Hippophobia
DISCLAIMER: This is a non-profit work of fan fiction. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic © Hasbro.
Chapter 5
Big Macintosh carried Conrad into the barn a dropped him onto a pile of soft hay. He nudged the human's face with his muzzle, and sat down, watching him tremble and mumble incoherent nonsense.
Conrad's brain was over-clocked, essentially trying to reboot and proccess all that had happened that day. He'd survived a colorful nuclear explosion, witnessed a murder/animal cruelty, and narrowly escaped a stampede more vicious and deadly than a herd of Beliebers. Everything after that was a blur.
Fragments began to piece themselves together like chunks of a jigsaw puzzle now, and the last moments came back to him. A red stallion, one that he swore he'd seen somewhere before, had picked him up and carried him away through the dark.
Oh, no! It's him!
He jumped up and scrambled back against a ladder that he began to climb up it backwards, keeping his eyes on the red earth pony that had rescued/abducted him.
"K-k-keep away from me! I mean it!" Conrad held his hand in front of himself defensively.
Mac stared up at the creature that was nimbly climbing up the ladder in a way nopony else had ever done, to his knowledge. His face bore a look of innocent confusion. Poor thing. Probably all scared after that stampede. But I'm the one who was protecting him. He shouldn't be scared of me, should he?
"Please," Conrad begged, "please let don't hurt me!"
Mac tilted his head. "OK."
Conrad blinked. "W-wait... really?"
"Eeyup."
"Conrad! Thank Celestia, you're here!"
Conrad and Big Mac both looked at the barn door and found Time Turner standing there.
"I don't have much time. You have to listen to me!" Turner said.
"I'm listening," Conrad said meekly.
"This is absolutely essential to your survival," Turner said sternly.
Conrad gulped. "I'm listening intently..."
"Good," said Turner, and he cleared his throat, "Now Conrad, you need to understand that whatever I tell you to do, you must do it. It's for your own good. That being said, there is somepony you definitely need to avoid."
Conrad glanced down at Big Macintosh, who was still watching Turner.
"Her name is Lyra," Turner continued, "Lyra Heartstrings. She knows about humans, and has been secretly obsessed with them for some time, it seems. She was also in the stampede, but it wasn't Twilight's want-it-need-it spell that made her chase you."
"Want what spell?" Conrad asked.
Turner shook his head. "Never mind that. But on that note, avoid Twilight for the time being too. Understand?"
Conrad stared blankly.
"Conrad!"
The human jumped and shook his head in surprise. "Uh, yeah! Yeah, I got it."
"Good," Turner said, "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go. I'll be arriving soon, and I can't be seen by myself. Safe travels, my friends." With that, Turner clopped his hoof and disappeared in a silent blink.
Conrad gasped. "W-where's he go?!"
Big Mac looked up at him and shrugged.
A moment later, Time Turner galloped in and skidded to a halt. He dropped his head and panted in ragged breaths. "C-Conrad... thank... Celestia..." He trotted towards the others and looked up into the loft. "What in Equestria are you doing up there?"
"Um, n-nothing..." Conrad inched back into the shadows.
Turner looked at Mac. "Has he been shy with you, too?"
"Eeyup."
"Conrad," Turner stepped forward and put a hoof on the ladder, "We need to talk. I know you're frightened, and this is all new to you. But I want to help you. I just need you to trust me."
Conrad clung to the rafter and refused to make eye contact with either pony.
Turner sighed. "Will you at least talk to us?"
Conrad whimpered and shook his head. "Mm-mm."
"Ugh!" Turner groaned, "I don't get it! This isn't just about you being lost. That doesn't explain you running away! What else are you so afraid of?"
Conrad flinched and shut his eyes tight. He mumbled something inaudible.
Big Mac and Turner leaned in closer. "Come again?"
"I'm... scared of ponies."
After an awkward pause, Big Macintosh started to chuckle. "Who's scared ah ponies?"
"Shut up!" Conrad shouted, and immediately shrank back when he realized he just yelled at two 'dangerous animals'.
"Big Mac," Turner held his leg in front of the red stallion and nudged him back, "I don't think he's joking." He looked up at the human. "Why are you scared of ponies? We're a peaceful race."
"Bull shit!" Conrad shouted, "You expect me to believe that after what I saw!"
Now Turner laughed. "Oh, no, that stampede was definitely not normal. That was a mishap with Twilight's magic that--"
"It's not just that!" Conrad whined, "I saw one pony destroy a building on her own, another one kill a bear, and then that crazy purple one, Twilight, is a pedophile! Now I've been abducted by him," he pointed at Mac, "and stalked all over town by you and Twilight!"
The ponies stared incredulously at the human. Turner's mouth hung open.
"I-i-is that... when did you see all this?"
"Today!"
"But that doesn't explain yesterday. Your disposition hasn't changed much since you got here. Something else must have happened."
Conrad frowned and tried to fight back the tears that threatened to burst out of his eyes. He closed them and sighed, knowing he'd have to explain this sooner or later.
"When I was little, I visited a ranch my uncle worked at where, uh, some ponies lived." Probably shouldn't mention humans keep horses as pets. "Well, my uncle offered to let me ride one, and..." He cringed. "I don't know why, but the pony got scared and bucked me off. He... he started panicking and... nearly trampled me. I haven't been able to go near anything with hooves since then.
"But it didn't stop there. All my life, I've been teased by others I went to school with for being scared of ponies. It just got harder for me, and I've been avoiding them all my life."
He expected them to either laugh or be angry, but Turner and Mac bore expressions of understanding and concern. Turner climbed the ladder, slowing his approach when Conrad shied away from him. He put his hoof on the humans shoulder and gently rubbed him.
"Conrad, I can assure you, nopony wants to trample you here. You're our friend now, and we want to help you. Now why don't you come down from here before you slip off this edge or something."
Conrad hesitated, and then cautiously followed Turner down the ladder.
"Good," Turner said with a warm smile, "Now then, let's get you back to my place so you can get some rest."
"Nope." Big Macintosh stood in their path to block the exit.
Turner raised an eyebrow. "Mac, what's wrong?"
"He stays here," Mac said firmly, clopping his hoof on the dirt for emphasis.
Conrad started to feel more afraid and scooted behind Time Turner to hide from Big Macintosh.
"Big Macintosh, what has gotten into you?" Turner asked.
"I'm adopting him."
Conrad and Turner were speechlessly baffled at this. Conrad gulped and inched further behind Turner, then moved more when he noticed he was standing in the bucking zone.
This would definitely not be a good time to mention the horse that nearly killed me looks exactly like Big Macintosh...
Ooooohhh boy... Poor, scarred Conrad! And AWESOME TIME-JUMPING TIME TURNER!
Lyra Heartstrings, eh? Well, even if she's about to become the "antagonist" of sorts, any story with my favorite BP is instantly 20% cooler!
And I wonder just how much that scary horse looked like Big Mac. Was it red?
Congrats on getting feature-boxed.
889469 <-- Him with a blank flank. And staying with the spitting image of the creature that started all this terror... mweheheheheh!
Oh dear... Macintosh is still under the spell right? Or was it him that almost stamped on him as kid and now wants to make up for it?! Only time will tell!
ADOPTING??!! *Faints*
"Nope." Big Macintosh stood in their path to block the exit.
Turner raised an eyebrow. "Mac, what's wrong?"
"He stays here," Mac said firmly, clopping his hoof on the dirt for emphasis.
Conrad started to feel more afraid and scooted behind Time Turner to hide from Big Macintosh.
"Big Macintosh, what has gotten into you?" Turner asked.
"I'm adopting him."
encrypted-tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS1nsfG_18U6oQccqadV4vVuCbKdBGMA1VkJ04xD1xGVYJxymYfsQ
Applebloom: "Ah'm an Aunt now! Finally! Nopony can say ah'm not a BIG pony!"
889799 i see what you did their
Somehow I think that Big Mac was the pony that traumatized Conrad, that somehow he later went to Equestria (or maybe he went back to Equestria, and that he had previously found a way from Equestria into the human world, where he befriended Conrad's uncle), and that he recognized Conrad when he arrived in Equestria, remembering and feeling remorseful for what happened, and now he wants to make up for it.
'Beliebers' I can't believe you used that. XD Fucking hilarious.
Something makes me think that Big Mac may not have shrugged off all of the effects of the Need it Want it spell
890044 Well, I was considering it, but now that you've spelled that plot out, I can't use it. :/
891287 I'm sorry. You can still use it. Please forgive me.
You didn't need to confirm the accuracy of my musings and predictions. I do hope that I didn't mess-up your story.
(Do you want me to delete my prediction?)
891352 the damage has been done. may trolls have mercy on your soul
895439
I hear them coming... brace yourself....
895527 SPARTANS! READY YOUR SHIELDS!
i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/076/655/shitstorm-flyer.jpg
thar be a shit storm abrewin
OH gawd, I'm glad I kept reading.
.................
heh.
Just started reading this but. have to say it after everything so far
*keeps reading*
...Mental blue screen of death.
dafuq
Is Conrad mixing up his own words, or was he supposed to be saying something else?
890228 Your spike picture is based off a Detective Conan movie. (Its an anime.)
I hope you realize this...
Because its really cool.
Also, what you said about the 'Beliebers' is how I feel right now.
~AnimatedGamer
PS: Great story so far.
I want to be adopted by Big Mac !!
5407937
Tarantulas,
Tarantulas,
Everybody loves
Tarantulas,
If there just fuzz
Where your hamster was,
It's probably because of tarantulas!
5407937 Now that's an idea, how about a show called 'My Little Spider'? I personally would enjoy watching that.
6903037
the scary thing is, it could be done, and it could be cute.
derpicdn.net/img/2014/11/1/755196/large.png
7098154 WTF IS THAT AHHRRGGGGGG MY EYES MY EYES NEED TO GO TEAR THEM OUT TEAR THEM OUT ARGHHHHHH
7098154
MY EYES MY EYES