Waking up in Equestria

"...what do you say, girls?" Twilight asked her friends.

There were 9 ponies, a baby dragon and an owl now gathered in the room with me. I was feeling a bit on display, but also relieved. After donning the clothes that Rarity had made me, a well fitting and soft dark blue shirt that was close to a T-shirt but with a deeper neck and pants made of a comfortable brown rugged cloth, Twilight had sent Spike out to get the rest of the ponies that were now gathered here. I had met Applejack and Rainbow Dash, along with Applejack's little sister, Apple Bloom for the second time. The three smaller ponies sat together, Scootaloo occasionally giving me a long look when she thought no one else would notice. I began to get the feeling that this little pony had a crush on me. She was acting the same way younger girls at school did around the seniors. Given the scenes that had played out upstairs, the thought of this pony with a crush on me made me nervous and excited at the same time.

The last arrival had been Pinky Pie, who came crashing in with balloons tied to her pink tail, pushing a small cart full of pies, cakes and assorted other treats. She was easily the most hyper and scatterbrained thing I had ever seen in my life, but her pure enjoyment of everything was infectious. After meeting everyone, including a brown Owl that had flown in silently through a high open window, landed on a perch and surveyed us with beady black eyes, Twilight told me about what had happened to me when I got here and how they saved me from Equestria's influence. Had I heard this story last week, I would have thought it the most crazy thing I'd ever heard.

"So... that dream I had was real then? You all saved me from dieing?" I had asked.

"Yeah, but it was nuthin" Rainbow Dash had said dismissively with a wave of her blue hoof. "Now if there had been some mean dragon to fight too... that would have been about 20% cooler!"

I sat in silence for a moment realizing that someone cared enough about me to come to my rescue. These ponies didn't know me... but they had all worked together to save me. I would probably have broken down crying with gratitude right there had Twilight's mistake not brought me here in the first place. "But what will that magic do... you know... the magic that you gave me?"

"Um... the book didn't say, really. But I'm pretty sure nothing bad. I mean.. you're ok right?" Twilight had asked with a hopeful smile.

"I don't think he's ok!" Pinkie Pie announced. "You were gonna die from happiness and that sounded like fun! Now you're just normal... How BORING!" With this she had flopped on her belly and tried her best to look depressing. I came to the conclusion that this pony couldn't pull that look off. She was like a barely contained explosion of happy.

"The important thing is you're alright and because of me, you're stuck in Ponyville. So my friends and I are going to help you get adjusted and fit in!" she said cheerily. "What do you say, girls?"

__________________________________

The cakes and pastries that Pinkie Pie had brought were delicious. I didn't realize how hungry I was until I took the first bite of what looked like a cherry crumble with white frosting. It tasted just like one would have back home and my stomach roared at the familiar texture and flavor. Applejack had brought a barrel of Apple Acres Cider from her farm that was sweet and slightly alcoholic. It tingled it's way down my throat delightfully, warming my belly with a pleasant glow that seemed to reach all the way up behind my eyes.

We had gathered around the largest table in Twilight's library. It was slightly lower than a table should be for me, but that looked to be by design in this world to accommodate the inhabitants. I sat on my now familiar wooden log stool with Scootaloo by my side once again. She and her two friends sat in a row to my right on low boxes to raise them up slightly, with her closest. Twilight was on my left at the end of the table and the others were across from me. I swear that when she thought no one was looking, Scootaloo was quickly taking drinks from my glass. The three smaller ponies all had water.

The gathering felt like a welcoming party. All present were interested in hearing about me and my world but in different aspects. I normally wasn't good at talking.. or socializing. But either this world or the apple cider had loosened me up enough that I was actually enjoying myself. Applejack wanted to know about what kind of work we did while Rarity grilled me on fashion. She was disappointed when I knew almost nothing about that topic and voiced her mild annoyance.

Fluttershy asked me all about what kind of animals were there while Pinky Pie wanted to know about what kind of things we did for fun. Spike even asked me if we had any good gems there. I really didn't know what that question meant until Scootaloo informed me that gems were Spike's favorite thing to eat. Rainbow Dash asked me if any humans could fly and I had told her that we do but in airplanes that we sat in. Her and Scootaloo listened with rapt attention as I described that there were machines that can go faster than the speed of sound.

"Yeah, but do they make a RAINBOOM?!" Rainbow Dash had asked haughtily.

The party wound on for quite some time. I listened to them talk about their world and adventures at great length with wide eyes. Everything from about how the weather works to some confusing creature called Discord. Fluttershy became a bit defensive when Apple Jack called him a "no good trouble maker" in her southern sounding accent. Sometime after my third or fourth cup of cider, I felt a nudge against my right thigh. I looked down and saw that while everyone was busy discussing who was the better musician, Vinyl Scratch or Lyra, Scootaloo had stealthily slid her hoof onto my leg under the table.

My heart began to thud when I realized this little pony was wanting to hold my hand. It was an intoxicating giddiness to have the thought that a girl liked me, human or not, making me feel more alive and like a part of the group more than I had ever felt at home. I reached down under the table and placed my right hand over her hoof. She didn't look at me, but just gave a big sigh and smiled into her plate. Her hoof was soft and warm, the hair feeling clean and smooth under my fingers. I traced a digit around the hard edge at the end, feeling the rough texture there.

"Mason?" Twilight said, snapping me back to the conversation. "You alright? Your face has turned red."

"Sure!" I said and used my left hand to grab the half empty cup of cider, swigging it down in one gulp.

"Applejack has offered up the extra room in the barn at Sweet Apple Acres for you to stay in while you're in Equestria."

"That's right!" Applejack said. "Ol' Big Mac will love havin another guy 'round there to help out for a while. We'll getcha settled in and keep ya warm and fed. Just askin ya help out round the farm a bit, that's all. Ya ain't had nuthin till you've had Granny Smith's apple pie after a hard day a-workin, ain't that right Apple Bloom?"

"That's right!" Apple Bloom said.

"That sounds great" I said to her. I wasn't so sure I'd like the work part, especially since I didn't have shoes yet.

"Well ah-right! Me n' Apple Bloom will get goin' and make sure everythings ready for ya."

Fluttershy spoke up and said that she would take me to Sweet Apple Acres but was interrupted by Scootaloo.

"No.. that's ok... I mean, my house is closest to there and I wanted to sleep over with Apple Bloom tonight anyways. We have... Crusaidin to plan for tomorrow, right Apple Bloom?" Scootaloo asked her friend.

"Uh... Sure" the small pony with the bow said in a not too convincing manner.

"You sure, Scoots?" Rainbow asked inquisitively. "Aren't your mom and dad home?"

At this, the little orange pony darkened. "No... they... they haven't been home in a while."

All of the gathered ponies fell silent for a moment as if they needed no further explanation. There was something going on with Scootaloo's home life that they had all heard before. I wanted to know, but now didn't seem like the time to ask. Looking at her, I gave her hoof a squeeze under the table.

"Ok, squirt. Sure, if ya want." Rainbow Dash said. "You know you can always stay with me, right?"

"I know... but it's OK. Really. I'm cool with it!" Scootaloo put on a smile and a brave face.

The party was over at this point. As the ponies began to clean up, I took the opportunity to ask Rarity about some shoes. She gave my feet a look and with a puzzled expression asked me how they worked. I couldn't help but be amused.

"They cover them up and the bottoms are hard or rubbery, so that the bottom of my feet don't get cut by rocks and stuff."

"You mean you humans can't walk around without these.. shoes?" she asked incredulously.

"We can, but not outside where things are sharp."

"Simply amazing... I don't know how you humans survive." She gave a fake sigh of resignation, bordering on dramatic that was a poor attempt to mask her excitement. "Draw one for me and I'll take some measurements."

I gave a rough sketch of what a shoe looks like from my world and explained the mechanics. She seemed to grasp the concept and said she should be able to whip something up tomorrow. With my bad ankle, I figured I wouldn't be on my feet much for a few days anyways.

The cleaning was done and the ponies began to leave. Applejack and her sister left first to get things ready at home and Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle said their goodbyes before the two white ponies took their leave. Soon it was just Me, Twilight, Scootaloo and a sleeping Spike on the bottom step. He was on his back, one arm and his tail hanging limply over the edge while he snored audibly. Twilight gave me a regretful look.

"I hope you can forgive me, Mason. This isn't fair to you... and it's all my fault. I feel horrible."

I don't know if it was the cider in my blood, the giddiness I felt about Scootaloo wanting to hold my hand, the fact that I was in a land of magical ponies that talked, or a combination of all of the above but today had been the single most exciting and enjoyable day in my life. I felt wanted, cared for and like I belonged somewhere. Regardless of the situation, it was Twilight that was responsible for it all. I moved without thinking and bent down slightly to wrap my arms around the pony's neck in a warm embrace. She stiffened momentarily before relaxing and bringing a hoof up to my lower back, embracing me in return.

"It's alright, Twilight. You're forgiven" I said quietly to her and stepped back.

Her large purple eyes were moist as she smiled at me. "Thanks."

"Come on Mason!" Scootaloo said behind me.

"Alright, lets go."

___________________________________

The night air was warm and comfortable outside the door. Candles were lit around Twilight's abode either by normal means or magic, but it accomplished the same goal. I could see that yes, her house was a massive living tree, yet another testament to the powers that existed here. I could see lights in the near distance of buildings and streetlight that I figured must be the main part of the town.

Twilight lived near the edge of town and the path we were taking looked to skirt the edge, not entering the more dense cluster of lights visible through the trees. The smell of clean grass and flowers was borne on the light breeze that occasionally tickled by my face. Everything felt peaceful and in harmony with itself, like the summer evening of your childhood where school was a distant memory and also a distant fear. Now I was going to be alone with a pony / girl who liked me. I was awash with new feelings inside.

Scootaloo and I hadn't even made it ten feet from the door before I knew this wasn't going to work. I didn't know how far it was to Applejack's place, but walking with a bad foot and no shoes wasn't going to get us there anytime tonight. Scootaloo had a small two wheeled skateboard-scooter thing with a T handle for steering with her. She gave up riding it almost immediately given the speed I was moving and was now walking it, her helmet dangling from the straps from one of the hand grips. Finally, I stopped.

"Scoot, wait. I don't know how far I can walk like this." I said miserably.

She just gazed up at me, waiting for me to make a decision. I looked down at her and then at her scooter.

"Can I use that?" I said, pointing to the device.

"Huh?" she asked confused.

"Lemmi see that for a moment."

About fifteen minutes later, we were moving at a good pace down the path. We had to go back to Twilight's house for a couple things, a small wooden box and a blanket for padding for me to adapt the two wheeled cart. What we ended up with was a box on the scooter with the blanket for padding under my right knee and the T handle extended up for me to balance and steer, pushing myself along with my left leg. It actually worked out rather well. She walked next to me on my left avoiding the occasional swerves I had while still getting the hang of the make shift trolly. The little orange pony thought it was the coolest thing ever and beamed with happiness.

The two of us walked in silence for a while down the deserted path that wound it way around the edge of town. Now that we were alone, I found I was nervous to talk to her. She appeared to acting the same way, looking around at the darkened trees and houses in the distance rapidly, her eyes never staying in the same place long. Occasionally she would look up at me, eyes darting to mine and then quickly away. I thought more about Scootaloo as the sounds of her hooves and my foot and wheels were the only noise between us.

She seemed young. Her mannerisms were that of a young teenager that reminded me of the freshmen or sophomore girls at school. I didn't know what that meant in this world as far as two people liking each other but that had never stopped any of the popular seniors in my world from dating them. Heck, there were even one or two girls that always had a baby before their sophomore year started... or sometime during it. The steps dragged on as the tension seemed to grow between us. Not an unpleasant tension, just the anticipation that sooner or later we would have to talk about it. The cider was still tingling my body, perhaps giving me the courage to say what I did first.

"I liked holding your ha... hoof." I said, correcting myself to this world's correct terminology.

She didn't say anything for a moment, and giggling a little bit "Your hooves are funny... I think they're cute."

"I'm a human.. they're normal to me." I said in a mock wounded tone.

"I think they're cool because they aren't normal, like me... You're not like everypony around here... I like it."

"What do you mean you're not normal?" I asked her with genuine interest.

"Duh, can you see my wings?" she stretched out her small wings and gave them a little flutter, looking back over her shoulder at them. "They're like the most un-normal pegasus wings ever!"

"Well, I like em." I smiled at her.

"I hate em." She replied. "I always get made fun of because I can't fly"

"You get made fun of? By who?"

"The other pegasus at school. It's the reason my parents don't spend any time with me" she said miserably.

"You mean they ignore you?"

"Well that and they're never there."

"Where do they go?" I asked.

She told me the story about her older brother. About how since he had vanished, they seemed to forget she was even alive. With a painful tone, she explained how every night she's usually the only one there, coming home to an empty house. Sometimes she could tell that they had been home because there was fresh food around, other times she would have to go to Apple Bloom's to eat. The times that they were home were no better. According to her, they barely made eye contact with her and only addressed her when she spoke directly to them. She felt like a ghost, she told me. An unwanted, deformed ghost.

My heart nearly broke hearing the pain in her voice. Clearly this was a very sensitive subject for her and I did the only thing that I wanted to do right then, abandoning any thoughts of right or wrong with this little pony. I stopped the scooter and knelt down gingerly in front of her to be at her height. She looked at me in the darkness of the path, lit only by the filtered moonlight through the trees above us. Her wings and ears twitched nervously as she waited to see what I was going to do with those large expressive eyes.

Slowly, I leaned into her and wrapped my arms around the base of her neck, hugging her tight to me. She pressed her weight against me, bringing a leg up of her own to wrap tightly around me under my arm. We stayed that way for a while, enjoying each others closeness and affection. I could smell her scent in her mane, a faint cinnamon-apple mixed with the vibrant undertone of a slightly animal smell that touched a primal nerve in my brain. I brought an arm up and stroked her mane briefly before she moved her head back, her face inches from mine.

"Do you like me Mason?" she asked quietly, her eyes searching mine.

"Yeah" I said. "I don't know what it is... but I keep thinking about you, I've liked you ever since we talked in the clubhouse."

"I... I like you to... a lot. More than I've ever liked anypony. I thought about you too every day since you got here... Like... I just want to be near you all the time"

"I'd like that..." I whispered, my heart racing in anticipation of what I wanted to do next.

"Yeah..." she breathed.

Her small mouth was slightly open, her breath was rapid like mine showing she felt the same nervous energy as I did. It washed against my face as a moist warmth that entered my nose with a pleasant sensation. Moving forward, I pressed my lips against hers gently. She stiffened up, taking a deep breath in through her nose and her eyes went wide before relaxing, letting them droop closed. The fine soft hairs around her mouth gently tickled my nose and face, each one feeling electric against my skin. I brought my hand up and cupped the back of her head, holding her to me. She gave a small whimper into my mouth as I parted my lips slightly, letting my tongue slide out and brush against her mostly closed lips. It unleashed the small pony's desire and she kissed back against me hard like she had been wanting to do this badly for some time. She parted her own lips and her tongue met mine.

Pressing together, we explored each other with an anxious need. Our heads twisted and our mouths locked, kissing each other deeply and sharing our taste between us. Our breath came fast and heavy through our noses and I was dimly aware that I had a massive erection from the erotic sensations our kiss was giving me. My remaining hand on her back felt that her wings were now extended and rigid. Scootaloo's passion and desire were so evident in her reaction that I was unable and unwilling to stop or slow down the process. Young or not... she was aching for this as much as I was now...

It was not without clumsiness. It was clear that neither of us had any experience kissing, let alone kissing between the different worlds. While our tongues pressed against each other, teeth clicked and saliva drooled, smearing between us making our mouths wet with our mixed fluids. Her tongue was longer than mine and reached into my mouth, flicking around to touch everything while she gave an occasional passionate whimper in her throat.

Finally, we had to come up for air. We broke off and stayed close, our foreheads pressed together while we panted in excitement and passion. I had just french kissed for the first time and it wasn't even with a girl from my world... let alone my own species. My lips and face tingled with the sensations of her tongue and hair. It was such a new sensation that I hadn't experienced before that my mind was soaking it all in. My heart was pounding and I felt like I was vibrating all over.

"Woah..." she breathed "that was..."

"You really OK with this...?" I asked her, out of breath myself.

"Yeah... but..." she trailed off, her eyes looking down and away. I pulled back a bit before asking

"But what?"

"It's kinda weird and all... you know? I mean... you aren't even a pony... and I don't even have my cutie mark yet."

"Does... does that mean you aren't supposed to be doing this stuff?" I asked, fearful of getting either her or myself in trouble with a forbidden lust.

"Well... no. I mean, lots of girls in school have special someponys before they get their mark. I just... I'm scared Mason. I've never felt like this before... and... and I know you don't belong here and you're probably going to leave." Her eyes were now shimmering in the moonlight, becoming moist with tears. "I don't want you to leave me... you're the only pony I know who's different like me..."

A tear fell from her eye as she seemed to be searching my soul. What was I supposed to tell her? I barely had come to grips with where I was, let alone dealing with an emotional situation like this. I had just deep kissed her and now she was crying here in front of me. It sounded like the same emotional roller coaster I'd heard about when dealing with chicks back home. I guess girls are the same no matter what world they are in. I couldn't blame her though... I didn't want to leave either. Who knows, maybe Equestra held a better life for me than the lonely, dark life I had before coming here. I pulled her back into a tight embrace, kneeling in the moonlit dirt path.

"Scoot... Today has been best I've ever had in my life." I whispered into her ear. "I found out I have ponies here that care about me, magic is real, and a whole new world to explore that seems so much better than where I came from. I can't say I won't go back when the time comes, but while I'm here... I want it to be with you."

She barked a sob against my shoulder and hugged me back as tight as she could. We stayed that way for long minutes while she wept into my shirt, me stroking her mane and comforting her as best I could. I thought about my home and family while I held the crying pony in my arms. If it had been two or three days since I'd been gone, then my mother was already worried about me. I felt bad about the pain she was going to go through, me disappearing like this. But I tried to push the thought out of my head because there was nothing to be done about it. I was stuck here for a long time and that was that... and I wanted to be stuck with this little orange pony with amazing purple eyes that was making me feel more alive that I'd ever felt before.

Her crying tapered off, and she moved her head back again. The hair around her eyes was a darker shade in the pale light that illuminated her face, her eyes dark globes shimmering with moisture. "I want to be with you too, Mason." she said and gave a small smile. "But I don't think we should tell anyone... cuz, you know... is kinda weird."

"Alright Scoot... It'll just be our secret then."

She leaned her face forward and we kissed again, this time with a slower more relaxed pace. While it didn't burn with the release of the first kiss, it was heavy with meaning and intent. She was giving herself to me, as best as she knew how... and I fell in love with a pony I barely knew.