I sat in the back of the carriage, enjoying the air rushing past my face and the view of Equestria below. Celestia had already sent a letter ahead to Twilight to prepare for a human visit that evening, and shortly thereafter had arranged a sky carriage as my transportation. I wanted a chance to meet the Elements of Harmony as I was now, a pony, to see if I could surprise them when I turned out to be a human later. I figured it might be fun. Celestia agreed not to let them know who I was. She was no stranger to either light hearted jokes or to trying to meet ponies in new ways, so she agreed to keep my secret. Of course, we both knew trying to hide wasn't going to be easy without a cutie mark, so she offered to give me some clothing in the style of my choice from the castle's fitting rooms. I told her that I didn't have much preference in style, but that I really wanted pockets and to have my whole body covered. Apparently the request was somewhat unusual, as the Princess decided to magic some green and grey cloth into some tactical gear for me rather than look for something on hand. After I thanked her, she graciously offered to send my bag ahead to the Everfree Forest while I got dressed. As far as I could tell, nobody had gone through it, so I agreed after pocketing my flashlight. The fitting room triple mirror revealed the gear to be very form fitting, and there were no fewer than ten pockets .
I'm gonna fit right in, I remember thinking. This has got to be the absolute best in subtlety, right up there with fireworks displays and opera singing. But hey, at least I wasn't nude anymore!
I laid down in the carriage for a moment, closing my eyes to think. Lunch had gone pretty well, despite what had happened beforehand. I had ordered a Caesar salad and eaten it with a fork and everything. Of course, I was the only one at the table eating without magic, so I got to learn how to use my hooves to move things around. Long story short, I felt like my hands were still there, so I just grabbed the fork and started eating. Turns out, the only thing I couldn't do easily while moving things with my hooves was to change grips without changing which hoof I was using. I dropped my fork a few times figuring that one out. Other than that, there wasn't any special learning curve; I felt where my fingers were supposed to be, and my hoof provided. It was pretty damned cool, but the uniqueness wore off pretty quickly. I'd been using my hands my whole life, so it was nothing new.
After lunch, Luna headed off to go to bed, having been up for too long. She didn't have to sleep for twelve hours a day, according to her, but she told me she'd prefer to get in somewhere between six and eight hours a day whenever she could. We said our awkward goodbyes and didn't mention anything at all about the things that may or may not have happened before lunch. That was around the time I'd taken Celestia up on her offer to send my bag ahead and take a chance at meeting the Elements of Harmony.
So there I was, riding along the air waves. I would have stayed to talk things over with Celestia, but I realized that she was already wasting a bunch of time on me instead of doing other things she was supposed to be doing, like running the country. I cut out early to go make myself somebody else's problem.
I sat up in the carriage again, looking over the front towards Ponyville. I'd been able to see it, more or less, since we'd left Canterlot Castle, but now I could make out some of the details: First I saw what I thought was the hospital, to the north, then I could make out Twilight's tree library to the west and the Town Hall to the east, and just southeast of that was the Carousel Boutique, and there! Behind those clouds, just outside of the apple orchards, that had to be Rainbow Dash's house! On the south side of town was Sugarcube Corner, and after I saw it I couldn't believe that I hadn't picked it out earlier. Almost farther than my eyes could make out clearly, to the southwest, in the apple orchards, was Applejack's farm.
Of course, I saw the Everfree Forest, too, as a great expanse to the southeast of the village, but I couldn't make out Fluttershy's house from the air. I tried to keep looking, but the two Pegasi pulling the sky carriage had started their descent. I looked at the flying carriage again, still somewhat bewildered over the feeling of flying this way. The closest experience I'd had before this was when I'd gone paragliding; gravity was constantly pulling me down, but the wind kept me in the air. It wasn't like flying in a plane, where the pressurized cabin didn't let you feel the wind in your hair, and the g-forces from take-off weren't nearly as strong in the carriage as they had been in a plane.
The two Pegasi, mindful of Celestia's request to make my arrival subtle, stopped the ride just outside the train station on the north side of town. I thanked them and hopped off of the back of the flying vehicle, and they took off quickly, trying to distance themselves from me. Celestia hadn't wanted anyone's first impression of me to be skewed because I was from Canterlot wearing... whatever style I was wearing.
I took a moment to compose myself as a train approached from a short ways off, also coming from Canterlot. The ponies on it might have come from any of a number of places, but Celestia recommended that I go with the port town of Baltimare as my own place of origin. Having no better idea, I went with it, hoping it wouldn't come up in conversation. Luna's contribution the conversation was my new Equestrian name, Sprightly. Of all the names she recommended, it had seemed to be the least objectionable at the time. Of course, I might have just been biased against her opinions, too.
As the train drew up and came to a complete stop, I stepped onto the platform. The doors opened, and a few ponies got out with their baggage, others slowly trickling out behind them. Having established (in my own mind, and in the sense of timing, at least) that I might have gotten off the train, I finally entered Ponyville proper. Having gotten a pretty good view of things from the sky, I decided that a roundabout walk maximized my chances of running into the Elements of Harmony. I got started, heading towards the closest of their possible locations: Twilight's library.
Pinkie Pie found me first.
I was going over the details in my mind, deciding why I needed to visit the library, when I walked past her. I was concentrating more on what I might have been researching than on where I was going, and I'd have missed her if she hadn't taken a step back to wave at me a second time. I waved back with a muted smile, then kept walking. If I was right, she'd either catch up and stop me or she was in a hurry to get somewhere else. It was, almost inevitably, the former.
"Hiya!" Pinkie greeted, trotting around to get ahead of me, "My name's Pinkie Pie. What's yours?"
I stopped, refused to freak out, and kept the wide smile on my face. "Sprightly," I offered.
"Sprightly what?" Pinkie asked, face beaming and expression eager.
I swear, my heart nearly stopped. It wasn't enough. Only one meeting in, and my name was already going to be my downfall!
Downfall.
Downfall?
Sure, Downfall.
"Sprightly Downfall."
"Downfall?" Pinkie asked, tilting her head sideways.
"Downfall," I confirmed with a solemn nod, deciding to stand by my decision no matter what.
"Soooo... Sprightly! I'll remember that!" Pinkie said with a nod, then started thinking to herself. She sat down in the dirt road and started rubbing her chin with her hoof, clearly stumped by something. Normally I'd have waited for her to take the initiative, being Pinkie and all, but I decided that I couldn't wait. I felt the strange need to become friends with her before moving on, so I tried to get her talking while she thought.
"What are you thinking about, Ms. Pie?" I asked, bemused.
Her eyes stared off somewhere into the distance as she replied slowly, "...Cure-all, narwhal, pitfall, goofball... Just stuff that rhymes with Downfall..."
Oh. She wanted to sing me some rhyme, like she had done with Cranky Doodle Dandy. Nice as that might have been, I didn't want her rhyming with my false name. I felt that it'd be wrong, or something. Instead, I tried to bring the conversation back to her.
"So, are you that Pinkie Pie?" I asked, feigning curiosity.
She jumped back into action quickly enough, her previous train of thought apparently completely derailed. Success! I thought to myself.
"Which Pinkie Pie? I didn't know there was more than one Pinkie Pie! Who are the other Pinkie Pies? I mean, other than Pinkie Pie, I guess, because that's already their name, and it's my name too! Or do you mean that I'm Pinkie Pie, as opposed to someone else? 'Cus I'm definitely Pinkie Pie, except when I'm in trouble, then my parents call me Pinkamena Diane Pie, but my friends all just call me Pinkie Pie. So I just gotta know, am I that Pinkie Pie?"
"You know..." I said with a thoughtful nod, "I think you are. Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Pie."
And then I walked past her, just like Cranky had done.
Oh yeah, I went there.
I didn't laugh, though it took all of my willpower to hold it in. I could actually see the tree library from here, now that I was looking. I started heading towards it, knowing deep down that Pinkie wasn't going to let me pass. I was going to become her friend, whether I wanted to or not.
She suddenly appeared in front of me with a huge smile, and let me know, "It's a pleasure to meet you, too, Sprightly, but you can just call me Pinkie, 'cus that's what all my friends call me! Say, you look like you're looking for friends in town! Can I be the first friend you've found, Sprightly? Pleeeease?"
Cue the puppy-dog eyes. GAWD, with those puppy-dog eyes! Was I still smiling? Yeah, probably, if how much my face already hurt from smiling too wide was any indication. I couldn't avoid it any longer. I just had to say it. Even so, I tried to maintain as much dignity as I could while I did.
"Yeah, sure thing, Pinkie. I'd love to be your friend."
She cheered. I cheered. Heck, random passersby cheered! All in all, not a bad way to start meeting the Elements of Harmony in Ponyville, if I do say so myself. One down, five to go.
"It's been nice meeting you, Pinkie," I said with that same overly enthusiastic smile, trying to get it under control before my facial muscles strained. "Thanks for becoming my first friend in Ponyville. I'm headed to the library to get some research done, so unless you're free, I guess I'll see you later."
"Research? That sounds like Twilight's kind of thing. She's the librarian in town, and the smartest pony I know. If anyone can help you find out what you need to know, it's her. She was at the library when I left, so you should have a chance to talk to her if you hurry. I don't know what else she was planning to do today, but she always has something scheduled, so you might want to get there fast. What are you researching, anyway?"
You know, I expected to have a minute BEFORE getting into the library to confirm what I wanted to know about. A dozen thoughts raced through my mind before one singular idea took the cake. Why not kill two birds with one stone, finding out about the humans hiding in the Everfree? If I had to meet them later anyway, maybe I could figure out what they were like.
"I'm going in to research the species Homo Sapiens, or humans," I said. Pinkie froze. "I've heard rumors that a group of them lives pretty close to this village, somewhere in the Everfree forest. I was hoping to go over everything I already knew, and to maybe learn some more at the library before heading out there to try to meet one. Think I'll have any luck?"
"Maybe..." Pinkie said slowly, "...but if you're thinking about going into the Everfree forest alone, I don't think that's such a good idea. Maybe you should get yourself a guide? I know all the ponies in Ponyville, but the best one to help you find your way out there would probably be... Lyra." Pinkie finished with a nod. "Lyra Heartstrings."
Of course it'd be Lyra, I thought, chuckling inwardly. Who else is always portrayed as the expert on humans? "Sounds like a plan. I'll try to find her after I speak with Twilight. Wish me luck!"
Pinkie did, and then raced off towards the train station. I turned back towards Twilight's Library, and gathered my thoughts. I'm here from Baltimare, researching humans. I've heard rumors that they live in the Everfree. According to Pinkie, who's my new best friend, Lyra's the one I'm going to want to talk to if I want to try to find them. By the end of the day, I want to try to become friends with all of the Elements of Harmony, and then to meet them again as my human self to try to surprise them. I nodded to myself, ignored a few odd looks I was getting from ponies passing by, and started towards the library.
"SPIIIIIIIIIIIKE!" Twilight's voice pierced the air.
I halted halfway through the library's door, hesitant to interrupt Twilight midway through something important. She bolted from one side of the library to the other, looking frantically at different books on the shelves as she did, tossing some of them onto the floor behind her. Rainbow Dash sat on the staircase with a book in one hoof, apparently unperturbed. As Spike jogged down the stairs, she leaned to one side out of his way, not bothering to look away from the page she was on.
"What is it, Twilight?" Spike asked, still jogging towards her. He spied me in the doorway, and waved me inside without stopping. "We'll be with you in a minute," he assured me with an apologetic smile. Twilight didn't notice, too intent on her search.
I finished entering the library, closing the door behind me. The library itself was much smaller than I had expected; there were only maybe a dozen or so full-sized shelves and half that in half sized shelves, with books of various color and size filling most of them. I was used to libraries being the size of grocery stores, with books stacked to the ceiling. Of course, the room might have seemed larger if books weren't strewn haphazardly across the floor, cluttering everything. I shook my head and walked to the center of the room where a circular table sat, a wooden pony head attempting to look regal as the centerpiece. Again, the appearance might have been improved if not for the book it was currently wearing as a hat. I reached up with one hoof, and pulled the book down onto the table in front of me, only half-hearing Twilight yelling at Spike without telling him which book she wanted.
The book I'd pulled seemed illegible, at first glance, but it didn't take me too long to realize that I had it upside down and was looking at the back cover. I flipped it over and read the title: Vladik the Remorseless, by Portman the 2nd. I shook my head, sliding it away. It's probably some adventure novel, or tragedy, or something.
I looked back towards Twilight just in time to catch a face full of book. Surprisingly, it hadn't hurt; the impact had felt like a light knock on my forehead, but nothing more. I expected the book to fall to the ground, but it stayed on my face, apparently stuck. Hmm. I reached up with my hoof and pulled at it with my invisible fingers, but it was stuck firmly to my forehead. It took me a moment to realize that it had caught on my horn, which had speared the book. I leaned my head down to get a better grip, and finally dragged the book off of my horn. When I brought my head back up, Twilight was standing in front of me, concern written cleanly across her face.
"I'm sorry, I was so busy looking for my books that I didn't see you come in. I didn't hurt you, did I?" She asked.
"Nah. Barely felt a thing. Sorry about the book, though; I didn't mean to spear it." I held the book up in front of me, and looked at her through the hole my horn had made. "This isn't the one you were looking for, is it?"
"No, it's not. You're sure you aren't hurt?" Twilight questioned. I shook my head, setting the book down next to the one I had already looked at. "That's good," she continued. "Well, I can find what I'm looking for a bit later. How can we help you, Mr...?"
"Sprightly. I'm just looking to go over any new information you might have for me on humans before heading-"
"Humans?" Rainbow Dash interrupted warily, finally taking notice of me. "What do you want to know about humans?"
"Uh, I'd heard rumors that some of them might be nearby, in the Everfree forest. I just wanted to go over them before trying to go meet one."
Rainbow laughed derisively, folding back the corner of the page she was on and closing her book. "Right. Because the Everfree is sooo safe to travel through alone, even if you weren't out hunting for monsters. What, did you want to go out to dragon territory next, maybe meet a couple of hydras while you were at it?"
"Hey, I resent that!" I faced her. "I can handle myself, and for your information, I was recommended Lyra as a guide already, so I'm not going alone."
"Your funeral," Rainbow said skeptically, standing up. "Hey, I'll see you later, Twi. I've got book five, alright?"
Without waiting for her answer, Rainbow Dash jumped off of the stairs and glided to the door, book in hoof. She opened it and disappeared from sight before I could say another word, leaving the door ajar. I watched regretfully as she left. Well, I'm one for two so far. Could have been worse, I thought, I might have had a chance to lie to her about who I am and why I'm here, too.
Twilight shook her head at her friend's behavior. "Don't mind her, she's just..." Twilight brought up a hoof, moving it in a circle as she thought. "...distracted." She finished lamely. Spike walked over and closed the front door.
"That's... fine." I said with a sigh. I'd catch up with her later. "Twi, she called you? I just wanted to check over anything you might have relating to humans, but you seem pretty busy. If you want, I can go."
Twilight shook her head. "I may be busy, but I always schedule time aside for anyone trying to learn something new. I am the librarian, after all. So, how did we want to go about this? Do you have a good starting point or do you need a full overview on humans?" She turned away, her attention shifting back to the shelves. "I know we have a book around here somewhere on the first human contact, and plenty of articles on behaviors and meetings over the years." She started pulling more books off the shelves, looking through the titles. "You're not the first to try to find out more about them since I moved here from Canterlot. They've become a more popular subject lately."
Spike shook his head and then started gathering books off of the floor to re-shelve. I couldn't be sure, but he seemed annoyed. It probably wasn't the first time he'd had to pick up after Twilight's research today, and judging by how things were moving, it wouldn't be the last. I stepped up next to Twilight as she looked through her selection. She looked over the levitating books one at a time, checking each over. Finally, her face lit up, and she dropped all but one of the books out of her magic hold and onto the ground, where Spike began scooping them up.
"Here's one! Rare Magical Creatures and Their Rare Behaviors! This ought to be a good place to start. So, how long have you been trying to find out more about the Homo Sapiens? How much do you already know?" Twilight asked, sitting on a cushion in the middle of the floor.
I sat down next to her on another conveniently placed cushion, and tried to think back as she flipped through the pages. Call it... ten, maybe fifteen minutes ago I decided to learn more about my own species? "I haven't been trying to find out more for very long, but I know a lot about them that I've picked up over time. I'm actually pretty close to an expert in the field, now that I think about it. Anyhow, I just want to brush up on how to meet one at this point."
Twilight stopped flipping through the book and ended up on a page with a full-sized picture of a human, which looked a lot like Da Vinci's sketch of a man in a circle and square. She looked up into the distance, tapping a hoof against her chin. "Hmm... Meeting a human? Well, I can tell you that it's always kind of... different. And most humans are pretty different, too. Some of them can be really nice, or even too nice. Does that make sense?" She asked. After I nodded, she continued, "Then there are the humans that you may have read about, that you don't want to meet. From everything I've studied, humans can get a little crazy from time to time, but that's normal enough. Other humans, though, are crazy all the time, and they take it to a whole new level. If you think you see one of those, just turn around and try to outrun them to the nearest town. They aren't very fast, but... they can chase you for a long time."
I nodded again. "Is that why Rainbow Dash got so upset when I said I was researching them?"
Twilight bit her lip. "Yeah... she probably heard those bad stories. Some of them can be really scary."
I nodded somberly. "Ok. Well, how would I know a crazy human from a nice one?"
Twilight laughed. "I don't think you should worry about seeing any crazy humans, if you see any humans at all."
"If you say so. Anyhow, I've heard humans can look really... what's the word... different? Do you know what I'm talking about?"
Twilight nodded furiously, and turned the page in the book. On the left page were words, but on the right was a detailed picture of... someone's arm hair? "Look," she said, pointing to it. "Most humans look normal enough, if as different from each other as dragons, but some look like this. Isn't it fascinating? It's like looking through a microscope, except you don't have to! A human like this looks normal enough, until you keep looking at it. The closer you are, the more detail you can make out. No matter how close you get, you just see more and more details." Twilight lifted the book to my face, but I had already seen the 'details' she was referring to. "If you see a human like this, try not to stare," she told me, putting the book back down. "It's not polite."
"If you say so. So, they're nice and sometimes crazy, can run for a long time, and can be really detailed but sometimes aren't. That's one way of putting it, I guess. So, when have you met humans before? Were they nice or crazy?"
Twilight looked at me quickly, then away. "What gave you that impression? I only said I studied them."
I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed when it comes to understanding others, but it doesn't take a genius to see a pattern. What happened before between the girls and humans? "I don't know, it's just that you seem to know a lot more than the book says. It sounds like you're talking from personal experience." Twilight's ears fell against her head. "I half expect you to tell me they average at around five and a half feet tall or something."
Twilight gave me a funny look. "Five and a half feet? What kind of measurement is that?"
"That's a, uh, human kind of measurement," I told her. "I read about it."
Twilight flipped the page back and pointed to the caption under the Da Vinci portrait. "It says here that they average between one and a half and two meters tall. You'd be surprised what kind of details you can find by reading. For example, did you know some humans have been reported to be able to kill by staring hard enough at you?" she asked, tapping the words. She gave me a clearly forced grin, and waited. I shrugged, and she moved her hoof out of the way as I closed the book. I could ask her about it later.
"Well, I've done enough research of my own to figure out the rest. As I told Rainbow Dash, I'm going to try to find Lyra and get her to show me around the Everfree. Thanks for taking some time to talk to me about humans, Ms. Sparkle. Maybe I'll have a chance to talk to you again sometime."
Spike turned to us suddenly, book in claw. "What? Ms. Sparkle? Who calls Twilight Ms. Sparkle? And now that I'm thinking about it, when did you meet Rainbow Dash?" Spike asked accusingly.
I smiled a little bit, having thought of this, and used the strongest bit of deception at my disposal: the truth.
"Ah, you caught me," I said, standing up. "I already met Pinkie Pie on my way into town, but I haven't met Applejack, Rarity or Fluttershy yet. To be honest, I thought I'd take the opportunity to meet the famous Elements of Harmony while I was in town. After all, it's not every day that you have a chance to meet the saviors of Equestria twice over, now is it?"
Twilight blushed crimson, and levitated the book back onto the shelf. Spike, meanwhile, just shook his head and got back to putting books away. "Do you really think we're famous?" Twilight asked, curious.
"Sure. Heck, you've got your cutie marks immortalized on stained glass windows in the royal hall. They're kind of hard to miss. Plus, you're Princess Celestia's personal student. That's gotta count for something."
Twilight's face got even more red, so she turned away from me to help Spike put the books she'd tossed around back onto their shelves. "I hadn't thought of it that way. Thanks, I guess," she told me. I shook my head, glad it had worked. If I hadn't already thought of that, I'd have probably blown my cover. I made my way over to the door, not eager to trap myself trying to figure out what might actually make a pony famous, if Twilight wasn't really well known. I'd probably have enough time to talk it over with her tonight, when I was done pretending to be a pony.
"One last question: I don't really want to seem like a fan-boy or anything, so could you wait before telling your friends that I want to meet them? I don't want them to treat me any differently because I think they're cool."
Twilight chuckled. "If you had told Rainbow Dash that, she might have been a little more willing to hear you out. I'm not in any hurry. If they don't figure it out, I'll tell them later tonight. How's that?"
I grinned. "Perfect! Thanks again, Ms. Sparkle, for everything. You're awesome!"
Twilight shook her head, smiling. "Twilight is fine. Good luck with your research, Sprightly."
"And you with yours, Twilight. Whatever it was on."
"Oh, right! My research!" Twilight said with a gasp. "Spike, where's that book?"
"What book?"
I closed the door as Twilight went back into her little frenzy, continuing where she had left off. I couldn't be certain, but I was pretty sure that she counted as a friend. I was halfway through the list, and there was plenty of time left in the day. Next up was the marketplace, which should be between me and the Carousel Boutique.
I've got a certain apple salespony to bother.
The market wasn't too crowded when I arrived, and a only a few ponies were traveling between stalls deciding what they wanted to cook for dinner. The asparagus stand was nearly sold out, and the carrot stand was already closing down, the SOLD OUT sign clearly displayed on the counter. Whereas some of the stalls were still suitably packed, none had so much stock left as the Apples' stand. Applejack pushed a thick, wooden empty bucket behind her cart to join a number of others, betraying just how many apples she had managed to sell that day. She dragged out another bucket filled to the brim with bright red apples, placing it precisely where she had pulled the empty one from. She tilted her trademark Stetson back, and set her feet in front of her display.
"Fresh apples, picked just this week! Finest apples in Ponyville! Get yer apples here!" Applejack yelled, getting the attention of some ponies buying other fruit. "Yeh know yeh'll need ta keep yerself healthy, and eatin' apples 'll help plenty with that! An apple a day keeps the doctor away, after all!"
I smiled, ready to approach, when my stomach rumbled slightly. Maybe I'll buy an apple from her after all, I thought, then reached for my wallet. Which, of course, wouldn't have bits in it, even if I still had it on me. I frowned slightly as Applejack spotted me, and waved me over.
"Come on," she called, "Yeh know yeh want ta try one!"
I grimaced, and walked over. She caught it, and shook her head, raising a hoof to stop me. "Nope. If yeh don't want to buy an apple, I'll not force yeh. Yeh-"
"What?" I asked, cutting her off. "No, it's not that. I just realized that I don't have any bits on me. I think I'll have to come back later, when I can actually buy one from you." Of course, I'll have to figure out how precisely I'll be getting bits, but still...
"Is that right?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "Yeh came to the market and yeh don't have a bit to yer name?"
I bit my lip and looked down for a moment. This was going just swimmingly. When I brought my head back up, she was still looked pretty unconvinced, her eyebrow still holding pretty high. I had a feeling, a primal feeling, that it'd be pretty difficult to lie to her in any regard.
No, seriously, I actually felt in the pit of my gut that lying was going to fail me here. How to describe it? It was like I knew I'd still be able to lie, and that I might even be able to get away with it, but that everyone I'd ever known would be disappointed in me if I did. It wasn't that I thought she'd be able to figure me out, because I'm not a terrible liar, but that it'd be wrong. I'd be a terrible person if I lied to her.
Then something else forced itself to the forefront of my mind: She's the element of Honesty. Her element might be manipulating me, right now. And just like that, I forced the feelings of shame away. I drew myself in, and I smiled at her. I wasn't going to lie to her, but I was going to tell the truth on my own terms. I wasn't going to let myself be manipulated, especially not through my feelings.
"Yeah, that's right." I told her, and she furrowed her brows. "I'm completely broke; I don't have a bit to my name. I wanted to come out here to buy an apple from you, Applejack, but I actually forgot to bring any money with me to do so. I'm here because you're an Element of Harmony, and I think you're awesome." I'm also a human in disguise, and no matter what you say or do, I'm not going to admit that to you.
The feeling that I was lying came back, and I quashed it. It'd been true enough.
Applejack chuckled, shaking her head. She took an apple from the basket she'd pulled out, and shoved it into my mouth. My eyes widened in surprise, and the flavor of the apple practically exploded in my mouth. It was the single best Red Delicious apple I'd ever eaten, and after I chewed a few times, I swallowed and took a great breath, already wishing I'd brought bits for another.
"That... was good." I stated simply, trying to concentrate on the flavor I'd just tasted. It had passed almost too quickly, and I'd missed out on enjoying it. Good was a bit of an understatement.
"Glad ta hear it, neighbor." She said, tipping her hat. "So, what's this about me bein' an Element of Harmony? That's not exactly somethin' I'd say comes up too often around here."
"I'm coming in from Canterlot, and I wanted to meet you and the other Elements. You've helped turn Nightmare Moon back into Luna, made a huge splash at the Grand Galloping Gala, and helped bring down Discord, plus a whole bunch of other stuff. I just wanted to say I'm a huge fan, and that I'm thankful for everything you represent."
Applejack chuckled again, and shook her head. "Ah shucks, that's awful kind of yeh to say and all, but I don't do all that much. I'm just an apple farmer who likes to help her friends out, when they need a hoof."
"Heh. Well, that's very modest of you, but you do a lot more than you seem to think. You know, I'd heard you even-"
"AJ!" Rainbow Dash yelled, swooping down to land in front of her. "Hey, did you hear from the Princess ye-"
She stopped, recognizing me. "What are you doing here?" She asked pointedly, glaring daggers at me.
"Just talking to your friend, Ms. Dash. Why, is something wrong?" I asked, trying to ignore her accusing look.
"Nothing you need to worry about." She said offhandedly, flicking her tail and turning back to Applejack, who merely took in the scene, bemused.
"In that case, I guess I'll talk to you later then, Applejack." I told her, swallowing my frustration. "Thank you very much for the apple." I turned to go, but got in a few words more, saying "Good luck with whatever the Princess wanted to bother you about. Be safe!"
Half a backward glance as I walked off showed that Rainbow Dash was still glaring at me, and she flicked her tail again. Why was she so mad at me? As I pulled away, I heard Applejack start to scold her friend about something or other, more likely than not having something to do with me. What precisely had I done to get her so pissed off, anyhow? I mean, I hadn't even talked to her yet, not really. So what was wrong?
I kept walking, heading towards Rarity's Carousel Boutique, trying to think over what I'd gotten so far: First of all, there was a village of people in the Everfree Forest. Despite that, people aren't exactly talked about too often here, even though Twilight clearly knew what they were. She didn't want to talk about having met them before, and Rainbow Dash had started hating me the moment I had even mentioned them. Even Pinkie Pie had seemed a little less jubilant when I had brought them up. So what was it? What had I missed along the way? Lyra seemed to be the human expert, so I guessed I'd probably just have to ask her.
A stray thought went back to the dungeon I'd been in, and I tried to remember it as I walked along. Why would I be thinking of that? Luna tried invading my mind, but... I'd kept her out. Completely. So why was I trying to think of that? The whole thing was fuzzy, especially before Celestia had put my head back together. What had I been trying to think of?
I stopped, and realized I had walked strait past the Boutique, lost in thought. Thankfully I'd found it at all, having not really watched where I was going. I shook my head clear of my thoughts, and jogged over on all fours. I stopped in front of the door, and got back into the mindset of meeting the Elements of Harmony. I wasn't going to be distracted from this! So, What do I have to talk to Rarity about?
...
Um...
"Huh. I just realized I have no reason to be here," I mused aloud, staring at the door.
"Is that right?" A feminine voice asked me from behind, and I jumped, turning to see Rarity surrounded by bags faintly glowing blue. She was wearing a rather flamboyant pink hat with a feather in it, and I was currently in her way. "If that's the case, could you be so kind as to get the door?"
"Oh, of course!" I said, grabbing the door handle to find that the door opened inwards. I stepped into Rarity's shop and out of her way, and she floated the bags in past me. She trotted gaily through, dropping her bags of cloth, feathers and other various goods onto a table as she did. I stood by the door and watched, still trying to think of something to say, as she dropped her hat onto a mannequin and checked herself over in a 3-way mirror. She spied me through one of the mirrors, and said, "Close the door and come inside. I'll be with you in just a moment."
I followed her instructions and entered the shop as she telekinetically grabbed the bags she had brought in with her and took them around a corner in the back of the shop. I heard her climb a staircase and open a door in the otherwise quiet shop, and took the opportunity to look around.
Various dresses were on display on several pony-shaped mannequins around the shop, which was decorated just as ornately as it had been in the show. Just to the right of the entrance was a door left slightly ajar. A quick peek through revealed it to be Rarity's kitchen. Leaving that alone, I walked over to observe a workstation in an alcove in the corner of the shop, where pins held together a particularly complicated-looking white wedding dress, half completed. On a nearby table lay a square piece of cloth with various colors of diamonds laying on top of it in the form of some kind of flower. All in all, the entire shop, this display especially, reminded me of my own complete lack of fashion. Ignoring my goal of meeting each of the Elements of Harmony, I had absolutely no reason to be here.
"Do you like it?" Rarity asked a few inches from my ear. I jumped to the side and faced her, heart racing. She looked surprised that she had surprised me, her eyes wide. "Oh, I'm quite sorry. I didn't mean to startle you, sir. I was just wondering if you liked my dress design."
"It's beautiful." I said simply, still trying to get my heart to slow down. That was twice she'd snuck up on me, pretty much effortlessly, and I felt I still needed a moment to catch my breath.
"Thank you. I must say, I've never seen an ensemble like the one you're wearing," Rarity said, and began to circle me to see it from other angles. "Where did you get it? It's got a certain... utility that you just don't see in day to day wear. Is that fashionable where you come from nowadays?" Rarity asked me, critically looking at the pockets over my flank.
"Oh, this? Truth be told, I'd forgotten that I was wearing it. Actually, Celestia gave it to me."
"WHAT?!?" Rarity shouted, eyes the size of dinner plates. "Celestia? As in, the Celestia? To you, personally?" Suddenly Rarity's gaze became critical, and I felt like cringing away from her intense gaze. She walked ever so slowly around me, never blinking, as she looked over my outfit a second time.
"Uh... yeah... Celestia made it. Are... you OK?" I asked, uneasy.
"I don't know what to say." She admitted, finally walking to stand in front of me. "I've honestly never seen a Celestia original like this before. It's obviously custom fitted, detailed with numerous pockets for various tools, and streamlined for running, and yet must breath pretty well for how comfortably you wear it. It's a masterpiece!" She finished with near reverence, unable to take her eyes off of my outfit.
"Um... would you like it?" I asked. She gasped, her eyes wide again as she looked into mine. "I mean, it's obviously worth a lot more to you than it is to me."
"Parish the thought!" She told me. "Celestia made that for you personally. I wouldn't take that away from you even if it is..." her gaze fell to it again, "...one of the most valuable and fashionable things to have ever entered my shop..."
She was staring again. I waved at her, and she broke out of her trance. Suddenly she did a double take, and put a hoof to her chest. "My word, how rude of me! I haven't introduced myself, or welcomed you yet! Well, better late than never. Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chic, unique, and magnifique. My name is Rarity. How can I be of service to you today, Mr...?"
"Downfall. Sprightly Downfall. You know, I thought I didn't have a reason to come into your shop, but obviously I was mistaken. Seeing as you're so taken with my outfit, how would you like to keep it and turn it into a new fashion statement, or something like that?"
"Ooooh... but I can't!" Rarity whined. "As much as I might want to, I can't take that outfit off your hooves, Mr. Sprightly. That was a gift from Celestia herself, and I'm not the kind to take something like that from another, no matter how much I might want to. It's very generous of you to offer, but..." She sighed heavily, deflating somewhat, "I'm afraid I must decline. But..." she said, gaining some of her confidence back, "If you'd like to stay a while, I can take your measurements and give you something as a thank you for the nice thought."
I shook my head with a chuckle. "You know, you're even more generous that I imagined you to be, Ms. Rarity. I suppose you don't become the Element of Generosity by being anything but, though."
"Element of Generosity?" Rarity asked, confused, "What has that got to do with anything?"
"Well, so long as the cat's out of the bag, I figure I might as well tell you why I was hanging around outside your shop when you got here." Rarity looked at me oddly, but waited for me to continue. "I came to Ponyville from Canterlot today to meet you, and the other five Elements of Harmony. Honestly, I'm surprised you aren't more famous for saving Equestria twice over."
Rarity smiled and shook her head. "Oh, it's not all that."
"No, I'm serious. You've put your life on the line to protect Equestria, selflessly. And here I come to find you're not just the bearer of an Element, but the full embodiment of it! I come in here, not even sure what to say, and not a few minutes later you're offering to make me an outfit just because I was polite? Seriously, you're one of the nicest people I've ever met. Ever."
"Oh, stop it!" Rarity said cheerfully. "Sprightly, you're too kind. But you say you've heard of me because I'm an Element of Harmony?"
"Yeah. You six are my heroes. I've already met five of you, yourself included, and so far you've all pretty much been way more awesome than I expected, even after finding out why I sought you out personally. I wasn't sure you'd be willing to talk to some random guy like me."
Rarity thought on that for a moment. "Not willing to talk- OH! You said that you were from Canterlot. Yes, I do remember how high and mighty the elite of Canterlot could be. Don't worry, the ponies here are considerably more approachable. You've met four of my friends, you say? Who, pray tell, have you spoken to?"
It seemed an honest enough question, more curiosity than anything. "Everyone but Fluttershy. I saw Pinkie Pie on my way into town, met Twilight and saw Rainbow Dash in the library, and had a quick word with Applejack in the market. Truth be told, I have no idea where Fluttershy is, or if she'd be OK talking to me. I know she can be really shy."
Rarity nodded. "Well, when you've finished talking to her, did you want to come by to talk some more? Even if you were just here because I'm..." she took half a breath, "somewhat famous in Canterlot, I must say, you do seem like an interesting fellow. Perhaps tea, or something?"
Whoa, what? Rarity actually wanted to talk to me? "Did you want to get another chance to look over my outfit, or something, maybe to copy the design?"
"Huh? No, though I do admit I admire it. It's specially made for you, and it has value in how unique a set it is. Kind as your offer is, I must still decline. Perhaps we could talk about Canterlot, or more about my time as an Element or some such. You've come this far, and I wouldn't want you to feel as though you'd wasted your time."
Dude, generous much?
...Oh, yeah. That.
"Rarity, I wouldn't want to impose on you after-"
"Then it's settled. Though I've other plans with friends this evening, I'd love to talk further with you some other time. Drop by some time this week, and we can discuss it further." She began pushing me towards the door. "As for now, I've got to get back to finishing this dress before the client needs it." A flash of blue magic later, and the door stood open. "I'll talk to you then, Mr. Sprightly," She said, pushing me gently outside. "Ta ta for now!"
Rarity closed the door lightly behind me, and I heard her humming slightly.
What just happened?
I started walking South, towards the general vicinity of where Fluttershy's cabin should have been, and tried to figure out what, precisely, had just happened.
In short, I had absolutely no idea.
Finally I saw Fluttershy's cottage in the distance. Dispite what the show had portrayed, it's WAY farther from Ponyville than you might think. To make a long story short, exit Ponyville to the south (with Canterlot being your "North Star") and walk at least a mile. Seriously, I know she's a recluse and all, but why is she far enough from Ponyville to make the town seem somewhat small in the distance? At least the school, which was on the way, was reasonably close, but Fluttershy is definitely not in town. She's not really even on the outskirts of town. That being said, her cottage and meadow were something else.
I call it Fluttershy's meadow because it's not precisely as shown in the show. Even from the front, I could see the huge enclosure behind her cottage, and when I say huge I mean it. It had to be at least twice the size of her house, bare minimum, and that's when you toss out the fact that she's got a huge pond a stone's throw from her backyard. The cottage itself was downright impressive, with birds occasionally flitting in and out of open windows placed liberally around the first and second floor. It stood on a slight hill, lording over the surroundings even as it welcomed life and all manner of animals. Oh, and the entire roof was growing with grass. Real freaking grass! That's not even mentioning the flowers the place was surrounded with.
And the animals' homes! Even from the front, I knew the number of them was going to be overwhelming. She had six bird houses on her roof and hanging from her windows alone, as well as several feeders hanging in her yard. The trees nearly connecting her to what I presumed was the Everfree Forest had more bird houses hanging from them, and various feeders were placed around them as well. That wasn't even mentioning the number I knew were behind her home, where I couldn't see them.
As I approached, I noticed a pair of otters watching me from the stream running past the front of Fluttershy's home. One of them quickly swam off towards the pond behind the house as I crossed the bridge over the otters' home, and quickly disappeared from sight. Continuing on, I walked up and knocked on Fluttershy's door.
Some time passed, and eventually a small, angry looking white bunny bounded out from behind the cottage. He regarded me from a distance coolly, then approached slowly, as if preparing to stand his ground. He narrowed his eyes at me, and waited.
"Good afternoon," I told the bunny, seriously expecting it to understand me. "I'm looking for Fluttershy. Do you know where she went?"
The bunny, who I assumed was Angel, turned and bolted away, back around the cottage and out of sight. Well, that was helpful, I thought sarcastically. With no idea where else to look for her, I carefully sat on my haunches in the grass outside Fluttershy's home, and waited, watching the forest.
It wasn't long before I spotted a mint green unicorn with a white stripe in her slightly lighter mane and tail slowly exiting the Everfree Forest. A golden harp emblazoned on her flanks revealed rather pointedly that this was to be my guide. She looked both ways, then slowly slunk away from the treeline, back towards the village. Huh. Why wasn't she taking any beaten path through the forest?
"LYRA!!!" I shouted, causing her to jump into the air. "OVER HERE!"
I smiled, stood up tall and waved to her with both my arms, balancing slightly oddly on my back legs. Half a moment later, I realized why and lowered myself to the ground again. Lyra began galloping over, and if her face was any indication then she didn't know what to make of me. As she got closer she slowed down, trying to take me in. I couldn't imagine what might have been going through her head, other than, who's this character?
"Who do you work for?" Lyra asked, setting her feet. "What do you want from me?"
"Woah, what do you mean, 'who do you work for?'" I asked, looking myself over. Oh, right. Tactical gear. "As of right now, nobody. Pinkie Pie just told me you'd be the one to talk to about finding humans in the Everfree Forest. Was she right?"
"Depends." Lyra said bluntly. "Who's asking? What business would you have trying to find humans?"
"The name's Sprightly. I'm researching humans because they're interesting, and because I believe they'll have plenty to do with my future. So how about it? Can you help me out here, or am I heading into the Everfree Forest alone?"
"Seriously?" Lyra asked, stunned at the idea, "You'd go in alone? Do you even know where you'd be going?"
"Truth be told, I don't have a clue," I admitted. "All I know is that somewhere in there are humans, and I need to find them. One way or another, that's what I'm going to do. What about you? You're traveling alone, and you seem to be doing well enough."
"That's because I live around here! I go into the Everfree Forest all the time. It doesn't mean it's safe; if you don't know where you're going, then you might get hurt, or worse! There are Manticores, Timberwolves, Basilisks and all kinds of other monsters out there!"
"That's why I was going to try to come find you," I responded, "but that doesn't mean I won't go in alone. Like I said, one way or another I need to find the humans before tonight. I'm kind of working against a deadline. Either you lead me, or I'm going it alone," I finished, putting my hoof down. The last thing I want is to miss my own welcome party back in Ponyville because I got lost in the woods.
Lyra's expression jumped back and forth between frustrated and concerned until she finally said, "Fine! Let's go. Just don't fall behind. You're not the only one who needs to hurry today; I've got a job to do that I do not want to be late for."
She hunched down slightly, and rather obviously looked around again. There wasn't another soul in sight, so she nodded to me and turned to re-enter the forest. As we took our first steps and entered the underbrush, the daylight seemed to fade. A whisper of wind sent a chill up my spine, even through my thick clothing and fur. Without another word, Lyra led on, into the the darkened branches of the Everfree Forest.