//------------------------------//
// 2.2 
// Story: The Masks We Wear 
// by JourneymanChronicler 
//------------------------------//

	There is always something added, never taken away, and I am ignorant of it for as long as I allow it.


2.2


Twilight gently raised her muzzle, as a cool breeze drifted through the misty air. The sun gradually rose in the east; the distant rumble of Canterlot Falls droning in the background of the plaza.  She rested her forelegs against the railing that separated the ground from the sheer drop off the side of the mountain. From here, anypony could see the falls as they tumbled down the craggy mountainside to the rocks below. She watched as millions of gallons of water poured over the edge, forming false rainbows in the clouds they produced.

This was her favorite part of the city, besides the castle library of course. It was the perfect place to simply relax and enjoy the view Equestria had to offer. Twilight watched as the waterfall flowed from the channel that cut through the heart of the city. Somewhere along the way, it turned the turbines that gave Canterlot its power, and without its enchanted riverbed the water would have eroded the city off the mountain long ago. Her heart swelled with pride at the genius of it.

A beautiful balance of nature and pony ingenuity.

Looking the other way, she could see to the mountains far to the south. In between, there was an immense mosaic of green. The grasslands and forests seemed to blend together like a massive puzzle, and the southwestern border was made of a thick, deep green, almost black line that was the edge of the Everfree Forest. Even from the top of Canterlot Mountain, she could sense the wildness of the forest, and how it seemed to be a dark mirror of the land around it. On the line that separated the two she could see a small patchwork of shapes that contrasted with foliage.

It looks so small from here.

Her home. It seemed funny, how after three short years she could call it that so easily. The town was barely distinguishable from the landscape around it. Ponyville was but a small, speckled patch among a sea of green. However, if she looked close enough, she could almost make out individual buildings. The tall spire of Town Hall, a big cupcake that could only be Sugarcube Corner, even the wide canopy of her library - all parts of her new home, visible from her old one. She smiled contently.

I have to bring the girls here sometime.

She gently pushed off of the railing and trotted to her bench. On it sat a paper bag which she unfolded and, out from, levitated one of Donut Joe's famous donuts. She settled onto the bench, and whilst drawing a book from her saddlebags, munched  on the pastry. Flipping to the marked page, she was immersed into the words before her.

Next to the Royal Library, the Falls Plaza was the best place in Canterlot to enjoy a good book. The far off roar of the Falls was just loud enough to make it a less than ideal place for a conversation, but soft enough for it to not be overbearing - the perfect location for some quiet contemplation. Nearby, several other ponies were lost in their own books, another meditating in the morning light. It was the most peaceful place in the city, except for the distracting music. 

Wait, music?

 Twilight looked up from her book curiously. Looking around she couldn't find the source of the sound. It had started as a few lone beats, before being joined by the smooth sound of a horn. There had to be several musicians, and they had to be close by because the sound managed to cut right through the usually overpowering noise of the Falls. Glancing from side to side, she couldn't find the source anywhere, and from the look of everypony else, she was the only one who seemed to notice it.

The music grew louder, and she sprang up onto all fours on her bench. Her front hooves slipped in her sudden motion, and the entire plaza seem to blur and melt away as she fell forward. As the world fell apart, Twilight did the vertigo inducing act of opening her eyes, unaware that they weren't already open.

She jolted awake in her bed as the last remains of her dream faded away, and the ceiling of her bedroom came into focus.  Her heart fluttered for a moment as she took a few deep, calming breaths before sitting up. She was about to roll back over and try to go back to sleep when her ears twitched. She could still hear the music.

"Spike, I thought I told you not to play with the record player without my permission?" she said, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. He didn't answer. "Spike?" Twilight got out from under her covers and leaned over the foot of her bed. The little dragon still rested in his basket, completely deaf to the world, and her record player sat silently in the corner of her room.

Twilight looked up, confused, and crawled out of her bed. Walking to the balcony before her, the music grew louder, and with the quirk of an eyebrow she started down the stairs. Halfway to the bottom, she could hear two voices singing: one she didn't recognize, but the other sparked instant recognition.

Of course, I'd forgotten about Isaac... but where did he get that music?

Quickly trotting across the foyer, she moved into her kitchen and saw Ike standing at her stove. A pan simmered on the stove top, giving off a smell of cooking eggs. Ike was dancing whilst preparing breakfast, all of it following the tune of the music. Twilight cast a glance around, still unable to determine where the music was coming from, until her eyes finally stopped on a small, rectangular device propped on her counter. Based on the direction of the sound, the music seemed to be coming from it.

Some kind of record player?

 A cord led from its base to a square panel that had been placed on the windowsill above the sink. The panel was tilted up into the early morning sun, and she could see light reflecting off of it like a mirror. Of course, she couldn't get the best look at it as her dancing, alien houseguest, kept stepping in front of it.

His movements were limited to the rhythmic bobbing of his head, and the occasional shuffle by the confines of her kitchen. His hands, however, were flying across the cooktop. One held a spatula, which he beat against a coffee tin, and the other tapped a pepper shaker against the counter. His voice matched the other singer to the point that it provided a smoother harmony to the invisible stallion's, or likely man's, rougher voice. That is until Ike broke away from the lyrics.

"I've been in the right world, and it seems so right, right, right, right, right!"

Twilight smiled at that.

At least he seems to be feeling better than last night.

The song suddenly came to a break, and Ike let go of his cookware. He made an exaggerated gesture with his right hand, and a flash of blue light left Twilight blinking and stumbling back a few steps. She shook her head, clearing her vision of spots. When she turned back to Ike she saw the guitar from the night before cradled in his grasp. He was providing an animated acoustic to back up to the electric guitar solo that was now playing. She stared at him, her mouth hung open in shock.

How did...I thought he said humans didn't have magic?

The guitar solo ended, but Ike continued to twirl around with the guitar in his hands. His eyes were closed, and he remained blissfully unaware of his audience. The song began to fade into silence, and Ike made a final half turn. With a flourish, he dismissed the guitar in another flash that Twilight managed to shield herself from.

Ike stood with his back turned to the stove, his arms held wide open like an entertainer basking in applause. His face held a similar look, until he opened his eyes...

She gave him a hard look and let out a quiet, "Ahem?", that sounded like a question and an accusation at the same time.

He smiled nervously like a colt caught drawing on his bedroom wall and let out a choked chuckle. "Hehe, hey, Twi! H-how do you like your omelet?" Twilight tapped her hoof against the floor, but said nothing. Ike's smile faltered and he dropped his arms with a sigh. He grabbed the music player and tapped its surface. A new song that started to play faded into nothing. "You're going to want an explanation aren't you?"

"Yes, I think that would be a good place to start," she said.

"Fine," he groaned, "but really, what do want on your omelet?" He pointed over his shoulder. "I found some mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, and cheese."

"Don't change the subject, mister." She took a whiff. "And that sounds good." Ike nodded and turned to the cutting board and began dicing up the peppers. Twilight walked over to her table and sat down, keeping an eye on Ike the whole way. He finished chopping and poured the peppers over the eggs.

How could he used magic? I know that book said humans couldn't use it, and he told me there was no magic at all on his world. Yet, he just pulled off a summoning spell that some unicorns would have diffi-

Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud clattering as Ike sat down the knife and cutting board. "You know, I can feel your eyes boring into my back from here." He turned to her with a confused look on his face. He folded his arms and leaned against her counter. "I can understand being a little startled, but you seem a tad miffed."

"I'm trying to figure out why you lied to me," she said.

"Lied?" he said, his confusion deepening.

"You told me humans had no magic!" she said, sounding a little more accusatory than she wanted. "If that's the case than what the hay was that?"

"Magic?" he said. His brow furrowed before his eyes opened wide with realization. "Oh, right, I see," he said and then laughed.

Now it was Twilight's turn to be confused. "What's so funny?"

"Sorry," Ike said trying and failing to arrest his laughter, "I just couldn't help but imagine Arthur C. Clarke is rolling in his grave."

"Who?"

Ike took a deep breath which seemed to compose himself. "He was a writer who once said, 'Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.' I think you just proved him right." Ike turned around and began to dice up the tomatoes and mushrooms.

Twilight sat quietly in her chair mulling over the implications of what he just said. "Wait, you mean that's some of your people's technology?"

He said they had machines that could fly, but how does somepony summon something without magic?

Ike spread the diced ingredients over the eggs, and then moved on to grating the cheese into the pan.

"Technology, yes," he said. "My people's? No." He set the grater down and then much to Twilight's confusion, placed the pan in her oven twisting on the timer. He grabbed his devices from her counter and moved over to the table where he fell into a chair that was far too small for him. He held his right arm up. "I got this from a friend of mine. Of course, his people didn't make it either. Come to think of it, I don't remember asking him where he got it."

Twilight tilted her head, but all she could see was Ike's arm.

"You got what? I don't see anything," she said.

"It's... um, it's in the arm," he said.

Twilight frowned, thinking she had misheard him, "D-did you say in your arm?"

He nodded, "It's grafted to my radius between it and my ulna. It's about this big." He held up his thumb and forefinger, holding them about three inches apart. He placed them over the surface of his forearm, and now that he pointed out where exactly it was she could barely make out two faint scars on the his skin. Her stomach churned as images went through her head.

"You put something in your arm! Why?" she asked.

Ike shrugged, "Well, it makes it hard to lose." Twilight noted that he didn't say impossible, but felt it best to let that slide. "It's a backpack in the most general sense. It's called a Data Drive. It turns matter into a form of information and stores it away."

"Like how a computer stores information?" Twilight asked.

Ike perked up, intrigued. "You have those?"

Twilight nodded, "In my lab down stairs, I probably have the only ones around here, and they're tiny compared to the one at Canterlot University."

"It's sort of like a computer," Ike said, "From what I understand, my data drive uses something other than bytes. Storing that much information that way is ludicrously impractical."

Twilight nodded, "I imagine it would take more than 64 kilobytes." Ike snorted and brought his hand up to arrest another giggle. "Now what's funny?"

"That's how much you can store?" Ike said.

"No, of course not," Twilight said. "That's what the university's supercomputer can store. A computer that size would fill up my entire ho-... why are you laughing?" Ike's chortling had grown into full laughter. He leaned over the table and even a few tears fell from his eyes. He had held up a hand and took a few calming breaths.

"I'm sorry," he said, his voice leveling. "Now I'd imagine Gordon Moore is rolling in his... wait," Ike looked up in thought, "he wasn't dead when I left. Eh, well then his ears are burning."

...What?

A ding sounded from her oven.

"Oh, hold that thought," Ike said, getting up. He left the devices he had with him on her table and moved over to the oven. He took out the pan, and Twilight found her mouth watering at the smell that followed. Ike took a plate from her cupboard and tilted the pan, letting the omelet slide out. From the size of it Twilight realized she was going to need to get more eggs.

Did he use an entire crate?

With his brow furrowed and his tongue sticking out in concentration, Ike held both objects steady. Then he snapped his wrist, pulled the plate back, and folded the monstrosity. "Ha!" he said triumphantly. Twilight smiled and laughed.

"I could have done that for you with my magic," she said.

"Now where would the fun have been in that?" He put the plate down and turned off the oven. "It's nowhere near as exciting to make without the potential for complete disaster. Besides, it's not that hard. As long as you don't hesitate you should be fine... usually." He grabbed a knife. "How much do you want?"

"Just a small piece."

He cut her what would have been a generous slice if the rest hadn't been so big and put it on a plate. He did the same for what would be Spike's and took the rest for himself.  

"Not going for a modest proportion, I see," she said.

"What?" He shrugged, "I'm a big guy, and all I had yesterday was an apple and a few pastries." Twilight raised an eyebrow at him, and his shoulders drooped. "Fine. An apple and quite a few pastries. An on-the-road diet and a high metabolism don't mix well, alright?"

Twilight chuckled, "It's fine, Ike."

With his size he probably does need more food anyway. Spike and I will have to go to the market today.

"Hm, we're missing something," he said, before picking up the plates. He snapped his fingers and walked over her fridge. He opened the door and paused. "Um, Twilight, you have a snowstorm raging in you fridge."

"Of course," she said, "how else would you keep food cold?"

"Apparently not freon compression," he muttered.

Freon?

Pulling out a bottle of ketchup, he closed the door and glanced at the logo on the front. "Cirrus Industries?"

"They're the largest producer of weather-magic related goods in Equestria," Twilight said.

Ike shook his head and sighed, "Pony corporations, of course." He grabbed the plates and ketchup bottle and brought them over to the table. "Want some?" he said, holding out the bottle.

"Why would you make a perfectly good omelet and then smother it in ketchup?" Twilight cutting off a piece with her fork.  

"Shush," he said, covering the bottle protectively, "do not insult the nectar of the gods." Twilight simply eyed him, and he shrugged. "Suit yourself," he said and poured the bottle on his food. Twilight rolled her eyes and took a bite.

This is really good!

"Wow!" she said, quickly taking another bite.

"I take it you approve?" Ike said, taking a bite from his own plate.

"How did you make it so fluffy?"

Ike held up one finger, "Dash of milk to fluff up the eggs," he held up a second finger, "and broil for two minutes to even out the sides."

"That's clever," Twilight said.

"Omelets are easy." He looked down at his plate and played with the edge of his meal with his fork.  "All you need are some eggs, and then you can add just about anything. It's a good meal to master."

"When you're always moving?" Twilight added, glancing up at him. Ike didn't look up and gave a half-shrug. There was a few moments of silence while they both ate.

"So," Twilight finally said, "you were explaining."

"Oh right?" Isaac perked up, "well, there's really not much more to say other than it's essentially my backpack. I can carry about sixty-five kilograms of equipment within it. The way it's stored keeps it from weighing me down."

Twilight nodded seeming to understand, "So it's like a bottomless bag. Wouldn't it be easier to carry one of those? Some can store entire houses. A lot more than what you're carrying."

"Ah," Ike said, raising a finger, "but that requires magic."

"What's the problem with that?"

"Well, let's say that I go to a place where the magic that enables said bag to function didn't exist. Best case scenario is the bag dumps everything right there."

"And the worst case?"

"It explodes. I find exploding tends to be the worst case scenario in most circumstances."

Why do I have the distinct feeling he's speaking from experience?

"That's the reason I avoid using magical devices. They tend to be unreliable, in the grand scheme, but I can trust technology to always function. It works off the basic laws of the universe, and those are always constant regardless of what world I'm in. Nothing is ever taken from them just added to them." He took a few more bites before continuing. "Gravity always works, the laws of mass and energy always work, and I can trust that when I do this," Ike place his hand on the table, there was a flash, and a pile of equipment littered her table, "I don't end up with a charred stump instead of a hand." He rolled his unharmed wrist theatrically before pointing at his equipment. "I also figured your next question was going to be what I had in it, so I thought I'd just show you."

It wasn't, but it probably should have been.

Before she could get a good look at the pile, however, she heard a gasp from behind her. "That was so cool!" Twilight turned and saw Spike gazing in awe at the her table.

"Morning, Spike," Ike said. "Sleep well?"

"Hey, Ike! What are you doing here?"

"Twilight was kind enough to offer me your guestroom," Ike said, pointing to the counter. "Made ya breakfast."

Spike took a deep sniff before licking his lips. "Awesome, I got an alien roommate with superpowers that can cook!"

"Hey," Twilight huffed, "you know I can do that trick too."  

 "Yeah, but, you're a unicorn, Twilight."

"So?"

"So when you do something like that it's kind of normal, but for Ike to do it without magic it's like an earth pony levitating something."

Twilight slumped, "I'm so glad my special, innate, bound to my very soul, talent has not left you jaded, Spike."

"Thanks!" he said, missing her sarcasm completely. She slumped further into her chair and shot a glare at Ike, who silenced his renewed chortles and became very interested in his fork. His ever-constant grin did remain a few shades brighter however.

Spike got his meal and a jar from the fridge before joining them at the table. Spike opened the jar and sprinkled a few pea-sized sapphires onto his omelet. He hummed in delight, sliced off a piece, and stuck it in his mouth with an audible crunch of shattering stone. Twilight noticed Ike had been staring at Spike with a mixed look of fascination and pain. She watched as the human worked his jaw a few times and ran his tongue over his gums.

For all his calmness, he's still a stranger in a strange land.

"Dragon teeth," she said, trying not to laugh at Ike tapping his fork against one of his canines, "are some of the hardest naturally forming things on the planet. Kind of have to been when diamonds are a part of their diet."

"Heh, you don't say," Ike said, putting down his fork.

"Yeah, diamonds are good," Spike said, through his munches, "but I like rubies better. They're fruitier."

"Yes, and the last time you gorged yourself on them you ended up with night terrors," Twilight said.

"It was my birthday, and Pinkie put them in a cherry pie. I couldn't help myself." Twilight gave him a knowing look, and the dragon shrunk into his chair.

"If I remember correctly there were three pies, and you were only supposed to have one a week. Not all in one afternoon," she said.

He's lucky he got night terrors and not a food coma.

Spike chuckled nervously before looking for a way out of this conversation. "So, Ike," he said. The human had been watching the exchange with an amused look on his face.

"Yes, Spike?"

"What's, um, this thing?" he said, pointing to a part of Ike's equipment at random. Twilight chuckled to herself, as she let the subject fall to the side.

It was just a little ribbing anyway. Besides, I want to know as much as I can about this stuff as well.

The object Spike had pointed to seemed like nothing more than short, black rod.

"This is an Omni-light." Ike said, grabbing it, "Basically, a glorified," he paused and pressed a button on the rod's side, "flashlight." He said the last part in a loud, clear tone, and the rod obeyed. An aperture opened on the end, and a beam of light emanated from the opening.

"Oh," Spike said, a little disappointed. "Well, that's still cool."

Ike's smile brightened like a magician before the prestige, "Now wait a second. I said 'glorified' remember." He nodded to the window. "Shut the blinds and turn off the lights." Spike got up and did so as Ike twisted the rod which caused its base to spread out into a tripod. He placed it on the table as the room fell into darkness.

"Rave," Ike said in the same clear tone. Twilight then watched in awe as many bead like objects floated out of the aperture. Each one was about the size of a fly and had a dimmed light at their tips. They all orientated themselves in a half spherical shape in the air. The white light at their tips then morphed in a rainbow of different colors, and just to top it all off, they began to dance.

It's like a mechanical firefly lantern, but I don't think you could ever train fireflies to do this.

Her kitchen became a sea of oscillating colors that shifted and swirled in hypnotic patterns. At least they were to the baby dragon, whose eyes grew huge at the prismatic display. Ike deactivated the rod, and Spike turned on the lights. Twilight just barely caught the last of the beads return to their compartment before the aperture sealed them inside.

"That's awesome," the dragon cheered. "It's like a party in a stick!" He paused with a thoughtful look on his face. "You better not tell Pinkie Pie about it. It would be worse than the time she figured out you could fry ice cream." Twilight winced at the memory.

Colgate and Doctor Stable nearly chewed poor Pinkie's ear off about the importance of dental hygiene and low cholesterol after that little binge.

"That sounds terrifying and delicious, and I don't know why," Ike said.

Trust me you have no idea.

"So, besides a your flashlight, what else do you have?" Twilight asked. Her eyes fell on the two objects he had out when she found him in the kitchen. "What about those?"

Ike picked up the black rectangle, and turned it over in his hand. The surface had a mirrored finish, and looked like nothing more than a paperweight.

"This is... well, it's kind of a multi-tool," he said tapping its surface. The screen began to glow and series of flat buttons appeared. The screen was completely smooth, but somehow it knew where Ike was tapping. "Unfortunately, it's used to work with other devices rather than alone, so for now it's just a music player."

"How many songs does it have on it?" she asked. She had seen several similar devices capable of holding in recorded sounds. Most of them were enchanted crystals that could be hooked to an amplifier. They had better sound quality than a common record, but could only hold a song or two, and they were too expensive to be much more than odd knickknacks for rich nobility.  That didn't stop her father from splurging on a set, however.

"The future!" he had called them.

Ike glanced at the music player contemplatively before shrugging. "I'm not really sure. It was a gift from this tech guru I helped out once. When I asked him he just smiled and said, 'Enough.' If I were to guess," he paused, thinking, "several hundred thousand maybe. He made some crazy modifications to its storage space, among other things."

Twilight felt her stomach drop. Her father may have been right. "S-several hundred thousand?"

"Give or take," Ike said, as if it wasn't a big deal.

"That's awesome!" Spike said. "You could have a concert that could last a year!"

"Likely several," Twilight mumbled. Her words were apparently ignored by the dragon as he pointed to the other device.

"And that?" he said, pointing to the mirrored panel about the size of a dinner plate.

"This is what powers all of my electronics," Ike said. "It's a solar panel. The shiny surface absorbs sunlight and turns it into electricity."

 Now that is very clever! Dad has some coworkers at the college who would love to have that idea run by them.

Ike moved on to the next device which was a rather unassuming box he called a fabricator. It was featureless cube about the size of a breadbox. Twilight's confusion grew when Ike asked if he could use her drinking glasses to demonstrate how it worked. Telling him it was fine, Ike took the glass and placed it on top of the cube. The top of the cube lit up when the glass made contact, but Ike had shifted his focus to the music player he had with him, tapping away at its screen.

He made one final tap, and Twilight's jaw fell open at what happened next. The glass disintegrated, but instead of falling in pieces to the surface of the cube it coalesced  into an orb at the center before being sprayed out onto the table. Twilight's eyes widened as she saw the atomized glass reform into something new. After ten seconds, what was once a glass cup was now a glass figurine of a swan landing on a lake.

"That is amazing!" she said, levitating the swan up for a closer look. It was so detailed that she could see the smaller feathers of its wings.

"I know it," Ike said, nodding. "It really lightens my load. Why carry extra gear when I can just make it, and if I'm patient I can make just about anything; provided I find the materials. That's it's one downside, it has to obey the law of conservation of mass, and it can only make one solid object at a time. That means if what I make has more than one part I still have to assemble it by hand."

That thing alone could revolutionize manufacturing.

Twilight stopped herself from asking if she could study the device. It would have been rude to take it from him and likely break it in the process. All of Ike's equipment was remarkable if she were honest with herself. Spike seemed to be handling the wonder better than her. His childlike awe glossing over the technical bits that were driving her analytical mind crazy, and when Ike took out his collapsible computer (it was at this point she learned why he had been laughing earlier, because apparently terabytes of information could be stored in something that weighed twelve pounds) Twilight hit an informational overload. By the time he was done describing all of its functions, her initial amazement had all but worn off leaving her with a headache.  

Record player, child's play. Photo album, of course. Film archive and projector, you bet. Library, why the buck not! And all of it powered by sunlight absorbing brick.

"So you can play games with it?" Spike asked as he gazed at the "laptop" in awe.

"Among other things," Ike said, "I'll show you some sometime." Twilight saw Ike give her a worried look as her hoof toyed with something at least partially mundane, his camera.

Except that it can take more pictures than the total number of photos ever taken in Ponyville before filling up, but I'm going to ignore that fact right now for the sake of my sanity.

"Are you okay, Twilight?" Isaac asked.

"Hm? Yes, I'm fine. Maybe a little overwhelmed." She said, casting a glance at the rest of Ike's gear. Hoping to find something to ease her culture shock.

Most of his equipment appeared rather mundane, which was why he had apparently skipped over it, and some of its items were labeled (which she approved of). There was collapsible tent, his guitar, a few sturdy looking cases, and items wrapped in bundles. One appeared to contain an extra set of clothing, and if his species did wear clothing all the time then what he had told Rarity was true. He did travel light. Another bundle caught her eye, something silver glittered from inside.

"What's in there?" she asked. Ike looked at the bundle and froze. For a few moments it seemed like he wasn't going to open it, and a debate went on behind his eyes. Finally, he steeled himself and undid the clasps. When it unrolled Twilight had to keep herself from drawing in a surprised breath.

Knives and daggers, at least a dozen of them. A few bore similarities with griffin and pegasi filet knives used on fish, but not the daggers... no, those had another purpose. Regardless of their function all were cared for and shined to a mirror finish, and Twilight could see her forced neutral expression in all of them.

Shining would find this impressive.

Her brother had taken to collecting similar weapons before going to the academy, so she was familiar with these types of items. However, seeing them on her kitchen table, and in the possession of a relatively unknown houseguest was a bit unnerving. Casting a glimpse back at Ike, she was surprised to see a flash of shame in his normally bright eyes. His smile had fallen to a nearly flat line, and he didn't look at the daggers. It was like he didn't want to acknowledge them.

Now that I look at him, it's kind of funny to imagine him using these.

"'Traveling can be a dangerous business,'" she said, echoing his words from yesterday.

A half smile returned to his face. "'Tools, nothing more,'" he finished. Twilight grinned in return and nodded.

Good enough for me.

Ike tucked the weapons away, and they both silently agreed that was enough show-and-tell for now. Ike recollected all of his equipment and began to clear the table. He didn't say a word as he moved the plates into the sink and began scrubbing them. His smile had slowly returned, but Twilight noticed the far-off look in his eyes as he worked. It was the same reminiscent  gaze she had seen yesterday, and again, it made him look far too old.

Twenty-five-years-old... just how much have you seen in that time?

Twilight had her suspicions about Isaac, though they had changed since yesterday. She no longer thought of him as an alien monster, it didn't fit with him anymore. Now, however she saw something far more troubling. He was a happy, carefree individual, or at least at one time she believed he was. Perhaps he still was, but something seemed to be holding him back.

Her eyes glanced at the scar on his cheek. It appeared out of place, but at the same time she couldn't imagine him without of it. It was like a bit of truth peeking out from behind the mask he showed the world.

"Ah can't tell ya what to think about him, but Ah think he needs friends more than anything right now." Applejack's words echoing in her head once again.

Twilight nodded to herself, I'm beginning to believe the same thing.

"So you'll help me?"

Twilight jolted when she realized Ike had asked her a question. "I'm sorry. What did you say?"

"I said, 'Could you help me find a place in town to stay?'" Ike said, drying his hands off.

"What's wrong with staying here?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah, we don't mind if you stay here!" Spike said, "Especially, if you keep making breakfast." Twilight rolled her eyes at the dragon. "What? He's good at it."  

Ike shook his head. "I don't like being a burden, and I was actually planning on sticking around for awhile," he said, leaning against her counter again.

"Really?" she said. "What happen to 'going wherever the wind takes you?'"

Ike chuckled, "The wind can wait a while. Besides, this seems like a nice place you've got here, and I haven't kicked my heels up in a long time." Twilight noticed his fingers had begun to absentmindedly twist the ring around his finger. She caught herself before letting her curiosity ask something about it. Her friends may have said she was terrible at poker, but thanks to her numerous strategy guides, she knew a tell when she saw one. The only question was what did it signify? Twilight realized she was drifting again and forced herself back on topic.

Don't start treating him as a puzzle, last time you treated somepony like that you ended up in traction.

"How long are you planning to stay?" she asked.

He shrugged, "I'm not sure. A few months or more, maybe. I don't want to be in your ha- um, mane that long."

Twilight smiled and waved the comment off with her hoof. "Ike, you're obviously a considerate houseguest." She indicated to the dishes he had cleaned and set in the drying rack. "Besides, I already told you the library has the most room for you. Well, except Town Hall and Rainbow Dash's house."

Ike raised an eyebrow, "What's different about Rainbow's house?"

"It's traditional pegasi architecture. The ceilings and hallways are wide so they can fly around in them."

"Sounds expensive," Ike said.

"It would be if the place wasn't made of clouds," Twilight said.

Ike's puzzled look only lasted a moment before he understood, "Oh, traditional architecture. So I guess that means it's-"

"About one hundred hooves off the ground, and you'd fall right through without a cloud-walking spell, yes," Twilight finished.

"Hm, well I guess that's out," he chuckled.  "Still, I nearly cleared out your fridge. I wouldn't want to run up your grocery bill."

Twilight rolled her eyes, "I get a stipend from the princess, herself. A few extra groceries is hardly going to hurt me financially. As a matter of fact, Spike, why don't you go up stairs and get what we need to make a shopping list?"

"You got it," he said, slipping off his chair and waddling out of the room.

Ike still leaned against the counter, the corner of his lip quirked up in a thoughtful expression. He looked down at the kitchen floor mulling over her offer. A few moments later he straighten up having come to a decision. He raised one finger.

"One condition," he said.

Odd, it's usually the landmare who sets the conditions.

"Yes?"

"I'm paying rent."

And it's usually the landmare who decides that.

"Ike, I already told you that-"

"I know," he said, cutting her off with a raised hand, "but I'm not staying here for nothing. Besides, getting a job will be an interesting experience."

"I thought you were 'kicking your heels up', taking a break?" she asked.

"Twilight, traveling is what I do. Doing something as mundane as getting a job would be taking a break," he said, "and I'd like having a routine for once."

Twilight couldn't help but smile to herself.

Stallions and their pride. It doesn't matter what species or world they're from they still have too much. At least Isaac includes his heart with his.

"Alright," she said, "I won't stop you."

Ike nodded and glanced at her wall clock. "Good, now if you'll excuse me, if I don't leave now I'll be running late." Twilight raised an eyebrow and turned to her clock, eight thirty.

Oh right, he promised Scootaloo he'd go to the lake.

"I can walk you there if you want," she said.

"No need. I'm big boy. I can cross the street all by myself," he said, his smile turning wry as he walked out the room.

Twilight shook her head with a smirk. She was more worried about how other ponies would react to him. He was right though; he'd been taking care of himself for a long time, so she guessed he really didn't need her.

The town's going to have to get used to him anyway, and I don't think they're going to have a problem with him. Seriously, insisting on paying me even after I told him the Princess would-

Twilight's thoughts came to an abrupt halt. When had she told him that she knew the Princess? She went through her conversations with him from the moment they met up to that point, and not once had she mentioned the Princess or the fact that she was her student. He couldn't be so ignorant to think that a stipend from her was normal. As she thought harder she realized he couldn't have known pegasi buildings were made of clouds either. So where had he learned that?

Twilight got off her chair and walked out of her kitchen with the intent of confronting him about it. However, she stopped when her eyes fell on library's reading table. On it was a pile of books. She levitated them up to her and went through the titles.

The Equestrian Guide, Tribal Influences, The Rise of Modern Equestria, Equus: Cultures and Races. He's been studying.

The thought actually made her smile a bit. Curiosity was a trait she could sympathize with.

It still doesn't explain how he knew I'm the Princess's-

Then she made the connection. All of these books came from the same shelf which was also the shelf she kept...

"My photo album," she said, a little annoyance slipping into her voice. Curiosity was fine. Nosiness, however, was a little more aggravating. She took the books back to their shelf. Replacing them and pulling out her photo album. She heard the thumps of Ike's now booted feet as he came down from the guestroom.    

"Twi, if you need me back all you have to do is ge-" Ike's words faltered as he saw the book she held in her magic. The look on his face was all the proof she needed to tell he'd looked through it. She wasn't angry, but she still opened her mouth to lecture him about privacy. "It's not snooping if anyone can find it!" Twilight held her tongue as Ike beat her to the punch.

Darn.

She let out a sigh and put the book back in its place. "Just ask next time."

 "Of course,” he said, nodding. “What gave me away?"

She smiled, "Some would find it odd that a simple librarian is getting a stipend from the Princess."

"From what I saw, you and your friends are anything but simple."

"Humph, yes I suppose. Why didn't you bring it up?"

He shrugged, "It wasn't important."

"The fact that I'm the Princess's protégé and national hero wasn't important?"

"Nope," he said, innocently, "You seem to prefer Twilight the Librarian to Twilight the Herculean mage, and I didn't feel like bothering you about it."

"Herculean?" Twilight asked.

"Reference to a human myth, it means super," he said.

"Oh." Twilight shook her head. Most ponies found her and her friends’ reputation at least a little intimidating. It was oddly refreshing for somepony... somebody to take it so easily. "You're an odd... person, Isaac."

Ike regarded her with mock surprise. "Took ya till just now to figure that out? Yeesh, I'm losing my touch."

Despite herself, she laughed a bit. He came the rest of the way down the stairs, and she noticed that he now had the sword and firearm strapped on his body. They hadn't been in his drive.

So they don't get put away.

She should have been concerned that he was carrying the weapons out in the open, but she suspected it was more out of a habit on his part than anything else.

"Just stay out of trouble okay?" she asked.

Ike nodded and made his way to the door. He paused halfway across the room, a thought seeming to occur to him. He reached up and unhooked the clasps that held his sword to his shoulder. The scabbard swung loose now only attached by the belt, and she realized it had been strapped on upside-down. The pommel was at his hip.

He could never have drawn it that way, and how does it not fall out?

After fiddling with the straps, he held out his hand and summon his guitar. He slung its strap over his head, and the instrument took the place of the weapon on his back. Lastly, he summoned his camera and let it hang on his front. He was an odd sight when he finished. He looked like—no, he was an alien prepared for battle, serenading, and touring all at once.

"There," he said, "now I won't surprise anyone with my flashing." His data drive lit up beneath his palm to emphasize his point.

"That's probably a good idea," Twilight said. "Just be gentle with everypony. They can be a bit skittish."

He smiled, "No need to worry, Twi, I'm the epitome of tact." With that he slipped on his sunglasses and strolled out the door. Twilight breathed out, assuring herself one last time that it wasn't a mistake to let the alien roam free and walked back to the kitchen. As she turned the sound of claws tapping on wood came from the stairs.

"Did Ike leave?" Spike asked.

"Yes, he promised to watch Scootaloo's training session today, and what took you so long?"

"I had trouble finding your quills," Spike said. He walked over to her foyer's desk and pulled open a drawer which was overflowing with the feathers. "I thought you said the paperwork was hoofprint only?"

Twilight winced when she saw the mountain of paperwork she had forgotten about yesterday. "They were just in case a signature wasn't snuck in there somewhere." Spike rolled his eyes.

"Of course, you'd keep quills on hoof for emergencies," he said.

She huffed and walked into the kitchen, giving the paperwork one last look.

No reason to fill it out now. The princess is going too busy to- THE PRINCESS! I forgot to tell Ike I'm taking him to meet the Princess. Oh well, I'll just meet him at Rarity's this afternoon. I need her too make him a suit anyway.

"So?" Spike said, as he scribbled on a roll of parchment, "I know we're going to need more eggs and vegetables. What else?"

Twilight thought for a moment. "Add fish," she said.

Spike looked at her curiously, "I thought you didn't like fish?"

"I don't, but Ike's an omnivore. He needs some source of protein," she said.

I hope Ike doesn't mind cooking it himself. I don't see how Dash can stand the smell.

"Okay," Spike said, writing. "Anything else?"

Twilight gave one look around the kitchen before her eyes fell on the one thing Ike had forgotten to return to the fridge.

"Ketchup." She levitated the bottle and noted that it was empty. "Extra large." She sighed and dropped the bottle into her garbage.

Ponies may not have anything to worry about from him, but I fear for the tomato population.



	                

Just across the way from the Golden Oak library, obscured by the foliage of the path-side shrubbery, a pair of beady eyes watched the front door with intent. A wicked smile stretched across the huddled form’s face, as he sat in manic anticipation. To say Thomas liked his job would be lie of criminal proportions. The pony that claimed Thomas liked his job would need his head examined, because the chances of there being any brain within it at all were slim to none. All anypony needed to do was witness Thomas perform his duty to know that there was no way in Tartarus he liked his job. One look and a pony would know the truth. Thomas did not like his job.

He was unconditionally in love with it.

If there had ever been a pony whose special talent was more suited for their occupation Thomas would have known about it, and as far as he knew, or cared, there wasn't. He did his work with a zeal and enthusiasm that bordered on, and sometimes was, psychotic. Today that enthusiasm was approaching dangerous levels, and that likely made him the happiest stallion in all of Equestria, if not Equus.

Today, the pegasus hid in the leaves of a bush across from the Golden Oaks Library with a smile that said he was up to no good. His patchy white coat always looked like it needed a bath, and the dark spot encompassing his right eye gave him a perpetual black eye, matching the real one on his left he'd gotten two nights before. His uncut brown mane fell from his head in a bedraggled mess, and his broad smile was marred by several missing teeth. As his griffon stepmother put it, he was terminally unkempt.

The only part of him that seemed at all together was his cutie mark. A red cross-hair, signifying his talent of always getting the perfect shot, and today he was going after big game.

From across the street, the door to the library opened, and Thomas's prey stepped leisurely out onto the street. For a moment, his heart stopped as the few lingering doubts in the back of his mind died.

So it's true, an alien!. A real live alien, and I'm the one who's going to get the shot!

Thomas lifted his weapon and took aim at the creature. Though, his body shook with giddiness his arms remained steady from years of practice. He smiled widely and took his shot.

Cl-click!

The snap of his camera's shutter was like bits in the bank, and with each successive snap Thomas's happiness grew.

I can't believe this. Las Pegasus can buck itself, because Ponyville is where the real jackpot is.

Thomas's big score was really more fate than luck. He had no plans on being anywhere near Ponyville until yesterday, when he was rudely awoken by Canterlot city guards at three in the morning. He'd only gotten halfway out of his apartment window before one guard latched onto his back leg and dragged him to their feet, scaring the earth pony mare in his room half to death.

Luckily, they were acting as messengers, and not there to take him away. After reading the letter, he was sure it was a bad joke, but a closer look at the royal seal proved him wrong. There was an alien in Ponyville, and he was supposed to tail it.

A few months ago, Tom became indentured to the Princess in a way. He had helped his nephew into the palace, who then obtained a few unflattering pictures of the Princess.

I still think it did her some good. Everypony loves a more relatable role-model, and she could stand to be taken down a few notches.

However once the pictures were released it didn't take long for the palace to track down the one responsible for it. Now, Thomas might not have the most virtuous of ponies, but he prided himself on being a good uncle and took all of the heat. Besides, he had a few contingency plans.

When his punishment was discussed, the Princess, lenient as always, suggested community service. Thomas took that moment to offer her his services. Thomas's reputation was legendary, and with a name like Peeping Tom ponies got several ideas of what he was good at. In his case, the ideas paled in comparison to the reality. So much so, he called himself by what his stepmother called him.

"Better than that silly pony name," she had said.

And more inconspicuous, he later added. He wasn't ashamed of who he was, but it did make work the slightest bit easier.      

The Princess took the offer as he knew she would. Several centuries of peace had made Equestria rather relaxed, and while it still maintained a standing army, it lacked an experienced espionage branch. As far as skill and experience went, Thomas was the clear choice, and to his own surprise, she accepted one of his regular contracts; one that gave him ownership over any pictures he took on the job. It may have been buried in the fine print, but it still had legal weight. He had been gambling on the fact that whatever job the Princess would send him on would be worth a fortune, but he never imagined he would be this right.

He followed the alien as it walked down the street, making sure to get pictures of as it strolled past other ponies giving each one a polite nod in greeting.

It's too bad the publishers are only going to use the ones of the ponies shying away. My gut tells me this guy ain't that bad.

Thomas noted the camera around the alien's neck almost immediately - alien or not, he could relate to a fellow paparazzo. However, it wasn't his job to get the story behind the pictures; that was left to the publishers and editors that would inevitably buy his work. It wasn't his fault if they turned him into an invader sent to take over their world. After all, sensationalism sells, the truth doesn't. While the alien would eventually get his say anyway, the tabloids ultimately didn't care whether their stories were believed - just bought. Whatever the pictures were used for was out of his hooves, in the end.

Many ponies had asked him how he slept at night. His answer was always the same. "I tend to work most nights so I don't really get a chance, but come day time I sleep like a foal."

Thomas followed the alien until it turned a corner and went out of sight. He didn't make a move to go after it. The creature stood out like a sore wing, and he would find it with ease. Instead he turned his camera straight ahead and waited.

The alien was the big score here, and Thomas was certain he could retire on what he currently had alone. However, retirement was far from his mind. He loved his job far too much to leave, and money was not what he wanted most, though it was nice. What he truly wanted – no, craved, was fame, and Princess Celestia had unknowingly dropped the means right in front of him.

The alien would sell, no doubt about it, but it would take awhile. If editors ran every alien sighting they got they would be backed up for months. Some would wait until it was at least partially confirmed. However, there was one topic any editor would sell his mother and maybe his soul to obtain: shots of the Elements of Harmony, the bearers and the rocks themselves. Sure everypony knew of them, but no one actually knew about them. They were each a bit famous in their own way, but that was all the media had gotten. It was only when they were directly in the spotlight that they were approachable. Their public lives were easily seen, but privately they were blank.

Surely the ponies of Equestria deserve to know the mares they owe their lives to. It's only fair.

Princess Celestia herself had instilled the media barrier around the mares, and no pony had managed to find a way through it. No pony until Thomas, and Celestia had practically hoofed him the keys.

Across the street the library door opened, and Twilight Sparkle, bearer of the Element of Magic, Princess Celestia's personal pupil, and the second of his seven targets trotted out onto the street followed by her dragon assistant. Thomas focused his camera and took his pictures.

His contract's orders couldn't have been more perfect. "Follow the alien, record his movements, activities, and effects on the populace." Under-normal circumstances following these mares was illegal. The Princess, self-restraining as she was, still had the power to form an absolute decree as long as three-fourths of the citizen government agreed. In the wake of their salvation from Nightmare Moon they had been more than willing to allow the Princess to decree that the Element Bearers' private lives remain so for as long as they wished. In short, every paparazzi pony in Equestria had been given a mass restraining order.

The only one who could override the decree was the Princess, and Thomas had successfully maneuvered her into doing so, just for him. He knew the exact lines in his contract he could point to for his lawyer to tear apart any reason the Princess could give for him to not sell his photos. They were legally his to do with as he pleased, and as far as the law was concerned she might as well have ordered him to follow the Elements. It was his job, and he would do it with the precision and skill that only he had.

The mare turned  the corner in the opposite direction the alien had taken, and Thomas sat considering which to pursue first; both were equally beneficial. Thomas took a second to wallow in his good fortune. By this time next week, he was going to be the most famous, and notorious, photographer in history.

"I love this job," he said, as he spread his wings and flew after the alien.