My Family and Other Equestrians

by Blade Star

Chapter 15 - A New Life

Stepping out of the carriage, I found my hooves softly touching down onto the soft, green grass of Ponyville. It felt good to be back. In spite of the short time I’d spent here, I’d come to regard the little town as the closest thing to home. Of course, to me, home really was still back on Earth. But I thought of the town, and in particular Sweet Apple Acres, as a sort of home away from home. I knew people, or rather, ponies here. I didn’t feel like a stranger.

Still, that didn’t really help much when I saw the reaction I got. I’d expected all sorts of responses, but the whole crowd going into a sort of stunned silence wasn’t particularly high up the list. You could hear a pin drop as I stepped down, the sound of my hooves hitting the ground reverberated around the square. I guess it was more built up anticipation than fear, but it was still a little uncomfortable. I was well aware that I was now going to have to explain both who and what I truly was. Mum, Dad and Lizzie had the advantage on me there, being completely new to Ponyville’s little world.

I looked over to Celestia, looking for some sort of prompt. The white alicorn smiled softly over at me and gently nodded her head. I guess I had to introduce myself. I ought to have practiced on the way over here. This was like your first day at a new school, standing at the front of the glass, introducing yourself to all the other students, cliques and groups. Personally, that’s not an experience I’d care to repeat. Still, needs must. I couldn’t stand here like a muppet now could I?

I opened my mouth and was about to start my little spiel, when Apple Bloom of all ponies broke the brief silence that had settled over the town. Jumping up onto a nearby table to be more visible, and with her friends flanking her on either side, she posed her obvious question.

“Princess Celestia,” the little filly called out, catching the alicorn’s attention, along with the rest of the assembled crowd. “How is Blade Star an alien? He’s a pony.”

It made sense of course. I hadn’t outright lied to Apple Bloom, but I had lied by omission. All I’d said was that I was far from home and trying to get up to Canterlot. I’d never said anything about being a pony or not. Still, I didn’t like the fact that I had to pull the proverbial rug from under the filly.

“That’s not quite true, AB,” I called out, prompting her and everypony else to look at me. I felt the same shock of well over a hundred very large pairs of eyes staring at me. “I’m sorry for keeping it under my hat, but I didn’t want to make a fuss or scare anypony. I may look like a unicorn pony now, but until a week or so ago, I looked just like the rest of my family; a completely different species. I don’t know what caused it, but something turned me into what I am now.”

Celestia nodded at my concise explanation, while Apple Bloom and the other Crusaders looked at each other and began to talk amongst themselves trying to work out what this all meant. Apple Bloom in particular seemed oddly pensive. Big Mac soon lumbered over to her and put a reassuring hoof on her shoulder. He was no doubt just as thrown as anypony else. But given his nature, it was hard to tell what he was thinking.

Looking over at the pair though, a thought occurred to me. Where was Applejack? Amongst the crowd, I could see Twilight’s other friends; Spike, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, who was muttering something about how she knew that ‘those monkeys’ would come visit if she waved at them enough, and Rainbow Dash, who was hovering a couple feet off the ground to get a better view. Applejack though, was nowhere to be seen. It seemed odd that she wouldn’t turn up to something as important as this, particularly when you consider that she was sad to see me go.

My thoughts were cut off as Celestia began to speak again. I was quite happy for the attention to be taken off me and transferred to somepony more comfortable in the limelight.

“Now,” she went on. “You can meet the rest of Blade Star’s family.” She turned to the still seemingly empty chariot. “If you would all come out now.”

My dad was first out, followed by my mum, who he helped down with a hand, and Lizzie who got a carry for her trouble. Celestia briefly activated her magic and removed the invisibility spell that had previously kept them hidden in the chariot.

The assembled crowd, Twilight’s friends excepted, all let out one combined gasp of surprise. It was a miracle they didn’t turn the square into a vacuum. Now there came the stunned silence. Luckily though, as before, there was a pony willing to break it. This time it was Lyra, although rather than talking to any of us, she simply turned to Bon Bon and said.

“Hah! I told you they were real, Bon Bon! Who’s the crazy pony now then?!” While it was nice for the town’s, and indeed Equestria’s, only anthropologist, if fanon is to be believed, to be vindicated, her excited comments did start a chain reaction.

Now you could feel the instinctive fear and alarm in the crowd. After a moment’s pause, like standing in the eye of a storm, it all kicked off. I couldn’t tell you who had the first question in.

All at once, ponies began shouting questions, at Celestia, at Twilight, at me, and even a few at my family. The noise was utterly deafening. My own ears pressed back against my skull in an effort to block out the noise, while the rest of my family partially covered their ears with their hands. I’d never been to a football match back home, but I imagine this was what the noise was like.

Celestia called out for ponies to calm down, trying to placate them and waving her hooves in front of her. But the crowd was too excited. They were actually beginning to draw closer to us. Dad even moved in front of Mum and Lizzie to shield them. Luckily, before that happened, Celestia’s patience ran out.

“SILENCE!” she bellowed, for once using the ancient Royal Canterlot Voice that had come to prominence courtesy of her sister.

Despite being only one pony, the shout trumped every other voice combined, echoing around the square long after the crowd had fallen silent. I hadn’t seen her do that since she admonished Twilight at the end of ‘Lesson Zero’.

Instantly the questions and shouting stopped and every pony, human, dragon, and any wildlife that happened to be around, all turned to face the owner of that voice. I gotta admit, that’s a neat party trick. For a moment, I saw a flash of embarrassment on Celestia’s face. She paused and cleared her throat before speaking again, this time in a much softer tone.

“I understand that these creatures are strange, and perhaps a little frightening to some of you.” I had to bite back my laughter at that. The idea of anypony being scared of Mum was just brilliant. “But having spoken with them myself, I can assure you all that they bear no ill will towards ponies or any other species in Equestria. Roger, here, has offered to assist me in my court; an offer I am happy to accept. His wife, Margaret, is a schoolteacher on their world and a devoted mother. And their daughter, Elisabeth has spent the last few days helping Fluttershy care for various animals. These are not beings that wish us harm; they are not our enemies. I ask that you accept them all as friends, and do all that you can to help and support them, until my sister and I are able to find a way to send them back to their home.”

The crowd digested all this information in silence. In spite of all the odd happenings in Ponyville, this was still quite out of the norm for many. As I said before, as much as I am sorry to admit it, many ponies do have a slight xenophobic streak in them. But given how the crowd seemed to be relaxing a little more now, it seemed that Celestia had gone a long way in dispelling such trifles. All we needed now was for somepony to make the first move. I imagined that it would be one of Twilight’s friends, or possibly Mayor Mare. But it was actually somepony quite unexpected.

After a few moments of silence, the assembled crowd parted to reveal Lyra, the mint green unicorn. She’d evidently made her way from somewhere near the back of the crowd, right to the front.

Her expression was…unsettling to say the least. She reminded me of Twilight when she was researching a spell of particular interest to her. Her eyes were wide and she had a big grin on her face. With some small amount of hesitation, she made her way over to my dad, who was now standing, with Mum and Lizzie a few paces away from Celestia. She was a little cautious, but her fear seemed to be trumped by her desire to meet a real human. Honestly, of all the things the fandom got right…

Walking up to him, the unicorn reached out with a hoof and took hold of his right hand. And, with no small amount of care and delicacy, she began to examine it, turning it over in her grip and looking at it from a variety of angles. To be fair to the slightly crazy mare, her approach was very scientific. She examined the structure of the hand, the bones, muscles, nerves. She tested how the various digits moved and flexed, and even squinted to examine the unique swirls and spirals of his fingerprints. While it was a little odd, and perhaps a touch intrusive, it wasn’t beyond the pale. At least, it wouldn’t have been if not for one simple thing. As she performed this careful analysis, she kept uttering one word, over and over again.

“Hands,” she said, sounding as if she were in some sort of trance state.

Her voice was barely above a whisper, but her eyes seemed to light up each time she said it. To be fair, this was her getting vindicated after all the years of ridicule about the existence of humans. It would be like one of those bonkers alien conspiracy nutters finding out that there actually were lizard people who arrived in the pyramids, which were actually disguised spaceships, and had secretly engineered every human conflict from the Hundred Years war to 9/11 in an effort to destroy our species and colonise the planet. At least, I think that’s how one of the wackier theories goes.

And whacky was probably one of several words my dad would have used to describe the unicorn that was currently holding his hand. Well, one of the more polite ones anyway. Mum, Lizzie and I were all doing our best not to burst out laughing at the surreal situation playing out before us. Even Celestia and the guards seemed a little at a loss. Eventually, Dad’s patience began to wear thin.

“Er…can I have my hand back, please?” he asked diplomatically. Lyra made no reply, and when he tried to gently withdraw from her grasp, she just held on tighter.

Trying to not show that he was getting alarmed, he applied a bit more strength in an effort to shake off the mare. Lyra however, just activated her magic instead. She seemed to have gone into a sort of trance, and now had a death grip on him. I swear that under the aura of her magic, Dad’s hand was starting to turn red.

Celestia was just about to take a leap and intervene, when out of the crowd, Bon Bon emerged.

I wasn’t certain how much of what I knew about Bon Bon was true. I knew she and Lyra hung out a lot, but as to the status of their…relationship, that was up in the air. Still, she seemed to be willing to offer some help.

The earth pony mare, no doubt embarrassed by her friend’s actions, awkwardly smiled at us as she walked over.

Reaching Lyra, she shook her with a hoof.

“Okay, Lyra,” she said, trying to keep her voice down and not yell at her friend. “I think it’s time you let go of his hand now. Ponies are starting to stare.” She glared at the still entranced mare.

“Hands,” Lyra muttered, entirely unfazed. Bon Bon snorted. Placing her hooves on Lyra’s shoulders, she tried to pull her off.

“Okay, Lyra.” Tug. “That’s enough.” Tug. “Time to go home now.” Tug

“Hands.”

There was now a sort of strange tug of war going on. My dad on one side, Bon Bon on the other, with Lyra Heartstrings in the middle. Finally, after one more tug, and a solid rap to her horn, Lyra let go and Bon Bon managed to pull her clear. Dad took his hand away quickly, flexing the fingers and checking his wrist. Luckily, nothing seemed to be broken.

Lyra however, remained in her self-induced hypnosis. And so, Bon Bon took hold of the nape of her neck and physically dragged her away, briefly stopping to say sorry before disappearing into the crowd. All in all, the whole thing was over and done with in a few moments, but it felt like an hour.

Still, with the situation in hoof, we all began to see the funny side of it, ponies and humans. Even Celestia was giggling softly behind a hoof. All that was missing was for Bon Bon to put Lyra in a strait jacket.

Luckily for us, that was the catalyst for other ponies to approach us, mostly to apologise. Still, it broke the ice. Before long, Twilight’s friends, along with a few background ponies I recognised had come over to talk with us. I personally found myself talking with Golden Harvest, aka Carrot Top, while Mum and Dad chatted with Zecora. Before too long, the four of us were working our way through a roster of background ponies. I found myself looking around for a certain grey pegasus.

But as I said before, there was one pony who was conspicuous by her absence; Applejack. I’d figured that she was just somewhere in the crowd. But try as I might, I couldn’t see her. Frowning, I made my way over to Twilight, who was hanging back from the crowd slightly with her mentor. The two princesses were chatting together, with the elder princess letting her usual mask slip for a moment.

“Hey, Twilight,” I said, catching the younger alicorn’s attention. “Have you seen Applejack around? I was just looking around and couldn’t see her. She’s not with Apple Bloom or Big Mac, or with your friends.” Twilight paused her conversation and frowned.

“That is a bit unusual,” she agreed. “I’d have thought that Applejack would be waiting for you when you and your family came back.”

“I hope everything’s okay with her,” I said, partly to myself. I’d promised her that, whatever had happened, I’d come back, at the very least to say goodbye.

I was just about to leave the two princesses and go and walk amongst the crowd to try and find her, when Rarity and Twilight’s other friends came over, and at quite a brisk pace to.

“Blade Star, darling,” Rarity said, sounding a little out of breath. “There you are. We’ve been looking all over for you.”

“Is something the matter, Rarity?” I asked. All four of them nodded.

“It’s Applejack, dear,” Rarity explained. “Ever since you left, she’s become so despondent.”

“Right,” Rainbow Dash agreed. “All that pony does is work, work, work all day long since you guys went up to Canterlot.”

“And she hasn’t smiled or laughed even once, no matter how many funny jokes I tell her,” Pinkie added.

Well, that sure as anything didn’t sound like the Applejack I was familiar with. Sure, I would have been pretty sad too if I’d come back here to just say goodbye before heading back home, but she must know I’m staying, surely. I put that question to the girls.

“We all tried to talk to her,” Fluttershy explained. “But all she does is tell us to leave her alone and let her get on with her work. And she looks utterly miserable. She won’t even talk to Big Macintosh or Granny Smith.”

“Please, darling,” Rarity implored. “You’ve got to go to her and snap her out of this funk. None of us can stand to see her like this.”

I was surprised to say the least. Not to put too fine a point on it, but Applejack is no stranger to loss. I figured that she’d be sad to see me go, but that she’d get over it soon enough. After all, I’d only been living with them for a few days. I guess it didn’t occur to me just how much of an impression I’d made on her, and how close I’d gotten with her and her family.

In any case, it was clear that she was in a bad way. And I was the only one able to bring her out of her current mood. If she really was so sad because she was missing me, then my return would lift her spirits.

So, it seemed as though there was only one thing for it. I would have to go over to Sweet Apple Acres a little bit earlier than planned. While it was a bit of a shame to ditch my own welcoming party (although I had it on good authority that pinkie was already planning another one for the four of us), I needed to help my friend first.

After making my way over to my parents, I let them know where I was going, assuring them that I would be back as soon as I could, hopefully with Applejack in tow. Twilight was staying here with my friends, while Princess Celestia and her guards would be returning to Canterlot Castle. As much as the solar alicorn had enjoyed things, it was high time for her to get back to the business of governing a nation. She promised my dad that she’d send him a letter via Spike about his new job.

I left Ponyville just around the same time that the princess did. I caught a glimpse of the two chariots taking off into the sky and heading back towards Canterlot. I of course, was heading in the opposite direction. Well, sort of. Directly south was the Everfree Forest, not a place I fancied venturing into again. But to the west of town was Sweet Apple Acres, and it was on that track that I now found myself. Despite the short time I’d stayed here, and the fact that I’d been away for a couple of days, I found the route was still familiar to me, and I could probably now find my way even if I was blindfolded. Before too long, the old red barn and farmhouse hove into view. I couldn’t help but view the place as home.

---

It was getting on for mid-afternoon now. The sun hung a little lower in the sky, but it was still a fair ways from sunset. The working day still had a long way to go yet. Sweet Apple Acres was fairly quiet, as it typically was. A few birds here and there chirped among the trees. I even spotted a fruit bat, hanging upside down in one of the branches. But of ponies, there was no sign. Mac and Apple Bloom were still in town, getting to know my parents and my little sister.

That left just Applejack and Granny Smith. It made sense that the elder apple matriarch would still be here. I made my way along the dirt paths and soon found myself standing outside the farmhouse that also served as a barn for the Apples’.

I was lucky that Ponyville was the kind of town where folks seldom locked their doors. Although, having said that, I myself am quite security conscious. The front door was open in any case and I let myself into the kitchen. It was empty.

“Hello?” I called out. “Anypony here?” I received no reply. Passing through the kitchen to the hall, I came to the foot of the stairs.

“Applejack?” I tried again. “Are you up there?” Still, there was nothing.

So I tried the living room. I’d spent a little while here in the evenings reading and chatting with AJ and Big Mac. It was here that I managed to find somepony. Sitting in her rocking chair, snoring quietly, was a sleeping Granny Smith. At her age, the mare needed all the rest she could get.

Still, she was the only pony who would have any idea where Applejack might be. I knew she was on the farm somewhere in one of the orchards, but Sweet Apple Acres was around half the size of Ponyville. Even if I was a pegasus, it would take a long time to search. It dawned on me too late, that I should have asked Big Mac where his sister was. Well, I was here now, so there was nothing for it.

Reaching out with a hoof, I gently shook the elder mare.

“Granny!” I called out, keeping my voice low. Oddly, my new accent began to return as well. “Granny, it’s Blade Star. I need to know where Applejack is.”

At my gentle urgings, Granny Smith stirred, her amber eyes blearily opened and after a moment, fixed themselves on me.

“Wha…Blade Star?” she said tiredly. “Ah thought y’all were headin’ up to Canterlot.”

“Ah was,” I replied quietly. “Me and my kin jus’ got back. Folks in town were sayin’ that Applejack’s been mopin’ somethin’ fierce since Ah left.” Granny let out a brief laugh.

“That sounds about the size of it, whipper snapper,” she replied, coming to a bit more. Poor filly’s been missin’ you since the moment ya left. Ah ain’t seen her like that since before she left for Manehatten.”

“Well, if Ah go see her, Ah reckon Ah might get her spirits up. Can ya tell me where she is?”

“Sure, young un,” Granny replied. “She’s been in the southern orchard all mornin’. Reckon she’ll still be there now, down by the pond.”

That was all I needed to know. Thanking her, I let Granny Smith go back to her mid-afternoon nap. Quietly making my way back out the house, I waited until I was far enough away not to disturb her, and then put on a burst of speed, breaking into a full gallop.

I was a stallion on a mission.

---

While Granny Smith had given me some idea of where Applejack was, the southern orchard was still a pretty large area to cover. Once again, I found myself wishing for wings instead of a horn. Sadly, as I’m nowhere near as powerful as Twilight, even when she was a unicorn, there’s no way I can self-levitate myself. So, I had to stick to the ground.

I did have one thing to narrow my search down though, at that was the information that she was near the pond. You see, in that particular neck of the woods, there is a large deep pool, which Applejack told me was a mixture of fishing hole and swimming hole for the family. Due to its large size, it constituted a small lake, and consequently didn’t heat up and evaporate even in the high summer. There was another small lake at the opposite end of the farm, but that was the result of a beaver dam, technically making it an artificial as opposed to natural pond.

Still going at a full gallop, evidently this new equine body was in a little bit better shape than my old human one, I soon found myself drawing up to the lake in question. And there I was confronted with a sorry sight.

There was Applejack. She was bucking away at one of the many threes that surrounded the lake. But while her kicks were strong and precise, they lacked the usual passion I’d come to expect from her. Her head was set low as she moved to collect the few apples that had missed the baskets. She just looked so deeply and utterly depressed. I’d never seen her in such a sorry state, not even when Discord corrupted her and made her lie constantly, and turned her bright orange coat into a muted grey. Even her eyes seemed to have lost that usual confident gleam.

I was standing about ten feet away, just below the small hill she was on, on the edge of the lake. She wasn’t really paying much attention to her surroundings and hadn’t noticed or heard me come galloping up.

I hated to see my friend like this. Aside from Luna, or possibly Twilight, Applejack was the pony I had connected to the most in my short time in Equestria. Despite the fact that we came from different walks of life, never mind different worlds, I’d found in her a good friend.

At first I thought about just galloping over to her, but that seemed a bit cliché. Besides, we were friends, not lovers. So I did the next best thing.

As she moved the baskets around to the next tree, I quietly made my way up the hill to join her. With her head hung low, combined with the wide brim of her Stetson hat, she wouldn’t see me. I watched as she kicked out hard at the tree, though still with a mechanical quality that didn’t befit a mare of her skill and passion. As she moved to pick up the few stray apples, I lifted one up in my magic, startling her for a moment as the apple levitated in my dark blue aura.

“Here, let me help ya with that,” I said in my soft Appalachian accent that living with the apples had given me.

Applejack looked up and let out a surprised whinny. In an instant though, her green eyes fixed on my own brown ones. As if by magic, and quite possibly it was, her demeanour changed completely. That spark came back and she smiled almost as wide as Pinkie Pie could. Such things warm any stallion’s heart.

“Sugarcube! You’re back!” she exclaimed, grabbing me and pulling me into a strong hug. I let out a laugh.

“Back and here to stay, Applejack,” I said as we embraced one another. When she released me, I had a chance again to look at her smiling face. I cracked a wry smile.

“Ah reckon Ah’ll take that job offer now, AJ,” I said softly. “Ah take it it’s still available.” Applejack just hugged me again, even tighter.

“Ya can start tomorrow morning, Blade Star,” she replied happily, faint tears in her eyes.

And so, that was how my new life started. I’d known for a few years that it was getting high time for me to leave the proverbial nest. I was in my early twenties and had finished university. I was at the big crossroads in life. And until recently, I had been wondering what to do with myself.

Back home, I’d had a pretty good life. It wasn’t like I had some clichéd long suffering background. I had a good home, loving parents, everything I could ask for really. But standing at that crossroads, I found myself unsure of where to go. Now it seemed, I had myself an answer.

I would be living and working on this farm, at least for the next few years at any rate. At present, I didn’t really want to leave. I was still close to my parents; their new home, once properly renovated was just a short trip into Ponyville. And Lizzie was still staying with Fluttershy, an equally short walk away.

Of all the possible ways the next few years could have gone, this certainly seemed like a step in the right direction. It certainly seemed like I’d found that direction at last. Honestly, I just felt…happy.

The two of us stayed on that hilltop for a little while. I told Applejack what had happened in Canterlot and brought her up to speed on our new situation. In short, I was here for the long haul, a fact that seemed to please her no end. Of course, I hadn’t given up hope of getting back to Earth. But I did know that, for the present at least, this was where we’d be staying. It only made sense to try and push forward rather than pine for my old home. And that was all the more easier given that my family were all here with me.

At length, we both headed back to Ponyville. The little welcoming ceremony had begun to wind down by the time we got there. There were now only about a dozen or so ponies chatting with my parents and Lizzie around the fountain. I explained to them that I’d gotten myself a new job and living quarters.

The rest of my family had done quite well too. Mum and Dad had arranged to stay with Twilight for just a little while longer until their new home was suitably modified and up to code (take a wild guess at who was currently reading a copy of said building code). Lizzie too, as I had suspected, was going to continue to stay with Fluttershy. Mum and Dad’s new house was large enough for her to stay, but as with me and AJ, the pair had become pretty inseparable.

The only other thing to know about, from Twilight, was that Celestia would be sending me some advice, through Spike, on how to deal with Discord if he did continue to harass me or my family. In any case, for I think the first time, both my family and the Mane Six were all grouped together in public.

---

We all stayed in town chatting and enjoying ourselves until the early evening. Everyone in my family, myself included, had made a few new friends in Ponyville, although Dad wasn’t too sure about letting Lyra conduct further ‘research’ on him. He was also arranging with the princesses when he could start working for them. The same could be said for Mum. She’d not had a chance to talk to Cheerilee herself, but Twilight had on her behalf, expressed an interest at lending a hand at the schoolhouse. Lizzie meanwhile, was poised to help Fluttershy conduct the annual bunny census next Wednesday.

As our little gathering broke up, AJ and I walked home together and chatted about the finer points of my employment. It took some wrangling on her part, but I eventually accepted a decent wage, which would be partially deducted to pay rent for my room; something I insisted on.

My room was just as I had left it, and I had soon stowed my few possessions away. With that done, we all gathered around the table for dinner, with granny Smith, now wide awake, serving up some excellent grub.

It had been a long day though, and I had an early start tomorrow, so I headed to bed a little earlier. Tomorrow would be my first real day in Equestria, a visitor no longer. And I planned to pay a certain clockmaker a visit.

Author's Note:

Proofread by Sweetolebob18.

Comments

[Luckyfanisaac]

I gotta admit, that’s a neat party trick.

and had secretly engineered every human conflict from the Hundred Years war to 9/11 in an effort to destroy our species and colonise the planet.

You think that’s bad try a thousand year old war.

——) “Poor filly’s been missin’ you since the moment ya left. Ah ain’t seen her like that since before she left for Manehatten.”

“Here, let me help ya with that,” I said in my soft

[N7_Valkyrie]

so is Blade Star not getting the hints or is he slowly starting to suspect Applejack might like him more than just a 'ranch-hand'?

[Bronzedragon]

and here we have one of spell checks finest " at one of the many threes that " [ trees ]

[Sweetolebob16]

So, it seemed as though there was only one thing for it. I would have to go over to Sweet Apple Acres a little bit earlier than planned. While it was a bit of a shame to ditch my own welcoming party (although I had it on good authority that pinkie was already planning another one for the four of us), I needed to help my friend first.

Pinkie should be capitalized.