Cold Hooves - Warm Heart

by RandomGreymane

Chapter 6 - The Eyes Have It

Dear Princess Celestia,

I have eyes! Wonderful green eyes!

Let me take a few hoofsteps back here.

Twilight came to visit finally. (Spike as well!) During the visit we caught up on a number of things and she was able to adjust several things about my body. (Turns out she’s been reading up on this in her copious amounts of spare time. Ha!)

Regardless she set about dealing with a few problems that I didn’t really realize I had. For instance I couldn’t understand why other ponies wouldn’t face me when they talked to me. As you know, from our previous exchanges when I was first bonded with this body, I don’t “see” in the usual way. Oh it comes across more and more as the same visual perception I’m accustomed to, but I’ve never had actual eyes to speak of. Not any more than carved shapes that is.

Twilight was kind enough to create me a pair of eyes that not only look fairly normal but track the direction I’m “looking”. The process took some time, a few days in fact, but was well worth it. I have the most spectacular green eyes! (The rest of the farm crew is still getting used to it, but it turns out they’re pretty flexible.)

The other change was one of color. While we were enjoying one of your morning sunrises, Twilight was almost blinded by the white reflection from my polished flanks. I was mortally embarrassed but Twilight shrugged it off.

She did remark that, after recalling several afternoon tea sessions with Rarity, a white coat could be like Tartarus to keep clean. And, no surprise, I was quite in agreement. I’d been trying like hay to keep my flanks free of any dust or dirt but usually to no avail.

It took us a day more to get the coloring right but I am now a slightly less white color. It is all sorts of awesome! And best of all when I get dirty the veins in the stone accentuate the overall look rather than stand out.

She also took the time to do something else for me at my request.

Since moving here I’ve been bucking cherries and pulling carts, but the one thing I have had a serious problem with is entering anything but the barn.

We discussed the issue and, while she couldn’t make me any lighter without altering the hardness of the stone, she was able reduce my size to something closer to a large draft pony rather than an enormous behemoth.

The experience was similar to one time in my youth. You had a tutor instructing me in volumetric expansion spells and I was occupying a large section of the royal garden as a giant pony. You emerged from the castle to tell me that it was mealtime and I shrunk myself so quickly that I didn’t have time to blink. It was as if the world instantly grew up around me. This current experience was similar to that but in miniature. Very strange yet familiar at the same time.

On other topics, Twilight agreed with me that the snowstorm did not appear to be of natural causes. After several walks around the orchard she told me that she sensed something but couldn’t pin it down. She said, strangely, that it somehow felt familiar. She said that if I’d felt it....

(...)

I was stopped in my tracks. Twilight as well.

Twilight looked up at me and apologized. I looked down and all I could see was, not a princess, but another uncomfortable pony. Another pony I’d made uncomfortable just by existing.

I told her it was okay even though a small part of me was crying inside.

We continued walking until we reached the barn again. By this time you were once again setting the sun so we both took our leave and Twilight headed into the house.

The new eyes...they still can’t cry.

I think I’m grateful for that because sometimes I feel like I could drown the entire world with my tears.

I’m me. I’m Alabaster. I know that. I FEEL that. But there’s so much missing that it feels like a hole burnt through my heart. And I don’t know if it’s even possible to fill it.

So much lost...I’m going to step away for a moment before continuing this letter...

I’m back. My apologies for that delay. Sometimes it takes time for me to get the emotions under control.

It’s weird. I’m both more formal with you and more casual at the same time. Part of me is still in awe of just being able to speak to you - especially after being transformed. And yet you’re one of the people I’ve been closest too all my life. The dichotomy is confusing to say the least.

Aside from that - Princess Twilight Sparkle (I think I’m going to secretly call her Sparky in my mind) has given me...a task! (You can’t hear it but I’m imitating trumpet noises as I write this.)

Twilight (Sparky) has told me that as I am less in danger than the other ponies here, it is my duty to investigate the cause of the odd weather. And, because I have started to grow attached to this place, I can hardly disagree.

The length and intensity of the winter is indeed something that we don’t need here next year. I don’t think the town could take another one like it to be honest.

So, once our dear Sparky (I’m liking that name!) departs, Alabaster The Intrepid shall venture forth to uncover the Mystery of the Snowpocalypse!

Or at the very least I’ll start with something that was already on my list - the holes behind the orchard and the Diamond Dog within.

All things being what they are, this has been a welcome visit and I welcome the return of Princess Twilight Sparky...er...Sparkle at a future date.

Who knows? I might have something nice for her someday.

Your Thrown Stone,

Alabaster (The Intrepid)