//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Magical Crash // Story: How I ended up living with six pony girls? // by DanishDash //------------------------------// It was a dark grey Monday morning, I awoke hearing the light rain hit the windows of my bedroom. Days like this always made me want to sleep an extra hour or two, I loved the rain, it was so relaxing, but, I didn't have the time. I had promised my friend Micheal to help him in town today, so he would probably come and pick me up in his van. I stretched in my massive bed, big enough for a small group of people I wagered. I know, I am a bit of a luxury animal, but that is only when it comes to my showers and beds, a guy needs to treat himself once in a while, right? Yawning a bit, I took a moment to simply lay there, looking up at the ceiling, listening to the raindrops hitting the window. It always took me about five minutes to appreciate the softness and smoothness of my bed while slowly making myself get up. You know when you are in a routine? Going to bed the same time as the day before, and get up at the same time like yesterday morning, you start to know when to sleep and when to wake. So like every morning, I woke up about five minutes before my alarm would, and then, just like clockwork, five minutes later my alarm went off. I smiled to myself, rubbed my eyes. "Like always.." I mumbled and got up, turned to the small table beside my bed, and hit the off button. I stretched again before starting on my morning routine, got up, made my bed, then walked to the door leading to a small bathroom. Yeah, nothing really to exciting, I brushed my teeth, took a nice warm shower before putting on a set of clothes. Something that could handle being worked in, some work pants and one of my old shirts. I had no one to greet me as I came down to eat breakfast, and yet, I always came down and said. "Good morning." To the house I guess, or the many pictures of my family hanging on the walls or on the tables scattered around the big farm house. I won't lie, it could get pretty lonely living here by myself. There was a lot of space to be sure, the house itself is a two story wooden/brick house. Lots of unused rooms, lots of land, a great place for work, and to start a family. Now it's not that this used to be a huge farm or anything, it was a modest but successful one when my grandfather was alive. Some corn fields when he was young, but then later in life it became a normal grass field, tending to it so animals had a place to eat. So yea, for a single guy it is pretty big, and it's a lot of work to take care of it all. Most of the rooms are not even in use, and is mostly packed up with boxes and all sorts of things. I didn't mind, I liked working on the house, making it better little by little. Of course there were things I could not do, like handle the electricity, and plumbing, or other such details. Thankfully I live in a small town, a sort of place where everybody knows everybody. Micheal and some of our buddies have come around to help me, and we made it into an event. barbecuing, them taking some of their girlfriends with them, one even had their toddler with them the last time they were here. Time sure flies, but I guess if you have the same routine day in and day out, the days simply becomes a blur. Making my way into the open kitchen area, that was open into the large living room, I turned on the TV and started my coffee maker. There was nothing exciting on, some morning cartoon. I know it is kind of childish, but hey, more power to us that can still find joy in these things. Besides, I did not really watch it, I just liked having some background noise while I made my breakfast. Breakfast consisted of a mug of black coffee, some toast and oatmeal, and of course some fruit. I sat at the small dining table, not wanting to use the big table in the dining room as I pretty much only used that for when I had a lot of people over. From here I could watch the TV, and pay semi attention to it while I ate. On the screen was bright colored ponies, talking about some race or something. I knew the show by name, My Little Pony, and a few character names. Though I did not really know much beyond that, I was more of a Spectacular Spider-Man fan, or anime. Though I had seen some episodes of this show when I came across it. It had a pretty decent fan base as I understood it, and some pretty good characters. Again, my knowledge of the show was limited, but I did know a few things, mostly the names of the characters, and some general information, like their personality traits and a few other things. While I was always entertained whenever I happened to watch an episode, I never really got into it. Not that it was bad, but you know, I didn't really have a need to see the newest episode or find out every single thing about it. I guess that was pretty normal for a young man. At any rate, I finished up my breakfast and started to clean up. Then I proceeded to pack myself a lunch and filled a canteen up with some hot coffee. It was about that time I saw Micheal driving up the dirt road and up towards my house. Finishing up my lunch for later, I turned off the TV and went out to the entry hall to get my jacket and backpack. I had barely gotten my shoes on when I heard him honk his horn from outside. Smirking, I opened the door and called to him. "I'm coming, I'm coming, relax!" The door got locked, and soon enough I sat in Micheal's white van and drove towards town. Micheal yawned, looking tired as usual, despite knowing he had to get up early in the morning for work. Even so, it was not that early today, which suggested he had been out playing darts with the lads again. Thankfully he was the kind of guy who always showed up for work and honored his responsibilities. "So, I tried texting you yesterday, but you didn't pick up. Me and the other guys were going out to get drinks." Micheal said and glanced at me. He meant well, he always did, Micheal was under the impression I needed to get out more and perhaps meet someone. If it was any other of our friends I would probably be annoyed by the constant attempts, but Micheal had a way of nudging a person, instead of simply pushing and pressuring you to come and hang out. "Sorry, I was working late, my phone was upstairs, so that's why I didn't hear you." It was the truth, but even if I had seen the text I had probably declined. Not because I didn't want to hang out, I was simply not in the mood lately. Micheal could see it too, and so was quick to change the subject. He was not offended or anything, he simply moved on with a silent promise to try again another time. "Ah, well, that happens. Well, hopefully this job shouldn't be too difficult and we won't have to work to late. Just old Marie that needs the entire shop rearranged." Micheal was the local handyman, I helped him whenever he could use an extra hand, this was one of those jobs. Old Marie owned one of the local shops, and apparently she had gotten it into her head to move everything around. Honestly, I didn't get why she didn't have us repaint the store while we were at it, the place sure could use it, but I guess she wanted to keep it as her husband had left it to her. I could understand that. Me and Micheal kept talking as he drove us into town. As I said before, it was small, so we all knew each other, which meant we had to wave and smile at every single person we passed. Not that I minded, it was nice feeling part of the community, even if I had become known as a bit of a hermit. The farm was about 6 kilometers from town, and it was pretty secluded thanks to the small forest areas that surrounded the farm lands. I didn't have neighbors way out there, not that I would have minded some, but again, it was nice and peaceful out there, so it had it's benefits being away from everything. Oh, and as a side note, getting internet way out there is a bitch. We arrived at Marie's textile shop soon enough, already in front of the door stood Marie, greeting us with her usual warm smile. "Well good morning, don't you two look sharp and well rested." She teased as she opened up the shop and let us in. "And nice to see you out of your hut, Daniel." I let out a chuckle. "Thanks, I needed to run for supplies, and Micheal offered to give me a lift." "I don't doubt it." Marie chuckled. "Do you want some fabrics to take home with you?" She always asked me that, I was pretty sure she just wanted another customer. The local legend said that if you ever had any fabric in your home that came from her shop, then you would be a customer for life. "No thanks, I wouldn't know what to do with it, I don't sew or anything." I said with a polite smile. "Well I teach a night class too, if you want to learn." Old witch, sneaky as always, she knew how to make money alright. How many people in this town had been spell bound by her nice lady act? I had to remain firm if this dragon wasn't going to get a hold of my wallet! "No, it's okay. Maybe when I get older." Yea, way older. Marie was not a nasty person at all, in fact, she had probably babysat every kid in this town, and their kids, and their grand kids. Though, you could not let your guard down around her, so I made sure not to get talked into anything. "Oh well, you're such a buzz kill. At any rate, if you're not here to buy, I suggest you get to work. Come on sonny, move it." Did she just use the word buzz kill? Well, guess I could not accuse her for not being hip, or whatever she thought she was. Letting out a sigh, I sent her a smile and walked to Micheal to get things started. Marie of course stood ready to boss us around, and I had a feeling we would be busy for some time. * * * * As I expected, we ended up being at Marie's place for three hours longer than we counted on, but we did get paid for our time, so it was not that bad. Besides, we got to enjoy Marie's homemade chocolate cake, which was famous around town. "Sorry it took so long." Micheal said as he pulled up next to the dirt road that led up to my house. He had other places to be, so he was rather busy, but it was okay, I didn't mind walking the rest of the way. "Nah, it's cool. Say hey to Nina from me, okay?" He smiled at me and nodded. "Sure thing, thanks for the help. See you around." I returned the smile and closed the door, giving him a single wave before I turned to walk back to my home. I stayed in the middle of the road as I walked, old dirt roads like this tend to get holes over time, so when it rains like it did today, they become filled up with water. Since I rather not step into one of those, I stayed in the middle where there were no holes. Even so, the light rain was still getting my hair soaked, and it was barely May, so it was kind of cold. Still, I looked forward getting back home, take a long hot shower and maybe just take the rest of the day off. Yea, that sounded nice, simply chilling in my living room, maybe going out to get some pizza later, and simply relax. As nice as that sounded, I still had a few things to do today, and since I was already out, I figured I should feed my rabbits. I was not really a big pet guy, not that I didn't like the idea, just didn't need one. The rabbits were the exceptions though, the farm had seen it shares of pets, and the bunnies had been a constant in my life, so I had a few of them. I had thought about getting some chickens, free eggs and all, but I had never really gotten around to it. Being out already, I did whatever chores outside, before the rain finally made me retreat into my sanctuary. To my surprise I did feel kind of tired, more so than usual. I had been working late, so I figured I should just get to bed early. Having already sent my latest music to my client, I had nothing planned for the rest of the day. It was too late for really starting cleaning up the entire house, but still to early to order a pizza for dinner. Not really feeling up for anything special, I booted up my old PS2 and played some of my old games. Even though I played, and enjoyed myself, I could not help but to think about the things I needed to get done tomorrow. I like to think of myself as someone who takes care of his home, but it was really hard to focus on it right now. Before I knew it, I was laying back on the couch, my eyes closed and my mind drifting off into a deep sleep. * * * * KRRRAABOOOOOOOM!!!! My eyes shot open as I heard an insanely loud roar of thunder from outside. My eyes had registered the flash before the sound, but it was the deafening sound of thunder that had woken me up. My heart pounded, I had gotten quite the shock, big enough to make me slide off the couch and end up on the floor. Everything was dark, outside, my house, and even my TV. I sighed in annoyance, figuring I had fallen asleep. 'Guess that's what happens when you go out of routine and stay up for longer than usual.' I thought to myself, holding up my wristwatch, I noticed it was already 08:12 PM. I had been sleeping for quite a while, enough for it to not having been a simple nap. I let out another annoyed sigh, mentally scolding myself for sleeping so long. The rain seemed to have picked up, it had stopped being some gentle tapping on the ground, to be a rainy whipping session. It came down thick and hard, so much so that the drops made big splashes as soon as they touched down. Since I could not keep sitting here, I figured I get some lights on, get that shower I forgot about, and get a nice meal. I didn't wanna drive in this rain, so pizza had to wait for tomorrow. When I reached for the light switch and flipped it, nothing happened. I tried again a few times, now groaning in annoyance. "Figures.." I mumbled, realizing it was a power outage, explained why my PS2 and TV was off. I had to go check the fuse box, but I hoped it was just something that had happened locally and would get fixed soon. It was then that I saw something weird outside, I was not sure what made me notice, it was only for two seconds, but I did see something coming from the old barn, a purple light. "What the hell?" I walked over to the window and looked towards the barn. Nothing happened, but I knew I had seen light coming from out there. I would not be able to relax with any uncertainty, so I knew I had to investigate, even if I rather not go out in the rain. Grabbing my big police flashlight, and my big raincoat I got ready to investigate. As expected the rain was merciless, pounding down on me pretty hard, making it kind of hard to focus, but the beam of light from my flashlight guided me. Soon enough, I found myself near the old barn. It could be someone who were seeking shelter from the rain. Or it could be thieves, but I found that very unlikely. Nothing in there was going to be easy to steal, there was nothing but old farm equipment. If it was not because I was so sure in what I had seen, I would have probably just ignored it, but no, I did see this strange light, so now I needed to make sure I didn't have any unwelcome visitors. "Is anybody in there?" I tried first, figuring if it really just was someone seeking shelter, I might as well give them a chance, but no responds came. I grabbed my flashlight a little tighter, opening the door carefully. "Hello?" I let the beam glide slowly over the interior of the barn, hoping to spot something out of the ordinary. There is nothing, I see the tractor, some old and rusty equipment, nothing that shouldn't be there. Shrugging, I was about to close the door and turn back, but then I heard something. "Achoo!" Did someone just, sneeze? I quickly turn around, moving the light, trying to figure out where the sneeze came from. "Hello?" I try again, but no answer. This time however, I'm sure someone is hiding. I swallow a bit, not really liking going into the dark barn only armed with a flashlight, but since I have nothing else and can't just leave, I walk inside, closing the door behind me. It's dark, and the rain is clashing hard against the wooden roof, making hearing any tiny noise hard. The sneeze though, I'm sure I heard it, which meant if someone was here, they had to be near. I look the places I would have used as hiding spots, but so far no results. There is a lot of places you can hide, but if you wanted to move around, that would be hard without being discovered by me. So it was just a simple case of finding whoever was in here, then I would have the person cornered. I keep walking, moving towards a big pile of hay, thinking I am getting closer, but then I sense movement, right behind me! I turn to look, holding my flashlight high, but nothing. Then suddenly I hear something that sounds like, footsteps? No, not footsteps, something else, but something that was moving across the floor. I turn to look, but once again, I see nothing but the barn and the darkness. Now, I was never the one to believe in ghost stories or get scared by being in the dark, but this situation was seriously starting to get creepy. It is moments like this when your imagination starts running wild, go to places you really didn't want it to go in these sort of situations. You start of thinking about monsters, crazy killers, or giant spiders, something that get's your heart pumping and makes you paranoid. I felt my breath get a bit heavier, and I was pretty sure I was starting to get scared of my own shadow by now. Then I heard something fall, nothing big, like a tool falling to the floor, and so just out of pent up adrenaline, I leaped towards the sound, pointing my flashlight at whatever had just caught my attention! Though as soon as the light hit the thing that had made the sound, my whole body froze in utter shock. I could not believe my eyes. There, right under the wooden worktable, curled up in a ball, shaking with fear and eyes wide with terror, laid a yellowish, pink maned creature. It's big eyes stared into mine, it was shocked, scared, that much was clear, but what the hell was it? I think part of my shock was that, I recognized it, but that couldn't be. Yes, I knew what this creature was, who, SHE, was, but that was impossible. It simply couldn't be- SMACK! Darkness...