//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 - Jump Rope // Story: Never Be The Same // by Kickback //------------------------------// Now you're older and the weight is on your shoulders, make the world a little colder when you're hidin' in the old day. Be strong, don't you give up hope, it will get hard. Life's like a jump rope. "Howdy, Lyra" I said as I rested my back on the grass beneath me by the shore. The little filly smiled at me as she trotted to my side and laid down on her stomach. "Hey, Kyle" she replied. I let out a content sigh as my eyes drifted towards the shimmering water under the bright glow of the setting sun. Lyra breathed out an audible exhale as she watched the scenery with me, I looked at her, she wore a calm grin on her muzzle. The unicorn gazed back at me, noticing me staring at her, smiling, her mane drifting in the slight shake of her head as she fixed her golden eyes on me, grinning. "Haha, What?" she asked, happily, with a giggle. "Nothing" I said, shrugging off her adorable nature. I looked at my hand and noticed one final stone in my palm, I clenched it in a stern grip and sat up slightly, looking out into the water. I threw the rock in the lake and with a dull splash, I fell back, resting my head on my hands. As the light of Celestia's grand star faded with the passing, silent moments, I gazed up at Lyra. The young unicorn was sitting, almost perched on the grass, staring at the setting sun. I couldn't help but notice how the orange cascading onto her green fur, making her eyes glisten with intent with the light and with the gentle breeze in the wind drifting her mane across her features...She looked amazing. Don't get me wrong, I knew she was 4 years younger than me and I'm not really that type of guy but...c'mon, it was Lyra Heartstrings for Faust's sake. However, I became very aware of the late hour. "Looks like that time again" I said half-heartedly. Lyra blinked. "Yeah, I guess" she replied, solemn in her tone. I groaned as I stood to my full height, feeling my joints crack under the sudden movement. The unicorn looked up at me and rose to her her hooves, I could sense the familiar feeling in her as I looked down at her. I smiled, leaning down to gently grush her mane, Lyra grinned at the motion and closed her eyes as I let my hand travel on it's own accord down her face. I gave her jawline a gentle scratch, she hummed in relaxation and opened her eyes to meet mine and I crouched down in front of her. "Hey, don't worry, doesn't look as though I'm going for a while" I said, grinning as her face lightened up. "You're from another world?" Cadence asked, dumbfounded but also, sounding very intrigued as Celstia finished her explanation, she looked at me, mouth gaping, I nodded. The two princesses and myself were now within the royal chambers of the white alicorn, I suppose Celestia had thought it wise to talk under less formal matters and had invited Cadence and I inside to explain everything to the Princess of Love. Perhaps, she even had another subject in mine to discuss within the solitary confines of her room but that was to be seen, still, I had my suspicions. "Yeah, it's like I said, one minute I get a package from someone and the next, I end up in the Everfree Forest" I said, shrugging. Celestia walked up to me and placed a hoof on my shoulder. My eyes followed the golden slipper up to her partially covered face, she smiled down me, sympathetically. I was barely able to return it before she looked back at the pink alicorn. "And it seems, I'm afraid that there's no way to send him back, Niece" she said, sympathy laced in her tone. Cadence's eyes softened as she looked at me, now with same expression Celestia wore. "So, you can't go back home?" she asked. "Doesn't look like it" I replied, exhaling on my words. Ever since yesterday, I had started to mentally grasp the situation in my head. Honestly, the sheer irony of it all was almost mockingly sadistic. It was SO cliche. It took every ounce of blantanism in my body to finally get a blunt picture of what was currently happening. I was a brony, a young male who didn't live a perfect life and was whisked away into Equestria by some unknown means and thrown into that forsaken forest. I almost groaned in annoyance at how much that irritated me. Never, in my life had I felt like some grand pawn for something and I say that because...this is going to sound really crazy but...in the back of my mind, I couldn't help but think there was something bigger at work here. Here me out before you scroll down. I had found that damnable orb in a package, right? Someone, something or even somepony had to have sent it to me, right? I've said this before; this obviously doesn't happen everyday so, why exactly was all this happening to me? The more I came to grips with the reality of it all, the more I questioned it, the more I felt like I was some kind of roundabout plot twist in some bigger grand scheme of events. What those events were, however, I had no idea nor did I really have a full-on reason to place all my eggs in that basket either. This was all just analysation on my part, my mind hungered for answers to questions I couldn't stop asking, hence, I decided to think about it later. When I had more time...and when I was alone. My mind came rushing back to awareness as I felt something warm pressed up to me. My eyes re-focused and I looked down to see none other than the pink alicorn; Princess Cadence firmly hugging me. Her body seemed to radiate utter sympathy as she embraced me, her hooves wrapped around my neck. I just grinned sheepishly and moved my arms up to return the gesture albeit, with less force. Her muzzle was buried into my chest as I glanced up at Celestia, she wore a serene smile, just like always and gave me a nod. I smirked friendly back at her and added a slight brush of my hand on the alicorn's back, I could practically feel her relaxed grin as I did so. "I'm sorry" she said, just barely audible as she began to release me. As she pulled back, I rested my hands on her shoulders, feeling the fine texture of her pink coat under my palms. She looked me in the eye, they glistened slightly with sincerity, it gave me an odd little feeling in my stomach to see. Nevertheless, I gave her a reassuring grin. "Hey, it's not your fault, your highness" I returned, trying to sound optimistic. "I'm positive it wasn't your fault, at least..." I then gasped audibly in mock shock. "Or maybe it was you! Was it your han-err, hoof-writing on the side of the box!? It's all so clear now, how could we have been so blind?! How long have you been summoning other-worldly beings, Cadence? Am I not the first? What twisted plot do you have cooking up in the pretty head of yours?!" "No, no, no, no, I'm not doing anything!!" Cadence, cried out in shock, obviously not catching my expression of suppressed laughter. She jolted away from my hands and stared at me wide eyed, pleadingly. "Please, Kyle, I'm not the one who brought you here!" She continued, she looked up at Celestia who wore the same expression I did albeit with less character. "Aunty, I swear I'm not trying to take you over, I-" And that's when Princess Cadence fell silent to my unleash roar of uncontrollable laughter. I couldn't take it anymore, I brought a hand up to the bridge of my nose, trying to calm myself. It only managed to bring me down to quiet chuckling, I could hear the muffled gigliing of the solar princess aswell as Cadence looked back at me in utter confusion. "I was kidding, Cadence" I said, smiling at her, she simply looked at me, dumbstruck. That is, briefly before she gave me an intense glare. A gesture, of which, I returned in good faith...by laughing, of course. "Oh, you suck" Cadence grumbled, much to my and apparently Celestia's amusement. I liked this. Just to drop all worries and have a go with a bad joke. It felt good. Despite everything that was going on, everything that had to happen, everything that needed sorting out, it felt so good to just not think about it all. Which is probably why I jumped at the chance to lighten the mood with a really bad joke...of course, I couldn't help but make another. "Should probably mention I'm into chicks, so..." I chuckled lightly to end my statement. I did not get the expression I thought I was going to receive however. Rather than a scowl or bemused look, I was met by curious glances. "You're attracted to young Griffins?" Celestia asked, raising an eyebrow. I gaped in shock. "What?! I didn't say that!?" "You said you're into chicks..." Cadence said, eyeing me confusedly. I had to restrain myself from face-palming and throwing into another laughing fit. "Oh, I see what you thought I meant..." I began. "But that's not what I meant. Ya see, 'chicks' is a bit of a slang term to refer to women" they stared at me with blank looks, I dead-panned. "Women are the females of my species" I said. "Ohhh" both princesses synched. "Such an odd world your from" Celestia murmured to herself. Before anyone could say anything else, I spoke up, a question had now entered my mind. "Wouldn't they be called 'cubs' though?" I asked. "You have a really long mane, Kyle, I don't know how you can see" Cadence commented, craning her neck slightly to look up at me. I nearly groaned at hearing the repeated the words, it was always in a different way but it was always said. After a bit of a long and rather casual discussion between the princesses and I, Celestia decided that we attend to business as soon as possible. Said business was finding out where the bloody hell I could live...until further notice of course. At first, she had brought up actually building a home out of the same I stayed suite I had slept in the previous night. Much to my surprise, Cadence's reaction was more than optimistic. I had thought that she would almost loath the idea of an alien living in the same castle as her. However, that was not the case as I soon found out that the pink, pony princess was quite eager to befriend me and was rather happy to have me stay. It was tempting, I will say that, I'd probably make best friends with Cadence, eat and chat with monarchs, sleep in giant beds in even bigger rooms. It sounded great and to some folks, I reckon that would be the utmost best decision and it probably is...or rather, was. Fore, I am not 'most folks'. I watched as Cadence and Celestia's facial expression turned from enthusiasm to disappointment. "Man, that sounds great, really great actually but-uhhh...." "What is it, Kyle?" the solar goddess asked. "Well, living in a castle's not really my thing, Tia" I hummed in thought, rubbing a hand under my growing chin hairs. "I'd prefer something a little bit more...down-to-Earth" both princesses stared at me curiously, probably from my word-usage or just simply waiting for my answer, politely. It finally hit me. Where else would be better? I'd be level ground with local and ordinary ponies, I'd be fairly isolated and close to grounds where I could only assume there'd be fresh game to sport if I tried my hand at hunting. It was spacious in it's own right and just felt cozy, despite it's condition. Of course, there was something I saw in it the first time I caught a glimpse of the old shack, a tinge of familiarity, almost. The place was already furnished and from what I had gathered, such possessions were easily remedied of any weathering via magic. Just like everything else apparently. However, in the back of my mind, I knew the actual reason I wanted to live there. I wanted to live there because I was close, close to the ground, close to Ponyville. Close to them. Close to her. I grinned subconciously as my mind came to the greatest perk of living there, I'd be close to her, close to Lyra. Of course, I knew AJ would be there too but I also knew that she was dead set on going to Manehatten and judging from that, I didn't assume she'd be around much longer. Only to come back and earn her cutie mark. I made a mental note to be there when she gets it. I smiled at the two princesses. "Hey, Tia..." the solar alicorn up and looked at me expectantly. "Reckon I could live in that cottage?" "Yeah, I get that alot" I replied to Cadence's question, it bugged me but I wasn't going to flip my shit to a princess, let alone an alicorn, let alone Cadence..let alone someone who's only asked me once. Cadence gave me an intrigued look as we continued walking, I thought I caught a content grin on Celestia's muzzle but from my angle, I couldn't quite tell. The pink aliconr beside me hummed in thought as she stared at me, narrowing her eyes with her tongue poking out between her teeth. I looked back at her, giving her a cautious gaze but as soon as I did, her eyes lit up and her mouth exploded into a gleeful smile. She gasped and squeeled in delight before her horn glowed a light azura hue. I noticed the same aura encasing something behind her head and then her ponytail started twithcing slightly. It didn't take too long before Cadence levitated her hair-tie from her mane and floated it in front of me, a grin plastered on her muzzle. I didn't even give it a second glance. I'm pretty sure my mouth fell open at the sight of the now untamed mane of the Princess of Love. Her long, flowing hair gracefully waved, straightened and curled all at the same time as each lock draped lower to the ground beneath her elegant hooves. I gawked in awe at how majestic and beautiful she was, I made another mental note to brohoof Shining Armor because...DAYUM! ...Ugh, spelling "Armor" like that is so weird for me. Remember, I'm an Aussie? Cadence continued staring at me gleefully as she took the black, elastic material around to the back of my head. I had just noticed that the two of us had stopped, Celestia turned around and apparently found quite the amusing sight as she giggled slighly behind a covering hoof. Cadence locked her bright, sparkling violet eyes onto mine, they were full of giddiness and hilarity. She then giggled musically "Heh, what?" she asked, grinning. "N-nothing, just...that's a nice look for you is all" I said, silently gulping. Cadence gave me a half-lidded smile. "Nawww, you think I'm pretty?" she asked, batting her eyelashes. I grimaced. "Well, duh" I dead-panned, Cadence merely giggled even further. "Heh, cute" she commented, she continued staring into my eyes with that same playful twinkle. However, as soon as I felt something brush against my hair behind me, her eyes switched to confusion. Then understanding. Then dissapointed. Puzzled, I looked behind me to find her hair-tie just hovering where at eye level with me, I looked back at Cadence and smiled. Knowing what she wanted to see, I plucked the lackey from her magical grip, when I turned to her again, her eyes were wide in disbelief. I looked up to find Celestia giving a slightly less dramatic but still shocked gaze. "What's up?" I asked, puzzled, turning back to the pink alicorn. "N-nothing" she said, seeming to calm down a bit. "It's just, it's not everyday somepony just rips something out of a pony's magic" she added. "Oh..." I answered, nodding. "Okay, then" I added, now fiddling around with the band to wrap it around my wrist. It struck me as odd at how being called 'somepony' didn't really feel...wrong. Well, maybe that's not how to explain it, it just felt like it was the right terminology even though I actaully wasn't a pony. Does that make sense? No, no it doesnt but the bottom line, however is... I didn't mind it. As I began to tie my hair back, I noticed Cadence watching my hands and face in amazement. She walked around me to get a better view of my fingers at work, getting a firm grasp of the back of my hair, grabbing the band, twisting it. Through the whole, short procedure, she stared at me in awe. Finally, after the fourth twist, my neck was free to breath, allowing the cool air to sweap at the skin beneath my head. I opened my eyes after tossing my fringe to the side to see Cadence staring at me, a picture of shock, envy and amazement on her face. I merely chuckled. "Whao..." she breathed. "Do that again" she added. I raised an eyebrow at her. "Please?" Once again, I merely chuckled. So, in order to conserve time, I think I'll skip ahead a little. Apparently, just waiting outside the gate of the castle is a prepped and ready golden carriage, hoisted by two royal, winged guards. Said carriage was used for both Celestia and my own transportation back to Ponyville. Cadence walked with us the entire way out, as the solar princess climbed into the glorified wagon, I turned back to the pink alicorn, giving her a warm smile. She returned it with vigor. I chuckled before reaching back behind my head to give her lackey back but when I noticed her upturned hoof, gesturing for me to stop, I gave the princess a confused look. "Keep it" she said, grinning. "It's a nice look for you" she added. "And I think you'd fit in better with a ponytail" she finished, giggling at her small joke. I merely laughed quietly along with her. "Maybe and thanks" I started. "Hopefully, next time we'll meet under better circumstances" I added, smiling assuringly at her. Cadence lifted an outstretched hoof to me, her eyes beckoning and her smrik becoming alluring. I sighted as I walked up to her and wrap my arms around her neck, she hummed slightly as she rested her head on my shoulder and now, both hooves on my back. "Good luck, Kyle" she said as we seperated our warm embrace. "Thanks..." I looked back at Celestia. "Well...I guess I'll catcha later" I said. "Bye" she returned, watching me as I climbed into the carriage and sat comfortingly next to the white alicorn. I closed the door and gave one final half-salute to Cadence and she waved back as the guards lifted the carriage into the air and she was now out of sight. Turning away from the window, I sighed and craned my neck back to rest my head against the red cushion. "She was right, you know" Celestia commented out of the blue. I turned to her, inquisitively. "That is a good look for you" she added playfully. "Not many stallions can pull off that kind of style" I laughed in response. "Oh, ssh, Tia" I returned. "Next you're gonna be straping on a pair of wings on me" I muttered. "What was that, Kyle?" "Oh, nothing" I answered, suppressing the urge to burst out laughing. Ah, here we are, one of the key points in most HIE's I read way back when. It's all downhill from here... ...Yeah fucking right. "Damn, that was fast" I commented as the two pegasi gently lowered the carriage onto he grassy road. I wasn't kidding either, after subtly blurting out Celestia's future plans for a particular unicorn, barely three minutes had passed by and now the princess and I now resided within the invisible walls of Ponyville. I looked up at her and she gave me an assuring smile before climbing out of the carriage via the adjacent door we entered through. With a deep breath, I pushed open the golden hatch and jumped out with a dull thud as I landed. I walked around towards the front to see the solar princess nod at the two pegasi, they saluted back. I shrugged, not full-on caring what the sign meant. I walked up to her and she began trotting down the road, an action I reluctantly followed in tow. It was now well into the late hours of the morning, so you can kind of get a picture of what the town was like. That's right... ...Busy. I got the initial reaction I expected but with the tall, majestic divine monarch walking by my side casually, it seemed to have a touch of difference. That alone and the fact that I couldn't help but feel her stature and motions rather...protective. My admiration and respect for this regal pony was unbound, even before hand when I knew her as nothing more than a cartoon character.Well, maybe a little more as I've already explained various times, I'd imagine my outlook goes without saying. Even still, however, I couldn't help but feel that take I had on her simply doubled as I began noticing the rather intense glares she gave when an insensitive pony would gawk for too long. I couldn't describe the looks she gave to those who showed disgust or anger. Celestia was obviously not a fan of racism. "Where're we headin', Tia?" I asked, strolling awkwardly by her side with my hands firmly shoved into my mother's jacket's pockets. "Town Hall, if you're going to live down here, we might as well make it known" Celestia replied. I left it at that, made sense to me, I suppose. My mind suddenly brought up that one scenario with that old donkey, what was his name? Ahhh, forget it. The point is, I couldn't help but wonder how he managed to set up living in that old cabin outside of town. What kind of ordeals did he have to go through? Other than Pinkie Pie, of course. I grinned as I thought about the bubbily mare. She truly was the lord of laughter, I can't even think about her without smiling. I wondered on how she would come to Ponyville, what reaction she'd get from the past citizens. How she managed to score a job and home at the finest bakery in town even if her only qualifications were farming rocks and partying. I smirked as I thought about how we would meet, would she be annoying? Maybe but she's Pinkie Pie and I know her, hell, maybe I could possibly be the only one to understand her, with her insanity and blatant disrespect for the fourth wall. Hell, maybe I should organise a party for her as a welcome to Ponyville, that'd be awesome, right? Heh, listen to me, I'm already planning my uncertain future. The chances were high but still, there might always be a strange turn of events that would send me home. Perhaps the reason why I was thinking like I was, planning and everything, was that I already had. As you have all probably guess, I dreamed alot about this moment, just never thought it'd become reality though. Now that it is reality, however, I don't know what to dream of anymore. Heck, my mind wanders a little too much sometimes, now I'm just rambling. I tried to get my thoughts back on track, or more specifically, on Pinkie Pie. Immediately, I smiled, she truly had a way of making people happy, even if she wasn't even around or... The smile I wore while thinking about the bouncy pony faded away as I came to realise once more that I was in the past. So far in the past of Equestria that AJ was a filly and hence, so were the rest. Pinkamena Diane Pie was still working the rock farm, pushing granite with her nose into stacks of stone. I couldn't help but grimace at the thought of seeing her so glum, so unhappy. It's amazing how fast your thoughts can differ in a few seconds, maybe I should stop thinking because by that time...we were already there. Apparently I had managed to cramp all these little contemplations within the span of a few minutes while I walked by Celestia subconciously. I'm sure I would've looked like an idiot if she tried to make small talk and then have to watch me stumble on my words as clarity took hold of my mind again. Lucky me, I guess. Town Hall was amazing and surprisingly quite the same. I hardly think it's necessary to describe it, all in all, it was pretty much the way they portayed it in the show with the giant almost, plaza-like structure only with the same touch of realism that everything else had. I began to get a better concept of the world around me, more importantly, Equestria in general. It was almost like...like a graphic novel in here. Everything was brightly coloured and contrasted with it's surroundings but still looked like a real thing. It's hard to explain really, hell, maybe one of ya'll will get lucky and have that damn glowing ball delivered to your doorstep. When Celestia and I stepped inside the central building of Ponyville, we were greeted by the not the most humble of sights. Standing by the stage was a dark purple unicorn stallion with his back to us, in front of him stood a rather uninterested looking pegasus mare. I was little interested in their conversation as I was suddenly drawn to the stallion's visuality. Walking up to the two with Celestia, I managed to make a single glass lens, resting in front of his right eye and a fine, respectable top hat adorning his head. Was that moustache? "Good morning, Mayor" the solar princess greeted coming behind the fine dressed colt. He turned as the white coated mare gawked upwards in amazement. He jumped a bit as he caught the sight of the alicorn... ...but once the two looked at me, their expressions became all around uneasy. I think I spotted a shivering spine. "P-Princess Cele-Celestia!?" The stallion managed, his hace cartoonishly bouncing off his mane and landing back onto it. I stifled a chuckle at seeing such a classic seen in real life. I had to hold back even more laughter as my brain registered his looks and that unmistakable voice. Indeed, there was a moustache, perched in front of his muzzle, covering his mouth and nose. His monocle seemed to make his right eye much larger as his left seemed forever closed, or perhaps he was just squinting? If so, it was really hard to tell. His voice was not what you'd expect from a full-grown stallion however, it had a bazaar squeaky nature to it. I suppose it made sense, I mean, this is Lauren Faust's world...even if Celestia rules it. "What brings you here, your highness?" he asked, bowing slightly. He then looked at me, I believe I caught the hint of a scowl. "And what have you brought with you?" I raised an eyebrow at him, as did Tia. A gesture I found comforting, was she offended on my behalf? "That" she began using a partially scolding voice. "Is my personal acquaintance; Kyle" The stallion's pupils shrunk to pin-points as Celestia ended her statement. I felt a little heartwarmed, in all her regal and majestic nature, she formally and secretly called me 'friend'. "Ah, I s-see" the mayor managed. "He gave our townsfolk quite the scare yesterday" he added. "I am aware, sir" Celestia said, calmingly. "Heh, yeah, sorry 'bout that" I cracked out, rubbing the back of my neck. "Trust me, it was never my intention" "Oh, yes, I've been getting none stop stories about you, all different and from different ponies" the mayor let out a sigh as he spoke. I think I'll just call him 'Mayor'...I always happened to and frankly, I've forgotten his real name. Celestia hummed behing closed lips, questioningly. "Stories, ay?" I asked. "Well, yes" Mayor began, his eyes dialating nervously. "Mostly rumors and whispers, however, I'm sure there'll pass once they know of your relationship with the princess" he put on a supporting, trembling grin that absolutely screamed uncertainty, possible even full-on doubt. Oh, well, good enough for me, I suppose. "Well, there'll be plenty of time for that then" Celestia added. Mayor gave her a quizzical look. "You majesty?" Not much later after that, I found myself standing just outside Town Hall, leaning back against the wall beside the front door on the porche. Celestia had explained to the mayor that I had chosen to stay at the shack she brought me to, an explanation he took with blatant surprise and hesitance. Said hesitance was doubled when she asked for the deed. Oh, the look on his muzzle. Anyway, he returned to us with it after excusing himself to his office for a few minutes and hoofed over the parchment to Celestia with a nervous grin. She simply levitated it over to me, smiling serenely as I took it in my hand and skimmed through the text. Basic stuff really, never had I been into realstate (Mainly 'cause of my age) but I could understand most of what the writing meant. Mostly confirmations of personal details and ownership of the house and land. That's right, land. Apparently, this cottage I had hopes in living in was centred around about a couple acres worth of plains. Lucky me, ay? In big bold lettering next to an underline said 'signature'. Tia levitated a quill over to me, I regarded her with a thankful smile before dotting down my name in full. Kyle Johnathon Mercer I gave the mayor a quick friendly look and he smiled weakly, taking the parchment from my hand. He read down the page and his features perked a bit. "Very Good, Mr. Mercer" he said simply. "Now, there is the matter of-" "I'll handle those" Celestia quickly said. I gazed at her, confusedly. She merely nodded at me and trotted ahead of the mayor, a sign of which he took to follow. I stood there, scratching my head in bewilderment. What was that about? Eventually, I shrugged it off. With nothing in the room to keep me occupied, I stepped outside for some air and now, here I stood. The streets were less than busy, at least in this part of town but ponies still trotted by happily from corner to corner, building to building, the kind of social network society you'd expect from a small town like this. It would've been perfect if I didn't keep getting a few uneasy glances from the passing citizens that were either trotting by the Hall or in some far less encouraging cases, all the way down the road. I groaned a little, feeling a wave of not-belonging pass through me. It felt horrible. It felt horrible to know blatantly, the ponies of this age did not seem as hospitible as I would've liked or imagined. I slouched in slight depression at that thought. However, I didn't stay that way for long. It was the sound of a high-pitched, almost squeal of a voice that brought me to awareness. The voice was young, female, angry, defensive and above all; very upset. "SHUT UP, BLAZE!" screamed the broken, raged voice of a young filly. I'd like to say that I found the voice familiar and knew exactly who it was. If I said that though, I'd be lying but I had an idea as it was obviously a foal. With that in mind, I subconciously let out a single, two-syllable name in a breathless sigh. "Lyra...?" Suddenly, the unclear bickering of voices caught my ear and I found myself drawn to the noise. I walked around the building, steadily, trying to catch any other sign of that voice. When I looked around the corner though, I was greeted by a cold display. Huddled up into heself was a young, Earth-pony filly. Her cream-coloured coat contrasting greatly against her red, two toned mane and tail, her back was turned to me, so the face I saw on anypony was the snickering violet foal that stood before her, an evil grin crossing her muzzle. Her eyes were a burning crimson and her mane was a gentle shade of lavender, styled in a way that made me cringe to think of all the maintenance put into it. By her right side was a tall, slim, dopey looking pegasus colt that wore a completely stoned smile on his face and on the other was a rather thick cyan filly, not to be rude but damn, this pony needed exercise. Hell, I almost mistaked them for Snips and Snails at first glance. I would've felt sympathetic but instead felt annoyance as I watched all three of them practically corner the tan-coated foal against the wall of Town Hall. I could now make out the pale emerald gleam of her eyes, they were wide in fear and her trembled ever so slightly. The three other foals kept giggling menacingly at her and staring her down in just the same. I scowled. "What's wrong, Rosey?" the purple one asked, mock-sympathy laced in her evil voice. It was then when I noticed the defensive stance that the cream-filly took, she wasn't defending herself, however. She was protecting something, something behind her, from my angle, I couldn't quite tell what. "You look like you need to lie down" the violet filly added. The purple filly noded to the pegasus colt and he grinned devilishly. In one swift movement, he pushed he to the side, making her tumble to the grassy road beneath them. My jaw dropped in shock...that is, before my teeth gritted harshly. Blaze, as I had come to know her as, merely snickered again. "Are you serious?" she asked, now gawking at the display at her hooves. I followed her gaze and saw the lively patch of growing scarlet roses protruding beautifully from the soil. I looked back down at the collasped filly, she sobbed inaudibly but I could see it, her eyes were tearing up and her mouth was formed into a saddened gape. I put her colours and the flowers together and immediately I knew what her name was...Roseluck. Such a name, it laughed in her face and yet smiled warmly at her at the same time. I say this fore she wasn't exactly lucky for what transpired next. "Ugh, look at these bloddy ugly things!" Blaze whined in disgust at the roses, staring at them in distaste. "Bitch, you wouldn't know if something was beautiful if it was in your face" I let out to myself. As Roseluck began to look up from the ground, my eyes widened as I watched Blaze lift her foreleg off the ground and hover it over a singular, tall rose. "Wait, no, stop!" Roseluck tried, reaching out to violet filly. I didn't even have time to breath as Blaze's hoof slammed down on the flower. My heart sank, I couldn't imagine how the little cream-coloured foal felt right then. Blaze turned her head slowly to Rose and gave her a malicious smile, I could tell the filly had tears in her eyes. Without warning or hesitation, the violet foal began absolutely trampling the vibrant roses in the earth. Her friends egged her on with audible, anarchic giggling, she laughed all the while. Roseluck merely sat there, gawking at her work being destroyed, crying helplessly. I stormed up to the scene. "P-please...stop, Blaze" Roseluck whimpered. None of them had noticed me yet as I quickly sauntered over to them, anger boiling up inside me. "Haha and what will you do if I don't, huh?" Blaze retorted. I let out a low growl and that's when the two other foals on the side glanced at me, immediately, their eyes shrunk in fear. "It's the monster..." they said in unison, breathlessly and turning tail, leaving Blaze alone with Rose...and me. "Hey, were are you two going?!" Called out Blaze who stared in the direction of her fleeing companions. She didn't have time to look at me before I gripped around her tail and gave her a fierce tug. She yelped as I lifted her off the ground, letting her hang up-side-down at eye-level with me. As soon as she caught my enraged glare, her eyes widened in shock, her mouth opened but by the looks of it, she was too terrified to speak. Or scream. I stared into her cold pools of crimson, I felt eyes on me from behind but I firmly kept her in place. She grimaced as I brought her closer to my face and sneered angrily, I barred my teeth, letting her get a full view of my canines before speaking. "Don't touch her, don't hurt her, leave her alone...got it?" I snarled, taking my time with each phrase, deliberately scaring her. She nodded weakly, whimpering pathetically. "Fuck off" I added as I dropped her to the ground, mindful she didn't land on her head. She scrambled to her hooves and without looking back at me of Roseluck, she bolted in the direction of her friends. I sighed and turned back to gaze down at the little earth-pony. She was huddled up next to her patch, she sobbed silently as she pawed at the soil with a hoof, eyes clenched shut. I kneeled down so she was taller than me. "You alright?" I asked sympathetically. Roseluck was silent as she tilted her head to me, her eyes were red and puffy as was her struck cheek. I looked into her pale green eyes and saw a tinge of thankfulness within them, shrouded by a never-ending smog of depression. However, she nodded her head slightly before turning back to her small garden. I watched her for a moment longer, I could feel her solemn practically radiating off her. I breathed heavily before speaking. "I'm sorry, Rose" I let out, sighing. She looked up at me, tears brimming on her lashes, she didn't speak, only stared. I gazed back into her glassy grassy eyes as softly as I could manage. Finally, after a quick sniffle, she said... "T-thankyou..." Roseluck choked out. I smiled and nodded at her, gently placing a hand on her back. She didn't flinch from the contact, which I took as a good sign, patted her fur comfortingly, a gesture she welcomed. "Will they be okay?" I asked. "No...s-she killed them, all of them" Roseluck whimpered, lifting up the limp stem of a quickly darkening rose with a gentle hoof. I shook my head in sorrow on her behalf, I knew this feeling. That feeling you get when you've worked for something, worked so hard to accomplish just one little goal and it means the world to you. The pride of well done job is uplifting, it just gives you confidence, you know? Now, take that, take that goal...and obliterate it. Roseluck's flowers were beautiful, from that quick glance, I couldn't say I'd seen plantlife so vibrant and alive. Now, they were grey, withering and dead. Roseluck had created life and that life was destroyed. I bet some of you are saying 'They'e just fucking flowers, man!'...Let em tell you, it doesn't matter what it is, if you're pasionate about it, not much comes close to being as important. I learned that not too long ago. Roseluck's eyes were clenched shut as thin rivers flowed from them, I sighed, looking back between her and the now dessicated patch of crushed life and soil. My eyes flickered to a bright shade of crimson, hiding behind the neighbouring bush. I removed my hand from the little filly and used it as support as I leaned my body towards it, out-stretching hand. "Well, what have we here?" I commented, forming a grin as I drew closer. Roseluck looked up at me confusedly but then looked in the direction of where I was going. I could feel her eyes brightening as she caught her first glimpse. I smiled and brushed away the brambles and hello and behold...there, protruding from the dirt stood a perfectly preserved, scarlet rose. I turned back to see Roseluck's giddy, shimmering smile as she gasped excitedly. I chuckled and stood up, keeping the bush in place to let her see. She walked over to it cautiously and stared at it, grinning with sparkilng eyes. She then looked up at me, a bit teary eyed. "Better than nothing, eh?" I asked, smiling warmly at her. I was caught off guard as I felt a weight tighten itself around my legs. When I regained my composure, I looked down at cream-coated filly, who had now wrap her forelegs around my thighs. Roseluck's back legs kept her upright as she squeezed my legs in a bone-crushing yet comfortable hug. She leaned the side of her head into me and I chuckled, reaching down to stroke her two-toned red mane. "Thankyou!" she began. "Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou!" Roseluck squealed. "It's perfect!" she added, beaming all the while. I chuckled again and sub-conciously turned my head to the side. I frowned a bit. Ponies, of all kinds stared at me. I wish I knew who they were, things wouldn't have had felt as uncomfortable, I reckon. Many gawked, others blankly gazed and some...some were smiling friendly. I smiled back to those few, it was good to know that if it came down to it, I had some supporters. It was then when I turned back to little Rose, she looked up at me briefly before jumping back down to all fours, smiling the whole time. "Hey, whadd'ya say we get it out of there and pot it?" I asked. Her mouth open in a smile to speak but was cut off by a rather interuptive sound. "Ahem" came the the soft clearing of somepony's throat from behind me. I looked back to find the white alicorn looking at me, the same serene smile on her muzzle. I smirked back. "Princess Celestia!" Rose cried out, gawking at the regal mare. "Howdy, Tia, things get sorted alright?" I said. "Yes but..." she breathed heavily. "I'm afraid this is where we part ways, Kyle" she said, frowning slightly. "Oh...Uh, alright" I simply acknowledged, my face fell a bit. "I've made sure your new home is of the highest possible conditions" she formally stated, a reassuring smile making it's way onto her face. "And...here" she added as her horn glowed. A hefty brown bag floated on over to me, tied at the end with a thin string, it jngled musically as it levitated to me. The aura around it ceased and I caught it in my hands instintively, feeling the many, solid materials inside. I looked up at her, blatantly speechless, I knew well enough what this was. "Call it a welcoming present, Mr. Mercer" she added, calmly. I giggled a bit. "With everything so far, a couple of friends, a new house, a bag of bits and..." I paused. "...A-and a new life...reckon I've got enough welcoming presents" I managed, smiling as humbly as I could muster. Celestia stepped up to me and stared warmly into my eyes. She lifted a hoof and rest her golden slipper on my shoulder. I followed it up to her face and returned the look. Right before I lunged forwared and hugged her. She let out an 'oof' of surprise but quickly and gently hugged me back, draping her hoof on my back as I wrapped my arms around her lower neck. My lower lip trembled as I smiled, burying my neck in her soft coat. I had a feels moment. We seperated and I chuckled half-heartedly. "Good luck, Kyle" she said friendly. "Don't worry, we'll meet again" she added. "I would hope so" I replied. She grinned a bit as her horn glowed subtly. "Farewell" she saluted, finally and in a burst of golden light, she was gone. A moment later, I looked up to find the same golden carriage being hoisted away towards Canterlot by two, armoured pegasus guards. I sighed. "Kyle, eh?" I heard a chirpy tone say from behind me. I looked back down at Roseluck who was grinning slightly up at me. "That's an odd name for a pony" she added, giggling as I gave her a blank look. "But it's a nice name" I smirked at her.