Life Finds a Way Cast List · 4:49pm Oct 25th, 2022
This will just be a basic description of characters as they make their appearance. I will put in a horizontal line / page break thing with an indication as to where the character first appears so, as you're reading, you can stop once caught up and not spoil anything, hopefully. If you see "Chapter 20" in here I really recommend you read chapter 20 before looking over that section.
I had originally planned to put this in a chapter, but upon asking was informed that the story itself is for narrative only and instead directed to make a blog post, so that's an FYI for anyone else that's wanting to post a cast list at some point.
The story takes place in Golden Hills, a small suburb of Baltimare, just one train stop to the west of the metropolis. It's about a fifteen minute ride into Baltimare, something Cure will probably explore a bit more as he gets older.
Golden Hills itself is almost exclusively an earth pony community with about 4000 residents. Though considered a suburb of the city, most of the surrounding area is firmly rural and even the families in the residential area enjoy larger plots of land where there's plenty of room for a garden big enough to just about feed themselves if they're willing to put in the time.
The story begins on Monday, September 1st, 908 years after Princess Celestia's banishment of Nightmare Moon (908 AB).
Don't read this at all until you get past at least chapter 8!
A/N -- This is incomplete, and will probably remain "incomplete" for the duration of the story. I'll try to add new characters on as they're introduced.
Cure Wave
Earth Pony - Light Blue Coat / Green mane & tail - Age 8.
Our protagonist. Think Rainbow Dash's colors except his mane and tail are all green; the same shade as the green stripe in hers. He was born 900 years after the banishment of Nightmare Moon (900 AB) when his mother unexpectedly got pregnant the previous fall. He's only finished his first year of education at the start of the story. Right around the end of August he started inexplicably reliving memories from, as best he can guess, a previous life.
Was he a human? Did he just get some random dude's memories shoved in his head? Nopony knows, but he does seem to have a lifetime of memories inherited from one Edward Weaver of Earth.
Ed passed about four months before his 48th birthday on Father's Day in 2020 (6/21/2020) from COVID that he caught from his granddaughter while babysitting. She'd caught it at daycare and the facility could not allow her back due to showing symptoms.
He and his wife, Cynthia Weaver, were both hospitalized shortly before. She died the day before he did and, between the virus and the heartbreaking loss of his beloved, he lost the fight to survive. Ed and Cyndi left behind a daughter (his step daughter), McKynzie (born July 1993), her husband Brad, and their granddaughter Alanna (born January 2013), with whom he would occasionally watch MLP:FiM.
Cyndi also had an older son, Josh, but the boy didn't get along well with Ed and idolized his biological father. Josh died a couple months before his 22nd birthday in 2013 leaving a party drunk & high, lookin to score with his girlfriend when he ran his motorcycle off the road. Ed's parents also passed a few years before him (mom to cancer in 2014, dad in 2018), as did his older brother (2008). He does have a younger sister, Angie, that survived him and she has a son she's raising by herself.
Spreading Vines
Earth Pony - Emerald Green Coat / Yellow mane & tail - Age 24.
Cure's dam. For those unfamiliar with the term, it's "biological mother". Her then-boyfriend, Clean Deed, knocked her up in a moment of passion during the fall estrus when she was fifteen years old. To be fair, he was the same age, and neither knew she would go into heat, as it was the first time she'd ever had that happen. She had just gotten her cutie mark the year before and Spring didn't hit her, so imagine her surprise when she started showing a few months later, never having shown the signs of estrus hitting at all.
She's a kind, gentle soul but she does have a mischievous streak in her.
Vines has an emerald green coat with a bright yellow mane & tail. Her cutie mark is a cornucopia.
Clean Deed
Earth Pony - Dark Brown Coat / Black mane & tail - Age 24.
Clean Deed is a real estate pony, though he kinda sucks at the "staying organized" part of the job. Thankfully a few years before our story begins he met his business partner, Title Search, who is able to keep him from messing too much up. Gregarious and friendly, Deed loves a good joke, but don't doubt he's a poppa bear under that soft exterior. He'll be the first on the scene when family calls, assuming Vines doesn't trample him on the way there herself.
Deed's cutie mark has a house in the background, with a family of ponies silhouetted in front of it at the bottom and a pair of hooves meeting over the top, roof area in a bump or shake.
Title Search
Earth Pony - Pink Coat / Purple mane & tail - Age 24.
A few months pregnant at the start of the story, Title is looking forward to her first foal. She met Deed on the job a few years prior and fell in love with both him and his first wife, Spreading Vines. Though she didn't marry him specifically for his ability to sire a colt, she desperately wants one of her own some day. She adores Cure and treats him just like she would her own son, even if they've technically only known each other a few years.
Smart and inquisitive, Cure's learned not to underestimate the mare because, chances are, she'll figure something out just as fast as he will. She's the most educated of the parents with a year at university studying business and real estate law, though she didn't finish out her degree.
Title's colors are a near-copy of the future Princess of Love. With a lovely pink coat and a darker, regal purple mane and tail, Title only lacks Cadance's multi-colored style and cutie mark or she could be dead ringer.
Title's cutie mark is a stack of papers. The top page is curled upwards with illegible writing and a magnifying glass zooming in on a section of it.
Heavy Lift
Earth Pony - Gray Coat / Dark Blue mane & tail - Age 8.
One of Cure's two male buds at the start of the story, Heavy is a typical kid growing up in the suburbs. Cure hasn't spent much on-screen time with him, but with all the craziness going on he hasn't had a lot of opportunity to either. Heavy spends a lot of time helping his mom, a pegasus named Spring Showers, take care of his two little pegasi sisters.
Heavy's dam is also pregnant, so he'll finally have a sister he can actually catch when he's playing with her.
He has not yet gotten his cutie mark.
Binder
Unicorn - Dark Orange Coat / Brown mane & tail - Age Mid twenties, approximately.
We don't know much about "Mister Binder" (the mare that shouted his name just called him "Binder") but he works at the local library and, apparently, is a bit of an elitist. Although he initially talks down to Cure he seems to have some respect for the colt, as he is very excited to show the lad a collection of books he'd personally donated to the library after he finished his schooling at Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. We don't know if he actually graduated, but he seems passionate about the subject either way.
Binder's cutie mark is a bottle of ink with a quill in it set before a small pile of books.
Aunt Bean
We don't know much about Deed's aunt; just that she owns a farm that apparently has a wide variety of produce. Also on her farm is a herd of ornery and (apparently) horny cattle ladies that don't hesitate to cat-call on the stallions workin the farm.
Cousin Pole
One of Deed's cousins that enjoyed himself some quality dairy time while working on Aunt Bean's farm, Pole apparently was the target of a fair amount of teasing after the fact. He's since moved away and married a unicorn and, according to Deed, should have a foal or one on the way.
Water Lily
Lily is another of Deed's cousins. She got knocked up when he was a preteen and it was while she and her beau were house-hunting that Deed got his cutie mark. Given that was twelve years ago she should have a child about three years older than Cure is by now.
Chapter 11 - Friends. Several foals Cure's approximate age are introduced. Stop reading here if you want to meet them in-story. I recommend reading the character list AFTER the chapter; a format I'll continue from here on.
Dawn Glow
Unicorn - Lighter Orange Coat / Crimson mane & tail - Age 8.
Dawn is the only unicorn that Cure knows around his age. She's very friendly and, according to Cure, cute and seems to maybe have an interest in our hero.
She does not yet have her cutie mark.
Crosswind Drift
Pegasus - Darker Purple Coat / Royal Blue Mane & Tail - Age 9.
Gruff and somewhat aggressive compared to the other ponies Cure knows, Drift initially tries to bully Cure a bit when they meet for kickball. Once he calls her bluff she backs down and is genuinely impressed with his special talent, so at least she is reasonable enough to accept when she's wrong. Still, she's the type that'll fly off the handle first and, maybe, stop to ask questions after.
Her parents are both guards stationed around Baltimare. Being a pegasus it's a pretty short flight to the city and, as such, she and the other pegasi in the town all go to school in Baltimare instead of locally.
She does not yet have her cutie mark.
Glacial Breeze
Pegasus - Platinum Photochromic Coat (gains blue tint in light) / Bright Blue mane & tail - Age 9.
With the new memories, Cure has a realization that Glacial's unique coat color may have something to do with some latent Crystal Pony heritage. Upon asking she says she has no idea, but she's clearly flustered (and flattered) by the attention and complement from the slightly younger colt and seems to appreciate him approaching her. He can't even deny to himself that he feels attracted to the filly, and waxes poetic when he thinks she's spying on him and Heavy's conversation, much to the amusement of his parents.
She does not yet have her cutie mark.
Rocky Reef
Earth Pony - Red Coat / Blue mane & tail - Age 9.
Although he, Heavy, and Cure do hang out on occasion we haven't had much opportunity to learn about Rocky yet. We know he has several siblings, but that's about all we've learned about the slightly older colt.
He does not yet have his cutie mark.
Delta Coast
Earth Pony - Light Blue Coat / Pink mane & tail - Age 8.
Coast hasn't interacted with Cure very much yet, so we don't really know her very well. Worth noting is that she has an almost identical colored coat to him, but her mane and tail are pink.
She does not yet have her cutie mark.
Rising Pitch
Earth Pony - Yellow Coat / Chocolate mane & tail - Age 8.
Another new character we're just meeting, we don't know much about her yet.
She does not yet have her cutie mark.
Ferric Shine
Earth Pony - Dark Red Coat / Black mane & tail - Age 9.
The only thing Cure notes about Ferric that's unusual is how built she is. Unlike most of the girls around his age she's already quite muscular, to the point Cure is actually a little put off by it. Still, her personality is open and friendly, so he treats her just like any other friend.
Though he doesn't make mention of it, she does have her cutie mark. It depicts two hammers crossed at the hilts; one a heavy war maul and the other a blacksmith's hammer.
Chapters 12 through 14
We meet a couple mares and their two daughters that lives a few houses down from Cure's family. As always, I recommend reading the chapter first. Lemon doesn't show up until 14, the other three appear in 12.
Amethyst Blossom
Earth Pony - Purple Coat / Pink mane & tail - Age 24
A friend of Vines' from her childhood, "Amy" lives just a few houses down with her wife, Lemon Sweet. Amy raises the foals but also helps Lemon in the store on occasion. It takes a few chapters for Cure to realize, but Amy, Lemon, and his parents occasionally get together for "adult time" so he'll probably end up foalsitting the daughters when the time comes.
Amethyst's cutie mark depicts a balanced scale with gems on one side and the other empty.
Lotus Bloom
Earth Pony - Dark Red Coat / Cream mane & tail - Age 3
Lotus is Amy's biological daughter and Lemon's daughter. She's a bit of a firecracker, just like her dam, and won't hesitate to sneak in a cheap shot when nobody's lookin. Her colors are a reverse of her sister's even though they're not twins, leading Cure & the fam to assume they have the same sire.
She's too young for a cutie mark.
Cherry Tart
Earth Pony - Cream Coat / Dark Red mane & tail - Age 3
Lemon Sweet's biological daughter and Amethyts's daughter. Apparently the sweeter of the two, though she can be a hellion at bath time. Her colors are a reverse of her sister's even though they're not twins, leading Cure & the fam to assume they have the same sire.
She's too young for a cutie mark.
Lemon Sweet
Earth Pony - Yellow Coat / Blue mane & tail - Age 24, give or take.
Lemon is the owner and primary worker for the family's main source of income; a candy store she owns downtown. We learn a little more about it and her in a later chapter.
She has a variety of candies for a cutie mark.
Chapter 17 - Conflict
Wind Shear
Pegasus - Slightly Off-White Coat / Gold mane & tail - Age 11
Much like her sister, Wind comes off as aggressive when Cure first meets her. It doesn't get much better from there.
She does not yet have her cutie mark.
Tailwind Flare, AKA "Washout"
Pegasus - Wearing armor, Colors & Mark not described. Age 28 Approximately
Well now we know where Crosswind Drift and Wind Shear get it, huh? Although the character is not named in this chapter, this is Wind Shear and Crosswind Drift's sire. His wife is also in the chapter, briefly, but she's not named or described other than being a mare in armor. Both Drift and Wind have a little sister as well, but we have not yet met her.
He is a Corporal in the guard. His wife's in the service too, though her rank is not given.
Iron Bulwark
Earth Pony - Wearing armor, Colors & Mark not described. Age 35 Approximately
Staff Sargent Iron Bulwark is a professional and expects his soldiers to be so also. We don't get to know him very well, but he listens when Cure describes how everything went down, looks over the facts, and deals with the corporal who's stepped out of line. He also apparently has some political acumen, as he immediately realizes how bad the whole situation looks.
Chapter 20 - Cure goes to the Rodeo! Definitely a longer chapter; give it a look before reading about the new pony we meet.
Sapphire Sprint
Earth Pony - Mint Green Coat / Slightly Darker Green mane & tail - Age 8
Sapphire is friends with Rising, Coast, and Dawn apparently, as Cure finds them all together at the rodeo. Unlike the other girls, though, she seems like kind of a dumbass, or at least a bit ditzy and gossipy to Cure. She doesn't get a lot of screen time, so hopefully we won't have to endure too much of her.
Chapter 22 - Crew
Solar Strike
Unicorn - Red Coat / Orange Mane & tail - Age 15 (will turn 16 in January 909)
Solar is Dawn's older brother. He's a pretty chill dude and he and Cure become buds pretty quickly, what with their similar sense of humor and the fact that he knows Dawn has a crush on Cure. What really seals the deal is when he realizes what Cure's capable of; or so he thinks. It takes the smart older colt hardly any time at all to figure out at least a few aspects of Cure's special talent.
He's joining Cure and the fillies for exercise since Dawn told him about Cure's ability to "help ponies be healthy" and his success beefing himself up. Come January he plans on joining the guard where he'll have to do as well as older, fully grown ponies, so having somepony nearby that can help him shape up sooner is a huge win in his book.
His cutie mark is a large yellow beam shooting downwards with orange beams blasting away from the point of impact.
Emerald Aura
Unicorn - Blue Coat / Yellow Mane & tail - Age ?? We don't know, but somewhere in her mid thirties
Emerald is Solar's and Dawn's dam. When Cure first meets her she doesn't hesitate to question the colt that her daughter's brought home. Cure thinks it's kind of a jerk move, so he's happy to turn the tables a bit on her when the opportunity presents itself. Still, he's really starting to like hanging out with Dawn, so he has no problem showing affection towards the filly whether or not it gets under her dam's skin.
Emerald works at the clinic in town as some kind of clinical assistant.
Her cutie mark is not described yet.
Sgt. Gleaming Haze
Unicorn - Red Coat / Yellow Mane & tail - Age ?? We don't know, but somewhere in his mid thirties, like his wife
Sgt. Haze hasn't really spoken up yet, but he's been present both for the craziness when Wind Shear acted up (in 17 - he was the medic checking her over for injuries, but wasn't identified at the time) and when Emerald gives Cure a hard time. He also finds it hilarious when Cure gets her back, so he must have some kind of decent sense of humor, even if Solar later reveals he's a bit of a wuss when it came time for "the talk."
His cutie mark is not described yet.
Chapter 26 - Baltimare
Thunder Dance
Pegasus - White Coat / Golden Mane & tail - Age ?? Late 20's
Thunder Dance is the dam of Crosswind Drift, Wind Shear, and the thus far unnamed third daughter with Tailwind Flare (AKA Washout), the pegasus corporal that accosted Cure when he and Wind had their scuffle. She drops by with her daughters and Glacial Breeze after the family gets home from Baltimare so she can apologize in pony for her and her husband's behavior
Cure does give her a little bit of a lecture, but they all end up on good terms in the end.
Her cutie mark is not described yet.
Chapter 28 - Canterlot
We meet a couple new ponies and our first non-pony named character. Barely.
Moon Rose, Esq.
Unicorn - Light Blue Coat (slightly darker than Cure) / White mane & tail - Age Mid 40's approx.
Moon Rose is one of the partners at Ace, Hardwick, and Rose. She maintains a professional demeanor throughout most of the encounter with the family, but seems to have a motherly side to her as well when she realizes how anxious the whole special talent thing has made Cure. Smart and well-informed, she clearly knows a thing or two in regards to the law's interaction with magical abilities, which is why Cure & fam ended up seeing her in the first place.
Her cutie mark was not described.
Ace Issue, Esq.
Unicorn - Darker Yellow coat / Brown Mane & tail - Age ?? Presumably early 20's
Ace Issue is another partner at the law firm with Moon Rose. Clearly the more excitable and exuberant of the two, the younger mare is more than happy to give herself a slice if it means she gets to see a spiffy unique talent demonstrated. Don't let her excitability give the impression she's not a professional, though, as she's quick to suggest Cure seek the firm out for future representation should he ever decide to step up to the "big leagues" as she says.
Her cutie mark was not described.
Anagor Stonefist
Minotaur - Dark Brown Coat, Black hair - Age ?? Presumably in his late 30s, early 40s based entirely on his profession
Anagor just happens to be stepping out of a stallion's formalwear shop while Cure is sitting outside waiting for his sire to pry the moms out of a dress shop. He's the first bipedal creature Cure has seen on this world, so he draws Cure's eye, something Deed notices when he finally comes out. The family's exit from the shop draws the minotuar's attention, so, being in Canterlot as an attaché (an assistant to some ambassador, presumably) here to make friends, he takes the opportunity to come over and say hi and give some encouraging words to the curious young colt.
Minotaurs, as far as we know, do not get cutie marks.
Chapter 29 - Familia
Deed & Co. finally meet his grandpa and a few other ponies at the estate in Baltimare's ritzy area.
Lucky Fix
Earth Pony - Off-White Coat / Dark Brown mane & tail - Age: Mid/Late 20's
Lucky is one of Deed's cousins. Physically, he's about the same height as Deed but not really in any kind of shape. He just has an average build, but one unique trait is that he has the "blended" darker stocking look going down his legs. Lucky seems to be some kind of assistant for Grandpa Brick, though his actual job position is never given.
Lucky's cutie mark is a money bag with a few coins bouncing out of the top.
Brick Top (AKA Vita Clarion or Grandpa Brick)
Earth Pony - Light Brown Coat / Dark Brown mane & tail - Age: ? Late 60s/early 70s
Brick is Deed's grandsire. He has a thicker build from his 20 years of service in the guard, despite his slightly advanced age. He carries himself like a soldier and one look at the older dude is all it takes to know he's not a good pony to have mad at ya. What's even scarier is that apparently all of those years of service means he has connections, as the first thing he does when he meets the family is ask about "Washout" harassing Cure, compliment him knowing when to call for help, and make it known that he's aware Deed and Title have been seeing a lot of financial success recently.
Brick seems to be a scary pony, but seeing him get spittin' mad at the prospect of unicorn nobles stealing away "our foals" is a relief to the family.
Brick negotiates a contract with Deed and Title for Cure to provide healing services as needed. They said Cure just wanted to help the family, but Brick insists that the colt be properly compensated for work, so he'll get 25% up front and the other 75% will be put aside in a trust for Cure when he turns 15.
Brick's cutie mark is, unsurprisingly, a brick wall 5 rows tall. The top, middle, and bottom have three bricks in it and the 2nd and 4th row have four, offset a half-brick's length from the rows above and below.
Caramel Candy (AKA Caramel Clarion or Grandma Caramel)
Earth Pony - Caramel colored coat / Yellow mane & tail (faded due to age). Age: ? Late 60s, early 70s
One of Brick's three wives and the only Grandma present when the family visits (Grandma's Vino and Sabre are off spending money in Fillydelphia according to Lucky). Grandma Caramel is every bit as sweet as her namesake, doting on Cure and treating everypony like family, whether they are or aren't.
Her cutie mark is a wrapped candy of some sort; presumably a caramel, floating in front of what looks like a shortcake.
Arcane Blast (AKA Blaster)
Unicorn - Dark Blue coat / Dark Red mane & tail. Age: Early 40s
Blaster is, according to Brick, the best caster he'd ever served with and the top artillery unicorn in Brick's division. He'd been disabled and discharged after a drunken brawl with a griffon on leave in New Horseleans early on in his career. Brick saw the young unicorn's potential and hired him on as some kind of associate despite his injury, something that earned Brick the battlemage's loyalty.
As a demonstration of Cure's healing talent, Cure fixed up the leg causing the unicorn's limp, then went the extra mile and took care of hearing loss, vision, and the typical tooth issues most ponies have. He also cleaned up any arthritis the unicorn had from his age, though Blaster specifically asked that he leave the scars behind.
His cutie mark is a trio of yellow comets or fireballs flying in an echelon with a slight downward trajectory.
thanks this is what i needed :)
The color combinations listed helped me here. Outside of their introductions, as far as I remember the references to their color/appearances are sparse with some exceptions like whenever Dawn is blushing, so this will help me visualize a bit more.
This is very helpful in building the mental picture of the characters. Sometimes with these stories my mental picture becomes a kaleidoscope of prisms as far as colors go unless the characters are interacted with frequently.
Yep definitely needs an update doesn't even have a Savy profile yet she is the best girl!
Super useful, but def needs an update