I close Dust’s front door as I exit, “So, where to now?” Kendra asks.
I walk mechanically, just putting one foot in front of the other, Kendra joins me, walking next to me, her hand reaches out, catching mine. I almost stop as I look at her hand holding mine, I look into her eyes, “Kendra, I think I would fall apart if it weren’t for you.”
She brings me into a hug, “I’m here for you, no matter what your name is, no matter what you look like.”
I finally hug her back, holding back tears, I don’t want to cry right now, I sniff hard, and pull back, “Let’s get our stuff out of the Widgeon, we’ll have an easier time running around town on the bikes.”
She giggles and leads me towards the public docks. We walk quietly until we get close to the docks, then Kendra sees something, and she squeezes my hand. I look up, “What the…”
A pegasus is lounging on the wing of the Widgeon, the door is open and two of the seats apparently have been unbolted and set on the dock. I break into a run down the dock, “What the hell is going on?” I shout.
The pegasus on the wing looks at me for a long moment, then looks inside the plane, “I told you, Zed, you were going to get in trouble.”
There’s an electronic sizzle from inside and a yelp, and more than a little banging. I look inside and see an earth pony in the space where half my seats were, his forward half is underneath the control panel. “Give me a second.” He shouts out.
“Ya know, Zed’s an absolute genius when it comes to electronics. He noticed something, so he wanted to fix it.” The pegasus calls from the wing.
I look at the pegasus, then at the plane, “It’s not your plane, it’s mine, what the hell?”
The pegasus launches off the wing, and does a short loop in the air, ending up landing on the deck in front of me, “Zed’s my brother, he means no offense.” She moves forward, crowding me back, away from the door.
I look at the pure white pegasus with a bright metallic silver mane, “And you are?”
She smiles and holds out a hoof, “I’m Mischief!”
I look at her a long time, some movement happens inside my plane, finally a gray face pops up, he’s got a shocking multicolored mane, not like Rainbow Dash’s, he’s mainly a midnight blue, but he has streaks of half a dozen colors all throughout his mane. And the most beautiful blue eyes, he backs out to the door and steps out, “It’s all fixed, your altimeter had a short in it.”
I look at him hard, “I know, I was planning on getting it fixed when I got to an airport.”
His ears fall, “I smelled the short.” He looks down, “It was an easy fix.”
I look at the earth pony, “I would have handled it.”
Mischief’s voice is right next to my ear, “He’s the best at electronics for a thousand miles. Should trust him.” I look over, and she’s gone. She must be a speedster herself. I look at Zed, then at Kendra, thinking furiously.
“You know, he just wanted to help, Mary.” Kendra says, putting an arm around me.
“Oye, are you changing?” comes Mischief’s voice, she’s hovering upside down right over me, she flicks my ear with a hoof, and I clap my hand to it. Wait a second, my ears aren’t on the top of my head. I feel the triangular ear, touching the soft fur, feeling it twitch in response to the touch.
“My ears have moved.” I say in wonder.
Kendra giggles, “It happened just after we left Dust’s house.”
“You were at my house?” Mischief says, landing in front of me, “Do you know my mom?”
I furrow my brow, “I was talking to Lightning Dust. I remembered her from Equestria.”
Mischief cocks her head to her side, her ears falling the same direction, “Yeah, my mom. Why were you meeting with her?”
I shake my head, this is Lightning Dust’s daughter? “I knew her in Equestria, I was about eight when most of the ponies were taken by Discord. Nimby and I had to survive and hide for most of the twenty five years until I was cursed.”
She looks me up and down, “You aren’t very far along.” Her ears fall as her eyes get huge, “You were cursed on Equestria’s independence day! That’s so cool.” She leaps into the air, doing a short loop, landing back on her hooves.
Zed comes forward, apparently while we were talking, he had bolted the seats back where they belong. Now I get an idea of this pony’s size. He’s huge, with a barrel chest and massive muscles, he’s almost horse sized going by height, but he’s built like a truck. He gently offers a hoof, “Your plane is ready to go, it’s beautiful, by the way. Who is that supposed to be?” He points at the picture of the pegasus on the nose of the plane.
I take a long look at the picture, looking at the mane color, the color of the coat. I move forward and trace a finger along the picture, then look back at Kendra, “You captured her perfectly.”
Kendra frowns, “Who?”
“Nimby.”
“Who?”
I smile as I touch the paint again, “Nimbus, my best friend in the whole of Equestria. We were together for years, we grew up together. After Discord, during the chaos. Until I fought the chaos.” I feel tears fall down my cheeks, “She was left alone. She probably think’s I’m dead.”
I find a white pair of forelegs wrapping around me, along with a set of wings, “I’m sorry.” Mischief murmurs in my ear, then she brightens, “We can send a message to Equestria, see if somepony knows Nimby, maybe you can go back and be with your friend.”
I look at the picture for a long time, “She’s twenty-five years older than I am now.” I look back at Kendra, “What if she doesn’t remember me?”
I find myself getting hugged by two ponies and a human, Kendra murmurs in my ear, “If you were as important to her then, she’ll remember you.”
Mischief giggles, “Remember, she’s been in Equestria, she has to know about the curse now. She probably has been counting down the days until you were back.”
I feel my ears fold flat, “I hope so.” I’m able to murmur as I move away from the plane. I reach over to Zed, I grab his ear, pinching hard, getting a gasp from him. I bring up my hand, he follows slowly, his eyes wide. I bring my face close to his, my voice hard, “If you ever start taking apart my baby, you had better make sure I’m there, or I will geld you. Understood?”
He nods and gulps. I let his ear go, Zed flinches back, and Mischief whaps him upside the head with a wing, “Told ya.” She growls at him.
He’s back on all fours, and he walks towards shore, looking back at me several times, his ears flicking. But I catch a smile from him as he gets on land. He gallops off, Mischief flying next to him.
A hand waves in front of my face, causing me to blink, “Loopy is a good name for you.” Kendra chirps.
I look at her in confusion, she giggles, “He’s cute, isn’t he?”
Huh? “What are you talking about?” Is what I say.
Kendra flicks my ear as she turns back to the Widgeon, “If you had your wings back, I’d swear you’d have a wing boner from hell.”
I turn and look at her, “What are you talking about, Kendra?”
She giggles, “You were blushing, the last time your face was like that, you were looking at Chris Scott.”
My face flames anew, I had a huge crush on him for two years, and he doesn’t even know I exist, I turn and open the door of the Widgeon, “Let’s see if we can find a place to stay for the night.” I grab my motorbike, pulling the charge cord off and hanging it up. I walk the bike down the dock, ignoring the smirk from Kendra as she pulls her own bike out of the plane and walks it down the dock herself.
***
Lightning Dust looks at the closed door and shakes her head, letting some memories loose. She hops off of her chair and heads downstairs to Mindy’s server room. One other part of the downstairs complex is record keeping. The shelves have business records from Lightning Electric, along with many other ventures that Dust has had a hoof in since her change. She trots to a storage container. She bites the handle and shifts the container onto her back. Extending her wings slightly to steady the container, and ignoring the stabbing pain that rewards her every time she uses her wings, she heads back upstairs to her office.
Two hours later, she finally finds the paper that she was looking for. A transcript that Princess Twilight Sparkle had sent to Princess Luna, who had given it to Dust and the pony colony in Montana. She scans the paper.
Sitting in the castle, Nimbus keeps her head low. “Please Princess.” She murmurs, tears leaking on the floor.
I hug the morose pegasus, “Look, it’s not good idea, there’s no guarantee it would even work. There are billions of humans over the entire planet, you could end up anywhere.” I say as I shake my head.
“She gave up everything for Equestria, for us. Even if there is the smallest of chances, I’ve lost so much.” She wilts, “I can’t lose her too.” Nimbus looks up, tears continuing to stream down her face, “I don’t want to go on without her, She’s all I have left.”
Applejack comes up and hugs her too, “Sugar cube, there are better ways than this.” She sighs, “Ah know what it feels like to lose family.”
Wings quivering as she sobs, Nimbus looks down at her hooves, “I’ve never asked for anything, I’ve never hoped for much, because I never had much to hope for.” She looks up at me, her gaze clear and steady, “Please, Princess Twilight Sparkle, I beg of you. Use Discord’s curse on me.”
“Talk about meticulous record keeping,” Dust murmurs as she finishes reading the page. She flips the page over, then looks at the folder of communications sent through the portal that first opening, two and a half years after the fight with Discord. She finally dumps the entire storage container out on the floor of her office, spreading around the papers as she searches.
She hears someone humming, and looks, “Mindy, I was just about to call for you.” Mindy is laying on the floor, a crayon in her mouth, she’s drawing on one of the papers. Dust rolls her eyes.
Mindy giggles, “I know, Dustie.”
Dust picks up the communique and shows it to Mindy, “Where is the rest of it?”
Mindy giggles, “How should I know? It was your paperwork that Princess Luna gave you before she went back home.”
Dust growls, “I’m not a diplomat, I’m not a secretary. You know me. I just sorta…” she sighs, “glanced at it and tossed it in the pile, it ended up in the folder, in the storage container.”
Mindy levitates the paper, showing the torn edge, “Well, Dustie, if you had paid attention, it was stapled to page two.”
“Well duh, I’m looking for page two. It was two and a half years after the fight with Discord, the opening where so many ponies went home. I was kind of busy, and I was still getting the hang of hooves and mouth for paperwork.”
Mindy glances at the papers on Dust’s desk, “You know, Dustie, we have a wonderful invention. They are called computers. They make record keeping a lot easier.”
Dust huffs and rolls her eyes, “I know, Mindy. I’ve got plenty of the paperwork on computer, but even now, some paperwork is still on paper.”
Mindy’s magic gathers all the papers from the floor, along with pictures and flash drives containing videos and recordings, and files them into the box, “Dustie, I don’t know where the rest is. But it looks like there might be another pony out there waiting to turn back.”
Dust shudders, “Dear Celestia, I hope not.”
***
“Loopy! Dinner!” The doe calls out, “Bring Nimby down too.”
Jumping off the top of the stairs, Loopy spreads her wings and glides down to the landing. It’s her favorite way to go down stairs. It does, however, get a stern look from the doe.
“What have I said?” The doe says as she puts the bowls on the table.
“Walk, don’t glide. If someone comes around the corner I could crash into them.” Loopy says just as the fawn comes around the corner, she looks at Loopy then at her mom, blinking.
Nimby bounds down the stairs and skids to a stop, lining up with the fawn and Loopy. “Ready ma’am.”
“Hooves up.” She giggles.
All three children hold out their hooves for inspection before she nods. “Good, tonight were having forest stew.” She says with a smile.
All the kids cheer as they take their places at the table. There is nothing better than a doe’s fresh cooked meal on a cool day. The thick broth, the hearty bread, was all enough to make a pegasus drool.
***
My eyes pop open. The small inn here in New Beginnings was insistent that I stay here for free, a courtesy to those starting their changes, I was told. Kendra even was allowed to join me, new ponies need their friends, be they human or pony, was the response. I have to smile at that. I shift in my bed, and reach down, I find what woke me up. I actually am able to smile, I reach up and turn on the small LED reading lamp next to my bed, I’ve got a tail now. It’s gray, just like my mane. I shift a leg, looking at my feet, I’m going to have hooves in a few hours, my middle toe is wider, it looks like my other toes are fusing together. I try to wiggle them, getting no response. I sigh and put my foot back under the covers.
A soft snore interrupts my thoughts, Kendra is completely out in the next bed, this room is nice, two queen sized beds. I look at her sleeping soundly, I feel hollow, cold. It’s the middle of summer, and yet…
I finally make up my mind, I throw the covers off of me, and use the mutant feet I’ve now got to move to Kendra’s bed. I slide under the covers with her, and snuggle up next to her.
“Mfff, guh, huh?” She murmurs.
“Can I lie down with you, please?” I ask as I hug her tightly.
“Mfff, uh huh.” She groans, an arm snaking around me, pulling me close.
I snuggle into my friend, that’s what I was missing. I sigh happily and close my eyes once again.
***
“Are you coming to class Loopy?” Asha chirps at the foal pouting on the bed.
“Why?” Loopy moans, “What’s the point?”
Sitting down on the floor the fawn puts her forelegs on the bed. She places her chin between her legs, looking at the moping pegasus.
“What do you want?” Loopy growls.
“You to stop moping.” Asha said. “Come to class, we are learning potions today.”
“Asha, they’re all gone.” Loopy says with a sigh.
“Nuh uh.” The fawn says softly.
“What do you mean Nuh uh.” Loopy says, lifting her head and looking at the fawn.
“I’m looking at one right now.” Asha giggles, “As long as you and Nimby are here, then they are not all gone. And with you, there’s hope. So find that hope in your heart.”
Loopy looks down at her chest.
“You are hope. Nimby is hope. And I can’t just let hope wither and die in this room.” Asha says, putting her hoof square on Loopy’s chest. “Now then, let’s get going before Nimby has a panic attack.”
***
Sunlight streams through the window, okay, I’m awake now. I stretch a bit, minding the still sleeping Kendra. I slip off the bed and stand up, looking down, yup, I’ve got hooves now. They are a dark plum color, identical color fur is starting to creep up my leg. I feel my tail twitching. I walk as quietly as possible, though I’m very pleased with the thick, luxurious carpeting in this hotel room. I twitch my tail aside and sit to do my morning business. Brushing my teeth is quickly taken care of, and I look at Kendra, she’s still sleeping. I smile as I pull my backpack onto the bed. Rooting through it, I smile. Kendra packed me some sweats. I grab my utility knife from the front pocket of my backpack and make a slit in the back of my sweat pants, a moments work has my tail threaded through the hole, and I pull on a shirt. I take a quick look in the mirror.
Then I stop, looking at my face, the face that I’ve had for twenty-five years, and now I’m going to have a new face. Then I look at my eyes again, they aren’t their normal brown. Bright green eyes are staring back at me. I close my eyes and shake my head, “I’m going to have to get used to all these changes.” I murmur. I pull my small purse from my bag, loading it up with my wallet and cell phone. I usually wear jeans, and just put my wallet and cell in them, but I think those days are now over. I sigh as I open the door. I close it gently, Kendra doesn’t get to sleep late very often, living on a farm, I’m going to let her get her beauty sleep.
Stepping outside, I look around, ponies, ponies everywhere. A bat pony is walking by, I clear my throat to get her attention, she looks at me politely.
“Um, excuse me, I’m changing into a pony. I know I need supplies, where do I go?” I look down.
“Oh, you poor dear. That Discord has cursed so many of us.” She says, her wing extends, resting under my chin and bringing my face up to look at her, “they have a couple of stores in New Beginnings with all the things you’ll need. A foreleg case for your cell phone, Bluetooth pieces that fit comfortably in your new ears, food, all sorts of things.” She smiles, “Even some pony clothing if you want some. Most of us don’t wear much, if any clothing, except for special occasions. But some of the ponies, when they first change, find they are self-conscious. Have you arranged for housing yet?”
I shake my head, “I just started changing yesterday, I got here yesterday afternoon, and I’m looking for a place.”
She cocks her head to the side, “What tribe are you?”
“Umm, pegasus, I think. I’m Loop De Loop.”
A big smile, “Well, Loop De Loop, if you feel adventurous, you can build your own cloud home.” She points to several cloud homes dotting the landscape, “Or you can live at Rim of the Sky, a lot of pegasi are living there. Or if you really want to be ground bound, you can get a house here. Prices are reasonable, and I know a few that are renting out houses.”
I smile, “Thank you.”
A card is passed to me, a phone number written on back, I look at the front, “Night Wing, EUP Recruiting.”
She nods, “I am a recruiter, the EUP is officially part of the US armed forces. We are pony led, and comprised of ponies, but we train with, and deploy with, human military members. Once you finish your change, you can certainly check out the options we have available. Do you remember what you did in Equestria?”
I nod, “All we did, mainly, was survive. We had shelter for years in Thicket, in the Everfree Forest. I never had a real job, we did find some ponies after some years. But we had to live under the chaos of Discord.”
Her wing brushes the side of my face, “You are sweet, young one. If you want, we can certainly use all the pegasi we can find. The 520th always is looking for speedsters. If you are fast enough, and good enough in the air, you could become a Wonderbolt. There are always options for ponies in the EUP.”
I thank her and follow her directions to get to one of the stores. I find myself walking up and down the aisles. My cart quickly gets a phone case, a Bluetooth, a set of saddle bags, with a plain metal clasps. I look at the food options, for some reason, I find myself grabbing a brightly colored box of alfalfa pellets, the pony on the front of the box looks pretty happy. Her smile getting a smile out of me as I put the box in the cart. A few more snack foods make it into the cart and finally I walk through the clothing. Panties designed with ponies in mind, I look at them a long time, I finally grab a pack of them, along with some pants and other clothing. What memories that Moon Shadow was able to stir tell me I didn’t wear clothing, pretty much at all, in Equestria. But right now, the thought of me walking around naked, that makes me want to shudder.
I get all my purchases and make my way up to the front, the unicorn quickly passes the items over the scanner.
“You changing?” She chirps.
I nod, “My birthday was yesterday.”
She smiles, when she gets to the saddle bags, “Can I see your cutie mark?”
I frown and look around, not very many ponies are here this early in the morning, finally I lower my sweat pants a bit so she can see, her horn lights and the plain metal clasps turn to replicas of my cutie mark, she smiles, “You have a very pretty cutie mark.”
I nod in thanks as she finishes ringing me up. I reach to swipe my debit card, only to have it encased in magic and put firmly back in the wallet, “Call it a late birthday present.” She says with a smile.
I look at her, “You really don’t need to.”
She giggles, “It’s not only store policy, I’m glad to do it. You had to go through the curse from Discord, and while the first ponies to transform back had it hard, we try to make the transition as easy as possible for ponies that are changing. We know what you are going through. Especially when one of the dreamers is able to help get your memories back, it makes the process both easier, and harder.”
I think about that moment when Moon Shadow opened the flood of memories into my head and nod, I’m still trying to make sense of everything. Though it’s nice to know some of the things I remember from Equestria. It’s all overwhelming. Finally I smile at her, “Thank you so much.”
She smiles brightly again, “Don’t mention it.”
I pack most of my purchases into my new saddle bags and throw them over my shoulder. I walk back to the hotel and grab my bike, Kendra’s is still there. She must still be snoozing. I laugh a bit as I throw a leg over the bike. Then I discover something, my hooves don’t fit on the pegs correctly. While I don’t have a transmission lever on the electric bike, my rear brake is foot operated. I don’t have feet anymore. I frown for a moment. I can put a hoof on the peg, but it will take a deliberate action to hit the rear brake. I look around, I don’t see many ponies riding motor bikes around here. Though they have walking and running endurance that boggles my mind.
I finally am able to twist the throttle and get balanced on two wheels. While New Beginnings is primarily pony, they have provisions for vehicle traffic, and there are always semi-trucks around making deliveries or picking up freight. Most of that is handled in a big distribution center to the west of town, though. There are roads for vehicle traffic in New Beginnings. I tool towards the docks and finally make it to the Widgeon. I load up my stuff into the front storage compartment. I hang my bike and set it to charge. A quick pre-flight, and I power up my baby. I check the altimeter, it looks like it’s working consistently now. No need to guess my altitude.
I smile as the engines spool up, reversing the propellers, I push the throttles forward to back away from the dock. Pulling back the throttle for my port motor allows me to rotate as I continue backing, finally I’m orientated the way I want. I inform New Beginnings control that I’ll be leaving and that I’ll be back soon, I finally push the throttles for some serious power, the shape of the hull lifting a bit as I speed up, I bounce across the water and finally am able to get off the water. I’m in the air, something that always brings a smile to my face.
I climb out to the south and after I get out of the New Beginnings control area, I turn west. Miles City is a short flight away, and I’ll land there, they didn’t have fuel for me in New Beginnings. Less than an hour of flight time has me on approach. Soon I’m on final, when I remember, I’m landing on land this time. I reach up and hit the switch, a hydraulic whine announces my gear descending. Being a tail dragger, I have to land differently than most planes. Something that was pretty hard to learn as a newbie pilot. But now I’m an old hand at landing my baby on land.
My front wheels touch the tarmac at the small municipal airport with a short screech. I pull back further on the throttle, allowing my rear wheel to touch the ground. I keep at the recommended taxi speed as I head off the runway towards the private plane area. I sigh happily as I am able to power down the engines. I pull my bike off its rack and heave it onto the concrete.
A throat is cleared behind me, I turn around, an airport employee is standing there, I smile at him, “Good morning.” I smile as I dig out my debit card, I hand it to him, a fill up of Jet A-1 is in order this morning. And my engines need oil changes. I toss off a salute to the mechanic as I hop on my bike, a quick twist of the throttle heads me towards the gate and finally off the airport property.
I head down the road, keeping my head swiveling, I’ve never been to this city before. My stomach growls, I think I’ll satisfy it. Ah, that place looks pretty good. I turn into the parking lot, I wish this town has an IHOP, but I guess Four B’s will have to do.
The waitress looks at me as her jaw drops. Then I remember, I’m half way between human and pony. I feel my tail twitch, I look down, “I’m sorry, I’m in the middle of the change to pony, I was cursed.” I murmur, my ears twitching.
She smiles, “Oh, I was wondering. As far as I know, only Irony is able to walk on two hooves, but she’s really tall.”
“And I’m short.”
She smiles, “You aren’t as tall as she is.”
I giggle, “She visit here?”
She shrugs, “Once in a while, when her family comes to town.”
I nod as she leads me to a booth. The restaurant is about half full. I start looking at the menu, my ears twitching, I’m starting to realize that these new ears are very sensitive, I can hear the conversation in the booth behind me as though I’m sitting with them.
A male voice, “I don’t know why those freaks have to leave their city.”
Another male voice, “We’ve been trying to get legislation to confine them to their settlements and force them through the portal when it opens, but they’ve got ponies in the House and Senate now, any attempts goes nowhere.”
The first voice, “Every time we protest, that damned Lightning Dust is in our faces, along with her damnable herd.”
My eyes are wide, protests? Legislation? What’s going on? These people sound like they hate ponies. I’m just starting to change into one. I feel tears starting to leak down my face.
The second voice chimes in, “Well, we are going to protest again, we’ve got the ABC affiliate to cover our protest this time. Maybe we can get some press this time?”
I shake my head hard, both my ears are rotated back, so I can hear them better, I can’t believe what I’m hearing!
“So, have you decided?”
I blink a few times, looking at the smiling waitress, her smile falters as she sees the tears on my face. I shake my head, “A few more minutes?”
She looks at me, concern on her face, she tries a smile, “I’ll be back in a few.” She puts a hand on my shoulder, “I’ve talked to a few ponies just after their change, it’s a scary time sweetie. But it’s also a happy time, you are becoming what you were. It’s okay.”
I sniffle and shake my head, “It’s not that.” I look back at the other booth, I lower my voice to a whisper, “Those people.”
She furrows her brow, I continue, “They hate ponies.” I’m able to moan.
She surprises me by sitting next to me, she puts her arm around me in a hug, “Oh, sweetie, I had a cousin change, she lives in New Beginnings now, ponies are just fine. Don’t worry about what people say, there is nothing wrong with you.”
I sniffle a couple of times, she finally pulls away, a smile on her face, “You know what you want to eat?”
I shake my head, “I need to go.” I say, pulling out a ten dollar bill and setting it on the table. I stand up, walking past the booth, there are four people in the booth, and they all give me baleful looks as I walk past. I rush out the door and head to my bike. I leave a strip of rubber as I twist the throttle hard and head onto the road, ignoring the angry honking of a semi-truck as I streak down the road, heading for the airport. A matter of minutes has me at my Widgeon. I load the bike onto my plane and rush over to the office. I sign the receipt for the fuel and oil change and rush back to the Widgeon. I do my pre-flight in record time and finally settle into the left seat.
Shortly both engines are wailing as I power down the runway, my tail lifts and I pull back gently to gain altitude, keeping the throttles all the way forward as I head back towards New Beginnings. I keep my airspeed up and in record time, I’m landing on Lake Luna. I get to the dock, backing the plane into position and powering down quickly. I throw the main switch and clamber out of the Widgeon, I don’t worry about my bike. I simply run flat out, in moments I’m at Dust’s front door.
My frantic knocking finally gets the door to open. I look up, and then up some more, a massive earth pony is standing there, on two hooves, she’s midnight blue and I stare into her big eyes, “Irony?” I ask.
She nods.
“I need to see Dust, right now.”
She frowns but she backs up, gesturing for me to enter. I brush past her, and rush down the hall, I stick my head in the office, nopony is there, I moan and turn around, the heavy tread behind me shows Irony has followed me. I turn to her, “Where is she?”
She gestures with a thumb behind her, “She’s in the kitchen. Something wrong?”
I nod and she turns, I follow her to the kitchen, Dust is sitting on a stool with other members of her family, apparently finishing her breakfast, the smell has my stomach lurching, somepony can really cook. She looks at me curiously, I take a stool and tell her what I heard. Her face getting darker with every word.
“Thank you for telling me what you heard, Loopy. We’ve had to deal with these people before, they believe Earth is for humans only. They try to be bible based, but the bible doesn’t address the fact that there is a multiverse. We’ve been accepted by most of humanity.” She sighs, “But humans wouldn’t be humans if there weren’t those who believed different than the norm.” She shakes her head, “It sounds like they are coming here. I’ll call the guard, let them know some trouble makers are going to be showing up.” She hops off the stool and comes around the table, rearing up on two hooves to give me a hug, “Thank you for telling me.” She murmurs into my ear.
She pulls away, “You hungry?” She asks.
I shake my head and my stomach growls loudly, I look down at it, “Traitor.” I growl.
Dust giggles, then looks over at the massive earth pony, “Irony, you’re up.”
She walks over to the stove and starts cooking, Dust settles back into her seat and pulls a mug full of steaming coffee over to her. In moments a mug magically moves over to me, Sunset Shimmer smiles as her horn quiets and she hops herself up into a chair.
Dust glances back at Irony while she’s cooking, then back at me, “So, do you have any plans?”
I was in the process of taking a sip, I am able to get it down before I set the mug down, “Plans?
“You know, what you want to do, now that you are becoming a pony.”
I look down, “I haven’t been thinking ahead.”
“That’s understandable.” Intones Sunset Shimmer.
Dust smiles, “Well, you could join the EUP over at Fort Inkwell. They’ll find a place for you.”
I shake my head, “I don’t know, don’t know if I’d like uniformed service.”
She smiles, “Too independent to accept orders?”
I look around, “Well, no. I’ve never had anypony give orders, it was Nimby and I for years, until we found the other ponies living under Discord’s rule.”
Dust looks at Sunset and smiles, the other mare smiles back, leaving me clueless.
A knock at the door gets Dust to perk up. She hops off of her stool and trots to the door. A few moments later, I’m hugged by Kendra, “Oh, Mary, why didn’t you wake me up?”
I look down, “You were sleeping so peacefully.”
Kendra rolls her eyes, “You need someone with you, and that’s me. But guess who I brought with me?”
She steps aside, revealing a pink unicorn sitting there, with wide eyes, “You’re changing, Mary?”
I jump over to Dustie and hug her, “Yes, can you believe it?”
She hugs me tighter, “Are you moving away from Kansas?”
I pull back, looking her in the eyes, “I think I’ll move to New Beginnings, Kendra needs training by a unicorn.”
Dustie looks wide eyes at Kendra, who shrugs her shoulders, “Oops.”
I look up at Kendra, “You didn’t tell her about you, but you told her about me?”
“Well, she started screaming when I told her on the phone, and she said she’d get to New Beginnings as soon as she could. She’s never mastered teleportation, so she ended up renting a car. She got to the hotel room, we’ve been trying to call your phone.”
I pull my phone out and flip it open, the display is dead, “Must have forgotten to charge it.” I get whapped upside the head by Dust’s wing. I look at her.
“Your phone is how people can reach you when they need to.”
I shrug, “It’s never been a priority.”
Kendra giggles, “She always reminds me to put on my helmet, yet always forgets to charge her phone. That’s Mary for you.”
Dustie looks at me, “I can only stay a day, I told my professors that I had a friend changing into a pony, they were understanding, but I still have classes.” She puts her hooves gently to each side of my face, “Are you going to be okay? I can blow off classes if I really need to, until you are done changing.”
Dust steps forward, “Your education is important, we will make sure Loopy is looked after.” She looks at Kendra, “Where are you two staying?”
“The Hampton Suites in New Beginnings.” Kendra says.
Dust makes a face, “It’s a nice hotel, but I should have offered yesterday, and for that, I apologize.”
I look at her, confused, “What?”
Dust shakes her head and sits down, “It’s been weird, I think you should be here, I’m glad you have Kendra, the invitation is good for both of you, even you, Dustie, if you want to. But I think you should get back to school.”
I cock my head to the side, “What are you saying, Lightning Dust?”
Suddenly a magenta unicorn is bouncing in front of us, “Well duh, sillies. Dust wants to you spend the rest of your transformation at her estate. With all of us. We will all support you.”
I look down, “You don’t need to do that, hundreds of thousands of ponies have transformed. You don’t need to do that.”
Dust slams a hoof onto the marble floor, shattering the tile. The magenta unicorn lights her horn and the tile is repaired, Dust looks at me, “I try to help where I can, Loopy. Over the years, I’ve had many ponies complete their transformation here. I want to help, I’m offering my home to you.”
I look at Dust then over at Kendra, who nods, “If you really want me to.”
Dust comes close and leans against me, “It’s a pleasure, Loopy. This home is so empty with many of the kids having moved out. I always like more here.”
I look at Kendra, then I kneel down to Dust’s level, hugging her tightly, “Thank you, Lightning Dust.”
She squirms a bit in my grip, “Dust will do.” She giggles.
Irony sets the food down on the table, Kendra and Dustie look at the French Toast and all the fixings, then sit down as Irony sets out plates for all of us. I hug Dust tighter one more time before standing up and moving over to a stool.
As we eat, I sneak glances at Dust. She seems to be watching us eat with a huge smile on her face. I don’t think she was exaggerating when she said her house feels empty.
“So, Loopy, it’s going to be hard for you to walk soon, what are you gonna do?”
I sigh, “I’ll probably try to sleep through that part.”
Dust nods, “You’ll be fully pony by tomorrow night. We’ll get you in the air.”
I nod as Moon Shadow comes into the room, she looks mournful, “Dust, they are here.”
“Already?”
Moon Shadow nods and Dusts hops off the stool. I stand up, “No, Loopy, you should stay here.”
I look at Dust seriously, “I want to come, Dust. I’m going to be a pony, I need to see this.”
Dust sighs, “Unfortunately, it is all too common. Ponies have been a fact of life here for twenty-five years. Some people just can’t accept change.”
***
I follow Dust’s family, the turquois mare firmly in the lead. Our social customs have been completely uprooted by Discord, so I’m not certain how things are supposed to work, but watching her with her family. It’s amazing. She is the glue that keeps some very different ponies happy together. In the short time I’ve known this mare, I’ve found out she is one I want to be friends with, not just because of when we were back in Equestria. Soon we make it to the westbound road on the outside of town. It has traffic controls, and a guardhouse. A large wrought iron fence stretches into the distance.
I edge over to Irony, “A guardhouse? A fence?”
She chuckles, “We’ve had enough people trying to come in uninvited and they want to make trouble. If you are human, you must pass through the guards. And those mares mean business. We have a visitor’s center for people who want to visit New Beginnings. But you can’t barge into our city uninvited.”
I look around in wonder, I flew in, so that wasn’t a worry for me. But controlling visitation, that’s pretty smart when you think about it. If some human wants to do something to ponies, the guard will intercept them.”
One of the guards trots over, “Lightning Dust, they said they would follow the rules. They are setting up so they don’t impede traffic. The news crew has also agreed. They understand that those humans are barred from entering New Beginnings.”
Dust looks at the group of humans, about forty in number, signs are being brought out. They all look hand painted, most saying some variation of ‘ponies go home’. I look at Dust as she watches the people continue setting up. I sidle up to her, “Aren’t you going to make them go?”
She looks at me like I’ve grown an extra head, “Why?”
“They are protesting our very existence. They want us rounded up and set back to Equestria.” I look down, “All I remember of Equestria scares me.”
Dust rears up and hugs me, “Oh, Loopy, Equestria is far better now than you remember it. It’s actually much back to how it was before Discord. But nopony is going to force you through the portal.” She pulls back to look at me, “There are laws in this nation, we are people, just like any human. We have the same rights as they do. They can protest all they want. It won’t change anything.”
“Then why are we here?”
She smiles, “I was asked to come by the guard, I own the land the city is on. Despite my attempts to sell the land to the city, I’m a city founder, they say. They want my input.”
“Oh.” I look at the group of people. An older man comes up, he fiddles with a small portable bullhorn and puts it to his lips.
“Oh, he’s back.” Dust growls.
“Who?”
“See that guy with the bullhorn?” I nod, “His name is Richard Willard. When we first were becoming public, he was part of a group that was trying to outlaw us, trying to make us go home. In our shouting match on CNN, he basically said I was a sexual deviant.”
That gets me to giggle, her, having sex? Nah. Though I’m one to talk, I had one boyfriend, and we never went all that far.
The shouting from the other humans is starting, mainly some variation of ponies go home. Dust chuckles and sits down. I look over at the guards, most of them have amused expressions on their faces as they watch the humans chant and shout.
The guy with the bullhorn seems to have noticed Dust and her herd sitting there, I see him smile, “And here we have the head of the deviancy, Lightning Dust herself.”
Dust stiffens, Irony places a hand on her withers, I hear Irony murmur to Dust, “He’s just trying to rile you.”
The fat man on the other side of the fence smirks at us, “One man and one woman isn’t good enough for her. Oh, no. She’s got mares aplenty, and stallions too.” He directs a long look at Lightning Dust, then he turns and addresses the camera, “She even has drawn her former wife from when she was a human man into this perversity. And then she’s drawn another human man into her abomination that she calls a herd.”
Dust looks at the camera, her wings extending in rage. Irony casually leans down and puts her arm around Dust, holding her tight, Dust’s hooves are making impressions in the ground as she tries to move forward. “Dust, he’s trying to rile you up.”
Dust growls even louder, “It’s working.” She strains forward, and Irony’s hooves skid on the ground, trying to keep her back.
“What’s amatter, Dust? Can’t take the truth?”
Dust shrugs out of Irony’s hold on her and gallops through the gate, Irony and Moon Shadow hot on her hooves as she tears towards the human. I follow, a bit slower as Dust starts screaming at the man, “You son of a bitch!” She shouts, “In case you didn’t notice, we aren’t human.”
He shrugs, “You are in our world.”
Dust rears back on her hind legs, her wings extending for balance, “Not by choice. You know we were sent here by Discord.”
He rolls his eyes, “And yet, you are still here, twenty-five years later, why haven’t you gone home?”
“So, by your logic, we should uproot our entire families, the lives that we have forged on this world. The lifestyles we have built, all because you don’t approve of the way we live?”
“You are ponies, you belong in your pony world.”
“You are right, we are ponies, but we live here, there is nothing that says this world belongs to humans only.”
“It doesn’t matter, we were here first. This is our world.”
Dust smirks, “Your world? I sincerely doubt that. This is a human world, and ponies will likely never be more than a minority here. The vast majority of humans accept us, and want what we offer. The weather has been tamed, food is plentiful, life is good here. With our help. We are not competitors with humanity, we are friends, countrymen with humanity.”
“Lovers?” The man smiles evilly.
Dust heaves a huge sigh, “In some cases. Our way of life is different than humans. Some people are attracted by the different, the strange. Some stay, some leave. A human leaving a herd is a sad thing. Anypony or human joining a herd is cause for happiness. As ponies, we love harmony, we love happiness. We work for our common dreams. We are not rugged individualists as some humans claim to be. Once again, that is our nature.”
I can see Dust giving sidelong glances towards the camera, I’m guessing she would like to use quite a bit saltier language with him, but is restraining herself. Dust continues to plead her case with the human, but soon Irony comes up next to Dust and picks her up bodily, “That’s enough, let these people have their fun, love.”
Apparently the human isn’t done, “Yeah, let others finish your fights for you.”
Irony freezes for a moment as she’s walking way, she holds Dust tightly to her chest, not letting Dust look over her shoulder at the man, then she continues walking. A slow, deliberate, measured tread back inside the fence, as she passes by, “Let’s go home.” She growls.
I look at her face, I think I should be afraid of that massive mare.
***
“I’m a pegasus! Why should I have to learn about plants?” Loopy protests.
Nimby giggles, “Cuz I don’t want to have to learn about them alone.”
Bramble, a young stag, walks over and nuzzles Nimby, “Why should I learn about the clouds or rain? I won’t ever fly or shape the weather right?”
Loopy blinks, “Young prince, why are you here?”
“Because after the plant course is a class on cloud formations and types. I’ve always looked up at them, but never knew their names.” Bramble says with a chuckle. “Beside unlike clouds, you eat the plants. It’s always good to know what’s safe to eat, right?”
“I guess.” Loopy pouts.
“There’s also some fun to be had with plants.” Bramble says, taking out a single seed and dropping it on the ground.
Loopy giggles and hops back. She’s seen him grow full trees before, so she knows to give him space. “What’cha doing this time.”
With a little bit of water, the bush grows, taking the shape of a rearing pegasus, its wings spread wide. “Sometimes, you can learn the unexpected.”
Loopy looks at Nimby smiling bright. “Ok that’s cool. You have GOT to teach me that.”
***
Moon Shadow walks through the dream as it ends, Loopy hasn’t complained about bad dreams, but the transformation sometimes produces horrible dreams for the pony involved. She always wants to make sure this pony has pleasant dreams. Though the feeling she gets, watching the dreams of Loopy with Nimbus, she finds herself feeling a longing. Loopy misses her friend. Moon Shadow smiles, another dream is coming.
***
“That tickles!” Nimby giggles.
“Not the hooves, not the hooves!” Loopy says, pulling her hooves back as she laughs.
“Sit still. You’re young mares, not little fillies.” The doe says, but can’t help giggling herself, watching the two pegasi.
Bramble and Lord Blackthorn chuckle softly as they apply the paint to the two pegasi. They are getting traditional markings that show the sun, air, wind, and water on their coats. Each is getting their face and legs painted as well.
“It’s the first day of spring and we are honoring the woods that keep us safe.” Bramble says.
“I know.” Loopy giggles, “I have the ritual memorized.”
As the two young mares stand up, each of them has a water flask put around their necks. “Remember, concentrate Loopy, you have to keep your mind focused.”
“I know Bramble. Are you ready for this Nimby?” Loopy is almost bouncing with excitement.
“You bet, the first ponies EVER to participate in the ritual.” Nimby is grinning so wide she squees.
Walking out, the two young mares join the ranks of the does. They walk down to the sheltered grove where the fireflies dance and play. They listen to the music, the song of the deer, and they even sing along, keeping their time.
Stepping forward, Loopy drops her seed into the ground, and carefully pours water on it from the flask. Concentrating, she stops singing, as she holds the picture of how she wants the tree to look. Slowly the seed takes root, growing into a beautiful cherry tree.
Nimbus follows suit with her seed. and soon the second cherry tree starts growing. Looking to Loopy, she reaches out to touch her wing to Loopy’s, their feathers intertwining.
As the cherry trees grow, their branches intertwine, to stand as a bond of friendship that can never be forgotten.
***
It’s getting on towards the evening, though my nap was very nice. I wish I was able to remember my dreams, all I have are vague feelings from them. Dustie and Kendra have already checked us out of the hotel, and I’m laying down, it hurts to stand upright right now. My hips have changed shape. I’m lying on the couch, enjoying watching television, the first time I’ve watched TV in a while. Some stupid comedy is on, I’m laughing but I’m not really into it, just mindless entertainment.
Dust comes up to me, hooking her forelegs over the couch and clearing her throat to get my attention.
I look up at her, and she smiles, “I’ve got to confess, there is more than one reason why I wanted you here. The main reason is what I said earlier, but also, I’ve got a surprise for you.”
I cock my head to the side.
“Loopy?” Comes a voice that I never thought I would hear.