Face the Unexpected

by Hakuno

10. Face the Spring

It took Twilight a week to fully recover from her sickness. The second day she was able to talk normally, and she could tell Daniel that it wasn’t really necessary that he talked all the time. But she still asked him to give her some conversation. His voice was so relaxing that she barely noticed how her muscles were sore when she had to stand up and walk to the bathroom. His presence was so reassuring that she felt the tiredness go away when he was at her side. And her eyes stopped hurting when she looked at his smile, at his eyes, at his hair, at everything about him.

Through these days, Twilight got a lot of time to think. Since said action didn’t hurt anymore, she could let her thoughts fill her mind. She realized that she got sick because she slept on a cloud all day in a cold day of winter, and she felt really guilty because she noticed how preoccupied Spike was. So she decided that when she got better, she would thank him with the biggest and most magical gemstones she would be able to find.

When her headache wasn’t a problem anymore, Spike allowed the other girls to visit her, but only one by one. Pinkie Pie was the first, she gave her a hug and a balloon with letters written on it that said ‘Get better soon’. Twilight had to giggle at that, but thanked her friend nonetheless. Applejack was next, she brought her the best apple she had, and Twilight was so happy that a little tear escaped from her eye. Rainbow Dash as always tried to hide her concern by talking about herself. Twilight was used to that, so she really thanked her, but forced her to give her a hug, at which Rainbow accepted pretty fast. Fluttershy gave her a lemon with honey tea, and told her about some medicinal plants that might help her. And at last, Rarity.

“I still can’t believe you got so sick, darling” Rarity said, she was sitting in a cushion to one side of Twilight’s bed. “The girls and I talked, and everypony agrees that we never thought that you of all ponies would, you know, get that bad”

“I may be an alicorn, but I’m still a pony” Twilight said with a big grin. “Most ponies think that I’m immortal and immune to everything and I don’t know what else” She waved playfully a hoof in the air. “But no, at the end I’m just a unicorn that grew wings” She giggled at her own words and Rarity joined her.

They laughed for half a minute, and for a moment they took their time to relax and just enjoy each other’s company. “I...” Twilight started, and Rarity looked at her with a faint smile. “I’ve been thinking… About what you said last week…” She was smiling and playing idly with her hooves as her cheeks started to turn reddish. Almost instantly Rarity knew what Twilight was about to say, and decided that it was better if her friend said it herself. “About Daniel…” Twilight knew that Rarity was well aware of what she was talking about, but she just needed to say it out loud. She slowly gasped for air and exhaled it to relax a little.

“I think… No. I know now that… I…” She wondered why it was so difficult to say it. Rarity already knew it. She knew it. But saying it out loud had a different effect than just thinking it. She knew it, and she had to do it. She needed to do it. “I have a…” Wait, did she really have just a crush on Daniel? That definition seemed too weak for what and how she felt. She knew it, her feelings were so much stronger than that.

She stopped a moment to think. How strong her feelings were for Daniel? Every time he smiled, it made her smile too. Every time he spoke, she felt really comfortable. Every time he looked at her, her heart would beat faster than ever before. And his sole presence made her feel safe, she didn’t know why though. He wasn’t able to do any kind of magic. She knew she could easily lift him with her magic at any time. But somehow his gaze, the way he looked at her, made her feel that she had nothing to worry about. He made her happy.

“I… I think that…” She looked at Rarity, her cheeks burning under her coat. “I think that I’m in love with him” There. She said it. And it felt really good to finally get it out of her chest. She was in love with Daniel. And say it only made her realize of how true was that. She leaned closer to her friend. “I love him, Rarity” Oh how great that felt! And every time she said it had even more emotion! “I love Daniel!” She said with the biggest grin she could make.

Rarity only smiled in return. “Now Twilight, you shouldn’t just shout it out. You don’t want him to find it out without a proper declaration, do you?” And with that, Twilight looked away trying to calm herself, but her smile remained. Rarity was having fun with the alicorn’s reaction. She truly acted as a little filly. But Rarity was concerned more for Daniel himself. She knew that he had something for Twilight, but he wouldn’t admit it. “When are you going to tell him?”

Twilight was playing with her hooves moving them in circles. “I don’t know… When should I?” She really didn’t know. It was the first time in her life that she felt like that, after all. She could feel her heart beating in her chest.

“Whenever you feel confident enough to say it, darling” Rarity said and stood up. “Well, I have to return to the boutique, tomorrow is Winter Wrap Up and I have to finish the teams’ vests for the new members” She hugged Twilight with a foreleg and walked away waving her a goodbye.

Twilight accommodated herself to get more comfortable in her pillow while resting her back in the headboard. With her sickness the whole week she almost forgot that winter was about to end. But she smiled. Luckily she would feel way better to organize the teams once again to welcome spring. Daniel would be so happy to finally be able to practice archery without his coat.

And then the thought snapped in her head. Of course, it was so obvious! She had to declare her love for Daniel at the very beginning of spring. It felt just right, almost poetic. In the time when tiny seeds grow to gorgeous flowers, their love would bloom as well. They would start with small steps, and their love would grow just bigger and wider in their hearts.

She chuckled. She really needed to stop reading those romance novels.

~~~~~~~~

The next day came faster than expected. She woke up and she felt with so much energy that she just had to jump down from her bed and open wide the curtains to see the beautiful shiny day outside. “Wait…” She shuddered as a feeling that something was wrong ran through her spine. She looked at the wall clock. “IT’S NOON ALREADY?!”

She felt her heart sink. How could she have overslept in such an important day? She rushed to the bathroom and quickly brushed her mane, which seemed to be messier than ever before. “Sweet Celestia what am I going to do?!” When she finally got her main so stay in its place, she took her vest and put it on while trotting downstairs.

“Ok, let me get this straight” Twilight heard Daniel, and for the echo, she could tell that he was in the kitchen. “You don’t only manipulate the weather at will, but you actually can just change seasons as it goes?”

“Yeah, pretty much” Spike said. There was a thud and Twilight could picture Daniel smashing the table with a hand in exasperation. She giggled at the thought and walked to the kitchen.

“Good morning!” She said beaming and walked to sit in a chair suspiciously nearby Daniel while singing a tone that only she knew.

“Hey, how’s it going sleepyhead?” Daniel said and for the first time Twilight noticed the green vest he was wearing. She couldn’t help but giggle a little inside her mind with the fact that she had been more focused on his head that she failed to noticed that he was using the plant team’s vest. And then she realized that she totally forgot about Winter Wrap Up. Daniel looked down to where Twilight was staring. “Oh you’re looking at this?” He put a hand on his chest with pride. “Yeah, I decided to help Applejack at the farm. But I thought this whole wrap-whatever thing was metaphorical”

“Oh no!” Twilight yelled and almost fell of her chair.

Daniel looked at her raising an eyebrow. “Relax, I’m going to be fine. It’s not that hard to find something an un-magical being can do”

“Not you!” She said and looked at Spike with a frown. “Why didn’t you wake me up?! Everypony must be wondering why I’m not organizing them! They will think I don’t care about it anymore because I’m a princess now and they will be mad at me! But I do care, Spike! I do care!”

Spike only looked at the alicorn with bored eyes. “Seriously, when are you going to learn to not jump to conclusions?” He took a gemstone from his plate and slowly ate it, making Twilight tap her hoof in the table. “Everypony knows you’ve been sick this whole week, so they all agreed to let you sleep so you can do your best today”

“Let me sleep?! We need to clean the winter today and they just let me sleep?!”

“Twilight” Daniel said with a tender voice, and all the anger and frustration she had suddenly disappeared. “Spike told me that it was late afternoon when you started to organize all the teams on your first Winter-something, and still you managed to make it in perfect time” He looked directly at the alicorn’s eyes and she blushed a little. “Everybody knows you were sick, and they decided to wait for you, because they believe that you will be able to organize them no matter what time of the day is”

Twilight sighed. It was true. In fact, last year they started so early and they were so efficient that spring had been welcomed by noon. Everypony was happy, yes, but it still had been out of due. She relaxed, and noticed that Spike gave her some fruit so she could have a quick breakfast. She took a pear and bit it. She needed to eat if she wanted to have energy for the day ahead.

~~~~~~~~

Twilight trotted through Ponyville with Spike in her back and Daniel at her side. She noticed how they all were already doing small things so they wouldn’t just lay lazily in the streets waiting for the princess, but actually trying their best to lighten her work a little. Everypony stopped whatever they were doing to greet the princess when she passed by, they all seemed really happy that Twilight was better. She only could smile at this, it made her really glad that ponies loved her that much.

When she reached the town hall, she could see that her friends were gathered there. Twilight smiled and almost ran to them. “Hello everypony!” She said and was greeted by her five friends as well. She hugged one and each of them as they told her how happy they were that she felt better. “Are you ready for Winter Wrap Up?!” She said with her most enthusiastic voice lifting a hoof in the air. And not only her friends, but everypony that heard her cheered.

~~~~~~~~

“So, I just kick the tree and the snow will fall?” Daniel said. It was just so silly that he had the ask Big Mac twice.

“Eeyup” Big Mac walked to a tree and turned around. He lifted his two hind legs holding all his weight in his forelegs, and with a strong kick, all the snow that once had been in the tree fell to a cart placed there.

Daniel raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know if you noticed, but I can’t do that” The red stallion looked at him with a disapproving glance and a frown. “All right, all right” Daniel sighed in defeat. He wouldn’t be able to do the same thing Macintosh did, but he surely could just kick the damn tree. Daniel faced a tree and looked at it with determination. He then raised his right leg and kicked with all his strength. He could feel how a chill ran through his spine and to his head while his thigh tensed and felt painfully heavy. Daniel fell on the ground sitting, and to his disappointment, he only could make fall a small amount of snow.

The human took his time to recover and slowly stood up. “See? I told you I can’t do this” He said while Big Mac looked at him with an unreadable face. Daniel wondered if he was silently laughing. “Isn’t there something else I can do?”

Big Mac put a hoof under his chin and then looked at Daniel. “Eeyup” He said and walked to a cart already full of snow. Waving a hoof he told the human to go with him. “How good are ya t’ pull carts?”

“Pull carts?” Daniel thought for a minute. “Well, that’s a really big amount of snow, but it shouldn’t be a problem at all” And suddenly he felt how Big Mac placed the wooden belt of the cart through his body and stopped to his hip. The stallion stopped for a second to think and started to adapt the cart so Daniel could place comfortably his hands on the belt. He saw how some ponies that were kicking trees watched him with curiosity.

By the time Big Mac finished adapting the cart, Daniel couldn’t help but notice how similar it looked to a man-pulled taxi. “Ok, here we go” He muttered to himself and started to walk. At first the cart didn’t seem to be moving, but Daniel didn’t give up and soon the wheels started to roll. And every foot he walked, the cart seemed less heavy until he was able to pull it without problems. He stopped and turned to Big Mac. “Hey, it works! Where do I have to carry this snow?”

“To th’ farmhouse” Mac replied with a satisfied smile. “Then ya come back fer more snow” And with that, Daniel started to walk through the path.

He couldn’t help but remember the first time he had been there. A lot of things had happened since he appeared in Equestria, and he had to admit that he was already used to living there. He had a place to stay at night, a very well paid job at the boutique, his own archery field, good friends he knew he could easily talk to and an almost peaceful life. Sure he every so often would have to deal with the amalgam of animals, also called Discord. Granted, he would have to step aside and let the local heroes take care of the weekly catastrophe. But at the end, life in Ponyville was really quiet.

He sighed and stared at his feet while walking. “I wonder how mom is doing…” He said in a whisper and looked again to the path. It has been nine weeks since he came to this magical world. Nine weeks since the last time he saw his only family. “I hope she’s all right…”

When he got to the farmhouse, he could see a few pegasi melting the snow in big containers. One of them told him that they had to store all that water for the upcoming rain season. Daniel shrugged and just placed the snow he had been carrying in the big mountain in front of the Apple’s house. And then, he walked again the path where Big Mac and the others were still kicking trees. He had more important things in his head to think of how crazy that statement was.

~~~~~~~~

Daniel had been carrying snow for a few hours now. His feet sore, and he was panting of tiredness, but somehow he was still able to go to the town hall when Big Mac told him that they finished their chores. He sat in a bench and saw how ponies started to gather around there. All of them having finished their own chores and helping other teams in whatever they could, and if they couldn’t, they just started to talk to each other.

“Uhmm Hi there” He heard a female voice to his right. He turned to face the mare that just sat beside him. She was a green unicorn with white and green pointy mane. But what caught his attention was that she was sitting the same way he was. Aha! He knew he saw a pony sitting like that somewhere! “The name’s Lyra, Lyra Heartstrings” She said waving a hoof in the air.

Daniel took her hoof and shook it a little. “Daniel Cero” He said and then put his hand back to his pocket. Winter might had been ending, but it was still cold.

“So uhm… I know you’ve been living here for a while now” She said moving idly her hind legs in the air and looking directly at Daniel’s eyes with a warm smile. “But I didn’t want to scare you. Ponies always seem to be scared of me” She let out a nervous giggle. “Well, except Bon Bon, she’s really nice” Lyra facehoofed. “Sorry, I always do that. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that you look really awesome”

“Uh… Thanks?”

“Yeah, you’re a… uh… how they said it-Human! You’re a human, right?” She asked with big eyes and an almost creepy wide smile. Daniel only nodded. “Cool I got it right!” She let out a sigh of relief. “So, I know this may be kinda creepy, but I’d like to be your friend”

Daniel raised an eyebrow. He was going to ask why she wanted that, but she interrupted him even before he could open his mouth. “I like all kind of uncommon things. That’s why ponies see me as some kind of crazy mare. Well, not Bon Bon, she’s really nice” The unicorn was smiling and looking at all the other ponies that were talking to each other. “So, since you came here I wanted to meet you because you’re the most uncommon thing I’ve ever seen… Uh no offense”

“None taken”

“Cool. So I wanted to meet you, but I thought that you might freak out with me as everypony always does. That’s why I waited until today, because by this moment you’d be already used to the craziness of Ponyville… Uh no offense!” She yelled at the ponies in front of her, but they just ignored her. And then she turned to face Daniel again. “So, the fact that you still didn’t freak out makes me think that you’re already used to it, right?”

Daniel smiled at her and nodded. This pony seemed the kind that likes to talk a lot, but not in super speed motion as Pinkie Pie. Lyra just talked in normal speed, and she didn’t seem to mind that the human wasn’t a talkative guy. That was good. Daniel liked people –or ponies, in this case- that talked a lot –in normal speed-, because then he was able to just say the needed words. “Yeah, I’d like to be your friend, Lyra”

“Awesome!” She said and jumped off the bench trotting to a yellow mare with blue and pink mane ended in swirls. “He said yes Bons!” Daniel had to giggle at that. That unicorn seemed to be the same age as the other girls, but she acted as a filly.

He sighed. This world was his home now, and he had wonderful friends in it, friends that he never thought he would have in Earth. Those ponies understood him, those ponies tolerated him. And no matter how different he was of them, they had been just curious at first, and then they treated him just as one more of them. No racism, no discrimination, no sexism. These damn ponies sure got a really good upbringing.

“Ok everypony! Come here!” Twilight’s voice came as enthusiastic as before and all the ponies and non-ponies gathered in a big crowd in front of the town hall where Twilight was behind a lectern and Mayor Mare at her side. “I just want to thank you for your kindness and support, I really appreciate it!” Twilight said beaming and the let the mayor take her place.

“You all did a really good job once again this year with the cleaning up of winter!” Mayor Mare’s voice was one full of pride. “And now, winter has officially ended!” The crowd cheered. “We welcome spring with open hooves once again! And for the third year in a row on its due day! All thanks to Princess Twilight Sparkle!” There was a big ovation that made the alicorn blush a little. “And now, let’s enjoy another year!”

The crowd quickly dispersed. Daniel was about to go straight to the library when he felt a little pull on his vest. He turned around and saw that Twilight was looking at the floor with her face red. “Hey Twilight, do you still feel flattered for what Mayor Mare said?” He asked, and Twilight only shook her head. This was odd, she was never the quite type of pony. “Are you all right?”

Twilight lifted her head to look at him, but her eyes were dancing through all her sight field. “I… I’d like to talk to you…” Her heart was beating so hard that she feared it would be heart through her throat. Daniel nodded with a completely confused expression in his face. “I, uhm… F-Follow me” She said noticing that there were still a lot of ponies, and she wanted to be alone with him. So she started to walk and he followed her.

Daniel thought that the princess behavior was really odd. Did he do something wrong? They were walking directly to the archery field. There were no other ponies. He started to fear that if she wanted to talk with him in private, it only could mean that she was going to yell at him. But what in the name of Earth did he do?

They kept walking until they got to the middle of the field. Twilight finally stopped and turned around to face him. She was really nervous and her face just couldn’t get redder. She sighed heavily trying to find the proper words. She had been so busy organizing the teams that she didn’t have time to think on this. But she decided that she was going to tell him how she felt today.

It was getting dark, so she didn’t have much time. “W-Well… I-I want to talk to you of s-something important” Twilight could feel how her breath was really hot. Her head was spinning and she felt her stomach hum a little. She slowly gasped for some air as her mouth shivered. “I-I’ve been thinking about it for a while now…” She had to look away, for Daniel’s gaze felt really heavy and his unreadable expression was a little unsettling. “Y-You know, I’ve never thought about something like this before… I… I always thought that it would never happen to me…” She gulped, what she was going to say next was the most important part.

“But it happened…” She said, and she felt her legs shiver in nervousness. “I… I fell… I…” It was really frustrating how hard it was to say it. All the courage she had built through the day had completely banished. She gulped again, her lips were dry. “I fell in love…” She finally said. It could have been enough with that, she though. But she knew that she had to finish her sentence. She looked back to meet Daniel’s eyes. He was still standing there with the exactly same expression. “I fell in love… w-with…” She breathed in and held it. “With you, Daniel”

And the world stopped.

For a moment, the only thing that could be heard was Twilight’s heavy breathing. A cold breeze met them both. Daniel’s eyes widened and shrunk so fast that Twilight didn’t notice. His gaze still upon her and for a moment she just couldn’t move. The silence was killing her. She was unable to read the human’s face. She needed him to say something, anything. And her heart sunk when he did so.

“I’m sorry”

Twilight had to sit down. His voice echoed inside her skull. She looked down at the grass and felt tears forming in her eyes. She couldn’t think of anything, she was unable to do so. The only thing in his mind was Daniel’s last words. “I’m sorry” He said again. “Just... Let me think about it” Twilight looked up to see him, but he was already walking away. And her eyes suddenly filled up with tears.

And for the longest time, Twilight cried.

Author's Note:

Happy new year! It's the horse year!

What? It's already happened in China

/)

Comments

[Bytestorm]

You made Twilight cry!

images5.fanpop.com/image/photos/30900000/you-shouldn-t-have-done-that-ben-30948972-234-215.jpg

[hs0003]

I cry evertim.

[High_Wind]

i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/5667405824/hA859EDD3/