To be Human: An Equestria Girls reimagining

[Twilight's point of view]

All I could see was darkness. There was no light, no sound, no stimuli for my body to sense. I couldn't remember how I got here, or even where was 'here'. I simply floated in nothingness, aimless without knowledge or care for whatever was happening beyond, or even if there was a beyond.

I didn't know how long I stayed like that; there was simply nothing there to help me tell time. But as I continued my aimless floating, something began to change. Weak light began to seep into the darkness and I began to feel my body again. A muffled voice began to echo through my mind as the feeling of being rocked assaulted my reviving body. The voice's clarity increased as the rocking continued and after a while I was finally able to hear, with considerable effort, the word 'Twilight'.

Instantly, images of my crown being stolen, of Celestia's revelation, and of the magic mirror resurfaced from my psyche in a single swift.

"Twilight...? Twilight! Twilight, wake up!" the voice called louder as the rocking I felt intensified.

My eyelids began to finally twitch and open in response and I slowly sat up from where I laid, my head throbbing very painfully.

"Oh thank Celestia, you’re alright," the voice said with a sigh.

For some reason or another, I must’ve lost consciousness after going through the mirror. And if the crossover was indeed successfully, it would’ve been a problem, a potentially deadly one if I stayed unconscious wherever I was. Thankfully, someone was there to wake me. And I would’ve shown my gratitude to the pony immediately had I known their name.

The voice, if I could guess… was a male’s. It had a low baritone and a silvery intonation that sounded quite juvenile in a pleasant kind of a way. But even through the youthful tone, the voice held a certain touch of intelligence to its speech that was quite noticeable, even under such a stressed state. The voice was unfamiliar.

I rubbed my eyes as I finally answered him with a tone that I hoped, sounded respectful. "Ye-yes, I think I'm fine. I'm sorry, but who are you?"

He didn't answer me at once, instead kept silent for a few seconds. I wasn't able to tell if he did so out of surprise or hesitation. But when I heard him let out a long sigh, I was inclined to believe the latter.

"Twilight, it's me! Spike."

My mind halted at his statement. And from the way he sounded, I could say this person was quite serious. But the thing he implied was – I was sure – impossible. For one thing, I was the only one allowed to go to this realm. Second, the voice didn't sound anything like Spike.

I chuckled awkwardly as my vision began to clear. "Well sir, you don't sound like Spike. So if this is a joke, then at least you got me to laugh. Besides, Spike isn't even supposed to..."

I wasn't able to finish my sentence; for my mind was made to race by what my now cleared vision showed to be in front of me. It was a creature. A living, breathing being that had no bearing on equestrian biology or lore.

The thing suffered – or at least I thought it suffered – from a severe lack of body fur with its body being mostly dominated by light pink skin. It could have been at the mercy of the elements if not for the purple hoodie and denim jeans it wore. On the top of its head was green hair that could've answered for a mane. The hair was shaved along the sides of its head with horizontal strips being shaved in deeper, while short hair rested on the very top, with the bangs being relatively longer compared to the rest. The creature also had other visible spots of hair, although compared to the cluster on top of its head, everything else was relatively minor.

In terms of facial features, the creature didn't have anything resembling a muzzle. Instead, its nose and mouth were on separate planes of its face. Its lips were relatively smaller compared to that of a pony's, but given it didn't have to go around a muzzle it seemed only natural. But what were really bizarre were the creature's nostrils. Instead of being just two holes laid on the creature's face atop the snout. Both nostrils were housed at the base of a – for the lack of a better description – bumpy half pyramid that was plastered on the creature's face. The eyes of the thing were smaller as well when compared to pony eyes, with the pupils being lime green in color.

Fear and disbelief took hold of my psyche as I instinctively pointed a shaky hoof at the creature. "Wha-what are you?"

But as I said this, I saw from the corner of my eye that it wasn't a hoof I was pointing at him. The appendage that answered for my forehooves resembled nothing like those I was born with, replaced by what looked like dragon claws, claws without scales or talons. And just like that of the creature, I was devoid of fur with naked skin mostly dominating my surface.

I was in a panic as I scrambled to see what else was different about my body. I no longer had my wings and tail. And just like the creature, I was almost naked if not for the articles of clothes that I now apparently wore, the articles being a turtleneck and a pair of jeans. Using my strange new appendages, I groped every nook and cranny of my face and felt no fur nor muzzle nor horn.

'What happened to me?!' kept repeating itself again and again in my mind. Panic and dread filled my psyche as the thought of my situation began to sink in. I could've sworn I was hyperventilating with the creature shaking me out of my delirium. Sad to say I was someone who was hard to snap out of a panic. Until finally the pressures of it all became too unbearable and my body just wanted release. I took a large gulp of air and readied to scream. But before I could, I was stopped.

The creature held his claw like appendage to my mouth, firm enough to stop me from screaming, but gentle enough as to not hurt me. As I sat there silenced, he held up a finger to his lips, making shhhing sounds in quick succession. When he knew that my scream was no longer an issue, he swept his head side to side. He then turned back to face me, his own visage more troubled than before. "Listen, believe it or not, I am Spike," he said, gesturing to himself with a claw. "I followed you here because I just couldn't let you do it alone. If you want to yell at me, do it later. But right now, we need to leave this place. It's not safe," he finished, his breathing slowly calming down.

I was very afraid at first. But the more I looked into this creature's eyes, the more the idea that this… thing was my best friend was starting to sound plausible. Just like Spike, the creature had the air of control and comfort whenever the situation called for it, and considering my own metamorphosis and subsequent panic attack, even more so. But even with the mounting evidence, I couldn't really help but still doubt his statement.

His visage changed into that of utter seriousness as he looked at me. “Twilight, listen to me. I'm gonna let go, okay. But please... please don't scream.”

Without any other viable option, I nodded hesitantly at the proposition. Being true to his words, he slowly pulled back his claw from my mouth. And being true to mine, I did not make a scene.

With the respite I was given, I allowed myself to calm down and observed my surroundings. It took little to no consideration to understand that I was no longer in the Crystal Citadel. But to think that I've crossed over and left Equestria entirely was something my mind had a hard time believing.

It was night time here. The moon was already past its zenith while very few stars were visible on the night sky. The surrounding area would have been very dark if not for the lampposts that lined the walkway. Right in front of me was this large, two story building made of bricks and concrete. Its tall glassed windows arranged uniformly along its walls while huge well-crafted wooden double-doors adorned its front. At its top, rows of neatly arranged tiles formed its roof. And just two feet below the roofline were metal-worked letters spelling out the words 'City Library'.

I just stood awestruck at how the building’s design was identical to pony architecture. Except for size and scale, the building would’ve fooled any pony to think it mundane and their own. And if those two words on it meant what I think they represented, then even the language is exactly the same as those of Equestria.

‘But that was impossible. Or at least I think it should be. I… we left Equestria, our alien bodies should be proof of that!’ I thought to myself, absolutely baffled. And as I contemplated this anomaly, a bright glimmer caught the corner my right eye. Turning around, I found a marble statue just a few meters behind me. The statue was of a rearing stallion on top a pedestal with a creature of my current species riding it like a jockey. There was nothing special about the statue itself, save maybe for the attention to detail given to the craft. But what really caught my eye was what it was standing on. One of the pedestal's sides – the one facing my direction and by extension the library – was… shimmering.

The statue wasn't new; it looked quite battered in fact. But even in the state it was the in, the pedestal had a reflective quality that just wasn't supposed to be there. I had a good guess on what the pedestal could have been, but I had to make sure. I contemplated touching the thing. And when I did, my clawed appendages didn't go through the reflection. But what I did get was a shock. The very same shock I felt as I went through the mirror.

“So this place isn't Equestria, is it?” I asked, completely baffled by the resemblance of this place to Equestria.

“No. Hard to believe, right?” he answered, his eyes set on the library.

And as I heard the creature's calmed voice again, different thoughts and questions surfaced from my mind, questions that simply needed answers. “I'm sorry if I sound blunt, but how do I know you really are Spike? That everything you're telling me is true?”  I wasn’t completely concerned if I sounded disrespectful. I just wanted to know if this... person… really was Spike.

He looked at me with an eyebrow raised, yet his face didn't look the slightly bit offended, as if he expected me to ask that specific question. “How exactly do you want me to prove it then?” he asked, his voice not giving urgency to the situation.

Though I initially felt offended by his attitude towards my question, the more I thought about it, the more the idea of him being Spike became more undeniable. Not really knowing what to ask, I just went and bounced the question back at him. “I don't know, tell me something only Spike would.”

He held a claw to what was possibly his chin – I really need to learn the anatomy of this species – thinking hard on what answer he would give me. And as if finding the most effective of rebuttals, he smugly smirked at me, his teeth flashing, before speaking his answer. “How about we discuss the first time you used the 'want it need it' spell. You know, when you were twelve?”

My face began to flush red as I heard his proposed rebuttal. “NO! No, it's fine. I believe you! I believe you,” I blurted out as I waved my front appendages like a mad pony.

Back when I when I was twelve years old, I found a book under one of the bookshelves in the royal library. The book was filled with an assortment of spells that I never heard before. Being the giddy little foal that I was, I picked a spell at random and cast the on an insignificant bottle cap. At first nothing had happened after a good few minutes, I chalked it up as spell being a dud and I planned to just throw away the bottle cap. But before I could, my brother stopped me and asked if he could have the cap instead. Thinking that there was no harm in doing so, I did. Just few hours later however, the whole population of the city began vying for possession of that measly bottle cap. It was chaos. It took three hours for the whole thing to settle down. Luckily there were no casualties. But even with that bright side, everything went so horribly wrong that once the spell was neutralized, Celestia had to clear everyone's memories of the incident, leaving Me, Spike and Celestia the only ones to remember that horrid day.

He laughed so hard when he saw my face as I was forced to reminisce. I could only glare at him as he continued on laughing. But even I wasn't able to help but laugh at my own blunder. As we laughed our hearts out, I managed to loosen up and forget about the seriousness of our situation. And once we had our fill of laughter, I began to notice how silent our surroundings really were.

The area was deserted and quiet, even the nightly songs of insects and frogs were nowhere to be heard. It was a good guess to think that maybe the dominant species of this world weren't too active at night. But even then, it was just too quiet. Something that I had to admit, felt quite unnerving.

At a corner of my eye, I saw Spike stand-up and run towards one corner of the street. I was caught off guard by his sudden actions, but once he signaled me to follow him, I kind of guessed that he might have just scouted on ahead.

Standing up on all fours, I complied with his call. As I trotted toward him, I couldn’t help but hate my inexperience of this new body. Simply put, everything about it just feels uncomfortable and awkward. But even with my grievances, I was still able reach Spike. Though not surprisingly, the time it took had a lot to be desired with my breathing being ragged from it all.

I stood behind Spike who was crouched behind a building corner, still scouting for any unwanted attention. And when he turned his head to look at me, he saw my obviously heavy respiration. But before he could start worrying, I tried to fix my breathing as fast as I could and flashed him a smile. My attempt to quell his worries worked it seemed. But as his worries faded, his face contorted into a look of questioning as he continued to look at my new form and posture. “Uh, what are you doing?”

“What do you mean?” I asked him back, not completely understanding his inquiry. Spike turned around to face me completely then gestured at my quadruped form. I didn't exactly understand what he was gesturing at me for. But as he continued, I was able to get a decent guess. “You mean like... standing?”

"Almost, I was talking about your stance. Did you follow me on all fours?!” he exclaimed, his voice rather louder than what we would’ve preferred.

I looked down at my legs, not completely comprehending his statement. And as I looked, I saw just how disproportionate my rear legs really were compared to my forelimbs. Not only that, but I also understood how ill designed the claws on the front appendages were for trotting. If at first I thought the evolution of this species was wrong and problematic, now I think I just shamed myself by thinking this body was anything like a pony's. Out of sheer embarrassment, I fell to my haunches. My face was facing downwards, most assuredly burning red. I sat like that for a fair amount of time, expecting Spike to burst out laughing or something like that, but that never happened. Instead, he did something that I never really considered.

He crouched down in front of me and placed a claw on top of my head. "You're new to the body. You simply made an honest mistake, that's all. No harm done."

I lifted my face toward him as I heard his words. This was far from first time that Spike would show such levels of consideration towards me. But the way he held his words felt different, rather comforting. With our faces turned to each other, I could now see a small smile on his face, a smile not of insult, but of genuine care and comfort.

A few moments later, he took his claw off of my head and stood up on his hind legs. “Now, I think you've already noticed how dis-proportioned your front legs are from your rear legs,” he said, gesturing to the appendages in question. “The reason for that is because your front legs aren't exactly legs, they're actually arms.” He paused, a slight grin manifesting on his face. “Meaning this species' natural gait isn't a quadruped’s, but is that of a biped.” He extended a claw towards me. I grabbed the claw hesitantly. And with a force I didn't think he had, pulled me up to my own hind legs – or if his explanation were to be believed, just legs.

Standing like that reminded me of dragons and their natural anatomy. With their two legs that kept them standing upright and their feet instead of hooves that touched the ground. Although dragons did have tails that helped them keep balance. I wonder what helped kept these creatures balanced on two feet.

At the same exact time I thought out the question I almost fell, face first into the pavement. Luckily, Spike was able to catch me just before I could gain momentum. “Whoa! Are you alright there Twilight?” he asked, his soft non-sharp claws supporting my body.

“Y-yeah, I'm fine. Just lost my balance,” I said weakly, embarrassed for the second time in a row.

As he held me and kept my body balanced, he chuckled and placed a claw on top of my head again. “Wow, will you look at that. So I am taller than you now.”

Instinctively, I quickly raised my face towards his own and blurted out, “What?!”

And when I looked up at him, I saw that he was in fact taller by two or three inches. Surprised at what I saw, I examined his new body with more scrutiny. And when I did, it took almost no time for me to turn speechless. Even with his hoodie on, it wasn't hard to see that his new form was a sight to behold. With chiseled forearms, broad shoulders, and bulging pectorals, he was practically an adult of the species… a very powerful one.

Spike laughed as he saw my dumbstruck expression. “Why do you look so surprised Twi?” he said with an obvious snicker.

“Wha-Why am I surprised? Why aren't you?! You shouldn't be taking this lightly! You... You suddenly just became an adult! Well, I think you're an adult. I mean, look at your arms! Even if you tell me males of this species are naturally tall, this muscle definition couldn't belong to a kid! How did his even happen! You're a baby dragon! You shouldn't have this kind of body,” I reasoned as I grabbed on of his arms and tried to squeeze it with futile effort.

Spike only snickered again. But only this time, it wasn't out of amusement. “So you expected me to be small, squishy and utterly defenseless?”

“N-no, I didn't mean it like that! It's just that... It's just that I can't really understand why you have a mature body here! I'm given a body comparable to the one I had in Equestria. But why didn't you?! This whole thing just doesn't make sense!” I told Spike with a voice louder than what I would've wanted.

Spike looked at me with an air of superiority. As if he very much expected my every word. “Never question a gift too much, Twilight. I know it's strange. But I think it's for the better. Now think about it, instead of having to tote me around like a kid while we look for Sunset. With a body like this, I can do my own searching, letting us cover more ground.”  He sighed. “Listen Twi, I have no idea why I have his body. But right now, I'm just thankful that I do. And so should you.”

"Bu-but... It's just..." I babbled before hanging my head in defeat. "You're right. I'm sorry, Spike,"

“No sweat, Twi.” He smiled a warm smile, like always ready to forgive and forget. “Now, on to more 'pressing' matters; we know how important it is that we retrieve your crown, right? So we can't have you losing balance like that, now can we,” he said as he made a bit of distance between us. "Lucky for us, the area seems to be clear enough for about a block or two... So if you wouldn’t mind, may I be allowed the honor of guiding you, my lady?" He offered, extending his right claw to me.

'Seriously?' I thought to myself. But thinking it was probably better to just play along and have fun with it, I took his claw and answered his invitation with the most regal voice I could make. “It would be my pleasure, Sir Knight. Please lead on.”

Clumsy would be the word to describe how the whole thing started, most of it being from my end. Spike kept his pace slow while I would almost always have to slam myself into a wall just to keep myself from falling. But even then, I still managed to trip one or two times with my butt always hitting the pavement. Despite the hardship – and the physical pain that came with it – I was still thankfully able to adapt to my new body's bipedal gait; so much so that I was able to keep proper posture even without Spike's assistance.

We kept walking around the streets; this time trying to find a place we could sleep or at the very least, rest in for the night. We were a good few blocks away from the library, and from the look of the buildings and signs that surrounded us, it wasn't too hard to think that we just entered the shopping district of the town.

The streets were lined with an assortment of shops and stands. Most of them were no longer open given the relative lateness of the hour, while the few that were had very few customers to speak of. There were other people walking around the streets, possibly on their way towards their respective homes.

As my eyes wandered the area, I couldn't help but remember home. It surprised me how an alien world could have so many things that were comparable to things seen in Equestria. From coffee shops to boutiques to libraries to lampposts, everything felt familiar. Even the people here were comparable to ponies. They work hard for a living. And when the day is done, they would go home for the rest, comfort and company they yearned for.

Finally ready to surrender to our own tiredness, Spike and I both sat down on a bench we found just in front of the town pharmacy. We really needed to find some place decent to sleep in. Not only didn't we get some sleep back in the crystal citadel, but the crossing of dimensions took a lot out of us. Couple that with the stresses of a new body, and we were basically begging for rest. And right there, the bench looked very comfortable even with its splintering planks of wood.

“You alright, Twi?” asked Spike, his face reflecting his own exhaustion.

“Yeah, just... tired.”

Resting my head on Spike's shoulder, I reflected on our whole situation. We were in a world that was not our own and turned into creatures like no Equestrian had ever seen. We had hardly anything to work with and we didn't know where to look for Sunset Shimmer, nor did we know what she even looked like as this species. And right now, it seemed both of us were assuredly relegated to sleep on this very bench.

“This whole thing's just impossible, isn't it, Spike?” I thought out loud.

“Don't say that, Twi. We just need to be resilient and do what we can,” he answered. And although he didn't face me when he replied, I could still tell that he was annoyed with my comment.

“I'm sorry for the negativity, Spike. But right now, I have no clue on how we could get my crown back. Not only don't we know where Sunset is, we don't even know what she looks like! For all we know Sunset could be miles from here,” I said half-heartedly.

“I won't argue against your point, Twilight. Not because it's hopeless, but because they have at least some merit.” He then paused, then turned to me with a face that had confidence. “Yes, we have no idea what Sunset Shimmer looks like in this world. But you also need to remember that the same could be said for us. And if she does know, then at least that means she couldn't be far. Thing is Twilight, we have time. We know Sunset can't use the Element of Magic until she can resonate with it. Till then, all we need to do is to assimilate, learn, and adapt; to get ourselves accustomed to our new bodies and the rules and laws that govern this world. And when she does make her move, we know what to do. We follow the magic.”

In all the time I've spent with Spike, I've had my fair share of encounters with this version of him. And every time I did, I would end up impressed and empowered, this very instance being no different. Despite his young age, Spike always did display a certain level of maturity whenever situations called for it, a maturity that I've come to be thankful for.

My lips curled into a smile as I continued to gazed into his confident and determined visage. “Why is it that whenever I go down the deep end, you always know how to fish me out?”

“Well, that's because someone has to,” He said with resolve. He then leaned forward as he sat down, his claws clasp together in front of his face, his elbows resting on his legs. “To be quite blunt, this is the very reason why I jumped in after you. I was afraid. Afraid that you'd lose perspective with all this… craziness, that you'd end up trapped here or worse. I just couldn't let that happen. I hope you're not upset.” Though his expression stayed flat and distant, the genuine fear in his words were still there.

I saw the fear in his expression. Before my ascension, there have been very few ponies besides family that legitimately cared for my existence. Even fewer that cared to risk life and limb to do so. And yet here I am, assigned a dangerous mission that has every chance to turn fatal with a friend that would do just that – if he hadn't done so already.

I lay a comforting claw on Spike's own. “How could I ever be upset at you for something like that? If anything, I should be thanking you. So thank you,” I said, trying to return the favor and pulling him out of his slump.

He returned my smile and answered, “Don't mention it, Twi. It’s my pleasure.”

With our thoughts expressed and our bodies exhausted, both Spike and I sat in silence, trying to recover even the slightest energy we could. And though the bench wasn't as comfortable as we'd like, at least it was something. I almost dozed off out of sheer fatigue. But I couldn't allow myself to do so until I felt that we were safe and secure. I thought of maybe teleporting both of us, however before I could try, I was easily reminded of the appendages I lost during the transfer, leaving me with a rather sour expression.

Not wanting to doze off again, I went and broke the silence with a random question. “Do you think this whole thing could've been worse?”

“Twilight, anything can go worse. Just thinking negatively will make it worse,” he answered with a tired sigh.

“I know. But what I mean is, how could it be worse?” I clarified.

Spike took his time, thinking of a scenario for my question. “Hmm… I don’t know, maybe me as a dog and you as a teenager?”

“How is that worse?” I asked, not completely seeing the negatives. But before Spike was able to reply, a muffled scream and crashing sounds echoed from behind us. Both of us instinctively stood up from our seats, our eyes moving at speed as we tried to looked for the source of the noises. And from what we could gather, the noise came from the alleyway just besides the pharmacy.

Despite our exhaustion, curiosity got the better of us and we found ourselves stepping forward hoping to get a better grasp on the situation. Inside the alleyway were two people, a male and a female. The girl had long blond hair and wore a light green sleeved sweater on top of a long yellow blouse, while the male wore a gray shirt with a black coat and dark brown slacks. From what I could tell, the girl was being harassed by the lone male; thrashing around, twisting and turning evasively, all the while trying to convince him to leave her alone. While the male only kept on pursuing and troubling her, not exactly getting her not so subtle hints. I wanted rush over to the girl; help her out of her predicament. But before I could, I was stopped mid-step.

Grasping my left arm with a claw, Spike asked, “Do you really think that's a good idea, Twi?”

I stopped my stride completely when his statement hit me. Hesitation took over and I found myself unable to answer. His words were on point. If we went and helped the girl, we risked blowing our cover, risked throwing away one of our only advantage – If we even had that advantage first place. But even so, something in me wasn't ready to let someone in need suffer, especially if I have the power to help.

I looked at him with eyes filled with resolve. “Well we can't just let her get mugged!” I exclaimed with determination, fully expecting Spike to object to my decision. But instead of pulling me away, he smiled at me before approaching the alleyway's entrance.

Inside the alleyway, the struggle of the girl continued. “I-I'm sorry but I really need to get home. P-please just let me go. Please!” She pleaded while hopelessly trying to pry off the claw that grasped her arm.

“Cooooome on babe.... I j’st wanna shpend shome time wid ya,” The male slurred, wobbling as if unable keep his balance.

I didn't know if alcohol existed in this world, but from how the male acted, looked, and smelled, he was very much intoxicated.

Approaching them carefully, Spike cleared his throat loudly, trying to get the drunkards attention. “Hello good Sir. Sorry for the intrusion. But could I ask that you let my sister go?” Spike asked, acting nonchalantly in a rather tense situation.

Instantly I turned to Spike  with a look of questioning. 'Sister?!'

The drunkard grunted, trying to process Spike's statement. “Huh? Ya're her brader den?” he said, his expression very obviously plastered. “Well ked, shorry but yar shister promised to join me for shome fun tanite!”

“Bu-but I never said that.” The girl in question objected.

“Ya did shay dat, yar jusht too...  drunk to remember, now com'on, da nayt ish til young!” The drunkard exclaimed while pulling on her arm. But before he could take her anywhere, he was stopped by a claw on his own arm.

“I’m sorry if I might have been unclear, so I’ll repeat myself… please let my friend go,” said Spike with face contorted just waiting for the aggression to start.

As drunk as the guy was, he knew when he was being challenged. So he too stared daggers at his challenger, throwing his own less-subtle fighting words at spike as he did so. “Ya better git yer hand off me kid, if ya don’t wanta lose it.”

Spike didn’t back down, instead tightened his grip even further. “So they're called hand, huh. OK, release her ‘hand’ first, and then maybe I’ll let yours go.”

The drunkard didn’t comply, only intensified his glare at him. I didn’t like where things were going. Yes, I did want Spike and I to help the girl. But to have him get into a fight was something I’d rather avoid. Spike might look strong and mature now with his new body; he’s still a baby dragon.

Spike and the drunkard just stood there, glaring at each other, waiting for who would make the first move.  I was a good few feet from the two. But even at my distance, I could hear teeth gritting from the both of them while they stared at each other with contempt. I was sure that at any moment one of them would finally begin the fight. But before any of them could make that move, the drunkard suddenly vomited and fell down, face first into the pavement.

All three of us stood there for a few moments, flabbergasted at how anticlimactic the whole thing ended up being. Even the female who just moments ago tried quite hard to free herself from the drunkard, now stood there with her arm still extended as if she was still held by the drunk.

Spike was the first to move among us, walking towards the unmoving drunk. “He’s… unconscious... that’s a thing,” he said with a tone that sounded more disappointed than glad.

In my case, I’m just glad that things ended up with hardly any violence. I snapped out of my own thoughts and immediately went towards the girl. “Umm, excuse me, miss? Are you alright?”

She jumped then turned to face me, obviously still unsure of what happened. ”Y-Y-Yes. Yes. I’m fine… I’m fine.”

“He didn’t hurt you or anything, did he?” I asked again, still concerned that maybe she was jumpy for other reasons.

“No, thankfully he didn’t. I guess he was just really… drunk,” she said as she looked at her downed oppressor in pity.

I wasn’t quite sure why she would have pity over him. But knowing we couldn’t just linger any longer, I walked towards the alley’s entrance. “Well in any case, we should get out of here before he wakes up.”

Spike stood up from where he was examining the drunkard and walked towards us. “I don’t think the guy’s gonna wake up any time soon. From the way he went down to how bad his breath reeks of alcohol,” Spike explained, fanning his hand just about where his nostrils were. “I’d wager he’d be asleep till tomorrow afternoon.”

“Oh dear,” exclaimed the girl. “We can’t just leave him here, even if he did awful things. The man was just drunk after all,”

Spike and I looked at each other in confusion for the unknown word the girl spoke of. “Man?” We both asked in unison, absolutely oblivious to the words meaning.

She looked at us with a face of equal confusion before speaking. “Uhh… yes… Man… as in human. Us.”

‘Damn it!’ I thought to myself in a panic, thinking that our cover might have been compromised. ‘We should have been more careful when it came to words we didn’t know! Now think Twilight, THINK! How do you get yourself out of this situation?’ But even as I tried my hardest to think of a way, no idea came to mind. And even if I had one, my mouth was too frozen to speak. Luckily, I wasn’t alone in the situation.

“Oh Sorry, thought you said something else,” Spike explained with a convincingly nonchalant tone, as if he just genuinely misheard the girl’s words. “Anyway, back to this guy. What do you propose we do with him then?” he finished, convincing the girl of his excuse. And to a degree, even me.

‘Since when did Spike learn how to act?!’

“Well… we should at least get to his own home… I-If you think that’s ok, that is,” she answered.

“Well, we don’t really mind. But question is… where does this guy live? I don’t suppose you know?” I said, asking the obvious question.

Both the girl and I faced each other trying to think of how to find out the answer to our question.

Spike didn’t join us, instead walked towards the ‘man’ again before crouching down and pulling something out of the sleeping man’s pocket.

“I think I know how,” he said walking towards us while showing the wallet he took from the man.

"SPIKE! WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO WITH THE MAN'S WALLET? GIVE IT BACK!" I shouted at him, thinking that he was going to steal it.

“What? NO! No, I’m not gonna steal it. I was just looking for any identification. And lucky for us, the guy has one on him,” he explained, pulling out a card from the wallet. “Let’s see… our mystery drunken man is a Mr. Joey Allen of 23rd Obed Marsh Street. I don’t suppose you know where this is?” Spike asked the girl as he returned the card and wallet.

“Y-yes, I do actually. It’s just at the other edge of town, a bit by the docks.” She answered as she pointed toward the direction of the drunk’s supposed home.

Spike only smiled. “Then lead the way… Miss…”

“It’s May," She said, smiling a bit, a little prideful at baring her name. “Shymay Winchester.”

“Well then Miss May, please lead the way.” he exclaimed with a bow.

And just like that, Spike, May and I started our walk towards our set destination, drunken Mr. Allen in tow.

If before there where barely any other humans around - as Miss May called these species, now the streets were now completely empty with hardly a soul in sight.

We were now a good few blocks away from there we started. And with only the four of us walking around, the only things to be heard from miles were our own footsteps, our breaths and the occasional whistling of the wind.

I would’ve been lying if I said the silence wasn’t get to me. In fact, with my body practically screaming for some rest, the silence only served to make me even sleeper, while at the same time inducing some odd fear of the darkness. I wasn’t quite sure if Spike was in the same boat as me. Though from what I could see, he was fairing much better, possibly because he had the task of carrying the still unconscious Mr. Allen to keep him occupied.

Thinking that maybe I needed my own distraction, I tapped May on the shoulder, trying to get her attention. “Excuse me, May. But I have to ask… are we close?”

“Well, we’re not that far. But still have a bit more to go,” She paused, and then turned her head to look at me as she continued to walk on, but then stopped as she did so. “Bu-but we could rest if you want to,”

My face probably looked so exhausted. “No, no, I’m ok. Let’s just keep walking. I think I’d prefer to get the job done than to prolong it. Thanks for the concern though.” I answered with a smile as I tried to regain some color back into my face.

“Don’t mention it. I’m just sorry that we couldn’t just take some transport. It’s too bad they just don’t run this late,” She said as looking at the empty road in front of us. She then turned to us with curious eyes. “If you guys don’t mind me asking, but... do you guys have a place to spend the night in? Coz if you don’t, you guys are welcome to spend the night at my house,”

Spike and I were simply caught off-guard by her offer. Though it was true that our exhaustion was very evident from our expressions, the last thing we expected was someone to point out our predicament and even offer us shelter.

“How did you know we didn’t have a place to go?” I thought out loud, unable to keep my question in.

She hung her head as she answered; afraid that maybe she said something wrong. “We-well, I’ve never really seen any of you before so I thought that maybe you guys are from out of town. And when you guys kinda hinted that that you didn't know the area… Well, I-I kinda put two and two together. I-I hope I didn’t offend you!” She finished, almost shouting out the last part.

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. We were just surprised that you guessed right,” explained Spike, finally pitching in. “It’s true that we don’t have anywhere to go. But are you really okay with letting us sleep at you’re place? I mean we’re practically strangers to you. And now that I think about it, we haven’t given you our names yet.”

“Oh no, it’s no trouble at all. In fact I’d be very happy if you guys stayed at my place for the night to rest. I wouldn’t want to let good people sleep outside in a night like this. After all, you did save me back there,” She said with a warm smile. “As for space, that isn’t a problem. I have an extra room with a bed and everything.”

Spike and I then turned to each other, trying to decide on May’s offer. And technically there was hardly any reason to decline. May didn’t seem like a person with bad intentions. And from how she interacted with us thus far, I could say for certain that she is a person that would never hurt a fly... even if needed. And as for her offer; a bed would’ve be infinitely better than a park bench in terms of sleeping surfaces.

Getting to our decision, I nodded at Spike, giving him my answer. He then turned to face May “If it’s really no trouble, then we accept,” Spike said with a smile. “As for our names… well… it’s…” But before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by loud groaning noises courtesy of the still downed Mr. Allen.

“Maybe we should get this guy home first before anything thing else.” I suggested. To which everyone simply agreed.

With the promise of a bed to sleep in, Spike and I found strength to continue on and get the job done. And before we knew it we were there.

The area was simply though uninspiring. The houses along the street were of modest sizes, most of them being made of wood. The one we were looking for in particular – Mr. Allen’s house – looked to be in a state of disrepair. And when we saw that the house had illumination, we could only guess that someone was inside.

“Um…Hello… Hello…” I called as I knocked on the door. “Excuse the late intrusion, but is anyone there? Hello?”

It took me a couple of tries before any response was returned. And when the door was opened, a young girl was what greeted us.

“Yes, what is it?” she said while she rubbed the sleep out of her half lidded eyes.

“Um, yes… well, sorry to waking you so late. But is this where Mr. Joey Allen lives?”

The girl yawned before she spoke. “Yes, but my dad’s not here yet.”

“Yes well, that’s because we have him right here,” I said as I stepped aside to show the man in question. I was a bit surprised when the girl didn’t seem all too happy to see her father in that state, then again I guess neither would I.

“He’s drunk again, isn’t he,” she said with a tone of indifference.

“Yeah… Can we go in please? He’s getting kinda heavy.” Spike answered as his face winced from the weight.

We were invited inside and led into the living room where Spike was allowed to rest Mr. Allen on the sofa.

As the three of us were headed out, the girl tugged on my sleeve. “Thank you for bringing him home. And if he did anything wrong while he was out, I’m really sorry and I hope you could forgive him.”

As I heard the girl’s sentiment, I turned to look at the sleeping form of Mr. Allen. “Don’t worry, we already did.”

The girl smiled at my statement then thanked us a second time. But before we could leave, she informed us of a taxi station that was more than like still open just a few blocks from the house. Thanking the girl, we then went on to look for the station. And thankfully for us, the station was indeed open, with a handful of drivers and ‘cars’ – as they called their metallic carriages – still ready for work. Hiring one of them, we rode towards May’s house. And with the speed of the thing, it didn’t take us long till we arrived.

Her place was of simple design. It was a single story building with two bed rooms, a living room that connects directly to the kitchen, and a single bathroom. In terms of furnishings, the living room had a dark glass coffee table, a linen sofa, a four person dining table and medium-sized bookshelf. And though the textiles and patterns of the house were new to me, I could still imagine such a house in Equestria.

The only thing I found that felt out of place was an odd looking mirror mounted on the wall. In itself, you can hardly call it a mirror due to its dark surface. But what was odder for me was that the furniture was set to face the thing, as if it was meant to do something. I would have experimented on the thing, but given my status as a guess in this house, – to this world more specifically – I’d rather not do anything stupid.

Keeping my curiosity to myself, I followed May and Spike toward the spare bedroom. She stopped right in front of the doorway and reached for something on top of the door-frame. Spike and I weren't sure what she was reaching for, but after she unlocked the door and led us in, we could probably conclude it was the key.

Inside, the room was almost empty. The room was large, probably five square meters in area, with a single window on one corner. The only things inside were a bed and mattress and a wooden wardrobe with very few clothes in it. And although the room was locked and unoccupied, it looked quite clean and well maintain.

"I hope this room is OK. It's been week since I last cleaned it, so it might be a little dusty. But if you want, I could clean it up right now. Well, if you don't mind that is." May offered, her voice a bit weak at the end of her sentence. At this, Spike and I awkwardly waved our hands at her.

"No, no, no. Its fine May. I'll clean the room. The last thing we want to be is a bother to you," Spike said with haste. "Besides, the room looks clean. The only thing it needs is a good sweeping and it'll be good to sleep in."

"Oh no, you're not bother. I'm quite happy to help," She paused, her expression softening into a gentle smile. "Like I said before, I can't just let the two people who helped me sleep outside." She finished with gratitude genuine in her eyes.

I placed a hand on her shoulder and gave a smile of my own. "Don't mention it May. We did what we thought was right."

"Still, thank you," She said with a renewed smile plain on her face. "Now, let me just get the broom."

Though May is the first human we ever actually interacted with – non-aggressively anyway, I couldn't help but feel a certain type of... comfort with her. From the way she talks, to the way she behaves, almost everything about her makes me think I'm interacting with a pony. Even the level of kindness she displays is something that very few being, even ponies tend to have. Yes, Spike and I did save her from those drunkards. But to think that she would offer us – complete strangers – room and board in her own home, is something that I just can't be thankful enough for.

"Does she remind you of someone, Twilight?" Spike asked, ripping me from my thoughts.

I turned to face him, curious as to what he meant. "No... Well… I don't think so. Why?"

“I have to say, she reminds me a lot of Fluttershy.” he replied as he still looked towards the doorway.

Now that he mentioned it, I could see why she would.  The kindness May has shown us does seem comparable to Fluttershy’s. Add her apparent meekness and his sentiment would be almost unquestionable. And though I’m not entirely sure what humans call cute, May certainly does have that kind of appeal to her.

“Oh and before I forget, pick one; Tara, Janice, Clara.” Spike asked, almost out of nowhere.

I didn’t really understand what he was getting at. “What? Why?”

“Just pick one.” he imposed with a cheeky grin.

Having understood that he wouldn’t take no for an answer, I just decided to play his game. “Uhh… What was the first one…? Tara.”

He smiled at me, as if fully expecting my choice. “Tara. Okay, now choose again; Wands, Rivers, Sparks.”

“Sparks. Wait, what was that all about?” I asked again, unable to keep my curiosity to myself.

“You’ll just know it when you hear it,” he said. His playful smile still plastered on his face.

May arrived with the broom shortly afterwards.  Spike then proceeded to clean the room while May and I took out clean bed sheets and extra pillows from her own room.

As we cleaned the house, I reflected on what I’ve learned so far about this realm. Though some things are different, the two worlds, this world and Equestria had a lot in common than what I first expected. From architecture to language to the interaction of beings, the things I’ve seen thus far have been things I’ve already experienced in Equestria. ‘Maybe this whole thing isn’t hopeless after all.’

With all three of us working together of the room, I didn’t notice how fast we managed to finished and ended up losing myself to my thoughts. “Wow. We’re done! That was fast,” I said honestly surprised.

“Well, there was hardly anything to clean to begin with. It was more like prepping if anything else,” said spike after putting away the broom. “Anyway, is it OK if I sleep on the sofa May?”

Surprised at Spike’s statement, I asked “Wait, I thought you we're…”

“Going to sleep on the same bed as you? Come on, you know I respect you more than that.” Spike interjected before I could finish. He then turned to face May “Is that OK May?”

She looked quite flustered as she replied. “We-well, yes… I guess. But don’t you want to sleep on a bed too? A-and besides, aren’t you two a couple?”

‘COUPLE!?’ I instantly thought to myself as I heard May words with my face more than likely blushing red at the same time.

“Couple?” Spike chuckled as he turned to look at me for a moment then back to May “Nah, we’re just good friends... very, very good friends. Anyway, I don’t know about you girls. But I’m pooped! Good night,”

“Oh… well… Good night then you two. See you in the morning,” May said as she walked towards her room.

But before she could enter her room, Spike called to her again from the sofa. “Oh and May… The name’s Daniel Shields. Her name on the other hand, is Tara Sparks.” He proclaimed, smiling. “Of course if you like, you could also call me Spike like she does,”

I could only chuckle at Spike’s shenanigans. ‘you cheeky little dragon, you.’