> A Forbidden Doorway
>  by Frostmourne
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue: Through The Drinking Glass
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

        It was four o'clock on the third of December, and the sky was covered with clouds. It had been a particularly cold and snowy year, and as such, the streets and land of Canada were covered in snow. Holiday lights were strung up on houses, and decorations were placed upon some of the street lamps around the town of Edmonton, Alberta. Inside one of the many decorated houses, was a young man of twenty-one. His name was Jack Robert Spade, and he was not having a very good day. Firstly, his head was pounding hard, like he’d been hit by a train. Secondly, he hadn’t made it to his bed before he fell asleep, and he had slept on the floor beside it instead. Because of that fact, his whole body was in pain with his head. Thirdly, he was a mess. With the small amount of strength that he had in his weakened state, he was able to pick himself up off of the floor and look in his mirror, paying witness to how much of a messy state he was in. His hair was scraggly and out of shape, and his eyes had large bags under them. Not to mention, his eyes were bloodshot to hell.

“Fuck me, I feel like complete shit.” He said, stating aloud his general discomfort. He slowly walked over to his dresser, which held up his mirror, and grabbed his favourite hair brush, and began to brush his dark chocolate coloured hair, which he had gotten in a sidecut style, and extended to his chest. He scratched one of his mutton chops as he did so, and when his hair was in a decently presentable condition, stopped halfway through a brush, leaving the brush in his hair. He walked out of his room and into the kitchen, walking over the trash and bottles of booze that he and his friends had ate and drank the night before. He’d invited them over for a holiday party, and even paid for all of their tickets in advance. They were all asleep in the guest room of his house, and he was glad for that, because it meant that he didn’t have to worry about being too quiet. He walked over to his fridge, and grabbed his last remaining full bottle of Rum Chata. He picked up his shot glass off of his small dining table, and drank the small amount of Rum Chata that was left in it, before pouring himself some more.

He dropped himself onto one of the couches in his living room, and began to drink out of the shot glass, pouring more every time he downed one. Rum Chata was the only alcoholic beverage he drank, because all the other ones didn’t taste as good to him. Just as he downed his third shot, however, he saw something through the bottom of the glass. Something black. He stopped to stare at the glass, confused as to why he would see something through it. He looked around at the room, seeing nothing black that could have been as close as what he had seen in the bottom of the glass in his very hand. He slowly brought the glass up to his face, curiosity getting the better of him, and put it up to his eye, a drop of Rum Chata dropping on his cheek as he did so. He looked through the bottom, and lo and behold, he saw something again. He looked up and down at the object in front of him. In front of him, standing in the middle of his living room, frame and all, was a door. He set his Rum Chata down on the floor, and walked up to the shot-glass visible door.

The door was made out of dark ebony wood, and had silver-made inscriptions in a language he swore he recognised upon it. The handle, as well, was made out of pure silver. He wondered just what the door went to. He noticed that in the center of the door, was a blank circle that the inscriptions started from. He cautiously raised his hand, ever curious, and placed it in the center. The inscriptions lit up with a bright purple sparkling light as he did so, lighting up from the center, and flicking off of the door as they reached the frame, and fading into nothingness. He heard the door unlock, and then it burst open with the same sparkling purple light the inscriptions had made, flinging him back onto the couch. He coughed as he sat back up, and saw at that moment that the door had become visible to the naked eye, most likely from him activating the magic imbued within it. Well... He thought, I think it was magic, at least... He stood up from the couch once more, and looked at the door, seeing that through it was complete blackness. He looked behind the door, and the rest of the room was still there. It was as if the door was a portal of some kind.

He didn’t waste no time rushing to his room. He threw on a clean pair of clothes, put on his glasses, and put his shoes on, before quickly coming back out to the living room, happy to see the door was still where he had left it. Or rather, where it had placed itself. He grabbed his shot glass off the couch, and put it in his right pocket, before doing the same thing with his bottle of Rum Chata and his right pocket, closing the bottle as he did so. He turned to the doorway, the inky blackness inside it, along with the wood, both utterly, and indomitably, still. He stood there for a moment, contemplating whether or not he should go through it. He stared into the pitch black portal, and simply thought.

If I go into this doorway, there’s no way of telling where I might end up. It could be somewhere dangerous. It could be somewhere with lots of monsters in it. For all I know, it could take me to another universe, or another planet. Then again... He looked deep into the darkness inside the dark ebony frame, and then a different thought came to his mind. It might take me to a place of wonder, and excitement. A place I could only dream of being. A place like... Naw, there’s no way it would take me there. But I do know one thing... He turned around and looked at the street in front of his house. He looked at the world outside of his house, and his face went straight. Wherever that door takes me will most likely be a hell of alot more interesting than the place I’m in now. He turned to the door, and with his mind made up, ran towards it, jumping into the tenebrosity as he reached the frame. As he did, the door shut loudly behind him, and locked itself once more, before vanishing into thin air. He began to fall. He fell down and down through the gloom and dark, no sign anywhere that he would ever stop.

He fell for what felt like hours. The air that he cut through felt like wind around him as he only continued to descend ever faster. He thought he was going to fall forever. That is, until he finally did stop, the never ending fall coming to a close as he felt that he landed. It felt as if he landed on something soft and firm, yet at the same time, he still couldn’t see anything, even though he knew for a fact he had landed. He even felt his whole body get cold, as if he was outside on a snowy day. He felt as though something was obstructing his eyes, and when he realised just what it was that was obstructing them, he felt like an idiot for not thinking of doing his next action sooner. He opened his eyes.

He was finally able to see, and the sense of sight that he had gained back allowed him to see something that greatly astounded him. He sat up to get a better look, because the first one he had gotten was something he could hardly believe. He was in a grand forest of pine trees. The pine needles were the greenest he had ever seen in his life, and the trunks of the trees were a perfect dark brown. The snow on the ground and on the top of the pine needles that were all around him was the whitest snow he had ever seen as well. The colour of everything, even the clouds and the sky above, was so vibrant, and almost... technicolour. The world he had entered when he went through the door was definitely a beautiful one, he gave it that. He stood up, the backs of his legs, and his butt both almost numb, and the wind that blew through the forest stinging his body as it blew against him. He began to walk through the forest, all the while hearing what he thought was the roar of a waterfall. He followed his ears, letting his sense of direction be based purely on that sense.

After a little while, he finally made it to the source of the sound, and found that his guess had been correct. Before him was a huge waterfall, the size of Niagara Falls, with a large lake below it. The water, just like everything else around him, was a vivid and rich colour blue as well. It almost seemed to sparkle as well, showing just how clean it was. He knelt down, and put his lips to the water, and tasted it. It was the best tasting water he had ever had the pleasure of having in his mouth. It was astonishing to him, the world he had entered. It was so magnificent and wonderful, as if it had been freshly painted by someone with the skills of Da Vinci and Van Gogh combined. He looked around at the environment he had found himself in, and began to walk down the shore of the lake that the waterfall created, eventually reaching a river, which he continued to walk beside as well. He walked for about a couple hours or so, nearly freezing to the bone. Winter was his favourite season, and he loved to be cold, but the chill that he was feeling was extreme, almost to the bone.

After walking for thirty more minutes, he came upon a bridge, with two train tracks running across it. The sky was becoming dark, night arriving fast, and Jack could tell. He stopped to rest for a bit, tired from the long walk he had just made. He sat down and leaned against the side of the bridge as he took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes. They were just as tired as his body, it seemed. As he put them back on, and felt his jeans constricting both of his thighs, it was at that point that he finally remembered his only supplies he had brought. He took out the bottle of Rum Chata and his shot glass, and after cleaning the shot glass out with the edge of his shirt, making sure to get all of the pocket lint out and off of it, poured himself some. The rum warmed his throat and stomach, making him feel as though he was a much more bearable temperature than the one he was. And with that, he lied down on his side, getting comfortable, and took a nap.


AAA


Jack awoke four hours later to the sound of a train’s brakes being used, as if it was pulling into the station. He quickly pocketed his drinking materials, and looked a bit over the edge of the bridge, keeping close so that the night would disguise him. Luckily the tee shirt and other clothes he was wearing were all black, which would allow him to stay unseen in the dark better. He guessed that the reason the train had stopped was because something had gone wrong with the engine or something, and was told that he was partly right when he heard the voice of the conductor.

“We need more coal up here! Dang thing just stopped completely! I need to get some rest, come on, hurry it up!” He was obviously grouchy from the length of time he’d gone without sleep. Conducting a train was a hard job because of the amount of hours you had to work every day.

Now’s my chance to get a free ride. Jack thought, before running as fast as he could along the side of the train, quickly making his way to one of the cargo holds for the steam powered transportation machine, which he found was open, and did not hold anything. He thought that the train had probably just made it’s last delivery for the day, and was heading back to it’s station, which would explain why the engine compartment had run out of coal to shovel. He hopped inside, finding a couple of piles of hay in the corners, almost looking like makeshift beds. He shrugged his shoulders, not wanting to think about it too much, and lied down on one of the piles, getting comfortable once more before he fell asleep again. He slept through the rest of the night, once he started, and didn’t awaken again until he heard the train stop in it’s station, and even then went back to sleep. He didn’t fully awake until he heard the train stop a second time, and he heard voices, and the clip-clop of horse hooves. He sat up, taking off his glasses to rub his eyes before standing up and putting them back on.

He saw through the open doors that he was in a station, but a public one. He heard a voice yell again, this one being a female one. “Alrighty, let’s get all the cargo inside, it’s time to get to work!”

Oh, shit. He thought, knowing that it was his time to get off, and fast. He quickly hopped out and onto the station platform so that way he could begin his escape, but when he looked around, and saw just what was coming towards him and whistling a happy melody, he couldn’t believe what his eyes were perceiving at that very moment. Trotting towards him on the station platform in that instant, was a technicolour pony of the female persuasion, a young mare to be exact. She was wearing a train conductor’s outfit. As she trotted towards him, she was continuously looking at the train itself, not paying attention to what was in front of her as she did so. She was performing a maintenance check to make sure all of the holds were connected securely and tightly, so that they would not disconnect along the way. Jack couldn’t move as he looked at her. He was still in shock at the images that were being sent to his mind from his eyes. He realised just where he was as soon as he had seen the conductor pony, and the epiphany that grasped his mind when he did, was too much for him to bear.

I’m in Equestria... I’m in Equestria! His mind repeated those words over and over, trying to process the massive revelation it was going through and failing. He blinked quickly and erratically, almost nearly freaking out at what he had just learned. He fell to his knees just before the conductor pony bumped into him and backed up to look at him.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t... wha... what are you?” The conductor pony said, seeing just what the figure before her was. She’d never seen something like Jack before, and for all she knew, he was some kind of animal. “Are you from the Everfree Forest?” That was the only thing she could think of. The Everfree had some strange creatures in it, but still, she’d never even heard of something fitting Jack’s description before.

Jack shook his head, snapping out of it, and looking at her, still slightly unbelieving. He summoned the will to speak, and swallowed it down, before he finally did. “Err... I... I’m a human?” He said it questioningly, wondering if she would do something after he spoke. And to his surprise, she did. She spoke back to him.

“Wow, you can talk? What’s a... a human?” She said, tilting her head to the right, her mane and ears moving as she did. The only sounds that came out of Jack’s mouth after she spoke were muttering and mumbling ones. Tears began to form in his eyes, and pour down his cheeks. He wasn’t just imagining it. He was really in Equestria, the place he had always dreamed of going ever since he watched the first episode of Friendship is Magic over a year ago. He hopped forward, hooking his arms around the conductor pony’s neck, hugging her. He needed to hug something, just to know he could feel it, and that he really was there. His dreams had become reality before his very eyes, and he was breaking down with joy over it.

The conductor pony smiled nervously, and patted him on the back with a hoof. “Umm... It’s okay, I’m here for you.” She honestly didn’t know what to think. A strange creature had appeared out of seemingly nowhere, spoke, and then had begun to cry and hug her. It certainly wasn’t something that happened every day. She heard hooves from behind her, and then heard the voice of one of her fellow workers.

“Oh my goodness, Daisy’s being attacked by a strange creature! Quick, get some help!” It was one of the other mares she worked with, one who always drew conclusions too quickly.

“No, wait!” Daisy tried to say, turning around awkwardly with the human hanging around her neck. Just as she was going to ask Jack to stop hugging her, he fell off.

His face was one of pure bliss. He was happier than he had ever been in his entire life, and that was saying something. He slowly fell into a euphoric state, beginning to fall asleep, so his mind could adjust to everything it had just gone through. The last word he said before he fell asleep was the name of the wondrous and magical land that he had come to after all of the nights he dreamt of doing just that. “Equestria...”

After a moment, a guard came galloping up to her, being blunt and concise. “Is this the creature, ma'am?” He said, pointing at Jack, who was curled up happily on the ground. Daisy could only nod, confused at the whole situation that had just happened. The guard then levitated Jack with his magic, and escorted him off.

Daisy Axel II, who was named after her late mother, shook her head, and decided to get back to work, as long as she could. She knew that not before long, she’d have to get someone to replace her, so she could stay in Canterlot and answer any questions that the guards may have about the human, so she wanted to get as much work done as possible before she did.

It certainly was not a normal day in Equestria.
> Chapter One: A Most Peculiar Induction
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	Things were not as they normally were in the land of Equestria. The state of normalcy that had spread across the land after the events of the wedding of Shining Armor and Princess Cadance had become slightly broken. Strange things were ahoof, as was made obvious by the arrival of the bizarre creature that had been taken into Canterlot Prison. Word spread across the city quickly after the incident had happened. The story that everypony knew was that early that morning, a conductor pony was attacked by a creature the likes of which nopony had seen before. An hour after the creature had been imprisoned, a notice was sent out to the members of the city, stating that a trial for the creature would be held at the Equestrian High Court building at ten that morning. Needless to say, many ponies were interested in the creature, and many wanted to attend the trial. The High Court room however, was not big enough for all of the ponies that wanted to attend. It was only big enough for forty ponies to attend. One of the ponies that had been granted permission to attend was Lyra Heartstrings. She was in town visiting her friend Octavia, who had also been allowed to attend. Little did Lyra know, however, that in attending the trial, she would have a dream of hers become a reality. She would see something that she had only seen and read about in books of ancient legends, and tomes of forgotten lore: a Human.


AAA


Jack, the human that everypony throughout Canterlot was talking about, was just waking up from the passed out state he had been in. He realised that he was in a bed, his head on a pillow, and his body on a blanketed mattress. He groaned, flopping on his side. He was ready to go back to sleep once more, but when he reached his hands up to place one under the pillow and one on top of it, he came to know that he couldn't. His wrists were constrained in cuffs, and the chain holding them together didn’t allow him to place his hands comfortably. “Blimey, that’s just great...” He reached under his glasses and rubbed his eyes lightly with his knuckles to get the sleep out of them, and looked around once he was able to see clearly. He was in a prison cell, but it was not as gritty and disgusting as the one he’d visited in Canada. It actually looked well kept, and for the most part, unused. He stood up, getting off the bed he’d been lying on, which like the rest of the cell, was rather clean. He looked his body over, and saw that he was still wearing everything he had been when he passed out. Everything was still in his pockets as well, which meant he still had his Rum Chata. He walked over to the steel bars, and saw a guard trotting down the hall of cells. He’s probably only here because I am. He grasped the bars and tried to look farther down the hall. At one end was a dead end wall, and at the other end, was a set of stairs. Just like the Imperial Prison at the beginning of Oblivion...

The guard trotted by Jack's cell, and upon seeing the human awake, stopped in his tracks to turn and face him. He spoke, his voice deep and stern. "Ah, finally awake I see, you criminal scum." He wore a scowl as he spoke, clearly showing his distaste in speaking to prisoners. "I suppose you're wondering where you are. You are in the Canterlot Prison, where those who steal from, assault, and murder ponies are sent when those crimes are committed in Canterlot. In twenty minutes, I am to escort you to the Equestrian High Court building for your trial. I would enjoy my time life as a potentially innocent... whatever you are, if I were you." The guard stood there silently for a moment, waiting to see if Jack would speak. Jack kept his mouth shut, however, as he knew better than to mouth off to a guard. "Though I don't know why a trial was ordered if you can't talk, dumb creature..." He turned and trotted over to the stairs. It was obvious he didn't like his job. Prison work most likely wasn't what he thought of doing when he became a guard.

As the guard trotted up the stairs, Jack breathed a sigh of relief. He was never good with authority figures: Cops when he lived in America, Mounties when he moved to Canada. And it seemed that he wouldn't have a good time with the Equestrian Guards as well. It wasn't that he committed crimes often, hell, he'd never even done drugs before, and he only walked places when he knew he was going to be drinking. It was just that police of any form put him on edge, they made him afraid that he might do or say the wrong things in their presence. There had been more than one account of him getting knocked out by a cop just for saying something sarcastically, or telling a joke. It was one of the reasons he liked Canada so much. Mounties were more understanding and fair rather than judgmental and punishing. From what he knew of Equestrian Guards, they were like a mix of the two. They seemed judgmental, but fair. More likely to roll their eyes at your jokes than knock you out for them. As far as Jack was concerned, that was fine by him.

He walked over to his cell cot, pulling his pint glass and Rum Chata out of his pockets along the way. He sat down on the bed, opened the bottle of rum, and saw that he only had a third of the bottle left to drink. Ah, what the hell... He set his pint glass down and finished off the bottle of rum, downing it quickly. He wanted to steady his nerves, for he hated being his usual jumpy and nervous self. He set the empty bottle down on the bed, and as he did, his eyes were drawn to his pint glass, or more specifically, the picture upon it. That's right... I'm in Equestria now. And that means I'm closer to her than I have ever been before. My very dreams could come true if I meet her... It was then, however, that he remembered his predicament. That's if I'm not sentenced to life in prison or... death in my trial... I don't think Equestria is the kind of place with a Death Sentance, but I can never be too sure. They didn't talk about crime and punishment much in the show, besides banishment to places and being turned to stone. He shook his head and cracked his neck before stuffing his pint glass back in his pocket, and hiding his rum bottle under his pillow, not knowing what else to do with it.

It was then that he heard a voice emanate from across the way, within the shadows of the cell opposite his. It was bestial in nature, and rough, like the voice of someone who had not had a drink for days. "Another prisoner? Baltharzar never thought he'd see another prisoner in here!" From the shadows of the cell stepped a Diamond Dog, covered in obsidian fur that was mangy and unkempt. His eyes were as golden as bits, and were very inspecting, almost rudely so. They were the eyes of a thief, eyes that searched the bodies of others for valuables. One of his ears was jagged, as if something had tried to bite it off. Lastly, a red scar started from his forehead, and ran down his cheek to stop at his neck. Baltharzar looked Jack up and down curiously. "What are you? Pale skin, stands on two legs, and has next to no fur? You must be a balding monkey! Tell me monkey, if I play you a song, will you dance to it?" He laughed, and when he did, it sounded similar to a garbage disposal being turned on and off. 

This is just great, now I have my very own Valen Dreth... But I can speak back, unlike in the game. He smirked mischievously, and stood up to walk over to the bars. "You're one to talk about looks, mutt. You look like a big greasy wookie hairball." He could have come up with something better than that, and he knew it. But for the time being, petty insults would have to do. He couldn't be bothered with focusing on insults. He had other things on his mind, like his trial, and whether or not he was going to live another day.

Baltharzar laughed once again, a smile upon his muzzle. "I like you, monkey! Tell you what, I'm getting out of here in a couple weeks. When I do, I'll see about breaking you out. If you're still alive, that is. You and me can steal gems together!" He did a small dance, and clapped his hands. "You and me, stealing gems from those stupid ponies, just like I did before I was caught! We'll be swimming in rubies, emeralds, opals, and if we're lucky, diamonds! Ha ha ha!"

Jack put two and two together, and realised just what Baltharzar had unintentionally told him. "Wait a minute, you stole gems from ponies, and you're getting out in two weeks? How long have you been here?" If Baltharzar, who also wasn't a pony, stole gems and isn't a pony, didn't get a life sentence, then he might not be in such a bad situation after all. Gems are worth a lot, I'm assuming, and if Baltharzar stole as many gems as I think he did, and yet he wasn't sentenced to life in prison, I may have hope yet... What am I even really in here for? Did I do something after I passed out? Or is it the fact that I'm a human, something never seen in Equestria before?

"Baltharzar has been here for two weeks already, monkey. I was sentenced to a month in this horrible place, and had my claws shaved down and rounded so I couldn't try to dig my way out. Ponies think they are so smart, but I'll show them, I'll steal all of their gems!" Baltharzar rubbed his paws together in a greedy way as he spoke. It was evident how hell bent he was on stealing gems, especially from those who locked him up.

So if he stole gems and was only sentenced to a month in here, the justice system is either pretty lenient, or he's a horrible thief... Jack nodded to himself, feeling as though he got as much information as he needed out of Baltharzar. He walked back over to his bed to sit down upon it and think further about his situation. Who is the judge of the Equestrian High Court, I wonder? Or an even greater idea, what if there is more than one judge? And if there is, who are they? Background ponies? Or perhaps ponies never seen in the show, like the conductor pony I saw? What if the princesses are a part of the High Court? There were so many questions and variables floating through Jack's head that he didn't even hear the guard come back down the stairs and trot in front of Jack's cell.

It was the guards voice that made Jack's head snap up from pointing towards the floor. "Come on, you dumb creature. It's time for me to escort you to your trial. Judgement awaits."


AAA


To say the court room of the Equestrian High Court was imposing simply would not do justice to the grandeur and sanction which it beheld. It was larger than any courtroom he had ever seen or been in, and it was thrice as fancy as any he knew of as well. The ivory wood bench, which had eight matching seats behind it, also matched the white marble floors and layered pillars that the room had. Red and blue silk banners: displaying Celestia's and Luna's cutie marks respectively; hung upon the inward sides of the pillars, adding an almost Persian touch to the room. Behind a ivory wood bar and opposite the bench, was the public galleries, with seats full of ponies of different colours and races, all waiting for the trial to begin. On the floor between the bench and a small oak wood chair that had been brought out for Jack to sit upon close to the bar, was the symbol of the flag of Equestria, painted upon it masterfully. As Jack stepped into the room, he gasped in awe at the eminence before his very eyes, hardly able to believe it was real.

Jack chuckled to himself. Then again, I am in a world of talking ponies, so I don't think believing something isn't real would be a plausible way of thinking right now. He walked over to the oak chair as the guard had directed him to before letting him in the court room from the side door for the accused. As he did, however, the ponies in the public galleries began to whisper about him, some gasping at his appearance. He looked into the galleries momentarily to see if he recognised any of them, and to his surprise, he did. Amongst the usual Canterlot citizens, were two musicians. Lyra and Octavia, sitting next to each other. He could hardly believe it. He wasn't expecting to see any ponies he could recognise for a long time, and yet attending his trial were two he knew of fairly well. One more than the other. He wanted to wave at them, but he didn't think it appropriate, considering his status as a criminal. It would probably just come off as creepy or slightly crazy because of that fact. He did, however, notice that Lyra was staring at him with a dropped jaw and wide eyes.

Lyra was in a state of utter shock. It was her turn to believe something wasn't real. Standing before her very eyes was a Human. A creature she had spent countless hours in both the Canterlot library researching. She had been fascinated by them for years, since she was a filly. Sure, her special talent was playing her lyre, but that didn't mean she couldn't have hobbies on the side. The study of Humans was one of them. The way the Human body worked, the different bone structures they had, it made her read on in awe. Though they were just tales, long forgotten legends that barely anypony even spoke of anymore, she wanted to believe they were real. Somehow, some way, she just knew they were. And the moment that she saw Jack walk into the court room, she knew: She was right.

Jack sat down in the chair that had been designated as his, and brought his attention to the empty bench, taking note that the two seats in the middle were a bit taller than the others, which he could guess who they were for. The guard that brought him to the building trotted up to the bench to stand beside it along with three other guards, two of which were on the other side standing next to a witness stand. After a moment of silence, bells ringing on the outside of the building to signify the coming of ten o'clock, ante meridiem. All at once the guards spoke, their voices bouncing off the walls of the room. "The trial of the assault of Daisy Axel II will now commence." After they finished their sentence, six ponies came in through the tall doors behind the bench, each standing beside a seat. There was two of each pony race, all of them mares.

Jack could barely believe his ears. Assault? All he had done was give her a hug! The guards spoke once again after another moment of silence. "All rise for the arrival of the honourable Princess Celestia." The doors behind the bench opened in a sparkling golden light, and as the form of the Princess of the Sun trotted in through them, horn alight, every pony in the room stood up from their seats. And so did Jack. Every pony, including the guards, was baffled. Celestia raised a brow ever so slightly at Jack, confused as to why he would stand for her. Nevertheless, she maintained an air of nobility and seriousness, like a judge normally would.

Celestia took her seat, and her voice resounded from her lips, as loud as the guards, but calmer and more reserved. "You may be seated." Jack surprised Celestia once more as he sat down just as all of the ponies behind him, and the judges beside Celestia did. She knew at that point that not only did he understand her, but he respected her enough to stand and sit for her. No Diamond Dog or Changeling would ever do the same things, or act as civilised as Jack. "This trial is being held because we've been told the accused can speak. So before we begin the proceedings, would the accused like to introduce himself?" She could tell Jack was male from the mutton chops he had, and from the shape of his body, even though it wasn't Equine in form.

"Yes." Jack said, earning gasps and more, frantic, whispers from behind him. He stood up once more, only to get down on a knee. "My name is Jack Robert Spade, your majesty. I hail from a town called Edmonton, in land far, far from here, known as Canada." He spoke only in a polite manner, not a hint of sarcasm or rudeness in his voice. "It is an honour to be before you, Princess." Jack had read enough medieval stories and seen enough British shows and to know exactly how to treat royalty, and he was going to pull all the stops he could to show her that he thought of her as nothing but royalty. He stayed kneeled upon the ground, looking up at her respectfully, all the while the judges and the ponies in the public galleries were confounded by him.

Not only was Celestia perplexed by Jack, she was pleased at how he was treating her. As polite and reserved as he was being, it was almost as if he was a law-abiding Equestrian citizen. But still, there was the accusation that he assaulted another pony, and she would not let that stand in her land. Assault in any form is unacceptable, and those who do it should be punished. "Good, you may sit, Jack." Jack did just as he was told, and she continued, her tone unchanging. "Now then, you are being accused of assaulting Daisy Axel II, a resident of Canterlot. I do not know how it works in Canada, bit assault is not taken lightly here in Equestria. Before we bring Daisy out to tell her account of what happened, how do you plead to this accusation, Jack?"

"Not guilty, your majesty. I would never hurt a pony unless I was trying to defend myself or a friend from them." It was at that point that every pony in the room knew the trial was going to get even more interesting that it already was. Diamond Dogs and Changelings were quick and proud to announce their guilt. Jack however, knew that he was innocent, and it was easier to tell the truth than it normally would be because of that fact, especially because of the slightly tipsy state he was in from his rum. He hoped that as long as he remained confident in his innocence, and spoke politely like he was speaking, that Celestia and the judges would know he is innocent. But that was just a hope. He was a strange creature in a foreign land, and he knew for a fact that whatever Daisy said when she spoke at the witness stand would be what sent him to death, jail, or freedom. His life was in her hooves.

Celestia once more raised a brow lightly. She wondered if Jack was telling the truth. He had been nothing but humble the whole time since the trial began, and he did not seem like the kind to lie about his crimes unless he absolutely had to. When he had declared that he was innocent, she could hear the tone of his voice tell volumes about how he felt. A skill that she had learned from being a Princess for over a thousand years. The tone of his voice was one of proud exclamation of truth, yet at the same time beheld an underlying sense of fear. Fear that his words would not be believed, no matter how true they rang. Without a shadow of a doubt, Jack intrigued her. "Very well. The court calls to the stand Daisy Axel II to recount her account of what happened this morning."

From the side door opposite the one Jack came through, came Daisy, looking just like she had earlier that morning, minus her conductor's outfit. As she trotted up to the witness stand, whispers came from the public galleries once more, whispers of how she didn't look like a pony who had been assaulted, and whispers of how maybe Jack was telling the truth. Daisy stood in the witness stand, looking almost like she didn't want to be there. She looked nervous, as well, most likely from the presence of Princess Celestia. "G'day, Princess." After she spoke, she cursed inside. She hated the accent that she had gotten from her father in that moment, it made being formal harder than it was supposed to be.

Celestia smiled kindly at Daisy, nodding her head slowly, silently telling her to relax. As she spoke, her expression returned to the solemn one it had been before. When Jack noticed her do that, in his mind he swore to never get in a poker competition with her, because not even his friend Shay had as good of a pokerface as her. "Daisy, would you please tell the court what happened to you earlier this morning? And take your time, I know it is not easy to remember such things." Celestia could see Daisy was perfectly fine, but she had to stay her observations to herself. She had to keep to the invisible script within her mind, lest she influence the judges beside her to make a decision based on her opinion, rather than their own.

Daisy swallowed hard. She knew that the whole trial was riding on her words, and it felt as if she was carrying Equestria upon her back. She took a deep breath, and spoke. "Well, my day had begun as it usually does. I started my shift as the conductor of the Canterlot Shipping Express, and I was doing a routine check to make sure the night shift didn't forget to deliver any packages the night before. And as I was checking one of the last two goods wagons, I bumped into..." She looked over at Jack, who was hanging on her every word, fear in his eyes. "Into him. He told me he was a Human, and then shortly afterward, he fell forward and hugged me, and started to... cry." She saw Jack blush a bit. He wasn't used to letting people besides his friends know that he cried. He'd always been raised to believe crying was something only a weak man did. He cried more than he liked to admit, and he felt ashamed of himself because of it.

Daisy swallowed and continued the rest of her story. It was the intensity of the situation that was making it hard for her to speak, not the fact that she had to remember what happened. "Then one of the other ponies I work with, Jittery, thought he was assaulting me, and went to go get the guards. Then he slipped off of me, and fell asleep. That's all that happened." Daisy sighed with relief to be finished with the story, and Jack sighed at the same time she did. He relaxed in his chair, whispering something to himself, just barely under his breath.

"Thank the gods..." Jack could barely keep himself together, he was so relieved. He had an urge to laugh happily, knowing that everything was going to go smoothly from that point forward. His luck had helped him out once more. Or rather, luck had not helped him, but the power of truth had. He told the truth, and so did Daisy. He was sure to be let go, and be free to travel across Equestria, like he had only ever done in dreams and fantasies he had. He wondered where he would go first. From Las Pegasus all the way to Manehatten, there was just so many places to go, things to see, ponies to meet. Those thoughts could be handled later, however. He just had to get through the rest of the trial. But what is the rest of the trial going to be like from here on out? He knew better than most that not everything always goes as you think it might.

Celestia turned to Jack, her expression one of interest. Jack swallowed, wondering what she was going to ask him. She stared straight into his eyes, almost as if she was staring into his soul. She wanted to know more. And she wasn't going to let the trial end until she was satisfied. "Jack, would you care to inform us as to why you cried? What would warrant that reaction from you upon seeing Daisy?" The ball was in her hooves at that point, and Jack could tell. He could feel the immense amount of power she beheld in that moment. If it had been audible, it would have been almost deafening.

So that's what it's like to be royalty... Jack swallowed once more, and tried to regain his composure. Relax, Jack, just answer her question with nothing but truthiness, and you will prevail. He sat up in his chair, back completely straight, all eyes on him once more. "Your majesty, I have not lied during this trial, and I am not going to start lying now. I cried, I admit it. I cried because the second I saw Daisy, I knew where I was, where we are right now: Equestria. Long have I dreamt of being here, in this land, ever since I first learned of it. You ponies value things that I hold dear, from kindness, to acceptance of one another, and finally, friendship. I cannot think of living anywhere else." He stood from his seat, the ponies behind him gasping, and the guards tensing up, ready to strike if they needed to.

He began to pace back and forth, gazes following him as he did. "Your majesty, where I come from, hatred, war, and death are common things. I had friends there, sure, but they were but small specs of light in an otherwise dark, hopeless, and lonely land. When you think about just how horrible the land I come from is, it's no wonder why I would want to come here, to a place that is the exact opposite of it." He stopped right in front of his chair, and turned to face Celestia once more. "I would like- no, I would love to live here. Of that I am more sure than I have ever been, about anything else in my entire life." He paused, clearing his throat and swallowing. "So please, your majesty, before you make your verdict, take every word I have said into consideration, for that is exactly how I feel. And, if even after doing that, if you do not deem me worthy of being an Equestrian Citizen..." He was beginning to choke up. "Then... Then I will accept my fate," he held out his hands, and fell to his knees before the symbol of the Equestrian flag. "with open palms."

An indomitable silence fell upon the court room. Shock was on the face of every pony in the room, including Celestia. She couldn't believe what she had heard. The place Jack spoke of was worse than almost anywhere she had heard of. The only place that was worse was Tartarus. She, and everypony else was still for a moment more. Jack looked up at her, his eyes pleading, on the virge of tears. It was then, all at once, that Celestia's face changed. She wore a smile of kindness, and eyes of understanding and caring. It reminded Jack of the smile his mother had given him so many times before. Her look told him that she would make sure that by the end of the trial, he would be free. "Judges, what do you think? Should Jack be allowed to be an Equestrian Citizen, or should he be imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit?"

The judges looked from Celestia to each other, their faces saying what their mouthes weren't. They all turned their eyes upon Jack, who looked into each and every one of their eyes two by two, begging them silently. Just as he finished, and looked down once more, closing his eyes, and waiting for his fate, one of the earth pony judges stood. "I say he would make a fine Equestrian Citizen." Jack's eyes shot open.

A unicorn judge stood then. "I agree. He deserves a better life than he has had." Jack's head snapped up. As every judge voiced their approval of his citizenship, Jack slowly stood up, and by the time the six judges were done, he was in a full standing position. His eyes were so close to tearing up with joy, he was afraid to blink. The only pony left to speak was Celestia, and all eyes turned to her.

With a smile, and the spreading of her wings, Celestia stood up, her horn beginning to glow. "It has been decided then. By the power vested in me, Jack Robert Spade, I hereby name you a citizen of Equestria. Congratulations." Her horn flashed, and the cuffs on Jack's wrists unlocked with a click, and fell to the floor. The look on Jack's face was the same look Celestia had seen on her new apprentice when she had gotten her cutie mark: pure joy. Tears fell from Jack's eyes at that point, the floodgates open, and he threw his hands up in victorious glee.

"Yes! Yes!" He began to do a dance he had done many times before, a dance he liked to call his victory dance. The ponies in the public galleries cheered, some clapping their hooves together. Over the course of the trial, they had come to care for the Human, and wanted him to go free. One more than others. Lyra grinned happily as she watched Jack dancing before Celestia and the judges of the Equestrian High Court, who were all clapping their hooves together as well, smiles upon their faces. She cheered loudly not just at seeing the Human go free, but also at the chance to meet and talk to him. She watched as Jack finished his dance, and pointed playfully at Celestia and the judge, though his words were true. "I promise you, your majesty, and you, judges, you won't regret this! Thank you! Thank you so much!"

Celestia chuckled humbly, and nodded her head at him. "Please, Jack. You are an Equestrian Citizen now. Addressing me as Princess Celestia is perfectly fine." Her horn glowed once more, and an enchanted gavel infront of her knocked loudly. "Trial adjourned!" She proclaimed with a smile. She politely excused herself to the judges, and turned to go back through the doors she had come in through, other important matters to attend to. Jack around to see that some ponies had left through two double doorways which had opened once the trial had been adjourned. The rest of the ponies were cheering him on and pointing towards the doors with their hooves. He smiled, and ran over to the bar, hopping over it, and jogging out of the court room. 

He was able to find his way out of the building easily, following the directions on the walls and signs. Before he knew it, he was in the entrance room, the main doors before him. He opened the doors, and as he did, he took in a breath of fresh air, stepping down the long stairway to the building until he was halfway down. once he was he stopped, and looked around him, looking at the ponies, the streets and buildings of Canterlot, and the blue cloudless sky above him. He stood there with his eyes closed, basking in the warm light of Celestia's sun, not a care in the land.

That is, until the soft hoof of a mint green pony gently poked his hip.

> Chapter Two: Locks
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


“Doors have locks, locks need keys, which you don't have.”


- Cheshire Cat, American McGee’s Alice


        Jack felt the hoof upon his side as plain as the sunlight upon his skin. He turned to look at the pony who had interested him as much as he had interested her, and smiled as he saw the look of awe on her face. Jack hadn’t really noticed before, but since he was a free man and could inspect the finer details of everything around him without worry, he noticed then: Lyra, like all of the other ponies, even the structures and land around them, was semi-realistic. He could see the strands of her multi-coloured mane, and the soft texture of her fur. Her horn looked smooth and softly shined in the light. Her eyes were what captivated him, however. They were just as enchanting as any pair of human eyes he’d ever seen, if not more. He paused and swallowed hard before he spoke, wanting his first words to one of his favourite ponies to be meaningful, but not too extravagant. “Hello, my little pony.” He said with a smile. Cute, and meaningful enough to stick as an occasional nickname, I did a good job with that one. He internally patted himself on the back, watching as Lyra blinked thrice before even thinking of replying.

        Lyra Heartstrings gulped, Jack’s words enticing her as they rolled off of his tongue and slipped from his mouth. A light blush spread across her cheeks as they reached her ears. Not only was it how he said them, but it was the exact words he had chosen: “my little pony.” She hadn’t been called that by any other but her mother. To be called that by a human, a male human nonetheless, made her feel a single butterfly form within her stomach. She cleared her throat, which had become profoundly stuffy as she stood before Jack. She was afraid that her voice wouldn’t sound pleasing to his ears, that he would hate it, and her, after she spoke, but she knew that the only way she could find out was to speak. “Hello...” She felt ashamed. Jack had been able to come up with something charming, and yet all she could muster was a single word.

        Jack held out his hand, gesturing towards her hoof. Another thing to point out as well, was the size Lyra was compared to him. Her face was level with his stomach, which meant that if he stood next to a taller pony, like Princess Celestia, his face would be at the same height as hers, Celestia being only a little taller. Just as he held his hand out however, something very... odd, began to happen. His vision got blurry, as if he had taken off his glasses, and his head hurt worse than it had ever hurt before, and that meant it hurt pretty damn bad. “Whoa...” He put his hand to his temple, and before he even thunk it, he sat down on the steps, Lyra’s eyes widening.

She was worried she had done something wrong. What if she hadn’t said the right words to him? Should she have made him cookies or something first? She remembered reading that female humans gave males offerings of food all the time. But then again, it did say that they only did that for those they cared about, usually in a romantic way. The thought made her blush, but she cast it aside quickly to focus on the situation at hoof. “Wh-what’s wrong? Did I do something to cause it?”

Jack closed his eyes tight and opened them again. “No, you didn’t... My... my head is killing me...” He strained to clear his vision, everything becoming shapes and colours at that point. He swore he heard something in the back of his head, but he couldn’t tell what. All he knew was that it wouldn’t stop repeating something over and over. He shook his head, only making himself dizzy as he did so. “I think I... I just need to lie down for a bit.” And so he did. He lied there upon the steps to the Equestrian High Court, barely able to see, darkness slowly blanketing his vision. It was then that the voice in the back of his head switched to being right in his ears, almost deafening. It was a voice he recognised, but he couldn’t place whom it belonged to. What he did know, was what the voice was saying: his name.

Jack. Once. Jack. Twice. Jack. Thrice. It didn’t stop, even whilst his body went numb, and he fell into a comatose state upon steps in a foreign land of which he had no natural right being in, it droned on inside his head. Jack. Jack.. Jack...

...It’s time to wake up.


AAA



Why can’t I see, what’s in front of me?


Light slowly faded into his vision, turning the inky blackness into pure, blinding white. When it had reached its brightest, Jack opened his eyes, breathing heavily, almost as if he had been legally dead, and was brought back to life. His ears were ringing similarly to how they would from a flash bang. He swallowed hard as the whiteness in his vision slowly faded, and the ringing subsided.

A person faded into his vision, and the audio of their voice finally began to reach his mind. “Whoa-ha-ho dude, you need to calm down, don’t try to get up so fast, you’ll hurt your head.” It was his friend, Shay. Jack was confused as to why he would see his big nordic friend in Equestria, but he then noticed where they were. He was back in his house in Edmonton. In Canada. ...On Earth.

Jack quickly grabbed hold of Shay’s arms, and shook him, Shay’s medium length dirty blonde hair moving around as he did. “Put me back! Put me back, Shay!” Jack couldn’t believe it, after going through his trial, and successfully becoming an Equestrian Citizen, he was ripped from Equestria like a fish out of water. He had done and seen things he never would have dreamed of, and yet the perfect illusion he had been in was shattered before he could fully enjoy it. Earth was the last place he wanted to be at that moment.

Shay slowly took Jack’s hands off his arms, and looked into Jack’s dark chocolate eyes with his own pastel blue ones, seeing all the signs he knew well. He laughed a little. “I can’t put you back brother, not unless the universe gave me some awesome ability to control dreams, or even something cooler, like space and time. That would be sweeeet...” He smiled dopily whilst staring into space, his head in the clouds. His expression returned back to his normal smile before he turned back to Jack. “Anyways, like I said dude, you need to calm down. Freaking out is not going to help you come down any easier.” He sat back on the couch, and started eating some cool ranch chips. “Just relax maan, and everything will go back to normal.”

Jack put his hands on the sides of his head, sitting up on the couch. “How can I relax when I don’t want everything to go back to normal?!” Reality was hitting him hard, and he could barely handle it. “I was somewhere where I’ve always wanted to be, somewhere far away from here. Away from death and war, away from the jerks at work, away from every single one of my ex girlfriends! I had found a new start there, and gotten a clean slate, and... and now it’s gone...” He swallowed hard, and and sighed. It’s gone... It’s gone and I’m never going to be able to go there again unless nothing short of a miracle happens. ...I guess I’m just going to have to face that fact... He rubbed his eyes, getting the sleep out of them, feeling tired as ever. After taking a moment to let everything sink in, he looked up. When he did, he saw his two other friends: Jacob and Reagan. Jacob was relaxing in the recliner with his feet planted on the floor, and Reagan leaned against the wall next to Jacob, holding his forehead and groaning, as if in pain.

Jacob smiled kindly as he saw Jack look at him. “How ya feelin’, broski?” He leaned forward from his tall sitting position. Jacob was only an inch shorter than Shay, who was 6’4”, but unlike Shay, Jacob didn’t have slightly large muscles, instead having an average build, similar to Jack’s. “Probably not too good, I bet. I woke up feeling like I got hit by a train, but you know me, I still got up fast like I always do.” It was true, for Jack had witnessed it before. The second that Jacob wakes up to go somewhere or get ready for work, he shoots out of his bed and gets dressed and ready almost as fast as Klark Kent undresses into Superman.

Reagan grumbled for a few seconds, his slightly long dark brown hair covering his face, and spoke for the first time that morning. His hair, like Jack’s, could be mistaken for black if only looked at for a second or two. “Was it a fucking freight train? Because that’s what your guys voices sound like right now...” It was obvious he had an insane hangover. Normal hangovers usually didn’t bother him, because of how drunk he was almost all the time, so for a hangover to cause him such pain he can barely think, it would have to be a hangover of high magnitude. “Could you guys maybe distribute less sound through your voice boxes whilst still keeping your voices audible enough for just you two to hear each other, please? Thanks.”

Jack rolled his eyes at Reagan’s intelligent words. He’d known Reagan long enough to know that when Reagan was sober, he was highly intelligent. He could do some of the hardest physics and math questions easily, and he could talk his way out of any situation. It was the reason he was such an amazing lawyer, even though he had just graduated from Law School six months before. Jack looked back at Jacob, whose eyes were the same colour as his own, before speaking a bit quietly. “I feel a bit horrible to tell you the truth, my body feels sluggish, and I just got woken up from the greatest dream I ever had.” It was then that a thought it him. If I dreamt of Equestria, then what did the other bros dream about? “Hey, what did you guys all dream about?” He looked at each of his friends as he asked the question.

Reagan was the first one to answer. “You have no idea how spectacular my nighttime hallucination was. I was in a small building, reminiscent of a medieval tavern, loaded with beer, the best beer I had ever tasted. And it was being served to me by a maiden of the utmost beauty, beauty which I simply cannot describe. She was as drunk as I, and in our drunken fervor, we engaged in coitus on every surface in the bar, drinking more and more all the while. It was prodigiously wondrous, to say the very least.” The whole time he spoke he moved his hands in grand gestures, almost as if he was still dreaming as he spoke. When he finished, however, his head was struck with a grand pain once more. “Ah, fuck!” He began to walk towards the kitchen, most likely to make his remedy for hangovers. A remedy that he hadn’t had to use for a while.

“I’ll go next.” Jacob said, sitting forward in his chair, putting his elbows on his knees. “Alright, so, in my dream I woke up in the chamber of a princess. At first she was just as confused as me, and demanded an explanation for why I was there. I told her that to be honest, I didn’t know how I ended up there, and that I was sorry I was there in the first place. She believed me, and called off the guard, and then she started asking me questions about where I was from, and about who I was. I mentioned to her that I was a gamer, and right when I said that, we started talking non-stop about games. It turned out that she was a gamer like us, and we played some games, like Resident Evil. It was pretty cool, if I say so myself. We finished playing some Dead Rising, and we started towards the Library, because she wanted to see if there was any books on where I came from. But then I kinda blacked out, and woke up.”

Shay was the last one to answer, mostly because he was finishing off his bag of chips. Jack swore that he had seen Shay go through at least five bags of cool ranch chips in one day, but Shay told him that he had only had one that day. After that, Jack decided to never question Shay’s eating habits again. After eating the whole bag, Shay put up a finger and pulled a rolled up piece of paper out of his pocket, which he promptly lit and took a drag from. Jack rolled his eyes when he saw it, and chuckled a bit. It was one of the reasons he liked having Shay around: Shay was a pothead. He said some of the weirdest and funniest things because of it, most of them sounding cosmic and prophetic.

Shay blew out the ganja smoke, and smiled. “Much better.” He turned to Jack. “Now then, as for my dream, it was like a dream come true. I was surrounded by babes at every turn. Babes who bended to my every whim after only whispering a few words in their ears. They gathered around me as I explained the inner workings of the universe. I told them of how one day the mighty space whale will come and take us to the Promised Land, and they thought that shit was fuckin’ rad. And then we had some fun times, if you catch my drift.”


Jack rolled his eyes at Shay’s innuendo, and then went back to his own thoughts as he stared at the floor. So from the sounds of it, they all had dreams just as spectacular as mine... Well, perhaps just a tad less spectacular, considering where my dream took place. Their dreams seem at least kind of normal, however, compared to mine. Casting aside the fact that I was in Equestria, I walked through a forest, hitched a ride on a train, got sent to jail, and then went through a trial over a claim that I had assaulted someone. Well, somepony in this case, but still. ...Though, come to think of it, the guys didn’t really say where their dreams took place. Almost as if they don’t know or remember. He looked between Shay and Jacob, and then at Reagan, who walked back into the room with a grimace on his face from the horrible taste of his remedy. Wait... They’ve all told me their stories, but...

Jacob stood up and moved over to the couch, sitting next to Jack, who looked up at him. Jacob simply smiled like he always did, and then asked the exact question Jack thought he was going to. “Well then, tell us broski, what did you dream about?” Little did Jacob know what he was doing in asking his friend that question, for he and his two friends Reagan and Shay were going to be blown away by it’s answer.


Jack swallowed hard. ...I haven’t told them mine. He finished his previous thought, and as he did, the air in the room hung heavy. The air was thick with tension as his three friends waited for his answer. You couldn’t cut through the air in here even if you had a +5 Sword of Air Cutting... He cleared his throat, and then sighed before looking each of his friends in the eyes and subsequently closing his. “I dreamed...” He didn’t know why it was so hard for him to say it, for in his mind, he knew it was a simple answer. It was almost as if just saying it would change his life forever, though he knew that to think in such a way about it was ridiculous. He took a deep breath. “I dreamed that I was in Equestria.”


Glass shattered within the minds of Shay, Reagan, and Jacob. The veil of illusion that had been placed over each of their minds was disintegrated. They all realized simultaneously where their dreams had taken place, for it was the same place that Jack’s had. Through remembering that, they also remembered other things as well. The woman who had served Reagan beer and had participated in coitus with him was none other than Berry Punch. The princess that Jacob met in his dream? None other than the Princess of the Night, Luna. As for Shay, he smoked ganja and fooled around with several mares he didn’t even know the names of. They each looked at each other, and then spoke at the same time, saying the exact same words. “Holy shit.” Jack’s head popped up, his eyes opening as he heard them, wondering why they said that.


Before anyone could say anything else however, Shay spoke once more. “Now just everybody relax, I think I might know what is going on here.” He took another drag from his blunt, and then continued. “Awright, check it, see, when I heard we were going to party, I did some stuff to prepare and to make this party totally fuckin’ awesome. So, not only did I bake ganja into the brownies I brought-” Jack slapped his hand to his forehead. “-but I also put my own special concoction into the drinks I brought you guys, some more than others.” He looked at Jack with an almost sinister smile.


He brought out a bag full of extremely white powder. “This is something I call Unicorn Dust. It’s extremely kaleidoscopic, made from only the most psychedelic plants and chemicals known to man. It’s purpose? To put you under a powerful spell, knocking you out and making you dream of whatever is most prominent on your mind when you take it. It makes the dream ultra tangible, making you feel as if you are actually there.” He saw how amazed his friends were, and knew he had to explain more.


“There is a downside to it, however. Because of the way it alters your mind, whatever happens to you in the dream is simulated on your physical form by your body. In other words, you die in the dream, you die for real.” Shay stopped to take another puff from his blunt, and then looked at the terrified faces of his friends. “I know, right? It’s some pretty scary shit! That, my brochachos, is why I suggested we watch MLP last night.”



AAA



Why can’t I see, what’s in front of me?


After the four friends realised that they all dreamt about the same land because of a drug, they all tried to get back to their normal selves, chilling around Jack’s house and doing their various everyday activities. Shay watched various internet critics on his laptop, laughing maybe harder than most would at the jokes and points the critics made. Jacob played survival horror games, and watched different b-rated horror movies. Reagan, well, Reagan just drank a lot of booze, drinking only from the stock the he had brought himself, afraid to even touch any other bottles. All of the bros were doing fine. All, that is, except one. Jack, who had been given more Unicorn Dust than his compadres, was suffering from post-trip stress. He hadn’t quite come completely down from the state that the hallucinogen had put him in, and because of that, he was having visions. Visions of the door.


I see the doors that I can’t open, adding locks from time to time...


He was walking down the hallway to the bathroom, and there it was, just on his left at the top of the stairs. He reached out to turn the knob and tried turning it, only to find that it wouldn’t turn. His eyes opened wide as a lock appeared right below the knob, almost seeming to form shape from the wood before turning into black oppressive metal. Other locks formed afterwards, chains connecting some. Locks to which he knew he had no keys. Just as the door could not fit anymore locks on it, it disappeared, leaving the wall behind.


When it opens, something blocks me, and I’m asking myself, “Why?” Did I take the step I wanted? Was it just a state of mind? I feel sorry for myself, everytime I close my eyes...


There were times when it was open before him, standing there just as it had in his living room, but instead of the black space it was supposed to hold within, there would be bricks, or even stone, blocking him from entering. He wondered why it wouldn’t let him in, and thought of everything he had done in his dream. He asked himself if he had truly done everything he wanted to do, and only got the same answer every time he did. No. The next time he saw it, he thought that maybe if he imagined it unlocked, open, with nothing blocking him, then it would be as such. It was a futile effort, for no matter how hard he tried, the door stayed the same: locked.


And I fall, into a hole, and I can take no more...



AAA


Jack sat down upon the couch Shay was on, it's cushions so soft they slightly caved in when sat upon. He looked over to Shay, melancholy written thickly all over his face. “Bro, it's not good, it's not good at all... The door keeps staring at me, taunting me because I can't enter it. I want to enter it again, man... I don't want to leave it, that place... The place we've always wanted to be…” He was wringing his wrists all the while that he had spoke, and his eyes constantly shifted from his Nordic friend to a place on the wall, one shaped almost perfectly like a door because of the pictures around it.

Shay shook his head, knowing how looney Jack was sometimes. “Jack... You gotta understand, staying there would involve complete chemical displacement. Your mind, heck, your very being would have to be displaced from your physical form. They would leave your body to move to the universe beyond the door, man. You get it? You'd be pushing up black roses, brah.” Shay needed to say it in the simplest way he could, and so he had to lower his level of philosophical mojo whilst he spoke. It was then however that he realised that he was the one who addled his friend's brain to the point it was at in that moment. “But... If you really, really, really, are sure you understand what staying there means, and yet you still want to go, then I won't stop ya, that's just not the whale prophet's way... There's more in my bag upstairs.”

The look on Jack's face was one of newfound hope, he looked as though he had seen a miracle happen right before his very eyes. He quickly rushed from his sitting position to a jog towards the stairs. He went past Reagan, who was entering the room. Reagan raised a brow at Jack's passing of him, and sat next to Shay. “Where the bloody hell is he going?” He asked shortly after looking at Shay's partially dopey face. Shay merely shrugged his shoulders, acting innocent, and took a long hit from his bong, which could shrink into a coffee cup. It was a bong from one of Shay and Jack’s favourite movies, that they geeked out about when they first got it.

Jacob was next to walk into the room, pointing around. “Where's Jackbro at?” The other two shrugged their shoulders together, and Jacob knew they only did that when they truly were lost or agreed on something. Jacob turned to go after Jack, but was shortly stopped by Jack running into him lightly before sitting in his throne-like seat like a Jarl from Skyrim. In one of his hands was a black pipe with gold accents, it looked like an Egyptian or Persian  artefact of some kind, which was the exact reason he had customised it that way. In the other hand he had the bag of ever tantalising Unicorn Dust. He opened the bag of Dust, and began to take some out. He smashed it into the bowl of his pipe, mixing it with the ganja that was there as well. He took a box lighter out and lit it before he looked back at his mostly surprised friends.

“Let's fucking do this shit! Für Ihre Gesundheit!” He began to smoke his bowl expertly, even Shay's mouth opening at the technique, because it was one of his own. After the bowl was completely devoid of any drugs, he looked at the bag of dust and grabbed a handful, which he began to stuff into his mouth, his nose bleeding lightly. Reagan and Jacob went to stop him, but when they grabbed his arms, it was already too late. His head hung low, and his arms were limp, last words slipping from his lips. “Join... me…”

Jacob sighed and shook his head, but still looked calm and accepting. “I better go with him, so he doesn't get in any trouble. I am basically his older brother after all. Besides, it's Equestria, who doesn't want to go there?” He smiled at Reagan and Shay, before he curiously took a couple handfuls, and ate them. “Huh, tastes kinda like... sweet tarts…” His nose began to bleed like Jack's, and he started to slowly lose consciousness. “See you... there... broskis…” He fell back onto the couch, and looked like he had gone to sleep, his hands in permanent finger guns, two clicking sounds leaking from his mouth as his breath left his body.

Reagan turned to Shay from Jacob's body, to see whale prophet already in the same state as Jacob, Dust coating his nasal cavities as well as his nose. He looked at each of them, seeming a little pissed. “Fuck, I guess I gotta go too. These little shits usually get into crazy stuff one way or another, and I'm the only one who can get them out of it…” He reached into his bag on the floor, pulling out a highly ornamented box, but he stopped before he opened it, because the words he had said only then made him see something. “...Fuck, it really is like I'm their dad... Damn it.” He opened the box, two bottles being found there.

The story behind the bottles was one he had only told once to his friends. They were full of the greatest alcoholic drink he had ever had. He said that if he knew his time was coming soon, he would drink one, and take the other with him to the grave. He opened one and took a small tasting swig, his face slightly blissful. “That's some gooood shit.” He then poured the right amount of Dust into the bottle, before he downed it in less than twenty seconds, beating his previous record by four. He took one last look at his friends,  grasping the full bottle tightly before he shut his eyes.


AAA


It was then that he saw his friends once again, but standing outside of their bodies, in ghost-like forms. He stood up with them, bottle surprisingly still in hand. Words he had said many times before in different ways emanated from his spirit lips. “You look like faggots.” They all heard a rumbling, and looked at the fireplace to see it become a door made up of different woods, gems, and metals, plant life growing on and around it. Many vines were across it, moving around, alive. It looked awe-shockingly beautiful in that moment. And what could only be described as the sounds of life echoed forth from it.

Jack was the first to walk up to it. He grasped the knob, and looked back at his friends. “We've been killing time our whole lives waiting for a moment such as this... Now we go... Ex ignorantia ad sapientiam, ex tenebras ad luce.” He turned the knob with a grin bigger than any grin he had ever had before. As he pushed it open a white light spilled forth, one which entangled them and blanketed them, blinding them completely.


From the farthest reaches of the white space, a loud and deep bloop resounded throughout the light, changing it’s colour, blanketing life in a sea of dark blue mystery.


The Four began to sink under it, being suctioned down by funnels that had been formed for them. 



And swifter than the light had come, everything became...





...absolutely, indomitably, ultimately...






...dark.

> Chapter Three: Safe and Sound
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


“I could lift you up. I could show you what you wanna see, and take you where you wanna be.
You could be my luck.


Even if the sky is falling down, I know that we'll be safe and
sound.”


- Safe and Sound, Capital Cities





        Darkness. Perpetually has the dark been portrayed as something malevolent or malefic in the eyes of many. But the stygian and the tenebrous are not ultimately things of pure vile and malice. Though it is rare to see, the absence of light can indeed be, in and of itself, an entity that is rather benevolent. Darkness should not be so often standardized or established as an infernal device, for in fact it can be just as divergent as another element of existence, time. Most think time is like a river that flows swift and sure in one direction. They are wrong. Time is an ocean in a storm. There are many different ways that time is perceived. Some feel days are short, others think days are long, and then there are folk who feel as though the length of a day is somewhere in between short and long, to various degrees. The thought of darkness as something evil is just as much a staple as the thought that time only flows in one direction. They are cliche, stereotypical thoughts generated by a banal, nyctophobic society, a type of society which is more common than it needs to be. The true point of the matter is that, while one person may distinguish something one way, it does not necessarily mean that that is the only way that the entity in question may be discerned.

        As Jack fell through the caliginous abyss he had fallen in once before, he felt as though time was slowed to a minuscule fraction of it's normal speed. He did not see any of his friends. He did not see anything for what felt like an hour or more, and he began to wonder what was transpiring. He wondered if he was returning to Equestria, or if he had simply entered a state of existence in which he resided in a pitch black plane of nothingness and emptiness. Just after those thoughts had passed through the recesses of his mental areas however, that was when he heard a voice. One that had become familiar to him. It was that voice that he grasped onto, his mind, body, and soul latching onto it for dear life, and in latching onto it unlocked the final lock that he had needed the key to. It was the voice of Lyra Heartstrings. Every syllable that she spoke resonated in his being, and brought him closer to where he wanted to be. The land he had given nearly everything else up for.


AAA


        Jack shot up from the steps, his eyes opening as if a light switch had been pulled in his mind, and he breathed heavily, feeling lightheaded. He shook his head, trying to shake off every single tingle that was running through his body, and then quickly got to looking around, the first thing to enter his vision being the form of the pony who had helped him access Equestria once again. His vision cleared from the hazy state it had been in when he awoke, and he looked Lyra in the eyes, remaining silent. They both remained still for a quite spell before either of them made any discernible reaction to the long stare that they were sharing. Lyra was the first, her reaction being that of a slowly spreading scarlet veil across her cheeks. She swallowed hard, and spoke once more, her voice bringing all of sound back to Jack's hearing as she did. “A-Are you okay?” She couldn't help but worry about him, feeling as though she may have caused him to feel such a way.

        Jack blinked for the first time since he woke up, and reached under his glasses to rub at his eyes. “Yeah... Yeah, I'm okay.” He stopped rubbing his eyes and pushed his glasses up on his nose before he looked at Lyra, and then Canterlot around them. I made it... I'm safe and sound in Equestria once again... “I'm way better than okay, in fact.” He slowly got to his feet, some of his bones cracking and stinging, as if he had been completely motionless for hours on end. He turned to Lyra once more, and couldn't help but crack a genuinely happy smile, which he rarely did. He slowly reached over to the top of her head, and pet her mane gently, it's very texture making the nerves upon his fingers dance with delight, knowing that it was the texture of a pony's mane. Lyra Heartstrings' mane. The pony in question blushed a bit more deeply than before at the fingers that had then begun to coddle her mane. Jack looked at her mane in what seemed like a trance. “Your mane is so beautiful...”

        The mint green pony looked away shyly at the compliment. “Th-Thank you...” She didn't get compliments too often, especially not from another species. The only griffon she had met was rude and brash, and only insulted her. And yet before her stood a human, and he was complimenting her. She bit her lip for a second, and then vocalized once again. “I don't get compliments like that often.” More like never... She said in her mind, not wanting Jack to know that.

        Jack snapped out of his trance at her last words, and blushed a bit before quickly pocketing his hand. “S-Sorry, did I say that out loud? ...Let's forget that I did.” He looked away just as Lyra had before, taking a deep breath to calm himself, before his gaze returned to her direction, and he quickly changed the subject before things got even more awkward than they already were. “So, what were we talking about before I passed out? How long was I out, by the way?”

        Lyra didn't feel offended by his dismissal of his compliment, for she was able to tell that he had only dismissed it because he was just as shy as her. She raised a brow to the latter of his questions. “You weren't really passed out, from what I saw. You lied down on the steps for only a few seconds, I... I said your name, and then you woke up.” She speculated just how long those seconds had been to him. “As for what we were talking about, well... We hadn't really been talking about anything.” She looked away shyly, still thinking that things were her fault.

        The darkly dressed human felt a little bad. He hadn't even had an actual conversation with her before he passed out. “I apologize for that. Since you know my name, how about you tell me yours?” He knew he had to keep at least some guise that he didn't know nearly everything about Equestria. He looked forward and saw a sign that he was able to read surprisingly. It was a post with multiple arrows upon it that pointed to different parts of the city. He could just make out the arrow that read 'Library'. A notion thrust itself into his mind, and he couldn't ignore it. “How about we wal- er, trot to the Library, and on the way, you can ask me whatever you like?”

        “My name is Lyra, Lyra Heartstrings.” She nodded to his offer of walking soon after she had told him her name, and as soon as she did, she saw a smile return to his mouth once more. He began to walk, and she watched as his legs carried himself forward, no need to use his hands, just like she had read about. She trotted alongside him, and thought of all the things she could ask him, before deciding on one that had been in her head ever since Jack had spoken at the trial. “The land you come from... The one with other humans. Is... Is it really as bad as you said it was?” She never read anything in her studies about humans being as unkind as he had said they were.

        Jack inhaled sharply at her question, but let the air out slowly before he answered. “Well... I'm probably not the best person to ask that question. I have my own reasons for viewing my land the way I do, experiences that I would much rather destroy my memories of rather than keep. My life in my land had quite a lot of bad moments. I guess it's just my mindset though... I focus on the bad more than the good. I'm sure there was probably just as many good moments in my life as there was bad ones, but with the way I am, I take every bad moment as worse than normal. ...At least, that's what Reagan, one of my friends, told me. Not sure if I believe him...”

        Lyra trotted along next to him in silence for a couple of minutes. I can't help but feel bad for him, he really seems to have had a hard life where he comes from. She let her eyes wander up and down his body, analyzing it's structure before changing the subject of their discussion. “Well... Tell me about your friends. You did not mention much of what they were like during the trial besides saying that they were some of the good humans.” She hoped that learning about Jack's friends would allow her to learn more about humans as a whole. Well, the benevolent humans anyways. “What are they like, and what do you usually do together?”

        Jack continued to follow the pink wooden signs that appeared every now and then, slowly leading Lyra and himself towards the Canterlot library. “The guys? Well...” He'd never been asked to describe his friends before, and he had to figure out how to explain them to her in ways she would understand, her not being a human and all. “We'll start with Reagan, the guy I just mentioned. He's a heck of a lawyer back in our land, he always won every single case he ever accepted, and he made sure that justice was dealt swiftly and honourably. That's just one side of him, though. The other side, well... Tell me Lyra, do you know what a drunkard is?”

        Lyra was in awe as she listened to Jack explain the sober side of Reagan. She didn't expect Jack to be friends with a lawyer, especially not one as good as he spoke of. At his last words, she raised a brow. She was confused as to why he was asking if she knew what a drunkard was. Does he not think there is alcohol in Equestria? ...Then again, I was thinking there wasn't any alcohol in his land. She shook her head with a smile at how silly she was being. “Of course I know what a drunkard is. One of my best friends is one. She owns the oldest bar in Ponyville.” She snickered, thinking about the pony she spoke of and how crazy she got sometimes.

        Jack hummed at her quick affirmation of knowing what a drunkard was. As she spoke of having a best friend who was one, and owned a bar in Ponyville, he had a pretty good idea of who it could have been. “Huh... Well anyways, yeah. Reagan has another side to him, his drunk side. He likes to drink a lot whenever he's not on the job, because when he's drunk he doesn't think so much about things, and his mind can relax. Again, that's something he told me. Other than that, well, he looks out for me and our other friends whenever he can. It's kinda like he's our dad, in a way.” Jack thought it was rather funny that he would say such a thing, because Reagan always insisted that they don't call him dad.

        “Then you have Shay, who's... Do you have stoners in Equestria, too? Actually, never mind that question. Basically, all you need to know about Shay is that he eats a lot, uses plants for more than decoration and food, and most of what he says sounds like he's a priest of some weird made up religion about whales in space.” He chuckled to himself at his description of Shay, because it was simple and yet spot on. “But really, he's a cool guy who just wants to make everybody happy and have fun. He told me once that his dream is to somehow make everyone in the world smile, and let me tell you, I've seen him make even the meanest looking guys crack a smile.”

        The mint green pony at Jack's side listened on to his descriptions of his friends, smiling as she watched him move his hands around as he was explaining things. She thought he looked like a stand-up comedian almost. She thought that the way Jack thought of Reagan as a father figure was rather nice, and she could relate in a way, because of her group of friends, Time Turner was the father figure. As she listened to him explain Shay, she was confused at first, because indeed she had never heard of a 'stoner' before. But as Jack went on with his explanation, she understood that whatever a stoner was, it couldn't be that bad of a thing. Jack's friends sounded rather nice so far, and she hoped she'd get to meet them someday. “Is there anypony else?”

        Jack nodded to her, looking back to the path in front of them as he spoke. “Last but not least, there's Jacob, who...” His mouth dropped at just what he was witnessing before his very eyes. “...is walking out of the library right now with the princess of the night.” Lyra looked forward quickly at his words, and undeniably saw another human in front of her, along with Princess Luna. Jack's jaw was not the only one that had dropped at that point. Jack began to jog up towards the two, and Lyra followed, curious as ever. “Jacob, by Celestia's beard, is that really you?”

        Jacob's day had continued right where it had left off when he told Jack and his friends about his dream. He, like Jack, had passed out on the way to the library with Luna. Luna had the castle doctor take a look at him, and made the doctor promise to mention Jacob to her sister, not knowing of the trial for Jack. After the doctor, to the best of his abilities, pronounced that Jacob was perfectly okay, the pair continued towards the library, talking of video games and the like all the while. Luna had read up on some of the legends about humans. Jacob disproved and explained ones that she asked him about, and answered every other question she had asked him.

        Some of Luna's questions were similar to the ones Lyra had asked Jack, except more quizzical in nature, Luna wanting to learn everything she could about humans as quickly as possible. He himself had been looking at some books about Equestria, grabbing one and checking it out under Luna's name. As the tall shaggy haired human was walking out of the library, the last thing he expected to see or hear was Jack coming towards him. “Broski!” He caught his friend in a brotherly hug, and ruffled his hair a little. “It's good to see ya!” He set his goth friend down, who quickly fixed his hair the way he always did when it got out of shape, which made Jacob chuckle.

        It was Luna's turn to be both confused and surprised. “I did not expect to see another of your kind so soon, Jacob.” She looked Jack over once, only needing to do so one time to get all the information she needed. The dark clothing, the long hair, the glasses and pale skin, it all was very familiar to her from words she had heard not very long before. “Hm... You are Jack, are you not? Jacob told me of you. Tell me, why do you say my sister has a beard?” She had to hold back a snicker at the words, trying to remain at least slightly formal. The thought of her sister with a beard was one that she found rather amusing, and she would definitely use it in a prank sometime.

        Jack turned his head slowly in a nervous shambling way to Luna as she addressed him, gulping as he did so. I totally forgot she was standing there! His eyes were wide as he looked back into hers, her flowing mane that resembled the night sky in his peripheral vision. He took a deep breath, and quickly got down on one knee, getting in the stance a knight gave to his king or queen. “I am indeed the one known as Jack, your majesty. As for my words of your sister having a beard, it was merely an expression of surprise, and I apologize if it angered you in any way.” He was being just as formal as he had been in his trial, if not more. “It is an honour to meet you.”

        Luna smiled at Jack's formalities, a little surprised at them, but pleasantly so. Her horn lit up with magic, and she made him stand up straight once again with a few simple magical sparkles around his body. “While it is quite nice to know that you respect me so highly, the formalities are not necessary, Jack. But thank you, none the less. It is an honour to meet you as well.” She turned back to Jacob with a smile. “Well, I won't take up any more of your time, I learned quite a great deal from what you've told me. If I have any further questions, I will send a letter to you. Have fun, you three. So long as it doesn't mean getting into trouble. Now if you will excuse me, I am off to rest before it is time for my duties to begin.”

        Lyra couldn't help but look at Jacob in wonderment, his height a sight to behold to her. She didn't know humans could be so tall. She looked between the two humans, comparing them and noting their differences. Her mind was ablaze with all of the information she had learned about humans and all of the information she was learning in so short an amount of time about them. She looked Jacob in the eyes. “My name is Lyra. And your name is Jacob? ...I didn't know humans had such strange names. Hm...” She placed a hoof on her chin as she trotted around the two. “This is so interesting, and not to mention exciting! I'd studied about humans before, but to meet not only one, but two! That's an opportunity I've only ever dreamed of.”

        She smiled widely at the two, who looked at her in much the same way she was looking at them, and stopped in her tracks, beginning to blush. “Oh, um, sorry, I got a little carried away there, didn't I?” She laughed nervously, rubbing the back of her head with a hoof. I've got to keep a hold of myself, I'm getting a bit too excited about this, and I don't want to give them the impression that I'm a weirdo. ...Even though that's what a lot of ponies think about me. She remembered being made fun of by other ponies when she was younger for writing stories about meeting humans, and believing they were real. If they could see me now! They would be the weirdos!

        Jacob smiled back at the mint green pony, and waved at her, making her watch his fingers in awe. “Yeah, that's me, Jacob. You can call me Jake, if you want.” He looked to Jack with a smirk, and Jack rolled his eyes, knowing exactly what Jacob was thinking. It's funny that Jack would meet his favourite background pony first. It makes me wonder where Vinyl is. Actually, that makes me think of something else, too! “Hey, broski, you know where Shay and Reagan are?” He thought back to the dreams that the two had spoke of, and realized that they could literally be anywhere.

        Jack had been thinking the same thing, but he thought a bit differently than Jacob. “Wherever they are, they're most likely close to each other. Those dudes are never far behind each other, know what I mean?” Jack then remembered something Lyra had told him just minutes before. “...But I think I have an idea of where we can find them.” He quickly turned to Lyra, who looked back at him. “Lyra, you said you have a friend who's a drunkard back in Ponyville, right? What's her name?” Jack was hoping his deductive reasoning would once again help him out just like it had in the past when he played L.A. Noire with Jacob.

        Lyra at first raised a brow, confused as to where Jack was going with his reasoning, but decided to go with it. He had surprised her thus far, she didn't think he was going to stop. “Her name is Berry Punch.” She wondered just what her light plum coloured friend was doing in that moment, but shrugged that thought off, knowing that it was most likely what she was always doing: drinking. She often pondered just how Berry owned a bar when she drank more than she sold. Time Turner always told her it was part of the way that Berry knew how to play the game when it came to buying and selling, but Lyra wasn't too sure about that.

        Jack turned to Jacob, snapping his fingers on his left hand and pointing at Jacob between the snaps. “Jacob, remember what Reagan's dream was about? Remember the details he had said about the maiden he spoke of. Doesn't that sound a lot like Berry Punch? Think about it, she's a drunkard, and she owns a bar, plus, I'm guessing that through Reagan's drunken eyes, she looked pretty damn hot, too. You know, it's the Female Bartender Effect I told you about, where a female acquires circumstantial hotness due to her location?” He hoped that Jacob would pick up on his implications.

        Jacob put his hand to his chin, holding it between his thumb and index finger. He thought about it few a little bit, and then his face was one of surprise. “Jackbro, are you suggesting that Reagan and maybe even Shay are both in Ponyville?” He hummed in thought. “I remember seeing the way to the Train Station from the Castle while me and Luna were heading here from it, there should be a train there to Ponyville.” He then remembered the book in his hand. “Oh yeah! Here ya go, broski.” He held it out to his goth friend. “It's a book about all the creatures in Equestria, I figured you would want to read something like that, considering your love of lore.”

        Jack took the book from Jacob carefully, and looked at it in an almost awe-inspired way. It held at least three hundred pages, which were bound in a thick orange cloth hardcover, midnight black letters engraved upon it, reading, 'Encyclopaedia of Equestrian Creatures: Edition VII'. He opened it to observe that the pages were cloth as well, all information carefully inked upon them. They seemed to glow a light blue almost, and he wondered why until he read some of the fine print, where he saw 'Waterproof Enchantment by Tome Binder'. Jack swallowed hard and looked back to his friend. “Jacob, I don't know what to say. ...Thank you.”

        Lyra was the first to break him out of his trance. “Well, come on, we don't want to miss our chance to catch a train to Ponyville!” She smiled at the thought of heading back home, but at the same time, she was smiling at the exciting chance to meet even more humans. This is so awesome! She could barely keep her zeal internal, a squee being released from her throat as she continued to smile. Normally she would have blushed at making such a cute sound in front of the two, but she was filled with too much fervour to care in that moment.

        Jacob snickered a little at the blush that Jack had upon his cheeks at Lyra's squee, knowing his friend found it much cuter than he did. He cleared his throat. “Alrighty, follow me.” He began to lead them through Canterlot without much trouble, surprising Lyra a bit, but not Jack. Jacob was always good at finding his way somewhere, Jack knew that from experience. It was one of the reasons he knew it would be good to have Jacob around whilst they travelled the Equestrian landscape. Jack felt a little constricted whilst they walked the roads, however.

        Jack, unlike Jacob, did not like to follow direct paths to the places he needed to go. He had a wanderlust that was typical of someone like him who played role-playing games so much. Sure, he had to admit that following the more solid path did get him to places faster, but at the same time he would say that it let him discover less, that there are more experiences to be found on the paths less travelled. It did not bother him too much, it was just that he couldn't help but feel he had an itch he couldn't scratch as the different roads and shops in Canterlot sparked his interest.

        Before Jack knew it, they were at the train station once more. Looking around at it reminded him of the first pony he met. Just as that thought crossed his mind, his eyes then stopped, widening. The very pony in question, Daisy Axel II, was trotting straight up to them, her conductor hat on her head, just like it had been when he first met her. She nodded with a smile. “Arvo, I figured I might see you again.” She hummed at seeing how nervous Jack seemed, looking away from her. “Now look, I just want you ta know I don't hold any bad feelings toward ya. I just want to wish ya good luck on your adventures. Oh, and don't be afraid to list me as one of your mates when getting a train ticket, that'll usually get you a grouse discount.”

        Jack was a little surprised at how kind Daisy was being to them, and a little confuse by some of the Aussie Slang she seemed to be using. Really, he'd only been nervous because he thought she was going to make fun of the way he'd cried in front of her. “Wow... Th-Thanks, Daisy.” He smiled a little. “You're a good pony. Good luck to you too.” He scratched the back of his head, looking over at Lyra and Jacob, who both smiled at him and nodded. “Hey, er, we were hoping that we could catch a ride to Ponyville, are there any trains in the station that are heading there right now?” He hoped they wouldn't have to wait too long.

        Daisy grinned with a small chuckle. “You're tinny you got here when you did, this ripper girl right behind me is heading there in five minutes! She's one of our best, as well, she'll give you a ride that'll be totally ace!” She turned to look at the train behind her as she spoke, beaming all the while. “She's got the newest public model of the axles me family is known for, providing a quick and smooth ride like no other train can give ya.” She then turned back to the humans and pony behind her. “Course, she won't give ya as good a ride as the train I conduct, but maybe one day you'll get to ride Sheila if you're tinny enough.” She smirked at them. “Go ahead and get on, I'll mark you down as passengers. All you gotta do if you're asked is say your names.”

        Jack silently told Jacob and Lyra to head on into the train with a wave of his hand, and after they were inside, he walked forward a little and knelled down, wrapping his arms around Daisy once again, just like he had that very morning. “Thank you, Daisy. I'll never forget this.” He took his arms from around her with a blush, and quickly hurried into the train, waving goodbye to the conductor pony, who also had a blush on her own cheeks. She smiled and waved back, before she saw him slip away further into the train.

        While searching for an empty compartment in the train, Jacob looked at Jack with a sly face, which made Jack grumble in peevish embarrassment. Lyra chuckled a little at Jack's grumbling, but at the same time, felt a little envious. She wanted a hug from Jack too, but she knew she had to keep such feelings and thoughts to herself. She didn't want to embarrass herself or seem strange. Little did she know, Jack was wondering something similar, wanting to know what it would be like to hug Lyra. He as well did not want to weird her out or perturb himself. They were both shaken out of their thoughts by Jacob's voice. “Found one!”

        All three of them looked into the compartment as Jacob opened the doors. It looked rather comfortable and pleasant, the window curtains a rose red, as well as the beds and pillows, whilst the walls were a calming dove white. The only problem was, there was only two beds. Jacob looked at Jack once more, and Jack rolled his eyes. “Ugh, stop looking at me like that, Jacob...” Little did Jack, let alone Lyra or Jacob, know what was to transpire on their train ride to Ponyville.


AAA


It was after midnight as the train made it's way to Ponyville. The three had gotten snacks from the vendor that travelled to each of the open compartments every couple of hours with bits that Luna had given to Jacob. They talked about various subjects, like video games, which Lyra did not know much about since she had not played too many. But as the night began to go on, the two humans fell asleep, Jacob stretched out across his bed, and Jack scrunched up on his bed to give Lyra the rest of it's room. Jack had fallen asleep after Jacob, reading the book he had gotten from him.

        Lyra yawned as she looked at the two, feeling rather tired herself. She looked at the pillow that Jack had given her, one of the two that his bed had, and thought it looked pretty inviting in that moment. She blinked slowly, clenching her eyes tightly and trying to fight off her urge to sleep just a little bit longer. She crawled as well as a pony could up to look at the page that Jack's book had been left open at, seeing a picture of a Griffon. She put the bookmark on the page before she closed it for him and set it on the fold out table next to the bed.

        It was then that she looked at Jack, finally able to admire his features without him thinking she was strange. She noted his thin but slightly wide lips, and how the slope of his nose suck out a bit further than Jacob's did, thought Jack's nose was a bit smaller. But what he attention was quickly drawn to, was his hands, which had long nimble looking fingers that gripped different parts of the bed, almost as if Jack was afraid he was going to float away. She chuckled a little under her breath at the thought. She looked at his eyes to make sure they were closed, and then over at Jacob to make sure of the same thing, before she quickly gave Jack's shoulder a nuzzle.

        Just as she was turning back around to lie down, she heard Jack mumble something in his sleep, before his arms slowly wrapped around her waist, making her cheeks turn a deep scarlet as she gasped quietly. She felt him start to pull her close, and she let herself go a little limp so he could do it easier. She was soon lying next to him, her head next to his on the pillow, his arms snugly around her. One of his hands rubbed her stomach, whilst the other merely rested on her chest. The whole while, she breathed a little heavily, extremely embarrassed. Nopony's ever held me like this before... She swallowed hard, keeping her gulp silent, but then slowly started to relax, enjoying how it felt lying next to his sleeping form, safe in his arms.

        ...And I like it.
> Chapter Four: With A Little Help From My Friends
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


“Oh, I get by with a little help from my friends,


mm, going to try with a little help from my friends,


oh, I get high with a little help from my friends,


yes, I get by with a little help from my friends,


with a little help from my friends.”


- With A Little Help From My Friends, The Beatles


        Rapid acceleration of the drubbing of the cardiac muscle was something to be expected in the manner of scene Jack was trapped in. He was blanketed in a feeling of extreme paranoia and repression, the likes of which he'd only known once before. It had been when he constructed a provisional straightjacket to familiarize himself with just what it would feel like to be in one. He had put it on, only to discover that he had made a near death-trap like bondage gear for himself, for it got tighter with every struggle he made to get out of it. Soon, it had gotten to the point where it slightly hurt to breathe. Luckily, it had not tightened any further than that.

        But where Jack was, and what he was wearing, those were trivial things in the situation at hand. All he knew was that he was in the same clothes he had went to sleep in, and that he was trapped in a hallway made of black stone. Torches with purple flames gave patches of light to the otherwise pitch black tunnel. Indiscernible echoes whistled through the tunnel, along with cold winds, winds which put out a torch behind him every now and again. He lay on the floor of the hallway, unable to move. It was as if something was holding him there, something unable to be seen or heard. He could not even breathe. That was a fact that disturbed him the most. His insides ached dreadfully with excruciating pain, desiring oxygen, and yet, he was alive and well. Such a thing was not possible, at least as far as he knew.

        He laid there in silence for what felt like hours, before it felt like a thousand pounds was lifted from his body. The first thing his body did was swallow air and cough, the ability to breathe coming back to it. But though he could breathe, he found he could not speak. When he tried, it was as if he never had a voice box to begin with, vocal chords nonexistent. His body felt weak, as though it had never moved before. He crawled against the wall, willing his muscles to work as he knew they should. Slowly, he picked himself up off of the floor, using the wall for support. His muscles came back to him, but they were still rather weak. He meagerly grasped a torch from it's sconce on the wall, and began to shamble forth, choosing to move forward in the direction he had been pointing when he was bound against the floor.

        The torches he passed went out just as soon as he reached them, but he was able to find solace in the fact that the torch he held seemed to be resistant to the winds that blew ever coldly through the tunnel. It wasn't until he reached a dead end that it finally did go out, his eyes widening in the darkness, and his heart skipping a beat. It was not that he was afraid of the darkness, for he knew that would be a thought rather ridiculous. No, he was afraid of not being able to see. He wouldn't know if something was behind him unless he was able to hear it. The very thought made his heart pound faster. A loud sound resounded throughout the tunnel from behind him, and when it finally reached him, he had prepared himself for it.

        The wall in front of him that originally meant a dead end, was instead a doorway, the stones separating as if by magic. What was revealed to him was a room with a singular platform in the centre, a wooden bridge leading from the tunnel over to it. Unlike what he would expect however, the wood was not rickety or weak, it was instead firm and strong, able to take his weight easily. With every step he took, he got closer to the platform, lit by four large steel torches, like a medieval lamp of a sort, he thought. In the centre of the platform was a fountain. The words Prince of Persia ran through his head over and over again.

        He walked forward just a bit longer, before falling down in front of the fountain. It was ironic that it was a fountain, for as soon as he hit the floor, a curse of dryness hit his body. He swore his blood had turned to sand. Summoning all of the strength he could, he forced himself up from the floor of the platform, and to the fountain, where he dropped his head in, feeling it sink in much deeper than he had though it would. He was suddenly forced into it, purple water surrounding him. But as he looked around in the purple void, he felt his head beginning to hurt, beyond any pain it had ever felt before.

        He grasped his skull, screaming in the water, feeling as though his head had split right in half, and yet he was still alive to feel all of the pain that went along with such a horrible thing. Visions were thrown into his head, visions of a bustling city which changed colours every other second, visions of him and his friends doing things and travelling, even visions of battles grand and small. But the one that shot straight into his mind like a shotgun blast was the vision of her. She was all around him, all he could see, feel, or hear, and his heart felt like it was hammering against his ribcage, his body convulsing every which way. She was all he could breathe for what felt like an hour, but as quickly as the vision had come, it was gone, and a familiar laugh echoed in his ears as constricting tendrils pulled him into an inky abyss below.

        Well well well, you have quite the interesting future, I must say. Who am I, you, along with the readers of this story, must be asking? Well, I'm afraid you, as well as them, will just have to wait and find out. There's no fun ruining a surprise. Until then...


AAA


        ...wake up.

        Jack awoke with a start, the words echoing throughout his head. He looked around him in the compartment, the faces of Jacob and Lyra being the first to things he set his eyes on. His breathing was ragged and in short bursts, and his body was shuddering in shock. His head still hurt all the same, just like it had in his dream, and he grasped at it again. “Oh fuck, oh fuck does this hurt!” He swore twice in a row, his eyes squeezed shut as he sat leaning against the wall of the train compartment in pain. He could barely hear himself think over the immense suffering he was struck with. He swore he could still hear that voice laughing, and it drove him looney.

        Jacob and Lyra looked at each other in confusion, and but simply shrugged before the turned back to look at their pain afflicted friend. Lyra was the first to speak, placing a hoof on Jack's shoulder. “Jack, what's wrong? Can we help in some way?” She bit her lip, wondering once again if something was her fault. She had been the first to awake, even though she was the last one to sleep. She tried to move and get up, but shortly realized that Jack was still holding onto her tightly, and her cheeks were once again painted scarlet. She used her magic to open up his arms so she could wiggle free, and set them down when she was able to sit up. She heard him mumbling something about a prince, and thought about waking him up, but decided to let him sleep. As she watched Jack sitting in pain, she couldn't help but feel bad for making that decision.

        Jack only grumbled loudly, before he barely got out a sentence. “Please be quiet, your voice hurts my skull right now...” He swallowed hard, feeling the pain slowly go down, but throbbing every now and then. “I think I got a migraine somehow... Gah, fuck, it feels like somebody was crawling around in there and left by punching a hole out...” He finally opened his eyes and looked over at Lyra, his eyes feeling like they were aching with every throb he felt in his head. “Ugh, sorry if my telling you to be quiet was rude, it's just... fucking fuck my head hurts...” He continued to use the same swear word he had before. Jacob and the other guys swore it was his catchphrase sometimes, as much as he said it.

        It was then that they felt the train slowing down, hearing the sound of the breaks against the tracks beneath them. From the window, they could hear the sounds of ponies talking and trotting. Jacob and Jack looked at each other, speaking without even saying anything. The look they shared spoke of the building excitement within them at that moment, and they quickly got out, straightening their clothes out, and putting on their shoes. Jack grabbed his book an glasses, and followed Jacob out the doors to their cabin, Lyra following Jack all the while. They slowly made their way out, Jack hopping on his feet in impatience as the ponies in front of them filed out one by one.

        Jacob was the first of them out, as was expected, and stood off to the side of the door, his eyes lighting up and his jaw dropping as he looked before him. Jack did much the same as Jacob, but his mouth hung open a bit wider than his spiky haired friend's did. Lyra noticed a single tear making it's way down Jack's right cheek as she trotted over to the two from the train door. She looked out the same direction they did, raising a brow. Jacob was the first to speak. “We did it, broski. We made it.” He put an arm around his goth friend. “My Nabroleon Dynamite, we're in Ponyville.”

        Undeniably, it was an absolute fact that they were standing right before the town of Ponyville, every building before their eyes seeming to glow with an air of wonder and amazement, geek goggles on both of their sets of eyes. They marvelled at the way it looked before them, everything having a texture, as if it was actually made of something, instead of being masses of colours, the sun pouring a slightly white-golden light down upon it all, allowing them to admire the wood and bricks put into the architecture before their very optics. From the Town Hall all the way to the Carousel Boutique, every building in Ponyville was before their very eyes, and it made both of their hearts pound with adrenaline fuelled excitement. Jack swallowed hard, his throat making an audible gulp as he did so. “We are. We really are.”

        Lyra shook her head with a smile at the two, chuckling lightly at how silly they seemed to her. “Well, we're not going to get anywhere if we stand here all day, guys.” She started to trot forward, and the two astonished humans followed her, looking all around as they did, staring in awe at everything. Lyra rolled her eyes, still smiling at the two as she continued to trot forward, away from the train station and deeper into the town. “We're coming up on the market, this is where everyone buys most of their vegetables, fruits, and other things, like trinkets and jewelry.” Indeed, the three began to walk through groups of ponies and past vendors stalls.

        Jack was a little confused however, as to just why none of the ponies were paying too much mind to them. He leaned close to Jacob. “Hey, why do you think it is that these ponies aren't looking at us all weird?” He scratched the back of his head. “You think it's because they know about my trial through newspapers or something?” He felt a bit awkward, the welcome he was getting rather different than the one he had thought he and Jacob would receive, the kind that was most often found in the fanfiction he and Jacob read.

        Jacob shrugged as they continued to walk through the market, looking curiously at a vendor's wares before he turned back to his friend. “It might be because of Reagan and Shay, if they're really here. Otherwise, it could be because they're used to all sorts coming through town, you know, being basically in the middle of Equestria and all.” He was wondering the very same question Jack had been, but his answers satisfied him, and seemed to satisfy Jack, as well. “I think most authors forget that, and that's why they're all generally written in the near-same fashion when it comes to entering Ponyville the first time.” His inner critic was showing, and it made Jack smile.

        Jack hummed as he thought over Jacob's words, nodding as he did so. “Yeah, you do make a damn good point.” He then wondered another thing as he spoke a curse word. “That's another thing, Lyra, why didn't you seem extremely surprised when you heard me cursing earlier? I thought ponies didn't like cursing or something?” He was trying to get all of the stereotypical thoughts out of his head, so he wouldn't have to worry about them later. After all, he hadn't truly expected alcoholic beverages to exist in Equestria, so maybe it was more mature than he thought it was from how it was depicted whenever he watched the show.

        Lyra couldn't help but once again raise a brow and chuckle. “It's not that we don't like it, it's just that it's not something we generally do. Definitely not as much as you do, anyways.” She looked back at him with a smirk, sticking her tongue out playfully. “But yeah, it's not like we don't use them, heck, my dad was basically a sailor, as much as he said them. You know, Berry uses them a lot too, but I don't think she can help it, as drunk as she is all the time. Derpy always covers her mouth with a hoof whenever Berry speaks them, Bon Bon blushes, and Time Turner just grumbles. It's rather funny, actually, especially when Vinyl joins in with Berry, but Octavia usually is the one who stops it after that point.” She giggled as she thought of her friends and their habits when it came to cursing.

        Jack looked back at Jacob and spoke quietly in his friend's ear. “Shit, looks like the background six are canon after all.” He snickered lightly, before it turned into a chuckle that he shared with Jacob. They were having the time of their lives as avid fanfiction readers and critcs, and they couldn't help but laugh at the irony of it all. They continued to follow Lyra, before Jack snapped his fingers. “Oh yeah, speaking of Berry, you think you could take us to her Bar?” Jack was eager to see if his deductive theory was correct, and Reagan was indeed there after all, along with Shay.

        Lyra grinned. “Where do you think I've been heading all along?” She snickered just like Jack had a moment before, continuing to trot on in an almost confident and prideful way, swaying her hips left and right. Jack grumbled after she snickered at him, rolling his eyes. It wasn't long before his eyes were caught by the swaying of her hips, and his line of sight went directly to her flank and tail. He slowly began to blush, admiring them silently. Jacob had noticed his friend's head movements go still, and when he followed where his friend's eyes were looking, he smirked almost mischievously. He elbowed Jack lightly and gave him a waggle of his eyebrows, to which Jack slugged him in the arm lightly, causing Jacob to laugh.

        After a little while more of strolling through town, they walked by a small clearing, in the middle of which laying none other than the Ponyville Public Library. Twilight Sparkle's Library. Jack stopped dead in his tracks as he saw it, Jacob stopping with him a bit confused, before he saw it as well. Lyra could her the two stop behind her, and turned around. “What's wrong?” She looked at where they were looking, confused by them once again. “Oh, it's just the Library. Twilight Sparkle lives there with Spike, her assistant dragon. She's one of the Elements of Harmony. They saved us from Discord a little while back. You want to stop there before we go to Berry's Bar?”

        Jack looked at Jacob with a face that spoke volumes. Jacob, if you can somehow hear me in your mind, please tell me you agree with me that going there wouldn't be a good idea. Jack hoped against hope that his mental message was conveyed well enough with the face he was making. When he saw Jacob give a look of understanding, he knew Jacob had received the message, and breathed a sigh of relief. He turned to Lyra. “Naw, we're good. It just caught our eye is all, nothing to worry about. Let's keep on heading towards Berry's place.” He ran a finger through his hair nervously.

        Lyra shrugged as best as a pony could. “Alright.” She began to trot once more, but whilst she did, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was a bit off. I wonder why they stopped as they saw Twilight's library... It's almost as if they already knew about it. ...That's just silly, they've never been here before, how could they possibly know about it? She shook her head, casting the thoughts away, finding them foolish. She led them past a few other places that she found them staring at, like Quills and Sofas, until they began to enter the more gritty part of town.

        The roads narrowed, their stones becoming a little darker in shade. Some closed nightclubs and a couple bars, along with some abandoned buildings, appeared. Those were the first things that the two humans noticed in surprise. Jack even swore he saw a hookah bar. Equestria was maturer indeed. Jack wondered how the section they were in looked at night, and thought back to every Noir film he'd ever seen, along with Sin City and L.A. Noire. His inner Noir/Detective-Geek squeed with delight at the very thought. “Jacob, think about it, this part of Ponyville, at night, rain pouring down.”

        Jacob grinned as he thought about what Jack said. “Aww yeah bro!” The two shared a fist bump as they began to geek out in their minds together. They truly were a pair of geeks. Lyra giggled as she heard Jack and Jacob share their exchange, knowing what they were thinking about. She'd seen detective movies before, and read crime novels. She turned onto the street she knew Berry's Bar was on. She knew the street, the thing was finding it, the sign was being fixed, and she had enough trouble finding it when it had the sign. She led the two humans halfway down the street, before they heard a voice come from an alleyway.

        “Whoahaho, and I really tripping hard, or is that who I think it is?” Jack's eyes opened a bit wide as he heard it. The three turned to see none other than the nordic Shay step out of the shadows of the alley, placing a hand on Jack's shoulder. “Aw dude, it really is you! Awesome!” The three humans all laughed together, Jack and Jacob at Shay's highness, and Shay because the fact that Jack and Jacob were before him was funny for some strange reason. They all share a brohug, before parting and ending the broment. Shay smiles even wider. “I didn't expect you two to be here!”

        Jacob snickered. “Well of course, my brohemian. Me and Jack figured that if we were able to meet up here, then you and Reagan would be here too. Me and Jack were both in Canterlot, and we took a train down here to Ponyville on a hunch that we'd find you guys here. Speaking of which, do you know where Reagan is? Hopefully he's not too far away.” He looked up and down the street, wondering just where Reagan could be. He thought that perhaps Jack's theory was right, and that Reagan and Shay did seem to stick close more often than not.

        Shay blew a raspberry with his lips, laughing shortly afterwards. “That's an easy one, he's right in this building next to us.” He pointed with a thumb to the building to his right. “I dunno if you wanna go in there, though, he's having some fun. He has been for the past... Uh... How long is three hours? Yeah, that's how long he's been in there having fun, however long it is.” He scratched the back of his head as he looked up at the sky, trying to figure out just how long three hours was. “It's like a day, right?” Jack rubbed his eyes at Shay's high sense of time, for it was hurting his head.

        Lyra backed up to look at the building Shay had pointed to, and raised her brows in surprise as she saw the familiar cutie mark on the door. “Wow, it really is Berry's bar. You were right, Jack.” She turned to see Jack doing a fist pump in victory, before doing a short robot-like dance. She giggled as she watched him do so, finding it cute. He's such a dork. She raised a hoof and gestured to the bar. “Well, are we going to head in, or should we wait until he comes out?” Jack and Jacob looked at each other once again, and she knew they were probably deciding whether or not to go in, based off of Shay's words.

        Jack shrugged after a few more seconds. “Ah, what the hell, it's not like it could be as bad as the Oktoberfest incident.” Shay shuddered at those last two words, and Jacob shook his head like he had a bad taste in his mouth. Jack led the three over to the thick wooden door, pushing it open with a hand on the cutie mark embossed upon it. As it slowly opened before him, he could smell the booze that lay within, before he took a step forward, going onwards into the bar. It looked just like Reagan had described it to a tee. He had forgotten the strong smell however, which made Jack a little bit dizzy, and made Lyra scrunch her nose.

        A stallion sitting at a table a few feet away from them grumbled angrily. “Ugh, you're letting the light in, you bunch of ingrates. My eyes hurt now!” He rubbed his eyes with his hooves for a second before looking back at them. “Oh, great, more of you damn humans, that's just fan-fucking-tastic.” He slammed his drink on the table and gestured to the barmaid pony in a rude fashion. “Ey, gimme more whiskey, I'm gonna need it if I'm going to put up with more of these kooks!” He was obviously a rather rude mannered pony, and Jack didn't like it when others were rude to his friends.

        Jack stepped forward, and pointed at the pony. “Now listen here, you jerk, I'm not going to sit by silently while you insult my friends. You can insult me all you like, I'm used to being treated like shit, but you say bad things about my friends, and I'm going to do something that I won't fucking regret. That's another thing, I'm the only one who gets to use the word fuck like that, you hear me, you fucking fucker?” He placed extra emphasis where he thought he needed to, and finally stood with crossed arms. “Oh, and by the way, my friend had sex on this table!” He pointed to the very table the pony was drinking at.

        It was then that the pony rolled his eyes and looked at Jack with an unchanging expression. When he next spoke, it was without any anger, nonchalantly. “Yeah, I know. I was here.” Jack raised a hand and was about to open his mouth to speak again, but realized he didn't really have anything to say to that, an 'Oh.' being the only thing that escaped his mouth. He growled lightly, before turning away and walking to the middle of the room, looking all around. He couldn't see Reagan anywhere, let alone Berry. Jacob walked over to the barmaid as Jack shrugged his shoulders at him.

        “Excuse me, miss, where is your boss, the bartender? We have a feeling that she may know where our friend is, if she's not with him, that is.” He smiled kindly at her, and when he did, she relaxed a bit, feeling rather refreshed to be treated kindly for once. Jacob had always been the best guy to go to a bar with. He would treat everyone kindly, and he only acted a little silly when drunk. He wasn't balls to the wall like Reagan was, but then again, Reagan always got extremely smashed, so there was that to consider.

        The Barmaid looked up at the friendly giant that was Jacob, setting the tray with whiskey on it down next to her. “I'm thinking you're talking about the other human. He's out back with my boss, but I don't think you wanna go back there. They're having a drinking contest, and their breath probably smells horrible due to them drinking Berry's special mix. That stuff knocks most normal ponies out after one mug, but your friend and my boss... They're something else.” She looked at the door to the back of the bar where the reserves were kept. “Through that door, that's where you'll find them.”

        Jacob nodded and began to lead the other three of his party with a wave. They reached the door at the same time, and Jacob pushed it open cautiously, hearing bottles move out of the way as he did so. The smell of the bar was even stronger in the backroom, and all four of them had to be strong and resist gagging as it leaked forth and into their nostrils. Jack was breathing through his mouth,with his teeth shut so he wouldn't taste the smell, a technique he'd learned from his grandfather. The four stepped further into the room, being wary of all the empty bottles, and saw just the two they were looking for in the back of the room.

        Jack was the one who decided to be brave and talk to them. As he got closer, he noticed that Berry had passed out, and was sleeping on the table that she and Reagan were sitting at. Reagan was simply petting her mane and massaging her ears a little clumsily due to his inebriation. Jack ever so slowly put a hand on Reagan's shoulder, swallowing hard as he did. “Hey, Reagan? It's Jack, your friend.” He tensed up a bit, bracing himself for whatever was to happen next. He could only hope it wouldn't be horrible.

        Reagan's hand went still and rested on Berry's head as his own head turned and looked at his goth friend. “Oh hey, when did you get here? ...Hic!” Jack's eyes opened wide and his face curled into one of what seemed like pain as the horrible smell of Reagan's alcohol breath hit his nose. Even though he wasn't breathing through it, it still hit him like a brick dropped from a four story window. His eyes rolled to the back of his head, and he slowly fell to the ground with an unconscious thud, lucky that there was surprisingly no bottles on the floor where he landed. Shay began to laugh hysterically while Jacob and Lyra looked on in shock. All Reagan could say as he looked at his friend on the floor was one word. “Oops.”


AAA


        It was not until two hours later that Jack awoke from his unconscious state. He slowly sat up, realizing he was slumped against a table. He figured that perhaps the guys had put him there so he wouldn't be lying on the floor. But, as he looked up from the wood patterns that the table beheld, he took note of two peculiar things. One, was that he was holding a half-full beer bottle. The other, was that he was sitting across from Berry Punch. He rubbed his head where it had hit the floor, looking at Berry and the beer bottle in his hand in confusion. “What the hell happened?”

        Berry smiled at him, putting a hoof on his cheek, her eyes half-shut. “That was great, Jack.” She began to rub his cheek with that hoof, her other joining it and rubbing his other cheek gently. “You were a lot better than I thought you'd be. ...And you know, I've never tried some of the stuff that you showed me, but I gotta say, it felt rather nice to get my hooves licked.” She giggled lightly under her breath as she began to pet his head, playing with his hair. “And those positions... did you read the Pony Sutra by any chance?”

        Jack's heartbeat slowly began to speed up as he sat there listening to her, feeling groggy. By the time she had mentioned the Pony Sutra, the tempo of his heart was similar to that of a goa trance song. “Wh... What?” Her words began to fully register with the rest of his mind, along with the way she had been rubbing his cheeks and was petting his head. “Wait...” He sat up completely straight, tensing every muscle in his body up as he was hit by the sudden understanding of just what was going on, and what Berry was talking about. “...I did what?!”

        It was then however, just after Jack shouted, that the laughter of none other than Reagan, Shay, and Jacob, could be heard from the table behind him. Jack turned around, blushing lightly, a peeved expression on his face. He noticed that even Lyra was slightly smiling and laughing, though she was at least trying to hide it with her hoof. Jack bit his lip with a growl, muttering every curse word he knew under his breath. He cleared his throat as he rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Oh, real funny guys. Poke fun at the goth guy who's never been laid before, I get it.”

        Jacob chuckled at Jack's words. “Ah, come on Han Brolo, you know you'd do the same thing to us if you got the chance to. 'Sides, I'm a virgin too. Now come on over here, I bought a map from the market, and we're all about to plan our courses.” He pulled the map in question out from the pocket of his leather jacket, unfolding it and setting it down on the table before them as Jack got up from the table Berry was at and sat down at their table. Berry merely drank the rest of the beer bottle he'd left and trotted towards the back room like she had done many a time before, smiling all the way, happy to participate in a prank.

        Jack settled in next to Lyra, which made the mint green pony smile. He turned to look at her, and his annoyed expression swiftly disappeared from his face, being replaced with a small smile. He pet her on her head for a few seconds and smiled a bit more when he saw her blush. He then cleared his throat once more and took a deep breath as he set his elbows on the table. “Alright, I'll go first, I guess.” He looked over the map, looking mostly at the southern regions. He hummed in his throat. “I've got a hunch there's something to be found in Appaloosa or Dodge Junction, so that will be where I'm headed.”

        Lyra nodded as she listened to him, patting him on the shoulder lightly with a hoof. “And I'll go with you. I've actually never been to either of those places before, and it could be fun.” She smiled at Jack once again, who looked a little surprised at first, but then shrugged and smiled, nodding in approval. She grinned with a squee as she saw him nod, and she couldn't help but dance a little in her seat in joy. Sure, she had ulterior motives, but Jack didn't know that. Once we're all alone together, maybe then I can try to start flirting with him, just like Berry told me to an hour ago. I just hope I don't mess it up like I always do...

        Shay was the next one to speak about his direction of travel, after he took a hit from a blunt, of course. “Hehe, dude... I gotta say, I wanna head to a city. There's stuff to be found in a city, like business.” Jack rolled his eyes at the business comment Shay had made, but Shay didn't pay any mind. He looked over the map slowly, taking his time in observing every city on it for minutes at a time, at which Jack began to sigh. Finally, he spoke once again. “Ah, maaan, Fillydelphia looks like a good place to start, but I'll probably make a stop on my way there.” He smiled widely, ideas in his mind.

        The other humans nodded at his words, taking note of them. Jacob was the next to say something. “I kinda don't know where to go, to be honest.” He rubbed his jaw as he often did when he thought about things, looking at the map. It was then however, that he remembered what he had seen on his way back to the market. It was an advertisement poster for what was called The Equitronic Dance Music Tour. Among the musicians listed on the poster was none other than DJ Pon-3. He remembered the location it would be in a weeks time. “I've got it.” He pointed to Las Pegsus. “That's where I'm going. Vinyl's going to be playing a show there.”

        Jack smiled and nodded at Jacob, who smiled back. They both thought Vinyl was pretty cool, but the fact that Jack had nodded to him let him know that he was free to go after her, which made Jacob all the more happy. Reagan was the last to speak, shrugging his shoulders. “Well, I think I'll hang around Ponyville for a little while more, and then I'll head up to Canterlot, see if I can get my job as a Lawyer here in Equestria as well.” Though Jacob and Shay nodded to Reagan's words, and Lyra as well, the one person who didn't nod right away was Jack, who had a look of suspicion in his eyes as he finally did nod.


AAA


        After the four gathered what supplies they would need for their respective trips, they all headed over to the Ponyville Train Station. The parting of the four slowly began to commence as they waited for Jacob's train first, each of them talking about what they might do on their journeys. When it finally arrived, Jacob received brohugs from each one of his best friends, and hopped on the train just as it was about to leave. With a wave and a 'See you, broskis.' on the wind, the friendly giant of their group left, the others taking a deep breath as they finally accepted the fact that they probably wouldn't see him again for a while.

        Jack and Lyra's train was the next to appear, and Jack felt a little nervous. Shay offered him a couple hits from his pipe, which he took with many thanks. Afterwards, he gave both of his remaining friends a hug, ready to set forth with Lyra by his side as he hopped on the train with a 'Be safe, you crazy fuckers.'. It was shortly after Jack's train left the station that Shay turned to Reagan, and gave him a hug. He wished him good luck in getting his job back, before he put his big stick with a bag tied to the end of it over his shoulder, and began to walk towards Fillydelphia.

        As he watched Shay walk on his way down the path leading out of Ponyville towards Fillydelphia, Reagan once again took a deep breath, and sat on the stairs of the train station platform, taking a drink Berry had given him out from his pocket. He poured a little out on the grass next to him in honour of his friends, before he chugged the rest. He put the empty bottle back in his pocket to throw away later. He was a Lawyer after all, he wasn't going to litter. He stood up on the stairs and swallowed hard, looking at the town of Ponyville before him, recieving the same view Jack and Jacob had gotten just that morning. It was there, in the afternoon sun, that he spoke to himself, readying himself for what was to come.

        “My journey begins here.”


> Chapter Five: Booze & Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reagan knew he could go wherever he wanted, and do whatever he wanted. So many options were open to him, and he was a little overwhelmed with just how many there were. But then, in that intelligent Lawyer mind of his, he cut through the wall of options, narrowing it down to only about three. The other options could wait. He decided to go with the most relevant one first: going back to Berry's for a little while. He began to walk back in the direction they had all come from, clearing his throat as he did. He wasn't heading to Berry's to get drunk again, but instead to try and help her. They had both together drank at least a fourth of her stocks, and she'd have to come up with the money to replace them somehow. That's where he came in.

He hummed a tune to himself, whistling a few parts of it every now and then. It was one of his favourite Reel Big Fish songs. Him and Jack listened to them together every now and then, when they just wanted music they could jam to while playing games or doing things on their laptops together. He chuckled as he remembered those times, having been spent in the lower level of his Dad's house back in the day. After a while, he found himself walking through the part of Ponyville where Berry's bar lay. He saw a few ponies here and there, looking as though they were starting preparations for that night. He nodded at the thought, having seen just how bustling the part of town he was in became at night.

It wasn't long before he found himself pushing open the door to Berry's Bar, which he had heard her tell him was named the Rat Trap, she'd just been having trouble getting a new sign made since the old one had fallen off. He breathed in the familiar smell of alcohol, especially familiar because it was Berry's alcohol. Her stuff smelled different to him than any of the stuff he had back on Earth, and he figured it was due to the magic that Equestria as a land beheld. Magic ingredients made for better drinks, he guessed. He waved hello to Peachtini, the barmaid, as he walked over to her. “Heya Peachtini. Is Berry in the back again?”

The orange and yellow mare shook her head only once, knowing that Reagan would get the message well. He would have been able to read it on her face even if she didn't nod or speak. She looked back at the door to the back room for a second before she did speak. “Yeah... She's crashing pretty hard. She went back there after you and your friends left earlier, saying that she wanted to train herself. I gotta say, I really respect you. Beating Berry in a drinking match is something that not even the toughest stallions in Ponyville can do.” She looked him over for a second, recoiling slightly. “I'm almost afraid of your skill, you know. Where do you learn to drink like that? Is drinking a national sport where you come from?”

Reagan chuckled lightly at her words, surprised that she would have such a reaction to the amount of expertise he beheld in imbibing alcoholic drinks. “Heh, I tried to make it one, believe me. The closest thing is an event that is held annually, in... a different part of our country than the one me and my friends lived in.” He smirked as he thought of the event in question, before he shook his head. “Anyways, you got any blankets or anything around here? I think I'll let Berry rest, and I'll take over for her while she's out of it. And before you ask, yes, I am a certified Mixologist, been one ever since my graduation from the School of Mixology in the town me and my friends used to live in a year ago. You could say that I was preparing for my future alcoholic endeavours.” He chuckled to himself.

Peachtini shrugged as he told her of his graduation from the School of Mixology, taking the information in nonchalantly, almost as if she expected him to say something along those lines. “Alrighty then... Oh, instead of just grabbing her some blankets...” She merely gestured with her head towards a trapdoor on the ceiling near the bar table. “That's where Berry's room is, I've had to carry her up there quite a few times during the time I've been working here, and I've only been here a month. You shouldn't have too much trouble though, seeing as how you have... Hands, I think I heard Lyra call them. That pony knows a strange amount about you Humans... Back on topic, the key to the door is in the cash register, oh, and you might want to watch out for falling bottles when you open that thing. Rookie mistakes hurt real bad.” She shuddered, grimacing lightly, before going back to work.

Reagan did as he said he would do, and what Peachtini suggested. He hopped and slid over the bar table and grabbed the keys first, putting them in his pocket. He then walked over to the backroom door, opening it slowly. With light footsteps like the ones he always did at work and in court, he made his way over to Berry, who was, once again, asleep. He then carefully and gently picked the slumbering mare up, as though she were a princess, and slowly made his way out of the backroom with her. He sat her cautiously at the bar table, before he unlocked the trapdoor on the ceiling. Bottles did indeed fall out, but Reagan was able to catch most of them and set them down softly before they hit the floor, making Peachtini gasp in awe.

He swiftly but softly picked up Berry again, and slowly climbed up the ladder, taking extra care in being sure that Berry was comfortable. He relaxed with her in his arms as he reached her room, built into the alcove that the roof seemed to have underneath it, bottles in different places of her room. He took a deep breath, and began to put Berry in her bed, again carrying her slowly, and set her down softly on her bed, covering her up. He gave her a kiss on the cheek, and grabbed a full bottle of a light ale he found under her bed up to her mouth, which she started to sip from every then and again as she slept, holding it like a teddy bear. Reagan smiled at how cute she looked in a drunkard kind of way, petting her gently on the head.

He descended the ladder as quietly as he could, being just as careful with closing and locking up the trap door. He turned around to Peachtini, striking a determined expression on his face and through his bodily position. “Let's sell some drinks!” The barmaid stood there silently for a moment, but then chuckled at just how enthusiastic he was, nodding to him. Reagan then ran over to the small radio the bar table had, fiddling around with it until he found an Equestrian Radio Station that played what sounded like Classic Rock, until he found it, through hearing a few lyrical lines that he knew oh so well, and sang along to.


“It was the heat of the moment,
telling me what your heart meant.
Heat of the moment shone in your eyes.”



~AAA~



~When day has turned to dusk...~


“Come on in, the drinks are cold and the sugar cubes are plenty!”

The sentence was kindly yelled forth from Reagan's lips whenever a new customer trotted in the door. Things were seeming to go pretty great ever since the first time he said it. His voice attracted crowds, their attention turning to him and the bar. It was the voice of a true bartender. And the music: what he called the Equestrian versions of AC/DC and Led Zeppelin; helped just as well. Peachtini trotted up to him and fist/hoof bumped him shortly after their sixteenth customer came in. “You're just as good as Berry when she's sober!” She seemed much more excited than she had been when he first awoke in the bar, and he was glad to see his positive attitude was spreading to others. She spoke again after fixing her mane a little. “Keep this up, and we might just sell twice what you and her drank!” She grinned as she turned around to get back to work.

Reagan had to admit, he was having a pretty good time himself. He was helping Berry out and having fun while he was at it. Everything was going swimmingly. He began to sing along a little to the radio, something Jack would have called him out on. He chuckled as he thought of it. It was about an hour or so later when something different and interesting happened. Of all the ponies that were coming through the door to the Rat Trap, the last thing he expected was one of the mane six. Applejack strutted into the bar on her hooves, arching her eyebrows a little peevishly from fatigue as she slowly made her way towards one of the corner tables, one nopony else had sat at the entire time before, as if they knew it was hers.

She leaned back in her chair, putting her aching hind hooves on the table. It was obvious she had showered before coming however, for those back hooves of hers were not very dirty at all. Reagan was not only surprised greatly at her appearance, but the way she acted, as well. He laughed a little to himself, shocked that he was meeting AJ sooner than he'd planned to, but shrugged his shoulders, not particularly minding at all. He walked around the bar table, and patted Peachtini on the back. “I've got the gamboge one in the corner, wearing the hat.” Peachtini looked rather surprised when he said that, but raised her brows and nodded, curious to see how he'd approach the farm pony. Reagan smiled at the interest he could see upon the barmaid's face, and then, with a deep breath, he continued on his way towards AJ.

The temporary bartender cleared his throat as he stopped before Applejack, looking at her with a smile. The farm pony smirked lightly, in a way she thought unnoticeable, but Reagan was just barely able to catch it. That was when she spoke, her voice as flush and creamy as he always thought it would sound in person, but flavoured with that southern accent it beheld. “Whiskey, Caramel flavoured, and if you could shake it instead of stirring it, I'd appreciate it much.” He had to admit that the way she pronounced her 'I's and 'you's in her southern way always made him feel a little light inside. Her order made him raise a brow in interest. Shaken not stirred... Heh, Jacob and Jack will flip when I tell them about this.

He nodded to her, quickly heading back to the bar and pouring up a glass for her, adding just a bit more, such as dropping a couple sugar cubes in the mixer, and sprinkling a little cinnamon upon it as well. He shook it well, making sure the ingredients flourished in the way he wanted them to whilst also making sure it was shaken good enough for Applejack's tastes. It felt a little quiet in the bar whilst he made AJ's order in his own special way, the music more audible than the hushed voices of the drinking ponies that sat about the place. He gathered that Applejack was sort of a big deal in the bar from the way everypony was watching him. It didn't bother him much. He was a lawyer, he was used to being paid attention to.

Reagan made his way back over to Applejack with the large mug he'd made for her, wanting to give her a good amount. The farm pony looked up at him then, showing him her sap green eyes, which then darted towards the mug he'd prepared for her. It looked damn good to her, especially because she had been hard at work the whole day. She took her hooves off the table and watched him set it down, raising a brow at the human, and then smiled kindly. She grabbed the mug with a hoof, and took a considerable swig from it. Her expression changed from the smug one it had been before, to one of true surprise. “Well I'll be, this is just fantastic!” Every other pony in the bar, including Peachtini cheered and clapped for a moment, before shortly returning to the volume they had been at before, the tension that the bar beheld before then completely gone.

The human took a seat at Applejack's table, nodding to Peachtini to take over bar tending duties for a bit, having taught her a thing or two about how to handle the drinks in better ways. He looked back at the farm pony, who was leaning against the table a little, the mug in both her hooves. He smiled. “Name's Reagan, if you haven't been informed by now. I'm taking over for a little while during Berry's resting time. I kinda beat her at a drinking contest, so I figured I'd help her out to make it up to her for basically knocking her out. You're Applejack, right? I've heard some stories about you, you seem to hold a great amount of renown around here.” He grinned as he finished his sentence, beaming at her in a way.

Applejack hummed in interest at the lawyer. She could size him up easily by looking at him. It came with being the Element of Honesty, she was able to tell when someone was lying, and when they weren't, as well as the way they held themselves, and other bodily motions that told her different things about him. She could tell he liked having his beard from how well cared for it was, and that he was no stranger to being clean cut, his beard line evidence of that. She could already tell she was going to like him. She had listened carefully to his words, finding that they were smooth and flowing, like the kind that came from a man who organized his thoughts well, and spoke quickly about important subjects and enquiries.

“So let me get this straight. You beat Berry at a drinking contest, temporarily became a bartender in Berry's time of weakness, and introduce yourself to me fearlessly, impressing me with a drink and kind, polite, charming words. All of which being honest ones? Well shoot, I'd say you're definitely out for my respect.” She laughed, and drank some of her whiskey once again. “Well, you've earned it.” He held out a hoof, and smiled as he shook it firmly. “My name is Applejack yeah, but my friends: that includes you now; call me AJ. It's nice to meet you.” Her eyes looked into his, and the human looked back into hers unabashedly, still kindly smiling, but the farm pony blushed after a moment or two, just barely however.

Reagan nodded to her, relaxing in his chair, but with a straight back, remaining formal and polite for her. “It's nice to meet you as well, AJ. And please, do not take my charm in any negative light, I assure you I have no nefarious intentions. I am a lawyer, following the law is part of who I am. I merely wanted to make sure I made a good first impression.” He looked around at the other ponies in the bar then. “I've definitely made up what I had to for Berry, and much more, which I am glad about. Whatever extra bits I can make for Berry are damn good things.” He nodded to himself, swallowing hard as he looked at the table. “Sorry if the curse I uttered was inappropriate to you, AJ.” He quickly spoke the words as he looked back to her.

“Reagan, I've said worse things before, don't worry. Just gotta be careful where you say them. In a bar like the one we're in, cursing is as normal as going for a trot through the orchard in the middle of a warm summer afternoon.” AJ chuckled, thinking of the way that Rarity was when they came to the Rat Trap together before. The marshmallow unicorn flinched ever so slightly at the rudest curses she heard, the normal ones making her act a little nervous. Applejack smiled kindly at Reagan then thinking about him for a moment. Hm, he said he's a lawyer... Granny Smith said a lawyer would be good to have on our side with the small land conflict we are having with Golden Harvest... But I should make sure he's not ruthless, Golden Harvest is a good friend...

Reagan took her silence as she thought about him as a passing over to him, and spoke again. “You know, back where I come from, I used to have to get my best friend Shay out of trouble. He's not a bad guy, he just sometimes acts pretty strange and loopy. Being a Lawyer came in handy quite a few times when I was helping Shay out, because I could prove his innocence flawlessly.” He grinned for a bit as the memories came back to him. “I also used it to help me solve arguments between the guys. I think that's the reason those knuckleheads think I'm like a dad to them, heh.” He rubbed his eyes, groaning lightly. “It is my fault, damn it.” He laughed then, finding the circumstance funny in a way. “Ugh, those three idjits must think they got me good.”

Applejack smirked at first, but slowly began to chuckle and laugh at Reagan's complaining about being like a dad, it reminded her of how her brother sometimes complains about the exact same thing. “You just made me trust you even more, you... Human, I think Twilight called you? Either way, I've got a job for you if you want it.” She cleared her throat, and leaned in closer, Reagan doing the same, and she spoke once again, a little quietly. “Granny Smith and Golden Harvest are arguing about a patch of land, and for the life of me I have not been able to figure out how to get them to calm down about it and just share. Granny Smith is set in her ways, and Golden Harvest is just doing as she was taught to deal with such things.” She held out a hoof then. “If you help me out with this, you can consider yourself always welcome at the farmhouse.”

The lawyer didn't have to think twice before he shook her hoof.


~AAA~


Reagan arrived at the farmhouse shortly after the Apples had finished having breakfast, looking as alive as ever, not seeming groggy at all. It surprised Applejack to see him in such a state. Usually even Twilight yawned when she visited as early as Applejack woke up. She nodded with a grin at his enthusiasm, but then swallowed hard, taking a deep breath. “Alright, I sure hope you're ready. Granny Smith and Golden Harvest are meeting again in thirty minutes. That should give you enough time to talk to both of them about it and go over whatever they tell you, right?” She hoped he would say yes to her. She wanted to be absolutely sure she picked the right human for the job.

“Oh, definitely enough time. I'll meet with you again after I talk to them, and then we'll both attend their meeting.” He smiled at her and nodded. “Don't worry Applejack, I'll figure out a happy resolution to this situation, you have my word.” He gave her a thumbs up before slowly beginning to walk away, towards Granny Smith first. It took him a little bit, as he forgot that the size of Sweet Apple Acres was much larger in person. But he did not waste too much time away. He walked up slowly and carefully to Granny Smith after he had found her. “Good morning, Miss Smith. I am a Lawyer under Applejack's employ, I'm here to help you out.” He nodded to her respectfully. “I assure you, you'll get your land.”

Granny Smith hummed as she looked him over before she spoke. “You'll do.” She then looked out towards the patch of land. “And it's not completely my land. Half of it belongs to Golden Harvest. The young farm mare wants it all to herself, however. That's my side of it. I just want this to be over already. If there's anyone you're going to try to persuade, it's the carrot farm girl.” She looked back at him. “You're a handsome one, whatever you are, I'll bet you can get through to her. And do not take that as a compliment, I'm happily single.” She laughed then, finished with her joking. “Maybe if you can talk Golden Harvest into sharing that land, I'll let you try to flirt with my grand-daughter.” She laughed again, coughing a couple times lightly.

Reagan was quite baffled at just how Granny Smith answered. Blown away, he'd called it. He was not expecting Granny Smith to be the one that wanted both sides to have a fair share of the land. He went over all the information she told him in a sketchbook he carried around with him, and blushed lightly and laughed with her when he was able to tell she was joking. He wondered if some of it was true. He nodded respectfully to her once again. “Well, that would be an honour.” He gave her a kind smile before bowing slightly. “If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go talk to Golden Harvest and... persuade her, like you said, heh.” He laughed nervously as he walked away, turning to Golden Harvest's land, making a comment upon reaching it.

“Bugs Bunny would love it here.”

It once again took him a little while, especially because he knew near nothing about Golden Harvest's farm, but he didn't get too lost. He eventually found the farmgirl shooing away a couple of rabbits. He walked up to her, chuckling. “You ever think that maybe they just like being chased?” He held up his hands a little defensively as she looked at him a little angrily. “Just kidding!” He relaxed and smiled at her. “Name's Reagan, I'm the lawyer hired to oversee this situation.” He cleared his throat, and gave her a look of interest. “Now I apologize in advance for being a little forward, but why do you not want to share the patch of land evenly?” He opened to a blank page in his sketchbook.

Golden Harvest took a few deep breaths, calming herself down. She sighed. “To be honest, I'm not so sure. It's just, my dad left me the farm, and I don't know if he'd be okay with me sharing it evenly.” She looked down shyly. “I want to make sure I don't do anything he'd disapprove of. In his will, he said I had all of this land to continue on the family duty. I just wonder if he would be okay with me sharing it.” She looked back up at him. “That's all I can say, really. I could show you dad's will, if you want?” She shrugged, still unsure. As Reagan nodded silently and finished writing out his notes, she looked up to the sky momentarily, and spoke under her breath. “I swear, I hope that sneaky pegasus doesn't try to steal from my refrigerator again...”

Reagan cleared his throat to let her know he was finished, and took a deep breath. “Okay, I'd like to see your Dad's will.” The carrot farmer nodded to him, and leaded him over to her farm house. He waited outside whilst she went in and grabbed the will. When she came back out with it, he held it carefully and inspected it thoroughly. “Ah, but you must have not read what comes after that, the smaller piece below it. 'And make sure that the Apples get a fair share as well, Goldie, they are good ponies.'” He looked back over to her, to see shock on her face, and chuckled, right before throwing his last words in. “So, Goldie, huh? That's a pretty cute name, fits you perfectly.” The look on Golden Harvest's face was priceless at that moment. “Don't worry, I give you my solemn vow that I will never speak of it to anypony.” He held his hand in front of his heart as he gave her his promise, and the carrot farmer grumbled.

“Just go back and tell Granny that she gets half of the land, y-you dumb flatterer.”

Reagan left shortly after those words were spoken, mostly because of Golden Harvest pushing him out of the door. He chuckled to himself as he headed back to the Apple farmhouse. I think I did that a bit too well. Oh god, don't let me become a love guru or something... I'd never hear the end of it from Jack, maybe even Jacob. And Shay would ask me to smoke Green Goblin with him more often.

Knowing my luck, that's probably what's going to happen...


~AAA~


Reagan took another decent bite out of his apple pie, loving how it tasted. “I have to say, this tastes amazing! Not joking, this is the best apple pie I've ever had!” The three ponies at the table all laughed at the same time. Big Mac patted the human lightly on the back. He'd been a little cautious around him at first, but as Reagan talked to him and told him things, he'd come to like him, and even think of him as a friend. Apple Bloom, who was sitting next to Applejack, had curiously asked him about being a lawyer earlier that morning after returning, and he told her a few stories of cases he had done. She had found them rather fantastic, and had begun to respect him a lot, saying that he is like Applejack in a way, something that made him chuckle.

Big Mac smiled at Reagan. “You know, at first I wasn't sure why my sister spoke so highly of you, but I can definitely see now just why she thinks of you as a friend. Shoot, if you were a pony, I think you'd definitely be a member of the Apple family.” He raised a mug of cider up a little before drinking some of it. “You're a friend to me.” Reagan smiled back at those words, glad to hear Big Mac's approval of him. After that moment was shared, they finished up their dinner whilst Reagan told them a few of his larger case stories, and Reagan was offered the guestroom to sleep in. He felt really welcome, and that was something that he found awesome. He thought back upon it all as he sat outside, looking up at Luna's moon as night had arrived, and he checked off a few goals he had set in his mind. He took a swig from a bottle of hard cider Big Mac had given him after Apple Bloom went to bed, and turned his head as he swallowed, hearing the front door open. Applejack stood there, stetson off.

The gamboge pony trotted over to him. “I was wondering where you were. I had something to give to you.” She leaned over and nuzzled him on the arm, blushing a little as she backed up. “Thank you for everything, Reagan, really. I'm glad that I picked you for the job. You solved the problem quicker than I thought you would, and Golden Harvest is still a good friend of mine. She gets a little nervous when I mention you though.” She chuckled. “You must have followed Granny's advice too well. Don't feel bad, I used to do it all the time.” She smiled at him with a kind laugh, and nuzzled his arm once again. She blushed once again, obviously not used to nuzzling guys, and turned back around. “Well, I'm off to bed now, see you in the morning.” She trotted back inside the farmhouse a little quickly. Reagan simply sat there on the bench in light shock and dreaminess.

She wanted to give me a nuzzle, and gave me two... That was so cute!