa slowly descended down the stairs in a much more regal manner, "It is good to see you two again." She was in her natural form.

Visceral Slaughter felt her heart speed up when she saw the Changeling Queen, 'Keep it together.' She coached herself, 'She hasn't done anything wrong.' It was so difficult for her. Vaiawa was more than twice the height of Razor Wit and Visceral Slaughter was even shorter than her daughter, though nobody in the entire herd was shorter than Oriana. The Changeling Queen exuded potential power and despite herself, Slaughter had trouble not shivering with fear.

Mason hugged his daughter warmly, "How's my little filly?"

Razor playfully shoved him, though she barely moved him a hair, "I'm anything but a filly, Daddy. I'm getting married!" She squeed in delight, "Come on into the living room and we'll get started!" She climbed off her parents and headed toward the rear of the house.

Mason stood up easily and extended a helping hoof to his wife, "Up you go, beautiful." He said as she accepted his offered hoof.

The two of them followed Razor Wit into the living room with Oriana and Vaiawa bringing up the rear of the procession. Mason and Slaughter admired the outline of the house. It was well-built, spacious, stout and Mason approved. Razor was already lying on the floor when everybody else arrived. She had a small desk on the ground and a quill, ink, and sand ready to write down the plans.

She waited until everybody else laid down before beginning, "Alright, I know traditions are important to you, Mother, but our herd is probably one of the most nontraditional in recent history. That being the case, I want an even balance between Human wedding traditions and our own."

Visceral Slaughter looked around the room and snorted, "If your fiancé is so concerned about the traditions of his people, then why is he not here?"

"Because he's out in his work shed building things for us with his hands. He knows that I'm familiar with many Human wedding traditions, we talked about it these past few days. He is confident that we can create something balanced." She shot her Mother an amused look, "Besides that, he's very easy to distract and I don't even want to think about his lack of organizational skills." Vaiawa and Oriana giggled at the statement, not because it was amusing by itself, but because it was so true. Vaiawa spoke up, "His friends say he has a case of A.D.O.S. It stands for Attention Deficit Ooh Shiny. Neither of you have had a chance to be around him when he is at ease. He lapses into the most random topics in conversation and occasionally just up and playfully pokes one of us for fun. It is always some extreme with him, he says it is from his... issue. He can be the most serious, uptight individual you will ever meet in one minute, and the most random, silly person the next."

Oriana a added her two cents as well, "We have seen him in all manner of moods on our travels. At first we assumed he was acting oddly because he was always stressed out over our work. We later found out he has some sort of personality... quirk which makes his mood change from one extreme to another in a matter of seconds depending on what is going on. We have to help keep him focused sometimes. When something catches his interest though, he pours himself into it heart, mind, and soul. Trust us, it's better to do the organization without him here. He'll be along when it's dinner time."

Razor nodded, "Right. So first, my gown. Humans have the tradition of the woman wearing a white gown, just like we do. But instead of it being white to make the bride easier to identify, Human women wear white to portray the purity of the bride."

"Purity?" Visceral Slaughter asked.

"Yes. It is supposed to symbolize her... erm... virginity. Even though the bride is not always a virgin when she gets married. Because of the two traditions being so similar, there is no conflict there. Now, Humans from Artex' part of their world have a few other traditions about the bride. One is that she have a veil covering her face when she is walked down the aisle by her Father." Razor looked up to her own Father, "Is that alright with you?"

Mason's smile grew wider, "Now that is a tradition I like... but wouldn't that detract from the bride and groom being the focus of the wedding?"

Razor shook her head, "Not at all. The Father is supposed to walk the bride down the aisle and pass her off to the groom. It's supposed to be symbolic. The Father is releasing the bride from his care under his house and giving her to the groom. He is passing off the responsibility for her to her husband."

Visceral Slaughter just had to speak up, "I don't want to assume anything, but it sounds like Humans are... treating the bride like a possession more than a Pony-uh person."

Razor tilted her head from side to side, "Uhh, yes and no. In ancient times Human men used to treat their wives somewhat like possessions. Modern civilized Humans would never do that. Human men have a social expectation of being providers and protectors of their families. Artex in particular feels it very strongly. The symbolism is that the Father is relinquishing that responsibility and entrusting his daughter to the groom for him to keep safe, not as a possession."

Visceral Slaughter hummed in thought, "That seems acceptable, if somewhat backward. Then again, you did say that Humans have a roughly equal gender ratio, so it makes more sense in context."

Razor beamed at her Mother being so understanding, "Alright next thing: the veil. Human brides often wear a veil to hide their faces. Artex is not particularly excited about that tradition so we can eliminate that one. Next is the... garter." Her face flushed crimson at even speaking the word.

Mason and Visceral Slaughter grew concerned at their daughter's sudden blush, "Is something wrong, Razor?" Her Mother asked.

Oriana and Vaiawa were giggling at the embarrassed blush on Razor's face. Vaiawa decided to field the question, "The garter is a frilly circlet of satin and lace that the bride wears around one of her hind legs. The groom is supposed to publicly remove it. Some traditions have him remove it with his teeth."

Razor's blush deepened as she explained, "The practice is often interpreted as symbolic of... deflowering. The groom will remove the garter and toss it to a group of unmarried men at the wedding. The tradition, which is more superstition than anything else, states that the man who catches the garter will be the next to get married. It is meant to be silly..."

"It's obscene." Visceral Slaughter growled, "That kind of thing is meant to be shared only between a husband and wives." She bit her tongue to keep from saying something worse, 'It's her wedding, it's her wedding, it's her wedding...' she kept repeating the mantra until she was calm again. She cleared her throat, "Razor please..." she trailed off as she sought the proper way to phrase her statement, "While I can appreciate you being willing to adhere to the traditions of Artex' people, are you sure you're comfortable with such a... forgive me for saying this, but such a lewd and embarrassing public display on your wedding day?" She scooted on the floor so she could be closer to her daughter, "Razor, you seem uncomfortable with the very idea of having him do that. I can only imagine how embarrassed you would be on your wedding day. For your sake, I hope you only ever have one, but it is supposed to be a special day." She lapsed into silence and placed a comforting hoof on her daughter's side, "Just..." she struggled to get the words out, "Just be sure that whatever you two decide, is what you really want."

Razor studied the small list in front of her for some minutes before she looked to her Mother, "I-I want to do it."

Visceral Slaughter turned an alarming shade of red, but instead of verbally exploding, she took several long, deep breaths and calmed herself, "If-if that is what you really want... I... I have no right to say otherwise."

Razor instantly perked up, "Oh good! I didn't want to anyway." She quickly crossed 'garter toss' off the list while her mother sputtered.

"Wait, what?" The elder Unicorn mare asked.

Razor gave her mother a level stare, "I just had to be sure you were willing to go with whatever I decided, even if it wasn't what you wanted."

Visceral Slaughter lowered her head, her eyes downcast, "I suppose I deserved that." She looked back up and met her daughter's eyes, "Razor Wit, you're my only birth-daughter. I know I've been unfair to some of your friends but... I really do want you to be happy. I love you and I want what's best for you... whether or not I always agree with what you decide... in the end the decision is still yours and I will respect that. I'm so sorry I was like that for so long." She closed her eyes and stuck her head under Razor's chin, "I don't ever want to lose you, but by being so overwhelming I can see I was just pushing you away even more. I was wrong, what I did. I'm sorry I hurt you so much."

Razor Wit was stunned. Her mother almost never apologized for anything. Despite the rift between them, Razor still loved her mother deeply. She lowered her head and nuzzled the older mare back, "I'll try to forgive you, mama." Before either one could say anything, Mason enveloped them in a massive, tearful hug. He set his chin on top of Razor's head and sighed, "There's my girls." He squeezed them tightly against his chest, glad to have seen some measure of resolution between them. Oriana and Vaiawa shared a smile and just stayed where they were. They were in no rush and both of them could see that the family had begun to patch up the hole in their hearts.

Author's Notes:

Another chapter. Let me know if you spot typos.