The sun had just fully appeared in the horizon when the brown pegasus was awoken to the most unpleasant ringing in the world. Star Gazer utterly despised his alarm clock and that was precisely the reason he'd bought it: he'd face down a pack of timber wolves in order to shut it up.

"Ugh, why does the princess have to be so meticulous? Can't she grant me five more minutes?" He mumbled to himself as he got out of bed walked to the windowsill of his bedroom and swatted the alarm clock with a wing to make it stop its incessant ringing.

Once the alarm had been taken care of Star looked in the windowsill's reflection and noted the bizarre mane-style sleep had graced him with. Even without his glasses, he could see that the left half of his mane looked like a pseudo-mohawk while the right half looked like a messy dark brown scribble. "I'm gonna need to get a haircut soon." But for now a shower was the best solution to the bed-head, plus it would wake Star up.

(/)

After the shower, Star felt much more awake. However, the desire for sleep was now replaced by a desire to eat. "Hmm, I've only been having oats lately…" he murmured to himself as he looked through his pantry. His eyes then alighted on some bread and he decided he'd make himself a treat, "Eh, what the hay it's Friday, plus I haven't made Prench toast in a while."

Bread bag in mouth, Star went over to his stove, grabbed a large frying pan, two eggs and some milk from the fridge and set about making his breakfast. He just needed to get the whisk from the drawer. But as he did, he passed by his calendar and realized it was a new month. The month he hated the most.

Star had never been a big fan of February; it was one of the colder months and even after years of living in Ponyville he'd never acclimated to the climate, his Appleloosa blood ran deep when it came to the temperature. But that wasn't why he truly disliked this month. He really only disliked one day alone: Hearts and Hooves Day, everypony else seemed to have a special somepony while he didn't even have any mares who were friends. He sighed a little as he looked at the tacky calendar, Hearts and Hooves Day, like the other holidays on the calendar, was marked with suitable festive colors.

Star decided to ignore the calendar for now and get back to breakfast. He hoped the toast would put him in a better mood. He whisked together the eggs and milk and dunked the bread into the mixture before tossing the slices into the frying pan. He quickly fried up two slices of the bread and put them on a plate for when he was ready to eat them. However, when he reached for a third slice, his hoof only grasped empty air. "Outta bread, super… guess I'll have to- oh."

Star now remembered why he didn't make Prench toast that often anymore. An earth pony named Sweet Bun now ran the only bread stall at the market, and Sweet Bun was a mare. For a second, Star missed Crusty Loaf but then remembered it was better to deal with Sweet Bun than risk Crusty's bread. Crusty had run the other bread stall at the market, but as he got older his baking skills had gotten worse and worse. Star had been one of his last loyal customers, at least until the time Crusty baked soap into the bread. Star had coughed up bubbles for a week. After that, even Star didn't buy from Crusty anymore and Crusty retired to Trottingham.

That left Sweet Bun as the only bread seller in town. Every time Star had to go buy bread horrific scenarios played out in his head. He imagined himself sending all the bread flying or accidentally kicking dirt onto it. But all the scenarios always ended with an upset mare lashing out at Star. Thus, he'd rather avoid a mare than upset one by doing something stupid.

His thoughts were broken by the smell of smoke. He'd forgotten about the slice of bread that was frying in the pan and now it was black and smoldering. "Great, just great." He picked the pan up brought it over to the sink and let the water clean up the burnt mess. "Guess I'll just have an early lunch somewhere, but for now…" he looked at the two small pieces of Prench toast that hadn't been ruined, "this'll have to do."

After his miniscule breakfast, Star had decided it would be the best idea to study a little and reading always helped him feel less stressed. He entered his study room and looked around at the vast collection of books he had and admired his organization skills. Each shelf in the room was dedicated to a certain part of the globe: books solely about Zebrica dominated one shelf while books on Dragonia dominated another; the rest of the shelves were similar in their organization.

Keeping and reading all these books was just a part of Star's ambition to become an ambassador to the Princesses. It'd been his dream since he was a colt to see the world and now he was on that path, a path that required a book he didn't have. Star had stopped in front of the shelf that contained books about the Far East global region. "Where is it?" His eyes franticly scanned for the philosophy book but it was nowhere to be found. "I know I was reading it. I remember reading the first few chapters last night at the li-" he paused and realized he'd be making a dreaded trip today, "at the library."

(/)

The flight down to the library wasn't fun. Despite the sunny sky, the temperature was freezing. There has to be some cosmic irony in a pegasus being miffed about the weather. Star probably would have found the thought funnier if he wasn't shaking like a leaf. But before he became a flying popsicle, Star reached his destination: the large tree was always a nice site, it was just its resident that Star feared.

He knocked at the library's door and braced himself for the mare. Don't say something stupid, don't say something stupid. However, much to Star's relief it wasn't a pony that opened up the door, but rather a small reptilian creature.

"Oh heya Star, didn't expect to see anypony this early in the morning." Spike waved his claw in a friendly manner. Oh thank Celestia, maybe I can just ask Spike for the book and the-.

"Spike, is somepony there?" came a voice from within the library. Star's spirits sank as he knew he'd have to talk with Twilight now.

"Just Star." Spike replied.

"Oh well let him in, it's freezing outside today." As Twilight spoke a gust of wind blew through the town and chilled Star to the bone. He quickly rushed into the warm confines of the library.

"I swear it's like the wendigos are out to get me." Star mumbled as he flexed his wings to get the blood rushing to them and hopefully warm them up a little. However, he stopped when he was nearly blinded by a bright flash of light. Suddenly, a light purple unicorn was standing in front of him.

"Morning Star." Twilight said with a friendly smile, always happy to have another visitor to the library. "I thought you might come by. I have to admit that's quite an interesting book you were reading last night."

"Um, y-yeah." Star nervously replied. Please not small talk, don't start small talk.

"Especially that dualistic concept, oh what was it called again?" Twilight raised a hoof to her face as she racked her brain for the term she was searching for. Star beat her to it.

"Yin and Yang." Ok this is work you're talking about, you can handle talking about work, just treat it like an interview, get your book and leave.

"Oh yes that's right, well let me just get that for you." As she spoke her horn glowed a magenta hue and a book coated in a similar aura flew towards them. "Here ya go."

"Th-thanks." Star stuttered.

"You ok? You sound like your teeth are chattering." Twilight was somewhat oblivious to Star's nervousness around mares.

"Y-y-yes!" Star's face was beginning to turn red out of embarrassment. "I-I, um, just think the reading is a little hard to grasp!" He lied. At this point Star just wanted the conversation to end before he said something stupid. He always felt like he'd say something stupid around mares and they'd think he was some pathetic loser pony.

"Hmm, well you're free to read here until the weather warms up a bit." Twilight replied while keeping the same friendly smile.

Why? Why do I have to be so scared around mares? They're just other ponies! Ugh! Star thought, but all that came out of his mouth was a meek, "Thank you Miss Sparkle."

"Just call me Twilight. I mean you spend almost as much time as I do in the library, and I live here."

"Speaking of which," came another voice from upstairs, "I think everything's almost ready." Spike descended the stairs carrying a vast array of objects that didn't seem to relate to each other at all: a vase, a blue feather, and a griffon claw.

"Thank you Spike, just put them over there." Twilight pointed a hoof at the opposite end of the library where she had set up her personal study area, which was strewn with even more books than in the section Star was sitting in.

Looking at the bizarre heap the dragon was carrying, Star couldn't help but be curious, luckily Twilight was moving over to her side of the library, so he felt a little less awkward in talking. "Um, what exactly is all that stuff for?"

"I've been looking into some of Starswirl the Bearded's spells and have been developing a theory on variants of them. I'm going to test a variant of the amniomorphic spell I've devised. The amniomorphic spell on its own requires a specific combination of items to work. So now I'm putting my version of the spell to the test." As Twilight spoke she levitated the items into a specific position around her so that they formed a half circle in front of her.

Star got of feeling of discomfort at the mention of testing. Next to mares, tests were easily the thing that frightened him the most. While this wasn't a written test, the idea of experimental magic being tested set off an alarm in Star's head. "This... this is safe right?"

"Don't worry, the amniomorphic spell is harmless, it only slightly transfigures inanimate objects. My variant works on the same principle only..." Twilight levitated a small fern between herself and the other items, "it can also be applied to living things as well. This is also the most basic of tests, I'm just going to try and turn this fern a different color."

"Yet it still required all these components?" Star had always thought unicorn magic was a curious thing: sometimes it required ritual and sometimes it seemed as natural as flying was to a pegasus. He really did dislike not fully comprehending the intricacies of magic.

"You don't know the half of it." Spike said as he wandered around the library picking up books that had been left on the ground. "That griffon claw was especially a pain. I had to go all the way to the Everfree to get one from Zecora. Beats getting it from an actual griffon though, they seem to have a bit of a temper."

"Spike! What did we discuss about griffons?" At Twilight's words Star had a brief flashback to his mother telling him to play nice with the buffalos in Appleloosa.

"Don't judge a library by one bad book." Spike said in a tired dull tone.

"That's right, while Gilda may not have been the best…" Twilight paused searching for the correct word, "example of her race, I'm sure other griffons are just as friendly as ponies."

"Tell that to the griffon whose claw that is."

Twilight decided to ignore the snide comment and went back to her work. Meanwhile, Star, while disconcerted about the magic, wasn't too concerned. He'd seen that Twilight could handle a raging ursa minor (then again everypony had) so in his mind he reassured himself that the only thing he'd achieve by watching the spectacle would be seeing a plant change colors.

He instead decided to go back to his studies while he waited for the temperature outside to rise. But he found that he couldn't focus: the earlier talk with Twilight had jostled him. He now found himself in a state of self-loathing, angry that he could never work up the nerve to talk to mares. I just don't get it. I mean, I like mares, but every time I talk to one I just think I'm going to make a fool of myself.

A positive thought crossed Star's mind. Maybe I'm overthinking it, maybe mares are just like stallions. But then a counter-thought rose up. Then why don't you have a fillyfriend? Hay, why don't you even have a mare who's a friend? Suddenly, a panicked shriek broke Star's thoughts.

(/)

Star immediately looked up from his book to see Twilight get knocked back by some force. He then saw that that source was the setup of objects Twilight had made. They were encased in magic, but not the mare's usual soft purple magic. Rather, this magic was white and crackling like lightning.

"Um, is that normal?" Star said in alarm.

"I don't know! This wasn't in any of my hypotheses or theoretical examples!"

"Um, I think we might want to be running now." Spike's eyes went wide as the objects combined into a white ball of light that zoomed up to the top of the library.

"Calm down!" Twilight's words were in stark contrast to the look of sheer panic on her face, "It's not being powered by my magic, I'm sure it will disapa-OH Buck!"

Star was more shocked at hearing the mare swear than he was at the magic ball heading straight for him. What happened next sounded like the loudest thunder imaginable and looked like a miniature hurricane mixed with an explosion. The world went black on Star.

(/)

For a good minute there was no living movement in the library. Dust obscured everything. Books were scattered everywhere and collected into chaotic piles all over the floor. Suddenly, the books from one large pile were covered in a purple glow and then levitated away revealing a dazed purple mare underneath. "Ugg… ok note to self, do testing outside next time… oh no! Spike! Spike! Are you ok?" She franticly looked through the dust for her assistant.

"Oww!" came a voice from where the stairs were, "Feels like I just got bucked by Applejack."

"Oh thank goodness you're safe, you're not too badly hurt are you?"

"I think I'll live but what about-" Spike was interrupted by a muffled noise coming from another pile of books.

"Oh no! Star! Don't worry! We're coming to get you!" Twilight ran through the dust, barely able to see where she was going, levitating books from the pile as she ran. Finally, she unearthed enough books to see a pony figure buried in the books. "You alright?"

Star coughed harshly as he tried to pull himself out of the pile. "Well my body feels like it just got hit by a manticore, but aside from that I'm fine." Anger laced his voice, " Safe you said? That thing blew up right next to me! I'm amazed I'm not a pile of ash!"

"I'm really sorry Star, I had no idea the spell would do that." Twilight was now helping the pegasus out of the pile with a hoof. For some reason he felt too light for a stallion.

"Err, my book is probably buried and… why does my voice sound off?" Star now noticed that his voice sounded very different from its usual deep serious tone, now it sounded much more… gentle.

"It's probably the dust, here, let me open some windows." Twilight instantly magicked all the windows of the library open, allowing the dust to start spilling out. As it did, Twilight was able to get a better look at the other pony.

"I knew I should have left when you started doing magic. That stuff is always crazy." Star was mad now and speaking on pure emotion. "I mean, sometimes you need rituals sometime you d- why are you looking at me like that?" Star now noticed that Twilight's mouth was now nearly touching the floor. "What? Oh Celestia! Did my hair get burnt off?" Star had felt that something was up with his mane but he wasn't sure what. He brought a hoof to his forehead and felt that his mane was still there.

"Ok." Star was panicking now, something was obviously wrong. "Oh no! Did that spell turn me pink? It did, didn't it?" Star looked down at his hooves and saw they were the same brown color as always. "Ok, not my mane, not my coat… what is it?" Star looked at Twilight with panic and anxiety scrawled over his face.

"Umm Star… oh, how do I put this…" Twilight was fidgeting around uncomfortably looking at Star and then turning away.

"What? What!" Star said in desperation.

"I um… just look in the mirror and promise not to freak out." Twilight pointed to a mirror on the side of the library.

"Already freaking out here!" Star trotted over to the mirror, noting that his walking felt off. "Besides what's a mirror going to… who's the mare?" Standing in the mirror's reflection was a young brown mare with equally brown hair that was at about medium length. She wore glasses and had green eyes. At first, Star and the reflection could only stare in disbelief at each other. Then a fear overtook Star, a horrible horrible fear. His eyes and her eyes slowly moved down her body and came to rest on her flank. There, clear as day, was an all too familiar cutie mark: a star partially covered by a cloud, the one Star had gotten as a colt. "Oh no! No no no!" In sheer terror Star spastically flailed his hooves and wings around, hoping the reflection wouldn't respond: however it repeated every one of his actions. "I… how…" his eyes wildly turned back towards Twilight, "Twilight! You gotta fix this, please!"

"I… I don't know how!"

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"The spell went wild on me! I mean if I research it a little more, it may take a little bu-"

"No! Please Twilight you gotta fix this!" Star tugged at his now girlish mane trying to get it to pull off or at least wake himself up from the nightmare his life seemed to have become. "I can't be seen like this! What'll everypony think? What if my friends find out?" Star began to flap his wings, nervously bobbing up and down in the air.

"Um, Star?"

"Oh sweet Equestria! What if somepony from Canterlot finds out? They'll think I'm the biggest joke on the planet, my reputation with will be one of mockery, I'll never be able to get job or even set foot in a town without being laughed at. My life is RUINNNNEEDDDDD!"

"STAR!" Star looked down now at the mare, shocked by her use of yelling. "Just calm down, I'm sure if you just give me a few days time I'll be able to find a way to reverse the spell."

"But… but how will I get around town? How will I get food or even get home? I mean I might look like a…a… mare but my cutie mark is still the same."

"I can provide you with an invisibility spell for now, but it'll only work in close proximity to me."

"S-so what do we do then?" Desperation was now overtaking anger in Star's voice and a forlorn look was creeping across his face.

"Well…" A nervous look crossed Twilight's face. "We need to get you some clothes to cover up your cutie mark and there's only one place in town that can make clothes on the fly."

"What do you… no… just no, I already lost my outer masculinity I am not losing any more by going to that boutique!"

"Star, where else are you going to get something to cover up your cutie mark? Besides, Rarity is a good friend of mine. I'm sure she'll be able to whip something up fast." Twilight's words were meant to be comforting. But they did little for Star. His mind was now completely on the fritz trying to clutch at any escape from this nightmare. But there was nothing he could do to escape so he gave up and hung his head low.

"Let's just go to the shop." Star's voice was full of misery.

(/)

Even while invisible, Star felt like all the eyes in Ponyville were watching him. He trotted close to Twilight, the fear of being seen overriding his fear of being near a mare. At this distance he could whisper to Twilight, which he often did out of fear, "You're sure they can't see me?"

"Yes, for the 16th time, but it's kind of conspicuous when a pony is talking to herself." Twilight flashed Star and annoyed look.

"Sorry, sorry." The whispering also helped Star take his mind off the other ponies. But he still had to be careful not to hit any of them. One time his heart was nearly in his mouth when his now longer tail barely brushed against a brown pony with an hourglass cutie mark. The pony looked back for a second but appeared to have just chalked it up to the wind. Star could have sworn the pony said "Fancy that" as he walked away though.

After what felt like a vast journey they finally made it the Boutique. The door opened on its own to Twilight's knocking. "Hello? Rarity?"

"Oh, be there in a minute darling." came a voice from the back of the shop.

"Close the door! Close the door!" came Star's voice from what appeared to be thin air.

"Right." Twilight simultaneously closed the door and lifted the invisibility spell. At that moment Rarity also walked to the front of the store.

"Now Twilight what can I do for you… and your friend." Rarity stared in some confusion at Twilight and the brown mare next to her. "Who is she by the way?" Just the use of the female pronoun felt like daggers to Star.

"Ah, well this is my, er, friend from Canterlot, she's just visiting town."

"Well what's her name darling?"

"Her name it's ah um…"

"Cloudy, Cloudy Sky!" Star acted in desperation saying the first thing that came to his mind.

"Oh, what a lovely name. A bit on the melodramatic side, but who am I to talk?" Rarity walked towards them with a pose that emphasized her high-class lifestyle. Star could only feel nervous around the display as it highlighted some of Rarity's more exotic aspects. "Now what can I do for you today?"

"Well Cloudy's not the best with cold weather so I told her she might pick up a coat here."

"Hmm… well I don't have anything already made, but since you're asking I'm sure I could whip up something quick."

"Really? Thank you so much Rarity!"

"Please, it's nothing for a friend. Now Cloudy, if you'll just step over here. I'll need to take your measurements." Rarity gestured toward the area of the store that had three mirrors each facing each other.

"M-m-my m-measurements?" Star's face went to nearly full red at the words and it appeared as if steam would come out of his ears. Luckily, before Star let something slip Twilight intervened.

"Sorry about that Rarity, he- SHE's just a little shy, you know how some ponies are, right?" Twilight gave smile of pure apprehension.

"Not a problem at all dear. Now Cloudy, I promise I won't bite, besides, I'm sure that Canterlot tailors are much less gentle than I am." Rarity's words were meant to hold her ill feelings about her stay in Canterlot, but to Star they were filled with innuendos and all other sorts of unfunded ideas. After some prodding by Twilight, Star finally made it to the raised platform. Magicking a tape measure over, Rarity began taking Star's measurement. Needless to say it was just another check on Star's "This is a nightmare kill me now" list.

Princesses if you can hear me right now I ask for your forgiveness… I don't know what I did but it's not worth this. That was the thought that stuck in Star's mind the entire ordeal… his sanity wasn't in the best order right now.

(/)

"There, all done." Rarity withdrew the tape from around Star's waist. He breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Was it really that bad? I have to admit with a figure like yours, you could probably do well as a model."

That was the straw that broke the pony's back. "A muh muh m-mode- ugh too much can't brain not gxzz!" With that Star's mind finally decided to shut down to preserve what was left of his sanity. He was out before he even hit the floor.

"Oh dear, she's even worse than Fluttershy."

"He's had a rough day." Twilight levitated the unconscious pony up and over to a nearby couch.

"He?" A look a shock and confusion now resided on Rarity's face.

"Oh… um… well you see…" Twilight now had an incredibly embarrassed look on her face.

"Twilight, I think we should take a seat." Rarity looked at the unconscious mare. "We might be here a while."