//-------------------------------------------------------// Cold -by Moonshine Wing- //-------------------------------------------------------// //-------------------------------------------------------// The hit //-------------------------------------------------------// Author's Note My first try at a mature story! Hope you enjoy! Find any mistakes, or misspelled words, let me know and I'll do my best to fix it. If you dislike the story, let me know why, or just do the smart thing and stop reading. Constructive criticism, as always, welcome within reason, and I'll see you in the comments section! :pinkiehappy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiehappy.png The hit The sky was cloudy today, almost like it was gonna rain, the wind whipping my shoulder length white hair around in erratic patterns. My partner, Flossy, was sitting out on my front porch with me, smoking a cigarette. Even without the sunlight, what dark brown skin wasn't covered by his wife-beater was gleaming slightly. I'm not really surprised, the boss just gave us a call an hour ago with a job. My kinda job. Say what you want about tough ol' Flossy, he ain't a killer. I, however, am. They don't just call me Frosty because I'm an albino. He takes a drag, then looks over at me. "Boss really want me to do this with ya? I mean, I ain't the kinda nigga you are, no offense. I ain't a killa." he asks, the cigarette calming his nerves a little. I whip out the butterfly knife I always carry with me in my pocket. I spin it open with a *whir* *whir* *chink!* and start cleaning my nails with it. "Don't worry so much, Flossy. You'll get cold feet," I respond indifferently, "And yes. Apparently, this dude's a nutcase that won't pay protection." I continue, switching hands to clean the nails on my right hand. He takes another drag, then drops the cigarette, stamping it out, and gets up. I flick the knife closed and head inside to arm myself. I may be hell with knives, but only an idiot brings just knives for a hit. I walk into the smoke scented living room, over to the end-table. On it is my trusty M1911 with a full clip. I smile as I check the safety, then pocket the weapon. Looking at the coffee table, I find Flossy's revolver, forgot what model it was. I bought it for him years ago and all he ever did with it was clean it. Never fired the thing himself. How did he make in the gang if he doesn't even shoot his gun? I pick it up and walk back outside, Flossy starting the silver 2014 Kia sorento, and hop in the car. I hold the gun out to him, raising an eyebrow, and he takes it. The sky darkens and the wind picks up, but I keep my window rolled down. Flossy starts driving down the street. "So where' this nigga live, Frosty?" he asks me, not taking his eyes off the road as we hit the somewhat empty highway going 76 mph. "Lives just inside the city limits, south of here." I explain. He takes an exit going south and, seeing the empty road, speeds up to 85 mph. I pull out my M1911, and inspect it. "Yo Flossy, you still got that polish in the glovebox?" I ask, eyeing the somewhat smudgy gun. "Yeah, go ahead." He answers. It starts to rain as I pull out the polish and rag and start wiping the gun. I look over at Flossy, who's concentrating on the road, and sigh. "Stop being so nervous, man. This ain't gonna take long at all, I may not even need your help. 's just nice to have backup." I say reassuringly. He seems to relax a little. "Sorry man, I just ain't the type o' guy go in and...cap a nigga. That's yo job." he admits, somewhat reluctantly. I smile at him, patting his shoulder. "Tell you what, I'll cap him, you just watch my back, alright? I ain't gonna make you kill nobody, old friend." I suggest. He gets a thoughtful look, then replies. "A'ight, thanks." he smiles, giving me a sidelong look. "What's a brotha for?" I laugh. He gives a snort. "Dude, you may be a brotha, but you so white I'd lose you in a crackhouse." he laughs. I laugh as well, that was our favorite joke. I see a trailer coming up, white painted walls going yellow with age and neglect, and point to it. "There's the place." I explain, putting the polish back in the glove box and flicking the gun's safety off. He slows down, pulling over to the side of the road, and parks the car. I open the door and get assaulted by wind and rain, thunder booming in the distance. If Flossy was nervous before, he's on edge now. Shielding our eyes from the rain, we cautiously approach the trailer. A neglected, double wide on dirty concrete blocks. I walk up to the door and kick it down, gun at the ready. The inside of the trailer was dirty, papers and filth scattered on the floor, lit only by orange and red candles. In the center of the floor was, what seemed to be, a chalk drawing of some kind. It was cut off into six, pizza slice shapes, with different symbols in each section. In the very center were two fist sized circles I recognized as the sun and moon. One section of the circle had the chalk outline of three butterflies, another with three apples, a third with three diamonds, the fourth with three balloons, the fifth with a lightning bolt from a white cloud, and the last one with some kinda sparkle looking thing. "The hell's this dude been smokin'? And where can I get some?" Flossy chuckles nervously, looking at the circle. "When I find him, he's gonna be smoking lead." I laugh. I hear a shuffle to my right, and immediately spin around to face whatever it was, gun raised. "Alright, freeze bitch!" I say, gun pointed at a figure in a dirty green pullover and torn Calvin Cline jeans. The figure stops and raises his hands in a submissive gesture. He turns to look at us... ...And I pull the trigger, shooting him in the head. What's left of his head is now splattered against the wall. His knees give out and the body falls forward. Flossy looks like he's gonna be sick. "Damn..." his eyes were wide. I flick the safety back on and turn to the door. Just as I start walking, I see a bright flash and cry out in pain, falling to my knees. I'm blind! I hear Flossy cry out as well, and I slowly lose consciousness. ++++++ I slowly wake up to the feeling of... weightlessness. My limbs were still asleep, a pins and needles sensation the only feeling I get from them. I hear...voices. They sounded like women, can't be any older than 19. My ears also pick up some kind of *clip* *clop* noise as well. The hell just happened? I capped the nutcase then....don't remember anything after that. I hear Flossy gasp beside me. The talking and clopping noises stop. "One o' them's awake, Twi!" I hear an unmistakeably southern voice say. Twi? The hell is that? Reluctantly, I open my eyes. Horses. Small, technicolor horses with slightly big ears gaze back at me. A yellow one with wings and a pink mane, a blue one with wings and a rainbow mane, a purple one with a horn, a white one with a dark purple mane and a horn, a pink one with a darker pink mane with neither a horn or wings, and a orange one with a blonde mane....wearing a stetson. "Yo Frosty, look down!" I hear Flossy say beside me. I do so.... ...I'm freakin' levitating! And covered in purple! "Flossy, dawg, tell me you see this too." I respond with a deceptive, calm tone. The horses' jump in surprise as they hear me speak. "Yeah man, I see it too! That means we're either trippin' or I'm knocked out and dreamin'!" He sounds nervous. Okay, I'll admit this is a little strange... okay, REALLY strange, but I still don't get why Flossy's so nervous. I've known him for years, and I still don't- "They speak equestrian!" the purple one, probably Twi, says suddenly, breaking my reverie. "Hehe, the darker one's acting funny!" the blue one says, pointing to Flossy. I couldn't turn to look at him, so I couldn't see what was so funny. "Look, I ain't gonna hurt you gu-er, ladies, but you think you can put me and my homie down?" I hear flossy ask. Soon, we're lowered down to the ground, and feeling returns to my limbs as the purple aura went away. "There you go! I'm Twilight Sparkle!" the purple one introduces herself. "I'm Rainbow Dash! And I've got my eye on you two!" The blue one says, flapping her wings so she was at our height. "Sorry about our rash friend here, darlings. I'm Rarity" The white unicorn gives a slight bow, after glaring at Rainbow Dash. "I-I'm F-Fluttershy..." I just barely hear from the yellow...pegasus-there we go- hiding behind her pink mane. "HiI'mPinkiePieandIwanttobeyourfriend!" The pink one says in a rush. "And I'm Applejack." The orange one says finally. God, some of those names are so girly I wanna puke, real talk. I give them a smile, not showing teeth. "You can call me Frosty. And that's my homie, Flossy." I say, pointing to me, then turning around to him and pointing at him. Who knows? If this is a dream, may as well go along with it. Might be fun. "H-How y'all doin'?" Flossy asks nervously. I roll my eyes at his nervous tone. I swear, sometimes you'd think he was really a high school chick. "Now, where exactly are we?" I ask politely. The purple one takes a step forward and explains, "You're in Equestria! Just outside Ponyville." Now I stop and take in my surroundings. We're by a green hill, a rustic looking town about a mile from where we're standing. I suddenly feel a pinch on my arms, and turn back to look at Flossy. My eyes widen in realization and shock. This isn't a dream.... ...Damnit! //-------------------------------------------------------// Well, Damn. //-------------------------------------------------------// Author's Note There will be some lighthearted chapters, or semi lighthearted, in this story as well. This chapter, for example. As always, let me know if you see anything wrong, and I'll do my best to fix it. :pinkiehappy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiehappy.png Well, Damn. As I approach the town, following the ponies and being followed by my homie, the reality sinks in. This isn't a dream. I take deep breaths to keep myself calm. Flossy's trying this too, but with a little more difficulty than me. That's when i remember the pack of cigarettes in my pocket, same pocket I keep my butterfly knife. I reach in my pocket, past the knife, and find the cigarette pack, albeit slightly flattened. I pull it out and toss Flossy one, which he catches, giving an appreciative grin. He pulls out his lighter and flicks it on, lighting the end of his, then tosses the lighter to me. I deftly catch it and flick it on, lighting the end of my cigarette. After I take a drag, the nicotine slowly working it's way into my system, the girls turn around with wrinkled noses. "What 'n the hay are you doin'?" Applejack asks, looking between the both of us, "Y'all smoke? Y'know that's bad for ya, right?" "This baby righ' 'ere is the only reason I ain't flippin' mah shit right now" Flossy explains, blowing out a cloud of light gray smoke. I chuckle at his antics, feeling better already, if only a little bit. "Well, could you please stand where the smoke isn't blowing towards us, darling? It's bad for my mane." Rarity asks with an almost whining undertone, enhancing how posh her voice sounded. We oblige anyway, moving to the left of the group. As we get closer, I see the rustic town better. Most of the buildings looked to be made of wood, save a couple two story homes, store buildings and....a gingerbread house. Seeing this, I nearly choke on my cigarette. A freakin' gingerbread house? What, next they're gonna tell me it's a bake- "That's Sugarcube corner, the local bakery where Pinkie lives and works!" Twilight explains cheerfully. I'm trying so hard not to laugh hysterically, and Flossy seems to be having the same problem. The ponies we walk by are eyeing us with curiosity, fear, or both. One particular unicorn with a sweet looking mint green coat, two toned green and white hair and golden eyes, started following us, wide eyed. "I smell a fan." Flossy whispers to me from the corner of his mouth. "Or a stalker." I reply, making him chuckle slightly. We continue our tour of the town, passing by a bowling alley (Not even gonna try understanding that one), town hall, Rarity's shop (which looked like a freakin' carousel) and ending at the "golden oaks library" "This is my home, and the town library!" Twilight says proudly. I raise an eyebrow at this, frowning slightly. "You live in a library? A building open to the public?" I ask, a little concerned "She doesn't have to worry! Nopony's gonna try and rob the princess's star pupil!" Rainbow explains, causing Twilight to blush slightly, giving a small smile. I look over at Flossy and nod. At the same time, we drop our cigarette buts and step on them, putting them out. Twilight opens the door, and the girls (I'm just gonna call them that from now on) lead the way inside. It's kinda dark inside, and I'm immediately apprehensive. I feel around in my left pocket for the M1911, grabbing hold of it. Suddenly, the lights come on, and I whip out the gun, holding it in front of me expectantly. What I didn't expect was for a group of ponies to jump outta nowhere and yell, "Surprise!!!!" The ponies finally get a good look at us, and some look nervous. There's a banner hanging from the ceiling that says, "Welcome to Ponyville!" I lower the gun awkwardly, thankful that these ponies didn't know what a gun was... hopefully. Suddenly, Pinkie was in my face. "Did I surprise you? Huh, huh, did I? I planned this welcome party just for you two!" Pinkie says in one breath. Flossy chuckles behind me. "Well, didn't see that comin'! Thanks, Pink." Floss says, shaking his head slightly at the scene before him, smiling. I just nod, and the ponies start the party. There's a table against one wall loaded with baked goods of all kinds, and a punchbowl. Some kinda techno music was playing from...what was the name again? Sonophone? Ah, forget it. Ponies are talking, some are dancing, others talking with Flossy. I just walk to the wall across from the sweets table and lean on it, watching everything with slightly narrowed eyes. I feel a tap against my left leg, and look down. My heart nearly melts at what I see. A small, purple-gray unicorn filly with a blonde mane was looking up at me in curiosity. She was probably small enough to fit in my hands. "Excuse me Mister, what are you?" she asks. A pegasus mare from the crowd with the same mane notices the little filly and walks toward me. "Well, me and my friend are humans." I say, trying hard to keep my face expressionless. She tilts her head. "What's a hoo-man?" she asks adorably, and I can't keep my poker face any longer. I smile down at her and reply, just as the pegasus mare, possibly her mother, reaches me. "Think about it like hairless monkeys." I suggest. The pegasus, who I see is wall eyed, scoops up the filly in a hoof, causing her to giggle. "There you are, muffin! We have to go. Now, what do you say to the nice..." "Human." I finish for her. "Bye mister hoo-man!" the little filly giggles as her and her mother walk away. I smile at the two ponies, enjoying my time here already. +++++ Night finally arrives, and most of the ponies went home. Flossy is passed out on the couch, exhausted. Truthfully, I'm tired too. The only pony left in the house is Twilight. "Well, I'm going to bed. Goodnight, guys." She says, giving a yawn as she ascended the stairs. I flick out the butterfly knife and begin cleaning my nails. It's amazing how dirty they've gotten traveling to another dimension, and having a party thrown for us. After the nails on my left hand are clean, I switch hands. I flick the knife closed with a *whir* *whir* *chink* and pocket it. Maybe I should hit the sack, too. I go and lay down behind the couch, thinking of everything that happened today. "Surprised I haven't gone crazy yet." I murmur as I fall asleep, the last thing I see is a pair of golden eyes watching me through the window. I snap awake. Someone's watching me through the window. //-------------------------------------------------------// Royal pain. //-------------------------------------------------------// Royal pain. I blink, staring out the window. The eyes were gone, though they might not have been there to begin with. I sigh, trying to relax. I get up quietly, so i didn't disturb Flossy, and open the front door. I close it behind me, sitting on the doorstep, and pull out a cigarette. With a flick, I pull out the lighter and light it, taking a drag. I slowly start to relax, looking at the night sky. The stars seemed to twinkle, like in those old cartoons back home. Back home... I frown as that thought crosses my mind. What about the gang? They doing okay? Are they trying to find us right now? I take another drag, calming down again. Not gonna get emotional. Haven't in years, not gonna start now. I hear the telltale *clip* *clop* *clip* *clop* of an approaching pony, and take out my knife. I flick it open with a comforting *whir* *whir* *chink* the blade gleaming in the moonlight, as whoever it is gets closer. A pony walks around the corner, stopping when it sees me...or my general outline, there being no lights on. Whoever it is seems to notice the blade. "Whoa there, big guy! Sorry I scared ya." A familiar, tomboyish voice apologizes. "Rainbow Dash?" I ask, turning the blade in my grip. "Yeah, it's me." She says, sitting down next to me. I blow out a cloud of smoke breath I didn't realize I'd been holding. She coughs, waving her hoof in the air. "Sorry. This helps me calm down." I apologize, holding the cigarette away from her. She just gives a nod. I sit there, smoking, watching the night sky for a while. Then rainbow speaks up next to me. "So, what was that thing you pointed at everypony earlier?" she asks, looking up at me. I think back to the party, when the ponies yell "Surprise!!!" and grimace. "You really want to know?" I ask, popping my neck. She's quiet for a bit, then answers, "Yeah, I do. You saying I can't handle it?" she asks challengingly. I take another drag, and let out the smoke in a chuckle. "That was a gun. Something I've had for years now." I answer, looking back up. "What does it do?" She asks expectantly. Smart mare. "I point it at someone I want dead, pull the trigger, and that's that. If I hit a vital area, that is." I explain simply. These ponies probably won't understand the mechanics behind a gun, so I'll leave it at that. "I'll bet I could outfly it." she says smugly. I shake my head. "Dash, this isn't a toy. if you see one of these pointed at you, could be dead before you can even register the wielders hair color." I explain. Her eyes widen at this. "You wouldn't use that on any of us... would you?" she asks, now nervous. "Do you plan on trying to kill me?" I ask, looking sideways at her as I raise an eyebrow. She quickly shakes her head. "Nopony would even think about killing!" she says like it's obvious. Couple years ago, in high school, some punks said the same thing about me...so I'm not very assured. No need to let her know that, though. "I'll take your word for it." I say, reassuringly. Finally, the cigarette goes out, completely used up. I throw it on the ground and step on it, can't be too sure. I stand up and stretch my back, eliciting a series of pops, and sigh, content. "Wait, one last thing!" Rainbow says, jumping to eye level and flapping to stay in place. I raise an eyebrow, but nod for her to continue. "What...what job did you have before coming here?" She asks, probably blushing, but it's too dark to see. "A well paying one." I reply smartly, then walk inside before she could rephrase her question. I was paid "commision" back home. More jobs done, more money, as much good as that does me now. I sigh, walking over to my spot behind the couch, and promptly pass the hell out. +++++ I hate mornings. So much. These thoughts went through my head as sunlight streamed in through the window, hitting my face. I turn away from the light, trying to go back to sleep. Then I hear hoofsteps coming down the stairs. "Good morning, boys!" Twilight says cheerfully as she walks into the living room. Sitting up, I rub the sleep from my eyes and stand. Twilight was levitating a scroll in front of her face, reading quickly. When she puts it down, she seems frantic. "The princess is coming soon! She wants to meet you two today! We have to get you ready!" she says urgently. Flossy finally gets off the couch, yawning and stretching, but looking better than I feel about getting up. "Relax, we'll be fine. We ain't stupid, ya know." Flossy says, smiling. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm hungry." I say. I smell someone cooking in the kitchen (like they'd cook anywhere else). Probably pancakes. "Well, Spike is working on breakfast now, so it'll be done in a couple minutes. How can you guys be so laid back right now when the princess is on her way?!" there's that frantic tone again. I look her straight in the eye, her purple meeting my pink. "Is she coming here to cap us? Or arrest us?" I ask flatly, raising an eyebrow. "W-well...no." she goes slightly red. "Then we ain't gotta worry!" Flossy finished, "Right Frosty?" "Yeah." Twilight looks between the two of us, almost like she wants to say something, but then I feel a slight....tingle. Not enough to be overly annoying, but it does tickle slightly. Flossy shifts uncomfortably, Twilight seems fine. "A'ight, the hell is goin' on?" Flossy asks. "Song magic." Twilight replies simply, as if it were obvious. I raise an eyebrow at this, and she seems to catch the hint. "Well, at random times, ponies will break out in song. Those affected all know the words to the song playing immediately and sing along. I wonder what-" she never got to finish that statement, as right then, I suddenly start singing (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJ2wlNJH728) After the song ends, Twilight is looking at us curiously. "I've never heard song magic do a song like that before! What was that?" she asks, not taking her eyes off me. "A song from home. One of my favorites, personally." I answer with a shrug. Song magic... I could get used to this. "Nigga, did we just sing hollywood undead? You know I don' like them!" Flossy says, rubbing his forehead. Before I could answer, there's a knock on the door. In a flash of light, Twilight is at the door, opening it. "Princess Celestia!" Twilight says, bowing. The door opens further, revealing a very tall, elegant white pony, with a flowing pastel rainbow mane, a very long horn, and folded wings. She has a familiar looking sun design on her flank. Where have I seen that...? "Rise, my little pony." Celestia seems to command, sounding more motherly than anything. She turns to look at us, and gives a warm smile. At least, it's supposed to be warm. I can't tell. "And who might you be?" she asks us, looking at me. "You can call me Frosty," I point to me, then to my homie "And this is Flossy." Her eyes widen when she hears my name. "So you're the one the waygate pulled. The hitcolt." she says, narrowing her eyes. ...Ah hell... Author's Note The jig is up, Frosty! How will this turn out? :pinkiecrazy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiecrazy.png As always, if you see an error, let me know in the comments section and I'll get right on that. :pinkiehappy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiehappy.png Next chapter may come a little late, with the weekend over, but I'll try my best to upload new ones before too long. //-------------------------------------------------------// Royal pain pt. 2 //-------------------------------------------------------// Royal pain pt. 2 Not good, not good! How did she know? I keep my poker face on, and for once Flossy isn't cracking. Twilight is now looking at us, mainly me, in shock. I wasn't too worried about this as, the OP looking princess staring at us with that royal smile still present on her face taking up most of my concern. I look her dead in the eye. "What makes you say that?" I ask evenly, not breaking eye contact. Every fiber of my being is screaming at me to run or engage, but I hold back. Something tells me, besides her knowing I'm a hitman, she's not your average crap politician and is prepared for either. Gotta keep cool. "Oh, just a rulers intuition." She replies, her smile shrinking slightly, barely noticeable. Of course, you don't last long as a hitter by being unobservant. That's how so many "thugs" back home got capped, or jumped. Mostly by me. "That it?" Flossy asks coolly. Okay, gotta hand it to him, he's doing pretty well considering the circumstances. "Appears I was right." she replies. I crack a grin, showing teeth. "Let me guess, you're here to ask if we intend to 'harm' any of your subjects?" I back up and lean against the wall, yawning. "Actually, yes." she admits, dropping the smile and narrowing her eyes. "Well, you wasted your time then. I ain't gon' hurt nobody, and frosty here doesn't do anything until provoked." Flossy says confidently. 'Or payed' I add, not out loud though. She continues to stare at us, making Flossy shift uncomfortably. I don't move. "Well, that's good to hear. Now there's the question of living arrangements." Celestia says after a while. Living arrangements? What, she gonna- "Living arrangements?" Flossy asks, raising an eyebrow at the princess. Dammit Flossy, I was thinking! "Yes. Having you live in the library with my student, while tempting, may not be the best course of action. So I had somepony else in mind. A self proclaimed 'Human expert'" she elaborates with a smile. Okay, now I'm nervous. Human expert? Who- "Lyra? They're gonna live with Lyra?" Twilight asks in disbelief, finally snapping out of her shocked reverie. Is everyone out to interrupt my thoughts today? ....That's what I thought. "Yes. While I trust you and your friends to look after them the most, I feel they would be more comfortable with someone who actually know more about their species." Celestia admits. "Is that alright with you?" she points this at me and Flossy. "...yeah, I'd feel betta' bein' around someone who knows what they' doin'." Flossy answers. I give it some thought. "Yeah, same here." I say simply. You never know, this could be fun. "Alright. Please send for Lyra later, Twilight." Celestia instructs, then turns to us. "I'll register you both as equestrian citizens, and send some bits to help you until you can get back on your hooves. Or feet, as the case may be. welcome to equestria, Flossy and Frosty." she says warmly. there's a bright flash, and Celestia is gone. I'm still blinking the spots out of my eyes when Twilight speaks up again. "Well... I'm gonna go find Lyra." then she turns her head to the kitchen, "Spike!! I'm going out real quick, I need you to watch the library!" Before she gets an answer, she heads out the door. "Damn, what crawled up her ass?" Flossy comments, letting out a breath. "The part about not knowing the slightest thing about us, and finding out I'm a hitman, probably put her in shock. I don't know about you, but I'm gonna watch my ass around her." I reply, putting my hand in my pocket and feeling for the knife. "True dat!" he chuckles nervously. +++++ We're now following the mint green unicorn, Lyra apparently, from before down the street to her house. I'm not gonna lie, her eagerness to take us home (if ya know what I mean) is kinda creeping me out. I feel like she's either gonna dissect us, bury us with questions, or dissect us while burying us in questions. Or rape us, but I'm not gonna ride that train of thought. "We're almost there!" Lyra announces happily. "You look happy." Flossy comments with a smirk. "I always knew humans existed! I have so many questions I want to ask! And I'm gonna have two of them living in my house with me!" she says excitedly, more to herself than anything, prancing a little. Well, I was right about the questions. Let's hope that's all I'm right about with her. "Easy tigah', don' wea' yaself out!" Flossy chuckles. Lyra stops just outside a wood and stone, two story building. The green curtains are drawn, letting the darkening rays of the sunset illuminate the room just beyond the window. There are a couple chairs, a full length couch, and a love-seat (yes, that's what they're called. They're like smaller couches) visible through the window. Lyra walks up to the front door and opens it, the knob enveloped in a mint green light as it's turning. She makes a hoof gesture for us to follow, so I go up the fronts steps, followed by Flossy. "This is my home! Go ahead and make yourselves comfortable while I get started on dinner!" Lyra says happily, walking through the living room to the kitchen. I look over at Flossy, who shrugs and takes the love-seat. I sigh, sitting on on the chair just to the left of the kitchen doorway (which doesn't have an actual door, oddly enough) and massage my temples. If I were anyone else, I'd have lost my shit ages ago. Which reminds me... "How you doing over there, Flossy?" I call to my homie, just a few feet from me. When it's quiet, he has the sound sensitivity of a heavy metal fanatic. Which is to say, almost deaf. "Truth be told nigga, I'm surprised I ain't flippin' mah shit right now. This ain't a dream, and I'm pretty sure I didn't do no LSD before we left. How's this all real, dawg?" he buries his face in his hands, "What about mah brothas? And our hood? Boss is probably mad as fuck we gon', and I don't see no voodoo chalk circles nowhere." "Can we please not make voodoo jokes?" I ask, an edge creeping into my tone. Flossy looks startled, then seems to remember... "Shit, righ'. Sorry, man. But you get the point." He apologizes. "It's alright. Sorry I snapped at you." I feel a little bad now. But Flossy should know how much I hate that particular subject. "Nah, 's cool man." He smiles a little, relieved. I smell Lyra's cooking, and my stomach gives a loud rumble. Flossy starts laughing his ass off at this. "Forgot how funny tha' was! Whoo, man, someone's hungry!" He manages between fits of laughter. I chuckle as well. Truth is, I wasn't hungry at all today until now. What is Lyra cooking? "Come in and sit down, guys! Dinner's just about ready!" I hear Lyra call from the kitchen. Me and Flossy get up at the same time, and he follows me into the hardwood floor, decorated dinning room. The table and chairs (both built like the ones back home, oddly) are pretty small, but we manage. Lyra comes into the dinning room, levitating three plates of spaghetti. Spaghetti. "Damn, that smells good!" Flossy comments, a little redundantly. Lyra giggles, setting two plates down in front of us, and sitting where she put hers. ...which happens to be right next to me. I'm not that concerned about it, though. "Alright, dig in guys!" Lyra says, twirling a fork in hers. I just grab my fork and go to town. Flossy is a little more reserved than me, watching me for a bit before chuckling, then starting his own plate. Gotta hand it to the girl, she could cook! The rest of the night after that is kind of a tired blur. I remember Lyra leading us upstairs, and showing us our rooms. I walk into mine and empty my pockets of the gun and cigarette pack, keeping my knife, and just falling into bed. I feel something warm press against my side as I drift off to sleep. Author's Note Surprise! Our heroes are living with the creepy human fanatic! Wonder what's gonna happen next! And I put a foreshadow in there, for anyone who can find it :pinkiecrazy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiecrazy.png (probably everyone). As always, feel free to point out any grammar or spelling mistakes in the comments and I'll do my best to fix them. And because I know this is coming, for those that are gonna try and rip me a new one for characters acting ooc, two words. Alternate universe. Thank you, come again. //-------------------------------------------------------// Didn't see that coming... //-------------------------------------------------------// Didn't see that coming... The first thing I register when I wake up is that I feel great. Went to bed full, no creepy eyes staring at me, and no one woke me up. Next thing I register is I'm currently cuddling something warm and...furry... My eyes snap open at this revelation. Lyra was in the bed with me, curled up against my chest and stomach. My clothes are still on, need to wash these later, which makes me sigh in relief. I almost forgot the feeling of cuddling, not having done much at all back home, even as a kid. I sit up carefully, so as not to wake Lyra, and rub the sleep from my eyes. If getting dropped into another dimension is what it takes to get a good sleep, it was barely worth it. Still kinda nice though. Why did Lyra sleep with me? Why not Flossy? Lyra stirs, groaning, and sits up. She yawns, then looks at me. "Morning, big guy. You slept like a minotaur." she chuckles, rolling off the bed and cat-stretching. She looks at me, then something on my arm catches her attention. "What's that on your arm?" she asks, pointing to my arm. On my right arm, just below my wrist, was a tattoo I had done years ago... תפחד "Is that your cutiemark?" Lyra asks, tilting her head and leaning closer to get a better look. I smile, shaking my head. "No, it's not my cutiemark, whatever that is. Humans don't get cutiemarks, last time I checked." I chuckle, standing up and stretching. "Then what is it?" She asks, looking up at me expectantly. Should I tell her? "It's a message." I reply cryptically. She narrows her eyes slightly, a tiny grin playing along the corners of her mouth. "Care to tell me what it says? Is it a human language?" she asks, trying to control her excitement. "One of the oldest written languages we have." I answer, opening the door. ...There's another pony in the house...and she's staring at me, her jaw touching the floor (Jesus, that's creepy!). This pony had a cream colored coat, a two toned mane of navy blue and pink, and... a tattoo of candy on her butt.(I was about to say ass, but donkeys might talk here too) She notices Lyra, then understanding dawns in her eyes, followed by an exasperated sigh. "Lyra, wha-er, who is this?" the new pony asks, rubbing her forehead with a hoof. Lyra gives an excited grin. "They're humans, Bon Bon!" Lyra exclaims happily, her eyes narrowing in a triumphant sort of way. Then she drops the smile, "So, you're back from Canterlot?" she asks. I barely repress a snort at the name. Canterlot? What next? "Yeah..." Bon Bon rubs the back of her head awkwardly, "...and I missed you." She finishes, tears in her eyes. Lyra gets teary eyed as well, moving around me to hug Bon Bon. I just barely keep myself from "D'aaawww!"-ing at the sight. So, is this Lyra's roommate or something? "And I guess you're right....humans do exist." Bon Bon continues, looking up at me again. I look her in the eye, her purple meeting my pink, and she tilts her head slightly. "Hey, what's-" she's interrupted by Flossy flinging his door open and yawning. "Mornin' dawg! I was out like a rock!" He says, then notices the ponies now staring at him. One was smiling, the other was shocked. Take a guess who was what. "Two? Two humans, Lyra?" Bon Bon asks in disbelief. "Yep! Princess Celestia wanted them to stay with the "Human Expert" until they can get their own place!" She says "Human expert" with barely concealed pride. Bon Bon shakes her head. "You and your hobbies, Lyra." she sighs, heading downstairs. Me and Flossy look at each other, a silent message passing between us. 'Yep, they're a couple.' "Well, c'mon guys! Bon Bon is a great cook!" Lyra urges excitedly, motioning us to follow her. I just walk back into the bedroom when Flossy follows her. I head over to the M1911 on the bedside table, check the safety, and pocket it. To think I was doing a routine similar to this in another....world I guess, two days ago. I sigh, thinking about the rest of the gang back home. Juan was probably at the shop fixing up motorcycles right now, with metal-man talking his ear off. Monkey's probably in jail. Rolla's....rollin', more than likely. I shake my head, clearing these thoughts. They're fine, no need to get all depressed. Just as I get up, Bon Bon walks in, closing the door behind her. I raise an eyebrow as she turns to me, her own brows furrowed. "Are you okay?" she asks, her tone concerned and...suspicious? "Yeah, why?" I ask, putting my poker face on. She seems to be struggling with herself about something. "You're really pale." she observes, almost nervously. "That's because I'm albino." I explain. "We have albinos here. But none of their eyes look so dead." she rebuts, her eyes narrowing. Wait...did I bring my eyedrops when we went for that hit? I quickly check my pockets. Not there. "Shit." I curse under my breath. I just look back to Bon Bon. "It's a human thing." I lie nonchalantly. "Your friends' eyes aren't like that." she rebuts again. "Look, just drop it, alright?" I ask, straightening up to my full height. "Alright, but you're gonna tell us one of these days." she says with what she thinks is a threatening tone. She leaves, and I chuckle just as I hear her go down the first step. Really, a pony thinking they're scary? I head downstairs to see the front door open. Lyra was talking with someone, she didn't seem happy to see whoever it was. I walk up to the door, taking a peak through the peephole. Some dark blue pegasus mare was talking to Lyra. "So, your pudgy marefriend finally back from canterlot?" she asks in a tone I'm all too familiar with. That whole "I'm so much better than your sorry ass" tone. Before Lyra can rebut this bitch, I step out from behind the door, arms crossed. She looks up at me, fear flashing across her face for a second, then her composure comes back. "Oh, and you even got a bald monkey! My, I must say, I never knew you were in-" I interrupt her mid-sentence with a backhand. Her eyes go wide in shock, then she turns to me angrily. "Don't bucking touch me, stupid a-" again with the backhand. This time, she gets ready to charge. Before she can, however, I rush in, grab her purple mane, and pull it, yanking her face to my waiting fist. "Stupid ape? This coming from the bitch that can't even hi-" in my cockiness, I barely notice her hoof as it flies into MY face mid-word. I feel an incisor tooth slide off my tongue, onto the doorstep. But the rest of my teeth were fine, which I took advantage of by biting down on her hoof, eliciting a "Crunch!" and filling my mouth with the taste of blood. Not mine, though. The mare screams in pain, flapping wildly and swinging her other hoof at me to make me let go. I bite down harder, making her squeal and pull. Finally, I let go, the mare taking off as her hoof is free and screaming "Monster!!" at me as she flies. "Tefahed, snide little bitch!" I call back at her. Then I start spitting out some of the hairs and warm blood from her foreleg. Lyra was staring at me in horror, with a tiny tinge of respect. "What the tartarus was that?!" she asks. I finally get all the hairs out of my mouth and reply, "She needed to be put in her place." I reply. I bend down to pick up the discarded incisor tooth. "Where's the bathroom?" I ask, holding the incisor tooth in my closed right hand. "Down the hall, first door on the left." she replies, a little confused. I quickly head down the hall to the bathroom, locking the door behind me. I turn the remarkably low sink on hot, putting the tooth in the stream, then turn the water off. I position the tooth over where it once occupied (top left incisor) and shove it back into the gums. A slight squishing sound is made, and I adjust it to how it was before. Satisfied, I look into the mirror to examine my work. You could never tell it was punched out! "There, good as new." Author's Note Now, I know what you may be thinking. "WTF?!?!" being it for most of you, and for others it would be "Didn't see that coming." The reply to both of these (for those that continue to keep up with the story) is that if you haven't put the pieces together, everything will be explained in time. As always, see any spelling or grammar errors, let me know and I'll fix it. See you in the comments section! :pinkiehappy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiehappy.png //-------------------------------------------------------// Spilling some beans... //-------------------------------------------------------// Spilling some beans... I was currently sitting on the couch next to my homie, Flossy, just across from the chairs Lyra and Bon Bon were sitting in. They keep eyeing me, Lyra in fascination, Bon Bon in raised suspicion. Earlier, they saw me walk out of the bathroom, my tooth oddly back in place, and Lyra figured it was a good idea to start the questions she wanted to ask. "So, let's begin!" Lyra says excitedly, her horn glowing a faint mint green as a notebook and pencil float towards her from the end-table. "What is the name of your home?" she asks, not seeing Flossy give a slight wince. "Earth. We lived in a country called North America, in the city of San Antonio." I answer, kinda expecting that to be her first question. "Is there any magic on earth?" she plows ahead, this time making me wince, though mine isn't a little one. "Well, otha' people would tell ya nah, there ain't no magic on earth. But there is..." Flossy says, as I shift uncomfortably. I can't believe we're talking about this. "Care to explain?" Bon Bon asks, raising an eyebrow. "We've had a run-in with one type of magic back home years ago...it never fully wore off..." I start, remembering that day everything Flossy knew about "fiction" came crashing down around his ears. The day he met me. +++++ Twelve years ago The sun was glaring down on San Antonio with a vengeance today, the temperature reaching a hundred and three degrees outside. Flossy was fine, though it was the middle of July, having lived there since he was three. Having turned sixteen a week ago, his homies decided to take him along on a job. They were all in a little known gang called "The Jacks" and have been doing jobs for "the boss" for a while, but it was mostly drug-dealing. Specifically LSD, though they managed to get their hands on some marijuana plants a couple months back. One of their usual buyers skimped out on three payments, and they were being sent to "Teach him a lesson." Now, nobody thought to give Flossy a gun at the time, thinking he would be covered by monkey, metal-man, and rolla' just fine, and therefore didn't need one (If he was given a gun, this would've ended very differently.) Him and his homies piled into their vehicle, a tan Isuzu trooper, and started the engine. "Alright, da' boss wants us to really fuck his shit up, break a bunch of stuff, do a lotta' damage to 'is house. That'll show him not to try and fuck us ova'!" Rolla, a light brown skinned teen of about seventeen years explains as he backs the truck out of the driveway of the abandoned one-story they always met up at. "A'ight, coo'. What if the nigga fight's back?" Metal-man, the group's only Hispanic member (and the tallest one there) asks, his green eyes showing concern. "If he's got a gun, we could get in some deep shit for startin' a firefight." "He fights back, shoot him in the dick!" Monkey exclaimed with a goofy grin. His long, really dark brown hair braided in dreadlocks going down to his neck. He lived on an indian reserve before moving here. He was Native American. Specifically, his mother was Comanche, though he didn't act like he cared. This remark caused everyone to laugh loudly, save for Rolla', who was focused on the road ahead of him. Finally, Flossy speaks up, "Well, what do I do?" he asks. Monkey and Metal-man look at him, an odd look on their faces. "Help us get in and wreck his place. Pro'lly hold the nigga down if you can." Metal-man says, shrugging. Monkey pulls out a pack of cigarettes, giving one to everybody, and soon the smoke was being blown out the windows. "How much longer, Rolla'? 's gettin' borin'." Metal-man half asks-half complains. "We'll get there when we get there, dawg." Rolla' replies, the barest hint of irritation in his voice. After leaving their neighborhood and driving for almost forty minutes, they come across the two story house of the buyer. His car wasn't there, so he must've been out. The gang quickly hopped out of the car, the ones with guns flicking the safety off. "A'ight, Let's roll!" Rolla exclaims, taking his double-action Bren Ten out with a smile. Monkey pulls out his Ruger Redhawk, checking the ammo. Metal-Man never uses handguns. Instead, he brought his Heckla & Koch FABARM FP6. Metal-Man approached the door, his shotgun in one hand, and motions for the others to follow. Once everyone gathers at the door, he kicks it down with a loud *Crash!*- +++++ -*Knock* *Knock* Me and Flossy were interrupted by someone knocking at the door. Lyra and Bon Bon look at each other like "Who could that be?" Bon Bon gets up, walks over to the door, and answers it with a "Yes?" Twilight Sparkle and her friends were standing at the doorway. Twilight seemed determined, Applejack had a smile on her face, Rainbow was eyeing me suspiciously, Pinkie was....Pinkie, Rarity was checking her hoof, and Fluttershy was hiding behind her mane. "Hi, Bon Bon. My friends and I were wondering if we could ask the humans some things..." Twilight explains, losing some of her resolve. I look over at Flossy, my eyebrow raised. He shrugs. "Well, come in then! They were just telling us a story." Lyra calls to them, a smile spread across her face. She is too happy for this story..... "Thank you." Twilight says, stepping inside, closely followed by her friends. Lyra goes into the closet just down the hall and grabs some pillows. Soon, all ponies present were seated around me and Flossy. "So, you were saying?" Lyra urges, excitedly. I honestly felt just a twinge of nervousness as everyone-er, everypony, I guess- turned to look at us. "Okay, so my homie Metal-Man kicks down the door...." +++++ As soon as the door was open, the gang piled in, guns raised. The entrance was empty, save for a couple vases on shelfs and pictures. Monkey shoots one vase, knocking another off with his fist. Metal-Man went further in, and they heard glass breaking. Flossy stuck with Rolla' as they moved further in, finding the winding stairs leading up to the second story. "A'ight, just stick with me, Floss'." Rolla' says as he cocks his gun, then starts going up the stairs two at a time. Flossy follows close behind, adrenaline pumping through his body as he took in everything they were doing. They reached the top of the stairs, the hallway they led into was dark with only one light on. Just as Rolla' turns to find a light switch, they hear a groan. Not the groan you hear from some "thug" that just got his ass kicked, but the kind that makes your hairs stand on edge. The kind that you hear in a graveyard down in Louisiana. Instantly, Rolla's on edge, looking around for what made the noise. "Da fuck was dat?" Rolla' says, his Bren Ten shaking slightly in his grip. Flossy didn't know. "I don' know, nigga." Flossy replies. They hear a startled *gack!* from downstairs, and a gunshot. Metal-Man's gunshot. "Somethin' got Metal-Man!" Rolla' says, then takes off down the stairs followed closely by Flossy. His heart was pounding in his ears. The house was supposed to be empty! When they make it to the bottom of the stairs, they clearly hear Metal-Man being choked in the kitchen. Flossy and Rolla' burst through the kitchen door. It was a medium sized kitchen, a stove, oven, walk-in pantry, the once white tiles now yellowed slightly. At least, what tiles weren't stained in blood were yellow. The pantry door was open, and in the middle of the kitchen stood Metal-Man. His knees buckled, but he was being held up by his throat by.... A boy, probably about fourteen and was almost as tall as Metal-Man, had said gangster around the throat. His hair was completely white, as was his skin, his glazed pink eyes staring at Metal-Man with no emotion. This boy was bleeding profusely from his stomach and just below his chest. Yet he continued to squeeze Metal-Man's throat. He was on the verge of passing out from lack of oxygen, and he forgot his shells in the car. Rolla' started firing at the new kid, almost every shot aimed at his chest. Most of the bullets hit, but he didn't even flinch. Metal-Man was going limp, and the albino growled. Flossy, in a fit of panic, grabbed everything he could get his hands on and threw what he had at the kid. A bottle of beer, a candle, a meat tenderizer, a knife. Nothing was working. They didn't want to get too close, or this thing would grab them too. Finally, Flossy grabs a glass container and chucks it at the white haired kid. It breaks over his head, covering him in what appeared to be salt. A couple seconds later, Metal-Man falls from his grip, and sizzling is heard. It was coming from the wounds. Metal-Man was clutching his throat, gasping and wheezing, as he scrambled away from the now stunned white kid. His wounds were closing. Finally, after all that's left of the wounds were scars, he passes out. "Jesus, that fucker didn't even blink!" Metal-Man exclaims, having finally found his voice again. "The hell happen' in here?" Monkey asks, before noticing the blood, the salt, Metal-Man wheezing, and the albino on the floor. "Nevamind, I don' think I wanna know." +++++ All ponies present were now looking at me. Some in horror, some in shock, and others disbelief. "Hold on partner, let meh get this straight..." Applejack starts, looking at me "That thing that was choking yer buddy was you?" I sigh, "Yeah, that was me. I didn't even realize I was doing it at the time, though. Then, after they got me off of him, they did some more snooping and found a jar." Rainbow dash, the second of two ponies that weren't eyeing me fear, raises an eyebrow, "What's that have to do with anything?" Flossy sighs this time. "After I saw the jar, knew wha' happen'. It was somethin' my uncle used down in Haiti. 's called zombie powder." At the name "Zombie powder" everyone in the room looked even more nervous. "D-Does it do w-what I think it does?" Twilight asks, her voice shaking slightly. "It's used by voodoo practitioners to turn people into zombies. The other zombie powder is a drug like devil's breath, but I got hit with the real deal. I was a zombie." I finally admit. To say the following silence was deafening was an understatement. //-------------------------------------------------------// Aftermath //-------------------------------------------------------// Aftermath Everyone in the room looked at me in either disbelief or sudden apprehension, and Flossy looked like he was getting uncomfortable. "You can't seriously be telling me you're a zombie. Real funny, big guy!" Rainbow stated with a chuckle. At this, I just look at her angrily. "You think this is a joke? Before Flossy and the boys found me, I was a slave, Rainbow." I stated back, keeping my voice calm. In truth, I still found it hard to believe sometimes.... but the evidence was overwhelming. Fluttershy was hiding behind Applejack, who was looking at me skeptically. "Well, are ya still one? Ah mean, ya'll don't seem like one o' them walkin' corpses..." This time, Flossy answered for me "A dude made a zombie by voodoo can be brought back with salt. I threw a whole thing of it at 'im. But only if you make it in time. We don't think that was the right salt to fully cure his ass, but that's just what our nigga, Monkey said." "So he may still be under this... "voodoo" magic?" Twilight asked. I really, really don't like that gleam in her eye. "Yeah." I respond simply, against my better judgement. I might come to regr- "Would you mind if I studied your magic?!" Twilight asks frantically, interrupting my inner narratio- "Now calm down, Twi. This subject seems a might touchy for them, Ah'd imagine." Applejack advises quietly. Can a guy not narrate to himself anymore? Seriously! ....oh, so now they let me think. "Nah, it's okay. I kinda want to figure this out too. Useful as it is, it may come back to bite me in the ass." I say with a nod. I reach into my pocket and pull out my knife, open it with a *whir* *whir* *chink* and start cleaning my now filthy nails. "And what kind of knife is that?" Rainbow Dash asks, eying the knife curiously. "It's a butterfly knife. Really sharp, and takes someone with dexterous fingers to handle." I answer with a smile, closing it with it's signature *whir* *whir* *chink* "Now, you say you were thugs..." Rarity starts "...but aside from your rather uncouth language, you two seem almost gentlecoltly." ...Five minutes later, after me and Flossy were done laughing our asses off, I respond to the now angry Rarity. "Girl, you've only known us for a couple days. I don't know what "Thug" means to you ponies, but back in our world, the word thug lost all the street cred' it came with. The "proper" term, if you can call it that, is gangster." "Well, wrong term or not, that was terribly rude!" Rarity exclaims, sticking her nose in the air poshly. It took all my willpower not to start laughing again. "Well, is that it for the questions?" Flossy asks, doing a better job of holding in his chuckles. "What does your diet consist of?" Lyra suddenly asks. At this, we look at each other like 'Should we?' With a nod, I turn my head back to the ponies. "Fruit, vegetables, starch, and meat. And occasionally sugar." I admit with a guilty smile. And once again, they were all on edge again. Well, except Fluttershy. "O-oh, you're omnivores?" She asks, sounding almost fascinated. "I think that's the term for it, yeah." Flossy answers, breaking his silence. "Well, there are a couple restaurants here that serve the occasional gryphon that passes through, so that shouldn't be a problem." Lyra explains with a smile. Bon Bon...didn't look reassured in the slightest. But then, she's been skeptical about us since she showed up. "D-do you have to eat meat?" Rainbow asks nervously... she's really seeming out of character since we sat on the library porch that night. Should probably check on that later. "I think nuts and protein supplements could help." I scratch my head in thought. The girls seem to sag in relief, Rainbow especially. Okay, something's REALLY not right here..... Seems Flossy thought the same thing. "Yo, ya alright there Dash?" he asks suddenly. Wow, tactless. "Yeah, I'm fine." she says, shaking her head quickly. Wait.... "Where's your pink friend?" I ask, looking around. Sure enough, Pinkie Pie was gone. The ponies (guess I should start calling them "The girls" now) look around in confusion. "Who knows with that mare." Applejack sighs. I raise my eye brow at this. Probably a common thing with her, I guess. "If that's all the questions, I'm gonna go have a smoke." I say, standing up. None of the girls stood to stop me, so I walk out the front door. The sun was shining brightly, ponies loitered the streets, going about there business, stopping to stare at me occasionally. I just step to the left of the door, lean on the building, and flick out my cigarette pack. Just six left. Ah, fuck it. I take one out and light it up, taking a drag. I feel myself calming down significantly as the nicotine worked into my system, and I blow out a puff of smoke. The girls leave Lyra and Bon Bon's house, waving bye at me as they left. I just nod my head, watching the semi-busy streets of...Ponyville, I think it was. Makes a little sense. A familiar little filly passes by and glances over before stopping. "Hi mister Hoo-man!" she calls out to me with a wave. HHHHHHNNNNNNNGGGGGG!!!!! "Heya, kid! Where's your mom?" I ask, looking around for the grey pegasus. "She's at work! We got out of school early today!" she says happily "I'm gonna go find my big sister!" "Want some help?" I ask. I don't care what dimension we may be in, it's never a good idea for a kid to wander around by herself. "Sure! Thanks mister hoo-man!" She gives an adorable grin as I stand up. "Call me Frosty." I say with a smile as I start walking with her. "Okay!" As we walk down the street, I memorize the faces of everypony that stops to stare. My hands were in my pockets, my right hand idly stroking my gun, my left gripping my knife. I take another drag, narrowing my eyes, and blow the smoke away from dinky. We were walking to a park, kids playing in the sandbox, on a seesaw, almost exactly like you'd see in cartoons. They stopped to gawk at me as we entered the park. I looked around, and dinky pointed with her hoof at another unicorn, with a light pink coat and purple mane with a light purple stripe. Kinda looks like a recolored version of Twilight to me. I take my hands out of my pockets and approach her with the filly at my side. "Hi Sparkler! Mister Frosty helped me find you!" she exclaims with another adorable smile. Sparkler looks over at us, then up at me in shock. I just give a grin, spitting out my cigarette before putting it out with my shoe. "I-is that right, Dinky?" Sparkler asks. Dinky gives another nod and smiles. I stop grinning and look around at the ponies here with us. A pink unicorn filly with a light purple mane was looking at me in fascination, she had a tiara seemingly tattooed on her...flank, I think it was called. To her left was a grey normal pony with an almost white mane, and a silver spoon mark. I narrow my eyes at them, and they quickly look away. "U-um, thank you mister...Frosty, was it?" I hear Sparkler say. I turn back to them with a smile. "Not a problem, ma'am." I shrug "I just know that it's not a good idea for a little girl-er, filly to walk around by themselves." "True, and thanks again." she turns to Dinky "Let's go home, Dinky. Say bye!" "Bye Mister Frosty!" she says, then hugs me around the ankle. I reach down and ruffle her mane playfully. The two start walking away, and I start my walk back to the house. I did agree to let Twilight study me, so I better get back. There weren't a lot of ponies out now, but the ones that were didn't even glance at me. Good, I'm tired of being gawked at by freaky horses. "Hey you!" I hear a mare call from behind me. Sighing, I turn around. Well well, It's the pegasus bitch I bit earlier. And some friends. With her was a dark yellow earth pony stallion with a brown mane, and an orange pegasus with a blue mane. I focus on the dark blue mare with her hoof wrapped up and give a toothy grin. "Hey, it's tasty! And you brought some friends! Good, I was starting to get hungry." I call out with a smile. Now, her friends seemed very nervous about me, eying my teeth. Specifically, my canines. "Raindrop, I don't think we should do this..." I hear the stallion say to the blue pegasus. Raindrop, huh? "Maybe you should listen to your friend there!" I call to them, bringing out my knife and opening it *whir* *whir* *chink* before hunching down slightly in a ready stance. "I'm not done with you, monster." Raindrop says with a snarl. I take out my gun next, and they all look at it curiously. I aim it at the sky and let of a shot. *BANG* They all jump back at the noise, and ponies start to gather. I aim at Raindrop. "Last chance to back down!" I say, no longer messing around. Fuck the consequences, if she's gonna be a problem, so will I. "...This isn't over, freak." She says, turning and running, followed by her friends. I pocket my gun and knife and look around at the crowd. They quickly disperse, and I keep walking back to the house. Finally, I make it back to the sight of Lyra and Flossy waiting outside. "Yo dawg, were you been? Got scared ya disappeared, nigga." Flossy says with a sigh of relief. "Helped a filly find her big sis." I say simply, tossing him a smoke. +++++ I look out the window to my room, at the half moon, singing quietly to myself "Come on down to the city of L.A where we ride with gangsters and the pimpin's easy..." Author's Note Ladies and Gentlecolts, I'm not dead yet!! Anyway, SO sorry about the wait, but things got a little...hectic. But I'm going back to these stories,so.... WOOOOOT!!!!!! :pinkiehappy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiehappy.png //-------------------------------------------------------// A new homie //-------------------------------------------------------// Author's Note I know I said this next chapter would be a flashback chapter, but upon second thought, it occurred to me that it wouldn't make sense to put it here. Sorry! You'll get your answers, though. Pinky Promise! :pinkiesmile: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiesmile.png A new homie Me and Flossy were sitting in the front room, smoking in our new house. The light shining through the white curtains provided just enough light to not trip over the furniture. We were enjoying the silence when it was broken by a knocking at the door. Definitely a hoof, by the sound of it. "I got it, Floss." I say, getting up from the love-seat and taking a drag on my smoke. He just nods, watching as I walk to the door and whoever was knocking. I open the door to a familiar (or unmistakeable) rainbow maned, magenta eyed cyan pegasus. Rainbow looked up at me with a grin. "Heya, big guy! You guys down to hang out today?" She asks with a raised eyebrow. I look back to Flossy, who's got his hand to his chin in thought. Then, with a grin, finally answers. "You go on ahead, nigga. I'm gonna do some home decoratin' today." Bro, if only you knew how gay that sounded... I turn back to Rainbow. "I'm down, but Flossy isn't coming with us." I say, stepping out of the doorway toward Rainbow Dash and closing the door. She looks nervous for a second but it quickly goes away, replaced by a large grin. "Sweet! Let's go!" She urges, dragging me by my arm down the street. Already a place in mind? Wait...why did Flossy bail out? We continued down the street, now garnering looks of confusion instead of the usual shock or fear. Guess they're getting over my appearance- "We're here!" Rainbow suddenly says, stopping me. The other girls were waiting outside a building, looking at us with smiles... I don't like those smiles... "Well, at least you could make it, darling! Oh, you'll enjoy this!" Rarity says, way to chipper. Nervous, I look up at the large one story building in question. The sign on the door read "Ponyville Day Spa!" ....Well, this should be interesting. "Alright, what the hell am I doing here, girls?" I ask, pointing up at the sign. Applejack is trying not to laugh. "Oh, you just seemed so tense! I imagine this will do you a lot of good, darling! And don't worry, I'm hoofing the bill on this." She says, tossing her mane. Ho boy, they already payed.... "Alright, I guess I'll give it a shot. What's the worst thing that could happen?" I decide with a sigh. Who knows? These girls just might a human anatomy lesson out of this! ...wait a minute.... "Splendid! Well, let's get started!" Rarity says, walking in first. I walk in after her, followed by the girls. Well, no chance of dipping out. I feel set-up here... Behind the counter between two doors on the opposite wall were two mares, one pink with a blue mane, the other blue with a pink mane. Twins, I guess? "Hello! Velcome to Ponyville Day spa! Are you new here, Mister...?" The blue one asks me. I resist the urge to facepalm at this. My non-amusement must have shown, but after taking a better look, her eyes snapped open and a light blush glows on her cheeks. "Yes he is, girls. We have an appointment for two." Twilight says, stepping forward. The sisters nod, and the pink one opens the door to the left of the counter. "The usual." Rarity says simply as we walk in the door. What, no separate room for humans? As we enter, I see a lot of massage tables, a couple mud baths, a sauna, and tables with various lotions. Further back, a hot tub is seen. Well, this actually looks pretty nice. "I'm sorry sir, but the clothes need to come off." The pink spa mare informs me. Eh, no problem. "Alright, hold up a sec." I say, before grabbing the bottom of my shirt and lifting it over my head in a single, swift motion. The shirt drops at my feet, revealing my upper body for all to see; my relatively tone abs, chest and arms, my super pale skin, and the few scars I collected from targets who fought back. The girls were all looking at me. Some, like Rarity and Twilight, appraisingly. Others, like Rainbow and Applejack, in respect. Pinkie was just looking at me deeply in the eyes, Fluttershy was looking away, blushing. "Well, at least ya know how ta take care o' yaself." Applejack says, breaking the silence with a smile. "Yeah, kinda helps." I smile back, unbuttoning my pants next. Now rainbow was looking away, just as red as Fluttershy. Twilight continued looking on in fascination, Pinkie was still looking in my eyes, before- "Hey! You have pink eyes! I'm pink too!" she announces out of nowhere, bouncing. Well, that seems to take the edge out of the awkward silence. Finally, I drop my pants (I know how wrong that sounds, but bear with me) leaving me in my black boxer-briefs. The black really clashes with my skin, making me look even paler. Of course, that was the desired effect. "Sheesh! You're really pale, big guy." Rainbow comments, finally looking at me, keeping her eyes on mine. Hehe, she wants a peek. "Yeah, I know. It's a condition I've had since I was born. Humans don't normally have pink eyes and skin paler than a white girl." I say simply, but the joke was lost on them. Sighing, I look to the onlooking spa ponies. "Hey, you girls have any towels I can cover with?" I ask, thumb hooked in my underwear. They nod and leave to get it. "So, if humans aren't like that, why are you?" Twilight asks, ever curious. "Well, you've heard of albinos' right?" I ask. Something sparks in her eye as she puts the pieces together. "Yeah, I am one. It's a problem that affects my eyes too, but I had eyedrops and stuff for that back home. But I didn't have them when we were yanked here." I continue, lowering my head. "Well, maybe we can do something for you about it?" Twilight suggests hopefully. I shake my head at this. "I doubt it..." The sisters walk back in with a large towel, which I take, wrapping it around my waist before slipping my underwear off, still covered by the towel. "So what first?" I ask, finally ready. Rarity points a hoof to the sauna, and we walk to it, the coals already set up. I sit down on the bench, toward the end, and the girls take their seats as well. Rainbow Dash sat next to me, then Fluttershy, then Rarity, then Applejack, then Twilight, and finally Pinkie Pie. The pink spa pony pours a ladle of water onto the coals, and the steam starts to cloud my vision. With that, Rainbow asks "So what do you mean Twi can't do anything about your eyes? She's crazy powerful!" she sounds confidant in her friend. "Because someone already did. How my eyes are now is how good they'll ever be." I admit. This seems to shock her, and everyone else. "Well, who was it?" Twilight asks, again curious. "...it was a couple years ago, I was in a bit of rut because I couldn't see well enough to be any good at anything during the day, and I first found out I wasn't fully cured from...being a zombie..." I start, the girls listening patiently. "A woman found me at the park by our home, me and my homies lived there at the time... Her hair was an odd blue, and she wore all black... she sat next to me on the bench and asked why I was crying..." I could feel tears start brimming in my eyes "S-so I told her... everything that was going on. She looked me in the eye and told me 'Dry your eyes, boys aren't supposed to cry' but I couldn't..." Rainbow was looking up at me now, her own eyes reflecting how I was feeling at the moment, recalling this memory. "So she said 'Well, what if I helped with your eyes?' of course, I didn't believe her, but I said she could do what she wanted. She...did something, I don't remember exactly what, but the next thing I knew, she was gone...and I could actually see clearly, for the first time." A faint smile touches my lips "I've never forgotten that day, but I never saw her again after that..." Twilight looked like something was bugging her, but she remained silent. Tears finally started spilling from my eyes as I remember my homies back home, all we did, and all we got into together... "H-hey, you alright big guy?" Rainbow asks, being the only one who could see my tears. A timer goes off, and the door opens, showing the blue spa pony. I quickly wipe my eyes as the steam clears, showing little evidence tears were even there. With that, we walk to the massage tables, a pair of tables put together to accommodate my size. I may not be the beefiest on the street, but everyone looks up to me. Literally. I lay down, Twilight laying down next to me on the other massage table, and the ponies get to work on our backs. Surprisingly, their hooves aren't cold, or even hard... working out the kinks in my back with practiced ease. I can't hold back the sigh of content as my back and shoulders are kneaded. It was... relaxing. +++++ The rest of the spa trip went smoothly, with light chatter and some stories. The only hitch was Rarity let slip that one of the girls had a bit of a crush on me. Okay....not gonna lie, should've seen that coming. Still a little weird. Okay, VERY weird. I had to refrain making a comment about pony head-height compared to me, but I didn't want whoever it was that liked me getting any ideas. Anyway, I was on my way home, followed by Rainbow Dash and Twilight. The sun was pretty low already, and my house came into view.Twilight branched off to the left, toward the library, and Rainbow suddenly speaks up. "I saw you crying. In the sauna." she sounds like she's trying to be careful. I turn my head to her. "And?" I ask, much to her shock "I'll cry if I want to. I just miss my homies back home, and I'll bet Flossy does too." "Well...could I be your homie, big guy?" She asks. I raise my eyebrow (I seem to do that a lot) at her, thinking. "Well, we did get to hang, and you girls helped us out a lot. You know what?" she tilts her head "Why the hell not." I answer with a smile. She grins at me and holds her hoof out. I think for a minute, then meet it with my fist. Looks like I got another homie. ...but even so, I miss the guys.... //-------------------------------------------------------// Oh boy... //-------------------------------------------------------// Oh boy... It's been a couple weeks since the events of our first week here, and I've been hanging with Rainbow, our newest homie, a lot during said weeks. We got a bit more furniture and Flossy did some redecorating (Say what you will about how girly this dude's been, this nigga knows how to decorate!) and found life here to be rather peaceful. Boringly so, for me. Flossy got a job with the apple family, him being the stronger of us two, while I took the occasional odd-job to keep busy when not with Rainbow. Though something's been bothering me. The air here has started to...."taint" I should say. The smell was faint at first, but over the next couple days has grown thicker. I had a very bad feeling about this so, being the paranoid motherfucker I am (blame my being a hitman) went and bought boards and nails for our windows. I felt a little better, but asked Flossy to stay home with me, just in case. We were sitting in the living room, the windows blocked, the door locked, dead-bolted and chained, and not smoking for once. "You said ya got a bad feelin' dawg? I know you paranoid, but shit! Though, that smell in the air was kinda rank..." Flossy idly comments, eying the barricades on our current floor warily. "Yeah. I know somethings up, I just don't know what." I admit, with a slight narrowing of my eyes "But no way in hell am I wanting to find out. I'd just as soon keep my happy ass behind my barricades with a gun in my hand." "True dat, brotha!" Flossy laughs, pulling out his revolver. Until now, I don't think I've ever seen him hold the damn thing! He must be scared. "Hello? Is a-anypony home?" We immediately tense up at this. That was a trembling mares voice. Alarm bells were going off in my head as I silently stood up, flicking open my knife *whir* *whir* *chink* and slowly heading for the door. I remember that voice... Looking through the doors peephole, I saw Fluttershy standing at the door, shaking slightly. Something's not right here...her wings were open, and her hind legs were rubbing against each other. "Hey, Flossy? It's Fluttershy, but something seems off about her." I say over my shoulder to Flossy as quietly as I could. "Flutters? Off or not, how she ever be a danger, dawg?" I don't honestly care how gentle she was, anybody can become a monster in the right conditions. Don't ever underestimate shy and quiet people. "I don't know, and don't rightly care. This door stays closed." I say with finality. He just shrugs, and I walk back to my chair, not flicking my knife closed. "P-please Frosty, Flossy! I know y-you live here! Please open the door!" She pleads from the other side of the door. Should I open the door? ...Man, I feel bad about this, but take no chances. I just sit down, staring down at my knife. I left my gun on my bedside table, as a precaution. The receding *clip* *clop* of hooves told me that Fluttershy had given up, and I sigh in relief. Damnit, now I fee- *knock* *knock* *knock* "...and here we go again." I mutter, irritated, getting up. The knocking starts up again, but quicker...more urgent. I quickly my way to the door and peek through the peephole again. "R-rainbow?" I mutter, only this time in surprise. Just outside the door was our new homie, looking around nervously. Her wings were twitching, and she seemed antsy, like fluttershy- Wait... Is something affecting the ponies here? "Yo Flossy, it's Rainbow. We let her in?" I ask over my shoulder, unsure for once. "Always help a homie out, Frosty." Flossy says by way of answer. I'll take that as a yes. I unlock the doors deadbolt first, and see Rainbows ears perk up, a smile growing on her face. I unlock the knob, and open the door, leaving the chain on so it only opened enough to stick a hand through. Rainbow quickly dashes for the opening, trying to stick her head through. I'm immediately assaulted by a thick, musky smell and just barely keep from gagging. "What's going on, Rainbow? The hell is with this smell?" I ask as she pulls her head out of the doorway. "Let me in! I'll explain everything when I'm inside!" She says frantically. She sounds bothered by something. I undo the chain, and Rainbow quickly barges in. I shut the door, redo the chain and deadbolt, and turn to face her. She was looking at me, a strange light in her eyes as she beheld me. I'm not gonna lie, with as long as I've spent here and with what I've eaten, I lost a few excess pounds, and the parts of me that were a smidge soft were toned like the rest of me now. My favorite shirt was a little looser on me, but I'm getting off track. "Okay, around twice a year, mares go into their estrus cycles and get a little crazy," Rainbow starts, and my heart drops. Did she say estrus? "Da hell is that?" Flossy asks, confused. "Heat." I say simply, not taking my eyes off Rainbow Dash. "Wait, like my pitbull back-" his eyes widen slightly and snap to Rainbow Dash as well, who was looking solely at me. Her cheeks were red, her wide eyes never leaving mine. We knew EXACTLY what that meant. We just let a heat-stricken mare into our house, and I locked the door... "H-hold on! Hear me out!" Rainbow says quickly, probably sensing my mental face-palm. "I j-just wanted to ask you something, Frosty..." Apprehensively, I nod for her to go on, not taking my eyes off of her. No chances taken. "Well, I wanted to ask if...." she starts before looking away "if y-you could..." jesus, this is pitiful. "if you could help me through estrus...." she mumbles, doing a relatively okay Fluttershy impression. I couldn't hear her, and Flossy had an eyebrow raised. "Could you repeat that?" I ask, feeling a little left out, as well as nervous. "Isaidcanyouhelpmethroughmyestrusyou'retheonlyonefeelsafeaskingthis!!!" She says in one breath, quickly. Not too quick that I couldn't understand her, though. "Wait up a minute, girl! You seriously askin' my boy ova here to sleep with ya?" Flossy asks in disbelief, slipping back into his street dialect. Rainbow just nods, her blush growing and darkening. At this, my eyes widen in disbelief as well. I knew Rainbow was pretty forward, but damn! "Kind of a big request you have there....." I admit. Truth is, I wasn't sure of my disposition here. Yeah, I'm not attracted to these ponies, as they still look like horses to me, But you NEVER leave a homie high and dry (or high and wet, in this case) when you can help them out. ... Okay, I can't believe I'm doing this... but I've made my decision. Author's Note And, pray-tell, what decision is that dear Frosty? Anyway, I'M BACK EVERYPONY!!!! And currently demon eyes lahral's 1,000th follower. :pinkiehappy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiehappy.png So what will that decision be? Oh, and one final thing. I'm putting a vote here for something Frosty and Flossy find later here since the blog vote didn't go very well. Feel free to make your vote in the comments below. The deck of cards? Or the Moon and flipped cross? For those who figure out what these are, don't ruin it. Either one won't change the overall direction the story will go, it'll just give them an edge they'll need to face the challenges ahead. Don't feel as though you have to vote, but it would be appreciated. //-------------------------------------------------------// The morning after //-------------------------------------------------------// The morning after Yeah, remember when I said it was a long night? Make it a week. Because my dumb ass completely forgot that estrus is a whole week long. As can be expected, I was in bed, being cuddled by a rainbow pegasus, moderately tired despite just waking up. Poor Flossy, doubt he got any sleep with how loud Rainbow is. Looking down at said pegasus, I can't help but review what it is I've done. I've crossed a line that would make most people back home hate me, or lose respect for me, just because one of my homies really needed it. Now, do I care? ...Nah, if they don't like it, fuck 'em. As Flossy always says, "Always help a homie out, dawg!" As carefully as I could, I got out of bed and headed for the bathroom, carrying my clothes over my shoulder and looking forward to a cold shower. Thankfully, each room had a bathroom, with a bath and shower! I figured since this was an orphanage before, it would be a little more run down than this. As I walk into the bathroom, I hear Rainbow groan and toss in her sleep. I close the door with a soft click, drawing the curtain and turning on the water, setting it on a rather low temperature. I've always loved the cold, it's part of the reason I'm called Frosty. I start singing (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hp1mSx3Kiw) as I step under the refreshingly cold downpour, favoring Danny's parts of the song and scrubbing away the accumulated grime all the while. I reach for the bottle of "Mane and withers" shampoo, squirting a generous amount directly into my hair, when I hear the door to the bathroom open. Okay, this scene kinda reminds me of psycho, minus the chick. The telltale *clip* *clop* of hooves informs me that it's a pony, (probably a mare, as the mare to stallion ratio in this damn town is 4:1) so I peek through the curtains, expecting Rainbow Dash. Instead, Twilight was shuffling nervously, just inside the doorway. Why is she here? ....I should so mess with her. I lather up the shampoo in my hair quickly, spreading some of the bubbles around my more intimate areas, and open the curtains with a flourish and grin. Twilight lets out a squeak, going an even deeper shade. I frown as something clicks in my mind. How did she get in? "How did you get in?" I ask, crossing my arms over my wet, bare chest as I look down at her. She just looks down, avoiding eye contact. "I teleported... remember when you gave me some of your blood to test on for magic?" she asks, finally looking up at me. I nod slowly, though in truth I remember doing no such thing. The hell is she talking about? "Well... actually, I think we should head to the library so I can show you." she sounds nervous. Really nervous. "Alright. Just let me get dressed and grab some breakfast." I wonder what's got her so down... She leaves the bathroom, allowing me to rinse my hair out and dry off. As I pull up my cargo pants, the door opens and Rainbow sticks her head in, looking at me with a smile. Did she hear what just happened? "Hey big guy, just wanted to let you know that I gotta get to work. And..." she goes red slightly "Thanks for your help." "No problem. You're a homie now, and homies stay loyal to homies." I say simply, putting on my shirt. SHe pulls her head out of the doorway. "Well, gotta go! Catch ya later!" she says, followed by a *Whoosh* then silence. Whelp, might as well eat. I walk out of the room and head down to the first floor to our semi-stocked kitchen (which really took a hit after the week of estrus, us not being able to leave the house for a week and all). Flossy was already down here, munching on a red apple (Gala, I think). "'ey! You finally up, mornin' glory?" He jabs with a grin, which I return. "Not my fault I couldn't sleep." His smile goes a little goofy as I say this. "You, my nigga, just got laid by a pony for a week straight, an' you don' give a fuck?" He asks as I grab a green apple. "Dawg, you know I never give a fuck what other people think about me." I answer, holding up my fist, which he meets with his own. "I also gotta stop by the library pretty soon, you wanna go?" I continue, raising an eyebrow as I bit into the sour apple. "Shit, got nothin' better ta do. I'm in." He says. I feel a little better knowing Flossy's got my back. Sure, if it got to that point, I could just cap 'em, but those damn unicorns would need to people to handle. +++++ Walking through the town was an interesting affair, majority of the mares that we passed avoiding eye contact. Thankfully, I didn't see Raindrop, or I probably would have choked that bitch. As we got closer to the library, a nagging feeling makes itself known to me. Looking at the library, I feel as though something's not right... "Yo Flossy, I just got a bad feeling about this." I admit, taking my knife out, ready to flick it open. Flossy seems to sense how tense I am. "I brought my revolva' with me,dawg." He says, showing me the grip. I calm down a bit at this. No matter how powerful you might be, good luck with dodging, catching, or even following a high caliber revolver round. With that comforting thought, I approach the door, followed closely by Flossy. What if I looked in the window before going in? Nah, I'm sure we'll be okay. We got a gun, zombie strength and endurance, and a knife. I knock on the door and wait, lightly gripping my knife in my pocket. Flossy fidgets at my side, glancing around. "I got a bad feelin' 'bout this to, dawg." He admits. Just before I could answer, the door is opened. By Celestia, flanked by a smaller, blue alicorn (sister, maybe?), Twilight was towards the back of the library, looking more and more nervous as we stood there, staring at the blue alicorn, who was staring back at us in a combination of fascination and trepidation (rhymes for days). "I take it thou art the "Humans" mine sister has told me about?" she asks. Archaic, much? "Yeah, He's Flossy, I'm Frosty." I answer, flicking out my knife with it's trademark *whir* *whir* *chink* and start cleaning my nails with it. Celestia raises an eyebrow at this, but says nothing as we enter, leaving the door cracked. "I am Luna, Princess of the night. But thou may simply call me Luna." She introduces herself, straightening out slightly. Guess everyone is a little out-of-sorts after estrus. "Twilight said the results came back, and I'm pretty sure if BOTH rulers of Equestria are here, it's pretty big." Celestia nods, "Indeed. The magic still in your blood proves you to be very much a zombie, still. But, that's not all we found." I raise an eyebrow at this, curiously. Something else? Flossy's eyebrows shoot up at this, he probably didn't see this coming either. "And what might that be?" I ask, keeping my voice flat, uninterested. "Magical readings similar to another entity that used to reside here in Equestria." Luna looks down, avoiding eye contact, as Celestia explains. Celestia's eye narrow, "One that took my sister away from me, forcing me to banish her." Okay, this is getting deep. "And you found that in me? I know I'm not exactly a good guy but shit, you make it sound all evil." Luna jerk her head in my direction, clearly angry, "This is not a jest! Thou mayst be in serious danger! If nightmare moon returns, our subjects will suffer!" Nightmare moon? The hell is that? "Wait, you tryin' ta say my boy here's possessed by some kinda whacko evil spirit?" Flossy asks suddenly, breaking the silence. When he says it like that, it does sound kinda stupid. Kinda reminds me of "The Exorcist" from back home. "Not an evil spirit, Flossy. The ethereal manifestation of my sisters jealousy and hate." Celestia says, turning to face me with sad eyes. I grip my knife slightly. I don't like this, not one bit... Celestia looks down at my knife, her eyes widening slightly, "It's okay, Frosty, we're not going to hurt you." She says in a calming, motherly voice. +++++ "Relax, kid, I'm not gonna hurt you." The figure said calmingly, pulling out a bag of powder +++++ I lower my head, a tear rolling down my cheek as I recall my earliest memory, before looking the princess in the eye, angry. "I hope you forgive me for not trusting that. I suddenly show little signs similar to one equestria's biggest threats, youboth come here from canterlot, and you expect me to believe that? I don't care how nice you may be, that's complete bullshit!" Both sisters look taken aback by my sudden anger. Luna opens her mouth to retort, when Celestia cuts her off with a hoof, looking back at me. "When you say it like that, it does sound... shady." Celestia admits, "But I mean it. We also know that you being what you are, you're not very trusting. Let me prove it to you, Frosty." ...And once again, I can't believe I'm doing this. This damn place is making me soft too. "...Fine. But what are you gonna do?" I ask. Flossy looks to me, both shocked and...proud? "We are merely going to banish her from your body, Frosty." Celestia explains, nodding towards Twilight. Then, the door opens, allowing entry to the rest of the girls. Okay, do they really have everything planned out already? Well, let's get this over with. Author's Note And so it begins. //-------------------------------------------------------// What am I? //-------------------------------------------------------// What am I? As I sit there, in the middle of the six mares looking at me in worry, I get a really bad feeling in my gut. The girls were wearing necklaces of various colors, save Twilight who wore a tiara, that looked just like their cutiemarks. Said necklaces were starting to glow brightly, and I wince at the sudden light. Damn, this hurts my eyes... The light gets brighter, and suddenly, I hear a *hiss* from somewhere, before a lancing pain makes itself known in my head. "AHH!! Fuck!!" I cry out, squeezing my eyes shut while clutching my head. It feels like my head is splitting open! I see the light fade through my eyelids, but the pain wouldn't stop! I drop to my knees, thrashing around in an attempt to shake whatever this was. "Frosty!" I hear Rainbow shout, and feel a pair of hooves, and a pair of hands try to steady me. But just as I feel them, A similar pain starts up in my back, near the shoulder blades. "AAHHH!!!" Once again, I can't keep a cry of pain from escaping. What the hell is going on?! "Frosty, what's wrong?!" Rainbow asks beside me, frantically "He needs a docta!!" Flossy yells I finally manage to open my eyes, looking squarely at a worried Celestia. "Y-you... fucking liar...." Was all I managed to get out, then everything went black. +++++ How long was I out? God, this hurts.... not as bad as before though, thankfully. I try to move my hand, only getting a couple twitches in response. It feels like I'm in a bed, I barely register the feeling of a blanket, and something under my back, jabbing into my already sore shoulder blades. I gingerly crack an eye open, then immediately shut it as a bright meets it. Where's some damn eyedrops when you need them? Fucking lying Princess, said it wouldn't hurt- "I think he's waking up!" I hear Twilight say from my left, shortly before I hear the a door slam open. "Yo, Frosty! Ho, thank god you ain't dead!" Flossy says, walking up to my right "You alright man?" "It's okay she said. We're not gonna hurt you she said. And she wonders why I don't fucking trust people..." I grumble, my parched throat not letting me get to loud, and I open my eyes again, getting used to the light. Twilight was on my left, along with the other girls, looking shameful with her ears flattened to her head. Flossy was on my right with a glass of water. I was in what looked like a hospital room, "Here dawg, you been out a bit." He says, handing said glass to me. Something seems.... off. And whatever is under me is really starting to get on my damn nerves. "The fuck happened?" I ask, a little anger creeping into my voice. Flossy looks over at the girls with narrowed eyes. "Good question. Well?" He asks, looking at each of then in turn, "Somebody betta start talkin'! The fuck is that on my niggas' head?!" What? I slowly put a hand to my forehead, only to come into contact with something hard, conical....wait a fucking second! "Twilight..." I start, a little panic creeping into my voice "Is this what I think it is...?" "Frosty, try not to panic-" Twilight starts before I cut her off "I'm gonna if you don't tell me WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED!!!" I finally snap, making the girls cringe back at my sudden change in volume. "You maaay or may not have a horn now....and wings..." She says by way of an answer, making me pause. Horn. Wings. What. the. hell. Are they messing with me? No way in hell do I have wings, let alone a horn! "...You're kidding me, right? If this is a joke, it ain't funny!" I try to sit up, only to have Twilight push me back down with a hoof. "Frosty, please calm down... we don't know what happened..." Twilight almost begs, her voice cracking. "Look at the bright side! You have wings, so you can fly now! And if you have a horn, maybe you can use magic too!" Pinkie says suddenly, popping up by Flossy with a grin on her face, then she looks at my eyes and her grin grows bigger "And your eyes look super cool!" "Get me a mirror." I say, having reached my wits end. "No fucking way I changed that much." Rarity walks up to me, levitating a hand mirror (hoof mirror?) up to my face, letting me see for myself. My eyes widen, I can't believe what I'm seeing... A bluish white, six inch spiral horn was jutting from my forehead, ending in a semi-sharp point, giving me about another 3 inches in height. My pink eyes now had slitted pupils, my Sclera now pure white, with no hint of veins. The girls look at me nervously as I just lay back down, my "wings" jabbing into my shoulders again. What the actual.... You know what? That's the last time I trust a fucking princess. First a zombie, then a half zombie, now some human/alicorn mix? What, am I gonna have hooves soon, too? Then turn into a dragon, maybe?!?! "Can you girls give me and mah homie a minute?" Flossy asks, breaking my descent into hysteria. The girls leave, except for Rainbow dash, who walks up to my left. "I'm not leaving. We're homies now, remember?" she asks, to which Flossy nods his head. "True. Alright, Frosty, here's what happened. They flashed some kinda light at you, then you started thrashing around and screaming before ya passed out. Then the horn just grew, and the wings just ripped themselves right outta ya back! Not gonna lie, I though I was gonna puke." Flossy explains, "So we took ya to this hospital, but they didn't know what ta do with ya. Good thing ya didn't need nothin'." "I'll tell you what I need, a handsaw." I comment dryly, making Rainbow wince, looking at me with wide eyes. "Dude, don't even joke about that! Having wings isn't that bad! And I guess you're technically an alicorn-" "Please don't say that again." No way in hell. I'm a human, nothing will change that. "Does that make ya a prince?" Flossy asks as if he didn't just hear me say that. "Shit, I can see mah nigga bein' royalty!" "Flossy, if this is payback for a week of no sleep, knock it off. This is serious. Besides the princesses, are their any other alicorns?" "Just Cadence, Twilight's sister in law." Rainbow answers with a shrug. I open my mouth to promptly panic when there's a knocking at the door. Flossy gets up, walking to the door before opening it. "Ya mind? We're t-" He cuts himself off as he sees who's at the door. Princess Luna was at the door, looking slightly worried. Yeah, thanks for caring so much you- "May I come in?" Luna asks. Flossy looks back at me with a raised eyebrow. You know what? I need to have a serious talk with her. I nod, and Flossy steps aside to let her through. She looks squarely at me, her eyes widening at the sight of my horn, then my eyes. "I apparently got wings now, too." I comment, unamused. "W-we didn't think thou would be put through such pain..." her eyes start to water ever so slightly "oh dear mother, what have we done?" Okay, I know I'm supposed to be mad (and don't get me wrong, I still am) but I never liked seeing women cry... Unless I'm hired to kill them. "Hey now, it's not like you knew this would happen." I concede, looking away. "Although I'm a freak of nature now." "Mine sister and I feel terrible about what has happened to you..." I turn to look at her again, meeting her ashamed eyes with my new pink, slitted ones. "Wouldst thou ever find it in thy heart to forgive us?" "...Is there a way to turn me back?" I ask, remembering my little bout of hysteria and checking under the blanket. Yep, I still got feet. "...we have tried, whilst thou was unconscious. We cannot." Are you serious right now? "I'll think about it." I say, looking down at my hands, "That hurt like a bitch, though." "We must be going, now. Almost time to bring in the night. Again, we are dearly sorry, Sir Frosty. And mine sister has a message, before I leave. As it seems thou art an alicorn-" my eye twitches "-Mine sister would like to adopt you into the royal family." ........... "What?" Author's Note Well, didn't see that coming! And I'm the author! :pinkiegasp: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiegasp.png As always, let me know if you find any grammar or spelling mistake in the comments and I'll get right on that. :derpytongue2: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/derpytongue2.png //-------------------------------------------------------// Induction pt.1 //-------------------------------------------------------// Induction pt.1 "What?" The hell did she just say? "Dear Tia would like to adopt you into the royal family." Luna repeats, trying to read my face. Me, a hitman for my hood, becoming royalty? "Could you leave the room for a minute? I need to discuss this with my homies here." I ask her, looking her in the eyes. She hesitates for a minute, but finally nods, stepping outside the door. Flossy closes it behind her, and immediately turns to me, as does Rainbow. "Aight, we gotta talk nigga. They want yo ass to join their family? Shit, this is huge, man!" Flossy exclaims, putting a hand to his forehead and pacing, before seeming to come up with an idea, "Hey, if you joined the royal family, maybe we could find a way to get home!" At this, my eyes widen, and so do Rainbow's. I haven't even thought of that! "You know what? Maybe you're right. And I want to get you home, at the very least." I say, going into contemplation. If I joined the royal family, I may have enough resources to find a way back to earth. But at the same time, what kind of responsibilities would that entail? "Call Luna back in." I say, making my decision. Flossy opens the door. Luna walks in, looking at me once again. "Well? How dost thou answer mine sisters invitation?" She asks, sounding genuinely curious. "I agree. But on one condition." I answer, making Luna raise an eyebrow. "And what would thy condition be?" "Albinism." I answer with a serious face, getting a chuckle out of Rainbow and a hoot out of Flossy, Luna just looking at me in surprise. "In all seriousness, though, if I'm gonna join the family, I want researchers working on a way to send stuff back to earth." "Thy home, correct?" Luna asks with a smile "Yeah." I look over at Flossy, "Hey, I wanna take you with me, but you have a job here, and someone needs to watch the house. What do you wanna do?" "I'm stayin' here, dawg. But if you need ol' Flossy here, just write, man!" He replies with a smile. I feel a little better, knowing Flossy will watch the house (And staying out of sight of the other royals. Politics, now that's the stuff that'll kill ya) and turn to Rainbow Dash "You and the girls can come visit any time, alright?" She nods, with a somewhat forced smile. "Hey, don't worry! I'll be fine!" I pull her into a hug, eliciting an *eep* from her. "A-alright, alright big guy!" She says with a giggle "Come to Canterlot tomorrow for your coronation, Frosty. But you may pick your title now, to avoid confusion. Will you be a count, a duke, or a prince?" "Wouldn't I have to lead an army or something to be a duke? And unless you plan on giving me land, I can't be a count. So I'll be a prince." I can't help but feel like a showoff when I do that. Luna seems mildly impressed as well. "Prince it is. Though our nephew may take that as a challenge to his rank." I grin toothily as Luna says this, causing Flossy, Rainbow, and Luna to flinch. What? "Let him come." I say simply, chuckling. With that, Luna nods before opening the door and leaving. Rainbow looks back to me. "Dude, your teeth looked wicked!" She exclaims. My teeth? "Flossy, is there another mirror in here?" I ask. He shrugs, looking around the room. I put a finger to my teeth, and wince in pain, pulling it back. There was a cut on my finger from where it touched my tooth, and I grin again. "Oh, I could get used to this." +++++ Seeing as how nothing was wrong with me (save the wings, horn, eyes and teeth) I was released from the hospital, finally getting a look at my new wings. They were large, bat-like wings in the same bluish white as my horn, with a span of 8 feet. Yeah, I could get used to this, now that I'm not going hysteric! "So, with these new wings, I wonder if I can fly?" I wonder out loud, giving them an experimental stretch and earning a couple *pop*s. "And if that's a horn, maybe you can use magic!" Rainbow suggests "Though, flying is cooler." "Aight, jus' don' hurt yaself, nigga. Rememba, you gotta through that coronation." Flossy reminds me with a barely contained grin. As we walked back to the house, ponies stopped to stare just like my first week here. Some of them went wide eyed as their jaws would drop to the ground. Some would hurriedly bow, trembling. Some would rush to get out of my way. All in all, I once again felt like a freak. But do I care? Not a bit. Finally, we make it to the house. Flossy unlocks the door, and the three of us walk in, crashing on the sofa (or in my case, my chair) and Flossy pulls out the smokes. "Yo, pass me one!" I say as Flossy pulls one out. He tosses me one, and a lighter. Actually, I want to try something. I put the cigarette in my mouth and focus on the end intensely, bringing it into sharp focus. Burn With a flicker, a tiny flame lights the smoke before going out. Flossy and Rainbow are looking at me in shock as I hold up the unused lighter. That was pretty damn cool! Let's see if I can do it again! I focus on Flossy's unlit cigarette, bringing the end into focus again. Burn Flossy's smoke lights up, and I can't contain an excited (and totally manly) giggle. Yep, no more paying for lighters! Is this magic? "Dawg, that's cool a' shit!" Flossy exclaims, taking a drag. I quickly take off my shirt and toss it to a slightly blushing Rainbow Dash. "Cover your nose and mouth with that. If you're gonna be a wonderbolt, no second hand smoking for you." I instruct, taking a drag on mine. Rainbow goes a little redder, but does so. Hey, at least I wash that shirt daily! "I guess I should try flying next. After this, of course." I comment, relaxing as the the nicotine (or whatever these ponies put in their smokes) works its way into my system. "Too bad you don't have pegasi wings! They're really soft!" Rainbow comments, somewhat muffled by my shirt. "Yeah, but preening would probably be a pain in the ass, and I don't have to worry about feathers being ripped out." I point out. Truth is, I like these bat wings. The feathered wings would make me look too much like an angel, and an angel is one thing I am not. "Actually, I think I wanna try flying now." I decide, looking down at the end of my cigarette. Umm...extinguish? The cigarette goes out, and I promptly feel badass, getting up and stretching my wings. It shouldn't be this easy to control my wings.... I walk out the door, garnering mixed looks of fear and shock from everypony (did I really just think that?) that was passing by. My eyes lock with a familiar blue pegasus, who visibly pales at the sight of me. I just give her a toothy grin, and she bolts. Rainbow walks beside me, and looks up at me. "Okay, for take-off, you may need a running start for your first couple times- oh yeah, those are bat wings, you won't need a running start. Just flapping your wings won't let you fly, you have to cup the air with your wings with every flap to stay airborne." She instructs. In all honesty, I think I may be a power flier, not a speed flier like Rainbow. +++++ Well, flying is tiring as hell, but now I can get from point "A" to point "B" without dropping like a rock. "You made a lot of improvement, big guy! I know your body isn't as aerodynamic as a pegasus body, but you'd definately make a great power flier!" Rainbow says with a smile. See? What did I say earlier? "Didn't flying could be that hard, first time or not!" I sigh, rubbing my shoulder. "Can I ask you a favor, Rainbow?" Her ears perk up, so I take that as a sign to continue. "Could you explain to the girls what's happened so far, and have them meet up at our place?" I continue. She smiles, "Sure thing, big guy. We'll meet you over there." She responds, stretching her wings before taking off. I walk back to the house, having flown to town hall with Rainbow, garnering the looks of those who passed again, before I hear a familiar voice. "Mister hoo-man!" I know that voice anywhere! I look to my left, seeing little Dinky running towards me with a smile on her face. I kneel down and open my arms, which she jumps into with a giggle. "Heya, Dinky! How's your sister?" I ask, ruffling her mane. "She's been pretty sad, and mommy and I don't know why." She explains, somewhat worried. "What happened? You have wings! And a horn!" "An....accident happened, Dinky. Can you keep a secret?" I ask, to which she smiles up at me with a nod. " The princesses are gonna crown me as a prince!" I whisper into her ear, making her eyes go wide, and her smile even wider. "Cool!" She exclaims loudly, earning a chuckle from me. "I'll come visit sometime. Are Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon still bullying you?" I ask, to which she shakes her head happily. "Nope!" "That's good. Well, I gotta get home, Dinky. I have to get ready to go to Canterlot tomorrow." I explain, getting up and setting her down gently. She looks sad for a minute, then perks up, "Can me, sis and mommy go to your coronation?" She asks, excitedly. How does she know that word? You know what? I've lived here long enough to know not to question shit. "Sure, Dinky." I answer with a smile. She hops in circles around me excitedly. "Now, your sis is probably worried about you, and I need to get home. See you at the coronation tomorrow?" I ask, making her stop hopping and smile "Yep! Bye!" She hugs my legs before walking down the street. Finally taking notice of my surroundings, I notice a couple mares looking at me with knowing smiles on their faces. Damnit, this place is making me soft, and now they know it...but who can say no to that little filly? +++++ Sitting in my chair, I look at the six girls sitting in front of my chair, who look back at me with looks that said "Is it true?" "Girls, as Rainbow has probably told you, Celestia is adopting me into the royal family. For what reason, I wish I knew," I start off, making the girls (Save Rainbow and Pinkie) gasp, "and as of tomorrow, I will be a..."prince" I guess. But just know that this is only a title for the moment, as I don't know what my new responsibilities may be. But just know that, prince or not, I'll always be there to help you guys. You've done that for me and Flossy, and we "Jacks" never forget our debts." "Well, it's not like we would've left you guys out there!" Twilight protests weakly, trying to hide a small smile. "And it's the fact that you didn't that I'm thankful for. I'll always be there if you need me, and I may need your help from time to time, so although this is a stupid question, can I count on you girls?" "Of course, darling! We'll be there for you too!" Rarity answers with a smile. "Do ya even need to ask?" Applejack answers, tipping her hat. "O-of course I will...that is, if you want..." I barely hear Fluttershy "Do I get to throw you a "Congratulations on becoming a prince" party?" Pinkie asks in one breath, to which I nod, making her smile grow wider as well. "Of course I'll be there too." Twilight says simply. These responses made me pretty happy, but the next one was the best by far. "Dude, what is it you two always say? Always help a homie." Rainbow answers with a cocky grin, holding her hoof out. Me and Flossy both meet it with our fists, smiling with them. It's nice to know we got each others backs, and though I hate to admit it, I was actually pretty nervous about tomorrow. But now, I can walk with my head held high. Author's Note As always, let me know if you see any spelling and grammar mistakes in the comments and I'll get right on that. All I have to say about this is this is gonna be good! :pinkiesmile: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiesmile.png But can Frosty bear the title of "Prince" without buckling under the pressure? We'll see. :pinkiecrazy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiecrazy.png //-------------------------------------------------------// Induction pt.2 //-------------------------------------------------------// Induction pt.2 It was 7:00 and I was now headed for the train station, having just gotten up half an hour ago, not wearing a shirt (as it would hinder my wings, and I'm too lazy to have rarity adjust it.), carrying a bag of bits, my knife, and my gun. I could barely sleep that night, not knowing what to expect. This wasn't a hire for a hit, this was the day I would be crowned a prince! I'm gonna be royalty after today! And I was nervous. Truth is, it's not the fact that I'm gonna be royalty that had me worried. It's how the ponies that are attending today (on REALLY short notice, but I'm not stressing over that too much) will react. How would the rest of Equestria handle having an alicorn prince when they're so used to being governed by princesses? And the fact that I'm still somewhat human complicates things a bit... I cut off my train of thought as the train station comes into view, the light from the ticket booth somewhat hazed by the smoke from the train. I approach the booth, and the bored looking mare behind the counter. She doesn't seem to take notice of me, so I clear my throat, causing her to glance up, and her eyes to slam open in shock. She suddenly didn't seem so bored anymore. Her brown coat was starting to dampen slightly with sweat as she glanced at my horn, then my wings. "I need a ticket to Canterlot." I say simply, reaching into my bag of bits. "T-that'll be twenty b-bits." she explains. For a second, I thought they were gonna be expensive! i count twenty bits out of the bag and slide them into the ticket window, and grabbing the ticket which was immediately given to me afterwards. I look down at the ticket as I walk into the warm train station, which read, Train to Canterlot, Departure time 7:20 Well, looks like I got here early. I look around for a bench, finding one near the entrance and taking a seat when I hear, "Mister Hoo-man!" I hear from behind me, and can't help but smile at the familiar, excited voice. I turn around to see Dinky walking quickly towards me, her usual smile present. She was being followed by Sparkler, and yet not their mother... "Heya, Dinky! You got up early too?" I ask, looking down at the purple-gray unicorn filly, who just nods eagerly. "H-hello Frosty.! It's been a while, huh?" Sparkler says as she approaches, trying and failing to keep the shock out of her voice. It was probably what everyone and their mother freak out about when they see me now. "Yeah, it has. As you can probably see, a lot's happened." I respond with a stretch of my leathery wings, earning me a couple pops, "Are you girls coming to my coronation today?" "Yeah. You did kind of invite us, after all." Sparkler responds with a smile, relaxing a little, "And Dinky was so excited when you did, how could I say no?" Said filly hopped up onto the bench, snuggling up to my leg with a giggle. Okay, the levels of adorableness coming from her are gonna give me a heart attack!! "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm a little nervous about how the rest of Equestria will handle having a human/alicorn prince? I know there's already a prince, but he doesn't rule over anything. I so many unknown factors..." "Aw, come on Frosty, it won't be that bad!" She responds. Before I could argue further, A train whistle goes off, making Sparkler jump, startled. "I think we need to board." I comment, getting up from the bench. The doors to the almost cartoon-ish train slide open, and a conductor pony walks off, looking around before catching sight of us. "Three going to canterlot?" He asks, not shocked in the slightest. Huh. "Yeah." I answer simply, walking toward the now open doors, followed by the two sisters. He nods, taking our tickets and punching holes in them with his horn, which honestly looked pretty funny to me. "Enjoy the trip." He says with a nod, which I return. With that, we step inside the train car. *Dong!* Correction, I tried to get on the train car but hit my horn on the top of the doorway. The inside of the train car was lined with cushioned seats on either side, low enough for pony use. I sit down at the one closest to the door, rubbing my sore horn. Man, I wish Flossy could be here with me, but I don't know how politics works here, and this may be safer for him to be with the apple family. "What's wrong, Mister Hoo-man?" Dinky asks, breaking my train of thought. She currently held the seat to my left (as the only thing to my right was the door) and was looking up at me with concern. "Nothing, Dinky. I'm fine, don't worry." I smile, patting her head, "Well, except for hitting my horn earlier." she giggles at this. She really is an adorable little filly. "That was kind of funny." Sparkler admits with a snort. I look at her with mock offense, putting on a dramatic air. "Oh, my pain is amusing, is it dear Sparkler?" I ask, sticking my nose in the air- *dong!* -and hitting the wall behind me with my horn again, making me wince. At this point, Sparkler is rolling with tears running down her cheeks as she tried to catch her breath. Dinky was giggling like mad, almost imitating her sister. "Okay, the horn is gonna take some getting used to." I grumble, rubbing the tip of said horn gingerly with two fingers. It almost felt like weakly hitting a funny bone, but in your head. "W-well *snork* you'll get used to it." Sparkler manages to say. At that moment, a voice is heard blaring over the intercom. "All aboard the 7:20 train for Canterlot! Last call for the 7:20 train!" At that, the doors open again, and ponies of various colors pile in, filling all the seats in our car (and maybe the next car over). A couple look over at me with raised eyebrows. One mare even calls out to me, good-humored, "If it's you're coronation ceremony, what're you doing on the train?" Oh, I had to do this. "I'm just coming along for the ride...and budget cuts are a bitch." I respond simply. After a second, I pick up a slowly growing series of chuckles from the ponies that weren't stunned by my profanity. "True enough, youngin!" I hear an elderly stallion call over the laughter. I just give my own slight chuckle as the doors slide closed, and the train begins to move, departing for Canterlot. I glance down at Dinky, who by that point was bouncing in excitement. Her sister was a little better at hiding hers, but I could still see it in the way she was tapping her hoof. I figured there would be more negative emotions and less excitement... But then again, these are ponies we're talking about here, not humans. "So, after you become prince, can we come visit you?" I hear Dinky ask over the general background chatter. "Of course you can! Why wouldn't you?" I respond, playfully poking her tummy, earning me a squeal and giggle. "Well, being royalty isn't all fun and games, one would think." Sparkler answers for Dinky with a shrug, "Though, what kind of responsibilities you'll be stuck with, who can say?" "True enough. But if there's one thing I'll never change, is I'll always make time for my friends." I continue, "Because in truth, friends are all I ever had." "What about family?" Dinky asks, looking up at me, her big, yellow eyes curious. "Don't have one. At least, not that I remember. It's a little complicated, D." I answer, ruffling her mane. Sparkler raises an eyebrow at this, but doesn't comment thankfully. +++++ Finally, after what feels like an overly long ride, the train begins to slow down, and a voice blare over the intercom. "Now arriving at Canterlot station. Prepare to depart the train." With that, I stand up from the seat, steeling my nerves. Why was I so nervous? I was a fucking hitman, I still am! ...Maybe because murder was the answer last time, whereas with this, I actually have to work with peaceful people-er, ponies...maybe I'm not a hitman anymore? I couldn't see myself killing any of these ponies for money... This place really is getting to me. "Hey, we're here Frosty!" Sparkler says loudly, waving a hoof in front of my face. "Sorry, got lost in thought there for a second." I say, walking towards the open doors and into the painfully bright sunlight. Author's Note The next chapter is when the actual coronation takes place, just a heads up. Sorry for the cliffhanger, but I'm REALLY tired and wanted to get a chapter out, as I've been meaning to do. Anyway, see ya in the comments. //-------------------------------------------------------// Induction final part //-------------------------------------------------------// Induction final part As I stepped out of the train and into the light of day, the first thing that crossed my mind was I need sunglasses. The streets were bustling with ponies going about their business, some wearing clothes and some not, or getting ready for (I guess) the coronation. Majority of the ponies at the station stopped to stare at me as I passed, mouths open and wide-eyed. A small few bowed as I passed, and I try not to grin at that. Well, maybe this wouldn't be so bad! I take a look at the buildings, and can't help but stare in wonder at the sight of so many mansions, fancy shops, and beautifully colored buildings whose purpose eluded me at the moment. Sparkler lets out a giggle at my reaction, though it sounded more nervous that anything. "Yeah, Canterlot is pretty neat, even if most ponies here are completely posh." she comments, levitating Dinky onto her back with a pinkish glow. "Yeah, the city we lived in on earth wasn't nearly this nice." I comment, looking around again before stopping, my eyes locked onto a green earth pony. He wore a black top hat and suit, had a red mane and green eyes, and the saddlebags he wore bulged slightly, but not in coins. But that's not what had my attention about him. It was the fact that he was walking towards me, not in the least perturbed by the fact that I was showing my new nightmarish teeth. "Well I say, it's the soon-to-be prince! Are you excited about your coronation today?" He asks. I glance at his cutiemark and see what looks like a pot of gold. "Not really." I lie, keeping a straight face. What's this guys angle... "Well, I'm glad I caught you before the ceremony, my family and I wanted to give you something!" He says happily, before sliding the saddlebags off his back. Is this guy kissing up to me? Using both hooves, he pulls out a white, egg shaped object with a blue and pink spiral. "The egg of a dragon." The earth pony explains with a prideful grin. Well, that explains the egg shape. Wait a minute... A dragon egg? He holds it out to me, so I gently take it, grunting at the unexpected weight. Jesus, this thing is dense! "Thank you, mister...?" He never did mention his name. "I'm Emerald Rain, I work with the equestrian bank. If I'm to be terribly honest with you, it's about time we had another prince that doesn't seem like a complete twat." He says with a grimace. Okay, not gonna lie, I was probably laughing for about 4 minutes, drawing looks from everyone (or everypony, I should say) who passed by. "So this other prince rub you the wrong way?" I ask, having finally caught my breath. "You could say that." He answers simply, before looking up at the sky, "Well, I best be off. I do believe I'll see you at the coronation?" "Well, it is mine, so yeah." We share a chuckle as he walks away and I put the egg under my arm. I turn back to Sparkler, who by that point had her jaw on the ground, staring at the egg. "He...He gave you a Dragon's egg!" "What, is that supposed to mean something?" I ask, raising an eyebrow. "Not specifically, but getting one away from the mother is really difficult, and life threatening." At this, both my eyebrow were up. Why go through so much danger just to get an egg for me? "Well, at least this is better than a chicken egg. Though I'll admit, I've always wanted a chicken." I put a hand to my chin in mock thought. "Hey, if you don't want it, I'll take it!" Dinky speaks up from Sparklers back. I just chuckle, covering the egg with my other arm. "No way, it's mine!" At that, she giggles, and Sparkler smiles, shaking her head. +++++ I was approaching the admittedly HUGE castle, it's golden gates gleaming brightly in this damnable sunlight. Definitely need to see about getting sunglasses before the day is out. With the sun beating down on my pale, almost translucent upper body, and the warm dragon egg under my left arm, I was sweating like no tomorrow. Sparkler looked over at me, raising an eyebrow. "You're getting shiny there, Frosty. You okay?" She asks. "Frosty's currently melting at the moment, please try again later." I say, wiping my forehead. I'm surprised I didn't get sunburned yet! We walked toward the guards at the gate, who were looking on impassively as we approached, holding spears. The guard to the left looks over me and the girls, before opening the gate with the hoof not holding the spear. Huh, I guess some things don't change no matter where you are... As we approach the doors to the large, white stone castle, I feel...something, coming from the egg. Almost like a baby when it kicks it's mother, you could say. I look down at the egg, expecting it to glow or something, but it looks no different than before. Guess that's what I get for my past interest in the fantasy genre. "So, how long does i-" I get cut off by the doors opening before us, revealing the regal sisters...my soon to be aunts, I guess. "Ah, Frosty! I'm glad you came early." Celestia says with a motherly smile. I just squint my eyes at her, still angry for the other day. Sure, I got wings and magic because of it, but it hurt like hell. And she lied to me, on top of that. Now, I may be a killer, a "thug" some would put it, but if I know what I'm gonna do is gonna hurt, I let them know. Sparkler bows, with Dinky bowing on her back. I just stand there, staring at Celestia. She sighs, "Well, come. Let's get you ready." before turning and walking back through the doors, followed by Luna, then me. I wave to Sparkler and Dinky before the doors close, then follow after the sisters. "I realize you aren't happy with right now, but I truly didn't mean harm unto you, Frosty." Celestia speaks up after a minute or two. I don't say anything, just taking my knife and flicking it open loudly *whir* *whir* *chink* and rubbing my thumb along the blade, observing my reflection in the polished metal. My now spliced, unnerving pink eyes gazed back at me, my mouth open slightly, giving me a look at my now razor sharp, white teeth. "Whether or not you meant for it to happen, sorry doesn't make my monstrous appearance go away." I finally answer, making Celestia look back at me sadly. Luna looks like she wants to say something, but every time she looked at me to say something, she would look away, losing her nerve I guess. She did mention someone called Nightmare Moon a while back. Do I look like her or something? The sisters stop in front of a set of medium sized, double doors before Celestia speaks up again, "The tailor will be here soon to take your measurements-" "Actually, I don't want to wear a shirt for this. You ponies rarely wear clothing, so I think it'd be fitting for me to only wear pants in becoming one of their royals." I cut her off. Luna raises an eyebrow, "Are you sure?" Celestia asks, almost in disbelief. "Yeah." I say simply. This could be seen as a step in the right direction for gaining the ponies trust. Although, I'm not going to go out there completely naked just for the sake of earning trust. "I have been meaning to ask you, sir Frosty, but why did you agree to become a prince?" Luna asks, only this time without the olden-time theme she had last time. Huh, weird. "I'm doing this mostly for Flossy. If there's a way to get back home, I want to at least make sure Flossy can get back to the hood." I then flick the knife closed *whir* *whir* *chink* "Even if that means I stay stuck here." "You truly care for him, don't you?" Luna asks, seemingly surprised by my answer. "He not only saved me, but gave me the closest thing to family I ever had, and never left my side when I needed him. It's only fair that I do what I can for my homie. If anyone deserves to go back, it's him." Luna, after hearing this, got a thoughtful look on her face, and Celestia just smiles. "Did Twilight tell you how me and him met?" I ask Celestia, who nods. Luna looks at us, curious. "How?" She asks simply, looking at Celestia. "Frosty here was made a zombie through some form of human magic, and Flossy unknowingly freed his mind. He still retains his zombie strength and endurance, as well as his pain resistance." Luna's eyes grow wide at this, looking at me in disbelief. "I think we've dallied long enough." I say, cutting off whatever it was Luna was gonna say, "Let's get this over with, carrying a dragon egg is tiring." Celestia just nods, leading the way down the hall. I just follow silently, Luna walks off, probably to sleep. She is the princess of the night, so she really shouldn't be up this late in the day. I reach into my pocket and smile as my fingers wrap around the cardboard box I knew so well. I open it, taking a cigarette out, and focus on the unlit end. Light Well, the once unlit end. As I take a drag, calming down, Celestia looks back at me with a wrinkled nose. "I was not aware you are a smoker, Frosty." she states simply. "Well, it helps me calm down. And if I'm still largely dead, what harm could it do to me?" "While that is true, think of the others who may be in your company at the time. While your lungs may not be affected, somepony else might be in pain because of it." My small smile drops as she says this and my eyes squint, "First off, it's not like I smoke all the time. Second, you're the last person I want telling me to think of other people's pain." I snap before taking another drag, trying to mellow out. She almost looks hurt at this comment, but says nothing. Is she really this soft all the time? Or am I just some special case? We now stopped just outside a huge set of double doors, and she motions for me to wait, walking through. As the doors open, I hear the chatter of many, many ponies. Was this the throne room? Maybe now would be a good time to try something out. +++++ Having been waiting outside the door for a while, and managing to get my little trick to work, I was actually growing bored. That is, until the door opens and a guard beckons me over. I walk up to him, and he states, "The princess summons you now, Sir Frosty." Alright, let's see how this goes. Play (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DelhLppPSxY) I can't help but smile as the opening riff plays loud and proud, and I step through the doorway, into the throne room filled with thoroughly confused ponies. As I walk to the throne occupied by Celestia, more and more ponies stop what they're doing and look at me. Some ponies actually start bobbing their heads to the music. Looks like there's hope for these ponies yet! Those that weren't enjoying the music were watching me intently. I had my wings fully outstretched, matching my footsteps with the drumbeat, my face set in what I can only call fierce determination. By the time I approach the throne, those ponies who were enjoying the music were clapping or stomping along to the beat, ignoring the glares and scowls of those who didn't. Celestia reaches forward, touching my horn with hers, causing a blinding flash. As my vision clears, I see her levitating three crowns, one of what looks like gold, one of silver, and one of steel. Each one was decorated with a different kind of gemstone. The first was decorated with rubies, the second with sapphires, and the third with some kind of jet black stone. Oh wait, those are jets. I reach for the crown of steel, plucking it out of the air and putting it on my head before the other two crowns disappear. I turn again to face the audience, and find that majority of the audience was bowing. To me. "Frosty, your speech if you'd please." I hear Celestia urge. A speech? I was supposed to have a speech ready?! Welp, time to wing it! Play (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJbrTgUL0Dk) "Citizens of equestria! Lend me your ears!" I call, startling everyone (including myself) with the power of my voice. "I know that I am, in fact, not a pony! However, don't think for a second that means I'll turn my back on you!! You have all, in some way, helped me and my best friend to get by while until we could stand on our own two feet! You aided us in our time of need when you could have easily kicked us out, left us to fend for ourselves. a couple even took the time to become our friends, our companions in this foreign world, and I'll never forget it!!" Ponies were lifting their heads to look at me now, some in awe, some in pride. All were speechless. "I promise you this, here and now! Never will I turn my back on you, nor your friend, nor your family! I will not push justice aside to fit my own agenda! I will never falter, never stand down! I promise you this, as a prince, as a friend, as a stranger and ruler..." I take a deep breath "I know that there are those who would fight, and die, for me, for your princesses, and your country!" I pound my chest with my right hand clenched in a fist "DON'T THINK FOR A SECOND THAT I WON'T DO THE SAME FOR YOU!!!" Some of the ponies had tears in their eyes at this point, but all in attendance were no longer suspicious of me, I don't think. "WHAT SAY YOU PONIES?!?!" The crowd were all cheering and stomping after I said this, and amidst the noise of a throne room of ponies, I could hear ponies chanting, "Frosty! Frosty! Frosty!" Though I did wing that speech, I meant every word. I think I did good today. Author's Note For those wondering, I actually did come up with that speech on the fly, if you couldn't tell. As always, if you see any mistakes or errors, let me know in the comments. Also, props to Solemn Blade for picking what the next homie will be (the soon to be dragon) //-------------------------------------------------------// The afterparty (and getting backup) //-------------------------------------------------------// The afterparty (and getting backup) I was currently in the castle dining hall, having undergone the coronation not two hours ago, for the "after party" they called it. Even though the music wasn't playing, the ponies were still bobbing there heads to the previous music as they chatted, danced, ate and drunk. Most shockingly, however, none of the ponies present showed any outward hostility toward me, and seemed to genuinely like me. Yeah, I may do what I can to protect them, but I don't trust that for a second. I don't care how accepting a species ponies may be, there's always three or four with an ulterior motive of some sort. Right now, I was talking with an almost tipsy gentleman-er, gentlecolt- with my dragon egg still under my arm. I haven't let go of it since Emerald Rain gave me it. "That was quiet the speech, your highness! I must say, I haven't felt like that since my days in the guard!" he chuckled, breaking my inner monologue. He was a pinkish white unicorn with a blue mane and a suit covering his cutiemark, and a hat covering his mane. "Yeah, I guess words hold power here in equestria." I answer with a slight grin. These ponies getting tipsy, and some completely wasted, was actually really funny. I mean, have you ever seen a horse get drunk and try to walk, let alone dance? Priceless. "Say, if you're interested, my daughter wishes to meet you dearly!" "Maybe. It's always a pleasure meeting new faces." I have no idea when I became so... diplomatic, I think it was called, but man, I'm glad it happened! Nice to know I'm not making a total ass out of myself in front of the "Elite" "Glad to hear it! Well, I must tell her the good news, I'll "Catch you later" as the kids say nowadays." it took everything I had not to face-palm at that. The moment he steps away, another pony steps into his place. this one was a mare wearing a body-hugging blue dress, a slightly darker shade than her coat, with a pink mane. She was probably an earth pony, as she had no wings or horn. Her light blue eyes gazed at my eyes, then glanced at my crown of steel (My name for my crown, sounds awesome huh?) "Your highness" she bows, then straightens up, "My father, Silver Platter, wishes to invite you to a dinner party in one weeks time. Would you like to come?" She widens her eyes slightly, making herself adorable. "I'm afraid not, but I'll try to come to the next one. I still have friends in Ponyville I need to take care of. Unless I get to bring my lifelong friend, that is." She smiles, "You may bring whoever you wish, your highness. Daddy will be pleased to hear this. Thank you again, your highness." "Before you go, may I have your name?" I ask, which makes her blush slightly "It's Crystal Glass, your-" "Just Frosty will be fine, Crystal." I interrupt with a smile. "Of course yo-er, Frosty." She blushes deeper at her tongue slip before leaving to join a group of ponies that looked like her somewhat. Must be the family. I hear a throat clear behind me, and I turn to see who it was. What I see isn't what I was expecting. It was a black pegasus with a dark silver mane, and completely white, blind eyes. he had a couple scars on his barrel, withers, forelegs, and one on his left wing. He wasn't wearing a suit, so I could see his cutiemark, which was a glass of clear liquid, outlined by a shining eye, with the pupil replaced by a crescent moon. Though his eyes looked useless, he was looking at me with a knowing smile. "Hello, Frosty. I just wanted to stop by and drop off this from my older sister." He reaches one of his black feathered wings toward me, a note being gripped between two feathers. I gently take the note from him, and he walks away from me. The ponies between him and the door quickly make way for him. I look down at the note, opening it with my only free hand and read it. "Don't hesitate to call on us if you need some air support, RoZo. xoxo Superstorm Wing" Huh, I've already got ponies signing up with me. That's a good sign, I guess. "Frosty! Congrats!" I'd know that voice anywhere... I'm suddenly tackled from the side by a familiar Rainbow maned pegasus, almost losing my balance but managing to stay upright, guarding the egg, and surrounded by a familiar group of ponies. "Hey girls! Glad you could make it!" I say with a smile. Twilight was staring at my egg in wonder, as was Fluttershy "Frosty, is that dragon egg?" Twilight asks, not taking her eyes off of it. I just nod, grinning. Fluttershy lets out what was probably the most adorable noise I've ever heard *Squee* and smiles. "Oh, another baby dragon!" Fluttershy says excitedly, her voice still not raising above a whisper. "Yeah, that'll be cool." I admit, cradling the egg with both arms. I wonder if it's gonna be a boy or girl.... "Well, again, congrats on your new title big guy!" Rainbow says with a smile. Just as I was about to comment, I feel a hand pat me on the back. A hand. "Yo dawg, you a prince now! Fuckin' sweet!" It's flossy! I turn to see him, and notice he was wearing his plain grey shirt, and sweatpants. Casual, not caring. "Yeah, who'd have thought?" I reply, pulling him into a bro hug after transferring the egg back to my left arm. "Well, that mean you gotta crash here in da castle?" he asks. Huh, didn't think about that. "Probably not, dawg. I'll be sure to check before we head back to ponyville." "How much bank you makin' now?" He asks with a mischievous grin. Oh, I didn't even think about that either! "I don't know, but I get the feeling it's a lot." I answer honestly, rubbing the back of my head. "Well, I think we've talked enough, darlings! Let's enjoy the party!" Rarity exclaims with a smile. The girls cheer in agreement, and spread out, except Rainbow and Applejack, who stay by me and Flossy. "Sugahcube, ah gotta ask ya somethin'. Rainbow's ya "homie" now, ya think maybe...." she trails off, looking around. "Sure, Applejack. I don't have a problem with it. You gave my nigga here a job, helped out. You deserve it." I answer with a grin. She looks back at me with a grin of her own. I hold up my fist, which she meets with her hoof. Now it's official. "Good ta have ya, homie!" Flossy exclaims, patting Applejacks withers. +++++ After that, the party was relatively boring. I managed to ask the princesses how much a prince gets paid, and couldn't believe what I heard. You know how many bits I get now? 600,000 a week for me. Dude. Awesome. Anyway, I was walking back to the train station with the girls and Flossy, humming (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=De_HxJF0gh0) with Flossy, the girls bobbing their heads slightly. The ponies we passed would either wave, or cheer, or bow. Now, I'm in no way sensitive, but seeing so many people glad to see me instead of running in fear... It was a nice change. "You seem happy, Frosty." Twilight comments, looking at me curiously. "It's nothing." +++++ No way. No fucking way this was happening. I stood there, in the street, my fists clenched in anger, Flossy by my side looking equally pissed. Ponies were scrambling around the street in a panic, some pegasi were bringing some clouds, and smoke permeated the area. Why, you ask? Somepony set our house on fire. //-------------------------------------------------------// Born of hate //-------------------------------------------------------// Born of hate Okay, I was having a great day, became a prince, got a dragon egg, started getting paid more than I used to make a year, and made some friends. Then I come home to my burning house? Needless to say, I may need a couple body bags soon. Very soon. As the pegasi worked on putting out our house, I take out my gun, scanning the crowd of ponies who weren't running around like a bunch of headless chickens. A couple looked back at me and froze, their eyes widening in horror at my expression, accented by my new eyes and teeth. I spot Lyra in the crowd, and wave her over. She runs over, a worried expression on her face, which quickly turns to nervousness when she sees my look too. "Frosty, you guys gonna be okay?" She asks, approaching carefully. Flossy turns to her and gives a weak smile, which quickly disappears when I speak up. "Who...did...this...?" I ask, taking deep breaths and trying to calm myself down to little avail. "I don't know, the mayor and guards are still looking." she looks up at me "Please, try to calm down Frosty." That was the final straw. "Calm down? CALM DOWN?!?! I PROMISED TO PROTECT THESE PONIES WITH MY LIFE, AND THIS IS HOW THEY REACT?!?!" my powerful voice kicks in and my wings flare, making everypony stop what they were doing to look at me nervously. I take a deep breath "I don't know who did this, but they better hope I don't find them." I state, turning on my heel and walking toward the town hall. It didn't sound like Flossy was following me. Suddenly, I feel the egg under me give a kick, and nearly drop it out of surprise. Small cracks slowly spread out from the point where the kick was from. Was it hatching already? My question was answered by the eggshell finally splitting, making a small gash in my side as I tried not to drop it. Sure enough, it hatched. I set down the discarded eggshell and managed to get a peek at the little dragon. It's scales were pink, with white spines going down it's back, and crystal blue eyes gazing at me. It was about the size of a dog, with a slim frame, and tiny claws. It looked up at me, seeming to take in every detail of my face. Then it raises it's hand... And promptly tries to eat it. Even as mad I was, I still found the sight to be rather humorous. And a little adorable, but don't tell anyone. "Hey, little..." was it a boy or girl? "...dragon." It pulls it's hand out of it's mouth and reaches up at me with both hands. Oh, I know what to do! I pick the giggling dragon up with both hands and place it on my shoulders before continuing on to the town hall. +++++ Well, that did absolutely fuck-all for my mood! The mayor already has ponies looking around and asking questions, but so far they've come up with nothing! Well, maybe because the fire was about an hour ago now.... I was outside what was left of our house, seething with rage. The building was mostly stone, how the hell did they BURN A STONE BUILDING DOWN?!?! *inhale* *exhale* "Well, at least Flossy's staying with Applejack. Who will we stay with, Slushy?" I ask my new dragon, giving her a pat on the head and earning me a happy squeak. Found out it was a girl because it needed to pee after we got to town hall. And it was on my shoulders. Disgusting. But after I got cleaned up, she sneezed and froze the puddle she made on the floor. That's how I found out she was an ice dragon. Anyway, our home was burned down and I had an idea. If I have wings, can't I manipulate clouds like a pegasus? if that is the case, I could just make a cloud home until ours was rebuilt, or we bought a new one. And if that failed, maybe Lyra would let me crash at her place. With this in mind, I lift Slushy from my shoulders and hold her to my chest, spreading my wings in preparation for flight. Aaaand takeo-! "Mister Frosty!" I barely have time to look surprised before I'm tackled and knocked off balance by a now very familiar filly. A very familiar...crying filly. "Whoa there, Dinky! You alright?" I quickly put Slushy back on my shoulders, hugging the crying filly close. "I-I t-t-thought you were s-still in the house!" she manages in between sobs, cuddling further into my chest. Which reminds me, all my shirts were in that fire... "I t-t-thought y-you-" I put a comforting hand on her head and start to rock gently, "Shh, I'm okay Dinky... Frosty's okay...I'm not going anywhere..." I say, doing my best to comfort the little filly. POV unknown "So, that pegasus planted the first seed. Excellent." I mutter to myself with a smile as I beheld the human prince comforting the crying filly. There was no danger of the simple mortals seeing me, let alone hearing me. "To think that such a lowly creature has so much potential, truly baffling. Brothers will be pleased with this." I gather my energy for a teleport, taking one last look at the truly unaware human, and can't help but let a wicked smile grow. Soon, mortal... Soon Author's Note Sorry for the delay once again guys. But being a teenager who actually cares about his friends, family, and his slightly deteriorating health means I don't have the privilege of updating daily, but I'll try. Anyway, hope you enjoy! //-------------------------------------------------------// It goes on //-------------------------------------------------------// It goes on Still holding the crying filly in my arms, and still rocking her gently, I look around for Sparkler or her mother. I see ponies looking at me in surprise, or with knowing smiles... but no Sparkler. What's she doing by herself this late...again? "Hey, where's Sparkler?" I ask gently, seeing that she's calmed down a little. She looks back up at me, wiping her tears. "She's making your room." She says, cuddling against my chest even more with those big, watery eyes staring at me in relief. Jesus, seeing her so upset makes me feel like a dick... wait a minute, making my room? "What do you mean?" I ask, furrowing my brow slightly in thought. If she's making me a room, she must expect me to stay with her. Dinky gives me her best set of puppy dog eyes, "Do you want to stay with us, Mister Frosty?" Dammit, how can anyone say no to that? "If your mom doesn't have a problem with it, okay." I concede. I'll just check on the cloud thing later, I guess. Slushy gives a squeak, then her stomach rumbles. Huh, hungry baby. What do dragons in this world even eat? "Hey, do you mind if we stop by the library real quick? I need to ask Twilight something." +++++ So, dragons eat gemstones. Good to know. Also nice to have princesses paying you enough to make said dragon fat for the next decade or so a month! Maybe this is Celestia's way of apologizing, and I'll admit, it's nice to be a prince... maybe next time I see her I'll forgive her. A guy can only be mad for so long. Anyway, we were on our way (Me, Dinky in my arms and Slushy on my shoulders still) to Dinky's house, having taken care of that uneventful business. We weren't there yet, so this granted me some time to think. Who the hell would burn down the house of a prince and his best friend just after a coronation? Now, the timing ensured that we didn't catch them in the act, but why? And how. the hell. DID THEY BURN DOWN A STONE HOUSE?!?! I don't care how many laws of nature, physics, gravity, matter, I don't care how many laws this crazy pony world breaks, you can't burn down stone!! I imagine that it would take a lot of magic to even attempt, so I guess some ponies still distrust me or something. "We're here!" Dinky exclaims, pointing to a decent looking, grey two story house. I approach the door, setting Dinky down, and taking a look around. It was starting to get dark, the perfect time to do something others can't see. I notice very few ponies are out and about right now, but those that are seem to be in a rush to get somewhere. Dinky opens the door, calling out, "I'm home! Frosty came with me too!" i couldn't help but look around again. I've done plenty of things in the late hours, and it's been made apparent that somepony doesn't want me here, so I'm not taking any more chances. Flossy should be good with the (much respected) apple family, and he's still got that revolver. I walk into the house quickly, shutting the door behind me and patting Slushy on the head, who had been happily quiet after being fed at the library (her favorite gemstone is emerald) and just observing her surroundings in childish curiosity. The inside was just as modest as the outside, with only a few chairs and a couch in the living room. I'd describe the rest of the house, but I was only in the living room at the moment. "Nice of you to join us, Frosty!" A familiar voice calls from the stairs. A vaguely familiar voice, I should say. I turn to the stairs to see a familiar grey pegasus smiling at me, her bright yellow eyes going in separate directions. Her mane looks a little damp, as if she was in the shower a few minutes ago. "Nice to be here, miss Do. Thank you for letting me stay with you." I respond, returning her smile (without showing my teeth, don't want to scare the poor mare) "You helped my little muffin with a bully, and always did your best to make sure she was safe when me and sparkler weren't with her. It's the least I could do-ah!" she takes another step and slips, tumbling down the stairs comically. I lunge for her, managing to catch her. "Well, now we can add "caught you mid tumble" to the list, eh?" I chuckle, putting the blushing pegasus down. "Hehe, thanks..." She smiles sheepishly at me, her eyes still facing different directions. Honestly, it was damn adorable, even if she was about my age. "Hey, I've been on a roll so far, why stop now?" I joke, walking over to the couch and flopping down on it. Slushy climbs of of my head and into my lap, curling up and closing her eyes. I hear another set of hoofsteps come down the stairs, and already knew who they belonged to. "Hey, Frosty!" Sparklers voice calls to me with barely contained glee. Now that I think about it, she was always unusually happy to see me, kinda like Rainbow during our first weeks here- wait a fucking minute. "Heya Spark!" Hey, that's a nice nickname! No wait, can't get sidetracked. "Is that my new nickname now?" She asks, finally coming into view as she takes a seat next to me on the couch, smiling with a raised eyebrow. "Better than Sparky." I shrug. She just nods before noticing the baby dragon in my lap. "Aww, it's cute!" she exclaims, rubbing a hoof down Slushy's back, earning happy burbling noises from the sleepy dragon. She giggles at this, causing me to smirk. "Her name's Slushy. She's an ice dragon, and is very fond of emeralds and head pats." I explain, patting Slushy on the head and earning me more burbling. +++++ As I lay in the guest bed, snuggled by Slushy, I can't help but think back to our burned down house. Why would they do this if I was gonna be a prince? Well, no matter why they did it, I'm gonna find them. They better have good life insurance, //-------------------------------------------------------// A letter sent //-------------------------------------------------------// A letter sent It's been a week after our house was burned down, and I've been getting regular updates as to how the investigation has been coming along (poorly), and I just now thought of this? Let me explain a little further. Remember at the after-party when that blind pegasus gave me that message from his sister "Superstorm"? Well, I had yet to make use of their services, and I think now would be the perfect time. So, with this in mind, I was walking through ponyville, looking for Rainbow Dash so she could deliver a message for me. The best place to start would be sugarcube corner. On the way there, I pass the apple booth to find Flossy and Big Mac manning the stall. It's been a while since I've talked with him... "Yo Flossy! How you been?" I call, walking toward the stall. He looks up at me and grins. "It's been good, dawg. I move through the trees like a fuckin' monkey now!" He exclaims, holding up his fist, which I meet with my own. "Things with Ditzy and her daughters are going good, though I think Sparkler likes me. Anyway, have you seen Rainbow? I need something delivered." "Uh, dawg.... ya do know ya live with the mailmare, right?" Flossy asks, making me pause.... And promptly facepalm. Wow. At my rather audible display of derp, Flossy starts laughing. "Wow, I feel dumb...." "N-nah, 's aight m-man!" Flossy manages to get out between fits of laughter. "But shit, tha's funny!" "Yeah yeah. Anyway, I guess I may as well head to the post office then. Catch ya later." I start walking away, but I'm stopped by Flossy. "By the way, Big Mac ova here's a homie too." He says. To test this, I lift my fist, slowly, in his direction... which he meets with his hoof. Yup, it's official. "Well, nice to know that some pon- *bleh* -some people still think of me as a normal person." I say, correcting myself. This, of course, earns a snort from Big Mac and more laughter from Flossy. With that farewell, I change direction, heading for the post office. As I walk, I can't help but think... We're getting a lot of new homies, almost army sized now! This can either work very well, or do very poorly. And what happens when we find a way home? What'll happen to everypony- still can't believe I'm saying that -that we end up leaving behind? Speaking of which, I need to get in contact with those researchers in Canterlot and see how far they've come in getting us back... I cut off my musings as the old post office building comes into view. Well, here goes. "Hello Prince Frosty! How may I help you?" The mare behind the counter asks. She doesn't seem too fazed by my appearance, thankfully. "I need a letter delivered. Do you know who the "Wing Clan" are?" I ask, taking the letter out of my pocket. She raises an eyebrow at me, "Yes, I do." "Well, I need this sent to one of them. Her name is "Superstorm" if I remember correctly." At her name, the mare raises her other eyebrow as well. "I can help you. She'll get this before the day is out." She says, taking the letter with one of her wings and calling out behind her, "Hey Stamp! Watch the counter while I'm gone!" before spreading her wings and shooting out the door. Huh, she looked like a mare on a mission. +++++ Not very long after, I was sitting with Flossy and Big Mac at the apple stand, letting my mind wander. I forgot my eye-drops back at home, and my vision's definitely taking a hit because of it. You'd think getting completely different eyes would fix that, but as Big Mac always says, Nnnnope! "Nigga, I still can't believe ya forgot 'bout livin' with da mail-mare!" Flossy chuckles, wiping the sweat from his forehead. Okay, I gotta admit, that was pretty funny. "Yeah, been kind of a long week. I should get a letter back soon. So, what's up with you and Applejack?" I say as casually as possible. Just as the words leave my lips, Big Mac snorts, but doesn't change his expression. Oh ho, did I strike a nerve? "Man, she's coo' as shit!" Flossy exclaims happily. "Her and big guy ova 'ere gave me their spare room. Growin' shit's tough, but 's cool with me." "Glad to hear it, man." I can't help but smile at my homies as I say this. Big Mac, completely breaking character, speaks up suddenly. "Y'all ain't used ta ponies being nice just because?" "Nnnope." Flossy and I both say in unison, not missing a beat. "Back home, you always had to watch your back. Or if you had a crew, watch each others backs. People are just as likely to stab or shoot you as they are to offer you so much as a cigarette. Here, though, I guess it's a little different." I elaborate, rubbing my aching eyes. Should've brought my damn eye-drops "Ya don't say?" Big Mac, "Doesn't sound like anywhere I'd want ta visit." "Well, we didn't have much of a choice in coming here. Crazy bastard did something with a chalk circle and here we are." I sigh, slightly frustrated. Well, I did kinda splatter his brains everywhere, but he doesn't need to know that. Big Mac stands and begins packing up the apple stand. "Well, I understand y'all must miss yer home, but it only feels right ta tell ya that some ponies are glad y'all 're here." "Seems like it, though apparently some of them like burning our house too." Big Mac snorts, but doesn't change expressions. He doesn't need to respond, I already know I got him there. It's then that I take a look at the sky, now a deep orange. Huh, is it that late already? "Yo, Imma go with him aight?" Flossy says, pointing at Big Mac, who was finished packing. I just nod and smile, and he walks off behind Big Mac. I should probably head back to Ditzy's place and check on Slushy. Make sure she didn't freeze anything... With that, I stand up, pull out a cigarette, and focus on the end of it. Light With the cigarette lit, I begin my trek back. Damn, but magic is convenient. I'm still a little wobbly in the air, so until I train some more with Dash, I'm keeping my happy ass on the ground thank you very much. The ponies I pass wave to me as I pass, and some even bowed... okay, that's a little weird, but whatever floats their boat I guess. Of course, it's nopony (ugh) I know, so that's probably why they're bowing... "Frosty!" I hear somepo-bleh- someone call out to me. I know that voice... turning to face the owner of said voice only confirmed my suspicions. Yep, that's Dash. " 'sup, Dash?" I answer. Now that I look at her, she seems worried about something. "Ditzy wanted me to give this to you. Looks like you got a letter." She says, handing me a sealed envelope. Where there would normally be a stamp, there's instead what looks like a brand. The brand's design looked like a pair of wings partially covering what looks like a marble. "Huh, thanks. You look nervous, is anything wrong?" I ask, pocketing the envelope. She looks up at me and smiles, though it's obviously fake. "Who, me? I'm fine!" "...if you're sure. Well, thanks homie." I say lifting my fist, which she meets with her hoof. When she feels up to talking, then I'll ask. 'til then, it's none of my business. "Well, I gotta run, later Frosty!" She says quickly before dashing off. Okay, she's seriously been acting weird. I start walking again, and take out the letter. I reach into my pocket and flick out my trusty Butterfly Knife *whir* *whir* *chnk* and swiftly slice the seal, reading the note. "Prince Frosty, it brings me great joy to know you yet require our help. I understand your frustration at your current situation, and have sent my brother's best ponies to aid in the investigation. You'll get your answer soon. -Superstorm Wing" //-------------------------------------------------------// The beginning of the end //-------------------------------------------------------// The beginning of the end I woke up to the familiar weight of Dinky on my chest, snoring peacefully away, but unlike the last couple of weeks, the sun wasn't hitting my eyes. Instead, the sky was a dark, stormy gray, threatening to spill over rain. Despite needing to stretch, I didn't want to wake up Dinky. It was a weekend, after all. Was there a storm scheduled for today? (Get this, they can control the weather here! Freaky.) A clap of thunder booms, and Dinky jumps awake, landing on my chest again with her tiny hooves. Had she been heavier, that would've hurt like a bitch. Thank god she's still little. She turns her head, looking around frantically, before her eyes meet mine. She calms down and gives a shy smile. "Good morning, Mister Frosty..." She manages, yawning. I can't help but smile a her, suppressing a chuckle. "Morning, Dinky. Uh... could you get up please? I need to use the restroom." "Oh, sorry!" She says, quickly hopping off my chest. Speaking of which, I haven't been doing a lot since I came here and started getting royal pay, yet I wasn't losing my muscles... In fact, they almost seem to be getting bigger. Now, as much as I appreciate keeping my rockin' body, I should probably get that checked out. As I get up and walk to the restroom, I notice my eyes don't hurt as much today (Thank god). Unfortunately, my wings were starting to itch somewhat. I'd already learned my lesson about scratching my wings though, so I wasn't gonna do that again. +++One trip to the bathroom later+++ Entering my room again, I notice Sparkler and Slushy joining Dinky in sitting on my bed. As I close the door behind me, she looks up at me with a smile. Slushy gives a squeak and reaches out to me. I pick her up and set her on her favorite spot, being my shoulders, and Sparkler raises an eyebrow at me. "Have you been working out, Frosty?" she asks, letting her eyes wander over my form. "You weren't quite this big when you moved in." "No, actually. I haven't been doing a lot besides learning to fly. Not that I'm complaining." I add, flexing my arms. Dinky and Sparkler laugh at my antics, while Slushy shoves her hand in her mouth again. "I'm not sure if that's necessarily a good thing, though." I continue, dropping my arms. "Last thing I want is to explode from magic buildup or something." At this, Sparkler nods. "Yeah, that doesn't sound very good." Dinky suddenly looks up. "Oh no, I was supposed to meet with Apple Bloom today!" I look at her as her ears drooped. "I'm gonna be late!" Wait, idea! "How about I take you? I can fly, after all." I say suddenly, making Dinky look up at me hopefully. Sparkler puts a hoof to her chin in thought. "Well... Alright. But be careful!" Sparkler says as I lift Slushy off of my shoulders, then Dinky literally jumps into my arms. I glance at the window. Well, I've always wanted to try this. Open With a whoosh, the window swings open, letting in the wind and sound of thunder. Now that I think about it, flying in a thunderstorm doesn't sound like the smartest idea I've ever had... Ah, what the hell. I'm feeling good. With that, I catapult myself out of the open window, opening my wings and taking off towards the barn. Thank god for not having pegasus wings, or the rain would probably be a lot more problematic. Dinky was holding on for dear life, giggling nonetheless. Soon, the farm came into view, and I began my descent, getting lightly peppered by the rain. I swooped down onto the front porch and set Dinky down before knocking on the door. I didn't have to wait long before Applejack opened the door. "Howdy, sugarcube! Why don't y'all come inside, git outta that rain." she says, stepping aside to let us through. I walk inside, closely followed by Dinky. The inside of the house was made comfortably warm by the lit fire in the fireplace. I sit down on the couch across from said fireplace while Dinky went upstairs. Applejack joined me on the couch, smiling. "How've ya been?" She asks, to which I shrug. "Eh, pretty good I guess. I may have to start throwing away money, though, or my bank account's gonna flood." at this, she gives a grin. "Well, can't say I know the feelin', sugarcube." she shrugs, "Ya want anythin' ta drink?" "...actually, do you have any vodka?" I ask, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. "Nope. But we've got cider!" she answers. Eh, it'll do. ++++++ "Hey, where's Flossy?" I ask, placing my mug on the end table closest to me. Applejack shrugs, setting hers down. "Ah don't know, sugarcube. He's probably in his room." She sighs, "Heavy sleeper." "He's been like that for a while... but I'm gonna go see if he's up." I say, standing up. The cider wasn't that strong, so I could still function without trouble. I walk up the stairs, my ears picking up the sound of the fillies giggling and playing. Let's see, which room was his again? "The room at the end of the hall!" Applejack calls. Huh. I walk to the indicated door, and throw open the door. Nothing could've prepared me for what was on the other side of that door. As I took in what I saw, my vision blurred, going red with pure rage. The metallic scent of iron filled my nostrils, and the scene before me burned itself into my memories forever. There, laying motionless in the now soaked, red stained bed, was my best friend. ++++++ That day, the cry of primal rage coming from the farm reached all the way to Canterlot as the last human in Equestria mourned his lost friend. A cry of rage, sorrow, loss, and the promise of painful, merciless retribution. The cry of a man-turned-monster. Little did the ones responsible know what it was they're bringing not only upon themselves, but all of Equestria. This was far from over. There will be tears. There will be pain. There will be blood. None of it would be Frosty's. Author's Note So, here's a new chapter. I may wind up disappearing for a while, about a week or so, maybe more. But as always, let me know if you see any grammar or punctuation errors in the comments. If you have any questions on the plot, or events in the story, know that everything worth explaining will be explained in due time. Wish me luck, guys. -Moonshine Wing, patriarch of the Wing Clan. //-------------------------------------------------------// Why now? //-------------------------------------------------------// Why now? One week later (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqZqxr44f1Q) The funereal pyre burned brightly, the tall flames swaying and flickering with the wind. The cold wind stung my tear stained face as I watched my best friend, my family, go up in flames. The funereal was two hours ago, and still the fire burned... still I stood here, wishing this was all a dream. Flossy, my homie, my nigga, the man who freed me all those years ago... *sniff* Oh god, not again. Haven't I cried enough? Wait... that wasn't me. "F-Frosty, are y-you gonna be okay?" I heard Lyra's voice behind me, sorrow and concern evident in her voice. I didn't turn to face her, or answer. I honestly didn't know.... at first, there were no words to describe how angry I was. How furious I was. But now, after a week to cool off... I still felt angry. But I also felt... Alone. A pair of hooves wrapped around me from behind. "Frosty, please... could you look at me?" After a couple of minutes of staring at the fire, I finally turn to face her, my eyes locking with her golden gaze, and she gasps. "F-Frosty, your eyes!" she exclaims. My eyes....? Flossy is dead and burning in front of me, and all she cares about are my fucking EYES?!?!?! "What." She flinches at the harshness of my words, but presses on. "You're bleeding!" What? I lift my hand up to my face to check, and it comes away dripping with blood. My blood. "It's coming from your head too! Frosty, you're covered! Wait here, I'm gonna get nurse Redheart!" Before I can respond, she takes off towards town. I just turn to stare at the fire again. There wasn't much left of Flossy's body, but even so, he looked so... peaceful. How can you be murdered and not look angry when you die? Or sad? ...Does he forgive them? "Here, Nurse Redheart!" I hear Lyra's voice again, as well as multiple sets of hooves. "Alright, we'll handle it from here, Lyra." I hear a faintly familiar voice respond before I lift off the ground. "Put me down!" I struggle frantically against the magical grip, but it shows no signs of weakening. Looking back I notice five unicorns there beside Redheart, all of which had glowing horns. She must've suspected I'd put up a fight. I also notice a stretcher they brought along, as they lower me into it and fasten the straps. My eyelids suddenly feel heavy, and I sink into the sweet embrace of unconsciousness. ++++++ "-ultiple places.... just burst open.... rapidly cha...." I faintly hear a stallions voice as I come around. My head hurts, specifically the areas next to my horn. My limbs feel heavy, itchy. How long was I out? "Doctor, I ask that you leave the room. He's waking up, and I must speak to him." Yet another familiar voice says, followed by the sound of receding hoofsteps. Finally, I can open my eyes, and I do so. Everything is a blur of blinding light, until my eyes get adjusted. On my left, watching over me, was Princess Celestia. As our eyes met, she gave me a motherly smile. "I wish we could meet under better circumstances than this, Frosty." she comments. I simply say nothing, my anger slowly returning to me. She sighs, "Why won't you speak to me? It's unhealthy to keep everything bottled up-" "Why weren't you at the funereal?" I interrupt, keeping the anger out of my voice. "I was preoccupied, Frosty. Try to understand-" "Understand? Understand?! Flossy is dead damn it! Despite everything he went through back home, he still believed in peace, being kind, even when his best friend was a fucking killer! Isn't THAT what you ponies prize so much?! Peace?! He was one of the last of our kind here and still upheld your value of peace, and not only was he murdered, but damn near no one came to say goodbye!! He deserved better than this!! He... He..." I sigh. I can't speak any more right now, but if the look on Celestia's face is any indication, I think she gets it. "... I know it's too late to say this, but I truly am sorry, Frosty. For everything that's happened while you've lived here. I... I understand how you feel right now." she replies, moving my head to her shoulder and hugging me with a wing. The telltale sting in my eyes is all the warning I get before tears start streaming from my eyes and the hiccups set in. Me, a grown man, cuddling a pony princess and crying like a little bitch. I really have gotten soft. Damn ponies... "Shh...Shh..." Celestia coos, rubbing my bare back with her wing, below my own wings. That reminds me... "Celestia, what happened earlier? I just suddenly started bleeding." I ask, my voice scratchy and hoarse, yet thankfully understandable. She pulls away slightly so she can look at me. "Don't freak out when I show you, Frosty. You may not realize it, but you lost quite a bit of blood, and you may worsen your injuries." How the hell did I lose that much blood anyway? Or more importantly, how did I not notice? I just nod. She seems unsure, but levitates a nearby mirror regardless, letting me look at mys- what the shit?! My eyes are bigger, taking up more room on my face, my normally snow white hair was now a light blue, and thick, white peach-fuzz was growing all over my head. It was the same color as my horn, and wings! Looking at my arms, the same peach-fuzz was present, and even on my chest. It didn't cover me, but it was everywhere! Looking back up at my head I notice two small, curved horns on either side of my main horn. "What the-! *cough* *cough*" "Frosty, calm down." Celestia says, "Look at your feet." I do so, lifting the blanket (huh, I'm naked) and look- where the fuck are my feet?! My jaw just drops. There, at the end of my legs, were hooves. Hooves. As in, the things ponies have! Wait, am I turning into a... "Am I turning into a pony?! *cough* *cough* *hack*" I exclaim loudly, before being set upon by a coughing fit. "It appears so, Frosty." Celestia nods, smiling. God damnit, I seriously need a drink. Scratch that, I need a couple dozen drinks. "Well, I must return to Canterlot. Your friends will be here shortly to check on you." She says, before disappearing in a flash. Flossy's dead, and I'm turning into a pony. Something tells me that Equestria doesn't like humans. Author's Note By the four princesses, am I tired. //-------------------------------------------------------// Speaking my mind //-------------------------------------------------------// Speaking my mind Celestia looked dead at me, an unamused expression plastered over her face. I just met her look with a glare, putting a hand on the podium for balance. My earlier rage wasn't entirely gone, and was screaming obscenities at Celestia. "Are you going to answer me, Frosty?" Celestia asks, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Evidence was found that could help catch my homie's killer. There's no way in hell I'm gonna sit and do nothing. Especially when I was supposed to be the first person told about this!" "I didn't have you informed because you were recovering-" "Oh, so you kept me in the dark intentionally?!" My anger is almost boiling over at this point. I can feel my left eye twitch and veins in my neck bulging. Traitorous bitch!! The sound of approaching hooves reaches my ears, and Twilight stands between me and the princess, her face reflecting disbelief. "Frosty, what's gotten in to you?!" Twilight asks. Finally, I boil over. "What's gotten into me?! What's gotten into me?!?!?! I'll tell you what's gotten into me, the fact that you fucking horses think it's okay to murder a guy who did nothing to even upset you, then not tell his best friend when you've damn near caught the culprit!" Everyone, save for Celestia, flinches at the sheer venom in my voice. "You think we wanted this? You think he wanted this?! To be ripped away from his only family, the only life he's ever known, dropped on our asses in this fucking world we knew nothing about, then when we finally have a stable life here, get his throat slit?! BY ONE OF YOU SO CALLED PEACE LOVING PONIES?!?!?!" "F-Frosty, please, calm down!" Twilight's eyes were brimming over with tears. We're not finished yet, girl. I look her dead in the eye and lower my voice, "I'll calm down when the murderer publicly has their wings ripped off and shoved down their throat." "That's enough, Frosty!" Celestia cuts in sternly, her eyes narrowed dangerously. "So, are you going to tell me who did it?!" I say challengingly. Celestia says nothing, Twilight looks away. "Didn't think so." With that, I turned and started walking down the street, each step bringing a wave of dull pain with it. I didn't stop, though. The ponies quickly got out of my way. All except for one... Sparkler. Before I could tell her to get out of my way, she pulled me into a hug, catching me (and everyone else present) off guard. "Frosty... I had no idea you were so hurt..." "I'm not hurt, I'm pissed." She just sighs, then looks up at me sadly. "Come on, Frosty. Let's go home." Author's Note O_o Damn, you mad bro? //-------------------------------------------------------// New home //-------------------------------------------------------// New home I woke up, as per usual, with the sunlight hitting my face. Hectic day yesterday...I'm really starting to miss my homies... With a sigh, I got out of the bed, shambling down the hall to the comically small bathroom. Looking into the mirror, I take a good look at myself. My matted, white hair was almost passed my shoulders. My slightly glazed, pink eyes staring back at me sadly, irises and pupils seeming to shake erratically, but it wasn't too obvious. God, my eyes fucking hurt.... "Well, this is gonna be a great day!" I say to my reflection, sarcasm practically dripping with every word. I turn the faucet on and splash my face with the cold water before grabbing the brush by the sink and brushing away my bedhead. Well, at least my hair is tamed now. There's a knock on the bathroom door. "Hello? Frosty?" I hear Lyra call from the hall. I don't even remember how long I was in here. "I'll be out in a minute." I respond, drying my face. "The mayor is here to see you." she continues before trotting to the stairs. The mayor? We getting our house already? I walk out of the bathroom and head downstairs, somewhat curious. In the living room was Flossy (damn morning people) and Bon Bon, along with a middle aged mare with a greying white mane. "Mister Frosty, I presume?" she asks, looking in my direction as I take a seat by Flossy. "Yeah, that's me. Just Fuh-Frosty is fine." I yawn "Sorry, just woke up." She didn't seem to overly mind...she was staring at my hair in disbelief. "Pardon me for sounding rude, but how old are you?" she asks in a tone matching her gaze. "I'm Twenty six. And the average human lifespan is 80-90, before you ask." I reply. Did she really think I was old? "Well, I just need you two to sign these forms and we can officially move you into your new home!" She explains with a smile, showing a clipboard with a housing form on it. "Now, who had the house before us?" I ask, narrowing my eyes slightly. The mayor looks nervous at my gaze, but doesn't let it show in her voice. "It was an orphanage at one point, but it's been closed and empty for years. No bad history." she explains, meeting my gaze. Orphanage? Then it's gotta have a lot of rooms. "....seems legit. And I'm guessing the princesses are paying for this?" I ask, grabbing the pen on the clipboard. "Yes, most graciously. And even decided to send you two money until you could find jobs." she answers with a smile. I raise my eyebrow at this, and crack a grin. "Well, unless there're ponies here that want someone dead, I'm a little outta luck with jobs." I chuckle. Flossy facepalms, and Bon Bon glances at the confused mayor nervously. "Well... jokes aside, here." I sign mine and Flossy's names on the paper. With that, the mayor stands up, holding her hoof out, which I shake, and bidding us farewell. She left the address to the house, thankfully. "Hey dawg, you a'ight? Ya look like shit." Flossy smirks. I grin at him. "Crazy day, busy night. What'd you expect?" I reply with a wiggle of my eyebrows. At this, Lyra looks at me shocked, followed by an almost disgusted looking Flossy. "Wait..." He seems to pick up that I was joking. "Damn fool, ya really had me there!" he laughs along with me, to Lyra's confusion. "Wait, so you're not into mares?" Lyra asks with a tilt of her head. Then she gets a wicked grin. "Are stallions more your thing, Frosty?" At this, Flossy starts rolling, and my eyebrow twitches. "Haha. I'm not into ponies. Hell, I'm barely even into other humans. In my occupation, it doesn't pay to make too many bonds." "True. Every time we brought some hoes home, he's always out." Flossy elaborates with a laugh. "Well, what was it you did before coming here?" Lyra asks. Didn't I say this already? "That's a story for another time, girl." I answer, doing my best to sound cryptic. She sighs, looking up at me with puppy dog eyes, poking her bottom lip out. "Please?" She asks in a pitiful tone. Too bad for her, I'm immune to puppy dog eyes. I just shake my head. "Alright...can we come to visit?" she asks hopefully. "Sure!" Flossy answers for me. Sometimes, it's scary how in synch we are. I just nod. "Well, I'm gonna hit up the town. You coming, Flossy?" I ask. Before he could answer, Bon Bon walks in, carrying a bag of...coins, I think. "This is from the princess." She says simply, tossing it to me. I catch it, hearing a jingle from it. Yep, coins. Heavy coins. I look inside the bag, and both my eyebrows shoot up. Shit man, gold coins! "Gold? How much is this worth?" I ask, unable to keep the surprise out of my voice. "Enough to get food, and some furniture." She says, nonchalantly. "I counted." "Well, this'll help." I smirk, closing the bag and pocketing it. Thank god for cargo pants! "Well, catch you girls lata. Me and mah nigga here goin' hit up the town." Flossy says, getting up. We wave as we walk through the door to the busy streets. Once again, some ponies stop to stare as we start walking. My right hand is on my gun, the other just hanging freely. Ponies made way for us as we walked, looking around at the shops for- "Found it!" Flossy says, pointing to a booth with unmistakeable little cardboard containers. Sick. We approach the booth, manned by a light grey unicorn mare with a green mane, and I take out the bag of coins. "I need two packs." I say to her, getting her attention. She didn't seem shocked at our presence, thankfully. "Ten bits, big guy." she says simply, in a sleepy tone. I guess a bit is one of these coins? I take out the money and leave it on the counter, taking the two packs and handing one to Flossy. "Yo, thanks dawg!" he says happily as I pass him the lighter. After he lights his smoke, we continue walking, now with more ponies eying us. Jesus, take a picture. It'll last longer. "Excuse me!" I hear to our left. I turn slowly, hands in my pockets and on my weapons. It was Sparkler, Dinky's sis. She seemed a little frantic. "Yeah?" Flossy responds confused. I have a bad feeling already.... "Dinky's gone! She went off to play with her friends, and I can't find her!" She explains, urgency in her voice. Flossy looks back to me, and I nod. "We'll help." I say simply, "Where do we start?" "Let's try the park!" she suggests. Flossy looks at me and shrugs. And with that, we head for the park, my knife drawn and ready. The ponies must be really good at sensing intention, 'cause they moved out of the way the moment they saw me. If anyone laid a hand on Dinky... "We're here!" Sparkler exclaims, and I immediately survey the area. No sign of Dinky, but everypony (eugh...) turned to look at me in fear. i see a bit of blonde mane by the slide, and immediately move in on it. Yes! There she was... with the pink tiara filly from before... crying... I immediately draw my gun, "HEY!!!!" I call in fury. They both look at me, Dinky with a teary eyed smile, the other with a shocked expression. "I'd step away from Dinky, brat." I advise, knife primed. She immediately turns and runs, leaving Dinky. I approach the crying filly and pick her up, petting her comfortingly. I walk back to the now shocked Sparkler. "What is that thing?" she asks, pointing to my still-drawn gun. "Something that could kill you before you could even hear the shot fired." I answer, putting Dinky down next to her. "I wouldn't use a gun on children, but it's a force of habit." That's why I have my knife. "W-well, thanks nonetheless." she says, holding Dinky close. "Diamond Tiara is something of a bad apple, with a rich and connected father, so please be careful..." I look her dead in the eye, "If he comes for me, or your family, I'll make glue out of what's left of him, his wife, and his daughter." I answer coldly. I'm no stranger to people with connections, I think I can handle myself. I turn to leave the now horrified Sparkler with Flossy in tow, and we keep walking. "We gonna check out the new pad?" he asks as we walk. "Yep." I say simply. He seems a little creeped out. "Brotha, I know you're supposed to be cold blooded, but.... shit, that may be a little much. Ya didn' hafta scare the poor chick..." "You're right, I didn't. But these ponies, friends and enemies, are gonna learn very quickly not to cross us." I answer simply, "Besides, maybe this way I can get someone to hire me for what I do best." I smile. "...I guess, dawg, but be careful." he concedes "Nigga, how long we been at this? We'll be fine." I say, slipping back into my old street slur. He brightens up a little at this. "Yeah, you're right." +++++ We stood in front of our new house. A four story, stone and wood building with a recently repaired roof and windows. Yep, lots of room. "Well, here we are. Let's take a look inside!" I suggest, heading to the door. When I went to open it, it was, of course, locked. Flossy clears his throat behind me, and I turn to see him holding the key with a grin. "Ya need a key ta get in, nigga." He says with a chuckle, passing me the key. I take it and unlock the brass knob, finally opening the damn door. The inside wasn't very different from the outside, grey stone and wood supports, rugs, some chairs, and a light switch that turned on the chandelier in the main room. I thought chandeliers used candles.... "Well, home sweet home." I comment, heading up the stairs to the second floor. I walk into the first room on the left, thankfully a bedroom, and set my gun on the faded, wooden bedside table, followed by the bag of "bits" before heading back downstairs for the lighter. I could get used to this. Author's Note Soon, my children. Soon... The pieces are falling into place perfectly, and the end result shall not change. :pinkiecrazy: https://static.fimfiction.net/images/emoticons/pinkiecrazy.png //-------------------------------------------------------// The first sign //-------------------------------------------------------// The first sign I was still in the hospital, feeling drained from the last week. Between losing my best friend and half-transforming (not pretty, by the way) I still felt lethargic after three days in the hospital. I don't know about the next guy, but I was in no shape to adjust to walking on two hooves. Slushy was curled up on my side, snoring cutely. They brought her to me my second day here, and she had gotten bigger! I may not be an expert on dragon growth and development, but if spike is any indication, normal dragons don't grow this fast. Someone knocks on the door, snapping me out of my reverie and startling Slushy awake with a *Squeak*. "Frosty? It's Lyra, can I come in?" Lyra calls from the other side of the door. "Su-*cough* *cough* Sure!" I say. I don't know if it has to do with the transformation or not, but my lungs have been acting up, almost as if I had been smoking for days straight. The familiar mint green unicorn gingerly opens the door, with her magic, giving me a smile. Her eyes showed concern, despite this. Something was up. "Hey, Frosty. How are you feeling?" she asks, gently closing the door behind her. Slushy squeaks happily beside me. I guess she's glad to see Lyra. "I feel like someone took my feet, widened my eye sockets, and made me grow extra horns." I reply with a deadpan expression. Seriously, how does she think I feel? She gives a snort. "Glad to see you're doing better. Anyway, there's something you should know. The mayor wanted to save this until you were feeling better, but I felt guilty about hiding it." I raise my eyebrow, intrigued. "What is it?" "First, the repairs to your house are complete, and even better than before!" she explains. Well, I guess that's a plus. She still looks nervous about something. "Second?" "Well... the Royal Guard have found evidence that could catch Flossy's-" I was out of bed before she could even finish her sentence, wobbling unsteadily on my hooves and ripping out the needles in my arm, causing the machines next to the bed to beep loudly. Lyra jumps, then tries go sit me back down on the bed. "Frosty, you're in no shape to-!" "WHO WAS IT?!?!" In a flash, all my anger came to the surface, but I don't care. When I find the son of a bitch who killed Flossy... "We don't know! The feather wasn't-!" she clamps her hooves over her mouth, but it was too late. Feather... A pegasus! I quickly move Lyra aside and charge out of the room. Slushy follows behind me, easily keeping pace as I dodge surprised nurses, trolleys, and visiting ponies. I hear a mare's voice (not Lyra) call, "Guards!" Ah shit! Lyra was right, I'm not doing so hot right now. Flossy looked so peaceful... This thought floods me with energy, I double my pace, my hooves cracking the tile flooring and my breath coming out in almost feral grunts. The sound of pursuing hooves meets my ears, informing me that some ponies are giving chase. I'm not giving up on you, homie! I push my weary limbs even harder, the front doors coming within sight. I'm about twenty feet away from them when a green aura slowly envelops me. No No NO NO!! "GET OFF OF ME!!!" The sound of glass breaking cuts through the air, and a mare's yelp of pain follows shortly after. With one final rush, I burst through the glass doors (which weren't broken) and Slushy hops on my back as I spread my bat-like wings. With a painful flap, I was in the air and flying towards the town hall. Ponies were gathered there, around an empty podium in front of the building. It could have been one of them... I flap my wings faster, ignoring the burning pain in my everything as I gain speed. Thankfully, it looks like the hospital staff- "Frosty!" a familiar, tomboyish voice calls to me. I don't turn around, I don't slow. Soon, I am aligned with the podium and fold my wings tightly against me. Slushy gives a yelp and holds on tighter. The ponies below notice me, looking up at me in a mix of panic, confusion, or shock. The podium comes up to meet me fast, and I flip myself around, landing HARD on my new hooves, and falling to the ground as the pain in my limbs catches up to me. God, that hurts! Pain is nothing to you! Get up!! As this thought registers, the pain dulls. I shakily stand up, meeting the looks of horror from the crowd with my own dark expression. "Who...*pant* did... *pant* it?! Who *pant* killed him?!?!" The silence seems to stretch on forever. No pony answers me, no wind blows. I faintly register a pain in my gums, not nearly as bad as the pain in the rest of me, before a familiar, motherly voice speaks up. "What are you doing out of the hospital?" I know that voice... I turn to look into the disapproving eyes of Celestia. And she does not look happy. I probably should've thought this through better... Author's Note If you see any grammar errors in this chapter, please let me know in the comments below. P.S- I could be wrong but I think that maybe..... Frosty is mad.