My Little Pony: Sora's Misadventures in Equestria

by Codex92

A Rockhoof and a Hard Place

"Thank you so much for coming, Mr. Terra." On the island where the Mighty Helm over a millennium ago had made their home, the excavation team was still at work uncovering the historical landmark lost to time featuring Rockhoof's homeland. The mare in charge of the excavation, Professor Fossil, had requested some personal bodyguards from Princess Twilight after the scare from a giant Heartless that almost crushed them some time ago. Terra decided to answer the call, despite there being no sign of any darkness on the map, partially interested in some more of Rockhoof's old home. "We lost so much time discovering anything new about the Mighty Helm, and if any artifacts were destroyed by another monstrous giant hiding on this island, our archaeological find would have been lost forever."

"Not a problem," Terra said. "Thanks to the map, everything seems safe for now, but you may never know."

"Well, thank goodness that young stallion Sora was here," Fossil said. "If there are any of those monsters, please be sure to lure them away from the village site."

"Sure thing." Terra got a look around the archaeological site while Professor Fossil got back to work.

Many diggers and archaeologists were busy finding some ancient pieces of history, marking grids where there could potentially be more underground and avoid being destroyed by senseless digging, or pondering what they found and discern their use by their design and what they were made of. Watching the ponies work made Terra's thoughts drift to the Keyblade Graveyard. There wasn't much history recorded as to what had happened prior to cause the Keyblade War what was essentially thousands upon thousands of years ago, or what had occurred after and who survived the aftermath aside from Sora's info from Olympus. All those Keyblades had some kind of story to tell, and all those bearers had fought against each other for control of the mightiest power: Kingdom Hearts.

"Oy! Terra!" Snapped out of his thoughts, Terra looked over toward the docks, not too surprised to see the burly earth pony stallion of the Mighty Helm himself. Rockhoof let out a laugh, his shovel balanced on his back as he greeted the Keyblade wielder with a hard smack on the back, nearly slamming Terra to the ground from his incredible strength. "Surprise seein' you here at my old home!"

"N-Nice...seeing you again, R-Rockhoof," Terra grunted. Straightening his back, surprised to hear his spine didn't snap, he tried to ignore the friendly Mighty Helm greeting. "What brings you here? Besides this island being your old home a thousand years ago."

"I felt a little homesick, so I thought I'd return home and see how my birthplace was farin'." Terra grimaced, worried how the lone Mighty Helm warrior would take the state of his village home today. Instead of being disheartened or upset at the state of the ruins, Rockhoof hummed curiously. "Guess my moat did its job for a while before some of it got buried in ash and magma."

"Well, a thousand years can change things," Terra said.

Rockhoof approached the area Professor Fossil was scouring for artifacts. She was bent over brushing off a piece of rusted metal, carefully digging up an old Mighty Helm helm in a gridded piece of dug up land. The huge stallion startled the mare with his shovel dug into the ground, surprising her with his hulking glory when she looked up at him.

"You're gonna have to work faster than that if ye plan to dig up my whole village, lass," he said with a hearty chuckle. "Let me help."

Rockhoof slammed his mighty spade into the small pit, but instead of helping like he thought, Fossil panicked as she went to cover and protect the rusted armor piece from the polished and sharpened digging tool. "N-No, no thank you, Mr. Rockhoof," she assured the confused Pillar. "We appreciate the help, but we're trying to carefully preserve every bit of history here."

"Aye. This place is full of memories," Rockhoof said with a look of whimsy. Pulling out his spade, to the professor's relief, Rockhoof began to wander around. Terra followed him, more concerned with the stallion making himself at home again when he doesn't seem to understand that his home had long since been abandoned. In the ground, there was a brown sphere jutting out and contrasting from the ashen gray earth from the volcanic soot from numerous eruptions throughout the centuries. Digging up the sphere, it turned out to be an old-fashioned ball from the past, much sturdier and made of a tougher material than normal balls children play with today. "Terra, did I ever tell ye about the time our chieftain knocked down five boulders with the kick of a wee ball?"

Rockhoof began bouncing the ball around, unaware that despite it still being sturdy, that was basically an ancient artifact that might never be recreated if it cracked or broke. "Uhh, no, but you probably shouldn't-"

"Catch!" Rockhoof shouted, giving the ball a hard kick toward Terra.

Terra barely had time to react, managing to hold his hooves out to catch it, but the force shoved his hooved back and the ball smacked his chest. Sent flying back several yards with a loud grunt, Terra hit the ground with a wheeze, the air knocked completely out of his lungs. Professor Fossil overheard the stronger earth pony stallion's tale, nearly having a heart attack when he found an important piece of the Mighty Helm's history and tried to play catch with it with Terra.

"Rockhoof, please stop that!" she demanded, startling the burly stallion while she ran over to check on the ball, not the wincing, barely gasping stallion who got hit with a hard fastball.

"H-Here," Terra gasped, giving the ball to Fossil.

"But that's what it's for," Rockhoof reasoned.

"Maybe in the past, but now, it belongs in a museum: safe, preserved, untouched," Professor Fossil said as she brushed off the dirt that remained on the ancient toy.

"Agh! Next you'll be sayin' I shouldn't have used the ol' sweat lodge." Rockhoof pointed to an old, dilapidated shack, where steam could be seen rising out of a hole in the roof.

Terra sat up, rubbing his sore chest once he got some air in his lungs, nearly jumping out of his skin when he heard the steam lodge collapse to rubble. Fossil was stunned, aghast, and growing more frustrated as she was losing more of the archaeological site with the strong Pillar's meddling. Seeing how on edge the mare was that her work was being tarnished by the displaced stallion, Terra stood up, placing a hoof on her withers.

"I'll take him away from the dig site," Terra said. "There's no Heartless around right now, but if Aqua lets me know of any activity around here, we'll be here in a flash to deal with them."

"Please do," Fossil said. "At least that giant barely laid a scratch on the village."

She headed over to one of the tents to keep the ball stored away for safekeeping while Terra went over to an annoyed Rockhoof. "Can ya believe that? Bein' told not to do anythin' in my old home after all this time."

"Well, Rockhoof, your home had been abandoned for quite some time," Terra said.

"Just what were the rest of my village doin'!? Lettin' it all go to rot!" Rockhoof exclaimed, slamming a hoof down hard into the earth, startling everyone present as they felt the island shake from his mighty strength. "They wouldn't have had to worry about the volcano with my moat! The lava would flow harmlessly into the ocean!"

"It has done its job, but...maybe your village decided to move after a century or two for other reasons," Terra explained. "You've seen how much Equestria has changed after you and the other Pillars were trapped in limbo for a thousand years. It's fair to say that your home has changed a lot...and, sadly, your home is...gone."

Rockhoof's anger and frustration slowly turned to sadness, letting out a sigh as he sat down and stared at the soil of his home. "I know. You're right," he said in defeat. "I'm only foolin' meself. And with them other ponies diggin' up everythin' to preserve them, they won't let me try to rebuild my home, will they?"

"Sadly, no," Terra said. He felt bad for the stallion, so far out of place with the times, and unlike the other Pillars, Rockhoof doesn't have a home to go back to anymore. He made a sacrifice along with his friends to stop a darkness possessed Stygian, and lost much more than he expected. Believing there was something for Rockhoof to do to adapt with the present day, Terra was willing to help the stallion. "Although, considering the archaeologists here want to learn about the Mighty Helm through any artifacts left behind, perhaps you could give students some history they might not discover from an actual Mighty Helm stallion? Like...at Twilight's school?"

Rockhoof perked up a little, stroking his beard in thought. "I suppose I could give that a shot," he said. "I do have plenty of stories of my greatest battles after obtainin' my incredible strength."

"Then let's make our way to Ponyville and see if Twilight would be interested in the idea." Rockhoof stood up, about to head for the dock to take a boat back to the mainland, only for Terra to steer him toward the volcano instead. "We're going to take a much faster way."

"Er, what exactly?" Rockhoof questioned as he followed Terra.

Climbing up the hills until they were at the base of the mountain, Terra made sure none of the archaeologists could see them. Once the coast was clear, he summoned his Keyblade, then gave it a hard toss up into the sky. Rockhoof squinted his eyes as he watched the Keyblade fade away, a brief flash of light appearing through the bright blue sky, and soaring down toward them, he jumped back when the weapon transformed into his hoverbike glider. Terra hopped on, snapping the dumbstruck stallion's daze as he held his hoof out to him.

"All aboard," he said.

"Whoa." Feeling a bit wary about flying on a highly advanced means of transportation, Rockhoof took caution to the wind, taking Terra's hoof and was helped onto the seat behind him. Terra grunted slightly as Rockhoof planted his weight on him, clutching his barrel tightly to balance himself on the awkward seating position. "Ye sure this is safe?"

"Just as long as you don't crush my ribcage," Terra warned.

Loosening his grip with a bashful grin, Rockhoof felt his heart leap when Terra made the glider rise up a few feet from the ground. He looked down, his island home getting smaller and smaller as they reached the clouds, partly terrified and awestruck by how small his tribe's home was compared to the mainland. As soon as they were high enough to not be spotted by the ponies down below, Terra sped off through the skies toward Ponyville. Rockhoof winced as they suddenly lurched forward, but despite the surprising acceleration, the ride was an exhilarating experience for the stallion.

"Ha ha! This is excitin'!" Rockhoof laughed. "Oh, Star Swirl would be tuggin' his beard off tryin' to figure out how many ways your Keyblades work!"

---

When the two earth ponies arrived at the School of Friendship, they made their way to Twilight's office, where Terra explained what happened at the Mighty Helm's former island village and pitching Rockhoof as a potential history teacher for their students. She found it as a brilliant idea, just as eager to learn more about the Mighty Helm that hadn't been recorded in the many history books she's read in her life. What better way to learn more about certain histories than from the mouths of those who experienced them personally.

In Twilight's classroom, a majority of her students along with their other friends were there to hear of the good news as she, Rockhoof, and Terra stood on the stage the alicorn had to teach her lessons. "Thank you for coming, everyone!" Twilight said. "I am happy to announce a new professor to welcome to our faculty: Professor Rockhoof!"

The students cheered and applauded, giving Rockhoof a warm welcome. "Thank you! Thank you, all!" Rockhoof said. "I know I'm new to your world, but there's one thing I learned when I saved my village from a rushing river of hot lava. There's nothin' you can't do without hard work. And a shovel!"

Rockhoof took his trusty shovel, showing off his "weapon" with a twirling flair, causing Twilight and Terra to back away to avoid getting smacked. He then slammed the spade into the wooden stage, startling everyone when the floor around the stallion gave out beneath him a second later, leaving a massive hole in the middle of the stage.

"Except maybe stand on stage," Smolder uttered to her friends in amusement.

Embarrassed, Rockhoof grimaced as he was stuck between the broken floorboards. Terra grabbed the stallion's shoulders and hoisted him out of the hole while Twilight grinned sheepishly, trying to ignore the unfortunate "accident".

"Yeah, you might want to hold off on being theatrical to look impressive," Terra warned Rockhoof. "And maybe tone down the muscle?"

"Heheh. R-Right," Rockhoof mumbled.

After the introduction of a new teacher, Twilight dismissed everyone back to their classes. She assigned Rockhoof to Terra's classroom since he offered to help the Pillar fit in, and Terra would ghost the stallion to see how well he does for his first class. In the Keyblade wielder's class, his students for that day were talking among themselves about Rockhoof, including their apprentices sharing the same class.

"You think that new pony is gonna be the weirdest teacher at school or just ONE of the weirdest?" Smolder asked.

"Yona like new teacher!" Yona said. "He big like yak!"

"And he smashes things like a yak,-" Gallus held his beak, as if covering his nose. "-smells like a yak..."

Enamored by the comparisons Rockhoof had with yaks, Yona's smile widened as stars sparkled in her big eyes. "Yes! He perfect!"

"Guys, Rockhoof is one of the six Pillars!" Sandbar said. "He's like...pony history!"

The door to their classroom opened as Terra walked in, everyone quickly shushing as they sat at attention in their seats. "Hello, everyone," Terra greeted. "I can tell some of you are a bit excited about the new professor, and there's even more good news: this class will be his first one of the day." Yona gasped and beamed, unable to sit still as she got to see more of the strong, burly earth pony stallion with nearly god-like strength. "I'm going to oversee his performance, so be on your best behaviors. Rockhoof, come on-" A sudden crash through the wall interrupted him and startled the class. Wincing, Terra glanced at the hole in the wall as Rockhoof made a grand entrance, with some collateral despite being big enough to simply walk through the doorway. "...in..."

"Hello, class!" Rockhoof greeted. The stunned looks on their faces made him a bit nervous, along with Terra's grimace and eyeing the hole in the wall of his classroom behind him. Suddenly feeling incredibly anxious, Rockhoof cleared his throat, pulling out a few notecards Twilight gave him for his first lesson to teach. "Err, I'll be yer new, uh, 'Theory and Defense of Friendship' teacher. I haven't got the chance to look through Headmare Twilight's notes yet." Rockhoof awkwardly made his way to the desk, placing down the small pile of note cards as he addressed the classroom. "What have ye all been learnin'?"

"We just studied all about how Princess Celestia and Luna used a spell to trap Discord in stone sleep for hundreds of moons," Ocellus piped up with a hint of excitement in her voice.

Rockhoof chuckled, getting a good feeling as to what his classes were going to be about and dig his anxiety under his metaphorical shovel. "So it's a class about stories, is it?"

"Uh, stories! Yeah!" Gallus agreed. "And we never, ever, ever get any homework!"

"Nice try, Gallus," Terra scolded the griffon teen, making him pout, almost forgetting about the actual teacher in the classroom. "But, basically, that's what the class kind of teaches. History is kind of like storytelling, but they hold an impact on what friendship was able to-"

"Good!" Rockhoof interrupted. "The best way to teach colts and fillies is by experience. Like the time I was in the woods and I ran across an ursa major!"

The class let out a collective gasp, growing more curious about this tale. "Really!?" Silverstream squealed excitedly.

"Uhh, we're not gonna...try to do that, are we?" Sandbar asked nervously, knowing Ponyville was almost rampaged by a cranky ursa minor a few years ago that was brought to town by Snips and Snails.

"You fight ursa major? All alone?" Yona asked.

"Aye. And I defeated her, too." The students were highly impressed, but they were getting derailed by the lesson plan for today's class.

"Ok, as exciting as that story may sound, we have a lot to go over today," Terra said, trying to get everyone back on track.

"Ah, one little story won't hurt, Terra!" Rockhoof said. "Besides, it's one of my greatest battles with one of the most terrifyin' celestial beasties to ever roam the land!"

"It does sound historical," Smolder chimed in. "I wanna hear how this went."

The other students voiced their agreements, but before Terra could chide them, Rockhoof took the initiative and took his shovel in his hooves. "From my island home, I arrived in Equestria and met up with my fellow Pillars of Equestria. Gathered together to protect the kingdom from foul beasts, we worked together to stop the likes of Tirek, a trio of evil songstresses called sirens, even wild beasts run amok like the ursa major. I willingly took on the giant star bear alone, with my trusty shovel the only weapon I needed.

"Out to the woods I went where it was causing its rampage, dangerously close to a nearby village, it let out a mighty roar, and I charged at her with a battle cry of my own!" Forgetting about his theatrical mishap earlier, Rockhoof gave a physical demonstration of his battle, to Terra's shock. The stallion let out a yell and leapt forward, swinging his shovel and slammed it into the floor. "I made an overhead swing, getting her right between the eyes, but her skin was thicker than the hardest steel, and I only made her angrier! She swiped with her claws, but I leapt out of the way!"

Rockhoof took a huge jump backwards, underestimating how far he went and wound up crashing into one of the empty desks. Undeterred by the damage he was doing, Rockhoof continued showing off his mock battle with the ursa major many years ago, each impact with his shovel to any part of the room or his massive frame bounding around either breaking something or causing the whole building to shake.

"Ok, Rockhoof, the demonstration is a bit too mu-!" Terra tried to intervene, quickly ducking as Rockhoof swung his shovel, nearly hitting him. "Alright, enough with the swinging! You almost-AH!"

Terra ducked again as Rockhoof was now using him as the mock ursa major. "Dodge! Thrust! Shovel leap! Shovel throw!" Rockhoof grunted, then hopped up onto the teacher's desk, which creaked slightly and threatened to break under the Mighty Helm warrior's weight. "Come on, Terra, you be the ursa major! Can't be authentic without a worthy opponent! Gimmie a good growl!"

"Are you kidding!? You could have taken my head off with your spade!" Terra scolded. "You can tell your story without reenacting every single physical action that was done!"

"But it's so much cooler to see it happen in action!" Silverstream said.

"You can probably take a whack with a shovel," Smolder added.

Terra gave the dragoness a harsh leer. "With his Herculean strength?" he questioned.

Through the hole in the wall, Twilight and Applejack peeked inside, wondering what happened, only to be shocked at the broken desk and extra holes or craters in the classroom. "...What is going on in here?" Twilight asked nervously.

"Professor Rockhoof teach us about fight with ursa major!" Yona excitedly responded. "Master Terra the ursa!"

"...No. No I am not," Terra said.

Worried about any more collateral damage done to her school, Twilight glanced at Rockhoof, who sheepishly hid his shovel behind his back, stepping down off the desk. "How about you all take an early lunch today?" she said. The students were disappointed that the story had to end so abruptly, but they didn't want to argue with the headmare/princess. Once everyone in the class filed out and were out of earshot, Twilight, Applejack, and Terra looked at Rockhoof, the stallion suddenly feeling smaller than the three of them combined after getting a bit too into his story. "Rockhoof, I know that for my school, everyone has their own special way of teaching."

"And we can tell you're a...smash with the class," Applejack chuckled, laughing at her own pun, though it wasn't much of a good joke that made Terra or Twilight crack a smile.

"But maybe you can do a little less smashing in the classroom?" Twilight suggested.

"I did try to warn him, but he got a little bit too into his storytelling, and almost clipped me with his shovel," Terra added.

"Eh, sorry, all," Rockhoof apologized. "The students were interested in my tale, and I couldn't help myself."

"That's kind of why you need to tone down on the muscle," Terra said. "Not everyone else in town, or anywhere today, is like the Mighty Helm, showing off their brute strength or getting into heated battles."

"Don't ya do that with the Heartless with your comrades?" Rockhoof asked.

"Well...yes, but they're much more dangerous than an ursa major," Terra said. "I don't even know what an ursa major even looks like."

"You...really don't want to know," Twilight said, letting out a nervous giggle. "Sora and I had to handle an ursa minor, and that was a baby compared to what the mother would be like."

"Can't be that bad." Teleporting a book of creatures, Twilight showed Terra what an ursa major and ursa minor looked like through the illustrations. Terra grimaced and reeled back at the sight of the mama bear constellation. "Oh, by the light in Xehanort's nonexistent heart! THAT'S a MAJOR!?"

"Aye, that it be!" Rockhoof chuckled. "Taller than a mountain, and as ferocious as a dragon."

Terra glanced between the stallion and the image. "...Ok, that's...actually an impressive feat," he admitted.

"Just don't ever really bring a live one here to demonstrate," Twilight added.

"What, ye think I would?" Rockhoof asked. The silence of the room and all eyes on the stallion answered his question, making him wilt slightly. "I...probably would have."

"I know it's a big change after one thousand years in limbo," Twilight said. "But I think you're gonna fit in just-"

Suddenly, the sound of roaring flames alerted Rockhoof. He glanced out the window, spotting a plume of flames and smoke coming from one of the rooms on the second floor overlooking the courtyard. The fire triggered a fight or flight reflex in the Pillar, reminding him of the volcano that nearly destroyed his home many years ago.

"FIRE!" he exclaimed, charging toward the window, leaping headfirst into it and landing to the ground below.

Startled, Terra and Twilight jumped out the window after him while Applejack sprinted out to the hall to catch up with them outside. "Wait, Rockhoof, hold on a second!" Twilight tried to call out, but the stallion was too worried to hear her out.

"There's no time! Evacuate the school!" Rockhoof called out.

"Rockhoof, it's not a real-!" As Rockhoof slammed through a wall, breaching into a classroom, Terra winced, fearing the whole structure would fall from his breaking and entering than the harmless dragon fire that could have been easily doused thanks to the security measures Twilight thought of in case she had dragon students like Smolder.

Inside the classroom he barged into, the startled class didn't have any way to react when Rockhoof literally shoveled the many ponies out to "safety". "Out we go, wee ones!" he said.

Inside that classroom, Yona was there to enjoy her early lunch, squealing with glee as she was getting shoveled to safety by her newest idol, flung out and flopping onto her back with the biggest grin on her muzzle. "Yona day just keep getting better and better!"

"Good for you, but Rockhoof's not going to have one," Terra mumbled.

After Rockhoof rescued everyone who was around the fire, he ran up to the fountain, smashed it, to Twilight's shock, and used his shovel to aim the geyser of water to put the roaring flames out. "Ha ha! Just like fightin' a volcano in the good ol' days!"

The water did manage to put out the fire, along with startling and surprising the one responsible for them as the others heard yelps and sputtering. Rockhoof made sure each room near the flames were drenched to prevent the fire from spreading, hearing Rarity's surprised squealing from the window nextdoor. Seeing the flames completely die out, Rockhoof removed his spade, giving it a twirl, feeling proud of his accomplishment.

Applejack had reached the courtyard right as Rarity came storming out, completely soaked from head to tail while everyone else just stared in shock at Rockhoof's "heroics", Yona being the only one excited to see the stallion in action. "What is the meaning of this!?" Rarity shrieked angrily. "Would somepony please explain why my classroom just got flooded with water!?"

Ironically, Pinkie came out from a rush of water on a surfboard, riding the small wave outside. "I don't know, but I think it's surf's up!" she cheered.

"Sorry Rarity, but I had to put out the ragin' inferno," Rockhoof said.

Spike and Smolder came outside, just as drenched as Rarity was and were also just as irritated. "What inferno?" Spike questioned.

"Did you all not see the smoke and flames?" Rockhoof asked, confused.

"Yeah, that was us," Smolder said. "We're dragons? Having a fire-breathing competition?"

Rockhoof still didn't understand how something that seemed dangerous was apparently normal to everyone else. He stammered his words, completely clueless that his efforts to save the school left him as a nuisance rather than a hero.

"We didn't get a chance to tell you before you just jumped out the window," Terra said. "It's kind of normal around here. Dragons are living among ponies now rather than being terrified, and if there ever was a fire caused by an accidental dragon belch, we have precautions to prevent a fire from spreading elsewhere."

"...Oh. It...it is?" Rockhood uttered, feeling absolutely ashamed and embarrassed.

"We understand you're just tryin' to be a hero, Rockhoof, but what we need here at the school is a teacher," Applejack said.

"One who doesn't ruin an entire class's friendship quilts," Rarity said, providing a poor example and making Rockhoof feel more terrible than he already was, even as she showed her one of the drenched quilts she was working on, colored blue with white edges and had pineapple patterns sewn on them. "Do you know how hard it is to stitch a pineapple pattern!?"

Terra glowered at Rarity, understanding her frustration, but she's forgotten that Rockhoof was so far behind on the times and didn't know any better, much like how Luna had when she returned to Equestria after being banished while she was Nightmare Moon. "My deepest apologies, Miss Rarity. I haven't gotten used to living with dragons or much else in this modern time." Rockhoof let out a heavy sigh, feeling more and more dejected. "I'm not welcome back in my old village, what with it bein' dug up and preservin' what's left of it. Seems like I don't belong here either."

"Hey, don't start giving up now." Terra walked over to the stallion and patted his shoulder. "It might take a while for you to get used to everything, but I'm sure there's something you're able to do."

"Ya sure about that?" Rockhoof questioned, doubting the wielder's reassurance.

"Yeah. There's plenty of jobs out there you're definitely qualified to do," Terra said, giving Rockhoof a confident grin. "We'll find you somewhere you'll definitely fit in, and you'll get acclimated to the present day in no time."

---

The confidence Terra had a couple days ago quickly wavered. Gathered in the throne room, everyone was present, all looking incredibly nervous and wincing as the topic of Rockhoof's latest job searching turned sour. Even with their help, Rockhoof had the potential for some of the things he could do, but there were moments where he messed up royally, or caused more damage than he thought.

His first job was working for the post office. It seemed to fit him as a pony with incredible endurance and stamina, and he was able to travel around Equestria while delivering mail or packages. Sadly, needing to voice out who was which creature to the public was disconcerting when he could simply read the addresses marked on each envelope or parcel. Especially when he was looking for the old, cranky donkey, Cranky Doodle, and mentioning his medicine for a rash somewhere on him that was highly embarrassing. The old donkey didn't dare set foot outside after being embarrassed by the whole town from Rockhoof's mail announcement, and Rockhoof was let go because he revealed something confidential in one of the packages that was meant to be kept private and personal to the recipient.

Next, he tried working as a masseuse. Another ideal job that required a bit of muscle to work out the kinks in a pony's back from the stress of their days, and he had plenty to spare and then some. Unfortunately, his first customer, or rather training dummy, was Ponyville Spa's other resident bulky stallion, Bulk Biceps. Rockhoof would be able to loosen up Bulk's musculature structure with his might, but he ended up applying a bit too much pressure. Bulk came running out of the spa with a high-pitched scream after a very painful crunch, which unnerved any newer patrons when they could hear that flinch-inducing sound outside the building. Thankfully, he didn't work on another customer after that, though Aqua wanted to see if Rockhoof's powerful hooves could try to break her in and give her a much better deep-muscle massage than Bulk could, considering the buff pegasus was going to be out of commission for a while.

After those failed, everyone thought his strength might be helpful for strenuous tasks that required lifting or pulling heavy objects. Pinkie was the bearer of bad news when she had suggested Rockhoof to help Zecora out by gathering some ingredients for her potions, especially those that would be too difficult for the zebra to get on her own. However, when tasked with gathering a few leaves from a specific species of tree in the Everfree Forest, Rockhoof thought bringing the whole tree was a smart idea, but he didn't realize there was a beehive hiding in the branches, and they did not take kindly to having their home removed and relocated. They swarmed Zecora for no reason, getting her stung multiple times, and Rockhoof was barely paid any mind by the angry insects. So that was another potential job down the drain for the Mighty Helm warrior.

"Hopefully Zecora gets better," Fluttershy said.

"So far, nothing's working out right for Rockhoof," Terra mumbled, running a hoof through his hair as he tried to brainstorm other jobs he could try around Ponyville. "There's gotta be something he can do that doesn't end up hurting everyone in some way."

"Maybe he could help slay Heartless and be a Key Bearer?" Ventus suggested.

"If that were the case, M would have given all the Pillars a Keyblade a thousand years ago," Aqua said. "After what happened at the school...if Rockhoof isn't careful if he was a wielder like us, he could end up tearing down buildings around close quarters."

"Oh yeah," Ventus uttered.

"Man, this is harder than we thought it was going to be," Riku said. "Star Swirl is traveling the world and fitting in well wherever he goes on his pilgrimage for knowledge. Let's just hope he doesn't wind up falling for another friendship scheme."

Terra's ears perked up, glancing over to Riku, the mention of one of the other Pillars' time after being thrust into a new era gave him an idea. "Maybe that could help," he said. "If Rockhoof got some advice from the other Pillars, that might help give him an idea to do something positive in this time."

"Oooh! Road trip!" Pinkie cheered. "I'll pack up my party bags!"

"Pinkie, we still have classes to teach this week," Twilight reminded the earth pony.

"Aww, but it feels like forever since the last chapter, and everypony's been so antsy to see new adventures!" Pinkie whined.

"'Chapter'?" Lea questioned. "Rockhoof's mishaps the last few days weren't adventurous enough?"

Pinkie suddenly slid up next to Lea from beneath the table, startling him as she acted like a weird creeper popping up out of nowhere when he was just looking at her across the table. "You have no idea, Lea," she stated. "You have no idea."

"...Can you please be normal for one day?" Lea asked, begging her not to be Pinkie Pie for a brief moment of her time.

She just giggled and patted the confused stallion's head. "Nope. Auntie Pinkie Pie's not going to stop being herself, mister!" she said and hopped back across the table back to her seat.

"Ok, I know I'm definitely older than you," Lea said, but he just sighed and shook his head. "Forget it. You could be immortal and no one would know."

"I'm going to find Rockhoof and see if his friends can help before we all get derailed from the main topic on hand." Terra hopped down from his seat and left the throne room.

---

Terra and Rockhoof flew off toward Canterlot first, where Flash Magnus had made his place there after the Pillars' return. Rockhoof felt so badly out of place in the massive mountain city, much like Manehattan while searching for hiding spots the Pony of Shadows could have loomed around when it used to be someplace else a thousand years ago. The nobles they passed stared at the huge stallion, feeling surprised that an earth pony like him could actually grow to be about a head taller than them, or disgusted by his shaggy facial hair and the braids in his long mane that kept it from getting in his way when he needed to get in a battle.

"Even Canterlot looks different from the old days," Rockhoof mumbled.

"Trot, two, three, four! Trot, two, three, four! Keep it lively, rookies!" As they reached a crossroads, Rockhoof heard a familiar voice as they reached the corner, spotting the pegasus warrior Flash Magnus leading a group of Royal Guard ponies in an orderly march. Flash Magnus spotted his fellow Pillar and Terra, not breaking his stride as a drill instructor as they marched toward the two stallions. "Visitors on site! Company, halt!" The moment Flash Magnus came to a stop, his troop did the same as they stood at attention, perfectly synchronized and properly in line. The pegasus Pillar trusted his soldiers to stay put as he approached the two earth pony stallions. "Rockhoof, you old ditch-digger you! It feels like ages since we last saw each other!"

"Aye, I feel the same, Magnus!" Rockhoof said, greeting the elite pegasus warrior with a "light" punch on the shoulder. Magnus grimaced slightly, used to getting a bit of a hard pat from the strong Pillar. "Is that your squadron?"

"After we got out of limbo, I went looking for work for a pony with experience in the Royal Legion," Magnus said. "Once a soldier, always a soldier."

"So you're the Royal Guard's drill sergeant," Terra said. "I guess Celestia couldn't think of a better warrior for the job than you."

Rockhoof grimaced, already seeing his friend and ally in combat was fitting in perfectly well in this time, and in his element, too. "She...really put you up with a job this big so soon?"

"Hah! This is nothing," Flash Magnus scoffed. "You should see what Mistmane is up to."

"Oh. Did she go back to her home village?" Terra asked curiously. "It was in a bit of a messy state before Rarity and I helped trim the massive amount of weeds down a peg."

---

The Crystal Empire was not what Terra or Rockhoof had expected Mistmane to be, and they were in awe when they found her, along with what she had been doing since her arrival. Not too far from the palace was a botanical garden, the flora also made of crystal much like everything else in the Crystal Empire. The aged unicorn mare cast her magic on the blooming crystal flowers, showing both stallions her unique spell as the shimmering crystal petals opened up. Terra and Rockhoof were in awe at the work she had done, the area filled with many beautiful flowers in glowing blues, greens, pinks, and purples that made the garden eye-catching.

"You're the Crystal Empire's royal landscape artist?" Terra asked Mistmane as he leaned down for a closer look at one of the crystal roses.

"I've never worked with crystal before, but it's nothing too difficult seeing how crystals are also part of the earth much like any flora on earth," Mistmane said. She made her way over to a section of garden, letting out a small laugh as she looked over the variety of crystal flowers growing in the small plot. "I've heard from Princess Cadence about young Sora and Kairi's wedding coming up, and I think a special bouquet for the bride-to-be made of crystal flowers would be perfect as she walks down the aisle."

"That'd be a nice surprise to give them," Terra said. Mistmane worked her magic on the special bouquet she's gifting to Sora and Kairi, transforming the petals on the flowers into a heart shape, letting out a sparkling shine similar to the hearts released by a slain Emblem Heartless. "...Wow. That's pretty."

"Thank you, Terra," Mistmane said.

Rockhoof agreed with Terra's praise for the mare's beautification magic, but seeing her enjoying her new job in this era only made him feel more downtrodden. "You always could find the beauty in things," he said, then let out a sigh as he hung his head. "But there's not much demand for shovel ponies like me."

Seeing his distress, Mistmane rubbed her hoof against Rockhoof's side. "Don't give up hope, Rockhoof," she said. "Why don't you see Somnambula? She'll help you find your purpose."

---

Upon arriving to the desert city of Somnambula, named by the very mare who returned to her old home, Terra and Rockhoof found Somnambula in the middle of a seminar. Since her return, the ponies who resided in this legendary city were elated to meet the very mare who instilled the feeling of hope for their declining kingdom from the terrifying sphinx. She was looked upon as a celebrity, and with her soft, soothing voice, she ended up becoming a motivational speaker for both locals and tourists across the land. Somnambula was a bit too busy to make small talk with Rockhoof, but Terra insisted on listening in on one of her meditation classes to help give Rockhoof some motivation to find his new purpose in the modern era.

"This is madness," Rockhoof grumbled to himself as he and Terra sat in the front row on soft mats. "Ponies didn't need a motivational speaker back then. They already knew what to do with their lives."

"There's been a lot more paths in life for everyone after so many years, and it's much easier to get lost in life," Terra said, keeping his voice hushed so he didn't interrupt Somnambula. "Give it a try. You might be more at ease and discover what you can do."

"Focus on my voice and feel yourself unlock your potential," Somnambula said to her class. Rockhoof found the whole meditation thing ridiculous as he sat in his seat as the Pillar of Hope inhaled and exhaled at a calm pace. He glanced over to Terra, finding the Keyblade wielder sitting like everyone else around them: hind legs crossed with their backs perfectly straight, eyes closed, and forelegs held out, completely locked in a serene trance. "Imagine everything that troubles you as one big cloud, and let it flow away." Rockhoof felt like the odd one out, not just because of his size, caving in and tried to meditate. He wasn't able to cross his legs like everyone else, but he tried his best to mimic the others. Shutting his eyes, he sat up and held out his hooves, trying to focus on Somnambula's words and follow her instructions to clear his mind. "You are relaxed. Free to do anything you wish..."

The moment of silence was ruined when Rockhoof fell on his back and began snoring, snapping Somnambula out of her own trance. The stallion got a bit too relaxed as he wound up falling asleep, nearly crushing an unfortunate pony behind him when he flopped over. Terra sighed and shook his head, getting up from his spot and woke the napping stallion. Their last visit was with Mage Meadowbrook at her home in Hayseed Swamp, and he wasn't going to lug a slumbering earth pony heavier than him across the desert on his glider.

---

The swamp was bustling with activity, once nearly desolate with only Cattail as the only resident of his ancestral grandmother's home. Now with Mage Meadowbrook's return from limbo, she's able to help ponies with all her hoof-crafted tonics and potions made with ingredients found literally in her backyard. The mare's old tree home was spruced up as Cattail got a nice surprise meeting from his ancestor, shelves all lined up with different cure-alls for different ailments for ponies to buy. Rockhoof began to grow more frustrated, seeing all of his friends were already getting comfortable with their new lives and fitting in much faster than he ever could.

Once the last of the line of ponies had been dealt with, Meadowbrook had some time to chat with Terra and Rockhoof after spotting the bigger stallions from the entrance. "Mage Meadowbrook," Rockhoof greeted the young apothecary. "Your home looks just the same like the old days...Wish I could say the same for me."

"Well, Ah've had to expand mah clinic a little bit," Meadowbrook said. "Many creatures need healin' in this modern world." When she finally noticed Rockhoof's dreary mood, she began to worry about the incredibly strong earth pony. "Ya look like you could use some, too. What's got ya heartsick, Rockhoof?"

The Mighty Helm warrior slammed his rump on the ground, shaking the whole tree and rattled the bottles on Meadowbrook's shelves. Luckily, the medicine mare caught the ones that fell over, not faulting Rockhoof for sometimes underestimating his enchanted strength.

"I can't do my old job like Flash. Or adapt like Mist Mane. Or succeed at something new like Somnambula. Or go home, like you," Rockhoof grieved.

Meadowbrook was a bit overwhelmed by the harsh reality Rockhoof was facing. She thought getting her life back in the swamp would be troublesome, but her old home remained the same: muggy, boggy, littered with pesky insects or dangerous predators, and filled with flora that can cause and cure illnesses. She looked at Terra, who felt as much pity for the big stallion as well.

"It's been a rough week for him," Terra said. "Rockhoof's home is now a dig site for Mighty Helm artifacts, so he can't really go back to his home. We even tried helping him fit in as a teacher at the school, or do some jobs we thought he could do well, but those didn't go so well either."

"Oh. Ah see," Meadowbrook mumbled. She placed the fallen bottles back on her shelf before walking around the counter to pat Rockhoof's shoulder. "Just give it some more time, Rockhoof. Star Swirl's still learnin' about friendship. Ah bet Stygian's also takin' a long while to fit in, too."

Terra thought it was a good idea. Stygian was also thrust into this new world, though by unfortunate circumstances and misunderstandings of him being their seventh Pillar. Just as he suggested trying to figure out where the unicorn resided now, his eyes glanced on a shelf with books, whether they were for sale in Meadowbrook's new clinic or reading material as they waited for a specific tonic to be brewed was unknown. One particular cover had the very same stallion in question, along with the Pony of Shadows as they faced back to back, and the title above them read "Me and My Shadow".

"No way." Taking the book, Terra opened it to the first page, and to his surprise, the author was none other than Stygian himself. Glancing through some of the pages, it was more of an autobiography detailing his emotions and thoughts on how the darkness of the Heartless he became was slowly changing him into a monster. What's worse, this was the third novel in a series he had been writing, and he had no idea what the other two prequel books were if they went through his life from before he met and became one of the Pillars. "Uhh...Stygian's doing just fine, apparently. He's got a couple books he wrote."

That only depressed Rockhoof even more as he let out a groan. "Oh, great. Even Stygian has better luck in this world than me."

"Ah didn't know Stygian became a writer," Meadowbrook said.

"Let's just face it. I don't seem to belong in this modern world." Rockhoof slumped out of the tree home.

"Hey, hold on a second!" Terra quickly set the book back on the shelf before chasing off after Rockhoof. "You can't just give up now! There has to be something you can do!"

"Like what? Nopony needs a shovelin' pony like me when ya all got them newfangled machines that can dig or build things. And if you put me in an enclosed space, I'm gonna wreck it if I so much as stretch my legs," Rockhoof said.

Terra stammered, trying hard to think of something Rockhoof could do. Being out of place, the only thing he could be good at is his heroics, but he's not a military pony like Flash Magnus is. The Mighty Helm were once voyaging warriors, where they sailed the seas from their home to partake in thrilling adventures and combat. Terra's eyes widened as he discovered a solution. Rockhoof wasn't the only one who was a bit out of place with certain customs beyond their world, and with what they are, they might be able to give Rockhoof his new purpose in the modern world.

"Let's take one more trip, and if this does work, you'll be glad to finally feel like you have a use today," Terra said with a confident grin.

"Where?" Rockhoof asked, slightly curious and regaining a bit of hope.

---

Terra's last trip with Rockhoof came to the hippogriff kingdom at Mt. Aris. Since the hippogriffs had lived under the water as seaponies for years to hide from the Storm King's wrath, there were a lot of denizens who were still adjusting back to their lives on land, even as they had no qualms splitting between whichever world they wish to live in. And, with much like for Rockhoof, the hippogriffs even had a naval branch on their military that was being revived after the many years living under the sea.

It was nightfall as the navy ship was ready to sail off, and Rockhoof was easily enlisted to aid the hippogriffs readjust to navigating the ocean above sea level. General Seaspray and his hippogriff soldiers wore their gold and green chest plates with similar headpieces that seemed to be like an armored headband. Unfortunately, due to Rockhoof's build, their slimmer armor wouldn't even be able to fit around his foreleg, let alone his torso, so he wore a modern traditional navy uniform of white with blue bands around the fetlock of the sleeves, a blue collar, a red ascot, and a white naval hat with an anchor on the front.

"I am honored to to serve in the Hippogriff Navy, General Seaspray!" Rockhoof said to the general. "I promise I'll prove my worth."

"Think nothing of it," Seaspray said, waving off Rockhoof's word and fully trusting the displaced stallion. "I know how hard it is to adapt to a new home. After our many years below the waves, land customs seemed strange."

"Like you didn't fit in, no matter how hard you tried?" Rockhoof asked.

"As though the world had moved on without us," the general stated. "But never fear, Rockhoof. We shall be as brothers in this bright future about the waves."

The naval vessel soon set sail from the harbor and headed out to sea. While Rockhoof got used to working on a much bigger and modernized boat, Terra watched from the sidelines. He felt glad he finally found something for the stallion to do. Though their conversation did leave a little impact on Terra's life. After he came back, he was desperate to find Aqua and Ventus, but felt so disheartened when the only thing that was left of Aqua was her armor and Keyblade. He fled into hiding to avoid revealing himself to Xehanort, finding himself in Equestria and the town he spared from being harassed by Iron Weight and Jitterbug. He felt a bit left out of what's going on today as well, but was quick to adapt to his new life and returned to his old one with his friends much later. Hopefully that town fared well without him around, and the stallion duo who tried to mess with him didn't come back and resume their troublesome torment.

"General, we have thick fog heading our way!" one of the naval soldiers called out.

Looking ahead, a wave of fog began creeping over the sea, the boat sailing into it and making visibility nearly impossible to see several yards in front of them. "Heave to, swabbies!" Seaspray ordered. "Halt the ship and hold her 'til the fog passes!"

"Wait, General! We can navigate the same way my Coltic ancestors traveled through the Selkie Mists!" Rockhoof interjected, pointing to the night sky, fully confident in his nautical expertise. "We'll look to the stars! There in the northwest sky is the constellation O'Bridle's Pelt! Steer the ship toward that!"

Trusting Rockoof's knowledge as he pointed to a certain constellation through a gap in the fog, Seaspray nodded and looked to his crew. "You heard the pony! Make full sail!"

Following their general's command, continuing their voyage through the foggy sea as they were guided by Rockhoof's guiding star. Terra was glad to see Rockhoof was already making a great impression, and leading a crew through treacherous weather conditions. Unfortunately, that ended far too briefly when the whole boat suddenly shook and the hull cracked as it seemed to tilt back slightly. Despite following the direction of the constellation, the ship ended up running aground on some rocks that no one could have seen through the fog until it was too late.

"What? I-I don't understand!" Rockhoof said in disbelief. "The stars have always steered me true!"

"I don't get it either," Terra uttered, just as baffled as Rockhoof was. While wondering what went wrong, as Terra looked up to the stars in the sky, the answer slowly dawned on him. "...Oh...Oh no."

"'Oh no,' what?" Rockhoof asked nervously.

Hesitating, Terra grimaced as he looked back at Rockhoof. "...The stars can move slowly over time," he said. "From the thousand years you've been gone, the stars making the constellation you used to follow must have shifted to another position in the sky."

Rockhoof slumped in bafflement. He trusted the stars, and even they had changed just like everything else in the world after so many years. He led the hippogriff naval vessel into the rocks, despite not knowing the celestial bodies in the night sky had altered their positions while he was gone, and was completely at fault as the hippogriffs trusted his navigational skills.

"It was an honor serving with you, Rockhoof," General Seaspray said, seeming a bit upset by the situation as he did feel sorry for the Mighty Helm stallion, but he couldn't risk keeping a navigator with past knowledge of the stars doing the same mistake again. "I'm afraid our paths lie in different directions."

Seaspray gave Rockhoof a parting salute before turning and inspecting the damage to the hull. Rockhoof sighed and lowered his head, taking off his hat, feeling unworthy of wearing the uniform.

---

The next morning, Terra and Rockhoof returned to Ponyville. Rockhoof had lost all hope, trying everything he could, but nothing would ever work for him in the modern world. Both stallions had been quiet after he was discharged from the hippogriff navy, and the silence was killing Terra, thinking it was the perfect job for Rockhoof.

"I'm sorry, Rockhoof," Terra said. "I thought for sure you'd fit in with a naval military."

"It's alright. You all tried to help me, but I have to face the facts," Rockhoof said. "I need to see Princess Twilight."

"Why?" Terra questioned.

"The little changeling filly mentioned a spell in one of the lessons they were learnin' before I tried my hoof at teaching," Rockhoof said. "If there is a stone sleep spell, then I want Twilight to cast that spell. On me."

Terra froze in shock, staring at Rockhoof as he continued making his way to the castle to find the lavender alicorn. Snapping out of his stupor, he ran toward him and stood in his path.

"You want to turn yourself into a living statue!?" he exclaimed.

"Aye." The serious expression on Rockhoof's face took Terra aback. "Just look at me, Terra. My home. My kin. The Mighty Helm. Nothing but relics of a bygone age now. I clearly belong in a museum like the rest of my buried home: safe, preserved, untouched. I don't belong in this time."

"But you're one of the Pillars of Harmony! What if the others found out about this decision you're making!?" Terra asked.

"I'm sure they'll understand. They're able to fit in this world, but I cannot, no matter what I do," Rockhoof said. "I want to be remembered as a hero, not as a disappointment."

Terra was speechless. Rockhoof was going to give up another chance to live a normal life, but his normal life felt it was only in the past. He was giving up on himself before he could find a new purpose in the modern era. As Rockhoof stepped aside to walk past Terra, the brown earth pony furrowed his brow, quickly shooting out his hoof and summoned his Keyblade, stopping and startling Rockhoof.

"No," Terra said, glancing sideways at Rockhoof with a scowl. "I'm not letting you do that."

Rockhoof leered back at Terra. "You're not gonna stop me," he growled.

Shoving the Keyblade back, Rockhoof stomped past Terra. Terra quickly dashed forward, then charged into Rockhoof, sending the burly stallion stumbling back. Standing in his path, Terra placed his Keyblade in his mouth as he crouched into his fighting stance.

"Then you're getting past me if you want to throw your life away and turn into a lawn ornament," Terra warned.

Glowering angrily, Rockhoof stomped his hooves as he gripped his trusty shovel with his mouth. "Lad, ya don't want to pick a fight with the likes of me," he said. "I could break you in two."

"I've faced worse, so try me!" Terra exclaimed.

"Don't say I didn't warn ya!" With a yell, Rockhoof charged forward, Terra standing his ground as he readied himself to push Rockhoof back.

As the Mighty Helm stallion shortened the distance between them, he quickly dug his shovel into the earth, but instead of heaving a chunk of earth to slam Terra with, he kicked up dirt and slapped it in his face. Stunned, Terra yelled as some of the flecks of soil got into his eyes, temporarily blinding him. Rockhoof bowled Terra over, sending him flying into the wall of a nearby building, and he galloped toward the crystal tree castle in the distance with a hearty laugh.

Terra quickly rubbed the dirt out of his eyes, squinting slightly from the burning sensation, but his vision quickly cleared as he let out a growl. Rockhoof may have had strength at his side, but Terra had both strength and more speed than the stallion. Sprinting after Rockhoof, both stallions weaved around startled ponies going about their mornings, wondering what the two stallions were doing. Once the path between them had no one in their way, Terra let out a roar and slammed his Keyblade into the ground, unleashing a slight tremor. Rockhoof looked back for only a second before turning back around, watching a huge pillar of earth suddenly shot up from the ground in his path. He charged through it with a grunt, shattering the pillar, but it slowed him down enough for Terra to catch up with him.

Dashing over Rockhoof, Terra slammed his Keyblade down into the ground, shooting bits of earth around the stallion's hooves that caught him and ground his running to a halt. "You're not getting one step closer to that castle!" Terra said.

Rockhoof growled, easily pulling his hooves free, then swiped at Terra with his shovel. Terra blocked the metal spade with his Keyblade, both stallions trying to push each other back in a war of pure strength. As surprising as it was to see how durable Rockhoof's shovel was after a thousand years of neglect against his Keyblade, Terra grunted as he began losing their battle, his hooves slowly sliding back against the dirt road.

"Have ya forgotten my story with the ursa major!? She was ten times bigger than you, and could crush huts made of brick without so much as breakin' a sweat!" Rockhoof gloated. "I was able to toss her up into the sky and made her a permanent constellation with my strength and my shovel!"

"Urgh! W-Well...you're not...messing with...a giant celestial bear, are you!?" Grounding his hooves into the earth, Terra surprised Rockhoof as he stopped himself from sliding back.

He suddenly moved back, causing Rockhoof to stumble forward after putting so much strength into pushing Terra. Terra dashed around Rockhoof, sliding his Keyblade against the stallion's hooves to trip him up. As Rockhoof's chest hit the ground, Terra spat his blade in his hoof and chomped down on his tail, letting out a loud grunt as he began spinning the larger stallion around. Rockhoof tried to use his shovel to plant into the ground to slow Terra's momentum, but he spun far too fast to the point where he started to get too dizzy to focus. With a roar, Terra let go, flinging Rockhoof over the town. He misjudged his aim, tossing the Mighty Helm pony past the castle and toward the School of Friendship. He quickly gave chase, hoping to intercept him before he found Twilight if she was currently at the school and not her castle at the moment.

---

As morning classes were getting ready, the Young Six were sitting patiently at their desks for their lessons in the Theory and Defense of Friendship class. They were eager to see if it was Rockhoof who would be teaching them permanently, even after his impromptu evacuation of the school from Spike and Smolder's fire breathing competition.

"Did you guys hear Rockhoof caught all the bees in the Everfree Forest and gave them to Zecora as a gift?" Sandbar asked his friends.

"Oh wow! That's gotta be a lot of bees!" Silverstream said.

"And a lot of painful stings," Gallus added with a snicker. "That Rockhoof guy's super weird."

"Yeah, but in a fun way," Smolder agreed. "I didn't appreciate getting drenched, but you never know what'll happen next with him around."

"Professor Rockhoof best pony!" Yona exclaimed cheerfully. The door to the classroom opened, but where Yona expected Rockhoof to walk in, or smash a new doorway in, Spike stepped inside instead. "Where's Professor Rockhoof?"

"Uhh...Still debating on him teaching," Spike said as he stepped up to the desk. "I'll be substituting this class for the time being."

"New sub, eh? Let me start by telling you we don't get homework and only do field trips," Gallus said with a sly grin on his beak.

Spike stared blankly at the griffon. "Nice try, Gallus," he said. "By the way, Aqua informed us that if you make that kind of suggestion to an actual new sub, then you'll be getting the 'usual' punishment after school."

Gallus's smirk was immediately wiped, giggling sheepishly as he glanced left and right. "I-It was just a joke."

"Anyway, your instructions for today are to write an essay on heroism and what it means to you," Spike said, getting a few groans from the class.

Yona already knew exactly who she was going to write about, eagerly grabbing some paper and a pencil and began writing. Just as she got a few lines into her first paragraph, everyone heard a loud thud outside. Confused by the sudden quake, everyone left their desks and looked out the window. Landing in the courtyard, thankfully avoiding the newly built fountain, was Rockhoof, knocked for a loop as he laid in a slight imprint of his body in the grass.

"Professor Rockhoof!" Yona squealed.

"What happened to him?" Ocellus asked curiously.

They watched Rockhoof sit up with a grunt, shaking his head in a slight daze. As he got his bearings once his vision cleared up, Terra suddenly dove toward the stallion, sending them both tumbling across the courtyard, weapons forgotten as they wrestled each other.

"Ooh! I get it! Terra and Rockhoof must be having a strong pony contest!" Silverstream said.

"Kind of like the Iron Pony competition Professors Applejack and Rainbow Dash had done a few years ago?" Sandbar asked.

"I have no idea what that is, but let's call it that!" the hippogriff said.

While the class watched the stallions' try to pin each other down, Spike grew a bit concerned from how rough their roughhousing was getting. "Uhh, I better find Twilight. Somepony's gonna get hurt."

As Spike rushed out of the classroom to find help, Terra and Rockhoof struggled as they grunted, breaking out of each other's holds while trying to keep a hold on the other. "I gotta admit, ya got a bit more strength than I thought!" Rockhoof said, feeling spurred on by the fight as it continued on.

"Enough to get you to change your mind!?" Terra grunted, slipping free from Rockhoof's forelegs and caught the stallion in a full nelson.

"Nay!" Rockhoof suddenly rolled on his back, pinning Terra beneath him, but the wielder didn't lose his grip despite nearly getting crushed by the heavier stallion. "I suggest ya give up now before I flatten you into a pony pancake! I haven't had a good fight like this since the last few brawlin' duels I've had with my fellow Helms! And it'll be the last good one I'll have before turnin' myself into a statue!"

"Not...on...your...life!" Keeping his grip on Rockhoof, Terra summoned as much strength as possible to push both of them up. Getting enough leverage, he managed to quickly flip Rockhoof over with him on top, shifting his forelegs to grapple his neck in a headlock. As much as he strained his muscles to choke Rockhoof, he barely made the stallion gag or deprive him of any oxygen. "Don't you dare quit on us!"

"It's my life, and I say what I can and cannot do with it!" Rockhoof argued, grabbing Terra's hair and swiftly flipping him back on his back before jumping him.

As they continued struggling, Twilight and Spike came running out to the courtyard, as well as Aqua when she heard the commotion coming from a class she was substituting for Rarity. "What the heck is going on out here!?" Aqua exclaimed.

"N-Not now, Aqua!" Terra grunted, trying to shove away Rockhoof's hoof pressing down against his face.

"Break it up, you two!" Twilight and Aqua grabbed a stallion, freezing them in place, then yanked them away from each other. Terra sat next to Aqua while Rockhoof was beside Twilight, both stallions leering at each other despite being forced to end their fight early. "What is the matter with you two? And why were you about to cause more collateral to the school?"

Terra and Rockhoof both exclaimed simultaneously, talking over each other and barely getting a word in for the two mares and baby dragon. Aqua quickly sealed both their muzzles shut with her aura.

"One at a time!" Aqua helped reiterate, releasing her hold on Rockhoof's mouth first. "Rockhoof, you first."

"I got kicked out of the hippogriff's naval fleet after trusting the stars to steer us through the fog," he said.

"What? How was that possible?" Aqua questioned. "Following a certain constellation to discern a certain direction shouldn't-" She paused, realizing Rockhoof's seafaring experience from a thousand years ago and misconstruing the location of constellations he knew would have changed as time went on. "...Oh. Right. Stars can change position over time."

"So that explains why you two were back so early," Twilight said. "But why the fighting? You got mad at Terra for messing up your chance to do something that you really were good at?"

"Of course not! I appreciated all Terra's done to help me these last several days!" Rockhoof said.

"So why did you come crash landing in the middle of the school and Terra jumped you into a wrestling match?" Spike asked.

Aqua released her aura from Terra's mouth as he spoke up. "Rockhoof wanted to find Twilight so she can turn him into a statue and join the rest his village's and Mighty Helm's discovered relics in a museum, and I was trying to stop him."

Aqua, Twilight, and Spike's jaws dropped, gawking at Rockhoof in shock. Even the slight nod he gave to confirm Terra's explanation mortified them. Unaware of the prying eyes and ears from some of the classrooms on the second floor, Yona felt devastated to hear the stallion was going to leave their world forever as a living statue.

"You wanted me to WHAT!?" Twilight shrieked.

"Why!? What for!?" Aqua questioned. "Did you even talk to the Pillars about your insane idea to just...basically take your life!?"

"I'd prefer calling it immortalizing myself so ponies would better remember me as a strong and courageous hero of the past, not the destructive and clueless failure of today," Rockhoof said. Twilight was speechless, more shocked to hear Rockhoof knock himself down several pegs when he seemed to be the more outgoing and likeable kind of pony out of the Pillars. "My time is long gone. There's nothin' left of the Mighty Helm. I can't return to my homeland. Everything's changed. And...I just can't."

"But you can't just give up like that!" Terra exclaimed. "The biggest story about you was when you found the magic that changed your small and scrawny build to the behemoth you are now, and you didn't give up on your village when many of the Mighty Helm wanted to flee from the erupting volcano! You stayed and dug a moat, then used that newfound power to divert the lava into the ocean as it was flowing mere inches behind you!"

"Aye, I never gave up on my home, but that's just an old story in this era," Rockhoof said. "Who would want to hear old tales like that in this day and age?"

"Yona do!" Startled, the four ponies and baby dragon turned to see Yona running up to them, her classmates following after her. She skid to a halt in front of Rockhoof, thankfully learning to stop sooner to avoid accidentally ramming into anyone. "Why Professor Rockhoof want to be turned to stone!?"

"Were you all listening?" Twilight asked as all of Spike's class had left their seats, partly disappointed that they were skipping, though she could see they were a bit upset overhearing Rockhoof's decision.

"Kinda hard to ignore something distracting us from our class like that," Smolder said.

Despite having the class he "taught" for barely an hour, Rockhoof sighed and shook his head. "I'm sorry, everypony. I can see all of ya are a bit upset, but I don't feel like I belong here in this time. I've made my choice."

"But pony need to finish ursa major story!" Yona begged.

"It's sweet of ya for wanting me to stay, Yona, but I'm afraid old stories like mine aren't worth anything today," he sadly said.

Yona huffed angrily, disappointed by Rockhoof's defeated tone after all the energy and bravado he showed. "Fine! If pony no want tell Yona story, then Yona tell pony story!" She grabbed her essay and set it on the ground in front of her. "This report from class just now about Yona's favorite hero! 'When Yona come to pony school, Yona not fit in. Pony ways strange. But Yona find friends! Yona meet Professor Rockhoof! Pony brave and strong as yak! Not afraid! Hero!'" Rockhoof was taken aback by Yona's words. Even though her essay was short, whether incomplete or actually finished, she belted them with enough emotion and devotion to looking up to him, sharing similar faults and somewhat out-of-place feelings in a new world. "'When Yona grow up, Yona want to be just like Professor Rockhoof!'"

Touched, Rockhoof got misty-eyed, feeling a glimmer of hope return in his heart. A youthful yak of this generation looked up to him as an idol. The other students behind Yona also felt the same way. His heroics in the past were legendary, and he was alive today to tell those tales to those who were eager to learn about him and the adventures that made him famous one thousand years ago. He couldn't leave his class hanging on such an exciting cliffhanger before he rested for all eternity in a stone sleep.

Wiping his eyes, Rockhoof let out a small laugh, ruffling Yona's head with a strong, but gentle hoof. "Well, since ya went to all the trouble of writing something that nice for me, I suppose the least I could do is tell you all the rest of the story."

Yona and her classmates cheered in response. Despite the reprieve of giving Rockhoof what he wanted, Terra came up with another idea for Rockhoof, and hopefully, it would change his mind. Glancing at Aqua and Twilight, he grinned and stepped toward Rockhoof, interrupting him before he resumed where he left off in his ursa major story a week ago.

"Hang on a second. I think the whole school should hear that story," Terra suggested. "It wouldn't really be fair if only a few ears heard such an epic and exciting battle against a mighty ursa from one of the Mighty Helm." He looked back at Twilight, subtly gesturing to Rockhoof with a wink. "At least before Equestria says 'goodbye' to a living legend."

Though she got the hint, Twilight was a little bit unnerved about canceling all of her classes for the day. However, for Rockhoof's sake, especially for his fellow Pillars when word gets out about him being a statue in a courtyard or museum, she grinned and nodded her head.

"I don't see why not," she said.

---

Throughout the whole day, everyone in the School of Friendship, from students to faculty, gathered around to hear of Rockhoof's greatest battles. He definitely caught the attention of his audience, and he was able to show off his moves while reenacting the tales safely outside and far from everyone, preventing any accidental hits or destruction of property. Yona was especially excited to hear the ursa major story to its full completion. However, it didn't end at that story; throughout the day, everyone has been asking for more stories, and Rockhoof happily obliged, getting his spirit back in the process.

As it got late in the evening, Rockhoof ended his final story of the day. The audience soon parted back to their homes or dorm rooms, wondering what else Rockhoof had fought in the past. He seemed to have completely forgotten about turning himself to stone and was riding on the entertainment he brought to the School of Friendship. Terra was glad to see Rockhoof returning to his normal self, and by Twilight's decree as a princess of Equestria, Rockhoof was given the title of official keeper of tales, even if there was no such title to be given.

To celebrate Rockhoof's true purpose in the modern world, Terra brought him to a familiar village he hadn't seen in quite some time; the first town he wandered into when he arrived in this world. The village was thankfully unscathed by the two stallions who bullied the ponies residing here as he guided the Mighty Helm stallion into the bar. Inside, many of the patrons were relaxing with their meals or beverages, but the one who noticed them walk in right away was Barkeep.

"Terra!" Barkeep greeted. His announcement alerted the other ponies as they all happily greeted the wielder. Terra waved back as he approached the bar, Rockhoof following with a curious look at his popularity with this town. "We haven't heard hide or hair of you the last couple years!"

"I moved to Ponyville," Terra explained, sitting himself down in one of the stools with Rockhoof awkwardly sitting behind him, too large to sit in one of the smaller seats. "Sorry for not giving you all a warning, but I had some good news after I tried out for the new Struggle tournament. My friend I thought I lost? She's actually ok."

"Well, that's wonderful news! Glad to hear!" Barkeep said. "And I'm assuming you're living in Ponyville now to...'catch up' with your friend?"

"Heh. You could say that," Terra mumbled. "Things are at least turning up better for us."

"That's good to hear. How about a drink on me? What can I get for you and-" When Barkeep glanced over to Rockhoof, he was a little surprised by the massive stallion seated next to Terra. "...your...friend?"

"Got some hard mead on ya?" Rockhoof asked. "I'm in a celebratory mood."

"I doubt he has any, but we'll see if there's something hard enough for your palate," Terra said to Rockhoof. "Barkeep, meet one of the Pillars of Harmony, alive and returned from limbo, Rockhoof of the Mighty Helm."

"Uhh, I'll see what I can mix up for you, Mr. Rockhoof," Barkeep said. "And I suppose you'll have your usual, Terra?"

"You know me. And don't worry; I can pay the next few rounds." Terra reached into his pockets, pulling out a hoofful of bits and set it on the counter.

Barkeep chuckled a bit. "I was half expecting you to pull out that Munny of yours," he said.

As the stallion got to work on making the two stallions their drinks, Rockhoof moved a couple stools aside so he could sit closer to the countertop. "It feels like forever since I've had a nice, hard drink after being summoned to be a Pillar," Rockhoof said. While waiting on their drinks, he looked over at Terra. "Ya never wanted to give up on me, even when I got so stubborn. Why was that, Terra?"

"I suppose, in my way, I know what it's like to feel out of place," Terra said. While Rockhoof gave Terra a curious gaze, Barkeep finished the duo's drinks; Terra had a small glass of mixed bourbon, while Rockhoof had a giant mug filled with a frothy, almost muddy liquid. Rockhoof took a sip, his taste buds singing praise as the unicorn bartender managed to make a drink that was hard and as sweet as his village used to make. "I'm not sure if Star Swirl mentioned what he saw in our pasts with you guys, but I've made lots of mistakes, which in turn cost me Aqua and Ven's safety, my home, and my master's life. My heart was even taken over by Xehanort, and while he controlled my body, my heart seemed to have faded out of existence."

"But you're still here. I don't know much about the whole hearts and Heartless thing like Star Swirl does, but I do know them wee beasties are a menace," Rockhoof said as he took another long swig.

"When someone loses their heart, they become a Heartless, and the empty shell of their body becomes a Nobody," Terra explained. "If the heart's strong enough, when both the Heartless and Nobody are destroyed, that person might come back to life." Grabbing his drink, Terra took a small sip, letting the hard flavor soak on his taste buds before gulping it down. "That's why Xehanort is back. As well as me.

"I woke up in my armor, where I took a final stand against him once his heart took hold of mine. Remembering the fight, I worried about Aqua and Ven, even as memories of being the Heartless and Nobody flooded back to me. I thought I would have some hope of finding Aqua in Radiant Garden, but the city seemed to be in ruin, slowly being repaired, and all I found was her armor and Keyblade. I blamed myself for everything that transpired between us, and I believe it's still my burden to bear for bringing such misery to them, destroying our home, and getting my master killed by Xehanort." Downing the last of his glass's contents, Terra set the glass down on the bar, letting out a heavy sigh. "Fearing I would be sought after by him, I fled and hid someplace where I don't think he'd find me. That's when I wound up staying around here."

"Hmm...I suppose that's a lot to take in," Rockhoof agreed. "I expected losing a lot during my time in limbo, but barely a smidge of time compared to mine, and the ones you lost feel so much worse."

"Part of me wanted to give up when I had to face the truth," Terra said, giving Barkeep a small nod as he replaced his empty glass with a new one. As he lifted his next round, he looked at Rockhoof. "But as news spread about Sora saving Equestria, I began feeling like a coward, but I couldn't act from that lingering fear of being discovered by Xehanort. It was when I saw Aqua at Rainbow Falls for the Equestria Games prelims when I decided it was too soon for me to just throw in the towel. I will never give up on my friends again, and I will make things right one day." Terra then pointed to Rockhoof with the same hoof carrying his drink. "And I didn't want you to give up on your friends, or the students who look up to you as a hero like Yona. If words couldn't snap you out of your funk and the choice of giving up your life, then I figured getting confrontational and goading you in a fight would help."

Rockhoof blinked, cracking a smile before bellowing out an amused laugh. "Well, I will admit, you almost did help convince me just a wee bit, lad! If you were born a millennia ago, you'd definitely have a spot in the Mighty Helm by my word!" he said, giving Terra a hard pat on the back. Terra braced himself, slightly jostled despite the painfully friendly smack, and he didn't even spill an ounce of his drink. He lifted his own mug, holding it out for a toast. "Here's to you for helping me discover my new place in this world; enlightenin' foals of stories of my adventures."

"And to you for being a legendary hero inspiring the future of the current generation," Terra added as both stallions gulped down their drinks.

Rockhoof let out a satisfied sigh as he waved to Barkeep with his empty mug. "Another round, lad! Don't be afraid to make it stronger, like me!" He slammed the mug on the counter, although a bit too hard as he wound up cracking the wood, nearly splitting the whole counter in half. The whole bar went silent as they heard the loud crunching sound of splintered wood and looked at the bar. Even Barkeep was a little startled. Rockhoof slowly lifted his mug, wincing slightly at the damage. "...Oops. My apologies. I...sometimes forget my own strength."

"I'll pay for a replacement bar top," Terra promised, tossing in more bits as he gave Barkeep an apologetic look.

"Just as long as we don't get a repeat of Iron Weight and Jitterbug's shenanigans, we have no problems between us," Barkeep said. "But if you two get a little too rowdy, I'll have to cut you off."

"Ah, it takes much more than that to get me drunk!" Rockhoof gloated. Terra cleared his throat, reminding the stallion of the counter he just broke. "Heh. But, I'll...make sure to tone down on the jaunty celebratin'."

Entrusting the legendary stallion would keep his word, he built Rockhoof another drink, being mindful to cut them off if they get a little too intoxicated. Terra and Rockhoof continued enjoying the rest of their evening, with much less accidental destruction for Barkeep's bar. The other patrons warmed up to Rockhoof, and he even regaled a story or two with everyone present, but he left out reenacting the action to avoid more collateral damage.

Comments

[ArlynntheDragon]

A word of advice: STAY AWAY FROM BOILERMAKERS!

[Postwarmonkey50]

Now that was awesome, and good job adding Terra, though I thought Princess Twilight and Applejack would be part of it, it's still a nice touch though. Though it still begs the question. Whatever did happen to the Mighty Helm. I know it's been a long time, but surely, they must've left a trace after they were somehow gone.

[Kreotre]

Awesome job Codex92, keep up the good work 😎👍

[DeathRider2021]

A fantastic chapter you made here Codex.

[kolbdog32]

Hey there I noticed an error in the last paragraph.

Entrusting the legendary stallion would keep his word, he built Rockhoof another drink, being mindful to cut them off if they get a little too intoxicated.

It should be bought not built.

[shining paladin]

awesome chapter mate cant wait for the next chapter

[MLPFanForever]

I'm happy to see this story is still alive. Excellent chapter as always. Hope to see the next one soon.

[Kye Belmont]

A Terra and Rockhoof chapter...

I try to be interested in it since Terra is involve but nothing much is different beside the fight with Rockhoof(though can't call it a fight). It was.. Okay, but not interesting in my perspective and opinion.

[Codex92]

11348359
No, it was the bartender trusting in Rockhoof's promise to keep his strength in check during his and Terra's stay. It's correct.