//------------------------------// // Ch.1 // Story: A New Perspective // by portaljumper339 //------------------------------// A New Perspective Ch. 1  Most days, a pony wakes up thinking "What is today going to bring?" or "Did I remember my homework assignment?" Today, I woke up thinking "Where the hay am I?" Cracking my eyes open, I could feel the heat of the sun shining down on my coat, I could hear the birds chirping, and I could sense that I was not where I was when I went to bed.  Pulling myself up to my hooves, I looked down, just to be sure that they were the same as when I went to bed. As I stared down, I saw a strange emblem burned into the ground all around me. And that was just the start of the weirdness. In addition to the splitting headache I had, I also had no clue who I was or how I got here. Classic amnesia. Perfect. I trotted over to a nearby watering hole, just to be sure I was still me. Looking in the water, I was thankful that nothing had changed, at least as far as I knew. Wings, check. Slate gray coat, check. Brown mane and tail with crimson at the roots, check. My... oh hay, what do they call it... that tattoo on my flank... missing? Odd. As I was busy gaping at my own reflection, I heard a bush rustling off to my side. At first I dismissed it as some sort of squirrel, but then noticed a blur out of the corner of my eye run over to another patch of shrubbery, a blur far too big to be a squirrel. I decided to go and check it out, hoping that whatever it was didn't want to eat me. That would definitely put a damper on my day. I slowly advanced toward the bush, tucking my wings in as I did so. Didn't want to seem threatening, right? As I cleared away the brush, I heard a small whimpering sound at my hooves. I looked down, and there was another pegasus cowering at my feet. She was a little smaller than me, with a light yellow coat, a long, flowing, light pink mane and tail, and three butterflies adorning her flanks. I decided that I may as well attempt to make conversation, maybe find out what was going on. "Uh, hello?" With a quick yelp, she bolted, flying away as fast as her wings could carry her. I decided that now would be as good a time as any to see if I still knew how to use my wings. I unfolded them, and with a single flap, I was suspended above the ground. Now I know what they mean about "slipping the surly bonds of earth." I quickly angled my wings and propelled myself forward in hot pursuit of the yellow pegasus. Despite my initial misgivings, it actually came much more naturally than I thought it would, and I was soon gaining a lot of ground on her. Even though she had a head start, her wings weren't as strong as mine, and I quickly caught up to her. I grabbed her by her midsection, doing my best not to hurt her, and tried to force her down with as little effort as possible. Easier said than done. We both started spiraling toward the ground, her screaming, and me attempting to drown her out and take the brunt of the impact against the very solid ground that was rushing up to meet us.  Let's just say that I got the most of it. I landed flat on my back, with her face down against my stomach. However, I felt one of my wings bend at an odd angle, and heard a sickening POP as it fractured at the joint. It was all I could do to not scream in pain, if only to not give her reason to try and break free again. I quickly bit back the pain in my shoulder, flipped myself over on top of her, and pinned her front legs to the ground with my hooves. "What was that for?" I asked rather tersely, the pain in my shoulder reducing to a dull throbbing, "All I did was say hi." However, getting her to talk was going to prove to be as hard as pulling teeth. All she did was squirm and wriggle, trying to get out from underneath me. "Look, if I scared you, I'm sorry," I offered, trying to curry her favor, "It's just that I'm kind of new here in... wherever here is. Now, I'm going to let you up, but you have to promise me that you aren't going to scream or try to run off again, okay?" With a quick nod of her head, I gradually lifted my hooves up off of her and stepped back, tucking my uninjured wing back to my side, the other hanging loosely. She slowly got to her hooves, somewhat shakily, and we proceeded just to measure each other up. She stared at me, I stared at her, neither of us speaking for about a minute. She had wonderful teal eyes, like the color of the ocean, and she seemed to be a little less put off by me. I finally decided to break the tension. "So, what's your name?" And she withdrew into herself just as quickly as she had come out of her shell, trying to cover her face with her mane. "My name is *mumble mumble*," she said, backing away. "I'm sorry, come again?" "My name is *mumble*." "Pardon?" "My name is," and in a voice just barely above a whisper I could make out, "Fluttershy." "Well, Fluttershy, would it be all right if I asked you some questions, because I am thoroughly lost." She muttered something that sounded like an affirmative, so I proceeded. "Well, first off, could you tell me where I am? I went to bed last night in my home, and I woke up this morning in that meadow." She seemed a little more confident now that I had scaled back the crazy, chasing her down and tackling her part of my persona a bit, and she answered in an audible tone of voice. "You're in the country of Equestria, right outside of the town of Ponyville." Equestria... that name sounds familiar, but I couldn't quite place my hoof on it. Maybe some of the ponies in that town could help explain what's going on. "Well, would you mind taking me there? I might be able to find somepony who can explain what is going on." "Sure. Do you think you can fly?" "I managed to catch up to you, didn't I? And that was no small feat." I tried to take off with just my one wing, but all I succeeded in doing was flipping myself over and landing right smack-dab on my bad wing, sending another shock of pain lancing through it. I hissed in pain. Fluttershy immediately rushed over to my side, cradling my wounded wing in her hooves. Now this was a lot better than her running away from me. "Oh dear, your wing! You can't go anywhere in this condition." Wow. This was a LOT better than her running from me. "Fluttershy," I responded, "I think I can walk to Ponyville without injuring my wing any more than it is." "No, no, no! I need to get you a splint and some bandages. Wait here, I'll be right back." And she flew off, with nary a backward glance or tip of the hat. Well, at least I knew I had a friend here. Small comfort, but a comfort nonetheless. ================ Fluttershy returned about a half-hour later with saddle bags that were laden with medical supplies. She landed gently next to me, and quickly set to work on my wing. As she worked, I went on with my questions. "So, uh, where do you live?" "Oh, nowhere special, just in a little cottage in Ponyville, right on the edge of the Everfree Forest." The idea of a forest intrigued me, so I pursued that. "Are there any stories about the forest?" "Many, and none of them good. There are so many strange creatures and monsters that live there, it would be crazy to go in alone." "Oh." Note to self, stay out of the forest. "So, what's your name?" she asked. My name. My name... what is my name? Stupid amnesia. "Um, I... I don't quite remember. My mind's all fuzzy. You think of one." "Well... how does Evan sound? It was my daddy's name." Evan... Evan... it does have a nice ring to it. It would work, at least for now. "Okay, I'm going to tighten the splint now. This may hurt a little." "What do you mean by a li-AAAAAAHHHHH!!!" Okay, that was definitely not a little. "Oh, I'm so sorry! Are you all right? I probably should have numbed the area first." "Yeah... that might've helped," I strained out through gritted teeth. Regaining my composure, I added, "Still though, it's better than nothing. Thank you so much."  "It was no trouble at all. I'd do it for anypony." "Well, all things considered, it was still incredibly kind of you, just dropping everything to tend to my wing. If you could direct me to a local inn or hostel, I could set up there for the night." "Well, if you'd like, you could stay at my place for a while. It will give you some time to rest up and get your bearings together." Well, this was unprecedented. By accepting her offer, I was pretty much saying that I would be staying here for quite some time, but I didn't want to seem rude to the poor thing. That, and it would be good to have a place where I could get a hot and a cot. A free hot and a cot, more importantly. "Sure, why not?" I replied "Oh, this is going to be just wonderful!" she said as we started walking down the dirt road. She sounded genuinely enthused, something that I didn't think possible judging by her previous personality. "You'll love it at my place. It's very quiet and peaceful, and I know you're just going to love all of my little animal friends." "What kinds of animals do you have?" "Oh, all kinds. I have mice and birds and ferrets and..." And that's the way the conversation went, with me asking a few questions, and her giving answers. I learned a lot of stuff about her, and she said a lot about her friends who I was very anxious to meet. Before we knew it, it was already evening, and we had arrived at her cottage. It really was as beautiful as she made it out to be. It had a small river running through the garden, various bird houses and animal homes, and a sod roof that gave it a very natural feel.  I was going to be very happy here. We went inside, and I was astounded. The architecture of the home blended seamlessly with the tree it was built in. It was a quaint little place, with a small kitchen, a well-furnished living room, and a staircase that led upstairs to her room. "I know that you must be tired after your long day," Fluttershy said, "so I'm going to let you get some sleep. I'm really sorry, but I don't have a second bedroom, so you'll have to sleep on the sofa in the living room. I hope it's not a burden." I settled onto the sofa, and I immediately felt sleepy. The light green couch was just my size, and it would make for a perfect bed. "It's no trouble at all. You should probably get some shut-eye too. You've had just as busy a day as I have, what with meeting me and all." I was forced to stifle a yawn, and lowered my head as my eyelids started to droop.  "All right," she said as she blew out the candles. "Have a good night's sleep, Evan. See you in the morning." "Mm-hmm," I barely muttered out as my eyes finally closed. The last thing Fluttershy did before she went upstairs was pull a blanket up over me. She gave me a quick nuzzle on the head and trotted upstairs. Ya know, I could get used to this. =============== The next morning, I awoke to the sound of pots and pans clanking in the kitchen, and a sweet aroma wafting through the air. My growling stomach told me one thing: it was time for breakfast. I creakily got up off of the sofa, and stretched my legs as well as my one good wing. The other one seemed to hurt less, but I wasn't ready to tempt fate just yet. "Fluttershy, are you in there?" I called out in the general direction of the kitchen. "Oh, I'm sorry," she said as she poked her head around the corner, "did I wake you? I tried to be as quiet as possible." "Nah, I was about ready to wake up anyway. So, what's cookin' good lookin'?" I said as I walked into the kitchen. I saw her blush a little at the comment, as she said, "Oh, just a little of this and that. Do you like daffodil and daisy sandwiches?" I don't think I had ever eaten a flower before, but I decided to humor her. "Uh, yeah, it's one of my favorites." "Oh, good. We have that, as well as some celery soup. I hope you like it." As I looked into the pot simmering on the small wood stove, a heavenly scent wafted up my nose, making my stomach growl with hunger. "This will be perfect," I quipped as she took the pot off the eye and started ladleing it into some bowls, which she then put on a plate along with the sandwiches. We took the food out around back, where she had a little tea table set up near her chicken coop. As we set our food down, she asked, "So, um, do you know how you got here?" "Wow, you don't beat around the bush, do you?" "Well," she said, "since you're going to be staying here, I just thought I'd get to know you a little better." "Well, that makes sense. And to be perfectly honest, no. All I remember is going to bed in my home, and waking up in that meadow. Then I met you, broke my wing, and we came here. That's about as far back as I can remember. However, when I first woke up, I noticed some weird symbols burned into the ground beneath me. Do you have any idea what might have caused that?" "No, but if it was just a regular teleportation spell that got you here, it shouldn't have left a mark." "Hmmmm," I sighed thoughtfully. "Well, let's just forget about it for now. Don't want the food getting cold, right?" We sat down and I took a bite out of my sandwich. I'm not sure if whatever brought me here had changed my taste buds, but this was probably the best tasting sandwich I had ever eaten. It probably helped that I was absolutely starving, considering I hadn't eaten yesterday. I started tearing into the food, while Fluttershy was content to eat at a slower pace than me. She was halfway finished by the time I was picking bits of daisy out of my teeth (metaphorically speaking).  "So," I asked, "what exactly are our plans for the day?" "Well, I was planning on taking you into town just to show you around, then having you meet my friends, since you seemed so interested yesterday. That is, if you want to." "Well, since I'm gonna be here for a while, I may as well learn the lay of the land. Where should we start?" As she finished her last bits of sandwich, and took in her last drops of the soup, she said "Well, if it's all right with you, I was going to take you to see Rarity. She's a really good friend, and if you want, she could make you some day wear, if that's your thing." "Well, it would be nice to try some clothes on, even though I was never much of a shopaholic myself. Shall we go?" And with that, we both got up and walked down the dirt path and over the tiny bridge that led to the main road into Ponyville.  "By the way, that was the best meal I've ever eaten." "Oh, it was nothing," she said softly, blushing slightly, "I really am not the best cook in Ponyville. If you want some really good food, you need to see Applejack. She can do just about anything with an apple." "I'll be sure to keep that in mind." =============== We got to Rarity's house at around 12:30, and it is a gem. According to Fluttershy, Rarity runs her boutique out of her home, so I expected it to be a little messy, but it was spotlessly clean. The little bell tinkled as we walked in, and everywhere I looked, there where various examples of Rarity's handiwork. There were suits, vests, shoes, and dresses of every size and shape imaginable. This is what I pictured a tailor's version of heaven to look like. "Rarity," Fluttershy called out, "are you home?" "Just one moment," I heard from the upstairs, accompanied by some frantic hoof steps, "I'll be with you in just a second, dear." After some more scuffling around upstairs, a white unicorn mare came down the steps, her flanks adorned with three diamonds. I am not going to lie, she was gorgeous. Her royal purple mane and tail were perfectly groomed, with every hair falling into place. Her eyeshadow and mascara were perfect, and her coat was immaculately clean. She immediately trotted over to Fluttershy, completely ignoring me. "Fluttershy, darling, it's so good to see you. Is it time for our spa day already? If I recall, we have that every Tuesday, and it's only Monday." "Oh no, I'm not here for that. I actually wanted you to meet somepony." "Oh, well where are they? You know how much I love meeting new ponies." "He's right over there," said Fluttershy, gesturing towards me. "Oh, he's a HE, now is he?" said Rarity, turning to face me. "Well, I hope he's a good stallioOOOOWWAAAHHH!!!" Her reaction to me was not as I had anticipated. I jumped back at her startled scream, wondering what I had done wrong. However, I never got a chance to ask. "Darling, whatever happened to you?! You look like a wreck!" "Oh, if you mean my wing, it was just a little misund-" "No, not your wing, I mean your MANE," she said, circling me. "It is so... dingy. And your coat is covered in little stains, oh this simply will not do! You go right upstairs and take yourself a good bath, and then we will see what we can do with that mane of yours." "But-" I pleaded feebly. "No buts!" At that she wrapped me in what I can assume was magic, levitated me into the air, and dragged me upstairs. As I snuck one last peek downstairs, I noticed Fluttershy, sitting on her haunches, barely containing a giggle at the scene she had just witnessed. Frankly, I could barely keep from laughing myself. =============== Rarity and I finally came back downstairs after what had amounted to an hour and a half long bath, in which she poured all sorts of shampoos and conditioners into my mane and tail, scrubbed my coat to a fair-thee-well, and dried me off with an industrial strength blowdryer. "Well, Evan, at least now you're clean," said Rarity, as we walked back into the boutique area, "but we simply must do something with your mane. You have such good hair, but you just let it grow wild, like you don't even brush it in the morning." "You are sounding exactly like my mother right now." "As well I should. She obviously had some sense of fashion, but it really is unfortunate that it didn't rub off on you. If you'll just step into the back, we can try out some manestyles, and maybe get you some casual day wear. Oh, you would look simply FABULOUS in one of my custom vests. Not to sound rude, but your coat is just so... dull. I've never been a fan of gray coats myself, but some ponies make it look good. You, however, definitely need some color to liven it up. I will simply not let this crime against fashion go unpunished!" "Whatever you say. You're the fashionista here, you lead the charge." She took me into the back room, which was a combination salon and fitting room, and we found Fluttershy looking at some of the new dresses Rarity was designing. She turned as we entered the room, and could only snicker when she saw me. "What? What are you laughing at?" "Um, Rarity," she said, trying to hold back her mirth, "I think you may have had the hair dryer on a little high." "What do you mean," I piped up, "that she had the hair dryer on 'a little high?'" I walked over to a nearby mirror, and couldn't help but laugh. My mane was literally standing a foot out from my head, and was all tangled and knotted. As if to add insult to injury, it was also swept straight backward from my face. I looked like I just walked out of a wind tunnel. "Oh dear," quipped Rarity. "I knew that something seemed a little off. Well, at least we have a good measure on the length of your hair. This should make it easier to pick out some styles." "Now, let's see what I have to work with here," she said as she started straightening out my mane. I noticed that she put on a pair of red, horn-rimmed reading glasses before she got to work, so I could only assume she used them when she really need to focus on something. After another hour, and several mane styles later, Rarity seemed simply flabbergasted as to what she could possibly do with my mane. "Your mane is the absolute hardest one I've ever had to work with. It seems as if it is purposefully trying to irritate me." "Trust me, I have the exact same feelings about it that you do. Plus, you don't have to live with it." "That is true, but I simply don't know what to do. I've tried parting it, gelling it, sweeping it back, even braiding it, but nothing seems to fit you. It's like your hair..." "...Defies the laws of physics?" I quipped. "Exactly! I just simply have no clue at all as to what to do. Your hair frankly looked it's best when you first walked in... wait a minute... AHA! "What? What are you thinking?" I was praying that it didn't involve another hour of waiting around while she did different things with my mane. "Your hair looked better when you first walked in, but I was too focused on how dirty it was to notice. I'll just style your hair so that it looks like it did!" "Well, that should only take about five seconds. I never really do anything with my hair to begin with." At that, she simply brushed my hair a little to give it its natural look, then stepped back to admire it. "Oh, this style suits you to a T! It really shows off your eyes, and gives you an air of adventure and mystique. Now we just need to find you a good vest, and you'll be ready to hit the town! Was there anything specific you had in mind?" "Not really, just let me see what you have in stock."  "Certainly!" We walked over to the nearest rack of vests, and I started perusing. "So, what brings you to our little town?" asked Rarity. "Are you visiting family, or are you here on business?" Gulp. I was hoping that the topic wouldn't come up, because for right now, I wanted to keep the truth about my origins between me and Fluttershy. As I was busy fumbling for an answer, Fluttershy supplied one. "Oh, um, he's a pen pal of mine from Fillydelphia. He's going to be staying with me for a while, because he's thinking of moving to Ponyville." Whew. Nice save there, Fluttershy. "Well, I hope that you choose to stay in our little burg. We have a very tight-knit community here, but I'm sure that you'll fit right in." "Yeah, definitely," I said, desperately trying to steer the conversation off of me. "So, what do you think about this one?" I asked pulling out a red vest with black trim. "Oh, that is simply much too dour and gloomy for somepony with your upbeat personality. Besides, those are more fall colors, and you definitely look like a spring or summer." "Well, what would you pick out?" And thus began another hour long foray into deciding which colors I look best in, what style of vest I would like, and other forms of fashion jargon that may as well have been a foreign language. All Fluttershy could do was look on in amusement as I tried on outfit after outfit, my annoyance growing with each passing moment. Not that I was ungrateful or anything. In fact, I liked Rarity, especially since she dropped what she was doing just to tend to me. She may not have been my first choice for the pony I would want to be trapped on a desert island with, but I liked her all the same.