A Pony's Rumination
Pisces Pieces was walking home from work when he had a thought.
Everything changed when humanity came. No, that wasn’t right. The sun still rose at the same time, the streets still ran the same way, and he still couldn’t cook to save his life. Plus, that sounded like something out of a children’s cartoon that his daughter would watch.
Many things changed when humanity came. Some of those changes were pretty significant.
The idea of democracy had been generally viewed as unnecessarily complex at best and dangerous talk at worst. That a whole species had come to the general conclusion that democracy was the best form of government was a shock to ponies, both in academia and across the street. It sparked debates about faith in singular power, the tendencies of pony nature, the rights of ponies, and more. To say that the nobility felt threatened was a gross understatement. If Pisces could have seen the future, he would have known he would live to see the publishing of the Caballo Carta, the Nighttime Revolution, and Equestria’s first election. But that wasn’t the most significant change.
The Internet had forever changed communication in Equestria. Yes, there were magical books that could sent messages far away, but those were hardly commonplace. The first few servers set up were already almost taxed to capacity day in, day out. Ponies just couldn’t seem to tear themselves away from the wealth of… everything online, even while struggling to handle keyboards or touchpads made for humans. Library attendance shot up, as libraries were the only places to find access to the internet. If Pisces could have seen the future, he would have known he would live to see fiber-optics span all of Equestria, the first viral pony videos, and leaked documents about dream-spying. But that wasn’t the most significant change.
Equestria had a lot of potential, both in resources and magic. Everyone knew it… including those with a lot of money. Already, industrial factories were being set up across the country, employing countless ponies. There were fears of dumping, outsourcing, and cartels ruining the interdimensional economy. The bit-to-dollar conversion rate still hadn’t stabilized. Humans were lobbying for lower tariffs. Ponies were lobbying for more protection of domestic industries. Even agriculture was changing. Only the smallest of farms hadn’t made the change to tractors, harvesters, and chemical pesticides. Growth hormones and preservatives were the talk of the day. If Pisces could have seen the future, he would have known he would live to see the establishment of the Canterlot Stock Exchange, child labor laws, and Ponyville into suburbia. But that wasn’t the most significant change.
Religion had been, at best, a ritual passing for most ponies. But there were definitely some humans that were determined to change that. A small church had been set up in the town square, and there was a service every Sunday morning, led by a human pastor. Pisces had ducked in a couple times himself, out of little more than curiosity. But already, pony-specific sects of major Earth religions had sprung up, and even one or two Equestrian minor cults had gained a far greater following. Moral standards were slowly changing. If Pisces could have seen the future, he would have known he would live to see the Pope visit Equestria, the Great Magic vs. Religion debate, and a resurgence of televangelists. But that wasn’t the most significant change.
War was mostly (and thankfully, still was) an alien concept to ponies. Oh, yes, there was a guard force, and crime existed, but it was something no pony put much serious thought to. It had taken just once incident where a human had shot up a school full of fillies to change that. The Royal Guard was now trained in the use of firearms, and most police ponies had taken some classes on Earth on how to deal with an armed shooter. Gone were the days where ponies left their doors unlocked, and every sapient being you met was a friend. If Pisces could have seen the future, he would have known he would live to see the creation of the Royal Armed Forces, pony-mounted machine guns, and the first inter-dimensional war. But that wasn’t the most significant change.
No, Pisces knew what the most important change that humans brought.
“Hey, dad. Mom left dinner in the fridge. Said she had to run the grocery store for something.”
And that change was little Adrianna, adopted a few years ago. (He insisted on calling her little, despite being half her height.) He didn’t know much about her past: the social workers had mentioned that she had been moved for her own safety, but she hadn’t opened up to him about it yet. He wouldn’t push her. She was sixteen now, and he trusted her judgment. But she had been the biggest bundle of joy he had ever had enter his life, perhaps only behind his wife. Of course, there had been challenges. She had been teased a bit in school, she did have a taste for meat, and the lack of human contact she had couldn’t be good for her. But all that seemed to pale in comparison to the opportunity to give her a new lease on life… and him a chance to finally have a family. Pisces had been born sterile, and while his wife loved him all the same, it still pained the two that they would never have a child. Adoption was rare in Equestria, since ponies very rarely had reasons to leave their families. If Pisces could have seen the future, he would have known he would live to see Adrianna graduate from Yale, move to New Jersey, and marry a doctor. But that wasn’t important right now. What was important was, right now, he had a family.
Yes, Pisces Pieces knew what the most important change that humans brought. He chuckled. They had brought proof that, even across time and space, there was friendship and love.