A brony thrust from our world to the EqG world avoids any of the Humane Six... that is, until he's found on Christmas Eve by one of them.
When David is mysteriously transported to the world of Canterlot High School, he does what he can to avoid any extended contact with the Humane Six or any of their family and close friends. The downside of this is that he's become homeless and alone. Now, with Christmas just a day away, he's prepared to hide in the shadows another night.
However, his plans are derailed once one of the girls catch sight of him...
(First-person story set about three months after the first Equestria girls movie that starts off sad, but ends up being a somewhat comedic tale. Also, my first hard crack at writing for a public audience. Constructive criticism is welcome, and any and all flames will be used to make delicious s'mores before being doused.)
My name is David, and I'm a twenty-three-year-old in a sixteen-year-old's body.
I don't mean that I'm mature for my age; I literally WAS an adult physically until a couple months back.
It happened when I was transported to another universe, one that I'm already familiar with: a world of humans of every color, literally, and a school that had just recently had a brief visitor from another world. The school's name is Canterlot High, and I've been a fan of the fiction it's based on for some time. It's been three months since the events of the Fall Formal, along with my waking up here the next day as I found out later. Now... now I'm a long ways away from that school.
Why? Because I can't risk interfering with even the most minor of characters, because I might make a colossal change in these people's lives. Unfortunately, that's left me with nothing but the clothes on my back. Sure, I've had my nutritional needs met by the local soup kitchen--except on days when I spy certain CHS students volunteering--and there are water fountains all around, but I've been sleeping in small covered spaces across town. Add to all that the fact that I haven't said more than a few words to anybody, and you can see how depressing it can be.
I'm even more depressed since today is Christmas Eve. The time of the year that should mean being together with family and friends just makes it even harder to have a smile. As a matter of fact, I've had to use a couple restrooms so far today to hide my now-regular breakdowns into silent tears. I feel another start to rise again, and I'm about to open the door to the nearest building before I realize exactly where I am: the interior looked like a coffee shop, a woman with turquoise skin and rosy red hair behind the counter, and six very familiar girls together in a corner.
I pause to see them all focused on each other talking and smiling and laughing, a rare smile crawling onto my own face. I turn the other way and start walking again, knowing that at least those girls were enjoying the season in full. As I turn the corner, however, someone looks straight at me: one of the girls from earlier, light pink skin and curly dark pink hair.
"Hi!" she half-shouts while waving. I gives a small wave back. "Are you new here? 'Cause I've never seen you around before. You were looking lonely, and that made me sad, so I thought I'd run out here and meet you, so nice to meet you! I'm Pinkie Pie!" It took me a second to digest the information before introducing myself in kind. "Do ya wanna come inside and get something to warm up?"
"I don't have any money on me," I respond. That much was true; last I remember, all I have on me was from my last night at home, a wallet devoid of dollar bills and a purple and silver flash drive.
"No problem, it's on me!" Pinkie wraps an arm around my shoulder as we walk back to the store. As I open the door, the main thought going through my head was:
'I hope I'm not making a big mistake doing this.'
"So are you more of a coffee guy or hot cocoa guy?" she asks once we reach the counter.
"Cocoa. I can never stand that bitter taste."
"Coming right up." She proceeds to talk to the rosy-haired woman about my order. Meanwhile, I chance a look at Pinkie's group and, not surprisingly, all eyes are on me. I give a tentative wave to them, and they all wave back with smiles--well, I can't see the face on the yellow-skinned girl's face very well due to her using her pink hair as a veil. Pinkie hands me a warm white foam cup and starts pushing me again, now toward her friends. Her other hand grabs an empty chair and sets it between two of them. I take my seat, then notice who I'm sitting with: to my left is a light-blue-skinned girl with rainbow hair; and the other girl has light-yellow skin and red-gold hair.
"Everyone, this is David! David, this is Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Sunset Shimmer!" Pinkie say while pointing out each of her friends around the table. They each make their introductions while I sip my drink.
"So how long have you been in town?" Sunset asks.
"A couple days. Just trying to figure out the lay of the land, which led me to walk to... here."
"Why not just use the map on your phone?" Pinkie asks, pulling a small blueish-gray slab with three white balloons adorning the back that match the ones on her skirt.
"I don't have a phone."
"Why not?" Rainbow Dash inquires, a curious look growing on everyone's faces.
"I... it... was lost in a fire. I lost everything I don't have on me now," I fib.
"Oh my," Fluttershy exclaims. "E...even your parents?"
"No, they... they were partly to blame for it. My dad's a smoker and he left a cigarette lit, and... fwoosh. So social services had me taken out of their care and emancipated due to my age. After all that I just wanted a clean slate, so I hitchhiked to Canterlot."
Everyone took my faux-sob story to heart and offered their sympathies... all, that is, except Applejack, who remained silent.
"So... can any of you help me out?"
"But of course, darling!" Rarity proclaims. "I can never stand to see anyone out in the cold, especially a friend and DEFINITELY not on Christmas!"
Everybody else, Applejack included, agreed. Once we all finish our drinks, we exit the Shoppe.
"So, anybody have ideas on where to start?"
"I believe a change in clothing is in order," Rarity says, leading the way to our first destination.
---
Apparently, the boutique Rarity works at has a men's wear section. Who knew? I didn't, and I also didn't know we'd basically play dress-up for the first hour we were there. The fact that Pinkie was encouraging the dressmaker hasn't helped much. It also didn't help that she quickly segued from casual wear to tuxedos.
"Can we PLEASE stop, Rarity?" I groan.
"Aw, but I have just one more jacket for you to try on."
"You said that FIVE FULL SUITS AGO."
"Fair enough," she mutters before replacing coat hangers that she could somehow balance on each finger.
"YES, FINALLY!" I cheer, at the same time Rainbow Dash got up from her seat and stretched.
"Mm, what'd I miss?" the athlete says, earning a glare from the fashionista.
"Not much. Just some more odds and ends she simply HAD to see if they clashed with my eyes or that hair or some other part of the suit I probably won't wear," I say while I duck into a changing booth to switch from the suit to a newer variation of my old clothes: dark gray long-sleeve, blue jeans, black sneakers, and a thick black coat.
"Heh, ya got her to a tee. 'Rainbow Dash, could you be a dear and help model a blouse or two for me after school?' Two hours later, and I'm still stuck here."
"I do NOT sound like that," the white-skinned menace interjected, taking offense to Rainbow's butchered accent.
"Maybe not," I reply, "but you have to admit you seem to lose track of time when you're in your element." Almost on cue, my stomach starts loudly rumbling.
"Hoo-wee, is it lunchtime already?" Applejack checks her phone. "Anybody up for a meal at my place?" As I exit the booth, everyone voices in the positive, save for...
"Darling?" I turn to see Rarity holding two large shopping bags full of clothes, plus a wire hanger draped with white plastic.
"Wow, I...I can't accept that much from you."
"Nonsense! After losing all you have, you need as much as possible to help get you on your feet!"
"But-" Rainbow pulls me back.
"Listen, she's not gonna budge, so thank her and let's go. I ain't waitin' longer than I have to for some fizzy apple cider." She pushes me back towards Rarity.
"Uh... thank you, Rarity."
"You're very welcome, David." She places the bags and hanger in my hands then joins the others.
"Wait," I say while thinking it over, "where am I gonna put all this?"
---
Currently, the bags are in the trunk of Rarity's car, the hanger on a hook so that it covered the window I was next to while four of us drove to Sweet Apple Acres, the Apple family's farm-slash-residence (the others came in Applejack's pick-up). Now my stomach is unquestionably full from a nice dinner that was surprisingly sparse of apple-based fare, save for Rainbow's choice of 'nectar for the gods'. After taking care of some business in the closest bathroom, I walk out to find the farmgirl herself waiting and no one else around.
"What aren't ya tellin' me?" she says with a cooled, cross gaze.
"Hey, if you think I'm fibbing about being alone--"
"No, you're showing clear as day you'd be on your own without us, but I know you ain't being up-front about most of what ya said at the Sweet Shoppe."
She's GOOD, a lot better than is shown to me before. I take a couple seconds to form an honest reply.
"I have my reasons for not telling you... any of you... about my past. If it makes you feel better, I'll try to open up eventually."
"Eventually?" She raises an eyebrow.
"I promise." I take a second to dwell on what I said. "And I'll do what I can to keep my promises." She stays silent, almost stoically so, before replying.
"Can you handle some hard work?" I nod silently. "I'll get you something to do here in a few days." She walks past me on her way to her friends, her smile growing in an unnerving fashion. "Let's see if you can handle what I dish out."
...What does it say about me that I'm starting to become frightened for my life?
---
The rest of the day is spent generally goofing around with the six girls and running into an occasional classmate of theirs. As they tell me about themselves, I tell them some inconsequential things about myself (favorite music: hard rock--which curries some more favor with Rainbow--and some jokes I've learned that are hit and miss for the most part, yet Pinkie almost always laughs at them). Our journey ends at a second visit to the boutique, where the girls start parting ways gradually (each promising they'll see me tomorrow) until only Rarity is left. She leads me to a staircase that leads to a modest one-bed one-bath apartment.
"I've used this from time to time while working on some tight deadlines, but while you were busy with the others, I talked my boss into letting you stay here as long as you need." Needless to say, I'm awestruck by the bombshell.
"...I can't thank you enough for this."
"Just make sure you get a good shower and a good night's sleep. I believe you'll find everything quite adequate."
"Adequate? I thought it'd be better if you were using the room." That earn me a curt giggle.
"That's by MY standards. Perhaps you're aren't so refined?"
"Can't really be choosy about accommodations, can I?"
"Right..." Her demeanor softens slightly. "There's nothing in the kitchen, so I'll be around in the morning with breakfast." She walks back to the door, but pauses. "Good night, darling, and sweet dreams."
"You too. Mine may not be sugarplum-sweet, but I think I'll manage."
"Mm-mm, you still need some work on your humor." Once she closes the door behind her, however, I hear a stifled chuckle.
I shake my head with a smile before getting into a routine I haven't been accustomed to for some time: choosing clothes, taking a shower, pulling on a couple layers' worth of cloth, and sliding into a bed--but not before looking out the window to see a small speck of white pass a streetlamp below.
'Christmas snow?' The girls were saying the chances were half-and-half that Canterlot would be getting its first snow on Christmas for the first time in several years tonight, and now with confirmation of at least a brief bit of snowfall, my mood gets a bit brighter. 'Maybe there's magic at work for me,' I think as I tuck myself in for the night. 'Maybe I should have make friends with them sooner.' I close my eyes and enjoy slipping into the land of slumber for the first time in over three months.
My eyes open slowly, mouth already stretching for a long yawn. Once that's over with, I pull myself out of bed and stretch soi I can awaken fully. Once I do, I walk to the window and look out onto the street below. The light downfall of snow last night has now become a thin blanket across the city, anout two inches thick. I also notice a certain car and footsteps being tracked down to--
*KNOCK-KNOCK*
I exit the bedroom and walk over to the door, Once unlocked, I find two girls dressed in red and white and carrying bags.
...No, not Mrs. Claus and her sister.
“Merry Christmas, David!” Pinkie Pie and Rarity exclaim, Pinkie at the top of her lungs. I take a second to smile broadly before making way for them.
“Hey, girls, merry Christmas! I didn’t think anyone would be here so early.”
“Darling, it’s eight-thirty.” Rarity makes her way to the kitchen. “You really need a clock.”
“Which reminds me!” Pinkie pulls out a gift-wrapped box and hands it to me. I rip off the paper to reveal a smartphone… without the phone. “I saw that you didn’t have a phone, so I got you the next best thing! You can download apps, music, videos, pictures, games… Besically, do anything except call my number.” She giggles.
“...Wow… This must have set you back a ways, Pinkie.”
“Not really. The Cakes gave me a generous bonus, and it was on sale in the mall.” She sacrificed her bonus AND survived fellow last-minute shoppers last night to get me this?
“Thanks a bunch, Pinkie!” I grab her in a hug and pick her up off the ground about half an inch.
“David?” Rarity looks at me after I set Pinkie Claus down. “Do you work out?”
“Sometimes,” I reply. “I guess you can say a lot of my family follow’s something similar to Applejack’s view of hard work.” She nods in understanding.
“Well, breakfast is set out and waiting for us.” She ushers us into the kitchen and sits us all down to a small spread consisting of biscuits, sausage patties, ham, hash brown patties, and a bottle of orange juice for each of us.
“It’s not much, but I’m leaving room for all of us to have a nice dinner,” Rarity explains.
“It’s perfect.” I take a knife to a biscuit and place a piece of ham between the halves, leading the others to follow suit.
The rest of the meal is spent with me and Pinkie conversing when our mouths weren’t full, with Rarity chiming in occasionally. Once every morsel is eaten, I pat my tummy.
“Whoever fixed that food knows good eatin’,” I sigh.
“Thank my mother and I,” Rarity says. “When I told her about you, I asked if I could help with making a bit extra for you and another friend-”
“Like me!”
“...yes, Pinkie, like you--and she accepted without a second thought.”
“Give her my thanks, then.”
“Would you like to do so in person?”
...what?
“Y’see, I had the GREATEST idea!” Of course you did, you little pink nightmare. “You can spend the day meeting each of our families while getting our presents, and then, after dinner, we were planning on having a Christmas-slash-’Welcome to Canterlot, David’ party at Sunset’s place!”
“Sunset? She didn’t say much about her family yesterday.”
“Actually…” Rarity delicately joins in, “she doesn’t have any family here, much like you.”
“Oh… Anything else you can say about her?”
“...I’ll let you speak to her yourself when you two meet up.” Sensing the awkward air about it, I drop the topic and begin clearing the table. With Pinkie and Rarity’s help, it’s done in a flash. Afterwards, I begin setting up my not-a-phone
“So since Pinkie gave me her gift first, I get to meet her family now?” I ask Rarity.
“Correct. One of the others will pick you up after a while, and it will repeat until we all reach Sunset’s place.”
“But first, you really need to switch your pajamas for some layers.”
“Will do. I’ll see you later, Rarity. See you outside, Pinkie.”
I excuse myself in order to switch my clothes to another set from Rarity’s bag. My old rags are discarded into a nearby laundry basket, and I finish up with my dark gray jacket. I walk out, take a keyring hang from a nair near the door, and exit the building to find the cheerful gal making a snow angel on the sidewalk. I look around, but don't see another car nearby. I clear my throat, and she stands up like a shot, which jars me slightly.
“Ready to go?”
“...do you live nearby?”
“Within walking distance. Come on!” She starts… skipping down the street. I shake my head and join her, pulling out my… screw it, I’m just gonna call it an iPod. Even though it’s not the actual thing, it does all the stuff my world’s parallel does. To my surprise, I’m picking up a signal.
“Huh, I got internet access already,” I think out loud.
“Oh, that’s a pretty nice perk of living here. Almost all the city has free public Wi-Fi.”
“Huh. Definitely makes it a lot easier to use this.”
“Yep! Once we get to my place, I can help you get some more fun things for that!”
"Hey, Pinkie? Why did you take me in like you did yesterday?"
"Because I want everyone around me to smile." She stops her skipping and walks alongside me. "When I saw you walk past, I could tell how alone you were." Her hair deflates slightly. "Nobody should be that alone, especially during a season like this." She looks at me, for once being serious and sincere. "So I thought I'd get you to join in on the fun me and my friends were having." She looks immediately ahead. To be honest, I thought it might not work when I got up this morning."
I wrap an arm around her. "Don't worry. It is." I can see her hair reinflating, her smile returning in force, and I feel her arm wrapping me in kind.
...until she pushes me into a snow-packed yard. I'm about to ask why when she jumps into the yard next to it and wipes her limbs on the ground.
"Don't-cha wanna make a snow angel?" I chuckle and mimic her actions.
The rest of our walk is mostly uneventful, save for Pinkie occasionally playing in the snow a couple more times and her goading me to join in. As we near her house, she pops up.
“Oh, almost forgot!” She hands me a gift card. “So you can fill it up with all kinds of things!” I thank her as we get to the door.
“Ready to meet the Pies, Davy?” A hand reaches the knob.
“As I’ll ever be.”
---
After some careful observations during my time with her family, here are my results:
Pinkie Pie’s parents are a nice couple, if a bit set in the past. Her siblings, however…
* “Gaze into the eyes of Limestone Pie!” Yeah, if you didn’t sound so psychotic, I’d consider it.
* “Mm-hm.” No matter how I try, that’s Marble’s only response.
* “I like rocks.” ...I’m certain each and every thing Maud says ends in a period, no exceptions.
So the long and short of it: yes, everyone, Pinkie’s family is about as crazy as she is. Good thing I’m trying to stick to her like glue... well, whenever I’m not trying to get a different respone out of Marble.
One bright side: Pinkie helps me to move my flash drive’s songs onto my iPod. Fun fact: play any song in front of Pinkie and she’ll sing along like she’s heard it for years, even ones from my world. I try to throw her a curveball with an instrumental-only piece, but she just drums her fingers to the beat perfectly.
It takes quite a lot of willpower to not apply my head to the nearest wall repeatedly.
*KNOCK-KNOCK*
“You’re gonna enjoy me and my dad’s place! This is gonna be so awesome!”
“Great, Rainbow, but can you not DRIVE SO DAMN FAST?!”
“Just a sec!” She careens down another street in her dark-blue sports car, then drifts into a driveway and stops right at the curb. I unbuckle, open the passenger door, and promptly spill out onto snowy pavement.
“Dude, you okay?” Yeah, I just need to keep my lunch down. I glare at her... as best as I can without throwing up in front of her.
“...on a racetrack is one thing… Open roads… WITH SNOW… is another, Rainbow Dash!”
“All right, I get it, sheesh! You sound like Rarity…” Note to self: whenever Rainbow offers to drive, look for all other possible options first... starting with Rarity.
“Did she give you a heart attack yet, boy?” I look up to find a middle-aged face on an otherwise prime atlete’s body. His skin is a paler blue than Rainbow’s, but his hair is an almost-exact match.
“Gettin’ there, sir,” I gasp as I take her now-outstretched hand. Once pulled up, I look back to see her with a look of sheer embarassment. I don’t know whether to hug or scold her, so I do neither for now. “You must be her father,” I say to the man.
“Rainbow Blaze, to your rescue,” he chuckles. “Come in, I got some cocoa ready.”
"Get some antacid, too, just in case."
I find during the warm round of drink and conversation that Blaze is a pretty cool guy, especially when I hear that he’s a former pro soccer player that had to end his career early due to injury. However, the money hasn’t stopped coming in, which means that Rainbow could afford to buy a game console, a few accesories, and a gift card for a few games to give me. If only everything save for the gift card could arrive as fast as Dash can run, I’d have it today, but I have to settle for a few sessions on her own console, with a return outside for a snowball fight. Unlike the landslide victory for her outside, I’m able to hold my own against her in the virtual realm. Sure, she had more wins than me, but I made her work for all of them.
What doesn’t help things, hoewver, is Blaze coming inevery so often and saying things to Rainbow and I to avoid ‘getting too close’. Now he make not just his daughter red-faced, but I as well.
“You know he’s just being protective of you, right?”
“Yeah, but he’s just being so…”
“‘Dad-ish’?”
“Yeah. Besides…” She flashes a smirk. “You need to at least get me dinner first.”
... "A-buh-hee-dah-wa-huh-uhh--"
"Baaa-ha-ha-ha-haaah!" She doubles over and starts howling in laughter. After a couple moments, she returns to her upright position, noticing I still have a dumbfounded expression on my face.
"...Dude? I was just joking... you can stop with the goofy face now." I shake the look off and glare at her again.
"Please don't kid around about that stuff with me."
"Why not?"
"Just... it's complicated." I turn away and look at the door.
"Sure..." She pauses the game for us. "I'm sorry, alright? I didn't think a little thing like that would set you off." I slowly meet her gaze again. Now, she looks genuinely remorseful. "If I knew, I wouldn't have said that to you. I'd NEVER try to put a friend down like that. It's just how I am. You can ask the others, and they'll say the same thing: I move first and talk later, whether it's my whole body or just my mouth. I guess you can say I'm a lot like my car that way.
...I crack a smile. "Now if only you had wings, you could be faster than that tin can. That'd be awesome."
Her own grin returns. "Heck yeah, it'd be awesome!" She goes back to the game, as do I. "...that face you made was so funny." She chuckles.
...Okay, NOW is a good time to apply my head to the nearest wall repeatedly.
The ride to Sweet Apple Acres is silent, save for the truck’s rumbling, the tone of which shifts noticeably as the road turns from asphalt to dirt. Once the truck stops and itds driver turns the engine off, she lets out a sigh.
“I’m sorry.” Applejack turns to look at me. “ I did some thinkin’ last night, and I shouldn’t-a snapped at ya like that yesterday.”
“Yeah, but I understand why you did.” I shrug. “I guess trying to lie to you is like beating a building down with your bare hands.”
“Heh, you can say that again.” The smile disappears as quickly as it came. “So you have any good reason for not tellin’ the truth?”
“I think, if I tell you--any of you--it’d be kinda unbelievable.”
“I’ve been through some pretty weird stuff in the past few months.”
“Not like what I went through, trust me.”
“Hmm…” She turns her attention back to the windshield for a few moments before unbuckling and opening her door. “Suit yourself.”
“I do mean what I said though: I WILL tell you all the truth in time. I just… need to find a way that makes enough sense.” I do the same and put a hand in my pocket, feeling the purple and silver thumb drive hidden inside.
“Just say when, and I’ll gather the others.”
“It might not be THAT soon.” We both reach the front porch of the Apple home when my stomach rumble softly, but just loud enough to be heard by both of us.
“Guess we got here just in time.” She opens the door and nudges me through. “How good at you are cookin’?”
“Meh, I’d call myself halfway-decent over a stovetop.” We both take off our coats, Applejack wearing her usual white and green shirt underneath. “Mind helpin’ with the finishin’ touches on our lunch?”
“Dunno. Would that entitle me to seconds at least?” She launches a weak punch at my shoulder, which for her means I can definitely feel the impact.
“Depends on how good your work is.”
---
Turns out that my job on the mashed potatoes and apple fritters did indeed earn me seconds. Thankfully, I rejected thirds from Applejack, knowing it would probably start an eating contest with Applejack.
I’d like to survive today without antacid, thank you very much.
After I helped so arrange the plates and such in the dishwasher, Granny Smith gives me a wrapped basket filled with various apple-based goods on behalf of the entire family. Thanking her, the country gal and I soon migrate into the living room. There, we sit and just enjoy silence for a moment.
“Still offering that job?” I ask once it pops into my mind.
“Depends. Ya still think you can handle working around the orchard?”
“Yeah. Only one thing--it has to be outside the payroll.” At her raised eyebrow, I reply, “It’s complicated.”
“How so? You got some sorta record?”
“No, but that’s… kinda the thing. There are no records on me, period.”
“I only know one other person like that.”
“Let me guess. Sunset Shimmer?” She nods. That girl is a mystery.”
“Let’s hope it doesn’t say that way to ya for long.”
“What was that?”
“Oh, nothing.” I just drop it. Even though I know, I can’t let on… not just yet.
*KNOCK-KNOCK*
Meow. A little white ball of fur graces Rarity’s legs as soon as we enter her home. That reminds me…
“Uh, Rarity?” She turns to me. “Do you have any antihistamines?”
“What?”
“Allergy medication,” I simplify.
“Oh.” She blinks. “Yes, why?” I point to the cat still at her feet. “OHHHH.”
“Yeah.” She rushes upstairs, then after a minute to the kitchen, afterwards returning with a pill and a small glass of water. I take them in hand and use them accordingly. My body may LOOK different, but I didn’t want to chance it if I still possess all the trappings I had back when my eyes were much smaller and my tongue wasn’t orange.
“How bad is it?”
“Not bad, but it would be very inconvenient to sneeze the entire time I’m here.” She shudders.
“Yes, that’s VERY true. Same with Fluttershy.”
“Oh, so she’s an animal person?”
“Oh, she has quite a few in her home. She even volunteers at the local shelter every week.”
“It looks to me that she’s more likely to socialize with animals than me or you.”
“If you were talking about her before she came to Canterlot High that’d be true. The only one she was even remotely comfortable around was Rainbow Dash.”
“...How-”
“They both went to the same middle school.”
“Ah. So I should tread carefully when she arrives?”
“Exactly. Wait here, please.” Without knowing it, I find myself standing outside her room. She dashes in and comes back out with various items in her arms, all relating to one thing.
“So, I hope you’re not offended by my asking, but… may I do something about your hair?”
---
About an hour in the bathroom later, she has my short reddish-auburn curls cut, combed, and without a single knot. When she asked about my face, I first take a good long look at it. It hits me now that my freckled skin is now condensed to just three on each cheek arranged in a triangle like the Apples, except said triangle points in the opposite direction, and one holdover from my old face just below my right eye. I smile at what I see in the mirror.
“Nah, I think it’s fine the way it is.” I look at her. “When it ain’t broke…”
“Nice to see someone happy in their own skin.” She beams at my little self-evaluation.
“Glad to hear you not say a bad thing about this.” I gesture to my face.
“Well, who would? You’re a fairly handsome, strong, and charismatic--if slightly awkward--young man.”
“Where I come from, my looks can get me some bad remarks.” Her eyes widen.
“Why would anybody do that?”
“People there have more similar skin color and hair than what I’ve seen here. Anyone who has fair skin, freckles, and red hair is automatically labeled ‘ginger’ and a LOT of baggage comes along with it… like being called soulless and wanting to devour the souls of others.”
“That’s… just… ABSURD! Who in their right mind would start such a rumor?!”
“Dunno, I just know I had a couple bullies that would taunt me for it in school.”
“Listen to me.” She puts her hands on my shoulders. “If you EVER get such treatment again, just pay it no mind. I can see here and now that you’re a beautiful person, inside and out.”
“I know.” I take her hands and put them back at her sides. “The ‘ginger’ bit’s something I’ve lived with for some time. It’s water rolling off my back.” She lets out a breath.
“Good. That’s... good. How ANYBODY can make such disparaging remarks just because of their looks is beyond me.”
“Seconded.” We walk out of the bathroom and run into a white-skinned girl with lavender and pink hair, a bit smaller than Rarity. She gives the two of us an odd look.
“Um, Rarity… who’s this guy, and what were you two doing in the bathroom?”
The entire walk to Fluttershy’s place is silent. I look at her every so often, but she makes a point to keep her face locked in front of her at those times. Conversely, she shoots every few seconds what I know to be nervous glances, even though I don’t look back. Once we’re at her front door, she pauses.
“Um… well… here we are…” She opens the door and leads me through. Once inside, I can see pictures of all kinds of animals and various knitted knickknacks all over the house and. We end up in front of a door, presumably to her room. “Wait right here, please.” She opens, walks through, and closes the door swiftly. I hear some soft chirping and meowing coming from the room, but nothing from Fluttershy. A moment later, she comes back out with a gift-wrapped box. She hands it to me, but before I can open it, I feel a slight presence on my foot. I look down to see a little rabbit, its paws on the toe, looking straight up at me.
“Hello there, little fella.” I kneel down to pet it. “Where’d you come from?” I look at the door, now cracked, which provides me a glimpse of a birdcage and scratching post, each currently occupied. I look back at Fluttershy. “Who’s this lil’ guy?” She immediately perks up and smiles.
"That’s Angel Bunny.” She picks Angel up. “How’d you get out?” I point to the crack in the door, and she ducks her head. “...oh.” She puts Angel back into her room, then closes the door fully. “Sorry, it just… I’m used to being the only person here.” We walk over to the living room and sit on the couch.
“You don’t live with your family?”
“They’re all back in Cloudsdale. They visit every other year, and I visit them for Thanksgiving anyway.”
“So why’d you come to Canterlot?” I ask.
“Rainbow Dash. We went to the same middle school, and we've been good friends ever since.”
“Hmm… I can relate. I went to my middle school because of a couple friends I made in elementary… but…”
“What? Did something happen?”
“I was on the honor roll in elementary school, even got an unsung hero award in fifth grade. When I started middle school, everything started going downhill…. mainly because of the bullies.” Her eyes widen.
“You were bullied?” she says, shocked. I nod and gesture to my body.
“I didn’t always look like this.” ...in more ways than one. “I was quite overweight for some time, and that was one of the things that I was picked on over. Other things happened just because, like…”
“Like…?” she repeats.
“...like being kicked in the crotch.” She gasps in horror.
“Why would anyone do anything like that?!” I shake my head, not able to give a good answer.
“Where I come from, kids are just cruel. At least it didn't do any permanent damage.” I look in her eyes, unshed tears pooling under my eyes. “Do you know what’s even worse? I tried standing up for myself, pushing back against them. What happens? I get punished worse than them… WORSE!” I rest my head on the couch, the tears falling freely now as I squeeze my eyes closed. “What… what did I do wrong…?” I feel arms wrap around me. I just sit there, letting everything go for a minute to just cry. Once I’m done, I take a few deep breaths as Fluttershy releases me and picks up a tissue from a nearby box, offering it to me. I accept and thank her, rubbing under my eyes and nose. “Thanks for letting me vent… it’s been a while since I thought about all that.”
“It’s no trouble. I get like that myself--well, um, not as much since...”
“Pinkie and the others became your friends?” She pauses.
“It’s complicated. I was friends with Pinkie when I was a freshman, then we were driven apart, but we got back together a couple months ago.” I just shake my head.
“All right, change of subject: want any help with your animals?” Her eyes light up.
“Sure!” She leads me back to her room. “So you like animals?”
“From a distance, mostly. Honestly, I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t take any medicine.”
“What for?”
“Oh, I have this little allergy to just about any animal with fur or feathers and the like.”
“Oh goodness no! I should--” She runs off. I’m puzzled until she runs back with a bottle of pills and a glass of water, pushing both into my hands.
“Fluttershy, I said I already took something earlier.”
“Oh… well, you should still keep those on you for later.”
“You already gave me this.” I move the gift box nestles between my right arm and the side of my torso. “I shouldn’t-”
“You should. I keep those for emergencies and I can always get another supply.” I open my mouth, but she just gives me a look.
“You’re too kind, you know that?”
“I’d like to think I’m making up for people who aren’t kind enough.” I sit the pill bottle and glass down, then open my present. Inside the box was a nice knit sweater that looks like a perfect fit. I place it with the other items on the table.
“How’d you know my size?”
“Oh, Rarity gave me your measurements.” She gently picks up Angel and hands him over to me. “I’ll get him some food.” She leaves me with the little bunny, who just nuzzles into my arm.
Okay, that’s one advantage of being here versus Equestria: a pet bunny rabbit that doesn’t act like he runs the place.
*KNOCK-KNOCK*
The motorcycle ride to the apartment complex doesn’t take long, but shaking off the pain from riding it probably will.
“Ow,” I repeat a few times as I carefully raise myself off the bike.
“It takes some getting used to,” Sunset Shimmer says with a giggle.
“That, plus an ice pack.” I look over to the building. “So which one’s yours?”
“You’ll see.” She leads me into the complex’s lobby, then to an elevator. She pushes a button close to the top of the grid, and I look at her incredulously. She just looks at me with a smile and leans back on the wall. About a minute later, the doors open and she leads me to a door the end of a hallway. Fishing out a keyring from her jacket pocket, she unlocks the door knob and opens it, ushering me through. She flips a switch on the wall, and her apartment is flooded with light.
The furniture is a mix of what looked to be black leather and brown suede, all in all quite tasteful. Everything else seems pretty generic, seeing as there’s not much but bits and pieces of school papers littered about. A newspaper here, a report card there… Thankfully the place is spacious, so there should be no problem fitting all seven of us in one room. I walk over to the window and see that a view of the whole city for miles on end. I can spot the high school and a number of places around here that I’ve walked past and memorized. Sunset walks over next to me.
“That’s the biggest reason I got this,” she whispered.
“How can you afford a place like this?” I ask back, slightly awestruck. She stays silent for a moment.
“It’s a long story,” she says before turning away. I turn as well, and I can tell without looking at her face that there’s a bit of sadness to her.
“Hey, you wanna get started on decorating, or is Pinkie gonna come and help?”
“She helped me pick up some things a few days back, so we should be fine.” Sounds like that cheered her up a bit, so I keep on that.
“Did you have to show some restraint before she broke the bank?”
“How’d you guess?” She looks back with a slight smirk.
“Spending a few hours with her can get a bit… tiring, I’d imagine.” I exaggerate cracking my back for emphasis.
“And next, she’ll e-vite you to every party she throws… and quite a few she doesn’t.”
“I need the social interaction. I haven’t been to a party in ages.” “Pinkie will set you up with some pretty soon, I can guarantee you that.” She leads me over to where she stores her decorations, and we start getting everything set up. We make some small talk as we set up the garland, the holly, and get some food set out.
“I take it you don’t get the place so festive all that often? All I saw was the wreath on the back of the door and that little tree in the corner.”
“Yeah…” She sighs. “I didn’t do much celebrating before a couple months ago.”
“Why’s that?” I ask, although I already know the answer.
“If I tell you, you probably wouldn’t believe me.” She looks away.
“If you tell me the truth, I will.” I look at her, and she looks back to me. I give her a slight smile, and she relents. She tells me about how she bullied the entire school, not caring about anything except her plans. I ask her to elaborate, and she gives me the whole deal about Equestria, her tutelage under Princess Celestia, and how she fell from grace and escaped to this world. She went on to detail how she was defeated by Princess Twilight and the five friends she made, and ended with their becoming her first friends.
“And are those the only friends you had?” She nodded and dipped her head. A couple unshed tears dropped onto the floor.
“The rest of the school can’t forgive me for what I’ve done…” She dropped to the ground and hugged herself. Immediately, I go down and lightly wrap my own arms around her. She sobs lightly for a few moments before looking back up at me with a sad smile, giving me a near-silent “thank you.”
“Hey, we all got moments of weakness.” I release my hold and help her up. “Just ask Fluttershy. A couple things slipped out about how I was bullied at my old school, and she did the same for me.”
“Then why are you so… okay with me? Especially after what I told you I did?”
“Because what you are now is more important. Instead of an evil unicorn she-demon, you’re a young woman who knows what you did was wrong, and wants to make up as best you can.” I grab a line of garland and throw one end to her. “Even if I can’t stand what happened, it’s Christmas. Why not spend a bit of time with an enemy, since it’s the one day a year they can become a friend?” I see her smile return, a bit wider than before and coupled with tears of joy.
“Thank you,” she repeats, now with more volume.
“You’re welcome. Now, we gonna hang this or see if it’ll hang itself for a change?”
*KNOCK-KNOCK*
About an hour later, we’re done with all the trimmings and such when we hear knocks not a few minutes later. We stand up from our opposite seats in the living room begrudgingly and walk over to the door. She looks through the peephole and says that all five of them are here, each with several presents.
“So you’re all doing a gift exchange here?”
“Yeah. Mine are in my room.” She looks to me. “Ready?”