Life has been considerably more different with Twilight around.

It's been a week since I found her on my front lawn in the snow. I've gotta say, she's been a nice change. It's nice to talk to someone. Plus, it's always nice when I can have extra help on anything I need to do. Things like cutting down tree's for wood, or even mining components in the nearby caves has been much easier and quicker with her by my side. Her magic is truly a gift, and it kind of makes me jealous.

She doesn't go hunting with me. After the incident with the elk, I decided she wouldn't want to come with me. She actually argued against that, saying she 'had to learn' but I know she was just trying to help. I declined her offers. She can offer help in other ways. Also, since she's here, I've had to go hunting a lot more. Food supply was perfect with just me, but adding a little purple pony on top of that makes my food situation go a little.. whack.

It's nothing that can't be solved without a few extra hunting trips ever so often. And, even if we do run out of meat and frozen veggies, there's always that pemmican laying in storage. I'd prefer not having to resort to that though, that's more reserved for summertime and when I have absolutely no food.

Also, I finally got that bed for Twilight. She kept thanking me as if I saved her life or something, praising the design. It was a simple frame, had some blankets and some pillows, so it wasn't anything special. Still, she thanked me continuously. It was nice to see her face light up when I was finished, and she's been enjoying that bed ever since I built it. It's considerably smaller than my own bed, but she is considerably smaller than me.

Life has been well. No raids, no hiccups with anything, mostly just smooth sailing. It scared the shit out of me. Nothing goes swell for too long on the Rim, that was for sure. Something was going to happen and I couldn't tell when it was going to. It left be scared, but it wasn't nothing that couldn't be distracted from with the help of a purple pony. She's been a major help in boosting my mood. I feel myself getting up and looking forward to talking to her throughout the day. It might just be the fact that I haven't had much social interaction in awhile, other than traders and visitors. I didn't really care why though, I was just happy to talk to her.

From my estimate, there's probably only one more week, or a week and a half left of winter. It didn't last long, but if you weren't prepared it could wreck your shit. It would start to warm up in the next coming week, though that didn't mean it got comfortably warm. It would still be cold for the next two or three weeks, just that the snowing would stop.

I awoke from my sleepy thoughts, hearing the front door shut. My eyes shot open to see who it was, and it was simply Twilight. I shook my head, laying my head back down onto the pillow with a sigh. I've really got to get used to having someone else here with me, because everytime I hear any movement in the morning my first thought is 'oh, someone broke in.'

"Why were you out..?" I asked groggily, not lifting my head up to look at her.

"We left those 'components' back at that little cave, remember? I decided to go and pick them up before you woke up. You know, save time and all that."

"You're too nice." I said with a chuckle.

"I don't think that's even possible." Twilight said with a giggle, opening the door to the storage room and putting the components inside before walking over to her bed and jumping up on it. I put her bed in the far corner where she laid on the floor, since she chose that spot herself when she first stayed here.

I turned over onto my side, now being able to look at her from where I laid. She looked at me with a smile, resting her chin on top of a pillow as she stared back.

"So.. what do you have planned for today?" Twilight asked curiously. I gave a small shrug.

"Honestly, no idea. I've got plans to make the house bigger, but that'll have to wait until the snow melts. I am not building in snow, fuck that. It'll just be slow as hell and annoying to deal with. Ooh- I have an idea." I said, sitting up from my bed. I looked over to the storage room and back to Twilight. "I could build those hydroponic basins before spring hits. Then, i'll just be able to put them down and let them run, instead of waiting."

"Hydroponics? Artificial Growing?"

"Yep." I nodded. "If I get that going, we'll be able to grow crops during the winter. Then we'll have a much better selection of food than just simple meat and potatoes every day."

"That would be nice." Twilight said, hearing her own stomach growl. "Speaking of food, you making breakfast?"

"On it." I said while standing up, feeling woozy for the first few steps before making my way over to the kitchen. It was time to make the daily special! Meat with potato slices. Except, it was the daily special every day. Twilight didn't seem to say anything against it, but I knew she wouldn't mind a bigger selection than these two simple ingredients. And, to be honest, I wouldn't mind either.

I poured the food onto the trays and set one on her bed while I sat at my little table. I offered to make her a chair but she said she preferred to eat on the bed. It was more comfortable for her. I turned the chair sideways, half pointed at the table and half pointed in her direction.

We both began to eat.

"When we get tomatoes, I'm definitely making you salsa."

Twilight's POV

It's been better here than I imagined.

With Rex explaining to me days ago about how the world was here, I was expecting to be attacked left and right, but it's just been snowy. We've been doing a lot of small tasks, like mining and stuff. Never thought I'd be doing that, but it's better than killing something, right?

I've been hiding it as best as I can from Rex, and I don't think he's noticed. I'm extremely homesick.

I miss the girls, I miss the comfortable castle I lived in, I miss being able to cast any spell I wanted to without it fizzing out. I miss eating my favorite foods, not that I mind eating Rex's food, but it's just.. I miss life back in Equestria already.

Is this what Rex felt when he crashlanded here?

I'm lucky to have him on my side, and to have him as a good friend that's willing to help me. I couldn't imagine what he must have gone through his first few weeks. No house, nothing to protect himself with, and nopony to talk to. That would be utterly terrifying. He doesn't talk about the first few weeks he spent here, nor does he like to talk about what life was like before he crashlanded much. All I know is that he was a bartender and that he was on a ship, or something, in space.

I don't push it. I'm sure talking about his old life only reminds him of what he's lost.

I can see that the world has left its scars on him, both mentally and physically. His arms are dotted in multiple scratches underneath that parka he always wears, and one time he lifted up his shirt enough for me to see what looked like a burn scar. I questioned them but he quickly shut me down on it, simply saying that 'its just life.'

Rex is a strange individual, that is for sure.

After we were both done eating, he disappeared off into the storage room, saying that he was going to work on those hydroponic basins he talked about. I don't know if he knows how to build them, but he seem pretty determined to build one no matter how hard it might be.

I didn't like the idea of sitting in my own thoughts doing nothing, so I peered my head into the storage room.

"Rex?" I asked.

"Yeah?" Came his voice from the far corner of the storage room. He was sitting on a little stool in front of a large table, all sorts of diagrams and paper were strewn across it. He didn't lift his head up to look at me, as he was obviously deep in concentration.

"I'm going to get the rest of those components in that cave, okay?" I didn't really want to do it, but it was better than sitting and doing nothing.

"Alright. You know what to take." He said, to which I nodded and levitated the 'revolver' over to myself, along with a pickaxe. Rex said he was going to make me some clothing that would protect me from the cold, but the cave I was going to was insulated enough to keep me warm, so I didn't need anything to wear. With the tools in my aura, and a destination to head to, I left the house.

The flakes were still falling, but not in abundance.

The journey to the cave wasn't exciting. Just trudging through cold snow, and silence other than the crunch beneath my hooves as I walked. I eventually made it inside the cave, to which I faced the wall where these 'components' were located. According to Rex, these things were needed to build a lot of the stuff he needed, so they were crucial items. They were almost like an ore in the wall, simply being a dark brown yellowish color.

I sighed and began to work. I kept the revolver levitating while I used the pickaxe to chip slowly at the components, each hit giving a quiet pinging noise. The sound was almost hypnotic, and instead of distracting me and numbing me from my thoughts, this tedious and repetitive job only served as background noise for my thoughts to hover on top of.

My first thoughts were about what was going on in Equestria without me. They must have noticed I'm missing by now, and have sent somepony to come get me, or atleast find a way to figure out where I went. I don't know how they would go about finding out where I am, but I had faith, even if I didn't believe it fully.

What were my friends doing? Do they really care that I'm missing?

What am I thinking- of course they care! They'd be the first ones to spearhead the little operation to find me, that is for sure. I know that Spike is probably freaking out right now, which hurts my heart a little bit. The little drake, no matter how much he insists he has grown, has always been fearful when it came to me getting hurt or anything of that sort.

Gosh, I am such an idiot! How come I thought doing a long-range teleportation spell, without proper safety procedures, and without a backup plan in case things go wrong? I just did it without thinking.

I guess things have just always.. fixed themselves when they go wrong in my life, so I guess I didn't fear the consequences that much. But now that I'm here, I'm realizing that these consequences might never be fixed. I could be stuck here, on an unknown world, living a life of hardship until I die.

That is definitely not what I want.

While I was thinking, I had already chipped away a decent portion of the components. I must've been lost in thought for quite awhile, since mining these darn things took quite awhile, and I definitely wasn't skilled at doing it. I was about to scoop up the little bits of components with my magic before I heard something crawl from the deeper part of the cave.

I froze, staring at the darkness.

That was my cue to leave, and I did just that. With the components in my magic, I left the cave in a hurry, heading all the way back to the house. Whatever was in that cave, I didn't want to know what it was, what it looked like, or if it was friendly or not. Rex told me about this world, and I would very much rather not take my chances, especially with something I cant see.

Maybe Rex can go see what it is later on.

Hydroponic research is probably the most boring thing I have ever attempted. I mean, I got the basics of it down, but the actual construction of it is probably the hardest part. I've got one basin made, but it's not even really a functional basin. It's a test basically, to see what it might look like and how it'd work.

I sighed, scratching the back of my head. This damn thing is confusing.

I could hear the front door open. Twilight must be back. She's been out there for quite awhile, I was beginning to actually get a little worried. Though, with that 'magic' of hers, she's better off than most people out here already. I stood from my little workshop and made my way out of the storage room.

"Run into any trouble out there?" I asked as she made her way past me, setting some components, and the pickaxe inside the storage room before making her way back out into the main room. She shook her head.

"Nope. Nothing out there but snow, as far as I could tell. Though, there was some weird sounds coming from the cave?"

"What kind of sounds?" I asked curiously.

Twilight shrugged as she jumped onto her little bed, covering herself with a blanket. "Crawling, or slithering. Something like that. I couldn't see anything because it was further into the cave, and there was no light."

I shivered as she spoke. It might just be my fears getting to me, and it could be nothing in the cave. Yet, I've had run ins with insectoid hives before. They spring up out of nowhere. They aren't there and one day later they are. I fucking hate bugs to begin with, and the world decides to make them huge and with razor sharp claws?

I waved my hand dismissively at her as I sat on my own bed across from her. "I don't think it's anything to worry about. I'll go check it out later. No going there anymore until then, okay?" Twilight nodded her head before shivering slightly. "You cold?"

"A little. My fur usually keeps me warm, but walking through that thick snow got to me a little."

"I've gotta make you somethin' to keep you warm. I just don't know how to design it exactly.."

"Don't worry about it too much." Twilight said with a soft smile. "I'll be fine for awhile. Besides, didn't you say winter was coming to an end soon?"

"Eh, yeah. But the world might just decide 'hey, lets keep snowing' or some bullshit. Never bank your hope on things going your way, that's what I've learned."

Twilight's smile turned into a slight frown. "I guess it is better to think that way."

"Don't worry, no matter what happens, we'll be ready to take it on, hm?" I said with a smile, trying to get her spirits up. It worked as she returned a smile to me. I couldn't dare let the Rim take this cute little thing and destroy its hopes and dreams. It did that too many times to too many people. I know I can't protect her from everything in the world, but I want to protect her innocence as best I can.

I lost my innocence, maybe I can preserve hers?

It was unlikely. Once you get in your first gunfight, or any fight for that matter, it really changes you. And, if you lived on the Rim, you were likely to get into a fight pretty soon. Whether you wanted it or not, somebody was out to get you. Whether they had a reason, or not.

"Hey, do you think you could help me with some research I've been doing?" I asked, to which her ears perked up instantly. She stared at me, an even brighter smile than before now across her face.

"What kind of research?"

"Hydroponics." I said. "Artificial growing. I've got the basins worked out.. kind of. I'm not exactly the smartest when it comes to research, and I'm using old blueprints I bought off some traders a long while ago. I can build things, but I'm not smart when it comes to.. well.. research."

"Of course i'll help!" She exclaimed, hopping off her little bed. I knew it would interest her, as she always seemed the type to experiments and all of that. I mean, that's what she told me.

"Good. Though, you do understand that things here don't have magic, right? We need something that works based off of.. physicality, instead of magic."

Twilight nodded. "Of course I can do that. Do you want me to start now? Can I start now? Where is i-" I pointed to the storage room where she quickly disappeared into. She was ready, wasn't she? Researching suit her better than mining or chopping wood. That should be left to the handyman, or me in this instance. If she can figure out how to make those basins work properly, she can start on other stuff.

I got blueprints for a 'nutrient paste dispenser,' but from the notes that the previous owner of said blueprints left behind, I don't think I want to know what it tastes like. According to the notes, it tastes like 'liquefied snot.' Absolutely disgusting. Besides, who the fuck wants to eat green goopy paste in the morning? That's quite a shit way to start the day off with.

With Twilight now researching in the storage room, I guess I could get to making some clothes for the little purple thing. For some reason, I put the tailor bench in the kitchen. I guess my thought process was 'after I'm done skinning, I can make clothes or something with it afterwards' but all it did was get dirty. I'll move it sometime later.

I quickly retrieved some bluefur from storage, trying not to disturb Twilight. She looked like she was hard at work, writing many things with the little pencil I had. I'll leave her to it. I made my way over to the tailor bench with the fur in hand, and began to work on.. something.

It would've been easier to make it if I measured her, but fuck it, I winged it. It's what I do all day everyday anyways.

It took a couple of hours. Twilight hadn't left the storage room the entire time, probably consumed in her research. I, however, had a prototype of a pony parka thing. It had a hood for her head, and two sleeves where her little legs could go through. It wouldn't cover the entire body though, only past the wings a little. Speaking of the wings, I made some slits for them to pop through.

It might not be perfect, but I'm pretty sure I'm the only person on this damn planet that has made clothes for a pony. Call me an inventor.

I wanted to show Twilight, but I knew she was still hard at work. I'll hide it for now and surprise her with it later. I headed over to my bed and lifted the covers up, sliding the little parka-hoodie underneath. Hopefully she'll like it. I looked around the house for a little bit, a little confused on what to do. I mean, what was there to do? Usually during the summertime there was all sorts of things to do. Building, growing, mining, all that stuff, but with the snow outside it made all of those things hard to do, or impossible.

Twilight mentioned a crawling or slithering sound in the cave nearby, so perhaps I'll check that out?

I grabbed my rifle from the side of my bed and checked my pockets to make sure I had rounds and my knife on me. I was already pretty set, so I peered my head into the storage room to tell Twilight.

"Hey Twi, i'll be out for a bit." I said, and without waiting for a response I was already out the door.

I groaned as I was hit with a wave of cold air. Fuck the snow, seriously. It might be fun if I didn't have to worry about anything, but sadly, I have to worry about everything. I slowly trudged through the snow, passing by the windmills and turrets I had set up. The turrets were completely still and half covered in snow. Thank god they could withstand the weather.

Before I knew it, I was already at the cave.

First thing I did was turn the flashlight that was strapped to my rifle on. I aimed down the dark cave with it, slowly walking. I must admit, I was a little scared. Who knew what might be in here.

As I stepped deeper into the cave, I heard the crawling and slithering sounds that Twilight mentioned. There was definitely something down here, that much was known now. Yet, I still couldn't see anything with my damn flashlight. The cave went down, and deeper. It couldn't have been that deep, could it?

I followed down the little tunnel, the sounds becoming louder and louder with each step I took. Eventually, I took one more step and the sounds went dead silent. Whatever was down here had stopped moving.

Did they hear me?

I aimed my rifle in front of me, preparing myself for anything to come charging at me.

A baby spelopede bug waddled in from the darkness. It was slow, tiny, and was making the same sounds that I was hearing earlier. This little bug was the culprit of my fears.

Really?

I aimed my rifle at it, smirking to myself. Sorry buddy, your time is up. I put my finger on the trigger and was ready to pull back before I heard something deeper in the cave. I backed up instinctively, now aiming my rifle at the darkness. From the right side appeared a large insectoid. It had multiple legs, two big mandibles and two razor sharp claws as arms.

Oh shit.

Author's Note

To be continued in the next chapter~!

I hope you guys enjoyed this one. If you like the story or have any criticisms, be sure to let me know down in the comments! I reply most of the time, and if I don't, I always read them, promise!

And to anyone who needs it,

Life will never go the way you plan. Instead of planning for every eventuality, prepare yourself for the unknown. It's a difficult thing to do, but it's better than relying plan A, B, C, and D and have them all fail.