Home Is Where The Herd Is

by TheEveryDaySparkle

Chapters

Prologue-Arrival
Chapter 1: Encounter
Chapter 2: Beginnings
Chapter 4: Royal Meeting-Part 2
Chapter 5: Reliving The Past
Chapter 6: Meeting The Family
Chapter 7: Unburdened
Chapter 8: Reborn
Chapter 9: A Royal Welcome
Chapter 10-Noble Emotions- Part 1
Chapter 3: Royal Meeting-Part 1

Prologue-Arrival

It was soft... so soft...

It felt like I was floating around on a fluffy cloud.

It was so warm and gentle, and so comfortable, too.

I could smell the scent of earth, and feel the breeze on my skin as I laid there, in my bed and-

Wait. Stop. This isn't my bed!

My eyes snapped open as I quickly realized the situation. I wasn't at home anymore. I was outside in some kind of a forest, laying on the-admittedly comfortable-grass.

I shot to my feet with the speed of a cheetah and took in my surroundings properly. Sure enough, I was in some kind of forest, surrounded by trees that looked just as alive as I was. And while that fact did creep me out a bit, I was more concerned about where I was, how I got here, and why i was now somehow lost in a forest with no knowledge of how to get home.

Although, now that I think about it it's not like I want to go home. After what happened I don't even think I want to be alive right now.

I sighed as I remembered the funeral. After that I finally decided to go and at least visit the house my parents left me.

It was trip down memory lane for me. The same old dinner table where my parents and I used to talk about everything and nothing all at the same time. The same old photos, the same old decorations. I can still remember their laughter as I told a joke or said something funny. I can remember my mother's smile, and how it'd light up the room for everyone.

My mother was a nice woman. She was always kind to me, and while she was firm, she was never oppressive or overbearing. That's not to say I didn't get in my fair share of trouble from time to time. I can still remember my mom catching me smoking at 16.

Suffice it to say I learned how to draw really well during that month. Trust me, boredom is worse than any physical punishment you can think up. I would know.

My dad...was a nice guy. He was always nice to me, just like my mom, but he was a bit more...forceful, so to speak. He was the playing catch outside, watching football, playing games kind of dad. You know, the kind that talks about you for hours on end to the neighbors and calls you his pride and joy? Yeah, that kind of dad. I knew he meant well, it was just...a bit much at times.

And then there's my little sister Susie. Typical 'annoy the older brother for no reason' kinda girl, but she was adorable and loved to play, so I let it slide.

I actually enjoyed playing with her. She was so lively and driven and well, you get the picture. Typical overly energetic kid stuff.

She grew up to be the smartest one in the family, and even took to tutoring me like it was second nature to her. Not that I was doing bad in school of course, but um...

Okay fine! I got three C's and a B on my report card back in middle school, okay? You happy now?!

Anyway, despite my abysmal GPA, with enough help from my family, I was put on the right track and eventually got into college.

This change was helped along by my older brother, who, being eight years older than me, had much more life experience.

He often told me tales of his life that revolved around the next step in my own journey to adulthood, to help me prepare for it all before I even got there.

I am proud to say that it was mostly because of him that I am who I am today.

I decided to put less effort into video games, and more into my passion, creative writing.

People say its hard to get a steady job doing that, but those people either never actually looked, or are too lazy to try.

I poured all my energy into learning all I could about everything I needed to both pass school with flying colors, and get the info I needed to start on my journey to become an author.

So yeah, we were just your typical, everyday family with typical everyday problems.

That is...until the incident.

They all suddenly died on me, leaving me as the sole survivor of my entire main family household.

My dream died after that, leaving me a wreck of my former self. I had no drive to achieve anything anymore. i was essentially lost until the funeral, where my aunt and uncle convinced me to face my problems and visit my parents old house.

They'd left it to me in their will, but I never even bothered to look it over. I didn't want to. I didn't want to go back to the place where all my suffering began.

But even so, even after all the time I spent telling myself it wasn't worth it, i eventually gave in and paid the house a visit.

When I got off from work the day after the funeral-I worked as an accountant in place of my real dream- I made my way over to the house and went inside.

I briefly entertained the idea that their ghost might be haunting the place. But then I remembered that they were properly buried, so no ghosts would come from them, since they were at peace.

I kind of envied them. Able to live up in the sky in bliss for eternity. They were in a better place. While I was stuck down on earth and left to suffer.

Our family wasn't what you might call religious. We believed in god, prayed and even read the bible, but we never went to church.

My father believed them to be nothing more than 'a bunch of money grubbing fools disguised as people', but my mother was adamant about it, so they had to compromise.

Don't get me wrong, Bible night was lots of fun! Each of us would read a passage from the bible, all the way up until we finished a book, and then we'd start again the next month. If we didn't finish in time, we'd just continue from where we left off.

Little Susie was having a lot of fun, too. She was so adorable, asking about 'the great big man in the sky' and all his 'little people.'

Ahh...those were the days. And now its my birthday. Kind of Ironic, huh? The people who brought you into this world, dying on the day you were born? Kinda makes you think of yourself as a curse, doesn't it?

Anyway enough gallivanting about down memory lane, Its time I finished this story. So after I went inside the house, I looked around for a little bit. You know, the usual curiosity over how things had turned out. Then I went to my room, and was hit with another nostalgia trip.

I could remember all the times my mother took care of me when I was sick. All the times, me and my brother and sister played together. All the friends I had over, the parties. It all just came rushing back. And before I could even rush over and bury my face in the bedsheets, I broke down and cried.

I cried for my parents, I cried for the past, the present, and the future. I cried for my brother, my sister, and my relatives who now have to live without their beloved family members.

After that I felt I needed some rest, and so I climbed into bed and let the feel of my old sheets carry me off.

Unfortunately it would appear they really did carry me off somewhere. Because i'm not at home anymore. I'm somewhere else.

Somewhere...unfamiliar.

Chapter 1: Encounter

I've been walking in this forest for the better part of half a day and I still don't have any clue where I'm going.

'Well, that makes sense doesn't it?' My brain says to me. Overtime I've developed a small habit of talking to myself.

Emphasis on small habit. If I were to stay stuck out here any longer, it might not be so small anymore. So it's in my best interest to find civilization, and quickly.

I've just been walking in a straight line this whole time, never deviating from the path for even a second. I've learned a long time ago that staying on the straight and narrow-this time literally- can never steer you wrong. And so I opted to stay the course. I was bound to find something sooner or later.

A growling sound and a rumbling feeling in my stomach told me that that time better be sooner, or else I wouldn't have enough energy to keep going. I picked up the pace and used a bit more of my energy to speed-walk my way through the forest, my head on a swivel as I kept a lookout for any sign of civilization. A city, a town, a village, anything that even remotely resembled a coherent level of organization would do. I just needed a chance to socialize with something that wasn't my own mind for a couple of hours. Being alone for too long with nothing to do can cause one to go insane, and i'd say i'm about this close to losing my cool.

It suddenly occurred to me while I was looking around in search of a settlement, but I soon realized that I hadn't given any thought to what exactly might be in this forest. It's a pretty large area, so there's bound to be some kind of animal around somewhere, right?

I started to widen my search. Not only was I looking for settlements, but now I was looking over my shoulder, peering at bushes and squinting at shadows, making sure that nothing furry, scaly, or otherwise was out there somewhere, hunting me.

I kept my eyes peeled for any signs of movement, my ears perked and ready to catch any sound I heard, and my body tensed to prepare to either run, or fight if I had to.

I wasn't too confident in my skills at combat, and I never had any camping experience, or hunting experience, for that matter, but I was willing to bet I could hold my own against something like a wolf or something, at least.

Even in my state of constant vigilance I some how managed to miss two things. A shadowy figure rushing by just on the edge of my vision, and a pair of glowing yellow eyes glaring menacingly at me from a bush I just passed by.

When I finally stopped breaking my neck to see if I was being stalked by a wild animal, I let out a sigh of relief and returned my sight to its former position in front of me, though I opted to keep speed walking just in case.

By now it was almost nighttime, and the sun was going down over the horizon, I stopped and took a moment to take in the great view above me. The clouds were brightening up with the usual orange colors that sunset was associated with.

It all looked so beautiful that I just had to watch and wait for the sky to change its color to the familiar black of night.

When it finally happened however, I was stunned into stillness once again by the sheer brightness of the stars in the sky. It was like someone sculpted the very moon and stars to look like that.

I was pulled out of my revelry however, as I heard the sound of growling behind me.

'Oh, hell no.'

I immediately shot off down the path i'd been following this whole time, adrenaline pumping through my viens at lightning speeds and giving me just the boost I might need to escape this beast, whatever it may be.

I could still hear the growling, but now it was accompanied by heavy footfalls and the occasional sound of...wood...clinking...together?

Whatever. Anyway, I kept on course down the path, adrenaline still driving my movements, and that's when I noticed that the tree line was beginning to thin. Soon, there would be no more forest for me to run through, which was a good sign. Maybe I could find someone who knew what was chasing me, as I'd be damned if I looked back right about now anyway.

But then again, there was also the chance of me leaving the forest, only to find something even worse waiting for me on the other side.

What if the thing chasing me was just leading me to its pack or something? What if I come to a town, only to find it destroyed and in shambles like the apocalypse?

What if whoever the locals are can't help me against this thing!

The last of the trees finally exited my line of sight, leaving me to guess what was on the other side...

only to see a cliff. Which I was about to fall off of, if not for my quick stopping skills. Of course, this still left me on the edge of a cliff with something I didn't even want to look back and see at my back.

But it seemed I would finally have to resign myself to my fate, and so I turned around and saw it. A great big, wolf, made of wood.

'Hm. now i've seen everything.' It growled at me and advanced. I instinctively stepped back, and tripped while trying to remain on the cliff.

I managed to avoid falling to my death by laying flat on my back and scooting just far enough away to where I could see over the edge.

Of course this gave the wolf more time to stalk me, and it was over me before I knew what hit me.

I squeezed my eyes shut, and was about to say my prayers, when I heard a sound I wouldn't expect to hear in a forest.

The sound of glass breaking.

I opened my eyes to find that the beast was swiping away at a purple mist around its nose, and that there was someone there in front of me, blocking the big brown beast.

This glass shards were surrounding them, so I assumed that they must have thrown it.

I laid there in shock for a moment before I heard the person speak.

"Quick! Jump, bury the fear you feel! You must go before you become its next meal!"

I didn't have time to wonder about this person's accent, much less whey they were rhyming their sentences. I needed to go. NOW.

I didn't even hesitate. I jumped with all I had. I could only watch as I fell to the ground. I could only hope that I hadn't jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Chapter 2: Beginnings

"Ahhhh!" I screamed as I fell to my death. Or at least I would have had I not rolled down the hill the cliff led to.

I somehow managed to avoid breaking my neck, at which point I stood up, sparing a look back in the direction of the situation I'd just left.

I couldn't hear anymore roaring, so that was good, but I also couldn't hear the voice of the person who saved me, which didn't bode well for the situation, but something told me that whoever they were, they'd be just fine. After all, they were able to stand up to...whatever that thing was.

I left the cliff behind and made my way down the dirt path before me. The good news was, I'd finally found civilization. There was a town just a few miles out from where I was standing. I could see it over the small bump of a hill this path made.

The bad news however, was that now that I had found my way there, would I be accepted? I had no idea what these people were like. They could dislike outsiders, and I could end up in the dungeons or whatever. Then again, there was always a chance they could be kind and receptive of me.

And so, with positive thoughts in my mind I made my way to the town.

When I got there I was pleasantly surprised to find the name of the place was...Ponyville? I read it on a sign just outside the tiny little village. Seriously, the place couldn't have held more than fifty people, max.

So imagine my surprise when, to my eyes at least, there appeared to be many more people than that.

There was a girl who looked to be a magician, if the strange star patterned witch's hat on her head was any indication.

There was a girl who appeared to be a perpetual drunk, a girl running around with a mailbag, and guy so buff it was as if he lived at the gym.

There was also a group of girls running around the town, laughing and playing. By their height, I assumed they were kids, teenagers most likely. With all this commotion, It came as a surprise to me that no one noticed me. At least, not yet that is.

Speaking of noticing things, it came to my attention that most of the villagers were female, and that all of them, regardless of gender, had some kind of strange tattoo on their right shoulders.

The group of girls from before all had what appeared to be a tri color shield, each with different symbols inside of them. Is there some kind of importance to these tattoos? Why did those three girls have matching ones when all the rest did not?

It was a question for another time it seemed, as I was too exhausted to think. I quickly looked around for a place to rest, and came across a set of four benches, all perfectly aligned into a square and bordered around the edges to separate them from the outside world. There was even a tree to provide shade from the harsh rays of the sun.

It was as if it was put there just for me. I quickly made my way over to it and sat down, eventually deciding to lay down instead, closing my eyes and opting to take a quick nap and figure out just where I was when I finally woke up. I soon found myself drifting into dream land, snoring softly as I slept.

"Hey, Sweetie Belle! Who'd'ya think he is?" Apple Bloom whispered, looking down at the man before her with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't know, Apple Bloom. I'm still trying to figure out where he came from." Sweetie belle answered her friend, raising her own eyebrows as she stared at the creature.

"I wanna know that, too. He certainly isn't from Ponyville, I know that much." Scootaloo parroted, copying her friends' expressions as though they were all somehow mentally connected. Such was the deepness of her friendship.

All three girls had caught sight of him out of the corner of their eyes, but they dismissed it, thinking it to be a trick of the light, or a figment of their-admittedly overactive-imaginations.

But now that they could see that he had in fact, been there, they just had to figure out what it was.

"So, where do you think he's from, girls? Canterlot?" Apple Bloom suggested.

"He certainly has the fashion sense." Scootaloo gestured to his clothes.

"I can't imagine why a Canterlot noble would want to pay visit to our little town." Apple Bloom supplied.

"Princess Celestia visits all the time, Apple Bloom." Sweetie Belle said to her friend.

"Oh! Yeah, right." The country girl chuckled to herself.

"Wait a minute!" Sweetie Belle suddenly shouted. "Do you know what this means, girls?!"

The two others shook their heads, slightly confused as to why their friend was so excited.

Sweetie Belle's smile only widened. "It means that we're the first Ponyvillians to ever entertain a noble!"

The shout caused the group to quickly quiet down, as they watched the creature toss and turn in its sleep.

"Oops!" Sweetie Belle whispered. "I almost woke him up!"

They tried to keep themselves under control, but their old childhood excitement got the better of them, and the trio couldn't hold it back anymore. They shouted "CUTIE MARK CRUSADER HOSTESSES! YAY-!"

They quickly put their hands to their mouths to stop the yelling, but it was too late. The damage had been done.

The man stirred, and its eyes opened slowly. Each individual second those eyes opened felt like an eternity to the three of them. They were frozen in shock at having been found out. What would it do to them?

I was busy having a nice dream when all of a sudden the sound of yelling woke me from my slumber. I slowly opened my eyes to look and see who had disturbed my sleep, only to see the three girls that had ran past me before.

I slowly picked myself up off the bench and sat up straight, looking down at them. The poor girls looked scared out their minds. They were shaking, crying even.

"P-please don't hurt us, Mister! W-we didn't mean to w-wake ya up..."

I wasn't mad at them, but they were so adorable I doubt i could stay mad even if I tried. I smiled and bent down to look at them, lifting my hand to pat their heads.

Of course, they didn't know this, and shrank back in fear of my hand, but when I began to pet their head, they visibly relaxed, leaning into my touch with a smile on their face.

My smile turned into a grin. "Relax girls! I won't hurt you. I'm not even mad. See?" I pointed to my smile with my free left hand's index finger.

They all smiled back and I stopped petting them. "So, what are your names, girls?"

"I'm Sweetie Belle!" said the one with the two tone pink and purple hair. Her voice was cheery and carried with it a politeness that intrigued me.

"I'm Apple Bloom!" The one with the bow said as she pointed to herself, her chest puffed out. She had a country accent that made me smile all over again as I heard it. She was so cute.

"And I'm Scootaloo!" Said the one with the boyish hairstyle. Her voice matched her hair in its boyishness and so did her outfit.

In fact, all their outfits seemed to match them perfectly. Scootaloo had on a pair of blue and white shorts with a rainbow lightning bolt design on the side, and a simple white T-shirt, along with sneakers that matched her shorts.

Apple Bloom had on a green plaid button down shirt and some brown work pants, though she too had on sneakers with an apple design on the front.

Sweetie Belle had on a simple redish, almost pink dress. It was very cute and made her look like a little princess in my opinion.

Now, i'm no expert on fashion, and I had no idea how I knew those outfits matched them. They just sort of...fit to me.

"And whatever would the three of you want with me?" I asked in the kindest voice possible, just in case they were still a bit afraid of me. I even brought out my smile again just to be safe.

They smiled back again, showing that I had gotten my message across, and then Apple Bloom spoke.

"Well, we were kinda wonderin' who ya are." She twiddled her thumbs and looked away blushing, as if it was embarrassing for her to ask the question. I think she was trying to be considerate of my feelings when it came to suddenly being asked a question like that. It was nice of her to do that even though she didn't know me.

"Well, my name is Mike Vilmont. It's very nice to meet all of you." I answered her as politely as I could in return for her consideration.

"It's nice to meet you, too, sir!" Sweetie Belle smiled wide at me.

"Well, aren't you polite. Mike is just fine though. No need for formalities." I said. I didn't want them to think I was some stuck up guy who stands on ceremony or something.

"I learned it from my sister! Okay. Just Mike then." Sweetie Belle said, still smiling. Her happiness was infectious.

"Come on, Mike! Ya gotta meet someone!" Apple Bloom exclaimed, yanking me from my seat on the bench and nearly dragging me along with them.

Fortunately, Apple Bloom realized her mistake and let go of my arm.

"Oh, sorry, Mike. Guess I got a little too excited, huh?"

"It's fine, Apple Bloom. Who are we going to see?" I asked, curious as to just who was so important it warranted being dragged by my arms all the way there.

"Our friend Twilight. She's a princess!" I heard Apple Bloom answer me despite not looking at me anymore. That certainly qualified in the 'drag me there quickly' category. And they were her friends? Just who was this princess of theirs?

"She lives in that castle over there!" Scootaloo called out, pointing in the direction of a giant crystal castle literally jutting out from the ground.

'How in the world did I miss that?' I asked myself as I sweat dropped at its sheer size.

Apple Bloom had taken to dragging me along again, but I didn't mind this time. I was much more interested in meeting this Twilight. I wanted to see just how the other half lived, so to speak.

The rest of my thoughts were canceled as we made our way down the path to the castle. I couldn't wait to find out more about this place.

Chapter 4: Royal Meeting-Part 2

Author's Note

Sorry about the two day absence guys! Some things happened and my schedule got messed up. But i'm back with another chapter! Enjoy!

Chapter 4: Royal Meeting-Part 2

The tour continued on after the library. We passed through the residential hall, as I decided to call it after finding out that other people actually lived here, and went straight for the kitchen.

Turns out, I hadn't eaten ever since I got here, and was understandably starving. So, it was with a growling stomach, and embarrassing laughter that we all made our way to the dining hall, Twilight making conversation along the way.

"So...I don't think I ever asked you your name." Twilight said as we turned a corner. I could see steam risng from what had to be the kitchen, considering said steam smelled delicious. I could only wonder what the food tasted like.

"It's Mike. Mike Vilmont." I answered, my head still turned in the direction of the kitchen. I was just barely paying enough attention to answer her question.

"well, it's nice to meet you, Mike. My name is Twilight Sparkle."

Hm. Wasn't expecting that for a name. Princess Twilight Sparkle. Pretty prissy for a title, but...I like it

When I finally managed to tear my eyes away from the kitchen and look straight, I said, "It's nice to meet you too, Twilight. Say, what's that delicious smell in the air?"

"Oh, that? That's just my assistant, Spike. He's cooking dinner."

"You have a personal chef?" I asked, intrigued.

"Nope. Spike's my assistant He helps me with everything, not just cooking." Twilight corrected me.

"I see. So is he a good assistant?"

"Well, he is my number one assistant, after all. That should tell you all you need to know."

"I see. So he's that good, huh?"

"Yep! Although he was kind of jealous that I needed another one for nighttime research. Don't tell him I told you, though." Suddenly, Twilight turned around and leaned up towards me, no doubt trying to whisper in my ear. I tunred my left towards her and she said,

"He tends to get a little cranky when I mention it."

She pulled back, and I turned forward and smiled at her. "My lips are sealed." I said, making a sealing gesture with my thumb and index finger over my mouth.

Twilight smiled at me. "Good. The last thing we want is for Spike to get jealous again."

Our conversation continued well into the dining room, which was just one more right turn and a left away from my field of vision. When we got there... I was speechless.

The place wasn't a dining hall. It was a banquet hall. The high ceiling was like an insurmountable wall, and the stain glass windows poured their colors onto the ground through the aid of the sun's rays. The chandeliers held candles rather than light bulbs, and there was a six pointed purple star mounting the back wall. It felt more like a church than anything.

But nothing could've prepared me for the spread. Sure it was the usual plates, knives, forks, and spoons, but there was also a horn of plenty full of fruit, bread, and other small samples. And the table, the table alone looked like it would cost several millions of dollars to install (I say install because the thing looked for all the world like it was built into the floor). The thing took up most of the space in the room lengthwise, and almost looked like it would never end.

It had a table cloth set on it that bore the same insignia as the six pointed star on Twilight's right shoulder. But even despite that, it still somehow managed to catch enough of the sun's light to shine through the fabric like a neon sign that said,

"Warning: Fancy Food Alert!"

I could only imagine what the whole thing would look like once there was actual food on the table.

Apparently, Twilight could see my awed expression, because she asked,

"Quite the shock, isn't it?"

I snapped my head in her direction so fast I think I might have heard a few bones pop. "Oh, you have no idea. Where I come from, we don't have things like this anymore."

"Really?" Twilight asked as we sat down to wait. The way she asked it made me think she had already thought something about me. Her next words confirmed my suspicions. "I thought Canterlot nobles ate like this almost everyday!"

This time it was my turn to give her a curious look. "What's Canterlot?"

It was at this moment, That Twilight knew, she fucked up. Her entire expression fell from happy, to confused, to downright sad as she looked down at her shoes. It was as if her entire world had come crashing down. Or at least her preconceived notions of me.

"But...but I thought...With you, and the suit, and the hair, and the... I mean I kind of had a feeling with the way you talk but-" Twilight was stumbling over her words at this point. "Ugh! Nevermind!" Eentually, however, she just gave up.

"Oh, you mean, my suit? This suit's for-"

I cut myself off as I looked down to see that I did indeed still have my funeral suit on. I went to sleep in it on the day I got here, wherever here was.

Seeing the suit again brought back memories of my parents, especially my dad, who died in a suit similar to this one.

The thought that I had somehow died and been brought here briefly crossed my mind, and it only served to make the pain that much harder to bear.

Slowly, my situation started to sink in. I was in an unknown place, with unknown people. There was no one I knew, or was familiar with, and everything around me was different. I had just gone through some big changes pretty fast, and it was all starting to catch up to me.

It took me a moment to realize that I was gripping my tie like my life depended on it. I let go, only to see it slightly wrinkled from the pressure I had put on it.

Twilight, ever the observant one, noticed this too, and decided to speak up. "What, Mike? What is the suit for? You don't have to tell me now, or even at all, but know that I will be here if you do decide to tell me."

I looked over to Twilight. Her eyes were sincere and her expression was one of pure, true, honest to goodness worry, as if I was the only one that mattered in that moment.

It wasn't like I was trying to gauge whether she truly cared about me, but even if she didn't, she cared enough to hear my story. To give me an ear that would listen to all of my troubles. But there was one thing keeping me from doing that.

As I looked all around me, at Twilight, and at the kids who, despite their silence, were now standing behind me, their hands on my shoulders, I realized that, well, I couldn't just ruin dinner like that, now could I?

I put on a small, but slightly genuine smile, and said, "I'll tell you girls later, after we eat."

It seems Twilight understood, as she smiled at me and said, "Alright. We'll wait until after dinner, then."

Suddenly, Twilight got up and walked toward the exit, leaving both me and the girls stunned for about two seconds each.

"Hey, wait! Where are you going?" I called to her.

She turned to me and giggled, smiling "It's nothing! I just have to go tell Spike we have a guest!" She turned back around, only to realize something and do a complete 180 all over again. "Mind telling me what it is you prefer to eat?"

I laughed and answered her question, in great detail I might add. She nodded and turned around, walking away. All I could do was watch her leave, all the way up until she disappeared behind the corner to the kitchen.

Chapter 5: Reliving The Past

After the meal, the tour was put on hold in favor of hearing my story.

Twilight insisted that I should only tell it when I feel comfortable enough to do so. When I told her that it was fine, however, she ignored me and took us to her room, saying,

"The best way to tell an uncomfortable story is to be as comfortable as possible while doing it."

I could only assume that meant she wanted me to feel safe and secure while telling it, so that I don't feel like I have to hide anything from them.

It was a nice gesture, and I really appreciated it, but all in all it was a bit embarrassing. The fact that Twilight would go to all this trouble just to make me feel better was a bit overwhelming. It felt like I didn't deserve it.

That being said, I wasn't gonna look a gift horse in the mouth and be ungrateful. If fate was giving me a chance to unload my grief, I would take it with pleasure.

"Well, you see...my parents died. Today. On my 22nd birthday. It may not seem like much of an explanation, but the wound is still fresh. My parents were great people. They were kind, caring, and understanding. And yeah, sometimes they were strict with me, but what kid hasn't made mistakes, right? No one's perfect. I still have so many fond memories of them, too. I remember the lullaby my mom used to sing to me whenever I would go to sleep. I remember going fishing with my dad. We would sit in a boat and go out onto the lake, facing away from each other as we both waited for a bite on our lines. I remember we would talk for hours about almost nothing as we listened to the birds chirping in the early hours of the morning, the smell of grass tingling against our senses. And it was the same with my brother. We had the typical dynamic of brothers. One would annoy the other to no end, and the other would despise his older sibling for as long as he lived, but even still we were family, and family sticks together. He was always there for me when I needed him, my brother. He never let me down, not even once. I just hate that it all had to end so suddenly. Even my little sister..."

As Twilight, the girls, and now Spike, sat there listening to me tell my story, I noticed That they were all sobbing quietly, little sniffles letting me know where they were in the dark of the night. I was about to try and stop their crying, to tell them that it was alright, but then Twilight spoke up, saying,

"Oh my...Mike, I...I don't know what to say, I...to think that the very ones who cared for you your entire life would have to leave you on the very cusp of adulthood is just...well it's too unfair for words! I can't imagine losing my parents. They've cared for me my entire life, and to lose them so suddenly, so unpredictably, without even a chance to say goodbye is just...it's just..."

"Don't worry about it, Twilight. Eventually, I was able to get over my grief long enough to pay a visit to my parents old place. They left it to me in their will but I never really went. I couldn't. The memories were too painful. Besides, at least I was finally able to see them at the funeral. I got one last look at them before I showed up here. I guess it was just...bad luck, is all."

"No!"

The sudden exclamation caught my attention as if a gunshot had been fired. I was surprised to find it had come from Twilight herself.

"Um...Twilight..." I tried to say, but she cut me off.

"No, I won't allow it! Don't you dare say it was just bad luck! Don't you dare say it's alright! Don't tell me not to worry about it! Any normal person would be worried sick about you right now!"

I was stunned. I couldn't say a word. Seeing Twilight so torn up over me had shocked me into silence. And her expression kept me from saying anything to counter her words. I wanted to tell her it was alright. That I would get over it. That with time, it would all heal, and I would be back to my old self. But Twilight's words had taken my breath away.

Her expression was one of anger. Not at me, but at the world I lived in. From her eyes flowed righteous tears that I could tell held a deep kindness in them. Her teeth were clenched in barely contained rage. I could tell she wanted to scream her lungs out and cry out in defiance against whatever cosmic force put me in such a state.

Never had I seen such passion, such fire in one person's eyes, all for the sake of another. Never had I seen such compassion from another being to another. Never had I been cried for like she was crying for me now.

Suddenly I felt Twilight wrap her arms around me, and I accepted her hug, giving her one back. We stayed like that for quite a while until Twilight finally spoke the words that I would've told her. The words that I thought I already knew, but was apparently so wrong about. The words I needed to hear, but had deluded myself into thinking that I already knew what grief was like, and what it meant to be in pain. With resolve in her tone, she spoke the words I would carry with me throughout my journey in this new place.

"It'll be okay, Mike. My friends and I are all here for you. Whenever you need us, we'll be here to help. Just call on any one of us and we'll be right there waiting for you to share your troubles with us."

She finally stopped hugging me and let go. When she stood up, she had a wide grin on her face, and her tears had dried up on her face. She wiped them away, put her hands on her hips, puffed out her chest, and said,

"From now on, We're your family, Mike. And this time, we won't be going anywhere!"

I was suddenly well aware of the tears rolling down my face. I hadn't even realized I'd been crying. I quickly wiped my eyes and looked up at Twilight. Was she serious? Because if she was, then I had just gotten more lucky than i'd ever been in my entire life.

I heard a voice to my left, and realized it was one of the girls talking, "Yeah! Twilight's right! We're here for you Mike. The cutie mark crusaders will hep make you feel right at home!" It was Apple Bloom. And judging by the smiles on the other two girls' faces, they both agreed as well.

If my ears weren't deceiving me, and I wasn't dreaming, then chances are I had a new family. And I promised myself right then, that this one, would be different.

Chapter 6: Meeting The Family

As I woke up the next morning, I found myself to face with...well, no one. Not a single person was there before me and as I sat up and looked around, it only served to make the place feel even more empty upon my realization that the room was indeed devoid of any life except my own.

It briefly reminded me of my life at home and how now I was going to have to find a way to live without my parents in my life. Most people take for granted what it means to have parents, or even, people you can rely on. They try so hard to escape from what they consider a prison, or some kind of trap, when in reality, we never stop needing our family. Hell, i'm Twenty-two. I have a job-well, had a job-, a few hobbies, and a place to call my own. I'm my own man and I have never stopped needing my parents for some things. Whether it be advice, A shoulder to cry on, or even just company or someone to lend an ear to my problems, I have always needed them, and it has always surprised me when people say things like, "I'm too old for this", or "It's embarrassing." Not that I haven't done my fair share as a kid of course.

Despite my brief relapse into sadness, upon remembering the events of last night, my mood brightened considerably, and I soon had a smile on my face once again.

Even if Twilight and the others weren't with me, they were still somewhere around the house at this point, I was sure of it. It was way too early for them to be anywhere else anyway.

I got out of bed and made my way out the door and down the corridors, searching for the kitchen. My mind automatically went to breakfast, and thus I chose to look there, hoping to find them eating so that I could perhaps join them.

That is until I realized that in the haze of last night's events, I had forgotten to pay attention, and currently had no idea where I was.

And so I wandered around for a bit, hoping and praying to come across the kitchen at some point in my travels.

As I made my way through the halls, I was treated to a reminder of just how big this place was. The ceiling was easily Three times my height, and the high walls were decorated almost everywhere with polished crystal. The designs on them were so well made that I thought I was in some kind of fantasy land. It reminded me so much of all those stories I used to read about knights killing dragons, wars fought in the name of honor, and mythical beasts walking the earth alongside humans. It was all so fanciful that I couldn't take my eyes off it the whole way down the hall.

Unfortunately, this led to me not watching were I was going, and eventually running into someone.

"Oh...ow...Sorry about that. Are you okay?" I asked after picking myself up off the ground. I reached out a hand to help them up and saw that it was Twilight.

"Oh, hey, Twilight. What are you doing here?" I asked, surprised that she was in the hall rather than the kitchen as I had thought.

"Oh, well, I was actually looking for you!" Twilight responded with a small gasp of surprise. "What a coincidence. I didn't expect to find you out of bed yet. Early riser, huh?"

"The best kind." I told her. We both laughed at that.

"Come with me. The others are downstairs. They can't wait to meet you." Twilight suddenly said, turning around and gesturing me toward her.

"The others? You mean your friends?" I asked, slightly confused.

"Yep, that's them!"

We made our way downstairs, and back into the foyer, which was big enough to be a room by itself and was treated as such as well.

The floor was circular all the way until you reached the hallways, where it was squeezed into a space just big enough to fit two people.

In the foyer was a rather lengthy couch, a coffee table, two chairs off to the side and essentially nothing else. I was disappointed that it was rather barren compared to the rest of the castle, but what really had my attention were the five girls seated on the couch in front of me.

They each took up one seat on the big thing, leaving no room for either me or Twilight to sit. It didn't seem to bother her, however, as she simply grabbed one of the far off chairs, dragged it over to the table, and sat in front of the five girls at the table.

They all had cups of tea, but something told me they hadn't touched them since they were poured.

It took me a moment to notice that the mood in the room had significantly changed. There was no exchanging of greetings, no happy expressions. Even the idle sounds in the room (Shuffling, creaking, and the like) had ceased. All that was left was pure and utter, silence.

I, who had been standing behind the five girls staring at the wall for a few minutes due to being too nervous to look at Twilight, gathered enough courage to make my way over to Twilight's side, where I stood, not even bothering to get a chair.

For a long while, no one said anything.

Then all of a sudden a single voice cut through the thick gloom that had descended upon the room.

"Oh, darling, I must insist that you stop with all this tension! You're scaring the poor boy!" My eyes shot over to the source of the voice, only to see a beautiful girl with deep purple hair and striking blue eyes. For a moment I could swear I saw her sparkling.

She stood up and walked over to me, a warm smile on her face. She leaned up to look me in the eye and I pulled back a little, if only out of shyness.

After a while she said, "Why, you're quite a handsome man, aren't you?" Her eyelashes fluttered seductively, and I found myself blushing and backing further away, even as a smile found its way onto my face.

"U-um...Thanks?" I said, stuttering and sweating now.

"Oh, you're quite welcome darling. I do so love your hair. Ah, but where are my manners?" She held out a hand for me to shake. I took it with...slightly less trepidation as before. It's only so many times in life you meet a woman this beautiful. "My name is Rarity. I hope to get to know you quite well in the coming days."

"I-i'm Mike. Mike VIlmont. It's nice to meet you." I managed to say through a sudden catch in my throat

"Likewise." She says.

She winked at me and turned around, walking away, her hips swaying side to side as she walked.

Rarity's introduction must've opened the floodgates, because with the tension sufficiently broken, everyone began speaking without restraint.

The next one to greet me was a rainbow haired girl. She simply oozed tomboy, and the next words out of her mouth confirmed it.

"Hm...he doesn't look too tough to me." she asked as she got up, presumably to get a better look at me.

As she stood there in front of me, examining me from head to toe as if she were a doctor looking at a patient, I found myself taking a step back. I was never good with her type. It's not that I disliked tomboys, it's just...they can be a little hard to deal with.

She seemed satisfied as she finally stepped back, giving me room to breathe. "Mm...I cold take 'im."

And here it comes. The challenge to a fight. Now do you see what I mean?

"Anyway, what's up new guy? My name's Rainbow Dash, but you can just call me Dash. All my friends do."

Okay, so maybe she wasn't as bad as she sounded. She tried for a handshake. One which I happily returned.

"Nice to meet you." I said in my most friendly voice. I even offered her a smile to go with it. She smiled back and returned to her seat, her mood seemingly brightened.

Next up was a girl I almost believed could never exist. Her entire demeanor screamed fragile. She even tensed up when I focused on her, and I didn't even so much as blink. She hid herself behind her hair, sporting what had to be the cutest blush possible and said, in a -thankfully audible- voice,

"Hi. I-I'm...F-Fluttershy."

And that sealed it. Her voice was adorable. She sounded as if a frightened rabbit had somehow learned English and was too shy to try and speak it.

She was the embodiment of innocence, and I couldn't help wanting to protect her. However, before my big brother instincts kicked in, I was interrupted by a sudden scream.

"AAAAHHHH! Areyounew?Didyoujustgethere?OH!Wehavetothrowapartyrightawa-!" The sudden onslaught of questions, accompanied by a rush of pink, the feeling of falling to the ground and the biggest pair of knockers I'd seen so far, all seemed to stop, and I was finally able to stand and collect myself properly.

"Huh? What just happened?"

"Don't think too hard about it, Sugarcube. Trust me, it'll just make yer head hurt."

I was brought out of my trance like state by a distinctly southern accent. I looked around for the owner of the voice.

"Over here, Sugarcube." I followed the voice, looking to my left. Another girl, this one wearing a stetson and holding what looked to be a lasso in her hands. A lasso that was tied securely around the waist of a certain pink haired girl. "Howdy. My name's Applejack. This here's Pinkie Pie."

"Sorry about knocking you over. I just get so excited when I see new people that I just can't contain myself! Ehehehe!"

I chuckled nervously and smiled. For some reason, whatever it was, I just couldn't stay mad at her. Maybe it was just her bubbly personality, but all my discomfort about the situation just melted away in that instant.

"It's fine. Don't worry about it."

"Really? Oh goodie! We just have to throw you a party To welcome you to town! Come on, Twilight, can we, can we, pleeeaaase?"

"I'm afraid a party is going to have to wait, Pinkie. We have something very important to talk about."

"Aww. phooey."

"Important? What do you-" Suddenly the events of last night came back to me once again. They were gone in all the commotion, but now with it on my mind, it came back in full force. "Oh..."

"That's right. Mike, please tell the girls what you told me last night."

Chapter 7: Unburdened

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 8: Reborn

The next morning I woke up feeling more comfortable than I'd felt in a very long time. I was laying in bed, wrapped up in covers that felt like heaven and surrounded by a feeling of...freshness.

No I'm not a vegetable, shut up.

I just felt...new. As if all my struggles were over, and I was free to just...be. My mind was clear, My body was rested, and the chill in the air gave me more energy than I knew what to do with.

But just before I could drag myself out of bed to start my morning routine, I heard a voice call out to me.

"Hey there, champ."

It was a new voice that I was positive i'd never heard before. I looked around the room, only to find a girl I'd never seen, sitting on the edge of the bed I was in. I sat up and stretched, more an unconscious reaction to my sudden elevation than anything. Then, I turned my gaze toward the strange new woman in the room.

"Wh-who are-"

"Starlight Glimmer. Twilight Sparkle's former student and current guidance counselor for the school of friendship. She told me about you. I'm...sorry for your loss."

"Yeah. You and everyone else." I said, slight irritation on my face.

"What do you mean?" She asked, genuine concern on her face.

"Sorry, it's not you. It's just that...well, I'm grateful you girls are taking care of me, but I'm okay. I know I went through something horrible, and I know it's gonna take a while for things to get back to normal, but constantly reminding me how much I suffered doesn't do much in the way of helping. I know I can't just not think about it, but it doesn't have to define me or dominate my life."

"Oh, I...see..." Starlight seemed deep in thought at that. Is it a bad time to mention she made cute faces? Even her worried face made her look absolutely adorable! "Then...I won't bring it up. Not until you're ready. After all, doctor-patient security, right?"

Now it was my turn to ask what she meant. "Wait? What do you mean by that?"

"Oh! That's right, you don't know!" She stood up and put her hands on her hips, grinning wildly as she looked down at me. Did I forget to mention she was rather tall?

"From now on, I'm your personal counselor!"

In that moment, I heard everything in the world stop just for a moment, as if those words were the pass code to some secret hidden mechanism that controlled the world.

"Um...what?"

"Well...not exactly personal. I still have to do my job. Just think of it as moral support. I'll be there for you if you ever need anything or wanna talk. Stuff like that. I'll even be there to help you if you need help getting around in this world. It's my job to make sure your adjustment to life here goes smoothly. If it makes you feel any better, you can even think of me as your big sister."

"Sister, huh?" was all I said. That was a lot to take in. First it was the girls' -Especially Rainbow's- emotional breakdowns, and now I get a personal guide to look after me while I'm living here. Just how much did those girls care for me?

I was about to finally get up when I heard a knock coming from the door. When I went to the door and opened it, I was surprised to see...

"Rainbow Dash? What are you doing here?"

Rainbow out her hands on her hips and gave an obviously faked, "Hmph! For your information, I live here." She opened one eye, most likely to check my reaction, but couldn't stop herself from smiling long enough for it to work.

"I came to tell you breakfast was ready."

"Well now...That was awfully nice of you." I said, smiling at her.

A bright red blush spread across her face faster than butter on toast and she started stumbling over her words.

"U-um...well, I uh...A-anyway, it's time for breakfast! Come down soon, okay?" And with that she shot downstairs faster than most Olympic sprinters.

Starlight and I shared a look. We didn't even need to say anything to know exactly what the other was thinking.

"So obvious."

With that, Starlight and I headed downstairs to the banquet hall. Luckily I still remembered where it was located so I didn't have to do that much searching.

When we got to the hall, I nearly had a heart attack. The table was filled with foods from one end to the other, making it look almost like an actual feast was going on and not just someone's plain old breakfast. What I didn't notice until I sat down, however, was that despite all the amazing decor and the abundance of food, almost all of it was vegetables. Salads, sandwiches, bowls of fruit, etc. In fact, the only one to get any kind of meat was me, when Fluttershy came by and sat my plate down in front of me.

"Here ya go." She had said then, in a voice similar to a mouse squeaking.

I simply stared at the abundance of greens across the table without paying much attention to the grand and wonderful set up that was my own plate.

When I realized this, I looked down and saw that my plate was indeed the only one with any kind of meat on it. It wasn't anything particularly special. Just a nice thick, juicy, practically glistening piece of chicken with an aroma that nearly brought me to tears. Yeah. Nothing too special at all.

Before I could get dragged any further into the masterpiece that was this single piece of chicken, I heard someone calling me.

"Mike? Is everything alright darling? Is it...not to your liking?" It was Rarity. I looked up and saw that she was indeed worried about how I liked the meal. She had a look on her face that said all I needed to know about the situation.

She had made the food, and would be completely crushed if I told her I didn't like the food (Which was as far from the truth as I could hope for it to be.)

"Oh no! It's not that. It's just...why are you all not eating any meat?"

Rarity visibly relaxed. "Oh my... For a moment I thought... oh well, nevermind."

"It's because we're vegetarian. You don't have that where you're from?" Twilight asked, giving me a curious look..

"No, we do. It's just...all of you? Not one of you eats meat?"

"Nope! Not a one!" Pinkie said, smiling and almost looking proud to not eat the stuff.

"Well. we don't. In fact the majority of our people don't eat meat. It's just not to our preference. but that's not to say that other cultures don't, and even some of our people have at least tried it before."

"I see. I felt kind of guilty being the only one eating any. But if that's the case then I guess i'll chow down."

I begin to eat, tasting the chicken first. Remember when I almost burst into tears? Well, i'm crying now. "This...is the most...amazing chicken...i've had in my life."

"Why, Mike! I know I wanted to know if you liked it but, for you to say such a thing is..." Rartiy blushed this time. What's up with these girls getting easily embarrassed? Are they easily flustered by nature or something?

"Oh no, I'm serious. This is quite literally the greatest thing i've ever tasted. I almost feel bad eating it!" I swallowed my food, then chuckled at my small joke.

"Well, I see someone's enjoying themselves."

The sudden voice caught me off guard, and I turned my head to see who was speaking. Only to nearly drop the chicken when I laid eyes on two people who had to be the most beautiful women I had ever seen. If I thought Pinkie had big ones, just looking at those made her balloons look like marbles.

But the most striking part about them wasn't their breasts. It was their faces.

Deep, kind magenta eyes, full ruby red lips, skin that just radiated warmth and softness and a smile that could make any man bend over backwards just to get her stuff she still doesn't want.

And that was just one of them.

The other had eyes as blue as the sky and as deep as the ocean, lips that spoke volumes without even parting, and skin that seemed to glow in the light of the room.

But what really hit me, was their voices. I knew I was in for something I hadn't been expecting when I heard the first one say,

"How do you do? Mike, is it? My name is Celestia, princess of Equestria. I welcome you to our humble nation. Please make yourself at home."

Chapter 9: A Royal Welcome

Author's Note

Hi guys! Here's another chapter for you all. I told you I was back. I deeply apologize for the long wait. Work and my own laziness got in the way constantly, but I managed to make my way back here. I know this isn't my usual update time, but I desperately wanted to get this to you guys. Tell me if the quality dropped at all! You will be getting more of this in the future after all. Take care, and enjoy!

Chapter 9: A Royal Welcome

"Um...Mike? Whatever is the matter?" Princess Celestia said as her expression turned from one of gentle happiness to great worry in the span of a second.

It was only then that I realized I had been staring for a whole minute and a half.

"Oh, well, It's nothing!" I said as I chuckled nervously. "It's just...you're so beautiful and-"

I covered my mouth as soon as I said it. 'Stupid! What were you thinking?! This woman is royalty! Have some respect!'

"Oh my...what a charmer he is. You've stumbled upon quite a gentleman haven't you, Twilight."

I looked over at her to see that she too had gone silent, and was blushing profusely- no doubt from embarrassment at being put on the spot- as she tried to think of an answer to her question.

"Pfft! Well...you know..." She waved her hand as if to wave away the question.

"No, I'm afraid we do not, Twilight Sparkle." Said a voice to my left. When I turned to see who it was, I saw the blue-eyed woman this time. "Pray tell, dearest Mike. Could thou perhaps be...interested...in us~?"

That caught my attention a little bit, and my face began to heat up a bit. "U-um...well..." Was she coming onto me? Never mind the fact that she sounded like she belonged in medieval times, this definitely qualified as flirting!

Unfortunately (and perhaps fortunately) Celestia stepped in to stop her, grabbing her and pulling her away from me. "Sister! Stop it!"

"Aw, we were just teasing him a bit..." Luna says as she pouts and crosses her arms.

Celestia turned to me with a big smile and said, "Don't mind her, she's like this with everyone. This is my sister Luna, by the way. My younger sibling and fellow princess of Equestria."

I was broken out of whatever trance Luna's words had put me in at those words. "Wait a minute. Fellow princess? You're both royalty?"

Celestia herself seemed confused as well "Well...yes. Is it not like that where you come from?"

"No. We only have one ruler for each nation where I come from."

"Oh, I see. Your people must be quite skilled to be able to handle such a task alone." Celestia said, the smile never leaving her face

"They're not alone. All of our leaders have a group of people around them to help them run the country and make sure they don't go overboard."

"Oh really? Then I suppose I should say they are quite lucky, instead."

"That sounds about right. Hey wait. How do you know my name?"

"Yes, well, about that. Twilight sent us a letter telling us of your...circumstances, and we thought we would come and introduce ourselves. Please, if there is ever anything you need, anything at all, do not hesitate to ask."

"Alright. I'll keep that in mind. Thank you." I said, smiling nervously once again. How these girls managed to get even royalty on my side I'll never know.

"Say, Twilight. Do you mind if we sit with you?" Celestia asked, giving her the warmest smile i'd seen on anyone.

"Not at all, Princess! Please, feel free!" Twilight said, noticeably sweating.

"Now how many times have I told you to call me Celestia? We're both royalty you know?"

Twilight blushed again at this. "Right, sorry. Still getting used to that."

"T' is alright, Twilight Sparkle. We understand. Taketh thy time."

I silently chuckled to myself as I heard that one. That is until the two bombshells sat down...right next to me. I could swear I felt a certain blue-eyed princess's breasts pressing against my arm.

Luckily Celestia glared at her, and she stopped. Oh, my heart.

We sat like this for the rest of the meal. It lasted pretty long, too. By the time I realized the food was gone, it was already 3 o' clock.

I got up and managed to keep my composure long enough to say, "Well, that was delicious. Thanks for the food, Rarity."

She smiled and stood up as well. "Well, of course, darling. It was my pleasure."

Soon, everyone was filing out of the room, and I was the last one left. Well, all except for Luna, who for some reason, had been standing completely still for two minutes after the others left.

I made my way out of the dining room, all the way up until the point where my feet exited the door, at which point I turned around to look at Luna. She still hadn't moved. I called out to her.

"Um...Luna?"

This seemed to get a response out of her. "Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

"Oh! Y-yes. I'm alright."

She then proceeded to walk around the table, apparently following me out of the kitchen.

She stops however, when she gets close to me, bending down to look me dead in the eyes. Her blue eyes bore into mine, once again reminding me of that deep, never-ending ocean. But there was something odd about them this time. They seemed to...glow. They pulsed with mesmerizing light that felt almost hypnotic in nature, and yet I felt no less in control of myself than I had been prior to this moment. And yet, for some reason. I couldn't look away.

I was snapped out of my trance however, when I heard her say, "You're quite easy on the eyes, dearest Mike."

Her voice sounded...different. More...adult. She almost sounded like a completely different person altogether.

I felt her hands brush against my chin, and saw her flash me a quick smile, before my delusions were shattered entirely by her slamming her hand against the wall and fixing me with a glare that would've made any man piss their pants. Good thing I didn't have to pee.

"I don't know who you are or where you came from, but If you hurt her, i'll make you wish you stayed there."

Then she blinked and whatever that was...was gone.

"Mike? Art thou alright? Breakfast is over now, is it not?"

It was my turn to snap out of it. "Oh. Uh...yeah. I'm fine. Coming."

"Don't take too long~!" She winked at me and left, her playful self having returned. But, when I turned to look at her, I could still see that glow, just behind her eyes. Whoever that was, they were still there.

"...and that's Rarity's boutique, that's Sweet Apple Acres, and that's Sugar Cube Corner!" Starlight explained to me, pointing the mentioned places out as we made our way through town. She had opted to take me sightseeing to help me get a better grip on where I-as well as everything in town-was. She thought it would help me relax. Get used to things here in Equestria. I appreciate her effort but, that isn't the problem anymore. This place still feels unfamiliar sure, but I'm more worried about what happened to Princess Luna. I know that whoever I talked to wasn't her. It couldn't have been. And that threat...

I think I'm gonna have to watch my back from here on out...

"Mike? Everything okay? You've been spacing out for the past five minutes." Starlight Glimmer's voice woke me from my trance and I looked up to see her giving me a worried look as she laid a hand on my shoulder. "It's alright. You don't have to worry. You're not alone anymore. And we'll never leave you."

"Oh, that? Don't worry, it's not that. It still hurts, but I'd be pathetic if I let that continuously get me down."

"Oh? Then what is it?"

I weighed my options. I could tell her about Luna, but that would just make me sound crazy, or I could keep it to myself, and save her the worry of thinking I really have lost my mind.

"It's...nothing. Don't worry about it."

Yeah...don't worry about it. That's my job. And it's a job I hope I get fired from.

Chapter 10-Noble Emotions- Part 1

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 3: Royal Meeting-Part 1

When we finally made our way to Twilight's castle, the kids were no doubt excited. Sweetie Belle had finally let go of my arm, and I was now simply watching and waiting for the door to open.

She had already knocked on the door, so that saved us a couple of minutes of having to decide how loud to knock, and a lot of wondering whether or not this Twilight person was asleep.

To be honest I couldn't wait to see what this person looked like. Was she a real, honest to goodness Princess, or was it just a nickname? was she regal and sophisticated, graceful and well mannered? The anticipation was killing me.

After about another two minutes we heard groaning on the other end, followed by a rather annoyed sounding, "I'm coming, I'm coming!"

'Well, that was unexpected.' I thought. Her voice, while girly and cute, was hidden behind a tone that spoke of extreme irritation and frustration. What could she possibly be so upset about?

My question was quickly answered, however, when I saw the door slowly open to reveal a girl in a white lab coat.

Her purple and pink hair was a complete mess, she had quills sticking out of tangles in her locks at odd angles (I'm pretty sure the feather on one of those quills is broken, too), and there was an extremely long piece of parchment hanging by a roll on top of her head, which chose now to unroll itself and fall right into her face.

She lifted it up to reveal tired, bloodshot eyes, complete with bags and all, drool hanging from her lower lip and ink marks on her face from having likely slept on her pen.

Needless to say, this was not what I expected.

When she saw the three teenagers, her mood brightened considerably. "Oh! It's you three! Hi girls!" She waved a gloved hand to them, and they waved back.

"What brings you to the castle today? You girls rarely ever visit me now that you have your cutie marks."

As I listened to the conversation, I took note of the phrase 'Cutie Mark', and stored it for later. Does this word have something to do with thesse strange tattoos I keep seeing on everyone?

"Yeah..." Sweetie Belle confirmed Twilight's statement. "Sorry about that. Helping people find their special talent is a lot of work."

"I would imagine so." Twilight said, smiling down at the three of them. "Now why don't you three come on inside. I'll make tea, and we can catch up!"

I now understood what the loud noise was that woke me up. I was getting a front row seat to it as the trio said, in unison,

"YAY, TEA AT TWILIGHT'S!"

I wish I had covered my ears when I had the chance.

"Can our friend come, too?" Scootaloo asked.

"Sure they can! Your friend is welcome to join us at any time!" Twilight looked around for moment, then back to the girls with a confused look on her face.

"Uh...where are they?"

"He's right here, Twilight!" Apple Bloom called out, gesturing to me.

When Twilight saw me, her eyes widened. The only possible reason I can see for this being the case is that i'm easily a head taller than her, if not more.

At 6'2" I did stand taller than some people I knew back in high school, so this wasn't a big deal.

Apparently it was for Twilight however, as she started to stumble over her words a bit. "Oookay, sure, let's let him in."

With that, Twilight turned around and opened the door, letting our little group of four come inside. I was immediately floored by how beautiful the whole thing was. The crystal decor, the marble flooring, the high ceiling. It was almost like I was in a-

Oh, wait, I am in a castle.

This...was...great!

While I was marveling at the whole setup, however, Twilight took the opportunity to go and make herself look decent. When she came back and saw that I was still in a state pf perpetual shock, she said,

"You like it? I've lived here for so long the grandiose nature of this place just flies right over my head most days."

To say I liked it was an understatement. My inner kid was screaming at the top of it's lungs for me to run around and explore this place. But my outer adult kept me for making a fool of myself in front of strangers. Thank god.

"Yeah, it's great! Everything is so bright and colorful and shiny, it's like i'm inside a treasure chest or something." I said, grinning wide.

"Well, I wouldn't go that far." Twilight said, waving away my question with a light blush to her cheeks. "Come on, I'll give you a tour."

"Sounds great to me!" I said, placing my fists on my hips in a superman pose before continuing forward, following after Twilight.

"To start our tour off, we have the library. It's my favorite place in the whole castle." Twilight said to me as we stood just inside the door of what had to be the largest library i'd ever seen. This place would put most public libraries on my world to shame.

Rows upon rows upon rows of bookcases holding hundreds upon hundreds of books lined the walls of the place. There were inner rows as well, creating isles so narrow that we had to walk in a straight line just to pass through them.

The only sign of a librarian's desk was a small corner section on the far left stationed right next to a set of spiraling stairs that led up to the second floor bookcases which reached all the way to the ceiling.

I was in awe.

All it needed now was a few magical sparkling lights and spirits for occupants and it would be straight out of a fantasy land.

I was so engrossed in my reverie that I hadn't noticed Twilight standing in front of me. I looked down to see her twiddling her thumbs and blushing from embarrassment.

"I'm a bit of a...bookworm." She said with a smile as she looked up at me. It was the most adorable thing i'd ever seen.

"I see." I said with a grin and an air of excitement. The awe from the library hadn't quite worn off yet, and if the rest of the castle was as amazing as this, I doubted it ever would.

We made our way further down the halls of the castle. Along the way, Twilight pointed in the direction of several bedrooms, telling us to whom they belonged.

"Let's see...That's Rarity's room, that's Fluttershy's...oh, and That's Rainbow Dash's, and that's Starlight Glimmer's room." She said as we passed a room with an odd swirl design on it.

I don't know why, but something about this Starlight Glimmer caught my attention. "Who's Starlight Glimmer?"

"She's a former student of mine." Twilight said, the tone in her voice telling me that something bad must've happened.

The fact that Twilight was not only a Princess, but a teacher as well, was intriguing to me. I resolved to ask about it. "So, what? Did she flunk out?"

"What?! No!" Twilight suddenly rounded on me. "Perhaps I made it seem like we're on bad terms, but that's not it at all. She's actually already graduated her friendship lessons. She's a guidance counselor at my school."

Something Twilight said caught my attention again. 'I suppose now would be as good a time as any.' "Hey, Twilight. I've been meaning to ask but, how are you a princess, and a teacher? You said something about Friendship lessons just now, but..."

"Oh, that? Yes, that's right. I'm a princess, and a teacher. I suppose I should explain myself. You see, I'm not just any princess. I'm the princess of Friendship, and my school, the School of Friendship, is where I teach the lessons that I've learned throughout my life with my friends, who you'll meet soon enough."

"And is this Starlight Glimmer also one of your friends?" I asked, genuinely wondering what their relationship could be.

"Yes, she is. One of my best friends actually." Twilght said with a smile of her own.

"I see. I look forward to meeting her, along with the rest of your friends as well." I said, returning her smile. "I hope we get along."

Twilight waved away my worry. "I'm sure you'll do just fine!"

And with that, the five of us made our way down the hallways even further. As I watched Twilight walk, I couldn't help but feel just the slightest bit nervous.

'I hope so. I really do hope so.'

Author's Note

Hi guys! Sorry about this. I took a day off to get my thoughts together on this. But I have it now so here's another chapter for you all to read. Enjoy!