A story featuring Lauren Faust living in the world, we are all glad she created: Equestria. But that's not all. There is a language barrier between Lauren and her creations, not to mention every time she draws a new pony it becomes alive!
Some authors wish to live in the worlds they create or just want to be able to visit it, to escape from reality at least for a little bit. Lauren Faust considered the thought from time to time, but never really wanted it.
Yet here she is, inside Fluttershy's cottage and she can't understand a word the mare or anypony else is speaking. When trying to calm herself down with her hobby, namely drawing ponies and other cartoon characters, the ponies become alive the next day!
Will she be able to find a way home, despite language barrier? Just how long can she keep her rather unique ability hidden? Spoilers, not very long
Fluttershy considered herself an expert on animals. Others considered her to be the best animal caretaker that has ever existed in the entire history of Equestria, princesses included. It came as no surprise that, when Derpy found an unknown creature near the Ponyville borders, she and Rainbow Dash would bring said creature to the shy mare. The creature was similar to a minotaur, just without horns and fur, a white skin and a red mane on it's head. Her overall body structure identified her as female. Rainbow once saw a female minotaur.
The creature was also wearing clothes, indicating it was intelligent. However, neither Derpy, nor Rainbow thought of getting this minotaur thing to the hospital for some reason. The now dubbed "minotaur thing" wore some sort of red shirt, blue pants made of a material nopony had ever seen before and had something hard covering up it's hooves or claws, nopony took them off.
And now Fluttershy found herself looking after a creature nopony seemingly ever heard of. Rainbow Dash and Derpy had to leave, because of their jobs.
"Oh dear." Fluttershy whispered to herself, as she watched the whatever it was seemingly sleeping in her bed. In the background Harry, Angel and a couple of squirrels watched her with interest, having stopped their game of poker for the time being. They watched as their caretaker and arguably foster mother, started inspecting the newcomer from head to tow.
"Hmm..." Fluttershy took a notepad and a pencil and noted that there were no obvious injuries from the outside. Placing the pencil next to the notepad, she proceeded to take temperature, measure the creature's height, heart rate, even check the bone structure and teeth.
"Oh my. I didn't expect this." Fluttershy whispered, carefully closing the creatures mouth again. It had canine teeth, meaning it ate meat, like Griffons. Of course, Griffons don't exactly need to eat meat to survive and Fluttershy hoped the same went for this creature. But just in case, she would have to check on her secret meat stash. For the animals who only digested meat of course.
"No fever, she ate well, no injuries..." Fluttershy went down her list. "She seems fine, but why isn't she waking up? Oh no! Did I overlook something?" The pegasus went back to her examination, especially around the head area. She suspected the poor girl had been struck unconscious and checked for inner bleeding, but found luckily nothing of the sort.
"Maybe she is just exhausted from something." Fluttershy reasoned and put the blanket back on the creature's body. Since her knowledge about the creature was fairly limited, she figured making sure it got water and some bed rest would be enough for the time being.
Urrgh, hangover. Lauren groaned mentally. Perhaps it hadn't been such a good idea to party with the rest of the crew until morning, celebrating their success of the finale of season 5. Their view ratings had been going down for a few weeks, but spiked once again, when the finale of season 5 of My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic aired.
Leave it to the bronydom to drop everything else and watch a TV show for little girls. Lauren chuckled internally, ignoring the headache she was having. Craig must have put her to bed last evening. Or possibly this morning. Heck, scratch that,it was most likely afternoon already and she missed an entire work day!
Groggily, the woman slowly got up, yawning and stretching her arms in the process. She rubbed her eyes and blinked a few times in order to get accustomed to the light. And then she screamed.
"AHHH!"
To her left side stood a gigantic bear, looking at her with a curious expression. Harry the bear was used to new ponies in town reacting that way, when they first saw him, so he didn't react, when the newcomer fell out of Fluttershy's bed and crawled backwards, until she hit the wall. It was actually quite the amusing sight to see.
The scream had caught the attention of the other animals in Fluttershy's cottage. They all came upstairs, wanting to know what all the fuss was about. It didn't take them long to realize what was going on. A lot of animals react the way the newcomer did, when they first saw Harry without Fluttershy reassuring them that he wouldn't do anything to them.
A few squirrels took the advantage and ran up to the newcomer, who still had her eyes focused on the bear. She let out another shriek, when two squirrels started to climb around her body, until they nestled themselves in her lap.
Lauren's heart was pumping blood, as if she was running a marathon. Waking up next to a bear, an animal that could easily kill her, was frightening enough, but then realizing that you're not in your own house, but a stranger's one was worse. And although the squirrels only meant the well, the fact that they were all of the sudden cuddling the woman didn't help at all. If anything it confused her even more as to what was happening or rather as to where she had ended up.
There was just so much happening, so many animals around her. Not that she had anything against animals, she adored them. But if you were in her situation and suddenly you were surrounded by what seemed to be the entire wood life of your local forest, you would freak out too.
Luckily the animals could sense her distress. By an unspoken command, most of the animals went back downstairs. The squirrels and Harry remained in the room, though at this point, Lauren's brain was ready to shut down. She couldn't come up with any kind of explanation as to why the animals were behaving the way they did. The squirrels proceeded to rub their heads against Lauren's head. Harry was lying on the other side of the room, watching.
Still utterly confused, Lauren carefully raised a hand started slowly rubbing it down one of the squirrel's back. The animal froze up for a second, before it relaxed and enjoyed the treatment it was getting. Seeing this, the other squirrel increased it's rubbing, until Lauren found herself in the awkward position of petting two squirrels at once. She struggled with the multitasking, but none the less started to smile. I mean, when do you ever get the chance to enjoy the company of squirrels?
However, the woman didn't manage to fully relax. For one, she didn't know where she was. Now that she took a closer look at the room, it was actually really nice decorated and a little retro with the wooden floor and everything. For some reason it looked familiar, yet the woman was sure she had never been wherever she was right now.
Another point was, there were a lot of animals in this house, a bear being one of them! Although he seemed peaceful, Lauren knew enough about animals that even a tamed lion had instincts. There was a reason it always came to accidents in circuses and zoos.
Last but not least, she didn't remember how she got to this animal infested house. The owner must really love animals. Or possibly be obsessed with them. The last memory she had was saying something really stupid, after John managed to convince her to try a tequila. That was about, when her brain must have shut down or it just suppressed the memory.
Oh dear, so much for not partying too hard.
What's with the bear, anyways? He's watching me like a dog guarding the sheep or something.
Oh cute little squirrels, I so want one!
...?
What's that sound? Footsteps! Wait, why would I wake up NOT in my house or workplace in the first place? Oh dear, I hope we didn't have a traffic accident!
Lauren's train of thought was interrupted, when she saw a equine like shadow approach the door.
Wait, a horse? I heard of animal love, but this is just unhygienic. The woman scolded. She gasped, when the squirrels jumped off her lap and ran towards the shadow. The bear got up into sitting position, seemingly looking forward to the horse or maybe a foal, judging from the size, to come in.
Lauren Faust decided not to make any movements, as long as the bear was still in the same room as her. She switched from looking at the approaching shadow, to watching the bear every few seconds, until it was finally there. It turning out to be a butter colored pony pegasus with a pink, impossible long mane and tail. It had a tattoo of three pink butterflies on each side of its flank.
"Fluttershy?!" Lauren exclaimed, startling the pegasus a little, as it flew into the air.
Seeing her guest awake and sitting on the floor, the pegasus quickly flew over to her patient, who backed off against the wall a bit.
"Oh, I'm so sorry." Fluttershy stopped in mid-air. "I didn't mean to startle you."
"Wha.....?" The woman didn't understand a word the pegasus said. It was obviously the voice of Andrea, when she spoke Fluttershy's lines, but it came out as gibberish to the woman, as if she was speaking another language entirely.
This is Fluttershy....her bedroom....the animals....the cottage....
Lauren's head hit the floor.
"Oh dear. Harry, could you please help me? If you don't mind that is."
Fluttershy looked up from her book, towards her guest, who was stirring in her bed. The pegasus slowly flew over to the bed just as the monkey like creature (Fluttershy couldn't think of a better description or a name at the moment) opened her eyes.
Lauren gasped upon seeing the pegasus, leaning back against the bed-frame and accidentally hit her head in the process.
"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow."
"Oh dear." Fluttershy got a little closer and gently took Lauren's head into her fore-hooves. The woman froze up for a second, until the pony started stroking her head and spoke to Lauren in the ever gentle voice.
"There, there. Everything is going to be alright."
Despite not being able to understand a word, Lauren relaxed in the grip of the Element of Kindness. In the back of her mind, Lauren Faust kind of knew what the pegasus was saying. Slowly she herself wrapped her arms around the little pony. Her fur was really soft and cuddly. Fluttershy didn't seem to mind Lauren snuggling her face closer into the pegasus' shoulder.
Eventually, Lauren's heart rate was back down to a reasonable level, she (begrudgingly) broke the hug.
"Well...that happened. I guess?"
Fluttershy looked a little confused, until she remembered what happened 20 minutes earlier. Obviously the two spoke totally different languages. Maybe that was the reason nopony could recognize her species so far. Maybe she was from very far away. Very, very, far away.
Smiling reassuringly, Fluttershy put a hoof on the woman's shoulder and then pointed towards the door with her other hoof. Lauren nodded, understanding what the little pony was trying to say. She slowly made her way forward, looking if the pegasus pony would follow her.
Downstairs, Lauren had yet to see any more animals. It seemed like they were all outside the cottage. Fluttershy had led Lauren to the kitchen and motioned the woman to stay, until the pegasus was back. Having nothing better to do, Lauren complied and was now waiting. In all actuality, she was glad she had the time for herself and let the situation settle inside her mind. Granted that almost led to a panic attack, but the woman managed to stay calm or as calm as one could possibly be, waking up in their own imaginary world.
Maybe I have gone insane and am spending my time at a mental asylum right now? Don't be ridiculous Lauren. Wait, that's actually- arrgh, snap out of it, woman! This is too real to be a dream or anything else! Somehow you're here. In Equestria. Obviously you need to find a way back, but first thing you need to do is show the ponies that they can trust you.
The sound of the door opening brought the woman out of her train of thought. Fluttershy came in, carrying a basket full of fresh vegetables with her mouth. She placed the basket on the table and quickly moved to one of the cabinets opening the door. The pegasus tried to carry out a huge pot, but had obviously troubles. Lauren decided to help out, her hands actually being able to grab the handles and then put the pot on the stove.
"Oh, thank you."
Fluttershy then proceeded to take out measuring cup and filled it with water. Then she put the water into the pot. And again. And again.
Lauren resisted the urge to sigh. Of course the sink was way too small for the pot to fit in, so she had to wait patiently until the Element of Kindness was done. The next step was obviously cutting the vegetables. The guest had already figured out that her host wanted to cook something and she decided not to just stand on the sidelines. Looking around, Lauren found a couple of breadboards in various sizes. Picking one out, she placed it on the table. Next she took a few carrots out of the basket and placed them on the breadboard.
"Umm, what are you doing? If you don't mind asking, that is."
The woman turned towards the pony once again, having no idea what she might have said. Taking a guess, Lauren picked up a carrot and made the motion to peel it.
"Oh! You want to help me? That is really not necessary. she smiled and motioned Lauren to take a seat again. The pegasus even flew up and rearranged the chair like a butler waiting for his master to take a seat.
The red headed woman couldn't help, but smile in return, which didn't mean that she wasn't determined to help anymore. She put a hand on Fluttershy's leg, to which the mare gasped and pulled back. The woman gave the pegasus the kindest smile she could muster, without "dawing" at the pegasus and repeated the motion of peeling the carrots.
"Oh no, I couldn't possibly ask you to..."
Lauren rolled her eyes. "Please? I just want to be useful and not eat your food for free."
Maybe Fluttershy took a guess on what Lauren said or maybe she just gave up, because she didn't want to start a fight. The pegasus flew towards a drawer, opened it and picked out the tool Lauren had been asking for with her mouth. The woman was pleasantly surprised not to find any spit on it, but it only made sense. Otherwise earth ponies and pegasi would soak books wet.
While Fluttershy filled the pot with water, Lauren started peeling the carrots. Afterwards she washed them quickly in the sink, before she started looking for a knife to cut them into pieces. The element of kindness in the meantime, turned on the stove and picked out some salt and pepper for later.
Thanks to her skillful hands, Lauren was quickly done with cutting the carrots, so fast indeed that it surprised Fluttershy. The mare had been actually wanting to start herself with cutting the paprika. Her guest in the meantime didn't miss a beat and started peeling the onions. The pegasus mare did her best to keep up with the human woman, though she just wasn't as fast as Lauren. Still, cutting the onions slowed the woman down a little, since her eyes became teary during that time.
It was a weird process to say the least. The woman didn't realize immediately that not everything was going into the soup, although she did wonder about the tomatoes and the radish. Fluttershy interrupted the woman, when she was about to start cutting everything. Only later Lauren would find out that her host intended to make salad too. Not something she would eat with soup, but other countries other traditions, right?
Besides, after a while it became fun. Fluttershy would gesture towards something Lauren could either cut or put into the pot. Or when something shouldn't get in just yet, the pegasus would gently put a hoof on her guest's shoulder and shake her head. From time to time some of the animals would come into the kitchen and watch the two. A few even allowed Lauren to pet them, but most of them either fled to Fluttershy or out of the room.
Almost no words were exchanged the entire time, mostly because they didn't even understood each other. It also was kinda weird hearing Andrea's voice, yet not understanding a thing. Heck, it was even weirder to actually cook with Fluttershy.
"Cooking with Fluttershy!" Sounds like a good five minute animation. Haha, with Discord as the sous-chef. Mmm, fried bunny.
It had to be the best vegetable soup Lauren had ever eaten. She wasn't sure if maybe she really was just in a drunk dream or if everything in Equestria just overall tasted better. If it was the latter, she could not wait to visit Sugercube Corner.
Fluttershy on her part seemed to be a lot more open, than Lauren ever imagined. Maybe it was because she wasn't a pony or more likely it was because the pegasus took care of the woman and helped her recover. That reminded her of one of those stories the fanbase just loved to write. If she was honest, she avoided most of them, because normally her inner author just cringed at the bad grammar. One thing Tara introduced her to was about (yet another) human in Equestria, who could actually speak to the ponies. Since he was the only human in Equestria, Fluttershy thought he was an endangered species and needed to be locked away in a "natural habitat". It had been fun to read, but the thought in itself was disturbing.
Instead, the woman tried to focus on the soup, only to find out that she was finished. Chuckling at her seemingly black hole in her stomach, she was about to fill her plate again, when there were three knocks at the door.
"Oh my. I wonder who this could be. I'll be right back."
Fluttershy quickly trotted to the front door of the cottage. Curiously Lauren followed the pegasus, wondering who it could be that was visiting the shy little pony. She immediately thought of Rainbow Dash, since the two were childhood or rather fillyhood friends. Next up came Rarity, maybe asking the pegasus to try out a dress or go to the spa.
"Oh. Hi Twilight."
"Hi Fluttershy. I got the book you wanted to lend out."
"Thank you, but that wasn't really necessary."
"Don't worry, it fit right into my schedule. I wanted to visit you for a long time anyway. It's not inconvenient with you is it?"
Twilight came to visit? Oh I wish I could understand them. Hmm, I wonder how Twilight will react to me? Hopefully not like she reacted to her new body in the first movie. Thank you Hasbro for ruining a chance for a great first movie.
"Oh no, never. There's actually some....one I want to introduce you to.
"You have a guest?" Twilight asked a little surprised.
As if she had planned it, just at that moment Lauren came out of the kitchen and into the living room.
Did the first movie already happened? Well, time to find out where I am in the timeline.
