Logic vs Emotion - A HiE Tale

by MetalGenocide

Chapter 11 - Surprise!

As the evening sun begins its descent, you find yourself on the way to Twilight’s information exchange at the library.

“Why did I agree to this?” You scratch your head. “Hopefully it won’t take all night.”

Reaching the large tree, you duck through the small entrance, entering the dark interior.

“Spike! Sparky! You around?” You call into the room. The lights suddenly burst to life.

“SURPRISE!”

*Toooooot!*

Before the door even closes, you get startled by a collection of colours jumping out and yelling in joy. A blast of confetti showers you in multicoloured pieces of paper to the tone of a party blower as a banner unfurls from the ceiling with the words ‘Welcome to Ponyville!’ sprawled across it.

Before you can wrap your head around the scene, a pointy hat is jammed on your head by a pink blur, followed by a party blower shoved unceremoniously into your mouth.

*Toooooblblblbleee*

You release the air in your lungs, causing the blower to flop weakly before slowly rolling back up.

“No silly! Like this!” *Toooot!* “See?” The pink cloud of cotton candy blows her party blower loudly in your face before she falls to the ground giggling.

“Dear me, you might give the poor man a heart attack Pinkie.” Rarity’s voice flows over the laughter.

“Well duh! That’s how a surprise party work!” The pink mare jumps up off the floor and grabs your arm with her hoof, dragging you to the table. Pinkie Pie pulls you down as she talks, wrapping a foreleg around your neck.

"You gotta try the cupcakes, some of my best work yet! Oh, and the punch! There are two flavours, cause Applejack insisted you liked apples, so you got apple punch here and this one is wild berry and peach. Weird combination I know but it works! Trust me!”

“Looks like somepony is a little too excited.” Chuckles the familiar voice of a blue pegasus.

“Eeyup!” Agrees an unfamiliar southern accent.

“Obviously I’m excited!” Pinkie Pie cries out, releasing you from her grip. “He’s been here for almost a week and hasn’t even had a Welcome Party! Do you know how horrible that is! That means we’re not best friends yet!”

“You need to calm down, Pinkie. Or you’ll scare him off.” Rainbow Dash smirks.

“After the first meeting, this is surprisingly light.” You straighten up, rubbing your neck.

My neck has been getting quite the beating lately.

You take a moment to gather yourself, looking around the room. Along with the interesting spread of cupcakes, fruit, and punch bowls on the table, you see the pink blur known as Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle, Spike, Rarity and hovering beside you is Rainbow Dash. Among the familiar faces, you also spot an orange mare with a yellow mane, wearing a cowboy hat and standing behind Rarity, a yellow pegasus with a long flowing pink mane and tail gazes at you in what could only be described as awe.

“Apple Bloom said you were a tall fella, but I wasn’t expecting this.” The orange mare approaches you without hesitation and lifts her hoof to you. “Names Applejack.”

“A pleasure.” You smile, taking her hoof in your hand and shaking it.

“And this shy pegasus is Fluttershy.” Rainbow swoops down and presents the yellow pegasus. “Say hello, Flutter… Wait, where’d she…?”

“OhMyGosh! OhMyGosh! OhMyGosh!” A flurry of yellow feathers obscures your sight as Fluttershy suddenly appears inches from your face. “I’ve never even heard of a creature like you before!”

The room stares silently as the yellow pegasus zooms around you with surprising agility, inspecting every part of your form. Her hoofs flow through your hair, she lifts your arms up, presses into your back even flies between your legs. You try follow her movements as she starts bombarding you with questions.

“Where did you come from?”
“What do you eat?”-

“Err… Fluttershy?” Twilight tries to get her attention, a hint of concern in her voice.

-“Why are you wearing clothes?”
“Do you have any special talents? What about a cutie mark?”
“What are these? Claws? But they are so soft and flexi-”

“Fluttershy!”

“-Eep! I’m sorry!” Fluttershy suddenly stops moving and falls to the ground. Her hoofs start to play with her long mane, a light blush appearing on her face. “I don’t know what came over me. I just got so excited.”

“It’s ok.” You reassure her, waving your hand. Her face disappears behind several strands of her pink mane.

You sit yourself down at the table, grabbing one of the cupcakes. Pinkie Pie rushes to the side and starts up a gramophone, causing some music to fill the air as everyone talks and chatters amongst themselves. She then appears behind you and starts rambling in your ear.

“Hey! Sorry your party took so long. I was going to do it way earlier, like a few days ago earlier when I first saw you and went ‘Ahh’”- Pinkie breathes in deep before releasing it in a mock scream – “’hhhh’. And you were like ‘ow’. You remember right?”

“How could I forget.” You mutter, the back of your head throbbing at the memory.

“Exactly! So, I was going to do it then, but Twilight stopped me and said I should wait! Do you know how hard it is to wait for a surprise party? Especially when you know it’s a surprise party! Anyway, she made some sense and at least it gave me time to get some stuff ready. How’s the cupcakes? You like them? I was going to invite more of the town to attend but you had already met them all anyway and something about what Twilight said struck with me. Do you not like parties?”

Pinkie Pie stares at you with her large blue eyes, her lips quivering as she feigns sadness.

“Oh… Pinkie.” You avert your gaze, clutching the cupcake in your hand. “It’s not that I don’t like parties… exactly… I just don’t want to be a bother.”

“Oh, you are silly. Friends are never a bother!” Pinkie cheers excitedly before she turns away in thought. “I mean unless they are. But that doesn’t mean you’re not friends anymore!”

“Thanks, Pinkie.” You utter quietly.

“You enjoy yourself now, Ok?” Pinkie Pie grins, diving in for a hug. She squeezes you tightly before diving for the buffet. You take a bite out of the cupcake that you had been massaging in your hands. It falls apart in your mouth, unleashing a torrent of hidden raspberry jam and vanilla essence. You reach for one of the punch bowls when Applejack approaches you.

“Hey, sugar cube? I just wanted to say thank you. For saving my sister and her friends.”

“What do you mean?” You put on your best confused expression.

“In the forest. Apple Bloom told me all about it. About the Timber Wolves, how you carried them to Zecora’s. She can’t hide anything from me, I can tell when she’s lying, you know.”

“And here I’ve been avoiding that small detail. If I knew they couldn’t keep quiet I probably.” You pause for a moment. “Actually, I still wouldn’t have said anything. It’s all still a bit hazy.”

“Well, I owe you big time. And an Apple always pays her debts.” Applejack says proudly, puffing out her chest. “So, if you ever need anything, just ask, alright?”

“Oh, sure.” You smile.

“Good! After all, you’re practically family.” Applejack happily states before turning her head to look around the room. “Now, where is that blue menace. I got a score to settle with her.”

You freeze as Applejack walk towards Rainbow. A sudden feeling of warmth passes over you, followed by a gut-wrenching sting in the pit of your stomach.

Family…

You feel a wellspring of emotions bubbling inside you. Your heart aches as memories begin to rise. Memories of home, parties that you had been to, events that you might be missing. As tears begin to form in the corner of your eyes, the memories fade and in their place new ones take root. A warmth washes over you as thoughts of your first encounter with the Equestrians comes to mind, carrying the three fillies, meeting new ponies, lunch in the park.

Your thoughts get interrupted as quickly as they came when you feel something caress your leg. You look down to see a yellow hoof stroking your thigh. The movement of the hoof reveals that there is more interest in the clothes themselves than what’s beneath, but it still makes you uncomfortable.

“Fluttershy?” You question the yellow pegasus.

“Oh! I’m sorry.” Her hoof darts away. “I was just curious about the clothes. Um... Why do you wear them?”

“Because I don’t have a coat like you guys.”

“I see. You would get cold without a coat. These are very nice though.” She starts stroking the fabric again. “Did you bring them with you?”

“No, these were a gift from Rarity actually.” You answer, quite happy with the look.

“I never realised she made stuff like this.”

“Practical working attire was the order of the day, Fluttershy. And I dare say, you look wonderful in them nonetheless.” Rarity proudly speaks of her work.

“Oh, that makes perfect sense. After all, if you are working you need to be comfortable otherwise somepony could end up getting hurt.”

Fluttershy and Rarity slowly drift towards the food as they converse on the practical fashions for job specific attires. Rainbow and Applejack have somehow gotten into an arm, or rather, hoof-wrestling match, with Twilight and Pinkie watching from the side-lines.

“Here you go.” A glass of punch appears before you, held by a purple claw. “You look like you wanted a drink.”

You reach out for the glass of punch. “Thanks, Spi-”

*Bang*

“SURPRISE!” The door to the library bursts open, accompanied by the cry of three fillies. “There you are!”

Before you can accept the glass from Spike, you get tackled by a blur of white, yellow, and orange. Crashing into you full speed, the girls knock you out of the chair and onto the floor. Straddling your chest, each of the fillies give you a tight squeeze.

“Apple Bloom!”
“Sweetie Belle!”

Applejack and Rarity hastily approach you as Rainbow laughs in the background.

“Hello girls.” You manage to breath out. “To what do I owe this?”

“You really saved us earlier!” Sweetie Belle cries excitedly, lifting herself out of the hug. “We’d have been in serious trouble if you didn’t show up.”

“Definitely.” Apple Bloom confirms. “My mind was racing trying to figure out what to do.”

“Yeah. Your timing was impeccable!” Scootaloo adds. “Thanks!”

“Ok girls that’s enough. Let the poor man get up.” Applejack says in amusement.

“Sweetie Belle, you should know better than to be charging into others like that. You could seriously hurt somepony.” Rarity scolds her sister.

“Sorry sis.” Sweetie Belle sadly replies, sliding off your chest. Apple Bloom follows suit. Scootaloo gives you a final squeeze before mimicking her friends, jumping to the floor.

“Sorry about that sugar cube, they can get awfully excited.” Applejack helps you to your feet, brushing your back.

“That’s alright. I don’t mind.” Getting back into the chair, you watch the three crusaders dash off towards a laughing Rainbow and Pinkie. Spike again hands you the glass of punch, his claws shaking slightly.

“Thanks Spike.”

Drinking the juice, you look around the room. The crusaders are laughing and chatting about their next big adventure over cakes and punch. Applejack and Rainbow Dash have returned to their little competition with Pinkie being an ever-keen observer and Twilight, Rarity and Fluttershy seem to be having an intense discussion, but you can’t make out what they are saying. Spike found a stool and placed it next to your chair, happily nibbling at a bowl of blue gems while reading a comic book.

“You know, if you had that bowl of gems back home, you probably wouldn’t have to work a day in your life.”

“Woah, really?” He looks up at you. “How does that work?”

“Gems are pretty rare on earth and any that do get found tend to be controlled by one company. So, prices get inflated.” You pick one of the blue gems from the bowl. “Weird that there are so many here though. You eat them, Rarity uses them in her fashion. Are they really so common?”

“Well, we can grow them.” Spike answers.

“I’m sorry, what?” Surely you misheard.

“It’s true! We’re able to grow gems. Most types are common enough, so they aren’t worth a lot really. But you can use them instead of bits if you want to. I even have a special gem I’m incubating myself. I can’t wait for it to be ready.” He glances up at your confused face. “You don’t grow gems back home?”

“No. They just get dug up after millions of years beneath the planet’s crust.” You say, dropping the blue gem back into Spikes bowl.

“That’s horrible!” Spike cries out in shock. “What would I eat?”

“I have no idea.” You chuckle. Equestria is weird.

“What do you mean you don’t like the idea!?” Rarity’s sudden outburst draws the rooms attention.

“It’s just, stories like that can be scary.” Fluttershy’s voice gently echoes in response.

“I’m with Fluttershy on this one.” Twilight agrees. “It’s one thing to read about it in a book, but it’s something else entirely for it to happen to one of us.”

“Dear me, you have no idea what you’re talking about.” Rarity huffs.

“Everything alright?” You call out.

“Everything is fine, darling. We were just talking about you.”

“Talking… About me?” You feel your face redden as Rarity walks over to you. “Nothing bad I hope.” Fluttershy and Twilight follow up behind her.

“Oh, not at all. I was just expressing my opinion on how it could be exciting if you were here for a reason.”

“What Rarity was actually informing us about, is the plot of a book she had read recently. It involved a traveller from a distant land that fell i-mmhmhmhmm…” Twilight’s explanation gets cut short by a white hoof. Her stare piercing its owner.

“Ha, ha! He doesn’t need to hear all that boring stuff, Twilight dear.” Rarity laughs nervously.

“Well, stories like that usually involve a lot of danger. And umm, it’s not really something that would be good if it were to happen.” Fluttershy concludes.

A common trope, even for stories from home. When a traveller appears, they are usually there to stop some big bad world ending threat. You ponder their words.

“Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you Rarity, but I don’t believe I was summoned.”

“Are you sure?” She eyes you intently as her hoof falls from Twilight’s mouth.

“I’m sure. Which means no world ending threat, no getting caught up in dangerous missions.” You take a sip of your drink.

“But your situation is just like a classic novel!” Rarity dives at you, spilling your drink. She wraps a foreleg around your neck and waving her hoof around as she starts her story. “Think about it! A mysterious creature waking up in an unknown world where they end up befriending the locals. When suddenly, disaster strikes! They must then go on a journey to-”

“-Save the world and rescue a damsel in distress?” You lift Rarity’s leg off your neck and push her away slightly.

“And then they’d live happily ever after.” Rarity swoons.

You roll your eyes. A small sigh escapes Spike lips as her stares deeply at Rarity, enthralled by her story.

“Well, as much as I love a good adventure, that all sounds very cliché if you ask me.” Twilight nods.

“I would much prefer a nice quiet cup of afternoon tea.” Fluttershy adds.

“Afternoon tea. Now that is a plan I could get behind.” You chuckle.

“Ugh, you eggheads still going on about books. I thought this was a party, not a, a, boring-ty.” Rainbow calls to you over the crowd. “Hey hotshot! Wanna hoof-wrestle? Applejack needs a win!”

“Rainbow Dash.” Applejack’s tone expresses her annoyance at Rainbows comments.

“What’s wrong, AJ? Afraid you’ll lose to a human?” Rainbow laughs, taunting her friend.

“Thanks, but I’m going to pass. You ponies are freakishly strong, I wouldn’t stand a chance.” You brush her off, hoping that it will be the end of it.

“Come on, I bet your strong too! You fought off a pack of timber wolves, you got to have some strength in those limbs.” She gives your arm a prod, a smug grin appearing on her face. “Or are you two chickens?”

“Does… does that even work? Calling someone chicken?” You turn to face the crusaders. “And who’s been saying that I fought timber wolves?”

The three fillies nervously chuckle, avoiding eye contact.

“I ain’t no chicken! Bring it on!” Applejack hypes herself up for the battle.

Huh, I guess it does work.

You feel a nudge on your side. Pinkie Pie pushes against you, motioning towards the table where Applejack has positioned her foreleg ready for you.

“Go on! It’ll be fun! And I bet you can beat Applejack easily!” She cheers you on, her azure eyes smiling happily at you.

“Fine.” You move closer to the table, placing your elbow down and firmly gripping Applejack’s foreleg. You grin. “Ready?”

====================

Several rounds and some bruised knuckles later you finally call it quits. You managed to claim a win against Applejack, but the victory was short lived as your muscles quickly gave way to the repeated onslaughts. Surprisingly, Rainbow Dash was more punishing, with wicked strength in her forelegs that nearly twist your elbow out of its socket.

“Oh yeah! I’m the best! Go Rainbow! Go Rainbow! Go Rainbow!” The pegasus starts celebrating in mid-air.

“Settle down there, Rainbow. Nopony likes a sore winner.” Applejack lightly scolds her friend.

“See? I knew you guys are strong. I’m hardly a challenge.” You laugh, sitting back in your chair. Rubbing your knuckles to get rid of the aches, you catch a glimpse of Twilight furiously scribbling on some paper.

“Don’t be silly. You still won once.” Fluttershy happily chimes in, sipping at her own drink.

“Yeah, I guess.” You smile, finishing your drink. A glimmer of light catches your eye, flickering off your ring. Getting lost in your thoughts, you run your fingers over the band.

“That’s pretty.” The yellow pegasus comments. “From your special somepony?”

“Yeah. My wife.” You chuckle as you stare at the band. “Till death do us part. Nothing in the ceremony mentions getting transported to another world.”

“I’m sorry.” Fluttershy lowers her head apologetically.

“Hey, it’s not your fault.” You give Fluttershy a weak smile. Several pieces of confetti catch your eye and, without thinking, your hand travels onto her head and you start lazily stroking her mane trying to get the paper out. The pegasus lets out a small ‘eep’, causing you to pull your hand back sharply.

“Sorry. There was confetti. I”-

“It’s ok, I was just surprised.” Fluttershy interrupts you. An awkward moment of silence passes between you before Fluttershy finally breaks it with a whisper.

“Umm… Could, could you do it again?” She blushes into her hoof. “Stroke my head, I mean.”

After a moment, you move your hand back to her head and restart your motions, feeling her soft coat and silky mane slide between your fingers. Fluttershy’s eyes close peacefully under your movement.

“Many of my furry animal friends like it when I stroke them too. But I never knew it could feel so… safe.” Her ears flop freely as your hand travels behind them, giving her a light scratch. Fluttershy starts to rock slightly, each movement of your hand eliciting a soft hum or an audible smile from her.

“Wow, Fluttershy looks like she’s in a dream.” Twilight approaches, stopping inches away from Fluttershy as she carefully watches her sway, lost in her own world. “Is this a type of human magic?”

“No, humans don’t have magic.” You answer softly.

“Oh my. She really does look so peaceful.” Rarity adds, observing the pegasus.

“Big deal. Fluttershy is almost always quiet and peaceful. How this any different?” Rainbow complains. Despite her fuss, she can’t help but stare at Fluttershy’s calm face.

“Wow, it’s like she’s in a trance or something. Think she can hear us?” Pinkie appears from behind Twilight’s mane. She extends a hoof and boops Fluttershy on the nose, causing it to wiggle slightly.

“Do you like stroking ponies? Is it a thing humans do?” Twilight horn continues to pulse with light as she looks up at you, ignoring the sudden manifestation of pink from her mane.

“I guess so?” You shrug. Fluttershy squirms slightly, pushing against your hand as you scratch behind her ear. “Humans tend to bond quite easily with other creatures, with many of us having pets. Stroking them, or anything really, is rather therapeutic. Humans can even bond with inanimate objects. Toys, electronics. Even pet rocks are not uncommon.”

“Oh! My sister has a pet rock!” Pinkie cries happily. “She loves little Boulder. Goes everywhere with him.”

Fluttershy stops swaying as you withdraw your hand.

“Oh goodness. Now I know how all my little friends feel.” Fluttershy opens her eyes. A little squeak escapes her lips when she realises all her friends are staring at her. “Umm, did I miss something?”

“No Fluttershy, you didn’t miss anything.” Twilight chuckles with the others. “I wouldn’t mind trying that stroking thing sometime though. How did it feel?”

“It was very soothing.” Fluttershy smiles up at you, playing with her hair. “Your wife is very lucky.”

“Yeah. I guess she is.” Your face slowly falls as you release a deep breath. Tears once again threaten to expose your emotional state as they build in the corners of your eyes. Blinking them away, you stand up from your chair. “Sorry guys, I’ve gotten tired. I’m going to go turn in.”

On the way to the door, you pat Pinkie’s head. Her mane bouncing under your hand. “Thanks for the party Pinkie. I had fun.”

The ponies share a concerned look.

“Are you ok, sugar cube?” Applejack asks.

“Oh yeah, I’m good.” Wearing a false smile, you give the girls a wave. “I’ll catch you later. Alright?”

Ducking through the door, it closes behind you. A still darkness bathes the town, held at bay only by the few lights coming from the buildings. The vast sky illuminated by the moon and stars. Wiping your eyes on your sleeves, you take a few steps into the night.

“Wait!” A voice calls out before you can get away from the tree. “Um. I’m sorry.”

Turning, you make out the silhouette of Fluttershy in the libraries glow.

“What for?” You ask her, hiding your tears.

“I mentioned your wife.” She rubs her leg with her hoof. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“It’s ok, you didn’t upset me.” You reassure her. “I’ll see you around, ok?”

“If... If you ever want to talk, I’ll be happy to listen. Come by my cottage any time.”

“Thanks, Fluttershy.” You softly say.

You slowly make your way to the workshop, leaving the yellow pegasus alone in the shadow of the great tree.

Comments

[StrikeFire]

Celestia... Yo bitch ass got some explaining ta do!

[Winter Star]

Thanks for the shoutout.
I really enjoy the story and look forward to reading the new chapters.
If I see any more grammer errors I'll point them out for you.

[Winter Star]

Noticed two errors.

...followed by a party blowed shoved...

I think you ment 'blower' here. Those things have so many different names!

...memories begin __ rise...

More grammatically accurate if the word 'to' is used here.

[MetalGenocide]

10952425
10952451
Thank you so much
Yeah, MSWord likes to change things when I'm not looking lol