> School Days
>  by Bronze Inkwell
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I stared up at the imposing, white brick building in front of me. I had already experienced two years of High School back in my world, now I had two years of pony world High School to survive. I sighed, repositioned my backpack, and continued forwards, ignoring all the hateful stares and spiteful glances of the other students of this school. Walking inside, I glanced around, and just like outside, stares were sent my way. Some were curious, most were negative in one way or another.

I ignored these to the best of my ability, and focused on just getting to class. The first one was history, which I was told I wasn't going to be graded on, I just needed to attend and pay some amount of attention. This was a great relief, since I knew that I would have flunked otherwise. Sure, learning the history of another world would have been cool anyway, but at least now I don't have to worry about being graded on it.

As I walked, I opened a side pocket on my backpack, and pulled out a folded piece of parchment. Yeah, this place didn't have paper or pens. Nah, this world had parchment and inkwells with quills. Sometimes, it honestly felt like I stepped back to the medieval ages. Hmm, hey, I did have a few pens and pencils in my backpack still, maybe I could patent the design and sell it. I stop for a second in my walking, a grin coming to my face as I imagine revolutionizing their writing utensil industry. I shook the thought away, putting it in the back of my mind for later use.

Looking down at the parchment in my hands I unfold it and re-read its contents once more. "Alright, let's see, where's my first class supposed to… wait, there's no homeroom? Huh, guess I missed that during my first look over. Alright, so I just head straight to class then. Hmm… room 205. Got it, so second floor, that means stairs." I mumble to myself as I fold the parchment and place it back into the pocket of my backpack. Looking around, I look for any sign of stairs but see none.

I shrugged this off and continued to just look around, hoping to get lucky. I mean, it's not like there are not going to be any, right? Just a hole in the ceiling where a pegasus can fly up through or a unicorn teleporting up a floor… right? I shake this thought away and refocus on my task. As I turn the corner I suddenly hear a ruckus up ahead. Looking at the source, I see the cause of it. A tall, slender mare with a, I have to say, sexy mane and tail is getting quite a lot of attention. I sigh at this. 'Great, the popular girl.' I then look past the assembled group, and my gut drops further.

"And there's the stairs. Of course they are." I grumble as I make my way forwards. The closer I got to the group however, the quieter it got. I pick up on this immediately, and look down to see all the ponies looking at me. I even catch the eye of the pretty unicorn mare, with her looking at me in a mixture of awe and curiosity. I feel my face heat up, now that I'm consciously aware of the attention. I just give a small wave with a hand, before bolting forwards, jumping over ponies in my way instead of walking around them. Once out of the crowd, I quickly make my way up the stairs.




Fleur de lis: 3rd POV




Fleur watched as the bipedal creature made its way up the stairs with surprising speed and agility. She had been about to wave back to it with a smile of her own, but it had moved before she could so much as lift a hoof. "Ugh, I can't believe that thing was even allowed to stay in the city, much less allowed to attend a school." A colt said, a snear to his tone.

"I agree completely." Said a filly. Fleur sighed internally, knowing that, like mother or father, like daughter or son. All of them were from 'noble' families here in Canterlot. She knew that none of them even really liked her, they just wanted her as a trophy mare or something to wet their dicks. Well she had other plans. And the same could be said about that creature. She and her brother Fancy Pants had heard similar things about the unknown creature from their parents.

But, seeing as there was nothing in the law against creatures of another race being in Canterlot, nothing could be done. Especially if what he had said was to be believed. From what Fleur had heard, the creature was one of a kind, in the literal sense. If anypony were to do him any harm, then they could very well fall under the consequences of attacking not just an endangered species, but a species on the very brink of extinction. And seeing as not a scratch was on him that wasn't already there, most likely, then everypony knew this, or had an idea about it.

"I do not see the problem. He may look different, but I'm sure inside, he is a pony, just like any of us." Fleur said, a bit of a scowl on her face, which made the students crowding around her back up.

"Ugh, you can't be serious? Did you see that thing?"

"It's absolutely hideous with its lanky figure!"

"I heard that it eats meat, and may have even eaten a pony!" Came the responses.

"Is there any proof of that claim?" Fleur asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course not, it buried the bones, and drank all the blood. There isn't any proof cause there is no proof left!" Fleur just shook her head, and turned away, heading to her class. Sure, they wouldn't start for another 30 minutes, but she needed to get away from those ponies. As she made her way to her class however, her thoughts were consumed by the being that now went to the same school she went to.




POV:1st




I sat down on a cushion behind my selected desk, and shrugged off my backpack, before letting my face fall into the desk in front of me. "Great job dumbass, you made a fool of yourself in front of the popular kid on the first day." I grumbled into the desk. After a minute of just sitting there, I lifted my head up and sighed.

"Well, no use dwelling on it now." I reach into the very front pocket of the backpack, and take out my phone and wireless earbuds case. I take one out, and put it into my left ear. I leave the other one in the case and put it back. Taking my phone, I turn it on and begin browsing through my music. But the more I look, the more I realize I'll never get the chance to expand it ever again, and this leads to me becoming more and more melancholy.

No longer in a music mood, I instead look through some games that could be played offline. Selecting Stick War: Legacy, I begin a new save on Insane difficulty. I've lost count how many times I've beaten the game, doing different challenges each and every time. But now I was just going to freestyle it, cause I couldn't be bothered trying to make up a challenge to do. I was about to do the Swordwrath Counter level when I heard the hoof-steps of a pony coming into the room.

Looking at the time, I realize I've been playing for roughly 25 minutes now. Looking up, I'm struck dumb as I see a type of pony I've never seen before. The mare, at least, I very much hoped this was a mare, had a bubblegum pink fur coat, with a tri color mane and tail made up of dandelion gold, magenta, and some kind of purple. Her mane and tail both were tied back in ponytails, the sky blue ribbons each forming a little bow where they were tied. Each pony tail ended in a large curl, which just added to her already pretty looks. Her wings were also something to note, as they went from a pink to purple gradient.

And lastly, her cutie mark. It was a crystalline blue heart with gold accents underneath. Now, one would think since she has wings, that she's a pegasus, right? Wrong. She also had a horn. I heard that only one pony had such attributes, Princess Celestia. But, then, did that mean, this was her? No, I heard Celestia was hundreds, maybe even thousands of years old. There was no way this mare was her. But then, that begged the question, who was she? It didn't take long for our eyes to meet, and almost immediately, I shot my eyes back to my phone, my face heating up.

'Fuck, why did I stare at her! Now she's gonna tell everyone I'm some kind of creep!' I yell at myself internally.

"Hello?" I froze, and shot my head up. She had trotted up to my desk while I had mentally yelled at myself, a curious but friendly smile on her face.

"Uh, hi?" I responded awkwardly. I was a 16 year old with confusing feelings about girls, especially ones that were as pretty as the mare before me and the popular mare, sue me! However, she seemed to like my awkward response as she giggled soon after.

"It's nice to meet you, I'm Cadance. What's your name?" She asked, her friendly look holding. My nerves started to drain as I saw how relaxed she was.

"Thomas, but most just call me Tom." I raised my hand for a fist bump but stopped, unsure if ponies knew of this greeting. However, she seemed to understand the greeting and bumped her hoof against my fist.

"Well, it's nice to meet you Tom. I'm guessing you're the mysterious creature that has all the nobles up in a fuss?" I sighed, nodding.

"Yep, that's me, the damnable freak." Cadance, seeing my mood drop, frowns herself.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bring up a sensitive topic. It's just… nopony has ever seen anything like you. I mean, you kinda resemble a minotaur, but just barely." I sigh, and shake my head.

"Nah, it's fine. Just something I'll have to get used to." I turn my phone off, and slip it into my pocket. Cadence eyed the phone, but didn't say anything about it. "Anyway, I'm not a minotaur, or anything like that. I'm a human. That's the name of my species." Cadence gave me a nod and a look of understanding.

"I see. Is there a reason why humans resemble minotaurs?" I just shrug at that.

"I might have a clue. But I honestly don't want to talk about genetics and multiverse theory at the moment." Cadence just gave me a glazed look as I heard her whisper something.

"Oh sweet Celestia, there's two of them now." I just sniggered at that.

"Know someone else that's pretty smart I'm guessing." Cadence sighed, then rubbed the sides of her head with her hooves.

"Oh you have no idea. She's only 8 years younger than me, but the things she talks about sometimes make me think I'm in a class that is for the seniors, or maybe college level." I let out a bark of a laugh at that.

"God damn, that must be one fuckin' smart kid then, holy shit." Cadence just nodded, a bit exasperated.

"You don't know the half of it." I just chuckled at her a bit more. My laughter seemed contagious at least and soon enough we were both chuckling. But it was soon cut short as the other students quickly began to pile into the classroom.

"Looks like class is starting, better take your seat." I said while I took out my earbud and placed it back in its case in my backpack. To my surprise, she sits right next to me, to my left to be precise. Soon everypony has taken their seats, and then the teacher walks in just as the late bell rings.

"Good morning students, I'm Dusty Scrolls." The teacher says. The teacher was a mare that I guessed was in her 50s, maybe younger. It was hard to tell, okay? They're ponies! She had a graying orange mane and tail with her coat being a light gray. Her cutie mark was, you guessed it, a scroll being dusted off. You know, this did make me wonder. I glanced at Cadence's cutie mark.

'Why does her name and cutie mark not match?' I quickly put the thought aside as I pay attention to the teacher once more.

"As many of you can tell, we have a new student. Mr… Jackson?" The teacher says, a bit confused as she looks at the class list. I raise my hand.

"Yeah, you got it right. Thomas Jackson. But please, I like to go by Tom. It's easier." The teacher nods as all the students peer back at me.

"I see. Well, it is nice to have you with us Tom. Alright everyone, today we'll be…"

Class went by pretty quickly for me. Though I could see several students dropping their heads as the class went on. Cadence followed along pretty well, sometimes helping me with stuff I didn't get. So far, I counted her as a pretty chill friend. After class, we sadly had to go our separate ways as we had different classes, but she promised to meet up with me for lunch.

I checked my schedule once more, and saw I had P.E. I groaned at the bain of all student's existence. Making my way there was pretty simple, and thankfully, since no one ever wore any clothes, I didn't have to change. The bad news, I didn't have to change, which meant I would be stuck in my sweaty clothes all day. Yeah, not fun.

To my surprise however, the popular mare I had seen earlier was also in the class. I didn't have much time to think about this though, as the accursed screech of a coach's whistle was blown. We all turned to see a blue stallion with a brown mane and tail with a ball being kicked as his cutie mark.

"Alright class, today we're going to do some routine things. A 15 minute jog around the gym, then some squats, curl ups, and after that, free time. Also, as many of you can see, we have a new student. Why don't you introduce yourself?"

"Uh, sure. Hey everyone, I'm Thomas Jackson, but y'all can just call me Tom. It's easier that way." They were some mumbled 'hellos' but I did get one actually nice greeting. And to my surprise, it was from the popular mare.

"It's nice to meet you Tom." She had said. I gave her a nod, then rejoined the class.

"Alright everyone. When I blow my whistle, I want you to start jogging. Ready? And…" The coach blew the whistle, and everyone started going. Immediately, I noticed something. Due to my much longer legs, I was able to outpace all of the other students. Not only that, during turns, I was able to keep my speed while turning while they had to slow down a bit. I grinned as I kept up my pace, feeling lots of eyes on me as I steadily pulled ahead of the others. That is, until some of the colts began trying to race me.

Of course, I wasn't one to take shit from anyone. So I simply began to run full tilt. After every step, I was off the ground for over half a second, and barely on the ground for that same amount of time before the foot was lifted. Even galloping as fast as they could, the colts had no hope of catching up to me with their much shorter legs. Not only that, I could take turns much tighter than they could.

I had come up to the rear of the group, and so I nimbly dodged and excused myself as I made my way through the jogging ponies.





Fleur de lis: 3rd Pov





Fleur watched as Thomas raced by her, outpacing every single pony by leagues. He was simply much too fast for the normal pony. Fleur thought she might have been able to at the very least match his pace if she was galloping her hardest. Having legs comparable to that of a full grown mare in terms of length was quite nice at her age.

However, due to her status, Fleur wasn't able to allow herself to race with the human colt. She could only watch as he went a full 3 minutes without tiring until he began to go at a steadier pace. He was noticeably sweating, but never went below the assigned task.

"Ugh, that freak, showing off how much better he is. Wonder if he'll still think he's so superior if we beat it out of him." Fleur instantly snapped her head to a pair of sweating and huffing colts. Of course, so exhausted, they didn't notice her staring at them.

"Yeah, that'd definitely put that freak in his place. Maybe we should try it after school." Fleur knew she should step in, and yet, she couldn't. She couldn't be seen even defending that creature or interacting with it, or else it would ruin her reputation. And reporting it to a teacher wouldn't be much better, as they would also thank her for informing them and would let everypony know of that.

She mentally bit her lip, and returned her gaze to Thomas. She could only hope he could hold his own in a fight. When the scheduled 15 minutes were up, Fleur still couldn't help but keep a concerned eye on the strange creature. Everything about him was so alien to her, to everypony really. His facial features were so small, so hard to read. The little things he had at the end of his forelegs, if they were even called forelegs.

And his horseshoes! They didn't look anything like the ones the princesses wore. They were made of tough fabrics, that much she could tell. But which ones, she didn't know. And that's not even mentioning the shape and how they bent when he had been running, like something was in the entirety of it, not just the opening.

Her curiosity was only kept at bay by her need to keep the serene grace everypony knew her for. The 15 minute jog was soon finished, and the next thing they had to do were the squats. This exercise was meant to help their legs muscles, but as she watched Thomas out of the corner of her eye, she saw him taking an odd stance. His legs turned a bit so his horseshoes were diagonal, and spaced evenly apart. As they all started doing squats, she saw how his legs bent, and how much lower he got than anypony else as he squatted.

She couldn't see the muscles in his legs move due to the clothing he wore, but with how deep and easy he made the squats seem with only two legs, she imagined they must have been pretty muscular. Fleur felt a light heat in her face as she thought about that. 'Dirty mare! Do not think of such things!' She mentally scolded herself.

The 3 minutes of squats came and went quickly, with all but Tom looking very exhausted already. The final one before free time was curl ups. Everypony sat in a line, with Tom at the end, and Fleur right in front of him. As they waited for their turn on the curl up bars, Tom spoke up in a whisper to her. "Hey, I just wanna say thanks, for that greeting that is. So far you've been the second pony to have been nice to me here."

Fleur turned and nodded at him, smiling. "You're quite welcome Thomas. And I'm sorry to hear your time here hasn't been better."

"So, where are you from? I can hear you've got an accent, but I can't quite place it." Tom asked, genuinely curious. Fleur could see that he had been tense at first, but as he talked with her he gradually relaxed.

"While I was born and raised here in Canterlot, my parents were born and raised in Prance. So I got my Prench accent from them." Fleur told him. She too was quite happy. Unlike all the other foals of nobles like the rest of the student body, Thomas seemed easy going and down to Gaia.

"Huh, cool. Back on my world we have a similar thing called France with people from there speaking French. Heh, now that I think about it, most of the places here are pony puns from most of the places on my world. Prance, France. Prench, French. See what I mean." Fleur nodded, giggling.

"Yes, I do. I must admit it is quite odd, but fascinating all the same." During this time the line continued to move with them along with it. Soon enough it was Fleur's turn. Fleur hooked her hooves over the bar, and began pulling herself up and going back down. She did 23 before falling back to the floor from exhaustion. Thomas, being the gentleman she figured he was, helped her down, helping her keep off her aching and wobbly front legs.

Her fur was a little mussed up from where he had placed his claw like appendages on her. But now it was his turn… or it would have been if the bar was higher. As it was, what was high up for a pony, wasn't for a human, as the bar was just below his chin. "Hey, uh, coach, this bar is a little… low."

"Hm, yeah, I can see that being a problem for you. Hmm… Here, let's do this." The coach used his magic to grab his hand, just to hold them above his head. Thomas nodd and turned his arms so the elbows were pointed out. As he did his curl ups, he would move his chin just above his hands before going back down. With this different method, he was able to move much more freely, especially since his arms looked much more maneuverable than pony forelegs.

If they tried doing it like he was, they'd dislocate something. Or at least so she thought they would. Fleur could see how his arms flexed, the muscles tensing each time he lifted himself, never touching the ground. 10… 20… However, at around the 25 mark, some of the other students came up to her and started to talk to her. She wasn't really listening, her focus still mainly on Thomas. He quickly hit 30. Thomas kept going until he reached 35, then opened his claw like appendages. However they were still grasped in the coach's magic, who was looking a bit tired.

"Ay yo, 35, new personal best. That's the crap I'm talking about right there." Thomas said, grinning as he then looked at the coach. "Alright, I'm done, you can let me go now." The coach nodded, the magic dissipating from Tom's hands.

"I gotta say Thomas, you're pretty athletic for somepony your age." The coach says, looking up at him. "Ever think about taking up a sport?" Thomas shakes his head at that.

"Naw, I've tried a few back where I'm from, but it never… clicked, you know? I just worked out some in my spare time. And I think the results speak for themselves."

"I'll say. You did good out there kid, keep it up." Thomas nods at the coach as he walks away. Thomas turns, expecting to find Fleur but sees she had been taken away by the others so she would have to talk to them.




1st Pov




"Well, there goes that option." I grumble to myself, having looked forward to speaking more with that admittedly beautiful mare. She had probably risked a lot just by talking to me. I sighed, knowing that was probably going to be the only time we'd talk. Sad, I was actually beginning to like her. No wonder she was the popular girl here. She had the looks, the personality, it was inevitable for her.

"And who am I kidding. It's not like she'd actually be interested in me… as a friend. Yeah, as a friend… God, I fucking hate these damnable teen hormones." I say to myself as I go over to my backpack and sit down. I take out my earbuds case and my phone. Putting one in, then putting the case back, I use my phone to look for a song to listen to. While the other stuff was good exercise, it wasn't everything.

The curl ups were good for upper body strength, but I figured some push ups would also do me some good. After selecting a song, I lay on the ground, in the standard push up position. As I start going, I can almost feel the eyes of the ponies going to me as I do my additional exercise. I tried my best to force them out of my mind, but the quiet of the gymnasium was louder than the music coming from the earbud that was against my left ear.

After completing 30 push ups, I stood back up, dusting my hands off, even though they felt surprisingly clean. I walk over to my backpack once more, and take out my phone, checking the time. If classes worked as they did in my last high school, I had four classes today, and four different ones tomorrow. This was my second class, before a thirty minute lunch. And seeing as the last class lasted about 90 minutes, I still had roughly 40 minutes left till lunch.

I sighed, and pulled out my earbud case, pulling out the other earbud and sticking it into my feed ear. Instead of listening to music, I went to Netflix to watch a movie. I had a few saved, but I didn't know how long the app would last before the app decided that being disconnected from the Netflix service provider or whatever made it so I could no longer access the app. It was a paid subscription after all. Sure, it was my mom's account, but I'm pretty sure it would stop working after being disconnected after a certain period of time.

I looked through the movies, frowning as I continued to feel eyes on me. I could feel my heart beating faster as my anger rose. I knew I needed to distract myself before I blew up, so I chose one at random. Seeing the title, I nodded. "Alright, that'll do." I whispered to myself as Zombieland started. The first one, that is. After a few minutes, I can see out of the peripheral of my vision a pearly white pair of hooves. Looking up as I paused the movie, I saw Fleur standing there.

She had a questioning look on her face, looking from me to my phone. "Thomas, what are you doing with that black box?" Fleur asked in that 'prench' accent that I couldn't help but love. I pat the spot next to me, gesturing for Fleur to sit down.

"Watching a movie, wanna watch it with me?" Fleur looked surprised, before nodding excitedly and sitting next to me. I was only about 13 minutes into the movie, but I figured it was best I rewind so she had the context. I skipped the first 30 seconds of logos, before I remembered that Fleur didn't have an earbud. Taking one out of my ear, I look at Fleur. "Hold still a sec." I say, moving my hand to cup one of her ears before carefully inserting the earbud. The ear flicked wildly as Fleur jerked her head back after the earbud was inserted.

"Au nom de Celestia, qu'est-ce que tu viens de me mettre dans l'oreille?! Est-il dangereux?!" (What in Celestia's name did you just put in my ear?! Is it dangerous?!) Fleur cried out, a hoof batting at her ear at the unfamiliar feeling of having something lodged in her ear while it flicked down, as if to wave away a pesky fly. I didn't know a lick of french, or 'prench' in this case, but I could take a guess.

"Relax, it's an earbud. It'll allow you to hear the movie." Fleur calmed down a bit, but still looked confused. I gestured to my phone, which currently had a black screen with a white triangle in the center. "Watch, and don't freak out, it'll be alright." Fleur still looked uncomfortable, but nodded. I was about to hit play when I stopped, then looked at her.

"Uh, quick question, how are you around graphic violence? You, things like blood and stuff?" Fleur looked at me horrified. "Right, okay, I should pick something else then." I say quickly exiting the movie and making a mental reminder to try and block her view of the R and M rated movies. PG13 and below stuff only… for now that is.

I then remember the comedian specials I had downloaded, and smirked. I filtered the other stuff out, and then began deciding which one we would watch. Picking Jeff Dunham; Unhinged in Hollywood, I smirk as I hold the phone so she can look too. After the segment with Walter had ended, I was trying to contain my laughter while Fleur was as red as could be while holding her hooves to her mouth. Yet I could also tell she was giggling a bit at the sheer ludicrousness of the show.

I pause it for us to take a few seconds to breathe, and to let Fleur cool down. "Oh my stars, they truly did not hold back with the jokes. You would never hear such crass language in Canterlot." Fleur said, fanning her red face with a hoof.

"Yeah, the rest is a bit more tame in that regard, but still absolutely crazy."

"I can imagine. This 'Jeff Dun-ham' is a comedic genius! Oh, never have I had to try so hard to hold back a genuine laugh." She said with a sigh, a smile ever present on her face. After a moment, a question popped into my mind.

"Hey, whatever happened to those dudes who took you away earlier to talk to you?" I asked the mare whose ears folded at the question.

"Ah, yes, them. Well…" I could see she was uncomfortable with the question, so I held my hands up placatingly.

"Hey, if you don't want to talk about it, then you don't have to. I get some stuff is private. 'Aight?" Fleur looked up at me, then nodded, a small smile on her face as she looked bashfully away from me.

"Merci Thomas." I nodded to her before looking at the time.

"Aw heck, we've only a few minutes left. We should start gettin' our stuff. Oh, uh, think I'll see you around lunch?" I asked a bit awkwardly. Fleur nodded, her smile becoming larger.

"Of course. I'd be disappointed if I didn't." Fleur said, nodding up at me with a smile as I started to put my things away.

"Cool, see ya around Fleur." I say, looking back at her and waving as I double check I have all my things before remembering Fleur still has my other earbuds. Turning, it only takes me a few steps to catch up to her. "Hey, wait! I forgot my earbud!" Fleur stopped, looking at me confused, before she notices the weight in her ear, small though it may be. Even though it had been in there for only a short time, she had already gotten accustomed to it and forgot the small device. Waited for me to come closer, and allowed me to take out the earbud.

As I held her head though, she did something that shocked me. She nuzzled her head into my head. "Mmm, you know, if you don't pass high school, I'd happily employ you." Fleur said, nuzzling my hand. I chuckle awkwardly, and remove my hand.

"Thanks for the offer, but… huh, actually, I might just take you up on that. I doubt anyone else would hire me. Anyway, see ya at lunch." I say, waving at her as I walk away. She waves back, a smile on her face that sends my heart racing. 'Fuck man, don't get a crush on the popular girl! She's probably trying to trick you or something like in those cheesy ass school movies!' I yell at myself internally, however, another very loud part was patting me on the back for getting the attention of who is probably the hottest chick in the school.

To pony standards, that is. As I put away the earbud, the bell rang, letting us know that class was out, and we had 5 minutes to make it to the cafeteria. Standing, I put my backpack on, and headed for the doors, a dumb smile on my face. 'Maybe this school year won't be so bad after all. Especially with ponies like Fleur and Cadence… shit, I still need guy friends. Though from the look of things, I'm pretty sure none of the male student body is at all interested in trying to make friends with me.'

I internally sigh at this, my shoulders slumping. 'Bah, who needs guy friends anyway? You already know enough to know what's what. You'll be fine! Sure, there are probably things that will require knowledge you won't possess, but that's way down the road.' I think to myself, trying to build my resolve. I nod, then continue to make my way to the cafeteria. When I get there, I look around to see which table will attract the least-

"Thomas! Over here!" I hear a familiar voice say. Turning, I see a pink hoof waving at me from a table near the edge of the cafeteria.

'That'll work.' I think to myself, heading over to the happy pink mare… who had a white unicorn stallion with a two toned blue mane and tail sitting next to her… very closely, next to her.
> Chapter 2 (Rewritten)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

'Play it cool Thomas, play it cool.' I think to myself as I approach the table. "Hey Cadence, who's your friend?"

"Oh, this is Shining Armor, he's my coltfriend. Shining, this Thomas, we met in history class." Cadence says as I sit down across from her, and then set my bag down next to me so Fleur would have a saved spot. Upon feeling the word 'coltfriend' my mind deflates a bit.

'Welp, so much for Cadence. Still, I might have a shot with Fleur. Bah! Focus, you idiot!' "Nice to meet ya, mate." I say, a bit of my autism slipping through. See, my mind worked weird. It took every shortcut possible, even my responses. And due to the immense size of the internet, it has given me plenty of random things to make shortcuts out of. The most common one being the Sniper from TF2, in the form of using the word 'mate' in a butchered Australian accent.

Shining looks at me, a bit confused and shocked. "Wow, uh, you certainly weren't what I was expecting when Cady was talking about you." I chuckled, shaking my head as I pulled out my bagged lunch. It was a small thing, just a peanut butter sandwich in a brown paper bag. I wish I had two, but that was all the orphanage could spare. As I started eating the sandwich, at least, that's what they told me. I didn't hear any conversation from the other two at the table.

Looking up, they were eyeing me with concern. "Thomas… is that… all you have to eat?" Cadence asked, the look on her face similar to one would make seeing a ragged begger.

"Yeah, so what? I mean, I wish I had two, but that's just wishful thinking." I chuckled in a depressed fashion.

"Deux?!"(Two?!) A shocked cry came from behind me. Turning, I see Fleur standing there looking at me sadly with a stallion next to her. Again, white fur, two tone blue mane, but different hairstyles. "Thomas, a…" Fleur paused, thinking of the word for my species before finally remembering it. "A human of your size should be eating much more than just two meager sandwiches!" Fleur said, eyeing my half eaten sandwich in distaste. "Yet all you have is one? Unacceptable!"

I moved my backpack to between my legs so Fleur could sit down next to me, which she did. She then set her saddlebags on the table, and got out a sack of bits from it. Pulling the pouch open, she shoved ten of the gold coins in my direction. "You come into that line with me, and you get yourself a proper meal. Got it?" A bit shell shocked, I blinked before shaking my head.

"Fleur, that's your money, I couldn't-" Before I could finish, I felt a hoof placed on my shoulder. Turning, I see the stallion that had come with Fleur.

"Trust me chap, it is best if you listen to her. Once she has decided to help somepony, there is no stopping her." The stallion said with an understanding smile.

"Hey, don't get me wrong, Fleur, your fucking awesome for trying to help me out, really, but… Ah, who am I kidding, I don't have a solid reason. But what about you Fleur? What'll you eat?" Fleur waves away concern.

"Thomas, I'll be fine. I have more than enough bits to buy us both lunch." Fleur says, standing from the able and setting her saddlebags where she was sitting. "Now come, before the line gets too long." Fleur said, leading me to the lunch line.




3rd Pov
Cadence




Cadence watched as her new human friend was pulled away by the most popular mare in the school. She giggled at the two as Fancy Pants sat next to Fleur's saddle bags. "Ah, Princess Cadenza, it's a pleasure to meet you." Cadence winced internally at that.

"Er, please, call me Cadence. And, uh, don't tell Thomas about me being a princess. I don't want him treating me in that way." Fancy nodded, before turning to Shining Armor.

"And you must be her coltfriend. I'm Fancy Pants, Fleur's brother. It's nice to meet you." Shining nodded before speaking.

"It's nice to meet you too Fancy Pants, I'm Shining Armor. I think I've seen you around here before. Last year or the year before, probably." Shining tapped his chin with a hoof in thought, while using his magic to levitate an apple up to his mouth and taking a bite.

"Yes, I do believe that is the case. An apologies for such a sudden change in topic, but I am quite curious about that tall fellow my sister has taken a liking to. Dare I say, her friend." Fancy said, then took a bite out of his own food that he had brought with him. Cadence finished chewing her own food before speaking up.

"He's very nice, as you saw, and very smart. He was talking about things that little Twily, Shining's younger sister, would talk about. I think he said something about jean-ethics and multiple-verses theory." The two stallions looked at her like she was speaking gibberish. "Yeah, that was my face when he said that. He also has this black box he carries in his clothes, and another smaller, more round black box he carries in his bag that holds these tiny little devices he puts in his ears."

Shining turned, looking at Thomas's odd looking saddlebags with suspicion. "You don't think he might be carrying something dangerous in there, do you?" Cadence quickly cast a  glare at Shining.

"Shining! I can't believe you! He's by far nicer than any nobles or their kids, er, no offense Fancy."

"Oh, I assure you, none taken." Fancy said, trying not to be scolded like Shining Armor was currently.

"Just because he looks different doesn't mean he's dangerous." Cadence finished with a frown, her eyes daring Shining to say something.

"Oh, no, he has every right to be suspicious of me." Thomas said as he and Fleur walked up to the table, Fleur also glaring at Shining before she looked up at Thomas in shock. "It's only natural after all. Humans are predators back on Earth, and I like to think that stays the same even here." Thomas sets his food tray down, and picks up the fork.

"So does that mean you have killed before?" Shining asks, eyes sharpening into daggers as he glared at Thomas who looked unphased.

"Technically, yes. But I'm sure you've killed an insect or two in your lifetime as well, whether on purpose or on accident." Shining wanted to argue the point, but knew Thomas did have a point.

"That's not what I meant and you know it." Shining growled, stomping a hoof on the table, causing it to shake slightly. Thomas raised an eyebrow as he looked at Shining Armor.

"If you meant taking the life of another human or a pony, then no. I have not nor will I ever… I hope. The future isn't set in stone after all." Before Shining Armor could say anything else, Fleur spoke up.

"So why are humans considered predators?" She asked. Thomas smiled as he turned to her.

"Excellent question, and the answer is evolution. See, modern humans which have only been around for about three hundred thousand years. But humans in general are only about 4 to 7 million years old in terms of how long we've been on our planet. And during those several millions of years of evolution, we slowly found our place on the food chain. Which was entirely off the food chain.

"Sure, some things could hunt and kill us, but if you got enough of us together back then and with nothing but some rocks and some wood, the hunter would become the hunted. We were pack animals to a degree, which is what made us so dangerous. One guy with a spear is not that much of a challenge. Ten of us? You should start getting worried. 50 of us? Kiss your ass goodbye, it's going into the forever box."

"Why would you put donkeys in this 'forever box'?" Fleur asked, which caused Thomas to open his mouth to respond, before shutting it closed.

"Right, forgot about that. Look, basically, humans are predators cause we evolved that way, end of story." They all nodded at this. All but Shining that is.

"So you're saying you are a threat?" Tom made a so-so gesture.

"Yes, and no. Am I a threat right now? No. Can I become a threat, well, I think that can be said for anyone. Everyone has the capacity for violence, but without intent or reason, the threat they pose becomes null." Tom looks up at Shining Armor, a smirk on his face. "That being said, I believe it is you who is acting as a threat to me. So the question is, are you going to be a threat to me?" Tom looked at Shining Armor with a stare that slowly made the young stallion wilt.

Tom smirked, before going back to enjoying his food. Cadence was, in a word, amazed. Tom had just taken the situation Shining was trying to set up, and turned it on its head. She had only seen such amazing verbal gymnastics from her aunt. "Good, now that that is settled, I haven't heard much about you guys. Y'all keep asking me about my life, but I don't know squat about yours."

Looking at one another, Cadence spoke up. "Well, what would you like to know, Thomas?" Thomas takes a second to think, before looking at Shining Armor.

"Shining, what are your future plans?" Everyone was a bit taken aback that out of the 4 of them, he had asked Shining Armor that question, much less that sort of question at all. After a few moments for the shock to wear off, Shining spoke.

"Well, one day I plan on joining the royal guard." Thomas raised an eyebrow as he sat back.

"Royal Guard, huh? Sounds important as hell to me. What does that entail exactly?" Shining puffed out his chest a bit at that.

"It means we dedicate our lives to protecting the crown." Thomas nodded, before speaking.

"So like the Secret Service, got it." They all gave him a confused look at that.

"What's the Secret Service?" Fancy Pants asked the obvious, to the ponies, question.

"They are the ones that protect the president of the United States. They do more stuff than that, but it's what they are most well known for. No branch of the military is above them, at least, as far as I know." Shining nodded at this.

"Yeah, they sound like the Royal Guard. But what's a press-E-dent?" Shining asked, head tilted.

"No, its president. It's the word used for a democratically elected leader in a democracy. And don't ask me what democracy means cause I don't have a damn clue." Thomas explained, causing Cadence to nod.

"So they are like mayors, but instead of a city, it's a whole country." Thomas nodded while pointing at her with his fork.

"Exactly. If I had a gold star, I'd give it to you." This caused the others to chuckle while Cadence rolled her eyes.

"Oh ha-ha, very funny." Cadence said, no real malice in her voice.

"So what about you Thomas? What are your plans after school?" Fleur asked him. Before Thomas could respond, the bell rang, signifying the end of lunch.

Tom stood up, grabbing his food tray as well as Fleur's to put them away. "That is something you'll have to find out tomorrow at lunch. Until then, I'll see y'all later." Tom was about to walk away before turning back to grab his backpack. "Almost forgot this, that would have been bad." The others began getting their things as well, readying to leave for their next class.




1st Pov




My next class was Equish, which I guess was their version of English. I hated English even back on my world. I could never understand what the hell the reading material was trying to convey most of the time. Upon entering the classroom, I immediately took a desk near the back. I was so not looking forward to this class. The teacher, another mare who looked like some high up aristocrat made me groan internally. She was a forest green coated unicorn mare with a striped purple and black mane and tail.

I couldn't see her cutie mark because of the clothes she was wearing. It didn't look like a dress per say, but it definitely looked expensive. I just pulled out my phone and an earbud, continuing my game in Stick War: Legacy from earlier today. When the bell rang, I put those away and paid attention to the class. "Afternoon everypony," The teacher said, emphasizing the word pony while looking at me, "today we have a new student, as I'm sure most of you can tell. Mr. Jackson, stand and tell us about yourself." She said in a commanding tone.

'Great, another noble who hates anything that isn't a unicorn.' I thought in an annoyed slash depressed tone. I knew that this class would be even harder than normal English, simply because the teacher would give me bad grades because she wanted to. I stood from my seat, the eyes of all the ponies looking at me making me shift my feet uncomfortably. "Uh, as most of you can probably guess, my name is Thomas Jackson. I'm… technically an alien due to me being on your planet and… uh, yeah."

With that, I quickly take my seat, not wanting to be noticed anymore. After that, class proceeded. The classwork was a bit easier than I expected, but not by much. Also, I had to remember to use pony words instead of general ones. You know, things like everyone vs everypony. After class let out, I practically raced out of the classroom. I had nearly suffocated from the negativity coming from the teacher alone. I let out a sigh of relief once I was sure the teacher couldn't hear me with her bat-like hearing. I checked my schedule once more to see I had biology as my next class.

"Room one oh eight, alrighty then." Making my way down to near the end of the hall just before it turned a corner, I saw a familiar pink pony there. "Cadence, what's up? You got Biology too?" The pink… whatever she is, nods as she looks up at me with a smile.

"Yep, though I'm a bit nervous. I don't entirely know what a biology course will entail." I smile and pat the mare on her neck.

"Hey, you'll be alright. I've already taken a biology course back in my world, and from what I remember it was relatively easy. There are some challenging bits here and there, but I'm sure you'll do fine." Cadence blushes a bit at the praise before giving me a puzzled look.

"If you've already taken the course, then why are you taking this one?" I shrug at her.

"Different world I guess. Shit might be different here then where I'm from." Cadence takes a moment to think, then nods at this.

"Yeah, I guess that makes sense." Just then, a third voice cuts into our conversation.

"Ah, Mr. Jackson, it's a pleasure to meet you again. I take it you and Ms. Amore here are also going to be taking this class?" Said the white stallion from lunch.

"Oh hey, sup dude. Sorry, but I don't think I caught your name?" I asked, a bit sheepish for not having asked for his name.

"Ah, right, I don't believe you did. I'm Fancy Pants, Fleur's brother." My eyes widened before squinting. I opened my mouth to ask a question, but he is already saying something. "And yes, I know me and my sister don't have the same accent. While Fleur was mainly raised by our Prench parents, I had been sent off to Trottingham to live with relatives there. I will not say more about it as it is a touchy subject."

I nodded at this, a frown on my face. "Sorry you had to go through that my dude, I myself couldn't imagine having to live so far away from a sibling… Mainly because I'm an only child, but that's besides the point." Fancy nods at this.

"Thank you Thomas. Now then, I think we should go take our seats, yes?" Cadence and I nod, and follow Fancy into the classroom. Unlike other classrooms which had posters of stuff related to their class, the walls of this classroom were lined with pictures of diagrams of ponies, skeletal, muscular, cardiovascular, etc. Though, I didn't see anything relating to the nervous system, which I found odd. Or maybe they just didn't know about it yet. There were also posters of flowers with close ups that showed veins and the stem wall, but not cells.

'Guess they haven't gone that small yet.' I thought as I took my seat, Cadence sitting to my right with Fancy in front of me.

"Hey, Fancy, Thomas says he already took a biology class." Cadence says, making Fancy look back at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Yep. Though I gotta say, I'm not seeing what I thought I'd be seeing. I mean, where's the diagram for the central nervous system? Cells? Bacteria? Nucleus?" They just gave me bizarre looks. 'Guess they haven't gone down the ever shrinking rabbit hole like humanity has when it comes to certain things.' "Okay, question, how do your muscles know what your brain wants it to do?" They looked at each, and shrugged.

"That's the job of the central nervous system. The brain sends electrical signals down your spine, and from the spine to the other parts of the body."

"Wait, really? So everytime I lift a hoof…" Cadence says, lifting one of her forelegs from the desk. I moved closer to her and poke her head where her brain should be.

"Your brain instantaneously sends an electronic signal to the region of the system that controls the muscles in your foreleg," I move my finger down her spine. Cadence shivered at the feeling of my fingernail softly scratching her as I moved it. I then continued down the side of her body to her lifted foreleg, "which contracts the muscles, making the motion of lifting your hoof."

"If that is true, and I am not saying you are lying, then there is a system of which our scientists haven't figured out yet in our bodies." Fancy said, eyes wide.

"Oh trust me, the nervous system will seem small in comparison to the atom." They both gave me another confused look. "Er, let me explain. The atom is as small as you can get basically. Think of it like this. Everything is made up of matter, that matter is made up of molecules, and those molecules are made up of atoms. Or something like that. I can't remember what it is exactly, but yeah." Seeing their still confused faces, I continue.

"A good example is comparing a hoof sized rock to a grain of sand. That's the comparison of an atom to a molecule. And a comparison of a molecule to a grain of sand… picture a small mountain, this is the grain of sand, to a decently sized boulder. You have an idea of how small an atom is now?" They both nod, eyes wide.

"But… that's so small! How can humans see something so tiny?" Cadence asked, incredulous.

"Science, and decades of research." I said, finishing the conversation as the bell rang. With the rest of the students in the class, the teacher, a bone white stallion with a two toned light purple mane, looked up from his desk with a smile.

"Good afternoon everypony. Or, should I say, everybody, as it seems we have a new student. Mr. Jackson, if you would, please introduce yourself." Having done this three times today already, I nod.

"Hey everyone, as some of you already know, my name is Thomas Jackson, though most call me Tom." A few half assed 'hellos' is all I got.

"Great. Now then, onto the lesson." The classwork was about what you'd expect, though from what I knew in comparison to the lesson, they used magic to explain a lot of the things that happened inside the body, rather than science. This would explain why the thought of a nervous system or the atom would seem ridiculous to them.

The thought made me chuckle a bit. Not only would I be bringing mechanical upgrades to this world, but scientific ones as well. The class finished rather quickly, and from what I saw Fancy and Cadence looked burned out by the lesson as we walked out of the classroom and towards the school's entrance. "Ugh, biology is going to suck so much." Cadence said, her head shaking wearily. Fancy agreed, looking a bit exhausted himself.

"I don't know what you two are talking about. Honestly, I find it interesting that y'all think magic is what keeps y'all going. I mean, sure, you guys are very magical in nature, but not everything is. What about the other species of this world that don't have as much magic? What about them? Surely their whole body can't run off of magic when there isn't any magic to be had?" Cadence just sent me a scowl.

"Don't make me think right now you jerk." Even though she said it in an annoyed tone, I could tell she didn't mean it. I hold my hands up placatingly as I chuckle.

"Alright, alright, enough with the science talk… for today that is." I send Cadence a cheeky smile, which she groans at, turning away. For a moment, I couldn't help but think I saw her cheeks get a bit more pink, but that was probably due to the lights. Soon we came up on the doors to the outside world, where I paused. I honestly really didn't want to go back to the orphanage, at least, not yet that is. Sure, I'd still have to face the mountain load of chores that awaits me, but…

Looking down, I look at Cadence and Fancy who have just noticed I wasn't next to them anymore, and we're looking back at me. "Tom, are you alright?" Cadence asked, a worried look on her face. I shake my head before responding.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry, just… thinking about some stuff. Hey, listen, I, uh, I gotta get going, I'll catch up with you guys tomorrow. Alright? Tell Fleur I said 'see you later'." I then turned and began making my way back to the orphanage.




Pov: 3rd
Cadence




Cadence and Fancy watched as Thomas walked away, a melancholy mood over him. Cadence frowned, wondering why he was suddenly feeling this way. She wanted to go after him, but knew Shining would worry if she wasn't here to greet him when he eventually got out of the building.

As the students continued to leave the school in droves, she and Fancy chatted. "So, what do you think of the lad?" Fancy asked her.

"He's really kind, but also… strange. His world and thus his upbringing is so radically different from ours. I mean, you heard of the things he spoke of, right?" Fancy nodded.

"Yes, I do see what you mean. But if he speaks the truth, then his people have used science in place of magic to get to where they are, as I do not see magic being able to give one the ability to look at something so small." Cadence nodded at this, a contemplative look on her face.

"He's given me a look to think about, that's for sure." It was around this time that Fleur and Shining Armor came out to greet the two conversing ponies. Cadence hugged Shining before giving him a nuzzle, while Fleur hugged her brother.

"Hey Cady, how were your classes?" The young stallion asked.

"Oh, they were alright, but biology is so complicated. Thankfully Thomas is taking the class as well, and he's already helped me a lot." Cadence beamed. Shining simmered internally at the thought of the human, but nodded.

"That's nice. Hey, why don't we hang out by the park for a bit?" Cadence wanted to agree, but wilted.

"Sorry Shiny, Aunt Celestia wanted to know about my day, as well as teach me more about my eventual princess duties." Shining sighed, but nodded.

"Alright, I'll see you later then. Just remember you promised to help me watch Twily tomorrow after school, alright?" Cadence nodded as she gave Shining a peck on the cheek.

"Of course Shiny, see you tomorrow." With that, Cadence turned before flying back to the castle in the distance. While that had been happening, Fleur and Fancy spoke to one another.

"Hey Fancy, how were classes?" Fleur asked her brother.

"Oh, they were alright. Though biology is sure to be a tough but odd class, especially since Thomas is taking it with me and princess Cadenza." Fleur nodded at this.

"Any class with him is going to be odd, that's for sure. He's so… different, in so many ways. Oh, speaking of him, where is he?" Fleur asked, looking around but saw no sign of the human.

"Oh, he said he had somewhere to be in a hurry, but he did tell me that he would see you later, probably tomorrow." Fleur frowned a bit, wanting to see the human one last time that day.

"Oh, I see. Well, there is always tomorrow. Come on Fancy, let's head home. I'm sure we both have some homework to do tonight." Fancy nodded, following Fleur down the street to their parent's mansion.
> Chapter 3 (Finished Product)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I stared at the front gate of the orphanage, a feeling of resentment welling up in me. I hated this place. I wanted out of here. There was no hope for adoption for me, why would there be? Celestia should have less faith in her subjects, especially the nobles. Yet Celestia put me here for reasons I couldn't understand. I sighed, remembering the first time I came to this building almost a year ago.





1 year earlier







I stared up at the large building in nervousness, my feet shuffling as I honestly didn't want to go inside. For years I was so used to having a home to look forward to after a day at school or daycare. But now, it was gone, and so were my parents, my friends, my- My train of thought was cut off when a wing pressed itself against my side. It was only then that I noticed the sting of tears, which I quickly wiped away.

"Thomas, I know this will be difficult, but I know you're strong enough to handle it. You're stronger than any colt or filly I've ever met." Said a pegasus mare from my side. That was Golden Feather, one of Celestia's assistants that had been assigned to help me settle into my new life in pony land, 'scuse me, 'Equestria'. She had a pale light yellow fur coat with a windswept golden mane and tail, with a gold necklace around her neck with a peculiar design on the centerpiece. Her cutie mark was a sun with a masquerade mask in front of it.

I stayed quiet, feeling like a lead weight had dropped in my gut while simultaneously a hole formed there as well. "... I don't want to stay here." I whispered, my voice almost becoming a whimper. "Why can't I stay anywhere but here? Why can't I live with you?" I winced, looking away. My arm came up to rub at my other one. "S- sorry, but I just…" Golden sighed dejectedly at my words.

"It's okay, I understand. And if it was up to me, I would, but it's not, so I can't. Listen, you know how to get in contact with me, right?" I nod, going to my backpack and pulling out a runestone she had given me.

"Drop it in a basin of water, and say your name out loud." Golden nodded up at me.

"Good, now go on, and try to make some friends."





Present







"Tch, friends, right." I scoffed, shaking my head. None of the ponies in the orphanage were anywhere near my age, making me the oldest one there by over 7 to 8 years, even at 15. And of course, nopony wanted me. Not even the common pony, which there were a few of in Canterlot, wanted something as strange as I was to them. I reluctantly opened the gate to the Orphanage, walking around the building till I came to the garden in the back.

Walking towards the birdbath, I took a quick look around before putting my backpack on the ground. I took out the runestone Golden had given me a year ago. I don't immediately drop it in, simply holding it in my hand, weighing my options. After a solid 3 minutes, I take a deep breath, close my eyes, and drop it into the birdbath. "Golden Feather." I say, just loud enough for the rune to activate. The water quickly looked like it held a bunch of smoke inside it, before a voice came through the water.

"Good afternoon Thomas, how was your first day at Canterlot High School?" Came Golden's voice, as cheerful and caring as ever. Her voice alone brought a smile to my face nearly every time I heard it.

"It was… eventful, for the most part. Honestly I thought it would have been similar to High School back on Earth. I mean, it was and it wasn't. And not in a bad way… per say. But I think you'll be happy to hear I made some friends." I could almost here the smile on her face as she 'EEE'd loudly.

"Oh, that's great news Thomas! I'm so glad you're finally making some friends. I must admit, in hindsight, putting you in that orphanage might not have been the right call." I rolled my eyes as Golden now sounded a bit sheepish.

"Gee, you think?" I could imagine her wincing at my words. "Sorry, just a bit of resentment towards Celestia for thinking an Orphanage was the right place to put me. I mean, seriously? A near young adult trying to make friends with someone several years below their age group? What was she thinking? And don't get me started on the fact that even if I did make a friend, they could have found a home at any point, making it so I'd never see them again."

I stop myself before I go any further, silently seething as I try to calm myself. After I was calmed down, I spoke once more. "Sorry… again."

"It's alright Thomas, I understand. And I'm proud of you, you were able to calm yourself faster than last time. Anyway, enough about that, tell me about your new friends!" Golden said, trying to change the topic which I followed along with.

"They're… an odd bunch, to say the least. Would you believe me if I said I made friends with the most popular mare in the school? And not like we're just associated, but actual mutual friends. At least, I hope we are. She's really fun to talk to. And seeing her react to things is hilarious."

"Hmm, I see. That is very good to hear. And what of the other friends you made?" Golden asked, ever curious.

"Well, you won't believe this, not only is this one also a mare, but she's a mare like Princess Celestia. And what I mean by that is that she's an Alicorn." I could hear the spit take through the 'call'. Golden coughed on what I assumed was tea for a few moments before speaking.

"R- Really? That's quite the surprise. How did you two meet?" Golden asked, still trying to clear her throat a bit. I told her how we first met, and aside from a few questions about the game I was playing and what I thought of Cadence, she stayed quiet. "My, that is quite surprising indeed. And it does sound like you made a good first impression. Is there anybody else you made friends with?"

I think for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, this one stallion who goes by, get this, 'Fancy Pants'. I managed not to laugh at his name and keep a straight face, mostly because I was in disbelief that his parents actually named him that. I mean, y'all don't even wear pants!" Golden took a few moments, and I could picture her tapping her chin in thought.

"Hmm, that is true. But as I've told you, our innate magic covers our privates until we unconsciously or consciously choose to reveal them. So the need for such garments is unnecessary. That, and unless you are a unicorn, it is exceedingly difficult to fit one's tail through a hole in the back of the pants." I roll my eyes, opening and closing my hand like a mouth since I've heard this countless times already.

"Yeah, yeah, I know, I know. Still, why name your kid after an article of clothing? You ponies and your ways of naming children confuse the heck outta me." Golden just giggled. "Anyway, back to Fancy. We met at lunch, and later in biology. Speaking of which, I seriously need to talk to some doctor or Celestia about getting you guys better microscopes because y'all have barely scratched the surface when it comes to the realm of the microscopic."

"Hmm, things so small we can't see them with the naked eye. Yes, I do believe we've talked about that once before during your medical examination when you first arrived. We should schedule another one sooner rather than later. So tell me, what do you think of Mr. Pants?" I snorted at Golden's use of Fancy's name before speaking.

"He's pretty chill for a kid of a noble, both him and his sister Fleur. Though I haven't spent a lot of time around him to say for sure. But then there is this last dude which we aren't friends… but for the most part he seems okay. He's no kid of a noble, I can tell you that much though. Dude wants to basically join y'all's army. And that means gettin' down and dirty. And no one raised with a silver spoon would want that.

"Aside from that, 'don't know much about him. Only met during lunch. He's a bit racist though, but then again that's pretty common with you ponies. I mean, it ain't exactly baseless. Humans are predators, first and foremost. That's just how we came to be. Still, he could have at least been a bit more subtle about it. Until then, I'd count him more as a negative, but not bad, acquaintance."

Golden hummed in thought as she mulled over my words. "While I am a bit disappointed that ponies aren't the friendliest when it comes to interactions with beings that aren't ponies, it is still quite understandable. Ponies live a sheltered life for the most part, I will say. Each of the species that live in this world usually keep to where they originate from.

"While we do have positive relations with them politically, for the most part, with each of them, the common pony has little to no interactions with them. Thus making them untrusting of beings that aren't from Equestria, and vice versa. And on top of that, you are not even native to this world. That not only makes your situation unique, but also worse than that for say a dragon or griffon."

I sighed, knowing what she said was very true. "Yeah, I suppose. I'll try and not give him a reason to hate me. But if he keeps being a bigot to me, I can't make any promises." Golden sighed.

"That is all I can ask for I suppose. It was quite nice talking with you Thomas. I shall come and get you next Saturday for both a medical examination and so we can catch up better." I nod, even though I know she can't see it.

"Yeah, alright. See ya then Golden." With that, the 'call' ends, the smoke in the water fading away as I fish out the runestone from the birdbath. I place it back in my backpack after drying it off by waving it around and wiping it on my jacket. I turned to the orphanage once more, and sighed. "Great, now I'll have homework on top of all the chores." I grumble, my once chipper mood fading. I pull out an earbud from the case, and put it in my ear. I turn on some music, then get to work.

First things first, the dishes. With over 20 foals in the orphanage, along with my own, from lunch alone there would be a sizable amount of dishes. Seeing as I couldn't do the breakfast ones before heading to school, there was the combined might of both the breakfast and lunch dishes stacked high inside the sink and to either side of it. Suffice to say, my hands were very wrinkly by the time I was done with them and I had finished my playlist of songs.

By time that was done however, dinner time had rolled around. Which meant me cooking dinner, eating, then doing those dishes. After that, I had to clean up after the foals. Who has gotten used to me doing this, so they usually left their toys and things out and scattered around. After that, I knew I had to do my homework, or else I wouldn't have the brain power to do it after doing the rest of the chores I was 'assigned'.

All in all, it was nearing midnight by the time I was done, and I had to be up in 5 hours to get ready for the next day. Oh how do I love school.




3rd Pov:


Celestia


Time:


Several Hours Ago




Golden Feather sighed as she closed the link between her scrying pool and whatever Thomas used to contact her with the specialized runestone. Tapping the amulet around her neck, she glowed bright gold, growing back into her true form. A second later, Celestia stood in the place of Golden Feather. Celestia removed the amulet from around her neck, placing it back into the box she had retrieved it from.

She was incredibly happy that Thomas had finally been able to make some friends, but hearing his true thoughts about her… it made her regret putting him in that orphanage in the first place. She thought that placing him there would have been best, but what he had said to her this time… really made her think. In hindsight, the orphanages in Equestria usually have a very low age when it comes to foals.

Almost never had any foal before they turn 10 not been adopted. And Thomas was 15. It was well known to her that the older you are, the less desirable you become to ponies looking to adopt. And even if there were ponies around his age, who's to say if or when they would get adopted. Thomas couldn't count on them coming back to spend time with him.

Celestia placed a hoof on her forehead, disappointed in herself. "I really should have seen that coming. But what can I do?" Celestia thought out loud, before there came a knock on her door. Turning, she put on her 'princess mask' as she answered. "Yes? Who is it?"

"Aunty, it's me, I can't wait to tell you about my day at school! And about Thomas! Can I come in?" Cadence said happily through the doors. Celestia let her mask drop, a smile coming to her face.

"Of course Cadence, please, come in." Celestia uses her magic to open her bedroom doors, allowing entry to the pink Alicorn.




1st Pov:


Thomas


Time:


The next day




I felt like shit. There was nothing more to say than that. I was basically dragging myself up the street to the school. However, despite my outward appearance, I was a storm of rage inside. I honestly wanted to get that damn noble fired, but then again, who's to say that the next pony put in charge wouldn't be even worse? I shouldn't have to do all these damned chores. Dishes were one thing, but I was basically doing all the jobs the damn noble should be doing himself!

Lost in my tiredness and rage, I failed to notice a few colts walking down the street towards me. That was until a blast of magic hit me in the face, knocking me flat on my ass while making my face feel like it was on fire. I screamed in pain while holding my face, tears instantly forming in my eyes as I heard the mocking laughter. Then I felt it. Hooves. Kicking. Backpack ripped off my back. It was then thrown aside. I could barely make out my surroundings as the colts pummeled me, dragging me.

I think they went on for five minutes before finally stopping. They left, laughing and mocking me. I couldn't move. Couldn't see. Couldn't think. Pain was all I felt, all I was. As I lay there, I slowly fell unconscious, in a pool of my tears and blood.




3rd Pov:


Fleur De Lis






Fleur waited excitedly for Thomas to arrive, looking up and down the street the school was placed on. Cadence, Shining Armor, and Fancy Pants stood with her. Shining was the only one of them reluctant to wait for their friend. "Cadence, I know he's your friend and all, but you know that not everyone wants to be friends with everyone else, right?"

Cadence rolled her eyes at him. "Of course I know that Shiny, but I have a good feeling about you two. And besides, I think he liked it when you said you wanted to become a royal guard. Auntie told me that Thomas holds law enforcement and the military in high regard because his grandfather was a veteran." Shining raised an eyebrow at that.

"Really? I didn't know that. What did his grandfather do?" At that Cadence gained a look of concentration.

"I think she said that he was a 'doorside helicopter gunner' in the 'Ve-it-nam' War. And no, I don't know what either of those things are. Aunt Celestia tried to explain it to me, but I still don't understand it. She said that a helicopter is a flying machine that uses large spinning blades to fly." Having listened in, Fleur and Fancy looked curious and confused as well.

"How is that even supposed to work?" Shining asked, before catching the word Cadence used. "Wait, 'war'? Who were they at war with?"

"I… don't know. Thomas never told her who they were at war with, just that the name of the war is based on the location the war took place." They were all looking even more confused now.

"While war in itself is quite dreadful, perhaps we should ask the chap about it when he gets here… Which should be soon or he'll be late." Fancy pointed out, looking up at the school's clock tower. Fleur frowned, looking up and down the road once more, but saw no sign of the human.

"I don't see him. Cadence, I hate to ask this if you, but perhaps you can fly up and look around for him? Perhaps he has gotten lost?" Cadence nodded, flapping her wings as she jumped into the air. She looked as best as she could from her vantage point, and could see the orphanage he was staying at. It was a bit of a ways away, but still relatively easily navigable from the ground. Something wasn't right. He should have been there already. He seemed to make a point of arriving early if possible based on past interactions.

She began to fly in the direction of the orphanage, scouring the streets for any sign of the young man. Just as she was flying over a street a block away from the school, something caught her eye. A glint, small, but it caught her attention. Looking down, she saw something she immediately recognized as nothing looked like it. "Tom's backpack?" Cadence asked herself as she flew down. The shine had come from a tear in the bag, where a metal key had poked through. But the bag itself looked like it had been caught in a tornado. Papers and books were strewn about, heading into a nearby alley.

Her concern soon jumped up to fear as she saw red specks on the ground and the school items as she followed the trail. She began trotting briskly, hoping that her thoughts weren't true. But as she followed the trail of blood, the splotches became bigger and bigger until there were puddles of blood as big as her hoof. She stopped suddenly, eyes wide as tears began trailing down her cheeks. "THOMAS!"

Cadence rushed forwards, not caring if she just used the Royal Canterlot Voice for the very first time on pure instinct. She used her magic to pick up the prone and unconscious, but thankfully still alive, human. He was covered in blood from many gashes on his body. Using her magic, she felt for his heart beat. It took her a moment, not being familiar with human anatomy. She eventually found it, and what she found just made her distress grow. His heartbeat was barely there, and growing fainter by the second. Her horn sparking, she teleported herself and Thomas to Canterlot Hospital without even thinking. She screamed and cried at the doctors to help him as tears flowed from her eyes. She just wished she wasn't too late.





Fleur, Fancy, and Shining were all running the direction Cadence had flown towards. All but Fancy were aware that the orphanage was in this general direction due to them living in the city all their lives. They had heard Cadence shout Thomas's name, and Shining alone knew her well enough that something was very, very wrong. They had lost sight of her about a minute after she had flown up, so they didn't know exactly where the pink Alicorn had gone, just the general direction.

After searching a few blocks, Fleur saw something that she recognized after having seen it 3 times the previous day. Thomas's backpack. There was no mistaking its unique shape and material. "Colts, over here!" Fleur cried out, running over to the nearly destroyed backpack.

"That's not good." Fancy muttered, looking at the scattered school materials and Thomas's personal effects. He and Fleur gathered them up in their magic, knowing Thomas would appreciate his things not being left behind.

"Oh… oh Celestia no. That's not… is it?" Came Shining's voice as he looked down at the drying drop of blood on the ground. Fleur raced past Shining, not caring if her hooves landed in some of the coagulating blood, staining them red. Her heart raced while a pit formed in her stomach which only grew as she followed the trail of blood and scattered parchment. She heard Shining and Fancy following her, calling out for her to slow down, but she just couldn't.

Soon, all three came to the alley where the blood made small puddles instead of small drops. There, they all saw that in the center of the alley, about 30 feet in, was a pool of blood. Said pool had been blown outward, spattering the walls with the red liquid. Fancy gagged, covering his mouth as he turned away. Shining was even more pale then he was before, while a little green around the gills.

Fleur was the worst of them, turning to empty her stomach on the ground as tears poured from her eyes.





"THOMAS!" Celestia jolted in her throne, looking out the throne room windows as she heard her niece. She immediately recognized the distressed tone of voice of her adoptive niece. Something was wrong, very wrong. Turning to her guards with a deathly serious look, she spoke.

"Day Court is over for today. Any petitioners may either return to their homes or be allowed to stay in the guest wing until such time I resume Day Court." The guards saluted while the noble she had barely been listening to acted relieved. If she remembered correctly, it was the noble in charge of the orphanage she had placed Thomas in. She had been speaking to her about removing Thomas from the orphanage and into a foster care system, but that would need to be placed on hold.

Unfolding her massive white wings, she lit up her horn as she traced Cadence's magical signature. Just as she was about to lock onto it and teleport, Cadence's magic flared then instantly moved from one place to another. She was a bit surprised at this, as she had yet to start teaching Cadence such a high level spell. Then again, with how in flux Cadence's magic was, she was capable of just about anything. 

When it finally calmed, she would be quite tired. Following and locking onto the new location of the signature, her horn lit up in her signature golden glow. She disappeared from the throne room, leaving only a few guards behind to keep watch of the throne. When Celestia rematerialized from her teleportation spell, she found herself in a hospital with a bunch of nurses and doctors rushing away with someone on two gurneys.

In the middle of the room though, tears plastered the fur and marred the makeup of a certain pink alicorn, who watched as the nurses and doctors took away who she presumed was Thomas. Cadence soon noticed her aunt from the teleportation flash, and practically lept into Celestia's hooves, pressing her face against Celestia's neck and simply breaking down. Large white wings, already outstretched, folded around Cadence, enveloping her in a one of a kind hug.

The lobby was soon filled with the sounds of sobs and tears hitting the floor. All the while friends and family of patients and on duty staff could only watch, saddened at the state of one of their princesses.
> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


3rd Pov:


Celestia






4 hours. That was how long it took for the princess of the sun to hear about the condition of the only human in Equestria. And the doctors… they didn't like what they found. Multiple lacerations, numerous cracked ribs, one broken rib, a ruptured blood vessel in his left eye, burn marks on 78 percent of his face from a magic attack, and he was currently in a coma. But that wasn't all they found. He was malnourished.

While Thomas was fit to a degree, he was quite underweight compared to when they first met. From 5 foot 9 at 148 pounds to nearly 5 foot 11 at 132 pounds. Thomas wasn't all that healthy before his beating, that much they could tell. Upon hearing this, the temperature in the room rose a few degrees.

Through it all, Celestia kept her princess mask up. And yet her mane and tail betrayed her, the smooth gentle waves now more akin to a tempered tempest. The ponies that had done this were bad enough, but to learn that he hadn't even been fed right was just not right. Nopony should be denied the right to a proper meal 3 times a day, and yet Thomas had… for a whole year, and she did not know.

As soon as the doctors had finished telling her of Tom's condition, she told Cadence to stay here and make sure nopony but the doctors and nurses tried to visit Thomas. Cadence, a slightly fearful look in her eyes from never having seen her aunt so serious, nodded. Celestia then made her way back to the castle, a plan already forming in her mind.

First things first, Thomas wasn't going back to the orphanage, nor to a foster home. The hoof marks on his body were too small to be made by a fully grown stallion or mare, but just the right size for a colt or filly in high school. So until she brought the ones responsible to justice, he wouldn't be seeing them again. At first a house in the lower district popped into her head, but was quickly swept aside.

Then, an apartment somewhere between the castle and the school. This she mentally jotted down. Of course, he wouldn't be living there alone. She would have either a pair of guards or a small squad of guards, 3 or 4 guards, with him at all times. Two definitely wasn't enough, four would most likely feel too much to Thomas, so three it was. Of course, she would have to start off by saying four, and eventually negotiate him down to three.

Second, she would need to have to start an investigation into both the ponies who did this to Thomas, and the owner of the orphanage Thomas had been staying at. She already had a good idea that some foul play or embezzlement would be found though. The ponies who did this thought… that was going to be tough. Thomas however had already given her ideas on how to apprehend such criminals. He had a 'show' he had downloaded on his smartphone called 'NCIS'. Naval Criminal Investigative Services if she remembered the acronym correctly.

While hoof print dusting wouldn't turn up anything, the 'black lights' used would definitely reveal the culprits. Her spell crafters had been hard at work converting the science of a black light to a spell. And just a month ago, they had come to her with results. And those results were spectacular. The spell was then distributed to all cities in Equestria, which turned an already low crime rate even lower. Thomas wasn't even aware that he was the catalyst for over 50 arrests made in the past year.

But with such a large pool of ponies that could be responsible for Tom's near demise, trying to do so discreetly would prove difficult. When Celestia arrived at the castle, she immediately ordered that no less than six guards be sent to the hospital to guard Thomas. Her next stop was to her guard captain, Steadfast Phalanx. Stepping into his office, the guard captain saluted her.

"Princess, to what do I owe this visit?" He asked, keeping his salute.

"At ease, Phalanx. And I wish this was a more casual visit, but it isn't." On tone alone, Phalanx knew something had gone terribly wrong. That, and he had also heard the cry of the love princess to be.

"Is this about the human, your majesty?" Celestia nodded.

"This morning, Thomas was found near death in an alley by my niece." Phalanx immediately straightened at that. Sure, there had been reports of violent crimes in the past, but never had any been reported as life threatening. "I want two investigations started, one into the mare known as Young Hope, and a second into the pony or ponies who have nearly killed Thomas the human. But I must ask, keep the latter one as discreet as possible."

The captain nodded at this, and gave a salute. Celestia nodded as well, turning and walking out of the captain's office.




3rd Pov:


Cadence


Time:


Next Morning




Cadence stared down into her bowl of oatmeal, a spoon levitating in her magic but not eating. She simply pushed the mushy oats around, a dead look in her eyes. She had always thought the best of ponies, and now that it had finally sunk in that ponies did this to Thomas, she could only imagine them at their worst.

Images of what could have happened to Thomas to make him look like that filled her mind, each scenario more terrible than the last. Celestia had long since left Cadence to sit alone in the dining hall. She didn't think her niece could handle going back to school in her state, so simply left her alone to do what she needed to to get through her grief. Her ear flicked however when she caught the sound of ponies she knew, one better than the other two.

Looking to the doors at the end of the hall, she saw them being opened by two guards who led Shining, Fleur, and Fancy into the room. Upon seeing her, Shining immediately rushed over to her, wrapping her up in a hug. The other two were more subdued, simply trotting over with sad looks in their eyes. However, Fleur's eyes looked a bit guilty. "Oh Cady, I was so worried about you. Are you alright?"

Cadence jolted, looking up at Shining in fury. "Am I alright? AM I ALRIGHT?! YOU SHOULD BE ASKING THOMAS THAT!" Cadence shouted, glaring death into Shining. Shining winced, stepping back at her shouting. Cadence saw his scared and hurt look and immediately deflated. "S- sorry. I just…"

"It's alright princess, we understand. We are all grieving at this moment. But do take solace that our friend is under the best medical care Equestria has to offer." Fancy said, a soft caring look on his face.

"It shouldn't have happened at all. Thomas did nothing, nothing except be different from us. Thomas was right, ponies are nothing but racist jerks." Cadence said bitterly, glaring into her long gone cold oatmeal. The other three ponies were stunned, having never heard such cold words spoken from somepony they thought was incredibly kind.

"Cadence!" Shining exclaimed, causing the pink princess to flinch and reflect on her words.

"S- sorry. I- I don't know what's come over me." Shining sighed, stepping up to his marefriend and giving her a hug.

"We know, we're all a bit angry right now, but I don't think lashing out at us or beating yourself up over it is going to help anything. Right now, all we can do is be there for Thomas. Celestia had ordered that the school be closed for the day. So why don't we all visit Thomas at the hospital? Maybe he's woken up?" That lifted Cadence's mood a bit, and she nodded.

However, with the knots in her stomach finally unclenching, her hunger returned with a vengeance. Cadence winced as she felt her stomach rumble from being devoid of sustenance. "Um, maybe after I eat?" The three looked at her quizzically, then to her bowl of oatmeal. Spotting this, Cadence groaned. She really should have been more eager to learn magic from Celestia.




Time:


One and a half hours later




The small group of teens stepped through the doors of the hospital and into the receptionist area. The receptionist on duty, upon seeing the pink Alicorn, bowed as much as she could while sitting behind a desk. "Your majesty, is there anything I can help you with?"

"Yes, actually. I was hoping you could tell me what room Thomas is staying in." Cadence asked, a bit sheepish as she was still not used to being treated so formally from adults.

"Of course Princess, he's in room three-seventeen. However I believe he is still unconscious." The group nodded, and began following Cadence to the stairs. After climbing two flights, they were finally on the third floor. A sign on the wall pointed them in the right direction of rooms three eleven to three twenty. Plaques besides the doors allowed them to know which room was which.

Shining knocked on the door, and waited for a few seconds. After no reply from a nurse or physician, they went in. They all gasped at what they saw. Thomas lay in bed, bandages covering his arms and most of his face. Only his right eye and some of his forehead was exposed. But even then, a small bandage was placed where some of his hair had been cut. A breathing tube was stuck down his throat.

"Oh… Oh Celestia. I knew he would look bad… but…" Fleur said, holding a hoof to her mouth as her eyes were wide in shock. Fancy simply shook his head sadly. Shining winced, imagining what it would feel like to have that tube down his own throat. Cadence teared up, trotting up to the bed slowly. She sat down, putting a hoof on top of Thomas's hand. She stayed quiet, simply just being there for him.

"How… how bad is it?" Shining asked, coming to sit besides Cadence. His ears were folded back, a sad look on his face.

"Aunty told me most of his face was burned by a spell. The hoofs that hit him had cut his skin some. He has a few broken or cracked bones." Cadence read off, almost without any feeling in her words. After a few silent moments, Fleur spoke up.

"I should have said something." All three ponies in the room turned to her, tears maring her face as her make up ran.

"Whatever do you mean?" Fancy asked his sister.

"Thomas, in gym, I… I heard something. I… I heard a few of the other students… I heard that… that they were going to… but I… I didn't… This… this is all my fault." Fleur fell to the floor, her forehooves covering her eyes as she let everything out.

"You… knew?" Cadence asked, her voice cold as she stared angrily at Fleur. "You knew this was going to happen and you said nothing?" Cadence got up and started for Fleur, but was held back by Shining.

"I was going to warn him! I… I was going to. But… but then-"

"Get. Out." Cadence hissed, glaring death at Fleur as her eyes flashed from their normal light purple to become a dark purple as her pupils became snake-like.

"Now hold on, let's-"

"Get, OUT!" Cadence screamed, wings flaring out as her horn lit up, the normally cornflower blue hue of her magic becoming a dark, almost navy, blue color. Scared and with heavy hearts, Fleur and Fancy ran from the room, with Fancy behind Fleur. Fancy stopped just outside the door, and looked back with a sad look on his face as he watched Cadence break down, head buried in Tom's leg as Shining shakily rubbed her back.

Their eyes met, and they had an unspoken conversation at that point. Both understood that the past few moments were from high emotions and loads of stress. Fancy left, taking his sister home while Shining stayed with Cadence. And where she would stay until the doctors and nurses came to clean him up and replace his bandages.




3rd Pov:


Celestia


Time:


3 days later




It had taken some time and a good deal of resources, but Celestia had finally learned the identities of Thomas's attackers. The noble that had once owned the orphanage he was staying at was put under arrest for embezzling money from her own orphanage. While the taxes of her subjects did pay for the orphanage mostly, some came from the crown as well, about 40% of it is given to the pony that would run the day to day of the orphanage, and they'd be given the title of 'noble'.

However, not only had Young Hope taken her 40%, but nearly 85% of all the bits that were put into her orphanage. The rest of the 15% was spent on food and bills. Suffice to say, Celestia's soft spot for foals became a stone cold hatred for the pony that had not only neglected the foals, but basically stole from them as well. After that court case, Celestia wondered if she would have ever noticed or been notified if Thomas hadn't been placed there.

Now, for the ponies that actually attacked him, there were 5 of them, but with their accomplices, a little over 10. The five that attacked him were 3 colts and 2 mares. Their accomplices, either a parent or parents, tried to cover their foals' tracks. But thanks to Thomas and the blacklight spell, they were tracked down. Who knew catching somepony with blood on their hooves could be taken so literally?

But that court case was over and done with a few hours ago. Now, Celestia sat in the dining hall with her niece, trying to enjoy a meal together. Cadence was a bit better, but not by much. Her mane was a bit more unkempt than usual, and without her eyeliner as well. Tonight was spaghetti, however they were trying something new tonight.

Instead of the normal red tomato sauce, they had a pinkish sauce that if Celestia remembered correctly, was a combination of the red tomato sauce with alfredo sauce. Thomas had told Golden about it one day, and she felt like now was as good as time as any to try it out. It tastes amazing to Celestia, especially because it was so new to her. If there was one thing she loved about her ponies, it was the creativity with new dishes.

But apparently humans also had that creative gift. Cadence also liked it, and had started eating a bit more readily when Celestia told her where she got the idea from, or, more accurately, who. Celestia could sense the growing emotions of Cadence for each day Thomas was in the hospital. Whatever Thomas had done to gain her friendship, she certainly cherished it. Just as Celestia was finishing though, the doors to the dining hall were thrown open by a panting doctor. Turning, they both looked at the doctor with a curious look. She also got suspicious looks from the guards.

"Princesses… he's… awake." The doctor barely breathed out, before turning, waiting for them to follow her to the hospital.
> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


3rd Pov:


Thomas




You know how you sometimes feel like absolute shit after having a full night's sleep? Yeah, that's what Tom felt when he woke up that day. Or, should I say, afternoon, based off of the direction the sunlight was coming into the room. He felt rested, sure, but with how much his body ached it trumped the feeling of restfulness. It was like most of his body was in pain but it had been dulled by a significant degree.

'Fuck my life, what the hell…' Thomas began to think until he got a mental flash of images. The alley. The hooves. The pain. He absentmindedly heard the increase of a heart monitor, paid no attention to the nurses and doctors coming into his room, and was only pulled out of his panic attack when he felt something removed from his throat. He registered that he was in a hospital room, but that only left him with questions as he began to cough, his throat scratchy from the tube that had been down it.

He heard voices, but with his mind as muddled as it was, he didn't register what was being said. Everything for the next few minutes was a blur to him, and before he knew it, he fell back unconscious.




3rd Pov:


Celestia


Time:


Few hours later




Celestia and Cadance sat at the side of Thomas's hospital bed, the tube down his throat replaced by a smaller tube that connected to his nose. However no tubes connected his nostrils to the clear tube. Most of the bandages had been removed, most of the smaller cuts now completely healed. His face was mostly healed, however, he wouldn't escape unscathed. His left eye had become unusable, and no amount of magic was able to heal it.

All was quiet, nothing but the steady beep of the heart monitor interrupted the silence. That was, until Cadence spoke up. "Aunty… how… how do you think… he'll react?" Celestia took a moment, her gaze sweeping over the human up and down. After that moment to think, she spoke.

"If he were a pony, most likely devastated, maybe a little angry. But he isn't, and he has been living in Equestria for little over a year. In that time, the number of times we have personally interacted is non-existent. In fact, this will be the first time we will meet. However, from what I have heard, he will be beyond angry. His kind are not ones to forgive easily. The long standing war that continues to this day with religious zealots of another country attest to that.

"I also feel he may point his anger at me, as I have also been told that he does hold some anger to my choice of placing him in an orphanage after his arrival. And I must admit, I myself feel that it is justified, his anger that is. The loss of his eye will only fuel that inevitable inferno. In the coming days he might even become distant, cold, near reclusive." Celestia sighed, shifting her gaze to her fetlocks.

"It is my fault he is in the state he is in. I should have asked him what it was he desired for his living arrangements instead of making them for him." She heard Cadence move, then felt the wings of her niece wrap around her.

"You did what you thought was best, aunty. Nopony can blame you for that." Celestia gave a derisive snort at that.

"Yes, nopony will." She felt Cadence flinch, making Celestia sigh and return the hug. "I apologize my niece, these last few days have been quite taxing." Celestia felt Cadence nod against her chest.

"It's okay aunty, I understand." Just as Celestia was about to respond, she heard a change in the rhythm of the heart monitor. Looking at Thomas once more, she saw him beginning to stir. But as he began to stir, he suddenly shot up right, his right eye wide as the heart monitor began beeping rapidly.

He twisted his head back and forth, kicking at the thin sheet that covered him. Celestia immediately acted, and grabbed him with her magic, stilling him. However, that only seemed to increase his heart rate on the monitor. Cadence hopped up onto the bed behind Thomas, and wrapped her 4 legs around his front, as well as her wings while she put her head on his right shoulder.

"It's okay Thomas, you're safe now. You're safe." Cadence repeated her words several times, rocking him gently even as nurses and doctors poured into the room as they had received alarms when Thomas's heart rate sharply rose. After several minutes of struggling, Thomas slowly began to calm down. Whether from the adrenaline finally exhausting itself from his muscles, or from the fact that he was being hugged by a very soft Alicorn could be debated.

"Wh-wher-" Thomas barely got out before his barely spoken word became wheezes and coughs. Thinking quickly, Celestia ordered for one of the nurses to bring some water. Said nurse immediately left to get the requested liquid. Barely a minute had passed before the nurse came back with a pitcher of water and a small cup. She poured some into the cup, and gave it to the Princess of the Sun.

Celestia immediately took it and levitated it over to Thomas who drank greedily of the refreshing liquid. After finishing the cup, he let out a light gasp, breathing heavily. "Agh, I hate dry mouth." Thomas said a bit hoarsely. His throat still felt like he had deepthroated sandpaper.

"Yes, as does everypony." Celestia said, making Thomas glance at her. He looked her up and down, before glaring at her.

"Me and you have some shit to talk about later." While Thomas had talked, Celestia refilled the cup and gave it back to Thomas who took it gratefully. "But for now, just keep giving me this amazing ass water." Celestia couldn't help the short giggle that escaped her. She knew of his aptitude for his world's 'curse words' from her time as Golden Feather.

"Uh, you know donkeys have nothing to do with water, right?" Cadence asked, tilting her head in confusion. Thomas let out a sharp laugh, shaking his head.

"Right, donkeys are like you ponies. Keep forgetting that." He looks towards Cadence, a confused but happy smile on his face. "It's nice to see you Cadence, but what are you doing here?"

"She was worried about your well being. And I assume your other friends will be here tomorrow to talk to you as well when they hear you have awakened." Celestia said, sitting down right beside the end of the hospital bed.

"Worried? Wh-" Thomas froze, his face becoming unreadable as an intense look of concentration came over him as his eyes shifted back and forth. The pain. The hooves. The magic blast to his face. Thomas became quiet as fear and rage warred inside him. On one hand, he was terrified he almost died, and that it would be easy for it to happen again, especially now that he was injured. On the other, he wanted to find the ponies that did this to him and return the favor.

"Before you say anything, they've already been dealt with." Tom whipped his head up to look directly at Celestia. "Both the noble in charge of the orphanage, and the ponies that did this to you." Celestia's face was also devoid of emotion, yet Thomas could almost detect revulsion in her mannerisms. She was sickened that ponies had done this. Her ponies. The blank canvas then cracked, showing remorse.

"Thomas, nothing I can do can make up for what has been done, and the decisions I have made that have led to your current circumstances. I can only hope you can forgive me, in time." Before Celestia could put her head down in a bow, Thomas spoke.

"Hey, don't you fucking dare put on those damn eyes. Y'all are fucking adorable enough already. I'm still pissed at you, and I want to continue being pissed at you. So don't you even think about making yourself look weak, damn it." The room was silent as the two looked at each other, Celestia's mask back on, showing nothing. Inside though, her heart cracked. It pained her that Thomas felt this way, but she could understand the reasons why.

"Thomas." Thomas turned to Cadence, her head down, ears folded back, and she was looking up at him. Thomas glared at Cadence for all of two seconds before he sighed, placing a hand on his stomach weakly as he looked away. He felt hungry.

"Damn it all, this is exactly what I'm talking about. What is it, Cadence?" Thomas said, annoyance in his tone before it shifted into a kind one.

"I… I was the one who found you. I found you… nearly lifeless… in a pool of blood." Cadence had tears coming to her eyes now as she choked out her words. "I… I thought, hik, I thought you were-" Her words were cut off as the doctors and nurses began shouting exclamations as Thomas tried to sit on the edge of the bed. Cadence's eyes widened as she moved forwards, pushing him back so he was lying down.

"Thomas, what are you-" Her words were cut off as he struggled to put an arm over her withers. And when he did, tried to pull her into a hug.

"Don't you fucking start crying on me pinks. I don't think I could take seeing you cry even if I was completely healthy." Thomas joked, making Cadence chuckle as she laid her head on his stomach. Thomas winced, but tried to ignore the pain.

"You're too nice Thomas." Cadence replied even as tears welled up in her closed eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, I have a bleeding heart. Yada, yada, yada. Just don't tell your boy toy, Shining." Cadence blushed, pulling away as she lightly slapped his shoulder. Thomas chuckled through the wince of pain.

Celestia smiled at their banter. Seeing Thomas act like his caring self was what she liked to see. "Thomas, ew!" Cadence cried out, her muzzle scrunching. Thomas chuckled, but soon began coughing again. Celestia gave him another drink of water. After he finished drinking was when Thomas noticed something was wrong with his vision. He reached up, touching his face where a bandage was still covering his damaged eye.

Immediately his mood fell, and he turned his head to look at one of the pony doctors. Seeming to understand the question he was about to ask, Celestia spoke. "Thomas," the human turned to look at her, "I'm sorry, but… your eye… we couldn't salvage it. The magic… it did too much damage to several vital areas of your eye." Thomas closed his one eye and let his head hit the pillow.

All was silent for several seconds as Thomas processed this info. Then, he spoke with an intense underlying rage. "What happened to them?" The question was spoken like a demand more than anything.

"Thom-" Cadence spoke up, trying to play the peacemaker. However, she was cut off by Thomas repeating his question with greater force.

"What happened to them?" He continued to stare straight ahead, eyes locked on the ceiling. Celestia was silent for several seconds before she turned to the attending staff.

"Give us the room. We have… much to discuss." The doctors and nurses immediately complied with the demand, exiting the room. Cadence moved to sit down but Celestia spoke up once more. "You too Cadence. If you can, please have a nurse bring Thomas some food. He is likely hungry." Cadence was going to protest, but a single look from Celestia told her that there was no room for argument.

Head down, Cadence nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her. Celestia got up and moved so she was sitting parallel to the bed, with her front facing Thomas. She then sat down, and looked him in his one good eye. "Tell me what you wish to know." After a second of silence, Tom responded.

"Everything."
> Chapter 6
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


3rd POV:


Thomas




"Everything." The word hung in the air for all of two seconds, before Celestia spoke.

"Very well. It started with Cadence going to look for you when she and your other friends thought you had gotten lost. During her search, she found your bag. It was in bad shape, and a few of the items inside were damaged, but still worked. As you had shown Golden Feather. Cadence folded a trail of blood into the alley you had been dragged to. She had an emotional magic surge which led to her teleporting herself and you to this hospital."

Celestia paused, as if to think about something before speaking once more. "If you'll allow it, I would like to move you to the castle infirmary. The best doctors and physicians in Equestria are employed there."

Thomas was silent, contemplating an answer. On one hand he didn't want to be anywhere near Celestia. On the other hand, maybe one of those docs could help him with his eye. And with better security, he wouldn't need to worry about any ponies giving him an unwanted late night visit. He hated it, but he'd have to give the pros of the castle the win here. "Fine, but later. Also, I want my bag. Hopefully those sons of bitches didn't break the irreplaceable shit." Thomas grumbled that last part to himself.

Celestia nodded, and then continued her tale. "The next few hours were… complicated to say the least. When Cadence found you, she had also used the Royal Canterlot Voice. This pretty much alerted the whole city something bad had happened. Your other three friends followed where they saw Cadence looking for you, and found the alley. The teleportation Cadence used was… unstable, to say the least. The resulting magic had…"

Celestia shivered, remembering the sight of what looked like a blood bomb that had gone off. "... There was a mess. I… I can't go into detail." For the first time since he had woken up, Thomas showed a bit of compassion for the Solar Alicorn.

"I can take a guess. Just tell me what happened next." Celestia nodded, regaining her composure.

"Alright. I too had heard Cadence when she found you, and immediately followed her magic signature to the hospital. It took a few hours before the doctors declared you stable, but still in danger. The damage was… extensive. From what I remember, you had numerous scars and bruises, burns from the magic blast you took, and blood was seeping into your now irreparable eye."

Celestia took a moment to push down the anger that had risen, then continued to speak. "You were also quite malnourished. That, plus your recent trauma, sent your body into a coma. A short one, thankfully, but a coma no less." Thomas nodded along, then paused.

"Celestia… What day is it?"

"If you're asking how long you've been out, it has been 3 days since your attack." Thomas sighed, shaking his head in exasperation.

"God damnit. I missed the entire first week of school. Probably the next week as well." Celestia shook her head at that.

"Not exactly, your… incident allowed me the decision of closing the High School for the rest of the week, and you should be well enough to return after the weekend, so you shouldn't have missed any classes." Thomas nodded, relaxing a bit now that he didn't need to worry about being behind.

“That's good. Anyway, continue.” Celestia nodded before speaking once more.

“After I got confirmation from the doctors you weren't going to succumb to your injuries, I headed back to the castle and started investigations into both the mare that ran the orphanage, and into the students of the high school. The first was actually much more simple and straightforward than I thought it would be, but the second one… to say it was complicated is an understatement.”

“Well, I got time.” Thomas said, crossing his arms. Celestia sighed, knowing this was going to be awhile.




1st Pov:


Celestia


Time:


~3 days ago




After leaving the guard captain’s office, I continued my way to the throne room, wanting Ms. Hope to still be there. If she wasn't, then I'd need to send some guards to retrieve her. Even if the investigation turned up nothing but not giving enough food to the children, that would still be enough for me to fire her. I don't know if I should hope more will come to light than that or not.

My body moved on its own on its predetermined path as I thought, my gaze seeming to bore into the carpet I trotted upon as I thought. ‘There have to be at least some witnesses to Thomas’s incident. I just hope that whoever has seen it will come forth. Though in all likelihood, they will stay silent from their distaste of having Thomas in the city.’

I soon found myself at the Throne Room doors, with my princess mask putting itself on just before I had come into the sight of my guards. They currently waited for me to signal them to open the doors. Taking a few breaths to calm myself, I give the slightest of nods, making them use their magic to open the doors. I trotted into the Throne Room for the second time this day, and most likely it won't be the last time.

Thankfully, Ms. Hope was still sitting in the Throne Room, right where I had left her. ‘Good, I need something to take my frustrations out on.’ The mare noticed my return, and bowed towards me. I smiled internally at this as I was about to make this noble become more scared than anytime in her life. “Guards, restrain Ms. Hope and bring her to an interrogation room. I have some questions I would like to ask her.”

I was also going to employ another technique I had learned from the NCIS show while I was Golden Feather. Waiting in a room with naught but your thoughts and a one way mirror apparently did terrible things to one’s confidence and psyche. That Special Agent Gibbs was a very impressive interrogator. Using legal scare tactics to get the truth was something I think… she would have admired about the human character.

I forced down the pang of pain in my heart as I continued past the shell shocked mare that did nothing until the guards started to drag her away. She then began ranting and raving, asking me what it is she had done wrong and several other things I simply didn't have the patience to listen to. When I was finally left alone, except for a few guards, I sighed and simply sat in the middle of the Throne Room.

I took off my tiara and looked into the amethyst gem set in the center of the headpiece. I allowed myself to get lost into the tiny details of it, from the engraved gold to the near imperceptible imperfections of the amethyst itself that would require a normal pony that doesn't have a cutie mark related to gems to use a special magnifying glass. “Even after all I have done, why does it feel like I have failed?” I could feel the gazes of my guards glancing at each other, unsure if they should step out of line to comfort me or not.

While I did wish they would sometimes step out of line, if only to show how much they cared, I did appreciate that they cared at all. I sighed once more, placing my tiara on my head once more. It held a familiar weight. One that even to this day felt like the weight of the world. I steeled my face once more, and made my way from the Throne Room to the designated interrogation rooms. A plaque which was just below the words 'INTERROGATION ROOM’ showed that this one was occupied.

Normally I would let my guards handle such things. But I felt like this one required a personal touch. Crimes against adult ponies were one thing, but foals? If she were still here, this mare would have already been placed in Tartarus, and I would have agreed. But it isn't a thousand years ago now. And she wasn't here. Besides, I wanted everything she has done to be brought to light, and for her to be charged for it all. I opened the doors to the Observation Room and stepped in. There were two guards that were in charge of recording everything that happened in the Interrogation off to the far side of the room.

I could clearly see Young Hope looking around the Interrogation Room nervously through the one sided window, looking the perfect image of a guilty pony. Other than the recording equipment, the two guards, and the window, the room was quite bare. “Has she said anything?” I asked as I stepped up to the glass, looking directly at the mare.

“Other than saying that she shouldn't be here, no your majesty.” Said the guard on the left side of the recording panel. I nodded as I continued to wait. It was only a few minutes until the guard captain came in. He looked shocked when he saw me standing there.

“Oh! Your Majesty, I wasn't expecting to see you here.” He turned to the mare I was still staring at. “... I'm just going to assume you'd like to be in charge of the interrogation ma'am?” A nod was all I gave him. “Very well. Here are the files we managed to get on her so far. I only took a glance, but even a rookie could tell you these numbers aren't adding up.” I took the files with my telekinesis spell, making the papers levitate over in front of me.




Pov 3rd:


Celestia


Time:


Present




“Unfortunately, I can't tell you what is in those files, or what happened during the Interrogation.” Celestia says, but she could see that I understood just fine.

“Yeah, yeah, confidential stuff and what not. I get it.” Thomas then yawned, and laid back, turning his head away from Celestia as he got ready to sleep. “Tell me the rest tomorrow. I'm tired. Night, princess. Shut the door on the way out… please.” He was short, curt. But at least he wasn't out right being mean to her. Celestia sighed, nodding as she stood, her legs having a dull pain in them from sitting for so long. She turned away from Thomas to exit his room, but before she could, Thomas spoke up. “Hey… thanks for telling me all this. I… I need to hear the full story. And since you're the only one who can tell me it… so… yeah, thanks.”

Celestia smiled, not saying anything as she could tell the air was now charged. She would be pushing her luck if she responded, so silence was the best response. Using her magic, she closed the door behind her. Once she did, she turned and saw Cadance fast asleep on the floor with several guards around her. Celestia winced mentally, knowing she should have told her niece to go back to the castle at some point. Celestia picked Cadance up in her magic, and deposited the sleeping Alicorn on her back.

Now with a passenger, Celestia made her way back to the castle with two guards, one on either side of her. The hospital was quiet, the only noise coming from the night staff and the beeping of monitors. Even when she exited the hospital into the streets of Canterlot, it was incredibly quiet. The only signs of life being from a high class bar and the late night workers getting off their shifts or going to start them. Celestia liked this side of Canterlot sometimes. The quiet side. It was one thing to have a quiet castle, it is another to be in a quiet city.

Sure, she wished the castle was more active sometimes. But with the city being more of a hustle and bustle, having the city be in a quiet ambiance was soothing in a way. Celestia chuckled to herself, shaking her head. How weird was she? Liking things to be the opposite of what they normally are. Looking up to the castle, Celestia took in a deep breath before letting it back out. ‘Things have been changing so much since Thomas has come to this city. Yet, I'm both excited and worried about what other changes he'll bring.




1st POV:


Thomas




Time passed slowly as I continued to think. Sleeping for a few days makes it a bit hard for one to be tired. I'm just glad Celestia bought my fake yawn. Now I had time to think. To process. The most immediate being that I had the wrong gender of the one in charge of the orphanage. I had never met the noble personally, just the pony that had been working in the orphanage as the caretaker before she was fired when it became clear that I could take over her role.

It was probably because of the planet I grew up on that I just expected the one in charge to be a male. One could call that sexist, but to me it was just the default until I got confirmation of one's gender. That, and Earth was still a male dominant society, while this one seemed the exact opposite. Then there was Celestia. I guess I too had fallen under the pretense that everypony else seemed to have. She wasn't perfect. Using the word pony sounds weird in this context, so yeah, she's human in that regard. Even though everypony regards her as this immortal perfect being who can do no wrong and has never made a mistake.

I sigh as I stare up at the ceiling, my gaze transfixed on nothing in particular. Suddenly, my mind goes from one pony to four others. My three friends… and one acquaintance. ‘God, how are they handling everything? How did they handle everything once they got word?’ More and more questions of a similar nature swirled about my mind, making me groan as I placed a hand over my good eye.

“Why did this shit have to happen now? Why not at the end of the school year or some shit?” I spoke to myself, before letting my arm fall back to my side on the bed. There were too many questions, and what answers I did get tonight weren't nearly satisfactory enough to allow my mind to rest. And so I could only lay there and let myself stew as the night crawled on. Eventually I did fall asleep, but it wasn't anywhere near restful.
> Chapter 7
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


3rd POV:


Fleur De Lis




The room was dark around Fleur as she laid in her bed. The mare who was once a symbol of teenage feminine beauty was now a mere shell of herself. The guilt had eaten away at her, leaving almost nothing behind. Even the best meals she forced down tasted bland and lifeless. Going to the bathroom alone was in and of itself, a chore. She didn't even bother trying to pretty herself up for the past three days, leaving the mascara and eyeshadow she had worn that day to remain and stain her fur.

If her past self looked at her, she would think that her family had thrown her out to live on the streets. She had tried to make things right, going straight to Princess Celestia herself… but it didn't stop the pain in her heart. She might have been the prettiest mare in the school, but she was a horrible friend. At least, those were her thoughts. Fleur laid under the sheets of her bed, something that could potentially pay off the mortgage of a home in a small town like Appleloosa.

Her thoughts swirling around one individual that wasn't even the same species as her own. But instead of the few good memories she had of him, all she could see was a few things. The bloody alley. His hospital room. What she thought a morgue looked like with Thomas lying on an autopsy table. And lastly, an empty funeral hall with a closed casket. All the while she heard Cadence’s voice shouting at her that Fleur was the one that had killed him. Fleur would be crying if she had any tears left to cry, but they had all been used up just before she went to tell Celestia about the colts she had overheard.

Sure, those ponies were now locked away, but Thomas was still in the hospital. He had still been beaten within an inch of his life. And he would most likely still hate her. Outside of her room however, Fancy sat in front of her door. He wanted to knock, tell her the good news. But his mind kept going back to a similar thought Fleur was having. ‘Would Thomas hate my sister?’ He had been sitting there for 30 minutes already, and it wasn't until another half hour had passed did he finally work up the nerve to knock.

A few moments passed by before he barely heard the sound of his sister. “Come in.” Fancy stood, using his magic to open the door. He winced at the smell that wafted from the room. It smelled of sweat and musk of an unwashed mare. Powering through the smell he stepped into the room, trying to let the minimum amount of light come through the door so as to not bother his sister too much. However he still needed enough to see.

“Fleur? Are you up?” Fancy asked the lump under the covers.

“I am… what is it?” This was spoken in the most broken tone he had ever heard from his sister.

“It's about Thomas… he's… awake.” Suddenly, Fleur sat up, looking directly at him with bloodshot eyes as she used her front hooves to hold up the blanket covering her barrel.

“WHAT?!” Fancy winced, but nodded.

“Yes, he awoke last evening. The Princess and… her went to go see him. They talked for some time, before Thomas went back to sleep. I only know of this because a nurse came by to tell us, since we are the very short list of contacts he has. He… wants to see us. But only for a short while. Apparently he and the princess have some things to discuss.” Fleur winced, looking away.

“N- no. He- he doesn't want to see me. He- he won't. I just know it.” Fleur threw the covers back over her head, her horn making a large tent under them. Fancy was silent for a moment, before he spoke.

“Fleur… he asked for you by name. He asked for all 4 of us by name. We're the only friends he has, and right now, he needs us. I'm going now, before the streets are overcome with the lunch rush. I recommend you do the same.” Fancy went to leave, but before he closed the door, he spoke up again. “He's going to find out eventually, one way or another. Would you rather he heard it from you, or from… well, you know.”

He waited a few more moments before sighing, and closing the door behind him. He went down the hall to the main foyer, descending the curving stairway on the left side of the foyer to the front door. He stopped there, only to speak to one of the maids to his right. “Clean Sweep, please tell my parents that I am heading out to speak with my friend at the hospital.” The maid, who had been dusting the dining room pictures above the fireplace, nodded to him before going back to her work.

With that finished, he opened the door only to find a guard ready to press the doorbell. “Oh, good morning sir. Is there something wrong?” The guard, a stallion that was just a bit bigger than Fancy himself, shook his head.

“No, there isn't. Are you Fancy Pants? Student of Canterlot High School?” Still confused, Fancy nodded. “Good, and is your sister, Fleur De Lis, here as well?” Now a bit nervous, Fancy nodded again.

“Yes, she is in her room. Though she currently doesn't want to be disturbed.”

“I see… Well, I have been sent to inform you and your sister that Thomas the Human has been moved to Canterlot Castle for the rest of his recovery. If you wish to see him, you will need a guard escort. If you want to see him now, I can escort you.” Fancy blinked in shock for a moment, letting his mind process all that was said. But before Fancy could speak, a voice came from the top of the stairs.

“Fancy? Is everything alright?” Fleur asked as she poked her head from around the corner to look down at them.

“Yes, Thomas has just been moved to the castle to finish his recovery.” Fleur winced at that, looking away. She had thought about what Fancy had said, and had worked up the nerve to at least see him. But now that he was in the castle… that nerve was quickly going away. “Fleur, if anything happens, I'll be right here for you. And besides, I think Cadance has had long enough to cool off from the last time you two met.”

Again, Fleur flinched as if she had been struck. It was no secret to Fancy why Fleur hadn't been visiting Thomas every day. She could visit, however facing the pissed off Alicorn wasn't something Fleur didn't seem too keen on doing anytime soon. Fancy sighed, nodding as he saw Fleur go back around the corner, out of sight. Fancy looked back to the guard, and gestured for him to go. The guard, a bit hesitant to leave the female sibling behind, nodded nonetheless. Together, the guard and Fancy made their way up to the castle, unaware that Fleur was watching them from her bathroom window.




3rd POV:


Celestia


Time:


30 minutes ago




Celestia and Cadance were walking down the streets of Canterlot with a squadron of guards around them, along with several of the castle’s medical staff. Nobles stopped what they were doing, looking at the group with curious attention. Cadance was a bit nervous from the attention of all the nobles, but was able to hide it as Celestia had taught her. No pony stopped them, and if anypony tried, the guards would shoo them away. It didn't take long for them to get there, and when they did, the guards stayed by the front doors while the princesses and their medical staff went inside.

Celestia easily remembered the way to Thomas’s room. The guards from last night still stood there, though they looked very tired at this point. “Good morning my guards, is Thomas ready?” The center left guard nodded.

“Yes your majesty. However he sent a nurse off to give a message to his friends. He wants to talk to them before talking to you.” Celestia hummer, before nodding.

“Very well. You 4 are dismissed. However, when you leave, tell two of the guards at the front to retrieve young Miss Fleur De Lis and young misters Fancy Pants and Shining Armor. Have the guards bring them to the castle, as that is where Thomas will be for the foreseeable future.” The guards nodded, and made their leave. Now that the door was unguarded, Celestia knocked on the door.

“Come in.” She heard Thomas yell through the door. Opening it, she was shocked to see Thomas trying to sit on the edge of the bed, but was having a hard time keeping his balance. Using her magic, she steadied him.

“Thomas, you mustn't over exert yourself. You are still healing.” Thomas nodded, but still had a frown on his face.

“I know, but I at least wanted to be able to sit up when my friends came over… or at least that was before y'all showed up. Seriously, I didn't expect you guys till after lunch or something. Guess I'll have to send that nurse back out to tell them I won't be here by the time they get here.” Celestia shook her head.

“No, the sooner you are in the castle, the better. And I have already sent guards to bring your friends to the castle.” Thomas gave Celestia a thankful nod before he looked to a nurse besides Celestia.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Can you go get me a Wheelchair please? Can't exactly walk reliably at the moment until I go through some physical therapy.” The nurse, caught off guard from being given an order by someone other than Celestia, splutters before looking to the solar monarch. A simple nod is all it takes to get the nurse into action, galloping out of the room and to the left.

“Good morning Thomas, how are you feeling?” Cadance asks, her ears lowered a bit as she stepped closer to Thomas. Thomas for his part relaxed a bit.

“Been better, but at least the meds here aren’t anything to scoff at. The painkillers I'm on are fucking awesome. I once dislocated my arm when I was 10, and the pain meds I got then only numbed the pain. Whatever shit they got me on now makes me feel nothing without any of the drawbacks of drowsiness or other debilitating shite. Though I still feel some aches here and there, but other than that, golden.” At that, Thomas perks up, trying to look behind Celestia and Cadance. “Speaking of, where's Golden Feather?”

Celestia tensed up, though she barely gave any inclination of that having happened. “She is currently on an assignment, but she will be back sometime in the next few weeks.” Celestia quickly came up with the excuse, and hoped none of the other ponies looked curious or confused. “But it was after you went into a coma. However she wanted me to tell you that if you don't rest until you are healed, she'll, and I quote, ‘kick your ass to Ponyville and back’.” Celestia hoped he bought the lie, and judging by the grin on his face, he did.

Thomas chuckled, shaking his head. “Ain’t even here and she's still looking after me. Damn mare.” Even though his words would suggest otherwise, Celestia could tell that they came from a place of appreciation. Soon after the nurse came back with a wheelchair, and set it beside Thomas’s bed. Celestia once more used her magic to carefully lift Thomas, and set him in the wheelchair that was a little small for him. Celestia frowned at that, and made a mental note to have non-pony equipment sent to each hospital in Equestria.

“I apologize the wheelchair isn't as big as what your world's, but do you think you can withstand it till we get to the castle?” Celestia asked the slightly fidgeting human.

“Yeah, I should be fine. Anything longer than an hour will drive me crazy though.” Cadance couldn't help the snort that escaped her muzzle at that.

“Like you aren't already.” The verbal jab was unexpected, but it at least got Thomas to smile.

“Heh, true enough candy mane.” Cadance playfully glared at the smirking human.

“You're lucky you're already injured, or I'd kick your flanks for that.” It was at this point Celestia let out a short chuckle, making the two become aware once more of the other ponies in the room. Thomas blushed a bit, but tried to pass it off.

“Come on, let's get going. Don't want to keep the others waiting at the castle if I can help it.” Celestia nodded, and made to use her magic to push the wheelchair, but Cadance was already on it, walking besides Thomas as they made their way through the hospital. Celestia smiled at the two from behind. Even if they didn't realize it, they were quickly getting closer to each other. But then Celestia frowned.

‘If this keeps up however, she will have a choice. Thomas, or Shining. I can only hope that no hearts are broken by the end of it all.’ Celestia sighed internally, and followed after the pair, the guards and medical staff from her castle following behind.




3rd POV:


Shining Armor


Time:


15 minutes later




Shining Armor and his family were being escorted by the guard that had shown up after the nurse from the hospital had left, up to the castle. He was a bit nervous, unsure if the other two ponies would be there as well. As his hooves clopped against the cobblestone path his mind wandered in deep thought. How would Cadance react if Fleur showed up? How would Thomas react when he learned that Fleur could have stopped him from getting hurt?

Many questions of a similar vein crashed against each other in waves in Shining’s head as he worried about everything there was to worry about when it came to the human and his friends. He was only knocked out of it when his sister bumped her head against his wither. “BBBFF, who are we going to go see at the castle again?” Before he could speak, Night Light spoke up.

“A friend of your brother's Twilight. Remember he was the one that was found injured by Cadance.” The dark blue stallion said to his daughter.

“Yeah, Cadance saved his life when she found him.” Shining added. However, ever the curious filly, she tilted her head.

“But how did he get so many ouchies?” Twilight asked, staring up at her brother.

Shining winced, looking away. “I'll… tell you when you're older, Twily. Trust me when I say you'll thank me later when I do.” Before Twilight could protest, a shadow loomed over them. Looking up, they saw they were at the palace gates. Their escort nodded to the two guards that stood at either side of the large gateway, and they nodded back. Soon the Sparkle family found themselves in the castle’s courtyard as they continued to make their way into the castle. Twilight was used to it since she visited frequently, but her parents and brother were still amazed every time they were allowed to visit. It didn't take long after that for the guard to lead them to the infirmary.

The guard paused at the double doors, turning to them. “Please wait out here until I get confirmation that you are allowed in.” The family nodded, and the guard left them in the hallway as he moved through the doors. They waited only roughly 2 minutes before the guard moved back through the doors, holding them open for them. Going through and thanking the guard, they saw Thomas laying on a hospital bed, with Cadance and Fancy Pants to either side of the bed. All 3 looking at the family as they came in.

Upon seeing Twilight, Cadance lit up and quickly trotted over to meet Twilight, who also galloped to greet her foalsitter in their usual greeting. “🎵Sunshine, Sunshine, ladybugs awake, clap your hooves, and do a little shake!🎵” Cadance and Twilight laughed as they ended their little song and dance, hugging each other. Only to stop when they heard someone fighting laughter. Turning, Cadance and Twilight looked to Thomas who looked like he was about to burst with laughter. Cadance blushed, realizing what she had done in front of Thomas.

But that was the straw that broke the human’s back, as he began laughing uproariously. It wasn't mocking or jeering, just a sincere laugh at having seen something funny. However, his laughter was cut short when his stitches acted up, making him wince and begin coughing instead, though a few chuckles still escaped him. “Oh, oh my God. Hehehe. That was freaking adorable. Hehehehe. Oh, I wish I recorded that.” Cadance blushed even more, looking away from the human. Twilight, unsure of the creature but still curious, tilted her head up at him.

“You're Thomas? You don't look like a pony.” The purple filly said as she came closer, moving past Cadance as the rest of her family came closer.

“That's because I'm not. Didn't your brother tell you?” Twilight shook her head at that. “I see. Well, since he didn't, I will. I'm a human. The only one of my kind you'll ever see in your life. Though I would have wished we met under better circumstances. My name's Thomas, though you already know that. What's your name? Wait! Let me guess, is it… Purple Smart?” Twilight giggled, shaking her head. “No? Hmm, how about… Sparkle Butt?” Once more Twilight was sent into a giggling fit, shaking her head. “Aw, it's not? Hmm, dang, I'm stumped. Mind giving me a hint?”

As Thomas played with Twilight, the others in the room couldn't help but be amazed at how quickly Thomas had adjusted to speaking to her. It was like he was used to playing with foals. It was then that Cadance, Shining, and Fancy remembered that he had been living in an orphanage with foals roughly Twilight's age for a year.

“It's Twilight Sparkle!” Twilight said with fake exasperation, a smile still on her face.

“What? No, twilight doesn't sparkle. Although, twilight is usually the time when the stars start to come out. And stars are kinda sparkly. Hmm, what do you think, does twilight sparkle?” Twilight laughed, not able to help herself. Night Light and Twilight Velvet could only stare in awe of the strange being that in less than 2 minutes of meeting their daughter, was causing her to laugh like she only really does with them, Shining, and Cadance when they were playing around. The moment was interrupted however when Celestia came in with a nurse beside her.

“Ah, it seems you've met my prized pupil Thomas.” Everypony but Cadance and Thomas gasped and bowed at her. Celestia rolled her eyes, and made a gesture which was almost a reflex by now with how many times she has done it. “Rise my little ponies, there is no such need here.” They all did as she asked, rising from their bows.

“Sup Cel.” Came the one voice which everyone turned to, appalled at his words.

“Pst! That's the princess! You got to show her respect!” Twilight whisper shouted up at Thomas. Thomas rolled his eyes at that.

“Hey, she was the one who said we don't have to be so formal. I was just obliging.” Thomas said back to her with a playfully challenging smirk on his face. Twilight wanted to object, but he was right. It was the princess who didn't want them to be so formal. Although she didn't directly say that was what she wanted. Twilight gained a look of concentration, scrunching up her face as she tried to figure out a response.

Thomas laughed at Twilight's scrunched muzzle, and booped her on the tip of it. This caused her eyes to go wide as she raised her hooves to swipe at the offending digit. Thomas saw it coming from a mile away though, and dodged it, making his hand seem like its own entity. His hand began moving about like a little monster to poke and prod at Twilight, even adding in little grunts and growls, making her giggle and to try and swipe at it to keep it from poking her. Eventually she caught it, and held it to the ground with her front hooves. “Gotcha!” She squealed in delight.

“Agh! You got me! Or… do you!” The hand slipped under Twilight, and held her from beneath her barrel. He then raised his hand, picking up Twilight and holding her above his head. She squealed in delight, kicking her hooves.

“Ah! Shiny! Help me! Ee Hahaha!” Shining, along with the rest of the room, was laughing at the scene before them, watching as Thomas played with Twilight like he was an experienced big brother.

“Alright, alright, that's enough Thomas. Please set her down.” Thomas did so, but set her down beside him like a cat. He put his hand on her head, and began scratching her behind the ears. Twilight's eyes went wide, before relaxing. In record time, Twilight went from a laughing foal having fun, to a passed out filly that was safe in dream land.

“Wow, not even I could get little Twily to settle down that fast.” Cadance said in awe. Thomas shrugged, a smile still on his face.

“Yeah, well, after a year of taking care of an orphanage full of foals, you kinda learn the basics.” Thomas whispered, not wanting to wake up Twilight. “That, and y'all have this little place behind your ears that feels pretty dang good when it gets scritched apparently.” Cadance tilted her head in confusion, though Celestia made a mental note of trying that out herself later. Her magic could probably make a good facsimile of Thomas's hand, though the act of it being done by another probably makes it feel all the better.

Thomas then turned to look at the only adults he had yet to meet. “And y'all must be Shining's and Twilight's parents, right? It's nice to meet you both.” Night Light, a bit taken aback, still gave a practiced nod.

“Yes, we are. My name is Twilight Velvet, and this is my husband, Night Light. Though not to get me and little Twilight confused, you can call me Velvet, honey.” Velvet said with a motherly smile.

“I think you're forgetting some-dragon hon.” Velvet turned to her husband with a questioning look before remembering who she had on her back. She turned enough just so Thomas could see the sleeping baby dragon on her back.

“Oh, yes, Thomas, this is Spike. He's a baby dragon.” Thomas's eyes widened at seeing the little dragon.

“Wow, that's an actual dragon. A baby one, sure, but an honest to god dragon.” Velvet nodded at him.

“Yep, our little Twily hatched him during her entrance exam.” Thomas raised an eyebrow, and turned towards Celestia.

“You had a foal hatch a dragon egg for an entrance exam? The heck kinda entrance exam is that?” Celestia sighed, shaking her head.

“It was meant to test how she would handle failure. But what actually happened is still something I haven't seen before in all my years.” Thomas just gave her a flat look. “You do realize how screwed up that is, right? I mean, I knew some people that were older than me that broke down when faced with failure. And yet you were testing an unemotionally developed foal with it? The heck is wrong with you?” Celestia actually flinched at that, looking away shamefully.

“Now that you point it out, perhaps I should talk to the school board about that particular test of the entrance exam.”

“You better. Now that Thomas has pointed it out, Twilight would have been absolutely devastated if she failed.” Velvet spoke up, looking a bit angry now, as did Night Light and Shining Armor.

“Hold on now, just because the test was wrong, doesn't mean she ain't right. Children do need to learn how to deal with failure. But in a more normal and safer setting. Not making it a test that can determine the child’s future where their stress is through the room. After all, how do you think she'll grow up if she thinks her life is measured by how much she succeeds, and then one day she fails to meet expectations? She won't know how to deal with it.” Their angry faces softened at that.

“Yes, I suppose you are right.” Night Light said, rubbing the back of his head. He couldn't count how many times he's made a mistake or failed. It's how he learned that not everything has to be done perfectly. It's okay to fail sometimes, it's okay to make mistakes. This was a lesson they have yet to impart on their daughter however. Celestia looked at Thomas thankfully, before checking the time on a wall clock that was above the door.

“I apologize for cutting this visit short, but it is now lunch and Thomas must eat. After which Thomas and I must discuss some things. If you'd like, all of you are more than welcome to stay at the castle for lunch. I don't think the chefs will mind feeding a few more mouths today.” The ponies nodded gratefully, and Night Light moved to retrieve his daughter. Thomas surrendered her easily, waving the family goodbye after he did.

“Well, that was quite the… discussion. It was nice seeing you again Thomas. Hopefully I can bring Fleur here tomorrow.” Thomas nods, looking at him a bit sad.

“Yeah man, tell her I hope she feels better, and that I miss her. Don't get me wrong, you, Cadance, and Shining are all good company, but I'd still like to see her. You know?” Fancy nodded at that, raising his hoof for a hoof bump.

“Of course, I'll make sure to tell her.” Thomas smiled and bumped his fist against Fancy’s. Soon Fancy left, leaving just three mares in the room. Thomas turned to them, raising an eyebrow.

“What are y'all still doing here? Nurse over there I can understand, but you two not so much.” Cadance sighed angrily, looking away. Celestia looked at Cadance, before turning to Thomas.

“There is something that you need to be told Thomas, however, I have told Cadance it is best if you hear it from Fleur herself.” Thomas looked at her curiously, a bit worried.

“What? Why?” Celestia shook her head at that.

“You'll understand when she tells you. But for now, you must eat, and we will not keep you any longer. I shall tell you the rest of what happened the last three days when I return. Until then Thomas.” Celestia and Cadance made their way to the exit, leaving Thomas alone with the nurse.

“Huh, wonder what that is all about.” He then turned to the nurse. “But seriously, Celestia's ass is pretty damn big. Probably ‘cause she sits on her throne all day.” The nurse blushes, shaking her head and leaving.

“I'll return when I have your food.” Thomas frowned at her retreating form.

“Don't I at least get a say in what I eat?” The nurse didn't answer as she left through the same door she and Celestia had entered. Now alone, Thomas sighed as he laid back. “Damnit.”