//------------------------------// // Welcome to Ponyville // Story: The Equestrian Incident // by StrawberryGamer //------------------------------// The duo of Lyra and Bon Bon always tended to be early risers. They'd get up in the morning, Lyra would help her roommate with getting the shop open, then she'd run off and do whatever it is Lyras do in their natural habitat. Usually either play music in the park or just go back to bed. Lately Lyra had found herself doing the latter more as she started becoming more active at night. Today was different though. Lyra had actually gotten a good night's sleep in preparation for lunch with Reimu. She even offered to help Bon Bon with cooking. To keep her sanity intact, Bon Bon sent her roommate outside to keep watch for the newcomer. Of course, this was assuming she'd even come over at all. Lyra was confident she would, at least. Bon Bon was a bit more skeptical, but that was more due to concern about how Princess Celestia would react to her message. She made sure to give as unbiased a report as possible and hoped it would be enough. A couple hours passed. Lyra sat outside, watching the roads, hoping to see that striking red and white outfit in the crowd. She couldn't escape the nagging thought in the back of her mind though. Did we come on too strongly? Is she not interested in making friends? Maybe she got lost. Lunchtime was getting closer, and there was still no sign of her. She didn't get lost, did she? The directions weren't very good... Her train of thought was interrupted by Ponyville's resident librarian and one of Lyra's old friends, Twilight Sparkle. "Hey Lyra. Fancy meeting you here..." She greeted, giving an awkward laugh. Lyra gave a friendly wave. "I live here, Twilight. It's good to see you regardless though. How was the Summer Sun Celebration?" She asked, holding back a giggle. Some things never change. Sure, she was a heroine who saved Equestria and a newly crowned princess, but Twilight never really stopped being the awkward nerd from Canterlot. A pair of wings wasn't going to change that. "It was great! My part went off without a hitch," Twilight answered with a hint of pride. "Sweet. Now I regret missing it. Maybe next year we can get through it without a world-ending threat?" Lyra playfully nudged Twilight. She gave a cheerful laugh. "I can only hope." She suddenly got a look like she just remembered something, and levitated a colorful paper bag over to Lyra. "Oh yeah, I picked this up at the festival. I figured you might get a kick out of it." Lyra accepted the bag and peeked in. She gasped when she saw what was inside and her eyes sparkled with joy. "Oh my goodness! You remembered! Wait... Is this...?" She pulled out a small plush replica of the alicorn in front of her and gave Twilight a very amused smirk. The awkward laugh returned. "Aha, yeah. It was a gift from Twinkleshine. I didn't want to be rude, but it's not really my thing. I figured you'd appreciate it more." "Thanks Twi. I'm sure you will make a fine addition to my collection." Lyra giggled to herself before putting the plush Twilight back in the bag. "Ookay... Is the shop open?" Twilight asked, eager to change the subject. "We're closed for lunch right now, but feel free to stop by later. We've got a good batch today, and since Sugarcube Corner is still closed for repairs, I expect we'll sell out soon." "I'll be sure to do that. I've gotta clean up the library, then Princess Celestia asked me to check on something in the Everfree, so would you mind saving something for me?" A quick thought ran through Lyra's head. They know about the shrine? Or is she just double-checking to make sure the Everfree won't attack us again? "We'll see. Even if you are a princess now, don't expect any special treatment from me." Twilight giggled. "I wouldn't have it any other way. I'll talk to you later, Lyra." "See ya." Lyra waved as she watched Twilight clumsily fly away. She idly wondered if Twilight and her friends were aware of Reimu's presence in the Everfree. If so, Princess Celestia must have told them. That meant everything was fine and Reimu was welcome in Equestria, right? It wasn't really her place to worry, but part of her wanted to be the one who welcomed somepony to Ponyville instead of Pinkie. It was a unique chance to make a new friend, and she didn't want Pinkie to spoil that by throwing a huge party. At least not right away. Maybe once Reimu has gotten settled in... "Urgh..." Reimu groaned as she woke, the painfully unfamiliar body reminding her of the previous day's events. How she was dumped with her shrine in the middle of someplace called the Everfree Forest. The Timberwolves that she shooed off with excessive force. The discovery of the Pony Village and the subsequent meeting with two of its inhabitants. They were surprisingly welcoming, even inviting her to their home for lunch. She hadn't recieved that kind of treatment from anyone besides Marisa since she became the Hakurei shrine maiden. The humans of Gensokyo were too set in their ways, too scared of things different from them, be they youkai or even their own guardian. Reimu rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling. Thinking of Gensokyo reminded her of how urgently she needed to get back. It was her shrine that kept the barrier between her home and the Outside World stable. There was a chance it was still connected somehow, but if it wasn't, would there even be a home to go back to? Would the Barrier crumble without her? She tried her usual approach to solving incidents, but somehow this form forbade her from flight. Like, the power was still there, she could feel it, but it just wouldn't work. It was a further annoyance to add to the pile, and one that severely slowed progress. Not having an aerial view of this alien land meant she had to navigate the old fashioned way. It was only really luck that she found the village. She should have tried investigating, but based on what she saw and heard, they were cleaning up their own incident. Better for her that she didn't add to the mess by just shooting first before knowing the land. Now she had a reason to go back. She had an 'in,' as Marisa would say. She could go into town, get a good look around, and investigate any leads she found that might lead to the culprit. Then she'd start shooting. The perfect place to start that investigation would be by accepting the invitation to lunch. Plus based on what her cupboards looked like, she was in no position to make her own lunch. She hoped four coins were enough for at least a snack, or she'd soon be very hungry. So after forming a rough outline of a plan for the day, Reimu finally got up and started getting herself in order. Getting dressed was a major pain, but she managed. As she did, her eyes lingered on the Yin-Yang symbols on her rear and her mind wandered back to the other ponies she met. They had symbols too. Did they have some kind of spiritual significance? Maybe a sign of fate or destiny? A brief shudder overtook her as she imagined the damage the elder Scarlet sister could do to a society that wore their fate so openly. But hey, that was her job, right? To slap troublesome youkai around when they mess with the balance of the world. Even when it's more trouble than it's worth. Once she was dressed, Reimu made sure the shrine was clean, grabbed a stack of talismans and hid them up her sleeve, picked up her purification rod and tucked it in a loop on her clothes, then started the walk to the Pony Village. Timberwolves stared at her from within the forest, but none openly approached the shrine and they also steered clear of her ofuda-marked trail leading to the village. That suited her fine. As long as they stayed away from her, she wouldn't need to take any further proactive measures. Once she was out of the forest, she finally got her first look at how ponies lived their daily lives. It wasn't too different from the Human Village, if she was being honest. She spotted a schoolhouse on the outskirts with a bunch of very small pony children playing outside, watched over by what she guessed was their schoolteacher. She's probably a good person to talk to, at least if she's anything like Keine I can ask her a few questions. As she approached the school, several children stopped what they were doing and stared at her. It wasn't the usual nervous or aggressive looks she got back home, these more resembled curiosity. Was a newcomer really worth so much attention? Three of them in particular were brave enough to run up to her, colored yellow, orange, and white. The white one had a horn like Lyra and the other two didn't, though the orange one was sporting a pair of wings. She was the first one to speak up. "Hey, what's with the weird outfit?" She asked, earning a slap on the head from the yellow pony. "Ow! What? We were all thinkin' it!" As if to prove her point a few other children nodded. If I knew I'd be dealing with children, I'd have prepared some charms... Reimu tried to keep a straight face as they crowded around her. "It's my uniform. I am a shrine maiden," she said, stepping around the students to talk to the teacher. "Excuse me, I'm new around here." The teacher giggled. "I can tell. Have you met Pinkie Pie yet? She likes to know every newcomer to Ponyville." She held out a hoof. "Welcome. I'm Cheerilee, Ponyville's schoolteacher." Ponyville? Well it was a step up from "Human Village" at least. She awkwardly bumped her hoof with Cheerilee's. "Reimu Hakurei, Shrine Maiden of Paradise. And no, I haven't met anyone besides Lyra and Bon Bon. I was actually hoping to find their house." "Paradise, eh?" Cheerilee asked with a sly expression. "Sounds like someplace I'd love to spend summer break in." "No it isn't," Reimu replied immediately, her expression suddenly turning dead serious. "Trust me on this." Cheerilee flinched, unsure how to respond. "Okay..." She quickly decided to change the topic. "Well, Bon Bon's shop is right down that road there," she pointed down a dirt road that deeper into town, "just look for the sign with candies on it. If you hit the market stalls, you've gone too far." "Thanks," Reimu smiled and gave a slight bow, then turned and left, ignoring the curious faces of the children still watching. As she started walking through the streets of Ponyville, she couldn't help but take in the strange alien society she found herself in the middle of. She gathered that clothes seemed to be optional, likely due to the fur coats. Perhaps they were a status symbol? Ponies seemed to greet each other with hoofbumps or nuzzles. Looking up, she saw more of those winged ponies flying about. Some were even pushing actual clouds around. Clouds! They could affect the weather, and they weren't even youkai. One thing she definitely noticed was the looks ponies around her gave. Some emulated the curiosity the children had. Others seemed more suspicious, like the look a youkai walking around the Human Village would get. Was it a percieved status based on her clothing os was it just that she was new? Cheerilee mentioned someone named Pinkie Pie. Perhaps she was an arbiter of sorts who was supposed to judge newcomers, and Reimu just came on her day off? She sighed. She was never gonna get anywhere asking herself these questions. She needed a local to help her figure this out. And as her luck would have it, she spotted a familiar mint green pony standing right outside a two-story building with the sign Cheerilee described out front. Lyra noticed her first and gave a wave as she approached. "Hey, you made it! Just in time too, I think Bonnie's almost done." Reimu allowed herself a smile, despite her conflicted mood. "Good. We can continue our talk while we eat. After seeing more of this place, I might have a few questions of my own." "I'd be glad to answer what I can. Maybe we can swap stories too. I've got some wild tales about my time in school," Lyra gave a cheerful grin as she led Reimu inside. "Food first though. I'm starving."