//------------------------------//
// Invitations 
// Story: This City by the Bay: A Mare's Story 
// by ponyboy245 
//------------------------------//



Bent and stooped and burdened by an expression of pure discontent, the hulking bronze figure struck an imposing image as it sat atop its granite pedestal, looking out across the museum’s courtyard like some troubled monarch presiding over an empty kingdom. 

"The Thinker," I said to myself, reading the name off a bronze plaque before I craned my neck so I could gaze up at the colossus looming above me. Harsh rugged features scowled beneath a prominent brow, deeply furrowed with thick lips pressed against five equally thick knuckles.

Well, the name certainly fit the description and the longer I looked at it, the more I felt as though I were looking at some twisted reflection of myself.

I suppose it goes without saying that my first day in the human city of San Francisco didn’t exactly end on the best of notes, what with my losing all of my most important travel documents because of a faulty saddlebag strap. The fact that I had been able to walk away from the whole experience on all four legs was nothing short of a miracle, especially considering how close I came to being run down by one those automobiles the humans had created.

I could still remember the moment when those awful machines came roaring out of the darkness with eyes glowing like balls of fire and metal faces that grinned and glared. The whole experience had been a nightmare and all I could do was sit there and watch while the whole world became crushed under the wheels of a dozen infernal machines. 

By the time I’d finally gotten back to my hotel room, tired and utterly beaten down by the evening’s unfortunate turn, I looked like something that had been rescued from a storm-drain. My lime-green coat was matted and filthy and my poor beautiful mane, once the vibrant color of strawberry-pink, was now a tangled horror far too awful for me to describe.

And my tail... don’t even ask me what my tail looked like.

I was an absolute wreck and not even a three hour soak in my room’s human-sized bathtub could alleviate the weight of my worries and troubles. Thank Celestia the hotel offered 24 hour room service. Before the night was over, I had practically gorged myself on three ice-cream sundaes and a plate of pancakes drenched in raspberry syrup, all of it happily provided by the ever cheerful bellhop named Trevor, who finally managed to calm me down with a cup of his ‘special’ blend of herbal tea.

I had no idea what was so ‘special’ about his so-called ‘special’ blend, but it was warm and smooth as it washed over my tongue and coated my mouth with the spicy flavor of cinnamon. After about two cups, my nerves began to settle and I was finally able to feel like a pony once again.

For all his flamboyance, the foppish young human proved himself to be a surprisingly good listener and after I finished telling him about all that had happened earlier that evening, he offered me his personal brand of sympathy. The way he carried on, one would have thought he was performing on stage with his animated way of moving and speaking. 

I think the only reason I was able to stomach more than a few seconds of Trevor’s routine was probably thanks to the calming effects of the tea he had brewed. I’m serious, the stuff worked so well that I probably could have spent a whole evening with my parents and not bat an eye. 

It was around my second cup that Trevor ceased his foppish antics long enough to finally offer up something useful, suggesting that I contact the Equestrian Embassy. I was nearly floored by how simple the solution was and even more so by the fact that it was a solution that had completely passed over me. Had it not been for how relaxed I was, I probably would have leapt about my room in absolute glee.

But the tea’s soothing blanket could only last for so long and by the time I woke up the next day I was once again a jittery ball of worry and frayed nerves. I may have found a possible solution to my worst predicament, but there were still others that I would have to contend with. The loss of my money pouch had left me with almost nothing, just barely enough to last me for another two days provided that I was careful about how I used it.

Of course, once that was spent and gone, I had absolutely no idea how I would make do. I couldn’t very well wander around the countryside eating grass for the next two weeks until the boat  finally arrived to take me back to Neo Equineox.

Thank Celestia I at least had the foresight to leave my boarding pass in my hotel room... in the little safe where I should have also had the foresight to place everything else. 

 So why, with all my concerns and all my burdens, was I wasting time at a museum, staring up a bronze figure of some naked human? The weight of my troubles felt as though I were carrying Luna’s moon on my shoulders and yet there I was, all for the sake of keeping a loosely planned date with a man that I hardly knew.

If somepony were to ask what I had been thinking at the time, I’m fairly certain that the short answer would have roughly translated into something around the lines of, ‘I don’t know.’ I suppose it really just boiled down to the fact that my troubles had even left me without a sense of harmony and I desperately needed something to bring it back, even if it was something as simple as a kind word and gentle touch.

So as far as I was concerned, the Embassy could wait, and so could my problems.

It was mid afternoon by the time I’d reached the Legion of Honor and like the cold dreary morning that had welcomed me the day I arrived, the sky was already clouded over. Endless gray stretched from one horizon to the other while chilly winds left the air so cold and dry that I could see my own breath.

The clouds themselves seemed so lifeless when I looked up at them. They hung in the sky like dead things, like ugly gray lumps floating on invisible strings and the longer I stared at their bloated underbellies the more depressed I felt. 

Actually, looking back on it, I don't think it was so much the clouds that bothered me as it was the lack of pegasai weather patrols to herd them. Just another difference between Earth and Equestria to add to the increasing sense of culture shock I'd been feeling since I first arrived in San Francisco.

It was a bit of a shame really; the city was such a lovely place that it would surely benefit from its own localized weather patrol. Until then, I suppose I had no choice but to suffer through Earth's unpredictable weather cycle, along with everyone else.

With that particular thought in mind, I scrunched myself into a tight, little ball with nothing but my ridiculously puffy jacket to keep me warm while I stood alone and sullen, much like the bronze colossus that was looming over  me.

It really was a marvelous piece; grotesquely beautiful and a true testament to the mastery of human craftsmanship. With its rough features and harsh shadows and the almost monstrous proportions that made up the figure's hulking form, I had no doubt it would have been regarded as visually ‘unappealing’ and perhaps even ‘ugly’ by Equestrian standards.

Make no mistake, there was indeed an ugliness to it, but it was an ugliness that was somehow balanced by the sheer beauty of the artist's skill and craftsmanship. It was certainly a different breed of creature from those elegant portraits of fine marble that could be found in almost every major park and museum in Canterlot.

Where us ponies tended to favor the pretty and visually pleasing, the master whose skillful hands had rendered this bronze figure into existence had a rougher and less refined approach. From the prominent brow to the enormous feet that extended from two well-muscled legs, the figure possessed a ruggedness that could almost be described as primal. It may have been called 'The Thinker' but the body clearly belonged to something far more raw and vigorous with strength sculpted into every bulge and lump of muscle.

So what was it that had reduced such a gladiator of a man to such a state of ponderous concentration? What devious riddle had left him the hunched the over creature sitting before me? What unsolvable problem had left him with his chin resting against his enormous fist while his mind remained locked away in the vault of his thoughts? It was almost as though I were gazing up at some ancient titan who had stopped to contemplate its own existence.

"What could you be thinking?" I said to myself.

"He's probably wondering where he left his keys."

I smiled at the sound of Daniel's voice, recognizing it instantly before turning around to see him standing only a few steps away, dressed in a thick, woolen overcoat and a scarf that gave his neck a rather puffed-up appearance. His hair was still the unruly mess that I had remembered from the day before, held in place by a hat that it clearly resented.

"Or he could be wondering if peanut is one word or two," he went on while he closed the distance between us. "With a mug like that, I'd say he could be thinking just about anything." He stood beside me and rubbed his chin and pursed his lips as though he were lost in a quandary of his own. He then buried both his hands in his pockets and smiled a strange, little smile.

"Then again..." he said with his brow furrowed. "If you stop and look at how he's seated... the angle of his slouch... the way his left eyebrow is arched just so..." He tilted his head to one side, rubbing his chin and clicking his tongue. "Yeah, you can pretty much figure out what he's thinking."

"And just what is he thinking?" I asked, unable to resist.

"I'm gonna be on this toilet all morning!" he said, deepening his voice and frowning as though he were trying to mirror the figure's grave expression. "I knew I shouldn't have gone out for tandoori last night!"
  
My cheeks reddened and I burst out laughing despite my best efforts to hold it inside. 

"That's terrible!" I said.

"Made you laugh, didn't it?" he asked.

"That's beside the point and you know it."

"Maybe," he said. "You still looked like you could use a good laugh."

"I'm alright, Daniel," I replied, knowing it was a load of horseradish. "Really now, there's no need to worry yourself over me."

"If you say so, Dew," he replied. 

“You don’t believe me?”

Daniel shrugged. "You just look like you’ve had a rough night, that’s all."

"Let's just say I needed a little something to lift my spirits." I answered, surprised by how sharp the young human could be without realizing it. "I'd actually prefer to just forget the whole thing if it's all the same to you." 

I tried not to be short with him, reminding myself that his company was the whole reason I had come to the museum in the first place. His concern for me was obviously genuine, and as endearing as it made him, a pony could only take so much before they reached the point of overflow. And the last thing I wanted was alienate the only real friend I had in this strange, unfamiliar world.

"Sure, no problem," he said.

"You're sweet to be so concerned over me, but I'm a big girl."

"In other words, I'm becoming a pain in the ass and just need to back off."

"What?" I nearly gasped. "No, no, not in the least! I was just trying to..." My words trailed off when I saw the hint of a grin spreading across Daniel's face. "Oh I see… you were just joking, weren't you?" He nodded, tapping a finger to his nose. 

"Of course," I replied rolling my eyes. "Now are we going to just stand around all day like a couple of cows? Or do you plan on showing me this famous museum of yours?" I tilted my head towards the main entrance. "That was the original plan, wasn't it?"

"I stand by the lady's preference," Daniel said before making a gentle sweep of his arm, with all the courtly grace of a highborn Canterlot stallion. "After you, my dear."

And thus began our second afternoon together.

With my human companion at my side I couldn't help but move with a tiny bounce in my trot, letting the clop of my hooves echo across the courtyard as we made our way to the main entrance. As expected, Daniel moved a few steps ahead so he could hold the door open for me. As I stepped past I let my tail brush against his leg. I'm not sure if he noticed, but if he did, he was very good at hiding it.

As far as museums went, the Legion of Honor proved itself to be a truly fascinating place, filled with some of the most wonderful pieces of artwork I had ever seen. Oh, I know there were bigger and more famous museums to be found on Earth, but that hardly mattered, for it was a beautiful building with plenty of equally beautiful sights to be admired.

It was almost as though we were walking through an old Equestrian palace, with its smooth marble floors and towering white columns and walls of stone that loomed above us no matter where we turned. I marveled at my surroundings as Daniel lead me through this labyrinth of spacious halls and high-ceilinged galleries, where groups of ponies and humans moved about the exhibits like a great, noisy congregation of tourists and sightseers.  

Truth be told, I honestly hadn’t expected to see such a turn out, at least not for something like a museum, and that’s coming from a mare who was born and raised in the upper crust of Manehattan high society. Between the uncountable numbers of curious families, bored looking teenagers and groups of excited children on class field-trips, the museum was hardly the somber and quiet place that I had pictured it to be. 

With Daniel acting as my guide, we made our way past the initial crowds and towards the museum's less congested galleries where only a few humans and ponies were scattered about, quietly admiring whatever painting or sculpture held their attention. Before long I too found myself immersed in the world that had been crafted by the human imagination.

Ahh, the human imagination. Such a strange and marvelous thing really, so full of passion and creativity and limitless potential. With ponies, it’s always been about fitting the world into two very distinct categories: Things that are pretty and things that aren't pretty.

I think it’s safe to say that we ponies have always prided ourselves on how pretty we are and have more or less spent our entire existence making sure our society was just as pretty; from our houses to our food to the frills and lace of our clothes. 

Now, was there anything wrong with any of that? No, of course not. Ours has long been a culture both ancient and beautiful, the object of both admiration and envy since the first days of its founding.

Even still, Equestrian culture has always tended to get a little... how should should I put it... formulaic when it comes to things like art and decor, favoring aesthetics over variety.

Humans on the other hoof... while they certainly shared some of our sensibilities, as a species they seemed more willing to expand their horizons. From the breathtakingly beautiful to the horribly grotesque, the human imagination seemed capable of producing almost anything, from portraits of powerful rulers to scenes of tender affection shared between two lovers.

So many images to behold, like magical windows into the souls of their creators, filled with so much joy and passion and sadness and anger.

"You seem a little overwhelmed," Daniel said quietly, leaning close to me so he wouldn't be heard by the other visitors.

"Do I?" I asked before pulling my attention away from a marble bust of an imperious looking human with broad shoulders and cruel looking eyes that seemed to be glaring down at me.

"Just a little." He side-stepped his way over to a neighboring painting. "Though I honestly can't tell if it's the good kind of overwhelmed or the bad kind."

"It might actually be a little of both," I said. "Ever since I first stepped off the ship from Neo Equineox, there've been times when I wasn't sure if I should be excited or afraid." I looked up and saw the amused look on Daniel's face before quickly looking away. "It sounds silly, I know."

"It sounds like culture shock,” he replied. "The same thing happened to me fifteen years back, when my folks drove me and my sisters down to Tiajuana for my cousin's wedding. After one day in that city, I pretty much spent the rest of the trip locked away inside our hotel room with nothing to do but watch Spanish soap-operas." 

He looked so serious that I found myself shrinking slightly under the intensity of his gaze. That was until the corners of his mouth pulled back into a smarmy little grin, emphasized when he winked at me from behind his glasses.

To this I just shook my head and snorted quietly. "Everything's just one, huge joke to you, isn't it?" I asked.

"You make it sound like that's a bad thing."

I would have responded had my growling stomach not interrupted me. I'm not sure how it's possible, but I think the two stallions standing at the other end of the gallery might have heard me, as they both turned their eyes in my direction, diverting their attention away from the female nude they had both been admiring.

"Oh dear," I said to myself with my cheeks flushed and eyes pointed towards the floor.

 "I think your stomach just growled at me," Daniel said while pointing at my belly.

My ears folded back as I looked away in embarrassment, searching desperately for some lame excuse to stare at my hooves. Despite the fact I had gorged myself like a swarm ravenous parasprites the previous evening, I could still feel my insides crying out for more and my poor stomach clenched inside my belly. 

Before I could protest, I was once again the recipient of Daniel's generosity when he offered to treat me to lunch for a second time.

Though I was glad to find that the museum had its own cafeteria, I'm afraid the same couldn't be said about the food. Besides being overpriced and embarrassingly limited in variety, everything looked so bland and tasteless. Even just by looking at it, I could tell that most of the food seemed to lack both the artistic flare of Equestrian cooking and the potent flavors that the human palate seemed to favor.

Even Daniel seemed to be having second thoughts about the sandwich he had ordered for himself.

Thank Celestia I had the foresight to stick to the cafeteria's small but decent selection of apples which were piled along with the other fruits. With a tray clenched tightly between my teeth, I followed Daniel as the two of us wove our way through a forest of chairs and tables, passing the other diners until we eventually found a quiet place to sit by the window.

Like the rest of the museum, the cafeteria was wide and spacious, brightly lit with spotless marble floors and crystal clear windows that looked out onto a luscious grove of trees.  As with the  hallways and galleries outside, the air was positively buzzing with the ambient noise of activity, from the clinking dishware to the murmur of a dozen different conversations carrying on at once. 

As we made our way past, my eyes drifted to the other tables where I stole a few glances at some of the other diners; humans for the most part, much like the rest of the museum's visitors, with a few ponies scattered about here and there, sometimes with other ponies and sometimes in the company of a human companion like Daniel and myself.
  
Daniel's courteous nature revealed itself once more when he held my chair for me while I climbed into it.

"Do you always go the extra mile, like this?" I asked before taking my first bite of apple, savoring the tart, crisp flavor while Daniel took his seat across from me.

"You'd rather I didn't?" he asked while he poked at his sandwich with a fork.

"It's just been a long time since I was treated this nicely."

"If you need me to tone it back a bit—"

"You don't have to do that," I said a little too quickly, before pulling back and adding, "What I mean to say is... it's sweet of you to go out of your way for me like this, a strange pony from another world that you only just met yesterday." I looked down at the table and watched as I rolled my other apple around with my hoof. "I suppose I just don't know what to do when that sort of kindness and generosity comes along."

"Would it help to even things out if I let you pay for lunch this time?"

"It would certainly be a step in the right direction."

Daniel smiled and pointed a finger at his plate. "Then consider yourself the proud owner of this overpriced, pretentious crap." He slid the receipt over to my side of the table. "I still get to pay for dessert though."

"A dessert that won't taste like overpriced, pretentious crap?" I asked.

In the end, the only appropriate response he could come up with was to stick his tongue out at me; a gesture that I was more than happy to return with a raspberry of my own, sending a spray of spittle halfway across the table. When I saw the first disapproving looks we were getting from some of the other diners, I quickly sucked my offending tongue back into my mouth. Daniel did the same, though I don't think his look of embarrassment even came close to matching mine. 

In fact, I honestly don't think there was even a look of embarrassment to begin with. It was almost as if the whole thing had just completely gone over his head. 

We turned our attention back to our meals and for a while we both just sat there, quietly listening to the murmur of the other diners while we ate. Sometimes we would glance at each other from across the and I would watch as he slowly consumed his bland looking sandwich one agonizing bite after another until nothing but the crusts remained.

My stomach sighed after I swallowed my last bite of apple and when Daniel asked if I was feeling better I could only nod quietly while I licked a bit of juice from my muzzle.

"I think I needed that more than I realized," I said. "Especially after everything that happened last nigh... umm, I mean..."

Oh horse apples! I thought to myself after realizing that I'd probably said too much.

"What happened last night?" Daniel asked.

I shook my head. "Nothing really worth mentioning," I said quickly. "I just... got caught up in the rain, that's all."

"Dew," he said, once again using that funny, little nickname that he had given me. "We both know that's a load of horseshit."

Well that certainly had been unexpected. 

I stared at Daniel, blinked at the bluntness of his statement as I searched for some way to respond. "You're obviously not a human who minces words," I said.

"I have my moments." he said. “So do you want to tell me about last night, or do I have to keep guessing?”

"Why is it so important for you to know?" I asked.

"Why is it so important for me not to know?" he countered.

For the love of Celestia, why did he have to be so persistent? 

"I just had a bad night.” I said and let out an exasperated sigh. “That's all. No mysteries or conspiracies, just a really bad night!"

"How bad could one night have been?" He asked and I tried not to let my irritation show. "I mean... did you see some homeless guy taking a huge dump on the sidewalk or something?"

"I lost my damn passport, alright?" I practically screamed. "Along with all my important travel documents and pretty much all of my money, which means now I can't even cover the cost of my hotel room!" 

I slammed my hoof down on the table causing Daniel to flinch. "The whole world's been kicked out from under my hooves and all I can do is hop on a bus and take it all the way out to some stupid museum so I can spend the day looking at a bunch of stupid paintings and watch you poke another one of your disgusting sandwiches with a fork!"

By the time I was finished I was practically gasping for breath. My heart pounded loudly and I could hear an unpleasant buzzing between my ears. It was only then that I realized that every head in the cafeteria, both human and pony, was turned towards our table.

Whatever embarrassment I had felt before was nothing compared to what I was feeling when I saw all those eyes staring at me. My ears practically molded themselves to my head as I lowered it to the table and buried my muzzle between my hooves. I really hadn't meant to snap at Daniel like that, not after all the kindness he had shown me. 

I couldn't even bring myself to look at him, even when I could feel his eyes resting on me, watching me quietly while I sat there with my face attempting to permanently merge with the table. I could already feel my throat begin to tighten and scowled when I felt the first tear roll down my face.

"Dew..." Daniel said quietly. "Dew, I'm sorry."

I nearly gasped when I felt his thumb brush gently across my cheek and wiped away the tear and for a moment my nose was filled with the smell of his scent. His touch was gentle and soft and I could almost taste the salt on his skin when his thumb brushed past my lips.

"I had no right forcing that out of you," he said before bringing his hand to rest on my hoof. “I’m sorry.”

"It's alright," I whispered back with a tiny sniffle. Oh Celestia, his touch felt so right... so unbelievably right that it was almost frightening.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" he asked, taking a moment to remove his glasses so he could rub his eyes. “I mean really talk about it. No jokes and no smart ass remarks.” He held up one hand as though he were taking an official oath. “Scout’s honor.”

“What's there to talk about?" I answered. "The strap on my saddlebags snapped and everything I'd been carrying ended up getting spilled all over the street."

"Damn," was all he could say.

"And now what hasn't been crushed and flattened is now probably spread out across the rest of the street."

"Including your passport?"

I nodded. "And just about everything else I would have needed for the return trip to Equestria." I breathed deeply, trying my best to calm myself down before I pushed my nerves over the edge. "The only thing I can do now is find the Equestrian Embassy and see if they can help get me out this whole mess. Quite honestly, I don't know whether to laugh or cry or scream."

"I'm not gonna lie to you, Dew," Daniel said. "Your situation sounds pretty bad."

"Your deduction skills are a credit to your species," I muttered. 

Yes, I realize that probably wasn't the most gracious response I could have come up with, but at the moment I just couldn't bring myself to care. I was tired of the stress and tired of feeling helpless and tired of not knowing what new calamity was waiting for me around the next corner.

"I just want to be able to close my eyes, count to three and be back in my Manehattan apartment," I said.

"Afraid I can't help you there," Daniel said, seemingly unfazed by my earlier barb. "But if it's the Equestrian Embassy you need to find, then that's something I think I can help you with."

"Can you?" I asked, lifting my head from the table. "Can you really?"

"I can try looking up the phone number for you at my place," he said. "I'll even make a couple of printouts for you if you'd like."

"Oh I would!" I said. "I would be so grateful if you could do that for me." Before my excitement could carry too far, I paused suddenly, my ear twitching as I just realized part of what Daniel had just said. "Wait a minute. Did you just say, we'd be going to your place?"

"…Yes?"

"As in, the place where you live?"

"Well I certainly can't do any of that here, now can I?"

"I thought you humans all walked around with those silly little devices that most of you claim can do anything."

"Oh you mean like one of these?" Daniel asked before he reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a scuffed up bauble he had won from a carnival booth. "I don't think this thing is quite up to the task."

He unfolded the strange little object in his hand, opening it like a pocket watch to reveal the portable telephone within. The tiny numbered buttons were worn with age and the little screen above them was split down the middle by a jagged crack.

"Believe me," he went on. "I would love to have that kind of disposable income. Until then, I'm afraid I'm stuck with this outdated piece of crap."

"Oh," I said quietly.

"You know, I can alway drop the information off at your hotel if coming home with me is going to be a problem."

"The only problem is that I don't even know how much longer I'll be staying there… or anywhere else for that matter, now that I've been saddled with an almost non-existent budget." I stopped to finish the rest of apple. "And even if I could find a cheap enough place, the only way I'll be able to afford it is if I stop eating for the next two weeks."

"You could try that," Daniel said. "Or you could depend on the kindness of strangers.”

“What do you mean?”

 “I mean,” Daniel replied. “Why don’t you just let me give you a place to stay at my place until you can get this whole mess straightened out."

"Oh...OH!" I sputtered, my cheeks burning brightly beneath my coat. "That would be, ummm… that is…" Oh for the love of Celestia! Why did he always have to go and complicate things further than they already were? "I wouldn't want to be a burden."

"You wouldn't be," he countered. "My apartment may not be too much to look at, but it's got enough room for two people to move around without being ass to elbow."

"It's a very kind gesture, Daniel."

"But…?"

"But, I can't ask you to do that. You've been nothing but generous with me since we first met. Yesterday you treated me to lunch and today, you’ve just taken me on a lovely tour of one of the most incredible museums I've ever seen. You've even offered to help me get in touch with the Equestrian Embassy." I reached across the table and took his hand in both my hooves. "You have no reason to go this extra mile for me."

"Are you done?" my human companion asked. "Are we really going through this song and dance again? Can't you just accept the hospitality so we can both move on with our lives?"

"It's too generous."

"It's just until you can get your problems solved," Daniel countered.

"And neither of us knows just how long that's going to take!"

We both stared at each other and it was only then that I came to realize that I was facing down my human equivalent when it came to uncompromising stubbornness. He may have been as handsome as a well-bred stallion but he was also as stubborn as a mule, and as we continued our awkward little standoff, it became all too clear that neither us was going to back down.

Surprisingly though, it was Daniel who eventually broke the silence. He removed his glasses and began to clean them, breathing onto each lens before wiping them both on his sweater. I then watched as he took his time checking them over before once again returning them to the bridge of his nose. 

For a while I wasn't sure if he was going to say something, or just sit there tapping the tips of his fingers together.

"Do I have to start begging?" he finally said.

"Excuse me?"

"I'll do it, Honeydew," he went on. "I'll get down on my knees and start begging right here in front of all these people."

"You wouldn't!"

"It'll be the single most embarrassing display you'll ever witness. People and ponies will be talking about it from here to Neo Equineox and beyond the portal itself."

"I don't think you've got the guts," I challenged.

"And now you can watch while I prove you wrong."  With that, my human companion suddenly rose from his chair and to my absolute horror addressed the rest of the cafeteria.

"Folks,” he announced. “I'd like to apologize to everyone in advance for what they're about to see here." And just like that, he made his way over to my side of the table and proceeded to lower himself to his knees. Whether or not he was actually planning to follow through would always remain a mystery because the moment he opened his mouth, I started batting him in the shoulder with my hoof.

"Will you sit back down!" I hissed. "What is the matter with you?"

"Hey you practically dared me to do it."

"What are you, twelve?" I asked. "Did you go to bed last night and wake up a twelve-year old boy again?"

"It would certainly explain the surprising lack of body hair," Daniel replied. "All kidding aside, will you stop treating this like a marriage proposal? All I'm doing is offering you a place to crash for the next few days."

"So what's the catch?" I asked.

"No catch," he answered. "No strings and no ulterior motives and the offer will still stand no matter how many times you try to shoot it down."

I let Daniel's words sink in, considering my options while I poked at an apple core on my plate. Was I really so averse to sharing a living space with this kind and gentle creature who had yet to give me reason to suspect his intentions of being anything less than honorable.

Truth be told, the thought of the two of us living under the same roof was enough to bring another blush to my cheeks. Just the mere thought of it was enough to send shivers of titillation down my spine and it filled my belly with a something hot and aching and impossible for me to ignore.

So why the trepidation, you might be asking?

Was it because I didn't trust Daniel? 

Or was it because I didn't trust myself?

It had been nearly five years since my last serious relationship came to an unpleasant conclusion and during those first agonizing months of loneliness, I came to learn that a mare's body can an unpredictable thing when somepony starts messing with its environment. Now, after being on my own for so long, I could only imagine what sort of circus act my body was going to put me through if I agreed to become Daniel's temporary house guest.

"I don't want to put you out," was the only thing I could bring myself to say and I nearly cringed at how utterly ridiculous I sounded when the words left my muzzle.

"You won't be putting me out, Dew," he insisted. "I promise."

I scrunched my muzzle while I stopped to consider my options, which had been pretty much narrowed down to nothing. 

"Before I give you an answer, " I said. "I do have a few conditions. Firstly, I'm only staying for as long as I need to." 

"Sounds fair enough," Daniel replied.

"And I expect you to let me pay for at least half the expenses when it comes to food and such."

"Sure, no problem."

"And lastly…" I felt the words die in my throat when I realized that this was more or less the same laundry list of conditions I'd given my last relationship when we first moved in together. And if my memory served me correctly, I’m pretty sure the third condition involved a certain bedtime activity that was more complicated than it was worth at times.

I'm sure if you use your imagination you can pretty much get the basic idea.

"Lastly?" Daniel asked, pressing me further.

"What? Oh yes, condition three… No leaving wet towels on the floor."

"No wet towels on the floor?"

"Yeah, stuff like that's always driven me crazy," I said quickly, hoping my little ruse was convincing enough.

"Seriously?" Daniel asked, raising an eyebrow. "That's really your third condition?

"These things always sound more important when they come in lists of three,” I said, wondering if I was making a mistake by agreeing to this. I know I said that my options were pretty much non existent at that point but even still... The thought of living with a male again was almost enough to bring me to fits of anxious laughter.

"Well, you certainly know how to drive a hard bargain, Miss Blossom." Daniel stood up from his chair once more and favored me with another one of his funny little half-smiles. "I guess this means I have a new housemate." And before I could stop him, he darted off to the front counter and returned a few minutes later with a slice of apple pie in each hand.

"How about a little something to mark this auspicious occasion?" He asked before setting one of the plates down in front of me. "And I've already paid for these, so don't even think about saying no."

I looked down at the tasty looking treat that Daniel had placed in front of me and smiled despite myself. "You're the most incomprehensible human I've ever met, Daniel Laughlin," I said and my human companion just grinned and reached across the table with his fork so he could scoop himself a bite of my slice of pie. 

"That's why you love me," he said before he curled his tongue around the crumbly little morsel and sighed with delight while slipping the empty fork from between his lips.