Being An Adult
It wasn’t too long before the two of us got back to Ponyville, the town practically empty when we arrived, just a couple of ponies out and about, bowing respectfully to Princess Celestia, the woman- mare- giving them a friendly wave as we passed through. I assumed it was so empty because of me, and felt my ears unconsciously droop at the thought.
“Am I still contagious?” I found myself asking as we walked. “Also, can you control your ears? Cause these things seem to just… do stuff automatically.”
“I’m not sure. That would be something to ask a doctor, or perhaps my pupil, Twilight Sparkle. She might know something about it, seeing as she reads everything she can get her hooves on. As for your ears, you should be able to move them however you wish, as well as your tail, but seeing as you likely don’t have much experience in doing so, it might take time.”
“Okay… is there anything else I should be aware of? I’ve been here for a few days now, but I don’t know if there’s anything else I should know.”
“Well, there are many things you should know, but at the moment, I can’t say there is anything that stands out. You’ll learn what you need as time goes on. Anyway, here we are.” We were stopped in front of Holiday and Lofty's house, somehow walking up to it without me realizing it. Although I did think I was getting a mental map of this city in my head. A way to school, a way home, what the train station looked like, the bakery.
“I have a question,” I suddenly asked as the thought came to mind. “Can I live alone? And be treated like an adult? I mean, I know I’m an adult, and you know I’m an adult, so…”
She smiled at me, the kind of smile you give a kid when you think they’re saying something dumb, and it made me frown.
“You’re just as old as all of the other colts and fillies. Besides, where else would you live if not here?”
“I… I don’t know, but aren’t you the princess of this country? I’m pretty sure you could set me up with something.”
“That is true, however, everypony would still see you as a foal and treat you like one. For now, staying here with Miss Lofty and Holiday as your guardians is ideal. I will see what we can work out once I get back after the holiday, however.”
“Can you at least tell them right now that I’m an adult? At least Miss Holiday and Lofty? Please?
She looked down at me with a knowing smile, telling me, “I’m sure I won’t need to. After all, it’s not often that the Princess of Equestria goes to visit somepony, trust me. However, even still, I do expect you to remain in school so you can make friends. As they say, friendship is magic.”
I sighed at that and decided to press a bit further.
“Please? Can you just tell them about me? They’ll believe you if you tell them. Please?”
“I’m sure it won’t be an issue, Asher. Although it might be difficult, a bright young colt like you should be able to navigate what lies ahead.”
“Whatever…” I got out as I looked at my hooves, rolling my eyes. ”Do you at least have any more of whatever medicine you gave me? I think I’m starting to feel sick again somewhat.”
“Your guardians should have received a package of medication from Canterlot. But I do have to get going now. As you may have guessed, there are other things I have to attend to as Princess of Equestria.”
“If you say so, but I do have one more question: if you’re the princess of this country, then is there a king and queen?”
“Well, I guess you could say I am the queen, at least in governance, but those names have a certain… history behind them that I can’t say I’m fond of. But now I must be going. I’ll speak with you again after the Summer Sun Celebration. Farewell for now.”
With that, she teleported away, back to Canterlot I assumed, a loud pop being heard once she left. I tried not to cringe at myself at that. She said everyone here, everypony here, had magic, and she had the power to raise the whole sun, so I could only tell myself that magic existed because God allowed it to exist and gave them whatever abilities they had. I still didn’t like it, but it made me less nervous about it at least.
I made my way up the sidewalk to the door, using a hoof to knock lightly and being greeted by an excited Scootaloo a second later.
“Asher! You’re back!” she practically yelled, causing me to instinctively put my hooves up to my ears, feeling lucky that the medicine I took was still working. I expected to see Holiday and Lofty first, although the sight of Scootaloo wasn’t a surprise.
“What was it like? What did the princess ask you? Are you in trouble? What’s Canterlot like?” A million questions came all at once, and I had to interrupt her in the middle of them.
“Where are Miss Lofty and Holiday? I thought they would be here.”
“Oh, they’re knitting right now, and probably want to know you're back.” With that, she called loudly for them as we walked into the dining area, the two of them standing more on their back legs as they knitted in front of a counter.
“Hey, Asher,” Holiday said casually as she stayed focused on what she was doing, way more casual than she’d ever been in the entire time I’d known her. “Are you feeling any better?”
I couldn’t help but frown at that, the tone in their voice, and sighed, deciding not to bother with it right then, telling her, “I’m still not feeling that well, but I am better. I’ll talk to you later though.”
Asher turned to Scootaloo and asked, “Isn’t Sweetie Belle supposed to be here?”
“She’s going to get some stuff from her sister Rarity,” the orange pegasus responded as they started to walk upstairs. “She said she would be back soon. Oh! What were the guards in Canterlot like? And flying on Princess Celestia’s back?”
Eventually, the conversation got too faint for Holiday and Lofty to hear, and the mares whispered amongst themselves once the two were gone.
“I mean, the princess didn’t even come inside,” Lofty started. “That confirms it, doesn’t it?”
“Well, I mean, maybe she just- sweet Celestia!”
The two were suddenly standing in front of the Princess of Equestria, who had teleported in front of them and quickly put a wing on their muzzles to keep them from speaking.
“Apologizes for my sudden appearance. I did want to speak to you two privately though, without Ashley in our presence if that’s quite alright.”
“Oh my gosh, you just about gave me a heart attack,” Lofty got out as she put a hoof on her chest. "Yes, yes that’s fine. I mean- anything for you, princess.” She and her wife bowed awkwardly at her presence as she spoke.
“Perfect. I did want to start by saying that your thinking that they are from outside of Equestria is correct. How and why this happened, I still cannot determine, but it has happened. And I’ve decided that as of right now, they will remain in your care.”
“So she- she really is telling the truth?” Lofty asked. “She really is an adult? And a colt, too?”
“Asher is telling the truth when they speak of their past life," the princess explained, "however, in regards to being an adult, while they are more mature than the average foal, they are a foal nonetheless. He has confirmed for me that he is nine years old, although timescales where he comes from are different, hence the maturity. As far as being a colt, though, it’s… rather complicated, as you already know. While Asher is steadfast in his… view of himself as a male, I believe that over time their perspective will shift.”
“You think later he’ll stop thinking he's a colt?” Holiday asked.
“I do believe so, yes, although I always could be wrong. However, it's just what I believe will happen based on what I understand about his situation.”
“Why are you trusting us to watch him?” Lofty asked.
“Well, in part because, as of now, we’ve no way of sending them back, but also because Asher expressed a fondness and desire to return to you, and from what I can see, you’re a very nice couple with a great understanding about him, and clearly care for him. Although this should only last through the Summer Sun Celebration, to be clear.”
“Oh, we know that,” the mare explained. “We have to leave after then anyway. Although I am a bit concerned that she might not- he might not have anyplace to go to once we’re gone…”
“Rest assured, they will remain in capable hooves, I can assure you of that.”
`
“Tell me what happened!” Scootaloo practically begged the second we entered the bedroom. “You have to tell me!”
“I flew on her back to Canterlot, she asked me a bunch of questions, gave me some medicine, and then we took the train back. It really wasn’t that spectacular, I promise.”
“But you really are from another world like you said, right?” she asked. “You really are a hu-mare like you said?” I sighed at that question and sat on the ground.
“I don’t know,” I answered. “I know that I was before, but clearly, I’m a pony now, right? I’m basically the exact opposite of what I was, from an adult male human to… this. Ugh…”
“Awww, come on, being a pony isn’t that bad, right?”
“No, it’s not bad,” I responded carefully. “I just… miss being what I was… ugh, this is going to make me cry again…”
“Hey! Me and Sweetie Belle had an idea! We could teach you how to be a pony! That way you can fit in and nopony will know you were ever anything else! And we can also teach you about being a filly since you used to be a colt!”
“That’s the thing. I don’t want to be a pony, and I especially don’t want to be a girl. I want to be me, but I’m not…”
I closed my eyes and put my head in my hooves as I tried to force away my tears. This was a gift. This was a gift. I had to look at it that way. If I was here because God brought me here, then this couldn’t be anything but a gift because I was chosen out of billions of other people in the world and throughout history to be put here. Even if it was horrible, it was still a gift regardless because God brought me here.
“Except that princess was certain I wasn’t,” I suddenly thought, unable to stop it from popping into my head. “She’s certain that I’ve always thought I was a girl and was brought here because of some gate.” That was an almost laughable thought to me. I wasn’t transgender, not in either direction. I’ve never, not even one single time, desired to be a girl, and I certainly didn’t like being one right now. As well, I wasn’t trans right now because I actually was a man. I was actually born as a man and had always been a man. It wasn’t the same as other people saying they were a different gender. I actually was a man. I was just that right now I was…
“I’m just literally trans right now,” I thought to myself, making myself feel worse. “And I can’t do anything about it… oh, I hate this so much. I don't want to be like this." I took in a breath as I continued to myself, "This is a gift, this is a gift, even if it feels absolutely terrible, this is a gift…”
“Are you okay? You’re not going to cry again, are you? Cause you cry even more than Sweetie Belle does.”
“No,” I got out quietly, before clearing my throat and speaking again. “No, I’m not going to cry. I’m sorry. Is there- is there something else we can do? What do you guys do all day on your days off?”
“Oh! We hunt for cutie marks! But um, I think it’s supposed to rain in a little bit. But we can go see if Sweetie Belle has anything we can- oh wait! We’re gonna teach you about being a pony! I remember! Let’s go ask if we can go over to her sister’s house and have a sleepover, that way Rarity can help us!”
“Oh! Princess! You’re back again!”
“Yes, Twilight, I am. I came to talk to you about that filly we were discussing.”
“The silver-coated one? What’s wrong? Do you think she knows something important about Nightmare Moon’s return? Should we-”
“Calm down, Twilight,” Celestia laughed lightheartedly. “I’m only here to tell you that she will be staying under your care after the holiday.”
“Wait, she will? Who is she? Is she somepony dangerous?”
“No, she’s not. She will tell you about herself when you meet her after the holiday. In fact, we three can sit down and I can formally introduce you to her. But for now, what you should know is that her name is Ashely, but she prefers to go by Asher, she’s nine years old, she’s quite intelligent and mature for her age, much like yourself when you were young, and prefers to be referred to as a colt.”
“Wait, she wants to be called a colt? Why?”
“I will explain all of this in further detail when the time comes. But moving onto more important matters: how have the tasks I’ve given to you been going? How are preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in Ponyville?”
“Well, um, they’re a bit behind schedule right now because of the precautions we’re taking because of that diphtheria case- wait a minute, that was her, wasn’t it? She was the pony who had diphtheria!”
“Yes, Twilight, she was, but I do want to know if preparations will be in place in time for the holiday.”
“Well, sure, they will be, but Ponyville will be closed off to outsiders until after the Summer Sun Celebration, so I don’t know if-”
“That’s fine. I would still like the ponies who are here to have an excellent time, even if there are fewer ponies than we typically would expect. But now most importantly: have you been making friends?”
The purple unicorn pressed her ears against her head at that. “Well, um, I- I’ve been busy with preparations and finding that filly and-”
“Twilight, that is one of the tasks I’ve given to you, remember? I would like to see you make some friends during your time in Ponyville. Perhaps you can start by going to Sweet Apple Acres and speaking with the Apple family. They were one of the first families in Ponyville, and I believe they’ll be in charge of the food for the celebration. That would be a good opportunity for you to meet some other ponies, and perhaps learn a bit about this town’s history as well.”
“I mean, I was going to go down to see them the day of the holiday, but I don’t see why I need to-”
“Twilight?” the princess interrupted, causing her student to look her in the eyes, seeing just a hint of sadness and perhaps a dash of concern on her face. “Promise me Twilight that you will make friends during your time here?”
The mare sighed, answering, “Yes, Princess, I promise I'll make friends.”
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Typical Celestia. "I could help you, but I won't."
Oh nevermind, she actively works against Asher, as I thought she would–
Oh. Okay. So instead of helping with that major issue, she just says 'not my problem.' Wow. Okay.
10797660
That do be how Celestia be. Look at NMM and Discord and Magical Mystery Cure and Stygian and-
I belive you mixed somedthing up there.
So she doesn't even bother to think about how Asher might feel about this and just dumps her on Twilight, like all the problems she is to lazy to take care of. If Celestia continue to go down that route, she is making herself an enemy.
So... Celestia is gonna be an antagonist in this story isn't she? Please tell me you plan to have Asher screw up the timeline.
Celestia has to talk behind Asher's back. Dumb and unnecessary. I mean what did she say to Asher's guardians that she couldn't have said in front of Asher? That Celestia still considers him a foal of 9? Lots of animals mature at different rates. While Asher would say no, I am an adult, they would agree on the number of DAYS that Asher has lived. It is just that the age of maturity in Asher's world is 6. You wouldn't call a human horse a foal at age 18, nor would you call a dog a puppy. They mature faster.
Question for Celestia -- how long does a diamond dog take to reach maturity? Do they have any sapient species that reach maturity faster than ponies?
---
She also left key information out of what she told Twilight.
10797927
Yeah, but is Asher that mature at the moment? His behavior throughout the book has not been that of an adult. Placing his consciousness into a foal's brain seems to have made him act more foalishly.
10797839
Oh yes, very much so. Asher will do that.
10797714
My favorite ship is Holiday x Cheerilee
10798910
Okay, that's a ship I have never heard before.
10798150
HEYYY. NO SPOILERS!!!
10799209
Spoiler: Asher will cry more because they're a very emotional filly
Even if he was never transgendered before, you can make an argument for it now. Specifically that he is now trans-masculine, but not exactly by the "normal" definition. He's literally a male trapped in a female's body by magic, rather than identifying qs the opposite of his birth gender.
Celestia being her puppeteering self. Gotta love how many problems she creates so they can be solved. Sometimes it's pretty clear why Discord had a thing for her...
Aw, the image in this chapter seems to be dead. Sad.
MC is calling this a ‘trans’ situation, but I think that’s incorrect. This seems more like a ‘change’ situation. There was no forethought, consideration, or desire. MC simply was one thing and then another, and now MC’s brain chemistry has to reconcile with the new biology and new chromosomes. Very different issues even down to the cellular level.