I - "My name is..."
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Bloodlines: Dragon of the Eclipse

I - "My name is..."

Chapter I“My name is...”

POV - ???I couldn't help feeling a tad relieved. I somewhat liked the feeling of blood slowly trickling down my mane, dripping onto my muzzle and running off into the tall grass. I felt that all over my body, like a warm, foul smelling bath. Now that the pain of the fall had gone away and I was losing consciousness, I could let my short, miserable life flash before my eyes. At least, I waited for that to happen. While I did, I looked around at what would be the place where I'd rot away without a funeral. There were lots of tall trees, they almost blocked out the moon, which I made sure to get a good view of.Honestly, I couldn't think of a better way to die. Far away from anypony that could give a damn, or finish the job themselves. They wouldn't get the satisfaction of taking my life. The ground was my killer tonight, and it toasted its victory with a soothing drink of my blood, which began to get absorbed into the soil.I wondered if that was how roses were created. Fertile soil and crimson blood. Roses were a dangerous beauty, finely crafted by nature, but sharp around the base. How fitting, considering what lead to this.So, I cracked a smile, leaned my head back, closed my eyes and let the black embrace of death roll through me... well, at least, that's what I thought would happen.Instead, as the edges of my vision began to get all wonky, I saw a curious sight. A purple Unicorn, female by the look of it, had the audacity to waltz into my dying moments. She took a while to notice me, instead looking at the scraps of cloth that used to be my favorite cloak. Then she noticed the blood, and followed the trail I had left when I crawled into this patch of grass to die. She got a good look with a shocked expression that I had seen too many times. She reached out with her right hoof to touch me, I suppose she was curious about whether or not they were feathered, like Pegasus wings. She didn't get to find out. I curled up a little more and tucked my wings in. I curled my tail too, for good measure.She just stared right at me, and I stared back, though it was hard to keep my vision straight, owing to the fact that I was losing blood at an alarming rate, at least I think it was alarming, because this Unicorn was starting to flip, just a bit."What happened to you? Are you okay?"I wanted to say, "Sod off. You can't help me," but all that came out was, "Brrrearghag..." I felt blood on my tongue. It tasted like rusty metal. Opening my mouth wasn't such a good idea because now I was dripping from the lips.That was a little too much for me to take. My vision started to swim and this Unicorn was little more than a blurry purple mess mixed with shades of green from the trees and red from my blood."Oh no, you're in really bad shape," I could barely hear her say. "Um, hold on, I know somepony that can help you. I'll be right back. Just stay here!""It's not like I have much of a choice." That’s what I would have said, but more draining blood blocked out my words. That bit of red was the last straw. My head slumped to the grass and I was out cold.

I hadn't opened my eyes quite yet, but I knew I was awake, and unfortunately, not dead. I couldn't feel feel any blood on my scales. Somepony had cleaned it up. That would explain why I felt a little cold and moist.I had gone through this before. Someone locked me in a room, I waited for them to stop talking, then I made my escape. Didn't matter what door it was. Same old song and dance. So, keeping my eyes closed, I focused my slowly returning sense of sound and listened to the voices outside the room I hadn't even seen yet.They were both female by the sound of it... that purple Unicorn was talking to another pony- no wait, Zebra. She had that distinct burr and rhyme to her voice that said she was from Saddle Arabia."He's not like anything I've ever seen before,” said the Unicorn. “Nothing I've studied about anatomy suggests that he should even exist."Go figure."When speaking of his wings and tail, do your words as mine fail?" asked the Zebra. Ugh, I hated nursery rhymes. Still do."Well... he is definitely different, but I don't think he's dangerous. I mean, I've dealt with far worse things than something like him."I rolled over onto my back. This purple unicorn looked at me from a scientific point of view and she didn't think I was dangerous. That was unusual. And very wrong."Besides, it's not like he's a monster. Aside from a few... anomalies, he's still a pony.""I am glad that you see it that way, considering how you thought of me that day.""That was years ago, Zecora. Besides, I didn’t think poorly of you until I got my ‘curse’, and you saw how that turned out."Okay, the Zebra was named Zecora. Who was this Unicorn?“How is he doing, anyway? He... he lost a lot of blood...”"My remedies have kept him alive. You wait here, for him to revive. He is resting now, and away from pain. From getting up he should refrain. I need only be gone for a time short. After I gather more plants, I can give a full report.""Alright, Zecora. Good luck finding those ingredients."I heard another door shut. Definitely the front door. Perfect, now if I could just get out of here- "Dammit!" I shouted involuntarily when I tried to move. That wasn't smart. Even with whatever Zecora had given me, it was a VERY bad idea to try and walk away from a several hundred foot fall."Oh, you're awake... and vocal." I finally opened my eyes. Standing among exotic masks and decorations was the purple unicorn. She had a light smile on her face that actually made me relax a little, but only a little.

POV - Twilight SparklePony anatomy and basic genetics. Two subjects that crumbled to pieces by the mere sight of him, the half dragon. Mostly everything about him was equine, except for four glaring anomalies.One - His irises were emerald green with slits for pupils.Two - Instead of a tail of hair, his was long and reptilian.Three - His coat, or lackthereof. Instead, his body was slick and scaly, a midnight blue color.Four - Dragon wings. Even when tucked in, they were large and rather terrifying. They looked sharp enough to cut bamboo.He still had a mane (Light blue with red highlights), though he lacked a cutie mark. His legs weren't anything out of the ordinary, though the scales covering those were thick and rough. He also had gold earrings, three on his right ear. Two were studs and one was a crescent moon.I should also mention the ridiculous amounts of scars that covered his face, several going across his right eye (Though somehow leaving the eye intact). There were also a fair few on his body. Those weren’t from the fall. He must have had quite a chain of bad luck.I only had this much time to examine him because he was sitting perfectly still, not even blinking. I was tempted to avoid blinking as well. What did I get myself into?I decided to ask him what anyone would ask someone new. "What's your name?""You don't need to know," he answered immediately, still glaring.Well, that got us absolutely nowhere. I tried something else."Where are you from?""You don't need to know," he said again.I felt a small draft on the back of my mane and I realized that I had left the door ajar. Oh sweet Celestia, I left the door-Slam.The half dragon threw himself onto me and I fell to the floor. I could tell he was going to make a break for it but he didn't get the chance. I slammed the door shut with levitation magic and he was left with a headache."Sorry about that. I can get you some ointment.""Just let me go!" he shouted while he rubbed the wound on his forehead. How could I that to him? He was still in pain from whatever happened to him in the Everfree Forest. I assumed some monster had gotten the jump on him, and here I was making it worse."I'll put this as simple as I can: You. Are not. Well.""I've heard.""Then you should take my advice and rest some more."He was out of options, and he had begun to accept it, so he huffed and walked slowly back to his bed. He laid his body across it but his head stayed up and alert."Why are you doing that?" I asked.“What?”“That whole wide-eyed-and-ready-to-pounce look.”"In case you try to kill me."I laughed, but he sure didn't act like it was a joke.I didn't count on him to stay in bed for very long, especially if I left for more than a minute, which I felt was necessary. “I’ll be right back. I’m locking the door.”“I’ll burn it down.”“Wait, you can do that too? You just get more and more fascinating by the minute!”

POV - ???Finally that Unicorn up and left the room, but true to her words, she had locked the door, not with a key, though. Magic. I actually did try to force it open. Nothing worked, and I knew better than to breath fire in a wooden hut. When she locked the door, she said, “I’m really sorry, but you have to stay safe. What if whatever attacked you comes back?” She had a really sick sense of humor. But, then again, the sun was rising, and that usually meant I had to get some rest. The natural kind of sleep, not the injury induced coma kind. I didn’t realize it at first, but that bed was really comfortable, a rarity for me.

It was around noon when I came to again, this time surrounded by more voices, one of them being that of the Unicorn’s. The others... I didn’t care what they sounded like. It was all so annoying, and honestly, scary. I wasn’t fond of crowds. Bad things tended to happen in crowds.“Don’t suffocate him. He’s still under trauma.” “I just don’t believe it. Never seen anything like him before.” “Dragon wings, Twilight! Dragon! Wings!” I was long fed up with the talk of how different I was from everypony else. I began to rise from the bed, leading these ponies to back away in surprise. I did a quick headcount: There was the purple Unicorn, levitating what I thought must have been poison beside her. There was a pink Earthwalker prancing in place next to a cyan rainbow maned Pegasus. I almost didn’t notice another Pegasus cowering in the back. Yellow, hiding her face behind her long pink mane. Her eyes betrayed her actions. While she acted scared, she had that curious look I’d seen far too often. First, they’d wonder what was wrong with me, then they’d sharpen their pitchforks... The Unicorn was quite excited about me. “You’re awake!” she said. She tried to feed me that nasty looking raw sewage substitute from that bowl, but I resisted. “Come now. This will dull the pain.” I snarled at her. “Oh please. I’ve done this dance at least twice before. You don’t do a very good job of disguising cyanide.” Apparently black comedy was the circus troop’s bread and butter, because they all started laughing, even the timid one in the back. I was so distracted by the timid one that I didn’t hear the Unicorn talking.“What?” I asked. “Why do you keep assuming that I want you dead?” “You’re a Canterlot type. I can tell by the way you walk.” “The way I-” “Okay, I’m gonna cut the crap,” said the rainbow Pegasus as she lightly shoved the Unicorn out of the way. “What’s up with your wings and tail and the rest?” This one had little sense of personal boundaries. I wished I wasn’t so sore so I could move away from her, but she wasn’t going anywhere until I talked, and had a feeling the same went for the rest of these ponies. “I’m a half dragon. My father is a dragon and my mother is a pony. Simple as that.” The rainbow one snorted. I could almost taste this one’s attitude, or maybe that was her breath. “Oh ho ho, look at Mister Special over here! So, what’s your average down-wind speed, guy? I bet you get some wicked shredding with blades like these puppies!” The Pegasus was really starting to irk me, the way she was... caressing my wings was just... I pulled my wings out of her grip and clamped them to my sides with a snarl. It turned into a whimper as I turned my head too far to the right. I collapsed back onto the bed and the Pegasus hovered away slowly, muttering what could have been an apology, but I doubted it. “Shut up...” I muttered. “Just kill me already, if that’s what you want. I told you, it wouldn’t be the first time somepony’s tried.” The pink Earthwalker was suddenly right in my face, a frown on her muzzle as she glared down at me. I glared right back. Then, she shoved a cupcake in my mouth.

POV - Pinkie Pie Like, ooohhh my gosh, earlier today, Twilight came by Sugarcube Corner, and she was telling me about this pony who was really badly hurt, and looked like he really, really could use something to eat! So, I grabbed as much cornbread and muffins and cupcakes and brownies as I possibly could, and then I told Mrs. Cake that I was leaving- or maybe I told Gummy not to chew on the sofa- and I galloped all the way to Zecora’s hut as fast as I could and I ran into Fluttershy- almost literally, but luckily my Pinkie Sense told me when to jump, and there was a cute little gathering of bunnies that she was helping move into a better warren, but-oh, I’m getting off topic again, so anyways, I told Fluttershy about the strange colt that was hurt, and she and I made sure the bunnies were nice and settled, and he has dragon wings! DRAGON! WINGS! I mean, I thought normal wings were cool, but dragon wings are amazing! Gosh these cupcakes are delicious... Oh, right! I forgot I was still doing this! Umm, oh! I was talking with some of my friends- AJ and Rare-bear weren’t there, because they had to work, but, oh, wait... this is real time, right? Then let’s tune in! Rainbow Dash was flying in a little circle, admiring the colt’s wings- and I was not. Jealous. ... Okay, mayyybe just a little bit. But not really, alright? His wings were super duperifically cool, and, well, I don’t even have normal wings... My right fetlock twitched and my tail curled, so I looked up and winced sympathetically as Ce- the colt grunted in pain (Gotta keep it in past tense! Didn’t know his name then!). He then got all mopey, and told us to go ahead and kill him if we wanted, so I got in his face and shoved a cupcake right in his kisser! His eyes widened, and he tried to spit it out, but I held my hooves over his mouth, and that boy did what was natural. He swallowed that cupcake, and boy did he like it! “That’s... that’s good.” And, thank Celestia, he didn’t think it was poison.

POV - ??? Lemon and vanilla flavored frosting, fluffy sweet bread, slight tang on the finish. It had been so long since I had the luxury of baked goods. Judas would often steal something for me from whatever bakery was in town. Stolen food tastes fine. When someone gives you food, it’s absolutely mouthwatering, that cupcake being no exception. “Alright, you scary little half dragon, listen here!” said the pink one as she stood on her hind legs. “You’re not dying today, so cheer up and eat up!” From seemingly out of nowhere, the Earthwalker slammed a large blue basket full of baked goods down in front of me. Talk about an impressive assortment, it was a whole spectrum of warm, sweet, doughy morsels and I could’ve had it all if I wanted to. The Earthwalker, she went through all that trouble for me? I never knew such random acts of kindness existed. I decided to slowly nibble on a slice of cornbread. I never had that stuff before, and I was pleasantly surprised at how delectable it was. I don’t even like corn. I looked back at the four mares who were still watching me intently. I could tell they were more relaxed now that I believed they weren’t going to kill me. I wolfed down the last of that cornbread. “Um, don’t leave yourselves out.” I pushed the basket to the pink Earthwalker, who was smiling quite broadly.Forgive me, Judas. I’m lowering my guard.

So, by the time that basket was half empty, I had eaten more than I ever had in one sitting, which wasn’t a hard record to break. I didn’t realize until the third cupcake how famished I had been. That brought a question to my mind. “Hey, Canterlot dweller?” I asked the purple Unicorn, who was chatting it up with the rainbow Pegasus. “You can call me Twilight Sparkle,” she said. She then pointed to the rainbow one, the pink one and the pink-haired one who was still cowering at the other end of the room. “This is Rainbow Dash, that’s Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy.” That last one squeaked when her name was called. What a fitting name. Clearly she was the only one here who hadn’t warmed up to me and my dragon lineage.“Right, Twilight. How long was I out?”“Three days.”Hmm, I’ve had worse, I thought.“You didn’t really answer my question earlier. Why do you keep thinking somepony is going to kill you?”“I’m... not exactly welcome in this day and age.”“That’s unfortunate. You don’t seem like a bad colt.”“Well, clearly this one has been hanging around the wrong crowd,” said Rainbow Dash. ”It’s a basic case of don’t judge a book by its cover. Believe me, I’ve been there.”“We all have...” muttered Fluttershy. That’s the first time she spoke since I saw her. I was beginning to think she had taken a vow of silence.I was acting a jackass. Clearly, if Twilight was well acquainted with the Zebra, then racism was a thing of the past in this town, whatever town it was.It was the unusual feeling, being able to speak freely, and now that I could, I didn’t know what to say. The best I could come up with was, “Thank you. For saving my life.”Pinkie Pie tossed me an apple fritter, which I caught with my fangs. “You’re somepony worth saving!” she said. That... meant a lot to me.

POV - Applejack (Ah’ll do my darndest to not narrate in mah usual way a’ speakin’, for the sake a’ comprehension)Nothing was set up to happen that day. Everything was perfectly ordinary. Autumn was in full swing. That usually meant two things; Rainbow Dash would come knockin’ at my door, challenging me to another race in the Running of the Leaves, which I would graciously accept, and as for the other thing, apple buckin’ season was coming to a close. I was just bucking the last of the apple trees and Big Macintosh, bless him, offered to carry the buckets. That last apple fell into its rightful place and Big Mac heaved the bucket onto his back with no effort. “That does it for today, big brother,” I said. “How about Ah pick us up somethin’ special from Sugarcube Corner to celebrate? Ah’d say we earned it.” Big Mac responded in his usual manner. “Eeyup.”

I wasn’t one to complain about the lack of excitement in the the mid-Autumn days. Now that all the work was done I could finally relax and let the bustling town of Ponyville sing a song to my strides.Along the way to Sugarcube Corner, I passed by the only shop that wasn’t more than a decade old, the Golden Glimmer Armory. It opened a few years ago, and I had grown to know the owner, this nice Unicorn colt, Hephaestus Ironwright (Bronze coat and bright red mane). Most of his neighbors questioned somepony like a blacksmith to occupy a small town like Ponyville when Canterlot was clearly a more effective option. I had mentioned that the royal guards could use somepony like him, but he insisted otherwise, saying he liked the scenery of the countryside much better, and honestly, who could blame him?So, Ironwright gave a pleasant wave as I passed by. Nothing spectacular.Sugarcube Corner was just across the gravel street from the Armory, and boy, did that bright and colorful architecture contrast with the dark wooden exterior of the armory.

“You’re out of pie?” “Yes, that is precisely what I told you five seconds ago.” Okay, Sugarcube Corner had been part of Ponyville since long before I could remember. Never once did they run out of stock. Not for pies, not for anything. “Sorry, hon,” said Mrs. Cake. “We’re also out of cupcakes and cornbread... I’ll take a look at what we’ve got in the back. I think we might have a baker’s dozen of maple donuts.” I paced around the rug as Mrs. Cake shuffled about behind the counter. Taking a peek up the stairs, expecting a lot more sounds of the zany antics from a certain somepony, I asked, “Where’s Pinkie Pie? She told us she was babysittin’ today.” “Well-ah, I thought I cleaned that-I uh-where did I-something came up. Here we are!” A pink box filled with maple donuts. That put a smile right on my face. “Anyway, I have Carrot Cake taking care of Pound and Pumpkin instead.” I may not have been the brightest knife in the crayon box, but I could put two and two together. “Mrs. Cake, Ah think Pinkie Pie may have raided your store.” “Well, obviously. Total comes to five bits.” “Okay then,” I said as I laid the coins on the counter, “but why would she take so much?” “Well, last I recall, she was carrying an impossible amount of boxes in her hooves and shouting ‘SUGAR FIXES EVERYTHING!’” “What happened after that?” “I don’t really remember. There was a lot of grape juice.” “Grape juice?” “It’s the only way I can put up with that mare.”

POV - FluttershyThe dragon colt in front of me was starting to become more talkative as time went on, losing some of his frightening demeanor as he devoured Pinkie’s treats. He scared me, but still, there was something about him that seemed interesting. I couldn’t help but wonder what his story was, where he came from, what his name was. He didn’t seem content to talk about his personal life, only answering basic questions in the vaguest possible answer, and occasionally referring to somepony named “Judas”.Eventually, after I sipped down a juice box and everypony else had eaten their way through a decent amount of the baked goods, the colt got up from the bed, started toward the door, and paused.“Wait...” he said in a moment of obvious clarity. Twilight and Rainbow Dash cheered for his recovery and Pinkie Pie shouted “I was right! Sugar does fix everything!” “Well, you can actually thank Zecora for that,” said Twilight, “I’m sure she’ll be happy to know her concoction was a success. Not exactly a five star meal though, was it?” The dragon colt shook his head vigorously. “I ate so many cupcakes and I still can’t get the taste of that gunk out of my mouth. Saddle Arabian food... I actually pass it up if I find it in dumpsters, that’s how much I hate it.” “Dumpsters?” I asked. A turn of everypony’s heads made me realize that was an odd thing to say. “I mean, well... if you like eating out of dumpsters... I- uh, I’m not judging you.” “Hmm...” He looked at me with a furrowed brow. Apparently he wasn’t used to hearing ‘Not’ and ‘Judge’ in the same sentence. “I should probably be up front about this,” he said. “I already told you I’m not exactly welcome among most crowds. Every day there’s somepony who calls me out. Most of the time I get verbal beatings. Other times, literal beatings. How do you think I got these scars?” I, along with Twilight, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, were shocked to hear of such cruelty. He didn’t deserve that. Not in a million years. “That’s why I walk alone. Thank you, for your kindness, but I should probably get out of your manes before I do something I regret.” Twilight’s levitation spell tugged on his draconic tail, causing him to struggle. “No, you can’t go! You’re still-” “Whatever the damage was, I can assure you I’ve had worse. Now let me go or I might have to get violent.”The levitation spell wore off. The dragon colt stayed stoic while he walked to the door, but I found the courage to intercept.“Um...” I had come up with words in my head to keep him from leaving, but they slipped my mind when we were face to face.“Fluttershy, is it?” he asked.“Um... yes.” He really was scary up close. The scars, his poisonous green eyes, his homely mane... I couldn’t help but cower.“Step aside.”“Sorry...” I slowly moved out of his way.He opened the wooden door and slowly trotted into the woods without even looking back, ignoring the pleas of everypony except me. I was too dumbstruck to say anything. Whatever courage I had mustered up was gone.“Not even a goodbye?” asked Rainbow Dash. “Ass.”Pinkie Pie’s saddened eyes shot wide open. “Wait, he’s half donkey too?”“Shut up, Pinks.”“Girls, he’s clearly been insulted enough in his life,” said Twilight as she looked out the circular window. “Somepony needs to get him back here. Look at him, he’s still limping.”All eyes fell on me, and I gulped.

Yes, I get it. I’m the one who’s good with animals, and my social skills had improved vastly through my adventures with my friends, but this was different. This dragon colt hid his emotional turmoil deep inside, and he pushed others away. I could see through it, but he wasn’t a cute and cuddly critter. I felt like if I made a wrong move, he wouldn’t hesitate to... I tried not to think about that. To my relief, he hadn’t wandered too far. He had ventured off the dirt road and laid down to take a nap in the shade of a large tree. I watched him, all curled up without a blanket, shivering from the wet dew. It was pathetic. Seeing him like this was enough for me to find that lost courage. I got closer and tapped him on the withers. “Huh?” He woke up instantly and shot to attention. Before I could even breathe he had me in a headlock. There went the courage again. “Where are they?!” “What are you talking about?” I managed to gasp. I had gone from confident to terrified in five seconds flat. “Oh, it’s just you.” He let go of me. “What do you think you’re doing?” It was like when I met Twilight for the first time. I backed away, all my words turning into barely audible squeaks. “I already told you,” he huffed, “I don’t need your help. Do yourself a favor and sod off.” While he was berating me, I noticed something peculiar. His eyes were somewhat bloodshot and the scaly skin underneath was glistening, and I didn’t think it was dew. “Were you crying?” “Huh?” He wiped off what was left of the moisture and turned away from me. “Don’t be embarrassed. You sound like you’ve been through a lot. It’s okay to let it out.” “Judas says otherwise. She always told me to colt up and never cry...” “Who is this Judas? Is she a marefriend?”“She’s... just a friend,” he choked.“You’re crying again...”“No, it’s just that... I feel like I’m letting her down by being such a...”I couldn’t believe it. I had cracked his shell. He was opening up.“I’ve... never told anyone this much about me, and aside from her, nopony has ever been this nice to me.” “Well then... come with me. I think you’d like Ponyville. Everyone there is really nice.” He began to walk my way, though he paused for a moment and examined himself. “Um, Fluttershy? I had a cloak.” My eyes widened. I had almost completely forgotten about a project Rarity had undertaken. “Oh! I’m so sorry I didn’t mention it earlier...” “It’s okay. What happened?” “There were scraps of cloth everywhere... My friend is a fashion designer. She’s doing her best to repair it, but...” “Can we go see her?”

POV - ??? I was trying to stay positive, at least for Fluttershy’s sake, but the boutique was on the other side of town, and the walk through Ponyville made me feel even worse. I was still weak; my legs would start to shake if I stood still for too long.Ponyville was nothing too impressive, a basic suburban town. No buildings were higher than three stories. There was little in the way of authority, though it seemed as if everypony knew everypony else. All the more reason to stay out of their view. Ducking past an orange maned mare at a carrot stand, I slinked back into the welcoming embrace of the shadowy alleyways.Fluttershy strode... well, not confidently, but in plain sight. I stuck to the shadows and alleyways, always checking the road to make sure I could still see her.As for her, she seemed intent on walking as slowly as possible, though that did give me the chance to check the dumpster behind a restaurant called “The Sunset Soiree”. Even their trash was exquisite. I could only imagine what they served inside. I took a mental note to steal from there later when things got dicey. After a trek that took an agonizing half hour, I had walked past a building that looked of gingerbread, a tree with windows, and a sofa store, before we finally reached our destination. A... “Carousel?”

POV - FluttershyI looked around, trying to find my charge, but he’d just... disappeared! I had hoped he would reappear soon, so I had stuck to a slow trot through town. I got to Rarity’s boutique, but he was still nowhere in sight. My concern turned to panic. What if he ran away? He’s still- Then, from right beside me, I heard somepony say “Carousel?” It... it was startling. “Eep! O-oh, I was getting worried. Where did you sneak off to?” His pupils kept darting in all directions, particularly at passersby. “Everywhere except in eyeshot.” “Are you afraid of what they might say?” “...All the time. You have no idea how awful words can be.” I shivered a little as I remembered the chants and teasing I endured at Junior Flight Camp. “I... I understand.” He snorted derisively. “I doubt it.” He looked to the Boutique, trying to comprehend its appearance. “Even if you didn’t tell me Rarity was an artist, I’d know it now,” he said as he rushed to the door, determined to avoid being seen as long as possible.

“Oh, customers? Welcome to the Carousel Boutique, where the fashions are unique, chique, and... and... tres magnifique!”Rarity’s unconventional reaction to the dragon colt’s ragged appearance made me think that she would shoo him away without question, given his less than stellar hygiene at the moment.She did quite the opposite, dropping every fabric sample she had levitated at her side and immediately rushing to him to get a better look at... well, everything. His scales, his wings, his tail, she couldn’t get enough, whereas he was starting to trot in place out of embarrassment.“How is this even possible? Twilight told me everything, but to see it with my eyes, even then I can hardly believe it!”“Rarity...” I said.“Are you sure there’s nopony else like you? I hope there is, I mean, with how fabulous these wings are, it would be a shame if nopony else was blessed with their beauty.”“Rarity.”“If I were you, I’d be showing these off for all to see. I’m sure every mare and colt from here to Canterlot would just-”“Rarity!”“Don’t talk about Canterlot!”The dragon colt and I shouted at the same time, ending Rarity’s obsessive rant.After a long and awkward pause, the dragon colt looked around the boutique. “...Cloak?” he asked.“Yes, of course. Give me a moment, I just need to make some last minute adjustments. Do you mind if I borrow you for a moment? I have to get the proportions juuuuuuust right and given your... abnormal physique, I couldn’t eyeball it. Just come behind this curtain.” I listened intently to the silhouettes of the dragon colt and Rarity as the cloak slowly came to completion.

POV - Rarity The poor darling and his battle scars. He had the essence of a Pegasus foal that had fallen from the nest, but then again, it seems we get a lot of those. Like, all the time.His fashion sense was unusual at best. The robes were elaborately layered, boasting black and blue tribal patterns and several exotic stitchings of crescent moons. I could tell it was meant to be light but also cozy, allowing the wearer to withstand the chilliest nights. Gorgeous, but rather conspicuous for somepony trying to lie low from abuse.He had a really rough life, apparently, as he told me when I coaxed him into talking about what was so terrible about Canterlot. I had almost run a stitch through his scales when he mentioned the graphic detail of a bruising from his childhood. A few unicorn foals from the Canterlot Academy had pinned him by a run down watering hole for... target practice. That resulted in one of the large unsightly scars.His apathy was what really struck me. I thought, He comes within a centimeter of death’s hoof and yet he stands tall. Under normal circumstances I would find that attractive but this was just unsettling. “You’re not a monster, you know. That’s all there is to it, and anypony who says otherwise is wrong. Now, let’s move on with this.” One last stitch on the hood and the cloak was complete, and it fit quite well on the dragon colt, completely obscuring his wings and tail, and with the hood up, his eyes couldn’t be seen. “Whoever designed this clearly holds you in high regard,” I said as I pushed the curtain aside. “My mother.”

POV - Fluttershy“How does your mother feel about your... well...” Rarity’s initial fluster over what she considered unique beauty had ebbed away and she had become more sensitive with the dragon colt, who had started to relax. “My wings,” he said. “She never thought any less of me... at least she never said that. I don’t see how she deals with this. I put her through a lot, being different and all.” He approached the stage surrounded by large mirrors and examined his cuts and bruises, as well as his wings, which he extended through flaps in the cloak. “I’ve put you through a lot.” “Trust me, dear,” chortled Rarity, “We’ve seen so much excitement throughout our lives bringing a mysterious and potentially dangerous half dragon back to health is a vacation! I mean that in satire, of course.” “I’m grateful for all this.” Stroking his scars and face hidden beneath his hood, his mouth slowly stretched into a smile. A single flap of his wings later, he turned away from the mirrors, genuinely happy and excited. “You were right, Fluttershy. This town does have nice ponies. You, Rarity, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. You didn’t have to save my life, but you did.” “I’m just glad that you’re not, well... brooding. I like you better this way.” “Yeah... me too.”

POV - ??? As Fluttershy and I left the boutique I had an epiphany. I had been selfish, moping about while I had friends willing to nurse me back to health and fix the only thing I had to remember my mother by. Earlier I had hoped that I really had died in the woods and I was just having trauma induced hallucinations, but this was real, and honestly, at that time, it was good to know I wasn’t imagining it. The beautiful country town of Ponyville, so simple, yet so gorgeous. The wooden rooftops and stone paved streets reflected the setting sun. I got a good long look. “Beautiful day, isn’t it?” Fluttershy said in an understatement. “Yes. I don’t get to look at the daylight often.” “Are you nocturnal?” “It’s to avoid unwanted attention.” Of course, even though I was five for five on how many ponies didn’t run or attack at the sight of my body, I was still reluctant to remove my hood. I wasn’t ready for everypony to see me at the moment, though I wished under my breath, that someday... “Hey, Fluttershy! Enjoying the sky?” Out of instinct I backed away from the sound of an unfamiliar voice, but Fluttershy’s response to the muscular orange Earthwalker boldly trotting our way told me I didn’t have anything to fear. “I’m enjoying it very much,” said Fluttershy. “So, uh, who’s this caped crusader over here?” Obviously the Earthwalker was a farmgirl. The ten gallon hat, the freckles, the scent of fresh hay, and that loud accent.Fluttershy nudged me. I guess she wanted to see if I could introduce myself instead of hiding in the shadows behind her back. It’s worth a shot, I thought. Let’s see if I can be six for six.Reluctantly reaching out my hoof, I said, “Um... nice to meet you. I’m-”Either an earthquake had spontaneously occurred or the Earthwalker had the strength of a Manticore that had the strength of five Minotaurs. “Mighty fine to see a new face. Ah’m Applejack of the Apple Family, and any friend of Fluttershy is a friend a’ mahne.”I admired Applejack’s enthusiasm. I hadn’t met anypony quite this, though I held my breath. She only knew me in my robes, not my skin. I figured if I got to know her, she wouldn’t be too weirded out when I revealed my wings and tail. “I’m just visiting... thought I’d drop in. Ponyville’s a nice town.” Applejack chuckled. “Well, that’s nothing new. Mild weather, good food, and we’ve got the best view a’ Canterlot!” She proudly gestured to the mountainside capital in the distance. It seemed so small and insignificant from the distance. “Uh huh.” I looked back at Fluttershy, who was gleefully nodding at my efforts. I racked my mind for more things to say. A life of xenophobia hardly makes for good conversation topics, so I decided to ask Applejack about herself. “So, you’re part of the Apple clan?” She looked quite puzzled and amused. “Clan? Well, ain’t you old fashioned. We say Apple Family in these times, Mista’ Old Fashioned. But, yeah, that’s right, I’m the second youngest of the Apple Family and damn proud of it!” Deciding to humor this one, I took a page out of Judas’ book and laid down the snark. “I don’t think I believe you,” I said jestingly. “Oh really?” She played along and nudged me from the side. “How ‘bout I prove it? Farm’s right over the hillside.” “Hmm, I might be interested.” I kept a snide face but on the inside I was baffled at how easy it was to communicate with these ponies. I had a happy thought, perhaps... if the rest Ponyville accepted me, maybe I could... Applejack apparently found my sarcasm hilarious. “I like you, kid. Follow close, it’s getting late.”

The next thing I remembered was a lot of fire... okay, let’s back up.First of all, I was gushing at how gorgeous the countryside looked in the sunset, as if the grassy fields were on fire... that I mean figuratively.Applejack and I had struck up quite the conversation. She told me a lot about her day to day work as a farm pony. For anyone else that would have been boring but I didn’t have the luxury of knowing what a ‘normal’ life was. I hung on every word. I didn’t even need Fluttershy’s reassurance. I was being accepted. I could-I was wearing the robes with the hood up. No wonder. It dreaded the mind to know eventually I would have to reveal my secrets to Applejack. Before that, I just had to know her stance on what a regular pony would define as ‘normal’. ‘Normal’ was such a subjective term. My definition of ‘normal’ was blades, clubs and torches and furious stomping, and I hadn’t seen any of those things in Ponyville. Yet.Didn’t get a chance to talk about that. Instead, my voice was canceled out by the pleasant sound of bleats. A small herd of sheep passing across the dirt road to a nearby stream, led by what was either a huge blonde maned colt or an average sized red stallion. He, like Applejack, had a Cutie Mark relative to apples. A big green that sparkled if the sun hit it at the right angle.“Relative?” I asked. The Cutie Mark and Applejack’s casual wave clued me in.“Tha’s mah big brother, Big Macintosh.” A strangely appropriate name. I took a page from Applejack’s book and waved, albeit with more enthusiasm. The big fellow nodded back, still tending to the sheep. “He doesn’t talk much?” “He’s a shy one, aren’tcha Mac?”The only sound he seemed to be able to manage was “Eeyup.” A quiet type.Fluttershy. Goodness, she was even more quiet, to the point where I didn’t even sense her there, at least until she was stroking the sheep and whispering into its ear. I decided to not question that one.“Winter’s comin’ up fast,” said Applejack. “If the Cloudsdale forecasters are correct, it’s gonna be a doozy. Gonna need all the wool we can get. Get a load of this coat, friend.”She led me to a particularly large sheep, who was drinking from the stream, and got a feel. “Thick as a stack a’ bamboo!” That’s the last thing I remember clearly, at least before that drinking sheep lifted her head from the stream, sniffed in my general direction and bleated, only in panic. It nearly knocked Big Macintosh to the water as it charged away, inciting a stampede of fluffy white clouds. In the panic of the moment, Fluttershy was cowering, Applejack was cursing up a storm, Big Macintosh seemed mildly disgruntled and I had a snout full of kicked up dust. That left me and Fluttershy exchanging a mutual thought in glance. I could hide my scent from regular ponies but some other animals were bound to notice. When that happens, it results in panic, disorder and in some unfortunate cases, me doing everything I could to resist sneezing. There was no contest. I had to let loose.That’s what I get for trying. The evergreen tree was set ablaze from top to bottom, creating a smell we could all recognize. An ungodly mix of smoke and brimstone. Applejack carefully stepped away from the traces of burning grass. We locked gazes, and I could have sworn she aged ten years in a manner of seconds. That stare. I had seen it before, too many times. Her words were familiar as well. “Wha- what are you?” I had hoped for a precious moment that she would see my eyes, scales, wings and tail and understand why I accidently put such a gorgeous tree to burning death, and why Big Macintosh was forced to buck the tree down into the stream to keep the fire from spreading. I thought maybe I could hear, “Oh, that makes sense,” or, “It’s no big deal, you couldn’t help it.”I was a fool. Down came my hood. My heavily scarred face was exposed, illuminated by the remaining flame on the grass. Did I say Applejack looked like she aged ten years? Make that twenty. “No...” I couldn’t take the time to brace myself. “No. You... no. No.” Applejack’s expression couldn’t decide between shock, sadness, anger or remorse. She found a horrifying middle ground of all four as she advanced on me. “You shouldn’t be here... why are you here?!”I remembered. This had happened so many times before. I met one of the select few who saw me as something more than a monster, became careless with my secrets and before I knew it, I was face to face with somepony who saw me as nothing more.“You actually wormed your way into my friends’ lives with your twisted little perverted mind, you Celestia damned filthy half breed!?”It was the Earthwalker tearing my heart out with her profane words that reminded me of how the rest of Equestria saw me, and why I never stopped to make any friends. Applejack, her and that metaphorical sledgehammer that she continuously used to beat my feelings into a pulp, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.“You’re nothin’ but a miserable, emotionless piece of dirt! No, you’re lower than dirt! You don’t deserve to walk on dirt!” Applejack was wielding that sledgehammer of hers something fierce... I pulled my hood up to obscure my eyes. I didn’t want anypony to see me like this. I turned away from Applejack and-“Oh no you don’t!” She intercepted my change of path and pulled that metaphorical sledgehammer on me again. “You’re not goin’ back into my town! You don’t deserve the dirt, and you certainly don’t deserve Ponyville! It don’t need your filth! We don’t need your filth, so take your freak wings and tail and scales and GET! OUT!” That sledgehammer was hitting me harder by the minute. Every swing led me down the path of emotional deprecation. I had cried before that day... but not like this, and with Applejack’s precise blows with that hammer, the tears came like rivers, staining the dirt that I didn’t deserve.“I SAID GET OUT!”All the beatings I had suffered from the date of my birth couldn’t compare to how absolutely shattered I was by those words. I had felt like a freak many times. I was used to it. Never before did I actually feel dirty. I felt filthy.“I’m s- I’m sorry,” I choked out, not able to look the farm mare or Fluttershy in the face. I spread my wings through the flaps in my robes and began to fly. “You’re right. I don’t belong in this place. I don’t belong anywhere...”I didn’t need to see clearly to know Fluttershy was struggling to take off after me as Applejack held her back by her tail. I was sure, if Fluttershy knew what it was, she would’ve called my name. I didn’t care. Not about them, not about anything. I just flew blind into the setting sun, and the only thing that followed in my wake were my own tears.