Living in the Crystal Empire

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter 1: Contemplation of a new life.
Chapter 2: Lunar Guidance
Chapter 3: Baking frienship

Prologue

….a couple of hours Emerald Peach’s freedom….

Shining Armor sat silently writing a note in his study after taking care of a rather peculiar task in the castle dungeon not long ago that day. Using his unicorn magic to write down his experience with the so called “Emerald Peach”, he did not feel he could outright trust the pony even though he seemed OK. Not wanting to jump into conclusions, he felt that it was best to entrust such an important task to the best capable ponies he could think of.

Laying down the last stroke of his ink quill, he read over the letter to make sure the message was clear: “Dear Princes Celestia and Princes Luna, there is a matter in which I believe I need your help in the Crystal Empire. Although it may be a matter of minor importance, it would put my heart to rest that all precautions have been taken and that I ask for aid from the most qualified.

A peculiar occurrence has happened last night and my palace guards arrested a young stallion that spontaneously appeared in the Crystal Mirror chamber. Although I questioned him of his origin and name, naming himself ‘Emerald Peach’, I believe he may be someone from another land that came from beyond the Crystal Mirror. Further evidence of this came in the form of his apparent inexperience at moving about in his hooves which disclaimed any possibility of any criminal act inside the castle. I have allowed him to stay in one of the guest chambers for the moment but I have instructed my guards to keep an eye on our new friend during the day.

I write this letter to you in hopes of being bestowed some wisdom on how to deal with this new member of the community and for Princes Luna to look into his dreams. I believe that his subconscious will be the best hint into who he really is and why he is here. Emerald Peach seemed to be thrilled to be in Equestria so he may not wish to be forced to go back but I hope to gain your impute.

Shining Armor.”

Believing the massage to be adequate, Shining Armor sprinkled sand on the ink so that the letter wouldn't smudge and wrapped it up before sealing it up with a wax seal.

Cadence had been startled early that morning when Shining Armor abruptly left their bed to deal with the matter of a prisoner that had been captured the night before. Slowly entering Shining armor’s study, she saw her beloved husband working on a letter with a candle to light his work. Wishing to know what he was up to, she approached and gently slid her hooves to hug Shining Armor’s back warmly to nuzzle lovingly into his neck wile humming comfortably “what happened earlier dear, you left the bed so abruptly, did something happen?” Cadance whispered half asleep into his ear before kissing his cheek.

Shining Armor had been so concentrated in his work that he was surprised by Cadance and laughed nervously as her sweet words trailed into his ear “Hey sweetie, sorry to have woken you but it was a matter I needed to take care of. I think someone came through the crystal mirror and is now stranded here in Equestria so I am sending a letter to the princesses for some help” with the letter ready, Shining Armor’s horn lit with a light purple aura of a spell to cause the letter to teleport to the post office with a bright flash of light.

Being the princes of the Crystal Empire, Cadence was naturally concerned that somepony from a remote dimension roamed their streets “did you get a good look at him, are you sure its ok to have him mingle with our subjects?”

“Yes I made sure he seemed like a good pony, a little weird, but he seemed fine. Besides, I had our stealthiest guards keep an eye on him so if he acts up, we will know” Shining Armor reassured his beautiful wife and returned her affection with some of his own.

Trusting her husband as unconditionally as she loved him, Cadence shared the tender moment with him and started to snuggle into his embrace with a light blush and a girlish smile. “It seems you got this figured out, I am sure everything will turn out ok”

…..

The day was almost at its end as the sun slowly sank behind the mountains in the horizon. Having no means to magically teleport the massage so far away, the chosen mail mare was just arriving at Canterlot after a long flight from the Crystal Empire. Derpy Hooves flew down from the clouds at a reckless speed as she had throughout her trip in an attempt to deliver the massage as soon as possible but ended up crashing into one of the castle windows.

Startled at the sudden commotion, a coupled of guards rushed over with their spears in hoof wile Princes Luna and Celestia were taking a walk in the next hall “what’s the meaning of this mess?!” one of the guards demanded to know while helping Derpy off the ground.

Derpy’s carefree smile turned into worry as she looked around and shrugged “I just don’t know what went wrong, I wanted to be a good mail mare and get here in time but then the window appeared out of nowhere, I mean what th-“

“We will take care of these, guards. Thank you” Celestia’s smile reassured the interrupted gray pegasi who bowed in honor to the princes of the sun while the guards followed with their own bowing before returning to their posts.

“You got mail your highness, here ya go~” Derpy happily chimed as her trade mark eyes looked towards opposite directions as she presented Shining Armor’s letter. Using her magic to telekinetically take hold of the letter, Celestia nodded to the departing Derpy before willing the letter’s seal open.

“Tis the seal of Shining Armor, what content the letter holds dear sister? Tis sparingly that Shining Armor writes to us and not his sister dearest, Twilight Sparkle” Luna asked as she helped the urge to read over Celestia’s shoulder.

It was then that Luna saw the expression of deep thought in her sister that summoned further urge to know what Shining Armor wrote “Sister?”

Celestia snapped out of her deep thought to reassure Luna with a warm smile “there is a minor conundrum in the Crystal Empire, a stranger from beyond the Crystal mirror has suddenly appeared and is now living there. They are not entirely sure about this “Emerald Peach” so Shining Armor hopes we can evaluate him” Celestia’s smile widened at the idea of wining Luna a new subject “I have a task for you my dear Luna, as the personal aid of our subjects, who better to see into this then you. I could think of no better pony for Shining Armor’s task than you Luna.”

Luna’s eyes sparkled at the thought of undertaking such a meaningful task which she accepted humbly “oh my sister, you honor me with this task! As the Princes of night and dreams I shall undertake this task to its fullest!” Luna excitedly declared as she willed the letter over to read it herself. With the time for Celestia to lower the sun, Luna would soon delve deep into Emerald Peach’s dreams to unlock his truest nature.

“I am sure you will Luna, I have faith in you. Why don’t we lower the sun so that the moon may rise and shine in the sky?” Celestia’s words were as loving as they were encouraging, enjoying reminding her beloved sister that she was adore and loved by everyone.

Chapter 1: Contemplation of a new life.

Emerald Peach walked down the road with baskets of berries in a careful but steady pace with his new hooves as he learned how to walk every day. The life that he had accepted was a daily struggle of trial and error but as the day went by, the peachy rust pony felt deep down that it was all worth it. It was a weird feeling, a sensation he had rarely felt in his life, something in the aurora painted sky of the empire reminded him of the wonderful things in the past and oddly, something more. Deep inside, Emerald Peach felt the nagging feeling that something beautiful was out there that called out to him and it was that feeling that reminded him to fight on.

Knowing that he had started a brand new life, a fresh start in a land he strangely loved also helped despite the odd feeling of his new body. Each hardworking day, he felt oddly changed inwardly as he had been physically and he felt he was losing his past self but somehow that felt fine. Somehow.

Whistling to a tune he had herd the day before in the market, Ballad of the Crystal Empire he believed the locals called it, Emerald Peach carried his harvest to the market. Having a straight path ahead of him, the Latino pony loved to stare at the sky as it was lit day and night by the love and cheer harnessed and focused throughout Equestria by the Crystal Heart. Having unbelievable luck in applying for work in the middle of one of the best crop harvests in the empire made enjoying the sights mid work a true pleasure.

Even with all of the wonders of the Crystal Empire, Emerald Peach felt something beckoning him further beyond so he planned to set off and explore when he had enough bits. The earth pony could not take further advantage of his gracious hosts and there was nowhere else to live so he had to go as soon as possible either way. What ever happened, it seemed best to go with the flow and follow the winds of destiny.

It was amazing how lost in thought one could get when running an errand to the city down a calm and silent road.

…..

The empire’s market corner graced the castle square were most of the day to day activities occurred in the city. Food and clothing stands surrounded the crystal castle and tourists from all over Equestria enjoyed the fascinating sights and the authentic crystal pony food.

Emerald Peach enjoyed the sights and made his way towards the castle square where he finally unloaded his cargo near the fruit stands. Setting one of the four bushels on a stand, a crystal pony with an apron approached Emerald with a wide grin before looking at the merchandise “for an odd stallion that can barely trot, you sure make up for it with pure raw strength and determination don’t ya kid?”

“Hey there senor Berry Polish, I just like to put my out-most effort in the work you so graciously gave me” the working earth pony responded as he moved as efficiently as he could to set the fruit neatly in the stand.

“Even for the reduced wage you asked for me, you’re still enthusiastic about the job, your something special kid. Tell you what, once you get a better grip of your legs, ill normalize your rate” Berry Polish kindly offered his Latino worker because he enjoyed his enthusiasm.

Emerald could not agree more although being blessed with a job was good enough. Agreeing to the suggestion, he vowed to work harder for his boss and friend “you've got yourself a deal senor Polish, I assure you that I will not let you down” the rusty peach colored pony proclaimed as he finished unloading the bushels.

As Emerald Stretched his legs to get ready for the long trek back to the orchards, Berry Polish wandered if he could ask his worker were he came from “I don’t mean to intrude in your personal affairs but it’s been nagging me ever since I hired you. Just where you are from Emerald, I sure know you are not from the empire and you have a rather peculiar accent.”

Looking back at his boss, the Latino stallion knew the whole truth would sound outlandish but there was no sense in lying “it’s no problem at all senor, I pretty much stumbled into the Crystal Empire when I wanted to have a fresh start in my life and decided stay a bit. I had no were to sleep so Prince Shining Armor has graciously allowed me to stay in the castle but that was more than enough for me so I cook my own meals” Emerald Peach spoke rather calmly for someone not telling the whole truth as Berry Polish looked on with a face of surprise

“I am very grateful so I have been paying the crown for my stay whether it’s accepted or not, just those not feel right when something is free” Emerald answered truthfully as he started to jump lightly on his hooves to warm up his legs and keep them active.

“Being a foreigner, how do you like the empire so far? I know it may not seem so but everyone here is much older than what we appear” Berry Polish stated, a little intrigued about his story.

“My stay has been amazing so far, everything looks so beautiful and everyone is actually rather kind to me which is weird considering where I come from” the rusty peach colored pony commented with a single wag of his eye brows and a simple chuckle to emphasize the drastic contrast.

“Was it really so bad were you come from? And you came here to get away?”

“It wasn't really my choice to come here, I…err, practically stumbled into town but so far I am really enjoying my stay. I guess you can call it the best accident of my life and I don’t really mind starting literally from zero in a hospitable place like this” Emerald spoke of taking his situation in stride and rolling with what he had even when it was bitter work. Having lost everything was ironically the best thing that happened to him but he did feel a little guilty about something that he left behind.

He had to look into the Crystal Mirror and set things right with those he left behind as soon as he could.

“Well senor, I better get back to work. It was wonderful talking to you but the fields aren't going to take care of themselves” Emerald declared after a good stretch before the conversation could have gotten too hard to manipulate. If he needed to keep a secret right now, it was the place of origin because no one needed to know just yet if ever at all.

Escaping a rather awkward conversation, the Latino stallion began to whistle his way back to the berry fields.

…..

After a long hard day in the fields followed by his daily end of the day reading in the library, Emerald made his way to the Crystal Castle to finally settle down for the next day. Arriving at one of the four gates of the castle with his duffle bag on his back, the Latino earth pony walked up to his escort to get settled.

“Hola, how are you doing man? You know, I really appreciate how careful you guys are about guests and I really don’t mind being ‘escorted’ around because the bedding is worth it” the Latino pony began a friendly one way chat just to brake the usual silence as he was escorted through the crystalline halls. The guard simply kept quiet as the farm hand rambled on.

“I mean, who am I to question having someone making sure I am up to anything? You guys are doing it because you care, aside from your pay but I am cool with this. Really I am”

“You don’t mind being watch because of suspicion?” the guard finally broke the silence as they continued to make their way down the brightly lit halls.

“I am thankful; allowing me to crash in one of your guest rooms is more than enough!” Emerald responded as he started to whistle a jazzy tune he listened to in the plaza.

The guard raised a questioning eye brow “For some one that is not fully trusted, you are rather trusting. I am also supposed to remind you that you don’t have to pay Princess Cadence for your stay but you’re going to do it either way.”

“I don’t like being given anything free without paying it back because it those not feel right” Emerald commented as he stopped to set down his bag and pull out a bag of bits to pay for his stay.

“You know you don’t have to do it, the Princess is more than happy to help out someone in need. We don’t even feed you and you pay the crown.”

Having just started working, Emerald was living on just 2 meals a day by skipping diner as he saved his money. Still he did his best to meet his needs and pay for his stay “You can call me mule but I am not taking anything I can’t work for so if you would be so kindly” Emerald said as he pulled out half of his hard earned money for the guard to deliver to the Princess “tip included good sir.”

Having arrived at the room, the guard gave a defeated sigh and accepted the money before taking his leave. Alone, Emerald grinned at the unbelievably comfortable bed and jumped into it after dropping his bad on the side following up with a joint crackling stretch.

Silently enjoying the feeling of his fluffy bed after a long and hard day, Emerald could not help but think how strange things were becoming. It wasn't long ago that he first stumbled into this magical new world in a strange new body but he had been slowly changing as he adapted. Every day that went by was another day that felt less like his past self. Every hour that went by, the only lie he had spoken in this land was slowly becoming a reality as he felt less like Giuseppe.

It somehow felt right that he was losing himself to Emerald Peach and this new world but it did not make it all any less thought provoking. It had been challenging enough to adapt to this world although everything seemed friendly and simple enough, but was it worth to leave it behind once he had the chance? And how did he know he would be the same once he went back to his realm? Maybe it was destiny that he stumbled into the mystical wooden stallion framed mirror and fate had done him a solid one.

Maybe it was time he lost himself to find his new, promising life as Emerald Peach the friendly hard working and friendly farm hand. It had a nice ring to it and with such a wonderful world before him, he just had to explore it once he had enough bits. With his motor skills improving, a few extra jobs were ideal to keep him busy and make even more money for his plans.

The decision to stay and live in a world of magic and friendliness was rather liberating, it almost seemed he really disliked his old complex life. Still, there was one thing left to do about his old life that he needed to do before finally settling in in peace.

“Mama….I am sorry” Emerald whispered silently to himself as his eyelids were becoming unbelievably heavy. Due to the day’s hard work or the bed’s fluffiness, the Latino earth pony soon fell into a deep slumber were he had landed as his mind trailed to the world of dreams.

Chapter 2: Lunar Guidance

Emerald worked steadily on plowing the crystal corn fields of his boss as he continued to work his legs hard at pulling the plow. The farm hand would have normally concentrated on the job at that moment but something was off that day, something did not seem normal. The sun and moon shifted at a tremendous speed in the skies above as the fields were wrecked with constant lighting and shadow but there was something oddly wrong; the sun and the moon did not seem to fit were they shined. Day and night seemed to be mismatched as ‘day’, for how little it stood, was lit by the moon and so was the night lit by the sun. The peculiar sight of the moon somehow shining brighter than the sun was an odd phenomenon but work had to be done and there was nothing he could do about it.

Hours after Emerald first started plowing, the farmhand seemed unable to reach the end of the row he was plowing all the effort he put into the task. The Latino pony soon figured that there had to be something wrong because all his plowing seemed to not get him anywhere. Finally annoyed at the lack of progress he was apparently making, the stallion looked around to see that he had not progressed anywhere even with the back breaking work he put into the task.

”Ok, this is creeping me out” Emerald whispered, surveying his surroundings before noticing a graying wooden door behind him. The Latino pony stared at the door with a questioning look on his face for a minute before finally unbuckling his harness to inspect the mysterious door. Walking over to it to give it a closer look, Emerald walked around it to see what it looked like from behind to see where it lead but nothing else was there.

As the peachy rust coated pony continued to inspect the door, the sky finally settling with a proper moonlit night which shined even brighter as Emerald moved to touch the door.

“Do not touch that door, not yet” a thunderous female voice called from the sky startling Emerald as a Luna descended from the moon. Awestruck at the sight of the princess, Emerald simply stood there watching as Luna inspected the door for a few seconds before addressing the farm hand.

“Salutations, we hope we have not troubled thine sleep. We sensed that a nightmare troubled thee but this is a nightmare most uncommon.”

”sleep, so this is or was a nightmare? Explains why the sky was acting up and I literally couldn't get my work done” Emerald responded with a sigh of relief before looking back at the princess with questions in his eyes “soooo…with all due respect, who are you?”

“We are Princess Luna, but you can just call me Luna. Please seat as we wish to converse with thee” Luna spoke in a soft and inviting tone as she taped the ground to shape their surroundings into a room with a table and chairs.

Laughing with joy at the pleasant display of magic, Emerald sat down almost right away while beaming with positive enthusiasm “how did you do that, amazing!”

“We have the ability to control and shape dreams for we are the Princess of Dreams and the Night” Luna explained the nature of her power before materializing tea for them.

Taking a sip of the tea, the Latino pony could not believe how real it tasted so his curiosity for the new princes continued to grow “My name is Emerald Peach y es un plaser to meet you, how can I help you?”

“Thou nightmare seemed most peculiar, care to tell us what troubles thee?”

”Me troubled…err no, no I am fine” Emerald answered in a carefree tone to try to avoid being asked hard to answer questions but Luna seemed insistent for the truth.

”Tis ok to accept the aid of a friend, aiding ponies with their inner turmoil is not only our duty, it is our pleasure”

Feeling bad to leave her hanging, Emerald gave sigh and caved in to her request “ever sense I came to the Crystal Empire, a feeling of guilt has been scratching at the back of my mind. I came from a faraway land filled with indifference and opportunism to live a better life but I left some one dear to my heart behind”

”If it troubles you so then why don’t you go back?”

“It’s complicated. I don’t know how to go back because I stumbled into Equestria for accident and even if I could, I enjoy my simple life here too much to go back” even when Emerald refrained from telling the whole truth, he remained honest “and even If I could come back and somehow bring her with me, I don’t know if she would want to…”

”thou speak of this pony dearly, who is she if thou doth mind us inquiring?” Luna’s curiosity peaked as she saw the stallion’s face to be sincerely troubled; only a true foul deviant could feign such masterful act.

”She is mi ma, I feel truly bad to leave her behind so I am conflicted between happiness and loyalty to my loved one” Emerald could no longer look at Luna in the eyes out of shame as his lips flattened and his eyes looked down at the dream tea he struggled to remember.

”We understand all too well the cost you pay for what you desire but your inner strength speaks volumes of you, pleasant Emerald Peach, for you have not forgotten what is truly valuable”

Emerald felt a bit of respite thanks to Luna’s kind words but the inner struggle kept him from being confident about the whole truth. Perhaps he could one day find the courage to stop hiding details of his life but for now he felt he needed to keep his true identity a secret.

”If it’s all the same to you, I would like to change the subject to something more cheerful” Emerald’s deep thinking demeanor quickly turned cheerful at the thought that just popped into his head “And I know of an amazing topic that has interested me ever since I first came to Equestria. Thing is, for some odd peculiar reason, I dint have a cutie mark before my arrival but it appeared in my flank once I got here. I hope you did not mind me looking but I have to say that the moon cutie mark fits you fantastically!” Emerald boldly commented before taking a sip of his tea.

Blushing at such a bold comment, Luna had never been addressed so personally and did not exactly know how to respond “subjects normally would have greater respect for princesses….but I guess you come from a land that do not hold such respect, that Is no exception to adapting.”

”Point taken, sorry my princess” Emerald bowed down to her out of sincere respect.

Appreciating the instant act of respect, she did enjoy the idea of educating the earth pony and perhaps knowing about his cutie mark might give her a clue to who he is “we do appreciate thy idea and enjoy the complement outside of formalities. We are sure you have read the basics of what a cutie mark is, the symbol of our destiny realized and what we are born to do. Our cutie mark is the moon so our great magic and responsibility is to rule over the night just as my older sister rules over the day.”

”So my cutie mark is a reflection de mi ser. If the moon signifies your magical dominion of the night then what do you think my peach cutie mark describes about me?” Emerald asked Luna as he looked at his heart shaped green peach cutie mark adorned by a silver horseshoe.

”So thou don’t know why you got thy mark? It’s impossible to get one’s cutie mark until one realizes what their special talent is….unless thou knoweth what thou special talent is”

”What do you mean Princess Luna, what those a peach and a horseshoe have to do with this?”

”Think deeply about what thou hath achieved in the past, what thou enjoys and excels at. Perhaps it is these things that encompass thy destiny” Luna spoke as she gently motioned towards his cutie mark as if asking him to reflect on the mark.

Thinking deeply about what he has done, his farm hand job was the very first thing that came to his mind “I do enjoy farming for old man Polish, its hard but honest work and it’s much more simple then the job I had back in my land. It’s just simple work for pay and no surprises. I am especially good with my…hooves and hard labor” Emerald realized.

”pray tell, Emerald Peach, what else thou have done?”

looking back to parts of his former life, he remembered his life with his mother who at times suffered from stress and muscle cramps “mi ma, she always said I was such noble and empathetic soul full of love and a set of magical hooves. With a strong upper body strength came precision and a gentle touch, I used to give her really amazing massages for her aching muscles. Whoever I helped relax with my hooves commented on how much of an amazing masseur I was and somehow my hoof work extended even to bakery and labor” Emerald’s voice began to trail off with the coming of a new epiphany.

”We deduct that thou mystery has now been solved, quite an impressive array of balanced skills thou possess. Progress has been accomplished!” Luna declared enthusiastically before noticing Emerald in deep thought.

”No wait, I believe there is one more thing. Something I have felt for quite a bit, something that has been calling my heart and my very being ever sense I set eyes on her. It was an odd bottle because the illustration was not in the other bottles but there was this…girl in the bottle for the faintest moment. Ever sense then, ever sense I came to this land and the Empire, something or someone has been calling me over as if my whole destiny depended on looking for her. I can’t explain it very well but I just have to go and, as some say, follow my heart to where it is literally leading me once I have enough money to travel”

Luna simply smiled at the idea of such a romantic quest for the truth being tied to a cutie mark, it reminded her of a trio of cute little foals in Ponyville “We guess this to be yet another mystery to the grand puzzle of life. Perhaps one day we shall put thou worries and regrets to rest once and for all pleasant Emerald but till then, I must bid thee farewell. Night will soon end and so we must continue our conversation another night”

”Thank you for everything my princess, you have been so much help and I cannot think how I can repay you. For now I have to hold on to my shame but I hope you can help me find my path” Emerald bowed down with complete respect and appreciation but he felt an ounce of guilt that he could not open up to her and tell her the whole truth.

Luna soon began to soar into the night sky and towards the moon before fading from his dream with a content smile on her face. It seemed that their new visitor might be fit to live in Equestria permanently with such friendliness but for now she would continue to visit him in his dreams.

Emerald soon drifted back into his dream after Princess Luna was gone as any trace of the nightmare seemed to have vanished. Feeling his mind to be at peace, the farm hand stood there for a few seconds in deep thought before moving to try again at the plow. As if the talk with the princess somehow lifted an invisible obstacle in his way, Emerald soon saw that he could now progress in earnest with his dream. It was as if the nightmare signified that he had been lost and confused only to find the way to move on forward with Luna’s counsel. It was at that point when the Latino pony chose to heed the advice of his new princess and put his hooves to use in spreading empathy and healing. Still being a foreigner and new to the Empire, he could not start as a masseur so there was only one other thing left to do and it was time he worked with the food he harvested every day. It was time he got a new job as the Empire’s new baker.

Chapter 3: Baking frienship

The light of a brand new day shined through the windows of the crystal castle signifying a brand new day. Celestia’s sunrise’s shined against the empire’s buildings creating a prismatic rainbow glow that almost seemed to celebrate the downfall of King Sombra not too long ago. The Crystal Empire had just recently been saved from the dark curse of King Sombra and despite the cheery mood of the empire; their new Latino resident was met by most with suspicion. With the rainbow shimmering on his eyes, Emerald’s rising followed a loud grunt as his sore muscles from the day before reminded him that he still lived. Emerald knew about the return and final fall of Sombra not long ago and understood the lack of trust some of the crystal ponies had. Among the mistrust and skepticism were the few that trusted him like his boss and that was enough for him to know that he could turn all that around through hard work and empathy.

It was suddenly that the memory of the dream the night before came back to him and Luna’s words ran through his mind repeatedly. Still awakening, the earth pony gave out a loud yawn along with a contorting stretch that sounded with subtle bone cracking and grunts to shake off the sleep. Its was soon that Emerald sat on the bed in silent contemplation after remembering that he was given that day off to rest.

Emerald knew that Luna wanted him to try out bakery but the Latino pony knew that he had never been an actual baker. The only baking work Emerald had ever done in technicality was mixing tamale dough in which he was very good and thorough at. Luna was a princess and by his studies in the library, and alicorn of vast knowledge and wisdom so her suggestions seemed to hold some weight. After close consideration, the farm pony decided he would also become a baker but he needed books for the know-how and the ingredients for the mix. Finally with a set course of action, Emerald grinned and sprung to his hooves before dashing off to take a quick bath before going to the store for a bite to eat.

*****

Emerald had always had sensitive senses of hearing and smelling that were easily affected and sensitive. The noise of the crowd and the smell of the Crystal Empire cooking permeated the market enthralling the empty stomach of the Latino as he shopped for breakfast. Before Emerald knew, his bag was almost filled with flower, yeast and sugar along with spicy hay sausage and cheese accompanied by loafs of bread. As he gathered his food, Emerald couldn't believe that only a few days ago he had eaten meat but what was more perplexing was how good the food he had been eating was. Instead of meat, ponies ate hay as their alternate and for some reason it almost tasted the same as a real sausage or a real burger.

Food was not the only think that was changing for Emerald, as he convinced others and learned to be an earth pony, he was slowly feeling like a real one. Having chosen this new life forced on him over his magic less life, Emerald was ok with the changes around him but the changing and warping of his mind was surprising for the lack of a better word. Having chosen Equestria as his new home, it was perhaps for the best that his former life were left behind for his new pony life even if….

The train of thought was suddenly broken when the murmuring and whispers started as emerald passed by. Looking around, the Latino pony could see a mixture of ignoring and frightened looks from ponies that were looking at him as they went about their business. It was a bit harsh at first sight but Emerald understood that someone so foreign would be feared after the ancient evil that enslaved them had returned not too long ago. Shopping for everything he needed, he did not wished to bother the poor crystal ponies so he went about his business as quick as he could.

It was then that Emerald spotted an earth pony with barrels of apples and dried fruit from out of town. The barrel had the insignia of the Sweet Apple Acres and the apples, the most delicious apples in existence, were directly imported from the farm in ponyville via train just for the Empire. There was something amazing and magical about the fruits that attracted Emerald, he seemed almost enthralled by the texture and taste of such perfect fruit. Before he knew, Emerald was picking half a dozen when the sales pony laughed at the sight “you really love this apples don’t you, every times I come to sell em’ you buy as much as you can carry” the sales pony stated as a blushing Emerald looked at him while mindlessly having taken a bite of one of the apples.

“I have always loved apples, I mean they are good for you and all that but this apples are just the best apples I have ever eaten in my whole life”

“Can’t deny good quality, them Apple folk back in Ponyville really know how to grow them, they are renown across Equestria for such a humble farm” The sales pony explained as emerald cleaned himself after devouring the apple seconds ago “you should go and visit first chance you get, it’s a very good place to live”

“Thanks for the tip, I always wanted to see Ponyville and the capital, they sound like great places to visit once I get enough money. Thanks for the apples and it was awesome talking to you” Emerald paid the sales pony his bits before heading off back to the castle were the guard keeping an eye on him waited as always, knowing little of the other guards blending among the crowd.

Ignoring the skeptical stares of the ponies as he approached the guard tasked to escort him everywhere he went inside the castle, Emerald’s normally joyful face saddened a bit. Looking to the side was the mother of the foal he had meet and played with the first time he set foot outside of the castle and Equestria. The baby waved at him and garbled happily at the Latino pony as the skeptical mother gently shushed her foal and tried her best to take his eyes away from him. Emerald understood this fear of the unknown and congratulated her in her desperation to keep her poor baby away from harm’s way but this seemed a little extreme. Emerald hoped he could one day win their trust because he truly cared to live among them.

Finally standing before the guard, to follow him back inside, he needed to know the nature of what happened with their dark king “hey there senor, I know it’s a sore subject and you don’t have to say anything but what is the bronca brought on because of Sombra’s return?”

Looking at Emerald with the same curiosity the Latino pony had to why he was asking, the guard simply nodded before starting to walk “a little more than a thousand years ago, Sombra arrived with great magical powers and an army with which he used to defeat and enslave all crystal slaves for his selfish wishes and lust for power. Those were dark times and no one was spared the king’s dark cruelty as even the old and the young were enslaved and put to work in the crystal mines near and beneath the castle for the king’s greed and love for tyranny. For years we endured and suffered under his dark rule and even to this day we bear the scars of hard labor and brutality brought on by his dark designs. It was years of enduring hard labor and torture that the regal sisters, Celestia and Luna, and their armies arrived and brought down Sombra’s dark rule into shadows. Sombra would not allow himself to fall alone so he cursed our empire to vanish from existence, frozen in time and space for one thousand years until the time he were to return and return he did. After a thousand years, we simply materialized as if nothing had happened but as a second was to us, a thousand years had passed and we were stuck in a new world with the dark king reemerging to bring on his revenge” the guard’s tale was filled with him and serious words as he recalled things that to him happened almost a month ago while it was a thousand years for the rest of the world.

Listening intently, Emerald’s face had gone from friendly to downright mindful as he listened of the hardships the crystal ponies were forced to endure. Wanting to know more, Emerald nodded to the guard as the slowly walked down the hall “I never knew, I am sorry for everything you all endured if you want…” Emerald’s empathy allowed him to feel the stress and sadness the guard was enduring but was shocked by the guard’s response.

“It’s all right because everything got better as you can see. As the dark lord laid siege on our city, our fair princes Cadence protected us with her powerful magic while her friends, the famous elements of harmony found the crystal heart and used it to destroy Sombra once and for all. Finally free from evil, some of us are still troubled by the dark times under Sombra’s rule so please bear with us”

“Why wouldn't I, you all been through so much that I understand. I hope I can prove that I am good somehow soon” Emerald smiled warmly and offered his hoof to the guard who smiled at how friendly he was.

“Thanks, but all in good time.”

*****

Back from the trip to the market and after half an hour of pleading the royal cook, Emerald sat finishing his breakfast as he cleaned the cooking table for the baking. Eating a pace of spicy hay sausage with some apple juice, Emerald was cleaning up the prep table thoroughly till it shined before drying it and getting to work “alright, let’s see what we have here….something simple for starters” looking through the baking guide book, the rookie baker decided that a simple loaf was a solid choice.

Before starting the royal cook came through the door as she saw Emerald pour some honey into hot water, Gleaming Éclair gave out a sigh before walking over to interrupt “you may have convinced the princess to allow you use of my kitchen BUT it’s still MY kitchen, you got that rookie?!” Chief Éclair, a pinkish brown coated pony with long curly hair closed up and looked at him menacingly before walking over to the side of the table.

Confused, the Latino pony just stood there while he waited for her to say anything else until deciding to break the silence “so what you plan to do?”

“Help you learn of course, I will not stand for foolish rookie mistakes in my kitchen so I’ll make sure you learn from the best; me!” Éclair stated confidently before looking at his book to see what he intended to create “this seems easy enough, better get comfy there boy, we are going to stay here all day baking until you are almost as good as me…..almost.”

After half an hour of 2 botched mixes and despite the chewing Éclair was giving him for failing to mix flour correctly, the third time seemed to have worked just fine into a ball ready to knead. Unloading the ball of dough into the table after sprinkling some flower, Éclair soon started to pantomime kneading “ok rookie, it’s time to put those hooves to good use and knead that dough real well so get to work farm boy.”

Looking at the dough before him, Emerald gave the ball a good look before placing his clean hoove on it “ok, here I go…it shouldn't be too hard right?” Emerald thought out loud as he took a deep breath before starting to use the strength of his hooves and arms to knead the dough with sudden speed and skill. Working with the dough with speed and strength, Emerald remembered that he did the same thing every winter when he created tamales for the parties back where he came from. Warm and happy memories of times and parties from when he was a child started to surge to his mind as his hooves sank perfectly, mixing the mix before folding the dough back several times.

Looking over his work after letting the dough rest and rise, Éclair nodded approvingly at how fast the dough had been prepared with such powerful and thorough kneading “your kneading is so good that the dough is ready at half the time which is impressive, I’ll give you that much. Now let’s prep these bad boys into shape before putting them on the oven” Éclair said as she divided the dough into several loafs before giving Emerald a brush with egg shine to coat the bread loafs.

Waiting for the loaf’s to finish, Éclair wandered why a simple farm hand suddenly wanted to learn to bake so she leaned on the table a she looked at Emerald “you seemed so insistent to borrow the kitchen, it can’t just be to try something new……it better not be just to try something new!”

“Don’t worry, it’s not about that Miss Éclair I’d tell you but you will probably laugh at me and get angry at me for the 11th time”

“Try me”

“Como le guste. The night before I had a nightmare but then a princess called Luna came to my dreams and kind of helped me out. I told her how I don’t remember how I got my cutie mark and we had a small talk about it before thinking of a way to figure it out. I decided to try baking first so aqui estoy” Emerald said with a shrug as he walked over to check on the oven “you can laugh now.”

“So that is why, sounds like our princess Luna all right, she helps and guides her subject during the night by talking to them in their sleep. Guess advice from the princess is an acceptable reason” Éclair said before getting up to take out the tray of loafs and inspect them “you should continue to do it, I would consider this an honor if a princes helped and advise you to do something so I suggest you take it to heart” Éclair said as she grabbed one of the loafs with a cloth and taped the bottom to see if they were done.

Emerald really appreciated her advice and openness in the conversation as she seemed willing to help in his tasked entrusted by the princess of the moon “Thanks, I will do my very best to find my way in this land, thanks to kind ponies like you senora Éclair” the Latino farm hand spoke with a joy in his tone, grateful for her help but then got worried when she beamed him a torching glare.

“But if you do anything, if you slip out of line even once, I will end you kid. Do you ‘comprende?’” Éclair’s words were as heavy and scary as her look to which the Latino farm pony gave an intimidated nod and a gulp.

“E-entiendo very clear.”

“good, now let’s finish up.”

*****

Emerald and Éclair worked all day making bread and perfecting the earth ponie’s craft, the royal cook was helpful but strict and would often drill Emerald but deep down she felt a bit of pride in his progress. So proud was Éclair that after a few tastes, she felt confident in her student’s bread making that she allowed him to help her and her staff with that day’s diner. Emerald’s diner and sweet breads were far from perfect and he lacked the artistic skill and knows how to make a cake worthy for a princess but his bread was tasty none the less. With guidance from the royal chief, the Latino farm hand had become a competent bread maker who excelled in prepping the bread swiftly while giving it a special touch to every loaf. Emerald had seemingly discovered his adept ability of bread making but there were many things left to try but for now he had to pass the royal taste test to truly know if he was ready.

Standing with chief Éclair, Emerald Peach stood silently before Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armor in the dinner table. Presented to them was the day’s diner cooked by Éclair and her team personally consisting of soup and finely dressed dandelion and hay with roses marinated in cheddar based cream and rosemary. To the side as a side helping and dessert were Emerald’s loafs of bread presented to Cadence to see If Emerald was doing well or if he still had work to do. Bowing to the royal couple, the two couple jumped into the culinary fray to throw the dice.

“Greetings your highness, I hope your meals looks appetizing and worthy for you. Today we have something special for you thanks for to my temporary helper Emerald Peach who has taken up bakery” Éclair said as she smiled and moved to the side to let the Latino pony talk.

Stepping forward before bowing again, Emerald have a charming smile as he summoned his courage to speak “I have been so grateful that you have given me estansia under the roof of the crystal castle, I do not know how I would manage without your generosity and kindness to me. I have pondered for days in how I may repay my beloved hosts until Luna came to me in my dreams to counsel me in my doubts, she has tasked me on learning and perfecting the art of bakery as self-discovery and would be beyond honored if you were to sample the fruits of my labor, thank you” Emerald finished his speech with a hoof in his heart and a final bow wile stepping back.

Cadence smiled and almost cried at how sweet his speech was while sharing a bit of guilt with Shining Armor in knowing the real reason they kept him inside the castle. None the less, the royal couple was touched and awe struck at his charm and consideration for their “hospitality”. Emerald looked to his side and grinned impishly as he saw Éclair start to cry and sniff while drying her tears in a handkerchief “that was so beautiful and thoughtful kid, you are one hell of a touching speaker….if you could please excuse me” she said, needing to clear herself up as she showed to have a weakness to sappy things.

Giving Emerald a bright smile, Cadence raised a hoof in appreciation of his services “you are very kind Emerald and we are more than happy for your offer, would you be so kind as to cut us some samples of your bread, I would love to taste it.”

Emerald smiled to Cadense’s request as he took out a bread knife and cut them some slices as fast and efficient as he could as he mentally hoped for the best. Offering them the bread, Emerald stood there as professional as he could while watching them taste his dinner rolls and wheat bread.

Taking a bite of the wheat brad and dinner rolls, Cadence smiled at how tasty they were on par to the bread made for them in the castle “it’s delicious Emerald, the wheat bread is hearty but not too chewy and the dinner roll is so delicious, they go very well with my soup and I love it” Shining Armor complemented as he dipped the wheat loaf on his soup and showed down.

Cadence smiled as she finished her dinner roll and nodded in agreement to Shining Armor in favor to the Latino pony’s bread “This bread is deed delicious and we are so appreciative for you to offer us the fruit of your dedication Emerald, I can tell right away the dedication you put into your work and I appreciate it”

Emerald blushed at such considerable praise and looked away shyly “aww shucks, gracias for the praise, I am not that good but I did my best for you two. It turn out I am so good and fast at kneading the bread that I made plenty more so please help yourselves” Emerald said as he felt happy to have passed his test so well. Inspired by such high remarks, he decided to continue and improving baking as he would learn new recipes to make those he cared for happy and satisfied. Satisfied for his new finding, he had things to do for tomorrow’s so he needed to excuse himself and begin the next phase of his new life “If you could please excuse me, I must be off to prepare for tomorrow’s farming. Again thanks for letting me stay and have a wonderful night” Emerald finally said before respectively leaving.

Looking at each other with worry, Shining gave out a sigh as he felt a little bad about the true nature of Emerald’s stay in the castle and his constant watch. Shining Armor did not trust the Latino pony but he has so far been an amazing person, so he felt a small bit of guilt “I feel that spying on him and keeping him here is a bit wrong Cadence, he has never acted suspicious or bad and I feel we may be over doing it. Sure we are still a little uneasy because of Sombra’s return and we don’t know if he was the only thing that came back but he just seems like an ordinary earth pony”

Cadence giggled and nodded in agreement as she took Shining’s hooves with hers “I know sweetie but we can’t be too careful in these times of insecurity. I can feel wonderful warmth coming from him but also some pain, we need to keep an eye on him just until Princess Luna and Princes Celestia finish watching over him. We have to be patient and wait, trust me when I tell you that we are doing the right thing” Cadence smiled sweetly as her love reassured Shining Armor’s resolve to keep him in house arrest long enough to find out his true nature.

Only time would tell if they were safe from him but Cadence truly hoped he was truly good because she felt a bright and gentle soul in Emerald and knew he could be a wonderful person. She truly hoped she was correct.

*******