//------------------------------// // Ch. 15: How Not To Explain My Little Pony To A Non-Brony // Story: Extraterrestrial #51 // by TundraStanza //------------------------------// --- A/N: Sometimes in the writing process, you just have to grind. It doesn’t matter if that means wheels and/or teeth. --- How Not To Explain My Little Pony To A Non-Brony ---{Cier’s POV} Smatterday 7:17 AM Eastern time An Inn Bedroom I looked at the mirror one more time. My left eye wasn’t any less blue than it was before. In comparison, my right eye had altered completely. In a world where there was news of people turning into ponies, suddenly having the big eyes with an iris that vivid shouldn’t have been so surprising. However, being a changeling and having a pony’s eye without having voluntarily changing it was very unnerving. What the heck was going on? “Is this some kind of changeling disease?” I muttered. No, not that I’ve ever encountered, Fifty-one replied. I imagined if I could see him, he would have been shaking his head to emphasize that he didn’t know. “Well.” I turned after nearly jumping out of my skin (metaphorically). For a minute, I had forgotten that Dad was in the room with me. At that moment, I also remembered that Mom was in the room too. Sheesh, and here I was basically talking to myself again. “Considering I’ve seen a ghost take control of Mom, I can’t say that a different eye look is the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen,” Dad smirked a little. I let out a relieved sigh. Count on Dad to be so understanding even when he doesn’t understand. “I suppose we really shouldn’t have expected the strangeness to stop just because we already changed,” Mom added with a chuckle. “Yeah,” I agreed, “It’s probably only going to get weirder from here onward.” “Now that we’re in agreement, how would you like something to eat?” asked Dad as he picked up the still wrapped-up Danish. Whatever this changeling body had for a stomach, it decided to gurgle for my answer. --- “How do you hold a coffee cup without hands?” I wondered. “Mm-mm,” Mom hummed over her sip while shrugging with the opposite shoulder. She lowered her cup slightly before continuing, “I guess I just didn’t really think about it.” I thought it over while sticking the last nibble of my pastry on my fang and somehow scarfing it into my mouth. So not thinking about it actually helped the hoof manipulate objects despite the lack of finger dexterity. Score one for the fanfic writers. “I’ve been meaning to ask you something,” Mom piped in. “What is it?” I prompted. “Could you explain that show that these pony creatures come from?” “Explain it?” I echoed. “Yeah,” added Dad, “You kind of gave me a summarized version, but I still don’t quite understand.” “Maybe if we understood the source, we might have a better chance of finding out how to go about fixing the problem,” elaborated Mom. Huh. Now that I thought about it, it was sort of strange. I don’t think I’ve ever told anyone in precise detail what the show was about. The closest I had come to doing that was just telling other fans how I had come to admire the show. Well then, I guess this was as good a place to start practicing. “Alright,” I nodded once, “Where to start? I guess the beginning’s probably the best place. Let me think.” ---{#51’s POV} I had forgotten much of the history regarding my home and the surrounding lands when I found myself in this world of the humans. So, I decided to pay close attention to Cier Dylan’s explanation of this ‘show’ that he and thousands of other humans had watched. It apparently began with a small excerpt involving two of the ponies’ princesses. They were sisters that acted as caretakers for the sun and moon. The elder guided the greater light and the younger moved the lesser light. Harmony existed in their land for many years. But this was not meant to last. I found myself confused upon the explanation that the younger sister was corrupted by jealousy. It was natural for ponies to sleep at night and rejuvenate themselves. Why would she be angry at them for following their nature? Though, it seemed that a lack of recognition of her beautiful moon and night sky were catalysts for a terrifying transformation. My queen in all her years was never able to create a brand new form of darkness and hatred. No, Nightmare Moon was a completely different form of transforming magic. Based on what Cier could piece together, the Elements of Harmony were unable to act as truly purifying magic without at least two bearers. The most that Celestia could do with them alone was trap her corrupted sister into the moon itself for one thousand years. Closer to the present day came Twilight Sparkle. She was a bright student of the quantifiable side of magic, but she lacked the emotional bonds. So in response to her discovery of the evidence that pointed toward Nightmare Moon’s return, Celestia tasked Twilight with overseeing the preparations for the upcoming Summer Sun Celebration. More importantly, she was asked to make friends. This would lead to introductions with four ponies in charge of specific items on her checklist as well as one pony that just wanted to make Twilight feel welcome and have fun. These five ponies that she met eventually turned out to be the next chosen bearers of the five known Elements of Harmony. The earth pony Applejack was the bearer of Honesty. The pegasus known as Fluttershy represented the spirit of Kindness. The earth pony called Pinkie Pie wielded Laughter. The unicorn Rarity was granted the power of Generosity. Finally, the pegasus known as Rainbow Dash was Loyalty’s bearer. These five Elements would shine together and unlock the sixth Element to be wielded by Twilight Sparkle herself. That Element that represented the spirit of friendship was Magic. When all six were synchronized, Nightmare Moon’s dark powers crumbled and allowed Princess Luna to return to her true form. Following the reunion with her sister, Celestia decreed that Twilight should live in Ponyville and continue to study the magic of friendship. The ‘episodes’ following the pilot were a mix of ridiculousness and importance. Twilight Sparkle was given two tickets to an event that piqued her interest: the Grand Galloping Gala. At this, I wondered what the big deal was. She didn’t seem like the party-going type based on her previous emotional description while living in Canterlot prior. But I digress. There were a bunch of shenanigans pulled by her five closest friends in ‘The Ticket Master’. Each had their own reason for desiring the extra ticket to the event. Each tried a bribing tactic within their personality. Finally, she gave up and told all of her friends that she didn’t want to leave any pony out. Twilight sent both of the tickets back having learned a lesson. Sharing your blessings is good, but it’s not always possible to share them with every single one of your friends. The ending was a bit anticlimactic with Celestia wondering why Twilight hadn’t said so in the first place. Seven more tickets were sent so that all of the Element bearers and Twilight’s assistant Spike could go. The pony called Applejack was the next focused character. It was the harvesting season for the apple orchard and Applejack insisted on taking care of all the work after her brother had been injured. After saving the town of Ponyville from a herd of stampeding cows, she was praised as the most dependable pony. I wondered why the Element of Honesty was doing a better job of being dependable than the Element of Loyalty, but didn’t bother to interrupt. In any case, Twilight went to investigate why Applejack was so tired. She offered to help Applejack who outright refused. This earth pony was rather stubborn and wished to stick to her word to harvest every apple in the orchard by herself. Her family pride was at risk. At least, that’s what her attitude seemed to convey. But after trying to balance her heavy workload with favors for the rest of her friends, it was apparent that she was fatigued and unstable. After finally seeing the last expanse of Sweet Apple Acres and refusing Twilight’s help multiple times, Applejack finally acted as the bigger mare and accepted the offer of outside help. This ended up being the best choice since Twilight’s portrayed magic was rather advanced. The bearers of Laughter and Loyalty started forging a stronger friendship in the next ‘episode’. Though, I wasn’t sure how effective a friendship was when it relied on playing the feelings of other friends. Even Pinkie Pie herself started questioning the lines that could be crossed when facing the choice of pranking the bearer of Kindness. Eventually, this pranking spree led to the introduction of the griffon Gilda. Pinkie Pie took notice when Rainbow Dash’s old friend was a disturber of the peace, a petty thief, and a most unkind individual toward Fluttershy. Pinkie decided to try her usual party antics to befriend Gilda in order to connect in a polite way rather than an aggressive one. However, her true colors were revealed and Rainbow decided that Gilda wasn’t as cool as she thought she was. Twilight learned the lesson that true friends will stay with true friends. Another one-time character was introduced in ‘Boast Busters’. A traveling magician calling herself the Great and Powerful Trixie exaggerated her abilities to a crowd and wooed most of them with parlor tricks not uncommon for human world magicians. Three of Twilight’s friends immediately showed distaste for the claims that Trixie made. I was inclined to agree. Magic was a rather common occurrence considering the number of unicorns in Equestria. How exactly did performing smoke and mirror illusions prove that she was better than the levitators, teleporters, and object conjurers that also shared her land? Shortly thereafter, two of her most enthusiastic fans created a situation that not even her ‘Great and Powerful’ magic could handle. It was up to Twilight Sparkle to use some of her newly practiced magic to remove an Ursa Minor from the town. In any case, Trixie ran away with what was left of her dignity in a smoke cloud reminiscent of stealthy escape tactics. Cier was not very happy that he remembered all of that. An exploration was taken of the bearer of Kindness in ‘Dragonshy’. Even though she had shown fondness when meeting a baby dragon, Fluttershy had a deep fear of adult dragons. After a mountain climb that could very well have ended their lives, the ponies took turns with different approaches to convince a dragon to leave its cave. The sight of her friends getting pushed around by this dragon gave Fluttershy a sudden burst in resolve. She stood up and told the dragon off for his behavior before softening up and convincing him to fly away. The next ‘episode’ had a scenario where three different natures clashed. The bearer of Honesty held a straightforward nature. The bearer of Generosity focused on little details. The bearer of Magic had a do-it-by-the-book nature. Twilight Sparkle learned that even though her friends were very different, they could still get along if they accepted each other’s differences. Though, I wondered how a slumber party was enough to show such a moral. A zebra named Zecora was introduced in ‘Bridle Gossip’. The ponies were unfamiliar with her and thus began spreading rumors that shrouded her in mystery. What struck me as odd was Cier’s description of how the filly known as Apple Bloom was the only one to keep a level head from start to finish. After a bad run with the plant Poison Joke and an herbal bath cure, Twilight reported how one should not judge the cover of a book. It was both a literal and a metaphorical lesson. Pesky, small creatures known as parasprites were the cause of ‘The Swarm of the Century’. Although they seemed harmless at first glance, they were actually quite the hoof full considering their bottomless appetites and their ability to multiply simply by vomiting. Pinkie Pie was doing what she knew would get rid of them, but she never took the time to fully explain why she needed instruments even when she was given ample opportunity to do so. Ponyville had a day for wrapping up winter. Cutie marks were something that needed time to be earned rather than forced. Cheaters didn’t prosper even in the fall. Dressmaking was not so easy when the bearer of Generosity’s friends looked their gift horse in the mouth. Pinkie Pie’s randomness just couldn’t be explained no matter how much study was put into it. The ‘Sonic Rainboom’ was a rather fascinating phenomenon when Rainbow Dash could simultaneously break the sound barrier and the visible light spectrum. Naturally, I was skeptical that any living creature could reach such a speed. Still, I wasn’t about to object the possibility. After all, it was just last week that I didn’t think I could cross into different worlds. But, here I was now. Fluttershy used an ability over animals that granted her the title of ‘Stare Master’. The fillies Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle could not figure out their actual talents even when they were plain to see for the audience. This led to a rather show-stopping finish. Rarity proved that she could handle herself in a bad situation even though she gave off the impression of being delicate. Fluttershy, Rarity, and Twilight Sparkle learned the importance of trust and when secret feelings should be told. A tribe of buffalo had a traditional stampeding ground through the planted orchard of Appleloosa. This caused a conflict between ponies and buffalo that amusingly resolved with pie. Following that was confusion on Fluttershy’s part not knowing how the life cycle of a phoenix worked. I couldn’t really blame her since I also didn’t know phoenixes revitalized themselves via their own ashes. The ‘Cutie Mark Chronicles’ managed to tie together the friendships of the Element bearing ponies before they met each other. It was all thanks to Rainbow Dash’s first Sonic Rainboom. ‘Owl’s Well That Ends Well’ gave Twilight a pet owl. It also touched on Spike’s insecure nature and his fear of becoming obsolete in Twilight’s eyes. Though, that was nothing in comparison to how the bearer of Laughter became undone in her state of insane depression. I didn’t know a mane could pop like that. The last episode of the first ‘Season’ brought the Grand Galloping Gala to an actuality. Mentioned at the beginning and middle ‘episodes’, the six bearers arrived and tried to realize their dreams during the night. Sadly for them, their dreams were essentially shattered and the ballroom essentially came crashing down. Also, I vowed never to piss off the bearer of Kindness to the degree that the garden animals had. Just the description of her breakdown caused me to mentally shiver. ---{Cier’s POV} I took a long drink from the juice bottle that Dad had opened for me. Sure, I couldn’t really taste the vitamin C, but I was willing to hydrate myself however possible. “Where was I?” I pondered, “Oh yeah.” ---{#51’s POV} The second ‘Season’ introduced Equestria’s newest antagonist and our current situation’s nuisance: Discord. As the master of chaos, he defied the Harmony that existed in Equestria by nature. The spell that had originally sealed him in stone had weakened. It was up to the newest bearers of the Elements to seal him again. However, the draconequus tricked them into participating in a game where he slowly bent the wills of the individual ponies. The corruption led them to personify the exact opposite of what their Elements were. Fluttershy seemed to have the most resilience against Discord’s suggestive tone. It was amusing to hear how she managed to ‘counter-troll’ him. Alas, the story had to move on and Discord broke his own “no magic” rule to make her cruel. When Rainbow Dash abandoned her friends after falling into disloyalty, Twilight Sparkle tried to use Spike as a replacement bearer. This didn’t work and led to a group separation. But after rediscovering the magic of friendship, Twilight gained a memory restoration spell that successfully countered Discord’s influence over the rest of her friends. Discord’s overconfidence became his weakness and the Elements of Harmony turned him into a statue once again. A normal entity would look for revenge. Cier and I both understood that Discord was anything but a normal entity. The next ‘episode’ introduced Twilight Sparkle’s mental breakdown. It also addressed the hindering limitations set in place when Twilight ‘had’ to send a letter about friendship every week. Celestia reminded her that she did not need such restricting deadlines to know that Twilight was a wonderful student. She further decreed that the rest of Twilight’s friends could send friendship reports whenever they chose. Luna started to learn how to interact with the modern Ponyville and how to have fun at an event that capitalized on her dark past. Rarity and Sweetie Belle learned what being sisters truly meant. Apple Bloom learned that being honest with oneself was what every heart desires. Rainbow Dash gained a pet tortoise and named him Tank. She also got spoon-fed the lesson of humility by way of the ‘Mysterious Mare-Do-Well’. Cier showed a bit of discomfort reciting what he knew from that event. I’m still not sure why. Rarity gained a reputation among the Canterlot elite. However, she also learned the importance of accepting your origins. Spike and pretty much everyone in Ponyville learned about what happens when a dragon’s greed consumes him. It also may have hinted a love relationship between Spike and Rarity. I felt uncertain as to how a dragon-pony relationship would work, but I wasn’t interrupting Cier to find out. A holiday known as ‘Hearth’s Warming Eve’ explained how the three pony tribes came together to form Equestria. Though, Cier commented how divided and confused that this episode left the fans of the show. Apple Bloom learned to appreciate her Granny Smith a little more. Pinkie Pie learned how to take responsibility and why taking care of babies isn’t all fun and games. Though, his description of pony foal care was much more hectic and somewhat more disturbing than some of the hatchlings I had seen back at the hive. Applejack learned that it’s okay to do your best even if you don’t win everything. True friends remain your friends regardless of the good or bad. Cier took some time to talk about how a certain backlash regarding the pegasus named Derpy caused some fan drama. The censorship didn’t bother him so much as the immaturity of certain viewers’ responses to said decision. Though, he perked right back up as he remembered how Applejack “didn’t learn anything” in the next episode. Rainbow Dash gained a fondness for a certain book series and learned to accept that side of herself. The Cutie Mark Crusader fillies learned that true love can’t be forced. Pinkie Pie learned that different ponies require different approaches before becoming her friends. Twilight Sparkle found a one-use time travel spell and essentially created a bootstrap paradox. Spike learned the difference between who he is and what he is. Fluttershy learned how to tackle the demons of the past with her present-day confidence and the needs of her friends. Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle found out the hard way that earning cutie marks doesn’t happen via breaking all their bonds. Twilight taught Pinkie how important looking at the situation without making hasty assumptions is. Finally, came the moment in history I was uncertain about reliving. Thankfully, the invasion of Canterlot wasn’t described right away. Instead, it followed the suspicions of Twilight Sparkle that something was wrong with her old foal sitter. She followed the wrong tactics and lashed out verbally without presenting any concrete evidence. This gave ‘Cadance’ the opportunity to garner the sympathy of every pony around Twilight before trapping her in the caverns underneath. It was strange hearing Cier describe the events after that. I didn’t recall any instance where Her Majesty Chrysalis actually sang her intentions or about her victory. Though, I did recall getting beaten up by allied hoof kicks. Yeah, maybe choosing the forms of our enemies while not directly facing them hadn’t been the best choice on our part. Still, I thought that the overall capture of the six Element bearers had been a relatively proud moment. What wasn’t so pleasant for me was how I got physically shoved out of the city by this bright pink force. Cier went on to describe a much happier wedding ceremony. The real Princess Cadance was the complete opposite of my queen’s impersonation in terms of tastes and personality. No wonder Twilight Sparkle had suspicions so early on. Hearing all of these events was a little unnerving, yet at the same time very surreal. This was all news to me, but I had known some of these things already. It was an unusual feeling that I couldn’t really describe in words. ---{Cier’s POV} “And that’s pretty much the whole show so far. There have been spoiler clips regarding a new setting in the upcoming Season 3, but I don’t know the specifics about that.” I waited for a bit, wondering how much of what I had said had sunk in. While I waited, I took another swig from the juice bottle. “Wow, that’s… wow,” commented Dad. “It’s certainly something,” murmured Mom, “The Ursa Minor would have explained that shaking noise I heard that day.” “Huh?” I looked at her in confusion. “Sorry,” she said with a shake of her head, “I think Spirit somehow spoke just then.” “Oh, no worries,” I responded dismissively, “If she’s got words to contribute, let’s let her talk.” “She said that’s all she had to say,” Mom told. “Ah,” I stated in understanding. *CRACK* “Augh!” My head. What the heck? Where the heck did this pain come from?! ---{#51’s POV} I hissed in discomfort as I fell from the bed. ---