The Loneliest Unicorn
There were still many things about friendship that Misty was getting used to now that she had made the Crystal Brighthouse her home. One of them was that her fellow unicorn Izzy loved crafting! It was her absolute favorite thing in all the world to do.
And the only thing Izzy loved more than crafting was crafting with a friend. So it was that she insisted on having Misty help her craft friendship bracelets that the two could share. "It'll be just the thing to let everypony know what good friends we are!" She had insisted with a smile. "Trust me, you'll love it too!"
Unable and unwilling to say no, Misty reluctantly agreed to join Izzy in crafting. She had never really used her horn, she'd done everything with her hooves up until recently. And it seemed like that was something she had in common with Izzy (then again, apparently every unicorn had been unable to do magic until Izzy had helped bring the three crystals together).
But the unicorn with a butterfly cutie mark soon found that crafting wasn't just difficult, it was really messy. Glitter, paint and even glue got everywhere. Izzy never seemed to mind whenever she made a mess, but Misty wasn't used to it. "Does crafting always have to be like this?" She asked Izzy.
Izzy swished her tail, indifferent to her glitter and glue covered coat, or the bits of paint splotched on her mane. "Come on, Misty! So it's a little messy? So what? Life's messy too. Besides, look how much fun we're having."
Misty sighed. "Don't know if 'fun' is how I'd describe it. I guess I'm just not as big into crafting like you are," She frowned while looking at her own creation. It didn't resemble a necklace at all. "I don't know what I did wrong. I did everything you told me to do."
The messy unicorn just giggled. "Cheer up, Misty. I've got years of crafting and unicycling experience, you don't. The only way to get better is to keep trying. That's how it worked for me."
Misty only protested. "I think I'm just gonna go wash off all of... this." And she trotted off, hoping to find a bathroom. Alas, her lack of knowledge about the interior of the Brighthouse led her astray. The unicorn ended up turning the knob on a door that looked promising, only to discover too late that it was the door to a broom closet. Said closet currently being overstocked, something fell out of it and on top of Misty!
Misty let out a shriek and jumped up!
The shriek was enough to bring Izzy running! "What's wrong, Misty?!" She asked with her hooves and horn at the ready. Nothing and no one was going to hurt her friend on her watch!
"It's a... a..." Misty began, before finally seeing with her own two eyes what it was that had "attacked" her. It appeared to be a very old looking object made out of wood, with fake teeth, large eyes, and even a fake horn made out of an ice cream cone. Then she blushed, realizing that she didn't know what it was, but that it was something that obviously posed no threat to her at all.
Yet when Izzy lay eyes on this clumsily put together object, a bright smile formed on her face and she let out a happy gasp! "Senor Butterscotch!" She exclaimed as she used her magic to pull the wooden creation off of Misty and towards her. "Oh, I'm so sorry, buddy! I didn't mean to leave you trapped in the closet for so long, really."
The now calmed unicorn with a butterfly cutie mark blinked in surprise. "Izzy, why are you talking to that... thing?" She questioned with concern. "You feeling okay? Did you hit your head or something?"
The unicorn with beautiful blue bangs could only giggle like a school filly. "It's not a thing, Misty. It's Senor Butterscotch: My oldest and dearest friend! He was my friend long before I ever met Sunny, or Hitch, or any of my other friends really," In a slightly more somber tone she added. "In fact, for the longest time, he was my only friend."
Misty was still puzzled. "Are you saying he's like an imaginary friend?" She now remembered that she'd occasionally consulted one of her own when she lived with and worked for Opaline. In her haste to leave after getting her cutie mark, she had neglected to take it with her. Knowing Opaline, it had probably been destroyed in a fit of rage upon discovering that Misty had abandoned the fire alicorn.
Izzy nodded quite slowly as she pulled Senor Butterscotch close. "Something like that. So what if he's made out of wood? He's real to me, and that's all that matters," She sweetly said to him. "Oh, how I've missed you, buddy. I haven't seen you since I was briefly showing you off the first time we flew in The Marestream." And she happily held her creation in her hooves, not caring the least for his worn appearance (to say nothing of the good coat of dust he'd accumulated from his time in the broom closet). It was like she was reliving a memory long since passed.
Misty couldn't help but inquire of her fellow unicorn. "What's the story with Senor Butterscotch anyway, Izzy? Did you make him or something? Didn't you have some friends back in Bridlewood?"
At that, the unicorn mare with a coat a shade of periwinkle turned her sparkly hot pink eyes towards her fellow unicorn. "It's kind of a long story, Misty. Senor Butterscotch and I, we go way back," She shut her eyes and began to recall memories of her childhood. "When I was growing up, Bridlewood was anything but a happy place. Everypony was always so glum, there was no sparkle in any of them. And yet, there was one pony who showed me that there could be hope. His name:" She paused for a moment, making sure the image was fresh in her mind. "Was Alphabittle Blossomforth."
It had been just another ordinary, down in the dumps kind of day in Bridlewood. It seemed like every day in this enchanted forest of crystals was like that now. Nopony alive could remember a time when anypony had ever truly been happy, a time before the fear of jinxies and other superstitions. Even holidays like Wishiehoof could do little to break up the spell of sadness that hung over the town of unicorns. Although calling it a town might be a little too nice considering it really didn't have a mayor, an elder or any sort of leader.
It was in this kind of setting that a blank flanked Izzy was wandering about, much smaller than the full grown mare she would one day become. Everything was so big and so bright, and so scary. She couldn't really remember why she was out here all alone, she only vaguely remembered knowing warmth and shelter for a brief period of time.
Then, suddenly, a rather tall stallion with a light gray coat and a beard happened to cross the filly's path. Something inside of him immediately compelled him to call out to the child. "What are you doing out here all alone, little filly?" He asked her.
Izzy shrank from the stallion's gaze and whimpered, clearly intimidated by his size (and his tone of voice didn't help matters). "I'm... I'm not supposed to speak to strangers. I remember learning that years ago."
The stallion just cleared his throat, lowering himself down to the filly's level. "I'm not a stranger. I'm Alphabittle Blossomforth. You know: The guy who works at and runs the Crystal Teahouse? The place where everypony gathers to hang out, or just have a cup of tea?"
The frightened filly whimpered, still unwilling to look Alphabittle in the eyes. "But... you're so much bigger than me! I've never really been to your place, I've just heard stories. Ponies say you like to play games and take all their stuff."
Alphabittle chuckled and flashed a toothy grin. "Guilty as charged. But everypony who's ever lost has made a fair wager ahead of time. I can't help it if I'm good. Besides, it's a way to pass the time without having to worry about those silly jinxies."
"You don't believe in the jinxies?!" Izzy gasped in disbelief! No unicorn she'd ever encountered or observed would ever dare say such a thing!
The tall unicorn stallion quickly protested and corrected. "I never said that, now did I? I just don't like thinking about them, that's all," And he was quick to change the subject back to his original inquiry. "But enough about me, what about you? Who are you, and why are you out here all alone? Don't you have parents or something?"
The blank flanked filly whimpered anew with tears in her eyes. "My name's Izzy Moonbow. I... I don't know if I have parents. I can't remember!"
"What do you mean you can't remember?! Are you saying you're an orphan?!" Alphabittle questioned.
Izzy sniffled. "I.., don't know! I'm all alone! I don't know where I came from or if I have a family!" She couldn't stop herself from crying and sobbing audibly. "But nopony cares."
Alphabittle snorted, lowering his head as he bent down once again to the child's level. "Nonsense, Izzy. I care. I can't stand to see a child like you be all upset," He quickly used his hooves to scoop her up. "Come on, you can stay with me. It's getting late. I'm sure that after a good night's sleep, we can sort this all out together and get you back to whoever you belong to."
Izzy was taken aback by the kind gesture this stallion had shown her. It was the nicest thing she could remember ever being done for her. It made her feel all warm and tingly inside.
Yet that one night of staying with Alphabittle quickly became two, then three, and soon a whole month had passed since he'd invited Izzy into his life. As it turned out, nopony could remember ever knowing or seeing either a Mr. or a Ms. Moonbow. Not even a search through what birth and death records were kept in Bridlewood could yield answers.
Much as he lamented and regretted it, Alphabittle didn't have it in his heart to throw Izzy out onto the streets again. She was only a child. "A kid her age has enough to deal with without needing to worry about where her next meal comes from or whether she'll have a roof over her head!" He'd thought to himself. And so it was that he ended up more or less adopting Izzy, taking her in and caring for her as best he could.
So the years went by, with Izzy slowly but surely growing and maturing. Like everypony else, she eventually got her cutie mark. And after discovering how much she loved crafting, she took to it like a duck takes to water. Soon, she was crafting her own little projects made from whatever other ponies discarded or just forgot about. She even gave it a term that perfectly described it in her mind: Unicycling.
But Alphabittle was the first to notice that there was one thing Izzy lacked, something that was very important for a young pony (or so it was said). Namely, Izzy lacked a friend.
It wasn't like the filly didn't try. Izzy never had a lack of enthusiasm and energy. She was always so "sparkly" as she put it, always talking about a pony's inner "sparkle" (whatever that was).
However, it seemed like such cheerful, upbeat behavior was too much for everypony who wasn't Alphabittle. It seemed like whenever Izzy tried to make a new friend, it would always end the same way: Her personality, her behavior, or even just her apparent indifference to things like "the jinxies" or the forbidden words would always repulse ponies. Some even resorted to doing the dance one was supposed to do to ward off "the jinxies" and avoid being cursed with eternal bad luck.
Naturally, all these failed attempts began to weigh heavily on the filly as she grew older. Bridlewood was such a big place, and without any friends at all it could feel empty.
"Why doesn't anypony like me?" The unicorn filly had complained one evening after she returned to the Crystal Teahouse earlier than had been expected (and hoped).
The Teahouse was long since closed for the evening, so for Alphabittle Izzy was the only pony he needed to tend to. He immediately set to work brewing some tea for his charge (on the house of course). "Izzy, don't say things like that. You're just.... different, that's all. That's hard for ponies to accept."
Izzy sniffled slightly. "It feels like they don't accept it at all. But I can't help it. I like being happy, I like thinking that we don't have to live our whole lives being all mopey and frowny faced. Bridlewood could be so much better if we all smiled more. It really would make the place shine."
The stallion sighed. This wasn't the first time he'd had such a conversation with the filly. It never got any easier no matter how many times they had this talk. "Look, Izzy," He said at last. "You can't change minds and attitudes overnight. And you're not the first pony who's tried to change things. When ponies get used to things being a certain way, it's hard for them to ever believe things could be any different."
"So you're saying it's impossible?" Izzy lamented.
Alphabittle shook his head from side to side as he set the freshly brewed cup of tea down, passing it to Izzy with a slight nudging from his hooves. He watched her take hold of the mug, seeming content to just stare at its contents with an empty look in her eyes. "I'm just saying that it's going to take a long time, kid. One pony by themselves can't change the world. Maybe someday when you're older, you'll find a way to help make things better. But you should focus on what you can change on your own here and now. And with an attitude like the one you have now, you'll never be able to make any friends."
The filly slowly sipped her tea, letting Alphabittle's words sink in. "Guess maybe you have a point, Alphabittle. Just like you always do. If I wanna make friends and make the world a better place," A look of fiery determination flashed across her face. "Then I've got to change my whole attitude and approach! What I'm doing now isn't working," Then an idea came to her. "But I know how to fix that!"
The very next day, Izzy was proud to show off her latest crafting project. It was something she had clearly put a lot of time, thought and love into if the frazzled appearance of her mane and tail were anything to go by. "Alphabittle Blossomforth," She declared, her voice brimming with an assertive confidence! "I'd like you to meet my new friend!" And then she pushed forward a large, painted, wooden object with fake teeth, and an empty ice cream cone to resemble a unicorn's horn.
Alphabittle decided it best to humor the filly, and with a wink he asked. "Who's your friend, Izzy?"
Flashing a smile, Izzy puffed out her chest and proudly proclaimed! "Senor Butterscotch. He's the perfect friend for any occasion! He'll always be with you no matter where you go!"
"Oh, is that so?" The stallion asked, apparently playing along with Izzy's imagination.
The unicorn filly happily nodded. "Uh-huh. I made... I mean met him just this morning! He's great fun!" Then she nudged the wooden puppet and whispered. "He's not much of a talker, though. He's the strong, silent type."
"So I can see." Alphabittle replied with a chuckle.
Izzy beamed with pride! "Oh, he's perfect! I'm so glad I found him when I did!" She pulled Senor Butterscotch close, hugging him tightly. "Finally, I've got somepony I can talk to when I'm feeling lonely. Somepony who will always listen to me no matter what I have to say. And no matter where I go, I know he'll always be there with me! Ooh, I can't wait for us to stay up late talking, and doing each other's manes, and sharing secrets, and all that good stuff!"
Alphabittle felt the smile on his face grow. It always warmed his heart to see Izzy happy. So he extended a hoof out towards the fake unicorn she had created. "It's nice to meet you, Senor Butterscotch," He whispered, glad that the Teahouse wouldn't open for business for another half an hour at least. If anypony saw him talking like this to something that Izzy clearly was pretending to be real, they'd probably think he was crazy. "You're so lucky to have Izzy for a friend. She's the best friend any unicorn could ever ask for. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about."
Izzy held Senor Butterscotch and extended one of his wooden hooves towards Alphabittle, happily letting them shake. "Thank you for reminding me never to give up, Alphabittle!" She said afterwards as she again brought Senor Butterscotch close. "You were the inspiration I needed. I don't know who I'd be if I'd never met you."
"Hey, I just didn't want a filly as sweet as you to go on living on the street for the rest of her life," Alphabittle played it off. Then he cautioned. "Just don't get carried away showing off your new friend everywhere you go. Some ponies might not understand the bond you have with him."
Izzy opened her eyes as the flashback ended. "That's how I met Senor Butterscotch, my very first friend," She told Misty. "Obviously, I haven't really spent as much time with him now that I've made friends like you and Sunny. But every now and then," She used her magic to hold up the fake unicorn. "I find it helps to remember an old friend who was always there for me no matter what."
"Wow!" Misty commented in amazement. "I... never knew you had such a special bond with him, that he meant so much to you."
Izzy nodded again. "Well, now you do, Misty! And I'm always happy to have more friends to share the story with. Sunny's really the only other pony who understands: Hitch, Zipp and Pipp just play it off as a me thing," Then she gave a wink. "But that's okay, we're still friends. And I know they do things other ponies would find weird if they knew about them. Can't tell you what they are, though. Even if I'm only medium sneaky, I try to be good at keeping secrets."
"Well... your secret's safe with me," Misty insisted as she made a motion with her hooves. Then she apologized. "Sorry for getting so freaked out earlier during crafting, and when Senor Butterscotch fell on me," She shamefully looked at the ground. "Guess I still have a lot to learn about friendship."
But Izzy just replied by pulling her fellow unicorn close. "Hey, I'm still learning some things about friendship myself. So we can both keep learning together, because that's what friends do! And friends like us, we gotta stick together. Senor Butterscotch says so."
Misty found herself unable to keep from giggling. "Seems like Senor Butterscotch knows more than you might think he does. No wonder you and him are such good friends."
Izzy swished her tail. "Yup. And ours is a bond that can't be broken no matter what!"