Author's Note

One more Caden chapter! We'll be switching back to Aurora and more in depth plot development next time!

Chapter 3: Helping Hands

Three weeks later...

Yawning, Caden pushed open his bedroom door and stepped into the dark crystal hallway. The sun wouldn’t be raised for some time and the only light came from small magical crystals that ran the length of the walls. He started down the hallway, stretching and trying to rub the sleep from his eyes.

As he made his way down the corridor, a violent grinding sound grew in intensity as he closed on one of the doors. He had just passed it when he heard a click. Turning around, the door opened and a bright orange unicorn draped in a teal, star patterned cloak stepped out, glasses askew and goatee frazzled. From behind him, an insanely loud snore erupted from the darkness of the room. Under that he could hear somepony mumbling about being great and powerful.

“Good morning Sunburst.”

The unicorn stallion pushed his glasses up his snout.. “Mornin’ Caden. Heading for the kitchen?”

“Yup. You’re up early.”

They began walking down the hallway together. “I’m heading back to the Crystal Empire tonight. I’ve got a lot to do.”

“Ah.”

Sunburst looked up at him. “Sleep well?”

Caden nodded. “Not bad. Better than I had been.”

“Injuries still bothering you?”

“That was a bit of it. Some lingering pain.” He subconsciously rotated his shoulder and yawned again. “It was weird though. Right after I moved in, I wasn’t having problems falling asleep. I just kept waking up and…” he trailed off as he searched for the words.

“And?”

“I don’t know. It’s hard to describe. It’s like something was watching me. Or maybe talking to me. I’d be dreaming and then suddenly be awake. It always felt like something was in the room.” He shrugged. “It seems to have passed. Probably just stress.”

He looked down at Sunburst. “Speaking of sleep. I apologize if I’m being too personal here but Sunburst, dude how on Earth do you sleep with those two? I can hear Starlight snoring all the way down in my room sometimes.” He gestured back to the hallway behind him. “And Trixie talking on top of that.”

Sunburst chuckled. “Well for one thing…” his horn lit up in yellow and a pair of earplugs appeared in front of him. “Enchanted earplugs. Twilight made them for me awhile back. You can’t hear anything with them in.” Another flash and the plugs disappeared. He blushed slightly and brought a hoof up to rub the back of his head nervously. “And you know, when you’re in a herd you deal with these kinds of things.”

Caden nodded. “Sure. I’ve been with women who snored but nothing like that.”

They arrived at the kitchen and Caden made his way to the pantry while Sunburst headed to the stove. “Caden would you grab me the eggs and sunflower petals?” The unicorn began levitating various cooking implements from across the kitchen over to him.

“Sure.” Caden scanned the seemingly never ending shelving of the pantry. He’d nearly fallen over the first time Twilight had showed it to him. There was enough food stocked here for a hundred ponies to live on for over a year. There were giant bags of flour, sugar, salt and every other dry staple you could imagine. Endless loafs of bread, cakes, pies and other pastries he’d never even heard of. Huge wheels of cheese of every kind. Spices from all across Equus. How it all didn’t spoil was probably some trick of Equestrian magic.

He marveled at the cornucopia, just as he always did. And as he marveled, the same thought returned every time. It had a million things he could eat. And it was missing the one thing he wanted.

He sighed. The food in Equestria was good. Actually it was often fantastic. Most of it was shockingly similar to the fare on Earth. Since being here, he’d had some of the best vegetarian food he imagined was possible. The desserts, especially those from Sugar Cube Corner were tooth achingly good. He certainly wasn’t eating badly.

And yet, for all that, he might give up a foot for a steak. Even a piece of fried chicken. One slice of bacon.

In the endless hours of questioning, study and analysis Twilight had subjected him to about all things human, it hadn’t taken long for them to get to the subject of the average human diet. Twilight herself hadn’t seemed bothered by the revelation but Starlight and Trixie had very nearly gagged when eating meat was mentioned. It hadn’t taken him long to figure out that was the usual reaction from most. Out of respect, he’d decided to stick with vegetarian fare and keep his mouth shut. It’s not like he had much of a choice anyway. From what he could tell, the closest city that might even sell meat was Canterlot.

He made his way down the shelves. “Dandelion stems...Saddle Arabian saffron...dehydrated hay flakes…...ah ha...sunflower petals.”

He grabbed them and made his way over to the egg bin. “How many eggs Sunburst?”

“Just two. Unless you’d like some?”

“Nah. Just coffee for me. I’m going jogging after this.”

Caden grabbed two eggs out of the bin and pulled the coffee tin off another shelf. He made his way back into the kitchen where Sunburst was prepping the stove.

“Here.” He held the eggs out, watching as Sunburst levitated them from his grip. He grabbed a teapot off the stove, filled it with water and returned it to boil. “Could you watch that for me?”

“Sure.”

Caden made his way to the middle of the kitchen and sat at the central workstation as Sunburst spoke up. “Speaking of my heading back, you should really come see the Crystal Empire someday.”

He watched as the eggs floated above the pan, cracking in mid air. “I’d love to but…”

“But what?”

Caden shrugged. “I’m really hoping I’m not here that long.”

Spices floated from a nearby shelf to the pan. “Has Twilight made any progress figuring out how you got here?”

“Not really.”

The unicorn turned to him. “No?”

“Apparently she keeps running into dead ends. ” Caden shrugged. “Sunset, Starlight and her have been beating their heads against this since I got here. They have all kinds of research on interdimensional travel. Discords realm. Some place he opened at one of the Galas once. Even something about a mirror world where there were evil versions of everyone.”

Sunburst jerked. “When did that happen?”

“Not sure. She only mentioned it in passing.”

Sunburst frowned and returned to his cooking. “I’m gonna have to ask about that.”

Caden watched steam start to appear from the teapot. “Problem is none of it points to a world like mine at all. It’s even more frustrating for her since our worlds seem to be so similar. She thinks its possible Equus and Earth are maybe mirrors of each other or something. Nothing concrete though. She says right now she’s just going in circles.”

A plate floated across the kitchen and Sunburst served his breakfast up. He made his way over to sit with Caden.

“That’s got to be frustrating for you.” He looked over to the stove. “Your water is boiling.”

Caden stood up and grabbed the coffee press off another shelf. He returned to the island and grabbed the coffee tin. “It is. I’m not mad at Twilight or the others. They’ve been nothing but accommodating since I got here.” He gestured around the room and began spooning coffee into the press. “Visiting another world. Living in a castle. Getting to meet a race of sentient magical alien ponies. In a way it’s been a hell of a vacation.”

He finished spooning coffee and walked over to the stove and took the pot back. Pouring steaming water into the press, he returned the pot to the stove and began working on the press.

Sunburst spoke around a mouthful of egg and petal. “At least it’s been a pleasant visit.”

He poured himself a cup and nodded. “It has and I’m very grateful. But I have an entire life back home. I’ve probably already been fired. Maybe evicted. Car’s probably been towed. I miss my world. I miss our food. I miss my friends.”

“What’s a car?”

“It’s….don’t worry about it. I just have a lot of things I need to get back to and take care of.”

Sunburst attended to his breakfast for a bit before speaking again. “What about family?”

Caden looked up from his mug. “What?”

“Yeah. I’ve been here a week and I haven’t heard you mention your family once.”

He thumbed at the mug. “Not a lot to tell. They all live in another state. I don’t see them much anymore.”

“Do you miss them?”

“Yeah. I guess.” He looked at the stallion. “Why?”

Sunburst stared at him for a moment from over his glasses. After a moment he pushed them back up his muzzle again and returned to his food. “No reason.” Something in his voice was different. “I was just curious. I uh...I haven’t always gotten along the best with my mother. She can be difficult. We’re getting along better now but I didn’t really talk to her for a long while there. I was just wondering if maybe it was something similar for you.”

Caden took a long swig from his cup. “Nah. We just live really far apart.” He stared down the mug. “It’s nothing like that.”

Even I didn’t buy that line.

Sunburst returned to his breakfast. “If you ever need anypony to talk to, I’ll listen.”

He smiled at the stallion. “Thanks.”

The sound of hoofsteps turned their attention towards the door as a yellow and red maned mare walked in.

She sat at the island. “Good morning guys.”

Sunburst spoke around a mouthful of petals. “Morning Sunset.”

Caden waved a hand. “Morning.”

Cyan eyes narrowed at Caden. “Is that coffee?”

He pushed the press across the table. “Yes it is.”

She grabbed it in her magic and brought a mug over. “Bless you, giant alien.”

He chuckled. “You’re welcome, tiny horse.”

She looked over to Sunburst. “You leave today right?”

He nodded. “Yup. Last train out.”

Caden looked at Sunset. “Twilight’s still in Canterlot for a few more days right?”

“Yeah. Two more nights I think.”

Sunburst cleared the last of the eggs from his plate and shot Sunset a mischievous grin. “You sure Caden’s gonna be ok here? Only two villains to keep an eye on him?”

Sunset stuck her tongue out. “REFORMED villains, thank you.” She shuddered and nodded her head at Caden. “I can’t imagine what would have happened to Starlights time travel spell with him around.”

Sunburst grinned. “The magically resistant alien collapses the spell and it just destroys time and space instead?”

She nodded. “Something like that.”

Caden drained the rest of his coffee and walked it over to the sink. “Not sure what you’re talking about but I’m always glad to help out.”

Sunset looked over at him. “Going for your jog?”

He nodded. “Yeah. Supposed to be hot today so I want to get it in as early as I can. ”

She took a sip from the steaming mug clutched between her hooves. “How’s the translation enchantment holding up?”

Caden rubbed his forehead. “Fine. No issues since the other day.”

A favor for Twilight had quickly descended into chaos when she’d sent him to Sugar Cube Corner to pick up an order. While Mr. and Mrs.Cake had been told he would be the one coming, they weren’t prepared for him to walk in and start vomiting a hybrid of English and Poneish at them. Pinkie Pie, for her part, had found the entire ordeal absolutely hilarious.

Sunset set her cup on the table and motioned with a hoof for him to come closer. “Let me check to make sure. With Twilight in Canterlot, I want to make sure it’s as strong as it can be.”

He made his way over to her and stared down. “Do you want me to sit on the floor?”

She glanced around the room, trying to find something for him to sit on before sighing. “If you don’t mind? It’s probably easiest. Unless you want to go to the study?”

He shrugged. “Doesn’t bother me. Just my jogging shorts.”

He sat cross legged on the floor as she jumped off her stool and approached him. He leaned forward as she gently touched the tip of her horn to his forehead. He’d felt slightly self-conscious when he had found out that this was how Twilight had cast the spell the first time. It had taken her assurance that this was probably the only was the spell would have a chance of working on him.

“Just relax. Try to clear your mind.” Red energy sheathed her horn as he closed his eyes. Reinforcing the spell had become something of a semi weekly ritual for them. As was usual, he really felt nothing during the process. Sometimes he thought there might be a tingle or other random sensation inside his head but he couldn’t be sure he wasn’t imagining it. He still barely noticed the spell working at all. In his mind, he was speaking and hearing perfect English.

Several minutes went by before he heard Sunset exhale sharply. He opened his eyes to see her pulling back from him, sweat beading on her forehead.

She stood up. “I swear that’s the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen.

He rose from the floor. “My magic resistance?”

“Yeah. It gets me everytime. It’s like you’re barely there. Like you’re...a shadow...or something.” She frowned. “I know that doesn’t make any sense.” She wiped the sweat off her forehead with a hoof.

He shrugged. “I’m just glad you guys are able to do this much.” He reached a fist out. “Thanks Sunset.”

She bumped his hand with her hoof. “No problem.”

“I’ll be back later. You going to be here?”

She nodded. “Yeah I have an entire manuscript on the friendship habits of a tribe of pre Celestia-era earth ponies from the San Palomino desert that Twilight wants me to transcribe from Old Poneish to Modern.”

“How long is it?”

She gave him a flat look. “429 pages.”

He saw Sunburst wince out of the corner of his eye. “Ouch, well you enjoy!”

The flat look darkened considerably. “Thanks.”

He looked over to Sunburst. “Be safe on your trip home.”

“I will be. And remember what I said ok?”

Caden threw him a two fingered salute. “Will do.”

He left the kitchen and made for his room, again assailed by an avalanche of snoring from Starlight's bedroom.

Bless you Twilight, for saving that poor stallion.

Arriving back in his room, he knocked out a quick stretching routine and picked his sneakers up off the floor.

As he pulled the overly accented trainer over his foot, he remembered the first time he’d met Rarity. He had arrived in Equestria barefoot and clad in only his sleepwear, all of which was basically destroyed the first day. When he’d told Redheart that he would need clothing before leaving the hospital, he’d been met by a look of sheer confusion. After Twilight had returned the next day, he’d tried to explain human modesty norms to them with little success. He was finally able to get through to them when he pointed out his distinct lack of fur and the real possibilities of sunburn and frostbite.

That had resulted in him getting a visitor the next day from Rarity, Twilight’s fashion designer friend. Wobbling on his injured leg and wearing a towel wrapped around his waist, he’d spent an entire day being measured and explaining the kinds of clothes humans wore, when, why and what they looked like.

She’d promised him an entire wardrobe, from casual and athletic wear, all the way to formal and sleepwear. He’d tried to talk her down, explaining he hoped to only be here a short time and he didn’t have any money. The snow white pony wouldn’t hear a word of it. In fact she seemed almost manic at the chance to design a wardrobe for him.

“Nonsense darling. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. No fashion designer worth her fabric would turn this down. Getting to design a wardrobe for not just an entirely new species but one that comes from a world absolutely laden with clothing? Why it’s a dream come true!”

After bringing him a pair of plain cloth pants and a shirt, he’d limped his way from Ponyville Hospital to Twilight’s castle a few days later. There he found everything she’d promised. An entire closet full of clothes. Probably more clothes than he’d ever owned in his life. Everything from silken sleepwear to a pretty damn good approximation of a full tuxedo with tails.

Unfortunately everything was on the slightly...loud side of normal for him. Bright colors, accent gems and elaborate stitching ruled the day. He decided to keep his mouth shut when Starlight mentioned that a wardrobe of that caliber made by Rarity would cost most ponies a small fortune. He had a strong suspicion Twilight had helped compensate the seamstress for her time.

He made his way to the entrance hall and out the front door into the cool Equestrian morning. The sun still wasn’t quite up and light barely shone on the edge of the horizon. It wouldn’t be too much longer before the thing suddenly jumped up over the horizon and traded positions with the moon. The mechanics of their sun and moon had taken him a fair chunk of an afternoon and no small amount of headache medicine to get his head around.

He stretched his legs again and took a deep breath. Down the road most of Ponyville still slept. He could make out a few ponies moving around the town square, likely the local shopkeepers setting up. He saw a grey coated mailmare fly over.

He set off down the road connecting the village to Twilight's castle before branching down a new side path and settling into a warm up walk. He’d taken several paths around the village so far and tried to pick a new one every few days. Twilight had told him he could pretty much run anywhere around the village, save for the southeast side near the Everfree Forest. He’d ensured her he was more than happy never going back there again.

It wasn’t long before the sun suddenly bounced up from the horizon and settled itself into the morning sky.

“Weirdest god damn thing….”

He sped up to a light jog. His leg injury still prevented a full on run. He’d always enjoyed running, even as a child. It was something that didn’t require thought or worry. He found peace in just focusing on putting one foot in front of the other and letting the entire world slip away. He often found that after a run whatever had been bothering him was often lessened. Since the doctor had given him the all clear a week ago, he’d made a habit of trying to get out in both the morning and evening.

It had certainly helped that Equestria was absolutely gorgeous. His initial impressions the first day had been pretty spot on, at least for the area around Ponyville. Everything was a little greener, a little cleaner than he was used to on Earth.

“Maybe it’s the magic.”

As he made his way down the path, a trio of pegasi crossed over the horizon. One waved down to him as they passed across the sky. He waved back and watched as they flew out of sight.

On the whole, the creatures of Equestria had been remarkably friendly towards him. He’d left the castle a few times with Twilight and other than some curious looks, most creatures he came across did little more than smile and wave. Twilight had decided it would be best if they didn’t go into explicit detail about where he came from. So far as he knew, the only ones who knew his real origin were Twilight and her friends, Redheart and Doctor Horse.

He’d been decidedly incredulous if it was possible to keep a secret like that but it had been shockingly easy. Apparently unknown or unique creatures weren’t an uncommon phenomena in this world. The only things that seemed to consistently cause them to stare were his hands. He’d been told that many species on Equus had digits but all of them ended in claws or talons. None of them had seen a finger before. Twilight had spent one entire afternoon doing a detailed analysis of just his hands and feet.

Eventually the road began sloping to the left. From what he could tell, it likely wrapped around the west side of Ponyville. As the road continued on, he noticed the trees on either side started becoming far more uniform than they had prior. Not long after, a well maintained wooden fence started running along the edge of either side of the road.

“Someone lives out here?”

A moment later, he heard a crash and something calling out from behind the tree line on the right side of the road.

“DADGUM LADDER. OWWWW!

He slid to a stop as the screaming continued. Whoever it was had a southern drawl thick enough curl paint.

“OF ALL THE ROTTEN DAMN...OW!!!

He approached the fence and yelled. “Hello? Need help?”

“NO!” There was a moment of silence. “DAG NABBIT, YES! TWISTED MAH HOOF!”

He stepped over the fence and started making his way into the tree line. Before long, he found the source of the screaming.

Sitting against the trunk of a tree was an aged, apple green pony clutching one of her rear hooves to her body. A snowy white mane, pulled back into a tight bun and an ample array of wrinkles made her age clear. An overturned ladder and a fairly large saw decorated the ground around her.

As he approached, she looked up at him and raised an eyebrow. “And what in Celestias sunny flank are you supposed to be?”

He kneeled down in front of her. “I’m a human. I’m uh...not from around here. I’m Caden.”

She eyed him up and down for a moment. “Granny Smith. Ah ain’t ever heard of no hooman before.”

He chuckled. “Like I said, I’m from...pretty far away.” He pointed to her hoof. “You ok?”

“Do I look ok?” She tried to push her leg out and grimaced. “Ah horse apples. Don’t think I can make it back to the farmhouse.”

He looked around. “What were you doing?”

She looked above her at the tree. “Prunin’ this here apple tree. Crops due in a few weeks and we gotta get all the dead growth off before then.”

She tried to push her leg out again before wincing and looking up at him.

He looked around. “Anyone around I can go get for you?”

She shook her head. “Grandkids are in town runnin errands. Not sure when they’re gonna be back.”

She looked him up and down again and sighed. “Ah hate to ask this of a stranger but do ya think ya could help me back to farmhouse?”

He nodded. “Sure.” He thought for a moment before realizing she was far too small to shoulder carry.

“Ummm...how exactly would you like me to….?”

She frowned. “Well how do ya think?! You look like yer plenty strong enough. Pick me up for Luna’s sakes.”

“Are you sure?”

“Course I’m sure! Ya don’t get to be my age and not be sure of things!”

He nodded and edged forward, sliding both hands under her before standing up. She was very light, not shocking considering her age.

She squirmed a bit and pointed her good hoof. “House’s that way.” She turned and looked up at him. “And dontcha get any funny ideas about running off with me or something. Ah know ah’m a looker but I promise I’ll buck ya right across Equestria!”

He did his best to suppress a smirk. “Yes ma’am. Wouldn’t think of it.” Despite her threats and general prickly demeanor, she was instantly likeable. It was obvious to anyone that she was fairly embarrassed about the entire situation. She reminded him a fair bit of one of his grandpas. He wasn’t usually pleasant when he needed help either.

“So this is your farm?”

She nodded. “Sure is! Sweet Apple Acres! Been growing the best apples in Equestria since well before you were born!” She looked up at him. “At least ah think so. How old are you anyway? Never know the ages of some of the creatures that come around here.”

Something about the name Sweet Apple Acres sounded familiar but he couldn’t place where. “28 ma’am.”

“28? Rockhoof’s beard yer a baby. Only a few years older than my grandson.”

“How many grandkids do you have?”

“Three.”

As they made their way across the orchards, she regaled him with stories from her past. A funny incident here, some memory there. He had to admit, the place was impressive. Rows and rows of perfectly lined apple trees rose as far as he could see. Everything looked immaculately maintained. The trees were all healthy, the ground verdant and well kept.

As they cleared the trees, she pointed at a cluster of buildings emerging in the distance. “House is attached to the barn. The big red one.”

They made their way past the various trappings of farm life. Chicken coops, a pig pen and an array of other random buildings dotted the land. Making their way into the house, she gestured at a large easy chair.

“Set me down there.”

He deposited her on the chair and took a look around. If someone had asked him to describe “quaint country home”, he’d show them a picture of the room he was standing in. Everything was wooden, apple themed and clearly well used. A stand in the corner had several hats hanging over it. A large stone fireplace sat against one wall while lassos, horseshoes and a myriad of country themed decorations sat on the walls. The house even smelled comfy, like a comforting mix of apple, winter spices and wood. It was a far cry from the lavish crystalline labyrinth of Twilight’s castle. This was a home.

She settled back in the chair and pointed a hoof at another room. “Go’n there and get me some ice from the box. Should be ah towel on the stove.”

He did as he was asked and returned with the makeshift compress. She set it on the injured hoof.

“Blasted leg.” She sighed. “Was already behind as it is. The kids are gonna skin me alive for this.”

“Why?”

She actually looked sheepish for a moment. “They don’t like me up on the ladder.” She huffed. “Ah’m not an invalid. Work needs doin and it’s not gonna wait for them to get back.”

“Do you want me to go get Doctor Horse?”

She waved away his question. “Land’s sakes no. I’ve twisted my hoof enough times in mah life to know it’ll be better soon. No need for that.”

She looked up at him. “You hungry?”

He waved his hands in front of him. “Oh no Mrs. Smith, I’m…”

She cut him off with a wave of her hoof. “Don’t be tryin to pull my mane with that polite bull. I know yer hungry. Yer belly was growling the entire way here.”

At that moment, said belly decided to loudly remind him that all he’d had today was a cup of coffee.

She smirked. “See?” She tilted her head back at the kitchen. “Fresh apple pie in the oven cooling. Finished it this mornin’. Help yourself.”

He dropped his hands in defeat. “All right. You want some?”

She nodded. “Please. There’s milk in the fridge.”

As he made his way into the kitchen, she called out. “And it’s Granny Smith, not Mrs. Smith!”

He chuckled. “Yes ma’am.”
.

He returned to the living room, 2 slices of pie and glasses of milk in tow. He served her and sat down on the couch.

She shot him a cocky smirk. “Now don’t go blamin me if you never have apple pie that good again!”

Something in the back of his mind chewed on the fact that he was sitting in an alien world, talking to a horse and eating an all American staple food.

You can’t make this shit up.

“That might be tough ma’am. Apple pie is kind of a big thing where….well where I’m from. I’ve had some pretty good apple pie.”

The smirk grew. “Not with our apples you aint!”

“We’ll see.” Forking a bite in his mouth, his eyes went wide as the treat settled on his tongue.

The bite was exquisite. A perfect mix between crisp, buttery crust and tangy apple. The filling was somehow both soft and yet still just tough enough to provide some bite. He was able to taste each part in individual perfection and then enjoy them as a combined whole that was so much more.

The look on his face apparently gave away enough. “Told ya!” she quipped.

He shook his head as a grin spread across his face. “Ok ok. You were right.”

She winked at him. “Thanks fer carrying my bones all the way over here.”

“No problem. I’d be kicking myself tonight if I hadn’t stopped.”

“Ya seem like yer a good kid. What brought you all the way to Ponyville?”

He mulled over a bite, trying to choose what to say.

“Kind of an unexpected vacation.” It wasn’t entirely a lie.

“Here all alone?”

He nodded. “Yeah. Just me.”

She frowned. “I don’t know a thing about hoomans but you seem a good one. No mare or stallion back home?”

He nearly choked on the bite of pie he was working on. Coughing, he took a big swig of milk and tried to get some air down his throat. Apparently busybody grandparents transcended time, space and species.

“No.” He coughed, clearing his throat. “No one back home. Not right now anyway.”

“Ya got family back there?”

He nodded. “I do. Parents and two brothers.”

“See them much?”

He shook his head. “I uh...I moved a fair bit away recently. Haven’t seen them since.”

She shifted in the chair, adjusting the ice bag. “That’s a shame. Not sure what I’d do without mah grandkids.”

He forked at the last of the pie on his plate. “I don’t get along very well with my parents. Haven’t for a few years.”

He watched as orange eyes flicked to picture on the wall. He followed her gaze to the portrait. A large stallion wearing a cowboy hat was hugging a petite, curly maned mare. Both were beaming at the camera. He thought he saw something dance across her face but she just turned back to him. “That so? Is that why ya moved?”

He nodded, unsure why he was still talking. “Yeah. Needed some space. When I finally graduated from college, I decided to try and start over elsewhere.”

“Do ya think they miss you?”

He sat for a moment before popping the last piece of pie in his mouth.

I wonder.

He set the plate back down. “I guess. Not sure.”

She seemed to get the hint. They sat for a moment in silence. He was about to get up and excuse himself when he saw her ear twitch out of the corner of his eye.

“Think the kids are back.”

He hadn’t heard anything but that was hardly telling. He’d figure out real quick that the ponies senses of hearing and smell were far, far beyond his. Twilight had mentioned something about them being a prey species for a long time so it made sense.

Sure enough, a moment later he heard muffled conversation through the door and it swung open.

Two ponies walked in. First, a filly with a red mane and an enormous pink bow. Second, one of the largest stallions he had seen since arriving. A red coat, freckles and an orange mane set off a bright green apple cutie mark. Wrapped around his immense neck was an old style horse yoke.

The filly looked up at him. “What’re you?”

He heard a mare speak outside the door. “What’s who Apple Bloom?” The drawl was as deep as her Grandmares. She walked in the door a second later, blonde mane flowing out from under her ever present cowboy hat.

Green eyes went wide as saucers when she saw him. “Caden? What in tarnation are you doin here?”

He felt his brain finally solve a problem it had been chewing on since he’d arrived on the farm. He had heard the name Sweet Apple Acres before. Applejack had mentioned it the first time he’d met her, shortly after moving into Twilight’s castle.

The other three all turned and looked at her. Apple Bloom looked between him and her sister. “Caden? You know this….” She stopped as she scanned Caden up and down. “You know this...whatever he is?”

Applejack stepped forward and bopped her sister on the head. “Don’t be rude. He’s not a ‘whatever’. He’s a human.”

Granny Smith looked him over again. “Wait. This is the alien you told us about? The one staying at Twilight’s?”

Applejack nodded. “This is him.” She stepped forward and gestured at her siblings. “Caden, this is my older brother, Big McIntosh.”

The enormous pony nodded up at him.

“And this is my little sister, Apple Bloom.” She looked down at the filly. “Say hi and apologize to Mr. Caden.”

The tiny pony stepped forward. “Awful sorry about that Mr. Caden. I’ve just never seen a hooman before.”

“No worries. I know I look a little weird.”

A sudden tempest of noise and movement erupted from the armchair. “Weird my wrinkled flank! Ya look just fine.” She leveled a glare at Applejack. “Ah didn’t know ah was gabbing gums with the alien all mornin! Ya said he looked like a giant furless monkey. He don’t look like a monkey at all! He’s got plenty of fur. Look at his face!”

He still wasn’t entirely sure how Ponies blushed. He would have thought that the fine layer of fur that covered them would prevent such a thing. Given how other things worked in Equestria, he was pretty much ready to just chalk it up to magic. However it worked, he watched in real time as Applejacks face went the same color as her brothers coat. She slapped a hoof to her face.

Element of Honesty indeed. Seems to run in the family.

“Damnit Granny….” She trailed off, face still crimson.

Caden chuckled. “It’s ok Applejack.”

She looked up at him. “What are you doin here anyway?”

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Granny Smith suddenly try to push herself back in her chair.

“I was out for my run. Decided to go a different way and ended up out here.” He looked over at the wizened mare.

No sense in lying. They’d find out.

“I heard your grandmare calling for help and decided to stop”

The three kids looked at their grandmare and seemed to finally notice the ice bag on her leg.

Applejack walked over and stared down at the compress suspiciously. “What happened to yer leg Granny?”

The elder Pony screwed up her face. “Nothin. Little accident.”

Applejacks eyes narrowed as Apple Bloom and Big McIntosh stepped forward. The immense stallion finally spoke in a voice deep enough to rattle the walls. “Accident?”

The senior pony avoided their gaze for a moment before sighing and looking at them. “Ah was in the northwest field, tryin to do some prunin. Fell off the ladder. Twisted my hoof.”

Applejack snorted loudly. “OF ALL THE….” She stopped and took a deep breath. “We’ll talk later.” She turned and looked at Caden. “Thanks so much for rescuin her Caden.” The other siblings echoed the thanks.

He smiled. “Not a problem at all.” It was obvious there was going to be a serious discussion after he left. “I think I’ll head out now.” He turned to Granny Smith. “Thanks for the pie.”

She shot him a wink and a smile. “Not ah problem Caden. Thanks for rescuin me.”

As he was heading for the door, she called out again. “Caden…”

He looked back over his shoulder. He saw her gaze dart to the picture again and back to him. “Try to see your parents soon ok? Ah’m sure they’d like it.”

He thought he saw something flicker across her face again but it was gone as soon as it came.

“I’ll…...I’ll try.”

She smiled and turned her attention to her other grandkids.

As he made his way out the front door and off the porch, he heard hoof steps behind him. He turned to a still blushing Applejack.

“Caden….ah’m mighty sorry about that. I just had no idea how to describe you to them and…”

He chuckled. “It’s ok. I promise. I’m not mad. I know I’m not exactly normal around here.”

A small smile grew through the blush. “Thanks so much again. She shot an angry, sideways glare at the house. “Told her enough times to stay off that damned ladder.”

“She’s lucky she only twisted her hoof and not something worse. She was just trying to help though.”

“Ah know. Ah know. Won’t be too hard on her, ah promise.”

He grinned. “Good to hear. I’ll see you later.”

She waved a hoof and turned back to head into the house. “Sure will. Have a good one y’hear?”

As she headed back into the house, he turned. “Oh and Applejack?”

She stopped. “Yeah?”

He couldn’t resist. “Technically I’m an ape. Not a monkey.”

The blush returned full force.