Fixing a Broken Man

by TheHardie-Boy

Rating: teen
Tags: Alternate Universe, Human, Sad, Drama, Original Character, Spike, Twilight Sparkle, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Length: 16586

After a freak accident, a hollow human finds himself in the loving land of Equestria

This story is a prequel to Romantic Meetings

Life had never been fair to Jake Taylor, not since he lost his parents thanks to his negligence. So, it’s pretty safe to say he wasn’t exactly the most friendly person around.

Unfortunately, a freak accident causes him to wake up in a forest...in another world full of ponies who value friendship. Jake, not being one for friends, magic, or well, ponies, freaks out. Too bad one pony in particular won’t let him leave

Here it is, the long awaited prequel to Romantic Meetings. I hope you all enjoy

Published 2020-02-10 23:00:01 UTC
Last updated 2020-03-05 13:47:53 UTC

The hospital

I woke up to an obnoxious beeping noise. I opened my eyes, but quickly squinted at the bright lights. Once my eyes adjusted, I saw and felt my arm hooked up to an IV stand. The beeping noise I had heard earlier turned out to be a hart monitor, and it was beeping steadily.

I also had a killer headache. The last thing I remembered was helping that little girl out of the building...and being knocked unconscious by a two-by-four.

I tried to lean up a little, but I felt a pair of hands stop me instantly. I looked around a little more, and saw it was a nurse.

“Please don’t try to move too much, Mr. Taylor. You’ve suffered a major concussion,” she explained.

“W-What happened? The little girl! Is she okay?!” I frantically asked.

“She’s fine. After you helped her out, you were knocked out by a falling board,” she replied.

’No way, really?’

“You’re lucky you didn’t get burned any more than you did. It was a large fire that caused the building to collapse, and it had reached the lobby just after you were knocked out. The fireman got you out before you were hurt by the fire,” she added.

“A-A fire?” I couldn’t help but ask, getting flashbacks to...the incident.

“Yes...is everything alright, Mr. Taylor?” the nurse asked me.

“U-Umm, when will I be able to get up and walk around again?” I asked.

The nurse got up and looked at a nearby clipboard. “Well, the doctors want to run some tests to make sure your brain is in good condition, but after that, you’re free to go.”

Great, just a little while longer, and I’ll be able to go back to my life. Wonder if I can get compensated for my apartment and get wasted, just like all the other rejects.

“I’ll go inform the doctor that you’re awake. Please don’t try to get up on your own,” the nurse instructed me.

I let out a yawn. “Sounds good, doc.”

Once the nurse left the room, I adjusted myself a little bit to get more comfortable. Thinking about the situation, however, there was one thing that still didn’t make sense. After I had gotten the little girl to safety and went for her doll, I swear I saw a white light before I was knocked out. Like, it was the world flashed before my eyes before suddenly turning pitch black.

I wouldn’t have much time to think about that, though, since I suddenly felt myself convulse and my head pulse. I heard the heart monitor start to speed up as my insides felt like they were being compressed. I tried to yell for help, but the words got caught in my throat as it closed up, keeping me from breathing.

As I looked at the heart monitor, I realized that this was it, the end of the line for me.

’I’m coming, Mom and Dad’

My body felt like it was filling up with something and that it would burst at any second. The doctors finally rushed into the room, but it wouldn’t make a difference, not that I cared at that point. My existence wasn’t important, and it wasn’t like anyone would attend my funeral, if there even was one.

I closed my eyes and forced a bit of a smile as the doctors tried to hold me still.

“Get the defibrillator!” I heard someone yell.

Don’t know why, but I’ve always wanted to feel one of those.

“Two hundred watts, clear!” the person with the defibrillator yelled before I felt a huge surge of electricity shoot through me. It stung at first, but admittedly felt a little good. Regardless, it didn’t do a thing to change your current physical state

“Three hundred watts, clear!”

An even larger surge shot through me, and once again, it did nothing. At this point, I could see a white light and was all too eager to move toward it.

“Three fifty, clear!”

This time, instead of one last burst of energy before I made my way into the light, I was suddenly engulfed in another, different light. It had felt as if my body had exploded entirely before I suddenly felt nothing. No more pain, no more convulsions, nothing.

I still couldn’t breathe, but I didn’t feel like I needed to. I looked down at myself and saw...nothing. My body was gone. I couldn’t see anything other than light, and felt a little warm, despite not having a body of some sort. Regardless, I liked the feeling.

It felt like an eternity before anything happened, but even once it did, I wanted to go back to the light.

I was on my back, in the middle of what felt like a field. I looked around and saw that I wasn’t in a field, rather a forest, still unlike anything I’d ever seen. The trees had more life, more color to them, leaves, branches, trunk, roots, you name it. The trees looked young and healthy. A few birds flew by in the air, but there was something a little off about them. Two squirrels ran by as well and had the same differences about them.

They were smaller and a bit more...round, as if a child had imagined them. Their eyes were also a lot more accentuated, glowing almost.

Regardless, the forest seemed at peace, as if completely untouched by mankind.

I looked at myself and saw I was wearing a brown jacket, a beige shirt, and dark brown pants. Out of instinct, I checked my jacket pockets, finding nothing, but finding a wallet in my back pocket.

The wallet was devoid of any currency, but had three pictures of...my parents, one of my mom, one of my dad, and one of both. Why I had them was beyond me, but I stuffed them back into the wallet and stuffed the wallet back into my back pocket. Might as well have something to remember them by, other than the memories themselves.

But wait...where did those pictures come from? And how did I end up with them?

I pulled them back out and examined them a little more, not recognizing anything about them. I sure as hell hadn’t taken them, and I didn’t remember them getting salvaged from our old house.

Deciding it was useless, I put them away again and fell down onto the soft grass, slowly letting my eyes close.

When I awoke again, I saw the sun was near setting. I sat up and heard rustling in the nearby bushes. My attention darted to the bushes and fixated on them. As I looked closer at them, I could just make out a pair of purple eyes staring at me.

I was being watched.

“Who’s there?” I asked aloud.

Instead of a clear response, all I heard was a gasp.

I stood up, ready to face whoever was spying on me. “If you can gasp, you can talk.”

“W-What are you?” asked a feminine voice that made me drop my guard.

“What do you mean, ‘what am I’? I’m a man, for God’s sake!” I shouted, growing impatient. “What are you supposed to be then?”

The bushes rustled a little more as a purple horn poked out the top. I thought I was hallucinating as a lavender unicorn with the same eyes that were watching me and a dark purple mane with a light pink streak running through it emerged from the bushes.

“I’m a unicorn, of course,” she replied, adding to my shock.

“N-No,” I whispered, mostly to myself.

“A-Are you okay?” she asked.

“No, you’re not...y-you’re n-not...” I stuttered.

“I’m not what?”

I shook my head and rubbed my eyes, trying to get the picture of a talking unicorn out of my sight, but to no luck; she was still there.

“You’re not...you’re not real! Unicorns aren’t real!” I said, turning and running away.

“Wait! What’s wrong? What do you mean, ‘unicorns aren’t real’? Wait!” she yelled behind me.

I ignored her as I kept running the opposite direction. “Unicorns aren’t real, unicorns aren’t real,” I kept muttering to myself, trying to convince myself I wasn’t crazy.

“Watch out for the ravine!”

Before her words registered, I tripped over something and took a huge fall. My body bounced against the ground like a tennis ball, rolling over and over myself. Eventually, I reached the bottom of the ravine, my head leaning on a rock.

The last thing I saw before blacking out again with the same unicorn rushing toward me with a look of worry.

Author's Note

So Jake’s officially in Equestria. What’d y’all think of his first impression of Twilight?

Every comment, whether it be praise or criticism, helps. So please, leave on. Please...just leave a comment.

Also, I don’t wanna wait an entire week, so I’ll just update every four to five days. Does that sound good?

The opinions

I slowly followed Twilight down the stairs and into the kitchen, nervously clutching my arm.

“A-Are you alright?” Twilight asked, turning around to face me.

“T-Tell me again why you’re doing this for me,” I responded.

Twilight tilted her head in confusion. “Like I said, it’s what friends do,” she said with a warm smile.

“So we’re friends now, is that it?” I asked sarcastically.

Twilight sighed and walked up to me. “Why not?”

“Well, let’s see. I called you fake and ran away from you, and I’m still not entirely convinced this is all real,” I answered.

For some reason, Twilight just kept smiling at me. It drove me crazy.

“Come and eat, and you can decide for yourself afterward. If you still don’t think this is all real...I don’t know what to tell you. If you do think it’s real, I’ll do whatever I can to help you out,” Twilight replied.

As she walked into what I assumed was the dining room, all I could do was groan.

’Why? Why is she so nice? She doesn’t even know me, and I keep accusing her of being fake. There’s no way this is real’

I put my hand on the door she had went through, but didn’t open it, instead pressing my ear against it to hear what she was saying.

“...a little different than we’re used to, but that doesn’t matter. The fact is, he’s not from around here, and he’s different, but don’t treat him different,” I could hear Twilight whispering.

“Alright, I get it. He’s different, and I should just not say anything,” I heard another, much younger voice say.

I hesitantly opened to door to see Twilight and...what I guess was her dragon assistant. It sure didn’t look like a dragon, though. Sure, it had spikes and frills, but it was very small. Overall, it looked more like some sort of lizard than anything.

“H-Hello,” it said in the same voice I had heard before.

I blinked a few times, trying to think of something to say, the word ‘hi’ having slipped my mind.

“Jake, this is Spike, my number one assistant,” Twilight greeted, seemingly trying to evoke some sort of speech out of me.

“H-H-Hello,” I stuttered.

Twilight stood up and lit her horn. Out of nowhere, a chair moved on its own, silently inviting me to sit down. “Take a seat. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

I slowly sat down and pulled up to the table.

“So where do you come from, Jake?” Spike asked out of nowhere.

“I-I...I-I’m not really sure how to describe it,” I stuttered. I didn’t feel shy, just a little confused, still unconvinced any of this was actually happening.

“Well, if you’d like, I’m sure I could find a way to send you back,” Twilight offered.

“W-What?” I asked.

“Well, think about it. If this is real, you’ll be going back to the world you came from. If this isn’t real, like you said, then this will all just seem like a dream,” Twilight explained.

Her reasoning made sense. If she found a way for me to ‘go back’, I could just go back to my life and pretend none of this had ever happened, and maybe avoid going to a mental institution. For now, however, I supposed I would just have to go with it and pretend it all was real.

“You know what, Twilight,” I said in a much more outgoing tone. “That would be great.”

“Alright,” she said with the same smile as before. “For now, go ahead and have something to eat. Spike here made some fried cauliflower tots.”

A plate of golden brown biscuits floated toward me. They were a little steamy, probably having just come out of the oven. I picked one up and bit into it.

“Not bad,” I subconsciously said aloud. “Never been much of a vegetarian.”

Twilight and Spike were suddenly staring at me with a mix of what felt like suspicion and fear.

“W-What do you mean?” Spike stammered.

Having realized I had said that out loud, I froze. Really thinking about it, it made sense that these two would be a little nervous around an avid meat eater.

“I-I, umm...” I began.

“It’s fine! It’s fine,” Twilight said, having snapped out of her suspicions. “You eat meat, what’s the big deal. There are plenty of creatures that eat meat.”

“Uhh, yeah,” Spike joined in. “You’re not from around here, you’re used to different circumstances. Who are we to judge?”

I didn’t say anything, simply going back to eating instead. Twilight and Spike did the same, acting as if nothing that was just said was actually said.

The rest of the meal was eaten in silence. I made sure to keep from making eye contact with either or the hosts, not wanting to cause any more bits of awkwardness.

“I have a spare bed upstairs that you can sleep in, Jake,” Twilight offered.

I looked at her like the crazy horse she was. “No thanks, I’ll find something.”

Twilight shook her head. “I insist. The Everfree Forest, the place I found you, is extremely dangerous at night. And besides, it’s not like-“

“Twilight, I am an unknown creature who you barely know. Do you really want me to stay here tonight?” I cut off.

Spike asked, “So are you saying that we’d be at risk if we let you stay here?”

“W-Well, n-no-“ I stuttered.

“Then what’s the big deal? I know, I know, ‘it’s weird to just be nice to somepony where you came from’, but it’s completely normal here,” Twilight cut off this time.

All I could do was roll my eyes and groan. “Fine, but only until you find a way to get me back to where I came from.”

Later that night, I was laying in the bed Twilight had offered me, which just so happened to be right next to hers. I made a point to myself to stay quiet and possibly try to sneak back out once Twilight was asleep.

This whole thing was just so weird and unnatural. People don’t just offer things. You’d be lucky if they didn’t steal things. Twilight...she was just so nice, and it drove me crazy! She didn’t know me or if I was dangerous. In fact, she knew I was a carnivore, yet she was still unfazed.

All I could do about it now was accept it and close my eyes.

“Aren’t you gonna use the blanket?” Twilight asked, getting into her own bed.

“Nah,” I answered without opening my eyes. “The cold never bothers me.”

“If you say so,” Twilight replied, turning off the lamp that stood next to her bed. “Good night, Jake. I promise I’ll find a way to get you home.”

I didn’t say anything back as I just rolled over and held my jacket a little closer. Despite all the doors and windows being closed, it was still very cold in the library. This was okay, however, as the cold night air kept me awake.

I guess I must have been shivering because I was soon enveloped in a magenta glow that lifted me above the bed. It felt warm, like a fire in a furnace. I opened my eyes as the blanket was moved out from underneath me. I looked at Twilight to see her horn was glowing again, and she seemed to be concentrating on something. I was slowly set back down on the bed and covered with the soft blanket. It did feel much better than the night air did. My eyelids became heavy and started to close, but my instincts caused me to do something I might come to regret.

“Twilight?” I said, not much above a whisper.

“Yes, Jake?” Twilight responded.

“Thanks for letting me stay here. And I’m sorry for acting so...” I said.

“It’s fine, Jake. Have sweet dreams,” Twilight giggled softly as I finally fell to sleep.

It had been two days since Twilight had opened her home to me. I had hesitantly come to accept the fact that this was real and not a hallucination. After all, I’d probably want to remember this experience when I got back. I hadn’t been out of the library much, due to my very different appearance to the locals, so Spike and Twilight were the only ones that I’d socialize with.

However, today was about to change that. Twilight told me that she’d gone through just about every single book in her library, but couldn’t find anything on humans or the world I came from. That being said, she had called on someone she’d really looked up to, someone who took rule of this land, someone who’s magic may just be able to send me back.

According to Twilight, her name was Princess Celestia, and she was responsible for the sunrise every day and the sunset every night, and, like I said, ruled this land alongside her younger sister, Princess Luna. I’d attempted to tell Twilight about heliocentrism, and she took the knowledge in like an eager school girl.

My attitude hadn’t done much to change since I got here, but I will admit that I was at least loosening up and accepting Twilight’s and Spike’s hospitality. Besides, how could I possibly say no to Spike’s cooking; it was the absolute best. I just wish I had a way to repay them somehow.

I was currently lying in bed, reading a book. Twilight’s been a lot more...caring of me lately, and I know exactly why. I had accidentally let slip my huge mistake in my childhood, which had resulted in the death of my parents. Since then, she’s been doing literally everything she can to make sure I’m happy. I don’t dislike it, but it was starting to get on my nerves. I will admit that her smile was nice and able to cheer me up, not to mention cute as hell.

I was drawn out of my thoughts by an extremely high pitched, female voice. “So what did you wanna show us Twilight?”

I put the book down and looked down at the ground floor to see five more unknown ponies standing in the library. One of them had a horn, like Twilight, but her coat was completely white with a dark purple mane and very obviously plucked eyebrows. Another had wings and a bright yellow coat. Her mane was long and pink, ending in a bit of a curl. A third had neither a horn nor wings. She had a blond ponytail and an orange coat. To compliment her look, she wore a brown hat you’d expect to see a cowboy wearing in a western. There was another one without a horn or wings with a pink coat and a poofy, deeper pink mane. She was hopping in place, seemingly filled to the brim with excitement. Finally, there was another one with wings and a cyan coat. I couldn’t help but silently admire her rough looking, rainbow colored mane.

“Well,” began Twilight. “Two days ago, I saw a bit of a tornado in the Everfree Forest and went to explore. When I got there, I found a...creature there. It wasn’t a Timberwolf or Manticore or anything like that. It woke up and seemed to be intelligent like us. He took a fall down a ravine, so I brought him back here to nurse him back to health. Spike and I got to know him a little, and I think you girls should get a chance to meet him.”

“Well that sure sounds interestin’,” said the orange coated pony with a southern accent to complete her look.

“So, where is it?” asked the yellow winged pony in a soft voice.

“He’s upstairs, but there’s a few things you should know about him first,” Twilight answered. I paid close attention, wanting to hear every word Twilight had to say about me.

“First,” she began. “He’s not shy per say, but he is very tense around ponies. That being said, just go a little easy on him and don’t even think about throwing him a party, Pinkie Pie. Second, his name is Jake. Finally, his appearance is a bit...different, and he is a carnivore, but he’s just like us, so don’t try to make it seem like he’s different.”

I saw a few of them exchange worried looks when Twilight told them about me being a carnivore as she came up the stairs. I quickly lay down back in the bed to make it look like I wasn’t listening.

“Hey, Jake, there’re some ponies down here that I think you should meet,” Twilight said once she got upstairs. I said nothing as I got up and followed her downstairs.

When we got there, I instantly saw the looks of fear and apprehension on the ponies’ faces.

“Jake, this is Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity,” Twilight introduced.

The one she called Fluttershy gave a tiny wave with her hoof, which I returned. The rest of the ponies’ stayed still and silent.

“Girls, this is Jake. He’s called a ‘human’,” Twilight said.

“H-Hi,” I greeted.

“U-Ummm...s-so where exactly do ya come from, Jake?” asked the pony Twilight had called Applejack.

“Well...not from around here, that’s for sure,” I chuckled. I felt the tension in the room and wanted more than anything to escape from it.

“I see your, uh, fashion sense seems to be a little...dark colored,” said the unicorn Twilight called Rarity with a fancy accent.

“Y-Yeah,” I replied, rubbing the back of my head. “I’ve never been too into fashion.”

Rarity simply nodded and looked away from me. I looked at Twilight with a bit of worry, who just smiled at me and nodded her head. It helped a little, but not as much as I wanted.

“So do you really eat meat?” the cyan pegasus, Rainbow Dash, asked with a bit of a raspy voice.

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight quickly chastised.

“What? I’m just...making sure,” Rainbow Dash defended.

I rubbed my neck a little more and found my balance quickly shifting between my two feet. I had to get out of there and fast. It...it was too much.

“I, uh, I’m feeling...I’m a little, uh, tired,” I stuttered, faking a bit of a yawn.

I wasted no time in bolting up the stairs, diving in the bed Twilight loaned me, and covering myself with the blanket.

Why did that feel so terrible? I’ve never cared about what others thought. Was Twilight doing something to me, changing me?

“He just seemed so intimidating,” I heard Pinkie Pie say downstairs.

“That’s not his fault!” Twilight defended. “Just because he looks differently than us doesn’t mean he feels and thinks differently than us.”

“But Twilight, didn’t you see him? He was so...glum and dreary,” Rarity added.

“Okay, so he wasn’t in the best mood. Cut him some slack! He’s only been here for two days, of course he’s still getting used to things here,” Twilight replied. “I promise you girls that Jake is a great po- er, person once you get to know him.”

“Ah don’t know, Twilight,” Applejack said. “He’s just gotta be hidin’ somethin’.”

“Yeah, and he eats meat too,” Rainbow Dash added. “Meat, Twilight!”

“So what? All species have different diets,” Twilight countered.

“Don’t you remember the last creature we met who ate meat?” Rainbow Dash asked.

That was it. I just couldn’t take anymore. I grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill and wrote something down. After that was done, I slowly opened the window and slipped out.

“If you’re referring to Gilda, she was an entirely different creature than Jake,” Twilight replied to Rainbow’s comment.

“Oh come on, Twilight,” Pinkie Pie said. “He had the exact same attitude as her!”

“He’s like that because his parents died!” Twilight shouted, having enough of her friends’ insults toward Jake. Once she said it, she quickly covered her mouth. But it was too late, the damage was done. Her friends all had shocked looks on their faces.

“T-Twilight,” Rarity stuttered. “W-What do you mean...his parents d-died?”

“When he was a child,” Twilight answered. “H-He told me that a fire had started in his home, a-and by the time someone came to help...i-it was too late for them.”

“S-So he’s been livin’...his entire life...on his own?” Applejack asked.

All Twilight could do was look away and nod.

“W-We are so sorry, Twilight. We have to go apologize to Jake,” Fluttershy said.

“She’s right. We really shouldn’t have judged him before we got to know him,” Rarity agreed.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

“That’s probably Princess Celestia,” Twilight commented, walking toward the door.

“Wait, what?! You didn’t tell us she was coming here today!” Rainbow nearly shouted.

“That’s because it was supposed to be discreet,” Twilight explained. “I called her here because I thought she might be able to send Jake back to his home.”

Twilight opened to the door to reveal the royal, white coated alicorn, Princess Celestia. “Hello, Twilight, everypony, glad to see you all again.”

All ponies present gave a bow to the princess as she closed the door behind her.

“Thank you for coming on such short notice, Princess Celestia. Jake’s probably gonna be happy to hear he’ll be able to go back to his world,” Twilight said with gratitude.

“It’s no problem. Now, where is this Jake? I’ll need a piece of his DNA to perform the spell to send him back,” the princess asked.

“Oh, he just went upstairs. I’ll go get him,” Twilight replied, looking everywhere but at her friends.

Twilight went upstairs and remained there for a few minutes before rushing back down with a worried look and a few things held in her magic. “Umm, bit of a problem. He’s not here.”

“What?” Celestia asked.

“What do ya mean, ‘he’s not here’?” asked Applejack.

“The window was open when I went up there, and this note was next to the bed I leant him,” Twilight answered, showcasing said note.

“What does it say?” asked Rarity.

Twilight held the note in front of her and cleared her throat. “Twilight, I am sorry to leave, and meeting you and Spike was great, but I just don’t feel welcome here. Please do not try to follow me or worry about me any further. Thank you for your care, signed Jake Taylor.”

Twilight sighed as she crumbled the note against her horn in grief.

“How could we be so stupid?” Rainbow Dash asked herself.

“What do you mean? What happened?” Celestia asked.

The five ponies in question turned to face then princess, each with shame written on their faces.

“We...we were too quick to judge based on appearance,” said Pinkie Pie.

“We said some things that we really shouldn’t have,” Rarity added.

“We...who am Ah kiddin’, there’s no excuse for what we said,” Applejack admitted.

“I don’t know about you girls, but I’m going out to find him and apologize,” Rainbow said, making her way toward the door.

“I’m going with you,” Fluttershy said, following Dash.

“Wait, if you go now, he may just think you’re apologizing out of pity. If you really wish to make amends, you should do something that shows you really do feel bad,” Celestia advised.

“And I think I may have an idea. It’s big, but if we work fast, we might just be able to pull it off,” Twilight said, holding up two pictures with her magic.

Author's Note

Everyone’s got their opinions

How dare they say those things about Jake?

Umm, hehe, Star, you know I love you, but please stay out of my author’s note; I gotta keep your existence under wraps

Fine. But they’d better pay for that

.............................

Hehe, sorry about that guys, the, uh...the ol’ imagination kinda gotta ahead of me, that’s all :twilightblush:

The funeral

“Jake?! Jake, where are you?!” Twilight yelled out into the forest, not caring if she attracted any unwanted attention.

“Look, man, we’re sorry! We should never have said those things about you!” Rainbow Dash called.

“She’s right! We should’ve gotten to know you first! We had no right to judge you otherwise!” Rarity added.

The forest didn’t move an inch, much to Twilight’s disappointment. She, Rainbow Dash and Rarity were searching for Jake Taylor by the edge of the Everfree Forest, while the others looked for him past the other side of Ponyville.

“I don’t think he’s here,” said Rarity. “Or if he is *gulp*, we might have to go in after him.”

Twilight and Rainbow exchanged horrified looks.

“G-Go into the E-Everfree Forest...a-at n-n-night?!” Rainbow stuttered.

“Girls, I don’t want to either, but if we’re gonna find Jake, we have to be thorough,” Twilight said.

“Fine, but he’s not here, you owe us big time, Twilight,” Rainbow gave in.

Fluttershy, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie were at the town limits and beyon looking for the human.

“Jake? Jake if you’re here, please come out. We’re really sorry,” Fluttershy called out.

Applejack didn’t hesitate to run up the nearest hill to try to find Jake from that vantage point, groaning as she found nothing.

“He’s not here. If anything, he probably went back to the place Twilight found him,” she said.

“The place Twilight...that’s it!” Pinkie cheered. “We need to find Twilight, now!”

Applejack and Fluttershy simply shrugged and followed the pink party pony.

I sat in the forest, curled up in a tight ball, trying to stay as silent as to not attract any unwanted attention.

Never in my life have I ever been insulted like that and reacted like this. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve taken plenty of insults in my lifetime, but I’ve never given them thought. Now...now, it stung, and it stung a lot, and after some serious thinking, I know why and who was to be blamed.

The one who’d shown me...well, emotion of any kind, which, looking back, I didn’t really have much of, or still do even.

I knew it was only a matter of time before someone came looking for me, despite the note I left. Twilight just seemed like that type of creature.

I wouldn’t have time to think much about that, because sure enough, I heard rustling in the bushes near me. I looked over but couldn’t see anything since it was night. Regardless, I knew who it was.

“Twilight, I told you in my note to not follow me or look for me,” I warned, my tone laced with anger.

“Jake,” Twilight said, stepping out of the bushes. “Please, I just want to help you.”

I moved away from Twilight. “I don’t want you help. You’ve already helped enough.”

“At least let us apologize,” said a familiar voice.

“What? Who all’s here?” I asked, looking around in the dark.

Twilight’s horn lit up to reveal her friends, the same ponies who’d called me all those...names.

“What do you want?” I asked sternly.

“J-Jake,” Twilight stammered. “H-Have you been...c-crying?”

“That’s none of your business!” I yelled. “What do you want?!”

The white unicorn, Rarity I think it was, stepped forward. “We would just like to apologize.”

I turned away. “Yeah? What for? It’s not like you were wrong.”

The orange pony, Applejack, came forth as well. “Twilight...Twilight told us about yer’ uh...yer’ parents.”

I slowly turned my head back to Twilight. “You told them? You said you wouldn’t tell anyone,” I said through gritted teeth.

Twilight wore a small apologetic look on her face. “I-It slipped...I’m sorry, but please, here us out.”

“Yeah, we really are just here to apologize. We Pinkie Promise we’re not here to hurt your feelings again,” pleaded Pinkie Pie.

I took a deep breath and turned my body toward all of them. “But it’s not your fault,” I said with a sarcastic smile. “It’s her’s,” I added, motioning to Twilight.

“Wait, what?!” Twilight nearly yelled.

“How is this Twilight’s fault? She’s the one who defended you,” Fluttershy asked.

“Because,” I explained. “Before I met you, Twilight, I was...incapable of feeling any sort of emotion whatsoever. I had no idea how miserable I really was. And then you...you started acting all nice to me. You didn’t even know me, and you let me stay overnight! I mean, who does that?”

Twilight looked like she was about to speak, but I wasn’t finished yet.

“I can honestly say...you’re literally the greatest friend I’ve ever had, and...and I have no way to repay you. So...thank you! Thank you for making me realize how miserable and worthless I am,” I said, tears falling from my eyes.

“J-Jake-” Twilight started, moving closer to me.

I moved away as she reached out a hoof to me. “No, just...just go away. Please, just go away.”

I heard some footsteps around me and opened my eyes to see Applejack was now in front. “We are not leavin’ this forest without ya’, whether ya’ like it er not!”

“Just leave me-“

“No!” Rainbow Dash shouted, joining Applejack. “Why do you get to stay out here and feel sorry for yourself? What makes you special enough to do that?”

“Jake,” I heard Fluttershy say. “We all have our bad days. Some of us even have terrible days, weeks or months even.”

“But you wanna know what always gets us by?” Rarity asked.

I groaned. “I know what you’re trying to do, and it’s not going to work.”

“Friends always have each others’ back, no matter what,” Pinkie said, ignoring my comment.

“Really?!” I asked, standing up. “Is that what’s going on here? We’re suddenly friends now, just because you know about my parents? Damnit, I just know none of you would be here if none of you knew about that! You aren’t trying to be my friends, you all just feel sorry for me!”

“Alright, yeah, we feel sorry for ya’. Y’all lost yer’ family at such a young age, and we feel sorry for ya’. But that doesn’t change the fact there we are out here, in the Everfree Forest, in the dead of night, trying to make up for the horrible things we said about ya’,” Applejack said in a tone that sure shut me up.

“Please, Jake. At least let us apologize for that. We really are truly sorry for all those things we said about you,” Rarity pleaded.

I simply fell to my knees and looked away from them, trying to keep from openly crying.

All of them apologized for what they said. I couldn’t bring myself to look at any of them as they spoke, especially Twilight. I didn’t think I was wrong, I just couldn’t believe I said those things to her.

“Please, Jake, come back with us to town. We just want to help you,” Twilight pleaded.

I kept my head dipped, but said, “F-Fine.”

I trudged back to Ponyville behind Twilight and her friends, tears still staining my face. I just wasn’t used to receiving...anything like these ponies had given me; kindness, understanding...friendship.

Twilight truly was my best friend, and I just spat it back in her face. And yet...she was still helping me. I, in no way whatsoever, deserved to be able to call myself a friend of someone so loving and pure and kind and generous as Twilight. She had given me everything, a roof over my head, food on my plate, a bed to sleep in, and as much as I didn’t want to admit it, an actual friend.

“Jake?” the aforementioned unicorn said, drawing me out of my thoughts. “We have something planned for you...i-if you’ll accept it.”

I wiped my eyes and looked up to see Spike sitting next to a large white unicorn with wings, golden regalia, and a wavy rainbow mane.

But then I looked past her to see something else. There was a stand with candles, flowers, banners, and three pictures.

“W-What is this?” I asked.

“You said your parents never got a real funeral,” Twilight answered.

I looked at Twilight, confused. “M-My parents? W-What do you...?”

I looked back and saw the stand was actually a makeshift alter. The two banners said ‘In Loving Memory’ and ‘Rest In Peace’. The three pictures were larger versions of the ones of my parents that were in my pocket when I got here. I checked my back pocket, and sure enough, neither one of the pictures were there.

It took me less than a second to figure out what Twilight and all of her friends had done: they had planned an actual funeral for my parents.

They all took seats, joining Spike and whom I presumed was Princess Celestia. Twilight still stood beside me and looked up at me.

“My friends set this all up, down to every last flower. They really are sorry for what they said before,” she told me.

“I-I-I...I don’t know what to say,” I whispered.

“Just go up there and say what you would’ve at your parents’ real funeral. I’m sure wherever they are, they’ll be more than happy to finally hear it,” Twilight said, walking off to her own seat.

“Twilight, wait,” I stopped her. The second she turned around to look at me, I knelt down and quickly wrapped my arms around her, letting myself cry. “Th-Thank you. I don’t deserve to call you a friend.”

Twilight wrapped one of her hooves around me. “Don’t think like that. Everypony deserves a chance.”

I let go of Twilight and stood up. Twilight took her seat as I walked up to the alter. I looked at all the ponies and the dragon present and took a deep breath.

“My parents...my parents couldn’t have done a better job raising me. They were there when I was happy, there when I got sick, there when I got hurt. They were the best parents I could’ve ever asked for.” I paused as I started to cry again. “I don’t know if...if they’re up there somewhere, watching me, but...” I looked up. “I love you guys. I’m so sorry I started that fire. I wish I could’ve had you two around to help me grow up...to become a man.” I sobbed a little more. “I never knew what I was gonna do without you, and I still don’t...there just isn’t a way to put in words how much I would give to have you back. You were amazing parents, and even better people.”

I couldn’t go on. I looked down as more and more tears fell down my face. I heard a few sniffs from those watching me. I felt a hoof touch my shoulder. I looked up to see Princess Celestia looking at me with a sympathetic smile.

“I am deeply sorry for your loss. Now is a time for you to be with friends. I will be back when you are ready to return to your home world,” she said before disappearing in a brilliant flash of gold light.

All I could do was nod and try to walk down from the alter. I didn’t take more than three steps before I fell onto my knees and kept bawling. I felt a sudden presence come up to me and...hug me?

I opened my eyes to see not only Twilight and Spike, but all of their friends as well all around me, embracing me with their hooves, crying as well.

“Oh, J-Jake, we’re so sorry,” Twilight cried.

I didn’t say anything, but slowly wrapped my arms around her back. I held her close as I continued to cry into her mane.

Twilight’s friends kept crying and apologizing, both for my parents and what they’d said. One by one, they slowly left until it was Twilight and me.

“Th-Thank you, T-T-Twilight. F-For everything,” I cried.

“It’s o-okay, i-it’s what friends do. A-And don’t e-ever think you can’t call me a friend,” Twilight replied.

I looked back at the alter, at the pictures of my parents. “I-I don’t know that I’ll do without them.” I looked back at Twilight. “I-I don’t wanna go.”

“W-What do you mean?” Twilight asked.

I looked her in the eye. “I don’t wanna go home. I don’t wanna go away from you. You’re the best friend I’ve ever had. I don’t want to be alone again.”

Twilight gasped. “A-Are you sure? What about your world?”

“There’s nothing for me there,” I answered. “Just a sad, lonely apartment. At least here, I have you. I don’t want to leave you.”

“Oh,” Twilight cried as she pulled back into another hug.

This is my life now. Living with a bunch of talking ponies and a small talking dragon. It’s strange, but...in a good way. I have friends, a home...a reason to live.

Author's Note

Out of everything I’ve written before, I think most of you will agree that this is the saddest, and not in quality terms

The home

Author's Note

Bit of a warning here, guys. Light alcohol use toward the end. All characters in the story are of the legal age. Please drink responsibly.

The home

It had been a few months since I’d announced my permanent stay here in Equestria. Since then, all of Twilight’s friends were being super nice to me, and I was trying my best to return the favor. It’d taken a while for all of Ponyville to trust me, but thanks to a few announcements from Twilight, they’d come to accept me as a new part of their lives. Or not, if they just wished to leave me alone. I was officially friends with everyone in town, and everyone seemed to be friends with me.

Speaking of Twilight, I still can’t thank her enough for all she’s done for me. She’s welcomed me into her home, taught me how to have a friend, stood up to her own friends for me, and brought me out of my shell. I’d found a lot easier to socialize, have fun, and even just smile all thanks to her.

I’d been living in Golden Oaks Library with her and Spike ever since, but had several times mentioned finding a home of my own. Rarity’s been helping supply clothes for me, and Applejack’s been letting me work with her and her family on their farm for bits and materials for a new house. They’ve even helped me start construction!

It’s funny though; whenever I mention the house to Twilight, she’s always...less than enthusiastic about it. I’ve told her that the house would be just next to the library, several times even, but she’s still down about it. I was only moving next door to the library because while I would enjoy the independence, I still don’t want to go too far from Twilight.

She’s also been acting a bit different around me than usual, which I find strange.

Out of all my friends (I’ve accepted the term now), she’s the one I’ve spent the most time with, by far. I don’t know what it is about her, we just really enjoy each other’s company. Whether it be reading, playing board games, trying our hand/hoof at cooking, you name it, we probably do it together.

Not to mention, she’s really cute she she smiles.

This is a thought, however, that I’ve wisely decided to keep to myself. Nothing against ponies, but I’m not sure how they’d respond to being called cute, at least by a different species.

Anyhow, Twilight and I were doing what enjoyed most, reading. We had two copies of the same book, and had planned to share each other’s thoughts when finished.

In the middle of reading it, however, I couldn’t help but feel a pair of eyes on me. I glanced at Twilight to see she was staring at me instead of her book.

“You...okay there, Twilight?” I asked.

She didn’t respond, just blushed and looked back to her book. I did the same, but felt her looking at me again. Instead of point it out, I simply smirked and pretended to ignore it. She was happy, so who was I to take that away from her?

After a few more minutes of silence, Twilight cleared her throat. “You...enjoying your book, Jake?”

I looked away from the book and up at her. “Yeah. It’s pretty good so far.”

Unfortunately, when I looked down, I realized I had closed my book, and had taken my finger out of it to save my place.

“Damn, I was pretty far in,” I said, mostly to myself.

“Th-That’s alright, Jake. W-We can just...share!” Twilight stuttered.

“Share?” I repeated, looking up at her.

Her face was a dark shade of red, and she had a very embarrassed smile. “Y-Yeah, we can just...finish the book together. I-I’m pretty sure you were in a similar place I was.”

“You sure? You’d have to levitate the book a bit further away. Either that, or I’d have to get pretty close to you,” I warned.

“Yes please!” she quickly shouted.

“What?” I asked, not sure I’d heard her correctly.

“I-I-I mean...that’s okay with me,” she said, just barely above a whisper.

“If you say so,” I replied as I sat next to her on the couch. She didn’t levitate the book any further, so I took the initiative and got a little closer to her. I felt her tense up as I put my arm over her to hold myself up. “You sure you’re okay with this?”

Twilight said something, but I couldn’t understand it.

“What was that?”

“YES!!!” she shouted.

“O-Okay then,” I said, settling in.

We’ finally gotten to reading, and were very comfortable. The book was shaking in Twilight’s magical grasp for a while, but that had stopped pretty quickly.

After about an hour, a knock on the door drew our attention, and drew my attention specifically to the position I was in. Twilight was right up against me, and I was leaning back on her with my arm fully wrapped around her. I felt my face heat up and quickly stood up.

I rushed to the door and opened it to reveal Applejack.

“Howdy there, Jake. Yer house’s nearly finished, so Ah thought you’d wanna come take a look,” Applejack offered.

If my face was still red, Applejack didn’t seem to notice or pay any mind to it.

“Th-That’d be fine. Oh and did Rarity get those paint colors in yet?” I asked.

“She sure did. She may not be the fasted pony around, but when it comes ta anything fashion, Rarity’s the best pony ya could hope for,” Applejack replied.

“That’s great,” I said, slipping on the brown silk jacket Rarity had made me. “You wanna come see, Twilight?”

Twilight looked up at us. “Huh? Um, no thanks.”

“Alright, be back in a few,” I said as I closed the door and followed Aj to the construction site.

“Is she alright?” Applejack asked me on the way.

“I’m not sure. She’s been acting weird for a few weeks now. I’m a little worried about her,” I replied.

“I’d bet my last bit it’s just the perfectionist in her. She'll be fine,” she said.

“I sure hope so,” I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck.

After Jake had left, Twilight lay her head down on the couch. She didn’t want him to leave, but didn’t know how to tell him. Then again, there were a lot of things she wanted to say to him but didn’t know how to.

’Why didn’t I listen to that stupid love advice Cadance gave me when I was a filly?’

Twilight looked back at the door again, hoping Jake would burst through and tell her that he didn’t want to move out after all. He was around so much, she could barely remember her daily life without him, and she didn’t want to go back to that. Sure, he’d be right next door, but waking up to see his handsome face, hear his wonderful voice, and be near his amazing figure had all become things she looked forward to.

All of these emotions were new to Twilight. Whenever she was near Jake, her legs wobbled, her chest fluttered, her face became hot. It had all started when Jake said he didn’t want to leave Equestria, when he said he didn’t want to leave her.

Twilight didn’t know how else to put other than...she was in love with Jake Taylor.

Seeing him smile for what he said was the first time in years, becoming what he said was his very first and best friend, it all made her swell with emotion.

She hadn’t dared go to her friends about this. She’d made it pretty clear love wasn’t her thing. Friendship, sure, but not romance. But now...now all that had changed. And the one she loved was leaving.

Twilight rolled onto her back and looked up at the ceiling.

“I just want to tell you,”she said aloud. “I just want to tell you all the things you make me feel. I want you to stay here and be with me forever. I want you to know how much I love you a-and love me back.”

Twilight let her eyes close as she fell asleep, hoping she wouldn’t dream of being with Jake so Princess Luna would see, but still wanting to dream of being alone with him, with all of her emotions out in the air and possibly even returned.

I ran as fast as I could back to the library. I had great news to tell Twilight.

It turns out that Applejack and her brother, Big Macintosh (because apples) had been working all day and night for the last two weeks on my new house and had finally finished today, meaning I could move in.

The house was right next to Golden Oaks, so it didn’t take long to get there. I burst through the door and yelled, “Twilight! Great news!”

Twilight was asleep on the couch near the door and ha awoken due to my shout. “W-What is it?”

“Sorry to wake you, but Applejack says my new home is ready! I can move in today!” I said.

Twilight simply sighed and sat up, not able to look at me. “Great. You’ll finally have your own home.”

Twilight’s tone told me she wasn’t very happy for me. “What’s wrong, Twilight?” I asked, sitting next to her on the couch. “I thought you were fine with me getting my own place.”

“I know, and I really want to,” she replied, seemingly on the verge of crying. “But...I’ll miss you. You’ve been here for a couple months now. Honestly, I’ve forgotten what it’s like here without you.”

I scooted closer and wrapped my arm around her. “I’ll be right next door. You’ll still be able to see me anytime you want. You’re always welcome at my new place, and it’s not like I’ll never come by.”

Twilight simply let out a sad moan.

“If it makes you feel any better, Pinkie said she’d throw me a housewarming party that starts at about seven. Come by early, and we can do what we always do here at the library,” I enticed her.

Twilight didn’t say anything, didn’t even look at me.

“Come on, cheer up, Twi. I can’t stand to see you all sad like that,” I said, scratching behind her ear with my index and middle finger. I’ve done this with her a few times in the past, and she’s always enjoyed it.

I could tell that Twilight was struggling to hold back a smile.

“Let’s see that smile,” I giggled, adding my ring finger to the mix.

“N-No, it...it just won’t be the sa-ha-hame without you,” she moaned.

“You can come by and see me everyday if you let me see that smile of yours,” I teased.

Twilight was falling apart like putty in my hands, but still wouldn’t smile. “Come on,” I said, poking her side.

She gave a small *squeak* to that and bat my hand away with her hoof. I repeated the action a few times, getting the same result. Never had Twilight looked cuter.

I kept poking her until she scooted off the couch and fell to the ground. I didn’t give her a second to recover as I leapt on top of her and dug my fingers into her sides. She was outright laughing now, and I couldn’t help but join in.

“Okay, okay, okay! Fine, I’ll be there!” she shouted.

I decided to give her a break and got off of her. She got up and said, “On one condition. You come by at least once a week so we can spend some time alone together like we always do.”

“Deal,” I replied, wrapping Twilight in a deep hug, stroking her back in an up-and-down pattern. I reached over to a nearby table and grabbed a camera Twilight had given me a month ago for my birthday, held it out, and said, “Say cheese.”

Twilight and I looked into the camera as I took the picture. It rolled out, and Twilight took it in her magic, levitating it to the room that held the rest I’d taken.

Twilight and I simply stayed like that for a while, until it started getting dark out. “Wanna come check out my new house?”

A few hours later, Twilight and all of her friends were at Jake’s housewarming party. Pinkie had brought the food, as per usual, and Applejack had brought her family’s best (and strongest, Twilight had noted) cider, on Rainbow Dash’s request. Jake had started drinking a lot of it, claiming he’d never gotten a good chance to really let loose.

Twilight didn’t have the heart to tell Jake all the...side-effects Applejack’s cider could induce, and had volunteered to help clean up whatever would happen.

It was a simple home. It was one story, had a large living room with plenty of furniture, two bedrooms, and two perfectly working bathrooms (Aj had hired a professional plumber).

Everything was going pretty smoothly, Pinkie was spinning around on the floor with Rainbow Dash, Jake was profusely thanking Applejack and Rarity for their help, and Twilight was chatting with Fluttershy and Spike, trying her best to pay attention. Truth be told, her eyes were solely on Jake, and nothing else. Fluttershy was saying something about Angel Bunny acting up, but try as she might, Twilight couldn’t bring herself to fully listen. Luckily, Fluttershy seemed to be talking mostly to Spike, so she didn’t notice Twilight wasn’t paying attention.

Twilight knew tonight would be perfect. Jake was in a good mood, and she felt like she’d found the words.

“Twilight? You okay?” Spike suddenly asked, drawing her out of her thoughts.

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine,” Twilight stuttered, trying not to act surprised.

“Are you sure? Because you’ve been looking at Jake for most of the night,” Fluttershy pointed out.

Twilight blushed. Had she really been looking at Jake for that long?

“I-I think I’m just gonna go talk to him,” Twilight replied, quickly walking over to Jake, who was also walking toward her.

“There she is, my favorite lil’ pony,” Jake slurred. He had a bit of a stumble in his step, and his eyes were nearly closed.

Twilight couldn’t help but blush at Jake’s drunken praise. “Th-Thanks, Jake. Umm, how much cider have you had?”

Jake rolled his head back. “Oh, you know, a couple...few...lot of drinks.”

Twilight looked around the room and saw a bit of concern from her friends. “He’s fine, just had a bit too much. Maybe we should go home and let him get some rest.”

Twilight’s friends all nodded and agreed, leaving one by one after giving their goodbyes.

“You coming, Twilight?” Spike asked before he left.

“Uh, yeah, just...let me get him into bed, and I’ll see you back at the library,” Twilight replied. Spike saluted and walked out the door.

“What *hick* why’d you send everyone home?” Jake asked, his words barely comprehensible.

“It’s getting a little late, and they all have to get up early in the morning. Speaking of which, we should probably get you to bed,” Twilight replied, holding Jake’s hand in her magic and leading him toward the bedroom.

“Yeah, you’re probably *hick* right,” Jake said.

Twilight helped Jake out of his shoes and into the bed. As she left, however, she felt a tug at her shoulder.

“Wait, I wanna tell you something,” Jake whined.

Twilight didn’t see the sense in arguing with Jake while he was drunk, so she turned around. “Yeah?”

“Thank you. You know, for bringing me into your home, treating me like a friend, all that good stuff. You...you’re the best friend ever,” Jake praised.

“I-It was no problem really-“ Twilight started.

“And you know what, I think you’re pretty too,” Jake added.

If Twilight’s far was red before, it was on pure fire now. “W-What?”

“I think you’re the prettiest pony in the world,” Jake repeated.

Twilight felt her heart speed up and Jake’s words, but quickly remembered he was simply drunk. “You should get some rest, Jake. You’re gonna hate yourself in the morning.”

“Yeah,” Jake responded, his eyes closing. “That’s a good ide-“

And just like that, Jake was sound alseep.

Twilight wanted to stay here with Jake, to crawl under the covers with him, but knew Spike would be worried. She reluctantly turned toward the door, only looking back to whisper something, something she wished more than nothing Jake could hear. A tear rolled down her cheek, knowing he wouldn’t.

“I love you.”

The journey

Okay, so a small spoiler, there’s a ret-con to Romantic Meetings in this chapter. Just know that I will edit that story instead of this one, since it makes more sense to this story

I was taking my usual morning walk around the edges of Ponyville. I had my route completely memorized, always keeping just beyond the limits, out of reach of the Everfree Forest, and close enough to wave at any friendly faces.

Sometimes Twilight would join me, but she’s been busy ever since she’s gotten her wings.

Yeah, you heard me right. Not more than three weeks ago, Twilight Sparkle became an alicorn princess. Princess Celestia even came to Ponyville herself to present them to her.

I couldn’t have been more proud of her, and while all of Ponyville held a celebration in her honor, she seemed a lot more intent to celebrate with just me afterward.

It’d been a little less than two years since Twilight’d found me in the Everfree Forest. I’d done my best to keep my promise to Twilight, stopping by the library everyday to hang out with Twilight, and sometimes Spike too, but that’d come to a bit of halt ever since she became a princess.

She’d had to go to Canterlot with Princess Celestia to make a formal announcement of her ascension, and she was still dealing with the paperwork. I’d been coming by less and less, usually to let her get what she needed to do done, and sometimes straight up forgetting.

Anyhow, as I was taking my walk this morning, something felt...off. I felt a pair of eyes, watching me. I paid little to no heed to it, as it still wasn’t very uncommon for ponies to be astounded by my appearance.

I got home and couldn’t even close the door before I heard a flash behind me.

I simply shook my head, closed the door, and said, “Twilight, if you wanted to come see me-“

I stopped as I turned around. In front of me was not at all Twilight. It was like...a six way hybrid, if that’s what you wanna call it. It stood on two different types of legs, and loomed down at me with yellow eyes with red, snake-like pupils.

Needless to say I was speechless.

“What’s wrong?” it asked in a voice I swear I’ve heard before. “Still thought you were the strangest creature around?”

“I...Wha-Who are you?” I stammered in disbelief.

“Why, I’m Discord,” it answered, giving a fake wave of its...talon? “Perhaps you’ve heard of me. Does the term ‘God of Chaos’ ring a bell?”

I shook my head.

“No? How about ‘Spirit of Mischief’?”

I shook my head again.

“Why.” He snapped his fingers, and a handkerchief appeared in his hand. “I’d think one of our friends, especially Fluttershy, would at least mention the only creature in Equestria that was taller than you.”

“What?” I asked, tilting my head to the side.

“Oh please,” he said as he snapped his fingers, causing a tape measure to appear. He then stretched it along my back. “You’re simply six feet tall.” The tape measure then completely emptied itself onto the ground. “I on the other hand can be as tall as I want to be.”

I was lost. “Wait...who are you exactly?”

He gave a sigh. “I’m Discord, the spirit and embodiment of chaos. This is your home, the place where you dwell.” He pointed at me. “You are Jake Taylor, the human who’s life I so graciously saved. You’re welcome, by the way.”

I blinked. “Wait, you what?”

Discord snapped his fingers again, and we both appeared on the couch, much to my surprise.

“Even Equestria gets boring from time to time, so I like to entertain myself by looking into alternate worlds and realities, searching for interesting lives and events. I must say, by the way, you’re a rather valid representative of your species, given all of the previous wars your people have fought and with all the present corrupt officials,” he explained.

I groaned. “Just cut to the chase. What do you mean you saved my life?”

“Oh well that’s simple,” he scoffed, making a pair of glasses appear on his face. “The most recent time I’ve looked into your world, I saw you. You were in what appeared to be hospital, on your death bed. I took pity on you and brought you here.”

I took a deep breath. “You WHAT?!”

“Oh please. You can’t possibly tell me that you’d rather be back there, with your sad, lonely life, rather than here with all of your friends, and Twilight,” he said in a sly tone, waggling his eyebrows at the end.

“What is that supposed to mean?!” I yelled.

Discord suddenly shot his head up. “I’ll just be going now, goodbye.”

He snapped his fingers, and he was gone instantly.

I paced around my house, thinking of all he’d just told me. I didn’t exactly like being dragged here like I was, even if this world was better than my own, and I had friends here who all cared about me, and...okay, so he had a point. Still though, I didn’t like the thought of being teleported around without permission like some sort of puppet.

I knew I wouldn’t be able to figure this out on my own, so I went to the one place I always did when something like this had happened: Golden Oaks Library.

It was only about a hundred feet from my house, so I got there in no time. I knocked on the door and waited for it to open.

The door was quickly enveloped in a magenta glow and slowly swung open. Inside was Spike, holding a couple of books.

“Hey, Jake. Long time no see,” he greeted.

“Yeah, good to see you,” I replied, kneeling down to give him a good old fashioned fist bump.

“You too,” Spike said as he dropped one of the books he was holding.

I picked it up and looked at the cover. It read “Romance for Dummies”.

“What’s this for?” I asked.

“Twilight wanted to take a look at it for some reason. I was just bringing it to her when you knocked on the door,” Spike replied.

I stood up, still looking at the cover. “I actually came here to see her about something. I could take this to her if you’d like.”

Spike sighed a sigh of relief. “Thanks, that’d be great. She’s upstairs right now.”

“No problem, bro,” I said, stepping inside. Spike and I spent nearly as much time together as Twilight and me, so we often referred to each other as brothers.

I walked up the stairs slowly as to not alert Twilight. It’d been awhile since I just dropped by like this, and I didn’t want to catch her while she was busy.

Upstairs, Twilight was lying on her bed, reading a book and taking notes on it, muttering incomprehensible words. I gave a small knock on the door frame to get her attention.

Without looking away from the book, Twilight said, “Not now, Spike. I’m too far into this to stop now.”

“What is it you’re working on?” I asked.

Twilight blinked in surprise and looked at me, blushing as she did. “Jake! I didn’t know you were coming here,” she said, quickly getting rid of what she was doing.

“What was that?” I asked.

“I-I-It was nothing,” she stuttered. “What brings you here? It’s certainly been awhile hasn’t it?”

I walked up to her bed as I replied, “Do I need a reason to come visit a good friend?”

Twilight scooted over on her bed. “Not at all. Here, sit down, make yourself comfortable.”

I obliged and sat down next to Twilight, giving her a little scratch behind the ear, eliciting a cute giggle from her.

“I saw the reconstruction on your house is finished,” Twilight said.

I chuckled. Not too long ago, a bunch of weird, black vines had reached in from the Everfree Forest, some of which had put a hole through my roof.

“Yeah, since there wasn’t too much to fix, I was able to do most of it on my own,” I replied.

We simply sat there, basking in the silence. It wasn’t awkward or anything; in fact, I kinda enjoyed it. Twilight and I just looked at each other and laughed a little, genuinely too.

“Well, there is something I feel I should talk to you about.”

Twilight tilted her head, moving it away from my hand. “What is it?”

“Well,” I began, not sure how she was gonna react to this. “I just met Discord.”

“Oh boy, did he give you any trouble? Because if he did-“ Twilight started.

I held my hand up to stop her. “No, no, he just...told me something very...let’s say interesting.”

“Yeah?” Twilight asked, intrigued.

“It turns out that he has the power to look into alternate worlds and realities...including mine,” I explained.

Twilight stayed silent.

“And it turns out that he can reach into those alternate worlds and...take things from them,” I added.

“Jake, are you saying...Discord...” she trailed off.

I slowly nodded.

Twilight got up and hopped off the bed. “That’s it. I’m getting him down here right now and giving him a-“

“Twilight, wait! I-It’s not like I’m really...upset at the whole thing,” I said, getting up as well.

“Really?” Twilight asked, sitting down on her haunches.

“Yeah,” I replied. “In fact, he kinda...saved my life.”

“What do you mean?”

I sat down next to Twilight.

“Well, I didn’t tell you this before because I didn’t want you to feel any more bad for me than you already did, but...right before I came to this world, I was dying. If it weren’t for Discord, I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t have appeared in this world, you wouldn’t have found me in the forest, we never would’ve become friends.”

Twilight sighed. “I...I guess that makes sense. Do you miss it though?”

I looked at her. “Miss what?”

“You know, your old world,” she answered.

I shook my head and chuckled again. “No way. I wouldn’t give this up for anything, not even to see my parents again. There isn’t anything that would make me leave this world, leave all my friends...leave you.”

Twilight’s face turned a dark red. “M-Me?”

I pulled Twilight into a hug and continued to laugh. “Of course! You’re the greatest friend I’ve ever had!”

Twilight chuckled as well. “I just wish we were something more than just friends.”

I turned my head around to look at her. “What?”

“N-Nothing! Umm...how do you feel, knowing Discord’s the one who brought you here?” Twilight quickly changed the subject.

“Honestly, not very different,” I said, playing along with Twilight. “Though, he did get me thinking.”

“About what?”

“About this world,” I explained. “I’ve been here for almost two years, and the only other place I’ve seen outside of Ponyville and the Everfree Forest is Canterlot. I’ve just been thinking, what else could be out there?”

Twilight stayed silent, which was surprising, given her love of research.

“Wait a second, yeah!” I said, standing up, having a great idea.

“What is it?” Twilight asked.

“I have the bits, I can always buy some stuff if I need it,” I said to myself, pacing back and forth.

“Jake, what are you talking about?”

“A round-the-world trip! We could travel from city to city, taking in all sorts of scenery, maybe even discovering something incredible!” I told her.

“Wait, what? What do you mean we?” she asked, clearly confused.

“Well,” I explained. “I-I couldn’t even begin to imagine a trip like this without you. You’ve been here ever since I got here.”

Twilight simply looked down.

“What’s wrong? Haven’t you always been curious as to what’s out there that hasn’t been found yet? About all the creatures that haven’t been named yet?” I asked excitedly.

“I-I...I really want to say yes. That sounds...amazing! But...I can’t just leave my friends like that? And what about Spike? He’d be all alone,” Twilight said.

Twilight’s counterpoint made sense. I fell down against the wall behind me to sit down again. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. It would be an incredible journey though, wouldn’t it?”

Twilight Sparkle couldn’t believe the words that had just come out of her mouth. Jake, the unknowing love of her life, had just asked her to go with him on the adventure of a lifetime, and she told him she couldn’t do it.

She looked at him. He seemed so disappointed, and it was her fault. She was holding him back.

“Well...who says you have to go alone?” she asked before she realized what she’s said.

Jake looked back up at her, the excitement returning in his eyes. “What?”

Twilight realized she couldn’t back out now, or else she would crush him. “I said, why can’t you go alone?”

Jake looked down again, rubbing his chin again in thought. “Are you sure? I’d be gone for a really long time.”

Not wanting to let Jake down, Twilight walked up to him and put her hoof on his chest, using her other hoof to raise his chin. “Jake, I just want you to be happy. I will miss you like crazy, but...I can get along fine, e-even if it’s without you.”

Twilight felt the front of her mane being stroked. “Twi, the thought of making you upset just kills me. I won’t do this if you don’t want me to.”

It took every bit of willpower Twilight had to not break down crying, to not yell at Jake everything she’d felt about him, and nod.

“I-If you’re sure. The last thing I want to do is hurt you,” Jake added.

Twilight closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Jake, if you want to do this, do this. This is your world as much as it is mine, and you have every right to see it. I just want you to be happy.”

Jake nodded and stood up. “Alright. Alright! I’m going around the world!”

With that, Jake dashed down the stairs and out of the library.

Alone, Twilight sighed and hopped onto her bed, pulling the covers over her. “I just wish you would be happy with me,” she said, finally tearing up.

It was finally time. I had my ticket, all my stuff, and my route planned out. The first place I was going was a city called Manehattan (because ponies). All I had to do now was wait for the train.

I was at the train station, all my friends present with me.

“Well, girls, looks like this is where we part for now,” I said, facing them.

“Gonna miss havin’ ya around at the barn, Jake,” Applejack replied.

“Yeah, man, never change,” Rainbow Dash added.

“All of my animal friends are gonna miss you,” said Fluttershy.

“Yeah, and it’ll be really weird to not see you around Sugarcube Corner anymore,” Pinkie Pie agreed.

“I must say, it was rather interesting to be able to design your clothes,” Rarity said.

Twilight didn’t say anything, to my surprise. In fact, she looked more sad than anything.

“I’m gonna miss you, bro,” Spike said.

With that, all of us joined in a group hug, even Twilight, though she still seemed a bit down.

After the hug broke, all of my friends left, and I turned back toward the train, which had just arrived.

“I’m really gonna miss you,” I heard a voice behind me.

I looked back to see Twilight was still here. “I’m gonna miss you too, Twi.”

I brought her into another hug, and he buried her face into my chest, tears falling form her eyes.

“I almost wish you weren’t going,” she cried.

I ran my hand up and down her mane. “I promise you that no matter what happens, you will always be my best friend, and I will come back to you, no matter what.”

Twilight continued to cry. “It’s hard...I can hardly remember what it was like before I met you.”

“Shh, shh, I know. But this is the best thing for me right now. I hate to make you upset, but this is really important to me,” I responded.

Twilight backed away and nodded. “I understand. Have a safe trip.”

I stood up and said, “I will. I’ll be back, I promise.”

I waved to her once again before stepping onto the train. The door closed, and the train started moving, all the while, I never willed myself to look away from Twilight. She starting walking in the same direction as the train, but quickly stopped.

A tear rolled down my face as I realized a new chapter of my life had started. I still wish Twilight had gone with me, but I knew she couldn’t. I simply sat down, looked out the window, and slowly started to weep.

It had been a little over two months since Jake had left Ponyville, and it was still the first thing Twilight thought about all the time. But...she had come to terms with the fact he was gone. She was happy for him, she really was.

Since then, however, a lot had changed for her as well. She’d gone to another world herself, she’d stopped a rampaging centaur, she even had a title now: the Princess of Friendship. She even lived in a castle, made of blue and purple crystals.

A letter had come, and Twilight sat in her room with it, hesitating to read it.

Eventually, she opened the envelop and read the letter.

Dear Twilight,

Sorry it’s been a while. I haven’t had the time to write lately with all the traveling I’ve been doing lately. It’s too bad I’m moving around so much; you could send me letters too if I wasn’t. It’s great to be able to send you this. My travels have been amazing so far, though I haven’t made any life-changing discoveries yet.

I still wish you could’ve come with me, but I get it, princess stuff. I miss you more than anything though. I’ll be back when the time is right, don’t you worry.

Your old friend,
Jake Taylor

Twilight smiled as she read it, a tear falling down her cheek. She’d contemplated sending Jake a letter to tell him how she feels, but she knew it’d never get to him.

This, though...this was more than enough. To know he was okay, happy was all she needed to be happy as well.

He could never return fast enough, but Twilight would wait.

For the love of her life, Twilight Sparkle would do anything, including wait.

Author's Note

Okay, so this ended up being shorter than I thought it would.

Tell what you thought of Jake’s arrival in Equestria in the comments below, and expect some more of Romantic Mischief

Prologue

I sat in my cold, empty, lifeless apartment, reading the one book that brought me joy: The Trumpet of the Swan.

My name is Jake Taylor. I am twenty-three years old, alone, and...I wouldn’t say ‘depressed’, but something close to it. Why am I alone? There are a few things to know in order to answer that.

To start, when I was four years old, my negligence killed my parents. I was playing in the backyard of my old house without a care in the world. My parents were in the living room, setting up for my birthday. They were so focused, and I was so...distracted, that none of us noticed my stupid mistake.

As a four-year-old, I was very curious. So, when I saw my mom turn something on a big, black box, my curiosity took over. Now, I know that big, black box was called a stove, and that thing I turned was what turned it on. The fire took a while to really burn, but once it did, it spread really fast.

I was outside, so I didn’t have to worry about being burned alive. But my parents...they weren’t so lucky. Somehow, they didn’t notice until it was too late. The firemen arrived fast, but not fast enough. They got me to safety, but the house came down before my parents got out.

For the first four years of my life, my parents were the best friends I had. I didn’t care for making friends in preschool because I thought I’d always have my mom and dad. How wrong I turned out to be.

Anyhow, after that, I ended up in the care of my aunt on my mom’s side. To her credit, she tried to be a good guardian. But whenever she tried to cheer me up, it’d always end with tears in my eyes. Eventually, she just got fed up and stopped caring about me. She’d treat me like I was ungrateful, which looking back, I kinda was, but I still say she went too far with the discipline.

This went on for about...three years. But even during all she put me through, I never lashed out. That is...until she scolded me for not forgetting about my parents. I lashed out and started yelling at her...and was met with a smack to the face. She told me to shake it off, but I couldn’t hold back tears. She grabbed onto me and started shaking me...until her friend walked in and called Child-Protective Services.

After that, it was off to the orphanage, the first of many. The only problem was, no one wants to adopt a seven year old. I was never actually angry with my aunt. After all, it was my fault I was in her care in the first place, so it’s not like I could complain.

Anyhow, life at the orphanage was...uneventful. Most of the other, younger orphans looked up to me, which I kinda liked, but I still didn’t make any attempt to befriend. But to this day, I say it was because of my leadership that I was never adopted. I spent two years at that orphanage until the headmaster couldn’t afford to keep it running, so I was relocated.

This basically started a chain of repeating events. It was orphanage, no adoption, orphanage, no adoption, and so on. I got a job by the time I was sixteen, but I barely made enough to get by.

Luckily, by the time I turned eighteen, luck finally started to show. Now, since I was sixteen, I had been working at the exact same grocery store. Don’t ask why, I just didn’t bother looking for another job. Anyhow, after two years of working there, I had been promoted from cashier, to stock-boy. Then, after another year, I went from stock-boy, to supervisor. By now, I was a manger. I got decent pay, my coworkers respect me, and I get to be my own boss, under the CO of course.

Anyhow, back to the present. I was sitting in my apartment, reading my book, when all of the sudden, the ground started shaking. I looked up from my book, but didn’t pay any mind. Then the ground shook again, knocking over and shattering my lamp. It wasn’t a very expensive lamp, so I wasn’t very upset.

After that, the earth just decided to go on a sugar rush. The earthquake that ensued was big enough to...well, destroy the building. I rushed out my front door, shoved a few neighbors out of the way, and bolted down the stairs. I probably could’ve gone down the fire escape or through the window, but I’m not a smart person when it comes to emergency situations like this. That being said, the stairs were my best option. At least I wasn’t dumb enough try to take the elevator.

I got to the bottom floor and saw a lot of other people trying to rush through the exit doors at once, so I had to find another way out. The chandelier started swaying back and forth, and I knew it was only a matter of time until it came down. Luckily, I saw a few people diving out the windows. I ran and jumped out of the window.

The ground was still shaking once I got outside, but it wasn’t as bad.

“Sweetie, please! Take my hand!” I heard a woman cry.

I looked at the building to see a woman around my age looking in one of the windows. I knew the building was about to come down, so I ran up to pull her away out of instinct. To this day, I don’t know what drove me to do that.

“No! You can’t! My daughter, she’s still in there!” the woman yelled as I dragged her away from the building.

I ran up to the window and looked through to see a little girl inside the building, seemingly searching for something. I jumped inside to took her by the hand.

“Wait! My dolly!” the girl screamed.

I looked around and saw a doll sitting on the couch. I tossed the girl out the window, into the arms of her mother, and I rushed to grab her doll.

No sooner than I got to the window did I hear the roof collapse. As quick as I could, I tossed the doll out the window and braced for impact.

Surprisingly, I hardly felt it. In fact, I heard and saw a white flash before my eyes before blacking out.

Author's Note

Hey guys,
Yes, I know this chapter is so short, but this is just the prologue. If you can’t tell, this Jake isn’t exactly as friendly as the Jake in my other stories. That’s because he hasn’t met the oh-so-friendly beings of Equestria quite yet.

Also, this marks a few firsts for me. The most obvious being that this story has nothing to do with Starlight Glimmer. Second, Twilight isn’t an alicorn. At least, not yet. Finally, this story has Golden Oaks Library instead of the Castle of Friendship.

Updates will be weekly for those of you who forget to track.

Happy Valentines Day!

The “explanation”

It had been an ordinary day for Twilight Sparkle: reorganize the library, see what her friends were up to, practice her magic a little bit, and maybe even learn something new about friendship.

Life in Ponyville was peaceful, especially for Golden Oaks Library with her number one assistant Spike, and that was the way she’d liked it. That being said, Discord’s “improvements” weren’t exactly a welcome change. Truth be told, she was still a little hesitant to trust him, but he’d behaved himself thus far.

Today was no different than most days, and Twilight gave a yawn while walking back to the library from Sugarcube Corner. It was the same old same old: Pinkie Pie let her sample a new recipe for her cupcakes, it was weird but surprisingly enjoyable, and she gave Pinkie her honest thoughts.

Twilight lit up her horn and opened the door to the library. “Spike, I’m back!”

Spike, a small dragon with purple and green scales, looked up from the comic book he was reading. “Hey, Twi. What was Pinkie’s new creation this time?”

Twilight licked her lips as she recalled what the party pony fed her. “Boysenberry banana.”

Spike looked at Twilight with a bit of confusion. “Isn’t that what she gave you last week?”

Twilight shook her head and levitated her bags onto a shelf. “No, that was...what was it? That’s right! That was peach kiwi.”

“She’s doing a lot of fruit themed cupcakes lately,” Spike said to himself. “She didn’t get any on you, did she?”

“Don’t worry, Spike. We’re not going through something like that again,” Twilight responded. The two of them had found out the hard way that, with enough of it, Pinkie’s cupcake frosting made an all-too-good substitute for super glue.

Twilight had not so much as gone upstairs and lay down on her bed with a book she had yet to read when a loud boom could be heard from out of her window. She quickly looked up to see a large, dark blue cloud swirling around like a tornado and touching the ground of the Everfree Forest.

For a moment, Twilight was afraid that Ponyville was about to be struck by a tornado. However, much to both her relief and curiosity, it had dissolved just as fast as it appeared, leaving no trace of anything having happened.

Twilight simply stared at the sky where the tornado had just taken place. She had the exact spot where it met the ground pin pointed. She knew she would have to go see what that was.

“What was that?” Spike asked, having joined Twilight upstairs.

Twilight blinked and shook her head, Spike’s words drawing her attention away from the forest. “N-Nothing. I’m going out, be back later.”

“You’re going out again? But you just got back,” Spike pleaded.

“This could be important, Spike. Hold down the fort until I’m back,” Twilight said, before rushing out the door.

Spike wandered back down stairs and looked out the window as Twilight ran toward the forest.

“I hope she knows what she’s doing,” Spike said to himself.

“Who?” asked Owliscious.

“Twilight,” Spike answered.

“Who,” Owliscious replied.

“Twili-, nevermind,” Spike said, walking away.

Twilight was getting pretty close to where the tornado happened. She didn’t ask any of her friends, not wanting to cause a needless panic. That being said, she was alone...in the Everfree Forest.

“Maybe I should have asked one of my friends to come with me. This place gives me the creeps,” she said to herself.

Luckily, she didn’t have to search much longer. Soon enough, she came across a strange-looking creature with long legs and short forehooves. It also had a rather short mane and no fur to be seen anywhere. Also, instead of hooves, it had these weird, claw type things, but with short nails. As well as that, it wore much more clothes than an average pony. To top it all off, it had a very short muzzle and what looked like a nose, but unlike anything Twilight had ever seen before.

Twilight was frozen. She didn’t want to wake the creature up in case it was dangerous, but she didn’t know whether or not it was sentient and would be able to talk to her. The researcher inside her also told her to do what she could to study the creature, but the unknown knowledge of its sentience got in the way of that as well.

She wouldn’t have much time to decide though, since it started to wake up on its own. Out of fear, she quickly ducked into a bush, looking at it as close she could. It stretched its limbs, eliciting a few pops that Twilight couldn’t help but cringe at, and then it made eye contact with her. She didn’t dare move and risk giving away her location if she hadn’t already.

Then, to Twilight’s surprise, at spoke. “Who’s there?”

It was with such great articulation and pronunciation that Twilight gasped out of surprise. From the sound of its voice, Twilight determined it to be a male.

The creature then got up, somehow standing on just its hind legs. He stared Twilight down and said, “If you can gasp, you can talk?”

Feeling no other way out of this other than try to converse with him, Twilight asked, “W-What are you?”

He seemed to calm down a little at the sound of Twilight’s voice. “What do you mean, ‘what am I’? I’m a man, for God’s sake! What are you supposed to be then?”

Twilight felt no other option but to reveal herself. Slowly, she stood up and faced the creature. In turn, he seemed to be put off by her appearance. “I’m a unicorn, of course.”

The creature backed away slowly and shook its head. “N-No.”

Twilight slowly stepped forward. “Are you okay?”

“You're not...y-you’re n-not...” he stuttered.

“I’m not what?” Twilight asked, growing confused.

“You’re not...you’re not real! Unicorns aren’t real!” he replied, running away from Twilight.

Twilight grew worried about the creature and started running after him. “Wait! What’s wrong? What do you mean, ‘unicorns aren’t real’? Wait!”

The creature kept running until he got close to the ravine that Twilight had nearly fallen down when she first came to Ponyville. “Watch out for the ravine!”

Her words were futile, as the creature tripped over something and tumbled down the ravine, falling unconscious. Twilight quickly and carefully ran to the ravine bottom to try to help the creature. She knew that she wasn’t strong enough to lift him on her own, so she lit her horn once again and delicately lifted him into the air and onto her back.

As fast as she could, she ran back up the ravine, through the forest, and into the library. “Spike?! Where are you? I need your help with something.”

Spike came rushing up to her. “Sure, Twilight, what is-what is that thing?”

Twilight teleported the creature from her back and onto the ground. “I don’t know, but it’s a male, and he called himself a-a ‘man’. But he fell down the ravine in the Everfree Forest. Can you help me get him upstairs and into the bed?”

Spike seemed a little hesitant. “A-Are you sure? It might be infected or something. We could put it on the table or something like that.”

“Spike! He took a serious fall and may be hurt. Come on, just help me get him into the bed,” Twilight chastised.

All Spike could do was shrug as he picked up the end of the creature and dragged him up the stairs, Twilight doing her best to hold up the head of the creature. Surprisingly, they had made it to the bed with much trouble and placed the creature onto it.

“Thanks, Spike. I’ll stay here until he wakes up,” Twilight said.

“As long as you’re sure its not dangerous,” Spike replied, walking down the stairs.

I’m not sure how long I was out, but I slowly came to and felt myself resting on something very comfortable. My head was killing me, which was weird. The last thing I remembered was falling asleep in that hospital bed. I gave a small grunt as I shifted around a little.

“Oh good, you’re awake. How are you feeling?” asked a familiar, female voice.

Without opening my eyes, I grunted and answered, “Good, I guess. What happened?”

“You took quite the fall. I did my best examination, and there doesn’t seem to be anything physically wrong with you,” replied the voice.

I moved around a little bit, getting a little more comfortable. “W-Where am I now?”

“I took you back to the library where I live. Sorry for scaring you like that,” the voice explained.

“What do you mean? Have we met before?” I asked.

“Not exactly. When you saw me in the forest, you ran away, yelling ‘unicorns aren’t real’,” answered the voice.

“Unicorns, yeah right,” I said, finally opening my eyes. “Wait, unicorns?” I looked to where the voice was coming from, and sitting there was the exact same horse that had chased me through the forest. I shot out of the bed and pressed my back to the wall. “Y-You get away from me. I’m...I have to be seeing things. U-Unicorns aren’t real! They’re just mythical creatures that parents tell their children about to entertain them.”

The unicorn slowly stepped toward me. “What do you mean? Is that what you believe where you come from?”

The window behind me wasn’t budging, and I didn’t feel like I could break the glass. “Y-Yeah, and they sure as hell couldn’t talk either. I-I have to be dreaming or in a coma or something.”

“I promise you that you’re not dreaming. Please, just calm down, and I’ll answer any questions that you have,” replied the unicorn in a calm voice.

Despite still believing this was a dream, I could see sincerity in her eyes. Slowly, but tentatively, I sat back down on the bed. “D-D-Do you have a name or something?”

“Yes, my name’s Twilight Sparkle,” answered the unicorn.

’Twilight Sparkle? Sounds like something straight out of a little girl’s cartoon’

“Here, I got you a glass of water while you were asleep. I thought you might be dehydrated,” Twilight said as a glass of water floated toward me. It was engulfed in some sort of magenta aura. I looked at Twilight and saw that her horn was also engulfed by that magenta aura.

Quickly putting two and two together, I flinched. “Y-You can do magic?”

Twilight’s eyes went a little wide, and the glass hit the floor. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t consider the possibility that you might still be in shock.” The glass levitated toward me again. “Here, it won’t hurt you.”

Twilight seemed to have a friendly smile on her face. I trusted her and slowly wrapped my hand around the glass. She was right, it didn’t hurt and even felt quite pleasant.

“Th-Thank you,” I said, taking a sip of water. “W-Where am I? Is everyone here a unicorn?”

Twilight pulled up a stool beside the bed, and took a seat. “No. There are plenty of different creatures in Equestria, griffons, dragons, and there are even different types of ponies.”

“E-Equestria? I-Is that what you call this place?” I asked, excepting the fact that I was probably going insane.

Twilight seemed to light up a little at my question. “Yep!”

“A-And what other types of...ponies are there?”

“Well, there’s unicorns, obliviously, but there’s also pegasi, earth ponies, and alicorns,” Twilight answered.

’Christ, this place really is straight out if a little girl’s imagination’

“Can I ask you something?” Twilight suddenly asked me.

“Go ahead,” I replied.

“What’s your name?” she asked just little too eagerly.

I looked at her with apprehension. “What’s it to you?”

Twilight seemed to sense my suspicion, and rose her hooves in defense. “N-Nothing really, I just want to know what to call you. After all, I’m not really sure what you are exactly, no offense, and you obviously come from...somewhere else.”

I thought about Twilight’s words. They seemed to make sense, and I couldn’t think of a reason not to tell her.

“Jake...Jake Taylor,” I answered.

“Jake Taylor, that’s a nice name,” Twilight complimented, a little to my surprise. She seemed like the type to show unconditional kindness, at least by human standards, but knowing that she’d never seen a human before, I still couldn’t help but wonder why she wasn’t more suspicious.

“Th-Thanks,” I said in reply.

“A-And of you don’t mind my asking, what exactly are you?” Twilight asked.

I looked at her again and saw she now had a pad and quill levitating in front of her.

“Are you taking notes?” I asked.

“Again, no offense, but this is kind of a huge discovery. And besides, maybe I can find something about your species that could help me send you home,” Twilight explained.

I looked back up at the ceiling and nodded a bit to myself. “In that case, I’m a human, spelled h-u-m-a-n...wait did you just say you’re gonna help send me back?”

“Of course!” Twilight answered with a warm smile. “Don’t you wanna go back?”

Before I could answer, another younger voice rang out from the lower floor. “Twilight! Dinner’s ready!”

“Oh, one minute, Spike!” Twilight called back. She then looked at me and asked, “Do you want something to eat? Spike’s a great cook.”

“Spike?” I asked.

“Oh right,” she chuckled. “Spike’s my number one assistant and best friend. He may be a dragon, but he’s got a heart of gold!”

“Oh,” I replied. “Wait, dragon?”

Twilight chuckled at herself again. “Yeah, Spike’s a dragon, but he’s completely harmless and an amazing friend.”

I didn’t say anything as I processed the information I’d been told: ponies, dragons, magic, all that good stuff.

“Come on, I’m sure Spike can make something you’ll like,” Twilight said with another smile.

“Why are you being so nice to me?” I asked, letting my suspicions show to the fullest extent.

Twilight’s smile faded and was replaced by a confused frown. “What do you mean? It’s only right, since it was kinda my fault you fell down that ravine. Besides, it’s what friends do!”

With that, Twilight walked down the stairs.

Friend? We were friends all of the sudden? I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. On the one hand, I barely knew her, and still wasn’t fully convinced I just wasn’t insane. But then...I’ve never really had a friend before, and I had to admit, it felt a little nice.

Not having much better to do, I followed Twilight downstaris.

Author's Note

So, you’ve seen how Jake views Twilight, what’d ya guys think of her first impression of him?

Keep in mind this is before she gets a crush on him