I looked around, and saw that I was once again in this nightmare. I heard the cackle of the creature that had deigned to torment me, and I huffed. “Reveal yourself, demon. I know that you’re there.”
The cackling intensified as it came down from the dark clouds above. Once more, it had the gall to take upon itself the form of Harold, as it started mocking me. “Well, well, well. What’s this? You met Ferris again? And, not only that… you’re trying to let go of what he did to you? To US?” He let out a guffaw. “Oh, that is just too rich! You and I both know that people can’t change. You’ll see. He’ll turn on you again, just you wait.”
I clenched my fist, and I tried to calm myself. I couldn’t let this psycho get to me. He might claim that he was some part of me, but I didn’t buy it. I took a deep breath as I confronted him. “You might be right, but you might be wrong. I’m not like I used to be. I have more strength than I used to. I will not listen to you any longer. Get out.”
The creature recoiled in shock. “What’s this? You’ve been back on it, haven’t you? Those scriptures of yours…” He scowled. “No matter. You’ll be mine, eventually. You’ll slip back. You always do. I’ll be waiting for you… Partner.” The figure then dissolved into the shadows.
I woke with a start. I took a breath as I reached for my backpack and took out my scriptures. I knew that I’d need them. I opened to the last place I left off, and began to read. I was somewhat absorbed in it for a while, but after I felt that I’d read a sufficient amount for the day, I bookmarked my place and put it back in my backpack. I gave a quick prayer of thanks for such an opportunity, and then went over to my wardrobe. I gave a quick once-over of what was in there before taking out the white t-shirt and midnight blue with white trim shorts, as well as my socks and shoes before going outside.
I found my way over to the house as the sun started to come up. I quirked an eyebrow. I hardly ever woke before dawn. I gave a sigh, shaking my head. Guess that nightmare really rattled me. I went inside the house and grasped the stair’s balcony to ensure I wouldn’t fall as I went up. I found my way to the bathroom in the dark, and gave a knock on the door just in case. When nobody responded, I decided to go on in. I found that there really was nobody in there- a relief, considering past experience. Shaking the thought away, I locked the door as I got ready for my shower. I climbed in and got to it. I let my mind wander. Just how long would these nightmares follow me? Or worse, would they ever go away at all? I tried to assure myself that someday it would all be behind me. I would certainly have to work at it to really make it happen, but it would be worth it if the nightmares stopped.
After I reached that conclusion, I turned off the shower and got out to dry off with a towel. I certainly felt better than I had in days past. There were a myriad of factors, of course. I considered each one as I put on the clothes that I had chosen to wear that day. The biggest one was meeting and getting to know Ophi. If I hadn’t sat next to her without thinking that day and still wound up here… I’d probably be in a much different state of mind. Another reason was my recent decision to at least try to forgive Ferris. Sure, I was still working on that, but it certainly made me feel better. Maybe once we got back home, I might try and find all the old friends I had, and try and at least forgive them. Certainly would be a weight off of my shoulders, that’s for sure. The last one was me finally accepting the positive feedback about my art, even starting to see it for myself. I’d never really had too much positive influence about that before, so hearing it was rather alien at first. That reminded me, I had promised to draw something for Ophi. I exited the bathroom once fully dressed, and made sure to unlock the door. I went downstairs and made a bit of breakfast for myself. I gave a quick blessing prayer in my head, and made sure not to wolf it down.
As I was finishing up, Applejack approached me with a calm smile. “Ya ready to work again today, pardner?”
I finished eating, and gave a nod as I stood. “Ready. Let’s be off, then.”
The two of us left the house, and Applejack went to grab the cart. I went with, and saw that there was nobody to help with the harness. I gave a deep sigh. I stooped down, and grabbed it. “Let me do that.” I fastened it carefully, so as to not cause any undue discomfort. I stepped back once finished. “How’s that?”
She tested the fit of it a bit, and gave a big smile. “Woah! Now that’s what I call a good fit!? She tilted her head, a question forming on her face. “How d’ya know how to do that so well?”
I gave a shrug. “Clasps like that are pretty common back home. Knowing how to make ‘em not snag is something pretty much everybody learns pretty quickly.” I jabbed a thumb in the direction of the market. “You ready to tackle the day?” She gave a firm nod, and the two of us walked off. I made sure to keep pace with her, so that we could reach there about the same time. I took the opportunity to think. Who would we meet at Manehattan later today? For, I was convinced that we would find somebody there- the chances of one of the portals spitting out nobody were astronomically low. After all, so far both of them had only resulted in two people each- and there were billions of people around the world. It was highly likely that at least there was somebody at each one. Despite that, I doubted that the one we would go to had the person I most wanted to find again.
I shook myself out of my thoughts as we reached the spot that we had put aside. We set up, and I saw that there were a few things there that weren’t there before. Apple juices of varying kinds, a variety of apple pies, and some other apple snacks. I smirked. “Taking my advice are you? I’m flattered, really.”
Applejack pawed a hoof at the ground. “Well, our sales have been keepin’ us in th’ black lately, so Granny agreed to let us try out yer suggestion. It took a bit o’ convincin’ though.”
Before I could respond, I spotted a customer. It was one of the many ponies from the party- a pinkish purple Earth mare with a mark of a strawberry near a bunch of grapes. I smiled cordially. “Hello, miss. Would you like one of our delectable apples today? We’re running a special promotion for some new products. If you buy an apple, we’ll give you a sample of some of our new apple juice, free of charge! What do you say?”
Applejack looked towards me in shock, and was about to lambast me. But to her surprise, the mare smiled. “Oh wow! I’ve been wondering when you guys would expand beyond apples and apple slices! I’ll be having a Fuji with a sample of red delicious apple juice!”
She placed the necessary bits on the counter, and I grinned. “Good choice, miss! I’ll be getting those for you.” I grabbed the Fuji apple she wanted, and placed it in a paper bag. I bent my knees slightly to more easily reach the apple juice. I poured her a relatively small cup- but not as small as the sample cups at Costco or Sam’s Club. I stood up and handed her the drink first.
She took a sip, and beamed. “This is the best apple juice I’ve tasted! I just have to tell everypony!” I made sure that she didn’t forget her Fuji apple as she left.
I turned towards Applejack, who was still processing what had just happened. I grinned. “So? Am I good or what?”
Applejack huffed, and shook her head. “Ah don’t know wut ya wer thinkin’! This won’t-”
Just then, a massive crowd swarmed us. I oozed with confidence. “Results. You just have to remember to hook one with the promotion, and in a small town like this… news travels fast.”
Applejack looked upon the crowd, and sighed. “Well, wutever works, Ah s’pose.”She let a small smile show. “This might be our best sales season yet…”
The rest of my shift flew by as we promoted the juice, pie slices, and other snacks. It wasn’t long until we were cleaned out- and I addressed the crowd. “Well, we weren’t quite expecting a crowd like this, so we’ve run out for the day. But don’t worry! We’ll be back tomorrow with a lot more! We’ll still be running the promotion for those that didn’t get a chance to have any of our new product, but for everyone else we will be stocking separate glasses and slices for sale. Have a good day, everyone!” They left camly, even if slightly disappointed. I sat down with a sigh. “Oof. That was… interesting. Almost like the Christmas rush after Thanksgiving.”
Applejack looked to me with an apologetic look. “Nathan, Ah’m sorry that Ah doubted yer methods. Ah guess that Ah was bein’ a bit stubborn, an’-”
I cut her off with a wave of my hand. “Water under the bridge. Consider yourself forgiven.” I stood up, and helped fasten the harness again. I then recalled what it was I had intended to do today. I spoke. “Could you let the townsponies know that I wish to address them about something?”
Following what it was I was talking about, she gave a nod. After I finished with the harness I then started to walk back to the farm. “I’ve got to be getting ready to ride the train to Manehattan. See you later.” I made my way back to the barn, and went inside. I pulled out the small notepad from the bottom drawer of my wardrobe, and placed it into one of my pockets. I was glad that I left it with the pencil that I’d used, because I’d be needing it later.
I then left the barn, just to be taken aside by Applejack. She held out a bag of bits. “Yer pay for yesterday and today. Ya’ve been a real help t’ us so…”
I opened the bag, and counted the coins carefully. I looked at her with genuine surprise. “40 bits and 60 jangles? Somewhat more than I was expecting, but I think I get it. I’ll be helping you for some time yet, at least until I go back home. I hope that you’ll keep all my advice in mind when I leave.”
Applejack nodded. “Ah’ll do mah best.” She smiled. “Now let’s be off, you have a speech t’ give.”
I took a deep breath and made my way to Town Hall. I hadn’t been there before, so it was somewhat intimidating. I made my way to the stage, and all the ponies had their attention on me. I took a breath, and calmed myself. I took another look at the crowd, and spotted Ophi. It was good that she was here, it helped to keep me from panicking. I started to speak. “Many of you know me. In fact, you’ve probably seen me at the party that welcomed Ophi and myself here. But I’m here today to address a grievous error. When the two of us fell from the sky, it didn’t take all that long for you to welcome us in, despite not knowing much about us. Yet, there is somebody out in the Everfree that is more like you that you have refused to allow in. I am of course speaking of Zecora.” At their hushed whispers, I held up a hand and they all quieted. “You may ask why I bring her up. I do so because I likely would’ve wound up lost in the Everfree without her help. She isn’t like the rumors paint her, I’m sure- all you need do is give her a chance.” I then gained a small grin. “After all, it’s not like she’s as dangerous as a dragon.”
The ponies looked between themselves, unsure of what to say. It was then that I stepped down from the stage, and let Twilight and her friends sort this out. I was stopped by Ophi. “You aren’t going to see how it works out?”
I took in her outfit for a moment. Soft green blouse, a knee-length pink skirt, and those purple socks and white heels. I hadn’t seen it very well from onstage, but… she looked good, as always. I calmed myself as I gave a shrug to her question. “I did what I could. It’s up to them now. Let’s be off to the train station, shall we?”
Ophi paused as she looked back at the ponies. She saw that they had the situation well under control, so she turned back towards me with a nod. “Alright then. Let’s go.”
We made our exit, and walked for a while in silence. I was trying to keep my thoughts away from my feelings for her, trying to focus on the task at hand. I hadn’t considered beforehand how tough it would be when I started talking to her that day… But I didn’t regret it one bit. I turned to her, and smiled as I broke the silence. “So how are things with you today?”
She gave a soft chuckle. “A bit hectic. Rarity’s actually getting more business, now that I’ve been helping her. Apparently, the opinion of one human on the quality of her clothes is weighted quite highly…”
I snickered. “Well, we are basically celebrities here. It kind of makes sense that they would have our opinions high in mind, seeing as we are the first humans to be met by the pony populace.”
She nodded, a grin on her face. “Maybe that’s partly why you’ve gotten the Apples to change their business practices. Don’t think that I don’t know how well they’ve been doing since you started working for them. It’s part of why I started helping Rarity in her shop, after all.”
She had been inspired by me? I looked away as a blush formed on my face. To have the girl I liked take a page out of my book… there really wasn’t any feeling that was quite like it. I reigned in my feelings once more, and turned back to face her. “I’m flattered, really. To have somebody follow my example… it’s really something else.”
Ophi made a dismissive gesture. “Well, it’s really what we should be doing here anyway. Beats sitting around twiddling our thumbs!”
I gave a chuckle, and we soon reached the train station. I saw that Ferris was there, lying against the ticket booth. “Hey you two. I thought that I’d stop by to wish you the best of luck.”
I gave an exhausted sigh. Of course. Murphy’s Law. I pushed away that thought, and reigned in my automatic anger. “Thank you, Ferris. It’s… appreciated.”
Ophi was more genuine however. “It’s nice that you did that!” She looked around, and was about to ask something, but then gently slapped her forehead. “That’s right, Miara’s busy back at Rarity’s. Of course she couldn’t come to see us off.”
I smiled, but caught myself quickly. I pushed the thought of how cute that was deep down. I approached the ticket counter, and addressed Ferris. “Do you mind? I’m here to buy the tickets.”
He took the hint, and walked off. Ophi caught up to me as I rang the bell on the counter. The stallion at the counter woke up suddenly, and gasped. “Oh! Sorry for dozing off there.” He gave a smile. “So, where are our resident humans hoping to go today?”
I lowered myself to make eye-contact. I gave my kindest tone. “Manehattan. How much for two round-trip tickets?”
Surprise lit upon his sandy brown face. “Uh…” He shook himself out of it as he turned to council with his chart. He subconsciously twirled his light yellow mane with his left forehoof before turning back to face us. He cleared his throat as he lowered his hoof. “20 bits.”
I pulled out my coin bag from my pocket, and counted out 20 bits. “There you go. 20 bits.”
He gave a nod, and took the bits and placed them in the register. He printed off the tickets and gave them to us. “Thank you for your purchase! Have a good trip!”
We backed away, and went over to the train. The conductor took our tickets, and gave them both a stamp. He nodded, and addressed us. “Welcome aboard the Friendship Express.”
I rolled my eyes as we went aboard the train and found some seats. We sat down, and I gave a sigh. “Now, we wait.” The train started to move after the doors closed, and I pulled out my notepad and pencil and sat up. “So! What would you like me to draw for you? I did promise that I would, after all.”
Ophi took a moment to think about it, and then gave a nod as she reached a decision. She then told me what it was. “How about… you draw your favorite place from back home. Can you remember what it looks like?”
I grinned as I made ready to draw. “You’re on!” I twirled my pencil and let my hand guide me as I remembered the place that I had in mind. My strokes were quick and sure as I went on, focusing in on the paper. For the first time in a long time confidence oozed from my art as I let myself go. I could see now more clearly why my art teacher and Ophi thought I was good. It all made sense now. I finished, and gave a nod. A perfect replica of the church that was near my house. I flipped it around, and showed it to her. “Well? What do you think?”
Ophi held it close, and looked over it. She smiled. “Like always, you never miss a detail. From the bushes out front, to the exact layout of the parking lot… you certainly do remember what the Stake Center looks like.” She paused as she considered. She looked up. “Wait. This… is the church that my family and I went to. How...?”
I cleared my throat as I took the notepad back. “Well, we did go to the same ward… you just never noticed me.”
Ophi thought about that for a moment. It dawned on her. “You mean to say that… we’ve been that close to each other, but we never crossed paths before last Friday?”
I shook my head, and looked away. “From your perspective, maybe. I’d… seen you before then, though. Always attent to detail, me. I never forget a face. That’s part of how I knew who you were when I sat down near you that day. Though, I wasn’t lying about meeting your younger brother.”
Ophi smiled gently. “I see. But… why not talk to me before? What was holding you back?”
I shook my head. “I…” I took a breath. This wasn’t good. I didn’t know how to broach that. I decided to give a non-answer. “I’ll tell you some other time. It’s… complicated.” She looked away, and sighed. I knew why, but… I wasn’t ready to tell her just yet. I instead brought up something else. “So tell me. How did you and your friends drift apart? I’d very much like to know.”
A bit startled, Ophi took a bit of time to gather her thoughts. She then proceeded to tell me. “I didn’t have as many friends as you, mind. But I had a close-knit circle that I thought would be with me forever. But some like Rena and Patricia left without saying goodbye, some like Lyla and Veronica said that it just wasn’t working anymore… and then there’s my previous best friend, Amanda. I don’t know why, but one day… she just started treating me like trash. I tried talking to her, trying to understand. But she never explained.”
I took that all in. She’d suffered less than I had, or at least that was what it seemed like before. But now, I understood her a bit better. She had much closer friends that I did, so it probably stung just about as much as my myriad of friends turning on me in a single day. I sighed. “Quantity and quality. That’s the difference between the friends we had. I had more, but my friendship wasn’t as deep with them. You had less, but yours were more meaningful. Maybe that’s why we sync so well. We may have a lot in common, but we have our differences too.”
I gave a smile. “I do hope that you manage to find some of your old friends here as you hope to do. Even if it’s just one… hope that it’s a good one. One that you can reconnect with easily.”
Ophi turned towards the window and looked out on the countryside, a small smile on her face. “Thanks, Nate. It means a lot.”
I spotted something different about her for a split second. Could it be? Was that… a blush I saw upon her face? But just as I blinked, it was gone. Had I imagined that out of some desperation that she felt the same way about me as I did about her? Or had that really just happened? I decided that it was of no use to think about it too much, and filed that observation away for later reflection. The rest of the train ride, we made some idle chatter after she turned back to face me. I strayed away from asking about what I thought that I had seen, and I could tell that she was straying away from asking me to tell her the answer to the one question that I had not answered. There was… a strange tension in the air between the two of us as the train ride went on. We both were keeping something from the other, something that I knew was bound to happen eventually. I just hoped that it wouldn’t tear our friendship apart, like I had seen happen so many times before.
It wasn’t much longer before the train was pulling into the station for Manehattan. The conductor called out over the PA system. “Next stop, Manehattan. Please ensure that you have all your belongings with you before you exit the train.”
The train slowed down, and the two of us stood, making sure to follow the conductor’s instructions. The doors opened, and Ophi and myself exited onto the platform. We were swarmed by ponies, all buzzing with energy.
“It’s the humans that fell into Ponyville!
“Oh my word, it’s actually them!”
“Sign my forehead please!”
Through the chaos, a pony parted the way to make it to us. The crowd quieted down, and I asked the question in my mind. “So you’re the mayor? We’ve come to investigate the sky hole that was spotted near here.”
The mayor turned. “Come with me.”
We obliged, and followed her.