A Story of Heritage

by thecookiewookie

Moving In

Sunlit Hearth tossed his mane out of his eyes and looked up at the slightly run-down house. He knew it was the only house that had been for sale in Ponyville, but he couldn't help but be a little annoyed at its condition. He had the bits for the repairs, but not enough to have them done by somepony else. He had hoped to be able to move things in and just call it home, but it seemed that step would have to wait a while longer while he got the place back up to liveable levels.

As he got to work, he mentally thanked fate for his upbringing. Rather than trying to move the fallen rafter by magic and hurting himself, he put his back into it and dragged the beam out by hoof. He smirked. Working with his adoptive father had certainly paid off.

It was going to rain again soon, so Sunlit decided the roof was the most immediate concern. He retrieved the spare shingles and ladder and set to work. Once again Sunlit wished he was better at magic. If he could just figure it out, he wouldn't even have to climb up, just focus and put the roof back together by horn. As his body worked at the repetitive task, his mind began to roam.

His mind drifted. Without realizing, he put a little magic into his daydream and focused it. Never having had any training, he had learned to use his magic in odd ways. He looked at the landscape of his mind. At the moment, it seemed a bit bare. He remembered the book he had just finished, and, as an exercise, summoned the imagery to his mind's eye. The writer really was brilliant. He had imagined new uses for relatively new technologies, possibilities of combining magic with computers, even digital universes; the only unbelievable part was the cheesy jumpsuits.

As Sunlit focused, the foggy distances crystallized into blocky, faceted mountains. The ground smoothed, and a grid appeared on it. Sketching in more detail, he placed cities, towers, strange vehicles, and arenas full of futuristic sports, all with a few strokes of his mind. The world of the novel faded into existence, and he watched its events again. His daydream sharpened, yet he continued his monotonous task in outside his mind.

---

He was caught up enough that he didn't hear the pink pony bouncing up the path.

"Hello, new neighbor! " Pinkie Pie shouted

Sunlit jolted and dropped the hammer and shingles, his concentration broken. His mind went blank, and he returned to the real world. He looked over the edge of the roof at the energetic pony bouncing in place.

"Hi," he said, still shaken,"my name's Sunlit Hearth. What's yours?"

"I'm Pinkie Pie," she said, grinning."I heard somepony new was in town, so I came to meet you. I always say I know everypony in Ponyville, and so I have to keep up with new arrivals."

He smiled, and leaned over to see her better. "Well, maybe you're just the pony to acquaint me with the rest of Ponyville, can you give me a tour-whoa! Aaaaaahh!!" He screamed as he lost his balance and fell. Sunlit landed on his side with an "Oof!" and a sickening crack.

Dazed, he looked up at the suddenly worried pony. "Are you okay? What hurts?" She asked. He felt a twinge in his ankle and worried about a broken joint through a fuzzy mind. It was only when he inhaled to reply that the sharp agony in his ribcage made itself apparent.

"I'm not too bad......Pinkie, why are there two of you ..." Sunlit trailed off as he passed out, lapsing into blissfully pain-free unconsciousness.

---

Sunlit woke groggily. First he was confused by how soft the ground was, before he slowly realized that he was in a bed. As his surroundings gradually came into focus, he figured out that he was in the hospital. And that noise....somepony was talking to him.

"Sunny, you're awake! I was worried you'd be out another hour, and I'd miss lunch."

Sunlit gritted his teeth in concentration, trying to remember through a painkiller haze who the talkative, pony-shaped mass of pink energy standing over him was. Suddenly the dam broke and he remembered meeting Pinkie, talking to her, falling...

"Pinkie, what happened? Wait, miss lunch? Oh, no! How long was I out? Did I keep you here?"

She just smiled."You fell off your roof, silly. It's not that bad, you've only been out a couple hours. The doctor said you needed to rest while the healing spell took effect, so they gave you a sleeping medicine."

As if on cue, the doctor entered. He looked at Sunlit for a moment, then spoke.

"You seem to have responded well to the spell, Mr. Hearth, but I feel I should warn you that you'll be very sore where your rib fracture compounded for several days. It's a good thing miss Pinkie was there. If you'd had to come here yourself, you might have had serious complications."

Sunlit blinked at several unexpected facts, but filed away his less important questions for later. "I thought I broke my ankle. It hurt, last thing I remember." He lifted his left forehoof in illustration, but realized there was only a slight, dull ache.

"Actually, you only bruised it. You should be able to walk just fine, but watch that left side. The rib may be intact again, but it will be quite fragile and tender for a few weeks. You may go whenever you're ready, please stop at the desk to pick up your pain medication." The doctor turned and left to continue his rounds.

Sunlit wasn't quite satisfied. "Pinkie," he asked, "how did you carry me here? I'm a full grown unicorn, and even though I have great respect for earth pony strength, it seems ... a bit much."

Pinkie grinned. "Silly, do you ask a fish how it swims?"

He looked at her, confused. "It uses its fins, right?"

She continued regardless."Or a bird how it flies?"

"It flaps its wings?"

She frowned, somewhat annoyed at his reasoned answers to rhetorical questions, before her iconic smile sprang back into place. "Well, my point is don't ask a Pinkie how she Pinkies."

If anything more confused, Sunlit decided he'd ask someone who knew Pinkie later. He got up and made his way to the front desk. The nurse handed him a few papers to sign, and then asked him, "Does anypony in your immediate family have any history of responding badly to this medication?"

Sunlit began to answer no, before pausing. The loving, caring pair of earth ponies who'd raised him were not his true parents, though he always had to remind himself of that. After a moment, he said "I don't know."

The nurse accepted his answer and informed him to come back as soon as possible if he noticed any side effects not listed. He thanked her and began to leave, but he was acting on autopilot. Sunlit's thoughts were a churning jumble. For some reason, the nurse's simple question had affected him profoundly. He truly had no idea who his parents, or family at all, actually were. He decided he'd rest, then visit Ponyville's library tomorrow to research genealogies. Perhaps a more recent one would hold a clue as to his family history.

Author's Note:

Finally finished chapter 1! Now if only my muse could show me chapter two.