> The Element of Hope
>  by Shootingstar212
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1: The Only Human
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

My steps echo throughout the train station of Manehattan; only a few other ponies are here. They don't even bother to look at me. Could I blame them? My name is Travis Goldheart; I'm sort of the only one of my kind, which you may think is cool, but... It sucks. I'm not socially accepted among the other ponies, I was homeschooled for crying out loud. It could be the fact that I can perform magic without a horn. I could do that for as long as I remember. I learned from my rescuer that everypony has a little bit of magic inside of them. That’s where the traits of Pegasi and Unicorns come from. The ones that aren’t lucky enough for horns or wings are inherently stronger than the others.

My rescuer is the only one who cares for me. He's the kindest, most genuine pony I've ever met. His name is Pure Goldheart. Without him, I'd probably be dead, but some ponies want it that way. I've been told this story by my rescuer plenty of times. I was found if the Everfree forest when I was a foal. He took me in because no one else would. But the news got out a while later. How I was just some wild animal from the Everfree forest, that I was going to grow up into some bloodthirsty creature. As a result of that, I really didn't get out much... I'd spend my days inside.

The brown suitcase I'm carrying is a bit heavy, combined the backpack I'm wearing, is straining some of my arm muscles.

I let out a sigh "This will be sore in the morning."

I put one of my hands in my jean pocket; I feel a slip of paper. This is the ticket my Grandpa gave me. I call Goldheart "Grandpa" because he's the only family I have. Yesterday was my eighteenth birthday, this was his gift to me.

I can hear the fragile voice of my old man echo through my mind.   "You told me that you wanted to go see places, so why not where I grew up? Stay there for at least a year for complete satisfaction!" I smile.

I reach my destination, the toll booth. The dark blue mare behind the counter looks like she's gonna fall asleep on the job. I hand over the ticket without making any eye contact. She'd just insult me anyway. I feel her giving me the stink eye while I'm walking to the open doors to the train.

I place my luggage next to the closest seat on my left and lean up against the safety pole next to me. The train is going to leave in probably a minute; I'm the only passenger on the train. The metal panels on the floor are bolted in for safety reasons, as well as having a pattern in them. A bolted set of lights are on the roof, going rows of two then stopping at the edge of the roof before continuing on. I can hear a faint noise coming from the PA system, it's a radio broadcast about the "Elements of Harmony."

"Must feel good to have friends." I think.

The doors shut, and the train starts moving. My unzipped hoody and headphones start to sway. I reach over to the right side of my pants to turn on my portable cassette player, my favourite song "Burn my Dread" is already in it. I cover my ears with the cushion like material that my headphones have and look out of the window at the night sky. The bright lights of the train are a bit distracting, to be honest.

I can't help but think about what happened last night...





I was laying down on my bed trying to go to sleep when Grandpa came into my room. "Travis?" he asked. "Are you awake?"

I let out a yawn whilst stretching "Yeah."

"I think you're mature and old enough to know this." his horn glows his trademark golden glow; successfully illuminating the room, to bring over an envelope. I take it from the air and open it casually. The envelope is packed with a folded up piece of paper, a rusted ring, and a picture.

"What's all this for, Grandpa?" I ask taking out the first item.

"Just…. Read it yourself…" My old man falls silent, he can't even look at me. I unfold the piece of tattered paper; making sure not to rip it in the process, and scan over the words written in a blue ink.

"Dear to whoever finds this.

Look after our child his name is 'Travis'. At the moment he is 16 months old. When he's old enough tell him about us, we love you, Travis.

From you parents: Maron and Justin." Over a million questions pop into my head at this moment, but the more I think, the angrier I get.

"How long have you had this?" I ask gripping the paper in my hand tighter every second.

"Pardon me?" Grandpa didn't quite hear the question.

"How long have you had this!?" I raise my voice, whilst holding up the piece of paper. I feel tears starting to form in my eyes, as I get choked up. He doesn't say anything; all Grandpa does is look down in shame. "I've been looking for answers for my whole life. You, my own Grandfather, didn't even tell me this!" Tears began rolling down my eyes.

"I didn't think you were ready!" Goldheart's voice rose. This shocked me a bit, I'm so used to hearing him quieter. "You know I care about you. I just don't want you to get hurt." I'm slowly regretting the things I said to grandpa. I use my hand to push my black hair to the left side of my face.

"I'm… sorry. I can't think straight at the moment." My hot face cools down to a regular temperature.

"I know you cant. I can only imagine how you're feeling right now." Grandpa walks up to me, stands on his hind hooves, and gives me a hug. The warmth of his fur reminds me of the other times I've needed to be calmed down.





I snap back into reality when I almost fall over, but luckily catching the pole behind me. "Reminder, don't do that again," I say out loud. My headphones fell off in the process. Nopony else is on the train, I don't really care anyway. I regain balance as soon as the sliding doors open. 'Time to see my new home.' I grab my things and make my way out of the train. The echoes of the metal train floor turn into the familiar clapping noise of hollow wood. I cross my arms and shift my weight as I get a good look at this desolate town. This place is completely different than back home. The buildings are much smaller, with hay being used for the roofing, "I guess nopony's out after dark," I shift my eyes around at the town, "Everything is much smaller than I thought it was going to be..."

I pick my suitcase back up and open the note I have in my pocket. I scan over the ink quickly, which is hard to do at this time of night, to find out that the house I need to get to is just outside of the town. I place the note back into my pocket and place my headphones on to my ears. I couldn't hear the train leave behind me, as I step off of the platform. The music is blaring into my ears.

I get a much better look around. Unlike Manehattan, the buildings don't have any lights strung across the tops. I can't even tell what one is supposed to be a store or somepony's house.

Before I know it, I'm outside of the town. I'm currently following a dirt path. I see an old shack off of the path in the distance, it's a little hard to make out what it looks like from here. But, I'm sure that's the place. There's no other house in sight on this open field. I pick up my walking pace, as my arms are getting very tired from my day. I slow my walking pace as I get to the front of the house. The outside of this place is an absolute mess... The wooden walls are cracked and covered in vines. One of the windows on the upper part of the house is smashed, almost like some colts tried to impress somepony by breaking it with a rock or something.

"I'm not sure what I was expecting out of a place that hasn't been used in over twenty years..." I walk up the steps leading to the porch. The floorboards creak as my weight is being applied, it makes me worried that they might just snap from under me. I take my backpack off and place it on the floor, before unzipping the middle pouch of my backpack, I fish around for the house key for a bit. I pull out a silver, rusted key. Unlocking the door is a bit difficult; probably because the lock hasn't been oiled for years.

I open the door just to be hit with a wave of dust, and cobwebs. "Ew, I think it got in my mouth!" I spit rapidly, trying to clear my mouth of the webs that are older than me. The main floor seems rundown, but it looks like that the kitchen and the living room are fairly close to each other. It's a bit cramped, but that's understandable as Grandpa did live here by himself. The chipped wood and paint are the most unappealing part. There's a lot of dust as well, nothing a little bit of spring cleaning can fix. But before I do that, I need some sleep. I let out a yawn. I don't bother to bring my things upstairs because I just want to sleep. I open the first door I see in the hallway to find a bathroom.

"Not what I wanted." I think. I continue down the hall, it's hard to see because of the darkness. the floorboards creak with every step I take; almost like I'm in a horror movie. With a little bit of feeling around, I find another door. Opening it up reveals a room. There's a nightstand, next to a king-sized bed. On top of the nightstand lays a lamp. The nice green drapes cover the windows, also a good sized dresser. "This ought to do for the night." I collapse on the bed and stare up at the ceiling. "I'll have to tidy the place tomorrow." I let out a sigh, "This will be my new home for one whole year. I hope it'll be a good one," I gradually close my eyes; and with that, I'm out cold...



Meanwhile at Twilight Sparkle's Library:

The lights are dimmed, just enough so that Twilight's assistant will actually get some sleep. The young unicorn has been up all night trying to perfect the newest potion in her "Chemists for the Advanced" book, which she received last Hearth's Warming Eve from Spike. She hasn't finished much of the book, only on chapter 6. Most of these potions are just tricks for kids. Making them feel smart for figuring out chemical reactions for the first time. But, Twilight didn't have anything better to do that night. Twilight is always up for a challenge when it comes to academics, always wanting to find ways to improve.

Twilight looks over to the couch close to her, to find her friend, Rainbow Dash, sound asleep. Twilight giggles a bit "I thought you wanted to see the colours, Rainbow Dash?" Rainbow stirs a bit, her ear twitching a little.

"I'm awake, Twilight…. Don't worry…" Rainbow says with a yawn, and readjusting her position to get more comfortable.

"It would help if your eyes were open," Twilight replies with a giggle as her horn starts to glow. Her violet magic wraps around a vial filled with a mysterious green goop. It was some leftovers she had from an invisibility potion she developed for Princess Celestia, as a project. Twilight uses her magic to lift the vial and ever so slightly tilts it over the boiling cauldron on her work table. A small droplet sinks its way into the bubbling blue liquid. Twilight uses her free hoof to stir the goop with a wooden rod. "Hey, Rainbow Dash. Come and look at this." Twilight invites her friend to see the "Magic" happen.

Rainbow Dash, slumps off the couch, her eyes half-lidded. Rainbow looks inside the pot with boredom at first, which turns into interest as the bubbling liquid turns into a purple colour. "Wow…. That was kind of disappointing." Rainbow says to Twilight, not taking her eyes off the cauldron.

Twilight sighs, "I told you that this wasn't as interesting as you'd think."

Rainbow Dash turns her head up, and a bit to the left. Trying to look at the old library clock, to check out the time. She squints her eyes to try to make out the time, through the dark lighting.

"12:30 AM," Rainbow mutters out loud.

Her ears perk a bit, as she sees something unusual. It's a pair of teal eyes, no pupils too. Just… Staring at her. Rainbow gasps! She can recognize those eyes anywhere! Her eyes widen!

"Twilight!" Rainbow Dash alerts, "There's a Changeling outside!"

Twilight whips her body around to investigate! She sees a bug like tail leave the window as fast as it can.

Without thinking, Rainbow Dash speeds out of the door to catch the spy. Blowing loose paper everywhere from the mighty wing flap.

It takes Twilight a second to realize what exactly is going on.

"Oh no. this was supposed to be a relaxing night!" Twilight runs out of the door, slamming it shut behind her with her magic.



Up in the skies:

Rainbow Dash is hot on the trail of the Changeling. It's easy for her, considering she's the fastest flier in Equestria. The Changeling spy tries to do advanced banks, and loops to throw off its follower, but that doesn't last at all. Rainbow Dash slams into the Changeling at full force. Wrapping her hoofs around its waist, so it cant escape. The Changeling thrashes around in Rainbow's grasp, flailing its fore hooves and legs around. It's trying to hit Rainbow off of it.

The two begin to spiral down towards an old house, just outside of the town.



Travis's House:

I'm walking in a forest, I assume it's the Everfree forest. My clues are that the trees are hanging really low, with the leaves being a dark green. The mud-like path squishes under my feet, with roots sticking out from the ground. I really don't like this place. It's dark, hot, somehow really wet, but worst of all, I'm not sure if I'm gonna make it out alive. I've been told by my Grandpa to stay out of here, I don't know why I'm here, to begin with. I have my hands in my pocket. I begin to whistle the tune of my favourite song, to bring good luck.

"Dreamless dorm, ticking clock. I walk away, from the soundless room." I start to sing under my breath.

I look at my surroundings as I walk past them. There are small yellow eyes staring at me through the bushes. I look forward and see two shadowy figures in the distance. The difference is, they're…. my species? One of them looked like it had longer hair than the other. I can't say for sure what they look like, as a dark blue fog is covering up their features, but the shape is without a doubt the same as me.

"No way…" is all I can say at this point.

"Traaaaaviiisss." A woman's voice begins, "Come home, Travis…" the voice is soothing and relaxes me.

"We miss you a lot… your mom and I." a man's voice follows up.

"Mom? And Dad?" I ask a little choked up.

"Come here, Honey." My mother says.

I take steps forward. But, I feel something wrap around my ankle. I look down in confusion to see a branch is straining me. I try stepping forward with my free leg, sticking out my hand, trying to get help.

Another branch wraps around my arm that's sticking out. Pulling it back.

More and more wrap around my body.

I don't know what to do!

What is there to do?

I'm getting pulled back into the forest.

"NO! Please, don't do this!" I yell. Tears forming in my eyes. The tears are coming down at a fast rate, as I get pulled back into the forest! "Mom! Dad! HELP ME!" I yell at my parents in the distance. They both turn their backs and begin to walk away. I fall on my back. Trying to break free of the branches grasp. I'm getting pulled into the darkness of the forest!
I scream if fear, as I get pulled inside.

I'm alone… again…



THUD!!!

I feel the house rumble and shake, as I wake up from that horrible nightmare.

"What the hell?" I say tiredly while rubbing my head with a hand.

I'm on the ground currently. It must have happened during my sleep. But, falling off my bed couldn't have shaken the whole house? I stand up and leave the room, hopefully, I have a deck. I run down the hallway, looking for a sign of one. I see a double door made of glass. Opening it up to investigate what made that noise.



Outside of the House:

Rainbow Dash and the Changeling crash into the grass, after slamming into the roof of the building close by. The two are surrounded by the shingles of the roof. Rainbow Dash tries to stand up but is struggling. She took the fall the hardest.

"D-Damn…" Rainbow Dash winces in pain while trying to stand up. Nothing is broken, but she is in pain.

"Oh no… Poor girl." The Changeling mocks, standing up perfectly fine. The Changeling starts to walk into the Everfree forest, a smirk of victory on his face.

"Fight me!" Rainbow Dash yells in anger.

The Changeling laughs, "Do you want to die now?" he whistles out a tune. This is the signal for his partners to emerge from the shadows. Both look the same, including the bloodthirsty look in their eyes.

"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight shouts from a distance, running to her injured friend. "Stay behind me! I'll take care of these guys!" Twilight's horn begins to glow a sharp, purple colour. "Looks like I'm on the defensive this time." Twilight thinks, making sure she knows where the attackers are.



On the Deck:

I squint my eyes, trying to figure out what's going on in the distance. All I can see is green lights hitting a purple shield. Every time the shield is hit, a flash of white light goes off, laminating all the way up to my house.

"What the hell is going on over there?" I say quietly.

I can't really make out on who's getting attacked. But I think I should help them. I grip the railing in front of me, preparing to hop off.

"But… would they do the same for me?" I say aloud.

I would most likely just be left alone again.

No one likes me…

Why should I help them?

They'd NEVER help me!

I have no one looking out for me!

No one but… Grandpa…

My grip is so tight on the metal railing, that my hands are turning red. I loosen my grip slowly and look back at the door into my house. I can just walk away, and pretend that I saw nothing.

I turn around, and slowly walk into my house, placing my hands in my pocket. That's when…. A feeling of guilt washes over me, like a storm.

"I was raised better than this…" I say looking at the ground, "If I'm gonna live on my own. I must take up responsibilities. Its what Grandpa would want." I look up and turn around to face the open door to the deck.

My face is now filled with determination, as I begin to run full speed outside! I leap from the deck. Using my hands to assist me getting over the handlebars! The wind of the fall pushes my hair up, over my head. I bend my legs as I land, and fall forward. I use my hands to recover before I face plant, just to continue my sprint to the pony in peril.

As I get closer, I see who the attackers are. They're the disgusting, bug-like, Changelings that I've read about in "Equestria Monsters: Fast Facts." They're attacking by using green fire spells. Shooting them one after another.

The pony who's being attacked is definitely a Unicorn. It's…. Twilight Sparkle? A look of confusion washes over my face while closing in on the battle. The Element of Magic herself? I don't believe it! She's protecting, The Element of Loyalty: Rainbow Dash. Why would they be out here at this hour? It must be very important.

Twilight is now starting to struggle as her shield is getting blasted at a rapid rate. She has a look on her face that can be described as anger, and concentration. She doesn't have a way out without dropping the shield, but that would risk her friend getting hurt. Speaking of which, Rainbow Dash looks pretty battered. She's surrounded by shingles… from a roof…. I think that's my roof shingles. That was the noise I heard earlier.

Time to bring out the big guns. I close my eyes while running forward. Focusing on my core, letting out deep breaths.

I feel my energy surging through my body!

A feeling I haven't felt in a long time!

I've activated my magic for the first time in about a year!

I open my eyes. The warm, teal colour has surrounded my hands. Out of the corner of my eye, I see both, Twilight Sparkle, and Rainbow dash looking right at me with confusion.

Time slows down, as I look at Twilight. Her eyebrow is raised, I'm not sure what's more surprising to her? The fact that she's seeing me for the first time in her life? Or, that she's seeing a non-Unicorn using magic.

I quickly hop from the ground, raising my legs to my chest, folding my arms across my chest, and shoving them behind me as fast as possible. I feel the magic-induced air gust spell exit my palms, sending me hurtling to the enemy in front of me. Its head turns to me for a split second, his mouth forming these words "What the Fu-"The Changeling interrupted by my body slamming into it!

I topple on top of the Changeling, and we roll for a distance. My face is in the dirt, I look over at my victim to see that it's knocked out.

"What the hell was that?" I hear a man like voice cry out.

I raise my hand to my head, to make sure that I'm not bleeding. I look forward, just to be greeted by a horn. It's shining green, and not too far ahead. I realize that it's trying to attack me! I place both my hands on the ground, and fire off a quick air gust spell! I get rocketed up a couple of feet. But, I see a green energy ball fly right past where I was. I look at the Changeling that fired off the attack with anger. But a purple energy blast sends it flying before the Changeling could respond. Twilight… was helping me?

I land on my feet and look for the last Changeling. I see it retreat into the Everfree forest, using its wings. Going really fast I might add.

"That's right! Get out of here! No one messes with the Elements of Harmony!" I celebrate with myself.

I look over at Twilight Sparkle with a smile. She isn't smiling back, to say the least. Her jaw is wide open, as well as her eyes.

"Um… hi," I say rather shyly, waving at her with my left hand, only a little bit. My magic aura fades away since we're no longer in danger.

"Y-You're… And you can…" She's having trouble finding the right words to use.

"Is your friend alright?" I ask in a bit of a concerned voice. Looking behind Twilight, I see a very…. Angry Rainbow Dash.

"You…" She stands up, wobbling a bit. "You IDIOT!" she yells at me. I flinch back, she's rather hash. "You let it get away!"

"Rainbow Dash!" A shocked Twilight Sparkle responds. I hardly notice it. But, I'm taking steps back.

I turn around and run away, from this fight that has broken out.

"He just saved our lives!" I hardly hear Twilight say.

"He's a freak, Twilight!" I faintly hear the response from Rainbow Dash.

I wipe the tears forming in my eyes while running back to my home. Things were supposed to be different here! This can't be happening all over again. I can't go through this again. I use the air gust spell to hop onto my deck, run inside, shut the door, and lock it...
> Chapter 2: Formal Introductions
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The birds chirping noise can be heard outside of my window. my eyes slowly open up, to be greeted with sunlight flushing into my room. I let out a groan.

"Ow... Everything hurts..." I complain to myself. well, it is my fault after all. Slamming yourself into a Changeling at full force can do that to you. I lay on my back, staring at the ceiling. 

"That was the first fight I've ever been in. I'm not sure whether or not my Grandpa would be pissed, or would be proud." I say aloud. One thing's for certain, I know that people still hate me in this town. I place my hands over my face and exhale loudly. 

"I can't believe this. I risk my life and get scolded in return. Rainbow Dash called me a freak..." I sit up on my bed slowly. my arms and legs are extremely sore. I should lay off of doing anything taxing for a while, I don't want to actually hurt myself. 

I get off of my bed, and walk outside of the bedroom I slept in. I finally get to see a clearer version of the establishment. The dark brown planks of wood for the floor creak with every step I take. Paint that used to be beige, is peeling off the wall. This place is a dusty mess. 

I use my finger to swipe some dust off of a counter surface. "The last thing I wanted to do today, was clean a house." I groan in disappointment.

my stomach lets out a grumble. That reminds me. What time is it anyway? I walk downstairs with the goal in mind of finding my backpack. If I remember correctly, I left my pocket watch inside one of the front pouches. The bag is exactly where I left it. There's a new addition though. Cobwebs. "I really dislike spiders..." I grab my bag from the mess of webbing and wipe it off with my sleeve. I've never liked spiders, ever since I was a kid. I remember being scared out of my mind when my Grandpa was watching a movie about a giant spider attacking the ponies of a fictional village. My Grandpa tried to convince me it was just all made up, but I never believed him when I was younger.  Some of the webbing gets stuck to my hand. I quickly wipe it off on the closest wall.

"Ew, Ew, Ewww!!!" I'm not paying attention to where I'm wiping my hand. But I feel another sticky substance touching me. I take a look at the wall and notice that there are even more spiderwebs on this wall. 

"Oh my... You've got to be kidding me?" I'm more annoyed than grossed out now. I remove my hand from the wall and just go with the easy solution, wipe the webs on my clothes. I need to get changed anyway. I open up the front pouch of my bag and look for my watch. It takes a couple of minutes, but I feel the familiar circle shape. I pull the bronze watch out by the chain link. It's one that's meant to be worn around the neck. I flip the watch open to be greeted by the picture of my Grandpa and me together. We were out at the park that day, that's a day that I'll always cherish. There was no harassment, insults, or anything negative. It was just me and him. That may be the reason why it was so special, I was with my family. I let out a side smile while looking at the image, then I take a look at the Roman numeral clock that is on the right side. 

"11:45?" I say to myself surprised. I never sleep this long. It seems like I'm going to be skipping breakfast. 

I look through all of the doors, cabinets, and closets in the house. Well. I can confirm, that there is absolutely no food in this house. What should I expect? Grandpa hasn't lived here for over twenty years. From what I remember, I don't have too much money on me... I may have to get a job. It's going to be difficult, who in Equestria would hire me to do anything? that would probably just disgrace the image of the Pony. I'm so lost in thought, that I didn't hear the hoof knocking on my door. I snap back into reality, and I hear a voice call out to me. It sounds familiar.

"Excuse me? I know you're home. It's Twilight Sparkle. You know, from last night?" Twilight Sparkle? Why would she come to visit me? I lean up against the door and listen to what she has to say. I don't want to open the door for someone who's going to be rude.  "I'm sorry about my friend. She was just a little freaked out by you. don't worry, I just want to talk for a bit." I lift my head up at that. Why would she want to? I mean, I did help out. Maybe it's just a Thank You?

I unlock the door, and slowly open it. Peaking my head out to just make sure she's alone. Twilight Sparkle is standing outside of the door. Her bright purple coat is eye-catching, to say the least. Her eyes share the same colour if a bit darker. A dark purple mane with a magenta stripe going across it horizontally. She has a friendly smile, wide-eyed, and overall friendly looking. Her mane is properly brushed, almost like she's been up for a while. I assume someone like her would be awake early in the morning.

"Good morning!" She greets, "Or, should I say afternoon? because it's almost noon." she corrects herself. My blank expression doesn't change. "Not much of a talker, are you?" She cocks her head. I'm at a lost for words, I'm not sure how I should greet her back. should I be polite? or cool sounding? 

"I-I, umm... I'm not too good around people I don't know." I stammer out. I'm pretty sure that this is extremely awkward for her as well.

"Oh really? Have I been too forward? I'm extremely sorry!" Twilight quickly apologizes to me. 

"No! I- I mean. It's fine. I'm just a little confused at the moment." I try to convince her that she did nothing wrong. 

"Confused at what?"

"Well, I'm just not used to having Ponies come up to my door. Considering..." I open the door all the way and take a step back. I let Twilight take a good look at me. How I stand up on two legs, Have claw-like hands, but they aren't pointed. How I have to wear clothes all the time. I see Twilight Sparkle study me with her eyes. Taking down mental notes, attempting to remember every detail about me. 

"Amazing..." Twilight says somewhat quietly. she starts to take steps into my house. "I mean. I've heard stories about how you look. How different you are from everypony in Equestria. I've always wanted to see what you look like in person. Here you are, right in front of me." She sticks a hoof out and pokes my hand. trying to feel the flesh on me. "Your claws. They feel soft and warm..." I let out a fake cough. This causes Twilight to recoil with a blush on her face, "Oh, I-I'm sorry. I got a little distracted" her eyes dart around.

I let out a little chuckle, "It's perfectly fine." I scratch the back of my head. Twilight starts to sniffle, then lets out a little sneeze.

Twilight looks around the room and notices how dirty, and dusty it is, "Quite the place you got here." 

"Yeahhhh... I just moved in last night. I haven't had the chance to clean yet." I respond while looking around with her. 

"You moved here?" She asks looking back at me.

"Yeah, just for the year. This used to be my Grandpa's place."

"Grandpa? There's more than just you in Equestria?" Twilight sounds excited 

I laugh, "No, don't get the wrong idea. It's my rescuer's house. I just call him Grandpa because he's my family"

Twilight raises an eyebrow, "Well... If you don't mind me asking? What happened to your real family." 

This topic brings up bad memories of not having a real family. Never knowing my parents, or even seeing them I look away from Twilight and place my hands on the table nearby. Looking down at the flat surface. 

"I-I never knew my real family. All that I know is that I was found in the Everfree forest when I was a baby. That's probably why everypony hates me. Because I'm a wild creature found in the most dangerous place in Equestria. How can I be treated like a real pony if I'm considered dangerous? The only pony nice to me is my rescuer. He adopted me, raised me like his own. He never saw a freak, but a baby that needed a home." I decide to not bring up the note that I was informed about on my birthday. I might start to tear up if I do. "The only thing I do know about my old life is my name. Travis..." I quiet down. I can't think of anything else to say. I hear the sounds of hoof steps approach me. I turn to face them and see an extended hoof.

"Well, Travis. My name is Twilight Sparkle, It's a pleasure to meet you." Her warm smile catches me off guard. Twilight is offering her hoof out to me. 

I look down at her hoof, then up to her face. she has a genuine look of kindness on her face. A smile grows on my face. I take her hoof in my hand and shake it. "It's nice to meet you too."

My stomach lets out another grumble. Twilight giggles at the noise, "Someone is hungry." Twilight is still laughing.

I chuckle at her remark. "well, I've not been up long. I was going to buy some food before I cleaned the house." 

Twilight's ears perked up, "Oh, I can take you out!" She offers almost immediately. 

"You don't have to, It's okay." I try to reassure her. 

"Nonsense, you helped Rainbow Dash and me last night. If you didn't show up. who know's what would have happened?" Twilight is very determined about taking me out for lunch as a thank you. 

"Well, if you really think that's gonna make us even. Then, yes." I agree to go out with her. 

"Trust me, Travis. You're gonna have a great time." Twilight trots her way out of my house. I leave with her, taking my bag with me. I make sure to shut and lock the door on the way out. 





We walk along the path into Ponyville. It's just a basic dirt path. The colour is a bright brown, and the crunching noise the path makes while we step on it is satisfying. On the way, we talk about random things, such as books, and movies. Twilight then brings up the topic of magic. 

"Travis, I was too amazed last night to ask you this before, but. How exactly are you able to perform magic? You're not a unicorn, as far as I'm aware." Twilight does have an interesting question. But, I don't necessarily have the answer.

"That's actually a really good question, Twilight. I'm not exactly sure why I'm able to perform magic. My hands seem to function the same way as a horn when I do use magic. I don't know any spells outside of the one that shoots the gust of air out of my hand. I believe that it's because we all have a little bit of magic inside of us. But, You and I are able to harness that magic, and manipulate it." I give Twilight the best answer I got for the question.

Twilight thinks for a moment, "Well, since you can perform magic... Maybe you have the capability of learning new spells?" 

"New spells? That sounds like something Grandpa would be proud of me for learning. He's also a Unicorn after all. I've just never learned any spells in my life." 

"But, the magic from last night? How were you able to do that?" Twilight has a look of interest and confusion on her face.

"I never really gave it any thought, if I'm being honest. It's just something I could do since I first used my magic ability."

"Interesting... There's something I'll have to look into then, later..." Twilight is getting lost in thought.

"The point stands, I'm not sure if it's going to be hard or not." I adjust the straps on my shoulders and place my hands in my pocket. 

"It's going to be hard at first, but you'll get the hang of it! I can even help you learn!" Twilight offers.

I think about the offer for a second. This could be an opportunity for some great things. The Element of Magic herself is offering to train me. "Just a quick question. Why are you being so nice to me? I haven't done anything that good for you." Twilight turns her head to me and looks me in the eyes. 

"I don't mean to beat the topic in. But you helped me last night. I saw how Rainbow Dash treated you just for being there, It made me feel a little sorry for you. So, I want to get to know you a bit better." I'm taken aback. Twilight Sparkle really just wants to get to know me better? "And if it's alright with you..." I raise an eyebrow at her, "Can we go back to my place after. I really want to take notes on you." Wait, what? 

"Why do you want to do that?" 

"There's no information written down on you that seems factual. I really want to have some sort of encyclopedia on your species." Twilight looks away from me when she asks that. She might be thinking she's asking too much. I think I should get on her good side if I want this to continue. I can't shake the thought of Twilight just using me for her own gain. I've been lied to in the past, how can this situation turn out differently. 

"Yeah, that's fine." Twilight's ears perk up, "I was looking for a reason to stay out of the house today anyway. The last thing I want to do is go back to that dusty hole." 

"Thank you very much!" Twilight smiles. This could be a good way to check out the town too. I really need to know my surroundings if I'm going to be living around this area.   

We continue down to the front of the town, and I stop. Looking up at the entrance. "Travis? Is there something wrong?" Twilight asks me. stopping in place herself.

"I mean... I'm not sure if I should yet..." I start to take some steps back. 

Twilight looks at me with a concerned look in her eyes. "Travis, It'll be okay. Don't let some old experience bring you down. If the other ponies see you with me, I'm sure they'll get the message that you're not dangerous."

"I guess... But, they won't like me still." I cross my arms and look down. Twilight walks in front of me and looks up into my face

"Friendship takes time, Travis. You can't just rush through it. Not everyone is going to like you right away, you have to prove that you're someone worth liking." Twilight gives me a smile. "From what I've seen of you so far, You're a nice Pon- I mean. Person. That's what matters most. just ignore the Ponies that hate you for no reason. Let's enjoy our afternoon out."

I inhale and exhale. An attempt of getting rid of the anxiety I built up, "So... Where do you want to eat?" I ask Twilight with a smirk. She smiles back. 

"Anywhere you want."

"Know any good soup places?" I ask. Twilight has to think for a second. 

"There's one by my house. It's pretty good. They use different  varieties  of spices to add some extra flavour." She suggests,

"Why not?" I say. We walk into town with the destination in mind. Hopefully, this doesn't go down in flames...
> Chapter 3: About Last Night...
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

You know the old saying, "The first step is always the hardest?" That's something that doesn't even come close to the feeling I have while trying to walk through the small town of Ponyville. I'm trying to not look around too much, just keeping myself almost glued to Twilight. Every step seems harder than the last. This may not have been the greatest idea. Gossip is ringing all around me. If this affects Twilight's reputation, I'll feel really guilty about it tonight. I lean over to Twilight and whisper into her ear.

"Umm... how much further do we have to go before we reach the restaurant?" My quiet voice makes her ear twitch a little.

Twilight turns her head a bit to see me in her peripheral vision, "Not too far now, Travis. Just a few minutes." her reassuring voice calms me down just a bit. I can feel the stares of the judgmental population on me. As much as I want to bail out of this plan and cower in my room, I just can't let down my one and only friend on our first outing.

Social anxiety is getting to me, my breathing is starting to get heavier. My palms are sweating, though that could just be from the heat along with my hands in my pocket.

"We're here!" Twilight's voice snaps me out of my thoughts. I look at the building in front of me. This is a pretty small establishment, decorations covering the door. Trying to send happy moods to customers I assume. There are some seats with tables outside of the windows on the left side, customers are enjoying their meals. Some of them are taking glances at me and whispering to their partners. The ones that are alone are too enveloped in their books.

"Ponyville Soups and Sandwiches?" I read the sign aloud, adjusting my posture to get a better look at the place.

Twilight gave me a smile with her eyes closed "I hope this is okay?" She asks me.

"This'll be perfect." I nod at her. Twilight uses her magic to open the door, and we both walk inside. I need to duck down to avoid hitting my head on the door.

The front worker turns around, most likely because of the sound of the ringer attached to the top of the door. The beige mare greets, "Good afternoon! How may I H-Hmmm?" The worker stops mid greeting when she notices that I'm in her store. She staring right at me and notices that I'm with Twilight. "Oh.. um, Ma'am... Is that with you... " I look away from the worker because of the rude remark, I shove my hands in my pockets as it's the sort of thing I do when I'm upset. Like, come on? I'm standing right there...

I hear Twilight speak up to the worker. "My friend here just moved into a house outside of town. I owe him a favour, so I wanted to take him out for the day."

The mare clears her throat before announcing "Very well then. Please follow me to your table!" The tone that was spoken was clearly forced. Either that or I'm just paranoid. We are guided to a seat around the back area. The window view that's next to our table let me have a good view of Ponyville. I look around the area from where I'm sitting, taking in the surroundings. I see Ponies doing everyday things such as working at stands, or out with their families.

"Wow. This place sure is peaceful." I say to Twilight, without looking away from the window.

"That reminds me, Travis. How long are you planning on staying here?" Twilight asks. I think about that question for a second. Placing my hand under my chin, and resting my elbow on the table.

"Well. Starting today, I should be staying here for a year. I've always wanted to travel when I was younger, give myself a fresh start. And so far... It's been pretty much the same as back home." I look at my fingers on the table, tracing them around in circles across the wood.

Twilight looks at me with a sad expression, "You really didn't have any friends back at home, huh... Well, to be honest. I was in the same boat"

This catches my interest, "What do you mean by that?" I readjust my position in my seat, crossing one leg over the other, and clasping my hands on the table.

"Before I came to Ponyville, I was just a shut-in. Only focusing on my studies, trying to perfect any kind of magic I could. As a result, I didn't get out too much. I would never take any opportunities I would get to go out with anypony. But that all changed when Princess Celestia sent me here. It's how I met my best friends in the whole wide world. I would do anything for them. That's why Ponyville will always hold a special place in my heart!" Twilight finishes her story and is back to being incredibly happy. "There's something special about Ponyville that just lets everypony get along with each other." Twilight smiles at me, "That's probably why we came across each other this fast."

Images of last night flash through my mind. But... why were they after the Changeling anyway? It can't be just because it was in town, there has to be more to it than that.

I lean into Twilight's ear at an almost whisper, "Speaking of last night, what was that Changeling situation about?" her ear twitches at the vibrations.

"If I'm honest, I'm not sure why that one was in town. All I can think of is that it was a spy, but we couldn't stop it from getting away."

No... I couldn't stop it from getting away.... I was so caught up in my own thoughts that I let that thing get away with its partners. I hope It didn't have any important info on it, or I'll feel TWICE as guilty for affecting Twilight's reputation.

"What are we gonna do?" I ask.

"Travis, if anything bad happens you can count on the Elements of harmony to take care of the problem. You don't need to worry about it." Twilight is trying to assure me that everything will be alright. But it's still my fault for that.

Our waitress comes around, and we place our orders. after waiting for a bit, we get our food and start to eat. It was subpar at best, but oh well. It was still out of the kindness of a ponies heart that I'm eating out, to begin with. But there's still an uneasy feeling washing over me like I'm being watched.

"Hey, Travis. I actually wanted to take some notes on you when we're finished eating. Only if that's okay with you that is?" Twilight makes this adorable face at me, how in Equestria can I say no to that.

"Yeah, sure." I reply "It's a way I can say thanks for taking me out."

Twilight giggled, "The reason why I took you out was that I wanted to say thanks for helping last night." I chuckle a bit at that remark.

"So where do you live around here?"

"Actually, I was assigned to live in the Library around the centre of town. Princess Celestia wanted me to have a place that I would enjoy living in. What better place than to be surrounded by endless books!" Twilight goes on about how much her house fits her needs of living. In fact, I'm getting a little excited to see the place myself. Maybe I'll be able to check out a novel while I'm over, just to read whenever I have nothing else to do with my days. Twilight pays the bill and we make our way out of the establishment. The journey to the Library is pleasant, we make small talk, and I begin to feel more comfortable being around this town. Not to say that I'm welcomed by any means, just that I feel better walking around.

"Well, Travis. This is it!" Twilight excitedly steps aside to reveal a massive tree in the middle of town. the tree seems to be hollowed out, having its own balcony and windows. I see a telescope set up on the balcony, with notes plastered all over the place. different charts are also stood up there. The doorway into the tree is a little small for me, so I crouch a little to enter. My eyes widen at the sight of all the books neatly organized along the multiple shelves wrapping around the room. There are different genres all labelled on each shelf, from fictional stories, to study guides.

"Wow..." is all I'm able to say while taking in all of my surroundings. "This is so cool!" I happily exclaim.

Twilight's face lights up, "You really think so? Rainbow Dash makes fun of me for reading all the time."

The mention of Rainbow Dash gets me a little agitated, "What does she know?" I say back in a half-joking way. "You get to read whatever you want here? I'm actually kind of jealous." I see Twilight's face light up a bright pink.

"It's not that impressive" Twilight giggles. I laugh along with her. Faint steps are echoing from upstairs. A voice calls down from upstairs.

"Twilight, is someone over? why didn't you give me a warning." The voice sounds a little crackly like it's from a young colt.

 I look over at Twilight "I didn't know you had a little brother."

Twilight laughs in response "No! That's not my brother." I look upstairs to see something I would've never expected to find in a Library of all places. A small dragon. Its purple scales are the same shade as Twilight's fur. A green fluff of hair rests on its head. And it has bright emerald eyes.

"Holy Crap!" that's all I'm able to spit out, this is the coolest thing ever. I've always wanted to see a dragon up close, it's a little smaller than expected though...

The little dragon is shocked while staring at me. "T-Twilight, is that? That's that!" The dragon is tumbling over its own words.

Twilight answers the dragon's question, "Yes, Spike. This is Travis, he's moved into a house outside of Ponyville for the year, so I wanted to make him feel welcomed"

Spike is smiling with glee, that's strange. Why would he be happy to see something like me? Spike runs down the stairs, tripping over the last step, but quickly stands back up.

"Umm... Are you okay?" I ask with concern in my voice.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Spike shouts with glee. "I've been wanting to meet you for so long!"

"What do you mean by that? I thought that..." I scratch the back of my head.

"Twilight was telling me about what happened this morning. She made it sound like you were an amazing pony. But I didn't believe her that it was you who did all of that stuff. I always thought you were just some scary creature from the Everfree Forest. I was kind of hoping that you'd be a Dragon." Spike laughs after he's finished.

"Sadly, I'm not. I'm a... I don't really know." I look away from the Spike after my answer.

"Hmm... Twilight should be able to help you out with that. She's the smartest Pony I know!" Spike shouts in confidence. "She was able to show everypony that I'm a friendly Dragon."

"Yeah... But do ponies hate you for being different..." I say quietly.

Spike looks at me, "no they don't hate me, but some are afraid of me. Because I'm a dragon, ponies are afraid that I might eat them one day. Some ponies are scared that I'm some monster. But I don't let that get to me because I know that I'm a good dragon on the inside and that I would never do such a thing to anypony. Especially to..." I didn't quite catch the name of the pony he just said. But I feel that's none of my business.

I extend my hand down to Spike, "My name is Travis by the way. It's.. nice to meet you."

Spike, instead of shaking my hand, bumps it with his fist instead. "My name is Spike. Nice to meet you."

I can see a bit of myself in this kid. We both don't know where we come from, but he seems to be fine with that. I, on the other hand, am not. I will find out about my old life one day...
> Chapter 4: Conducting Experiments
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I hear Twilight clearing her throat behind me. It sounds a little impatient. I turn around and face Twilight with a look of confusion on my face. "So, Travis. You said it was alright if I were able to take notes on you?" Twilight has the biggest smile on her face right now. It's impossible to say "No" to a Pony that excited to learn.

"Y-Yeah, whatever you want." I adjust my posture so I can stand more comfortably. Twilight clops her hooves together in glee.

"This is so exciting!" she lets out an excited high-pitched noise. Twilight claps her hooves together twice and clears her throat. "Spike, I need my note taking supplies!" She shoots a look at her assistant.

"Yes ma'am" Spike salutes in response and runs back upstairs.

"I take it you're close?" I ask Twilight, referring to Spike with my hands.

"He's my number one assistant! As well as number one friend. I remember it like it was yesterday. Being able to hatch his egg with magic, all for a test if you can believe it?" Twilight is dosing off in her own memories.

"How long ago was that?" I ask out of curiosity.

"It was when I was just a little filly. That day was also the same day I got my cutie mark. Can you guess what it means?" Twilight rotates her hip to show me the mark on her purple fur. Her mark is a purple star, surrounded by smaller white stars. I'm not too sure what it represents. Maybe her love for studying? I take my best shot at her little challenge

"Umm... Does it mean you take your studies seriously?" My hopes are crushed when she shakes her head.

"Actually, it means that I have a gift in magic. By the way. Do you have a cutie mark?" Twilight walks around me, examining my body for any sign. Twilight uses her magic to attempt to lift up my shirt, but I pull it down faster and hold it.

"Trust me, I don't have one." My face is turning a little red. Twilight realizes that she got a little carried away and backs up a bit. Her face is turning red out of embarrassment.

"Oh, um... Sorry, I get a little into it sometimes" Twilight shoots me a sheepish grin. She really does seem like the kind of pony to get really invested in learning. The footsteps from upstairs are becoming louder until Spike comes slowly down the stairs. He's carrying a pile of parchment in one claw, a glass of quills in the other, and he's balancing an ink vile on his nose. I'm just staring at him as he fumbles around the room, trying his hardest to keep his balance.

"Uh... need any help?" I ask the dragon in trouble.

"No, no.... I think I got this" Spike grunts while making his way over to the table in the middle of the room.  Spike perfectly throws all the items onto the table and finishes by dusting his claws off in satisfaction. I hear Twilight's horn using magic, and I'm suddenly swept into a chair that's pulled up from behind me. The back of my bag hits the chair.

"S-Slow down!" I shout due to the surprise, "At least let me get comfortable..." I slide my bag straps off and carefully place it on the floor next to me. Parchment paper and a quill are flying towards Twilight. She dips the quill into an ink bottle that's next to her and begins to scribble something down.

"Equestria's finest discovery! No..." Twilight crosses out that title from the top of her paper. "How about.... 'The mystery of the strange creature'! Too long..." Twilight sticks her tongue out the side of her mouth as she thinks. Twilight crumples up the parchment and throws it into a nearby trash bin. "I'll just come up with a title later." Twilight levitates a new parchment over to her and begins to write down on it. "Let's start from the top. Name?"

"Um... Travis." I am a little confused why she's asking me this. She knows my name, maybe it's so that she can get every detail right.

"Age?" Twilight isn't looking away from her parchment while asking me questions.

"I just turned eighteen about two days ago," I answer politely.

"Oh, a double hitter! Looks like we're being efficient." Twilight giggled to herself. Spike sits on the other side of the sofa that Twilight is sitting on. "April 14, 1995." Twilight quickly calculates I can practically hear the mental gears winding in her head. Twilight stands up from her seat and trots over to me. She looks into my eyes, "Stand up for a moment please?"

"Sure." I listen to her command, essentially being a living anatomy model. Twilight walks around me writing down physical aspects.

"Black mane, teal eyes." She says aloud. Twilight looks at my backside with a confused look on her face, "Would it be right to assume that you have a tale underneath your clothing?"

"No, I do not have a tale" I answer bluntly. I hear a scribble noise coming from behind me. I look over at Spike, he's tossing and turning in his seat getting a little impatient.

"Come on, Twilight. You're just writing down what he looks like. When are we getting to the good stuff?" Spike groans.

"Oh, Spike. I need to make sure that everything is perfect. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity." Twilight replies, not looking away from her notes.

"Good stuff?" I raise an eyebrow at Spike. He hops off his seat and makes crazy hand gestures as he speaks.

"Twilight was telling me that you can perform magic, but she wasn't sure if you had a horn or not. That sounds awesome!"

I let out a small chuckle, "No I don't have a horn. I'm not exactly sure how I can use magic, It's just an instinct for me. Twilight said she had a theory that I can learn more magic, considering I can use it."

"Speaking of which..." Twilight says while she quickly finishes writing down all that she needs, "I need you to follow me." Twilight begins to trot towards the stairs. I follow with a confused look on my face. Where is she taking me? As we both walk up the stairs, Spike starts to follow as he's also interested.

"Twilight, you're not taking him there are you?" Spike asks with a groan. That's a little worrisome.

"Spike, there's nothing wrong with my lab. It's purely for advanced research." Twilight boasts with pride.

"You're lab?" I question. I'm starting to think that this lady's a madmare...

"That's right! I've slowly been building it up since I've moved here about two years ago. I only really use it for special occasions." Twilight answers, looking back at me while speaking. We walk along the slightly smaller second floor. I don't get that good of a look around before we descend a new set of stairs. These stairs seem to be going on much further down, tree roots are attached to the dirt tunnel. Candles provide a slight light source, just enough to see where we're going down the spiral staircase. This is screaming all kinds of fishy... Twilight isn't trying to set me up right?

"U-Uh... It's pretty cosy here..." I nervously say. I shove my hands in my pockets. Twilight giggles at my sarcastic remark.

"This actually used to be a storage area. When I first moved here, this is where all the extra supply went. But, I had Spike help me clear it out to free up space."

"More like I did all the heavy lifting..." Spike says quietly enough so I could hear it. A smirk grows on my face from that information. Once we reach the bottom of the stairs, a very worn down wooden door greets us. It has a very simple design to it, I expect that due to the likely hood of this room being used. Twilight uses her magic to push the door open, causing a loud creak.

"Well, welcome to my laboratory!" Twilight steps to the side and shows off the place in all its glory. The first thing I notice is the roots of the library being spread throughout the underground area. Roots are covering the walls and the floors. Instead of bookshelves being used, the roots are making a shape around an area that the books are being tucked into. I begin to explore a little, as I am curious about what this place holds. I walk down a small flight of stairs and see a whole potion set up. Plenty of different beakers and ingredients spread across a wooden table, as well as a book propped up against a stand. I shouldn't go messing with that stuff, I'm not sure if it's important or not. The most eye-catching things in the room are the multiple machines on the other side. There's a massive machine in the back, with pipes connecting all the way up to the top of the room. Could it be something of an advanced heater? There are all kinds of parts on the machine as well, like a cylinder that has a sort of greenish, yellow liquid flowing through it.

"Hey, Twilight. What's in there?" I point towards the cylinder of liquid. Twilight and Spike come down the stairs to join me.

"Oh, that's just gasoline. It's for some of the appliances around the library, like the stove upstairs, as well as the heating so we don't freeze in the winter." Twilight replies. I see a metal cover on the side of the machine. This seems interesting. I walk up to the cover and examine it.

"So, what's this for. Is it another power source? Y'know, in case the gasoline runs out?" I ask. Spike walks up to what I was referring to. He reaches up and hits the button next to it. The sound of objects flopping around is coming out from the inside of the lid.

"That's a washing machine," Spike says putting his hands on his hip.

"Oh..." I look over to see what Twilight's doing, and I see her setting up some sort of machine. This looks interesting. I walk over to examine it. There's some sort of helmet resting on the top of the metal box she's working on. The helmet has a strange design, there's a couple of wires coming out of the top of it. These wires are connecting to the box. "Uh.... what is this?" Twilight looks up with a green wire in her mouth.

"It's a machine that can detect diverse types of energy, by printing out a graph from a dispenser. I can adjust the machine to get a better reading." the cable in Twilight's mouth muffled most of her speech. I clear my throat and gesture my head to her mouth. Twilight moves her eyes down to her mouth. She spits the cable out of her mouth, her cheeks turning red in the process, "What I said was...." Twilight started to walk around her machine, "This machine is meant to measure energy. You just need to put on that helmet and follow my steps. During the process, the machine will be graphing down your information on some paper. The higher the graph is, the higher your natural energy is." All this information is going over my head, but I'll just roll with it.

"So, all I have to do is wear that weird helmet?" I cross my arms.

"Pretty much, Travis. I'll do the rest from there."

Seems easy enough. I walk over to the helmet and hold it in my hands. I look over the cold bowl-like object. There are lights flashing on and off. This better not bite me in the butt. "It's safe right?" the last thing I want is to fry my brain with this thing.

"I promise you, It's not dangerous at all,” Twilight says, looking into my eyes. I'm pretty sure she's telling the truth. I'll go with my gut feeling on this one...

"Alright," I say placing the helmet on my head. It's got plenty of leftover room, as it is designed for their head size instead of mine.

"I'll just need to adjust a few things on the helmet to get the proper scan..." Twilight trots up and uses her magic to change some dials. At least I think they're dials, as the audible clicks are ringing in the inside of the helmet. "I think that's good now" Twilight walks over to the machine and looks over to me. "I just need you to do what I say when this machine is on, alright?" That sounds easy enough. I give Twilight a nod in response. She begins to adjust some dials and flip a switch on the machine. Spike runs up to a glass screen, anxiously waiting for something to happen. Twilight flips the last switch, and the screen lights up with a green line just going across it in a flat way. We all stand still in silence for a few seconds, just watching the continues straight line travel horizontally across the screen.

"That's it?!" Spike complains, almost like he was ripped off.

"A straight line? What does that mean?" I ask. Isn't this thing supposed to measure my magic? Why isn't anything showing up? Twilight seems lost in thought, trying to come up with an explanation for what's happening.

"Maybe it's on the wrong setting." Twilight runs back behind the machine to check what she has her machine set to. "That's strange... It's set to everything that is needed to measure magic." Twilight flips another switch, with an audible click. It sounds like a printer was turned on. Spike quickly moves a basket right below a slot on the machine. A long sheet of paper is being printed out, the same line from the screen is drawn across the middle of the paper. This seems like the graph of information Twilight was talking about. "Spike, how does it look?" Twilight looks around the corner from where she is standing. Spike starts to scan the paper with his eyes, trying to catch any oddities.

"It's the same as the screen," Spike says scratching the top of his head.

"Um... is that bad?" I ask a little worried.

"This means that no magic is detected," Twilight says looking at the graph with Spike. No magic? That makes no sense. "Travis, let me see that helmet for a second." Twilight uses her magic to lift it off my head and proceeds to place it on hers. The machine begins to make blip noises and starts to scribble on the new graph paper that's exciting. "That's what's supposed to happen for you..." Twilight brings her hoof to her chin and begins to think.  Spike looks over at me.

"Does that mean you actually can't use magic?" Spike looks a little disappointed.

"But I really can. Check this out!" I inhale a deep breath and exhale. I close my eyes and begin to concentration. I just need to focus on having my magic emit from my hands, and it will happen. It's a little harder than last night, as my body still is sore from the experience. But I think I'll be able to manage it

"Woah! That's so cool!" Spikes voice causes me to open my eyes, and see the teal glow covering my hands. "What spells can you do? Something awesome? Can you teleport?" Spike runs up to me with a huge smile on his face. Time to blow him away.

"Alright, I'll give you something special," I say. I pull back my right arm, and thrust it towards Spike, opening my hand in the just before I reach the full length. A gust of air shoots at Spike, I didn't take in count his much lighter mass... Spike is thrown across the laboratory. Spike lets out a yell as he's thrown across the room, before hitting one of the root wrapped bookshelves. Spike slumps to the ground, as well as a pile of books falling off the shelf, landing on him. I cringe at the sight.

"You okay?" I shout at Spike. The top of head pokes out of the pile, and he shakes his head a few times to snap himself back into reality.

"You'd be surprised if I told you what I've needed to go through. This was nothing." Spike dusts himself off as he stands up.

"Let me help you clean up." I offer to Spike. Before I can do anything else, Twilight pulls me back to the work area with her magic.

"I've got an idea!" Twilight shouts. She slams the helmet back on my head, "Don't turn off your magic yet!" Before I can say anything, Twilight runs over to the machine to check it out. There's a small reading on the machine now and a weak blip noise, "Just as I thought." Twilight says proudly. What does she mean by that?

"Can you slow down for a second! What's going on?" I turn my magic off, and the machine is unable to read the energy again.

"Travis, use your magic again!" Twilight says excitedly. I follow her instructions and I begin to make my hands glow once more. Readings on the machine are starting to pop up again. They're the same as the last ones, not too much of a reading but it's still there. "Alright, off again." I turn my magic off and we get the flat line once more. At this point, Spike runs over to check out the results.

"Woah, is that supposed to happen?" Spike asks Twilight.

"Usually, this machine is supposed to track your peak and minimum for any kind of energy; in this case, for magic, it seems to not recognize that Travis has magic inside of him when he's not using it. When Travis is using magic, it does detect it, but it's not the greatest signal. I assume it's because Travis doesn't use his magic much, so it's not at its maximum potential right now." Twilight shuts off the machine, and grabs the graph paper, and begins to show it to us. "You see the straight line represents that no energy is being detected." Twilight moves the paper to the readings from my magic. "But when Travis uses his magic, it seems like it comes out of nowhere. Think of it like a sudden reaction he uses it, like combining a highly reactive ingredient with another one to create a chemical reaction." Spike and I look at each other with a confused look on our faces. "In simpler terms... Travis's magic seems to not be something his species isn't innately supposed to do."

This catches me off guard, "So you're saying that I'm not supposed to be able to perform magic. That it's just an accident?"

"I'm not saying that necessarily. I'm just trying to say something about it isn't natural. Look here." Twilight moves the graph up to the point when she was wearing the helmet. There's a pattern going across it. The readings are more apparent than mine for sure, I'm not surprised because she uses her magic all the time. "Even when I'm not using my magic, the machine is still picking up readings. It doesn't see anything when you're not. It treats it as there is no magic..." This is some information... That can't be true, right? My magic isn't natural. Am I a bigger freak than I already am?

"I-I um... I don't know what to say..." I'm at a lost for words.

"This is a miracle!" Twilight says. What? what does she mean by that?

"W-what?" I say.

"You have a gift, Travis. This is something you have to embrace!" Twilight shouts. "You're not a unicorn, but you can perform magic. You have something special about you, and in my opinion, you should try to make something out of it." Twilight is encouraging me to look more into my magical ability. Twilight thinks for a second, "How about we make a regular meeting time for this?"

"What do you mean?"

"I said I'd help you with magic as a thank you for helping me. I want it to be set in stone! Give you some personal lessons." I think about the offer. This could be a great chance to get used to being around Twilight. I do feel a slight connection forming between us...

"Deal." I nod my head at her. This could be the start of something good. I just hope I don't blow this...

We all return to the Library floor, so we can have casual discussions on when I should go for my lessons. It was decided that I should come anytime I'm up for it if it's passed 3:00 pm. The time flies as we were hanging out with each other. Spike fell asleep on the couch while Twilight and I were talking. Twilight lets out a little laugh, "Spike goes to bed early, he is only a baby dragon after all." This seems like my time to leave anyway.

"Well, thank you for taking me out. You were right, I did end up enjoying this more than cleaning my house all day." I thank Twilight while I make sure I have everything in my bag. I check my pocket watch to see that it's just after 9:00 pm

"You're sure you'll be able to find your way back yourself?" Twilight asks.

"Yeah, it’ll be easier as everypony should be getting to bed at this point." I plug my earphones into my portable cassette player.

"You know, this town isn't all that bad with their ponies. They're really nice when you get to know them."

"I'm sure some of them are, I'll just have to get to know them if I want them to like me." I throw my bag over my shoulder. "I'll see you around, okay?"

"Goodnight, Travis," Twilight says to me, while I wave goodbye to her. I'm pretty sure that they still won't like me that much... It's always the same, but I should at least stay on Twilight's good side if I'm going to be living in this town for a year. The town is deserted, nopony is out at this time. It's both eerie as well as relaxing for me. I'm playing my music loudly in my ears to keep me detracted from how long the walk back home will take. Hopefully, it won't take too long.

While I'm walking through town I see a black blur rush across the road. I couldn't get a good look at it, but this only spells trouble. I take my earphones off, and call out "Hello?" But I don't get a response. Who would be out this late, everypony should be sleeping. I shouldn't be too loud just in case I wake anypony up. I shove my hands in my pockets and look around to see where that blur went. It's a little too dark for me to see anything, so I speed up my walking pace to try to get back home as soon as possible. Another gust of air blows past my back. I whip around to see what the hell that was. Once again, there's nothing. This is getting a little freaky...

"Haiya!" A high pitch voice shouts behind me, this causes me to almost leap out of my shoes, and fall on my back.

"Holy shit!" I yell as I fall back. The figure standing in front of me is a bright pink pony, with a hot pink mane. She has a baby blue eye colour, as well as an incredibly curly mane and tale. The mare lets out a loud gasp.

"Ponies shouldn't say those kinds of words you know. They're very bad." The pink pony says in a somewhat scolding tone. I just stare at her for a second.

"Yeah, right... Sorry. You just startled me..." I scratch the back of my head before standing up. The mare giggled.

"It's alright, silly. Everypony makes mistakes!" The mare is jumping up and down.

"What are you doing out here so late?"

"Actually, I was looking for you! My Pinkie senses were telling me that a new pony moved into town today, and I wanted to greet you on your first day! You're a little funny looking though, but I don't mind!" The mare isn't keeping her voice down, she might wake everypony up. I try to shush her while she's speaking. "Oh, are you trying to play the quiet game? I'm the best at the quiet game!" The mare takes in a massive deep breath and shuts her mouth tight. What's with her?

"No, just whisper. And I'm sorry, did you say Pinkie senses? Your name wouldn't happen to be Pinkie Pie, would it?" I ask in a whisper. The mare nods her head. Pinkie Pie lets all the air out of her mouth and begins to talk in a sort of loud whisper.

"Oh, how'd you know! Is this the name game? Let me guess, you'reeeee.... Fabio!"

"No."

"Bobby?"

"No."

"Timmy?"

"Travis," I answer. Pinkie Pie lets out a groan.

"I was so close! Tell me, how'd you know my name? Are my Pinkie Pie Perfect Popular Parties that famous?!" Pinkie leans in on every P she says.

"Actually, it's because you're the Element of Laughter."

"Oh, that's it. A little silly if you ask me."

"If you don't mind me, I was going to get going now..." Pinkie Pie is bouncing next to me.

"So, Travis. Where are you from? Where do you live? How old are you? What was life back at home?" Pinkie Pie asks plenty of questions fast. I only really catch the first one.

"Well, I just moved here from Manehattan last night, today was my first day in town. I was with Twilight Sparkle."

"You know Twily???" Pinkie gasps. "She's like, my bestest, best, best friend!"

"Yeah, she took me out today, we hung out for a bit. We're starting to get to know each other, but she's not much more than an acquaintance." I answer her question.

"If Twily's not your best friend. Then who is?"

"I don't really have any friends," I say quietly. Pinkie Pie is quiet for a few seconds.

"You do now!" Pinkie jumps in front of me.

"Pardon me?"

"I'm going to be your bestest, best, best, best, best friend!" Pinkie Pie shouts excitedly. This is confusing me...

"Huh, why?"

"Because I, Pinkamena Diane Pie is friends with everypony, no matter the shape or size! I know everypony in town!" Pinkie shouts proudly. I cover her mouth quickly before she can finish her sentence. She's too damn loud!

"Look. If I say we're friends, will you please be quiet?" Pinkie nods her head while my hand is still covering her mouth. "Alright, friend..." I move my hand from Pinkie's mouth. Her smile grows to an impossible curve. Her baby blue eyes twinkling. Pinkie lets out a gasp.

"There's something I forgot to do! Bye Travis, see you tomorrow!" She shouts, before zooming off into the unknown at a breakneck speed. I wave slowly and confusedly at her departure. She's really something, that's for sure...
> Chapter 5: Spending Time With The Dragon
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I collapse face first onto my mattress, the recoil of the springs squeak lightly. I didn't do much today, besides spending some time with Twilight, yet I'm exhausted. I got so absorbed up in our conversation that I forgot that I wanted to do my spring cleaning at some point. Twilight did tell me that she's only free after a certain time, so I may just spend my morning tomorrow just trying to clean this place to the best of my ability.

I smother my face into my pillow and let out a sigh. I can't shake the thought of what Twilight was talking about earlier. My magic is off when compared to a Unicorns magic. Of course, it's different! I can't just have something go my way for once. right? I turn my body towards the ceiling and stare at the web covered supports that are going across the roof. I raise my hand above my face, looking deep into my palm.

"There has to be an explanation for this," I whisper while my hand begins to glow a light teal colour. The waves of magic flowing up to a few inches from my fingertips before evaporating into nothing. the room lights up with the teal colouring from my magic. I close my fists causing the magic to stop completely, making the room drop back down to darkness.

I'm still on edge about this whole deal I have with Twilight. She seems nice from what I was able to get from her, but I'm unsure whether or not that's just a show she's putting on to get what she wants. Twilight is the Element of Magic, that should count for something. At the same time though, Rainbow Dash was a bit of an ass for even just helping her... I let out a massive yawn. I'll think about this tomorrow, I'm too tired at the moment anyway...





The early morning sunlight shines through my window, directly onto my face. The warm heat causes me to wake up. My eyes slowly flutter open. I sit up and let out a long yawn, stretching my arms and arching my back slightly. I hear the sounds of my bones popping from being stretched. This has been the most peaceful sleep I've had in a really long time. Usually, it would be loud in the streets of Manehattan at night. Ponies would be out and about at any time. It's probably because they have to work night shifts at their jobs.

I get off of my bed and open my suitcase that I left right beside my bed. My assortment of clothes are neatly folded, so I can fit as many as I can for the trip. I don't have too many different kinds of clothing styles because I had to get them custom-made to fit my body. No store sells anything that would fit me, so it got a little pricey trying to get somepony to tailor me things to wear. I don't remember who exactly made everything, but I'm pretty sure they're happy with the payment. There aren't any fancy designs on any of my clothing, not just to save some bits. But it's because I also don't really like anything flashy. I quickly get dressed in some casual clothing. Nothing too special, just a grey shirt and dark blue jeans. 

Now's probably a good time to get to cleaning up the house... 

"Maybe if I get lucky, Twilight will be at my door." I sigh in disappointment. I know I'm not going to get out of this chore, might as well stop delaying the inevitable. The first order of business should be to put my clothes in a more accessible place, the last thing I want is to constantly dig around for everything. My gaze shifts over to the dresser that's beside the nightstand. It's nothing too crazy, four rows each having one medium-sized drawer. Each of the drawers has a plastic nob in the middle so it can be easily opened. 

I slowly walk towards the dresser. I'm not sure if any spiders set up shop inside any of the drawers over the years of this house being empty. I slowly and carefully pull open the drawer and take a peek inside. There's actually nothing in there? Finally, a little bit of luck comes my way. I proceed to check the other three drawers and come to the conclusions the spiders have yet to invade the area. All that really needs to be done is some dusting on the inside if I want to keep my clothes in there. Maybe grandpa left some stuff around the house?

I leave my room and begin my search for the cleaning supplies. I should probably look inside the washroom first. The washroom is the only other room on this floor if I'm remembering correctly. This place is still pretty new to me, I haven't really looked around because I've been too tired every time I get home. I open the door that's just down the hallway from my bedroom. Just as I remember, it's the washroom. Now that it's no longer nighttime, I get a much better look at what there is to offer. The glossy tiles on the floor run in a checkerboard pattern. Where the colour black would be are replaced with dark blue tiles. The bathtub is on the other side of the cramped room, it's the perfect size for a pony. So, naturally, I'll be struggling with the smaller length. This was also a problem back in Manehatten, taking showers was a bit annoying because I would just move the showing head around in one of my hands to spray myself with the water. 

I kneel down so I can open up the sink cupboard that's to my right, but there's nothing inside except for the drainage pipe. I scratch the back of my head as I stand back up. If I'm being honest, I'm not really surprised if grandpa did end up taking everything with him when he moved away. I'll just give a quick search around the rest of the house to see if I did miss anything...





I close the final cupboard in disappointment, it's now confirmed that everything is gone. I let out a sigh knowing that I have to go into town to buy some cleaning supplies, as well as basic stuff that any house should have. Do I even have enough bits on me for that? I know I do have some money in my bag, but definitely not enough to last me a whole year here. I take a seat on the couch in the living room. I cross my leg over the other, place my hands behind my head, and look into the ceiling. I know I need to get myself a job soon. 

But, what exactly would I be able to do that other ponies can't? I'm not what one would refer to as "Strong" so any earth pony could easily outclass me there, that scratches off anything that involves heavy lifting... My magic isn't strong enough to do anything that a properly trained Unicorn can do. I'd probably end up dropping the ball an anything that would require advanced magic... I could never do anything a Pegasus could do, I can't fly so that's out of the question. I shouldn't be thinking about this right now, I've got some more important stuff to do.

I stand up from the couch and make my way upstairs to grab my bag. The only thing that's worrying me is where to find anything in town. I'm not exactly the most comfortable person around strangers, so asking for directions will be a pain in the ass. I'm not sure if it would be too much of a bother to ask Twilight... If she really is trying to be nice to me, I guess that could be a sort of test, even though it's really just a test of politeness when I think about it. I sling one of my backpack straps over one shoulder and leave my place. 

I plug my headphones into my cassette player and fast forward the tape that's inside to get to some more relaxing music. I settle on a song that has a good soothing beat to it and turn up the volume to drown out any outside noises. I make sure to move the hair that's covering my ears aside so I don't block the speakers while I'm listening to music. I place my hands inside my pockets while I walk down the dirt path to Ponyville. I should probably know what I need to get before I go into town, just so I don't need to be there longer than I need to. I think I'm going to need some sort of feather duster, washcloth, some stuff to keep inside that bathroom cupboard in case of emergencies, and a mop with a mop bucket. That's probably not everything, but that's all I can think of at the moment. After all, I can still head back another time if needed. 

I make my way to the bridge that's just outside of town and stop. This bridge is sort of like a border for the town. I'm not feeling too good about going into town by myself... I can see the citizens doing their own things from where I'm standing. Little fillies running around with their friends, adults are working stands that are selling town goods, and there are just the passerby's that are probably just buying some things for their own places. I'm not sure if any of these stands are going to be selling what I need and I would rather not waste too much time by asking every single one. Maybe I should just go to Twilights' place and ask for some help, I mean, I wouldn't be bothering her just for asking for directions. I'm also not too keen on the idea of asking any of the ponies I don't know, they might not like the idea of talking to an unknown creature... 

I cross the bridge and awkwardly walk through town. I turn up my music to the point where the chatter around me is completely muted. I can't help but to shift my eyes left and right to see what the other ponies are doing. They don't seem to be paying much attention to me surprisingly. I've been getting a few quick glances at most, then they seem to turn their attention back to what they were doing before. Maybe just by looking like I was friends with Twilight it boosted my reputation a bit. I wouldn't be surprised if they're still weirded out by me. Spike said to me that there are still ponies that think he's going to grow up to become a ferocious dragon, so I don't know if there's a rumour about me becoming anything.





I arrive at Twilight's library or "Golden Oak Library" as it is officially called. Should I just walk in? It's a public library after all, but at the same time, it's somepony's home... I raise my hand up to the door and clench it into a fist, I give the door a few quick knocks and wait. I hear some rustling around from the inside before the door flings open. Spike is there to greet me at the door. 

"Hey, Travis. How are you doing?" Spike asks me while he adjusts his posture to get more comfortable. 

"I know I'm a few hours early, but I need to ask Twilight something if she isn't too busy," I ask while scratching the back of my head. 

Spike crosses his arms, "Actually, she went out with Pinkie Pie. Twilight told me she was helping her out with something," Just my luck, huh?

"Oh... Pinkie Pie, huh?" the disappointment leaks out of my mouth. 

Spike raises an eyebrow, "I take it that you've met her?"

I nod my head, "Yeah. She's nice, don't get me wrong. Just a little..." I pinch two my index and thumb in front of my face to emphasise the point.

"Energetic?"

"That's one way of putting it..." I say, thinking about the events that happened last night when she almost woke up the entire town with her screaming, "Anyway, since Twilight's not here, I won't bother you." I turn around and begin to walk away before hearing Spike call out to me.

"Wait! You know you can ask me whatever you wanted to ask Twilight, after all, I am her number one assistant." Spike gives me a thumbs up with a wink, "As long as it has nothing to do with magic... I'm not exactly going to be useful in that area." Spike's own pride deflates slightly by his own words.

"Are you sure? I don't want to interrupt you from whatever you were doing before." I tell Spike, I'm pretty sure somepony his age wouldn't care about cleaning a house.

"I insist!" Spike reassures me, "I would just be sitting around reading comic books all day anyway."

"If you insist. I'm actually looking for a store that sells cleaning supplies. You see, the house I'm staying in is actually pretty rundown. It's covered in dust and spiderwebs and I really need to get that crap cleaned out so I can live comfortably." 

"Is that really all you wanted to ask?" Spike laughs. 

"Pardon me?" 

"I can easily help out with that kind of stuff, I've always been helping Twilight with organizing and cleaning while she studies. It's your lucky day, Travis. I'll show you around. I'll even help you with your house if you want?" Spike points his finger at me in triumph. Wait, how could a dragon also be the equivalent to a housemaid? This guy never ceases to surprise me.

"Yeah, that'd be great!" I thank Spike. In response, Spike gives me a thumbs up. 





Over the next hour, Spike showed me around the area. Told me the best places to look for deals and such, but eventually, we managed to get all that we needed to clean up the place. Actually, it was really what Spike recommended, I just listened along because he's the expert right now. We got a mop with a mop bucket, some washcloths, a couple of different sprays to get rid of the bugs, a few different kinds cleaning solutions, and some stuff for my washroom cabinet. We are now making our way back to my house, but the thought of the townspeople are still in my mind.

I look over at Spike, who's dragging the mop bucket behind him as he walks, "Hey, Spike. Did the other ponies today seem quiet? 

Spike turns his head and cocks it slightly to the left, "What do you mean by quiet?" 

"I mean... They weren't saying anything bad about us. You said that some ponies are afraid of what you'll turn into, right?"

"Yeah, I did say that, but the ponies that are afraid of me are a small amount. Most of them do know that I'm a nice dragon and I'll never do a thing to harm them on purpose. This rumour only really started a few months ago after an incident..." Spike looks towards the ground as he walks, "It was my birthday not too long ago and ponies were giving me gifts to be nice, but my dragon instinct of greed began to grow... The more I was able to get my claws on, the more of a jerk I became... It got to the point where I almost hurt one of my friends..." I can hear the sad tone in his voice. It's obvious that he regrets what happened that day and hopefully, he will be able to move past it. I can't find the right words to say to Spike right now and the last thing I want is to make him upset by accident. What should I say to him? I see my house not too far from where we are. It might be best to just avoid this right now until I get to know Spike a bit better.

"A-Anyway, here's my house!" I point my finger towards the rundown shack. Spike stops and turns his head. The expression on his face turns from sadness to curiosity. 

"Umm...." Spike is at a lost for words, I'm not sure if it's because he's impressed or disgusted, "It's an absolute mess." He states while crossing his arms. Spike isn't wrong, the outside walling will need some patching up someday because of the visible cracks. I don't even want to imagine what the roof is going to look like with all the trees that are surrounding the house, "And how long have you been staying in this place?" Spike turns to me.

"I only arrived here two nights ago and I've been a little to distracted to fix up the place." I attempt to defend myself. 

Spike lets out a sigh and begins to walk towards the house, "Well this is going to take a while..."





Over the course of a few hours, Spike and I were attempting to clean out all of the dust and webs that were built up over the years. Spike made sure to teach me the best way to use a mop "Go in a figure eight pattern" He told me. He's the master here, so I make sure to listen to all he had to say. 

I'm moping the floor to the best of my abilities, making sure to get every spot clean. The house is looking better already, we even managed to get most of the spiders out with the bug spray. Most of the webbing is still covering the counters, but Spike is trying to get it washed off. I hear him call me from the kitchen, "Man, this is taking forever! Spike complains, throwing his claws up into the air.

"You're the one who offered to help, you can leave anytime you want," I speak back without taking my gaze off of my task. 

"Well, I thought that this was going to be a much smaller house because you're living on your own. But I'll stay and help because I'm such a nice guy after all,"I catch on to his joking tone and chuckle to myself, "Who'd you buy this place off of anyway? Because you got totally ripped off."  

I place the mop back inside the bucket to get it wet, "Actually, I didn't pay for this place. It was my foster grandpa's place. He lived in this place around fifteen years ago, but he moved out because his job at the time had him transferred over to Manehatten. Grandpa still owns the place, so for my birthday, he gave me a chance to live here for a year," I continue to mop the floor around me, "It's also nice because there aren't any ponies around this area. I can finally have some peace and quiet at night."

I hear the spray can go off while Spike is speaking to me, "Well, one of my friends lives in this area too. Her name's Fluttershy," Does Spike mean the same Fluttershy I'm thinking of?

"You mean the 'Element of Kindness' Fluttershy?" I stop what I'm doing and look over at Spike.

"Yeah, that's the one," Spike looks at me while he rinses the washcloth he's holding, "Are you a fan of the Elements of Harmony or something?" 

"I sort of am, actually. Back in Manehatten, that's all I would hear about on the radio. When I was being homeschooled, grandpa would tell me about them, how they saved Princess Luna and stopped Discord from taking over the world last year."

"You were homeschooled?" Spike asked out of curiosity, 

"Yeah, I was. Grandpa didn't want to enrol me in public school because of the way the other kids would make fun of me for being weird looking. So he just ended up keeping me at home and attempted to teach me the things that regular schools would. I didn't really learn any complex math or science, but he did teach me a lot about the history of Equestria as it was the easiest to teach. I ended up spending a lot of time inside and not going out that much, that's probably why rumours were spread about me. I can see why. Some mysterious creature living in your town that spends most of their time alone, that's sure to get somepony worried," I try to play it out in a joking way to make it seem better than it was. 

Spike walks up to me, "Well, Ponyville is one of the nicest places in Equestria! They welcome ponies of all shapes and sizes with open hooves, after what happened with assuming things about Zecora."

"Who's Zecora?" I ask.

"She's a zebra that lives in the Everfree forest. When she would come into Ponyville, we used to hide from her because she was from the Everfree forest. We thought that she cursed us this one time, but it turned out to be the opposite, we learned our lesson that day..." Spike scratches the back of his head in embarrassment. She lives in the Everfree forest? That's one of the most dangerous parts of Equestria from what grandpa has told me, it's also where he found me... Maybe Zecora knows something about what kind of creature I am?

"What does Zecora do in the Everfree forest? That place is dangerous from what I've heard." 

Usually, she does her own thing, but her hut is filled with all of this weird potion making stuff. Also, the forest isn't that bad during the day, you just need to be careful while you're in there." Spike responds confidently.

If what Spike says is true about the Everfree forest being safe during the day, I should go find Zecora's place and ask her some questions. But, that'll have to wait until morning as the sun is setting off in the distance. I should help Spike get back to the library safely, he did help me out all day after all...
> Chapter 6: Anxiety
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun has officially set on Equestria. The streets of Ponyville are empty and quiet; it feels like everypony has some sort of curfew that is followed in this town. I've been telling Spike about my experience with being homeschooled by my Grandpa. Spike is curious about how my Grandpa homeschooled me. It was pretty simple; we would spend a few hours a day going through the subjects that Grandpa thought were things I needed to learn. I ended up liking Equestria's History more than something like Math. It was probably because I was desperate to read about my species, but that only lead to disappointment when there was no information catalogued. That's probably where my curiosity was first sparked about where I came from...

"Uhh... You in there?" Spikes voice brings me back to reality; I look over at Spike to see him snapping his claws to make a loud click noise. 

"O-Oh, sorry," I scratch the back of my neck in embarrassment, "I was just thinking about something..." 

"Is something wrong?" Spike asks with concern in his voice; he is looking up at me while we were walking together.

"It's nothing. I was just... thinking about my magic lessons with Twilight tomorrow." I lie. I don't want to bother Spike with my personal issues.

"Speaking of that. How come you don't know any magic outside of your wind blast thingy? Your Grandpa is a Unicorn, right? So what's the deal?"

I raise my hand in front of my face; gazing deep into my open palm, "If I'm being honest... I've been rejecting my magic for a long time. I only thought of it as another reason why I would be considered a freak to the eyes of everypony around me.  My Grandpa would try to convince me that it was some sort of "miracle" and that it made me "one of a kind" but I never saw it that way..." I clench my hand into a fist before continuing, "When the Changelings attacked a few nights ago; I just used magic without even thinking about it, even though I don't have anything that would compare to what the Changelings had. I guess I got lucky," I look down to Spike who is invested with my mini-speech, "I want to use this year to change myself for the better. I want to accept myself for who I am and stop worrying about all the little things that bring me down! The first thing I want to do is improve my magic and show my Grandpa that me spending a year in Ponyville wasn't just me trying to run away from my problems!" 

I hadn't realised that Spike and I had stopped walking and are just standing in the middle of town. I'm not sure what just came over me there, but I just couldn't stop myself from spilling all of my pent up feelings over the years onto Spike. I'm staring directly into his eyes; I can feel the beads of sweat forming on my eyebrow. I really don't think I should've told him this. Spike will probably think I'm some sort of weirdo for being so passionate about something like this, "U-Uh, I'm sorry. It just sort of slipped out and-" my stammering is interrupted by Spike sticking his fist out towards me. 

"That tone of voice really reminds me of Rainbow Dash," Spike begins, "She really wants to become a Wonderbolt and has been working hard at it since the first day I met her. I'm always being amazed at all the tricks she's able to pull off, she even won the "Best Young Flier" competition a year ago. If you work hard like she does, I'm sure you'll be able to do anything!" Spike finished by giving me a wink. "Plus, having Twilight as a teacher will definitely make it easier for you." Those words that were just spoken really are tugging at my heart a little bit. Having somepony believe in me is something I've never had outside of my Grandpa before; it's refreshing and just what I need to help boost my confidence a little bit. I pull my fist back and give Spike's a little bump, not too hard to knock him off of his feet. I have a strange feeling in my gut, one that I haven't felt in my life. I can't describe what it is exactly, but it does feel nice. 

"Thanks, man." I smile at Spike; he gives me a thumbs up in return. We finally start walking back to the library again after who knows how long of talking in the middle of town. We arrive at Golden Oaks and Spike opens the door. It's strange, all the lights are turned off. It's almost like nopony is home at all. 

"Twilight, I'm back! Twilight?" Spike calls out inside the library. the both of us wait a few seconds only to receive no answer, "Is she not back yet?" Spike asks aloud, he was most likely talking to himself. I remember Spike mentioning that Twilight was helping Pinkie Pie with something earlier. Maybe she's still there?

"Spike, maybe Twilight is still with Pinkie Pie? We could just go to wherever Pinkie Pie lives and check up on her. I don't mind going with you." I suggest. Spike nods to me and begins to walk into town; he waves at me to follow. 

"Come on, I'll show you the way."





"So, what exactly does this "Sugarcube Corner" place look like?" I ask Spike. We've been walking around for almost twenty minutes at this point. It's gotten pretty dark now, so it's pretty hard to see.

"It shouldn't be too hard to pick out. It looks like any other building, but the roof looks like it's made out of gingerbread." Spike says while turning his head back and forth. Did he just say gingerbread?

"I'm sorry, did you just say gingerbread?"  

"Yeah. It's also got Icing lining the outside, and some gumdrops decorating the top," This doesn't really sound like a safe building to live in. I really hope it's just for aesthetics, but from what I've seen from Pinkie Pie, I wouldn't be surprised if it was real... "Ah ha! There it is!" Spike says with the snap of a claw. I turn my head towards the building Spike is referring to and to my surprise, it actually does have a gingerbread roof. The shingles are a dark chocolate colour, with dribbles of icing going in a diamond-shaped pattern on each shingle. This is definitely one of the strangest things I've seen in a long time.

"Oh... You were serious." I look over at Spike, "Wouldn't this building collapse if it rains?"

Spike starts to giggle, then it turns into a full-on laughing fit, "It's not made of actual candy. I-I-I can't believe you actually fell for it!" Spike is trying to catch his breath between laughs.

"W-what do you mean by that. I was just playing along..." I scratch the back of my neck trying to deflate the embarrassment, "We should just head inside already." Spike calms down and wipes a tear from his eye. We make our way up to the front door, but something seems off. The room inside is dark; all of the lights are turned off, "Is it closed?" I ask Spike. I don't get an answer from him, instead, he tries to open the door.

"That's strange. It's unlocked." Spike pushes the door open a little bit. This isn't really sitting well with me. Isn't this trespassing?

"Yo, I don't think we should go in there," I speak up.

"I'm just going to call for Twilight and we'll get going." Spike takes a step inside, "You coming?"

"No thanks, I'll just wait right here. It'd be awkward if there were other ponies in there. I also don't want to leave until I know that you can get home safely," I lean on the wall that's next to the door and begin to unwrap my headphones, "Just give me a shout when you find Twilight." 

"Yeah, ok" Spike confirms. I hear the door shut to my left just as I place my headphones on. I turn on my electronic music tape and begin listening to the sweet sounds. I really hope that this won't take too long; I need to rest up so I can go see Zecora tomorrow. The only problem is that I don't know where exactly she lives. I can always just ask Twilight for some directions, but I'm not sure if that'll eat into the time I should be using for practising magic or not. Twilight also wanted to take notes on me while we work on magic though... I don't want to disappoint her by trying to delay that... I do have the whole year to get all of that sorted out, I'm sure I'll think of something by tomorrow.





I'm not sure how long it's been, but I'm starting to get a little impatient. How long does it take for somepony to check up on another? I look down at my feet to see that one of them is tapping on the dirt impatiently. I let out a sigh, and take my headphones off; letting them hang around my neck. I look over at the door and stare at the handle. Should I really just go in and as Spike what's going on? It most likely wouldn't hurt nopony, but part of me is keeping me in place. I can't believe this, I'm freaking out over a door. I really need to just grow up already... I grasp the handle and take in a deep breath. I open the door slowly; letting out a loud creak.

"Hey, Spike! Did you find Twilight?" I call out into the darkness. I wait a few seconds to see if I will get a response, but nothing returned the question. My foot slowly makes its way into the room, the sound of stepping on wood echoes throughout the room. I take another step inside, "Spike, what's going on?" I ask a little louder, hoping that the first time he didn't hear me. 

suddenly there's a loud click and my vision goes to white for a moment. I use my arm to cover my eyes at the sudden shift of light. I hear multiple voices shout the same word, "Surprise!" My stomach drops as I realise exactly what this is. I lower my arm and look at the group of multicoloured ponies gazing at me with smiles on their facing. Their gazes are longing for a reaction, but I can only focus on all the eyes that are glaring at me. I have the feeling of what can be described as multiple knives being stabbed into my chest at once, my heart is racing as I can't find any words to say. I look at my surroundings and see some faces I recognize such as Spike, Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash. They all have smiles on their faces, hoping that their expectations will be met.

"U-Uh, I-I..." I can't speak any coherent words, there are too many ponies. I'm the centre of their attention. It's tearing me apart. Their faces go from being happy to the look of concern. They begin to whisper things to each other as I stand there trying to think of something to say, something to do. My right leg moves back one step, I can't handle this. I shut my eyes tight. I can't think of what to do. When I open my eyes again, I'm no longer inside Sugarcube Corner. I'm outside, running away from the building. My body is moving on its own. Running was the first instinct for it, almost like I have no control. 

"Travis, wait!" I hear a familiar voice call out, but I'm not sure if it was Spike or Twilight who is calling out to me. Frankly, I don't care at the moment. I just want to get out of this area.





I rest my hand on the tree that's to my right. I'm looking down at the ground, panting intensely. I managed to run outside of town and am now standing on top of a hill. Sweat is dripping from my face, I'm not sure if it's because of the run or not. I've never been so scared in my life; not even in the fight with the Changelings. Sadness and fear is turning into frustration and anger. Why did I run away? Why was that the first thing I wanted to do when all that happened were that some ponies I don't know wanted to throw me some party? I pull back my right and punch the tree with as much force as I can give, only to be met with pain and the tree just absorbing the hit.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" I yell out loud as I bang my hand on the tree in frustration. I can feel tears welling up in my eyes. Tears of disappointment and anger. I hear some hoofsteps coming up from behind me; causing me to quickly turn around to see who exactly it is. I see Twilight Sparkle with a look of concern on her face. She looks directly into my eyes and asks me a question; one that feels genuine and from her heart.

"Travis, are you okay?" Twilight's deep purple eyes pierce my body. Instead of answering her question, I just shake my head. I turn away from her and use my jacket sleeve to wipe away the tears falling down my face. Twilight approaches me and stops beside me, she doesn't look at my face while she speaks, "I'm so sorry..." 

"What? What are you sorry for?" I ask out of confusion. Twilight didn't do anything wrong.

"Pinkie Pie wanted to throw you a welcome party like she does for everypony who moves here. I was helping her out for the day and how many ponies would come completely slipped my mind. I forgot about how it would make you feel being surrounded by so many unfamiliar faces." Twilight is looking up at me, "We wanted to make you feel welcomed considering what it was like back for you in your old town." 

"H-hey," I say, my voice is a little shaky, "It's not your fault... It's mine," Twilight then tries to speak but I interrupt her, "You tried to do something nice for me, and I ended up blowing it. I wanted this year to be a new start for me, but I guess you can't help but keep some of your old faults. Everypony probably thinks I'm sort of freak now." I sit down on the grass and look up into the bright moon above. 

"That's not true. You were just surprised. Nopony will judge you on that, considering how many times we've all made mistakes here." Twilight sits down next to me. A few minutes pass before I speak again.

"It wasn't like that back in Manehattan. Whatever you did would end up sticking to you for life, that's why I ended up staying inside a lot. It was a place for me to forget about what it was like being with others, a place where I wouldn't be judged just for what I am."

"Well... Ponyville isn't like Manehattan. I don't think you should let your old experience affect what it will be like here," We sat in silence for a minute before Twilight began talking again, "I used to be the same way..." This catches my interest, and I turn to face her, "When I lived in Canterlot, I would spend all my time alone in my library. I used it as a place to shut myself out of the outside world, a place where I never had to worry about anything other than my studies. It wasn't until Princess Celestia wanted me to help organize the Summer Sun Celebration I went to Ponyville for the first time. At first, I hated it. It was weird and different than back at home. It was then, I met the five mares that changed my life. I finally knew what true friendship felt like, and I never want to give that up. Travis, what I'm trying to say is, please give Ponyville a chance." 

I can't think of the words to respond to that. Should I really just try it out and see what happens? Deep down, I'm just afraid to fail and be left with disappointment. Twilight stands up and looks down at me, "I'm going back to Sugarcube Corner... You don't have to go with me, but you're always welcomed to join..." Twilight begins to walk back into town, my eyes are following her as she slowly descends down the hill. Once Twilight is out of view, I look up into the moon. Is it really worth it; following Twilight? Or maybe it would just be better if I just go home? 

I stand up and look back towards town before turning to face the direction where my house is. It's time for me to make my choice...
> Chapter 7: Suspicions
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

My gaze is locked on the doorknob that is in front of me. Behind this door is what will decide my fate for the rest of the year. Hell, maybe for my life.

I’ve come back to Sugarcube Corner after giving what Twilight said to me some thought. Everypony put so much arduous work into that party; it would just be a waste if I didn’t attend. Before I even knew it, I was already standing outside of the place. The techno music is muffled behind the walls and I can see multicoloured lights flashing through the cracks in the door. I reach my hand and grasp the brass knob. Feeling the cold metal shoots some chills up my spine. What am I scared of exactly? I’ve been assured that showing up again will be alright. I should probably make an excuse on why I flaked out, to begin with…

I turn the knob and the locks click open. I slowly push the door open and am assaulted with music. The ponies in the room are practically shouting so they can hear what each other are saying over the music. Lights are violently flashing all over the room; it hurts my eyes a bit. I look around to attempt to find Twilight in this mess of a bakery. I see the familiar violet mare talking with a Pegasus. The bright flashes of the party lights illuminate the body of the Pegasus. It only lasts for a split second, but I know exactly who it is. The cocky stance, the cyan blue, and the eye-catching mane are all the signature of Rainbow Dash. The last thing I want to deal with tonight is another snide comment from her, but I guess that’s the price I must pay for running away from a party of all things…

I begin to push my way passed the crowd of pony’s, unintentionally interrupting their dancing or conversations in the process. Everypony I must push pass I try to excuse myself as loud as I can; even though they most likely can’t hear me; I know I can’t hear them. Everypony I bump into, I feel the burning gaze of annoyance digging into my soul. But I press on, almost blocking the other pony’s out of my mind, just so I can get to my destination. I reach out and tap Twilight’s back to get her attention. I feel her back muscles tense up a bit from coming into contact with my fingers; it’s probably an unusual feeling for her. Every time the light flashes on and off, Twilight slowly turns to face me. I am at first greeted with a look of surprise, which slowly turns into one of happiness. No words are exchanged between us. Twilight’s smile says it all, she knows her words of encouragement were able to convince me to come back to the party.

The background music fades out slowly before changing into another song. Instead of continuing with the techno genre that was playing before, the music is now some sort of combination of Rap and Dubstep. The styles are clearly clashing with each other, almost like it’s some sort of remix of another song I don’t recognize. There’s one thing I’m certain about, I really dislike this song….

“Hey, Twilight! Can we go somewhere quieter?” I try to yell at Twilight but to no avail. She cocks her head in confusion.

“What?” Twilight yells in response.

“I said, can we go somewhere quieter?!” I yell even louder in an attempt to overshadow the music. Instead of saying anything in response, Twilight just nods and begins to walk in another direction. I think she wants me to follow her? I begin to follow her, and to my disappointment, Rainbow Dash is also walking with Twilight. I guess there’s no getting out of this, I’m in for a rough night…

We go from the corner of the room, past a few ponies, and up a flight of stairs. We’re currently walking down a narrow hallway. I’ve been taking quick glances at Rainbow dash for only about a second while we walk, I’ve noticed her doing the same. The awkward air between us is interrupted by Twilight. “Wow, it’s really loud down there…” Twilight says while rubbing her ear with her hoof. The music can still be heard from even on the second floor, but now it’s more muffled because of the wood flooring. My ears are still ringing from the music that was playing, it’s a complexly unique experience than what I got from my headphones.

“DJ Pon3 really isn’t pulling any punches tonight!” Rainbow Dash is practically yelling; maybe because her ears are ringing too loud. The name “DJ Pon3” sounds so familiar… I feel like I’ve seen a cassette with that name on it, while I was shopping once… “Hey! Where’re you going?” The raspy voice of Rainbow Dash catches me off guard. I didn’t notice that I walked passed where the others had stopped; I was too lost in thought. I slowly turn around to face the girls. Rainbow dash’s very, and I mean very, forced smile catches my attention immediately. There’s something that’s a bit off-putting from this situation right now, mostly because Rainbow Dash isn’t treating me like last weeks trash, and is somewhat being respectable. This smile is really sealing the deal that there’s something going on behind the scenes that I don’t know about.

“U-uh, it’s nothing… I was just lost in thought…” I reply while trying to avoid eye contact with her. I’m not sure if what’s holding me back from outright asking what the deal is. Maybe it’s out of fear from being lashed out at again? I really have to grow a spine for this sort of shit soon…

Twilight uses her magic to open the door we were standing in front of, and to my surprise, it’s a bedroom. It’s way bigger than the one in my house, that’s for sure. This place has enough space to fit probably fifteen Stallions in here. The blanket on the queen-sized bed has a checkerboard pattern of bright teal and a darker shade of teal, with pictures of balloons on the sides and all over the sheets. A sizable couch is sitting in the middle of the room, it has the same colour as the blankets from the bed. Finally, there’s a long table that’s taking up the rest of the space, chairs are lined up on both sides. Each chair is a few inches apart from each other, with four chairs on each side.

“Whose room is this?” I ask Twilight. I’m curious about who needs all this space for a bedroom. It’s almost as big as the first floor of the house I’m living in.

“This is Pinkie Pie’s room!” Twilight responds rather excitedly. Pinkie Pie’s room? Does that mean she’s here now? My eyes nervously scan the room for fear of being jump scared by Pinkie Pie once again, I still haven’t forgotten about last night. While looking around I see Rainbow Dash lay down on the sofa, crossing her forehooves behind her head and crossing her legs to get comfortable. Twilight clears her throat, “Rainbow Dash, can you please wait here for a moment? I’m going to go get the others.”

Rainbow Dash nods her head, not even looking at Twilight, giving her an “Uh-huh” in response.

Twilight looks at me before trotting out, “I’ll be back in a second.” The door closes because of Twilight’s magic, leaving me alone with Rainbow Dash. I lean my back against the wall behind me and I place my hands in my pocket.





The passing minutes feel like hours, mainly because of the awkward silence that’s between me and Rainbow Dash. Neither of us has said a word, and it looks like Rainbow Dash doesn’t even have a passing interest in saying anything to me. But looks are deceiving as Rainbow Dash speaks up, “So, are you nervous or something?” Rainbow Dash isn’t looking at me when she speaks. Her eyes are still closed for crying out loud.

“What do you mean by that?” I ask her back.

“You haven’t said anything in minutes, I see your eyes darting around the room, and I’ve seen you take glances at me. To be fair, I’ve looked at you a couple of times, but for a different reason.” Rainbow Dash completely read me like a book, while at the same time admitting to taking some glances at me. “Or maybe your just nervous because this is your first time being alone with a Mare in a bedroom” Rainbow Dash teases.

“I want to cut to the chase,” I state. This causes Rainbow Dash’s ear to perk up and open her eyes. “You’re acting differently than when we first met two nights ago. Almost like it never happened. You’re trying to act “buddy-buddy” with me, despite what you said that night. Something about this whole situation seems off, and I want an answer.” Our eyes are locked on each other. My stomach feels like it’s twisting with every second of silence.

“I’m going to be honest with you, Travis.” Rainbow Dash addresses me by my name for the first time which catches me off guard, “Twilight and I have been talking to each other more about what happened that night. Mostly, about you.”

“You were talking about me?”

Rainbow Dash sits up, “Twilight went on and on earlier today about how you’re actually really nice to her, and that I shouldn’t have yelled at you that night. She told me ‘Just get to know him and you’ll see’ Maybe I shouldn’t have taken out my frustrations of having the changelings escape on you. You really did help save our bacon… What I’m trying to say is…I’m sorry for yelling at you and making you upset that night…” Rainbow Dash is physically cringing when she finishes her apology.

I’m left standing there dumbfounded. Rainbow Dash just said that… I’ll be taking this with a grain of salt, I don’t really know her too well so I can’t just blindly accept, “Do you… really mean it?” I try asking her.

“Let’s get one thing straight though,” Rainbow Dash completely dodges the question and looks me dead in the eye, it feels like one thousand knives are digging into them, “Twilight, Spike, AJ, Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, all of them. They all mean the world to me. If something bad happens and I find out that you’re to blame, I suggest you learn how to sleep with one eye open!” Rainbow Dash is dead serious about this, it’s honestly frightening, “You got that?”

“Y-Yeah… I got that…” My heart is pounding not from anxiety, but from fear of what this mare will do to me.

The door to my left shoots open, which makes me almost jump out of my own skin. Twilight walks in with some unfamiliar faces, but Pinkie Pie hops in. It’s strange seeing Pinkie Pie hopping all the time, and always… happy.

“Hey, guys!” Rainbow Dash calls out to her friends.

“Howdy, RD. How’ve ya been tonight?” The orange coated mare speaks with a very distanced accent. But, I feel that the most prominent feature about her is the dusty cowpony hat she’s wearing. It looks like it’s made from leather, or maybe it could be a knockoff. I wouldn’t know, I’m not an expert on this sort of thing. The two mares bump their front hooves together.

“Twilight, where might our guest of honour may be?” The voice belongs to one of the most beautiful mares I’ve laid my eyes upon. The snow-white coat is complemented with a sharp purple mane. The purple is almost the same shade as the base of Twilight’s mane. The white Unicorns entire mane and tail are curled elegantly.

“He’s right there, by the door.” Rainbow Dash uses her hoof to point in my direction. All the mares change their direction to face me.

Pinkie Pie jumps up in front of me, “Wow, Travis! Did you like the party I threw for you? Well, of course, you did! You were so surprised that you just ran off!” Pinkie Pie shouted in excitement.

“Yeah… That’s why I ran off! You really got me good.” I lied a little as an attempt to not hurt Pinkie Pie’s feelings.

“I knew it!” Pinkie Pie hopped away excitedly, feeling proud of her own accomplishment.

“Well, girls. This is Travis, he just moved into town not too long ago. Please, make him feel welcomed.” Twilight, presents me to her friends.

“Umm… Hi” I wave to the mares slowly. The orange mare walks up slowly to examine me.

“Err… Twi? You sure it was this scrawny feller that helped you out a few nights ago?”

“Applejack, I told you that he can use magic. It’s truly amazing! Travis, can you please show them?” Twilight asks politely.

“Twilight, I still find it a little hard to believe that this creature can perform magic. It doesn’t even have a horn, I couldn’t even sense his magic as well.” The snow-white Unicorn said to Twilight. Meanwhile, The orange earth pony known as Applejack is trying to poke my arm with her hoof. I look at her with a deadpan expression. Applejack’s face turns red from embarrassment.

“S-Sorry about that, partner.” She slowly backs up.

“I’m serious, Rarity. It’s unbelievable, but I’m sure Travis will show you.” Twilight tries to reassure her friend, “Rainbow Dash saw it too.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty cool… I guess. But not nearly as cool as some of my stunts I’ve come up with over the years!” Rainbow Dash strikes a pose on the couch.

“You mean like the time you broke your wind while doing a corkscrew?” Pinkie Pie jumps up on the couch with Rainbow Dash. All the mares except Rainbow Dash begin to giggle.

Twilight turns to me and nods her head. Is this my queue? I close my eyes and feel deep inside of my core. The energy that is usually dormant is now growing through my body, specifically my hand. I open my eyes and my hand begins to glow teal, just like a regular horn would. My hair is being pushed around a little because of the energy.

I take a look at all the mares who had their gazes locked onto my hand, “I take it that you believe her now.” I say with a little bit of cockiness.

Their mouths hang open in awe, except for Rainbow Dash and Twilight who has seen this sight before. For the first time, I’m glad to have this power inside of me. It’s gathering me the attention I wanted since I was a little kid. These mares don’t fear me, they’re interested in me.

“B-B-But, how did he? What?” Rarity stumbles over her words.

“Oh, my Celestia.” Applejack manages to say.

“He’s doing the thing! He’s doing the thing!” Pinkie Pie is jumping up and down in excitement.

I look over at the one Pegasus who hasn’t said a word since walking in. She’s completely speechless. The Pegasus looks into my eyes with awe. In response, I give her a smile.

“So… My name is Travis Goldheart, it’s nice to meet you all!” I try to break the silence, “If any of you have any questions…. Feel free to ask.”

Just like that, the mares begin to ask questions all at once. Whether it is where I came from, what I am, or why can I do magic. I know one thing for sure… I’m going to be here for a while…
> Chapter 8: Information Overload
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So let me get this straight..." Applejack began, "You're tellin us that you've been able to able to use magic for years, and you still don't know why you're able to?" 

I've spent the past few minutes telling the girls all I know about my magic powers, which honestly wasn't much information to tell. 

"Yeah, I've been able to at least access it for years. My grandpa told me that when I was younger I almost tore the living room apart with my wind magic when I was upset about something," I scratch the back of my neck in embarrassment.

"And is your Grandpa also one of your kind?" 

I shake my head, "He's a Unicorn. I've been living with him since I was an infant," This is starting to feel similar to the conversation I had with Twilight when I first met her. No wonder why these two get along... "But enough about me," I attempt to change the subject, "I believe we haven't been formally introduced yet."

Applejack's ear perks up, "Sorry about that, partner," Applejack adjusts her hat on her head and trots up in front of me, "The name's Applejack," Applejack gives me a friendly wink and shakes my right hand fast and hard with her hoof. Her muscle strength is certainly up there; it feels like she's trying to rip my arm off. When she releases, I feel the entire hand pulsing in pain. 

"Uhh... nice to meet you too," I say while fanning my hand up and down trying to distract myself from the pain. Applejack starts to snicker to herself, "What's so funny?" 

"It's nothin... It's just that Twilight made the same face you're makin now when she and I first met," Applejack sits on her haunches so she doesn't fall over. 

Twilight's face lights up in a bright pink, "hey, I was really busy that day. I needed everything to be perfect for the celebration..."

I look over at Twilight and laugh to myself. It's really adorable to see her embarrassed if I'm being honest. My thoughts are interrupted by Pinkie Pie jumping in place. She's waving her hoof in the air; most likely trying to get my attention, "oh, oh, pick me next! I want to go next!" Pinkie Pie begs. 

"Pinkie Pie, we already met. That's why you threw this party, remember?" I remind Pinkie Pie of the previous night's events.

"I know, I know. It's just really fun to meet new ponies! I really want to meet more of them and throw more parties!" Pinkie Pie is bouncing all over the room announcing her future plans if anypony else decides to move into this town. My eyes are locked on her jumping around the room until Rarity enters my vision. Her eyes seem like she's analyzing my body. Rarity takes the initiative and begins to elegantly trot over towards me, but instead of stopping, she begins to circle me. I think she's trying to get a good view of everything, it's a bit off-putting, "May I... Help you?" I turn my shoulder so I can look at her. 

"Don't move!" Rarity aggressively demands. This causes me to practically freeze in place. She sounded really serious, almost as serious as Rainbow Dash was earlier.

Rainbow Dash groans and rolls her eyes," Great. She's at it again..."

"At what again?" I ask Rainbow Dash; still trying not to move a muscle. Rarity has begun to use her magic to manipulate my limbs for her viewing.

"She's going through her fashion phase. You're gonna be there for a while." Rainbow Dash says bluntly. 

Twilight clears her throat to get my attention, "You see, Rarity owns a boutique stationed in this town. Sometimes she gets this spark of inspiration and goes a little..."

Rarity grabs my face with her hoofs and pulls me towards her face incredibly fast, "You will be my magnum opus!" Rarity shouts excitedly. We're uncomfortably close to each other right now, so I pull away with all my might. 

"Your magnum opus?" I ask out of confusion.

"My masterpiece, darling," Rarity batters her eyelashes at me, "Working on pony clothes can become so dreadfully boring, no challenge has come from it in such a long time. But, you," Rarity starts to hop around kind of like Pinkie Pie," You're entire physique is so different than the other ponies; it will offer the greatest challenge of any fashionista's career. And I, Rarity, will be taking that challenge!" Rarity boldly states, "Plus, you're body sort of reminds me of Spikey-Wikey's. I've always wanted to make clothes for him, but he's always so stubborn." I'm sorry, did Rarity just refer to him as Spikey-Wikey?

"What'd you just call him?" I start to laugh out loud, "Spikey-Wikey?" I'm never going to let him live that one down.

"I'll have you know that my little Spikey-Wikey loves to be called that, thank you very much." Rarity huffs. This is just too good, I can't help but laugh a little harder than before. Rarity clears her throat, "Anyways, Travis. How does coming by at 12:00 sound?" Rarity leans in and her eyes glisten. She really wants me to help her out with this, huh? I can't really just say no... I'm not sure if that'll make her upset or not...

"Y-Yeah. I'll come by and help you..." I begrudgingly accept her offer. 

Rarity claps her hoofs together in delight, "Thank you very much! I'll be right back with the address." Rarity trots out of the room, probably to go get a quill and parchment. 

Applejack walks up to me and raises an eyebrow, "You sure you want to do that kind of stuff and Rarity isn't just forcing you?" Damnit, Applejack is catching on to me already, "Y'know, you can always just say no..."

"Of course I want to do that stuff... I'm always willing to lend out a hoof to anypony who asks for it." I try to play this off cooly.

Applejack smirks, "Willin to lend out a hoof, huh? Then I hope you don't mind getting a little dirty. The apple season is just around the corner, and we're looking for some volunteers to help buck some trees. If you can, just come to Sweet Apple Acres after your little froo froo thing with Rarity."

"Yeah, that'll be no problem," I say confidently. I should really stop being such a pushover now that I think about it... This is one of those situations where I just accepted without really thinking about what I was agreeing to, "So, Sweet Apple Acres, huh? Where is it exactly?" 

"It's not too far away. Just take the bridge out of town and follow the picket fences going along the side of the Apple trees. You'll find our place pretty easily," Applejack answers. It shouldn't take me too long to get there from Rarity's boutique. It really only depends on how long I'm going to have to spend there...

Rarity bursts into the door with a slip of paper in her magical grasp, "I'm here," she announces, "I've got my address written on the top and some simple directions on the bottom in case you get lost," Rarity levitates the slip of paper into my pants pocket without giving me a chance to read it. 

"Right, thanks." I'll try to be polite to Rarity, she seems nice. I look over to my left and see a butter coloured Pegasus fiddling with her hooves; her eyes are fixed on the floor. Her left eye is covered by her light pink mane. I feel a little bad, she hasn't said a word at all. Is it because we never gave her a chance to speak? Or maybe she's still scared of me? "Uh... Hi" I try to greet the mare as friendly as possible. The mare looks up at me, but at the same time trying to avoid eye contact. 

"Um..." She says something that's a little too quiet for me to hear. We both just sit there in an awkward silence. The mare is dragging her hoof across the floor as a nervous fidget. Rainbow Dash lands next to the mare quickly, which causes the mare to jump a bit. 

"This is Fluttershy. If you can't tell already, she's not really good with new ponies," Rainbow Dash wraps her hoof around the mare while she introduces her. So this is Fluttershy? I don't know why I was expecting somepony a little more talkative with their name having the word "Shy" in it... 

"You're Fluttershy? Spike told me about you," I begin. Fluttershy looks up at me, still silent, "He said that you live outside of town too. I used to live in Manehattan, and it got pretty noisy on the streets. So I understand why you live outside of Ponyville. I do enjoy this change of volume."

I hear an audible gasp, not from Fluttershy, but from Rarity, "You used to live in Manehattan!?" Rarity yelled with excitement and curiosity, "You simply must tell me all about it," Rarity's hoofs were stamping on the floor at a rapid pace. Everypony, including me, just glare at her in disappointment, "L-Later, of course," Rarity's face turns red. 

"So, what I'm trying to say it... I guess I'm your new neighbour." I smile at Fluttershy. I feel like I understand her a little bit, I'm not exactly the most open person in Equestria. Hell, if I didn't already know Twilight, Pinkie Pie, even Rainbow Dash a little, I would've probably run out like I did earlier in the night. Fluttershy shifts a little bit and loses eye contact with me. We continue to sit in silence for a few more seconds. It looks like I didn't connect with her like I thought I would, "Is she always like this?" I ask out loud.

"To most ponies, yes," Twilight answers my question, "But you should've seen her when she met Spike. Fluttershy was going on and on about how cute he was and wanted to know everything about him. She really comes out of her shell when she's comfortable," This somewhat makes me feel better. Does this mean ponies didn't like me because I'm not as cute as Spike is... 

"She'll warm up to ya eventually," Applejack hits my side with her hoof. 

"If you say so..." I reply. I take a step back and look at the sight right now. I look over all of the ponies in the room with me right now. Rarity's beauty that overtakes everypony's else, Pinkie Pie's bubbly personality, Rainbow Dash's smug and cocky attitude,  Applejack's strong and unbreakable stance, Fluttershy's quiet deminer, and Twilight's friendly smile. These are all the Elements of Harmony that I've looked up to since I was a kid. Hell, I even envied their bond because it was something that I lacked in my life. This is a literal dream come true, my 9-year-old self would explode if he was in here. Just seeing all of these mares together motivates me to want to achieve a kind of friendship like the one they have together. Twilight was right, this is a new start for me if all I do is put my faith in others. I let out a small laugh. 

"What's so funny?" Rainbow Dash questions.

"I was just thinking about something... Don't worry about it." I place my hands in my pocket.

"You better not be planning something. Remember, I've got my eye on you," Rainbow Dash says with a serious tone. The chill from earlier comes back. Rainbow Dash really is scary when she wants to be... Speaking of which, what time is it? I forgot my pocket watch in my bag and it's still at home...

"Hey, does anypony have the time?"

Pinkie Pie waves her hoof in the air, "It's currently 11:23 and 24 seconds. make that 25, 26, 27," Pinkie Pie continues to count upward. Seriously? Is it that late already? 

"Well, a mare must get her beauty sleep," Rarity announces, "You'll be at the boutique tomorrow?" 

"You know it." I nod. The rest of us all say goodbye and we begin to go our separate ways.

I'm walking through the almost empty SurgarCube Corner dining area that was used for the party. It's almost a complete mess and most ponies already left the party. I look over to see the DJ cleaning up her gear. She has a wild mane and tail style, the colours are a dark blue and a light blue going in a pattern, and she has purple shades that completely cover her eyes. Maybe I should thank her for playing music tonight, even though I didn't really like one of the songs that she played. I begin to walk over to the Unicorn, but before I can reach her, a mare steps in front of me. The mare is an Earth pony with a seafoam green coat. Her mane and tail are shorter than the average mares. They're both complemented by a light shade of pink.

"Hi, there!" She greets me rather happily. 

"Uhh... Hi," I respond a little annoyed as this mare just cut me off.

"So, you're the pony that the party was for, right. What's your name?" 

"It's Travis," I answer rather slowly while trying to peek behind her. To my disappointment, the DJ is wheeling out the last of her equipment. I let out a sigh, and lean back to the way I was standing before. But on the way back, I noticed something strange. The mare that's trying to talk to me has no cutie mark... She's a blank flank? at her age? 

I hear her clear her throat, "My eyes are up here, Travis," The mare teases with her eyes half-lidded.

"Y-yeah, sorry," I apologize to her. Something about this isn't sitting right with me, but it could just be my imagination. at the same time though, she's being a little nice to me... I know that Spike said that Ponyville is friendly, but I don't know about this... "So, is there something you want? I'm kind of..." Before I know it the mare is close, I mean really close, "In a hurry..." 

"So, how are you liking Ponyville so far?" She asks me, "You make any friends yet?"

"Something like that..." 

The mare begins to walk around me, her tail trailing a bit across my side, "What are you so nervous about? Haven't you ever talked to a mare before?" The mare giggles as her tail brushes past my back, sending chills up my spine. She's right, I am nervous. Not because of talking to a mare, but because of this situation. This seems too good to be true. How is it that this mare that comes out of nowhere is not only acting a little too friendly with me but is also showing interest in me. I feel like a lump is stuck in my throat right now, making it so I can't even say a single word. 

"I-I, It's not that, I just..." I try to think of an answer but I can't. I'm completely helpless, at the mercy of this mysterious seductress. 

"Say no more," The mare stops and looks me in the eye, "I know it's really late right now, but how about we go and grab a cup of coffee and chat for a bit? Spend a night out on the town? It'd be fun, wouldn't you agree?" The mare's face is close to mine. The alarms in my head are going off on full blast right now, this is the only kind of thing that would happen in the movies. This feels scripted like it's all been planned out to the finest detail. 

"I-Um-I" I start to stammer out of nervousness, I need to think of a way to get out of this. My eyes begin to dart around the room looking for something, anything to get me out of this situation. I hear somepony whistling a tune, my eyes dart over to Pinkie Pie who's happily whistling while cleaning up from the party, "I- I can't tonight, sorry."

"Oh? Why not?" The mare looks upset.

"I'm helping my friend over here clean up the party she threw for me. It's only fair that I repay her for her gratitude," My excuse flows off my tongue a little too naturally. I feel my stomach tighten while the mare thinks over my response.

"Really? That's a shame..." The mare walks past me, my head doesn't follow her. My eyes are locked on the confetti-covered floor, "Maybe we can do something another time? When you're not busy."

"I'll think about it," I lie as an attempt to get her off of my back. I let out a huge sigh of relief while I walk over to Pinkie Pie. I crouch down and start to pick up party cups that have been left on the floor, "Thanks for showing up when you did, Pinkie Pie. I wouldn't have been able to get that mare off my back if you didn't" I thank Pinkie Pie.

"You're welcome, for whatever I did!" Pinkie Pie looks around the area, "But I don't see any mare around here." What? She doesn't see the mare. I quickly stand up and look around the room, the mare has vanished. She was just here a second ago, how'd she get out so fast? Now that I think about it, Pinkie Pie would've noticed her if she's from here. Pinkie Pie said that she knows everypony in town. So it would only make sense for Pinkie to greet her... I'm glad I went with my gut feeling on this one. who knows what would've happened if I let her tempt me into what was most likely going to be more than just coffee...
> Chapter 9: Carousel Boutique
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

My eyes shot open from the loud noise that's echoing in my room. I turn my head over to the alarm clock that's currently going out of its mind. My eyes are following the little metal piece that's hitting the two bells to create the wake-up call. I stretch my arm out towards the clock, waving my hand slightly in an attempt to press the button to get it to stop ringing. My finger lands on the switch with a satisfying "click" of the mechanism. I sit up on my bed and begin to stretch my muscles and back; followed by cracking my knuckles. 

I look over at my clock, it's a little after 11:00 am. I rub my face with my hands as the thoughts of last night's encounter flow back into my head. There's just something about it that I can't get out of my mind. For all I know, it could've just been nothing more than a mare that drank a little too much during the party. That is if there was any alcohol there, to begin with. Maybe I'm just overthinking it... 

I get out of bed and begin to get changed into my regular clothing, "So what's the plan for today?" I ask to nopony in particular. I know that Rarity wants me to be by her boutique by noon, then I roped myself into volunteering at Applejack's farm for a while... That's definitely going to be a pain. I remember I wanted to ask Twilight something when we're together next, but I can't remember what it was off the top of my head. 

Once I'm dressed, I leave my room and go to the bathroom. I open the cupboard so I can grab my toothbrush and toothpaste. Maybe I should come up with a more concrete schedule for today while I'm brushing my teeth... I know that I need to go so Rarity and Applejack today for sure, as I did promise I would. I do want to go see Twilight for a bit for some magic training, but I'm not sure if I'll have the time or energy when I'm finished with Applejack to even think about going to the Library. I don't want to seem neglectful of Twilight, she really helped me out when I first came into town. We did make a deal about her teaching me if I gave the information she wanted. I don't want to let my first friend down. 

I spit into the sink and put my dental stuff away. I pull out a comb and start to fix my hair, staring deep into my own reflection. The problem of coming up with a schedule right now is that I have no idea what exactly I am doing at each location. I know for sure that going to the farm will equal doing hard work and will eat up a lot of time. Going to Rarity's might not take up any time at all if what we're doing will be easy, hopefully. At the same time, it could always be something that'll be slow and painful. The more I think about it, the more I realise that I might not have any time or energy to even see Twilight when I'm free... I should go tomorrow though and spend as much time as she wants taking notes or whatever. 





I let out a loud yawn and stretch my arms out while I'm walking down the dirt path. I have no idea why I'm so tired today, it might be because of my sleep schedule being messed up, but I can't say for sure. I pull out the slip of paper that Rarity gave me last night. I look at the directions that are written on the bottom of the paper and make the decision to follow those when I get into town. 





I'm not sure how long I've been walking around for, but I can safely say... I'm completely lost. I sigh in frustration, I'm supposed to be by some café at this point, yet I'm in the market area. Maybe I had to start at Sugarcube Corner and follow the directions from there? Now the problem with that is... I don't know where Sugarcube Corner is; I only followed Spike there last night, I wasn't paying much attention. I grip the paper tightly in my hands, almost to the point of crumpling it up, "I can't believe I'm going to be late on the first day she needs me!" I say aloud. 

"Who is it that you're talking about?" An unfamiliar voice asks. I turn around to the source and see that they are talking to me. It's a light seafom Unicorn, her eyes are a bright yellow, almost to the point of being gold. Her mane and tail are a very faded out cyan colour, with a pure white streak going through both of them. Her mane is actually almost as short as Rainbow Dash's, but it's styled differently enough for it to give the Unicorn her own identity. Her cutie mark is a golden harp. She walks up to me with a look of interest in her eyes, "So, you're the talk of the town, huh?" The Unicorn starts to circle me. Is she trying to get a good look or something?

"Talk of the town?" I question. I'm not surprised as much as I made it sound. The only thing I hope is that it's more of a positive talk, rather than a negative one.

"I can see why now. You kind of look like that little Dragon I see walking around sometimes," The mare refers to Spike, "I tried to look around at that party last night to see if I could get a glimpse of you," The mare finishes circling me and stops in front of me again, "And it was worth it. You look really cool!" The mare shouts excitedly. This catches the attention of some ponies walking by, they give us some awkward looks.

"Uh... Thanks?" I scratch the back of my neck. I'm only really wasting time by just standing here, I need to go find the boutique. 

"I know it's a little awkward that I just came up to you out of nowhere," The mare looks down at the dirt, then looks up at me, "But I heard you say you were going to be late and you looked lost... So, where were you going? I can show you the way if you want?" Is that really why she came up? Something like that would never happen back home... 

"S-Seriously?" I ask dumbfounded. The mare nods her head in response, "Well... I'm looking for Carousel Boutique," I read the name off of the paper, "A friend of mine wanted me to help her with something."

"Carousel Boutique, eh?" The mare walks past me. She takes a few steps forward before turning around, "Come on, follow me!"

I start to walk beside her as she shows me the way around town, "You know how long it'll take to get there?" 

"Not long at all, I've been everywhere in this town. I know my stuff. In fact, Rarity's place is one of my favourites; I just love the way her dresses look." 

I place my hands in my pocket as we walk through the streets. Hopefully, I'll get there in time and she's not just leading me on...





"And here we are!" The Unicorn points her hoof out to a unique looking building. It's not like the other shops I've seen here, but it's definitely not as strange as Sugarcube Corner. The overall design of the house is kind of like a cone-shaped tent with purple and pink walls. There are decorations all over the building that make it look like a carousel from an amusement park; that's probably where Rarity got the name from.

"Thank you very much, ma'am," I say to the unicorn. She got me here incredibly fast, even faster than Spike would. 

"No need to be so formal," The mare giggles, "My name is Lyra Heartstrings, but you can just call me Lyra if you like."

"Thank you, Lyra. My name is Travis," I hold out my hand. Lyra stares at it for a second and blinks. She sticks out her hoof slowly, I grasp and shake it.

"Wow, that feels... strange..."

"You'll get used to it," I release her hand and begin to walk towards to Carousel Boutique, "It was nice to meet you. I'll see you around," I wave back at Lyra while I walk away.

"See you later, Travis. If you're ever looking for something to do, you can find me and my friend at the café, usually."

The café huh? I'll be sure to keep that in mind if I'm ever free. I walk towards the door and knock on it. I wait there for a few seconds, only to not be answered. Maybe I should just go in? I grasp the handle and push the door open, a little bell is chimed at my arrival. I hear the hoofsteps of a pony upstairs move rapidly.

"Hello!" Rarity calls out from upstairs, her word elongated at the last syllable, "Welcome to the Carousel Boutique, how may I be of assistance to you," Rarity walks downstairs, not noticing that I'm the one who showed up. Rarity looks towards me, "Oh good afternoon, Travis. Glad you could show up."

"Yeah, sorry for being a little late... I got a bit lost on the way..." I try to avoid eye contact with Rarity.

"Don't be silly," Rarity begins to trot up to me, "You're only late by just a few minutes. If you were to be here earlier, you would've caught me fixing my mane," Rarity flips her mane with her hoof. The beautiful purple curls almost sparkle in the light. Rarity definitely is one of those mares that spend a lot of time on her looks; not that I'm complaining, it really does pay off, "So, shall we begin." Rarity begins to trot over to her workstation.

"I guess I am... If I'm being honest, I still have no idea what you want me to do," I walk towards Rarity, while at the same time getting a good look around the room. Plenty of fabrics and supplies are neatly organized, there are a few machines also around the room. I can't begin to imagine how tough a job like this would be, especially if you're doing it by yourself. 

Rarity begins to levitate some supplies with her magic. Blue aura covers different measuring tapes, a notepad, and a pen, "Today will be pretty simple, but a little tedious for the both of us. I need you to stand on that platform with the mirrors surrounding it," I look over at the platform she's talking about. There's a pony manikin standing on it; there are three mirrors surrounding the manikin, "Feel free to move anything that could be there," Rarity hasn't looked away from her table yet. She's probably still getting ready. 

I crouch down and grasp the manikin by the metal pole, standing up to raise it off of the floor, "Where should I put this?" I ask.

Rarity turns around for a second to see what I'm holding, "Just put that by the changing rooms," Her head turns towards the purple curtains. Those are changing rooms? It seems like they would lack the privacy a simple locked room would... I wobble my way over to the destination Rarity wanted me to go and place the manikin down, gently. I return to the platform and notice that there is a floral pattern on it.

"You really put a lot of effort into making this place look appealing, huh?" I look around the room from the platform.

Rarity giggles, "It's really nothing, Darling. I was always told that Ponies love places that make them feel comfortable, especially if they're going to be standing there for upwards of hours."

"From what I've seen of the shops in this town, they all have their own atmosphere that was lacking back home. The ones from Manehatten felt so... mechanical?" I think that's the right way to describe it. 

Rarity walks over with all her measuring tools in her magic grasp, "What do you mean by that?" Rarity uses her magic to remove my jacket, probably because it would get in the way. 

"No passion really went into anything there, it felt like ponies where there just so they could get their payment and come back the next day," Rarity's tape wraps around my waist tightly. She then trots over to another side of my body and records the information. 

"Hmmm, I see. Not everypony where you're from is contempt with sticking to what they're cutie mark says is their special talent," Rarity unwraps the tape from my waist, "May you please raise your hoof up?" 

I think she might mean my arm,"Yeah, no problem," I follow her demand and she measures from my leg all the way up to my arm. 

"So, what was it like in Manehatten? I've never been there and I must know what it's like," Rarity asks politely. Should I sugarcoat it or no... 

"Well... The ponies there aren't really that nice to... outsiders or anypony that would be considered 'strange' like me. I'm not sure if it's because of the stress of working almost all the time or what, but they aren't really ponies you should bother about anything."

"So you're saying that they're grouchy?" Rarity tries to confirm with me while she scribbles down some numbers.

"I guess so. I didn't really go out too much because of it. It's probably why I'm so pale... I heard you last night say that you wanted to expand your business there. Is that your dream?"

Rarity giggles to herself, she's momentarily stopped taking my measurements, "That's correct, Travis. I've heard that Manehatten's fashion scene is lacking... and by judging by the plainness of your outfit, it's done nothing but confirms it," Talk about a low blow... "My dream is to have my fashion be all over Equestria! The name Rarity to become a household name for everypony to know!" Rarity pulls my face close to hers, "You will be the greatest challenge, the one that will help my dreams become a reality. If I'm able to make a successful fashion line based off of you, we'll be able to do great things in the future, you and I!" Rarity is getting ahead of herself...

"Are you sure something my face attached to it would even sell... Especially in Manehattan..." My lack of confidence is showing.

"Trust me, Darling. I can make anything sell. Now I need you to hold still for the next little while..." Rarity sticks her tongue out as she moves the measuring tape around my body. 

Rarity seems like the type of mare that is only satisfied with the very best. She'll never settle for anything less. Success seems to be her motivator to do better than her last attempt, which I can commend her for. I only hope that I don't get stiff muscles from staying still for a few hours...
> Chapter 10: The Apple Family
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I rub my stiff shoulder with my right hand, attempting to loosen it up. Rarity kept me standing there for a couple of hours, plus she wants me to come back as soon as possible. I was only able to get out at the time I did because I have to go to Applejacks place to help out with the farm. The words from Applejack echo in my mind, "Once you cross the bridge, follow the white picket fence to get to my farm," something along the lines of that. I made sure to confirm it with Rarity, so I don't get lost again. 

I look at what the fence's supposed to be guarding, there are apple trees going on for what seems like miles. I shouldn't be surprised, the farm has somepony named "Applejack" working there. It makes sense that they run an apple orchard. The apples look bright red and juicy. I may have to try to bribe one out of Applejack later... They look a lot better than the ones back at home. I place my hands in my pockets and continue down the path at a faster pace, the excitement of the apples are getting to me...





I see a red barn in the distance, it's bigger than I thought it would be. I decided to jog the rest of the way, I've never been to a farm area before, so I want to check it out as soon as I can. I arrive at the front gate of the area pretty quickly and look over the farm in awe. Above me is a sign with a hollowed out middle in the shape of an apple, there are vines covering the post with apples growing on them. The barn is painted an apple red, with images of apples on the walls. Not only the barn, but the chicken coops are also painted red... with an apple theme going on. Okay, I get this is an apple farm and everything, but this is really obsessive... 

I place my left hand on my hip while I gaze around the area, looking for anypony to talk to, specifically Applejack. I spot the orange cowpony running up to an apple tree at an extremely fast speed, "Yehaw!" I hear her shout out as she approaches the tree. I got to take a look at this. I start to jog up to the towards the area Applejack is running towards. When Applejack gets close enough to the tree, she quickly spins around and gives the tree a mighty buck. The tree shakes violently, losing a few leaves in the process. More importantly, piles of apples fall out of the tree, landing in buckets that are carefully arranged around it. I slow down my pace to a walk, watching Applejack exhale loudly.

"Not only did you kick the tree with enough power to knock down all of the fruit, you managed to arrange buckets perfectly to catch all of them. Colour me impressed," I complement Applejack on her outstanding display of raw power, I'm even clapping my hands together.

Applejack does her own version of a curtsy, "I thank ya kindly. I'm more impressed that ya didn't chicken out of today and you stayed by your word." 

I shrug my shoulders, "Well, I did say I would help..."

Applejack chuckles, "I hope that your little dress up party with Rarity didn't make you afraid of getting dirty because you're going to be sweatin like a pig by the end of the day!"

"Just what I always wanted..." I say sarcastically, "So what do you want me to do first?"

Applejack trots up to me and sits on her haunches beside me, "You see that apple tree over there?" Applejack points her hoof at a nearby tree.

"Yeah, I see it," I cross my arms and lean my weight on my right foot, just to get comfortable. 

"I want you to get the apples out of that tree and into these buckets," Applejack is now pointing her hoof at a group of buckets that are pretty sizable, "I'll help ya set'em up." 

"Uh... Sure," I respond as we both start to walk towards the buckets. There are two buckets per wooden pole; I'm not too sure how I should carry it though. I look over at Applejack who gets underneath it and begins to carry it with the back of her neck, effortlessly. Alright, so these shouldn't be too heavy. It's only the first thing Applejack wants me to do, so naturally, it's going to be the easiest thing. I grab the wooden pole with my hands and attempt to lift it up. To my surprise, these buckets are a lot heavier than they look on the outside. I wobble a little in place, trying to lift the pole over my head and on my neck area.Once I'm able to get the pole to a more comfortable area, I begin to follow Applejack who is almost at the tree at this point. I'm being careful with each step, so I don't lose my balance.

"You okay, Sugarcube?" I hear Applejack ask me in a half teasing way. 

"Pfft, don't worry about me, I've got this under control," That was a bit of a fib, I'm a little worried about falling over, "You should just worry about setting your buckets up," I try to get her attention away from me. Applejack rolls her eyes and begins to set up the buckets she brought over around the tree. I'm able to just barely stumble my way over to her and carefully place the buckets down behind me, "See... What'd I tell ya," I try to sound confident?

"That was only stepping one, there's still plenty more you need to know," Applejack smirks, "I need you to now get the apples out of the tree."

"That's pretty simple," I say. I look up at one of the thicker branches of the tree, maybe it can support me... I open my hand and aim it towards the ground, crouching down a little to get myself ready. I use my air gust spell on the ground and jump at the same time to send me up higher than a normal jump would. I land on the tree branch but feel myself wiggle a little bit. I place my hand on the main trunk of the tree so I don't fall over. I slowly sit down on the branch and look at Applejack, "See, now it's going to be a cakewalk."

Applejack snickers a little, "You don't plan on... picking each apple individually, do you?" Applejack begins to laugh halfway through her sentence. 

"Well... I mean..." Applejack completely guessed my Idea and is laughing at it. I mean, I don't really see what's wrong with it.

"Look around ya," Applejack says, "Don't you see how many trees there are? It'll take you ages to get through one, let alone a few of them!"

"Then what do you want me to do?" I slide off the branch and land on my feet, making sure to bend my legs so I don't get hurt. I then turn around to face Applejack 

"I want ya to give 'em a good ol apple bucking!" Applejack says with pride.

"Apple bucking?" I ask confused. This makes Applejack give me a strange look.

"Y'know, like what ya saw me do earlier. I want you to give the tree a good buck."

I remain silent for a few seconds while I think about the kick Applejack gave the tree earlier, "You're kidding me, right? You want me to do that?"

"Yessiree!" Applejack nods her head. This has to be a joke; I can't do anything close to that.

"Uh, I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I'm not exactly the strongest guy around."

"Didn't Twilight say that you were able to help fend off some Changelings a few days ago? This is way easier than that is," Applejack gives me a playful hit on the arm.

"I'm not sure what Twilight told you, but what I'm saying is what happened that night was a complete fluke. If I didn't get a surprise hit in on one of them and if they knew that I had magic, I probably would be dead," I look towards the dirt, thinking about how the situation would've been different if I weren't so lucky. 

"C'mon, Travis, don't think like that. You need to believe in yourself and make sure your technique is good. With those two ideas in mind, you can do anything," Applejack tries to encourage me on, "I do suggest you get a running start at it though, it does help with the impact if you do."

I walk away from the tree until I'm a good enough distance away from it. Self-doubt is entering my mind, I'm sure if I can do it... I clench my fist as hard as I can. Applejack is right, I just need to believe in myself. I get into a starting position and gauge my target, the lonely apple tree that has such a punchable look to it. I just need to remember what Applejack did. She ran up at top speed, then twisted around to kick the tree with all of the force. The way she kicked it though, she used her forehooves to help propel the attack, then stretched out her hind legs to connect to the tree. She was carrying the momentum from the run-up to the tree... Yeah, I think I got it down. A smirk starts to grow on my face, I've figured it out. 

Before I can even think, my feet are carrying me as fast as they can towards my target. The blood is pumping in my chest, almost like the adrenaline is trying to escape me. I see my self rapidly approach the tree, closer, closer, even closer. I just need to believe in my own strengths, I will knock the apples out of this tree and nothing will stop me. The phrase, "The unstoppable force vs the immovable object" is what can describe the feeling I have right now in my heart. The metaphorical fire is burning bright and hot, I'll show myself that everypony that I can do it, that I can accomplish anything!

A grin grows on my face now that I know I'm close enough. I turn my body slightly, placing my hands on the dirt to assist me and to be my propeller. I scrunch my legs in to build up the power, as well as slightly bring myself closer to the ground, my body rotating slightly. It feels like time itself has slowed down for the moment of pure triumph as I spring from the ground towards the apple tree. I can't contain any more of this built up adrenaline and I let out a loud yell as I extend my legs to give this tree the best buck it'll ever have in its life. I shut my eyes tightly as my feet connect to the apple tree, it almost hurts me a little, but it doesn't matter. My legs scrunch back to me so I can land in a squat position. I stand up, not even looking at the apple tree because I know I did something fierce to it. 

"Er... Travis?" I hear Applejack say to me, she's most likely impressed that I managed to buck down some apples on my first try. 

"I know, you don't have to say it. Honestly, what was I even worried about? That was pretty ea-" I interrupt myself as I turn around. The tree is completely fine. In fact, it looks like my kick did nothing to it at all. I can feel my mouth open up wide in shock. Did that kick really not do anything?

"Y'know, you might be a little scrawny... But at least you have heart," I feel Applejack pat me on the back. Despite all of my efforts, I think I need to be just a tad bit stronger if I want to work here...

"That's a little... soul-crushing," I cross my arms. The bitterness and self-disappointment is now flowing through me even stronger than the adrenaline I felt earlier.

"Don't let it get to ya, you just need some more practice," Applejack trots in front of me, "Maybe get some meat on your bones as well," Applejack pokes my scrawny arm with her hoof, "C'mon, let's try to find something else for you to do." Applejack begins to walk towards the barn with me following her depressingly. 





The sun is setting over the Sweet Apple Acres farm. Even though it's starting to become dark out, it's still hot as hell. It's most likely because of all the chores Applejack had me attempt throughout the day, I even took my sweater off to cool down, but that didn't work at all. Even right now it feels like I'm being pushed to the absolute limit. Applejack wants me to try to move a cart of apples. What they did was attach me to said cart and want me to pull it just by walking. At this point Applejack's older brother, Big Macintosh is trying to help find something that I'm able to do. He's pretty nice, if not really intimidating, but he's also a stallion of few words.

My feet are skidding in the dirt while I try to walk forward, the weight of the cart full of apples is holding me back. I can feel myself sweating buckets while I try to move the cart with every step. Sometimes I'm able to get it to move forward a bit, only just a few centimetres though. My legs are beginning to shake and my arms are getting sore, it only takes one more step for me to slip and fall down. I fall to the ground, but catch myself with my arm before my face touches the ground. I inhale and exhale heavily, I need to catch my breath so I can try again... 

"Alright, that's enough, Sugarcube," Applejack calls out to me. I attempt to push myself to my knees, but my arms are shaking too much. I feel my straps being loosened, giving my waist some breathing room. I look over to see who took it and see Big Mac getting the straps set up on himself. 

"Thanks..." I'm able to huff out at him.

"Yup," Big Mac responds before he begins to effortlessly move the cart to where I was supposed to bring it to. My fists clench the dirt in frustration, the soft soil wetting my hands slightly. I can't believe that I wasn't able to do anything That we tried today. I've never felt so humiliated in my life. I slam my fist against the dirt in anger.

"Damnit!" I yell out in anger. My eyes begin to water, I've let down Applejack today for sure. I've wasted everypony's time, including my own. I feel a large body come from underneath my arm and lift me up. I look over to what it is and to my surprise, it's Applejack.

"C'mon, don't just lay in the dirt," Applejack uses her free hoof to straighten up her hat. I'm able to get onto my feet, balancing relatively easily.

"I'm... Sorry for wasting your time, today..." I avoid looking at Applejack; I'm absolutely sure she's disappointed.

"Don't worry about it," Applejack chuckles, "Everypony starts out somewhere. You shoulda seen me when I was a filly. I was more hopeless than a Dodo bird tryin to get into the Wonderbolts."

"Pardon me?" This analogy has flown right over my head. We've begun to walk towards Applejacks house, instead of the barn.

"I couldn't lift anything heavy, I couldn't pick the eggs out of the coop without gettin a good peck, and I was the worst Apple at apple bucking," Applejack begins. Was she the worst? But, she's amazing from what I've seen," I would try for countless days just to get that one good buck. Days and nights were spent just outside, practising. One day, when I thought it was all hopeless, I managed to get my first apple buck. It made it feel like all the hard work and trying paid off, just by getting it right once."

"You never gave up... despite it seeming like it was impossible?" 

"I've been told in my day that I've been fickle," Applejack winks at me. This causes both of us to laugh a little.

"Soups on everypony!" I hear a voice yell, distinctively belonging to an old pony. This is followed by a ringing of a triangle.

"You heard the mare? Let's go!" Applejack starts to pull me towards her house a little forcefully.





"So, your stayin in Ponyville for a whole year?" The old mare known as Granny Smith elongates the last year of her sentence. Granny Smith is just finishing preparing dinner for the Apple family plus one extra. I'm sitting in my chair awkwardly, I honestly feel a little uncomfortable with this situation. Applejack insisted that I'd join her for dinner because of how much effort I put in today. My fingers are nervously tapping my legs while we sit there in silence. 

"Y-Yeah, I just moved into the area a few night ago," I reluctantly answer. I turn my head to face where I thought Granny Smith was standing, only to be greeted by her right in front of my face. Her eyes feel like daggers that are piercing into my soul. Did I do something wrong?

"Hmmm... Applejack, you better not be gettin googly-eyed over this one," Granny Smith scolds Applejack for doing... Well something, I don't know.

"Granny, I just met him last night. I don't have those kinds of feelings for, Travis," Applejack responds a little embarrassed. I just continue to sit there awkwardly. I'm pretty sure my grandpa would be the same way if I ever brought home a mare... 

Granny Smith's eyes lock onto me once again, "I've got my eye on you," The shrill voice of Granny Smith almost makes me grin. I look over to an empty seat next to Big Mac, but there's a plate of food set up like there was supposed to be one more here. 

"Who usually sits there?" I look over at Applejack as she takes a bit of her apple pie. Applejack chews and swallows her piece before answering.

"My little sister Apple Bloom usually sits there, but for the past few nights she's been out late 'crusading' with her friends."

"Crusading?" This is gonna be interesting.

"Apple Bloom and her friends are apart of the 'Cutie Mark Crusaders' it really is just trying a bunch of things to see what they'll get there cutie marks in." 

"It sounds like something to do to pass the time, I guess..."

"Twilight was tellin me that you're a blank flank," Applejack grins at me, "Is that true?" 

"Uhh... Yeah?" What's Applejack thinking of?

"Maybe you should think about joining the Cutie Mark Crusaders, I'm sure they'd love a new member." Applejack laughs at her own joke. I always thought that I couldn't earn a cutie mark because of my species, but maybe I just wasn't trying hard enough... What am I thinking? I probably would've gotten it by now if I could earn one. 

I look out the window to see that the sun has set and darkness covers the area. I missed my chance of going to Twilight's today, but I'm going to go tomorrow. I'll spend as much time as she wants taking notes or whatever, just to make it up for not doing anything with her...
> Chapter 11: Magic Control 101
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Today is April 19th, so that means it's my fourth day living in town. That also means it's been a while since I've been with Twilight by ourselves. I really hope she's not angry or anything about me doing things with Rarity and Applejack, instead of her...

I approach the door to the Library and give it a good couple of knocks. After a few seconds of waiting, the door opens. Instead of it being Twilight like I expected, it was actually Spike. Spike looks like he's in a hurry to go somewhere.

"Oh, hey, Travis." Spike greets me.

"Hi, Spike. Is Twilight there?" I try to look around the Library but to no avail.

"Yeah, she's just upstairs. You can just call her and she'll probably come running if it means she gets to learn more about your species," Spike says in a half-joking tone, "Well, you two have fun doing whatever it is you two are doing," Spike runs past me, he's heading into town.

"Hey! Where are you going in such a hurry?" I shout at Spike as he runs away. 

"I'm going to go see Rarity! I told her I'd help her out today!" Spike yells out without turning around, "I'll see you later!" 

I cross my arms, "Well... Alright, I guess I'll see you later too," I was somewhat hoping Spike would be around today, I feel like we hit it off nicely last time we were together. I walk into the Library slowly, getting a good look at all of the books that are neatly organized. It would be a pain to do all of that... "Hey, Twilight!" I call out. After a few seconds of waiting for a response, I decided to call out again, "It's me, Travis! I came over because I was with Rarity and Applejack yesterday. I felt kind of bad for not being with you after what you did for me." I wait a few moments for a response. What I got instead was a bunch of hoofsteps from upstairs quickly move. 

"Travis, you're here?" I hear Twilight call from upstairs, her volume is slowly getting louder as she leaves her room, "Sorry, I was just caught up in reading something," Twilight walks downstairs, her mane has been freshly straightened. She is wearing an excited grin on her face, her and I both know what I'm here for. 

"Don't worry about it. I just wanted to come and see you because I felt a little bad for skipping out on our deal." 

Twilight has a confused look on her face, I think she even forgot about the deal for a second, "Don't feel bad about that, I said you can come over anytime. That doesn't mean it has to be every day. On the note of that deal, I said I'd help you with your magic. Would you like to do that now?"

"Absolutely!" I accept the offer excitedly. It's a very exciting feeling that one of the best Unicorns in Equestria is going to be my teacher, "What are we doing first?"

"We're going to start with the most basic step I can think of. We're going to be working on your magic control first."

"Working on my magic control? You mean like... How strong it is or something?" I'm confused, I already know how to level how strong the magic would be, for my air gust spell at least. 

"Not that. I'm talking about using your magic to manipulate objects. Have you learned how to do that yet?" Twilight raises an eyebrow at me. I shake my head. Twilight smiles, "Well, for our first lesson, we're going to be going on a little field trip." Twilight begins to trot upstairs, "I just need your help getting some things together." 





Twilight and me or walking through town. She said that we needed somewhere peaceful to practice, so I can keep my concentration. Twilight suggested somewhere outside of town, just so I don't accidentally trash her Library. We've got a few things with us from the Library, Twilight asked me to carry a flip chart for her, I never got to see what was on it exactly. 

"Are you sure we need all of this stuff?" I ask Twilight while I try to get a better grip on the flip chart.

"I'm positive. You see, I'm not sure if your magic will be the same as a normal Unicorns because you're... Well, not a Unicorn. With the information I gathered from the scan of your magic we did a couple days ago, my hypothesis is that your magic is different than ours. I'm just not sure how different it really is, we did find out that you're pretty much invisible on the magic spectrum when you're not using it though. Usually, a Unicorn is always visible on the magic spectrum, that's how the Royal Guard are able to sense threats or unfamiliar magic," Twilight dumps a lot of information on me at once, expecting me to follow it. She may be overestimating my ability a bit.

"You said 'Usually' has there been a case where that's been proven wrong?" 

"The only magic that I know would fly under the radar is magic from Discord," Twilight puts a hoof to her chin while we walk. 

"Discord... That name sounds pretty familiar. Wasn't Discord the god of chaos? He was sealed away over 1000 years ago by the Elements of Harmony, right?" I'm pretty sure that's how the story went. 

"You're both correct, and missing some information still. Almost one year ago, Discord managed to escape his prison. He managed to disband the Elements of Harmony momentarily and take control of Ponyville. We managed to seal him back away, but this time it could be forever. But, that's not the point of bringing him up. Discord was one of the few to slide under the magic radar, it could be because his magic isn't Unicorn magic... Maybe we can't detect the magic of other species? But I know for sure that it can be scanned with that machine I scanned you with, as it picks up its data from the inside of your body, right down to the brain activity," Twilight begins to mumble to herself. At this point, she's completely lost me.

I hear a familiar voice to my left, but it's not talking to me. I recognize it almost immediately and turn my head to see if my assumptions are correct. It's just as I thought, it's the mare that was talking to me at the party, but this time she's flirting with a stallion outside of a shop. I can tell by the way the stallion is reacting that he's being roped right into her charm. I guess she moves on quick from rejection, a little too really quick... There's a new eye-catching thing about this mare, it's the fact that she now has a cutie mark. When did she get that? I'm sure it's not an overnight process. The cutie mark is a pink heart, I'm not sure what it's supposed to represent. It looks a little cookie cutter, almost generic in a way...

"Travis?" Twilight interrupts my train of thought.

"Huh? Sorry, did you say something?" I turn to Twilight. If she did ask something, I hope it wasn't too important.

"I was just wondering what you were looking at? You seemed really out of it," Twilight says with concern in her voice.

"It was nothing..." I say to Twilight. I take a quick glance back to where the mare was standing, to find out that both the mare and stallion have disappeared, "I just had a strange feeling. It was probably nothing." 





"Alright, this is the spot!" Twilight says excitedly. We're standing on an open plain surrounded by trees. There's nopony or even animals for that matter in sight. I guess this is what Twilight meant by "no distractions" it's peaceful here, I wouldn't mind taking a nap on the grass if I'm being honest... "Travis, may you please place the flip chart over here," I follow Twilight's orders and place the flip chart on its stand, beside her.

I back up and get a good look at the front page of the flip chart, "Magic and you, by Twilight Sparkle," I read aloud. The text is accompanied by a crude drawing of a Unicorn with the horn lit up, the unicorn has a smile on its face. In fact, the unicorn almost looks like Twilight.

"The drawings were Spike's idea, he wanted to make the lesson more 'fun' but I think it's plenty of fun just learning," Twilight explained to me. 

"I think the drawing really adds to it," I chuckle. Twilight uses her horn to flip over to the second page.

"Step one," Twilight smacks the title with a pointer stick, "Understanding your magic. Let me ask you a question, Travis. What do you know about magic? I'm not talking about spells, but magic as it is." 

It takes me a second to remember what I was taught by Grandpa, "Well... Magic is inside everypony. Unicorns are able to use their horns to access their inner magic and manipulate it so they can perform spells. Pegasi and Earth ponies don't have access to their magic, but it's why they have their own special talents. The former being able to walk on clouds and manipulate the weather. The latter being naturally stronger than both of them."

Twilight smiles, "Correct, but do you understand how Unicorn magic works?"

"Um... No, sorry," I answer honestly.   '

Twilight giggles, "There's nothing to be sorry about," Twilight slaps her pointer against the first drawing of the Unicorn, "As you can see here, this is the standard Unicorn body. As you already know, Unicorns use their horns to harness the magic inside of them," Twilight slides her pointer to the second picture of the Unicorn, the horn has been parked with a highlighter, "When a Unicorn desires to use their magic, it's focused up into the horn. Think of it like an antenna for a radio. Without the antenna, the music won't play. In this case, without the horn, the magic wouldn't be accessible."

"I have a question," I raise my hand slightly, "What would happen if the horn were to break? Does that mean there would be no magic at all?" 

"Incorrect. The horn would still be attached to the body, but the Unicorn would have a difficult time trying to control the magic output that they might as well not use the magic at all. Think of it like your cassette player," Twilight says.

"My cassette player?" I scratch my head at the comparison. 

"Imagine if the nob used to control the volume were turned up to the maximum output. It would be really loud, right? Now, imagine if the volume was always set to maximum output, but you couldn't turn it down," Twilight finishes. So she's saying that no matter what the Unicorn will always be producing the maximum amount of magic at a time?

"Would there be any way to control the magic if something like that were to happen?"

Twilight rubs her chin with her hoof, "This is mostly just speculation, but I guess if the Unicorn were to spend years trying to tame the magic, they could."  

"Alright, is there anything else I need to know before we get started?" I really want to move on to the next step at this point. 

"There's still plenty of things left to tell you," Twilight sticks her tongue out in a teasing way. Twilight slaps the pointer on the final picture of the page of the Unicorn's horn glowing, as well as another object, "You see, basic spells aren't ones that require a Unicorn to expend a lot of magic. That's why you see almost everypony use the Levitation spell on small objects. More advanced magic, such as anything combat focused, requires expelling a lot of magic from the body to be used for damaging something. For example, your air gust spell could technically be classified as combat magic. You're using a lot of magic from your body on the oxygen around us to push yourself or others. So your body won't be able to make enough magic to replenish the lost magic immediately, unlike the levitation spell. The levitation spell doesn't take a lot of magic to lift small objects, but the bigger the object, the more magic it'll take to lift it."

"So that means the body won't be able to replenish the lost magic fast enough to lift two heavy objects one after another. After lifting the first one, you'll be too low on magic to lift the second one immediately. So in a way, it's kind of like sprinting." 

"Exactly," Twilight says a little impressed, "You catch on quickly. Remember when I scanned your magic a few days ago?" I nod my head, "Well since it detects the amount of magic you currently have, you've got a little more than a filly unicorn right now. This means if we decided to throw an advanced spell at your right away, you simply won't have enough magic to pull it off, even if you completely understand how it works."

"So what you're saying is we need to build up my magic if I have any hope of doing anything more advanced?"

"That's correct," Twilight nods.

"How would I even build it up?" 

"That's where today's lesson comes into play," Twilight flips to the third page of her presentation, "We need to start off at the basics if we want to get an understanding on how you learn." Twilight's pointer slaps the title of the page, "Using magic to manipulate objects, also known as 'levitation'" 

"Levitation, huh? I've seen every Unicorn use this spell all the time, I was getting a little jealous that I was the only one who couldn't do it."

"Today's the day that all changes," Twilight says proudly while at the same time using her magic to retract the pointer. She uses her magic to levitate a blanket out of her saddlebag and lay it on the ground, followed by an apple, "Alright, Travis. This spell is a little tricky to get right at first, so don't get frustrated if you can't get it right now. 

"Okay," I understand what Twilight is saying. If I get too frustrated it'll only lower my chances of getting this right. I take a seat on the ground and stare at the apple. Twilight sits on her haunches right across from me. 

"I want you to levitate this apple over to yourself," Twilight's horn and the apple become covered in a purple glow. The apple gently floats from the blanket, over to Twilight's face. My eyes are locked onto the apple, studying it, "Just like that," Twilight says. 

"It looks easy enough," I say trying to hype myself up.

"Well, if someone thinks that they're a prodigy, why don't you show me?" Twilight teases.

I sit there awkwardly for a few seconds, "Can you... please tell me what to do at least."

Twilight giggles, "Alright, I guess I will. I need you to close your eyes," I follow Twilight's order and close my eyes, "You need to visualize that apple in your mind. You need to make sure that the apple in your mind is the one on the blanket, not some apple that you thought of randomly. You need to see that exact apple in your mind and only that apple, no blanket, or me," Okay, an apple. Think of nothing but the apple on the blanket... I visualize the entire scene before myself. Maybe I should work from there. It feels like the area around me is beginning to vanish slowly, the flip chart is gone, the trees are gone, and Twilight is gone. Only me, and the apple, "Do you got it?" Twilight's question breaks my thought a little bit, but I manage to keep it to only the apple. 

I don't even want to answer the question, "Yes" I whisper out as an attempt to keep concentration. 

"I need you to reach out and grab the apple, with your mind's eye," Twilight whispers in response, "Don't reach out with your forehoof, just reach out with your mind," Twilight is too into it to remember I don't have hooves, "When you've done that, only use a little bit of magic from your body. Let it flow through and grab the apple for you," So that's what she meant by it would be tricky... If I try to reach out with my mind, I might reach out in real life. That'll break the concentration if I'm interrupted by any other feeling. I clasp my hands together while I sit down, the feeling of skin touching is a little distracting, but I need to focus. I need to reach out... I need to reach for the apple... I see my own hand in my mind begin to move towards the apple. I slowly close my hand around the apple, there's no sensation of doing so.

"Okay..." I whisper. I just need to use my magic to lift it, right? My magic just needs to wrap around this apple, not too much, only use a little bit. I sit there for what feels like hours, waiting for my magic to move over to the apple, but there hasn't been any sign of it doing so. I open my eyes with a look of frustration in them, "Damn, this is harder than I thought it would be." 

"Travis, the trick is to not think about anything. I heard you mumbling to yourself, I can tell you were feeling anxious," Twilight says, looking me in the eyes. 

"I was mumbling to myself?" I didn't even know I was doing that... 

"You just need to relax and clear your mind of everything don't worry about anything going on right now, just sit there in peace." Twilight tries to give me some tips on how to get better results.

If I'm going to learn this spell, I'm going to need to listen to Twilight. I just need to clear my mind and focus on the apple in front of me, which is a little harder than it looks considering I can hear the pen scribbles coming from Twilight's end...
> Chapter 12: The Mayor's Announcement
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun is setting over the plain field; I've been trying to get this levitation spell right for the past couple of hours. I've improved slightly since I've started, now my magic is able to wrap around the apple, but I'm struggling to lift it up. My magic fades away as I lose focus; I let out a groan of frustration, "Great... I'm getting too distracted..." I say out loud. I wasn't expecting this spell to take so long to even get right once, I'm starting to feel a little unsure about this whole thing.

"Maybe we should take a break? You've been at this for hours," Twilight suggests. She's been trying to give me some tips while I was practising, they've been helping a lot, but not enough for me to actually levitate something. 

"But I-" I try to protest before getting cut off by Twilight.

"You're getting frustrated, again. Remember, you need a clear head in order to get this spell right. If you're getting anxious or angry, you'll just be wasting your own time," Twilight puts me in my place. She's the teacher after all, so I should listen to her.

"Fine..." I reluctantly agree.

"You should also give yourself time to restore your magic. Who knows what'll happen to your body if you run out?" Twilight levitates over a bottle of water. I take off the cap and take a swig, the liquid cools me off and rehydrate me.

"What happens when you run out of magic?" I use my sleeve to wipe away the water from my chin.

"Usually, I feel really sleepy, and it gets harder to focus on anything," Twilight tells me before she takes a sip from her own water bottle, "We can't rule out that something different could happen to you since you're a different species."

I chuckle, "Twilight, there's no need to worry. Just because my magic is different, it doesn't mean that anything bad will happen if I use too much," I've never had my magic cause anything harmful to happen to me in my life, so I can say it with confidence.

"Just... Try not to overdo it, please," Twilight frowns. We sit in silence for the next few minutes; I'm at least trying to clear my head so I can get back to practising. My thoughts are interrupted by Twilight speaking, "So... Are you getting used to Ponyville?" She asks. 

"Yeah, I'm starting to," I readjust the way I'm sitting so I can get a better look at Twilight, "At first I was really unsure about moving here. I only really did it so I could get away from Manehattan. I honestly didn't really care where I went, as long as it was far away. I didn't really think that this small town would be a good place to go to, but Grandpa insisted I move here because of the old house," When I finished, I remember the night where Grandpa told me about my real family. The more I think about it, the more I realize that the last time we had a real conversation is when I yelled at him. Regret begins to fill my stomach; I completely screwed up that night...

"You talk a lot about your Grandpa... What's he like?" Twilight asks me with an eyebrow raised. This catches my attention and distracts me from the guilt, "You really love him a lot, I just wanted to know what he's like."

"You want to know about good ol Grandpa Goldheart, huh?" I grin at Twilight, "Grandpa's the kind of stallion that believes that you should never try to change who you are and to make sure that who you are is the best you can be. When I was younger, I didn't really listen to that... When I found out I had magic, I just wanted to hide it. I thought 'Maybe if I pretended I didn't have it and acted like everypony else, ponies would like me more.' I wasn't exactly old enough to understand that I couldn't change what ponies thought of me by just pretending that something didn't exist."

Twilight saw I was looking a little down and wanted to change the subject, "You told me a couple days ago that your Grandpa would be proud of you if you learned magic. Did you try to before?"

"Not really..." I think about it for a second, " Grandpa really wanted me to learn how to use my magic, but I just wanted to shut it in and keep it a secret. Grandpa would go on and on about how I could join the Equestrian Guard if I just let him help me. Grandpa really wanted me to follow in his hoofsteps," I scratch the back of my neck. 

"Hold on a second. You're Grandpa is apart of the Equestrian Guard? For the Princesses?" Twilight asks with genuine surprise in her voice. 

"Definitely not Royal Guard, He worked on a much lower scale than that. Grandpa worked around this area and a little out to the west. That's why he owns a house here, but he retired years ago."

"Did you ever think of joining the Equestrian Guard, like your Grandpa did?"

"You're just full of questions, aren't you?" I tease Twilight, "I'd be lying if I said I never thought it... But look at me... I can't even levitate an apple, what hope do I have of being up with the best Equestria has to offer..."

"Don't say that," Twilight says trying to cheer me up, "So what if your magic isn't the best right now, you just need to practice more."

"I'm not too sure that a little bit of practice will get me up to being on their level. Besides, that job doesn't really interest me right now."

"Practice can go a long way. Look at Rainbow Dash, she's always wanted to join the Wonderbolts, so she practices every day. During the best young flyer competition about two years ago, she even performed the Sonic Rainboom!" Twilight is visibly getting more excited when she talks about it.

"The Sonic Rainboom? I thought that was a myth. Rainbow Dash pulled it off?" I'm dumbfounded. how did Rainbow Dash do it? 

"That's right! Rainbow Dash just believed in her own abilities and practised every day. She was so fast that she saved Rarity as well as three Wonderbolt members all at once!"

"No way..." No wonder why Rainbow Dash is always so cocky... 

"Twilight!" A voice in the distance calls out. Twilight and I quickly turn our heads to the location of the sound to see a blur flying towards us. Speak of the devil... Rainbow Dash lands on the ground rather harshly, skidding across the dirt on her hooves. Rainbow Dash slows down to a stop right in front of us, "Twilight, we need you to come to town right now." Rainbow Dash says, her breathing is a little harder. Was she trying to look for us

"Did something happen, Rainbow?" Twilight responds with a lot of worry in her voice. This is starting to make me feel a little uncomfortable. 

"Mayor Mare is holding an emergency town meeting, everypony has to go," Rainbow Dash fixes her gaze on me, "That includes you."

"Uhh... Okay?" I'm a little confused, we never had any sort of emergency town meetings back home. From the sounds of it, this can't be good. 





We arrived into town not too long after Rainbow Dash found us. Twilight told me that the town meetings are usually held outside of town hall, so it's more convenient for everypony. I look over to my left and see multiple groups of ponies heading towards the same location we are, some of the fillies and colts are with their parents.

"Maybe I should stand in the back, I'm much taller than the rest," I suggest to Twilight. I think I will be able to see from the back, it's also because I don't want to be crammed beside a bunch of strangers. 

"Good idea, I'll join you," Twilight responds, not wanting to leave me alone. 

"I guess I will too..." Rainbow Dash begrudgingly agrees.





It's been about half an hour since we started to stand in the back row; the sun is set even lower than it was before. I let out a sigh of boredom, I really hope that this doesn't take long, I want to get back to practising levitation magic. Almost on cue, the Mayor of Ponyville walks out onto the platform that has been set up. A pair of stage lights follows her to the podium. Once the mare reaches the podium, she clears her throat into the microphone. The microphone echoes her action, most likely as a test to see if it's working properly. 

"Greetings, everypony," The Mayor speaks into the mic. The area falls silent, we're all eager to hear what the Mayor has to say, "I've decided to hold a town meeting here today for a public service announcement. There has been an alarming increase of reports recently on the disappearance of ponies in this town," When the Mayor finishes her sentence, the chatter begins again except this time, it's filled with fear. 

"Disappearances?" I lean over to Twilight.

"This is the first time I'm hearing about it..." Twilight begins to think to herself.

"Are our children safe?" A mare calls out from the crowd.

"Do you know who's causing this?" A stallion calls out from a different part of the crowd. A bombardment of questions from the bystanders erupts towards the Mayor.

"Settle down, everypony!" The Mayor begins. After a few seconds, we all stop talking, "That's why I called all of you here today. We need to go over some rules that everypony needs to abide by in order to stay safe. Rule number one: All fillies and colts need to be home by 8:00 pm at the latest. Rule number two: Everypony needs to be accompanied by somepony they trust, whether that be family or friend. Rule number three: If anypony sees any suspicious activity, please report it to the town hall. To answer another question that was asked, no, we currently do not have a suspect on who or what's causing these disappearances. The only thing I can tell you is to look out for any suspicious activity," When the Mayor finishes her speech, I can feel the daggers being thrown my way. I mean, why wouldn't you suspect me in a situation like this? Some creature showing up out of nowhere, followed by the disappearances of ponies in the same town. I look over at Twilight and Rainbow Dash. Twilight has a look of worry on her face, and Rainbow Dash is glaring right at me.

"If something bad happens and I find out that you’re to blame, I suggest you learn how to sleep with one eye open! You got that?" Rainbow Dash's words echo through my mind. She's serious about that threat, huh? 

Before I can say anything, Twilight begins to speak, "Rainbow Dash, Travis, I need you two to come with me for a second," Twilight begins to walk away from the crowd of ponies.

"You are all dismissed," The Mayor says. The group of ponies begin to go their own ways, I feel some of them look at me for a second before going back to their own ways. I don't believe this... Even after that party that was supposed to welcome me, ponies still don't trust me. What's going on in the town right now is a serious matter, I might even get arrested if somepony thinks that I did it. I start to walk to where Twilight is heading, hopefully, I can find a way to keep my name in the clear...





We arrive at the library a few minutes after leaving the area, the tension still is polluting the air. Twilight calls out, "Spike, are you home?" 

"Yep, I've been here for the past few hours," Spike responds from upstairs. Spike comes downstairs, he's holding a comic book in his claw. 

"Did you go to the town meeting?" Twilight asks, raising an eyebrow.

"There was a town meeting?" Spike responded sheepishly. 

Twilight groans, "Spike, it's getting dangerous out... You needed to hear what Mayor Mare had to say."

"Sorry, Twilight. I was with Rarity all day, I just wanted to come back and relax for a bit..." Spike flips open a page to his comic book and begins to walk back upstairs. Twilight has a look of frustration in her eyes.

"I'll just tell you the information later!" Twilight yells to Spike. Rainbow Dash and I have been just standing there awkwardly for the past few minutes. 

"Twilight, you wanted to talk to us? Why couldn't have been just outside?" I ask Twilight. 

Rainbow Dash hovers beside me, "Usually we come here after town meetings to discuss... important business," Rainbow Dash says with a serious tone, "The rest of the girls will be here soon." 

"Alright... So... Why did you invite me?" Deep down, I know the answer. Twilight probably suspects me of being the culprit behind this ordeal.

"Well, Travis..." Twilight turns around to face me, "I know that you're innocent," Twilight's words leave me in shock. If something like this happened back home, I would've been hunted down, but here's this mare, that I just met a few days ago, saying that I'm innocent. 

"What?" Rainbow Dash says with some anger in her voice, "Twilight, how do you know it's not this guy? He's the fishiest one in town, these ponynappipngs started when he showed up!" Ouch, way to lay it on bluntly... But, Rainbow Dash is right. I would be a prime suspect, even if I was a pony. It all just falls in too perfectly for the new pony to show up and suddenly ponynappings begin in that town.

"For once I'm agreeing with Rainbow Dash, how did you know it wasn't me?" I ask.

"That's easy," Twilight begins, "Mayor Mare said that there has been an 'Alarming Increase' in disappearance reports. The key word being 'Increase' it's almost like it's been going on for a while," Twilight begins to pace around the room while she speaks, "Travis arrived here only a couple of days ago. If he were to be the one behind this, he wouldn't have a motive or any hard proof against him. He's got an alibi, he's been with me and the other girls for the past couple of days, so there wouldn't have been any time for him to commit the crime," Twilight finishes pacing when she's done explaining her reasoning. 

Rainbow Dash crosses her forehooves while hovering, "I guess you're right..." She says rather frustrated. Part of me is a little bitter at Rainbow Dash right now, but I can't really blame her as she's looking out for everypony. The Library door swings open, and inside walks Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie. Well, Pinkie Pie is hopping instead of walking. 

"Sorry, we were a bit late. We got caught up talking about these ponynappings," Applejack says while fixing her hat. 

Rarity runs up to me excitedly, "Travis, darling. You won't believe the trouble I went through trying to get your new outfit ready. I think it's some of my best work yet, and you simply must try... it... on..." Rarity awkwardly finishes while we all glare at her, "Right... It's a serious moment," Rarity corrects herself. I guess I know who want's to see me first... 

"Well, girls. I know you're all aware of the current situation and I can safely confirm that Travis isn't the culprit behind it!" Twilight says proudly.

Applejack walks up to Twilight and places one of her forehooves on Twilight's shoulder, "Uh... Twi? We already knew that," Applejack bursts Twilight's bubble.

"What?!" Rainbow Dash, Twilight, and I yell in confusion.

"Well, that's what we were talking about before we came over here. It was silly for any of us to think Travis ain't the stallion to do anything like that, he can't even apple buck for cryin out loud," Applejack begins to laugh. 

Pinkie Pie hops in front of Applejack, "He's like super scrawny and I mean super-de-duper scrawny," I cross my arms and look away in embarrassment. I can't believe Applejack told everypony about that apple buck I tried to do... 

Applejack shoves Pinkie Pie out of the way, "The point is, we know he's innocent." 

"Really?" I say in disbelief. It tugs at my heartstrings slightly to know that these girls didn't just jump ship the moment something bad happens. 

"That's the honest truth," Applejack winks at me. The gear clicks in my head when she says that. She's the Element of Honesty, so It's safe to assume that she's not an avid lier.

"Anyways, we've got to get to the bottom of this!" Twilight states. We all nod our heads in unison, "This isn't just a ponynapping for a ransom... otherwise, why would they need so many? They didn't leave any evidence or notes for a ransom... There's something much bigger going on than what is being led on," Twilight begins to pace around the room again. I assume this is how she gets her best ideas. Pinkie Pie looks like she's about to explode, she's waving her hoof at a rapid pace in Twilight's direction, "Yes, Pinkie?" Twilight asks.

"Maybe it's for a big-super-surprise party!" Pinkie Pie shoots a party popper out of nowhere, spraying confetti all over the floor. 

Twilight groans, "Pinkie! This is serious."

"How do you know that's not what happened?" Pinkie Pie huffs.

"Because parties don't last for upwards of weeks," Twilight responds seriously.

Pinkie Pie sits on her haunches and crosses her forehooves, "Maybe you're just not trying hard enough..." 

"We know for sure that it's not a ransom, we also know that it's not a party..." Twilight glances at Pinkie Pie. Pinkie Pie begins to whistle to herself, "How is it that we don't even have a suspect yet..." 

I begin to think to myself before being interrupted by a weak voice, "I-I think I..." I didn't quite catch what the rest was. I turn to the voice, and it's Fluttershy who has a suggestion. Fluttershy looks to the floorboards and begins to trace her hoof across them, almost like when I first met her.

"Fluttershy? You got a suggestion?" I ask her. Now everypony has their eyes on Fluttershy, longing to hear what they missed. 

"It's probably wrong... So I don't..." Fluttershy's self-confidence has fallen deeper than the roots of this library. I walk up to her slowly and kneel down to look her in the eyes.

"At this point... something is better than nothing. We don't have a single lead on this, so your suggestion could help..." I try to convince Fluttershy to tell me. Fluttershy doesn't respond, it's almost like she ignored me, "Please, Fluttershy..."

Fluttershy looks up at me, part of her mane is hiding her right eye, "Well... I was just thinking that it might have to do with the Changelings that Twilight and Rainbow Dash encountered a few night ago..." The Changelings? Now that I think about it there was something I never asked about that night...

"Twilight," I stand up and face her, "Those Changelings that you and Rainbow were fighting. What exactly were they after?" I never thought about asking Twilight about that before. 

Twilight thinks for a second, "Now that you mention it... The Changeling that Rainbow spotted outside of the library wasn't doing anything. It was just surveying us, almost like it was..." Twilight gasps at the end of her sentence, "That Changeling lead us to an ambush of a few more, they never expected you to show up. It was almost like the one that was spotted was keeping guard on us in case we saw what the other ones were doing in Ponyville!" Twilight seems excited that she got all the pieces of the puzzle in the right places. 

"There was a book I read a while back called 'Equestria Monsters: Fast Facts.' That's how I knew what attacks the Changelings were going to use in that fight. It also said something about them being able to shapeshift into ponies to conceal their identity." I place my hand under my chin, "It never said why they needed to do that though..." 

"Changelings feed off of the love of ponies. About half a year ago, my bother was getting married. The Changeling Queen, Chrysalis, transformed herself into my brother's bride to try to feed off of his love. We were able to defeat them, but I didn't think they would still be alive..." Twilight was confused herself about this whole situation. 

"So, let me get this straight," Rainbow Dash began, "The Changelings are ponynapping innocents to feed off of there love?" We all nod our head in confirmation, "That's all I need to hear! Let's kick some bug-brained flank!" Rainbow Dash flies up into the air and begins to throw some jabs.

"It's not that simple," Twilight begins, "We have no idea where their new hive is or where to start looking."

"That's an easy one, Twi," Applejack says, "We just do a good ol stakeout. We wait around Ponyville until we see something suspicious and then we hog tie em faster than a clown at a rodeo!" Applejack laughs at her own joke, while everypony else has no idea what she meant by that.

"You know... That could actually work!" Twilight is getting excited as a plan forms in her mind, "We split off into groups of two, each group will be station around populated areas, it'll be up to each group member to hold their own weight. We look around until we see something suspicious and we take a good look at it, any sign of Changeling magic we have to try to capture it for interrogation!" Twilight finishes her plan with a satisfied smirk on her face, "There's going to be a group with one extra member in it though..." 

"Wait! I'm helping with this?" I say rather confused, I thought that these guys could handle this situation, "Well, the more the marrier and don't you need help to make it look like you're not the one who's ponynapping," Twilight raises an eyebrow at me. She's right about that for sure... But, holy shit, the Elements of Harmony want my help with an important mission? That's a serious dream come true!

"I'm in!" I give Twilight a thumbs up.

"Great, then we'll meet back here tomorrow morning," Twilight states.

"Right!" The rest of us all confirm. 

So the plan is to just hang around until we see something fishy? Sounds easy enough; I just hope I'll be able to carry my own weight...
> Chapter 13: All According To Plan
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's almost 11:00 pm currently, I should've gone to sleep a few hours ago, but I have a strange feeling in my stomach. Maybe I'm just nervous for tomorrow, but who wouldn't be? I'm working with the Elements of Harmony to try to catch some Changeling in order to help clear my own name. I'm not sure if it's going to be dangerous or not, but I know for sure that I don't want to fail the others. 

I'm sitting in my dining room, on a chair. There's an apple sitting on the table; this is the set up from earlier today. I want to keep myself busy if I'm staying up late, so I might as well practice the levitation spell. I have the lights dimmed so I don't get distracted by any glare. The glare isn't the thing that's distracting me this time, it's my jitters for tomorrow. It's gotten to the point where my magic can't even wrap around the apple anymore. I let out a yawn and stretch my back, it's probably a good time for me to go to bed...

I stand up from my chair and begin to walk to my bedroom, the pent of anxiety is overflowing inside of me. I open my bedroom door and turn on the light. The room is still really plain right now, there are no posters or any real life to the walls. I'm sure if Rarity saw this place, she'd faint. I laugh to myself while I sit on the bed. I look over to my nightstand, reaching out to the alarm clock to set the time it should go off. I set the alarm to go off at 9:00 am. I lay down in my bed and stare at the ceiling. Nothing bad will happen tomorrow, we're just going to look for the Changeling that's behind all of this...





I arrive at the library a little after 10:00 am, I'm still nervous about the situation. I knock on the library door a few times and wait for a response. Instead of Spike greeting me like I thought he would, it was Twilight.

"Good morning," Twilight says when she opens the door.

"I'm not late, am I?" I scratch the back of my neck.

"You're rather early, actually. Pinkie Pie and Applejack are already here. I expect Rainbow Dash to show up a little later because she sleeps in..." Twilight trails off. I follow Twilight into the library, Applejack and Pinkie Pie greet me. I take a seat on the sofa with Pinkie Pie. Applejack is sitting in her own chair.

"So, Sugarcube. How ya feelin?" Applejack asks

"If I'm being honest, I'm a little nervous," I look down at the floorboards, "It doesn't really help that I stayed up really late just thinking about today."

"There's nothing to worry about, silly!" Pinkie Pie presses up against me to get my attention. 

"Pinkie Pie's right, Travis. We're just going to be taking a look around town. Maybe the Changeling won't even show up today," Applejack tries to reassure me.

"I guess you're right..." I respond. Applejack's right, maybe the Changeling won't even show up today. Even if it does, I don't have to risk my life to capture it. That's one of the reasons why we have a buddy system... 





an hour has passed since I arrived at the library, we've only made some small talk. Applejack was telling us about the upcoming cider season and how the demand is always too much for the supply. She even told me about a time where these two con artists tried to capitalize on the shortage but failed because of some competition between the Apple family and them. During the hour, the other mares show up one after another. Rainbow Dash was the last one to show up. That's pretty ironic because she's self-claimed "Fastest Pegasus in Equestria"

Twilight runs through her checklist one last time before speaking, "Alright, Girls... And Travis. Is everypony ready for today's operation?" Twilight says with determination. So she's calling this an operation now?

"I have a question!" Rainbow Dash asks.

"Yes, Rainbow Dash?" Twilight raises an eyebrow.

"What's the name of the operation? It better be something super cool and slick!" Rainbow Dash begins to fly around the room in anticipation. 

"Rainbow Dash, this isn't the time for coming up with some silly name. We've got to get serious," Twilight says sternly. 

"Come on, Twilight. We've already kicked those Changeling's butts before and that was their full army. Taking down one will be a piece of cake," Rainbow Dash lands and strikes a confident pose, "We can at least have a little bit of fun," Twilight doesn't say anything in response, she only glares at Rainbow, "Or not... Whatever," Rainbow Dash backs away from Twilight. 

"Anyways..." Twilight sighs. Twilight uses her magic to levitate up a clipboard, "I've created a list of groups based on who will be effective with who as partners. Group one will be Applejack and me."

"Hold on, Twilight. Why aren't AJ and I teamed up together? We can do some serious flank woopin," Rainbow Dash complains. She begins to throw punches in the air.

"Well, Rainbow. Applejack and you do have some impressive feats of strength, but the problem is if we stack all the power in one group, it leaves the other teams vulnerable. What we need to make sure of is that we all have balanced groups because each group will be in a different part of town. Does that answer your question?"

Rainbow Dash nods her head, "Got it..." She says a little disappointed. 

"That being said, you'll be paired up with Rarity today."

Rainbow Dash's eyes widen, "Oh great..." I can already tell why she's not too happy with being with Rarity. Rarity is a fashionista and Rainbow Dash really doesn't care for that kind of stuff. I can't help but snicker at her suffering, "You got something to say!" Rainbow Dash stares me down. 

"Don't worry about it, I was just thinking..." I respond, trying to save my own hide.

Twilight clears her throat to get our attention, "That just leaves Pinkie Pie's group," Pinkie Pie perks up at her name. She begins to shake in place excitedly, anticipating to hear who's apart of her group. She know's that Fluttershy and I are the only ones not in a group, right? "You'll be partnered up with Fluttershy and Tra-" Before Twilight could finish, Pinkie Pie jumped into the air and yelled excitedly.

"Oh my gosh, I'm with Fluttershy and Travis? This is the best day ever! We'll spend so much time talking, having fun, playing games..." Pinkie Pie begins to list all of the 'fun' things that we'll do as a group.

"Uh... Is she always like this?" I ask Twilight out of fear for my own safety. Twilight nods with a smile, "Of course she is..."

"I partnered all of you together because you and Pinkie Pie share the element of unpredictability. Not many ponies know that you can do magic, Travis. Pinkie Pie is... well... Pinkie Pie. I included Fluttershy in your group because we need to show the other ponies that Travis isn't the one who's committing the crimes. Being friendly with Fluttershy will be a great way to show that you're to be trusted."

"I'll try not to get in the way..." Fluttershy weakly says. I turn to face her, and she's avoiding eye contact with everypony.

"Hmm, it's a shame I wasn't partnered up with Travis. I really wanted to give him an update on how the clothes are going," Rarity says a little disappointed. Maybe it's a good thing I didn't end up with her, the last thing I want is to fall asleep while on the search.

"Well, girls. Let's head out." Twilight say's with a serious tone.

"Right!" The rest of us yell in unison. This is it, the moment I've been waiting for. I just hope I don't blow it...





I'm stationed outside of the café area with Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. It's been a while since we've arrived, I haven't been keeping track of the time. Plenty of unfamiliar faces have been trotting around, minding their own business. After a while, it seems like most of them have blended together. I'm actually surprised at the number of mares with the same mane style, I didn't really notice it until now...  Before we were assigned our locations, Twilight told us the 'signal' we should use if we come across any trouble. Twilight and Rarity would use their magic to light up the area around them bright enough so anypony could see it over the buildings. When I told Twilight I didn't exactly know how to execute such a spell, she just said that Pinkie Pie will fire off her 'party cannon' whatever that means... Speaking of Pinkie Pie, she's currently 'on the hunt' as she said it. I look over at her and I can tell she means business. By that, I mean that she's dressed up in a safari hat and is combing the area with a pair of binoculars.

I place my hands behind my head and sigh, "Look out for something suspicious, she said," I quote Twilight, "Twilight never said what would classify as suspicious... For all we know, we already missed it."

"I'm trying to focus here," Pinkie Pie shushes me, "One small blink and we can miss it!" Pinkie Pie pulls her eyes away from the binoculars and they are blood red.

"Um... You okay?" I ask out of concern for her own well being.

"I haven't blinked since we got here and I'm not starting now," Pinkie Pie pulls out a bottle of eye drops and applies them to her bloodshot eyes. I'm beginning to feel more worried about the safety of the public instead of Pinkie Pie... She's pretty scary at times. The pony I'm not really worried about, but am curious about is Fluttershy. She hasn't said a single word since we got here. Nopony has been talking much, but Fluttershy has been completely silent. Part of me really wants to talk to her, but I'd be taking my eyes off the prize... Plus, we don't really have much in common, as far as I'm aware. Unless you're counting social insecurities as something to talk about. Talk about an oxymoron right there. I could ask her how if she's seen anything fishy yet...

"Uh, hey, Fluttershy," I ask Fluttershy, turning my head to face her direction. Fluttershy looks up at me, blinking a couple of times. She's actually really adorable now that I can get a good look at her. Fluttershy looks so soft, almost motherly in a way. Almost like she's the kind of pony to go to if you hurt yourself playing outside as a filly or colt.

"Y-yes?" Fluttershy responds.

"I was wondering if... if you found anypony who looks suspicious yet? I've been struggling to keep track of all of them myself," I scratch my neck, trying to come up with conversation topics. 

"No... Sorry... I'll try harder," Fluttershy says. Does she think I'm upset at that?

"Don't worry about it. Maybe we should all take a break anyway?" We've been at this for what feels like hours. I'm sure Twilight won't mind if we take just a little break. At the mere mention of the word 'break' Pinkie Pie has vanished in a Pink blur of speed, "Hey! Where are you going!?" I yell at Pinkie Pie. Pinkie Pie calls back the word 'cupcakes' whatever she means by that. I turn to Fluttershy, we're looking at each other awkwardly. I've got an idea, "Well, since we're by the café... Do you want to get a drink or something?" I offer. 

"uh... Sure, thank you," Fluttershy's eyes dart around the area.





I return to the table Fluttershy is at with two drinks in hand. Fluttershy wanted a green tea with two sugars, while I just got a coffee with one cream and one sugar. This is going to be the first time I'll be trying coffee in about a few years, if I end up not liking it, I'll drink it anyway because that would just be a waste of money to throw it out. I pull out my chair and hand Fluttershy her tea.

"Thank you very much," Fluttershy responds before taking a sip of her drink.

"Yeah, no problem," I sit down in my chair and open up the top flap of the cup. Here goes two bits down the drain... I take a slow sip of the coffee, the bitter but sweet liquid slides down my throat. The coffee still is really hot, but not hot enough that it hurts. It tastes a bit better than when I first tried it a few years ago, probably because I actually added sweeteners this time. Coffee still isn't really a go-to thing for me, even after this more pleasant experience. I look over at Fluttershy, who's still darting her eyes around the area. What's wrong with her? "Hey, Fluttershy. Are you nervous or something?"

Fluttershy nods her head, "A little bit... I'm worried about the others a bit more..."

"I'm sure they can handle themselves," I respond. I should try to get Fluttershy's mind off of the mission for a second, "I know you live outside of town too. Do you live by yourself?"

Fluttershy shakes her head in response, "Not at all. I have my little animal friends living with me too. I take in small animals that don't have a home and let them live with me."

I finish taking another sip of my coffee, "So, you're their caretaker, huh?" Fluttershy nods her head, "Well... I'd like to come by and see them... if you don't mind?" I cautiously ask Fluttershy.

"I don't mind," Fluttershy loses eye contact with me when she says that. After these past couple of days, Fluttershy seems to have opened up to me a little more it seems. But, all good things must come to an end at some point. I only think this because I see something going on behind Fluttershy. It takes me a second to realize exactly what it is. The seafoam Earth pony from Pinkie Pie's party is talking to a stallion. She's got the same mane, tail, and cutie mark as the last time I saw her. This is strange... She was flirting with another stallion the last time I spotted her... 

"Fluttershy... Can you go get Pinkie Pie?" I ask Fluttershy while standing up from my chair.

"W-what is it? Is something wrong?" Fluttershy says with some fear creeping into her voice.

"Don't worry about it. I just wanted to check something out," I lie a little to try to calm Fluttershy down, "I just don't want you to be left alone." 

"Oh... Okay..." Fluttershy says. I begin to walk towards the seafoam mare and the stallion, but the two of them walk away before I can make any progress. They both look like they're enjoying themselves. They're talking, laughing, and all around look happy. Maybe I'd just be ruining an honest date? But... I just have to make sure that this mare isn't a Changeling. It makes sense if she is. A random mare showing up out of nowhere that Pinkie Pie doesn't know, how she suddenly wants to talk to me for no reason, and why I've been seeing her all over town with different stallions. I'm certain that this mare's a Changeling, I need to save that stallion before something bad happens to him. 

I'm making sure to be at a further distance behind the two, to make it look like I'm just passing by. I'm not paying attention to my surroundings, only the two ponies that I'm tailing. I apologize to anypony I accidentally bump into, which is a lot. I can't just call out for the two of them to stop, what if I'm wrongly accusing somepony? Even If I did catch them, it's unlikely that the Changeling will reveal itself. There are too many ponies in this part of town, my eyes can't keep up with the two I'm following and I lose them in the crowd. Oh no... I have to hurry! Before I can even think, I'm running through the area, pushing past anypony who gets in my way. Where could they have gone? it's impossible to move that quickly. In between the gaps of the houses, I see somepony move behind the house on the left. I can't tell who it is, but I have to check it out. 

when I reach the other side of the houses, there's a surprise waiting for me. The stallion that the mare was trying to seduce has a magical grip on the mares throat. The colour of the aura is green... the same green that the Changelings I encountered a few nights ago have. Tears of fear are rolling down the mare's face. She looks directly at me, her gaze penetrates my soul. 

"Take another step and she dies," The Unicorn stallion says calmly. I look over at him and he has a smirk on his face, "So, you're that freak that I've been hearing about. I can't believe that some of my own were surprised by you." The stallion says. Is he talking about the Changelings from a few nights ago? 

"B-B-but I thought..." I stammer out. I can't even form a complete sentence, out of shock. Is the mare innocent?

"If you say one more word..." The stallion threatens. I can hear the grip tighten around the mare's throat as she whimpers, "Then... *pop*" The stallion makes a popping sound with his mouth. I'm frozen in fear, one small misstep and she's a goner. What do I do? What can I do? "Don't follow, kid." The stallion begins to walk with the mare towards the forest. I didn't even notice we were at the edge of town. The mare is being dragged across the ground, tears rolling down her face as she's helpless. My own eyes begin to water, I shut them so I don't have to look at what's happening. If I do something, she could die. If I do nothing, she will die

I open my eyes to see that the Changeling is beginning to morph back into its original form. His coat turns from brown to black, and bits of skin begin to form holes in them. The bug-like wings begin to sprout off of the Changeling's back, a dark green slime covering the new wings. The Changeling is just outside of the forest now, the mare's tears are staining her coat. I know that this is a risk, but I have to try something! I crouch down slightly and open my hands towards the ground, slightly behind me. This is a pretty long jump I'll have to make, but I need to try. I can't let this guy get away, not like last time! I focus my magic in both of my hands and blast as much as I can into the ground, sending me skyrocketing upwards and towards the Changeling.

While I fly at an arc, I pull my right arm back and form a fist. I throw my punch towards the back of the Changelings head while I descend, causing the Changeling to fall face first into the dirt. When I land on the ground, I end up stumbling over and falling down myself. 

"What the hell?" The Changeling questions while he slowly stands up, his magic grip is off of the mare.

"Run! Go get help!" I yell at the mare who's frozen in shock. The mare isn't moving at all, this isn't good. I need to make sure she doesn't die. I get on one knee and start to stand up, but I'm interrupted by a magic orb being flung right into my chest. The pain is sharp, it feels like my chest is being stabbed with multiple knives. I'm flung back into the forest and skid across the dirt, leaving an imprint as I slide. I'm trying to catch my breath from the attack, but the pain is too intense. 

"You just interrupted my meal... But I'm sure you'll do just fine," The raspy voice of the Changeling says. The Changeling stands over me and lunges at my face, but I manage to block his fangs with my arm. His fangs easily tear through my sweater and puncture my skin, some blood flies out of my arm while I yell in pain. The tears in my eyes begin to leak out from the damage this Changeling has caused.

"Get the hell off of me!" I shout in anger. I use my free arm to punch the Changeling directly on the forehead. The Changeling doesn't budge at first, so I begin to hit him a few more times in a row in a desperate attempt to get him off of me. I've got an idea; I pull my arm back one last time and coat my hand in as much magic as I can. When my fist connects to the Changeling's face, I unleash my air gust spell at the same time, sending the Changeling spiralling away from me. When the Changeling's fangs release from my arm, blood begins to leak and stain my clothes. The Changeling crashes down on the ground, skidding to a stop a few feet away. I quickly scramble to my feet, I'm a little relieved that I was able to get him off of me, but I can't relax just yet.

The Changeling stands up, licking the blood off of his lips with his snake-like tongue, "Your blood... It's delicious. The Queen would love to have some," The Changeling looks at the wound he caused in my arm. I feel my arm with my free hand, when I pull it away to check the damage, I'm shocked to see how much blood is leaking out. Fear shoots through my heart, this guy is really trying to kill me! I'm not sure if he knows about my magic, he didn't see me doing any. hopefully, he just thinks I'm strong; I've still got the element of surprise on my side... for the most part. 

The horn of the Changeling begins to glow a bright green once more. I instinctively move to the right of me before he can fire off another spell. When the fireball slams into the tree that was behind me, it explodes, sending small slivers of wood in every direction. I can hear the fire lingering, but I have no time to look back. I quickly regain my footing and make a mad dash towards the Changeling. I fire an air gust spell at the ground to fly up into the air, only a couple of feet above my opponent. I pull back my good arm, getting a good punch ready. Before I can reach the Changeling with my punch, I'm stopped in the air; I'm completely frozen! I can't move a muscle, this is really bad. There is a green aura surrounding my entire body.

"So, that's your trick?" The Changeling says with a smirk, his horn is glowing. There's no way that Changeling has the magic to freeze me in place by himself, "The two Scouters that came back a few nights ago were going on and on about some strange creature using magic. I didn't think it was you at first, but it seems like they weren't incompetent after all." 

"Don't try to make it seem like you're the one doing all of the work," A feminine voice chimes in. I shift my eyes to the source of the voice, it's the mare that I just saved. The mare slowly transforms into a Changeling, the two of the Changelings look identical. But I thought that this guy was the Changeling? "Now that we got him, we need to deliver him to the Queen," The newly revealed Changeling says, referring to me.

"Yeah, yeah... But first," The Changeling flings me right into a nearby tree. I yell out in pain because the impact was so hard. I feel my vision fading away, I'm not sure if it's because of their spell or because I'm losing too much blood. I let Twilight down again... This time, it'll cost me my life...
> Chapter 14: Underestimation
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

My brain is pounding, almost like it's trying to escape my skull. I slowly place my hand on the spot that hurts the most and try to massage the pain away. My eye's flutter open; I'm staring at a stone ceiling, it's riddled with cracks. Where am I? The last thing I remember is fighting the Changeling... And then... 

I slowly stand up, my right arm is still in pain from earlier. I quickly place my left hand on the spot where the damn Changeling bit me earlier. To my surprise, I'm no longer bleeding. My wound feels like it's been stitched up with magic, all that remains of it is scars. Did the Changelings patch me up? Why would they do that? I thought they wanted to kill me...

It's really dark in this room, it's hard to tell where I am exactly. The only light is coming from the moon outside. How long have I been knocked out for? The moonlight is somewhat blocked by the metal bars on the window. I quickly turn around to see if I can find a door, but I'm only greeted with metal bars blocking the only way out. Am I in some sort of jail? Too many questions are racing through my mind, but the fact of the matter is that I need to find a way to get out of here.

I hastily jog my way up to the jail bars and try to move them to the side, hoping deep down that the cell is unlocked. The cage can only shift slightly open before getting caught in the lock. What was I thinking? Like a jail cell would be left unlocked... I grasp the bars tightly, anger is boiling up inside of me. I can't believe I let myself get caught by those damn Changelings! I told myself that I wouldn't let them get away again... Maybe it was just luck that I was able to win that first fight. 

I need to use my head if I want to get out of here. If I hang around for too long, who knows what will happen? I quickly begin to search around my jail cell for anything that could help get this door open. I engulf my hand in magic to light up the area. My teal glow illuminates the room, helping me make out the details. Saying that this place is sketchy is the biggest understatement of the year. The stone walls and ceiling are cracked and covered in moss. to my dismay, there's nothing in this room, not even a bed. I run my hand along the mossy wall, trying to think of a solution to my problem. I'm not strong enough to bust down the wall with my magic. Even if I could, I'd probably be too drained to do anything else.

I walk up to the barred up window and look up into the moon. Princess Luna did a really good job tonight, the moon looks absolutely outstanding from this angle. This could be the last time I see something this beautiful if I don't get out of here. I don't know what to do... I'm pretty sure Twilight and the others don't even know where I am...

I slump down, my pack pressing against the wall. I'm staring at my exit, it's taunting me. I clasp my hands together and close my eyes. I can't believe I'm about to believe in these superstitions, but I really need it right now... Princess Luna, please guide me with your moonlight. Show me what I must do in order to get out of here safely... I sit in silence for what feels like hours, hoping that praying to the Princess of the Night would work. I open my eyes slowly, only to be blinded by a bright flash.

"What the hell?" I question out loud, I shield my eyes with my arm. When the light fades, I look to what caused the light. I see that the light from the window has lit up the room a bit more clearly, but that's not all. The moonlight is reflecting off of a metal object. Could that be the key to the cell? I stand up in shock, did that actually work? It could've been a coincidence, but I won't rule out the possibility. I quickly run up to the cell door and try to reach out for the key by sticking my hand in between the metal bars. I quickly come to the realization that it's out of my grasp, there's no way I can reach that far out. I pull my hand back into my cell, disappointment washing over me. This damn place just keeps taunting me. The old fashion key is resting on a hook, it looks really rusted. I couldn't care less how it looks, as long as it's for my cell.

My grip tightens around the metal bars, it's now or never I suppose. I close my eyes as an attempt to rid myself of all distractions. It's only me and the object, just like what Twilight said. I visualize the key in my mind, making sure to remember all the little details. I just need to add a little magic to get it to move towards me, right? I've been practising this for hours, please let this work... I slowly open my eyes to see that the key is wrapped in my teal magic, it's shaking slightly. I just need to stay calm and the key will come towards me. I stare down the key, trying my hardest to get it to move off of the hook. The key begins to shake harder than before, but it's slowly beginning to slide off the hook at the same time. Just a little more and I'll be out of here!

My concentration is broken by the sound of a heavy door opening. My magic fades off of the key while it slumps back to its original position. I really hope that whoever is coming it didn't see that. I quickly sit down, leaning up against the wall beside me. I hear multiple hoofsteps approach my cell. Two Changeling guards stop in front of my cell.

"Inmate, stand up!" One of the guards commands. I slowly comply, making sure that they know that I won't make any sudden moves. I know I won't be able to take on these two in my current condition, even at my peak I was struggling with a single Changeling. The other guard uses his magic to levitate the key off of the hook and begins to unlock my cell. 

"The Queen wants to speak to you. Try anything funny and you're dead," The guard with the key threatens. Once the guard is inside my cell with me, he steps behind me and lines his horn up with my back. 

"Follow me," The first guard says before he begins to walk to the door. I feel a slight poke in my back, that's probably the guard wanting me to walk. I begin to follow the first guard to where he's leading me. When I leave the room, I'm met with the warm light of torches on the wall. This castle seems like it's almost abandoned, it's very worn down, "You're lucky that the Queen is being generous to you. I wanted to throw you down in the other dungeon with the ponies, but the Queen wishes to keep you alive," The guard speaks without looking at me. Questions begin to pop up in my mind. There's another dungeon? Why would the Changeling Queen want to keep me alive? The other dungeon is where all the other ponies are, I hope that they're alright...





After walking up what felt like hundreds of stairs, we arrive at an ominous set of double doors. The front Changeling pushes open the doors with his magic. The throne room isn't as long as I thought it would be, but there are plenty of stain glass windows filling the space anyways. It's a dimly lit room, with the only light being the few torches spaced out. I look forward at who's sitting on the throne. Queen Chrysalis is massive, she's almost the same height as me, her horn is as long as Princess Celestia's and Princess Luna's. Just she also bug-like wings like the other Changelings, but hers are currently tucked in her side. Queen Chrysalis as a long, stingy mane and tale that's a dark seafoam green colour. Just looking at her intimidates me.

"My Queen, we've brought the creature you asked for," The guard in the front bows, followed by the one in the back. Queen Chrysalis locks eyes with me and her horn begins to glow. Suddenly, I feel myself collapse onto my hands and knees, unable to move. What kind of spell is this? 

Queen Chrysalis steps down from her throne and begins to walk up to me, "So you're the creature that I've heard so much about?" Chrysalis uses her hoof to raise my face to look at hers. She smirks before letting my head drop back down to its original position, "I cannot believe that my subjects had such a hard time with you. Some were claiming that you can use magic, but I don't sense anything. It's just an excuse for their ineptitude," Chrysalis begins to walk around me slowly, "But I'll admit, you put up a much better fight than the others we've captured," Chrysalis laughs. I try to struggle against the spell, but to no avail, "Now, on to the main reason why I've spared you thus far. I've gain information from my subjects that you've become close to The Elements of Harmony," Chrysalis becomes angry at the mention of the title, "I want you to tell me all about them. I want to know what they fear, what they're weak to, how to break them. Maybe I'll let you live if you cooperate."

"No..." I respond, metaphorically putting my foot down. I feel a hoof strike my face hard, the pain lingers. 

"Don't you dare defy me!" Queen Chrysalis hisses, "I will not ask again. Tell me what you know about The Elements of Harmony!" Chrysalis is trying to intimidate me and it's working. 

"I won't sell out my friends!" I yell back. 

Chrysalis laughs in response, "You really those ponies are your friends? I know who you are, Travis. I know that you don't have a family of your own, you're hated by the world," Chrysalis says trying to break my spirit "If those ponies were your friends, would you be alone right now?" 

"I don't care if you think that they're my friends or not. I will never betray their trust like that!" I shout back angerly.

"If you wish to die so bad, then so be it..." Chrysalis says in anger. She begins to walk in front of me, her horn beginning to glow a bright green. I feel an intense force on my back, trying to push me into the ground. I try to keep myself up, but it's no use. I collapse to the ground, the pressure on my back still growing, "I'm going to make this one nice and slow," Chrysalis giggles to herself. My body is still frozen, I can't use my magic to get out of this one. I'm completely helpless. I scream in pain and fear, tears start to roll down my face. I don't want to die, it hurts too much!

Suddenly, a loud crash of one of the windows erupts through the room. Chrysalis stops her spell to see what the commotion is about.

"Blah Blah Blah," A raspy voice mocks Chrysalis, "Don't you ever shut up?" I lift my head up to see... Rainbow Dash? How did she find me? 

"You!" Chrysalis screams in anger at Rainbow Dash. Chrysalis aims her horn at Rainbow Dash and fires off a couple of shots of magic. It looks like the same spell that one of the Changelings hit me with. Rainbow Dash effortlessly evades the attack by flying to her right at a blinding speed. When Rainbow Dash skids across the floor, dust is kicked up into the air. 

"Aw, it's so sweet that you remember me, Bug Breath," Rainbow Dash smirks at her own insult. 

Chrysalis charges at Rainbow Dash, charging up another spell in the process. The two Changeling guards surround me, making sure that I don't stand up. When Chrysalis fires her spell, Rainbow Dash takes off into the air. The magical attack slams into the wall, causing it to explode into a blinding green light. I shut my eyes in order to protect them from the light. When I open them, Rainbow Dash is nowhere to be seen. A blue blur rushes past me and slams into one of the guards, sending him spiralling backwards. The guard lands on the ground and is knocked out. Rainbow Dash lands on the floor, skidding to a halt. She looks at the second guard who is frozen in shock and smirks. Rainbow Dash propels herself into the air with one mighty flap. She spins in the air and bucks the second guard square in the face, sending flying back. The guard lands on his feet and begins to fire magic blasts at Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash moves out of the way before the blasts can reach, they hit the floor and cause a shockwave of energy to erupt. The shockwaves throw me to the side of the room.

I'm regaining some muscle control while I slowly stand up. I look over at Rainbow Dash who's now in a full-on hoof fight against the Changeling guard. I hear the sound of magic being charged and see Chrysalis gathering power, she's aiming her horn at Rainbow Dash. I need to do something! I fire an air gust towards the ground, sending me flying towards Queen Chrysalis. I pull back my arm and ready up a punch, I need to at least get her to miss Rainbow Dash. My fist slams into a hard bubble of magic causing it to ripple.

"Oh, Travis. Do you think I wouldn't watch my blind spot?" Chrysalis taunts. The bubble leaves her and begins to wrap around my body, "How does a creature like you use magic without a horn? It doesn't really matter, you're too weak to stop me anyway," Chrysalis laughs. The bubble flies across the room with me in it and I'm sent crashing through one of the windows. Time seems to slow down as I get a glimpse of what's below me. My feel my stomach sink as I see how far I am from the ground. The bubble begins to disappear as I fall to my death. 

Images of my past begin to flash through my mind. From growing up alone, finding out I have magic, to me yelling at my Grandpa the last time we spoke. I'm so sorry Grandpa... I close my eyes, tears flowing through them. This is how I die, huh? Falling to my death all because I underestimated someone who outclasses me in every way... I feel my consciousness fade as the shock takes over me...
> Chapter 15: Loyalty
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey, are you okay?" A distorted voice calls out to me, "Please don't be dead..." The voice trails off in sadness. Be dead? Why would I be... Images of the fight with Chrysalis flash through my mind. My eyes slowly open, to be greeted by Rainbow Dash's worried face. I move my eyes around to see that we're surrounded by trees, are we in the Everfree forest? It's still night time, so I don't think I was out for long, "Oh, thank Celestia," Rainbow Dash exhales.

"What... What happened?" I say groggily. I slowly sit up, placing my hands on the damp grass.

"You took a plummet out of the tower, but I managed to grab you before you could hit the ground. I tried to get us to land softly, but you were too heavy. Let's just say, we're further away from the castle than we should be." Rainbow Dash puts a hoof behind her head and smirks, "You should've seen it. They don't call me the fastest flier for nothing!" She boasts at her own speed. 

"You saved me?" I ask with a little disbelief. Why would Rainbow Dash save me? I thought she hated me the most... 

"Well, duh," Rainbow Dash mocks, "If you were dead, how would you talking right now?" 

"That's not what I meant by that..." I lock eyes with Rainbow Dash for a second. We sit in silence for a few seconds before she starts to speak again.

"Anyway... We need to get back to the Changeling's hideout, our friends are in trouble!" Rainbow Dash shouts.

"In trouble? What happened?" I slowly stand up, wobbling a little in the process, "How'd you find me anyway? This place doesn't look like it's close to town at all..." I observe my surroundings. Darkness is the only thing past the trees, and the last thing I want is to get lost in this place. We're practically in the middle of nowhere.

"Fluttershy saw you get attacked by two Changelings earlier today. When she came to us, we left immediately to the spot you were at. There wasn't anything left, other than some blood, and boy did that make Pinkie Pie queasy... Twilight tried to follow it without even getting ready first. We lost the trail not too long after we went into the forest... That's why it took us a while to find the castle.

"Go on," Fluttershy was tailing me when I was tailing the Changelings, huh? I didn't even notice her...

"It was a little too easy to get into the castle. Usually, there's at some guards going around the area, but there weren't any when we got inside," The girls probably got here not too long after I woke up. There were no guards around the area when I was being escorted, "We heard crying from where we were and followed it. We found the dungeons on the lowest floor of the castle, there were so many ponies locked up, I just wanted to break down the bars right there! We couldn't see you in any of the cells, so Twilight started to get worried. She wanted me to try to find the throne room because she thought that Chrysalis was torturing you. She wanted me to go because I was the fastest out of all of them. That's when things to a turn for the worst..."

"What do you mean by that?" Worry begins to wash over me.

"It turns out, the crying pony was just bait and we fell for it! The jail cells were just full of Changelings disguising themselves as ponies. They had us surrounded, so Twilight made me leave her and the others behind to find you..."

"Wait, so the girls are jailed up? Twilight was worried about me..." I look towards the ground, guilt washing over me. If I wasn't so careless today, this wouldn't have happened, "Do you know where the girls and the other ponies are in the castle?"

"Not a clue..." Rainbow Dash kicks a nearby rock in anger, sending it flying towards a tree. When the stone collides with the tree, bark flies off of it. Rainbow Dash stands there in silence, not even looking in my direction, "Hey, do you remember where your cell was? I'm sure that the other cells aren't' too far from yours."

The thought of going back inside the castle terrifies me. I wasn't strong enough to even defend myself from a single Changeling, let alone an entire army swarming the place. 

"I... I can't," I mumble out.

Rainbow Dash's ear perks up, she turns around with confusion and anger filling her, "What do you mean you can't'?"

"I can't go back in there!" I yell, "I'm... I'm too scared..." 

"Travis, our friends are in there! Innocent lives are in there, and you're telling me that you can't go in because you're scared!?" Rainbow Dash yells back at me. 

"I almost died twice today! I couldn't fight Chrysalis and I couldn't fight the Changeling from earlier today," I finish with tears beginning to form in my eyes.

"So you're going to just abandon your friends? Twilight was willing to put her life on the line just to make sure you were okay. You repay her just by giving up when she needs us?" Rainbow Dash takes a few steps closer to me, her rage at a boiling point. 

"I'm not like you, Rainbow Dash!" I yell. Rainbow Dash stops walking towards me and just glares, "I'm not brave... I'm not strong... I'm not a hero... I'm just some kid that got in way over his head! I wanted to be something that I'm not, I thought that I could just magically make others respect me. All I wanted to do was just run away from my old life, and start over," I clench my fists so hard they begin to shake. I can feel the tears starting to pour down my face while I look at the ground. 

"You don't need to be a hero to stay loyal to your friends," Rainbow Dash says, "You want to make ponies like you more? You can start by actually being there when they need it!" I raise my head from the ground and stare at Rainbow Dash, unable to find any words to respond with, "If you're not as brave as you say you are, then why did you come help out Twilight and me when you first came here? Even though you thought that everypony hated you, you still came to help two strangers when they needed it."

"It's because I..." I can't find the words to express how I was feeling that night, "It's because that's what I felt was the right thing to do..."

"So you think just standing around here when your friends are in trouble is the right thing to do now?" When Rainbow Dash finishes I sit in silence. It's the right thing to help out my friends, but I'm too afraid of failing again. If I fail this time, it'll not only cost me my own life but the lives of innocent ponies. I don't know what to do. Should I take the risk and possibly die trying? Or should I just head back home and give up? Hell, even move back in with my Grandpa so I don't have to deal with all the shame and blame I'll get from Ponyville. I sit down on the grass, leaning up against a nearby tree. I place my head into my palms while I think.

"I don't know... I don't know what to do..." My voice cracks a bit at the end of my sentence.

"Do what you want, I don't care. I'm going back to the castle with or without you," Rainbow Dash scoffs. I hear her wings flap, "I don't know what Twilight saw in you that made her want to be friends, but I now know for sure that she was wrong about you. Don't even bother talking to us, unless you actually understand what being a good friend is about!" When Rainbow Dash finishes, she flies away from the area as fast as she can. 





Shame... That's all that I can feel in my body while I sit down defeated. I'm not sure how long it's been since Rainbow Dash left me here, but it's been torturous on my mind. I can't stop thinking about the days leading up to these events, how I've slowly been getting used to my life here. The time I've spent with Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, and Spike have all been the best days of my life, even though it hasn't been a lot of time. The feeling of having somepony to talk to and to be with is something I don't want to lose all because I'm being some selfish asshat. 

I remove my hands from my face and stare at the grass. I don't want to let Twilight down, I don't want to abandon Rarity and Applejack, and I don't want Spike to be alone like I use to be. I slowly stand up from where I'm sitting, staring in the direction Rainbow Dash flew off to. I don't want Fluttershy to lose her chance to see her animals again, and I don't want Pinkie Pie to feel like the welcome party she threw for me was a waste. But most of all... I don't want what Rainbow Dash said to be fact! 

I sprint from where I'm standing, heading in the direction that Rainbow Dash flew off to. I carefully avoid any trees, branches, and rocks that could cause me to stumble. I don't care what's in the Everfree forest, it doesn't matter to me if anything will try to attack me. I don't care if a Manticore jumps out at me right now, I won't let that stop me from saving my friends. I don't want to be alone again!

My heart is beating faster and faster, my breathing is becoming irregular, and it's getting darker in this forest. I can feel eyes watching me while I sprint, but I have to ignore them. I engulf my hands in my teal magic, as an attempt to provide light for me. I don't even pay attention to how much magic is in my hands, I just need to see where I'm going. I run around the trees and duck under any branch that's too high. I see some light at the end of this dark tunnel. I blast a massive gust of air to send me flying towards it at a high speed. The wind is whistling past my ears, my jacket flowing behind me. This is a sense of speed I haven't felt before.

I fly out of the tunnel and attempt to land on my feet. I slide on the grass for a bit before falling onto my back because of my lack of balance. I slide a little more before coming to a complete stop. I try to catch my breath while I wipe the sweat off of my face. I slowly get on my feet and look at my surroundings. There are fewer trees than before, but I'm still in the forest. It's a lot easier to see because of the moonlight. I look around the area and see a tall structure in the distance, that must be the castle.

I make my way to the structure in the distance, I can finally see what this castle looks like. It's definitely been here for years. Moss is growing all over the crack cobblestone bricks. There's a tall tower on the castle, that must be where Chrysalis's throne room is. I carefully begin to circle the castle, looking for the entrance and hoping that no guards find me. I stop when I'm at the corner and press my body up against the wall. I slowly peek around the corner to see if there are any guards around the area. To my surprise, there aren't any guards around the entrance. Maybe it's just to make it look like that the castle is abandoned still.

I carefully walk up to the open entrance of the castle and peer inside. I've already made up my mind, there's no turning back now.





I'm sneaking around the castle halls, making sure that I'm making as little noise as possible. When I take my steps, I'm placing my heel down and then my toes. It's not total silence, but it's better than running through this place. The flickers of the torches on the wall mask the sound pretty well. I have no idea where the real dungeon is in this place. Every hallway looks the same as the last. I think if I find the stairs to the throne room, I can try to remember where I had to go when the guards escorted me. 

I approach the end of my path to be greeted by three choices. I can keep going forward, go left, or go right. There's a door to the left I can also check as well. Maybe I should at least see what's inside before I keep looking for the throne room? I slowly open the door to reveal an empty supply closet. I lightly sigh, like there would still be anything here... I hear some hoofsteps coming from around the left corner. I quickly enter the supply closet as an attempt to hide, I'm so screwed... The hoofsteps slowly go passed my area, I can hear them speaking from here.

"What does she look like?" I high pitched voice asks.

"The Queen says that she's got a rainbow mane and tail," A gruff voice responds. They're talking about Rainbow Dash for sure. Did she get caught?

"Why is she so worried about some pony?" 

"She's not just anypony, she's an Element of Harmony. The Pegasus apparently took care of two of our elite guards without breaking a sweat. Keep an eye out for her."

"Yeah, yeah..." The high pitched voice loses interest.

I wait for what feels like hours before opening the door. So, Rainbow Dash hasn't been caught yet. I don't think Chrysalis expected me to come back to the castle after my humiliating defeat. It's a good thing for sneaking around, but it's a bad thing for my pride...

I leave the supply closet and continue my way down the hallway. I peek my head around the right corner, there is a pair of double doors at the end of the hallway. I recognize that door, that's gotta be where the throne room is. So that means I'm getting pretty close to the dungeons. I quickly head down the hallway parallel to the double doors, I know exactly where I'm going now!



 

I've made it to a familiar hallway after a long journey through the castle. I was starting to get a little reckless on my way there, almost got caught a few times, but I managed to hide in the shadows because of my dark clothing. I never thought my choice in fashion would end up saving my life one day, but I'm not complaining. I slowly open up the door at the end of the hallway. Just as I thought, this is where they kept me locked up, but there's nopony in any of the jail cells. At the end of the hallway lies another door, maybe that's where the rest of the ponies are.

I quickly run to the end of the room and open the door, heading down the set of spiralling stairs. The torches on the wall make it easier to see where I'm going, I just hope I don't trip because I'm going too fast. I reach the bottom of the stairs to be greeted by yet another door. How many are in this one hallway alone? I quickly open up the door, not even sure if there are any Changeling behind it. I just want to make sure everypony is okay. I feel a hoof slam right into my stomach with plenty of force behind it. I grunt in pain and fall to my knees, spitting saliva in the process.

"Travis!?" A raspy voice yells in confusion.

"Why?" I croak out, "Why would you do that?" I lift my head to look Rainbow Dash in the eyes. 

"You came back?" Rainbow Dash says in disbelief, "And you were able to get here without being caught? I thought you were too scared to?" 

"Yeah..." I slowly stand on my feet, "What you said earlier, it got me thinking. You're right... I don't need to be a hero if I want to stay loyal to my friends. Thanks for reminding me of that," I smirk at Rainbow Dash.

"Don't mention it," Rainbow Dash smirks back, "I'm serious, don't mention it to anypony, got that?" Rainbow Dash practically whispers so nopony can hear us.  

"Did you find the girls?" 

"Yeah, they're just over here," Rainbow Dash begins to run down the hallway. I follow Rainbow Dash, looking into the jail cells in the process. The ponies that have gone missing are grouped up in every jail cell. Every pony has their hooves tied together by rope. The Pegasi have their wings bound by ropes too. The Unicorns are all wearing rings around their horns. All of them are completely helpless. I even see some children in the jail cells, those Changelings are disgusting. 

"Isn't that the strange creature from the party? What's it doing here?" I hear one of the stallions whisper to its cellmate

"Is it here to help us?" I hear another voice say. 

"You all need to stay quiet!" Rainbow Dash says harshly, but keeping her voice down. 

We arrive at a stretch of jail cells, the one we stop at has both Twilight and Rarity in it. 

"Travis, is that you?" Twilight questions, "I thought you left us... Rainbow Dash said that you couldn't come back..." Twilight says with sadness creeping into her voice. 

"Yeah... I just had some reflecting I needed to do..." I trail off, feeling guilty about not being able to get here sooner. 

"Thank goodness you're here. Those ruffians tossed us in these disgusting cells and completely messed up my mane!" Rarity cries in agony, "They also forced us to wear these awful rings on our horns."

"Those rings... I saw all of the Unicorns wearing them. What do they do?" 

"These rings are suppressing out magic. We can't use any spells with these rings on," Twilight informs me.

"I'll be right back, Twilight," I tell Twilight. I head over to the other cells to check on the other girls.

Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie are sharing a cell. Pinkie pie not only has been bounded by ropes, but her mouth is covered in tape as well. Pinkie Pie is trying to speak through her tape, but it's only being muffled. Fluttershy is shaking in fear, hiding in her mane.

"Fluttershy." I say to her, only to get no response, "Fluttershy, are you okay?" Fluttershy still doesn't respond. I begin to boil in anger. Fluttershy did nothing wrong, she doesn't deserve this. Nopony deserves this kind of suffering. I look over at Rainbow Dash. She's staring into another cell, trying to contain her laughter. Why would she be laughing at a time like this?

"This ain't funny, RD!" Applejack shouts from her cell. Applejack's hat has fallen off of her head, and she's attempting to put it back on without using her hooves. Applejack is rolling around her cell, using her head to try to scoop it up. I snicker to myself, but Applejack overhears it, "Travis? You came here just to laugh at me?" Applejack says with a little bit of anger in her voice.

"Actually, I'm here to help... But..." I roll my eyes at Applejack in a joking way. Applejack glares at me with a murderous intent in her eye, "Alright, I'll help you," I panic a little, "Rainbow Dash," I get Rainbows attention via her name, "Did you happen to find a key while you were looking around?" 

"Those Changelings must be smarter than they look, I couldn't find it anywhere. I thought it would be either here, or on the floor above," Rainbow Dash responds. She sits on her haunches while she begins to think. Where would the key be? With the number of jail cells that need to be kept in check, I doubt they'd have multiple keys for the cells. Just one master key that the Changelings would use when they need to feed... Wait a minute!

"I've got it!" I snap my fingers, getting Rainbow's attention, "When I was in my cell, they had one key hanging off of a hook. I tried to use my levitation spell to get it, but I couldn't get the key in time. One of the guards that escorted me used the key to unlock my cell."

"Okay... And your point is?" Rainbow Dash responds while standing up.

"You knocked out those of those guards when you came to save me. Maybe the guard still has the key on his body."

"So we just need to go back to the throne room and swipe it off of him." Rainbow Dash finishes the plan for me. 

"Right!" I give Rainbow Dash a thumbs up, "I'll be going with you, I know how to get to the throne room." 

Rainbow Dash nods her head with a smirk, "Then let's not waste any more time," Rainbow Dash begins to run to the door at the end of the hallway.

"Travis..." I hear Twilight's voice say to me. 

"Yeah?" I walk up to her cell.

"Thanks for coming back for us," Twilight smiles, it reminds me of the same one she gave me when she first came to my house.

"No problem... What are friends for?" I smile back at her.

"Both of you be careful now," Rarity requests.

"Don't worry about it, we'll be back in no time," I saw with determination. I run to catch up to Rainbow Dash.





I push open the double doors that lead into the throne room, it's the exact same as we left it. The bodies are still on the floor, but Chrysalis is nowhere to be found.

"Did Chrysalis leave when I was thrown out?" I ask Rainbow Dash.

"Don't ask me, I was busy saving your butt," Rainbow Dash teases.

"I don't care where she is, we just need to get the key and get out of here," I run towards one of the bodies and begin to search. It's cold to the touch, which is a bit odd. I notice something strange with the body I'm examining, there are puncture marks all over it. It's almost like the Changeling has been drained of all its blood... Oh, Celestia, I think it's dead.

"I think I found the key," Rainbow Dash calls out.

"What'd you do to these Changelings?" I ask Rainbow Dash out of fear.

"I just knocked them out, what's wrong with that?" Rainbow Dash walks over to me, wearing the key around her neck. Something isn't right...

"Rainbow, we got to go," I say to her, worry in my voice. 

Rainbow Dash gasps in response, tackling me to the floor. Before I can even register what's going on, a blast of energy hits the floor, sending bits of stone flying everywhere. Chrysalis lands on the floor, green blood dripping from her fangs. There's no way... Did she kill her own servants? Rainbow Dash and I quickly scramble to our feet.

"I knew you'd come back, Element of Harmony, but I didn't expect you to, Travis," Queen Chrysalis giggles sinisterly. Chrysalis is guarding the door, I'm not getting out of here so easily. I could jump out the window with Rainbow Dash, but Chrysalis could follow. There's only one choice here, huh?

"Rainbow Dash, go get everypony out of here," I say sternly.

"What?" Rainbow Dash questions. 

"I'm not as fast as you, plus you can just fly out of one of the windows. Just leave me here to deal with this..." 

"No way! I'm not leaving you here alone! I won't just abandon my friend!" Rainbow Dash yells at me. I smile slightly, I guess Rainbow doesn't hate me after all...

"This isn't about loyalty, Rainbow. It's about doing the right thing now. I'll be able to buy you some time at the very least." 

Rainbow Dash sits there in silence for a few seconds, "We're coming back for you," Rainbow Dash flies out of one of the broken windows as fast as she can, leaving behind a rainbow coloured trail in the process. 

"Fool, why throw your life away? Do you really think you'll be able to defeat me?" Queen Chrysalis questions. I don't need to beat Chrysalis, I just need to buy enough time to get the ponies out of here, then the girls will come back for me. I just need to survive until then.

"I want to know something!" I yell at Chrysalis, "Why are you doing this?"

"It's simple, I want to take what is rightfully mine. All of Equestria is mine to control, It's mine to shape. Under my rule, Equestria will become a place where all of my subjects may do what they please. No longer will they be under the rule of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. We Changelings have no love of our own, that is why we feast. Without love, we will die!"

"So you've been keeping ponies around for some sort of disgusting love farm?" I ask with anger flowing through me, "That's horrible!" 

"It's simply what we must do to survive. I can't have any of you get in the way of what is rightfully ours..." Chrysalis trails off, "Now die!" Chrysalis lets out a screech so loud, I have to cover my ears to protect them, "Your friend only has a few minutes before my subjects arrive to take care of her." 

A magic bubble surrounds me, almost like the one that she used on me before. This time, when Chrysalis lifts me off of the ground, the bubble begins to shrink in size.

"I want to see you die, nopony is here to help you," Chrysalis laughs. The space is getting tighter and tighter. I try to kick and push my arms out to stop it, but it's all in vain, "I hear that you're from Manehatten... Do you have any relatives there?" Chrysalis toys. Is she talking about Grandpa? No... 

"Don't you dare lay a single hoof on him!" I scream at Chrysalis. I place my hands on the bubble that's so tight, it's almost crushing me. I focus all of my magic, I mean allof it into both of my hands. I won't let her hurt my family! I blast the bubble with all of the air magic I've got, causing it to shatter into pieces. I land on my feet, bending down to break my fall. I slowly stand back up and glare at her right in her eyes.

"There's the fighting spirit that was missing last time!" Chrysalis excitedly.

I keep a constant stream of as much magic as possible in both of my hands, causing them to be engulfed by teal light. I'm not sure how long I'll be able to keep up this much magic, but I don't care as long as I'm able to smack that smirk off of her face!

"I don't care what you or your subjects went through in the past, I draw the line when you threaten my family!" 

I run towards Chrysalis at my top speed, clenching my fists in anger. Chrysalis's horn glows and fires a few magic chrystals at me. They are tinted the same green colour as her magic. I push my left hand out to the side and fire out a strong gust of wind, sending me sliding away from the attack at a high speed. 

This surprises Chrysalis. She quickly reorientates herself to shoot a strong bolt of magic at me. I finish sliding across the floor by the time the bolt is fired. I quickly place my hands on the floor and shoot a blast of air out of my palms. I fly upwards, causing the bolt to miss me and impact the floor. I hear a small explosion go off behind me, sending dust and debris everywhere. I pull my right arm back, trying to ready a punch. My fist collides with a shield spell, sending a shockwave throughout the spell with an audible sound. When my feet land on the ground, I continue my barrage of strikes on the shield. Each blow to the shield sending a ripple throughout it. I can feel my knuckles beginning to bleed.

"You dare defy your Queen?" Chrysalis shouts in anger, as well as in a taunting matter.

"You are not..." Each word I say results in another punch to the shield, "My Queen!" I yell the final part of my sentence. I pull back my fist once more and throw it forward as hard as I can. When my fist connects this time, I unleash a raw blast of magic out of my hand, throwing me backwards. I tumble across the floor before quickly recovering, my breathing is becoming heavy and both my hands are in pain. I look at the damage I did to the shield, there are now cracks forming inside of it. 

Chrysalis's shield disappears and she begins to fire off a flurry of green fireballs. I shoot both of my hands to the right, firing off an air spell in the process to help give me a running start. The gust of wind carries me a few feet, when I land, I run at top speed in order not to fall. Every fireball that hits the wall causes the ball to burst into flames for a few seconds. One fireball hits the spot in front of me, sending me flying back. I land on my back, pain erupting through my body. Thankfully, I'm not on fire.

My heart is beating so fast that I feel like I could go into cardiac arrest. I can feel my magic on my hands beginning to fade away, I have to keep pushing on! I slowly stand up, stumbling a little bit. Chrysalis has momentarily stopped attacking me.

"Have you reached your limit already? You only have so much magic inside of you, I wonder what happens if you were to run out?" Chrysalis looks like she's not even felt a bit of fatigue this entire fight. Have I already used too much magic? I grit my teeth in response. I'll just have to hit her with everything I've got then...

Time seems to slow down while I run forward, almost painfully slow. Chrysalis isn't bothering to attack me, she's taunting me. I bring both of my arms back, pouring my soul into this attack. When I reach Chrysalis, I thrust both of them forward, shooting as much magic as I can out of my body. My vision goes white for a moment, both of my arms are in agonizing pain, and my ears begin to ring. 

When my vision comes back, I'm laying on the ground, my face looking at the ceiling. I'm too tired to move, my arms feel like they're dead. I'm trying as hard as I can to get air into my lungs, not even caring if Chrysalis is alive or not. 

"That actually did something..." I hear Chysalis say. I'm too tired to even care, that's all I had in me, "Try as you might, you're not strong enough to defeat me," I hear hoove steps approach me. My heart rate is slowing down now, I can breathe properly. Chrysalis towers over me, her horn beginning to glow. One of her eyes are closed and she's breathing a little heavier than before. I can't do anything to stop this... I just hope it's painless... I shut my eyes tight to prepare for my fate. 

A massive explosion goes off in the distance, sending dust and wood chips everywhere. What the hell was that? Chrysalis and I both look towards the source of the noise. The dust begins to swirls around the source, circling a Unicorn horn. It's Twilight and the others! They really did come back for me, huh? I begin to laugh out loud in relief. Chrysalis stands there, terrified. 

"Get away from him!" Twilight shouts before firing a beam of magic at Chrysalis. Chrysalis uses her wings to fly out of the way. When the magic hits the wall, there is an explosion that destroys the entire thing. The blast is so strong, that the wind from it almost can slice through stone. 

I feel hooves try to help me sit up, I look to my left and right to see who it is. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash are trying to help me sit up.

"Travis, are you okay?" Fluttershy asks, worry in her voice.

"I'm fine... I'm just really tired," I respond weakly. 

"Thank goodness, can you stand?" 

"I don't know..." I answer, "Just give me a minute..." Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy try to help me stand up, but I end up falling onto my stomach. I hear the both of them calm out my name, but darkness envelopes my vision before I can do anything about it...   





I slowly open my eyes, only to be surrounded by an unfamiliar sight. I'm laying down in a bed, but it's not my own. I'm in a room with a seafoam curtain to my left and a nightstand to my right. The walls are a bright teal with a dark wood panelling going across the bottom. This definitely isn't my home. Am I in the hospital? What happened with the Changelings? I remember Twilight and the others showing up to save me and that's about it. It takes me a second to realize that I'm alone in this room, I'll have to ask whoever is running this place what's going on. My body feels more relaxed than usual. I don't know how long I've been out for, but I don't mind this feeling. My arms are feeling better than they were before, thank Celestia that they aren't broken.

As if almost on cue, somepony walks into the room. It's a white Earth pony mare wearing a nurse cap, her cutie mark is the symbol that's on most hospital fronts, "Oh, you're finally awake! Thank goodness, your friends were starting to worry," The mare says, her voice sounds a little older than most. 

"My friends?" I slowly sit up in my bed, "They're here?" 

"Yes, I'll go get them for you. They'll be happy to know you're awake!" The nurse trots out of the room. 

A few minutes later, she comes back in the room with the girls. Before long, they surround my bed. 

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Twilight asks me.

"I feel... relaxed?" I respond, "What happened with Chrysalis?" 

"Don't worry about her, we got her good this time. I'm pretty sure she won't be trying anything funny anytime soon. Even her army went running with their tails between their legs" Rainbow Dash boasts. 

"We brought you here as fast as we could, deary. We couldn't save your jacket though..." Rarity says, trailing off at the end. I check under my blanket to see that I'm wearing a garb as a shirt, my jeans are still on but they are damaged. I notice that my right arm has been bandaged up where the Changeling bit me along with anywhere else that had a bad cut.    

"That old thing? You sure you didn't just throw it out?" I tease Rarity.

"I would never!" She stamps her hoof on the floor, causing us all to laugh.

"It's gonna start gettin hot soon anyway, you'll be sweatin like a pig with that on," Applejack adds.

"How long have I been here for?" I ask. It can't be close to May already.

"You've been here for a day already. You must have been pretty tired," Fluttershy says, giving me a smile. 

The nurse clears her throat, "Anyways, we managed to treat your wounds to the best of our abilities. Please take it easy for the next few days, we wouldn't want you to end up back in here too quickly."

"I've had too much excitement recently anyways..." I respond, "How long do I have to stay in here for?" 

"Just one more day will do it, you need to get your rest." 

"Oh, oh!" Pinkie Pie shouts, raising her hoof into the air. I look at her and nod, "We should throw a party when you get out of the hospital! A 'Congratulations on recovering' Party!" 

"Uh... I don't think a party would be applicable for that," Twilight says, "But I do believe we should celebrate our victory. We all worked hard and I think that calls for a celebration." We all nod our heads in agreement, "I'll start to plan it right away!" Twilight shouts with glee at the chance of planning the event.

"I didn't take you for a celebration type, Twilight" I tease her.

"Huh? No, I just love to plan stuff, I love being organized!" Twilight is bursting at the seams with excitement.

"Okay..." I'm a little confused, but whatever makes her happy I suppose.

I feel like I'm a little bit closer to the girls than I was before. It feels like we all bonded in some way over this event, especially Rainbow Dash and I. I hope that whatever our celebration is, it'll be something to remember...
> Chapter 16: Princess of the Night
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

My eyes flutter open to the familiar sounds of multiple ponies walking down the streets outside of the apartment I live in. It's the same thing every morning. Mares and Stallions walking their kids to school or going to work themselves. It's just bad luck that my Grandpa and I live in the busy part of Manehattan, or maybe it was just cheaper to live here than getting our own house... 

I stretch out my arms while yawning, "Same old same old," I throw on my clothes in what feels like an instant. I begin to walk out of my room, but notice that something about the apartment is a little different than it should be. I can't pinpoint why I feel this way... something is just off... 

"Grandpa, Are you home?" I call out while walking down the hallway. There's no response, so it's safe to assume he went out.

I walk into the bathroom to begin the usual morning routine. I open up the medicine cabinet to pull out the toothpaste and toothbrush. I lay a line of toothpaste across the bristles of the toothbrush and go to work. I try to clean as much as I can before the urge to spit takes over. I lean into the sink to empty my mouth. When I pull my head back up, a figure in the reflection catches my eye. This figure is so recognizable that I know who it is instantly. I quickly turn around to face her. 

"Greetings, Travis Goldheart," Princess Luna says to me. 

"Princess Luna!?" I yell in response, but because of the toothbrush in my mouth, it came out as a garbled mess. I quickly drop down to one knee to bow down to her. The Princess of the Night knows who I am? What in Equestria is she doing in my house?

"Travis Goldheart, no need to be so formal. Tis merely a dream," Princess Luna's soft voice echoes through the dreamscape. Her voice doesn't sound like the way it would in real life, almost like it's coming from every direction.  

"I'm dreaming?" I question. I stand up from my kneeling position, only to be greeted by Princess Luna's face. She's around my hight while she's on all four hooves. I can only imagine how much taller she is when on her back hooves. 

Suddenly, a wave of memories washes over me in a split second. I see Ponyville, the house I'm currently living in,  the Changeling's, and the time I've spent with Twilight. I raise my hands in front of my face to examine them. The bandages that were on my arm aren't there. 

"If I'm dreaming... How are you here right now?" I ask. 

"As the princess of the night, we not only have the ability to raise and lower the moon, but we can also enter the dreams of all living being in Equestria," Luna responds. 

"Why are you here? I mean, out of everypony in Equestria, why are you in my dream?" I notice that the room we're standing in has changed into something else during our conversation. Instead of the bathroom of my apartment, we're standing in the Changeling castle hallway. 

"Because we know of you, Travis Goldheart..." 

My eyes light up at her words, "W-What do you mean by that?" Is this my chance to finally get some answers?

"We know that a lot of our subjects don't like you," Princess Luna says bluntly. 

"Oh..." I feel my excitement deflate like a balloon, "Tell me something I don't know then," I turn around and place my hand on the wall I'm now facing. I look down at the floor, deep in thought. The flooring of Twilight's library. I hear a chuckle from behind me. 

"This is the Library that Twilight Sparkle is currently residing in. Are you acquainted with her?"

"Yeah... we met recently, when I moved into Ponyville," I respond, not looking up from the floor. The thought of asking Luna about the Nightmare Moon situation involving the Elements of Harmony crosses my mind. The last thing I want to do is piss off Princess Luna herself, so I'll just ignore it for now...

"You're currently residing in Ponyville?" 

"Yeah," I turn to face Princess Luna, leaning against the wall behind me, "It's been a bit more complicated than I thought it would be. One minute I could be doing something trivial, then before I know it, I'm fighting for my life."

"So, it was you who called upon my moonlight?" Luna looks into my eyes. 

"Yeah, I'm still surprised that worked," I scratch the back of my head awkwardly, "That's why you're here, right?" 

"We heard about the event involving the Changelings yesterday, and how it had something to do with you," Luna takes a step closer to me, her tone staying in the same, "Travis Goldheart, you were helping the Elements of Harmony that night?" 

"Yeah, I ended up having to fight Chrysalis in an attempt to distract her. That's why I ended up in the hospital," I try to take a step back, but end up being blocked by the wall behind me. I feel intimidated by Princess Luna getting closer to me, "Did I... Do something wrong?" My face feels hot. 

"No," Princess Luna turns away from me, "From what we've heard, it doesn't seem like something you'd do," Princess Luna begins to walk away, "The end of the night is nigh. We shall speak to you again," Luna's voice booms.

"Wait! What's going on?" I yell out to Luna. Suddenly, a bright white light blinds me, followed by complete darkness.





When I come to, I see the hospital room that I'm staying in. I sit up in my bed and check my arms. The bandages are back on my arms, I don't think I'm dreaming anymore. I look at the digital clock next to me, it reads 9:30 am. The room is kind of dark because the blinds are covering the windows. 

I lay back down in my bed and look up at the ceiling. What was that dream all about? Why did Princess Luna leave so suddenly? Something just doesn't add up... But if she's going to visit another one of my dreams, I guess I can ask her then...