The Light of the Star

For the next few months, Starlight Glimmer watches over Leo and Asger until she can figure out a way to get them back to their home. When her parents found out about the mysterious strangers, they initially wanted nothing to do with them, but after some pleading from their daughter, they eventually agreed to put them up in an old tool shed in their backyard. Starlight would go out to the shed every day to check up on and hang out with her new friends; she would even sleep with them to keep them company.

While they spend time together, Starlight learns more about the world Leo and Asger came from. "And what are those appendages on your hooves called, again?" she asks, staring at Leo's upper forearm.

"These are fingers," he answers, "and this is a hand. And these are my feet," he adds, wiggling his lower forelegs, "which have toes on them."

"Fascinating!" Starlight says with wonder, "Everypony I know just has hooves."

"Everypony?" Leo says, tilting his head in confusion.

"Oh, sorry," Starlight apologizes for misspeaking, "You guys say 'everybody,' right?"

"It's okay," Leo says, "It's no big de-what was that, Asger?" he suddenly looks over at his friend and they seem to have a mental conversation with each other. Eventually, Leo turns back to Starlight.

"Asger wants to know why your mom and dad look at us funny?" Leo says innocently.

Starlight gulps, "Well, its because you're a bit - different, from everypony I know."

"I know that," he chuckles, "but I think he meant why they look so - angry - whenever they see us?"

"Well, they've never been the most welcoming sort of ponies," she sighs sadly, "especially to outsiders. They've lived almost their entire lives here, so anypony who comes from anywhere other than this village means trouble in their eyes."

"Oh, I guess that makes sense," Leo comments, then looks at Asger as they have another mental conversation, the only indication being Leo's occassional change of expression.

"How do you do that?" Starlight asks Leo.

"Do what?" he asks, "Oh, you mean talk to Asger? I've always been able to, at least for as long as I can remember. He doesn't understand the words everybody else uses, so I tell them to him in my mind. Back home, I was the only one who could understand what he was saying."

"Wow, that's amazing!" Starlight says, "Tell me more about where you came from! I mean, if you don't mind, of course."

"Okay, well," Leo begins to say, "I grew up in a place called New York City, in Manhattan, specifically. Lots of tall buildings called skyscrapers."

"Hey, that sounds kind of like Manehattan," she says.

"Yeah, but we didn't live in any fancy skyscrapers," he says, "My family lived in a small apartment building a few blocks away from where I would go to school. We moved around a lot, though, because of my dad's job."

"What did he do?" she asks.

"He was a journalist for newspapers," Leo explains, "and he would move from job to job all over. He wasn't in any of the big newspapers, like the New York Times."

"Interesting," Starlight comments, "I think we have something similar, called the Manehattan Chronicles."

"I guess," Leo says, "So, what do your parents do?"

"My dad's a buisnesspony," she explains, "and my mom works the bakery. You can tell by their cutie marks."

"What's a 'cutie mark'?" he asks.

"Well, it's a-" she begins to say by looking down at her flank, then realizes that she is still a blank flank. All of a sudden, the memories of a few months ago flood her mind and cloud her vision; when she looks up, however, she realizes that tears are clouding her vision, not the memories.

"Are you okay, Starlight?" Leo asks; even Asger seems concerned.

"No, i-it's nothing, I," Starlight responds, wiping her eyes clear, "I just don't really feel like talking about it."

"Hey, it's alright," Leo says, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, "I'm here for you, just like you're here for me and Asger. You don't have to feel sad with us around," he adds as Asger stands up and sits down beside Starlight, nuzzling her side.

Starlight chuckles, "Thanks, guys." She pauses for a moment, "Basically, a cutie mark dictates what you will do for the rest of your life, whether it's staying here and doing all the hard jobs or going away to learn about magic and having fun."

"That doesn't seem fair," Leo says, "Where I'm from, people get to choose what they want to do when they grow up, and they go to school and get degrees and stuff. In fact," he lifts Starlight's chin up, "it's probably better that you don't have your cutie mark."

"What do you mean?" Starlight asks.

"Well, if you don't have something that tells you what you're suposed to do," he explains, "then that means you get to try anything you want to do; there's nothing to keep you away from getting what you want."

"I-I guess you're right, Leo!" Starlight exclaims, hugging him hard, "I can do anything I want! Thank you!"

"Hey, that's what friends are for," Leo says, returning the gesture as they hold each other, silently comforting one another for their problems.