Earth to Equestria in ten seconds flat. But how to get back?
The life of me, a human, who ended up travelling to Equestria via fall through a chasm. Now I've got to deal with 6 colourful ponies and a struggle to find my place in a world where I don't fit in, all the while doing my best to find my way back to my own world. Story of my life in a nutshell....
Walking home, listening to my favorite tunes on my iPhone, I bopped along down the city streets. Not a care in the world, and and not a single thought crossing my mind, I was in my own little world. Little did I know, I was on a blind date with destiny. I walked across the street, and suddenly, a sleek black car sped down the road and nearly ran me over. I jumped to avoid it, but the car stopped and two strange men in black suits came out. They stared at me from behind their sunglasses. I ran. It was the only thing on my mind now. Escaping. Running as fast as I could, as far away from those strange men as I could. Unsurprisingly, they chased me in their car. I lept through backyards, front yards, playgrounds, anything I could run through to throw them off my tracks. But they kept with me. I decided to take to a forest. I ran through the forest, and they got out to chase me on foot.
I kept running, but I was getting tired. Soon, more black suits showed up. They were trying to box me in. I wasn't dumb. I climbled a tree and lept to the next one, then down. That got me out of a sticky situation, but not the chase. Finally we ended at a long drop. A cliff. It was so deep I couldn't see any sign on the ground. They were closing in now. I was either gonna have to get captured or jump. I saw that the other side of the cliff wasn't far, but it was just out of my leaping distance. But maybe with one big jump I could make it. I saw them close in. I saw them draw their guns.
"GET ON THE GROUND! NOW!" One ordered. I couldn't think. It was death or death. And I wasn't about to die. I turned and lept for the cliff.
"NO WAIT!!" I heard one yell. It was too late. I felt my foot push off the edge of the cliff and I lept. I flew across the chasm's open maw and I saw the other side get closer. Closer. Closer! I was gonna make it! I was gonna MAKE IT!! I WAS GONNA MAKE IT!! Suddenly, the other edge of the cliff flew past my field of vision. I didn't make it. I lept right into the chasm. I felt my heart skip a few beats. I was gonna die. This is it.I saw the pitch blackness absorb me and I was gone from sight. There was no sign of the black suited agents. They were long gone. I wanted to scream, but I couldn't find the voice to do so. I mean, what can you say when you see you just missed the choice of life or death?
I saw I missed. I saw the cliff rush past me. I saw that I was now falling to my demise. I was a goner. I almost wanted to cry. No second chance. No chance to say goodbye. No time to reflect. No way to cheat death. Suddenly, in the pitch darkness, a bright light. I saw something in the distance. But there was no way that this chasm was nothing but a tunnel straight down...There was nothing. So then what's that light? Suddenly, it got extremely bright. I covered my eyes and I felt wind....Wind from sky. I felt a cool mist tickle my cheeks and I saw that I was now not in a chasm, but thousands of feet in the air. But this was not my town. This wasn't my WORLD. This was something else! I saw strange coloured creatures flying. They were four-legged winged animals of some sort.
Well, no sense in just letting them fly past me. I screamed at them.
"HEYYY! GET I REQUIRE ASSISTANCE!! I'M KINDA...YA KNOW....DYING!" One must've heard me, because she flew out and got another one, and together they flew out and caught me. Unfortunately, when they caught me, they winded me by accident, because one caught me by my stomach. I was disabled from lifting my head so I couldn't get a good look at them, but I can tell they got a look at me.
"Whoa, what IS this thing?" "Is this an alien?" "It certainly doesn't look like a pony...So it must be...We should take it to Twilight, or maybe Fluttershy. They might have some answers."
Oh great. I'm being brought to more strangers to be inspected like a dog...This oughta be fun. Too weak to fight, I allowed these strange creatures take me to this 'Twilight'. But I couldn't stop thinking about it. I left everything. My family. My home. My world. I have to get back.
They took me into a giant tree building. They put me on a table, and I heard another voice.
"What's going on?" "We saw this strange creature falling from the sky, so we saved it. But it seems hurt, and we don't know what it is. Can you help us?" "Well I can try, but I don't think I have any books on this strange creature..."
I heard books being pulled from shelves, pages turning, covers closing. Finally, I heard them talk again.
"Ah ha! I found it!" "Well? What is it?" "It's a different species all together. It's called a 'Human'. Apparently, these strange beings are only supposed to be an old pony's tale. But these creatures have a much different biology then we do." "Is it hurt? I mean, look at it's strange expression...if that's it's face..." "Yes, I think it is hurt. But I don't know anything about it's anatomy. I'll call Fluttershy. Maybe she could help."
I opened my eyes. Everything was blurred. I couldn't see. The fall did more of a number on me then I thought. Suddenly, the vision blurred until it was black. I couldn't see...I passed out. I heard only the disembodied voices slowly fade...
"Thank Celestia.....you.....-rrived....Ca-......-elp?" "Oh....my....-hat is it?" "I'll......-plain.......-ter...."
Drifitng in and out of consciousness, I heard the strange creatures talking. They mentioned all sorts of weird things. Princesses, Manticores, Aliens, Myths, Fairy Tales, and everything in between. Finally, I felt something touching me...It was a little hard, but warm. I felt my arm being lifted. Too weak to fight back, too tired to protest, I layed there, limp, like a ragdoll. I heard them talking again, but I was starting to wake up, so their voices were much clearer.
"Is it dead?" "No, I think it's breathing." "Do humans breathe?" "Apparently so." "What's your book say?" "Well, it only tells me about what it looks and acts like. It doesn't show anatomy." "You should tell the Princess. Maybe she can help." "I'll send a letter to her right now."
I slowly opened my eyes. It was still blurry, but I at least could keep my eyes open...I saw a pale yellow and pink blob of some sort. It was unclear what it was.The strange thing tended to me, checking to see if I was hurt. She finally left to do something else. Now that I wasn't being poked and prodded like an experiment, I took the chance to escape. I waited until I couldn't hear them anymore, then I got off the table, stood up, and ran to the door. I banged my head on the top of it. It was lower than I thought. I pusehd the doors open and ran out. The creatures must've heard me leave, because I heard them talking to one another, then run into the front room.
"It couldn't of gotten far." "Be careful, Twilight. It might be scared. We should be quieter." "Fluttershy, we need to capture it. We can't have that thing running around." "Oh...Okay Twlight..."
I ran as fast as I could, but they were quickly on my trail. I was still groggy and a little hurt, so my run was less of a run, more of a blurry stagger down the streets. But it was faster than them, because I had longer legs and longer strides. I heard the creatures call in others to help out.
"Applejack! Rainbow! We need your help!" "Whoa there, Twi. What's going on?" "It's hard to explain, but there's a strange creature running through Ponyville, so we need to catch it." "But Twi, we don't even know what it looks like! How are we supposed to catch something we don't know?" "Trust me girls, you'll know it when you see it."
I ran faster now, I needed to get away from these strange creatures. My vision was still blurry but clearing up now. My run was faster, and I wasn't staggering. Now to escape. I ran as fast as I could, putting my track skills to the test. I had to do this once before, so I knew my stuff. I lept the river and ran towards one building. I lept to it and climbed the rain gutter to the roof, then started to leap from rooftop to rooftop. Finally, I jumped down and landed in a wagon of hay, and disappeared from sight. My mother told me that nothing good comes from playing video games, but look who was right.
Suddenly, I felt the wagon tip upward, and I fell out. 4 creatures stood over me. I got a better view of them...They looked kinda like horses. Only they were much smaller, they had no 'hoof' as I could see, and they were....well....different. Colourful, big eyes, different hair styles, and 2 even had wings! One had a horn. I just laid there, knowing if I did anything I might get hurt.
"What IS this thing?" "It's a human. It's a creature that was thought to be only an old pony's tale." "Is it dangerous?" "We don't know for certain."
Okay great, so they can talk. AND they know my language. I noticed something though, they were 4 legged, meaning...I suddenly swung my arm and knocked their front legs out from under them, and they tripped. I stood up and kept running. Suddenly I felt a tight rope wrap around my ankles and I tripped. They slowly dragged me back, and tied me up. I just grumbled. I had nothing to say to these things.
"Come on girls, now that it's captured and awake, maybe we can get some answers."
They took me back to the tree, and they sat me in a chair.
"Hello, Human. I'm Twilight Sparkle."
I just stared blankly at them. I wasn't scared, I was just irritated.
"Can you speak?"
I just stared.
"Do you have a name?"
I nodded, but remained stoic. They looked at each other, then back at me.
"So it can understand speech...So that must mean it can talk..."
I just stared.
"Are you frightened? Is that why you don't want to talk?"
I shook my head. They sighed.
"Well, are you angry?"
I nodded.
"We're sorry for tying you up. Can you just please talk to us? We need to know more about you."
I just groaned.
"Fine." I said blatently. "What is it you want to know?" Twilight smiled and looked at her friends.
"Well, what's your name?" "My name is Austin." "That's an odd name." "Your's isn't all that normal either, Sprinkles." "Um, it's Twilight Sparkle...SPARKle." "Whatever you say Sparky."
Twilight just blinked.
"So? What else?" "Are you here to hurt anypony?" "Trust me, if I was aiming to hurt you....THINGS....I would have already." "Well, what do you eat? Are you hungry?" "Okay, I'm omnivorous. I eat both plants and meat." "Is pony meat one of your...meals?" "Is that what you things are? Geez, I thought you were just crayon creatures."
They looked at each other, confused, then turned back.
"To answer your question, no. I do not eat 'Ponies'. Frankly, I don't imagine you'd taste all that good. Besides, I don't even like horse meat." "What do you eat?" "I'd rather not answer that." "Are you scared of us?" "I'm angry at you."
They just sighed.
"Twilight, we're getting nowhere with these questions..." the orange pony said. "Sorry."
I just blew some hair out of my face.
"Well are you magical?" "Do I look magical? I don't grant no wishes, and you ain't finding any pot o gold. So I'd appreciate if you untie me." "You're not very friendly, are you?" "Aw, sorry. It's just when you ponies tied my up and started interrogating me, it kinda ruined any chance of a friendship." "Oh." "Now, I'm done talking. I'll be waiting for you strange creatures to run a knife across my neck."
And with that, I went silent. They left and started to talk about me. I just reached into my pocket and pulled out my trusty butterfly knife. I sliced through my bindings and lept out the window. I am SO outta here. Once I'm gone, I'll go find someone who can get me back. Preferably, not a 'pony'. Though I am pretty hungry....Maybe I could go find somewhere I could get something to eat. I looked around, then spotted a giant house that looked like it was made of candy and cake. I blinked. I made sure no one was looking, then ran to it and snuck in. It was a bakery. What a shock. No one seemed to be around...yet. So I peeked at some of the treats.
Suddenly, I heard something I didn't want to hear.
"Hi!"
I jumped nearly out of my skin, and saw a pink pony. She just stared at me, almost oblivious that I was a human. That smile made her look completely innocent. I just glared.
"Um...Hello?" "I'm Pinkie Pie!" "I'm...Austin. Aren't you scared? Or confused? I'm a human..." "No, I've seen plenty of humans~" "Um...okay...can I get something to eat?" "Well, I need money first." "I'm broke." "Ok, I'll let you have one on the house."
She was surprisingly nice. Almost TOO nice. She brought out a cupcake and smiled at me. I just looked at her, then at the cupcake. She just stared at me, and I felt extremely uncomfortable. I just slowly took a bite of the cupcake.
"It's gurd." I said with a mouthful of frosting and cake. Pinkie just laughed. "You sound so silly!" she said between laughs. I just blushed a little and swallowed. "It's good." I said to correct myself. She smiled and bounced back to the kitchen. I just finished the cupcake and left. Well, at least she didn't tie me up and force me to talk like a prisoner.
"This place isn't that bad...I should still lay low though." Suddenly, I heard the girls from the library.
"He's gone!" "Wait, I think I see him outside!" "Go get him!"
I just groaned and ran. As last time, they gave chase. Suddenly, I bumped into something hard, yet soft, almost like silk. I rubbed my head and looked up. I saw looking down at me was a 7-8 foot tall pony, white as snow, with a wingspan that was bigger than SHE was. Her mane was kinda like toothpaste, but it moved. I just stared at her. She stared back. Twilight and the others ran over.
"Hello, Twilight. I got your letter about this creature, so I came down to see it for myself. This is indeed a human." The tall white pony said. What was she a moron? I think we've already established the fact that I'm not from here. Now this is just getting annoying. The pony lowered her head to talk to me face to face. "I'm sure you have a lot of questions." Finally, maybe I can get some answers from them. Now the shoe is on the other foot...erm...hoof.
"Yeah, actually. I do have some questions." I said sharply. "Where in the world am I?" The pony just smiled and I stood up. "You're in the land of Equestria. A world populated by all sorts of magical creatures, including the most numerous, ponies. The 4 ponies behind you are the first four of the Elements of Harmony, and they've helped save this world 3 times." "So if these are ponies, why does one have a horn, 2 have wings, and you have a horn AND wings?"
"Well, Twilight is a unicorn, meaning she can use all sorts of magical spells. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy are pegasi, which means they're fast, light, and can fly. They can also walk on clouds. And Applejack is an Earth Pony, or a pony without extra appendages. But that means they're often strong and tough. I'm an Alicorn, meaning I have both wings and a horn. I'm also the Princess of this land. I rule with my sister and-"
"Okay okay! I get it. She's magical, they can fly, and you're magical and can fly. Nice to know. If I wanted your life story, I would've asked."
"Very well."
"Now, I'd like to know what the hell happened."
"What do you mean?"
I rubbed the back of my head, then continued, "Well...I come from a land called Earth. It's a land much like this, only far different. It's a long explanation I don't want to continue, so I'll cut to the chase. I was running through a forest, being chased by a few other officals, and in the haste of my run, I kinda....lept into a chasm. The chasm was super deep, but I suddenly disappeared and found myself falling from the sky above this town....-"
I then relayed the entire past of what happened in the last 30 minutes of my life.
"-....And then they chased me again, and that's when I bumped into you, and here we are."
The princess pony then smiled. "Well that's quite the story, Austin."
"Do you know anyway I can get back into my own world? I mean...No offence, your world is great and all...but...I'd rather be back on Earth, and not....um.....here."
The princess' smile faded, and she said "I'm sorry, Austin, but I don't know any way for you to get back. I'll go back to the castle and research about you and your kind, and maybe that will reveal something useful. But for the meantime, you're going to be stuck here in Equestria until further notice."
"Well how long do you think that would be?"
"It could be only a few hours, a year, or more."
I just turned whiter than the pony standing in front of me.
"I'm sorry, Austin."
"But where will I live? What'll I eat?"
She looked at Twilight. "I'm sure Twilight or her friends could find you some lodgings for the time you're here."
Twilight smiled. "Of course! I'd love to! There's so much I want to know!" I sighed. It beats sleeping on a park bench. But I'd rather not be interrogated. Again. Take whatcha got, I guess. The princess smiled, then left to her castle. Twilight got her other friends in to see me. Joining us was Pinkie Pie, and a white unicorn I haven't seen before. Twilight explained to Pinkie and the white pony about what had happened. When all was said and done, Twilight finally said, "So now that you girls are up to date, you can go ahead and go about your own accord, and if anything happens, I'll inform you."
AJ, RD, Pinkie and Fluttershy left, leaving me with Twilight and the stranger. Twilight said, "Austin, this is Rarity. She's a fashion designer who runs the Carosel Boutique." I blinked, then looked at her. She seemed to be staring more at my clothes than me. "Can I help you?"
"Darling, I'm not the one who needs help. I mean, look at this! Drab grey sweater, blue leggings, and....Sneakers...." She shuddered. "You must simply let me make you better attire!" "Okay, um...these aren't leggings....They're called jeans. They're pants...." Rarity looked at me, confused. I facepalmed, then said, "It's clothes you wear on your flank and hind legs."
Rarity blinked. "You mean like a dress?"
I just sighed. "Well, kind of. Only...Not as loose. and not around your legs, but rather...um....wrapped around. It's hard to explain. But it's usually what males of my species wear."
"Do females wear dresses?"
"Well...yeah...but...not all the time."
"Regardless, you must let me make you something better, Darling."
I looked at Twilight. "Does she call everyone Darling?" Twilight just smiled a little and nodded. When I looked back, I saw Rarity was measuring my leg.
"Do you mind?" I said. "It's a nice gesture and all, but I do not have the same body type as a pony...I'm bipedal. I walk on only 2 legs. Not 4." Rarity just ran off, and I groaned. I wasn't certain what she wanted to accomplish out of that, but whatever. Twilight smiled. "So can I ask you a few questions? And hook you up to an X-Ray machine?" I groaned. This was going to be a very very long day...
After being blasted by heavy amounts of radiation, answering questions for several hours, and a impromptu puppet show to demonstrate how one human would settle a score, Twilight finally got to the last topic. "Okay, this is the last thing I want to talk about."
"F*cking finally! I'm sorry for the foul language, but this was getting irritating. I told you everything about my species from A to Z, so what is it so I can finally have some peace?"
Twilight flipped through a few notes, then smiled. "Well, you've covered everything I needed, but there's one more I'd like to talk about." I made a motion to her to continue her thought. "I'd like to know more about relationships." "Like what? Friendship? Enemies? What?"
"Romance."
"Pretty much the same as your world. Guy likes girl, girl likes guy, they get together, one thing leads to another and suddenly marriage and children."
Twilight giggled. "Not what I mean."
"Then please clarify."
"Well, what would be a sign if a girl liked a guy?"
"Okay, Sparky, I wanna tell you something now. I don't know beans about females. You'd need a female human for that." Twilight looked disappointed. "Could you at least try?" "Sorry." She shrugged (Or at least I think she did) and asked "Well what do guys do if they like a girl?"
"Well...let's see. It depends, but usually the guy gets all awkward, blushes, and does everything he can to AVOID the girl."
"That sounds like our stallions..."
"Told you it was similar."
Twilight put her notes down. "Okay then, Austin, that's all I can really learn." I rubbed my wrists and shrugged. "Yeah sure." I stood up and walked upstairs. "Soooo...what do you do around here?" "Well I'm the royal student and librarian. Moreso a student. What do you do?" "Well, I have no real occupation. But I have a variety of talents."
"Like what?" "Well, I can babysit, I took care of cats, I'm good at playing video games, and I've been able to use this butterfly knife in a variety of situations. Such as cutting myself free of Applejack's rope." I said, motioning to the scraps of rope on the floor near one of the chairs. "I'm also fast and good at escaping sticky situations."
Twilight smiled. "Like what?" "One example is escaping 4 ponies who are hunting me down like a wild animal in order to tie my up and ask me questions." Twilight blushed. "Sorry..." "No no it's fine. I've had it happen before. Only it wasn't ponies, it was 5 yr old kids." Twilight blinked, a little confused at the last remark.
"So, where can a 6 ft tall bipedal humanoid creature sleep?" Twilight scratched her head. "Well, there are only 2 places you could sleep. You could share my bed, or the spare bed in the corner. But it's a lot smaller and not as comfortable." I groaned. "Anywhere else?" "Ummmm....no. There's nothing big enough, and sleeping on wood wouldn't be very cozy..." She said, gently tapping the hard wooden floor with her hoof. I groaned. "Well, I've slept on stranger materials..." "I really don't think you'd fall asleep easily..."
I sighed. "Fine. But please keep to your own side of the bed?...which would be most of it?" Twilight nodded, and went upstairs. "Speaking of, we should probably get some rest." I scratched my head. "erm...well..." "Come on, it's been a long day, so I'm sure your tired." I sighed. She was right. I just didn't want to admit it. I went upstairs, being careful to duck in case I hit my head, and she crawled into bed. I crawled into bed beside her and turned so that I wasn't facing her. "Night Twi." Twilight smiled a little. "Good night, Austin."
The lamp's pull cord then was surrounded with a pink glow, and was pulled down, and then the entire room went black.
Bright and early, I feel Twilight tug the blankets off of me and I wake from my slumber. I groaned. I was having such a nice time sleeping. Why do I have to ruin it by waking up? Twilight gently gave me a few taps with her hoof. "Come on, sleepyhead. Rise and shine." I groaned again, then got up, rubbing one eye. "Erhnhgle....What time is it?" I looked at her clock and saw that it was 8:30 in the morning. I rubbed my head. "Seriously? I normally wake up at 11! Maybe Noon at times...a human needs his rest ya know!" Twilight just smiled. "Austin, you've been asleep for 12 hours. Your species only requires 6-8 hours of sleep to function properly."
I sighed. Again, she was right. And again, I didn't want to admit it. But I got up anyway and leaned back a bit until I heard my back pop and crack. I just groaned a bit and rubbed my side. I overdid it. Sometimes when I stretch too far or too long, I pulled something in my side and I have to loosen it. It hurts until it's fixed. Twilight saw that I pulled something and walked over. "Are you okay? Are you cramping?" I sighed and groaned a bit, then twisted and I felt the muscle loosen up again. "Nah, I'm fine Twi. I just pulled a muscle." Twilight then sat me back down on the bed. "Well you should be careful. Here, let me help." She got behind me and went to touch my side, and I jumped up. "Whoa, hey. I said I'm fine Twilight. Really. I don't need a chiropractor."
Suddenly I saw a pink glow surround me and she pulled me back down. "Just give me a minute. Maybe I can fix it." "But Twilight, I said I was- AHHHHARGH!" My sentence was cut short by Twilight pushing on my side rather sharply with her hoof. "Oops. Sorry." She said quickly, then she pushed again, and I yelped in pain again. "Sorry again!" I managed to stand up before she could touch me. "OKAY OKAY! I'm fine!....I think you broke one of my ribs..."
A few minutes and another X-Ray later, I walked out with some bandages around my lower torso. As it turned out, she hadn't broke anything. Just a bad cramp. So she made a make-shift brace out of some linen bandages and a safety pin, which I luckily seemed to have in my pocket. The pin, I mean. Not the bandages...We went out, and I said to her, "Hey Twilight, I'm gonna go try to befriend some ponies...Maybe I can feel a bit more comfortable living here." She nodded, then gave me directions for her 5 friends. I went out into town and thought of who I wanted to befriend first. "Okay Pinkie scared me, Rarity seemed too obsessive with my clothing, Fluttershy is kinda strange and shy, and I don't think Rainbow liked me that much...Maybe I'll talk to Applejack...after all, I DID cut apart her rope..."
I set out for the big red barn on the hill, or 'Sweet Map Makers'....or was it 'Neat Cap Takers?'........'Treat Sap Lakers'?.....I couldn't really remember...Maybe I'll ask Applejack when I get there. I went in and looked up at the archway over the gate. It had an apple on it. I looked towards the barn. Hmmm....Apple......Acres of farmland full of apple trees....Nope, still couldn't remember. I continued on, then heard something that sounded like a 'Thump', then a lot more smaller 'thumps', like something falling. I went out into the forest of apple trees and saw Applejack.
"YEEEE-HAWW!" She ran over and reared up, then kicked a tree so hard it shook, and all the apples fell out into the wooden buckets under it. I just stared, shocked and apalled. She smiled. "Oh, well howdy Austin! What brings you to Sweet Apple Acres?"
Sweet Apple Acres..How did I forget that?
"Oh...I....um......what?"
She laughed. "I'm askin' what ya'll are here."
"Oh...um...I'm here to say sorry for the rope...and..-...Did you just kick a tree so hard the apples fell out?" Applejack smiled and tipped her hat. "Well, the apples aren't just gonna jump outta the tree, are they?" I blinked. "Hey, I know a way you can pay back that rope!"
Oh boy...I didn't like the sound of this...
"How about you help me get some apples out? If you do 2-3 trees, I'll forgive ya'll about the rope."
Told you.
"Umm...well that seems fair..." Applejack smiled. "Okay, you go over to those 3 trees over yonder. I'll get you some buckets." She ran off, then came back with multiple buckets. Enough for each tree. She just stepped back, then I looked at the tree. "Umm...hm...."
I tried climbing it, but I fell out. Next I tried just jumping to grab the apples. Nope, I was just too short. I then tried to grab the trunk of the tree and shake it as hard as I could, but it just looked really strange...Finally, I tried kicking it. I hurt my foot, unsurprisingly. I then, out of a fit of anger and desperation, took a running start and....
slammed face first into the tree and gave myself a face full of splinters and a bloody nose. I layed there, holding my face and groaning, rolling around. Applejack gave me a strange look. "Ya'll okay, Austin?.......Austin?"
I blacked out, then woke up in Twilight's bed. I groaned. My face felt like it exploded. It moaned in pain, then looked around. Twilight and Applejack were standing near the bed, talking. I could only faintly hear their conversation.
"So he then ran facefirst into the tree..and that's what happened." "Well that's quite a story. I'm just glad he didn't break anything." "I think he's paid the rope off..."
They then approached the bed. "Austin, since we don't know alot about your species, or how it heals, we called in Fluttershy to tend to you while you're like this. "Nng...yar....mmble....garble..." I mumbled in reply. Twilight just smiled a little. "That's good...Okay, come on in, Fluttershy." Fluttershy flew in and saw my condition. "Oh my! You poor thing...Here, let Nurse Fluttershy make it all better..." If I could protest, I would. But all that came out was: "Mmbles...Scarb.....fabble..." Fluttershy then pet my head and gave me a spoonful of.....something. She said it was some sort of home remedy to help heal my face, but to me, it tasted like a mixture of bad cough syrup, mud, and water mixed with salt. It was absolutely awful, but I couldn't really do anything other than swallow, then just screw up my face in distaste. Fluttershy smiled. "I know I know...It doesn't taste good, but it'll make you feel better..." She pet my head again.
Okay, lemme say one thing here. I know I'm an alien from another planet. I know I may be considered an 'animal' by their kind, which is understandable. But I'm not stupid. I don't need to be baby talked and spoonfed medicine. Then again, the fact that I was groggy, hurt, and a little too dazed to really do much of anything but garble my words and make small movements, really left me in a vulnerable state. And when I'm in vulnerable state, with the fate of my actions in the hands....or in this case, hooves....of a few girls, most of which I don't even know that well, all the while one is babytalking to me and feeding me like I'm a 6-month-old baby, it makes me a little uncomfortable and paranoid.
So, using what small movements I could muster, I managed to scoot myself as far away from Fluttershy as the bed would let me. Fluttershy just gave me a warm smile then spoke with Twilight. "Give him this medicine every few hours, and he should be fine by tomorrrow morning." Twilight nodded and set it down near the bed. I just rubbed my forehead a bit. I had a bit of a headache. Well, 'tis to be expected when one decides to run headfirst into an apple tree. I groaned again. I was hoping to be better some other time, but I was in no state to be making ANOTHER escapade away from these ponies. The first 2 times were enough. A third time would be foolish. I sighed then tried to get some sleep, which is hard when your head is pounding and your face feels like a pile of mashed potatoes....
Much much later, during the night, Twilight woke me up to give me some medicine. Like the other 3 times that day, I resisted. And, like the other 3 times, she said, "Oh come on, Austin. Please?" I shook my head, and once again, I felt her magic force my mouth open wide enough to give me that poison, and I swallowed reluctantly. "That's the last of it. If what Fluttershy told me was correct, your face and head should feel better tomorrow. I'll tell you a bedtime story to help you relax." Luckily, by this time, I was able to talk. "Twilight, I'm not a child...I don't need a bedtime story." "You sure? I just want you to get some rest." I sighed heavily. "Okay fine...Whatcha got?" She smiled. "Well it's unlikely you want me to tell you nursery ryhmes or fairy tales, so how about I tell you the story about the Elements of Harmony?"
"Shoot, if it's better than Mother Goose and old pony's tales, then I'm good with anything."
"Once upon a time, a mare was in Canterlot's castle, reading about the Elements of Harmony...an ancient prophecy told about the return of Nightmare Moon...-"
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"And after defeating Nightmare Moon and saving Equestria, the kind-hearted princess allowed the young mare to stay with the friends she's made, and give her reports on friendship everyday....later it was changed to when she could make one, so it all worked out. The end."
"Twilight, that story sounded really familiar....Too familiar...." I tapped my chin in thought...."Nightmare Moon...." I said to myself.
"Well, goodnight, Austin." Twilight took the spare bed to make sure I slept easier. I blinked, then fell asleep. "Nightmare Moon...where have I heard that before?" I mumbled.
*2 days earlier, seconds after Austin's jump into the chasm, the black suits stare down into the darkness of the chasm's maw, unsure of what to do*
The lead black suit spoke into his earbud. "We lost him sir. He managed to jump into the chasm." A very angry voice replied. "We're not paying you morons to tell us if you lost the target. We pay you to capture the target. Now we have to find a way to get him out. He doesn't know what he's gotten himself into...He could be our country's....maybe even our universe's...only hope of stopping what's in play. We need to catch him, and tell him what's going on. And the only way to do that is to either send someone in after him, or use our inside source. And I'm not losing more agents on a freefall down into Equestria. Tell her what needs to be done. You know what to do."
The black suit motioned to his team, then they left out of the forest.
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Present day, the FBI HQ
"Is she in place?"
"Yeah. Now we just hope she'll follow orders this time."
"You're talking about Agent 32-PDP. She's never really one to listen."
I strolled into the bakery with Twilight, now trying to befriend a certain pink mare. Hopefully, she won't be as creepy as last time. Twilight called into the back room. "Pinkie? Pinkie!!" Pinkie Pie came hopping out like usual, and Twilight smiled. "There you are." Pinkie smiled. "Hiya Twilight! Hiya Austin! What brings you here today? Cupcakes? Cake? Cookies? A party?" Twilight giggled a bit. "Oh no, nothing like that Pinkie. We were hoping you could befriend Austin. He'd like to know more about us." Pinkie gasped, then dashed into the other room like a bullet. Me and Twilight exchanged confused glances, then watched as Pinkie ran back out with a cake that had sparklers and in red frosting, it read: "Happy Befriending Austin". Told you she was creepy.
Suddenly, Pinkie's 'Pinkie Sense' kicked in. Her ear flopped, her tail twitched, and then her left hind leg kicked out. "Wuh-oh." she said. She looked worried. I blinked and noticed the cake was made extremely fast...which was odd...
Meanwhile, seeing as how I was distracted by the cake, Pinkie Pie took Twilight into the other room.
"My Pinkie Sense....and the Earth officals....told me."
"I don't get it Pinkie...You're always going on and on about your Pinkie Sense and-"
"I can't tell you everything Twilight. But Austin may end up being our and his world's savior..."
"Are you sure?"
"My Pinkie Sense is never wrong...."
Twilight bit her lip nervously. "Twilight? You okay in there?"
Twilight came back out. "Coming, coming...." Pinkie then ran her hoof across her mouth, indicating she wanted Twilight to keep quiet about it. At least to me. Twilight just nodded and smiled at me. "Hey Austin. Want to learn more about the Elements of Harmony?" I shrugged. "Sure." Twilight took me into the library and gave me a book, labled 'The Elements Of Harmony: A Reference Guide'. "Read this. It'll tell you everything about them. It got updated too.
"The Elements Of Harmony are the 6 magical jewels that helped banish Nightmare Moon, and turn the evil god of Chaos, Discord, into stone. They are represented by 6 ponies who reside in Ponyville." I read aloud. "You might be interested in the chapter about Discord...." Twilight said, flipping the pages to a section about chaos. "Discord, the god of Chaos. A mixture of different animals, Discord is a sight to behold. 1000's of years ago, he ruled over Equestria, spreading chaos and dread wherever he went...-"
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"-....And so, with the power of the Elements of Harmony, the 6 ponies managed to send Discord back into his stone prison, where he remains until this very day. No one is certain what the future holds, but ponies can only hope that the god of chaos does not return."
I looked at the clock. I spent a good hour reading that chapter, but for some reason, Twilight kept urging me to finish it. I dunno. I looked at Twilight. "So you're supposedly the Element of Magic, then?" Twilight was organizing some books on a shelf. "Yeah, you could say that. I'm more the pony that represents it...The Elements are actually kept in Canterlot Castle."
"Huh. So what if I was an element?"
"What?"
"If I was one of these Elements...Which one do you think I'd most represent?"
"Umm....I don't think you'd be any of them...You seem to have trouble grasping Laughter, and Honesty.....well you're not exactly completely truthful. Um, Loyalty maybe, but I'm not sure. Definately not Magic, and I don't think you'd be good for Generousity....And....well....Kindness isn't likely either."
I stared at her, insulted.
"Well I'm sorry, Austin...But you just seem to have trouble grasping the magic of Friendship...that's more what the elements mean...The Elements of Harmony are based on Friendship."
"Hmph...So what you're saying is I need to grasp the magic of friendship before I have any chance of being ANY element?"
"Why are you so upset? So what if you don't nessessarily represent an element....it's not exactly a job they give to ANY pony...erm...human."
"I'm sorry Twilight, if I'm over-reacting..." I sighed heavily and sat down. "It's just...I get upset when someone questions my integrity. I'm a nice guy Twilight. I'm just stressed. Dropping into a new world, possibly never getting back home... It was all too much. But I'm nice, Twilight. Back home, I had no trouble finding new friends...I was kind, loyal, honest, generous, I always made them laugh....You got me on the magic part, but you know what I mean...I just let it go to my head and I kinda started acting hostile."
Twilight trotted over and put her hoof on my shoulder to comfort me. I was almost near tears. Talking about this made me think of everything and everyone I left behind. Twilight gave me a hug and smiled. "It's okay, Austin. Just calm down..." I hugged back, her soft lavender coat suprisingly comforting. She smiled and pulled away. "Better?" I slowly nodded and wiped my eye. "Thanks Twilight..." Twilight gave me a gentle pat on the head, then set the book back on the shelf. "Hey Twilight?" "Yeah Austin?" "Can you help me?" "With what?" "The magic of Friendship? If I'm gonna live here, I might as well know somepony." Twilight gave me a warm smile. "Sure thing. But tomorrow. We'll have more time." I nodded and we went to bed.
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*Present Time, Earth, FBI HQ*
"Did she do it?"
"Yep."
"Now we just wait and let it all play out...Hopefully Agent 32-PDP will tell the others."
I groaned and sat up. I didn't know where I was...It looked Twilight's house....but it was.....messy...unorganized. It was like my bedroom on a GOOD day....I went downstairs, and I saw her. Her mane was frazzled, her eyes bloodshot, and it smelled like she hasn't bathed in days..."Twilight?" Twilight looked up and grinned. "AUSTIN!! How's my favorite human?~" "I'm the only-" My sentence was cut short by Twilight laughing rather strangely. "OF COURSE, that's right!! Silly Twilight!" "Twilight, what's wrong? What have you been doing? You look terrible!!"
"I had to find out! I needed to figure out how to do it! And I finally did! I can finally make you comfortable living here!!" "Wait what?" She laughed again. "I had to! I wanted you to be happy, then I could be happy and we'd all be happy! Happy happy smiling FRIENDS!!" "I'm getting you a doctor..." I ran to the door, but I felt her magic tug on my ankle and I tripped, then she dragged me back and laughed. "No no! You can't leave! You haven't seen your surprise!!" "Twilight, you're scaring me!" Twilight didn't respond, she just laughed and her horn started to glow again. I saw her magic seize my hands and feet and pin me to the floor. I struggled to get up, but her magic was too strong.
"I mean, how could a HUMAN be comfortable in a land of PONIES? I MEAN IT'S RIDICULOUS!!" She laughed. "So I thought, what if there were more humans here? But I couldn't find a spell to get humans here! SO I'M GOING TO SETTLE FOR THE NEXT BEST THING!!" Twilight used the scraps of rope and tied my hands and feet so she could free her magic. "Twilight, let me go!!" Twilight just kept laughing and walked over to be, her horn glowing. "Twilight! You don't have to do this! I can get you help! We can get through this!" Twilight just continued her advance on me. "So, instead of bringing humans here, we're gonna make you something that'll make you plenty comfortable in a world of ponies! I can't turn HUMAN, so I'll just turn YOU into a PONY!!" I felt her horn touch my forehead and I felt sharp pain throughout my body.
My arms and legs shortened into hooves...my torso became smaller and heavier. I felt my head and neck change and I felt a horn pushing it's way out of my skin on my forehead. I screamed in pain and dropped to the floor on all fours. I was a grey unicorn with long brown mane and a tail. She just laughed. "WELCOME TO EQUESTRIA, SKETCH!!"
*Equestria, Ponyville - Twilight's House
I screamed and sat up in bed. Twilight woke up and saw me, white as a sheet. "Austin! What's wrong?!" I scampered away from her, still paranoid about my nightmare. I fell off the bed and backed into the corner, breathing heavily and shivering. "Austin, what's gotten into you?! It's me! Twilight!" I looked around. I wanted to make sure I was awake. I pinched my arm and yelped, then looked at her again. I was certainly awake...I felt my head, still scared out of my mind. Twilight came over and sat near me. "What happened? Did you have a nightmare?" I looked into her deep purple eyes, and I swear, I saw that same eerie grin stretch across her face. I just sighed and looked away, then told her everything that happened in my dream. I sighed. Twilight looked distraught. "Why would you think of me like that?" I shook my head. "No Twilight. I know you're way better than that. It was just a night terror. Nothing more." She gave me a hug and I finally felt my heart drop back down from my face. (not literally, but that's what it felt like.)
Twilight let me have some time to calm down. I went downstairs a little later, and I felt more calm. She looked at me. "Listen, this may not be the best time. Especially after that dream you had. But I've been wanting to attempt a spell...And please, hear me out before you refuse." "Twilight, you're letting me live in your house, sleep in your bed, eat your food, and even helped me calm down after a nightmare specifically about you. I owe you more than just that, so go ahead and tell me."
Twilight smiled and said, "Well...It's a spell to give humans powers like a unicorn, only without the extra appendage." I stared at her. "It won't turn me into a pony, will it?" "No no no! Of course not!" I sighed. "Well...Okay, sure." Twilight's horn glowed, and I felt my body slowly being lifted upward. "....Wait, is this gonna hurt?........Twilight?......"
Unable to hear me over the sound of her spell, I saw a strange set of glowing ribbons come up from nothing, and slowly cacoon around me. "Twilight, I'm having second thoughts...what if it hurts? or it's irreversable? or it DOES turn me into a pony?.....Twilight?!" Suddenly, I saw the cacoon slowly close up, and I felt a sharp pain across my chest and arms. I screamed, and, in a bright flash of light, the cacoon exploded and I dropped to the floor. I landed on my knees, and panted. My arms were numb, and my chest felt like my heart was going to explode at any second. But there was something more. A strange tingle....a weird tingle....the tingle of pure energy running through my veins. Twilight stood up, then looked at me. "Austin?" I looked at her, my eyes glowing pure white. She stared in disbelief. "Austin?!" Suddenly, the glow stopped. I dropped like a fly. She gasped. "AUSTIN!!" She ran over and picked me up with her magic, then took me to lay in a bed. I blacked out. Much later, I woke up in the Ponyville hospital. I looked around, I couldn't feel my arms and my head was pounding. "Careful! Don't strain yourself." It was Twilight...I turned and saw the mare sitting near my bed. "You reacted differently to the spell then I hoped, but it was still successful."
"What do you mean? You could've killed me..." She gave me a warm smile. "Would I ever do something if I knew it would kill you?" I sighed. "No." "Look at your hands." I lifted my hands to vision. Nothing on my palms or fingers...I turned my hands over. There, I saw the same symbol on both hands. It was a pencil, drawing a scribble design. There was a grey 'paint' splatter background. "What is it?" "Well, judging from the fact that it's a unique symbol to you, and it's the same symbol on either hand, I think it's your cutie mark." "But I thought you were trying to make me into a 'human who could use unicorn magic without a horn required'." "I did. The cutie mark is your 'horn'. Your magic is passed from your body through your cutie mark."
"Oh that's cool....What's a cutie mark, by the way?"
----------------
"-....and so the doctor said you should rest. You'll be good to go soon enough." Twilight said. "So...how do I use it?" "Use what?" "My magic." "Well, I don't think you should attempt to...At least until your fully recovered." "I guess you're right..." Twilight smiled. "I'll be back to pick you up tomorrow morning, and...thanks for being a good sport. I really appreciate it." I just nodded. "It's okay, Twi." Twilight packed up her books and left. I looked at my hand, and I felt the same tingle from before pass through my arms. Magic, huh? I just hope this won't hurt...
---------------
Finally, an hour and a half later, the doctor said I was free to leave. I just had to take it easy for a little while. I thanked him and left the hospital shortly afterwards. The 'cutie mark' glowed a little. It glowed a yellow-gold colour. I looked at it, and felt the same tingle of energy. I wanted to try it out. I saw Twilight really strain herself when giving me this, so it must take a lot of concentration for more advanced techniques, like transformation. I stared at the mark, then looked at a nearby stone. I aimed my hand at it and strained every muscle in my torso and arm. I saw the glow return, only brighter, and my hand was surrounded my the very same glow, just like Twilight's horn would when she used magic. I strained and strained, and suddenly, I saw the small rock slowly being lifted upward. I kept going, but I was running out of energy fast. I finally couldn't hold it any longer. I gasped and suddenly the glow stopped and the rock fell back to the ground. Something told me that this wasn't going to be easy to use....
I decided to pick up the rock with my hand, then pocket it. I then walked back to Twilight's house and peeked in. "Twilight?" Twilight came down from upstairs. "Oh! I was just on my way to pick you up!" "Thanks, but I got here myself. I tried out my magic. It's harder than you make it look..." Twilight gave me a sheepish smile. "Yeah, well, I am the Element of Magic representitive." I just nodded, then showed her the rock. "See? This one is the one I tried to levitate." Twilight looked it over with her own magic. "Hm...Not all that big. And certainly not heavy...Any troubles?" "I managed to lift it about 2 and a half feet." "Not bad for you first time! Believe it or not, I could hardly flip a page in a book when I was learning!"
Twilight pulled a few books from her shelf. "Here!" She gave me the books. "These books will help you learn the basics of magic. Try to take the information and convert it to fit your magic abilities." I read the books for a few hours, practicing using my magic on flipping pages, levitating the rock, and using a drinking glass without spilling it. Over the course of only 6 hours, I managed to pick up on the basics of levitation, and even Twilight's signature Teleportation Spell. Of course, she had to teach me that one herself...
I then looked at one book in particular. It had a picture of the Elements on it. I wondered what could be inside. "That's the book for me and my friends." She smiled. "It was history on the Elements of Harmony. Nothing special." "Can I read it?" "Sure, but there's not much you'll learn from a history book..." She hoofed it over to me and I spent the rest of my time reading that, cover to cover. Finally, I looked at the time and saw how late it was. "Whoa. It's late." Twilight nodded. "We should get some rest." I put the books away, cleaned up her desk, then went to bed. It felt my hands tingle once again. I just hope my magic won't keep me up at night.
There I was, playing with my family and friends at a huge get-together in a forest park. I laughed and played with my friends, tossing a frisbee back and forth. They tossed it too high, so I ran to catch it. I tripped...I fell screaming into a chasm and caught on to a branch. I looked down into the chasm, thousands of ponies were there, all laughing, jeering and calling for me. Their eager hooves reached out to grab me and tug me into the depths of that chasm. My family and friends looked scared and worried, all calling for me to climb up and they'll pull me out. I climbed. But I was tired from running after playing frisbee. I tugged and pulled, doing my best to get back out of the chasm. The eager ponies tugging at the very tips of my shoes and jeans kept crying for me to just let go.
I grunted and strained, pulling myself up one step at a time. I reached out for the fingers of my friends and family. They reached as low as they could, but I was just out of their grasp. Suddenly, the stones gave way and I plummeted into the chasm, the ponies pulled me down through the clouds. The last I heard of my family and friends were their shocked and sad faces, and their worried cries. I fell through the clouds and plummeted thousands of feet until I fell through the branches of Twilight's Library and then, right as I hit the ground-
Equestria, Ponyville - Twilight's House
I woke up in a cold sweat, a scream scarcely escaping my lips. My heart skipped a few beats and I was white as a sheet. Twilight felt me shoot up from the bed, so she woke up to see if I was okay. "Austin?! What's wrong? Did you have another nightmare?!" I said nothing, unsure of what to think. Two nightmares in one week. This wasn't just a coincidence. I felt my mind slipping. I could only hear Twilight's voice fade into nothing. I passed out.
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After what felt like sleeping for eternity, I woke back up. It had only been about 45 minutes. I looked around, hoping that I woke up in my own comfy bed and this was nothing but one big nightmare. Nope. I saw Twilight's walls staring back, her starchart blanket still on the bed. I groaned. I just wanted to wake up and be far away from this place. I liked Twilight and her friends and all, but this was getting to be too much...I was mentally breaking down, and I didn't like it. Twilight did her best to cheer me up, but even her most comforting attempts proved futile. She sighed, then went to go make me some tea, in hopes that the combination of the scent of the tea leaves and drinking the tea itself would calm me down. When she returned, she saw no one waiting for her. I had run away from her.
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Earth, FBI HQ
"What's he doing?!"
"He's breaking down! He can't handle this all at once!!"
"How is he supposed to be our only hope if he can't handle a few nightmares?!"
"You forget he is only a teenager. He's 16 years old, and he has to drop his entire life because he needs to save the world!"
"Well we need to get him back, or our world and the universe as we know it are doomed!"
"We can only do what we can from Earth. He's stuck in Equestria."
"Get Agent 32-PDP on his tail! I'm sure she can cheer him up!"
"He's clear out of Ponyville! She'll never catch up with him now!"
"You're forgetting that she's Agent 32-PDP. She can do anything she wanted to."
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Equestria, Unknown
I ran as fast as I could. I was getting out of here if I had to kill myself to do it. I used my magic and leviated some old logs and rope. I made a make-shift raft, then got on. I used my magic to then levitate it upward towards the sky. "If the sky is how I got in, then the sky will bring me back out!" I floated higher and higher. Suddenly, I saw a pink hot air balloon being piloted by Twilight and her friends. It was right beside me. "Austin, what do you think you're doing?! Get in the balloon! You're going to get yourself killed!" Twilight screamed.
I just shot her a glance, then used my free hand that wasn't using magic and used it to shove the balloon further away from me. "NO! I'm getting back home! Where I live! Where I can be with my family and friends!" Twilight used her own magic to fight mine. I felt the raft start to sink. I strained and felt it slowly rise up again, slower than what it was at before. Twilight shoved it back down. Her magic being stronger than mine, I started to get weak. I strained one last time before I felt her magic grip the raft once more. That's when my magic gave way, and Twilight still pushing down, the raft suddenly shot downwards and smashed against the ground, and I was close behind. I fell from the sky and suddenly, I hit the top of the balloon...
With some careful flight work from Rainbow Dash, they managed to get the balloon down fast enough to stop my decent. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy flew up and brought me back down into the balloons basket. When I felt my feet touch down, I immediately did what a real paranoid man would do, and I curled up in the corner and said nothing. Twilight just sighed and they brought the balloon back down to Ponyville. Twilight used her magic to levitate me into the library, then set me down in a chair. And with Applejack's new rope, they tied me to a chair, this time making sure to take away anything in my pockets. Twilight then came over and asked me, very calmly and gently, "What was your nightmare about?"
I just screamed in her face in response, which not only caught her and her friends off guard, but in retrospect would've been really funny if it was a comedy movie. Twilight just stopped me screaming my slamming her hoof into my mouth.
It may look funny in the cartoon, but when it actually happens, it hurts...Plus, it really didn't taste all that good. Come on, her hoof was in my mouth. It would've been hard NOT to actually taste it. When she pulled away, I spat and sputtered off to the side in distaste. Twilight didn't seem fazed by that. "Please, just tell us what you saw." I just sighed and told her and her friends everything. The fall, the agents, the leap into the chasm, the weird freaking ponies in my dream that were like crazy fangirls....Everything. They all just stared, silent. "-then I fell through Twilight's roof, and right before I slammed into the ground, I woke up."
No one said anything for a long time. The silence was unnerving. Finally I broke the silence by saying "Can somepony PLEASE say something to make me feel remotely better? Because frankly, you all staring at me not saying anything, IS REALLY NOT HELPING MY PARANOIA!!" Twilight just sighed. "Okay okay...I think we should tell him..No point in keeping it secret now...."
"What? Tell me what?" I looked around, nervous. Pinkie stepped forward with the most serious look on her face. "It's Discord. He's returning, and he plans on taking over not only Equestria, but your world as well. You read about him in that book Twilight gave you? Well he plans on speading chaos there too. And, surprising as it is, you may end up being our world's, and your world's, only hope of defeating him. Those agents? Those were the Earth FBI. They weren't intending to harm you. They were trying to warn you. Train you like we've been this entire time."
I went whiter than Rarity's coat. "So what you're telling me, is that this super powerful demon god of chaos is coming back from his stone imprisonment to wreck havoc on Equestria AND Earth, and I may be the only one who can stop him?" Twilight rubbed her foreleg. "That's the short version, but yes." "And when were you planning on telling me this?" "We couldn't! We knew that if we told you, you may refuse!" "So you decided to NOT tell me, wait until I have a mental breakdown AND paranoia, then tell me all of this?"
Twilight and her friends all looked guilty and ashamed. "So everypony knew about this. And not one of you considered my feelings? I think you all just reflected who you all really are. Thanks alot. Thanks a REAL lot." Twilight opened her mouth to say something, probably an apology, but I cut her off. "No! Don't say a word. I got it. I get the picture. Now one of you untie me!" Twilight used her magic to undo the knots, and I stood up. I stared at Twilight and her friends, all of which were silent. "So! Magic of Friendship, eh? Elements of Harmony, huuuhh?! With FRIENDS like you, who needs enemies?!?" I just walked out of the library, leaving the ponies both ashamed and a little heartbroken. I grunted and kicked a nearby tree so hard that all the apples fell out. "Freaking manipulators. I'm gonna see Princess Celestia about this."
Suddenly, quite suddenly, I felt a chill and heard a laugh so unnerving I went white. I looked at Canterlot. A huge pulsewave of energy swept the land, and things went from weird to bizarre. The Mane 6 must've heard and felt it too. They ran out and looked towards Canterlot. "Oh noo!" Twilight said quietly.
I did the first thing I could think of. I ran to Twilight's hot air balloon, and the ponies looked at me, a little dumbfounded. "What in Equestria are you WAITING FOR? AN INVITATION? GET ON THE BALLOON!!" The ponies looked at each other, then looked at me. "But we thought-" "NO TIME, TWILIGHT!! NO TIIIIMMMME!!" She and her friends finally decided to accompany me in the balloon. Twilight then started the balloon's ascent and we started drifting towards Canterlot to find the Elements of Harmony. Twilight looked at me, I had a hard, determined look on my face. "Austin, we thought that you were angry at us...We thought that you wouldn't help us now."
Without looking over my shoulder, I said to her, "Twilight, I am a little angry at you. But there's a time for anger and there's a time where you have to look at the bigger picture. A little blind hatred isn't going to keep me from getting you girls to the Elements of Harmony. I'm sorry I snapped at you. You know what I went through. But it's time for me to snap out of this paranoia, and get to Canterlot and put an end to this." Twilight stared at me, a little startled at my words. "And Twilight?" She nodded. "Yes, Austin?"
I looked at her, staring into her big purple eyes. "I can never stay mad at a friend." Twilight's solemn frown changed to a small grin. I just smirked at her, then looked back towards Canterlot. My smile didn't stay for long. "So how am I supposed to play a part in this? After all, I'm just a human with some crazy powers. I still have to learn the real meaning of friendship." Twilight shook her head. "I'm not certain either. But we need to get to the princess. I'm sure she knows where the Elements would be."
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We arrived shortly afterward at the castle. I kicked in the doors and ran into the throne room with the Mane 6. What we saw made my skin crawl and horrified the ponies. Celestia and Luna had been turned into solid stone statues. Discord had his final revenge, and was probably on his way to Earth. "Princess Celestia!" Twilight cried, but I grabbed hold of her. "Stop! Stop Twilight! There's nothing you can do for them now!" "I have to try!!" "No!" I tugged on her tail hard and she dropped and cried. I grabbed her by the shoulders. "Dammit Twilight! Do you think that Celestia would want her best student to just sit here and cry while she's a statue?!" Twilight sniffled. "N-No..." "Don'tcha think Celestia would want her to go and find the Elements and fix this mess?!" She nodded. "Y-yes..." "So why are you crying? You have to get angry!"
"But the princess-" "FORGET THE PRINCESS FOR A MINUTE!!" I groaned then stood in front of the ponies, all of which looked a little hopeless. I stared at them. "Listen! Discord did this! He turned your world upside down and your princesses to statues, and the only things you can think of doing is cry and wallow in self-pity?! No! This is the time to get angry! To make sure that Discord is banished ONCE AND FOR ALL!!" Rainbow Dash looked at me, then stood up. "Yeah!" Applejack saw Rainbow, then smiled. "Yee-haw!" Fluttershy flared her wings. "Yeah!" Rarity nodded. "Onward!" Pinkie hopped in place. "Yeah!"
I kneeled down in front of Twilight, who slowly looked at me with her watery eyes. "Whaddya say Twi?" Twilight thought for a minute, then wiped her tears away and nodded. "Yeah." I helped her onto her hooves. "Alright then. So let's get those Elements!" We ran to the Element's chamber. I opened the box. "They're here!" I looked at the ponies. "They're actually-" My sentence was cut short. I stared at my friends. They were grey....colourless....They seemed hateful....almost....angry. Discord laughed and floated above them. "Not this time, my little ponies! I made sure to get rid of you this time!" I stared. They were no longer the Elements...they were....enemies.
Discord threw his head back and laughed. I looked at the Elements of Harmony. The golden shine turned tarnished. The gemstones lost their glimmer. The chains turned rusty. I stared in disbelief. "No! NO!!" Discord then just smiled. "So YOU were the one who was supposed to defeat me? Well good luck without your precious Elements!!" I snapped. I just lost it. My eye twitched. I stared at him with a look of pure hatred and eyes of fire. "Meet me in Ponyville. I'm defeating you with the Elements of Harmony myself. With, or without the help of the Mane 6." Discord just smirked but accepted my terms with a smug grin. I took the ponies and the Elements to Ponyville, and I read the book on the Elements.
I read it over and over and over, but it revealed nothing. I threw it down in frustration. I looked at my greyed-out friends. They seemed to be arguing. I sighed then sat down. It was hopeless...I felt a single tear drip down my cheek and it dropped onto the Element of Magic. Something caught my eye. I looked at Magic, and saw that where the tear drop hit, it had polished the headpiece where it was once tarnished. I stared, then looked at Twilight. She seemed crestfallen. I blinked. Suddenly, all the memories of my family and friends and all the time I spent on Equestria flooded into my head all at once, and I felt something....My eyes twinkled and it caught the attention of all the ponies. My hopeless expression suddenly stretched into a happy grin.
They looked at me like I was insane. Come to think of it, I probably was.
I knew that, in the state the ponies were in, they were not able to use the Elements. Granted, either someone needs to use a Memory spell like Twilight did in 'The Return of Harmony' in a cartoon I have not yet heard of, or someone else needs to use the Elements of Harmony. Now, I didn't know any memory spells. Nor did I know how to use the Elements. But someone had to try, and hey, maybe I can bring a happy ending to this story!!
I grabbed the Elements and inspected them closely. No instructions, no user manual, nothing. There wasn't even a warning label. I grunted. Looks like we WERE screwed. Maybe I could just beat him up until he cries defeat. No that'll never work. Well, that's it then. Wait...Maybe not.
I picked up the Element of Loyalty. The red lightning bolt-shaped gemstone was now pale and dull. No shine or glimmer on it. Well....maybe the Elements weren't useless...After all, it seemed that my tear drop polished some of the tarnished gold on the Element of Magic. I decided that I should at least give it my all. I put the Element of Loyalty around my neck, then tightened the other 4 necklaces to my hands and feet, which, in all honesty, made me look like some teenaged dork wearing necklaces in all the wrong ways. I picked up the tiara and slipped it onto my head. I looked in Twilight's full length mirror and....
...saw a complete doofus wearing jewelry.
Yup. That's REALLY intimidating. I just sighed. There was no other way to fasten them all on, so I just walked back out into the main room. The 6 ponies took one glimpse at me, then immediately burst into a flurry of laughter. Well...Pinkie didn't. She just sat there with her forelegs crossed. I rolled my eyes, then walked past them, ignoring their rude remarks and laughter. I walked outside and onto Mane Street. I looked at my watch-.....-my wrist....that's right, I don't own a watch. Suddenly, I heard the clock tower from City Hall ring 12 times. High-noon.
Suddenly, Discord appeared on the other end of the street in a puff of confetti and smoke. He just grinned, then we slowly approached one another. Finally, when we were about 5 feet away from each other, we stared daggers at one another.
"So?" Discord said. "Where are the Elements? Did they chicken out?" "No. I'm here." "YOU?!" He laughed. I just sighed and rolled my eyes once more. "Yeah, me." "Good luck, human. Once I'm through here, I'll be on my way to Earth." "You'll be the one who needs the good luck..." "We'll see, Austin. We'll see."
I concentrated on focusing my energy to the Elements. The tarnished gemstones slowly glimmered back to their original state, and I closed my eyes. The Elements shone and I slowly rose up. Discord watched in disbelief as I slowly opened my eyes and I could feel the 6 Elements surging through me. Finally, with a bright flash, I rose up and....-
-....fell right back down. The Elements didn't work. I couldn't use them. Discord laughed and pointed.
"I knew they wouldn't work! AHAHAHAHAH! You are just as useless as the Mane 6!!" "No! NO!"
I stared at them. They were tarnished once more. I couldn't use them. My own integrity wasn't enough. Maybe I wasn't the saviour of Equestria and Earth after all. Discord just kept laughing and disappeared. I sighed and felt my cheeks turn an icy cold as tears flooded down them. I stood up then walked back to Twilight's house and slammed the door. For once, even Mean Fluttershy seemed afraid. I threw the Elements against the wall and knocked an entire row of books down in my rage. The ponies just watched in fear and confusion as I kicked over tables and threw books against the wall. I was a huge mixture of sadness, anger, and a whole lot more emotions I can't describe.
Finally, I sat down and groaned. Suddenly, I felt a hoof grab my shoulder. It wasn't a mean grab...it was...a comforting one. I looked behind me and saw Fluttershy, her colour had returned. I looked past her. The other ponies had theirs too.
"What-" "I don't know what you did Austin, but you brought us back to our senses." Twilight said. I stared at them, both startled and a little confused, but I stood up.
"Does that mean you can use the-" "No. That's YOUR job this time. We can't leave Equestria unattended, and Discord is already on his way to Earth. The duty of using the Elements rests on you, and you alone." "But I already tried! They didn't work!"
Twilight shook her head.
"Of course, silly! They didn't work because we were greyed out. Now, pick up the Elements, get back out there, and get fighting!" "But Twilight, I can't! I don't know how!" "I'm sure Pinkie Pie can lend a hoof..." She smiled and looked over at the bubbly-pink pony. Pinkie nodded eagerly. I just sighed. Whatever Pinkie does, I just hope it won't get me killed.
I grabbed the Elements and strapped them once more to my hands and feet, donned the tiara, and strapped on the necklace. Finally, Pinkie tied a rope to herself and the other end to my waist.
"So how does this...4th wall...breaking...work?" "Just copy what I do, and you'll be fine!" "O-okay Pinkie..."
I didn't feel all that comfortable trusting my life to someone as erratic as her, but she was my only shot to stopping Discord. Pinkie smiled, then hopped. I hopped immediately after her. She skipped forward. I skipped.
"Jump!" she yelled, and we jumped together, and suddenly, I saw the entire world shatter like it was nothing more than a glass window. I couldn't see much of anything other than space and a lot of clocks. I watched as Pinkie pulled me into the Time-Space Gap, and I gripped the rope tightly and screamed. I felt my feet touch the ground and I stopped screaming and opened my eyes. We were on Earth. I stopped and looked around. It was right outside the chasm from before. Pinkie smiled and undid the rope from herself.
"Good luck Austin!" She hopped, skipped, then jumped, and in a strange flash of light, she was gone. I nodded and ran towards the city.
I ran back towards my town and was shocked at what I saw. Streetlamps were turned into licorice. Buildings were made of cheese, and the roads were...well they were soap. The sidewalks were made of wool, and the trees were giant brocoli. I growled and hastened my advance toward the tallest building I could find. I ran into the elevator and pressed the 'Up' button. The doors opened up and I was assaulted by the stench of cheddar. I forgot the insides were cheese too. I just hope that the cheese can support my weight. I stepped in and pressed the button to get to the highest floor I could.
The next 3 minutes were rather anti-climatic. It was just an elevator ride. An elevator made of cheese. Nothing odd about that.
When I finally arrived, I kicked the doors open and ran up the stairs to get to the roof. I tried to get the door to the roof open, but it was stuck. I just groaned. It was too risky to kick open without losing my balance on these stairs, and I couldn't ram into the door without falling through the roof and back down to the top floor, so I did what had to be done. I rammed my hand into the door's soft cheddar, then tore a chunk out and threw it aside. The stairs started to shake. Can't do that. This cheese is too heavy. I groaned, then tore at the door with my teeth.
Now, I only had to open a hole big enough to break through without falling. Which was a lot of cheese that needed to be eaten...I felt my stomach retch and my movements slowed down. I couldn't keep eating like this...But something in my head clicked...A small voice.
Go on Austin! You can do it! Trust your insticts!
The voice was familiar to me.
"Pinkie Pie?"
Just do it! If I can do it, so can you!
I looked at the hand that was bound by the Element of Laughter. The jewel glowed and I heard Pinkie giggle. I found it almost inspiring. I tore apart the entire door with my teeth and swallowed seemingly impossible amounts of cheese. Finally I rammed through the door and stepped out. I groaned a little but rubbed my stomach. I laughed. I actually did it. It was kind of a funny thought.
I saw Discord was creating more chaos in a different part of town. Dammit. I needed to get going. I ran to the edge of the building and stopped dead in my tracks. 30 stories straight down. Now, I'm terrified of heights. So I backed up and went to take the stairs, but that's when I saw that part of the building crumble. This cheese building wasn't going to last long. I had to jump, but I knew I'd die! I couldn't! But it's for Earth! I can't! I....I...-
Just jump, sugarcube. You'll be okay.
"Applejack?! Are you crazy?! It's 30 stories!"
Trust me, sugarcube. Would I lie to you? You'll just have to trust me. Jump.
I just sighed, then took a deep breath and jumped. I fell 30 stories straight to my doo-
Nah, I'm joking. I fell 30 stories down, but I landed safely on a very conveniently placed giant muffin. Weird. I hopped off and started to run towards Discord. I ducked, lept, and dove through the chaotic streets of my town, until I stopped short when I came across a giant....cat.
"Oh come on!"
Austin, you see the ball? Maybe it wants to play!
"Fluttershy, the only thing on that cat's mind is food!"
No, just push the ball. It wants to play!
"Fluttershy, I swear if I don't live because of this..."
I ran over to a giant ball made of yarn, then threw it down the street. The cat playfully chased it.
"Okay, now what?"
Okay, look around for some milk.
"Where am I going to find enough milk for that-"
I looked up at the clouds.
"Oh yeah."
I whistled for a cloud, and one came down. I gave it instructions to go rain into the cat's mouth. The stupid cloud rained on me instead. I was in no mood to have sass from a cloud. I pulled it down and walked over to the cat. The cat stared at me curiously. I threw the cloud into the air over the cat's head, and it started to rain. The cat drank up all the chocolate milk and gave me a lick as a thank you.
"Bleh..."
The cat then picked me up with it's teeth and put me onto it's back. Cool. I'm riding a cat like a horse.
"Yah! Onward!" The cat obediently charged toward Discord. Terrified citizens fled from the chaos.
"Wooooahhhh! Whoa, Mittens, whoa." The cat stopped and purred. I hopped down and thanked it for it's help. The cat ran off and I nodded. I stared toward my goal. I walked towards it slowly, making sure that nothing else would-
"Help! Someone!"
Oh god dammit.
"Help!"
I sighed and approached a young girl who was crying.
"Listen kid, this is no place for you. You gotta get going." "But my dress! It's ruined!" "I'm sorry, but you need to go!" "No! I can't!"
I facepalmed, then I heard another familiar voice.
Oh, darling. You simply MUST help her! Look at her dress!
"Rarity, I don't think fashion is the main concern right now."
Please, just help her out! It'd be most generous.
I groaned. What could I do to help her?....Hmmmm...I pondered this for a brief moment. What would Rarity do in a case like this? Wait, fabric! I could get her a new dress. But where would I get a dress in the middle of a chaotic city? I pondered this for another brief moment. Wait, a dress shop. I looked at the street I was on.
"Hey, a dress shop is on this street!"
I looked around, then spotted it. I ran into the store and looked around.
"There it is!" I grabbed a child-size dress from the stand and threw some money on the counter. I ran over to the girl with the new dress and her eyes lit up like a pinball machine.
"Thank you so much mister!" "Don't mention it. Now go find your parents. I have some business to take care of."
I noticed something. My hands were glowing, and one foot. Wait, no. Both feet. I took a look at them. The jewels on each of the Elements were glowing. I looked at the Element of Loyalty and Magic. They weren't. I blinked, then put them back on. I kept walking, thinking nothing of it.
I was closer to my goal than I ever was. I continued my advance toward Discord-
"Hey you!"
Oh for the love of-
I turned around, looking rather annoyed. I saw the Mane 6, but something was off. They weren't grey, they were....well..darker. They were a much darker shade than they normally are. I stared at them.
"And who are you supposed to be?" "We're the Mane 6." "No you're not. You're incredibly cheap knock-offs." "We want to make you an offer." "I'm all ears." "We can give you everything you want." "Yeah?" "And more." "Mm-hm." "All you need to do is give us the Elements. We'll stop Discord." "Yeah no." "What do you mean no? Do you not want riches? Fame?" "Nope." "A chance to save your family?" "Huh?"
The Fake Twilight motioned to my family dangling over a pit of lava.
"That's not my family." "What do you mean?! Of course they are!" "No. That's an illusion. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out." "Oh? Well what about this?"
Fake Twilight held up a crystal ball, and in it, I saw the Mane 6.
"What about them?" "Would you like to stay with them? Discord promises he will stop the chaos in Equestria as long as you give us the Elements." "What do you mean stay?" "When this is all over, you can't go back. You will lack the ability." "What are you getting at?!" "The bonds. The friendships you've made there. All of it. Gone. It will all fade once you defeat Discord. They've been using you."
The realization hit me like a boot to the head. They were right. I wouldn't be able to see them again. I'll never see them again. Ever.
Don't listen to them!
"Rainbow?"
They're not telling the whole truth! You need to stay loyal to us! And if not to us, then to your family and friends! You need to put a stop to this!
"Well?" Fake Twilight asked. "No deal. I'd rather stop Discord than betray my friends." "You're making a huge mistake." "That's your opinion."
The Element of Loyalty started to glow. Finally I shouted into the skies,
"DISCORD! GET DOWN HERE AND FACE ME!!
Discord spiralled down out of the sky and floated in front of me.
"Oh it's you again. The human. Gonna try to stop me again?" "I'm not going to try. I will." "Hmhmhm...Your last attempt failed. What makes you think this will be any different?"
My eyes sparkled.
"I'll tell you why. You gave me a variety of challenges getting here."
The cheese tower. I climbed this 30 story building in hopes that I could find you somewhere in town. But when I got to the top, I realised I couldn't break the door down without risking a fall. I had to eat my way through the door, but couldn't bring myself to do so. That's when Pinkie gave me some inspiration and I ate the entire door. Come to think of it, I found that pretty funny!
The Element of Laughter glowed brighter.
The Fall. I was scared of heights and couldn't jump. But that's when Applejack told me that everything would be okay, and it was.
Honesty glowed.
The Cat. Fluttershy taught me how to tame this giant beast and after some playtime and milk, it gave me a ride that brought me much closer to you. Sometimes a little love is all you need.
Kindness...
The Girl. She was crestfallen about her dress and refused to go to safety, so Rarity gave me the idea to spend some of my own money to make this little girl happy once more. She told me it was pretty generous.
Generousity.
The Mane 6. You tried to tempt me away from the path of truth and lead me astray with lies. Rainbow Dash saw through your ploy and helped me overcome my mental state, and I stayed loyal to my friends.
Loyalty.
"And so Discord, these trials I faced all ended up being your own downfall." "I'm still not convinced." "There's one small detail you forgot, Discord." "All of this is stupid. Your defeat will be tragic." "You happened to forget that Friendship is Magic!!"
I rose up and the Element of Magic glowed brightly. I opened my eyes, they shimmered with the light of 100 suns, and I fired a giant rainbow down upon him. He cried out a long protest, but the Elements showed no mercy. I watched as Discord disappeared and everything in Equestria and on Earth was undone. I dropped back down and smiled. Pinkie came back from Equestria and took me back to Ponyville through her time-space leap. I took off the Elements and handed them to Twilight. She smiled at me and I managed a weak smile back.
"So that's it then?" "Yep." "Will I see you all again?" "I hope so." "Twilight, I'm sorry about everything I said." "It's okay Austin. I can never stay mad at a friend."
I choked up.
"I guess this is it, huh?" "Yep." "I never liked goodbyes..." "I know." "I'll never forget you Twilight Sparkle." "Nor will I, Austin."
Pinkie tied up a rope around my waist.
"Goodbye everypony...I...I hope our paths will cross again someday." "I think they will, Austin. I think they will."
I gave each pony a hug and looked at Pinkie.
"Alright...I don't want to...but I'm ready to go."
We hopped, skipped, then jumped back onto Earth. We were back on the street that started this whole adventure. I could hardly hold back my tears.
"I'm gonna miss you all.' "We'll miss you Austin." "Hey Pinkie?" "Yeah?" "There's something I wanted to do, but never got the chance." "What's that?" "Can I pet your mane?"
She giggled.
"Sure Austin."
I gave her mane a gentle pet for a little while, and Pinkie gave me one final hug and a nuzzle before she hopped, skipped and jumped back into Equestria. I stood there, all alone. I smiled and opened my hand. In my palm laid a small golden coin, about the size of a large bottle cap.
On it, simply, was a carving of Princess Celestia, and the words "In The Princess We Trust". I flipped it over in my hand. It read "1 Bit" on the back. I pocketed the coin and continued homeward-bound.
------------------------------
FBI HQ, Earth
"Agent 32-PDP...Agent 32-PDP....Do you read me?" "I read you loud and clear." "Is he back on Earth?" "Affirmitive." "Good work." "Thanks..." "Something wrong, Agent?" "It's nothing...I'm just going to miss him." "Maybe we can arrange for him to visit every now and then." "Can you?" "Affirmitive. I'll talk to the chief, but I'm sure he'll let him visit you. After all, Equestria may be in danger again some day." "Okie-Dokie-Loki! Agent 32-PDP, signing out." "Over and out."
Author's Note:Hey guys! DubleTruble96 here. Um, I guess this new chapter requires some explanation...It's like, "Whoa, hey! I thought this story was complete?" Well, it still is. But this is an alternate version of the story. The same events take place, only....differently. Here's what's new: Austin is actually a brony, and therefore, knows about the show, the characters, etc etc.; This all takes place BEFORE Season 3, so Alicorn Twilight is not making an appearance. Sorry.; The ponies actually have been watching Austin for a long time, and make it their mission to bring him to Equestria, not by Austin finding a portal by accident.; and lastly, there's going to be humanized ponies in this. So if you don't like human ponies, leave now. Alright, let's get this started!
Equestria: Crossing Over
Act 1: World I Left Behind
6 mares gathered closely around a magical crystal ball, with Celestia slowly flipping through the 'channels'.
"When you see a brony you like girls, just say the word." Celestia said.
They made this a weekly thing. Every Sunday night, the mane 6 would gather in Celestia's private viewing chambers, and pick a brony from a world known as Earth to watch. Sometimes it was funny, sometimes it was sad. This time, they just wanted someone to watch....
They couldn't view private aspects, oddly. It seems that whenever they tried viewing a bathroom, bedroom, or changing room, the crystal ball would malfunction and then show nothing but mist until the brony left the room again. Usually, if the brony went to sleep or was spending too long in the washroom, they would just change the view to a different, more interesting brony.
"Ooooh! Wait wait wait! Go back to that long haired one!" Twilight said.
Celestia flipped the channel back to a male, long haired brony who was bopping along the road, singing what sounded like Pinkie's Smile song. Just when the going was about to get good, a royal guard burst in.
"Your highness! Your highness! Red alert! Red alert!" He shouted between gasps. "Wait! Catch your breath, soldier....Now, tell me what's wrong." "It's Discord, your highness! He's escaped and hid the Elements of Harmony...and reports have said that Discord plans on leaving to a different world in hopes to elude you and the Bearers."
Celestia turned pale, then looked at the mane 6, who looked determined and protectively at her. She smiled and nodded, then turned to the guard.
"Thank you. You are dismissed." She turned back to the girls. "You know what to do, girls."
They all nodded and galloped out of the room, leaving Celestia alone, peering deeply at the crystal ball. She had an idea of where Discord was headed. And she didn't like it.
Hours soon turned to days, and those days, to weeks, and not a clue was found as to the Elements' location. That's when Twilight got a letter that instructed the Bearers to get back to Canterlot as soon as possible. Once they arrived, Celestia led them to her viewing chamber.
"This really isn't the time for brony watching, Princess!" Twilight started to protest.
Celestia shushed her and motioned for them to get closer.
"I think you'll want to see this." She said.
The mane 6 all peered into the crystal ball and saw that long haired brony again, only this time, he has found some new headwear....The Element of Magic.
The mane 6 gasped and reeled back, then turned to Celestia.
"Indeed...I'm afraid Discord has hid the Elements on Earth, and he's planning on taking it over as well. I'm readying a portal to Earth...But you can't go looking the way you do. You'd be spotted for sure. You need disquises...."
Celestia cast a strange spell on the 6 of them, turning them into humans. The clothes magically appeared on their bodies and the magic faded soon after. The looked at their new bodies and attire, smiling in awe of their new bodies.
"Now, you still have your powers as unicorns, and your wings of pegasi....I couldn't leave you grounded, now could I, Rainbow Dash? But you can only use them in emergencies...You don't often see the bronies flying around with wings on their backs, do you?"
They all took her instructions into consideration, than agreed.
"Now my little ponies....Go to Earth and find that brony...You have to set up new lives there....You must remember, you're human now, not ponies. Good luck, and I'll be watching you all the way."
The portal opened up and the 6 humans all looked at one another, then stepped through. Celestia watched as they disappeared and the portal closed. She sighed heavily and turned to the Crystal ball, the image of the brony with the Element of Magic still in it's mist.
"That human has no idea what he's gotten himself into."
I stared into the strange golden headpiece. Whoever made this had some damn good cosplay skills. I put it into my backpack and walked home, setting it in my closet. Whatever. If I find the owner, I'll give it back to them. But until then, I'll keep it safe.
*One Week Later*
I noticed things seemed...different on my street. I was walking down what I called the Market street, which is actually called 33rd Street West, and I noticed a few things. The old dress shop that used to be closed up was now open again under new management, called the Carosel Boutique. Huh...sounds a lot like Rarity's dress shop in Ponyville. I chuckle to myself and keep walking. Further down the street, I notice something even stranger....The bakery was also under new management, and was renamed "Sugarcube Corner".
Now this was starting to look a lot less like a coincidence...I continued and walked into the library, then noticed it had a new librarian. She had dark hair, with a purple and pink stripe down the middle. Her eyes were pretty blue, almost....purple. And she was wearing a sweater vest over a woman's dress shirt, and I swear I saw what appeared to be a starburst pattern on the lower left corner of the sweater vest....
I looked up and spotted something else that seemed strange.
The sky was clear. Just 10 seconds ago, it was cloudy with a chance of rain. Now, not a single cloud in the sky. I turned and ran all the way back home. I was so alienated by the whole thing....I decided to just stop by the local convenience store for a soda to calm my nerves. I walked down the street and saw a new tenant was moving into the old cottage at the end of the street. I went down to introduce myself, but stopped and went white when I saw that it was a 20-some girl with pale pink hair, wearing a pale yellow sweater that was 2 or 3 sizes too big for her, and a short, pleated pink skirt. In her arms she was cradling a small white rabbit. I decided to go the other way, to the grocery store instead...
I had to pass through the produce section. That's when I saw something that made my mind crumble. A new employee. Long blonde hair tied into a ponytail with a red band, green eyes, freckles, and an orange plaid shirt with a pair of blue jeans. She was restocking the apple section. I screamed and ran back to my house, and locked myself in the bedroom.
Maybe this was a weird, messed up brony dream. Or maybe I was just overreacting. Who knows? Maybe I just needed a good night's sleep.
I woke up to a note from my parents. It said that they had left for a business trip to somewhere in the US, and that they'd be gone for about a month. They left me plenty of food, money, and laundry soap, so I was supposed to take care of myself while they were away. I didn't like it, but I didn't really have a say in the matter...After my daily routine, I decided to relax and watch some My Little Pony on the television set. Ooh, this is a good one! The Last Roundup! Just when I was about to get comfortable, I heard a knock at the door. I groaned and stood up, then walked to the door, not bothering to peer into the eyepiece. I open the door.
"Yeah yeah, who is.........it?"
Standing there was a 20-some girl with curly hot pink hair, baby blue eyes, wearing a rose pink t-shirt and blue bellbottom jeans. I smelled a faint whiff of cotton candy, and I could also smell the scent of a strawberry cupcake on her breath. Sticking out of her pockets seemed to be licorice of all colours. I felt my heart leap up to my throat and I could hardly talk.
The girl looked at me curiously.
"Hello. I'm Pinkie-....uh......Pinka....um.....Penelope...." She stuttered. "I was looking for a brony- BOY!.....Boy....with....um....long dark hair, has a black MP3, and a red and white backpack?"
I choked on my words. I couldn't breath, couldn't move, couldn't talk...I just stood there, scared.
"Hello? Mister? Are you okay?"
I slammed the door and leaned against it, then shouted through the door.
"Uhh...N-No! Sorry! Don't know anyone like that! Goodbye please!"
I heard the girl through the door.
"Uh...Okay! Thanks....I think....Bye!"
I stayed up against the door, listening for when her footsteps were quiet. When I was certain she was gone, I let go and walked back upstairs, talking to myself.
"Okay okay! Maybe it was just a really good cosplayer who got a little too into her role...Y-Yeah! That's probably it!" I chucked nervously and started to walk back to the living room when I heard another knock. I turned and went back to the door, this time making sure to peer into the eyepiece.
I saw another 20-some girl with long bluish-purple hair, sapphire eyes and dark blue lipstick. She was wearing a white dress which had a 3 blue diamond insignia on it. I turned white and then shouted through the door again.
"Ummm...My mom isn't here! I'm not aloud to answer the door!"
"Oh, um....Well, that's okay....I just want to know if you've seen a boy about 6 ft tall, appears to be 16 or 17, long dark hair, owns a red and white backpack?"
"No I haven't! Sorry!"
"Okay.....thanks anyway!" I watched her through the eyepiece, watching her leave and then sighed heavily. Maybe it was just those cosplayers looking for that headpiece? Maybe I could just leave it outside my door and they'll leave me alo-
*CRASH*
Now what?!
I ran into my bedroom and saw that the window was broken, and glass was all over my bed. I looked for what was thrown, and saw something that made my heart skip a beat. Sitting on my bed was a golden necklace, with a small pink jewel in the shape of a butterfly....The Element of Kindness.
6 humans met in a park nearby where the Element of Magic was found. They were discussing their recent findings.
"So, how'd it go with you, Fluttershy?" said the dark haired librarian. "Not so well...I thought I spotted him yesterday, but they disappeared before I could get a good glimpse." replied the pale pink haired one. "Nothing for me, either." Said the rainbow haired athlete. "I checked most of the lower area of the city from the air. No one noticed me, thank Celestia...but I did see something pink and glittery fall from the sky..." "I got nothing." Said the blonde produce dealer. "Just lotsa this weird coloured paper and some metal coins." "Me and Pinkie both went house to house.." Said the dressmaker. "Yeah, I did see a boy who looked like him...but he didn't want to talk. He slammed the door in my face before I could get a good look." Said the pink-haired baker. "Where'd you see him?" "In a white house, just down the street." "Hey..." The athlete continued. "Was it a house that had a backyard overgrown with trees?" "Yeah..." "That's where I saw the pink thing fall to! Come on girls!" They all ran down the street.
I had to ditch these things...Find a dumpster or a trash can....I scooped them both up and put them into my backpack. I slipped it over my shoulder, put on a baseball cap, tucked my hair back, put up my hood and put on some dark sunglasses. I turned to go out the backdoor, but then saw 6 girls with strange haircolours....I recognized all of them except the rainbow haired one. I swallowed and ran to the front door.
I heard them knock on the door.
"Hello? Helllooooo? Open up!" I heard them shout. I started to panic, so I fumbled with the doorknob. I swung the door open and swung open the creaky metal screen door. I cursed under my breath and then turned. I saw the one with the yellow sweater peeking around the side of the house at me.
"Crap." I jumped my steps and ran off down the street. I heard the 6 of them chasing me soon after. I kept running, using my long legs to my advantage, then ducked down a back alley. I knew this town like the back of my hand. They didn't.
They ran past and stopped, looking around. I peeked out and ran down the alley way, then down a different street.
"How could we lose him?" "Split up! He can't elude all of us. Blend in with the crowds. Wait around corners. We need to find him and get those Elements back!"
I sat in a park, catching my breath while hiding in the trees. I peeked out and looked around. Not a girl in sight. I walked out and tried to act as nonchalant as possible. What I didn't know is that I was being followed. I walked down the street, acting as calm as possible. I felt a chill run up my spine. Whatever I do, I can't look over my shoulder. They'll know it's me. I kept walking. I heard footsteps behind me, keeping pace.
I turned the corner and started to walk faster. The footsteps got faster too, then started to sound like more than just one set of feet. I didn't dare turn around. I just kept walking. My calm walk soon turned into a panicked jog. The footsteps got faster, louder....My jog turned into a low run. The footsteps again increased in volume, speed...Finally, I forced myself to look. I saw the blonde, the rainbow and the purple haired girls behind me, then they broke into a full speed chase. I ran as fast as I could. I started to run toward the alley again. Just a little further and I would be home free!
I felt a set of strong arms wrap around my waist, knocking me off balance and making me fall face first into the ground. I turned over and saw the blonde girl had tackled me. I struggled and tried inching myself free, but the other 5 ran over and surrounded me. I felt something heavy land on my back. I turned and saw the pink haired girl who smelled of candy sitting on my back. GOD she was heavy! Like, I knew she was probably heavy, she certainly looked a bit more thicker than the other girls, but she was a lot heavier than she looked!
She sat there, crossing her arms and pinning me to the ground. I kicked and squirmed, all to no avail. Finally, the dark haired librarian girl grabbed my face and looked at me, square in the eyes. She glared at me, then nodded.
"That's the one. Good job, AJ." "No problem, Teresa."
"GET OFF OF ME YOU OVER GROWN COTTON CANDY THING!!" I screamed. She just sat there, sticking her tounge out at me. "You can get off him, Penelope."
I felt the girl's weight suddenly lift off my back, and I groaned in pain, then started to stand up, only to feel a sneaker press down on my back and push me back down.
"Stay down if you know what's good for ya, dweeb."
I felt my backpack get pulled off of me and I heard it unzip.
"They're here alright, but there's only two of them." I heard one of them say.
The rainbow haired girl knelt down by me and stared at me.
"Where are the other elements?" "I don't know what you're talking about! I only have those two!" "Don't play dumb! You're working for him, aren't you?!" "WORKING FOR WHO?!" "Where are the other elements?! We know you have them!" "I DON'T HAVE ANY MORE ELEMENTS!"
She stood back up.
"He's playing dumb." "Let's just bring him back with us and see what he knows." "Back where?! SOMEBODY HELP ME!" "Ugh, we'll never get him back with him screaming like that...." "Hold on...."
I felt something touch my forehead. It felt like a hand, only it was tingling. I started to protest but before I could say anything more, I blacked out.
I woke up tied to a chair, and having the strangest feeling of deja vu....I looked around. I appeared to be a dimly lit house, and it seemed more or less normal past that. No torture tools, no ropes (other than my bindings), no nothing....That's when I was blinded by a sudden flash of light in front of my face, and that one girl, Penelope? I think that was her name...shined a light at me from what appeared to be a desk lamp.
"Where are the Elements of Harmony?" she demanded. "I don't know! I swear to God and Celestia herself that I have no idea!" "DON'T PLAY DUMB WITH- Wait....Did you just say Celestia? As in PRINCESS Celestia?" "Y-Yeah?"
The girl stepped back, then ran into the other room and I heard her whispering to someone else, who I could only assume was one of my other kidnappers. She ran back and turned off the desk lamp, turning on the light.
"How do you know of Princess Celestia?" "I'm....a brony? A teenaged to adult male fan of the show My Little Pony: Friendship is-" "I know what a brony is!" She groaned and rubbed her forehead. "Look, do you have any idea where we can FIND them? Because it seems you already located two of them. So you may be of use to us yet."
She turned and started to leave.
"So what is going on anyway?" I said to her accusingly. "Clearly you aren't just cosplayers....isn't that right, Miss Pie?"
The girl froze dead in her tracks and turned around, then snapped at me.
"That's not my name! My name is Penelope!" "Drop the act, Pinkie...A brony knows his favorite ponies when he sees them. Disquised or not. And I know for a fact that you aren't really who you say you are."
The girl bit her lip and ran into the other room. I heard her panicked whispers from behind the door, then I heard a heavy sigh and 'Penelope' and that librarian who I assumed was 'Teresa' walked into the room. Teresa raised her hand and her fingers glowed with a magic magenta aura, and I felt my ropes come loose. I stood up and rubbed my wrists, then stared at the girls.
"Okay, we'll come clean...You caught us. You probably know who we are already...." "Can I just say I'm a big fan and I'm fanboy squealing inside?" I said with a goofy smile. "Yes, I'm sure you are..." Twilight said with an amused smile, which quickly faded. "But I'm afraid there's no time for idle chatter....Discord is coming." "Wait....THE Discord? The one who completely and utterly destroyed Equestria, deharmonized you and your friends, wrecked havoc everywhere he went, and almost made you break up entirely?!" "That's the short version, but yes, that one." "And he sent the Elements of Harmony to Earth in an attempt to escape you and Celestia, so he also plans on coming HERE to wreck havoc and no one will have a chance to stop him without the Elements AND their bearers, so Celestia disquised you and your friends to blend in with the human crowd, and tasked you with finding the Elements of Harmony! And when I ended up with both the Elements of Magic and Kindness, you got suspicious, locked me up, and were going to interrogate me like a criminal, but now that you know I'm innocent, you are now about to ask me to aid you in your quest to find the Elements, stop Discord, and return him to his stone imprisonment back in the Canterlot Royal Gardens and return to Equestria safe and sound!" I said all in one breath.
The two of them gave me blank stares with startled expressions, obviously not expecting me to figure out the entire dilemma AND predict their next movement to the letter...
"Uhh......Y-Yeah, actually...." Pinkie said. "How'd you know?!" Twilight asked. "I didn't honestly, that was just what I was hoping for..." I said with a goofy smile again. "So you mean it? I can really join you and your friends to stop Discord? Cause I really hate that guy..." "Well, we need all the help we can get...and for some odd reason, the Elements seem drawn to you...."
That's when Pinkie looked kinda funny, and she quickly tackled me to the ground, pinning me down. Immediately after that, the Element of Honesty came crashing through the window right to where I was previously standing. I pushed the heavy girl off of me, grunting under her weight.
"P-Please get off me! I don't mean to offend, but you're really heavy!" I said, grunting. "Oops, sorry... " She got off and smiled, helping me up. "Why'd you tackle me?" "My Pinkie Sense told me that something was falling." "But how? You don't have a tail...." "My tailbone started to tickle." "Oh."
Twilight picked up the necklace and smiled. "That's 3 out of 6! It looks like Rainbow Dash was right! This brony seems to be like a magnet for the Elements!" "Well that's all well and good, but I'd like to know where we are right now..." "Ummm....th-that's classified." Pinkie said hastily.
I looked around. It definately seemed like a human house. I rapped the wall and it fell apart. It must be that old, abandoned house that was near mine.
"Whatever, that isn't important....can I meet the rest of you?" "Sure, come on." Twilight said, motioning for us to follow.
She took us out of the house and back to MY house. I guess the girls were using it as their HQ while they had me incapacitated...We walked in and Twilight smiled.
"Well, we got the info we needed, and....well...so did he."
Rainbow Dash looked at her. "What do you mean?" "He knows about us now."
Applejack stomped and groaned. "Twilight! Ah thought the princess told us NOT to reveal ourselves!" "It slipped out. But it doesn't matter....He Pinkie Promised not to tell a soul. If he gets asked about us, he'll just tell them that we're 'cosplayers'....Whatever those are." "Well....alright I guess....Welcome to the herd, partner." "Thanks.....wow I just said thanks to Applejack! Eeeee!" "So, what do we do? Just wait until the Elements just COME to us?" Rainbow asked rather snarkily. "No, we still actively search for them. We also may need to answer questions for him as we go along....He doesn't know all the details." "Well, I have a question for HIM. What's your name, human?" She glared at me with her magenta eyes.
I stuttered as I spoke.
"A-A-Austin, Miss Dash...."
I felt REALLY small with that stare of hers....That combined with the fact that she's one of my favorite fictional heroes, it was all rather intimidating....
"Please don't call me 'Miss Dash'....Just call me Rainbow."
"Yes sir, Rainbow...I MEAN MA'AM!" I cursed under my breath.
Rainbow Dash just rolled her eyes, and sat on my couch. It was rather awkward...the silence hung in the air for a long time. Finally, I asked...
"Um....so...are you staying HERE while you're on Earth?" "If that's okay with you, Austin..." Twilight said. "This is our only place of refuge until we figure something else out...." "Um.....I guess it's alright, just...don't mess with anything...My parents might get mad." "PARENTS?!" I heard them all exclaim at once. Suddenly, the room full of girls was gone in an instant, all hiding behind something.
"No no no! Wait! They're not here right now....They're gone, for a month anyway..." I quickly said.
The 6 of them all emerged from their hiding spots.
"Don't scare us like that!" Applejack said. "Sorry, Applejack..." I muttered.
They came out and then looked outside.
"So I guess we should all just act normally and search when we have time?" I asked. "I suppose so." Twilight said, crossing her arms over her chest.
I nodded understandingly, then turned to the window, staring outside with the rest of them.
Applejack (AKA Ashley) worked in the produce department of the local grocery store, so I would see her frequently when I came in to buy a snack or soda or something. Pinkie (AKA Penelope) worked in a bakery, Twilight (AKA Teresa) was the librarian, Rainbow Dash (AKA Danielle) was a standard citizen and neighborhood runner, Rarity (AKA Rachel) was the new dressmaker down the street and Fluttershy (AKA Fiona) was the new neighbor who had too many pets. I on the other hand, was simply that one teenager who only came out to run errands, get sugary snacks and drinks, and go to school. So all together (despite the hair-dos), we looked pretty 'normal'. For the most part, anyway...
I walked into the produce department to chat with AJ.
"Hey Apple-.....I mean Ashley. How's it going here?" I said. "Howdy, Austin. Things are goin' pretty good here. Any news of the other elements yet?" "No, not yet....Dani is keeping her eyes open from above, while Teresa and Rachel look in the city areas and markets. Fiona, Penelope and myself have been looking in the residental areas. Nothing." "Darn....Ah was hopin' ah could get back home soon....Applebloom will start to worry 'bout me if she hasn't already been worryin'." "I know, but we're looking everywhere we can....But we still have to keep a low profile...No one knows who you guys REALLY are." "Ah know, and if any other bronies found out we're here on Earth, we'd be flooded with the varmints....no offence." "None taken."
Ashley noticed her manager walking nearby, then quickly started to act like she was working.
"Uhh, yeah partner!" She said loudly to me. "The pasta is down in Aisle 3, near the sauces!" She winked. It took a minute, but I caught on and nodded. "Uh, thanks miss. I'd lose my own head if it wasn't screwed on right!" I nodded and walked out of sight. The manager walked past Ashley's station and nodded approvingly to her. She just smiled and adjusted her hat, then waited till he was out of sight.
"Okay, coast is clear, Austin. Ya'll can come out now." I walked out and sighed in relief. "I'll let you know if I figure anything else out. Keep me posted!" I walked down the aisle and picked up what I was after, then bought it and left the grocery store.
"I'd better head back home...." I muttered to myself, opening my soda with a loud hiss. I took a long swig from it and heard something going on nearby. I turned and saw a few kids crowding around what appeared to be a shiny object. I walked over and I both smiled and turned pale when I saw that it was a gold necklace with a red thunderbolt. The Element of Loyalty.
I quickly pushed past the youngsters and scooped it up, putting it in my backpack. That's when one kid yelled at me.
"Heyyyy! Put it back!" "Sorry kid, but it's my necklace...I must've lost it earlier." "That's not yours! You wouldn't even wear it!" "It IS mine, and whether or not I wear it is not your concern." I said with a annoyed huff. I always hated dealing with bratty kids. "Put it back!" I heard another yell. "Yeah!" "Put it back you big meanie!" "Give us the necklace!" I groaned and walked away. The kids ran after me and started to hit me. I just pushed them away, not wanting to hurt them. I just needed to get back home with the Element. Suddenly, I heard the kids scream and run away. Oh geez, have I scared them?! I turned around to apologize but was staring at something straight out of a fantasy movie.
There was a pile of apples behind me, with a malicious grin plastered to it's red face. I stepped back and bumped into another pile, this one of green apples. I turned and saw a brighter red pile of apples. They all circled around me and chanted something about truth and lies and all that jazz. I felt my head start to become dizzy and I started to stagger. I heard a deep laughing coming from seemingly nowhere. That's when Applejack, done with her shift, was taking a shortcut through the park and saw me. She knew all too well what was happening.
"AUSTIN!" She ran over and kicked the apple piles, scattering the apples and breaking the spell. I snapped out of it, but I was still really dizzy. Applejack steadied me and looked me in the eyes.
"Austin, ya'll okay? Speak to me!" She said. "Ughhh.....wha...what?" "It's okay, Austin....It was Discord....He was tryin' ta put you under his spell! Just snap out of it!" I felt her hand touch my head, checking to see if I was better. I slowly groaned a bit and blinked a few times, still rather spooked, but came back to the real world.
"A-Applejack? What happened?" "Discord nearly had ya in his spell...I managed to save you before he could finish it, thank Celestia...." "Applejack....I....I found the Element of Loyalty." "Come on, let's get ya back to the house. We can talk there."
"So these apple piles started to circle me, and chanting and laughing and I started to get really dizzy. That's when Applejack came in and saved me." "So Discord is trying to deharmonize you for some reason, and not us.....Why would he want to do that?" Twilight thought aloud. "Well, it doesn't matter. We have the Element of Loyalty now!" Rainbow said, clipping her necklace around her neck and smiling. "It feels so good having it back!" She squeaked with happiness, making us all look at her with a smile. "I mean....yeah it's great....my Element is back." She said, covering her emotions up with fake coolness.
"So why would he want me?" I said. "Well, maybe it's because you're a magnet for the Elements, so maybe if he deharmonizes you, it would have an adverse effect and repel the Elements instead!" "Sounds legit to me." I said with a smirk. "What can we do to stop him?" Rarity asked. "OOH I know I know!" Said Pinkie, wearing a fake mustache and holding her party cannon, a giant butterfly net and a hornet's nest. "NO PINKIE!" We all yelled at once. "Awwww." She pouted.