Disenchanted

by PaisleyPerson

Chapter 2: Welcome to Equestria

Chapter 2
Welcome to Equestria

“Coffee?” Pound scrunched up his muzzle in confusion.

“Look, we can get you coffee,” Shift did his best not to laugh, but inevitably failed. “In fact, now I want coffee. Anypony else? No?”

“Are you alright, Miss?” Charcoal interrupted.

“Go away.”

“What were you doing out there?” Spectrum demanded, poking his head into the roots where I was hiding. I scuttled back on the dirt, and I guess they heard me because he quickly pulled back out. Charcoal shook his head, warning the others not to try that again.

“That is a question I would also like answered,” Topaz coolly reiterated.

“N-Nothing,” I hesitantly stuttered, intimidated by her authoritive figure.

“Then why did you run from us?” Fink interrogated, just as coldly.

“I... I...”

“Well?” he insisted.

“Fink,” Char reprimanded. “Cut her some slack. She’s scared.”

“Aw, come on, lady! I know the Bogg is a little creepy, but it’s not that bad,” Shift hollered with his trademark, lopsided grin.

“The Bogg?” I repeated, trying to recall if Equestria had a bogg.

“Yeah, you’re in the Bogg, just south of the Everfree. Don’t you know where you are?” Shift cocked his head.

“N-No,” I bit my lip. That’s right, Equestria did have a bogg. In fact, I had recently been in the process of designing some “Bogg Sprite” characters that lived there. I shuddered from both the cold and fear that was finally setting in. The group outside exchanged glances.

“Well, no worries,” Charcoal assured, stepping up again. “Just come on out and we’ll get you home... or wherever it is that you need to be.”

“I don’t think you can,” I miserably mumbled.

“What’d she say?” Shift not-so-quietly whispered to Fink.

“Miss,” Smoky Topaz plodded forth, sending chills down my spine. “What are you running from?” Charcoal’s eyes shone with something comparable to glee, evidently catching on to whatever it was she was getting at. It struck me as both strange and rude, considering my predicament.

“Did you see anything in the Bogg?” he almost eagerly asked.

“No... Just you,” I hesitantly confessed. I felt my stomach knot again. Why were they asking? Was there something else in this Bogg? Something... dangerous?

“Aw, come on now. I know Char’s having a bad hair day, but it’s not THAT bad,” Shift jibed and ruffled the prince’s hair. Spectrum snickered, and a smile unwittingly crept onto Pound’s face. The rest of the group were unamused. “Sorry,” he eventually snickered.

“It’s perfectly safe,” Pound Cake assured. “There are some pretty powerful ponies here - two pegasi, a thestral and three destrals, one of which is the Everfree’s Chief of Research and the other the prince himself. Surely you’ve heard of them, at least?”

“Yes,” I shut my eyes.

“Then you know you’re safe,” he nodded. “My name is Pound Cake. And this is Shift-”

“I know all your names,” I cut him off.

“You do?” he stepped back, slightly perplexed.

“Guys! We’re famous!” the blue destral squealed like a little schoolfilly.

“How do you know our names?” Fink demanded.

“B-Be-Because...” I stuttered, trying to find the words. I almost told them everything. ‘Because you’re all my storybook characters that I made and wrote about in another universe where talking rainbow ponies only exist in a popular kid’s show.’ Yeah, that would go over well. “Because you shouldn’t exist,” I finally wept, curling up into a miserable, cold, filthy ball in the dark shadows of the mangrove.

“What does she mean?” Spectrum quietly inquired.

“H-Hey, don’t cry,” Pound coughed.

“Alright Miss, I’m coming in,” Charcoal finally declared, plodding forth.

“N-NO! Stay away! Just go away!” He stopped before he started, frustration slowly becoming evident on his face.

“If she won’t let us in, how are we supposed to help her?” Shift finally decided to stop goofing off and made himself useful.

“She can’t stay in there forever,” Topaz reasoned. “We wait her out.”

And so the standoff began.

---

Holed up in my little safe haven, I had no reliable way to measure time- I couldn’t even see the sun from here. Only the loud *thump thump* of my heartbeat counted the minutes (or hours?) away. I quickly grew bored of watching the ponies outside pace, and started to count with it. ‘183, 184, 185...’ My eyes were growing heavy from the hypnotic rhythm. The gradually quieting *thump* of my chest combined with the gentle rustle of leaves and soft plodding of hoofsteps was-

Hang on, what happened to the hoofsteps? I became slightly more alert as I strained to peer past the roots. Antsy Shift was no longer pacing. Actually, they had all gone still, huddled in a group just outside my hearing range. I huffed and leaned back against the roots. Fine. They could scheme all they wanted. I wasn’t coming out.

I couldn’t come out. I was still scared of them- the fact that I was now in Equestria as a pony was only just beginning to sink in Though, with every passing second the group seemed slightly less intimidating. But that wasn’t the issue. The issue was that I couldn’t think up a lie elaborate enough to cover all my bases, and I had no way to explain the truth without looking like a complete nut job. True, in the Equestria Girls movie, the girls instantly believed Twilight when she gave them a similar scenario, but I wasn’t dealing with canon here. If my OC’s were here, it was likely this was not THE Equestria, but rather MY Equestria: The Thestral Universe, perhaps one of many versions of Equestria. (It was in that moment that I fully comprehended the meaning of Multiverse.) If this was the case, then I couldn’t be sure how my characters would react. I had written them in a world slightly more brutal than the canon Equestria, and most decisions had a more realistic weight to them. Perhaps they would accept my reasoning, or maybe I would be sent to a mental institution. I had never been one to take risks, and just thinking of the latter made my stomach knot.

With a start, I realized that my plan had worked all too well. They were gone! I cautiously peered out of the roots, but didn’t see- oh, false alarm. The sparkle of Shift’s crystal coat gleamed in the distance. He wasn’t exactly hiding, and in fact had made himself quite visible parked under a tree a few yards off. I strained to see anyone else hiding in the tree line, but turned up empty han- hooved. I rolled my eyes and flattened my ears. I wasn’t falling for that.

“I see you, Shift,” I called from the dark. “You can’t fool me. I know you’re all out there, and I’m not falling for it!”

“Oh, no, you got it all wrong lady,” Shift shouted back, not bothered in the least. He casually remained where he sat in the shade, twirling a leaf in his hooves. “The others are gone for real. We figured if you’re gonna camp out here, so will we... just in shifts. And I volunteered to go first, you know, ‘cuz my name is Shift. Eh? Eh? Get it?”

“Get it?!” he wildly grinned again. “Come on, lady, that was comedy gold!” I groaned, and sat back again. Well, if what he said was true, then it didn’t sound like I could sneak away. So unless I thought I could outrun one of them, I had already been defeated. Unfortunately, every single one of Charcoal’s gang had wings that could easily overtake me, not to mention I really had no idea where I was going...

I was adamant to get away from them, but I haven’t really given much thought as to what I would do afterwards. Pick a direction until I found civilization? Assuming I made it that far, what would I tell the next group of ponies I ran into? I faced the exact same problem. What would I do for money, for food? Where would I stay? Not to mention, I imagine it would be pretty difficult to stay hidden from the Prince of the Everfree.

My options were very limited: tell the truth to Charcoal and company and possibly wind up in a mental institution or make a run for it and possibly starve or freeze to death. Either choice involved serious risk, but the longer I sat here in the dark, the more it looked like a confession would be safest for everyone. At least a mental institution would provide food and shelter...

“Woof!”

“AAAH!” I screeched and thrashed when something moved in the dark and wound itself around my forehoof.

“Arp!” A yelp sounded above my thrashing.

“Hey, hey, calm down!” Shift sprinted back to the roots in a matter of seconds, while respecting my perimeter. He skidded to a stop outside the roots and barely poked his muzzle through. “It’s just Brambles, Char’s pet. It’s okay, he’s friendly!”

“Brambles?” My pounding heart began to relax. The creature had appeared directly in front of me, and we both remained stock still. Silhouetted by the light outside, I could now make out the shape of a young timberwolf pup with glowing blue eyes. Despite the fact that this was a timberwolf, a well-known monster in Equestria, I wasn’t afraid. I knew this wolf.

“Yeah, Brambles,” Shift nodded. “He’s alright, not like normal timberwolves. But I’m betting you already knew that, huh?”

“Yeah.” I did remember Brambles, in fact. He was Charcoal’s bodyguard slash pet timberwolf. Char had accidently brought him to life just before ascending to royalty. Unlike wild timberwolves, these royal wolves were bound to their masters, and lived to serve them. They also had more magical powers than normal wolves, able to reconstruct themselves into whatever shape suited their master’s needs, even forming into their royal armor. But they didn’t usually stray from their masters unless ordered to... so what was he doing out here?

“Alright,” Shift slowly straightened up. “Char said he was going to send him back with coffee.”

“Coffee?” On command, Brambles’ paw bent and twisted back into a vine, and he retrived two half-empty coffee cups. Despite the lids, most of the fluid must have splashed out during our little skirmish. His unblinking gaze never faltered as he offered one to me. I hesitantly took it, struggling for a moment to grip the cup between my new hooves. Once I had a firm hold on it, however, he dashed away to hurriedly leave the second cup with Shift.

“Thanks, Brambles,” the destral levitated his cup and dismissed the wolf. With a quiet yap, the puppy sprinted away. Shift took a sip and quickly called after him, “AND GIVE MY REGARDS TO THE KITCHEN STAFF!” The howl echoing in the distance alerted us of his acknowledgement. “It’s actually really good today,” he casually commented, slurping up some more. “The usual kitchen staff usually burns it. Maybe Princess Essence took my advice and hired Black Roast- the barista from Baltimare. She was really friendly when we met her last week. ‘Course, she wasn’t too happy when we got her fired during that batpony incident... Hey, are you crying?”

I wasn’t crying, I was outright bawling. Something about the coffee finally hit a nerve. Their kindness, my stubbornness, the terrifying unfamiliarity of this world... it was all crashing down. “Easy, easy,” Shift urged, dancing outside the roots. “What’s wrong? Come on, lady, talk to me.”

“No one... will... believe me.” The words came out broken and choppy between sobs.

“Believe you? Is that what this is all about?” Shift almost laughed. But it wasn’t a teasing, ridiculing kind of laugh. His entire demeanor was soft, gentle, understanding. “Lady, we deal with crazy, unbelievable stuff all the time. That’s sorta in our job description. Tell ya what? Why don’t you come out of there, have a cup of coffee and tell me all about it?”

I didn’t have the strength to fight them anymore. Defeated, my head bobbed once, and I weakly stood. Shaky legs led me out of the roots with a mind of their own. Shift tried to help me out, but I flinched from his touch. We both paused, and then he cautiously tried again. I held my breath but allowed it this time. Like the gentlecolt he was, Shift slowly led me out into the center of the clearing, pausing only long enough to turn back and retrieve my forgotten coffee cup. He sat me down (or I suppose laid me down, considering that my legs completely gave out) and settled the cup between my hooves. He lay across from me, settled himself quietly, and looked up.

“Let’s start with your name.” My name. That was easy enough. Megan Stevenson. I didn’t even have to think about it as my lips formed the words.

“Paisley Swirl.” My eyes bulged. Wait, what?

“Okay, Paisley,” Shift nodded, “why don’t you-”

“Wait, that’s not my name!” My heart rate sped up again. Shift furrowed his brow. “My name is Paisley Swirl. No, I mean Paisley Swirl!” ‘Megan Stevenson,’ I thought. ‘My name is Megan Stevenson!’ Regardless of how hard I concentrated, the only words that erupted from my mouth were, “Paisley Swirl!” I leapt back to my hooves, bucking and thrashing with every attempt to pronounce my name.

“Okay, okay, Paisley!” Shift jumped back up and tried to set a hoof on my shoulder.

“But that’s not my name!” I cried, panicking. “I couldn’t even keep my own name?!”

“Then what is your name?” Shift gripped my shoulders tight to hold me still.

“I can’t say it! I try but it comes out as Paisley Swirl! I can’t say my own name!” I trembled. Despite my scrambled thoughts, my mind began trying to fit the pieces together. This world must have its own sort of autocorrect or censorship. Back home, my name was Megan Stevenson, but here in this new world I had received a new one. Great.

“What do you mean you can’t say it? Why not?”

“I don’t know,” was my miserable response. I sank back to the ground, and noticed with no small amount of disappointment that I had spilled the rest of my coffee. Shift remained standing, deep in thought.

“Well, can you spell it?”

“Huh?”

“If you can’t say it, can you spell it out? In the dirt?” He swiped a big chunk of grass away, revealing the moist soil beneath. I looked at the broad, bell-bottom hooves at the ends of my arms. Could I? Shakily taking a breath, I jabbed the tip of my right hoof into the dirt. ‘M... start with a line.’ I dragged the appendage back towards me. ‘Alright, now another line...’ I started back up at the top and started back diagonally. About halfway through, though, my hoof involuntarily slipped and started curling back down.

“No!” I audibly yelled, recoiling. Shift watched patiently. I snorted and tried again, jabbing dots into the dirt until they connected into a wibbly-wobbly line. By the time I was ready to move onto the next line, I realized I had already used up all the space in the dirt. I groaned, and slashed a deep gouge across my scribbles. “No.”

“Well, that’s okay, Miss... Look, can I call you Paisley for now? Fink’s gonna lecture me as it is for calling you ‘lady’ all this time.” I silently nodded. “Okay, Paisley, we’ll figure out your real name later. Right now, why don’t you tell me what’s going on? What won’t I believe?” I hesitated, searching for words. “I promise not to laugh,” he assured.

“Okay,” I took a breath. I wasn’t sure how much of my tale would be censored, so I tried to choose my words carefully. “I’m not really a pony,” I began. Shift cocked his ears, interest piqued. “I’m from another world. There are no ponies there- at least, none that can talk. The dominant race there is humans.” So far, so good. I was somewhat surprised that I could say ‘human’ but not my own name. However, perhaps that was due to the Equestria Girls movies.

“Oh! You’re from the human world! Why didn’t you just say so?” Shift’s wild, cocky grin returned. He stood and started dancing off into the trees. “Don’t you worry, Paisley Swirl! Princess Twilight has a portal that can get you right back-”

“No, not that human world,” I intruded.

“There’s more than one?” He froze, and returned to his spot in bafflement. “And wait... if there IS more than one, how do you know about both?” My ears pressed themselves flat against my head.

“This... this is going to sound crazy, but... where I come from, this place, Equestria, it’s not real. At least, it’s not supposed to be. I only know about it because it’s the setting of a moving picture show.” Okay, so I had been going for TV show, but close enough.

“Moving pictures? Like a projector?”

“Yes! This show is called My Little Pony. We watch shows for entertainment, following the lives of the characters through a series of installments.” Again, had been going for episodes there, but it was still coming across.

“Like in a book series?”

“Yeah. One of the installments was called Equestria Girls, and it was all about Twilight’s adventure in that human world. But none of this should exist- it’s just a made-up little kid’s show! That’s why I was so freaked out...” Why couldn’t my coat have been pink? Then maybe it would have hidden the flushing color of my cheeks.

“You’re trying to tell me that in your world, Equestria is a made-up fantasy world, the residents, er, characters of which are written simply for your entertainment?”

“Um, yes?” It actually sounded really bad when you put it like that...

“SWEET! I’m a beloved storybook character! Er, moving picture character!” Shift struck the most vain, boastful pose he possibly could have managed.

“Uh... not exactly.”

“Huh? What does that mean? Am I different in the show? The villain? Wow, that’s dissapointing...”

“No, nothing like that. You’re exactly as I imagined you, actually,” For the first time since arriving here, a smile tickled the corners of my lips. Perhaps it was because he was taking this remarkably well, or maybe the full truth of that last sentence was sinking in. “It’s just... how do I put this?” How in the hay was I supposed to explain the concept of a fandom to Shift, especially without being censored?

“You just... REALLY shouldn’t exist. Not even in the show.” Shift took a good long minute to ponder my words.

“Then how did you imagine me at all?” Another deep breath was in order.

“I really, REALLY like My Little Pony. And there are others out there that really like it, too. And sometimes, when we don’t like something that the show producers did, or if we have a great idea that we know won’t be used in the show, we write our own stories about it. We get together and share our stories. I wrote one, and invented my own characters to put in a different version of Equestria. I invented...” My voice caught in my throat.

“Invented what?” I could hardly meet his gaze.

“I... invented... you.” Shift blankly stared back at me. “And Charcoal, and Acrylic, and Torchwood, Princess Essence, Fink, Spectrum...” Now that I had started, the names kept spilling out of my mouth. Shift stood in silence as I rambled on until I finally ran out of steam. Unblinking, unmoving, he remained a moment longer.

“So I’m a fictional character from your fictional story based on a fictional show, in a world run by humans?” My ears couldn’t flatten back any further, and my tail had worked itself between my legs. I closed my eyes and hung my head. “I told you you wouldn’t believe me...” I finally stood. I wasn’t sure where I could go, or what I would do, but I had outstayed my welcome here. My companion stopped me before I could take my first step.

“I think,” Shift solemnly spoke, “we better tell Charcoal about this.”

Comments

[fre3000]

Good good, it's really interesting. Can't wait for more chapters :D