The Adventures of James Stallion, Book 1: The Gift of New Life

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3

Prologue

Dreams are life’s way of making one look toward the future; whether it is from a little kid wanting a toy so he waits eagerly for his birthday, or even a full-grown man who wants to have a high position in a corporation so he works tirelessly to reach the top.

Sometimes it’s not always as simple as it seems however; dreams also have a dark side to them. For the desperate or lonely of heart, dreams could also lead to more pain in their lives as well as happiness. Some people plan and make dreams that are so impossible to achieve that they go mad trying to obtain the unobtainable. However every once in a while, the unlikely does happen and one lucky soul gets what they want more than anything else in the world. I myself have had one such experience in my life. One that shaped my being and changed my very soul and sometimes even the faithless can change to see a better, more brighter future upon the horizon.

In order for you to make sense of my tale, you have to take a look into my past first so you can truly understand the full extent of it. My life prior to these events was a horrible one, though not as tragic as one might imagine I was a depressed soul, wandering through my life as if I was on autopilot and I would continue on with my existence as if it was nothing more than a simple movie.

I must clarify something first though; I was never at any point alone. I had friends and acquaintances that helped me through the tough times in my life. I always had food, clothing, everything that one would need to survive in the world. However despite all of this I was never truly happy. It was as if I was lost but always found all at once. I always felt empty inside.

There was one exception to my life that made me happy. Indeed there was one thing that made me continue on despite my never ending stress that I endured and that was the television show My Little Pony Friendship is Magic. I watched the show whenever I got the chance to, especially on the holidays when I had no one and no friends around or family to talk to.

The show itself really spoke to me. It showed what friendship was supposed to be like; indeed the way the whole world was supposed to be. Watching the show made me feel, if only for a few moments, happy. Even the fan fictions I read, despite their obvious differences between them and the show, gave me insight into a perfect world.

However it wasn’t until I read the fan fiction ‘My Little Dashie,’ when I really started to feel upset about my existence. The story made me feel truly connected with the show. The relationship between the man and Rainbow Dash made me have an extreme yearning to be there in Equestria. I knew that it was a work of fiction, of course, but the thought of a pony coming to our world made me want to go to their world. Again I also knew that the odds of that happening were slim to none, but it reminded me of something that my friend had told me awhile earlier; which was nothing was impossible, just highly improbable; and this advise good enough reasoning for me.

And so, I began to pray. Occasionally at first but soon every waking moment I prayed to God and asked him, no begged him, to take me to Ponyville and let me live in their world. After a solid two months of constant prayer, I began to lose hope. I didn’t lose hope in God mind you; I instead lost hope in myself. I had felt that perhaps my faith wasn’t strong enough, and I started to think that maybe I somehow angered God, and he was ignoring me.

Because of everything that had happened, I sank into a great depression. I was upset over everything that had happened, and it even got to the point that I would lay awake at night and cry for hours due to my inability to make it and achieve my dream. At certain points, I even had thoughts of suicide.

But things took a change for the better one night. After I had cried very late and was finally able to drift into a restless sleep, I got what I wanted and my dream was realized. I would awake the next morning and find myself in the place where I only dreamed of, and this is where my story truly begins.

Chapter 1

I awoke to blinding sunlight streaming through thick leaves of a massive oak tree. I grunted and closed my eyes tightly in shock as the unexpected rays of light hit my tired eyes and momentarily blinded me. I rolled over onto my stomach and slowly opened my eyes so that they could adjust to the brightness of my surroundings.

“What, where am I?” I muttered as I tried to stand up. I managed to rise up onto my elbows, but I quickly found that I couldn’t stand up onto my hind legs. I was so busy looking at my surroundings that I didn’t notice that there was something different about me. I looked down at my hands, and my mouth dropped when I saw that they weren’t actually hands, but hooves!

“What in the world?!” I exclaimed as I unsteadily rose up onto all fours. I had a tough time adjusting to my new posture; but once I was sure I wouldn’t lose my footing and fall, I took a look at myself. Indeed I was standing on four hooves; and from what I could see, I was also covered in brown fur. I looked back at my flank and found that my neck was infinitely more flexible than what it used to be. Once I saw that I had a black tail that seemed to move on its own.

“I’m a… a…” I stammered to myself in disbelief. My mind was still trying to wrap itself around the situation, despite the evidence that was so clearly in front of me.

“A stallion…” I said quietly to myself. “But does that mean?” I started but trailed off as I tried to maneuver my legs so I could turn around and see my surrounding area more clearly.

After about a minute of trying to adjust to my posture, I managed to turn myself around without tripping. When I finally turned around, I beheld it; there, just over the grassy plains that lay before me, was the town of Ponyville. I was hit with a barrage of different emotions all at once. Immediately I fell down and began to cry tears of joy. God had heard my prayers and gave me that which I wanted most in life. I prayed, giving thanks and blessing His name; all in the joy that I was feeling at that moment. I felt as though I was hit with a realization, as if my eyes were suddenly opened and I had finally come home.

Once I regained my composure, I once again unsteadily rose onto my feet, or I should say hooves, and looked towards Ponyville. I was on top of a big hill overlooking the village and, even though my vision was partially obscured by trees, I still got a good look down into the city. Ponyville looked just like it did on television. It was a beautifully colored town with buildings of all different shapes and sizes, all of which were nestled under the summit of a grand mountain range. I gazed over to my left and saw rows of apple trees, and I guessed that they were the beginning part of Sweet Apple Acres. As I looked at the trees, I also noticed that there was a road that led from Ponyville and entered into the rows of apple trees and continued to head towards the center of the farm.

The sight of the apples made my stomach grumble and I took noticed that I was really hungry. Confused as to why I was suddenly hit by hunger, I took a look at the sun, and I saw that it was way past the center of the sky. If the sun worked as it had when I was on Earth, then from its current position I figured that it was well past midday already.

“No wonder I’m hungry,” I said aloud to myself as I went to take a step towards the apple trees, but when I lifted my hoof up, however, I lost my balance and fell over onto my side and began to tumble down the hill I was on.

Along my way down, I had the misfortune of hitting an unearthed part of a root that was part of the giant oak tree, and the sudden impact caused me to let out a yelp of surprise and pain. A heartbeat later I hit the trunk of another tree, and I had the breath completely knocked out of me. I lay there gagging for a few seconds until finally I gasped and filled my lungs full needed oxygen. Once I could breathe again, I lay there for a few moments until I got my breath back, and then I slowly tried to rise up back onto my hooves.

I let out a groan as my back popped in a few places when I got up on all fours. I looked back up at the hill that I fallen down from and saw the uncovered root that I had fallen onto on my way down.

“Ouch…” is all I managed to say as I lifted my front right hoof and shook it a little to relieve some of the pressure that was on it. I carefully put my hoof back down on the ground, glad that I didn’t lose my balance again, and I cringed as my ankle cracked a few times as I put weight back on it. I took some time to stretch my sore body; and while I was stretching, I got used to being on four legs. Once I was sure that nothing was broken, and when the pain started to subside, I gazed back over towards Sweet Apple Acres. Again the site of the apples made my stomach let out another growl.

“Ok…” I said getting ready to try to take another step. “Let’s try this again.”

I carefully took one step forward, then another, followed by yet another, and before I knew it I was walking straight. A bit unsteadily, but never-the-less I was still making my way forward.

I slowly walked toward the apple trees; and on my way there, I took in the beauty of the world around me. A slight breeze started to blow, making gentle waves on the grass as I walked through the field, and all around me I could see wildlife roaming all throughout the landscape. Birds flew freely through the air, singing beautiful songs as they floated in the sky. Rabbits went to and fro in the fields eating flowers and grass and as they did so occasional deer would come out and join them and bask in the life giving sunlight. Equestria was more beautiful than I ever dreamed it would be.

I eventually came to the dirt road that led to Ponyville. I stopped for a moment and took a look at where the other direction of the road led. The road came out from the town and split into two different directions; one of which that led into the center of Sweet Apple Acres, and the other path led into a vast expanse of farmland and grassy fields. In the distance, I saw snow covered mountain ranges and vast, elegant looking clouds. There was one giant cloud that especially caught my eye, one that looked as though it was physically designed, not made naturally. I wasn’t sure if my mind was playing tricks on me, but it appeared as though the cloud was a city of sorts. It was really far away, and I couldn’t really make out much of the details; but it was elegantly crafted and looked astonishing from what I could see.

I looked away from the cloud city and back towards Sweet Apple Acres. I felt a deep happiness within me once more as I looked upon the pristine landscape of Equestria. Words couldn’t describe the emotion that I felt at that moment. It was a sense or harmony, a realization of sorts. I felt as though that I had made it home after a lifetime of torment and betrayal. No longer did I have to worry about the evils of the old life that I had left behind; and for the first time, I truly felt at peace. I said another prayer of thanks as I continued onward.

I crossed the road and took the path that lead to the first row of apple trees. I noticed that there was fencing that encircled the entire boarder around the premises of the property, and I took time to go around it. I wanted to savor every moment of being there in Equestria.

As I approached the apple trees, I noticed that there were baskets scattered around the base of each tree. Some trees were already harvested and the baskets underneath them were completely full, while others still had their fruits still attached.

I looked further down the path into the heart of Sweet Apple Acres and was astonished to see how far back it went. The property went on for miles on end and in the distance a little speck on the horizon was the farm itself. All around the farm in every direction was nothing but apple trees as well as additional fields that contained additional produce. The property went on as far as the eye could see, so much so that I couldn’t even see the end of it. I shook my head at the thought of how long it would take anyone, actually a whole army for that matter, just to harvest all of the crops that were on this one farm.

My thoughts were interrupted by another rumble from my stomach; and without another thought, I approached the nearest harvested tree and began to eat out of one of the baskets that lay beneath it.

The apples were the sweetest things that I had ever tasted before in my life. Their mouth watering goodness topped even the juiciest of fruits that were on Earth.

“Oh my, these are the best apples I’ve ever tasted!” I exclaimed as I continued to eat. I wasn’t sure if it was because of how hungry I was, or if it was because the apples were so delicious, but either way I couldn’t seem to get enough of them.

“What in tarnation are you doing eating my apples?!” a voice demanded from behind me.

I froze and almost choked in surprise. I recognized the voice immediately.

“Well, are you deaf or what? I asked you a question.” the voice said sounding more irritated.

I swallowed the last bit of apple that I still had in my mouth and turned to face the pony that was behind me. When I saw who it was, I nearly gasped-- it was none other than Applejack herself. Applejack looked exactly like she had in the show. She had a light brown coat as well as a yellow colored mane. Her mane was braided into a long ponytail, which hung down over her side. She even had the same signature cowboy hat that fit perfectly on her head and really complimented her looks. Everything about her was exactly the same even down to the same distinguishable freckles on her muzzle. I would have jumped in joy at the sight of her if it wasn’t for one thing; she looked furious.

“Who do you think you are coming onto my farm and eating my family’s apples without permission?” she yelled while stomping a hoof on the ground.

“I uh… You see I was hungry and I thought that-” I stammered trying to come up with a good excuse, but she interrupted me before I could finish.

“You thought what? That you could just come over here and eat without paying, is that it, huh?”

“No I didn’t, I just-”

“Well you thought wrong buster. We worked really hard to grow these apples and I’m not about to let some thief walk over here and just take them and get away with it. Now pay up!” She demanded holding out a hoof.

“Pay? I can’t pay, I don’t have any money. I just got here and I-”

Applejack slammed the hoof that she extended out to me on the ground, and I took a step back in surprise. I never saw her get this mad before on the show. She looked like she was about to murder me.

“I suggest you leave boy,” she said through gritted teeth, “If I catch you here again, I’ll get Big Macintosh and we will personally rip your head clean off your shoulders. Is that understood?!”

I nodded and took another step back.

“Good. Now get out of here!” she snapped.

She didn’t need to tell me twice. I instinctively reared back and galloped past her and didn’t bother to look back. I was so focused on trying to get away that I didn’t take the extra few seconds to go around the fence, instead I jumped right over it and kept running. I didn’t stop until I was sure that Applejack wasn’t following me; and when I felt relatively safe, I slowed to a trot.

I couldn’t believe what had just happened. I had literally just met an actual character from the show! Unfortunately, however, I made her mad before I could even introduce myself. What’s worse is that I had made her believe that I was nothing more than a worthless thief.

After about a minute later, I stopped trotting and looked back towards Sweet Apple Acre and saw that Applejack was still there. She was standing over the basket that I was eating from, and I watched her as she threw out the apples that I had taken bites out of. She stood there a few minutes picking out the bad apples and once she finished she shook her head and hoisted the basket onto her back and began to walk down the trail that lead to her farm.

I let out a sad sigh and looked away towards the oak tree that I woke up under. It was a massive tree that was easily hundreds of years old. Its massive branches blocked out the sun, casting a big shadow over the landscape. I marveled about this world that I now lived in. All my life prior to the miracle that had brought me there I had lived in a dying world that was full of corruption. However there in Equestria, life was abundant and the world was perfect. I no longer had to live in fear ever again. Being there truly was the greatest thing that could’ve ever happened to me.

My thoughts suddenly returned to Applejack. I looked back towards Sweet Apple Acres and found that she was already completely out of sight; however, I caught sight of another mare starting to walk down the trail towards the farm. She was an average sized pony that had jet black fur. Her mane and tail was a dark blue in color, as well as her hooves. The pony wore a black backpack that was secured around her neck and was resting on her back. The pony was just casually walking down the trail and a moment later I lost sight of her as she disappeared behind the trees.

I started to wonder about the strange mare but a shadow flying overhead pulled me away from my thoughts. I gazed upward and saw a beautifully designed golden chariot being pulled toward Ponyville by two white pegasi who were dressed with fabulous golden armor.

I listened closely, and I caught sound of two voices emanating from within the chariot. I couldn’t physically see the occupants because of it being so high up, but I caught sight of part of a purple mane flowing in the wind over the side.

“Look on the bright side, Twilight. The princess arranged for you to stay at a library. Doesn’t that make you happy?”

“Yes! Yes, it does. You know why? Because I’m right. I’ll check on the preparations as fast as I can, then get to the library-” It was all I managed to hear before the chariot got too far away but despite this I still knew who it was. It was Twilight Sparkle and Spike the dragon on their way to Ponyville! Princess Celestia must have sent them from Cantralot to check on the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration. Maybe this was my chance to introduce myself properly to somepony after all.

I took a look back towards Sweet Apple Acres once more. Applejack or that other strange mare was already long gone. I felt really bad about how my encounter with Applejack had turned out, but deep down inside I knew that I would have another chance to fix things. I shook my head in contempt and looked back towards Ponyville. The chariot was about to cross over top of the first set of buildings and head to the center of town. Without waiting another second, I started to gallop towards Ponyville with the knowledge of what I was going to do; I was going to meet Twilight Sparkle.

Chapter 2

The run to Ponyville was quite a long one. Even though I could see the town from the Oak tree I woke up under clearly, I didn‘t take notice to the actual distance that had lain before me.

After my rush of adrenaline was over, I slowed down to a trot to catch my breath. It wasn’t that much farther until I reached my destination and already I could see ponies of all different colors and sizes beginning to come into view. I couldn’t believe it. There I was on my way to Ponyville to meet the two main characters from the show. Just that thought alone swelled me with excitement.

On my way there I arrived at a river that completely encircled the entire city. The river coiled around the outer edge of the city snuggly and eventually turned away and continued to go further out into the distance. I stopped near the bank of the river and gazed at my surrounding area to look for a way to cross it. I didn’t want to forge the river unless I actually had to; I didn’t want to meet Twilight Sparkle looking like a wet slob.

As I looked around I noticed a pink bridge further downstream that led across the river and onto a path that would take me the rest of the way to the city. Without a moment of hesitation I began to walk over to it. I knew that the chariot would land in or near the town center so that narrowed my search; however a big obstacle I would face would be finding my way there and arriving in time.

As I approached the bridge I noticed a peculiar object hanging on bridge’s corner. Even though I was in a hurry curiosity got the best of me and I stopped to take to look at it. It appeared to be a strap that was ripped off of a backpack of some sort. As I looked at the strap I remembered that the strange mare I saw was wearing a backpack when I had seen her walking up the trail towards Sweet Apple Acres, and I assumed it had belonged to her.

I brought my head down closer to examine it a little more carefully but the sound of flapping wings coming from Ponyville brought me out of my trance. I looked towards the town and saw the chariot take back to the sky over the buildings and started to turn around to head back toward Cantralot. From what I could see, Twilight and Spike weren’t in the chariot so I knew immediately that they had already been dropped off.

I cursed my luck and galloped across the bridge as fast as I could. Once I crossed, I got onto the trail that lead to Ponyville and continued to make my way towards the city. It wasn’t that much further away so I reached the outskirts of the town a few moments later. As soon as I arrived though I slowed to a brisk walk so I wouldn’t run into anypony.

Just as I had walked onto the first road I saw ponies of all ages walking around having a good time. They were doing everything from talking to each other, to buying or selling goods at stands that were on the side of the streets. There were young fillies and colts running about the streets playing games and laughing in joy as they did so. Every once in a while, one would occasionally stop and greet somepony else they knew or would take a break from playing for a moment to rest.

The whole town was full of abundant energy, so much so that I quickly became caught up in trying to take in everything; the sights, the sounds, and especially the smells. There were so many different aromas in the air that my brain almost went into overdrive trying to separate what the different smells were.

I became so enthralled of the life around me that I momentarily stopped paying attention to where I was going and accidentally ran into a galloping pink mare that was headed in the opposite direction. The impact was enough to stagger me back a step or two, but the mare had been completely knocked down on her flank. After I realized what had happened I apologized to the mare and hoped that I hadn’t hurt her.

“Oh I am so sorry-” I began to say, but I stopped when I looked at who it actually was; it was the eccentric friendly party mare Pinkie Pie. She looked exactly like she did from the show just like Applejack had. She was completely pink, with the exception off her mane and tail which was more of a magenta shade of color. With her colors and her happy-go-lucky attitude, she definitely stood out from most other ponies that were in Ponyville. Her mane was extremely curly and actually resembled a big swab of cotton candy. Once I realized who it was that I had knocked down, I immediately began to apologize even more intently.

Pinky Pie stood up as I was apologizing to her and when she looked at me let out a really loud drawn out gasp and galloped past me without looking back.

I looked back towards her confused and watched as she expertly dodged through the crowds of ponies. I shook my head and continued on towards the town center. There was one thing about Pinky Pie that definitively was true about her; she was really strange and random. I hadn’t even gotten a chance to introduce myself to her before she ran away. What’s more she didn’t even really have a reason to run away.

With a sigh I quickened my pace when I seen the town hall drawing into view. Even though I had no idea about the layout of Ponyville, I did know that the town hall was located in the center, and after another few moments of making my way through the crowded streets I finally made it my destination.

The center of Ponyville was a huge vacant area of the town with buildings built all around the outskirts of it. There was a small stream which cut through and curved around the town hall. Along the banks river there was flowers that were in full bloom and they added a pristine look of life to the area. The town hall was located in the very center and was extremely large; large enough in fact that it could probably be seen from most, if not all of Ponyville. On one side of the town center there was a fairly large fountain that had a statue of a pony rearing up on its hind legs in glory, and on the opposite side of the stream there were colorful tents set up and I assumed that the tents were selling goods and merchandise. I marveled to myself at the expanse of the town I now found myself in. I never would have guessed that it was this massive when I watched the show back on earth.

While I was looking at the pristine beauty of the town hall I suddenly remembered Twilight and Spike. I quickly began to look around the town center for any hint of them but as I looked I quickly began to take notice that the town center was a lot more crowded then the streets I had just on. There were so many ponies located in the area that just the sheer number of them alone would make finding Twilight and Spike as difficult as trying to find a needle in a haystack.

As I was trying to seek them out, I overheard some of the ponies make mention about a golden chariot as they were walking by me. It then occurred to me that the huge crowd of ponies that were there had actually come to see the royal guards that had dropped of Twilight and Spike.

With this knowledge I immediately set out and started to look through the crowds of ponies for Twilight. I searched every square foot of the town square twice before I gave up. I even asked a few ponies that were passing by if they had seen them exit the carriage, but each time I did I received similar responses- ‘Who’s Twilight Sparkle?’ or ‘How could there be a dragon here in Ponyville?’

I let out another sigh and made my way closer to the town hall so I could have some reprieve from the herds of ponies that were still trying to vacate the area. On my way over, I took notice to the actual architecture of the building. The town hall had a rounded appearance with multiple stories to it. I wasn’t sure of how many floors it actually had, but on the top it formed together into a dome shape. At the base of the building there were six sets of small staircases that led onto the first floor. The entrance to the establishment sat facing to what I guessed was north, and in between the staircases there were sets of flowers and other bushes planted to add to the beauty of the surroundings. Most of the plants were merely daisies and other common flowers; however I did take notice that there was one section that was completely covered with what looked like roses in addition to the other plants.

There were multiple wooden posts that connected the of bottom floor to the second story balcony, and since I didn’t have anything else to do, I walked over to one and leaned on it for a bit. As I was resting I watched the other ponies as they went about their business in the crowded town center, most of which were just trying to leave. I didn’t have any idea on where to look for Twilight and Spike, and even if I did know where they went I wouldn’t know my way around town to catch up with them.

I stood there for a few moments and admired the liveliness of the town once more. I didn’t know what it was, but there was something about the sounds that relaxed me. The sound of pony’s hooves plopping on the dirt streets as they walked, the soft chattering of the birds singing their lovely songs in the distance, the sound of ponies laughing and talking to one another all accumulated into my burdened mind and relaxed me.

As I was taking in the sights and sounds around me, a young filly walking with a mare caught my attention. “Mom can I have one more cupcake, please.” The filly asked her mother as they walked by. She was a small pony with tan fur and also had a really curly red mane and tail. She wore a pair of purple reading glasses that were a little too big on her face and gave her somewhat of an intelligent look.

“No Twist you’ll ruin your dinner. If you have to eat something else before we get home, eat an apple ok?” The mare replied to the filly as she reached into her saddle bag.

“An apple, that’s it!” I exclaimed as an idea flared into my mind. I was too enthralled by my sudden insight of knowledge that I didn’t even realize that I cried out like a mad man before it was too late.

The mare and filly both stopped and looked at me like with weird expressions on their faces as I shouted. I hadn’t intended to cry out like that, let alone make them stop and notice me, but now they had and I was standing there probably looking like I was insane. I tried my best to come up with a good excuse for why I cried out, but due to my nervousness, all that came out was senseless babbling which added to the awkwardness of the moment.

“Oh sorry, I uh… remembered something very important when you said apple and I um…” I stammered as I took a step back from them in embarrassment. The mare and filly continued to look at me strangely and all I did was laugh nervously and turned and walked away.

“Mom, what’s wrong with that stallion?” I heard the filly ask as I made my way through the now dwindling crowds of ponies.

“Nothing sweetie, he’s just disturbed is all.”

I turned and made my way down the nearest street and dodged my way through the last of the ponies. I felt like an idiot after what had just happened. I made a fool of myself in front of the two ponies and to top it off I ruined my chance of a good first impression. However, if there was anything good that had come out of the mess, it was that their conversation reminded me of were Twilight and Spike went after they arrived in Ponyville; they went to Sweet Apple Acres.

I stopped in my tracks as I then recalled my run-in with Applejack earlier. If I went after them and try to meet them at the farm, there was a huge possibility that Applejack would get her brother and they would probably beat me to a bloody mess; or at least ‘rip my head clean off my shoulders’ as Applejack had put it.

I sighed and hung my head in defeat as I sidestepped to a secluded corner of the street I was on. I knew then that meeting Twilight Sparkle would have to wait and I had the urge to kick myself considering that I let her get away.

I leaned against a corner of a building and began to think of what I should do now since Twilight and Spike were gone. I considered looking for some of the other characters like Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy the pegasus ponies, but as I thought about it however I decided against looking for them due to one prominent reason; I still didn’t know my way around Ponyville yet. If I were to just blindly run around looking for them, I would run a chance of getting lost in this metropolis. Plus in addition to that there were also the other various other minor things that would hinder my ability to meet them. Rainbow Dash, for example, would be next to impossible to find in the sky unless she flew directly overhead, and even then she probably wouldn’t stop if I tried to call out to her. As for Fluttershy, she would be too shy to talk to me, let alone try to make conversation. Since I ruled out looking for Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy, I then thought about looking for Rarity the unicorn pony, but once again decided against it because of the various complications that I would face. As always there was the fact that I didn’t know where her boutique was located, and even if I found it she would be too busy working on dresses to talk with me.

Having considering my options for a few moments, it became clear that no matter what I did I wouldn’t be able to meet any of the ponies that I wanted to meet. With that in mind, I decided that the best thing to do was to walk around town and get to know the layout of Ponyville a little bit better and hope I didn’t get lost in the process. In addition to learning the layout of the town, I would pass a lot of time as well, hopefully enough that when I was finished Twilight would have returned and I could meet her then.

I made my way out of the secluded corner and continued down the street I was on. As I started to walk, I noticed a clock that was hanging on a wall of a shop to my right and I took note of the time. It was a little after four o’clock now, but despite knowing the time I still didn’t have any idea of how long it would be before Twilight would return.

I took a few moments while I was walking to try to get a general idea of when Twilight would be back. I knew that Sweet Apple Acres was located a pretty good distance away from Ponyville, and I considered that if it had taken me about fifteen minutes to gallop from there to here, then it would probably take Twilight and Spike twice as long to make the same trip since they would be walking. In addition to the journey itself, I also added in another half an hour or so for them to finish checking on the food preparations, and with all of that in mind, as well as an additional time for them to walk back, I estimated that it would be about an hour and a half before they would return to Ponyville.

Once I had the mathematics figured out in my head and an idea of when they would return, I continued forward with a renewed vigor. Even though it was just a complete guess as to the actual amount of time, it was still something for me to look forward to and fill me with some excitement. Soon I would meet Twilight Sparkle and Spike the Dragon, and just that thought alone almost made me jump with joy.

As I walked around for awhile I started to take notice to what places of interest that Ponyville had to offer. As I looked however, I made sure that I kept my distance from the stores out of the fear of having another incident like the one I had earlier with Applejack.

There was a huge variety of stores that sold everything from horseshoes and saddlebags, to stores that sold clothing for mares and stallions. In addition to all of those stores, there was also an overabundance of places that sold fruits and vegetables; so much so that I found entire sections of streets devoted to nothing but stands of that nature.

As I continued to walk around looking at the wide assortments that the town had to offer, I came across a bakery shop called Sugar Cube Corner. I noticed the shop immediately because it was the only bakery store that I seen throughout the entire city, and not to mention, it looked like a giant multistory gingerbread house. The entire building looked completely edible from the outside and just the sight of it alone gave me a craving for sweets. All of the windows of the shop were bright pink in color and on the very top of the building there was what appeared to be a giant cupcake addition to the structure. All around the edge of the roof was painted white and looked like vanilla icing.

As I walked by the shop, I noticed a stallion outside of the store cleaning the windows near the entrance and was humming a song as he did so. When I drew close to the store the stallion heard me as I approached and looked over at me. I froze as he gave me a kind smile and began to walk over.

I was hit with by a wave of anxiety and fear; I had no idea of what to do and the closer he got to me the more concerned I became. I worried of what would happen when he found out that I didn’t have any money to buy anything from him. Ordinarily I wouldn’t have cared about being approached, but seeing as to how Applejack had acted earlier when I told her I couldn’t afford her apples made me feel uneasy.

He was a tall and skinny earth pony that had yellow fur and a red colored mane and tail. He wore a white and orange hat that covered the top of his mane almost completely, except for a few strands that stuck out underneath the front of the cap. In addition to the hat, he also wore a white apron and a white bowtie that had red streaks that ran through it. He had freckles on his muzzle that really stood out on his yellow fur and, when he smiled at me, I noticed that he also had a slight under bite.

“Well hi there.” he said as he stopped in front of me. “I’ve never seen you around here before. You must be new to town aren’t you?”

“Um yes I am new, I just got here today.” I replied looking away from his gaze a little. He seemed to be nice enough for me to feel a little more at ease.

“Aha I knew it! I would never forget a face. Everypony in town comes to my shop so I know just about everyone there is to know,” he said happily. “Little competition in the bakery business means lots of customers.” He added with a laugh.

“Yea I know, um… that’s really cool.” I said shifting uncomfortably on my hooves.

“I know right?” he said with a glimmer in his eyes. “Oh I’m terribly sorry, I didn’t even introduce myself. My name is Carrot Cake, but everypony just calls me ‘Mr. Cake’ for short”

“Oh, it’s really nice to meet you Mr. Cake.” I said as I awkwardly extended my right hoof out to him. I didn’t really know what else to do or how to continue the conversation, and I prayed that ponies here shook hooves like humans did on Earth.

“Ah, you’re quite a gentlecolt I see. With an attitude like that you going to fit in around here nicely.” He said as he grabbed onto my hoof and shook it. I let out a quiet sigh of relief and after a firm hoofshake he let go of my hoof and continued. “So what’s your name sir?”

“Oh uh, my name?” I asked obliviously to the unexpected question.

“Why yes your name. Everypony’s got to have a name don’t they?”

I smiled embarrassedly at him. I hadn’t thought of a name for myself now that I was in Ponyville and in a near panic I quickly said the first name that came to my mind. “Uh yes indeed, my name is um… Stallion… James Stallion.”

Mr. Cake nodded and gave me another smile “Well it’s a pleasure to meet you Mr. Stallion. Please don’t take offense of my saying so, but your name sounds slightly foreign. Are you from out of Canterlot by chance?”

“Oh, uh no. in fact I’ve never been there before. However I am from a very faraway place though. You’ve probably never heard of it and there isn’t really that much to say about it.” I said starting to feel uncomfortable. I really hoped that Mr. Cake didn’t press me for more information on where I was actually from. If I told him the truth about my origin he’d probably brand me as a lunatic.

“Well that’s fine and dandy Mr. Stallion. I’ll tell you what; how about you come in and we can continue our conversation over some cake?” Mr. Cake asked with a gesture toward the shop.

My heart skipped a beat and I nearly fell over. I was hit by the familiar fear that I had felt just before Mr. Cake had started to talk to me. Once again I started to become afraid of what he would do when he found out that I didn’t have any finances to compensate him. He did seem really nice, but then again Applejack also did when I had seen her on the show. I tried my best to think of a quick excuse onto how to get out of there, but all I managed to do was stutter.

“Oh I uh… You see I um…”

Mr. Cake raised an eyebrow and started to look concerned. “What? What’s a matter James?”

“Oh well um you see I can’t. I um… uh… the place… and the money…”

“James spit it out stallion; get it off your chest.”

I stopped stammering and looked at Mr. Cake, then down to the ground. “I can’t come in and eat Mr. Cake because I don’t have any money to pay you.” I said closing my eyes. I was afraid of how he was going to react, but to my relief he actually started to laugh.

“What is that all? My word James you acted like I was going to… I don’t know… tear your head off or something just because you couldn’t pay.”

My eyes grew wide and I just looked at him in response. That was exactly what I had thought he would’ve done, or rather something else along those lines.

“Look its fine alright? The sweets are on the house.” He said reassuringly. “Besides Cupcake would kill me if I didn’t invite you in and welcome you to Ponyville properly; she always loves to meet new ponies.” Mr. Cake added with a chuckle.

“Oh, um… ok.” I said with a nod.

“Well alright then, let’s go.” He said giving me a pat on the back with a front hoof.

He turned towards Sugar Cube Corner and walked towards the front door. I hung back for a second and tried to grasp onto what just happened. Even though it was just a simple kind gesture, it was still something that was unusual to me. A life full of cruelty and hardships had made me into a hollow shell that was foreign to all types of kindness.

Mr. Cake reached the door and turned back towards me. “Are you coming James?” he asked me with another gesture towards the store.

“Oh uh yea, sorry.”

I quickly moved towards the store, and when I got close, Mr. Cake opened the door and motioned for me to enter. I told him thanks as I entered the shop and immediately upon entry I was barraged by a massive amount of delicious smells. I smelled everything ranging from natural fruit to sweet artificial sugary smells that made my mouth water. On the opposite side of the room away from me there was a counter that served as a display case that held intricately and beautifully designed cakes of all various sizes. When I looked around more intently, I noticed that there were other stands set up that also displayed a huge selection of merchandise that was readily available for purchase. To my immediate right there were tables and booths set up for ponies to sit and enjoy their goods that they purchase, but as of right then the entire place was empty except for Mr. Cake and myself. In the back of the room there was an archway that led to what I assumed was the kitchen and from within I heard sounds of various cooking utensils being used. I assumed that someone was preparing to bake something.

The entire place was completely decorated with a wide variety of colorful paintings; all of which were of different types of candy or other sweets. In addition to those paintings, there were also pictures hanging on the walls that were of Mr. Cake standing with a mare. I assumed that the other pony in the pictures was Cupcake, and as far as appearance was concerned, she looked like the complete opposite of Mr. Cake. She was a short mare that had a rounded appearance to her and she had blue fur and a pink colored mane and tail. Her mane had a curly appearance to it and since it was pink in color, resembled a big strawberry ice-cream swirl. She wore a small yellow apron that had small thin pink sleeves that hung over her front shoulders and in addition to that, she also wore two pink pearl earrings in that complemented her outfit perfectly.

“Mr. Cake, is that Cupcake in those photos?” I asked as I stopped and looked at one that was the two of them that was in front of a church altar.

“Why yes it is. That particular photo that you’re looking at was taken on our wedding day over ten years ago. Ever since that wonderful day, Cupcake and I have been happy ever since. Honeybunch we have a guest, pieces of cake all around.” Mr. Cake pronounced as he began to walk over to a booth that was near a window.

“Just one minute.” Came the cheery response from within the kitchen.

As I was looking at the various photos, Mr. Cake took a seat at the booth and cleared his throat to get my attention. I looked over at him and he motioned for me to come over to take a seat and with a nod I approached and took the seat opposite of him.

“Were you enjoying the photos?” Mr. Cake asked with another chuckle.

I looked at him and blushed a little bit. “Oh sorry about that Mr. Cake, I didn’t mean to seem to be nosy or anything.”

“No need to apologize James, I don’t mind. In fact I’m happy that you took notice to the decorations. Cupcake put a lot of effort into the décor and I’m glad to see that ponies take notice and enjoy it.” He said with a smile.

After a few seconds he continued to speak, but on a more serious note.

“James there’s something that has been bothering me; can I ask you a question?”

My immediate thought was to try to make up an excuse so I wouldn’t have to answer any questions. However, considering that I every time I tried to I just stammered like an idiot, I reluctantly fought the urge and gave him a nod to continue.

“Why did you freak out when I invited you in for some cake?”

I sighed and rested my front hooves on the table. If there was ever was a time to come clean about my erratic behavior, then that was the time.

“I am very sorry about that Mr. Cake. It’s just that I was afraid that you would get really mad when you found out that I didn’t have any money to pay you with.”

Mr. Cake raised an eyebrow and looked at me. “Why did you think I’d get mad?”

“Well the reason why I thought that was because the last pony who I talked to threatened to beat me to a bloody mess because I couldn’t pay for her apples. Since this is my first day here, I figured that everypony acted that way when it came to money.”

“Who in Equestria would do such a thing?” Mr. Cake asked in surprise. “Tell me everything that happened.”

I shifted in my seat and told him about what had happened at Sweet Apple Acres, and once I made mention that it was Applejack who threatened me he immediately nodded his head in understanding.

“You have to forgive Applejack for that.” He said as I finished my story. “I will admit that she could’ve handled the whole situation better, seeing to as your new here and everything,” He paused for a moment and I nodded to show that I was listening. “But you must look at it from her perspective though. You were a stranger who had come onto her property and started to eat her family’s food without permission.”

“I know Mr. Cake, but she didn’t even let me explain that I was new or that I didn’t know that the apples were hers. I fact she hardly even let me speak at all.”

Mr. Cake again nodded in understanding. “I know James. I’m not trying to stick up for what she did because I know it was wrong, but what I am trying to say is that you have to overlook her attitude. I’ve known the Apple family for quite a while now and I’ve seen Applejack grow up over the years. Over that time, I’ve realized that there’s one thing about her that stands out above all else; and that’s that she jumps to conclusions very quickly. My personal guess as to why she acted the way she did is because she needed the apples to prepare the food for the Summer Sun Celebration.”

“Wait, she’s making the entire banquet for the Summer Sun Celebration?” I asked incredulously.

“Oh no, the entire Apple family is making the food. She was probably out collecting the harvested apples when she found you.”

“Oh, that makes sense.” I said looking down at the table.

“Hey there’s no reason to get upset over it. Just give her time to calm down and apologize to her when you see her again. Like I said, I’ve known the Apple family a long time, and I know for fact that they aren’t ones for holding grudges. She will forgive you when you explain yourself to her. Trust me.”

I nodded and gave him a weak smile to show that I understood. A sudden loud sound coming from the kitchen made us both turn to look and see Cupcake emerge from the room.

“Alrighty then, I just put the cake in the oven and it’ll be ready in a few minutes.” She said as she walked over to the booth that Mr. Cake and I were sitting at. When she noticed me she smiled as she approached.

“Well hello there, you must be new here I take it. My name is Cupcake, but everypony in town calls me just ‘Mrs. Cake’ for simplicities sake.”

“Oh hello Mrs. Cake my name is James Stallion and it’s a pleasure to meet you.” I said offering out my hoof to her.

“It’s good to meet you too Mr. Stallion.” She said as she shook my hoof. “You’re quite the gentlecolt aren’t you?”

“Yea I try to be when I meet somepony new.” I said as we let each other’s hooves go.

Mrs. Cake took a seat next to her husband and she continued to speak. “So tell me James, what brings you here to Ponyville?” she asked as she took Mr. Cake’s hoof into hers by their sides.

“Oh I uh, I came to town to meet new ponies and make new friends.”

“Well you’ve come to the right place for that dearie. The ponyfolk here are the nicest bunch you will ever meet in all of Equestria. Did you by chance meet anypony else since you’ve arrived in town?”

“Well, no not really. The only other pony I met here was Applejack and I just got done telling Mr. Cake about how that turned out.”

“Oh? What happened” She asked as she looked over at Mr. Cake.

“There was a big misunderstanding dear. James ate some apples over at Sweet Apple Acres and Applejack had found him. She had believed that he was a thief and drove him off before he could explain himself.” Mr. Cake said as he set his free hoof down on the table.

“Oh my, that’s horrible.” Mrs. Cake said looking back at me. “Don’t you worry dearie, there will be another chance to make things right as rain between the two you, just give it some time.”

We sat there talking for a few moments until there was a sudden buzzing noise that came from the kitchen.

“That must be the cake.” Mrs. Cake said as she stood up from the table. “It’ll be just one minute.”

Mrs. Cake then went into the kitchen leaving me and Mr. Cake alone once more.

“It won’t take her long. All she has to do is cool it, put the icing on and it will be good to go.” Mr. Cake said.

“Won’t that take her around half an hour to let the cake cool?”

“Oh no, Mrs. Cake and I have been baking for so long that we found a way around that. We can bake a cake, cool it, cover it in icing, and have it to the costumer in less than ten minutes flat.” Mr. Cake said with a grin.

“What? No way, that’s impossible! It takes at least half an hour for the cake to bake, and just as long to let it cool.”

“You got to open you mind James; you’re thinking too literal. I’m telling you that there is nothing in this world is impossible to achieve, it’s just highly difficult to come by it at times.”

I couldn’t find the words to respond to that comment. I then remembered that my friend had told me the exact same thing when I was on Earth. I couldn’t believe that I had actually lost that insight. Just the night before, I had been sitting on Earth considering committing suicide because I couldn’t make my dream a reality, only to wake up the next morning and find myself in Equestria-- the place where I only thought existed in the hearts and minds of children. God heard my prayer and fulfilled my dream and still I sat there and continued to deem things impossible. Mr. Cake was right, I do think too literal.

“Just watch.” Mr. Cake said holding up a hoof. “Three…two…one…” he counted aloud as he moved his hoof back and forth. As if on cue, Mrs. Cake came out of the kitchen balancing a pan on her muzzle that had a perfectly iced cake on it. She approached our table and sat the pan between Mr. Cake and myself, then once again took her seat by Mr. Cake’s side.

My eyes grew wide with astonishment. “What the? How did she? Did you?” I stammered looking at the cake that now sat in front of me. Mr. and Mrs. Cake both laughed as I leaned close and examined the cake. To my disbelief, it was perfectly cooled and iced. It was a beautifully decorated blue cake that had the words ‘Welcome to Ponyville James’ inscribed on the top in chocolate icing.

“How did she do that?” I asked leaning back in my chair.

“That my friend is a family secret.” Mr. Cake said to me with a smirk.

We sat there a few moments talking about how Mr. Cake met Mrs. Cake and discussed how they got married. As he concluded his tales, Mrs. Cake got up and got us each a fork and plate and then she cut the cake into nine perfect slices. She gave me the first slice and, once I had taken my first bite out of it, I exclaimed at how good it tasted which again caused Mr. and Mrs. Cake to laugh a little. As we ate, they both told me about the layout of Ponyville. We talked for over an hour and by to time we were finished with our conversation we had completely eaten the entire cake. They asked me if I wanted something else to eat and I just shook my head in response; I was completely full and couldn’t eat another bite even if I tried.

“I have to say that that was the best cake that I have ever eaten before.” I said as I laid a hoof over my stomach.

“Why thank you dearie. It was my pleasure to welcome you to Ponyville, and the best way to do that is with a ‘welcome to town’ cake.” Mrs. Cake said with a smile.

I nodded and smiled back to her in return and when I did she rose once again from the table and took our dishes into the kitchen. A moment later I heard the sound of running water from a sink and knew that she had begun to wash them.

I sat there talking with Mr. Cake for a few more minutes until he had glanced over at a clock that was hanging on the wall and let out a sigh.

“Well James unfortunately it’s time to close up shop for the day.”

I looked over at the clock and saw that it was only a little past five o’clock and became confused as to why they were closing so early.

“But it’s only five fifteen Mr. Cake. Do all stores in Ponyville close this early every day?”

“Oh no, stores around here usually are open till around eight or nine o’clock at night. Today however, all the shops are closing up early today to get ready for the Summer Sun Celebration.”

“Yes, and also Pinky Pie usually throws a big party before the event and the store keepers want to make sure they get prepared for that as well.” Mrs. Cake added as she returned from the kitchen and sat back down next to Mr. Cake.

I remembered that I had a run in with Pinkie Pie earlier when I arrived into town, however I didn’t want to let Mr. and Mrs. Cake know that I knew her. If I did tell them they might ask me about how I knew Pinky Pie, and in reality the only reason why I actually knew her was because I seen her on the television show. I didn’t think that that explanation would go by them very well.

“Who’s Pinky Pie?” I asked after I thought to myself for a few seconds.

“Oh sorry dearie, I keep forgetting that you’re new to town. Pinky Pie is the pink mare that we’re renting our loft out to. You can usually find her hopping around town laughing and having a good time. She’s a really nice mare, but if you give her a chance and she will talk you up a storm.” Mrs. Cake said.

“Yes and she absolutely loves parties.” Mr. Cake added. “She would have a party everyday of the week if she had a chance too. To top things off; she also has a huge obsession over sweets. Why this one time we left her in charge of the bakery while Mrs. Cake and myself went to get our mail, and while we were gone she ate our whole inventory! Needless to say we haven’t left her in charge of our bakery, unless it’s a sheer emergency, ever since.”

“Wow. That’s crazy; I can’t see how anypony can eat that much in one sitting. How long were the two of you gone?” I asked.

“Five minutes.” Mrs. Cake said with a shrug.

I just looked at them in astonishment. “Whoa!”

“Yea you’re telling me. It took us almost two full workdays to remake the cakes for the orders and to restock our inventory. But don’t get the wrong idea about her though; she’s not a bad mare. She may act completely crazy at times, but she is extremely friendly and doesn’t have any bad in her at all. Even though she constantly eats our cakes if we’re not careful, we love her like she was part of our family.” Mr. Cake concluded.

“Well that’s good to hear. It would really stink if you lived with someone that you always had fights with…” I started to say but I trailed off as I remembered my childhood and how I always fought with my parents. I looked down at the table as I remembered the pain and sadness that I had went through. “I would know.”

Mr. and Mrs. Cake exchanged glances as I sat there for a moment lost in my memories.

“Well since you all are closing up shop I’m going to be on my way.” I said as I stood up from the table.

Mr. and Mrs. Cake stood up as I made my way to the door and I stopped as reached for the door knob and looked back to them.

“Do you need any help closing up?”

“Uh no we’re alright; we just have some minor things we need to take care of. James is everything alright?” Mrs. Cake asked sounding concerned.

“Yea I’m fine. I’m just… remembering some unwanted memories is all.”

Mr. and Mrs. Cake looked at each other with concerned looks on their faces.

“Thanks for the cake, it was delicious.”

“It wasn’t a problem James; you can come back any time that you like.” Mr. Cake said.

“And James if you ever need anypony to talk too, you can always talk to Mr. Cake or me. Even if we’re busy we will still make time for you.” Mrs. Cake said as she approached me.

“I know Mrs. Cake. I… I just have problems coping with my past is all. It’s nothing too serious; I don’t mean to worry you.”

“James we all have problems with our pasts that will continue to haunt us through our lives unless we let them go. I’m telling you this as a friend; it’s always better to move on than too dwell in the past. The more you keep things bottled up inside, the more it will continue to eat you alive.” Mr. Cake said as he walked up next to his wife. “There’s only loneliness in life if we choose to make it that way.”

I nodded to him and opened the door and took a step out onto the street. Mr. and Mrs. Cake both came to the doorway to see me off, and so I turned and gave them a wave goodbye.

“Be sure to come back now.” They both said with a wave.

I nodded and smiled back to them. “You can be sure to count on it.”

I turned and started to walk down the street towards the town center and as I did I heard them close the door.

As I continued to walk forward, I felt hollow inside. Up until that moment in time, I hadn’t thought of my childhood in years. When I remembered the turmoil that I endured, I felt as though a lurking giant had awoken in my mind. All of the emotions that I locked away in my past suddenly returned to me all at once and caused me to shudder under the weight of their relentless sorrow. Despite this however, as I continued to walk my grief slowly began to turn into happiness once more. I realized that I would never have to face pain like that ever again. Mr. Cake had made a really good point; I had a new life here in Ponyville and I didn’t have to hold onto that sadness any longer; I could finally move on.

As I got closer to the town center, I stopped and looked around the street I was on. I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t even take notice that the streets were completely vacant. All of the stores and stands were already closed or were closing up for the day, and in addition, there were hardly any ponies roaming the streets.

At first I was confused as to why the town had suddenly become void of activity, but as I started to think about it I remembered what Mr. Cake had told me about the Summer Sun Celebration. All the ponies were probably at their homes getting ready for the festivities that were about to begin.

I stood there a moment piecing everything together in my mind, and as I did a cloud drifted in front of the sun casting a big shadow on my surroundings. It was a minor thing, but the change in light distracted me and I was drawn to look up at the sky and I took notice that the sky had begun to cloud up a bit while I was in Sugar Cube Corner.

There was nothing special about the clouds; they looked just like they would’ve as if they were on Earth. However as I watched them, a flying blur suddenly rocketed through the sky above Ponyville. I recognized immediately that the object was a light blue pegasus pony, but it was moving so fast that it appeared to be nothing more than a blur of motion.

The pegasus sped towards the cloud I was looking at and rammed into it, causing it to disappear into a poof of white fluff. It then zoomed away towards another and destroyed it in the same manner. With a series of aerial acrobatics and break-neck speed, the pegasus had the entire sky cleared of clouds in a matter of seconds, leaving me staring upward in a state of pure shock and amazement.

Once it was done with clearing the sky, the pegasus decelerated and began to hover downward towards the town center. Once the pegasus slowed down, I managed to recognize who it was; it was Rainbow Dash! She continued to casually fly down towards the town hall until she disappeared behind some buildings in the distance.

Finally that was it; my chance to meet a character from the show and not make a complete fool of myself. Since there were no other ponies in the streets, and also since I knew the relative layout of the town, there was nothing that could get in my way; nothing that would get in my way.

I began to gallop as fast as I could towards the town hall with nothing but pure excitement swelling inside me. This time I wouldn’t take a chance losing her like I had lost Twilight and Spike. I expertly began to dodge through alley ways and jumped over obstacles that got in my way. It took me no more than about three minutes to get to the town center due to my quick reflexes and my rush of adrenaline; however once I arrived I stopped to catch my breath.

I quickly scanned the sky looking for any trace of Rainbow Dash, but as I did so I quickly found that there wasn’t any sign of her.

“Oh come on!” I said to myself as I kicked at the ground in frustration, although I still tried to keep quiet so that I didn’t cause a scene.

I walked over to the nearest street corner and leaned against a wall of a small red hut and muttered to myself in irritation. It seemed like that every time I came close to meeting one of the ponies, something would happen and I would either arrive too late or they would run off.

As I stood there contemplating about what I was going to do next, I caught sight of two figures walking toward the town hall in the distance. I could tell right away that one of them was a unicorn pony, but the other one was much harder to identify. It was much smaller than the unicorn and it was walking on hind legs.

I raised a hoof in front of my eyes to shade them from the blinding sun so I could see them better, and when I did I almost exclaimed in excitement. It was none other than Twilight Sparkle and Spike the Dragon.

Chapter 3

Note: Sorry for the really long wait for this chapter. Work has been killer and I hadn't had that much time to write in the past few months. Anyways I hope you enjoy the chapter and let me know if you find any errors :3

Chapter 3

I couldn’t believe my eyes, it was actually them! Twilight Sparkle and Spike the dragon in the flesh.

They were walking toward the town center and, as I watched them, I figured that Rainbow Dash had flown down to the town center to talk to them before she flew off.

Twilight was a light purple unicorn mare that had a dark purple mane and tail. There was a magenta colored streak that ran through the center of her mane and her tail that really added a pristine look of beauty to her appearance. Her horn, which prominently stuck out of the top of her mane, was the same color as her coat and, due to the darkened color of her mane, really stuck out prominently about her appearance. As for Spike however, I couldn’t see him at all because he was walking on the opposite side of Twilight, and the only thing that I could really see of him was a small part of his tail.

As Twilight walked toward the town center, I took notice that her mane was completely frazzled like it had a bad run-in with a hair dryer. When I seen the way she looked I laughed to myself a little and as I looked I faintly overheard Spike make a joke saying that it was pretty if she would get used to it.

Twilight and Spike continued to walk towards the town hall and I got an urge to call out to them and get their attention; however despite my best efforts, I couldn’t bring myself to do it. It was as if I had lost my voice; my words seemed to dissipate before I could utter the first syllable. I couldn’t believe myself. I had spent all day looking for them in Ponyville, and when I finally came across them I couldn’t even work up enough courage to call them.

As they drew close to the town hall, I finally began to walk towards them; however with each step I took my legs began to feel as though they were growing heavier by some unforeseen force. Eventually it came to the point where I stopped walking altogether and couldn’t move. I didn’t know what a matter with me. I just couldn’t physically bring myself to approach them or to call out to them.

Once I finally worked up enough courage to make any sort of advances towards them it was too late. To my dismay, I watched Twilight and Spike enter the town hall and the door slam shut behind them.

I let out a groan of frustration and shook my head in contempt. I didn’t know what it was about Twilight and Spike, but it felt as though something from within me didn’t want me to interfere with what they were doing. However, despite these thoughts and feelings I quickly began to think that it was cowardice that held me back; I grew angry with myself because of the unsatisfactory outcome of the event. I became so mad in fact that I actually wanted to yell out and hit something, but quickly fought down those urges.

After I had taken a moment to calm down, I approached the town hall and stopped in front of a staircase and sat down on one of the steps. I decided to wait outside until Twilight and Spike came out and I would introduce myself to them then, and nothing would stop me this time. Not even my own fear.

I hadn’t sat down no longer than a minute before I heard a scream of shock emanate from within the interior of the town hall. The sudden noise made me jump in surprise and look back towards the door. I feared that Twilight had discovered me and believed that I was stalking her and screamed in surprise, but I then realize that the scream hadn’t sounded like her at all. After I took a second to consider who it could’ve been, it then occurred to me that it had sounded like Rarity’s voice.

I almost gasped when I realized it. I then recalled that in the show Rarity the unicorn was put in charge of the decorations for the Summer Sun Celebration, and that was how Twilight came to meet her.

I immediately had thoughts of going into the town hall right then; my fear being replaced by utter excitement, but as I reached for the door I stopped. Just as before; something inside me told me not to interrupt her. With those thoughts in mind, I decided instead to lean against the door and listen in on what was going on.

When I put my ear against the door, I was met by the sound of Rarity and Twilight’s voices as they had a conversation about Twilight’s mane.

“Oh my stars. Darling, whatever happened to your coiffure?” Rarity’s voice sounded from behind the door sounding shocked

“Oh, you mean my mane? Well, it’s a long story. I’m just here to check on the decorations and then I’ll be out of your hair.” Twilight replied.

“Out of my hair? What about your hair?”

“Wait, where are we going? Help!”

I started to hear multiple sets of hoof steps from behind the door, and I knew that they were about to exit the building. Before I could react however, magical aura appeared around the door knob and the door stormed open, smashing my face in the process. I was hit with enough force that I stumbled backwards and fell over the railing that encircled the entire town hall. Just when I thought things couldn’t have gotten any worse, I fell into the bed of roses that I had seen earlier and their thorns dug deep into my flesh, and to top things off, as I landed, I was greeted with another blow to the head as my skull made contact with an unearthed rock.

I was completely disoriented from the concussions I endured that I began to slip in and out of consciousness; all the while the thorns continued to penetrate my sides making it impossible to move. The last thing I remembered was Twilight’s voice echoing through the now desolate streets as she tried to protest to Rarity taking her somewhere.

“Wait what are you doing? I can’t go. Spike and I still have much to do and,” Twilight started but Rarity would hear nothing of it.

“Nonsense dear. I can’t see how anypony can do errands, let alone go out in public with such a messy mane like yours. I simple cannot let crime against fashion go on uncorrected. We must get to my boutique at once, and then we will-”

Their voices faded away as darkness enveloped my mind and I began to slip out of consciousness. I tried to fight it; tried to stay awake out of the sheer fear of not knowing what would happen to me, but trying to stay awake was like trying to hold back a tsunami with my mind. I quickly lost the fight and gave into the ensuing darkness and drifted away into the void.

Being knocked out was the most terrifying thing that had ever happened to me up until that point in my life; I had never went through anything like it before. Prior to the experience, I imagined that it would be instantaneous; however fate would have it that it was the exact opposite. The closest thing that I could compare it to would be like falling asleep, however while you wait to fall asleep at night you have no idea when it’s going to happen. You lay there until your subconscious sneaks up and slowly takes over your mind, and you don’t even realize that it happened until you wake up the next morning. However when I was knocked out, I felt it coming. I felt myself being drawn in to the darkness of my subconscious, and I remained trapped there until I was finally able to break free from its venomous grip. However while I was there, I found myself drawn to think about my fears and past evils. I was forced to endure this torment until my safe return back into the world of the living.

And so there I was stuck within the blackness of my mind, thinking about what had happened to me that day. I thought of everything that had happened to me from when I woke up under the grand oak tree that morning, all the way up to when I arrived at the town hall. Most of all however, I thought about how many times I had failed. I ran through the different scenarios that I went through and how many times I had come close to meeting Twilight or her friends, only to see them get away. It was as if I wasn’t supposed to meet them; indeed it was like I was destined to lose.

As I thought about those minor failures, my mind started to drift back further into my past to when I was on Earth; back when everything I did never amounted to anything. I was forced to watch how everyone around me succeeded where I failed, and watched as they gloated and rubbed it in my face. I relived those years and watched myself deteriorate from the inside due to the never-ending sadness and disappointment.

I started to sink into the familiar anger and sadness I had felt back then; my resentment towards the very meaning of life began to return to me as I relived those terrible years. I couldn’t hide from my past and I knew it, and because of which I began to lose hope in everything once more.

Just as I neared the brink of losing the will to continue however, a blinding light appeared and the tormenting memories in my dream began to dissolve from my sight. Before long there was nothing but the light, and for a moment it just floated there and I gazed at it with curiosity. As I looked upon its beauty, a voice suddenly emanated from it calling out to me. It was an authoritative voice, but also sounded wise and kind; it sounded beautiful.

“James,” The voice stated and I was startled at the sound of my name. It knew me.

“Who-who’s there?” I replied back. “How do you know me?”

“You no longer have to live with this sadness anymore.”

I was shocked by the response and I had no idea what to say. After a few seconds of silence, the voice continued in a more compassionate tone.

“You are safe now. The ones that hurt you are not here and can’t cause you any more remorse.”

“How is it that you know me?” I asked again holding back tears.

“I know you very well young Stallion for I have been watching you since you arrived here in Equestria. I know everything about all who dwell in my kingdom; however you James take me aback. I’ve never before seen one with so much sadness in their heart…”

At that last statement I did begin to cry and the light stopped talking in response. I didn’t know whether it was out of concern or out of shock.

“No one cares about me!” I yelled as I mourned in contempt. “I came here to try to escape my past and still it haunts me. Nothing that I do will ever amount to anything in my life, and even here in Equestria I can’t even meet someone properly without messing it up. I will forever be alone in life; tossed aside and branded as an eternal failure.”

I didn’t know why, but I couldn’t stop crying. It was as if all the misery and torment that I endured in my life hit me all at once and I just let out all of the bottled up sadness.

“I feel so alone…” I said choking through my sobs.

The light silently listened to me but as I finished speaking it slowly floated down and hovered a few feet in front of me. I looked up at it with tears blurring my vision, and as I did it began to grow even brighter. Soon the light became as vibrant as the sun and I had to shield my eyes from its blinding rays, but suddenly the light began to dim once more until it was back to its original state.

Once I could see clearly, I looked towards were the light had been and found that it was gone and instead a beautiful white alicorn was standing in its place. Light emanated from her, giving her an almost god-like appearance and her horn glowed slightly with blue magical aura. She was bigger than a normal pony and she had her wings fully extended which really made her look intimidating and I would have been afraid of her if it wasn’t for the compassionate expression that she had. She wore a golden crown with a matching necklace and each had a sapphire colored gem stone attached to their center. But the part about the part of appearance that stuck out to me the most was her mane and tail. They both were brightly colored and flowed freely in the air and were translucent. Hadn’t I have known better, I would’ve believed that they bother were made from cosmic energy. It was Princess Celestia.

“Your never alone young stallion,” she said soothingly.

I looked away from her and quietly cried to myself as she continued.

“Throughout your life you’ve been told that you would never amount to anything and that you were unimportant. No one has ever told you otherwise, but I have seen into your heart James and I know that you are capable of accomplishing great deeds.”

I didn’t respond; I couldn’t respond. I was too upset to even try to think of the words to be able to question her, or to even thank her properly for her kind compliment. Instead I sat there and continued to cry, sulking in my sorrow.

The princess brought a hoof to my face and turned my head so that I would look at her; her beautiful eyes staring deeply into my soul.

“The spirit of friendship burns brightly within you Mr. Stallion, and you will soon discover that others around you will care about you based on who you are and not for what you do.”

The princess wiped away a tear from my cheek with her hoof and gave me a kind smile.

“When the stars above us all align you will understand.” She said as she turned and began to walk away. I didn’t know what she meant, and I quickly found myself standing up and calling out to her.

“Princess Celestia, wait!” I cried out as I started to run after her.

I started to run with all my might to try to catch up with her, but despite my best efforts she seemed to gradually drift further and further away from me. Before I knew it, she had completely disappeared from my sight leaving me standing there alone and confused.

I stopped running and called out to her once more, and the dream slowly started to fade away. Just before everything was fully engulfed in darkness I heard Celestia’s voice once more “When the stars align you will see…”

I awoke with a start and the sudden motion jostled the roses that I was laying on and their thorns dug deeper into my sides. I let out a pained yell as I instinctively tried to get out of the gnarls of thorns however I quickly became entangled in the vines and found that struggling was making things worse.

I stopped moving and relaxed my body for a minute and started to think about the situation I was in. How did I get tangled up in a rose bush? What’s more why did it feel like that it was literally wrapping around my legs? I carefully lifted my head up so I could see what was going on and I got my answer.

I hadn’t fallen into a bed of roses like I had originally thought. Instead I had fallen onto a bushel of plants that looked like roses that had hidden tendrils that lay beneath the surface of the soil, and to my horror were now starting to arise and wrap around my body. All along the length of each tendril, I noticed, were lines of wicked sharp black thorns that could easily penetrate through flesh. I watched breathlessly as the tendrils slowly wrapped around my legs and around my body.

My mind raced. If I moved and tried to escape the thorns would slice me to pieces, but if I stayed and didn’t try to escape then I would run a risk of being fully enveloped by them, and only God knew what would happen then.

Maybe if I hold still and don’t move then perhaps they would stop and let me go? I thought to myself trying to keep from panicking. I was wrong. The tendrils continued to wrap around me and began to grow tighter; their thorns starting to tear into my body.

My heart started to beat a mile a minute. I had to get out of there now! I immediately tried to bend my fore legs down and grab for them, but I hadn’t noticed that other tendrils had surfaced and had already begun wrapping around them as well; I was pinned.

“Somebody help me please!” I cried out as the thorn covered appendages continued to grow tighter “ANYONE!”

I frantically looked around toward the street to see if there were any ponies around but to my dismay I found that I was alone; there was no one to be seen.

Panic spread through me like a wild fire. Thorns be damned I was going to get out of there. I began to fight with all of my strength trying to break free from the constricting vines, completely ignoring the growing pain from the thorns that were slicing into me with every move I made. I tried my best to ignore the pain, but the more I struggled the tighter the tendrils became.

By now my legs were gashed open; deep cuts that continued to ooze more and more blood with each move I made. While I was struggling, more tendrils surfaced and started to wrap around my torso as well as my head and began to grow taught in addition to the ones that were wrapped around my appendages. Was this it? My first day in Equestria and I was going to die by some unforeseen plant for hell?

I couldn’t fight it any longer. I cried out as loud as I could for any source of release. The vines continued to grow tight around my torso and I could feel my ribs begin to groan and creek from the immense pressure; breathing was becoming more and more of a challenge with each passing second. I didn’t know what else to do. The thorns had dug so deeply into me that every move I made was agony, and by now there was a noticeable pool of blood starting to appear underneath me. With every ounce of energy I had left I cried out once more for help, but due to the immense pain I was enduring it came out sounding nothing more than a wail of agony.

Another tendril began to wrap around my throat and I knew that my time was almost up. I could feel death beginning to reach out with its ice-cold hand to take me away from this life. I was beginning to grow light headed from oxygen deprivation as the tendrils around my neck begin to constrain my windpipe. I didn’t know what would happen first; would I die of suffocation, or would my neck break and would I go out painlessly?

I felt the world around me begin to dissolve into black and I assumed that I was going to lose consciousness once more; the difference was however I knew that this time I wouldn’t be waking back up. Nothing short of a miracle could save me now and I knew it. I closed my eyes and braced for the end…

“Dear Princess Celestia above! James hole on!” I heard a familiar voice emanate from the blackened world around me. I didn’t know if the voice was just a figment of my imagination; a last ditch effort that my mind might have been trying to play in order to retain some hope in my last few seconds of life. I found out quickly though that it wasn’t my mind as I heard the sound of hoof steps thudding on the ground coming towards me.

The hoof steps came to a stop in front of me and I opened my eyes to see an extremely scared looking Mr. Cake. He reached down and tried to grab a hold of the vines that were wrapped around my neck but to both of our dismays, the thorns made it impossible for him to grasp onto them. I heard another set of hoof steps and I saw Mrs. Cake galloping towards us carrying a pair of hedge clippers in her mouth. She came to a stop next to Mr. Cake and she quickly took the hedge clippers and frantically began to cut the base of the tendrils that were wrapped around my neck.

By this time breathing was impossible. I lay on the ground helplessly gagging for air as Mr. and Mrs. Cake frantically tried to free my neck. My bones felt like they were about to snap like twigs, and my lungs were on fire due to the immense stress.

After what seemed like an eternity; indeed what seemed like my certain demise; Mr. and Mrs. Cake were finally able to cut the vines away from my throat and I filled my lungs full of much needed oxygen. Every breath I took however drove the thorns around my torso ever deeper and I began to go into shock from all of the mixed signals my body was sending to my brain.

Once my neck and head was released from the tendrils, Mr. and Mrs. Cake immediately began to cut the rest of my body free. Mrs. Cake would cut the base of the tendrils, and Mr. Cake would grab a hold and pull them away once they were loosened. The ones around my torso proved to be the most painful upon removal due to how deep the thorns had penetrated my sides, and when one was pulled off of me I couldn’t help but cry out in pain.

As the last of the vines were cut and pulled away, I relaxed my tensed body and went limp on the ground in exhaustion. I could feel blood oozing from my puncture wounds and deep gashes on my legs, and my joints cracked once I finally relaxed them.

“Is he…?” Mrs. Caked asked worriedly as I slowly closed my eyes.

“No, he’s still breathing. Quickly run and get help. I’ll stay here and make sure that he doesn’t lose consciousness and do what I can.” I heard Mr. Cake say as he leaned down closer to me. If only I had the luxury of losing consciousness again; even that would be better than feeling all of the pain.

Without a response, I heard Mrs. Cake turn and gallop away from us. I opened my eyes and weakly looked up towards Mr. Cake. Of all the things that worried me at that moment, nothing scared me more than the expression I saw on his face. It was a look of sheer terror and uncertainty; a look that people only get when they are unsure if someone the care about is about to die; the primal fear of the unknown.

I opened my mouth to say something, but Mr. Cake immediately stopped me before I could speak. “No you can’t talk. You have to save your strength.”

Despite his advisory, and also despite the extreme pain it caused me, I still inexorably spoke.

“What… In God’s holy name… were those?” I asked breathlessly. I had to know what it was that had almost killed me.

Mr. Cake looked away from me as if debating with himself whether or not he should answer my question, but with a sigh he looked back towards me.

“That plant was a rosé constrictor and it is found primarily in the Everfree Forest. They are identical to roses, but when something draws near they grab a hold of them with their hidden vines and squeeze them to death. Ordinarily they aren’t found in these areas.”

“Then why was it here?”

Mr. Cake shook his head “I have no idea why they were here in Ponyville. My only guess is that they might have been purposely planted here by somepony, but why in Equestria would anyone in their right mind do such a thing?”

I didn’t know, and in reality I didn’t really care. I just wanted to get out of there and forget that this whole incident ever happened. Without a word, I tried to rise onto my hooves which turned out to be a big mistake. As soon as I moved, I was greeted by an explosion of pain from my back legs and my torso. The thorns had sliced me up so bad that it made it impossible to stand up. I cried out and Mr. Cake instantly tried to stop me from moving.

“James you have got to sit still. Your wounds are too severe for you to move, let alone stand up.”

I rested my head back onto the ground with a sad sigh; all the while trying to hold back tears of pain.

“James, don’t worry. This was just a freak accident and everything is going to be fine.” Mr. Cake said trying to reassure me, but one glance at his expression told me that he didn’t actually believe what he said and I myself didn’t believe it either. It seemed like ever since I arrived in Equestria I had nothing but bad ‘accidents’ as Mr. Cake put it. I have fallen down the hill and scraped up my back near the tree I woke up under, accidently crossed paths with Applejack and made her think I was a thief, and now I was almost crushed to death by a plant. It made me sad to think that I actually thought that I would meet Twilight and her friends. It seemed like whenever I saw one of them I would either do something wrong and mess it up, or I would lose them before I could even approach them; all the while getting hurt or emotionally frustrated.

As I lay there thinking about these things to myself, Mr. Cake kneeled down closer to me and gently put a hoof on my shoulder. It was as if he could feel my distress.

“James things will get better.” He said earnestly to me.

I looked at him and I could tell that he actually meant it this time. His kind gesture was enough to make me feel slightly better, but not enough to mend my broken spirit. Deep down inside I had given up hope.

The sound of galloping hoof steps echoing through the empty streets made Mr. Cake turn away from me. “Oh thank goodness that you’re here! Quick, he’s right there, please help him.”

A white mare that I didn’t know came to a stop in front of Mr. Cake with Mrs. Cake following close behind. The white mare wore a white nurse’s hat that had a red cross on the front of it and had a pink mane that she had tied up into a bun underneath it. She had stunning blue eyes that resonated kindness which really brought out her beauty. She carried with her a medical pack of sorts that she quickly put down when she stopped.

The mare took a quick glance at me and shuddered. “OK, tell me what happened.”

Mr. Cake quickly ran through the story of how they heard me screaming for help while they were making their way across town. When he mentioned the rosé constrictor, the nurse pony raised an eyebrow.

“A Rosé Constrictor? Here? How in Celestia’s name did it get into Ponyville?”

“I’m not sure. It could’ve got there as a prank by the outlaws The Forgotten, or it could’ve been planted here for a special occasion. Either way though it almost took somepony’s life.” Mrs. Cake chimed in.

“Alright then,” the nurse said as she approached me. “I usually only work with fillies and colts but I’ll see what I can do.”

Now I felt nervous. This nurse pony only worked with younger fillies and colts, and that meant that she probably only dealt with minor injuries. I could tell because whenever she got closer to me, she got really skittish due to the blood that was seeping from my wounds. Despite my discomfort though, I still let the nurse do what she had to do. Mr. and Mrs. Cake seemed to trust her and I had faith in their judgment.

She kneeled down and carefully began to examine the wounds from the thorns, especially the major gashes on my legs. She was especially sure that she didn’t touch me. The slightest jostle on my body would’ve made me cry out in agony, and I silently thanked God that she didn’t actually have to physically feel my wounds for her to see how bad they were. While she worked, I overheard her say numerous medical terms to herself such as “Major lacerations and a minor sprain. To my relief though, she didn’t mention anything about any broken bones.

“Can you help him Nurse Redheart?” Mr. Cake asked after a few moments.

I looked at the Nurse expression and I started to feel unsettled. She had the same look of uncertainty that Mr. Cake had and I feared that she might not be able to help me. After a few more seconds she finally spoke up.

“The good news is yes, I can help him.” She said as she stood back up.

“Well that's good news indeed! It’s a relief to hear that he’s going to be alright.” Mr. Cake said enthusiastically.

“Wait, what’s the bad news?” Mrs. Cake asked as the nurse pony leaned over and opened her medical bag.

After a few seconds of silence she stood back up. “The bad news is that I have to use Phylate to heal his wounds.”

Mr. and Mrs. Cake both let out a slight gasp and looked at each other in shoc. What was Phylate and why was it bad? Despite the pain I knew that it would cause me, curiosity still got the best of me and I spoke.

“What’s…? Phylate?” I asked weakly and as I did they all turned and looked at me.

“He doesn’t know what Phylate is?” I overheard Mrs. Cake ask as the nurse reached into the medical bag.

“Phylate is one of the strongest healing potions ever created by Ponies anywhere. Once injected, it can save a stallion that is near death and heal even the most fatal of wounds, but there is one side effect…” Mr. Cake said as he looked away from my gaze.

“A side effect? What kind of side effect?” I asked.

“It hurts like hell.” The nurse pony said as she pulled out a vial that was filled with green oozy liquid.

“Say what!?” I exclaimed as I moved in surprise, the sudden motion sent a wave of anguish through my body and I groaned in response.

“James it’s the only way for you to get better. Otherwise you’ll have to deal with these wounds for weeks before you can walk again.” Mr. Cake said with a seriously.

“Yea and think of it this way; you’re getting all of the pain over with in one go. If you don’t want to take it however you can sit in a bed at the Ponyville hospital for a month. It’s completely up to you.” The nurse added as she held the Phylate in her hoof.

I didn’t know what to do. On one side, if I took the Phylate I’d be healed and back on my hooves right there on the spot; at the cost of the most extreme pain I’ll ever feel in my life. However if I refused to take it I’ll be stuck in a hospital bed until I could walk again; constantly feeling pain through the entire healing process. Whichever choice I made though it didn’t matter; pain was unavoidable. After a few seconds of thought I made my choice.

“I’ll take the Phylate.” I said weakly as I closed my eyes.

With a nod, the nurse reached into her medical bag and pulled out a syringe and inserted it into the top of the vial. I watched as she filled it with the Phylate and when she was finished she turned her attention to me.

“Do you want a block?” she asked as she put the vial back into the medical bag.

“A block? What for?”

“It's something for you to bite down on to prevent you from screaming through the healing process. I’d suggest you take it.”

I wondered to myself about why was there so many of these never ending precautions. I didn’t see why they didn’t just give me the stuff already so I could get up and leave. I did know very well from Mr. and Mrs. Cake’s reaction that the procedure would hurt; but I didn’t believe that it would hurt so bad as to make me scream.

As I was about to turn down the offer Mr. Cake spoke up. “James, I highly recommend that you take the block. I know from personal experience that when it starts you will be glad that you accepted it.”

I began to grow a little aggravated towards the whole situation. I was on the ground, too hurt to move and bleeding out, and all I wanted to do was take the take the damn stuff and get it over with, but despite my growing irritation I said yes and accepted the block.

The nurse walked around me, making sure that she stayed away from the remains of the rosé constrictor while she did so, and kneeled down and put the block in front of my mouth. I reluctantly bit down on it and she took the syringe filled with the Phylate and injected the substance into my side. I cringed as I felt the ooze enter my blood stream and began to coarse through my body.

A few seconds went by and I started to feel really hot, so much so that I began to sweat profusely. I could feel the Phylate beginning to take effect and my heart rate and breathing began to increase. The warm sensation I was feeling quickly intensified until my body felt as though it was ablaze. My heart began to race faster and faster until I thought that it was going to burst out of my chest. I then knew that Mr. and Mrs. Cake’s fear of the Phylate was completely rational.

The nurse pony took a few steps back away from me and I saw Mrs. Cake look away. Something told me that this was going to get a lot worse before it got better in the end.

The healing process only lasted about three to five minutes, but to me it felt like an eternity. Once the initial healing began, it felt as though every living cell within my being was liquid fire. My skin felt as it was forcibly pulled and stretched over my wounds and, for lack of a better term, was ‘welded’ together by the Phylate substance. Every wound that was on my body was completely healed. Once it was over, I lay there shuddering by the force that had ravaged my very being. I was glad I took the block after all because if I hadn’t I would’ve screamed in agony; Mr. Cake had been right about everything.

“You need to lie still for a few minutes until the Phylate completely works its way out of your system,” the nurse began as she carefully removed the block from my mouth. “If you move around too much you may become nauseous.”

She didn’t have to tell me twice. After what I had just been through I didn’t want to risk throwing up; that would only add to the inconvenience.

Mr. Cake walked up and gave me a respective nod. “You handled that really well James. The first experience with Phylate is always the worst. Let’s just hope that you won’t have to use it again, huh?” he said with a chuckle.

I just nodded and didn’t say anything; I didn’t really feel like talking.

After another few minutes went by, the nurse said that it was alright if I tried to stand up. I gave her a silent nod and Mr. and Mrs. Cake approached either side of me and helped me onto my hooves. Once I was on my hooves, I watched the nurse pony put everything that she had used back into her medical pack and clos it up. Once she was finished she turned back and faced us.

“Just take things slow and everything will be fine.” She said as Mr. and Mrs. Cake took a few steps away from me. I could stand on my own now, despite being extremely sore.

I cringed at the sound of the last words she said. Why did everyone insist on reassuring me about a future that they knew nothing about? Despite my growing agitation on the matter I held my tongue though; I knew that they were just trying to help me after all.

“You honestly don’t know how lucky you are,” the nurse began as I slowly and carefully stretched my legs. “I usually only work with fillies and colts and usually don’t carry medical supplies to heal severe wounds like the ones you had.”

Confused by this, I questioned how she got the Phylate then if she didn’t have access to high end medical Supplies. She had said earlier that Phylate was the most potent healing potion ever created.

“You see that’s why I’m bringing it up. Earlier today a mishap happened with the mail and the Phylate was delivered to me by mistake by a grey cross-eyed pegasus pony. Once I tried to ask her about it she just said that it was for me and flew away, almost crashing into a tree in the process.”

“That’s weird. Usually the mail system doesn’t make mistakes like that. Who sent it to you?” Mr. Cake asked.

“That’s the weird part. All it had attached to it was a note saying ‘you’ll be needing this’ written in big black letters. My first thought was it was stolen, seeing as to how it was so valuable. I was afraid that I was going to get into trouble if I held onto it and so I was actually considering to taking it directly to the guards or to the hospital.”

I was too shocked for words. Someone had sent the Phylate to her today? Not only that, but someone had written her a note telling her that she would need it? My mind reeled as it tried to grasp onto the whole idea. Was it just a mere coincidence that she received the Phylate on the exact same day that I would just so happen to need it? Or did somepony actually know that I would be here and what was going to happen? That thought slightly disturbed me.

“Well it’s a good thing that you didn’t. Only Celestia knows what would’ve happened if you didn’t have it with you this evening.” Mrs. Cake said after a few seconds.

“Yes indeed, thanks for all your help Nurse Redheart. You saved a stallion’s life today.” Mr. Cake added earnestly.

“Oh please, you’re giving me too much credit. I only did what anypony else in my situation would’ve done-”

“No,” I suddenly said as I took an unsteady step toward her. “You saved my life and that’s a debt that I can’t repay. You’re getting all the credit you deserve.”

The nurse looked down at the ground and looked as though she was about to blush. It looked like she was trying to find something to say, but was having a lot of trouble doing so. “Well… um… thank you.”

“I wouldn’t say it if it was a lie,” I said seriously and with a smile I added, “Oh and my name is James Stallion by the way.”

I could see the nurse begin to smile and she looked up at me “Well it’s a pleasure to meet you. Everyone just calls me Nurse Redheart around here.” she said extending a hoof.

Mr. and Mrs. Cake exchanged glances as I raised my hoof and she took ahold of it into her own. When we were finished with our gesture, Mr. Cake spoke up, “Well James, since you’re feeling better and have been properly introduced; I’d say that it’s a good time to go and get you a shower. You look horrible.” He pronounced in a matter-of-fact tone.

It then occurred to me that I looked disgusting. Looking down, I noticed that my coat was covered in blood from the wounds that I had just so recently endured, and in addition to that there were batches of dirt clinging from my main and coat from when I was struggling to get free from the rosé constrictor. I figured that if I went out in public like that then ponies would probably think that I committed a murder and buried the body somewhere, and I certainly didn’t want that. I looked back up to Mr. Cake and asked him what he had in mind.

“Well we were heading to a party to celebrate the Summer Sun Celebration when we heard your cry for help. We could make a detour and take you back to our shop and let you use our shower.”

“A shower would be nice.” I said with a shrug.

“Okay then sounds like a plan. If you want you can come with us to the party too. I hear that everypony in town is going to be there and its going to be a lot of fun.”

I honestly didn’t want to go considering that I just had a near death experience. Also I wasn’t really in the mood to be around a lot of ponies that I didn’t know anyways. I thought about it for a few seconds, and the more I thought about it, the more the idea grew on me. It was like something in the back of my mind was telling me to go and after another few seconds of thought I reluctantly agreed.

“Well alright then it’s settled.” Mr. Cake said happily. “Nurse Redheart, would you like to come with us too? You could leave you bag in our store and pick it up later if don’t want to carry it around with you.”

“I would love to go, but I can’t. I’ve got to go and get caught up on my paperwork for this month’s medical turnout. I’m really sorry I can’t make it.” Nurse Redheart said apologetically.

“It’s alright, there’s no need to beat yourself up over it. We’ve all got to work so don’t feel bad, we understand. Do you need help carrying your stuff back?”

“No I’ll be fine. I just have this bag and it’s no trouble.”

“Nurse Red Heart…” I said as she went to pick up her medical bag. “Thanks again for coming and helping me. I’m really glad that you were here.”

Nurse Red Heart blushed once more and gave an awkward smile as she looked up at me. “It was nothing, I’m just glad I could help.”

“It may not have been a big deal to you, but it really means a lot to me.”

“It’s no big deal really. Well I’ve uh, got to go now. You all have a good afternoon.” Nurse Redheart said as she quickly picked up her medical bag and swiftly trotted away.

I was confused by her sudden departure and I didn’t know what to say. I looked over at Mr. and Mrs. Cake to see if there were taken aback by it as I was but to my surprise they were actually smiling. They waited till Nurse Redheart was out of earshot before they spoke up.

“James, she likes you.” Mr. Cake said with a smirk.

“What?” I asked stupidly to the statement. That wasn’t the response that I was expecting; I thought that I had said something wrong and she had left to get away from me.

“Isn’t it obvious dearie? The way she was blushed every time you had complimented her should’ve given it away. Mrs. Cake said with a chuckle. “You’re not good at picking up on mare’s signals are you?”

I looked down at the ground in embarrassment. “Oh uh… no, not really.”

“James, there’s no need to get upset over it. You will get better at it as you go. It’s a natural ability that every stallion picks up over time.”

I nodded and looked back up towards them and smiled weakly. “Thanks for the kind words.”

“It’s no problem at all dearie.” Mrs. Cake said as she returned my smile.

“Well we better get moving if we are going to get you a shower and make it to the party; we’re almost late as it is.” Mr. Cake said as he looked in the general direction the bakery was.

“Oh yes, your right dear. Come on James we have got to get going.” Mrs. Cake said with a gesture towards where Mr. Cake was looking.

Mr. and Mrs. Cake started to walk away, but I didn’t move. I took one last look at the remains of the Rosé Constrictor before I left. It was nothing more than a mess of tangled up vines lying in a pool of my now drying blood. It amazed me that this plant nearly cost me my life. I guess not everything in Equestria was what it appeared to be, and indeed not everything was safe, like I had foolishly thought.

“James, are you coming?” Mr. Cake called to me as he looked back towards me.

“Yea…” I said as I took my gaze away from the remains of the plant and began to make my way towards him. “Hey Mr. Cake, what more can you tell me about Rosé Constrictors?”

After we had left the town hall we made our way to Sugar Cube Corner so I could bathe, which actually proved to be more difficult than I thought it would be. I could walk on four hooves just fine by now, despite being a pony for only a few hours now; however maneuvering myself in a bathtub was a whole different story. I found it difficult to wash in the confined space of the tub, so instead I settled with rinsing my coat and mane off with hot water until all of the blood and dirt was off. I figured that later, when I had better hoof-eye coordination, I would wash myself more properly.

When I was finished rinsing my mane and coat off, I turned off the water and got out of the tub. Mr. and Mrs. Cake were waiting patiently down stairs for me so I had some time to myself. I took some time to think about what Princess Celestia had said to me in my dream before the Rosé Constrictor nearly strangled me to death. Actually, I wondered if it was just a dream that had come to me because of the events of my day, or if it really was a vision of some sort and she really did talk to me. Had Celestia really been watching me since I got here? Also what had she meant when she said ‘when the stars align?’ There were so many questions that swirled inside my mind, and it appeared that with every passing second many more continued to appear before me. I hoped that I would figure some of them out soon so I could bring some closure to my burdened mind.

“James, I don’t mean to rush you dearie, but we have to get going if we want to make it to the party. Can you please speed it up a bit?” Mrs. Cake sounded from down the hallway and interrupted my thoughts.

I didn’t want to be more of a burden than I already was. After all, They reopened Their shop and were letting me use Their shower so I could look presentable to a party that They were taking me to. They hadn’t gave me many specific details about the party other than that it was to celebrate the summer solstice and witnessing Princess Celestia raise the sun for all to see.

I quickly dried to dry myself off before I walked out the door, but I had some issues, the main one being that I didn’t know how to pick up the towel with my hooves. It then occurred to me that since I had been in Equestria I hadn’t needed to use my hooves at all other than for walking. So instead of trying to figure out my dilemma, for simplicities sake I just took the towel in my mouth and dried the parts of my body that I could reach (which wasn’t that many.) When I was done, I left the bathroom and on my way to the Cakes I found that I had done a really poor job with drying. In fact so poor of a job that I was still practically dripping wet.

When I retraced my way through the sets of hallways back into the main lobby where Mr. and Mrs. Cake were waiting for me, they both chuckled when they saw how wet I still was.

“Dearie I told you to speed it up a bit is all. You didn’t have to jump out like you were being attacked by an alligator.” Mrs. Cake said with a smile.

I didn’t want to tell them that the only reason that I was still wet was because I actually had a really hard time physically drying myself off due to inadequate balance and lack of knowledge of my bodily functions; that would just be very awkward for my part so I instead just went along with the joke.

“Well anyway come on everypony.” Mr. Cake said as he stood up and started to head to the door. “We’ve got to get a move on, we are really late as it is and we have to get a move on if we want to make it before all of the food is gone.”

Mrs. Cake stood up as well and followed her husband and I in turn followed her. We exited the store and once we were outside Mr. Cake locked the door and we continued to make our way down the street. I didn’t know were we were going, so I just followed the Cakes as we made our way across town.

We made our way towards the opposite end of Ponyville, to a part were I hadn’t been yet, and after about ten minutes I started to get curious as to where we were going but I didn’t bother to ask them though. By this time in the day the sun had already started to go down and again I found myself caught up in taking in the beauty of Equestria. As the sun started to descend in the far horizon, it had caste a beautiful orange glow over the land and made everything more vibrant and clear. It almost brought a tear to my eye to see the serenity of the pristine landscape around me. Indeed I became very excited to be able to witness the beauty of the day again tomorrow.

“Here we are.” Mr. Cake pronounced as we approached what appeared to be an extremely large hollowed out oak tree near the edge of town.

“What is this place?” I asked as I looked at the tree in awe. The tree was obviously a library of some sort due to all the signs that covered it, all of which had books on it. Despite the tree being hollowed out, it looked like it was still alive and was in full bloom with vibrant leaves. The tree was massive; bigger even than any of the surrounding buildings that encircled around it. There were two balconies on the top of the tree, the highest of which had a big telescope positioned on it pointing to the heavens. On one of the upper branches near the top there was a large beehive that was so massive that it was almost the size of a full-grown pony. On the front door there was an engraved candle stick figure that was carved into the wood, and there was a sign to the right of the door that had a picture of an open book on it.

“This is the Golden Oaks Library, and this is where the party is happening.” Mr. Cake replied as we drew closure to the massive tree.

I could’ve figured that because I started to hear the music emanating from within it over a block away. The tree was bathed in a fiery orange light from the sun and it cast a looming shadow over the streets that surrounded it. It was truly a sight to behold.

“Dear sweet Celestia, this is one huge party.” Mrs. Cake commented as we drew closer to the door.

Indeed it was a huge party. Just as we were approaching, I seen herds of ponies that were gathered around the outside waiting to get in; the entire city of Ponyville must have been there.

“Are we really going to have to wait to get in?” I asked as we came to stop near the herds of ponies.

“Oh no, Pinkie Pie would never make us wait. The only reason why these ponies are waiting to get in is because they probably have just arrived late is all.”

“Wait, did you just say Pinkie-” I started but a familiar hyper-eccentric voice cut me off.

“Mr. and Mrs. Cake! Oh my I didn’t think you’d be this late, is everything OK? This party is absolutely fantastically amazing! I’m so glad you could make it. We have lots of food, games, and guests. Oh who’s you friend?” The happy voice of Pinkie Pie sounded out from an open window. The pink mare bounced out of the window and gracefully landed on her hooves and began to hop to us, continuously speaking as she approached.

I couldn’t believe my luck. As fate would have it, I had arrived at Pinkie Pie’s party.