Friendships are Magic: Season 1

Did you ever look back on something you did or say and think, why did I do that? Or, why did I act that specific way?

If not, you must be rather carefree. I know I did.

Why wouldn't I? Think about it. I used to be human, now I'm a pony. I used to be an adult, now I'm a child. I come from a democracy with technology, now I live in the middle ages during a monarchy. I should be in a blind panic, but, yet, I'm not.

And there seems to be a reason for that. Something I can't quite grasp as of yet. My mind tells me to panic, but there is also something else in there. Something that makes me think this is normal. I know that I am deformed. I know what happened to my head. In some scenarios, I would have thought this to be a secondary effect of the changes. But, I can feel my heart and I don't feel quite dead yet. Plus, the roaring panic thoughts don't form properly for them to be subdued. Somewhere in my head, there is a dampener of sorts.

This dampener is making me have strange impressions. Things that shouldn't come up appear. When I met the princess, somehow, my head made me think she was trustworthy, that she was just as beautiful as they said. But, those thoughts weren't my own. It felt like someone else's perspective was overlapping with mine, turning the visage of something that should inspire confusion and fear, into awe and tranquility. When I woke up in the hospital, I should have tried to call for someone, but I knew I was ok. I knew that the doctors did a good job of handling my situation. It was like those thoughts came like second nature.

But, this feels like something I'll need to bother with later. As of right now, I don't have anything from which to investigate this further. Perhaps, it would be better to continue to register these thoughts and moments. Maybe I could understand the cause of this later on.

It's been five days since I woke up in the hospital. Things haven't changed much since I first woke up.

It took me a day for the doctors to stop infusing fluids into my system. But it would take longer for me to leave. Not because I had any underlying conditions, but because I had to hide my face, scratch that, I had to hide all of my head. This task shouldn't be problematic at all. However, I have two horns sprouting out of my head, and that's not talking about the skull aspect of my boney head. Unlike the rest of the unicorns walking about, I have two, and mine is closer to a goat's than a unicorn's. If anything, I would look like the dual-horn from Persona or Shinigami-Tensei games. Therefore, I need to hide ALL of it.

Which is bothersome, not going to lie. Having to keep your face hidden can sound cool, but can turn into quite a nuisance. If these ponies are anything like humans, my masked visage will cause nothing but unwanted curiosity.

The Princess, who seems to be called Celestia, is working on something to conceal my head. As for my magic, she tried to give me a suppressor ring. But the ring ended up making me get encased in a cocoon, or so I was told. I can't recall the events, since the ring knocked me out cold the moment I put it on. It felt like I was out of my body until I woke up with Celestia holding me with several cuts to her hands. So, the cocoon was covered in razor-sharp thorns.

Yep, I have weaponized thorns. Normally, I would think this to be awesome. But now? I rather not have them at all. Fantasy settings and all are good when you're reading them, not so much when you're experiencing them.

Transported to other world settings have a few setups. And mine is turning out to look quite grim. I wasn't summoned by a desperate kingdom. Therefore, I am not a destined hero. I have no gift from the gods. Therefore, I have no blessings to aid me. I've been touched by devils. Hence, I stand on a razor's edge between good and evil. I have no legendary relic. Thus, I have no secret role to speak of. My setup is for a modern transported to another world, which quite frankly, points to my inevitable doom.

But, that is something I need to bother with when I'm able to speak or walk around again. If I come across something that points to the corruption of the estate. Hidden darkness among the princess or something of the sort, then I'll have reasons to run away from this place. However, as things stand, I need to stay here and wait for a proper adjustment.

Therefore, for my proper control of basic functions such as speaking and using magic, the Princess is working on something to suppress only my voice's power and a limiter rather than a suppressor for my horns. I won't deny that I feel bad for all the trouble I'm causing at my arrival. But there is only so much I can do. And not knowing how magic works, means I can't offer any help on getting these abilities under control. So, I keep quiet most if not all the time while in front of the doctors. I don't know what my voice did to others beyond making them pass out. Therefore, it sounds like a sensible idea to keep quiet.

Even if bored me to no end to remain utterly silent. Whether I like it or not, I'm in a fantasy setting. I should be excited. But, I can't do anything about it without having someone to read my questions. And since everyone seems to turn fifteen shades paler than they are before trying to finish their job to leave, I can't rely on that, can I? At least Celestia's been bringing books for me to read. I don't know what she considers child literature, because there is a bit of everything here, safe for adult content.

At any rate, I was sure my day would be normal enough. I would sit around in the bed while reading a handful of books that the Princess brought to me. But that didn't turn out to be true as I soon received a visitor. Before that, I think it's worth noting that some books of this world mirror tales of my world. Like the Lord of the Rings. The story is the same, but the characters are all reversed in gender, with the majority of the population of Middle Equos (don't ask, because I won't) being mares.

Back to my day, Celestia came to visit with a filly around my size and apparent age. I quickly hid underneath the covers as to not scare the little one to death. If I was scary-looking enough to make adults skittish, I could only imagine what my face would incite to a child. I heard their steps coming closer before feeling my bed shake.

"Mors! Mors!" I heard someone call while they pulled my sheets. Admittedly, I felt bad for doing so. As in, that was hurtful, in some way. I committed to it, but I didn't feel good about it. Even if it was a logical decision.

I didn't like it one bit.

I hated it, quite frankly, I wish I hadn't done it.

But, it happened, so, moving on.

Mors is my new first name. My last name is Heartigan. Celestia started calling me that after the first visit. And only the doctors that come in are calling me that. Therefore, the one calling me was someone Celestia trusted. I slowly crawled out from underneath the sheets. The one calling me was a little filly. She had a horn, her coat and eyes were lavender-colored, her mane was purple with two stripes colored in pink and bright purple, and she was dressed in a bright blue dress.

I don't know why, but I remember thinking she looked good on it. Like it was a good dress. Even if it was rather plain in design. And, I felt a bit of joy when looking at her face.

"Mors!" The filly called out when she saw me. She didn't hesitate to give me a warm hug. Strangely enough, my body could feel the tactile stimulus. But my head couldn't feel anything. "I was worried! You disappeared after we met!"

So, I'm dead from the head up, but not the opposite. That is something worth remembering.

I didn't respond. But, it seemed as though I had met this little one before. Or this body met her before I woke up. She could be the screeching child. But I had no means from which to confirm this. So, I decided to not question for now. I knew a bit of sign language because it was a mandatory subject in my college's medicine curriculum. It could be an alternative for speaking until Celestia got my voice properly controlled. Tapping Twilight's back, she backed away.

"Hello. I'm Mors Heartigan. What is your name?" I gestured with my hands. The little one tilted her head while looking at me.

"His voice is a bit dangerous. I'm working on something so he can speak normally. But he is asking for your name," Celestia said as I turned my attention to her. It slipped my mind for a moment, but there was a chance that sign language wouldn't exist in this world. But that didn't seem to be the case.

In retrospect, I should be more careful when trying to do things. Since, you know, I don't know what might be a bad thing here.

"He can talk with his hands?" The little one asked while looking back at Celestia. "Can you teach me?"

"There is no need, he can hear you just fine," Celestia reassured her as the little one turned to me. "Oh, but you won't understand him, will you?" She mumbled while Twilight looked at me.

That was a moment I wanted to facepalm hard. A real brainfart from the princess, but I give her props for noticing immediately the problem.

"Did you forget already? It's me Twilight! Twilight Sparkle!" She introduced herself with a bright smile. The name struck me as familiar somehow. But it didn't make sense, since, I have never seen her before that moment. I felt an urge to ask how she knew me. However, just then, I felt something crawling up my chest, looking down, I saw this HUGE purple lizard with green fins on its head and back. "Barb! I told you not to climb on others without permission! Bad dragon!" Twilight scolded while picking up the lizard. Their response was letting their head hang backward to look at me before showing me their forked tongue like a snake.

"Who is this?" I asked.

"This is Barb," Celestia intervened while patting Twilight's head. "She is a baby dragon Twilight hatched during her entrance exam to my school for gifted unicorns. I have arranged things so you can study there too. You'll enroll as a special case. So, no one will question your background. This way, you'll have proper education. I'm also making arrangements so that you and Twilight here can study magic with me as my pupils," She added while looking at Twilight. That was a bit pile of information, I'm glad I listened to anything after she said that the lizard was a dragon.

"Is that ok? Won't it be a problem? Because of my magic, shouldn't I be isolated?" I asked as Celestia's expression turned into a frown.

"I'll get to the details with you later," Celestia responded with sign language as I nodded.

Here is a little detail about sign language. Your facial expressions change the tone and the expressivity of the message. So, Celestia's frowning visage with a dead-lock on my eyes felt like I was about to meet my end.

"Now, Twilight, we have to go. Your parents are waiting outside. I'll be finished with the devices soon enough, so, don't worry," Celestia said with a reassuring tone. Twilight pouted while crossing her arms and looking away from me. Meanwhile, Barb climbed on top of Twilight's head and laid there like a bear rug with her eyes focused on Twilight's horn. I felt an urge to pinch Twilight's cheeks right then and there.

I enjoy cute things, but wanting to pinch them like that wasn't something I would normally do.

"Ok," Twilight resigned before giving me another hug and hopping out of bed. I felt a hint of sadness as she began to leave. Which was strange for someone I had just met. She ran back to the door and got out on her own. Once we were alone, Celestia turned to me with a serious expression.

"Listen, I'll lay some ground rules for your magic usage in particular. Without knowing what your affinities are, don't practice magic on your own unless it's an everyday magic spell. If it is a magic spell from one of your affinities, do not use it unless you're with me or alone in your room while exposed to bright lights. Under no circumstances are you to use your magic affinities on your own out in the open, am I clear? Because of your condition, your magic will be weaker while exposed to bright white lights or direct sunlight. Am I clear?" Celestia inquired before I nodded in agreement. If my voice could knock out others, I rather not experiment at random what other abilities I have. Celestia smiled after I confirmed that I had understood the rules and pulled out a piece of dark blue cloth with golden ropes hanging from it like some sort of necklace.

"I managed to finish the mask. This will hide your horns in a pocket dimension without severing your connection. So, you will look like an Earth pony while retaining your ability to use magic. These ropes fall around your neck like necklaces that will hold it in place. I put some safeguards so it can't be used to choke you. Plus, from the inside, the veil is transparent, so you won't have your vision hindered. Meanwhile, no one will be able to see your face. I made it larger than you so that you can grow into it," Celestia explained while securing the veil on me before covering my face with it.

"There, now you can step outside. But do not leave castle grounds. I'll have some guards escort you while I continue with the restraints and the voice modulator," Celestia said as I imagined something from a sci-fi movie attached to my neck to alter my voice.

"Ok?" I replied with a tilt of my head before Celestia walked away.

I picked a mirror the doctors left for me at my bedside. I immediately recalled a character from a manga called the Ancient Magus Bride. His last name was Ainsworth if I recalled correctly. All I needed was fancy-looking social clothes and I could play pretend with them. But, I rather not be like him, since he was some type of Fae combined with Humans and other things. And he was hunted for existing. So, yeah, no thanks. Placing the mirror back in its place, I laid back on the bed. I didn't have anywhere I wanted to go at the time. Without knowing the layout of the place I was in, I wouldn't have any areas of interest to visit.

It's been four days since I got my mask.

I'm as of yet to leave the hospital. I didn't feel like taking a stroll. But I did get to read a lot of books. There is a series that follows the theme similar to Indiana Jones, but with a mare, and monsters that try to get ancient relics to destroy the world. If I'm being perfectly honest, these sound like someone wrote down something they experienced rather than an invented story. And, based on some history books I got my hands on, the relics she collected were all donated by an anonymous source to the Equestrian museums for safe-keeping.

So, yeah, this author is the main character of the story.

I don't think I'll get to do much while being small like this. In the other books I got, I found out that until the age of seven, unicorns can still have magic surges. They become less frequent as we grow older. But until I spend another three years here, I can't do much more than wear a restraint and quietly study about the world. I don't think it will be a good idea to even touch my abilities until I'm free of these surges.

Something I think I should investigate is my current ability to read. These books are in scribbles that have the same linguistic construct as English, but their symbols are different. Yet, I can read them. It feels as if I had the alphabet already memorized somewhere else. As if I was borrowing it the first few times I read it. But, I learned it quickly and then my reading got faster. As well as my comprehension of the texts became way smoother.

Another thing I need to mind is the way I act. Celestia doesn't seem to mind, mainly because she thinks I'm a victim of sorts. So, she believes I'm more mature because of it. But when I start going to school, I might get into trouble for being too mature. But you know what? Fuck it. I don't feel like acting like a child in school. I'll keep to myself and do the lessons the best I can. It's a school for gifted unicorns, so, they ought to be the pompous ones with the ego the size of sky-scrappers. If anything, I'll make sure Twilight doesn't get into trouble.

She isn't afraid of my face. As it stands, she is the only one, aside from Celestia, for who I remove the veil without hesitation. Therefore, I'll make sure she won't scream like that ever again. If anything, I'll make sure there is always a smile on her face. And I pity the one that makes her cry. As for the veil, I keep it on twenty-four-seven, save for baths. The thing has an auto-clean function on it, so, no need to wash it anyway. And, my head can't sweat either, so how would it get dirty anyway?

I can't say for sure that my quietness is helping much with the doctors. But the veil did put them at ease. Although, some of the nurses that were allowed to enter after I acquired the veil seem to be taking interest in what is underneath it. This also makes me believe my file was either removed from clinical records, or it has been classified and the pictures of my face the doctor showed to Celestia are no longer available for the hospital staff.

Therefore, I should thank the princess for making my life easier. Now I won't have to worry about a bunch of ponies hunting me down as soon as I step out of the hospital because of some magazine or newspaper. Why didn't I get a normal face when I got transported to another world? And, why is it that I can't feel my heart inside me? Right! I am certain now that my heart isn't in my chest. I asked to play with the stethoscope from a doctor once and placed it on my chest. There was no heartbeat there. But I can sense that it is alive and beating. I'm not sure what happened to me, but my heart isn't working inside me anymore.

As far as discoveries go, the most relevant thing about the world is that I think we have a major figure out of the picture in the current political scenario of Equestria. I'm not sure what happened here. But someone pulled the perfect disappearing act after the rise of a creature known as Nightmare Moon. Celestia's sister, Luna, is a prominent figure before, during, and after the rule of someone called Discord. But, she completely disappears after the rise of Nightmare Moon. The stories make it sound like Nightmare Moon did something to Luna. But that doesn't make sense. After all, with Nightmare Moon sealed away, Luna should have returned, unless she died. But there is no grave or memorial of the Moon Princess. I doubt Celestia would bury her sister in an unmarked grave.

So, unless Luna is Nightmare Moon, I think something else is going on here. Celestia doesn't seem the kind to try and pull a coup, but I don't know about her sister. There are some mentions to those who live shrouded in the night, so, she could be in one of those locations waiting for a chance to take over the kingdom? Or it might just be me thinking this world is a Game of Thrones kind of place where everyone is out to get the one true throne.

Honestly, at this point, my world, the world of Mors Heartigan is the isolation wing of a hospital. How can I understand anything if I can't step out of the castle or into the world? I'm a child. The only thing I can aspire for right now is to be the top student or be a literal wizard when it comes to magic. So, yeah, not much in terms of ambition for the moment. Maybe I can work on healing magic? Is that a thing? I mean, if I can do so, I could probably try to figure out how to solve all the diseases known in this world. Nah, that's too big of a goal for someone like me. Not to mention, I think I'm more inclined towards hurting others than anything else in terms of talents.

So, as far as goals go, I guess, I'll try to be the best friend Twilight can have. She's far too kind to me. So, instead of aiming for a crazy goal, maybe I'll stick to something more mundane. Being a good friend to her and those around me sounds like a good idea. I might not be able to change the world, but I can make a few ponies happy. And that is alright with me.

So, I guess this is the beginning of my memoirs as Mors Heartigan, the skull-faced pony that was sold to a demon and was rescued by a little filly who became his friend.

I hope this is the beginning of a long life.

Wait...what?

Why am I planning to stay? These plans, what the hell am I saying? I should be trying to figure out if this place is safe. Not, diving deeper as if I plan to stay. I can't be getting attached when I haven't even left my bed, right?

I, I think I should get some sleep.

The more I write, and the more I think about this place, the less attached I feel about who I was.

Was? I'm still me. Right? I'm still...

What is happening?