Fugue - Volume 1

"Gaze in admiration, everypony!" Drill Bit declared. "Today, we rebuilt our first house together in just two days!"

Huey rolled his eyes at Drill's lack of recognition of the fact that he was not a pony, but said nothing as he looked up at the house. Immediately after lunch, they had finished off the addition of the interior furnishings, followed by the finishing touches to the exterior once the daub had dried. For all who weren't aware of the calamity that had befallen Ponyville, it would seem that the house had never been damaged at all.

"We make a really good team!" Flitter remarked as she hoof-bumped her fellow Pegasus, Thunderlane. This was followed by murmurs of agreement by the rest of the crew.

"So, where are we headed next, boss?" Thunderlane asked their leader. "We're ready for it!"

"I'll have to send a message to the committee first," Drill Bit replied. "I honestly thought we'd be done when the day was over, but we've got around three hours left. No harm in getting started on the next one, but first..."

The construction worker reached into his visibility vest's pocket and retrieved a whistle, which he blew into. The sudden noise caused the ponies to cover their ears in surprise.

"What in Tartarus was that for!?" Berryshine asked angrily, while shooting a glare at Drill Bit.

"You'll see in a tick." He replied as his head tilted, so that he could look at the sky. Huey's ears pricked up when he heard a low droning sound that was similar to that of a jet engine. It did not take him long to realise who it was when a cyan blur flew towards them. Within seconds, Rainbow Dash landed close by and let the rest of her momentum peter out by transferring effortlessly from flight to a canter.

"You called?" She said with a hint of smugness. "I heard you guys all the way from the other side of town, so I guess it took me like... Two seconds longer."

"Can the attitude," Drill Bit scolded, causing Rainbow Dash to huff in disappointment. "My team's done with this house, and we're ready to move onto the next."

"Great!" She congratulated. "I remember Twilight saying that the bowling alley would be perfect for a load of ponies to crash for a while, so you all head on over there and I'll report back to her!"

"You heard the mare!" Drill Bit shouted as he adjusted his hard hat and tool-belt. "Let's move out!"

With an enthusiastic cheer, the group broke into a canter, forcing Huey to jog after them.

Upon arrival, the group gasped at the destruction before them. The roof of the bowling alley, along with the massive sign adorning the front of the building, had collapsed entirely. The only part of the structure that was left standing were the four walls.

"I know, right?"

The sudden voice caused the group to whirl round in surprise. Standing behind them were a trio of earth pony stallions. The first was incredibly stout and tall with a brown, trimmed beard and a flat-top mane style to accompany a gray-brown coat and dark sunglasses. The second was lean and thin with a brunette mane that contrasted with his pale cream coat and clean shaven, but gaunt, face. The third struck the middle ground between the two extremes with a forest of blonde hair and an untrimmed moustache and goatee accompanying a grayish amber coat, while his frame erred towards being stocky, but not to the extent that his heavy-set companion had.

"Name's Jeff, man," The blonde stallion greeted with a detached tone. "Jeff Letrotski, but ponies usually call me 'Dude'. My compadres here are Donny and Walter. Sorry for scaring you."

"It's fine," Huey replied as he stepped forward. "How may we help you?"

"There ain't much you can do to help us," Walter, the stout male with sunglasses replied gruffly. "We were just mourning our beloved alley."

"You were customers of this place?" Huey enquired, causing the trio to nod solemnly in confirmation.

"Well, before you start buying a tombstone," Drill Bit interjected. "Let me actually have a look inside and see what the damage is."

The construction worker immediately abandoned the group by heading to the front door, picking his way through the mass of rubble separating him from the building's entrance.

"He ain't gonna find much, dudes," Jeff remarked. "We checked. The whole place is totally wrecked."

"We can rebuild it!" Flitter replied defiantly. "We rebuilt Nightjar's house, which means we can rebuild the bowling alley!"

"This place is done for," Drill Bit declared, his return causing Flitter to whirl round in surprise at his speed, followed by her ears drooping at his diagnosis. "Just took a peek round the door. The entire roof's caved in. Best thing we can do here is pull down the rest of the building and clear it all up so it can be used for something else."

Jeff and his companions approached the ruins upon hearing Drill Bit's diagnosis and put a hoof against a large bowling pin that had been part of the front door's sign.

"Rest in peace," Jeff murmured sadly. "We'll never forget the good times."

"Yeah, rest in peace, old friend." Donny added solemnly. His input caused Walter to jab him in the side, forcing the stallion to squeak in surprise.

"Shut up, Donny," Walter scolded tearfully. "Let's just... Remember."

The group watched the trio mourn for a moment, before coalescing into a huddle.

"What do we do?" Flitter whispered. "Those guys seem real torn up about this!"

"What can we do?" Huey replied. "You heard Drill Bit; the place is beyond repair. We're not fully qualified builders, we're only able to do repairs under his supervision."

"The human's right," Drill Bit agreed. "Best we can do is pull the building down in preparation for it to be rebuilt later, as I said."

The group mumbled their disapproval. The high morale bestowed upon them from their earlier success now sapped from them.

"It's so sad," Thunderlane remarked as he glanced over at the three bowlers. "I mean... They must really love that place."

Huey looked at them and breathed a heavy sigh.

"Sometimes, there are things that one just doesn't have the power to do," He muttered thoughtfully. "However, that doesn't prevent us from searching for those who can. We have the funding necessary to rebuild everything in Ponyville. It will take time, but the bowling alley they cherish will return, just not as quickly as we would like."

"I'll go tell them that," Flitter said. "Those guys deserve to know that things will be alright."

She flew over to the bowlers to inform them of the good news, leaving the group to stew in the despondency that was beginning to set in.

"Cheer up, everypony," Huey soothed. "We may not be able to fix this problem by ourselves, but that doesn't mean we can't fix our next building!"

"Which we'll get as soon as Rainbow hears this." Drill Bit added as he readied his whistle and inhaled sharply. The crew covered their ears in preparation for the piercing screech that occurred moments later. Within moments, Rainbow Dash arrived with a poly-chromatic trail marking her route through the sky.

"You guys done already?" She asked in surprise. "Wow, you guys are good."

"Rainbow, if you took the time to check behind you," Huey said, his eyebrow raised incredulously. "You'll find that the bowling alley is... Beyond our abilities."

Rainbow Dash glanced at the ruins behind her. She then smiled sheepishly at the group and chuckled in embarrassment.

"My bad?"

"Your bad's right," Drill Bit growled. "You said this place was ready for repairs!"

"No, I didn't!" Rainbow barked back defensively. "I said I heard Twilight say that the bowling alley would be a great place for a lot of ponies to crash for a while!"

"Both of you, settle down!" Huey intervened. "This is clearly a simple miscommunication. It'll soon be the end of the day, let's just make the best of this mistake and prepare the site. Drill Bit did say that we can demolish the rest of the building and clear it for when it's rebuilt, right?"

The construction worker nodded with a grunt, his glare continuing to match the leer Rainbow Dash was shooting back.

"Then let's do that! We can wind down from a hard day's work with some demolition and clearance!" Huey said quickly as he grabbed Drill Bit by the shoulder and, with a bit of effort, began to turn him away from Rainbow Dash and towards the ruined bowling alley. "Rainbow Dash, report to Twilight that we'll get the site prepped for reconstruction, and send her my best wishes!"

"On it!" She chirped with a salute before zipping away. Huey breathed a sigh of relief before Drill Bit shoved him away.

"What's the big idea?" He rumbled angrily. "She sent us on a wild goose chase!"

"Does it really matter!?" Huey replied forcefully. "Okay, yes, she sent us here without actually knowing whether we could do anything worthwhile. We all heard her. There's no need to get so worked up about a mistake! We established this whole scheme when the entire town had been munched by parasprites, there's bound to be a slight hiccup or two since it was all very slap-dash!"

"Yeah," Berryshine concurred. "Even then, we finished Zipporwhill's house quicker than expected!"

Huey folded his arms triumphantly, while the rest of the group murmured in agreement. Drill Bit huffed in defeat as he quickly realised that he was outnumbered.

"Alright, fine," He grumbled. "Let's get to work. If you're strong, grab a sledgehammer and begin smashing. If the exertion is too much, grab a hammer and chisel, so you can chisel away the cement between the bricks and dismantle the wall that way. Once the four walls are down, we begin clearing the rubble away. All clear?"

"Aye aye, sir!" The group, minus Huey, replied enthusiastically with a salute. They swiftly retrieved a variety of tools and began to dismantle the wall.

"Be careful," Huey called out as he picked up a sledgehammer. "If you're knocking a section of wall down, make sure it falls away from you. We don't want anyone getting crushed by falling brickwork!"

The human slowly approached a sizeable chunk of wall and gave it an experimental prod. Even though the rest of the building had collapsed, this wall was still sound. The width was approximately twenty feet, while the height extended to around six feet. The sound of a pony clearing their throat caused Huey to turn and see Drill Bit watching him with a smug grin.

"Can I help you?"

"No, no... Just watching to see how you handle this," Drill Bit replied. "You seem to know a bit about building, let's see if you know about demolishing."

Huey raised an eyebrow. He couldn't help but feel that Drill Bit was being intentionally confrontational. Whether that was just Drill Bit's general demeanour, or because Huey had been throwing in bits of advice or suggesting ideas to speed up the work, which was annoying the expert, he could not tell. Shrugging, Huey turned towards the wall again and approached one of the sides.

"Stand back," Huey warned, causing Drill Bit to take a few hoofsteps backwards. With a grunt, Huey hefted the sledgehammer back and slammed the head about half a foot in from the edge. The cement cracked or crumbled to dust, causing a few brick to fall loose and drop to the ground. Huey glanced back at Drill Bit.

"If you're not too busy," Huey called to him. "Do you mind giving me a hand... Or hoof? You could start from the other end and we meet in the middle."

Drill Bit nodded silently before approaching the other side of the wall, turning, and giving it a kick with both of his back legs. Huey watched as the bricks were sent flying and the cement disintegrated under the massive force exerted upon it.

"Doesn't that hurt?"

"Nah," Drill Bit replied nonchalantly. "Practice makes perfect. If you do it just right, it's harmless, do it wrong and you've just broken your hooves."

Huey grimaced and shivered at the thought of shattering his legs.

"That's just a little bit concerning," He remarked. "I'd rather you stayed safe, than put yourself at risk."

"It's fine!" Drill Bit stated with a dismissive wave. "I've done this many times without any injury. I wouldn't do it if I wasn't certain I'd be safe."

"That's a good principle to live by," Huey concurred with a nod. "By the way, how did you discover your talent for construction?"

"You want to know how I got my cutie mark?" Drill bit asked in surprise. "That's a first for me."

"Well, I've been told that these marks appear when you discover an integral part of who you are as an individual. So, the discovery of what makes you... Well, you... Must mean a lot to you, personally."

"You're right there, I've just never been asked about it before."

"There's always a first time. So, what's the story?"

"It started all the way back when I was a colt," Drill Bit began thoughtfully. "I loved playing with stuff like wooden blocks and building sand castles. Anything that involved building, I'd love to do. While I was at school in Cloudsdale, a competition was held for the fillies and colts to display a work of art they'd made. I wasn't an artist or anything creative like that, so I thought I'd build something. Construction's a kind of art, right?"

"My kind dabbled in different architectural styles, which was kind of art," Huey remarked. "So, I don't see why not. I mean, just look at the buildings around us, then compare it to Carousal Boutique. If that's not art in the form of a building, I don't know what is."

"Yeah, I'd built this amazing jungle gym in the style of a castle. With turrets and all kinds of cool stuff for the rest of the kids to play on."

"And you did this as a foal? I'm hoping you got first prize based on effort alone."

"Nah, I lost. The judges didn't think that it counted as art," Drill Bit corrected nonchalantly. "But, one of them was an architect, who was super impressed. After the competition was over, he came back to examine it further and thought that it was a brilliant piece of work. He told me that I had a bright future ahead of me in cloud construction."

"C-Cloud construction?" Huey repeated incredulously. "That's a real thing?"

"Uh... Yeah?" Drill Bit snarked. "Cloudsdale is the cultural home of all pegasai. It's a city built entirely from clouds."

"W-Wow," Huey spluttered in amazement. "I'm sorry, I... I was told that Cloudsdale is a city, I just... Still haven't quite come to terms with the fact that it's a literal city in the clouds, made of clouds."

"What, do humans not have that kind of thing back where you're from?"

"Not in the slightest. Clouds are just big blobs of water or ice that haven't yet reached the point where they begin to fall as hail, rain or snow."

"Weird, we make all of our weather at The Rainbow Factory in Cloudsdale. It's then distributed around Equestria according to the needs of the local weather teams."

"Now that sounds weird to me. All of our weather naturally occurs due to a variety of different phenomena, like heat, wind, regional pressure, the list of variables is endless. Each playing a part in what kind of weather's on the horizon."

"Huh... That sounds a lot like The Everfree Forest."

"Everfree Forest?"

"Yeah, it's a forest on the outskirts of Ponyville," Drill Bit explained, while pointing into the distance towards a large wall of trees outside of town. "It's a massive wood filled with strange and dangerous creatures, and the weather occurs all by itself, just like yours does."

"Really?" Huey said quietly, while rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "That's most interesting."

"Not interesting enough for you to have a break, pal," Drill Bit scolded playfully. "Come on, put your back into it, lazybones."

Huey rolled his eyes and shook his head before returning to work.

"The progress we've been making is fantastic!" Twilight announced happily.

She, Huey, Spike and the rest of her friends had congregated in the unicorn's bedroom at the end of another day of hard work. They had decided to eat their dinner there, because they'd spent the last few days away from each other, due to the heavy workload exerted upon them by the near destruction of the town. Suffice to say, the six mares refused to let that get in the way of their friendship.

"Of course it's fantastic!" Rainbow Dash stated nonchalantly. "We're doing this together, which means we're unstoppable!"

"Well, two brains are better than one," Rarity mused quietly, the fork she was levitating softly tapping her chin thoughtfully. "So, naturally, a town of brains is better than two!"

"Precisely!" Twilight concurred, while poring over a long piece of parchment containing a list of the various homes that were in need of repairs. Those that were able to be repaired, and were, such as Night Light's home, had a tick scrawled next to them. The unlucky buildings that were beyond hope, like the bowling alley, had a large cross next to them.

"How fantastic are we talking here?" Huey enquired as he sat, cross-legged, on the floor with a tankard of apple juice beside him and a plate of apple tart. He had hoped for another serving of apple crumble, but Applejack had insisted that he try something new as often as possible, so he could establish a larger understanding of the foods he liked or disliked. Unfortunately, the tart he had been persuaded into having was not as pleasant as the previous apple-related dishes he had tried. The tart, while sweet, felt clammy and strange due to it being a cold dish, instead of a hot one. The squishy texture of the cooked apples merely added to the discomfort Huey was experiencing. However, he soldiered on, so he would not offend the orange farmer.

"We're talking a productivity error of around 100%!" Twilight explained. "In other words, we are working twice as fast than originally predicted. In fact, things are going so well, that we should be all done and dusted by the end of tomorrow!"

"Minus the buildings we couldn't save," Spike added. "The town hall's completely collapsed. It'll have to be rebuilt from scratch!"

"That ain't nothin' to be concerned about!" Applejack said with a dismissive wave of her hoof. "With the bits Luna kindly gave to Ponyville, it shouldn't take too long for a good band of ponies to get it back to the way it was."

"Indeed," Rarity concurred. "It was most generous of Princess Luna to donate so much to such a worthy cause."

"And we couldn't have done it without you, Huey," Rainbow declared authoritatively. "After all, pulling us all together was your idea."

"You overstate my role, Rainbow," Huey replied quietly, while sipping his drink. "I merely suggested the idea. If anyone deserves credit, it's Twilight. After all, she organised the town into the crews that have made this miraculous recovery possible!"

"T-True," Twilight stammered, while a blush began to creep onto her cheeks. "But you suggested the idea originally. If you hadn't thought of us all banding together to repair Ponyville, we'd be waiting months, while contractors did the work by themselves. The company Drill Bit's a part of just doesn't have the ponypower to achieve what we've done over the past few days, and it would have taken weeks for other companies to arrive. You really are the town's saviour."

Huey smiled weakly and looked down at his plate in embarrassment when he saw the six equines gazing at him gratefully.

"I just wanted to help," He murmured. "That's all."

"And we appreciate it, Huey," Fluttershy spoke, her silence finally breaking. Albeit only slightly, since she spoke with a barely audible whisper. "We really are grateful for your help rebuilding our town."

"Hopefully, you see it as your town too," Rainbow Dash added. "I mean... Who wouldn't want to live here? It's got me in it!"

A round of groans and eye-rolls erupted at the rainbow-maned pegasus' boasting, causing her to grin sheepishly.

"Although, Rainbow Dash does have a point, darling," Rarity remarked. "After all, all of your friends are here. Surely that is another reason to wish to care for Ponyville?"

"Not all of them," Huey muttered under his breath, his mind drifting to the two princesses residing in Canterlot that he had left behind not so long ago.

"Anywho, I'd better get goin'," Applejack interrupted as she stood and stretched her legs. "I need to get back to the farm. My bed's callin' and I don't want to keep it waitin'."

"You're right, we all need our beauty sleep if we're to meet Twilight's target tomorrow," Rarity agreed with a nod. "Which reminds me, I must thank Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy again for their help rebuilding my home. I truly don't know what I'd do without them."

"What are friends for?" Rainbow replied nonchalantly with a wave of her hoof. "It's no biggie! I'd do that for any of my friends!"

Fluttershy merely let her face be shrouded by her curtain of pink hair, while nervously scraping the floor with her hoof. The group bade farewell and departed, leaving Spike, Twilight and Huey alone.

"I guess it's time to hit the hay for us too," Spike remarked passively as he plodded towards his basket. "See you guys in the morning!"

With a dull thud, the chubby drake flopped into his basket and snuggled up under his blanket.

"He's such a great helper," Twilight whispered. "I really don't know what I'd do if he wasn't around."

"Every successful mare has a powerful dragon behind them?" Huey joked, causing Twilight to press a hoof to her lips to stifle a chuckle.

"You could say that, yes," She murmured. "He's almost like a part of me... If you catch my meaning."

"He knows you well enough to be able to predict what you want and do it before you even know you want it?" Huey mused, earning him a nod. "I do know what you mean."

Twilight breathed a sigh of relief and then fell silent as she gazed upon the now sleeping dragon. Huey shovelled the final piece of tart into his mouth and chewed it slowly, yet noisily. The cold dessert squelching as his teeth munched into it.

"You know Applejack's gone," Twilight whispered. "You can stop eating it now."

Huey's eyes widened and he stopped chewing when he realised that Twilight had been able to work out his distaste for this particular piece of cuisine.

"How did you know?"

"I saw your face," Twilight answered. "You looked so miserable and disgusted whenever you put a piece of that tart into your mouth."

"Crap," Huey cursed quietly. "Do you think anyone else noticed? I was trying hard not to make it too obvious."

"They probably did, but kept silent," She mused. "If I, of all ponies, noticed, then they definitely did. I'm sure Applejack would understand that somethings just aren't for everyone."

"I guess, I'll still try and talk to her about it though. I, personally, preferred some of her other treats. The crumble is divine, in my opinion."

"It definitely is, but I know, from experience, that you can have too much of a good thing."

"How so?"

"When I first arrived in Ponyville," Twilight began. "I was tasked with ensuring that the preparations for The Summer Sun Celebration here were on schedule. Applejack and her family were in charge of the food. I was treated to a very hectic introduction to most of her extended family, and a crash course in everything apple-related. By the time I was done, I could barely walk!"

"Yeesh!" Huey grimaced. "I'm imagining you with a really swollen stomach."

"Your imagination is nearer than truth than you think. I honestly thought I was going to explode!"

Huey smiled and shook his head at the exaggerated image of Twilight nursing a sore, full tummy.

"Well, at least that event didn't ruin your figure," He remarked absent-mindedly, causing the unicorn to look at him in surprise.

"M-My figure!?" She stammered. "W-What do you m-mean!?"

"Well, if the selection I've been able to choose from while helping with rebuilding is anything to go by, you must have eaten a phenomenal amount of food. Food that is, for the most part, sugar. All that glucose, fructose and sucrose would have to go somewhere, even if you were a very active pony. All the excess would be converted to fat for later use."

"How do you know all this? What even is fructose and glucose?" Twilight asked in wonder.

"I don't know," Huey replied honestly with a shrug. "I just remember. Maybe I learned this in school, even though I don't remember going to one. I just... Know these things."

"Amazing..." She breathed in admiration. "I need to find a quill and ink."

The unicorn's horn ignited with a spark of purple as she began levitating a fresh piece of parchment, along with writing tools, over.

"Come with me," Twilight ordered, while heading down the stairs to the ground floor of the library she lived in. Huey followed without complaint. With the repairs of Ponyville being ahead of schedule, the ponies who had taken refuge downstairs had all been transferred to their repaired homes or an alternative location, so they would no longer be a nuisance to the library's caretaker. Twilight had stated that she didn't mind allowing her home to be a place of rest for the temporarily homeless, but Mayor Mare had insisted that they move out to a larger and better organised location.

As such, Huey wandered down the spiral staircase after Twilight, who ventured into the kitchen adjoining the main section storing all the books.

"I don't want to disturb Spike," Twilight explained, as she ignited a few candles situated around the room with her magic. "He needs his rest."

"I understand," Huey replied with a nod. "What would you like to know?"

"I wish I could say everything, but there's just too much!" Twilight huffed in frustration. "We'd be here all night!"

"True, but if this were any other time, would that matter to you?"

"It wouldn't," She admitted, while trying a hide a swiftly forming blush behind her quill. "But Ponyville is depending on everypony doing their part! I can't let them down, just because I want to learn more about you and your kind now. That's just selfish!"

"You're right," Huey agreed. "When this is all over, how about you and I spend some quality time together?"

"Q-Quality time?" Twilight repeated, her eyes widening at Huey's choice of words.

"Mhm, I promised you that we'd knuckle down and really focus on documenting as much as we could about me. Unfortunately, Celestia requested my presence, then this calamity befell Ponyville. Suffice to say, we've been neglecting these studies."

"R-Right," Twilight squeaked. "Of course, you're right! Celestia tasked me with learning as much as I can about you! I can't let her down."

"That and it probably makes you very excited to be delving into the unknown."

"You have no idea!" She said with a frantic nod. "You keep saying all these new things that I've never heard of. Fructose, sucrose, glucose... I want to learn everything there is to know about them!"

"Well, we don't have all night, so you'll have to make a decision on what you'd like to talk about."

Twilight scrunched her face up as she thought hard on the decision put before her. Huey's smile widened at the adorable expression upon the lavender unicorn's face. She was, in many ways, the perfect scientist. Honest, dedicated,forever inquisitive about the unknown and an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and a greater understanding of the world around her. Even though she could just be patient and wait until Ponyville was fixed, she was still eager to learn as much as she can regardless.

"You." Twilight finally said, causing Huey to shake his head in surprise.

"I beg your pardon?"

"I want to know more about you, Huey," Twilight stated solemnly. "You're more than just a specimen of humans."

"Specimen of humanity."

"Humanity, right! A-Anyway, you're more than just a specimen of humanity to be studied. You have your own thoughts, memories, desires and aspirations. I don't just want to learn about you as a species, I want to learn about you as a person. Person's the right noun to use, right?"

"Right!" Huey confirmed with a nod, causing Twilight to sigh with relief.

"I know this is probably silly of me to say, since it's most likely already blatantly obvious, but I'd like to go further than what I was tasked to do by the princess. I want to be friends with you."

Huey shook his head before reaching out and pulling Twilight into a hug, causing her to squeak in surprise at the sudden gesture.

"Twilight, you don't need to worry," Huey soothed, while softly petting her purple mane. "I've never felt like I was just an experiment. If that was the case, I probably wouldn't have had the amount of freedom I've enjoyed so far. Not only that, I've never felt like you were only interested in me, because of my status as a human. You've treated me like one of your own kind and I appreciate it a lot. If anything, I already consider you a friend, Twilight. You're fantastic."

The lavender unicorn's eyes widened throughout the entirety of Huey's speech, a prominent blush also gracing her cheeks. Embarrassment finally registered, causing her to bury her face into Huey's chest to hide. He hugged her a little tighter and gave one of her ears a tender scratch, causing her to shiver slightly.

"If you wish to discover more about who I am as a person," Huey whispered quietly into her ear. "We're going to have to do so together. I'm just as clueless as you are."

Twilight finally plucked up the strength to look up at him and nod in agreement.

"We'll do it together!" She declared firmly. Suddenly, her mouth opened wide as a prominent yawn escaped her, causing Huey to chuckle quietly.

"Starting tomorrow, Twilight," He murmured. "This will be a long-term project of experimentation and observation for both of us. We won't miss anything by sleeping."

Twilight gazed up at the human and pouted, her lower lip quivering in an attempt to persuade him to change his mind. When it became clear that Huey was adamant, she puffed her cheeks out in mild frustration and began making her way towards the stairs. Huey followed close behind, his mind wandering to whether what he had just promised was a lie. He knew nothing about himself, but that was one of the things he was terrified of. As he had explained to Celestia in the strictest confidence, he was afraid that, if he were to regain his personal memories, he would discover that his past was littered with unpleasantness. However, that did not discount the possibility that he could, in essence, 'discover' so much about him that didn't involve his past. Fashion preferences, food and drink, sports and literature all lay open for him to explore with Twilight and her friends. He shook his head forcefully and corrected himself mentally, because they weren't just Twilight's friends, they were his friends too.