The vision of a strange world comes into light. In the eerie scene of a dark forest, the trees dark and partially broken. A dark temple stands in the eerie mist with it’s stone bricks cemented together covered with moss and vines. The gate, which was once standing, had rusted. The bolts had snapped and the door lay on the cold stone floor. The surrounding area creeped of crickets and a low growl every now and again, was broken by shouting.
“Come on, girls,” said the leader of the group, “Angel says it’s this way.”
The language resembled English, but the creatures were strange. The bodies looked equine in origin, but they were rounder and thicker. The heads had large eyes with large pupils. The leader was a lavender color and had a horn sticking out of the top of its forehead. It was following a white rabbit.
More came out from the fog. Another horned one came along, this one was white with a purple mane. Two were more like the Earth’s equines, though one was pink and the other orange. Then above them came a winged one, gliding above the rest. This one had a multicolored mane, like a rainbow.
“What is this place?” Asked the orange one.
“I don’t know,” replied the lavender one, while it stared at the ruins.
The rabbit scurried to the temple, leading the way through the fallen gate. The five equine creatures stopped at the steps of the structure, fearing its dark essence. The group stepped forward, trying to understand where the rabbit was leading them.
“What can this place be?” Asked the white one.
“Who built it?” the orange one asked.
“Not one more step, Twilight Sparkle!” Shouted a voice from the heavens. Just then, a black chariot emerged from the skies and, behold, a sixth equine creature. This one was as dark as the night sky, with a flowing mane made of darkness and stars. It was larger than the rest. The creature had both wings and a horn and wore an amulet and a tiara, both as black as the void. The chariot was of a dark purple color and was pulled through the air by two more equines. These equines with bat like wings rather than the feathered wings of the rainbow maned one.
The larger one leaped from her chariot while still in mid-air and glided down into the sight of the others. “What is your purpose here?”
“Princess Luna!” Shouted the orange one as the group lowered their heads to the ground in respect. “Fluttershy’s gone missing!” She spoke in a southern United States drawl.
“Angel lead us to this temple, but we don’t know what he wants,” interrupted the rainbow one, “but we were sure it had to do with Fluttershy.”
“Does thou not know what this temple is?”
The group looked at each other. None had the slightest clue.
“This is a most dangerous temple,” the Princess walked slowly towards them. “This is the temple of the Moonstone.” The group shook in their hooves.
“Moonstone?” Asked the lavender one, “I studied many books on ancient temples, but I never heard of the Moonstone Temple.”
“That is because it predates us and our sister.” The princess explained, “In the creation of our planet, by our father and the other titans, came an anomaly which created portals to other worlds.”
“Other worlds?” remarked the lavender one. “What are they like?”
“This stone here sends the pony into a world run by hairless apes bent on dominating one another. We felt a large being pass through. It was larger than the rodents which usually pass through. We came here to investigate.”
“You mean…” The white one asked frantically, “our dear Fluttershy is trapped in that strange world?”
“We are afraid so.”
With a gasp, the white equine took her hoof to her head and fell back. The others were in as much surprise as her, yet didn’t react the same way.
“We have to go get her back!” Yelled the rainbow equine.
“Unfortunately the Moonstone activates only on a full moon in both worlds,” Explained the princess.
“A full moon? That’s in a month from now.” The lavender one was saddened by the words of their princess.
“Can’t you make it come by faster?” Asked the rainbow one.
“We apologize, but it cannot be done. The moons of the worlds must align for the full effect of the Moonstone.” The princess responded.
The group looked into the temple. The rabbit held its paw to the stone, it’s face a mask of guilt.
“Fortunately, we can peer through to find the ones who passed through,” she said with a calming smile.
“It’s been two days,” the orange one asked in a low voice, “do you think she’s alright?”
“We’re sure of it. The apes were calm and receptive on the last trek into the other world.”
“So, do they care if we look different?” Asked the lavender one.
“The stone transforms the pony to one of the apes. It transforms foreign objects into their equivalent in the other world. We would say Fluttershy appeared to be look similar one of them.
The six equines entered the temple, wondering of what had become of their friend.
_______________________________________________________________________________
“Welcome to Marian’s Clothing. How may we help you?” The sales representative called out at the door, feigning a smile as most do.. Fluttershy, or Mary Posa in public as Fluttershy and John agreed to, was frightened by the woman’s sudden call.
The store was average-sized for a department store. The store was divided in half by gender and then again by age groups. It was a simple setup for a simple town.
John looked at the sales rep and back again at Fluttershy, who was now gripping his arm in a defensive manner. “Yeah, we need to get some…” He paused for a moment, rubbing the back of his head with his free hand. He muttered the next word under his breath.
“I’m sorry,” said the sales rep. “I didn’t catch that.”
“Women’s Underwear.” He whispered.
Nobody knows what possessed the sales representative to shout into the air ‘lingerie is in the back to the left of the store!’ The other shoppers turned to see the Hispanic man standing ahead of the sales representative at the door. They couldn’t see the pink haired woman crouching behind him.
‘If she had said it any louder the people across the street would hear her.’ John thought to himself.
“If you need anything, Martha would assist you.”
“Thanks... We’ll need it.” John rolled his eyes as he walked past her. He headed towards the back, walking slowly to keep Fluttershy close to him as she observed her surroundings. The people around her were glaring, probably because of her unfamiliar hair color. Pink catches the eye very easily.
“Um… Mr. John, are you sure about this?” Fluttershy’s nerves were getting to her. “There are so many of, um, your kind here, looking at me.”
“Calm down Flutter… I mean, Mary,” he corrected himself, not wanting to say the name in public. “Most people here are kind and understanding.” He looked at her smiling to keep her calm. “It’s the asshole children that you have to watch out for,” he said in a grumpy tone.
“I’ve had some experience with children. They can’t be that bad.” Fluttershy retorted with curiosity.
“Trust me, the kids here are like rabid badgers.” John made claws with his hands, showing how aggressive they can get. Fluttershy was at a loss for words at the comparison.
Upon arrival at the back of the store they found one worker who was a woman roughly the same age as John. She took one look at him and frowned.
“Let me guess,” She growled, “you are a cock lover.” She was very forward with her accusations.
With a heavy sigh, John felt he needed to answer. “We went out on one bad date.” he lifted his index finger counting the single date. “Why do you feel the need to pester me every moment we meet, Martha?”
“You waited to ‘till dinner to tell me you weren’t interested, and left me with the bill, Mister ‘I won the lottery’.”
“Who can pass up an offer for a meal? Also, I paid for my part…” He rubbed his forehead trying to let it go. “Anyway, that’s not why I’m here.” He pointed to the woman behind him. “She needs some new, um, underwear.” John couldn’t keep himself from pausing every time he said the word.
Martha stopped and gawked at Fluttershy, analyzing every detail of her in five seconds. “I didn’t know you liked anime characters.” Her sarcastic smirk burned John’s pride.
“No, she’s a friend…” John came to a realization. ‘Crap, I forgot to come up with an explanation.’ The two were staring at him, hoping to hear a story. He came up with the most plausible lie he could think of. “She’s an old friend from California… from high school.” His quivering smile was close to breaking from the pressure.
“I see.” Martha seemed doubtful, she quickly glanced between the newcomer and the man she disliked. “Why does she need underwear?”
He tried to stay calm, hoping he wouldn’t sound like an idiot. “She… lost her luggage on the ride here. She’s wearing loaner clothing, and well she’s not…” He couldn’t finish the sentence. He kept a straight face. ‘No need to draw unnecessary attention’ told himself.
“Oh, you poor dear.” Martha accepted the lie. Rushing towards Fluttershy, she tried to console her. “We should get you some proper clothing.” She then glared at John. “Just as long as he pays for it all.”
John rolled his eyes. “Well, yes.”
“Good, we’ll be back in an hour,” Martha pulled Fluttershy away. The helpless woman reached her arm out to John, beckoning for help.
John didn’t want to believe the lies he had to come up with. Rubbing his head in shame, he pondered how he could make this work. In the meantime, he headed to the men’s section to find some shirts.
In the women's section, the sales representative and Fluttershy made their way through the lingerie section. Martha agreed to help the poor woman, hoping to get some information out on John out of her. Martha asked which underwear Mary preferred, making sure only the most expensive items were what she was interested in. With work Martha got Fluttershy to come out of her defensive shell. They were $15 each as picked by the sales representative.
It wasn’t long until the curiosity of the sales representative came out as she began to wonder about this pink haired woman.
“So… Mary,” she asked, “what’s with the pink hair?”
The woman gave a shy look and quietly answered. “Is it not normal?” Fluttershy tugged on her hair, looking questionably through it. “I’ve had it since I can remember.”
“Well, it’s not something you see every day.”
“Well, where I’m from the colors are very diverse…”
Martha began to wonder why she was so strange. “Oh right, California.” She remembered. Something then ticked in her head. “You say you came from the same High School,” she turned to her. “What was he like?”
Fluttershy was caught in the lie. Her eyes dilated as Sweat began to form her brow as she contemplated what to answer. “Well, um, uh…” her mind was blank.
“I just want to know if he was always an asshole or if there was some good in him at some point of his life.” Martha scoured through the racks for more expensive material.
Fluttershy was confused. She hadn’t known John for more than a day but she had to pretend that she knew him for years. She had to resort to whatever knowledge she had. “He… was nice...”
“Did he ever hit on you?”
“No! Never…” Fluttershy was surprised by the question. Her face turned a bright shade of rose.
Martha felt the awkwardness in the air and chose the next questions carefully. “So was he a…” She made a gesture, resembling two phalluses touching at the tip. Fluttershy did not know what she meant. “Into other males?” Martha elaborated.
Fluttershy’s face turned a darker red. The hairs on the back of her neck rose as a shiver came up. The silence was eerie.
“Was he?”
At that moment, she realized she had an answer to it. “He… he had a girlfriend before. Her name was Lucia, but I think something bad happened to her.” They were words which woke her up this morning, the Lucia which she believed to be someone of importance.
“Lucia?” Martha stopped what she was doing. “Is that her name? You know, I hear my little brother and his friends talk about some woman he killed. I’m not sure what happened. Do you?”
“No, um… he wouldn’t say.” Fluttershy lied.
“Well, he probably has too much to deal with. I mean he’s the only Mexican here that owns a house. That brings some confusion for the townsfolk. Then there are the kids that yell at him when they see him.” She began to mumble to herself, going on with why it must be hard for him. Martha felt a sort of pity for John. “You know Mary; I think I now know how you can stand John. He’s like a three legged puppy who messes up the carpet because he doesn’t know where to go.” Her thoughts went away as she then came to a conclusion. “That doesn’t excuse you for going on a date just for the food.”
Martha looked at the woman. She was strange to her eyes, although that was something to expect from a Californian. Her tense posture was a sign that she was uncomfortable here.
“So, what about you?” Martha asked. “What do you do back home?”
“Well, I tend to the animals.” She spoke softly.
“I love animals.” The glee in Martha’s voice was evident. “What kind of animals?”
The subject calmed Fluttershy. She poked out of her shell. “I tend to any animal that comes to me for help.” This was one subject she had no problem with. “Squirrels, birds, bunnies, ferrets-”
“Do you care for cats?” Martha interrupted.
“Well, a few. My house is not so big, but I get to care for many animals.”
“Your house?” questioned Martha. Her mind went busy as she recalled never hearing of an animal care provider running from their house.
“Well, I live in the outskirts of Ponyville and I have freedom over what business I run in my home.”
Martha thought in confusion, ‘Ponyville?’ She thought heavily for a moment. ‘Oh, that must be what they call the town, crazy Californians.’ She smiled, trying not to seem judgmental over this new face. “So you are a home veterinarian? That must be nice.”
“Oh, it is. I mean, the animals already have a liking to me and are easy to care for when you had experience reading the animal’s feelings. Angel gets grumpy, but it takes a kind heart to teach him what he needs.”
“That’s fascinating.” Martha started to take a liking to this girl. She was different from the other boring town girls there in Dewford. A ping sounded in her head. “Mary, how long will you be staying in town?”
Fluttershy’s face turned to a worried frown. Tapping her index fingers together she gave her most honest answer. “Well, I am actually stuck here; I don’t know when I’ll be going back. I don’t know how long it would take for me to see my animals again.” Her eyes began to water. “I don’t even know when my friends would realize I am gone. Or if they are as worried as I am.” She fell to her knees and covered her face, sobbing.
‘Her friends don’t even know that she’s gone?’ thought Martha. She pieced the fragments together and only one conclusion came. ‘She must be in Witness Protection.’ She had to do something. A crying customer would be bad for business. “Calm down,” Martha hoped a pat on her shoulder would help. “I’m sure your friends are worried, but it’s your safety that matters.”
The crying woman glanced upwards.
“Besides, you have John. He is here to help.” Something about saying that made her feel a cheeks tingle.
Fluttershy smiled as her crying slowly ceased. “Thank you. John did take me in when no one else did.”
“He is a nice guy when he needs to be, I guess.”
John was selecting a new shirt, when he felt a chill run down his spine. “That felt like something drastically changed for the worst,” he muttered to himself in surprise.