The former human walked around the mansion, knowing the invisible presence of Celestia was watching him from behind. As long as she kept her distance, he didn't mind - he knew she couldn't simply leave him alone with all the foals running around. She likely thought of him as some sort of savage beast who could tear into someone for looking at him wrong. She wasn't entirely incorrect in that regard.

However, he didn't plan on hurting anyone who didn't want to hurt him in turn. As long as he could keep himself calm, he would be fine. He imagined a thick steel-walled box, just standing there in his mind by itself. One by one, he put all his worrying thoughts in it, then locked it. Now his mind was empty, devoid of either emotions or thoughts. He passively acknowledged his surroundings, yet there was little beyond that. He could hear himself breathe, he could listen to the sounds both close and distant, he could feel the floor under his hooves and the air around him. He was simply a part of this new world now, yet another observer and participator in its life.

The box in which he locked his thoughts was not without imperfections - some of them slipped out of it, returning to him. Slowly, his mind drifted to Celestia - he knew very little of who and what she was, yet he had reasons to be suspicious of her. Royalty, as far as he was concerned, deserved no right to exist. They had inflicted an immeasurable amount of harm on humanity for thousands of years, and all because of the lust for power. For centuries, kings and queens and emperors and khans and tsars plundered the lands, oppressing and exploiting people who simply wanted to make their own lives easier. Thousands upon thousands, millions of deaths, millions of lives ruined and miserable, could all be attributed to those 'high' people and their followers. This very thought made a fire of hate grow larger and hungrier inside him, struggling to get out. He kept it down, knowing these emotions were of little use yet - after all, he could cast little judgement on Celestia before he found out more about her. He had to keep in mind that it was her who brought him to this place where he could eat, sleep, and perhaps even be safe. Her eyes were kind, and her intentions seemed noble and good - yet the former human simply couldn't stop expecting a different, darker side to surface sooner or later. He firmly believed there was no way she was as she outwardly appeared.

As he walked around the mansion, he didn't forget to pay attention to his surroundings. There were various paintings on the walls throughout the building, and all of them were, for a mysterious reason, sceneries. There were some ponies here and there, but they were vague, undefined, without a clear identity one could recognize beyond what was presented on the paintings themselves. Some sceneries the former human recognized: a mountain with what looked like a castle on its side, and a painting of the mansion. Then there were plenty of sceneries the former human had yet to learn about, including what looked like a late twentieth-century city, eerily similar to New York in appearance. From this information, he concluded the civilization of ponies was even more advanced than he expected, all while retaining medieval armament. He didn't think it was just for show, but he was puzzled by this huge of a difference in military and civilian technology.

As he passed another hallway, he did see a somewhat more advanced piece of protection - a couple suits of full plate armor, certainly late medieval to early renaissance. The pony suits of armor and decorated halberds stood in a big glass display on the side of the hallway, and there was something written on a rectangular piece of thin metal riveted to the glass. Ignoring what he couldn't understand just yet, the former human used his eyes to inspect the items on display instead. The weapons as well as the suits were clearly ceremonial: expensively decorated, with elements that would hinder combat, and certainly too heavy and cumbersome; the weapons, of course, were blunt. Unimpressed and disgusted, the former human turned away from the display and continued on his way.

The subtle change in his otherwise empty expression did not go unnoticed by the princess, and a question arose - did he recognize the armor? It couldn't be true - the suits had been standing there in the very mansion for more than three hundred years. They were an exquisite work made for the long-gone previous owners of the mansion who wore it, according to her memory, exactly once before they met their end. She tried not to think of them - at least the mansion served the ponies now, repaying for all the crimes the previous owners had done.

Quick gallop sounded from around the corner, making the young unicorn tense up, getting in a fighting position. To his great relief, it was a pair of young foals making the noise, chasing one after another in what was likely a simple game of tag. The former human stepped aside, his posture relaxing, and they zoomed past him, giving him not a glance. He simply continued on his way.

Celestia raised her brows in puzzlement - why didn't he react more aggressively? The foals came very close to him, almost brushing against him as they galloped. However, he seemed completely fine and unfazed, not even following the foals with his eyes after they were past him. He had already shown himself to be uncomfortable around older foals and adults - could there be a hidden reason behind it? Noting it for herself, Celestia continued following the young unicorn.

He suddenly stopped in his tracks, his ears turning to his left. A small frown appeared on his face, tension rose in his body. He swore he heard... whispers. The words were indiscernible, yet not muffled. There was no door to his left, no room, and nowhere to be hidden if one indeed whispered from that direction. The former human slowly went around the corner in front of him, and then he saw a door on his left - it was a plain door without a lock. He pulled it open and stepped inside the room behind it. It was completely windowless and smelled of old wood and paper, as well as stale ink. Bookcases lined every wall of the room, and only the light from the open door illuminated them. In the center of the room, a table stood, a few books lying on top of it, unreadable to the former human but clear to the alicorn behind him: "The Shattering of Crystal", "The Loveless Swarm", and "The Dark Moonrise".

Cold sweat ran down Celestia's spine - this was not an accident, she knew it with all her being. When fate wanted to speak, it spoke, and this time, it was bold and direct. One way or another, these books and what they described were tied to the young unicorn. He didn't react to it in any way that she could tell, probably because he couldn't read yet, but she believed he did feel at least something even if he didn't show it.

Without much of a delay, the former human turned around and returned to the hallways to continue his exploration of the mansion. Celestia noted for herself to re-read the books she had just seen before following him.

The rest of the travel through the mansion proved uneventful, and the former human memorized the layout. Overall, it was not difficult: a dorm wing, a cafeteria wing, and what looked like a teaching wing, all of them forming a vague triangle. Perhaps they used to be different before, but that had changed since. In any case, he decided it would be best for him to head outside and breathe some fresh air.

By the time he reached the front entrance, the rain has stopped, and the sun appeared from behind the now-white clouds. The warmth of the day came upon the land, and the air became slightly more difficult to breathe in as moisture evaporated from the surroundings. However, it now smelled of freshness one could only smell after a good summer rain. The former human couldn't help but inhale it deeply, then exhale it slowly. It was, quite literally, a breath of new life, one among millions that he would likely make in his life here. Deep inside his mind, this thought filled him with joy - yet a larger part of him was dismayed at still being alive.

He didn't fail to notice pegasi pushing the clouds away, and he stopped in his tracks. A look of befuddlement appeared on his face, and his lower jaw trembled slightly as if he wanted to say something. As he watched, the sky was quickly cleared with the efforts of the pegasi, and then they dispersed. Soon, nothing looked out of the ordinary. He shook his head in amazement, then continued on his way down the stairway to the orphanage grounds. Celestia didn't fail to notice the changes in his expression, wondering just how intelligent he was. If she didn't know any better, she'd think he was simply from a foreign country that didn't know much about the ponies.

The former human headed towards the pond he saw on his way in. A slow stream of foals emerged from the entrance following him, and soon many others were playing outside. The former human, however, ignored them and soon arrived at the pond. Without a delay, he entered the chilly waters, shivered, but continued forward. Soon, he laid down, only leaving his head above the water so he could breathe. He closed his eyes and relaxed, the tension in his body going away little by little with every breath he took. Celestia watched him curiously from the shore.

He remembered the time when he used to do the same with the lake in which he died. When he felt uncertain, when he needed to get away from things, he came to the lake and just sat in it, sometimes for hours, simply relishing in the freshness of the water. If only for a little while, he was just a part of the lake, swaying with it, breathing with it. All his thoughts were gone, replaced with the quiet ambient noise of the surroundings. For some time, he felt truly alive, without a worry in the world.

He heard quacking nearby and opened his eyes. Mere meters away from him, a flock of ducks approached: one drake, a couple hens, and a small group of ducklings. They circled around the former human and then got closer, making quiet noises along the way. He watched them, a shadow of a smile on his face. One of the ducklings closed in on him and attempted to climb on his head, only to fall and make a splash. His smile grew bigger and he chuckled in amusement before slightly lowering his head. This time, the duckling successfully climbed on top of it and settled there between his ears. As the ducks dived underwater for food around him, he simply remained in his position and relaxed completely.

Celestia couldn't help but notice that he displayed no hostility towards the ducks - why was that the case? Why wasn't he afraid of their touch? What made them special? There was no explanation that she could come up with at this point. However, she did enjoy watching the young unicorn relax and be at peace even for a little while. And the chuckle he made was certainly pony-like, not feral. She had never seen Ferals chuckle so readily without having adapted to the pony society, it was simply unheard of in her experience.

One of the foals around the pond chose to approach the former human. As soon as their hoof touched the surface of the water, making a tiny splash, the young unicorn's ears swiveled to hear it, and then he sharply turned his head, almost making the duckling fall off. His intense gaze settled on the foal, looking them straight into the eyes. The foal stopped, then retreated, uncertainty clear on their face.

With that settled, the former human slowly turned his head back to its original position and settled down, the tension from his body disappearing as quickly as it came. A deep breath in, a deep breath out. He had nothing to worry about, he was a part of the lake. No one was out to get him. No one wanted to hurt him. No one wanted to make him suffer.

Many minutes passed, and Celestia decided to become visible again. After summoning a beach sheet, she settled down on the shore of the pond, basking in the light of the sun, her eyes half-closed in relaxation. A few foals noticed her but continued doing their own things, leaving her to spend some quiet time by herself.

The young unicorn closed his eyes and drifted into a state of semi-sleep. In this strange dream that came upon him, he glided across the pond, dancing all the while. His movements were vague, blurry, and undefined, yet filled with grace and beauty. He didn't know how to dance, yet he did so effortlessly, and a smile spread on his face. He even wanted to sing, yet his mouth was clamped shut. He faltered in his step, ruining his dance, feeling the lock on his mouth. He wanted to sing, but nothing could happen when his mouth was forcefully shut. Slowly, panic overtook him, and then he opened his eyes.

His heart was beating strongly in his chest, a wild expression on his face. However, the pond remained as before, and the ducks around him remained peaceful. He sighed - this dream ended his serenity, it was time to end his unity with the pond, at least for the time being. He slowly shook his head and lowered it, letting the duckling back on the water. Then he slowly turned around and stood up, heading towards the shore. There, Celestia was chatting with an adult, from what he could tell. She noticed him coming out, finished her talk, and then teleported her beach sheet away after standing up. The former human blinked at the display of magic, yet continued back to the shore. After saying their goodbyes, Celestia and the other adult parted ways with the alicorn following him as he decided to explore the rest of the orphanage grounds.

His ears perked up as he heard a yell from one direction, and he turned his head to take a look at what caused it. From the entrance to the mansion, a group of foals with an adult at the head exited, all of them holding one manner of weapon or the other. The adult led them to a nearby clearing where no one was busy, and soon the group was setting up dummies and mats. The former human decided to get closer and watch them do what was undeniably swordsmanship practice.

The practice began with all the ponies trotting around and doing various leg warmups. The young unicorn noted it was how he began his own swordsmanship practice in the club he used to attend. Of course, ponies had a different idea on how to warm up - they didn't have arms to warm up separately from the legs. After the warmup, the adult divided all the foals into pairs, making them practice distancing. He corrected those who didn't do it right and praised those who did. Unlike how the young unicorn trained as a human, these ponies trained distancing by eye - they had no arms to check if they could reach their opponent. Judging by what he observed, this way of training looked to be efficient anyway. And unlike humans, ponies had no advantage of making themselves look thinner by turning slightly to the side. If anything, ponies exposed more of their body to the opponent by not facing them head-on.

Next came the strike practice, and that was what the dummies were prepared for. Each foal grabbed their weapon: mostly spears, but some had one-handed and one-and-a-half-handed swords - although the former human didn't know how exactly the terms could apply to those who had no hands in the first place - for unicorns and some ponies from the other two tribes. Basic weapons, the training with which could prepare the ponies for all manner of other weapons. Every pony with a spear had a special harness fixing the polearm in place to their bodies, but there was also a lever stemming from the contraption straight to the maw, and the former human saw the spear could be adjusted by using the lever by gripping it with the teeth and moving it. A clever if not somewhat complicated and slightly unsanitary system. Swords were gripped in maws as well, without any contraptions. However, the swords had a D-shaped handle, the straight side of which was parallel to the guard, thus making the swords look like weird shovels. Of course, unicorns didn't need such a shape to hold their own swords, and thus the handles had a traditional straight design. The former human didn't know how well D-handled swords worked, but they likely worked well enough because ponies, after all, did use them. If they were inefficient and cumbersome, he reasoned, ponies wouldn't use them. Fine neck control would be needed in order to rival telekinesis in a sword fight, but at least ponies had thicker and longer necks, making them not nearly as vulnerable and weak as human necks.

Unicorns, as he had already noted, used their magic - telekinesis - to handle their own weapons. Unlike with hands, there wasn't a limit of dexterity or flexibility with telekinesis, and thus it allowed a far greater range of movement with attacks that otherwise would twist a human into an impossible shape. Very useful - if only the former human could learn it. So far, he only felt a slight tingle in his horn from time to time, but he had no idea how to activate his magic.

He continued watching the training and noticed the dummies sometimes glowed green, yellow, or red depending on how and where they were hit. From what he could understand, it also depended on edge alignment - the better it was, the greener the dummies were on the strike. They were clearly enchanted to show not only the physical response to being hit but also grade on how well it was executed. In his opinion, it was very useful, especially considering the fact that foals didn't need to use sharp, dangerous weapons to train this aspect of swordsmanship.

Next, the ponies were broken into pairs once more for simple attack and defense practice. The former human frowned, wondering why they did it without protective equipment. However, ponies seemed completely unfazed at being hit pretty much anywhere. Were they so much tougher than humans? Or were the weapons enchanted to be essentially harmless? It was very likely the latter, he reasoned.

After the end of that practice, one pair at a time fought in a duel, trying to show their best. Once more, it was done without any protective equipment, yet no one was hurt despite some pretty nasty hits the former human almost cringed at. He couldn't hear anyone complaining about being hit too hard, and the ponies fought with intensity belonging to real combat. The young unicorn nodded to himself - this way of training was certainly more practical if ponies ended up fighting for real someday. On top of that, it was also more authentic if they fought in regular tournaments and medieval-like role-play games.

From his observations, he judged the unicorns to be the most versatile. While they were less agile compared to the flying pegasi and weaker compared to earth ponies, telekinesis allowed them a wide range of attacks and responses to choose from. The pegasi were much more maneuverable on their wings and hooves both, allowing them to strike fast or from unexpected angles. Some pegasi used their wings to quickly redirect their bodies even on the ground, allowing them to use the spear harness to its full potential. Meanwhile, earth ponies were the biggest, the strongest, and with the most endurance - their attacks were unrelenting, allowing them to tire out their opponents quicker without losing momentum themselves. The former human noted it all for further consideration.

Once the training ended, the tired and sweaty ponies put their weapons in a pile and went to the pond to take a swim in order to soothe their aching muscles and clean themselves as well. The former human, in turn, decided to wander around the orphanage grounds and memorize the layout as well as possible places of interest. He, for once, would certainly partake in the local swordsmanship club as soon as he could understand ponies better.

This new life held much promise for him, undoubtedly. He could hope it would help him become a new, better person. Maybe, just maybe, he would be able to leave his old life behind... if he tried hard enough. It seemed an impossible task, one someone like him would never be able to achieve. Yet, he had hope, as little as it was.

He would only need to keep himself in control.

Author's Note

Sorry for not updating the story for so long, but I'm more or less back on track now.

Anyway, I'd like to ask you all how you'd name the protagonist. Not a name he gives himself, but a name others could give to him in order to, well, call him. My own version is simply Wild - because he came out of the Everfree and, from the perspective of ponies, is just a surprisingly intelligent feral pony.

In my headcanon, each pony has two names: the first one is given to them by their parents at birth, and the second one is what they choose for themselves after obtaining their special marks. Of course, the protagonist's parents aren't there, and he doesn't use his human name, so someone has to call him something until he chooses a name for himself.