Pretty in Blueby SupaSqueegeeChaptersNew in TownStrange New FriendsCopingNew in TownWho knew that so many changes could happen to one person in their life time. Sure, I lived an easy enough life for awhile. I went to work, cleaned my apartment, and spent some time with my friends. I lived a simple enough existence. I had my hobbies, my passions, and my duties. Some days all I wanted to do was sit on the couch and play video games, and some days I wanted to hole up and hide from the world. I loved my friends and family, and I would have done anything for them. Loyalty was always easy to me. If I became close to someone, then I would stand by them forever. Simple as that. I wasn’t a difficult guy to figure out. Slightly overweight, but still considered at least moderately handsome, single, early twenties. Fresh out of college with a decent paying, entry level job. I was an upstanding member of the community, and I paid my taxes every year like the rest of the country. I wasn’t anything special, though. It’s hard to be when there are so many people in the world. That’s why when all of this happened to me, you can imagine the shock I felt. ‘Why did this happen to me?’ Everyone had heard of the show ‘My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic,’ but not very many people took it very seriously. And I was far from being one that did. I had watched a couple episodes with some friends, but that had been about it. It was cute, and it had a good message, but I had never really put more thought into it than that. So when I woke up one Saturday morning, slightly hung over from the night before, in a strange forest with fluffy hooves, you can only guess my confusion. “Okay, I gotta be dreaming. There’s no way I have hooves right now. Besides, they’re blue. Whoever heard of blue hooves?” So I stood, to the best of my ability, and looked around. Sure enough, I was in some kind of forest. Tall trees, birds singing overhead, critters running about all around, etcetera. That was fine. But why in the world did I have hooves? Oh, I almost forgot to mention. I also had a tail, and floppy ears, and big eyes, and...well, I guess the easiest way to say this is that I had somehow been turned into a pony. And not just any pony, but from the look of my body and the color of my fur, one from that show. Yeah, this had to be some kind of weird dream. But no matter how long I stood there and stared at my rounded hooves, I just couldn’t seem to wake up. “Well, no point standing around if I’m not gonna wake up. Might as well...explore, or something.” So with an annoyed sigh and more than a little trepidation, I started walking. I wasn’t headed in any general direction. Just...that way. I couldn’t really tell which way to go, so I just went straight ahead. It didn’t matter anyway. I was bound to wake up soon. But after stumbling on unsure hooves (who can just magically know how to suddenly walk on four limbs when you’re used to walking on two?), and getting more than a few scrapes from brambles and bushes, I started to wonder if I was ever going to wake up. Sure, this could be some elaborate dream, but I had never heard of one like this before. There was always something that would cause a jolt to wake you up. Always. So why wasn’t it happening now? I didn’t even think dreams lasted this long. I’ve been wandering for what feels like almost half an hour, I’m covered in gunk, bruised, and hot. This was too real for comfort. The phrase “this is stupid” must have come out of my mouth about a hundred times by this point. I had just about given up hope when I finally saw a break in the foliage. Well, if nothing else, at least I can get out of this rotten forest. Maybe find someone to give me a drink of water or something. Hopefully I’ll be able to explain to them that I’m a person trapped in this body before they call the National Guard or whoever. Who would you call in a situation like this? It’s not every day a miniature, talking, technicolor horse comes waltzing up to you, is it? I was still putting together the story in my head (I had determined that this had to be the work of aliens), when I pushed through the last few trees and saw...a tiny little hamlet that looked oddly familiar. There were tiny houses, a...castle-slash-tree house in the middle of the square...and lots of little businesses all over. Eh, whatever. So long as there were people here, it didn’t matter. Maybe small town folk would be a bit more understanding of my current plight than someone in a city. Weird, though. No one was out and about yet. It must still be pretty early, then. Maybe there would be someone at the City Hall that I could talk too? Might as well start on towards there, then. That building is easy enough to recognize, anyway. So I started trudging along, making my way down the cobblestone path with a bit more confidence. Level footing, plus the little bit of practice I had had, made my trek a bit easier. Why, I was almost a pro at walking at this point! And you’d think that I had won some kind of award from the goofy smile on my face. It was a small triumph, but a triumph all the same. And I had almost made half way through town when I spotted something that was rather odd. It was a house that looked like it was made from pastries. The roof looked like gingerbread, there was a cupcake on top...and...a pink pony unlocking the door and peaking outside. Oh great. I suddenly know where I am. And I can tell you this much, I’m not in Kansas anymore. No, this is Ponyville. The center of My Little Pony. And that pink pony right there, that was suddenly bounding out the doors and headed in my general direction, was most assuredly one of the main cast. Wait. She’s not just heading in my general direction. She’s headed straight for me! I barely had time to brace myself before I was suddenly toppling end over end with her on top of me. A series of grunts and strangled, surprised noises came from me before we finally stopped moving. I looked up at her, clearly still dizzy, and frowned. “Really. You really just tackled me out of nowhere like that.” Just a little tip, waking up in another world, as another species, will not put one in the most friendly of moods. The pink pony merely giggled and jumped off me, then proceeded to bounce around me in a springy, hard to follow motion. “You sure bet I did! You’re a new pony, and new ponies don’t come around much anymore! So of course I had to come over and say hi. So...hi!” She stopped right in front of me, as I struggled back to a standing position, with that last phrase. I just nodded and sighed, “Yeah, hey.” I gave her a once over before rolling my eyes and starting back down the path I was originally headed. I remembered enough about her to know that she was the super hyper one. And I was not in any mood to deal with that. I needed answers, and I was probably not going to get them here. If anyone in this place could give me answers, then it was the purple princess one. But, of course, before I could make it three steps away, she was standing in front of me again. And she was giving me the strangest look. “You know, normally when I do that to a new pony we introduce ourselves and then start having fun. Then we become best friends and I throw them a party! You’re different. You remind a little of my donkey friend, but that’s okay, because I know that we can still be friends.” Then she giggled and stuck her hoof on my chest, effectively halting me in my tracks. “I’m Pinkie Pie! What’s your name?” This wasn’t going anywhere. And neither was I, unless I played along anyway. So with yet another groan, I took a step back and plopped myself down on my haunches. “I’m…” Wait. Wait a second. Who am I? Why can’t I remember? “Uh…” Crap. “I...I don’t remember my name, if you can believe that.” I know I sure couldn’t. That was weird. Could I remember anything else? Let’s see… I was having fun at a party last night...I flirted with this cute girl...and then nothing. I must have had a strange look on my face, because Pinkie had tilted her head and was staring at me in a very weird way. “Well, whatever your name is, it doesn’t matter! Because I’m always happy to meet a new, friendly, pretty mare!” I shrugged and looked down, still trying to put together the alcohol blurred pieces from the night before. Then...wait. I looked up and right at her with wide eyes. “M-mare?” Strange New Friends“Well yeah! You’re a pretty mare! I can’t believe you didn’t know that already!” My eyes must have gone wide as she repeated herself, because she fell over, giggling. I couldn’t even wrap my mind around this. I’m...a mare? And mares...and the females here...which means I’m not a stallion. Oh, for the love of all things holy. I was still sitting there, dumbstruck, when Pinkie hopped up and moved right up and in front of me. She was practically touching noses with me! “I don’t know why you’re acting so silly! It’s like you didn’t know you’re a mare! And the only way that could happen is if you’re actually a guy from a whole other universe and not a pony at all!” Wait. What? “How’d you know all that?” That was it. Regardless of the fact that I’m a mare, it was time to get some answers. And this pony seemed to know an awful lot about what was going on. Or, at least, I hope she does. Why else would she have said all that? “Oh, just a hunch! Anyway, are you hungry? Because you look really hungry!” And just like that, she swept me up and hauled me into the cake-house-thing and plopped me down in a chair at a table. I barely had time to blink before she appeared before me with a tray of cupcakes, all frosted and tasty looking, and sat down across from me. “I just...I mean...how?” She giggled again and shrugged, pushing the tray towards me. Well, she was right about one thing. I was starving. And those did look really tasty! I reached out to grab one...only to smush it with my hoof. And I guess I must have looked really sad, because Pinkie just smiled and scooted her chair closer. She then proceeded to pick up one of the pastries and hold it to my mouth. I eyeballed her and the cupcake for a couple seconds before taking a bite, albeit in a begrudging manner. Pinkie simply smiled and let me finish that one off before picking up another and feeding that one to me as well. We probably would have looked like a couple of idiots if anyone else had been in the store, but luckily for us there wasn’t. After the second I held up a hoof and sighed, then wiped my mouth. “Those are really good. Uh...thanks, I guess, for feeding me. I don’t really know how to...hoof...yet.” Pinkie, being Pinkie, giggled and shrugged. “No problem! I’ve never met someone from another world before. Well, not really anyway. So this is really neat! And I’m super glad to help. We’ve still got like a whole thirty minutes before anypony comes in for breakfast, so why don’t you tell me the whole story!” I blinked and stared at her. She was taking this news far better than I was. In fact, she seemed kind of overjoyed about the whole situation, while I was doing my best not to break down in sobs about it. So I nodded and looked around, catching a look at myself in a mirror on the wall. I flinched a little, thinking it was another pony, only to realize that it was me in all my blue furred glory. And...I have a horn, apparently. So I’m a Unicorn. Got it. “Well, okay...but there’s not much to tell since I don’t remember a whole lot. I know that I’m from a place called Earth, and that I’m a human. A male human, by the way. And...I was at this party...and then I must have blacked out, because I don’t remember anything after that, other than waking up in the woods outside of town here. I don’t remember my name, the names of my friends...or even my parents’ names. And I sure as heck don’t know how I got here. All I know is that I just want to go home...like, as soon as possible.” I looked down at the table as it finally hit me. New place. New body. And I might never make it home again. Sure, they have magic here, like, real magic...but that was no guarantee that it would take me home. The entire life I’ve built up to this point was gone. I was stuck here. And that’s when I finally started sobbing. I pushed my forehead against the table and wept like I’ve never wept before. They were loud, wet sobs, too. The kind one only gets when something huge happens. And I definitely think this qualified. I don’t know how long I was going on like that, with the world cut off from myself, only hearing my choked noises and the fear in my own mind. But when I finally started to quiet down, I heard singing. And then I realized it was Pinkie. And she wasn’t even really singing so much as...humming...and holding me in a hug. It was comforting, even if a little strange. This total stranger had pulled me off the street, fed me, let me confide in her, and was now holding onto me while I cried my eyes out like I was some old friend. I couldn’t help myself, though, and I wrapped my fore legs around her too and held on as tight as I could. It was the best that I could do, all things considered. There was no telling how long the two of us stayed like that, but the sound of the doorbell finally broke us apart. Pinkie smiled at me, gave me a wink, and waved to the patron that just walked in. “Stay right here! I’m gonna go help him, then find Mrs. Cake, and we’re gonna go get you some help, okay?” I just nodded and watched her take off. A little smile tugged at my own lips. Maybe she could help me. Who knew? I only had to wait for about half an hour before Pinkie did all she had said she would and we were headed down the street towards my original destination. Pinkie had told me that if there was any pony in town that could help at all, then it would be Twilight. She is the Princess of Friendship, after all, and her special talent is magic! I had no idea what any of that meant, but it sounded impressive enough, so I agreed without any argument. I had calmed down a bit since the scene earlier, too. That realization had hit me like a wrecking ball, but I wasn’t going to give up hope. Not yet anyway. Not until I had exploited every single option out there. We passed by a few ponies here and there, and Pinkie smiled and waved at every single one of them. I feel like if she hadn’t been with me, that she would have stopped and talked to every single one too. But she kept us moving forward in a rather determined fashion. It was nice that she was going so far out of her way for me, especially with me being...well, an alien, I guess. I didn’t talk much on the way there, preferring to keep my silence for the time being. It didn’t stop Pinkie from rattling on the entire time, though. She pointed out every pony by name, and detailed everything about every shop we passed. She was practically tour guide worthy. And it was nice, because it helped me keep my mind off things as we walked. We arrived at the castle after only a while, and Pinkie just pushed the door open and beckoned me in after her. I kept expecting guards or...something to come out and tell us to stop, but they never did. Pinkie was walking around like she owned the place. And after a minute, we arrived at what must have been the center of the whole place, because there were six chairs sat in a circle, and each one had a picture on it. Then I noticed that one of the chairs had the same picture as Pinkie did on her flank, and I became all the more confused. I made a mental note to ask her about that later. A purple pony came flying down once Pinkie called out “Twilight!”, only to stop in mid flight when she saw me. A curious look crossed her eyes as she landed and smiled at Pinkie. “Oh, hi Pinkie. What can I do for you today? And who’s your new friend? I don’t think I’ve seen her around before.” Pinkie took a deep breath, and then blurted out the whole story in one go, like she was having a race, only to stop and breathe at the end. “And that’s how she ended up here, and why she wants to go home, and why she needs your help!” Twilight looked...befuddled, if nothing else. But she stepped closer and started to look me up and down, “Hmm. I don’t see anything unusual about you. In fact, you look just like any other unicorn mare. Except, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a pony our age that doesn’t have their Cutie Mark yet.” She moved back around to my front and extended a hoof, “It’s nice to meet you, anyway! I’m Twilight Sparkle.” I extended my hoof as well, pretty sure that I was blushing from that little inspection, and tapped it against Twilight’s. She looked confused for a moment, then shrugged. “Sorry. I, uh...I don’t remember my name. I don’t really remember much of anything, to be honest.” Twilight looked crestfallen for a moment, before stamping her hoof, “Well, don’t worry. If there’s a way to get you home, then I’ll find it. Heh, I might have to get a little help, though.” She looked between me and Pinkie, “But, for right now, let’s keep just who you are between the three of us, hmm? Well, us and the Princesses back at Canterlot. I’m sure Princess Celestia and Princess Luna would be as intrigued by this as I am.” She tapped a hoof to her chin, before looking at me and then at Pinkie. “So, have you found a place to stay yet?” She barely had time to finish the question before Pinkie seemed to explode with energy! “Oh! Oh! Oh! You can stay with me! We’ve got an extra room right upstairs!” I frowned and looked between the two of them, “I mean, that’s nice and all, but I don’t have any money to pay for it.” Pinkie seemed to think on this for a moment, and then Twilight chimed in. “How about you pay for it by working at the bakery? It will give you ample opportunity to practice with your new body, and Pinkie can help you with anything past that. And while you’re doing all of that, I’ll get busy trying to find a solution. It was nice meeting you. I have to get going, though. I’ll see the two of you later!” And, just like that, she popped into thin air with a burst of purple magic. Which, of course, left me completely dumbfounded. “Uh…” Pinkie nudged me, while giggling, and motioned back to the door. “She has the best ideas. Which is why she’s the best book pony ever! C’mon, we’ve got so much to do!” I gave the castle one more once over before I nodded and followed Pinkie out the door. One thing was for certain. This was definitely going to be interesting. CopingAlright, so here’s how things stand as of right now. About a week ago I woke up after a wild party in Equestria, the land of magical ponies. Turns out, I was a pony now too. Not only that, but now I’m a mare. Yeah, I’m a girl pony. Lastly, turns out I’m a unicorn, too. Sure, I have magic now. But I have absolutely no idea how to use it. And it’s not like I really have the time to learn, either. After finding out that the local Princess didn’t have any answers for me (though she promised she would find some), I was left a little lost. I didn’t have anywhere to go, and I didn’t have anything to do. How could I when I could barely walk in this body? But, luckily for me, I guess, Pinkie Pie had been following me ever since we, er, bumped into each other that morning. She had even shown me the way to Twilight’s and introduced us. So, when she found out that I was all alone and, sad to say, helpless, she offered me a room at her place. The rather prominently named ‘Sugar Cube Corner.’ Turns out there were living quarters above the bakery. Not really having any other choices, I decided to take her up on her offer. But only on the condition that I pay for my food and lodging by working with her at the bakery. It couldn’t hurt, after all, and it would give me ample opportunities to work on learning how to use this new body. Not only that, Pinkie had informed me that I didn’t have my...cutie mark...yet, and that working with her might help me discover my talent. After not really getting any kind of real explanation from her on what exactly a cutie mark is, I went back to Twilight. She explained to me that, in layman's terms, a cutie mark is a physical representation of one’s inner self. It could be a talent, a calling card, or have a deeper meaning altogether. So, after I had a better understanding, I decided that finding this out about myself would be a good way to pass the time until she could figure out a way to get me home. So when I wasn’t bumbling things up at the bakery (seriously, who can bake with hooves, anyway?), I was out and about the town trying everything I could. It was a way to help pass the time and keep my mind off everything else. But, as it turns out, I wasn’t particularly good at anything. I won’t go into the detailed list here, but after a week of experimenting, let’s just say that I discovered it was best for the town if I kept my head down and stayed out of the way. I mean, it’s not like I could help build a house, or drive a cart, or even do basic household chores in my condition. I hadn’t even figured out how to pick things up with these silly hooves yet. How was I supposed to accomplish anything? The only upside to this whole thing is that I discovered that I could access a bit of my magic if I concentrated hard enough. Granted, I couldn’t do anything with it yet, but I could make a couple sparks if I tried. Twilight even said that for someone who had never even thought about using magic before, I was making decent progress. I don’t really believe her, but I had no way of judging whether or not she was right. So the best I could do was to trust her judgement and go about my merry way. But after failing horribly at finding my cutie mark, and accomplishing nearly nothing with magic, all I really had was the bakery. I hadn’t ever really baked in my life prior to this, but Pinkie was understanding, and a patient teacher. And by the end of the first week, I could confidently make a batch of simple cookies. I know, I know. Making cookies isn’t that difficult, but when you’re using hooves instead of hands, it’s a lot harder. Not only that, but I found out that Pinkie wasn’t actually that bad to hang around with. Sure, she was a bit hyper and a little off the wagon sometimes, but she made me laugh. And, according to her, a smile could help anyone, especially if they were feeling down about something. And I had more than enough to be down about. I don’t know my name. I can’t remember any of my friends’ or family members’ names, and I could barely remember what they looked like. My old address is a blank, as was my job and where I graduated college. It was like every memory of my old life was fading as the days went on. It was more than a bit frustrating, and really, really depressing. At least Pinkie had managed to give me a slightly ironic nickname. She calls me Blue now, because of the color of my coat. I tried to explain to her that it was ironic because of how often I’m sad, but she just smiled, shook her head, and called me a silly pony. Eh, I guess it’s better than nothing. Besides, I kinda like the name anyway. And more and more ponies are starting to refer to me as that, so I guess I’m stuck with it now. I have to say, when it’s all said and done, this really wasn’t a bad place to live. The town’s population was all around happy and carefree, I had made a few friends, and even work was kinda fun most of the time. I was finding it easier and easier to not let things bother me as much. Though, the no longer being a guy thing still weirds me out sometimes. Especially when I’m bathing. That’s just...a shock every time. All in all, things aren’t so bad. And I think that if Twilight can’t figure out a way to send me home, I might be able to at least be moderately happy here. But then again, I haven’t really gotten over the shock of it all yet. “Still haven’t heard anything from Twilight, huh?” I looked up from the tray of cupcakes I was currently in the process of decorating and looked over to Pinkie. She was looking down, focusing rather intently on her own tray of cupcakes, and it seemed like she didn’t want to meet my eyes. She was being kinda quiet, and this had been the most serious I had seen her since I had arrived. It was a little unsettling. “Uh...no, not yet.” I was still getting used to the personalities of all those that lived in town. There were a lot of similarities to humans, but for the most part the ponies here lived out their lives in blissful honesty. They didn’t really lie or cheat, and pretty much every petty disagreement was resolved in a really friendly way. And all of these traits were most prominent in Pinkie and her friends. And, from what I had seen, Pinkie was the embodiment of laughter. She loved to do things for other ponies. And she would go to just about any lengths to help someone if they were sad or put out in any way. It was sweet, because if she could make another pony smile, then any discomfort she put herself through was totally worth it. “I mean, I haven’t gone by the castle in a few days to check, either. I know she’s busy enough with her other duties, and what I’m going through doesn’t really seem like it should be at the top of her list, y’know?” I looked back down at my cupcakes, frowned, and then sighed. Dumb hooves made everything so difficult. And after seeing Pinkie’s cupcakes, mine looked like a toddler’s in comparison. Pinkie didn’t say anything, so I went back to work, trying to remedy my foul ups the best I could. I figured she was just making idle conversation, but it was still strange. Because even when she did just chit-chat, she was always so much more jovial than this. And after a few minutes, I decided to inquire a bit further. But when I looked up, she had already gone. I could never figure out how she managed to vanish like that. Ah well, she probably just went back out front to help more customers. The afternoon rush was pretty much over, but there were still a few stragglers here and there wanting to satisfy their sweet tooths. And we at Sugar Cube Corner were happy to oblige them any manner of tasty confectionary! Still...something about what Pinkie said, and the way she said it was a bit off-putting. So, once the shop was closed (still with no sign of the floofy maned mare), I decided to head out and do a bit of investigating. Because while I had only been a part of this world for a little while, I still considered Pinkie a friend. And I figured if anyone had to know what was going on with her, it would be one of her friends. The problem was, I wasn’t really sure how to get in touch with any of them. Twilight and Rarity were easy enough. They both lived in town. But, from what I understood, Rainbow Dash lived on a cloud somewhere, and Fluttershy and Applejack lived outside of town. I didn’t know how to get to Fluttershy’s, and Applejack’s farm was too far off to go to this time of day. So, I decided to visit Rarity. I was still a little hesitant about bothering Twilight, since she’s a princess and all, and I figured Rarity closed up shop about the same time of day that we did. And, lucky for me, she was just right around the corner. So I said goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Cake, told them I’d be back soon, and headed out. It hadn’t quite gotten dark yet, so there was still enough light to see by without the aid of the streetlights, so finding my way was simple enough. Which was good, because while I had done a fair bit of exploring, I still had a hard time finding my way around. Having such an awful sense of direction, along with being thrust in a whole new place, kinda did that to you. I made it to Rarity’s after only about ten minutes, and noticed that she had closed up for the day. I stood in front of the door for a few minutes waffling back and forth about what I wanted to do. I don’t really know why, but out of all of Pinkie’s friends, Rarity bothered me the most. She was so far out of the ordinary to me, with her fancy talk and all, that it just felt...wrong. But every time I saw her she made me feel welcome, so I knew that it was on my end only. Maybe I should try a little harder? No better time than the present, I guess. I gently rapped on the door a couple times and was immediately answered with a voice from within, “Coming!” With a sigh, I steeled myself. She was nice enough, after all, and this was something I really wanted to know, so it was better to just get on with it. The door opened a moment later, and before me stood the exact unicorn I was hoping to see. All pristine and shiny and well groomed. She looked like she had just gotten out of the fur dryer, but I had a feeling she had looked like this all day. She was the only one I knew, person or pony, that could manage to look so immaculate after a day of work. “Oh! Blue, darling, I wasn’t expecting a visit. Please, come in, come in.” She stood aside and I stepped in, making sure to knock the dust off my hooves before I did. I learned my lesson about that the hard way. She gingerly closed the door behind me with a bit of magic, and I sighed inwardly. I still couldn’t even move a quill a few inches, much less shut a door with my magic. But, that frustration was for another time. “Please, dear, come to the kitchen. I just finished making tea, and I would love the company.” She started walking and I followed dutifully, looking around a bit as I did. She really did a nice job keeping the place clean. It looked as well put together as she did! “So! To what do I owe the pleasure of your company tonight? It’s not often I get a knock at the door from such a mysterious pony this time of day, you know.” I cleared my throat and sat down at the table, pushing the small tea cup around with a hoof in an effort to avoid eye contact. “Well...It’s about Pinkie.” Rarity immediately stopped preparing the tea and looked at me with wide eyes, “Oh dear, something hasn’t happened, has it?” I shook my head and finally met her gaze, “No, nothing like that. She was just acting a bit strange today. Like, she didn’t have her usual bluster, you know? And we only talked a little, and then she ran off about an hour before we closed and I haven’t seen her since. I was just wondering if...if you knew what was going on?” The look on Rarity’s face made me more than a little uncomfortable. It was like she knew something I didn’t, but didn’t want to tell me either. She cleared her throat and poured me my cup of tea, “Darling, I wouldn’t think too much of it. She’s probably just worried that her new friend, you, of course, is going to leave soon. I know you’ve been seeking help from Twilight for whatever reason, and Pinkie probably doesn’t want to lose you.” I blinked. Oh, right. Pinkie, Twilight, and I had decided that we should keep where I came from between the three of us and the royalty at Canterlot. Though I hadn’t met Princess Celestia and Princess Luna yet, Twilight did say she would be making a full report to them both. Just in case either of them knew something she didn’t. I cleared my throat and blew softly on the tea, “Oh, right.” I looked back up to Rarity and sighed, “I guess I can understand that. I’ve gotten closer to Pinkie than I have anyone else...no offence.” Rarity smiled, “None taken, dear.” I returned the smile and continued, “Well, since I got here. She’s been great. I don’t know what I would have done if she hadn’t shown up when she had. So it makes sense. And I don’t want to hurt her, but we’ve talked about me going home before, and she’s never really said anything about it one way or another. I just figured she understood…” Rarity shrugged and took a sip of her tea, “Celestia only knows, dear. I’ve been acquainted with Pinkie for a long time, and I still don’t understand her. She’s an odd one, but she’s a dear friend. I’m sure she’ll come clean with what’s bothering her soon enough, darling. So I wouldn’t worry too much.” I left shortly after that. Turns out, Rarity and I had little to talk about after all. I didn’t know anything about fashion, and that was pretty much her whole world. Well, aside from the odd romance novel, but that really wasn’t my thing either. So I thanked her for the tea and advice, and headed back home, letting myself slip into thought as I did. It wasn’t like Pinkie to hide anything from me. Even though we’d only known each other for a short time, she still told me pretty much everything. At least, from what I could tell. But from Rarity’s initial reaction, I was starting to think that something else was going on. Well, really only time would tell. If Pinkie wasn’t ready to talk about whatever it was that was bothering her, then I wouldn’t pressure her. That’s just not what friends do, right?
New in TownWho knew that so many changes could happen to one person in their life time. Sure, I lived an easy enough life for awhile. I went to work, cleaned my apartment, and spent some time with my friends. I lived a simple enough existence. I had my hobbies, my passions, and my duties. Some days all I wanted to do was sit on the couch and play video games, and some days I wanted to hole up and hide from the world. I loved my friends and family, and I would have done anything for them. Loyalty was always easy to me. If I became close to someone, then I would stand by them forever. Simple as that. I wasn’t a difficult guy to figure out. Slightly overweight, but still considered at least moderately handsome, single, early twenties. Fresh out of college with a decent paying, entry level job. I was an upstanding member of the community, and I paid my taxes every year like the rest of the country. I wasn’t anything special, though. It’s hard to be when there are so many people in the world. That’s why when all of this happened to me, you can imagine the shock I felt. ‘Why did this happen to me?’ Everyone had heard of the show ‘My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic,’ but not very many people took it very seriously. And I was far from being one that did. I had watched a couple episodes with some friends, but that had been about it. It was cute, and it had a good message, but I had never really put more thought into it than that. So when I woke up one Saturday morning, slightly hung over from the night before, in a strange forest with fluffy hooves, you can only guess my confusion. “Okay, I gotta be dreaming. There’s no way I have hooves right now. Besides, they’re blue. Whoever heard of blue hooves?” So I stood, to the best of my ability, and looked around. Sure enough, I was in some kind of forest. Tall trees, birds singing overhead, critters running about all around, etcetera. That was fine. But why in the world did I have hooves? Oh, I almost forgot to mention. I also had a tail, and floppy ears, and big eyes, and...well, I guess the easiest way to say this is that I had somehow been turned into a pony. And not just any pony, but from the look of my body and the color of my fur, one from that show. Yeah, this had to be some kind of weird dream. But no matter how long I stood there and stared at my rounded hooves, I just couldn’t seem to wake up. “Well, no point standing around if I’m not gonna wake up. Might as well...explore, or something.” So with an annoyed sigh and more than a little trepidation, I started walking. I wasn’t headed in any general direction. Just...that way. I couldn’t really tell which way to go, so I just went straight ahead. It didn’t matter anyway. I was bound to wake up soon. But after stumbling on unsure hooves (who can just magically know how to suddenly walk on four limbs when you’re used to walking on two?), and getting more than a few scrapes from brambles and bushes, I started to wonder if I was ever going to wake up. Sure, this could be some elaborate dream, but I had never heard of one like this before. There was always something that would cause a jolt to wake you up. Always. So why wasn’t it happening now? I didn’t even think dreams lasted this long. I’ve been wandering for what feels like almost half an hour, I’m covered in gunk, bruised, and hot. This was too real for comfort. The phrase “this is stupid” must have come out of my mouth about a hundred times by this point. I had just about given up hope when I finally saw a break in the foliage. Well, if nothing else, at least I can get out of this rotten forest. Maybe find someone to give me a drink of water or something. Hopefully I’ll be able to explain to them that I’m a person trapped in this body before they call the National Guard or whoever. Who would you call in a situation like this? It’s not every day a miniature, talking, technicolor horse comes waltzing up to you, is it? I was still putting together the story in my head (I had determined that this had to be the work of aliens), when I pushed through the last few trees and saw...a tiny little hamlet that looked oddly familiar. There were tiny houses, a...castle-slash-tree house in the middle of the square...and lots of little businesses all over. Eh, whatever. So long as there were people here, it didn’t matter. Maybe small town folk would be a bit more understanding of my current plight than someone in a city. Weird, though. No one was out and about yet. It must still be pretty early, then. Maybe there would be someone at the City Hall that I could talk too? Might as well start on towards there, then. That building is easy enough to recognize, anyway. So I started trudging along, making my way down the cobblestone path with a bit more confidence. Level footing, plus the little bit of practice I had had, made my trek a bit easier. Why, I was almost a pro at walking at this point! And you’d think that I had won some kind of award from the goofy smile on my face. It was a small triumph, but a triumph all the same. And I had almost made half way through town when I spotted something that was rather odd. It was a house that looked like it was made from pastries. The roof looked like gingerbread, there was a cupcake on top...and...a pink pony unlocking the door and peaking outside. Oh great. I suddenly know where I am. And I can tell you this much, I’m not in Kansas anymore. No, this is Ponyville. The center of My Little Pony. And that pink pony right there, that was suddenly bounding out the doors and headed in my general direction, was most assuredly one of the main cast. Wait. She’s not just heading in my general direction. She’s headed straight for me! I barely had time to brace myself before I was suddenly toppling end over end with her on top of me. A series of grunts and strangled, surprised noises came from me before we finally stopped moving. I looked up at her, clearly still dizzy, and frowned. “Really. You really just tackled me out of nowhere like that.” Just a little tip, waking up in another world, as another species, will not put one in the most friendly of moods. The pink pony merely giggled and jumped off me, then proceeded to bounce around me in a springy, hard to follow motion. “You sure bet I did! You’re a new pony, and new ponies don’t come around much anymore! So of course I had to come over and say hi. So...hi!” She stopped right in front of me, as I struggled back to a standing position, with that last phrase. I just nodded and sighed, “Yeah, hey.” I gave her a once over before rolling my eyes and starting back down the path I was originally headed. I remembered enough about her to know that she was the super hyper one. And I was not in any mood to deal with that. I needed answers, and I was probably not going to get them here. If anyone in this place could give me answers, then it was the purple princess one. But, of course, before I could make it three steps away, she was standing in front of me again. And she was giving me the strangest look. “You know, normally when I do that to a new pony we introduce ourselves and then start having fun. Then we become best friends and I throw them a party! You’re different. You remind a little of my donkey friend, but that’s okay, because I know that we can still be friends.” Then she giggled and stuck her hoof on my chest, effectively halting me in my tracks. “I’m Pinkie Pie! What’s your name?” This wasn’t going anywhere. And neither was I, unless I played along anyway. So with yet another groan, I took a step back and plopped myself down on my haunches. “I’m…” Wait. Wait a second. Who am I? Why can’t I remember? “Uh…” Crap. “I...I don’t remember my name, if you can believe that.” I know I sure couldn’t. That was weird. Could I remember anything else? Let’s see… I was having fun at a party last night...I flirted with this cute girl...and then nothing. I must have had a strange look on my face, because Pinkie had tilted her head and was staring at me in a very weird way. “Well, whatever your name is, it doesn’t matter! Because I’m always happy to meet a new, friendly, pretty mare!” I shrugged and looked down, still trying to put together the alcohol blurred pieces from the night before. Then...wait. I looked up and right at her with wide eyes. “M-mare?”
Strange New Friends“Well yeah! You’re a pretty mare! I can’t believe you didn’t know that already!” My eyes must have gone wide as she repeated herself, because she fell over, giggling. I couldn’t even wrap my mind around this. I’m...a mare? And mares...and the females here...which means I’m not a stallion. Oh, for the love of all things holy. I was still sitting there, dumbstruck, when Pinkie hopped up and moved right up and in front of me. She was practically touching noses with me! “I don’t know why you’re acting so silly! It’s like you didn’t know you’re a mare! And the only way that could happen is if you’re actually a guy from a whole other universe and not a pony at all!” Wait. What? “How’d you know all that?” That was it. Regardless of the fact that I’m a mare, it was time to get some answers. And this pony seemed to know an awful lot about what was going on. Or, at least, I hope she does. Why else would she have said all that? “Oh, just a hunch! Anyway, are you hungry? Because you look really hungry!” And just like that, she swept me up and hauled me into the cake-house-thing and plopped me down in a chair at a table. I barely had time to blink before she appeared before me with a tray of cupcakes, all frosted and tasty looking, and sat down across from me. “I just...I mean...how?” She giggled again and shrugged, pushing the tray towards me. Well, she was right about one thing. I was starving. And those did look really tasty! I reached out to grab one...only to smush it with my hoof. And I guess I must have looked really sad, because Pinkie just smiled and scooted her chair closer. She then proceeded to pick up one of the pastries and hold it to my mouth. I eyeballed her and the cupcake for a couple seconds before taking a bite, albeit in a begrudging manner. Pinkie simply smiled and let me finish that one off before picking up another and feeding that one to me as well. We probably would have looked like a couple of idiots if anyone else had been in the store, but luckily for us there wasn’t. After the second I held up a hoof and sighed, then wiped my mouth. “Those are really good. Uh...thanks, I guess, for feeding me. I don’t really know how to...hoof...yet.” Pinkie, being Pinkie, giggled and shrugged. “No problem! I’ve never met someone from another world before. Well, not really anyway. So this is really neat! And I’m super glad to help. We’ve still got like a whole thirty minutes before anypony comes in for breakfast, so why don’t you tell me the whole story!” I blinked and stared at her. She was taking this news far better than I was. In fact, she seemed kind of overjoyed about the whole situation, while I was doing my best not to break down in sobs about it. So I nodded and looked around, catching a look at myself in a mirror on the wall. I flinched a little, thinking it was another pony, only to realize that it was me in all my blue furred glory. And...I have a horn, apparently. So I’m a Unicorn. Got it. “Well, okay...but there’s not much to tell since I don’t remember a whole lot. I know that I’m from a place called Earth, and that I’m a human. A male human, by the way. And...I was at this party...and then I must have blacked out, because I don’t remember anything after that, other than waking up in the woods outside of town here. I don’t remember my name, the names of my friends...or even my parents’ names. And I sure as heck don’t know how I got here. All I know is that I just want to go home...like, as soon as possible.” I looked down at the table as it finally hit me. New place. New body. And I might never make it home again. Sure, they have magic here, like, real magic...but that was no guarantee that it would take me home. The entire life I’ve built up to this point was gone. I was stuck here. And that’s when I finally started sobbing. I pushed my forehead against the table and wept like I’ve never wept before. They were loud, wet sobs, too. The kind one only gets when something huge happens. And I definitely think this qualified. I don’t know how long I was going on like that, with the world cut off from myself, only hearing my choked noises and the fear in my own mind. But when I finally started to quiet down, I heard singing. And then I realized it was Pinkie. And she wasn’t even really singing so much as...humming...and holding me in a hug. It was comforting, even if a little strange. This total stranger had pulled me off the street, fed me, let me confide in her, and was now holding onto me while I cried my eyes out like I was some old friend. I couldn’t help myself, though, and I wrapped my fore legs around her too and held on as tight as I could. It was the best that I could do, all things considered. There was no telling how long the two of us stayed like that, but the sound of the doorbell finally broke us apart. Pinkie smiled at me, gave me a wink, and waved to the patron that just walked in. “Stay right here! I’m gonna go help him, then find Mrs. Cake, and we’re gonna go get you some help, okay?” I just nodded and watched her take off. A little smile tugged at my own lips. Maybe she could help me. Who knew? I only had to wait for about half an hour before Pinkie did all she had said she would and we were headed down the street towards my original destination. Pinkie had told me that if there was any pony in town that could help at all, then it would be Twilight. She is the Princess of Friendship, after all, and her special talent is magic! I had no idea what any of that meant, but it sounded impressive enough, so I agreed without any argument. I had calmed down a bit since the scene earlier, too. That realization had hit me like a wrecking ball, but I wasn’t going to give up hope. Not yet anyway. Not until I had exploited every single option out there. We passed by a few ponies here and there, and Pinkie smiled and waved at every single one of them. I feel like if she hadn’t been with me, that she would have stopped and talked to every single one too. But she kept us moving forward in a rather determined fashion. It was nice that she was going so far out of her way for me, especially with me being...well, an alien, I guess. I didn’t talk much on the way there, preferring to keep my silence for the time being. It didn’t stop Pinkie from rattling on the entire time, though. She pointed out every pony by name, and detailed everything about every shop we passed. She was practically tour guide worthy. And it was nice, because it helped me keep my mind off things as we walked. We arrived at the castle after only a while, and Pinkie just pushed the door open and beckoned me in after her. I kept expecting guards or...something to come out and tell us to stop, but they never did. Pinkie was walking around like she owned the place. And after a minute, we arrived at what must have been the center of the whole place, because there were six chairs sat in a circle, and each one had a picture on it. Then I noticed that one of the chairs had the same picture as Pinkie did on her flank, and I became all the more confused. I made a mental note to ask her about that later. A purple pony came flying down once Pinkie called out “Twilight!”, only to stop in mid flight when she saw me. A curious look crossed her eyes as she landed and smiled at Pinkie. “Oh, hi Pinkie. What can I do for you today? And who’s your new friend? I don’t think I’ve seen her around before.” Pinkie took a deep breath, and then blurted out the whole story in one go, like she was having a race, only to stop and breathe at the end. “And that’s how she ended up here, and why she wants to go home, and why she needs your help!” Twilight looked...befuddled, if nothing else. But she stepped closer and started to look me up and down, “Hmm. I don’t see anything unusual about you. In fact, you look just like any other unicorn mare. Except, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a pony our age that doesn’t have their Cutie Mark yet.” She moved back around to my front and extended a hoof, “It’s nice to meet you, anyway! I’m Twilight Sparkle.” I extended my hoof as well, pretty sure that I was blushing from that little inspection, and tapped it against Twilight’s. She looked confused for a moment, then shrugged. “Sorry. I, uh...I don’t remember my name. I don’t really remember much of anything, to be honest.” Twilight looked crestfallen for a moment, before stamping her hoof, “Well, don’t worry. If there’s a way to get you home, then I’ll find it. Heh, I might have to get a little help, though.” She looked between me and Pinkie, “But, for right now, let’s keep just who you are between the three of us, hmm? Well, us and the Princesses back at Canterlot. I’m sure Princess Celestia and Princess Luna would be as intrigued by this as I am.” She tapped a hoof to her chin, before looking at me and then at Pinkie. “So, have you found a place to stay yet?” She barely had time to finish the question before Pinkie seemed to explode with energy! “Oh! Oh! Oh! You can stay with me! We’ve got an extra room right upstairs!” I frowned and looked between the two of them, “I mean, that’s nice and all, but I don’t have any money to pay for it.” Pinkie seemed to think on this for a moment, and then Twilight chimed in. “How about you pay for it by working at the bakery? It will give you ample opportunity to practice with your new body, and Pinkie can help you with anything past that. And while you’re doing all of that, I’ll get busy trying to find a solution. It was nice meeting you. I have to get going, though. I’ll see the two of you later!” And, just like that, she popped into thin air with a burst of purple magic. Which, of course, left me completely dumbfounded. “Uh…” Pinkie nudged me, while giggling, and motioned back to the door. “She has the best ideas. Which is why she’s the best book pony ever! C’mon, we’ve got so much to do!” I gave the castle one more once over before I nodded and followed Pinkie out the door. One thing was for certain. This was definitely going to be interesting.
CopingAlright, so here’s how things stand as of right now. About a week ago I woke up after a wild party in Equestria, the land of magical ponies. Turns out, I was a pony now too. Not only that, but now I’m a mare. Yeah, I’m a girl pony. Lastly, turns out I’m a unicorn, too. Sure, I have magic now. But I have absolutely no idea how to use it. And it’s not like I really have the time to learn, either. After finding out that the local Princess didn’t have any answers for me (though she promised she would find some), I was left a little lost. I didn’t have anywhere to go, and I didn’t have anything to do. How could I when I could barely walk in this body? But, luckily for me, I guess, Pinkie Pie had been following me ever since we, er, bumped into each other that morning. She had even shown me the way to Twilight’s and introduced us. So, when she found out that I was all alone and, sad to say, helpless, she offered me a room at her place. The rather prominently named ‘Sugar Cube Corner.’ Turns out there were living quarters above the bakery. Not really having any other choices, I decided to take her up on her offer. But only on the condition that I pay for my food and lodging by working with her at the bakery. It couldn’t hurt, after all, and it would give me ample opportunities to work on learning how to use this new body. Not only that, Pinkie had informed me that I didn’t have my...cutie mark...yet, and that working with her might help me discover my talent. After not really getting any kind of real explanation from her on what exactly a cutie mark is, I went back to Twilight. She explained to me that, in layman's terms, a cutie mark is a physical representation of one’s inner self. It could be a talent, a calling card, or have a deeper meaning altogether. So, after I had a better understanding, I decided that finding this out about myself would be a good way to pass the time until she could figure out a way to get me home. So when I wasn’t bumbling things up at the bakery (seriously, who can bake with hooves, anyway?), I was out and about the town trying everything I could. It was a way to help pass the time and keep my mind off everything else. But, as it turns out, I wasn’t particularly good at anything. I won’t go into the detailed list here, but after a week of experimenting, let’s just say that I discovered it was best for the town if I kept my head down and stayed out of the way. I mean, it’s not like I could help build a house, or drive a cart, or even do basic household chores in my condition. I hadn’t even figured out how to pick things up with these silly hooves yet. How was I supposed to accomplish anything? The only upside to this whole thing is that I discovered that I could access a bit of my magic if I concentrated hard enough. Granted, I couldn’t do anything with it yet, but I could make a couple sparks if I tried. Twilight even said that for someone who had never even thought about using magic before, I was making decent progress. I don’t really believe her, but I had no way of judging whether or not she was right. So the best I could do was to trust her judgement and go about my merry way. But after failing horribly at finding my cutie mark, and accomplishing nearly nothing with magic, all I really had was the bakery. I hadn’t ever really baked in my life prior to this, but Pinkie was understanding, and a patient teacher. And by the end of the first week, I could confidently make a batch of simple cookies. I know, I know. Making cookies isn’t that difficult, but when you’re using hooves instead of hands, it’s a lot harder. Not only that, but I found out that Pinkie wasn’t actually that bad to hang around with. Sure, she was a bit hyper and a little off the wagon sometimes, but she made me laugh. And, according to her, a smile could help anyone, especially if they were feeling down about something. And I had more than enough to be down about. I don’t know my name. I can’t remember any of my friends’ or family members’ names, and I could barely remember what they looked like. My old address is a blank, as was my job and where I graduated college. It was like every memory of my old life was fading as the days went on. It was more than a bit frustrating, and really, really depressing. At least Pinkie had managed to give me a slightly ironic nickname. She calls me Blue now, because of the color of my coat. I tried to explain to her that it was ironic because of how often I’m sad, but she just smiled, shook her head, and called me a silly pony. Eh, I guess it’s better than nothing. Besides, I kinda like the name anyway. And more and more ponies are starting to refer to me as that, so I guess I’m stuck with it now. I have to say, when it’s all said and done, this really wasn’t a bad place to live. The town’s population was all around happy and carefree, I had made a few friends, and even work was kinda fun most of the time. I was finding it easier and easier to not let things bother me as much. Though, the no longer being a guy thing still weirds me out sometimes. Especially when I’m bathing. That’s just...a shock every time. All in all, things aren’t so bad. And I think that if Twilight can’t figure out a way to send me home, I might be able to at least be moderately happy here. But then again, I haven’t really gotten over the shock of it all yet. “Still haven’t heard anything from Twilight, huh?” I looked up from the tray of cupcakes I was currently in the process of decorating and looked over to Pinkie. She was looking down, focusing rather intently on her own tray of cupcakes, and it seemed like she didn’t want to meet my eyes. She was being kinda quiet, and this had been the most serious I had seen her since I had arrived. It was a little unsettling. “Uh...no, not yet.” I was still getting used to the personalities of all those that lived in town. There were a lot of similarities to humans, but for the most part the ponies here lived out their lives in blissful honesty. They didn’t really lie or cheat, and pretty much every petty disagreement was resolved in a really friendly way. And all of these traits were most prominent in Pinkie and her friends. And, from what I had seen, Pinkie was the embodiment of laughter. She loved to do things for other ponies. And she would go to just about any lengths to help someone if they were sad or put out in any way. It was sweet, because if she could make another pony smile, then any discomfort she put herself through was totally worth it. “I mean, I haven’t gone by the castle in a few days to check, either. I know she’s busy enough with her other duties, and what I’m going through doesn’t really seem like it should be at the top of her list, y’know?” I looked back down at my cupcakes, frowned, and then sighed. Dumb hooves made everything so difficult. And after seeing Pinkie’s cupcakes, mine looked like a toddler’s in comparison. Pinkie didn’t say anything, so I went back to work, trying to remedy my foul ups the best I could. I figured she was just making idle conversation, but it was still strange. Because even when she did just chit-chat, she was always so much more jovial than this. And after a few minutes, I decided to inquire a bit further. But when I looked up, she had already gone. I could never figure out how she managed to vanish like that. Ah well, she probably just went back out front to help more customers. The afternoon rush was pretty much over, but there were still a few stragglers here and there wanting to satisfy their sweet tooths. And we at Sugar Cube Corner were happy to oblige them any manner of tasty confectionary! Still...something about what Pinkie said, and the way she said it was a bit off-putting. So, once the shop was closed (still with no sign of the floofy maned mare), I decided to head out and do a bit of investigating. Because while I had only been a part of this world for a little while, I still considered Pinkie a friend. And I figured if anyone had to know what was going on with her, it would be one of her friends. The problem was, I wasn’t really sure how to get in touch with any of them. Twilight and Rarity were easy enough. They both lived in town. But, from what I understood, Rainbow Dash lived on a cloud somewhere, and Fluttershy and Applejack lived outside of town. I didn’t know how to get to Fluttershy’s, and Applejack’s farm was too far off to go to this time of day. So, I decided to visit Rarity. I was still a little hesitant about bothering Twilight, since she’s a princess and all, and I figured Rarity closed up shop about the same time of day that we did. And, lucky for me, she was just right around the corner. So I said goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Cake, told them I’d be back soon, and headed out. It hadn’t quite gotten dark yet, so there was still enough light to see by without the aid of the streetlights, so finding my way was simple enough. Which was good, because while I had done a fair bit of exploring, I still had a hard time finding my way around. Having such an awful sense of direction, along with being thrust in a whole new place, kinda did that to you. I made it to Rarity’s after only about ten minutes, and noticed that she had closed up for the day. I stood in front of the door for a few minutes waffling back and forth about what I wanted to do. I don’t really know why, but out of all of Pinkie’s friends, Rarity bothered me the most. She was so far out of the ordinary to me, with her fancy talk and all, that it just felt...wrong. But every time I saw her she made me feel welcome, so I knew that it was on my end only. Maybe I should try a little harder? No better time than the present, I guess. I gently rapped on the door a couple times and was immediately answered with a voice from within, “Coming!” With a sigh, I steeled myself. She was nice enough, after all, and this was something I really wanted to know, so it was better to just get on with it. The door opened a moment later, and before me stood the exact unicorn I was hoping to see. All pristine and shiny and well groomed. She looked like she had just gotten out of the fur dryer, but I had a feeling she had looked like this all day. She was the only one I knew, person or pony, that could manage to look so immaculate after a day of work. “Oh! Blue, darling, I wasn’t expecting a visit. Please, come in, come in.” She stood aside and I stepped in, making sure to knock the dust off my hooves before I did. I learned my lesson about that the hard way. She gingerly closed the door behind me with a bit of magic, and I sighed inwardly. I still couldn’t even move a quill a few inches, much less shut a door with my magic. But, that frustration was for another time. “Please, dear, come to the kitchen. I just finished making tea, and I would love the company.” She started walking and I followed dutifully, looking around a bit as I did. She really did a nice job keeping the place clean. It looked as well put together as she did! “So! To what do I owe the pleasure of your company tonight? It’s not often I get a knock at the door from such a mysterious pony this time of day, you know.” I cleared my throat and sat down at the table, pushing the small tea cup around with a hoof in an effort to avoid eye contact. “Well...It’s about Pinkie.” Rarity immediately stopped preparing the tea and looked at me with wide eyes, “Oh dear, something hasn’t happened, has it?” I shook my head and finally met her gaze, “No, nothing like that. She was just acting a bit strange today. Like, she didn’t have her usual bluster, you know? And we only talked a little, and then she ran off about an hour before we closed and I haven’t seen her since. I was just wondering if...if you knew what was going on?” The look on Rarity’s face made me more than a little uncomfortable. It was like she knew something I didn’t, but didn’t want to tell me either. She cleared her throat and poured me my cup of tea, “Darling, I wouldn’t think too much of it. She’s probably just worried that her new friend, you, of course, is going to leave soon. I know you’ve been seeking help from Twilight for whatever reason, and Pinkie probably doesn’t want to lose you.” I blinked. Oh, right. Pinkie, Twilight, and I had decided that we should keep where I came from between the three of us and the royalty at Canterlot. Though I hadn’t met Princess Celestia and Princess Luna yet, Twilight did say she would be making a full report to them both. Just in case either of them knew something she didn’t. I cleared my throat and blew softly on the tea, “Oh, right.” I looked back up to Rarity and sighed, “I guess I can understand that. I’ve gotten closer to Pinkie than I have anyone else...no offence.” Rarity smiled, “None taken, dear.” I returned the smile and continued, “Well, since I got here. She’s been great. I don’t know what I would have done if she hadn’t shown up when she had. So it makes sense. And I don’t want to hurt her, but we’ve talked about me going home before, and she’s never really said anything about it one way or another. I just figured she understood…” Rarity shrugged and took a sip of her tea, “Celestia only knows, dear. I’ve been acquainted with Pinkie for a long time, and I still don’t understand her. She’s an odd one, but she’s a dear friend. I’m sure she’ll come clean with what’s bothering her soon enough, darling. So I wouldn’t worry too much.” I left shortly after that. Turns out, Rarity and I had little to talk about after all. I didn’t know anything about fashion, and that was pretty much her whole world. Well, aside from the odd romance novel, but that really wasn’t my thing either. So I thanked her for the tea and advice, and headed back home, letting myself slip into thought as I did. It wasn’t like Pinkie to hide anything from me. Even though we’d only known each other for a short time, she still told me pretty much everything. At least, from what I could tell. But from Rarity’s initial reaction, I was starting to think that something else was going on. Well, really only time would tell. If Pinkie wasn’t ready to talk about whatever it was that was bothering her, then I wouldn’t pressure her. That’s just not what friends do, right?
