Bubbles trotted alongside her friends, Razz and Trap. "And that's when I zapped that big monster, foom! You should have seen the look on her face." She smiled in more of a smirk as she blew a bubble with her gum. "She would have been lost without me."

Trap perked an ear at his thuggish ally. "Good job, sis. How are you liking the new gig?"

She raised a hoof to wobble it. "The pay's not bad, and she only checks in on me once in a while. I could have way worse jobs, I suppose. It's just kinda boring." She rolled her eyes. "Working for Miss I-Don't-Do-Nothin' ain't helping matters."

Razz shook his head quickly. "She was really hurt!"

Trap seemed surprised by this. "You saw her then? Did you play hero and drag her to the hospital?"

"N-no." Despite his word, both of the others were peering at him directly. "What? She's fine! Spring helped her."

Bubbles rolled her eyes. "Ugh, her? So a lot of nothing then."

"Not exactly... nothing," confessed Razz. "She was with Coco when I walked in on her."

Trap raised a brow. "Coco?"

Bubbles gestured to the building most of them emerged from a while before. "She's one of the ponies I'm paid to guard. She lives there."

Trap smiled deviously. "Aw wow. You didn't mention your landlady was a total fillyfooler. That's righteous."

Bubbles punched Trap, crashing a stiff hoof into his side. "She can't technically be a filly fooler, cause she ain't a damn filly!" She fixed her gaze on Razz. "You saw that, right?"

Trap looked befuddled but quite intrigued. He raised a brow at Razz, hoping for answers.

Razz flashed a false smile a mile wide as the two began to glare at him. "Ah heh... So... maybe a little?" The glaring continued. "She's better hung than either of us." He sagged in place as Trap sputtered a moment before starting to laugh in an uproar that drew curious peeks from other ponies walking past.

Bubbles snorted softly. "Good, so you're putting, uh, him? behind you, right? You don't need any would-be mare like that, Razzy Boy."

Razz glanced around nervously before he started walking along. His movement drew the others to either of his sides and he guided them towards one of their favorite hangout alleyways where some minimal privacy could be had. "She isn't just a stallion, or a filly. She's both."

Trap hiked a brow. "So, you plowed her, didn't you?"

It was Bubbles turn to sputter. "You wouldn't! You didn't... You did, didn't you?" The intensifying blush in Razz's cheeks was more answer than either needed. Even as Trap fell over laughing, she took an angry step forward. "She's a damn freak! Why?!"

Razz held up his hooves, seated on his haunches as he tried to ward the angry mare away. "She's different, but she's not a freak."

Bubbles growled softly. "Why would you pick that over a real mare?!"

Real mare? Razz was confused as to who else he'd consider even as Bubbles slapped him right across the cheek. "Hey! That's not called for." He fell to all fours and advanced on her with a snarl. "I like her, and it's my choice! Mine!"

Trap got between his furious friends. "Hey, chill out. We're pals, and that's not how buds act."

Bubbles huffed. "Some pal he is."

Razz's confusion only grew as his anger stormed. "Why don't you just tell me what you mean?! By Celestia, you know I miss things. I'm not trying to be thoughtless."

"Thoughtless?" Bubbles scowled at her would-be coltfriend. "It takes a pony without eyes to miss that I've been hunting for him for years!" It was only after the words got out of her mouth that she realized what she had said. Her tail fell along with her ears and the rest of her in part. "I was just joking, ah hah ha..." Her laugh was far from sincere, and neither stallion was fooled.

Trap slapped Razz on the shoulder. "You're a veritable stud. I'm so jealous right now. Two! Two mares to pick from." He was smiling despite his words, clearly taking the competition in about the best light. "Lucky Razzy Boy."

Razz was frozen for a moment, thinking back on the way Bubbles acted around him, and all the signs he had missed but seemed so obvious in retrospect. "Really?"

She scowled at him. "Don't you even dare ask that!"

Razz gave a shallow nod. "I... see." He did have two mares, and not a single clue to share among them. What could he do?! Did he like Tabitha? Yes. She was kind and smart and even successful. Did he like Bubbles? He looked her over. He liked her a lot, as a friend. As a mare, she was pretty enough, with that wild edge that was... kind of attractive and scary. He knew Bubbles better than Tabitha by far.

Maybe an experiment? With a dry mouth, he licked over his lips. "Bubbles."

"Yeah?"

"How about... we try it?"

She canted her head a bit. "Try what, exactly? Be specific."

Razz leaned forward. "Coltfriend and marefriend. I'll be yours if you be mine." He didn't really have Tabitha, but he could have Bubbles, and that was a hell of a secondary prize.

She blinked softly. "Just like that?"

Trap threw a leg over either of his friends. "Just like that. If Razz says it, it's clear. He'd do anything for us, even give up on freaky landlady stallion-mares." He raised a brow. "That means I can go after her, right?"

Razz blinked at the very idea. "She has somepony else after her already..." But Trap? "You're kidding, right?"

"Well, mostly." He shrugged. "I wanna see her, now. Not often a fella gets to put eyes on something quite like that." He looked between Razz and Bubbles. "Forget that though, today's about a new happy couple!" He drew them in tighter. "Let's celebrate!"

Bubbles suddenly shoved Trap away and advanced on Razz. "Are you serious? Do you even know how to treat a mare?"

Razz blinked softly. "I will be your stallion. I will support you and cheer you on while I keep you on the good path. Hopefully, you'll return that favor."

Trap shrugged a little. "Sounds like we're all married."

Bubbles punched Trap for his trouble. "This ain't no sleazy herd, by Celestia."

Razz gave a little smile. "But we are all friends, romantic or not. I don't want that to change."

Trap bobbed his head quickly. "Exactly. I hope you two have a great time, but don't leave Trap out of it. I get lonely with my ideas."

Bubbles looked ready to be scathing, but it died without being spoken. "Trap, you are hopeless." She gestured to herself, then Razz. "We both got jobs, paying bills and all that nonsense. What are you doing?"

Razz thrust out a hoof. "That's not fair!"

"Sure it is." Trap nodded softly. "She isn't wrong. I thought I'd beat her to employment any day..."

"What happened to the hoof pick?" asked Razz. "That one looked good."

He produced the pick from his side. "It works great on my hooves, every time, but getting it to work reliably on not-my hoof, now that's the trick..." He tossed the device aside. "Back to the drawing board."

Bubbles advanced on him. "When do you ever leave the drawing board?"

"Never, I guess." He sank a little. "I'm sorry... I don't mean to drag you two down."

"N-no! You stop that!" Razz clopped the ground. "You're our friend, not somepony in the way of anything."

"Nah..." Trap smiled gently. "I'm out of money, and I'm not going to ask for a handout, again. I'm going to head out, leave you two to your happy--"

Razz pounced him, knocking him to the ground. "You're not going anywhere!"

Bubbles sat beside the two. "Look, he's my friend too, but whatcha gonna do?"

"Yeah," protested Trap from beneath Razz. "I'll just get out--"

"No!" Razz sat up on his friend. "We made a promise, together. I didn't forget it, but I have learned... something."

Bubbles tilted her head. "Something?"

"I'm standing up for what I believe in." Razz put a hoof to his chest. "Which means Trap stays."

Trap squirmed out from under Razz. "Hey, look, I mean... That's nice, but you two are getting all hitched, and I don't want--"

Razz put a hoof on Trap's nose gently. "I love you, stallion to stallion, bro to bro. If we have to put you up for a little while, forever if we have to, I'll do that."

Bubbles rolled her eyes before a smile broke her scowl. "Yeah, he's not wrong. You're one of us, Trap."

Trap looked back and forth between the two before he giggled a little. "I promise to not eat the last of the cereal."

"You'd better not!" She swatted him, then hugged him tightly, a gesture soon joined by Razz. The trio would stay united, even if two of them meant to be far closer than before.

Trap gave an awkward little laugh at the thought. "Even if you two want to keep me around, I'm still kind of the third wheel if you two are becoming a 'thing'."

Razz rubbed behind his head. "The idea is just as new to me." He glanced at Bubbles. "I don't mean to sound funny, but you're sure you want me?"

She rolled her eyes. "You sounded better when you were confident. What do you want, moron?"

He quirked a smile. "For you to relax a little. I mean... we kinda did it... I mean, we just have to not mess it up." He nudged Bubbles. "We keep our jobs, live the good life, right?"

Trap hopped up to all fours. "I was serious about celebrating before."

Bubbles nodded. "To the next chapter in our messed up lives." She began to lead the way out of the alley. "Success or failure, we'll have each other at least."

"Don't say that." Razz caught up quickly at her side. "We'll both do fine. If one of us starts slacking off, the other slaps the sense back into them, even you, Bubbles."

"You ready to try?" She puffed out her chest and stood tall and imposingly.

Razz stood up himself, realizing he was taller than her, if significantly less thuggish. "Yes." He said it clearly, and Bubbles seemed to like it on some level. The level that wasn't punching him in the center of the chest for his gall.

There were things yet to learn.

Author's Notes:

Wait a moment... Did one of our trifecta just back out without a fight?

Typo!