To assume victory is to ensure defeat. To assume that a society of small technicolored ponies won't beat you to death is also probably not very smart.
David's plan, it seemed, went off without a hitch. He had spent the remainder of the day huddled in the corner of one of the enclaves, his knees acting as a brace for the book he was reading. Twilight had come and gone numerous times by the time the sun was setting. Considering he was not yet under attack by a furious purple unicorn, he could only assume Spike had sent the letter.
After dusk arrived and the danger had apparently passed, the potential consequences of his plan- namely, Celestia informing Twilight of the letter in a way that gave him up -got him thinking about the nature of the danger he was in. Could he truly die here? He had never seen a true instance of death on the show, with the exception of a funeral in one episode. They never did explain how that pony happened to die. He could only hope it was due to old age or some other natural cause.
He was not particularly afraid of gruesome maulings from the town's population. Even some of the gags he had seen on the show would be potentially fatal in the real world. Did the cartoonish durability of the Equestrians also apply to him now? It was a question that could only be answered with experimentation. The potential pain (or worse) was not exactly motivating him to find out anytime soon. He would have to assume the worst, to avoid the worst.
After he was sure Twilight and Spike had retired to their room for the night, David swiftly climbed the stairs and exited the basement into the library proper. Sure enough, his letter was gone from the table on which it had rested. With a confident, self assuring nod, he left the library with the swift stealth he had honed over the last few days.
His abilities in the dark were not the only thing that had improved. Due to the lack of lights in the basement (at least, ones he could find and operate), his vision had become accustomed to the blackness as well. This, at best, meant he was less likely to bump into large objects along his path, which had been a serious hazard the first few nights. He was still a far cry from a nocturnal creature prowling the night with confidence.
This was once again a night of scavenging. His options, however, were growing smaller and smaller. If he took too much from one particular business, even over the course of a few days, it might alert them of the theft as their supplies continued to disappear. As well, he didn't exactly feel very good about stealing merchandise from innocent creatures to the point where he might kill their business as a whole. Morality in the land of sunshine and rainbows, indeed.
Thus, he had two options: Return to Sugarcube Corner, which he hadn't touched since he arrived, or explore an option he had been trying to avoid: Sweet Apple Acres. One would think that taking a few apples in an orchard would hardly be noticeable. But these were ponies who lived and breathed their work. Applejack noticing a few missing apples was far from an unlikely scenario. Once again, however, a lack of options forced his hand.
The path to the orchard was long, confusing, and dark. Even though it was connected to Ponyville by roads, in the dark, and in unfamiliar surroundings, he frequently found himself getting lost. He had never ventured this far out during his nightly hunts, and for good reason. After doing a few circles around town, he eventually found what he thought to be the road to his destination. Around him, the quaint little homes, shops, and stalls melted away into rugged rural landscapes. Even in the dark, he could see this change, and it left him feeling very exposed. No more buildings were left to dart behind in an emergency.
It was just him and the wide open road to Sweet Apple Acres.
The trip was, thankfully, not very long once he was on track. The massive farm itself was visible on the horizon in no time at all, looming threateningly in the dark. With only moonlight and vague memories to guide him, David hopped the small fence into the orchard itself. Instead of taking from the outer trees, he walked deeper into the field of trees before selecting his spoils. The apples did not seem as ripe as he had hoped, but he was not very picky at this point. Taking four from the tree as quietly as he could, the man retreated back the way he came until he found the road, the apples cradled in one arm.
Before he set off down the road, he gave a lingering look back at the farm house itself. Somehow, he felt as though the experience had been too easy, almost as if he had come to expect complications in his plans. He half expected Winnona and Applejack to come barreling out of the side door to bring him to his doom. But after a few seconds of staring, such a thing would not come to pass. David made the short trip back to the library whilst resisting the urge to eat one of the apples right then and there, focusing deeply on not dropping any of them as he got inside. Collapsing into the corner of the basement with his bounty still cradled in his arm, he enjoyed the sweet taste of Sweet Apple apples and prepared himself to sleep.
"I wonder if my family and friends realized I'm gone yet. I wonder if I still have a job."
FIRST!
1458185
In due time, good sir, in due time
I hate that feeling when something feels too easy... It's a disaster waiting to happen!
That first post!?! Haha i Hope hes not geting fired here on earth
1458284
Twilight had some note-taking supplies in the basement (possibly for her experiments on Pinkie? )
1458218
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Good story but I'm a bit more accustomed to longer chapters.
Same ink used to write the best letter in the history of history
That was easy...too easy. That's never a good sign,
Haha, I love every single thing about this character.
I declare you a wonderific author.
1458191 UGH we don't give a fuck!
1458191 SURPRISE
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MOTHERFUCKER!.
Cool, I was your 300th like. Get ready, the Persians are coming.
1454392 Yeah. Hate. Okay.
I don't know. I'm loving the idea of the story, and for the most part the story itself. But... the story feels lacking in depth in some sense. The chapters are REALLY short, and I understand that's a matter of taste and in some cases I wouldn't mind it's just that... I really feel like the story is suffering because of it. Here's a line in this chapter that kinda made me cry a little on the inside:
"which had been a serious hazard the first few nights"
...wait... really? He... he went outside and explored the town? And... we... didn't get to read/see it?
You don't really need to add a lot or anything, but I REALLY think adding in one or two of his "scavenging nights" and maybe a scene where he's listening in on the mane 6, which he claims to have done a lot. This is a really good story, but I feel like it's suffering from what my english professors would call "tell and no show."
In a sense this can be great, for example if you're trying to not worry about great descriptions and details but just want to get the story done and then you plan on going back to rework and add in details and whatnot latter.
However, as it stands it's hard to connect with the main character at times because I kinda feel rushed along at a few points.
Of course I also struggle with the more "showing" and less "telling" and at times I get too caught up in trying to "show" and not "tell" and I don't want the same to happen to you, but I think if you added a wittle, just a wittle, more detail and a scene or so about this guys life in Twilight's basement and his night time strolls then it could really add a lot.
Still a pretty good story, but I think it could be a lot better.
1458655
I understand where you are coming from. I just figured since most of the scavenging nights went rather smoothly, if they were talked about over and over again, it would get boring. That's why I reserved detailing them for when interesting things happened, such as the trip to Sugarcube Corner or Sweet Apple Acres. Most of the stuff I did not elaborate on I did so to maintain the flow of the story, to keep things interesting.
1458191
EIGHTEENTH
When suddenly: Lyra
1458724 O god run!
So, when is he going to show himself to somepony?
1458677 Your mom could really use some more detail.
When you figure out what that meant, tell me, cuz I don't have a clue.
Lookin' forward to the next chapter
1458467 No we don't.
1458554 Shit shit shit!
1458776
All depends on the Lyra. In the dark, he might be mistaken for a scrawny Minotaur...with...no horns...yeah, maybe not.
I have one question, if the books in the basement are writen in a diffrent language, how will Celestia read a letter he wrote in english?
Otherwise good story
NEED MOAR
Very enjoyable read! Can't wait for more.
1458868 The joke was that it made no sense, that was the entire point of it. That and to make fun of people who DO use those jokes seriously.
NOPE
MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEE
1458554
Lol I remember that damn shell from Mario Kart 64. I definitely should, seeing how many times it blew me up
This is my first comment , ive already read a few stories on fimfiction but liking this one alot. think your doing a great job and hope this story continues for alot more chapters it's getting better the the more i read- "monkey monster" awesome description, is he really that hairy?? Checking every day for new chapters. Thanks
1458678
I understand the desire to not do something over and over again to have it get boring. However, I think it might have been nice to have experienced a nightly stroll. Get a feeling for what it was like for him to explore Ponyville in the dark... or a conversation or something from when he was eavesdropping on the ponies. Just to help give the story some flavor, give the world some color.
Murphy's law, bitches....it will happen...soon.
1459646
What's the worse that could happen?!
1456785 No, I'm not saying it's the human nature, whatever that implies, is inaccurate. I am referring to the immediate conclusion of a similar-to-human mindset in ponies. If you look up ToM, you will see what I mean by the assumption of similar thinking processes. Actually, it's quite natural and somewhat reasonable to assume cognitive similarity in other unknown sentient beings, I was just saying that assumption may not necessarily hold true, especially considering that he's in a cartoon world. Then again, that was said half-jokingly and should not be taken too seriously.
On what you've said though, I doubt that the discovery of another sentient species must proceed and end in such a stereotypically humans-are-bastards fashion. That has to be dependent on the situation and nature of the said encounter.
1458958 i think the books werent on a diferent language, more like in a scientific terminology(magics formulas i guess), so even if he could read the text in them he couldnt understand what they meant, you know like giving a 7 years old boy a book on advanced physics
Hehehehe... Dis' ain't gon' be good.
WMG: Applejack finds out, Winona tracks his scent that miraculously didn't vanish overnight, and Winona tracks it down to Twilight's Library.
Alternatively, Angel does something.
Whoa, "Operation Sweet Apple Acres" was interesting, not only because you wrote it well, but because I had imagined what the next scenarios would be and that was one of them.
I'm really liking this story! I have a theory on what might happen, but I don't want to influence your decision, so I'll keep it to myself. Keep up the suspense!
1458958 He meant it might as well have been another language, like how the phrase "Severe hydrophobia renders consumption of Hydrohydroxic acid causative of anaphylaxis" is technically English/Equestrian...
WOAH! HOLD THE PHONE:
MLP: FIM had an episode the featured a funeral taking place?!
For realz?
1460807
Mhm. The Hearts and Hooves episode, during the song. "This one's too old". That was a funeral, I believe.
New chapter imminent!
1460961
Thanks! I popped on over to youtube and...wow...talk about your slick gags.
I guess you don't have worry too much about self censorship when you own 50% of the company that broadcasts your stuff.
>Winnona
>>Winona
1460807
Eeeyup, "Hearts & Hooves" oddly enough.
The ancient looking Mr Wattles was wearing a clergyman's collar and presumably giving the eulogy when Sweetie Belle jumped in singing "..This one's too old..."
1458218 i know i hate that felling.
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1458935
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1458554 I am replying to this solely to allow others to know that I think highly of the comment.
1458554
Quick, wheres the like button? This post needs more likes!