As requested by Twilight, Matt talked at length about what Earth was like and answered what questions he could. He spoke of bits of history, various pieces of modern technology, entertainment, whatever came to mind. He made sure not to get too involved with some of the negatives that humanity brought with it, particularly the more horrific things people had done to each other over the centuries, though he didn't leave the subject completely untouched. While he knew nothing of Equestria's history, he assumed that they must have had conflict here and there as well since most creatures in general had been known to fight for one reason or another on occasion.
With each new topic, Twilight scribbled madly on her absurd amount of paper, nearly covering the kitchen floor in a layer of parchments. While the others listened intently at the fascinating things being discussed, none were more hinged on every word as Twilight was. Her friends did, however, take specific interest in one thing or another individually over the hours they spent huddled together. In a strange way, it almost felt like camping.
Rainbow Dash had perked up when she heard about a professional sport involving racing these motorized wagons that Matt referred to as cars. Rarity was curious about how much business one could generate with his communications technology advertising just about everything imaginable, including fashion. Spike denied that he was jealous – though all his fidgeting gave him away – of how easy it was to keep in touch with others on the bizarre-sounding things Matt called computers.
Trying to explain exactly how these gadgets and devices worked was a little difficult for Matt, what with not being able to sit down and show them. The best he could do was found in his shorts pocket – the cell phone he had on him when he crash landed. Also in his pockets was his wallet. Before he had been snatched away by...whatever it was, he was getting ready to head out in a little while to get something to eat. He set the brown leather wallet on the floor beside him and let them take a closer look at his flip phone. It was an older model but it did the job. Granted, he wasn't going to be able to use it for its intended purpose, but at the very least, he could show them the few options one could fool around with without having to worry about getting a network signal.
Unsurprisingly, Twilight was the most entranced by the foreign device. It amazed her, as well as the rest, that what was probably the most advanced thing on the planet was small enough to fit on a single hoof. Matt found their fascination to be rather endearing as he watched them study his phone with the wonder of a small child, even though they didn't have a clue how to operate it. If only they saw some of the other things that he had dealt with back home. He chuckled under his breath and in doing so garnered the attention of the young mares. Seeing him finally calm enough to have a small laugh at something put their fears to rest; they had nothing to worry about from their visitor.
An angry growl from Matt's stomach told a new, embarrassing story that late evening, giving Applejack reason to smirk. But, it was right. It was nearly eleven o'clock by now and they still hadn't eaten, too taken in by Matt's incredible tales. Even Spike had managed to force himself to stay away thanks to an overwhelming desire to hear everything the human had to say.
However, with Matt's internal gripe now made public, Spike sighed and rose to his feet, knowing full well what to expect from Twilight. He preferred to stay and continue to keep himself glued to Matt's words, but that wasn't about to happen. Without a command, he headed to the fridge and pulled out various fruits and vegetables for the girls and himself.
Remembering the gift Applejack had given him as he watched Spike gather the food, Matt glanced to his right and at the floor. The bright red apple still laid in the same place it came to a stop at. Reclaiming it, he wiped it down, finding that there was next to no dirt or dust on it. In fact, it looked as if it was still nearly as immaculate as it looked earlier. Shrugging just slightly, he sunk his teeth in. It only took a single bite.
"Jesus, this is good. Juicy as hell," he praised, quickly digging back in with a full mouth.
Applejack beamed proudly at the compliment. "Thanks! They're from the apple orchard Ah live 'n work on. You ask anypony and they'll tell ya they're the best in Equestria!"
It didn't take long for everyone there to gobble down what was given to them. Pausing and looking over the food was enough to remind everypony they had forgotten dinner. Not soon after, the hour began to take its toll on them – including Matt and Twilight – and not even his talk of how they had flown people to Earth's moon in a spaceship was enough to keep their eyes from slowly closing. The rather stressful day wasn't helping matters either.
With Spike being the first victim the night claimed, Twilight yawned and decided they should probably get some rest; there was still a lot to do and discuss the following day. As they rose to their hooves, stretched, and headed back inside to their waiting pillows and blankets, the lavender mare approached Matt without a hint of the anxiety or fear that plagued their initial meeting. She floated his phone back into his hand, and he took it also without feeling the shock or dread he did before.
"We can talk more in the morning," said Twilight. "You've told us so much about where you're from. It's only fair that we tell you a bit about Equestria, and us, as well. I promise we'll do anything we can to get you home. I'll look through my library from top to bottom if I have to, and if that doesn't get any results, there's another even larger archive I can visit elsewhere." She glanced at the gash on his forehead. "And I'll clean off that wound a little more tomorrow. It still looks like it stings."
"A little," Matt admitted, rubbing it gingerly. He could feel the caked blood stuck on his skin and instinctively started to pick at it. His hand suddenly glowed purple and moved on its own away from the injury.
"You really should leave it alone. You don't want to make it worse," she scolded.
He pursed his lips and looked away, a bit embarrassed that a talking purple pony felt the need to lecture him. "I guess."
"Did you...want to come out to the lobby and get some sleep with us?" Twilight asked hesitantly. "I do have a guest bed upstairs, but I don't think you'd fit on it."
"I'll just sleep in here tonight," Matt quickly replied. Sleeping together with them, even though there wasn't any danger in doing so, wasn't something he was ready to do just yet.
The unicorn understood and smiled. "Alright. I'll get you a pillow and a blanket. Be right back."
He nodded and watched her leave the kitchen only to return a moment later with said provisions. They were a bit on the small side, but it was obvious they were made with equines in mind, not nearly-six-foot-tall humans.
"Well, I guess that's it for tonight." Twilight took one last look around and gathered up the scattered papers with her magic. She figured she'd sort through them later. Once she determined that everything was in order, she smiled pleasantly at her new friend. "It was nice to meet you, Matt."
"You too," he said, returning a small smile of his own, "and...thanks."
With an appreciative nod, Twilight scooped up Spike and left the human be.
Late the following morning, the girls had gathered around main room of the library, waiting patiently for Matt to come out of hiding and join them. It took the combined efforts of Applejack and Twilight to convince him though it didn't take much. With the insanity that took place the night before, Matt had fallen right asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow and was out like a light almost immediately. One could have fired a gun by his head and it probably wouldn't have woken him. Now that he was a bit rested, he was ready to take his first steps into a strange new world, even if it was only into the next room.
-----
Matt had diligently helped out around the library during the two weeks since his violent arrival. An arrangement had been agreed upon that while the girls did what they could to help him get home, he should still help out where he could. He didn't have any problem agreeing to it; it would have driven him crazy sitting around doing nothing. They decided that helping out around the library would be repayment enough, though when a customer came by, he'd have to make himself scarce. No need to potentially start a panic.
Spike was happy that his daily chore regiment was effectively cut in half. Matt entertained himself as best he could when he wasn't busy working despite being confined to the place. One of the only things he could do while stuck in the library, aside from chatting with Twilight and Spike, was read. He listened to some of Twilight's recommendations, but magic fascinated him the most since he arrived.
He made it a point to find out what he could about the subject. However, he had never been much of a reader on Earth thanks to all the video games he played, the amount of time he spent watching television and the surfing on the internet. He tried to stay focused while reading the books he found about magic but ended up skimming over a lot of it. Some of it stuck with him but not nearly as much as he would have liked. He figured the materials he read up to that point would likely have made more sense to someone who could actually wield magic to begin with.
The following morning came, and Matt was unusually grouchy; he hadn't slept terribly well that night. The bed that the girls had specially made for him by a confused store owner was comfortable, but he had been restless recently. So much for simply toughing it out. He had been sleeping in Twilight's basement since it had the most room, and he tried not to get in the way of any of her work when she was down there. Maybe it was the air? It was a basement, after all. He tried to just shrug it off, but that wasn't working too well. Trying to figure out what his problem had been over the last few days wasn't the first thing he wanted to do in the morning.
He said hardly anything while he ate breakfast with Spike and Twilight. He was getting a little tired of a vegetarian diet already, even though the food was delicious. Twilight had planned to have Spike and Matt start reorganizing some of the library starting today. She gathered a large number of books to the floor and let them get started.
Matt took a small stack of books and began his chore with the same irritated look he had when he woke up that morning. He determined where the first book he had in his hand was meant to go and slammed it into place. The next few books followed with the same result.
"Matt, please! Try and be gentle with them. Some of those books are rather old," Twilight snapped.
He just scowled to himself and mumbled his annoyance so they couldn't hear. Some of the morning sunlight blared in through the window and lit up the room. It was to be clear skies all day today according to the weather team. The warmth it brought felt pretty nice against his skin and Matt turned to look. It was bright and almost blinding. He sighed and turned back around to his chore.
Lunchtime had come slowly that day. After feeling the glow of the sun on his face, Matt seemed to move at half his intended pace. Spike even noticed and was mildly bothered that, even with another body helping out, he felt like he was doing most of the work. They all sat at the table and Matt was once again distracted. He barely touched his food and stared out the windows he could see. There wasn't much to see save for a couple roads and homes with an occasional pony trotting by.
"You're awful quiet today," Spike said.
He ignored the comment. Aside from staring blankly out the windows, the only sign of life he showed was from his hand. He was almost involuntary rubbing his phone and flipping it open and closed. Even though the battery had been dead for a while and it wouldn't have worked in Equestria anyway, he still carried it with him in his pocket habitually, as well as his wallet, even though he never left the premises.
There was a hint of melancholy on Matt's face that he tried to hide, but Twilight was able to spot it. She glanced out the window he was staring at and back at him.
"You want to go outside, don't you?"
Matt got lost in thought for a moment and threw a hand slightly in the air. "I dunno." He took a bite of his meal.
"You know why you can't though. I'm sorry, Matt," Twilight said sadly.
He stood up and back to lobby to continue his work. "Yeah, I know," he said bluntly as he left the room.
-----
Twilight had arranged to see the rest of the group, including Spike, the next day for dinner at one of the local restaurants. She hadn't been as upbeat as she usually is since lunch the other day. Spike had continued the rest of the day as if nothing was wrong. That wasn't unexpected though. Unless somepony specifically said what was on their mind, Spike was generally oblivious to somepony's problem unless it was coming from Rarity. Matt had figured out his obvious infatuation with her after only a single one-on-one visit from the white unicorn. Some things are the same even across species, apparently.
She figured it was best to give Matt some space for an evening and left him alone at the library. Their meals had arrived and they had just started nibbling at the flowers and vegetables they were served when Twilight addressed them. "Thanks for coming out, girls. I know this dinner was kind of last minute, but I needed some advice...about Matt."
Rainbow Dash laughed as she responded, "What, are you getting some kind of crush on him?"
Twilight smirked at her. "Funny. It's...well, lately he's seemed just...miserable. He barely said a word all day yesterday. I think I know what's bothering him, but he'll never admit it."
"Didn't look like anything was bothering him to me," Spike said.
"That's because you were too busy eating after he walked off. It was like he was avoiding us after lunch. Doesn't that strike you as odd?"
"He was running around doing chores. So what?"
Twilight rolled her eyes and looked back at her friends. "He kept looking out the windows all day and staring at nothing."
"Sounds like he wants to get outta the library for a little while. At least that's what it seems to me," Applejack said.
"Yeah, that's what I've been thinking too." Twilight poked at her salad with a magically guided fork. Matt's actions had started becoming upsetting to her as well.
"I can't say I blame him, really. I'd go crazy if I was stuck inside and couldn't spread my wings and fly around a bit," Rainbow commented as she flipped backwards in the air. "What does he do to amuse himself?"
Twilight thought for a moment. "Not much really. He tried reading but he seemed to get bored of that real fast. Most of the times when there's nothing to do, if he's not looking out a window, he's curled up in the corner thinking about...well, I'm going to assume his home, but he never says, even when I try talking it out of him. And if he doesn't look upset, he almost looks...angry. I have to admit, sometimes when he's angry, it's...kinda scary. I just don't know what to do at this point. I haven't found anything that I think can really help get him home. Even when I stopped by Canterlot last week, I couldn't find anything about his species or his world or anything."
"Did ya talk to the Princesses? Maybe they know somethin' that could help."
"No," Twilight sighed.
"Why in the hay not?"
"We know he's a decent pony...person, whatever. But what if the Princesses are aware of where he comes from and think that he's a danger and throw him in a dungeon or something? I wouldn't want to see that happen to him."
"I really can't see Celestia and Luna doing something like that. They didn't do anything to me when I took Philomena, remember?" Fluttershy argued.
"I'm afraid to take that chance. We're talking about a species that isn't native to Equestria. We have no idea if she's ever dealt with such a thing before." She groaned as she rubbed her aching head. "I just hate feeling this lost. I don't want to risk upsetting or angering the Princesses, but at the same time, I don't want to give them a reason to think Matt is dangerous by keeping him cooped up, which would probably just continue to anger him. Ugh, what do we do?"
"We should throw him a party! A good party's always cheered everypony up!"
Rarity countered, "I doubt a party would help, dearie. From what you said though, Twilight, it does sounds like he's going absolutely stir crazy. Throwing a party and seeing us having fun when he's been feeling the way he has been would likely make things worse."
"Maybe we could try just letting him out for a little while? The fresh air would probably do him some good. If that's okay, that is."
"Jeez, Fluttershy, 'letting him out'? You make him sound like he's one of your critters," Rainbow Dash scoffed.
"Oh. I'm sorry."
"But that's just it, girls. It's not okay. You know how jittery some of these ponies can be. The last thing we need is a riot on our hooves," Twilight argued.
"We're pretty well-known in Ponyville, Twilight. Elements of Harmony and all?" Rainbow puffed out her chest. "If they saw him with us, they probably wouldn't freak out like you think they're gonna. At least, I don't think they would."
"While I too think allowing him to stretch his legs for a while would be good for him, nopony can argue that both sides do have a good point," Rarity added. "But, this is ultimately Twilight's decision. He's staying under her roof for the time being, and whatever decision she decides to make, we should support her."
They continued to eat and chatted amongst each other as Twilight silently pondered what to do. Near the end of their meal, she sighed heavily, having finally made her decision. "Alright, fine. What's the worst that could go wrong, I guess? But, I still want to make sure he isn't seen if at all possible. At least for now."
Pinkie shot happily into the air like a firework and landed softly onto her pillow chair. "Yay! This is gonna be so much fun! What are we gonna do?"
-----
Matt's day started out as irritably as the last several. For some reason, he wasn't as tired as he usually was and crept up the stairs, dragging his feet and rubbing his face. He was grateful for not being so out of it that he'd be hitting the walls for once. When he got to the main floor, he saw Spike organizing some more books.
He noted the clock; it was almost noon. Gah, how could he have slept so late?! Wait, Twilight always woke him up. Did she somehow forget? That wouldn't be like her. He heard the clopping of hooves behind him coming down the stairs.
"Hey, Twilight. Sorry I got up so late."
"No, it's okay! I let you sleep in today."
"She never lets me sleep in," Spike grumbled.
"Uh...why?"
"I wanted you to be more rested today. But that's not the only reason. Today, I have a special surprise for you!" Odd, she seemed to have some spring her voice this morning.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, the girls and I went out last night as you know. We discussed some things regarding you, and we decided that maybe you've been cooped up here too long." His eyes widened in anticipation. "The girls decided they'd take today off and we'd all go on a picnic for lunch today. All of us."
"Not that I'm complaining but why the sudden change of heart?"
"You've seemed really distant lately, and I've seen you staring out the window a lot. You've been making it kind of obvious." She smiled at him knowingly, prompting him to look away embarrassed. "I promise we'll try and get you outside more often. Just don't think you're going to be running around the Town Square just yet. I do still want to try and keep you out of view of the public for now. Maybe we can work on that sooner or later."
Matt pursed his lips. "It was that obvious, huh? Heh, thought I was doing a better job with that."
"Don't worry about it, Matt. The girls will probably be here soon. You should get ready."
"I'll go shower real quick then. Spike, could you grab some clothes for me in the meantime?" he asked as he headed up the stairs.
"Sure thing."
-----
Matt hadn't been in the shower long before Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, carrying some of her trademark desserts, had arrived. Rarity came a few minutes later wearing a large white hat with a several vibrant feathers of pink and orange hanging out the side and a pristine sapphire in the center of the sleek black band where the head piece met the brim. He finally turned the water off after Applejack – who also brought some treats as well as the picnic blanket – and Fluttershy had shown up.
The girls were making sure they had everything they needed when Matt came down the stairs. Spike had picked out some tan shorts and a blue-green button down shirt. He had his wallet and phone in his pockets as usual. There was a glimmer in his eyes Twilight hadn't seen in a while. They smiled at each other when they saw him.
"So, where to?"
"There's a nice open area a little north of Ponyville. It's got peace and quiet and a wonderful view. We'll have to sneak past a few homes but the residents should still be inside for a little while if they're not at work. It is around lunchtime but we'll still keep an eye out." Twilight said.
They were ready to go shortly after. A plan had been drawn up and everyone was ready. Rainbow Dash and Applejack stepped out first and looked around the roads. Clear. So far, so good. They waved the rest outside and Rainbow took to the air to get a better view of the area. Matt crouched out behind Pinkie and Twilight while Rarity and Fluttershy occupied the rear to keep watch behind them.
They sprinted to the northern side of the library and ducked Matt behind a bush. Twilight motioned to Pinkie to check in the house to their right. She zipped over and ducked under the largest window. She pulled her ears parallel to the ground and her eyes periscoped up. She turned her ears in the direction she wanted to look and somehow her eyes obeyed. Clear. Pinkie returned her eyes and ears to normal and went back to the group just as quick as she left, nodding towards the next checkpoint straight ahead to the north. Only one pair of houses side by side to go and they were set.
There was a fair sized tree next to the house on the right. They made a break for it and Matt dove behind. Fluttershy peeked inside the house. Looked empty. A cat suddenly jumped onto the windowsill and Fluttershy fell to the ground with a squeak. The others gasped and swung their heads around. They sighed with relief when they saw only the cat and glared at the easily frightened pegasus, who just smiled apologetically. Twilight looked up and Rainbow signaled that everything was quiet ahead.
They made a break for the clearing. Rainbow and Fluttershy flew behind Matt to use their bodies and wings to hide him as best they could. Rarity had trotted along at a regular pace the entire way so far since she didn't want to risk having her over-the-top chapeau fly off her head. Matt hadn't been much of an athlete and couldn't move as fast as the ponies, even at his top speed. He was a little embarrassed that he was slowing them down.
Twilight looked over at him, "You ready, Matt? This is probably going to be a little weird for you." He was, and not a minute too soon. They had only been sprinting for about fifteen seconds and he felt like his lungs were on fire. Twilight's horn glowed and the two of them popped away.
Matt and Twilight reappeared about fifty yards ahead. The sudden change of location made Matt trip on himself and he fell to the ground. "Well, that's new."
His head was spinning thanks to the jump and he was going to take a minute for himself whether anyone liked it or not. His purple friend giggled and asked if he was okay. He was alright, just a bit disoriented. As his vision straightened out, he saw that the houses were finally far enough away that they didn't need to hurry along anymore. The others caught up shortly after with Rarity bringing up the distant rear. Applejack and Rainbow Dash gave her an annoyed look when she arrived.
"What? I wasn't going to have this masterpiece turn into a disaster."
-----
It was about twenty minutes when they finally reached the spot. Twilight was right; it was gorgeous out. Clear blue skies, warm sun. Matt took his shoes and socks off and curled his toes. The grass even felt magnificent under his feet. He leaned his head back, closed his eyes and breathed deeply. Every sense he had reminded him what being alive was like and his tongue was going to be appreciative shortly as well.
Matt started setting up the blanket and laying out the food when there was a sudden brief pinch in his chest. He clutched at it and grunted through his teeth. In an instant, it was gone and, strangely, there was no lingering pain. It felt like an unspeakably painful bug bite when it happened but from inside his chest.
"Oh gosh, are you okay?" Fluttershy asked. The others saw what happened as well and expressed their concern.
He took a couple deep breaths and confusedly shook it off. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. That was weird. Probably just got a little too excited by all this," he joked. "But I'm okay, really. Feels fine."
-----
The picnic was turning into a great idea. After Matt's little scare, they had settled in and eaten the first of the courses they brought. Rainbow Dash and Applejack were getting competitive as they were wont to do. Pinkie was bouncing and rolling around in the grass giggling. Fluttershy, Rarity and Twilight were discussing some of the recent high class clientele that stopped into the Boutique the other day. Spike engorged himself on some gems Rarity had brought for him as a gift. Matt relaxed on the blanket staring at the sky after having dozed off for a little while. His hand had found his cell phone again and was playing with it on its own. Right now, things were perfect.
Matt started getting lost in the vast blue sea over their heads and the sounds of his friends. But then, he noticed a different sound in the distance. It was getting louder fast and appeared to be coming closer. It was coming from the sun's general direction and he squinted as he looked for what was causing the noise. Matt spotted the source of the sound and followed it along, despite his vision being affected by the brightness. It flew in front of the sun and a shadow went past the group before they took notice.
"Is that what I think it is?"