PonyPark

In a local church near Richmond, Virginia, their weekly Sunday sermon was currently taking place on a cloudy overcast afternoon. Nine year old Oliver, sitting in between his six brothers and sisters, tried to focus as much as he could on the pastor, without failing asleep in the middle of a lecture about righteousness. His family was very conservative, and that meant they made weekly visits to church each Sunday.

He didn’t mind his faith—in fact, he was very serious about it. It was only the very boring sermons and family pressure that kept him on the edge of pushing it away all together at times. The room was instructed to turn their bibles to Mark 2:13-17, and everyone did as such. Oliver tried his best to hide an incoming yawn, wishing that the service was over already. He just wanted to go back home.

The pastor began to read the passages from the gospel, as Oliver followed along in his book.

13 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them.

14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him.

16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Eventually, the clock struck three on the cold January day, finally allowing Oliver and all of the other church-goers to return to their homes. At least that was over with.

Oliver put on his heavy green jacket to shield himself from the cold outside, shuffling out of his seat when his siblings to the left of him had moved, with the others to the right following him. Three brothers in front, three sisters behind.

His family was surely big, and he was convinced he had the most family members in his fourth grade class. There were his brothers: Sam, who was three, Kyle, who was five, and Jacob who was just two years older than him. Then came his sisters: Olivia, the smallest one in the family, being only one year old, thirteen year old Lexi, and finally, the oldest child, fifteen year old Bailey.

Then of course came the heads of the household—his mother, Samantha Oakley, and his father, James Oakley. They were strict, but Oliver had convinced himself it was for both their and family’s sake. Only the adults, Lexi, and Bailey were allowed to have technology, as they feared that any influence of it on the younger children would cause trouble. Even Lexi was carefully supervised when going on the computer, with Bailey being the only one having much freedom. But, like the parents of the huge family always told their children, it was for the best.

Oliver eventually followed the rest of his family outside, where his nerves were immediately struck with the freezing temperatures of winter. His fingers grew numb the longer he stayed outside, and he grew increasingly angry when he noticed that he and his siblings had stopped moving.

“What’s happening? Why aren’t we moving?” Oliver tapped Jacob on the shoulder, and the eleven year old brunette looked back at him with an annoyed glare.

“Beats me,” replied his older brother, and he just turned back to looking in front. Oliver sighed internally, as he should have known that Jacob was always quiet.

Oliver looked to the front of the single file line that the siblings had lined themselves up in, and peered at his mother speaking to who was presumably one of her friends. He walked up in front, which only rewarded him several gasps from his siblings, as they were often told never to interrupt their parents having conversations. He wouldn’t have done so if not for the fact that the temperate was thirty degrees outside.

“Mom,” he softly tapped his mother on the shoulder, but his father gave him a very stern glare, silently telling him to scurry back to his spot. But his mother noticed her child’s action, and surprisingly, she smiled at him. Oliver looked at whom she had been talking to, and saw that she also had a son that looked about the same age he was...he even looked familiar.

“Oliver, have you met Jeremiah?” She asked in a sweet voice. “He’s in your class.”

“Uh...” Oliver examined the other boy who stood behind the other woman. “No, I don’t think so.”

“I think it’s about time you come out of your shell,” she replied, gesturing for the boy named Jeremiah, who was also a blonde like Oliver was, to introduce himself. The young man looked a little nervous, but still spoke after a few moments.

“Hi...I’m Jeremiah,” he waved slightly at Oliver, and Oliver waved back with a smile. He then explained, “Mrs. Oakley told me that you could come over this weekend, if you wanted to—“

“Really?” Oliver interjected suddenly, and both his mom and dad struck two angry glances at him. He couldn’t help his excitement, though—this was the first time he’d been allowed to visit a friend’s house. By the time their kids had turned nine, that was when the parents would decide that they would finally be free to open up to the world just a bit more. He wouldn’t get much conversation at school, due to his parents not exactly having the best reputation with the other children’s families, but now, a brand new opportunity had finally opened up.

“S-sorry, sir, ma’am,” he quickly bowed his head apologetically. “But, um, I’d love to! Can I really, mom?”

“Sure,” his mother was back to having a smile on her face. “You’re growing older, Oliver. It’s about time we give you just a bit of freedom.”

The other siblings were growing impatient, and soon enough, the adults had taken the hint as both families bode goodbye and had headed to their cars, shoving off for home on the overcast, chilly Sunday.

When the following Saturday had rolled around, January 22nd to be exact, Oliver hadn’t been more excited in his life than he had been that week; he finally got the chance to have a sleepover of all things!

Jeremiah had been a very nice boy, and liked many things that Oliver did. Jeremiah’s family had even possessed a Wii of their own—something Oliver wished his family had. They played many rounds of Mario Kart for hours as the day went along, and Oliver was convinced that he had never been happier in his life. After their fifteenth round—they kept count—Jeremiah finally asked Oliver a question the boy feared would eventually come up.

“So, Oliver,” the other blonde asked. “Why doesn’t your family have a Wii? Or...let you do many things?”

“We’re conservative,” Oliver looked down at the floor, feeling a bit embarrassed for having to explain the reason to his new friend. “Our parents say that too much exposure to the modern world is really bad for us. So, we just try to live happy lives.” Their lives were far from happy, though. But Jeremiah didn’t need to know that.

“Well...” Jeremiah suddenly laughed nervously, making Oliver raise an eyebrow. “I think I may have something they’ll let your whole family watch! They may even like it.”

“Huh?” Oliver was doubtful at the proposition. Usually when it came to cartoons, his parents restricted the children’s viewings of TV to preschool channels until a child was around five, and most of the “screen time” they’d get from television would only be certain channels like Disney—even then there were only a few shows the family was allowed to watch on that channel alone. Oliver would always stare at the huge TV guide, a sea of channels just begging him to watch them, but he knew if he even tried to sneak one little peek at what was beyond his limits, he’d be toast.

“I know you don’t exactly talk to many people,” Jeremiah said jokingly, and Oliver sighed at this. The other boy’s expression quickly turned solemn. “Sorry...but, anyway, you haven’t heard of My Little Pony, have you?”

That was something that Oliver had never heard of before in his life. “No, I haven’t. Why?” It sounded a little silly...

“Oh, it’s what everyone’s been talking about in school,” Jeremiah went on. “It’s a show for little girls that came on around October, but it’s just as good as SpongeBob, I swear! My favorite pony’s Fluttershy. But there’s Applejack, oh, and, Rarity...Rainbow Dash, too, and—“

“Jeremiah!” Oliver yelled slightly, not wanting his friend to explain so fast. “Why don’t you, uh...show me this show? It does sound kinda...” he was going to use the word ‘stupid’, but years of his parents reminding him not to crushed the idea down. “...silly. Are you sure my family would like this? Are you even sure that I’m going to like it?”

“That’s what I said, before my friends showed it to me,” Jeremiah smiled, heading over towards the stairs. “Come on, I’ll show you where the family computer is upstairs. Someone uploaded some episodes on YouTube!”

Hours flew by until the clock had struck nine at night. For the past three hours, the two newfound friends had killed their time by watching none other than My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. They had started off with the first two episodes, and eventually made their way to episode nine, Bridle Gossip, before they could find no other episodes on YouTube. Oliver didn’t think he’d like it one bit, as a show about talking ponies couldn’t have been appealing to a boy.

But, to his surprise, he absolutely loved it.

After finishing the nine episodes, the rest of the night was filled with conversation of who their favorite pony was, what episode they liked the best, and even ideas for a made up episode or two. When asked the question of who his favorite character was, Oliver wasn’t even the least bit hesitant when he gave his answer—Applejack, the farm pony with three apples on her flank.

She was stubborn, honest, and even southern like he and his family—as someone who moved from Texas, he could obviously relate to that. She had a large family like his, although it was not nearly as big as the mare’s. He took a liking to her steadfast attitude and her competitive nature. But, above all things, he admired that she didn’t let silly things that seem evil on the surface cloud her mind with judgement. Like that episode where the six friends met a zebra named Zecora; she seemed strange and evil at first glance, but was actually very friendly when the ponies looked past appearances.

If only his parents would realize that...

“Hey, Jeremiah,” Oliver took in a deep breath, thinking on if he should say the words he was about to let out. “Can I tell you something?”

“Sure! We’re friends, aren’t we?”

“Okay,” Oliver smiled, the freckled boy growing nervous, but tried to keep his composure. “There’s a reason why so many kids are wary around me.”

“Why? You’re great to be around,” Jeremiah lifted an eyebrow. “I don’t know why anybody would—“

“My parents.”

“What?”

“My parents,” Oliver repeated, his voice taking on a more angered tone. “They always see an interest that someone I made friends with has, and assume it’s “evil” or “the devil’s work”. They never see past first glances just because something is modern, and I’m sick of it! I’m nine, I’m not a baby!”

As he thought on it, memories flashed in his head. Bailey would try to convince their parents many times to let the children have more fun, since she’d been the oldest and thought they’d take her advice. But alas, nothing changed. Jacob was still being denied a phone, which he got bullied over not having one in the sixth grade. Lexi was tired of being watched over all the time while she went on her phone or on the family computer. Sam and Kyle admired at least the tiniest bit of cable freedom.

And Bailey was perhaps the one Oliver felt saddest for, for having to tell him and his siblings that she’d yet again failed to convince the heads of the house to change their mindsets.

“Hmm...” Jeremiah lifted a finger to his chin, and momentarily, Oliver sensed that he hatched an idea. “Listen, don’t tell anyone this, cause I’ll probably get in trouble if you do,” his new friend laughed. “But...I know how to burn DVDs. My parents don’t mind, they did it all the time when they burned music to CDs. I’ll find a blank disc and burn Bridle Gossip on there. You can show them the episode, cause I really think they need to learn the lesson from it, heh.”

Oliver blinked, thinking that it was a hopeless plan. But maybe—this was his only chance to finally break the cycle of whatever situation their family was in, and maybe they all would loosen up a bit towards “modern times”. Maybe Jacob would finally get a phone without having to wait two more years, like he’d been asking to? It was definitely worth a try.

“Well...okay,” Oliver nodded with certainty. “It’s a plan.”

The next morning was full of anticipation for Oliver. It was Sunday, meaning he had to get up early for church again, but this time he’d endure the church meeting because of one certain plan he had—finally breaking his family free of whatever nightmare they had been living in. He didn’t just want more freedom for himself, he wanted freedom for all of his brothers and sisters.

Right before he left, Jeremiah offered him an Applejack toy he’d gotten the previous Christmas, and Oliver happily accepted, tucking both the doll and the DVD in his jacket pockets so that nobody in his family would see them until it was time.

The meeting was over with rather quickly, to Oliver’s relief, probably because of his good mood.

Just after dinner, at around seven, Oliver finally decided he’d execute his master plan then and there, not wanting his siblings to suffer another moment like this. Was his goal to completely remove religion out of the house? No, he’d never. But at the very least, he wanted his parents to be less uptight.

“Mom, dad,” he approached his parents, who had just finished washing dishes, careful to make sure that they were in a decent mood. “May I have the family come in the living room, please? I need to talk to everyone about something important.”

The married couple exchanged glances, but then nodded, to Oliver’s shock. “Make it quick, though, you need to be in bed soon,” his mother noted.

That was one thing he’d hope would go away, too: ridiculously early bedtimes.

Surely enough, all nine family members had been present in front of the living room TV, gathered around it in curiosity, wondering what Oliver wanted to tell them. His parents even agreed to light the fireplace for the special meeting. After finding the courage to stand up after a few minutes, Oliver turned on the flatscreen television and the DVD player that was hooked up to it. The player was only used for watching religious documentaries or movies, with no non-religious movie or show on DVD being permitted. Until today.

Oliver took out the blank disc from his pocket that had been sitting within the fabric all day. He inserted the disc into the DVD player, but waited to press play until he made a small speech to his family.

“My new friend named Jeremiah showed me something amazing yesterday,” he began, a little scared. “A really good show that I feel like the whole family should watch. It has great characters and really good life lessons, too, I hope you enjoy.” And with that, the play button was pressed.

As the family looked near the screen in both confusion and wonder, the children adored the colorful ponies that came onto the television, and many “oohs” and “aahs” were heard echoing in the room. Oliver looked to his parents for a second, and thankfully, they had not yet reacted.

However, things went downhill fast.

As soon as Twilight Sparkle, the purple unicorn and main character of the show, began to speak of magic, curses and supernaturals, his parents exploded with anger, screaming at what they had just heard. Immediately his father took the disc out from its player and ripped it right in front of the boy’s eyes. Oliver cried out in protest, as his plan was backfiring in the worst possible way.

In a rash decision made in moments, Oliver took out the Applejack doll that was gifted from Jeremiah. “This is Applejack,” he boldly exclaimed, trying to finally stand up to his parents. “Jeremiah gave her to me. She reminds me of you guys. Except she knows not to judge at first glance. Don’t you understand? Just because something is modern doesn’t mean—“

“OLIVER TANNER OAKLEY!” Quite suddenly, Oliver was cut off by a fierce yell of anger by his mother. He winced, surprised by this, and heard gasps belonging to his siblings coming from behind him.

Bailey quickly came up front beside him, trying to calm the situation. “Mom—“

“Sit down, young lady,” Oliver’s father demanded, and the oldest did as such, looking at Oliver sadly. “Oliver Oakley, how dare you bring something so demonic into our home?” He ripped the pony doll from his son’s hands, and, quite quickly, he threw the orange mare into the fireplace, as his brothers and sisters screamed at the fact he would even do something as such.

Oliver, however, said nothing. Just sat there in absolute shock before he was deemed grounded for two weeks.

The blonde boy lay face down on his pillow, the cushion soaked with tears as his guilt wrecked through him like a flood of emotions. How did he even think that was going to work? Of course his parents would ruin things, like they always did. He probably wouldn’t be allowed to see Jeremiah anymore. Shame, he lost another friend, and it’d probably be harder to look for any more. He just continued to cry, hearing the muffled arguing between his parents and Bailey coming from downstairs.

Three knocks came from the other side of his bedroom door, and Bailey entered the dark room, flipping on a light switch. “Hey, kiddo, you all right?” She asked, her voice slightly raspy.

“No,” Oliver sighed, his voice quivering. “I tried to give us a better life, and I failed. I just made things worse.”

“Well,” Bailey smiled, as Oliver wondered why. “You know how I handle you and your siblings’ school fees, right?” Bailey had gotten a fairly decent job that had high pay, so she was able to help her parents with her younger siblings’ school payments.

“Uh...yeah?”

“Well, I checked your bag before mom and dad could, like always,” she explained. “And...well, I’m not sure if you actually like My Little Pony, but—“ she held out a slightly familiar blank form that Oliver had received on Friday. It was a permission slip for a field trip to PonyPark on February 12th. Admission was about sixty dollars per student, as the tickets themselves cost the same price. The elementary school had good budget, so it would be no trouble to pay for flights and hotel fees.

“I worked my butt off to save up $60,” Bailey sighed, but still smiled at her little brother.

‘That’s why she was working so late? Because of me?’

“But, it was worth it in case one of ya’ll had eventually caught onto the whole pony craze. Internet access is great when you’re up to date on these kinds of things. So, do you—“

She was cut off when Oliver gave his big sister a hug, tears of both joy and sadness getting on her red shirt in the process.

“Thank you,” whimpered Oliver. “Thank you so much. I love you.”

“No problem, kiddo,” Bailey chuckled. “I’ll tell mom and dad you went to Washington for a monument tour for that weekend or something. They’ll believe me if it comes from me, trust me.”

Oliver walked alongside Jeremiah and his mother in pure joy. Being grounded was worth it if it meant being in a place based off of his new favorite show. Jeremiah’s mom had been kind enough to chaperone the two young boys, so it was inevitable that they’d want to partner up.

Oliver gasped in awe as they entered the park; it was as if he’d stepped into Equestria through a TV screen. Bliss filled his senses, and he took in the smiling children he saw around him. It was nice to see happy faces of younger and older kids for once instead of everyone asking when they’d get to have more freedom.

He, Jeremiah, and the rest of the class who arrived for the trip were instructed to follow their fourth grade teacher, Mrs, Lockwood, to a very gigantic roller coaster near the end of the Ponyville area of the park. Oliver recognized the coaster’s color scheme immediately, belonging to none other than Rainbow Dash herself. No wonder why it was named Sonic Rainboom.

Mrs. Miles explained to her students that they may ride on it if they may choose; they were currently studying how different types of energy worked, such as kinetic and potential energy, which could be easily applied to the huge coaster. Maybe that’s why they went on the trip?

Oliver didn’t want to go on the ride, fearing the large drop that made anxiety numb him just by looking at it, but it didn’t take much convincing from Jeremiah for him to give in.

When it was their turn, he, Jeremiah, and his friend’s mother had loaded onto their carts, near the back. He spotted a few kids in front of him, ones whom he was glad to see happy. He grew tired of seeing sad faces of children.

He noticed the crowd of people who had just gotten off their cart—a blonde girl, a boy with glasses, and another boy with a blue DSi sticking out from his pocket. It seemed like the ride was widely popular.

Both excitement and nervousness filled him when the cart started going—and then it stopped. He heard a worker from behind declare that the ride was broken, and looked back when he saw a young girl with red hair yell out at this, and saw her ran off somewhere in the distance. What, he couldn’t stop seeing sad kids here, too?

After removing themselves from the ride, the three park guests decided a bite to eat would do themselves some good. Jeremiah suggested SugarCube Corner, a restaurant that would sell breakfast and lunch, as well as dessert snacks. That sounded good to the other two, so they searched for the iconic bakery.

Strangely, there was no line. Oliver, in front, opened the pink door leading to the sweet shop, and saw that there were only three people sitting at a table. Looking closer, he recognized a young girl sitting there. The same girl who had cried for the ride not working earlier.

Oliver slowly approached the girl, leaning down to her height as he and the others entered SugarCube Corner. The girl looked back at him, as he said, “Hey, I’m really sorry about—“

“Hey!” A shrill voice from behind cut him off, and he whipped around to see an employee wearing a name tag with the name “Melissa” on it. The woman smiled, but her tone was firm. “I’m going to have to ask you to leave, please. We have a birthday party going on here right now!”

“O-oh! We’re so sorry!” Jeremiah’s mother apologized, but Melissa insisted things were all right.

Of course, the next best decision was the other restaurant, Sweet Apple Acres. Oliver was happy about this; where else would be better to eat than somewhere based off of the home of his favorite pony?

To say the food was good would be an understatement, as the chefs in the restaurant were very good at their talent, serving many apple-based delicacies to the customers. Both having full bellies, Jeremiah and Oliver stayed together, trying to find the bathroom.

After searching for a minute, the two of them found where the male bathroom was. The room with three teal stalls was strangely dark, with the only light illuminating the restroom were two fake candles that sat onto the sink. No other human was in the two boys’ presence.

“This is kinda scary,” Jeremiah whispered.

“Yeah,” Oliver agreed. “But it’s kind of fun!”

A strange THUD caught their attention; it seemed to be coming from inside of the bathroom walls. Wondering what it could have been, Oliver and Jeremiah looked curiously at the tiled wall, having to squint their eyes a little bit to adjust to the darkness.

“You boys need some light?” A strange voice echoed behind them. It sounded feminine, with a southern hint to it. Oliver initially feared the worst—that his mother had somehow tracked him down, and was here to take him home and ground him even longer. When he turned around, though, he saw a familiar face smiling at him.

Applejack. The farm pony. A trio of apples presented themselves on her flank. Oliver had to rub his eyes multiple times to make sure he was not asleep, even pinching himself quite a few times as well.

“I’m the Element of Honesty,” Applejack giggled at Oliver’s efforts. “I don’t lie, sugarcube. You ain’t dreamin.”

“A-Applejack?!” Oliver had yelled in surprise so loudly that Applejack and Jeremiah had to quiet him down while he was experiencing so much excitement.

“You! You’re real!” He pointed at the orange pony wearing a brown hat. “You’re actually real!”

“What’s your boys’ names?” She asked.

“Oliver!”

“Jeremiah!”

The mare gave a small chuckle.

“I reckon you two have heard of Equestria, right?” The farm worker asked the two boys, as her green eyes seemed to shimmer in the dark restroom.

“Of course!” Jeremiah exclaimed. “Why wouldn’t we know where you come from, Applejack?”

“I can take you there,” Applejack placed a hoof on Jeremiah’s hair, ruffling it a bit playfully. “But—I need you two to be honest.”

“Honest?” Oliver questioned, still trying to keep his voice low. “Honest about what?”

“Anything,” the mare let out a snort. “I ain’t got no heavy trade you have to make. Just confess somethin’, and the ticket to Equestria is yours.”

Wow...it was that easy?

Oliver felt something in his gut, like it was telling him to run. His gut had always been right about many things, especially when it was telling him if something was good or bad. He was getting the notion that Applejack was somehow evil, but that thought lingered deep beneath many layers of excitement. Applejack couldn’t be evil, she’s the best pony that he ever knew of! Was he really going to be just like his parents?

“Well?” She eyed Jeremiah first, expecting an answer to come out of him.

“Uh...” Jeremiah rubbed his head, before coming up with an answer. “I...burned discs. A lot of them. With stuff...downloaded illegally...”

“Okay,” Applejack nodded, and turned her gaze to Oliver. “And what about you?”

“Well, I...” Oliver couldn’t think of anything right there and then, but didn’t want to waste Applejack’s time. So, without thinking, he blurted out the current issue he had on his mind. “I-I don’t know if I can trust you! My gut, it’s telling me to run, and I...well...I’m sorry.” He sunk to the ground, and put his head in his knees in shame.

He felt a hoof on the top of his head. He looked up, seeing Applejack had moved right in front of him, smiling. “Sugar, it’s okay. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I’m sorry,” Oliver repeated, as he started to sniffle. “I...just...hate my life back at home. I feel trapped, like I can’t trust anyone. My parents always keep me and my siblings on watch for everything, and think modern things are evil. It’s like we’re trapped in a cage and we can’t get out!” He began to sob right into his knees, and Applejack stroked a hoof across his cheek after lifting up his head, wiping away his tears.

“In Equestria,” she began. “None of those problems exist. How’d you like to live there, sugarcube? You’ll never see those horrible parents of yours again.”

“But...” Oliver tried to settle his sobs. “How?”

“Jeremiah,” Applejack looked back at the other boy. “I’ll come fetch you in a minute, okay? I want to show Oliver how to get to Equestria first. But tell nopony!”

Oliver smiled, looking at Jeremiah, who had a smile on his face as well. He couldn’t believe it; Applejack was going to show him how to get to Equestria!

As soon as Jeremiah shut the bathroom door, Applejack returned her gaze to Oliver. “All right, sugar,” she said, in that same southern tone. “Let’s make this quick. I don’t want to waste your time, or mine, either.”

Oliver’s smile fell. “What—“

“You’re not that young, I’m sure you understand,” she hummed, as Oliver backed up against the wall in slight fear. That gut feeling returned to him, but he still trusted the farm pony enough to remain where he was.

Applejack continued, while stretching her legs. “I’m sorry, darlin’. At least you’ll be far away from here, though.” She started to laugh darkly, with a hint of malice in her tone. “I ain’t gonna lie and sugarcoat things, like my friends wanted me to. Gotta stay true to my element, heh.”

“Applejack—?”

“Hold still!“ Within moments, Oliver felt a powerful kick of hind hooves straight to his head. Red liquid leaked out from his brain, and splattered onto the tiled walls and floor, with some of the substance getting onto the stall. He could hear Applejack grunt in frustration as her kicks continued, as his skull felt pain burst through it.

The farm pony continued, and Oliver did not return to the other side of the door where Jeremiah was waiting for him.