A New Lifeby NeshkaSauceProductionsChaptersThe Maneswell ChildPresent DayThe ArrivalThe Party AnimalA Spark In The LibraryFridayPrologueThe Maneswell Child"No...No...No please!" "Goodbye Brent, we...love...you. "Nooo!" Huh? oh, it was only a dream, well more like a nightmare, ah well, morning already?" Brent Maneswell, a child who was very normal in the eyes of society, except one thing, his family was extremely wealthy. Of course Brent grew up this way and didn't know any other style of living. He'd occasionally see somepony wearing awful clothing and asking for money, which he didn't understand, and just ignored it. Brent had it all, the good life, a fun life, but all of that was about to change. He just didn't know it yet... Brent slowly got out of bed, before realizing something. "Hmm, something feels... off, different." Brent thought to himself. "Oh yeah! It's my birthday!" Brent quickly threw on his morning slippers and trotted down stairs. as he descended, he met his mother in the kitchen. "Morning sweetie!" "Good morning Mom, is breakfast ready?" "Why yes, it is, since its your birthday, I cooked your favorite!" "Thanks mom!" Brent said as he entered the kitchen. "Wow, blueberry pancakes and sliced oranges!" Brent quickly ate his meal, and entered the hallway. "Hey mom?" "Yes dear?" "Where's dad?" "I don't know, Buck honey, where are you?" "I'm in the garage dear" "Thanks mom" Brent said as he headed down the hallway to the garage. "Morning Dad!" Brent said as he entered the garage. "Morning sport! Happy birthday!" "Thanks dad" "No problem, so sport, what do you wanna do today?" "I don't know yet" "Tell you what sport, how about we go see your favorite movie, then go to an amusement park?" "That sounds amazing!" Brent said with a joyful tone. "Great, hey sport, think you could help your mother with something? she needed help earlier. "Sure, what does she need?" "She said she needed flour from the store, I think you know what that is for!" "Oh, yeah, the cake! Sure, I can get that!" Brent said with a large smile. "Thanks sport! Here's 10 bits, it should be enough for you, now, run along, and be safe!" Brent quickly hurried out of the door, to what seemed to be a perfect day in Equestria! Wow, Princess Celestia has really outdone herself today! Brent was a only child, and wasn't very interested in friends, he figured as long as he had family, he didn't need them. But according to the adults, he was a very mature and kind. Brent headed into the town, saying hello to the ponies around and headed straight to the local store. As Brent galloped to the store, he noticed two small fillies in what seemed rag like clothing. As he stood there he heard them begging for bits. He didn't quite understand this, so he carried on to the store. "Brambleton Groceries, I bet they have flour" Brent said to himself as he entered the store. Brent quickly found the flour and headed to the register. "That'll be 8 bits please." the cashier said. "Here you go" Brent grabbed the flour and headed out the door. He quickly trotted home, and when he got there, he heard a sudden scream from inside the house... Brent ran through the back door into the garage to the end of the hallway, he heard voices that were, unfamiliar to him. When Brent looked down the hallway and to the right he saw his father against the wall next to the front door, holding a kitchen knife. Brent was looking down the hallway to what appeared to be three ponies in black clothing, one of which, was holding his mother against the wall. "Where is it?" the unfamiliar pony said. "I don't know what your talking about!" Brent's mother said. "You useless whore!" One of the ponies said as they slammed Brent's mother into the wall. Just at that moment Brent's father rushed into the crowd of the three ponies and slashed one of them across the stomach with the knife and another across the face. "You bastards!" Brent's father said as he went for another slash but just then one of the ponies grabbed Buck's arms while another grabbed his legs. "Where did you put it?" one of the ponies asked. "What are you talking about?" Buck said. "Oh, don't play dumb with me. You know what I'm talking about! The fortune!" The unfamiliar pony said. "I'll never tell you bastards, you think you deserve it?" Buck said, just then, the pony asking Buck the questions took his hoof and kicked Bucks left leg, smashing his knee cap to pieces."Ahhhhhhh, damn it!" Buck screamed as he fell to the ground holding his leg. All this was a horrid sight to Brent, as tears ran down his checks, he wanted to say something, but the fear of the criminals in his house left him speechless. "Search the house, find it!" one of the criminal's said as he tied Brent's parents to chairs. Brent out of fear of being seen hid in his favorite spot during hid and seek, except if he was caught, it was over. After about ten minutes he heard one of the criminals speaking to the others. "There's nothing here, listen, we better go boss, the cops will be here any minute! "Damn... alright, alright we burn the house while we leave, remember, no evidence! None. At. ALL!" "Yes sir!" Brent heard the crooks leave, he quickly ran up to parents which were tied up in chairs, side by side. "Brent honey your alright!" Brent's mother said. "Yes, but you guys aren't!" Brent said in a stuttered voice as he tried to speak while he cried. "We'll be fine sport, Grab that knife on the floor, and cut these ropes. Brent quickly grabbed the knife, and started cutting away at the ropes. Just as he started, he noticed that it was getting warmer, then suddenly, the walls burst into a flame! "The house, its on fire!" Brent's dad said. Brent started cutting as fast as he could but the house was burning away faster. "I can't cut fast enough!" Brent said as he shook in fear of losing his parents. "Brent listen, Get out of here, you won't make it if you stay here." Buck said in a worried voice. "No I wont, I can't, I love you both too much, I can't!" "Listen to me, be brave son, you need to be brave, life may throw you around but listen to me when I say we love you and will always love you, NOW GO!" Brent's father said.Brent looked at his parents with an fearful look. "Goodbye Mom, Goodbye Dad, I... I love you!" Brent said as he realized at that moment that he would never again see his parents. Brent ran to the back door as the house fell apart, he looked at his parents one more time. "Goodbye Brent, We love you" Brent's parents said. Brent ran outside crying and running as fast as he can but tripped and fell, he looked back at the house, as he saw it collapse from the flames, he knew what had happened to his parents he heard the sirens and heard the voices as he was sobbing. He looked around as he saw the ponies around him, his vision started to fade, and the last thing he saw was the home he had lived in for 12 years crumbling to the ground... Present Day After the unfortunate event, Brent was sent to his Aunt and Uncle's. Where he stayed for six years up until his 18th birthday, His Aunt Milly was one of the nicest Mares he'd met in all his life so far but his uncle Bert... well that's a bit different. But Uncle Bert wasn't always like that, but after he was fired from his job as a mailpony, he started drinking and now is drunk most of the time, if he's not then he's probably too drunk realize whats going on. But if there's one thing Brent knew, is that his Uncle hated him for unknown reasons. Probably the alcohol but Brent tried his best to ignore it, although sometimes he'd show a hint of anger... or a lot of anger, but he didn't like being mad, so he was looking for a place to move but knew of nowhere that would fit his likes. Small, homey, quiet, and peaceful. Brent's Aunt and Uncle were around a middle class like structure in terms of money, but they had enough, living in Manehatten, it was quite hard to find, vast paying jobs. Brent didn't really like living in the city that much, even if they had a nice house. "Hmmmm, where to go, where to go..." Brent asked himself as he read the latest newspaper. After about ten minutes of looking through the pages about all the news stories in the bustling city. Eventually he found a "Summer getaway" article about some nice places and then a place caught his eye. "Ponyville". "That place looks quite nice, with its scenery and all." Brent said to himself. Brent looked at the clock. "9:00 A.M. already?" Brent said getting out of bed as he laid down the newspaper. He put his Morning slippers on and headed down stairs. He then entered the kitchen and sat at the table. "Good morning Brent!" Aunt Milly said. "Morning..." Have a good nights rest Brent?" "Sure..." Brent said looking down at the table. "Here, I made you Biscuits" "Thank you" Brent said. "So uh... big news, I found out where I want to go!" Brent said with a unsure look. Really? That's great!" Aunt Milly said. "So, the little queer found a place huh?" A ragged voice said. "Hey Bert... yeah I did" Brent said. "Well isn't that just great? Now we won't have to pay for his sorry ass anymore, now will we?" Uncle Bert said with a slight grin. "I'm not in the mood right now Uncle Bert." Brent said with an angry tone. Oh, I'm sorry, am I gonna make you cry, well good. Go ahead and cry, cry like you did when your parents died!" "Uncle Bert..." What?, What are you gonna do? You gonna run like you did when you left your parents to die? Well sport, come at me." Brent was fed up with him, a little spark ignited inside him that quickly grew into a raging fire. Brent shoved the chair against the wall and ran up to Uncle Bert smashing him into the wall, leaving a hole in the wall. "If you ever talk about my parents again, I'm gonna make sure the wall isn't the only thing with a hole in it!" Brent said as he the threw Uncle Bert against the floor. Brent quickly ran back up to his room. "Brent come back!" Aunt Milly said. She quickly left the kitchen and headed up to Brent's room. "That's right, leave you pathetic, worthless, handicap bitch, I don't need any of you!" Uncle Bert said as he was struggling to get up. Brent stormed into his room, cursing under his breath while he laid in his bed. He thought of the painful things his Uncle said to him. "Brent? Brent?" Brent heard his Aunt coming up the stairs. "Brent, I'm sorry about Uncle Bert, you know how he is." "Yeah... I do, I'm sorry about the wall." "It's alright, the house is a thing, we can fix it." Aunt Milly said in a comforting voice. "I have a gift for you, here have this." Brent looked at Aunt Milly as she took out what looked like two bits on a leather string, and on the bits were engraved Mom on one, and Dad, on the other. "What... this is great!" Brent said with a smile and a tear running down his cheek. "Thank you, I made it for you while you were at the hospital that day. I waited for the right time to give it to you." "Since your leaving for Ponyville, I thought it was a good time." "Thank you Aunt Milly!" Brent said as he hugged his Aunt. "Oh yeah and one more thing." Aunt Milly handed Brent a check for 5,000 bits and a train ticket. "Wow, thank you so much Aunt Milly, I don't know what to say!" "You're welcome! Tomorrow we'll head down to the train station and get you settled, it's a long way to Ponyville. Now I'll pack your things, have a great rest of the day Brent!" Aunt Milly said as she left the room. Brent spent the rest of his day getting items to bring with him on his trip, items like cloths, drinks, food, and memorabilia of his home. All along he was thinking of how good it would be to get away from his rude Uncle. It was 8:00 A.M. and the first train to Ponyville was already on its way. Brent was so excited, he couldn't wait! "Now you're sure about this?" Aunt Milly said with an uncertain look on her face. "Not totally, but I feel as though it's for the best" "Okay, now Brent listen to me, Ponyville is a nice town, I've been there a couple of times, everypony there is very nice" "Second, Be careful, you're a smart stallion and I'm sure you can get through anything but still... you should always be careful, and one last thing, be... brave." The last two words reminded Brent of something, something inspirational. "Thank you so much Aunt Milly, I'll visit from time to time" "I'm sure you will." "Now go, live your life, enjoy every bit of it." Aunt Milly said with a tear in her eye. "I will, I love you, stay safe!" Brent said as the doors closed on the train. Brent looked around, found a seat, and set his luggage and saddlebags down. "Well, here it is, a new start." Brent said to himself as he boarded the train rested his head, closed his eyes, and drifted to sleep. The Arrival"No...No i can't...No" "Attention passengers, next stop, Ponyville." Brent was awakened by the voice of the conductor. "Next stop, huh?" Brent said with a tired voice. "Yep, next stop, how did ya sleep!" Brent jumped a little then looked to his left to see a mare with a white coat and a red and pink mane. "Sorry did i scare you?" The mare said. "No you just startled me, that's all" "Okay good, i don't want to make you mad." "No, you didn't, say, have we met before?" Brent said with confusion. "No, not that i know of, sorry i didn't introduce myself, my name is Roseluck." "My name is Brent." Brent said with a tired look. "Brent? That's quite an odd name, then again, I've never seen you around Ponyville before." Roseluck said with a joyful kind of voice. "I was raised in Baltimare then moved to Manehatten" "Wow, why did ya move?" "I'd rather not talk about it" Brent said with a sad expression. "Oh, sorry i asked, quite a beautiful morning huh?" Roseluck said trying to change the subject. Brent had just thought about the time, he looked outside to what seemed to be the best view he's ever seen. The sun was shimmering, and to his right, a grand waterfall. All this was so extraordinary to him he completely forgot Roseluck's question. "Oh, yeah, beautiful morning, very beautiful. He said to the mare. As his eyes got back into focus, he noticed how attractive Roseluck was to him. But out of courtesy he shook it off and made conversation. Roseluck noticed this but kept quiet about it. "So Roseluck, when did you get on the train?" "When the train stopped at Canterlot around 12:00 A.M, i was just finished competing in the Canterlot Flower Competition." "Did ya win?" Brent asked. "Well i got 4th place, which is pretty good considering there was 30 competitors." "That's great, i bet you did a fantastic job." Brent said with a smile. Ya, i know i did my best, ill just haft to try harder next time. Brent wasn't sure what to say so he just smiled and looked down at the floor. "Hey whats that thing around your neck?" Roseluck asked with great interest. Brent couldn't tell her the truth, he didn't want to make her feel sorry for him, so he thought of the quickest thing to say. "Just a necklace i made when i was a kid." Brent said hoping she bought it as he did say it quite fast. "Oh, well i think its cute" Roseluck said with a smile. "Thank you" Brent said. "So where are we?" "We are in the Mountains on the outskirts of Ponyville." "So we're close then?" "Yep, we are." Brent looked around and found a clock, the time read 7:46. "No wonder some of the passengers are asleep, its quite early" Brent said as he was looking around the room. "Yeah, good thing I'm an early riser!" Roseluck said.No wonder she has so much energy Brent thought. "5 minutes to Ponyville, all passengers may take their luggage and get ready for the stop." The conductor said in a loud voice which woke up the rest of the passengers. "Well it was nice talking to you!" Roseluck said with a smile." "I'm sure i will see you around Ponyville!" "I'm certain" Brent said as the train rolled up to the station. "If you want to chat more, my shop is in the market area in town, its called Roseluck's Rose and flower shop." "Thanks, I'll swing by when i get the chance, it was nice meeting you Roseluck!" "Nice meeting you too Brent!" Roseluck said as she waved, and headed into town."Well, here it is, Ponyville." Brent said to himself. Brent grabbed his luggage and saddlebags as he headed into town. He didn't really know where he was going, so it took him a while but he found what seemed to be a town hall in the center of the city. He entered the building when a voice made him jump a little. "Welcome to Ponyville's town hall, how may i help you?" The mare at the counter said. "I'm interested in purchasing a home." Brent said."Great, in the outer region of the city or an apartment?" The mare said. "Hmm" Brent thought hard, the outer regions sounded nice and quiet but he would haft to walk far for groceries and such, the city house sounded nice as well, with the small walking distance and such, but he was bothered by the noise, but this was a small city. "I'll take the apartment in the city please!" Brent said. "Alright that'll be 3,000 bits please." Brent handed the lady the check. "Um sir?" Brent looked over at the mare. "Yes?" "You wouldn't happen to have a bank account in Ponyville would you?" The mare said. "No ma'am i do not, where do i sign up?" "Over there is a book called Ponyville Resident Finances, just find a spot in alphabetical order according to your last name, sign in, and I'll work on this check for you, sound good?" "Sounds great Brent said." Brent walked over to the book on the pedestal flipped to M, and Signed his name in. Then he closed the book and faced the mare. "Alright the check looks good, here is the key to your house and a map of Ponyville." "Thank you" Brent said. "Your welcome, i hope you find Ponyville to your liking!" The mare said. Brent smiled at the mare, waved goodbye, and headed toward his home which was marked on his map. He stepped into the building and read the key. "Floor 2 huh, alright then." Brent had a little trouble getting up the stairs, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle. He got up to his room, or floor if you want to be specific. He unlocked the door and looked inside, it was actually quite nice, no mansion but since he was alone it was more than enough. He noticed that the apartment was already furnished. "Great, i don't have to buy furniture." he said to himself. he laid his luggage and saddlebags on his bed and unpacked them. he noticed he didn't have any sort of formal attire. "Gotta make a note to buy a suit when i get the money." He said to himself. He turned on the TV and watched shows until it was around 6:00 A.M. Grrrr. "Well i think my stomach's trying to tell me to eat, i think i have 30 bits on me, ill grab a bite to eat." Brent got up and turned the TV off, then walked out of his apartment into the street. The area where he lived didn't have much commotion but when he got to the center of the city, it was very busy with lights and the voices of ponies around. Brent found a Dinner, sat down, ordered, and had a quick dinner. As he was eating, he noticed the waitress looking at him. "Not from around here?" "Yeah, what gave you the idea?" Brent said. "Just that your very quiet and ain't talking to anypony. "Yeah, I'm just tired" Buck said. "Well you enjoy your meal, and have a great evening!" The waitress said as she went back to serving food. "Wow, ponies around here are nice. Brent finished his meal, and walked into the street. He was walking home when a Pink pony stopped him. "Hauuuuuuuuuuh!" the pink pony Gasped. and ran off. "Well, that was strange. "Brent said as he walked home. He entered his apartment, brushed his teeth and headed to bed. As Brent lay there he thought to himself. "Today hast to be one of the best days I've had in years. I bet tomorrow will be awesome." he said with a grin, as he drifted to sleep... The Party Animal"Brent, are you sure about this?" "Of course I am" "I don't know little Bro, it seems, dangerous." "Remember what you said? Live life to its fullest!" "Yeah, I did say that didn't I?" " Ugghhh..." Brent groaned as he awoke from his sleep. He tried to look at the clock, but it was blurry, so he wiped his eyes and when he did, he noticed tears. "Hmm, that's strange." He said to himself as he sat up. He looked at the clock. "6:45 A.M., damn its early, well for me anyhow, I'll get up anyway, huh, bet Roseluck's up, that reminds me, I need to go see her again." Brent said to himself as he slipped his morning shoes on, and walked into the kitchen where he planned to eat breakfast. Since he didn't bring much, all he had to eat was a box of cereal that read Chocolate Covered Oats. Brent opened the box poured a bowl, and went to the fridge, when he remembered. "Oh yeah, no milk, damn." He said under his breath as he closed the fridge door. So he ate his dry bowl of cereal and turned on the TV. As he watched the morning cartoons, he was thinking of his task that needed to be done. "Okay, first things first, get groceries, then, find a job, I think I saw a job board in the town hall." Brent said to himself as he made a list of thing to do. "And last I'm gonna go visit Roseluck, Okay looks like a plan, but I don't think the stores are open around this time." As Brent waited for the stores to open, he watched TV but also studied the map the mare at the desk in the town hall gave him. "Let’s see, there is my apartment, and town hall, and looks like this says Sugarcube Corner, I'm guessing pastries. The library is located there, and Sweet Apple Acres is located there. After Brent was finished watching cartoons he looked at the clock. "7:35 A.M. the stores don't open for another 25 minutes. I guess I’ll take stroll, just to get an idea of where to go. Brent unlocked the door to his apartment, and headed out into the street. It was a cold and rainy day in Ponyville. This didn't bother Brent, as it wasn't raining hard, but he threw on his coat and left his apartment to go look around. He first started at the bridge in Ponyville, from the EverFree Forest to Sweet Apple Acres. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to him, just a small town full of rural like life. On the way back to his apartment Brent had remembered he forgot to get groceries. So he headed to the store. Even though it was bad weather, there were still a sizable amount of other ponies at the market place. Brent went up to the vegetable stand, got some lettuce, carrots, and tomato's. "Thank you for shopping at carrot top's shop!" The mare with the orange mane at the stand said in a loud voice. "Next bread." Brent said to himself. He headed over to a bread and sweet stand, where a mare with a tan coat and a dark blue and pink mane looked at him strangely. "Hello to Bon-Bon's Flour Heaven, Baked goods and sweets, may help you?" The mare said. "Yes, I would just like a loaf of bread." Brent said. "I know I haven't seen you around Ponyville, you’re new aren't you?" "Yep, pleasure to meet you miss...?" "Call me Bon-Bon" The mare said. "Call me Brent." "Brent? may I say that is a strange name, where did you come from?" Bon-Bon asked. "I was born in Baltimare, raised half of my life in Baltimare, Half of it in Manehatten." Brent said quickly as he was picking up the bread. "So you’re a city pony? You don't sound like it." "Well, I wasn't the biggest social bug." Brent said chuckling a little. "Well for somepony who hasn't had many friends, I think you are a friendly pony." Bon-Bon said "Thank you Bon-Bon, that means a lot." "You’re welcome, hey, you look like you could use a good time, DJ-Pon3 is performing in the local club, maybe you might consider?" Bon-Bon said with a wide grin. "Uhh sure, when is it?" Brent said. "Friday night actually, we can meet up outside and everything, and you can meet my good friend Lyra!" "Um..." Brent gave it some thought at first. "Yeah, sure I'll go tonight." Brent said with an assuring look. "Awesome, I can't wait!" Bon-Bon said with excitement. Brent left the stand saying his goodbye's and he headed home to drop the groceries off, then went right back outside. "Alright, now I’ve gotta go to town hall, and look at the jobs available." Brent said to himself as he walked out the door. "HELLO THERE NEW PONY!" A startling high pitched voice said. The voice made Brent jump and stumble to the ground almost having a heart attack! "Oh I'm sorry, are you okay?" The high pitched voice said. "Yeah, I'm fine, why is it everypony's mission to scare the hell out of me?!" Brent said as he was catching his breath. "I'm so so soooooo sorry! I just wanted to welcome you to Ponyville!" The high pitched voice said. Brent got up from the ground to see a pony with a pink colored coat and mane. “My name is Pinkie Pie!" "And when I saw you the first time I knew I just had to get you something, and greet you of course, hope you like it" Pinkie holds out a pink frosted cake that says Welcome To Ponyville on it. "Thanks Pinkie!" Brent said grabbing the cake. "No problem, oh gosh, I've got to get going, see you later NEW PONY!" "Wow, she left without asking for my name, must've been important." Brent said to himself, now to find a job. Brent headed down to the town hall, of course saying hello to the mare at the counter and walked over to the job board. "Hmm, let’s see." Brent looked closely at list. "We've got applebucking, book sorter, and a lot of other jobs, hmm, this, book sorter sounds like an easy start, I'll ask about that job.” ”Excuse me Miss?" Brent said looking at the mare at the desk. "Yes?" "Where do I go to get the book sorter job?" The words seemed a little odd when saying them out loud. "Well at the library of course! The mare at the counter said. Wow, that was obvious, Brent thought to himself. "Alright, thank you!" Brent said to the mare. "You’re quite welcome Mister Maneswell." Brent headed out the door, "Well, now to talk to Roseluck!" Brent said to himself. He headed to the market place where Roseluck said he'll find her. It took some time but soon he saw it. Roseluck's Rose and Flowers. It was getting late, and he knew he was running out of time. He went inside to see Roseluck closing up the shop. "Hey Roseluck!" Brent said as he entered the shop. "Brent, hey! How’s your day been?" Roseluck said with a smile. "Pretty good, how about you?" "Slower day than usual, with the weather and all.” “Well at least that puts the stress off of you right?" Brent said. "Definitely, hey, I'm gonna close up shop, you don't mind standing outside do you? I'll be quick!" Roseluck said in the nicest way possible. "Sure, I’ll be outside." Brent said. The day was ending, and it had been a pretty normal day, well except for Pinkie of course. Brent stood outside in the rain as Roseluck was finishing up with locking up the store. Brent looked through the rain at the nearby ponies and one in particular looked quite familiar. Brent just couldn't put his hoof on it, The somewhat familiar pony was leaving the pawn shop. As Brent looked closer he noticed what looked to be the bottom half of a sheath in the pony's cloak. As Brent looked a little closer he could see what appeared to be a scar on the pony's cheek. This pony started to look very familiar, He just couldn't put his hoof on it. As he was thinking, Roseluck had just finished locking up the shop. "Well you ready? Sorry we haft to chat in the rain!" Roseluck said. "It doesn't bother me at all." Buck said with a grin. "So, what does your cutie mark represent?" Roseluck asked with a interested look. "I don't really know" Brent said as he looked down at the picture of the three 4 leaf clovers on his side. Brent was scared to tell the day when it appeared, it was too painful to think about. So he told the quickest lie he has ever told. "One day I just appeared, it’s one of those learn as you go you know?" "Ya, I get what you mean." Roseluck said very softly. "So uh, how’s tomorrow look for you?" Brent asked. "Nothing incredible happening, just another day at work, what about you? Aren't you looking for work?" Roseluck asked with concern. "Actually, I'm going to sort books at the library, the pays moderate and I'll meet someone new!" "That's great, full time?" Roseluck asked. "Don't know yet, I'll look at the flyer later." Brent said. "Well I'm sure you'll do an excellent job at it!" "Thank you Roseluck, that means a lot." Brent said. "This is my stop, it was nice talking to you." Roseluck said. "Nice to talk to you too." Brent said. They stood there in silence, the only thing to be heard was the rain. As they glanced at each other to what seemed to be eternity, the sound of thunder broke the silence, startling them both. Brent was the first to speak. "Have a nice night Roseluck.” Brent said with a smile. Roseluck blushed a little. "You too Brent, and be careful. See you soon!" Roseluck said as she entered her house and closed the door. As Brent went home he couldn't help but to think about all the crazy events that happened today, but the one thing that made him ponder, why did the pony with the scar seemed so familiar? He took the key out of his coat and opened the door to his apartment. He put his coat in the washing machine as it was soaking wet and he didn't want to get his floor messed up, he took a quick shower while his mind buzzed in thought. He brushed his teeth, and got to bed quickly. He couldn't sleep, all he could think about was why the pony looked so familiar. Then he realized after thinking about it. It was one of the ponies that killed his family... A Spark In The Library"First, I'm gonna destroy everything you hold dear, then make sure, your family is finished, then kill everyone you hold dear." "No, you wouldn't dare!" "I'll prove it to you then..." "AHHHH!" Brent screamed as he jumped out of sleep. "Okay, I need to do something about these dreams... more like nightmares actually." Brent stuttered as he spoke. Brent concentrated his look in the direction of the clock on his night stand. "Alright its 8:21 A.M. I should get moving, gotta big day of work ahead of myself." Brent said to himself as he grabbed his bit necklace and wallet, put on his morning shoes, and headed into the kitchen. Unlike yesterday, today was a beautiful day yet it was still a little cold, but still tolerable. Brent got out the cereal, poured a bowl of cereal, got the milk, and sat down to watch the news. it was about 15 minutes and Brent was done with his cereal, he squinted at the living room clock, still a bit tired. "8:36, well better go." Brent said as he threw on his jacket. He traveled down the muddy street and starred at the map he held with his magic. "Hmm, so looks like the library is straight ahead, that's ironic the library looks like a tree! Guess they forgot to put it on here." Brent said chuckling to himself. "Alright, looks like I'm here... at a... tree library?" Brent looked up at what seemed like a grand looking tree. Brent walked over to the sign above the wooden door and it read "Ponyville Library" Brent knocked on the door softly. He started hearing sounds from inside the library, then the door opened. "Hello and welcome to the Ponyville library, in what way can I help you?" Brent looked at the young mare in front of him, she had a purple coat, and a purple and pink mane, and she was an Alicorn! Brent looked at her in awe but responded quickly. "Hi, I saw this flyer, and I wanted to know when this job was?" Brent said trying to cover up him looking at her with shock. "Oh, yes, thank you coming over to help!" The mare said with a smile. "No problem, I’m glad to help." "Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself, I’m Twilight Sparkle. The mare said with a friendly look. "My name is Brent, pleased to meet you!" Brent said. "You're the princess right?" Brent asked with confusion. "Why yes I am, but you can call me Twilight, no need for that stuff." "Okay, Twilight it is." "So you said your name was Brent? That's quite an odd name, then again, I've never seen you around Ponyville." "Yeah, I got here about two days ago, I was raised half my life on Baltimare, half of it in Manehatten." Brent said. "Well that explains the name, come inside and we can get started, you came at the right time, Spike had just left to go see Rarity. "Who are Spike and Rarity?" Brent asked with interest. "Spike is my assistant who likes... somepony" Twilight said with a mischievous tone "And Rarity is one of my best friends!" Brent pondered who the 'Somepony' was, then chuckled when he realized who it was. "Okay, and another question, what is a princess doing at a library?" Brent asked. "I decided to stay, since my friends were here, I thought it would be better for me and them, that and I liked Ponyville, anyways let me get my lists of to-do's, and then we can get started!" Twilight said as she entered another room. Brent looked around the library, the smell of recently burnt candles and wood filled his nostrils as he stood there, looking around. He quickly took out the flyer to review his pay, twenty bits, not bad. As he looked around he saw books, beakers, and telescopes around the library. "This mare sure does like science." Brent thought. "Alright, I've got the list, let’s get started." Twilight said breaking the silence. "First we restock the shelves in alphabetical order, depending on Genre and then we double check it, sound simple?" Yeah, sounds good." Brent said, which of course he knew he could. "Great, you start on that shelf, and I'll start on this one, then well move to where we are on the same shelf!" Twilight said with excitement. "She must be a book enthusiast or something." Brent thought, smiled, and got straight to work. They worked pretty much all day, it was repetitive but Brent needed the money, so he said nothing and continued to work. Every now and then Brent would hear Twilight checking off the things to do on her notepad. Brent was in the middle of double checking, his eyes were heavy as he was getting tired from all the lifting and stacking and such. "All right looks like we're almost done, I'm going to put my notepad up." Twilight said as she headed up the stairs. Brent looked over at the clock. the time read 3:21 P.M. Brent felt his eyes were heavy but tried to stay awake. He had stayed up too late, Brent felt his eyes shut and he drifted to sleep. Twilight looked down and noticed this, she beamed a small smile, she didn't wake him, thinking he probably needed the sleep. She simply was quiet the whole time. She propped a pillow under his head and finished double checking the shelves. Though, something bothered her, she couldn't make out what he was saying but it seemed he was mumbling a little. "So you're leaving?" "Yeah, they want me to be there early for inspection, sorry little bro." "Will I see you ever again?" "Now Brent, of course you will, it's the Royal Guard, trust me, they'll let me take time off don't you worry." "I love you!" "I love you too buddy, now remember, look after mom and dad for me okay? I know you, you're strong, and always remember to be brave." Brent had awoken to the sound of kitchen utensils dropping on the floor. Again, Brent had noticed that when he wiped his eyes, tears were on his hooves. "Ah, sorry did I wake you?" Twilight said peeking her head out of the kitchen. “Yeah, but I'm fine, I needed to wake up, how long have I been asleep 30 minutes?" "Nah, it’s been about five hours." Twilight said going back into the kitchen. "Five hours? I gotta go!" Brent said as he got up. "I have one question." Twilight said getting Brent's attention. "Do you always cry in your sleep?" Twilight asked with concern. "Oh... you uh...you noticed that?" "Yeah, are you okay?" Twilight said.. "Yeah, I'm okay, hey listen, thanks for letting me sleep, I needed it." "No problem, your pay is on the counter there. It was nice meeting you, we should talk later, a friendly chat if you will." Twilight said with a smile. "Sure, and it was nice meeting you too!" Brent said as he put his coat on and grabbed his bits. "If you’re looking for work I'll always be here!" "Thank you Twilight, see yeah later!" Brent said as he rushed out the door. Twilight wondered why he was in a hurry, but went back to cooking. Brent galloped to Roseluck's shop, hoping it wasn't closed. He entered the market, spotted the shop right away. He ran up to it looking inside. The shop was dark, nopony in sight, he looked at the sign in the shop window, Closed. "Damn it, I hope she didn't think I forgot!" Brent huffed in frustration. He walked home in a grumpy mood, feeling bad he didn't keep his promise. But he had a weird feeling someone was watching him, "If Twilight noticed me crying in my sleep, then it must be bad, I need to talk to someone about it..." Brent said in a sigh. Brent had gotten up to his building where his apartment is. He looked back in the direction of Roseluck's shop. And he started to turn towards the door when he saw a figure in the distance, staring right at him. "Hello, who's there?" Brent said. And as soon as he asked the figure ran. Brent was to freaked out to care about who it was now, he ran up to his apartment door, unlocked it and locked it as fast as he could. Then he walked over to the window, to see the figure one last time before he closed the blinds shut. It was quite early for going to bed, so he turned on the TV. Which was quite challenging to do in the dark cold room. He cooked up some dinner and sat down, every now and then he would look at the door, as if it were about to bust open and the figure he saw would be standing there. The clock read 10:17 P.M. it was time for Brent to go to bed. He brushed his teeth, took his necklace off and set his wallet on the table as he took his coat off. He laid there in bed, thinking of what Roseluck was probably thinking about him, the figure he saw. Then he remembered as he drifted into sleep, Tomorrow is Friday... Friday"Brent?" "Yes Aunt Milly?" "Could you go out to the shed and get Uncle Bert the shovel?" "Yes ma'am" Brent being a 13 year old colt, never understood why he kept seeing them, the figures, they were always just there, watching, waiting, he never told his Aunt or Uncle about them, as he felt he didn't need to. They never talked to him, never hurt him, they were just there. he would see them occasionally as he went outside to play or went to the shed. He would look at one, watch it, then the figure would run away. "Brent? Brent? Brent are you there?" The sound of a mare's voice and a hoof knocking on the door woke Brent. Brent quickly got up and went to the door and opened it. "Hi Brent, oh gosh did I wake you, I'm sorry!" As his eyes adjusted he could see that it was Twilight. "No, I needed to wake up anyways, whatcha need?" Brent said with a tired voice. "Sorry, it's the second time I've done that, anyways, me and my friends are having a picnic in Sweet Apple Acre's, would you like to go?" Brent thought for a moment, Sure, but how long is it gonna be? "Probably from 10:00 to 4:00, but we are gonna show you around the farm as well." "Okay, I gotta be back around 5:00 so that's great!" "I'll go get ready, you can come in and watch TV or whatever till I'm done getting ready." Twilight stepped into the apartment and sat down on the couch. She watched as Brent entered the bathroom, then started to look around the apartment. She headed into Brent's room, she didn't want to be nosy, but Brent was acting strange yesterday. She noticed two bits with a leather string tied around them. She walked over to the table and picked it up to get a closer look. On the bits were Mom engraved on one, and Dad engraved on the other, and as she flipped them over the word, be, was on one, and the word, brave, was on the other. This was something she had never seen before. As she looked around the room she noticed a box sticking out of the bed. She slid the box out and in the box, there were photos. She started looking through them and she got to one that made her stop. It looked like a family photo. There were 2 stallions, a mare, and a colt. The colt looked like Brent, just of course, younger. and the oldest stallion looked like his dad and the mare looked like his mother, but the stallion next to his dad, had a brown coat and a black mane. "What is he hiding?" she said to herself. She heard the shower stop so she quickly put the picture back in the box. Slid it under his bed, and left the room to go to the couch, being as quiet as she could while going by the bathroom. She sat there quietly watching TV as Brent got out of the shower and got his things. "Alright, you ready to go?" Brent said as he was walking out of his room, putting his necklace on. "Yeah, let’s go." Twilight said hoping he didn't noticed anything different in his room. The two walked out of the apartment and into the street. "Let’s get a bite to eat before we go, what do you say?" Twilight said. "Sounds good, I’m kinda hungry." Brent said. They found a local Dinner and sat down to order. Once they ordered, Twilight was the first to speak. "So what’s your family like?" Twilight asked with a serious look. "Well they're just like any other family." Brent said in a nervous look. "Really? Have any siblings?" "No, only child.” "Hmm, what’s that like?" "It’s okay." Brent said. Brent wanted to just spill everything that has been bothering him out. He wanted to tell Twilight, but the risk of telling her and she feeling bad would be too much on him. Just then the food arrived. "Thank you sir!" Twilight said to the waiter. "So what’s your history?" Brent asked. "Well I grew up in Canterlot, studied magic and other stuff for a while, and pretty soon, as it was an amazing thing, I became Celestia's student. Then I came down here because she told me the summer sun celebration was held here, and she wanted me to do the preparations. But she was really testing me, a couple of years went by and I soon became the a princess. In the shortest way to say it really." The two were finished eating breakfast and headed to Sweet Apple Acres. They traveled down the dusty path and towards the farm. There, Brent could make out what seemed like a checkered cloth laying in the grass with an umbrella to the left. "You stay here and I'll go see how Applejacks doing." Twilight said as she walked off toward a red barn. "Hmm, Applejacks probably one of her friends." Brent said to himself as he sat down. As he sat there he thought of how beautiful a place Sweet Apple Acres is. As he sat there in the dark warm grass, Brent noticed something from a far. As he looked he could see something, a figure of some sort. Brent looked closer, this figure had a scar on its face, the only detail he could make out. Brent had gotten very nervous now. but he kept looking and soon, it turned and ran away. Fear was arousing inside of Brent. Just as he began to look away, the sound of Twilight's voice broke the silence. "Brent this is Applejack, Applejack, meet Brent." "Hey there pardner." The mare said as she held out her hoof. "Hi, pleasure to meet you Applejack" "Pleasure to meet you too, Brent was it?" "The others should be arriving soon." Twilight said. Just as she said that Brent saw what appeared to be a white Unicorn with a purple mane, a blue Pegasus with a rainbow colored mane, a yellow Pegasus with a pink mane, and a pink pony that was obviously Pinkie Pie by the way she jumped up and down instead of walking. "Hi everypony!" Twilight said with a big smile. "Hey Twilight! HUUUUAAAAAAHHHH, is that the NEW PONY?" Pinkie Pie said with a giant smile and a loud voice. Pinkie Pie ran up to Brent with a big smile. "Calm down Pinkie, I'm sure he doesn't like ponies being in his face." Applejack said with a chuckle. "Sorry, how have you been today?" Pinkie said. "I've been pretty good today, what about you?" "Oh I've been great! I just couldn't wait for this picnic!" Pinkie said getting louder and louder with each word. "Say dearie what’s your name?" The white Unicorn asked. "My name is Brent." Brent said. "Brent, that's different, where are you from?" "I was born and raised half my life in Baltimare, and half of my life in Manehatten, or really the outskirts of Manehatten if you wanna be specific. Brent said. "That's quite a way of life! I'm sorry I forgot to introduce myself, I'm Rarity." The mare said. "Nice to meet you Rarity" Brent said with a smile. "My name is Rainbow Dash!" The blue Pegasus said in a bold sort of way. "Nice to meet you Rainbow Dash, and Nice to meet you too Miss...?" Brent said while looking at the yellow Pegasus. "My name is Fluttershy..." I'm sorry what was that?" "Her name is Fluttershy" Rainbow Dash said with an annoyed look. "Oh, okay, well nice to meet you Fluttershy." "So, what do you all do for a living?" Brent asked. "Well, I'm going to the Wonderbolts Academy!" Rainbow Dash said with a bold look. "And you Rarity?" Brent asked. "I work at the Carousel Boutique where i make all kinds wares and such." Rarity said. "And you Pinkie?" "When I'm not with my friends or meeting wonderful new ponies i work at Sugarcube Corner!" Pinkie said with glee. "And what do you do Fluttershy?" "I take care of animals for other ponies." Fluttershy said, Brent barely hearing what she had said. "Wow, those sound like they are pretty cool jobs. Brent said. The day went by quickly since Applejack really wanted to show Brent around the farm. As Brent looked around he kept seeing them, the figures. They weren't doing him any harm and were quite far away, but he could still see them. "Brent, whatcha starring at?" Applejack said. "Brent was to busy looking to notice her question. "Brent?" Applejack said getting his attention. "Yeah, huh?" Brent said stuttering a bit. "Are ya okay? your sweatin a little." "Yeah, I'm fine, just...uh...looking at the scenery. Brent said wondering if she bought it. "Alright then. Applejack said with an odd look. Twilight had noticed their conversation as they walked. And was curious what was going on with Brent. Soon time rolled around to 3:50 and the majority of the ponies left. All who was left was Brent, Applejack, and Twilight. "Well I think that was fun! We need to do that again." Applejack said with a smile. "Yeah, it was fun, wasn't it Brent?" Twilight said. "Yeah, got to meet some pretty nice ponies. And I enjoyed myself, couldn't get better!" "Well I'm glad you liked it Brent! Listen I've gotta go, see you guys later." Applejack said. "See you Applejack!" Twilight said. "See you!" Brent said. "Well it's been fun but I..."Gotta go, no, I have a question." Twilight interrupted. Brent looked at Twilight with confusion. "Why have you been hiding who your family is and where you came from?" Twilight said with a serious look. Brent had tried to hide it from his friends, so they wouldn't hurt, wouldn't feel sorry. But it looks as if now, that won't work, so he did the quickest thing he could. "Alright, I'll tell you," Brent said with a sigh. "I have a question for you though, how did you know that I was hiding something?" "I'm sorry, but I looked through some of your pictures and things when you were getting ready." Twilight said with regret. "That's okay, I need to get it off my chest, shall I began?" Brent said. "Yes, you may" "Okay, here we go" "I was born into the richest family in Baltimare, The Maneswell family, we had a pretty good life." Brent said with sadness in his voice. "Who is the stallion with the brown coat and black mane?" Twilight said with interest. "That is my brother Chance, he was a good friend to me, he had to go away though." "Why" Twilight asked. "He signed up for the Royal Guard and was sent away one day, he told me he would return, but he didn't." "Why not?" Twilight said. "Because, he was killed" "What?" Twilight said in shock. "I'm sorry" "No, it's fine." Brent said getting his bearings. "I had been told that he was killed in an ambush by the changelings." "I didn't know, I'm sorry." Twilight said feeling a little sad to. "After that was the day my cutie mark had appeared. "The day that got me here." "It was my 12th birthday, I was told to go to the local store in town and get some flour for the cake. then when I got back I heard a scream from inside the house, I ran inside to see my mother and three ponies dressed in black. they were holding my mother against the wall, I didn't say anything in fear of them finding me." "They threw my mother on the ground and just as they did that my father rushed into the crowd of them and cutting one across the stomach and another on the cheek. They tied my parents up as they tried to look for my family's fortune." " They couldn't find it so they set fire to our manor, I had to say goodbye to my parents that day, they told me to leave so I ran as fast as I could out of the house and as I looked at the manor crumble in on itself." "Just as soon as I saw that I passed out and woke up in the hospital, where I found a cutie appeared on my side, the three 4 leaf clovers." I stayed with my Aunt and Uncle until I decided to move to Ponyville, so here I am, and the change i had leftover from buying the flour. My aunt engraved it and made it into a necklace." "So, now you know..." Brent said with a sigh. "Twilight was in shock, she couldn't say anything except one thing. "I'm so sorry for you" "It’s alright, but one thing scared me." "What is that?" Twilight asked. "I saw a figure earlier, staring at me, from a far. I looked closer and it had a scar on its face." "Oh gosh, do you think?" "Yeah I do." Brent said with a scared look. "Well stay safe Brent, and have a great day" Twilight said as she disappeared into town. "Oh shit, I forgot, I said I was gonna be at that club to see Bon-Bon!" Brent ran to his apartment as quick as he could, he unlocked the door and shut it, he took a shower, got washed up and entered the kitchen. As he was gathering his things he took a piece of paper and wrote a letter to Roseluck. It read, Dear Roseluck, I'm sorry I haven't talked to you in a while, been really busy lately, I hope your doing well, I'll talk to you tomorrow, Your friend, Brent. Brent got his coat on and left his apartment. Brent walked into the street, and looked at the map. "Okay so that is where the club is located." Brent said to himself as he walked down the dry streets of Ponyville. Though he did feel happy about telling Twilight what he was hiding, he couldn't help but feel bad about it. He shook it off as he headed to the club. The club was only a few blocks away, though he had written that note for Roseluck. Roseluck's house was just up the road from where he was. He walked till he reached the house, then attached the note and continued walking towards his destination. He walked up to the building and could tell this was the place. The sound of music could be heard from outside the building, and outside was a few groups of ponies. Brent spotted Bon-Bon and what appeared to be turquoise colored Unicorn standing next to her. "Brent you're here!" Bon-Bon said with a smile as she walked up to him. "Couldn't wait" Brent said with a small grin. "Well since you're here, this is Lyra." Bon-Bon said shoving the Unicorn closer to Brent. "Nice to meet you Lyra, my name is Brent" "Brent said holding out his hoof. "Oh... well, nice to meet you too." The mare said while shaking Brent's hoof." "Well then, are we all ready to go inside?" Bon-Bon said. "Yeah, I've never been to a club." Brent said looking at the doors of the building. "I'm sure you'll love it! Now let’s go." Bon-Bon said with excitement. Brent was very excited to enter, he looked around before entering, and he saw something, the figure, except it was just across the street, closer than it's ever been. The three entered the club where the music boomed and like any other club, the booze was a plenty. Brent was struck by flashing lights and Dance music. "Well, enjoy yourself! I'm gonna go catch up with some friends." Bon-Bon said as Lyra and her galloped off. Brent looked around the club, as he looked he saw a bar, a lounge area where Bon-Bon and Lyra galloped off to. And a Dance floor accompanied by a DJ, with neon letters above that read DJ-Pon3. Brent walked over to the bar to get a drink. Even over at the bar there were flashing lights. Brent found a stool and took his seat. "What would you like to drink?" The bar tender asked. "Just some beer, Brent said. "Here you go." The bar tender said as he handed Brent a shot. Brent took the drink and as he was at the bar he had a moment to think. "Well, here you are, you've made some friends, and are having a good time, what more could you ask for?" Brent thought. "I've gotta loosen up, stop worrying." Brent thought as he took another sip. At this very moment, Brent was happy, no worries, he has told somepony the one thing that was bothering him, and he had met lots of good ponies so far. Brent finished his drink and headed for the dance floor. There was a crowd of ponies dancing all over, the buzzing club music and the colorful strobe lights only made it better. Brent joined the crowd and danced along. All the sudden, it seemed as everything stopped, and Brent felt a sharp pain in his right rib. He looked down to see a blade through his side. The sounds of screaming ponies made it worse, Brent fell to the ground, his blood pouring onto the dance floor while ponies scream and cleared the area, and before Brent passed out from the pain, he saw a figure, the ones he had seen before, walking away... PrologueThe Maneswell Family: A family that has been known throughout the city of Baltimare. Known as the richest family, the only way to know how they got there, is to tell a little story. Buck Maneswell was a small colt, on a farm with his family in the early days of Baltimare got interested in selling items to others. So each Thursday, Buck would head to the town and sell food with his father, after a few years. He soon became interested in selling items and once he turned 18 years of age, he left the farm and headed into the city to sell for a living. Soon buck had been known all throughout Baltimare and had acquired a small fortune which he used to set up a big house in the northern part of the city, the house was known as the Maneswell Manor. One year when buck was on a business trip in Canterlot, Buck met someone that would be the change of his life. Buck was on his way to a Canterlot social party, probably the most important event in his life, and he was going to have to make a good impression. He bought a nice suit and a nice hat from a tailor shop. The party was very unique indeed. since Canterlot was high up and has lots of flying space, the party was on a blimp yacht. "Very fascinating, I have never seen a party such as this!" Buck said. "You think so, your not from here are you stranger?" an unfamiliar pony said. "Well uh... no, I'm not from around here." Buck said. "Well you sure look the part, my name is Hank Brambleton." "Nice to meet you Hank, My name is Buck Maneswell" Buck said as he shook Hank's hoof. "Maneswell? you said your name was Buck Maneswell?" Hank said. "Thats right, have you heard of me?" "I have heard you are quite the business pony in Baltimare" Hank said. "Thank you, thats mighty kind of you to say!" Buck said. "Father, who is this...stranger?" A mysterious mare said."I'm Buck Maneswell, and who might you be Miss?" "This is my daughter Sentra Brambleton." Hank said. "A pleasure to meet you miss" Buck said kissing her hoof. "May I say you are quite the charmer Mr. Maneswell" Sentra said. "Necessary when meeting such a beautiful mare." Buck said with a sort of a sly expression on his face. "You are quite dashing Mr. Maneswell, so tell me about yourself." Soon the two talked and then they quickly fell in love, love at first sight if you will. They got married and Sentra moved into Buck's house. and they had a few "Magical Nights" and pretty soon Sentra became pregnant with a colt, and soon there was, The Maneswell Child.
The Maneswell Child"No...No...No please!" "Goodbye Brent, we...love...you. "Nooo!" Huh? oh, it was only a dream, well more like a nightmare, ah well, morning already?" Brent Maneswell, a child who was very normal in the eyes of society, except one thing, his family was extremely wealthy. Of course Brent grew up this way and didn't know any other style of living. He'd occasionally see somepony wearing awful clothing and asking for money, which he didn't understand, and just ignored it. Brent had it all, the good life, a fun life, but all of that was about to change. He just didn't know it yet... Brent slowly got out of bed, before realizing something. "Hmm, something feels... off, different." Brent thought to himself. "Oh yeah! It's my birthday!" Brent quickly threw on his morning slippers and trotted down stairs. as he descended, he met his mother in the kitchen. "Morning sweetie!" "Good morning Mom, is breakfast ready?" "Why yes, it is, since its your birthday, I cooked your favorite!" "Thanks mom!" Brent said as he entered the kitchen. "Wow, blueberry pancakes and sliced oranges!" Brent quickly ate his meal, and entered the hallway. "Hey mom?" "Yes dear?" "Where's dad?" "I don't know, Buck honey, where are you?" "I'm in the garage dear" "Thanks mom" Brent said as he headed down the hallway to the garage. "Morning Dad!" Brent said as he entered the garage. "Morning sport! Happy birthday!" "Thanks dad" "No problem, so sport, what do you wanna do today?" "I don't know yet" "Tell you what sport, how about we go see your favorite movie, then go to an amusement park?" "That sounds amazing!" Brent said with a joyful tone. "Great, hey sport, think you could help your mother with something? she needed help earlier. "Sure, what does she need?" "She said she needed flour from the store, I think you know what that is for!" "Oh, yeah, the cake! Sure, I can get that!" Brent said with a large smile. "Thanks sport! Here's 10 bits, it should be enough for you, now, run along, and be safe!" Brent quickly hurried out of the door, to what seemed to be a perfect day in Equestria! Wow, Princess Celestia has really outdone herself today! Brent was a only child, and wasn't very interested in friends, he figured as long as he had family, he didn't need them. But according to the adults, he was a very mature and kind. Brent headed into the town, saying hello to the ponies around and headed straight to the local store. As Brent galloped to the store, he noticed two small fillies in what seemed rag like clothing. As he stood there he heard them begging for bits. He didn't quite understand this, so he carried on to the store. "Brambleton Groceries, I bet they have flour" Brent said to himself as he entered the store. Brent quickly found the flour and headed to the register. "That'll be 8 bits please." the cashier said. "Here you go" Brent grabbed the flour and headed out the door. He quickly trotted home, and when he got there, he heard a sudden scream from inside the house... Brent ran through the back door into the garage to the end of the hallway, he heard voices that were, unfamiliar to him. When Brent looked down the hallway and to the right he saw his father against the wall next to the front door, holding a kitchen knife. Brent was looking down the hallway to what appeared to be three ponies in black clothing, one of which, was holding his mother against the wall. "Where is it?" the unfamiliar pony said. "I don't know what your talking about!" Brent's mother said. "You useless whore!" One of the ponies said as they slammed Brent's mother into the wall. Just at that moment Brent's father rushed into the crowd of the three ponies and slashed one of them across the stomach with the knife and another across the face. "You bastards!" Brent's father said as he went for another slash but just then one of the ponies grabbed Buck's arms while another grabbed his legs. "Where did you put it?" one of the ponies asked. "What are you talking about?" Buck said. "Oh, don't play dumb with me. You know what I'm talking about! The fortune!" The unfamiliar pony said. "I'll never tell you bastards, you think you deserve it?" Buck said, just then, the pony asking Buck the questions took his hoof and kicked Bucks left leg, smashing his knee cap to pieces."Ahhhhhhh, damn it!" Buck screamed as he fell to the ground holding his leg. All this was a horrid sight to Brent, as tears ran down his checks, he wanted to say something, but the fear of the criminals in his house left him speechless. "Search the house, find it!" one of the criminal's said as he tied Brent's parents to chairs. Brent out of fear of being seen hid in his favorite spot during hid and seek, except if he was caught, it was over. After about ten minutes he heard one of the criminals speaking to the others. "There's nothing here, listen, we better go boss, the cops will be here any minute! "Damn... alright, alright we burn the house while we leave, remember, no evidence! None. At. ALL!" "Yes sir!" Brent heard the crooks leave, he quickly ran up to parents which were tied up in chairs, side by side. "Brent honey your alright!" Brent's mother said. "Yes, but you guys aren't!" Brent said in a stuttered voice as he tried to speak while he cried. "We'll be fine sport, Grab that knife on the floor, and cut these ropes. Brent quickly grabbed the knife, and started cutting away at the ropes. Just as he started, he noticed that it was getting warmer, then suddenly, the walls burst into a flame! "The house, its on fire!" Brent's dad said. Brent started cutting as fast as he could but the house was burning away faster. "I can't cut fast enough!" Brent said as he shook in fear of losing his parents. "Brent listen, Get out of here, you won't make it if you stay here." Buck said in a worried voice. "No I wont, I can't, I love you both too much, I can't!" "Listen to me, be brave son, you need to be brave, life may throw you around but listen to me when I say we love you and will always love you, NOW GO!" Brent's father said.Brent looked at his parents with an fearful look. "Goodbye Mom, Goodbye Dad, I... I love you!" Brent said as he realized at that moment that he would never again see his parents. Brent ran to the back door as the house fell apart, he looked at his parents one more time. "Goodbye Brent, We love you" Brent's parents said. Brent ran outside crying and running as fast as he can but tripped and fell, he looked back at the house, as he saw it collapse from the flames, he knew what had happened to his parents he heard the sirens and heard the voices as he was sobbing. He looked around as he saw the ponies around him, his vision started to fade, and the last thing he saw was the home he had lived in for 12 years crumbling to the ground...
Present Day After the unfortunate event, Brent was sent to his Aunt and Uncle's. Where he stayed for six years up until his 18th birthday, His Aunt Milly was one of the nicest Mares he'd met in all his life so far but his uncle Bert... well that's a bit different. But Uncle Bert wasn't always like that, but after he was fired from his job as a mailpony, he started drinking and now is drunk most of the time, if he's not then he's probably too drunk realize whats going on. But if there's one thing Brent knew, is that his Uncle hated him for unknown reasons. Probably the alcohol but Brent tried his best to ignore it, although sometimes he'd show a hint of anger... or a lot of anger, but he didn't like being mad, so he was looking for a place to move but knew of nowhere that would fit his likes. Small, homey, quiet, and peaceful. Brent's Aunt and Uncle were around a middle class like structure in terms of money, but they had enough, living in Manehatten, it was quite hard to find, vast paying jobs. Brent didn't really like living in the city that much, even if they had a nice house. "Hmmmm, where to go, where to go..." Brent asked himself as he read the latest newspaper. After about ten minutes of looking through the pages about all the news stories in the bustling city. Eventually he found a "Summer getaway" article about some nice places and then a place caught his eye. "Ponyville". "That place looks quite nice, with its scenery and all." Brent said to himself. Brent looked at the clock. "9:00 A.M. already?" Brent said getting out of bed as he laid down the newspaper. He put his Morning slippers on and headed down stairs. He then entered the kitchen and sat at the table. "Good morning Brent!" Aunt Milly said. "Morning..." Have a good nights rest Brent?" "Sure..." Brent said looking down at the table. "Here, I made you Biscuits" "Thank you" Brent said. "So uh... big news, I found out where I want to go!" Brent said with a unsure look. Really? That's great!" Aunt Milly said. "So, the little queer found a place huh?" A ragged voice said. "Hey Bert... yeah I did" Brent said. "Well isn't that just great? Now we won't have to pay for his sorry ass anymore, now will we?" Uncle Bert said with a slight grin. "I'm not in the mood right now Uncle Bert." Brent said with an angry tone. Oh, I'm sorry, am I gonna make you cry, well good. Go ahead and cry, cry like you did when your parents died!" "Uncle Bert..." What?, What are you gonna do? You gonna run like you did when you left your parents to die? Well sport, come at me." Brent was fed up with him, a little spark ignited inside him that quickly grew into a raging fire. Brent shoved the chair against the wall and ran up to Uncle Bert smashing him into the wall, leaving a hole in the wall. "If you ever talk about my parents again, I'm gonna make sure the wall isn't the only thing with a hole in it!" Brent said as he the threw Uncle Bert against the floor. Brent quickly ran back up to his room. "Brent come back!" Aunt Milly said. She quickly left the kitchen and headed up to Brent's room. "That's right, leave you pathetic, worthless, handicap bitch, I don't need any of you!" Uncle Bert said as he was struggling to get up. Brent stormed into his room, cursing under his breath while he laid in his bed. He thought of the painful things his Uncle said to him. "Brent? Brent?" Brent heard his Aunt coming up the stairs. "Brent, I'm sorry about Uncle Bert, you know how he is." "Yeah... I do, I'm sorry about the wall." "It's alright, the house is a thing, we can fix it." Aunt Milly said in a comforting voice. "I have a gift for you, here have this." Brent looked at Aunt Milly as she took out what looked like two bits on a leather string, and on the bits were engraved Mom on one, and Dad, on the other. "What... this is great!" Brent said with a smile and a tear running down his cheek. "Thank you, I made it for you while you were at the hospital that day. I waited for the right time to give it to you." "Since your leaving for Ponyville, I thought it was a good time." "Thank you Aunt Milly!" Brent said as he hugged his Aunt. "Oh yeah and one more thing." Aunt Milly handed Brent a check for 5,000 bits and a train ticket. "Wow, thank you so much Aunt Milly, I don't know what to say!" "You're welcome! Tomorrow we'll head down to the train station and get you settled, it's a long way to Ponyville. Now I'll pack your things, have a great rest of the day Brent!" Aunt Milly said as she left the room. Brent spent the rest of his day getting items to bring with him on his trip, items like cloths, drinks, food, and memorabilia of his home. All along he was thinking of how good it would be to get away from his rude Uncle. It was 8:00 A.M. and the first train to Ponyville was already on its way. Brent was so excited, he couldn't wait! "Now you're sure about this?" Aunt Milly said with an uncertain look on her face. "Not totally, but I feel as though it's for the best" "Okay, now Brent listen to me, Ponyville is a nice town, I've been there a couple of times, everypony there is very nice" "Second, Be careful, you're a smart stallion and I'm sure you can get through anything but still... you should always be careful, and one last thing, be... brave." The last two words reminded Brent of something, something inspirational. "Thank you so much Aunt Milly, I'll visit from time to time" "I'm sure you will." "Now go, live your life, enjoy every bit of it." Aunt Milly said with a tear in her eye. "I will, I love you, stay safe!" Brent said as the doors closed on the train. Brent looked around, found a seat, and set his luggage and saddlebags down. "Well, here it is, a new start." Brent said to himself as he boarded the train rested his head, closed his eyes, and drifted to sleep.
The Arrival"No...No i can't...No" "Attention passengers, next stop, Ponyville." Brent was awakened by the voice of the conductor. "Next stop, huh?" Brent said with a tired voice. "Yep, next stop, how did ya sleep!" Brent jumped a little then looked to his left to see a mare with a white coat and a red and pink mane. "Sorry did i scare you?" The mare said. "No you just startled me, that's all" "Okay good, i don't want to make you mad." "No, you didn't, say, have we met before?" Brent said with confusion. "No, not that i know of, sorry i didn't introduce myself, my name is Roseluck." "My name is Brent." Brent said with a tired look. "Brent? That's quite an odd name, then again, I've never seen you around Ponyville before." Roseluck said with a joyful kind of voice. "I was raised in Baltimare then moved to Manehatten" "Wow, why did ya move?" "I'd rather not talk about it" Brent said with a sad expression. "Oh, sorry i asked, quite a beautiful morning huh?" Roseluck said trying to change the subject. Brent had just thought about the time, he looked outside to what seemed to be the best view he's ever seen. The sun was shimmering, and to his right, a grand waterfall. All this was so extraordinary to him he completely forgot Roseluck's question. "Oh, yeah, beautiful morning, very beautiful. He said to the mare. As his eyes got back into focus, he noticed how attractive Roseluck was to him. But out of courtesy he shook it off and made conversation. Roseluck noticed this but kept quiet about it. "So Roseluck, when did you get on the train?" "When the train stopped at Canterlot around 12:00 A.M, i was just finished competing in the Canterlot Flower Competition." "Did ya win?" Brent asked. "Well i got 4th place, which is pretty good considering there was 30 competitors." "That's great, i bet you did a fantastic job." Brent said with a smile. Ya, i know i did my best, ill just haft to try harder next time. Brent wasn't sure what to say so he just smiled and looked down at the floor. "Hey whats that thing around your neck?" Roseluck asked with great interest. Brent couldn't tell her the truth, he didn't want to make her feel sorry for him, so he thought of the quickest thing to say. "Just a necklace i made when i was a kid." Brent said hoping she bought it as he did say it quite fast. "Oh, well i think its cute" Roseluck said with a smile. "Thank you" Brent said. "So where are we?" "We are in the Mountains on the outskirts of Ponyville." "So we're close then?" "Yep, we are." Brent looked around and found a clock, the time read 7:46. "No wonder some of the passengers are asleep, its quite early" Brent said as he was looking around the room. "Yeah, good thing I'm an early riser!" Roseluck said.No wonder she has so much energy Brent thought. "5 minutes to Ponyville, all passengers may take their luggage and get ready for the stop." The conductor said in a loud voice which woke up the rest of the passengers. "Well it was nice talking to you!" Roseluck said with a smile." "I'm sure i will see you around Ponyville!" "I'm certain" Brent said as the train rolled up to the station. "If you want to chat more, my shop is in the market area in town, its called Roseluck's Rose and flower shop." "Thanks, I'll swing by when i get the chance, it was nice meeting you Roseluck!" "Nice meeting you too Brent!" Roseluck said as she waved, and headed into town."Well, here it is, Ponyville." Brent said to himself. Brent grabbed his luggage and saddlebags as he headed into town. He didn't really know where he was going, so it took him a while but he found what seemed to be a town hall in the center of the city. He entered the building when a voice made him jump a little. "Welcome to Ponyville's town hall, how may i help you?" The mare at the counter said. "I'm interested in purchasing a home." Brent said."Great, in the outer region of the city or an apartment?" The mare said. "Hmm" Brent thought hard, the outer regions sounded nice and quiet but he would haft to walk far for groceries and such, the city house sounded nice as well, with the small walking distance and such, but he was bothered by the noise, but this was a small city. "I'll take the apartment in the city please!" Brent said. "Alright that'll be 3,000 bits please." Brent handed the lady the check. "Um sir?" Brent looked over at the mare. "Yes?" "You wouldn't happen to have a bank account in Ponyville would you?" The mare said. "No ma'am i do not, where do i sign up?" "Over there is a book called Ponyville Resident Finances, just find a spot in alphabetical order according to your last name, sign in, and I'll work on this check for you, sound good?" "Sounds great Brent said." Brent walked over to the book on the pedestal flipped to M, and Signed his name in. Then he closed the book and faced the mare. "Alright the check looks good, here is the key to your house and a map of Ponyville." "Thank you" Brent said. "Your welcome, i hope you find Ponyville to your liking!" The mare said. Brent smiled at the mare, waved goodbye, and headed toward his home which was marked on his map. He stepped into the building and read the key. "Floor 2 huh, alright then." Brent had a little trouble getting up the stairs, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle. He got up to his room, or floor if you want to be specific. He unlocked the door and looked inside, it was actually quite nice, no mansion but since he was alone it was more than enough. He noticed that the apartment was already furnished. "Great, i don't have to buy furniture." he said to himself. he laid his luggage and saddlebags on his bed and unpacked them. he noticed he didn't have any sort of formal attire. "Gotta make a note to buy a suit when i get the money." He said to himself. He turned on the TV and watched shows until it was around 6:00 A.M. Grrrr. "Well i think my stomach's trying to tell me to eat, i think i have 30 bits on me, ill grab a bite to eat." Brent got up and turned the TV off, then walked out of his apartment into the street. The area where he lived didn't have much commotion but when he got to the center of the city, it was very busy with lights and the voices of ponies around. Brent found a Dinner, sat down, ordered, and had a quick dinner. As he was eating, he noticed the waitress looking at him. "Not from around here?" "Yeah, what gave you the idea?" Brent said. "Just that your very quiet and ain't talking to anypony. "Yeah, I'm just tired" Buck said. "Well you enjoy your meal, and have a great evening!" The waitress said as she went back to serving food. "Wow, ponies around here are nice. Brent finished his meal, and walked into the street. He was walking home when a Pink pony stopped him. "Hauuuuuuuuuuh!" the pink pony Gasped. and ran off. "Well, that was strange. "Brent said as he walked home. He entered his apartment, brushed his teeth and headed to bed. As Brent lay there he thought to himself. "Today hast to be one of the best days I've had in years. I bet tomorrow will be awesome." he said with a grin, as he drifted to sleep...
The Party Animal"Brent, are you sure about this?" "Of course I am" "I don't know little Bro, it seems, dangerous." "Remember what you said? Live life to its fullest!" "Yeah, I did say that didn't I?" " Ugghhh..." Brent groaned as he awoke from his sleep. He tried to look at the clock, but it was blurry, so he wiped his eyes and when he did, he noticed tears. "Hmm, that's strange." He said to himself as he sat up. He looked at the clock. "6:45 A.M., damn its early, well for me anyhow, I'll get up anyway, huh, bet Roseluck's up, that reminds me, I need to go see her again." Brent said to himself as he slipped his morning shoes on, and walked into the kitchen where he planned to eat breakfast. Since he didn't bring much, all he had to eat was a box of cereal that read Chocolate Covered Oats. Brent opened the box poured a bowl, and went to the fridge, when he remembered. "Oh yeah, no milk, damn." He said under his breath as he closed the fridge door. So he ate his dry bowl of cereal and turned on the TV. As he watched the morning cartoons, he was thinking of his task that needed to be done. "Okay, first things first, get groceries, then, find a job, I think I saw a job board in the town hall." Brent said to himself as he made a list of thing to do. "And last I'm gonna go visit Roseluck, Okay looks like a plan, but I don't think the stores are open around this time." As Brent waited for the stores to open, he watched TV but also studied the map the mare at the desk in the town hall gave him. "Let’s see, there is my apartment, and town hall, and looks like this says Sugarcube Corner, I'm guessing pastries. The library is located there, and Sweet Apple Acres is located there. After Brent was finished watching cartoons he looked at the clock. "7:35 A.M. the stores don't open for another 25 minutes. I guess I’ll take stroll, just to get an idea of where to go. Brent unlocked the door to his apartment, and headed out into the street. It was a cold and rainy day in Ponyville. This didn't bother Brent, as it wasn't raining hard, but he threw on his coat and left his apartment to go look around. He first started at the bridge in Ponyville, from the EverFree Forest to Sweet Apple Acres. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to him, just a small town full of rural like life. On the way back to his apartment Brent had remembered he forgot to get groceries. So he headed to the store. Even though it was bad weather, there were still a sizable amount of other ponies at the market place. Brent went up to the vegetable stand, got some lettuce, carrots, and tomato's. "Thank you for shopping at carrot top's shop!" The mare with the orange mane at the stand said in a loud voice. "Next bread." Brent said to himself. He headed over to a bread and sweet stand, where a mare with a tan coat and a dark blue and pink mane looked at him strangely. "Hello to Bon-Bon's Flour Heaven, Baked goods and sweets, may help you?" The mare said. "Yes, I would just like a loaf of bread." Brent said. "I know I haven't seen you around Ponyville, you’re new aren't you?" "Yep, pleasure to meet you miss...?" "Call me Bon-Bon" The mare said. "Call me Brent." "Brent? may I say that is a strange name, where did you come from?" Bon-Bon asked. "I was born in Baltimare, raised half of my life in Baltimare, Half of it in Manehatten." Brent said quickly as he was picking up the bread. "So you’re a city pony? You don't sound like it." "Well, I wasn't the biggest social bug." Brent said chuckling a little. "Well for somepony who hasn't had many friends, I think you are a friendly pony." Bon-Bon said "Thank you Bon-Bon, that means a lot." "You’re welcome, hey, you look like you could use a good time, DJ-Pon3 is performing in the local club, maybe you might consider?" Bon-Bon said with a wide grin. "Uhh sure, when is it?" Brent said. "Friday night actually, we can meet up outside and everything, and you can meet my good friend Lyra!" "Um..." Brent gave it some thought at first. "Yeah, sure I'll go tonight." Brent said with an assuring look. "Awesome, I can't wait!" Bon-Bon said with excitement. Brent left the stand saying his goodbye's and he headed home to drop the groceries off, then went right back outside. "Alright, now I’ve gotta go to town hall, and look at the jobs available." Brent said to himself as he walked out the door. "HELLO THERE NEW PONY!" A startling high pitched voice said. The voice made Brent jump and stumble to the ground almost having a heart attack! "Oh I'm sorry, are you okay?" The high pitched voice said. "Yeah, I'm fine, why is it everypony's mission to scare the hell out of me?!" Brent said as he was catching his breath. "I'm so so soooooo sorry! I just wanted to welcome you to Ponyville!" The high pitched voice said. Brent got up from the ground to see a pony with a pink colored coat and mane. “My name is Pinkie Pie!" "And when I saw you the first time I knew I just had to get you something, and greet you of course, hope you like it" Pinkie holds out a pink frosted cake that says Welcome To Ponyville on it. "Thanks Pinkie!" Brent said grabbing the cake. "No problem, oh gosh, I've got to get going, see you later NEW PONY!" "Wow, she left without asking for my name, must've been important." Brent said to himself, now to find a job. Brent headed down to the town hall, of course saying hello to the mare at the counter and walked over to the job board. "Hmm, let’s see." Brent looked closely at list. "We've got applebucking, book sorter, and a lot of other jobs, hmm, this, book sorter sounds like an easy start, I'll ask about that job.” ”Excuse me Miss?" Brent said looking at the mare at the desk. "Yes?" "Where do I go to get the book sorter job?" The words seemed a little odd when saying them out loud. "Well at the library of course! The mare at the counter said. Wow, that was obvious, Brent thought to himself. "Alright, thank you!" Brent said to the mare. "You’re quite welcome Mister Maneswell." Brent headed out the door, "Well, now to talk to Roseluck!" Brent said to himself. He headed to the market place where Roseluck said he'll find her. It took some time but soon he saw it. Roseluck's Rose and Flowers. It was getting late, and he knew he was running out of time. He went inside to see Roseluck closing up the shop. "Hey Roseluck!" Brent said as he entered the shop. "Brent, hey! How’s your day been?" Roseluck said with a smile. "Pretty good, how about you?" "Slower day than usual, with the weather and all.” “Well at least that puts the stress off of you right?" Brent said. "Definitely, hey, I'm gonna close up shop, you don't mind standing outside do you? I'll be quick!" Roseluck said in the nicest way possible. "Sure, I’ll be outside." Brent said. The day was ending, and it had been a pretty normal day, well except for Pinkie of course. Brent stood outside in the rain as Roseluck was finishing up with locking up the store. Brent looked through the rain at the nearby ponies and one in particular looked quite familiar. Brent just couldn't put his hoof on it, The somewhat familiar pony was leaving the pawn shop. As Brent looked closer he noticed what looked to be the bottom half of a sheath in the pony's cloak. As Brent looked a little closer he could see what appeared to be a scar on the pony's cheek. This pony started to look very familiar, He just couldn't put his hoof on it. As he was thinking, Roseluck had just finished locking up the shop. "Well you ready? Sorry we haft to chat in the rain!" Roseluck said. "It doesn't bother me at all." Buck said with a grin. "So, what does your cutie mark represent?" Roseluck asked with a interested look. "I don't really know" Brent said as he looked down at the picture of the three 4 leaf clovers on his side. Brent was scared to tell the day when it appeared, it was too painful to think about. So he told the quickest lie he has ever told. "One day I just appeared, it’s one of those learn as you go you know?" "Ya, I get what you mean." Roseluck said very softly. "So uh, how’s tomorrow look for you?" Brent asked. "Nothing incredible happening, just another day at work, what about you? Aren't you looking for work?" Roseluck asked with concern. "Actually, I'm going to sort books at the library, the pays moderate and I'll meet someone new!" "That's great, full time?" Roseluck asked. "Don't know yet, I'll look at the flyer later." Brent said. "Well I'm sure you'll do an excellent job at it!" "Thank you Roseluck, that means a lot." Brent said. "This is my stop, it was nice talking to you." Roseluck said. "Nice to talk to you too." Brent said. They stood there in silence, the only thing to be heard was the rain. As they glanced at each other to what seemed to be eternity, the sound of thunder broke the silence, startling them both. Brent was the first to speak. "Have a nice night Roseluck.” Brent said with a smile. Roseluck blushed a little. "You too Brent, and be careful. See you soon!" Roseluck said as she entered her house and closed the door. As Brent went home he couldn't help but to think about all the crazy events that happened today, but the one thing that made him ponder, why did the pony with the scar seemed so familiar? He took the key out of his coat and opened the door to his apartment. He put his coat in the washing machine as it was soaking wet and he didn't want to get his floor messed up, he took a quick shower while his mind buzzed in thought. He brushed his teeth, and got to bed quickly. He couldn't sleep, all he could think about was why the pony looked so familiar. Then he realized after thinking about it. It was one of the ponies that killed his family...
A Spark In The Library"First, I'm gonna destroy everything you hold dear, then make sure, your family is finished, then kill everyone you hold dear." "No, you wouldn't dare!" "I'll prove it to you then..." "AHHHH!" Brent screamed as he jumped out of sleep. "Okay, I need to do something about these dreams... more like nightmares actually." Brent stuttered as he spoke. Brent concentrated his look in the direction of the clock on his night stand. "Alright its 8:21 A.M. I should get moving, gotta big day of work ahead of myself." Brent said to himself as he grabbed his bit necklace and wallet, put on his morning shoes, and headed into the kitchen. Unlike yesterday, today was a beautiful day yet it was still a little cold, but still tolerable. Brent got out the cereal, poured a bowl of cereal, got the milk, and sat down to watch the news. it was about 15 minutes and Brent was done with his cereal, he squinted at the living room clock, still a bit tired. "8:36, well better go." Brent said as he threw on his jacket. He traveled down the muddy street and starred at the map he held with his magic. "Hmm, so looks like the library is straight ahead, that's ironic the library looks like a tree! Guess they forgot to put it on here." Brent said chuckling to himself. "Alright, looks like I'm here... at a... tree library?" Brent looked up at what seemed like a grand looking tree. Brent walked over to the sign above the wooden door and it read "Ponyville Library" Brent knocked on the door softly. He started hearing sounds from inside the library, then the door opened. "Hello and welcome to the Ponyville library, in what way can I help you?" Brent looked at the young mare in front of him, she had a purple coat, and a purple and pink mane, and she was an Alicorn! Brent looked at her in awe but responded quickly. "Hi, I saw this flyer, and I wanted to know when this job was?" Brent said trying to cover up him looking at her with shock. "Oh, yes, thank you coming over to help!" The mare said with a smile. "No problem, I’m glad to help." "Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself, I’m Twilight Sparkle. The mare said with a friendly look. "My name is Brent, pleased to meet you!" Brent said. "You're the princess right?" Brent asked with confusion. "Why yes I am, but you can call me Twilight, no need for that stuff." "Okay, Twilight it is." "So you said your name was Brent? That's quite an odd name, then again, I've never seen you around Ponyville." "Yeah, I got here about two days ago, I was raised half my life on Baltimare, half of it in Manehatten." Brent said. "Well that explains the name, come inside and we can get started, you came at the right time, Spike had just left to go see Rarity. "Who are Spike and Rarity?" Brent asked with interest. "Spike is my assistant who likes... somepony" Twilight said with a mischievous tone "And Rarity is one of my best friends!" Brent pondered who the 'Somepony' was, then chuckled when he realized who it was. "Okay, and another question, what is a princess doing at a library?" Brent asked. "I decided to stay, since my friends were here, I thought it would be better for me and them, that and I liked Ponyville, anyways let me get my lists of to-do's, and then we can get started!" Twilight said as she entered another room. Brent looked around the library, the smell of recently burnt candles and wood filled his nostrils as he stood there, looking around. He quickly took out the flyer to review his pay, twenty bits, not bad. As he looked around he saw books, beakers, and telescopes around the library. "This mare sure does like science." Brent thought. "Alright, I've got the list, let’s get started." Twilight said breaking the silence. "First we restock the shelves in alphabetical order, depending on Genre and then we double check it, sound simple?" Yeah, sounds good." Brent said, which of course he knew he could. "Great, you start on that shelf, and I'll start on this one, then well move to where we are on the same shelf!" Twilight said with excitement. "She must be a book enthusiast or something." Brent thought, smiled, and got straight to work. They worked pretty much all day, it was repetitive but Brent needed the money, so he said nothing and continued to work. Every now and then Brent would hear Twilight checking off the things to do on her notepad. Brent was in the middle of double checking, his eyes were heavy as he was getting tired from all the lifting and stacking and such. "All right looks like we're almost done, I'm going to put my notepad up." Twilight said as she headed up the stairs. Brent looked over at the clock. the time read 3:21 P.M. Brent felt his eyes were heavy but tried to stay awake. He had stayed up too late, Brent felt his eyes shut and he drifted to sleep. Twilight looked down and noticed this, she beamed a small smile, she didn't wake him, thinking he probably needed the sleep. She simply was quiet the whole time. She propped a pillow under his head and finished double checking the shelves. Though, something bothered her, she couldn't make out what he was saying but it seemed he was mumbling a little. "So you're leaving?" "Yeah, they want me to be there early for inspection, sorry little bro." "Will I see you ever again?" "Now Brent, of course you will, it's the Royal Guard, trust me, they'll let me take time off don't you worry." "I love you!" "I love you too buddy, now remember, look after mom and dad for me okay? I know you, you're strong, and always remember to be brave." Brent had awoken to the sound of kitchen utensils dropping on the floor. Again, Brent had noticed that when he wiped his eyes, tears were on his hooves. "Ah, sorry did I wake you?" Twilight said peeking her head out of the kitchen. “Yeah, but I'm fine, I needed to wake up, how long have I been asleep 30 minutes?" "Nah, it’s been about five hours." Twilight said going back into the kitchen. "Five hours? I gotta go!" Brent said as he got up. "I have one question." Twilight said getting Brent's attention. "Do you always cry in your sleep?" Twilight asked with concern. "Oh... you uh...you noticed that?" "Yeah, are you okay?" Twilight said.. "Yeah, I'm okay, hey listen, thanks for letting me sleep, I needed it." "No problem, your pay is on the counter there. It was nice meeting you, we should talk later, a friendly chat if you will." Twilight said with a smile. "Sure, and it was nice meeting you too!" Brent said as he put his coat on and grabbed his bits. "If you’re looking for work I'll always be here!" "Thank you Twilight, see yeah later!" Brent said as he rushed out the door. Twilight wondered why he was in a hurry, but went back to cooking. Brent galloped to Roseluck's shop, hoping it wasn't closed. He entered the market, spotted the shop right away. He ran up to it looking inside. The shop was dark, nopony in sight, he looked at the sign in the shop window, Closed. "Damn it, I hope she didn't think I forgot!" Brent huffed in frustration. He walked home in a grumpy mood, feeling bad he didn't keep his promise. But he had a weird feeling someone was watching him, "If Twilight noticed me crying in my sleep, then it must be bad, I need to talk to someone about it..." Brent said in a sigh. Brent had gotten up to his building where his apartment is. He looked back in the direction of Roseluck's shop. And he started to turn towards the door when he saw a figure in the distance, staring right at him. "Hello, who's there?" Brent said. And as soon as he asked the figure ran. Brent was to freaked out to care about who it was now, he ran up to his apartment door, unlocked it and locked it as fast as he could. Then he walked over to the window, to see the figure one last time before he closed the blinds shut. It was quite early for going to bed, so he turned on the TV. Which was quite challenging to do in the dark cold room. He cooked up some dinner and sat down, every now and then he would look at the door, as if it were about to bust open and the figure he saw would be standing there. The clock read 10:17 P.M. it was time for Brent to go to bed. He brushed his teeth, took his necklace off and set his wallet on the table as he took his coat off. He laid there in bed, thinking of what Roseluck was probably thinking about him, the figure he saw. Then he remembered as he drifted into sleep, Tomorrow is Friday...
Friday"Brent?" "Yes Aunt Milly?" "Could you go out to the shed and get Uncle Bert the shovel?" "Yes ma'am" Brent being a 13 year old colt, never understood why he kept seeing them, the figures, they were always just there, watching, waiting, he never told his Aunt or Uncle about them, as he felt he didn't need to. They never talked to him, never hurt him, they were just there. he would see them occasionally as he went outside to play or went to the shed. He would look at one, watch it, then the figure would run away. "Brent? Brent? Brent are you there?" The sound of a mare's voice and a hoof knocking on the door woke Brent. Brent quickly got up and went to the door and opened it. "Hi Brent, oh gosh did I wake you, I'm sorry!" As his eyes adjusted he could see that it was Twilight. "No, I needed to wake up anyways, whatcha need?" Brent said with a tired voice. "Sorry, it's the second time I've done that, anyways, me and my friends are having a picnic in Sweet Apple Acre's, would you like to go?" Brent thought for a moment, Sure, but how long is it gonna be? "Probably from 10:00 to 4:00, but we are gonna show you around the farm as well." "Okay, I gotta be back around 5:00 so that's great!" "I'll go get ready, you can come in and watch TV or whatever till I'm done getting ready." Twilight stepped into the apartment and sat down on the couch. She watched as Brent entered the bathroom, then started to look around the apartment. She headed into Brent's room, she didn't want to be nosy, but Brent was acting strange yesterday. She noticed two bits with a leather string tied around them. She walked over to the table and picked it up to get a closer look. On the bits were Mom engraved on one, and Dad engraved on the other, and as she flipped them over the word, be, was on one, and the word, brave, was on the other. This was something she had never seen before. As she looked around the room she noticed a box sticking out of the bed. She slid the box out and in the box, there were photos. She started looking through them and she got to one that made her stop. It looked like a family photo. There were 2 stallions, a mare, and a colt. The colt looked like Brent, just of course, younger. and the oldest stallion looked like his dad and the mare looked like his mother, but the stallion next to his dad, had a brown coat and a black mane. "What is he hiding?" she said to herself. She heard the shower stop so she quickly put the picture back in the box. Slid it under his bed, and left the room to go to the couch, being as quiet as she could while going by the bathroom. She sat there quietly watching TV as Brent got out of the shower and got his things. "Alright, you ready to go?" Brent said as he was walking out of his room, putting his necklace on. "Yeah, let’s go." Twilight said hoping he didn't noticed anything different in his room. The two walked out of the apartment and into the street. "Let’s get a bite to eat before we go, what do you say?" Twilight said. "Sounds good, I’m kinda hungry." Brent said. They found a local Dinner and sat down to order. Once they ordered, Twilight was the first to speak. "So what’s your family like?" Twilight asked with a serious look. "Well they're just like any other family." Brent said in a nervous look. "Really? Have any siblings?" "No, only child.” "Hmm, what’s that like?" "It’s okay." Brent said. Brent wanted to just spill everything that has been bothering him out. He wanted to tell Twilight, but the risk of telling her and she feeling bad would be too much on him. Just then the food arrived. "Thank you sir!" Twilight said to the waiter. "So what’s your history?" Brent asked. "Well I grew up in Canterlot, studied magic and other stuff for a while, and pretty soon, as it was an amazing thing, I became Celestia's student. Then I came down here because she told me the summer sun celebration was held here, and she wanted me to do the preparations. But she was really testing me, a couple of years went by and I soon became the a princess. In the shortest way to say it really." The two were finished eating breakfast and headed to Sweet Apple Acres. They traveled down the dusty path and towards the farm. There, Brent could make out what seemed like a checkered cloth laying in the grass with an umbrella to the left. "You stay here and I'll go see how Applejacks doing." Twilight said as she walked off toward a red barn. "Hmm, Applejacks probably one of her friends." Brent said to himself as he sat down. As he sat there he thought of how beautiful a place Sweet Apple Acres is. As he sat there in the dark warm grass, Brent noticed something from a far. As he looked he could see something, a figure of some sort. Brent looked closer, this figure had a scar on its face, the only detail he could make out. Brent had gotten very nervous now. but he kept looking and soon, it turned and ran away. Fear was arousing inside of Brent. Just as he began to look away, the sound of Twilight's voice broke the silence. "Brent this is Applejack, Applejack, meet Brent." "Hey there pardner." The mare said as she held out her hoof. "Hi, pleasure to meet you Applejack" "Pleasure to meet you too, Brent was it?" "The others should be arriving soon." Twilight said. Just as she said that Brent saw what appeared to be a white Unicorn with a purple mane, a blue Pegasus with a rainbow colored mane, a yellow Pegasus with a pink mane, and a pink pony that was obviously Pinkie Pie by the way she jumped up and down instead of walking. "Hi everypony!" Twilight said with a big smile. "Hey Twilight! HUUUUAAAAAAHHHH, is that the NEW PONY?" Pinkie Pie said with a giant smile and a loud voice. Pinkie Pie ran up to Brent with a big smile. "Calm down Pinkie, I'm sure he doesn't like ponies being in his face." Applejack said with a chuckle. "Sorry, how have you been today?" Pinkie said. "I've been pretty good today, what about you?" "Oh I've been great! I just couldn't wait for this picnic!" Pinkie said getting louder and louder with each word. "Say dearie what’s your name?" The white Unicorn asked. "My name is Brent." Brent said. "Brent, that's different, where are you from?" "I was born and raised half my life in Baltimare, and half of my life in Manehatten, or really the outskirts of Manehatten if you wanna be specific. Brent said. "That's quite a way of life! I'm sorry I forgot to introduce myself, I'm Rarity." The mare said. "Nice to meet you Rarity" Brent said with a smile. "My name is Rainbow Dash!" The blue Pegasus said in a bold sort of way. "Nice to meet you Rainbow Dash, and Nice to meet you too Miss...?" Brent said while looking at the yellow Pegasus. "My name is Fluttershy..." I'm sorry what was that?" "Her name is Fluttershy" Rainbow Dash said with an annoyed look. "Oh, okay, well nice to meet you Fluttershy." "So, what do you all do for a living?" Brent asked. "Well, I'm going to the Wonderbolts Academy!" Rainbow Dash said with a bold look. "And you Rarity?" Brent asked. "I work at the Carousel Boutique where i make all kinds wares and such." Rarity said. "And you Pinkie?" "When I'm not with my friends or meeting wonderful new ponies i work at Sugarcube Corner!" Pinkie said with glee. "And what do you do Fluttershy?" "I take care of animals for other ponies." Fluttershy said, Brent barely hearing what she had said. "Wow, those sound like they are pretty cool jobs. Brent said. The day went by quickly since Applejack really wanted to show Brent around the farm. As Brent looked around he kept seeing them, the figures. They weren't doing him any harm and were quite far away, but he could still see them. "Brent, whatcha starring at?" Applejack said. "Brent was to busy looking to notice her question. "Brent?" Applejack said getting his attention. "Yeah, huh?" Brent said stuttering a bit. "Are ya okay? your sweatin a little." "Yeah, I'm fine, just...uh...looking at the scenery. Brent said wondering if she bought it. "Alright then. Applejack said with an odd look. Twilight had noticed their conversation as they walked. And was curious what was going on with Brent. Soon time rolled around to 3:50 and the majority of the ponies left. All who was left was Brent, Applejack, and Twilight. "Well I think that was fun! We need to do that again." Applejack said with a smile. "Yeah, it was fun, wasn't it Brent?" Twilight said. "Yeah, got to meet some pretty nice ponies. And I enjoyed myself, couldn't get better!" "Well I'm glad you liked it Brent! Listen I've gotta go, see you guys later." Applejack said. "See you Applejack!" Twilight said. "See you!" Brent said. "Well it's been fun but I..."Gotta go, no, I have a question." Twilight interrupted. Brent looked at Twilight with confusion. "Why have you been hiding who your family is and where you came from?" Twilight said with a serious look. Brent had tried to hide it from his friends, so they wouldn't hurt, wouldn't feel sorry. But it looks as if now, that won't work, so he did the quickest thing he could. "Alright, I'll tell you," Brent said with a sigh. "I have a question for you though, how did you know that I was hiding something?" "I'm sorry, but I looked through some of your pictures and things when you were getting ready." Twilight said with regret. "That's okay, I need to get it off my chest, shall I began?" Brent said. "Yes, you may" "Okay, here we go" "I was born into the richest family in Baltimare, The Maneswell family, we had a pretty good life." Brent said with sadness in his voice. "Who is the stallion with the brown coat and black mane?" Twilight said with interest. "That is my brother Chance, he was a good friend to me, he had to go away though." "Why" Twilight asked. "He signed up for the Royal Guard and was sent away one day, he told me he would return, but he didn't." "Why not?" Twilight said. "Because, he was killed" "What?" Twilight said in shock. "I'm sorry" "No, it's fine." Brent said getting his bearings. "I had been told that he was killed in an ambush by the changelings." "I didn't know, I'm sorry." Twilight said feeling a little sad to. "After that was the day my cutie mark had appeared. "The day that got me here." "It was my 12th birthday, I was told to go to the local store in town and get some flour for the cake. then when I got back I heard a scream from inside the house, I ran inside to see my mother and three ponies dressed in black. they were holding my mother against the wall, I didn't say anything in fear of them finding me." "They threw my mother on the ground and just as they did that my father rushed into the crowd of them and cutting one across the stomach and another on the cheek. They tied my parents up as they tried to look for my family's fortune." " They couldn't find it so they set fire to our manor, I had to say goodbye to my parents that day, they told me to leave so I ran as fast as I could out of the house and as I looked at the manor crumble in on itself." "Just as soon as I saw that I passed out and woke up in the hospital, where I found a cutie appeared on my side, the three 4 leaf clovers." I stayed with my Aunt and Uncle until I decided to move to Ponyville, so here I am, and the change i had leftover from buying the flour. My aunt engraved it and made it into a necklace." "So, now you know..." Brent said with a sigh. "Twilight was in shock, she couldn't say anything except one thing. "I'm so sorry for you" "It’s alright, but one thing scared me." "What is that?" Twilight asked. "I saw a figure earlier, staring at me, from a far. I looked closer and it had a scar on its face." "Oh gosh, do you think?" "Yeah I do." Brent said with a scared look. "Well stay safe Brent, and have a great day" Twilight said as she disappeared into town. "Oh shit, I forgot, I said I was gonna be at that club to see Bon-Bon!" Brent ran to his apartment as quick as he could, he unlocked the door and shut it, he took a shower, got washed up and entered the kitchen. As he was gathering his things he took a piece of paper and wrote a letter to Roseluck. It read, Dear Roseluck, I'm sorry I haven't talked to you in a while, been really busy lately, I hope your doing well, I'll talk to you tomorrow, Your friend, Brent. Brent got his coat on and left his apartment. Brent walked into the street, and looked at the map. "Okay so that is where the club is located." Brent said to himself as he walked down the dry streets of Ponyville. Though he did feel happy about telling Twilight what he was hiding, he couldn't help but feel bad about it. He shook it off as he headed to the club. The club was only a few blocks away, though he had written that note for Roseluck. Roseluck's house was just up the road from where he was. He walked till he reached the house, then attached the note and continued walking towards his destination. He walked up to the building and could tell this was the place. The sound of music could be heard from outside the building, and outside was a few groups of ponies. Brent spotted Bon-Bon and what appeared to be turquoise colored Unicorn standing next to her. "Brent you're here!" Bon-Bon said with a smile as she walked up to him. "Couldn't wait" Brent said with a small grin. "Well since you're here, this is Lyra." Bon-Bon said shoving the Unicorn closer to Brent. "Nice to meet you Lyra, my name is Brent" "Brent said holding out his hoof. "Oh... well, nice to meet you too." The mare said while shaking Brent's hoof." "Well then, are we all ready to go inside?" Bon-Bon said. "Yeah, I've never been to a club." Brent said looking at the doors of the building. "I'm sure you'll love it! Now let’s go." Bon-Bon said with excitement. Brent was very excited to enter, he looked around before entering, and he saw something, the figure, except it was just across the street, closer than it's ever been. The three entered the club where the music boomed and like any other club, the booze was a plenty. Brent was struck by flashing lights and Dance music. "Well, enjoy yourself! I'm gonna go catch up with some friends." Bon-Bon said as Lyra and her galloped off. Brent looked around the club, as he looked he saw a bar, a lounge area where Bon-Bon and Lyra galloped off to. And a Dance floor accompanied by a DJ, with neon letters above that read DJ-Pon3. Brent walked over to the bar to get a drink. Even over at the bar there were flashing lights. Brent found a stool and took his seat. "What would you like to drink?" The bar tender asked. "Just some beer, Brent said. "Here you go." The bar tender said as he handed Brent a shot. Brent took the drink and as he was at the bar he had a moment to think. "Well, here you are, you've made some friends, and are having a good time, what more could you ask for?" Brent thought. "I've gotta loosen up, stop worrying." Brent thought as he took another sip. At this very moment, Brent was happy, no worries, he has told somepony the one thing that was bothering him, and he had met lots of good ponies so far. Brent finished his drink and headed for the dance floor. There was a crowd of ponies dancing all over, the buzzing club music and the colorful strobe lights only made it better. Brent joined the crowd and danced along. All the sudden, it seemed as everything stopped, and Brent felt a sharp pain in his right rib. He looked down to see a blade through his side. The sounds of screaming ponies made it worse, Brent fell to the ground, his blood pouring onto the dance floor while ponies scream and cleared the area, and before Brent passed out from the pain, he saw a figure, the ones he had seen before, walking away...
PrologueThe Maneswell Family: A family that has been known throughout the city of Baltimare. Known as the richest family, the only way to know how they got there, is to tell a little story. Buck Maneswell was a small colt, on a farm with his family in the early days of Baltimare got interested in selling items to others. So each Thursday, Buck would head to the town and sell food with his father, after a few years. He soon became interested in selling items and once he turned 18 years of age, he left the farm and headed into the city to sell for a living. Soon buck had been known all throughout Baltimare and had acquired a small fortune which he used to set up a big house in the northern part of the city, the house was known as the Maneswell Manor. One year when buck was on a business trip in Canterlot, Buck met someone that would be the change of his life. Buck was on his way to a Canterlot social party, probably the most important event in his life, and he was going to have to make a good impression. He bought a nice suit and a nice hat from a tailor shop. The party was very unique indeed. since Canterlot was high up and has lots of flying space, the party was on a blimp yacht. "Very fascinating, I have never seen a party such as this!" Buck said. "You think so, your not from here are you stranger?" an unfamiliar pony said. "Well uh... no, I'm not from around here." Buck said. "Well you sure look the part, my name is Hank Brambleton." "Nice to meet you Hank, My name is Buck Maneswell" Buck said as he shook Hank's hoof. "Maneswell? you said your name was Buck Maneswell?" Hank said. "Thats right, have you heard of me?" "I have heard you are quite the business pony in Baltimare" Hank said. "Thank you, thats mighty kind of you to say!" Buck said. "Father, who is this...stranger?" A mysterious mare said."I'm Buck Maneswell, and who might you be Miss?" "This is my daughter Sentra Brambleton." Hank said. "A pleasure to meet you miss" Buck said kissing her hoof. "May I say you are quite the charmer Mr. Maneswell" Sentra said. "Necessary when meeting such a beautiful mare." Buck said with a sort of a sly expression on his face. "You are quite dashing Mr. Maneswell, so tell me about yourself." Soon the two talked and then they quickly fell in love, love at first sight if you will. They got married and Sentra moved into Buck's house. and they had a few "Magical Nights" and pretty soon Sentra became pregnant with a colt, and soon there was, The Maneswell Child.
