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Chapter 11,641 words
Chapter 21,550 words
Chapter 31,638 words

Chapter 2

Author's Note:

This chapter is in the process of being rewritten and the general plot direction changed. A blog will be posted when the revised version is uploaded. In the meantime, please enjoy this quality video about horses: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fe4fyhzS3UM

Pain.

An all-consuming, burning pain was all I could feel as blurred shapes moved around me. I writhed with the pain, gasping for air that refused to go down my windpipe. Every now and then a loud voice would break through my stupor.

"Outta the way, Bloom!"

"Applejack, please stop his motion so that I can administer the potion."

Strong limbs held me down and a bottle was pressed to my lips. A freezing, tasteless liquid was poured down my throat and I forced myself to swallow it. I gasped as a numbing sensation began to spread through my body. I started to relax as the pain faded away.

"I apologize to you for what I am about to do..."

I cried out as a poultice was laid over my shoulder wound, shooting a new wave of pain through the numbness. Another bottle was pressed to my lips and a warm liquid that tasted faintly of grapes and strange herbs poured into my mouth. A drowsiness fell over me as I swallowed, and a soft voice began to sing as I closed my eyes, fading into sleep.

"Hush now, quiet now..."

"Come on, sugarcube, wake up now."

I groaned as my consciousness returned, accompanied by a pounding headache.

"That's it. Easy now." It was the same oddly accented voice as before. A cup of water was pressed to my lips and I drank from it gratefully; my throat felt like sandpaper. "Can ya talk?" the voice asked gently.

"Yeah," I croaked, sitting up in the bed I was in and rubbing my eyes with my fingers. "Thank you." I opened my eyes and looked around blearily. I was in a small room of what seemed to be a cozy cottage. My swordbelt and gear were leaned neatly against the opposite wall. Bright sunlight filtered in through the windows, casting golden rectangles on the floor and filling the room with warmth. It reminded me of Lon Lon Ranch, especially with the smell; it was somewhere between a farm and a stable and... apples? Weird.

"Feelin' all right now?" The voice came from right beside me. I turned to see... a smiling orange horse? I blinked several times, then rubbed my eyes again. Nope, that was definitely a horse. And yet it wasn't. Not quite. Its green eyes were large and expressive, its mane... Din's breath, was it wearing a hat? "What?" said the horse. "Somethin' on my face?" It... She, rather, rubbed her cheek with a foreleg. "Did I get it?"

"What... the... hell" I said, sure that my senses were lying to me. And yet, I knew I wasn't dreaming. There was actually a talking, hat-wearing horse grinning amiably at me. Its coat was a bright, vibrant orange, its mane golden-yellow and it had what looked like a brand or tatoo of three red apples on its side near its flank.

"Believe me," she said. "It's just as weird for me as it is for you. I have no idea what the hay you are, but ya saved my sister, and for that, I'm much obliged to ya."

"You're welcome," I said absently, still not quite sure how to react to this whole situation. What was even more surreal was the fact that the horse was taking it better than I was! I shook my head, trying to collect myself.

"Thank you for helping me, um..." I hesitated. "Do you have a name?"

"Oh! How silly of me!" the horse said, chuckling. "Name's Applejack, owner of Sweet Apple Acres. Welcome to Ponyville!" She extended a foreleg.

Ponyville? Well that was certainly... straightforward.

"I'm Link," I said, taking her hoof and shaking it. "I came from the land of Hyrule." I watched her face for any sign of recognition but instead received a raised eyebrow. I sighed. "No offense but... is there anyone-"

"Like you?" Applejack finished for me. She gave me a sad smile. "Sorry, sugarcube. Just ponies here in Equestria."

Equestria... Was it possible that that log tunnel in the Lost Woods had taken me to yet another new world? I remembered the overpowered shock I'd gotten as I went through it. Could that have been because I was crossing between worlds?

"Hey girls," Applejack called, turning to the door. "I reckon y'all can come in now and introduce yourselves."

I watched in fascination as the door opened and three small hor- er, ponies stepped through the threshold. The first was cream-coated with pinkish-red hair and a large red bow tied in her mane. Her amber eyes gazed at me with curiosity and awe. A child I guessed, judging by her small stature compared to Applejack and her childlike demeanor. The next pony to come through the door made me let out an audible gasp. A white, unicorn filly with a puffy pink and purple mane was looking at me inquisitively as she moved to stand beside her cream-coated counterpart. One more came through the door; an orange pony with a spiky, windswept magenta mane who was attempting to hide her own curiosity behind an aloof demeanor. Were those wings? There were pegasi here too?

I smiled as I looked at the three young ponies in front of me. I'll admit it, I thought they were the cutest thing I'd ever seen. Even Applejack, who seemed to be a grown-up pony, was cute in a more mature way. It seemed to be an aesthetic that all of these creatures had in common. I wondered how I appeared in their eyes. Friendly, I hoped.

"Girls, this here's Link," said Applejack. "Link, these're Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. They're the ones you rescued from the manticore out in the Everfree. Which they're still in deep trouble for," she added, shooting a glare at the trio of fillies. They hung their heads, looking sheepish.

"Sorry, Applejack," Scootaloo said.

"And just what hare-brained scheme did you three have this time?" Applejack pressed, walking towards them.

"Well, the idea was-" Scootaloo began, and then all three shouted, "CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS CARTOGRAPHERS, GO!" as they struck triumphant poses. I winced as their cheer drove through my head like an iron spike.

"But it didn't end up working out," Sweetie Belle finished.

Applejack gave me an apologetic look before continuing. "Why not make a map of Ponyville then? Why go into the Everfree? And after all the times I told you not to do that, I might add!" The three younger ponies recoiled from the older mare, looking ashamed. Applejack sighed. "But you're okay," she said more gently, nuzzling Apple Bloom, "and that's what matters." Her motherly demeanor returned as she pointed an authoritative hoof at me. "Now, what d'you say to the nice stranger who helped you out o' that pickle?"

The three turned to me and smiled adorably. "Thank you!" they said in chorus.

"No worries," I replied, smiling back, then winced as another spike of pain shot through my head. "Ow..."

Applejack seemed to take that as the cue for the younger ponies to leave. "Alright now, y'all. That's enough gawkin' for now, Link needs his rest. Manticore stings are nothin' to sneeze at." She ushered them out of the room, then turned back to me. "Anything else ya need, sugarcube? More water? Anythin'?"

"Water, please," I replied. Then added, "And... a few questions, if you don't mind."

Applejack started to nod, then bit her lip. "Well..." she said slowly, "water I can do lickety-split, but questions... you might want to be talkin' to Twilight for those.

"Twilight?" I asked, gratefully accepting another cup of water and gulping it down.

"Twilight Sparkle," Applejack explained. "Most knowledgeable pony 'round here. Fair warnin' though; for every question you have, I reckon she'll have two for you." She walked to the door. "You get some rest, now. I'll bring some lunch up for ya later."

I laid back on the bed as the door closed behind her, my mind whirling. Talking ponies... I gave myself a hard pinch and winced at the pressure. Definitely wasn't dreaming then... And I didn't think it could possibly be a hallucination caused by the manticore poison. Still, a land where legendary creatures like unicorns and pegasi were as common as Gorons and Zora was so incredible to me. It was so surreal, and yet there it was, all around me.

It was a while before my mind settled down, but the warmth of the sunlight and comfort of the bed slowly calmed me and lulled me into sleep.

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