//------------------------------//
// Party Time Again 
// Story: Beyond Me 
// by Boopy Doopy 
//------------------------------//

I sat there laying on the bench for a few minutes before I realized I should probably find that pony and apologize for making them feel bad.
“Even if you’re completely in the right with what you said,” I thought to myself, “that’s still no excuse for being as mean as you were about it. That doesn’t change the fact though that he… or, I mean, she... they... ugh, it’s not the same at all…”
Of course, it was the same. How could it possibly not be? It wasn’t a coincidence that I was effectively a transgender pony with lesbian guardians who was just approached by another trans pony of all people. There was no doubt about the lesson I was supposed to be learning from all this.
“It’s not like I can disagree anyway. Can I even try to disagree, even if I wanted to? Wouldn’t that just be hurting myself? Oh, God, why does this have to happen to me?”
I tried to hold back my tears, and was on the verge of crying right there when someone else, somepony else, interrupted me.
“Awww, what are you doing sitting there crying all alone for, Asher?” someone, Pinkie, started. “You should be out having fun with your friends, silly filly.”
“It’s kind of hard to do when everyone here calls me a filly,” I retorted, my voice cracking as I spoke. “Not that I don’t deserve it, since I can’t help but be mean, but…” I grumbled angrily, my eyes still wet as I continued, “It’s not like I was out protesting against trans people or something! Everything I thought, I kept internal! It’s not fair!”
“Oh, I don’t think you’re a mean filly, Asher,” she told me, which actually did make me start to cry. “You seem serious a lot of the time, but I don’t think you’re mean, and I’m sure your friends don’t think you’re mean, either!”
I could feel the tears dripping down and then the hug that followed a moment later, which only served to make me more upset.
“Get off of me!” I said through my tears, although I didn’t push her away much. “None of you ponies know how to give me space. Just let me cry on my own for a while.”
“Oh, but hugs make everything better!” she said cheerily, which annoyed me. “But you know what’s even better than a hug? A party! And guess who’s throwing a party? That’s right! It’s me! The best party planner in Ponyville!”
“I really don’t feel like going to a party, Pinkie…” I said half-heartedly, sniffling as I lay my head on the bench while her hooves stayed wrapped around me. “Can I just be by myself for now, please?”
“Oh, I’m sure a party will make you feel better. It’s for an even newer pony in Ponyville named Twilight Sparkle, and it’s going to be at her library! Doesn’t that sound like fun?”
“Not really, but…”
I suddenly thought back to when I was alone with Celestia, and how she said something was going to happen today with her sister and that pony. I was pretty sure she said it was going to happen with that pony, Twilight Sparkle. Not that there was anything I could do. In fact, she specifically told me Twilight would handle it, which was fine by me. I basically already knew what I was doing here, and anything to do with this holiday wasn’t it. Also, although I couldn’t be sure, I had a sneaking suspicion that Twilight was the pony she wanted me to live with.
“I mean…” I started as I tried to rub my eyes, unable to because my limbs were tied up in her grasp. “I really don’t want to, but… where is it going to be at?”
“It’ll be in Golden Oaks Library, and it’ll be a fun, fun, fun time! I’m sure you’d really, really like it! Plus, we can make it a surprise, and you can tell Twilight what being the new pony in Ponyville is like and how to make all sorts of friends like you have!”
“I'm not sure about all that but... maybe,” I sighed. “I’ll… think about it, okay?”
“Oh, please don’t be so sad, silly filly,” she suddenly told me, moving up to rub her cheek against mine and rubbing the wetness around. “Seeing you sad makes me feel sad, and I want you to feel better.”
“Why do you care though?” I asked. “You don’t even know me- well, you saw me for about a minute like two weeks ago.”
“And I threw you that amazing party, remember? Wasn’t it the most fun ever? You even made some new friends so you wouldn't be all alone!”
“It was… a nice thing for you to do for me,” I told her politely, making sure not to tell her that I didn't really care for it, “but that doesn’t really answer my question. Why do you care so much?”
“Because you’re my friend, and cheering up my friends is just what Pinkie’s here to do, silly filly!”
“Please don’t call me a filly,” I told her, making a face and sniffling as I tried to get my emotions under control. “I’m not a girl, and I don’t want to be called one, especially not a silly one.”
“Okie dokie loki!” she responded cheerily, still not releasing me from the hug she had me in. “Can I call you a silly colt then? Or maybe just a silly foal?”
“Being called a colt would be nice, because, I don’t know if I told you before, but I am a boy.”
“A colt with filly parts?” she asked. “You must be one very silly colt then, Asher! You’re so weird, and that’s what makes you fun! Which is why you should go to the party I’m throwing for Twilight Sparkle! What do you say?”
“Well… I’ll go since you’re being nice to me and said you’d call me a boy, but-”
“Perfect! We only have five hours until the party starts, which means we need to get started right away!” With that, she placed me on her back and dragged me with her to the library to get ready for the party.



Twilight went through her day making sure everything was in order for the Summer Sun Celebration, visiting Rainbow Dash after the four fillies she was talking to had left. After she coerced her into clearing the sky like she was supposed to (and getting her mane messed up in the process), she went over to the town hall to visit Rarity, and gave her quite a shock when the unicorn saw her mane. After a little while with her getting her mane fixed and styled a bit, she went off to see Fluttershy to check on the music for the holiday, quickly getting annoyed by the quiet mare’s somehow incessant chatter with Spike. Overall, it took the mare a few hours to get through everything she had to do, and her annoyance with the ponies in Ponyville was quite high after all was said and done.
“Humph, rude much?” Spike asked with a frown after Twilight pushed Fluttershy out of Golden Oaks Library.
“Sorry, Spike,” she apologized to the dragon, “but I have to convince the princess that Nightmare moon is coming, and we’re running out of time! Plus, I need to find that filly so I can make space for her, and I can’t do that with a bunch of crazy ponies trying to make friends all the time! Now where’s the light switch?”
“Surprise!” the whole room said at the same time as the place lit up, Pinkie Pie’s voice cutting through the group the most. “Hi! I’m Pinkie Pie, and I threw this party just for you!” the pink pony told her. “Were you surprised? Were you? Were you? Huh? Huh? Huh?” she asked, already grating on the unicorn’s nerves.
“Very surprised,” the mare being asked answered. “Libraries are supposed to be quiet.”
“Well that’s silly! What kind of welcome party would this be if it were quiet? I mean, duh! Booooooring! You, see, I saw you when you first got here, remember? You were all…”
Twilight groaned, already worn out from her, and began to walk away to pour herself a drink of apple cider, debating what she should do as she did so. Everything in Ponyville was already set up for the Summer Sun Celebration, so that wasn’t an issue.  Not that it would be if everything weren’t. The main concern for tonight was Nightmare Moon’s reappearance and the Elements of Harmony, which she had to prepare for, another secondary concern being that filly, Ashley she thought the princess said. Celestia was going to meet with her to formally introduce the two of them. She wondered what importance she had that she wanted Twilight to take care of her.
Speaking of the filly, just as the mare was about to take a sip of the cider she was pouring (which was actually hot sauce), she caught sight of her. She looked just how she remembered the couple of times she saw her before. A bright silver coat and a perfectly golden mane with deep blue eyes. Twilight wasn’t a pony who was particularly concerned about the way she looked, but she had to admit, seeing her now made her just a teensy bit jealous. Not very, but a little. She also noted the small look of annoyance she had as she stood a bit of a distance away from a few other fillies her age, occasionally making a comment but mostly staying out of the conversation they were having.
“And that’s Asher!” Pinkie Pie introduced as Twilight trotted up to her. “He was the newest pony in Ponyville until you came around! Isn’t that exciting? You should say hello to him! But make sure not to call him a silly filly! He said he doesn’t like that.”
The words Pinkie said put a blush and a shy, happy smile on her face, words that she liked to hear. Twilight however, rolled her eyes at the thought. She almost didn’t believe the princess when she said she wanted to be called a colt, and thought the idea of it was ridiculous. 
“Hello, ma’am,” Twilight started politely, intentionally making sure to use the word and instantly causing Asher’s smile to drop into a scowl. “My name is Twilight Sparkle. I believe we’ve met before?”
“Not really,” the filly responded, “but I... think I remember you. Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and I saw you here for like a second when we were coming to study before you ran off.”
“Heh heh, yeah,” Twilight got you as she rubbed a hoof behind her head, a bit embarrassed. “That was rude of me, I’m sorry. I should’ve introduced myself to you guys back there. But as I said, I’m Twilight Sparkle. And you are?”
She said and, sounding a bit reluctant, said, “My name is Asher, and, um… I think Celestia said I was supposed to live with you?”
“Well, that’s Princess Celestia to you, Asher, although you’re right about that. Princess Celestia did tell me to keep an eye on you. You know we had to close off Ponyville to outsiders because of you?”
“Yes, I know,” she said, her ears flattening in embarrassment. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to mess up the holiday for all of you.”
“Well, good,” Twilight told her sternly. “This is the most important day of the year, and everything should be just perfect for Princess Celestia. She wouldn’t want anypony causing a mess.” 
Asher’s scowl deepened as she rolled her eyes, already not liking Twilight’s confrontational style.
“So… am I living with you starting tonight?” she asked. “Because if so, I need to tell Miss Holiday and Lofty.”
“I’m not sure, but I don’t see why not. As I said before, Princess Celestia told me she would formally introduce us, but she did tell me a little bit about you before. She said you were like me when I was young, and said you were quite the smart little filly.”
“I… I’m not a girl…” Asher trailed off quietly at that remark, looking at her hooves.
“Oh, Princess Celestia did say something about that before,” Twilight remembered again. “She said you were a girl who would rather be called a boy.”
“I want to be called a boy because I’m not a girl at all,” she couldn’t help but say. “I know I don’t look like one,” she explained, “but I actually am a boy.” 
“I mean, you’re not,” Twilight told her simply. “Just because you say you are doesn’t make you one, silly filly.” It made her cheeks red with anger and her already lack of fondness for her turned into dislike. She knew she just added that last bit because Pinkie Pie had said she didn’t like it. She looked up to the pink mare to gauge her reaction, but noticed she was long gone by that point.
There was a little bit of shame mixed into her emotions, too. It was largely the same thing she told that other pony, and now it was being told to her. It made her feel bad to hear, just because it was what she thought a lot of the time when she was a human, and lately what she thought about herself some of the time in Equestria.
“I actually used to be a colt- err, a boy. I was turned into a girl, so it’s not-”
“I mean, I’m not sure I believe that,” Twilight interrupted, “since magically changing your sex is something that's only theoretical, but even if that’s true, you’re not one right now, so that makes you a girl. I mean, you can’t just say you’re a boy and then be a boy. That’s ridiculous.”
“Ugh, I’m not- I don’t- I’m…” Asher closed her eyes and took a breath, more shame starting to kick in as the tears welled up again. She really didn’t want to cry in front of the mare if she could help it.
“Damn it, I was so mean to that other pony. Why did I have to act like that to him… her? I need to find them and apologize.”