Life Lessons

I woke up feeling completely rested.  I sat up and let out a loud yawn as I stretched.  Man, that was one weird dream.  I thought to myself as I slowly opened my eyes.  I took a look around and found myself in the hospital room.  Or..maybe it wasn’t a dream.  After a few more stretches, I heard the doorknob turn.  I looked towards the door and saw a lemon yellow male unicorn with a very professional looking brown mane step into the room.  The pony was also wearing the top half of a doctor's outfit and glasses on his face.  I noticed the stethoscope slung around his neck.  Eh, what’s up doc?

“Ah, good to see you’re awake.  How are you feeling?”  He said in a generic cheery doctor tone.

“Pretty good, will I be able to leave soon?”

“Yes, I just wanted to make sure you were feeling better.  You took a pretty good hit to the head.  But now that I know you're ok, you are all set and can check out now.” I  don’t know if he’s more happy that I’m ok or happy because I’m leaving.

“Great!”  I said, glad to be able to get out of this bed and get some fresh air.  I looked down at myself and noticed that I was wearing a patient's gown that barely covered everything.  “Do you know where my clothes are?”

“Ah yes, they’re on that chair over there.”  He pointed his hoof towards the wall to my right.  I looked and found my clothes neatly folded and placed on a chair that was backed against the wall.  “Stop by the main desk when you’re ready so we can get you checked out.”

“Alright, thank you.”  I said, not wanting to get up until he left the room.

“No problem.”  With that, he turned around and walked through the door, closing it behind him.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood up.  My balance wasn’t great due to the fact that I hadn't been on my feet for what I think was a whole day.  I walked over to the chair and removed the gown.  Grabbing my pants, I pulled them on and buttoned them.  I then grabbed my shirt and put it on.  Next I sat down on the chair, putting on my socks and then stepping into my shoes that were placed next to the chair and tying them.  After I was fully dressed, I opened the door and left my room, heading for the main desk.

I soon realized that I had not seen any of the six ponies I had met yesterday.  Didn’t they say they were going to come by and show me around the town?  I continued walking, not having a clue where I was going and just following the signs on the walls that pointed me in the right direction.   I turned a corner and came to what looked like the lobby.

“Hi Chris!”  I jumped back in shock as I heard multiple voices all shout at once.

I looked down and saw my six new friends.  My shock soon replaced with joy since I thought they forgotten about me.  “Hey girls, I was just starting to think that you weren’t going to show up.”

“Oh darling, of course we showed up.  You’re our friend after all.”  Rarity said with a caring smile.

“We just thought it would be fun to wait out here and surprise you!  Were you surprised, huh were ya!?”  Pinkie said as she got in my face, her excitement was almost too much for me to handle.

“I can definitely say I was.”  We all had a good laugh as I walked to the main desk and checked myself out of the hospital.

All set to leave, I turned around and faced the girls.  "Ready to go?"

"I'm ready Chris."  Twilight spoke up, "But unfortunately the others have work that they need to attend to."

Feeling a bit sad I put on a fake smile.  "Oh, ok well I guess I'll see you all later then."

"Yup we'll definitely have to meet up later!"  Pinkie Pie said.  It almost sounded like she was hinting towards something.  With this, they all turned around and walked to the door, waving as they exited the hospital.

Twilight looked up at me and smiled, "I guess we should get going now."  We left the hospital and started walking through Ponyville.  As Twilight was telling me what each of the buildings were, a thought came to mind. I don't have any other clothes besides the ones I'm wearing.

"Hey Twilight?"  I said, interrupting her from her new job as a tour guide.  She stopped talking and looked up at me, waiting for me to continue my question.  "Is there a place where I could get some new clothes?"  This caused a puzzled look to appear on her face.

"Not really, the only place I can think of is Rarity's.  Though I never took you as one for fashion.”

It then occurred to me that most of the ponies don’t even wear clothes.  I also doubt that there are shops that sell human clothes, considering that no one seems to know what a human is.  “No you’re right, I’m not one for fashion.  But where I come from, it is socially unacceptable to be naked in public.  Plus, humans don’t have coats like ponies do.  So wearing clothing protects our bodies from extreme temperatures and other things.”

“Oh, I see”  Twilight muttered while trying to take in the bizarre information.  “Well in that case, why don’t we head to the Carousel Boutique, Rarity’s shop.”

I nodded in agreement and we made our way to Rarity’s.  It took about 10 minutes of walking accompanied by occasional small talk between Twilight and I until the carousel shaped building came into view.  We got to the door, a bell ringing as it swung open.

“I’ll be right with you.”  Rarity’s elegant voice called from somewhere in the building.  Twilight walked inside and I followed suite, having to duck down to avoid getting hit in the head.  Curse my height.  After I was fully inside I closed the door behind me and turned to face the interior.

It looked like a regular fashion studio.  Light purple walls with pink drapes everywhere.  Pony shaped mannequins lined up along some of the walls.  A small platform for a pony to stand on display, with three mirrors behind it to show all sides of the model.  A changing booth next to the platform with pink saloon style swinging doors.  To my left was two makeup stations and across from me was a staircase leading to the second floor.

I soon heard foot-..I mean ‘hoof’steps coming from the staircase.  Rarity soon came into view and greeted us with what I assume is her usual customer greeting.  “Welcome to the Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chic, unique, and magnifique!...oh, hello Twilight, Chris, what can I do for you today?”  A beaming smile grew on Rarity’s face upon seeing it was us.

“Hi Rarity, Chris needs some new clothing.  Apparently it's custom for humans to wear clothes to cover and protect their bodies, and as of right now he only has the one pair.”  Twilight spoke for me, it’s probably better that she did seeing as how they seem to be good friends.

Rarity’s happy smile changed to one of excitement.  “Say no more, I would love to put my designing skills to the test and create a wardrobe for you Chris.  I’ll just need your current clothing so I have something to go by.”

I blushed realizing I would have to remove my clothes in front of the two female ponies.  “Umm...do you have something I could use to cover myself with while you use my clothes?”

Rarity put her hoof up to her chin in thought, and a few seconds later she perked up.  “ohh I know.”  Suddenly her horn began to become engulfed with a strange light blue aura.  Not three seconds later a large quilt came hovering over to me covered with the same light blue aura as the one around Rarity’s horn.

I was awestruck at the sight.  “Rarity what are you doing!?” I said in a very alarmed tone.

“Whatever do you mean darling?”

“How is that quilt floating!?”  I shouted still trying to grasp what I was seeing.

“Why I’m using my magic of course.  Haven’t you ever seen somepony use magic before?”

Realizing I was shouting, I began to bring my voice back to its normal volume.  “No, where I come from there is no such thing as magic, only fake tricks and illusions.”

Twilight, being the bystander to this whole ordeal quickly intervened.  “There is tons of magic in Equestria.  It allows us unicorns to cast spells with our horns, and pegasi to fly.  Most of the nature itself here has a close bond with magic.”

Finding the existence of real magic caused my head to spin.  “S-so you can make things levitate with your horn?”

“Yes, but we can do a lot more than that.  All we have to do is learn the spell required to do it, although it can take years of practice.”  Twilight replied in a very proud tone.  She must be an expert on the subject.

“Well now that that's out of the way, would you mind removing your clothes now?”  Rarity spoke trying to change the topic.

I was slightly taken aback by her question, right before I recalled why we were here in the first place.  “U-um yeah, um do you mind if I change in there?”  I said pointing to the small changing booth.  Rarity answered by simply shaking her head.

I scurried over to the booth and stepped in.  It was pretty small but I managed to get out of my clothes and wrap myself in the quilt.  I stepped out of the booth and handed my clothes to Rarity, which she took with her magic and trotted back up the stairs.  “I should be finished with your new attire in a little while.  Until then please, make yourself at home.”  With that, she made it to the top of the stairs and out of my sight.

I looked back down to Twilight and she motioned to a couch by the door that I hadn’t seen when we first came in.  We sat down and had some idle conversation.  “Hey Twilight you mind if I ask you something?”

“Sure Chris, what do you want to know?”

“Well..this might sound weird, but how can you and the other ponies talk?  We have ponies back where I’m from, but they’re just domestic animals.”

At first she seemed confused, but soon she began to put some thought into it.  “Well, I guess the same way you can.  From what I can gather, you come from a completely different world.  I think that we ponies have come to develope in a very similar way to how humans have.  There are other creatures here who can communicate and are just as intelligent as us also.  I feel that the creatures in your world haven’t had the ability to develop the same way.  So humans have become the dominant species.”

All of what Twilight said made sense.  I can tell she is very smart and thinks things through logically.  I thought about what she said.  I'm in another world?  Will I ever return to mine?

Looking my lavender friend over, something caught my eye.  “Hey Twilight, what’s that?”  I pointed down towards her rear- that sounds weird, maybe I could use another word for it...um..oh how about flank.  Yeah sounds a bit better.  Regardless, I pointed to her ‘flank’.  There was a small detail that I had not noticed before, she had what looked to be a tattoo.  It was a pink star with five smaller white stars surrounding it.

“Oh that is my cutie mark.”  She said with a smile.

“What’s a cutie mark?”  I asked, not sure if it was just a fancy name for tattoo.

“Well, when a pony finds something they're really good at; his or her special talent, their cutie mark appears.”

"It just appears there?"  I said, not sure what she meant.

"Yup, everyponies born with a special talent, but their cutie mark only appears once they find it."

“So what does your cutie mark stand for?”

“Magic.”  She replied with confidence. I should have known the magic expert would have a talent in magic as well.

A few seconds later, I heard hoofsteps coming down the stairs.  Rarity soon came into view with a large box floating behind her. The clothes I was wearing earlier were neatly folded, sitting on top of the box.

She moved the box and my clothes over to me.  "There you are darling, your brand new wardrobe.  It was a bit of a challenge, but I do say they look divine!"  Her smile glowing, satisfied with her newest masterpiece.

I put the box down and walked into the booth with clothes in hand.  Once I was finished changing, I stepped out and put the quilt down.  I went and grabbed the box.  "Thank you Rarity.  What do you I owe you?"

"Oh darling just consider it a gift, and an apology for chasing you through Ponyville and putting you in the hospital."  Rarity had a sincere look on her face.  Her generosity one of the kindest gestures I have ever received.

I set down the box and kneeled down in front of the white unicorn, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her into an embrace.  Her coat felt good against my skin.  “Thank you Rarity, this means so much.”

She returned the hug by putting one forehoof around my back.  “Think nothing of it darling.  I always love new challenges.”  She soon broke the hug, “I’m awfully sorry, but I must run out to do a few errands.  Be sure to close the door when you leave.”  She then proceeded to walk out the door and into Ponyville.

I looked down to Twilight, “Well, where to next?”

"I think it’s getting pretty late.  Let’s go back to my home, you can stay with me for as long as you need.  That is...if you want to.”

It had not dawned on me where I would sleep.  I was flattered by her offer.  “Thanks Twilight, I would love to.”

Twilight’s face brightened up.  “Great!  Let’s get going.”

I quickly picked up my new box of clothes and followed Twilight out the door, ducking once again to avoid hitting my head.  Looking outside I noticed that it had indeed gotten late.  If I had to guess, I would say it was around 9:00.  The moon was high in the sky, the sun hiding behind the horizon, some sunlight still existed adding a faint pink color to the sky.

The walk to Twilight’s was pretty uneventful, consisting mostly of me just enjoying the night sky.  Barely any sunlight was left when we came to a huge tree.  “Here we are.”  Twilight spoke up while looking at the tree.

Looking more closely, I noticed that it actually was a house.  It had a maroon door with a candle carved in it.  A few small windows were scattered throughout the tree, and way up at the top supported by a branch was what looked to be a balcony.  “You live in a tree?”

“Yup, but it’s not just a tree, it’s also a library.”  Living in a library?  Seems fitting for her.

We walked up to the door, all the lights inside were off.  Twilight opened the door with her magic and motioned for me to enter.  I peered inside and quickly noticed that even though there was still light outside, it was pitch black inside her house.  I took a few steps into the darkness, moving slow so I wouldn’t bump into anything.

“SURPRISE!!!”  A crowd of ponies shouted as the lights turned on.  The medium sized round room was full of ponies.  It was like all of ponyville was here.  There were party decorations scattered everywhere and a banner that read: ‘Welcome to Ponyville Chris!’ hung from the ceiling.

A large smile spread across my face, feeling honored that complete strangers would throw me a welcoming party.  Pinkie Pie quickly dashed in front of me with a huge grin.  “Hey Chris!  Remember earlier in the hospital when I said we should definitely meet up later?  Well it’s later and I gathered everypony in town and put together a surprise welcome to Ponyville party for you.  Were you surprised?"  Pinkie was bouncing in excitement.

“Wow Pinkie, thank you for throwing me this amazing party,  and yes, I was surprised.”  I said, my smile never leaving my face.

“I knew it!”  She shrieked, clearly pleased with her ability to surprise me.  “Now let's get this party started!”  She rushed over to an old gramophone and put some music on.  The party immediately began to liven up, everybody was talking and enjoying themselves.  Putting the box I was still carrying down by the door I joined the others.

I mingled in with the crowd, talking with my friends who all attended, and meeting tons of new ponies.  The party went on for a few hours, not dying down until the very end.  Getting lost in the fun though, it only seemed like a little while.  Eventually everyone said their goodbyes, leaving me alone with just my friends.

“So how was the party Chris?”  Pinkie asked, a random lampshade resting on her head.

I laughed at the sight.  “It was wonderful Pinkie.  Thank you all so much, you don’t know what this means to me.”

They all gathered around me, moving into position for a group hug.  I got down on one knee so I was about head level with them, becoming surrounded on all sides.  I felt them wrap around me, it was a little awkward for me because I’m not really used to getting hugs.

We stayed that way for a little while enjoying each others warmth.  They soon let go, all of them returning to all fours as I stood up.  We made our way over to the door as they got ready to leave.

“Good night darling, I will see you soon.”  Rarity said before heading outside and back to her home.

“Bye” Fluttershy said in a very quiet voice. I need to find a way to get her to lighten up around me.

“Awesome party Pinkie.  I’ll see you around Chris.”  Rainbow said before walking out the door and taking off into the sky.

Applejack tipped her hat to me, “It was good talk’n to ya Chris, but Ah’m mighty tired.  I’ll see ya’ll tomorrah.”  She then trotted out into the night.

“I can’t wait for the next party, see you later Chris!”  Pinkie waved before literally hopping out the door, Twilight closed it behind her.

With everyone gone, Twilight let out a loud yawn and I found myself doing the same.  She giggled, “Sounds like we’re both pretty tired.  How about I show you to your room.”

I nodded as I followed her up some stairs to the second floor.  Once we were at the top, Twilight spoke up.  “This is mine and my assistant Spike’s room.”  She then pointed to a door to my right.  “That’s the guest bedroom, make yourself right at home.”

I walked to the door and opened it up.  Looking inside I saw a decent sized bed in the back left corner and a dresser on my right.  There was also a small round window in the middle of the back wall.

I turned back to face Twilight, “Goodnight Twilight, thanks for letting me stay here.”

"No problem Chris, I’ll see you in the morning.”  She replied with a kind smile on her face.

We both turned and went our separate ways.  I closed my door and started to undress.  I removed all my clothes until I had nothing on but my boxers.  I put my clothes to the side and pulled back the blanket on my bed.  I slid under the covers and laid on my back, my head resting against the pillow.  I let out one more yawn before I closed my eyes as began to fall asleep.  Today was my first real day in Equestria and although it is weird, I can tell I’m going to like it here.