The Doorway

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter I: Arrival
Chapter II: Friendship
Chapter III: Awakening
Chapter IV: Sleepwalking
Chapter V: Unto The Breach
Chapter VI: Workaholics
Chapter VII: Homecoming

Prologue

“God I’m so bored!” someone said with a sigh after shifting their weight on the couch.

I woke abruptly after hearing the sudden outburst, I opened my eyes and took a look around trying to see where the sound emitted from.

“Whoops, looks like I accidently woke you up.” The voice muttered under it's breath.

Looking at the direction I heard the sound from, I see a blurred figure. Blinking my eyes my vision slowly starts to clear. With my increasing sight I see a person sitting next me. “Now that you’re awake, can we get ready for our adventure?” He says with a questioning voice.

“Sure…” I say.

My vision finally clears enough so that I can see who I’m talking to. I look and see my companion ‘Thomas Stone’. I start to think about how long we’ve been friends, thinking back to when I first came to this dimension. Man… being a time traveler and a dimension jumper I’ve been through many adventures and met many people along the way.
My most recent companion was Thomas, even though he was just a normal every day adult, he still was my best friend.

I look up from where I'm sitting to look at the bedroom I was in. I was in a rectangler shaped bedroom with the door on the shortest wall centered perfectly in the middle. About a fair distance away was a desk pushed up against the wall sharing the door, on the opposite side of the room was a small bed with a wardrobe at the foot, and then on the other side was a couch that my friend and I sat on.

“Can we get ready to go? We’ve been sitting here for an hour, what’s the wait?” He said while anxiously twirling his hands.
With plenty of confidence in my voice I decided to tell him to pack his supplies and get ready while I gear up for our first travel. I never did tell him about my other method of travel, I would usually never tell my companions about 'The Doorway', but this actually seemed like a risk worth taking.

I then got up from the couch and started to walk towards the rucksack leaning up against the desk. Okay, so I need to make sure he has what he needs in case we get separated. I slowly pick up the bag and check the contents. Hmm… Flashlight, batteries, med kit, extra clothes and food. Feeling satisfied with his provisions, I then decided to pull out a small mirror from my jacket pocket.

Looking at myself, I check out my features. Looking at my face, I see a rough beard as if I hadn’t shaved in the past couple of days. I then run my hands through my shaggy hair, hastily swiping it to the side. Deciding that my hair was looking half decent, I glanced down at my torso to see a plain crimson t-shirt underneath a hooded leather jacket. Patting myself down to make sure I had everything in their desired pockets, I then looked down to see my dark faded jeans, and then finally glancing down at my feet to see my coal Converse high tops. Feeling proud of my appearance I then turns towards Thomas once again.

With a smile on my face I walk towards him. I then noticed he must have gotten changed while I was admiring myself.

With the best poker face, I spoke. “So you suddenly decided to change while I was still in the room, that’s not weird at all.” I said in a sarcastic tone.

In the time I took looking at myself in the mirror, he changed his clothes from his pajamas, to his normal clothing. He was wearing grey jeans, a plain blue hoodie with a black shirt underneath and a pair of navy blue sneakers.

“So I take it you’re ready to travel to Equestria.” I said with a serious tone.

“Yeah, I guess. I mean the whole time travel thing was weird, but you never told me about your doorway!” Tom said with a excited voice.

“Alright let me check my stuff again."

Several Minutes Later

After a couple of minutes of going over my inventory, I checked my jacket pockets and pulled out some things for the speech I was about to present. I started by pulling out a map of the Equestrian land we were heading to, and handed it to Tom, who was watching curiously behind me. “Hey Tom, before we head to Equestria, I have a few ground rules we need to go over… ONE! We’re heading there for a visit, so stay close to me.” I said while pulling out a sonic screwdriver from my other pocket. “TWO! Because we’re going to be the first humans in all of Equestrian history there, we need to get our story straight.”

“Wait so you’re saying you’ve never been to Equestria?” Tom said with a smug look on his face.

“Yeah, I don’t even know what a brony is, so I guess you’re my life line no-... WAIT A SECOND!”

“What?!” Said Tom, glancing up from the map.

“I’ve been to multiple dimensions and I have never once came across this so called Equestria...” Now that I think of it, being a time traveler and a dimension jumper makes life very confusing. I originally came from a dimension where life was like a video game that I was the main character of. It was strangely like being with Scott all over again. Come to think of it, I should really visit him again. I looked up to see Tom impatianly leaning against the wall. I then synchronized my watch to the next day.

“So Tom, I forgot you might want to tell your old folks where your heading” I said with a grin.

“Oh okay, like I would tell my parents I’m about to go on an adventure to a different dimension.” Tom said sarcasticly handing me the map and pointing to an area. “I want to visit this town.”
I looked at the map and saw him pointing to a town called 'Ponyville'.

“Well that’s odd, a town named Ponyville?” I said while nudging him. “We don’t have a town called Humanville here, Do we?” I said while trying to hold back a cheap laugh.

“Do you always have to be a dick about things?” He said sounding a bit annoyed.

“Yes, yes I do” I said while chuckling. “Where I came from, my Charisma was a seven.”

“Can we just go now, you’ve been stalling for a good couple of hours and I’m getting really anxious.”
I glanced at my watch to see what time it was. "9:37."

“Alright I guess we are ready.” I said while throwing him the rucksack, causing him to grunt in surprise by heavy bag hitting him.

“Ouch! What do you have in here? Rocks?!” He said while slinging it on his back.

“Nope, just the necessities.” I then stepped outside of the bedroom and immediately saw another door leading to the bathroom. To my left was a dead end, and to my right was a hallway with doors scattered throughout it. I turn back and hollered. “I think it’s best if we leave now before I get sidetracked again.” I said jokingly.

“Okay let me just grab my camera.” He said with glee.
I then looked ahead of me and then ascended down the stairs that lead into a entrance room. Hearing footsteps behind me I walk to the base of the steps and awaited his presence once again.

“Okay, I got everything I need!"

“Alright let’s get go-” I briefly stopped what I was saying. At the head of the stairs I saw that he was over encumbered with bags hanging off his body in multiple directions. I then remembered that I forgot to tell him the rest of the rules.

“What do you mean I can’t take all this stuff with me?!” He said in a shocked voice.

“What I’m saying is that we aren’t staying there long enough to were that would matter.” I said with a stern tone, with my eyes locked in a stare with his. Intimidated he decided to back down.

“Okay, but can I at least take my camera?” He started to tear up like a bitch. “It’s my dream to hug Fluttershy.”

“Okay, Fine.” I said feeling sorry for him. “I don’t even know who or what a Fluttershy is…”
I then stepped to my left through a doorway leading to the kitchen. “A very boring kitchen if I would say.”

“Say what again?” Tom said curiously.

Noticing my mistake, I cursed under my breath. I then walked to the far side of the kitchen, past the breakfast table that stood next to the back door. I looked back at Tom and then said. “So this is it. Your dreams are coming true.” I then pulled open the heavy wooden door and then turned around before being hit by a bright beam of light.

I then reached into my jacket pocket and pulled out a pair of sunglasses. “So, are you ready?”

Tom stood there, staring with an open mouth. Finally, he spoke with a shocked voice. “That…that’s the doorway?”

I then turned around and walked out to the back lawn, approaching where the doorway stood. The doorway was a navy blue door that looked like any normal door, except that it stood up vertically and defied the laws of physics by popping up literally anywhere, at any time.

“This is my 'Doorway'. It can take you anywhere at any time, including other dimensions. Totally beats the TARDIS anyday!" I said remembering an old friend. "So I guess you want to take a step inside.”

I watched Tom walk towards the doorway, and then walked around the door multiple times before stopping because of the blinding light.

“You should really wear these.” I said as I reached into my jacket and tossed him a pair of sunglasses. He missed the catch, but bent down to pick them up. Tom then said after putting on the glasses. “Should I just open the door?”

I gave him a thumbs up, signaling him to go ahead.

He reached his hand forward, grasping the doorknob and pulled it open. Letting the door swing open slowly, he opened his mouth in awe.

After we took off our sunglasses, I then nudged him inside. His immediate reaction was a surprised shock and then an instant squeal of delight. “I don’t know what’s more exciting. The fact that I’m heading to Equestria, or the fact that I’m in this thing?!” he said in an excited but startled voice.

I followed his footsteps and looked at the interior of 'The Doorway'. I looked around and took in the sight all over again. I stepped into a huge circular room about the size of a tennis court, all around the walls are doors matching the curve of the wall, each with a sign stating what was held inside the doors. In the center was a lounge with a huge wooden table adorned with patterns, at the table were maybe a couple dozen fine leather chairs that reclined with the press of a button.

I then snapped back to attention as Tom spoke. “So when do we go to Equestria again?”

Looking to my left, I saw the control panel that had the coordinates preset to save time. It was a simple device, and I say simple as if you were a rocket scientist. One small touch of the controls and you could step into a world of hell. Now just to check the coordinates, just to be sure we arrive in Equestria at the right time period, and... “BAZINGA!”

Thomas, being startled by the sudden outburst, snapped out of his trance and looked over to where I stood. “Wait! What’d you just do?!”

Before he could react, I looked down at the control panel and then pressed the activation button. “Get ready for the adventure of your life!" I said to him as he gave me a glare of excitement.

Immediately after I pressed the button, I heared a loud crack.

Shocked by the sudden sound, he then started to tremble along with the newly shaken ground.”Is this supposed to be happening?” He urgently said while hugging the ground for dear life.

I quickly realized what was going on, and then yelled at him. “THE DOORWAY MUST HAVE BROKEN!" I paused to see a crack run down the far wall. “IT’S TEARING ITSELF APART!”

I look back down to the panel to see what looked like random numerals scrolling across the terminal screen. What in the world is happening?

Startled by the situation I look down at the ground to see a crumbling floor, and up above to see falling infrastructure. I rushed to pick up Thomas before accidently tripped over the newly fallen debris.

“Ugh, Damnit!” Shocked by the situation I was currently in, I took a quick second to take everything in that was happening around me. To my right I had seen Thomas attempting to stand up before being striked by falling debris. “NO!” I yell in a fury after seeing him fall to the ground unmoving. I looked around and saw the insides shaking while tearing itself apart violently. In the confusion I fell back to the ground to see a horror. Under the ground that was falling apart remained a dark and empty void. At the sight of this, I saw the mistake I made and quickly ran to the doorway narrowly dodged more and more falling debris.

I reached the door and quickly thrusted it open, what I saw was a multitude of sights. First I saw a strange sight of what looked like a future battlefield with a battleship flying into orbit onto a planet ready to drop its cargo, another sight was of a steampunk dimension, and the next was a zombie dimension filled with a ghastly sight of an incoming zombie horde swarming a military complex, another was a sprawling metropolis of what looked like a future Earth, and then finally my last sight was a group of girls standing at the edge of a forest before a bloodied man stumble at their feet.

Shocked by seeing all the different dimensions I quickly shut the door in a rush, before that too broke apart. Turning around to hopefully see Thomas up, I saw nothing but the black void closing in on me. Seeing that Thomas was long gone into the void I decide that this must be game over for me.

“This is the end Max… Once you drop into that void, you’re lost forever.” I muttered to myself.

Immediately after I spoke, the last chunk of the ground broke away and I felt the strange sense of vertigo. I then felt as if I was being pulled in multiple directions to a point to where my mind fell to a world of black.

I awoke being unable to see anything, the only reason I knew I was awake was because I could feel a blinding pain as if I’ve just been trampled by a legion of soldiers. My mind raced as I tried to recall what just happened. "I must have just pissed off some god or something." I thought jokingly to myself before realizing the situation I was in.

Not being able to see really worried me, I then tried to open my eyes, but it felt as if something was keeping them shut. After a time of struggling I finally open my eyes to see a warm night air above me.

“Oh what have I gotten myself into again?” I said as I heard a rustle off in the distance. I immediately shot up and heard my joints pop in a sickly manner. “AAGHHHH!” I screamed in pain. My vision went slightly blurry but then refocused almost immediantly. I quickly glance at the surrounding area and took in the sight. I looked at the warm night air above me and then turned my head around and saw that I was surrounded by an eerie image of a forest. "It looks like I’ve landed in a forest of some sort." I thought to myself.

I then looked at the source of the sound and tried to identify the object, what I saw slightly confused me. It looked like some sort of oddly shaped Equine. I suddenly realized where I was.

“Oh…what the hell?”

“Eeeep!” I saw the object yelp in fear and gallop off farther into the forest.

“Wait! Don’t leave!” I yelled in a frantic rush.

I started to pick myself up. I was now standing again, but the sense of vertigo struck again along with a spasm of pain shooting up to the back of my head. I held my head in pain. "What in the world is wrong with me, I must be dying again..."

I looked down and saw that I was still wearing my jacket, thankfully. I then reached into my jacket pocket and pulled out a syringe full of a red liquid. Injecting myself, I felt an instant relief from the vertigo and felt fully restored in a matter of seconds. “Thank god for stimpaks!”

I looked at my surroundings again, realizing I’ve been wasting too much time. I pulled out the map of Equestria from my pocket. On the map, I could see the marked location of Thomas and I. It looked like I was in some place called the Everfree Forest… Hearing a howl in the distance, I quickly realized how dangerous this place must be, especially at night. I quickly rushed to find where Thomas was. I Looked at the map and saw that he was only about a mile away from me.

I patted myself down to make sure I was all in one piece, and headed off on a search for him...

After a short hike through the forest I started to notice the foliage thicken the farther I walked through it. After a few more minutes it got to the point where a wall of vines was in front of me. That left me with two choices. Chop it down, or set it on Fire!

I quickly ditched that last idea, and decided the best option would have been to chop it down instead of accidently burn down an entire forest. I reached into my pocket and rummaged around for a good while, until I felt the handle of a machete. I pulled it out and took a good look at the tool. Noticing that it was still sheathed, I unbuckled the straps and pulled it off the blade. I saw the gleam of the blade and prepared myself for the work ahead.

I took a slash at the wall of vines and felt it give way almost instantly as if something moved it. I Decided that I no longer needed the tool, I put it away.

Once it all fell, I took a good look to see the outline of an object on the ground. I took a step over the fallen vines and scouted out the area. Apparently I had just stepped out of the forest. Ahead of me laid an open field of rolling hills spanning far over the horizon. With the sun rising in the horizon, I looked down below me to see an outline at what I assumed was Thomas.

I took a knee so I could take a look at whatever it was. “Ugh, five more minutes mom.” He said as I touched him, I immediately blinked and sighed in relief.

“Hey it’s you” Thomas said with a light hearted chuckle.

“Yeah I’m just glad I found you.” I replied.

I took a good look at him, and asked him in a sincere voice. “You can move, right?”

“Of course I can, why wouldn’t I?” He said with a weird look on his face.

“I don’t know? Probably the fact that we both fell through the void and survived in one piece.” I said with a worried voice. "Let me help you up.” I said while I extended an arm out to him.

“Alright, so what’s going on, and where are we?” He said with a clueless look, as he reached for my extended hand.
I pulled him up and told him exactly what I knew. “I’m not sure what happened back in the doorway, but I know for a fact that we aren’t on Earth anymore.” I said with a furrowed brow.

“At least were safe, but like I said: Where are we?” He once again had a clueless look on his face.

“Well take a guess.” I said with a grin on my face,

“Wait!” He froze instantly and then shouted. “OH DUDE, I CAN’T BELIEVE WE MADE IT!”

I shuddered from his sudden outburst and replied with a more serious tone of voice. “We do have one big prob-” before I could finish he interrupted me.

“OH MY GOD I CAN FINALLY MEET FLUTTERSHY!” He yelled with increasing vigour.

“Okay, will you let me t-” I once again got interrupted by his outburst.

Out of a fit of rage, I set my hands on his shoulders to keep him in place, I then said to him. “STOP! JUST STOP TALKING!” I shouted at him to stop.

“Oh sorry” He muttered in a quiet whisper.

I pulled my hands off of his shoulders and spoke. “Like I was saying, we have a big problem.” I finished and allowed him to speak.

“What do you mean?” He asked with a sudden worried tone of voice.

“Well I can’t reopen the doorway, seeing that it’s shattered to pieces.” I said in a serious voice. “So that means were stuck here for a while until I can find us a way back to our dimension.” I sighed as I walked in a direction that lead towards the closest town.

“Wait why leave?” He said as he started to walk after me.

“You know, for being stuck in this dimension you seem pretty calm.” I spouted while I spotted the rucksack a few feet in front of us. I walked up to the bag and checked the contents I then handed the bag to Thomas who was trailing behind me. He grabbed the bag and slipped the straps through his arms. He spoke in a calm voice.“Probably the fact that were in Equestria!”

“Well this world isn’t all rainbows and sunshine.” I joked sarcastically. Holding back a grin as we finally reached a road.
I reached into my jacket and pull out the map and took a good look at it. “Well for starters, we aren’t exactly supposed be here and for other reasons, I just don’t feel comfortable here.”

“Can we at least head to Ponyville?” He whimperd to me with a puppy dog face.

I turned my head toward the sky and gandered at it. Seeing the sun now spreading its sunlight slowly over the vast land beyond us. “Yeah I was thinking of heading there anyways, I am a bit curious about these ponies.” I finished, feeling like a hypocrite after saying that.

“So how far away are we?” He asked me, now that were walking alongside the road.

“I’m guessing about a couple of miles so get ready for a long walk ahead of us.” I spoke while reaching into my pocket and pulled out a canteen. “Thirsty?” I questioned him while I held the canteen out to him.

“Sure, I'm parched and a little hungry.” He said while grabbing it and taking a swig.

I scanned ahead and saw some buildings off in the distance and a shimmer of what I assumed was a river. After I spotted that, I nudged Thomas and told him what I saw in the distance. Immediately he picked up speed and started to outpace me. Speaking up, “Oh yeah, I can’t wait until I see them. I wonder who I’m gonna see first…” He said as I tuned him out, and then looked to my left and saw a sign that said 'Ponyville'.

I saw this, so I decided it would be a good time to stop and give Thomas another talk…

So this is my first fan-fic. Constructive criticism is okay as long as it’s not too bad and I will try to release my next chapter within the next few days if my writing style isn’t too bad.
Thanks for reading anyways!

I also want to point out that I reworked this prologue, so now their are 20% less errors.
All thanks to my proof reader: 'DeadlyMongoose'

Chapter I: Arrival

Authors Note: The prologue has been redone so it’s at least readable now. I took everyone’s advice and got a pre-reader. So hopefully there aren't as many mistakes. The pre-read was a bit rushed.

Chapter I: Arrival

“Okay Thomas…” I looked around to make sure nothing could see us. I then pulled us off the road. “Before we go into Ponyville, I think we should go over some things first.”

“Oh don’t worry!” Thomas exclaimed. “I’ve read plenty of fan-fics to know what to do in Equestria.” Thomas afterwards decided to step back onto the road leading to Ponyville.

“That still doesn’t mean anything, this is a whole new dimension that you or neither I have ever been to. You just can’t walk into a random town and expect the locals to be friendly!”

Thomas then turned around and responded heatedly. “Well, why not?!”

“We can’t just trot into town and instantly become friends with everyone!” I said as I started pacing back and forth. “First, we need to find the mayor and then find a place to live until I can find us a way back home.”

“How long do you think we might be here?”

“I don’t know, days, weeks, months, even years. Until I can find out what happened to the Doorway, we can’t leave here.”

“Come to think of it, I might have something useful in my bag.” I muttered to myself. “Hey Thomas, I need that bag.”

I walked over to him and tugged at his bag. “I’ll need this.” He agreed and gave me the bag. I slowly opened the bag, peering inside at its contents. Hmm… water, food, extra clothes for Thomas, magazines, ammo? “Oh shit! I just…” reaching farther into the bag, I slowly pulled a gun from the bag. A Colt M1911, modified to fire a .50 Action Express and outfitted with an extended magazine. “Well this is bad, I don’t remember putting this in here…”

FLASHBACK

Stepping out of my bedroom in the doorway, I looked around to see where I was. A huge circular room with many doors lining against the wall and a large conference table in the center.On the far end there was a raised platform with the exit. Looking around I spotted the door I was looking for ‘The Kitchen’.

In the kitchen I prepared a quick breakfast. Starting by walking to the refrigerator, I opened it and pulled out the ingredients. “I always do love to eat a healthy breakfast consisting of eggs and toast.” I said aloud, winking at a non-existing camera. Shutting the door I noticed a little note. ‘Do not forget to pack for the trip!’

“Oh goody goody! Todays the day I get to travel again!” Rushing with my breakfast, I walked to the next room ‘The Armory’.

Inside the armory, I turned on a light revealing a long corridor with cabinets stretching down as far as the eye can see. Spotting what I needed in the distance, I approached it quickly. It was a golden cabinet with a plaque on it stating ‘Legendary Weapons’. Throughout my travels, I have collected many weapons. Most of them I will never use, but I still have them anyways just to show off.

Opening the cabinet I reach in there and pull out a gun. “My precious…” The gun I was looking for was a modified M1911, this gun was from my original dimension. When I left, this was one of the things I took with me. “Okay, now just to grab the ammo and… Shazzam!”

I slammed the cabinet shut after retrieving my supplies, and then reached into my pocket, pulling out a metal tin. “Mentats” I read aloud. “God I love these things!” Sure I know that their bad for you, but I just love these things. The Fallout universe really changed me and made me the man I am today. Leaving the armory I pop a pill and then walk out towards the exit…

PRESENT TIME

Snapping back to reality, I realized what I’ve been holding in my hand. “Uhhh… Thomas you might want to see this.”

“Sure, but why”

Thomas slowly approaches behind.

“Why did you need the bag any-WOAH?!” Thomas shouted as he realized I was holding a gun. “Why do you have that?!”

“I thought if we got separated you might need some form of protection, but by the looks of it, I guess we won’t be needing this.” I looked at the gun to admire its work before shoving it back in the bag. “Don’t worry, you won’t be seeing this again.” I said to him.

He sighed in relief before speaking again. “Oh that’s good” Tom exclaimed. “I was hoping this wouldn’t turn into some crazy murder story.”

“Well then, if you’re ready, lets head into town.” I said before closing the bag and slinging it onto my back. We both start walking towards the town. As we got closer to the town, I could start to see the finer details of it. Ahead of us was a arched bridged that lead over a shimmering river. Connected to the bridge was a simple cobblestone road leading to a small section of the town up ahead. This part of the town looked like the back entrance, probably because of the lack of ponies there.

I looked over to Thomas and ask “So about these ponies?”.

Thomas snickered a bit before resting a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t worry, if its anything like the TV show, they should be real nice.”

“You’re really going to base them off of the TV show.” I asked.

I looked further ahead and saw that we were about to step onto the bridge. While walking to the other side, I felt a slight pain because of the unnecessary arch of the bridge. Ahead I could see a bright and colorful town full of life. The structures were made of timber-frames with thatched roofs and the occasional overhanging upper floors.

“Oh man, were finally gonna do this!” Thomas shouted with increased enthusiasm.

“Now slow down, I don’t want you to scare off the locals.” I told him in worried tone.

Ahead I could see that the ponies few ponies that were out at this time were setting up stands or opening their stores. Checking the sky, I saw the morning sun now slowly rising to its peak. “Before we actually mingle with people, I think it would be best to talk to a local authority before we actually settle in.”

I sighed as I looked at the approaching town. “I don’t want to get ran out of a town we just got to.”

One of the ponies glanced in our direction, but quickly went back to work before doing a double take and screaming in fear. “RUN! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!” The distress of the mare set of a chain reaction and caused all other nearby ponies to panic and run around in alarm.

In unison we both utter the same phrase. “Oh hell, we just got here!”

Looking ahead I saw a group of ponies galloping to our position, before stopping at our feet. The lead pony shouts “Stop! In the name of Celestia, we command you to relinquish your arms and stand down or we will use force!” Starring at them, I figured they were the local law enforcement. They were sporting blue coats that had markings on them probably showing their rank.

The lead pony was a blue stallion with a darker blue mane Walking over to m, he commanded me to hand over my bag.

“I’m sorry, I think we may have come at a misunderstanding.” I said as I take off my bag and raise my hands to show no harm. Thomas to the side of me agrees and also raises his arms. “Can you tell us what we did? We’re new here and we ju-”

I quickly get cut off by the commanding pony. “There have been reports of mysterious monsters on the outskirts of the Everfree Forest.” He says with a commanding voice. “We’re sorry if we may have interrupted you, but you will have to come with us. Will you two comply?”

Lowering my hands I agree to his terms. “Yes we will.”

One of the smaller ponies trotted up and grabbed the bag. We were then both pushed into the direction of the town hall.

“Before we go any further, can I ask why we are being detained?” I asked.

“You’re not being detained, but I think you might want to meet the mayor.” The lead pony responded. “You also might need an escort to the town hall.”

I nodded in response and prepared myself for the long walk into the town.

As we slowly made our way further into town we got a lot of looks from the ponies, all ranging from confusion to fright as some ponies even ran into their homes at the sight of us. We even got a surprised look from a mint green mare who just stared at us and smiled in glee. Looking around, I took in the full sight of Ponyville. Observing the town, I saw many different stores holding all kinds of items. One building caught my eye, a simple house with navy blue door.

One of the ponies spoke up before I could catch another glimpse of the building. “We should be there pretty soon, don’t try anything with the mayor or we will detain you!” With a lighter tone he says. “By the way… My name is Blue Cuffs.”

“So Blue Cuffs, why are we meeting the mayor?” I ask hesitantly.

“We’ve never seen you’re kind, so we thought we should take you to the mayor’s office.” He answered as if he was also confused. “We already called ahead to announce you’re arrival so the guards don’t get startled.”

After walking for what I thought was an hour, we finally arrived at town square. Looking around I took in the scenery, smiling as I saw a large pavilion with a fountain of a mare rearing up on her hind legs Around it were multiple benches and in front of the fountain was a large building that shot towards the sky.

Blue Cuffs stopped in front of me to make an announcement “This is town hall, I’m sorry but my squad and I will have to leave you here. Just walk up to the guards and follow them inside.” He stopped to take in a breath. “We really shouldn’t have left our post anyways, but we couldn’t leave you two alone.”

Blue Cuffs then walked toward me, handing me my bag. “Take care, and don’t do anything stupid.”

I thanked him, then waited for him to walk off a fair distance before speaking. “Hey Tom, we should probably do as he said.” After hearing a lack response, I turned around to see him gazing at the surroundings, completely mesmerized by everything going on around him. I grabbed his shoulder causing him to steer back in surprise.

“Oh, sorry about that!” He yelps in surprise.

I started to walk towards the town hall. “That’s okay but I think we should do as he said before people start staring at us.”

He looked around one last time before quickly following after me. “Hey about all this happening…” He stopped nervously. “What if they kick us out?”

I turned to him before stepping onto the patio of the town hall, giving him a grin to let him know everything will be alright. We then approached the two guards. They were both wearing golden armor and had swords at their sides hanging, concealed in their sheaths. They nodded at me and then lead us into the building. Inside I saw a plain room with a reception area and a small lounge. Next to the reception area was a door that probably led upstairs. Following the guards,

I walked with them towards the door, waiting for the command to go in.

One of the guards finally spoke up. “Open this door and follow up the stairs. At the top you will come across a long hallway. The door at the end of the hallway is the mayor’s office, knock before you enter.” Once he finished talking, he walked back outside with his partner.

Deciding it would be best to do as he said, I opened the door and slowly ascended the stairway. The stairway was a spiral staircase that only went up three floors, I did as the guard said and reached the top floor. I arrived in the hallway that he was speaking of. At the end of it was the mayor’s office. Adorning the hallway were four other doors, each spaced out perfectly from each other with plaques naming the owner of the room.

I turned around to Thomas and slowly nudged him forward. At this point, he was too tired to talk or even fully understand what was going on. “Tom, I think you might need to take a break soon.”

Thomas, becoming alert once again responded sluggishly. “I’m sorry but I feel like a zombie right now, I honestly don’t know how you do it…”

“I’ll talk to the mayor and try and get us a someplace to stay.” I told him casually. Thinking to myself how exhausted he must be by this point, I rushed to open the door before remembering to knock. Taking my hand from the knob, I instead raised my hand to knock.

After a moment, I heard a faint voice of a female. “Come in!”

I opened the door, immediately being greeted by a mare. She had a tan coat with long wavy hair that was a shade of grey with a lighter shade of grey mixed in. She also wore reading glasses that were tilted at a slight angle along with a collar at her neck. Her cutie mark was a beige scroll with a blue ribbon tied around it, suiting her occupation perfectly.

She flashed me a smile before speaking. “Please take a seat.” she said as she pointed over to two seats pulled up to a desk. She then trotted over behind her desk and sat down in a leather seat.

I once again nudged Thomas over to the chair and plopped him down, almost instantly he was out like a light.

Embarrassed by his actions I quickly spoke. “I’m terribly sorry about my friend, it’s just that… we didn’t exactly get any rest on our way here.”

She now noticed my friend, giggling a bit before speaking. “It’s okay, I actually have some important questions to ask you, regarding you’re arrival, then I’ll send you on your way..”

A bit confused by the suddenness, I couldn’t help but stammer a bit. “I’m sorry bu-”

I was quickly cut off as she properly introduced herself. “Oh where are my manners! I didn’t even tell you my name.

Please call Miss Mayor.”

“Uh…okay Miss Mayor. My name is Max Powers… It’s very nice to meet you.”

I smiled a bit before continuing.

“My friend and I have come here looking for a place to stay…except we don’t exactly have any money, seeing how were not from here.” I said with my usual form of casualness, as I took a seat in the chair.

“I can provide you room and board for a short time, but eventually you will have to find another home.” She said with a hint of pity in her tone.

“There is one thing I’m curious about… I’ve never seen your kind around here.” She finished with a puzzled look on her face. “In fact you don’t exactly look like you belong here…”
She stopped, realizing what she has just said. “Oh, not that I mean you’re not welcome here.” She said embarrassingly.

“I’m sorry but why exactly are you going to give us a free room to stay at?”

Giving a friendly smile she said “We people of Ponyville like to treat every traveler with respect and help them along their way, unlike the towns Manehatten and Las Pegasus…” Ending her statement with a frown.

“I can fully understand what you mean by that, I will be glad to tell you about us and where were from.” I said holding a poker face.

She took a look at me and studied me for a moment before speaking again. “I assume that the townspeople didn’t seem so friendly towards you.”

“About that… The authorities actually mistook us for monsters. They did no harm after seeing what we were, but it actually brought us here which was in fact, a good thing.”

She nodded in acknowledgment to what was I said. “So I know this might come off a bit rude, but what are you?”

“I’m a human.” I say confidently.

She starred at me for a small moment before speaking. “That’s odd, Lyra spoke of something like you before, but I always ignored her.”

“I’m sorry, but who’s Lyra?” I asked, failing to hide my interest.

“Lyra’s a mint green mare. She’s absolutely crazy about humans and I can understand why. I think it might be best to avoid her for now, but in the mean time it’s getting late and you look like you might need a place to stay for tonight.”

“I was actually just about to mention that.” I said excitedly. I looked at her while she started to reach under her desk to pull out a folder.

“Here you might need this” She said while sliding the folder across the table.

“What exactly is this” I asked as I reached for it.

“That folder will have everything you will need for your stay here. I also made arrangements for you at a local inn.” She then rose from her seat and trotted over to the door, opening it. “I expect you two are very exhausted from your travels, I’ll just send you on your way.”

“I just have to say thank you. If it weren’t for you, we might have had to sleep in the streets tonight.” I said sarcastically.

I stood up and walked over to Thomas. I called his name, waking him up after a few tries. “Come on Tom, we should get out of here.”

Thomas lazily got up from the seat, standing at my side. He tried to envision what was going on. “So did you get us a place to stay?”

The Mayor answered for me “Yes, I have provided you a place to stay, but only temporarily.”

We then said our goodbyes, then exited the office. We started to walk down the hallway, reaching the stairs we descended, reaching the bottom floor hastily. I pulled open the door and looked into the main room, seeing a grey
Pegasus with yellow mane arguing with the receptionist.

I decided this was not any of my business. I continued to walk past the arguing ponies, quickly reaching the exit. Pulling the door open, I nodded at the guards to let them know the meeting went well and continued to walk over to the fountain.

Taking a seat by a nearby bench, I looked at the folder the mayor gave me with enhanced interest. Opening it, I saw a couple pieces of paper as well as a check listing. It could be cashed for one hundred bits. Unsure on how much that was I would be sure to ask somepony about that.

“Hey!” Alerted by the sudden outburst I looked up from the folder to see a mare with a mint green coat. She had cyan mane with white highlights and a horn poking out from her mane. “I’m sorry to bother you, but you and your friend look like you need a place to stay, right?”

“I’m sorry, we just met and I’m not sure who you are.” I reply with hesitation.

“Oh! My name is Lyra… Lyra Heartstrings, but you can just call me Lyra.” She said as she extended a hoof out to me.

Taking the hoof and awkwardly shaking it, I spoke with somewhat obvious discomfort in my voice. “Well my name is Max Powers and it’s nice to meet you…”
“I saw you back at the market place.” She said eerily.

“Uh, yeah now that I remember, I think I might have also seen you too.” I said with growing discomfort. “I’m sorry but I was actually on my way to an inn to stay the night there. Could you help me get there?”

With gleam in her eyes she said in delight. “YES YES YES!”

Surprised by the sudden outburst, I stood up slowly. Bumping into Thomas, he whispered to me “I think we should avoid her.”

Turning to him I murmured a response. “I know what you mean but we don’t exactly know our way around this town and we could use the help.” I then turn to face Lyra and brace myself for the barrage of questions.

“So you’re a human?”

“Yes I am.”

Looking even more excited she started speaking faster. “How do you walk on two legs so easily?”

“I can’t exactly explain it, it’s just natural.” I said before making a statement. “Can we start heading to the Inn now?”

“So… Would you like to come back to my place?”

“I’m sorry what?!” I said sounding surprised.

“Do you two want to come over to my house?” She said, flashing a seductive look.

“No, just no…” I said awkwardly. “Just take me to the local inn.”

“Sure it’s over this way.” She said with a deflated lack of enthusiasm.

Lyra then started to trot away from the fountain and over to the nearby street corner. Following, I looked down the road, seeing an assortment of colorful buildings. At the end of the street I saw a small rectangular building with a small pavilion and what looked like a restaurant inside. The three of us started to walk down the road until we reached our destination.

“Well, thank you Lyra. I guess we might be seeing each other again sometime.”

“Can I come with you?”

Ignoring her question I waved her goodbye and then walked inside. Lyra looking saddened now started to slowly walk away before disappearing around a street corner. “That was awkward” I said to myself.

“I can’t believe she just did that.” Thomas muttered. “I knew she had an obsession, but that just takes the cake!”

“Wait! You know who Lyra is?!”

Turning back to me he explains. “Well, Lyra has a fantasy of being a human… So she wants your body.” With a snicker, he patted my shoulder jokingly.

I simply rolled my eyes and replied with obvious sarcasm. “Very funny Tom. Now if you don’t mind, I’m going to find the receptionist.”

Looking around the inn I saw a small reception area to the side of the room, and on the opposite side of that I saw an even smaller lounge with a vending machine standing next to the chairs. Walking over to the reception area, I saw a small bell on the counter. I rung the bell and was instantly surprised by a black stallion eerily popping out from underneath the counter. He seemed to have a tired look on him, as if he was sleeping under the counter the whole time and I had just awoken him.

He spoke with forced enthusiasm “Well hello there! You seem to…” Noticing my appearance he stammered a bit before speaking again. “Oh it’s you. The mayor called ahead and made reservations for you. Your room is at the end of the hallway behind you.” He handed me a key after he was finished. “The name is Jericho if you were wondering. If you need any help just ask me.” Once he finished, he quietly slumped back underneath the desk, disappearing from sight.

“Thank you, we’ll just be heading to our rooms now.” I said as I grabbed the key and walked to my room.

I reached the room after making my way past crowds of customer. Pulling out the key, I inserted it into the keyhole, hearing a click as I turned it. I pulled open the door and looked inside. There were two small beds up against one wall with nightstands right next to them. At the end of the room was a small window that showed the now night sky. Looking to my left, I saw a small bathroom and a closet.

“Well, home sweet home…” I said quietly.
Stepping inside the room, I threw my bag to the side and closed the door behind me after allowing Thomas to step inside.

I walked over to the nearest bed and feel into it. Feeling that it was a little small, I struggle around a bit before getting comfortable.

“Night Max.” Thomas said quietly.

“Yeah… night.”

Falling into a semi conscious state I started to review all the things I had done in my life, this by far was one of the strangest things I have done in my life. “And now to sleep.”

The last thing I thought of before losing consciousness was that crazy pony named Lyra…

Authors Footnote:
So yeah…
Chapter 1… enjoy!
Took me a bit longer to release but I still did it.
Now if you don’t mind me, I’m going to be busy again.

Chapter II: Friendship

“Where am I?” I said puzzled.

As I looked out beyond me, I saw an endless field. The field was full of the most random things. Feeling as if I should leave, I backed up and stumbled upon an uprooted weed. Landing in the grass, I caught a glimpse of something blue, navy blue to be exact. I stood up from where I was and looked around at my surroundings. I noticed the scenery changed while I was on the ground, leaving me in a hallway.

I immediately rushed to the Doorway, as I hoped for the best. Drawing closer to the door, it seemed to drift farther away, eventually leaving my vision entirely.

“What?!” I said in growing confusion.

I looked around where I stood. I noticed that I had stumbled upon another Doorway, yet this looked very familiar, as if I just saw it.

Out of my control I raised a hoof. Wait, a hoof?! “Great Scott! When did I get hooves?!” I said puzzled by my sudden change of appearance. As I continued to raise my hoof, I knocked repeatedly against the door.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

I awoke with a stir, hearing a knock at the door.

“Hey! Wake up in there, I have a message for you.” The pony said from the other side of the door.

I looked up from where I laid, glancing around the room. Instantly I saw Thomas get up from the other bed. “Uh, who is it?”

“I think it might be Jericho.” I yawned as I got up from bed.

I stood and stretched out, popping my joints as I extended my arms outwards. I slowly shambled towards the door.

Looking through the peep hole, I confirmed it was Jericho, and opened the door.

“Hey there Jericho…” I said with little enthusiasm. I yawned again before I speaking. “Sorry about that. You just woke me up, so I’m still a little tired.”

“Yeah, I can see that.” He said, looking behind me to see Tom heading towards the bathroom.

“So what’d you have to tell me?” I asked.

“I’ve received a message from an anonymous pony, saying for you to meet them at the local park.”

“I’ll be there, but at what time?”

He gave me an awkward look before he spoke. “They said anytime. I wouldn’t know why, but they sounded eager to meet you.”

I thought to myself who it could have been, but quickly set it aside as my stomach rumbled. “You wouldn’t happen to know where I could grab a bite, would you?” I asked.

“Sweet Celestia!” He snorted in anger. “There’s a bucking restaurant right outside on the pavilion.” He yelled in a rage.
In a muffled voice I heard someone speak. “Keep it down out there, some people are trying to sleep.

“Uh, great. I’ll be going back to my desk now.” He said as he trotted down the hallway, out of sight.

“Well, thanks for telling me anyways.” I mumbled to myself as I stepped back inside my room.

I turned around to walk towards the bathroom, hearing running water I assumed it was Thomas freshening up. Deciding that I should give him his privacy, I instead looked out the window. All I saw was an alleyway, and what looked like a mare staring right back at me.

“Okay, that’s just creepy.” Walking to the window, I quickly opened it to startle a peeping mare.

“I’m really sorry! I know this looks bad, but I can explain!” She stammered while backing further into the alley. “Please don’t take this the wrong way, but I really need you to come with me and fast.”

I glanced at the mare. What I saw, was a familiar mint green unicorn with hazel eyes and a lyre for a cutie mark. Oh, god!
Not Lyra again. I thought to myself.

She awaited a response. Lacking one, she spoke again. “Please?”

“If I go with you, will you promise to leave me alone from now on?” I questioned her.

“Yes! I just need to prove something to a friend.” She explained.

I nodded to her, letting her know I acknowledged her. I quickly paced back and forth while I thought whether I should bring Thomas or not. Making my decision, I pulled a notepad out of my jacket pocket, jotting down a quick note before leaving out the door.

I took my time walking out to where Lyra stood outside. When I arrived to where she was, she had an enormous grin creeping across her face. “Oh, she’s gonna be so surprised when she sees you!” She said giddily.

“I’m sorry, who?”

“Bon Bon, my roommate.” She said as she flashed me an even bigger smile.”She told me that humans weren’t real. I can’t wait to see the look on her face when she sees you!”

“Wait did you just…” I assumed she already heard about the word human from the mayor, so I decided to continue on. “So let’s go then.” I told her in boredom.

She squealed in excitement before leaving the pavilion. As she left, she waved her tail towards my direction to signal me
to follow her.

My stomach rumbled once again. “Would you mind if we stop by somewhere to eat? I’m starving.” I said as I rubbed my stomach.

“Sure why not. I don’t expect you to have any bits, do you?” she questioned me.

“No, I actually left that for Thomas.” I said as I remembered the note I left behind. “He’ll need it way more than I would.” I said jokingly.

“That’s fine; I don’t exactly like bronies…”

I quickly turned around and stared her down. “How? You know about bronies?” Confused by her knowledge I started to question her. “How do you know about us humans?” I demanded.

“I… I just made up that word.” She stuttered.

I raised my voice. “I don’t believe you!”

“I really mean it. Brony here means a bad thing!” She said nervously.

“Now you’re insulting my friend!” I shouted at her. Drawing a crowd around us, I decided to pull us off to towards another alleyway. “Look! Just tell me what you know about us humans and I won’t report you for being a peeping sally.”

Feeling threatened, she cracked. “Alright! I’ll tell you!” Nearly breaking out into tears, she confessed. “I’ve actually known about humans for a long time. Ever since I traveled there, nopony would believe me when I told them about you’re kind.”

“What? So, you’re saying you’ve been to Earth?” I said questionably.

“Yes, yes I have. I don’t know how I ended up there, but I got back somehow.”

“When you got there, what did you see?

“I saw people like you. They never saw me, but I saw them. I was only there for a short time before I popped back in Equestria.

As I thought over everything she just said, I went over all the different reasons how she could have ended up there. I never heard of someone who traveled between dimensions other than me and the… Oh no, he must be here. Out of all the places I travel, HE has to be here.

“Lyra, are you sure there wasn’t anything else that happened, when you went to earth?”

Lyra looked up at me and cleared her throat. “I’m not sure, I was just walking back from work, when I suddenly popped up in Earth.”

Not believing her, I spoke up again. “So how did you get back then?”

Feeling nervous, Lyra backed up against the alley wall. “I uhhh… I just popped back here!”

“I think there’s more to the story than just that.”

“No there’s not, I swear! Why would I lie to you?!”

Coming to a conclusion, I answered her. “Maybe you’re trying to protect someone?”

“And who would that b-“

“LYRA!” Somepony yelled, at the entrance to the alleyway.

“What?!” We both said in unison.

The pony continued to speak.”I said what are you doing with… mother of Celsetia!”

I looked away from Lyra, into the direction of the pony. Seeing that it was a mare, I worked out her details. The mare’s coat was a pale cream, while her curly mane was dark blue with pink highlights. As I was checking her out, Lyra stepped in front of me attempting to hide me.

“Oh, hey Bon Bon.” Lyra said casually, as she started walking toward us.

“Lyra! Where have you been?!” Bon Bon said in distress. “You never came home last night, where were you?”

“Oh, I was… I was just staying with a friend.” Lyra faltered.

Bon Bon noticed that I was behind her friend and started to towards us.

“Is that a human behind you?” She asked hesitantly.

“Yes…”

Bon Bon stared at Lyra briefly, before she spoke in a serious manner. “We need to talk. Now!”

Lyra turned around to say something, before being cut off by Bon Bon. “I need to speak to her in private, I hope you don’t mind.”

While I stood back in the alleyway, I overheard parts of their conversation. Coming from Bon Bon, I heard she was arguing with Lyra, about her not coming home the previous night. During the barrage of ‘hate’ Lyra just stood there before she motioned toward me.

Bon Bon turned in my direction and spotted me in the darkness of the alley. “So, I take it that you’re the human everyponies been talking about.”

Wow, word spreads fast in a town like this. “Yes I am. In fact there are actually two of us.”

Lyra hopped in front of me and shouted. “Double the human! Double the Fu-” Lyra once again got cut off.

“Lyra! Not right now!” Bon Bon blurted out. “You know, how about we get out of this dirty alleyway and go somewhere else. I don’t like the looks we’re getting.”

Looking behind her, I could see a growing crowd of ponies. “How about going somewhere to eat… Lyra?” I said while
grinning.

We all walked through the town for a while before stopping at a restaurant called ‘Sugarcube Corner’. I glanced at the building. Shocked by what I saw, I did a double take before looking at it once again. The building had the weirdest infrastructure I had ever seen before. The building looked like a gingerbread house. Candy pillars were supporting the overhang, while the roof was made out of what looked like chocolate. The building was about three stories high, with the third floor appearing as a cupcake tower. Above that was a trio of candles that serviced as a light tower.

“I want to eat that building.” I announced.

Bon Bon turned toward me. “Trust me, the building looks good, but wait until you see the actual food.”

“Oh, sounds good.”

When we walked into the store, I was immediately struck by an enchanting aroma. I smelled so many different pastries.
Glancing at the counter ahead of me I noticed the confections.

“Oh…My…God!” My mouth watered at the sight of the mountains of pastries. Donuts, cakes, pies, cookies, assorted candies, all the wonders ahead distracted me from the pink surprise that was ahead of me.

“HIYA!” A pink blur shouted.

“What?!”

I quickly looked at the pink shape that was now in front of me. What I saw was a bouncing pink earth pony. She had a cotton candy mane and a cutie mark consisting of a trio of balloons. Eagerly bouncing she quickly skipped right up to my face.

“Hey there! I’ve never seen you here before, you must be new here!” She said giddily.
In my head I quickly went over the choices I had. One! I could just turn around and leave, but I’m still hungry. Why go hungry when there’s mouth watering cake… right over there… Oh that’s right! Two! I could talk to her, even if she might be leaning onto borderline insanity… Or Three! Profit! Wait, how would I even?!

“Ah screw it.” I thought to myself. I started to make my acquaintance with her. “Hello my name is Max and you must be?

“My name is Pinkie Pie and I’m here to greet you, as the official town greeter I’m gonna throw you a PARTY!” She announced with joy.

“Oh well thank you but…” I looked over to Bon Bon and whispered to her. “Should I be scared?”

“No, she’s just being… Pinkie.”

“Uh, Okay... So Pinkie? How much for a cake, preferably that chocolate cake?”

“Hmmm… Being new here, I think you deserve a discount. How about… Five bits!”

“Yes I’ll take it!” Thinking to myself, I realized I didn’t have any money. “Uh, actually… I’ll be right back!”

I turned around to find my companions. Spotting them sitting at a nearby booth, I rushed toward them.

“Hey there…!” I said innocently. “You wouldn’t happen to have any money, would you?” I brought out my biggest smile, as
I tried to convince them into loaning me money.

They both looked at me. Bon Bon sighed and pulled out a few bits. “Here, take these.” As I walked away, back toward the counter, I heard Lyra comment about my bipedal stance. Ugh, she’s really starting to scare me about her obsession. I thought to myself.

“Okay, I’m back to buy that cake!” I said as I slammed the bits on the counter.

“Okie dokey lokey!” She said with a… Squee?

“Uh you wouldn’t happen to know were a park is, would you?” I ask questionably.

She popped out from under the counter, holding a pink box in her mouth. “Muff muf mfg…” Dropping the box on the counter, she continued to speak. “The park is over there.” She pointed her hoof in a random direction.

I sighed in gloom. “Just show me on this map.” I pulled a map out of my jacket pocket and held it out for her to see.

“Oh! That’s a nice map there! Ooooh, it even shows where you are right now and even someone named Thomas.” She took hoof of the map and pulled out a pencil from her mane. Holding the pencil in her hoof, she started to draw a circle on the map. “And… Right there!”

I stepped up toward her and looked at the map. “Okay, I’ll just be taking this then.” I swiped the map from her and then said adieu. I smirked. “My plan worked!” I thought to myself. I took a look at the map, seeing that her name was now on the map. I smiled, knowing that I could now successfully avoid her. This map is actually a special map. It reads your DNA and tracks your location. I actually got this map after I visited the J.K Rowling dimension.

I walked to the booth where Lyra and Bon Bon were sitting, taking a seat near Bon Bon. I was trying to stay as far away from Lyra as possible.

“Hey guys, I got a cake.”

“Oh, that just looks lovely!” Bon Bon said smiling.

“You wouldn’t mind if I borrowed some, right?” Lyra spoke out, standing up.

Looking at both of them, I nodded my head. “Sure why not, you guys bought it anyways.” Opening the box, I prepared myself for a delectable treat. “So why don’t you two tell me about yourselves.”

Bon Bon spoke up first. “Well, Lyra and I are roommates. We share a flat together over by Stirrup Street.

“So, anything else?” I winked at them.

Lyra gave me a look. “Bon Bon owns her own sweets store.”

“Wow that’s quite interesting, please tell me more…” I said with discrete sarcasm.

Bon Bon took over the conversation from there. “Oh! Well, it first started back a couple years ago…” She paused for a moment. “When I first came to Ponyville, I came here looking for a job, long story short, I started my own business and became the second most popular sweet shop in Ponyville.”

“You sound very successful. How is you’re business running exactly?” I asked.

“We’re doing very well. Infact, we’re actually raking in a huge profit. It’s more than we need, so I usually spend the extra money on building up on infrastructure.”

“Why don’t you use the extra money to build another store?”

After I spoke, I saw her eyes twinkle. “That’s a great idea, I should have thought of that earlier.”

I looked over at Lyra, seeing that she was still eyeing the remaining cake, I nudged the rest of it toward her. “What about you Lyra?”

Lyra noticed the cake and started to dig at it with her hoof. “Oh, well I’m actually unemployed…” Her face started to glow red. “I usually just hang out at the park and play my lyre, but I sometimes play at Bon Bon’s store, just for the hay of it…”

“That’s not so bad, do you get any tips?”

“Yeah, it’s nice. But I feel like it’s more of a pity game.” She said while slumping back in her seat.

As we started to finish up our conversation, the pink pony decided to drop by again. Bouncing playfully toward us. I began to get up. “Sorry girls, but I should really get out of here. I have a meeting with another pony.” I said as I stood up, stepping away from the booth. “See you later girls.” Once I walked away, the pony trailed behind me until I stopped by the door.

“I’m sorry, but do you need something miss?” I asked her.

She giggled as she spoke. “No, I’m just walking in the same direction as you.”

“Uh, okay then…” I took a step outside, pulling out the map. Looking at it, I spotted were the park was. Seeing that it wasn’t too far away from my area, I began to walk. I also looked at where Thomas was, and saw that his marker was no longer at the inn. Assuming that he left and started his own adventure, I stopped to think… Maybe I shouldn’t have left him by himself.

“Leave who by himself?” A girly voice said behind me.

I turned around to be greeted by the pink pony again.

“How did you…? Shouldn’t you be at work?” I said while staring in alarm.

“I took my break, so now I can follow you.” She said, as she inched closer to me.

“Well then, I’m going to the park. So if you don’t mind…” I said.

I began walking toward the direction of the park. While I was walking I couldn’t help but notice all the different stores. I saw some strange stores selling individual items like quills and sofas, a store that sold only fans and then one selling clocks. I even saw a store that specialized in selling cheese.

Seeing that the pink pony was still following me, I began to strike up a conversation. “So, I take it that your favorite color is pink.”

She instantly sprung up like a high powered spring and popped right in front of my face. “Oh yes! I just love pink! It’s my favorite color and all. I just love how full of life it is and all the…” She noticed that she was in my way, and started to resume back to walking beside me. “I can tell we’re already going to be best friends!”

“Oh Pinkie, you already are my best friend!” I winked at her.

She gasped and then galloped away with glee. Hearing her squealing in delight as she galloped, I couldn’t help but smile. Secretly in the back of my mind, I was actually glad that she left. Glancing at the map, I saw her run back to Sugarcube Corner. Smiling, I continued to walk to the direction of the park, avoiding the alluring stores.

I finally arrived at the park and looked around. The park was just a huge forested area with a walkway cutting paths throughout it. In the center stood a fountain of a majestic winged unicorn, surrounded by benches and multiple clearings for stands. The place was deserted, except for a stallion drawing by the fountain. I decided it was best to make a new friend, so I started to walk toward him to talk to him.

“Hey there, how’s it going?”I asked the stallion.

Glancing up from his drawing he spoke. “Hey, I’ve seen you around town.”

I took a seat by the fountain. “Yeah, I’m the human everyone’s been talking about.”

He shot me a confused glance. “Don’t you mean everypony?”

I smirked, noticing my grammar mistake. “Yeah, I’m not from around here so yeah…” I looked at him and caught a glimpse of his drawing. “Hmm… Nice drawing, what is it?”

He grinned and flipped the drawing pad over. “See for yourself.”

I instantly saw the artwork. He drew a stallion suited up in a fine suite of fine metal plated armor. The armor had segmented plates folding on top of each other, building up the main part of the legs and midsection of the torso. The breast plates were a much larger, thicker type of plate. In the center of it, there was a special crest upon it. A golden sun with solar flares surrounding it, beyond that was a shield and two swords overlapping. The stallion bearing the armor was in a defensive stance, clearly showing his courage against an unknown enemy. Looking at the face of the stallion I noticed it was the splitting image of the pony I was speaking to.

“This looks like you, why is that?” I asked curiously.

He sighed. “No reason, just a fan of medieval Equestria.”

He flipped it back over and then shut the drawing pad, setting it to the side revealing his body, I could now fully see him. He was a well built stallion. He was a brown earth pony with a chocolate brown mane. Looking at his face, I saw a shaggy mane and a pair of blue eyes staring back at me.

“Sorry, but I should have introduced myself to you. My name is Max… Max Powers.”

Displaying interest, he responded. “My names Rough Sketch, pleased to meet you.” He said as he extended a hoof.

I grabbed his hoof, shaking it. “It’s nice to meet a friendly pony here. Say, why are you here by yourself?”

“I just like to come here on my off days and draw. It’s just something I like to do.”

After he finished speaking, I glanced at his flank, spotting a pencil as a cutie mark. I instantly took interest.

“That’s an interesting cutie mark, It’s a pencil right?”

“Yeah, it’s a pencil, my talent is drawing after all.” He said while he stood up. “I got it after a school project. I was told to draw, so I drew and then… Blam, a pencil as a cutie mark!”

“That’s pretty cool. My species doesn’t own cutie marks.”

“Yeah I can see that, you’re also wearing clothes. Doesn’t it ever get hot in those, especially in that jacket of yours?!” He asked, snooping.

“Humans have a harder time dealing with warming ourselves, so we wear clothes to solve that problem. It’s also considered unorthodox to be naked in public.”

He sneered. “That’s odd, but I’ve seen weirder.”

He glanced at the sky and spoke up. “Hey, sorry but I have to get home. It was nice talking to you though! Hope to see you again.”

He trotted over to his drawing pad and packed it up into a nearby saddle bag. “Oh, by the way, I think someone over there might want to see you.” He then immediately left.

“Who would want to see me?” I turned around curiously, to be met by a brown stallion.

“Why, hello there! How are you?” He said inquisitively.

“I’m doing fine.” I quickly looked him over. The stallion was a brown earth pony with a spiked brown mane and a red tie.

“Good, because I need to know why you’re here.” He quietly demanded.

“I’m sorry wha-“

Before I could finish, I was knocked unconscious by a blinding light.

Authors Notes: I have very big plans for this story.
I’m thinking of making this a very long story, yet I also want to release chapters more often.
Also, if you enjoyed this story, please rate and comment.
If you see any errors or have any questions, feel free to comment about it.

Chapter III: Awakening

I awoke by being prodded awake by an impatient hoof. Opening my eyes, I was surprised to be greeted by faint outline of a stallion in the darkness. I struggled to find I was tied to a chair, my hands being tied behind me and my ankles strapped to the leg of the chair.

“Sorry about that mate, but I couldn’t reveal my base to you.”

I blinked to refresh my vision, quickly scanning the room. My eyes were met with nothing but complete and utter darkness.

Nervously, I spoke. “Where am I?”

“Time will tell.” The voice responded.

The outline in front of me moved from where it stood. Walking away, I heard some hoofsteps before silence.

“Now if only I could find the lights?” the voice said curiously. “Oh, there it is!”

Immediately, I was blinded by a wave of blinding light. I briefly shut my eyes to avoid being blinded. Feeling the heat of the light against my skin, I attempted to open my eyes. Squinting, my eyes made out a figure in front of me.

“Well, hello there. Might I ask, what are you doing here in Equestria?”

I struggled once more and twisted in the chair. Feeling the weakness in the ropes holding me down, I made a plan. “Yeah, go ahead.” I said expecting the worst.

“How did you get here!?” The voice questioned.

“I came from a land far, far away.”

“Lying is pointless, now tell me the truth!” The figure snared.

“Like I said, I’m from a far off land.”

“Technically, I wasn’t lying.” I thought to myself. I shut my eyes and opened them. This time I had my filter implants in effect, so this time I could fully see my surrounding. What I saw shocked me. The Stallion had a wide grin on his face. I was tied to a chair and I was missing my jacket, stripped down to nothing but my underwear. I suddenly felt sick to my stomach.

“Who are you and what am I doing here!?” I demanded.

“I’m the Doctor and you’re in my TARDIS.”

He paced around in front of me and then stopped suddenly.

“I’ve been watching you since you’ve been here. You caused a disruption and nearly shattered this universe…” He paused momentarily. “If it wasn’t for me, this universe would’ve been destroyed.”

I frowned. “I guess you know then.”

“Yes, and I’m not happy to see you here.”

“I really have no clue how that happened.”

“I know how, it’s also the reason why were both stuck here.”

“Would you mind telling me how this all happened?”

He looked at me with grimace. “It happened because the time vortex broke. We both came here simultaneously. When we both appeared in this dimension, we caused a time ram. Instead of being destroyed, we were thrown through time.” He gave me another grim look. “You popped up a day ago, I popped up decades ago. Because of you, I was forced to regenerate and my TARDIS was shut down in the process.”

“I do have one more question.” I said.

He looked at me again. “And what would that be?”

“Why am I in my underwear tied to a chair?”

“Oh…” He paused looking confused. “You know, I have no clue?”

He then proceeded to walk toward me and then untie me. He started first with my ankles and then with my hands. Once free, I calmly stood up then stretched. Feeling better, I then looked down at my half naked body. Embarrassed, I covered myself behind the chair.

“Can you please escort me to my clothes?” I said nervously.

“Oh sure, just follow me this way then.

He began to walk toward the door in front of us. Leading me through, we appeared in the TARDIS atrium. The atrium was dimly lit and had three levels. We were on the second level, which led to the control panel and a set of stairs leading to the third. We slowly made our way up the stairs to the third level. Upon arrival, we were in a large hallway with many doorways.

“Now I’m not so comfortable with you being here, but since the TARDIS is offline, I guess I shouldn’t be so fearful of you.” He said

We both walked through the nearest doorway, which brought us to a large wardrobe. I immediately saw my clothes.

Walking towards them, I noticed a difference in them. Instead of my usual dark jeans, crimson shirt, leather jacket and converse high tops. They were replaced with different colored clothing. I grabbed them and inspected them closely.

“They’re the same clothes, but why are they different colors? They’re just so…” My speech broke for a moment. “Colorful!”

I quickly changed and looked in a mirror. My clothes were altered to brighter shades than before. My shoes changed from a coal color to a light grey. My jeans were a brighter than before and my shirt changed from a crimson to a navy blue. And most importantly, my jacket was no longer black. It was now white with red blue stripes going down the arms.

The Doctor noticed my distress and trotted up beside me. “I’m terribly sorry about that, but when I knocked you out with my sonic screwdriver, it appeared to alter your clothing’s color. I could fix it, but I’m afraid I might make it worse.”

I stared at my reflection, disappointed with my new clothes. “I guess I can deal with.”

“Well let’s go then, Allons-Y!” He said vigorously.

“Where will we go exactly?”

“I dunno, but I think we should get back to your friend Thomas.”

“Hey, just to be clear here. I’m not following you and you’re not following me okay.” I said as we both shot each other nervous glances.

In unison, we both spoke. “Agreed!”

We both left the wardrobe and then walked into the atrium. The interior of the atrium was dimly lit, because of this I reached into my jacket and pulled out my own sonic screwdriver. Activating it, I increased the lighting of the TARDIS.

“What! Where’d you get that?” The Doctor exclaimed.

“What? Oh that’s right!” Remembering that the Doctor was the only person who would have owned a sonic screwdriver, I quickly explained. “Well having the ability to travel anywhere. I traveled to the giant universe store thingy…” I ended with a lull.

“What?!” He asked once again.

“I bought it.”

“No, I mean how did you increase the lighting output? The TARDIS is barely managing without a time rift to suck energy from, so it can barely keep the power on.” He pulled out his sonic screwdriver from his collar. Checking the scanner, he then activated it.

“Quick, follow me!” He then proceeded to gallop outside. Bursting from the door, we both appeared in the evening twilight of the town.

I turned around to see that we were in the marketplace near where I first arrived in town. I even noticed that the doorway to his house was the same navy blue, just like the TARDIS.

Confused I blubbered “Wait, what the?!”

The Doctor clarified.“I built my TARDIS as the doorway to a dummy house. That way when I have guests, they don’t get suspicious about my house.”

“That’s actually quite clever.”

“Well let’s get going then. Allons-Y!”

We rushed through the city for the next hour. While traveling through the city, he told me how he brought me back without people noticing me. It’s actually funny, because all he did was put me in a wagon and throw a tarp over me. Sadly, not a single flying feather was given that moment. I also couldn’t help but realize how big the city of Ponyville was.

While we were nearing the inn, I noticed Thomas walking nearby with a bag of groceries. He noticed me and then shouted for my attention.

“Yo, Max! You won’t believe who I met today!” Thomas cried out.

“You won’t believe who I met today.” I responded.

The Doctor stepped up from behind me and spoke up. “And I should have brought my companion!”

For a moment, we all stood around for a while and stared at each other. Eventually the Doctor spoke up.

“Yes, I know I’m a pony…” He paused awkwardly. “Unlike you guys, I meant to keep a low profile.”

Thomas looked at me. “When did he get here?”

“The Doctor is here because of an accident.” I rolled my eyes. “Just like us!”

“So Doc, what should we do now?” I asked.

The Doctor started to walk toward the inn. “Why not go inside?” He said as he began entering the building.

I immediately began following the Doctor. Thomas trailing behind me, decided to speak out.

“So aren’t you curious about my adventure?!” He said as he started digging in the groceries.

“Not really.” I responded lazily.

Thomas looked at me and frowned. “Oh, well… I met someone named Carrot Top.”

We both entered the building after the Doctor. Seeing that he was chatting up with some mare. We both decided to head toward our room. Entering the room, Thomas went off to put away the groceries, while I went to look around the room. I never got a good look at the room, noticing that the room was very boring, I settled on putting up a poster. I pulled out a demotivational poster from my jacket, carring on to hang it up.

Thomas walked up behind me and took in a good look at the poster.

“Really?!” He spoke in a shocked tone. “Why that poster?!”

I looked at the poster again. It was just a poster of a kitten hanging from a tree branch, below it was labeled ‘Keep on hanging pussy!’.

“I honestly don’t see a problem with this.” I said jokingly.

“Its offensive, that’s why!”

“Who’s gonna see it other than us?”

He shot me a foul look. “What if a mare sees this!”

I reached into my pocket and pulled out another poster. “How about this?”

He gazed at it briefly. “Okay seriously. What the hell?”

I turned it around and stared at it.

“So, what about motivational posters?”

“Sounds better I guess…” He sighed.

I heard a voice by the doorway. “What are you two doing!?”

I looked in the direction of the voice and saw Jericho. He started to trot toward us angrily, picking up pace as he noticed the poster hanging.

“You need to take that down.”

I twisted to see him. “Why?”

“Regulations, that’s why!”

“Okay, rules are rules.”

I turned to take it down before being distracted.

The Doctor came in after our discussion and leaned against the doorway. “Well I need to start getting out of here, so I’ll see you all later.” He started to walk out before turning around again. “I also paid for a monthly stay for you. Now if you don’t mind me…” He paused dramatically. “ALLONS-Y!”

Jericho continued to chat with us. “Like he said, he paid for your rent this month.” He glanced down at his leg, checking his watch. “Unlike you guys, I have a job. Now excuse me while I get back to work.”

I mumbled something to myself as he trotted away, shutting the door behind him. “Well it was nice talking.”

“He’s not very nice!” Thomas said. “It’s like he has a stick up his arse!”

I looked around and then plopped down on the nearest bed. “I understand, but what if… What if he has a very dramatic and tragic fillyhood, causing a disturbance in his adult life?” I said kiddingly.

Thomas shrugged. “I guess?”

I leaned back into the bed. Thinking about my day, eventually dozed off.

I found myself in another dream world. This time, things were actually normal. I was just going through a basic dream for me. Usually I would go through an earlier memory. This one was just a boring adventure. A previous companion and I were going through a tunnel, this tunnel eventually led to a doorway, but this was no ordinary doorway. This was my

Doorway! I instinctively lurched forward, attempting to grasp the door. I only met a failed attempt, I spun around to meet the eyes of my companion, only to see nothing but blackness. Startled by the change, I stumbled back into a gloomy shadow of my inner mind.

In the darkness… I saw a light.

Chapter IV: Sleepwalking

My mind was drifting away. I was dreaming again, but this once again, was not a normal dream. Ever since I came here, my dreams have been out of whack. Last night I dreamed of a previous journey, and this night, my mind wasn’t at ease yet again. This was an unusual dream, probably because I don’t normally dream about cheese.

I was standing in a grassy field on a very sunny day. Around me, I saw that the field was made of a very thinly cut mozzarella cheese. I knelt down to look at it, seeing that it was real cheese. I picked up a patch of the cheesy grass and ate it.

“Why is the grass made of cheese?” I said surprised.

I looked upward into the sky and saw the sun, raising my arm to shield my eyes. I saw something startling. The moon and the sun were out at the same time. It wouldn’t be so weird if they weren’t right next to each other. I stared at it for a moment before the unexpected happened. The moon collided with the sun, knocking it off into the horizon like some old cartoon. After that the sky started to darken, to the point where I couldn’t see about a couple of meters ahead of me.

Thinking that my dream would start to lighten up, something else occurred. It started snowing, but this wasn’t snow, it was parmesan cheese. I stuck out my tongue until a bit landed on it. It tasted like any other normal cheese, but why was it
falling from the sky and why I’m I still dreaming about cheese?

I heard a loud thud behind me. I turned around curiously, only to be met by nothing but a black wall of darkness. Feeling as if I was safe, I continued to enjoy the precipitation of cheese until something bumped into my leg. It was a wheel of cheese. I took a quick glance at it until I was struck again. This time, I was struck with enough force, that it knocked me down face first into the ground.

I awoke abruptly. I wasn’t sure why I dreamed about cheese. I’m guessing it might have been because I ate too many sweets the day before bed or probably because I’m just weird. I opened my eyes to see only a faintly lit room. The room was lit by the starry night sky. The window could only let in so much light, with the fact that it was facing the alleyway. I slowly sat up in bed, careful not to wake up Thomas in the nearby bed. I knew he was still asleep because the only two sounds I could hear were the faint humming sound of the air conditioning unit and the soft snores of Thomas.

Once up in bed, I pulled of the light covers and slowly stepped out of bed. Moving to the window, I opened it to let in some fresh air. Taking in a deep breath, I was startled by the smell of garbage. Apparently having a window right next to a dumpster can produce that effect. Not wanting to pollute the room, I shut the window, locking also to make sure I won’t have any unwanted visitors after coming back.

I turned around and then proceeded to the bathroom. I don’t even know how long ago it was since I last took a shower. I also needed to wash my clothes. I might even have to find out where I could find a new leather jacket. These ponies certainly won’t butcher animals for their meat, so why would they do it for their skin. Just the thought of that made me shudder. I could probably change the color back to its previous state, but why bother now.

I entered the bathroom and flicked on the light. The bathroom was surprisingly big. I didn’t expect much from ponies, but this was strangely similar to human design. They had everything I’d expect to see in a human bathroom. There was a counter with a sink in it, next to that was a toilet and on the opposite side there was a rectangular bathtub with a shower head fixture and curtain ring surrounding it.

Surprisingly, I found this very comfy. I started off by stepping into the bathtub and turning on the water, waiting for the water to reach a comfortable level, I started to strip down to my birthday suit. Once I removed my clothes, I set them on top of the counter, except for my jacket, which I hung above the door.

I carefully stepped into the bathtub. The water was very warm and soothing to the touch. I soaped up and then rinsed off using the shower head. I emptied the water from the tub and then got up. I stepped onto the carpet and started to dry myself off. I actually caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. My reflection didn’t surprise me at all. It was just my old, normal self. Once I dried myself off, I redressed myself and left the bathroom.

I felt much cleaner now, but now that I was awake, I didn’t know what to do. I looked across the room out the window. By looking at the window, I could tell it was still night time. That left me with two options. Sleep and dream about cheese again, or go for a midnight stroll. Thinking that it would be best to familiarize myself with the town, I chose that idea. Before I left, I dug in the rucksack that was set off to the side and pulled out a bag. Inside that bag were about twenty bits, about all that was left of our money. I took the bag itself and left the room.

Shutting the door behind me, I heard a faint gruff. “What are you doing out?”

I turned around to see Jericho sitting behind the reception counter.

“Oh nothing, I wanted to go out for a walk.” I answered.

He looked at me from behind the desk. He was apparently working a night shift, even though I saw him working when I first got here and then after I got back earlier. Apparently he works all day and all night?

I shrugged and started walking toward the exit.

“Excuse me, but you mind telling me why you’re here?” He said from behind the desk.

I turned back to him. “I was just looking for a place to stay. I was tired of traveling, so I settled down here.”

He stood up from behind the desk and started walking toward me. “I just want you to know that I don’t trust you. I’ve never heard of your kind, or heard of where you even came from.” He stared at me for a moment. “Just remember this. I’m watching you.”

When he finished speaking, I stood my ground for a moment before I spoke.

“Well that’s nice of you. I just want you to know this,” I paused for a moment. “I love you.” I said with the best poker face I
could pull off.

He was so shocked by what I said, he was rendered speechless. During his confusion, I walked out the front door into the night air with the biggest smile on my face.

Outside I could hear Jericho finally react to the stunt that I pulled off. Even though I couldn’t see it, I could tell he was cussing up a storm. He’ll probably hate me now, but at least I could get in a cheap laugh. I wasn’t sure what to do, so I just started walking in a random direction. Unsure of where I would go, I kept on walking until I saw something interesting.

I walked up to a pub. It was a very bland pub, but it looked promising, so I decided to enter the building. One I entered the pub, a small bell rang overhead. Inside the pub, it was very dimly lit. With one light centered in the middle of the pub and another behind the bar, it was still very dark. The layout was a standard pub. One side of it had the bar, while the other side held a couple of booths. In the back, I could see a hallway that probably led to a bathroom or maybe an office. Behind the counter was an old weathered stallion. He had a tan coat while his closely shaven mane was brown. He looked like he’s been through a lot in life, so I decided to sit by the bar.

I took a seat in the stool. Looking at him, I placed my order. “Hey there, I’d like a glass of milk.”

He gave me a funny look, laughing at my wish. “Ha, you’re funny kid, but we don’t serve that stuff here. We only serve alcohol here.”

“That’s fine I guess, I guess I’ll just have a shot of whiskey.”

“Okay kid, that’ll be about two bits.” He said as he started digging around behind the counter. “Okay I think we have some Applejack Daniels behind here somewhere…” He popped out from beneath the counter revealing a shot glass and a darkish brown bottle.

“So kid, what’s your name?” He said curiously “I’d like to know the names of the people I serve here.”

“Well, if you must.” I said winking at him. “The names Max… Max Powers.”

“That’s a nice name, my name is Whiskey Shot.” He said.

I glanced at him and saw that he had a scar starting from his muzzle, ending at his upper left ear. Curious, I asked him about it. “Hey, how’d you get that scar?”

As he was pouring my glass, he fumbled at my question, spilling a bit of it. “Uh, kid. I don’t want to talk about it.”

Even more curious, I didn’t let the question go unanswered. “Why? Did something happen in the past?”

He gave me a grim look as he slid the shot across the bar top. “Kid, I’ve been through some shit in my life. I’ve done things I’m not proud of and this was the results of one of them.” He said as he pointed to his scar.

Taking the drink into my hands, I turned my head back and poured it into my mouth, feeling the deep burn flowing down my throat. I took a moment to enjoy the burn before looking back at the bartender. “I know that feeling. I’ve done things I’m not proud of either.”

He gave me a firm look. His brown eyes stared into mine, peering into my soul. “Kid, if you want to know, I’ll tell you.”

“I’d love to hear your story.” I said comfortably.

As he started talking, I paid attention to his story listening intently. I was surprised to hear about his struggles in life. Apparently, this peaceful land had been at war with Diamond Dogs. How he explained them, made them sound frightening. For a moment I was actually afraid to confront one of them, until I realized they’d be more scared of me. He said that he got his scar in a small skirmish he was in when they were on a search and destroy mission. He kept on talking for a while before I heard a bell ring as the entrance door opened.

I turned away from him to see a mare walk into the pub, She had a plum colored coat and a mulberry mane, while her cutie mark consisted of a bunch of grapes and a strawberry. I found it strange that she would walk in here by herself, but then again I came here by myself. Apparently she noticed I was staring at her but started to walk toward a booth in the farthest corner.

I looked back at him and spoke. “Hey, do you know who she is?” I asked.

He looked at her. “Who… Her?”

I nodded.

“Oh, that’s Berry Punch. She’s a regular here. You’d think a mare like her would go somewhere else, but she chooses to come here.” He said as he cleaned my glass. “If you want to talk to her, I could sell you some wine. Apparently she loves the stuff, she always orders it.

“Sure, how much would that be?”

“It’s about five bits.”

“I’ll take it!” I said a bit too vigorously.

“Slow down kiddo.” He said as he disappeared beneath the bar.

I turned around to see the lonely mare seating at a table. She was writing something down on a piece of paper. I couldn’t make out what she was writing, but I turned around back to Whiskey before he got back up.

“Alright kid, I got your drink here.” He said as he slid two glasses and a wine bottle toward me. “So, why exactly do you want to talk to her?”

“No reason. I’m just looking for a new friend, as saying how I just got here.”

He saw somepony else farther down the bar wave him down. As if that was his cue, he started to go on back to his business. “Sorry kid, but looks like somepony needs my help. I’ll see you later.” As he finished, he turned around and walked toward the pony. After he left I turned around to see that the lone mare was still sitting there by herself. Taking my chance, I moved over to her.

“Hey, you wouldn’t mind if I sat here, would you?” I asked as I stood by her.

She turned to face me. Startled she dropped what she was doing and started to fumble with her items. She gathered her stuff and shoved them into her purse that was sitting by her side.

My expression changed to a rather gloomy mood. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bother you.”

“Don’t worry… I’m just a klutz at some times.” She said calmly. “You can sit down if you’d like.”

I took a seat. I noticed she shifted uncomfortably, as I sat down. I guess it’s time to break the ice. I thought to myself.

“Sorry to intrude, but you looked like you needed somepony to talk to.”

She looked at me boringly. “Yeah, I usually look like that.”

“Why exactly did you come here by yourself?” I said curiously.

“I’m not sure? I didn’t feel like being at home, so I just came here like I usually do.” Her ears fell back a bit, but then perked up. “So, would you care to buy a lonely mare a drink? She said reddening after the question.

I stifled a laugh. “I already have that covered.” I said as I uncovered a bottle of wine. “I hope you like this stuff.

As I finished speaking, I could see a twinkle in her eyes. “You know exactly what a mare likes, don’t you?”

“I don’t normally buy drinks for mares, but when I do… I prefer to buy cheap wine from a bar.” I said switching on my classy humor.

I started to pour the wine into two separate glasses. Sliding a glass in front of the mare, she grabbed the glass and started to greedily gulp down the rich nectar. She managed to finish her glass before I even touched mine.

“So I take it that you like this brand.” I said sarcastically.

The mare looked at me and apologized. “I’m sorry. I’m just under a lot of stress right now.” She said gloomily.

Interested, I decide to start probing the statement. “Why is that? You can tell me.”

“Well, there’re a lot of things going on in my life.” She said glancing at her bag. “I’d rather not talk about them.”

I looked into her eyes. “You can trust me.”

Immediately afterwards, she looked into my eyes. I could see the pain in her eyes, feeling what she’s felt through years of
hardships, all because I could have a moment to make direct eye contact with her.

“It all started about five years ago...” She stopped suddenly and started to tear up and brake into a light sob.

“What’s wrong, did something happen back then?” I said while trying to soothe her.

She looked up at me and wiped her eyes clear of her tears. “I’m really sorry, it’s just…I was young and I didn’t think anything would happen. I was stupid, that’s what!” She nearly yelled.

Her little outburst attracted the attention from a couple of fellow patrons and the curiosity of Whiskey Shot. I glanced in his direction to shake my head, giving him a sign to not interfere. Looking back at her I realize that maybe alcohol wasn’t the best option. I could now tell why she was here. She was looking for a friend, in all the wrong places.

“Look, you don’t need to cry about that, I’m here for you. Just please tell… What can I do to help you?” I said in a sincere voice.

“I don’t want help, but I need it.” She looked down at her empty glass. “It’s just that drinking makes it easier to cope with.”

“I know that feeling, Berry. I’ve had some hardships in my life. What exactly happened though?” I asked.

“I got drunk and did some things I’m not proud of.” She stealthily reached for the bottle before I placed my hand upon her hoof. She stopped and looked into my eyes.

“I’m sorry.” Her gaze burned into my heart.
At that moment, I knew what I needed to do.

“Please, tell me about your child.” I said with great care.

“My daughter name is Berry Pinch.” She said digging into her purse.

She pulled out a picture and showed it to me. Her daughter was beautiful. In the photo, she was sitting on a swing set being pushed by another small filly. She also had the most cheerful smile I have ever seen on a filly. Berry Pinch had a carnation coat color, her mane was a thulian pink and she had green eyes. Her flank was blank, probably because she never discovered her talent at the time but I disregarded that.

“She’s beautiful. You gave birth to an amazing daughter. Where is she right now?” I said curiously.

She put away the photo and sadly looked away from me. “She was taken away from me…”

“What! Why?” I said shocked.

Her gaze stayed fixed on her purse. “I was a terrible parent, that’s why!” She yelled at me, throwing her head at the table and bursting into tears.

“Hey! It couldn’t have been your fault she was taken away.”

“No! It’s all my fault!” She was sobbing to the point where everyone was looking at us. She was causing a scene, and a rather large one.

I stood up to sit closer to her, holding her in my arms, trying to calm her down. “Come on… It wasn’t your fault.” I whispered into her ear.

As I held her, she looked up and stared at me. “I’m so sorry…” She hugged me back. “I didn’t want to bring you into this.”

“Don’t worry, I wanted to help you.” I said.

I released my hug from her and slowly stood up.

“Where are you going?” She whimpered.

“I’m taking you home.”I said, enlightening her mood instantly.

I started heading toward the door until she shouted at me. “Hey, I’ll be right with you!” She shouted.

I turned around to see her pick up her purse and continue toward me. “Ready?” I asked.

“Yep.” She said smiling.

We both walked out of that bar. I hoped she wouldn’t have to step into that bar again to soak in her sorrows. Because today… She made a new friend. I’m going to help her with her troubles, and get her daughter back. I won’t even think of leaving until I can help her up from depression. I was going to lead her out of the darkness, and bring her into the light.

As we were walking away from the bar, I stopped and asked her a question.

“After your parents knew you were pregnant, what happened?” I asked, knowing I was treading on light ground.

She stopped not too far ahead of me. Without even looking back, she spoke quietly. “My parents shunned me. They shunned their own daughter, instead of helping her when she needed it the most.” She kicked at the ground. “I… I hate them for it, but I still love them.” She turned back toward me. In the darkness, I could only see a shimmer in her eyes. “After my parents found out, I packed up what I could and just left… Everything I could have been, I left behind with my parents…” She sniveled. “I didn’t even say goodbye to my sister.”

I felt heartbroken for her. She defiantly didn’t deserve any of those things. “The worse part about all of it though, was the fact that the stallion just got up and left.” I stepped forward and knelt down beside her. “Hey, I’m here for you. You don’t need to worry about anything anymore.” I said consoling her.

She eased down a bit, sighing in relief. “I’m just glad I met you instead of some sleazy stallion looking for a one nighter.”

I stood up, glancing at her face. She seemed as if a ray of hope fell over her eyes, giving her a chance at redemption. She smiled at me before lurching forward, hugging my waist. “Thank you.”

Feeling warm, but awkward, I easily pried her off. “Okay now, let’s not get too hasty.” I smirked.

She didn’t struggle as she came off of me, but she did redden at the statement.

“What, what’s wrong?” I questioned at her response.

She returned to normal, quickly disregarding my question. “Oh, nothing…” She turned around and started walking away. “Come on, my house is this way!” She said as she started a light trot.

I hurried after her. She quickly outpaced me as she started to gallop ahead of me. I was starting to think she was actually playing a game with me until something happened.

THUD

Apparently, as I rounded the corner into an alleyway, I managed to slam head first into a wall. With her to be nowhere in sight, I was left dazed and confused.

“Uh… Hey Berry Punch?” I said grasping my head in pain.

Why did I have to run head first into a wall? Its always my head, never anything else! I thought to myself. As I started to regain focus, Berry popped up from behind a stack of boxes. She trotted up to me and started laughing hysterically.

“I’m so… sorry.” She stopped in between to take a breath from laughing. “I thought you would have seen that wall, but I can’t believe that you actually ran into it!” She started laughing once again. This time, she dropped to the floor and held her stomach in pain.

I shook my head, immediately clearing away the stars. “Why is that so funny?”

She stopped for a moment, staring up at me from the ground. “Because…” She chuckled briefly. “Because, you just slammed into a wall.” She glanced at the wall and busted out laughing. “You even cracked the wall.”

I looked over at the wall and saw the damage I caused. The wall I collided into was crumbling around the center of impact. It actually looked as if you smashed a sledge hammer into the brick wall. Curious of the damage, I lifted my hand up to my head and felt around. Surprisingly there was no damage whatsoever.

“Hey, we should start moving again. My house isn’t far from here.” She said from behind me.

I turned my attention back toward her. “Yeah, but shouldn’t we do something about the wall?” I said as a chip fell out of the wall.

She started walking away. “Nope…”

I started trailing after her, careful not to lose her this time. “Alright, let’s walk this time okay?”

While walking toward her house, I was startled by the turn of events. When I first met her, she seemed normal until I started talking to her. Now she seems, a little… crazy! I just hope she doesn’t pull anything on me again. I pondered.

“Okay we’re here!” She announced.

I looked around and saw we we’re in front of a line of up kept houses, except for one house. There was one house that was falling apart. Everything that should have been fine was deteriorating. I noticed the undergrowth was even starting to overcome the house. Vines were actually scaling the walls, breaking down simple structures and causing small cracks to form.

“Sweet Jesse James!” My mouth dropped. “How long has your house been like this!?”

She didn’t even look at me when she spoke. Instead she had a fixed stare on an object. “Way too long…” She whimpered.

I stared at it for a moment. “I guess I could help you fix up the house…”

Apparently she didn’t hear me, because she spoke completely off subject. “So?”

“So… What?” I said inquisitively.

Her face reddened. “Would you like to come inside?”

I have never ran so far in my life… Ever! Apparently as we left the pub, she turned right back around, chugged the
remaining wine, and then immediately followed after. And the entire time we were walking back, she was slowly becoming more and more wasted. I’m not sure how alcohol works, but I’m scared of what would have happened if she had even more of it.

I just can’t believe she actually tried to invite me… inside Her house!? I thought angrily to myself. Before I ran away, I quickly jotted down where I lived and what my name was, just in case she forgot, and then got out of there. I just hope that she won’t try something like that again. I actually ran all the way back to the inn, only stopping to catch my breath before entering. I just hope that in the morning, things will be better. The only thing I didn’t realize is the fact that I would eventually have to meet her again. No matter what she does…?

“Oh, sweet Jesus Chrysler!” I said, worrying about the day ahead of me, as I stepped inside the inn.

Okay guys, I managed to release a new chapter!
Woo!
This time I only released a day behind schedule, so I'm getting better at this.
...But anyways, as you can see I added Berry Punch as another main character.
I also want to point out that this won't be a romance story, I don't want to tread on that ground...
If you have any questions, feel free to ask me, and I encourage you to rate and comment.
...Please, my comments are so empty.

Chapter V: Unto The Breach

I don’t know what worries me more, the fact that I’m stuck here in Ponyville, or the fact that I’m stuck here with Thomas. I like this town, but at the same time, I’m a little worried about how easily we were able to fit into society. My other adventures always ended ghastly, whether it ended in death, or I was ran out of town. I’m just hoping that this time will be
different. I’ve actually got friends here, unlike in other places. I just hope things turn out good.

The previous day was bizarre. And not just a low level strange, but a very creepy, unusual level of bizarre. I got back to the inn, slept, woke up, and then I chilled in the room with Thomas. I knew I had to leave the inn and meet Berry Punch again. Before I head back over to her house, I might just find the Doctor first. I also need to head back into the Everfree Forest, and find any remains of the Doorway, or at least any huon particles.

I was sitting in a swivel chair near a desk before I heard a knock at the door.

“I wonder who that could be.” I turned around carelessly, nearly slipping out of the seat.

Thomas glanced at me. He was laying on his bed. Every now and then he would idly throw a ball up into the air and barely catch it on its descent down, only to once again repeat the process.

“Meh, I dunno.” He said lazily.

Great help you are. I thought to myself, before rising up and slowly turning toward the door.

Somepony knocked at the door again. This time, it seemed a bit more frantic.

I reached the door. “Yeah, hold on!” I slid the deadbolt from the panel, and then pulled the door inward, only to be met by a blur of brown that swiftly knocked me down.

“Sorry about the intrusion, but Jericho’s the world’s biggest arse!” Somepony said unmistakably.

It took me a moment to regain focus, but when I did. I saw it was none other than the Doctor. With a smile on my face, I was somewhat overjoyed to see him. “Hey, what’s up Doc?”

“What?!” He looked at me bewildered.

I shrugged to regain composure. “Eh, nothing…”

He stood next to me as I attempted to stand up. “Well, Max... You know what we need to do?” He said as he pulled a notepad from beneath his blue tie.

“I dunno, something about timey wimey stuff?” I offered.

He jumped up. “Yes, exactly!” He proceeded to walk back through the doorway, before stopping. “Oh, I also forgot!” He looked past me at a curious Thomas. “Hello there, I’m the Doctor… Now, Allons-Y!” He dashed outside into the hallway, unseen from our view.

I turned back to see Thomas, mouth agape in astonishment. “Who the…?” He said confounded.

“That’s the Doctor. You know, from Doctor Who?” I replied.

He stared at me blankly. “Never heard of it…”

Apparently Thomas never heard of him, even if he has his own show. The thing about different dimensions is that you have your own dimension, and then someone else has their own. For example, the Doctor has his dimension where he belongs. Thomas has his dimension that has a television show of the Doctors, and then I have my dimension… That I sadly broke. Because I’m an idiot…

I snapped out of my train of thought, only to be interrupted by the Doctor popping his head around the corner. “Right, I’m being a genius outside, and nopony is there to watch me! Come on!” He said irritated. “So, come on! ALLONS-Y!” He once again, as he dashed outside.

I sighed. “Let’s go Thomas.” I said, motioning him toward the door.

Thomas looked at me, only to stand up and speak firmly. “I don’t know who this mad pony is, but I like him.” Immediately, he rushed after the Doctor.

I blandly face palmed. “Alright, let us commence the fun then.” I followed after my party, shutting the door behind me.

I could already tell that this was going to be a very awkward day. The Doctor was already working on time stuff, and Thomas was once again caught up in the moment. The Doctor was frantically pacing around in the lobby, awaiting my appearance, while Thomas was arguing with Jericho by the counter.

The Doctor stepped toward me and spoke. “Okay, now that you’re here, we need to find Derpy and then we’ll head toward the forest.”

I looked out to see Jericho shout out in the heat of his argument. “Damnit! Why are you such a bucking idiot and why is this guy here again.” He yelled, pointing a single hoof at the Doctor.

The Doctor flashed a piece of paper into the angry stallions direction. “Well… I’m here to investigate a serious issue, sooo... If you don’t mind, we’ll be on our way.” The Doctor said, answering his question.

Jericho disappeared from beneath the counter, only to reappear with what appeared to be a stick of wood. “Hey! Don’t make me use this!” He said holding out a block of wood.

“I will use this!” He said pointing it toward me.

The Doctor stepped behind me and whispered into my ear. “Uh, that’s a musket.”

I took a moment to take in the information. “Okay, let’s go.” I said slowly stepping toward the exit. “Nothing to do here anymore.”

I stepped outside the inn. It only took me a moment to become drenched from the pouring rain. If I paid attention to the argument between Thomas and Jericho, I might have heard them mention something about Pegusi and rain clouds. My jacket kept my upper body somewhat dry, but my head and legs were soaking wet. There was also a constant stream of water slowly dripping down from the middle of my chest, downwards to the rest of my torso. I stepped back into the inn, only to bump into Thomas.

“Love the weather, don’t ya.” He said sarcastically.

I gave him a firm look. “Yes, I love the rain.” I said with the driest voice.

The Doctor followed afterwards, and then went on to ramble about something unrelated. I glanced into the air, only to see nothing but a gloomy sky and rain clouds, pouring down onto us. I swore at the fact that I was soaking wet, and then turned to meet the Doctor.

“So, Doc… I actually have things to do.” I muttered.

The Doctor turned toward me after doing a quick analysis of a nearby puddle. “Really, of what like’s?”

“I have to meet up with someone, and I don’t want to keep them waiting.”

The Doctor looked at me closely for a moment, only to shoot me a brief smirk. “Sounds like you have a mare to meet.” He said pulling off the biggest smile possible on a pony.

I causally put my hands behind my head. “Well…” I yawned for a second. “I guess you could say that.”

The Doctor stood up on his hind legs, putting his fore hooves on my chest. “You conniving bastard!” The Doctor bellowed. “I always expected worse from you, but this is a new level of low.” He said stepping down.

I vigorously raised up my hands in defense. “Hey!” I crossed my arms in a defensive manner. “It’s nothing like that, were just friends.”

I caught a quick glimpse of something shiny. Turning around, I saw Thomas staring in amazement at a cart. But, this was no ordinary cart. This cart was motorized. It would have stood out as normal if it wasn’t outfitted with brass and copper parts, and the extreme usage of gears, levers, gauges and pulleys of all sorts. It was a box shaped cart that was held up by four wheels. The carriage held the controls up in the front, while in the rear, the cargo space and seating was held, and above that all, there was a leather over cover. In the back where the engine was held, I could see all the pipes and gauges, that were spewing about spouts of steam.

The Doctor noticed I was gazing at the machine, so he snuck up behind me and spoke softly into my ear. “She’s a beauty, isn’t she?”

My eyes didn’t leave the fixed gaze. “Yeah, I love Steampunk!”

He looked toward me and laughed. “Well, I guess this is Steampunk… But it’s actually built like this to fit in with the time period.”

I shrugged, reassuring that I was paying attention. “So, could we actually stop b-“
DOCTOR!!!

I was interrupted by a cry. A Pegusi mare had just descended from the sky, nearly crashing into the machine and Thomas. Confused, I looked into the sky to see a pony shaped hole in the cloud cover. How does that even work? I thought to myself, only to hear the Pegusi cry out again.

“Doctor!” She ran up to the Doctor, nearly bumping into him.

The Doctor stepped back a bit. “Yes Derpy…” He held a warm expression on his face, as if he knew the mare.

“I’ve got another letter for you, and this one is important!” She nearly yelled.

She immediately dug into her mail bag, pulling out a small parcel and handing it to the Doctor.

“Alright, let’s see what it is then…” He unwrapped the parcel under the cover of the machines carriage to avoid getting himself, and the package wet. He briefly reviewed the letter, and then looked at the package. He looked up with a startled look on his mug. “Oh, dear!” He got up into the machine and called out. “Everypony, on board!”

Everypony looked at him before stepping up to the machine and entering it. Once inside the Doctor pulled a few levers and pulleys, before finally lifting a cover and pressing a button. The Engine then fully came to life, spewing a thick cloud of smoke from behind my seat. The machine then came to life and started to accelerate forward.

The Doctor cheered in joy. “Yeah baby, do I make you randy!?” He said in a fake English voice before turning around and glancing at us. “Alright, well…Allons-Y!” The Doctor once again said.

After hearing the word, I put my head against the side door and banged it in frustration. I could already tell that he was going to over use that word. I looked around the cabin, and saw that I was sitting next to the Pegusi mare, with Thomas sitting on the opposite side, staring out the window. The mare had a grey coat and a golden yellow mane. I also noticed something strange about her eyes… They looked Derped?!

“Why do you keep staring at me like that?” The mare questioned in an annoyed voice.

I blushed in embarrassment. “Oh, well it’s just that… Your eyes, they seem to be-” She cut me off.

“Yes!” She stomped briefly onto the undercarriage. “It’s always the same deal. Everyone always looks at my eyes and say “Oh, she’s cross eyed, she must be an idiot.” Or they say “Har har har, look at that freak! She can’t possibly fly straight like that.” ” She turned toward me in rage and stared at me. Her eyes were cross eyed for a moment, before returning to a normal centered state.

I slid back into my seat, trying to escape her stare. “I am very, very sorry I offended you. I didn’t mean to cause anything between us.”

“Well, I just want you to know that I’m normal.” She huffed.

The Doctor looked back at us both. “Come on Muffin, tell him your name. He won’t bite.” The Doctor said breaking the ice.

“My name is Derpy Hooves” She said looking the other way.

I relaxed a bit. “Well Derpy, my name is Max Powers.”

She straightened up. “Wait! So, you’re the one who?”

“Yeah…” I said softly.

She looked at me in horror, mouth agape and started to babble. “Wha- why would you do that?!”

I looked at her and answered. “Because, I’m stupid.”

She raised a hoof and struck me across the face. I immediately flinched from the backlash. At this moment Thomas
looked up from his view and intervened.

“Woah, Derpy! Why did you do that?” Thomas questioned.

Derpy turned to face Thomas, tears now streaming from beneath her eyes, and blurted out. “Because of him! He caused all of the Doctor’s problems. That selfish…” Her speech broke as the Doctor pulled the machine off the path.

“Derpy, calm down!” The Doctor said, attempting to settle down the situation. “There’s nothing to be worried about, everything’s fine now.”

The Doctor turned from his seat and moved towards Derpy, attempting to console her. He then turned toward me, only to nudge his head into another direction, signaling that we have arrived. As I looked outside I saw that it was no longer raining and I also spotted something else. Something that was unpleasant.

I saw that Berry Punch was outside, stumbling around with no sense of direction. Stepping forward, she spotted me in a heartbeat.

“Hey there sweetie!” She said as she lurched forward, only to fall onto her breasts.

I ran up to her and knelt down by her side. “Berry! What are you doing?!” I said in a confused fray.

She flipped over onto her back and looked at me flirtatiously. “Oh, nothing…” She hiccupped. “I just had a drink and then I

took a step outside, but then I got locked outside, but the sky was raining and then I started to get wet, but not the wet that I like, but a different kinda wet where you get all soggy and stuff an-”

I cut her off from her drunken ramble. “Berry, do you have you’re keys?” I questioned.
She looked at me clueless. “My keys?”

I face palmed. “Do you have keys to your house?”

“I dunno?” She hiccupped once again, this time only to turn a sick green color. “Oh, I’m not feeling so hot anymore.” She hastily stood up and rushed to the shrubbery in front of her house, and then proceeded to empty the contents of her stomach.

I heard a creak from behind me. Turning around, I saw that Thomas had decided to step out of the machine. He took one quick glance at me, saw my face, and then looked at the mare puking in the bushes. He looked at me, shaking his head as if he was saying to me “no bueno” and then reopened the door to the machine, stepped back inside and then shut it, sealing him inside. Once he was inside, he looked at me through a window and then pulled down a flap, hiding himself from my view.

I turned around after hearing Berry finishes her gagging. Only to see a past out mare, fallen head first into her own vomit. Once again sighing, I walked toward her pulled a rag from my jacket and wiped her down to reduce the amount of vomit that covered her breast and muzzle. Feeling sick myself after taking a whiff of the excrement. I too started to gag before I caught myself. Taking that extra step, I pulled out a full gas mask from my jacket pocket, and pulled it over my face.

For some odd reason I heard a voice in my head, yelling at me. Demanding me the answer to how I’m carrying all of these things in my jacket. My jacket is “Dimentionally Transcendental”. That means that it’s bigger on the inside, than the outside. So that explains why I’ve managed to carry around a map, machete, flask, binoculars, sonic screwdriver, chloroform (Don’t ask, and I won’t tell.) and a biological gas mask. The reason I carry all of this objects, because I can.

Once I finished that long thought process, I picked up Berry and began to walk toward the Machine. I also noticed that I was starting to gather a lot of attention from many on goers. Even though this was a residential zone, there were still many people cutting through here, Possibly to avoid less traffic, or maybe for sightseeing. I approached the Machine and then pulled open the door, only to run into the Doctor face first, almost dropping Berry Punch in the process.

The Doctor stared at me before cracking a smile. “Are you my mummy?” He said jokingly.

I rolled my eyes behind the tinted lenses of the mask. “Nope, I’m your granddady.” I offered.

The Doctor scooted back to allow room for me to enter. I also noticed that everyone else in the carriage was starting to scoot away from me. Probably over the fact that I was carrying a vomit covered pony, or my mask. I need to start being normal again. I thought to myself. I think I might even out do Thomas at this point.

As I sat down, I carefully set Berry aside next to me. I was sure to place her in between Thomas and I. Thomas glanced down and Berry and looked back at me. I could see that he was becoming disgusted in the fact that Berry was still covered in vomit and also to be enhanced by the aroma of it.

By this time I could hear the faint hum of the engine start up, and the slight bump signaling the acceleration of the
Machine. The Doctor once again turned around and yelled. “Alright guys, ALLONS-Y!” The Doctor took in extreme delight with my annoyance.

I saw that Derpy was sitting next to the Doctor. She seemed to hold no interest in the fact that I was now onboard, but every now and then she would curiously look back into the cabin, only to look away if our eyes were to accidently meet. As with Thomas, he would just stare out the window. Tempted by my boredom, I began to question the Doctor.

“So Doctor, where are we going?” I said raising an eyebrow.

He swerved the car, avoiding a jaywalking pony. “Ah, nearly hit him!” He said noticing my question. “I thought we might go to my house, seems like the proper place.”

“Sounds like fun.” I said nudging Berry Punch. She stirred in her sleep and kicked out a leg, nearly jabbing me in the face, as she flipped over the seat.

She woke up abruptly. “Wha- Where am I!?” She started to panic, kicking around wildly before I managed to calm her down.

“Hey, you’re sober now, are you?” I said questioning her.

“Eh, yeah.” She said as she started to take in her surroundings.

Thomas stared at her and spoke. “Uh, Berry…” He paused looking at her mane. “You have something in your hair.”

She raised her hoof up to her mane and started to feel around. “Oh dear, I- I have…” She looked at us all and saw our expressions. “I’m so sorry.” She said as she attempted to clean herself off.

I lent her a rag. “You might want to apologize to the Doctor.”

She looked at me confused. “Doctor Who?”

“It’s just the Doctor.” The Doctor said cheeringly.

Thomas also said his two cents. “So, are related to Cherilee?”

Berry scratched her head at the question. “Who?”

“Meh, never mind.” He said pointing his attention elsewhere.

The machine decelerated and then came to a complete stop. The Doctor jumped out of his seat outside, Derpy following soon after and then myself afterwards. I took a step outside and removed my mask taking a fresh breath.

Thomas bumped into me. “Feels good, don’t it?” He remarked.

I took in an extra breath of fresh air, this time making it unusually long. “Ah, yeah!” I said raising my arm.

I walked forward until I met the familiar blue door of the Doctors home and then stepped inside. “Oh, Doctor! Berry!”

By the time I spoke out she had already seen the wonders of the TARDIS. We were all in the control room. Even without
an actual power source, the TARDIS still had the emergency power on. This only had the basic power supplies on.

At that moment I heard a gasp, thud and then a filly cry out. “Mama, is that you?”

Derpy flew over to a nearby catwalk and picked up a cream colored filly with golden hair. They both flew up into the air and hugged briefly before descending down.

The little filly glanced at me and turned toward Derpy. “Mama, why are there strangers in our house?” She questioned.

“Don’t worry. Your father just invited some friends over.”

The filly looked at all the other bodies in the room. “But papa never invites people over.”

The Doctor popped up and reassured Derpy. “Come on Dinky, I invite people over all the time.”

“You only invite Lyra over, and she’s creepy.” She said harshly.

The Doctor frowned. “Muffin, would you mind taking Dinky to her room?”

Derpy nodded, flew up and then swooped up Dinky, disappearing in a back room.

The Doctor waited a few moments before speaking. “Alright, so what are your questions then?”

Thomas spoke up first. “So, are they your real family or…?”

“Derpy is my marefriend, we’ve been dating for several years. And sad to say, Dinky and Sparkler are adopted. Timelord
DNA doesn’t mix to well with pony DNA, so don’t even ask about that.” He finished.

I spoke out next. “So Doctor, I actually need a favor.”

The Doctor stared. “Yes…” He said awaiting a response.

“I’m assuming you have your own company, being a doctor and all. So, would you mind giving us all a job?” I asked.

He walked around the control panel and pulled up a folder. “Sure, I do need a new courier. I actually do have a job for you right now.”

“Really, that was fast.”

The Doctor pulled out a note from beneath his tie. “One of my clients needs an item and he needs it now…” He stood still for a moment. “Literally, right now!”

The Doctor ran around for a moment before finding a chest and digging around in it. “It’s here somewhere.”

I turned around to see Thomas and Berry no longer standing next to me. I assumed they were exploring the interior of the TARDIS themselves, so what’s the worst that could happen?

CRASH

I spoke too soon, because as I said that the lights started to flicker before going back to normal. The ground even shook for a moment. Before I could ask about that, the Doctor popped up in front of me and gave me a tiny parcel. He then stood in front of me.

”Okay, in that parcel, I have a very important package for a client. It must get there within the next ten minutes. The reason I waited until now, is because you held me back for a few, and also…” The Doctor pulled up a company hat, stuck it down onto my head, and then gave me a pair of keys.

Confused, I looked at the Doctor. “Uh, what are these for?” I said holding up the keys.

The Doctor started pushing me out toward the entrance. “Those are for the Machine.”

I resisted from his shoving. “But how will I drive it?”

He pushed even harder, this time knocking me fully outside into the evening sunset. “You’re smart, find out yourself!” He responded, as he slammed the door shut.

I turned around to see the Machine sitting there idly, willingly commanding for my use. I stood up from where I was sitting and walked up to the Machine.

“Well, here it goes.” I said as I climbed into the Machine.

Woohoo! I wrote this all on one day on my vacation.
The reason why was because I was sick...
So, be happy and remember to rate, comment, and maybe even… Profit!

Chapter VI: Workaholics

“Alright, I have the keys…” I glanced down at the control board for the Machine, only to see that there were levers, knobs, buttons and all kinds of switches arranged around the board. “Well, Fudge!” I said in frustration. What kind of vehicle doesn’t have a steering wheel? This was just infuriating, and…. Wait! Did he even tell me where I was supposed to go?

I was getting overworked until I realized that the package should have an address on it. I quickly checked it to make sure, and low and behold, there it was. I quickly read it over and then pulled out my map. Looking at my position, I studied the map and found where the destination was. It was… It was only a block away! I had plenty of time as long as I didn’t fool around, but I didn’t know the time.

“Damnit! Out of all the things I carried around in my jacket, a watch isn’t one of them!” I yelled in frustration, causing the Machine to spur to life.

BURB BURB BURB BURB

I jumped in the seat in astonishment and slammed down on the brakes. This caused the Machine to accelerate at a fast speed, nearly causing me to drive into a nearby pony. Checking the rear view window, I could see that pony shake a hoof at me, and what I thought was flipping the bird.

A heard a voice with heavy static. “He- Hey, can you---- me?”

I did a double take. “What?!”

“I said ca- you hear me?” The voice said, although this time more clearly.

I noticed the source of the voice and saw that it was coming from a small headset mounted to a black box connected to a cord that lead a console. I picked up the headset and put it over my ears. “Yeah, I can hear you loud and clear.” I said.

“This doesn’t sound like the Doctor at all. Who is this?” The voice asked.

“This is Max.” I said as I made a swift turn, nearly missing the correct street.

The voice hesitated to respond. “What? Max, what are you doing?”

“I’m sorry, but who is this?” I said returning the previous question.

I heard what sounded like a chuckle and then the voice responded. “Max, this is Rough Sketch. Remember me?”

“Yeah, I do.” I took a turn and finally arrived at the destination. “Uh, I think I might be at the right place. Where are you exactly?” I asked as I gazed around the street, only to see a random assortment of ponies passing by.

“I’m on the other side of the street.” He responded.

I looked in the opposite direction and spotted him talking into a pay phone. He waved me down and pointed to a house, running inside of it, I took the hint and immediately followed him inside.

The interior of his house was actually very regal. If I wouldn’t have known, I could have mistaken this for a mares house. He saw me walk in and stepped up to me, shaking me in the process. “For Celestia’s sake! Please tell me you have the ring?” He lead me through the hallway taking a left, leading us into a spacious living room with a small coffee table set upon a rug with two equally sized couches flanking it. On the wall was a fireplace and many different things like pictures, mirrors and surprisingly even a television.

“Well do you?” He said as he leaned up against me.

I stepped back from him, causing him to stumble. “Yeah, just calm down!” I reached into my jacket pocket to pull out a small parcel. “It’s right here.”

He saw it and snatched it from my hand. “Okay, my marefriend will be here any moment now, and-
We both heard a door open briefly and then slam shut.

“Oh, she’s here!” He whispered in alarm. He looked side to side and then pointed me to the couch. “Quick. Hide!”

I took the tip, and rushed over to the couched, tripping over the table, and ended up sprawling over the couch. I hid behind the couch just in time as the mare entered the living room.

“Oh, hi Honey. How are you doing?” Rough Sketch said nervously.

The mare must have picked up his nervousness, because what she said was unexpected. “Oh, you must have heard haven’t you?”

I swear I could hear his heartbeat going in overdrive. “Heard, heard what?” He said unknowingly.

“Oh, I guess you haven’t then.” The mare strolled around for a bit. “You might want to sit down for this.”

I could feel the wait press down on the couch, as he obeyed the orders. “Why is that, is something wrong?” He said becoming ever more nervous.

“I know that we’ve been dating for a couple of years, but…” She paused for a moment, as if she was trying to build up tension. “Well…”

“WILL YOU MARRY ME?” Rough Sketch nearly yelled, jumping from the couch.

“Oh, oh my!” The mare must have just looked at the ring, because she just stood still not knowing what to say. “It’s lovely, but… I just can’t.”

At that moment, I heard something shatter. It could’ve been anything, but I suspect it was his heart. Noticing that the room was dead quiet, I checked a nearby mirror and saw their reflections. Rough Sketch stood there, frozen like a block of ice. I could also see the lavender mare who had just turned down his offer. She was blushing with extreme remorse.

Finally, someone spoke out.

“But, wh- why?” He asked.

The mare turned around and started to walk into the hallways. “I actually came here to break up with you. I want your stuff out by before the morning.” She said heartlessly.

Rough Sketch started to tear up. “But, I loved you.”
She glanced at him before turning away. “I’m so sorry. It just wouldn’t work out.”

“What!” Rough Sketch snapped out.

“Hey, don’t get too loud.” She stared at him before looking at a nearby picture. “I know of all things we’ve done together, but we need to move on.”

“But, can’t we do something about this. Can’t you just reconsider? I… I just proposed to you and-”

She turned around and started to descend up the stairs. “I’m sorry, but my mind is made up. So, please leave.” She disappeared from sight. I heard another door slam seconds later.

I stood up from my hiding spot and saw that Rough Sketch was standing completely still looking at a lone ring that was set down on a table.

“How could she?” He said, still gazing upon the ring.

Staying silent, I allowed him to finish his rant.

“I had everything planned. The wedding, the reception, the honeymoon, I even knew a name for our first child… Note Pad.” He began to prod his hoof at the table.

I stared at him in disbelief of what had just happened. I could feel his sense of heartbreak, as I have also been through it myself. Knowing for a fact that he would get over it, I laid my hand on his shoulder, only for him to drop onto the table, knocking everything over onto the floor, including the ring.

“I’m really sorry.” I said, attempting to comfort him.

He just laid there as he spoke. “Don’t be. It’s all my fault.”

I kneeled down next to him, also picking up the ring in the process. “You didn’t do anything wrong.” I laid the ring upon the table, right next to his head. “You might want to keep this for some other mare. I’m sure you’ll find another one.”

He looked at the ring and grabbed it. “I don’t want another mare! I want… No I need her!” He demanded.

I stood there, thinking of what I could do to help him, and then the idea came to me. He needs a doctor, but no ordinary doctor. The Doctor! He usually knows what to do, and if not, then he could at least introduce him to a new crowd of people. I looked back down at Rough Sketch and picked him up.

“Hey, put me down!” He thrashed about, nearly punching me in the face. “Hey watch ou-!”

BONK

At that moment, I bonked his head on the doorway leading into the hallway. He recoiled from the impact and immediately looked at me in anger. “Ow! That really, really hurt!” He sobbed

I kept on walking to the exit. “Whoops, sorry about that.” I apologized.

“Where are you taking me?”

“I’m taking you to a doctor.” I said casually.

“Doctor Who?” He asked curiously, until noticing my façade. “Oh, you dirty rascal!”

Smirking at his remark, I stepped outside, setting him onto the ground. “Alright, well let’s go then!” I said pointing to the Machine.

He looked at the Machine and then to me. “Eh, that thing? I’m not too sure about how safe that is.” His face held a grim expression.

I walked up to it, swinging the door open. “Come on, don’t be a chicken!”

“Hey… Who you calling chicken?” He stood into a defensive stance.

I leaned up against the side of it, banging the passenger door. “Oh, I don’t know… Maybe the little filly standing in front of me.”

He snorted at my insult. “Okay, now you’re calling me a filly.” He kicked the ground behind him, throwing up a cloud of dust. “I want an apology!”

“First. Get in the vehicle.” I again banged on the machine.

“No, that thing is a death trap. I’d trust the Doctor driving it, but not you!” He said stepping back. “By the way, I need to collect my stuff.”

“You can do that later, she said do it by the next morning. Last time I checked, it’s still daytime.” I opened the door,
motioning him inside. “So, why not?”

He looked at me again, placing a hoof up the his chin, thinking of what to do. Coming to a decision, he rested his hoof onto the ground and trotted up to the Machine, stepping inside. “Ah, it smells like vomit!”

I grinned for a second. “Yeah, it’s a short story, but I still won’t tell you.” I started up the Machine, only for it to sputter and then shortly die afterwards. “Ooh… That doesn’t sound good.” I checked the rear view mirror to see the engine throwing up a thick black cloud of smoke. Stepping outside of the vehicle, I walked slowly the engine, pulling out my sonic screwdriver. I was going to attempt to jury rig the engine. I couldn’t fix it here, not because I didn’t know how to, but because I just didn’t want to.

“God I live being lazy!” I said inserting the screwdriver randomly into the engine.

Activating the device, I start to hear a low sonic hum, increasing in pitch. It also emitted a red light, slowly changing hues depending on the frequency of the device. My sonic screwdriver was also similar to the Machine. It had the same
Steampunk design of it, Except my had a more sturdy design, compared to the scraped look of the Machine.

After a couple of moments, I heard the engine come to life. The engine spurted out a cloud of white smoke, before going to a normal color and running again normally. After the engine came back, I returned to the cabin of the Machine and started to flip the knobs and levers. The Machine jerked forward suddenly and then began to move at a steady pace.

Rough Sketch was in the backseat looking very nervous. He still looked very sad from the previous event, but I managed to cheer him up a little bit. He became aware of the fact that I was looking at him. “So, how have you been doing lately?”

He asked, stirring up a new line of conversation.

I shrugged my shoulder. “I’ve been doing fine. I was kidnapped by the Doctor, met a drunken mare, offered to help her with all of her problems and then I was stabbed in an alleyway about forty-two and then died.” I said sarcastically.

He stared at me in disbelief. “Wha…?”

“I’m not too sure, I did get stabbed in the past, but not here in Ponyville.” I spoke easily.

“But, you said you died.” He started to become uneasy.

My mind turned on to what I was starting to say. “Oh, that’s right! I forgot that I was kidding.” I said with a poker face, trying to hide the fact that I wasn’t from here, or even remotely normal.

He could only look at me and just move back into his seat. “Okay, I guess that was funny…?”

We both remained quiet for the rest of the ride. I kept driving the remainder of the trip, only to every now and then check back on him, to see how he was holding up. The ride was very short only lasted a few minutes. I eventually arrived in front of the Doctors house. Seeing that the door was open, with the Doctor standing in the doorway, I assumed that he already knew.

The Doctor stepped down onto the steps leading down from his house and threw me a tiny sack, while also walking toward the pony in the back seat. I caught the sack and felt it. Inside I could feel something flat and circular. Opening the sack, I saw an unnecessary large amount of coins. Almost as if the bag was bigger on the inside than the outside. Testing this theory, I reach my hand into the bag. My hand met no resistance other than the coins. Before I knew it, my entire arm was inside the bag. I could instantly feel my eyes gleam with the reflection of the coins.

“Holy grenades, Doc! Where and how?! I inquired.

He looked back at me while helping Rough Sketch exit. “I actually acquired that money in a fair manner.” He walked past me, winking at me. “I defiantly didn’t find a faulty ATM and then hack into it.” He said as he pulled out his own sonic screwdriver.

I could only think of the dastardly act of the Doctor once again taking money in an unfair advantage. Then again, I didn’t have room to talk, as saying how I used to pocket anything that seemed valuable back in the Capitol Wasteland.

I saw that Rough Sketch was slowly shambling to the doorway. He seemed to be in a heavy depression, now that he’s had time with his own mind. I think he might have actually been weeping inside the Machine.

I quickly jogged up to meet them inside, running up beside the Doctor. “So Doc, what’s the situation?”

“He has severe physiological trauma.” He passed his sonic screwdriver over the depressed pony.

I leaned up against the center console. “So, what should we do?” I asked, thinking of the possibilities.

“Get him a girl, whiskey and maybe a memory wipe, and he’ll be good as new.”

I moved up against the console, accidently flipping a lever. The lever held no use as the fact that the TARDIS was in a powered down mode. I also noticed that I didn’t give a single flying feather, so I continued the conversation with the Doctor.

“So, how’s Derpy?”

The Doctor glanced up from his subject. “She doesn’t seem to like you, and she’s also keeping Dinky away from you.” He pulled out a thermometer from behind his tie, quickly shoving it into his patents open maw.

“Hey! What gives?” Rough Sketch demanded.

“Well I need to check your vitals. I am a doctor as you know.” He pulled a little box from beneath his time and set it upon the ground. The box started to slowly expand until it was the size of a small chest. He opened the box and pulled out some medical tools. One of them were a set of latex gloves. “Now, turn around and cough.”

I saw that Rough Sketch’s eyes immediately shot wide open in fear. Not taking a chance of the Doctor to seize him in his grasp, he broke into a light sprint into a random direction, leading into a doorway. “NO. I don’t care if you’re a doctor! You are NOT… Touching me!”

“Hey, watch out!” A mulberry mare said before Rough Sketch collided into her.

Rough Sketch was the first to stand up, clearing his vision he could see who he had just ran into. He would have continued running, but he was caught in a trance by the mare. The mare was no other than Berry Punch. She had a shine to her as if she had just taken a shower. Even from where I stood, I could even smell the faint aroma of perfume.

Berry Punch noticed the stallion staring at her and eventually stood up. “Uh, is something wrong with me?” She said shaking off anything that may have been caught in her mane.

“No… I’m sorry but, it’s just that you’re…” He reddened. “You’re a very beautiful mare.” He said without thinking.

Berry Punch also started to blush hiding her face partially behind her tail. “Oh, well thank you, no one other than Max has said that.”

I saw the expression in his face drain. His face quickly changed from a deep red to a angered face. “Uh, what?”

She looked at him noticing what she may have just started. “Nothing, just nothing.” She started to walk toward the center console where the Doctor and I were standing. “I’m really sorry about what happened earlier.” She especially looked toward the Doctor. “I also used your shower if you don’t mind.” She paused for a second. “You know, for a small house like this, the inside is really big.” She thought for a moment, before forgetting the thought.

Curious of where Thomas might be, I pulled out my map. I checked it, only to see that he had returned to the inn. “Hey, Doc.”
I had drawn his attention away from his newly returned love fallen patient. “Yes?”

I saw that Thomas’s mark on the map had started to move away at a very fast speed. “When did Thomas leave, and did he take anything?”

“He just had to check up on a friend of his.” He said nothing else while he looked at his patent. “Oh!” He jumped up.

“What!?” I said alarmingly.

“That’s insane!” Berry Punch had a look of surprise on her face.

“I gave him my flying machine.” He said almost too comfortably.”

I face palmed for the fiftieth time this day. “Why would you?!” I froze thinking of the chaos he could cause. “How would he even know how to fly it?”

“I just gave him the keys. He said it was urgent, and unlike you, I could actually trust him outright.” He finished up his procedure on his patient. “…But since where both stuck here, why not trust you again.”

I glanced at the map to see that Thomas had already arrived back here. I had guessed that the Doctor might have had a hanger installed behind his house, or maybe he had just landed onto the roof. Being in the TARDIS, I couldn’t hear anything outside unless the Doctor had the security on, but being the typical Doctor he is. He wouldn’t have it on.

Rough Sketch had just stepped next to me. “Max, do you think you could help me find a place to stay? Possibly close to where that mare may live. What’s her name by the way?”

I rolled my eyes. “I don’t know, why not talk to her.” I offered as I nudged him into her.

“Heh, I’d like to but… What does she like?” He asked looking away from her, not wanting to attract attention.

“She likes long walks on the beach, flowers and nice guys who are willing to obey her every wish.” I jokingly said.

“Okay, here goes nothing.” He slowly walked toward the unknowing mare and tapped her on the shoulder.

She turned from where she was looking and glanced at him. I didn’t pay attention to their conversation, for I had other
things to do.

Thomas had just arrived from where he was, but he was strangely carrying all of our bags and supplies. “I’ve got some terrible news.” He said uninviting look.

I looked at everything he was carrying. He was holding everything that we held back in the inn. I had assumed the worst.
“We’ve been evicted.” He said setting down the bags.

I stammered at his statement. “Why? For what reason?”

He threw the rucksack we had originally brought through the travel. “He raided our room and then found your gun. I walked in on him while he was supposedly cleaning our room, so he kicked us to the curb for having a weapon.” He brandished a small sack from pocket. “At least he gave us our deposit back.”

The Doctor took notice. “Actually, that was mine.” He pointed out.

Thomas tossed the tiny bag to the Doctor. “Yeah, sure…” He crossed his arms. “So we’re homeless again. Unless the

Doctor would like to give us rent.” He said glancing toward the Doctor.

The Doctor walked toward the console and checked a display screen. “I would, but Derpy would make me sleep on the couch again.” He stood up onto his hind legs, leaning his weight onto the console. “If you all wouldn’t mind, I need you to leave. Derpy has prepared supper and she didn’t supply enough for the bunch of you.”

I gathered everyone and told them to wait outside. Everyone left the room but the Doctor, Rough Sketch and I.

I wasn’t sure where I could stay the night. I didn’t want to stay in another inn, and Rough Sketch had just been kicked out of his previous house by his would be fiancé. I also need a faster way around town. “Doc, would you mind if I borrowed the Machine?”

He kept on tinkering with the console. “Not at all, I keep the coal in the trunk. I also need you for work in the morning.” He reminded me.

I removed the hat I’ve been wearing this entire time. Surprisingly, I didn’t seem to notice it until now, for I had forgotten about it all this time. “I’ll be sure to show up for work.”

I started to walk out of the room, just as Rough Sketch stopped me from exiting the building. “Before we leave, I need your help.”

I continued walking, ignoring his barrier. “You just had your heart broken, and now you want another mare?”

He leaped in front of me. “I know that!” He blocked the door. Putting his body in an X shape, blocking me from further advancing outside. “Just help me… please.” He applied a puppy dog face his demeanor.

Wanting to end his annoyance, I thought of a plan deep inside my mind. “Okay, just step out of the way, or I’ll move you myself.”

“Awesome!” He opened the door, jumping gleefully outside until stopping short of Berry Punch.

I strolled toward the Machine, stepping inside of it and looking outside at everyone else. “Everyone pile in!” I called out to everyone.

Berry, Rough and Thomas all jumped into the back seat of the Machine while I had already turned on the engine, and started to drive towards Berry’s house. I started my first phase of my plan.

“So, Berry… About your house?”

She turned her attention away from Rough Sketch. “What about it?”

“How much room do you have?”

She thought for a moment. “It’s actually pretty big for a house. Four bedrooms and three baths. It also has a loft and a basement, although I’m too scared to go into the basement.” She shuddered from a memory. ”Oh, there’s also my shed...

But don’t be going into my shed!” She later added.

I agreed to her command. “I know this might come off as sudden, but would you mind housing us all. We could all help cleaning up and paying the rent.”

Rough Sketch and Thomas both shouted in unison. “We are?!”

I glanced at them in the rear view mirror. “Yes, and we might even pay rent if she agrees.”

Berry Punch had been in a deep train of thought the entire time. She had finally come to a decision. “Sure, I can house you all. You’ll have to pay rent, but I can house you all.” She remained silent for a brief second. “Just stay away from my shed.”

My mind didn’t think of what could have been in the shed, but I quickly forgot about it. “That’s fantastic. I’ll drop you and

Thomas off at you house. I have to Rough Sketch pack his things up at his old house.”

Berry Punch nodded her head. “Okay, just make it quick.”

I kept on driving. The sun had started to set in the background and I had noticed that there were some hushed whispers in the cabin behind me. I could make out some of the words with my advanced hearing. I heard something about Berry Punch, beautiful, and then some other things about a nice flank? Apparently Rough Sketch was the one talking about it.
I had finally reached her house when I let both Thomas and Berry out, and then soon driving back to Rough Sketch’s house. Hopefully his would be fiancé wouldn’t be there. Things were going along smoothly until my passenger made a comment.

“So… Do you like Berry Punch?”

Huzzah! I wrote two chapters within two days!

That means this won’t be posted until maybe the fifth, but I still got two full chapters done within two days.

If only I could be sick more often, then maybe I could writer more like this.

I also hope you like what I’m doing with the story. Now that the sad stuff is finally over, I can move on to the lighter side of the story. Don’t forget to rate and comment guys!

Chapter VII: Homecoming

I had always known this would happen at one point. No matter where I go and who I am, love would always happen.

Although not in the way I expected. I was starting to think that I had just been involved in a love triangle. It probably wouldn’t be so bad if the others weren’t ponies. I’m not saying that it’s wrong, but it just that it wouldn’t work! I’ve just got a feeling that this will get much worse before the better.

I continued driving forward, unphased from the query. I couldn’t exactly comprehend what he had just asked me. He had just asked me if I love… A pony! I could never. I mean sure, they are intelligent and capable of everything a human could do, but the anatomy? Society may look down upon the act of cross species relations. Hell, they may even get to the matters of persecution. I quickly glanced over to my companion and breathed in deeply, ready for the onslaught of questions.

“So… Do you like her?” He asked shrinking into his seat.

I remained unchanged from the question. Before jumping into things, I’d like a little trivia. “I’m not sure. Why do you ask?”

“Eh, well I’m just a bit curious after all. You know, it’s just a matter of curiosity!” He sputtered nearly swallowing his words.

I looked onward into the field of view. I could see that the twilight was coming onto us. Deciding that now was not the best time, I attempted to drop the conversation. “I’m interested in her, but not in any way you would care about.”

“Well, would you mind asking her if she’s interested in me?” He offered.

Somewhere in my head, I heard a little voice yelling at his situation. He had literally just broken up with his marefriend, and now he’s already interested in another mare. This mare being a complete mess at the moment! I haven’t a clue about love, but this was becoming a nightmare for where this was going.

“Could you just tell her something about me, just put out a good word or something?” He said with a shaky voice.

I could hear the desperation in his voice and I wasn’t taking pleasure in hearing it. I thought up a response, and shot at him.

“Why not talk to her yourself?”

He looked away from me, turning his voice out the window. “I want to, but I’m just a nervous wreck around mares…”

“We all live in the same house now. You’ll have plenty of chances to talk to her.”

He returned his gaze to me. “That’s the problem! Max, I know she likes you, I can tell.”

I flinched at the remark. A pony loving me, I couldn’t think what to respond to that. I had just hoped that this wasn’t getting worse. The atmosphere was turning into a thick haze of angst, jealously and love. I didn’t notice until now, but I had now found out that he was jealous of me. He had just broken up with a mare, which he could’ve married and then was kicked out of the house, and all he could think about now was whether or not another mare likes him. Sadly to say, I felt somewhat proud of him for jumping back into the crowd instead of sulking around for a couple of days. It may even be love for him, who knows?

“She couldn’t like me.” I stated.

He looked at me, deciding whether or not I was telling the truth. Honestly, I couldn’t have known the answer. I kept on driving the Machine until we reached the destination. I pulled a lever and shut down a valve and turned to my companion. “We’re here.” I said pointing to the old house.

He opened the door and exited the Machine. As he stepped down, he tripped up and fell onto his front hooves.

I leaned over my seat and looked at him. “You okay?”

He picked himself off the ground and patted himself free of any dust. Turning around he shrugged. “Yeah, I just fell, that’s it.”
I turned my direction and looked at the house. The windows were shut and the blinds were drawn. It was strange though, I could see a light emitting from the upstairs window and what seemed to be… silhouettes moving back and forth.

“Dear god!” I muttered under my breath.

I turned to look for Rough Sketch, but he was nowhere to be seen. He must have just walked into the house, unaware of what was going on upstairs. I could only sit back and wait for the inedible. In the meantime I looked up to the dashboard and found the black box. In that black box there was a hand radio, shades, and a spare key to something. I picked up the hand radio and started to dial in random frequencies. Breezing through the frequencies I heard several stations.

I kept browsing until I heard a crash coming from inside the house.

“Just keep the stuff then!” Somepony shouted from within the house.

I looked up from the radio and saw Rough Sketch exiting the house in a fit of rage. I could tell by the look on his face that he wasn’t happy with whatever he saw. Rough Sketch was trotting up to the Machine, kicking up an excessive amount of dust from the ground.

“She just broke up with me and now she’s rubbing hoofs with someone else!” He shouted as he threw a bag into the backseat of the Machine. He stared at me, signaling me to start up the machine.

I leaned back in my seat and let out a breath of air. “This may sound bad, but you’re not in the position to talk either.”

He glared at me. “What!” Jumping up onto the seat, he slammed the door shut. “I’m nowhere in her position. Last time I checked, I wasn’t being rutted out by a stallion!” He said furiously slumping into his seat.

I checked the ignition on the Machine and toggled a switch, turning it on. Shifting a gear, the Machine lurched forward and picked up at a fast pace. I glanced at him to reassure that I was paying attention. “I know that but you’ve also fallen in love with a mare you just met.”

He flinched at the remark. “That nothing like what she’s doing!”

“It’s still pretty similar. If she was a bit looser, I’d imagine that’d you pounce her.” I said ending my case.

I looked over to where he sat and saw that he had a surprised expression on his face. “What! I would never!”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m pretty sure everyone would want that tail.” At this point I could tell I was purposely instigating him. I wasn’t sure why, maybe I curious on what he would do or that something would slip from him, but something did eventually.

Rough Sketch looked at me, staring at me with deep intentions and said the most startling thing I’ve ever heard. “I’m still a virgin.”

I was then forced from that point to tense up my jaw muscles to keep from laughing. “How is that even possible, you dated her for two years?”

“Well, I’ve got standards you know!” He said pounding his front hooves upon the dashboard.

“Yes, but I imagine you also have hormones.”

He fumbled with his front hooves as if he was unsure what to respond with. “I’ve actually got a medical condition…”

Hearing his reason, I pulled the Machine of the main road and off onto a side road. Doing that would give us a bit much more time to talk. “What kind of medical condition are we talking about?”

“I’ve got a…” He spoke too softly to hear.

“I’m sorry what?”

“I have an… Ego issue.” He said nervously

I stopped the Machine at an intersection allowing a party of ponies to pass by. Turning my attention to my companion, I listen to what else he has to say.

He started turning red. “I’ve never gotten very far with her, and anytime we got close, she would just laugh at me.”

“That’s terrible!” I wasn’t sure what to think about that. I’ve never had an issue like that. I don’t want to sound like a Gary Stu, but I’ve had problems, just never like that!

“Yeah, I don’t want to talk about it. Could we just go home?” He offered.

I looked ahead of us and saw that the passing ponies were gone. Taking the opportunity, I drive forward and continued for a couple of more blocks, until finally arriving at a disgruntled house. From outside I could see a single light emitting from the first floor window. I toggled a switch on the Machine’s dashboard and dismounted. Rough Sketch was already a couple of steps ahead of me and was already heading up the steps into the house. I followed shortly after him immediately after I locked the door s to the Machine with the newly acquired keys from the black box.

I took one step inside and was already buffeted by a cloud of lingering smoke… Wait smoke!

“Gah! Where there’s smoke, there’s fire!” I looked ahead and saw that I was in a small entrance hallway. Directly in front of me there was a staircase leading up to a second floor and on the right and left of me were doorways that lead to possibly a kitchen or a living room. Seeing the smoke coming from the left, I ran into there .

“What’s going on in here?!” I yelled as I ran into Thomas.

Thomas was carrying a plate of some charred food to a nearby table until I knocked into him. This caused him to panic throwing the plate up into the air. During this time, time seemed to slow down at a standstill. I didn’t know what that stuff was on the plate, but it fell right onto me, splattering onto me and covering my jacket and shirt. I don’t know if you remember or not, but I have a faded white leather jacket thanks to the Doctor. This incident didn’t end well for my jacket, neither did it end well for Thomas.

“What on all that’s heavenly were you doing in there!?” I yelled at him, expecting a good reason.

Thomas and I were in the living room. He was sitting on a couch as I was standing, clearing my jacket of the filth that supposedly his dinner.

“I was making food, that’s what.” He said in a mocking tone.

I face palmed with my free hand as with the other hand held a dirty rag. “How do you burn something so simple as a?” I stopped wondering about what it could have been and dumped the idea. “Well then… Where’s Berry?”

He thought for a moment and spoke. “I think she’s up in her bedroom.”

“Really, that’s odd.” I pondered for a moment. “Did she walk up there as soon as I dropped you two off?”

He stood up from where he sat and started walking to the doorway. “Yeah, she looked as if she was in a rush. Then again, I could have been wrong.” Finishing his statement he exited the room, leaving me alone with the lingering smoke.

I let out a puff of air to clear a smoke cloud directly above me. Doing so just sent the cloud a farther into the air and dispersed it. “I guess I’ll just open a window then.” I whispered quietly to myself.

I strolled up to the nearest window and opened it. The window was in a state of disrepair and was falling apart. It was a miracle that it didn’t shatter as I touched it, but it did its job. The smoke cleared the room pretty fast after that. It’s kind of weird though, normally smoke is dangerous to breathe in, but something was different about that. Maybe it wasn’t very even smoke, but who knows, it’s gone now.

I walked back to my jacket and checked the condition. My jacket was clean now but there was still a slight black stain around the chest. Nothing that bleach couldn’t handle though! I reached into my jacket and started digging around for an item. I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings because Berry managed to sneak up on me.

“What’re you up to?” She purred.

I was startled by her but I responded with ease. “Oh nothing, just cleaning my jacket.” I said with suave.

“Really, why?” She said as she got uncomfortably close.

“Thomas burnt some food, and then threw it on me.” I exaggerated.

She sighed. “So that’s why I smelled smoke.” She walked around me for a moment studying me, only to stop to look up at me. “Are you planning on anything tonight?” She offered.

I set my jacket down and patted myself off, just to clear any lingering dust off. “No, I wasn’t planning on anything. What about you?”

She jumped up onto the couch next to me and sprawled out across it. “I was thinking of staying here, maybe watch a movie?”

I noticed she raised her tail and started to wrap it around my leg. Unsure what to do, I sat down by her. “That sounds good.
Maybe we could gather everyone else.” I suggested.

She drew back her tail from me and sat up normally. “Oh that’d be fine. I guess I’ll make something up real quick.” She said depressingly. She got up from the couch and started to walk to the kitchen. Walking off I can hear her sigh as if her attempts at flirting went to waste.

On the other hand, I was still in the living room with my jacket. I surveyed the room just to see all of what was in here. There wasn’t much but the couches, coffee table, and the small television set up against the wall. I wasn’t too sure what technological tier Equestria was in, but they seemed to advance in certain aspects. They had advancements in electricity but it seemed used very seldom here only for lighting and such, but they did have some sorts of vehicles going around.

There were automated carts driving about and I think I even heard a train whistle at one point. The technology here was all out of whack. They had most of the technology you’d expect to see in the fifties, but then it would jump to a current age or even further. This time period was a whole mix of tech.

While I was busy thinking to myself Berry had came up behind me and nudged my back. Unknowing that she was behind me

I jump a bit. “Ah, please don’t sneak up on me!” I beckoned.

She responded in a low voice. “Oh, I’m sorry.” She had a bowl of popcorn and set it down onto the table. “I just made some popcorn.”

I put my stance in a relaxed state to show no worry. “That’s fine. I’ve just got a bad history of people sneaking up on me.” I said unaware of the following question.

“Have you been jumped by people before?” She said worryingly.

I slumped down into the couch and crossed my legs. “No not at all. I’m just jumpy, that’s it.” I said quirking my face.

Obviously destroying any poker face I had just held.

She looked at me briefly and turned the other direction. “Okay… So what movie would you like to see?” She pointed her hoof off by a cabinet next to the TV.

I looked over at my jacket for a minute. “You know… I’ve actually got a movie we could watch.” I offered.

Curious she fixed her gaze on me. “Really, you’ve got some movies?”

“I’ve got a few.” I pulled my gaze vision away from my jacket and looked back at Berry. “Why don’t you get the others, okay.”

I stood up and stretched my limbs, yawning in the process. “I’ve got to find the movie anyways.”

She walked away from the cabinet and then started to walk back into the entrance room leading to the stairs. “Sure, I’ll get them real fast.”

Waiting a moment for her to leave, I looked around the room to make sure no one was still around. Once I was sure no one was around, I walked toward my jacket and reached inside, pulling out a metallic cube.

The cube I had just pulled out was a storage device. When I said storage device, I meant an actual storage device. This cube can store an infinite amount of space and organize it very well, unlike my jacket which just holds things in a jumble. I’ve actually gotten things lost in the cube because I’d forget about it.

I held the cube and pressed the button on the underside. It made a small noise from the mechanics on the inside and then a projector popped up, emitting a small hologram from it and held it above the cube. This hologram allowed me to view the contents of the cube. Since I kept it highly organized, I just looked in electronics/entertainment/video players and then found a good device that’d fit in with the tech level here. I grabbed the little icon of the item and flicked it off the hologram. The cube then after started making a whirring noise and released a large cluster of atomic lights from the small port. These atomic lights gathered around the table and started to form the device.

“Hey Max, have you found a movie yet?” I heard Berry say as she started to decent the stairs.

I panicked and found a random movie in the cube. “Yeah, I found a good one.” I said nervously.

I could hear Rough Sketch also speak something inaudible to Berry, maybe flirting or just some harmless chit chat, but he sounded a bit scared.

I had just finished setting up the DVD player and hooked it up to the TV. Berry and Rough Sketch had both walked into the room and saw that I had everything set up. Rough Sketch walked over to the table and spotted a bowl of popcorn.

“Oh popcorn, Awesome!” He said excitedly.

Berry noticed his trance on the bowl and smacked his hoof away. “Not until the movie!”

Rough Sketch shrank back from her suddenness and sat up against in the lone seat farthest away from the TV, but reasonably close to the table. He slumped down into the seat and moaned. “Aw, why not?”

Berry stared at him with her big eyes and facehoofed. “If you eat the popcorn now, we won’t have any for the movie.”

“Pfft… That’s your excuse?” He mocked while also staring at the popcorn set upon the table. “Why not make more then?”

Berry had ignored the question and trotted over to where I stood by the TV. “So what movie are we watching?”

I was standing next to the TV fumbling around with the video player. I had finished connecting the necessary wires to the TV in order for it to work. I was about to put the movie into the player when I noticed what movie it was. “Oh, bollocks!” I said in despair.

“Uh, so what movie are we watching?” Berry had spoken up again, this time much louder so I could hear her.

“Well, we’re watching Transformers…” I said nervously.

I didn’t have the time to find a proper movie and I didn’t want to show this movie. I don’t dislike Transformers, but this movie was directed by Michael Bay. Sadly I had no choice but to play this movie instead of stalling and finding an excuse to leave the room and return with another movie. Did I mention that this movie was directed by Michael Bay?

I heard a soft crunching noise muffled by a slight cough and then a whoosh of returning to a seat. Apparently while Berry was distracted, Rough Sketch had gotten up from his seat and grabbed a hoof full of popcorn and shoved it greedily into his mouth, although his effort was wasted with Berry’s keen sense of hearing. Berry cringed at the attempt on her popcorn and turned around a stared at him.

I didn’t want the situation to escalate so I started the movie. I turned the volume up as much as the TV allowed it and returned to the couch bringing Berry with me, leading her away from Rough Sketch. I rested in a comfortable position and prepared myself for the amazing film that was about to be bestowed upon us all. Did I mention it was directed by Michael Bay?

It was only about an hour into the movie when I was forced to shut it off. Berry was terribly confused while Rough Sketch was severely disappointed. Berry had been pestering me with questions on what the robots were and why they were fighting. She also wanted to know about all the places and things she saw. I knew it had been a terrible mistake to show them the movie, but in all honesty… It could have been much worse. They could’ve seen the second or even the third film and may God help their soul if they even saw the intro for the fourth movie.

Rough Sketch was amazed by the film and stood there in awe. His eyes were transfixed on the movie the entire time it was playing and he beckoned for more. I would’ve kept playing the movie but Berry was ruining it by her barrage of questions. I also had to stop it because she eventually asked where it was. I made up a false statement and said it was a science fiction movie and wasn’t real. Although she didn’t fully believe me, she bought it anyways. Rough Sketch on the other hand might need some explaining.

I had just ejected the movie from the player and put it back into the case. Turning back to my party, I see that Rough Sketch had come back to reality and had been munching on the popcorn. Berry had just been sitting on the couch in confusion, unsure of the entire movie.

“What did I just watch?” She questioned.

“Well, there were robots, explosions and a hot girl.” I shrugged my shoulders. “That’s the movie in a nutshell.”

Berry had just sat there while I briefly described the abomination of a movie. She sat up and sat in an upright position, strangely similar to how Lyra sat if I might add. She didn’t hesitate very long because she reached into her tail and pulled out a bottle of wine, popped it open, and took a long gulp before I knew what was happening.

“Berry!” I shouted at her.

She continued to take another sip of it, this time a bit more slowly as if she was mocking me. “What, I can’t have a drink around here?” She said lowering the bottle.

Rough Sketch also pitched in. “Oh, could I have some of that?”

Berry had glanced at him and raised her hoof at him. I could tell that she was already starting to get buzzed and was starting to slur her words. “You… You can’t hav- *hiccup* This is mine!”

I signed up strolled over to Berry, yanking the bottle from her grasp and picking her up. “Hey Sketch.” I called to him.
His ears perked up at my call. “Yes?”

I tossed the bottle to him. “Here put this some place she won’t be able to find it.” I said as Berry struggled in my hold.

He smiled and caught the bottle. “Sure, I’ll put this somewhere safe.” He turned away from me, twiddling his hooves. “It’ll go right in my stomach.”

I was already in the hallway when I stopped to turn back to him. “I said somewhere safe, not to get drunk and be evil.”

His expression fell at the statement. “What the point then?”

“Just listen as I say.” I resumed my path, ascending the stairs up to another hallway.

This hallway had five doors, two on my left and three on the right. I was practically in a T shaped hallway, my side being the lower vertical line being the stairs as the upper horizontal line would be the hallway. Unsure of which room was hers, I started opening the doors to my left. One door was a led to a newly furnished bedroom. This one was what I assumed to be

Rough Sketch’s from the canvas panels covering the walls. I also saw a strange silhouette of a big hunk of metal.

Preserving his privacy, I shut the door to his bedroom and tried the door opposite of his.

The door held a closet and nothing more, so I went to the other side of the hallway and opened the closest door to the staircase. Apparently this was the right bedroom for the fact that the walls were strangely the same color as her coat. Berry at this point had fallen asleep in my arms and had been mumbling things incoherently. I didn’t catch much word but my name and Rough Sketch’s. I gently set her onto her bed and tucked her in. I took a moment to look at her. She was sleeping peacefully, even for how drunk she was. I decided to stop being a bit of a creep and left her room, only to be confronted by Rough Sketch.

“Where you in my room?” He stood unmoving, blocking my path like a brick wall.

Unsure of how to respond, I told a white lie. “Not at all, why do you ask?”

He stepped out of my way, clearing a path for me to my designated bedroom. “Okay then. Just stay out of my room.”

I walked over to my bedroom and turned to see Rough Sketch peeking into Berry’s bedroom. He noticed my eyes on him and jumped back. “Heh, yeah… I’ll be going now.” He walked of down the hallway disappearing into his bedroom.

Surprisingly I heard a deadbolt lock. I assumed that he installed a lock on his bedroom door in the matter seconds he had just been in there, but I carried on my own business.

I stepped into my bedroom. It was just a small room with a twin bed centered in the middle of the room pushed against the wall. The only other piece of furniture was a night stand. For my clothes, There was also a very small closet that a person, or pony could step into. That would be usefully to put my clothes in there, except for the fact that all I own right now are jeans, a t shirt and my leather jacket, not forgetting my shoes and underwear. I’d have to ask Berry or Sketch about where a clothes tailor would be. I knew that neither I or Thomas wouldn’t want to wear the same clothes for days.

I walked to my bed and sat down onto it, stretching out onto it and yawning. There wasn’t much to do but sleep now. I laid back in the comfort of the bed and quickly fell into a deep sleep.

Hey guys, sorry for the late update.
I’ve actually been busy doing other things but I promise I’ll dedicate more time to this story.
Like always, if you enjoyed reading this, like, rate and comment and such.
Thanks for reading.