What Separates

by Zurock

Chapter 5: Compatriots

Twilight and James safely stored away the bulk of the food they had picked up save for a mix of leafy vegetables he recognized and an apple. He would just throw the vegetables together in a bowl and call it a salad for today, and the apple was on Twilight's high recommendations. When Twilight had told him that Princess Celestia would cover all his food expenses, it began dawning on him for the first time that his situation had virtually eliminated all his serious responsibilities. With no duty to report to or job to maintain he would find himself suddenly with a lot of free time. It was daunting on some level because he would prefer to keep busy, particularly since it helped pass the time while keeping his mind off of the deeper thoughts and emotions he wanted to slowly sort through. On the other hand, there was a certain stressless freedom to it all. In any case, he would have plenty of time in the future to learn how to prepare different meals out of the available food selection so he didn't see a problem settling for a random jumble today. Maybe tomorrow he would figure out how to work some of the grains and legumes in there.

They kept their lunchtime conversation casual, sticking to mostly talk of the food they found, what more they could order from Canterlot, the coincidental commonality of some plants across dimensional lines, and such things. James felt like the variety was there in the options they had found, and he also thought he had formed a solid recollection of the things he had heard from vegetarians in the past. Still, without reference material he could only hope that they had enough to maintain his health. Twilight suggested that as he adapted to his new diet he should maintain a consistent amount of activity and spend some time carefully monitoring himself so he could feel for changes or anything that seemed unusual to him. That way they would hopefully catch anything wrong as soon as possible. It oddly struck him as the kind of advice he imagined one of his friends would give him if ever decided to try vegetarianism back home. He would run with it.

After they had finished eating Twilight was eager to head out and try to introduce James to her other friends. Although the initial meetings with Rarity and Rainbow Dash had not gone as well as she had hoped, she didn't let that put a damper on her faith in her friends. Each pony would react differently, but they all would meet him in time inevitably and she knew that no matter their initial reaction they would warm to him in time. She told James her basic plan for the afternoon. They could stop by Sugarcube Corner first to see if Pinkie Pie was around. After that they could visit Sweet Apple Acres because Twilight was reasonably sure that Applejack would be working the farm today. From there they could wind their way over to Fluttershy's cottage to see if she was home tending to her pets.

Still trusting Twilight's lead in the matter, James didn't see any reason to object. He had subtle reservations about meeting more ponies, especially those who had seen him earlier when he first arrived, but he recognized that these meetings were unavoidable one way or the other. They were all Twilight's friends and they were all going to be around as long as she was. Besides, he had gotten through the introductions with Rarity and Rainbow Dash alright. Better than he had expected, even. With that they departed from the library, leaving behind the saddlebags this time.

---

Sugarcube Corner looked like a child's fantasy come alive. A gingerbread house scaled up from its festive display and dropped right into town. James was rethinking his original interpretation of the intentions in the minds of Ponyville's designers. When he first saw the insides of the library he had thought they were going for a creative grandiosity. But now, having seen a few buildings with their wildly different but appropriate designs, it felt more like there was an emotional expressiveness behind it all. Of course a confectionery and candy shop looked like a gingerbread house; that's what one "should" look like. Or so it felt.

As they approached, Twilight was giving James an overview of Pinkie Pie. She explained how her friend rented from and worked for Mr. and Mrs. Cake at the shop. "She's a very lively and excitable pony," Twilight continued, "and she's also a little... goofy. So, don't take her too seriously. She's very friendly, though. You can take that seriously."

"I take it she was there when I first arrived also," James said.

"No, actually," Twilight responded. "When the tower started shooting out energy and became dangerous, I sent Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy back to town so they could get Spike and alert Princess Celestia."

"Oh. I see." Thinking about it, he believed he had only seen four ponies at the time. That would mean that the only other pony who he hasn't met that had seen him before was probably her other friend Applejack, the one who worked at the farm. Unless it was instead some other pony who had just happened to be there? One who wasn't a close friend of Twilight's? But what are the odds of that, considering everything else? "It's a funny coincidence that you, the Princess' personal student, and your friends were there when the tower came through," he said to Twilight.

"Not completely," she plainly said. "Pinkie Pie sensed it coming."

He didn't understand what she was saying.

Twilight pushed open the door of Sugarcube Corner which rang the shop bell as it swung open. Mr. and Mrs. Cake were in shop baking more of the treats which share their name. They looked up from their work to greet their prospective customers but got incredibly quiet and still when they saw who followed Twilight inside. Mr. Cake never stopped the pressure he was applying to the pastry bag he was using to ice a cake, so it kept spewing out icing in excess over his target, overflowing onto the countertop.

"Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Cake!" Twilight said. "Is Pinkie Pie around?"

The frozen couple glanced at each other for a moment before Mrs. Cake carefully answered, "She's just upstairs, dearie."

"Thank you!" Twilight cheerily said and made her way to the stairs. She didn't want to interrupt their busy day with talk of extra-dimensional visitors. James followed her while trying to casually smile and wave.

After they ascended, Mrs. Cake asked her husband quietly, "What was that, honey?"

"I think it was a ghost!" he nervously replied.

"The poor girl doesn't even know she's being haunted," Mrs. Cake said.

---

Pinkie Pie was in her room sorting through various party supplies while humming and singing to herself when Twilight and James entered. She bounded over to them at the sound of their approach.

Twilight began, "Hi, Pinkie! I want to intr-"

But Pinkie Pie was only looking at James for a moment with wide eyes before she gasped and shouted, "Is it Table Cloth Day already?!"

"What...?" Twilight said in confusion.

"Wait right there!" Pinkie Pie gleefully instructed before zipping off to the other side of her room. She dove into a basket of laundry and linens which ruffled and shook before Pinkie Pie emerged again wrapped in her own white table cloth. It covered her from head to tail, falling down over her eyes. Only her nose and mouth were left visible. The walking table cloth shuffled across the floor back towards Twilight and James, but she was a little off the mark and wound up standing in front of a pile of stuffed animals instead.

"Pinkie Pie, what are you doing?" Twilight asked, still confused.

Pointing a hoof out of her coverings at the stuffed animals in front of her, Pinkie Pie said to them, "Don't be silly, Twilight. EVERYPONY knows about Table Cloth Day!"

Twilight didn't have a clue what bizarre memory or fantasy had given her the idea to make up this strange sounding holiday. For all of Twilight's reading and studying of pony history and culture though, there is one thing she felt confident she did know: NOPONY knows about Table Cloth Day.

"Don't take her seriously, indeed," James mused to himself. Twilight's crash course on her seemed pretty accurate. She was anything but vapid. He couldn't help but see a strange odd couple nature between the two friends as well. Twilight didn't seem to have any problems being loose and jovial when she felt like it but, in general, there was a serious and knowledgeable side to her that was a strong contrast to this unhinged liveliness that Pinkie Pie displayed.

"Pinkie," Twilight began again, "I want to introduce you to a new friend of mine. He'll be staying with me at the library."

Pinkie Pie prodded at one of the stuffed animals on the pile, which gave a high pitched squeak each time it was pressed. "New friend? He sure is soft and squeaky," she said.

"Pinkie!" Twilight shouted to try and get her attention. Her horn lit up and with her magic she whisked the table cloth off of Pinkie Pie's face, revealing her whole head.

"Oh, hi Twilight!" she said with a giggle while turning to face her guests.

Starting for a third time, Twilight said determinately, "Pinkie, this is my new friend James. James, this is Pinkie Pie."

James gave a bow and an introductory, "It's nice to meet you, Pinkie Pie."

With a vigorous smile Pinkie Pie gave a bow of her own, the table cloth still hanging over her sides scrunching up on the floor as she lowered herself. "It's very nice to meet you, Mr. James!" she echoed back.

The energy of her greeting encouraged him to respond. "The pleasure's all mine," he said, smiling.

Twilight was satisfied with the way things were going. Not that this introduction went the exact way she imagined either, but if there was any meeting that was going to be reliably unpredictable than this would be the one. Pinkie Pie's exuberance was reliable however, and all the things that made the townsponies uncomfortable around James clearly didn't matter to her.

Somewhat bewildered by her holiday conscious guest, Pinkie Pie curiously asked, "Why are you here, Mr. James?" Before he could answer she got worried and said, "You're not here to replace poor Spike are you?"

"No," James said. "I'm not here to be an assistant at the library."

"Princess Celestia sent him here to learn about Equestria from us," Twilight explained. "He's staying at the library under my care by her orders."

Something about the situation was really firing up Pinkie Pie because she was bursting with excitement. "You know what this means!" she exclaimed.

"What does it mean?" Twilight asked uncertainly.

Pinkie Pie whirled around and threw her hooves into the air, causing the rest of her table cloth to fall off. "He needs a welcome party!" she shouted into the ceiling. She bounded back over to the party supplies she had been organizing, saying, "I just knew I should get these ready!" She kept digging through the pile, sorting things and babbling about what she should do for the party.

"How did I not see this coming?" Twilight thought to herself. She should have realized it would happen. Pinkie Pie had thrown a party for her when she first arrived in Ponyville and that was before Pinkie Pie had even said a word to her. Twilight wasn't sure this was a good idea. Although Pinkie Pie threw great parties, the other ponies in Ponyville have certainly shown that they're not used to James' presence yet. Further more, Twilight didn't feel like she had collected the data to know how well James would respond to such a thing so soon. She remembered how much she didn't appreciate her own welcome party at the time. While she did regret her unappreciation now, in this specific situation James' present comfort might be more important than any future regret he might have for not enjoying a party. They were dealing with someone who didn't really know or understand pony culture and she didn't want to risk putting him in a situation where he might be very uncomfortable or simply not understand. Perhaps she should try and get more details out of him.

"Uh... Pinkie Pie really likes throwing parties," Twilight mentioned to James, trying to spur on some kind of readable reaction.

"I see," James observed, watching Pinkie Pie eagerly sift through her supplies. This was starting to make him uneasy. He didn't want a party. What was there to celebrate? Besides, he didn't really know anyone here. It would be another one of those "stand in front of the class" type scenarios he had long hoped to forget, pointless and awkward for everyone around. He thought about Twilight's earlier mantra, however. He had no clue what a pony party would entail or if, in Equestria, throwing parties was such a regular thing to do with so little provocation.

Twilight was trying to read his face, but she wasn't precisely sure what to make of it. He definitely wasn't excited at all, that much was clear. Maybe a party would be a bad idea.

Noticing her staring, James looked back and gave his head an unsure shake while he shrugged.

It wasn't much to go on. Since he wasn't showing any direct opposition, Twilight thought she could let Pinkie Pie throw a small party. Maybe it will be a nice welcome for him and another chance to get to know her friends more. At least it could be an opportunity to teach him a little more about Equestria. Pinkie Pie was sorting through a bunch of envelopes, talking about how she would have to get the word out to everyone in Ponyville, when Twilight approached. "Pinkie," she said, "maybe we should reconsider this a little bit."

Pinkie Pie got quiet and stared at Twilight as if she had just told the most enthusiastic party planner in all of Equestria that parties were sometimes a bad idea. No, wait. That's exactly what Twilight just did. Pinkie Pie scratched her ears just in case some cupcake frosting had gotten trapped in there somehow from when she had eaten lunch earlier. All the while she was gaping at Twilight with a loose jaw.

"What I mean," Twilight tried to elaborate, "is that James is new to all of Equestria."

"Ooooh," Pinkie said in one long drawn out breath. "You're right!" she smiled as she bounced over to a closet. With a flick of the hoof she swung the door open and a larger pile of envelopes and additional party favors came tumbling out. "I'm going to need a lot more invitations to get all of Equestria here! Do you think Applejack will let us use the farm for the party? I don't think the library will have enough space for everypony."

"No, no, Pinkie, listen," Twilight pleaded. "I think it would be better if we could have a small party. Just our close friends."

Pinkie Pie gave Twilight another dumbfounded stare for a moment before finally bringing her hoof up in thought. Her eyes wandered back and forth between her two guests as the hum of her thinking became audible. Her clenched teeth flashed as they ground more and more with each passing second. The sweat from her massive consideration began to dribble down her forehead.

Suddenly she held her head up with a tremendous grin, saying, "Okie dokie lokie!"

"Thanks, Pinkie," Twilight said, relieved. "I'm sure it's going to be a great party, as always."

"You bet!" Pinkie Pie enthusiastically responded. "I'll have it ready before you know it!" She skipped over to the first pile of party supplies while telling James, "I'm going to throw you the best small 'Welcome to Equestria' party you've ever been to, Mr. James!"

"Thank you," he said with a polite hesitation. "And it's just James."

At this point, Pinkie Pie already had her head deep in the pile of party goods, fishing around for what she needed. But still she responded, "Okay, Just James!" She laughed wildly. She hadn't misconstrued him. That one was on purpose.

Twilight asked Pinkie Pie, "Are you going to need any help planning this?" She was pretty sure she already knew the answer, but she still felt she had to try and be courteous. "We were going to go visit some of the others, but I can stay and help if you need it."

Popping her head out of the the pile, with streamers now caught in her hair, Pinkie Pie giddily answered, "Nope! I plan small parties in my sleep!" The exact tone of her response made it hard to tell if she was just boasting or if she was literally describing her dreams.

"Alright," Twilight said. "I guess we'll leave you to it. Thanks so much, Pinkie Pie!"

"No problem!" Pinkie Pie replied. She grabbed some deflated balloons and leap over to an open space on the floor to start a new pile of everything she would need as she began again to hum and sing to herself.

Twilight walked back over to James. "Let's head to Sweet Apple Acres and visit Applejack," she said. She made her way out of the room to go back to the stairs while calling goodbye to Pinkie Pie.

James gave another bow and said, "It was wonderful to meet you, Pinkie Pie. Goodbye."

She turned to him, gave another counter bow, chuckled, and said, "Bye-bye!"

With that, James followed Twilight out. They went down the steps back to the main lobby of the shop. Mr. and Mrs. Cake had just finished cleaning up all the stray icing and renewed their baking work. They froze again as Twilight and James passed through. Twilight warmly wished them a goodbye while James repeated his smile and wave. There was a ring of the shop bell as they went out the door.

Mr. and Mrs. Cake let out a collective sigh and got back to work. A short while later Pinkie Pie came thumping down the steps, again completely wrapped in her table cloth. She couldn't wait to tell her hosts the good news about the holiday. "Hey, Mr. and Mrs. Cake!" she shouted.

The couple leapt into each others' embrace and screamed.

---

The tangy smell of live animals mixed with the rejuvenating smell of the orchard, and it hung in the air as a mark of the agrarian lifestyle the ponies at the farm have long lived. Twilight and James walked along some fencing which separated them from an apple orchard, following it towards an arch that lead to the main area of the farm. The place evoked a strange, nostalgic feeling in James, reminding him of farms he had visited before in his youth. Hayrides in the fall to see all the different crops and animals, or going apple picking to make apple cider.

Twilight was again trying to run down the basics of one of her friends to James. "She's strong and hardworking. She's also fair and considerate, always willing to lend a hoof. Applejack never has problems telling you what's on her mind, either." Twilight also tried to give a simple summary of the details of Sweet Apple Acres itself and its place in Ponyville's history and culture.

James didn't bother to ask if Applejack had been present for his arrival. Based on his earlier deduction he was assuming she had been. In any case, it would be easy to tell for sure once she saw him.

Applejack did catch a glimpse of her visitors while she was moving some bales of hay about. She put down her work to go over to meet them with a serious look in her eyes. She recognized who Twilight was approaching with, but she also knew something had be up if Twilight was so comfortably walking along with him.

"Twilight," Applejack said as a greeting. "What can I do you for?" There was every hint of caution in her voice, and she was visibly studying James whenever she wasn't talking to Twilight.

"Hi, Applejack. I wanted to bring my new friend over and introduce him to you," Twilight responded.

"Friend, huh?" Maybe it was the afternoon sun or the silly getup he was dressed in, but there was something more approachable about him now. She still couldn't forget what she had seen however, so she was trying to carefully reserve her judgment. Twilight wasn't a fool though, so she must have had a good reason for doing what she was doing. "Well, name's Applejack," the farm pony said plainly and with a tip of her hat, "and this here is Sweet Apple Acres. The finest farm and apple orchard in all of Equestria."

Getting very used to the action now, James gave a bow to her and introduced himself. "Nice to meet you, Applejack. My name is James."

Good manners. That was a point in his favor as far as Applejack was concerned.

Twilight explained Princess Celestia's orders. That James would be staying at the library and learning about Equestria from herself, and how she was now taking him around to introduce him to her friends. "You're all going to be a big help in showing him how we live in Equestria."

"The Princess' instructions?" Applejack said out loud. That was some strong support. If both the Princess and Twilight were content with his presence then there must be something to it. Things would be at least alright for now while she had the time to make up her own mind. She relaxed herself and said to James, "If you're going to be staying awhile then let me welcome you to Ponyville. But you should probably know that there are some things we don't take to kindly here."

Both listeners knew exactly what she was referring to. Twilight got worried as she didn't want any negative topics clouding up this meeting. James, however, was somewhat impressed with Applejack's openness. Like with Rainbow Dash, her lingering suspicion better matched with the carefulness he felt the ponies should have towards him. There was also a genuineness to her words. He didn't feel there was an actual veiled threat in her language, but that she was just expressing a fair warning of what pony society would not accept.

"I've been told, yes," he said to her. "I guess that's part of what I'm here to learn about."

Stepping in to try and avert any downward turn in the mood, Twilight said, "Well, I'm glad the introduction has been taken care of. I'm sure in time we'll all be friends."

"Since y'all have come on out here, I suppose I could show you about the farm," Applejack offered.

It would be interesting to see how a pony farm differed from a human farm, but James was reluctant for a tour over worked earth. "Maybe a little," he said. "But I'm still borrowing Rarity's boots, so I'd like to avoid soiling them too much." The boots already had a dusty layer of dry dirt stuck on them from marching down the roads of town.

Applejack hadn't fully recognized that he was in pony boots at first. Now that she really noticed it, she gave out a friendly laugh. "Those sure look like something that fussy princess would wear," she snickered. Considering momentarily where she could take them, Applejack at last held a hoof out to the sea of apple trees just beyond the fence. "Suppose I could show you the apple orchard at least," she said. "Our pride and joy. And a little ambling through there shouldn't mess the boots none."

They were agreeable to that. Twilight had seen the orchard plenty of times before, but it was a particularly beautiful place that was always a nice setting for a stroll. Not to mention it could serve as an opportunity for her new friend and old friend to get to know each other a little better. Besides all that, Applejack was always proud to show it off anyway and there wasn't anything wrong with sometimes indulging a friend.

Passing through a gate in the fencing, they walked amongst the apple trees while Applejack gave a short speech about the glories of the farm's apples. Their impeccable color, their mirrorlike shine, their crisp crunch. She punctuated her sermon with a cocksure, "The best apples in all of Equestria!". It was all the things you would expect to hear from a rightfully proud apple farmer.

"Have you tried one yet?" she asked James.

"Yes, for lunch actually."

"And?" There was no hiding her confidence. She knew what answer she would receive.

James wasn't in the habit of keeping track of the best apples he had ever had. An apple was an apple. Still, when pressured for an answer directly he didn't have to respond with a lie. "It was very good," he told her.

"Of course it was! Best apple you ever had," she said with assurance.

The trio continued on through the orchard. The early autumn's soft breeze wasn't enough to overpower the warmth of the sun whose light eased through the branches of the trees. James was taking in the air of serenity, not having had the chance to go for any kind of leisurely nature walk in a long while outside of wandering the castle gardens at Canterlot. Meanwhile, Applejack began talking with Twilight.

"I guess you already took him to see Rarity," she said. "You shown him all around town yet?"

"Ah, not really. I've only brought him to a few places," Twilight replied.

"Goodness girl, aren't you supposed to be showing him the ropes?"

"We've just started today!" Twilight protested. "He only arrived from Canterlot last evening. It hasn't even been a full day yet."

Nodding with acknowledgment, Applejack said, "Guess the Princess had him for a little while there."

"Yeah..." Twilight reflected for a second, recalling her uneasy day of heavy thinking that had followed first seeing him, after Princess Celestia took him away with her to Canterlot. The Princess had kept him there for about a day herself, but Twilight had no clue what really happened there since the letter she received never said so. "It was so sudden," she told Applejack. "The letter with the Princess' instructions came in out of the blue and a few hours later he was at my doorstep."

"Princess Celestia knows how to pick'em insofar as students go," Applejack said to her friend. It was a vote of confidence in Twilight, but it also made Applejack remember how much she trusted the unicorn herself.

"Thanks, Applejack," Twilight said gratefully. She supposed she really should consider just how she was going to teach James about Equestria. The conversations they've had so far have been educating for her. Not always in the best way but informative nonetheless. Hopefully he was getting something back from them. Introducing him to her friends has seemed like a strong step as well. In the past they have done a lot to help her learn about friendship so she absolutely knew how helpful they could be here. But where would be the best place to go next? "Books!" she said suddenly.

"Come again?" Applejack asked.

"He'll have free run of the library, so I can give him some recommended reading material to learn about Equestria." Twilight excitedly considered what titles would serve as good starts. Some on history and mythology were a must, maybe "The Tourist's Guide to Ponyville" for some local information, or you never know what he could learn from a compelling piece of fiction. There were so many great books to choose from.

"Books?" Applejack blew a raspberry. "Books, schmooks. Twilight, what have books ever taught a pony that couldn't be learned better with some good ol' jumping in and getting muddy? Beanstalk there needs some practical experience."

Catching up from behind them, James entered their discussion. "Books would be a good start," he asserted. "I'm going to have a lot of free time to do reading, and I imagine you all will be somewhat busy with your usual routines most of the time."

The fact that he wasn't opposed to soaking up the written word was good news for Twilight. The library's collection offered a wealth of knowledge. If only she could actually decide which titles to recommend to him!

Applejack considered her own schedule in the coming weeks. "Harvest is going to be picking up more and more," she confirmed. No doubt Twilight had some of her own responsibilities she had to take care of in addition to her new charge, leaving it questionable how much time she would have to serve as a teacher. But Applejack got curious. If they're going to be busy... "Why are you going to have so much free time anyway?" she asked James.

"I don't have any responsibilities," he said.

"What?" She didn't understand what he was saying. It sounded like some kind of odd admission to laziness.

Twilight realized he was referring to how shifting universes had cut him off from anything he was supposed to be doing. "It's a bit complicated," she tried to explain to Applejack, "but he's right. His most important goal should be to learn and study anyway."

"It's just as well," James added. "With how rapidly everything has happened, it will good trying to spend some time decompressing."

Hearing that, Twilight thought that perhaps Pinkie Pie's small party was going to turn out to be a reasonably good thing. A little time to relax and relieve some tension. It sounded like that was what he was looking for.

"Hm. Alright," Applejack said with acceptance. The books would have to do. However, she still told James, "But don't you go forgetting to get out and see some things for yourself. Ponies can tell you how juicy and delicious the apple is but you ain't ever gonna know until you taste it yourself."

That was fair. It was also something James was used to. In general he preferred direct experience where he could get it. But when and where possible, some preparation and research could go a long way.

"We are still going to get around a tiny bit more today," Twilight mentioned. "We'll be heading to Fluttershy's after this to introduce her."

Applejack tried to imagine that meeting. Fluttershy didn't quite have the constitution of some other ponies but, then again, she didn't witness what happened back when James had first appeared either. With Twilight taking the lead, things would probably turn out okay.

They were coming back around to the orchard entrance now, so Applejack said to them, "Well, if that's where you're heading next perhaps you'd better get a move on, then."

"I'm sorry, we didn't interrupt anything did we?" Twilight asked with concern.

"Nah, nothing important," Applejack reassured her, "but I'm not sure how much more I could show you around without putting her highness' precious boots at risk." She opened up the orchard gate for them while grinning. "Go on. Pay a visit to Fluttershy."

Twilight thanked her. "We'll see you another time."

With yet another bow, James said to her, "It was nice meeting you. Thank you for the tour of the orchard."

"Don't mention it, Beanstalk."

"James," he corrected.

"Right," she jestingly said. "Take care. And don't go getting yourself in any trouble."

Comments

[LayDownHunter]

Bah ha ha ha, that was a brilliant introduction to Pinkie Pie and Mr. and Mrs. Cake. AppleJack's introduction went well also, but not as fun as Pinkie Pie's. Bah, it was something. She's quite braggy about her Apples, but if she's honest that must mean it's true.

[Theresa]

3891341
She might think it is true but she also thought she could do the whole farm by herself. That wasn't a truth.