//------------------------------// // Anxiety and Draconiquis and Döppelgangers, Oh My! // Story: Fallen Kings and Crystal Hearts // by TheGreatPandaKing //------------------------------// Kaleb slowly followed Click and Ditsy as they trotted away from the station of ponyville. The sun was high in the Equestrian sky and, though Ponyville was still small, it was bustling with it’s residents in the morning rush. Kaleb tried keeping his eyes low to the ground, refusing to make eye contact with the ponies around him. His mind was starting to spin as his heart picked up its pace. He never liked being around groups of people, that’s what made school torture for him. He’d come to terms with the fact that this world is ruled by multicolored, sentient ponies, he even was fine with the fact he was one now, what made this bad was that he was moving through a crowd of sentient beings; beings that would judge him. Sure, Kaleb knew no one payed attention to him, for the most part, but there was still that little part of him that scrutinized everything he did. He didn't want to offend anyone, so he always tried to be liked if he had to be in social situations, always second guessing himself and berating himself. It made him fear and dread being in groups. While he wasn't paying attention to where he was going, he failed to notice that Click and Ditsy had turned a corner. He soon bumped into a little purple dragon, accidently knocking him down. "Spike!" Came a worried voice in the distance. "Oh, s-sorry..." Kaleb meekly murmured as the drake started getting up. Kaleb slowly backed up a few steps before he bumped into another pony. "What's your problem?!" Hollered the cyan pegasus. Kaleb began running from the fuming pegasus and apologizing over and over. He kept his head down trying to ignore the inquiring eyes falling onto him, causing him to slip in a fresh patch of mud. A white unicorn shrieked as the soaked soil splattered onto her and the dress she happened to be wearing. "Look what you've done to my ensemble! How could you?!" Kaleb couldn't run anymore, a crowd was gathered and all looking at him. His vision blurred before he cowered on the ground his wings instinctively shielding him as he cried into his forelegs. He tried to calm himself down but that small part of him began getting louder and louder with each muffled murmur. 'Good going, not here even a day and you end up ruining everyone’s day.' the voice seethed, “Maybe you can get lucky and slink away like the sorry excuse you are.' Tears streamed down his face as his mind kept it’s mental assault him. The only thing ponies could hear, barely, was “sorry” over and over again. The crowd kept getting bigger and his eyes shut themselves tighter while his wings on reflex tightened its wall of feathers to shield him from the glares and the stares. A certain yellow pegasus watched him with a soft, knowing glance and her heart wept for him. After a moment, her gaze hardened and an uncharacteristic growl came from her throat. "Alright everypony, that's enough!" she erupted, "You should all be ashamed of yourselves! Twilight, help me take him somewhere quiet." The purple winged unicorn looked at the pony shocked before she quickly snapped out of it. "R-right." With a flash from Twilight's horn, the three were gone. Spike, the dragon, brushed some dust off him and looked around and shrugged before going to the white pony, mentioned helping her clean her dress and walked off. The rest of the crowd, with various degrees of shame carried on with their business. After a while, Kaleb, regained his faculties and his primaries allowed him to peek out and see, what looked like, the inside of a cottage. The warm, inviting atmosphere caused his wings to slowly relax to his sides once again. He looked around in wonder at all the creatures he could see: birds, squirrels, mice, a couple snakes, a rabbit seeming to have an argument with a serpentine quasi dragon with other animal parts...okay that was, what's the word, different? Yes, different was definitely the word to use. He blinked and rubbed his eyes...yep the thing was definitely real. The rabbit eventually took out a few gold coins and angrily threw them the the ground before hopping off. The creature chuckled as the pieces jumped into his waiting paw giving a bark. He dropped the coins into a bag giving off a long falling whistle before giving a distant splash. Kaleb quirked an eyebrow as he watched the antics, never noticing the two ponies approaching him. "Are you feeling any better?" came a soft, kind voice. Kaleb's eyes snapped to the female voice addressing him and saw a yellow mare. his wings snapped open in surprise before one hid his face. "I-I'm sorry!" he squeaked causing the yellow mare to giggle, the giggle caused him to peek between his primaries and his face heated up. "There's no reason to apologize." she stated. Kaleb waited for a while as he looked over the pegasus before him. She had soft curves to her and soft facial features, great, a woman-er mare, just his luck, he was never the best at making conversations with women back where he came from, well, usually anyway. He got along with Tia because he got along with Luna. He got along with Luna because the two of them were practically outcasts, especially in college. "Are you okay?" asked the sweet voice again, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Don't be afraid, we're away from the crowds." Kaleb's wing lowered a little at that. "It's okay, you don't have to say anything." At that Kaleb's wing fully lowered and both wings were, once again, at his sides. Silence, once more reigned, though this one was admittedly a bit more comfortable. The yellow mare smiled even though he could tell part of her was a bit nervous. His tension lessened considerably at the possibility that he was in the company of a kindred spirit. After a little while another pony came in, a purple winged unicorn causing Kaleb to jump a bit and push slightly into the couch he was on. "I'm sorry, Fluttershy, it's been a while since I made tea. Spike usually kicks me out of the kitchen saying it's 'his territory' and that he 'doesn't want me burning down the crystal kitchen...again.'" That last line made Kaleb smile a bit for a fraction of a second. "Hey, it's nice to see you smile a bit." the purple one, Twilight, said. "I'm so sorry that I caused you to have an anxiety attack like that." Kaleb blinked a couple times at that before the yellow one, apparently Fluttershy, cut in. "I'm sorry, I saw how you were and I didn't step in sooner." Fluttershy squeaked, her ears slaying a bit. Kaleb frowned a bit before giving a sad smile. "I-it's not your fault," he says, "I'always like that. I always mess up in some way or another. I'm not really good in crowds." The three sat there for a while before another voice sounded, this one a bit familiar. "Oh, come on, this is hardly the time for an awkward pause, leave that for later." the creature from before said breaking the tension. "Professor Discord? Is that really you, Dizzy?" Kaleb asked wide-eyed. "How did you get here. "Do you know him Discord?" asked Twilight "Nope." he said simply with a shrug, "Must know my doppelgänger." "Oh, come on Discord, Neighry Curie, proved the scientific impossibility of different universes!" "Oh, right, I'm sure she would know more about dimensions than the Lord of Chaos." He says with sunglasses randomly coming down from nowhere to rest on his snout, covering his eyes. Twilight's eye twitched in irritation before she thew her hooves in the air and huffed. "'Di Doppelgänger! du bleicher Geselle!/ Was äffst du nach mein Liebesled,/Das mich gequält auf dieser Stelle,/So manche Nacht, in alter Zeit?'" Kaleb quoted absentmindedly causing Twilight to twitch a bit. "What was that?" asked Fluttershy. "Oh, sorry, that's a little bit or a German verse. Roughly, it translates to: 'O you Doppelgänger! you pale comrade!/Why do you ape the pain of my love/which tormented me upon this spot/So many a night, so long ago?' It was written by Franz Schubert." Once more Twilight's eye twitched. "No, it was written by Furz Bleetbert! He was a Baaman composer." "What's 'Baaman?'" Kaleb asked, tilting his head. Discord laughed and started eating some un-popped popcorn. The three ponies looked at him with raised eyebrows before he motioned for them to continue. Kaleb repeated his question and before Twilight could answer, Fluttershy spoke. "Oh, that's the language of the sheep in Goatmany." Twilight looked at her a little shocked and she gave a shy smile. Kaleb just grew more confused. "Sorry, but that was German. the language spoken by the people in Germany." "Germany?" "People?" Kaleb raised an eyebrow. "You know, humans in Europe?" The ponies looked at each other for a brief moment. "How do you know about humans?" asked Twilight. "What do you mean?" "Apparently, 'hyooman's is the race that exist in the world Twilight visited." Fluttershy commented. Discord laughed as Kaleb's eyes grew. "You know how I can get back?!" he shouted, causing the two to yelp.