I Wish I Were a Pony

by KevinCorporation

05/10/2013 (Part 3)

Angelbunny spent two whole minutes waking up. When he finally finished, he looked around and then up at me. I was so happy, Angelbunny must have recognized me! But then he shook his head and kicked the base of my trunk and bounded off…

Angelbunny did not come back for couple hours and I started to wonder what he could be doing back at the cottage. But just as I started thinking about that, I started hearing cries coming from my cottage. Oh no! The animals, they haven’t eaten! They must have been starving, I got so worried…I didn’t know what to do…

I had never felt so helpless and ashamed in my life. Here I was, celebrating becoming a tree that I forgot all about the animals that depended on me. The same animals that were the reasons that I wanted to be a tree in the first place. I wanted to become a tree to help and be with my animals forever and here I was, unable to even feed them. I started crying inside my trunk.

I cried for so long but then I saw Angelbunny coming back up the path to my cottage and he had my Unicorn friend, Twilight, with him! I probably missed Angelbunny leaving because I was so busy crying but now I was delighted! Good Angelbunny, you're so smart, thinking to bring Twilight over. Soon the cries of the animals died down and Twilight left. She was muttering something to herself but my hill was too far from the path to make it out.

A couple more hours passed and I started to calm down. Surely if Twilight kept coming to my cottage, my animals would be alright? I told myself that is exactly what that meant. My friends would never let my animals get hurt. I looked out again and took in the scenery.

Did you know that the winds is just as alive as a pony or a tree? I didn’t know that until that day. I stood on my hill and just listened to the breeze. It felt its way through my leaves and I heard its breathing and whispers. It told me about the weather and where it has been. It was amazing. The wind told me that it was going to rain later. It carried me and the other trees that message that the Pegasus ponies were bringing clouds over from Cloudsdale to water all the new plants Spring had brought.

But then I heard a noise and looked down in front of me. Angelbunny was back and looking up at me. Did he now realize it was me? I watched him circle me and examine me. Minute after minute ticked by. Angelbunny then stepped in real close and started sniffing my bark. He must have smelled something there because he jumped back and looked at me with wide eyes.

I yearned to yell at him that it was me! That I was now a tree! But I couldn’t…because I was a tree. But that is okay because Angelbunny figured it out by himself.

He must have been so confused. He just kept circling, and sniffing, circling, and sniffing as if he was not convinced. Finally he stopped and looked up at me again. Just then, the wind whispered to me its warning again and this time I felt my leaves start to bunch up all on their own as if trying to create shelter. It was like an instinct. Angelbunny saw what my leaves were doing and immediately ran off back to the cottage. At first I did not understand why but then he came back with my umbrella in his mouth. He managed to get it open and propped it against my trunk.

It was then I realized that trees have a larger role than I first thought. I always knew animals could read nature and always seemed to know what the weather was going to be like before us ponies knew but I never thought I’d be making those signs myself! Trees were not only shelter and a source of food for animals and insects but they also were signposts to help tell the animals the weather. Amazing! Angelbunny saw what my leaves were doing and knew it was going to rain so he brought me an umbrella. Oh, Angelbunny you are so sweet and I love you so much.

Angelbunny went back to the cottage and it started raining. I stood there taking it in. It felt wonderful. It was like an invigorating shower and a delicious drink combined into one. The umbrellas that Angelbunny brought me didn’t last long, and fell over and blew away rather quickly towards the Everfree forest. But that was okay, it’s the thought that counts.

Not only was the rain so wonderful but the rain brought me my first animal visitors. A tree’s leaves are usually spread apart to try to catch all the sun but when it rains, leaves bunch up to catch the rain to drink. When the leaves bunch up, it also makes for good shade against the rain for anything under it. The shade isn’t perfect but anything under me will be a lot less wet than anything that is out in the open.

The birds started coming a few minutes before the rain started. They chirped around my branches and leaves, looking for the best places to settle. It felt wonderful having all that life on me. I felt the first of the insects moving in my bark and on my branches. Ohhh, I wonder what kind of butterflies will come from eating my leaves? I also hoped that some of those birds would make their homes in my branches. How nice it would be to wake up every day to a bird’s song. That was all I could imagine as the storm ran its course. I couldn’t wait to have some residents move in to my branches and nooks! Just like I have always dreamed!

As the rain started to peter out and the skies started to clear, some of the birds started leaving and it made me a little sad but who was I to force the birds to stay? They have their own places they need to be too. Besides, there were still the birds that decided to stay with me. I looked out towards my cottage (is it still mine now that I’m a tree?) to see if Angelbunny was going to come out to greet me. He must have been busy because he did not come but I saw my umbrella. It was torn up by the bushes and part of it was stuck there and the rest was probably scattered through the Everfree forest by now.

Oh dear, I didn’t mean to make such a mess.

While I was looking out towards the forest I also saw Twilight coming back up the path to my cottage. I assumed she was coming back to feed my animals again. She is such a good friend. What I didn’t realize was that she brought all my other friends with her too. I still wasn’t used to being able to see in all directions at once so I kinda gave myself a head (tree? bark?) ache. It took me a moment to refocus but then I saw Twilight had come back with Spike the Dragon, Rarity (my other Unicorn friend and fashion expert), Rainbow Dash (my childhood friend from Cloudsdale and the fastest Pegasus in Ponyville, maybe Equestria), and my two Earth pony friends Applejack (the best apple farmer in all Equestria) and Pinkie Pie (the greatest party animal there is).

Why were they all here too? I didn’t have that many animals at the moment…

Oh my, it is getting late. I know that since I am a tree, I don’t actually need sleep, but it is hard to break a habit I have lived with all my life…sorry. I’ll tell you why all my friends were there tomorrow. Besides, this isn’t really a story I’d like to tell right before bed…

Author's Note:

What follows is a recounting of Angelbunny's day on the date of 04/04/2013:

Angelbunny woke that morning feeling groggy. He was used to having Fluttershy wake him with breakfast but did not smell any food. He laid there and kept trying to wake up. After a few minutes he was finally able to get up. He looked around, trying to make sense of where he was and remember last night.

Where's Fluttershy and where's my breakfast? thought Angelbunny getting more mad than worried. He is very grumpy when hungry.

He started remembering the night before and mentally retraced his steps, Fluttershy had just finished feeding the other animals and wanted me to go on a walk with her. Then I told her I wanted to go back but shooting stars started falling and she wanted me to stay a while longer to watch with her. I reluctantly agreed and laughed when she fell into a puddle. That's what she gets for having her head in the clouds or rather, stars. After the show, I fell asleep with Fluttershy on this hill.

Angelbunny stopped there. He went to sleep snuggled with Fluttershy, not this tree...Where did it even come from? Well, it was not Fluttershy so Angelbunny gave it a kick in frustration and decided to see if Fluttershy was at home making him breakfast.

But when Angelbunny got there, he could not find Fluttershy. Now he was starting to get worried. Where could she be? He ran off and looked all over the house and backyard. He asked all the animals if they had seen Fluttershy and they told him no but that they were hungry. Angelbunny told them that he would feed them later if he could not find Fluttershy and bounded off again. Not satisfied, he searched all through the house again but still could not find her!

Now on the verge of panic, Angelbunny started pacing in circles wondering about what he should do next. He must have been pacing for an hour lost in thought but the cries of the animals brought him back to the present.

The other animals were hungry (not to mention himself) but he soon realized that he would not be able to feed them all himself. He was too small and could not get to the food on the higher shelves or unlock the pens. As much as he hated to admit it, Angelbunny needed Fluttershy.

So if I can't have Fluttershy, thought Angelbunny, Then I will just find some other pony to feed us.

Angelbunny ran out and told the animals he would be back soon with help. He quickly bounded towards Ponyville as wuick as he could while wondering which of Fluttershy's dumb friends he should bring back. But he was too distracted thinking about what to do next, that he did not realize that he was already in Ponyville and ran into one of those "dumb" friends.

Angelbunny looked up and it was the purple unicorn. Twilight. The unicorn cocked its head, puzzled. Angelbunny started hopping up and down, pointing back to the cottage. Twilight was at first confused as to what the bunny was trying to tell her but then realized that Angelbunny was trying to get her to go back with him to Fluttershy's cottage.

She started to follow the bunny back to the cottage but then started to pick up the pace, moving into a gallop. After a moment you start to realize that there is something eerie about a pet out in the middle of town without its owner. Especially if it starts acting hectic and trying to get you to follow him home. Something has to have gone wrong.

The pair make it back to the cottage and Angelbunny immediately leads Twilight to the animals. At first the unicorn was confused about why she was brought here (she was expecting to find an injured Fluttershy) but after Angelbunny rubbed his belley a few times and pointed to the empty food bowls, Twilight realized what he was trying to tell her.

After Angelbunny had shown her where all the food is stored and she managed to feed all the animals (including himself), Twilight left promising to come back that night and muttering about forming a search party. But all Angelbunny cared about was his full stomach and waved her away.

After a while though, that worry came back. Where was Fluttershy?

Angelbunny went to the window and looked out, hoping to find her. His gaze finally settled on that strange tree sitting out on that hill. That tree was definitely not there last night. Angelbunny then remembered that stupid superstition ponies had about wishing on a star and what had Fluttershy told him her wish was? No way...There was no way that actually happened.

He ran out to the tree and looked up at it. Then he started to slowly circle it and examine every bit he could. There was definitely something off about the tree. It was not normal. He leaned in to sniff the bark and immediately jumped back.

No way!

The tree smelled exactly like Fluttershy. He was still not convinced. He continued his investigation of the tree but the longer he looked at it and smelled it, the more convinced he became that it was her. What happened? He then noticed that the tree (Fluttershy?) was trying to tell him something. Angelbunny looked up at the leaves and realized it was telling him it was about to rain. Angelbunny then ran back to the cottage.

If Fluttershy is now a tree, then she can't get her umbrella, but as he was returning with the umbrella, he wondered, Wait, does she even need an umbrella now? Trees need water and besides, this umbrella is too small.

Confused, Angelbunny set up the umbrella against her trunk anyways. He may as well, since he went through all the trouble of bringing it out and through the grueling effort to open the stupid thing.

He sat out there for a while, just staring at the tree and wondering. Now what was going to happen?

Just before it started raining, Angelbunny went back to the cottage and fell asleep on the rug in front of the fireplace. He was burnt out from all the running and mental strain that day. However, his sleep was a restless one and fraught with nightmares of the future.

He could not wake up until Twilight knocked several hours later as night was beginning to fall...