Desperate for Change
Jason woke up with a low groan. Rolling over to lay flat on his back, he took a deep breath and let it out slowly, then tugged the comforter up to his shoulders. The sun was barely peeking over the tops of the surrounding houses in Ponyville, casting a steep shadow through the two windows in his bedroom. He ran a hand through his brown hair and scratched the side of his face as the sounds of ponies setting up shop for the day in the market came through the window. His house was a couple of buildings down from the entrance of the market, and while it was a very convenient place to live, he was never able to sleep in for as long as he was used to.
Glancing at the clock on his nightstand, he saw that it was just after eight. Back in South Carolina, he would never get up before ten in the morning. After coming to Equestria, it had quickly become apparent that he wasn’t going to get to sleep in like he was used to. It didn’t matter anymore though, for he had made the commitment to go to bed early, a feat not easily accomplished by the night owl he was.
He sat up and blinked blearily. Unfortunately, since he was already awake, there was no way he’d be able to fall back asleep again. “Might as well take a shower and get that out of the way,” he muttered. The sheets slipped from his shoulders as he crossed the short distance across his room to the bathroom in the hall. Stripping the clothes from his back, he turned on the shower and waited for the water to heat up.
His house was disappointingly empty, both of sound and decorations. He missed having a television, but he had gotten used to other ways of entertaining himself. He’d given reading a good shot but couldn’t find the patience to finish any book. The hoofwritten books that he always got from Twilight Sparkle had been interesting to try and read, but since he was used to typed words, it was more of a struggle than it was worth. The local newspaper was the most he ever read, and if he was lucky, it would be sitting on his doorstep by the time he got out of the shower.
As he stepped under the stream, he wondered what he was going to do that day. It was always the same old routine: take a shower, eat breakfast, and walk around town. After coming to Equestria, he found that sitting inside was incredibly boring, so he made it a point to spend as much time outside as possible. Back on Earth, he used to be a couch potato, playing video games all day.
After drying himself off, he put on his favorite pair of blue jeans and a green T-shirt. Silence met his ears, save for the ponies outside. He threw on his socks and shoes, then made his way through the small cottage to the front door. Throwing it open, he smiled and took a breath of fresh air.
Heh, sure is nice outside... Might be a good idea to open some windows later... Leaning against the door frame, he spotted Pinkie Pie walking to the market with a platter of sweets on her back. She looked his way, so he smiled and waved at her. She paused to wave back with a rather large smile on her face, then resumed walking towards the market with an extra pep in her step.
With a small chuckle, Jason snatched the newspaper from his doorstep and closed the door behind him. He sat down on the couch and propped his feet up on the coffee table, then unrolled the newspaper. The front page held a large picture of Twilight Sparkle with Mayor Mare in front of the new library. He had heard from some ponies at the local watering hole that the old one had been destroyed a few months or so before his arrival when some terrible monster had tried to take over Equestria. Naturally, that had shocked him a little to hear such things, especially when he learned that the old library used to be Twilight’s home.
Jason grinned as he saw how happy Twilight was in the picture. He had been at the grand opening of the new library last week, and even had been mentioned in the list of those who had helped make it happen. In addition to filling in the role of a carpenter, he had also spent a lot of time cleaning up after the construction ponies, though he considered his contributions not big enough to warrant a thank you from the princess herself.
The new library was a work of art. A beautiful stained-glass window sat above the entryway of Princess Twilight herself, her wings spread wide as if she was inviting everyone inside. Cities from all around Equestria had donated books after they received word of Ponyville’s loss, and ponies in town had even given up their old books that they no longer read so that others could enjoy them as much as they did. Jason would have gladly donated some books, but sadly enough, he had not brought any back from his old home on Earth.
Flipping to the next page, he saw a coupon for half off any sweets at Sugarcube Corner. He made a mental note to save that, for he particularly liked the vanilla cupcakes that Pinkie made every Thursday. Whenever he came in, she’d always give him extra frosting, just how he liked. He saw a few articles that looked pretty interesting, but the rest of the newspaper was full of ads that he didn’t care about. So after ripping out the coupon, he folded up the rest of the newspaper and tossed it on the coffee table.
Once he had the usual breakfast of bland oatmeal and a fresh apple, Jason looked in the mirror, made sure his short hair wasn’t a mess, grabbed the newspaper, and stepped out onto the street. Due to habits that he brought back from Earth, he locked his front door. Knowing fully well that there wasn’t any crime in Ponyville, keeping his possessions secure gave him peace of mind.
Looking both ways, he wondered what he should do for the day. Taking another deep breath, he tucked the newspaper under his arm and turned right, walking away from the center of town. There was a nice park that he liked to frequent on the south side of Ponyville. It had a lot of benches, so he was almost always guaranteed a seat. This park was the only one in Ponyville that had a playground for all of the school fillies and colts, save for the one at the school.
Grateful that he lived near the center of town, the walk to the park took him just under five minutes. He had a lot of choices in terms of finding a good seat, so he simply picked his usual one and sat down. Unfolding the newspaper, he crossed his right leg over his left and lay the paper on top of them, then picked up from where he had left off from back home.
After he finished reading the article about how Minuette was moving her dentist business down to Ponyville to be closer to her family, Jason decided that he’d read the rest of the paper later. It was simply too nice of a day to keep his nose buried in the newspaper, so he folded it so that it’d fit in his pocket. He laid his arms on the back of the bench and looked around, wondering if there was anypony he could strike up a conversation with. He spied Bon Bon and Lyra cuddling on their usual bench, the farthest one to the right from his position, then glanced left to find a few mares whose names he could not remember. They waved at him, so he waved back.
Looking back ahead, he cocked his head to the side as he laid his gaze on a family of three ponies. The filly, a blue pegasus, was swinging back and forth while her father pushed her from behind. The mother simply sat to the side and out of the way, a loving smile upon her face. Jason smiled softly and watched as the filly’s wide smile grew the higher she went.
“Watch me fly, Daddy!” she called out. The filly swung back one more time, then when she swung forward and reached the highest point, she slipped from the swing and opened her wings wide. She held herself aloft for several seconds, then clumsily flew back over the top of the swing set and flew down in tight circles until she collided with her father’s chest. Both of them collapsed in a heap, giggling. Jason watched as the stallion ruffled his daughter’s mane lovingly, then let her slide off of his chest to the ground. The mother, a soft yellow unicorn, held out a hoof to help her daughter up. Once he stood back up, the stallion let his filly hop onto his back, then they trotted back towards town.
There were several other colts and fillies left on the playground, but Jason was only able to remember the names of a couple: Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. It was a lazy Thursday morning, and since it was near the end of summer break, he knew that they would all be back in school in a week or so.
His mind drifted back to his original problem. Waking up to an empty, silent house had grown old really fast. Back in the small city that he came from, he had had a few roommates that he shared an old, run-down apartment with, so he’d always had someone to hang out with. But here in Equestria, he had nobody that meant a lot to him.
After letting loose a yawn, he rubbed his eyes and cleared his throat. “What to do, what to do...” he said to himself, drumming his fingers on his leg. His mind drifted away as his eyes glazed over like they usually did whenever he daydreamed. He thought back to how happy that blue filly had looked when she was with her father. Jason had dated a few women, but never got anywhere close to getting married and having kids. From an early age, he’d always wanted to have a happy family, but because of him being in Equestria, he had lost that option.
“Heh, what if I just adopt a pony?” he asked to nobody in particular, joking to himself. “It sure would be interesting... but would they let me adopt a pony? How would I even go about doing something like that?” Jason shook his head and chuckled as he let his mind drift away.
So many possibilities played out in his mind. Hehe, let’s just think things through real quick... he thought with a shake of his head. If he chose to adopt and raise a unicorn, there was no doubt in his mind that they’d look to him for guidance on how to use magic. Naturally, that’d be a problem because he couldn’t use magic, though it wouldn’t stop him from trying his hardest to teach them with books and all that. If he chose to raise a pegasus, he was sure they’d be out in the park, having them practice flying.
And after a long day of playing, he imagined laying on the couch back in his little cottage, the imaginary filly curled up on his chest. Jason closed his eyes as he let his daydream play out, a small smile slipping onto his face.
In his mind’s eye, he scratched them behind their flicking ears, watching as they pushed their head into his hand. He toyed with the idea of an earth pony, then a unicorn. Part of him wondered how sensitive the horn was, then he imagined a pegasus. He blushed slightly as he imagined massaging the pegasus’ wings, scratching just where they’d like it.
Jason normally wasn’t one for thinking of such adorable things like that, but... he couldn’t help it. His smile widened as he imagined them snuggling closer to him, trying to wrap their short legs around his chest. A soft chuckle escaped his lips as his heart sped up. Jason opened his eyes and looked back at the playground, watching all the colts and fillies gleefully run around.
It was, at that moment, that he knew in his heart, that he wanted to adopt a pony.
The problem was that he had no idea how to even start such a process.
He knew of no orphanages in Ponyville, and Ponyville was the only place he really knew. Wondering who would really know that sort of stuff, his thoughts drifted straight to the top: Princess Twilight. The new library was only a few blocks away, so he stood up and set off, hoping that she would be there. He could think of no other pony, save for Mayor Mare, that could help him, but to see her, he’d have to set up an appointment that could take up to a week.
He simply could not wait that long.
Jason set off at a brisk pace. He tossed the newspaper into a nearby trash bin and found that he couldn’t stop smiling. The idea of adopting a pony was simply too great. He wouldn’t have to wake up to an empty house anymore, and raising somepony would surely fill the void that he’d felt for quite a while now. He had two bedrooms in his cottage. The one that he wasn’t using was empty, save for a couple boxes of things he hadn’t gotten around to unpacking.
The new library came into view. Jason made a beeline for the entrance and pushed open the front door. He found Twilight near the back of the first floor, hovering in midair as she placed some books back into their rightful place near the top of the bookshelf. As the door shut behind him with a loud click, Twilight turned to look at him.
“Oh, hey Jason! Give me a few seconds to finish up!” Twilight threw the last few books onto the shelf, then flew down to meet him. “You come to try a new book or three?”
“Actually, no.” Jason scratched the back of his head. “There was something I wanted to talk to you about, and now that I think about it... it might sound a little strange. Is there somewhere we can sit?”
Twilight cocked her head to the side. “Yeah, I have a couple of couches on the second level. This way!” She turned around and walked to the left, then made her way up the staircase that hugged the wall.
Jason followed close behind her. They walked in the tight space between a couple of bookshelves before they emerged out in a more open area. Two small couches sat on either side of a coffee table, similar to the one that he had back home.
“Please, take a seat!” Twilight said, motioning with a wing for him to pick a couch.
Jason took a deep breath to calm his racing nerves, then chose the one on the right. He sat down and sat up straight, his posture rigid. Drumming his fingers on his leg again, he waited for Twilight to sit down across from him.
“So... what’s on your mind?” Twilight asked curiously. “I’d offer you some tea, but we don’t have a kitchen like the old library did.”
Jason bit his lip and failed to meet Twilight’s gaze. Now that he had to explain his idea to someone else, he realized that he should probably have prepared some more before coming here. “Well... life here in Ponyville is great and all, but things have gotten kinda... slow? I guess that’d be a word close to what I’m trying to say.”
“What do you mean?” Twilight asked.
Jason cleared his throat and looked back into Twilight’s eyes. He pushed a cushion behind his back and slumped down to make himself more comfortable. “It’s like... every single day is the same routine: I wake up, shower, have breakfast, then walk around town. I’ve already done quite a bit of exploring, and I’ve met a lot of ponies, but...”
“But what?”
“It’s hard for me to really explain this, but I feel like there’s a void in my life, like... there’s a hole that I can’t fill. And until today, I didn’t know how to get rid of that feeling.”
“Oh, really?” Twilight smiled. “Well, I’m glad to hear that. Might I ask what you came up with?”
“Uh...” Jason chuckled and scratched his cheek. “How hard would it be for me to adopt a colt or a filly?”
A look of sheer surprise slid onto Twilight’s face. “A-adoption, huh? I can’t say I saw that one coming...”
“Hehe, yeah...” Jason chuckled again, his tone wavering slightly. “I was at the park a while ago, and I saw this really adorable filly on the swing set being pushed by her father, right? She looked so happy, and, uh... well, I kinda want to do that too. I’m just so tired of waking up to nothing every day, and I want some variety in my life. I don’t want to move or anything like that; I’m perfectly happy where I am now. And... um...”
Twilight cocked an eyebrow as her ears flicked up. “What?” she asked, her voice soft and caring.
“I know picking one out of the rest would leave the ones I didn’t choose depressed and all that. If I was in their place, I can’t imagine the pain of not being picked, but... if I can make a difference in at least one of their lives, then why shouldn’t I?” He finished with a determined look upon his face.
“Well... you are a completely different species, for one. I don’t know how the adoption process back from where you came from is like, but from what I can remember, you have to go get a background check, your household has to be inspected, plus a bunch of other things that I can’t remember right now. All of that can take a few weeks, sometimes up to a couple of months, but... Is this really what you want? I’ve heard that raising somepony is quite a lot of work.”
Jason didn’t even have to think twice. “Without a doubt in my mind, yes. How do I get started?”
Twilight grinned slyly at him as she slid from the couch. She trotted over to the wide desk that lay in front of the sole window on that wall, overlooking the street below with her castle off in the distance. She pulled out a piece of parchment, found a quill and a pot of ink, then shot a glance over her shoulder. “Gimme a few minutes to throw something together, okay?” Her smile widened as she turned back around.
As the soft sounds of a quill scratching against paper filled the room, Jason asked, “Uh... okay?” uncertain as to what Twilight had in mind. “What are you writing?”
“You’ll see!” came Twilight’s excited voice.
Jason glanced about the room as he waited for Twilight to finish writing. Another minute passed in silence before she finished.
“Aaaand done!” Twilight stamped her royal seal on the parchment, rolled it up, and tied it shut with a cute little purple ribbon that had her cutie mark every half inch or so on it. She used her magic to place it on the center of the coffee table, then she took her place back on the couch.
“Um... what is this?” Jason asked with a chuckle, looking down at the sealed scroll.
“Well, I’m glad you asked!” Twilight lay down on her stomach and crossed her forelegs. “So listen, remember how I mentioned you needing to get a background check and all that extra stuff? I’ve known you for a while, and I know you are of good character. As a Princess of Equestria, I am allowed by law, within reason of course, to make judgement calls like this. This document, signed by me, will bypass the necessary background check. I’m going out on a limb doing this for you, and I hope you know that I’m doing a really big favor for you, but I’m certain you won’t let me down.”
“I give you my word that I won’t.” Jason leaned forward to grab the document, but Twilight tugged it out of his reach with her magic. “Hey, what gives?”
Twilight levitated the scroll beside her. “Since it sounds like you just came up with this idea, I think it would be wise if you slept on it to see if that’s what you truly want.”
Jason lowered his outstretched arm and sat back, smiling sheepishly. “Oh, uh... yeah, I guess that makes sense. You kinda had me going there for a minute, though.” He chuckled, then laid his right arm across the back of the couch.
Twilight giggled, covering her mouth with a hoof. “Come back around five in the afternoon tomorrow and we’ll talk about this some more. That’ll give me time to do some research on the topic for you, and it’ll give you time to really think this out.” Sliding from the couch, Twilight tucked the scroll into a drawer in the desk and locked it with a key. “But in the meantime, would you like to accompany me to watch Rainbow Dash give Scootaloo flying lessons? I heard she’s becoming quite the flyer!”
Rain poured down from the heavens in thick sheets, though Nightshine was still able to see the shapes of three ponies close the door to the orphanage behind them. The mare lit her horn and opened up an umbrella, one large enough to shield them from the rain.
Her closest friend at the Canterlot Orphanage, Sea Stride, had just been adopted.
She hadn’t even been able to give him a proper goodbye earlier because she had been eating dinner with everypony else in the cafeteria. She wrapped her soaked forelegs around the rusty iron fence as tears streamed down her face. Nightshine pressed her face up against the bars as hard as she could, ignoring the pain as she tried to get one last look at her only friend before he disappeared forever to his happy new life.
If anypony saw her at that moment, they would not have been able to distinguish her tears from the rain.
She felt cold, though it wasn’t from the rain but from the knowledge that she had been passed up for adoption yet again. Nightshine had lost count of how many times ponies had ignored her. Every week was the same: a couple or two would come in looking to adopt somepony, and even though she tried her hardest to be the most perfect little filly in all of Equestria, most of them simply paid her no mind. Nightshine had no idea why nopony wanted her, and that cut right into her heart, a wound that never truly healed. All she wanted was to live a normal life, but her dreams of doing exactly that weakened each time somepony else was picked.
“Can I call you Mommy and Daddy?” she heard the newly-adopted colt ask, his words barely making it through the sound of rain hitting the street.
“Of course you can!” a deep, male voice replied. “We wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Nightshine saw him ruffle her friend’s hair. She closed her eyes tightly and sobbed for several moments. Knowing that this was the last time she would ever see him again, she forced herself to open her eyes just in time to see them start walking down the street towards her. Her ears flicked to lay flat on her head as she laid her sodden tail around her flank, her eyes never leaving the three as they passed by her. Nightshine ruffled her wings a couple of times, then let loose a soft, pathetic-sounding whine as she watched the three of them disappear into the rain down the street.
She hit the fence with a hoof as tears streamed down her face. “Why does life have to be so unfair?” Nightshine slumped down to the ground in a heap, the side of her face still pressed up against the fence.
“Mom, Dad, can you... a minute?” she very faintly heard Sea Stride ask down the street. Her ears perked up as she heard hoofsteps approaching her, so she lifted her head. Nightshine stared in the direction of where the sound was coming from, and even though she couldn’t believe her eyes, Sea Stride came trotting into view. She sat up immediately, banging her head against the low, horizontal bar on the fence. Pain lanced through the side of her face, nearly making her close her eyes.
Doing her best to ignore the pain, Nightshine threw on a fake smile as Sea Stride stopped in front of her, mere inches separating them. She was so happy for him, though she couldn’t help but feel immensely jealous. If it wasn’t for the fence, Nightshine would have already pulled him into a fierce hug. She stuck her left hoof through the fence and smiled for real when he grabbed it with his own forelegs. He held onto her hoof tightly and gave her the most reassuring of smiles.
“Hey Nightshine...” A look of guilt slid onto his face. His ears flicked back, he bit the side of his cheek like he always did when he was nervous, though he never looked away from her. They stared at each other for a few moments in silence before he reached through the fence to wipe away her tears. “Listen, I’m really sorry that yo—”
“Thank you for coming to say goodbye... I thought I was never going to see you again...” Nightshine muttered, her gaze falling to the ground. She felt Sea’s hoof on her chin, gently lifting her head back up.
“Hey, buck up and never give up, okay?” Sea Stride briefly tightened his grasp on Nightshine’s hoof, then let her hoof slip from his. “Maybe we’ll see each other on the outside?” Nightshine nodded sullenly. “If I can be adopted, I know you can too! I’m just some earth pony, but you’re an awesome bat pony, the coolest around!”
Nightshine closed her eyes for a few seconds as fresh tears threatened to break loose. She had to look strong for her friend, for she surely didn’t want the last memory he would have of her was of her crying.
“And ‘Shine? You will get adopted; don’t ever forget that. I...” He heard his new parents calling his name. “I have to go now, so... Goodbye, Nightshine.”
Even though she desperately wanted to believe her friend’s words, part of her knew she’d never be adopted.
Stats
Page generated in 0.046 seconds
Total duration
1,005 users online
380,977 hits today, 2,054,621 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
YES ITS HERE!!!
Poor Nightshine! She is about to get her wish soon, but how will she handle having an unusual father, no mother, and Ponyville in general? Will be tracking this story and I have had my heart strings throughly pulled by this start!
GAHHH ITS SO AWESOME AND ADORABLE!!!
That last scene was a real stab in the heart for me! Poor Nightshine...She's so sad
Awesome chapter man and I can simply not wait for the next chapter!!!
So far a bit on the fence with this one, but I'm defenetly going to keep an eye out for updates. I honestly expect this to good but I'm not much for HiE stories for the most part.
Then again I have never been really dissapointed by anything you've written so far Abyss. Here's to hoping it gets well recieved
Sincerely
Silverstain
It begins!
gifwave.com/download/1Anu/joker-batman-heath-ledger-start-here-we-go.gif
Adorable. Simply adorable. Give us moar.
Hmm...
I noticed a few errors in the human's portion, but they didn't detract too much.
Didn't notice any errors in Nightshine's portion. My eyes were blocked by the feels.
very good story
6823426 Errors?
Was in the room when Puss was drafting the picture, so I was wondering when this would see the light of day. Looks incredibly promising, and you definitely have my attention
6823456
A few typos, a few wrong words used, things like that.
6823504 Typos? Could you point them out for me please? In a PM would be preferable.
Too adorable must read more
Hm, I can't bandwagon this.
Cute story, though.
6823456 Yo, Abyss!
This is really good. I'll add it to the Watch list and see how this develops, if you consider adding more on to it.
I'm certainly looking forward to seeing how this develops in the next few chapters or so.
Also, are you planning on going over how Jason actually happened to arrive in Equestria? It may still be a bit early, but it seemed pretty glossed over in this chapter.
6823612
Yes, I already have a scene planned in a future chapter to have him explain all of that.
Yay a story with you OC
...Hmmm...Yeah, I could go for a cute story. Its been awhile since I decided to follow one of these.
You know they should totally have a cute tag! That would be nice.
Smelled some Pusspuss in the art.
Might as well stay for the story.
D'awwww can't wait to follow this one.
6823801 He also graciously drew the custom pagebreak that I'm using in this chapter. He drew another one, too.
wow I do not think you know the kind of masterpiece you have here this story is going to be a total run away this is a true hit.
Harts Fire
The Abyss has something here to watch vary closely.
and the art work it just fits perfectly.
Part of me imagined continuing with all of this buildup, really making the readers emotionally connect with Nightshine, and then having Jason simply adopt a different bat pony filly.
It might make me literally Hitler, but I enjoyed the hilarity of the thought.
6823780 They should totally make a cute tag! Also, if you're looking for more cute stories, I have several of them.
Finally, a new story to follow! I can't wait to see where this one goes!
I am greatly enjoying this story! I can't wait to read the next one!
An Abyss story that isn't porn? How did that happen?
Unless Twilight deliberately give him really old books this whole "hoofwritten" thing don't make any sense. I really doubt that A.K. Yearling hire lots and lots of scribes to make loooooots of her "Daring Do" book copies and lots of artist to make covers of said books.
Considering that they also have fashion magazines with photos in it I'm pretty sure that ponies know hot to print books. Hell, even Ponyvile school have their own paper press.
6824172 I was going to explain this in a later chapter, but he has a hard time reading hoofwritten things, and it was supposed to help him acclimate.
Hehehe 404 views
imgur.com/kQvzisq.jpg
6824237 Lol. Just wait until the advertisements for type 2 diabetes start showing up.
static4.fjcdn.com/comments/On+the+one+hand+that+picture+is+adorable+on+the+_afca4c94edafa53d6790bd072f301337.jpg
I never asked for these feels.
i3.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/962/369/897.jpg
6824034 Well, I do write things other than clopfics, so... yeah.
6824297
Well, color me surprised, then. I thought horrifying fetish porn was your entire shtick. No offense intended, of course, except for the parts that are entirely intended.
6824308 Uh... what? Horrifying fetish porn? I'm not into dark stuff bro.
6824311
We've got different standards there, I think. Incest and foalcon are way into the "dark" stuff for me, but for what it's worth, you're much less awful about it than some people I've met here, so don't take it too seriously. I was just being tongue-in-cheek about that original comment.
I bet whoever did that art for you is a big loser!
6824311 so he is from a small city in south Carolina so he is either from Columbia, Greenville, or Lexington.
It's here! Time to read adorableness!
6824322 Yeah I want to follow that loser home! Um...for manly reasons.
6824409 I bet you wanna get your snuggle on.
6824426 I would say bear him hugging softly.
Also great start by the way!
6824434 Thanks!
So adorable, looking forward to more.
when is chapter 2 coming out?