//------------------------------// // Of Friendship & Magic // Story: Age of Equestria // by EdofJville //------------------------------// "I'm Ethereal Divide. Sorry for running into you like that". Ethereal Divide looked back and forth between Twilight Sparkle's face and the ground at his hooves awkwardly. Though she seemed friendly enough, he couldn't help but feel a tad bit uncomfortable at her gaze and question. After all, he rarely conversed with other ponies and was accustomed to being alone. Socializing was definitely not a strong attribute of his. The lavender alicorn mare followed up on his response. "Yeah, about that, Ethereal Divide. Why were you in such a hurry anyway? I mean, I'm not one to pry, but it seemed to me that you were fleeing someone or something. Is everything okay?" She looked at him with a legitimate expression of interest and curiosity. He pondered for a moment over how he should explain things and if it was even necessary to do so. The longer he took to reply and remained silent, the more it seemed that Twilight Sparkle grew more intrigued and simultaneously impatient. "Well, you see, I was running away from the school after I was woken up by the school ponies. I fell asleep in the front lawn by the entrance steps last night. I'm.... not exactly from around here. I travel a lot by myself and... well... came across this town of yours. I couldn't exactly find a hotel or proper place to stay and I don't have any money on me, so I just ended up at the school. I meant no harm to anyone." She tilted her head and frowned upon hearing this. "So, you're passing through Ponyville and don't have a place to stay? When did you get here?" He rubbed his left front hoof with his right, fidgeting uncomfortably at her inquisitive nature. He tried his best to maintain eye contact with her as he explained himself. "I just arrived in town last night after going through the forest nearby. Its been a while since I've been in or near a city." Just then, his stomach growled loudly, much to his embarrassment. He hadn't eaten in over a day and it was starting to take a toll on him. Twilight smiled slightly at this. "I'm guessing you haven't eaten much lately as a result." She suddenly grew wide-eyed as something clicked in her mind. "Wait a minute. You traveled here through the Everfree Forest, all by yourself!?" "Uh... yes, assuming that's the name of that dark eerie forest I had to pass through in order to get here" he replied matter-of-factly. "What? Is that so unusual?" Now it was Twilight's turn to go quiet and process things. She looked at Ethereal incredulously, sizing him up before ultimately stopping her gaze at his quite blank posterior. Ethereal took note of this and winced slightly before instinctively covering his flank with his bushy chocolate brown tail. The brief, uncomfortable moment of silence was broken by the growl of his empty stomach rearing its head again. Twilight snapped out of it and regained her usual air of friendly openness. "Well, before we bumped into each other, I was on my way to the food market to buy groceries for myself and Spike. He's my number one assistant and a close friend. We live together in the same home. If you like, I can take you there so you can rest and gather yourself while I head to the market. Spike can whip up something for us when I get back. He's a pretty good cook. What do you say?" Ethereal was caught off guard at her genuine kind offer. Never before had anypony ever offered him a place to stay and a meal, at that, for free. Surely, there must be some sort of catch. Who is this mare? A kind-hearted alicorn who happens to live in a small town such as this who casually offers a stranger lodging and food without requiring any sort of payment or favor. This is new. He smiled and nodded. "I appreciate your generous hospitality, Miss Twilight. I'd like that. But, are you sure I won't be a burden or hindrance to you? I don't have any bits to my name right now, but I'm sure if I look around, I'll find some sort of employment with which I can earn some money to pay you for your efforts." Twilight shook her head. "Don't worry about that. There's honestly no need. I'm happy to help. Besides, its not often that we get visitors and new faces here. I'm sure my friends would be interested to meet you as well." "Your friends?", Ethereal inquired cautiously. "Yes! Come on, I'll show you to my house!" Twilight exclaimed cheerfully. She led him through the center of town several blocks over, trotting at a steady pace. As he followed close behind her, he watched the local ponies gallivanting all around them. Compared to his initial arrival yesterday evening, Ponyville was much more lively now during the middle of the day. Ponies of all ages passed by, mares and stallions alike, though it seemed there was a disproportionate amount of mares here compared to stallions, which he found quite curious. A red-maned mare was busy selling flowers to a line of ponies from her botanical stall, while a white unicorn mare with a blue spiky mane and tail wearing shades and listening to loud music on headphones obnoxiously cruised by, barely avoiding colliding with a klutzy looking mail mare with bubbles as a cutie mark as she flew through the crowds carrying a full bag of letters and packages. It felt strange to be among such a crowd of ponies like this. Months and years of near-constant solitude and endless travels through the wilds of Equestria fending for yourself will do that to you. Chancing upon civilization was an infrequent occurrence for him, and it never lasted for a long duration of time. He was still surprised at the kindness that this Twilight Sparkle showed him today. Wasn't she naive to trust him and bring him into her home? They only just met after all. This just wasn't the norm. He should be doing chores for her as payment, or perhaps finding an odd job on a temporary basis. He felt spoiled now and somewhat guilty. "You're awfully quiet back there" called Twilight from up front. "Not much of a talker huh?" She gave him a friendly smile and chuckled a bit. Ethereal shrugged. "I was just looking around. Its been a while since I was last in a city. Pony-watching, you could say." "I see. Well, we're almost there. Its straight ahead." She pointed at the towering tree castle at the edge of Ponyville. Even during the day, it still looked splendid. Wait, she lives there!? Ethereal's mind was blown. He continued to be surprised again and again by this mare. First, it was the fact that she was an alicorn. Then, her heart of gold. And now, this. An alicorn living in a regal home like this. He started to wonder if she was more important in stature than she cared to admit. She was the only one who lived in such a luxurious abode. The rest of the townsfolk all lived in standard houses with stone exteriors, plain windows, and thatched hay roofs. As the two of them reached the front steps and door of the castle, Twilight paused and glanced at Ethereal. "Welcome to my home! Well... my new home, that is. Please excuse the lack of furnishings and furniture inside. I just moved in recently and haven't had much time to establish myself yet. Its a big place, as you can clearly see." She flashed a nervous grin and then proceeded to push open the large front doors. They walked into a tall and wide hallway with crystal walls and a shimmering crystal ordained ceiling. The floors were a glossy crystal tiled mosaic, cold to the touch. It was indeed sparse on furnishings and decorations as Twilight had said, giving it a solemn and imposing atmosphere. It seemed the home of a powerful king, rather than the home of a friendly, cute pony and her humble assistant friend. Speaking of whom, the pattering of feet on the cold crystal floor could be heard echoing throughout the area as Twilight called out to her friend. "Spike! I'm back! And I've brought a guest too!" A little purple dragon with green scales and green eyes appeared before them from around a corner room. "Back already? Oh, a guest? Is it Rarity?" He stopped a few feet away from Twilight and Ethereal and looked up at them with a mix of confusion and disappointment. "Uhm... who's that guy?" He pointed a claw at Ethereal and looked at Twilight intently. Twilight smiled and motioned with her hoof at Ethereal. "This is Ethereal Divide. We met by accident... quite literally." She let out a dorky sounding laugh. "He's visiting Ponyville and kinda travels from town to town, but he doesn't have any place to stay and hasn't eaten in a long while. He's low on bits too, so I figured I'd offer him a room here for the duration of his stay." Spike raised an eyebrow. "So, he's a hobo." Twilight glared at him. "Spike! That's rude! He's not a hobo. The proper term is a nomad. But I suppose you could also call him a gypsy, or a wanderer, a loner... so many different names for it really..... but the point is he's an independent stallion who just needs a place to stay for a few days. This castle is huge and seeing as we just moved in, we can afford to spare a little space for our guest here." "Hmm yeah, you're right I guess" replied Spike. "Sorry, I was just kinda surprised. I thought you were done shopping and I'm hungry. Our pantry is looking pretty empty right now. I ate all of the jewels and nachos from the past week. And no offense to you, dude." He looked over at Ethereal. "Its just that Twilight and I have always lived alone together and we just moved into this crazy big tree castle after losing our old home. Its a lot of change to deal with plus sharing it with another pony now is something else to get used to." Ethereal glanced over at Twilight, then at Spike. "Yeah, I didn't really plan on this happening. It just sort of turned out this way. Twilight was so kind to allow me into her home and offer me both lodging and food when I have nothing to repay her with. But I promise I won't be a burden or get in anyone's way. I'm normally on my own, living off the land." Twilight flexed her wings and stretched a little. "Show Ethereal to his room, won't you Spike? I was thinking of the second room on the second floor, next to the future library and den room with the fireplace." "Sure thing!" Spike gave her a quick salute and motioned for Ethereal to follow him towards a long spiraling staircase. Meanwhile, Twilight started to head out toward the front doors. "I'm going to the market now, okay? I'll also go and fetch a bed for Ethereal so he can sleep well tonight. See you guys in a bit!" With that, she opened the doors and trotted off before taking off in flight toward town. Hours later, Ethereal lay in bed in his temporary suite, having eaten a delicious dinner prepared by Spike. Twilight was right. That little dragon could really cook. He may be a young kid, but in some areas, he seemed quite ahead of his years. It was easily the best meal he'd had in a long time. Flame-roasted corn-on-the-cob with a nice helping of glazed yams, apple sauce, and fresh daisy salad with walnuts. Truly a feast fit for royalty. However, after the dinner, Spike had insisted on following him up to his room where he proceeded to bombard him with lots of questions about his travels and lifestyle and any details he could squeeze out of him. It was like the little guy almost viewed him like some cool rebel who lived alone and fought creatures in epic battles for survival in the wilderness. Later on, he showed him some of his superhero comics, much to his delight and Ethereal's disdain. Something about Power Ponies and the Mane-iac. By that point, he was tired and ready to call it a day. And what a day it had been. He was finally alone in a nice new bed that Twilight had so generously bought for him. He'd finally managed to escape Spike's attention and gain privacy when Twilight literally yanked Spike away out of the room via magic levitation as he was asking Ethereal about his lack of a cutie mark. Thank Celestia for that. That would have been the last straw. He'd had enough of others focusing on his lack of a mark after the morning with the school fillies and colts and the awkward encounter with their teacher. He drifted to sleep quite peacefully under the warm covers with a full stomach. But, like clockwork, the usual dream haunted him again. Father reading the bedtime story. Falling asleep. Loud noises outside. Father returns and scoops him up. They bolt outside from their burning house, only for father and mother to be surrounded by the hooded figures. Run! You must run! Not wanting to leave them. But he must. Looking back. The hooded ponies attack them with those bizarre weapons as they slump over lifeless. Keep running. Must escape. The whole city is on fire. Commotion and struggles all around. Some of the bad guys see him. Surrounded. Cowering in fear and looking up at the moonlit sky. A face appears in the moon. Its like last time. Transparent. It calls out. Ethereal. Ethereal! Ethereal Divide! Its you, isn't it? The one who slipped through the cracks. You can't.... escape.... your past. Face it... confront it.... seek out.... your full potential. ETHEREAL DIVIDE!!! "WHAT!?" Ethereal was drenched in sweat as he jolted up in bed. Looking out the window of his second story bedroom, he saw it was morning outside. Birds chirped happily as the sun's rays shone light into the room and the charming visage of little Ponyville calmed his racing mind a bit upon viewing it in the distance. After getting up, he somehow managed to find the bathroom on the same floor through exploration of the castle and washed himself wide awake with a warm shower. Upon drying, he trotted down the staircase to the main hall on the ground floor and headed toward the source room of a multitude of voices. There were many, but he only recognized two of them; those of Twilight and Spike. As he ventured closer to what looked like a dining room area complete with a long table, he overheard the ongoing conversation. "So darling, we're all curious to know about the new arrival to town and current guest of yours. I hear he's a stallion. How coy of you Twilight. Is he cute?" "Hmph, he's just some random stallion dude. Nothing special. But I guess he's kinda cool. He lives in the wild but has no cutie mark. I even showed him my comics last night. I think he digs the Power Ponies and---" "Yeah yeah, we get it Spike. But even if he IS some loner surviving in the wilderness for all these years, he's no Daring Do, so I doubt he could be that cool." "I'm just so totally excited to meet somepony new! Cause like, that doesn't happen too often here! I gotta show him around Ponyville and throw him an awesome super special WELCOME TO PONYVILLE COOL VISITOR PARTY EXTRAVAGANZA!!! WOO-HOO!!!" "I reckon he'll pass on that fer' now sugarcube on the count of him being new to the area. He probably just wants to rest and relax for a while before moving on to his next destination. I figure we could at least stock him up with some juicy, healthy apples and some thirst quenching apple cider so he'll be prepped for the journey." "I can't believe he made it through the Everfree Forest all on his own. I still hesitate to go in there even when I visit Zecora for some tea and herbal remedies for Angel and my other little buddies. Its startling...." "Honestly girls, he's just some ordinary looking stallion. I'll admit, he is odd in that he doesn't have a cutie mark as a full grown adult, but other than that, he's just down on his luck and wandering around Equestria without a true home. I find that sad. The poor guy probably doesn't have friends either." "Uh, hello?" Ethereal Divide slowly peered his head into the dining room. Sitting in front of him at the long rectangular table were Twilight Sparkle and Spike, along with five ponies that he didn't know, all mares. There was an elegant looking white unicorn with a dark purple-ish and blue mane and tail that were clearly well-kept. Next to her was a cyan colored pegasus with a full-on rainbow spectrum going on in her mane and tail. To the right of her was a cream colored pegasus with a pink, silky mane and tail. Next to Twilight on her left was an orange earth pony wearing a stetson hat and bearing an obnoxiously obvious apple-centric cutie mark. And lastly, to the right of Spike sat a bright pink earth pony with a cotton candy-like mane and tail with balloons as a cutie mark. They were all gathered around at the table, having evidently just finished breakfast. Now, all eyes were glued on him. This made Ethereal fairly uncomfortable. It only got more uncomfortable from there as the pink mare jumped out of her chair and popped up right in front of him. "Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie! You must be the new stallion in town! Welcome to Ponyville! What's your name? OH WAIT-- I already know! Silly me." She giggled a bit before continuing. "You're mister Ethereal Divide!" She then proceeded to hyper-actively shake his hoof in greeting. The rainbow pegasus dashed in front of them and nudged Pinkie Pie to the side. "Give him some space, Pinkie!" She looked at Ethereal, sizing him up from hooves to horn. "Hmm.... you don't look that tough. Do you really live alone and wander all over Equestria? Have you fought bears and timberwolves? I bet you can't benchpress a dozen apple crates like Applejack or Big Mac. Definitely not a true survivalist and adventurer like Daring Do either. Meh, I'll give you a 5 out of 10." The white unicorn chimed in as she trotted over. "Oh Rainbow Dash, perhaps on your scale of awesomeness, he's only a 5, but as far as I'm concerned, he's a definite 10 out of 10 on my handsome scale." She fluttered her eyes at him which made Ethereal step back a bit. For some reason, this compliment served to annoy Spike, who turned away and crossed his arms with a gruff grunt. Twilight got up from her chair and inserted herself into the middle of her friends, as they moved away a bit. "Meet my best friends, Ethereal! Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Applejack. Hopefully, they didn't overwhelm you... too much." She smiled with a twinge of uncertainty. "Oh also, I should have probably mentioned this earlier, but I kinda, sorta, became a princess recently. That's why I'm an alicorn. I used to be a unicorn. Princess Celestia sent me to Ponyville to study friendship and I met all of these amazing girls right here. Other stuff happened too, but its a long story. I'll tell you later if you're interested. But yeah, I'm Equestria's newest princess, the Princess of Friendship, Twilight Sparkle." Once again, she flashed that trademark smile of hers. What have I gotten myself into?, Ethereal wondered. I went from being alone to being overcrowded by ponies in just a day! This was strange. He didn't know what to feel or think. For the first time in his life, he was absolutely lost and clueless as to his next move going forward. How long should he stay here? Should he keep wandering like he has been for all these years? Or is it worth the try to get to know these ponies and start a new course? He honestly didn't know. That made him feel vulnerable. And feeling vulnerable brought back a feeling he hadn't truly felt in many, many years: Fear.