//------------------------------// // Waking Up is Hard to Do... // Story: The Becoming // by Lemmers //------------------------------// "Message for Pathfinder!" I awoke the next morning to the sound of hoofbeats against my bedroom door. Already the sun was shining high in the sky, and streamed in through a window above my silken four-poster pony bed. The covers were tossed every which way, and the vast majority of the pillows that had graced my bed were laying unattended on the floor. My mouth was dry and yet felt peculiarly sticky, and my eyes stung with exhaustion. My neck was cramped, my legs were numb, and my mane was tangled. Actually, I think it was caught on one of the bed’s posters. Even with a brand new pony body, it seemed I couldn’t get rid of my usual sleeping habits, and here I was hoping that I could finally have a good night’s sleep. Though I had to admit, it was nice to see that some things never changed. Still, I couldn’t even remember my dream from last night, which was even stranger than waking up in a pony body in the first place. For a moment I wondered if this was concrete proof that I was, in fact, not dreaming about being a pony, but decided that it honestly didn’t matter. Then I wondered if I could ignore the urgent beating at the door and go back to sleep. “Message for Pathfinder!” came a soft, feminine voice from the other side of my bedroom door. My first thought was, ‘Who the buck is Pathfinder?’ before the memories of last night’s escapades finally came back to me. That’s right, Pathfinder was the name I had assumed – courtesy of Princess Celestia – after I discovered my rather selective name-forgetting amnesia. My second thought after realizing all of this was, ‘why the buck am I using the word buck for any reason whatsoever?’ before I also remembered the rather invasive magical nature of this strange pony world. Primarily the magical nature of the pony’s speech, and how it was controlled by my Spark, my tiny glimmer of magic that allowed me to do all of the things ponies normally shouldn’t be able to do. Sometimes, remembering things was harder than actually experiencing them, like getting a lecture on something you just did… even though you just did it. “Message for Pathfinder!” I finally waddled out of bed, almost collapsing under my weight as I let the pins and needles kick in. It was an entirely different feeling when it was going through four limbs all at once. I ran an ineffectual hoof through my mane and wiped something crusty out of my eye before I made my way across the room. The pony on the other side of the door must have heard my echoing hoofsteps on the stone floor, since she stopped wrapping on the massive wooden portal. With a distinctive groan I pushed open the door, surprised at the strength I had managed to display. I guess this was why ponies didn’t worry about building their doors so heavy. Even I was strong enough to open it without too much trouble. “I’m Pathfinder,” I said sleepily, feeling the warm tingle of magic in my throat. I was sure I’d get used to that eventually... if I had any plans to stay here. Luckily for me, I was getting a one way ticket back to the human world today. In fact, this was probably my summons from Princess Celestia for just such an appointment. “Here you go!” said the small unicorn… um, mare? She levitated a small scroll of parchment up to my face, and then stared at me for a moment with large yellow eyes. They were mesmerizing in a way, and matched her pale gray coat and yellow mane in a peculiar fashion. Actually, this was the first pony I'd met that wasn't related in some way to Celestia and Luna – oh, I get it now – and she was actually a rather fascinating creature. “Um… you’re Pathfinder right?” she asked, snapping me out of my inner monologue, “aren’t you going to take the message?” I looked down at the parchment positioned in front of my face before I finally realized what she wanted me to do with it. Reluctantly, I opened my mouth and gingerly clasped my teeth around the scroll. The slow, methodical way in which I approached taking the thing must have startled the other pony, since she left in a rush almost immediately after I had grabbed it. I wanted to pass it off as her being busy, but even I had to admit that I probably looked a bit like a creeper. Whatever the equivalent of a pony creeper was… Sill pondering how to actually open the scroll, I trotted back into the room. I considered donkey-kicking the door shut, but realized that I would probably end up breaking my spine if I tried it. I opted instead to close it gently with my rear end, still balancing the parchment in my teeth. In the end, opening the scroll turned out not to be a problem. As soon as I set the darn thing down on the table, the seal that kept it shut seemed to magically dissolve. The scroll even rolled open in front of me with a little flourish, laying itself out like a nice, neat sheet of paper. I looked at the writing on the parchment with confusion before the letters began to rearrange themselves magically before my eyes, forming proper sentences that I could actually read. I probably should have been shocked by this, but I was a bit too tired at the moment to react to anything in an energetic sort of way. My Dear Pathfinder, The letter began, and I couldn’t help but feel a tiny prick of longing to see the princess again. My Dear Pathfinder, How have you enjoyed your stay here in Canterlot Castle? I hope your room is to your liking, as I’m afraid you must remain our guest for a short while longer. I know that I had promised you a safe return to your home this morning, but I have unfortunately forgotten some pressing matters I must attend to in the kingdom. This news must come as a shock to you, but I know that you will understand when I say that my hooves are tied. Rest assured, as soon as this business with the royal wedding has concluded I will see to your return. In the meantime I have tasked my younger sister, Luna, to your case. I understand you have already met her, which saves me the trouble of having to introduce you two. Do not let her looks or attitude fool you, she is a master of unicorn magic and a real sweet pony at heart. I am sure that you two will get along famously! You should be able to find her in the library, just ask one of the guards for directions. Sincerely, Princess Celestia P.S. Thank you for your suggestion last night, it was sound advice to send for help with the wedding preparations! :) I wondered if ponies were capable of hyperventilating, considering how close I was to undergoing a panic attack. If it wasn’t for my strange and unfamiliar admiration for the sun-patterned princess, I might have eaten the scroll in a rage. It was probably a good thing that I hadn’t, considering this one promptly rolled itself back up and disappeared in a flash of golden light. I guess she wanted to make sure that I had gotten it. Still, I found myself at a loss for words. … Ok, not really, but you understand what I’m getting at. I would have complained more about the situation, but for brevity’s sake I forced myself to just accept my circumstances. I hadn’t chosen to come here to pony land, and I certainly shouldn’t be upset that I ended up getting a royal welcome and a room in the castle to stay at. If I’d been born with worse luck, I might have been stranded in the Everfree forest and forced to scavenge for food until something big and nasty finally came along and ate my little pony brains. I should just be grateful that the princess still intended on sending me back all, when she could have just as easily ignored me. My loyalties to Celestia reaffirmed, I focused my attention on the latter half of the letter. The parts about the night mare princess Luna. Apparently she had been assigned to my case, which probably meant – actually I had no idea what Celestia meant by that, but it must have been important whatever it was. “Library – ask the guards,” I told myself, “I got this.” If I was going to have to spend a week here in pony world, I was going to live it to the fullest. Who knew, I might wake up in a padded white cell when I finally got back to the real world. I washed up a bit in the sink, still somewhat wary about using the tub, and did my best to groom myself. My mane was shaggy and tangled, and needed more than a hoof to get it looking even remotely neat. I wasn’t sure why I even cared what I looked like as a pony, but some part of me just never wanted to make a bad first impression. My eyes were bloodshot and exhausted looking, and my coat had a distinctly dull quality to it, unlike the lustrous coats of the other ponies. No wonder that messenger unicorn was so eager to get away from me. In the end I decided that no amount of pony preening was going to make me look much better than I did right now. It certainly wasn’t going to make me feel better seeing how frumpy I looked, and as a I left my bedchamber my concerns seemed to evaporate into the crisp morning air. I hadn’t noticed it last night, but the view from my tower perch was utterly intoxicating. A swift breeze blew through my mane, and I basked in the warm sunlight. I could see nearly the entire city of Canterlot from here, not to mention the castle grounds, which were abuzz with an incredible sort of liveliness. I had never seen so many ponies before either, and I was amazed at the sheer quantity of the color spectrum they seemed to span. If I could have see my own eyes right then, I’m sure they would have been sparkling with excitement. “So... awesome…” I muttered to myself as I started descending the stairs. Since wandering around the castle was only going to get me lost, I stopped the first guard that I met and asked him for directions to the library. At first I was worried that the big unicorn stallion wasn’t going to help me, but he eventually relented after a I stood there for a few moments without trying anything funny. I wondered if the unicorn Captain of Canterlot’s Guard, Shining Armor, had told his sentries about my presence. For all I knew, this could have been one of the guards who surrounded Celestia and me in the throne room last night. “You’re standing in front of it,” he said grumpily, pointing a hoof at the building behind me. Sure enough, there was a large round building opposite the courtyard from me, though I couldn’t see how I would have known it was the library if the guard hadn’t just told me as much. “Thanks,” I murmured, slinking off silently. I was a good three yards away when the guard spoke up again, “Hey!” he called out, causing me to jump. My heart was racing as I turned my head back to look at him, “Y-yeah?” I asked. “Be on the lookout for any suspicious looking characters, kay?” My front legs began to wobble unsteadily, and – almost like magic – they gave out under my weight. I fell forward, my chin hitting the dirt – hard. It sent a jolt of pain through my jaw and into my skull, and it was almost as uncomfortable when my hindquarters, which had been sticking straight up into the air at this point, came plopping back down to the earth with their own pronounced thud. “Have a good day!” the guard replied merrily, trotting off. I had never actually given a pratfall before, but I was fairly certain that it wasn’t supposed to hurt quite so much. I placed a hoof to my jaw and rubbed it sorely before standing up and cantering off to the library, eager to avoid any more comedic situations. Somehow I don’t think I’d survive an anvil falling on my head, and there was no telling how the magic of this world affected the actual physics. All I knew was that that fall was certainly no work of my own. “Hello?” I whispered, opening the library door. With no real purpose it seemed, as I soon discovered this wasn’t really that kind of library. It was more of an archive really, and there was certainly no helpful pony at a reception desk to point me where I needed to go. Not that I needed it, libraries were home turf for me, and princess Luna was sure to stick out like a bruised thumb in this place. The library itself was a round building with two floors, connected in a full circle by a single long hallway. Several smaller rooms branched off of these hallways, each with their own distinct name, no doubt dedicated to a pony of great accomplishment. The center of the library, however, took up the majority of the building and showcased the majority of the books and scrolls that made up the collection. It was an impressive sight, even more so when I remembered it was constructed by ponies. After wandering around the building for a good twenty minutes or so, just getting the lay of the land, I finally found the big blue princess on the second floor, in what appeared to be the strangest room of them all: the Starswirl the Bearded section. The room was a cluttered mess of books and scrolls, torn open and off the shelves with little regard to the obvious frailty of the works. Luna looked no better, now that I saw her in the light, and she seemed strangely different without a shaft of moonlight at her back. “Hello?” I called out, passing by the prison cell styled door that stood open in the entryway. The princess turned to me, an obviously flustered look plastered on her face, and I couldn’t help but notice a distinctive eye twitch. When she saw that it was me, however, she seemed to relax. “Oh, it is only you Pathfinder,” she said as though that was supposed to make me feel better, “come in.” I looked around the mess of the room, “Did something happen here?” I asked. “We are not sure,” she said, “this room was like this when we arrived, and so help us we will wring the neck whoever pony did this!" Princess Luna’s anger management issues aside, I figured it was better to leave the matter at that and help the princess out. She was obviously not used to manual labor, or cleaning for that matter. I trotted over to her and picked up one of the scrolls in my teeth, making sure I didn’t harm it. “Where dosh thish go?” I asked. The princess gave me a quizzical glance before finally pointing a hoof at one of the shelves, where I quickly deposited the scroll. We didn’t say much more than that, and the princess only spoke when I needed clarification as to where something went. It was strange how in sync we seemed to be, but then I was used to cleaning up books and the princess was used to ordering people around. We were just doing what we did best. It didn’t even take us that long to get the mess all sorted out. “You are quite a bit more capable than we had originally thought, Pathfinder,” said Luna, looking at our handiwork. “Yeah? Well… I mean… I’m used to it,” I replied sheepishly. My own book collection wasn’t quite as big as this, but it did require a bit of maintenance when I really dug into it. It was strange how the thing I loved most felt so far away now, and a wrenching sense of homesickness overcame me. “We can tell,” she said proudly, “in fact, you remind us a bit of our friend, Twilight Sparkle.” The name sounded familiar to me, and it took me a few moments to remember where I had heard it from, “Shining Armor’s sister?” I asked, and Luna seemed surprised at my knowledge. “Why yes, where did you learn that?” I raised an eyebrow, “From the pony himself actually…” I said, “weren’t you there?” The princess suddenly seemed flustered, “I – we – certainly were not!” I chuckled, which only served to aggravate Luna further, “Honestly!” she snapped, “must I suffer such indignity, and from a human no less?” My eyes widened a bit, and I was unsure why I suddenly felt so guilty, “Oh, so you heard about that, huh?” I asked. The princess, noticing a chance to gain the upper hand in the conversation, took it, “Of course, we were tasked to find a way to send you home, after all!” “Can you really do that?” Luna stumbled, “Were we in our prime, it would be as simple as raising the moon!” Much to my chagrin, I ignored the implication that Luna had allowed me to clean up the mess of scrolls for her when she could have just as easily done it with magic, and repressed my rage in the usual spot. I resolved to press further, “So… no?” “Listen here human!” Luna snapped, “if it weren’t for a run in with rogue magical rainbow, we would be ruler of all Equestria by now!” I frowned, “But you can’t send me home now, can you?” “Well…” Luna shared my frown, “no, not at the moment, and sister is far too busy with her preparations to tend to your predicament.” “It’s fine,” I said, reassuringly, and princess Luna seemed shocked by this, “I’m in debt to Princess Celestia… and even to you. I’m fine with being a pony for a while longer.” Luna’s gaze softened a bit, “You certainly do seem to be more a proper pony than those who came before you,” she said. It donned on me at this point that I hadn’t ever inquired about the other human ponies who had come to Equestria. How had they gotten here? How did Princess Celestia send them home? For that matter, how did I end up getting here? There were so many questions that I somehow forgot to get answered when Princess Celestia took me out of the Everfree forest, I couldn’t even think of them all right now. “So, what do you know exactly about the human ponies?” I asked. Luna shot me a perplexed glance, “The human ponies?” she clarified, “not much. There haven’t been very many of you, and only one of you ever spoke before.” I nodded, informing her to go on, and she sighed. “Well… the first of you appeared a few years ago, a young woman as she called herself. She spent a few months here in Equestria, in secret, while sister searched for a way to send her home. Everything we know about humans we learned from her during her short stay, after she learned to speak of course, but we’ve sent all of the others home without much ceremony.” “How did you send them home?” I asked. Luna didn’t really seem to think I would understand her explanation, but I guess my shining personality must have finally won her over, “Well, the returning spell itself isn’t exactly difficult to perform, but it requires several procedures that make it a bit... tricky. It’s more of a ritual than a spell really. First, you must cast the spell from the grove in the Everfree forest, where the barrier between our world and yours is the weakest. The target must also have a strong desire to return home, and a clear picture of where that home is. This is why sister always tries to carry out the spell as soon as possible, while the human frantically wishes to leave. There is also the matter of the sheer amount of magic necessary to bridge the gap, which is a feat that only my sister can accomplish.” Well, that was actually quite informative. Luna really was an expert on unicorn magic. I knew I could trust Princess Celestia. “How are you sure the spell works?” This time Luna scowled at me, “If you jest, your sense of humor is not appreciated. Sister would never willingly put another in jeopardy. The spell works, you can rest assured of that.” I nodded, somehow able to smile in a situation like this, “I agree with you,” I said, much to Luna’s surprise, “I don’t think the Princess would do something like that either, but do you know why she didn’t just send me back right away?” Luna seemed to ponder this, which I thought was supposed to be my shtick, “Perhaps because of your ability to speak, sister believed she could learn more about your kind. You are the first to grasp our laws of magic so quickly…” she said, and then quickly added, “even we were impressed.” I laughed, “I don’t know about that. I just ended up shouting at her. It’s nothing to be impressed with.” “Shouting?” Luna inquired, “how so?” I thought about this for a second, letting my memories refresh themselves, “It was sort of like… a big, concussive blast. I don’t really know how to –“ “LIKE THIS!?” Luna shouted at me with such force that the book shelves began shaking, and I was momentarily afraid that all of our hard work would come crashing down again. “Exactly like that!” I said loudly, my ears now filled with a piercing ring. “That is the Royal Canterlot Voice…” Luna said, suddenly sounding grim, “this is a very intriguing discovery indeed. Why did sister not mention this to me before?” “What? What did you say?” I asked, again partially deaf. “Tell me, Pathfinder, are you absolutely certain that your voice took on this quality?” I dug into my ear with my hoof, ignoring the fact that it was physically impossible, “Yeah,” I said, “it was the same.” “Perhaps… no…” Luna was whispering to herself now, “I am afraid I must leave you now Pathfinder, I apologize for the abruptness, but I have much to think about.” I opened my mouth to reply, but Luna was already headed towards the door. “Wait, Luna!” I called after her, forgetting my decorum. The Pegasus unicorn turned back to me, a little abruptly, “Y – yes?” she asked, somewhat nervously. “I uh…” I was looking for the right words to phrase this, “I…” “Yes?” Luna prompted. I couldn’t hold it back any longer, and my stomach let out a cavernous howl, “What exactly do ponies eat?” I asked in mock desperation. Luna’s face took on a deadpan quality, and she trotted out of the room without another word. “W – wait!” I panicked, “Luna – ack – I mean Princess Luna! I haven’t eaten anything since I got here!” I followed her out the door, quickly returning to shut it behind me before chasing down the fleeing princess. Later, when I found myself in the kitchens at the night mare’s behest, I was silently thanking her. That was certainly something I never thought I would be doing. Sure she had abandoned me on a whim, insulted me, forced me to do unnecessary menial labor... you know, I wasn't really sure where I was going with this. At least she had been kind enough to answer my kitchens and send me on my way to the questions. Wait… reverse that. Anyways, here I was, a lone pony in a foreign land with no clue what to do aside from beg for food. I was getting too used to this place… “What? No I don’t have time to help you! The caterers for the wedding will be her tomorrow afternoon! I have to get this place spick and span! Now shoo!” I was speechless as the chubby brown pony in a chef’s hat and coat pushed me out the kitchen door, leaving me sitting in the hallway, dumbfounded, as I listened to the distinct slam behind me. I wasn’t sure whether I was more surprised by his reaction, or by his fancy handlebar mustache. I didn’t even know ponies could grow facial hair. Maybe they were part goat? Either way, that could have gone much better than it did, and it still didn’t solve my hunger crisis. “Haha, got booted out of the kitchen by Chopping Block did you?” came a familiar voice from down the hall. I turned my head, only to see Shining Armor, the captain of the Canterlot Castle Guard, headed my way. At his side was another unfamiliar Pegasus unicorn, about Luna’s size, but distinctly less mystical. It was probably the lack of a magical translucent mane. She was thin and elegant looking, like the other princesses, and I figured this had to be Shining Armor’s one and only bride. That, or the guard captain was going to be in serious trouble later, given how close they were trotting to one another. I frowned, “Yeah…” I muttered. My first meeting with Shining Armor wasn’t exactly what you would call pleasant, and I had trouble figuring out whether he thought of me as a guest or a pest. He didn’t trust me, I knew that much at least, and was it just me or did he seem a little too happy about my current predicament? “You should try out one of the shops in town,” he said, “Sweetie Treats would probably give you something if you tell them that I sent you.” Again, I couldn’t tell if he were being sincere or condescending. Not to mention, the pink pony by Shining Amor’s side had spent the last few moments staring at me intently, which only added to my discomfort. I watched as she nudged Shining Armor, maybe a little too forcefully, “Ahem?” she prompted. “Oh, right,” said Armor, “this is Pathfinder dear; he’s a guest of the Princesses.” I couldn’t help but notice that he’d made it plural. “Charmed,” said the pony with a curtsey, “you may call me Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.” “Uh – charmed,” I replied awkwardly, still sitting on my hind haunches. She smiled ominously and nodded her head, “You must come to our wedding Pathfinder, it would be a shame if the princesses esteemed guest couldn’t be there.” Shining Armor chimed in, “Dear, I don’t know if –“ Cadenza ignored her fiancé and interrupted him, “Consider it an invitation,” she said with a wink that made a shiver creep up my spine, “from me.” With that she walked past me, and Shining Armor passed by shortly after, sparing only a single glance over his shoulder as they left me sitting in the hallway. I was more than a little disturbed by the surreal conversation, and waited for them to disappear around the corner before I stood up. The kitchen door opened behind me. “Are you still here!?” Chopping Block scolded, “I told you to get! Get! Take some oats and leave me be!” He threw a small burlap sack in my face and slammed the door again. “Whoopie,” I said, picking up the sack with my teeth, “I jusht love oatsh.” I didn’t really love oats...