In the streets of ponyville a crowd gathered around the young drake scolding the rainbow mare for her impulsive actions against the fallen ape that has decided to take up residency with Twilight Sparkle who has agitated him by restraining him against his will in an attempt to find out more about his enigmatic body. By doing this Leo was forced to learn a sad truth from his mother which she meant to tell to her son too little too late, the tragic departure that she was forced to take left Leo in a state of utter lament that led into a saddened rage. Angry and in denial, he took to the streets of ponyville, taking his rage out on intimate objects that made the weak minded equine community scatter in fear from a human's fury.

The assault on produce and carts ceased from an impulsive act on a rainbow mare's part to save face when she was forced to act to prevent a trio of pegasus from finding out her far fetched story. So she took flight and descended at intense speeds to incapacitate the raging ape. Little did she know Spike the dragon had calmed his spirits leaving him sad, and calm rather than sad and angry. Unfortunately, Rainbow dash had made a mistake by sending Leo crashing through the carrot cart from an intense blow to the right side of his skull. So here we are; Spike scolding Rainbow Dash for her assault on Leo as half the town gathers around in a circle, spectating the scene before them.

Let's see what happens next.

"Rainbow Dash, what the heck where you thinking?!" Spike's fists were clenched tight getting right in Rainbow Dash's space, making the mare uncomfortable as she stares at the dragon's cat eye slits.

"Woah...calm down Spike. I was only stopping Leo from hurting anypony!" She tried to defend herself by making a reasonable excuse, but the dragon was having none of it.

"Hurting anypony?! All he did was flip over a cart and stomp a few carrots!" Spike gestured at the produce that was now nearly pulp on the dirt.

"That doesn’t mean he gets go and wreck Carrot Top's merchandise just because he was having a big freak out over whatever happened!"

"You have no idea what happened! I have no I idea what happened! But all I know is when I went to the basement to see what was wrong when I heard yelling, I saw-" Before Spike could continue, a groan broke his train of thought. Spike and Rainbow Dash turned their gazes towards Leo who was stirring in the remnants of Carrot Top's cart.

Both surprised and relived, Spike quickly rushed over to Leo, placing a hand on his back to help him sit up and the other waving it across his field of vision.

"Leo, are you okay?! How many claws am I holding up!?" Spike asked fearfully, all Leo could do was stare crossed eyed at the many appendages his mind was making him see.

"S-spike? What happened? Why does my head hurt as though my dad decked me really hard?" He slowly placed a hand on his stricken head only to wince and hiss at the sharp feeling going through his skull. "Ow! What the hell, that hurt!" He shut his eyes tightly, clenching his teeth as tears formed in the corners of his eyes.

"No, don’t touch that spot! You've been hit really hard in the head, you're just lucky you didn’t get brain damage! I least I think you didn’t..." Spike said having qualms of what kind of damage the Rainbow Dash inflicted on him.

"Hit hard in the head by what...?" Spike didn't say anything, he just sat there in silence has he narrowed his eyes turning in the direction where Rainbow Dash stood. Frozen by Spike's icy stare, feeling the wave of dread increase tenfold as his gaze was followed by Leo's with almost the same type of spite. Only his was practically burning right through the fear stricken mare. "You...did this to me?" Leo said in a silent deadly tone that dripped with venom, his right hand clenched in to a fist shaking uncontrollably and the other digging through the ground as dirt made its way in Leo's nails.

Rainbow Dash backed up as his words entered her ears, making their way into her equine mind, telling her that she might very well end up like Carrot Top's cart, or worse. She might end up like the Timberwolves that fell to the rage of the human who was now slowly but dangerously getting on his feet as he brushed Spike off of him, his eyes never leaving hers.

"W-wait a minute! I only did it because-"

"You admit doing this to me?" His tone sounded both shocked and appalled, but with a hint of a terrible punishment to follow. "You struck my skull with enough of an impact to send me flying through a cart that could have very well killed me, you?" His face showed no emotion behind any of the words directed at Rainbow Dash, who was shaking in her hooves as her eyes darted to his right hand that held dirt, squeezing it tightly around his hand with enough force to be heard by her sensitive ears.

The populace of the town stood around the commotion keeping their distance, observing the bronze ape make his way towards Rainbow Dash. All too scared to come to her aid due to their none-violent ways. That and because their equine instincts were telling them that this ape could pose a threat to their existence. Spike felt inclined to help Rainbow Dash, but at the same time he felt that Leo should even the score with her; in a way that would involve a lot of scolding and hopefully no physical violence.
Hopefully.

Closer and closer Leo the human was closing distance between them; he was only a few inches from his target. Before he could advance any further though, a loud apposing shout behind the crowd stopped him in his tracks drawing his attention. Taking advantage, Rainbow Dash quickly slipped away from the human and into the skies. The one that had drawn the attention of the human was none other than Twilight Sparkle, with a look of fear and regret on her face. Leo's breathing now became heavy and shallow as his eyes narrowed at the mere sight of the unicorn who had restrained him and opening up an old wound of his.

"You..." He hissed, clenching his right hand to the point of the bones popping.

At that moment, Twilight sensed that same vibe from before in the Everfree forest. She could practically feel the heat emanating from his very being. Twilight being a very gifted unicorn mare with magic honed to the point of her zenith could feel the magical aura from any living being that most unicorns couldn’t. This talent of hers warned her at a possibly impending threat from the human as she felt his magical aura become more turbulent, he slowly made his way towards the unicorn mare, his anger increasing by each step he took. Closer and closer Leo approached until finally he stopped a few inches right in front of her. There was a deadly silence as the crowd; including Spike watched the scene of the human towering over Twilight who was just too scared to look up to avoid the angry gaze of the human being.

"Look at me." He said in a calm tone.

Twilight could practically feel his hot breath on her as a cold as death like chill ran down her spine, her muscles tensed keeping her in place, too afraid to make any sudden movements. The poor unicorn mare fearing for her life, she did not know why she was so afraid of him. She had dealt with many foes that posed a threat to the pony civilians of Equestria and she has never batted an eye at any of them. Perhaps it was this foreign magic this human housed inside of him. What kind of living creature carries this kind of unholy burden inside?

"I-I...No!" She shrieked as she shook her head, tears starting to form in the corners of her eyes.

"LOOK AT ME!" He shouted, making the spectators of the scene jump in their skins. Twilight shot her gaze up at the sudden shout as she looked upon the brown eyes of Leo. She wished she hadn't, the pure rage behind those eyes made a lump grown in her throat, her tears falling from her eyes as she began to sob a bit. This moment was by far the most terrifying of her life.

"L-Leo, please don’t hurt me! I...I just wanted the schematics of your mental and emotional readings to see if you could be housing hazardous magi-AHH!" The sudden tight grip on her horn silenced her effectively before she could continue to explain herself, being a unicorn meant that her horn was sensitive to both pleasure and pain. Right now Twilight's body and mind was in agonizing pain, she felt as though a thousand burning red hot needles pierced her.

"I don't want to hear your excuses Twilight!" Leo held on to her horn to keep her gaze at his. He knelt down to her level until their noses barely touched. "Back in my world I have gone through horrible things, things I thought I would never make it through at a very young age that have left me traumatized and more! Like sneaking into a country that wants nothing more than to kick you out by any means…" His grip tightened around her horn electing a small sob from the mare. "…or being surrounded by bunch douche bags at your school that shun you and a false father to beat you mercilessly on a daily basis!"

"L-Leo, please stop! You’re hurting me-"

"But what you just did back there to me Twilight beat them all by a land slide." Tears began to form in Leo's eyes, his stare never leaving her just to show how much she hurt him. "Worst was that I was about to hurt your rainbow friend for something you caused!" Leo pushed Twilight back with great force sending her landing on her back.

She looked upon Leo as she sighed in relief that he didn't harm her, but still timid as Leo stood up straight, looking down at her with pure and utter disgust. He turned his back to her and made his way to Spike as the crowd quickly made way for the tall ape.

"Spike..." Leo said as he walked up to Spike in a lifeless tone.

"Yea Leo?" Spike asked Leo as he gazed up at him seeing the tears on his cheeks dried

"Please take me to Fluttershy's. Get me far away from Twilight as much as possible before I really end up hurting her."

Without hesitation, Spike quickly took Leo's hand and made his way through the crowd. It was for the best he got him as far as possible before somepony really got hurt.

The populace of the town stood in place until the human was finally out of sight, finally being able to breathe easy as they finally dispersed while Carrot Top was angrily scolding Rainbow Dash for the destruction of her cart.

Twilight on the other hand lied on the middle of the road as she did, she couldn’t get her bearings. It left her in a state of regret, leaving her to contemplate on what she had done.

Leo and Spike walked down the dirt road in silence as they both made their way to Fluttershy's cottage from the 'adoring' crowd.

Spike couldn’t help but subtly glance up at Leo to check how he was holding up from the whole ordeal. He wondered what kind of experiment Twilight had forced down on Leo; he still could not believe that Twilight would do such a thing. He knew that she would become overly enthusiastic when it came to learning something new, but this is just new. She crossed the line and experimented on another living being without his consent. Twilight must have had a good reason for what she had done; he'll have to ask her when he gets back.

"Hey Leo...how are you doing? I hope you're alright" Spike asked.

"I'll live, though I won't be able to shake off the trauma anytime soon." Leo said in a neutral tone, his eyes never looking down on Spike.

It was murder to watch Leo like this, being so calm about it on the outside yet clearly distraught inside. He could only hope Leo would open up to him, hopefully enough for him to help Leo.

"Leo, what exactly did Twilight do to you?" Spike asked as he jumped over a puddle.

Leo's look darkened at the mention of Twilight's name, a feel of melancholy washed over him as he remembered what his "mother" said to him.

I'm not your mother... It echoed in his mind.

"I really rather not talk about what your friend did to me back there...I'll only get angry again." His tone remained neutral, a little too neutral for the state of mind he was in.

Silence was all that filled the trek to Fluttershy's cottage as their destination was finally reached. A joyful hum was heard from across the bridge as Fluttershy stood amongst her flowers, watering just the right amount as a few birds flew around her, singing along with her joyful tune.

Both Leo and Spiked stopped on the middle of the bridge as they saw her enjoying her morning watering her beloved plants. Leo had a look upon his face that Spike could not help but notice; a look of desire, and envy. He watched her as she happily ascended and hovered above her plants to water the more fragile ones, the morning sun shone gloriously behind her as more birds came to sing along the yellow mare. They were all oblivious to their presence.

A sad feeling came upon Leo after envy; he always wanted to wake up like that in the morning. Happy enough to at least just hum a joyful tune like her.

Sadly it wasn't in the cards.

"Let's go Spike." He barely whispered as he turned around and began to walk the opposite direction.

"What, why?" Spike asked as he followed, completely confused.

"Look at her Spike, she's so happy right now." Leo sniffed as he wiped a tear forming in his right eye. "I don't want to burden her with what happened this morning." He continued down the dirt path.

Spike halted as he watched his companion continue back to town with his head hanging with a heart full of lament. Spike hated seeing him like this, down on the dumps, not being able to get a break. He sighed and shook his head as he followed him.

In the library’s basement Twilight stood amongst the shattered remained of her machine wires hung out and circuits were loose as soot covered most of the area of the explosion. By some miracle the results that the machined provided in paper were unscathed. She began to look them over as best as she could, though still a little shaken from her "near death experience" with Leo. She could remember his gaze, just the thought of it burned right through her; she shuddered as she tried to shake off the thought.

"O-okay Leo..." She spoke in a shaky voice." Let's see what you have for me."

She began to look them over in a more composed manner, her look was of curiosity, but as she looked further her brow furrowed as she was in the middle of the page.
"Strange, his readings spiked when he began to cry, could he have been going through another nightmare as I put him to sleep?" She continued to check the analysis, a few moments later she gasped loudly, dropping the results as she backed away. "S-so it is true! He does harbor magic, and from the end of my analysis it is magic fueled by rage." She enveloped the data in her magic, quickly rolling it as a scroll would be.

She trotted up the stairs as she placed the data on her desk and pulled out her feather pen, ink parchment and a blank piece of paper. She quickly dabbed the tip as she began to write furiously. After a few short seconds, she rolled it up, tied the seal around it and began to call out for Spike.

"Spike, Spike! Get down here I need you to send a let-" She stopped in mid-sentence as she membered that the young drake escorted Leo to Fluttershy's cottage; she also remembered he was mad at her for what she did.

"I'll have to go to Fluttershy's." She dashed for the door, but quickly skidded to a halt remembering who else would be there. "Buck, Leo's going to be there too." She stood in place considering her options until a knock was heard from outside the door frame that broke her out of her focus and nearly jumped out of her coat.

"AH!" She shrieked.

"Twilight easy it's me!" Rainbow dash said letting herself in. "Geez, you act like somepony’s out to get you." He scratched behind her head as Twilight tried to compose herself by breathing again.

"S-sorry Dash, I'm just edgy since this morning..."

"You're telling me, I was too afraid to leave the sky until Leo finally left." She looked at Twilight concerned. "What got over him anyway?" She asked.

"I'll explain later, right now I have to get to Fluttershy's. Spike's over there and I need to send and urgent message to Canterlot." She levitated her satchel and placed both her message and data in.

"Why? What's so important that it couldn’t wait till Princess Celestia comes back from her diplomatic meeting?"

Twilight sighed as she tried to find the right words to explain the situation to Rainbow Dash, and by right words it was small words.

"Okay, remember about that thing I felt in the Everfree when we found Leo in a bloody mess?"

"Yea...what about it?" She said nervously.

"Well I have the data confirming my theory about his magical levels his anatomy produces from just being here. And I really, really need to get this sent right away." She said overdramatically walking past Rainbow Dash.
"Woah! Wait, hold on! Let me come with-" Before she could even finish, Twilight had Teleported herself from the library.

"Darn it, Twilight!" Rainbow Dash shouted before taking off from the tree into the sky to Fluttershy's cottage.

Fluttershy joyfully skipped to her chicken coop after she finally finished with her plants, though at one moment she couldn’t help but feel like she was being watched. Her suspicions were put to rest as nothing was around but her and her birds.

Still though, the thought still bugged her.

Before she could proceed, a purple flash startled her and froze in place with her with her hooves sticking in the air with her wings sticking out to th sides. For a very brief moment one could say her heart stopped with the look she had on her face.

"Fluttershy? Fluttershy are you alright!?" Twilight shrieked as she ran over to her friend who was trying to remember how to breathe.

"I...I'm fine." She squeaked breathlessly as she rolled to her side and tried to find her bearings. "Why did you teleport here instead of taking the path?" She asked curiously.

"I'm so sorry I just had to intercept Spike as fast as I could so I could have him send a letter to Canterlot, so I teleported here were Rainbow Dash said he would be" She helped her friend on her hooves.

"Why would Spike be coming here?" She asked, finally breathing normally.

"Rainbow Dash said that Spike would be taking Leo here."

"Why would Leo want to come here?" She wondered, her wings finally retracting back into place.

Before Twilight could answer, a shout from above caught their attention. It was none other than Rainbow Dash descending crudely on Fluttershy's lawn.

"Twilight! I spotted Leo and Spike heading back to Ponyville while I was making my way here!" She said while breathing heavily from her flight here. "I should really lay off the sweets from Sugar cube corner." She muttered.

"Why didn't you stop them!?"

Rainbow Dash nervously looked away as she circled a hoof on Fluttershy's grass. "I uh...thought it would be a better idea if the three of us meet up with them. You know, I thought maybe if he saw Fluttershy he might calm down a little, right?" She lied; she was completely terrified of the thought of Leo tearing her a new one.

"Excuse me." Fluttershy spoke. "But what are you talking about? And what's wrong with Leo, why would he need to see me to calm down?" She asked with a hint of worry.

"I'll explain on the way" Twilight said as she went ahead of her friends. "Right now we need to get to Spike, I have something really important to report!" She quickly took off as both Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash followed.

"So what exactly happened?" Fluttershy asked taking place next to Twilight.

Twilight averted her gaze with a troubled look upon her as she continued on, the same with Rainbow Dash.

"Well...you see this morning I--"

"Why exactly are you going back to the library?" Spike asked as both him and Leo made their way back to town, the locals still wary of him quickly avoiding his path that they were making back to Twilight's home.

"I want my jacket back, so I'm going to go and get it." Leo said bluntly continuing to make his way with no signs of slowing down, his gaze staying on course.

"But Twilight might be there." Spike was worried what Leo would do if he saw her again, he trembled at the thought of Leo breaking her if Twilight agitated him.

"She's considered to be smart right?" Leo asked.

"Yea why?" Spike wondered were Leo was going with this.

"Then I'm guessing she'll be smart enough to stay out of my way if she knows what's good for her." Leo popped his neck; he then reached for his pocket searching for his pack of cigarettes, quickly pulling one out as his other hand reached for his other pocket. Only to be reminded he did no longer possess his lighter. "Shit, Spike give me a light. I really need to smoke so I can ignore this headache digging into my skull."

A little hesitant but Spike obliged to Leo's request for his fire. Spike could still not believe any creature besides his dragon species would breathe in such a hazardous smoke into their lungs, especially if it's to take the mind off pain like a blow to the head.

Leo stopped in his tracks for a moment to breath in his 'healthy' dose of tobacco, he exhaled the smoke sighing loudly clearly a bit at ease has his head ache alleviated, but only a little.

"Hey Leo I wanted to ask you something."

"Eh?" Leo glanced down at Spike.

"What exactly were you talking about when you said about going through horrible experiences, like the one you were saying about trying to survive in a country that wanted nothing more than to kick you out? Why is that, if you don't mind my asking." Spike wondered.

"You wanna know bout my human life back on earth?" Leo asked curiously as Spike nodded.

"I'm not sure I really want to talk about that Spike...it was a pretty traumatic time for me at a young age."

"Common Leo, I wanna help you. I can't do that if you don't let me in, please tell me." Spike looked up to Leo.

Leo wasn't comfortable telling a part of his past Spike shouldn’t know, in fact, Spike was being very nosey. But his curiosity was out of good intention though, but still, the subject for Leo was very touchy. But for now he would humor the dragon.

"Fine, you see Spike..."

Fourteen years ago.

In the Arizona dessert the boy known as Leo hid behind the tall grass with his mother's hand over his form. She kept him hidden along with her husband as they spectated the U.S. border patrol ruthlessly overpowering a helpless immigrant who was struggling to get the oppressive boot of his throat by one of the guards.

"Hey Allen, take a look how this beaner squirms when I press my foot down his throat!" A tall caucasian man said as he smiled widely enjoying the game he was playing. He had broad arms like Leo's 'father'. The difference however was that he had a United States Marine Corp tattoo that Leo noticed as he dared to peak at the scene before him.

"Fucking wet-backs man, they just don't know when they're not welcomed. Hey, maybe we could make an example of this one Kyle?" The African-American guard suggested as he made his way from the van the confined seven immigrants.

"Are you suggesting that I--" The guard known as Allen nodded, confirming his suspicions. His smile widening wickedly, his gaze leered upon the man below him as he reached for his holster, pulling out his gun. "Open the van doors; I want those animals to see what'll happen to them if they try to come over American soil again.

The guard known as Allen made his way to the van opening the gate doors, demanding the Mexicans to turn their attention towards the guard who was pointing his barrel down at his victim. The wife in the van screamed as she watched her husband about to be executed in front of her and her children, they too shrieked seeing their father in the state he was in. She begged the guardsmen to stop but her words fell deaf to their ears.

He clicked his pistol, his gaze went to them, and he stood there staring at them menacingly. Leo was petrified as his body felt as though it was frozen in place, his tears streamed down his cheeks sobbing as quietly as he could.

"Mama, I'm scared!" He whispered to her.

"Shhh, stay calm hijo. Just face down, close your eyes and cover your ears. It'll be over soon." She tried to comfort her son as best she could as she too was in the same sate as her adoptive son. Her husband on the other hand was just growing inpatient, waiting for the guards to just get it over with so they could move on.

The loud gunshot echoed through the dessert night as everything felt deathly silent for a moment, until the widow along with her children cried for the loss of their family member.

"Let this be a reminder for those of you who consider crossing the border again!" The guardsman said as he made his way closing the van along with Allen who was congratulating him for actually going through with what he did. He just brushed it off and told him it was just like killing the al Qaeda troops, the guardsmen got into their vehicles and left to corpse of the man who risked everything just for a better life for him and his family, all of it in vain.

Leo's mother gave him the okay to lift his head as they began continue their journey further North in the cold desert night.

"I hope you got a long look Leo." His father said as they both exchanged gazes. "Because that is what the world is all about when it comes down to it." He spoke in a bitter tone, drinking begrudgingly to ease particularly his journey.

Leo's gaze went to the sandy ground as he began to contemplate what his father told him. Was it true? Was this really how the world was and always would be. due to Leo's childlike mind, he just shook off what his father had told him and continued to believe that somewhere in life it would get better. It just had to get better, because in this country, opportunity existed and with Leo's childlike innocence he would remain ignorant for the true lessons life was going to teach him.

Leo was about to get an ugly reality check from the world, one that would force him out of his childhood and unnatural pace.

"Oh my gosh dude! Did that really happen to you at that age?! Like seriously?!" Spike was stunned, unable to believe what Leo had told him.

"As a heart attack." He said making his way to Twilight's home looking for his jacket that lay upon her desk with his I-pod. "Shit, I actually forgot I had this." Leo said while putting on his jacket over his bare upper body, quickly zipping it up. He then reached for his I-pod and quickly placed it on his pocket, leaving the library before Twilight came back.

"Whew...got there and left before your friend came back." Leo continued on, rubbing the huge bump that was causing him pain. "Hey Spike, do you think you can take me to a bench somewhere in town? I really need to sit down; all of this walking is making my head ache."

Spike noticed Leo was becoming a little wobbly throughout their walk, perhaps it's for the best if he took him to the park bench. There Leo could rest himself, the morning he has gone through has been wild and emotional for him.

Before they could continue, Leo cursed loudly to himself, the locals steering clear from him from his sour mood. Leo had forgotten his backpack at the library; he really did not want to back. Spike on the other hand didn't mind if he went to go and retrieve his belongings for him, he insisted while Leo go to the park bench and take a load off.

The young drake quickly made his way back while Leo sluggishly made his way to the park, he remembers from yesterday where it was from Fluttershy giving him the tour around town. The thought of the yellow mare made Leo’s heart sink a bit as he thought about what she would think of him when she heard the news about his "fit". Leo's thoughts where interrupted by a mint green mare that had bumped into him who was clearly not watching where she was going.

"Oops I'm sorry mister, I wasn’t looking where I was going!" She apologized to him before she had time to regain her senses and look upon the bronze ape that stood before her. "O-oh my..."

"Shit, I'M sorry! I kind of wasn't really paying attention myself, I was lost in thought actually." Leo said while rubbing his stomach were her horn had jabbed him, he tried really hard to mask his discomfort from the tip grazing his skin.

The mare noticed this and once again apologized for her obliviousness. The human was smiled sheep fully at her panic while scratching the back of his head.

"I'm fine, really you don't have to worry yourself over me."

She couldn't help but gaze at his form, from his head all the way down to his feet. Leo coughed loudly a bit to get the attention of the mare that was at a loss for words. "Oh! I'm so sorry! I just couldn't help but stare. "I've never seen anything like you before. At least not this close before when you're behind a crowd in the center of town"

"Well, that's because I'm not from here." Leo chuckled at the mare's childlike curiosity. She was quite adorable too. "Wait, you saw that this morning?"

She nodded, All Leo could do was sigh and covered a part of his face to hide his shame. He was so embarrassed at his behavior, he couldn't look her in the eyes. "I'm so sorry you had to see that..." he averted his gaze to the ground.

"Oh! Don't be sorry, I knew you were in a bad state so I understand. You didn't mean to go on a rampage, actually to be honest, I wanted to get to know you when you left the hospital." She rubbed her forehoof. Leo was quite a bit shocked that she wanted to get to know him unlike his first meeting with the mane six."I was going to meet you today, but...well you know." There was an awkward silence for a minute, until she decided to break the tension. "I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself, my name is Lyra Heartstrings." She gave a genuine smile to Leo. One that made him comfortable enough to introduce himself.

"I'm Leonardo Zarate of earth. It's nice to meet you too." he extended his hand, Lyra stood for a moment staring at the limb with small appendages before her. The only thing that came to mind was to mimic his actions as she too stretched her limb outward in his palm. Leo's fingers gently wrapped around her hoof which she recoiled a bit,but calmed as he slowly shook her fore hoof until Leo released his grip.

"Wow, that was weird. In a good way, I've never felt anything like that before."

"Yeah, it's called a handshake back on earth."

"Wow really, I'd like to hear more about earth if you wouldn't mind telling me." She smiled at him with the curiosity to learn more about his world and himself. "Why don't you come over to my house and we can talk more. I really enjoy getting to know you, we could have some sandwiches and lemonade."

Was Lyra Heartstrings serious, she wanted to get to know him at her place? Leo was a bit skeptical but he really needed to kick back from this morning's kick to the head that nearly killed him.

"I'm not sure Lyra, after meeting Twilight I'm a bit uneasy."

"Let me guess, Twilight was too forward with one of her experiments that you became a test subject too?" Lyra expression deadpanned as the memory of her being one of the unlucky subjects of Twilight's 'important' tests. " Kinda went through the same thing in magical kindergarten. Something about a weird anomaly or something."

It seems Leo's opinion of Twilight has lowered to the point where it has reached to the gum under his shoe. It would look like Leo wasn't her first victim to her experiments, but hopefully after scaring her out of her fur, she would think twice before repeating the same actions towards any living creature.

"As much as I'd like to Lyra, I just can't shake off what Twilight had--" Leo's sentence was interrupted as two hooves were upon his biceps as his hands reflectively held her shoulders in place to keep her from tumbling over. There was a look on her face that Leo couldn’t ignore, a look of sympathy for him. It kind of reminded him of the look his mother gave him when he came home from school, beaten to a pulp by John.

"Leo please, don't let one science wacko leave you with a sour impression of this world and its inhabitants. I don't want to study you, I just want to get to know Leonardo Zarate. Maybe even, befriend him."

Lyra was all to genuine with her words and the kindness she had offered him. She understood him, what it was like to be different. Should he really open up to her? It's been so long since he had someone to speak to about how he felt. Besides Spike though. Perhaps, giving this place a second chance couldn’t do much harm than it already has, it was time to discard the doubtful side and be a bit more open to this new world.

"Alright Lyra, I accept your invitation for lemonade and sandwiches." Leo said as he set Lyra down on her front hooves as she shrieked excitingly.

"Great, let's get going. My house is this way!" She gestured with her hoof before she trotted happily next to Leo. He wasn't sure why but Leo had a great feeling about her.

As Leo and Lyra made their way, they were both completely oblivious to the spying presence of the town smart ass, who watched them converse from a far in a bush that for some reason was irritating her fur.

"This is not good!" She muttered to herself. "I think I might have very well lost Leo to Lyra! Oh, this is bad, I hope Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy come back with Spike quickly! This is just to important to leave at the hooves of Lyra." She jumped out the bush while shaking off the twigs and leafs that much irritated her. "I'll have to keep an eye on them, but gotta keep my distance." She quickly took off in her 'mission' as she made sure to stick to the shadows.

Author's Note