Domination and Twisted Bone

Chapters

Chapter 1: Alien vs Predator
Chapter 2: Test of Strength
Chapter 3: Early Bird
Chapter 4: Chomp At The Bit
Chapter 5: Honest Work
Chapter 6: Healing Waters

Chapter 1: Alien vs Predator

Twilight Sparkle let out a deep sigh. She was sitting in her bed, staring out her window over the peaceful town she'd come to call home. Though more recently she'd been thinking of it as her little kingdom.

The wings on her back fluttered nervously. She curled up underneath her blankets, hiding away from the cold Winter air seeping through the glass. Ruling did not come easy to her.

She closed her eyes, attempting to force her restless mind to stillness. Anxiety scraped at the edges of her mind, sending nervous tremors traveling through her thoughts. When she was still a student in Canterlot, she would pray to the Princesses for the strength to deal with her problems. Though she had never been able to confirm or deny its effectiveness, it always made her feel better. But who listens to the prayers of Alicorns? Maybe it didn't matter.

Twilight pressed her hooves together and bowed her head. She wished for guidance, for answers, for peace in her mind. She wished for the knowledge to rule, and to lead. Her eyes slowly opened, now adjusted to the darkness beneath her blankets. She smiled. It had made her feel better, even if it didn't do anything.

The Princess of Friendship resettled herself in her bed. Things honestly weren't that bad. The newly-minted Alicorn smiled, thinking of Ponyville and everypony in it. A lot had changed since she'd come to this place. She'd made new friends, defeated powerful enemies, and learned important lessons about the power of friendship. The very fact that she was willing to set aside the issues pressing inside her head showed just how different she was. How mature she was. With her friends by her side and her new form, she could take on the world.

A knocking at the door interrupted the Princess' mental monologue. She was tempted to ignore it, but the knocking came again, slightly louder. She cast the blankets away from her body and shivered from the cold night air. Whoever had come knocking had better have a damn good reason for doing so. Twilight glided down from the loft where her bed was and landed in front of the door leading out of her room, eager to get back to the warm safety of her bed.

"It's one in the morning, Spike," Twilight complained while opening the door. "Whatever it is can wai—"

But it was not Spike walking at the door. In fact, not only was it not Spike, it was a kind of creature she had never seen before. It was a giant pygmy standing over two meters tall, perhaps taller than Celestia herself. The corded muscles on his chest rippled under his green skin. Thick trails of white steam rise from his neck and shoulders. His hot, humid breath ran over Twilight's face and back, stinking of rot and decay. His unusual teeth were sharp and long like the bite of a saw blade. His crazed eyes seemed to glow, flitting between different colors every second. He leaned down towards her.

The giant's sudden movement knocked Twilight out of her stunned state, and she slammed the door shut in a fear-driven panic. She needed to run, and fast. Pygmies today existed only as legend, having been wiped out by the Alicorns ages ago. They were the greatest predators the world had ever known. And now there was one in her house.

"Buck! Buck, buck, buck, what do I bucking do!" Tears filled her eyes and her hooves shook against the floor. It was her responsibility as Ponyville's guardian to protect the town from these horrifying monsters. Every survival instinct she had was telling her to RUN, but her duty as a Princess demanded that she stand and fight.

She took a deep breath, sweat dripping down her face and neck. She swung the door back open and prepared herself for the fight of her life, but...the beast was gone.

Twilight stepped into the hallway to look for the creature. A wave of purple light traveled down the hallway as she sent a pulse of magic traveling outwards, scanning the library for the pygmy intruder. She frowned. The only living creatures in the library were herself, Spike, and a family of mice living in the kitchen cupboard.

She walked over to the hallway window and examined the buildings outside the library. Nopony was screaming. No sounds of a scuffle, no screams in surprise. Ponyville was as peaceful as it had ever been. Either the creature had never existed or it had disappeared.

Twilight sighed and withdrew from the window. Maybe she was more stressed out than she'd thought. Her horn glowed again as she moved to draw the curtain over the hallway window, but the Princess was surprised to find it missing.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"Was it something I said?" the 'pygmy' muttered to himself. He'd already had one hell of a night, waking up in the bottom of a giant hole in the middle of a giant forest and then being chased for miles by giant fucking chicken. Then he gets to this town and everything looks like its built for midgets. Getting a door slammed in his face by—what was that, a horse?—was just adding insult to injury.

The bipedal creature put one arm against the wall to brace himself. The adrenaline running through his veins was starting to thin out, and his body began feeling the effects of his midnight run from hell. The heat emanating from his skin began to die down, and he shivered in the cold hallway. It was a chilly winter night, and he was stark naked.

"Oh. Right." It dawned on him that he'd just knocked on the door to someone's room in his birthday suit. He looked around for something to cover himself with. He snatched a curtain from over a window and wrapped it around himself before starting down the hallway. He definitely wasn't going to try talking to that horse again. Maybe there was somebody here who'd actually talk to him.

After wandering around in the dark for a while, he eventually came to a door with a plaque that read 'Spike'.

"Really? Is there a talking dog here too?" He straightened his posture and secured his makeshift floral dress. "Well, let's try this again." He knocked on the door three times.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Twilight trotted down the hallway towards her adoptive brother's room. Despite detecting nopony else in the library, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. She'd tossed and turned in her bed for nearly half an hour before deciding to at least make sure Spike was okay. It became clear that her need to be a good sibling outweighed her need to be asleep, so she'd magicked her lantern to follow her and gone to check on him.

Though now she'd come to regret caring feeling concern for the little twerp. She could see light coming from the crack underneath his door, and voices coming from the other side. Spike had snuck his friends into the library again without her permission. Last time he'd brought his friends over they'd poured soda all over her anatomy books!

She prepared a stern, motherly speech about the importance of respecting your older siblings, and threw open the door. And then she screamed.

The apex predator that had nearly made her wet herself was now sitting at her brother's desk, wearing a very cute dress and a very shocked expression.

"Twilight, what's the matter with you!?"

Spike was sitting leaned back on his bed. Her horn flashed and Spike was enveloped in a purple sheen. Spike was whisked out of the room and the door slammed shut behind him.

"Whoa, what the heck Twilight? Seriously, what's going on?"

"Shhh!" Twilight desperately tried to quiet him, her face full of fear. "Th-th-th-that's a pygmy, Spike!", she frantically whispered. "They're the deadliest creatures in Equestria! And this one is HUGE!"

The dragon, still hanging in the air, gave his older sister a look of disapproval.

"Oh, and I guess you should run from me too since dragons are so dangerous. Come on Twilight, get real. That guy's harmless, didn't you see what he was wearing?"

"You don't get it, Spike! Pygmies were so crazy evil that the Princesses had to exterminate their whole race! They're the most dangerous creatures who've ever existed! They hunt ponies for sport!"

"Well I don't care what the Princesses think! That guy is my friend and he is killing it in that dress! And, not that it should matter, but he's not a pig-mee or whatever. He's a human. He told me himself."

Spike flapped his wings and broke out of Twilight's levitation spell. He walked angrily back into his room, slamming the door behind him.

"Was that your sister?" The human in the dress gestured towards the recently closed door.

"Yeah, that was her. Don't mind her, she'll come around." The purple dragon sat on his bed and huffed angrily, sending a thin stream of smoke from his nostrils. "I just don't get it. She's defended me from that kind of thing since I was little. Always telling everypony that I'm not like other dragons, that I'm civilized just like everypony else!"

The human rubbed his chin and looked back at the door. "Well, it's like you say, right? She's known you for your entire life, and she only just met me. And... I may not have made the best first impression. Let's just say I wasn't always wearing floral print."

A smirk cracked through Spike's frustrated expression. He sighed and his body seemed to sag downwards. "Yeah, maybe you're right. It's just annoying, you know? I've dealt with this kind of thing my whole life, but Twilight's never acted like that towards me." He pressed his face between his palms.

The human shifted in his chair, causing it to creak under his weight. "Hey man, I'm not trying to cause trouble for you guys. If you need me too, I can get out of here."

Spike sat up and looked the human in the eye. "No way, man. If anybody needs to go, it's her." He sighed and flopped backward onto the bed.

The young dragon cursed under his breath. "Whatever, dude. It's like two in the morning and I'm bucking exhausted. There's a sleeping bag in that closet over there. Goodnight."

The human nodded at his new reptilian friend, who then promptly fell asleep. He pulled the sleeping bag from where Spike had indicated and set it up against the wall. Through the cold, dreamless night, the biped slept through his first night in Equestria.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"How do you like your eggs?"

"Uh...scrambled, I guess. You guys really eat eggs? Didn't you say nobody here eats meat?"

"Yeah, I don't know. It's just a cultural thing I guess. We act like we value all sentient life, but we still eat eggs and fish. It's a little dishonest, I know, but it's still better than spying on somepony through the walls with scrying magic."

A loud *thunk* could be heard from the room directly above the kitchen. Spike snorted and cracked two more eggs into the frying pan. The sound of hooves on wood started to grow louder and louder, until a purple pony appeared in the doorway.

"Good morning, Spike." She turned to face the biped sitting at her kitchen table. "Good morning, um...human."

He nodded. "Good morning. Sorry that I, uh, almost made you shit yourself last night."

The Princess choked on her morning coffee, sending streams of the scalding liquid up her nose. "Y-yeah? Well. Me too."

She took the seat opposite to him. "So... what brings you to the library, then?"

The human blinked. "I... don't know. Coincidence? It was pretty dark last night, I wasn't really looking where I was going."

The Princess gave the human a look of disbelief. "Ooo-kay. Well, what's your name?"

"I don't know that either."

She shifted in her seat. "You don't know your own name?"

The human shook his head. "I can't remember it. I can't really remember much of anything."

Twilight's eyes narrowed. "You're saying you've lost your memory?"

He nodded and began running his thumb over the edge of his mug. "Yeah, I guess I am. The first thing I remember is waking up in this big hole in the ground. After I climbed out, a great big chicken started chasing after me and I started running for my life. When I finally stopped running, I was in front of the library."

"That's..." She glanced over at Spike who looked equally skeptical. "...a little hard to believe."

"You think that's hard to believe? Bitch, I'm on an alien world being interrogated by a fucking unicorn. Everything about this is hard to believe!"

Twilight's eyes went wide. "Wh-what's wrong with unicorns?"

"Dragons and unicorns don't exist. They're just stories made up for little kids."

Twilight's horn glowed and she pulled out a quill and notepad, starting to scribble furiously. Spike rolled his eyes, but the human was entranced. The purple light flowing around the feather was both alien and familiar.

He turned back to the biped, ignoring his stunned expression. "So, what, you think you're in like a parallel dimension or something?"

The question snapped him out of his trance. "Parallel dimension? Yeah, that sounds about right. That would definitely explain how I'm having a conversation with a magical talking horse and a fire-breathing dragon straight out of a storybook!"

Twilight started scribbling harder than before. Her thoughtful eyes started to sparkle, and she looked back up at her extraterrestrial guest.

"Sooo, an alien huh? Wow, first contact. Interdimensional first contact. Do you think maybe I could run some te-"

Twilight's draconic voice of reason interrupted. "Twilight! I'm glad that you're not scared of him anymore, but come on. Let him get used to Ponyville before you try to tie him up."

The human's eyebrows shot up at Spike's remark and he looked over at Twilight. Tie him up? Was this cute little purple people eater trying to fuck him? More importantly, should he be trying to fuck her? He was an alien invader after all. It was only right that he should try to probe one of the locals. God knows he could use the stress relief.

The purple unicorn cleared her throat. "Sorry Spike, you're right. That's not what's important right now."

Her eyes narrowed as she stared the human's body up and down, looking like she wanted something. Oh shit, maybe she really did want to fuck him.

"Can I get my curtain back?"

Or maybe not. He looked nervously between them.

"Um, sure. Shit, I guess if you guys are comfortable being naked, I can get used to it too." The human stood up and pulled off his makeshift dress. Twilight screamed and covered her eyes.

"Huh, déjà vu."

"Wh-wh-wh-why are you..." The Princess stammered from behind her hooves "...unsheathed."

"Unsheathed!? What the hell is she talking about, man?" Unfortunately for him, Spike was also covering his face. But instead of embarrassment, he was struggling not to laugh.

The human pulled the curtain off of the floor and covered himself back up, his green face now glowing red. "Okay, somebody needs to explain this! Why are you guys acting like my dick is supposed to have a scabbard!?"

"B-b-because it should!" Twilight's voice was beginning to crack.

"Fuck me, is this some kind of horse anatomy thing? Well, let's get one thing straight: I do not have a dick sheathes! If you want this curtain back, you're gonna have to take me somewhere than can make clothes."

Spike's face lit up.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"Everybody's looking at me." The human grinned to himself. "I knew I looked good in this thing, but damn."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "I think they're probably looking at you because you look like ponies' greatest natural enemy since the beginning of time. The only reason they're not screaming in terror is because you're with me. They could also be staring at us because a five-foot dragon just ran through the center of town, and it's usually my job to take care of stuff like that. Take your pick."

Spike had left them almost the moment they had stepped out of the library. He had blustered something about getting things ready before sprinting off at top speed.

"Why was he so excited? Is the tailor hot or something?"

Twilight groaned. "It's because we're going to see his fillyfriend."

They walked on a bit further. The human felt jolts of pain run through his legs with each step. He'd definitely hurt himself when he'd been running through the trees.

The Alicorn gestured towards a tall, white building with a purple roof. Large glass windows lined the front of it, though each one was covered by a thick purple curtain. Spike was nowhere to be found. The sign out front read, 'The Carousel Boutique - Closed for Renovations'.

Twilight knocked on the door and then turned to the human. "Let me do the talking," she warned. "My friend Rarity's a little under the weather right now and...um...well, she might freak out when she sees you."

And freak out, she did. Upon opening the door, the small white mare screamed like a banshee and slammed it shut so quickly the windows rattled in their frames.

"Rarity! Please open the door! He's not what you think, I promise!"

The curtain over the window by the door began to shift. A glimmer of bright purple peered out from the dark.

Twilight stepped off of the porch and put her face up to the window. "Please, can you please help us, Rarity?"

The eye turned to look at the apex predator who'd come knocking at her door. He smiled and hunched his shoulders, trying to look as small as possible.

The curtain shifted back and, after a moment, they could hear shuffling from behind the door. The entrance swung open, and the tiny white mare stood in the doorway.

Her dark violet hair twisted and twirled around her body in a series of delicate curls. Her legs were long and slender, and three blue diamonds decorated each of her flanks. The front of her mane framed her slender face and a gleaming white horn was placed by the top of her forehead. She stared up at him with deep purple eyes that twinkled in the sun.

"Wow, she really is pretty."

Twilight cleared her throat. "Yes. Well. Yes. This is Rarity. Rarity, this is... well, I don't really know. He's nice, at least."

Rarity giggled and the curls of her mane bounced against her shoulders. "Yes, I could tell that much."

Her face was flush and a sheen of sweat seemed to cover her entire body. Damn, she really was sick.

The white unicorn stepped back and gestured inside. "Won't you come in? It's far too cold to be idling about outside."

The green giant followed Twilight inside the boutique. The walls extended up to the second floor and a large crystal chandelier hung unlit in the center of the foyer.

He began to inspect the other objects in the room. Horse mannequins, measuring tape, rolls of cloth. A vanity with a large mirror was sitting against the far wall, covered in oddly-shaped scissors and hairpins.

"So," Rarity started, bringing his attention back to her. She stood several paces from them, clearly still a little wary. "I, um... imagine that you're in need of some proper clothes. I can appreciate the naturalist aesthetic, but it's so seventeenth-century, if you catch my meaning."

The human chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah? Yeah, I think I probably do. Maybe."

Twilight rolled her eyes again. "Maybe you could get started then?"

"Quite right. Follow me, please." Rarity led them to one of the curtains in the back of the room. She pulled it aside to reveal a small room with a large mirror hanging on the far wall and a platform in the center. The two of them stepped inside, followed by Rarity who let the curtain fall behind her.

"Step onto the platform, please. I'll need to take your measurements."

The small wooden table groaned under his weight. Rarity's horn began glowing bright blue and several rolls of measuring tape floated out of the small purple satchel fastened to her waist. The tapes glid through the air and began taking all manner of measurements across his body.

The human shifted around on his feet. Magic was still a little scary, and seemed to him like some kind of otherworldly predator, especially when it was literally sizing him up.

Suddenly, the tapes retreated all at once. The human looked down at the miniature fashionista. "Is it over?"

"No sir, not quite," she replied. "I need you to remove your...garment." Her already red face turned darker as she answered.

The human looked over at Twilight. "Oh! Sorry, I'll go. Rarity, just shout if you need me." She quickly bowed out of the room before her friend could respond.

The human pulled the curtain away from his body and tied it around his waist like a knee-length skirt. In the mirror, he took his first proper look at himself since he'd arrived in Equestria.

"Oh my."

'Oh my', indeed. His body was tall, thick, lean. Standing at about seven feet tall, he was a tower of muscle and bone. His pecs bulged and his abs were so tight they almost looked vacuum-sealed. His biceps must have been eight inches thick and his legs looked like they could kick a hole through concrete. His face was angular and handsome, and his leathery skin was a dull grey-green. His long pointed ears aimed directly backward through his short, black hair. He opened his mouth and pulled his cheeks back to reveal two full rows of razor-sharp teeth, his long canines coming to a fine point.

The green giant's face twisted in shock and confusion. Had he always looked like this?

"Hey, uh, Rarity?"

"Hm?" Somehow the unicorn sounded distracted to him, but he was too enamored with his own appearance to care.

"How tall did you say I was?"

"Oh, um... ninety-two inches. You're very tall for a pygmy. A fine specimen."

Something about her voice made him look over at her. Rarity's vision was trained on the sheet wrapped tightly around his waist. "Oh, um... I don't have a scabbard or sheathe or anything. I can't imagine you'd want to see that, so I'm keeping the curtain tied like this."

It took a few seconds for Rarity to break out of her trance. "What? Oh, right. Thank you for being so..." She ran a hoof along his calf, causing his leg to tremble. "...considerate."

The hungry look in her eyes caused the human's sheet to tighten slightly. He shook his head, cursing at himself in his mind. She was just being polite. Right?

"I think I'll need you to take it off completely, darling. I need to be sure I get all of the proper measurements."

Wrong. He pulled the curtain off of his waist and let it drop to the floor. The sudden lack of warmth made him shiver.

"Hmph. That's somewhat disappointing," she pouted.

"Now hold on a minute. It's just cold is all." He gave her a cocky grin. "Maybe you wanna warm it up a bit?"

The white unicorn giggled for a moment before stopping herself. She chewed her lip and stared up at him with narrowed eyes. "I don't get the wrong idea. I don't usually do this sort of thing, I'm not that kind of mare."

The ground seemed to slide out from beneath his feet, and the human started to topple backward. He fell through the air and down onto the cushioned platform, landing on his backside with a grunt. Rarity placed her hooves on his knees and forced his legs apart.

"But I can make an exception."

She took his soft member into her mouth and began swirling it around with her hot tongue. He could feel himself starting expanding rapidly as she coated his rod with her sticky saliva. Rarity pressed against his thighs and pulled her mouth off of his penis with a loud *pop*.

She looked up at him as she rubbed her cheek along his length. A measuring tape floated up from the ground and drew a line up his shaft. Rarity read the measurement and gave him an eager smile, her face dyed a deep red.

"Twenty-three inches. That will do nicely."

Her hot, heavy breath ran over the sensitive head of his pulsing member, making it jump every time she exhaled. Precum leaked out of his tip, coating her face in his seed as she continued to nuzzle his shaft. Her tail occasionally flickered upwards, giving him glimpses of her glimmering marehood through the wall-mounted mirror.

His overpowering musk made her throat burn and her haunches tremble. She could hear herself dripping onto the stone floor. A small puddle formed around her and the human could feel her juices run beneath his feet.

"Someone's a little excited, huh?"

"Oh, hush. I'm in the middle of the worst estrus of my life, I feel as though I could take an elephant."

"Estrus? What does that mean?"

She sighed and lifted herself into his lap, straddling his torso and rubbing his member against her stomach.

"It means I need you to fuck me like an animal." The unicorn pressed her furry torso against his, grinding herself against his muscled chest. Her soaking marehood leaked onto the base of his penis. She whispered into his ear, "Do you think pygmies and ponies can have babies?"

He knew it was wrong, but he couldn't stop himself. The immorality of it all probably made it harder to resist. His hands wrapped around her thighs and lifted her up. His tip parted her soft outer folds, and Rarity let out a soft moan. The human put his index finger to his lips. Twilight was still in the next room, separated only by a thin cloth.

Rarity smirked at him and turned back towards the entrance to the changing room. "Excuse me, Twilight? Can you come in here for a moment?"

The human's eyes went wide and stared at the curtain, waiting for the purple Alicorn to step inside but... it never happened.

"The changing rooms are all soundproofed with high-level charms. Some very sensitive information about mares' figures and weights passes through my boutique. Not the kind of thing you want other ponies to hear."

She bent down and nipped at his ear before whispering, "Fortunately for you, it means you can make me scream as much as you like."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"By the Gods, my throat is going to be so sore tomorrow."

Rarity rubbed at her neck and coughed a few times before swallowing the cum she'd gathered in her mouth. She inspected herself in the mirror while the human lie flat on the floor.

"From the screaming, or from the other thing?"

She quietly snorted and looked at him through the mirror. "A combination, most likely. I daresay you were trying to make me lose my voice. It was a valiant effort, though your methods were a bit strange."

"Strange? Strange how?"

"That..." Her body shuddered, recalling the sensation. "...thing you did with your tongue. I've never even heard of something like that. It was very strange indeed, though not to say that I didn't appreciate it."

The white unicorn brushed her violet mane back into place and began applying the final touches to her makeup. "We'll have to do this again sometime..."

She walked over to him and planted a kiss on his cheek before giving him a smile. "..., strange lover."

The two of them shared a laugh before preparing to leave.

He turned to her as they approached the door. "Still feeling under the weather?"

Rarity laughed again, pressing a hoof against his thigh. "I'm feeling much better now, thank you."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"Well, did she get you what you needed?"

He looked down at her with a shocked expression, then relaxed when he realized what she'd meant.

"Oh yeah, of course. She said she'd have a few sets of clothes ready for me within the next two weeks."

"Really? That's pretty fast, even for her. I hope she's not pushing herself, considering she's in the middle of...um...being under the weather." Twilight looked down at the ground, trying to hide her embarrassed expression.

"It's just that she was probably more scared of you than I was. She must have really come around after actually getting to know you."

The human grinned. She sure had. Multiple times. Consecutively.

"Oh, and speaking of which: have you decided on a name? We can't just keep calling you 'human' forever."

The human's expression turned thoughtful before spreading into a wide smile. "Yeah, I was just thinking about that. There was something Rarity said that stuck with me, and I think it's what I'll go with."

"And? What should I call you now?"

The human grinned bared and looked down to face her, showing off both rows of his pearly white razors. She stared into his eyes and Twilight felt the animal part of her brain shudder in response.

"You can call me, 'Strange.'"

Chapter 2: Test of Strength

"Did you pack your toothbrush? Your sleeping bag?"

"Yes, Twilight. Everything's right here."

"Are you sure? Do you want to go over your checklist again?"

"Twilight, come on! I've unpacked this bag three times already!", Spike complained. "All of our stuff that isn't in your saddlebags is in there. I promise."

Strange yawned from his seat by the window, not exactly pleased to be woken up so early. He shifted on the long, ornate bench, causing it to groan under his weight. Twilight had woken everybody up before dawn, eager to inspect the site where Strange told her he'd woken up. He had a feeling she didn't totally trust his story.

Still, he wasn't going to complain. She'd been nice enough to give him a place to sleep, even if that sleep had been cut short.

He leaned his head against the cold glass pane, inspecting the quiet moonlit town. The only other lights he could see were from a barn in the distance, peeking out over distant treetops.

"Strange, are you ready to go? We need to get there before any, um, clues get trampled."

"Yeah, I'm ready." The last of his coffee dripped down the back of his throat like fuel breathing new life into dying embers. He still felt like shit, but protesting would only make him look more suspicious. The elastic waistband on his temporary pants stretched as he pulled himself to his knees. Rarity had dropped them off at the library last night. He concealed a wry grin, remembering the second gift she'd given him underneath the table.

Spike stood back up and slung his backpack over his shoulders. He opened the door, shivering in the cold wind that greeted him. The fire-breathing reptile did poorly in the cold, but he had been adamant about coming.

"Shall we get going then?"

Twilight gathered herself up and led the way outside. The tight straps of her saddlebags looked painful as they dug into her skin. Strange then Spike followed her out, closing the door behind them. The purple dragon pulled a large set of keys from a pocket on his giant backpack and slid one into the hole on the front door. The locking mechanism slid into place with a loud *clank*.

"Is that really necessary, Spike? We won't be gone for more than a day."

"I know better than to take half measures when we go on our little adventures, Twi." He tucked the keys back into his pack. "Better safe than sorry. Now Strange, which way are we headed."

Strange took in his surroundings, trying to remember the previous night. "Well, if I came to the library from this angle then...this way." His long index finger pointed through the center of town.

"So you ran all the way through Ponyville, and just happened to stop at the library."

Her voice didn't sound like a question, but he answered anyway. "I guess so. Maybe it's a little hard to believe, but that's why we're up at the asscrack of dawn, isn't it?

Spike sighed. "Let's just get going."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Walking along the long gravelly roads through town from the library, the trio finally reached the outskirts of Ponyville. A wide grassy plain stretched out before them, ended by an impossible dense treeline.

The purple dragon let out a groan. "Right, of course it's the Everfree. Why did I even bother hoping?"

They continued on through the grass, and eventually came to the looming edge of the Everfree Forest. Twilight stopped and the three of them stood in silence. The wind blowing through the trees sounded like an unholy choir, growing in volume as the wind picked up speed.

The Princess spoke up. "If you were sprinting for your life as you said, then you should have left a trail."

Strange looked down to see her staring stoically into the treeline. He narrowed his eyes, not missing the implication. "Guess we'd better start looking then."

"Uh, guys?" Spike had already started to search and was now standing by a tree at the edge of the forest about a dozen yards away. He pointed at something in the trees. "I think I found it."

They followed the path he had made through the tall, dead grass. Twilight turned to look at what he'd found and felt the cold morning air being forced out of her lungs.

"Ho-," Twilight's questioned caught in her throat. She couldn't believe her eyes. "How strong are you?"

But Strange didn't respond. He took a step into the forest, stunned by what he saw. It had been dark last night, but surely he would have noticed doing this? He kneeled and reached out with his hand. Icy splintered wood lay scattered along the ground, leading a trail to the remains of a large tree that had been knocked clean out of the ground. Its roots were cracked and torn. At the site of the impact, the tree had almost been broken in two. His arms fall to his sides.

"Did I...really do this?", asking so quietly only he could hear the question.

Spike began to walk over to Strange's side, but suddenly stopped. A blazing purple light cast long shadows through the dark forest as Twilight's horn glowed brighter and brighter. Her expression was stern. Her eyes were cold.

"Whoa Twilight, what are you doing!?" cried Spike, noticing his older sister's lethal expression.

"What I should have done yesterday! I can't believe I was so stupid. You had me fooled, acting so polite at Rarity's, ut now I see you were just trying to lure us to the forest so you could pick us off!"

Spike jumped in front of Twilight's horn. "Twilight, stop! That doesn't make any sense! A guy as strong as him could have killed half the town the first night he got here!"

"Except that he was smart enough to try and take out the one person in Ponyville who could take him down! You really think he just showed up at the door to my room by sheer coincidence!?", shrieked Twilight. Her back hooves dug into the dirt as she started to lower her horn.

Spike shook his head and spread his arms out. "If he wanted to kill us, he would have done it already. I'm not gonna let you hurt him just because you're scared!"

"Ahg!" Twilight let out a desperate scream. A bright flash from her horn sent Spike floating up into the air.

"Holy shit! Strange, look out!" he yelled, unable to turn his body towards the ground.

Twilight turned towards Strange and took a fighting stance, but...he was gone.

"Wh-where did he go?", Twilight questioned aloud. She stepped slowly towards where she'd last seen Strange kneeling by the broken tree. His wide legs had left deep impressions in the mud. A set of large footprints led out from there, traveling further into the forest.

Looking closer, she could see other signs of destruction making a line through the dense forest. A cracked rock. A trampled bush. Another broken tree. Twilight's eyes widened with realization.

He was following the trail.

"Oh, buck!"

A loud popping sound came from overhead, and Spike began to plummet back towards the ground. Twilight's horn glowed and she caught him right before he made impact.

"Not cool, Twilight." Spike complained from on top of a magic purple cushion. He clambered off and the cushion dematerialized. The dragon dusted himself off and walked over to where she stood. He followed her gaze down the path of destruction Strange had left behind.

"You know, if you did fight him," Spike remarked. "I'm not sure who would win."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

The trio-turned-pair continued to follow Strange's beaten path. They'd been walking for hours, and it had been a surprisingly peaceful hike. They were miles into the Everfree Forest by now but they hadn't run into a single animal, dangerous or otherwise.

"Very strange...", she muttered under her breath. Spike snorted from behind her.

She took great effort to walk as quietly as possible, keeping her eyes peeled for any movement. Meanwhile, Spike was taking no such precautions. The giant bag on his back swung with every step, creating a loud clatter of plates and tent stakes colliding together. His eyes were glazed over, the rhythmic crunch of dry leaves nearly lulling him to sleep.

Suddenly, the path grew much brighter. Spike looked up to see the sun directly overhead. It was finally noon. The warm sunlight washed over his scales, easing the chill that had set into his bones. He was glad to have a break from the icy forest air.

Then, as quickly as it had appeared, the light vanished as a dark cloud rolled into view. A cold wind blew through the trees, whisking away any warmth he'd been feeling. A small raindrop fell on his snout, and he let out a loud groan.

His foot hit something hard and he started to trip. "WhoOoOa!" he shouted, windmilling his arms backward uselessly. His scale-hardened knees collided with stone and he stopped himself from face-planting with his foreclaws. He pulled himself back onto his feet, suddenly feeling a lot less motivated. He'd tripped on the edge of a huge piece of flat stone that created a large opening in the forest canopy. It seemed to have slipped down from the adjacent mountain, leaving a long, rocky scar in the dense forest.

"Twiliiight!", he whined. His voice echoed through the forest.

The tense unicorn whipped around to face him. "Shh!"

"We've been walking for hours, let's take a breeeaaak!" The dragon continued to whine. His exhaustion outweighed any need he had to act his age. He sat down on a stray rock, nearly sliding off due to the weight of his pack.

Spike let out a frustrated sigh. "How much further can we even go? The Everfree doesn't look wider than five miles on a map."

The Alicorn looked at her younger brother and bowed her head in a deep sigh. "The forest is non-Euclidean, Spike. That means it's bigger on the inside. Nopony's ever walked from one side to the other, so there's honestly no telling how far he's gone."

Feelings of hopelessness started to leak into her thoughts. Her stomach rumbled in protest at the idea of walking further. They hadn't eaten since dawn.

Twilight turned to look down the seemingly endless path. The mangled remains of a large timberwolf lay shattered further down the path. She stared into its lifeless eyes and thought of her friends in Ponyville. The Princess let out a deep sigh. They couldn't stop yet.

With a grimace, she turned her head back towards the young dragon. "Not yet, Spike. I know Strange isn't stopping just because he's hungry. We need to find him before he hur-"

*CRACK* *THUMP* *THUMP* *THUMP* *CRACK*

Her voice was cut off by the sound of heavy impacts and breaking wood. Something huge was moving through the forest towards the clearing, knocking down trees as it walked.

"Spike, we need to run. Drop the bag, and get on my back."

"Twilight, wh-"

"NOW, Spike."

An ear-shattering roar blasted through the trees, knocking down the last of the blackened Winter leaves still clinging to their branches. The monster was partially visible now. A single giant eyeball stared down at them, angry, red, and bloodshot.

Spike cut himself free of the pack with his claws and scrambled across the stone over to Twilight. In his haste, he sunk several talons into the soft flesh on the left side of her neck. Twilight winced, feeling warm blood soak through her cold, damp fur.

"Oh buck, I'm so sorry Twilight!"

"It's alright, Spike. Just hold on!"

Twilight spread her wings and glanced behind her. The monster was completely visible now, standing over twenty feet tall and just a few dozen yards away. She began to flap her wings as hard as she could, using every bit of her self-control to keep her wings in a steady rhythm.

"BUCK, Twilight! Please, please, go!"

Spike wrapped his arms around the front of her neck, pleading for dear life. She got off the ground and barely managed to clear the canopy during takeoff. Suddenly, their ascent was halted and Twilight cried out as an immense force seized her from behind.

Spike screamed as he turned around, seeing the cyclops' scaled hand gripping the end of Twilight's tail. She strained against his grasp, barely managing to keep them in the air. Spike extended the claws on his foot and swiped down at the cyclops' hand, but to no effect. He didn't even scratch the bastard.

Twilight blasted him with a stream of fire from her horn, but he didn't even seem to notice it. Spike turned his efforts to her's tail and frantically sawed straight through it. Finally free from the cyclop's hold, Twilight and Spike shot forward into the sky.

Once they were sure of their safety, the two of them began laughing and crying. They were okay. They were safe. Spike tightened his arms around Twilight's neck and buried his head in the top of her mane.

"Thanks, Twi. Sorry about your neck." He said with a sniffle, wiping his tears into her hair.

Twilight didn't spare the energy to speak. She was giving everything she had to keep them in the air. If they made it back, she'd have to thank Rainbow for the flying lessons.

"Um, Twilight?"

She turned her head back to look at him. Spike sounded a little off.

"It's following us."

Twilight looked down and almost started crying again. The red-finned cyclops was staring up at them, crashing through the forest with no sign of slowing down. She returned her eyes to the skyline and could see Ponyville in the distance.

Twilight started running through her options in her head. She needed a plan, and fast. It was entirely possible that the cyclops would stop chasing them before they got back to town. On the other hand, if it followed them back she'd have to kill it herself or it would destroy the entire town.

She looked down at the forest. If she tried to fight it here in the Everfree there was a smaller chance for collateral damage, but the cyclops would have the terrain advantage and it would probably kill both her and Spike. She set her eyes back on the horizon.

If she could make it back to Ponyville ahead of the cyclops, she could fight him in the field between the edge of the forest and Ponyville. It'd mean risking the town, but it was by far the best chance she had of saving everypony. She steeled herself and made her choice.

She raced back to town, psyching herself up for the fight of her life.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Twilight began her descent towards the town. The cyclops had followed them all the way back to Ponyville, but she had gained a one-hundred yard lead on the creature. She landed on the town outskirts, and Spike rolled off of her back. Her legs gave out and leaned against a fencepost, her chest heaving up and down. She'd just flown eight miles in twenty minutes. She pressed a hoof to the gashes on her chest and felt blood gushing outwards with each thump of her heart.

"Are you okay, Twi?" Spike asked her, eyes wide.

Twilight pulled herself to her hooves and turned to face him. "I'm fine Spike. We're going to be fine." She wiped the sweat off her face with her forehoof, continuing to breathe heavily. "Go get the others, Spike."

"What are you talking about, Twilight!? He's right behind us, there's no ti-"

"Spike!" He didn't need to tell her. She already knew. "Go get the others."

Spike looked at the ground and wiped tears from his eyes. He clenched his jaw and curled his claws into fists. "Okay Twilight, I'll go get the others. Just...hold him off until I get back."

Spike ran off towards the center of town. Once he was out of sight, Twilight allowed herself to collapse back against the fence. She pressed a hoof against her neck and examined it, dismayed to see it slick with blood. She watched with fading vision as blood trailed down her front hooves and formed a pool on the ground. Her legs felt cold, and her wings were completely numb.

*CRACK* *THUMP* *THUMP* *CRACK* *THUMP* *THUMP* *THUMP*

The sounds of the approaching cyclops were starting to grow louder. Still braced against the fence, she turned her body to face her challenger.

"Another dead legend..."

Cyclopes were semi-aquatic carnivores that had supposedly gone extinct thousands of years ago due to a sudden lack of their primary food source: pygmies. When she had read about it she'd thought it a good thing, since they were almost entirely magic-proof.

*CRACK* *THUMP* *THUMP*

The cyclops had broken the treeline and was now angrily scanning his surroundings. His search stopped on her, and the massive iris in his single eye shrunk down to the size of an apple. He let out an angry roar, sending powerful ripples through the tall grass in the hundred-foot field between them.

Twilight screamed back at him, indignant. She was Princess Twilight Sparkle! An Alicorn, dammit! She'd been chosen by Celestia herself to become a God, a guardian, of Ponyville! She...she...

She needed to run. Away from Ponyville, back to Canterlot. Back to her laboratory. Back to Celestia. She pushed herself off of the fence and tried to run into town, but her weakened legs gave out from under her. She hit the ground hard and felt her brain rattle inside her skull. Her heart pounded against her ribcage like it was about to explode. She was going to die.

The beast roared again. She could hear him stomping towards her, faster and faster. Tears and snot poured down her face and onto the dirt. Twilight struggled uselessly to pull herself up onto her hooves. She sobbed uncontrollably, pleading internally for someone to save her. What had been the point of all of it? Why had she struggled so hard, why had Celestia made her an Alicorn if her destiny was to die here in a pool of her own blood and tears?

The thumping slowed, and a tall shadow loomed over Twilight's bloody form. Twilight pulled her head up to face the monstrous form that had approached her, but collapsed back onto the ground. She closed her eyes, defeated. She couldn't even muster the strength to look her death in the eye.

"Just...do it."

Then, her vision turned to black.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

The first thing she heard when she woke up was the scratching of a quill, and the quiet humming of hospital lights.

"Mhm, and you brought her here right after?"

"Well, I had to ask around to find out where the hospital was, but yeah pretty much." Twilight was still unable to open her eyes, but she knew that second voice.

"Thank you, Mister...Strange, was it? You saved her life bringing her here."

"Come on, I just did what anybody would have. She'd just saved the town, was I just gonna leave her there?"

"No, not just anybody would have done what you did. I think what you did was very heroic. You should be proud."

Twilight could hear the clink of a curtain being closed, and the sound of hoofsteps fading into another room.

"I know you're awake, Sparkles. Don't think I didn't see those little ears of yours start twitching."

Twilight forced open her eyes, blinded by the bright fluorescent lights. Her eyes adjusted, and she saw Strange facing her from a seat next to her bed. He looked tired.

"You...saved me," croaked Twilight, almost asking a question.

Strange gave her a wry smile. "Yeah, I did."

"Why?"

Strange's smile disappeared. "What are you talking about?"

"I was...trying to kill you...thought you were a monster..."

Strange was silent. He looked away, out the hospital window. The town was quiet.

"...I did it because I'm not." Strange turned back to face her, conviction in his eyes. "I may look like one, and sometimes I'm gonna act like one, but...I'm not the monster you think I am."

Twilight's eyes filled with tears. "...so...sorry..."

Strange rested a hand on Twilight's shoulder. "I know you are, Sparkles. I know you are."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Twilight opened her eyes.

"She's awake. Everypony she's awake!" Spike cried out. The quiet murmuring in the room stopped, and Twilight could see a few of her friends here to see her.

"How ya' doin', sunshine?", asked Applejack, her voice filled with naked relief.

Twilight smiled. "Hi, AJ. Thanks for coming to see me. I'm feeling much better now." Her voice was quiet and strained. The blood loss had taken its toll.

A rainbow-maned pony stepped forward, looking anxious. "How did this happen, Twilight? Spike said it was a cyclops, but nopony else saw it."

Twilight looked away. "I... don't remember."

"You don't remember? Seriously? You turned a cyclops into monster-mash and you don't even remember doing it?"

"No, um...it's all black."

The room breathed a collective sigh. The remains that had been found looked like somepony had run the creature through a blender. If she'd remembered doing it, Twilight might never have gotten over it.

Twilight noticed Rarity looking around, searching for something.

"Rarity?", Twilight called out. "What are you looking for?"

"It's nothing, dear. Just...where is the pygmy?"

Several pairs of eyes widened.

"A pygmy!?", Rainbow questioned. "There's a pygmy here? In Ponyville?"

Spike spoke up with fire in his voice. "He was staying with us at the library. He was the reason we went out to the Everfree in the first place. I swear, I'll kick his ass when I see him, I'll-"

"Spike!" Twilight chided. "Don't be upset with Strange."

"What!? But he-"

"He saved my life, Spike. He was the one who carried me here."

Twilight winced. Raising her voice at Spike had caused her to shift her body, and the gashes on the front of her chest had started to open back up.

Spike watched blood soak through the heavy bandaging on Twilight's torso. His eyes filled with tears, and he looked away. "I...I understand, Twilight. I won't be mad at Strange."

Twilight looked at Spike with appreciation. "Thank you, Spike."

The sound of approaching hooves could be heard from the door to the hospital room. Nurse Tenderheart appeared in the doorway.

"Excuse me. I'm afraid it's time for Miss Sparkle to have her bandages changed. You folks can come to see her tomorrow."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"Thank Celestia, you finally get to go home," Spike exclaimed as he pushed Twilight's wheelchair along the path back to the library. "They had said your wounds weren't serious, so I didn't get why they kept you so long."

Twilight knew why. She'd lost a lot of blood from the cuts Spike had accidentally made. The gashes were small, but the decreased pressure at high altitudes made her blood much thinner. She'd almost bled out by the time Strange had gotten her to the hospital. But Spike didn't need to know that.

"And don't worry about Strange. I don't really get what happened, but I know you're not mad at him anymore. That's good enough for me. Trust me Twilight, we'll find him eventually."

Spike rolled the chair up to the entrance of the Golden Oaks Library. "Home, sweet home," he said as he pulled his keyring out of his satchel. He pushed the key into the lock, but couldn't make it turn.

"Hmph, that's odd. I know this is the right key."

Spike tried turning the doorknob but was surprised to find it already unlocked.

"That's even weirder! I know I left the door locked before we left, and I haven't been back here since I heard you were at the hospital. Stay here, Twilight. I'm gonna see if it's safe."

Twilight sat back in her chair, rolling her eyes at Spike's overprotective behavior. A cool breeze blew through town, causing the naked branches of the library to sway overhead. She closed her eyes and breathed a deep sigh of relief. She was glad to be home.

"Not worried about the intruder?"

Twilight opened her eyes again and turned to look towards the source of the voice.

"Strange!", she called out. "Where have you been?"

Strange flashed his white razors at her in a grin. "I've been here, dummy. Where else?"

He pushed the front door open and brought Twilight inside the main reading room, quietly closing the door behind them. Strange wheeled her over to the unlit hearth.

"Hmph, the little bastard didn't even start the fire."

"Oh, I can do that." Twilight's horn glowed, and the fireplace abruptly began to roar with heat.

Strange took a seat across from her, stretching out his legs and warming his bare feet by the flame. The flame seemed to melt him into his chair as he sagged further and further into the seat. He stared at the flame with half-lidded eyes.

Twilight, on the other hand, was fidgeting in her chair.

"What's up, Sparks? You need to pee?"

"Wh-what? No! I just..." Twilight folded her hooves in her lap. "...is this really okay?"

Strange opened his eyes to look at her. "Is what really okay?"

"This!" Twilight threw up her forehooves. "I tried to kill you! Then you come back to save my life! Are we really just supposed to go back to the way things were?"

"Sure. Why not?"

"Because I can't just do that!" Twilight was almost yelling now. "Every time I see you I'm reminded of how awful a pony I am!
How much of a monster I am! I'm supposed to be the Princess of Friendship, and yet I tried to kill somepony just because they looked like a monster!"

The only sounds in the library were the crackling of flames and the distant howling of wind blowing through high branches. Twilight flopped back in her chair, wiping tears from the corners of her eyes. Strange stayed silent, staring into the fire.

"The couch...", he finally muttered.

"What?"

"The couch is...uncomfortable. It makes for a shitty bed. If you want to make it up to me...then I want my own room here."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Strange lie in the darkness, resting on his new bed. Well, beds. They'd had to line up two mattresses to make a something long enough for him to fit on. There had barely been enough space in the guest room for it, but it was a thing of beauty when it was finished.

He smiled. Twilight had nearly cried when he'd told her he wanted to live here. She was such a sweet girl.

Strange lie back on his pillow and thought back to a few days ago when they'd gone into the forest. To after they'd entered the forest, and he had fled. To what he'd found.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Strange walked back along the path, still unsure if he could have been the one to create all this wreckage. He stared down the straight and narrow path, straining his eyes trying to see an end. He sighed and stopped walking, taking a seat on one of the fallen trees along the path.

This didn't feel right. Something about was wrong, but what? He thought back to that night, the sweating, the breathing, the thumping of his feet as he ran-

That was it.

Strange stood up. If he'd made this path in ten minutes, he should be able to follow it back in the same time. He started down the path at a fast jog. The sound of his footsteps made a heavy, thumping rhythm echo through the otherwise silent forest. Strange frowned. He'd been going faster than this. He was sure of it. Strange tried to increase his speed and found he could keep the faster pace quite easily. Maybe he could go a little faster. Even faster. Faster! The forest had turned into a green and brown blur. Several seconds passed between each stride. Strange could no longer tell how fast he was going. He pushed, and pushed, and pushed the limits of his speed, showing no signs of leveling out.

Suddenly, the ground gave way beneath him. Strange started to free-fall, but his forward momentum slammed him into a hard rock wall. Strange barely struggled to escape his stone prison, finding that the rock wasn't as hard as he'd believed.

He climbed out of the hole he'd made in the rock face, sliding down the wall to the bottom of the small canyon he'd fallen into. He looked over his body for any signs of damage but found only powdered stone clinging to his skin.

Strange thought back to Twilight's frightened expression. The way she'd screamed at him.

He clenched his fists in frustration. Why had this happened to him? Why did he look like a monster? Why did he have these abilities?

He looked back over to the cliff he'd sprinted off of. If he could get back up there, he could probably see where his trail continued. If he wanted to find answers, he would have to get back to where he'd first arrived in Equestria. Strange walked to the slowly sloping wall at the base of the cliff and started to climb, methodically burying his hands and feet in solid stone to create footholds. Finally reaching the top edge, he looked down at the shallow gorge.

"Oh my God."

The long, straight canyon started shallow at one end and grew much deeper towards the other. Scorched, shattered rocks were scattered throughout the gorge, and fallen trees lined the edges. He had found the pit he'd woken up in, but it was not a natural formation. It was a crater.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

After that, he'd sat in the crater for hours. He felt alone and confused. Twilight had rejected him. And even though Spike would stand up for him, he knew he'd never be at home in that library.

The only thing that had pulled him out of his stupor was a strange feeling from the direction he'd come from. The same feeling that had guided him to Ponyville in the first place. It had been by pure chance that he'd been there in time to kill that cyclops. He shuddered, thinking of what could have happened if he'd gotten there even a second later, but also of how easily he'd been able to kill the beast, of how familiar he was with the sensation of tearing through flesh.

Now feeling restless, Strange got up out of his bed. He walked over to the window, looking down over the sleepy rural town and to the forest beyond. The Everfree seemed to look back at him. He shuddered. It was a forest full of monsters. Did he belong out there with them? Did he belong anywhere?

Strange cursed under his breath. Of course he belonged somewhere! He belonged here, at the library. Even if it was dysfunctional, he had a family here.

He looked down at his green hands, remembering the dark red viscera that had coated them after he'd ripped that cyclops to shreds. Whispering to no one but himself, Strange chanted.

"I am not a monster. I am not a monster. I am not a monster."

As he repeated the chant, his nerves cooled and his feelings of anxiety faded. He drew deep, shaky breaths that cast fog against the chilled windowpane. He stared at his warped reflection in the glass. His eyes seemed to glow in the darkness.

Strange let out another deep sigh. Exhaustion clouded his mind. He turned away from the window and eased himself into his bed. His existential crisis could wait until morning. He covered his eyes with an undersized pillow and waited for sleep to take him.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Sweat poured down his back and chest as he strained against the lever with immense effort. His legs shuddered, his arms twitched, and he felt like he was about to throw up. He must have been pushing this damned thing for hours.

"Keep going, you've almost hit 15 minutes."

The human didn't even need to look to see who was talking. After all, he was the only other person here.

"That's the ticket, little man. You're almost there."

"Fuck...off," said the human, out of breath.

"Don't be like that. You're going to be doing this for a long time, so you might as well do it with a smile."

The human continued in silence.

"I'll tell you what: you make it to thirty minutes, and I'll give you a reward."

The human turned his head to face his guest. "What reward...could possibly...be worth...this!?"

His conversation partner grinned at him. "Why, the greatest gift of all to a human like you."

"Death?"

The human's quip earned a throaty laugh. "No, not quite. I thought we'd already discussed that, little man. No, I'm talking about knowledge. All the secrets of the world flow through this room. If you do what I ask, I'll let you skim a bit off the top."

"That's it...gossip?"

"No mere gossip, little man. The secrets to true power. Forbidden knowledge. Stuff that would send Gods running like scared children."

The human glanced up at the other speaker. What use could he have for something like that, especially in a place like this? And yet his first milestone came and went, and the human showed no signs of stopping. Another fifteen minutes later, the human crumpled to the floor in a pile of sweat and exhaustion. He could do nothing but dry heave as his guest loomed over him with an inhuman smile.

"I knew you had it in you, little man. I could see it from the moment you came here. You are ruled by a bottomless thirst for power."

The human's limp body was lifted by his torso, his head and limbs dangling down towards the ground. "Very well. I shall give you a taste."

His face was pressed against cold stone and, in his next breath, he saw a glimpse of the face of God. Color, light, life, death blew through his mind. He saw flashes of everything anybody had ever known, yet only a grain of this heavenly wealth of knowledge would lodge itself into his mind.

Again he was lifted into the air, the flow of knowledge forcing its way through his mind now cut off. He was tossed backward, landing against the wall and somehow managing to land on his feet.

"And what did you learn?"

The human gave his watcher an incredulous look.

"What the fuck are you talking about, I didn't learn anyth-"

The human's breath was stolen away as an immense pain wracked his entire body. He collapsed to the ground, writhing helplessly. A vicious cracking rung out from beneath his skin. It was as if every bone in his body was exploding. Tears and snot streamed down his face. The human opened his mouth but was unable to air his grievances. The bones in his neck had collapsed inwards, and his deprived lungs felt like they were about to burst.

Suddenly, the pain began to fade. His punished limbs retook their shape and his windpipe expanded, allowing him to breathe. The human could only focus on taking in oxygen as his skeleton finished reforming itself.

Finally, his torture had ended. The human looked up from the ground at his inhuman watcher, fury in his eyes.

"What the fuck was that?"

The watcher laughed. "It seems fate has played a cruel joke on you, little man. Looks like you've learned something you weren't ready for."

The human scrambled to his feet. He ran a hand over his face, wiping away a mixture of sweat and tears. "I didn't bust my ass for you just to get pranked."

The watcher laughed again. "One day, little man, you will understand what you have been given. The boon you carry can never be taken back. If those false Gods could see you now..." He gave the human an unearthly smile.

"...why, they'd kill you where you stand."

Chapter 3: Early Bird

Only the sound of wind rushing past his window greeted Strange as he awoke his bed. The cold winter air nipped at his exposed toes and fingers. He rubbed at his eyes and swung his legs to the side of the bed, planting his feet on the ground. He reached as high as he could, stretching his dense musculature to its limits and earning several loud *pop*s from his spine.

He paused for a moment, watching his breath form an almost invisible vapor. A large patch of sweat stained the sheets where he'd been lying. Strange clasped his hands together, trying to stop them from trembling. He'd had that dream again, he was sure of it. The one with the wheel.

Pressing his hands against his knees, he stood himself up. The wooden bed frame groaned, relieved to be rid of his immense weight.

Strange trodded over to the small closet off tucked into the corner of the guest room he'd made his own. He pulled the clothes Rarity had made for him off of the top shelf, and slowly started to dress himself. It had taken quite a bit longer for them to arrive than she'd originally said. Twilight had thought it strange that he kept having to go have his measurements taken. Why wouldn't Rarity just write them down? Strange knew why. And he wasn't complaining.

She'd given him several sets of long black denim pants and a few dark woolen sweaters. She had said they would bring out the color in his eyes. Strange had looked in a mirror and found that his eyes were black.

He had helped her with the design for oddly-shaped socks and shoes. Strange smiled at the memory. Helping Rarity with her work had been the highlight of his time here, even after her estrus had ended.

He walked downstairs and into the kitchen to start making the coffee, but was surprised to find it already done. He reached into a cabinet and retrieved one of Twilight's plain mugs. Strange poured the life-giving fluid into the ceramic cup and drew a long sip, then sighed in satisfaction.

He glanced around the kitchen hoping to find signs of the other early riser and heard a tiny sneeze come from the next room over. Peeking his head into the room, he saw a purple pony holding a cup of coffee with both hooves, looking dead to the world.

"Gesundheit."

"Hm? Oh, it's you." The glaze over Twilight's eyes cleared away.

Strange leaned back against the door frame. "Not a morning person?"

She yawned with all the grace a tired Princess could muster. "Not without my caffeine. Spike started making the coffee in the morning a few days ago, but I can't make it quite as strong as he does."

Strange stepped fully into the room and took a seat opposite her. "Actually Sparkles, I've been the one making the coffee. It's plenty good, don't worry."

She looked at him, looking slightly embarrassed. "Oh, um. Thank you."

Strange gave a drowsy smile to the equine librarian. "My pleasure."

He rubbed his arms, feeling unusually cold. The fire pit was unlit. "Sparkles?", he questioned. "You forget something?"

"Hmm?" Twilight looked up at him, not understanding. Strange gestured towards the cold hearth.

"Oh!" Twilight's horn glowed with a start and the fireplace roared to life, bringing some much-needed heat into the chilly reading room.

"Thanks."

The two of them shared a long silence, warming themselves inside and out with coffee and fire. Strange started looking his morning companion over. She'd been overworking herself. Her mane was scraggly and long, and a few feathers in her wings were out of place. Small bags had formed under her distant eyes.

"You alright, Sparkles? You seem stressed out."

The Alicorn's drowsy expression suddenly turned hard as she stared Strange in the eyes. Then just as quickly her gaze softened, looking almost sad. She weakly shook her head, flipping her ragged mane back and forth. The action gave Strange brief glimpses of the long, thin scars healing on her neck.

"It's nothing you can help me with. Princess problems."

Strange frowned at that. He turned his head to look out the window, seeing distant flashes in the darkened sky. It had started to rain.

She called out to him. "Can you tell me something?"

Strange turned back to face her. "What's up?" He sipped his coffee.

"Why...why did you tell everypony that I killed that cyclops?"

He felt his jaw tighten at the question. Strange looked away, rubbing his face with a trembling hand. "I was afraid."

Twilight straightened up. "Afraid? Of what?"

He let out a long, shaky sigh. "I don't really know."

Strange turned back to her, looking directly into her eyes. "Do you remember what happened when we first entered the Everfree? When you first saw just how strong I was?"

She thought back to that morning, remembering her feelings of anger and fear. The way she'd screamed at him.

"Strange, I-"

He held up his hand. "I know, Sparkles. I know you don't think that way anymore, and I know you're sorry you ever did. But...it helped me realize something." Strange brought his hand back down, warming it against the hot porcelain mug. He looked down at the floor.

"My strength is scary. My appearance is terrifying. If I want to live here peacefully...I can't let people know that I'm even more powerful than they think. Over the past few weeks, I've been able to start building a life here. There's just too much at stake now."

Strange turned his head up, facing Twilight with a serious expression. "I have to hide that part of myself, or I'll lose everything."

She stared at him with widened eyes. Strange was more complex than she'd given him credit for.

"Strange..." Twilight adjusted herself in her chair. "I'm glad you want to stay. Truly, I am. But you probably already have a family somewhere else! Aren't you even a little concerned about them?"

Strange thought back to the dream he'd been having. Back to the wheel. To that voice. He shook his head. "No. I've got no interest in finding out who I used to be. This is my home now, my family."

She sighed and smiled at him. "That makes me a little happy. The library will always be your home, Strange. No matter what."

Twilight sat up in her chair and gave Strange a more serious look. "So. You've told me you don't want to find out about your past and as your friend, I can respect that. But as a scientist...I can't help but wonder. Pygmies have been extinct for thousands of years. Why did you suddenly appear now? And your amnesia, your fragmented memories of a parallel world...where did they all come from?"

Strange averted his eyes. He wouldn't correct her. There was no way he was going to be able to convince her that he wasn't a pygmy without showing her that crater. And maybe she was right. Maybe he was a pygmy. As far as he knew, humans couldn't punch holes through solid rock.

She reached over and put her hoof on his knee. Strange pulled his hands down and looked up at her. Their eyes met and Twilight smiled up at him. "Just promise me you'll give it time, Strange. If you start helping others like you helped me, then the ponies in this town will grow to love you."

His eyes followed her as she set her mug on the coffee table and trotted upstairs to her room. She needed to write a letter.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

*THUNK*

"Careful! That couch has been here longer than we have."

Strange set the chair against the wall and gave Twilight an annoyed look.

"If it's so important, then why aren't you helping?"

She walked over and sat upside down in the lounge chair he'd just moved, letting the tip of her mane brush against the floor.

"Isn't it obvious? I have to finish planning the party."

He gave an incredulous look to the inverted, lounging Alicorn who now scratching away on an over-sized notepad with an over-sized magic quill.

"And why exactly are we having a party in the middle of a thunderstorm?"

"Come on, a party'll be fun. And besides, you need to meet everypony else."

"Who is everypony else?"

"The rest of my friends." Twilight twisted herself to sit upright in the cushy recliner. "It's good that you're getting along with Rarity, but you haven't really had a chance to meet the rest of the gang. This'll be a good way for you to break the ice with the others."

"Trust her, man!" yelled Spike from the kitchen. "She's kinda the expert on making friends!"

"And why can't you help me move this shit!?", Strange yelled back.

"Spike is in charge of preparing the food."

The adolescent dragon appeared in the doorway wearing a smug look and a tiny pink apron. "Sorry man, my hands are tied."

Strange made a rude hand gesture he'd read about in a book describing ancient dragon customs. Spike didn't recognize it. Twilight did.

"Strange!", rebuked Twilight with the practiced voice of a scolding older sister.

The green giant gave Twilight an unabashed grin. "Sorry, Sparkles."

"You need to get a move on, the others will be here s-"

*knock* *knock*

"Ohh, first arrival!" Twilight hopped up off the chair and glid over to the front door. Strange watched her almost bouncing through the air, and smiled. The troubled Princess he'd been speaking to this morning was nowhere to be found.

"Welcome, please come in! Oh, hi Fluttershy! And you brought Angel! Here, let me take your umbrella."

"Thanks, Twilight." Their first visitor stepped into their makeshift living room.

A pale yellow pony with delicate-looking wings trotted over to the row of cushions that had been set up in front of the television. She turned her head behind her and used her teeth to pick up the small white rabbit that had been nested in her long, flowing pink mane. She set the rabbit down on the floor by the cushions and turned to face Strange, who hadn't taken his eyes off of her since she'd walked in.

The slender pegasus looked up at him with droopy cyan eyes. Cute.

Twilight walked over to the mare, standing between her and Strange. "Fluttershy, this is Strange. Strange, Fluttershy."

Strange towered over the small yellow creature. Perhaps the past few days had been him more sensitive to these kinds of things, but he thought he could see her trembling.

He crouched down to greet her at eye level. Strange was going to have to play this carefully.

He slowly reached out his hand, hoping to shake her hoof. "Hi Fluttershy, I'm Str-OOHG" The biped had the air knocked out of him as the meek-looking pegasus suddenly tackled him.

"Oh you poor, poor thing," Fluttershy whispered as she stroked Strange's back like he was a frightened animal. "You must be so lonely...the only one of your kind left in the world. But don't worry, momma Fluttershy is here to take care of you. You can come live with me at the cottage with the rest of the animals."

Despite being unable to breathe, Strange felt decidedly safe wrapped in her forehooves. The offer was incredibly tempting, but he couldn't help but feel like she'd misunderstood something. Especially since Twilight was doing her best to contain her laughter.

"Fluttershy. I'm sure he appreciates the offer, but Strange isn't exactly the defenseless creature you think he is."

Strange felt the corners of his mouth start to pull backward. "Oh no, I definitely am. Please Fluttershy, tell me more about this cottage of yours."

Fluttershy pulled back from her bear hug and looked Strange in the eyes. Strange felt a strange melancholy as oxygen returned to his lungs. "You're...you can speak?"

"Damn, the jig is up," he said, now fully grinning. He reached out and rested his hand on the top of her head.

"My name is Strange. Nice to meet you, Fluttershy."

Fluttershy recoiled and her face turned bright red. Refusing to look Strange in the eye, she quickly turned and all but galloped away. She hopped up in the large recliner Twilight had been using and curled up into a ball, covering her eyes with her hooves. You could practically see steam rising from her face.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Strange watched Twilight hoof it up the stairs, leaving him alone to greet oncoming the guests.

*knock knock knock*

A muffled voice came from the other side of the front door. "Strange, honey. Can you open the door, please?"

Strange stood up and walked over to the library entrance. He opened the door and was greeted by what appeared to be a giant talking suitcase.

"Rarity, is that you back there? Damn, you brought the whole closet with you." Strange lifted the case with both hands, taking great care to ease it through the doorway. He set it by the staircase and turned back.

Rarity stepped inside, closing the door behind her. Spike stuck his head out of the kitchen. "Hey, Rarity. Did Belle come too?" Rarity gave him a mocking smirk. "I'm afraid Sweetie Belle is spending the night at a friend's house tonight. Maybe next time, killer." A pink blush somehow appeared across Spike's scaly complexion, and he withdrew into the kitchen. She turned to face Strange, who hadn't taken his eyes off of her since she'd entered the room.

"Hello sir," teased Rarity, biting her lip. A pink glow had formed on her face. Strange smiled back, feeling his face start to warm up. This would be an interesting night.

"I didn't know you guys were friends." The pegasus who'd been trying to hide between the sheet cushions now sat on her haunches, hooves forward, in the padded recliner.

"Oh, hi Fluttershy! Yes, Strange and I have become the best of friends over the past few weeks. He's been a huge help."
Rarity back to face Strange and fluttered her long eyelashes. "He's very good with those hands of his."

Fluttershy's blush returned with a vengeance.

"Strange, could you please be a dear and carry my luggage upstairs to Twilight's room?" An innocent request. He'd be happy to oblige.

"Sure thing." He hoisted the suitcase up onto his shoulder and turned to walk up the stairs.

"Hold on a minute darling, let me lead the way. It wouldn't do for you to get lost." Rarity started walking upstairs ahead of him, swaying her hips and tail from side to side with each step. That was a hell of an invitation. He wasted no time following her up.

When they reached the door to Twilight's room, he set the immense suitcase down against the ground as gently as he could manage. Standing up straight, he turned to face Rarity just in time to catch her as she jumped into his chest. The little unicorn wrapped her forehooves around his neck and hooked her hind legs around his hips. Strange grabbed her by her waist and lifted her up, running hands over the curve of her haunches. She pressed her hooves against his chest and leaned back, unlocking their lips with a small *pop*. She started running her hooves over his chest and pressed her forehead against his.

"Good evening, Miss Rarity."

"Good evening, sir. I just wanted to give you a proper hello."

Strange grinned, pulling on her thighs and grinding her lower body against his abdominals. "Maybe you can pay me a visit tonight and give me an even better one."

A sudden shuffling from inside Twilight's room startled them both. The two managed to separate themselves just as Twilight opened the door.

"Oh! Rarity, you're here!" Twilight stepped into the hallway, followed by a small floating box with the word 'HORROR' on the side.

"Hi Twilight. It's good to see you." The two of them shared a brief hug. "What's that you've brought?"

Twilight smiled, bringing the box in front of her. "Only the pinnacle of traditional sleepover entertainment: classic horror movies on VHS!"

"Very cool. Can I take a look?" Strange reached out his hand to grab the tape box, but Twilight moved it out of his grasp.

"Nuh-uh. No spoilers. Movies are always better if you go in totally blind."

Strange frowned, restraining himself from just snatching the box faster than she could see it. "I guess that's...probably true. I just wanted to see what a civilization that deals with mythical creatures on a regular basis could possibly find scary."

Twilight started laughing loudly. "Strange, trying to exploit my respect for intellectual curiosity are you? For shame! Now, let's get back downstairs." The three of them made their way back downstairs, where Fluttershy was talking to two other ponies with their backs turned to the stairs.

"AJ! Pinkie! Glad you guys could make it!" Twilight pulled them both into a hug.

"A' course we'd come Twi'," the orange mare spoke with a strange accent as she returned her friend's affections. She wore a large leather stetson, and her pale blonde mane framed her white freckled face. Her body was broad and muscular, and her bright green eyes were warm and strong.

The pink pony snorted. "Are you kidding? I wouldn't miss our slumber parties for the world!" Her bouncy, pink mane shook up and down as she laughed.

The three of them separated, and Twilight cleared her throat. "Oh, before I forget: Applejack, Pinkie Pie. Meet Strange." She gestured towards the goliath standing a few feet away.

Applejack stammered out, "G-gosh, he's-"

"HUGE! Hey, hey, can you lift me up, PLEEAASE?"

Twilight rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Just ignore her, Str-"

Strange leaned down, hooked his hands behind Pinkie's forehooves, and lifted her above his head in one smooth motion. Pinkie cheered with delight, continuing to laugh even after he set her back on the ground. He smiled and turned back to Twilight and Applejack, the first of whom was holding back a laugh and the latter of whom was staring at him with her mouth hanging open.

"You want a turn?"

"Wh-what?" Applejack blinked a few times, closing her mouth. "Oh, no thanks sugarcube. I'm a little afraid of..." She looked him up and down, her gaze lingering on his broad hands and sharp teeth. "...heights."

Strange frowned at her.

The front door burst opened, and thunder boomed in the distance. A few of the mares screamed, and Twilight hid behind Strange's legs.

"Hey everybody, sorry I'm late!" A hooded mare rushed inside and closed the door behind her. "Nopony at the weather factory expected a storm this strong this early in the year. Super bucking lame."

The mare pulled off her soaking raincoat and set it on the coat rack by the door, revealing a light blue fur and a bright rainbow mane. The wings on her body were long and immaculate, accenting her slender, muscled frame. She turned away from the coat rack and started to walk towards the center of the room, but came to a dead stop when she noticed the giant standing in her way.

"Holy shit." Her eyes grew wider as her gaze traveled up Strange's massive frame. "You're pretty big."

Strange crouched down to look her in the eye. "And you're pretty small," he retorted. "What's your name?"

The mare stood up straight and gestured to herself with a forehoof. "I'm Rainbow Dash, the fastest pony in Equestria."

She posed for a bit longer before asking, "And you are?"

He offered his hand. "I'm Strange."

The mare snorted. "Yeah, you are. Alright, 'Strange'." Rainbow matched his hand with her hoof. "It's nice to meet you."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Everyone seemed to get used to Strange rather quickly. They finished watching a few of the movies Twilight had brought with her, then the group almost immediately devolved into talks about the latest town gossip, or talks about the latest news from Canterlot. The subject of conversation had driven Spike to head to bed early. Eventually, the flow of the conversation shifted to Strange himself. They were all curious about who he was, where he came from, and why he was staying at the library.

Strange leaned back into the couch, careful not to sit on Rarity's coiffed tail. "I don't really remember my life before Ponyville."

The bubble-gum colored earth pony let out a gasp from her spot on the pillow-covered floor. "Really? You don't remember a single thing?"

Strange rubbed his chin. "Well I don't have a memory per se, but I keep having this dream over and over again."

Rainbow looked up at him from her cocoon of blankets with sparkles in her eyes. "A dream? What's it about? A lost city of gold? A secret passage in a castle?"

He shook his head. "Nothing like that. I only ever remember one thing. There's always a wheel"

"A wheel?" Twilight looked at him from her seat, shifting on her haunches in the lounge chair across from him. "What kind of a wheel?"

Strange stared down at the ground. "It's a giant stone wheel with a handle sticking out of the middle. It looked like an old piece of farming equipment." He shivered. For some reason, imagining it made him feel sick.

"What about your name, dear?" Rarity leaned into him on the couch, stroking his arm with her hoof. Her warmth seeped into his cold skin, and his shivering stopped.

"I couldn't remember that either. I thought up my new one after I came here. Actually Rarity, you helped me come up with it."

Rarity looked surprised. "I did?"

Strange grinned at her. "Yeah. You remember the first time we met, right? You kept calling it 'strange'."

Rarity's face turned red, and she loudly cleared her throat. "W-well, I suppose I did. You have to admit, a pygmy isn't something you see every day."

"That's true." Strange looked around, letting his gaze wander over every mare's flank.

"H-hold on, partner." Applejack started to stammer. "Jus' where d'ya think yer lookin'?

Strange turned to look at her. "I've just been wondering what those tattoos are on your butts. Every pony I've seen seems to have one. Do they mean anything?"

Twilight looked at him, a bit red-faced but still curious. "What is a 'tattoo'?"

"You guys don't have them? They're like drawings you put on your skin. People get them to make a statement about who they are, or where they came from."

Her eyebrows went as high as they could go. "That actually sounds a lot like cutie marks!"

Strange laughed. "They're called cutie marks? What the hell, that's adorable."

Twilight straightened up and began speaking with all the authority of a first-grade math teacher. "Cutie marks are symbols that represent each pony's purpose in life. We are born without them, but as a young pony experiences more of what life has to offer, they discover their true passion! Cutie marks appear when a pony has realized what they want to do with their lives."

Strange re-examined everyone's cutie marks thoughtfully. "Cutie marks, huh? That sounds pretty damn useful. If I had one of those, I'd be a hell of a lot less confused right now." He turned his gaze to Rarity, examining the three diamonds on her flanks. "Still though, it's a ridiculously adorable name."

He looked back to the center of the circle. "So what does everyone's cutie mark represent, then?"

Rarity re-positioned herself on the couch to give Strange a better view of her cutie mark. She brushed her delicately curled tail across his face as she turned to show him her flank.

"My cutie mark is of three immaculately cut diamonds. It conveys my affinity for gemstones, as well as my appreciation of the refined." Rarity sat back down, rubbing her haunches against Strange's thigh and laying her tail over his lap.

Twilight turned her body in her chair, showing an unusual pattern of multi-colored stars. "My cutie mark is of six smaller white stars surrounding a large purple one. I used to think it represented my talent for magic, but now I think it has more to do with my position as the leader of the Elements."

Strange cocked his eyebrow. "The elements?"

"The Elements of Harmony. The six of us represent different aspects of harmony, and the Elements we represent give us the power we need to protect Equestria."

Strange leaned back and began running his hands through Rarity's tail. "Is Equestria the only country with elements like these?"

Twilight paused, bringing a hoof to her chin. "I think that we are. I can't think of any other country with magic as powerful as ours."

"That's 'cause we're the best, obviously! Nopony bucks with Equestria these days." The rainbow pony beamed with pride.

"Oh, and while I'm at it." Rainbow uncoiled herself from her thick wool blanket and showed off a cloud with a rainbow lightning bolt shooting out of it.

"My cutie mark tells everypony that I was born to fly and that I'm as fast as lightning!"

Strange's eyes widened. Was she as fast as him? He questioned her, "As fast as lightning? Really?"

"Well," Rainbow rubbed the back of her head with a hoof and showed Strange a bashful grin. "Not quite. But I am pretty damn fast."

Rainbow sat back down and rewrapped herself back in her blankets before tapping the orange mare sitting next to her.

"Hmm?" Applejack looked over at Rainbow. She'd been looking down, staring into space with an anxious expression.

"Tell Strange how you got your cutie mark, airhead," Rainbow teased.

"Oh, um," Applejack shifted the blanket covering her back and looked up at Strange. "Alright. I got my cutie mark when I realized how much I loved working at Sweet Apple Acres."

"Sweet Apple Acres? Is that a family farm?"

"Sure is." Applejack pulled the blanket off of her flank, showing three bright red apples adorning her muscled flank. "The orchard's been in the farm fer generations."

Strange nodded his head. "So a cutie mark can represent your talent, your passion, or your calling in life. It must mean a lot to you."

Applejack took on a happy, nostalgic expression and looked away. "It sure does. The farm represents everythin' I love about livin' in Ponyvill. I don't know what I'd do without it." The anxious look on Applejack's face reappeared. "Though I suppose I may have ta' find out."

Twilight's expression turned worried. "What does that mean, Applejack?"

Applejack sighed. "Big Mac...broke his leg this mornin'."

The room shared a collective gasp. Fluttershy's head rose from her chair with her eyes wide. "Oh my gosh, is he okay?"

Applejack let out another sigh. "The doc says it's a clean break, but it won't heal soon enough. Spring's just started, and there's way too much for me ta' do on mah own."

Twilight stood up out of her chair. "We can help, Applejack. Just tell us what to do."

She shook her head. "This ain't the kind of work I can ask y'all to do. Big Mac was a hard worker, waking up every day at dawn and workin' till sunset. I appreciate tha' offer, I really do. But there's no way I can ask you guys to work all day, every day until the end of Spring. And besides," Applejack pulled the blanket tighter around her body. "None a' y'all are anywhere near as strong as him. I couldn't bear it if any a' y'all got hurt."

"But even then," Twilight said. "One missed harvest couldn't bankrupt the farm."

Applejack's eyes filled with tears and she hid her face with the blanket. "Except that I pushed Big Mac to invest in better farming equipment this year. It took everything we had, but..." She let out a sob. "...I thought we had earned it. I thought we'd worked hard enough ta' deserve somethin' a little better than tha' same tools Granny Smith'd been usin' since she was a filly. I guess...I guess I was wrong." Applejack continued to sob quietly, and Rainbow pulled her into a hug.

The party fell quiet. Nothing could be heard but the howls of wind and rain straining uselessly against the enchanted library windows. A somber tone had drifted over the room. They sat for a while, watching the dancing flames in the hearth cast strange shadows over the darkened room. Eventually, Applejack stopped crying but continued to lean her head into Rainbow's chest.

Strange was lost in thought. He yawned deeply, only to have everyone look at him. "Um, sorry."

Twilight let out a sigh. "No, it's fine. Everypony," she called everyone's attention. "It's late. Let's all go to bed."

Everyone slowly began to stand up, leaving their blankets on the floor. The other mares continued to comfort Applejack as they all walked upstairs. Strange tapped Twilight on the back as she began to follow them back to her room. She turned back to face him and was met with Strange's anxious expression.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Twilight nodded and followed him into the kitchen, where Spike had left a few ingredients out to prepare breakfast in the morning. Strange picked up a large sack of flour like it was a sheet of paper before setting it back down by the kitchen counter.

"I know what you're going to say. And I think it's a bad idea."

Strange turned around to face her. "I know it's a bad idea, Sparkles. That's why I need you to tell me it's okay."

"You can't, Strange. Don't you remember what you told me this morning? You've got too much to lose if you try to help her, and we can find another way to help Applejack."

Strange set a hand on his hip and rubbed his furrowed brow with the other. "It's not just about that, Sparkles. You told me that if I helped the ponies in this town, then they'd be able to accept me no matter what I was. This is the perfect opportunity to do just that."

Twilight shook her head. "This isn't exactly what I had in mind."

"It doesn't matter, Sparkles."

Strange turned away from her and pressed his hands into the edges of the wooden countertop. He looked out the kitchen window, remembering the look on AJ's face as she felt her future crumble away.

"I can't be the kind of person who walks away from somebody who needs my help. I won't be. You already know that."

Twilight walked up behind him and put her hoof over his hand on the counter. A long silence passed between them as they both stared out into the stormy night. Finally, she let out a deep sigh. "Yeah, I guess I do."

She shook her head, defeated. "Fine. I'll convince AJ to let you help."

Strange smiled and breathed an internal sigh of relief. "Thanks, Sparkles."

"But, Strange?" He turned his head down to face her. "Remember that AJ is a proud mare. She's going to want to pay you for your work, and you're going to have to let her."

Strange shook his head. "I've got no problem with that."

Twilight smiled at him and squeezed his hand. "Good. I'll see you in the morning."

She pulled her hoof away and walked back up the stairs.

"Goodnight, Strange."

"G'night, Sparkles. See you in the morning."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"They will never thank you for it.

You will toil endlessly in your doomed existence, devoting every fiber of your being towards perpetuating their meaningless cycle, but they will never even know your name. Most of them won't know you exist at all.

But one day they will call for you. And on that day, you must be ready."

Chapter 4: Chomp At The Bit

Strange shivered as biting winds invaded the thick woolen sweater covering his body. The sun had yet to rise, so his walk to the Apple family farm let him experience all the freezing chill of the night before. Still, he felt good. Here he was, treading along a long dirt road on his way to his first real job. No more lazing about at the library.

He pulled a crumpled note out of his back pocket and smoothed it over. Applejack had taken a few days to prepare a list of tasks for him, but she'd finally dropped it off last night. First item? Be at the barn by six. He didn't know whether she'd meant morning or afternoon, but it was better to show up twelve hours early than twelve hours late.

Finally, the farm came into view. The large barn in the center of the property was still dark. Strange remembered seeing light pour out of the barn the last time he'd been awake this early. It reminded him of why he was here. The last guy who'd had this job broke his leg doing it. In spite of his invulnerability, the idea made him a little nervous.

The orange barn lights snapped on. Light leaked through the plank walls and streaked across the landscape. As Strange grew closer, he started to see movement through the cracks in the wall.

He stepped into the tall doorway at the front of the barn. Applejack was there, loading large canvas bags onto the back of a huge wooden wagon. The muscles in her legs and back rippled like water with each effort.

He called out to her. "Good morning."

Applejack looked up at him, almost dropping the bag she was holding. She set the bag on the back of the wagon and turned back to face him, looking a little surprised.

"You're here kinda early." She wiped a small bead of sweat away from her emerald eyes.

"Am I? The note said six o'clock."

She shook her head. "I meant six in the afternoon. I was gonna show ya' 'round the farm before we started puttin' you ta' work."

Strange frowned. He ran his thumb over the crease of the note in his hand. "Should I go then? I can come back later if you need me to."

Applejack smiled at him. "No, it's fine. I'll show ya' what needs doin', don't you worry."

The unease in his chest faded away. Strange was glad to start working and gladder that he hadn't upset his new boss. A smile took over his face. "Thanks, Applejack."

She laughed. "You thank me now, but you'll be cursin' me soon enough. Load the rest of these sacks into the back of the wagon. I'm gonna get strapped up."

Strange walked over to the pile of remaining bags and began lifting them into the wagon. He made sure to keep about the same pace she'd been going. After discovering his superhuman strength and speed, Strange had lost all sense of what physical feats were normal. He'd have to rely on Applejack as an example.

He watched Applejack as he worked. She had taken off her stetson and was strapping herself into a thick leather harness. The worn cords dug into the softer flesh of her neck and barrel as she pulled them tight across her orange body. Applejack stepped back into the lower half of the harness and brought it up around her hind legs. She pulled her long blonde tail through an opening in the back, giving Strange a glimpse of what lay underneath.

Strange shook his head, banishing the pink haze from his mind. "Fuck, man. Now is not the time," he cursed under his breath.

Applejack pulled the last strap into place and turned back to face him. Her face turned red. "Oh," she almost whispered. "I had forgotten it was you here and not Big Mac."

Strange kept his head down, focusing on the remaining bags. "It's alright. It's not like I was watching."

A long silence passed between them while Strange continued loading up the wagon. He set the last bag into place and finally turned to face her. "Are you ready to go?", he asked.

"Wh-what?" Applejack's blush hadn't faded in the least, and she seemed like she'd been lost in thought.

"I finished loading up the wagon. Aren't we taking it somewhere?"

"Oh. Right." Applejack walked to the front of the wagon and hooked the straps there to the metal loops on her harness. She tied the last strap into place and turned her head back towards Strange. "I'm turnin' around with this thing. You'd best stay clear."

Strange backed up against the wall of the barn. Applejack swung the wagon around towards the entrance. She pushed hard against the straps holding her to the immense weight of the wagon and started to move. Strange followed her as she dragged the wagon outside.

They started walking down the southern road, opposite the one Strange had taken to get to the farm. Strange watched as Applejack strained to pull the huge cart up the dirt road. He felt guilty walking beside her unburdened.

"Can I try pulling the wagon, Applejack?"

She stopped pulling and cocked her head back towards him, her face and neck covered in sweat. "Sure, you can try. But I don't want you ta' hurt yerself tryin' ta' punch above yer weight.
Don't overdo it."

Applejack unhooked herself from the wagon and stepped aside. She pulled out a rag from her saddlebag and wiped the moisture from her face, letting out a deep breath.

Strange took her place, wrapping the leather straps around his forearms. He curled his arms forward, making the appropriate grunts and groans.

He glanced back at his new colleague, who was staring at him like he was an idiot. Maybe he was overdoing it a little.

The wagon started moving, and Strange kept walking. Applejack kept pace, keeping on eye on him and making sure he didn't hurt himself.

They continued walking in silence for what seemed like hours. Suddenly the trees opened up to reveal a large, barren clearing. Applejack walked off the path over to a smaller shed. "Leave the wagon there and come over here."

Strange uncoiled the leather straps from around his forearms. He rubbed the grooves left in his skin as he followed her inside the shed. The morning sun had crept up over the treeline, providing ample light to see the inside of the unlit shed.

A sheet lay over something in the center of the shed. Applejack walked over to it and pulled off the object's cover, revealing a long, steel plow. The metal shined in the morning light, and the blade looked sharp enough to cut through solid rock. There were stiff leather straps on the sides, like the ones on the wagon except much newer.

Applejack stood still, staring at the plow's shining edge with her eyebrows furrowed. Strange's eyes widened with the realization. This was what had put the farm in the red.

She spun back to him. "Today we're planting tomatoes in the northeastern quadrant of the southern field."

He gestured towards the plow. "Do you want me to pull it?"

Applejack put a hoof to her chin. "I was gonna have you spread the seeds behind me as drug the plow, but..."

Strange put his hands on his hips. "Come on, AJ. I managed to pull that wagon here, didn't I?"

She shook her head. "Tilling the field's a whole different animal from pullin' a wagon. And besides, I don't wanna wear ya' out on yer first day."

"Just let me try!", he almost yelled at her. Applejack took a step back from him.

Regret filled chest as soon as he'd done it. He averted his eyes, choosing instead to stare at the dirt floor of the equipment shed.

"I...I'm sorry. I just...I want to help."

Applejack stared at him for several minutes. Eventually, she walked into a stall, obscuring herself from his vision. He could hear the sound of leather rubbing against fur. The tip of Applejack's golden tail flipped up above the edge of the stall. She emerged with the harness draped across her back.

She looked up at him with a stiff expression and nodded.

"If you get wore out, don't say I didn't warn ya'."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

The dirt provided even less resistance than Strange had expected. The plow cut through the farmland like a hot knife through butter. It was a testament to the skill of the craftsman that had forged it.

Unfortunately for Strange, this made controlling his speed that much harder. Keeping his progress slow and steady over the long hours of the day was a herculean task. By midday, he no longer had to feign his exhaustion. When Applejack finally called him to break, Strange was ready to fling the plow into the stratosphere.

Strange untied the leather bands from his arms and ran his fingers along the deep grooves in his skin. He turned and trudged to the side of the field, shambling like an undead. Applejack grinned broadly as he approached.

"It's not quite like makin' fancy clothes with Rarity is it?", she teased.

Strange glared down at her, out of breath. She threw her head back, cackling, and started walking back down the path. "Come on, then. It's lunchtime."

They walked in relative silence back to the Apple family homestead. The only breaks in the quiet were when Applejack would look back at Strange start laughing again. Strange couldn't help himself from smiling either.

He pulled off his thick, damp sweater and tied it around his waist. The cold, dry wind blowing through the trees took the heat from his skin. Steam drifted from his shoulders as he continued catching his breath.

After a while, Strange could make out the bottom of a large yellow house standing above the trees. The bright color stood out among the dull brown of the apple trees. They finally entered a clearing, and Strange could see Applejack's family home in all its glory. They had passed by it on their way from the barn that morning, but Strange had been distracted by other things. Namely the orange mare walking slightly ahead of him.

She stopped before the fence and turned to face him. "You're welcome to join us if you...if you...." Applejack trailed off, mid-sentence. She hadn't noticed him take his shirt off. "...if you like." She finally pulled herself out of it, looking up at Strange's face and smiling at him.

Strange smiled back, though his was a bit smugger. "Sounds great."

He took the sweater off his waist and draped it over the fence before following Applejack into the enclosure.

Strange followed behind her, examining the building's exterior. The front door was heavy and worn. Several crude apple-shaped ornaments hung from the knocker. The faded paint on the house seemed decades old. The roof drooped downwards, and wispy grey smoke trailed out of the rugged brick chimney. The rugged house looked like it would either fall apart in the next five minutes or in five centuries.

Carved bricks lined the path inside the fence. The gravel trail led up to a small wooden staircase that rose to meet the entrance. Applejack pulled the door open and gestured Strange inside.

"Come on in, stranger. We don't bite."

Strange walked up the stairs and into the house, ducking his head to fit through the doorway. Applejack followed, closing the door behind them. She slid past him, leading the way past the main staircase and into the next room. Strange's boots thumped against the solid hardwood floor as he walked after her.

Applejack had led him into a dining room. Windows lined the far wall, spilling natural light across the large room. A full-sized kitchen lined the wall to his right, and an over-sized kitchen table was set against the wall to his left.

Strange heard fast footsteps racing across the floor above him. They made their way towards the stairs behind him, growing louder and louder. A teenage girl's voice rang out over the railing. "Aw crap, AJ! I'm sorry, I lost track a' time."

A young, pale yellow filly appeared from the staircase. Her dark, disheveled red mane framed a disheveled expression. She slipped past Strange and ran into the kitchen. He blinked in surprise. She didn't even seem to notice he was there.

"I'm so sorry, AJ!"

Applejack saw her crazed expression and laughed. "Calm down girl, it's fine. We can take a bit longer for lunch today. It'll give our new farmhand some time ta' recuperate." She gestured over the filly's shoulder at Strange. The young mare turned around, and her eyes widened. Strange knew that look. He'd seen it at the boutique the first week he was here.

She stood up straight. "Hi there. I'm eighte—um, I mean...!" The pink glow on her face turned as red as her mane. "...I'm Apple Bloom," she whispered out.

Applejack started to wheeze with laughter, throwing her forehoof around the girl's neck. She wiped a tear from the corner from her eye and took a deep breath. She gestured towards the green giant with her other hoof. "Bloom, this is Strange. He's gonna be helpin' us out while Mac gets better. Strange, this fair maiden is mah' little sister."

She turned back to Apple Bloom whose blush had started to spread down her neck. Applejack whispered into her sister's downturned ear. "Sis, you may wanna go back upstairs and...make yourself decent."

Apple Bloom shot out from underneath Applejack's forehoof and zipped back through the hallway. Strange watched her nearly fly back up the staircase and turned back to Applejack. She grinned at him. "My sister's feelin'...a little under tha' weather."

Strange turned back towards the staircase and cupped his hands around his mouth. "It was nice meeting you!"

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

The two of them left the house and started walking back towards the field. Strange picked up his sweater from its place on the fence and stretched it over his torso. He looked back towards the house and saw a shock of red hair disappear from one of the second-story windows. Applejack snorted.

"Don't even think about it, partner."

Strange looked down at her. "About what?"

She glanced up at him from the corner of her eye and shook her head. "Big Macintosh may have a bad leg, but if you touch Apple Bloom it won't make a difference."

Strange widened his eyes. Then he smiled. "Is he that protective of all his sisters?"

Applejack didn't respond. The brim of her stetson hid her face from him, but Strange knew she had to have heard him.

They continued walking on the worn dirt road. They were about halfway back to the field when Applejack veered off the path. She approached one of the apple trees and ran her hoof over an odd groove in the side of the trunk. Strange followed behind her, inspecting the mark.

The bark was stripped away and deep cuts in the wood had nearly exposed the tree's core. The long cuts traveled vertically up the tree as if something huge had been trying to climb it.

"What could have done that?"

Applejack turned back to face him. She looked worried.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"What the FUCK is a hornhog?"

The library's other occupants turned to him with wide eyes. The librarian herself rebuked Strange with a loud, "SHHHH!"

He felt his face heat up and smiled in apology. "Sorry, Sparkles."

Strange walked up the stairs to the nonfiction section and started to scan the shelves. His frustration had come after Applejack had ordered him home. Whatever a hornhog was, it was dangerous enough that her whole family was spending the night at Rarity's boutique.

Strange sighed, resting his hand on the edge of the shelf in front of him. He thought back to the long, even cuts the monster had through in solid wood. He thought back to the young filly he'd met earlier that day. Maybe AJ wasn't overreacting. But goddammit, she could have at least let him help!

He let out an irritated burst of air from his nose. Strange picked a local bestiary from the shelf and began thumbing through it.

"Here it is, 'Hornet Hog'. Combination of a bee and a boar, feed on the flowers of apple trees, yadda yadda yadda...oh shit."

Hornet Hogs (a.k.a. Hornhogs) are a very rare sighting these days, making their striped hides a very valuable commodity. They will normally build their hives near rivers or other bodies of water, but haven't been spotted in the area surrounding Ponyville in decades..

"What's got you all rustled up?"

Strange whipped around, still holding the book in front of him. Twilight peered at him over the rim of her black-rimmed, half-circle reading glasses. The shine of her long, winding horn reflected into his eyes.

"There's a pest in the orchard that's got AJ all spooked. Something called a 'Hornet hog'."

Twilight's eyes widened. "Really? Hornet hogs a very rare sighting these days. They haven't been spotted in the area surrounding Ponyville in decades."

Strange smirked and rolled his eyes. He looked back down at the bestiary and continued skimming through it. "Anyways, AJ's family is staying at Rarity's place while she tries to contact animal control."

"Animal control? What for?"

He looked up at her. "Whaddya mean 'what for'? For the hornhog."

Twilight cocked her eyebrow at him from behind her glasses. "Seriously? I watched you vaporize a cyclops with your bare hands. You really don't think you could scare off one measly little hornhog?"

Strange shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe I could. But if animal control can take care of things, I say let 'em. I've got too much to lose from trying to handle things myself."

"Too much to lose? From what? Do you think Applejack is the kind of pony to spread rumors about somepony who was doing her a favor? Come on, Strange. When I said you should start helping ponies, this is exactly what had in mind. People need to know that you use your strength for good."

He shook his head, turning back to face the bookshelf. "I still don't like it."

Twilight walked up next to him at the shelf. "What don't you like about it, Strange?"

"I just don't see why I should." A tinge of annoyance had entered his voice.

She snorted and pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. "You should because you can, Strange. The very fact that you've been given this power means that you have a responsibility to use it."

Another pony walked up the stairs into the room and over to the bookshelf next to them. Strange stayed silent, staring into the bookshelf with his arms crossed. Twilight studied his face and then shook her head.

"You know, if Applejack calls animal control she's gonna have to pay a looot of money. Money that the Apples don't have."

He looked down at her, still refusing to speak.

"If only there was somepony who could help her out. Animal control is reeaally expensive. She may just try to take her of it herself. She might even get hurt."

Strange sighed and dropped his shoulders. He leaned down and seethed into her ear. "Goddammit, fine. Just...make sure nobody goes to the orchard for the next couple of hours."

Twilight smiled and nodded her head.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

*knock* *knock* *knock*

Rarity looked up from her paper-covered desk. She set her floating quill into an inkwell and walked out into the foyer of the boutique. Who would be knocking this late at night?

She pushed her red, oval eyeglasses onto her forehead and whipped her hair from her face. She cleared her throat as she prepared to open the front door.

"Yes, dear? Who is it?", she asked, putting her eye up to the peephole.

Her friend's voice traveled through the door. "It's Twilight. I heard that Applejack was staying here?"

Rarity's nerves settled after hearing Twilight's voice. Her horn began to glow and a heavy *clack* indicated that the door's lock had been opened. She pulled the door open and smiled at her visitor.

"Hello, Twilight."

"Hi, Rarity."

Rarity gestured inside with her hoof, welcoming Twilight into the boutique. The Alicorn nodded in thanks and escaped from the night's cold embrace into the warmth of a friend's home.

The white unicorn closed the door behind her, and the deadbolt slid back into place. She turned to face her guest, who was looking back at her with a worried expression.

"Are they here?"

"Yes they are, darling. And before you ask, they're all fine. Nopony's been hurt." Rarity walked further into the room. She led the way towards a doorway blocked off by a thick purple curtain.

"Where are they?"

The two of them walked through the curtain and into the boutique's kitchen. The room was a spotless white with purple accents, mirroring the style of the boutique's exterior and owner.

"They're all upstairs, sound asleep. Big Macintosh is one heavy pony, even heavier than he looks. It was a true struggle trying to levitate him up the stairs." She walked up to the kitchen counter and glanced back at Twilight.

"Can I get you some tea, darling?"

"Hm?" Twilight had been staring through the kitchen window. Her mind had wandered off until Rarity's question pulled her back. "Oh, thank you, Rarity. I could use something for my nerves."

Rarity turned back to the kitchen and began preparing the tea. "What nerves, Twilight? Did you have another dream about sleeping through an exam?"

Twilight snorted and took a seat at Rarity's large glass dining table. The violet-maned mare set the kettle over a low flame on the stovetop before joining her friend. She took a seat in the chair across the table.

"I imagine Applejack told you what happened."

"Mm." Rarity leaned back in her chair. "Something about a 'hornhog'? I'm afraid I didn't ask many questions. If you'd seen the look on her face, I doubt you would have either."

The purple curtain that filled the doorway to the foyer parted. Applejack stepped through, looking surprised to see their nighttime visitor.

Twilight smiled weakly. "Hello, Applejack."

"Hey, Twi." Applejack took the seat next to Twilight and leaned forward onto the table's hard surface. "I take it Strange told ya' about the hornhogs."

She nodded. "Yeah, he did. He was pretty upset about not being able to help."

The troubled farmer sighed deeply. "Yeah, well. There's not a whole lot any of us can do until I can hire someone to get rid of it."

"Do you want me to—"

"No way, Twilight. Don't even think about it. I know you want to help me, but I'd rather lose tha' farm than see any of you get hurt fer my sake"

Twilight shook her head. "I know that, AJ. I just wanted to inspect the markings the animal made before you call AC. There's no point in you spending all that money if you're not 100% sure that it's what you think it is."

Applejack breathed another deep sigh. "I know what I saw, Twi. I'm sorry. I know you honestly want ta' help, but I'm just not comfortab—whoa!"

The silverware in the cabinets clinked together as a small shockwave rocked the boutique. The trio started to hear the sounds of shuffling hooves from the ceiling above.

Applejack cupped her mouth with her front hooves. "Is everyone okay!?"

"Yep!" Apple Bloom's muffled voice replied through the thick floor. "Just a lil' shaken up is all!"

"Gracious! When was the last time we had an earthquake in Ponyville!" Rarity had started fanning herself with her hoof. She looked over at Twilight, who was staring out the window again.

Rarity called out to her. "Twilight?"

The purple pony's head snapped back, her eyes opened wide. "I need to go."

"What for, Twi? Ya' just got here." Applejack reached over to take Twilight's hoof in her own, but she withdrew from the table. The purple Alicorn walked back towards the kitchen entrance.

"I need to...make sure the library's okay."

Applejack stood out of her chair. "Do you want us to come with you?"

"No!", she almost shouted. "No, I'm fine. Thank you, though." Twilight took a deep breath, smoothing out her mane with a forehoof. "I just need to make sure Spike is okay."

She turned around and walked briskly into the foyer. Twilight's horn glowed purple as she approached the door. The loud clack of the lock rang out through the room. She flung the door open, only to see a giant green fist stretching out from the darkness outside.

"Oh. Hello, Sparkles."

Strange stepped into the porchlight's soft yellow glow. He stood straight with his hands clasped behind his back.

"What are you doing here?"

Twilight coughed and cleared the surprise from her face. "I was on my way back to the library. You might have noticed the small earthquake we just had."

She lowered her eyelids and tilted her head back. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Strange's black eyes glanced behind her. "Of course, I felt it too. The library was shaking something awful, you know? I had to stop by here and make sure everyone else was okay."

"A gentleman, as always."

Twilight turned her head back to see her friends approaching from the kitchen.

Strange waved his hand and gave a small smile. "Hi Rarity, Applejack. You girls doin' okay?"

Rarity giggled lightly. "Of course we are, darling. It was hardly anything to worry about. Right, Applejack?"

The orange mare simply nodded in agreement, unable to look him in the eye. She looked somehow naked without her signature stetson.

"Right." Twilight turned back to face Strange. "So I trust you took care of that errand? Everything went according to plan?"

Strange's right eyelid twitched slightly before his face stretched into a broad smile. "Of course, Sparkles. It went just like you said it would."

"What kinda' errand d'you have him runnin' in the middle of the night?"

Twilight grinned and turned to face the curious blonde mare. "Oh, nothing. He just went ahead and took care of your hornhog problem for you."

Applejack's eyes opened wide.

"I'm sorry, he did what exactly?", Rarity questioned. "I'm afraid I'm still unsure of what a 'hornhog' is."

Twilight answered the question with a smug tone to her voice. "A hornet hog is a very dangerous animal and a very expensive problem. Applejack would have had to close the farm down for days and hire an expensive specialist to take care of it. Except that Strange here was able to scare it off by himself! Isn't that right?"

The purple Princess turned back to face the giant standing in the doorway, who was rubbing the back of his head.

"It was nothing."

"You scared it off?", Rarity asked. "How do you know it won't come back?"

"Strange." Applejack suddenly called out. "Can I speak with you alone fer a minute?"

Strange raised his eyebrows and glanced down at Twilight. She nodded to him, and turned back towards the kitchen. His gaze turned to Rarity, who gave him a knowing look before turning to follow Twilight.

"Didn't you say you wanted to check on the library?"

"I changed my mind. I'm sure it's fine, Rarity."

After the two of them had left the room, Applejack walked over to the plush chairs in the foyer's waiting area. Strange followed and sat opposite to her, waiting for her to speak. Almost a minute of silence passed before Applejack broke the silence.

She looked up at him, traces of anger flickering in her emerald eyes. "I asked you to stay out of it."

"Wh-what? You're upset? I thought you'd be happy!"

"Why the hell would I be happy!?" Applejack stuck her forehoof out at him. "Why do you think I sent you home in tha' first place!? I was tryin' ta' keep you from doing somethin' stupid an' dangerous, but you went ahead and did it anyways!"

Strange leaned forward in his chair. "You think what I did was stupid? Come on, I would never have done what I did if I thought it might put the farm at risk! And think of all the money you saved not having to call animal control!"

*smack*

He felt a sharp sting across his face as Applejack slapped him with a forehoof. Strange rubbed the mark on his cheek in shock.

"Are you some kinda moron!?" She wiped away the tears that had formed in the corners of her eyes. "You could'a been killed out there and you think I'm worried about the damn money?"

Strange stared at Applejack, blinking hard with his mouth agape. The shock was still making his head spin.

"The money's not the bucking point, Strange!" Applejack's yelling reverberated against the room's tall ceilings. "Did you ever stop to think about what would'a happened if you'd died out there playin' hero like a damn fool!? How could I explain to Twilight that I'd gotten her friend killed!? How could I live with myself knowing that you were dead 'cause a' me!? It's goddamn selfish!"

The realization hit him hard, bringing tears to his eyes. Applejack had been more worried about him than she was about the farm. But...if he explained how pointless her concern was, then his secret would be out. Everyone would know the truth about him, and he would lose his home.

Strange spoke quietly, trying to drain the anger from his voice. "I appreciate that you were worried about me, but I need you to understand that I was worried about you too. I did what I did to keep you and your family safe. You wanna call that selfish, that's fine, but I only went out there was because it was the only way I knew how to help.

"That's a bald-faced lie, Strange." Applejack stared him down. "You can talk about wantin' ta' protect me all you want, but I know a glory hound when I see one."

She hopped out of her chair and stood facing him. "Yer actin' like ya' got somethin' ta' prove. I don't know what it is, but frankly, I don't care. You work for me, so when you're on my land you do what I tell you. If you can't do that, I'll find somepony else who can. We clear?"

Strange looked up from the floor. "Yes, ma'am."

"Good."

Applejack turned away and began walking back upstairs.

"Goodnight, Strange. I'll see you in the mornin'."

As she vanished up to the second floor, Strange slumped into his cushy chair. Twilight stepped out of the kitchen and began walking over the Strange. Though she was doing her best to stay quiet, the clacking of her hooves against the stone floor rang out through the tall room. Strange glanced at her as she approached, but opted to continue staring at the white chair across from him.

Twilight cleared her throat. "She, um... doesn't seem to appreciate your help. Sorry about that."

He shook his head. "Not your fault. I was probably gonna do it either way, so..."

She slowly nodded her head.

"I mean, whatever. At least the farm is safe, right?"

"Yeah." Twilight smiled before putting her hoof to her chin. "I mean...yeah, probably."

Strange straightened up in his chair. "What the hell does that mean, Sparkles?"

"Well, it's just that the smell of hornhog blood has been known to attract other hornhogs to the area. That doesn't really apply since you just scared it off. but even if it did start bleeding it probably wouldn't matter. That was the first hornhog in Ponyville in over a decade. It's very unlikely that a second one would be close enough to smell a few drops of blood."

Strange pushed himself onto his feet by his knees and sighed. "Great. One more thing to worry about, huh?"

He nervously rubbed his hands together, trying to rub away the sticky substance coating his knuckles.

Twilight yawned and looked back up at him. "It's been a long day, Strange. Let's go home."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"Do you even remember who you are anymore? Does it even matter?

Here you have found a new life, a new purpose. You spend countless hours torturing yourself over who you were, and who you might have been. But what is the point? Is it not impossible to reverse the flow of time?

Whether you like it or not, you've been given a second chance. Make the most of it."

Chapter 5: Honest Work

Yellow beams of sunlight streamed through the kitchen, shining into Applejack's eyes as she trotted into the room. She shielded her eyes with a forehoof, blinded but still drawn towards the smell of freshly toasted bread and fried eggs. Apple Bloom was standing at the kitchen counter holding a spatula in her hoof.

The red-maned teen turned around, holding a tray with two full plates. She smiled at her sister.

"Mornin', sis. I'm gonna take these upstairs, so go ahead and serve yerself."

Applejack didn't have a chance to reply before her sister took off down the hallway. She shrugged, and did as she'd been told.

As she sat down, Apple Bloom hurried back into the kitchen. She quickly gathered her food and took the seat next to her sister. The young mare was eating so fast she was hardly chewing.

"What's got you in such a hurry this mornin'?"

"Oh, um." Apple Bloom swallowed the food that was in her mouth. "I'm working on a project for my math class. I'm planning on being at the library all day so that I can work somewhere quiet."

Applejack cocked her head. "A project? You mean like a bottle rocket or a trebuchet?"

Her sister's red mane bounced as she laughed. "No, nothin' quite that interestin'. It's not really a project, it's more like a really long homework assignment."

"Do you want some help?"

A shadow of regret fell over her face. "Oh, um... no thanks, AJ. This stuff is pretty hard and, well, I know you've got a lot a' work to do on the farm."

Applejack could take a hint, but that didn't mean she it didn't hurt. "Alright, I get it. I'll leave ya' to it."

Somepony knocked at the front door.

"Aw crap, that'll be Strange." Applejack hopped out of her chair and set her dishes in the kitchen sink.

"I'll see ya' at lunchtime, Bloom."

She nodded her head. "See ya', AJ."

Applejack walked out of the kitchen and down the hallway. She took her stetson from the hook by the door and looked into the mirror on the wall. Her hair was a little messy, and she had a few crumbs on her chest. She carefully ran a hoof over her mane to straighten it up and brushed herself off. Finally, she carefully placed her stetson on her head, taking care not to mess up her hair.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Apple Bloom standing in the doorway to the kitchen, staring at her.

"What is it?"

Apple Bloom shook her head and smiled. "Nothin'," she replied as she turned back into the kitchen.

Applejack opened the front door, swinging it inwards. The tall green giant nodded his head at her, smiling.

"Good morning, AJ."

She nodded back. "Mornin', Strange."

Applejack closed the door behind her and stepped off the front porch. "Let's get ta' work."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

The midday sun beat down from on high, casting down a humid heat throughout the orchard. Strange and Applejack slowly trudged down the road.

They'd spent the entire first half of the day tearing up dead tree stumps, and it had been hard work. Applejack had strapped herself to the stumps and applied tension while Strange hacked away at the base. He had destroyed his pickaxe halfway through and had started ripping the roots up with his bare hands.

Strange carried the badly bent pickaxe across his back and dirt caked his pants. With the back of his hand, he wiped away the sweat pouring down his face. He glanced over at Applejack.

She carried her leather harness over her back. Her chest heaved as she slowly caught her breath. Her chipped hooves were covered in dirt and grass.

As the two of them approached the white fence, Applejack let out a deep sigh.

"Something wrong, AJ?"

She glanced back at Strange and shook her head. "Nothin' you need to worry about."

He clicked his tongue. "Fine."

Applejack handed Strange her harness and pointed at the barn. "Leave our tools in there. We'll see if we can fix that pickaxe later."

She walked into the house, leaving Strange to take care of their things. He cursed under his breath and sped over to the barn.

Once inside, he set the harness on its hook and took a look at his broken pickaxe. The pointed tip was curled back and the flat edge on the other side was completely twisted. As though he was molding wet clay, Strange pressed the tempered steel back into place. He squeezed the tip of the pick between his fingers, creating a sharp edge from the hardened metal. He placed the tool on the workbench and walked back outside.

Strange hopped the fence into the yard and opened the door to the Apple family's house. He kicked off his dirty work boots and stepped inside.

The rich scent of soyburgers and hayfries wafted into his nose. Strange walked into the kitchen, looking for the source of the smell.

Applejack was already tearing into her food, seated across the table from her sister. She glanced up at Strange as she walked in.

"Hey, Strange." Apple Bloom called out to him from the kitchen table. Half of it was covered in notepads and textbooks. "I didn't have time ta' cook today so I just bought y'all takeout instead. I hope that's okay?"

"It's great, Apple Bloom. It's a hell of a lot better than what we usually eat." He laughed as Apple Bloom glared at him.

He took a seat next to Apple Bloom. Applejack silently passed him a burger wrapped in wax paper and a paper cup with fries. He tore the wax paper and ate half of the burger in a single bite. He sighed through his nose as he chewed, savoring the flavor of the imitation-meat. Soy patties normally grossed him out, but hunger really was the best seasoning.

Apple Bloom rubbed her nose as she continued to stare at the stack of papers in front of her. Her irritation was almost palpable.

"What'cha got there?", he asked, pointing with his finger.

"That's her school project," Applejack answered. "High-level mathematics, too complex for us common folk."

Strange didn't miss the irritation in her voice. He wiped the grease from his hands and snatched away the paper that had Apple Bloom's attention.

"Hey!" Apple Bloom whined at him.

Strange read the page over and snorted. He tossed the papers back on the table.

"That's what you're having trouble with? Pre-calculus?"

Apple Bloom looked at him like he was speaking another language. "What the heck is pree-cal-cool-us? This is trigonometry."

His eyebrows rose slightly. "You don't know what calculus is? Have you ever heard of integrals?

She slowly shook her head.

"Well, whatever. The answer to number three is sine of two pi 'f' minus theta all over four cosine of 'f'."

Apple Bloom blinked at him and looked down at the paper. She began scribbling furiously at the page and AJ raised her eyebrows. Finally, she put her pencil down and stared at what she'd written.

"That...that was it! How did you do that!? I've been working on this problem for two hours and you solved it in two seconds!"

Strange chuckled and grinned sheepishly. The exasperation in her voice was somehow nostalgic, but it also scared him a little.

He waved his hand at her. "Come on, you're exaggerating."

She shook her head. "I'm really not, Strange. You're amazin'! You think you can help me again after you're done workin'?"

Strange laughed while a sinking feeling formed in his gut. Yet another hidden talent that stood to cost him everything.

Loud coughing from the other side of the table interrupted his thoughts. Strange glanced over to see Applejack clearing her throat with extreme prejudice.

"I don't that's such a good idea, Apple Bloom. Both of us'll be exhausted by the end of the day. I'm sure Strange will want ta' rush home to supper." She turned to Strange and glared at him. "Ain't that right, sugarcube?"

"Oh!" Apple Bloom's face lit up. "He can just eat with us then! I don't mind cooking for another person and—" She turned back to Strange put her hooves on his arm. "—you can consider it payment for tutoring me!"

Strange nodded his head enthusiastically. "Sounds great." He turned back to face the older sister and smirked. "Right?"

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Applejack sighed as she walked back into her home and shut the door behind her. Dinner had gone well. Very well. Strange had really hit it off with Big Mac, and Granny Smith didn't seem to mind him either. Still, she'd felt somewhat awkward throughout the night. Apple Bloom had been acting very familiar with Strange at the table. The very thought of it made her anxious, which was why she had gone out to the barn to perform maintenance on the tools. The simple, yet satisfying work cleared her mind of uncomfortable thoughts or feelings.

She walked into the kitchen and frowned. Big Mac sat alone, leaning back in his chair focusing on a small paperback flattened against the table. He pushed his small spectacles back up his nose. Apple Bloom's books and binders were gone, and the mare in question was nowhere to be found.

"Hey, Mac?"

"Hm? Oh." The red stallion looked up from his book. "Yes, AJ?"

"Did Strange and Apple Bloom already finish studying? That was over with a bit quicker than I'd expected."

He shook his head. "Nope. They went upstairs. I think they're studying in her room."

Applejack raised her eyebrows. "Just like that?"

"What does that mean?"

She snorted. "It means that you used ta' mean-mug the crabapples outta any colt who even so much as looked at Apple Bloom, but now yer' okay with her bringing strange men inta' her room?"

Big Mac set his book on the table. "Apple Bloom ain't a kid no more, and Strange ain't exactly a stranger ta' us. If yer' so worried about it, why don't you go check on 'em yerself?"

Applejack glanced back out of the kitchen, at the staircase leading to the second floor. She huffed and shook her head. Big Mac shook his head as he watched her slowly walk back into the hallway.

She started slowly up the steps, straining her ears for any noise coming from upstairs. AJ heard Strange's and Apple Bloom's voice grow louder and louder as she grew closer to her sister's room.

"Strange, I don't think that's where that goes."

"Oh it is, trust me. I know it's abnormal, but I think you'll enjoy it a lot more."

"Enjoy it... more?"

"Absolutely. Once you start doing it this way, you'll never want to do it normally again!"

Strange turned his head as Applejack threw the door open, causing it to rattle in its frame. She stared at the two of them, wide-eyed and confused.

"Hello there," greeted Strange, standing by Apple Bloom's desk.

Apple Bloom looked up from her homework and over at her sister. "What's wrong, AJ?"

Applejack felt her face catch fire. "W-well, I, uh..." She stopped her stammering when she saw Strange grinning at her.

"Y-you were doin' it on purpose!", she accused with her hoof.

He shrugged. "Maybe."

The teenage filly sighed. "Sorry sis, but I'm real busy right now. If you don't have anythin' ta' ask me, I need to get back ta' studyin'."

Strange watched a gloomy haze fall over Applejack's eyes. She shuffled on her hooves. "Sure thing, sis. I'll get outta' yer way." The orange mare turned to walk out of the room.

"W-wait!"

She turned back to Strange who had called out to her.

"Did you want to learn this stuff too? I mean, I'm not always going to be around when she needs help, you know. Is that okay, Bloom?"

His prodigy looked up at him, and then at her sister with a smile. "Sure, that'd be great."

Applejack felt the gloom in her mind fade away, and stepped back into the bedroom.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Strange yawned loudly and leaned back in his chair. The antique wood creaked under his weight. Applejack looked up at him.

"If you need ta' go, that's fine. I can handle the rest on mah' own."

The great green man shook his head. "Not a chance, AJ. I know if I leave you'll stay up all night trying it teach it to yourself. At least if I stay here, we'll be equally exhausted come morning."

Applejack looked up at him from across an ocean of paper and textbooks. Apple Bloom had gone to bed hours ago, and the two of them had moved into the kitchen. The only light in the room was from a ceiling lamp above the kitchen table.

She looked back down at the pages in front of her and let out a deep sigh. Her sister hadn't been kidding. This stuff was hard. She thanked the Gods that Strange was here to help her.

The mare snuck another glance at him. His sleepy black eyes met her emerald ones, and he gave her a warm smile. She quickly looked back down and ran a hoof through her mane, pretending not to notice. Grateful as she was, she still didn't know if she could trust him. He never told her why he had actually taken care of the hornhog. Strange had said he was just concerned about her family, and tonight shows that that was probably true. But there was something else there. He wasn't telling her the whole truth, or she wasn't the Element of Honesty.

The sound of heavy snoring knocked her out of her thoughts. Applejack looked to see Strange sleeping in his chair with his arms crossed and his chin pressed against his chest.

She smiled and shook her head. This stuff could wait until later. AJ hopped out of her chair and walked around to the other side of the table. She hooked her hooves under Strange's arms and pulled him onto her back. Good Gods, he was even heavier than he looked.

Applejack stepped into the hallway with the green giant still on her back and made her way into the living room. She heaved Strange onto the couch with a grunt. The mare shook her head as he continued to snore, blissfully unaware.

She watched his face as he slept, thinking to herself. Strange was a pygmy, a born pony hunter, and yet he was one of the most dependable people in her life.

Strange shifted in his sleep, causing his arm to hang down off of the side of the couch. Applejack lifted his arm back by his side, but noticed that his hand was clenched into a fist. She looked back at his face with worry in her large emerald eyes. Whatever dream he was having, it wasn't a nice one.

------------------------------------ X X X X X X X X X X X X ------------------------------------

Applejack stepped out of the house and crunched across the gravel path. She stared down at the ground as she walked and focused on her warm breath turning to vapor as it exited her nose. The sudden chill of the morning air knocked away some of her drowsiness. Normally this was the time of day when she and Strange would be heading into the orchard, but today was different.

He had been much more help than she'd expected, so much so that they were ahead of schedule. They had to wait until it was warmer to start planting some of the more sensitive crops so, with nothing to do until the weather changed, they were taking some time off.

"Hey AJ."

She left her trance and looked up to see who had spoken. Strange stood in front of her with messy hair and sleepy eyes. He was slouching with his hands in his pockets and he looked like he was about to fall asleep standing up.

"Howdy. Didn't expect ta' see you today."

"Oh?" Strange rubbed at his eyes. "And why not?"

Applejack snorted and walked past him. "Uh, because we're not workin' today."

"Shit, that's right. I totally forgot." He let out a long yawn.

She turned back to him with a raised eyebrow. "Why d'you look like yer about ta' fall asleep."

Strange groaned. "Twilight was lecturing me again last night. Says I should go see the Princesses about the strange dreams I've been having." He let out another yawn. "Damn, that mare can talk for hours about nothing at all."

Applejack bit her lip. "And you don't wanna go?"

Strange scoffed at the question.

"What?", she asked.

"Why would I? I've got no interest in wasting other people's time with useless nonsense. And besides, I've got a job to do. It's not like I can just leave for a month and expect everything to be fine."

Applejack nodded her head turned away, hiding her pleased smile.

Strange sighed. "So where are you headed then if you aren't working today?"

The mare stepped into the middle of the road and started to stretch her forehooves. "Figured I might go for a run. It's been a while since I've had the time."

Applejack leaned down onto her forehooves and stretched out the muscles in her legs and lower back. Strange stared at her fine, muscled posterior still high in the air, watching her blonde tail gently sway back and forth.

"What for? You've gotta be the strongest pony I know."

She chuckled and began pushing her hips from side to side, groaning as she pushed her joints to their limits. Strange turned his face away to hide his burning face. She had to be doing this on purpose.

"Don't let Big Mac hear you say that." She let out another groan. "He's always been the strongest I've ever known and it'd hurt his pride to know there was somepony stronger, especially now that he's been off his hooves for more than a month."

Finally, she stood up and turned back to face him. "You comin' along?"

"Ugh." Strange tilted his head back and looked straight up at the sky before returning to Applejack. "Maybe. How long's the run?"

"It's ten times around the perimeter of the orchard so... 'bout twelve miles, give or take."

Strange thought back to his run through the Everfree. He could probably run twelve miles in five minutes.

"How long do you normally take to run that, AJ?"

She smirked at him. "Fifteen minutes."

Strange's eyes went wide, though not for the reasons AJ might have thought. "That's... pretty fast, right?"

Applejack scoffed. "Damn right, it's fast. I've just about set the world record for Earth ponies. A' course, I can slow it down for ya'. Wouldn't want you ta' chip a hoof or whatever."

She turned away from him and started running in place. "We don't even have ta' go the full twelve, I can just stop when you do."

Strange grinned.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Thick humid air had rolled over the orchard by the time the sun had reached its apex. The chill from that morning had been replaced with an unbearable, damp heat. She cursed between inhales at the figure running about twenty feet in front of her.

Strange turned his head back as he ran. His bare chest gleamed in the yellow light of the sun. "Need me to slow it down for ya'?", he called.

AJ was too tired to respond to his taunt. Instead, she chose to focus on keeping her pace. If she stopped now she might just collapse on the ground.

Sweat poured down her face and into her damp coat. A droplet made its way into her eye and clouded her vision. She couldn't spare the effort to wipe sweat from her eyes so she focused on the bouncing green figure directly in front of her, falling into a trance.

They had passed twelve miles hours ago. Applejack had lost count of the number of times they'd circled around the orchard. Her legs had gone numb and she could hear own heartbeat pounding in her ears.

Suddenly, Strange slowed down to a walk. Applejack began to slow her pace as well and came up beside him.

She struggled to breathe the thick air. "Why...did you...stop?"

Strange wiped a trail of sweat from his face and gave her a tired smile. "I got tired."

Applejack would've laughed if she could. He wasn't even breathing hard. "You're... a damn... liar," she wheezed out.

He snorted and ruffled the top of her sweat-soaked mane. "I'm sorry, did you want to keep going?"

She swatted his hand away and swore under her breath. They continued walking for awhile. Eventually, the burning feeling in her lungs faded and some feeling returned to her legs. AJ continued to stagger up the road and turned her face towards the sky with her eyes closed as she continued to catch her breath.

"Hey."

Applejack opened her eyes and glanced over at Strange.

"Let me buy you lunch."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"I know what this is."

Strange cocked his head and smirked. "Yeah? What is it?"

Applejack took a long draw from the oversized plastic cup in her hooves. She gulped several times before pulling her mouth away from the straw.

"You did this because a' how damn pathetic I looked after we were finished runnin'. Don't you think fer a second that that'll happen next time!" She took an angry bite from her soyburger and chewed it thoroughly.

Strange laughed. "Good! I can't wait."

He leaned back and lay down on the red and white blanket. His bare feet stretched past the blanket's edge and rested on the cool grass. They had set up in the shade by a small pond on the edge of the orchard. Strange had gone to get the food while AJ picked up a blanket from the house. He'd gotten a few odd looks in town, but they were nothing compared to the one Apple Bloom had given AJ.

Several empty paper bags sat between them, their contents ravaged by savage beasts. Strange had eaten a normal amount, but he'd expected that Applejack might be a bit hungrier. He had been right.

Applejack let out a loud belch and quickly covered her mouth. Strange laughed from his position on the ground and she gave him a dirty look.

"Now that wasn't really ladylike, was it?"

She huffed. "Good thing I ain't a lady then."

A warm breeze blew from the lake and across the ground. The ripples through the grass seemed to match those running across the surface of the pond. Strange closed his eyes and started to drift off.

Before he could fall asleep though, a splashing noise caused him to open his eyes. He looked to his side and saw that Applejack was missing. Strange sat up on the blanket to see her skipping stones across the surface of the water.

*splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash*

"Hm." Applejack smirked and turned back to look at Strange. "You may have endurance, but how about finesse?"

She threw something at him, and Strange caught it in his hand. A smooth, flat rock that fit right into his palm. He looked back at her.

"You comin' or what?", she taunted.

Strange rolled off the blanket and stood with the rock still in his hand. He walked down to where Applejack stood, shaking his head.

As he approached the edge of the water, he glanced back at her. "How many times did you skip it? Four?"

"Five," she stated, sticking out her chest.

Strange looked back down at the rock in his hand. He ran his fingers over it, getting a feel for its shape and imperfections.

Applejack snorted. "Quit showin' off and throw already."

He clicked his tongue in annoyance. With a flick of his wrist, Strange spun the rock towards the surface of the water.

*splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash*

"Six." Strange turned back to her wearing the same tired smile he'd given her at the end of the run. "That was six, right?"

It was Applejack's turn to click her tongue. "Yeah, I guess it was." She picked up another rock. "Let's see you beat this one."

She tossed the rock high into the air. Applejack leaned hard onto her forehooves and kicked back hard, barely grazing the stone's curved edge and causing it to spin as it shot towards the surface of the water.

*splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash*

Applejack grinned and spun back towards Strange. "Ten! Beat that, ya' damn farmhand!"

Strange's eye twitched. He snatched a rock from the ground and whipped it towards the water without looking. AJ followed the rock with her eyes, shocked by its speed.

*splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash* *splash*

She looked back up at Strange, who was still giving her that awkward smile.

The green giant shrugged his massive shoulders. "Lucky throw, I guess."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"I just can't believe it, Strange."

Strange laughed. "What is it you don't believe?" The sun was starting to set on the orchard, casting a dark orange light across the deep green canopy. They had started walking back towards the farmhouse, with Strange leading the way.

"I mean, how can you be so...?" Applejack trailed off, shaking her head.

He looked back at her with a raised eyebrow and shrugged. They continued walking and the front of the house came into view between the trees. The main door opened and Apple Bloom leaned out, waving her hoof.

"Dinner's almost ready!", she called.

Strange laughed and turned back to AJ. "You still got room for it?"

She stayed silent, staring off into space. Strange's smile left his face as he thought to himself. Maybe he'd taken the showing off a bit too far.

They stayed quiet as they entered the house. Strange kicked off his shoes and followed AJ into the living room where Apple Bloom and Big Mac were chatting. Strange sat back in a large lazy chair and put his feet up on an ottoman.

"Saw you two runnin' today," the little filly commented with a smirk. "Strange just about left AJ in the dust."

Big Mac raised his eyebrows. "That's a surprise." He looked Strange up and down. "Didn't take you for a runner." The stallion turned towards AJ. "Even more surprised you let him do it."

The orange cowgirl shook her head, still looking distracted. "I didn't let him. He was just too fast."

"Strong too!", Apple Bloom interjected. "I saw him skip a stone clear across the north pond!"

The uncomfortable feeling in Strange's chest grew slightly. "You saw that, huh?" He rubbed the back of his head with his hand.

"Eeyup! Gosh, it was so cool. I don't even think Big Mac is that strong!"

Applejack snapped out of her stupor and stared at her little sister, then looked at her brother. Big Mac looked the same as ever, but she could tell. Apple Bloom's comment had hurt him.

"Strange." The red stallion called out in an even tone. Strange looked over at him.

"Hoof-wrestle."

Big Mac stood up and walked into the kitchen. Apple Bloom instantly got up to follow him, while AJ and Strange stayed behind. The two of them locked eyes for a moment before Strange stood up and followed behind the others. Applejack sighed.

Granny Smith stood at the kitchen counter with her back turned towards the center of the room. The great red stallion was already seated across the kitchen table with Apple Bloom sitting beside him.

Strange took the seat in front of Big Mac. "Are we seriously doing this?"

Big Mac lifted his forehoof and sat his elbow against the table with a loud *thunk*. "Eeyup."

The green giant shook his head and matched his arm to Big Mac's. He grasped the stallion's large red hoof, and his face took on that same awkward smile. Applejack's stomach dropped.

She quickly approached Strange and put a hoof on his shoulder. He snapped his head back to look at her, but his smile faded away when he saw her expression.

"Ready?"

Strange looked back at Big Mac, and nodded. Apple Bloom leaned over the table and placed her hooves over theirs.

"Ready... set... go!" Apple Bloom pulled back and the two of them began to struggle.

Strange put on a good show, grunting and groaning like he was putting his whole body into it. Just like he'd done with the running and the stone skipping, he'd have to win just by a hair. He needed to hide the depths of his strength, but he had too much pride to just lose on purpose.

Still, he couldn't get Applejack's expression out of his head. What she'd said this morning about Big Mac's pride echoed in his ears. Big Mac was his friend, and he was in a bad place. He'd be upset if he knew Strange was holding back, but...

Strange let out a load grunt and let his arm go limp. He felt his fist slam against the table, twisting his shoulder. Big Mac wiped a beat of sweat from his face and smiled at him.

"Eeyup."

The green man shook his head. He stood up out of his chair and walked to the kitchen exit. Applejack stood up and followed him out into the hallway.

"Where're you headed? Supper's almost ready."

Strange stopped and glanced back at her, hiding his face. "I think I'm gonna have dinner at the library tonight."

Applejack walked up beside him and took his hand in her hoof. She sighed. "Okay, Strange. Be safe on yer way back. And... thanks." She let go of his hand and he walked out of the house.

Strange looked up at the sky as he walked, and shook his head. What the fuck was he doing?

------------------------------------ X X X X X X X X X X X X ------------------------------------

The tall green man shambled up the dirt road in the dark. He didn't know what time it was, and he didn't care. All he knew was that he would do anything to keep from falling asleep.

Over and over for weeks now, he'd been having that same dream. The wheel. The voice. The feeling of his bones being crushed into sand. That feeling had started to leak into his waking hours, leaving him nearly immobilized with pain. There was no goddamn way he was going to see Twilight's teachers for help, so he would just stay awake for as long as he could. But after a week without sleep, the sandman was starting to call his name.

Strange looked up and saw the barn in the distance. If he could just keep moving, he wouldn't fall asleep. He wouldn't have to dream. His vision blurred and swayed as he walked, but he kept his focus on the barn doors. One foot in front of the other. Surely Applejack would have work for him, and that would keep him up for another few hours at least. Anything to stay awake.

He tripped against the rough wooden doors and pulled them open. Strange nearly fell into the barn and began to look around. He was alone in the dark, with the muted sounds of nature that leaked through the walls. The dirt felt cool beneath his feet.

Strange looked down. "Aw shit," he whispered. He'd forgotten to put on his boots. Still though, the earth was comfortable against the bottom of his feet, against his... face? Strange snapped his eyes open, apparently having fallen onto the barn floor without noticing. He pushed against the ground to lift himself up, but found himself unable to resist the siren's call.

The barn's interior faded to black and two yellow eyes smiled at him from the shadows.

"It seems fate has played a cruel joke on you, little man."

Strange jolted awake and started screaming at the top of his lungs. His bones felt like they were exploding through his skin, begging to be let out. Desperate to be free of the pain, Strange began to carve away at his arms with any tool he could find. Shovels, axes, saws, everything he pressed against his skin would break before it could cut him. The pain crescendoed higher and higher, and his screams grew higher pitched. His head felt like it was splitting open.

As a final act of desperation, Strange hooked his fingers into his eye sockets. He dug his fingers into the softer flesh underneath his eyes and began to pull as hard as he could. He started to feel his skin rip, and nearly cried from the relief it gave him. He pulled harder and harder. His arms shook with effort and the air around him seemed to vibrate.

A horrible tearing sound echoed through the barn as Strange stripped his skin away from his skull. A brilliant white light shot out of his wounds, burning holes through the ceiling of the barn. The pain had almost totally vanished. A loud crack rang out as Strange finally let go of his peeled flesh and it snapped back into place.

Strange fell to his knees, breathing hard. He was too weak to stand and sweat poured down his face and back. He could feel himself tipping backward, and fell into darkness.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"Until your task is done, your soul will never know peace. You have already ensured as much. With power comes strife, meaning that for you there will be no end to either.

You are a monster. An abomination even more terrible than myself. And until you have taken what you are owed, you will bring suffering wherever you walk. The mere knowledge of your true nature would drive mortals beyond the brink of sanity. Hide it, until you are ready."

Author's Note

Three weeks, huh? Sorry about that guys, I got super distracted playing Astral Chain. Wish I could say it won't happen again but BL3 just came out too, so... RIP.

I will say though that I am going to be making an effort to write more consistently. I see this story taking about another 30-40 chapters, so monthly updates aren't really going to cut it. I'm going to try and aim for at least one per week.

Chapter 6: Healing Waters

A knock came from the front of the house. Applejack sat up from where she'd been laying on the couch. With a sigh, she pulled herself from the cushion and walked into the hallway. The mirror reflected bloodshot eyes. The tired mare rubbed at her face with a forehoof. She had to stop sleeping in the living room.

The knocking came again, louder this time. Applejack pulled the door open and stepped back. She already knew who it was.

"Hi, Twilight." AJ smiled weakly at her friend.

"Hey, AJ." Twilight had been visiting every day to check on him. The dark purple bags under her eyes told Applejack that the Princess was even more worried that she was. She had been the one to decide that Strange would stay at the orchard, but it still had to be eating at her.

The sound of a door being opened caused AJ to turn around. Her brother stood in the hallway, pulling the door to the guest bedroom closed behind him. A set of sheets lay folded across his back.

"Good morning, Big Mac."

He turned towards her and smiled broadly. "Mornin'," he remarked before walking into the laundry room.

AJ gestured to the living room. Twilight took a seat in the recliner, almost melting into the cushions. Applejack went back to the couch, her spot still warm.

"D'ya hear anythin' back from the Princesses?"

"Yes. The royal physician is ready to see him, but..." Twilight shook her head. "She's very old. Far too old to travel, even by magic. We'll have to take him to Canterlot to have him treated." She at through the wall in the direction of the guest bedroom. "And it's not like we can just teleport him there. We have no idea how that would affect his condition."

Applejack stared at Twilight, then let out a deep sigh. "I owe Strange a lot. I can leave the farm to Big Mac for a few weeks it comes down to it."

Twilight raised her eyebrows. "Oh, well you don't have to worry about that. We can afford to just take a carriage or a train there."

"Don't bother."

Applejack turned towards the door to the hallway and gasped. The green giant stood propped up against the doorframe.

Strange ran a hand over his cheeks. No scars, marks, anything. Maybe ripping his own face off had just been a dream.

"Strange! You're awake!" Twilight leaps off the couch and wraps her forehooves around his waist. He looked at Applejack with a confused expression.

"She got over here quick, didn't she?" The morning birds were still chirping outside. "I couldn't have been asleep for more than a few hours."

Twilight stepped back and looked up at Strange. She gave him an odd look. Applejack gave him one just like it.

"What's... what's going on?", he asked with a nervous tinge to his voice.

Applejack shook her head. "I'm sorry, Strange. I'm afraid it's been... nine days."

Strange stared at her, then looked down at Twilight. She retightened her hold around his waist and buried her face in his stomach.

"Nine... nine days?"

Applejack slowly nodded her head. "We've been takin' care of you here while you were unconscious. Big Mac has been doin' most of the work, bein' how he's the only man in the house."

The loud thud of hoofsteps echoed behind him. Strange turned back to see Big Mac coming out of the kitchen. The red stallion stared at the purple princess attached to his waist and smirked at Strange.

"Hey man. Thanks for takin' care of me."

Big Mac nodded. "Eeyup." He walked past Strange and opened the front door. Large saddlebags were strapped to his flanks, and the cast on his leg was now gone.

The stallion turned back and called out. "You comin', AJ?"

Applejack let out a sigh, and nodded. "Yeah, I guess I am." Big Mac nodded and headed outside, swinging the door closed behind him.

"Where are you guys headed?"

She glanced up at Strange then looked down at the floor. "We had planned to head upriver today. The water stopped flowing, and it's been that way fer a while." Her hoof scraped at the ground and she let out a nervous laugh. "I was real worried about going, but now not so much. I'm glad you're awake, Strange."

Strange grinned at her. "Me too." He rolled his solid shoulders backward, putting a hand on his bicep. "You guys mind if I tag along? I could really use a chance to stretch out."

"No!" Twilight detached herself from his waist and glared up at him.

"There is no way you are going with them!"

Both Strange and Applejack stared at their princess. The cowgirl spoke up, almost in a whisper. "I'll, um... give you guys the room."

She slipped past Strange and out into the hallway. Applejack put one foot on the stairs before cocking her head back to look at him. They locked eyes for a moment before she ran up the stairs to the second floor.

The sound of AJ's footsteps carried through the floor. Strange turned back to the Alicorn standing in front of him.

He crossed his arms. "Why shouldn't I?"

"You are in no condition to be running around the Everfree with Applejack. There's no telling what else might be wrong with your body, and that's not even mentioning the fact that we don't even know why you fainted in the first place!"

His forearms pressed further into his stomach. "Sparkles, there's nothing wrong with my body, I just wasn't getting enough sleep. Come on, it's not like I'm gonna be in any real danger."

Twilight stamped her hoof against the floor. "Sleep deprivation does not cause people to pass out for over a week!
Gods, you are such a selfish ass! We have been worried out of our minds for nine days wondering if you were going to be okay, and the first thing you want to do is rush off into danger?"

"Twilight, I—" Strange cut himself off.

The sound of running hoofsteps had started to come from above. Applejack ran down the stairs and shot Strange another glance before bounding out the door.

He took a deep breath and kept his voice low. "Twilight, listen: I am really grateful that you were so concerned about me when I was unconscious, but if something happens to AJ because I wasn't there, I won't be able to handle it."

Her purple eyelids narrowed. "Oh, so it's not dangerous, but you still need to protect her? I get that you want to fuck Applejack, but doing stupid macho shit like this is not how you're going to win her over. It's just going to get you killed."

"Shut up." Strange looked out the window, watching the siblings walk down the road. "You don't know what I want."

Twilight followed his gaze and scoffed. "Applejack is the Element of Harmony, and you are the last pygmy on Equus. You are both far too important to do something as stupid as fall in love."

She turned back to Strange, who stared at her with anger and hurt in his eyes.

"Fuck you. What the hell gives you the right to say any of that?"

The Alicorn straightened up and flared her nostrils. "By right of my status as a Princess, maybe? I'm the smartest pony in this town and I'm telling you that going with them is a stupid idea!"

"I don't give a shit, Sparkles! I don't give a shit what you think anymore. Going with them isn't any less stupid than taking care of their pest problem. The only difference is that this time it wasn't your idea. I'm out of here." Strange stormed out of the house, leaving the door open behind him.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

He walked in silence up the country road to the southern edge of the orchard. The strong wind blowing through the trees drowned out the sounds of his muttering. How could she say something like that to him? He knew Twilight was only been trying to keep him safe, but she didn't have to be such a cold bitch.

Strange was so caught up in his thoughts that he almost ran straight into Big Mac, who was standing in the middle of the trail.

"Damn!" He almost fell over trying to move his hulking body out of the way. "Didn't see you there, man."

Big Mac chuckled. The massive red stallion stood out like a sore thumb against the green landscape. "Called out to you. Somethin' on yer mind."

He put his chin to his chest and let out a deep sigh. "I got into a fight with Twilight."

"Because you wanted to go upstream with us, right? Not happenin', friend."

Strange looked up at him. The red stallion looked faintly smug.

"Turns out my leg ain't as healed as I thought. Gonna have to take it easy fer a while. At least 'till the two of you get back."

The green giant stood straight up. "So... it's just gonna be me and AJ out there?"

"Eeeyup," he replied, letting the word hang in the air before continuing his walk back towards the house. He took long, even strides. If his leg really was hurting him, he didn't show it.

"Stay safe, Strange. And hurry. Applejack'll try ta' carry all those saddlebags on her own if you let her."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Applejack was standing on a small bridge that stretched over the river. The riverbed was almost totally dry, with only a few patches of mud to indicate that water had flowed there. Big Mac's saddlebags were stacked up next to her, coming up to her knees. The orange mare was looking upstream with a troubled expression.

Strange approached her without her noticing. The strong winds carried away the sounds of his footsteps. Her long, blonde hair flowed in the breeze. AJ ran a hair through her mane, accidentally causing the wind to sweep under the brim of her hat and carry it away.

She snapped around, ready to give chase, but Strange snatched it out of the air as it glid past him. Their eyes met and Strange gave her a broad smile. Applejack grinned and trotted up to him. He placed the hat back on her head.

"You dropped this."

"Thanks, big guy."

A warm feeling spread through his chest in spite of the cold winds. Strange walked over to the saddlebags Big Mac had left behind.

"Um... you sure you can handle this?"

Strange looked back at her with a raised eyebrow. "Who do you think you're talkin' to?" He picked up the leather bags with one arm and slung them around his shoulders. "See? No problem."

Applejack shook her head. "I mean do you think you can handle the trip? We'll be in deep shit if you pass out again out there."

He ran a hand over his face, tracing the spots where he'd felt his skin tear. Honestly, he had no idea if his dreams would come back, but he could handle any pain if she needed him to. Strange looked her in the eyes, and nodded.

"I can handle it."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Applejack led the way through the forest, traveling along the riverbank. She kept a steady pace, sending a rhythmic thumping sound through the forest. The long brown grass brushed against her underside as she walked. Strange noticed that she seemed to be taking steps in a line in front of her, attempting to press the grass down before it had a chance to touch her stomach.

He snickered to himself. "Hey, Goldilocks. Are you ticklish or something?"

She glanced back at him before returning her gaze to the grass in front of her. "Can't imagine why you'd think I was."

His face bent into a smirk. "Guess it's just my imagination then."

The two of them walked for hours into the day. Strange was actually starting to get exhausted. The forest remained eerily quiet, as it had when he had returned the first time. The Everfree was supposed to be teeming with dangerous creatures, yet he could scarcely hear a songbird.

The sun's light began to retreat beneath the horizon. The tall trees turned to mangled scarecrows, with twisted limbs raised high in prayer to some unseen god. The silence only added to the eerie feeling occupying Strange's head. Applejack's steady footsteps were drowned out by the sound of his own heartbeat.

He turned his head towards the sky. The bright moon seemed to mock him, as in spite of its clarity it did nothing to pull away the darkness that surrounded them. Strange kept his eyes on their pale watcher and let his mind drift away. The stars in the sky seemed to fizzle out one by one until only the single white disc remained, glistening like the white flesh in the eye of a giant.

A voice rang out in his head.

"Death will remake you."

"Excuse me?"

Reality seemed to crash through his mind as his senses returned to normal. Strange looked around for the speaker before finding Applejack standing directly in front of him.

"Did... did you say something?"

She let out a frustrated snort. "Dammit, I knew you weren't listenin' to me. I said, we should make camp. I's too dark ta' keep walkin', so let's set up here."

He shook his head, casting away the cloudiness lingering in his head. Strange gave her a nod and got to work.

The saddlebags around his neck contained most of their supplies. He set it down on the ground and pulled a small green tent out of one of the pouches.

"You go ahead and get that set up, and make sure you don't put it on top of any rocks. I'll get the fire goin' so we can have somethin' ta' eat."

Strange nodded silently and began to unroll the cloth, revealing a set of metal stakes at the center. He examined his surroundings and realized that they had stopped in a small clearing. Tent in hand, he walked around the perimeter and checked the hardness of the ground with his feet. He found a spot beneath a tree where the dirt was slightly damp and springy.

Orange light appeared to light up his surroundings. The ground was brighter and Strange was able to remove a few hidden rocks from the site he'd picked out. He looked behind him and saw Applejack crouched by a small firepit. She was blowing into the base of the flame. In her hoof, she held a strange rock with unusual markings on it.

Three sticks held up the center of the tent while the stakes pinned the edges to the ground. It was in a classic triangular prism shape with entrance flaps at the front and back. Strange put his hands on his hips and admired his work before glancing over at Applejack.

She had started to boil water over the fire. A small metal contraption held the pan directly over the flame, keeping it steady with three points of contact. Smoke trailed around the pan's edges and drifted off into the black sky.

He took a few steps towards the fire before Applejack called out to him.

"Strange, can you get the chairs from my saddlebags? They should be in the largest left pocket."

Her bags were lying closer to the entrance to the clearing. Strange stepped out of the fire's light and crouched down by the soft cloth bags folded on the ground. He unclipped the top of the pouch and dug around with his hand. His fingers touched something stiff so he pulled it out and examined it. A large plastic square with easy-tear edges. There was something written on one side. He held it out for the firelight and could make out a single word.

"Studly?" he muttered to himself. The pouch held another three squares like the first one, all different sizes. Whatever these were, they weren't the chairs. He put them back in the saddlebags and kept looking.

"Hey, did you say the left or the right pocket?"

"The left. No! The right! The right pocket, don't look in the left one!"

Strange's eyebrows went up. "O-okay. The right pocket."

He fished around in the saddlebags and pulled two metal contraptions out of the right pocket. They each folded out into a small stool with cloth seats. Strange set them both down by the firepit and eased himself onto one. The alloy frame flexed under his weight. It wasn't particularly comfortable, but it was much better than the ground.

Steam rose from the pot over the firepit and a faintly sweet smell filled his nose. Strange leaned towards the fire to take a peek and took a faceful of smoke for his efforts. He coughed and waved the smoke away from his hand, nearly falling back in his chair.

Applejack put a hoof over her mouth and laughed at him. Any apprehension Strange had felt was now gone, and his face warped into a smile.

"That's what you get for tryin' ta' get a sneak peek. If ya' can't take the heat, stay outta the kitchen!" She took the stool from his hand and sat back on it, continuing to stir the pot with a long wooden spoon.

Strange rolled his eyes before putting on a devilish smirk. "You shouldn't be so mean, Goldilocks. After all, I know your secret."

Her emerald eyes went wide and flickered towards the saddlebags she'd brought with her. She stared at Strange while chewing on her bottom lip.

"You're ticklish."

The nervous look in her eyes turned to fear.

"Am not."

"Oh, yes you are. I can tell."

Applejack spread her forehooves to her sides to leave her chest and stomach unguarded, daring him to attack. She was putting on a brave face, he could give her that. "I am not."

Strange scooted his stool closer to hers and started examining her up and down. Applejack's face slowly turned redder and redder as he ran his eyes along her torso. He looked up at her face and stared into her glimmering eyes.

"You're a shit liar."

He shot his hands forward and began mercilessly tickling the sides of her stomach. Her laughter filled Strange's ears like music, and her twitching muscles seemed to dance under his fingers. Applejack jerked her torso away from him and fell backward onto the ground. Strange followed her and continued his assault.

She started to gasp and slap at his arms, and desperately rolled away from him. He grabbed her and rolled with her in the grass, laughing all the while.

The two of them stopped rolling with her body on top of his. Strange brought his arms around her torso and felt her chest rise and fall against his. Her damp, hot breath warmed his skin.

Strange slowly sat up, keeping Applejack pressed against him. She buried her soft muzzle into his chest. The mare began to pur as he started to stroke her hair. The mare's thick, blonde mane felt like silk between his fingers.

"Strange?" The woman in his arms whispered his name. His heart beat a little faster.

"Yeah, Goldilocks?"

She tilted her head back and looked up at him. Her large emerald eyes glittered in the firelight, and a red blush ran between the white freckles on her cheeks.

"Are you gonna kiss me or wh—"

He pressed his mouth against hers as delicately as he could. Her eyes widened for a moment before closing, and she matched his pressure. The mare's lips were soft and sweet, tasting lightly of apples. After what seemed like hours, the two of them separated.

Strange gasped for air with wide eyes.

"Damn." He gave her a sheepish grin. "I forgot to breathe."

Applejack rolled her eyes before touching her lips back to his.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Author's Note

And that's where the story is going to sit for a while.

I had a realization last night that the story as I've written so far is fundamentally flawed. The reason I've spent so much time rewriting previous chapters is that I keep trying to shape gold from straw; if I want to make this story any good I'll have to rewrite it from the ground up.

Shit, it sucks having to type that. I do like this story, but I wrote a lot of what's here before I really knew what it was going to be. If you ever felt like the story was meandering or lacked clarity, now you know why. But now that I've essentially finished the outline, I realize that what I've written so far isn't good enough.

So instead I'm going to start writing something else. I need to step away from this story for a while so that I can come back to it with a clear head. I came up with a few super cool ideas as I wrote this story, and I think I can probably do them justice.

Do keep in mind that I will return to this story at a later date. It'll just be... a super long time from now. And when it does come back, it'll be mostly unrecognizable.

Remember to follow if you give a shit about my next project. Thank you for reading, and I will see you all in the future.