//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: First Impressions // Story: A Life, for A Life // by Zinnia //------------------------------// I lay awake on the floor, currently sharing a blanket with Tempest. I woke up maybe 5 or 10 minutes ago, it was kind of hard to tell since I couldn't access my phone at the moment. It was still pretty dark from what I could see out of one of the windows, but I did see a hint of an orange hue in the corner. I should still be asleep, but I didn't feel tired at all. I probably only slept for around 5 or 6 hours if I had to guess. When I woke up, I found myself in a bit of a bind, which is also the reason I can't access my phone right now. Sleeping on top of me is of course, Tempest. I have no idea how I didn't wake up when she initially got on top of me, how she did so in the first place is beyond me. She has her hooves wrapped around my barrel, with her muzzle under my neck. She wasn't all that heavy despite being more built than the others in the room. I didn't want to be rude and wake her up, so I decided to lay here for a while until she either woke up, she rolled off of me, or I get fed up and wake her anyway. Either way I had to admit, it was pretty cute. I still had enough room to look around without disturbing Tempest. Looking around, I saw that the others were still asleep, more or less in the same positions. Except Pinkie Pie who was sprawled out on top of the crystal table, her hind leg twitching every so often. Smirking in amusement, I try to get more comfortable and attempt to fall asleep again, if only for half an hour more. However, there was a slight problem I had noticed that was in the way. I had to use the bathroom. Cursing to myself, I try to gently pry Tempest off of me, but she was a stubborn one. She whined a little when I managed to get her hoof from around me, granting me access to scoot out from underneath her. Acting quickly, I took the pillow I was using and put it where I was laying down, Tempest taking it and holding it close to her chest. With my little escape plan complete, I got up and walked quietly out of the room through one of the doors that were aligned with the pillars. That left only one more problem. Finding the restroom. The door I walked through led to what looked like a dinning hall, with a large, long rectangular table in the center surrounded by chairs. I looked around, if there was a dinning hall, the restroom couldn't be too far off right? Spotting two other doors, I went to the one on the right first, this one smaller than the one that led back to the previous room, I walked to it and opened it, peaking through. This room looked like a kitchen, with counter tops, kitchen ware, a sink, another table this one being circular and smaller with stools instead of chairs, a multitude of cabinets and ovens as well. I had to be getting closer to my destination, if this place made sense a bathroom should connect with this room somewhere. I saw another door, with a blue sign of what appeared to be a pony. Rolling my eyes at how similar the sign looked a lot like the ones in my world, I walked into the room and closed the door. ~ ~ ~ ~ > > Tempest POV < < ~ ~ ~ ~ Tempest stirring, she let a quiet yawn escape her. Tempest sat up and looked around, confused as to where Isaiah went. I hope I didn't wake him.. She thought, thinking back to what happened a few hours ago. A few hours earlier.. Tempest was woken up by movement. At first she assumed that Isaiah was uncomfortable and was trying to shift into a better position, so she ignored it for a few moments, until she was starting to get annoyed by it. Groaning, she opened her eyes to see what he was doing. Her brow furrowed from annoyance to concern. He was shivering, an uncomfortable look on his face. Tempest noticed that he was still asleep. She waited, to see if he would stop on his own. After about a minute, it actually started to get worse. Growing more worried, she did the only thing she could think of doing to help him stop shivering. Carefully maneuvering into a position where she could hold him, trying her best not to wake Isaiah. Once she got into a good position, Tempest slowly relaxed, laying her head on his chest. After a moment, he seemed like he was calming down, and the shivering ceased. Tempest couldn't see his face from her position, but hoped that this helped. He stopped shivering at least, so she took that as a sign that she was helping. Getting a little more comfortable, she closed her eyes, finding the rising and falling of Isaiah's chest to be calming, and fell back to sleep. Present Deciding to go look Isaiah, she got up, and silently trotted to through the large entrance to the hallway, opening the door and closing it behind her with a soft click. Tempest walked down the hallway, every so often looking between other corridors that conjoined with the hall to see if she could spot him down one. Approaching the balcony from the hall, she figured she could take the chance to see how early in the day it was, and get some fresh air. Upon walking onto the balcony, she saw Isaiah there. He was leaning over against the rails, watching the sunrise. The sun was almost fully over the horizon now, casting it's glorious rays onto across the plot of Sweet Apple Acres, and down on the town of Ponyville. She walked up next to him, joining Isaiah. ~ ~ ~ ~ > > Isaiah POV< < ~ ~ ~ ~ As I watched the sunrise before me, I took in a deep breath and let it all out, relieving me of the drowsiness I was feeling. I heard the clip clop of approaching hooves from behind me, not bothering to turn around. The sound came closer, until the pony came into view from the corners of my eye. It was Tempest. She put her front hooves up against the railings next to me, looking out across the horizon. I turned my head slightly to face her. "Good morning Tempest." I greeted simply. "Good morning Isaiah," She returned, turning her head to face me, a slight smile on her face. "I hope I didn't wake you." "Nah," I began, rubbing the back of my head. "I just had to use the restroom, I only came out here a few minutes after. By the way, I don't know how effective I am as a pillow, but I hope you found me comfortable." I added with a smirk. A look of mild concern and curiosity crossed her face. "About that..," Tempest began, taking her hooves off the railing to face me more directly, " You were shivering in your sleep last night. I was worried, so I cuddled with you. When I did, you relaxed and stopped shivering." She explained, a slight blush appearing across her muzzle. A raised an eyebrow in confusion and mild concern. "I was..?" I asked, bringing a hand to my chin. Tempest nodded in response. "Huh. Well, I'm sorry about that, I have no idea why I would be shivering though. I didn't have any nightmares, or dreams at all last night. Thank you though." "Don't mention it." She said, turning back to watch the sunrise. "It's the friendly thing to do." I smiled at that, turning to watch the rest of the sunrise as well, in a companionable silence. ~ ~ ~ ~ > > < < ~ ~ ~ ~ Around 10 minutes went by in a flash. Tempest and I sat there in silence for majority of the time, just enjoying each others company. I didn't even notice how long it had been since I came out here, not really conscious of time. I was somewhat aware of a pitter patter sound coming from behind us, followed by a sigh. "So this is where you two went off to." I turned around to see Spike, walking up to Tempest and I giving a quick glance at the view. The sun just made it fully over the horizon, indicating the start of the day. "Come on, Twilight is making breakfast for all of us, and we are going to have to talk about your stay here in Equestria." I nodded in understanding. "Right, makes sense I suppose." I turned to Tempest, and I cocked an eyebrow. She seemed to be completely unaware of Spike's presence, and totally oblivious to the conversation. Spike noticed this as well, and gave her a worried look. "I got this." I assured the little drake. Bringing my hand up to the front Tempest's muzzle, I made a pointing gesture. I heard Spike snicker, taking that as the 'Ok' to go through with my plan. I gave Tempest a quick boop on her nose, just enough to get her out of her deep trance. "W-What?" She started, getting off the railing and looking back and forth between me and Spike. Spike and I shared confused and worried glances, before turning back to Tempest. "Are you okay Tempest?" I asked, a concerned look on my face. "You were pretty out of it just now. We did just meet so I don't know if it's a thing you usually do..?" I turned to face Spike, who was shaking his head. "You seemed to be out of it last night too, when we first met." Tempest fidgeted on her hooves. "I'm fine.." She answered, her voice cracking ever so slightly. "I was just lost in thought is all, I'm fine." Tempest finished with finality, regaining her posture. "I'm sorry about that. So then, breakfast?" She asked with a smile, looking between us. I was unconvinced with her answer, but nodded nonetheless. "Yeah, Spike was just looking for us, but I'ma head back to the room I left my hoodie and phone in and picks those up. I'll meet up with you guys in the dinning hall." Spike gave me a surprised look. "You know where it is?" he asked looking back, already heading back into the hallway with Tempest. I nodded. "Yeah, I found it pretty quickly on my way to the restroom. Guess I have a pretty good sense of direction." I shrugged, walking opposite of Spike and Tempest. "I'll catch up." Out of the corner of my eye as I turned into the corridor that lead to the large door where my belongings were, I thought I saw Tempest frowning slightly at me, before disappearing around the other end of the hall. As I walked down the passageway, I thought back to what Tempest had told me. Maybe I was just really cold? It was the only thing I could really think of, seeing that I don't remember having any nightmares or dreams at all last night. But it was weird, since I was sharing a pretty sizable blanket with Tempest who was already sharing body heat even before holding me. Shaking my head, I decided to worry about that later, right now I had to hurry up and meet up with the others for breakfast. I reached the large doors that led to the room we all slept in together, the one with the tree roots, crystal table and chairs. I picked up my phone and hoodie from my spot on the floor, but I couldn't find the speaker that popped into existence. I shrugged it off, put on my hoodie and walked through the same door that lead me to the dinning hall. On the far end of the table of the room, I saw my new friends talking with each other, Spike and Tempest seemed to have walked in not too long before me from another pair of doors. They spotted me and waved me over, prompting me to join them. There was a seat that was open next to Starlight, so I went over and greeted everyone. "Good morning guys!" The gesture was happily returned from them all. "Good morning Zaley Whaley!" I heard pinkie shout from her side of the table, and then proceeded to tackle hug me with force I was not prepared for. Luckily, I fell back into the seat I was approaching anyway through sheer dumb luck. I grunted from the force but It didn't actually hurt as much as I anticipated it to. She sat on my lap and gave me a bountiful hug. "The party last night was simply divine," Rarity chimed in. "It was quite the experience! My mane didn't escape from getting a little disheveled from the activities," She said, touching up her mane with a hoof. "But it was still rather enjoyable." "Uh, yeah," Rainbow chuckled, flying over and putting a foreleg around my shoulders. "When Zale came along, the party got 20% cooler!" She declared, giving me a small nookie with her hoof. "And the music, I've never heard anything like it! It was Awesome." Applejack chuckled, giving me a smile. "I gotta admit," Applejack began, tilting her hat up from her face. "That was quite the hoedown." "I never felt so alive.." Fluttershy said, with a dreamy look in her eyes. "It was so exhilarating!" I chuckled at everyone's antics, nodding in agreement. "Glad you all enjoyed yourselves." I replied, closing my eyes with a content sigh. I heard the door that led to the kitchen open and looked back, revealing Several plates and a very enthusiastic looking Twilight Sparkle. "Good morning everypony!" Twilight greeted as she walked in. Rainbow flew back to her seat and Pinkie.. well, somehow was already in her seat when I looked again. Twilight was carrying several empty plates, and a few dishes of mouth watering food in her magic. A couple of the dishes were filled with steaming hot pancakes, with a big bottle of maple syrup accompanying it, more than enough to go around. Another dish contained omelets, enough for all 10 of us to enjoy. Twilight levitated a plate on the table in front of everyone, and put some pancakes on each plate as well as an omelet for each of us, taking the empty seat between Starlight and Spike. She then levitated the maple syrup in front of me, looking at me expectantly. I smiled in thanks, taking the maple syrup and pouring some on my stack of pancakes, enough to make it flow off the top and on to the plate. "Since you're our guest of honor for today, I figured I'd let you get first dibs on the syrup." Twilight said, already pouring syrup on her own pancakes, way more than I expected her to. "Thanks Twilight, I appreciate it." I thanked her, picking up a nearby fork and knife and dug in. Everyone did much the same, though Applejack and Rainbow Dash ate theirs with gusto. ~ ~ ~ ~ > > < < ~ ~ ~ ~ "So, Zale," Twilight began after we all finished our meals. "I've already sent letters to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna; who are the rulers of Equestria, about your situation. They'd like to meet you in person, so today we are going to head to Canterlot." I nearly fell out of my seat at the words. "We are going by carriage and it won't be here until noon, which gives plenty of time to prepare." "Princess Luna.." the minute I uttered the name a pain flared in my head, causing me to wince. A felt a hoof press against my shoulder, looking back I saw Starlight. "It'll be alright, you'll see." Starlight reassured, smiling up at me. I smiled back, the pain starting to subside. "Thanks," I replied, grateful for the gesture. "I guess I am a bit nervous though meeting with the ones in charge. But I won't let that stop me from making a good first impression." I relaxed in my seat, breathing out a breath I didn't know i was holding. I looked over at Twilight, giving her the okay to continue. Twilight nodded. "Yes, good first impressions are important. But they are very understanding and accepting so you don't have anything to worry about Zale." Twilight got up and took everyone's dirty dishes in her magic, walking back towards the kitchen door. "I'll take care of these. In the mean time Zale, why don't you take a look around Ponyville? I'm sure you'll love it here!" Twilight shouted over her shoulder, walking out the room with the dishes. I hummed in thought for a moment. "You know what, why not? I guess it would be good to familiarize myself with the Town and the ponies in it, although.." I frowned slightly, unsure of the idea. "I'm not exactly sure how they would react to some random weirdo showing up in their town." "Oh silly, quit your worrying!" Pinkie chimed in, slapping a hoof on my back a little too hard. "Ponyville is pretty accepting! Heck, the whole town is full of weirdos, like Applejack!" The mare in question raised a skeptical eyebrow at Pinkie, no amount of amusement found on her face. "She's right you know," Starlight pointed out. "Ponyville is surprisingly accepting and forgiving place." Spike nodded in agreement. "Like that time when you enslaved an entire town and controlled their destiny, and when you broke destiny itself for all of Equestria by going back in time to stop the sonic rainboom, practically no one in Ponyville batted an eye." Spike stated nonchalantly. "Same with Tempest when she was with the Storm king when she imprisoned the Princesses." I blinked, not sure what to do with that new bit of information. Starlight laughed sheepishly, and Tempest looked away. I nodded, getting the point. "Alright well, if they are that accepting, I guess I really have nothing to worry about." I pulled out my phone and looked at the lock screen, the time reading 8:14 AM. "Welp, we have till noon," I began, standing up and stretching. "I'd say we get this grand tour underway. Who's gonna be my personal guide?" Pinkie Pie was practically bouncing out of her seat with glee shouting 'Me! Me! Me!', with neon arrows pointing towards her. Chuckling at her antics, I sighed and relented. "Alright, alright Pinkie. You're it." I leaned over the table slightly and gave her a quick and firm boop to emphasize. "Alright, we'll be back before noon. Lead the way Pinkie." As we walked out into the hallway, they all waved after us, wishing me good luck. Tempest however, just watched me. With that same look from earlier.. what could be on her mind? I put that in the back of my mind to ask her later, for now deciding to focus on my tour and first impressions on the town. Pinkie looked back and gave me the brightest, albeit slightly disturbing grin. "Don't you worry Zaley, before noon the whole town will know your name, or my name isn't Pinkamena Diane Pie!" Why do I have a bad feeling about this.. But it was too late. We were already at the huge double doors that lead out of the castle, and into the unknown.